"Haah..." Finn breathed out, watching as the arrival of the light brought the room back to a calm.
As he looked back, he exchanged a glance with Charlotte, who kept her shining blade raised, having the same look of relief in her eyes.
"Pyuuuh!—"
"Shit! Magnus! C'mon, mate...!"
The sound of a gargled yell and the panicked voice of the knight brought both Finn and the spellblade looking around the newly-lit area.
"Magnus? Jasper?!" Finn called out as he spun around, finding where the others were.
Near the left wall of the chain-riddled caver, he found them both.
The sight of the cannoneer laid out on his back and Jasper right beside him in a panic brought him to sprint over. He came to an abrupt stop when finally seeing what state his companion was in.
Magnus couldn't even speak, as his mouth oozed blood, seeming to have been deprived of his tongue amidst the chaos. Worse, the man's body was riddled in lacerations, with his stomach gored as if pierced by a bull.
"Shit...What happened?!" Finn asked, kneeling down.
"I don't know, mate! I was right beside him in the dark—I couldn't even see what did this..." Jasper answered.
The knight's armor was covered in scratches and stained with blood, though no clear wounds were seen.
Charlotte covered her mouth in dismay at the state the cannoneer was left in, "Magnus!..."
"It's alright—I still have some ambrosia," Finn said, attempting to calm the situation as he brought the bloodied bottle to the man's lips.
Despite Magnus' condition, he remained calm, tilting his head back while being helped to drink the golden liquid.
"C'mon, mate, swallow," Jasper pleaded, patting the man's back.
It took a prolonged effort for the wounded cannoneer to force the liquid down before coughing up.
"Pyeuh!—" Magnus expelled.
The injuries that riddled the blonde-haired man's body closed up, as the blood peeled away. Like threads being sewn together, the gaping hole in Magnus' stomach was restored.
"Ahh—" Magnus kept his mouth open as his tongue was reborn from a stub, spitting out the remnants of blood in his mouth.
"Are you all good, mate?" Jasper asked.
While Finn popped the cork back into the bottle and tucked it under his coat, he watched the one recovered from death's door adjust himself.
Magnus took a moment to come to as he smacked his lips and felt his own tongue, "Ah...I'm back in one piece. The miracle of ambrosia is terrifying."
A vein pressed against his neck as he bent his knees, lifting the lid as if deadlifting a steel beam. It finally opened up with an old croak, releasing the dormant dust that laid within it.
"Haah..." Finn breathed out, letting go as he brushed his gloves off.
All eyes were on the contents of the chest, though not just one treasure was found within it–multiple sat in its haul. A vial of bright, cerulean liquid; a broadsword of a sable hilt and a blade engraved with magical seals, and a bundle of coins.
"What do you reckon this stuff is?" Jasper asked, holding the bottle of glowing liquid up, shaking it a bit.
Magnus grabbed the bottle right out of the knight's hands as if taking a toy from a child, "No idea, so don't play with it."
In regards to the sword that somehow remained untouched by dust within the stygian chest, Finn handed it to the young woman who was intensely looking at it.
"I think this is best in your hands," Finn said.
Charlotte accepted it into her hands, quiet for a moment before looking over at Jasper, "Are you sure?--I can't just–"
"All yours, mate," Jasper said, waving his hand as if declining any stake in the weapon. "Look at that thing, it's practically oozing with magic."
"If you say so, thanks," Charlotte said, graciously taking ownership of the fine blade.
With the treasures of the cavern claimed, they were left silent with what the next move was, seeing as the room appeared to be a dead-end.
Finn moved to the front of the chamber, looking towards the walls of chiseled stone as a clean gap laid right in the middle. As he pressed his hands against each side, he peeked through the narrow opening–
Light; he saw light. An unmistakable gimmer of radiance that laid beneath the tucked-away depths of the cave.
"Finn?" Charlotte called out.
"Did you find something?" Magnus asked.
For a moment, the young man remained quiet as he pushed his hands against the walls, feeling a slight budge and a grating sound as if stone was grinding against itself.
"Give me a hand over here," Finn requested, pressing his shoulder against the left side of the wall.
It didn't take much for the others to quick up to what was discovered, bringing Charlotte to lend her shoulder to the left side, and Jasper alongside Magnus to push on the right. The combined effort, requiring all of their strength in unison, managed to push the walls forth.
As the thick, carved walls parted into impractical doors, the light of day dipped into the chamber, bringing forth a relieving warmth.
"We're out–we made it out of the other side," Charlotte said in near disbelief.
"I started to doubt we'd make it out at all," Magnus admitted.
Finn walked out as the heavy entrance was opened all the way, finding himself leaving out of the mountain's base and into a scenery that stole the breath from his lungs.
What was mistaken as sunlight was the glow of golden leaves, acting as a sky above as colossal trees stretched high and loomed.