This was the day the expedition would challenge the dungeon boss; we've lost a number adventurers to the monsters, to injuries, or to illness from poison, but with the small army we have left we should be able to clear the last floor. After breakfast, everyone packed camp and got ready for the battle. My armor was practically destroyed, the chestplate was the only piece that was till usable; I knew that it would be impossible for me to tank but I still was well equip to fight. Securing my weapons in place, I went to talk with Rana.

"Are you ready?" I was concerned for my wife's well being.

"I'm fine." She smiled at me. "There are still plenty of armored men to handle the frontline, so you and I can focus on attacking together."

I looked down at my armor. "Yeah, I think I'm more suited for at damage dealing. That time at the plateau helped me see things in a different perspective." I thought about all I learned from Kawa and the Cheraneura, I was grateful but sad that I wasn't able to tell Rana about them.

Rana grabbed my hand. "I think Lanie is looking a little down, you should talk to her."

Her request confused me, but I could understand why Lanie was miserable. "I should, I'll be right back." Lanie was polishing her pistols, a deep frown of her face. "Still hurt?"

She looked at me as I sat down. "I am... I just didn't think I lose her like this. I figured we would turn around after a few floors; why did you turn around after getting the rock?"

"I guess I wanted to understand more about this world, see how far I've grown." My reasons were foolish, but I would never put my friend's lives in danger if I didn't think we could handle it.

"This world? What do you mean?"

I forgot she wasn't aware of my history. "Oh, I mean just my place in the world, in the existential sense." I tried to cover. "I understand... despite are final days together, I still consider her a friend."

Lanie smiled at me, blush on her cheeks. "Maybe we should still see each other... it's easy talking to you."

Grief is hard to talk about. I figured she must have a lot of emotions she needs to express. "Sure, if you're up to the task, I'm planning a voyage to the Paganish Realms, it'll be dangerous but you might find new materials to work with."

She giggled. "I'd love to."

I said goodbye and went back to getting ready. She's really nice, like Rana. They're both pretty and- I realized what I was thinking. Lanie's pretty, but I have to be a good husband to Rana. Just ignore it and it'll pass.

Everyone was in formation at the last gate, the leaders were Ocellus and Linda from the Desert Dragon incident, and they were at the front to address everyone.

"LISTEN UP!" Ocellus' voice boomed. "When we pass these doors, we will face the fists wave, as you all may know is the Croc Guardian that broke through the first floor weeks ago before slithering back down! After that, we will face the final boss, the Marsh Snapper! The boss doesn't attack outside a designated area that is perimetered by stone posts; because of this, we will take a rest after the Croc to heal! This will be a dangerous excursion, if you choose to leave now or during the battle, you have complete freedom to do so! It takes just as much courage to run away as to run towards!"

Linda got up to speak. "On my count, we will enter the final floor!" She warned everyone. "On the count of five. 1... 2... 3... 4... 5!" With her word, everyone marched orderly into the Boss Floor.

As we passed through the gate, the entire subjugation force was faced against the same monster that separated me from my friends. The Croc Guardian, a Godzilla sized monster that guarded the boss of the dungeon. The expedition had a strategic formation that has been used to combat this creature for years; the advantages gained from doing an annual routine. The warriors with armor focused the creature's attention while the mages and shooters used long range attack spells; meanwhile, the attackers like us would strike while the ranged units reload and rejuvenate. The battle took over an hour, but the Croc Guardian was defeated.

The porters dismantled and collected what remains could be obtained while the adventurers rested. Right now, my party was eating some rations and meat collected from the Croc Guardian; it's tough but pretty good. After lunch, everyone got back into formation to get ready for the dungeon boss. Heading to the perimeter of stone posts, I saw the posts were very tall, maybe half as tall as the Washington Monument, and the fence stretched across for a mile. Getting closure, Ocellus and Linda signaled for everyone to advance; when we did, the Marsh Snapper appeared.

If I had to describe it, the boss looked like a giant snapping turtle with glowing red eyes and a poisonous snake extending from the back like a tail. It was a little smaller than the croc, but it looked deadlier with the two heads, spiked shell, and faster reflexes. Fighting this was definitely more dangerous, and our party was hesitant to turn around, but we all agreed to help as much as we can.

We just entered the perimeter of the boss when I noticed something on a passing pillar. Curious, I got closure and found there was script carved into the stone post.

"Is there something wrong?" Ra'sh asked, everyone else waiting for me, their leader, to give the orders.

"There's writing on this." I cleared of some moss and discovered the script was Cheraneura language. The writing was old and faded, put to me it spelled out a message. "'Follow...Firestarters?" I was confused, then I noticed that starting from this post heading into the woods was a trail of firestarters. "Everyone, this might sound odd, but I think we should follow the bugs."

They looked at me, confused by my plan. "What do you mean?" Lanie asked, I signaled for her to come closure.

Showing her the script, she understood where I got the message. "I can't explain in full detail, but the script on this post is saying we should follow the firestarters." I pointed to the trail. "As this is a team, you all have a vote of what we should do. I think the best course of action is to follow the message."

Rana walked up to me. "I trust your judgement, you have my vote."

"Mine too." Lanie agreed.

"You've pulled us through tougher times." Ra'sh was along, Cavadier and Tuca agreeing.

"I shall place my faith in you." Jo-se stepped forward.

"You seem to have a nose for taking the best path, I'll go too." Fai agreed.

With everyone in agreement, we decided to follow the message left by an unknown Cheraneura, but we would be disserting the expedition. My instincts told me this was a good choice, but it still shamed me to abandon my comrades.