The Rotten Knight's blade cleaved through stone like paper.
"We can't hurt it!" Eryan shouted, diving for cover behind a broken column as another swing shattered the floor where she had just been standing.
"He's not slowing down!" Rika's daggers struck with precision, but each blade bounced uselessly off the corroded, cursed armor. "Nothing's working!"
The Rotten Knight stood in the center of the ruined chamber like a ghost of vengeance—silent now, sword in hand, head tilted as if watching them squirm. The fires flickered, but even they seemed afraid to cast their light too close to him.
"I have no weakness," the knight hissed, stepping forward with a clank of heavy armor. "I am the end."
"Run?" Kajala offered, half-joking but completely serious.
"No way out," Regulus grunted, gripping his axe. "Not unless we make one."
Rei's eyes darted around the chamber. It had once been some kind of ancient hall—now crumbling and half-swallowed by time. In the center of the ceiling, a massive pillar stretched upward like the spine of the dungeon itself. Cracks snaked along its base, the only thing holding it up being the stones around it.
Rei's heart kicked into high gear. "That pillar."
"What?" Eryan shouted.
Rei pointed. "We can't kill him. But we can bury him. We bring that thing down on top of him."
Rika's eyes narrowed. "You want to crush him?"
"Do you have a better idea?!"
Kajala's ears twitched. "Actually… I love it."
They scattered, each of them moving in coordinated chaos. The Rotten Knight advanced toward Rei, sensing the heart of the plan. "You will not escape me," he rasped.
Rei stood his ground, sweat running down his brow. "Not planning to. I'm the distraction."
Regulus reached the base of the pillar, inspecting it with narrowed eyes. "It's weak," he called. "But not enough."
"I can help," Kajala said, already pulling out small explosive charges from his pack. "I've got two of these. Stick them in the cracks, hit hard, and pray."
Regulus grinned. "Praying's not my thing. But hitting? That I can do."
While they worked, Rika danced around the Rotten Knight's blind spots, her movements quick and distracting. Eryan whispered spells, sending brief bursts of wind and debris to keep the knight's focus bouncing.
Rei stood in the middle of it all, breathing heavily, sword in hand. The Rotten Knight fixed his gaze on him, that awful hollow stare burning into Rei's chest.
"I remember you," the knight whispered.
Rei's blood went cold. "What…?"
"You dream of the dark," the knight continued, stepping closer. "You hear my voice when you sleep. You know me."
"No," Rei whispered. "No, I don't."
"You will."
Suddenly, Kajala shouted, "Ready!"
"Regulus!" Rei yelled. "Now!"
With a mighty roar, Regulus brought his axe down on the pillar's base just as the explosives went off. The ground shook violently, a blast of dust and broken stone shooting into the air as the column began to tilt.
"Get clear!" Kajala screamed.
The Rotten Knight turned, sensing the trap—but it was too late.
The pillar fell with a deafening crash, the entire ceiling groaning as it collapsed downward in a cloud of smoke and rubble. The knight had just enough time to raise his sword before the massive stone column slammed into him, burying him beneath tons of ancient ruin.
Silence followed, heavy and absolute. The dust settled.
Rei coughed, trying to wave the air clear. "Did it…?"
"Yeah," Rika panted. "He's not getting up from that. Not fast, anyway."
"Then let's not be here when he does," Eryan added, already grabbing Rei's arm and pulling him back.
The chamber groaned again, deeper this time. Whatever magic had held it together was failing. Cracks spread across the walls. The floor tilted.
"The whole place is coming down!" Kajala yelled. "Run!"
They sprinted, ducking falling stones and leaping over splintering floors. The dungeon groaned like it was dying, like it too wanted to bury the Rotten Knight and everything near him.
As they reached the outer corridor, a section of the ceiling collapsed behind them. Light from the entrance ahead spilled in like salvation. One final leap—and they burst out of the dungeon's mouth just as the entire entrance caved in behind them.
They tumbled onto the grass outside, coughing, panting, alive.
Rei stared at the rubble, chest heaving. "We… we did it."
"No," Kajala said quietly. "We delayed it."
Eryan sat up, brushing dirt off her arms. "That wasn't a monster. That was something worse."
Rika nodded. "That thing knew us. Knew you, Rei."
Rei was silent for a long time. Then he whispered, "He said I dreamed of him. That I knew him."
Regulus stood at the edge of the collapsed ruin, gripping his axe. "Then we need to find out what that thing is… before it digs its way out."
They stared at the rubble in silence.
And somewhere far below, under layers of ancient stone, a single armored hand twitched beneath the broken pillar.
The Rotten Knight was down—but he was not dead.
He couldn't die.