Everlasting Dream

Chapter 94: As long as we’re together

[Aster]

The boy's silver head moved up and down as the chest beneath him rose and fell in a steady rhythm, lungs expanding and contracting with each breath his naked mother made. Her heartbeat sounded like a gentle lullaby for the half-asleep Aster as he lay atop Nivalis, face buried in the softness of her large breasts that felt like heavens themselves against his skin.

A deep inhale filled his nose with the sweet scent of her body, the unique, feminine scent that only mothers have. It smelled so nice—like home, like safety—exactly what young boys like him need after a tough day. As he was about to fall back into a peaceful sleep, he felt his sister shift beside him, also lying on top of their mother. The cave they found was likely the smallest yet, walls pressing at them from each side, forcing everyone to huddle together.

"Hey," Silvia mumbled sleepily into Aster's long hair, pressing her cheek against the back of his head. He could feel her arms around himself, as well as her leg thrown over his butt.

— "Hey, sis..." Aster replied after a long silence, cogs in his brain still struggling to wake up properly. His voice was muffled by the softness of his mother's breasts, and a quiet yawn soon followed. "How long do you think we've slept?" he asked, his moist lips moving against Nivalis' pale skin.

"I dunno... but I feel much better than yesterday. My legs hurt a lot less now," Silvia shrugged her delicate shoulders, snuggling closer for warmth, almost getting on top of him. "So, I guess we slept for quite a while?"

A long sigh escaped Aster's mouth at her words because it meant they would need to get up soon. The darkness still engulfed them like before; no ray of light could be seen anywhere, making it impossible to tell whether or not morning had come yet. It was so dark that the boy had to check if his eyes were opened or closed because there was no difference between them being in either state.

"Are you thirsty?" she asked, her finger drawing random circles on the skin of his back, feeling every bump of his ribcage.

Aster hummed softly. "A bit, yeah..." he whispered, turning to face his sister with a small smile on his lips that she couldn't see, hugging her petite body. He was careful not to touch anything with his wounded palms as they still hurt like hell and had begun to smell funny from all the puss inside the wrappings, clearly in need of some attention and cleaning. But that could wait until their mother woke up...

"Give me a second. I'll make you some ice," Silvia said, going quiet for a moment to ignite the mana within herself. A few seconds later, goosebumps covered her skinny body as cold filled her chest. A tiny shard of ice soon appeared in her fingers, and she immediately pressed it against her little brother's lips; she could almost hear how it hissed against his warm flesh.

Taking it from her with his teeth, Aster sucked on the chilly shard, feeling how it slowly melted in his mouth to relieve his thirst. "Mmm... thank you," he mumbled, smacking his lips together. It didn't take long for him to finish it, making him feel much better.

"Can you melt mine, too? It's so cold..." Silvia asked shyly, pressing the shard she made for herself against Aster's mouth. "Pwease?" she added with her best pleading voice.

With a chuckle, he took it into his mouth and began sucking on the ice, swirling his hot tongue around its surface until it melted completely. Letting out a soft hum to let her know it was ready, Aster leaned forward and kissed his sister. Their lips pressed together as he pushed the water from his mouth into hers, hearing each tiny gulp as she swallowed it all down.

A soft groan came from beneath them, causing them to break the kiss; her taste still lingered on his tongue. "Good... morning, I guess?" Nivalis whispered to her children, rubbing their backs up and down. A cute yawn escaped her mouth before she asked, "How did you two sleep?"

"Good," they both mumbled in unison, wiggling their naked bodies higher up until they could reach their mother's face; they immediately showered Nivalis with delicate pecks on those soft cheeks of hers, eliciting a chuckle from the woman. "My bandages are starting to smell bad. Can we wash them somehow?" Aster asked, moving his lips against her skin.

"Ugh... yeah, I can smell that. We need to think of something," Nivalis said with another sniff at the air around them. "How's your neck? Let me see it," she whispered, touching the bandages on his delicate throat.

— "It hurts a lot less," Aster whispered in response as he focused on his mana, igniting just enough to create a tiny flame above his hand. Even though the light was incredibly weak, their eyes were too used to darkness for so long, making them all squint from the sudden pain.@@@@

Once Aster adjusted to the sudden brightness of the flame, his neck and palms suddenly became the last thing he could think about, his golden eyes going as wide as they possibly could. Both siblings stared at the ice barrier in shock, seeing how countless of those terrifying leech-centipede creatures wiggled around in a frenzy, trying to get away from the light he had just made—hundreds of them, an actual swarm. The sound of their bodies slithering against the other side of the barrier echoed throughout the little cave.

Noticing their heartbeats going crazy, Nivalis also looked up, only to let out a high-pitched shriek of horror when she saw what was happening there. "WHAT THE ACTUAL—" she screamed, the rain of curses coming right after as she pushed herself and her children away from the entrance until their naked bodies hit the deepest part of their little cave. Her hips barely fit between the cold rocks, sharp edges scraping against her soft skin.

She tried to push further back, but no more room was left in that cramped space. Her heartbeat, too, pounded loudly inside her chest as she hugged both Aster and Silvia close to herself, pressing their faces against her bosom. "There's so many... dear gods, help us..." Nivalis whispered, staring at the writhing mass on the other side of the ice.

Her hands shook from fear as she reached for her knife in her boot and clutched it with white knuckles. Her wide eyes were fixed on their dark-red elongated bodies, squirming against each other. She doubted it would do any good against that whole swarm of them, but it was still better than nothing. "Make it brighter, honey. Please," she whispered to her son urgently, turning his head toward the barrier.

While Silvia whimpered something against her breast and shook in terror, afraid even to look at what was happening there, Aster had no other choice but to face it. Nodding slowly with a heavy swallow of fear down his throat, he whispered, "D-don't worry... I-I'll keep them away." His childish voice trembled just like the rest of him. He wanted to puke just looking at those slimy creatures but somehow managed to keep it in.

Nivalis stared ahead, her blue eyes fixed on the darkness as she waited for that sound to come again. A few heartbeats passed in silence before a faint noise echoed off the walls once more—a faint drip of water somewhere up ahead, confirming Aster's words. "It could be an exit..." Nivalis whispered with hope in her tone, "...but we must still be careful. Prepare more mana if you can," she added, receiving nods from both children.

Once everyone was ready, they carefully crept forward; the light of Aster's fire made shadows dance across the rocky walls around them. 'Please, let it be a way out...' Aster silently wished as he neared the corner, glancing around it as quickly as he could before retreating behind the sharp edges.

— "There's nothing here," he whispered disappointedly, peering cautiously around it again, feeling his mother's hand on his shoulder. It was just another endless tunnel, nothing unusual about it... except for some strange glinting on the wall ahead. He was so nervous that he almost unleashed the fire in that direction, afraid that it was some kind of creature, but managed to hold back just in time.

"Huh? A stream?" Silvia asked softly as they approached it, gazing at the trickle of water flowing along the stone wall, vanishing between crevices in the rocks. She gently traced the wet path with her finger, feeling the cold liquid swirl around her knuckle.

"Yeah... whew, I almost fired a spell at it," Aster chuckled nervously, relieved that nothing dangerous was hiding here. Part of him expected to see some enormous abomination waiting for them around that corner, but it was just a tiny stream of water.

Looking over her shoulder to ensure nothing followed them, Nivalis whispered, "Let's take a quick break here. We've been walking for quite a while now, and it looks like a nice spot." She was also glad everything was quiet around here, though she couldn't shake her disappointment that there was still no way out. "And we need to clean Aster's wounds and wash the bandages... and maybe wash ourselves a little," she added with a tired sigh.

Making the fire smaller in his hand to save on mana, Aster nodded at her, sitting down on the cold ground with a groan. "You alright?" he whispered to Silvia, who sat beside him, still not letting go of his arm. Her face was paler than usual, those golden eyes staring fearfully into the dark depths of the tunnel where no light could reach.

"I just want to leave this place," the girl mumbled, pressing her cheek against her brother's shoulder. She watched as Nivalis kneeled before them and started pulling off the bandages on his right hand, revealing burned flesh underneath. The sight made Silvia grimace in disgust, and the smell was not much better. Turning her attention to his face, she asked softly, "Have you seen... that thing back there? How are you not afraid?" Her long eyelashes fluttered at him.

— "Well..." Aster responded with a sweet smile, ignoring the agonizing pain of his skin being peeled off along with those bandages. "If I can survive all those silent farts of yours at night... What's there to be afraid of?" he giggled softly.

Nivalis chuckled quietly as she worked on his wounds, her frown momentarily disappearing; the sound echoed through the tunnel.

Silvia gasped at Aster's words. "Oh, my gods! I did not!" She pinched his side hard, causing him to giggle even more. "Everyone knows that girls don't do such things," she mumbled in embarrassment, crossing her arms over her flat chest and pouting cutely at him.

He kept smiling at her, glad finally to see her in a slightly better mood. For a moment, he forgot about their horrible situation and all the pain, just enjoying the sight of his sister's angry face, adorable little cheeks puffed up like that. For a moment, he had no doubt they would survive this mess, just like they always do, as long as they were together.

"Breaching for Dummies" by Aelric Longtooth. Chapter 1: The Horrors of Upper Levels, Page 1.

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So, you've decided to try your luck down there, huh? Hoping to get rich by finding some forgotten treasure everyone whispers about? Or perhaps you're just an adventurer, drawn in by those absurd prices on the guild board for ore and body parts? Perhaps your village was raided and burnt down, and now you have nowhere to live except that weird uncle of yours who touches himself every time he sees you? Or maybe those debt collectors finally got tired of chasing a deadbeat like you and are finally sending the thugs with their big hammers?

Whatever the reason for your decision, find a different way to deal with all the mess in your life. Wank your uncle if you must. Beg those collectors to let you work off your debt. The Breach won't offer you anything but suffering. And believe me, I know what I'm talking about. Been there, done that, and more than once.

Still reading? Alright, I get it. Sometimes life is shit. I understand. But please consider this carefully. Your life will only get more shit once you go down into those depths. Unlike all those books where authors romanticize the underground as a place where gold and gems shower upon your head from the ceiling, it's nothing like that. It's nothing but stone, darkness, and death awaiting you at every step. You won't be that bastard from their stories who always finds some magical sword deep in a secret chamber. You will be that guy who dies in the first chapter to set up the scene for the main character.

If, instead of being scared by my warnings, you feel blood rushing through your veins and hear your heart pounding faster with excitement... then this book is for you. After all, I'm also guilty of being such a moron.

Nightmare worms, also known as Crawlers. They are your first problem the moment you step inside the Breach, as the upper levels are filled with them. Where I've been, that is.

Words can't describe how much I hate those little fuckers. Imagine something between a leech and a centipede with countless legs and a round mouth filled with rows of tiny teeth on the inside. Covered in slime, it has dark-red skin with holes all over its long body, each pulsating rhythmically. While not very big, seeing one is enough to give anyone nightmares for weeks, believe my word. They love to sneak up on their victims when they sleep and bite into an artery on the neck, armpits, or inner thighs, leaving nothing but bones behind when they are done with you. If especially hungry, they form swarms that can easily devour a grown man in mere minutes—a sight I wish to forget with all my heart.

Still want to go down there? Good. You will need as many torches or oil for lanterns as you can possibly carry. They are more sensitive to light than my old man after too many mugs of ale, making them more of a chore to deal with than any real threat...

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