They sprinted toward the doorway without hesitation.
Rama led the charge, followed by Shoji and Axel. Their footsteps pounding across the collapsing stone.
Behind them, Larsen and the remaining Crimson Vale Hunters scrambled forward while trying their best dragging the wounded they could still carry.
One by one, the stone pillars behind them crashed to the ground in deafening bursts. Dust billowed and cracks split across the ceiling. Chunks of debris hammering down just meters from their heels.
The air grew thick with grit and the choking scent of falling ruin.
Then they crossed the threshold into shadow behind it.
Rama didn't stop running. The space beyond the door swallowed them in total darkness but his instincts pushed him forward. There was no other option.
"I see light ahead!" he shouted over his shoulder. "Keep going!"
"I see it too!" Shoji called back.
"Keep running!" Axel added while looking back.
But there was no reply from Larsen or the others behind.
