Apotheosis

"What is going on here?"

Zen muttered in curiosity as he pressed a hand against the rough wall.

Despite its roughness, his hand could press and make a slight indentation on it. It wasn't rock but more of fleshy material, almost like the internal cavity of an animal.

"We don't really know. According to rumors, the 19 passageways within the Grand Sky Temple are, in fact, living creatures, and we are walking in their bellies," an Ear Mouse answered.

The Other Shore was filled with infinite mysteries, some stranger than the last. There was no way to investigate, much less prove, all of them.

The party continued forward and every thousand feet, the Ear Mice and Dorothy would have to absorb soul pills in order to replenish their soul force.

Blood red luster radiated from the walls, becoming brighter as they ventured deeper into the passageway. There were times when sections of the path were illuminated entirely by the red light but there were also times when it simply stretched on in darkness.

Despite having Zen lead the way, the Ear Mice and Dorothy still felt the pressure and were definitely on high alert.

"ARGH!"

Sounds of screaming could be heard up front, catching them by surprise.

"What was that?!"

"That must be the creatures that entered the passageway first!"

"What did they encounter for them to scream like that?"

Numerous creatures from various races had also entered the temple that day.

Some knew of the slim chances the 19th passageway offered in terms of survival but there were others that had no idea and chose it without knowing the possible horrors that awaited them.

"I'll go look," Zen told them determinedly.

He darted forward the passageway, leaving the party behind.

It was after two thousand feet when he came upon a strange sight: faces, all of them with their eyes closed, lined both sides of the path.

The faces had variety and belonged to all kinds of races. Zen could identify a few human ones among them. What was unsettling about these faces though, was the fact that all of them sported abnormally painful expressions.

"The scream didn't come from these faces," Zen muttered to himself.

He continued to take a few more steps forward and entered the corner where he saw eight Souls of Light being pulled into the walls by random hands coming out of the walls.

There were still a few faces in this area and some of them had their eye

"Mind both sides of the path!"

She heard Zen answer from beyond.

"What? Why? What's wrong with the walls?"

"Wait! Look, some masks are flying along the walls!"

"These are faces! Look, I can even see some of our race! Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!"

The Ear Mice began to panic, quite scared of what was happening.

The reason they dared venture into the Grand Sky Temple was that they held a lot of information, more so than the other races. Moreover, they had Zen to protect them.

However, their current situation proved to be quite precarious.

As the faces reached their area, white, three-fingered hands began to shoot out of the walls and charged at them!

An unfortunate Ear Mouse that had been standing close to the wall was the first casualty. It was suddenly grabbed by a hand and dragged into the wall before it could even scream.

"Stay away from the walls!"

"Don't allow yourself to get caught!"

"Soul Protection Shield!" one of the Ear Mice cried out, summoning a shield from its claw.

There was a flash of light as a small, round shield surrounded the Ear Mice and Dorothy, protecting them from harm.

The Soul Protection Shield was a powerful soul weapon and was only a bit weaker than Dorothy's Necklace of Mystic Soul.

Relieved due to the fact that there was now a shield to protect them, the Ear Mice and Dorothy began to relax. Surely the hands wouldn't be able to reach them now. Unfortunately, they were very wrong. Numerous, ghastly, white hands scratched at the shield and one managed to break through. It grabbed hold of Dorothy and began to drag her towards the wall.