Zero to Peak: Ascension Online

Ivan and his colleagues saw the world fade to black. The unsettling sounds of chaos gradually subsided into a profound calm. The heavy, hot air that circulated around them became cool and tranquil. They perceived a serene, calm return to the world around them. One by one, the adventurers slowly lifted open their eyelids. To their surprise, they had manifested back in the grand dining hall of the Vate Realm's lords.

The adventurers wanted to make a comment, but they remembered whose residence they were in, and they wisely kept their words to themselves.

"Welcome back, adventurers. My lords and I are relieved that you all returned unscathed."

The eerie, raspy voice startled the adventurers, causing them to almost flee the spot.

Wanyama quickly recollected himself. He said to the knight who, once again, had appeared silently behind Ivan, "We owe our survival to your lords."

"They are deeply sorry that you were abducted right under their noses. They promise plentiful rewards as compensation for the discomfort." The knight's tone then became stern. "I must warn you, adventurers, there appears to be an element of dark energy clinging to this team. It may be a beckon item, but be aware: it was responsible for the appearance of that cowardly, foul devil. When there is a devil's beckon, the problems don't end with one. Countless more problems will arise until the beacon is destroyed."

The knight and the adventurers briefly chatted about the perilous challenges that lay ahead on the subsequent levels they were about to clear. After the discussion, the adventurers were transported to the summit of the stairwell that led to Level Four.

Troy_to_Me audibly cleared her throat, drawing the attention of her colleagues. She glanced at everyone and said, "I was thinking about what happened in the hall, the abyss, and what the knight said to us. I've come to the conclusion that there is a devil's accomplice among us."

"You think so?" Onelight was quick to ask, her voice apprehensive.

Troy_to_Me replied with a simple, firm nod.

Onelight's gaze quickly scanned her colleagues. "Is it Am_I_Me?"

"Hey!" Am_I_Me protested in shock. She apprehensively looked around, trying to garner support against her accuser.

The other adventurers were quick to refute Onelight's accusation.

"Nah, it can't be her. She... she doesn't have what it takes," Troy_to_Me asserted.

"She is not. No devil would take her seriously," Ivan said, speaking almost simultaneously with Troy_to_Me.

Wanyama, BlueBlack, SheCyclones, and Sarah_Ze_Beauty were all of the same opinion as Troy_to_Me.

Alita_72 was not having it with her colleagues' sugar-coated words about Am_I_Me. She bluntly stated, "Why would any devil want to collaborate with a coward?"

Her words were sharp, and they stung Am_I_Me bitterly. She glared at Alita_72. She knew that she couldn't retaliate because the archer spoke the painful truth. She was, undeniably, the most cowardly member of the crew.

"Then who is the devil collaborator among us?" Onelight asked, tightening her grip on her newly acquired staff. Before the adventurers left the Vate Realm's lords' residence, Onelight was rewarded with a boon. Her intelligence stat increased by 0.5 points, accumulating to 11 points. She inherently gained the ability to cast an AOE effect healing sphere that heals targets she selects within the sphere. She could maintain the sphere for ten minutes and use it again after a cooldown period of seven minutes.

Ivan turned his gaze to Wanyama. "I have a strong hunch that Wanyama is the devil collaborator."

"Dude, what the heck!" Wanyama was genuinely shocked. "Why would you think that?"

Ivan gestured at Wanyama, who was still in his runic giant form. "I mean, look at you. You look like a watered-down fire devil."

"Bullshit! My current form is a runic giant. If I were a fire devil, I would have long since dealt with that grey devil!" Wanyama defended himself, his voice booming.

"If I were to say, every single action you have displayed right from the moment of our arrival until this moment heavily suggests that you are the devil collaborator," Wanyama fired back, his own counter-accusation sharp.

The other adventurers saw reason in the team leader's accusation, and they voiced their agreement with his words. Ivan was momentarily frightened. He understood what it meant to be mobbed like a witch if his teammates were convinced that he was the devil collaborator.

Ivan's expression remained impassive despite the accusations. "Now, calm down, everyone. Think about it. My abilities are not based in mysticism; they are physical. It doesn't make sense that I'm the devil collaborator."

"More reason it makes sense that you are the devil collaborator! You may have collaborated with the devil in order to boost your powers so that you would always be at an advantage in the raid. Heck, apart from Onelight, who had a legitimate reason to cry, you were the only one who overtly reacted over Baka's death," Wanyama retorted, pressing his case.

Onelight had cried during Baka's death because she blamed herself for her healing powers not being strong enough to rescue a colleague from the hands of death.

"Stop saying rubbish! I would have reacted the way I did for anyone on this team. I don't know about you lot, but I have a lot of humanity in me. Unlike you, Wanyama, you appeared stoic and calculating when he died. You acted as if you cared when you performed CPR on him!" Ivan retorted, his voice tinged with anger.

Wanyama continued, a smirk forming, "I think I get the picture. We are only three guys on this team, and the others are beautiful ladies."

Alita_72 blushed in embarrassment, guessing the direction Wanyama was heading. She muttered, "Please don't say what I think you want to say."

"You want to remove all the male competition so that you can make moves on the ladies. You want to smash them, don't you?" Wanyama said, pressing the point further.

The adventurers erupted in cringe at Wanyama's words.

"Dude, you are going too far."

"I don't think Black Riot 79 would act so dishonourably."

"This is no longer an act trying to identify the devil collaborator. I think these guys have an ongoing beef we don't know about."

Ivan shook his head, kicking himself inwardly for starting such an unintelligent accusation. "I'm sorry for what I said, guys. I was just worried and frustrated. Everything that has happened is messing with my head. I just wanted us to be safe."

He approached Wanyama with an extended hand for a handshake. Wanyama reverted to his normal avatar form; his special ability's usage period was over.

"Let's put what transpired now behind us and move ahead. I'm sorry for what I said," Ivan sought peace with Wanyama.

Wanyama firmly shook Ivan's hand. "I'm also sorry for what I said."

Wanyama took the lead, with Ivan following closely behind.

"Let's go," Wanyama urged the other adventurers.

The adventurers entered Level Four of the Vate Prison Realm.