The heat in the "Path of Flame" was suffocating, growing more intense with every step. Sweat was pouring from me, soaking my leather mask and making it harder to breathe. I felt like I was walking into a dragon's mouth.

  "Hey, horse," I said in an exhausted voice, looking at 404's back, which seemed completely unaffected. "Don't you feel anything? Don't you even sweat?"

  "The heat does not affect my vital functions," 404 replied in his quiet voice.

  "You're not a horse, you're a damned desert goat!" I muttered to myself, and took a small sip of water.

  After what felt like an eternity, we finally reached the source of the heat. The corridor opened into a great forge, the size of a cathedral. In its center was a giant furnace, its maw open and spewing silent tongues of flame toward the dark ceiling. The air was saturated with the smell of hot metal and sulfur.

  But what caught my attention was one thing. On a massive, polished anvil in the heart of the room, rested a single sword. Its scabbard was pure white, and its hilt was a simple black. It was placed there like a work of art, an offering to a god of fire.

  Suddenly, the shadows near the furnace moved.

  From the shimmering heat, a massive creature emerged, shaped like a giant lizard standing on its hind legs. Its skin was as dark as cooled volcanic rock, with cracks from which a faint orange light glowed. Its eyes were two small embers that burned with an ancient intelligence.

  His eyes fixed on me first, and an expression of pure disgust crossed his face.

  "A Prometheus... you are one of them."

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  Then his eyes turned to my silent companion, and they widened slightly in surprise.

  "And a Panir. So, you are still alive."

  He laughed a dry laugh, the sound of it like grinding rocks. "You are all the same. Demon bastards. I will not allow your kind to desecrate this holy place!"

  I froze. This monster wasn't just an angry guard; he carried a personal, ancient hatred. After the initial shock, my survival instinct took over. I bowed slightly in a fawning gesture.

  "Great sir, we meant no disturbance..."

  He cut me off with a louder voice, "I swear by my name, Arda, that I will not let you leave this mountain alive!"

  In the next moment, Arda charged.

  The fight of rock and flame began. 404 moved to intercept him. The battle was a stalemate. 404's punches bounced off Arda's hard skin. And Arda's attacks, though powerful, were unable to scratch 404's body.

  In one moment of their clash, Arda yelled in fury as he looked at 404. "You stone-thing! Don't you think with your logical mind? How can you ally yourself with this parasitic insect?"

  404 completely ignored him, but the words pierced me. Arda began to use the environment to his advantage, kicking a cart full of burning coals and sending it flying toward us.

  I was watching the battle, slowly realizing the truth. The constant blows from Arda's heavy tail were beginning to affect 404's balance. He was losing the battle of endurance.

  A conflict raged in my mind. 'If 404 falls, I'll die right after him. If we kill this lizard, we may never know the way out.'

  I looked at 404 as he took another blow that sent him reeling back, then I looked at the white and black sword resting peacefully on the anvil.

  I made my decision.

  "To hell with everything!"

  I ran toward the anvil, the searing heat scorching my skin. Arda saw me and let out a different kind of roar of rage, a personal, burning fury.

  "The Ash Blade! That blade is not for your kind, you bastard!"

  I ignored his screams and grabbed the sword. It was heavy, and I felt a strange coldness emanating from its white scabbard. With all my strength, I turned and threw it toward 404.

  "Take it!"

  404 saw the sword flying through the air toward him. He reached out and caught it by its black hilt.

  In that instant, the pure white scabbard slid off and fell to the ground with a faint clang, revealing a blade that was completely black, so black it seemed to absorb all the light around it.

  The battle paused for a moment, and all eyes were fixed on the impossible weapon in the silent entity's hand.