Round 492

Merrin's eyes widened as she watched the water level rise with terrifying speed. The icy liquid lapped at her boots now, seeping through the cracks in the ancient stone beneath their feet. "Varrika!" she hissed, grabbing the dwarf woman's arm. "We need to move—now! This whole section is going to collapse any second." Her gaze darted between the advancing Guardian and the rapidly flooding chamber floor. "Can you climb? We have to get higher before we're both swept away!"

Varrika gritted her teeth against the agony shooting up from her sprained ankle. The pain was blinding, but she refused to show weakness in front of Merrin. "I can manage," she grunted, though every movement sent fresh waves of nausea through her body. "But we need to find somewhere stable first. This whole damn chamber is coming down around our ears." She swung her crowbar in a wide arc, deflecting another of the Guardian's attacks with a grunt of effort. "Go! Find us a way out while I keep this thing busy!"

Merrin hesitated for a split second, torn between her instinct to help Varrika fight and the desperate need to find them a safe haven from the rising waters. The sound of rushing liquid grew louder, more insistent, as the flood accelerated. "Fine," she called back over her shoulder, already scanning the chamber walls for any possible escape routes. "But if you fall in, I'm leaving you there!" Her words came out harsher than intended, fueled by fear and desperation.