Safari and the family stumbled into the third chamber. The air was thick, heavy with the stench of rust and decay.
CLANG. CLANK.
Chains littered the ground like discarded serpents - twisted and broken. Some links were massive, stained with the dried remains of countless victims. Others slithered unnaturally, twitching at their presence.
A suffocating darkness shrouded everything, making it impossible to see beyond a few feet. Only the dim, flickering glow from cracks in the walls offered any light.
And then-
"Those who enter this place... shall never leave unbound."
The voice was deep, guttural, and ancient. It crawled through their minds like nails on stone.
Before anyone could react -
WHIP!
A thick chain lashed from the shadows, wrapping around Safari's leg.
"Gah!" he grunted, yanked violently to the ground.
"Big bro!" Olive cried, her blaster already drawn.
But she didn't get the chance to fire.
The chains moved.
Like writhing serpents, they surged from the ground. One slithered around Ian's arms, pinning them behind his back. Zack stumbled, his feet bound. Jen barely managed to avoid the first coil, but it was relentless, twisting and snapping like a hungry beast.
Safari gritted his teeth, struggling. Every time he pulled, the chains tightened - digging into his flesh. They were alive.
And they were feeding.
"Ugh..." Ian's knees buckled, the chains draining the strength from his body. "I-I can't..."
Zack gasped, his light dimming. "They're... taking our energy..."
Jen tried desperately to kick free. " What do we do?!"
Safari's breaths came in ragged bursts. His arms were bound, his ribs throbbing. The chains twisted tighter, squeezing the life from him. His vision blurred.
But just before the darkness consumed him-
He heard it.
A whisper.
"Safari... please..."
His heart clenched.
That voice.
Angeleva.
His eyes shot open.
BOOM!
A shockwave of sap green energy exploded from Safari's body, sending the chains flying. Sparks danced around him as the shackles shattered like glass.
He stumbled to his feet, his breath ragged, but his eyes burned with unrelenting fury.
"Ian! Zack! Olive! Jen-get moving!"
The family, still weakened, saw the flames of determination in Safari's eyes. They couldn't fall here.
"Right!" Olive blasted apart the chains binding Ian. "We're not done yet!"
Zack's hands glowed as he gathered his healing energy, while Safari smacked the remaining chains, breaking everyone free.
The monstrous links twisted in frustration, but Safari's presence pushed them back.
"No more chains. No more holding back."
With a defiant roar, Safari swung his Devil Hammer into the ground. The force ruptured the floor, sending shockwaves through the abyss. The chains recoiled, screeching like wounded beasts.
"Let's move!" Safari barked.
And they did.
With one final sprint, the family dashed toward the chambers that loomed ahead. The chains clawed at their heels, but they didn't look back.
Safari didn't care how much pain he was in.
He didn't care how exhausted he felt.
Angeleva was waiting.
And he was going to get her back.
Meanwhile in the fifth chamber, the air was dense with the foul presence of dark magic.
At its center - a massive, glowing pentagon.
Angeleva hung suspended above it, bound in a twisted reverse crucifix. Her once radiant body was pale, her wings tattered and trembling. Every passing moment drained her further. Deep scratches marked her arms and legs, as if the demons had taken pleasure in her suffering.
And the demons - they watched.
A horde of monstrous creatures, their twisted forms half-shadow and half-flesh, circled the pentagon. Their laughter echoed, savoring her torment.
"She's close to breaking," one hissed.
"The ritual is almost complete," growled another. "The more exhausted she gets, the easier it'll be."
"Demon General Zozo will be pleased."
Angeleva's head hung low. Her once fierce gaze was dull, her breathing shallow. The infernal energy coursing through the pentagon sapped everything from her.
She couldn't move.
She couldn't fight.
She was powerless.
But even as her body failed her - something stirred deep within.
A voice.
Faint, but unmistakable.
Safari.
Her trembling lips parted.
"...Safari..."
A tear slid down her cheek.
She knew he was coming. She could feel it. But every moment she spent within the ritual weakened her further.
Her vision blurred.
The demons laughed louder.
The pentagon pulsed.
And for the first time in her life - she pleaded.
Even if it was only a whisper.
"Please... come for me..."
But tragically, though her call had reached him -
It would still take longer for Safari to come.
The fourth chamber greeted Safari and his family with an eerie stillness. Unlike the previous trials, there were no flames, chains, or monstrous roars. Instead, they stood in a vast, circular hall, its floor polished to a mirror-like shine.
The reflections beneath them twisted unnaturally - distorted and fractured.
A thick mist swirled along the ground, and the distant walls were lined with darkened, shattered mirrors. Yet, the center of the chamber held the most unsettling sight - a colossal, unbroken mirror.
Its smooth surface pulsed faintly, as though alive.
"Welcome... to the Trial of Reflections."
The voice came from nowhere, echoing in a warped, sinister tone.
Safari's grip on his hammer tightened. "Enough with your games. Where's the next gate?"
The voice chuckled. "To leave... you must conquer what lies within."
Before anyone could respond -
The mirror flickered.
And suddenly - their reflections stepped out.
Twisted doppelgängers emerged, their forms clad in dark, corrupted versions of their clothes. Glowing, soulless eyes locked onto the family. Each reflection radiated an ominous energy.
"W-What the hell?!" Ian gasped, stepping back.
Olive cursed under her breath. "They're... us?"
The reflections grinned, their jagged smiles stretching unnaturally. "We are your truths. Your failures. Your weaknesses."
Safari's reflection stepped forward, brandishing a shadowy version of the Devil Hammer. Its eyes gleamed with malice.
"You can't defeat us. Because we are you."
Safari growled. "We'll see about that."
With a fierce roar, he lunged at his reflection. Their hammers collided, sending a shockwave through the chamber. Sparks erupted.
But the reflection matched his every move. Blow for blow. Step for step.
"You fight for others, but what about yourself?" the reflection snarled. "Your body breaks, yet you keep pushing. How much longer before you fall?"
Safari gritted his teeth. "Shut up."
Ian's doppelgänger held a twisted camera, its lens crackling with dark energy. Every time it clicked, Ian flinched, feeling a surge of fear. Images of ruined planets flashed in his mind - scenes he couldn't forget.
"You couldn't save anyone," the reflection sneered. "You think capturing the pain of others absolves you?"
Ian clenched his fists. "No. I capture their stories because they deserve to be remembered!"
With renewed resolve, he lunged at the reflection, evading the next camera flash and delivering a swift punch.
The dark version of Olive smirked, her blaster corrupted into a jagged weapon. "You left the Celestic Police. Ran away. And for what? To play mechanic on a doomed ship?"
Olive fired relentlessly, but her reflection matched her every shot. "They'll abandon you the moment they no longer need you."
"I'm not afraid of being alone," Olive growled, adjusting her blaster. "Because I've found a family that won't leave me behind!"
With that, she unleashed an energy burst, striking the reflection directly.
The twisted versions of Zack and Jen moved like shadows, circling them. Reflection Zack's hands glowed with a sickly green energy, while Reflection Jen brandished corrupted crackers that oozed black mist.
"You're weak," Reflection Zack hissed. "You heal others, but who heals you?"
"You pretend to care," Reflection Jen added, her voice dripping with malice. "But what happens when they no longer need your food? Your support?"
Zack's hands trembled, but Jen grasped his arm firmly. "We're not weak. We stand together."
With a determined nod, Zack unleashed a pulse of golden light, dispersing the corrupted energy. Jen followed up, launching her purified crackers, which glowed golden reflecting there confidence. The reflections staggered, unable to withstand their unity.
Despite his exhaustion, Safari continued to trade blows with his reflection. Each strike sent shockwaves through the chamber, cracks forming along the mirror-like floor.
"You'll never save her," the reflection snarled. "You're too late."
Safari's breathing was ragged, but his eyes burned with defiance. "Maybe I'm late... but I'm not giving up."
"Devil Hammer - Incineration!"
With one final, devastating swing, Safari's hammer ignited in a fiery blaze. The reflection screamed as the impact shattered its form into fragments of shadow.
The colossal mirror behind it splintered.
The twisted reflections of the others vanished, their defeated cries echoing into silence.
The mist dissipated. The shattered mirrors turned to dust. And in the distance, the next gate rose - tall and foreboding.
Safari stumbled slightly, his strength fading. But Olive was there to catch him.
"You did it," she said, her voice steady.
He nodded, though the weight in his chest remained. "One more level."
Ian, Zack, and Jen joined them, their expressions hardened yet hopeful.
"Angeleva..." Safari whispered.
She was still waiting.
And nothing - not even his darkest reflections - would stop him.
Together, the family stepped through the gate, ready to face the final trial.