"...And that's the gist of how I lost my memories."
Grey finished recounting his tale to Tyr, a tall, robust man whose group he had been lucky enough to come across. Tyr stared at Grey intently, at a loss for words. Grey could see his reflection through the man's clear brown eyes, Tyr could not say the same. Grey's eyes had lost their transparency long ago, they were murky and bleak, not daring to reveal any intent. After some time, Tyr finally found a response to Grey's immaculate tale.
"Ain't that a hell of an experience… T'sa bit hard to believe."
Tyr laughed, choosing a somewhat dry, basic response. Grey was met with disappointment, but he didn't let it show on his face, instead letting a faint smile creep up his face. The man who sat before him was an Ascendant, though it was only natural he would find one in the spire where he currently resided, he still found himself amazed at the thought of it. Not only was Tyr an Ascendant, but the six other members of his group were, not to mention Grey became one a while back as well.
"Isn't it? Well, it wasn't the most pleasant experience but certainly one I learned from!"
Six. Including Tyr, his group consisted of seven powerful warriors, all of which were skilled and experienced. If he were to face even one of them head-on he would wind up dead in less than ten seconds. So instead he would attempt to exploit their kindness.
'How treacherous!'
Grey chuckled inwardly, he didn't imagine that his first interaction with a human in ages would begin by figuring out how to use them– at least not immediately . However, if he decided against it, it would not be likely he would survive the next ordeal the spire throws at him.
"Ah… So please I beg of you, have some hospitality and take in a weak and frail child such as I."
"There's no need to be so formal."
Tyr grinned, slyly dodging the request, he wasn't in any rush to make a final decision. Dissatisfied, Grey averted his attention from Tyr and instead took a peek at his allies. A few were conversing behind him, leaning on the ambient black sludge as it pulsed with life. A few others had their eyes on them as they eavesdropped on Grey and Tyr's conversation.
'Well, aren't they just the virtuous bunch.'
"Don, get over here."
Tyr called out to one of the members, and in response to his request, a large dark-skinned man approached them. Don stood by Tyr's side idly, as if awaiting some sort of order. By Grey's measure the man was a giant, roughly seven feet tall.
"Right, so this whole time I've been meaning to ask…"
Tyr hid his surprise for the interruption. He expected the boy to stay quiet until he finished talking to Don, however clearly the boy– Grey, wanted to know something important if he read the room and still decided to speak. He raised an eyebrow, but before he could respond, Don spoke for him.
"Speak with caution, boy."
"...Right, well what rank are you guys?"
Indeed the rankings in the Infinite Spire were a complex thing. There were ten of them, each holding their own significance and boasting a reward for reaching such a level. They all demanded their own level of bravery to reach, as ranking up was usually induced by killing Spire beasts or other Ascendants. The deadly guardians that acted as wardens protecting the gate to the next layer, were also a means to rank up. The Spire rewarded an Ascendant for their bravery with a variety of mutations and perks, of which Grey knew a few.
'After all, I didn't spend a year in this hell without making any progress.'
Grey had memorized the names of each ranking and what significance they held, in times where it seemed he would lose sanity they were an object used to retain it, or to help him sleep. Many many times he would recount them, in hopes of achieving great power one day, and as a reminder for his goal. Even now, in the midst of a conversation, they were used to hold together his logical thinking, reciting themselves quietly in the back of his mind.
'Vestige, Dissonant, Wraith, Shard… Expert, Master, Grandmaster, Apex, Champion… Tyrant.'
A quaint line that rang like a bell in his mind. Enough of that though, both Tyr and Don paled when Grey asked his question, so it was rather safe to say that they were lower ranked.
'If I had to guess… ten or eight?'
"Seven, most of our group is rank seven. The only exception being Ariette."
Tyr pointed to a woman leaning on a wall who, despite being in Tyr's group, seemed to be younger than the rest– probably closer to Grey's own age. She had dark brown hair and green eyes, she harbored a menacing look towards Grey– no more accurately towards anyone who was unlucky enough to even glance at her. Even if he wasn't directly looking at her, pressure emanated from her very presence, giving away the fact she was a visionary. Surprised that she would so openly reveal something so important, Grey muttered under his breath.
"Must be insane."
"I heard that."
The voice came from none other than Ariette herself, her eyes now boring holes into Grey. She scowled at him, expressing her discontent without regard for the menacing look she was giving. By all accounts, hearing him whisper under his breath from her distance should not have been possible for a normal human. Therefore she had proven Grey's prediction and further confirmed that she was a Visionary.
'Oh man, I'm getting nowhere like this. It's time for the bargaining chip.'
"There's no merit in keeping our conversation going this way."
Tyr sighed, nodding his head. At this rate, with Grey showing no signs of being anything other than a typical child who had ended up in the Spire, he would not be able to take him with them even if he wanted to. All he would be is a hindrance and ultimately, would cause the death of their group. But what Tyr found most important in this moment, was what Grey would follow his statement up with. The next words he would speak revealed promise, or at least they would have to be interesting. Otherwise taking Grey through this layer was out of the question. Then Tyr focused his attention back on Grey as he began to speak.
"So I'll cut the act. First and foremost, you will without any doubt, die without me."
"Why's that?"
"Pipe down for a sec."
Grey silenced him. Tyr's interjection was not needed, no longer was this a two-sided interrogation where neither side would yield, but rather a one-sided negotiation in which Grey would lead the conversation. He was confident that they would accept him after he revealed what he knew, so he did.
"The Nati in this biome are freakishly strong. I doubt even your strongest would be able to go toe-toe with the average beast in this layer. Which brings me to my second reason, I have all the information you can get on these bastards. Oh and finally, they are immortal."
"What… to hell with it, we're getting out of this layer!"
"Ah well, you can't go back. The only way to escape this place is by defeating the Warden."
Grey grinned, he told them all he knew about this layer, after all it was his best bet in making it out alive. Tyr glared at Grey, his eyes full of intention.
"Even if you revealed all of that to us, you would only be a hindrance physically. Why should we take you with us?"
"Ah well that's simple, as mentioned before not only do I know everything about these immortal creatures, I am also the only one who can kill them."