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once
again hit the ground of the steep cave, she began to roll. Tumbling
through the rocky outcroppings of earth, Ruby slammed against
jagged edges and hard flat surfaces. Through the terror and agony,
she thought she heard the breaking of bones, and she could feel
some of the rocks penetrate, slash, and tear open her skin. Before
she blacked out from the terrible pain, an idle thought ran through
her head about what had happened to the purple imp that had
previously rested on her shoulder.
    Her eyes opened to see a trail of poison
leaking far away from her mouth, stretching out into the dimly lit
cave. The substance ended in a large puddle that had grown
substantially since she was knocked out from the fall. Every inch
of her body ached in pain, but she knew that she must have broken
her ribs on the way down. Every wheezing breath ended with a
terrible pressure and what felt like a knife jutting into her
chest. The princess knew nothing of how to bind such a wound, nor
did she feel she had the energy to even stand.
    Groaning, Ruby looked around, where she saw
the outlandish, glowing mushrooms of the subterranean tunnels first
hand. There was a comfort in seeing again. What she didn’t see,
however, was all of her imps, black or purple. They were simply
gone. She didn’t have the energy to try to connect with them and
see through their eyes, so the princess simply assumed that she was
once again alone.
    Ruby believed that she had passed out once
more, when she felt that time had slipped away from her. She was
awake for the moment though, and she needed to act. She would not
give up despite her horrendous pain. Her thoughts drifted to Leina.
Her sister still needed her help, and she would not let her down.
Bracing her arms against the cold, wet surface of the ebony rocks,
Ruby winced but ultimately managed to lift herself partially
upright, resting on her battered and tender knees.
    Looking beneath her, the princess realized
what had happened to all of the black imps that she had created.
During her tumble, they had all grouped together to form a softer
surface at the bottom, which she had landed on. They had broken her
fall and possibly saved her life. What happened to her disobedient
purple imp was still uncertain though, as she saw no sign of it
underneath her or anywhere nearby.
    Unable to ignore the pain from the pressure
on her knees, the princess next forced herself to stand. Leaning
against the nearby wall, she used it as leverage, and upon raising
herself up, her head went dizzy. She nearly fell again from the
effect, but the princess held steady. Ruby then took the time to
examine her wounds. Scrapes and bruises, both small and large,
littered her arms and legs, but none of them worried her like the
broken ribs. Leaking from each of her cuts was a trace sampling of
her blood, but mostly they were full of more of the poisonous
substance. Ruby had no idea whether that was a good sign or
not.
    The princess started to feel as though she
might pass out again from the pain in her chest or at the very
least throw up. The thought occurred to her that she might not even
be possible of retching anymore. Gently placing one hand just below
her ribs and using the other to brace herself against the rocky
wall, Ruby began to move. Whatever was down there had to be worth
it. When she had started down the steep tunnel, she hadn’t even
considered that she would have to make it back up after she’d found
what she was after. Now, it was all she thought about. She felt
doomed by her shortsighted avarice.
    Regardless, she had no choice but to move
forward through the cavern. Leaning her shoulder against the rocky
wall, she left a separate trail of her injuries along it - one that
was distinct from the poison spewed along the cave floor because of
this new one’s red tinge. Each step was a crucible, testing her
resolve and determining how much she could endure. Her chest
trembled in pain at every breath, and she knew it was only a