** CHAPTER 20: A BREHA IN STRENGTH - THE DAY OF DELLG **
The underground dawn brought a pale light of light that could barely touch the surface of the ** underground island **. After the cruel torture of ** grayrock **, the atmosphere became heavier, as if the world around were absorbing the pain and the screams that had filled the night before. The stone creature, despite its incredible body, now seemed fractured, a monument alive to physical and psychological pain that this tournament inflicted to competitors.
This was a day without challenges. A day off, at least in the illusion of Henrique Nakamura. But there was no true rest. No one could relax because anxiety was unshakable like an underground river. This brief moment without deadly competition only expanded the blows of distrust, cracks in alliances, and the weight of their own survival.
---
### ** Defeated Cabana - Ancestral Light **
The cabin seemed smaller every day, as if the challenges and losses stole not only strength, but even the space in which they lived. The defeat in the challenge of "meat" had left deep psychological marks in the group. More than ever, ** Hardy Nakamura ** stressed to maintain cohesion among their allies, but clearly the group was on the brink of collapse.
** Grayrock **, sitting in silence near the corner, hardly moved. His cracks told stories of an infernal night he didn't want to talk about. He was still alive, but the price had been huge.
** Irene Dellis **, with heavy eyes, prepared what he could to try to take care of Grayrock, knowing that the treatment options were scarce.
- * "Gray, do you take it?" * She asked in a low voice.
** Grayrock ** answered, his voice slowly and full of lamentation:
- *"Stone ... does not fall. But stone feels cracks ... inside." *
** Drake **, still resentful of the torture that had survived days earlier, sat near Grayrock with a serious expression.
- *"They want to dismantle us, Gray. But we will rebuild. Remember that." *
** Hardy **, trying to gather some moral strength, approached everyone.
- *"We have lost a lot, but we are still here. Each of us is necessary. Lucidity, strength, magic… that's only what keeps us standing. Okay if they don't seem full pieces now, but we can still rise to the next challenge." *
Hardy's speech brought a brief silence of reflection to the group. But the psychological impact of the tournament never allowed confidence to last long.
---
### ** Winners Mansion - Chaos Hunters **
Across the island, the ** hunters of chaos ** celebrated another victory, or at least that appeared. The mansion was filled by its dominant presence, but the winners were beginning to feel the cracks of unlinked distrust in their own covenant.
** Calley **, with arrogance in his tone, commanded the space as if it were an empire of his.
- *"Do you see? Every decision we make puts us one step ahead of these weak. They will never be able to reach us as we keep control. It is up to us to crush the little hope they have." * *
** Glenda **, in a corner, watched Calley speak to his calculated and silent posture.
- *"Of course, the control is yours, Calley. But is it?" * *
Meanwhile, ** Leerstrom **, with his insidious smile, was around the main table where remains of the last banquet.
- *"You talk too much about control ... but forget that this game is made of chaos, and chaos is unpredictable. Our control today can be our imbalance tomorrow."
** TowerFall **, always the most direct, interrupted:
- *"No matter who controls. Since I win, I can walk on the carcass of any of you. Even you, my 'allies'." *
Even in the midst of the celebration, it was evident that this group, built on pride and selfishness, was a time bomb waiting to explode.
---
### ** Interactions between groups **
The underground island occasionally allowed the two groups to cross during these days off. But these interactions always came with suspicious looks, harsh dialogues or veiled manipulation attempts.
#### ** Hardy and Calley **
The leaders of the two groups once again crossed ways, this time near the broken bridge where the arrows of fire had formed another scenario of despair.
** Hardy **, serious, but controlled, was the first to say:
- *"How many lives will be needed to quench your idea of control, Calley? Do you think your victories make you untouchable?" *
** Calley **, with a ferrous smile, answered without hesitation:
- *"Each step I give myself strengthens myself. I don't care about morality or soul, Hardy. All that matters here is to survive. If you want to stop losing, maybe it's time to abandon your stubbornness to being 'just'." * *
#### ** Irene and Glenda **
Near one of the island's clearing, Irene was accidentally with glenda. Almost as opposed, they exchanged words with a certain tension.
** Irene **, in a soft and dark voice, asked:
- *"How much more will you need to suffer so that you realize that there is no victory without real sacrifices between you too?" *
** Glenda **, with its usual coldness, replied:
- *"We know that, honey. But the difference is that we choose where, when and who to sacrifice. You only wait to be crushed at once."
---
### ** Reflections in the afternoon **
Each competitor used the rest of the day off in his own way. Some sought forces in silence, others reevaluated strategies or conspiracies. But there, under the pale and constant light of the island, it was impossible to escape the oppressive stillness.
** grayrock **, sitting alone, murmured softly to himself:
- *"Stone Hold on. Stone gets up ..." *
In a corner of the mansion, ** Glenda ** sharpened his words and blades. Meanwhile, ** Drake **, breathing with difficulty due to the pain that still endured to torture, struggled not to give in to the growing despair.
---
### ** The arrival of Henrique **
When the underground sun began to fall and the shadows lengthened over the island, ** Henrique Nakamura ** finally returned, his imposing figure projected against oscillating light. His voice cut silence as a blade that everyone already knew well.
- *"Well, I hope everyone has taken advantage of their truce. They know that these clearances are rare, so they value them while they can. Tomorrow, the next challenge will call them again. He will be ... difficult even for the standards of this tournament.
He disappeared as mysteriously as he appeared, but his words continued to echo in competitors' thoughts. Each one knew that the "peace" they experienced today was as fragile as a silk thread and that tomorrow a new hell was waiting for them.
---
### ** The climax of the day **
At the end of the night, the competitors returned to their spaces with a heavy heart. For ancestral light, it was another chance to lick your wounds and try to survive the next challenge. For hunters of chaos, it was an opportunity to consolidate their domain - or to start their conspiracies against their own allies.
The island needed nothing to remind them: the real challenge was the insanity that came with silence.
** End of Chapter 20 **
*(Next: the sixth deadly challenge - corridor of distant mirrors)*
---
** NOTE: ***The day off was filled with increasing tension, fragile alliances, and murmurs of betrayal that fermented slowly. The next challenge will be the final test of mind and character - or its instability.*