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Etho wasn't sure what had caused the ravager to spin around and face them. Maybe it was the sound of their quickening heartbeat, or the dripping from the icicles overhead onto the damp rocks, or perhaps just an unlucky coincidence. Whatever the case was, it had its eyes trained on them now. The beast glowered at them, not yet moving. It breathed heavily, puffs of fog rolling from its large mouth. Etho backed away slowly, still looking directly at the creature. They held up their hands to show it that they were unarmed, careful not to make any sudden movements. The ravager didn't move either, still staring and panting.
"Theeeere we go, buddy." They nodded slowly. Just as they were about to fully back out of the room, a patch of ice caused their foot to slip, and their body jerked as they tried to maintain balance. A voice rung out in their earpiece. Stumble!
The ravager reacted instantly. It rose to full height, growling and knocking aside a column of ice and rock in a deafening crash. Etho's eyes widened, and they began running. They clutched the ear that was closest to the ravager, which was echoing with a disorienting ringing. As if they needed any more difficulty balancing in the rough terrain. They dropped the hand down and squeezed through a narrow passageway, praying it wasn't a dead end. Their heart rate was rising steadily now. Any minute, and the vex would hear it and come after them.
Etho spun around. Damn it, where were they? Where was the exit? Etho wasn't sure. They took shaky, heaving breaths, trying to get a grasp of their surroundings. With cold hands, they pushed white hair out of their face.
"Fuck...," they mumbled. Etho crept through the dungeon, trying to find any part of it they recognized. Their earpiece went off again. Treasure Hunter... "Not the time," they hissed to the disembodied voice. Then, Etho fell silent, except for their breathing and their heartbeat. They could hear ice and snow shifting.
The vex were waking up.
They started running. They weren't sure if this was the correct direction or not, but it didn't really matter. They were dead either way. The vex were behind them; Etho could hear them, cackling and flittering wings creating a horrific cacophony. Finally, after what seemed like ages of running, hunger gnawing at their stomach, they spotted the exit. They tapped their breast pocket to ensure the artifact was still inside, then leapt through the door, panting.
Tango's voice crackled through his earpiece. "Nice run, man! Have fun?" There was laughter in his tone, like he had just been maniacally cackling as Etho risked their life to the beasts of his dungeon. Who was Etho kidding, that was exactly what Tango had been doing.
"Oh, absolutely." Etho dropped the artifact into the hole in the ground. "So much fun that I think I'm all funned out, actually." They laughed along with Tango. "I'm never doing that again..."