“Oraetor,
I am pleased to report that most of the northern cults have been purged or driven up the Frostwinds. With most of the Wildling tribes taking part of the Meltonian Settlement Plan, we suspect there will be precious few recruits and resources for the remaining cultists. Unfortunately that is where the good news ends. For although we partnered with an orcish tribe to hunt down High Chief Eskul and his demon-touched allies, progress on this front has been slow as they are escaping into the Mistveil…”
- Letter on desk of Oraetor Vitellus, Written by Viktor von Krantz, “Inquisitorial Report 227-SEL-6: Northern Frontier Activities”
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It did not. Sophia was pushing and pulling relentlessly at the doorway as Sophie kept her eye out for any of the dead that slipped past the sentinels. To her dismay, after one of the clockwork guardians had cut a swathe through the dead, it turned its attention to her.
The situation had played out almost exactly as they had imagined it. Leading the horde of undead towards the temple, the clockwork guardians awakened and moved their rusted joints into attack positions, revealing large spears and shields that the duo hadn’t noticed during their examination. After avoiding the initial blows, the tide of undead slammed into the three guardians in pursuit of the duo. This prompted the guardians to respond in kind and begin cutting down vast swathes of the undead. That in turn prompted the undead to attack the guardians, leaping and biting at exposed gears and wires. Jets of black ooze coated the undead and the ground, the guardians skewering multiple undead with every attack, bashing survivors into a pul with their oversized shields. All went well, that is, except for the doors that were shut tight.
“Fucking open!” Sophia snarled, ramming her shoulder against the brass doors.
“Anytime would be good, we’ve got problems!” Sophie snarkily quipped.
“You always have problems!” Her counterpart bit back.
Sophie kept her eye on the guardian approaching her, only to see it ready its spear. Shit!
She practically tumbled down the stairs to avoid the attack, the spear slamming into the temple steps and sending stone and debris flying. She hurriedly scrambled to her feet as the sound of metal on stone scraped towards her, the spear tip carving a line out of the steps as it tried to saw her in half. Dodging the blow, she found herself unable to avoid one of the attacking undead, the creature managing to grapple her and forcing both of them to the ground as they rolled down the steps.
Desperately holding back the monster’s claw and jaw, Sophie was saved when another of the undead nudged it slightly, shifting its center of balance. Never one to fight fair, she immediately seized the chance and pushed the claw sideways, making it embed itself into the street below her. With a hand now temporarily freed, she reached up and dug deep into its disgusting eye bulbs, ripping them out through sheer force alone as the creature reared back in agony.
Slipping out from its grasp, Sophie found herself looking back up the steps with horror as the clockwork guardian now set its sights on Sophia. It’s coming! Sophie screamed in her mind.
Her counterpart seemed to only flick a brief glance at the guardian before looking down at Sophie, a quirky grin on her face. Get your ass up here. Came the reply.
The guardian struck with a brilliant thrust, its gears creaking as the spear extended towards Sophia. But at the last moment, she had followed Sophie’s example and simply allowed herself to tumble down the steps despite the pain involved. With a terrific crash as metal struck metal, Sophie found herself staring in amazement at her counterpart. The guardian had struck so precisely that there was now an opening in the doorway, their way in had been made.
Stop gawking and move!
Sophie obeyed at once and hurried up the stairs, taking great care to maneuverer in the guardian’s blindspot until the last moment, using its own body to sneak her way back up to her compatriot. Sophia had already clambered back up and ducked just within the doorway, one tiny hand outstretched beckoning for Sophie to hurry up. The guardian launched one final attack when it sighted her, but Sophie was just fast enough that the spear tip reached just a hair short from the scruff of her neck. Having avoided the blow, she practically lunged into the doorway opening, landing with a heavy thump on her chest. Wincing from the blow, Sophie reluctantly pushed herself off the ground, wobbling slightly only to be steadied by her counterpart.
Around them was a hall that stretched upwards, the next floor almost two stories above them. Square pillars adorned the sides, some crumbling, others broken, and even some that still remained relatively pristine. It was here that they figured out their mistake, this was no temple. For in-between the pillars were dozens of forges, each likely linked by intricate piping to provide the necessary water and ventilation that master craftsmen might require. Though most of the pipes were now in varying states of disrepair, they all traced themselves back to a truly gargantuan circular pillar that stood at the far end of the building. The elevator. Must be.
Together, they performed another examination of the grand hall, searching around for any clues or potential hostiles. Finding none, they turned their ears to the battle outside, a heavy clattering of machinery indicating that one of the guardians had fallen. Knowing that their time was limited, they began examining the elevator shaft, knocking and tapping against it but finding no obvious way to gain entry. Clockwork mechanisms still ticked from somewhere, so clearly the forge facility hadn’t been completely abandoned, though they both felt a small sense of dread at that realisation.
It left Sophie with the unenviable knowledge that to access the elevator, they would have to go deeper into this facility. Although Sophie hadn’t exactly been enamoured with the discussions of magitech and engineering with the twins as Aryana had been. She had picked up enough to know that between magitech and dwarven constructions, the dwarves had plenty of failsafes due to the far more physical stress that the machinery operates under. If her theory was right, then much like the Chamber of Stalwart Justice in Arteria, there would be a separate stairwell that would coil up alongside the elevator.
The two of them could sense that whatever lay beneath their feet was shrouded in malice and darkness, the source of the miasma but also what allowed the main temple structure itself to remain relatively uncorrupted. In fact, now that Sophie actively thought about it, she was surprised at how light the air had become, how clear her mind had gotten without the battle fog distracting her. It felt refreshing, if not for the incessant whir of machinery hammering away at her ear drums.
Remaining alert, the two carefully scouted the room until they found stairs, taking great care to move one step at a time in the darkened stairway. They descended a spiral staircase that seemed to keep going, whatever torchlight long since gone, only the occasional fungal growth bursting in with a little light. To call the stairway dim would be an understatement, but the two could at least see their feet and the stairs immediately ahead of them. Rattled by the machinery, they kept themselves as close to the walls as possible, hoping that if anything should notice them they would have the first strike.
The thrumming of clockwork only grew louder and louder, interspersed by the pulsating effect, now more clearly heard. It’s like a hammer striking an anvil, a really large one. They both shuddered as the hammer blows kept landing, each pulse now sending physical vibrations that shook the whole structure. Rattled, they tried their best to ignore the blows, keeping their eyes alert. The two were more concerned about the lack of defenders present. For aside from the clockwork guardians, they were certain they had seen a mass of eyewalls, though they were in the upper floors, a part of Sophie had thought that they would be far more present. Unless…
The pulse scares them too, keeps them at bay. Sophia finished the thought for her.
Sophie nodded, their shared concerns blossoming into mild paranoia the deeper they descended. Here, machines creaked and groaned in their service to an inscrutable goal. Clockwork gears squeaked in agony as the passage of time had long since begun to rust with age. Aged clinks occasionally sounded as bits and pieces of machinery would break or sputter to a halt, only for another clang of the anvil to restart the offending pieces.
To their surprise, after descending for what felt like forever, light flickered around a corner and halted their advance at the final floor. Worried and primed for combat, the two tensed up as they rounded the corner, only to find a dimly lit hallway. Jet black stones now covered the walls, consuming the light as if it were but a sprinkling of nourishment. The aesthetic contrasted greatly with the brownish decrepit looking stonebrick floor tiles, a few of the glow shrooms even having snuck their way down here. But as they left the stairwell, it hit them at once.
An immense wave of dark energy pummelled them both to their knees. The unpleasantness felt far worse than when her body had shattered, for that was at least instantaneous. This however was a sensation akin to having every bone in her body being grinded to dust at once. The pain was so overwhelming that her nerves simply didn't know what to feel or prioritise, leaving her haggardly wheezing. Her head pounded with an ephemeral pain that squeezed intensely. In her one moment of calm, she caught sight of Sophia clutching at her chest, her counterpart sweating profusely and also gasping for air.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
As the two struggled to recover, Sophie fought past her pain to reach for her counterpart. When she managed to grab her counterpart’s shoulder, they both jolted and an electrified shock passed through both of them. Though the pain still gripped at them intensely, they both let out mutual sighs of relief when their suffering lessened. Together, they braved the darkness and shouldered onwards, taking steps at the same time to ensure that their burden would be split between them. The metallic clangs grew louder and more aggressive, a hint of raw anger permeating the miasma that hung over them.
Footsteps shuffled around in front of them and they stopped midstep, trying their best to discern what lay ahead. Guttural grunts turned into loud clicks as the sound of the forge ground to a halt. Haunting groans snuck their way forward from behind hidden corners. Eyes alert, Sophie caught sight of a few dwarven forms, trying shabbily to hide behind parts of the hallway. Signaling her discovery to Sophia, the two grimaced and let out, ready for battle. Sophia struck first, forcing herself to sprint past the first corner, her hands covered in a dark misty aura that seemed to eviscerate the undead that she touched. Sophie meanwhile, relied on the tried and true tactic of sheer brutality, throwing herself at the dwarven undead and pounding its rotted skull into ichor covered smithereens before charging at her next target.
Sophie’s battlefury blocked out the pain, her mind now solely concentrated on protecting herself and Sophia. She leapt onto a stocky but gaunt cheeked undead, pummelling the creature into a pasty oblivion as her senses came alive with a persevere feeling of power. Revelling in the relief and control she had once more, she kicked another undead over, almost tripping over the fallen dwarf. Annoyed, she stomped its skull in even while two other undead tried to claw at her. Aiming a precise punch, she felt the bones scratch her knuckles as she punched straight through the putrid fleshy eye socket of one of the creatures. With a roar of her own, she used the newly re-deceased as a ram and bashed its corpse into the other. Without a second thought, she delivered a heavy slam that sent bits of bone and rotted flesh flying everywhere, the fragile skull exploding under the attack.
At that, the forge was struck once again, the metallic clang now far more forceful, the anger more prominent. Looking over at her counterpart, she found Sophia had adeptly dispatched the undead on her side of the hallway, her dark weapon having sliced through the undead like butter. A dark grin was also on Sophia’s face and when their eyes met, it was as if time froze and they each realized what had happened, quickly averting their eyes in shame. Goddess, if this goes on, I’ll lose my mind.
Not if we, ughh, Sophia began only to collapse and start clutching at her head, the dark… it calls…
What? Sophie ran over and laid a hand on her shoulder, her nerves instantly recoiling in shock at the sheer weight of emotion that now flowed into them.
“Begone, foul fiends.” A voice commanded.
As the two grunted from exertion, they could feel the trail leading them towards a door at the end of the hallway. Seeing no real option besides heading back up, Sophie lifted Sophia by the shoulder and started moving forward, taking great care to not drop her charge. When they reached the doorway, Sophia let out an exhausted breath, the veins in her face coming to the surface. Much to Sophie’s horror, they ran black like the miasma that cursed this place. Sophia looked over with a tired expression, almost as if questioning Sophie’s resolve. Replying with a nod, she then pushed open the doors, the two practically stumbling in.
Instantly, the hammering of the forge came to an immediate halt. The unwelcome attention of hundreds of eyes being cast upon them sending shivers down her spine. With her battlefury subsiding, she gulped as she took a look around the room. A massive pillar stretched up to the roof and beyond on the far side. In the center of the room, two rivers of water and magma bubbled up from somewhere underground and ran in parallel in a cross around the room, surrounding a large central machine. It too was rounded, but it was the size of her wingspan and had hundreds of cogs and gears attached to it. The giant mechanism itself hung over what appeared to be a still warm bed of metal that served as a base. Shit that’s big. In the sides of the room, dozens of smaller forges sat burning hot, their own anvils glowing with a darkness similar to the miasma.
Around each of the forges was perhaps the most disturbing sight of all. Instead of dwarven craftsmen, each station was manned by a blobified amalgamation of dwarves, their bodies smashed together like a mush that left their heads, bodies and limbs sticking out of the black blob any which way. Eyes too, stuck out at all angles, but they were now all turned to the duo, a cold expressionless that reminded them of the eyewalls. Their strange forms however, were nothing compared to what Sophia assumed to be the forgemaster. Suspended into the air by dozens of mechanical tools was a naked dwarf standing as tall as an orc and equally as muscular. Its legs were augmented by grafted body parts to extend it to its towering height, even as its torso and arms remained distinctly dwarven. One thing that was in common with all of them however, was the almost gaunt, cold and uncaring expression that all had, a vacantness in their eyes that sat uneasily with Sophie. Almost like they were just puppets.
Yeah, I don’t like this. Sophia replied.
A heavy rumbling shook the whole room and everything seemed to break from their frozen states. The monsters began forming a wall so that the only paths were back out or towards the suspended dwarf. A monstrous thud nearly blew out their eardrums as the forge behind the machine behind the dwarf slammed down once more. Electrical currents flew from the impact zone, bathing the room in an eerie dull yellow light. Sophie almost yelped as the air grew more statically charged, leaving her hair standing on ends. Countless mechanisms ticked away, little jets of steam releasing themselves from the arms that held the dwarf alight. Puffs of steam burst out from the piping and with a heavy crunch, the mechanical tools separated and the orcish dwarf dropped to the ground.
Another heavy clang came from the anvil, the striking noise sending the rest of the monsters into a flurry of flagellating limbs that writhed about aggressively. From the ground, the orcish dwarf seemed to pick itself up, gradually rising to its full height using the aid of the grafted limbs. But it was in the face in which Sophie found herself equal parts mesmerised and terrified. For where the eyes once had been were hollow sockets, revealing the rotted fetid brain matter that was somehow still preserved within. Then, they were replaced by a fiery yellowish red that seemed to gaze back at her. Though it was nothing, she felt her soul tighten a little in anticipation, almost like it had sensed something that she should fear. Sparks burst from its necrotic form and suddenly the orcish dwarf was alive, sustained by the fire that burned within it.
Before the duo could even exchange a look, the dwarf forcefully tore off a decorative war axe and shield, roaring out a challenge.
Hold my hand, Sophia ordered, close your eyes.
Slightly terrified but equally intrigued by a fight, Sophie did as she was told, feeling a tepid lightness before a sea of darkness surrounded her senses. Only when the whirlwind of mana silenced did she dare to open her eyes. Where her fingers had interlocked with Sophia’s she found a shortsword made of pure darkness, so much so that her eyes could barely focus upon it. There was a heftiness to it, a weight that she didn’t know if it came from the blade or from Sophia.
Feel the dark, embrace the nothingness. Bring us together once more.
Sophie visibly loosened her body, experiencing a second of pure serenity as the mana infused into her very being.
I will shield your mind. Focus on the fight.
Encouraged, she opened her eyes and calmly held out her blade against the dwarf. It roared back in response, letting out a nasty snarl as it beat its chest.
Though her eyes also scanned the room back and forth, none of the other monstrosities seemed to be advancing. In fact, they seemed to be moving backwards, almost as if creating an arena for the two. To her increasing surprise, they seemed to be warring amongst themselves as well, with limbs and appendages reaching out for her, but at the same time resisting the urge and forcing themselves back. Curious, perhaps some sliver of honor remains within them? Sophie mused.
The ground quaked as the creature charged at her, its shield barrelling right for her. She side stepped it and cut it’s shoulders, barely scratching the muscular body. Reacting on instinct, it flailed its axe at her and missed, opening itself up to a second strike that cut a little deeper. Buoyed by her success, she launched a third attack and managed to jab into the creature’s now exposed left shoulder once again. Roaring with fury, it tried to chop her with its axe and failed as she jumped backwards. She felt the wind get knocked out of her as its shield managed to clip her side during her escape, her whole body shaking from a glancing hit alone. Shit, one of these. Can’t get hit.
Sophie stood back up and circled her opponent, the dwarf seemingly getting the same idea and snarling. A malicious grin appeared on its face and Sophie tensed, expecting an attack. What she didn’t expect was for it to holler out loud. Immediately she sensed something was wrong and tried to side step only for a stray piece of brick to smash into her sides. Around her, one of the blob-like amalgamations began advancing, the flurry of agitated limbs clawing at her as she tried to avoid them.
Use me! Strike it! Through the center!
Obeying, Sophie dashed at it, catching the creature off guard and tried to pierce its defences. Unfortunately, she was off target and only managed to skewer a head, ripping it off with a few other attached limbs. The blob quivered in agony before rage filled its remaining limbs. This time, it tried leaping at her, landing with a thick splotchy plop. Distracted, Sophie turned too late to fully avoid the axe blow aimed at her. Though her shoulder blade stopped most of the main attack, the impact alone brought her to her knees. Her muscles cried out in surprised agony, the force once again far outclassing her own strength. Hastily disentangling herself, she scrambled away and found more of the blob creatures joining in on the attack.
Multi armed freaks now pawed at her, their presence alone forced her to tiptoe around what was already a cramped battlefield. She would cut and slash at them, but was rarely given an opportunity to strike their core. What few chances she did get were robbed by the dwarf who seemed to simply wade through his comrades in his insatiable desire to hack her to pieces. Using one of the blobs as leverage, the dwarf stepped off the creature and landed right beside her, immediately swinging his axe. Sophie ducked in time but still felt it shave off a few stray hairs from her ponytail. Retreating once more, she found herself getting pushed back, her left leg brushing up against the central forge. But it was then that a sudden electrifying jolt tickled the edge of her sensation.
She quickly glanced over to find a mote of pure arcane energy, seemingly hovering between existences in the middle of the forge. A wave of hatred erupted from it and she felt her mind being assailed by hostile intent. Yet a part of her found the discovery tantalising, capturing her attention. When she finally turned back to face the dwarf, all she could see was the axe swinging down at her face.