Chapter 23: Hunted.

If someone more naïve asked me what the most heroic thing I’d ever done was, they might be surprised to find out that gutting a gnome like a fish was number one. They might also be a little put off that disembowelling all his friends was a close second.

Which was, admittedly, very odd. Unless you saw how many ears the little creeps had collected.

87 Pairs by my counting. All of which were tied in ornate cords around their necks.

No more.

From now on, I will keep the truth in mind.

All the evil acts the world has known are regularly endorsed and committed by gnomes. To kill a gnome is to make the tunnels safer for all and to serve the greater good.

Therefore, my massacre was not only justified, it was a great boon on all the people left in the labyrinth.

For my effort, I received a whole lot of hurt in the short term.

Though it must be said that the other rewards more than made up for it. Perhaps even better than the gun I’d pilfered from the fallen officer.

Equipment:

Inferior Symbiote (Psy: 100 / 100)

Dagger of Exsanguination (Psy: 200 / 200)

4, 000 Store Tokens.

No special Tokens Available.

Dagger of Exsanguination

(Dagger) (Uncommon)

(Psy: 200 / 200)

A dagger adorned with gnomish runes.

Grants the bearer the [Regeneration] 2 ability so long as a warm-blooded creature has been slain within the last 3 hours.

Creatures struck by this weapon are afflicted by [Confusion] 1.

Sure, a single knife didn’t seem like much. Especially when one considered how squishy I was.

But that regeneration effect was life-saving.

Literally, I would have died from internal bleeding without it.

Even mid-fight, as my chest closed with alarming alacrity and my leg bones reconstituted themselves, I felt death whispering softly into my ears.

Instead, I was back up to full health thanks to a healthy dose of Shifter powers. Something I didn’t even think was possible in the first place. The only way it could have been made better was if it didn’t come with certain strings attached.

‘I sense him! The human is down there! He’s descending!’

‘Hunt him down! Don’t let him escape!’

‘How dare that insect kill Mot!’

‘String him up! Make ropes of his intestines!’

Yeah. Being too popular could be a bad thing.

For gnomes were inherently different from the other monsters in that they were fully sentient. That made them trickier to deal with, in the sense that they knew better than to bunch up nicely for a charged [Fever] bomb.

In return, their habit of searching for me in groups of two gave me ample opportunity to toy with my new ability.

[Confusion] was complex beast. One that I’d been forced to know first-hand.

It essentially scrambled a living being’s controls, so that a step backwards would become a step forward or to a random side.

Similarly, any action was made harder and slower due to the extra time necessary to re-orient oneself.

I’d managed to push through using my nifty future-sight of course, but my pursuers evidently lacked those particular skills.

Aside from that, their bestial thirst for vindication left other unique vulnerabilities to exploit.

Namely, their pride.

These guys were so full of themselves that they hardly ever saw the ambushes coming. Granted, that was because most of them were Projectors and my scented illusion beacons couldn’t be easily detected, but I’d take the win nonetheless.

Now if only they’d be kind enough to stop throwing rivers of fire down the tunnels. It was funny when I confused them at the right time and they roasted each other. Not so much when the stream of heat nearly caught up to me.

Honestly, I’d probably be dead by now if it weren’t for the investment I’d made.

Three whole points were no laughing matter. It was a full level at a time when progress only came at great personal risk.

Still, [Mental Map] was overdue for a little dose of love and it proved to be a wise choice once I started gaining ground.

Name:

Solomon Carter

Psy:

49/225

Type:

Telepath Level 35

Abilities:

[Sense Thoughts] 3 / [Message] 4 / [Mental Bolt] 4 / [Fever] 4 / [Fear] 3 / [Static Illusion] 4 / [Hide] 3 / [Faint Presence] 2 / [Mental Map] 3 / [Precognition] 5 / [Friendship] 1 / [Meditation] 3 / [Block Mental Attack] 2 / [Block Mental Detection] 2 / [Premonition] 3 / [Confusion] 1 / [Psychometry] 2

Ability Points:

0

Because the freaking killer gnomes were almost as lost as I was.

The maze confounded them as well as it did me and they’d often run into traps or dead-ends, wasting precious time.

Being the gentleman that I was, I figured it was only fair to alleviate their apparent frustration by throwing more bolts whenever the ability came off cooldown.

I figured they couldn’t be angry if they were dead.

So, I ran and ran and ran. Down creepy dank caves filled with centipedes and eels and the stupid lightning bunnies.

The first day went by without a hitch. Not a complaint to be found. Until I started to doze off.

That was when I found the biggest downside to being chased by killer gnomes. They were endurance hunters, in the same way that humans had been back when we had to settle for wooden spears.

Being chased till you’re about to keel over from exhaustion didn’t sound that bad at first. Not after my run-ins with the menagerie of monsters trapped down here with us. Yet my foolish notions were put to rest soon thereafter.

Having to stay on the move sucked.

It sucked twice as much when my hunters figured out the exact range of my fog. Afterwards, they began sending parties to major intersections, waiting in ambush to collapse tunnels before retreating. I was left running for my life, without the means or opportunity to retaliate.

The second day was arduous. That infuriating feeling of oppressive strain returning with a vengeance. As if there was an unbreakable film over the deep lake where all my powers surfaced from. Determined to keep their charge trapped and buried.

The prisoner groaned. Clawing incessantly at the barrier like trillions of burrowing insects. They. It. Would have no more of being squeezed. The mounting pressure was their battle cry. Their discordant plea.

With every pulse, I grew weaker. My vision blurring and falling away at random intervals.

The third was worse.

Before I knew it, I’d found myself collapsing every few steps. My head felt as if it’d been placed inside a washing machine, spinning me around with careless cruelty.

My lungs felt cold and my heart felt heavy. Weariness sapped the very will to live from my cells while I kept giving order to march on. Time became confused and distorted. I couldn’t tell if a whole month had passed since I was kidnapped or if those struggles occurred within the last hour.

I was getting feverish. Disoriented even with my map. The mushrooms and the pink fronds blocking off adjacent sections seemed to melt together into a single canvas of vivid colour. Despite knowing the plants were dangerous, my eyes began to see a certain allure within the dancing bioluminescence.

A promise. A lure. The absence of struggle.

I shook my head at once, sending a bolt to strike down yet another gnome who’d braved the perimeter. That small morsel of exertion sent me sprawling like a baby learning to walk for the first time. I tried to get back up, but eels had replaced my legs.

“Buddy. If I ever get my hands on a gnome again, I’ll exact every last bit of revenge I’m owed. I swear it.”

‘Of course! You totally will Sully! You’re the best!’

I was laughing like a madman after that comment. Positive re-enforcement stimulating me back towards a parody of confidence.

That night, I sat down with my back against a dead-end. I tried to close my eyes and sneak in a nap. A few minutes of respite at the very least.

It didn’t take.

I awoke, weakened and stupefied, to a river of molten magma slithering towards me. I lashed out, blundering through a few errant kills before realizing how hopeless the situation was. All around me were gnomes riding some primal creatures I didn’t recognize. They were above and below, heating up the floor and ceiling with supernatural blazes, turning my resting place into a furnace.

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‘Sully! Thank goodness! I was trying to wake you! You need to run!’

Buddy didn’t need to tell me twice. I was up on my feet and moving. Not bothering to think about how many hunters had come around or how many other surprises they had in store.

Instead, I threw out charged attacks in all directions, conjuring illusory scent trails to lure in more foes to disperse my adversaries. The assaults did not waver from my lashes. More fodder trailed in, taking the place of their fallen comrades and adding more pressure.

I couldn’t focus on any one target. The presence within me stirring and smashing its weight against the film.

The ground was literally glowing beneath my feet. So much so that my feet were seared even while covered by Buddy. Through our link, I could taste the agony he was being subjected to.

He took it all without complaint, determined to see us out alive, which only deepened my guilt.

Alas, the illusions had the greatest effect, seducing a leviathan down from behind my fog, a bit above our position and to the west. It struck with alarming alacrity, swimming through the air like a shark smelling blood. The crowd of pyromancers broke and ran, suffused with the colour of hatred, spite, and bloodlust.

Knowing it was the only chance I’d get; I ran up a spiral staircase off to the side and activated [Hide]. Part of me honestly thought that was the end. The melee was ferociously fought, eels streaming in after their larger cousin to pick off rosy-cheeked sadists left and right. All while the savage serpent bit off torsos and rammed into anyone with the gall to fight back.

My eyes took in new shapes as I ran, a group of gnomes riding giant ants into battle wielding whips of crackling lightning.

At the rear was the biggest gnome of them all. She sat imperiously on her six-legged steed, bellowing orders and firing thunderbolts from her fingertips. Around her hips was a lavishly decorated belt, holding six human heads. One of them was smaller than the others.

Righteous indignation swelled within me and I almost retaliated with a charged [Fever].

Almost. Deep down, I knew it would get me killed and no one else would have the experience or the means to fight back. So, I ran.

Neither she, nor any of her retinue noticed my shameful flight.

I held back from making any parting shots. Suffocating the would-be hero within me calling for justice to be served.

My flight continued until I was all out of breath and my body slowed, despite my protests.

I felt my hands shaking uncontrollably, and with a burst of pure willpower, I managed to stay in motion.

Another day passed in silence. The animals had lost my scent.

I had found a watering hole and settled in. Even so, sleep eluded me. Every time I closed my eyes, I’d see the faces on that belt. They had been people. Victims like me. Slaughtered while their guard was down for no rhyme or reason beyond the sport they provided.

Not for the first time, I imagined how close I had come to joining them.

I tried to keep my eyes closed. Without luck.

Every hour would see me changing positions or doing a bit of light exercise. I was so tired already, surely a bit more would help me sleep.

But sleep never came. Not after a whole night. Not after another day.

My body protested incessantly, yet refused to help itself. Running away from them, from her, had done something foul to me.

“Well Buddy, it could be worse.” I said abruptly, attempting to distract myself from my body’s own failings.

‘How do you figure that friend?’

“We haven’t run into any more people for the past few hours. It would suck having to explain how evil the gnomes were to someone who hadn’t seen the bodies.”

‘Didn’t you say someone warned you beforehand?’

“Yes. For all the good it did. I… I don’t think anyone could really comprehend how sinister an ability called [Friendship] could be. Even I underestimated it, and I actually have it.”

Another set of shivers ran up my spine. One from the horrifying memory that I hadn’t fully processed and another from [Premonition].

‘Is that your danger sense again?’

“It sure is Buddy.”

I drew in a breath and called the golden threads to me. I allowed them to rise for long enough that I could see alternate versions of me taking different routes through different tunnels. Two of them died almost instantly from being peppered with bullets, yes, actual bullets and a sudden rockfall from above.

I cut the link before the visions caught up and followed the still-living echoes before they fully dissipated.

‘You’re so cool Sully.’

“Thank you, Buddy. You’re really cool too.”

‘Did you figure out what [Psychometry] does yet?’

“Not quite. I thought it best to leave that for later. You know, when all the gnomes are dead.”

‘You’re so smart.’

“Thank you.”

‘I wish I could be smart.’

“Don’t give me that Buddy. You’re already great. I’d be deader than Elvis if it weren’t for you.”

‘Who’s Elvis?’

“Some guy who danced a lot and got fat later. Mom’s a big fan.”

I drew several deep breaths in quick succession, trying in vain to relax. To make the crushing trauma go away for the briefest of instant.

When that failed, I began to laugh. Hysterically considering how pathetic I was. How much I’d failed to do. How ashamed my parents and friends would be.

“Okay. Okay. Calm down. Positive thoughts now. Positive thoughts. I mean, yeah. Things got a bit out of hand. Yeah, I was almost murdered. Again. Yeah, there are psychotic garden implements roaming the caves. Yeah, I only escaped by the skin of my teeth. But that’s all in the past. I’ll take it as a lesson learned and keep my head down from now on. Sure, I’ll save anyone I can, but the main focus is to stay alive until help comes.”

‘What are you doing Sully?’

“Talking to myself.”

‘I’ve noticed you do that a lot.’

“Only when I’m stressed or having an anxiety attack.”

‘Do you have those often?’

“That’s…Uh. Yes. More often than I’d like.”

‘So, you don’t like being stressed?’

“Not really no.”

‘Understood. Being stressed is bad.’

“Yes Buddy. Being stressed is very bad. Especially when an exam is around the corner. Or a monster. They drive me crazy sometimes. With their chittering ideas about how hungry they are. How they constantly think about food and blood and meat, all day every day. On and on. Everywhere at once. From above and below and to my sides. But I need to keep up my fog or they’d catch me by surprise. But I’m also tired. So tired of listening to them every single minute of every single day. Sometimes I feel like I’m seconds away from snapping and doing something…”

I took another second to compose myself before adding:

“Never mind that. Also, I’m not crazy. I’m just talking to myself out loud. Again. Definitely not crazy.”

‘Whatever you say Sully!’

With that decided, I ran downwards, dodging skittering beasts and meeting new foes. Each encounter was met with either a summary sniping bolt or an impromptu ambush.

The former came and went without much fanfare. The latter turned into hazy messes as both sides lost a fair deal of vigour from my improved and super-charged [Fever].

There were fewer side passages in this section of the labyrinth. Most of the surrounding walls were smoother, resembling polished marble, with few pointy bits to discourage me from leaning against them.

Thankful for the reprieve, I collapsed unto a heap and tried to collect my thoughts.

So far, I’d been dead set on doing the right thing. Saving as many people as I could and laying down signs wherever I went so that any other survivors would at least have a chance to find watering holes. It wasn’t much in the grand scheme of things and the fact that deaths had continued regardless irked me to no end.

Things, as it turned out, could get a lot more complicated.

There was a chance, albeit a small one, that the gnomes could read English. Nah, even if they couldn’t I’d been making illusory arrows the whole time.

Which meant that intelligent monsters had a clear trail of breadcrumbs to follow if they wanted more victims. Add to that their hunting method, how difficult it was to see coming, and I had a recipe for disaster in my hands.

There was no telling if my goodwill could be used to kill more people. Heck, there was no way to tell if it had been already.

Intrusive thoughts began bubbling to the surface. Pictures of the necklaces worn by the leader and his minions. My fists clenched until they were white.

“Buddy. I have a question.”

‘Ask me anything Sully.’ My suit responded, eager to please.

“What would you do if…if someone died because of you.”

‘Learn from the experience and move on.’

I chortled. Then laughed at the absurdity of it all. Buddy was right of course. That was the only logical answer.

I wasn’t Thunder Fist or John Gardens. What else was I supposed to do?

“Thank you, Buddy. Simple really is best.”

‘No problem! I love helping you!’

Now if only it were that easy.

I sighed and allowed positive emotions to flow from him to me. It wasn’t as thrilling as the [Friendship] assault the murder gnome had used. Nothing of it packed the same punch of addictive ecstasy that it had thrown my way.

Strangely, the memory was almost pleasant. I knew it had been a lie. A vile lure that killed almost a hundred people.

However, it had felt so good at the time.

In my addled state, I wondered if I could replicate it. Just so that I could silence the whispers tormenting me for little while. It might help me sleep.

A trickle of Psy left me for Buddy, bringing the happy notes. He reacted almost at once, immaterial giggles answering me in turn. As he got his fix, I tried to loop the strings so that it fed back to me.

No good. Only others could be targeted. Or could they?

I tried something new with my fog. This whole time I’d been trying to expand it so that my range improved, for obvious reasons. Now I was pushing the mantle tighter, folding it like a blanket around myself and Buddy.

The emotions he was feeling became clearer and clearer as I did so and a little bud of the joy got back to me. So, I tried to press in again, constricting like a serpent.

My senses retreated alongside my map, and the feedback loop spun faster. I made Buddy feel even better so that I got a kick out of it, draining the anxiety at once and filling me with bliss.

Oh, the sweet bliss. Time slipped from my fingers as they lost their previous tension.

I dove inside myself. Trying to chase after a better high.

System Notice:

Student has made a breakthrough with an ability.

Level Gained: +5 Maximum Psy. +3 Ability Points.

Level Gained: +5 Maximum Psy. +3 Ability Points.

Ability Evolving: [Friendship] 1 has grown to [Friendship] 3

Those dreams were awesome. In them, there was no more darkness. No more greenish shadows cast by overgrown fungi. No threat of being killed.

It felt so good. Words could not describe the calmness. The oneness with myself. I was numb to all the pain and the bad ideas.

They could not hurt me in here.

I was free.

Level Gained: +5 Maximum Psy. +3 Ability Points.

Ability Evolving: [Sense Thoughts] 3 has grown to [Sense Thoughts] 4

The swirling shroud coalesced. Less a fog and more of a sugary milkshake. It was delicious.

Level Gained: +5 Maximum Psy. +3 Ability Points.

Ability Evolving: [Confusion] 1 has grown to [Confusion] 2

Name:

Solomon Carter

Psy:

26/245

Type:

Telepath Level 39

Abilities:

[Sense Thoughts] 4 / [Message] 4 / [Mental Bolt] 4 / [Fever] 4 / [Fear] 3 / [Static Illusion] 4 / [Hide] 3 / [Faint Presence] 2 / [Mental Map] 3 / [Precognition] 5 / [Friendship] 3 / [Meditation] 3 / [Block Mental Attack] 2 / [Block Mental Detection] 2 / [Premonition] 3 / [Confusion] 2 / [Psychometry] 2

Ability Points:

1

I could not say how much I missed. Only that the thrill seeking was cut short by a wail.

‘Sully! Thank goodness! I thought you were dead!’

“Wha…? What hapu…?”

‘The mole! It almost got you! It fell over there by that trap you dodged!’

I went over to look and saw the collapsed roof, massive boulders pinning down a mole. A big mole. Much larger than the ones I’d seen earlier. This one had stripes, like a tiger and rows of shark-like teeth in its mouth.

I blinked a couple of times and saw how much Psy I had left.

Psy:

4/245

“Wow. Okay. Let’s not do that again. Not while in the open at least.”

I shook myself awake, feeling remarkably good as I yawned.

My new knife sunk inside the trapped creature’s eye socket. Blood flowed freely from the sharpened edge and into Buddy, who lapped it up eagerly.

There I was, relishing in another victory, when I got a bad feeling. It wasn’t a goosebump or a sudden chill either. No, my body started making minor predictions out of nowhere and I had to slam down my will to keep from hallucinating again. Once the golden strings were silenced, I noticed a stillness in my senses.

There was a quiet, somber mood in my fog that hadn’t been there before. It was an absolute, inviolable barrier that kept me on edge.

Nothing out of the ordinary happened for another few minutes until I felt a mind reaching out a ways in.

That’s right. I wasn’t sensing them. They were sensing me.

Oh.

Oh poo.

I had considered that my kidnappers might also be Telepaths, but I hadn’t accounted for their personal might.

Of course, if I was this strong after 3 days, then how strong must they be, after years or decades of training?

My feet were running in the opposite direction before I knew it. Sweet adrenaline pumped through my veins, empowering my flight with the taste of desperation.

Until I stopped.

I hadn’t wanted to stop, but my limbs refused to move anyway. Instead, I watched in abject horror as they turned my body around and moved obediently towards the source of the energy.

Strings pulled me along, one stiff movement after another. No amount of fighting kept me still and even my screams were cut off by a clamping force keeping my jaw tightly shut.

I tasted the foreign fog as it enveloped my own now. Another person’s energy colliding with my own.

[Block Mental Detection] hadn’t meant anything to them.

[Block Mental Attack] didn’t so much as tremble at this intrusion.

Then thoughts entered my mind. Messages that were not my own.

‘Now this is a treat, isn’t it? One of the newcomers thinking themselves a hero. What a breath of fresh air, to see you people helping each other, rather than trying to bash each other’s brains open all over my polished floors. Don’t be afraid dearie. Granny Golden wouldn’t hurt a soul. Not unless you tried to hurt me first. But you wouldn’t be so inconsiderate, would you now?’

‘AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!’ I thought in response. “Sweet merciful Buddha! Please don’t enslave me!’

‘He he he. Enslave you? Don’t be silly now dearie. Granny Golden is a polite and sophisticated lady. There’ll be no such discourtesies around my home. You’ll see for yourself soon enough.’