Chapter 34: The Newbies.

Borislav, for all his other faults, was not a stupid man.

He said little and heard much.

Forming opinions about others in his head and thinking thoroughly before committing to action. It was this pattern of careful observation that had allowed him to get the measure of Dusty and Slab right away.

As such, he knew better than to speak roughly in my general direction.

At least when those two were nearby.

Alas, Charlie was not so well informed.

Ever the passionate hero, he grabbed what passed for a collar on Buddy’s astronaut form.

Using his superior strength to lift me into the air, where he could question me at his leisure.

Right until Dusty gave him a concussion and Slab ripped his (Gnome)ing arms off.

Handling the hero in the same manner that a pair of recently castrated gorillas might handle a zookeeper.

Thankfully, I was able to stop them before they started beating him to death with his own severed limbs. Too aware that my chances at a second Type were hanging by the thinnest of threads.

After that, I managed to coax Borislav into stitching them back and Monique into not running for her life. All while the two cowering onlookers held each other and the waking Shifter girl. Sniveling in a corner.

“Please don’t hurt us man. We haven’t done anything to you.”

“We won’t tell anyone you killed that guy. I swear we won’t. We didn’t see anything.”

“He’s fine.” I assured them, stretching the truth a little bit. “This much won’t even faze Borislav. He’s healed worse injuries. Besides, Charlie’s tougher than you think.”

Borislav himself grunted, remaining focused on his task. Said task was frothing at the mouth now, aware of what had happened and that it could happen again if I so willed it.

“I’m very sorry about this misunderstanding.” I told him them. “Dusty and Slab are, very protective of me. Its kind of their thing. I need you to understand that they’re good people that are looking out for those weaker than they are. Like you.”

Against all odds, the others panicked further.

“I’m sorry!” I repeated while backing off. “I’m not trying to come off as threatening. I wanted to explain that one of my powers is to see the future. I know you’re new to this and that its not common in your world, but that’s the reality. With that in mind, I want to help you. Please let me help.”

The boy gaped.

His gaze drifted off to the ogre siblings. His eyes grew watery.

“Right. My mistake. Please help me.”

“It would be my pleasure friend.” I answered, smiling ear to ear.

He and the other girl in the corner started crying.

“Stop that. I’m not trying to threaten him or anything. You’re all safe with me. I’m a good person.”

“That’s right!” Dusty agreed. “We should all be celebrating being under the Shepherd’s command! It will be an honour to die in his name!”

They cried harder.

At the same time, some of my tiger-moles have started catching up. Their nose-feelers twitched as they neared the bodies strewn on the floor. Those too slow or too unfortunate to get out of the beetle’s way.

The crying couple and the Shifter girl would have joined them too I knew, were it not for our timely intervention. Charlie would have run, after they were all dead. Going on to wander alone for the remainder of the cycle.

Stewing on his hatred to keep himself sane.

“You will not touch the bodies.” I told my pets. “They are people. Not food.”

By this point, my hooks had embedded themselves so deeply into their minds that obedience was second nature. The two behemoths parted ways sullenly. Leaving the cooling flesh well alone.

An action, which had the unfortunate consequence of drawing my attention to the cadavers. Dark and damp as the large cavern was, their features were clear. Mere boys from the look of them. Or close enough that it didn’t matter. They would been on their final school years on the outside world. That, or very recently graduated.

They probably had families too. Parents and siblings and close friends who would wonder where they’d gone. Who might still be holding out hope of seeing them alive.

Prying my eyes away took a great deal of effort, but there was nothing else I could do. I didn’t even know what to do with them now. Would it be possible to bury them? If so, where? There was always another open space beneath the rough hard stone.

As I was contemplating the issue, the small Shifter began clearing her head. She scanned the immediate area with mounting trepidation. Her claws sharpened and lengthened in conjunction to her senses. All around she could sense my army. Monsters of all shapes and sizes streaming in like some profane river.

Surrounding everyone while still keeping their distance on my orders.

As she prepared for what she thought was an ambush, the boy next to her continued to weep. His body has been left mostly intact as he was a few steps shy of the charge, being wounded only by the shockwave and flying debris.

Only his heart was in tatters. He stood suddenly. Moving past me and two of the moles in a stupor.

He collapsed next to the remains of his friends and held his hands to his face. The scream held almost all the emotion I sensed in his mind.

There was a darkness in his eyes as well as his soul.

Hopelessness that flayed all reason from his being.

A deep, resounding existential dread.

The clawed girl’s eyes turned to the bloodstains.

For the first time in this entire exchange, that veil of calculating practicality lifted from her mind.

In that moment, she was human once more.

She too began to cry.

The last girl has been mourning for a long time now. She had been weeping hysterically while the battle raged all around her and she continued without any sign of abatement.

A centipede approached from the side, but my power silenced any errant feelings from it and I ordered it away.

Finally, I decided that the silence has stretched on long enough and began walking closer to the youths.

The boy and the clawed girl looked up at my approach.

Their eyes moved around my form, taking in Buddy in all his deep crimson splendor.

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He was mimicking an astronaut suit, as I’d asked him to. Granting me protection against all the tiny, annoying pebbles and puddles and jagged stones littering the Labyrinth’s floors. On my face was a transparent membrane resembling glass, though it retained a fair deal of flexibility and durability for all that.

I did not think the ensemble made me appear particularly ominous, though it was striking when compared to the rags the trio wore.

At some point, they might have been pajamas of some fashion.

The same kind I’d been wearing when I was first taken.

Those days were gone however.

The stringy fabric was weathered, stretched, cut, and horrendously dirty. Indeed, it could very well be rotting on their very bodies.

‘Nothing I can do about that in any case. At least for now. Gnomish garb won’t fit them and I can hardly ask the others for a spare set of clothes.’

“Are you all okay?” I asked as if I didn’t already know the answer.

“Ye-Yeah. We’re all right.” The clawed girl lied.

I saw through the deception at once.

Her thoughts were overflowing with emotion and suspicion.

She tried to put on a strong front.

Reasoning that I could be a new danger, one far more powerful than the beetle.

“What do you mean all right!? Are you stupid or something!? Mark and Tracy are dead! They’re dead Louise!” The boy wailed.

Part of me felt terrible at that outburst. I knew what it felt like to be helpless and cornered. To feel the weight of the world crushing you.

I didn't berate the boy for his words or his erratic behavior. It was normal to feel this way.

Instead, I moved forward and sat beside him.

I put my hand on his shoulder and let him process his loss. Louise continued to stare at me as her wounds closed and knit together. She didn't say anything, but allowed the tears to escape unhindered. The last girl hasn’t even registered my presence properly.

I spread out my fog to sense any incoming dangers while I sat.

Another three centipedes and some big panther-shrew things wandered over through the edges and joined my cause without much trouble.

“Thank you. I’m sorry. I just, can’t deal with all of this right now.” His voice came out firmer than before, yet it stills felt haunted. Some wounds took a lifetime to heal. Some never healed at all.

“No problem.” I answered. “This is tough for all of us. Take your time. We can talk when you’re ready.”

“I’d rather talk now.” Louise interrupted. “Was it you that froze it?”

“Yes. I was the one who stopped it. I’m a hero, trying to save as many people as I can.”

Dusty and Slab cheered, though they were the only ones.

The boy looked at them.

Then at me.

Then at all the mute nightmares following our trail, streaming in like a river of tainted flesh and wrought steel.

Trying to figure out if we were telling the truth or messing with him.

“You weren’t even here.” She countered.

“I know. That’s just the Type I got. Just like you got to be a Shifter. We all have different talents.”

Her eyebrows rose at that.

“How did you know my type?”

I stopped for second to process the absurdity of the question before answering.

“You’re regenerating. Only Shifters can do that.”

“How do you know that though? There might be more than three types. We have no idea how these powers work or what they can do. Did you assume? Or do you have some proof.”

My mind went blank.

Sheer incredulity blowing everything away and leaving me stunned. Dusty and Slab had been listening to our conversation and roared with laughter at her ignorance.

Monique stayed silent.

Choosing to step gingerly away from my admirers. The ruins of her shotgun were as useful as my empty pistol, yet she cradled the hunk of junk as if it were a lifeline.

“This is common knowledge.” I blurted out before I could fully process what she’d said. “Everyone knows there are four types and that only Shifters can heal people. It’s been that way for twenty years.”

“You’ve been down here for twenty years!?” Asked the boy, horror cascading off his face.

He looked like a child watching their beloved family dog being run over on the highway.

Pure, undistilled grief and confusion dancing on his face.

The tears dripping down his cheeks only added to the effect, making him look pitiful.

The siblings laughed harder.

Unable to get a single word in. Monique was groaning in exasperation.

Borislav either didn’t notice the argument or paid it no heed.

“What? No! The outside world has Espers. You know, super people. Like Rockslide, Lakebed, Horizon, Thunder Fist. Heroes. Haven’t you heard of them?”

Louise and the boy looked at each other, then back at me.

She took on a wary posture, shuffling her still-healing body so that her feet were firmly planted in the ground.

It was an awful, off-putting sight. Torn muscle reaching out and entangling itself with the rest of her. Tiny giblets of flesh and blood crawling underneath her exposed skin, like maggots on a carcass.

Her innermost thoughts were still somewhat blurred.

His weren't.

‘Come on man. Please don’t tell me the first person we find is some nutter. That’s not even funny. Not now. Not after all we’ve been through. Not after Mark and Tracy. I can’t. I can’t deal with this right now. Its too much. The freaking centipedes and the arrows and the stupid beetle.’

‘Maybe that’s it. This guy lost his mind after some of his friends died. Now he’s going around thinking superheroes are real and the others are humoring him. Wearing a goofy space suit and controlling monsters. Controlling…’

‘Oh.’

Newly found dread erupted from the boy and he staggered into an upright position.

His body was tense, as if ready to act at the drop of a feather. His fingers started twitching, curling into fists before loosing up over and over again. His mouth opened once, but no sounds escaped its depths. Instead, it is the girl who spoke up.

“I… We have no idea what you’re talking about.”

I looked at both of them. Really looked at them.

Then I slapped my own head.

“Right. Of course. You’re not from my Earth. My bad. Are you from Zombie Earth or Alternate World War 1 Earth?”

“Holy cow! He’s nuts!” Yelled the girl.

“Watch your tongue! Weakling! Or I’ll cut it off!” Dusty interjected.

All hint of amusement was gone from her face.

Slab said nothing. Merely bringing up a blade as if to volunteer for tongue-cutting duty.

The trio all moved away from the ogres with hurried motions.

The weeping girl scurrying behind the boy with admirable alacrity.

The boy’s mind was bursting with frantic notions. Trying to figure out if we were a threat.

‘Okay. Okay. Calm down. Keep it together. There has to be some explanation. Some way this all makes sense. He might be crazy. He might not. He said he was a hero. Think it through. Don’t think about Mark and Tracy right now. Your life’s in danger. The girls are in danger. You have to keep it together. Protect them from this psycho in case he’s lying. Which he probably is.’

Ouch.

That actually hurt my feelings a bit.

‘Time travel? Its possible. I mean, no its freaking not. But it’s been a weird month. Jane can do telekinesis. Louise is literally coming back from the dead. I killed giant bugs with rocks. Prudence and her pet psychos almost killed us. Have an open mind, Ryan. It might just save your life. Actually, this guy already saved your life. He also didn’t attack us from where he was hiding. He didn’t kill Charlie. Yet. Maybe, okay, maybe a little trust might be called for. He hasn’t done anything untoward, yet. Its only right to repay good with good. Hear him out at least.’

“Um, what year do you think this is?”

“2022.” I answered without hesitation.

“Same as us then. Okay, were any of the heroes on the news recently? If they were, can you give us dates and locations? Did they do anything during the pandemic?”

“Pandemic? What pandemic?”

Their incredulity was only exacerbated by those words.

They both began to wonder how I’d never heard of this pandemic they referenced.

‘There is absolutely no way in heck this guy didn’t know before we told him. I feel grateful and all that, but something’s wrong here. Think Ryan. Teleportation. Cave. Screens. Its been a month. Or has it? I’m not sure. Doesn’t matter. Find a way it all fits.’

“Oh, I get it! You’re absolutely right!” He lied.

Badly.

“It’s like a parallel universe. We got sucked into something involving a superhero on his dimension. That’s why we got powers.”

“Shut up Ryan. That’s the dumbest thing I ever heard.” Louise retorted, voice cracking like a whip.

“No, think about it. This guy knew what your type did without you telling him and he brought all the uhm, other, pets, down to help without even being here. He also said there were four types, not three. We thought Prudence was lying, but she could have been telling the truth. Since none of us could do that, he must be the fourth type. He may know what’s going on or how to get out of here.”

‘And I really don’t want to get on the bad side of Mr. Slaver over here. Those two freakshows tore Charlie apart like he was a gingerbread man, and Charlie’s the strongest person we know. By a lot. Holy (Prudence) Louise. Read the room. Show some gratitude and try to get the (Prudence)ing scary stranger on our side. We need this.’

Louise still looked unconvinced.

I on the other hand, fully supported Ryan.

In fact, I was pretty sure Ryan was my new best friend.

Whatever his Type, he had the most normal reaction I’d seen yet. A bit of healthy misapprehension coupled with optimism.

Surely, he, as a normal, well-adjusted person, would see that I was a hero who was trying to save everyone.

To top it all off, he felt at least somewhat indebted to me, or Charlie, which would be essentially the same thing after I’d recruited him.

Good vibes all around.

“Ryan. I think you’re on to something.” I said, immediately capturing their attention.

“Now, I don’t know what’s going on. I really don’t. This is as weird to me as it is to you. I’m a Telepath. That’s my type. That’s how I stunned that beetle-monster and saved you.” I paused for effect, making sure all of them could hear me.

“Personally, I think we should stick together for a while. To keep each other safe you know? My crew here is looking to claim a safe zone after we extermina… Sorry, pacify the gnomes. Yes, that’s right. All the people and the, tamed pals that you see here are all going to pacify the gnomes. We’re going to pacify them so hard that there won't be a single one left. After that, all the survivors will have a place to call home. A place where we can all be safe and think of ways to escape.”

Dusty and Slab were cheering again.

Clapping loudly. Borislav had finished healing Charlie, and began to clap as well.

Perhaps he was finally starting to come around. Or perhaps he was terrified that Slab might add his own fur to his gore-caked attire if he didn’t show enough enthusiasm.

Whatever the reason, it created a chain reaction where my gnomish meat shields clapped in unison. Hundreds of little hands joining in the darkened chasm.

All at the same time.

Without any light or life in their sunken-in eyes.

Ryan took a look around the wide tunnel floor. I saw his eyes wander over to the stains that used to be his friends.

He started to cry once more.