Chapter 11

Kopius and Cici exited Oh-jin’s lab to Kickshaw without any further fanfare. The remaining time indoors had been spent refilling and/or replacing the potions, reorganizing his inventory ring and some minor house cleaning. They left the extra kindling and rations with Oh-jin, mostly because Cici ate a lot in the short time they were there and Cawbachu would have supplies a plenty. As they strolled back to the central plaza area of Kickshaw, Kopius double checked his inventory ring.

Of the sixteen slots available he was surprised that fifteen were taken up. Three slots were occupied by potion bottles, showing a stack of five each. Another three were taken up by the extra large sacks of clothes he was carrying and he wondered why the wood or rocks stacked in inventory but the large bags did not. The rest had only one slot taken by each: the bag of books with the new one added to it, the chisel set to help with mining optical quartz, the fire gloves, a food sack, a waterskin, applewax, a seemingly metric ton of grafeen, the pugil staff and some baseball sized rocks.

He decided to strap on his poor excuse for a sword sheath instead of playing peek-a-boo with his weapons and the inventory ring. Though Cici had insisted the likelihood of fighting was minimal, Kopius felt safer with the jumbled mess of straps and the quick access to his weapons. He had at least come up with a consistent way to wear it even though it was obviously incorrect.

The two men stepped out of the dim side tunnel and into the sun filled plaza. One giant beam of light shone on most of the wide open space, the unfinished fountain taking center stage. Other places were illuminated by their own light that had cracked through the surface above. The emptiness of it all made the place seem bigger and him feel smaller; all at the same time. Kopius couldn’t shake the feeling that at any moment an entire city of people would all pop out like a well planned surprise party. Sounds were amplified; normal clinks and clanks echoed more than he felt they should.

“If there’s no danger, why don’t people live down here?” Kopius asked as he followed Cici through the sunlit plaza.

“From what I have been told,” Cici began, “When the Tessel first turned, there was plenty of danger. Once folks learned there was no more access to clean water–well, that all but sealed Kickshaws fate.”

“Why not pump water down from above with pipes or, I don’t know, an aqueduct or something?”

“I was never one for engineering, lad. Once you see the stairs we’re climbing, it might make more sense.”

Kopius remained quiet and kept up with Cici’s pace. As they moved to the opposite side of the plaza, dodging a variety of stone tables and other sitting arrangements, the big man pointed at a pair of mahogany doors reaching at least twenty feet in the air; adorned with various symbols and artsy flair. Though the doors had seen better days, he could still make out the ornate fashion in which they were carved and painted. As they approached, the cracked and faded nature became more evident; as did the oversized chains entwined around the large door handles.

“Normally, I go around the other way,” Cici said, pointing off in a different direction. “This was the official passageway into Kickshaw. I’ve always used the service corridor but I thought I’d show you this first.”

“We can’t go this way,” Kopius asked, pointing at the doors.

“We could,” the big man shrugged.

“I mean, is there a reason we shouldn’t or can’t?”

“Can’t would be my guess.” Cici scratched at his beard in contemplation. “I was always told they tried to block the path through once everything was abandoned. You know, keep the creepy-crawlies down here.”

“You’ve never looked, obviously,” Kopius said, pointing to the still intact chains.

“Nah. Not worth the trouble just to come to a dead end.”

“Dead end? How do you know that?”

“I don’t know exactly, but the service side was sealed off so I assumed this side was too.”

“But we still go that other way to get to Cawbachu?”

“That’s right. It’s smaller, more enclosed. Plus it has some gates to keep the beasts out. Both of the paths lead to a circular staircase, The Coil of Cawbachu–that’s the way up.”

“Okay then. Which way is the corridor?”

Cici threw a thumb over his shoulder in basically the same direction he had gestured a few moments before. He scratched at this beard as he gave the doors more examination. The big man stepped up to it and grabbed the vertical handles on each door. He tried to jar the doors but they did not budge. He tried grabbing just one handle with both hands to give it a jerk but it remained unrattled. Using the head of his hammer he tapped at one of the large chain links and smiled, though Kopius had no clue as to what the big man was up to.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“No vibration,” Cici said over his shoulder as if could feel Kopius’s wtf stare. “Whoever locked this up left no slack, no give.”

“Okay.” Kopius replied, still unclear about it all.

“That makes it easier for Celeste, my friend,” Cici declared, looking back at Kopius with an infectious grin. “If the chain is loose, it makes things a bit more challenging. Doable but challenging.”

“I thought you couldn’t use your weapon for a while,” Kopius asked as he recalled the miniature sun that had exploded right next to him and the pond of funk.

“Oh, no, that’s Proxima Wake I can’t wield for a while. A good while actually. In the meantime, I’ve got this beauty to protect me.”

“You’re just going to, like–Hulk Smash–the chain?” Kopius said in his best Hulk-voice and smash.

“It’s not always about brute force, if that’s what you mean.”

Cici continued tapping the astralsilicate on the chain link. It clinked in even, rapid succession like a cook chopping vegetables. He moved the hammer all around the link until there was a noticeable change to the sound. Cici immediately stopped when he honed in on the area and placed a single finger on the top part of the large chain link. He looked back at Kopius with a bigger smile and a wink. With his hammer in the other hand, he raised it just above his head and brought it down in a lazy fashion, right where he was pointing. It made a dull plink sound before the entire link crumbled like a Las Vegas alibi under scrutiny of security footage.

The doors bowed forward as the chain was relieved of its pressure. The two large pieces would have flung wide open had the chain not been looped through a few times. A sliver of space appeared where the doors had started to open but beyond was only darkness. Kopius took a few steps away from the doors as Cici began to jangle and cajole the rest of the chain free. When a few links of the chain ripped through the handle–before jerking to a stop–one door had opened fast enough to knock Cici back several yards.

Rock, stone and dust poured out of the small gap that had been created. The sound of falling debris and boulders could be heard on the other side as things settled. A mighty THUD! cracked against the top of one of the doors, pushing that portion out like a giant boulder had just smacked into it. More sounds came from behind the door, loud enough that both men started to back away to a safer distance. As they retreated, loud creaking started to make its rounds accompanied with more rock shifting noise. By the time they were forty–or so–feet away, the remaining chain lost its grip and the giant doors flung open.

A small avalanche spilled through the opening, distributing itself in no discernible pattern all over the edge of the plaza floor. The two men backed up faster, dodging random boulders as they skipped and bounced out of the darkness. A final crashing of large rocks was heard before a source of light shot out from the doorway, followed quickly by a wall of dust. The short sand storm shot out random pebbles, pelting the two men. Once everything settled, each door hung ajar with their top hinge broken off as though an explosion had burst them open.

Inside the new opening, it indeed looked like a bomb had gone off. Countless rocks and boulders–ranging from golf ball-sized to golf cart-size–littered the area. Once Kopius was able to get a closer look it appeared that the ceiling had fallen in too. Beyond the initial rubble was a long hallway large enough to fit tour buses side by side, much like the tunnel he had walked through to enter Kickshaw.

A smell that was faint at first, started to make its way out of the doors opening. The scent of stale and stagnant air changed to a more puke inducing tang.

“Gawh!” Cici coughed. He pulled a handkerchief from a pocket to cover his nose and mouth.

“What the hell is that!” Kopius complained as he pulled his shirt over half his face. The odor was rancid with a little bit of putrid sprinkled in. No amount of incense or bleach was going to remove the stain from the air.

Kopius started to get a sour spit taste and his stomach was preparing to lurch. He turned away from the doors and jogged until he was a safe distance away.

“Bloody Gnomes!” Cici said as he followed Kopius. “Pull out that shirt sack you got in that ring of yours.” Kopius absently removed the sack from his ring. “We’ll need one of those throwing rocks too.”

He supplied the requested items and watched Cici get to work. First the big guy rummaged through the bag until he found a particularly damaged shirt. He then took the rock and wrapped it in the rag, creating something close to a softball-sized wad. Once that was complete, he groped in his fanny pack and pulled out a flask. Is that bag like my ring? Kopius wondered. Cici opened the flask, took a swig, offered a drink to Kopius(he declined) and then splashed the item he had just made.

“You’ll want those fancy gloves for this last part,” Cici implored, to which Kopius donned his gloves.

Once the big guy saw Kopius was ready, he brought the rock wad to his lips and–essentially–blew it a kiss. A small jet of flames escaped Cici’s mouth and set the item on fire. He quickly placed the fire in Kopius’s waiting hands moments before the alcohol ignited. He nodded in the direction of the open door, so Kopius reared back and threw the fireball.

As the wad of rock, cloth and fire hurled its way towards the doors opening Cici gestured to take a couple more steps back. At first the ball of flames looked like it was snuffed out as it passed the threshold. A moment later and the dust particles still circulating in the air looked like they were sucked back in the door frame before an eruption of flames exploded from inside. Even at more than fifty paces away, a wall of heat hit the two men, rustling their clothes and pushing around Kopius’s hair. It was over in seconds leaving behind a stench of burnt dog urine mixed with week old cat litter muskiness.