Chapter 4

Roly Poly

Before the group there was a vast and massive opening deep beneath the ground. The ceiling was incredibly high, high enough that the space could have easily housed skyscrapers. Jacob wondered how a space that big could have been down here when the staircase they walked was indeed long but was nowhere near that long. He ended up attributing it to some magical mumbo jumbo since there was no way to figure it out given their current predicament.

The space itself was lit by a soft green glow. Jacob tried to find the light source, but there was none. It was as if the air itself gave off that gentle green light. The cavern floor was devoid of any plant life but was covered with stones and boulders that appeared to be purple in color, although it was hard to tell due to the green glow reflecting on them. In front of the group, people were starting to walk down a dirt path that stretched for hundreds of yards, leading towards one of the walls.

Jacob's gaze followed the path filled with people, and when his eyes reached the wall, he was in awe. Three massive holes with diameters stretching from the floor to the ceiling left him in a state of complete wonder. At the base of the wall was a camp, and what looked like where the people were forming.

When Jacob approached the camp, he found himself in yet another line.

“Each of your groups will be handed out a number between 1-3. Depending on the number you get will decide which entrance you will enter. Don’t ask me what the difference is, because each one of them will lead you to the depths of Ashradul. Stick with your group and you may just survive.” A Rok’thorian soldier yelled over the line of people. He approached a younger smaller woman, that was obviously frightened.

“Though I doubt any of you will. Either way, defeat the forces inside, yada ,yada and claim glory.” He said while waiving his hand whimsically, and now speaking back to the crowd again. The soldier continued to do this in one way or another until every group had received their number.

Jacob watched John walk back from getting the number while sitting nearby with Tyler and Ashley.

“Which one’we get?” Jacob asked while looking at the entrances.

“Also are you guys as scared as me? I mean, this shits pretty damn intimidating right?”

Jacob got a few nods, which brought him a little relief. He had always had a hard time knowing if his feelings were justified, which made him question his feelings at times.

“Good to know, because so far, I mean, I’m surprised we’re not seeing more people freak out.”

“Well, these people do have the fear of just being killed for not listening, and there was that promise if we succeed at defeating this so-called force of Ashradul. Though I doubt many give much weight to it seeing as they are murderers.” Said John as he approached

"Fair point. I do have a bad feeling, though, about what's inside. I don't trust these guys at all, and I doubt the legitimacy of that promise," Jacob responded.

"Yeah, anyways, we got number 3. The one on the right."

"Nioce, 3's better than one, in my opinion," Jacob said with his chin held high.

"Why's that?" Ashley asked.

"Because 3 is 2 more than 1," Jacob said while laughing at his own joke.

Soon, every group had their number, and the groups started to stage themselves outside their respective entrances. Jacob, now standing in front of the massive hole in the cave wall with his group, stood there completely taken aback by just how big these holes were. The width being thousands of yards had the groups for entrance 3 decently spaced out. With Jacob's assumption of 1000 people, that made 250 groups of 4, giving roughly 83 groups per entrance. The width of the tunnel entrance was hundreds of yards across, making Jacob think that as they progressed through, the odds of running into each other would get slimmer and slimmer. Adding on the fact that people were bound to die, meant that Jacob and his group were about to get really close.

As Jacob's group positioned themselves, a voice echoed across the tunnels, the voice of the Viscount.

"There are 1159 of you, and let it be known that some of you will die. In fact, it's entirely possible that all of you will die, as the Rok'thorian only seek the strong. On the bottom of your packs is a special magical circle that acts as a tracking device for us to follow your well-being. The moment you took the pack, it became bound to you. If you focus your thoughts, you will be able to bring up the current survivor count as well as the days remaining until you get teleported back to Earth."

"I should have identified the pack," Jacob thought as he began to focus on bringing up the current survivor count.

Current Survivors: 1159

Days Remaining: 179

Jacob found himself pleased as his estimates of the total number of people weren't that far off . He could also tell that the others had figured it out as well based on their expressions, though a few were struggling.

"Now venture forth into the Caverns of Ashradul, defeat the forces of Ashra, and claim glory. Overcome and persevere! Now go! You have 179 days." The Viscount finished his speech.

With that, the representatives from Earth began their 6-month journey into the caverns of Ashradul to defeat the forces that lie within.

"Not even a quest to go with," Jacob said as he was about to take his first step. But before his foot could even land, a notification window popped up. Not just for Jacob, but for everyone entering as well.

"There it is," Jacob said as his foot landed.

QUEST – ADMIN - Journey into the Caverns of Ashradul, fight and become stronger, Survive.

0 of 1 – Survive for 6 months.

Bonus Objective – Defeat the Forces that lie within the Caverns of Ashradul

0 of 3 Ashra Branches destroyed

0 of 1 Defeat Overseer Ashradul

Bonus Rewards – Rewards will be reflected by contribution effort.

"Overseer Ashradul sounds like a real bad mothafucka," Tyler commented as they began their walk.

There was a visible group to their left, about 20 yards away, but the more they walked, the greater the distance between them grew. To the right, they could hear another group talking, but they too were getting farther and farther away.

"True. I say we take our time; I have a feeling we need to get a lot stronger before we attempt to take down these so-called branches and this overseer," Jacob said, contemplating the quest.

"How soon do you think we'll run into something? I'm ready to use this axe," Tyler said.

"Tyler, relax. This is a matter of life and death; it's not a video game," Ashley spoke, being the voice of reason.

"She's right, Tyler. We need to approach this cautiously; we really have no idea what's about to happen," John added.

"Agreed," said Jacob. He then explained to them that they should maintain some sort of formation as they traversed the landscape, modeling it after how a fireteam in the Marines operates. Jacob placed Tyler in the front, taking point and keeping a lookout for anything approaching from the front. John positioned himself directly behind Tyler to provide quick support if they faced a frontal attack that Tyler couldn't handle and to keep an eye on their flanks. Behind John was Ashley, in the safest spot, as it was the best position for a healer. She would also watch the flanks. Jacob took the rear so he could continuously monitor their rear, a commonly overlooked area, and have a view of the entire team. The team agreed to follow Jacob's guidance in these matters, as even though his experience was limited, it was still valuable to have.

The team, now in a Ranger file, traversed with about 5 yards in between each of them. The constant green glow remained as strong as ever, creating an overall sense of the place that felt somewhat cryptic but still impressive. They continued deeper until eventually...

“Oh Shit!” - Tyler screamed while getting his axe ready.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

“What is it! - Jacob yelled toward the front.

“It’s a body.” John answered as he caught up to where Tyler was standing.

Eventually, all four of them were looking at the body. Ashley gasped at what she saw, while John let out a long sigh in sadness.

"Ashley, watch the rear. Tyler, continue to watch the front," Jacob said as he kneeled down to inspect the body. For some reason, Jacob never had a hard time staying calm in these kinds of situations—death, blood, gore—it never really bothered him. At times, it made him feel somewhat like a sociopath, but he just didn't see the point of making a scene and freaking out, as it didn't do anything to help.

"You don't have to tell me twice," said Tyler as he walked a few yards forward to keep a lookout. At the same time, Ashley nodded while trying to hide her fear, though both Jacob and John knew she was terrified. Earlier in their discussions, Jacob had learned that John was about 26 years old, making him four years younger than Jacob. Tyler was much younger, at 18 years old, having just graduated from high school earlier this year. Ashley was a year older than him and was going to finish her college freshman year soon. This made Jacob the oldest in the group, which made him feel somewhat responsible for these guys, though John seemed competent enough himself. Jacob and John inspected the body further."

"What do you think happened?"

"Well, it looks like she lost her head," Jacob responded.

"Obviously, that's a pretty clean cut on her neck, though," John said while pointing at the neck, which looked as if it were cut by something incredibly sharp.

"Looks like a blade to me; it could be human on human," Jacob said in an almost worrisome tone.

"Which, if that's the case, that's just fucked up."

"No kidding but look at those holes all over her body. It looks like she was punctured by something like horns or something," John said. The holes were about 1 inch in diameter and were deep.

"Honestly, it could be anything. We just can't afford to be complacent now. We've got to stay alert. I'm serious; pass the word to your brother and sister: no messing around. I don't want any of us going down like that. Better yet not going down at all," Jacob said with a serious tone, almost shocking himself. He instantly felt bad that he might be too harsh, but nonetheless, John moved without question, picking up that Jacob was dead serious and understood the gravity of the situation. This confirmed Jacob's own thoughts, and he stuck with being stoic. If it works, keep doing it. Simple.

John quickly ran to his siblings and gave them a more or less big brother talk, with a moral story of "Fuck around and find out, so don't mess around”. It was evident that Tyler and Ashley were indeed not planning to mess around. Jacob checked the decapitated body's pack as it was still on her back. There were all the potions and rations, which was no surprise, as it had only been about an hour since they set off. Jacob quickly shoved half into his pack and since it was getting full, he ran to John, who was now back in their ranger file, and shoved the other half into his pack.

"Take these; we will distribute them as needed," and John nodded in response.

Jacob took his place back in the rear. The four of them began to traverse deeper into the caverns. The stalagmites were getting larger the further they went, some of them standing close to five stories tall. Soon, the floor started to decline, indicating they were descending in depth.

Tyler was in the front, fully embracing the seriousness of the situation. It could also be said he was enjoying himself, feeling like he was playing commando. Tyler soon spotted a soccer ball-sized hole in one of the stalagmites. He quickly beckoned to the group. Jacob, again, asked Ashley to keep an eye on the rear and then approached Tyler as well as John, who was also coming over.

"There’s drag marks that look like blood around that hole," Tyler said.

"I see, good eye. Let’s get you back to the front and take security while John and I investigate this," Jacob instructed.

Tyler gave a nod and headed a few yards away to take position and provide security from the front. John and Jacob both took a closer look. Near the hole were clear drag marks with blood scattered around. Also, around the hole and along the trail of blood leading to it were hole-like punctures directly in the ground. They were similar to the holes found on the body they had spotted earlier but not as deeply punctured as the ones on the decapitated.

"Do you think these are tracks?" John asked while running his hands over the hole marks in the ground.

"If they are, then it must be a small creature to fit in that hole," Jacob replied.

"Good point. It reminds me of that one movie where those aliens would latch onto your face."

"Ugh, I hope that's not what we're dealing with." Suddenly, a scream from Tyler erupted. Jacob and John quickly turned to see Tyler swatting his axe at what looked like a giant roly-poly the size of soccer ball. They were dark, almost black in color, with legs ending in extremely sharp points. It wasn't just one of these creatures, but three of them. One was currently jumping at Tyler, while the other two were crawling down from stalagmites near him.

John immediately threw up a barrier around Tyler, creating a bubble with a diameter of 10 feet to protect his brother from impalement from the ball-sized creatures. The other two creatures noticed John, who had just casted the barrier, and immediately changed their attention to him.

"Tyler, I'll back you up. Protect John. Ashley, keep watching the rear and listen for a call-out if we need healing," Jacob ordered as he brought out his sword, wielding it with both hands and running to defend John from the two creatures closing in. Just as one was about to pounce on John's face, Jacob came down with a vertical swing, hitting the creature on its back and knocking it away.

"To your right!" John screamed as the other creature was about to land on Jacob's shoulder.

A blast of energy shot out from Tyler, who ignored the one he was previously trying to hit while moving back to join John. His body and eyes glowed a vibrant yellow as he activated Assailing Rush.

Assailing Rush – Ability – Rarity: Common: Your muscles pushed to the max; you charge to your foe with impending doom, increasing your next melee attack's damage. The ability is scaled off agility. The use of the ability applies a temporary cooldown. Cooldown time can be reduced based on Agility.

Tyler moved so quickly that he became a blur as he shot towards Jacob and John, his axe aimed towards the head of the beastly roly-poly. Right before it made contact, the creature turned into a perfect black ball, and Tyler's axe only knocked the body of the creature away, but it did leave some visual cracks on its shell.

"Their bodies are too damn hard. Ah, shit!" Tyler fell to the ground as the roly-poly he had been fighting earlier latched onto his leg. Its head was towards his knee, with the rest of the body hanging below. It embedded its legs into Tyler's calves. Tyler screamed in suffering on the ground. A crescent-shaped blade-like appendage emerged from the back end of the roly-poly, and using its rear abdomen, it swiped Tyler's foot clean off.

"Ah, fuck! John, help me!" Tyler cried out while still writhing in pain on the ground. John's vision turned red with rage upon seeing his little brother lose his foot. He took out his staff and, with all his strength, slammed it on the side of the roly-poly latched onto his brother. This knocked it off and caused the puncture wounds from the legs to tear even further on Tyler's leg.

The three roly-polys were now all gathered in a ball about 20-30 feet away.

"Ashley!" John yelled. She quickly ran over and placed her hands over Tyler's leg, emitting a green glow. Tyler's flesh began to wiggle and squirm, with his veins, membranes, and even bones slowly starting to regenerate. It appeared that Tyler's foot might be back in a few hours if she could keep up the healing.

"How do we kill these, Jacob?!" John screamed as the roly-polys began to unravel.

"Damn it!" Jacob looked over at the roly-polys, unsure of what to do.

"Guide, some help would be nice," Jacob said, sending a mental message.

A screen appeared in Jacob’s vision.

Identify Creature - Ashra Pillbug F – Level 3 – A bug born in the Caverns of Ashradul. With a hard durable shell, they are difficult to kill as they can quickly cover their soft underbelly.

"We have to hit their underbelly!" Jacob stated as he mentally thanked Guide as well. He had more questions about that identify ability, but now was not the time.

"Ashley, focus on Tyler. Jacob and I will watch over you as you heal him," John said, looking at Jacob. Jacob quickly gave him a nod and readied himself as the bugs were starting to move around again. Jacob grasped his sword with both hands again and faced the three bugs, with John slightly behind him and to his left, wielding his staff.

"We have to hit the underbelly before they ball up again." John responded with a nod.

The three bugs approached, one in the front with two on each side behind it. Quickly, the first one jumped up at Jacob. Jacob tried to stab its underbelly with his sword but completely missed as the bug landed on his left arm causing puncture wounds from its legs. The bug was unable to swipe its blade across his arm before John quickly knocked it off, sending it to the ground. Before the bug could roll up, Jacob came down with his sword, stabbing the bug in its underbelly, causing green blood to spray on both Jacob and John. Suddenly, the other two were in the air, about to land on Jacob. John hit one that was coming down towards Jacob's head, while Jacob tried to pull out his sword in time to intercept the other bug aiming for his side but was too slow. The bug latched onto his side, embedding its legs. A sharp pain caused Jacob to cry out in agony as a blade swiped through Jacob's lower midsection revealing organs. The pain caused Jacob to drop his sword. He quickly pulled out his dagger and wedged it between his side and the bug. The bug was too strong; he couldn't dislodge it just with his dagger. John couldn't help as the other one he hit was quick to recover and started trying to land on John. Jacob started to panic, knowing how much blood he was losing, and decided to make a bold move.

"Ahhh, FUCK IT!" Jacob screamed as he stabbed himself, angling the blade trying to avoid organs and stabbing into the underside of the bug. The bug released its legs and fell to the ground. Jacob quickly dropped to the ground, visibly pale due to blood loss.

"Time...to test... these potions."

Jacob mustered what strength he had left to quickly pull out a healing potion. He popped the top off and chugged it down. He immediately felt a warm surge through his body. He looked down at his gored-opened side from the blade of the Pillbug. Like Ashley’s healing, his flesh began to dance, intertwining and interweaving itself together. It worked much faster than Ashley's healing; it looked like his wound would be sealed back up in 10 or 20 minutes.

"John, I need some time for this potion to work."

"I've got this one!" John said as he kept swatting the bug down to the ground.

"Help!" Ashley yelled, as two more pill bugs were running down the stalagmites near Ashley and Tyler.

Panic overtook the whole group. Tyler was down, Jacob was down, Ashley was currently trying to heal Tyler, and John was already occupied. Thoughts raced through Jacob's mind as he tried to figure out what to do. Then it dawned on him.

"I'm an idiot," Jacob began laughing hysterically, as a red glow started to emit from his body, his spilt blood turning into a mist that swirled about him. He stood up, his eyes completely bloodshot, with pupils glowing a sanguine red. He stood with clenched fists and then furiously ran towards the two pill bugs approaching Ashley.

Ashley saw the two bugs coming down the stalagmite, not knowing what to do. She screamed for help, for soon she would either have to leave Tyler to die in an attempt to flee or try to fight the bugs herself. The two bugs jumped from the stalagmites. Ashley was unable to make a decision, frozen in fear, and now unable to move. Right before they were about to land, Jacob appeared in front of her with his arms and fists out towards the bugs. The two bugs landed on each of his fists, impaling him with their legs, wrapping themselves around his fists. But before they could swipe their blades, Jacob slammed his fists together, knuckle to knuckle. Causing his fists to burst through their undersides. A cascade of green and red blood sprayed into the air. Jacob fell back, completely drained from Fighter's Rage, with a slight smile on his face. His consciousness slipped.