A cave black as midnight surrounded him. The only light was a pool of neon orange lava that kept his arm submerged up to his shoulder and deep in agony. Searing pain held his incinerated arm. Icy blue centipedes swarmed out of the lava encompassing his body, biting and chewing and freezing him. Slowly they burrowed down into the lava onto his arm. Their bites stung yet each one reduced the blistering pain of the lava.

He screamed.

Then he awoke, panting loudly. Something around him trapped the sound of his labored breath. The world was black, but his arm no longer burned. He wore some kind of suit. His right arm was sore. He felt his right shoulder with his left hand. It was tender, like from a wound, but he could move it with some minimal ache. It still hurt from the bites of the centipedes. How could dreamt up centipedes bite him? He tried to move his right hand, but it resisted. Something was taped in it. It was round, like a cylinder. It was familiar...a flashlight!

He flipped it on. Above him was an uneven, rocky ceiling. He tried to sit up, but as he did his head pulsed with pain. He eased himself back down and slowed his breathing trying to remain calm and focused. Where was he? How could he not remember? Why was he wearing this cumbersome suit?

“Hello? Is anyone there?”

No response.

He searched the room as best he could while prone by scanning the ceiling with the flashlight but only saw rocks and no sign of anyone.

He needed more information. Screw it. He forced himself up, the pounding in his head be damned. Once upright he kept his eyes closed and the pounding turned into a mild thump. He could manage that. He opened his eyes but found only more rock. He couldn’t recall ever seeing rock tinted purple like this. He looked down at his hands. The flashlight duct taped to his hand was also tinted purple. No, it was his visor. It was covered in purple blood. How did he know it was blood? Not his though. His blood was...red. Yes, red. What about the word ‘red’ was so interesting?

His other hand had a gauge on it. It read 110F/43C. That was hot, which would explain the suit. Right, he still needed more information. He needed to stand up and look around. He used a rock to his left to hoist himself up. His legs shook. His right knee throbbed, but he didn’t fall.

Now he had a better vantage of the room. Still nothing but reddish-purple rocks. To his left, a tunnel of sorts. To his right, a wall of rock, but it had something on it. A symbol. He moved closer. Someone had scraped an arrow in white chalk pointing up. His flashlight revealed a landing some two stories above him.

There’s no way he could climb that. It was a sheer face with no foot holes or spots to grab. The tunnel he could manage. He took a few steps to the tunnel and found a huge arrow pointing back from where he had come. Damn it.

He turned to the rock face and scanned it with his light trying to find a way up. To the left, a pile of loose fallen rocks offered his best bet. Could he do this? He could barely stand, let alone climb. Did he have a choice? He could wait, but would his condition improve?

Fuck it.

He scanned one more time trying to find an easier route up, but the pile of loose rock was his still his best option. If he did this right, he could scramble most of the way, only having to truly climb the last bit.

At first the going was easy. He used his legs and hands to dig into the pebbles and stones packed together. Once he was a full story in the air, the hand holds became scarce and he saw several spots someone had slipped before him. Was that him? Did he fall already trying to get out of here? It didn’t matter, he had to proceed. He would have to trust the chalk signs. They just felt right.

He reached for a rock, getting purchase with his good left hand and as he did, the free gravel below his feet let loose. His body slipped out and he slammed into the wall. But his grip held. He was strong. Really strong. That was good.

He scrambled to his feet to find a grip and secure his spot. A fall from that height could have broken something. Okay. He could do this. He spied two more solid hand holds and places for his feet, but he would have to steady himself with his bad shoulder. That was going to hurt.

“Don’t think about it, just do it!” He yelled.

Like a three-legged spider, he executed his planned movements scurrying up the cliff face. And with one agonizing pull of his bad arm, he reached the top. He fell to his back, panting.

He had made it. Where had he made it to? Who knows. But he had.

After letting the pain slowly subside, he sat up. In front of him, an uneven and crooked passageway slowly descended. He stepped gingerly but maintained a constant pace. Every few minutes he found an arrow chalked into a conspicuous spot comforting him that he was pointed in the right direction, even if he had no idea where that was. The ache in his head didn’t diminish, but it was tolerable, as long as he didn’t move too quickly. The gradual descent also helped keep his pulse and the throbbing down.

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

After a few tight spots and a few large boulders he had to scale, he came to a fork. No sign provided him with an indication of which way to go. Why would someone mark every step along the way only to leave a fork with no clear indication of which way to go?

Hands grabbed his shoulder. He spun to find a plump man wearing a silver suit like his, stained in purple. Through the dimmed mask the man’s mouth moved, but he couldn’t hear what the man said. He looked happy? Surprised?

The man ripped his helmet off. Faint words could be heard through the mask. The temperature gauge said 101F/38C. That didn’t seem too hot and so he took the helmet off.

“Red! You made it!”

The man’s voice was...familiar. Was his own name Red? Who was this man standing in front of him? Why did he want to punch the man so badly? Red’s fingers curled into a fist. No. Punching him was a bad idea. He needed more information first.

The man threw a bag off his shoulder and hugged Red. This felt so wrong, Red shook it off. “What happened?”

“Look at your helmet.” The man pointed to the helmet in Red’s hand. It had a spiderweb of cracks across the top. “You were out cold from the cave in. I dragged your heavy-ass carcass as far as I could, but there was no way I was getting you up that cliff face without ESH. I gave you the only medicine I had and left you some directions on which way to go.” An irritating smile crossed his pig-like face. “Obviously, it was enough. So, you’re welcome.”

Instincts took over and Red slapped him hard. Why had he done that? Why did it feel so good? Like really good! Well, it was best to go with your instincts. “I think you deserved that.”

The man scowled. “You know I saved your ungrateful ass. I could have just left you. Did I? No. Oh, and here.” The man unfastened a belt from his waist and threw a sheathed sword at Red. “Take your damn sword, it’s too heavy to be dragging around. Plus, no more creepy crawlies here.”

Creepy crawlies. Those were centipedes. Big centipedes. Red strapped the sword around his waist and felt the first sense of safety since he awoke in that cave alone. “Thank you for saving me.” The words came out almost involuntarily. He had meant it but hated saying it. Weird.

The man gasped. “Did you...just...thank...me?” He held a hand over his mouth. “Did you hear that universe? Red has officially thanked Reggie.” He dropped to a knee and put a hand to the ground. “Oh shit, and I’m pretty sure Hell isn’t freezing over either. I’ll be damned. Well Red, you are very welcome. Now let’s get this love fest on the road. Here.” Reggie dropped one of the two bags he had strapped on his shoulder. “I’m tired of carrying your crap.”

Red picked up the bag but stumbled as he did.

“Oh,” Reggie said with disgust in his voice. “I should have known. It all makes sense now. You’re still concussed.” Reggie grabbed the bag he had just dropped. “Come on. I’ll carry it for now.” Reggie grabbed his helmet. “Put your helmet back on. It’ll keep you cool. Another mile or so and we’ll be able to make camp and strip out of these suits for good.”

After a long and boring hike that thankfully continued to descend, they were able to stop and remove their thermal suits. They had found a pool of water and apparently a rest stop Reggie had known about. The ground and air were still warm, but the suits were no longer necessary.

Reggie checked the wound in Red’s shoulder. He had applied a bandage while Red was still unconscious and that had, according to Reggie, prevented him from bleeding out.

Red drank greedily from his canteen now that they could replenish it. The minerally water soothed his dry throat and calmed him. He found a soft patch of dirt and sat down, resting his back against a flat rock. Reggie handed him a bag of dried fruit and nuts.

Red shoveled them into his mouth. He was tired, really tired.

“Here.” Reggie dug through the duffle bag and tossed Red another pack. “You look like you need it.”

Red caught and devoured the contents of that bag as well. Dried nuts and fruit never tasted so good.

Reggie sat across from Red, his back against his own rock. He nibbled on his own bag staring at Red but not saying anything. Was he still mad because of the slap?

After finishing his own bag, Reggie finally said, “Why are you still so angry with me after all these years?”

Why was he? Red studied Reggie’s face. He felt abandoned. Betrayed? Angry? Reggie had done something to betray their friendship. A deep friendship that had lasted over a hundred years? Wait, how old was Red?

Reggie shook his head. “Forget it. I forgot I’m talking to a mental patient.”

“You left,” Red said, surprised at his own words. It started to come back to him. Reggie had left the Wrecht Order. The war was almost over. They were closing in on the last remaining members of the Sovereign Sect. Reggie’s intelligence gathering had been crucial to the effort. But he had left before Goblin Valley. A chill made Red shiver. That horrible place.

Reggie stowed his garbage into the duffle bag. “You’re damn right I did. Mistress Kreeg had become unhinged. Do you know how many people she killed to find those Sovs? How many people she interrogated? I had enough blood on my hands to last two lifetimes. I don’t care how awful the Sovs were. I wasn’t doing it anymore.” Reggie sighed and positioned himself with his back against the duffle bag. “Lisa said she was going to leave too, after the war ended. I told her I couldn’t wait. I couldn’t do it any longer. She said you wouldn’t understand. And of course she was right. But I never figured you would hold it against me for so long.”

It all rushed back at him. The pain. The rage. The loss. The tears. “If you had been there, none of this would have happened. We’d have gotten the bastard.” There, he said it. All this time and he’d never said it out loud before. He blamed Reggie for this whole mess.

“That is what this has always been about?” Reggie’s voice tightened. “You can’t blame me for the Warlock of Stonehenge’s actions! I didn’t enslave Lisa! I’m not the one that tortured her for years trying to break the hold he put on her! You did that. You were the one who forced her to go through those countless experiments. You did. Not me. So don’t put that shit pile of guilt on me.”

“No, but if you hadn’t abandoned us right before the most critical fight of the ages, we’d have had another mage by our side. Another chance to stop him.”

“Maybe! Or maybe I'd be a mindless fucking Sov!”

Fucking Reggie. But he was right. And it tore at Red so bad. He swallowed, but the gnawing pain in his chest remained. He had done what he had done for her. But the result never changed. She had suffered and remained a grey-eyed freak. “I’m going to get some shut eye.”

Reggie didn’t respond.

Red drew his knees close to his chest and wrapped his arms around them as if he could squeeze himself until the pain left but that hurt wouldn’t end until he found Lisa and freed her. Even with an aching heart, sore shoulder and throbbing head merciful sleep found Red before long and he drifted off hoping for a less painful tomorrow.