Holy Land - Hell mine - ?

I've been running after Racheal for a while now while moving around carefully to not tip off my presence. The area is teeming with guards now since they got an intruder alert report. I'm struggling to suppress my panting from emitting more noise than it already is.

"Too much...running."

I might not be out of shape, but my body isn't built like an athlete, and my constitution is weak. Maybe I should take a breather… Wait, is that Racheal? Yeah, it is! She's sneaking past the guards and workers by sticking to the upper level. It is a pretty smart thing to do rather than blend in with the workers. I climb up to where Racheal is. Now that I'm up here, I don't need to worry about anyone seeing me as long as I don't bring any attention to myself.

I hug the wall since there isn't much ground up here. I'm just behind Racheal and it looks like she is having a bit of a hard time balancing herself while carrying that pickaxe. Before long, she loses her balance. I hurry her before she fell.

"Got you!" I quietly shout, feeling as though my arms went numb for a minute... "Hello, " I nervously greet as I desperately hold my grip on the ledge.

...

Racheal and I reached a platform on the higher level to take a brief break. Now that I think about it, I have no idea what to do now. I didn't have an actual plan, so to speak.

Racheal drags her axe around on the ground, carving something into the ground. She stops and points to the ground.

"I'm not going back," the writing on the ground says.

"Huh?"

She shoves the axe in front of me. She then writes something else on the floor.

"Aren't you here to take me back to the shelter?"

"Of course, it’s dangerous out here."

She shakes her head, carving something else into the ground.

"It doesn't matter! I won't go back."

"Why not?"

Racheal makes a break for it without answering me. I grab her arm before she could get far. She is struggling to get out of my grasp but I am not letting up.

"Calm down! I have no idea where you want to go, but I know it's dangerous to go by yourself. How about you tell me what're you going to do, I might be able to help."

She immediately settles down, so I let go of her arm. Once again, she writes on the floor with her axe.

"Why do you want to help me? All the others wouldn’t listen to me when I asked them?"

"Well, I don't know what you mean, and to be honest, this is all going a little bit too fast for me. But, I know that I want to help, so, can you tell me why you left the shelter? I promise to hear you out."

Racheal looks to her feet. I smiled at her, reassuring her ‌I won't dismiss her.

"I left the shelter to go find my dad."

"Your dad?"

"I know when people are put out, they aren't killed; the guards said so. I heard them say it!"

That doesn't sit well with me.

"Listen, I don't think you want to get your hopes up."

"Why not?"

"I just think..." My hands tremble as I pause mid-sentence. "...You might not want to get your hopes up."

I don't wanna say it, but it's better to say the truth than someone getting hurt. I'm sure Proxy would agree. But I don’t want to crush her spirits. The resolution in her is strong, so no matter what I say she might not listen. She picks up her axe and begins walking off.

"W-where are you going?" I stutter.

She says nothing and just keeps moving on. Damnit, if she goes on her own, she'll most definitely run into trouble. I have to stop her… Or maybe not.

"Wait!" I plead. "I know ‌I can't change your mind, but if I can't do that, then let me help you!" Racheal turns her head, surprise written on her face by my offer to aid her. "Like I said: if I can, I would help."

I wasn't planning on going anywhere else in this place without Proxy, but I guess I have no choice. Even if I drag her back, we would need to go back down the way we came from to sneak by the guards, and I'm pretty sure she wouldn't make that easy. So, I might as well try to aid her.

"Are you sure?" she ends with a question mark.

"I'm sure."

"Then, Don't make too much sound, don't go too far from me. Also..."

Now I’m being treated like a pet in the park. Well, it beats fighting, and I sure as hell don’t want to go through that again.

...

Running around looking for Richard isn't as easy as I want it to be, but nobody said anything about this would be easy. There are guards deeper in that are packing sharper-looking weapons and actual armor than the ones from before, so fighting them all at once sounds cool, but it would suck to get overrun by them. Plus, I need to prioritize my obligations.

"Hm, this mine sure is big. Wonder what would happen if someone tried to level this place?"

Nah, that isn’t possible. For one, you’d have to have some strong ass explosives to do something like that, and I sure as shit don’t want to be buried underground.

"Huh?"

In the corner of my eye, something moves toward me. A set of carts on a single track. It might be a good idea to see where they would lead me somewhere if I follow the track. And I always wanted to ride a cart when I was a kid, but that was a go-kart. I hop into a cart, now, time to enjoy the ride. Something is pressing against the lower part of my back. I pick it up to see that it's a crystal, some nice sparkly ones too. Well, I don't see the harm in taking a few of them.

I've been on the cart for a while now. It hasn't gone down or up, still going on the same height with little change. It's getting pretty boring. I look up to see that the cart in front of me, halted. My cart makes a collision with the one ahead of me, rocking me a little. I jump out since this is the end of the line. The carts are going down a sloop. I carefully followed behind, moving into a cramped tunnel. It leads into a well-lit area with more lights and wires running through them. It's a large circular area. There are tons of guards, some rocking swords on their backs, while others don’t have any and are wearing light armor.

"Here comes the next batch of materials,” one of them announces.

"Okay, hurry ‌and load these into the truck!"

They take out the materials from the cart, crystals, metal, and other ores. More carts come out in droves behind me. I move to the side to make as much room in the cramped tunnel. Some of the carts are holding more materials than others. All of them go down the sloop, being stopped by a rail buffer.

"Cart twelve is lacking in materials," one worker states. "Who were the ones with this cart?"

"No idea, gonna have to report this‌."

"I feel bad doing that."

"Yeah, well, it's either their ass or ours that's gonna be in the hot seat. Let's just load them up."

They’re loading them into a small truck. Not as modern in design, but like an older, militaristic version of a truck. More trucks come out of the hole next to me. Better get out of here before I'm spotted. From the uphill tracks, I scale down the hill, grasping whatever I can.

"Did you see the warden today?"

A voice echoes from a large man-made hole right next to me. I hug up the wall, lowering my breathing.

"No, why?"

"The guy is really breathing down our necks today, and he's making us load twice as much stuff. Honestly, it's a real pain!"

"Well, we could still be digging up this stuff, like the others."

"Guess you have a point."

"I also heard the guards are on high alert right now for two intruders."

"Seriously? Why don't they tighten security up at the entrance to mine?"

"Cause getting in is easy, but trying to steal anything from here and then getting out is harder. The warden knows how many of them there are and where they are every single time. It's child's play to him."

"How does he know?"

"I don't know. Maybe he just uses the workers?"

"You think he knows we're talking about him?"

"Of course not, if he did I would've been gone a long time ago..."

So the warden can find out how many intruders there are and where they are? Is he using the workers? So far nobody spotted me, so I guess it's whatever. As they continue talking, I slip past them and enter the tunnel that they came from. It is a dimly lit narrow hallway with wires running from the lights. Running through the hall, the rocky floor and walls are being replaced with steel plating.

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By the judge of this place, I'm betting that this is an area for guards only. If that's the case, then I'm getting closer to the goal. Albeit, I am probably going in the wrong way to find Richard.

"Hm?"

Footsteps are coming from the left-corner turn of the hallway. I back up to the wall near the corner, waiting for the person to come closer… Now! I grab their arm and slam them against the wall.

"Who the--!?"

He tries to pull out a weapon but I grab his other arm and twisted it. He lets out a shrill, girlish scream.

"It's kind of rude to draw weapons on people, and unfortunately, I'm kind of rude myself."

"Ow, that hurts!"

"That's the idea, genius," I remark.

"Well, stop it, or else the warden won't be pleased!"

"Huh? How so?"

A pretty bold claim from a regular grunt.

"Because I'm second in charge of this place, and the warden values me greatly; in fact, you could say I'm the only one he relies on the most." If he's the second in charge, that means I just hit the jackpot.

"Hey, wanna do me a favor?"

"Why should I?"

"Because helping a child in need is the right thing to do. Plus, if you don't, I'll snap your arm like a twig. So you know, no pressure."

"You don't scare me!"

Seriously guy, I see you lying through your teeth.

"Man, don't lie, just do the smart thing that doesn't with your arm being popped out of place."

Sweat begins rolling down his face.

"You won't hurt me?"

"Not if you help me."

"Fine, I'll help you."

"Good."

I let him go and point my sword toward his back.

"Alright, we're gonna go for the warden, no sudden movements or signaling, or any type of resistance. I don't think I have to tell you what happens if go against any of those rules."

The guy desperately nods. We walk down the halls, my sword pointing to his back. He’s gonna lead me to the big boss around this place, then I'm gonna beat the crap out of him, simple stuff. Maybe then finding Richard will be easy.

Hell Mine - Lower depth - ?

We had been sneaking around the mine for a while now. The security was hard to sneak past as we kept going in deeper. I'm growing exhausted. The few times we nearly spotted did a number on me as well.

"Hey, can we stop here? I'm spent."

"If you can't keep going, then I'll go by myself."

"Just wait a moment. You must be tired as well. If you go on without proper rest then you'll collapse again."

"I'll be fine."

"What if you fell asleep while near guys? Wouldn't be very good, would it?"

She bitterly stares at me. Guess she knows I have a point. She points towards a cave on the side of the path we're walking on. Looks like it's been abandoned. They probably couldn't find anything in there. We decide to take a quick break inside. I take a seat on the ground. Racheal is wiping down her pickaxe. Seems like she’s having trouble.

"Is something not coming off?" She bobs her head. "Let me see that." I take out a bottle of lens cleaner. She is hesitant about giving me the axe. "Don't worry, I won't break it."

She is still hesitant to give it to me, but ‌she gives it to me. I open the cap to the lens cleaner, poured some of the liquid on the axe, then cleaned it off with my hand.

"What's this?" There’s something written on it, "Hammer on for the future".

Sounded pretty cool. I give the pickaxe back to Racheal. She then goes over to her wall, hugging the axe as if she'll lose it if she lets go. Must be important to her. I take out the white card from my chest pocket. I gaze off at it, getting lost in the pure color. It's odd, when I look into it, it feels as though there's more to it than just a blank feature; like there is a hidden presence to it.

A light tap on my shoulder drags me out of my daze. Racheal is pointing at my card.

"I got it from my mother when I was a kid. It's a pretty important gift from her, so I keep it with me no matter where I go."

She then points to my deck box.

"These, well..."

I take out my deck and showed her the cards.

"What are they?"

"They're cards, you know, to play games with."

"Are they fun games?"

"Yeah, they're fun. I play with Proxy all the time - the other guy I came with."

"How many times did you win against him?"

It would be hard-pressed to say I beat him to the point of oblivion.

"A bunch of times, but he won some games..."

"Can we play?"

"Right now? I mean, is it okay? Don't the guards come through here?"

"It's okay, we can stop here for now. Security is more relaxed at night."

"How do you know it's night?"

"It gets a bit cooler in the mine at night."

Come to think of it, it is kind of cooler in here.

"I guess it's okay then."

I take out another deck box. It is a simple put-together deck and so was mine. It would be overkill if I used the current meta on her, let alone Proxy.

"I think we should play one game at least."

Racheal respectfully nods.

When we began the game, I taught her the rules of the game. I was also trying to take it easy on her ‌to not make it a one-sided game. It's been quite a while since I played a card game against anyone else besides Proxy. In the end, I won. Racheal pouts from her loss, but she tries to hide it.

"Um, sorry, I guess I went a bit too hard in this game."

"You're too good at this game!"

"Not really."

"It's because you already know the rules, not fair."

"True, wanna play again?"

"...What's the point of trying if you're gonna win, anyway?"

I put the deck in my hands, rotating it to face forward.

"I don't think it matters if you know if you'll win or lose. Yeah, people don't like losing, but do you know why it doesn't matter for games like these?"

"Why"

"Because in the end, you had fun. So whether you win or lose, you should just try to enjoy yourself."

I forgot that feeling for a while. There was a time when living felt painful, where my ability to read people just overwhelmed me, and coupled with my mother’s death, being happy was the last thing I ever felt. Back then, all I wanted was to be left alone, moving through life with little to no human interaction. But Proxy crushed that plan to pieces. At first, it annoyed me, but after a while, he just destroyed that shell of mine. If it weren’t for him, I’d be a miserable mess.

Racheal looks at me, curiosity filling her eye. She then gazes at the card on the rock.

"Can we play again?"

"Sure, let's go again!"

I shuffle the decks up and placed them on the rock again. We played several games. She was getting used to the game the more we kept going. She nearly had me on the ropes a few times. Overall, this was a pretty fun way to pass the time. It kind of reminded me of those times. . .

"Can I ask about your dad? I mean, if it's okay with you?"

"Like what?"

"What he's like?"

“My dad is kind, respectful, strong, and was an outstanding role model for everyone."

"So everyone knew who he was?"

"Yes, he was the one who secretly made the shelter and rescued anyone who was about to be put out."

"Ah, so he was heroic."

"But I don't care for that. I loved my papa, he gave me hope, and he used to tell me about the outside world; how the day has a bright light up above."

"That's the sun."

"I know that. Oh, he also told me how the night has a giant blue thing."

"That's the moon."

"I know that!"

"Sorry, sorry," I apologized as I chuckled.

"He would always tell me that someday, we would all leave the mine together!" Her expression seeps into her writing as it seemed more upbeat and cheerful, matching the smile on her face. Only for that to disappear and be replaced by a more somber expression. "...But then he was taken from me, and for no reason at all! And I was..."

I grab her hand, preventing her from writing anymore.

"It's okay. I don't want you to tell me. I don't want you to relive those painful moments. That's something I wish nobody has to do."

I know that pain. It is an old pain, but it was a pain looming in the mind, and I hate the hell out of it! Racheal nudges me. I'm still holding onto her hand. I take mine off immediately.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hold your hand!"

Man, I sounded like a dork. Racheal appears baffled by what was wrong. I guess I'm in the clear.

"But can I ask you now?"

"Ask about what?"

"About your family. . ."

An icy shiver goes through my whole body, almost as if the temperature in the cave dropped to below zero.

"Oh, well. . ."

Maybe I should lie about it… No, having her remember her painful memories doesn't seem fair. I let out a reluctant sigh. This is not gonna be fun.

"My family was okay, nothing too perfect or below average. I was happy with how we were. That was until my mom got sick." I cross my hands and lowered my head. "My dad became distant, colder even. He started leaving home more and more, looking at me and my brother like we weren't even people or his sons anymore. It got so bad that he would leave for an entire month without calling us to let us know where he was at. After four months of this, he vanished."

Nobody could find him, or get ahold of him. He just fell off the radar.

"You have a brother?"

"Yeah, an older one. He and I don't get along nowadays and we rarely talk to each other."

He does send me money every month as an allowance, but that's the extent of it. To be honest, I don’t even know if I want to talk to him. It’s not like I have a good reason though, it’s just…after all the time we spent away from each other, I don’t know if he would even care to speak with me.

I notice Racheal's expression. It's pain-filled. She must pity me. Damnit, why does it feel so weird?

"But you know, there was a time when me and my brother were pretty close. We used to play card games together as well. Of course, he would beat me all the time, even when I got better at the games. But I didn't mind though. I just always wanted to play with him, even if I knew I would lose."

Nostalgia overtakes me, reminiscing about those times is nice. They were times I wish I could relive, times I wish were eternal. But those times are never coming back and thinking about them - while nice - is painful for that very reason.

"I'm sorry," Racheal carves into the ground.

"What for?"

"I made you sad."

"How?"

"I made you talk about your family."

"No, you didn't make me."

"Really?"

"Really, I wanted to because you told me all about your dad. It probably made you sad because he isn't here."

"It's okay, I won't be sad. My papa told me that as long as I stay strong, then everything will be all right. So I won't cry or be sad!"

Those words coming from her strike a chord in me. Even if I couldn't hear them, I feel their emotions like I would if she were speaking. I know it's vague, but for the longest time now, I could always sense the meaning behind someone's words or their true emotions behind them, no matter how hard they tried to hide them. It's not that I practiced this, it's like a sixth sense. The only time this never worked was when I spoke to my brother, father, mother, or Proxy. Lauren as well, but that's because she's blunt about things and rarely holds emotions behind her words.

"So I don't want you to be sad either!"

She's right, there's no point in me acting this way. I need to focus on the here and now. Agonizing what I don’t have now isn’t going to fix anything. Luckily, I’m good at drowning the past.

"You're right. Thanks for the pep talk, Racheal. Your dad sounds like a great man."

"He's the best in the whole wide world!"

I can't relate to it but feel happy for her. There was a time when I would've despised it, or become jealous of her, but it is behind me. Besides, I don't need one. Proxy helped with that. While he isn't a role model, I couldn't help but have fun and forget my worries with him around. So really, I'm just glad to be his friend. Speaking of Proxy, I wonder where he is now?

...

A gigantic, burly man is sitting on a chair, watching, listening, and waiting for his prey to come to him. The room he occupies is air-conditioned and all-white. A chrome metallic case leans against the wall. Left untouched, with no scratches, burn marks, or anything to show that the workers tried to open it. The gigantic figure chuckles to himself as he watches on.

"Let the rats run around in the maze. Eventually, they'll come to me."