Hell Mine - ?

Tracking down Richard is harder than I thought. It would've been harder without the words I found on the floor and walls. They are all over the path I’m going down; couldn't go five seconds without seeing words all over the place. They were talking about security further down this road. I guess the person carving this knew that nobody would probably come this way. Along the way, I had no choice but to fight workers. I did my best to knock them out in one hit. While I did so, I still feel bad about doing it.

"What do we have here?" I ask myself. There’s a double metal door. It seems impenetrable, from what I can tell. There is no door handle to use, so how the hell am I gonna… Wait, the edge of the door is bent outward. There are also marks on the floor to prove that it was open at one point. Someone probably forced it open. The question now is: how am I going to open it? If they used something to open it, then maybe I should use my sword? Yeah, why not? I jam my sword into the gap. This should work since I’m strong enough. It opens wide enough to squeeze through. Exiting the other side, I’m on an elevated platform, with stairs at the other end. I approach it to see what’s beyond.

"Never wanted to say this. But this is epic."

I climb down the long flight of stairs. The atmosphere is way different from the mine, and the lightning hit my eye as they were getting accustomed to the dark.

"This place is amazing!"

The buildings, streets, and even street lamps have a Victorian-era aesthetic. It’s making me feel as if I’m in one of those reimaginings of a village from that time. This place is incredible! The streets, the buildings, even the street lamps, they’re all perfect! But I don't have any time to be screwing around here. As I roam around, something metallic is being dragged on the floor. The sound is getting closer to where I was.

"Hey, who's there?"

The metallic object stops. The silence holds a sense of danger to it, something that my senses picked up. A sense kicks in. It tells me that a dangerous attack is coming my way and how it’s coming. I roll to my left, out of my attacker's range. This wouldn't be the first time I acted on this instinct. It’s been like this since I was a kid, and it got me out of trouble more times than I can count. My attacker is wearing a bag over their face, a ragged coat that is all cut up, and pants that are just as torn.

"Wow, I get to fight a horror movie reject, and you have a bunch of knives as well. That definitely gives you bonus points."

The reject didn't bother to talk back to me. Instead, he comes swinging his knife at me. I duck in response. I’d roll away from the enemy ordinarily, but the way he’s swinging is too perfect to just run away from. His balance is out of whack whenever he swings like that. So before I lose my chance, I need to hit him. I sweep his legs, making him fall backward. He tries to stop himself, but I won’t let him. I follow up by drop-kicking him. All that’s left is to pin him to the ground. I grab his gangly arm and wrapped my legs around him. As a last measure, I kick the knife away.

"Thought you were big because you had a weapon, right? Well, newsflash, I'm used to dealing with opponents who have weapons!"

Time to say bye, bye to the arm! Hm? What is he…?

His upper body rises despite being pinned down. And despite the weight difference on his left, he stands up perfectly. How the hell is he doing this!? He flings me off of his arm. I skip across the ground until I hit a wall. My shoulder feels like hell after impact, and my back is killing me.

"Shit, well that was different.”

I get up from the floor. Drawing the stone sword from my scabbard, I rush the masked freak. I strike at his legs, and bring him down to my level. Then I strike at his side. With all this, this should be the T.K.O. for this dude. Despite that attempt, the guy got back up.

"What the hell? That should've put him down."

I’m starting to think that this thing isn't human. Maybe it is like the ones from the tower? If nothing I do to it is gonna hurt it, then... Shit, am I gonna have to run away from this fight? No, it would be a simple retreat. I'll fight this thing again when I have something better than a stone sword.

"See ya!" I retreat from the battle. Right when I run, it follows me. Its form is terrible, yet it’s still able to keep up.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit!"

I get this thing might be a monster and all, but he shouldn't be running with those legs! I know he didn't feel the pain, but I crushed the bone in them, that I'm sure of. More importantly, If I don't lose this guy soon, he'll definitely catch me. I turn the corner. There’s a busted-up shop. The face of it is in complete shambles. This might be the best spot to hide in. I head inside, hoping to find a hiding place. The clerk’s desk seems to be a good enough hiding spot. I jump behind the broken desk, aligning myself with the desk. It has been only a few seconds and I feel like it’s been longer than that. Is that thing still hot on my ass? Does it know where I am…? No, calm down, Proxy. Thinking like this will only make it worse. Calm down...

"Hm?"

There’s something gleaming under the rubble in front of me. I pull it out from under the rubble. It’s glasses. The black frames seem familiar. Plus, they're out of place here… Hold on a second.

"These glasses, they belong to..."

The back door next to the clerk’s desk slightly opens. I freeze in place, as if moving is going to get me caught instantly. I put my stone sword in front of me. The door opens more as it creaks. Someone pokes through the door; a little girl with a pickaxe. She seems quite familiar, but I can't tell where. Regardless of that, I crawl over to her to meet her at her level.

"Hey, is there a monster out there, wearing a bag over its head?" I quietly ask, hoping that freak isn't around to hear us. She shakes her head no. "Good, that's good." I let out a large breath of air, feeling relaxed. She points to my goggles. "Sorry, kid, they're not for sale."

I readjusted them over my head. She has this annoyed look on her face. She carves something into the door with her axe.

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"Your Richards's friend, right?"

How does she know Richard? Wait a second, I know where I saw her now. I saw her in the security cam footage earlier.

"Yeah, I am. Do you know where he's at, is he okay?"

"No, a monster took him."

Shit! This is bad, this really goddamn bad!

"Do you know where it took him?" She bobs her head no. "Damn it!" I got up from the floor. I'm not sure what they'll do to him. That big, nasty bastard is probably gonna use him to flush me out or some shit like that.

The little girl walks out through the door she came from.

"Hey, wait a minute. I still have questions for you. What were you two doing out here?" She uses her axe to carve words on the stone ground.

"We were looking for my dad. I was going to go alone, but he came along with me."

“Looking for your dad... Yep, sounds like him. Richard is too keen on helping people when he can. He might seem cowardly, but he’s a pretty reliable guy when it comes down to it."

The little girl's expression turns dower at the mention of Richard.

"Look, I'm gonna go save that idiot. Wanna team up?" She didn't respond, keeping her gaze on her feet. "Maybe that would be a bad idea. I mean, ‌if a kid can fight, then they can fight, but I feel as though bringing you would be bad. Besides, you have to find your dad, don't you?" She lightly nods yes. "Then I guess this is where we go our own ways."

I sheath the sword. "See you, and good luck looking for your dad."

I wave goodbye to her as I run down the stone path. Her small figure fades as I run further and further from her. Hope she’ll be okay on her own.

Suddenly, my sense warns me of something on the side, and that something springs from an alleyway next to me. It comes at me, hurling itself like a cannonball. The monster kicks me into a house. My back smashes against the wall. I focus my sight to see if it's the bag head monster. It’s already within stabbing range. I need to head right! I’ll still get hit, but it’s better than dying. Just as I’m about to go with my plan, something hits the monster, forcing it away to my right. Fire dances around its body, crackling as it burns its skin. A bone-chilling shriek comes out of that thing as it thrashes around to put out the flames.

"Come, quickly!" There is someone on the other end of the street. He's waving for me to move my ass. Staying here doesn't sound all that fun anyway. I make a run for it. That bag-headed freak isn't following me The mystery man leads us to an alleyway, yards away from that freaky monster. After a minute of running, we stopped in an alleyway. My breath ran short. I’m trying my best to draw in more. I usually have a high amount of stamina.

"Okay, I think we're safe for now," I spit out in between breaths. I wouldn't normally be exhausted from running, but I was running like a bat out of hell, so maybe that’s why I’m more exhausted than usual.

"Yes, we got away from that thing," the hooded man assures.

"So..." I reverse-grip my sword, distancing myself from the mystery man. "You don't look like a guard. You one of the warden's men?"

"Yes," he answers honestly.

"Wow, came out and said it. That's fine because I'm gonna-"

"I didn't come here to fight you. I came here to help you. If you don't believe me, then ask yourself, why did I save you? Wouldn't I have let you die if I really worked for the warden?"

I can't say he's lying, since he saved me from being skewered by a freak in a mask. Although, I can't let my guard down.

"How can I trust you? For all I know, you could be waiting to sneak a knife in my back, and I ‌mean that literally."

"I cannot make you believe me, but if you want to save your friend, I suggest you come with me."

He isn't making a case for why I should believe him. However, if he works under the Warden, then I'll be able to rescue Richard with his help...

"Fine, I'll go with you. Just don't stab me in the back and all that other stuff, okay?"

"I understand. To honor our cooperation, I am Ovan.”

“Proxy.”

“A pleasure. Now, let's move through the alleyways to avoid the monster."

"It's still alive?"

"It is injured, but it will recover and come after us. We must go now."

"Lead the way then."

Still don’t trust this dude, but if there’s even a chance to save my buddy, then I’ll have to take a chance and put a little trust in him. But if he tries it, then I’ll put the hurt on him.

Hell Mine - The Warden's room

My eyelids are struggling to open up, My face feels ‌sore, almost as if I was hit by a bullet train, or maybe rather, a brick.

"I see our guest is wakin’ up." Does he mean me? I can't see who’s talking about me, but a disturbing sensation backs his words. "How are ya feelin'? I told my friend not to hurt you, but I guess his thinkin' capabilities aren't that impressive." The voice has a southerner accent.

"Who...are you," I ask, too tired to say the words.

"I'm the warden of this fine mine."

The Warden!? If only I can see properly. I think my drowsiness is making a lasting effect on my sight. Wait, where are my glasses? I must’ve lost them in that store!

"Why do this? Why enslave people?" I ask of him, too weak to scream.

"I already went over this with yer friend. Ask him why." Proxy was here? "Now, I'm surprised that ya got captured by my giant friend instead of the workers since he has the brains of a rock. But hey, at least he follows my commands to the ‘T’."

"So that's why the workers attacked me?"

"That's right."

What a sick idea, using these people as his plaything. Even if I couldn’t read his words, I’d still feel disgusted just from listening to him.

My vision is clearing up. Little by little, I’m able to see what the warden looks like. It’s still murky, but I can tell he’s at least 6’7, and that he’s pretty wide. "Ya know, the reason I didn't kill you yet is for this."

"When you got here, this box started talkin'." That sounds like something you hear from a child's tv show. "It started spoutin' words that I couldn't understand, but I understood that it said it was going to open, but ya were unconscious. But now..."

When the warden snaps his fingers, the giant that knocked me out earlier comes near me with a chrome-colored box, planting it right in front of me. I feel a sudden connection being established. I have no idea what that means, but I know it’s happening.

"Source detected, initializing analysis for compatibility with the subject in case... Compatibility at 90%. Potential users status: conscious, acceptable result. Now opening."

The front of the case releases a loud click.

"Now this is what I've been waitin' for! Move it to the side!"

The giant moves the case to the side for both of us to see

Air steams out of the case, blowing in my face. Oddly enough, it has a nice feeling to it, coupled with a wonderful aroma. A powerful weapon is about to reveal itself and to be honest, I'm kind of nervous about this. What'll happen when this guy gets his hands on it? Better question: what will happen to me?

The lid stretches up until it finally hits the highest it can go. Whatever the weapon looks like, the steam covers it; the anticipation is killing me. The moment we see it, I’m a dead man. They’ll kill me without a second thought… Then, when the air cleared, we finally saw it.

"What... What the shit is this!?"

"Huh?"

The weapon...there is no weapon... It’s just a girl.