More than our kind lived down here.

Slowing my pace as I approached a pair of people… I forcefully calmed myself.

I had to. Since I was getting worried. It’s been nearly half an hour since I had delved into this maze of drainage tunnels. Half an hour of running around like a fool without anything to show for it.

The stink of non-humans was everywhere down here, and it made it impossible to narrow down the source. It was likely that they’ve been down here for decades, based off the way their scents were so overbearing and stable. How’d none of us ever notice?

To top it off these blasted sewers and drainage systems were joined with the old city. They merged and melded with each other, creating a labyrinth. Only further complicating my search.

But I had finally found people.

Or well… humans, at least.

The two were sitting down next to each other, covered in pelts and blankets. They had a small fire burning in front of them, which had been what had let me find them. I had smelled the burning fish being cooked upon it.

Least I hoped those were fish. I tried not to look too closely at them, since they seemed a little oddly shaped.

“What…?” a man’s voice entered my ears as I slowly approached the two.

“Who?” a woman’s voice. She sounded scared.

The two hurriedly stood, and I realized I wasn’t going to need to keep my anger in check.

These two were human. And old. Too old to be down here, in fact.

“Who are you?” the man asked worriedly. He sounded more than scared… he sounded expectant. As if he already knew I was a threat, but wasn’t able to do anything about it.

“My name is Vim. I’ve come down here in search of a family member,” I told them.

The small fire casted deep shadows on their weathered faces, but upon my words I was able to see the worry drain from their faces. The two looked at one another, and I noted the sad realization on their faces.

I must not be the first to have come down here saying such a thing.

“I see… you’re probably looking for those people down below then,” the man said.

“Below?” I asked.

He nodded, and he gestured for the old woman to sit back down. She did so slowly, and not because she was still worried. She simply couldn’t move too quickly. The old man made sure to wrap her back up in the pelts and blankets, which I now noted were… well…

Lacking, to say the least. They weren’t just old, but thin. Too thin for down here, in this cold.

“If you’re alone, son, I recommend not going down there. There’s quite a few of them… and they’re not… well…” the old man coughed as he stepped away from the woman, who was now bundled up. He stepped towards me, putting himself between her and myself.

“What route do I take to get there?” I asked him.

He frowned at me, in worry. The kind that told me he had just decided I was going to die.

“If I tell you, you’ll also get lost,” he said softly.

“My life is not yours to risk, old man. Do not spend a moment to worry over it,” I said gently.

He blinked, and then quickly looked behind him. I couldn’t see her, thanks to him being between us… but I knew he had just looked at the woman. Maybe for conformation.

“You’re an odd one… how did you know I didn’t want your death on my hands?” he asked after looking at me for a moment.

“You’re not the first elder to warn me against acting foolish. I promise you; even if I perish it shall not be your fault. I will go down there, whether you tell me how or not. All you will do by informing me of their location is save me a little time. Nothing more. The result will not change,” I said.

The old man gulped, and I hoped I didn’t say it too strangely. I could find them, given time… but Renn likely didn’t have time. I needed to find them now.

“Just show him, Paul. Maybe he’ll give you something for the trouble,” the woman said lightly.

Before Paul could say anything I dug out a few coins. I didn’t care their color or worth, and simply extended my hand to him.

“Damn…” Paul whispered at the sight of them, and I hoped it was just because of their value and not because I was forcing him to do something uncomfortable.

Paul shifted and then sighed. He nodded, and then pointed behind him. “This way, lad.”

I nodded and stepped forward, to join him… but before I did I stepped over to the woman.

Bending down, I put the coins on the ground in front of her. Since she was so bundled up, she’d not be able to easily get her hand out as to take them from me.

“Thank you,” she said, looking down at what was probably a fortune to her.

“Thank you,” I said back, and then went to follow Paul.

He walked quickly, but not quick enough for my taste. But there was nothing I could about it. Not only was he human… he was old.

“You’re not part of their group?” I asked him.

“Gods no. Most of us aren’t… really. But most don’t have a choice. You either bow or die,” he said as we walked down the dark hallway. Their fire slowly stopped being loud as we walked. The popping and crackling of the fire replaced by the sound of wet footsteps.

“Are they cruel?” I asked him.

“No more than the rest of the world is,” he said.

I nodded. That was an expected and standard viewpoint for one his age… and one in his position.

Rounding a corner, I noted the way he slowed a little each time we approached a new hallway.

He was worried about being seen or noticed. Likely by the ones he was leading me to.

It didn’t take long for him to lead me to a small stairwell. It was dark, and looked broken more than not. Parts of the steps were worn down and shattered, likely from years of flooding taking its toll.

Paul pointed down the stairwell. “If you take this down all the way to the bottom floor, and then take a right you’ll find them. Though… again… I suggest against it. If you go down there, son, you’ll never come back up,” Paul said with a stern voice. He sounded as if he was being cruel, but that was just his age. He was trying to be kind.

Stepping past Paul to the stairwell, I paused a moment and glanced at the old man. He looked defeated.

“When those coins run out, or it gets too cold, go to the Animalia Guild. Find a member and tell them that Vim sent you. They’ll at least make sure you two are fed, and have somewhere warm to sleep when needed,” I told him.

The old man’s eyes went wide, and it was obvious he didn’t know what to say.

Not waiting for the old man to find his nerve, I turned and headed down the stairs.

Hurrying down the small stairwell, I quickly realized the stink of not only non-humans… but something else was starting to grow thick in the air.

Stale air too.

It didn’t take long to reach the bottom of the stairs. It had descended three levels, and sure enough the bottom of the stairwell led to a small hallway. One that led left or right.

Heading right, as Paul had told me to, I picked up my pace.

The stagnant air made it clear. This definitely was their territory. Not only was the scent of non-humans much thicker… there were now smells of proof. Proof of people, and the society they created around them.

Food being cooked. Beds and bedding. Bathrooms. Oil from lamps. Dirty clothing. And…

Slowing down, I approached a large room. One that was illuminated by fire, and had voices echoing from within.

Rolling a shoulder, I took a small breath as I exited the hallway and entered the camp of my enemies.

The room was large. Large enough for little buildings to have been made within it. Shacks, made of wood and leather strips, lined the walls. Some looked empty and dark, while others were lit up by lamps and had shadows dancing within. I counted seven small buildings, but could tell there were more out of sight. Some were made in such a way they actually went into other hallways… maybe they turned entire sections of hallways into homes?

There were a few people, but most were sitting at tables. Eating. Drinking. Talking amongst each other without a worry in the world.

Although the shacks, and the tables and other things here, were all made seemingly from scraps and debris… This place wasn’t that dirty. It stunk, but only because there was no real ventilation. The air was stagnant, and full of old smells.

The people sitting at the closest table to me looked normal. At least, normal enough. A quick glance around didn’t show any non-human individuals… but I could smell them clearly. They were here, or at the very least frequented this area.

“Hm? Who is that?” Someone finally noticed me, but I ignored them and the looks I got as I walked through the…

What was this? A camp? An enclave? A commune of some sorts?

Maybe a slum…?

“Wait!” I slowed as a small figure ran out from between two shacks. The young boy laughed as a girl about his age, but a little taller, chased after him.

The two were so focused on their chasing of each other that neither noticed me as they ran by.

Watching the two kids run off towards a hallway, I looked away from them and to the adults starting to appear in greater numbers.

People were whispering and alerting each other to my presence. Not a surprise, since I wasn’t trying to hide, but what was surprising… well…

Everyone here was human.

As more people showed themselves, stepping out from their shacks or from hallways, it became clear that those I searched for weren’t here. Or at least, weren’t living here. Amongst these people.

Yet their smell was here. These people, and this location, stunk of those not human. So…

“Who’re you!” a man shouted at me. He had a short sword in his hand, but kept it lowered.

“Careful… look at him, he isn’t scared at all,” another man stepped up behind the one with a sword. He had a large hammer in his hand, the kind one used to hammer something large into the ground.

Looking away from the two, I glanced one last time around the area. It wasn’t too surprising to see so many people down here. The homeless needed to live somewhere too, after all. But what was shocking was how many different nationalities were down here.

There weren’t just the dirty blondes of the east, like Renn’s Lamp, but the red skinned southerners. A small family of them were staring at me from the safety of their shack’s oddly shaped window.

About to turn away, to head down a large hallway that had more people down it… I had to stop upon seeing someone I recognized.

Or well, what they wore at least.

The Animalia Guild insignia on her shoulder made me frown. Had she stolen it? But no. The woman was too clean, as was the bank uniform she was wearing. Too clean to have been something found or stolen.

A worker. An employee.

Living down here.

If this had been any other moment I would have approached her, to ask why she was down here. To find out the truth.

Yet I had more pressing matters.

“Stop! If you go that way…!” the man with the sword stepped forward as I went to head down the hallway.

Down the larger hallway, I could see more lights. More people. If Renn, and her kidnappers, weren’t here I simply needed to move on.

“Wait!” I paused as the man rushed forward, coming up to my right. He reached out to grab me by the arm, but I pulled my arm out of the way before he could. I stepped back to glare at him, expecting an attack.

Instead of attacking, he instead shook his head and put himself between me and the hallway.

“You can’t go down there,” he said harshly.

“And why not?” I asked.

He wasn’t that old. Maybe early twenties… but it was obvious he wasn’t healthy. He had a large frame, and looked like he worked manual labor, but it also looked like he was suffering from something. Maybe a drug addiction of some kind. He was oddly thin in certain areas, and fat in others.

Granted it might just be his lifestyle. Poor habitat, bad hygiene and a worse diet than either of those.

“That’s…” he hesitated a moment, and then seemed to gather his nerve. “That’s where bandits live!” he decided to say.

Bandits.

Sure.

“You’re the second man to try and save my life today. Take pride in it,” I said to the honest man.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

“What…?” he wasn’t sure what I meant, but I didn’t care. I stepped forward, only for the man to try and hold his ground.

He made sure to move his sword out of the way, so that it’d not touch me, as he held his hand out and tried to stop me. He pushed on my chest, and was shocked when I didn’t let him do so.

“Mark, careful!” Others behind me, a growing crowd, sounded worried as they warned the man trying to stop me from doing my duty. Others shouted their concern as well, and it seemed to only make him more determined. He dropped his sword, letting it fall to the stone ground in a way that it sounded as if it almost broke.

He put both his hands onto my chest and went to doing all he could to push me back and away from the hallway.

“Young man… Mark is it?” I asked him as I stepped forward, and his thin worn down leather shoes scrapped loudly as I pushed him forward too.

“Huh…?” he stopped struggling for a moment, to look up at me. After half a moment he looked back down, to renew his efforts in stopping me.

“Let me pass Mark. I have something I must do. Do not make this harder for me than it has to be,” I said to the man.

His pushing firmed up, and I paused so as to not break his arms. He had locked his elbows, and fixed his footing even more.

“They’ll kill you. They’re monsters,” he whispered as he strained himself.

Mark’s head was hung low, and he was breathing heavily. He was straining himself, and seemed… Distraught?

How many has this young man watched die for him to act like this?

That old man earlier too.

Were Fly's people such blights on this world? Were they that cruel to this community here?

Mark's arms were shaking, and I wondered if I should just knock him out. With him so tightly wound, and struggling like he was, a solid blow to his stomach would do it.

But could I do it without causing permanent harm? I could control my strength well, but this lad was definitely not healthy. What if even a minor blow caused organ damage or…

“Help Mark!”

Before I could make a choice more men came to his assistance. I turned as people went to grabbing me. Some grabbed my arms, others grabbed clothes. One of the larger men even wrapped his arms around my waist, as if to lift me and pull me away.

“The hell…?” the large man was the first to notice, as he put his whole back into it… and I didn’t budge.

Then others noticed, and slowly one by one they all stopped. Hands released me. People stepped away. The large man who had wrapped his arms around my waist had not only released me… but had run off. Heading down another smaller hallway between two larger shacks.

“Hm…” I nodded at the people staring at me with confused awe. A part of them were terrified, yet most seemed simply shocked. Confused. Amazed.

All but the young man, still trying to push me back.

“Mark. Let me pass,” I told the young man.

He shook his head.

Sighing I reached over and grabbed him by his shirt. In the back, near his collar. He fidgeted a moment, wondering what I was doing likely, but didn’t get to do much else. I hefted him off his feet, and his hands went from pushing on my chest to holding onto my shirt so that he’d not fall forward onto his face.

“What!” Mark panicked as I held him up, his thin clothing barely held his weight as I stared at the struggling man.

“You’ve reminded me that those who have the least are those willing to risk the most. You got a job, Mark?” I asked.

“A… a job…?” He sounded worried as I lowered him, letting him stand back on his own feet.

Letting go of his shirt, he stumbled back a little but remained standing. He was no longer confident, however.

“A job. Where do you work?” I asked.

“Oh… the docks…” he glanced past me, likely for help or guidance… but no one in the crowd seemed willing to aid him.

“Go to the Animalia Guild tomorrow. You work there now,” I said.

“Huh…” he nodded, even though I knew he hadn’t registered what I had said just yet.

Stepping past him, I patted the young man on the shoulder as I did.

Mark didn’t try to stop me this time, but he did step after me… and at first I worried he’d follow me. But he thankfully stopped after a few feet. “You’ll be okay, right sir?” he asked.

Waving lightly, I nodded. “No matter what you hear… stay away, Mark,” I warned him.

Heading down the hallway, I ignored the chatter from behind me. Their voices echoed wildly in the large hallway… mostly thanks to how empty it was.

Which was strange. Those other hallways had been used, and even the ones not being lived in had still been full of trash.

This one however was clean enough to almost be mistaken for a normal hallway, and not something that existed in a sewer.

“Who cleaned it, Mark and his people or the non humans, though?” I asked myself as I picked up my pace.

Down the hallway, near its end… were more lights. Flickers of lamplight and… by the smell, a fire too.

I didn’t need to worry over the ones I approached being actual bandits, as Mark had tried to warn me.

The smell alone told me the truth…

And…

Slowing, I sized up the tall man who stepped out into the hallway from a recess. He slumbered upward, standing up to his full height. A height that was impossible for a human.

“You humans should know better,” he spoke with a deep voice… one that was accompanied by a lisp.

I frowned at the man who had a strangely flat face. He was dressed in dirty rags… and looked…

“Some kind of lizard, maybe,” I said as I stared at his pupils and nose. His eyes were bulging outward a little, but that might have been just because of how flat his face was… and…

That inward snout. It was like a lizards, and not just because it was covered in dark scales.

“Lizard? Me…?” the man nearly hissed at me as he lowered his head and shoulders… and began to shake.

Shake in anger.

“Was just an assumption,” I politely said.

“I’m no ass either!” he shouted, and then charged forward.

“Tch…” I shifted to my right, closer to the wall as he ran at me. I felt a little bad for using a word he hadn’t known… but I wasn’t in the mood to correct his misunderstanding, nor try and explain myself to him.

After all…

He extended his hands outward, and in the dark hallway his claws glistened as he attacked. He leapt at me, swinging his claws towards my stomach… as to disembowel me.

An attack that was far more than just real. It was something he had obviously done many times. He was proficient at it. An expert, almost.

If he had my strength or speed, it would have been dangerous.

Before his claws reached my stomach, I spun on a heel and kicked the man in the head.

Thanks to how he had lowered his body as to attack in his rush forward, like a tackle, it was easy. My knee hit his arms, and claws. The top of my foot connected with his head, on the side of his flat face…

Then, before he even realized I had kicked him… I followed through with the kick, and sent his head into the wall.

The stone wall crunched more than his head did, and he groaned as I pulled my leg back and stepped back… to watch as he fell to his knees.

However he didn’t fully fall to the ground. His head was stuck in the wall. Thanks to his height, he was able to simply fall to his knees and sit on them, leaning up against the wall.

Was he dead…? He had groaned, but…

One of his hands twitched, yet the rest of him remained still.

Sighing I stepped away from the wall and the man and returned to heading down the hallway.

Pausing before the recess he had emerged from, I stared at the person hiding within it.

“You killed him?” she asked. She was curled up against the wall… behind the chairs that they had likely been sitting on.

Why were they sitting in the dark in this hallway? Guards maybe? There were boxes, and other items in the recess… but nothing too important.

“I’m not sure,” I said honestly to the woman.

She flinched and curled her arms upward, to hide her face. A face that looked human enough, except the rounded horns extruding from above her ears.

Sheep horns of some kind.

I stepped towards her and she yelped. She curled up even more, turtling into herself… in pure fear.

She was trembling. Afraid. Of me.

It’s been a long time since those I were charged with protecting have been my enemies…

But were they?

“I’m here for someone. You’ve stolen a member of my… family. I’m here to get her back,” I told the sheep woman.

Her trembling didn’t stop but she did look up, out between her curled up arms hiding her head. “You… you mean the wolf girl?”

Wolf girl.

Yes. An easy mistake based off Renn's appearance.

She yelped and hid her head again, and I had to blink a few times to get rid of the obvious expression that had startled her.

“Renn. Yes. Do you know where she is?” I asked her.

She nodded.

I kept the relieved sigh from escaping as I nodded. “Would you please take me to her? I’ll not harm you, I promise,” I said to her in as calm a voice I could muster.

She shook her head, and I noticed the way her large horns bumped and snagged her arms and the sleeves around them.

They were rough. Like hard stone.

Odd. Usually horns weren’t so…

“Why not? I promise you I’ll not harm you. Please… she’s precious to me,” I said.

“I can’t…” she whispered.

That wasn’t just fear of me.

“Then at least tell me where she is, please. Else more will die. If you tell me where she is, you can save more of your…” I slowly stopped talking as I watched the sheep suddenly go still.

A long moment passed without a word, or a heartbeat… and I wondered if the poor thing had just died from stress. She had gone completely still… not even a whimper or…

Then she lowered her arms… and looked up at me with wide eyes. Eyes with pupils that were like her bloodline. Her pupils were wide and elongated.

“You’ll kill them?” she asked with an odd tone.

What was that in her voice…? It wasn’t fear. Nor panic.

I nodded. “To find her. To save her. But if you tell me where she is then…” I started to say, but she stopped my words with a smirk.

One of pure joy.

“Then no. I’ll not tell you.”

A cold wave of understanding pumped out of my heart and throughout the rest of my body… as I stared down at a woman scorned.

I gulped a dry mouth, and for a tiny moment I thought of the many others I had met like her.

Why was it always the women?

“Kill them all, then,” she said with a smile at me.

Glancing away from the suddenly happy woman, I glanced again at the man I had just… possibly killed.

He was still leaning up against the wall. Unmoving. Head still stuck in the stone.

Looking away from his odd clothing, and lack of it in certain areas, I returned to the woman… and the little recessed area she was sitting in.

There were more than chairs and boxes. There was something of a bed. A dirty one. In the corner. Near where she was curled up. Made of straw and loose cloth.

“I see,” I said as I understood.

She wrapped herself in her arms, and I did my best to ignore the way she dug her nails into her dirty arms.

She was dirtier than the homeless humans I had just met. Dirty enough I had not noticed the bruises and injuries until now.

Taking a small breath I glanced away from her and down the hallway. To my destination.

No one had heard the commotion. No one was approaching.

Yet I heard voices down there. Echoes.

“My name is Vim. I’m the protector of the Society. I know not your name… nor your story… but know that if you desire freedom, and a life beyond these smelly stones… then find us. Come to us. The Society welcomes all who suffer, and will abide by our rules. We care not your past, only your future,” I spoke evenly… but didn’t look at her. Instead I kept my eyes on the lights down the hallway.

She was silent, but I heard her heartbeat. It was beating wildly. Even more than when she had been shaking in pure terror of me.

“We’re in the Animalia Guild, upside. If you wish to join,” I said as I stepped away.

As I walked away, I heard her fall forward. Crawling on the ground after me… I heard her stop, likely upon reaching the corner of the hall as to stare at me as I left her behind.

Usually I’d do more. I’d be surer about it… but…

Frowning, I did my best to not hate the woman who had been willing to sacrifice Renn… just so I would kill those who made her suffer.

It was hard not to. But I knew that was because of how much I cared for the one she was sacrificing.

Usually I was more…

“Stop! We don’t need to do this!”

I froze for just a moment as the, sing song like, shrill scream echoed down the hallway.

“Fly…?” I couldn’t believe it. That was her voice.

Yet she was supposed to have been at the Society... Maybe I was mistaken or...?

Someone else shouted, and then another… and then I heard it.

Flesh being hit. Flesh being bruised.

Flesh being torn.

Hurrying forward, I ran to the end of the tunnel... right as Fly screamed out in defiance.

Emerging from the tunnel, I skidded to a stop as I took in the sight.

A few dozen people were in the room.

A large room. One littered with junk. Beds. Tables. Boxes… even debris. Off in one corner was a pile of trash, stacked higher than even I was tall.

Yet none of that mattered. Nor even did the dozen non-humans matter either.

All that mattered was the odd hole in the ground. In the center of the room. Likely a drainage pipe. One that led even farther underground.

But honestly even that pipe didn’t matter.

All that mattered was Fly.

Being held out over the hole, by a woman with antlers. Ones wrapped by her hair.

Fly was squirming, trying pitifully to free herself. She looked battered and beaten… and oddly was naked. Her feathers were puffed up, giving her an odd look. As if she was far bigger than she really were.

The one with antlers held Fly be her neck. She was taller, but thin… thin and…

Stepping forward, I ignored the dozens of people watching the spectacle. I ignored the looks of terror on some… but I did take note of the looks of pure glee on others.

As I stepped forward, I felt it. In the air. Without warning, yet somehow with one.

“Stop!” I shouted right as Fly was released.

Rushing forward, I ran with all my might. Pushing aside people, jumping over a table, running through a lit campfire and causing embers and wood to scatter everywhere.

The woman with antlers turned towards me as Fly fell into the hole. My gut wrenched as I planned how I’d save her.

That hole was obviously deep. Likely many floors, even. Even if it was angled, it wasn't something someone as frail as Fly could survive.

I’d jump in the hole. But I’d need momentum to catch her. Could I fall in such a way that I could kick off the side of the hole at enough of an angle to force myself to her? Maybe, thanks to her traits, she could flap her arms and stay aloft just enough? Or…!

Before I made it to the hole, and the antler woman who had dropped Fly, I was hit.

Being slammed into, my eyes never left the hole as my hand darted out to grab the throat of the one who had just tackled me.

I was lifted off the ground, and for a few moments was in the air as the one who had tackled me lifted me. Huge arms, thick of muscle and more, wrapped around my waist and stomach… and then we landed. Harshly. Into a table.

Flinching as wood and plates crunched and broke; I rolled as the man tried to get on top of me. As to put me into a hold, and keep me down.

Even still, my eyes never left the hole.

Fly.

I’d not be able to catch her in time now.

I should have been quicker.

I shouldn’t have let those humans delay me.

It’s my fault.

The world became oddly… quiet… even though I heard yelling. And noise. Lots of it.

Many people were everywhere around us. Things were being broken, and moved. The man trying to pin me was grunting, and not just because he was more beast than man. A woman was shouting orders, and amidst all the chaos… I heard the sound of swords being drawn.

A familiar sound, amongst many more.

Ignoring the shouting and screaming, I grabbed the throat of my attacker. A large man. One covered in fur. I tore my eyes away from the hole, to stare into his.

His eyes were black. Pure black. As if he had no pupil. No iris. As if they weren’t eyes at all.

“Thank you,” I said to him.

He blinked, and then tried to sit up and back, to get free of my grip.

Yet he couldn’t budge.

He was a bull of a man, and not just because of his ferocity. He was easily thrice my size, and likely near my own weight. He was covered in thick dark black fur, and had two large horns where his ears should be. His face was more beast than not, and from glance alone was nearly lacking all human traits. His only human aspect was the way his body was shaped. He stood on two legs. Had two arms, and hands.

The bull opened his mouth, to say something… yet couldn’t. My grip on his throat tightened, and I felt the very sudden panic surge within him. He hit me, and tried to stand up and away from me… as he realized I wasn’t going to let go. After attacking me a few times I felt his panic increase many fold, likely upon figuring out that he couldn’t get me to release him.

Leaning upward, I sat up as the bull tried to flee. I ignored his full on attack of panic, as his fists hit me. In the head. The face. The sternum. He even tried to grab my own throat, yet couldn’t seem to calm down enough to actually do it.

Looking into his dark eyes, I smiled… then looked around.

At those staring at us. Men. Women. Nonhuman, and even human alike.

Some with weapons. Some with smiles. Some backing away in fear…

And then finally my eyes locked onto the one with antlers. The woman who had dropped Fly into that hole.

“Thank you. For being the types I needed you to be,” I said lowly, as I squeezed. “Thank you for making it easy for me.”

As I killed the bull, I was glad that I wasn't lost anymore.