After all rats received a blessing, King let his veil drop, beckoning us to gather. King wanted our attention, and expected to get it. Since I wouldn’t be doing anything important between now and later, I gave him mine.
All rats closed in, curious as to what would happen. Even the violent Brynn reluctantly joined.
‘You should all have had plenty time to rest up after your visions. I presume a confused state within you...’ The big guy started with his grating voice, ‘but time will not halt in the face of confusion. It’s of imminent importance to establish now how our group will sustain itself. Our predicament fills me with contempt. More so, because we will live off mother for a long time as I keep her from rotting away with my…’ he fell silent for a second ‘my magic. Anite and Brynn, the both of them were competent warriors before, unlike the rest of you.’ He stated and I could see Bart cringe at the finiteness. ‘I need you two to survey the rest of this dungeon. Meanwhile, the rest of you figure out how to make yourselves useful.’
What I understood, is that he’s wanting to create something for us, something safe. Looking around the space it was very clear we didn’t have any home to speak of, just space. However, the way his voice sounded, the undercurrent of amusement, conveyed a feeling of cruelty. Something cold. Somehow, it felt like he was looking at Brynn.
Brynn scowled furiously. Surely, she had complaints but kept it quiet. She still looked quite roughed up. Personally, I didn’t care much, and looked around the dull grey room, but couldn’t shake a feeling quiet dread.
‘Why are they stronger than us?’ One of the other girls muttered hesitantly. Her question was met with a four-eyed glare of beady eyes. The girl casted her eyes down at her pink feet and muttered an apology with trembling voice. The big guy growled and explained.
‘Quite alright, their souls simply hold more raw power. Judging from their pasts, that seems congruent. They have the skills to keep alive. Not something I can say for someone of your occupation, Clementine. Raise a hand for your next enquire. Or raise a claw.’ Clementine cringed at the dismissal.
‘Y-yes King.’ She uttered with bleak enthusiasm.
To my left Brynn raised a stiff arm. Maybe she wasn’t such a noisy idiot. King acknowledged her with a dissatisfied grunt.
‘Yes, Brynn?’ He asked, and I could swear he regretted it at once.
‘How the fuck do you think we’ll escape this fuckmothering shithole?!’ She demanded, nearly giving Clementine a heart attack. Next to me, Bart wheezed for air. The other little rats kept their mouths shut. The bigger rat didn’t didn’t let on that he minded. He simply grimaced, somewhat brutally.
‘I’m sure you know what happens when you put a rat on a man’s stomach and lock him in with a bucket.’ He said. The hopeless expression on Brynn’s face told me she did know. We both knew what would happen, I think. ‘Imagine mother is the stomach, and my disappointment is the bucket.’
King smiled his cruel, amused smile.
‘Don’t be concerned. It’s but a temporary measure. Until we know it’s safe, and I can uncover another magic to close off the entrance. My plans simply require knowledge of our situation, as soon as possible. Now, please get to work.’ He said, wrapping the shadows back around himself. His voice echoed through the air. ‘I expect results when you return.’
Our brethren stared at us, disgustedly. We were either spited or pitied. Helplessly, I faced Bart who in return sternly looked the other way.
‘Sorry Anite, I don’t think I can look at you for a while.’
This astonished me. As did the task at hand. The only exit was blocked off. Surely, I wasn’t going to dig my way through mother’s corpse, and I voiced that lapse of judgement as such but the shadows behind us seemed to quiver at the words.
‘You’ll leave us like this?’
‘What will happen if you don’t go?’
‘We can’t go, can we, we’ll die!’
‘You have to go Anite, I’m so scared.’
‘You have to go Anite, we’ll die if you don’t.’
‘You have to Anite, or King will eat us!’
The small reprieve of identity found was burned away like paper, and the little rats shied away from the flame devouring them with it. Brynn did not look well, a grimace portrayed painful discomfort. It was pretty obvious she didn’t have a choice in this matter.
‘Are you okay?’ I asked.
‘Of course.’ She said confidently. A trickle of blood ran down the corner of her mouth. Whatever confidence she had, she didn’t instill in me. In fact, I wasn’t planning to follow her at all.
I looked back at the group of rats. They looked to us, their little faces contorted with terror. Beyond them lay the looming shadows, warranting their terror. If I chose to stay here, I would put my wellbeing before theirs. The rats looked back at me, eagerly hopeless. It must have been on their minds, what King would do if we disobeyed. It’s here that I waver.
Before I could ponder about what to do and why not to do it, we were shoved towards mother’s corpse by the five other rats. Her big butt approached.
Was happiness short-lived?
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Yes.
Being so close to mother, I realized I hadn’t paid her any attention. She wasn’t special to me, neither was her carcass. But damn, was she huge. Her tail laid along the wall and seemed thicker than I was tall. Her claws seemed able to crush a man. Two of which protruded from the wall. Deep scratch marks edged into the stone around her, filled me with relieve for pooping us out before failing her escape. The entrance loomed around five times our height. Even the big guy could sit up straight here. It became increasingly difficult to believe we could make it to the other side without suffocating. If the height was this much then the length would be far, far more. There was also the issue of mama’s tail being heavy as hell. Momma fat.
‘Ladies first.’ I said, knightly but uncertain. She punched me in the gut for it, which hurt less than expected, and hesitantly made. Brynn mumbled something as she took an impressively deep breath and searched for a crevice where mother’s romp protruded less.
Together we pushed a big paw away. She started clawing away, trying for the corner of the tunnel and, in the distance, I could hear a male voice sobbing over the sound of claw on flesh.
‘For Gloria’s sake my ears, they bleed!’
Turning around now was out of the question. I could not bring myself to look at them. Maybe, this pushed me to go through with it. I’m not sure to what extend I would come to regret it, but it didn't feel knightly.
---
After Brynn made her way through the tick fur, I followed suit. Within moments it was pitch black, and I was trusting my touch to lead me farther. Somehow it wasn’t nearly as disturbing as I expected it to be. Being a ratman, this may be natural.
After we’d both entered the passageway, I quickly caught up to Brynn, who desperately clawed at a wall of meat and hair. Since I couldn’t see I felt around to try and find her, which rewarded me a soft kick on the shoulder and later an elbow to the stomach. Still, even without sight I felt her desperate struggle. And I struggled too. We had to get to the other side before suffocating. At the pace she was digging through the gore, we would never make it through the colossal carcass. I pushed her down against mother’s body and climbed over her to take the lead with newfound extraordinary strength. Against my back I felt the stone wall grinding and digging into me. Gasping for non-existing air, I ripped apart the flesh, crafting a slippery crevice for us to crawl through. For a second it felt like we’d have a chance.
A minute or two passed and I could feel my breath running out and a painful pressure on my chest but as I pushed through the feeling, a sense of static ran through my back, suppressing the sense of suffocation. Dragging sister by the ankle, I pressed on.
Finally, I could see a light, taste the air. We slipped through. After pulling Brynn by her arm into the open tunnel, I fell to the ground. The both us lay there on the stone ground for a while. I was breathing heavily, uncertain as to how we even succeeded. Next to us laid a monsterly rathead the size of King himself. Its eyes shone green.
I got up to my knees a crawled to Brynn. She was not breathing, and her pink nose had a paleness to it.
‘Ono, fuck.’ I pressed against her chest, repeatedly. Her body convulsed with each push.
One push.
Two push.
Three push.
Four push.
Five push.
Six push.
Seven push. She makes a gurgling noise.
Eight push. She spits up a red liquid, and starts coughing. She must’ve choked on all the blood and bile as her breath ran out. Her body convulses again, and her chest raises before rolls onto her knees and continues coughing painfully. Her eyes regained a certain light.
I fell down to my side, and once she was done coughing she groaned and collapsed next to me. We lay there for a while longer next to the giant rat’s head. How much time had actually past? It felt like an eternity. Brynn broke the solemn silence with a victorious chuckle and I could not resist the urge either.
Understandably, I got up first and looked around. Although mother had filled up the hallway with her body, there was still a considerable amount of distance beyond. We could make out a small opening in the distance that showed a brighter light. Brynn got to her wobbly feet and we strolled over. As we arrived, we were unexpectedly overcome.
The air felt thick and our eyes watery. A flattening pressure pressed us to our knees.
Within the bright light sat a hulking manlike creature. Blue crystals in the walls emitted a soft light, turning the creature into a looming shadow. The light showed just enough of him to see the bullish features, between large horns and thick hooves.vIt wore a dull, tough armour. Its hands grasped the end of a large double sided axe which rested on the ground. Frozen, like the minotaur itself.
Its eyes opened, yellow with golden indifference, and regarded us. My breath got stuck in my throat and suddenly I’m back in the tunnel between mother and the wall. Suffocating. Within me rang doubt. He's considering if we're trouble. Immobilized and filled with fear, I shook with incompetence. I could never run away even if my legs hadn’t given up. It would catch up and kill me. All I could do was fall to the ground, weep silently, and piss myself. It stood up, looming over me like everything I wasn't. That difference could never be overcome.
with a roaring step it encroached on us, hanging above us with its large snout, scalding my nose and ears with its aggressive breath. It hung there for a second, before leaving us wetly disappointed, and strolled off, into the hallway on the right. Its hoofs crashing at every step. After a minute or two, the sound faded and our breath returned.
We secured our lives.
Just like that. On a whim.
Saved by insignificance.
One look at Brynn told me she too felt shame at being disregarded. Beneath her I noticed a similar puddle. But my shame was deeper as her face was dry, and my face embellished, wet with a sense of anger towards this ratgirl. For dragging me into her conflict. Inflicting on me her cruel punishment. With discouraged display of strength, I pulled myself up to my feet and shuffled back into the hallway.
‘Wh-where are y-you going?’ A weak voice managed to mutter. Her voice shivered with desperation. As did she. And I stood there, a thrill grasping my heart and freezing my legs.
I waited before replying. Not because I wanted to, but my throat was still locked tight. How could she speak with such ease? Even as I tried to reply, it wasn’t much.
‘Clean myself.’ I rasped. Shamed but determined.
Brynn stared at me hopelessly before slowly and awkwardly pulling herself up on her shaky legs. She obviously struggled to even stand, and faced me desperately with two discoloured eyes. One brown, one emerald green.
‘Help me… Anite. I can’t walk.’
My throat locks again as I immediately jogged towards her, surprising myself at how my body moved. I put her arm around my shoulder and supported her as we slowly strolled to the comforts of our mother’s fur.
We cleaned ourselves against her thick hairs and sat on the stone for a while. In front of us lied the small, faraway light.
I didn’t want to go back there, ever again. What a poor excuse for a knight I was.
It filled me with inadequacy and diverted my eyes. If It was up to me I’d stay here for hours rather than exploring that unknown. As I wallowed, Brynn spoke up.
‘We should go.’ She said. How could she say that? Even though she was so fragile. Where did she find courage?
As she stood up without difficulty she looked at me, slapped her face, and spoke again with even more conviction. ‘Let’s go, Anite.’
In frustration I slammed the back of my fist at the meat wall behind me, and pulled myself up.
‘Let’s go!’ I shouted.
Together we walked towards the light and after seeing hoof prints, crushed into the stone, turned a decisive left.