Cal’s panting paused as he looked ahead towards the cave opening: a vast chamber revealed by the faint glimmer of blue crystals embedded in the walls. They shimmered like stars fallen from the night sky, casting eerie reflections on the uneven ground. For a moment, wonder seized him, a rarity in a life spent skirting the edge of danger.
"Beautiful," he said, despite himself, then coughed out blood onto the cave wall, His gaze lifted to the ceiling where the crystalline formations congregated, a constellation within reach.
But beauty was a luxury he couldn't indulge. Reality snapped back with the echo of his own footsteps, a reminder of vulnerability. The way back was a path of pain and peril, the way forward—a precipice.
"Temp, we’re trapped," he hissed, eyes scanning for any hint of escape. Ahead, the ground fell away sharply, the depths hidden in shadow. Behind, an archer with unknown intent and unerring aim.
“I think you know that there is no going back. Without your pistol, you have no chance of escaping back the way we came.”
As if on cue, the death throes echoing in the caverns came to a stop.
[Defeated a mid-first stage beast as a mortal - title upgraded, Mortal combat]
[Mortal combat: +2% -> +5% all stats]
[Quest reward: Decorating vase – a sober terracotta vase to hold your favorite flower to match any chair, chaise or sofa. Vase is brittle, do not break the vase]
Cal threw a rock off the edge, listening for the drop below and started to pull apart his remaining net traps to dismantle and weave them together. He inwardly sighed, “The fuck are these rewards.”
Call looped the net over a jagged outcropping of rock. Cal couldn’t help but scorn the poor strength – it wasn’t strong netting.
“Hopefully it won’t snap.” He yanked hard, testing its hold, muscles tense and ready for the gamble on his makeshift anchor.
"Down it is," he grunted, glancing into the abyss that beckoned below. The cavern's breath caressed his face, cool and damp, whispering of unseen depths and untold dangers.
With one last look at the menacing shadows behind him, he swung over the edge sideways to avoid aggravating the arrow. His hands gripped the net-turned-rope stretching every fiber and straining under his weight as he began his descent, each movement a silent prayer to the force of gravity.
Darkness enveloped him. A shroud that clung with oppressive weight. His boots found purchase on uneven walls, the blue crystals now a grand gallery in the dark, their glow fainter, like dying embers.
"I used up all the rope traps. Are you sure we will make it Temp?" Cal asked, the words lost to the void. The cave answered with silence, a gaping mouth swallowing his resolve.
Temp paused before answering, “Cal, do note, you are asking me after you jumped off the cliff. The rock took 3.28 seconds to reach the bottom. With this world’s gravitational constant slightly higher than New Earth at 36.5 ft/s2, the ground is approximately 200 ft away.”
“In hindsight, that was probably a mistake… So…?”
“No Cal, the rope is too short. The rope is 75 ft.”
“Shit.”
A distant sound echoed from the tunnels above. A tiny screech, pain and fear entwined, followed by a guttural cry in an alien tongue. Cal's heart lurched, but he pressed onward, the echoes a grim lullaby for the unknown.
Cal breathed out and picked up the pace, his descent relentless. The stones whispered back, their secrets veiled in shadow, as he disappeared into the belly of the world, driven by a will that refused to break.
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Unfortunately, the rope did not have such will.
"No!" His shout echoed around him, swallowed by the gaping void.
With a jarring snap, the tension holding Cal abruptly vanished. He fell. Time stretched, the darkness pressing closer, his breath stolen by the shock of empty air beneath him.
"Cal, brace for water!" Cal could hear the smile in Temp's voice.
"Son of a..." Cal spat out, his voice shaking with adrenaline. His fingers clenched around the broken net, white-knuckled and slick with blood.
The world below opened up in a roaring explosion of sound and sensation as he struck the water, his words lost in the violent rush of bubbles that enveloped him. The arrow snapped and he could feel his innards shriek in protest. Icy tendrils curled around his limbs, drawing him deeper into the pitch-black depths.
Cal fought back and kicked towards what he hoped was up, lungs screaming for air as darkness closed in.
His head broke surface, gasping greedily for air. His eyes darted in every direction but saw nothing save for liminal shapes carved out by the faint glow of far-off crystals.
“Damn it Temp!” Cal coughed first, then laughed, “You got me good,” Cal let out another chuckle and began swimming. He didn’t have a choice but to pick a direction, so he went away from the cliffside. His muscles burned with fatigue as he navigated through the near darkness. With each stroke, the remnants of his net clung to him like a tattered shroud.
As he neared the mouth of the cavern, a strange glow illuminated the water around him, painting his wet skin in ethereal shades of blue and green. He looked down and saw a bed of luminescent plants lining the bottom of this underwater aquifer.
In the distance he saw an opening in the wall. The passage narrowed, becoming a tight squeeze. Cal grit his teeth against the pain from his wound but pushed on. Eventually, it opened up into another cavern, but this one was different.
Thick vines draped from the ceiling, their luminescent flowers casting a strange glow around the chamber. Pools of water reflected the light in rippling patterns across the nearby walls, but he could not see the end of the cavern. It was a world of its own hidden underground. It was alien. Cal climbed out of the water onto a rocky ledge on the edge of the pool. He sat down heavily, his body protesting every movement. He pressed a hand against the arrow wound, grimacing at the pain that shot through him.
Cal's breaths were quiet, each one a wisp in the subterranean gloom. His fingers found the tear in his poorly made armor. It was soaked with warmth that was too slick, too vital to be anything but his own blood. With deft movements born from countless brushes with death, he pulled off his armor, and slipped the remaining broken arrow pieces out from his body. He then pressed a new set of fabric from his satchel firmly against the wound. The pain was sharp, but the absence of gut-wrenching agony told him his organs had been spared by fortune's thin grace.
Cal pulled out a set of bandages, wrapped his wound, and relied on his now supernatural recovery to slowly heal himself.
He moved away from the water with senses heightened to every shift within new environment. Each step was a calculated silence, and he scanned for danger.
A bioluminescent glow bathed the cavern in an otherworldly light. He could see black trees in the distance, spiraling upwards, their trunks twisted sculptures reaching for heights unseen. Leaves of the deepest purple fluttered slightly, edges glowing faintly with the reflected luminescence of embedded blue crystals. It was a silent forest of twilight hues, alien and mesmerizing, the underground environment a stark contrast to the endless forest above.
Cal started to explore the nearby area for a suitable and safe resting place. Cal didn’t want to remain too close in case he was pursued, but also didn’t want to get drawn into another fight so soon by recklessly exploring.
He moved through the strange landscape, boots whispering against the soft black soil that cushioned each step. Alien flora towered over him in the half-light, while strange fungal growths made the ground luminescent with their soft glow. Distantly, high pitched squeals echoed in the subterranean expanse. His gaze was drawn to a thick cluster of vines nearby. The vines were dense but not impenetrable—an ideal hiding spot if he needed one—but equally likely to be hiding something threatening within its depths. He carefully skirted the periphery before moving on.
After what felt like 10 minutes, Cal’s gaze settled on a rocky overhang at the edge of the pond. Its base was surrounded by an array of glowing fungi, casting eerie shadows onto the overhang. It was sheltered and offered a good vantage point over the entrance he arrived from. Cal approached quietly, his eyes scanning for any signs of threat or any residents.
He made his way up to the overhang, his fingers finding handholds in the rough rock face. Once he reached the top, he was greeted by a hollowed-out space, just large enough for him to fit comfortably. The area was dry and free of any creature. It seemed untouched, like this part of the cavern had been forgotten by time itself.
Cal eased himself into the natural alcove, and finally rested. His body welcomed the reprieve from constant motion.
There was a peculiar smell in this underground world - an amalgamation of wet soil and alien flora not unpleasant but undoubtedly strange, almost like cinnamon. Cal took a deep breath of it, his senses adjusting to the new reality.
Suddenly, Temp's voice echoed inside his head - "Cal, you should sleep. You lost more blood than you think."
Cal sighed. Fatigue was slowly settling in, its invisible chains wrapping around him tighter with every passing moment.
His hands reached for his damp satchel and pulled out the soul-structure fruit.
“All of this for you.” Cal gazed at the fruit.