by Dave Hazel
The passage they turned into appeared to be a path way not used much. The floor and the walls were not smooth, but rough and broken. The narrower corridor twisted and turned as if those doing the construction kept changing plans in which direction to go. The rear guards couldn’t see the pursuers but they heard the mob coming after them.
When they reached the end of the new corridor they weren’t sure if they made a good decision to take the side passage. They were stopped by a large wooden door. The closed door gave no indication or hints as to what could be on the other side.
“Mykal, can you hear me at all?” Diaz asked while exaggerating his lip movements.
“Yeah, I can hear a little bit now,” he answered while trying to unclog the numbing silence with his pinky.
“I think we should go through the door, but what do you want to do?” Diaz asked.
“We have to,” Mykal answered while all the men listened. “We know what’s back there and they’re pissed. Let’s go.”
“Rear guards, watch our back,” Finley yelled out. “Men on point carefully open this door. Be prepared for anything.”
Marine Staff Sergeant Moreno took it upon himself to lead the way. He grabbed the big heavy iron rod that served as the handle and turned it upward with ease. The door opened smoothly without a creak. The men toward the front all had their weapons pointed into the darkened room, but they saw nothing that would be considered a threat.
“Everyone in and secure the premises. Secure those two doors,” Diaz said once Nordad’s light source filled the room. Light revealed two other doors in the room. One of the doors was on the far side of the very large hall. The second door was on the same wall of the door they just entered but about twenty-five feet away. They would have three separate entrances they would have to be concerned with. They knew with certainty the Goblins were behind them and would come to the door they just entered.
The room looked like it could have been used for large gatherings, banquets and fine dining. There were many long tables with numerous chairs and wooden stools. Beneath the layer of dust covering the floor could be seen a high gloss shine. It looked like polished marble.
“I would assume an intelligent being once lived here,” Leeno said to Finley and Jake.
“Why do you say that?” Jake asked.
“This room has not been used for some time,” Blair said. “Or so it appears. Those foul Goblins hunting us would not have had the wherewithal to build such a beautiful chamber.”
“They may have been used in the labor,” Starling replied. “You have seen what wretched creatures they are.”
“Now what the hell are we gonna do?” Boris asked when he and Mykal joined Jake and the Elves. “If these ugly little shits play their cards right they won’t have to lose any more of their people. All they have to do is starve us out.”
“I don’t think we’re trapped,” Mykal said while he looked around the large room. Mykal continued working his jaw and using his fingers to get his hearing back to normal. “In a few minutes we’re gonna check out these other doors and see where they go cuz we’re not gonna be held hostage by these creeps.”
“I agree,” Boris said. “I’d like to try to get outta here before they have us completely surrounded.”
“Whoa , hold on just a minute here. Maybe we’ll just get ourselves into deeper trouble,” William objected. “Don’t you think it would be better to try to communicate with these people and make some sort of an agreement with them? If we explain our--”
“William stop. Just friggin stop,” Mykal spoke loudly, cutting him off. “Do me a favor and don’t start right now. Do you really think these things are gonna wanna talk after we invaded their territory and killed who knows how many of them?”
“I just think it would be better than trying to fight our way out when we don’t even know where we are.”
“We can always count on the sissy option,” Boris laughed. His comment forced a few others to turn away so as not to be seen snickering.
“Boris, knock it off,” Mykal replied sharply. “I don’t wanna deal with this right now,” he said while he continued to look all around the large ballroom.
“You’re right, I didn’t mean to say sissy. I meant to say stupid, cuz you always have the stupidest friggin ideas.”
William looked prepared to respond but he saw others hiding their laughter so he remained quiet. If looks could kill, Boris would have dropped over. William walked away with his head held low. William looked embroiled in rage and seemed embarrassed by the young men laughing at him.
“Get some of these tables and chairs in front of the door so they don’t push it open,” Finley ordered some of the men who were standing around. “I want the M-60s positioned on each of the door so if they get through they will wish they didn’t.”
Minutes after the door had been secured by a heavy locking mechanism, they all heard the sound of the Goblins trying to gain entry. When the door didn’t open the Goblins beat and pounded the door with weapons and fists. Goblins filled the passage way with loud war cries and yells. Occasionally unified yells and calls broke the silence. They were being spurred on by some of their leaders. Mykal wasn’t sure if the lock would hold the Goblins back so they pushed many of the heavy wood tables in front of the door to ensure they couldn’t force the door open. They would have to tear the door from the frame to gain entry. By the size of the door that would not be an easy task.
Mykal knew the men were tired, hungry and just plain fed up with running for their lives. He was still impressed with their resiliency and their will to survive. Mykal felt grateful to be surrounded by such a great group of warriors, but he began to doubt his ability to get the men from their dreadful situation. He worried all these men were going to die because of him and all his actions and choices. Mykal feared his emotions would get the best of him, but he knew he had to be strong. As unprepared as he felt, he was still the ‘leader’.
He looked at Captain Diaz and Lieutenant Finley and felt somewhat relieved that they were present. They were true military leaders while he felt like a pretend leader. ‘I’m only where I’m at because of my friendship with Towbar. If only Towbar was here,’ he sighed in thought. After Diaz and Finley, Mykal was thankful that Jake and Ratner were here. Ratner was the ranking NCO and Jake was next in line, but more importantly, Jake was a longtime friend that had his back if things turned ugly with the men. He knew he could count on both Jake and Boris to be there for him.
Mykal didn’t like to sit around and do nothing. It gave him too much time to think. When he had time to think he started to question his own ability as a leader. He blamed himself for the men who died and he blamed himself for being lost on this side of Towbar’s world. He blamed himself for being separated from his family. He blamed himself for everything imaginable so he didn’t want to have time to think.
“Hey Myk, how do you think we’re gonna get outta here?” Boris asked.
“I don’t know buddy,” Mykal said and held his hand up to stop the conversation. Mykal knew he needed the friendship of Boris and Jake more than ever because he felt fearful how their predicament would unravel. “Hey Thompson and Freeman,” he called out to the men who were closest to the two untouched doors. “Listen to the doors and see if you can hear anything on the other side.
“Whadda ya thinking Myk?” Jake asked when he joined them.
“They’re going nuts on this door here.” Mykal pointed to the door they came through. “But it doesn’t seem like there’s anything going on over on this side.” He pointed to the opposite wall.” “So I’m hoping they’re not connected. Hopefully they can’t surround us which then means we might have a way outta here.”
“We will investigate it Mykal,” Starling offered. “Our hearing would detect more than your human ears.”
“Thanks,” he said to the Elf and smiled. He felt bad that he dragged them into this mess with them. ‘But they chose to come with us,’ he reminded himself.
“
If it sounds clear I think we should go for it,” Jake suggested. “I don’t like the idea of sitting here waiting for them to bust through the door.”
“I agree with you,” Nordad said and moved closer to the doors with his rod of light.
“Anything? Have you heard anything? Can you hear anything at all?” Mykal asked anxiously and watched some of the men tend to the wounded soldiers. He was driven to get all the men out of this situation safely.
“I hear nothing,” Blair said while he turned to Mykal. “I do not think the Goblins would be smart enough to set a trap for us by lying in wait, waiting for us to venture out.”
“I hear only small sounds beyond this door,” Starling pointed to the other door he listened to which was along the same wall of the door they entered. “It does not sound like there would be a Goblin force beyond this door either.”
Mykal pointed to Blair’s door. “Alright, since you didn’t hear anything on the other side of the door, I’m gonna take five men with me and go check it out. If it looks clear we’ll leave.”
Jake selected five men of the many who volunteered to go with Mykal. It brightened Mykal’s heart that the men looked up to him and didn’t blame him. There were many who volunteered to blindly walk into the unknown with him. It made his day. He needed that small vote of confidence more than any of them could ever have known.
“Nordad, when we open this door will you shine your light on the other side before we go?”
The old man nodded and though his body looked old and feeble he glided across the floor with a youthful grace of a young ballet dancer. Thompson opened the door at Mykal’s direction and Nordad shined his light into the adjoining corridor.
Mykal, Nordad and the men standing near them were startled when the light caught sight of many small humanoid creatures sneaking up to the door. The Goblins were just as startled as they were and the corridor erupted with many yells. Just as the door was slammed shut the sound of many crossbow bolts slammed into the door startling some of the men in the room.
“Damn it. I think we’re trapped,” Mykal yelled and looked at the floor in frustration. “Lock and block that door,” he ordered but many of the men had already rushed to move tables and chairs in front of it. Mykal sighed heavily.
“Maybe we should try talking with them,” William offered.
“Get the hell away from me right now,” Mykal snarled at William. He was angry at himself. “These things ain’t gonna talk with us. They wanna put our heads on their belts or whatever the hell they do. What’s it gonna take for you to realize that?”
“Why don’t you let him go out there and talk to them?” Boris said and laughed. “Let him go talk with them. If they make a deal with us I’ll apologize to you. But when they kill you we’ll have a memorial for you and we’ll reflect on what a pain in the ass you were.”
“You know, I’ve had it with you,” William exploded and turned to move toward Boris before he could pull his revolver.
Gunnery Sergeant Ratner stepped in front of William. “With all due respect Sir, I can’t allow you to do that. We have far too many enemies out there. Save your fight for the real enemy. Besides, Sir,” Ratner moved closer to whisper quietly for William’s ears only. “It’s unbecoming of an officer for you to stoop to a lower level of conduct like that Sir. We are all getting annoyed with each other,” he whispered an exaggeration to help William keep from losing his cool. The truth was, only William and Boris were at odds with each other. Everyone knew they all needed each other to get through the trying ordeal they found themselves in.
William stopped and didn’t try to go around the older Marine, because there were six younger Marines standing beside him ready to assist Ratner if William became a problem. “Sometimes I truly wonder who the real enemy is,” William said and glared at Boris’s cocky smirk.
“Boris, I don’t wanna hear any more between you two,” Mykal barked at his friend. He moved closer and spoke quietly between the two of them. “We’re in a real spot here and I don’t have the time to be baby sittin’ you two. I have too much on my mind. I’m asking you as my friend, help me here and don’t make things worse for me.”
“I’m sorry Myk,” Boris said and dipped his head. “It’s not you, it’s him I’m pissed off at, but I’ll stop.”
“Thanks,” Mykal said and turned to join the others.
“More than likely they’re behind the other door as well,” Diaz frowned. “Do you have any ideas Myk?”
“We’re not gonna give up,” Mykal raised his voice for all the men to hear him clearly. “We’re gonna let these little ugly bastards know we’re not gonna play around and we’re gonna send them a message. If they wanna push us, they’re gonna get hurt.”
“What do you intend to do?” Blair asked.
“Bring one of the machine guns over here beside Hall’s machine gun,” he pointed to the door they just opened. “Hall, get your weapon ready. Get this stuff away from the door,” he pointed to the table and chairs. “Thompson, when Hall’s machine gun is positioned and I tell you to open the door, I want you to open it just long enough for Hall to get a couple of bursts down the passage way. Hall, I want you to blast anything that moves. I want you to yell when you want the door closed. You got that?”
“Yes Sir,” Hall said and happily readied his M-60.
“I want the second 60 ready in case they try to force their way in. Ready? Open,” Mykal yelled and the door opened quickly. Before the enemy could react, Hall’s M-60 spat burning lead with a bright orange flame down the corridor at anything that moved. The opened door had at least thirty crossbow quarrels stuck into the wood. In the few moments Hall lay heavy on the trigger of his machinegun he had killed nearly seventy Goblins and wounded almost as many. The large 7.62mm rounds ripped through the smaller bodies and easily traveled through several Goblins each.
Only moments after the door was shut did the Goblins react and try to offer a counter attack. Their counter attack ended against the secured wooden door. The yells, screams, moans and war cries could be heard as a continuous wail.
“Now they’ll think twice about trying to bust in here,” Mykal chuckled nervously. “Good job Hall. Good job to you too Thompson. Now they know we mean business and they should leave us alone for a little while. So, let’s set up a guard roster and let’s have everyone get some rest, cuz we sure as hell don’t know what tomorrow is gonna bring. Any questions?”
William shook his head which showed his disappointment. “I really don’t think that was a good thing to do Myk. I think you ruined our chances of trying to negotiate with them.”
“Don’t start with me. I’m not in the friggin mood for it,” Mykal snarled. His expression indicated he was beyond fed up with William’s constant opposition. “Those little friggin freaks don’t wanna work something out with us. They wanna kill us. When are you gonna get that in your head?”
4.
After forty-five minutes Mykal’s thoughts began the exercise of tormenting him again. He felt he was to blame for all that went wrong. Mykal eyed the men and tried not to beat himself up mentally for the position they were in. He truly felt terrible because he feared they were all going to die. He felt guilty because he knew he had the magic ring to turn himself invisible. He would have more of a chance to escape if everyone were to be killed, but he wasn’t sure if he would have the mental strength and stability to wander around alone inside the underbelly of the mountain. There were more than just Goblins to contend with, but he wasn’t sure what other freaks were hidden beyond the walls of their temporary prison.
Some of the men were ‘young kids’, young warriors who wanted to go on an exciting adventure. Some of the men were family men who had wives and children waiting for them to come home. All their families would never be able to have closure. They would forever want to know what happened. There wouldn’t be anyone to report they died at the hands of Goblins, under a mountain, on the other side of Towbar’s world. Once again Mykal blamed himself for e
verything that happened and now he blamed himself for things that hadn’t occurred yet.
‘Wait a minute,’ he thought to end his doom and gloom thinking. ‘I was in the same situation about six months ago when I was stuck, lost with Doninka, under the mountains at the Pass. The Dwarves were chasing us and we thought we would never survive, but we did. Me and Doninka thought our situation was just as impossible as this is, but we got out of it. No, it’s not over till it’s over. Diaz believes his God is going to get us outta here. I’m not gonna give up and surrender to the doom and gloom, end of the world, type of thoughts that are bombarding me.’
“Whadda ya doing Myk?” Boris asked when he and Jake joined him.
“Nothin’, just thinking,” he replied and couldn’t hide the fact he was down in the mouth. “I don’t know how this is gonna play out, but I’m blaming myself and it makes it worse that you two are here. I feel like I dragged you guys into this and I don’t know--”
“Mykal stop,” Jake said and held up one of his long skinny hands. “You’re not to blame. If things do go bad, I don’t want you to blame yourself. Seriously, you didn’t force me onto that helicopter when we went to rescue those people. You didn’t drive my vehicle into the green fog when we first arrived here in Towbar’s world back in June. You didn’t prevent my reaching the green fog when you returned home the first time. Don’t put this on you. I’m not a religious person so I can’t say this or that about God, but I can say if I wouldn’t have signed up to join the Air Force all those years ago, then I wouldn’t be here. I believe whatever happens, happens. I’m not blaming you so I definitely don’t want you to blame yourself on my behalf. You don’t need to do that to yourself Myk,” Jake said with a wink and a smile.
