Upworld

by Ian Woodhead

  He managed to lift his head, only to watch the two boys jump off the now still Benedict and scuttle away. She took her foot away, allowing Nelson to move. He jumped up and ran over to his friend. He placed his fingers on the side of his neck. He couldn’t find a pulse. “You bitch!” he snarled, turning his head. “You let them kill him!”

  The giant dropped down beside Nelson and wrapped her arms around his body. He so wanted to push her away, but he didn’t want to lose her warmth and comfort. “No, Nelson. I did not let them. Your friend was already dead before he hit the ground. Look at the blade cuts down your friend’s chest. They weren’t deep enough to kill him.”

  “Jesus.” He looked up into her face. “Poison?”

  “This is a dangerous world, Nelson, and if these boys hunt the birds, then it makes sense to use every advantage at your disposal. If you had intervened, then I fear that you too would be lying beside your dead friend.”

  He felt an incredible sense of loss when the giant did release him. She stood, dipped her head when she walked past Benedict’s body, then walked over to the edge of the wall. “It is okay now, Nelson. They have both left us.”

  He found it almost impossible to contain the emotions now running riot through his system. He looked over at Benedict and wanted to weep, yet, when he shifted his attention to the giant, a different set of emotions travelled through him. After all, despite the size disparity and the huge age gap, she was still very beautiful. He wanted her to hug him again, which made him even more upset as well as guilty for allowing his base feeling to try and rule him.

  “What about the others?” he said, standing. Nelson dipped his head, just like she did, and hurried over to the other side of the wall. He felt so angry with them for leaving them almost defenceless. If it hadn’t been for the woman, he could have died as well.

  He put his hand on the top of the wall and scanned the dark horizon. Nelson couldn’t see anything out there. This didn’t surprise him in the least, considering their light source now looked like a very dim light bulb a hundred miles in the sky. He sighed heavily while wondering how to place his dreadful encounter into the possible history of this place.

  It felt so inconsiderate, as well as ill-mannered, to engage his academic mind in the light of recent events. Right now, it helped to keep the bubbling insanity at bay. Christ, so much for regaining his clarity. It’s obvious that the gas Marlon used on him had not dissipated at all.

  Their appearance and behaviour suggested that those boys came from a primitive society and yet this wall, although ancient, was created using tools made from hard alloys. He tapped the rock; this stuff was granite. Had their society regressed?

  That did make sense. After all, if you leave a group of volatile people alone in a confined area for any period of time, there was going to be conflict. For the first time since been dumped in here, this news actually made Nelson feel a little better. After all, if would explain why the giants down here hadn’t found a way to escape. They were too busy fighting each other. It also might suggest that their numbers were very low, meaning that Benedict might be the last of their group to die.

  His musing came to an abrupt end when he picked out two figures racing towards them. He heard their indistinct shouts at the same time at a dozen flickering lights suddenly illuminated the treeline. “Oh crap!” he shouted. That was torchlight. The giant appeared beside him.

  “We need to go.”

  “Oh, you think?” The two men were now within sight. Blood poured down Bradley’s face. He looked behind them, counting thirty torches.

  Dane reached them, he took one look at Benedict. “Oh no, not him.” The archaeologist closed his eyes for a second. “How many were there?”

  “Two of them.” Nelson put his hand on the man’s arm. “I’m so sorry, dude.”

  “Two against a full tribe.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Like we have a choice!” Dane waited until Bradley caught up with them before pointing to the right. “We go that way.”

  “What? That’s the way we came. It’s where those birds are!”

  Bradley nodded. “Exactly why those behind us won’t follow.” He set off running. “Unless you want to say here?”

  Nelson took one last look at the silent army running towards them before racing after the others. That dread of never seeing the real sun again had returned, and he didn’t think he’d be able to shift it this time.

  Chapter Thirteen

  It took the freak precisely eight seconds to make up his mind. He then spent the next two minutes promising Marlon everything from enough gold to sink a continent to an army of giant warriors the likes of which had never been seen before. He said that he knew who to talk to in the underworld, that he had influence with every warring tribe, that they’d all be willing to trade with him for the right kind of goods.

  Marlon allowed the freak to continue his rambling speech for a further couple of minutes before ordering his remaining three men to pull their blades away from his naked body. Was the freak begging for his life, basically saying anything just to get Marlon’s associates to stop prodding him with their shiny blades? Of course he was, and exactly how many lies had he just spun? That too, Marlon knew would be many. Yet, within that intricate web of lies, he also knew spun a few threads of truth, and he intended to push through all that bullshit in order to find them.

  Branch might be a serial liar, but even his lies did contain a shred of truth. That much, he had already discovered.

  “You know what, Branch? I like you. No, I do. See, just like you, I’ve had my share of adversity. I believe this is the sole reason as to why I have turned out to be rather dangerously unstable.” He leaned back against the circular wall and watched his other companions for a moment. The four remaining employees must be going out of their minds about now. Despite Marlon’s instructions to cut the freak, Branch had still refused to open that door.

  He knew just how frustrated the others were becoming and ached for Marlon to order them to cut off a piece of the freak. It wouldn’t matter how much they tortured Branch, he wouldn’t give up the secret of the door. Of course he wouldn’t, for as soon as he relinquished his only hold on them, he’d be a dead man.

  Marlon respected that. It showed him that this ungodly creature had known much hardship, so much so that resilience was now part of his very being. He picked up the hybrid’s castoff clothes and passed them to the shivering man. “Here, put them back on.”

  He waited until the freak had covered up most of his dignity before continuing. “It must have been tough for you, my friend. I’m guessing that the others cast you out at an early age. Comparing you to my slave, I can understand why, Branch. It isn’t easy, being different, not knowing love and having to fend for yourself.”

  The hybrid stared down at Marlon, his unreadable expression telling him far more than any of his previous outbursts under torture.

  “I am sure that some of what you said to us earlier was true, Branch.” He clicked his fingers twice. One of his associates approached him. “Open your backpack.” The man did as instructed. Marlon pulled out the last of their supplies and gave half of them to Branch. “Go on, eat. I assure you they’re not poisoned or anything.”

  The others were more than a little pissed at him giving their supposed prisoner half the food, but they wouldn’t dare say anything. They’d trust his strategy. Marlon frowned. Then again, what if they didn’t? They were all tooled up. Sure, their guns were all empty, but at least they possessed knives. What would he do if they did mutiny? Hit them with his shoe?

  “I am willing to strike a deal with you, Branch. All I ask is that you introduce us to someone who will be able to furnish me with a few giant warriors. If you do that, I will give you the slave with my blessing. Does that sound like a good deal?”

  “Wait, you mean we’re all going down there?”

  Marlon glared at backpack man, noting the knife in his hand. “It was the plan.”

  “But, how will we be able to ge
t back?”

  Marlon approached the man. He gently placed his hands on his shoulders. “My friend,” he said, smiling. Marlon felt the man relax, then snatched the large knife out of his hand. Maintaining eye contact, he flipped the knife and plunged the blade deep into the man’s stomach. “Consider this the termination of your contract.” Marlon sawed across his waist before pulling the knife out. He pulled off the backpack before allowing the man to fall to the floor.

  “I’m sorry you had to witness that,” he said to the other two while staring in fascination as the moaning man on the floor tried in vain to stop his steaming insides from spilling out. “Events are in a state of constant flux, meaning that to achieve your goal it is sometimes necessary to switch alliances.” He finally looked up. “You two, at this present time, are no use to me. Branch will be my guide, and for that, he will be rewarded. Now, you have a choice. You stay here or,” Marlon climbed onto the wall, “you join us in the greatest adventure of your lives.” He gazed back at the squirming man. He had lost his private agonising battle to stop his insides from leaving his body. “He will be dead in hours, perhaps sooner.” He smiled at the two men. “This means that they’ll be enough food to last you for at least three, maybe four days.”

  Branch quietly laughed. It was good to hear the hybrid’s sense of humour returned. It proved to Marlon that he was right about his resilience. He motioned the men to climb onto the wall. “Up you get, chaps.”

  “You really are sick,” one of them spurted.

  Marlon shrugged. “Perhaps, or perhaps I am just driven? Look, it is not like we can’t return. Branch here is the living proof that it isn’t a one-way journey.”

  As soon as they joined Marlon on the wall, Branch ran forward and pushed them. Marlon shared the hybrid’s laughter as the pair of them screamed all the way down the funnel until they dropped through the centre.

  “You really will give me the slave?”

  “Of course, I will, my friend. I don’t go back on a deal.”

  Branch slowly nodded. He climbed onto the wall, paused, then jumped back.

  “What are you doing?”

  The hybrid picked up the body, then threw it over the wall. Unlike the other two, he didn’t make a single noise as he slid down.

  “We’re going to need him,” he said. “There’s worse things down there than the other giants. Believe me, I know this.”

  “Yeah, I already guessed that much, that’s why I made sure we took the other two with us as well.”

  Branch giggled. “You know something, I think I’m beginning to like you.”

  Marlon shifted a little to the side to avoid the man’s blood streak which now stained the surface. He waited for Branch to start his journey into the unknown before he jumped forward.

  There was a brief experience of weightlessness before he found soft fur-like plantstuff caressing his body. The hybrid’s large green eyes filled his vision. He heard human voices as well as cries and howls from unknown sources. He suddenly remembered Branch’s last-minute warning and desperately searched around where he had fallen for the knife. Where was it? The bloody thing had to be around here somewhere. Marlon almost screamed out in surprise when Branch pulled him onto his feet.

  “You dropped this,” he said, giving Marlon the knife.

  “My God! We’re inside another cavern.” Even though shadow covered the land, Marlon could still pick out distant features of hills, woodland beyond this plain of tall grass-like material. He turned his attention back to the two men who sat crossed legged opposite each other, looking thoroughly miserable. “Are you not going to look beyond your own tragedy at where we are? This is so magnificent!”

  They shook their heads.

  “Some people just aren’t happy. You could be back up there, looking forward to tucking into a portion of dead human.”

  “That’s still a possibility. I’ve already had a bloody look around, and I didn’t see any cafes close by.”

  Marlon wanted to stab him in his face. How dare he try to put a downer on his current euphoria. Thankfully for the man, he was too excited and giddy to exact revenge. Instead of berating Mr. Grumpytrousers, he drank in the glorious sight of those distant trees again. What delights awaited them beyond this grass? He couldn’t wait until it got light. Marlon’s optimistic dreaming shuddered to a halt. “Branch, it won’t stay dark like this, will it?”

  The hybrid shook his head. “No, it’ll get light in a few hours. By then, we’ll have found ourselves in a safer place than this.” He walked towards the two sitting men, giggling when they both cried out. He reached behind them and lifted the body, giggling again when bits of the body’s insides fell on their heads.

  “May I use your knife, Marlon?”

  He gleefully handed his prized possession to the hybrid when the men’s expressions switched from disgust to dread. Was he about to butcher them? Marlon would even allow him to do the deed. After all, this was his territory now. They were all fragile dolls in the freak’s deformed hands.

  Branch skillfully cut away the dead man’s clothing before jointing and dismembering the corpse. It brought back the realisation that this creature had the strength of half a dozen men. He dissected that man as if it was no more than a two-day-old cooked chicken carcass.

  “The last time I was in this area, there were two tribes fighting for territory. Thing is, there’s a huge colony of birds who hunt the small animals who live in the grass. Thankfully, the birds only hunt in the light, and the two tribes usually come out at dusk and dawn.” Branch twisted off the other foot and chucked the limb high into the air.

  “So why are you doing that?”

  He grinned while winking at Marlon. “See, this is why I like you. The questions you ask usually make sense. See, this grass is inedible. Nothing down here can eat the stuff. So, see if you can guess what the animals which race through this stuff at high speeds like to eat.” The hybrid shivered. “They look a bit like wild boar, they do. They don’t make a single noise. The nasty little bastards sneak up on you.” Branch pulled off the man’s head then dropped it into the lap of the only man still sitting down, before handing the knife back to Marlon.

  Branch threw the mutilated corpse over his shoulder then walked past Marlon. He nodded over at the other two men. “It’s best you two keep up with us. You really don’t want to stay in this place, fellas. The animals don’t normally attack adult humans. Too big, you see. It hasn’t stopped them from carrying off any kid stupid enough to venture into these fields once it got dark.” He stopped and turned around. “And right now, that is exactly what you would look like to those vicious buggers.”

  Marlon couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Despite the few setbacks, this adventure really was beginning to get exciting. He so wanted to ask Branch a thousand questions about this place, now believing that the hybrid would be less likely to lie all the time. Why should he lie? After all, the hybrid now thought that he was in control, that he was the expedition leader. This didn’t really bother Marlon as he knew the real score. What did bother him was asking a dozen questions which would make him sound like some eager little schoolboy, asking the teacher for answers while the rest of the class sniggered behind his back.

  “When did you last come by here?” Marlon dare not ask anything else.

  The hybrid shrugged. “Not since I was a boy. Not that it mattered. This place isn’t as large as it looks, and news down here travels fast. If there had been a change in the status quo then believe me, I would know. Of course, as it’s been years and years since I’ve been down here, stuff might have changed already.” He glared at Marlon. “I mean, it’s not like I’ve been staying in contact with any of the bastards who wanted to eat me, you know?” The hybrid tutted loudly before continuing to push his way through the shoulder-high grass.

  Marlon stopped and allowed the two men to pass him. It was best that he should bring up the rear. This way if the hybrid came out with another smart answer, he wouldn’t end up stabbing him
in the back in a fit of temper.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Dane heard Nelson muttering some incomprehensible words. He wasn’t sure if they were directed at him nor did he care. The insanity of their current surroundings, as well as the possibility of an ambush, took up all his concentration.

  Of all the buildings to stumble across down here, the last place Dane expected to find was a church. Oh, no normal church either. He swallowed down bile as they walked past yet another gutted giant nailed to the wall. He forced himself to look at the poor man, and allowed his analytical mind to visually examine the corpse. It wasn’t what he wanted to do, but the more he learned from their evidence, the better prepared he would be. If that was even possible.

  Judging from the advanced state of decay, their new friend had been in that position for a good few months. Did that mean that this place wasn’t used daily? How much of a relief would it be to rest up, knowing that in the next pretend dawn, they’d all open their eyes without finding metal bolts pushed through their limbs while their steaming insides slopped onto the filthy floor? Don’t forget to mention the small animals tearing off the toes.

  He took a deep breath, determined not to allow that ‘I’m never getting out of here alive’ mind-set to sink its pervasive claws into his over-tired mind. Dane glanced over at Nelson, stumbling after him, the older man’s face a picture of terror. He was already in the bad place. Dane doubted whether poor Nelson would ever be the same again, if they all did make it through this nightmare.

  “I hope they fired the decorator,” murmured Bradley. He stooped, picked up a bone piece, and casually flung it at the rotting corpse.

  “Jesus, have some respect, will you?”

  Bradley just shrugged.