Daverex looked up where the pillar had slammed into the low ceiling of the cave and noticed that in addition to blood, there was also gore stuck to the spot. “Curious that there are remains stuck to the ceiling, yet none on the ground.”
“My guess is dey ate it,” Danival said, pointing his rifle at several sets of glowing eyes in the distance. A moment later, many more hauntingly glowing eyes could be seen along the entire length of the cave wall. The group was surrounded and the others drew their weapons as well. “De sound 'o de slammin' rock must 'o brought dem out 'o hidin', thinkin' dare next meal was served up on a stone platter. Whatever happens,” Danival warned the group, “don't move forward. Ya likely ta set off another trap if'n ya do!”
The glowing eyes darted forward and soon revealed themselves as belonging to creatures closely resembling giant rats. Daverex tried to slow time, hoping his ability was working again. He was relieved to discover it was. The creatures darting became a crawl as Daverex and the others opened fire and immediately stopped some of their ravenous attackers dead in their tracks. Most were unharmed, but quickly retreated back into the corners of the cave, there to wait on easier pray foolish enough to trigger the deadly floor traps.
Danival resumed tapping the floor before him with his rifle, ensuring a safe path forward as the others followed closely behind him. He triggered two more pillars along the way that also slammed into the ceiling. Seeing the giant rat eyes glowing again each time, they drew their weapons, ready to fire. This time, however, the giant rats stayed put.
Daverex did not take his eyes off those of the giant rats, saying, “They seem to know how dangerous it is here. They learn quickly.”
“Let's hope dey 'ave short memories doe,” said Danival. “We may not be in any shape ta fight 'em when we leave.”
Finally, they exited the room through a man-made opening and entered the next room. Unlike the previous room, this one was narrow enough to be classified as a passageway. The floor, rather than stone, consisted of a series of metal grates, starting about a foot past where Danival was standing and leading to just before the entrance to the next room. Danival sniffed the air and then so did the others.
“Sulfur,” Daverex said.
“A'yup,” said Danival. “Stay back as far as you can. Hug the walls.”
Danival hugged the walls and the others followed suit.
“Why?” said Daverex. His question was answered not by Danival, but by a tremendous trail of flames belching upward through the grates from their side to the opposite side of the passageway. As soon as the trail of flames ended, Daverex slowed time and said, “Run!”
The twins ran after Daverex, but Danival said, “Wait! We should cross one at a time!” Seeing that they weren't going to stop, he ran after them. He could feel the intense heat of a flame at his back as he said, “Stop!” to Daverex.
Daverex was moving too fast, even with time slowed, to stop before exiting the next man-made opening and entering the next room. He caught a glimpse then of an enormous circular buzz saw as it swung down from somewhere above, heading towards him. He rolled out of the way of its path, but it managed to strike his ankle before swinging back up to somewhere above. He heard the brief grinding of the saw's teeth on his ankle and felt the violent vibration as the remarkable material of his suit resisted any damage to him.
The twins stopped just short of where the buzz saw swung down and separated, leaving just enough room for Danival to avoid the worst of the flame trail. Danival screamed in pain and collapsed. Aegis saw the charred flesh of Danival's back and immediately kneeled to heal him. Soon, he was standing and back to his old self again. “Thank you, um...Fargus, is it?” said Danival.
Daverex said, “It's Aegis, actually. He's the healer. His brother's name is Fracas, the brawler.
“Right. Thank you, AEGIS,” said Danival.
Aegis nodded and smiled.
As Danival began studying the edges of the man-made opening, Daverex said, “I'm really sorry I ran ahead like that, Dan. For a moment there, I got kind of --”
“Scared?” said Danival
Daverex's eyes narrowed slightly. “I was going to say irrational.”
Danival laughed. “Sure. Sure. Not a problem. Just try not ta get me killed again is all.” Danival then said, “Here we go” before stepping back and knocking a tiny mechanism to the ground with the butt of his rifle.
The fact was, Daverex really was scared for a moment. And in that moment, all he could see was his childhood home bursting into flames with him inside. Then him running for his life, barely escaping the engulfing blaze and leaving his trapped parents to their horrible fates. He lowered his head in shame at almost killing his friend, but then his head snapped back up as the huge buzz saw swung back down again and then just dangled, unmoving, in front of him.
Danival picked up the tiny mechanism he had knocked to the ground and showed it to the others. “It's a motion sensor. Whoever set up these 'ere traps is as clever as dey is sinister.” He tossed it towards the grates and it disappeared between the slats, soon to be devoured by an insatiable flame.
The rest of the group entered the next room and Daverex looked back at the new flame trail. He felt suddenly sick to his stomach. He bent over and dry heaved, remembering his mother yelling at him from her bedroom window, “Run to the neighbor's down the road! Get help!” But little Daverex just stood there in the night outside the burning home.
“Daddy can't hurt you anymore, mommy,” little Daverex had said with an eerie innocence, “I made sure of it.” He was mesmerized by the flames, afraid to leave his mommy, clutching his favorite stuffed toy bunny, Rosey. He called it that because of its rose-colored cheeks. Little Daverex watched as his mommy burned in the fire, listened to her scream as she plummeted to the ground and continued to burn until there was no more of her flesh to devour and all that remained of her was charred bone five feet from where he stood. The heat of intense flames and the smell of burnt flesh should have repelled the boy, yet he remained in that spot as though tethered by a terrible sin of which he was not yet aware.
“Are ya okay dare, buddy? Ya look like ya seen de pits 'o Hell.”
Daverex stood upright and took a deep breath. “I'm fine.”
“Da pits 'o Hell await ya.”
The words rang in Daverex's ears and penetrated his skull. “What?” he said, desperately shaking his head free of the frightening forecast.
“I said, sit a spell. We'll wait fer ya,” said Danival.
“No. I'm fine, really. Let's keep going. Lead the way.”
“Okay,” whispered Danival as he cautiously stepped forward. “Everyone stay close, but a few feet behind me.” The room was wide and long, but completely empty with no indication whatsoever of a trap of any kind. “I don't like de looks o' dis room. Stay as close ta de wall as ya can without touchin' it. Take small, light steps ‘n be absolutely quiet.”
Daverex and the twins did as Danival instructed, following him along the right wall. Halfway into the room, Danival stopped as did the others.
Danival pointed at a patch of small black things along the wall that almost blended in with the wall. “Poison mushrooms,” he whispered. “Too small to eat.” Then he looked further along the wall and spotted larger versions of the mushrooms. Most, he noticed, had been gnawed at. He looked up and saw a mass of giant bats – hundreds of them as big as his arm – huddled together at the opposite end of the room. He then looked down and saw the very treasure he sought. Giant bat guano. Piles of it decorating the ground. “I'll be quick. Keep an eye on those giant bats above us. Let me know if you see more than a few open their beady little eyes.” The others nodded at him as he retrieved a large plastic bag and a small shovel (with a rubber blade to minimize noise) and began collecting the precious piles. Once he had gathered all that he could carry, the group carefully and quietly exited the room, lucky to have not disturbed the sleeping giant bats above.
Once they crossed the threshold, Daverex whispe
red, “I noticed there weren't any Reaper bodies in that room.”
“You're right,” whispered Danival, “'n I noticed dare weren't any human-sized bites taken out o' de mushrooms. Strange.”
Daverex nodded and followed Danival and the twins into the next room. They walked a quarter of the way in before Danival stopped and pointed above his head, saying, “A string o' vents linin' de ceilin'. Could be fer poison gas. Be ready ta sprint back if'n ya see any pourin' out.”
After a few more steps, an ornately-carved stone fountain came into view. The first thing Danival noticed was how macabre the carvings were. They depicted men and women writhing in agony, some with their entrails pouring out of their twisted mouths. Then he noticed words carved at its base that read:
Drink of my flow at thine own risk!
Thine death come slow.
Thine agony brisk!
“I wouldn't recommend drinkin' from dis fountain, gentlemen,” Danival said. The fountain was in the very center of the room and clear, inviting liquid flowed from its top and splashed into the pool that encircled it. Suddenly, stone doors slid down over both exits and the group was sealed in the room.
CHAPTER NINE
“ Don't move,” Danival warned the others. “Stay calm. Somethin' was triggered. Ain't no need ta trigger somethin' else.” Then the deafening sound of industrial evaporators kicked in from above. The noise was made almost unbearable by the echoes produced by the cave walls. Everyone but Daverex – whose helmet cut the decibels in half – clasped their hands over their ears and bent over by the will of the thunderous machine as within seconds, essential moisture was ripped from their pores. It happened more slowly for Daverex as his environmental suit offered some protection, but they all suffered greatly.
Daverex punched a command into his arm control pad and a moment later, he was sipping recycled H2O. This only slowed the effects of the industrial evaporators, however. He needed to get everyone out of this death chamber quickly. He chanced Danival's warning not to move and sprinted to the exit leading to the next room. He didn't know if his tiny laser pistol would have any real effect on the solid rock blocking the exit, but he had to try. He aimed at the center of the rock slab and pulled the trigger, holding it down to achieve a sustained blast of powerful energy. To his great relief, the rock began to crumble away; first in small amounts, then gradually in larger and larger chunks.
Daverex turned his head to make sure the others were still standing and saw that Fracas was making a mad dash for the fountain, his body's dire thirst eclipsing the crippling noise. Daverex yelled for him to stop though he knew it would go unheard above the din of the industrial evaporators.
Daverex slowed time and also saw both Danival and Aegis now writhing on the cave floor in excruciating pain, no longer possessing the willpower to even clasp their ears against the paralyzing noise. With a continued blast from Daverex's laser pistol, the barrier that sealed the group in their own tomb would come crashing down at any moment. But how many moments did the others have left before succumbing to terrible deaths?
Even with time temporarily slowed, Daverex had a difficult decision to make. Should he stop firing his laser pistol long enough to run to Fracas and force him not to drink the fatal water, risking the lives of Danival and Aegis by losing precious seconds? Or should he continue firing, likely saving Danival and Aegis, though just as likely ensuring Fracas's dreadful demise by literally drinking himself to death?
In the end, Daverex reasoned that, like his favorite movie character once said, The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one. He also reasoned that if Aegis survived this room, the possibility existed that he could restore his brother to life with the use of his remarkable healing ability. Daverex chose to stay where he was and continue firing his laser pistol. Soon the stone barrier came crumbling down and Daverex could immediately feel the difference in his body as moisture from the next room overpowered the capacity of the industrial evaporators. Likewise, the new opening greatly reduced the din of the machines, bringing it from painfully unbearable to decidedly uncomfortable.
As time resumed its normal pace, Daverex whipped around in time to see Danival and Aegis lying prone on the floor, not moving. Then he saw Fracas, bent over, projectile vomiting like a man possessed. Daverex wondered if he was too late, if Danival and Aegis were already dead, if he had made the wrong decision. He ran to Aegis, the person most needed at the moment because of his healing ability, and smacked him several times on the face, yelling, “Aegis! Aegis, wake up!” Daverex was relieved to see Aegis stir, but he desperately needed more from him. He leaned in so that he was an inch from Aegis's face and yelled, “YOUR BROTHER IS DYING! HELP HIM NOW!”
Aegis's eyes snapped open and with Daverex's help, he was able to crawl over to his brother who, at this point, was literally vomiting his guts out. With trails of blood and viscera clinging to his chest, Fracas had collapsed by the time Aegis got up into a kneeling position. Aegis wasted no time in floating his hands over his brother's still body.
While Aegis attempted to revive his dying brother, Daverex darted over to Danival's side. He knelt before his fallen friend, shook him, slapped him. Then he yelled very near his face, “Wake up, Dan! Your son needs you!” For all he knew, it was a lie. Danival Junior seemed pretty self-sufficient and Daverex himself learned to be self-sufficient at a much earlier age than him. Still, he had to try anything and everything to get his friend on his feet.
Danival moaned and stirred, but did not open his eyes.
Daverex looked back at Aegis and saw that he was still busy trying to revive Fracas. Daverex wished that his medic robot friend BeN-E was there to help Danival, for the robot could surely do far more to save his life than Daverex could ever hope to. The stark reality is that wishes and hopes never get things done and if you can't do something yourself that needs doing, you damn well better force the hand of someone who can.
Daverex looked back at Aegis again and saw Fracas violently coughing up more blood and guts just before smacking his head hard on the rocky cave floor. Then blood began pouring from an impact wound on his. Daverex yelled, “Aegis! There's nothing you can do for our brother. I'm Sorry. Please do what you can for my friend here.”
Aegis looked over at Daverex with tears running down his face and anger in his eyes. Then he looked back at his brother and continued to float his hands over his brother's still, wretched body.
“Your brother is gone, Aegis! Quit wasting your energy on him and help my friend, now!”
Aegis ignored Daverex.
Daverex lept up, turned around and walked towards Aegis and his dying brother. Daverex stood over Fracas's body, pointed his laser pistol at his head and said to Aegis, “Help my friend right now or I will pull the trigger.”
Aegis darted his hand out with blinding speed and grabbed Daverex's wrist in hopes of wrenching the pistol from his hand, but Daverex just switched the pistol to his other hand.
“Nice try,” said Daverex as he pressed the pistol to Fracas's temple. “Would you rather see what a laser pistol can do from here or help save my friend? Your choice.”
Aegis stared daggers at Daverex before shuffling off to Danival's side. Aegis was very weak from the effects of both the industrial evaporators and trying helplessly to save his own brother, yet he gave what little energy he had left to spare to at least save his brother from further indignity at the hands of someone he deeply regretted trusting too readily. He cleared his mind as best he could for his brother's sake and began the process of healing Danival. Soon, Danival was breathing and blinking and trying to sit up.
Daverex rushed to Danival's side and said, “Lie down and rest a bit. Both of you. I need you both strong enough for whatever's ahead of us.”
Danival whispered, “Thank you” to Daverex in a strained voice before taking in a much needed deep breath and then resting.
Daverex said to Aegis, “I had no intention of shooting your brother. I simply needed you to face the real
ity that your brother is too far gone for you to help him. I truly am sorry, Aegis.
Aegis just collapsed from exhaustion, but was still breathing fine.
As Danival and Aegis rested, Daverex went back to where Fracas's body was lying. He listened for breathing and checked for a pulse. Neither came to fruition. Fracas was surely and truly dead. Daverex then cleaned up Fracas's body as best he could both to show his respect for a good man whose death he was at least partly responsible for and to perhaps ease Aegis's anxiety of seeing his brother again in a state of demise. Finally, Daverex leaned against the fountain, closed his eyes and listened to the innocent-sounding cascade of not-so-innocent laced water.
Some time later, Daverex was awoken by Danival, who was standing over him, touching his shoulder. “We should move forward,” said Danival.
Daverex stood up, looked around and said, “Where's Aegis? Where's his brother's body?”
“Aegis carried his brother out o' here. He made motions dat he couldn't work wit ya anymore and dat he plans ta bury his brother right away. Didn't say where. I drew a map o' how ta get past de traps again, so he'll make it out okay. I reckon ya made an enemy wit dat fella, sorry ta say.”
Daverex sighed. “You're probably right. I really can't worry about that right now though. This room was a major setback for the mission. What do you think we should do?”
Danival removed his cap and scratched his head. “Well, I don't fancy our chances o' makin' it all de way through de cave wit just de two o' us, but I'll push on if'n ya want.”
Daverex thought for a moment and said, “There are people that need rescuing, including my best friend. We've come too far to stop now. With any luck, the traps and the giant pests will be the worst this awful cave has to offer. Come on. Let's waste no more time!”
Deadeye- Episode II Page 8
