Chapter Four: Day One: Part one: So, how many dimensions was that again?
I have always been an incredibly jumpy person, yet I really didn't expect what happened next.
Upon stepping out of the elevator door, I was immediately tackled to the ground by an IWEC guard.
I struggled to punch him off…
...Until I realised the man was dead.
Miu Shizuka: (Muffled laughter) ‘It looks like you have made a new friend there!’
I pushed the carcass off me. Miu had already killed the security guarding the elevators, and as a cruel joke, shoved one of the body's at me as I stepped out.
I will be honest, It scared the absolute crap out of me!
The others, who were focused more on the mission than mucking around, were standing directly in a hall, which split off into three different corridors, and an elevator leading further down. Each corridor had the exact same layout, pattern and colour scheme of the one facility we were in before. The only difference was that these one’s seemed to have no weapons mounted to the ceiling.
X.D: ‘Right, Yuuto, what should we do?’
There was no reply.
X.D: ‘Yuuto?’
Yuuto Ito: ‘Geez, hold your horses, i'm thinking!’
He paused to gather himself
Yuuto Ito: ‘Alright. Atsuko, let me see where we are.’
She raised the laptop above her head, rotating it in a circle to show our surroundings.
Yuuto Ito: ‘Well, we should do what we always do I guess…’
Miu Shizuka: ‘And what would that be?’
Yuuto ito: (Sarcastically) ‘Split up into uselessly small groups, wander around like headless chickens, and somehow find each other again in the exact place we need to be.’
Ronnie Manning: ‘...Or we could follow the signs that lead to the HQ.’
Ronnie pointed to a bunch of big, blue and black signs hanging over our head.
Yuuto Ito: ‘...You know, I almost forgot why I celebrated when we found out you were gone.’
Ronnie Manning: ‘You had a celebration? Why wasn't I invited!’
Lewis Sterge: (Rolling his eyes) ‘Let's just go and get this over with already. The faster we do this, the quicker we can look elsewhere.’
Agreeing, we all made our way down the left hallway, following the signs to the HQ.
Although similar, I did find that this facility had allot of robotic staff. None of them were aggressive and carried on with chores and cleaning as we walked past.
Soon, we reached this facilities version of a cafeteria. The room was decorated similarly to the one we were in previously, however, this one had a thick oak flooring, which looked as if it had been smoothed over with sandpaper.
We could see the room to HQ on the other side, but walking directly through the canteen was in no way a smart move, as all the facilities staff seemed to be taking their lunch break.
This gave me an idea.
I whispered into Miu’s ear, telling her of the plan. Nodding, she stealthily made her way around to the other doors.
Then, when we made sure that all the IWEC were not looking, we closed all the doors, locking them from the outside.
X.D: (Whispering) ‘That should give us some time.’
We all slowly went around to the other side, where Miu was trying to push numbers into a device on the door.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Blast these damn things!’
She tried again. The device bleeped red at her.
Ryu Jianar: ‘What type of code does it require?’
Miu Shizuka: ‘Apparently, it requires (some boring, long maths equation that I honestly wouldn't be able to remember let alone solve.)’
Ryu Jianar: ‘Oh, well maybe it's this then…’
He typed in a few numbers, and the door still denied access.
Ryu Jianar: ‘But that's correct! How could that not be it!’
Atsuko looked over his answer.
Atsuko Viola: ‘Y...yes, that s...should be right…’
The three began to ponder over the answer, scratching at the very corners of their minds for a clue.
Dakota Way: ‘What you guys up to?’
Ryu Jianar: ‘Its maths Dakota.’
Dakota Way: ‘Oh, let me see!’
Pushing past Ryu, he took a small glance at the device.
Dakota way: ‘Dude, how did you get that answer?’
Ryu Jianar: (Boasting) ‘Well Dakota, I simply (Yet another long, boring summary of how to put numbers together to make a bigger one). And that is how I got it. I'm just confused, as this damn machine keeps telling me that it's wrong.’
Dakota stroked his chin.
Dakota Way: ‘That's because it is man!’
He deleted all digits on the screen and typed in a small line of numbers. The door opened.
I don't think I had ever seen a look which had both awe and complete and utter disbelief, as well as hatred at the same time.
Miu Shizuka: (Confused) ‘How...did you...Dakota, are you feeling ok?’
Dakota Way: ‘Of course I'm feeling ok. I just love maths man. It's just my jam, as well as sports and stuff.’
Yes, he may come across as a tall, helium headed guy. But when it comes to maths, even Ryu has to go to Dakota for help.
And yet, he can't even go to the shops without over paying for something!
Making sure that we weren't being followed, we headed cautiously onwards.
After a small walk along the same type of corridor, we were greeted with another incredibly large room. The signs on the wall read “testing grounds”. At first, I thought it was similar to ours. Then I took a detailed glance around the room.
Cages were stacked high upon one another, until they reached the roof. Each one held an Android, which was labeled with a coded number.
There must have been thousands, all branded. To my amazement, although clearly the same original design, all of the bot's were either twisted or damaged in some way. Some seemed to have missing limbs, whilst others had more than their original.
Some even seemed to have unnatural energy and deformities covering them.
At least they all had one thing in common. They were all dead.
Every single one of them was left in their “cage” (Which were all incredibly sturdy. Trust me, Ronnie tried to break one) to rot.
But the centre of the room was another story. A large circular pad with two robotic poles sticking out of it was the centrepiece.
Even a simple minded man could see that this was controlled in the room directly in front of us, as there was no computer or device to activate it in here, and the room that was in front of us had a huge blast screen and (what I presumed was bulletproof) glass.
Lewis Sterge: ‘What do you think this could be?’
He went to get a closer look.
Yuuto Ito:(Shouting) ‘Don't get near it then! It could be dangerous.’
Miu Shizuka: ‘I think it will be best if we split up at this point. I will stay here with Atsuko. You boys go on ahead with Yuuto as well.’
She started making her way into the safety room, lightly dragging Atsuko by the arm.
Yuuto Ito: ‘But why? We are nearly there!’
Lewis Sterge: (Whispering to Yuuto) ‘Its girl stuff. Don't question it.’
We did what any group of men would do…
Not bother to argue and continue without them.
Ronnie, like a happy puppy, raced around as we made our way along the hall to the HQ. As we arrived, we all peeked cautiously through the glass. Inside, I could pinpoint three things:
-
There were five individuals sitting around a table in the centre of the room. Three of them were In a full suit , whilst the other two were in what appeared to be lab coats.
-
Surrounding them, was what looked like a bunch of pods made of glass. Two of them seemed to have something in them, whilst the rest were empty.
-
A large computer behind the table was wired into a bunch of large screens and a weird blackboard (the Universal sign for “This is an important piece of tech”)
X.D: ‘Ok, so we should all go in at the same time, that way we can…’
Ronnie Kicked the door open, charging into the room. Before I could yell at him, he had already bludgeoned the five men unconscious with… well… the wooden spoons we got him.
Ronnie Manning: ‘Did I do good?’
X.D: ‘Yeah, good enough.’
Yuuto Ito: ‘let me into the system. I may be able to get an idea of what this place is all about.’
I walked over to the computer, attaching the cable to Yuuto.
Yuuto Ito: (Annoyed, moaning) ‘*Sigh* This may take a while…’
On the screen of the other monitor, I could see that Yuuto was intensely trying his hardest to get through some security firewalls. Since it obviously required an immense amount of attention, I began to rummage the desk. Almost nothing useful was found, except a small manual on the machine in the room before us.
Dakota Way: ‘Hey dudes, there's people in here!’
Dakota was standing in front of the two pods I noticed.
Dakota Way: ‘Should we let them out?’
Lewis Sterge: ‘I wouldn't If I were you. They may be working with the IWEC.’
X.D: ‘Open them…’
Ryu Jianar: (Shocked) ‘But why? Xyro, what if they are working for them!’
X.D: ‘They could be like us Ryu…’
I looked at him, unsheathing my hand blades.
X.D: ‘...But If they are IWEC, then I would stand a little further back then that if I were you.’
I looked around until I found a set of buttons on the wall. I pressed the ones which had the same numbers on them as the pods of the two individuals.
A large hissing sound went off, as the pod doors slowly slid open. Both figures dropped out onto the floor, struggling for breath.
The male on the right began to push himself up from the ground.
???: (Out of breath, aggressive) ‘What do you need us for now, you dirty motherfu…’
The man took a glance at us and paused.
He was slightly taller than Lewis, With dark blond hair, which was rather spiky. Just like Lewis, his facial features were rather sharp, but his eyes were a very deep blue. He was clearly very toned, as his shirt underneath revealed clearly. He wore a rather large, black leather-looking trench coat, with military camo trousers underneath. An Incredibly short, double barrel blunderbus rested on his back, as well as a weird looking helmet. His boots were also military style.
Lewis Sterge: ‘Hey, are you ok?’
???: ‘Save me the kind shit and tell me what you're doing in here!.’
As he said this, the girl next to him sat up.
??? (Girl): (Yawning, rubbing her eyes) ‘Wh...what's going on?’
Using the man's leg to pull herself up, the girl stood next to him.
She was roughly my height, which was aided by the most iconic thing about her, the fairly large rabbit ears sticking out of her head. She had long, pale blue hair, which matched her bright blue eyes. She was wearing a tattered, dark pink dress, that was rather short. On top of this, was a sleeveless jacket, which was completely black, except the line for the buttons. Around her right arm and her left leg, she had a leather strap. Her boots were in a military style, nearly reaching her knee. Above all else, both her socks and her fingerless gloves were striped with black, blue and purple patterns.
??? (Girl): 'Davis, look…’
The girl pointed at the five men at the table. Ronnie, who had been holding his spoons out, slowly tried to hide them behind his back.
Davis Drafter: ‘Oh, so you're not with that scumm then.’
X.D: ‘Of course not.’
The two looked at me with a strange look.
Davis Drafter: ‘No offence kid, but you are one ugly android.’
X.D: ‘Cyborg, actually.’
Davis Drafter: ‘No way. *Tutting* They really don't give a blind shit about people anymore, do they?’
The girl besides him looked around the room.
???(Girl) 'Does this mean that you can help us out of here?'
Yuuto Ito: (Still doing work) ‘Yeah, just give me a second and we will get a plan sorted.’
Lewis Sterge: (Being friendly) ‘Hey, the name's Lewis.’
He extended his arm to Davis for a handshake.
Lewis was coldly blanked.
Davis Drafter: ‘I'm not much for the pep talk. The names Davis and that's all you need to know. If you want to get your ear chatted off, Crystal here can help you with that.'
Davis walked over to one of the chairs. Kicking the unconscious man off it, he then seated himself, using the man's back as a footrest.
As the other boys went over to either take a seat or check out other bits of the room, I decided to talk with crystal.
X.D: ‘Hey, the names Xyro. It's a pleasure to meet you.’
Although clearly worried, she had an uncontrollable smile on her face.
Crystal: ‘Hey, it's nice to talk to someone who doesn't point a gun at your head the moment you start speaking.’
X.D: ‘If you don't mind me asking, what happened to you two anyway?’
Crystal: ‘Well, it's a long story…’
The ears on her head twitched slightly.
Crystal: ‘..I don't know about Davis, but before we both got here, I was living with my family in Quanterism…’
X.D: ‘Quanterism?’
Davis Drafter: ‘Quanterism is a place located in the seventy third earth dimension. When I found Crystal there, the planet was crumbling to its knees.’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Dimension? What are you on about?’
Davis gave us all a sharp look.
Davis Drafter: ‘You guys have no idea what this facility is for, do you?’
Yuuto Ito: (Excitedly) ‘Ahaaa! I do now.’
He placed a bunch of text up on the large screen behind us, as well as a bunch of pictures of both beautiful and horrific landscapes.
Yuuto Ito: ‘As far as all the records say, this facility is being used to create time rifts in earth, therefore allowing the users of that device out there to enter any different dimension on earth.’
Davis Drafter: (Sarcastic) 'Sounds pretty amazing, don't it...'
He took a stand from the table.
Davis Drafter: ‘...That's what they all say at first. Then they send you into a fucking hell hole, just to watch your whole damn squad get torn and devoured in front of your eyes.’
Crystal looked down at the floor. Although I had just met the two of them, I already felt sympathetic for them.
Damn, I hate being so soft!
Yuuto Ito: ‘The technological development of this is extremely useful. Davis, have you seen any sought of teleportation devices in these dimensions?’
Davis Drafter: ‘Oh yeah, I have seen thousands of different types. They are not very hard to use either...’
‘
Our hopes began to rise…
Davis Drafter: ‘...But the thing is, the portals are all extremely unstable! Bringing anything back into this dimension will alter it in unpredictable ways.’
Ryu Jianar: ‘How unpredictable?’
Davis Drafter: ‘Let's just say… Crystal had a pet rabbit called Sylvester before she Smuggled her way back here.’
Crystal wagged her ears a little bit in embarrassment.
Yuuto Ito: (Excited) 'We have contact with Kiri again!'
He signaled into their frequency.
Yuuto Ito: 'Hey, can you hear me?'
Kiri: (Static,Muffled) ‘Listen to me carefully. You all have to find a way to get out of there, NOW!’
Yuuto Ito: ‘Wait, what's happening out there?’
Kiri: (Static,Muffled) ‘The IWEC has just called in all available units to swarm Your location. They are all making their way down to you now. Find another way to get out fast!'
Yuuto Ito: (Cutting off from the call with Kiri) ‘OK, OK, Let's not panic…’
Davis Drafter: ‘Hey, you all need a way out?’
Dakota Way: ‘Well dude, of course!’
Davis went to search the desk drawers.
Davis Drafter: ‘Did someone see a manual anywhere?’
Without saying a word, I handed it to him.
Davis Drafter: ‘Alright, let's strike a deal. Me and Crystal will join you guys on whatever it is you are doing from now on if you do us a favour first.’
X.D:(Positive) ‘Sure, anything!’
Both Davis and crystal showed us their arms. On each one, was an incredibly heavy looking device, which was wrapped around tightly.
Crystal: ‘These things are used to track us in the dimensions. Since they are unstable, we can only spend a few days in there until the rift closes for good.’
Davis Drafter: ‘So we have these so that the basterds can pull us back for later use. I have tried to break them before, but the damn things are impossible to destroy.’
X.D: ‘So you want us to remove them?’
Davis Drafter: (With a harsh look) ‘Obviously!’
X.D: ‘Alright, I think I know the right person for the job. Let's get going, then we can remove those for you.’
Picking up Yuuto, We made our way back into the room with the dimensional rift maker. Atsuko and Miu were both barricading the door, as groups of troops were trying to ram it in.
Miu Shizuka: (In slight pain) ‘Can someone please give us a hand. I don't think this door or my shoulder will last any longer.’
Dakota and Lewis rushed to the aid, whilst the rest of us got the teleporter up and running.
Davis frantically typed a bunch of letters and numbers into a small panel, which caused a large black sphere to form.
Davis Drafter: ‘Alright, this is it.’
He made his way towards it, removing the blunderbuss from his back.
Davis Drafter: 'Just to let you guys know, If this universe is not a safe one, don't go crying to me if one of your group gets dragged of by something, Because I'm not going after them.'
He slowly walked through, with crystal running in after him.
X.D: (Shouting) 'Go, get in!'
Everyone darted directly through the portal, just as the door was flung open by the IWEC staff. I quickly snapped a wire on the machine, before jumping in myself.
The portal closed behind me...
Chapter four: Day one: Part two: Everything's the same… oh wait...
As I was being transported through the twisting vortex, I couldn't help but find myself at complete rest. The weightlessness combined with the vast array of vivid colors floating around in lapping movements was almost hypnotic.
It was like being thrown around inside of a kaleidoscope!
As I was suspended in the air, I started to feel the weight return back to my body. The lights receded, and were replaced by black and white outlines. As they approached me with speed, I could see exactly what they were. Before I could do anything to slow down, I was spat out of the portal…
...And into the pile of my friends.
As I crashed on top of them, they all let out large huffs of air.
(together in argument)
Miu Shizuka: (Smothered) ‘Get off me! You all weigh a ton!’
Lewis Sterge: (Smothered) ‘Dakota! Your foot is in my face!’
Dakota Way: (Smothered) ‘Ergh, not cool dude!’
Atsuko Viola: (Smothered)‘Y...y...you're all c...crushing me…’
Ryu Jianar: (Squashed, gasping for air) ‘C...cant….breathe…’
While we tried to untangle ourselves from one another, both Davis and Crystal were standing beside us, watching. Crystal was laughing on the ground with her legs crossed, whilst Davis was shaking his head in frustration.
Davis Drafter: (Frustrated) ‘How on earth did you lazy excuses for soldiers even get here alive in the first place.’
He took out a flask from his pocket and took a small swig of the liquid inside.
Once we were all able to clamber off one another, I was finally able to get a look at our surroundings.
The room was fairly large, but filled to the brim with cages of assorted size…
X.D: ‘Wait, this is the same room we were in before!’
Davis Drafter: ‘That's where you're wrong!’
he took yet another small sip from the flask.
Davis Drafter: ‘As I said, these portals bring you to the same place on earth you were, but in a different dimensional time. So yeah, this may look the same, but take a bit of a more detailed peep before you open your stupid mouth.’
Although rude, he was right.
Even though everything was similar, the place was overrun with vegetation. Thick vines and roots were piercing their way through the walls, large outshoots of plants made it virtually impossible to see past them. This place looked as if it had been abandoned ages ago.
Ryu Jianar: ‘What you're saying, is that this dimension has the exact same planetary placement as the one before, but with a different history?’
Davis Drafter: ‘At least someone is paying attention.’
Davis removed the helmet from his back, placing it rather slowly over his head.
Ryu Jianar: ‘If that's the case, then I understand the plan you have mister Drafter.’
Davis Drafter: (Placing a bunch of shells into his shotgun) ‘Oh really? Then what is that then?’
Ryu Jianar: ‘Since this is the exact same placement as in our dimension, you want to take us out of here and onto the surface, until we find a safe place, which we can then use those devices on your and Crystals arm’s to make a direct teleportation back to that place on earth, making it so that we escape from the IWEC without a scratch!’
We all nodded in agreement. As I said, Ryu is a genius.
Davis combed the back of his head with his left hand.
Davis Drafter: ‘That's one smart plan kid. I'm glad you thought of it… because I didn't.’
Davis started to walk off on his own.
Miu Shizuka: ‘So he pulled us in here with no plan!’
Crystal: ‘*Sigh* Sounds like Davis alright.’
Davis turned to us all.
Davis Drafter: ‘Have you got legs or what? Let's go!’
We set off along the corridor after Davis, who was walking steadily ahead of us.
Lewis Sterge: ‘Hey Crystal, quick question for ya…’
Lewis walked beside her, trying to keep his voice down.
Lewis Sterge: (Silently) ‘What's the deal with Davis anyway. Why is he such a douchebag?’
Crystal: ‘He's not too bad. It's just, ever since he lost his friends a while ago, he started to drink… allot.’
She looked over to him, to make sure he was not listening.
Crystal: ‘Davis used to be such a nice man to everyone. He really seemed to care about everyone around him.’
Crystal pulled a sheet of paper out of the side pocket of her bag. I did not get to have a look at it, but she told me that it was a propaganda sheet for her to sign so that she could stay with Davis to work for them.
Crystal: ‘All Davis told me was that he had to come here to save his town, and that things went wrong.’
Crystal looked forward at the cold, joyless man walking ahead of her.
Crystal: ‘I wish he could see that he is still important to others.’
She went silent, so Lewis backed away to let her think. While the others continued onward, Crystal seemed to fall back slightly from the group. She had her head down in thought.
I didn't know what to say exactly, so I went to offer to carry her bag.
X.D: (Silently) ‘Would you like me to carry that for you?’
Instead of the yes or no reply, she looked at me with a smile on her face.
Crystal: ‘Xyro, I know we only just met and all, but can you do me a favour please?’
I always seem to get into these bloody situations:
“Xyro, can you promise me this...”
“Xyro, can you promise me that…”
Why is everyone so obsessed with promises!
Crystal: ‘Please don't give up on Davis. Allot of people do, but he just needs to see that people are actually worth trusting for once. I mean, you seem nice enough.’
X.D: ‘I don't think nice is quite the word for it…’
She laughed.
Crystal: ‘OK. so if you were not a nice person, why did you offer to take my bag?’
She gave me a sarcastic grin.
Crystal: ‘Exactly! You were trying to make me feel better! Don't try to be mystical with me mister!’
She poked my arm with her finger.
After a few minutes of walking and discussion, we finally came to a stop at the stairway leading up to the next floor.
Why did we stop?
Well, it may have had something to do with the fact that the entire stairway was completely collapsed and covered in vines!
Davis began to try and shift the plant matter, to no avail. Every vine he removed, was replaced with another one.
Davis Drafter: ‘Damn it! We need to find another way up.’
Davis walked back over to us.
Davis Drafter: ‘Can you ask your computer pal if there's another way out?’
Atsuko opened the laptop. The screen was covered in static, rendering it useless.
Atsuko Viola: (Guiltily timid) ‘I..I think t...that it got c..crushed…’
Davis gave Atsuko an angry look, so I made sure that I stood in front of her, just in case he tried anything.
Davis Drafter: ‘This is just great! How are we supposed to navigate our way around this bloody maze without any way of knowing which way is the right one!’
As Davis stomped around madly, Ronnie started laughing.
Lewis Sterge: ‘What's so funny now!’
Ronnie Manning: ‘hehehe, look up.’
You would think we would have looked up at the same, bright blue and black signs as before for direction, but apparently going through a portal makes it so that the same thing cannot occur twice.
But as luck would have it, yes, Ronnie was right again.
Davis, who didn't want to apologize, stormed off in the direction the signs were pointing to the other exit. Crystal ran off with him, in order to try and calm him down.
Ryu, who normally just sticks to the back, was wondering around, fascinated by the vast amounts of plants growing in the vegetation.
He didn't touch any of them, but took photos on a small camera he pulled out from his pocket.
The walk forward seemed to take ages. Since the hallways were now completely overgrown, some were even beginning to flood with stagnant water.
...
Here is a funny story:
Are you sitting comfortably? good!
There once were seven young people, who wanted to get past a small lake of stagnant water.
The first two though: “Wouldn't it be easy to go around the water!”
They did and made it to the other side dry.
The second set of two said: “Hey, how about we use the vines hanging from the ceiling to climb over!”
They made it dry too.
The third set of two thought: “Here is a bright idea, how about we jump over the water!”
They both made it with slightly wet feet.
Now the last, very clever individual, had a brilliant idea in his head. He must have thought: “If there was no water, then I could get across without getting wet!”
Long story short, and one huge cannonball later, the story ends up with 8 people getting drenched, and one being half dry and sitting in a hole with a smile on his face.
The end. (Well, of Ronnie, if Miu was to get her hands on him. Luckily she was unable to reach him).
…
Walking around being soaked in stagnant water is in no way fun at all, as stagnant water tends to seep deep into your clothes, causing a rather vulgar and obnoxious smell.
When we did arrive at the staircase leading up, Davis was waiting on a step with Crystal seated behind him.
Davis Drafter: ‘What took you all so god damn lo….’
He looked at the state we were in, and just gave up.
Dakota Way: ‘Can we please set up camp for the night or something. I’m drenched, man!’
Davis, although angry, was also tired.
Davis Drafter: ‘Fine, but don't talk to me. I need some rest for once.’
Without making another word, he laid on his back on the bottom step and went to sleep.
Making a small fire dry our clothes, Miu took this night's watch, whilst the others went to sleep.
I couldn't help but close my eyes too. Although the walk was not as tiring as I expected it to be, I still felt drained.
I sat back against the wall, closing my eyes.
Throughout the entire evening, I swear I kept hearing low murmurs coming from the walls...
Chapter four: Day two: Well, they move now...
I was awoken by a movement on my shoulder. At first, I thought it was simply Miu waking me up.
X.D: *Yawning* ‘Hey, morning…’
As I opened my eyes, I saw that everyone was fast asleep. Even Miu was sitting with her head on her palm, snoring softly.
Confused, I searched around to see what had touched me.
Nothing around me could have possibly been the cause. It was a pretty firm grip, so it couldn't have been the brushing of the vines behind me. Whatever did it, was no longer here.
Feeling confused and weary, I got to my feet and made my way over to where the stagnant lake… well, puddle now, was.
Although the smell was rotten, I could easily cope, as I was able to filter air with the faceplate. Holding my position on my knees, I began to meditate.
The sweltering heat and droaning sound of small insects chirping were enough to make anyone visualise a thick jungle, teeming with wildlife.
Although drowned out by the loud noises, I was still able to hear the silent footsteps behind me.
Crystal had followed me whilst I was not looking and was trying to hide behind one of the vines. Her huge white ears gave her away instantly.
X.D: (Calling back to her) ‘You can sit next to me if you want. I don't bite.’
Knowing that she had been spotted, she made her way next to me.
Crystal: ‘Why did you leave us?’
X.D: ‘I didn't leave. I just like to meditate away from the group. You know, peace and quiet and all.’
Crystal tried to sit down, but couldn't find a comfortably dry spot, so she remained standing.
Crystal: (Awkwardly) ‘So… how did you… you know…’
She was hinting at my body.
I explained to her the way that the IWEC took me apart, replacing each part with a robotic equivalent. Stunned, she showed a full interest.
Crystal: (Excited,interested) ‘Is that the same for the others then?’
Miu Shizuka: ‘Not exactly...’
Miu, who was standing towards the end of the hall, slowly made her way along to us.
Miu Shizuka: ‘You see, they took me away from my home, whilst I was sleeping…’
As she walked towards us, she formed her index finger into a claw, dragging it along the wall. The sharpness of it pierced the metal.
Miu Shizuka: ‘...they changed me, modifying everything so that I’m nothing like my former self…’
Her finger dug much deeper into the metal, screeching loudly. Her head was down, but I could still see the small amounts of black blood trickling up her face.
Miu Shizuka: ‘...And after all that, they had the audacity to take my family away from me…’
She finally came to a stop a few inches away from us. I could see the look of terror Crystals had as she stared at Miu's twisted face.
Miu Shizuka: (Smiling) ‘...look me in the eyes, and tell me what you see?’
Miu stared her in the eyes, with her Red, fiery eyes. Crystal stood frozen, but with a slight awe in her stature.
The two stood silently for a while, until Miu morphed back into her usual self, removing her finger from the now gaping slice in the wall.
Crystal: (Smiling) ‘I see that you have lovely eyes!’
Miu took that as a surprise and stared in almost embarrassment at the floor.
Crystal: ‘Honestly you two! Do you really think you're both horrible monsters or something?’
Miu and I gave each other a glance of agreement.
Crystal: (Giggling) ‘Then clearly, you two haven't seen real monsters then!’
She pulled out an art book, which contained some amazingly detailed drawings of hideous looking creatures.
X.D: ‘Did you draw these yourself?’
Crystal: (Happy) ‘Yes, do you like them?’
X.D: ‘They're amazing! I love the detail!’
Crystal blushed, and held her book tightly
Crystal: ‘Thank you! I need to keep a log so that Davis can deal with monsters accordingly.’
She started pointing out the most horrid of the creatures and comparing us to them. It made Miu feel somewhat better, but I just found the art to be more of a cheer up then the actual pep talk.
After a short while, we decided to start making my way back.
Once there, the others were just getting up, including Davis. They hadn't even noticed that we had gone.
Lewis Sterge: ‘Hey, Xyro, I need to speak with you for a sec kid.’
He walked over to me and turned me away from the group.
Lewis Sterge: (Whispering) ‘Keep an eye on this Davis guy will you, I don't trust him.’
Not allowing me to answer, he patted me on the back, before packing his stuff.
Before we knew it, everyone was making their way onwards up the stairs.
Just like the floor below us, the walls were covered in tons of vines. But this time, I also noticed something twitching on the ground.
I went over to investigate.
Under a mass of vines, was what appeared to be a mechanical arm poking out. Although it was covered in vines, it seemed to be twitching ever so slightly, which bolstered my curiosity.
I reached down to grab it, but the arm seemed to have the same idea.
Just before I could understand what had gone on, the arm shot upwards, grabbing me. Without hesitating, my hand blades cut through the metal in an instant, separating the arm from the body of the “thing” that tried to grab me. Whatever it was, had disappeared into the undergrowth of vines and vegetation.
Atsuko was the only one who witnessed what had happened, as she had stayed behind with me.
Atsuko Viola: (Worried) ‘Xyro, a...are you ok?’
X.D: (Panting from shock, trying to act naturally) ‘Yeah, I'm fine…’
Atsuko Picked up the severed arm, inspecting it with no sign of disgust on her face.
Atsuko Viola: ‘L...look at this Xyro…’
She pointed at a bunch of sections on the mechanical arm. At first, it looked like normal metal and plant matter. But on closer inspection, I could see that it was far from that. In fact, the plant matter itself seemed more like green flesh then the texture of a typical plant.
Atsuko Viola: ‘A...amazing, I have never s...seen something like this b...before…’
A sudden, unsettling thought sprung into my mind.
X.D: ‘We need to get going, now…’
Atsuko gave me a strange look before she realised what I meant.
You see, the thing about vines is that they grow rather quickly, and rapidly. Now, take this into consideration, and with what this facility is full of, then you start to panic.
Why?
Well, i'm a little bit of a detective myself.
You see, if you can recall earlier, there were many, many different androids in cages. Now, when we passed through the rift, there were the same cages…..with nothing inside.
Tie that together with the fact that I got attacked by a plant/robot hybrid, and even a fool can understand what I mean.
Yep, we were in one of those “Plants abducting bodies” type of situations. Great for when you really want to become a “fun-guy”.
Don't get annoyed at me, I have "much-shroom" for improvement!
(I really need to stop it with the puns, but I can't help myself!)
We frantically ran back to the others, to warn them of the danger.
We were too late.
A few of the hybrid creatures burst out in front of the others, trying their hardest to swipe at Davis.
Although grumpy, Davis was one hell of a good shot!
With the blunderbuss, he blew a hole straight through their chest’s, leaving them writhing on the ground.
But before we could recover, more sprang through the foliage. All of us began to fight back.
Fists, blades, guns, razor-sharp teeth…
We thought them with ease, each enemy falling to the ground as a lifeless mass of plant and steel.
Yet they kept on coming. They seemed to be a never ending swarm of mechanical abominations.
After what seemed to be a hundred, I knew we had to retreat, otherwise, we would have been mobbed!
Luckily for us, the stairs to the next floor were directly down the hall.
X.D: (Fighting) ‘Guys, everyone start moving towards the stairway, I have a plan!’
Complying, we forced our way through the hoard of creatures towards our goal.
As soon as Davis got to the stairway, he covered us whilst I tried to get everyone up.
I heard a small yell and turned to find Ryu getting dragged off.
Not on my watch!
Without thinking, I unloaded every shot in my revolvers at the pitiful creatures. Each and every one of them dropped to the ground.
Helping Ryu to his feet, I rushed him up the stairs.
Once we reached the top of the stairway, Davis and Dakota slammed the emergency door down to prevent the remaining things from getting to us.
Panting, we all tried to recover our breath.
Ronnie Manning: (Excitably) WHOOOOO! Well,that was a thrill!’
Ryu Jianar:(Panting, angry) ‘I nearly got killed!’
Miu Shizuka: (Shouting) ‘Shut up Ryu! I nearly broke a nail!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Look, At least everyone is fine.’
…
Let me guess, were you expecting there to be someone who was injured or something?
Haha!
Don't make me laugh! we hadn't survived with the IWEC on our backs just to die to a bunch of infected walking tree robots.
Making sure that we were all safe and that none of those things were around, we set up a small fire to warm up some water and to fill our empty stomachs.
Dakota's fists were drenched in green and black from the combined mixture of vine extract and oil. Using some of the heated water, he began to wash his arms.
I took a seat next to him.
X.D: ‘Hey buddy.’
Dakota Way: ‘Yo, that was an intense fight man!’
X.D: (washing off the blades, because they were caked in the stuff too) ‘Yeah, it was.’
Dakota Way: (Excited) 'Did you see the way they tried to touch us. ah man, they were pathetic!'
I don't like to admit it, but something about fights like those makes me feel all pumped too. I'm not sure if it's the adrenaline rush or the ease of combat, but fighting off hoards of enemies is somewhat fun.
Yeah, and this is coming from the guy who is supposed to be the “good guy” in this story.
Trust me, I'm in no way a good guy.
Yes, I care for my friends, and yes, I will do anything in my power to protect anyone in need…
But that doesn't compensate for what I can do, and what I have already done.
After all, if I was a good guy, then this story wouldn't be very interesting now, wouldn't it?
I'm more of a, how would you put it…
….the rouge? Nahh, I'm not harsh really….
….Hmmm, well, I'll let you figure it out for yourselves I guess. To me, i'm just me!
Anywho, I made sure that the blades were thoroughly scrubbed before I went to sleep.
As I sat down (Closer to the fire this time, and away from the vines) I noticed that Atsuko was still studying the arm. She was completely fascinated with it, as well as Ryu. the two were so attached to the design of the thing, that Ryu took a photo, but also wrote down notes on its every detail. Even the smell was noted.
Great, My brother and best friend were both fascinated with a dead creatures arm, Dakota was talking to his reflection, Ronnie was pulling faces at the creatures through the glass of the door, Davis and crystal were chatting And Lewis was having a conversation about knives with Miu.
And then you have me, who was seated alone next to the fire, staring into the open flame.
Yeah, I got bored, so I went to sleep.
Can't blame me, right?
Chapter four: Day three: Part one: Bop!
With the fire slowly dwindling, I opened my eyes to greet another day of venturing through a Grass-mechanical infested hell hole.
For those who complain about getting up early in the morning to go to work, you don't understand how easy you have it!
I sat up to stretch.
Raising my arms above my head, I let out a large yawn, before stretching out my legs as well. It seems like I'm always the first one up every damn morning, give or take Miu. Dakota was laying with his legs up against the wall for some strange reason. The others seemed to be sleeping in reasonable positions around the fire.
All apart from Miu, who was staring through the window of the emergency door. The creatures from the day before had retreated, but their claw marks still scarred the hall.
Trying not to wake anyone, I crept over to Miu.
Miu Shizuka: (Whispering) ‘I wonder how many of them are roaming the halls?’
X.D: (Whispering) ‘I don't want to know!’
Miu Shizuka: ‘Surely, they must have another way out from there.’
X.D: ‘We have to keep moving or those things are definitely going to catch up with us.’
Shaking the others awake, we carried on our way.
As we traversed the winding hallways of overgrown vegetation, we found ourselves being paranoid at every turn, movement or sound. Evan Davis’ eyes kept darting around, making sure to check every step before he took it.
Our paranoia made sure that the walk remained silent. Nobody wanted to talk, as we were all too focused and scared of an impending ambush of brushbots. Because of the enclosed space, it seemed to me that the room was heating up, which couldn't be true, so I assumed that it was just me feeling nervous.
That was until I noticed the beads of sweat forming on everyone else's faces.
Dakota Way: (Panting) ‘Man...why’s it so hot…’
The reason soon showed itself.
Ascending the steps up to where the elevators were, we found the place where the elevators “Were”
What do I mean by that?
Well, the elevators were here. Instead, they were now gone.
Where exactly?
I assumed they must have melted in the enormous pool of magma below us.
Yeah, that's right. A giant fissure directly under each of the elevators had ripped half the place apart, revealing a huge gaping hole of magma in the ground.
Atsuko took one look over the edge, and fell backward, sweating with anxiety.
Atsuko Viola: ‘W...what do we do n...now. The e...elevators were the only w...way up!’
Davis Drafter: ‘Great. Another bloody task to do!’
Removing his shotgun, Davis started walking back, with Crystal following.
X.D: ‘Where are you two going?’
Crystal stopped, but Davis kept walking.
Crystal: ‘To find another way out.’
I had to chuckle to myself. Walking over to one of the elevator shafts, I started eying up the chord that was hanging down.
Miu Shizuka: ‘I know what you're thinking, but no!’
Dakota looked from the magma, and then back at me.
Dakota Way: ‘That's crazy man! No!’
Ryu Jianar: ‘Wait,wait,wait! Where’s Ronnie?’
We looked down the hall. The weirdo was nowhere to be seen.
Ronnie Manning: (Shouting) ‘Hey guys, up here!’
Ronnie was clambering up the chords, already halfway up to the top.
Ronnie manning: ‘Is it just me, or have you all gotten smaller?’
X.D: (Shouting after him) ‘Hey Ronnie, wait up!’
I looked over to the others.
X.D: ‘Someone call those two back here. This is our way up.
I took hold of the chord.
Atsuko Viola: (Shy, nervous) ‘X...Xyro, I'm s...sorry, but I c...can’t do this.’
Her fear of heights rendered her ability to climb useless. So, like any responsible teen, I decided to give her some help.
Atsuko Viola: (Confused) ‘H...hey Xyro, what a...are you…’
Scooping her over my shoulders into a fireman's carry, I started clambering up the Chord after Ronnie. Atsuko started hyperventilating on my shoulder but stayed completely motionless. Upon arriving at the top of the elevator shaft, I placed her down on the floor.
For a few minutes, She just sat there, frozen completely solid. Then, after asking if she was ok, she turned her head to me and nodded.
One by one, the others climbed up to us. Even Ryu was able to clamber his way up the chords with relatively minor fuss.
Once again, Ronnie had disappeared. This time, there was no trace of him.
Up here, however, there seemed to be less vegetation than before. In fact, the only vines that I could see were covering the ceiling.
I found that the longer we kept walking, the more and more noise was being made. Insects were increasing in number, water drips could be heard. It was kind of nice.
Turning the final corner, Lewis, Dakota and Ryu fell back on the ground screaming.
Confused as to what had happened, I rushed over to assess this terrifying situation…
Ronnie was hiding around the corner, waiting for us to get there.
He had adorned himself in leaves, and jumped out at the boys, causing their “Manly instincts” to kick in.
Ronnie rolled around on the floor laughing, as the boys brushed themselves off, unimpressed.
Miu Shizuka: (To the group) ‘You know, I would have probably used that as an excuse to rip his head off.’
She sighed, and continued walking onwards.
Miu Shizuka: ‘It may just be me, but I hate that guy with a passion.’
Ryu Jianar: ‘No, it’s not just you…’
Miu Shizuka: ‘I’m sorry, was I speaking to you?’
Ryu Jianar: *Sigh* ‘You don't scare me anymore Miu. I'm too tired for this right now.’
Ryu kept walking ahead. Miu had plans.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Hey, Ryu…’
He ignored her.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Ryu!’
He continued to ignore her.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Ryu!’
Ryu Jianar: (Turning around) *Sigh* ‘Wha…’
Just before Ryu was able to form his sentence, the rock that Miu threw at him collided with his face. Rolling around on the floor, Ryu was grasping his head in pain, whilst Miu laughed at him.
Miu Shizuka: ‘That's why you should be scared of me Ryu, now come on!’
Dragging him by the legs, she caught up with the others. Honestly, those two have the weirdest relationship I have ever known.
Crystal, who had been by Davis’ side all day, sprinted over to me, clasping her art book in hand.
Crystal: (Excited) ‘Hey, check it out!’
Opening it up to one of the pages, I could see that she had drawn the different variations of those plant robots we had seen yesterday. Although they had no color, they did look rather elegantly drawn and had labels all around, showing potential weaknesses and different characteristics.
X.D: ‘You really did focus on so many details during that fight, hey?’
Crystal: ‘Actually, I cheated a bit. I stayed up whilst you were all asleep to sketch the ones that were at the door before they left.’
She closed the book, folding it away into her backpack.
Crystal: ‘I would show Davis, but he is a bit of a mood at the moment.’
X.D:(Sarcastic) ‘No kidding’
I looked at Davis, who had the dirtiest frown on his face. He looked as if he had been slapped in the face with a trunk of a whale.
“But, Xyro, whales don't have trunks!”
Trust me, they do on some planets.
Crystal: ‘He may have run out of whisky a few hours ago and he's not taking it very well.’
X.D: ‘I guess drinking has been his coping method then.’
Crystal: (Half arsed laugh) ‘Yeah, that and being a miserable git!’
Davis Drafter: (Shouting) ‘Hey, fluffy, hurry up.’
X.D:(Trying so hard not to laugh) ‘Fluffy?’
Crystal: (Blushing, embarrassed) ‘Yeah, he calls me fluffy at times, because of my ears.’
With her face turning a bright shade of red, she rushed off to his side.
Yet another ship had set sail off into the wind.
You are all smart people, so you know what I mean!
With the others off ahead, I was left alone at the back, kicking a stone as we all made our way through more and more corridors.
Honestly, I still can't understand why places like these have to be so damn daunting. Why can't they just, liven the place up a bit, or make the corridors at least a little bit shorter. Or even add a lick of paint to it!
Yeah, I know that they at least tried by putting plants about, but it makes the place feel more like a jungle than anything!
Am I being too facetious about this?
Probably!
I know you're probably tired of hearing this, but we walked through way too many hallways to even go into detail, so I won't. Instead, let me skip to a more, Interesting part…
(Imagine a camera fading out, and returning to us, but further ahead. Yeah, I'm going to be one of those types of writers now! I'm not doing sound effects, though, so don't get your hopes up!)
We had all finally arrived at where that huge metal door was in the last facility, well, the hallway to that door.
Dakota, Miu, Ryu, and Atsuko were all at the front, whilst Ronnie was winding up Lewis, and Davis was discussing what I think was some type of alcohol with Crystal.
Ronnie, who was prancing about, suddenly stopped at the stairs to go up.
He searched his pockets, but whatever he was looking for, he couldn't find.
Ronnie Manning: ‘Hey, has anyone seen the top of my finger?’
Davis Drafter: (Confused) ‘The top of your what!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘It's a long story.’
Atsuko Viola: ‘Y...you dropped it, so I p...put it in my p...pocket!’
She handed him back the small tip of his finger.
Ronnie manning: ‘Thanks, shortie!’
He and the others pranced up the stairs. But I knew something was incredibly strange about that, so I took Atsuko to one side.
X.D: (Whispering, questioning) ‘Urm, Atsuko, why did you keep hold of the tip of Ronnie's finger?’
Atsuko made sure that the others were out of earshot before going into details.
Atsuko Viola: (Whispering) ‘I m...made a copy of the USB shape and d...drive in order to get a f...feel on how it works. I was s...studying it last night, so I must have f...forgot to put the f...finger b...back on.’
X.D: (Questioning, sly look on face) ‘So, you stole from Ronnie?’
Atsuko Viola: ‘N..no…’
I gave her the look of expectancy.
Atsuko Viola: ‘...Kinda…’
She looked down in embarrassment.
Atsuko Viola: ‘P...please don't t...think badly of me X...xyro, I only d..did it because…’
Before she finished her sentence, I tapped her on the shoulder.
X.D:(Happy) ‘Disappointed? Ha! I’m so proud of you!’
Atsuko Viola: ‘P...proud?’
X.D: (Happy) ‘Yes!’
Atsuko Viola: (Confused) ‘B...but why? S..stealing is such a b...bad, cruel t...thing!’
I had completely forgotten that Atsuko was against stealing entirely. So mentioning why I was proud of her was something I was not going to touch on.
X.D: (Taking back what I said, trying to pretend that it's bad) ‘Err, yeah! I'm so disappointed in you Atsuko!’
I bopped her on the nose with my finger.
X.D: (Jokingly) ‘Bad, naughty!’
Twitching her nose, Atsuko laughed at my silliness and tried to bop me as well.
Jokes on her I guess! Because I don't have a nose!
I heard Dakota yelling at me from on top of the stairs.
Dakota Way:(Shouting) ‘Hey, Xyro dude, we need your help man!’
Dakota and Lewis were trying their hardest to get the same metal door open. This one seemed to have been forced together with planks of wood, as well as metal reinforcements. One by one, we removed each plank until all we were left with was one huge metal bar to lift. Using the combined strength of all our team (Except Miu, who wandered off to stare at a pink flower) we forced the rusted piece of metal from its position.
Pulling the door open, I was surprised to see…
...
Chapter four: Day three: part two: Wiggle!
…
…..
Are you dying of suspense yet?
Oh, right, you can't answer me.
…
So….
Pushing the door open on its rusted hinges, we were greeted by both the sight, and the smell, of much thicker vegetation.
The entirety of this floor had vines and flowers blooming across every inch of the walls. It was almost impossible to see the walls under the mass of vines, brightly colored flowers and nests of what I presume where some type of bug or another.
We walked along, stunned by the sheer magnificence of the flowers. The different shades of white and pink made them stand out from the dark green vines.
Atsuko picked one of them, studying it, along with Ryu. The two were so fascinated with things like that.
I was more intrigued by the bar that we had seen Pint in before.
The polished wood of the tables and comfy looking seats were all torn to shreds and tipped over, with plants finding new homes amongst their wooden, rotting carcasses. The only lights that were on in this place seemed to be radiating off a bright blue looking mushroom patches.
Atsuko and Ryu had seen it too. The two of them made their way over to the corner, taking pictures of the weirdly fluorescent fungi.
Davis, who couldn't resist the bar, was rummaging through the broken cupboards. With a satisfied grin on his face, he pulled out a few bottles of whisky, stuffing one of the bottles into his pocket, and the others into Crystals rucksack.
Dakota Way: ‘Yo, Xyro!’
Dakota was calling me from the back of the bar area. He was standing with Lewis next to a dart board.
Lewis Sterge: ‘How about a healthy game?’
X.D: ‘Darts? I haven't played before.’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Really? It's easy to understand kid, so don't worry about that!’
He explained to me the rules, as he threw darts at the board.
With the rules in my brain (For the twenty minutes of playing) we had a few rounds of darts.
It ended up with Lewis and I tying first, Dakota coming second, and Ronnie coming last.
How many points did Ronnie get exactly?
Well, he did hit his mark a few time, if his mark was Miu’s dress.
She was not very happy with him.
Dakota Way: ‘Man, why are you two so good!’
Lewis Sterge: (Laughing, sarcastic) ‘I think it might just be luck!’
X.D: (Sarcastic) ‘Yeah, nothing to do with the fact that he has been throwing knives half his life.’
Dakota Way: ‘Yo, I know that! It's just, man, I wish I could throw like that!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘It's all about the training. You can easily throw like me, but it will take time to learn. Training's all it takes!’
Miu Shizuka: ‘And a good hand-eye coordination is required. I don't want you training when you tend to throw objects in random directions. In fact, don't train anywhere near me please Dakota!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Come on Miu, he's not that bad!’
Miu Shizuka: (Challenging) ‘Oh, is that so?’
She pointed at the dart board.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Try to hit it from where I am standing, Mr Way.’
Dakota, rolling his eyes, took a stand in Miu's position. Handing him a pebble, Dakota took aim and threw with all his might.
Honestly, I think that his throw was amazing.
It's just such a shame that he let go way too soon.
The pebble went straight up into the air. Dakota, who was confused, began scratching his head.
Dakota Way: ‘Err, where did it go?’
He stood still for a moment, whilst Miu and I watched the pebble fall back down onto his head. It made a tiny clink noise as it bounced off.
We both snickered to ourselves, as Dakota rubbed the part of his head better.
Dakota Way: ‘That's not funny bro’s, not funny.’
We all laughed.
Until an incredibly loud, high pitched scream filled the room.
In pain, everyone clenched their ears in pain. The sound felt close to ripping my eardrums to shreds!
The sound was coming from where Atsuko and Ryu were. As the noise died down, I rushed over to check if they were both ok.
At first, I thought that It was Ryu screaming (Yeah, he has the girliest scream imaginable) until I noticed the cause of the loud noise.
A tiny, blue and white mushroom on the ground, with a tiny face, was the cause of the uproar. It didn't seem very happy at Atsuko or Ryu and was threatening to shout again.
That is until Crystal ran over.
Crystal: (Freaking out with adorableness overload) ‘Oh my ….*unrecognizable gibberish for a few seconds*.....You're so cuuute!!!!!!’
She stroked the little mushroom with the tips of her fingers. The little thing smiled and began to wiggle on the spot, which only made it cuter.
Crystal: (Freaking out with adorableness overload) ‘Davis, Davis! Can I keep him! Please!!!’
Davis Drafter: ‘Crystal, leave it alone.’
Crystal: ‘But...but…’
She turned to him with puppy-dog eyes.
Crystal: ‘(In a cute, drastic voice)...Pweaseeee!’
Davis had to give in to her, even though he didn't seem too impressed.
Davis Drafter: ‘*Sigh* fine, but you're feeding the damn thing.’
Under her breathe, Crystal pumped the air with her arm.
Crystal: (Under her breath) ‘Yesss!!!
Holding out her hand, she let the tiny mushroom hop onto her with his little stump. He seemed to like her already.
Atsuko Viola: ‘W...what are you g...going to call it?
Crystal: (Happy) ‘Mr. Wiggles!’
X.D: ‘Mr wiggles? How do you know that it's even a boy?’
Crystal: ‘He is Mr wiggles, and that is that!’
She placed “Mr wiggles” onto her shoulder. The tiny blue fungi nestled up against her neck and let out a tiny, silent yawn.
Even Miu was struggling to fight the cuteness. It was slowly killing us both!
Miu Shizuka: ‘His face is making me want to puke…’
Mr Wiggles gave Miu a little smile and made popping noises at her.
Crystal: ‘Awh, I think he likes you!’
I could feel the death look radiating from her face.
X.D: ‘Come on, we need to catch up with Davis!’
Speaking of which, by now, Davis was already up two floors, hacking his way through a countless number of dead vines and shrubberies that were in his path. By the time we caught up with him, he was completely covered in thorns, had his clothes torn by spikes, and small cuts on his hands. And yet, his trench coat was unscathed.
Davis Drafter: (Still hacking through the plants, not looking at us) ‘Took you all bloody long enough!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Hey, take a break Davis. Me and Xyro can…’
Davis Drafter: (Agitated) ‘I don't need a break.The more you pester me, the slower we get through, so shut up, and let me get on with it.’
He swung at another vine. His arm got caught on yet another thorn, cutting him even more. This only seemed to put him more into a frenzy, as he slashed through piece by piece.
Lewis Sterge: (Turning to Crystal) ‘Is he always like this?’
Crystal: ‘*Sighing* Yep. Just don't take him too literally, though. Davis is a nice guy when he wants to be.’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Yeah, well I will be the judge of that.’
I was watching Davis struggle his way through the plants in annoyance. Pushing against my better judgement, I stood beside him, unsheathing my blades and cutting through.
Davis Drafter: (Agitated) ‘I told you to stay out of my w…’
X.D: (Interrupting abruptly) ‘Davis, you can't do everything yourself you know!’
Davis tried to stop me, by grabbing my arm.
Although a super weapon, his strength seemed almost beastly, as he was able to grip my arm in place.
X.D: (Annoyed) ‘Listen, Davis, I understand your frustration!’
Davis Drafter: (Harshly, almost aggressively) ‘You don't know the half of it, kid. You don't know what it's like to see those close to you ta…’
X.D: (Interrupting again, this time in anger) ‘Don't know the half of it?’
I began to shout.
X.D: ‘Don't assume that my life has been sunshine and rainbows, because with this face, clearly, it hasn't been!’
My anger seemed to be building up, with every word I said. I was winding myself up more and more.
X.D: ‘I watched my family die. I watched my friends die. Hell, I watched my friend die and come back again to try to kill us!’
The images filled my mind.
Leona limping in agony.
Yuuto and Yukki failing their “test”
And worst of all, my family’s smiling faces, replaced only by the bloodied lips and pale eyes of their hanging bodies.
I started to lose myself.
I turned to him, still under the influence of rage.
X.D:(Shouting) ‘So don't you dare, say that I don't know what it's like! You may have lost those close to you, but you knew the risk of it when you started! My family, my friend’s, all of them died because they were forced into it! You have no right to say I don't understand!’
I stared menacingly at him for at least a few minutes. That's all I was able to focus on in my rage.
As soon as it subsided, I realised that the others were also staring, with both in fear and silence.
I honestly thought Davis would have shouted back, or at least lashed out. Instead, with a red face and dead eyes, he said nothing more, releasing his grasp from my arm.
In an almost mutual agreement, we both returned to hacking away at the vines. In silence.
The further we hacked into the vegetation, the more and more apologetic I felt. Every time I looked over at Davis, his face no longer had a determined look. Instead, it was just a plain, pale look.
The others didn't talk either. They didn’t want to make anything worse than it already was. Even Ronnie, the one who never took anything seriously, stayed silent.
It was one long stretch until we finally made it to the final level of the hotel, just before the ground floor.
We emerged through the vines into the hallway, which still had its paint in tact (With a few rips and flakes here and there). Davis, who now seemed to have regained some color in his face, went ahead, like usual. Crystal accompanied him, and the two started to have a conversation.
In fact, for the first time, Davis was actually speaking to her, as opposed to the two of them wondering forward in silence.
In a way, I think our rant had actually forced him to think in a different way than he once did.
Whether that's for the better or the worst I don't know, but at least it got him thinking, right?
As soon as we reached the stairway up into the main reception area, I noticed that bright light was coming down the stairway.
When we ascended, we found that the reason so much light was available, was because the huge tower that once stood tall, was now sideways in complete ruin, as well as the rest of the city.
Some buildings still remained, barely towering over some of the large trees, and even giant mushrooms. And when I say giant mushrooms, I don't mean the kind you see in fairy tales. These Things were large, ugly, and had many vines draped around them. The thick jungle of plants, mixed with the vast amounts of rubble, gave this a really post-apocalyptic look.
Unfortunately for us, the sun was on its way down. So deciding that it may not be so safe to venture onward at night, with the uncertainty of what may be waiting for us in the treeline, we set up a camp.
Miu’s lighter fluid was almost out. Acting spontaneously, she “borrowed” some of the whisky from Crystals bag, and used a little bit to top up her lighter.
With the fire going, and the darkness casting its vail upon us, I found a nice comfortable spot on a concrete slab, which was still held tightly on by a remaining wall.
I must have been there for about twenty minutes or so, staring up at the beautiful starlit sky, before I heard someone climbing up next to me. It was Ronnie.
Ronnie manning: (Sitting with a thump next to me, legs crossed) ‘Hey Donuts, I thought you might want some company.’
X.D: ‘Donuts?’
Ronnie Manning:(Confused) ‘That is your second name, right?’
X.D: ‘No, that's not… *Sigh* never mind…’
I was too entranced by the stars to care about Ronnie. The recurring images from before kept flooding my mind.
Ronnie Manning: (Folding his arms around the back of his head) ‘Donuts, You may not know this, but I'm a bit of a loner.’
X.D: (Sarcastically) ‘Oh really? I would have never guessed!’
Ronnie Manning: (Picking his ear with his little finger) ‘As a loner, I tend to try my hardest to just be me. I don't really care what others think about me. Mainly because they aren't me, and im me, so only I can be me, understand?’’
He untied his tie, before tying it back up incorrectly… again.
Ronnie Manning: ‘The thing is Xyro, you have to care about what others think about you. You have so many friends that rely on you and need you. Whatever you do, remember that you can never let them down. Actually, the only way you can do that is by letting yourself down. So don't do that, you silly Donut!'
He patted me on the back of the head as if I were a dog.
Ronnie Manning: ‘I will leave you to whatever it is you are doing up here. Just don't look at those things for too long.’
X.D: ‘You mean the stars?’
Ronnie Manning: ‘Yeah, those things are pretty creepy!’
Hoping his way back down, Ronnie sat beside the fire and began rocking backwards and forwards.
What a funny little man Ronnie was. Weird to put it like that, but he is such a strange individual.
With the view of the stars above me, I quickly fell asleep.
That night, all I could dream about was of two things.
I will let you figure those out for yourself.
For now, I'm pooped out! Let me go and sleep, and I will write more tomorrow.
Chapter four: Day four: You can take a Dakota to the water, but you can't make it drink!
Let me tell you something; It's the most amazing thing when someone brings you food whilst you are working.
Let me explain.
Well, I was working late yesterday trying to write all this up so that Ryu had something to document, when I guess I kinda fell asleep.
Yet, when I woke up, Lucia had put a blanket over me and she also prepared breakfast.
I will tell you one thing, it's always a pleasure to just take time and do this, even if I have to follow Ryu’s boring ground rules.
For those of you who don't quite understand what i'm talking about, all will be revealed soon enough.
Anyway, back to the story at hand…
I awoke on the pile of rubble to find the others already awake. They were all getting prepared for the travel ahead, gearing themselves up for to the face the trials ahead.
Davis, who had regained all color and confidence, was telling everyone to get prepared for the worst that could come. Although stern, he commanded in such a way that it didn't come off as an order, and instead, as advice.
Needless to say, as soon as Davis was preparing himself, I jumped down and went over to apologize for yesterday's outbreak.
X.D: (Walking over, hand on the back of the neck, apologetic) ‘Hey Davis. Listen, I'm sorry about what I said yesterday. I was just…’
Davis Drafter: (Dismissive) ‘Hey, don't worry about it. What you said was completely true, so don't work yourself up over it.’
He looked over to Crystal, who was adoring Mr Wiggles as he wiggled on a small rock for her and Atsuko’s enjoyment.
Davis Drafter: ‘It's easy for a guy like me to forget the most important things in life, and not show them any respect or care, especially when drinking. I'm just grateful that people like you and your friends exist, Xyro. Your good people.’
He took a swig out of his flask.
Davis Drafter: (Stern look) ‘One more thing. Don't think of this as me liking any of you, because I don't. If you all stay out of my way and don't distract me from things, then I can happily stick around. I'm doing this for her sake, and not mine, understand?’
X.D: (Trying to be funny) ‘So, no hugs then?’
Davis Drafter:(Not impressed, agitated again) ‘You can try, if you want a bullet through your skull!’
X.D: ‘Hey, I will stay out of your way from now on, deal?’
I shot my arm out for a handshake. With quite a bit of grip, he shook it and went back to packing.
Using a small flowing waterfall, I washed away some of the grime on my body, then sat back to watch the others pack.
I found it amusing that my brother insisted on keeping the arm from the day before. It was funny to watch him try to find space in his bag.
In the meantime, most of us sat around Mr wiggles, watching him with joyous intent.
I couldn't resist watching the little mushroom dance. Just seeing the tiny shroom boogie to it's own rhythm was a show of it's own.
Once Ryu had fully packed, we prepared ourselves for the track through the city-like jungle…
...or the jungle-like city…
Whichever one takes your fancy, I guess.
Now, the plan was simple enough in theory:
We were trying to venture our way back to “The one stinger” in order to use the rift devices on Davis and Crystals arms to transport us all back to our dimension, at the same time we left, so therefore we would be untraceable from the IWEC. Plus, Davis and Crystal will no longer have the heavy metal bands on their arms.
Sounds simple enough, until you take into account the cons of our situation:
-
We were completely surrounded by such a dense forest combined with pavement and cement, that it was almost impossible to get any sense of direction.
-
Without Yuuto, we had no navigation.
-
We were struggling to find any clearings the whole time we traveled the area
Although the list can continue on forever, I may as well let the journey explain that for you.
Tracking through the mass of vines, thorns, soft bushes and other jumbles of assorted plants, we made our way deeper and deeper into the jungle. The blistering heat was almost unbearable, which must have been even worse for the others. I could see the sweat dripping from everyone's faces.
In an attempt to remove the amount of heat, all jumpers, hoodies and accessories that were not important were removed. Well, except Miu, Ronnie, and Davis, who all refused to take off any clothing whatsoever.
Even so, the heat was still so hard to ignore. It made traveling super difficult.
Ryu Jianar: (Out of breath, sweating) ‘Why...can't we just… travel at night?’
Crystal, who was at the front next to Davis, stopped everyone and took them over to a weird looking plant on a tree.
Cupping her hands together, she blocked the light from the sun, casting a shade over the plant. As soon as she done this, it opened up, revealing some of the sharpest teeth I have ever seen, and one large tongue, which shot out after Ryu. The boy fell backwards and Crystal removed her hands, making the plant cower back into a bulb.
Crystal: ‘Most of the plants in these kinds of dimensions are nocturnal. You could try your hardest to travel at night, at your own risk. Oh, stay out of dark areas as well.’
Davis Drafter; ‘By nightfall, we need to be in an opening, or else…’
Crystal nodded.
Miu Shizuka: (Stroppy) ‘Get a move on then! I would rather not become a plants diner!’
As we progressed through, I made sure to stay near the back with Atsuko, as she was struggling to climb some of the steeper parts, as the footing positions on vines were either too tall or too wide for her to reach them. Helping her up each time, we progressed further into the unknown, until finally, we found a nice open clearing next to what used to be an old apartment building.
Dakota, who had been complaining about being thirsty the entire time, rushed over to a small pool of water that was against the building. Just like a dog, he thrust his head deep into the water, taking gulps and gulps of water. Ronnie happily joined him.
Miu Shizuka: (Disgusted) ‘It's like watching pigs eating out of a trough!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Atsuko, could I have some bottled water?’
She took one of the many bottles she had prepared from the bag, and handed one to him, as well as Miu and the rest of us.
Why did Ronnie and Dakota drink out of a pool of water, if we had it in bottles?
Sometimes, the simple answer is always the best.
They are idiots!
Sadly, this was the place that we had to stay for the night. The sun was already a quarter of the way to setting, and we were all not very confident about venturing onwards, just in case of us not finding another clearing before the sun went down fully.
Like always, we set up a fire, had a few snacks, bullied Dakota. It was our normal rest routine.
I wanted to watch the sunset, so I climbed on top of the old apartment building to watch it settle. I sat at the highest point, in the most uncomfortable position to watch it fall. Of course, I can never truly be alone when I want to be, as Miu came up to sit beside me.
Miu Shizuka: ‘They are all watching that damn mushroom down there.’
X.D: ‘As long as you stay silent, I'm happy for you to sit next to me.’
Miu Shizuka: ‘Are you alright Pumpkin? You seem a bit tense?’
X.D: (Silently, calm) ‘I'm fine. I just want to watch the sunset in peace and quiet.’
Taking a seat beside me, Miu stared out at the setting sun.
As the inferno began to slide over the distant line of the earth’s surface, Miu pulled out a tiny knife from her boot.
With a small, sharp action, she cut her index finger with it, allowing her blood to slowly, but majestically float upwards into the air in spiraling motions. In a few seconds, the wound healed.
X.D: ‘Why do you keep doing that?’
Miu Shizuka: (Giggling) ‘One-day Xyro, you will understand.’
X.D: ‘Just… don't do it too often. It's not healthy!’
Miu Shizuka: ‘I don't plan too.’
By now, the sun had set entirely, throwing a black veil over the city of trees. Me and Miu made our way down to the fire, where we sat down with the others, who were discussing plans for the future.
Atsuko was the only one who wasn't taking part in the conversation. She had all her tools out of her bag and was trying to fix her laptop.
X.D: ‘Need a hand?’
Atsuko Viola: ‘Oh, y...yes, please! Can y...you hold this for a s...second?’
She handed me her rucksack, as well as a bunch of wires and a hammer. Who knew a girl of her size would carry so much metal!
After ten minutes of standing there like a melon, she eventually took everything from my hands.
Atsuko Viola:(Cheerfully) ‘Thanks!’
X.D: ‘Is that Yuuto fixed?’
Atsuko Viola: ‘W...well, not quite. He still n...needs a new b...battery, as the r...reserve on this one is a...all out, so it can't be c...charged.’
She took the battery out, and placed it neatly on a rock, before bashing it to pieces with a hammer.
X.D: (Concerned) ‘Wow! Atsuko! What the…’
Atsuko Viola:(Smiling innocently) ‘What? I n...need the b...battery acid!’
She placed her hammer back into the bag.
Atsuko Viola: ‘X...xyro, could I ask you to do m...me another favour p...please?’
X.D: ‘Sure, I'm happy to help!’
Atsuko Viola: ‘C...could you leave m...me alone for a f...few minutes?’
X.D:(Confused, disappointed) ‘O...ok...I guess…’
Atsuko Viola: ‘It's nothing p...personal, I just want to c...carry on with the s...surprise I was talking about, a...and I don't want you s...seeing it yet.’
X.D: ‘Ahhh, got ya! I will leave you to it then.’
Taking a bow, I made my way over to the fire, where the others were settling down for the evening. As I placed my head on the ground, I kept thinking of how nice it would be to sleep in a normal bed for once.
I went to sleep dreaming of beds. What a dream that was!
…
What?
Are you expecting me to make a really bad joke?
I mean, I could tell you a joke about a bed, but it hasn’t been made up yet!
...
Yep, the coffee has definitely not hit the bloodstream yet!
*cough* moving on!
Chapter four: Day five: Part one: Only YOU can START forest fires!
(Whispering) ‘Xyro...Xyro.. wake up dude…’
A large, heavy hand was shaking my shoulder. Obviously, it was Dakota.
Dakota Way: (Whispering) ‘Dude, wake up!’
As soon as I pushed myself off the ground, I noticed that the day had only just started. Even over the tops of the trees, I could see that the sun had barely made its way past the horizon.
X.D: (Tired) ‘You better have a good reason for waking me up this early Dakota.’
Dakota Way: (Whispering, excited) ‘Dude, keep your voice down and follow me!’
I guess I didn't really have a choice in the matter since there was no point in going back to sleep.
Making sure not to disturb the others, I tiptoed my way over to Dakota, who was creeping into the Jungle.
X.D: ‘Where are we going?’
Dakota Way: ‘Shhhhh!’
After about a minute walking, we arrived at another tiny clearing, next to a steady flowing stream of water. The place seemed beautiful, especially with the vast amount of brightly colored flowers growing around it. The reason that Dakota had brought me here soon became apparent.
Sitting with his back against one of the trees was Ryu.
Ryu Jianar: (Talking to himself whilst writing) ‘...So to you my love, my angel, my gem in the night sky….’
Sighing, he tore the piece of paper out of the book,throwing it across the open space.
X.D: (Whispering) ‘What's my brother up to now?’
Dakota Way: (Whispering, giggling under his breath) ‘He’s trying to write a love letter to Miu!’
Ryu Jianar: ‘...For you, my love, I ask for one simple wish….. No, that's not right either.’
Again, he scrunched up the piece of paper, casting it aside.
Dakota Way: (Whispering) ‘Hehe, what a soppy loser!’
X.D: (Whispering) ‘That's my brother you're talking about!’
Dakota Way: (Whispering) ‘Right, sorry dude.’
X.D: ‘Besides, have you ever had a crush on anyone before?’
Dakota Way: ‘What do you mean dude?’
X.D: ‘You know...when you find someone you can't stop thinking about…’
I went into thought for a second, when Dakota began to laugh.
Dakota Way: ‘You mean like you and Atsuko?’
I Looked down in embarrassment.
Dakota Way: (Standing up, laughing) ‘Dude!’
Ryu Jianar: ‘What are you doing here?’
Ryu, who was now staring at Dakota, had both a look of embarrassment and annoyance on his face.
Ryu Jianar: (Embarrassed shouting) ‘D..Dakota! Have you been spying on me the whole time!’
Standing there in silence, Dakota grabbed me by the arm and pulled me up from my cover.
X.D: (That look of annoyance) ‘Gee, thanks! What a friend you are!’
Ryu Jianar: (Even more embarrassed) ‘Y..You both have been spying on me!’
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Ronnie fell from the trees above us, onto his back with a loud thump.
Ronnie Manning: (In pain, winded) ‘Don't forget about…*Cough*...me!’
Ryu Jianar: ‘*sigh* I guess you all know now, hey?’
We all nodded, with guilty looks on our faces.
Ryu Jianar: ‘Well, I knew all along that my secret would be revealed eventually. I mean, I never really thought that it would stay a secret for long. I started to kid myself that I could have a chance to reach out to her, and touch her sweet emotional side, but I still can't find the right words to describe how I feel for her. Yes, she bullies me, and yes, she hurts me in more ways than just physically. But somehow, I can tell she has a much softer side. I can feel it in here.’ He placed his hand on his chest. ‘All I can hope for is that when I open up my heart to her, she will do the same to me. I have never felt this way towards anyone before. I mean, am I wrong about this?’
He was asking us this question.
I say “us” very vaguely, because when I looked to my left and right, Ronnie and Dakota had scarpered, leaving me to deal with this alone.
Thanks, guys!
X.D: ‘Hey, Ryu, i think it's best if you look at this at another angle…’
I went and sat beside him.
X.D: ‘....she’s not your type.’
Ryu Jianar: ‘Wait, what?’
X.D: ‘Look, im only trying to protect you. You see, Miu isent exactly….wife material?’
Ryu Jianar: ‘What do you mean?’
He gave me evils. I was trying my hardest not to be rude…
But in reality, miu is….well….
….Rather dominant…
Ryu jianar: ‘I don't have to listen to you Xyro.’
With no way to stop him, he walked back over to the camp.
Sighing, I ran my hand through the clear stream, watching the water part around my hands. The sensation was a delightful one, and the water seemed crisp too.
That's when I noticed something moving out of the corner of my eye. It wasn't the movement of an animal exactly, but rather that of a projectile.
Looking at the ground next to me, someone had thrown an acorn at me.
X.D: ‘Erm… thanks, I guess?’
As expected, there was no reply.
X.D: ‘Hey, Ronnie, you should head off back to the others now. I will catch up in a bit.’
No reply again. I started to get a bit worried.
X.D: ‘Seriously, who’s there?’
I drew my blades, expecting something fierce to jump out. Instead, crystal’s white ears popped around the side of the tree.
Crystal:(Laughing) ‘Your advice is terrible Xyro!’
X.D: ‘Yeah, I know, but what else am I supposed to say.’
Crystal: ‘I don't know, how about “Don't listen to me, I’m a dummy”?’
She laughed, causing little Mr. Wiggles to laugh too. It was more of a tiny squeak than a laugh, but I knew what he was doing.
X.D: ‘Yeah yeah, mock me all you want. I'm heading back to the camp!’
I started to make my way back.
Crystal: ‘Xyro, camps that way!’
She pointed in the complete opposite direction to where I was going.
X.D: (Casually, as if nothing just happened) ‘I'm heading back to camp!’
Shaking her head whilst laughing, Crystal followed me from behind, feeding the occasional acorn to Mr. Wiggles, whilst eating some herself.
Do rabbits even eat acorns? If not, why was she eating them then?
Now that I think about it, I need to question her on that!
I mean, do acorns taste nice?
Damn, now I'm thinking of acorn pie!
Garh, I'm easily distracted.
Right, so we got back to camp in a matter of minutes. By now, everyone was already up, Miu especially. She was preparing tea for the trip ahead over the fire. I could see that Ryu was hard at work trying to figure out a plan on how to win Miu over.
yet , when Ryu went to speak to her, I went to interject.
X.D: ‘Miu, I have a question for you?’
I sat beside her, with the annoyed stare of Ryu burning a hole in the back of my head.
X.D: ‘If you had the option of choosing your favourite type of sweet, which one would it be out of these two: one with a soft outside, but a strong inside, or the one with a hard outside, and a soft, but mostly hollow, inside?’
Within an instant, she knew what I was hinting at.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Well, that depends. I prefer my candy to be a little bit more….rustic…’
She giggled at me weirdly.
I hate her at times.
Slowly, Ryu left.
X.D: (whispering) ‘Miu, what do you think of my brother?’
Miu Shizuka: (Giggling) ‘I find him to be….well….?’
She poured the boiling water into her flask.
Miu Shizuka: ‘Although I find it more enjoyable to watch him try and win me over, I have much higher taste.’
X.D: ‘What classifies as higher taste?’
Miu pointed at me.
X.D: ‘Well, Miu, I….’
I looked back at Atsuko, who seemed busy with something.
Miu shizuka: (With a genuine smile) ‘Trust me Xyro, I know. I'm just teasing.’
She took a tiny sip of tea, before packing her flask and boiling materials back into her bum-bag.
Atsuko Viola: ‘X...Xyro, c...could you h...help me, p...please.’
Atsuko hobbled over to me. She was missing one of her boots.
Even so, she seemed incredibly tired.
Atsuko Viola:(Embarrassed) ‘I g...got my boot s...stuck in that t...tree.’
She pointed to the tallest tree out of the whole bunch surrounding us. Surely enough, her boot was hanging by its laces from one of the branches.
X.D: (Laughing, confused) ‘How did it get up there?’
Atsuko Viola: (Embarrassed, looking down) ‘I w...was trying to g...get a p...piece of f...fruit to fall d...down, and I had n...nothing else to throw.’
X.D: (Still laughing) ‘You could have just asked me, you know that!’
Atsuko Viola: (Slightly annoyed, still embarrassed)‘Y...yeah, well I was t...trying to be i...independent . I c...can do t...things too you k...know!’
X.D: ‘Did I ever say you couldn't?’
I unsheathed one of my pistols. Taking aim at the branch holding the boot, I fired, separating the branch from the tree. It fell down to the ground next to us.
Saving Atsuko the trouble, I handed her the boot, then shot down another branch, holding a nice cluster of fruit.
As I took the pieces off, and Atsuko put her boot on, I examined the fruit.
It was a bright orange color, and yet it had small yellow dots surrounding the bottom half of it. As soon as I pushed my finger into it, it oozed white sap. Taking a single bite out of it, the toxic fumes and painful taste made me spit it back out. These were poisonous.
I turned around to warn Atsuko, who had already eaten two of them.
Yet, even at the incredible toxicity at which they were, she still seemed completely fine. She was smiling, taking small bites, and enjoying every mouthful.
Something was not quite right here, but I didn't want to question her on it. Instead, I threw away the remaining “fruit” so that the others wouldn't get curious and try to eat some.
X.D: (confused) ‘How does it taste?’
Atsuko Viola: (Smiling, blushing) ‘Oh, i...it's a bit b...bitter, but I l..like it.’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Kid, Atsuko, we are heading out!’
Throwing the remainder of her fruit on the ground, Atsuko rushed off ahead. It's as if she was completely full of energy again.
No matter how close I get to her, I seem to get more and more distant from understanding her.
Some rubbish friend I am.
Pushing forward, we began tearing down a new path through the undergrowth. The longer we traveled through the thick, misty vegetation, the more I started to respect the nature around me. Yeah, It may have been in the way, but I couldn't help but admire the range of plants and animals that came as we passed.
Now, the travel through these areas was incredibly tiresome, and nothing really happened apart from a few slip-ups and wise-cracked jokes made by Ronnie.
The sun reached midway across the sky. We had now been traveling for roughly six and a half hours. Drenched in sweat, the others were finding it incredibly hard to continue.
Davis, who was still wearing his bloody trench coat, didn't even have a single bead of sweat on his head.
Davis Drafter: (Whispering) ‘Hold up!’
Holding out his arm, he made us stand in silence.
No sound was heard. Not even the wind.
Dakota Way: ‘Dude, I hear nothing.’
X.D: (Unsheathing blades) ‘Exactly.’
It's a common fact when out hunting. If no sound, then somethings around!
A little rhyme my father taught me.
Backing myself up, I kept my eyes peeled. A twitch coming from a distant shrub caught my attention. A familiar, mechanical arm was poking out.
Davis Drafter: (Taking a swig of whisky) ‘Alright, we have company!’
With the uproar of horrific screeches, hundreds of plant-droids darted their way out the undergrowth, swarming towards us. Like before, we swung at them with all our might. Guns, fists, blades. It was a massacre on their end. With Atsuko and Ryu in the middle, I at least knew that they would be safe, considering that Atsuko doesn't fight, and Ryu is just a weakling to start with!
One of the creatures rushed forward, clamping its jaws shut on my arm. Blowing its head clean off, I removed the pair of mechanical teeth still lodged in my arm. The small indents that it made seemed to disappear all too quickly. Something else to question Yuuto on later.
Crystal, who was using a cleaver, was darting around the creatures, avoiding any kind of face to face contact with them.
Ronnie was no surprise. He was crushing every one of the creature's skulls with wooden spoons.
Suddenly, Miu let out a painful scream.
One of the robots had sunk its teeth deep into her leg.
With one slice, she split the creature into four pieces using her claws. Her leg was bleeding badly for only a few seconds before her parasitic blood sealed the wound immediately
As I was backing up, I bumped into Lewis on accident.
Lewis Sterge: (Fighting) ‘They just keep coming, ha?’
X.D: (Fighting) ‘We need to find a way to stop them. Any ideas?’
Lewis looked over to Miu, and then to Davis’ whisky.
Lewis Sterge: ‘You thinking what I'm thinking?’
X.D: ‘Lewis, you know that llama, right?’
Lewis Sterge: (Taking a slash at one of the creatures) ‘llama? What are you on about?’
X.D: (Fighting, smiling) ‘You know, the one in that stupid anti-forest fire's hat?’
Lewis Sterge:(Still fighting) ‘Yeah, what about him?’
With a quick movement, I darted over to Miu, taking the lighter out from her boot. Then, I took a bottle of whisky out from crystals bag, before standing over to a dry patch of grass.
X.D:(Smiling, igniting the whisky bottle) ‘He's going to hate me after this!’
Smashing the bottle on the grass, the entire canopy was ignited in an instant. Cowering from the ongoing flames, the creatures retreated back into the canopy.
Miu Shizuka:(Snatching the lighter back) ‘Smart thinking.’
X.D: ‘I need to ask. Davis, will this affect our past, or not?’
Davis Drafter: (Clearly annoyed) ‘Of course not! This ain't the future! It's a different existence.’
Dakota Way:(Concerned) ‘Yo! Less fighting, more running away from burning stuff!’
He was right. The flames were now enveloping the entire jungle of trees around us.
As we ran away from the blasting heat of the inferno, The flames kept dancing behind us, spreading quicker than I would have thought.
Earlier, Ryu did a few experiments on the scraps of vines he took from there. It turns out that they held a high volume of methane.
No wonder the flames were spreading so quickly!
I could tell that Atsuko was struggling to keep up with us. She was already so tired, so trying to keep up with us was a task in its own rights. Sweeping her off her feet, I placed her in a fireman's carry and kept running.
The flames seemed to give chase for miles until we were saved by a huge clearing.
The flames kept on going around, but we were safe at least.
Taking a breather, I studied our surroundings.
Then it hit me, we were in the old district. Even in this universe, I could see the dirty streets, the collapsed buildings. All that made a difference here was that instead of thick trees, it was overgrown with large, brown mushrooms.
Ryu Jianar: (Panting) ‘Hey...look…’
He pointed over to a building, not that far away from us.
The bright (Surprisingly still active) neon sign out front had flashing, in bright letters “The one stinger”.
Dakota Way: ‘Ha! We made it guys!’
He rushed forwards.
Ronnie grabbed Dakota by the back of the shirt.
Ronnie manning: (Smiling) ‘Now now! Mind the step Dakota!’
This “step” he was referring to, was an incredibly large fissure, that split the earth in two. It was Gargantuan, with no apparent bottom in sight.
Taking a gulp, Dakota took a step back.
Miu Shizuka: ‘So… are we going to jump, or?’
Atsuko Viola: ‘I t...think we n...need to make a b...bridge over.’
Davis Drafter: (Angrily) ‘And how do we do that? If you're planning on using wood, then I think your out of luck!’
He pointed to the burning trees.
X.D: ‘Hey, Atsuko, you still have some rope left, right?
She searched through her bag. With a happy sigh of relief, she pulled out another small coil of rope. It was just enough for the job.
Taking the rope, I took out small scraps of metal, tying the ends to them.
My plan was to try and hook the end on the other side, so that I could tie the other end to our side, then support the rope on both sides for the others to get across.
…
Will Xyro and his friends make it across?
Or will they fall into the bottomless pits of hell!
Find out in the next episode of Me-Myself-and-the-Multiverse!
(Do you like that end? No? Well you're no fun!)
Chapter four: Day five: Part two: feeling shroomish?
Tying the ends of the rope to the metal, I swung the coil over my head, building up momentum with every spin.
With one decisive moment, I threw the rope over the ledge.
It missed.
Miu Shizuka: (Sarcastic) ‘Great shot! You nearly made it!’
X.D: (Swinging the rope again) ‘Yeah yeah, whatever.’
I threw it again. This time, it collided with the rocks on the other side, wedging itself firmly in between two boulders.
X.D: ‘Alright! Someone hold this end for me?’
I handed the rope to Lewis Because I couldn't trust Dakota or Ronnie, while Atsuko and Ryu were both too weak to support my weight.
Slowly, I started to inch my way across the rope. One hand after another, I made steady progress. It's more straining than you think, especially when you're hovering over certain death below you.
Half way across, Dakota yelled at me.
Dakota Way: (Yelling) ‘Whatever you do man, don't look down!’
Honestly, I had half a mind to turn around, make my way back, and slap him!
But, I pushed forward. Grasp after grasp, hand after hand, I made my way steadily across, until my feet pushed up against the grey ridge on the other side.
Pulling my way up the ledge, I secured this end of the rope by wedging it further into the rocks, before signalling the others to tie the other side so that it was also secure.
Using one of his blades, Lewis cut into the earth, burying the end of the rope and covering it with a few rocks.
One by one, they all made their way over. Even Atsuko, who had her eyes closed and clenched the rope for dear life, made it across safe and sound.
Then you have Ronnie, who started tightroping his way over with his hands in his pockets.
Miu Shizuka: (Whispering into my ear) ‘Can I cut the rope? Please?’
X.D: (Whispering) ‘No Miu.’
Sighing, she stomped off , leaving Ronnie to freely wander his way over to us.
With everyone over, we were now only a few minutes walk away from the one stinger. Finally, we could get out of the blistering heat.
Away from the weird creepy man-plants. B
ack to a warm, comfy sofa.
Davis Drafter: (Distant) ‘This is the place you lot are camped in? This used to be a bar, you know!’
Ronnie Manning: (Excited) ‘Yeah, it was!...’
Ronnie frowned.
Ronnie Manning: ‘(Confused)...W...wait, how did you know that?’
Davis gave him a blank stare. We weren't going to get an answer that easily.
Ronnie Manning:(Proud) ‘Do you like the sign out front? I hung it myself?’
The closer I looked at the sign, the more I could see how shoddily made it was. Literally, pieces of it were made of paper mache! I’m surprised they didn't take it down as a health and safety hazard.
Nevertheless, Ronnie seemed incredibly proud of his work.
X.D: ‘Yeah, it looks….great.’
Ronnie Manning:(Excited) ‘Want to know something impressive? I made it with my eyes closed!’
Lewis sterge: (Grinning) ‘Yeah, I can tell.’
Miu Shizuka: (Bluntly) ‘Well, I just think it looks like a piece of trash. Ryu, Dakota, what are your thoughts.’
(Speaking simultaneously)
Dakota Way: ‘You're right man, it looks like garbage.’
Ryu Jianar: (Acting tough) ‘Well, it's actually pretty cool Miu. Open your eyes up for once!’
Atsuko Viola: (Whispering under her breath) ‘I c...could m...make a n...nicer one…’
X.D: (To her with a smile) ‘I know you can.’
Arriving at the doorstep, Ronnie wiped the mud on his shoes off on the tattered doormat outside.
Ronnie Manning: (Smiling, laughing) ‘That wasn't so bad, am I right?’
We were standing here, torn by nettles, assaulted by plants with legs, sweated out more than the pacific ocean, and above all else, had to deal with the smell of stagnant water contaminating our clothes.
Apart from that, it was all fine and dandy!
Am I being sarcastic?
What do you think?
Ronnie went to open the door, but it simply fell off its rusted hinges.
Stepping inside, we were greeted with another stagnant smell.
The room was completely overgrown with mushrooms. They infested every crevice of the warehouse. What was even more striking, was the incredibly large brown mushroom at the back of the room. It was hideous, covered in all kinds of warts and vines.
Davis Drafter:(Tugging at the device) ‘Right if you guys get these bands off us, we can rework the circuitry and get out of here.’
Atsuko took out a few tools from her backpack and placed them neatly on the floor beside her.
Atsuko Viola: (Shyly) ‘T...this will only take a s...second Mr. Drafter. P...please stay s...still.’
She began to unscrew pieces of the metal off, as well as using a range of different tools that I had never seen before.
I just left her to it. After all, the others were standing around the large mushroom at the back.
Ryu Jianar: ‘isn't it amazing! How many years do you think this took to grow like this?’
Lewis Sterge: ‘I don't know, but From the size of it, I would say a few hundred years.’
Miu Shizuka: ‘I think that's fairly obvious.’
X.D: (Joking, hooking arms around Miu and Ronnie's shoulders) ‘Well, it's not got Mushroom left to grow, right?’
Miu Shizuka: (Removing my arm from her shoulder, unimpressed) ‘I will cut you!’
Dakota Way: ‘It's pretty impressive though man. I mean, Look at this compared to that little guy!’
He pointed to Mr wiggles, who blushed with embarrassment.
Crystal:(Shouting over to us) ‘At least Mr wiggles is nicer to look at!’
Ronnie Manning: (Laughing, smiling) ‘Even its feet are bigger than Mr wiggles!’
X.D: ‘Yeah even its…’
It took me a second to sink in what he just said.
X.D: ‘Wait, feet!’
Ronnie pointed at one thick, stubby mushroom leg. Sadly, I knew what this meant.
Ronnie, who was prodding the mushrooms leg with a stick, jumped back after the creature began to rise.
You know, I could now see it a lot better, considering the fact that it had forced a hole through the roof from standing. The huge grotesque figure before us had four legs, each tiny and stubby in size, attached to the bottom of it. Think of a giant mushroom dog. The thing was ugly!
What didn't help, was that the vines smothering it, were actually the creature's arms! It had hundreds of the flailing green ropes to choose from.
Let's put it this way: its mouth was bigger than Miu’s (So pretty big if I do say so myself) And had more teeth than a few thousand hacksaws.
I was thankful that It had two eyes, otherwise, this thing would have been hard to kill, as I wouldn't have been able to look at it!
Dropping everything, we rushed out of the building, with the monster on our heels.
Bursting through the roof, it clumsily climbed out of the building, landing with a thud on the grass. We had nowhere to run. This creature had claimed this building as its domain, so we were going to have to fight it.
X.D :(Unsheathing blades) ‘Were going to need a plan here!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Hey, Crystal, you should stay back with Atsuko, Ryu, and Ronnie. We will deal with this!’
X.D: ‘Davis, any tactical suggestions?’
Davis Drafter: (Bluntly) ‘I tend to fight on my own…’
X.D: (Sarcastically) ‘Yeah, great input Davis! Lewis, any tactics?’
Lewis Sterge: ‘I have no idea kid. How many giant fucking mushrooms do you think I have fought in my life? Hmmm?’
The creature started charging towards us at speed. Green saliva drooping out of its mouth. We all jumped out of the way, as the beast charged past us.
X.D: ‘Alright, let's do this!’
Drawing my guns, I fired bullets at the Giant fungi. Each one ricochet off its tough skin.
Miu, who had her claw-like fingers ready to go, ran in close and personal with the beast. Although slicing deep into its side, the creature swatted her away with force, slamming her hard against one of the trees. She was out cold.
Dakota ran instantly to her side, protecting her from the sharp swatting vines that the beast lashed out at her. Carrying her and clasping his arm, he ran over to where Atsuko and the others were hiding. I could see that Dakotas back was covered in deep cuts from the harsh strike that the creature had done.
This was not going to be easy at all.
It was now up to me, Lewis and Davis.
Lewis and I ran off to the right, with Davis going left.
Taking the straightforward approach, we all charged in close. Lewis and myself using blades and Davis firing slugs into the creature. Both seemed to have little effect.
In retaliation, the giant fungi used a spinning attack, allowing its vines to flail loosely. We were all sent flying into the treeline. It didn't hurt as much as I thought it would, but the same couldn't have been said for Lewis, who was also unconscious.
It was just me and Davis now.
A loud, deep grunt came from Davis. He was sitting down from the impact on the tree. His leg was clearly twisted out of place.
It was now up to me to stop a rampaging mushroom beast. I felt hopeless.
That is until I watched it go after the others. In that moment of time, the sheer panic and defeat on everyone's face overwhelmed me.
Then, something just snapped.
My eyes blurred, but seemed to focus on what was important:
The creature's weakness.
It's stubby, pathetic excuses of legs were easy targets. My mind began to race. The rope, the ledge, Davis’ blunderbuss. It all added up in my head.
I stood up from the tree, eyes Glowing with both pulsing white and black light. As the creature charged towards the others, I took aim and fired multiple times at its back to draw the damn things attention.
Luckily, it turned to face me.
Davis Drafter: Are you crazy! You can't beat that thing alone!’
I didn't answer him directly.
X.D: (Under my breath, stern) ‘Davis, when I tell you, throw me your gun.’
Davis could see that I was not joking, and not in the mood for arguments, so he nodded.
The beast began pounding the ground with its stumps, eager to charge at me. But I bet it wasn't expecting me to charge first.
Running at the beast, I jumped directly over it as it tried its hardest to trample me. This was the perfect time to check its rear legs. As I would have expected, the rear legs were incredibly muscular.
Flipping the switch on my pistols, I ran at him again, this time wedging them deep into its flesh.
Unsheathing by blades, I crushed the revolvers with a single punch each.
Under the sheer force of the blow, I ignited the fuel, causing a small yet effective explosion, rendering both its hind legs useless.
I now had a chance to end this.
Running to the ledge, I grasped the rope, yanking it free from the other side.
With quick, decisive movements, dogging flail after flail of vines, I tied the rope down close to the edge of the rift.
I then ran past Davis.
X.D: (Shouting) ‘Now!’
throwing the gun in the air, I ran underneath it, holstering it into my arm before having to dodge another few consecutive swings of the vines.
Making steady progress, I baited the creature into moving closer and closer to the ledge, Until it was right next to the rope.
Taking the opportunity, I got close, blasting the creatures front kneecap with a shot, tearing the bone apart. Flopping forward, it tripped over the rope, then down the cliff.
Yet, the creature refused to give up that easily.
One of its vines tangled itself around my leg, dragging me over the edge.
Before I could even think, my blades cut my leg free from the vine, allowing me to grasp the edge just before I fell for eternity.
The Abomination let out one last final shriek, before disappearing into the abyss.
Panting, my eyes returned to normal.
I was safe.
More importantly, they were safe.
I suddenly heard a voice from over the ledge.
Ronnie Manning: (Crying) ‘...And he sacrificed his life…*Sniffle*...to save ours!’
X.D: (Climbing) ‘I’m not dead! I’m down here Ronnie!’
Ronnie manning: (Crying louder) ‘And now he has gone to hell! He just spoke to me from death! He is down there now!’
Dragging myself back onto solid ground, Ronnie instantly snapped himself out of crying and smothered me in a hug.
X.D: (Smothered, struggling for air) ‘Get...off... me, you... stink!’
He hugged me tighter instead. Atsuko and Ryu stood around laughing.
Once Ronnie had finished cutting off my air supply, we took everyone inside, tending to Dakota and Davis’ wounds, whilst monitoring Lewis and Miu whilst they were unconscious.
Tending to everyone's wounds, we finally finished off the last bandage.
Sitting around a newly made campfire, we were all way too tired to do anything more that day. I guess our escape had to be made tomorrow.
Exhausted, I closed my eyes.
In my head, I kept thinking….
What a day! I can now happily say that I almost got killed by a giant mushroom!
Still, I wonder if that guy thing would have been fun at party’s….
Because, you know….
Ehh, i'm just going to save you the bad puns.
…
Chapter four: Day six: Part one: Peace at the price of Boredom
With my eyes closed, a warm, steady wind passed over my body. It rustled the leaves outside the building, draping them over the thick soft grass. A few stray leaves fluttered down from the giant hole in the roof, landing peacefully around my body. The sunlight from above was warm on my metal shell, but a soft heat. I felt at peace.
But a small, constant clicking noise disturbed my rest.
I rolled onto my side.Opening one eye, I could see that Atsuko was already up. She was back to working on removing the arm pieces.
Davis, who was also awake, seemed to no longer be in pain. His leg was once again back into place.
The two were talking, unaware that I was now up.
Davis Drafter: ‘...Which is why you have to reverse it before you place the barrel in’
Atsuko Viola: (Reaching down for a different tool) ‘S...so how can I m...make my own? W...with j...just those m...materials or…’
Davis Drafter: (Obviously struggling to make conversation) ‘Yeah, you just need those.’
Atsuko Viola: (Smiling, working on the band) ‘Thank’s Mr. Drafter! I think Xyro will love it!’
Not being sure on how to react to Atsuko’s smile, Davis stared off into the other direction.
Davis Drafter: (Under his breath) ‘Don't mention it.’
Pretending as if I had just woken up, I sat up, stretched my arms, and rubbed my eyes.
X.D: ‘*Yawn* Morning all.’
Atsuko Viola: (Cheerfully) ‘M...morning Xyro!’
I stood up to stretch. Sleeping on the floor always leaves you with a stiff back, no matter how comfy it feels.
I noticed that both Miu and Lewis were now awake, sitting next to the door. They were accompanied by Dakota, who’s back now seemed healed, although the scars still remained. His vest was torn too.
The three were laughing about something, but I couldn't catch a word they were saying. I guess my hearing was not as acute as I thought it would be.
A loud snapping noise filled the room.
Atsuko Viola: (Excited, Cheerfully) ‘G...got it!’
She had successfully removed Davis’ Band. The black ring had such an immense amount of wires and small blinking lights on the inside, along with a few buttons here and there. It seemed like someone had put it together without a care.
Atsuko took no time to move on to Crystals, whilst Davis scratched the part of his arm where the band had been.
It must have been such a relief to him, having the band removed. I couldn't imagine having something weighing you down for years on end, Constantly on your mind, annoying you, tormenting you, without mercy.
It was like a less torturous version of Ronnie.
As Atsuko worked on Crystals band, Mr wiggles snuggled up close to Atsuko's neck, trying his hardest to nibble at a piece of her hair, to no avail.
I went to accompany Ryu, who was sat on one of the leftover crates that were still in the warehouse. He had a few of his books laid out across the floor so that he could look down on them as he wrote his journal. He was using the other books as references, as each one was open to a page describing a certain creature or plant in depth.
I took a seat next to him, crossing my legs.
X.D: (Happily) ‘Remember that time that you said you were useless?’
Reluctantly, he stopped writing to look at me.
Ryu Jianar: (Tired) ‘Yeah, your point?’
X.D: ‘Look at your work. It's amazing!’
Ryu Jianar: (Going back to writing) ‘And? It's not as if writing a bunch of facts is going to do anything for the team.’
X.D: (Poking Ryu in the side of the head) ‘That's where you're wrong!’
I picked up the book which contained all the notes on the creatures we just fought.
X.D: ‘You and Atsuko have taken down such in-depth notes! If you combine these with Crystals drawings, then we almost have an archive of information! Imagine how useful it will be for the future!’
I placed the book down next to him.
X.D:(Laughing, jokingly) ‘See my point, you miserable git?’
Ryu had a smile on his face.
Ryu Jianar: (Smiling, but unsure) ‘Well, if you want, I can keep writing up everything I see, I guess.’
I patted him on the back.
X.D: ‘You're our scribe, Ryu. You're more useful than you could ever imagine.’
To this day, he has been the most useful out of all of us. The fighting, the conflicts, the heartfelt relationships. With all this happening in the forefront, you kind of forget everything else around you, including the most important people.
Ryu, in our this case, is the reason I am able to look back on these days now. Without a scribe, no story will ever be told.
Then again, i'm the one here who’s writing everything by a day to day basis, so you know…
Never forget that the unsung heroes.
Because in the backdrop of every fight, you always have the witness. The one who keeps the dream and legend alive.
Witnesses hold all the power, if the “Heroes” of the story fail or succeed, they will know.
Sometimes, power is not physical, or even mental.
Sometimes, true power comes from experience, information, and truth.
As I watched Ryu flick through page after page, writing with a smile on his face, I could tell that he finally had the courage to step up to this power.
He could have never known, But deep down in his heart, he knew we needed him after all.
*Sigh*
I think too much, that's my problem.
I had to leave Ryu with his work.
After two hours of watching the boy write, you can't blame me for getting bored!
I moved twelve inches away, to sit and watch Atsuko deal with Crystals band.
Literally, there was nothing else to do, apart from wait.
I kid you not, it was well over five hours before Atsuko finally pulled the last pin out of the bracelet.
Atsuko Viola: (Sweating, clearly tired) ‘D...Done…’
Crystal: (Excited) ‘Thank you, Atsuko!’
I noticed that Atsuko had already picked up the devices. She was starting to try and decode them. I allowed Davis to intervene.
Davis Drafter: (Snatching the devices out her hands) ‘I appreciate the effort, but we need to hold up our end of the deal!’
Atsuko was too tired to disagree. She laid down on the ground to take a nap. With a tired yawn, she fell soundly to sleep.
Since everyone was preoccupied, I meditated in front of the sun.
Genuinely, the day was so calm, but peace comes at the price of boredom.
In my mind, I visualized the road to come. Clearly, we had to find another facility, as this one was a bust. Our priorities were now simple: fix Yuuto, and get back out there to find the next one.
I felt light breathing next to my head. At first, I thought it was either Ronnie or Miu, trying to either annoy or distract me.
But when I opened my eyes, it was a much different story.
Atsuko was now awake and sitting beside me. She had a small, sleepy smile on her face.
Atsuko Viola: (Tiredly speaking) ‘T...the sun is n...nice and w...warm…’
She paused, rubbing her eye with her sleeves.
X.D: ‘I need to apologize about the pistols Atsuko. You worked so hard on them. I’m sorry.’
Atsuko never said a word. She yawned before she cozied up to my shoulder.
If I could blush, then I would have. Her hair felt incredibly soft.
Without another word, I went back to meditating, with Atsuko sound asleep on my shoulder.
I must have drifted off a little too, as I was disturbed by lewis tapping my back with the tips of his boot.
Lewis Sterge: (Whispering) ‘Kid, Davis has both the devices up and running. It's time to go.’
I didn't want to disturb Atsuko, so gently, I lifted her head off my shoulder, before lightly picking her up into my arms.
Following Lewis out the front door, Davis had set up what seemed to be a circle with the devices. Each one had a switch on the side. The others could see that Atsuko was asleep, So in silence, Davis activated the portal.
(Which, to be fair, let off an unusually loud hiss. I’m surprised Atsuko didn't even stir.)
The portal opened. One by one, everybody stepped through it, until it was me and Atsuko left.
I looked back over our surroundings. The collapsed ruins of a once profitable, sustainable city. Now, it was overgrown with vegetation.
I took in the sight, but a familiar set of faces showed themselves from the bushes.
This time, they stayed their distance. Whether this was out of fear or respect was beyond me, but hundreds of them just sat, staring at us with a look of trust in their eyes.
In neutral respect, I waved at them. Some waved back. Others stared. One or two of them were trying to tear the other apart.
Yeah, I thought they may have been mimicking my movement more than anything.
Out of curiosity, I tried something… bold...
...I showed them the finger!
In the uproar, they all charged forward.
This was my time to leave.
Destroying the connection behind me, I stepped through , Atsuko grasped gently in my arms.
…
Chapter four: Day six: Part two: Back, Again, Yay!
Trying my hardest not to make the same mistake as before, I hopped out of the portal as I came to its end.
As expected, everyone was laying in a pile on the ground in the centre of the storage room, again. At least I landed safely behind them, with Atsuko in my arms.
The portal closed with a silent shriek.
Kiri and the four boys were all seated around the crates, drinking coffee out of mugs, and eating donuts. Although surprised to see us, they still sat and watched as the pile tried to untangle itself.
Andrew weber: (Happily, with a smile) ‘Well, nice of you all to “Drop in” finally!’
Jamie slapped him over the back of the head.
Kiri: (Agitated) ‘Yeah, thanks for dropping radio communication with us. We thought you were all captured!’
X.D: (Sarcastic) ‘Yeah, thanks for dropping everything and trying to save us then.’
I said, peering at the donuts and coffee.
Ryu Jianar: (Pushing himself up, dusting himself off) ‘Seriously, everyone stop saying drop!’
Atsuko awoke in my arms. She tiredly rubbed her eyes and yawned. Gently, I placed her down on her feat.
Lewis Sterge: ‘What happened before we lost communication, Kiri?’
Kiri: (Folding arms) ‘As soon as Yuuto cut off, the IWEC dropped a crap ton of Troops in after you all. I even noticed them bring in a couple of high priority attack units. if that is true, then that means…’
Christian Baraster: (Serious tone) ‘...You are all high targets to the IWEC…’
Jamie Eruu: (Serious tone)’...which means they will try and track you down at all costs…’
Andrew weber: (Slightly less serious tone) ‘...They are bound to form a team together to try and vanquish you all. Just like they have done in the past…’
Jack Jenkings: ‘...’
The other boys started at him expectantly.
Jack Jenkings: (Confused) ‘What? We didn't make a script or anything!’
The group facepalmed.
Kiri: (Not impressed) ‘What we are trying to say, is that the IWEC will plan to form another squad to counteract you all. They still don't know that we are involved, so we still hold that as a positive.’
Lewis Sterge: ‘You don't mind that we have more members?’
Davis and Crystal presented themselves (in Davis’ case, it was less presenting and more Giving an unwelcoming glance at them all.)
Crystal: (Excited) ‘It’s so nice to meet you all!’
Andrew Slicked back his hair, moving in for the kill.
Andrew weber: (Trying to sound posh and deep) ‘Why hello there.’
Davis stood in his way, staring down at him.
This wasn't his first rodeo. Andrew knew to back off slowly and to avoid eye contact.
I noticed that Atsuko had slipped away. She was already working on repairing Yuuto on the couch in the other room.
As the others moved off into their typical groups, I went off with Dakota to grab some food. We were both famished!
Dakota raided the bottom draws for anything he could, whilst I rummaged through the top. In the end, we found a few boxes of chocolate and a leftover cinnamon pretzel.
Happy with our pillage, we both sprawled out over the sofa opposite to Atsuko.
Dakota Way: ‘Yo, Xyro, how nice is this man! This sofa is so comfortable!’
X.D: ‘*Happy sigh* Tell me about it!’
Dakota way: (Leaning back further) ‘I wonder if that mushroom dude is still alive?’
X.D:(Laughing) ‘I'm going to make an assumption and say he is dead Dakota.’
I took a bite out of the pretzel. It was delicious!
Dakota Way: ‘Yeah, but dude, it's a mushroom. What if they can survive huge heights or something?’
X.D: ‘Well, if it's anything like me or you, it is definitely dead.’
Ryu Jianar: ‘Not necessarily…’
Strolling in, he took a seat on one of the smaller chairs.
Ryu Jianar: ‘...We still can't be certain if that creature could or could not survive the fall. As a species of fungi, he is not adapted the same way as humans, so maybe he might have had an adaptations to counteract the fall.’
Dakota Way: ‘I wish we could test it…’
Both boys stopped, peering through the door at Mr Wiggles, who was perched on Crystals shoulder. They had a weird look of intent on their faces.
X.D: ‘No!’
Both boys sighed, before getting back to writing and eating.
Dakota Way: (With his mouth full) ‘What do you think we do now? Ask Kiri for another base or?’
Atsuko Viola: (Staring at a bunch of code on the screen of her laptop) ‘Y...Yuuto has some i...information from the facilities c...computer on his drive. As s...soon as he is up and r...running, he is more then likely to d...drag on about it.’
Everyone was making their way into the room. I can't believe I hadn't noticed, but Jack pointed out a pool table just at the back of the room.
You can tell what I was doing whilst we waited for Atsuko to fix Yuuto again.
Pool was interesting. After a few games, Ronnie joined in on the fun. I think we lost a few of the balls, but he did manage to pot one….
Literally, he punched a hole in the table to put the ball in.
For such a playful person he can be very competitive. In a way, he is like Miu….kinda.
The sound of a booting up laptop brought the game to a standstill.
Yuuto Ito: (Angrily) ‘Hey, I can take the hint. If you don't want me, just put me in someones phone or something. I don't care!’
Lewis Sterge: ‘It's not like that Yuuto. We squashed you on our way out of the portal.’
Yuuto Ito: (Angry) ‘s...squashed! How do you SQUASH A LAPTOP!’
Dakota Way: ‘Don't question it, man, you know that already.’
Yuuto Ito: ‘*Sigh* well, I know you got me working for a reason. Here's the information…’
He whispered something under his breath, before pulling up all the information he retrieved from the facility’s main computer.
Lines and lines of script, blueprints, diagrams and codes sprung up. Yuuto went through them all faster than they could appear. Before long, he reached the zip file he was after.
Yuuto Ito: ‘You know we were saying that this was going to be an incredibly long journey?’
He paused, expecting us to answer the question, to which we did not.
Yuuto Ito: (Annoyed) ‘Well, For your clearly simple minds, that's not the case. It says here that they have been shipping devices exactly like the ones Atsuko described around facility to facility. The last known location that these were transported to where a facility located in Paris.’
Kiri’s group all sighed, my group all sighed, Ronnie sighed, I sighed, Davis and Crystal sighed.
The only person in the room to cheer was Miu.
Kiri: ‘What are you cheering about?’
Miu Shizuka: (Excited, bitchy) ‘Please, peasant! I’m excited because I get to try out my new swimsuit!’
Kiri: (Shocked) ‘D...Did you just call me a peasant!’
Miu Shizuka: ‘Awhhh, has it taken you this long to realize?’
The two girls locked eyes. Kiri’s were burning red, whilst Miu’s were almost calm, considering the fact that they were red to begin with.
Andrew Weber: ‘Hey, hey, hey! Ladies! We are on the same side here!’
Both turned to him.
Miu and Kiri: ‘Shut up Andrew!’
Ahhh, the sound of someone telling Andrew to shut up. It's like music to my ears!
That's just me being harsh. Although annoying, Andrew is a nice guy.
X.D: ‘Does this mean we have to get packed then Yuuto?’
Yuuto Ito: ‘Well, I think you all should. I don't really have any hand luggage!’
With Ronnie's (Well, Kiri’s to be honest) permission, we started to pack our rucksacks full of essential supplies. In mine, I packed food, water, a few pieces of flint, a long coil of rope and a few little knick knacks from around the warehouse. (for example, I found a weird looking cube with a bunch of colors on it. Apparently, you're supposed to move the cubes to get them into the same colors on all sides. I want to meet the genius who invented this masterpiece!)
As I was placing a torch in the side pocket of the bag, I overheard Yuuto complaining to Atsuko. He was just whining because he didn't want to be pressed against something hard in the bag, just in case he got squashed again.
For a guy who watched his brother die to a wall of bullets, and had to get a chip stabbed out the back of his neck, he really is a huge crybaby!
I only say that half sarcastically. He is a crybaby, after all.
On a more positive note, Miu’s bird finally arrived. Little raisin was sitting at the window, pecking at it with his beak.
Miu made sure to get Dakota to crush her up some nut to give to him. The little thing must have been starving!
Even after his meal of nut, he was still eying up Mr. Wiggles rather strangely.
Kiri: ‘I have an idea on getting there, but i will need to make a few phone calls first.’
Yuuto Ito: ‘To who?’
Kiri: ‘My boss.’
Lewis Sterge: ‘Boss?’
Jamie Eruu: ‘We work for a cause. We can fill you in on the details when the time is right.’
Andrew Weber: ‘Just trust us, it's easier than having to do the bloody paperwork!’
Once again, Jamie punched Andrew in the arm.
With everyone busily packing, I headed up onto the roof of the building.
Although the bright city lights had choked out the night sky of stars, it was now replaced with the spontaneous glow of electricity and color from the city. I was not bothered by the cold air. All I could think about was the future ahead of us, and what challenges we had already faced.
Even so, a bigger questioned loomed over me like a shadow.
“What were the IWEC planning to do about us?’
Pondering on the question for a few hours, I was finally called back down into the building.
X.D: (Speaking to myself) ‘What are they planning...’
…..
With the main host finally back into their reality, will they move on to the next facility and find what they are looking for, or is disappointment waiting on the other side?
Find out, in the next chapter of Me-Myself-and-the-Multiverse!
(You know, I think I'm improving on these endings. That may just be me overthinking things.... Oh well.)
(End of chapter four)