“No! No! Get it off me! Let me out!” the blonde screamed yanking at her restraints. Her screams bounced off the granite walls of the dimly lit room they had been teleported into.
“Calm down. Calm down!” Renska grabbed her face and forcibly turned her head towards him, “Somva, calm down. Please there is a latch. Let me get the latch.”
Somva was too overcome by panic to hear his instructions. Luckily, he noticed this and quickly tried to unlock her restraints on her behalf. However, this task became more arduous than it should have been as Somva kept violently yanking at her chains repeatedly and she kept thrashing around. Despite this hurdle, Renska managed to tug on the release latch before Somva hurt herself or before she could accidentally strike him.
As her handcuffs clicked open, she was pulled backward by her inertia and fell to the stone-tiled ground. Just as her bottom had hit the ground, she immediately looked over her shoulder to find a woman dressed in black robes wearing an animal skull with protruding golden antlers. The black-robed woman was standing only a few feet away from her alongside two people wearing ominous-looking gas masks which covered the bottom half of their faces.
As soon as her brain began making sense of what she saw, she immediately screamed at the top of her lungs while charging for the opposite side of the room. By the time she had reached the wall furthest from the eerie trio, Radlig, Renska, and Nomli were able to get out of their handcuffs. The gallant blonde and the gentle brunette both rushed to help the manic girl. The ex-crook on the other hand chose to loiter while enjoying the chaos unfolding.
Sadly Radlig’s and Renksa’s efforts to try and calm Somva down only backfired. Her panic attack only worsened by the two of them huddling around her. Renska didn’t take long to catch on to this escalation in terror and instantly changed his tactics by backing away, keeping his distance, and by calmly calling out to her.
Radlig chose the opposite approach by further closing the gap between them and which resulted in him cornering her even more. In her hysteria, Somva just kept pushing against the wall behind her while clawing the air between them.
“Everyone! Please back away from her now! Please back away unless you wish to worsen her condition!” One of the black-robed woman’s companions, a green-haired woman dressed in blue scrubs quickly rushed in to stop the others from crowding around Somva. She kept one of her hands over her gas mask as she ran, making sure that it doesn’t accidentally slip off. Her heavy backpack bounced loudly as she charged toward her patient.
As Renska backed away from Somva as per the nurse’s instructions, he noticed a four-leaf clover stitched onto the nurse’s backpack. “Guys, just back away and give the nurse lady room to work, okay?” Renska began helping the nurse by keeping everyone huddled around the wooden pole they had been shackled to. Radlig was the only one who didn’t comply with the nurse’s instructions or with Renska’s request. He chose to continue his futile efforts of reaching out to Somva on his own.
“Young man, please head back with the rest of the group. You are only making her condition worse.” The nurse’s first priority was to get Radlig away from Somva so that she could safely treat her panic attack.
“And why should I believe any of you? As far as I know, your black magic has turned her mad!” Radlig defied her orders and was on the brink of retaliating violently.
In response to his aggression, the nurse inhaled deeply before removing her gas mask and exhaled a green mist from her mouth onto Radlig’s face. She then began speaking to him in a soft soothing voice “I understand how this isn’t the sort of afterlife any of you had been expecting. I understand how frustrated and uncertain you all are feeling and that you feel like you are being played with. But I need you to calm down and understand that I can’t help your friend unless you back away and give me some room to work.”
Radlig’s anger instantly melted away as the mist seeped into his lungs and her voice caressed his mind. His whole body became relaxed to the point that he was tempted to collapse and fall asleep on the stone floor. His stubborn attitude and the adrenaline in his blood helped him stay concious but it was not enough to stop the mist from intoxicating him. His locomotion and speech were now of a drunkard, “Fine. But I’m zticking cloze and keeping my aye on you.” As he backed away, he quickly rushed to a nearby wall in order to use it to support his weight and observed the woman while fighting off the drowsiness that were overtaking his senses.
After getting the room she needed to work, the nurse exhaled the same green mist in Somva’s direction and requested her to calm down, “It's alright dear. There is nothing to be afraid of. Just take a deep breath. You’re safe.”
The mist immediately stabilized Somva’s emotions similarly to Radlig and she went from being manic to being giddy. Unlike Radlig who was glued to the wall, Somva skipped back to the group. Once she reached them, she immediately clung to Renska, and began rubbing her face against his shoulder like a cat.
As someone who hadn’t received a hug in over a decade in his previous life, her affectionate behavior turned him into a profusely sweating statue.
“Maybe I should try having a panic attack to get a dose of that mist,” Nomli mumbled under his breath envious of the high that both Radlig and Somva were experiencing.
“I guess it's pleasant to know that Sdyvi doesn’t have to harass someone for us to get to see a new ability,” Igka commented while laughing nervously.
The discussion regarding the mist amongst the group was cut short by a sudden loud whistle that caught everyone’s attention. The source of the whistle was a pale man in a three-piece suit, wearing large round sunglasses and a gas mask similar to the nurse standing next to the woman in black robes, “Listen up! I need you all to step out of the damn teleportation circle immediately!”
The group complied with his instructions without any feuds. Just as everyone had stepped out of the circle, the woman wearing the animal skull pulled out a mirror and stroked its surface with the back of her fingers. As her fingers ran down the mirror, its surface began to ripple like waves.
“Can we retrieve the pole?” A voice emerged from the waves on the mirror’s glassy surface.
The black-robed woman replied while holding the mirror a few inches away from her red matte lips. The glass rippled, seemingly turning liquid. The mirror's cold surface thrashed and danced in tandem with her voice. “You may retrieve it now.”
Just as she spoke into the mirror, the pole instantly vanished into thin air.
“So tancosoms in this world are mirrors… interesting,” Igka muttered as he saw the woman’s mirror act as a telecommunication device.
After the wooden post was teleported, the man in sunglasses started to give everyone a run down of what was going to happen. “Not that you care but my name is Solska and I have good news and some shit news. The good news is that you all get to have your questions about all this mess answered. The shit news is that you are going to have to go through a few tests before you are given those answers.”
Unbound and free Sydvi was brimming with bravado as she challenged Solska, “Or I could just rip your nails off till you give us what the answers we want.”
He let out an exasperated sigh as he took out a small notepad from his suit. He flipped through the notepad and briefly viewed the contents of one of its pages before replying to Sdyvi, “Darn, looks like I lost the bet. A shithead popped up before I even finished explaining everything. Oh well…” He shrugged before he nonchalantly put back the notepad into his breast pocket. “Girl with the chiseled jaw, congratulations because you are the 5th person whose head I’m going to pull out of their own ass.”
After putting the notepad in his pocket, the man smugly walked up to Sdyvi with his arms resting by his sides. Sdyvi happily accepted his challenge by raising up her fists and prepared to attack. As he was getting closer, Sdyvi hyped herself up by throwing a set of quick jabs and haymakers while bouncing on her feet. The moment he was only a few steps away, Sdyvi swiftly dashed in and attempted to land a few blows to his guts. However, this battle plan immediately collapsed as he managed to grab her arm in the middle of the very first punch she threw.
Despite being caught off guard by the man’s speed, Sdyvi threw her second punch, this time with the full intention of getting her second arm caught in his grip as well. Just as his right hand’s fingers wrapped around her left wrist, she jumped up and wrapped her muscular legs around Solska’s feeble neck in one swift motion. A cocky smile formed on her face as she succeeded in performing the first step of her new combat plan. However, her confidence and smile turned to dust the very moment she tried to squeeze his neck between her thighs. “Why does your neck feel like a rock? What the fuck is wrong with you people?”
The man calmly twisted her right arm closer to her left and closed his hand around both wrists. His right hand was now free. “Most of those who wear gas masks or air filters have the gift to produce mists that can alter people’s state of mind almost like hard narcotics. My colleague’s gift allows her to pacify targets which is why she chose to be a nurse. My usual gig is to be an interrogator. So tell me. What do you think my mist can do?” As he finished asking the question, he abruptly pulled Sdyvi closer to his face, ripped off his gas mask, and exhaled his green mist onto Sdyvi’s face.
He then released both her hands and her body swung back towards the ground as she continued to latch on to his neck with her legs. While in the middle of her body swinging backwards, she swiftly grabbed onto his shirt’s collar and yanked herself up to punch him. As she pulled her free arm back, fully ready to throw another quick strike, but she suddenly froze in fear.
Her face started to contort in terror at the man’s twisted visage. She started to see faces emerge from the roof deafening her with horrid groans. Eyes began to emerge from the walls and the sounds of wailing babies joined in this orchestra from hell. The cocky, bravado-filled Sdyvi fell to the floor, curled up into a ball, and began crying in terror. With a single breath, the man in the suit broke her. Even the ever flippant Nomli was on edge witnessing the man’s power.
“Most interrogators will rip your nails off or crush your balls so that they can make you shit yourself out of fear. My gift helps me bypass that bullshit. Luckily, that allows me to be quite fucking good at subjugating dickheads too,” he spoke of his ability with a glee akin to a maiden bashfully speaking of her prince. Upon seeing the fear in the crowd’s eyes of his ability, he gently placed his gas mask over his mouth and snapped its straps in to place.
Meanwhile, the nurse dashed to Sdyvi’s side who seemed to have started to convulse as though she was having a seizure. Just as the nurse reached Sdyvi, she dropped her backpack to the ground and, turned her gaze towards Solska, “What dosage did you give her?”
His mouth twitched hearing her question and then he clicked his tongue in agitation before replying, “The concentration was about 400 avum per breath as far as I could tell and she took in about two or three breaths worth.”
“Tch. No wonder she’s having a fucking seizure,” the nurse turned her headback to the backpack infront of her, whipped it open and started pulling out various medical supplies.
“Help me bind her and pin her down,” the nurse requested her black robed colleague.
The seizure was causing Sdyvi to squirm around and was making it practically impossible to treat her unless she had been pinned down. Due to this conundrum, the lady in the black dress quickly binded Sdyvi’s limbs with what looked like a black belt made of cloth and then pinned the rest of her body down with her own body weight.
Solska loudly clapped his hands to pull everyone’s attention away from Sdyvi’s spasms and to redirect it towards him. “Hoping that there aren’t any more idiots among you guys that I have to put down, let's get down to business.” He took out the small notepad from his breast pocket once again and flipped it open before continuing, “First of all, don’t bother asking any of us questions about your family, life, death or any of that bullshit. You’ll get a clue or answer after each trial…” Solska paused for a moment when he noticed Igka raise his hand. “You will be given the chance to ask five questions from me after I’m done explaining. Just keep your pigs in your pens until then.”
He paused again to wait for the others who were still raising their hands to lower them and then proceeded with his announcement. “Before we guide you to the testing grounds, we will need each of you to put on one of these metal bangles.”
He pointed to his right wrist on which he was wearing a metallic bangle.“Don’t ask why because I will be showing you dickheads why you need these pretty little things shortly but I won’t do that until you all to put these on now.”
“First handcuffs now metal bangles, I do wonder if they would ask us to get blindfolded and to open our mouths next,” Nomli retorted sarcastically.
As Solska made his way to the nurse’s backpack, he paused and audibly chuckled while tilting his head. “I’m dropping the questions down to three now.”
“What? Why?” the group asked in unison.
“Because I don’t like sassy bastards. I also don’t like bitchy bastards so I would be careful about bitching in front of me if I were you,” despite his entire mouth being covered by the gas mask, one could tell that he was smiling ear to ear.
Nomli wasn’t pleased with the outcome. Everyone in the group except for those affected by the mist was staring at him in disdain. He wondered with a smirk on his face whether it was him or the knocked out she-giant who were higher on the group’s shitlist.
“After you are all done putting those bangles on, I need you all to follow me to the door so that I can explain what these do. Except for those who are high on mist,” he announced as he acquired the bangles for the group from the nurse’s backpack. He then walked up to the group. Upon reaching them, he passed the metal bangles to Igka who then quickly disseminated them to the rest of the group.
“Sir, I don’t think I can follow you to the demonstration. Miss Somva seems to have somewhat of a death grip on me.” Renska wiggled his arms and torso to show how helpless he was against the strength of Somva’s hug. “I don’t mind missing out on the demonstration, if I have any questions I’ll just ask the group or just follow your instructions quietly. I would rather not have to go through the hassle of prying Miss Somva off me.”
Solska shrugged. “Everyone except for the Snuggle Bear and the gassed up trio put your bangles on and follow me.”
After they had put on the bangles, Solska shepherded them to the only door in the room. “I want each and everyone one of you to keep an eye on what happens each time I open this door, got it?”
He waited for everyone to nod or give some sort of confirmation. “Traska! Is it safe to open the door?”
The moment he heard the black robed lady yell yes from the other side of the room, he pulled open the door. Many in the group were rather disappointed by the reveal as it was just a regular wall and hallway on the other side of the door. Igka tried to approach the doorway but Solska quickly gestured him to stand back. He then closed the door again. “Traska! How long till its the spike room?”
“There is one in fifteen seconds but its the large one. I wouldn’t recommend it. Go for the buzzsaw room, it will be there in about fifty seconds,” she yelled as she helped the nurse held the IV bag up in the air for the nurse.
Solska giddily sang the countdown till fifteen while tapping his feet before he swung open the door again. This time a strong gust of wind tried to suck all those near the door into the room past the doorway.
Luckily, everyone resisted the wind’s pull. The area beyond the door’s frame was not the dull hallway from before, it was a massive cave with metallic spikes jutting out of every inch of it.
Even Solska barely managed to withstand the gale as one of his legs was dangling past the door’s threshold and he was on the verge of falling onto the spikey pits below. He quickly regained his balance while shutting the door behind him and let out a nervous laugh.
“Hehe, see that kids, if you don’t listen to a Vunka priestess in their castle, you end up getting skewered.” When he turned around to see their reaction he wasn’t surprised to see them horrified. “Calm down you pussies, none of you would have been pulled into that place from that distance,” he chuckled.
“He is a demon…” Narga gasped as she began walking backwards.
“Oh fuck. Don’t tell me…” Solska immediately tapped the region around his eye and found that his sunglasses had been pulled into the room by the wind. He realized that the group wasn’t horrified by the cave full of spikes he just showed them but rather from his goat-like eyes.
“I’m not a demon nor am I a half fucking goat. Some of us have…” He snapped his fingers thrice with his right hand while pulling out another pair of sunglasses with the other. “Physical… variances. It's not what you guys think it is.”
Besides Igka nearly everyone else in the group had begun to follow Narga’s footsteps and started to distance themselves from him. Igka simply stared at the goat-eyed man standing in front of him pensively. Solska himself was lost in deep thought trying to figure out a way to salvage this as he rhythmically tapped his feet on the ground.
“The only way out of this room is by the door Solska is standing next to! Even if we allowed you to go through the door on your own, the castle would kill each of you off in its ever shifting labyrinth! If you intend on seeing tomorrow, you need us! So I’d advise you all calm down!” Traska yelled while still holding onto the IV bag for the nurse.
Her words helped Solska gain the second wind that he needed so he loudly clapped his hands, rub the brim of his shirt’s sleeve between his fingers and pump his chest out. “EXACTLY! Exactly! You motherfuckers ain’t nowhere to go without us. So stand in fucking line!
“No!” Narga yelled as she began her charge for the teleportation circle. The nurse swiftly trained her dart gun on Narga but the silent silver haired boy tackled the panicked redhead to the ground.
He climbed atop Narga who had started to slap and swat at him. He then grabbed both her arms and pushed them against her chest in a cross before screaming at the top of his lungs. “Unless you wish to be knocked out and have your body dragged around this acursed place, you need to calm down and listen to these people!”
“Didn’t expect those to be your first words but hey at least you aren’t silently moping in the corner,” Nomli commented as he assessed the best route to get to the teleportation circle.
“Sir Baraska, why are you siding with these demons?” asked Tenmska.
“I’m not siding with the…” Baraska paused as he noticed that Narga wasn’t struggling against him as she did initially. He quickly looked down and noticed a large red colored dart sticking out of her arm and immediately understood that the nurse shot Narga with a tranquilzer. He then let go of her wrists. Red imprints of his hands marked Narga’s limp forearms.
“I’m not siding with them. I’m not siding with anyone. I merely want to know where my loved ones are and I know full well whether these beings are devils, angels, gods or beasts, they are the only ones who can remotely give us a clue to their whereabouts,” he paused again to look over his shoulder at the nurse who was monitoring Sdyvi’s pulse with one hand and holding the dart gun in the other, “I also know that by openly rebelling against them we only make ourselves weaker.”
Nomli wanted to give a sassy retort to what Baraska said but after pondering briefly he agreed with the statement. “He’s got a point. If we keep fucking around, they’ll just knock all of us out and do whatever they want. If we follow orders at least we can at least get some information even if it is false.”
“But…” Temska attempted to give another argument but was quickly cut off by Nomli.
“Darling, the only way we make progress is if either one of us bend’s over. Since none of us have magical powers like these lovely folks we really don’t have any choice besides being the bottom here.” Despite his crude analogy, the rest of the group could see his logic.
Everyone grew silent momentarily until the nurse spoke, “I understand none of you have any reasons to believe us. Most of those in your shoes don’t. Out of the three other groups that we were in charge of guiding to testing room, every single one of them was brimming with anxiety. I know that our uncanny appearance makes it even harder to trust us but please know this that we have no intention of harming you. At most we will pacify you and that too would be to insure that a riot doesn’t break out and so that nobody gets hurt.”
“If you guys are done with your demonstration and briefing, can we ask you guys a question?” Renska asked while raising his forearm. His calm and cold expression would have been intimidating had it not been for Somva slouching and drooling over his shoulder.
“Sure but the number of questions is reduced to two for the shit you just pulled. It would have been one but that silver haired kid’s actions are making me feel more merciful so I’m settling on two questions,” he said as he yanked out a pair of sunglasses from his breast pocket, flipped them open and put them on.
“Okay, lets all vote on who asks the questions and which questions we should ask so that we don’t go at eachothers throats over the chance to ask our question,” Renska suggested.
“Good idea. We can have everyone suggest two questions and then vote on which questions are worth going for. Sir Solska may we borrow your notepad and writing utensil?” Baraska started walking towards Solska in order to acquire his notepad.
“I’ll give you six pages and my charcoal pencil but make it quick, we don’t have all the time in the world for this.” Solska tore out six pages and handed them over to Igka along with a charcoal pencil who in turn handed them over to Baraska.
“I have qualms against the voting but don’t you think its going to complicate things if everyone suggests two questions from the start? What if we all end up with more than two questions after voting?” Nomli asked as he circled around Baraska and started inspecting Narga’s condition from afar.
“Then we cut out the questions that none of us agreed on and then start another round of voting. We do this until there are only two questions left. At this current time, I find that this maybe the fairest method of picking questions to ask.” Baraska gave one page to each conscious member of the group and passed the pencil from person to person.
The questions that Igka asked were about how Solska sight varies from those with normal eyes and whether there was someone controlling the shifting hallways of the castle or if it was some sort of anomalous phenomena. Temska asked why they were being tested and how safe these tests were. Nomli questions focused primarily on the sorts of rewards, whereas Baraska asked if it at all possible to traverse the castle without a guide and if they had some sort medical facitlity within the castle in case of emergencies. Out of them all, Renska was the only one whose questions revolved entirely about food and bedding circumstances. He was also the only one who had both his questions rejected in the first round of voting.
In the end they agreed to have Baraska be the one to ask the questions on behalf of them all. “For our first question, we would like to know why we are being tested in detail. We will be grateful if you don’t answer us with a single word or sentence but rather with something that lets us have an idea of what is going on.”
The nurse decided to answer his question before Solska even had the chance to open his mouth, “There are various factions who are interested in your capabilities. We want to know what you are all capable of so that it can be easier to assimilate you into our society. Since I know most groups tend to be worried about how safe these tests are, please be rest assured that your survival and your wellness is most important to us. Teleportation is an expensive procedure, one that is not used lightly. You are all more precious to us as a sack full of gems.”
“Here’s hoping its not a sack with a hole in it and no gems.” Temska immediately jabbed Nomli with his shoulder as the flippant ex-thief made a sarcastic comment. Nobody wanted to lose the final question to his sassy attitude.
In order to insure that they don’t lose their final question, Baraska even bowed in gratitude to the first answer they were given. “We are extremely grateful for what you have shared with us and are overjoyed-”
“Cut it with the ass kissing. You aren’t going to get an extra question no matter what you do nor am I taking your last question. Just ask what you want to know so that we can leave this fucking room.” Solska intervened. It seemed as though the goat-eyed man wasn’t fond boot-licking bastards either.
“Very well then, for our second question, we would like to know what would happen if we are separated from the guide within this castle on accident. If a situation were to arrive, where for one reason or another we are separated from the group and the guide, is there any way we can safely traverse the castle? Is the person in charge of its mystical ever-shifting properties going to guide us to safety? Or are we guaranteed to die to its many hidden traps?” Silence echoed throughout the room just as he finished asking his second question.
The three of them were experienced enough to know the true meaning behind such a question and they knew how to thwart it. In order for the answer to sound more legitimate, they needed Traska to be the one to answer the question. “The master of this castle does not tolerate those who would carelessly wish to roam its halls. However, she is aware that accidents can happen that can lead to such circumstances and she is willing to allow stragglers to remain safe lest they not roam around and stay put.” She paused to let her last sentence settle in as she stared down Nomli and Baraska. “If you chose to roam around and open doors, it will be viewed as an act of aggression against our house and the lady of the castle shall respond accordingly. Staying put and waiting for those wearing garments akin to mine is the only option you have if don’t wish to be viewed as a menace.”
Everyone but Renska’s expressions turned grim upon hearing her answer. Escape was not yet an option anyone could consider.
“I guess the bangles are some sort of tracking device for the guides to find us,” Renska said as he shrugged his right shoulder while Somva used his left shoulder as a pillow.
“You are absolutely right. Its the reason why Solska and I wear them too,” the nurse confirmed his assertions and in turn slightly ticked off Solska because she answered more questions than the limit set by him.
“Is the jackass’s condition stabilized enough to move her?” he quickly asked her about Sdyvi’s condition in order to prevent the group from bombarding her with questions which she would answer reflexively.
The nurse pressed her index and middle finger against the side of Sdyvi’s windpipe in order to monitor her pulse. She glanced at her and then back at the others while still clutching onto her dart gun. “She is stable enough to move but I might have to check her condition again when we get to the testing room.”
She handed her dart gun onto the black robed woman and then began pulling out two foldable stretchers from her backpack. She unraveled both of them in a matter of seconds and clicked the neccessary joints into place for them to retain their shape, “I will travel at the back of the line, everyone else please line up. Solska, please grab the boy,” she pointed at Radlig by jerking her head in his direction.
Everyone followed her instructions while she strapped Narga and Sdyvi to the two stretchers. Many in the group wondered whether the nurse could carry the two unconscious bodies along with her bulky backpack and stared at the nurse with anticipation.
After the nurse had placed all the medical supplies back into her backpack, she carried one of the unused stretchers in one hand with her fingers wrapping around its metal frame and the other with a strap made of fabric.
Temska and Igka were rather impressed by her ability to carry a stretcher with an unconscious person laying on it with one hand. Nomli and Baraska on the other hand had more morbid feelings attached to that sight. The nurse was visibly muscular and had broad shoulders but she didn’t look like she was strong enough to lift an entire person like a bag of groceries.
“Mr.Baraska, can you help me carry Somva on my back?” asked Renska who was still trapped in her clutches.
“If you have no qualms with the set up then sure.” Baraska helped support her weight while Renska adjusted his grip around her legs as he attempted to carry her on his back. With a little bit of adjustments, he managed to get a stable grip and was ready to travel.
Surprisingly enough, Radlig had regained enough motor functions to walk but it did not seem he was ready for a long trek unassisted. The intoxicated blonde demanded that he be allowed to follow them unaided but Baraska managed to talk him out of it and use his shoulder for support during their march.
Meanwhile, the nurse had strapped Narga onto the second stretcher she pulled out. She stood between the stretchers in a way that Sdyvi was to her right and Narga was to her left. Then she squatted down and grabbed onto the strap handles of both stretchers before she stood back up with a single grunt.
Solska and the guide performed a final check on the group to ensure that everyone had their tracker bangles on. After performing the final checks, the guide walked up to the front of the line while Solska positioned himself to be in the middle of the queue. The guide then placed her hand on the door for several seconds before swinging it open thus beginning their journey to the testing room.
