Ten

Bryan – 1

   If what K.J. had experienced was accurate, then it didn’t bode very well for anything else they might encounter on the mountain. It had no rhyme, but it did, however, seem to have reason, or, at least, a reason. Bryan thought of the woman she had heard on the intercom again. If what she said was to be taken as the truth, then, did that mean nightfall would bring the end to all of the madness they were met with? What did she mean by the red sky coming down? With the way things were headed, he wouldn’t have been surprised if she literally meant the sky would come crashing down, unveiling itself, not as the sky, but actual, literal blood to drown them in.

   “If we can find Shaun or someone else, if we can regroup with the rest of the survivors, I think that will be what’s best for us,” Bryan explained.

   The air was cold. It was enough to make Bryan’s body shiver on occasion, but it wasn’t enough to mean they needed to find shelter. The fog was everywhere, about waist high, which meant if there were any leprechaun-sized Kudos knights then they would be sitting ducks for a malicious onslaught. The terrain appeared to have changed more times than Bryan could count, it had happened so often that Bryan no longer checked behind himself, out of fear the land might change itself when it became time to continue on. He also held K.J.’s hand tightly, afraid she might disappear on him.

   K.J. nodded her head and smiled politely but didn’t offer much else besides that. Bryan took what he could get.

   “I think I see a checkpoint up ahead,” Bryan commented, pointing his index finger at a small-rectangular building only a short ways away, partly obscured by a pair of dying trees with leaves that had long since shed off from them.

   “Seems like a bad location for a checkpoint,” K.J. responded, although she didn’t appear to otherwise object to the idea of investigating it.

   “It is definitely not abiding by any actual path,” Bryan agreed, but, countered, “But I almost wonder if anything at all is where it once was, or if what’s happening, … what if, … what if everything sort-of re-rolls itself, doing whatever it wants, whenever it wants,” Bryan explained, without actually explaining anything at all.

   “If that’s the case, then, maybe we’re better off building an ark and waiting it out until the flood comes,” K.J. responded, and, in fairness, Bryan didn’t think it was the worst of ideas.

   Bryan led K.J. forward, eventually arriving at the checkpoint. The best-case scenario would be finding survivors that might be able to offer them answers about what was happening, whereas the worst-case scenario would be finding a Kudos soldier and having their heads chopped off. Bryan could make do with anything, so long as it wasn’t that.

   Bryan led K.J. up the steps of the small building’s porch. Upon inspection, it did, indeed, appear to be a checkpoint station, although it was worse for wear and tattered. That much was easy to see. The porch was wobbly and had a black iron rail on the left-hand side. 

   That iron rail was for show, as if Bryan were to lose his balance, the porch was small enough that its entirety would flip before the iron rail gave way. 

   He turned the knob on the door, a thin L-shaped handle that made Bryan think he could break it off if he wanted to, even though he couldn’t. 

   While he had expected it to be locked, he was pleasantly surprised to discover the truth was otherwise. With a gentle clicking sound, they were in, entering the cozy building with an on-guard demeanor about them.

   “What if we stayed here until everything blows over?” K.J. inquired, as they both began to walk around the room, searching to find anything, or anyone, of interest.

   “What if it never does,” Bryan said, looking over to K.J. with hopeless skepticism. 

   It wasn’t like he had any interest of heading back outside into the hell of the maddening mountain and the demons inhabiting it, but he couldn’t stop but think their death would become a certainty if they stayed. “What if the whole area changes again and the whole building’s crushed by a tree, or something?”

   “At least we wouldn’t suspect it. It would happen and it would be over with,” K.J. fired back. 

   Something had definitely changed about her since meeting that woman, something she must have said or did had taken every strand of hope she had left.

   “K.J.,” he said, and then, left it at that, as if to try and argue how she could say such a thing and not see the problem with it while not putting up an actual defense. “The things we’ve seen, … that’s not something I think I am willing to leave up to chance, we have to do something about this. And, if there’s any chance whatsoever that Scott’s alive, then, I want to find him.”

   “Why,” Tears spilled out over K.J.’s cheeks, “It won’t do any good. One way or the other, something will happen.”

   Bryan walked over to her and extended his arm out, trying to wipe off her tears. K.J. slapped his hand away, turning her back to him. “Leave me here then.”

   “I can’t just leave you,” Bryan said, moving closer to her.

   “I am not asking,” K.J. fired back. Her eyes gleamed a fiery passion, and from it, Bryan could tell that nothing would convince her to see reason.

   Bryan took a breath, “If I find anyone, if I can find answers, I will do whatever I can to come back for you.”

   As Bryan stood at the door, he waited for K.J. to offer him a response, anything at all that might offer a sense of closure to what could very well have been their final interaction with one another. Nothing came, however, instead, it was only silence between them. Bryan soon closed the door behind him and left.

2 – Melissa

   Melissa could hear the echo of the man’s screams as Dr. Rindan did to him whatever Dr. Rindan did to his subjects. She shuddered at the thought, knowing she would be dealt the same hand if she didn’t find a way to escape her confinement. The dungeon was dingy and drab, but, otherwise, didn’t offer any other opportunities for an escape. The iron bars felt rustic, but they held steady no matter how hard she tugged at them. At any rate, it almost seemed a kinder fate to gouge out her sutures in hopes of bleeding out, instead of being faced with whatever the mad doctor had in mind.

   She reflected on that thought a moment, feeling it almost disrespectful to Shaun’s sacrifice that she even contemplated it. As ungrateful as it might have made her feel, bad feelings weren’t enough to free her from her predicament. She thought back on the old man. Dr. Rindan was frail and wiry, and she didn’t doubt she could overpower him, even with the wounds currently ailing her. The same couldn’t be said about the guard he would undoubtedly call for.

   The Doctor likely had a ring of keys dangling at his waist to unlock each of the cell doors, if only there was a way to procure them someway without him finding out about it. But that left too much up to assumption. She had no way of knowing Dr. Rindan’s ritual – whether he would return and fatten her up with candies like an old folk’s tale bad-guy or if he would want to start straightaway on his new plaything, slicing and carving to his heart’s content.

   If she intended to escape from Dr. Rindan’s clutches, then, she would need something less up to chance than that. She looked over to his victim Michael’s cage, and without being able to distinctly see it in the dark, considered Dr. Rindan’s heinous assault. Specifically, she considered the broken glass that had been left in his wake. She maneuvered her way over to it. There were shackles inside the cage itself, rustic, but strong, however, Dr. Rindan must have been confident enough not to bother with any restraints. She saw a dagger-shaped shard of glass on the ground, unfortunately out of arm’s reach.

   She first considered using the rusty shackles as a way to drag the glass over to her, but, then, thought better of it. The shackles were attached to a chain, which meant they could be brought back to her, but they were heavy; no reason to risk shattering the glass with them. She went with a different approach, undoing her shirt and using it to bring the glass into her possession. It took her a few tries, but she soon held the sturdy piece of glass in her hand.

3 – Jessica

   Left on her own accord, Jessica could feel the realization of her own demise permeate through her. Scott had left her, and the only familiar faces she had known had since been reduced to forgotten blurs in the ongoing destruction.

   Her body was covered with dirt and mud, her clothing appeared drab and was stained with the foul filth of the mountain, but, at the moment, it might have been the only thing that kept her alive. She laid flat on the ground, obscured by fallen leaves and the debris of Kudos’ destruction, the broken remnants of disturbed tents and the ash and soot of burnt wreckage. The Kudos soldiers roamed the terrain with observant eyes. Their eyes in search of any stragglers still clutching onto their grasp of life.

   “Come out, come out, wherever you are,” The voice spoke, toying with his victims, finding no shame in the fact. Jessica’s recognized, not the voice, but the accent. The man didn’t speak like the rest of the knights, not hollering battle-cries or spouting warnings with a cadence that sounded like it was plucked from the dark ages. This man sounded like Jessica. He sounded contemporary and like the Kudos men should have mowed him down like the rest of them. And yet, for some reason, he belonged with them.

   Jessica remained quiet. She could hear his shoes hit the dirt with every step he took. He crept closer to her. Jessica held her breath. He stood only a short distance away from her now, the side of him was plainly visible, he donned a dark robe that hung loosely off him. He wasn’t a large man nor did he appear to be wielding a sword, but he spoke with confidence in himself and his situation. “It won’t be long now until nightfall, and then, everything’s over with, one way or the other,” He said plainly, like he sensed the presence of someone around him.

   He turned his back to Jessica and followed the sound of marching men.

4 – Officer McIntyre

   He was reluctant to shout to try for Crystal’s attention, that would have meant death for the whole lot of them, and yet, Davis McIntyre felt desperate to find her. Scott was attentive now as well. Now, no longer being carried by Davis, but, instead, supporting himself through the use of a long wooden stick. He would not be able to outrun one of those creatures if they ran into it, but, then again, neither would Officer McIntyre if he was carrying the boy on his back. Crystal couldn’t have wandered off, not with the way Officer McIntyre had lagged behind her. He was following her for fuck’s sake! And yet, the second he looked away from her, she was nowhere to be seen.

   The young girl had been a symbol for him, he now realized. If no one else, if he could have saved her, then, after all the bloodshed he had witnessed and after all the dead bodies he had found, maybe that would have made his ventures out into the mountain worth it.

   Officer McIntyre squinted his eyes at the sight of a dark blur in front of him. It was shortly after; however, he began to fathom what it appeared to be. The object was large, at least twenty feet, both tall and wide, and appeared to be slithering toward them. That word – slither. Slither was a very appropriate word to describe the dirt-colored creature in-front of them. It was a worm, or something like it.

   His response was entirely instinctual but was nevertheless regrettable for him. Of all the thoughts he had about Scott and how he knew, one way or another, he would not make it off of this mountain alive, that didn’t mean he wouldn’t fight to see him through to the end. However, met with such a gargantuan monstrosity, he found his mind outwitted and his spirit outmatched. The tree branches rattled overhead, and he could feel the vibration beneath his feet. He ran from it.

   He moved as fast as he had in years, turning left and then right, intent on creating as difficult a chase as he could. Soon, however, out of dumb curiosity, he looked back, and he saw the creature was not on his tail. It had apparently had its fill and was now burrowing into the ground, kicking up dirt as it dug its long body under, showing its hard exterior that looked made up of scales of rock, stained brown with mud. It had taken Scott with it.

   Officer McIntyre breathed heavily. Even though his legs had stopped, his heart felt like is going a mile a minute. Davis bowed his head down in anguish. I’m sorry, kid.

5 – Melissa

   Michael’s life certainly stretched farther than anyone had right to expect, but, in the hands of the mad doctor, everything had an expiration date attached to it. Melissa remained still as Dr. Rindan came around the bend, carrying the broken lantern in one hand and his ring of keys in the other. Soon, Dr. Rindan arrived at her cell.

   Melissa could see his wrinkly, haggard face from the shine of the fire, and on it, too, she could see a youthful enthusiasm as well, like a small child opening his presents for the holidays. Then, he shook his head: “Oh, child. Please know you aren’t the first of mind to pretend they are asleep; everyone is afraid the first time around. Don’t worry,” he calmly explained, and as he did, he waved his hand and invited a soldier to his side with his sword withdrawn from its scabbard.

   He had been smarter than she had offered him credit, anticipating she would try an attack of some kind. Dr. Rindan toyed with his keys until finding the needle in the haystack, as he opened the door, he offered her a toothy grin as he walked toward her bedside. Melissa remained calm and still, unwilling to reveal what Dr. Rindan already figured out. For all he knew, her best attack would have been brute force or flailing arms, he wouldn’t know about the broken shard of glass she clasped in her hand. As she felt his cold hand on the back of her shoulder, her body shivered, and then, went on the attack. She acted swiftly, knowing the knight would be on-guard to thwart her intent. Her best bet was no longer about killing the Mad Doctor. She moved her body behind Dr. Rindan, using him as a human shield from the soldier, and then, held pressed the glass on his throat, applying just enough pressure to assert her control of the situation.

   Melissa could hear Dr. Rindan chuckling. She could feel the chilliness of his breath on her hand.

   “I think you’ve mistaken yourself as being under the company of humans, my dear.” The withered man showed no sign of intimidation or fear in his predicament. Melissa didn’t even know it was a certainty that he could even wrap his head around the concept. But he could understand a threat.

   “You aren’t human, but I know you can be killed. I’ve seen you creatures die and dissipate into nothingness, the weak ones, especially, and you are nothing, if not for weak,” Melissa responded. She did her best to express confidence and control, despite the fact she felt nothing of the sort. If nothing else, it felt like something Shaun would have done, and, at best, it might fool the doctor as the truth.

   “There’s no surviving this, child. This is a chess match and the game is rigged. If not me, then, it will be the knight standing outside the cell-doors, and if not him, it will be another man in Odeo Hassius’ army,” Dr. Rindan’s voice changed now, sounding more methodical and quieter. His voice was that of a soft-whisper, and it made it feel as though the whole world had hushed in-order to hear what he had to say for himself.

   “I will let you live to torture another damned soul if you do as I say. The knight must enter the cellblock. I will lock him in, and I will lock you in. Afterward, I will leave your dungeon and will no longer be your prisoner,” Melissa explained.

   Dr. Rindan let out a small laugh, “Very well.”

   The knight obliged to Melissa’s instructions as they were reinforced by Dr. Rindan. The back of the knight’s body hugged one side of the cell-bars before arriving in a corner of the dungeon. Then, Melissa led Dr. Rindan forward, until they were free from the cage’s confines. Melissa could feel tears running down her cheeks. They weren’t of joy and they weren’t of sadness, but hysteria. She took a breath and let it leave her, and then, she slit Dr. Rindan’s throat.

   The knight charged forward, but Melissa anticipated his assault, throwing the dying old man in the line of fire and snatching the ring of keys off from him. As the knight tried his best to tend to Dr. Rindan, Melissa slammed the cell door shut.

   No blood poured out from Dr. Rindan’s wound and, as of yet, he hadn’t fallen away to ash, but that didn’t matter. He was lock inside of the holding cell and Melissa held the keys to his freedom. She took little satisfaction in the small victory, however. Mostly, because she wasn’t finished. Against the opposing side, many lanterns were lined up, hanging on iron stakes shaped like shepherd’s hooks. She held one of them in her hands, admiring how it was made. 

   A second later, she threw it in the cage with the knight and Dr. Rindan. The lantern shattered on the floor beside them, with the lamp oil pouring out around them. They seemed confused by her action but figured it out when she started to throw more into the cell with them, watching them shatter, and then, finally, by the third lantern: ignite.

   Dr. Rindan caught flame first. Although he offered no screams, it was enough being able to watch him fall away to ashes. The same could be said for the knight, although his armor appeared like it would prolong his life. No matter, Melissa thought, staring at what remained of Dr. Rindan, which wasn’t much. She only hoped she would live to tell Scott about what she had done to the bastard.

   She walked up the spiraled flooring, ascending the mountain as she did. She couldn’t help but wonder where it would lead, could it possibly lead to the mountain’s peak? It was a long way down off one of the ledges, and even though it looked more like she was inside a volcano, she could see a large body of water at the bottom and could hear the heavy stream of a waterfall.

   As the row of lanterns ended, no longer illuminating her path, she unhooked one of the lanterns and carried onward. From the way the sun had set, barely shedding any light into the caves, it earned its keep. The waterfall offered an overbearing white noise that not only masked her footsteps from oncoming bystanders, but hid their presence as well. She had no idea what she intended to do if she ran into any Kudos men.

   Die, she supposed, but the thought wasn’t as blunt or frank in her mind. Despite her aching side and the drugs that were beginning to wear off, and despite the trauma of everything she had seen and the death of her boyfriend Shaun, Melissa still very much wanted to live. All the time she had spent wondering what she wanted to do with her life and being afraid of what happened next, she no longer feared the future so long as she survived it.

6 – Bryan

   Maybe it was a mistake on Bryan’s part, deciding to leave K.J. behind and venture out on his own into the unknown of Mt. Kass. The decision to do so even surprised himself. He walked forward, about the only thing he could do, and was left to only wonder if he was headed in the right direction. Perhaps it didn’t even matter in the end. The way the mountain reacted to things, maybe there was no right direction, maybe you simply walked and walked until the mountain decided you had arrived at your destination.

   The longer he spent walking, admiring the scenery and the trees, warped and perverted in some way, he began to feel a sense of calm. Or, as calm as you could feel while knowing a soldier could come by and chop your head off at any moment. He needed to find Shaun and the rest of the group, maybe they had found something he hadn’t. What about that woman on the intercom? If she had had something to do with their predicament, perhaps she was also someone who could bring an end to it.

   It was then that Bryan felt someone knock against him. Bryan flinched, but calmed down some a moment after. It was a man in a hooded sweatshirt that had shouldered him from behind. Without saying a word, the man continued walking forward, not reacting to Bryan in any significant way.

   “Hey,” Bryan said, unsure if he actually wanted the man’s attention or not.

   The man continued walking, not saying anything in-response to him. Soon after, Bryan felt his left side brushed up against and then, his right. One man walked forward, and then, one woman. Then, after that, he could only warch as more walked past him. Soon, there was a small crowd that had formed around him. None of them seemed to have hostile intent, but none of them seemed to care about Bryan’s presence at all. Bryan touched a person’s shoulder and turned her toward him. He yanked his arm away when he saw that a blank, blurry face looking back at him.

   The blank faced figure stayed where Bryan had stopped him. If she had eyes to stare, then, the woman would be staring at him. Bryan watched as the woman’s head began to widen, as though her jaw was trying to rip a mouth for itself.

   Bryan’s anxiety had returned to him; so badly he yearned to be away from the gathering crowd around him.

   They had all stopped dead in their tracks, each one of them with their heads facing Bryan with such judgment. They each extended our their arms and pointed their finger at him. Bryan dropped to his knees for reasons he couldn’t explain. The woman’s jaws ripped open beyond the skin, and like the damn had broken, soon other creatures’ mouths ripped open as well. What came out of their mouths was a siren’s shriek, one that sent a ringing in Bryan’s head the moment the sound met his eardrums.

   Bryan bowed his head down into the dirt. The noise was making his skin pulsate, like it might encumber him beyond capacity and cause him to explode. Stop, Bryan mumbled beneath his breath, but it was a whisper in a room of screaming head’s. No one listened to him. The screams never seemed to relent. All he could do was stand there quietly and take it. That’s what he was best at, after all. He whimpered softly, waiting for the end to find him.

   As the noise overcame him, he made one last valiant attempt, looking up at the crowd of creatures, he screamed, “Leave me alone!”

   Silence filled his surroundings. Bryan watched as the creatures fell to ash. He stood to his feet once again. The mountain wasn’t bested. He knew that much. The creatures weren’t beaten, and yet, this wasn’t the same as the Kudos soldiers wandering the mountain either. 

   It was easy to forget that Mt. Kass had once accompanied an actual battle, with bloodshed and heartache, and vigilance and fear. That Kudos soldiers fought against Midori, driven by things that had mattered to them all those many years ago. Whoever they were and however they had done what they had done, the cultists hadn’t merely brought back the bodies and hatred of soldiers at war, but they had brought the tormented spirits that haunted it. Soldiers had died for certain, but it was no holds barred for everyone else in the cross hairs as well.

   Bryan continued forward, looking out over the mountain. There was a small cave in his view.