Alright! I'm back in business! No more dilly-dallying this time, for now. I got my computer back, so I'm gonna upload the chapters back to .
Behold, chapter 11!
Ripred wiped the blood with his muzzle on one of the dead rats and spoke in a whisper. "Those were the guards to this passage. We are about to enter open space. Stay against the wall, single file, for the earth is unstable and the fall immeasurable."
Everyone except me nodded their heads numbly, stunned by his ferocity. He broke into a smile, which looks more menacing than before and said, "Don't worry. I'm on your side, remember?"
Like I didn't know that already.
Around the bend of the tunnel was the opening. Ripred made a right turn, and we peeled off in a single file behind him, me being the last. A narrow path led along the side of a canyon. When Lizzie shone her light into it, we saw nothing but blackness. She shivered, probably scared of what was in store for her or us. "And the fall is immeasurable," she mumbled.
Good thing I learned echolocation. I used the slight shuffle of Henry's feet to navigate around us. I couldn't detect where the ground of the ground of the canyon was. I was pretty sure the bats couldn't too, judging by how they flew and how nervous and ready they were to save anyone who fell.
After about 50 meters or so, we reached the more solid ground that fanned out from one end of the canyon. A natural arch of stone framed a wide road, worn smooth by many rat feet. An open and dark space. The best place to assassinate. Ripred picked up speed as we crossed under the arch, signaling us to hurry.
Everyone but Luxa and Henry, who instinctively were in the air mounting the bats, raced down the road.
The path ended abruptly at a deep circular pit with walls as smooth as ice. A faint light burned in the pit revealing a furry creature hunched over a stone slab, fiddling with something. It seemed to look like a very weary rat, but echolocation says otherwise. It had no tail, no claws and no sharp teeth. It was a human, a male, a father. Lizzie's father. But not quite as expected.
The dim light illuminated his face when he looked at us. He was very skinny and was more frail than an elderly, even though he looks to be in his late 40s. Lizzie instantly recognized him with wide and relieved eyes and dismounted Temp, rushing for her dad. "Dad!" she shouted.
The man squinted up and tried to stand but failed miserably, falling on all fours and lifted one hand to help tilt his own head back.
Luxa and Henry landed beside him, helped the poor soul up on Aurora's back and carried him up.
I then saw what he fully looked like. He had snow white hair and beard, wore a cloak of rat fur over a very skeletal body, and ragged pants with torn and worn down shoes.
Lizzie clutched his hands onto her own, shaking with tears. Oh, for the love of god! Goddammit! "Dad? Dad, it's me. It's me, Lizzie."
"Li-zzie?" he said, as if he hadn't heard that name in his entire life. His voice was rough and scratchy.
"Yes, Lizzie! That's my nickname at home! Elizabeth is my real name."
"E-li-za-burth? Who- who is that? Who are you?" he said, rubbing his eyes to try to recognize Lizzie but failed to do so. Well, that was expected. A few years in this hellhole would likely cause anemia.
His eyelids were starting to close. "Just... want to sleep..."
Lizzie shook her head. "No, no, no, no, no... Don't sleep! Stay with me! Please!" She started to shake him awake.
Ripred put a paw on her shoulder. "Let him rest, he needs it," he whispered softly. She immediately stopped the shaking.
"Where is the medicine you gave me, Ripred? Where is it!?" She was panicking and hyperventilating at the same time. I couldn't blame her this time, considering I was the one who killed her mother and brother. Her father was at his limit, and I knew she didn't want to lose another family member.
Ripred gave her the bottle and she dumped half of it down his throat. "We must fly now, Lizzie. We shall heal him properly in Regalia," urged Luxa.
That was when I noticed something amiss. One member was not here. Using echolocation, I 'saw' Henry, who was away from everyone, staring above. Oh. Yes.
"No!" screamed my subconscious.
Dammit, he's back. Why do you care again?
"Why would you want this to happen?"
To fight. Duh.
"Isn't fighting wrong?"
Goddammit, you are my subconscious! A part of me! You of all people should know why I do it!
"... I still think it's wrong."
Well, nobody asked for your opinion. Now stop pouting like a little girl and watch.
"Henry, help me secure him." She tried to tie Lizzie's dad to Aurora with a length of silk that Gox was rapidly spinning. "Henry?" said Luxa again.
"No, Luxa, we have no need to hurry now."
It was a strange answer for everyone to hear. But not for me and Ripred. "No, I believe Henry has taken care of everything," said Ripred.
"Henry had to," he said, and lifted his fingers for a whistle. Suddenly, my hand found itself grabbing a throwing knife and propelling it straight to his arm, stopping his whistle. The knife impaled into his hand, with him gnashing his teeth to prevent himself from screaming in pain.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO LET HIM DO IT!
"It was just a thought! I didn't know that would actually happen!"
Control your damn urges, kid! You're making me lose control!
"S-sorry."
Don't you 'sorry' me! Just- just go to sleep! Don't think of anything that will provoke me. Got it!?
"Yeah... I'll do that." His voice faded out. Finally.
Henry whistled nevertheless, but took a great effort to do so. He then pulled out the knife and grabbed his hand in pain. Luxa's reaction was a very pale face, with the silk rope slipping from her hands and falling to the ground.
"Ripred?" asked Lizzie.
"It seems I am not the only spy among us, Lizzie," said Ripred wryly. "A member of the royal family, too."
"You mean, Henry...?" He nodded before she could finish. Lizzie blurted out. "But, what about Luxa?"
"Sorry, cousin," said Henry urgently to Luxa. Or was it painfully? I couldn't tell the difference. Maybe both. He took out my knife and threw it aside. "But I had no choice. We were headed for disaster under Vikus. He would ally us to the weakest, when our only real chance of survival is to ally ourselves with those who are most powerful. We will join forces with the rats and rule together, you and I."
I almost laughed at loud at how ridiculous it sounded. But I didn't want to provoke the Queen in her current state, so I let her speak for herself.
She spoke calmer than I thought. "Not now, Henry. Not ever."
"You must, Luxa, you have no choice. You must join with us or die," said Henry coldly, but there was a tremor in his voice. He was afraid. Typical him.
"This is as good a day as any," said Luxa. "Perhaps better." Her voice was a little strained but regal with authority. Quite unexpected, given the situation.
"So they promised you a throne, did they? Really, Henry, you are not fool enough to believe they will deliver it," said Ripred, breaking into a laugh. His words perfectly matched my thoughts.
"They will deliver it. Together we will rid the Underland of crawlers and spinners and share their land among us," said Henry.
I coughed. That got his attention. "Share. Right... How stupid can you be?"
"I care not of your opinion, Overlander," he spat. "I am tired of having cowards and weaklings as allies. The rats, at least, are not guilty of that. Together, we will protect each other. Together, we will rule. Together, we will be safe. It has been decided."
"Says the weakling."
"Together, together," said Ripred in a singsong voice. "What a lot of togetherness you are planning. And what a lot of solitude awaits you. Ah, here are your friends now."
I grabbed my daggers, ready and thirsty for the awaiting battle. I used echolocation to count. I gave up after fifty. The rats fanned out quickly and circled the group. Most of them were laughing, delighted at the rich catch before them. They won't laugh when I kill them.
Lizzie tugged onto Ripred's fur, wanting to know what to do. He signalled her to go to Temp, which she did quickly. He then gave me a slow wink. "Think we can take them, you and I?"
I grinned. "My pleasure."
The circle widened, leaving a gap. A huge silver rat strode into the space. Jammed over one ear was a gold crown, clearly designed for a human head. For royalty. Luxa inhaled sharply.
"King Gorger," said Ripred, giving a low bow. "I did not hope we would have the honor of your presence here."
"An unfortunate crawler told us you drowned, Ripred," said the king in a low voice.
"Yes, well, that was the plan," said Ripred, nodding. "But so often plans go awry."
"We must thank you for bringing the warrior so neatly into our paws. It was Henry's job really, but no matter as long as he is here. I wanted to be sure. I wanted to see him for myself before I killed him. So this is he?" He peered at me. "How... unexpected."
I resisted the urge to scowl. Don't let Ripred's plan go down just because of one emotion, I reminded myself.
"Oh, do not judge him too quickly," said Ripred. "I have found him most delightfully full of surprises." I smiled internally. He made his way around the circle, occasionally lifting a front leg to scratch his nose. Each time he lifted his paw the rats near him flinched. "Clawsin... Bloodlet... now break my heart, Razor, is that you? You have no idea how it hurts me to see you in His Majesty's company."
The latter rat stopped making eye contact with Ripred. Was he feeling ashamed?
Ripred came up behind Henry and nudged him forward. "Go, go, go, go. Stand with your friends." Henry tripped and fell into place beside King Gorger, stepping on his tail. The other rats laughed, but not the king, who whipped his tail out from under Henry and slashed Gox in half.
Three down. One more to go.
The rats stopped laughing. "Why has everyone stopped laughing?" said King Gorger. "Go on, laugh!" he ordered, and the rats did, but it was more forced than the previous one. The rat king stretched out on the ground in a pose of complete relaxation, but I could see his muscles were still tense with anger.
"Who's next? Come, do not be shy. Shall we take care of the pup? She looks soon to expire, anyway." He trained his ratty eyes onto Lizzie. Ripred twitched his paw very slightly.
My legs stepped forward without my consent.
What are you doing?
"Helping you... To fight with the king, I mean," said my other self.
You're making it seem like I'm defending her! Ugh, nevermind. I intended to do that anyways.
Gorger was amused. "Ah, the warrior. How very brave of you."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's just stop the talking and do the fighting." I took my stance, hungry for battle. The rats readied to charge, but Gorger stopped them with a wave of his paw.
"Hm." He smacked his tail on the ground. The rats nearest to it backed off. "Do not be too confident, Warrior. You are underestimating your opponent."
"You sure? Because, the way I see it, you look like one ordinary rat to me."
A few rats whispered at each other. That did it. I could see some pride of his shattered as he whipped his tail towards my head, aiming to kill me then and there.
Using my Rager abilities, I grabbed his tail at the very last second. There was a look of surprise on Gorger's face, but it was only momentarily. I loosened my grip and he retracted his tail back to him. "That was luck. You will not have any next time."
"Luck, huh? Keep believing that."
He lunged at me, doing a feint on the left with his left paw and actually intending to attack on the right. I grabbed his attacking paw by the wrist and using my other hand, stabbed him in the shoulder.
He paid that no heed as he continued with a flurry of attacks, using his claws, paws and fangs to disable me as much as possible. He was like Ripred, only without the Rager part. But still, his attacks were quite ferocious. I had some difficulties trying to block a few, even with my Rager. This was getting fun.
I walloped his stomach, but he saw that coming. He descended his paws at the edge of where I would kick, softening the impact and lifting himself up on my leg, wrapping his tail onto my leg to reel himself to me. Man, this guy's good.
I quickly shifted my captured leg to the back, forcing him to let go of me. Once free, I did a barrage of punches, kicks and slashes for payback. Gorger had to pace back to fight against them. The fiercer my strikes, the more steps he had to take to defend himself. Good. My plan was working.
Everyone tailed behind the scene, even the group of rats. They probably did not want to be left behind and wanted to see their king in action.
I 'saw' Luxa drawing out her sword and wanting to rush in to help, but Ripred stopped her by a flick of his tail.
"Don't help him. He's doing well on his own. And to think he forgot about me." Oh crap, I forgot about Ripred. He's so gonna kill me.
"Besides, we have other matters to attend," he said, gesturing to the rats. The crowd was split into two: Spectators and fighters. There are two battles being fought now. Me against Gorger, and Ripred, Luxa and her bat against half of the rat army. I focused more on mine, not wanting to know theirs to prevent distraction.
Once we reached the edge of the canyon, which had a narrow road, Gorger had injuries. His shoulder had a deep gash, his left arm had significantly more wounds than his right, and tufts of his fur were torn out. I, on the other hand, had lesser injuries, but that didn't mean I was proud of it.
Gorger tried to flex his left arm. It still worked, but that made him hiss in pain. He was panting, but very slightly so that I would not notice and say anything about it. I used that opportunity to taunt him.
"Met your match, King Gorger? Do you want to try fighting me again? Oh wait, you can't."
He gritted his teeth, his fury practically seething in them.
"King Gorger! Let us fight the human!" shouted one rat in the midst of the smaller crowd. Murmurs of agreement filled the tense air.
"Oh? What's this? You would rather call in backup to fight me? Me, a mere human? Well, considering your Highness's condition, I suppose that's only fair."
"Do not speak to our king in that tone, Overlander!" argued another rat with its paw in the air. Most of the rats loudly agreed. It was getting noisy.
"SILENCE!" yelled Gorger. The screaming immediately stopped.
"So, what's it gonna be, Gorgie?"
His reply was a laugh. "You think you are winning? Do not be so arrogant at your success, Warrior. You do not know the true meaning of victory." He then did a full frontal assault with his quick speed. I instantly shifted my stance and cupped my hands forward, bracing for impact. Then I realized that my idea was a huge mistake. It left me defenseless. Shit.
He saw that chance and within no more than an inch from my body, smirked and hurdled over my head. His tail was in a hooked position. I knew what was going on. I had to think fast. With only a second to save myself, I arched my back downwards and opened my mouth, chomping on his tail that was aiming for my throat.
He clearly felt the pain, but recovered very quickly, spinning his body mid-air and slashing his sharp claws on my right arm, ripping my sleeve off and embedding deep wounds; the sudden numbness making me drop my dagger. That forced my teeth to open out of reflex, and his tail was free.
Before I could let my body hit the ground in defeat, I used my remaining working arm onto the floor to support myself and launched a savage kick straight onto Gorger's back, towards the group of rats.
He twisted his body around and shouted a name. "Bloodclaw!" That rat, who seems to have the body of a wrestler, rushed in front and positioned itself behind Gorger's rocketing momentum with its knees bent and arms extended to him. Sly rat.
Gorger made contact with its paws and bounced himself back into the fray with his jaw wide open. When he got close, I did an uppercut on his chin, clamping his mouth shut and his tongue bleeding.
His reaction was quick, inserting his tail into one of my many injuries of my right arm and pulling my left hand down with his paw, causing my right arm and myself to drop to the floor, putting me in a kneeling position. The sudden downward force dislocated my ankle and bled my knees. I could barely feel them.
But worse of all, I was bowing down to a damn rat. A rat! How freaking embarrassing.
"Met your match, Warrior?" he mocked back. I craned my neck to him in utter fury and rage. He continued. "Remember what I said, Overlander?" He spat at last word, playing with my open cuts with his tail. I flinched at the pain. One emotion peaked the others. Rage.
"'You do not know the true meaning of victory.' At that time, you were 'winning'. You were 'achieving victory'. But look at you now." He shook his head in false sympathy. "Kneeling, begging for mercy. How disappointing for a Warrior."
"I want to kill you, but I cannot. I have to let my army play with you. I have to let myself play with you." His tail went into my arm and forcefully shoved my flesh out, giving it a bigger hole with fresh blood oozing out. I screamed silently.
"Painful, is it not?" He released his tail grip and instantly replaced it with his heavy foot, cracking my bones on my hands. I grunted. My vision was getting hazy. Was it tears?
"I asked you a question, Warrior." He proceeded to claw my right arm. I hissed.
"Answer my question. Answer it!" He slapped my face with his tail repeatedly. "Come on, Warrior! Speak! Speak to the king!" He laughed haughtily in his bloody annoying voice.
He stopped the smacking. My checks were sore as hell. "What is the matter, Warrior? Rat got your tongue?" He forced my mouth open and pulled out my tongue with his disgusting paw. He chuckled. "Or are you not the Warrior we believed? Hmph. Maybe you are not. After all, how can a human Warrior stand against me, king of the gnawers?" He picked up my dagger with his tail and held it on his right paw, twirling it around like a toy. He held my dagger high up and dug it deep into my shoulder. I gritted my teeth.
"There. That is better." He folded his arms and smiled in satisfaction.
Suddenly, my legs went from kneeling to squatting, and they jumped to Gorger's head, leg-locking his neck and suffocating him. My sudden action shocked him, back-pedaling out of reflex. My body took that chance and lifted itself onto Gorger's snout, punching his head over and over.
He tried to stop my attacks by grabbing my thighs, but my body moved quicker. My legs released the lock and in mid-air, punted him hard.
He went flying to the band of rats, but not before scratching my legs with his claws. Bloodclaw tried to stop him, but his momentum was too much. He was knocked down with plenty of other rats; a few even falling down into the abyss.
As for me, I couldn't even feel the pain anymore. I couldn't feel my hands and legs. I couldn't even feel my entire body. I felt my anger rising tremendously. But there was something else. Ecstasy. Something was wrong. Happiness and anger aren't supposed to be together. What was going on?
Then, it hit me. It hit me hard. It had happened only once, when my Rager was first unlocked. This was the moment I feared. The only situation where dread fills my heart.
I lost control.
"I'm back, baby!"
And done! Dammit, this came out more than two weeks. So sorry for that. There shouldn't be any more delays. Thanks for enduring the super long wait! I appreciate it a lot. As usual, rate, review and criticize all you want!
