Chapter 14:
Kyria had managed to outrun the injured Lizardman and reach the chamber beneath the forge. It was an enormous room consisting of a rectangular platform suspended over magma by a set of iron columns at each end. The platform had become heavily cracked over time, creating large chasms. The sides were decorated with beautiful Greek-style arches and columns. Colossal statues, representing Hepheastus' sons, the Cabeiri, stood at each end of the platform. They were carved from the rock walls and overlooked the iron columns holding up the platform.
"This must be it," she said, "Now, all I have to do is find the mechanism to destroy those columns."
As Kyria took a look around, she failed to notice the Lizardman standing behind her until it was too late.
"By the…" she said, as she turned around.
The creature roared and swung its claw at Kyria's torso, knocking her back. Kyria hit the ground hard and coughed a few times.
"Damnit," she grunted, placing her right hand just under her chest.
As Kyria removed her hand from her chest, she saw that it was stained in blood. While her armour had absorbed most of the blow, at least one of the claws had penetrated her skin. Kyria observed in horror as a blood stain formed on her chiton around the wound.
Kyria looked up and saw the creature roaring in triumph. The scar on its ribs indicated that it was the same one she fought before. Kyria angrily rose to her feet and drew her weapons.
"I will not die by your hand, beast!" she bellowed, "You want me? Come and take me!"
The creature charged for Kyria, forcing her to block each of its blows with her shield. With every chance she had, Kyria stepped back and slashed its torso, eventually forcing it to its knees.
"Had enough?" she asked.
Without warning, the Lizardman sprung up and lunged at Kyria. Despite blocking with both her sword and shield, the impact was such that she was sent flying backwards several feet. Her sword flew from her hands and into one of the chasms.
"Now what?" she muttered.
Back in the forge, Christine struggled to break free as the priests hovered over her, reciting their prayers. Kunpaetku slowly raised his dagger over his head and prepared to bring it down on Christine.
"PLEASE!" she shouted, "STOP!"
Just then, a gunshot echoed throughout the room. Kunpaetku, having been struck in the shoulder, dropped both his dagger and the phial.
"Thomas?" said Christine.
Thomas nodded to Christine while tossing away his smoking pistol. Kunpaetku glared at the man who stood before him, threatening to bring about the end to his plans.
"What are you waiting for?" Kunpaetku cried, "KILL HIM! KILL HIM NOW!"
The two cultists drew swords and charged for Thomas.
"That's right," taunted Thomas, "Follow me…"
Thomas bolted from the room, forcing the cultists to pursue him.
"After him!" yelled one of them.
Thomas ran outside the room with his weapon drawn, searching for the Lizardmen he had so desperately tried to evade earlier.
"Now would be as good a time as ever," thought Thomas, "Uh-oh!"
"HIYAAAA!"
The cultists had split up, each taking separate corridors. One managed to intercept Thomas and brought his sword down on him. Thomas raised his rapier to block the blow, then turned and tried to run the other way, only to encounter the other cultist. With both cultists attacking him at once, Thomas ducked, allowing their swords to clash, then ran to safety.
"That was close," he said
With the cultists right behind him, he led them into an adjacent hallway, where one of the Lizardmen he encountered earlier awaited. The two cultists behind Thomas stopped dead in their tracks.
"By the gods," said one of them, "It's those things again!"
"RUN!" screamed the other.
The three men ran from the corridor, with Thomas managing to push past and sprint ahead. He turned the next corner and hid while the Lizardman continued its pursuit of the cultists. Within seconds, he could hear the sounds of their screams followed by the tearing of flesh.
"Alright," he said, "Now, to get Christine!"
Back in the chamber, Kyria continued her battle against the lone Lizardman. She used her shield to block its blows, but without her sword, victory was impossible. Glancing down the chasm, Kyria found her weapon had not fallen into the magma, but rather, upon a ledge just a few metres down. She needed it back by any means necessary.
Kyria leapt into the chasm, plunging her shield into the rock wall to slow her descent. As she stepped onto the ledge where her sword lay, the Lizardman jumped in after her, using its claw to slow its fall. Kyria readied her sword and slashed at the creature's thigh as it lunged at her, causing it to fall to the ground hard. The impact caused the ledge to crack and come loose, so Kyria began to climb her way out.
"I have to get out of here," she thought.
The Lizardman leapt off of the ledge as it broke off and plummeted below, grasping the rock wall with its claws. Ever-persistent, it began climbing up after Kyria.
"Begone, beast!" she commanded, "Stay away!"
While clutching onto the rock wall with her left hand, Kyria used her free hand to ward off the Lizardman. The creature managed to grab Kyria's leg, sinking its claws deep into her calf.
"RAAAAGH!" she cried.
Kyria swung her sword once more, slicing off its forearm. As the creature howled in pain, Kyria pierced its chest, causing it to lose its grip and fall to its doom.
"That was too close," she said, holstering her sword.
Injured, but alive, Kyria climbed out of the chasm to safety After looking around momentarily, she finally spotted the mechanism needed to destroy the forge; a crank at each end of the platform. Kyria clutched her wounded chest and limped her way over to the first one.
"I hope this works," she prayed.
With every turn of the crank, the mouth of the first statue began to open. A torrent of magma flowed from the opening, spilling all over the first two iron columns. Almost immediately, they began to deteriorate from the immense heat.
"Just one more," Kyria thought, "Thomas, I pray you've found Christine and are safe..."
Back in the forge, the injured Kunpaetku collected his items and stood back up.
"For the love of Palgaea!" he snapped, "Come, it's time to leave! That fool could have led those creatures here!"
After removing the first clamp holding down Christine's wrist, Kunpaetku headed over to remove the next clamp. With her right hand free, Christine reached into a nearby barrel containing ore rods. She drew one and used it to strike Kunpaetku in his damaged shoulder, causing him to cry in pain and fall over. She then proceeded to strike him in the back of the head, knocking him down.
"Parfait," she said.
With both hands free, Christine undid the clamps holding down her legs and quickly stood up. She stepped on the fallen phial containing Cadmus' blood, shattering it, and collected Kunpaetku's dagger. Afterwards, she cautiously approached the exit, where she heard footsteps nearing. Readying her weapon, she pounced on the intruder.
"WOAH!" yelled Thomas grabbing her wrist, "Christine, calm down! It's me!"
"Oh, Thomas!" she sobbed, hugging him, "I can't you believe you made it!"
"Come," said the young man, "We have to get out of here!"
"What about the necklace?"
Thomas looked around the room and spotted the furnace used to melt ore. It was connected to one of the many "magma pipes" running along the ceiling.
"Only fire from the forge can destroy the necklace," he muttered, "Give me your dagger, quickly!"
Christine handed Thomas Kunpaetku's dagger. Using a pair of iron clamps, he inserted the item into the furnace.
"Thomas," began Christine, "What are you doing?"
"You're going to have to trust me on this," said Thomas.
Thomas removed the dagger from the furnace, exposing its red-hot tip. The rest of the dagger was quite hot as well, forcing Thomas to wrap the handle with a cloth before grabbing it.
"If you value the skin on your neck," he began, "Please, for the love of God, hold still."
"Just get it over with," begged Christine, with tears in her eyes.
To reduce trembling, Thomas placed both hands firmly on the dagger's handle. He slowly brought its red-hot point to the necklace and held it for a moment, producing steam. Once Thomas pulled the dagger away, Christine was finally able to undo the necklace and remove it.
"I don't believe it," she said, "It worked!"
"Come," said Thomas, "It's time to dispose of it."
As Thomas and Christine ran to the railing, Kunpaetku came to. Immediately, he sprung up and bolted towards them.
"NOOOO!" he yelled.
Christine glared at the Grand Priest while tossing the necklace over the railing and into the magma pool below. Defeated, Kunpaetku collapsed to the floor, clutching the railing for support.
"You don't know what you've done!" he cried, "Years of planning, RUINED!"
"You are a liar," said Thomas, "And a hypocrite. You never served Palgaea, only yourself!"
"Come, Thomas," whispered Christine, "Let's get out of here."
Thomas and Christine ran from the room, leaving the Grand Priest to wallow in despair.
"You think this is over, Thomas?" he muttered, "Oh no, far from it. You took everything from me, so now, I've no choice but to return the favour. Time to activate the 'final resort'."
Kunpaetku approached one of the windows and pulled a small metal pan flute from within his robes. The priest then took a deep breath and blew as hard as he could, producing a faint, high-pitched whistle, barely audible to a human ear.
At the foot of the volcano, surrounded by the corpses of both Fygul cultists and Lizardmen, the tarp-covered cage containing the "Final Resort" lay on its side, knocked over in the chaos of battle. As the sound of the whistle echoed across the landscape, loud knocking could be heard from within the cage…
"Quickly," urged Thomas, "We have to keep moving!"
Hand-in-hand, Thomas and Christine ran through the forge, desperately searching for an exit. A sudden, violent tremor nearly knocked them down.
"Thomas," began Christine, "What was that?"
"Oh, uh, that would be Kyria. It would seem she has already triggered the forge's destruction."
"WHAT? But we're still inside!"
"I know, Christine. The plan was destroy it whether I succeeded or failed. All we can do now is run."
"Do you even know where you're going?"
"Er, good question…"
Thomas and Christine stopped to examine the multiple pathways that lay before them. As Thomas tried to determine which way to go, a herd of Lizardmen emerged from one of them.
"Woah!" he said, "Definitely not by there! Come on!"
Thomas pulled Christine down the opposite corridor. Another tremor caused the duo to momentarily lose their balance. Behind them, one of the overhead pipes burst, spilling magma all over the corridor. Thankfully, Thomas and Christine were nowhere near it.
"This is bad," said Christine.
"Not quite," said Thomas, "Look!"
Thomas drew her attention to a corridor filled with Fygul corpses.
"Dead cultists is always a good sign," he said, "Just follow the trail of corpses!"
"That's a rather morbid form of navigation," Christine quipped.
As Thomas and Christine ran down the corridor, the Lizardmen continued their pursuit. However, another tremor struck, knocking them all down. As more pipes burst, Thomas and Christine did their best to block out the blood-curdling cries of Lizardmen being burned alive.
"Don't look," said Thomas, "Just focus on ahead!"
By the time they reached the courtyard outside, the morning sun was beginning to appear over the horizon. After spending so much time inside the volcano, the outdoor air seemed freezing cold by comparison. Thomas and Christine took a deep breath and observed their surroundings.
"I can't believe we made it," said Christine.
"Indeed," said Thomas, "I just hope Kyria found a way out as well…"
"Thomas, there is something you need to know: Soul Edge is alive!"
"What? But, how?"
"Kunpaetku said so himself; not even Valnykuluk knew of this. If that's true, then…"
Just then, another tremor struck. Lava burst through the rock wall and cascaded down the side of the volcano, all around the courtyard. Pieces of the mountain broke off while an enormous cloud of ash erupted from the top of the volcano.
"Jesus!" exclaimed Thomas, "Look, we'll discuss this later. For now, we must get as far away from here as possible!"
As Christine and Thomas headed for the staircase, they found their path blocked by a seven-foot-tall humanoid donning spiked boots and gauntlets along with an executioner's fauld. The lower half of its face was covered by a thick, leather mask.
The creature was completely hairless, with tan-coloured skin that appeared to have "cracks" in it, as though it had been roughly molded from clay. Its most unusual features were the rotating gears protruding from its back, and its heart, which rested outside of its chest. Like Wilhelm, the creature wielded a giant axe.
"What on Earth is that?" asked Thomas.
"BEHOLD!" said a voice, "OUR PROTOTYPE! The first-ever artificial man!"
Thomas and Christine turned around and saw Kunpaetku standing on the balcony above the forge entrance.
"Kunpaetku!" snapped Thomas.
"This thing," began Christine, "This was to be your so-called 'final resort'?"
"Yes," explained Kunpaetku, "Except I dared not activate it in order to ensure the success of my purge. But now that you two have foiled my plans, I shall leave you at its mercy. See, Thomas, so long as I live, this organization will never die. In time, we will rebuild, and Soul Edge will one day be ours!"
Kunpaetku drew his metal pan flute once more.
"…And you two," he continued, "Will no longer be around to stop me!"
He then blew into the flute, agitating the golem .
"So long!" the Grand Priest cackled as he fled the scene, "May you rot in Hades!"
The creature roared and charged for the duo. It slammed its axe down, forcing Thomas and Christine to leap in separate directions.
"There's no way we can outrun it," said Thomas, "We have to stop it!"
"How?" demanded Christine
"Its gears - They must be directing its movements! If we can somehow disable them…"
"I'll distract it."
"No, Christine! Don't…"
Christine ran to the monster's side and began waving her arms.
"Ici!" she yelled, "Come and get me!"
Due to the creature being powered by clockwork, its movements were jerky. Nevertheless, it remained a grave threat. As the creature lumbered its way over towards Christine, Thomas drew his rapier and began piercing its back, hoping to damage the gears.
"It's no use," said Thomas, "I…"
The golem turned around, swinging its mighty axe. Thomas ducked to avoid the blow. Christine ran to its side and tried to distract it away from Thomas, but the creature simply backhanded her, sending her flying a considerable distance.
"CHRISTINE!" yelled Thomas.
Christine was out cold, leaving Thomas alone to deal with the beast. Despite his best efforts, Thomas could not get close to it.
"What do I do now?" he wondered.
Just then, Kyria appeared on the balcony above the entrance, observing the battle occurring below.
"Damnit," she muttered, "Hang on, Thomas!"
Thinking quickly, Kyria drew her sword and leapt over the railing. She landed on the golem's back and plunged her sword deep into its skin to prevent herself from falling. With her shield, she began hammering away at the gears.
"Kyria?" said Thomas, "What are you doing?"
Each blow Kyria dealt dented the gears, disrupting the golem's movements. The creature did all it could do shake Kyria off, but she held on tightly.
"Hang on, Kyria," said Thomas raising his sword, "I'm coming!"
"Just leave," she ordered, "Take Christine and get…WOAH!"
The golem reached behind with his left arm and grabbed Kyria's leg. With all of its strength, it flung Kyria across the courtyard like a ragdoll. She struck one of the four corner pillars, producing an audible "Crack". Kyria's body wrapped almost completely around the column before collapsing to the floor.
"NOOOO!" screamed Thomas, "KYRIAAA!"
With its gears heavily damaged, the golem could no longer move its right arm. Both steam and a black oil-like substance leaked profusely from its back. Despite its injuries, it continued to pursue Thomas, wielding its axe in its left hand.
"You're going to pay, you bastard!" cried Thomas, "You hear me?"
Thomas charged for the golem, plunging his rapier into its left forearm. The creature howled in pain as more steam and oil leaked from the wound. Thomas forced the sword deeper, hoping to slice off the arm, but its skin was far tougher than he thought. Still, the pain was enough to force the monster to drop its weapon.
"Enough of this!" snapped Thomas, "It's time…To…Die!"
Thomas withdrew his sword from the creature's arm and used it to slash its chest. Thomas followed that up with another slash, weakening it further. Just as Thomas prepared to pierce its heart, the golem grabbed Thomas' shirt collar and hurled him into the air. Thomas landed face-down near the edge of the staircase and watched in horror as his rapier rolled down the steps.
"I can't…" he muttered.
Elsewhere, Christine began to regain consciousness. She watched as the golem lumbered over towards her husband.
"Th-Thomas?" she groaned, "No!"
Thomas turned onto his back just in time to see the golem hovering above him. The golem reached down and lifted him up by the neck, slowly strangling the life out of him. Just as Thomas' vision began to fade, the golem suddenly dropped him.
"GACK!" Thomas gasped for air as he hit the ground, "What the…"
Upon looking up, he saw Christine standing next to the golem, plunging Kunpaetku's dagger into its exposed heart.
"Christine?" said Thomas.
Steam and black oil poured from the golem's heart as it backed away. The creature clutched its head in agony and fell to its knees, while steam erupted from its back like a geyser. Eventually, the creature fell, face-first, to the floor and ceased moving.
"W-We did it!" exclaimed Thomas, "We won! Christine, that was brilliant!"
Thomas ran to Christine and they embraced in silence for a moment.
"Thomas," said Christine, "After everything you've done for me, there was no way I could let you die."
"I know, Christine," whispered Thomas, "Thank you so, so much."
Just then, the two heard a groan.
"Oh my God," said Thomas, "Kyria!"
Thomas and Christine ran to Kyria's body, which rested on the ground near the pillar she struck. Kyria was cold and pale and blood ran from both her nose and mouth.
"Th-Thomas," she whispered, "Christine…I am relieved to see that you are safe…"
"Shhh," said Thomas, "You're hurt. We need to take you to a hospital. There must be one somewhere on this island!"
"Thomas," Kyria spoke in between gasps, "There's no time…Can't even move…Just save yourselves…"
"No," said Thomas, as tears ran down his face, "That's not true. We can patch you up, we just…"
"You know it's too late for me," said Kyria, "Just leave me to die in peace."
"You can't die!" Thomas sobbed, "There's still so much to do! Kunpaetku still lives! Soul Edge still lives! How do I stop them without you?"
"You don't…This was never to be your fate, Thomas. Go home, and be with your wife. When the time is right, Hephaestus will summon new warriors to deal with the threat. For now, our work is complete…"
Thomas clutched Kyria's hand and began sobbing. Christine turned her head away to wipe the tears from her eyes.
"Soon," Kyria continued, "Once my final breath is drawn, I will be reunited with Pallene in Elysium. Go, Thomas. Leave this place far behind and never look back. May the gods watch over you always."
Once Kyria took her last remaining breaths, she turned her head to the side and slowly closed her eyes.
"NOOOO!" cried Thomas, "KYRIAAAA!"
Christine placed a hand on Thomas' back while wiping some of her own tears. For about a minute, the two knelt over Kyria's body in silence. It was the sudden quaking of the ground beneath them that snapped them out of their grief.
"Thomas," said Christine, standing up, "This place is falling apart. We have to leave!"
"I know," said Thomas, wiping his eyes, "Let's go."
Thomas and Christine glanced one last time at Kyria's body as they made their way down the stairs leading to the bottom of the volcano. More lava came pouring down the volcano as the courtyard began to crumble and break.
"Hurry!" urged Christine.
On the way down the stairs, Thomas collected his fallen rapier. The couple wound up at the same path they had taken earlier, only now, it was abandoned and littered with corpses. Thomas could still hear cultists and Lizardmen battling somewhere in the distance, but like the forge, it was only a matter of time before they would meet their end.
Thomas led Christine to the area where he and Kyria had parked their horses. Thomas and Christine mounted them and set off as far away from the volcano as they possibly could.
"It's over, Christine," said Thomas, "We are safe now..."