As Linda pulled into the small farm, Kurome allowed her eyes to observe the land. Quite sizable in most eyes, yet fairly miniscule compared to many she recalled from the olden days. Plenty of fields strewn about in their rectangular glory, most filled with grapes; perhaps for wine? She didn't spot a brewery or the sort, just the large house up ahead, and the barn down off by the first of the fields. She did notice the empty patches strewn about, just barely visible between the other in-use land; maybe that was where the planting of the forbidden vegetables would commence.
She wouldn't have much time to question it as they came to a stop just before the driveway.
"Right... we're here." Linda said, still with a somewhat shaky breath. Slowly the two stepped out of the vehicle, with Kurome choosing to remain mostly quiet as not to spook her partner. Up ahead was the door, and making their way up the patio steps Kurome quickly stopped Linda from ringing the doorbell with her hand, pulling the girl's own gently away and giving a calm focused look.
"Let me do the talking, alright?" The goth's voice held a softer pitch, one that spoke of her often apparent carefree attitude. She'd hoped this would calm Linda's weariness a bit, and that was partially true. The ash-skinned woman wasn't so spooked as before, but there was still this cautious restraint to every action she took. Taking this as the best she could get for now, Kurome pressed in on the doorbell.
A loud, almost gothic chime echoed out, and both could have sworn the sky darkened a tad. None had time to question it as the door opened, and they were greeted with a bald man. He was well-dressed, and sported a golden monicle.
"I presume you have a meeting with the master?"
"Yes." Kurome ignored the fact that this butler person was talking to her from a dirty run-down farm home, as well as refraining from throwing out a comment on how out of place his posh self was. Instead she got down to business. "We're here with the... 'produce'."
"Hmm?" A single brow raised, and he shut his eyes in thought. This lasted a second before he spoke. "Pardon, but I will have to fetch the lord, but please..." He stepped aside. "Do come in."
Being asked inside by a strangely contrasting man, along with the fact they were two young girls in the middle of nowhere, would normally be considered a little sketchy. Kurome however was more than skilled enough to defend herself, so she had no worries; no, those thoughts belonged to Linda, who followed along in mild apprehension.
Yes, this was part of the job, and yes, they'd technically reached the end, but something about this all seemed... off. It was a strange feeling, especially after they'd just escaped being captured only an hour ago. Thunder roared out, and shooting her vision to the nearest window had Linda watching the downpour of rain, not only incredibly heavy from the looks, but also starklyinstantaneous; it was sunny not two minutes ago.
Yep... we're definitely screwed.
Linda held this realization close as the butler brought them into a clean, and immensely decorated living room. Pottery and artwork surrounded the couch and chairs, with a coffee table between all; engraved and stained dark. So much red really shouldn't have looked good, but paired with the nearly black wood and gold edgings along much of the furniture, it complimented the crimson fabrics and wallpaper.
"Please, have a seat and rest. The master will be with you shortly." The butler bowed courteously before taking his leave. Once the door shut Kurome looked to her.
"Strange, don't you think?"
"Yeah." Linda couldn't prevent the shiver from running up her spine, giving her all sorts of goosebumps. "Just what the heck kind of place is this, and why did it suddenly start raining?"
Mildly curious and wanting to take her mind away from the currently conflicting atmosphere, Linda walked over to the window, and peered outside. Even so she caught the words of her recently emotion-flipped friend.
"First the servant, next the decor. With 'the master' on his way, I'd say we'll have the full 'castle' experience reach its peak."
"Yeah... we will..." Linda sucked in her breath before continuing. "Hey, Kurome, can you come take a look at this; I think I'm seeing things."
Next came the sound of footsteps, and as she saw the midnight haired viper peer out the window, she knew what they were seeing was real. Kurome responded in a calm voice, but it had just enough edge to make her frustrations known.
"Linda, is it just me, or am I seeing several stone stories below out there."
"You are."
"Yes..." She stepped back, all the while Linda just stared at the round courtyard so far down. "Well, I suppose this 'farm house' was more than it looked. Come on."
The call pulled Linda from the transparent guard, and she saw her buddy over at the door.
"What are you doing?"
"Leaving." She pulled open the door, and Linda called out in a panic.
"Wait, but what about the job!"
Kurome didn't answer, and for good reason too, as what she was seeing now was certainly not the dusty hallway they took into the fancy room now holding them. Ahead were clean pristine halls, apparently molded from marble of an obsidian hue. A contrasting scarlet carpet, edged in royal violet laid the path, with torches held in place along the beams, encased in steel cages so as not to be easily removed.
Hearing Linda walk over, Kurome was hardly shocked when the girl gasped audibly, only to sigh and grumble.
"Why does this always happen to us?"
"So you're sensing the pattern too, good; I was beginning to believe I was the only one." Keeping it real even in her own thoughts, why shouldn't they grow annoyed? Having seen just how wacky things always seemed to turn, one would imagine an individual quickly reaching their breaking point. All Kurome wanted was to get paid; being kidnapped and now stuck in a castle was not what they'd signed up for.
"We heading out there, or waiting here for the master like that guy said?"
"What do you think?" Kurome shot, only for Linda to once again grumble, this time with less sass.
"I was afraid you'd say that."
"Hmm?" The dark woman faced her less enthusiastic partner in crime. "Why the sudden lack of spirit now?"
"I don't know." Linda rubbed at her temples, appearing to be on the verge of a headache. "We just got done with one dungeon, so I'm not too thrilled about marching through another."
Not entirely untrue, but this time they were actually able to move around; no chains in sight. Still though, Kurome was partially in agreement with Linda, and considering the woman's supposed lack of luck, this was not exactly a great aspect to inherit.
"We won't get out of here any faster if we just sit still." Linda didn't look all that convinced, proven by her next response.
"Well, the dude said to wait. We could just sit back and meet with this 'master'. What's the worst that could happen?"
"Telling you not to say things is going to become a habit, isn't it?" Shaking her head, Kurome tried to throw on a tone that would hopefully coax her partner into agreement. "Look, we've essentially been kidnapped again, and while the man said he'd bring his master, are we really willing to trust his word after he did this?"
Waving out to the destitute - yet fairly appealing if you were into spooky scenery - hall she made sure to throw a little more effort into the motion, hoping the utterly minor action would get her point across.
"Well, no, but isn't this the guy we're selling our stuff to anyway? I mean, he's probably a villain of some sort, so having a creepy lair to meet him in isn't too crazy." Linda sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than anything else.
"And kidnapping his allies is just his way of spicing up the meeting, that's what you're trying to sell me?" Kurome bore a flat toned look as she spat the last bit. "Let's leave the scamming to me, alright?"
"I mean, we're not really scamming anybody... just, delivering a few goods we're not exactly allowed to have."
Kurome breathed deeply.
"Let's just go." Not bothering to check on Linda anymore, Kurome stepped out into the hall. Her movements were muffled by the carpet, but assuming these floors were marble, they'd no doubt cause a massively noticeable echo if walked on. While she wasn't too worried about them being caught, and she was perfectly fine beating the life from their new set of captors, Kurome still wanted to at least figure out why they'd been kidnapped again.
Wasn't there honour among thieves... or something along those lines?
"We sure this is a good idea?" Linda questioned, and Kurome didn't even bother to look back.
"No, but what risk is their? Don't you trust me?"
"I mean... yeah, kind of."
"Kind of?" Kurome expected a 'no', but with a cheeky retort; hearing a 'yes' was... oddly comforting.
"I mean, you can just beat the hell out of whatever threatens us, right?"
"Yes." The midnight woman offered a quick look back this time, seeing how Linda was shooting her gaze mostly to the shadows. Internally a spark shot through Kurome's mind, and she realized Linda was far more worried about potential threats from the dark. In this she smiled silently, out of sight; admittedly proud the woman was properly cautious.
Linda however was not worried about the dark, it just so happened the dark was anywhere but the direction they'd taken. In reality the pasty gal was doing her best to avoid looking at her partner. Now, in all honesty she actually kind of respected their newest addition to the crew; hell, even Warechu was on board with Kurome's continued aid.
The woman's change into a sadistic monster back at the dungeon was proving to be a hindrance to this notion.
Linda was a smart girl, and knew her friend's transformation into that beast some hours ago was mostly in response to the danger, however this brought with it some problems. The girl had essentially become a demon; a hollow husk of chaos and dread; the likes she'd not seen in a long time. As silly as might have seemed, Linda was just the littlest bit afraid. Not so much for her own well-being, but rather that of everyone else.
Kurome had given off the same energy as an enraged goddess before, and with that familiarity Linda couldn't stave off the instinctual desire to flee. The woman seemed calm now, even as they passed a rather bold portrait of some pale guy in an oversized cape - posh expression and all - but the ex-criminal turned currier had this itching she'd be seeing more of that wrathful creature in the future. Furthermore was all the weird threats she made, which seemed oddly specific, and the implications of some of the things said were... questionable. These thoughts flooded throughout the back of Linda's mind for the time being...
And then her eyes spied something.
"Hey, Kurome."
"Hmm?"
"What's that?" Linda pointed towards the item of her interest. It appeared similar to a bat, and only now had she noticed how it stopped when they did. It seemed to be looking at them, and the single eye it bore appeared to be glowing a feint red.
"That thing?" Kurome paused, and crossed her arms. "Well, it's a bat obviously, but whether it's actually a random animal or not I can't say."
"It's been following us for a bit, at least I think it has."
"Well good." Kurome smirked, sending a challenging smirk. "Little spy will get a good look at us before we confront its master." Turning back she started down the hall again, only this time with a hint of boosted vigor. "Come on, we have got to be expected at this point."
"Yeah."
They trekked on for another few minutes; the hallway almost infinite in its length. This was until Linda made a suggestion.
"Kurome?"
"Yeah?"
"We going to check any of these doors? We've passed by, like, ten or so, and the halls just keep going on."
"Right..." She couldn't really deny the idea, but Linda's attempt at exploration before had the girl chained up alongside her, and the potential risk of wandering into a trap was high. Even so they'd been walking for long enough, to the point it was becoming dull, and so upon crossing the next door she stopped and reached for it.
"Wait." Linda brushed past her, focus apparently set on the facing. "Something isn't right."
"You just suggested we take one of them."
"Yeah, well." She pointed to a small crack above the handle. "You see that there."
"What of it?" Kurome questioned, watching as Linda looked to her with a smudge of concern.
"Every door we've walked by has had this same crack."
"Are you certain?"
"Yes."
Humming to herself for a bit, Kurome got an idea.
"Wait here." She started off, only for Linda to call out.
"Hold on, where are you going?"
"Just wait there." She shot back, and so Linda did. Around three minutes passed before Kurome returned, from the other side of the hall.
"So what did you find?" The pale girl asked, only for Kurome to huff, crossing her arms as a somewhat sour face took the spotlight.
"I simply kept walking straight, and here you are."
"Huh?"
"I'm saying this hallway is somehow running us back to the start, and if I had to guess..." Stepping over Kurome gave a couple knocks to the door. "We've been passing this same door every single time. Open it up."
"Wait, slow down." Linda waved her hands in stiff opposition. "We came from the room at the back end of the hall. Can't we just go back?"
"Give it a try, I'll wait here." Kurome offered, and slowly Linda started down the path yet again, and as to be expected, in the span of three minutes she was back from the opposing side. Linda for all intents and purposes seemed the appropriate level of perplexed.
"Oh yeah, that's definitely trippy." She made her way back to the door, facing Kurome with a sort of expectance. "So going back is off the table."
"Then we press forward." Kurome said, taking one last look towards the bat watching them, and offering a hidden threat as she set her sights back to the door handle and pulled.
Both stepped in, but were lightly caught off guard as the bat whizzed quickly between their legs and into the space ahead. Linda responded in her usual nature.
"This is why I wear pants." Her eyes fell to the scene ahead, and like that any sense of rationale left her. "Okay... we're getting pretty high up on the crazy meter here."
She could say that again, even though Kurome herself wasn't at all phased. Ahead lay a series of doors, just doors. No floor, no walls, just an endless expanse of stars. Taking a step ahead the girl confirmed that there was a sort of floor, although it appeared invisible as not to obstruct the stars below. Without a word she walked out, marching into the apparently endless expanse of space.
Linda followed along of course, and as they carried on she noticed how her buddy gave a glance to each door they passed, silently returning her gaze onward. For a bit this had her lost, and she assumed Kurome just wanted to get a look at all doors before making a decision. Really, what else was there to do in a room of endless exits. Some were up, some were below, but no matter where you looked there were doors.
Passing by another few it seemed the girl of blending hues made her decision.
"This one here." She said, laying a hand across its surface."
"Uh huh." Linda paused as she observed. She looked to one of the other doors, and then another. Returning her eyes to the one Kurome chose, Linda let out her thoughts. "Let me guess, the knob?"
"Correct, and I take it you've already figured out why."
Linda nodded with complete understanding. Most of the doors looked identical, however unlike the rest which bore the crack they'd seen on the entrance to the room, this one here - slightly askew at a 75 degree angle - had no such blemish. With how wacky the apparent fortress seemed with its previous tricks, Linda had a pretty strong belief that if they were to take one of the cracked doors they'd just end up back outside in the endless hall.
"Right." Linda sucked up her expectations, ready for them to be shattered again. "Let's get this over with."
With an accompanying nod, Kurome opened the door, and the space ahead was shrouded with a navy blue mist. This darker glow of night was their welcoming, and while she'd have rather gotten something normal like lavenders or a gun, Kurome accepted the shadows and pressed inside.
She could hear the exact moment Linda touched down behind her, however her eyes were instead set on the massive mountain of stairs ahead. Squinting a little she could see the peaking of something at the top, but couldn't tell the thing's identity from here.
"Damn!" Linda accompanied her shout with a whistle. "That's gonna be a hike." She looked around again, and walking over to the edge of the walkway peered down over the railings into the abyss below. Moonlight rained down bright enough to illuminate the cliffside and thrashing ocean below. "We're really high up."
With the glorious insight of expert wisdom from her partner, Kurome admitted defeat... well, more of a temporary truce. This castle, dungeon, farmhouse sort of crypt lead them here for a reason, and whether it was on purpose or not didn't change the fact they'd been stranded in a fairly dangerous situation.
Falling would be a death sentence for an average human, and Kurome was certain this was the belief of their captor.
Intimidation tactics huh? I like it. A villain of her own once black heart, although it wasn't quite so fun being on the other side admittedly. Nevertheless Kurome took the first step towards their journey of going upstairs, following the newly returned carpet. Linda's voice from behind was somewhat torn by the winds which had suddenly picked up.
"Sheesh, it's like the wind wants to push us off or something."
"Just keep your balance." Kurome shot back, not bothering to visibly check on Linda; she knew the girl was fine, her skills wouldn't afford such a pathetic death here.
"Easy for you to say, you're strong enough to probably walk this fall off."
That wasn't an entirely true statement, but Linda was pretty close. A fall from this height wouldn't outright kill her, or even injure her for that matter, but the mental damage was another story altogether. This castle was definitely on the larger side, and the inside was a winding labyrinth of ridiculous detail. The only reasonable way back up without the headache of the interior would be to scale the walls, and seeing as Kurome didn't put all her stats into climbing - being more of a battlemage type of woman - the time it would take to fulfill such a task leaned on maddening.
And that was without making mistakes and falling.
Yeah, no, Kurome decided that rather than risk dealing with that scam of playtime padding, she'd just 'not fall'. Simple enough, just don't fall, easy. The wind could roar and blow all it wanted, but she was not climbing all the way back up, it could forget about that. Casting a quick look, Kurome confirmed that the increased gusts of nature had not taken her partner.
Seemingly sensing her concerns, Linda offered a cheeky smirk, followed by a thumbs-up. Turning her face back towards the end of the rise, Kurome rolled her eyes, unseen by others; even that stupid bat who lagged behind. It seemed the girl's childish sense of rebellion had returned, a welcome - if not fairly annoying - change; the girl's dower mood had made her more of a hindrance to things, and the relief of calm it resulted in wasn't worth the risk.
One more minute of walking and the two were before a large golden throne, with a long cloak of bloody glow stretching from the figure outwards. Linda, as was the usual, was the first to comment on this.
"Hold up, was the carpet we took up these stairs just your cape all along?!"
The man chuckled, extending his arm outwards. Prick looked just like the picture from before depicted, and sure enough that bat who'd been following them landed on his arm. With his other arm he brushed the cape off to the other side, allowing his black tux below to be seen. The spreading of the stupidly long cloak bent the fabric they stood on a little, but not enough to trip them or anything.
"Welcome to my abode." He tilted his head, his long flowing hair nearly flying as the winds turned to storm. The moon above bled into a lovely shade of rose, a surprise really as Kurome honestly expected it to be red - way to break theme, moon. "I do hope the trip wasn't too exhausting."
"Sorry pal." Linda snuck in before Kurome could even formulate a comeback; that girl was fast. "You're dungeon isn't quite up to date; already dealt with one earlier, and that one had cultists. But hey, you're warping tricks were pretty cool; you a wizard or something?"
"Hmm." He seemed more perplexed than insulted; a good sign, but that didn't quell Kurome's desire to beat some sense into her partner right then for that sudden outburst. "Cultists, dungeon, whatever are you talking about?" He waved his arm, and the bat flew off to the side. There was a burst of fog, and once it settled the butler from before stood in its place; as prim and proper as ever. "I merely wished to give you a little excitement, under the pretense your journey here had been dull. It would seem you are under the wrong impression."
"Could have fooled us with all those puzzles." Linda offered, and Kurome berated her own sudden bout of slowness.
"A simple game, completely safe I assure you." Before the pale one could speak, Kurome took her shot.
"With all this wind you'd think a normal person would fall." It was even in tone, as usual, but unknown to her Linda could hear the light panting in breath, and smiled a little.
"No no, it is also safe. A field of air blocks the way. You wouldn't even be able to jump from the rails without the winds swapping direction to plop you back up here." The man's voice grew just the slightest bit higher near the end, a detail that was lost on neither of the girls. "Congratulations on solving the puzzles though, I didn't even need to make them easier; you really are some clever little devils."
"Thank you?" Linda beat her to the punch again, but Kurome ignored this and spoke up again.
"We're just here to deliver the goods."
"The vegetables, yes, I am well aware." He clapped, and soon enough the boxes from before were at his side of the throne. "I'll have these planted and ready come next month."
"Hold up." Linda said as she wore a confused mask. "Don't you need this?"
She pulled out a slip of paper; the very same one their boss told them to memorize. It was at this moment Kurome realized Linda might have pilfered her pockets, because she sure as hell didn't remember giving the woman their only form of identification. Was this an instance worthy of punishment, probably, but the subtle laughs of their apparent customer were enough to have her abandon the thought; luck looked to be on Linda's side once again.
"You don't need to worry about that." His finger pointed towards the paper, and a small burst of fire was shot towards the ting, turning it to ash as Linda jumped. "I knew who you were regardless. Tell your boss I send my deepest thanks and regards. Tootles!"
Who the heck says 'tootles' anymore? Kurome never got to finish the question before the sounds of the club rang loudly in her ears. Ahead of them was the boss, who appeared to be in the middle of a meal. He offered a single brow raise before clearing his face with a napkin.
"It seems my trust in you was proven. I am pleased you got the task done. There were no major issues I'm guessing?"
Kurome decided to roll with it.
"None at all. He sends his thanks to you personally."
"I'm sure." The boss paused, pulling out a cellphone and making some motions. A second later it was away and he faced the two again. "The money has been deposited within the shared account of your 'friends'. They know the gist already, and will forward you your deserved cut. I assume any worries I may have for them not properly paying you would be misplaced?"
"They know better." Kurome responded, and the boss nodded.
"Very well. I'll call you all when another job shows its head. You are free to spend the next few days as you see fit, and bask in your success."
"About that..." Linda was a little timid with her words, yet pressed on regardless. "Our truck-"
"Is where you left it." The boss sighed. "Do try to forgive him, he gets excited easily. I'll have it returned here in the parking lot by tomorrow morning."
"Right, thanks."
And thus the two left, slightly worn down from all that had occurred. Linda, in a rare bout of thinking ahead, called for a cab. A quick fifteen minute ride and they were home, with Warechu giving the usual greeting.
"You're back, chu? Congrats I guess, so how'd it go, chu?"
"Tired." Kurome said, dropping into her usual spot. Linda meanwhile wandered over to her bag and answered for both.
"I'll tell you about it later tonight. Cartoons?"
"Sure thing, chu."
Kurome would succumb to slumber alongside the sounds of animated violence for children.
Author's note
...
Chapter 10 is here, only 300 more to go... calm down, I jest. Still though, we're moving along swiftly, and for once we've actually had the main cast all active within 5 chapters; not really all that important for you, but for me it's a win.
Pacing issues aside, the crew have another win under their belt, and all it took was two dungeons and a couple weirdos. Clearly this is a sign of only good things to come.
Catch you next time.