Present...
"Randy, why didn't you fill up before we left?" Marcus asked with a sigh. The bus driver just shrugged and stepped off the bus, going around to start pumping diesel into the bus's tank. Marcus looked around at the rest of the group. This trip is going swimmingly... Maddie was still obviously barely tolerating Elliot's rambling, too nice to tell him to go away, Jason and Phillip were talking quietly, and Chastity was fixing her makeup while Joel still slept on the bus. Marcus looked out the window of the bus, looking for something to break the monotony of this trip when he spotted something.
"Maddie." Marcus said, not taking his eyes off what he was looking at.
"Yeah?" Maddie replied, glad for an excuse to get away from talking with, or more appropriately, getting talked at by Elliot.
"Look out the window here and tell me if you see what I see."
Maddie moved closer to Marcus, leaning across him to look out the window. Marcus forced himself to focus on what was outside, and not on how close she was... "Is that... a house?"
Marcus nodded. "Looked like it to me. But why would there be a house behind a gas station on the interstate... and why is Randy not even looking at it?" Marcus nodded at the bus driver through the window. Every time he would look in the direction of the house that Marcus had noticed, his eyes seemed to move right past it, not even recognizing that it was there.
Maddie turned to look at Marcus, not even realizing the effect her closeness was having on him. "You think it's hidden by the Mist? But it's just a house."
Marcus forced himself to focus. "Could be the hiding place of a Monster. Or anybody else who wouldn't want mortal eyes prying on their affairs."
Maddie's eyes lit up. "You think there could be a God or Goddess there?"
Marcus shrugged. "Maybe. Either way, I'd say it warrants a look. Don't you?" Maddie nodded and jumped up, rushing to the front of the bus. Marcus breathed a sigh of relief and stood, stretching the stiffness from his muscles. Marcus strolled to the front of the bus, lightly hitting Joel's foot to wake him as he walked by and stopping at the front. "Alright guys. Maddie and I have noticed a building hidden by the Mist not too far from us." Marcus said, turning back to address the group. "Anybody wanna volunteer to tag along with us while we check it out? I'm thinking we leave two of us here to watch the bus and convince Randy not to just drive away without us."
"Ooh ooh I'll come!" Elliot shouted, running to the front of the bus. "I love exploring! Plus, you may need a bear!"
"Um... right..." Marcus replied, raising an eyebrow. A bear...? Whatever. "Anybody else?"
Joel stretched and stood up. "Guess it's as good a time as any to get some exercise! Hey Phil, you coming?"
Phillip shrugged, stringing his bow and standing. "Scouting is what I do best. Might as well put it to good use."
Marcus nodded. "Alright, that leaves Jason and Chastity here to watch the bus. You two okay with that?" For a moment, it looked like Jason wanted to protest, but then he just sighed and nodded.
"Thank the Gods. I'm not being dragged off this bus to every diversion that catches your eye Marcus." Chastity replied, turning away from him to continue fixing her makeup, even though to Marcus it looked perfectly fine already.
If this keeps up, that attitude is going to be a problem. Marcus sighed. "Alright, we'll be back soon. Just make sure nothing terrible happens like the bus exploding or Chastity losing her makeup kit." He couldn't be sure, but as he turned away Marcus thought he caught a smile on Chastity's face.
They crossed the threshold of the house without incident, much to Marcus' surprise. Something hidden by the Mist, at a place where most travelers would stop... yet it doesn't seem trapped? This made Marcus even more suspicious. After all, why go through all the trouble to hide a place, and not protect it any further? Marcus walked into what at one time would have been a sitting room, furnished with shelving and landscape photos on the walls, as well as a pair of couches facing each other across a low table, and looked around.
"I'm glad Chastity chose to stay behind. She seems like the kind that hates dust!" Elliot said with a smile. The group spread out and started searching throughout the room for anything that might explain why the house was hidden from mortal eyes. Marcus noticed a few signs of occupancy in the house, such as the floor and shelves being clear of dust, but for some reason the furniture looked like it hadn't been touched in decades.
"This makes no sense..." Marcus said, looking around. "Dust on all the furniture, but the floor looks like it was swept yesterday... the shelves are clean, but the windows and picture frames aren't..."
"Maybe it's a lazy housekeeper?" Joel said with a wry smile.
Marcus rolled his eyes. "Okay, say it's a lazy housekeeper. Doesn't explain why the house is hidden from mortals..."
"Hey guys! I found the light switch!" Elliot said, flipping the switch on the wall as he did so. Instead of turning on the lights, the furniture in the room disappeared, and where there had been a set of couches and dining table before, there was now a stairway leading down. "Whoa... I don't think that was for the lights..."
"Really? What was your first clue? How about giving us some warning next time?" Joel replied.
"What do you mean? I said, 'Hey guys I found the light switch'."
"He's got you there Joel." Phillip said with a small smile.
Marcus sighed. These newbies are gonna be the death of me I swear. Looking down the stairway, Marcus could see a light at the bottom. Looking over, Marcus met Maddie's eyes and nodded. "Guys, let's go down. Whatever's there, be on your guard." Marcus pulled out his pocket watch and headed down the stairs.
As he reached the bottom on the staircase, Marcus saw a large room spread out around him. Much larger than the house above ground had been. One mystery after another... Looking around in the dim light coming down the staircase, Marcus couldn't see much detail of the space around him, but he could feel the vastness of the space. Stepping away from the staircase, Marcus called out, "Hey Maddie! Care to shed a little light on the situation here?"
Maddie stepped into the room with a smile and tapped her finger lightly to her chest. Immediately, her hoodie started radiating light, channeling a blessing from her Patron, Apollo. Marcus couldn't help but smile. That little trick never gets old. With the light Maddie gave off, Marcus could make out bedding and old fire pits spaced out in the chamber. But that was all he was able to see before an ear-splitting shriek rang out through the air. Without wasting a second, Marcus charged towards Maddie, swinging his watch into a sword as he did so. Dim lights clicked on in the ceiling above them and Marcus could see a group of ten figures coming at them. They were around the same heights as the group, but each of them had the head of a bull. At least, they looked like bull's heads. In the dim light, Marcus couldn't make out much more detail than the giant horns. No time to think about that now. Have to defend Maddie and the others. Gotta get back to the bus.
The clang of weaponry rang through the air. Joel had whipped off his duffel bag, swinging it as its form shifted to one of a two-handed great sword. Elliot leaped forward, and Marcus was shocked to see that he did actually turn into a bear. With a roar, Elliot charged into the two figures closest to him. Phillip fell back to the staircase, using the distance to allow him to pepper the figures with arrows.
"Marcus!" Maddie yelled, pushing him to the side. Marcus stumbled out of the way as a weapon flashed above his head. He shook his head. Get your head in the game Marcus. Marcus swung his blade, causing the one closest to him to jump back. Marcus tried to see more details of the shadowy figures attacking them, but it was impossible in this light. Gods dammit. Marcus barely caught the glint of another weapon as it swung at him, and he parried just in time. He tried to catch the wrist of the figure that had swung the weapon, but the darkness threw off his sense of where it was, causing him to grasp at empty air. Dammit! Marcus turned and ran back towards Maddie, who was doing a lot better than he was. As he got closer, the light still radiating off her hoodie was just enough to let him see the attacks coming at him properly. He managed to duck under another swing from his opponent's sword and reply with one of his own, gritting his teeth as he felt his sword hit what felt like armor instead of the flesh he was anticipating. Not missing a beat, he swung again, harder this time, and felt his sword cut through his opponent. No time to celebrate. Marcus felt a shift in the air behind him and spun just in time to catch a spear thrust that Maddie had dodged with the flat of his weapon. Jumping forward, he grabbed the shaft of the weapon and pulled the figure in, swing his weapon at their neck as he did so. His sword struck home, removing the figures head from their body, but Marcus was sickened to see that their body didn't disappear. But... But Monsters turn to sand when they're killed...
Marcus looked at the scene around him. All the figures had been killed by this point, whether by him and Maddie or by the others, and none of the were disappearing. Marcus looked closer at the body he had slashed before and saw that what had felt like armor was just that. Bronze Armor. Each of the figures had been wearing Minotaur helms, meant to inspire fear in their enemies as far as Marcus could tell. Kneeling, Marcus removed the helm from the nearest body and saw a face that couldn't have been older than his own. A human face. Marcus couldn't believe his eyes. The boy was dressed in jeans and a red shirt with armor over it. Marcus lurched back, hearing Maddie cry out, having fallen out of her Berserker state. What is this...? Why did they attack us?! Gods... what have we done?