The Dark Side

1050 hours, 4 July 0145...

In the stretchy and vast blackened cavern tunnel that stretched into nothingness, me, Nolan, and Lisabelle illuminated the path with our flashlights. The surroundings felt heavier the deeper we went, with the ambient wind eerily blowing through the stretchy and wide tunnel as the waters dripped into the ground from the stalactites.

As we continued our journey, squeezing our way through several stalagmites that are bound to block our paths, Nolan suddenly queried me with his voice reverberating around the cave.

"Tsuyuki, there's something that we want to ask you."

"What is it?"

He abruptly moved to my left side, explaining his point with a hand gesture.

"Judging by the way you usually act, have you ever felt pain when you're hurting others?"

With a brief sigh and simultaneously squeezing my way through the blocking stalactites, I continued my walk, slightly faster than before, while I elaborated in a low and cold tone.

"Of course. Unless I kill those evil degenerates."

However, Nolan abruptly prodded me again on my left shoulder, using a slightly pushy tone that inadvertently invaded my personal space.

"Come on, Matey, don't you try to build some empathy?" You cannot freely purge anything that you perceive as problematic. Even the bullies you despise have faced challenges in their lives. Or at least give them time to redeem themselves."

Unfortunately, his sermons are merely projections meant to provoke fear, devoid of any meaningful content. For what? To make themselves look like saints! But they are failing to learn the hard way about how life used to work.

With growing frustration, I kept my distance from the latter as I sped up my walking speed and responded in a cold but solemn tone.

"That's why I'd rather end their suffering with the gift of death than subject them to the punishment of this accursed world, with no hope of salvation."

But Nolan's frustration suddenly got on my nerves as he prodded my left shoulder for the second time, his light retort reverberating through the cavern surrounding him.

"Matey, at least make more friends, not enemies! Of course, you will encounter bullcraps like that when you hang out with them, but how can you enjoy a longer period of time if you prefer to be distant from others?"

"And do you think that will make you a good guy?"

There! He once again did it with his projections. However, amidst the hero vs. villain narrative that I've grown weary of, Lisabelle approached my right side and gently prodded me.

"That's true. Understand the power of friendship's logic? This could be your solution during challenging times, as they will provide unwavering support."

That power of friendship, bullshit?! What the fuck are they smoking or drinking?! This is not a fantasy, but rather a harsh reality where heinous acts have occurred without any warning signs! I'm tired of their bullshit, not out of stubbornness but out of their failure to make sense of the implications of reality!

Out of frustration while keeping my anger below the limit, all I could do was speed up my stroll and respond in the same cold but solemn tone, which reverberated throughout the cavern.

"Why would I give a fuck about them if they're ending up like hypocritical retards?! There are neither heroes nor villains, only life or death."

My response frustrated Nolan to the limit, as he prodded my left shoulder slightly harshly and even retorted at me with his voice reverberating on the cavern's wall.

"Tsuyuki! You don't even know what it means to live a life! I know that all you do is isolate yourself from the others, lock yourself in your dorm room, and constantly indulge in a hentai doujinshi! No wonder why you're freaking miserable!"

But during his retort, I accidentally witnessed a strange creature lurking in the shadow of the darkened cavern's part behind Lisabelle, and that lurking threat will devour us if we just ignore it.

After his retort, I looked down with a frustrated sigh and reached my right hand into the holstered handlebar of my Kiryu.

"If that's what you think..."

And all of a sudden...

WRYAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHH

A jet-black mutated bat suddenly flew into my sight, its fanged mouth wide open, and jumped for its easy prey after centuries of torturous fasting.

As the mutated bat was about to reach into Nolan's back without his knowledge, I swiftly drew my Kiryu, pointed at its open fanged mouth, and pulled the trigger long enough to emit a charging aura.

"You're no different than them."

BANG

Both Nolan and Lisabelle, taken aback by my sudden action, drew their weapons and gazed at the dead mutated bat in an alert stance. Lisabelle drew her motorized pink scythe and grasped it, watching the dead monster with a stutter of worry.

"Is that... a Piracelli?"

WRYAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHH

Another Piracelli, and even several of them, let out a screeching roar that echoed and reverberated throughout the cavern, deafening our ears like a fork constantly scratching the plate. They hung themselves upside-down to charge for their meals, their red eyes flashing on the ceiling as they watched me brutally murder one of their kind.

Once they sank into the earth, they surrounded all of us, roared louder than a fork's screech, and even extended their wings in a display of intimidation. Alternatively, they would prepare to perform their customary sacrifices on any unsuspecting victim who ventured too close.

Out of frustration, I then activated my left hand's claw, which summoned a pecut with a whipping chain, and reached my right hand into my Nakajima as I revved it.

"Well, we seem to be in their own territory."

BRAAAAAAAAAAAP

BANG

After my Nakajima's exhaust popped its flames like a gunshot, dozens of Piracelli suddenly charged forward by plunging their fangs into our sight. But despite their simultaneous charge attack to plunge for their meals, suddenly...

JSLOSH

Insert Music: Kyrolis – Blade Bunny

The three of us easily slashed the surrounding Piracellis with our weapons, as all of us did stylish slashing moves with the addition of sending them bullets from our guns.

I brutally beheaded four Piracellis in a collateral way from my charge Kiryu's shot; Nolan executed a stylish spin of his lever-action shotgun to shoot down the surrounding Piracellis; and Lisabelle even topped it all off with her SMG's massacre.

The blood of the herds pooled on the stone ground, nearby stalagmites, and the muzzle flares temporarily blinded the blackened cavern, transforming it into a monstrous slaughterhouse that was impeding our progress.

While I brutally slashed the remaining Piracellis with my Nakajima in a stylish flip, I expressed my frustration with Nolan's previous comment.

"Isn't it funny that a rapist like you degrades me over the fucking fictional contents?"

As Nolan brutally finished one of the poor Piracelli with his Chainsaw, the gore splattered into his body, and the V-Twin engine of his Chainsaw roared at its limit, he responded with frustration.

"You have no proof! And unlike you, I talked to a woman!"

JSHROACK.

Dumbass! You just made that shit up to make yourself look like the typical 'I'm better than you' bullshit!

While continuing my massacre against the invading Piracellis, which showed no sign of stopping as they kept coming in each direction, I then retorted to him after I brutally slashed several Piracellis with my Nakajima and my left hand's claw in a stylish way.

"Including a fucking child, DUMBASS!!!"

"A mind without a filter is like a bank without security. If you don't distinguish between those who trust you more, you'll make mistakes easier! No wonder you're easily manipulated!"

Nolan responded to my rant by brutally slashing the remaining Piracellis with his chainsaw.

"Said the goner who prefers to masturbate to a fucking hentai doujinshi!"

But suddenly, Lisabelle retorted to all of us amid our heated arguments as she slashed the remaining Piracelli with her motorized scythe.

"CAN ALL OF YOU JUST SHUT THE HELL UP?! WE'VE GOT MONSTERS TO KILL RIGHT NOW!!!"

Before I could react, a horde of Piracellis continued to converge on us from all directions, as if we had intruded into their nest, provoking them to turn on their own kind.

BANG BANG BANG

DRRRRRD

Unfortunately, eliminating the entire herd in this blackened cavern would be a waste of our valuable time. I launched one of my flashbangs skyward and fired my Kiryu's bullet, causing the explosion to release a blinding light that engulfed the surrounding area.

After the blinding explosion, which blinded one of us, the three of us closed our eyes and sprinted away, desperate to locate the exit using the GPS on our smartphones.

As I was swiping my smartphone's screen in a haste from the dash, Nolan suddenly exclaimed in my back in a tinge of scorn.

"Now, what are you gonna do in this situation, fool?!"

Before I could respond, Lisabelle alerted us with a huffed tone as she observed her smartphone's GPS while following closely behind me during our dash.

"Guys! I found the exit hallway! It's 200 meters from here, and it's going through-"

But Nolan alerted all of us with an urgent shout, as if something threatening was about to plunge my back.

"WATCH OUT!!!"

TSYANG

But as I dashed forward at lightning speed and glanced over my shoulder in a brief moment, I saw Lisabelle narrowly avoid death after she deflected one charging Piracelli's devour plunge charge attack by releasing a shield from her motorized Scythe.

She saw Piracelli's teeth fall to the ground as they abruptly retreated in pain due to the sudden obstruction.

As the number of remaining herds increased and continued to prey on us, I increased my dashing speed, and Nolan followed suit, trailing behind me. Lisabelle, panting from the constant dash, also trailed behind us.

"HEY! WAIT UP!"

Just when we thought the journey was still too long, I suddenly saw an obscure, shrinking hallway that measured around 300 cm by 300 cm, narrower than the blackened cavern we were dashing through. As I hurried into the narrow cave, I gestured toward it with an exhausted huff.

"Is that the exit you meant?"

As Lisabelle took a closer look at her smartphone's GPS, she nodded in approval.

"It is!"

"You guys enter first; I'll hold them off!"

"What the hell do you want to do?!"

Once we had all successfully navigated the narrower cave path, I halted my sprint and aimed my Kiryu at the remaining Piracelli's herds, who were undoubtedly struggling to squeeze through the narrow passage. However, their towering bodies made the narrow passage difficult for them to enter, so I had to repel them by firing bullets at them.

BANG BANG BANG

Upon noticing my sudden action, Lisabelle quickly drew her SMG and stood on my left side, firing numerous bullets directly at the Piracellis.

"Don't worry, we got this!"

Nolan also joined my defense, repeatedly squeezing the heads of the Piracellis into pulps with his lever-action shotgun, as the shells clattered into the ground.

I've had enough of those Piracelli bastards who keep squeezing through, so I pointed my Kiryu directly at the entrance's ceiling, pulled the trigger long enough until it emanated a charging aura, and then...

BANG

BSRYAK

My charge-shot bullet shattered the entrance's ceiling, causing the rock debris to ruthlessly seal the entrance like a mini landslide. This ultimately crushed one of the squeezing Piracelli, severing its hip in half. The monster, desperately pleading for another chance, dragged its hand out for assistance, leaving a small pool of blood beneath the debris.

But nonetheless, I stepped on the monster's back, pointed my Kiryu right at the head, and then...

BANG

I brutally popped the poorly wounded Piracelli's head into the splay of gore, as I'd ended its suffering with the gift of death. With blood splattering my blue hoodie, and mildly stained my cheek.

As we settled into the narrower cave path, Nolan approached me abruptly and spoke with a hint of worry.

"Jeez, can't you be more patient? Its already dead!"

Out of frustration, I holstered back my Kiryu and continued my journey ahead of them with a brief solemn response.

"There's no time to lose! Let's head on!"

Without any further elaboration, the latter then silently followed my lead after they enlightened the dark side with their light of hope.