Penumbral Prelude (being edited)
[VANE'S POV]
The torch sconces lit the tunnel in a shade of brownish-orange, accompanied by the colour of mud.
The initial vigor had died down, and we walked across the labyrinth, while the soldiers grew increasingly angst with each step.
I gazed at my compass, whose red hands changed directions and size when I pressed a button.
Lost in thought, I didn't observe the mob sitting down to rest, and a man called out to me;
"Oy, are ya comin' or not?" a gruff voice of a man in his 40s called out to me, and I noticed strange gazes on me.
Pocketing my compass, I sat by the man, and his eyes widened when he looked at me;
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, poor fella, your face got ruined ain't it? These fuckers be sendin' young boys and ruinin' their marriages," he frowned.
My heart panged, consequently running my fingers about my face, feeling the scars marring it.
"Yeah," I replied curtly, but he didn't mind and asked;
"A tough one eh? Did ya try to leave this place?" he asked, but immediately spoke, "Ah, how can I forget! These fuckers never letcha go."
If you wanted to resign, the fortress will delay it—because they don't receive many applicants, after all, most of them die.
"Live a lil' longer young man, maybe you'll get outta 'ere," he comforted in a gentle voice.
"Maybe," I shrugged, but added, "Do the soldiers not try to escape?"
"They sure do—they be cryin' and stuff when we get to the door, honestly—can't blame 'em," he gazed at something distant, and continued;
"Them tunnels be takin' ya to god knows, and ya know only one thin'—ya either die out there, 'cause ain't no way yer livin' in 'ere, or…" he paused, looking at me.
Observing my indifference, he continued;
"Well, yer a quiet boy, ain'tcha? I'll get to the point—those guys…" he pointed to a group of soldiers, standing sentinel.
"They'll kill ya if you run," he curbed my doubts.
No wonder the soldiers didn't try to escape, especially when there were only wooden doors to other paths.
"What strong are they?" I looked at the sentinels.
"I ain't sure but don't try ta' run, they be wicked fast," he informed, looking at the sentinels.
"Did you try to escape?" I inquired, and turned to me;
"Hell nah! Those fuckers ain't human—they slaughtered them runners like pigs," he spoke firmly and nodded in negation.
"You don't deny you wanted to escape," I pointed out.
"Of course! I fucked up real bad and joined for some dough, but now I'm regrettin' it, and those fuckers never let ya go," he pointed to the sentinels and added;
"They whipped me real bad when I told 'em I didn't wanna go, and oh dear mother did it pain like hell," he frowned at them, rubbing the side of his belly.
"Been through a lot eh?" I asked.
"Sure did," he affirmed, and I gazed into the distance briefly, before;
"What's your name, old man?" I inquired, looking at him interestedly.
"It's Vargos, and I ain't an old man, kid! I'm in my 40's," he spoke in mock exasperation, and chuckled, looking at me.
"Marco, nice to meet you," I extended my hand and he gripped it in a firm handshake.
"Nice to meetcha kid," he smiled, and placed his hand on my shoulder, patting it gently.
CLAP CLAP
"GET UP—BREAK'S OVER!" a sentinel informed, and we stood up, walking together.
"GET THE FUCK UP!" I looked at the sentinel shouting at the reluctant ones, kicking them if they didn't, but Vargos placed his hand on me.
"Ya should ignore them, kid," he suggested, and I obliged, walking silently for a while.
The tunnels proved to be endless, giving me time to contemplate, the cacophony of footsteps and occasional metal ringing served as the ambiance, but I broke it;
"Been here for a long time?" I noticed his calm expression, but he smiled wryly as I spoke.
"Yeah—was young when I left my crib," he nodded, speaking in a low tone.
"Life must be dull here then," I asked him.
"Yeah, I don't got a wife or a life 'ere, and every day I gotta walk to my death," he chuckled dryly, powerless to change anything.
"Then why live?" my puzzled voice questioned him, a rude stating, but he didn't mind and spoke;
"Maybe there's a god out there ya know? My Ma told me to be a good man, I'll go to heaven she said, but I'm startin' to think she was wrong, but who knows," he chuckled once again, shrugging off the matter.
Silence settled over us, but I broke it, "I'll be back in a moment," I told Vargos, and trailed behind, while he looked at me, confused.
At the end were sentinels, warding away potential deserters, trailing a few meters behind the last soldier—a crying man.
"Hey, where are we going?" I asked a brown-haired soldier, and he looked at me.
"GUAAAH! SHIT WHO… w-who are you!?" he jerked violently after seeing my face, causing me to frown slightly.
"Marco, I want to know where we are going," I asked normally, and one of the soldiers in front scoffed at my question.
"Are you new?"
"Yes, I came from the defence corp," I said and he nodded in realisation, chuckling wryly.
"Haha, from the defence corp eh? We all think alike don't we?" his exhausted smile accompanied his chuckle, leaving me with a cryptic message.
The others looked at me, paying more attention, and a black-haired man chimed in;
"We're all in the same boat man, you joined here for money din'cha?" I nodded in affirmation.
"This tunnel takes us to the forest," he informed me, but I frowned and said;
"I don't see what's the proble—," I was interrupted, "Monsters and we fight them," my eyes widened at his exposition.
"We fight them? But they said we will be defending the bases?" my confused voice asked them.
"Fuck no! These motherfuckers send us to fight them, all they want are those mana cores," the other soldier voiced his anger.
"Oh, and no siege, no traps, no artillery—nothing, and if you're lucky, we will have mages," the black-haired man added.
"What the fuck!? Then, how are we supposed to fight them like that?" I spoke exasperatedly, frowning deeply.
"We don't, my guy—we don't, we just pray the others get them before they get us," the brown-haired soldier chuckled dryly, gaze downcast.
"Are you joking? Don't fuck with me! There is no way we are going there without prep, right!?" my voice sought validation, but;
"Do we look like we are messing around man?" he asked—his trembling lips and teary eyes told me all.
My frantic gaze clung onto no hope; all of them—no, everyone here was afraid; some veiled it, but some didn't, and I saw the latter in them.
After a brief silence, I asked, "Swear to me it's the truth."
"Haha, no respect eh? Well, I swear it's the truth," the brown-haired man said, and the remaining nodded, crushing all hopes.
Every step we took heralded our impending death, leaving us at the mercy of nature, but I refused that notion;
"I will get out of here… if what you said was true then I'm just walking to my death, aren't I?" one of them chuckled, while the others looked at me curiously.
"You're seriously tryna escape? Those soldiers…" he pointed his neck backwards, and continued, "They will kill you, and ain't no way you're escaping from here,"
"I'd rather die trying, and I know it won't be possible alone, so I need your help," my solemn expression shut out any laughter.
"Hey, he's serious," one of them said, while the other, "There's no poi—?" he paused when I retrieved my compass, and I told him;
"This compass…" I flipped the cap, revealing a decorative paper, but I flipped that as well, revealing a compass pointing somewhere, "It leads outside."
"No wa—," he was interrupted by the brown-haired man, who asked, "Prove it," I nodded.
"It is a magical one, my uncle gave it and told me I could always find my way home using it, and I checked if it was true, and it was."
"How do we know you ain't lying?" the black-haired man asked.
"Why would I? If you're worrying it works—trust me it does, and I'll prove it to you soon," I left them in suspense.
"When? And how will you show us?" the other man asked me, but I told him to wait, and they did.
- - - - -
"Hey, are you going to show us now?" one of them asked, but I dismissed it;
"Not now."
- - - - -
"Are you going to show us now?"
"Not yet."
- - - - -
"Now?" his frustration seeped through.
"Not yet."
"You keep on saying that! Are you fucking with us?" the other man asked, while the remaining looked at me.
"I know what I'm doing," my voice was laced with absolute confidence, shutting out his anger.
"Then show us," the others asked, but I told them to wait, and they waited; restlessly.
- - - - -
It had been a short while, and I heard cheers from the front, while a distant shout resounded;
"Let us march on soldiers we are nearing our purpose! Long live Eldoria!" the chant hid the screams of terror.
Some of the soldiers begged the sentinels, dropping down to touch their feet, but were kicked away.
"No, no, no, no, shit—fuck! I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die—FUCK, SOMEONE SAVE M—!" the sentinel 'silenced' a soldier.
"SHOW US NOW!"
"Alright, follow me," I replied and jogged faster.
"SOLDIERS! WE HAVE REACHED OUR PURPOSE, COME ON!" the captain was opening a double door.
"COME ON MAN, SHOW US NOW!" I ignored the shout, as I saw a door in the distance.
"HEY—," I interrupted it, "VARGOS!" he turned back.
"DO YOU WANT TO ESCAPE?" I asked.
"WHAT ARE YA SAYI—," I unsheathed my sword and tore open the wooden door.
"HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" one of the trio asked.
"I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO DIE, THEN COME ON!" all attention was on me, sentinels approaching.
The wooden door revealed another path, and I ignored the shouts, entering it.