Beyond the Door

Hours passed and the warehouse was now empty.

Arriving at the scene, Nuke Boomsma tilted his black shades up on the tip of his nose, wrinkling his brow in frustration with a frown on his face.

"The Seven Sleepers are gone... their suits were far too valuable to lose, dammit!"

He punched the ground in anger, behind him Rorke smiled sheepishly.

"Master Nuke, no need to worry! Missing a couple suits won't affect the grand plan!"

"Tch. Those suits are invaluable to me, grand plan or not! It's also regretful that I lost my seven disciples, they were on the brink of greatness. A couple more gfg's was all they needed!"

"Yes, yes! Of course, Master Nuke! But maybe they still live?"

Nuke stayed quiet, looking over the place.

The walls were destroyed, while blood and various other bodily fluids splattered all across the building. The amount of blood wasn't little either; it went up half an inch on their shoes.

"Rorke, take a look around this place and try repeating that one more time?" Nuke suggested with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

"Eheheh..." Rorke scratched the back of his head awkwardly, but didn't dare to utter another word.

The last thing he wanted was to set of Nuke Boomsma; he wasn't nicknamed the Ticking Time Bomb for nothing!

"C'mon, Rorke. We need to go see The Great Manchini."

The Great Manchini, also known as Boss Manchini, was a very strange man.

He lived for a millennium, perhaps longer, and his intellectual abilities were unfathomable.

Sadly, over this long period of time he had become nothing more than a washed up shell of his former self.

Once a successful man, now an unclean drunk after having been betrayed by his previous religious beliefs; his life thrown into disorder upon seeing the world's true light with his own eyes.

Or so some thought....

The true story of Boss Manchini could only be learned upon meeting him yourself.

Nuke Boomsma and Rorke left the warehouse in great disappointment and they decided to return to the Nuke 'Em All Dungeon where rehabilitation of the mind was done.

They walked with heavy footsteps down the cold concrete stairs, reaching the barren room.

Click. Click. Click.

"They are my hope." Nuke gave a genuine smile as he approached the door, opening it quietly to avoid disrupting his three new disciples inside.

Click. Click.

His smile only grew more brilliant as he looked at the three malnourished gamers inside, their foreheads coated with sweat while they reeked a stenchful odor.

Delexi, Bjorne-Rel, and Redkuhn

They were truly like skeletons, be it in physique, or lack of physique should he say, and that awful scent.

He quietly arrived behind them, looking at their screens.

'Looking at their kills, deaths, and assists... not bad. Delexi, or as he goes by Delexyi, is doing the best among them! And look at that cs! Astonishing!'

Compared to The Seven Sleepers, he had a much deeper appreciation for this batch of disciples.

Rocket League wasn't his forte, after all.

Like a fish in water, League of Legends was where he thrived and he finally felt at home.

He patiently waited, browsing Reddit all the while until their game was done.

[Victory!]

Hearing that sacred announcement, Nuke stood up and clapped, almost causing the three malnourished men heart attacks.

"GOOD JOB, YOU THREE! HAHAHA!" he burst into laughter, "Oh, yeah! Don't forget to say your gfg! Haha!"

Silently and entranced, the three did as he said and typed in "gfg," only to immediately get insulted by the entire lobby.

[Gfg? You may have won the game, but you clearly lost at life!]

[Fucking losers!]

[They probably say "gfg" even when they lose.]

[Probably. They're the fucking disease that kills me inside.]

The comments continued, gradually growing even worse.

Of course, Nuke Boomsma paid such childish provocations no attention, moving forward with a key in hand.

One by one, he unlocked the chains which cuffed each of them to the gaming mice which were now coated in a thick layer of sweat and blood.

"Alright, you three go clean up. We're heading out to meet an acquaintance soon, so dress sharp~!"

With hollow eyes, the three did as they ordered and left to the washroom, coming back after ten minutes.

They were now fit with the professional gear of a suit, black shades, and top hats as endorsed by Rorke himself. Truly the definition of class, if Rorke would say so himself.

Nuke and Rorke exchanged a few words before excusing themselves briefly.

During this time, Bjorne-Rel and Redkuhn exchanged a glance, muttering to one another under their breath.

"Hey, Redkuhn, what do you think about our odds of escaping?"

"Not very great... we don't even know where that path leads us...."

The two had found a tiny crack in the wall months back and peering within, they saw what looked to be a long but dwindling pathway.

They had no clue what dangers could possibly be lurking within, but no risk could be worse than playing League of Legends all day!

Chained to the desk, they felt like the bones in their wrists were crumbling! There was no way they stayed here any longer!

Of course, their escape attempt had to wait until after their trip with Nuke Boomsma.

"Bjorne-Rel, we've managed to trick Nuke into thinking we've succumbed to League Fever. He earnestly believes us to be his disciples... so we mustn't slip up!"

"Yeah, I know man! I just wanna get out of this hellhole! I've been tricking dudes into giving me V-Bucks for awhile, but I'm afraid they won't continue giving me them as I've been away for so long!"

"Huh?"

Redkuhn shook his head with a sigh, but didn't say another word.

Sometimes, you had to do it for the skins!

Speaking of which....

"Oh, you've probably missed out on a lot of skins by now, huh?"

What was just barely a smile immediately faded from Bjorne-Rel's face; he felt his veins pulsating along his neck and forehead.

"You're right! And it's all Nuke Boomsma's fault! How many limited time edition skins did I miss? How many Street Fighter chicks? How many anime girls? Damn you, Nuke Boomsma!"

He was furious, but thankfully he still held onto his reason.

"Oh, yeah," Redkuhn started, "Hey, Delexi, you're in on our plan, right?"

"..."

"You are in? Right?"

"It's..." Delexi mumbled under his breath, his words inaudible.

"Bjorne-Rel, what's wrong with him?"

"I don't know, man! Delexi, c'mon, listen to us—"

"My. Name. Is. Delexyi. Can't you get it right, you dumbasses?"

His eyes flashed a frightening look and the others found themselves mute, afraid to utter the slightest sound.

Delexyi wasn't playing, no, he had truly lost himself to Nuke Boomsma's torture.

Seeing that he was indoctrinated, the two immediately backed off. They couldn't risk exposing their plans to escape; Delexyi might just rat them out and they would lose their only chance.

Thankfully, Delexyi's mind seemed to only be focused on League and he hadn't heard any of their plan.

Silently, they waited until Nuke returned.

"Alright, everything is in order! Let's head out to meet with The Great Manchini!"

'The Great Manchini?'

With a puzzled look, they followed after Nuke.

What was he? A magician?

Soon after, the group arrived at a strange array of sorts, carved in a stone ground.

Standing upon it, it suddenly emanated a colorful light, prompting them to close their eyes.

Before they realized what was going on, their eyes opened to an all yellow room, from the walls to the ceiling and floor.

They shot inquisitive looks at Nuke Boomsma, but one look at that dazed face showed that his mind was anywhere but here.

And seeing a strange glint in his eyes, it looked as if he was deeply enraptured by something.

Hallway after hallway, staircase after staircase, Bjorne-Rel and Redkuhn lost track of the passing of time.

There was also the constant buzzing and a harsh reflection of light bouncing off of the yellow walls, alongside their heavily malnourished bodies, making them feel sick to their guts.

They felt like they were walking into heaven's light, fearing for their lives.

Another of what appeared to be ten minutes passed.

Finally coming into sight was a dark green door, a heavy contrast to the rest of this building.

"This is it... We've finally arrived at our destination!" Nuke's entire body trembled, his voice containing a feverish zest.