"Then, sir… you must be from a really advanced world?" Hans asked, his eyes gleaming with curiosity.
"Not really," Art said, shrugging slightly. "My world was only about a hundred years into its tech revolution when I left."
"A hundred years sounds like a lot..." Hans tilted his head.
"It isn't," Raphael cut in with a dry chuckle. "My world was still garbage even back in my grandfather's day."
"Damn, that sucks…" Hans muttered. "I wouldn't know. I've only been alive for sixteen years."
"Right…" Art replied, but his voice trailed off as the group continued deeper into the maze. They twisted through narrow corridors left, right, then straight each turn dragging them further into the unknown.
Suddenly, Art's eyes widened. Without a word, he threw both arms out, halting everyone behind him. A cold sweat broke down his forehead. The others froze, eyes darting in confusion, until they too saw what had made him stop.
Art slowly turned and brought a finger to his lips, silently commanding them to stay quiet.
Up ahead, in the dim torchlight, a towering figure stood at a fork in the maze a grotesque and inhuman shape.
The creature was massive, easily over eight feet tall, its skin a slick, oil-black mass that shimmered like tar under the flickering light. Its muscles bulged unnaturally, rippling beneath the skin like something constantly writhing inside. From its body oozed viscous black goo, dripping in thick globs and sizzling where it hit the stone.
It breathed heavily, each inhale a guttural wheeze, like a predator savoring the scent of blood. Its eyes were sewn shut with thick black stitches, yet it moved with the certainty of something that didn't need sight. Two long, pointed ears twitched and rotated, hyper-sensitive. Its mouth... it had no lips only rows of jagged, needle-like teeth that jutted out in all directions, forming a permanent, predatory grin.
"Geh... geeee..." it growled lowly, exhaling thick air like steam from a furnace.
Art's heart pounded. Is this... the monster?
"F-Fuck, it's bigger than I thought…" Kret's hand hovered at his waist, fingers trembling just inches from his sword hilt.
"What is that thing…" Emery thought, clasping her hands tightly together to stop their shaking.
Hans stood still, mouth ajar, eyes wide. Holy… shit...
Raphael swallowed hard. This isn't a monster… this is a nightmare.
"M-Monster…" Ivana's thoughts fractured into panic. Her legs gave out beneath her, knees buckling as she collapsed with a soft thud onto the stone floor.
The sound was faint but not faint enough.
The creature stopped.
Its head snapped sharply toward them.
Art's eyes shot open. Shit!
Before the monster could move, a tall man in a scholar's robe appeared behind Ivana. He wore glasses, and his movements were calm and precise. He crouched, wrapped one arm around Ivana's mouth, and brought a finger to his lips.
Ivana nodded, tears brimming in her eyes. The man didn't speak. He just held her tightly, keeping her quiet, while the group stood frozen in the presence of the abyssal horror just meters away.
Suddenly, a figure sprinted into view from the left corridor a man, wild-eyed, panting, desperate.
The creature froze. Its stitched eyes twitched. Its head jerked toward the sound with unnatural precision.
The man skidded to a stop.
His eyes locked with the monster's eyeless face.
His legs gave out beneath him. "W-What the fuck is that?!"
The beast let out a guttural screech as it lunged.
"W-WAIT! STAY BACK WHAT THE FU—!"
His scream was sliced short.
A sickening wet snap echoed through the corridor as the man's head flew through the air, trailing blood like a gruesome comet. The spray hit the walls, the floor everything.
The monster's left arm had morphed into a sleek black blade, its surface jagged like obsidian shards. With a twitch, the blade melted back into a hand long-fingered, clawed, and twitching hungrily.
"Shit… What the hell even is that thing…" Art thought, heart hammering in his chest.
Without wasting a second, he threw up a hand and signaled: Move right path, now!
The group bolted down the passage.
Behind them, the creature fell upon the corpse.
It ripped open the man's stomach, pulling out coils of intestines like string from a spool. It grabbed the severed head, held it over its open maw, and drank the blood straight from the neck, like draining a goblet. Then crack! it crushed the skull between its fingers. One claw dug into the ruined mess, scooping out brain matter with a sickening "scloop."
Its long, blood-drenched tongue lolled from its mouth, licking up the remains like a beast savoring a meal.
The group didn't stop running until they had turned four corners deep into the maze.
Everyone collapsed in place, panting, drenched in fear.
"Holy shit! What the fuck was that?!" Raphael wheezed.
"Fuck!" Emery screamed, rounding on Ivana. "You almost got us killed! What were you thinking?!"
"I-I'm sorry! I was really scared!" Ivana stammered, trembling.
"We're all scared, Ivana! You think you're the only one with your life on the line?!"
"Enough!" Art stepped between them, arms outstretched. "It's not her fault! We're lucky we're even alive!"
"Lucky?" Emery scoffed bitterly. "If that guy hadn't shown up and that man who silenced her we'd all be dead right now! He's gone, you know that?! He died for us!"
"I know," Art said quietly, "and arguing won't change that. We need to focus. Work together. This… all of this it's probably our first time facing something like that. Monsters like that don't exist in my world…"
"Yeah? Well maybe that's because you're the monster!" Emery snapped, her voice sharp with rage.
The words cut through the air.
Silence.
Art stood still, jaw tight. His eyes narrowed, but he said nothing.