“Meera, let’s fall back! I don’t care what the Stranger says. If there’s Witch business in this place, there’s no reason to take an unnecessary fight.” I reach down and haul up Sila with a hand. Waving at the other two Demi’s who still seem afraid of me, I bark, “Either come with us or take your chances with whatever’s down here!”

“Nika, Jinta, please come!” Sila begs. The little one wants to go, but Nika holds him back. It seems like they’re going to stay. But then, Meera brushes by them. I can just imagine her mocking leer under the mask, as she leans in and whispers in Nika’s ear-

“Kid…whatever’s down that pipe…it isn’t going to feed you. It isn’t going to offer you bread and cheese like my Boss. It’s going to eat you.”

“I…I..but Jasi said we need to avoid going up!” Nika hesitates. However, the splashes get closer and the fetid smell worsens. With a horrified glance into the darkness, he nods. Hauling up the other Demi-boy, he hurries to catch up to us. “We’ll go with you! Please…don’t trick us!”

Typical kid. Thinks I’d tell him if I was.

*Splash Splash Splash*

…

*Clink*

The hell is that?

Chains?

I toss a look over my shoulder while trying to hustle along my prisoners Demi’s. Unfortunately, it does seem like we’re losing ground. The Demi kids are fast, but not fast enough. And they’re exhausted from trying to run from us earlier.

“We’re going too slow.”

“I know, Meera.” I sigh. Mentally reviewing the map, I know we’re still a long ways off from the first pipe. I turn around and wait for the others to pass. Alright. Let’s try this then! “I’ll give them something to think about-”

[Frozen Water of My Soul, Come Forth-Chill]

This time, I don’t hold back. Icy energy spreads out directly in front of me, and the water on the tunnel floor freezes solid. The surface is magically smooth. Anyone walking on it will definitely have to watch out. Behind me, I hear gasps of amazement from the Demi’s. They probably have never seen a mage this strong before. Pretty cool huh? However, while I’m admiring my handiwork, Meera calls out at my back-

“Boss, we got problems!”

*Clank*

I spin around only to discover shadows writhing the other way as well. Really? We’re surrounded? How did they get behind us? Where the hell are the Stranger’s guys when you need them?

“W-What now?” Sila cries out in terror. Her sensitive yellow raccoon eyes are watching the unknown enemies approach. I wince as splashes approach from both sides. “The monsters are here!” For a second, I just think. An unknown enemy is one of my worst fears. Especially in an enclosed space. And with children to protect. It’s really not a job for a mage. Hmm…the Stranger said kill everything you see that isn’t one of us, right? Well, I’m fairly certain whatever these things are, they’re not friendly. He recommended using fire magic. Let’s see…

“Meera, do you smell any gas?” I ask.

“Can’t smell anything with all this crap.” Meera wrinkles her nose. “Couldn’t tell ya, Boss. Don’t blow us up.”

Turning to the kids who probably have good noses as well, I ask-

“Any of you smell anything strange? Does anything smell flammable?”

…

“I…I don’t think so.”

“No.”

“It just smells bad.”

The Demi’s give me the all clear.

Sila tugs at my sleeve.

“What are you going to do?”

…

Ever seen a Michael Bay movie?

“Oh, nothing much. Just back up here, will you?” I nod at Meera towards an offshoot tunnel. She gets the idea and starts herding the kids down it. Sila watches me curiously as she passes. No idea where this goes. But If we can’t go forwards or back, then to the side it is! Once everyone’s inside, I chant-

[Cold Wall At The End of The Divide,

You Who Guard Against Failing Light,

Sunder This Dark Night!

Bring Me Refuge From All Plights!

Come Forth-Frozen Seal]

Safety first!

A huge wall of ice erupts out of the ground and thin air. Since I’m utilizing the sewage water, the base is thick and murky brown, while the translucent top half is a nice clean blue and white from crystallized moisture. I leave a hole in the middle just big enough for my hands to fit through. Alright then. Squeezing my palms through, I angle one hand with Mephis’s glove to the left, and one to the right. Covering both directions. For a few tense heartbeats, I listen. Above the children’s heavy breathing, I can hear the enemy. Heavy chains clinking, sloshing footsteps. A whole lot of them. There’s this distinct whuffing noise, like the breaths of a hundred panting dogs. That’s close enough.

“Fire in the hole!”

[Flaming Ember of My Desire, Burst Forth-Burn]

[Stormy Breeze of My Loneliness, Gather Forth-Gust]

A stream of air and flame from each palm. The invisible tug of two mana hungry spells combining into one greater magic. Mephis’s glove grows hot in my hands as a jet of air shoots out in either direction. Now! Flames ignite down the spiraling tornado. Behind our ice-wall blast shield, the children cower amidst the sudden change in pressure. I can’t see what’s happening on the other side, but I can hear it. My spell is intensely loud, the equivalent of a raging flamethrower, and only partially muffled by the curtain of frozen water.

*Shuaaaaaa*

*Shuaaaaaa*

Got em. Survive this!

More flames.

I let Mephis’s glove suck in my mana like a hungry baby. I’m certain that whatever's on the other side must have either backed off or gotten cooked. However…an unexpected noise hits my ears. It’s so close I can hear it even over the roaring flames-

*Grawwr…*

What in the f-!?

*Swooosh*

Something grabs my hands. And then…there’s a huge pop like someone ignited the world’s biggest gas burner-

*KACHA*

The ice wall ripples. Solid ice begins to bubble as an intense heat reaches it. Sharp slivers fly off towards my eyes and I know that in a second, the whole thing will shatter. Briefly, I understand that something has gone wrong. With my reflexes, I have time to wince and try to pull away. However, whatever is holding me on the other side refuses to let go. My hands are stuck as the explosion spreads. An intense, raging heat sears my fingers. They’re going to get cooked. But I can’t get free-

“Idiot.”

A pair of hands yank on my shoulders from behind. My hands are ripped away from whatever’s holding them. I’m dragged backwards right as the wall gives-

Meera.

*BOOM*

The wall which was supposed to shield us, explodes into a hundred-thousand pieces. Meera drops me in the sewage and snaps open her fan. Swinging it in front of us, she expertly blocks the shrapnel. I finally regain enough control of my hands to cast another spell. A hasty Gust to counteract the incoming shards. Hopefully that will protect the children…wait…the kids! I whip my head around, worried because Meera can’t possibly block every bit of ice shrapnel. However, I can see that there’s a bend in the pipe next to us. Three little Demi’s peek out around the corner, watching us get peppered with wide eyes. Heh…she got them out first. Smart.

*Tsss…*

I swing about to stare at what remains of my Frozen Seal. It’s…gone. All that’s left is a few of the thick bits at the bottom. Something shambles over the fragments. What in the hell is that? My heart sticks in my throat. Yours would too if you could see them. Cold human bodies covered in flame, they must be corpses. Because humans would scream. Only corpses feel no pain. I can see them burning. Burning, burning, burning, like they’re being cremated before our eyes. My flames are consuming them. However, they keep on coming. A zombie of some sort? I scramble to get on my feet, hissing as my toasty hands touch the mucky water. Meera helps hauls me up by the armpits. It’s easy to see now. Bits of flaming…flesh line the water, like the world’s most disgusting torches. Fire spreads through the line of zombies. Many of them are chained together, and the conflagration greedily takes advantage of this. One zombie after another bursts into flames. Their heads alight, a disgusting smell of charred meat and singed hair wafts through the undercanals. Abruptly, one of the zombies shakes as its neighbor catches fire. I see bubbles forming on its skin. And then…it ignites like a balloon. Blowing itself apart into more fleshy chunks. There must be gas inside. Several of the zombies chained to it fall down. But they rise again not soon after. Well, at least they’re fairly clumsy. Not nearly so dangerous as those Bloodfiends we ran into at Tosa-

*Grawwr?*

The closest corpse catches sight of us with burnt eyes. It’s ashen pupils are almost completely black, but still, it sees us. And then…it clambers forwards. I swear to God, it shifts gears or something because it’s limbs blur.

“F-Fast!” I yelp and take a half step back into Meera. “I hit them with fire just like the Stranger said! But they’re not dead!” Talking is a mistake. It only incites these monsters to move faster. Now that they’ve seen us, it’s like a wave spreads through their chained lines. The lead body falls on all fours, crawling towards us, a sort of demented dog. Each zombie behind it is tugged forwards by the chain and then also switches to all fours. Within seconds, the whole horde frenzies, picking up on our trail. They start climbing over each other to get to us. Soon, the writhing, twisting corpses mosh together into a single entity. Suddenly, we face not a line of individual prisoners, but a multi-limbed flesh centipede racing across the ground on a hundred arms and legs. The speed of so many bodies working in unison is…frightening. Time to bug out! I turn to Meera and see the same thought running through her head. “Run! Grab the kids!”

*Splash Splash Splash*

I dive across the corner and pick up Sila, leaving the two heavier Demi-boys for Meera. The girl shrieks as I throw her over my head. Carefully, I set her down so that she can clamber onto my back. Piggyback style. Just like how Perideen used to carry me. Behind me, Meera is carrying more weight, but she’s keeping up, a boy awkwardly tucked under each arm. I think my security wants to be annoyed with me, but then the corpse-swarm turns the corner behind us and there’s no time for words-

[Muddy Stone of My Endurance, Move Forth-Meld]

[Frozen Water of My Soul, Come Forth-Chill]

I drop an Icebomb for that thing…things…to eat. There’s another fork up ahead. Furiously, I try to remember which way to go. But even for me, trying to cast spells, hold Sila, and run from a flesh-eating monster is a lot. I can’t recall the map. Damnit, I’m lost. We’ll just have to wing it!

“Follow me!” I yell out and swing right. Blink said to take the biggest and most well-lit tunnels to get out. But what do I do if they look exactly the same?

“Do you even know where we’re going?” Meera calls out. She grunts, hauling two squirming boys at once. “Stop moving! Or I’m going to drop you, pipsqueak!” We dart into the right fork. It’s a bit smaller inside, and when I turn around, I shudder as a colossal wave of flesh smashes into the entrance.

*Crash*

*Bang*

*Crash*

The corpse-swarm struggles to fit inside the narrow pipe. Misshapen limbs and exposed ribcages are squeezed into a paste as all of the zombies try to push themselves in at once. They slow down for just a second-

Eat this.

*Boom*

My Icebomb goes off. I pray that I toned down the power enough to avoid causing a freaking cave-in. Instantly, it’s like the corpse-swarm stepped on a mine. My eyes widen. A severed arm flies by me, it’s rotting hand still snatching out at Sila’s face.

“Eeeek!” She cries on my back, and I feel her arms tightening around my neck. “Why won’t they die!”

Good question.

I glance backwards, only to wish I hadn’t. The Icebomb blew off some limbs, but honestly didn’t achieve much else. Headless corpses are dragged along by their still functional neighbors, and compacted into a great writhing ball of flesh. A few missing limbs aren’t bothering it at all. There’s just way too many! After a second, I shudder as the horde manages to smush itself into the pipe after us. Bits of rotting guts splatter everywhere and I gag. That…is disgusting! Did I just make it easier for that thing to fit? Meera pulls up next to me, and looks about ready to drop the kids. She gives me a look with one eye. I know what it means.

“We should leave these kids behind. They’re too slow.”

I close my eyes, feeling Sila’s warm little body pressed against my back. Her hands have turned fuzzy, transforming in her fear and she struggles to hold them around my neck. When I reopen my eyes, Meera grows exasperated but she knows I won’t abandon the kids just yet. Sorry…I guess I do have a soft spot for Demi’s.

“Boss…we’re out of options!” She snorts. Pointing back at the thing smashing its way towards us, even Meera can’t hide her fear. “I can’t fight something like THAT! It’s too frickin big! And there’s no space in this pipe! I’ll get squished! Give up on the kids, we can still get out-”

Wait what’s that?

“Meera!” I notice something around the corner. There’s a…a gap in the wall. A missing section. Sprinting to it, I poke my head through to find a huge drop on the other side. It’s just a black pit into nothingness. However, somewhere, at the bottom, I can hear running water. “I think this connects to another section!” Thinking fast, I whisper a spell. My earth magic is crap, but at the very least, I can do this much-

[Muddy Stone of My Endurance, Move Forth-Meld]

The metal and bone around the hole shifts, enlarging the gap as I poke at it with my mind. An even more fetid smell breaks out, although that might be because of what’s rushing at us from behind. I turn to Meera who is looking at my handiwork dubiously. It’s just barely big enough to fit a person now.

“You want to go in there?” She asks.

“The Stranger’s map showed a bunch of chambers below us.” I hurriedly glance over my shoulder at the corpse-swarm which is creeping forwards. Putrid hands and feet scrabble trying to get it’s enormous bulk through the pipe entrance. Motioning at the hole, I grin behind the mask, “If we go through here, that thing will have a hell of a time fitting.”

“...” Meera incredulously looks at me and the hole to nothingness. Then turns towards the tunnel which slopes upwards, possibly towards the surface. “You want to go down that hole…just to save some kids you don’t know?”

“They can tell us about the Ferry-Rat.”

“Who cares. We’ll just hunt him down the old-fashioned way. Look, let’s just toss these guys down the hole and run for it. They’re Demi’s. They might survive the fall.”

“W-What?”

“Mister, please don’t!”

“Meera…don’t you think that jokes a little cruel?” I tell her chidingly. Though I concede the point. It’d be easier to leave em and run. But how else are we going to find out where he’s run off to? “Still, we need them. Until we find the Ferry-Rat, I expect you to take care of them.”

“Tch…Boss, I think you’re the cruel one.” Meera sighs. She walks towards me, a boy under each arm. Hold on…you’re not seriously going to ignore orders? Before I can react, she tosses the two boys into the hole one after another.

!!!

“M-Meera?!”

Sarcastically, she turns around and salutes me.

“Do you ever think that you’re just doing this because they remind you of her?”

“What?”

…

*Whoosh*

Meera allows herself to fall backwards into the hole. At the last second, she pushes off the ledge and accelerates, no doubt going to catch the boys. I sigh in relief, watching her disappear into the darkness.

For a second there…I thought she really was just going to leave them.

“M-Mister! We need to go!” Sila tugs at my ears and I realize the sound of squirming flesh is getting awfully close. Turning around, I grimace at the sight of a wall of undead meat roiling towards us. Several chains rattle as they slide across the pipe walls. Their inhabitants are missing. It seems, to fit in the pipe, the corpse-swarm has literally squeezed off it’s own excess weight. Huh…this might be the first instance of liposuction in this world. “P-l-e-a-s-e! Don’t let it eat me!”

Puh-lease…you don’t look anything like Natalia.

I wouldn’t even think twice about letting you get eaten if it wasn’t for what you know.

Right…? RIGHT?!

“I got you.” Facing the void, I grab Sila’s elbows. Her face is terrified and I wink at her, knowing that she can’t see anything else through my mask. “We’re going to fall now. Try not to let go-!”

No fancy diving maneuver like Meera. I just tilt forwards and hop into the abyss. Behind me, I hear chains smacking as the monster tries to fit through the tiny hole. But we’re already falling-

Down…

Down..

Down.