The Lesser One Arc 2 Version 2 Chapter 26: Snap

 

Snap

We arrive at a compound in the countryside. It appears miliary in nature, with high barbed wire fences and block buildings. Sebastian pulls the limousine into a parking lot in the nearby town. We disembark and walk through the small town. Mandrake takes us into a small alleyway, where there is an entrance to a local sewer system. He pulls the gate open, allowing rust to sprinkle the ground.

We stoop over to get inside. Sebastian enters last, covering our rear. The darkness envelopes us, but we brought flashlights. Or torches, as they are called in the UK. They flicker on and illuminate the dirty, bug-infested walls. The sewer continues onward past the beams of our lights. We start walking forward. There is a small ledge on either side of the tunnel that keeps our feet above the sewage. The stench is terrible, of course. We’re in a sewer after all.

Several gigantic rats scurry past our feet. They skitter, the sound of their voices bouncing off the curved walls. We go deeper. Dripping water echoes. A miasma-like cloud gathers at our feet.

A roar comes from somewhere deep into the darkness. Everyone stops.

Esla holds up her hand. “Can we get some more light in here?”

A previously unnoticed sewage grate catches the sun in just the right way, sending sunbeams into the depths of the sewer, illuminating dust motes. A twisted face appears in front of us.

The face is like that of an eldritch monstrosity. Its eyes are pitch black. Its chin is split into multiple sections. Its nose is gigantic. Tentacles hang from its scalp instead of hair. The monster lifts its massive hand and places it against the wall, leaving slime behind.

“What is it you are here for?” The monster speaks.

“We’re sneaking into a military compound.” Mandrake takes a step forward.

“Then you shall play a game of riddles with me.”

Mandrake nods. “Okay. I agree.”

The monster breaths out a cloud of noxious gas. “I am not alive, but I grow. I don’t have lungs, but I breathe air. I don’t have a mouth, but water kills me. What am I?”

Ari looks at me. “Markus. Test your skills. Answer the riddle.”

I think for a long time, or at least what seems like a long time. “Fire. Fire is the answer.”

Ari claps. “Oh ho.” She turns to the monster. “How much dirt is in a hold two feet by five feet by four feet?”

“None, of course.” The monster appears smug. “I’m tall when I’m young, I’m short when I’m old. What am I?”

Esla holds up her hand. “Oh, oh! A pencil!”

“Good.” The monster lowers its head. “Ask.”

Ari raises an eyebrow. “A man was outside during the rain without an umbrella or a hat, but did not get his hair wet. Why?”

The monster seems to think for a moment. “He was bald.” The monster grins. “Your name. No mortal has ever gotten this far in a contest of riddles with me.”

Ari waves her fan in front of her face. “Oh ho. You are playing my game.” She turns to me. “Markus. Give him a riddle.”

“Okay. I am a box without hinge or lid, and yet inside golden treasure is hid.”

Esla suppresses a laugh. Mandrake looks at me like I’m an idiot.

But the monster seems to have trouble with it. “Hm. It is not elemental gold. The box, perhaps, is not square.”

Esla continues to suppress laughter. Mandrake claps his hand over Esla’s mouth.

“Egg. It is an egg.” The monster frowns. “Now answer. If you don’t keep me, I’ll break. What am I?”

I think for a while. What can be broken when not kept? Sage?

 

Sage: I believe you are being tested. It would be smart not to use my skills.

“Okay.” I think some more. “Promise. A promise.” Promises can be kept and broken. I grin. “Okay, monster. A man on a ship is heading to New York. On the way, he passes a yacht with fourteen passengers, including a dog. Then he passes a fishing trawler with six passengers. And finally he passes a small motorboat with five passengers. How many people reach New York with him?”

“Oh, my.” The monster closes his eyes. “Fourteen … Six … Five …” He sighs. “I am no good with math.”

“The answer is him alone. He did not pick up the passengers he passed.”

The monster guffaws. “Oh my.” He steps aside. “You have beaten me. Pass, and I shall allow you to do what you wish. I must warn you, however. The master I am currently serving has much more up his sleeve than you appear to know about.” The monster bows, and then shrinks back into the darkness.

Esla looks at me. “I know where you got that egg one, but where did you get that ship one?”

“I, ah, I played a video game once.”

Esla laughs. “Oh my god. You’re such a nerd.” She taps me on the forehead. “I know Ari would have bailed you out if you hadn’t answered those other two, but you did good.”

Ari waves her fan. “Oh ho.” She turns away. “It’s about time for us to continue.”

We walk through the dark sewer, which is occasionally graced with sunbeams from the sewer gates and inflows. Water drips.

We reach a crossroads. Mandrake consults a map. “Looks like we go this way.” He points to the right.

We take that right turn. The sewer starts elevating upwards. The flow of sewage decreases in size and increases in speed.

We reach a dead end with a door on it. There is a faded nuclear symbol on it.

“This appears to be the location.” Mandrake steps up to the door. “And here is the key.” He produces a key from his pocket.

The door opens with a rusty groan. Flakes of metal fall from the ceiling. We enter into a nuclear bunker that has been stripped of everything not nailed down. Dust covers every surface. Mandrake stops and places his map on the table in the middle of the room. “Looks like we’re directly under one of the barracks. This one appears to be abandoned, but the one nearby is used as a holding place for his demons.”

“They’re those clowns, right?” Esla shudders. “I really don’t like them. I’ve always been suspicious of clowns, and these guys just seal the deal.”

“You’re going to be fighting them.” Mandrake turns to Esla. “Are you ready for this? Your safety is not guaranteed.”

Esla holds up her bionic hand. “Yeah, I got that seared into my flesh by an evil mastermind.”

Mandrake appears satisfied. “Good. The SAS assault will begin at oh fourteen hundred. That’s in twenty minutes. We have until then to get into position.”

“Have we confirmed the location of Deeve himself?” I look at the map.

“No. Not yet. But we know what to do in a contingency.” Mandrake turns to Ari. “Do you have Deeve’s voice sample?”

“I do.” Ari takes out a small recording device. She turns it on and Deeve speaks. It’s just a few garbled words, but Ari apparently gets something from it. She slips the device back into her pocket. “I’m locked on.”

We nod at each other. Then Mandrake walks to the door that leads to the surface. He taps gently on the door. There is no response. He turns the handle, dragging it open with a creak. We walk up dimly lit stairs and into an abandoned barracks. Rows of empty bunk beds line the walls. Streaks of sunlight come through cracked corrugated tin walls.

“We’re waiting here until the assault begins.” Mandrake kneels and crawls to the door. He looks around the edge. “Okay.” He pulls a pistol from his coat pocket. “Arm yourselves.”

Ari snaps her fan shut and takes out a dictionary. Sebastian and Tia conjure their respective spirits into weapons. Esla takes the glove off of her bionic hand. I conjure a rifle.

We sit next to the door, saying nothing. I feel the pressure mounting. My ears ring with an ever-present buzz.

The sound of a helicopter grows from a faint rumble to a loud vibration. I can hear demons yelling at each other from the nearby barracks. Gunshots pop.

“Go, go go!” Mandrake bursts through the door, followed by Sebastian, Tia, Esla, Ari and I. We fan out, moving in the general direction of the main building.

Two clown demons spot us. Mandrake pulls his hand through the air. “Open fire!”

One demon conjures a force field. The other is hit between the eyes by Esla’s hand cannon. My rifle bullets bounce off the force field. The bullet ricochets and spits up dirt next to me.

Tia motions. “I’ll take care of him! She rushes towards him wielding a spear of ice, and collides with the clown, pushing them both ono the ground where they start struggling.

“Go, go!” Mandrake motions and the rest of us race towards the main building. A demon clown pops up over the top of the building and takes pot shots at us. Several bullets puff into the dirt nearby. I cover my head with a shield and fire off my rifle in his general direction.

The clown takes a hit to the neck and staggers backwards. Droplets of blood spatter the ground beneath the building.

We reach the wall and press up against it. Mandrake motions. “We’re entering through this wall!” He pulls a thermite package from his backpack and slaps it onto the wall. “Back off!”

We back away. The thermite burns whiter than the sun, melting the wall. Then Mandrake motions again. “Let’s get in!”

We rush into the building and catch two demon clowns by surprise. One of them pulls a pistol but the gun is shot out of his hand by Esla. The other conjures a steel spear and rushes at us.

Sebastian engages with him using a short sword. The two dance around the hallway. Sebastian stabs the clown in the chest and the clown falls. Mandrake rushes up to the other clown and slits his throat.

Tia runs into the room, covered in blood. She is holding her arm. “I’m okay.”

We move through the hallway, keeping an eye out for enemies. I can hear gunshots in the distance. Most of the demon clowns are being occupied by the special forces.

We come to a large oaken door. Mandrake pulls another thermite package from his backpack. “This is it. Deeve is probably behind this door.”

Mandrake blows the door up and we rush through into a gigantic antechamber. All at once everyone freezes. I can’t move, except for my eyes and mouth.

Esla starts speaking and her hand glows.

“Markus.” A voice comes from my right side. Deeve walks into my field of view and snaps. Esla’s mouth shuts.

Her hand stops glowing.

Deeve continues as if nothing has happened. “You found me. Congratulations. I heard you gave my pet quite the game of words.”

“Deeve.” I try to move my arm but it won’t function. “What do you want?”

“I called you here for a reason.” Deeve lifts his hand and a projector screen rolls down from the ceiling. A projector puts an image of Alice onto the screen. She is still in her cot at the hospital. Her eyes, of course, are closed.

“I want you to promise me now that you will make the choice to wake up Alice.” Deeve holds up a glowing golden orb. “You will get this choice in the not too distant future.” He places the orb on a pedestal. “The Gods will be your witness. If you make this promise, I will give you my vote as a member of the Silverbones.”

“Okay.” I didn’t even hesitate.

“Markus!” Mandrake’s voice is loud. “Why are you agreeing so quickly? There has to be a downside to this! Why would someone as powerful as Deeve want this?”

Deeve snaps his finger. “Shut your mouth, Bright.” Mandrake’s jaw snaps shut. Deeve turns to me. “Your oath is complete. I will cease all operations and attacks on the city of London.”

The glowing orb brightens. Deeve snaps his fingers again. “So be it.” He disappears.