Chapter 45 - In the Depths
The flames in the background didn’t approach fast, but the sizzling lava spewing from the Zinnals’ horns gave off steam. Within a moment, fog draped around the necks of the two kidnappers. causing them to cough and panic.
“Where do we go?!” Tynun shouted, noticing that it would only be a matter of time before they would be captured. Even before Reok had a chance at a reply, they both darted down—as best as Tynun could anyway—toward the wall to shut the passage. Reok arrived there much quicker that Tynun, who still tired from hauling water all morning, and was exhausted further now that he had to carry a body around.
The smoke around them swelled and burned their eyes.
“Shit! Tynun! I can’t find it! The smoke is already too thick. Get over and help!” Slaps of the Frakkal’s rough hands battered against the rocky wall. “Hurry!”
Tynun groaned. “I’m trying!” Step by step he moved forward, body weighted to the ground. On occasion his stomach even scrapped against the sharp mineral-filled ground and almost caused him to collapse. But, he carried on, through the directionless fog. It grew so thick that he could only rely on the sound of Reok’s voice. That too, however, ended up proving useless as the army of Zinnals behind them shouted out, “Stop! Give Larana back!”
Was there a way to escape? Was this the end of Tynun’s short lived life? How could he help save Nery at this rate?
Reok no longer shouted, but the sound of his pickaxe frantically smashing through rock pierced the air. Boulders crumbled and vibrated the ground.
“Hurry! Try to follow my voice! I think I found some—” Reok’s voice vanished.
The heat from the abyss within the mountain grew stronger as the shouting for Larana came closer.
“Reok! Reok! Where did you go!” Panic flared within Tynun and his short stubby legs frantically danced against the ground, tripping up on occasion. His body scraped against the wall as well as the ground as he hovered around the outskirts, attempting to find where Reok had been mining, or to even find a clue of Reok himself. Tynun felt a scorching heat approach and land on his back, causing him to scream out in pain. His legs buckled, but somehow he managed to continue. He climbed over the small rocks that Reok had lodged out from the wall, and felt a sense of relief as he quickly realized part of the wall had disappeared. He stepped inside.
As if falling from the sky, the ground had disappeared. He barreled down into the abyss. Screaming. The Zinnal, Larana, fell from his back and though Tynun couldn’t see her, he felt her lifeless body falling down beside him. He flipped over and saw flames above him, looking down upon him. Though they didn’t come any closer. The disappeared into a sliver of red, almost indistinguishable.
Tynun’s body scraped against a wall that caused him to start spinning. He let out a guttural cry as he bounced against Larana and the wall, surely their body was badly beaten up as well. Just as Tynun was sure of his death, the tunnel gently sloped and caused him to start rolling down, bouncing and banging across any and everything around him with speeds he had no way of discerning. And then he reached it. A flat surface. But he didn’t care anymore. He wanted to die. Warm liquid ran out from all over his body. Surely this was the end.
“Tynun…?” a shallow voice called. “Are you okay?”
Tynun didn’t respond. He couldn’t, though he did make a whimper.
“Seems my body is more made for stunts such as these.” Footsteps closed in on Tynun. Reok reached out for the whimpering Bakkon and gasped. “We need to get you back to the Parti Tab right away! But how can we do that…? Shit.” Reok rolled Tynun over onto his side and then lifted him, in an attempt to somehow carry him along. Reok hoisted Tynun on his head, the lower part of the Bakkon’s body dragging across the ground as he walked.
With only a few paces, Reok tripped over something large. Knocking Tynun back to the ground as well as himself. “Sorry, Tynun.” Reok gently brought Tynun to a comfortable position on the ground and reached for the obstacle before him. “That Zinnal.” Reok traced his hands over the lava Zinnal now encased in wax. A light beamed from inside. “You aren’t dead?”
The wax melted off and flamed lit the tunnel. Reok felt fear, but not for fire, but for what the fire displayed. He glanced over at Tynun covered in complete red, barely breathing.
“Tynun! We’re gonna make it. Just stay with me a bit longer. I’ll find a way out!” Reok glanced back at the lava Zinnal now stretching and appearing as if they just woke from a month’s long slumber. “Please! Larana? I know we… just tried to uh, abduct you, but we really need your help. We had no other choice please believe me!”
Larana rose from the ground, shaking off the remaining wax that incased their body. They did nothing but stare at Reok with eyes that pierced into his as if encasing his whole body in lava itself. The seething hatred would be felt by someone just passing by.
“Well.” Larana stomped her stubby legs, removing the last encasing that had protected them. “You stand no chance against me anymore.” Lava plumed up out of their horns, bubbling and speaking sounds of death to Reok.
“Please Larana! I know this is a selfish thing to ask. Even an absurd one, but—”
Larana fell to the ground.
“Wasn’t expecting other Mount Dai slaves to be in here,” a voice called out from behind a downpour of water. Once again, the fire-lit room faded and turned to darkness.
“Who’s there?!” Reok said.
“Your local murderer.”