Dungeon Run

Prologue

"How many times I'll have to beg you for it, Benjamin?" asked that man that, for him, had been a father during the long years of loneliness. The days filled with hunger, pain, and cold that preceded his invitation to join the Cleric's Order. "You know that there's no one better for this job than you."

Obviously, the time there hadn't gone as planned – for both of them. His entire childhood molded him as he presented himself back in the day and also nowadays, living in the slums surrounding the King's City, with no one to rely on. But already in the early days, the man had noticed his skills for deceiving and subtracting items without others noticing. Not only that, but he also perceived – and acutely during the last years – something unnatural growing in him, under his skin, and in his brain. He could feel it, he could talk with it.

"You mean, I'm the only one expendable enough to do this. Am I right?" Asked Benjamin in return to the pressing friend. In return, Drogo only stared at him, without saying a single word that would deny exactly what he was being asked to do – risk his life once more. The bar where they were meeting was completely different from the Order's halls where they spent so much time training. It was crowded and loud, but the smell of the good food prepared somewhere in the back of the building continued to grasp his attention. With his stomach rumbling, Benjamin looked to the side and noticed a small place with a few leftovers of bread laying over an empty table.

"The food is already on the way, Benjamin. I've ordered it already." He interrupted the friend's distant thoughts. "We could have avoided it ending like that. But please, accept this job, and you will have enough to take care of yourself until the end of the day. It isn't me – or just me – asking for it, it's the Order!"

Benjamin's focus moved back to his friend, and his thoughts faded away together with those words… "the Order…" it echoed in his mind for longer than he had wished for. Once something that had been a dream now felt like something so distant. Not because of “The Order” itself, but rather because of him. "Drogo,” he halted for a moment while the waitress brought the food that his friend – and mentor – had ordered, and with a pretty smile she placed the plates together with a bowl of bread right in front of him, when she left he continued. “You have uncountable prepared clerics in the order that could do the same job as I would. Many of them have even more training than I have. And surely they are more reliable than I am for this kind of job, or for any kind of job. Without any more bullshit, why me?”

Drogo moved from one side to the other on his chair. He wasn't the typical cleric that you would find roaming the town during the day, he looked much more menacing than that. Instead of the dark gray robes that were the normal Order’s dressings, he walked as a half-prepared warrior, with a steel-plate armor so perfectly polished that it could reflect the shine on one’s eyes when looking directly at it. Instead of the perfectly shaved beard, he flaunts a long red-haired beard that easily crossed his chest height. Although he had the perfect menacing appearance, Benjamin knew that that man was the most heart-welcoming person he ever met – and the one who took him from the streets and believed in him. Without much longer he cleared his throat and replied, “You know that in the Order we have woes…”

Benjamin’s eyebrows lifted, he was already expecting some sort of random excuse.

“And those woes mark us as devotees of the Holy Light. We know that we could enter the palace and get the transcripts by ourselves. That is logical. But our sources identified that the king has an unknown sorcerer with him, and the dark magic would easily identify our presence there.”

“It sounds logical, but still… can’t you all either way pay a visit to the King? Like something completely casual, just like two old friends having dinner while talking business?” Benjamin winked while grabbing another piece of the bread. "This is delicious."

Drogo's face became serious, “we could, surely. But we do not want to risk a war with the kingdom. That’s why we need other methods to fulfill our role to protect this world against any dark forces – or people that want to pretend that is in fact related to it.”

The loud tone of the people chatting around increased quickly before halting from one second to the other. A fight broke on the other side of the bar, where two burly men began to discuss whatever heated topic. Many of the ones that were quietly fasting had to make room while fists and cups began to fly from one side to the other. They continued tackling one another, flipping tables and making chairs fly. A third man, bigger than both of them together, joined the brawl, taking both men by their hair and pushing them to the farthest corner of the tavern.

"Benjamin… please, I do not have anyone else that I can trust with this task. We need your help. Do not forget that you were the one that chose to leave the Order, and it wasn't our decision. I risked myself to avoid you being hurt."

He hated to hear his friend and mentor begging for help. It wasn't something that he was used to, and that he had almost never seen. Drogo was known for being a hard-headed and grumpy cleric - one of those old-school types that remained like that for their entire lifetime - and now close to his seventies it only got worse. But, Benjamin was different, he always had the most patience and tried everything he could to make that little boy that he found one day be the best person he could be. Another bottle broke somewhere in the back of the bar, probably on someone's head. The noise took Benjamin out of his own thoughts.

“What we are about to witness is the beginning of the destruction of everything we know. And we are not only talking about this place here, this town that sheltered us - we are talking about the entire world.” His old friend observed the fight on the other side with sad eyes, as if he knew that whatever was happening there wasn’t important. Those people, carrying their everyday lives, so normal, so alienated, will soon have to face something that would cost them much more than they ever imagined. That kingdom had seen dark days before, but now it is different. “I beg you, Benjamin, for the Order, for these people!”

Benjamin… sighted. Long, undesired, and a sigh empty of hope. Without much thinking, trying only to follow his heart, he tried to come up with an alternative that would save his own skin, and help his friend. He couldn’t.

"Fine.” He said, grumpy and rolling his eyes. “I know you will just keep repeating the same bullshit over and over again. You know me well enough and know how much you mean to me…”

Drogo stared at him, with the shape of his mouth slightly changing while hearing his once pupil’s words – his expression became even more serious.

“What exactly should I look for?"

A pause, followed by one last question.

"And why?"

***

Chapter 1

“Never again, Benjamin… NEVER AGAIN…!” He complained over and over while trying to catch up with his breath in that cramped and stinky place.

Slowly, the darkness that surrounded him began to be replaced by a weak light that penetrated that dark and humid tunnel, where he slowly, but fiercely, dragged himself through a small opening. Its diameter didn’t allow him much more movement to the sides in a way that he could easily slide to the other side. He turned back, facing the path he had left behind, and from where he couldn’t see much of the route that he followed until that point.

The sewage from the castle that lay above was what currently ran under his feet. Not more than a few centimeters deep of constant running and fetid water, carrying all the wastes that were produced by the prominent and self-proclaimed important people hundreds of meters above where he currently was. His backpack was pushed through the hole with relative ease. Now, he held his breath and, desperately, laid on the water, crouching and placing his body in front of the opening. He needed to get out of there. The movements of his arms splashed against his face and also against the walls of the hole, which unfortunately hit back into his mouth and eyes. His clothes were soaked and ruined, and his body urged him to vomit when something somewhat solid slipped through his fingers, breaking into smaller pieces while pressing against the walls.

Inside his mind, he repeated over and over again the same phrase, which tried to keep himself focused no matter what: You have until before dusk to leave the tunnel. Seeing the last lights will protect you from your enemies, and give you enough time to enjoy what was planned to happen after. He barfed once again. You will have a life as you could never imagine having one day! Those were the last words that the mysterious contact sent by Drogo shared with him not long before he found his way inside the castle and retrieved that strange book from the hands of the king.

Ah… the King… he recalled. It was collateral damage, and the fat man would survive. He had the best doctors at his disposal, although he was sure that they wouldn’t be able to stick those fingers back in place. The heist up to collecting the book had been perfect, the problem was the moment the king returned to the library to… make out with one of the maids. After that the plan had become completely chaotic, screams, swords swinging here and there, chairs flying, and even the maid being used as a shield, it all culminated in the situation which he was at that point.

Coming slowly, growing with time, a high-pitched squeak broke the silence from inside the tunnel, where only the running water could be heard outside him panting. Benjamin stopped almost instantly, trying to quickly control his accelerated breathing and his heart pumping more and more blood to his arms and legs. Wishing to identify how far exactly those things were behind him, he overheard the noises of his followers not so far from where he was.

Fuck.

Time was short. And having any companion there - especially those Skums that he was avoiding for so long - would only result in more delays for him to reach the end of the tunnel, as planned. Pushing himself out of the opening, ahead of him, he wouldn’t need to cover much more than five hundred meters of the tunnel to go, it should be fast… If it wasn't for small detail.

Light…!

There was light coming from his side. There was a freaking tunnel coming from somewhere else straight to the place! He must have overseen it during the planning, but now was too late to take any advantage of it, as the ones that were chasing him were now not so far behind as he wished.

Not more than a dozen of meters, a sharp corner formed a natural blind spot for his location. There where he had come not so long ago, the light coming from torches carried by Skums illuminated the path forward, and consequently him, right after the bend. And with it those fish-like creatures that the king uses to patrol the sewage sections would easily find him.

"Benjamin, the King wants you back there! You two have unfinished business to deal with! He has some fingers of yours to cut off - and also your head!" the first fish head spoke from somewhere, which he couldn’t identify. Judging that Skums weren’t so smart, and almost incapable of learning human language, he presumed that it was from one of their higher ranks following him.

"Dead or alive!" The second completed and seconds later the first arrows began to fly in his direction, hitting close to his head while he instinctively dropped himself to the water level to hide.

His breathing was heavy, and he could feel the adrenaline rushing through his veins. No better option could be accounted for than just continuing sprinting through that tunnel without looking back. And that was what he did, trying to deviate from the arrows, with the fetid water splashing all over. Benjamin had no other option than to continue going.

"Fire against him!" they screamed, "don't let him escape! KIIIIILL HIIIIIIM!"

A fire bolt was shot from behind him, and as he rushed through the tunnel Benjamin could perceive the clarity that followed it as it got closer to him. The trajectory was almost perfect, scratching him over the shoulders and ripping his robe. The fire extinguished instantly when hitting the water in front of him, but the burning sensation with the burnt skin continued there.

With no more options at his disposal than when he had entered the castle for that job, he had to make a decision. It was either finding a way to fight back against a horde of Skums following him closely, or else. Where else was taking a chance while jumping off that cliff and hoping for the best. Benjamin hated this type of situation - mostly when he had no other option.

He closed his eye for a moment, quickly casting a spell around the book, hoping it would keep it safe for the necessary time. And then he rushed towards the end of the tunnel.

***

Chapter 2

Even though the odds were always against all of them, none (NONE) of them could ever have imagined that they would reach the situation that they were in at that moment. No Order, no outcast cleric, no king or kingdom could have foretold what they were seeing. From within the woods on some hill a few kilometers away from the city, Benjamin stood still while facing one of the – if not the most – catastrophic scenarios of his entire lifetime.

His mind was in sheer panic. His heart pressed like a father’s hand while trying to calm their frightened children. His feet - oh his feet - those were tired, they desired to bring that flesh vessel to safety - even though his mind already knew that safety was long gone.

It is nowhere safe now.

No matter how much he desired to lie to himself that he could probably find somewhere safe to hide and hope for the best, he couldn’t think of a reason to do so. He wasn’t that selfish, no matter how many times people and life had beaten him down.

A crack coming from within the woods caught his attention, even though the thunderstorm echoed through the air. He swiftly turned while pulling the dagger from its leather holder attached to his shoulder. The light and silver blade traveled through the air before finding the throat that appeared on the other end. Benjamin’s breathing was erratic, his eyes were sharp by the fear and willingness to survive, but his mind was even sharper.

“What the actual fuck, Drogo?!”

His old mentor was standing there, with his face covered in blood and bearing the eyes of someone who had seen too much during the last months. The fingers, once perfectly clean no matter the occasion, now were covered in a permanent mixture of dirt and thick dark blood. “You mean me being here, or the situation?” the mentor replied, with a deep and serious voice.

Benjamin drew back his dagger, safely placing it back in the cover. The roar of the thunders behind him grew stronger and louder, with the sock waves hitting them and making the hair on the back of his head rise. Far into the horizon, crossing the city and close to the newly created mountain, a river of lava and fire grew from the depths of the earth and visited - destroying everything along its path. The once green plains that were vastly used for cattle and the families that once lived there. All dead.

The most disturbing sight though was the fact that from the peak of the mountain, not only rocks and ashes flew from the vivid red hole on it. Rather, it was possible to see something rising from it. Something wicked… The noise that it produced was equally terrifying. Loud but deep, like a thousand souls asking for help, for forgiveness. Benjamin pressed his eyes, trying to understand exactly what was in front of him, but although he pushed himself to avoid believing it, his conscience was stronger… he mumbled… “is… is this a…”

Drogo placed his firm hand over his shoulder, interrupting his thoughts with a single phrase that made him become pale. “Yes, this is a hand.”

Swallowing felt like an eternity while those words kept echoing in his mind. Weightless was the best way to describe his state, everything, while more dark smoke and red lava spilled from that opening and poured itself and the flying rocks over the city not many kilometers from its location. That place…that place was where the necromancer had planned and executed everything that we are seeing now. And I gave it to him!

“Whose hand is it?” Asked Benjamin, even knowing that he didn’t want to know the answer.

“Rohnas’ hand. The lord of the darkness is rising from his rest. He had been kept there for centuries, even long before the Cleric wars.”

Benjamin looked at him with confusion on his face. He knew the tales, and that many of the dark followers had been trying to achieve that deed no matter what, but that had been true… unless it was worse than he had imagined. “The sorcerer book you - the Order - asked me to get from the King… I saw it contained rituals that could free old spirits, but they weren’t complete… not to the point that Rohnas could be awakened… how can… I mean…?

Drogo looked at him with a quick sideways look, ashamed, distrusted. “The Order was compromised. We were weak and inattentive, and we accommodated people that weren’t pure of heart. We stored the volume for a short time… but too late we realized that the pages were missing!”

That sentence felt like a punch in his stomach. Compromised! It means that during all that time someone was inside the Order, knowing all their secrets, having access to every sort of information and secrets that it kept away from the mundane world. And in front of him was the result of it, the chaos and destruction coming from the depths of the earth straight into this world. A soul seeker, devourer. He knew that nothing would survive once that creature had reached the surface and would then begin its path of destruction.

He feared to ask, knowing the answer, but he did anyway “is there anything that we can do? Any spell or enchantment that we could make use of?”

It couldn’t simply be the end for all of them.

Benjamin observed the hands of his mentor. Closed fists, pressing so hard that even under layers of dirt, it was possible to perceive the veins jumping between the nodes. A somewhat furious expression was imprinted on his face while staring at the mountain rising far away. Words tried to come out of his mouth, but for a moment they were impeded to be pronounced. Drogo took another deep breath before continuing.

“There is one way. It won’t be pretty, it would require much more from us than we would like to give, Benjamin.”

“Ha…” a short laugh followed the statement, “I don’t believe we are in the position of deciding how much we want to drag ourselves into this, are we?”

“No… there is this only chance to avoid the entire world being burned to the ground…”

Benjamin shrugged while turning himself back to the forest, and with a smile, he responded: “Let’s not waste any more time, we have some gigantic ass to kick.”