Chapter 89: Knock Knock, It’s a 60-Foot Death Roomba
Karl and his party now stood before the entrance of the towering, silver metallic structure. Dullahan and Libera, their bodies trembling slightly, instinctively gripped the hilts of their swords, their unease a palpable presence in the air. Karl, however, was the opposite; his eye sockets widened like twin stars in the darkness.
"Wow! This is fascinating," Karl said, his voice filled with genuine awe. "I never thought I’d see such an alien design. This looks like something out of a futuristic science fiction movie."
Schalezusk was equally amazed, though tinged with a healthy dose of fear. "This is amazing and terrifying at the same time," he mumbled, his gaze sweeping over the seamless, unnatural surface.
"How old do you think this structure is?" Rook asked, a hint of wonder in his voice.
"We can’t know for sure," Leo replied, his hand resting on the smooth wall. "But judging by how alien it looks, this might be as old as the world itself."
"My guess is that an ancient civilization used to live here, then died out for unknown reasons," Karl mused, his mind already racing. "Or maybe the denizens of the underworld are their descendants." He turned to the Dullahan. "Do you have any known history of the underworld?"
"No, my lord," the Dullahan said, shaking his skull. "The church and a few select members are the only ones with access to the records of the underworld. It is believed that the underworld has its own history, separate from the land of the living."
"Not surprising," Karl muttered. "There must be something they don’t want the public to know."
Schalezusk ran his hand along the wall, his brow furrowed in concentration. "Wait a minute," he said, his eyes widening. "I think I saw this kind of material somewhere before."
Karl looked at the one-armed orc, intrigued. "You have my attention," he said.
"My father was given a box," Schalezusk explained, pointing at a silvery pattern on the wall. "Yeah, it was a box that looked just like this."
Karl’s curiosity piqued. "Where is it now?"
Schalezusk scratched his head. "Well... I thought it was just a useless box, so I left it. That traitor Minur must’ve had it."
Hmm... Karl thought, looking at the orc. Could his bloodline be connected to this place somehow, or maybe his grandfather just found it? Whatever it is, I’m interested in the technology-i meant history of this place. There might be a database in here somewhere. He smirked. Maybe I can take a peek at one of the schematics and functions.
He opened his 3D map, the red beacon pointing below.
"Anyway, our next destination to the 10th floor is here," he said, gesturing to a massive, dark hallway behind an eerily open, massive silver door. "Come on!". Leo, Rook, and Schalezusk followed him into the dark hallway. Dullahan and Libera followed, their hands on their hilts, their senses alert for any kind of movement.
Inside, the lights of the artificial sunlight illuminated the hallway of the structure. Massive alien pillars lined the hall, with numerous stands and slow-fading white lights on the walls.
"This place seems to be long dormant," Karl said. "I wonder if there’s anything I can take as a souvenir."
He saw Leo and Schalezusk reaching out to touch one of the stands, and he immediately held up a hand. "DON’T!" he said, and the two pulled their hands back quickly, startled. Karl continued, his voice a low growl. "DON’T. TOUCH. ANYTHING. GOT. IT?"
They glanced at each other and nodded.
"Good," Karl said. "If we want to make it out of this place alive, we better not wake up whatever’s sleeping in here. Just follow me."
Dullahan and Libera became even more alert, their bodies trembling in fear. "Should we just run?" Libera whispered to the Dullahan.
"Even if we could," Dullahan replied, "I don’t think we have the free will to do so."
"Ah, right," Libera mumbled, resigned.
They made it to the end of the hall, only to be blocked by another massive silver door. Karl threw his hands up in frustration. "This pisses me off! I mean, who leaves their house locked?"
Everyone glanced at each other, their faces silently asking the same question: Isn’t everyone supposed to lock their doors?
Karl muttered to himself. "I mean, how can I rob—I mean, get to my destination if this thing’s locked?" The others exchanged knowing looks, confirming their suspicions. Yep, he’s going to steal something.
Karl began to look around. "Help me look for anything I can press. But don’t touch. Start on the side of the door, on the walls. There’s usually a code lock in here or something." Everyone scattered, searching for a console.
Twenty minutes later, Karl sighed in exasperation. "Where’s that damn console? How else am I going to open this massive door? Push?" he said, staring at the double doors.
"I found something!" Schalezusk shouted from behind one of the massive pillars.
"Finally!" Karl exhaled. "Don’t touch anything. I’ll be right there." He ran toward the orc, with everyone following.
As they all gathered to see what he had found, their eyes widened. A massive claw slash had cut through multiple black tubes with glowing yellow circuits.
"What. The. Fuck. Is that?" Karl said, his voice low. Everyone was silent. "I don’t even want to imagine what caused this kind of damage. Whatever it is, is extremely dangerous." Karl turned around. "One of you didn’t touch anything, right?"
They shook their heads in unison.
"Good," Karl exhaled. "Now, this must be what caused the doors to close. Let’s try something. I bet my core that whatever I do won’t cause an alarm," he said, more to himself than to the group. "Well, hopefully." He began looking around, scanning the damaged tubes. "Everyone look for anything that lights up as soon as I connect one of them, especially if you think it’s dangerous."
Everyone followed his instructions. Karl reached beyond the damaged tubes and grabbed a detached one. He turned and said, "Ready?" Everyone nodded. He then connected the two random tubes.
Silence.
"Nothing happened," they said.
Karl sighed. "Alright, let’s try this again. I must’ve connected the wrong pair." He took another tube, scaling them to see if they were the perfect match. "Not that," he mumbled, taking another. "Not that." He took one more. "This one, hopefully. Ready?" Everyone nodded again.
He connected the final pair, and instantly, a low hum filled the air. Rook shouted, "The lights on the pillars turned on!" Karl looked back at the hallway, seeing the pillars now glowing a vibrant white. He sighed in frustration. "Ahhh... thankfully but not thankfully. I’m looking for something that opens that damn door."
He took yet another pair of tubes. "Ready?" Everyone nodded. As soon as he connected them, the large doors began to open. With a deafening slam, they swung wide despite their massive size. Their eyes widened as they saw a metallic beast that looked exactly like a lion, but with horns. Its eyes glowed a furious red as it let out a thunderous roar.
Karl’s confidence vanished, replaced by palpable fear as the beast dashed towards the hall, its size ten times their own.
Libera and Dullahan could not help but scream. "AHHHH, WE’RE DEAD!" they cried. "THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT!"
The 60-foot metallic beast moved with a terrifying grace, its massive claws swatting and stomping the approaching skeleton soldiers who, despite their numbers, proved to be nothing more than fragile toys. Their bones shattered and crunched under its weight, their attacks—mere pings and scrapes on its armored hide—useless against a body forged of an unknown metal.
Karl snapped back to reality from his initial fear. "Go outside! Attract its attention!" he roared, his voice cutting through the roar of the monster. The skeleton soldiers, bound by his will, didn’t hesitate and ran toward the outside, a diversionary tactic he was all too familiar with. Karl then raised his hand, and a swirling vortex of black and purple energy appeared above the party. With a sickening thump, the Corpse King fell from the portal, its immense, grotesque form landing heavily on the ground. The Flesh Golem roared, a deep, guttural sound of challenge, but the noise died in its throat as its eyes fell upon the metallic beast, a creature four times its size. Karl didn’t care for the creature’s terror. "Go distract it," he commanded, his voice cold and commanding. "Buy us some time."
The Corpse King hesitated for a moment, a rare display of defiance or fear, before letting out a determined roar and charging forward, its immense feet shaking the ground as it ran to intercept the monster.
"Let’s go, the doors are open," Karl said, turning and running toward the massive gateway. Everyone followed him, their feet pounding against the silent, cold floor.
"My lord," Rook called out, his voice filled with a conflict of duty and concern. "What about the men?"
Karl’s mind raced. He wasn’t truly attached to his summons; they were just pawns, disposable minions to be used and discarded. He hoped they would survive and escape to the next floor. But then, it dawned on him—maybe the beast they were fighting wasn’t just a monster, but was the was the gatekeeper, he was tasked with defeating it. And now, he was about to run away, again, leaving his forces to their fate. He stopped dead in his tracks. Everyone behind him stopped as well, confused.
Shit. Shit. Shit, he cursed internally, the word an echo of a long-buried memory. Am I always going to run away?
His mind flashed back to a scene from his middle school days. He was on the ground, a group of bullies surrounding him, their cruel laughter ringing in his ears. "HAHAHA! Look at him curling like a snail!" one of them jeered. "He’s gay! He pooped in his pants! Curl up and eat your own shit, nerd!"
The taunts were a familiar tune of torment, a daily ritual that had chipped away at his spirit. Just as he was about to break, his dog, a loyal mutt named Buster, arrived. The dog growled and bared its teeth, its hackles raised, ready to defend him. But Karl, consumed by panic and fear, ran away, his feet carrying him to the false safety of home, leaving his dog behind.
Later that night, Buster returned, injured and limping, a deep gash along his side. The next morning, animal control came to get him. Buster had chased the bullies and bit five of them, nearly tearing one’s leg off in a fit of protective rage. His parents faced civil lawsuits, responsible for the medical bills and damages. Buster was taken away for quarantine and further investigation. Karl had loved that dog, and his cowardice had led to severe consequences for his pet and his family. The shame of his inaction, of choosing his own fear over the loyalty of his companion, was a scar on his soul.
The same was happening now. He was about to abandon his summons, to let them be shattered and destroyed while he escaped to safety. "Shit. Shit. Shit!" he muttered, the memory a fire in his veins. The fear he had felt before was now replaced with a seething, hot anger at himself. He was a leader now, with the power to command legions, yet he was still the same coward who ran away.
That was a reality he couldn’t live with. The shame was unbearable.
"Fuck this shit!" he shouted, turning to face his astonished followers. "We die, and we die hard!"
Leo and Rook’s faces broke into smiles. Without a word, they turned back, the six of them charging down the hall, ready to chase after the beast and face their fate head-on.