Egression
I awoke to the sound of dragging chains. Attempting to shake of the massive headache pounding at my skull, I looked around, only to find jail cells. Countless rows of bars stretched out in front of me, containing both body and mind, each marked with a sign written in a strange language.
As my eyes cleared, I saw the source of the noise, as twothings, dragged a lifeless body in front of my cell. These creatures were vaguely humanoid, but had what appeared to be tentacles in the place of their arms, tipped by a mass of writhing feelers. Moving along on a snakelike body, they left behind a slimy residue in their wake. Jetting out from their backs were what looked to be a set of 3 wings, yet they were tattered so badly that they would never support the weight of such a massive form. Most remarkable of all, however, was the tentacle-like head, whose tail seemed to be constantly in motion.
The figure they were dragging, it seemed, was of a woman, but before I could get a better look, the jailer noticed my attention, and grabbed me through the bars, thrusting me to the back of my cell with a surprising strength. Speaking from an unseen mouth, it uttered some unintelligible threat, and dropped me to the ground. I rolled myself into a ball, coughing up blood when I was finally able to breathe.
The jailers flung open the cell adjacent to mine, and tossed in the body. As they slithered away, I pulled myself to the front of my cage, looking for the new addition. Spitting more blood from my mouth, I pressed my head against the bars. Each cell in eyesight were as unremarkable as mine; cold, gray walls, a bare floor, and a disheveled shell of a human being in various positions of depression. In some of the cells, some of the prisoners had even hung themselves, using their clothing strung together with shoddy knots.
Then I heard the moans. The helpless moans of hundreds of thousands of the incarcerated slaves who had lost all hope. It was maddening.
But, through the groaning, one voice stood out. I couldn't place it, but it seemed eerily familiar, emanating from the newest prisoner. Her voice hung on my mind as I tried to place it.
"I see you're finally awake, John," a cold, steely voice said from behind me, pulling me from my thoughts. Turning around, I saw Blitz, leaning nonchalantly against the back wall. "It's not her, before you ask."
"What do you want?" I asked, more annoyed than shocked.
"Just here to repay the favor," he replied, stepping forward. "You set me free, so it's only fitting that I set you free." With that, he charged at me. As I braced for his impact, though, he passed right through me, leaving a trail of black smoke, stretching from the front of me to the door of my cell.
"All that for nothing?" I cried, after several long minutes. After all that talk, that big production, he did nothing. I yelled out in frustration, slamming my fists against the bars. But, to my surprise, they began to shake, slightly at first, but growing more violent.
Then, with no warning, they shattered like glass. The shards hung in the air for a brief moment, then came together in a flash of light with the force of an explosion. I was thrown back to my cell again. When I looked up, I saw a scythe, as it briefly hovered in midair before clattering to the ground.
I slowly went over to it, and took it in my hands. A sudden rush of energy filled me, and I felt the tattered rags I was dressed in fall away, replaced with what appeared to be the same garb Blitz was wearing when he appeared. Even stranger, though, were the physical changes. My hair now fell in my face, my muscles bulged beneath my skin, and something weighed heavily on my back.
I could not stand in awe of myself for very long, since at the end of the hallway, the jailers were stirring, most likely to inspect the commotion I had caused. I stepped out into my freedom, glancing down both directions. And, since those abominations stood at one end, I decided to try my luck down the other.
By chance, I looked into the new prisoner's cell, and stopped. It was her. Her auburn hair falling all around her in an unwashed mess around her face. Her arms and legs were lying in seemingly uncomfortable positions, as if she was a rag doll. She was the voice I couldn't place. I looked upon her with a grim feeling of relief. The one woman who loved me truly, that I let get away. It was Anya.
I didn't want to leave her to this Hell, but I couldn't pick a lock, and I was nearly certain the fist pounding wouldn't work a second time.
The scythe!
I widened my stance, and swung at her cell door with the scythe, and surprisingly, it split like a knife through butter. The top half of the bars slid forward, and fell to the ground with a loud clang. Stepping inside her cell, I reached down and picked her up, throwing her over my left shoulder.
I heard the jailers calling out for reinforcements, so I knew I had to leave, now. I darted down the hallway and cut myself an exit when I reached the end. I realized it was a stupid idea when I saw the endless drop stretching out below me. But I was not falling nearly as fast as I would have thought. Instead, I felt myself drifting slowly forward. Glancing back at my doorway, I saw wings. The same wings I saw on Blitz. I also saw the jailers through the opening. I was afraid that they were preparing to follow, but they remained.
Feeling confident that I had escaped, I felt Anya stirring on my shoulder. "John?" she groaned, "Is that you?"
"Yeah, Anya," I replied, "it's me."
"I finally found you," she sighed, then passed back out.
I awoke to the sound of dragging chains. Attempting to shake of the massive headache pounding at my skull, I looked around, only to find jail cells. Countless rows of bars stretched out in front of me, containing both body and mind, each marked with a sign written in a strange language.
As my eyes cleared, I saw the source of the noise, as twothings, dragged a lifeless body in front of my cell. These creatures were vaguely humanoid, but had what appeared to be tentacles in the place of their arms, tipped by a mass of writhing feelers. Moving along on a snakelike body, they left behind a slimy residue in their wake. Jetting out from their backs were what looked to be a set of 3 wings, yet they were tattered so badly that they would never support the weight of such a massive form. Most remarkable of all, however, was the tentacle-like head, whose tail seemed to be constantly in motion.
The figure they were dragging, it seemed, was of a woman, but before I could get a better look, the jailer noticed my attention, and grabbed me through the bars, thrusting me to the back of my cell with a surprising strength. Speaking from an unseen mouth, it uttered some unintelligible threat, and dropped me to the ground. I rolled myself into a ball, coughing up blood when I was finally able to breathe.
The jailers flung open the cell adjacent to mine, and tossed in the body. As they slithered away, I pulled myself to the front of my cage, looking for the new addition. Spitting more blood from my mouth, I pressed my head against the bars. Each cell in eyesight were as unremarkable as mine; cold, gray walls, a bare floor, and a disheveled shell of a human being in various positions of depression. In some of the cells, some of the prisoners had even hung themselves, using their clothing strung together with shoddy knots.
Then I heard the moans. The helpless moans of hundreds of thousands of the incarcerated slaves who had lost all hope. It was maddening.
But, through the groaning, one voice stood out. I couldn't place it, but it seemed eerily familiar, emanating from the newest prisoner. Her voice hung on my mind as I tried to place it.
"I see you're finally awake, John," a cold, steely voice said from behind me, pulling me from my thoughts. Turning around, I saw Blitz, leaning nonchalantly against the back wall. "It's not her, before you ask."
"What do you want?" I asked, more annoyed than shocked.
"Just here to repay the favor," he replied, stepping forward. "You set me free, so it's only fitting that I set you free." With that, he charged at me. As I braced for his impact, though, he passed right through me, leaving a trail of black smoke, stretching from the front of me to the door of my cell.
"All that for nothing?" I cried, after several long minutes. After all that talk, that big production, he did nothing. I yelled out in frustration, slamming my fists against the bars. But, to my surprise, they began to shake, slightly at first, but growing more violent.
Then, with no warning, they shattered like glass. The shards hung in the air for a brief moment, then came together in a flash of light with the force of an explosion. I was thrown back to my cell again. When I looked up, I saw a scythe, as it briefly hovered in midair before clattering to the ground.
I slowly went over to it, and took it in my hands. A sudden rush of energy filled me, and I felt the tattered rags I was dressed in fall away, replaced with what appeared to be the same garb Blitz was wearing when he appeared. Even stranger, though, were the physical changes. My hair now fell in my face, my muscles bulged beneath my skin, and something weighed heavily on my back.
I could not stand in awe of myself for very long, since at the end of the hallway, the jailers were stirring, most likely to inspect the commotion I had caused. I stepped out into my freedom, glancing down both directions. And, since those abominations stood at one end, I decided to try my luck down the other.
By chance, I looked into the new prisoner's cell, and stopped. It was her. Her auburn hair falling all around her in an unwashed mess around her face. Her arms and legs were lying in seemingly uncomfortable positions, as if she was a rag doll. She was the voice I couldn't place. I looked upon her with a grim feeling of relief. The one woman who loved me truly, that I let get away. It was Anya.
I didn't want to leave her to this Hell, but I couldn't pick a lock, and I was nearly certain the fist pounding wouldn't work a second time.
The scythe!
I widened my stance, and swung at her cell door with the scythe, and surprisingly, it split like a knife through butter. The top half of the bars slid forward, and fell to the ground with a loud clang. Stepping inside her cell, I reached down and picked her up, throwing her over my left shoulder.
I heard the jailers calling out for reinforcements, so I knew I had to leave, now. I darted down the hallway and cut myself an exit when I reached the end. I realized it was a stupid idea when I saw the endless drop stretching out below me. But I was not falling nearly as fast as I would have thought. Instead, I felt myself drifting slowly forward. Glancing back at my doorway, I saw wings. The same wings I saw on Blitz. I also saw the jailers through the opening. I was afraid that they were preparing to follow, but they remained.
Feeling confident that I had escaped, I felt Anya stirring on my shoulder. "John?" she groaned, "Is that you?"
"Yeah, Anya," I replied, "it's me."
"I finally found you," she sighed, then passed back out.