Know Thy Enemy

The protagonist learns about what has happened to this world.

Darren loudly yells out, calling for people to come and spar. Slowly five people answer by hesitantly gathering in front of us.

“What are we doing Darren?” One of them asks. He looks me up and down, resentment on his face, “Who’s this guy?”

“New guy.” Darren answers, “Found him outside the Dark God’s tower. Wanna have first crack at him?”

The boy smiles cruelly, and grasps his weapon tighter.

Darren smiles as well and takes several steps back, gesturing at me after he does. “Have at it.”

They all look at me, then at each other.

“Don’t hold back!” Darren yells.

I grip the staff tightly, trying to think of how to fight. From somewhere inside me I hear words. “Your body is built for speed, not strength. Train in doing a bunch of little blows, then finishing with a major strike that leaves your opponent dazed or dead.” I cannot recall who told me that, when, or why. It is not even that I hear the words in my head. More like my body remembers the effect the words had on my style. Thanks to them I get into a new stance, and as soon as I do the men start charging towards me with short swords; xiphoi, I somehow recall the name.

I sidestep the first, and then crack my staff at his back. I step around him, and jab him in the stomach five times. As he doubles over, I hit him in the face, which sends him sprawling. Before he hits the ground, I grab him by the collar and use him as a human shield, all but throwing him at my second opponent. While they both fall, another comes toward me.

I can tell from his stance and the look in his eyes that he has more fighting experience. He brings his sword up in a wide arc, which I easily dodge. I swipe at him, but he dodges my blows then delivers one of his own that leaves a small gash in my arm. When I see blood I decide to repay him in kind. So instead of finishing him quickly like his friend, I strike slow and hard. First I swipe at his leg, sending him to his knees. I then deliver several blows, walking a tight circle around him as I do. As he lies on the ground, breathing shallowly due to pain, I strike him over the head.

I almost feel the air moving behind me and I jump to the side as someone tries to stab me from behind. I am about to say something, but then I hear more words: “Never talk to the opponent. It’s a battle, not a game.”

So instead of speaking I lunge with my staff, but the opponent blocks me and swipes, forcing me to back up. I feel an urge to windmill my staff, and do so. It has the effect I wanted: The enemy looks at it and loses sight of me. Before they recover I am behind them and deliver several whip-like blows across the back, then another to the head.

The final enemy comes for me, and I notice that it is a girl. I hesitate at first, but then words come to me yet again: “Male or female doesn’t matter in battle. It isn’t a man or a woman, or anyone you know. It is an enemy to be defeated, nothing more and nothing less. Strike fast, strike hard, and win.” So I ignore that it is a girl, and a person, and take my final enemy out in much the same way I took out the others.

I windmill my staff around my body several times. I do not know why, perhaps for show. The last thing I do is whip the staff out in front of me. I then put it into a holster I find at my waist.

At that moment I feel pain in my side as someone else strikes me with the flat side of their sword. The person I had thrown my first victim to did not go down then. I twirl against their weapon, my elbow leading the charge straight to his face. The blow slows as I make contact, but still knocks him to the ground. He falls with his nose cradled in his hands.

“Where the hell did that come from?” He asks, “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“I do not know.” I tell him, offering my hand. He takes it with his free hand and I help him to his feet. “I just somehow knew what to do.”

“Impressive work.” Darren says, appearing at my side. He puts his hand on my shoulder, but suddenly pulls it away with shock on his face, “Dude, you’re not even breathing hard!” He is correct; I do not feel tired at all.

“They were too slow, and too obvious in their attempts.” I inform Darren.  

He gapes at me, to which I shrug. Darren kneels down next to the girl, “Hey, is Sammy in here?” She nods and points to a boy standing in front of the wall.

“You look like someone put you in a time-out!” Darren yells to the boy, who looks up, startled. “Get over here, I need you!” The boy nods and comes towards us.

He is perhaps ten years old with blue eyes and dark brown hair cut short. He looks sullen, as though he had been punished. I am shocked to see his hands, which are roughly twice as large as they should be.

“This is Sammy.” Darren says.

“Hello.” I say to him.

“Your hair is white.” The boy responds in a whisper of a voice.

“Yes it is.” I agree. “But before you ask I do not know why.”

The boy looks me in the eye, and I feel a shudder rumble its way through my body. His bright eyes seem to look directly into my soul. He reaches up with his large hands and lays them flat on my chest. He closes his eyes and focuses on something for a few moments, then he gasps.

“Darren, this is freaky. His energy levels are really high. He has more energy in his body than any person should be able to handle. And, it isn’t even…” The boy, Sammy, cringes suddenly, as if in pain. He removes his hands and cradles them against his chest, like they are burned. “I can’t see anything else. I don’t like this; I couldn’t see his organs, or anything past his skin. There’s something inside him, some power.”

“What kind of power?” Darren asks.

“I don’t know,” Sammy says, “But whatever it is, it’s not human.”

The boy looks up at me in fear, which hurts me deeply.

“I do not know what to say,” I tell him, “I feel like I am quite mortal.”

“’Mortal’.” The boy repeats. “Not human, just mortal.”

“That’s enough, Sammy.” Darren says, “Tend to these guys.”

“Okay.” Sammy says, kneeling down next to one of them.

Darren leads me back towards the weapon stockpile.

“Well that was creepy.” I conclude.

“Sammy’s a good kid.” Darren says, “But he’s…a little weird.”

“I figured that.” I say. “What was he talking about? Not being able to see past my skin?”

Darren shrugs, “No doubt you noticed his unusually large hands.

“No,” I say sarcastically. “My eyes skipped over them.”

“Yeah, whatever. Anyways, with them, he can look inside people; see any internal injuries and stuff; he’s the perfect medic. And if what he said is true, you’re gonna be more important than I thought.”

“Oh, good.” I say, hanging my head.

“Good?” Darren yells, “Are you joking? It’s f****n’ awesome, you’re perfect! If you can figure out what your energy is, and control it, we could actually stand a chance in a fight against the Dark God! We might actually make a difference with you at the lead!”

This is just perfect; apparently I am going to be some kind of secret weapon. I feel like that is something I would like to avoid, and it is something I have been avoiding for a long time.

“I do not think I want to fight any more today.” I say.

Darren shrugs, “All right, that’s cool, hey, maybe I can tell you about the Dark God. How he rose to power and stuff.”

“That sounds good.”

Darren puts his arm around my shoulder and starts leading me over to the table. “Well, my new friend, you’re in for one hell of a story. And no one tells it better than I do.”

We are about to sit when Darren pauses. “Wait, didn’t you say you were hungry?”

Darren’s mind works in a strange way. “Um, actually, now that you mention it, I feel like I am starving.”

“That’s great; we have the best food in this area, that is to say, outside the Dark Tower. You should see the bakery.” Bakery? My interest has been piqued.

“A bakery sounds great, where do we go?”

Darren leads me out of the Great Hall and we start walking to the town part of this cave. I am contemplating all I have seen when I see Solution arguing with another girl, who seems to be begging her for something. They stand halfway between the living quarter and the Great Hall, standing over loose dirt.

 I point them out to Darren and ask, “Have any idea what that is about?”

He looks where I gesture, chuckles, and shrugs. “Women, trying to guess would be pointless.”

“Perhaps they are discussing battle plans.” I suggest. Seems possible, but how should I know?

Darren stops walking, “You want me to go find out, don’t you?”

I nod and he sighs, “Excuse me for a sec, then.”

He jogs over to them and apparently asks what is going on. Solution sighs loudly, and the other girl starts talking to Darren. Darren nods occasionally, encouraging for more, but I can see that he is stifling laughter behind his hand. The girl finishes and Solution starts talking, then the two start arguing again until Darren yells for them to “knock it off.” It looks like Solution calls the girl a…unflattering term, I can only guess this because the girl goes open-mouthed. Darren starts to laugh, but after a harsh look from both girls, he stops himself, and regains his composure.

Darren chastises Solution, who argues back, but he holds up his hand, silencing her. He continues speaking, rolling his hand as though trying to emphasize his point. Solution rolls her eyes, and then notices me. She points me out to Darren, who grins and starts talking more. Solution asks him a couple of things, and Darren shrugs. I can see Solution say “amnesiac?” Darren nods, talks to them for a moment more, then Solution motions for the now smiling girl to follow her.

 “Play nice girls! And Solution, please try not to bite!” Darren yells. Solution holds up her middle finger in Darren’s direction. It seems like a rude gesture, but Darren laughs before turning back to me.

“Sorry,” Darren says to me, “They had a problem I had to deal with.”

“What was that gesture she made?” I ask.

“Holding up the middle finger means ‘f**k you’.” He explains.

“Okay, and what did you tell her about me?” I get to my real question.

Darren laughs and asks “Why? You worried about what she’ll think of you?” I look down at my feet, unwilling to answer. Darren laughs, “That’s a yes. Relax, okay? I just told her you’re a new guy I found outside the Dark Tower; you’re an amnesiac but a really skilled fighter. And what else? Oh yeah, I told her that you were totally checking her out earlier.”

My eyes go wide, “Are you serious!” I look around for Solution so I can…do something, but Darren puts his hand on my shoulder and tells me to relax.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t really tell her that. Now let’s go before you blow a gasket.”

I try out the middle finger gesture for myself on Darren as he walks away, but do not like the way it feels, so lower my hand and follow after him. I walk with my head down for a while, but then I almost trip and decide to watch where I am going.

The size of the cave belies the small number of buildings within it. Despite the cave it is in, the city is actually rather diminutive in size. Darren leads through the first four streets, throughout which I see groups of people doing various things. I look down the block that is marked “Chilling” and see several people just sitting around, doing seemingly nothing but talk to one another. Some are eating and a few of them are boy and girl pairs who seem to be having serious discussions.

“Let them be.” Darren instructs.

“What are they doing here?” I ask. I am a bit confused by their lack of activity.

“They’re just chillin’.” Darren says, “You know, just sitting around talking.”

“To what end?”

“It brings people closer.”

He leads the way to a block entitled “food”. The fifth building is titled “Bakery”. Kind of obvious, but as Darren said, what is the point of being clever in a place like this? Despite the lackluster name, the place smells delicious. Upon walking through the door, the smell strengthens, and I inhale it deeply.

“If I did not know any better, I would think we just walked into Elysium.”  I say dreamily.

Darren looks back at me, “Walked into what now?”

“I think I said…Elysium? I believe that is a good thing. I-I, I lost it.” That was odd; I had felt like I was onto something for a second there, but now it is gone.

“Ookay, moving on now.” Darren continues his stride, going up to the counter.

“Darren, always a pleasure to see you here!” behind the counter is a pretty girl with hair of a scarlet coloring. She looks hardly older than Darren, so perhaps eighteen years. She is Darren’s height, just above mine, and has a curvaceous but muscular frame.

“Nice to see you again, Krista. How are we today? How’s business?”

“I don’t charge Darren, so ‘business’ is terrible.” She says. She looks at me, and her warm smile falters. “Who’s the new guy? New guys are supposed to have a stupid welcoming ceremony, aren’t they?”

 “Well yes, but that wasn’t the case this time.” Then he leans closer to her and whispers (as if I cannot hear) “There’s something odd about him, I can feel it, like destiny and s**t. I feel like the war’s almost over.” 

The girl, Krista, rolls her eyes and with an exasperated sigh says “Darren, you think finding a weird twig will be the answer to our problems. Frankly, it’s getting annoying.”

“I know, but this time is different.”

“I don’t wanna hear it right now Darren. The usual I assume?”

For a second Darren looks disappointed, but quickly gets over it. “Yeah, make it two today, but with a double shot of espresso in mine.”

“What is espresso?” I ask.

“Seriously?” Krista asks.

“Amnesiac.” Darren tells her.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” She says. She does not seem surprised. “Okay then, espresso’s a kind of coffee, only more powerful, it makes for a really good energy boost.”

“Oh.” I say. I turn to Darren, “Do you really think you need that?”

“Why not?” He responds.

“Well…” I begin.

“Don’t,” Krista stops me, “I’ve had this discussion with him many times.”

“Alright.” I say. “Should I get extra espresso in mine?”

“If you want, but if you aren’t used to coffee then you shouldn’t.” Krista advises.

“It will be a ‘no’ then.” I decide.

“Anyway…Krista,” Darren cuts in, leaning on the counter with his happy grin replaced by a…different one I cannot identify. “I was thinking that later, if you’re in the mood, you and I could maybe…”

Krista holds her hand up, “Let me stop you right there, you try to ask me out every time you come in here, and the answer is always ‘no’.”

“So…it’s a ‘yes’ today?” Darren says. He drops his head and widens his eyes, keeping them on her. His mouth contorts into a pout that I assume is supposed to be cute. I think he looks ridiculous, but Krista smiles and walks into the back room. Darren turns around and smiles widely, “Oh yeah, she wants me.”

“Darren, you are so strange.” He just laughs and heads to a table.

“All the best people are, wouldn’t you agree?”

As we turn, I realize the place is full of people, mayhaps…thirty of them. Most sit around the circular tables on comfortable looking stools, the others lounge on the large purple couches that line the walls. Nearly all of them have cups and trays in front of them, covered in various pastries and breads. The place seems to be popular, but quiet as though the numerous people talk, they do so at near whispers.

I catch some of them looking up at me, but as their eyes meet mine they dart back to the table, as if hoping I would not notice.

“You said the Great Hall was the place in which you ate,” I say to Darren as the thought occurs to me, “Why then do you have restaurants?”

“You talk so weird.” He says as we near a table away from other people, “The Great Hall is mostly for when we all gather, like when there are announcements or mission prepping, boring crap. In other words, Solution’s specialty; otherwise it’s just for training.”

That makes sense, I suppose. As Darren leads me to end of the Bakery, I take stock of the décor. It is a small place, but it is also a roomy, cozy-feeling space with large windows. Why there would be windows in an underground place is beyond me, but no matter. They give the place a nice air, and the lighting is pleasant because of it.

The Bakery is decorated in browns and oranges. A large brick fireplace dominates the room at its farthest edge. But it is what is above the fireplace that takes my breath fearfully away.

Hanging above it are very alive-looking, very large heads of serpents. They are hanging with the mouths open, as if they were cut off while the thing was hissing. Wait, what makes me think this was just one creature? A searing pain flares behind my eyes, and I put my hand to my temple. I lose whatever thought I was having and study the orange coloring of the scales. They are an awesome sight; just one head is bigger than my torso.

I cannot explain it, but those heads, while impressive, fill me with a feeling of sheer terror. I shift uncomfortably as I stare at them. Their eyes of a sickly yellow and green coloring seem to pierce into my soul. Fear takes root in my stomach, and I nearly lose my appetite.

“Hey, you alright?” Darren asks from the table.

“This thing makes me uneasy.” I say, going to sit across from him.

“Yeah, it gives me the creeps too.”

“What is it?” I ask.

Darren chuckles and whispers, “Trade secret, and I think you might just know already.”

“No I…What does that mean?” Darren does not answer and winks at me.

I am trying to figure that out, but then I spot Krista coming towards our table with two cups and two large muffins on a tray.

She lays it on the table before us, and then wipes her hands on the apron tied at her waist. “Alright, Darren, you’re usual. Banana-nut muffin and mocha latte. Enjoy.” She turns her gaze to me, and offers an insincere smile, “You too, um…I didn’t get your name.”

“Thank you, Krista.” Darren interrupts, grabbing his cup and a muffin. I grab mine as well but recede into my seat as she looks down more closely at me. She bends until her face is just in front of mine and stares me in the eye, like she wants to fight me.

“Can I…can I help you?” I ask. I try to back away, but with the wall behind me there is nowhere to go.

“Your hair is white.” She points out. “What’s with that?”

I look at Darren, but he is staring at his muffin.

“I…do not know. As Darren said, I have amnesia. I do not know much of anything. Even my name has been lost.”

She looks into my eyes deeply. “Enjoy your food.” She says with a somewhat angered tone. Her voice changes to a higher pitch as she returns her gaze to Darren. “Oh, and Darren?”

“Yes?” He says.

She sighs and looks up to the ceiling. “Okay, I accept, let’s give it a whirl. Just come by whenever you have time, and we’ll…plan something.” She smiles at him, and then turns to walk away.

As she walks away, Darren smiles hugely, leans back in his seat, puts his feet up on the table, and promptly falls over. I look over and see him just lying on the floor, arms behind his head, and a foolishly triumphant smile on his face.

What just happened? No matter, it does not pertain to me. I take a bite of the muffin and Darren asks me how it is from his place on the floor. I look at him again, and watch as he props himself up on his elbow, looking at me expectantly as he does.

“This is just exquisite. My compliments to whoever made it.” Darren smiles and gets back in his seat while I finish the delicious treat in three greedy bites.

“Krista made it.” He says, picking up his own breakfast.

“Really? So quickly?”

“The girl has mad skills. To be honest I’m not sure how she does it. No one’s allowed near her while she’s cooking.”

“Interesting. Well, she is certainly skilled.” I pick up the cup and stare at its contents as they swish about the glass. The bittersweet smell of the hot drink reaches my nose, and I inhale it deeply, savoring the wonderful scent. Its shades of brown and white swirl together, creating an entire new color that I take immediate pleasure in seeing.

“Gonna drink it?” Darren asks, sipping his own after blowing its steam away.

“What exactly is it?” I ask, still holding the glass in the air before my face.

Darren’s eyes go wide, “You don’t even know that?” I shake my head and he falls forward, his chin hitting his chest. He sits up after about five minutes, opens his mouth, then closes it again. “I mean I’m not surprised but dude…I’m so sorry, really.”

“What is the problem?” I ask.

“Just take a drink, trust me, you’ll love it.”

I do as he instructs, but the burning liquid nearly scalds my tongue. I splutter and spit out the liquid to the side, wiping my mouth.

“Well damn, blow on it first!” Darren exclaims. “Its freakin’ hot!”

After my mouth cools and I stop coughing, I try to blow on the coffee. When I feel it has cooled enough, I again bring it to my lips. Though it again hurts my mouth where the previous sip had burned me, the taste is exquisite. It starts off with a surprisingly sweet flavor, but as it goes down the sweetness fades, leaving a bitter but delicious trace. Darren gulps his drink as well, closing his eyes in sheer pleasure. We enjoy our drinks in silence for a while, the warmth of the place giving my questioning mind comfort.

Something comes to my mind as yet another person dodges my glance, “They all seem to be fearful of me.”

“I’d be surprised if they weren’t.” Darren says, “You fall from the Dark Tower without a scratch and wake up two days later? New guys are uncommon here, we’re always a bit fretful until they settle in.”

“I understand.” I say, “But it looks to go beyond that. The way they look at me, and avoid my gaze, it suggests more fear than trepidation.”

“Where’d you learn language?” He asks, shaking his head. “They’ll adjust, don’t worry about it. Anyway, what do you think so far?”

“What do I think of what?”

“Smart-a*s, you know what I mean, what do you think of the Resistance? Besides some whining about the way they look at you.”

I put my cup down and consider the question. “I cannot say; I am impressed with this large space you occupy, and that stockpile of weapons. Yet, I am also nervous; why is a big stockpile necessary for a group of teenagers?”

“You don’t know if you can trust us yet?” He offers, to which I nod.

“But as we have walked I have watched your people as they have milled about.” I continue, “They seem to just be living their lives. Even here in this place, they do nothing but talk and enjoy their time together. I do not know if I can trust you yet, but you seem like a trustworthy person, and if you wished me harm, you would have harmed me already. So I suppose I will give you the benefit of the doubt, and if you let me down, I will kill you.”

Darren smiles, but then seeing I am serious, the smile wavers, “Really?”

I nod. “But if or until then I hope for a friendship.” Darren’s smile returns, albeit shaky, and he sips his drink.

“At the top of the list of things I am wondering about.” I say, “How exactly did you manage to acquire all of those weapons?”

“For most of them, we launched raids into the Dark God’s castle. It was risky business, and we lost a few people, but ultimately it was worth it.”

“Ah, how long ago was this?” I ask.

“This was all under the first leader, so…about fifty years ago?”

“Those weapons are fifty years old?”

“Roughly.” He answers. “This place was built inside what used to be, and still could be, a huge iron mine. There used to be adults down here along with us, and they helped us mine and taught us how to make weapons. Our parents…”

“What happened to them?”

“We’re not really sure.” He answers, face turning somber. “They all died.”

“After all that time, nobody became an adult?”

“Of course they do, but the ones who were older than thirty all died in a terrible mining accident about eight years ago.”

“You said you were not sure.” I point out.

“I said we’re not sure.” He replies, “Solution and I were there, I broke my leg and Solution got a scar from falling debris.”

“What caused the accident?” I ask.

“Ahh, now that’s the interesting question. It’s why we’re not sure what happened. All was going normally, when suddenly, one of the guys started acting funny. He did a weird little dance and slapped the ground and walls. After that he cried out…I dunno, something in Greek. To this day we wonder what it meant. Anyway, the dude fainted after that, and when we opened his eyes to check on them, they were glowing a bright grey color. Then the ceiling fell.”

“Were many injured?”

“Um, yeah,” he says as though it were obvious. It was, I suppose. “A lot. All of the adults were able-bodied men and women, so they were all miners. All of them were there and all of them were killed.”

“Were…were your parents among them?” I ask.

Darren scoffs, “Nah, I never knew my parents. People claim I was found here in a silver basket engraved with an owl. The Resistance raised me, all of the adults and older teens acted like my parents. Most of the Resistance members are like that.” Darren’s face drops, “And I lost pretty much all of them in a five minute long cave-in. Only three of us who were there at the time survived. A sixteen-year-old, Solution, and me. All those people died. Most of them had children. Krista’s dad was the one who did the freaky stuff.”

“Who was her mother?”

“We don’t know. That’s the other thing most of us have in common. A lot of us were raised by only one of our parents. But then…then they all died. All of them, and we don’t even know why. Hell, we don’t really know why.”

“My condolences.” I offer sincerely.

“Thanks.” Darren says, humor all but gone.

“What happened to the other survivor?” I ask him.

“He became our leader after that.” Darren answers, “He was a great guy, like an older brother to me and Solution. But he only lasted four years before he kicked the bucket too.”

“What happened to him?”

“He tried to launch an attack on the Dark God’s castle. A small group of about twenty people. I shouldn’t have to say what the result was.”

“No, you do not.” I agree.

Darren’s expression to a disheartening look of melancholy, almost on the verge of tears. I may not know him, but I feel bad about this, so I decide to change the subject. “Anyway, Darren.”

“What’s up?” He replies.

“I was wondering something else, what exactly are you hoping for with Krista?”

Darren doesn’t seem to know how to respond, then bursts out laughing. I am confused by his laughter, and when he sees my expression, he stops.

“Wow, are you serious?” I nod and he begins laughing again “Oh, man that’s hysterical!” He says, hardly able to breathe through laughter. I tilt my head in confusion, and he continues with his bout of hysterics. I am relieved he is no longer upset, but also a bit worried that he got over it so quickly.

“I do not understand.” I say. “From the way you spoke, I guess you are trying to woo her?” Darren rolls his hand in a “go on” gesture. “Well, then what? You are clearly too young to marry her.”

Darren stops laughing, and looks completely lost. “Whoa…whoa. Who the hell said anything about…that?” He looks so startled; I would laugh if I were not so confused myself.

 “I am confused Darren. What exactly are you trying to do with her?”

“I just want a girlfriend, ya’know? Nothing that serious.”

“You are not looking to marry her?”

“Dude! I’m seventeen years old!”

“So?”

“‘So?’ What the hell do you mean ‘so’? I’m way too young to even think about marriage! Besides, we’re in a war; we can’t afford to have serious relationships.”

“Then what are you going to do with her?”

“What the hell is with you? You’re talking like some guy from ancient times!” A shudder goes through me when he says that.

“Look man, I just want a girlfriend. You’re getting really old-timey on me, and I’m getting, um, uncomfortable. So I think that’s enough for now, I believe you said you wanted to know about the Dark god?”

“Alright Darren, forgive me.”

“Jeez. Let’s go.”

“Why not tell me here?”

“Because I don’t wanna talk about everything where just any of these asshats could hear it.”

“Oh.” I say, standing to follow Darren. I feel that I have embarrassed him seriously. I allow myself a smile for that. It was humorous, after all. But then I look back at those large orange snake heads and shudder. I quickly turn to the door and follow Darren out.

“Bye Darren, see ya’ later!” Krista calls from the counter, but Darren only blushes and hurries out with me right behind him, still wondering what exactly happened in there.  

 Darren and I make our way through the city in silence. I look around and again marvel at the sheer size of this cave. It seems to be a miracle for the ceiling to even stay up. Only then does it occur to me to wonder how this place is being lit. I look around and see no obvious light sources. There could be something on the ceiling being hidden by the distance between it and the cave floor. I decide not to worry about it, and just be thankful that there is sufficient lighting. I feel my stomach rumble, and think to myself that while delicious, the muffin and late were not exactly satisfying. I think back to the flavor of the muffin, banana-nut, Krista said it was. What is banana nut? I look around the cave again, and wonder how they could have gotten the ingredients for such complicated foods. I look over at Darren and think he seems to have calmed down.

“How do you get food?” I ask.

 Darren looks at me, puts his head down, looks up, sighs and says, “I was hopin’ you’d ask. We’ve got a few ways. For the more complicated things, like meat and stuff, we go hunting for the animals that can still survive in this world. We’ve managed pretty well with that, but it isn’t perfect. For stuff like coffee, we launch small raids into the Dark God’s city.”

“I thought you said that was foolish.” I recall.

“It is; that’s why we don’t do it very often. When we do, it’s usually stealth groups of three or four people, and they stockpile in major bulk. I think we’re starting to run low on supplies, so we’re probably gonna launch a raid here soon. Part of training is stealth, so you should come along.”

“What is the other way?” I ask.

“What other way?”

“You said you had a few ways to get food, what is the other way?”

Darren chuckles mysteriously, “That’s the crazy part. We’ve got people here that…well, when they get near plants, the plants just go berserk, they grow like crazy and if the plants are rotten, they suddenly become perfect, and, I might add, they also taste better than normal plants. They can stand in front of a barren field and make an entire crop of wheat or something just materialize. Some of those people learned to control it; some can even make plants appear out of nowhere. That’s how we get our fruits and veggies.”

“That sounds a lot like Demeter.”

He stops, “Who?”

“Demeter.”

“Okay, who’s Demeter?”

“I have absolutely no idea.”

“You seem to know some stuff, but then you don’t, what’s with that?”

I can only shrug.

Darren stares into my eyes for a moment, focusing. But then shakes his head. “Alrighty then, moving on.”

“Hey, Darren!” someone calls.

I turn and see the girl that Solution had been arguing with before. She has dark hair, almost black, and round eyes nearly the same color. She has a small, button shaped nose, and a prominent but thin jaw line. She is dressed in what I now see is the usual for girls here, but something seems off about it. The fabric is torn around her torso, revealing her arms and midriff, and in lieu of pants she wears tight fabric under her skirt. The black accentuates her petite frame and tanned skin quite well. I almost catch myself ogling her before she looks at me with extreme distaste.

“Hey Maria.” Darren grumbles as though preparing himself for something annoying.

“How’re things?” Maria asks, drawing out the word ‘things’.

“Fine.” Darren answers in a clipped tone.

“I saw you coming from the Bakery.” Maria informs him, “Get anything good?”

“Always do.” Darren responds, still clipped.

“Yeah, I bet you do.” Maria says, getting closer to Darren and grabbing his arm.

“Who’re you?” Maria asks me suddenly as Darren tries (unsuccessfully) to shake her off.

“I might ask you the same thing.” I respond.

“I’m Maria, weapons specialist.” She claims.

“Self-proclaimed weapon specialist.” Darren mumbles.

“Oh, come on Darren.” Maria says, twirling her body while still hanging off of him. “You know how great I am.”

What is with this girl? I cannot decipher the way she is smiling at Darren. And with the way he looks uncomfortable, I would guess that she is someone he considers to be dealt with, rather than a friend.

“Sure, I do.” Darren answers, “Can’t even tell the difference between a dagger and a knife. But you’re an expert all right.”

Maria’s lips turn into a pout that is obviously fake; much like the pout that Darren gave to Krista…oh.

Darren catches my eye, and his eyes seem to beg ‘get her away from me, please’. I shrug and grin.

Darren glares at me before pulling his arm away from Maria. “Well, it was great seeing you, good luck with…whatever the hell it is you do all day, but now I really gotta go.”

Maria grabs Darren’s arm again to keep him from leaving. “Ah, what’s the hurry?”

“None of your damn business. Buzz off!” Darren tells her, almost shouting.

Maria lets go of Darren immediately, but she retains a flirtatious smile. “See ya’ later then, Darren.” She winks and turns to walk away.

Darren glares at me again and I smile widely. He punches me in the arm and I laugh.

“I can’t believe you.” He says to me.

“Sorry.” I say, “It was far too amusing.”

“You dick.” He grumbles.

“Call it revenge.”

Darren groans and motions for me to follow him to the edge of the cave wall, where the entrance to the Great Hall is located. He puts his hand to the plate and the wall slides away, again leaving me openmouthed. As we walk through I look up at the opening and marvel at what a natural opening it looks like. Truly, you would never know that it was closed off only seconds before.

“Hey, Darren?” I say.

“What?” He grumbles.

“Why is there a door to separate the Great Hall from the rest of the…Fox-Hole?” I ask.

“No idea.” He answers, “That’s how someone designed it.”

“Is there a way to keep it open?”

“If we blew up the wall, probably. But what’s the point? The plate recognizes all humans and it takes less than a second to open.”

“Then what is the point of it?”

“I don’t know and I really don’t care.” He replies sharply.

“You seem angry.” I notice.

“Caught that did you?” He snaps. He meets my widened eyes and sighs, “It’s just…Maria.”

“What about her?”

“She’s a huge flirt, in case you didn’t notice. And she won’t leave me alone. She’s so annoying and isn’t exactly bright either.”

“She seemed friendly.”

“W***e is more accurate.” He says. “I mean don’t get me wrong, she’s cute and all, but I like a girl with a head on her shoulders, y’know? Besides, she’s a bit small in the chest for my taste.”

“W***e?” I repeat.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Darren and I stand behind the various people training, watching them. One of them, a cute girl with blonde hair around thirteen, flips a large man over her shoulder. The perhaps eighteen year old hits the ground with a loud ‘gouf’ bursting out of him.

“Ha.” The girl laughs, her voice high pitched but pleasant. “You said ‘gouf’!”

She continues laughing as the guy jumps back to his feet. They continue their match, and the girl displays impressive speed and agility. Despite the enormous difference in size and strength, they seem almost evenly matched.

“That is very impressive.” I tell Darren.

“That is the result of intensive training.” He responds.

“Remarkable.” I say.

“Yeah, and those two suck.”

I whirl on him, “What!” I practically shriek the word.

“Please,” Darren says, “Their forms are sloppy, their attacks are predictable, and above all, they’re wearing protective gear.” He cups his hands over his mouth and shouts to the pair, “Maranda, bend your knees more! Luke, bend yours less!”

The girl turns to Darren and points at him with her thumb. “Call me Bubble.” She calls out. Luke takes the opportunity to take the girl’s legs out from under her. He barely glances at Darren, and nods slightly as he does so.

“Protective gear is bad?” I ask. The girl turns on her back, sweeping Luke’s legs out from under him. After he lands they continue their duel as they lay, though it becomes more of a wrestling match.

Darren sighs, as though about to repeat something he has repeated numerous times. “If you need armor to avoid injury in battle, then you have no business on the battlefield.”

“All of our clothing is outfitted with armor.” I point out.

“It’s spread out and mostly for style.” He explains.

“What happens if you take a blow and die when armor could have kept you alive?” I challenge.

“Then you should have trained more.” Darren answers.

“That is just stupid.” I voice my opinion incredulously.

“It’s a belief.” He insists, “Enforced by the guy who trained me.”

I look back at the trainees, and except for the armor thing, I agree with Darren’s analysis. They are sloppy. After they return to their feet, Maranda pulls her hand back. I know exactly where she will aim, and am proven right as her small fist is driven into Luke’s side. He should have seen that coming, but he does not and cradles her fist against him. As I suspect, he uses her moment of confusion to force his forehead to her nose. The blow is light, but still sends the girl reeling.

I look away from the duo to survey the various people training about the floor. They are at various stages of skill and somehow I know how to tell the level of each fighter. Practically each type of weapon imaginable is being used, but few of them are actually being used correctly. These people are all complete novices! They handle the weapons as if they know how, but in fact they have no clue. I cross my arms and look up to the stands surrounding the arena, viewing about a dozen people who lounge around on them. ‘Chilling’ Darren called the action (or lack thereof).

“Hey, Darren.” I say.

“Yeah?”

“Would you like to spar?” For some reason I feel excitement at the prospect.

He chuckles, “Maybe later, for now, I wanna talk about the Dark God.”

“Alright.” I say.

Darren starts heading over to the oversized table.

“‘God’.” I repeat under my breath before following.

“Okay,” Darren says, sitting at the table. “The story you are about to hear is completely true, every word. At least, it is to the best of our knowledge and sources.”

“Alright.” I say.

“Really, it is.” He insists.

“Just tell it.”

“Yeah, just wanted to make sure you knew this wasn’t fictional. Now then, roughly a hundred plus years ago, there was a man named Christopher Black. He was huge about hiking, visiting other countries, geology, boring s**t like that. He lived a pretty normal life, good job, pretty girlfriend. All the basic goods, because of the way his job worked, he was able to take random trips basically whenever the mood struck him.”

“What, he would just wake up one day and decide to take a trip?” I ask.

“Exactly! And as with all his other trips, he woke up one morning and decided to go to Crete, Greece.”

“A completely random decision?” I ask.

“Well, maybe not. See, in Crete, they have a myth about a labyrinth. Mr. Black wanted to find the real labyrinth the myth was supposedly based on. It was a hot topic among archeologists, so Black kept up with all the info, since he was into that sort of thing. Anyway, there were many places believed to be the site of it. So Mr. Black went with the most popular: Gortyn. All was going well; he actually managed to get into the thing. After a while the darkness of the tunnel started to almost absorb the light of his flashlight.”

“It absorbed the light?” I repeat.

“So sources claim. Naturally, he freaked out when the light went out completely, and tried to run back the way he had come. But he got lost in the maze of natural pathways, and soon became more lost than he was at the start. He lasted down there for ten days before he ran out of supplies. An incredible fourteen days later, the constant darkness and loneliness drove him insane. With his sanity gone, he started prancing through the corridors, calling out ‘come to me, make the darkness mine!’ in Greek.

“If he was alone, how is it known what he did?” I ask

“After a while, he stumbled into a cave.” Darren continues, not acknowledging my comment. “His spirit was nearly extinguished and his energy was gone. When he fell through the opening of the cave, his flashlight turned back on and he found a little black statue. Even insane, he retained his curiosity. When he picked up the statue, that’s when s**t hit the fan. A thick black mist came out of it and converged on him. The mist was absorbed by his body until his human spirit was completely drained and we were left with Erebus, The evil God of Darkness.”

“God?” I interrupt.

“Yeah, god. At least, that’s what he calls himself. Of course, after witnessing his power, it isn’t so hard to believe.”

Perhaps, but somehow that just seems…wrong. I cannot explain it, I believe that he is godlike, but is he truly a god?

“Believe it or don’t, that’s up to you.” Darren says as if reading my mind. “But the point is, he is a god. A Greek god, to be exact.”

“Greek? The language the man was speaking?”

“Yeah, there was a country called Greece before Erebus came to power. In way ancient times they worshipped these gods, and we think Erebus is one of them..”

“If they are real, then where are they? Why has Erebus risen to power? If those gods are real, then why did they not stop him?”

“Good questions. Unfortunately we don’t have answers to them. We don’t exactly sit down to coffee and chat with the Dark God. But we’re not really worried about it. Who needs ‘em? We can handle Erebus ourselves. Anyway, that’s the part most people alive now don’t know. The rest is history.” Darren sits back, looking pleased.

“I do not know history, Darren.” I remind him.

“Oh, right,” He begins again, embarrassed. “Well, then he started his conquest; he began normally, rising through normal ranks in this country, what was once America. First he became the mayor of a small town in what used to be Virginia, then he became a governor, after that he ran for Senate. Then he became the President, he started out pretty well, normal. People liked him; he made the country better and more powerful. Foreign affairs were better than ever, poverty and unemployment became practically non-existent. He was like a cure for the whole world. But then he started to change things. He behaved more like a king then a president. Since he was so good, almost no one objected, at least, not until he tried to take over the world. They liked him, but not that much. No, they didn’t like that very much at all, so they attacked big time, it was World War Three.”

“An entire war was started because one man tried to take over?”

“Well, yeah. That’s the way it goes. No one believes that just one man should control the entire world. For Erebus it was even worse. See, when he started trying to take over, he became more about military control. If he had tried the tactical, peaceful route, he probably would have succeeded and saved the world a lot of trouble. But he tried to take over by force. America became a country run by tyranny rather than democracy and compromise. For the rest of the world, war was the only option.”

“So war.” I conclude.

“Yeah, the biggest war in human history. With all of the advances in military technology, destruction became an instinct rather than a habit. The whole world was, is practically a barren wasteland from the fallout. Unfortunately, Erebus and, not so unfortunately, a couple thousand other people survived. A few thousand, and that’s a rough guess. A few thousand from over six billion people.

“After that, He revealed all his godlike powers and after thirty-four hellishly long years, became the ruler of the world. He’s made the world a living hell, which is amazing considering how bad it was after the war. It’s almost constantly dark, seeing the sun is a rare event that we don’t even bother to consider anymore. The few people live as slaves or in random groups like us. Erebus makes the slaves destroy grass, trees, everything beautiful in the world and the poor people barely survive, we see them during raids and our hearts break. Finally, about fifty years ago a small group of people got sick of it all and escaped.

“It’s become your classic rebellion/dictator cliché, except this is a real living nightmare. We’ve been fighting him for forty years, and gone through thirty-three leaders and a lot more fighters. I’m actually the thirty-fourth leader the Resistance has had, which says something about how long we leaders last. Doesn’t matter though, we’ve made little to no difference. But now you’re here, and after seeing the destruction in the Tower and finding you having survived the fall from it without a scratch, I believe we can finally end this. That’s all, that’s the story.”

“That is all true?”  I ask.

“Yeah.” Darren assures me. “Every word is exactly how it happened.”

“How do you know?”

“It’s an extension of my clairvoyance. I just know when things are true.” He proclaims.

He can tell by my look that I do not believe it, and chuckles, “Yeah, I know. Actually, we captured one of his servants and we, well…we kinda tortured him until he told us what we wanted to know. We put him through too much for him to even want to lie. That’s why we trust his info. Unfortunately, that didn’t tell us anything that was actually helpful, just history.”

“Alright.” I say slowly, “That I believe. But what if that is not all the information? I think I should question him.” I get to my feet and push the chair in.

“You can’t do that.” He tells me.

“Why not?”

“Because he’s dead; killed him. What, do you honestly think we’d keep him alive? Can you even imagine the kind of dead weight that would be? And, keeping one of the enemy’s personal servants alive, are you serious?”

“I suppose you have a point. Well, what do I do now?”

“Accept it at your own pace.” Darren tells me. “This is a lot to take in.”

“But if that is, has been the state of the world, then where have I been?”

“Good question.” Darren says. “My guess is that you were with some of the nomadic survivors. Or maybe you were in the Dark God’s city as a slave.”

“Then what was I doing outside the Dark God’s castle, having survived a fall from the top of it?”

“Another good question.” Darren says, “But I don’t think we’re gonna get answers to either of them anytime soon.”

“Alright.” I say, looking down.

“Hey, it’ll be cool.” Darren assures me, “Don’t worry about it.”

“Still, I cannot help but wonder.” I try to think, then pain flashes through my head. I shake it and rub my temple. I decide to change subject. “What did you mean when you said you think I can end this?”

“I told you already, I get feelings. It sounds crazy, but I’ve never been wrong before. I just feel like you’re gonna be important.”

“No pressure on me at all.”

“Ha! Yeah, you get to be our secret weapon!” He raises his arm, pointing at me, “You should feel grateful for this high honor!”

“Yes, I am practically quivering with excitement.”

“That’s the spirit!”

I scoff and shake my head. “The end game is to destroy Erebus, correct?”

Darren nods “We will do whatever it takes, any risk, any means. But you’re already in if that’s what you were going to tell me. Krista’s right, there usually is a stupid welcoming ceremony, but as your arrival was a unique case, we won’t worry about that. You’ve already proven yourself to be a skilled warrior, and that you can commit to our cause. And most everyone knows you’re here anyway, so there’s no reason to bother with an introduction. Besides, you need a name before we can start introducing you to people.”

“A name?” I repeat. Just then Solution walks by, distracting me. While Darren starts rattling away random names, I get back up to my feet. 

I must talk to her. She stops in front of the weapons stockpile, and I decide to leave Darren (who, by the way, is still talking) and go over to her. Most likely rude, but as I watch, she picks up a knife and hurls it straight into the bulls-eye of a target roughly fifty feet away. When she does it three more times, I forget about Darren entirely.

“Beautiful and skilled.” I say to myself. “Smart as well, according to Darren.”

She pulls the sword, a xiphos, from the scabbard at her hip and swings it around. She holds it up in front of her, perhaps trying to judge the sharpness of the blade.

“Is something wrong with the sword?” I ask.

“It’s getting a little dull and the balance is off.” She responds, not even looking at me.

She heads to one of the various dummies scattered about the place and starts swinging the sword at it. Her style is flawless, and she wields the blade knowingly, obviously well trained. As proof, the xiphos goes straight through the dummy’s chest, seemingly without resistance. She does the same to three other dummies, then sheaths the blade. I am amazed, but she scoffs.

“See?” she asks me.

“No, what?”

She huffs her breath. “The blade didn’t go through as easily as it should have. It needs to be sharpened better.”

“It looked to me as though the blade went through easily.”

“Then you have a lot of studying to do, don’t you?” She retorts. “Who are you anyway?”

“Oh, I am um…” I stutter for a few seconds.

“You’ve forgotten, or your name is Um?” She asks, to which I shrug. “You’re the newbie, right?”

“Something like that.”

“Darren told me that you’re an amnesiac. Do you even know your name?”

I shake my head.

“Um then.” She decides, “I’m really busy with planning, training, and the like. So uh…” she takes two steps closer to me, stopping less than an inch in front of my face. Her beauty is intoxicating, and with her so near me I can smell the sweet scent of her breath.  “If you wouldn’t mind too terribly, kindly…piss off!”

Solution heads through a doorway next to the stockpile. Where it leads I do not know. Meanwhile I head back to the table in a bit of a daze. Despite Solution looking at me like dog-food, I am a bit thrilled from that interaction.

Darren is sitting where I left him, holding up his head in one of his hands and giving me a smug smile.

 “That went better than usual.” He says as I sit down.

“Better than usual?” I repeat, “That was better than usual? You are kidding, right?”

Darren chuckles, “Usually she’d have kicked your a*s just for distracting her, let alone flirting. Guess you’re a lucky guy.”

“Flirting?”

“Oh, how would you say it all old-timey? Um, trying to woo her?”

“Oh, I suppose I was. Or would have, given a longer conversation.”

Darren gets a strange look on his face. Bemused, but angry somehow. Maybe protectiveness? I try to analyze the look, but Darren loses.

“In any case, I think I am in love.” I say. Darren starts cracking up, doubling over in laughter.

“Look, bro, you wanna die, be my guest. Personally, I’d rather fight the Dark God himself than face her.”

“I think I am in love.” I say again, looking up towards the ceiling. Darren keeps laughing and the various people in the room continue their training, ignoring us.

He stops laughing suddenly.

“What is it?” I ask.

“‘Fight the Dark God himself.’” He repeats, “Dunno why, but I feel like I’m gonna eat those words later.”

“Do you think it will be alright?” I ask. Darren only shrugs, regaining his grin.

Author's Note

As before, the protagonist is still learning his manner of speaking, so it will be a bit strange.

Reviews

[David Ung]

The chapter is amazing. I am now thinking that he could be a greek god, his powers are powerful and I think he is very well written. But there is one question that is roaming in my mind. If this is taking place in the future, then I think you should show a bit of it. Like the part you mentioned guns, I think you should add maybe a few futuristic weapons that they stole from the Dark god kingdom. But that is just my opinion. Other than that, this is an amazing chapter. Can't wait for more...

[Xavier Lee]

Futuristic weapons. Hmm....Now that is interesting. It occurs to me that While I did set this story 100+ years in the future, I didn't do much to make it seem so. i'll go back and do some work to make it more obvious that this is in the future.

[Dante Carlisle]

Definitely enjoying this, I can't wait to read more. You have a good story here and I'm interested to see where it goes. Your prose is great, and you keep the reader engaged. There are a few parts I feel are simplistic, such as the different emotions the characters experience, but that takes time to develop. Another good bit of advice I could give is the ages old 'Show, don't tell'. Rather than tell us how your characters feel, show us in their actions. Once again, well done on this, I'm liking it, which is a rare thing indeed.

[Xavier Lee]

Thank you for your review. Though I must inform you that even as I write this I am back to editing the early chapters, this one alone has gone through much work. Not sure what more to say, suffice it that I will update what I have on here as soon as I am done.