The Creature
Contents
The darkness swelled behind him, swallowing the light from his lamp. The damp stones beneath his feet squelched with every step and the soft sounds of flowing and dripping water contrasted with the echoes of his footsteps.
Armand was alone in his hunt for the Monster.
No other in Nyr was brave enough to enter the sprawling sewers below the city to hunt for the creature that took Alyssi several days before. But Armand was brave!
That's what he kept telling himself anyway. Yet he still found himself shivering every time he heard the slightest noise; rats skittering, water dripping. The sewers were sweltering, humidity causing sweat to blossom on Armand's face and drip down his nose, tickling the skin softly. He resisted the urge to wipe it away, instead clutching tighter to his covered lamp and sharp stone sword.
He turned slowly around a corner and recoiled briefly. Before him was a quivering mass of goo. The monster?! He steeled himself and took in a breath. The goo did not react. After several frozen seconds, Armand realized this was not the slime he was searching for, but leftovers. He approached slowly, just in case the ooze was waiting to trap him. He inched closer, steadied his sword, and stabbed aggressively into the slime pile.
It sat there as the sword plunged into the mass and did not move. Armand was right. This was no monster. He pulled back the blade, wiping it on a nearby wall to remove the dripping ooze and began to move further down the wide passage.
Behind him, an eye opened.
Armand continued down the passage, emboldened a bit. His stab had been perfect! The sweet slick squelch as the blade entered the nasty ooze had been so satisfying! The real monster stood no chance! Armand was ready to vindicate all of Nyr. Maybe he could find and save Alyssi too!
Behind him, the shadows stirred.
Behind him the shadows loomed.
Behind him, sounds began to slither. Armand was blissfully unaware, climbing up a collapsed set of walls, approaching a doorway displaying a hazy glow. Before him was a room stuffed with pipes, water flowing heavily through them with a rushing sound. His ears perked up. Was that a squishing sound? Was the ooze nearby?
Behind him, two eyes reflected the hazy glow, peering at Armand's back.
Armand spun. Armand screamed, and stabbed forth with his sword, hitting nothing but a wall of ooze. The ooze surged forward and Armand dropped the sword, leaving it quivering in the mass before him and began to run deeper into the room. The creature surged forward, pursuing him, the sound of rushing water nearby masking any noise it could be making. Armand continued to scream, swinging the lamp wildly before him to try and light the way. He ran blindly, rushing through hallways, and finding himself back in the room with pipes. There was no sign of the monster. He heard nothing but the rushing water. He held nothing but a lamp.
Then he heard it. Behind him. A squelching stepping noise. A groan.
Armand didn't even turn to look. He dropped his lamp and ran.
The monster is still down here. Waiting. Beware the Giant Ooze, for it will not be so forgiving again.