Page 83 of King of the Unsightly

“Archaic magic abides by no laws!” Kaschel yelled out like I would somehow understand his words as he snatched my hand and hauled me behind him.

We fled until the walls shifted closer together.

It was like everything in this crazy world wanted to squeeze the life out of us.

Our pathway started to barricade us in, becoming smaller and smaller until we had to flee by crawling on all fours.

My breaths were shallow as the cramped space had my head spinning. I felt more claustrophobic as the spiked thorns on the vine walls dug into my sides and shoulders.

I was so thankful Kaschel let me go first, but a horrid thought entered my mind.What if they reached us and snatched Kaschel and dragged him away?

What if I was next?

The vines convulsed around my shoulders, and I lost confidence by the second.

A dim light shone from a distance, and I hoped to god it led out of this monster-ridden labyrinth.

I couldn’t deal with this shit anymore.

I reached the end, stood up, and peeked back at Kaschel who was right behind me.

He rubbed his temples and sighed.

The same doors from the beginning of this hell loop.

But this time the massive metal doors had different symbols burned and etched into them, and now, I could understand it.

The grieving-face door with a mouth full of fangs suspended before us. The words under it written in silver.Still or be steel. Both weep for cordial affairs. Rust will be anew if you seek the truth. One for two, ruin awaits if uncertainty brews.I looked at the other door with the mask, serpent-like eyes, and the dangling tongue split in half.Two hearts, one beats, and the other pumps. Two of one, desire for none. Let it be known one bleeds and the other sows.

What the hell does that even mean?

On the verge of hyperventilating, I peeked over my shoulder, and the centipedes increased their speed, burrowing faster.

Kaschel unsheathed his sword and sliced the ones shoveling their way out of the tunnel, lunging at us.

Kaschel split them in half one by one as a green substance oozed and sizzled out of them.

A heavy rancid smell permeated the air with each killing blow Kaschel landed.

“Choose one, and I’ll be right behind you!” Kaschel swung his sword again and again.

Another one hissed as it squeezed its appalling body through the hole before Kaschel decapitated it.

I panicked as I looked at him and back at the two doors.

The first one seemed like the only option with a somewhat promising outcome if I understood it correctly.Right?

I pushed open the grieving-masked door and prayed for the first time in my life to not let it be another trap.

Kaschel stumbled in after me as the room we left filled to the brim with centipedes.

I slammed the door shut behind us and huffed for air.

Kaschel was drenched in the neon green slime while I only had little bits of it spattered on my clothes.

A slow clap came from above.

It evolved, louder and faster.

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