The Awesomatic Adventures of Dexter Seagrave

RECOURSE! Pt. 06: Let's Blow This Overgrown Litter Box! [Story No. 08]

Like I said: it doesn't matter where we've been, only where we are now. Living in the moment, right? Eh, anyway, sorry for the change in demeanor. I think I warned you all about that before, though I've honestly forgotten how I worded it.

(Rewrites, amirite? Ha-cha-cha! Okay, enough fourth-wall breaking. Let's get back to the present…)

After all of the portal jumping, Zuri and I ended up inside that cavernous corridor again, but this time we were obviously on the other side of it and near an exit. I'm not sure if it and everything else that we went through were actual parts of my mind, but I'm ready to get back to the real world. D'Voorz really knows how to mind-fuck you. (Speaking of which…)

"Dexter... what—*GULP*—is THAT thing?!" Zuri stammers as she points upward. The fear in her voice is contagious and palpable.

"If I had to hazard a guess, Zee, I'd say that's D'Voorz," I reply, my own body trembling with a mix of fear and excitement. "She really stepped her game up this time."

Zuri—who had been transformed into her Tinkerbell form again—shuddered as she peered at the hulking figure hanging from the roof of this psychological hellscape. She circled my head in a dizzying flight while screaming "I HATE IT HERE!" repeatedly.

D'Voorz (who was short and only slightly muscular the last time I saw her) had shapeshifted into a grotesque creature resembling a giant uvula, though she maintained her pink skin color and her four arms. Her mouth was lined with even sharper teeth that shined like platinum and which I could see in their entirety as she grinned ever so menacingly, while her body was covered in slimy, veiny skin. Misshapen (and seemingly breathing) stalactites glowed ominously around her, unleashing a black substance that sizzled upon contact with the ground, creating steaming craters.

"This is the last stop for you, Dexter Seagrave!" D'Voorz roared. Her gruff, chilling voice reverberated through the chamber as she fixed her many eyes upon us. Drool as dark as ink cascaded from her lips, hitting the ground with enough force to create small, meteor-like explosions. It appeared to be the same acidic substance dripping from the stalactites, though obviously more potent. "I will devour you and that annoying girl you're trying to protect. Then, I'll slowly consume your father. I'll destroy everything you love and care for!"

"Not if I can help it!" I screamed, activating my Fuego-Fists and Absolute Strength. The flames seemed more intense this time when they erupted from my hands, and I could feel my muscles surge with a truckload of the power I had before. "I don't know what twisted vendetta you hold against me, but I'm going to beat it out of you if it's the last thing I do!"

I rushed her, wasting no time unleashing a barrage of fiery punches. The atmosphere crackled with energy as we clashed, exchanging blows that echoed like thunder, with each strike carrying the weight of our determination to overcome the other.

*🌙*

As our combat raged on, the bizarre landscape surrounding us began to warp. A range of colors washed over the area, shifting the environment and forcing it to repeatedly separate then meld back together. The ground beneath my feet wavered like a mirage as I dodged D'Voorz's attacks. It would seem that striking back with everything I have was the key. Each blow was meant to weaken her, putting an end to this fucked-up, psychological trap.

However, D'Voorz was no ordinary adversary. She knew that her psychic hold was beginning to weaken, so she began to cut loose. In a fury, but somehow simultaneously graceful, she contorted her elongated form through the air at full-speed. It was like seeing a dragon perform ballet in the sky.  She gnashed and chomped at the air, unleashing the aforementioned acidic drool from her jaws, spraying it in every direction. Thankfully, it never hit Zuri and I—surprisingly—was able to take the brunt of the caustic attack, with only minor burns to show for it. It was a battle of wills, as well as a fight for survival in this nightmarish realm.