(Artwork by Ashura Arts)
GROWL!!
Mono yelped, clutching his stomach as it suddenly let out a loud growl.
"NO... SHADOW SIX... NOT NOW!!"
"Mono, are you... oh no..."
Six immediately dug around in her pockets as Seven ran over next to Mono, holding him up and stabilizing his footing as he nearly fell backward.
"Woah, woah there... easy pal. Just relax..."
"AHH!! IT... HURTS!!"
Mono was sat down against the wall by Seven as Six pulled out a piece of bread that she had saved for this very situation.
"Here, eat this Mono."
As Six handed it to him, he gulped it down in one bite, his ravenous hunger pains making him act like he hadn't eaten anything in weeks.
"There... better?"
"MORE..."
Mono dug around in his pockets, grabbing the piece of bread that he had saved and immediately shoving it into his mouth, not even bothering to chew on it as he immediately swallowed it.
"What about now?"
Six looked on with concern as Mono's face looked rather pale. He caught his breath, sweat dripping from his forehead.
"I'm... I'm good..."
"Can you walk?"
"I wanna... rest... for a while..."
She was patient, crouching down next to him and rubbing his shoulder gently.
"Seven, do you mind if we all wait here for a minute..?"
He looked at Six, thinking about her question to him, an idea popping up in his head.
"I think I got something better."
"What is it?"
"I can go after that tall lady by myself and maybe I can find a way out of here. Once I do, I'll come right back, promise."
Six looked at him like he was crazy.
"You can take care of Mono while I go look for the exit, so I can stay busy and productive."
"But... you're all by yourself! What if you get hurt? Or worse..."
"I'll be fine, don't worry. I'm too quick, I can't be caught!"
Seven chuckled at his own joke, his eyes averting down to the floor.
"Ah, well... I guess it wasn't that funny."
"Seven... go if you want... try and find out more... info about her..."
Mono looked up at him and nodded.
"Alright, I'll see what I can find, Mono. See you two later!"
Seven started off in the other direction, running through the vent, but halted in place as Six stopped him.
"Wait!"
He turned around, facing her while she was still crouched down next to Mono.
"Good luck, Seven."
"Thanks! I'll be back real quick, don't worry!"
Six looked back at Mono, sighing.
"I hope we aren't making the wrong decision here..."
(POV Switch)
"All alone.. forgot how scary that feeling is..."
Seven flicked his flashlight on, brushing his bangs aside so he could see a little better.
"Jeez... I could use a haircut."
He looked at his reflection in a cracked mirror that was leaning against the walls of the vent, lifting his hair up and staring at his eyes.
"Well, guess that's the second priority. Get a haircut."
Seven stopped staring at his cracked reflection and faced an opening in the vent. Stuffing his flashlight in his pocket, he climbed up and onto the wooden floorboards above, entering the place where he watched the tall lady speak on the phone with his two friends, Mono and Six.
"Oh, I should let Mono and Six cut my hair!"
He liked the idea for a brief moment but quickly realized how wrong that would go if he were to let them do that.
"Actually... they would probably make me bald, never mind."
Seven looked around the room, slightly being unnerved by the number of broken mirrors there were scattered all around the place. Several were leaned against walls or had entire wooden frames, but they all shared a similarity. Each was smashed to bits, rendering them completely unusable.
"Somebody's self-conscious."
He walked over to the desk the lady was last seen using, climbing up onto a wooden chair and jumping up onto the surface of the wooden table. Seven tried to ignore the giant mechanical eye that was positioned in front of him as he kneeled down, examining the framed photo that the lady had held up to her face.
"So... this is Mono's dad..?"
Picking it up and examining it, he saw a man with grey skin wearing a fedora and a black suit facing the camera, a stern, emotionless expression staring back at Seven.
"Creepy."
Setting it back down, he didn't dare touch the telephone as he carefully lowered himself back down, not wanting to awaken the giant eye.
"Ugh... I'm still freaked out about the fact that they got a photo of us..."
He shook his head, facing a wooden door that was on the other side of the room. It was slightly ajar, so Seven peeked his head through, examining the surroundings of the next room.
"Oh shoot."
Seven cautiously watched as the tall lady examined a map that was being projected by another mechanical eye in the wall.
"Well, if that source of energy is gone, we could always try the Nest."
"The heck is she talking about..?"
He was afraid to even think of thoughts in his head, afraid the lady would somehow hear them as Seven watched her mumble to herself about destruction and power.
"Ugh... why am I even doing this anymore... now that he's gone, what's the point in assuming control of more cities?"
She sighed and Seven flinched as a dark fog began to surround her.
"Woah, woah, woah..!"
"What am I saying... I must finish what I started. It's what he would've wanted me to do."
With a gesture of her hand, the eye closed, the woman turning around and facing the door Seven was peering through. He almost immediately ducked behind the safety of the wall, not daring to peek back around as the sound of her footsteps grew closer.
"She's gonna... assume control of more cities..? What does that even mean?! Why is she doing it for Mono's dad?!"
Seven felt like his brain was going to explode with the number of questions he was asking, on top of that the lady was closing in on his position, and he had only a few seconds to move before his life would be at risk.
"Are Mono and Six not telling me something..? Do they not trust me? No... they... OH SHOOT!"
He instinctively ducked as the door he was standing next to swung open, the tall lady stepping into the room he was in.
"I need a drink..."
She sighed, shaking her head in sorrow as Seven took his opportunity to run, ducking through the doorway just as she had slammed it behind her.
"Phew... way too close..."
Seven put his hands on his knees, sighing with relief.
"Wait... how am I gonna get back?!"
He turned around in a panic, clenching his teeth and looking around for a way back. The door was locked at this point, if he had to go back he would need to go through a vent, or wait for the lady to come back through the same doorway.
"Uh... I'll figure out something. I can't be gone for too long though, they're gonna get worried."
Seven looked around, keeping his attention on the mechanical eye the lady had been looking at, making sure it wasn't going to turn on and vaporize him just like the last one had tried to do.
"Exit... gotta find an exit... then go back to Six and Mono... and get out... simple!"
He walked around, looking up at the tall bookshelves that were holding endless amounts of information. Seven walked along a red carpet, keeping his flashlight out to his side just in case.
"Mono... he said that his dad killed his mom, so that lady can't be his mom... right?"
He was beyond confused at this point, had his only two friends been lying to him this whole time?
"That would really suck... but I have faith! Haha... I have faith..."
Seven looked down, his eyes following the red carpet as he walked along with it, following it through another doorway.
"Huh..?"
His head immediately jolted upward, Seven hearing the sound of skittering footsteps in the distance.
"Who's there?!"
Seven called out, turning his flashlight on and waving it around the dimly lit room he had stepped in. Several pieces of furniture provided easy hiding spots for anybody trying to spy on him, and he knew that his mind wasn't playing tricks on him right now, for he could've sworn he saw something pass the corner of his vision.
"Look, I know you're there, so just come on out!"
His voice was beginning to fail him as he tried to sound fearless when in reality he was experiencing quite the contrary at this moment.
"Hello..?"
Seven gasped as the door behind him suddenly slammed shut. He jumped, turning around and aiming his flashlight at the now-closed wooden door, running the beam of light around the doorframe.
"I... I'm not scared!!"
His breathing became uneasy as the overwhelming sense of dread began to set in, just as the creature revealed itself to him. Seven screamed as he heard the sound of a distorted child's giggle coming from right behind him.
"AAHH!!!"
He covered his eyes as he came face to face with a shadow being. It was around his size, but it was completely made out of a dark mist, its face being a white mask that seemingly floated along with it. Instinctively, he pointed his flashlight at the shadow kid, backing away as the sound and smell of something burning began to set in on his senses.
"Stay away, stay away!"
Seven uncovered his eyes, watching with a sense of strange triumph as the shadow kid shielded its face from the beam of light protruding from his flashlight, its body beginning to disintegrate as he held it on the shadow's form longer.
"Oh... what's wrong?"
He scoffed as it reached one final hand out to him in desperation before disappearing completely, the room becoming vacant once again.
"Phew... well, that was interesting... wonder how many more are around here..."
Just as he had considered the true number of enemies there were in the room, he began to hear more distant shuffling. A metal can was knocked to the floor as Seven gasped, pointing his flashlight with both of his hands and aiming it around him, making sure not to get attacked from behind as he listened closely.
"You wanna be like your friend? Be my guest!"
Seven heard another shadow kid approaching him from his side. For a moment, he pretended not to see it, before attacking it suddenly, aiming his flashlight directly on it and holding it.
"No..."
"Yes!"
The shadow kid disintegrated just like the last one, disappearing into thin air as Seven held his flashlight back down at his side, keeping it ready just in case another one decided to attack him.
"You are... lost..."
"Yeah, I don't know where I am right now!"
Seven ran away from the voice that called to him from behind, holding his flashlight over his shoulder and aiming it behind him. The sound of hissing was heard, indicating that he was aiming directly at it.
"No... escape..."
Seven halted, gasping as one appeared in front of him, reaching its pulsating arms out at him. His heart leaped to his throat as he ran over to the side, steering clear of both of the shadow children that had been targeting him.
"Who did this to you? The tall lady?!"
He tried to reason with the foggy humanoid figures, but they provided no response to his question as they began to charge at him simultaneously. Seven sighed, holding his flashlight back up at them and disintegrating both of their forms at once.
"Sorry, but I don't wanna find out what's gonna happen when you get ahold of me."
As soon as they disappeared, Seven caught his breath, the adrenaline wearing off as he looked around at the stone statues that were seen off to the sides, placed near the wooden walls with purple wallpaper along with them. Aiming his flashlight at the giant statue of a humanoid, he looked on with horror as the fat face of the petrified statue stared up at the ceiling.
"Who even makes this stuff..?"
Seven moved the beam of his flashlight onto another statue, which was familiar to the other one. A large humanoid figure with a horrified expression was seen, their stubby arms stretched out to the side as they appeared to be backing away from an unseen entity.
"Ugh... this sucks... I should go back to Mono and Six. Why did I even sign up for this in the first place?"
The once brave Seven walked through the darkroom both terrified and defeated. He knew that he wasn't going to find an exit so easily, and he had no easy method to get back to Mono and Six, so he was forced to take an alternative route.
"Wait... maybe I can be useful in another way..."
Seven reached the other end of the room, holding his flashlight up at a door that was labeled as a wine cellar.
"Went for a drink, huh? I can totally surprise her here..."
A grin spread across his face as he unequipped his flashlight, cautiously pressing his ear up against the door. A soft hum was heard on the other side of the door, and Seven realized that he was correct in his assumptions.
"So she hates mirrors, for some reason... maybe if I can get a mirror in front of her I can find out."
Seven put his hands up against the door, pushing against it ever so slightly, pushing it ajar and peeking through the tiny opening he had created.
"Okay... there she is... now where do I get a..."
His eyes drifted over the countless shattered mirrors that surrounded the tall woman as she groomed her hair, humming to herself with a glass of wine next to her. She was in front of a large mirror that was completely destroyed, cracks formed on all sides of the glass reflection.
"Jeez, lady. What did those poor mirrors do to you?"
Seven collected himself before cautiously proceeding into the room with her.
"Well... time to be-"
The sound of the door closing shut behind him made Seven's stomach sink.
"Useful..!"
Almost immediately Seven ducked behind the safety of a table leg as the lady's humming stopped completely. He could feel a chill run up his spine as he gulped, closing his eyes and putting a hand over his mouth so he could muffle his own breathing.
"I am so dumb... why did I..."
"Stupid rats..."
He could see her dark brown kimono from under the table as she appeared to hover around the room. She approached the wooden door that had closed, seemingly examining it, before scoffing and turning back around, proceeding with what she was doing before she had gone to investigate the door closing.
"There is NO WAY... oh thank heavens..."
Seven let out a quiet sigh of relief, sitting down and hugging his knees as he planned his next move, or in this case, his next attack.
Word Count: 2537
I wonder if Seven can take the Lady all by himself...
Probably? He's one of the main characters after all.
Right?
Well anyway, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll see you in the next one.
Bye!