Dressing Down

My final interaction with the doesn't talk very much twins was seeing the male version who briefly looked like me before resuming his normal appearence leave my shop with a grunt (it went unsaid, but the implication was to tell no one what had actually happened while I was away).  Thankfully my business was mostly there, and my not so doppleganger was at least a passable seamstress if only very workman. Sadly the rush of orders had tapered off in my absence/increased competition.  I still had work to do of course, but the boom of my early orders had died off and now I actually had to compete with others.

Still compared to trudging in the darkness of an Asylum it was a welcome change of pace to return to my normal business. Rolak was busy after the rebuilding, a harvest festival was coming up, and despite a lot of the local farms being burned during the war enough of them had replanted in time to have a decent showing. On top of that the Emperor had declared the entire empire in celebration of the recent revolution, so there were mini parties and events all over which included new dresses having to be made/tailored for all the new occaisions.

Nothing really terrible happened post Asylum (thank whatever gods I get no luck from), I heard reports of people coming across a broken town on the coast and burning the ground behind them after being attacked by horrific creatures, but that could have been anything in this world. Things just went as they go, and soon enough months turned to years and I just kept on chugging away at my store.  It was about five years and a couple ups and down before I even got involved in anything noteworthy.  It was the start of winter... And oh you'll have to check back tomorrow!

By Rojove I think He's Got It

The deeper we went the less normal the place looked.  Caves covered with gore gave way to caves that seemed to be made from human corpses.  The darkness even seemed to get darker beyond my oil lamp, like the black itself was now fighting us.  These things didn't seem to bother my companion, but they scared me as we went.  I mean I couldn't see in front of me, we had fought unholy creatures already, and I was really worried things were going to get a lot worse before they even looked like they'd get better (if better was even an option).  I felt my ribs ache with memory of being crushed as we came to a large chamber that appeared to be filled with blood.  The lantern light did not penetrate the darkness beyond about a foot in front of me, so I couldn't tell how large the chamber was, but from the sounds of echos huge seemed a good estimate.

"So do we like ask him to die or whats the plan here?" I broke the silence with one of my helpful suggestions. It got a nasty glare from my female companion (that all she had for me nasty glares, it was how I knew she was truely female if not truely human).

"You know Lorentino..." Her rebuke was cut off by an emergence of a person from under the blood/water. His clothes were tattered, skin looked pale and his eyes from what I could see were all white no pupil anymore. Though he just emerged from the blood/water he also had a bit of drool leaking from his lip.  It was quite the different look from when I last saw Rojove I can't see he looked better though its not like I really thought highly of him and that his look of dishelvement didn't bring a smile to my face.

"Lorentino." His voice was obviously not his own he was acting as a vessel for the creature, "You have not won this fight Lorentino, I will be back and your suffereing will be eternal, I will no..." Rojoves talking was cut off mid creepy slur as my companions bullet annihilated his head.

"It's not here," She sighed, it was the type of sigh of someone who knows they failed to do something they set out to do.

"That's a good thing right?" I was trying to be hopeful we would get out of this hellish place and leave it behind us.  The lantern oil seemed to be going low. She looked at me and sighed again, but turned around and started walking out the way we had come in.  We made our way out of that hellish Asylum, and as we did the place seemed different, like the creature had originally been there when we showed up, but in fear it left before we got to it. I mean it was still creepy, scary and disgusting, but we were leaving it and as we did I could hear things falling apart faster now.  I guessed whatever power had kept the place working faltered without the creature there and it was now going to just be destroyed.

Leaving the rusty hell I felt a sense of relief and blinding light, apparently it was day as we emerged. My companion did not look happy to be finished but I sure as all thats right in the world was.  I wanted to get back to my shop while I still had a shop! So I didn't wait to make a camp, I got on my horse and companion or no I was out of there.  We hadn't exactly succeeded, but I honestly don't think success was possible, this creature did not want to be killed, and it had the means to escape its own demise.  Also to be perfectly frank I think having seen my companion in action the creature leaving was the best result for us.  I don't think we could have killed it, or it can be killed anyway.

All the same I felt pretty good putting this whole thing behind me and hoped against hope that I never had to deal with any of these people ever again.  So far and this is many years later, I have not!

Jumped the Gun

"You truely are a weak little creature." Bedside manor of my dark companion? Pretty awful.  I mean I'm not like sunshine and lollipops or anything, but I don't insult the person I injured for in fact getting injured.

"Thanks I'll try in the future to be more bulletproof." I have not in fact tried to be more bulletproof.  Not intentionally mind you, but I don't really know how one can do that.  She was bandaging up my shoulder with fabric from my own clothing (I was not asked before this occured, and would have vastly prefered to go bandageless if it meant screwing up my look!). I don't even really know the point of the bandage here, the wound was closed by her weird molten bullet upon entry.  All her bandaging did was highlight I was in fact wounded.

"And another thing Lorentino, when were you going to tell me you were corrupted?"

"Look I take a little graft here and there, but I wouldn't say I'm totally corrupted." Thanks folks I'm here all week tip your waiter.

"You do understand the creatures here are all a result of the corruption you yourself carry in your veins? Are you so stupid to not understand what that means?"

"What so I'm better bait than you thought previously? Please I've been worse I can deal with this." It was true I'd gone full corrupted once, though I did have to be healed through necromancy, its not a huge deal honestly. Ok it is, a dark version of me would probably be pretty bad for the world in general, but at that point it would be totally awesome for what was left of my mind.

"Better bait yes, but now I'm more at risk you moron, if they corrupt you then your use as bait is gone, if they haven't already gotten to you." I could sense I was about to be looking down the barrel of a revolver soon, or I would have had a loud thumping noise came crashing towards us.  I slid over to the side of the disgusting cave wall, my companion got to her feet revolver leveled and ready. What emerged  in the Lantern light was some large man beast creature.  Blackened from corruption, with an ugly tusky mouth it looked at the two of us and roared.  My companion roared back her revolver once again firing blinding flashes in the half darkness.  I covered my eyes and hoped she could gun the creature down. I heard her revolver stop just in time to see the creature slam her backwards, apparently her bullets worked great on me less on the beast.

My companion went flying and hit the gore caked cave wall with a thud, she was still moving but not as spry as she had been previously. Worried I was about to be alone in that hellish place with no real sense of direction I sprung into action, leaping up with my sword at the ready. I was able to get on the creatures back, using my sword as a sort of climbing tool (this despite my injury, weak my ass spooky lady!).  The beast howled in pain as I stabbed my way to the top. Unfortunately when I made the top the creature started to buck crazy.  It was like the worst horse ride ever, he swung too and fro trying to shake me off as I tried to hold on with my bad hand and remove my sword with my left to try and put an end to the creature itself.  I could hear my companion had started shooting again (which partially scared me having been shot by her already, it wasn't unheard of while I'm clinging to the back of this creature she's shoot me again this time "accidentally"). I didn't have a lot of time to ponder getting shot though as the creature slammed me and itself into a wall.  Not going to lie that hurt a whole lot especially in my just got shot shoulder. My grip was fading as the pain threshhold increased, the creature was trying to grind me into the wall.

Going off desperation I wrapped my arm tight around the creatures thick neck and set my own arm aflame (thankfully magic flame you conjure is generally safe for you, sometimes, it really depends honestly sometimes I've done something like this and had burns, other times I've bathed my hand in flame and had nothing, I think its something about other acclerants or something? Its not exactly something I've "studied" really because who wants to set appendages on fire!?). I felt my arm get some give and then it went all the way through the creatures neck decapitating the beast.  It collapsed forward tossing me off the creature, the head came rolling with me and landing at my feet as its body landed with a thud.  I'm sure it could have looked all heroic but honestly I just fell off and groaned in pain.  I also burnt all the hair and clothing off my right arm which smelled fabulous even in a horrid place like this.

"We have to hurry Lorentino, this was just a scout I'm sure other creatures are coming." I didn't even get a thank you! Just a move Trezlan.  I tell you no one ever says thank you anymore! You know what they say "a little politeness goes a long way when murdering the damned!" I mean it must be true THEY say it!

And Down We go

In the deeps you go tromping
Something lies below goes chomping
You should have stayed in the light
Now you are in for a Fright

You have no idea what you are in for
You should have shut the door
Time to take a bow
They come for you... NOW!

-Poem scrolled on a cave wall in what appeared to be Blood

So yeah deeper under the Asylum any manner of man made construction falls away, and simply became a cave system covered in gore (I'm not joking rotting decayed corpses were everywhere the further I went in, which again much like the poem I found above indicated maybe just maybe I should have turned around).  I did happen to find fresh foot prints most likely from my companion, so in the absence of any kind of navigation I could at least follow these.  So there was that, though it did occur to me it could have also been a trap from the creatures that tried to kill me above.

To this end and because it seems I was constantly losing my sword to other people I enchanted the hilt with a blood curse.  Well I tried to, I've never been really good with writing out curses (damn you writing in blood on an uneven surface!) so either I had it be a blood curse, or whoever got it would immediately get my life force transfered to them (funny how those two curses are so similar in wording, it does come to mind why I couldn't simply just create my own curses, well you know spell curses, I've invented whole phrases for what my life throws at me). I hvae to admit I was feeling a little safer despite being clearly in a terrible place and safe was the furthest thing from me entirely. I was feeling so safe I didn't even notice I'd found my female companion until she put a bullet right through the right side of my chest (hows that for gratitude! Thanks for finding me, here's a bullet).

"You will not take me so easily monster." I knew immediately that the creatures that had attacked me above had obviously lead her away in much the same fashion.  Clearly though I should have figured this prior to just coming upon her in a cavern and approaching with my lantern out sword sheathed (I never really learn do I?).  The bullet sizzled on the way out, now I'm not a gun expert, never claim to be really, but even I knew back then (and even now) that its not natural for a bullet to be super heated on exiting a gun normally.  It was a blessing because it closed the wound it created.  Still the shot did mess up my arm a bit and cause me to drop the lantern which thankfully didn't break but again the precious oil inside sloshed out a bit more.

"Nice to see you too." Shock hit then, well shock and all the built up fear and anxiety and lack of sleep.  I collapsed like a necromancer shot near his heart (I think maybe? I've never looked inside my chest my heart might not actually exist, something that has been alledged by people).  I remember thinking before I passed out "God I hope that actually was the lady I came down here with." And then the world went black.

Doubles in the Dark

Certain things you can count on when you are all alone in a scary place.  Sounds even ones like dripping water take on a whole new terror, there is never enough light to show you everything you want, and the physical manefestation of the evil in the place trying to take on your persona to fool you into thinking you are going crazy.  Ok so that last one might be unique to me personally, but still it seems like the more dark and scary some place is, the more likely I'll run across another me, either in a mirror, or just out in the open. Its not like I don't talk to myself enough!

To my credit I was doing as my dark female companion had asked me to do before. I was staying put hoping she'd come back. As time seemed to stretch into forever (so like five maybe ten minutes?) I got worried she was not coming back.  And thats when I stepped from the darkness.  Well not exactly me, it was me in a nicer set of clothes not covered in blood and not as scruffy looking (look I can admit after time on the trail I look fairly nasty, I don't travel well). He seemed to look me over with condescion, as if appraising me to be what I appeared to be and finding me lacking.  Which to tell you the truth should I ever come across a copy of myself looking like I normally do, I'd judge myself pretty harshly (Again I mean lets not forget the creepy shape changers).

"So this is what we're reduced to, huddling in the dark hoping some strong woman comes to save us?"  His voice was mine, but not quite, kind of like when someone mocks your voice.

"Can we just skip to the part where you try and kill me, I mean this act might work on someone who isn't half as crazy as myself, but I know crazy sir, and you sir are no crazy!" I'll admit anyone else this fake you or is it? Act might work on, but I'm Trezlan "Batshit Crazy" Lorentino! I'm a guy who was locked within himself by an evil master. I'm someone who routinely has to talk to himself to cheer up his day! Some spectre mimicing my look won't even make me blink! Well other than normal blink responses. He lunged at me, hands twisting from mine in to some kind of weird hook hands, behind me there was another of the same type of creature (actually kind of smart, distract from one angle, try and kill from a seperate one). They also had me sitting down, though that worked to my favor.  I ducked backwards from the first attack which dodged the second perfectly! In falling backwards I went to pull my sword out of its hilt (because stupidly I'd left it idle in a dark scary place, what can I say I'm not a smart swordsman) and brought it into the second attackers midsection slicing the weird shadow creature in two, while his own lunge decapitated the former me.

They did knock over my oil lamp, spilling some of the precious light fluid on to the ground, but outside of that complete failures (so I guess they were a bit more like me than I'd like to admit, self hey yo!!). I was still in the prison section and despite my hopes my female companion was not returning.  Now a smart person would just leave, but I've never been smart, and I figured the only way out was down (clearly I'm terrible at room geography). So with a heavy sigh I picked up my little lantern and went deeper into the blackness, hoping that no more copies of me were waiting, or if they were, they were a bit less condescending!

Don't be Afraid of the Dark

"Take this lantern." She had been carrying it when she saved me from the whateveracreature, but I was of course distracted. It was unlit but that was not a problem for someone who uses fire like I do.

"Is that all I am to you? Bait and someone to hold the light?"

"I don't even need the light, but I figured you'd want to see something." One more strike against her humanity (if I didn't already think she wasn't human to begin with). Past the bath section there were stairs that lead down, as we walked down them I heard the echos of our feet and saw dust rise from the footfalls, no one had gone this way in quite some time.  The stairs themselves were metal and in fairly good shape honestly, which was a bit of a relief considering the state of affairs of the rest of the place (wouldn't want to have another accident crashing through the stairs).

The light wasn't much of a relief, I mean it showed me what was around, but not much beyond that.  So all it really showed was what I wasn't seeing.  I did have the twin revolver using being from another whatever, but her treatment of me didn't exactly inspire confidence in the "If Lorentino is in trouble I'll save him" part of my brain. We came to the bottom of the stairs and found a section of cells, the bars were marroonish black I could see from how the coating was on the bars it wasn't a natural rust. There were a few skeletons broken and scattered about, whatever treatment this place offered it wasn't high on the "curing" set I figured.

"Lots of blood, not a lot of skeletons." I saw three skeletons but there were over forty cells from what my limited light could see.  My companion didn't say anything, she didn't really have time, from the shadows emerged half corpses.  I say half because they were missing skin and muscle in some places, and had way too much in others.  She drew her pistol and started firing, the ignition of the powder with each shot causing enough flash to screw with my eyes, even with the lantern providing light.  The corpses were howling at us half gutteral screams that would chill the bones of a lesser man. I waded in with my sword, swinging with my left keeping the lantern steady with my right. The creatures went down easily enough, though the blood gore, and piles of corpses started to obscure my vision (you try hacking something up in the darkness while someone fires a loud revolver next to you). I didn't even notice in the heat of the battle that I lost my companion. I had become so deafened and blinded from her firing/hacking up the corpses my self.  That suddenly I was all alone with my little lantern and a pile of corpses.  Still in the prison area, but she was no where to be found.

"Crap." It was all I could think of really.  I'm sure it was intended, that whatever dark horror was in this place wanted to seperate us and used this opportunity to do it.  All the same, I clutched my little lantern with a bit more fear.  Its not what was in the dark that scared me, it was what would set foot in the light.  Because honestly the most terrifying creatures don't fear the light, they love it, tells them where their victims are hiding.  Sleep well tonight knowing that, as I slept in that Asylum cell area surrounded by the remains of half corpses and covered in their gore. Hint I DIDN'T SLEEP AT ALL!

Looking for a place to Crash

Caraway Asylum was a very large building.  It looked like at one time it had been smaller, but over the years had simply grown into the massive structure of twisted steel and stone we saw in front of us.  The metal was rusted sadly (just once I'd like to come across a beautifully maintained evil hideout! Just once!), and the stone looked to have decayed to match it or was originally blood red I couldn't tell.  It was a very tall structure, reaching to a large belltower like point at the top.  The doors leading in were oppressive double metal doors with huge knockers (insert breast joke here). My female companion strode forth and with a solid kick the doors were knocked off their hinges with a huge clanging crash.

"So much for subtlety." I mouthed under my breath as we stepped inside. The opening area was very much an admittance place, probably to keep up the illusion it was a real Asylum.  I could see a wooden desk that looked like it had seen better days and some rotted furniture for people to sit down in while they wait. Compared to the huge doors in the waiting room seemed kind of normal.  I did notice a small bell at the front desk and being someone who can't pass up a simple joke made my way too it.  I rang it a couple times and waited.

"This is the worst service I tell..." I fell through the floor at this point, I'm sure in the midst of rolling her eyes at me, my female companion mouthed idiot. I crashed through a couple floors before I found one that the floor wasn't rotted enough to support my wait, I could see above me a large hole from my entrance.

"You still with me Lorentino?" She called out from above, I could see from the light coming in from our entrance she had one of her pistols out.

"Yeah I seem to have fallen into a washroom or something, I see a lot of ceramic tile that was probably white at one point." It was now like everything else very red.

"Stay where you are I'll find a way down."

"Where would I go? And there's already a way down." There was, and its not like she was probably alive or anything.  I dunno what she was, if she was even a she at all (still don't really), but still she could have leaped after me.  Despite me asking where I would go I couldn't help but look around (I am what I am, and that is all I am). The room I crashed into lead to another larger room (maybe I was in the undressing area and the larger room was originally a bathhouse of sorts? I have no idea).  Light of course was almost nonexistant this deep in the actual building itself, so I decided to brighten things up with a bit of fire (always a bad idea, but I've never been a cautious restraint kind of guy). I saw what looked to be a pile of debris near the floor and tossed a bit of flame towards it.  Big big mistake, what appeared to be debris was some kind of multi legged insect from the foulest pits of the darkest hells.

As a positive I'd set it on fire, as a negative that didn't seem to slow it down.  Its carapace looked like it was almost metallic.  The front was a pair of nasty tusks that slammed into each other in a scary way (as if there was some none scary way of having an ugly pair of tusks in front of your mouth). My sword was out and my backpeddling began.  The room I was in was fairly large which again was a positive, but I'm fairly out of shape with regards to running, once again a negative.  It definatley was at one time a bath or pool, I could tell from it being deeper in parts and shallower in others.  As I got to the shallow end I found the nest of the creature chasing me, the crunch of broken bones as I stepped on its past snacks was unsettling. I was going to lose the cardio battle pretty soon so I had to make a desperate move I got near one of the walls of the pool and waited for the beast to try and lunge at me (didn't have to wait long it wanted a Trezzle snack pretty badly). I side stepped at the last moment and rolled past the beast.  Its tusks got stuck in the pool for a moment so I sliced off what I assumed was the head from the rest of the body.

Good news it was smaller, bad news, it was still alive! It unstuck its tusks and looked rather pissed at me for making it slimmer.  I could see it was spilling its insides all over places, but it was still trucking, and with less weight it was rather fast.  The fire I'd originally cast on its rear parts was also dying out, so the light was fading, the creature was faster, and I was tired.  I was about to curse the luck of being eaten by something three quarters dead when a gunshot rang out and struck the creature stone dead for good.

"Told you to stay put." My female companion looked none the worse for traveling to where I was.

"I went one room over, I didn't expect to run across whatever the hell that was." I flicked the goo off my sword and resheathed it.

"I heard those things are good eating if you're feeling hungry."

"The very thought of eating it almost makes me nautious."

"Humans, so concerned with the look of something to ignore the flavor explosion that lies within, oh well, come on we've got a long way to go and now the creatures probably know we are here." I did at least learn that whatever she was, human was not apart of it (her way of pronoucing it alone seemed to differentiate her from any living person ever). She moved beyond the pool area unfortunately towards a stair case leading down, and down we descended into the black heart of the Asylum, I know now that the bug creature in the pool was the least of the horrors that awaited us.