The Smiling Sword Chapter 12: Chapter 12: Subterranean Horror

Read chapter 12 of The Smiling Sword by IchorX on NovelPedia.

Subterranean Horror We sprint through the new tunnel, a very narrow one filled with phosphorescent moss, Neo's hand clamped around my wrist. The rumbling's getting quieter, and soon it disappears altogether. "We made it out guys," I say, turning around and realizing there is absolutely no one behind me. "Uh." Neo releases my hand and catches his breath. "They couldn't have gone far," he pants, leaning against the tunnel wall. "I'm sure we'll meet them again soon." "At least we're together," I grin. "You think the others made it?" "Hope so. Krim's tough as nails, Elemental is Elemental, Luc's too angry to die." "True, he'd probably punch Death in the face if it came for him." We walk through the tunnel, surrounded by the bright green glow, and momentarily I think I forget we're in the Facility. "Crazy, huh?" I smirk. "Three weeks ago we were practically nobodies, and now we're surviving cave-ins and fighting monsters." "Speak for yourself, I was always destined for greatness." "Yeah? What were you studying again?" "Comedy." "Exactly." "Hey, comedic tact builds empires." "Only thing funny 'bout you is that face. Besides, look where it got you. Miles underground with glowing mould, psycho friends and no connection." "Honestly could be worse, at least the mould matches your eyes." "The fuck's that meant to mean? Creepy sonuvabitch. You’re crazy." "Maybe, but you'd be bored without me, and probably dead, too." "Well, I'm glad you’re still here." "What, you gettin' sentimental on me now?" "Oh piss off. Do you think I'm serious? Every time you say something, you jinx it." "That's just not true," Neo protests. "What, are we gonna walk headfirst into a trap set by a psycho kill-" I grab his shoulder and yank him back, a millisecond before he walks headfirst into a trap. We've come out into a place where the tunnel splits off into a couple smaller ones, heading in different directions - and the 'clearing' before them is shadowy and dark, deprived of moss. It's only because of the light behind us that I was able to spy the network of strings that criss-cross this whole place. The green glow of the moss bounces off the wires, forming a lay layer of green lines stretching into the dark at ankle-height. "You were sayin'?" I ask. "That's not even my fault." "Anyone here!?" I call into the dark. "We ain't gonna kill you on sight so hellooooo?" Something moves in the shadows, circling us, and we back up into the moss tunnel. "It's gotta be a human, right?" "It might be a giant flying spider's nest," Neo mutters, before I can stop him. I flinch. Then it comes tearing out of the shadows, a monster. Or rather, a human. A slim, agile, flexible, crazy-looking human with long, dirty, pale pink hair. She can't be any older than me, but the knives spinning in her fingers look plenty sharp. I parry her in a shower of sparks and she disappears into the shadows, flittering back and forth. "I can see her!" Neo exclaims, and jumps into the dark. I hear two people cry out, scuffling, craping of stone against stone, and then suddenly the two of them bundle back out into the light of the moss tunnel. We get a good look at the girl in front of us. She has wide, wary, fiery orange-red eyes, and her pale pink hair falls down around her shoulders. There's dried blood, scrapes and grit all over her, and she looks exhausted. Did she survive here all this time alone? But what hits me the most is her face. It's not her eyes, or how pretty she is, or the ugly slash on her face. "L…" I catch myself. If I were to say her name out loud I'd be dead. I know her. I've definitely seen her before. She recognizes me too, and her orange eyes widen. The knife clatters from her hands. "You… you?" her voice hits me like a gunshot. And then for a heartbeat, I'm in a classroom, a large, quiet classroom, with high, neon ceilings, whirring robot lab assistants, and white light. The sound of pens scratching and tapping into projector panels. A girl sitting t