Chapter 22: Distorted Lair

Chapter 22: Distorted Lair

[Sifter's Foundations Distortion Cave]

Shit... well I guess it was expected that we would be split up one way or the other. Originally what happened was that Jan would save the extra character by shoving them and Louise jumped out of the way to Jan's side to dodge.

As the story would go they'd continue fighting monsters, eventually getting distorted into a lair of Sifters Foundation with one of their lackey's experimenting with the DM Doping Drug.

But I realised of all the people who had to be here with me, It was Valencia who stood there silently pondering on what to do next, She had her Katana sheathed by her side and I thought it was best if I left her alone so I tip toed down the path leaving her behind. Updated from novelb(i)n.c(o)m

tap, tap, tap,

[5 minutes later]

Lost. Utterly, fucking lost. Each carved archway mocked me with its distorted "wanggg?" mirroring the disarray in my head. Each path I went through twisted and turned, spitting me back out into the same dank hall every few turns.

I felt really stupid to think of how easy this distorted walk would be but It seemed that I had underestimated my knowledge as the author. This cave pathing began to annoy me so I tried to go through paths where the sounds were more evident but I would just end up going down the same way each time.

Then, a chill. A prickling on my neck like eyes boring into my skull. I froze, every instinct screaming. Something watched me, The air crackled with unseen tension, my breath a shallow rasp in the cavernous quiet.

Swallowing hard, I spun, scanning the shadows like a trapped animal. Nothing. But the feeling persisted, a cold weight on my chest. This wasn't just paranoia. Something was out there, waiting.

But as I looked closer using deadeye I realized the person hiding was Valencia who was just following me. So I eased up a bit and continued to walk down another set path hoping to have some sort of breakthrough in this stupid cave.

wangggg!

After marking places I'd been to for continuous minutes, this part of the cave was the one I had yet to discover, and there weren't any markings on the wall. So I grabbed the closest rock and marked the side of a cave with an X.

Closer. Something on my skin crawled, and the heavy breathing of something towering overshadowed the mark, making it invisible.

GARRRR.

[Evasiveness Stat has been triggered! your speed will temporarily be enhanced for the remainder of the fight.]

TAK, TAK, TAK

As the bear fell victim to my flaming arrows, the Grizzly bear fell mad into anger as he rushed hitting the walls and trying to pin me to the side of the cave.

I dodged countless times thanks to my invisible robe and the passive stat of Evasiveness I could move much faster when it came to close combat.

With the angry Grizzly bear swinging downwards I kicked off his arm and aimed my crossbow towards his head firing it and sending the bear back to the afterlife.

The cavern fell silent, the lifeless bodies of the Grizzlies serving as testaments to the narrative's unfolding drama. In this dance of calculated moves and fictional vulnerabilities, I emerged victorious and continued down the path hopefully finding the area with the flag or maybe Jan and Louise's whereabouts.

Jan and Louise are probably fighting hordes of monsters since this place was a testing ground for Sifters Foundation...

Valencia, emerging from the shadows, stumbled upon the lifeless Grizzlies strewn across the cavern floor. Her features were filled with awe and disbelief as she surveyed the aftermath. "Did he do all of this?" she mused, a tone of incredulity threading through her words.

***

The cave seemed to close in on us with every step, our footfalls echoing in the damp silence. Louise's discontent hung in the air; he kept nagging about being stuck here, but I simply ignored him, trying to figure out this cave's weird barrier change.

"Why am I stuck with you?" Louise grumbled, bitterness evident in his voice. I responded cautiously, trying not to bite his bark.

"Sorry, let's find the flag and get out of here," I said, attempting to shift our attention to the assignment. The cave's eerie soundtrack, a mix of growls and echoes, added an unsettling backdrop to our uneasy partnership.

Haah, I guess there's no helping it. I don't want to fail this assignment because we got split up, so I think we should be fine now that Valencia is with Rel. But in all honesty, I can only pray that Rel can deal with Valencia, knowing what kind of person she's like.

Moving through the cave felt like navigating a confusing puzzle. The repeating pattern of the design slowly revealed that we were going in circles.

The cave trek went on, and every time we stepped into a new spot, weird noises like 'wham' or 'wang' hit our ears. It was like a signal that we'd entered a different part of the cave, messing with our sense of direction. These sounds made navigation trickier, keeping us on our toes as we tried to figure out where the heck we were going.

"AHHH, WHAT EVEN IS THIS CAVE?" Louise yelled out in frustration as he hit the side of the cave with his fist in anger.

"We just need to find a pattern where the sounds become smaller, which means we are heading in the right direction," I tried to calm him down, but he seemed to wander in his frustration.

Wham!

The cave seemed to shift once more, and down the very end of the cave, there was a massive door and a ton of monsters in front of it. Louise's eyes seemed to light up, judging by how our cave seemed to have an end.

[Sifter's Foundations Front Entrance.]