《A World of Many》


 Chapter 001: Awoke in the Unknown

    He wasn¡¯t sure how it happened. In one moment he was perfectly fine and going about his day as usual, and then darkness. Ceaseless pitch-black darkness had shrouded his consciousness. He could feel no sense of response from his physical body, as if he were cut off from it. For Cyrus Speer, the only thing he could do was plead to the heavens for his survival.


    There was no sense of time in the empty void. For all he knew a hundred years could have passed by him and he wouldn¡¯t have noticed, not that he had the leisure of trying to figure it out. A ceaseless fear clouded his mind; doting worries of what was happening to him had kept him from collecting himself.


    Click.


    Then, suddenly, there was a sensation. A feeling as if his mind made a connection to something. This moment of suddenness has temporarily snapped him back from his fear driven state. Then, silence. As if all though process had ceased, Cyrus remained there in a blank-minded state. It wasn¡¯t until a split second later, after the mysterious mind click, that pain sprang forth.


    ¡°Arghh!¡±


    Cyrus lurched. The pain that had found his way to him had taken him by surprise. There was no moment or warning for the impact. He remained there, screaming from the pain for some time until it finally dawned on him. He heard it. He heard his own scream. Wouldn¡¯t that mean he was still alive?


    ¡°Grr¡­¡±


    He gritted his teeth, trying to suppress the pain so that he could think. He could sense it, his body. Thinking on it for a bit he concluded that the clicking sensation his mind had felt must have been his consciousness somehow reconnecting with his body. This was all a mere possibility of course, but it made somewhat of a sense to him. Thanks to that, he had managed to dispel a slight margin of fear from his psyche.


    At the moment he was unable to open his eyes. After a bit he had managed to move a part of his body slightly, a means by which told him he was slowly gaining back his physical body functions. Still, he was curious as to why his body was in pain. Slowly, bit by bit, Cyrus managed to move more of his body. Eventually movements had increased to larger increments.


    From his movements he could tell that his entire body felt weak. His stomach felt empty, movements felt stiff, and a sense of weariness overwhelmed him. It wasn¡¯t until he tried moving his left arm that he came to a problem. He was unable to move it. A tinge of panic settled into his heart in fear of the worst. However, after a bit of fumbling he found he was still able to feel his arm, and even able to slightly move his fingers. This meant his arm was still attached to him.


    Though the question of why he couldn¡¯t move it plagued his mind. In addition to that he felt that the most pain in his body stemmed from that very arm. After confirming that his entire being was still in one piece, Cyrus had no other choice but to wait until he possessed the capabilities of moving once more.


    Once again, time seemed infinite as Cyrus suppressed the pain he was feeling. He would occasionally move a random part of his body to ensure himself that he was still there and alive. Eventually he managed to recover his eyesight, slowly opening them to allow them time to adjust to the outside world. However, the bright light he expected to view was nowhere to be seen.


    Looking straight above there were no clouds, sunlight, or even stars. Rocks. A rocky ceiling, like that of a cavern, that was what Cyrus had seen when his eyes had finally opened. The walls were different though. Large, smooth bricks were what surrounded him. Ornate items decorated the walls, the likes of which seemed too gaudy for any household to have. Slight confusion overtook him at the sight. Either he was in some type of structured underground cavern, or someone threw a room into a mountain and this was the result. Of course both options were absurd.


    ¡°W¡­Where am I?¡±


    A weak hoarse voice escaped his lips. Though he was unsure how he ended up unconscious, he was at least able to remember that he was nowhere near a place like this. After a bit of thought the pain from his left arm brought his attention back to it. Despite fearing what he may see, Cyrus slowly turned his head towards its direction.


    Concrete, a large slab of it was currently occupying the area over his left arm. Rather, his arm was covered in ruble and debris. It wasn¡¯t to the point of being crushed, but blood was seeping out of his arm. Cyrus was unsure of what to do. If he tried pulling it them the ruble might collapse on it and fully crush it, but on the other hand it might collapse anyways. In either case he needed to get his arm out so that he could venture out and figure out where he was at.


    Cyrus gritted his teeth and placed as much energy into his left arm as he could muster. With a quick and rough tug, his arm plopped out underneath of the stone slab. After which the ruble that was already piled there collapsed further. It wasn¡¯t the safest of methods, but the unstable condition of the ruble forced this quick action.


    With his arm free, though still hurting, Cyrus cradled it as he waited to regain what little strength his body was currently able to maintain. After a few minutes he slowly stood up. Due to the stiffness of his body, Cyrus appeared as though a toddler who was just learning to walk. He wobbled side to side and there were a few instances even he thought he would fall down. Using the wall as leverage he slowly surveyed the room.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Due to what little, if any, light there was it had been difficult at first to see everything. After allowing his eyes to adjust to the darkness Cyrus was now able to see enough to tell what was around. The first thing he noticed was the state of distraught the room¡¯s condition was in. The ceiling was smashed up, walls were tearing down, and an array of ornate object were scattered on the floor. There was one object in particular that had caught Cyrus¡¯s attention.


    It lay next to various gaudy swords, shields, and cups. It appearance was that of a small device, no bigger than a palm. Out of all the objects here it was the only one that seemed out of place with the medieval vibe of the other things.


    There were four small prongs around the circular device, as if used to stick it anywhere. On the front of the metal-like device was a smooth blue gemstone. At first he thought it might be some kind of strange LED light, though further observation proved otherwise.


    At first he was going to toss it away, but something strange had occurred. Some blood from his left arm had made its way to the gemstone, covering the clear blue stone with a splash of red. Suddenly, there was a reaction. The blood that plastered it seeped into the strange gemstone as though it were devouring it.


    Cyrus couldn¡¯t help but be surprised. He had never seen anything like this before. Slowly the blue gemstone had a small red dot in the center. The red dot, as though symbolizing Cyrus himself, slowly overtook the entirety of the blue and turned it into a deep crimson red before reverting back to its original blue color. This time the blue gemstone had traces of what appeared to be red decor lines over it.


    Scared by it, Cyrus dropped the strange device. Surprisingly no clang against the ground could be heard. Looking at the device, Cyrus was dumbfounded. The device was there, floating, just a few centimeters off the ground as though an unknown force repelled it. Then, as if attracted to what overtook it, the device quickly flew over to Cyrus. The four prongs of the device clasped onto him, refusing to let go.


    Reeling back from the shock of it all Cyrus fell down. His left arm, clamped by the device, came into contact with a nearby spear.


    Vween!


    An unknown sensation came over Cyrus. Confused he looked towards where the sensation seemed to be emanated from only for his eyes to land atop the strange metal device. Lifting his left arm up he found the sensation to have stopped. Wondering what was happening he slowly placed his hand back down, the device back atop the spear it was resting on moments before.


    Vween! Vween!


    At the moment of contact the strange sensation returned to him. It was strange, a feeling as though the device clasped to him was trying to tell him something. Unable to determine what it wanted, nor how the mental link he seemed to have with it was formed, Cyrus was left dumbfounded at what to do.


    I don¡¯t get it. What are you trying to tell me? If you¡¯re going to do something, then do it already. As if reading those thoughts, the device reacted to Cyrus. Afterwards something even more shocking than what happened moments before had occurred right in front of his eyes.


    The gemstone appeared to light up a bit as the spear faltered and wavered like it was made of water. Then slowly it dissipated into small fragments of light. Those lights ventured directly towards the gemstone and vanished into it as though it were gorging on them. Eventually the sturdy spear that was once there was now gone, vanished into the small device on his bloody left arm.


    Stunned by the act Cyrus remained wide-eyed with his mouth agape. Moments later the pain in his arm was what awoke him from his surprised state. Though he was in pain he still couldn¡¯t help but wonder about what had just occurred. Setting his thoughts on the device and the spear that seemed to have been eaten by it a reaction ensued.


    Responding to his thoughts the gemstone glowed as particles of light overtook it. Slowly the clumped up lights, appearing as formless bright water, took shape. What appeared afterwards was the spear that had been absorbed, seemingly fused to the device as the gemstone was assembled with it.


    ¡°It turned into a spear?¡±


    This time a small gasp came from Cyrus. Perhaps because he was awestruck no less than three times in rapid success that this act came off as less surprising, though needless to say it was still something to behold enough so that he still voiced out his thoughts.


    Wondering on something Cyrus sent his thought to the device once more. Utilizing the strange mental link the device responded to his desires as the spear glowed and dissipated, turning back into the small device.


    With his curiosity peaked Cyrus played around with the device, morphing it back and forth from its default state and the spear.


    ¡°Hmm, I wonder what else it can turn into.¡±


    Recalling how the spear was absorbed, Cyrus reached over for other things around the area. A shield, sword, bow, chalice and what appeared to be pieces of armor. One by one he allowed the strange device to devour them. It was at this time that there was a problem.


    Though the device managed in absorbing the shield, sword, and bow it was unable to take in the chalice and armor pieces. From what he could conclude from the little information he had was that the device was only able to absorb weapon-like creations.


    The reason for his interest in the device and spending time learning a bit about it was due to his current situation. He was in an unknown place and could quite possibly encounter danger even if he remained here. The thoughts of this being a prank flew out the window the moment the device activated and latched onto him and a dream was out of the question as he felt genuine pain and hasn¡¯t woken up yet. Either way this place was too surreal for him to have imagined.


    Mental linking to the device and changing its form into the shield he let it absorb earlier Cyrus prepared to embark out of the strange medieval castle-cavern room he found himself in. While the option of staying was there, there was no guarantee there was anyone here to help him out. Worst case scenario he might die before any help could arrive.


    Though he wasn¡¯t one to purposefully endanger his life his instinctual means for survival made him embark on this dangerous task. Still suffering from wounds and malnourishment he steadily and carefully walked out of the room and into one of the dark caverns.


    Chapter End

 Chapter 002: First Encounter of the Dangerous Kind

    Cyrus slowly proceed down the dark cavern, right hand grazing past the walls to keep him stable as his left was propped with the device-turned-shield. Treading carefully he strained his senses as his heartbeat hastened.


    Shallow breathing with the occasional deep breaths came from him. In truth he knew he was in no real condition to be doing something as stupid as venturing out in a dark cavern when there was the possibility of danger, but the choice was already made.


    He begrudgingly continued forth in hopes of a fortuitous event. If all goes well then he might not even encounter anything dangerous on this expedition. Though if he did encounter an enemy then he¡¯d try his best to avoid then.


    Tap. Tap. Tap.


    The sounds of his footsteps were the only thing that seemed to be audible around here. He thought about slowing down a bit to reduce the noise he was making, but the thought that he might not make it if he went any slower made him reject the notion.


    If things get really bad then I¡¯ll just use this thing. Cyrus looked down at the device on his wounded arm. Though its current form was that of a shield he could also change it into a sword, spear, or bow at will. Thoughts of killing someone entered his mind as he thought about the possibility of entering a fight. Hopefully things don¡¯t escalate to that.


    Determined to dodge and evade any confrontations rather than directly take them head-on Cyrus sent the thought of killing to the back of his mind. He instead turned his attention back onto the device. Even though this thing changes shape and absorbed a few things it¡¯s still light as a feather. Just what the hell is it?


    It was true. Even in its various transformations the weight of the metal device never exceeded its original form. Such a notion bewildered Cyrus. Then again, this thing can absorb things into it and even change its shape. Maybe the whole ¡°no extra weight¡± thing isn¡¯t the weirdest aspect of it.


    Putting aside his amazement of the device Cyrus notices something farther ahead. Is that¡­light? From a bit father in there was a bright light at the end of the tunnel. With relief and happiness overtaking the despair and fear in his heart, Cyrus hastened his pace. Step-by-step the source of light drew ever closer to him, its shining bright light symbolizing hope and peace for him.


    Raising his injured left arm to shield himself from the blinding light he quickly entered the place without a second thought. Taking the time for his eyes to readjust to the light Cyrus energetically removed his arm from his sight, practically smiling at his fortune. However, that smile soon vanished from his face.


    What? That was the only thing his brain could process at what he was seeing. Rather than an exit he was still within the cavern, enclosed within its dank walls. The light source that Cyrus had seen, the source of his temporary joy, came from a few glowing crystals in the room. In fact the chamber he was in was filled with them.


    As if doused with cold water Cyrus¡¯s body faltered. He lay on his knees in a submissive position, his fingers trembling as they clawed into the ground. From fear to blissful to uncouth rage and despair, the sudden shifts of emotions within that short timeframe caused more damage to Cyrus that he would have originally though.


    Tears slowly began forming before they streaked down his face. He was scared, afraid of where his current predicament had put him in. He had ventured out to try to find some help only to be put down at the first sign of hope.


    In the first place Cyrus himself was not an adventurous being. He was cowardly, cautious of what may cause him pain, and quite evidentially a sensitive and self-doubting being. Once he discovered that this was not the exit that he had originally though various negative thoughts and emotions entered his mind.


    What if I never find a way out? What if I die here? If I had stayed put would I have already been saved? If I go back now will there still be someone who passes by and help me? Will I even be able to make it back? What if I¡¯m all alone here? Is¡­is death all there is for me?


    Such thoughts seemed to sway endlessly in Cyrus¡¯ mind and heart. While distractions such as the device seemed to keep him at bay it was nothing more than his attempts to remedy his situation, to calm his nerves and try to think clearly of what to do next.


    Dammit¡­dammit¡­ ¡°Dammit!¡± As if unable to contain it, the thoughts in his mind ended up being voiced out in defeat. Breathing erratically he had finally managed to gain some semblance of control back to himself. With clenched fists he remained there, eyes to the ground as his tears continued to flow down.


    Clang!


    A never before heard sound echoed in the chamber. It was reminiscent of metal clanking against metal. Cyrus remained there, motionless, as the sounds continued to draw closer and closer to him. Fear gripped his mind and heart, preventing him from taking action. It was a fight or flight reaction. Only in this instance, Cyrus¡¯ flight failed him.


    Clang! Clang! CLANG!!


    With a furious stomp the sound of clanking metal ended. Unfortunately relief did not embrace Cyrus. Only dread did. The reason was simple as an armored foot had slammed down right within his view. While there was a chance it was someone who could help him, Cyrus couldn¡¯t help but be filled with fear as the hairs on his body stood on end.


    Danger! Danger! Danger! His mind cried out to him. With rusted robotic movement Cyrus slowly lifted up his downward face. He wasn¡¯t sure why he was able to move his head, nor why he was about to stare at what had appeared in front of him and made his mind¡¯s danger radar go off. It was as if his body was not his own anymore. He was conscious of his actions but unable to control them.


    As his head slowly lifted up he was able to take note of what he was seeing. The armor that the one in front of him was wearing was obviously not the correct size. Not only was the armor too big, but there were various pieces of it missing as some of the color underneath the metal of the armored being was exposed.


    Green? Cyrus¡¯ mind contemplated about the unusual color of what was beneath the armor. There was the possibility that what he saw was actually some clothing that was underneath the armor. However as his head continued to rise such thoughts became distant.


    The leg greaves of the armor appeared smashed as various cracks plastered them and the jagged top showing that they may have even been partially destroyed already, their length shortened. The gauntlets seemed to be in an alright condition if only too big for the one wearing them, grasping onto a pair of well-maintained daggers. The only other piece of armor equipped was the helmet which hung loosely on the creature¡¯s head.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    W-what¡­what is that?! His mind screamed out. No, he knew what it was. The problem came from accepting that such a creature could even exist. Still the proof was right there in front of him. It had sickly green skin with warts plastering it, a misshapen head with disproportionate facial structure and eyes that seemed ready to pop out of their sockets as its uneven sharp yellow teeth protruded from its mouth.


    With a size roughly two heads shorter than he was, smelling of filth, and childish groans and incomprehensible babble there was one thing that Cyrus¡¯ mind came to the conclusion of. If all he ever read about and experienced in games is true then the creature that he was having a staring match with right now was no doubt a ¨C Goblin.


    He could feel as his heartbeat quickened and blood was rapidly coursing through his veins. With a permanent wide-eyed expression Cyrus stared at the goblin in front of him, unable to fully comprehend what was happening to him right now.


    With his thought process halted Cyrus was unable to act as the goblin in front of him raised its dagger, preparing to strike. It wasn¡¯t until a searing pain overcame him that this thought process returned to him.


    ¡°Aargh!¡±


    Late to process the pain Cyrus yelled in anguish after being stabbed. Looking to where the dagger was implanted in him he saw it was in his injured left arm, the one wielding the shield.


    It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! IT HURTS!!


    Unable to voice out his pain the words echoed louder and louder in his head. Seeing Cyrus in such pain the goblin gave out what appeared to be a happy grunt as it proceeded to remove the impaled dagger. Flinching from the act Cyrus finally screamed out in pain.


    Seeing Cyrus flailing about had brought momentary joy to the goblin. Though it couldn¡¯t really describe it there was a sensation, a drive it felt that compelled it to torture the strange looking human in front of it. Best of all it was an extremely weak human who seemed to have no other talent than to scream and be scared.


    During its time of exploration the goblin had suddenly blacked out and awoke in the strange cave. Looking around it eventually found some armor and a weapon it could use. It had heard someone screaming from a different part of the cavern and curiously came to check it out. Seeing the crying human it took its chance to confront him, eyeing the shield on his arm.


    When arriving it saw as Cyrus seemed afraid of it. Not wanting to waste this chance it decided to attack. Seeing the shield it decided it best to try to disable its use by taking aim at the arm wielding it. When Cyrus hadn¡¯t moved it had thought something may have been wrong, but when its attack landed a direct hit and saw Cyrus in pain, such thoughts vanished.


    With his mind on the pain Cyrus was unable to see the goblin winding up for its next strike. Perhaps due to luck or sheer coincidence, as he flailed about in pain he had managed to move his left arm and thus block the second strike with the decorative shield.


    Clang!


    The shield deflected the dagger effortlessly as it continued its erratic motion as its wielder continued thrashing about. Hearing the sound of metal against metal Cyrus was able to momentarily bring some of his cognition back to what was happening.


    Perturbed by its deflected strike the goblin stopped for a moment to see if anything was amiss. It worryingly looked around the chamber in fear of other humans who might have been lurking in wait.


    Danger! Run! Danger! Run! Danger! RUN! RUN!!! Perhaps it was due to the pain of being stabbed, but once Cyrus saw the goblin distracted his body managed to act. Set on ¡°flight¡± his body erratically began to run away.


    Like an instinctual wild beast his body sparred nothing to escape. Under the effects of an adrenaline rush and his brain¡¯s release of endorphins, the pain Cyrus was feeling before had been subsided considerably. Surviving was the only thing on mind.


    Seeing its prey flee the goblin gave a low growl before giving chase. Unable to catch up to the nimble human it threw its bloodied dagger towards Cyrus. Impaling him in the calf muscle the human stumbled to the ground, the momentum from his running causing him to tumble a bit before landing on his back.


    Seeing the goblin trying to reach for its dagger Cyrus attempted to kick the beast away. Unable to grab its weapon the goblin gave out an irritable sounding snarl before leaping atop him. With survival instincts still kicking in Cyrus had managed to move up the shield to block off the goblin from directly landing on him.


    With his arm injured and the goblin¡¯s surprisingly heavy weight on the shield Cyrus attempted to alleviate the situation by supporting the shield with his right arm. The goblin jerked around atop the shield, trying to move it away from its prey.


    The fear of the goblin coupled with his adrenaline rush and fighting caused Cyrus¡¯ body to feel as though it had been lit aflame. He could feel something inside him ignite with a passion, a burn that did not hurt him but felt strange nonetheless. It was something aroused by the situation, awoken through this struggle. The passion that burned in his soul was his own fighting spirit, brought forth by survival instinct.


    Under this effect of fighting spirit his brain churned out thoughts as they endlessly gushed forth like a geyser. I don¡¯t want to die! Weapon! I need a weapon! Without hesitation the mental link formed by the bond with the strange device once again showed its prowess.


    The shield began to glow in a bright light before morphing into a seamless water-like puddle. The puddle of light stretched and skewed, reforming into a different shape. As the weapon took form its tip pierced through the unguarded flesh of the goblin that was atop it moments ago.


    Everything seemed as though it were in slow motion for Cyrus. He watched as the shield lost its form, the goblin falling from its temporary nonphysical state. As the goblin descended the light began to reform from the device. Shooting straight like a missile, the reformed weapon began to take shape.


    Cyrus watched as the bladed tip completely formed before impaling the goblin. With the weight of the goblin falling from gravity coupled with the outwards formation of the weapon, it dug through the goblin¡¯s flesh like paper.


    Without time to realize what had happened the goblin was unable to utter a single sound as the spearhead pierced through its right eye and straight into its brain. With a few small helpless grunts the spearhead that entered through its eye had exited out the back of its head, lifting the armor helmet with it as though mocking its uselessness. With its brain destroyed the goblin¡¯s body slowly limped, twitching a bit before remaining motionless forever.


    Blood dribbled down the spear, its warm touch slowly covering Cyrus¡¯ left hand. With the battle over the adrenaline rush he had was beginning to wane. The weariness and pain that was being blocked slowly returned to him. However, such trivialities were of no concern to him right now.


    ¡°I¡­killed it¡­¡±


    As the goblin was being impaled the sensation of flesh being pierced felt as though it were transmitted through the spear. Every spasm the goblin made, no matter how miniscule, was all felt by him. While it was in an act of self-defense the knowledge that he killed a sentient creature took a toll on his mind.


    Even if it tried to kill him first there was still a sense of guilt. Sure he could joke about it before that it would be easy to do such acts if the perpetrator had it coming, but imagining and experiencing it were two completely different things. For Cyrus who had never had to kill anything of the sort before now, it was quite the traumatizing experience.


    Even still he had to do it, he had to overcome it. If there was one goblin then there might be more. In fact there might be other creatures even more dangerous than goblins here. If they all acted like this one then he¡¯s have to avoid them. If he couldn¡¯t do so and had to confront them then he¡¯d have to kill to survive. Kill or be killed. This was how his mind rationalized this, how he consciously tried to justify it.


    Trembling, he tilted the spear away. With the goblin on the ground next to him he mentally called out to the device. Changing its form once again the spear morphed back into its original form, releasing itself from the dead goblin in the process.


    Tearing off some fabric from his shirt Cyrus tied some around the stab wound on his arm as tightly as he could before looking down at the knife in him. Touching it sent a wave of pain, making his hand scurry away from it.


    Knowing it had to be removed but lacking the resolve to pull it out Cyrus had a thought. Bringing the device to the dagger a familiar sensation struck him. Like what happened before the dagger split into fragments of light before being absorbed. With the dagger gone he quickly wrapped the wound like he had done on his arm.


    With a trembling body and mind he slowly stood up. Pain sprang forth from his wounded leg. Using it as a reminder of what happened, a deterrent for pain, he mentally switched gears as he prepped himself for what lied ahead. Be it monsters or freedom all he could do was go forward.


    Chapter End

 Chapter 003: Materials and Meshed Design

    As Cyrus continued treading inside the cavern chamber he tried to distract his thoughts with the surrounding area. The crystals that emitted light were fairly numerous in number, however when he had attempted to use one as leverage for himself it ended up breaking off. While they were pretty to look at and seemed durable they were in fact quite brittle.


    Vween! Vween!


    Noticing the device¡¯s reaction to the crystal he held it up towards it. In a surprising twist the crystal was absorbed into the device. Huh? I thought this thing only absorbed weapons. I guess a crystal can be used as a weapon, but certainly not this one. And even if it could I¡¯d feel weird using something as small as a crystal instead of a sword or spear. Puzzlement overcame Cyrus as he tried figuring out how the device on his arm functioned.


    After the events of the goblin battle Cyrus had moved the device from his injured left arm to his right one. Though he was unsure if it would even work there was the fact that when changed into the sword or spear the device would unlatch itself to form the weapon. The shield was the only real exception to this. While he couldn¡¯t purposely leave it behind, he could at least control where it would latch onto.


    Curious about it he mentally commanded the device to change into the absorbed crystal. However, nothing happened. Worried that he might have broken or damaged it he mentally shifted it between its other forms. Seeing that there was no such problem he tried once again to shift the device into a crystal but met with failure. Trying to figure out what was a wrong a stray mental though leapt out at him.


    Insufficient materials. That was the intrusive thought that entered his mind. As for its origins if it wasn¡¯t Cyrus himself then it must have come from the device. Intrigued by the notion he quickly gathered some more crystals along the way, allowing the device to absorb them all. He had tried to absorb an entire crystal but found that it was too big for the device to absorb.


    After absorbing quite a bit Cyrus attempted once more to shift the device into a crystal. Like before it was a complete failure. This time the mental message of insufficient materials didn¡¯t come to him. Not knowing what to do anymore he simply ignored it and continued on.


    Pain and hunger continued to derail his thoughts. He wasn¡¯t sure how much longer he¡¯d be able to last. Coming across multiple tunnels he chose one at random and went through it. Looking around he noticed that small crystals were peering out of the walls, the same kind that produced light. While they were fairly dim they provided just enough light to see. He theorized that it was probably these crystals that also allowed him to see when he first awoke, their appearance so small he simply hadn¡¯t noticed.


    Huff¡­huff¡­huff¡­


    Walking for a few minutes more, Cyrus found himself wheezing, his body tiring out. The battle with the goblin had obviously taken its toll on him, both physically and mentally. Shoving his distraught emotions about killing to the back of his mind he temporarily closed his heavy eyelids.


    Loosing stability Cyrus quickly opened his eyes and sent his leg forward to stop his fall. The brunt of the impact sent a wave of pain to him as he realized the leg he used to stop his fall was the one he had injured.


    ¡°Gah!¡±


    The sudden influx of pain escaped his lips in dismay. It was enough to cause him to topple over to the ground. Trying to get up he found himself unable to properly gather the strength to do so. If I don¡¯t figure out something soon¡­


    As the dust cloud from his fall settled, Cyrus saw something that made his thoughts cease completely. It wasn¡¯t another goblin or a different creature. It wasn¡¯t anything like the strange device or light crystals that were equally mysterious. No, what he saw was something that he recognized. There in plain view, seemingly teleported in, were the remnants of a building of modern times seemingly merged into the cavern.


    With a spark of hope once again showing itself Cyrus forgot all about the pain he was feeling. Putting as much force into his body as possible he quickly made his was towards the building. Looking at it he saw no door, this specific section being a different floor, but noticed smashed windows leading in.


    Without even thinking how or why the windows were smashed Cyrus quickly made his way inside. In a building like this he might find food, first aid, or even other people. While the chamber of light crystals gave false hope of an exit, this building gave a definite hope for survival.


    Carefully making his way in Cyrus noticed the true size of the building he entered. While in the tunnel it may have only seemed like a small section of it that was broken off, in truth it seemed as though it were completely intact. Sure there were areas of the wall being destroyed, but from what he could tell the entire structure of the building was still whole.


    Cheering in his mind he quickly set out to find something useful. The end result, while not the best, was still something he was thankful for. A couple candy bars, two bags of chips, some Tic-tac¡¯s, and three bottles of water. He had thought about searching the room some more but the building¡¯s slanted angle had caused everything in it to be scattered around.


    Content with what he had Cyrus took a quick chuck of water, completely emptying one water bottle in the process. With his thirst quenched for the most part he then quickly went on and devoured the sources of food he scavenged earlier. Seeing as the chips made too much noise, he deciding it best to eat those first, saving three candy bars for later.


    Looking around he managed to find a knapsack, placing anything useful in it before putting it on. With slight nourishment he continued to explore the underground building. If I¡¯m underground and this building is still intact then would going to the top have me closer to ground level? At worst I¡¯ll just have to come back down, might even find more supplies along the way. With such thoughts Cyrus decided to head towards the highest point this building would take him.


    Climbing the slightly steep building proved a little troubling for Cyrus. With his leg still injured it was a difficult trek for him. Opening the door to the next room he came across another disturbing sight. Based on a sign he had just been on the sixth floor, but here on the seventh was something unusual.


    A police car half caught in a nearby wall made its presence known to all. Further inspection showed that the police car didn¡¯t crash into the building, rather it seemed to be merged with like. It was as if the world itself glitched out and the police vehicle clipped into the building while also being teleported underground with him.


    The notion of what happened to Cyrus grew more and more confusing with each new piece of evidence presented. As this room was essentially in the middle of the cavern in the most literal of sense, the light crystals that seemed to sprout everywhere were nowhere to be seen.


    Luckily the lights of the car were on, slightly blinding Cyrus but lighting the dark room as well. A quick search of the room showed nothing of interest other than the police car itself. Walking towards it, he took a quick look in. The back half of the car wouldn¡¯t be seen, covered by the concrete of the building. Despite looking like that neither the car nor building seemed as though they impeded the other, the car wasn¡¯t shown to be crushed and the walls seemed perfectly intact.


    Rummaging through some papers and equipment Cyrus stumbled upon something. A weapon lay on the floor of the passenger seat, a handgun. Looking at the modern weapon he knew of Cyrus remained staring at it for a bit before reaching out for it. He had never handled a gun before but given the situation he may end up needing it. At the very least it could be used as a good deterrent against enemies who knew of the dangerous weapon.


    Weapon! As if barely processing that he quickly brought the gun over to the small device. Though he didn¡¯t know much about it, what little he did know was that it seemed to absorb weapons into it just as it did with the spear, sword, shield, and dagger.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Dumbfounded at the loss of reaction from the device those words left Cyrus¡¯ mouth. He didn¡¯t understand why nothing was happening. The only conclusion that he could draw was that the device could only absorb medieval weaponry such as the things before, but it had also absorbed the light crystals which in turn also seemed to provide nothing to him.


    Grabbing a holster from inside the car he quickly put it on and placed the gun in it. He looked around for some ammo but found nothing. While slightly depressed he quickly made his way to the next room.


    Dark, everything was a pitch black abyss. While the next two rooms could be filled with some light from the police car by leaving the doors opened, it was only a matter of time before he had to move up a floor and leave the illuminated car lights behind.


    Equipped with the shield just in case Cyrus remained wondering what to do. Thinking on it if he could being out those light crystals the device absorbed out then he could use them as a makeshift flashlight. He could also head back to collect some and bring them here, but if he ran into something along the way then it would be bad.


    Stuck wondering what he should do Cyrus¡¯ gaze fell onto the shield. A slightly strange thought had entered his mind. He had imagined a shield created out of those light crystals in his head, musing over the thought of a flashlight-shield.


    Vween! Vween!


    Suddenly there was a reaction from the device. Cyrus watched confusedly as the shield glowed, despite not actually illuminating anything nearby, and changes its form. Hmm? What¡¯s going on? I didn¡¯t tell it to change forms.


    Cyrus observed as the light skewed a bit before reforming into a shield. It was an act that had greatly confused him. It wasn¡¯t until the glow vanished that he realized something different.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?!¡±


    Voicing out his surprise he watched as the device shifted from a shield to another one. This time however the structure of the shield was vastly different as it dimmed slightly with pulsating light. The shield in his right arm now looked like it was made completely out of the light crystals he had absorbed prior; almost in the same shape he had imagined it in a moment ago.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    Wondering something Cyrus changed the shield back and forth from the gaudy overly decorated one and the light crystal version. The result was that he was able to switch between them with ease. Wonderment overcoming him, he imagined a light crystal sword in an attempt to create a glowing ¡°holy¡± sword.


    Insufficient materials. That phrase entered his mind again. Apparently either most or all of the crystals he had absorbed were used to create the Light-Crystal Shield. Switching back over to it he saw as it illuminated a small area with a dim light. Sending mental thoughts to the device through the link they shared Cyrus discovered that the light emanated from the shield could be easily controlled from blinding all the way to being off.


    Using his new Light-Crystal Shield, Cyrus continued on his venture to the top of the building. At one point he came across a fridge but found its contents all spoiled, making him wonder how long he had been down here.


    It wasn¡¯t until he entered the thirteenth floor that something felt wrong. His encounter with the goblin had put Cyrus¡¯ sixth sense on end, enough so that he could feel like there was something else here in the building with him. Placing trust in his survival instincts he dimmed the light of the shield to the point where it illuminated very little, just enough to make out what was in front of him.


    During his entire way up there wasn¡¯t any signs of another tunnel meaning it was either he continued forward or go all the way back down and go on from there. Placing his ear on the door leading to the next floor he listened for signs of something there.


    The sounds of cackling flames accompanied by a strange smell of something cooking came to him. The thought of it made him believe that there were other people here besides him; other stranded survives of whatever happened to put them there.


    As if forgetting all other thoughts he quickly opened the door. What met his eyes was not what he had wanted. Humans, he saw humans there except they were bloodied, beaten, and missing limbs. Looking over to the fire in the room he was as roasted ligaments were grilled over them, charred to a crisp.


    As the smell of blood and charred limbs assaulted his nose Cyrus completely lost all processing power. Like a statue he remained there looking at the scene. It wasn¡¯t until he heard a snarl that his head automatically turned towards it. A goblin was there. Except it was not just one or two, but five of them huddled together like a group. Cyrus saw as the creatures were holding onto various burned human limbs, eating them with great delight.


    Noticing the single human who intruded upon their feats, the five goblins each gave out a shriek before running towards him. Seeing them advancing the pain in Cyrus¡¯ arm and leg pulsated in despair. Recalling the sensation of being stabbed he managed to regain his bodily control and slammed the door before running away.


    Up the square staircase, round and round, Cyrus ran as quickly as he could. The nauseous feeling he had after viewing the gruesome scene still in full effect. He had seen what they were eating. He recalled the charred looks of the feminine arm having a bite taken out of it, the leg that was being shared amongst two of the goblins, the organs being chewed on by another, and finally the head of a little girl that was missing an eye being mercilessly bitten into by the last one.


    Cyrus felt as though his body was becoming sluggish, wanting to puke out everything he had eaten and then some. He continuously held back the stomach acid making its way to his throat. Due to his currently sluggish nature he ended up being tripped by the staircase, falling directly onto his stomach and as a result released the floodgates.


    Gagging, Cyrus watched as his stomach emptied its contents right then and there. The strange mixtures of food he had eaten and even some liquid from the water he had drank returned to the physical world.


    With nothing left to hurl out Cyrus continued to gag and heave out nothing but air. His heartbeat racing the fastest it has ever been, his body trembling and seemingly unmoving, and his mind in complete disarray.


    Hearing the sound of rummaging footsteps behind him Cyrus turned his head to see the group of goblins quickly following. Instinctive reactions took the helm once more as his body forced itself to continue running upwards through the slanted staircase to escape the pursuit.


    Floor after floor he ran. It wasn¡¯t until he made it to floor twenty-four that he stopped to catch his breath. His legs wobbled from the strain. Looking back he could see as the goblins continued to chase him from a few floors down.


    Wanting to shake them off he quickly entered the room of floor twenty-four, quietly opening and closing the door, rather than continuing up. If all went well then he could avoid the goblins, catch his breath, and come up with a plan of action. With the device and the gun there was a good chance of survival in this fight.


    Crawling underneath one of the desks Cyrus made himself scarce, steading his breathing and attempting to blend into the darkness. He debated on whether changing back to the gaudy shield or keeping the Light-Crystal Shield equipped. Defense or visibility, he wasn¡¯t sure which was the appropriate one to sacrifice. After all if these goblins could see in the dark then they¡¯d find him no matter what, but having no light means zero visibility for him and a less likely chance of escape.


    Now that I think it, those goblins weren¡¯t wearing any armor. From what he could recall from the quick glances he had there seemed to be no goblins wearing armor like the first one he encountered. Then again there was the possibility he merely missed it during his hectic getaway.


    Waiting for a bit he heard the door to the room he was in creak open. Cyrus silently freaked out in his mind about what to do. Observing best he could he saw that there was only one goblin that had entered. Did the rest continue up, go back, or hiding?


    Debating whether or not to take this chance to try to get rid of one of them Cyrus unintentionally caused some clutter to move and sound out his location. Seeing the goblin make its way towards him, adrenaline still pumping, he made his choice.


    ¡°Gwah?!¡±


    With the Light-Crystal Shield I mentally commanded it to activate its brightest setting possible for a split-second. With the makeshift flashbang the goblin panicked as it was momentarily blinded.


    ¡°Haaa!¡±


    Screaming to motivate himself, Cyrus clenched his eyes tight as he grabbed the spear the device shifted into. Recalling where the goblin was and the path to it he held the pear directly out. With the momentum of his running he managed to send the spear through the goblin¡¯s head. With a killing shot the goblin died off fairly quick.


    Not wanting to see the results of his job Cyrus turned his head before opening his eyes. Changing back into the Light-Crystal Shield he quickly made his way to the open door leading back to the staircase. Grabbing onto the railing he tried steadying himself.


    When every hair rose on end for him Cyrus knew the fight wasn¡¯t over. Quickly turning he saw another goblin rushing towards him with a rusted and chipped dagger. Blocking with his shield he saw as the dagger bounced off it, but not without chipping some of the shield off as well.


    ¡°Shit!¡±


    Forgetting how brittle the light crystals were Cyrus had attempted to block an attack with a shield made of them. If not for it being a rather weak creature then his entire shield might have broken apart. Instincts in full drive Cyrus ran towards the off-balanced goblin.


    As before he changed to the spear, using his momentum to increased its piercing strike. With a direct hit he heard a struggling gurgle in the darkness as well as a sudden halt to his advance. If he had to take a guess then he must have struck directly in the goblin¡¯s throat and straight into a wall.


    With a quick swing he launched the goblin off the staircase as he heard it fall to the area bellow. Still in the momentum of the swing he felt something heavy suddenly landing on the spearhead. Hearing the agonizing cry that followed made it obvious that one of the goblins must have jumped down from the area above to try to ambush him.


    While things seemed to have been going moderately fine, an unexpected problem occurred. While the weight of the goblin and gravity drew the top of the spearhead down, Cyrus attempted to lift and send the spear in the opposite direction to try to throw the goblin down the staircase away from him.


    During this motion the spear snapped. Cyrus could hear as the weapon broke in two as well as the goblins cry as it fell down the staircase. What should have been a relieving moment was actually one of dread for him.


    Recalling the strange device and its various forms, it would always merge with the weapon and appear on a different location on it. For the shield it was directly in the middle, but for the spear its location was the spearhead itself with the blade actually protruding from it. With the spear snapped directly in the middle the device it fell alongside the goblin¡¯s body.


    Now stranded in the dark with no weapon other than the gun Cyrus felt a chill down his spine. Even with the gun if there was no visibility then he could miss his shot. In addition the device was the only means of defense he actually had. He had considered taking the first goblin¡¯s broken armor but was too injured and exhausted to do so.


    Cyrus, feeling overwhelmed by the darkness, grabbed hold of the gun and drew it out. With heavy breathing he used his left hand to find the guardrail of the staircase and began to go up. Slowly, step-by-step, he made his way to what he hoped was salvation.


    When a searing pain emanated from the side of his stomach Cyrus lost grip and fell down the stairs from the loss of balance, losing grip of the handgun in the process. Reaching to the side of his stomach he felt the touch of something warm and wet. Realizing it was his blood he quickly curled up in fright.


    Though it was still dark Cyrus could feel as though he was able to see a menacing outline of the goblin approaching him. Seeing the ghastly image made his quiver in fear. Thoughts of the device came to him in that moment. Thoughts of it returning to him and saving his life like some sentient superhero.


    Vween~ Vween~


    A reaction from the device came over Cyrus¡¯ mind. It was the same yet different in meaning. As if reacting to his plea to return to him, Cyrus saw the device fly his way over him as it shifted into the more durable gaudy ornate shield.


    Before Cyrus could celebrate this fortuitous event, a sudden weight brought his attention back to the goblin. Like with the first goblin he changed to shield into a spear, however this time no reaction came from the device. Still in shield form confusion and fear plagued him.


    Why isn¡¯t it working?! Is it because the spear broke? With thoughts racing through his mind Cyrus tried changing into a different weapon. Just as the first time the goblin who was too close to the device ended up being pierce when it began to change forms. This time a short sword appeared to kill the beast. As if on instinct Cyrus twisted the blade as best he could against the struggling goblin. Like the two before it he tossed it down the staircase, hoping to never see the creature again. He had noted that sometime during the skirmish the same feeling of his soul-burning-fighting-spirit had activated once more before snuffing out.


    Changing to the Light-Crystal Shield, Cyrus quickly found the handgun and placed it back in its holster. Checking his latest injury he saw it was nothing by a scratch and nothing to really worry about, although it still hurt.


    Becoming sick of the place Cyrus decided it best to just make a beeline to the top and not check the various rooms on each floor. With this shield lighting the way he made his way up. After what felt like hours he arrived at the topmost area of the building on floor forty-seven. With hands gripped on the door handle he gave a quick deep breath before turning it an opening the door.


    Room after room he went through. Just as he had lost hope of escaping he opened the latest room he found. That instance he was assaulted by a blinding warm light. Looking out he could see through the window that was half submerged in the rocky ground and half in the open air.


    Finally making it Cyrus ran to the half-submerged window to take a peek out. Though he couldn¡¯t really see much from what he could assume was ground level of the top half of the window, he at least saw greenery and the bright blue sky overhead.


    Seeing another broken window up ahead he quickly made his way towards it and climbed out of the nearly submerged building. Taking in the bright warm sun rays and enjoying the breeze of the wind Cyrus couldn¡¯t help but begin to tear up. The thought of death continued to plaster his mind throughout the entire ordeal, the thought of dying cold and alone in that frightening place. Now he had finally made it out.


    Still, things weren¡¯t over yet. He still needed to find a way home and find out how he ended up in such a bizarre cavern in the first place. As Cyrus opened his clenched eyes to take in the view he became wide-eyed and flabbergasted.


    A mountain range lay to the farther parts of the end, blocking anything that may be hiding behind them. The hill he had found himself on was peering through the dense forest that surrounded it. Rocks, crystals, and even rivers seemed to float around in the sky like it were the most natural thing in the world. In fact he could even make out a kingdom floating in the sky.


    ¡°Where¡­just where the hell am I?!¡±


    Chapter End