Volume 01 - Chapter 5: For Whom the Tales Are Told (Part 01)

On our way back to the abandoned mines, Mizuka insists we plan our infiltration.

Wolf suggests killing as many Wheezers as possible before entering the mines to thin their numbers. I disagree, saying if their numbers didn’t decrease in the time Wolf had been killing them, each we kill is likely replaced before we can make a difference. That and we’d exhaust ourselves long before finding the Downer.

Koishi asks if we might make the Downer come to us, but no method comes to mind. The villagers’ merrymaking only made it angry. It may leave the mines to claim its next victim after it’s done wailing, but for all we know, the Wheezers are doing the kidnapping.

“Then why don’t we just charge right on in?” Mizuka scoffs.

“Fine by me.” Wolf adjusts her gloves and tightens the straps.

“I wasn’t serious. How are we to evade the Wheezers?”

“Kick them? They aren’t too tall.”

“And when they latch onto us?”

“Fling them off? They aren’t too heavy.”

“You alone can perform such absurd feats of strength, girl.”

“I told you not to come. And stop calling me ‘girl’. By the looks of it, you’re younger than me.” Perhaps her three years of dangerous living are to blame, but Wolf appears a couple years older than myself.

“In terms of appearance, yes. I know not which one you are yet, but in regards to my fragments—I am the eldest.” She lifts her head, grinning.

“And how old is that?” Wolf snickers, miming an old woman walking with a cane.

Mizuka’s eye twitches. “Old enough for me to refer to you however I please. Back to planning.”

None of us being war strategists, we don’t share plans, but awkward glances.

“So…we’re charging, right?” Wolf stands on a hill overlooking our destination, rolling her shoulders.

“There must be a better idea.” Mizuka plays with her hair.

“Wait, that might actually work,” I say. “Wolf, remember how the Wheezers were focused only on you?”

“Were they? I figured they just attacked whoever they saw first…weren’t they chasing you too?”

“After I killed a bunch. They paid me no mind beforehand.”

“They’re after me?” She grimaces, tugs on her vest.

“Probably. If you lead the charge, we can enter without having to fight.”

“Hey.” She catches me by the shirt collar. “You got a lot of nerve trying to use me as bait.”

“T-That wasn’t my intention…Seeing how, uh, super strong you are, I figured you could handle it.”

“Obviously.” She pushes me back. “But what are we gonna’ do when we find the Downer? The Wheezers will swarm us all at once.”

“Oh, right…What if I held them off long enough for you to defeat the Downer?”

“Can you?”

“…I can.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” She pushes me back and stretches her legs.

“W-Wait, we’re charging in after all?” Koishi snaps out of whatever stupor she’d been in since leaving the tent.

“Unfortunately.” Mizuka sighs, mimics Wolf’s stretches.

“Violence is always the answer. Especially when you do it fast.” Wolf pops her knuckles and descends the hill toward the mines. “When I start running, it’d be in your best interest to keep up!”

“Muscle-brained moron,” grumbles Mizuka, facing me and Koishi. “You two ready?”

Our nods of assent don’t match our frowns. Mizuka takes off after Wolf, and we follow, Koishi stuck to my side.

The gleam of a thousand pomegranate eyes manifests out of the black. The Wheezers remain still, waiting for something, or rather—someone. As one of Mizuka’s fragments, Wolf must have some connection to the madness happening in Hleigar. Why didn’t the Downer appear three years ago like Koishi’s sword in the stone? Was it asleep, waiting for Wolf to arrive? Then again, if all it cares about is Wolf, why kidnap the villagers?

“Charge!” Howling, Wolf bolts toward the horde, fists raised.

Mizuka emits a surprised squeak, and we give chase. The Wheezers waste no time in swarming Wolf, each clamoring for the spot closest to her. She pays them no mind, leaping over those blocking her path. Unlike before, no procession pours from the mine entrance. All were waiting outside. They ignore us as we skirt around the bloated line following Wolf.

“Hurry up!” Wolf closes in on the entrance. “I’ll be blind without those lamps!”

Mizuka speeds ahead, sidestepping the stragglers. I run faster thanks to Caliburn but can’t leave Koishi behind, who is slow because of her short legs and, well…let’s just say she’s top-heavy.

The Wheezers, living up to their name, wheeze as they hobble, their bodies not designed for strenuous activity. Many trip, fall, and receive a trampling from their siblings’ malformed feet. Still, they keep up with Wolf, who tears through the night at a ridiculous speed. Although, she’s probably holding back as to not leave us behind.

By the time Wolf and Mizuka reach the entrance, we’re not far behind. Dashing through the pitch-black hole, we find them waiting inside, both tapping an agitated foot.

“Can we stop them from coming inside?” Mizuka paces in a panic, searching.

“I could block off the entrance.” Wolf points at the ceiling over it. Raining dust and several cracks in the jagged rock suggest not much would be needed to destroy it.

“And trap us inside? No way.”

“We’ll be fine. The miners said these mines are connected. There should be another exit or two.”

“Are you sure of this?”

“Nope. This could be a standalone mine…wanna’ risk it?”

“Have we any alternatives?” She freezes, staring at the closing-in horde. “…Do it. We can destroy whatever you knock down later.”

Wolf runs back to the entrance and examines the ceiling. Crouching, she pulls her right arm back, bursts into the air, and punches the ceiling before falling. She bounces back, a riotous rumbling shaking our bones as a portion of the ceiling collapses. A mass of dirt and rock crushes several Wheezers and stops the rest.

“That should hold them off.” Wolf flicks off dirt stuck to her knuckles.

“Until the Downer makes more.” For this, I receive a round of three glares.

“All the more reason to not dawdle.” Mizuka takes the lead, lamp swinging in her hand. “But we aren’t to get in a rush. We don’t know what else dwells within these mines.”

The mine is roomier than expected. The ceiling is a mere two heads higher than me, but the tunnel stretches wide, our lamps unable to light the entire space. Our faint breathing and careful footsteps alone disrupt the stale, silent air. Koishi is all but clinging to me, her arm pressed tight against mine. The chief path branches off at several points, but we decide to stay on it as to not risk losing our way.

Old pickaxes, broken mine carts, and hunks of dusty rock dot the uneven floor. Rusted tracks run along the path from the entrance, serving as our guide. The path is straight, spare a few steep inclines followed by steady declines. I trip on such an incline and land on my face, eating a mouthful of dirt. The girls laugh, Koishi patting me on the back as I cough and spit, but still laughing.

Not two minutes later, I step on soft ground and fall through, my right leg swallowed up to the knee. Wolf stares in shock while the other two hoist me out of it, Mizuka telling me to be more careful.

Footsteps clatter—faint, but consistent. One set, two, and then hundreds of tiny feet pitter-pattering against the floor. We meet each other’s nervous gazes and prepare to run. Wolf raises her fists, while I ready Caliburn, its glow still strong.

Misfortune strikes again. Despite seeing a pickax head in my path and stepping over it, my boot catches the pointy end and I fall. Koishi tries to catch me, but I pull her down along with me. An elastic softness covers my upper back as her breath tickles my neck. Pleasure distracts from the pain of landing on spiky gravel.

“Leo. Once is understandable, twice is bad luck, but three times?” Mizuka counts with her fingers. “Now you’re just being stupid.”

“I-It’s not Leo’s fault.” Koishi tries to stand but only succeeds in dragging those wonderful masses down my back.

“How could it not—g-get off him already.” Mizuka grabs Koishi, yanks her to her feet. “We’ve no time for this idiocy.”

“I may be a lot of things, but clumsy is not one of them.” I stand, wiping blood off my forehead. “This place being a mess is to blame.”

“Were that so, one of us would’ve done the same. You need to pay more attention.”

“Sister, it’s really not Leo’s fault. It’s…all my fault.”

“Don’t say that, Koishi. Mizuka’s right. I’m too tense is all.”

“N-No, it is. Rather, it’s Caliburn’s fault.” She points at the sword. “Remember the curse?”

“About my life ending in failure?” That sounds much worse when I say it out loud…

“Yes, but that’s not the only effect. I didn—forgot to mention it, but the curse is multifaceted.” She presses her index fingers together, avoiding eye contact.

Caliburn’s curse not only activates whenever I’m about to accomplish something, but also after I use it. If I never used the sword to achieve glory, it would have no reason to collect payment in the form of my failure. However, because I used it and am using it now, it requires payment, which manifests as ‘bad luck’.

For borrowing the sword’s superhuman power, both it and the universe, whatever that means, require an equivalent exchange. The sword curses me with a set amount of ‘bad luck’ every time I use it, which fulfills both the conditions of the curse and the universe’s desire for balance. Put simply: Caliburn’s power isn’t free.

Under normal circumstances, the sword doesn’t collect payment until after I’m done using it. But because I’m using it in quick succession, it’s forced to collect for the last time while being used now. Despite my precautions, the curse will manipulate any potentially dangerous events I encounter into ones that end badly—making each appear as ‘bad luck’.

I ask Koishi when it’s supposed to stop, but she has no idea. However, because I only used Caliburn for about an hour, there should be only a couple more unfortunate instances, if any.

“And Leo, I hate to point it out, but…the amount of bad luck you’ll have after we’re done here…”

“Will be horrible. Don’t remind me. At least I know what’s going on. Thanks, Koishi.”

“D-Don’t thank me.” She grips the hem of her skirt. “Honestly, I didn’t want to tell you about it at all.”

“Knowing the painful truth is better than Mizuka thinking I’m a complete idiot.”

“Yes, yes, I apologize for misunderstanding.” Mizuka makes a shooing motion with her hand. “Can we go?”

“They’re almost here.” Wolf edges forward, fists held close to her snarling face.

We walk a touch faster, not to meet but to avoid them. Their dry wheezing reaches our ears as their footsteps grow louder, like rolling thunder. They manifest around the approaching bend, their shadows mixing in with ours as the lamplight reveals their hideous forms. They’re slimier than those outside, a trail of liquid pooling on the path as buckets of goo drip off them.

“Over here.” Wolf presses against the right wall. “The second they’re in front of us, I’ll lead them away. You three stay on this side and start running, understand?”

“And afterwards?” Mizuka poses to bolt.

“We find the Downer and kill it.”

“With those things behind us?”

“Leo said he’d handle them.”

“…Sure, but there are far too many.” She points to the hundreds of wobbling Wheezers.

“Why don’t you help him?”

“I-I would, but I haven’t enough—”

“Save your excuses. Forget the fancy spells and use your hands.”

“Are you suggesting I touch these filthy creatures?” Mizuka pulls her hands to her chest. “And it’s not an excuse. Leo is draining most of my myra.”

“…My bad.” I pant, sweat dripping into my eyes.

“Quite. If you would just…no. I am to blame. Were I not in this pitiful state, I’d have enough power to split this mountain in two.”

“Sure you could…I’ll kill the Downer quick.” Wolf sighs, legs tense. “Now!”

Wolf pushes off the wall and bounces to the opposite side, bolting forward; the Wheezers twist to face her. We run parallel to her, Mizuka in front, lighting Wolf’s way. The Wheezers scramble, each end of their line attempting to converge on us, but tripping over one another, forming a glut on the path’s left side. They wheeze and squirm as the glip-glopping of their slimy bodies rubbing together assaults our ears.

We leap over and weave through the legion of bewildered Wheezers. The curse must’ve worn off as I remain standing. The walls close in and the ceiling drops as we approach the path’s end. Awaiting us? Another swarm of Wheezers.

“W-We’re surrounded!” Mizuka grinds to a halt. “What are we—”

“Here!” My lamp reveals a narrow path to the right.

I push Koishi inside and beckon the others. Mizuka tells Wolf to destroy the entrance despite the latter’s warning this route has a much higher chance of being standalone. A handful of Wheezers force their way inside, and I dispatch them as Wolf wails on the ceiling. An act that would surely spell our deaths if not for the countless support beams along the walls.

As a mass of rock separates us from our foes once again, we find ourselves alone. Having little choice but to press onward, we do—into the quiet abyss.