Unwilling Eldritch Horror of Fortune

We went off, following the trails left behind from an ancient god who used to dwell here eons ago. These sorts of insane situations had become so mundane that I didn’t even question things any longer. I started to wonder when my mindset had become so warped. Well, I guess too much of anything and you’ll start becoming desensitized.

The guiding light of mana crossed over barren, dead land for a significant amount of time. So long, in fact, that we had to set up camp for a while just to take a breather and get refreshed. I suppose between the harpies, the climbing and everything in between, a lot of time had passed, and I hadn’t noticed the accumulating fatigue until I sat down for the first time.

But our rests were never more than a few minutes long, just enough time to eat some solid food and get a drink of water. The Regressor was quite the stickler for proper nutrition and hydration, and he seemed to have some kind of supernatural talent for finding the perfect time to order one of these rest periods. These breaks were timed perfectly right before any one of us would become too tired that our thinking and performance would be negatively impacted.

Honestly, Jae-Hyun made for the perfect leader for any excursion. He was knowledgeable, deadly, and most importantly, he knew the limits of every single one of his charges. I felt pretty happy to just let him take charge and follow blindly, even with my unique situation within Central.

I could only imagine this man growing further and further. Maybe I can help accelerate that growth and point him the Overseer’s way… but I’d also have to somehow prevent him from damaging the people I cared for. I’ll still have to properly think about how to approach this particular problem, but that’s something to think about later.

Eventually, the Regressor saw that we had rested enough and made us leave again. The glowing mana trail had started to dim a little, so we had to pick up our pace. It wasn’t until late in the evening (according to Noe in any case, it’s hard to tell the time of day when the Tartarus was completely underground) that we reached the end of the trail. By that point, the only one who could still sense Hephestus’ signal was Yoona, and we had to trust her instincts to guide us the rest of the way.

After a certain point, we didn’t need Yoona to show us the way anymore, since we were going towards the only structure that we’d seen so far. Well, perhaps structure wasn’t the right word for it. There was a single entrance, and all around it was a solid wall that stretched all the way up to the ceiling.

“Think there’s a minotaur in there?” I joked, pointing to the labyrinthine entrance.

“There is one,” the Regressor said softly, “it’ll be easier to explore the place once we’ve gotten rid of it.”

“You’re joking, right?” I asked, “We’re not fighting that thing that almost did in Theseus, right?”

“We are,” Jae-Hyun answered, “Although it’s probably not the same creature. That one’s been dead for a long time.”

“Lovely…” I muttered, “And I suppose you have a ball of string we could use to find our way out again?”

The Regressor shrugged, “Why would we need that? Once we find and kill the beast, we’ll have Vadeem open us a shortcut. Why did you think I asked him to buy that maul in the first place?”

Wouldn’t that be cheating though? But then again, when did the Regressor ever operate on normal people logic? I almost felt bad for the guy responsible for building this elaborate structure, probably dreaming up the best ways to trap unsuspecting trespassers, only for a big dude with an even bigger hammer to smash all of his hard work into nothing. But I suppose we couldn’t just spend the time navigating the maze the old-fashioned way. It was a pity though, because I even learned some labyrinth-solving techniques back in the rest area after seeing how complex Q’s workplace was.

“I like the sound of that!” Vadeem added, “So do we smash first and find the minotaur to kill, or kill first and then smash our way through?”

“We go in first,” Jae-Hyun answered, “We need the minotaur’s core, and I can’t risk scaring it if we go in like that.”

Oh… so it wasn’t us who should be afraid of the minotaur like I had thought, it was the other way around. Now I was starting to feel a little bad for the creature like I did the maze’s architect. I wouldn’t want to be anything that got in the way of the Regressor’s plans.

“So how do we attract the big cow?” Noel asked, “I say we roast Vadeem a little over a fire and use him as bait. I’ll bet the minotaur’ll come rushing out to eat him.”

I looked at the big man, “He’s too gamey, too lean, probably won’t taste too good.”

Vadeem looked at me and grumbled, “Not you too, Walter! Noel’s infecting you with her stupidity.”

“I’m joking,” I said seriously, “I’m sure you’d be delicious, Vadeem”

He just sighed and walked towards the others, shaking his head. Noel gave me a thumbs up.

“You’re all being distracted again, if this happens when we’re in the Trials then it could prove deadly,” the Regressor grumbled, “We’ll have to address this problem once we’re out of here.”

“Sorry, boss!” Noel apologized, “Can’t help myself.”

“I was getting carried away as well, sorry,” I admitted, “Just wanted to lighten the mood was all. So what is the actual plan?”

“Noel’s idea isn’t technically incorrect,” Jae-Hyun said, I saw Noel about to say something witty but a quick disapproving glare from the Regressor shut her up again, “The minotaur is sensitive to smell, it was a part of the reason these labyrinths were built in the first place.”

“So the food suitcase?” I asked.

He nodded, “Yes, the food suitcase.”

Vadeem took the thing out from his storage and opened it up.

“So what do minotaurs like to eat?” he asked, peering into its bottomless contents, “Walter’s been busy stocking it up with practically everything in Pandora, so we’re spoiled for choice.”

“Meat,” Jae-Hyun said, “raw meat preferably. You should have some cooking ingredients in there as well, right?”

Vadeem took out an entire boar carcass from his case. It still had most of the fur on it. How it even fit in there was beyond me, and I was definitely not the one who bought that thing.

“Way ahead of you, boss,” he smirked, putting the huge slab of meat on his shoulder, “I think this will do nicely.”

“The boss said we shouldn’t be distracted,” Noel muttered, “So I won’t question why you thought it would be a good idea to bring that with you, but…”

The Regressor gave her another one of those chilly stares.

“But I won’t say anything this time,” the redhead continued, “See, I can follow instructions too! Unlike Vadeem I can actually learn!”

“You didn’t have to add that last part in though,” I sighed.

The Regressor nodded, “Good, now there’s something else I want us to work on, and it’s how we lead a group.”

“But you’re the leader, leader,” Noel said quizzically, “You’re going to do all the leading.”

“We can’t count on that all the time,” Jae-Hyun explained, “Who’s to say something like the last Trial won’t happen again? Walter did a great job guiding Vadeem, but what happens if he’s with me and the rest of you are together instead? Would you know who will be in charge then?”

“Oh,” Noel replied, “Good point, I’m more used to working alone, and Vadeem…”

She gave the man a disapproving glance.

Vadeem sighed, “I will readily admit that I am a poor leader, I’ve already told Walter as much. If we only follow the stuff I think of, we’d probably still be in that damn creepy darkness. I’m sure I can work something out if it’s just me and Noel together, we’ve worked fine as a duo before, but with the others to consider…”

“It’ll be a mess,” Noel finished, “So we follow… Yoona then?”

The high school turned wide-eyed, “I- I can’t do that! You two are a lot older than me, so surely it’ll be better to follow Noel at least?”

The other girl laughed, “Yeah, as awesome as I am, that’s not really an option, bestie. I’m not the best at telling peeps what to do.”

Yeah that’s for sure. If even I had a hard time trying to guess her nebulous methods of thinking and communication, then I can only imagine how impossible a task that would be for anyone else. If Vadeem made for a poor leader, then Noel made for an absolutely terrible one.

“You’re used to giving orders already,” the Regressor added, “You were the captain of your Archery team back home.”

Yoona blushed, “But those were other kids my age, I mean, I can’t tell people like Vadeem or Noel what to do, they probably know a lot more than me.”

“We don’t,” the both of them said as one, finally agreeing on something.

Jae-Hyun continued, “We’re in a whole new world, Yoona, the things that we know back on Earth have very little bearing on the current situation. And you should get used to such a role soon, you are second in command after all.”

“But…”

“Hey,” I added, “No one’s expecting you to be perfect the first time around, and we’re all friends here, so it’s not like we’re going to judge you. Hell, I messed up the most around here, what with my sponsorship nonsense, and you guys were supportive of me. We’ll be the same.”

The girl slowly nodded, “Alright… I’ll give it a go. But I apologize in advance if I make mistakes, I’m not like my brother.”

Vadeem chuckled, “I don’t think anyone is like him.”

Noel nodded, “Alright, so what’s the plan, new boss?”

“Before that,” the Regressor interrupted, “Let’s ease Yoona into the role first, the minotaur will be an easy foe compared to the Golem or that hybrid we faced earlier, so we won’t all need to act. Let Walter and I take a more passive role this time, so you can focus on leading a team of four. That’s the standard size of most parties in the Trials.”

The Regressor’s sister took a deep breath and gave a firm nod, “I’ll do my best.”

I stood near the back with Jae-Hyun while the other five entered the labyrinth first. Yoona, despite showing hesitation earlier, was honestly pretty good at taking charge of the situation. She was giving short and concise instructions for each of the members, even putting in the stuff her brother taught us earlier.

She sent the twins ahead to scout for any movement, telling them to be extra mindful of any noise that might be coming from each corridor. The labyrinth was pure stone walls and nothing else, which made for an effective echo chamber. Additionally, she put Vadeem near the front with the carcass out, and whenever we reached a fork in the road, she would wait for the twins to guide them down the path with the most sound or vibrations.

It didn’t take us long before we didn’t need the twins to locate the minotaur in question. Vadeem put away his boar carcass when the echoes of the bull’s rapidly advancing footsteps became too loud to ignore, and everyone got ready to meet the enemy head on. The labyrinth corridors were wide enough that we didn’t have to worry about the use of space, much to the joy of Vadeem, and I was about to join in before the Regressor put a hand on my shoulder and pulled me back.

“Not this time, Walter,” he said, “Let’s watch them on their own, we’ll help if needed. I want to hear your thoughts on the fight.”

 

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