The Swordsman

(Guess it's time to dust off the keyboard and start a new story, I hope you all enjoy it! -Chuck210)

"Listen up, men! No one knows why this cave appeared, and honestly, I don't give a damn. Our job isn't to worry about that. It's to get in and out before the government shows up and locks this place down. I have it on good authority from the Doc that there is treasure down there that will change the world. Now, take one last moment to get ready. We move in five."

I looked around our small camp and let out a sigh. There were five of us in total, and I couldn't help but feel uneasy with how little I knew.

A mysterious cave appears out of nowhere, and they hire four mercenaries and a doctor? Someone knows something and clearly isn't letting on.

I was snapped from my thoughts when a hand roughly slapped me on my back. Looking up, a brute of a man stood over me. With a laugh, he said, "You ain't gonna get cold feet are you kid?" Forcing a smile on my face, I responded, "Just another mission, how about you?" He let out an annoyed grunt and replied, "I'm fine, minus this being a massive waste of time. I didn't sign up for boring shit like this. I was told there was going to be fighting." Shaking his head, he wandered off, leaving me alone again.

Having just met each other for this mission, I didn't know anything about the others. The only thing I knew about the man who just talked to me was that his codename was Hulk, and he carried a big ass gun. Glancing around the rest of the camp, the next man I saw was Tex. He was a handsome man who had two revolvers attached to his hip. Next was the leader of our group who we were calling Cap. He was the one who had reached out and recruited me for this mission. Then there was the doctor we were told to call Doc. I don't think sleazy started to describe him, and I questioned if he was even a doctor. Lastly, there was me, an 18-year-old who only carried a sword. My codename was Kid and I couldn't shake the feeling that I shouldn't be here.

I shrugged it off as I got to my feet, the pay was a hell of a lot better than the other jobs I've had. Who cares if this wasn't legal, it was a way for me to get my name out. Adjusting the sword attached to my hip, I slowly made my way to the entrance of the cave. Cap looked us all over and nodded, signaling that it was time to begin. We received his message and slowly entered the cave.

It took all of three seconds for me to notice that things were different than what they should be. Strange writing and symbols covered the wall, and none of it looked to be human. I heard Doc say more to himself, "Just as we expected," making me question this even more.

We descended into the darkness with only our flashlights lighting the way. After what felt like an eternity, something finally changed. The corridor we were walking in suddenly expanded, and it felt as if the temperature was rising exponentially. Cap held up his hand, and we instantly stopped. In a mere whisper, he said, "Something is coming."

True to his words, something turned the corner that was like nothing I had ever seen before. It had the looks of a wolf, but it was at least double the average size. Instead of fur, its body was made entirely of flames. It seemed to be casually patrolling, but when it noticed our party, it quickly let out a menacing growl.

In a relatively calm voice for what he was seeing, Cap said, "Alright Kid, show us what you can do." I nodded my head in understanding and slowly unsheathed my sword. The monster seemed to understand that I was its opponent, and the two of us slowly circled each other. The beast made the first move and quickly lunged at me with fangs exposed. While it was fast, I had been expecting the move and effortlessly rolled to the side. I sprung to my feet, and just as the beast turned to face me again, my sword sank into its neck, instantly killing it.

As soon as I removed my sword, it fell to its side dead, and its body began to slowly dissolve. Once it was gone entirely, a small bright red ruby appeared at my feet. I bent over to touch it but quickly stopped when Doc yelled: "Don't!" I turned to look at the rest of the party, and they seemed almost nervous with how close I was to the ruby. Doc slowly walked up to me while putting on gloves. With shaky hands, he reached out and carefully grabbed the ruby and placed it in his bag. I was about to ask hundreds of questions when Tex let out a long whistle. Seeing he had my attention, he said, "I gotta hand it to you Kid, you made that look easy. I doubted you for not using a gun, but you are one hell of a swordsman."

I nodded my head in thanks to his praise but remained quiet, trying to come to grips with what happened. Was that a monster, and why are the other four totally unfazed by what we just saw? I was snapped from my confusion by hearing Cap say, "This is better than I could have imagined. If they are all that easy to kill by themselves, then we will wipe them out in no time."

Again, I was about to ask a question, but this time I was interrupted by an echoing gunshot. A bat that looked to be made from ice fell from the ceiling and shattered at my feet. Just like the last one, it began to dissolve until there was nothing but a deep blue sapphire remaining, which the doctor quickly scooped up. All was quiet for a moment, then Cap yelled, "Hulk, what the hell was that! I told you no shooting, now every damn one of those things knows where we are!" With a smug look, Hulk only shrugged obviously, not apologetic about what he had done.

Everything was quiet for a moment, then we heard heavy footsteps pounding our way.

Tex was the first to react and called out, "We need to get moving! Everything in this damn cave just heard those shots, let's move!" Understanding his words, I foolishly ignored all of my doubts and ran after the group.

We sprinted through the cave without coming across any more monsters. However, I could hear the number chasing us continuously growing. Eventually, the cave opened up again, and we entered a vast cavern. There was a bridge directly in front of us that led to a strange-looking door. Without hesitation, we sprinted over the bridge, wanting to keep as much distance between the monsters and our party. Looking over the side, I noticed that we were suspended over a vast body of water. I was about to start walking when a foul smell wafted into my nose. I looked over the side again and realized that it wasn't water below us. Instead, it seemed to be some sort of black goo that was bubbling.

Our party made it to the door, and I heard Cap yell, "Doc, you're up, Kid help him out. We will back the two of you up." I followed the doctor to the wall and watched as he traced his fingers over it and muttered to himself. After a brief pause, he turned to me and said, "This is some sort of puzzle. When I point to a section, I need you to put your palm on it and push, do you understand?"

At this point, there was nothing that I understood, but the sound of Hulk and Tex opening fire made me realize that it didn't matter. I nodded my head and put my hand on the first section. Doc gave me a nod, and I gave it a hard push. To my surprise, that part of the door moved in a few inches and then stuck. Next to me, Doc nodded and said, "Good, let's keep going." The two of us worked at a furious pace until there was only one left. Doc looked at me and said, "This is the last one, so I need you to push with all your might." I nodded my head in understanding and, with a deep breath, pushed as hard as I could.

Unlike the other sections, this one had no resistance, and my hand flew through the door. I was about to pull my arm out when something on the other side fell instantly, crushing and pinning it. I let out a scream of pain that was drowned out by the heavy door slowly opening. I turned to my side and begged, "Doc, my arm is crushed, I need your help." With a smirk, he replied, "Sorry, Kid, but this was the plan all along. Why else would we bring some useless like you along." I watched in disbelief as he called out, "Cap! Were ready to go!"

The gunfire instantly stopped, and all four of them ran past me without a second glance.

At this point, I was hysterical. My anger overpowered any feeling of pain that I had. No longer able to see them, I continued to scream, "I swear I will kill you all if it's the last thing I do! You four are fucking dead!"

"Aww, isn't that cute."

I quickly turned my head, then froze in fear as I found the source of the voice. Someone was standing in front of me, and she wasn't human, but I wouldn't call her a monster. She had the body of a woman, no, she had the shape of a supermodel. Everything about her was absolutely perfect, and she stood completely naked, leaving nothing to my imagination. What put fear in my heart though, was her eyes. They were all black without a hint of color to them. The longer I stared into them, the more scared I became, but I wasn't able to look away.

Frozen by her gaze, I was helpless as she slowly reached out and grabbed my sword with a smirk. She gave it a few experimental swings in the air and, in one quick motion, brought it down on my trapped arm. The sudden pain snapped me from her gaze, and I fell to my knees with my severed arm still stuck in the wall. I slowly lifted up my head up and immediately wished that I hadn't. Different types of monsters stood behind the woman for as far as I could see.

I knew I only had one option for survival and stagged to my feet, clutching my open wound. Refusing to look in the woman's eyes, I asked, "We both know I'm going to die, can I have my sword back? I would like to die holding it."

I could feel the woman hesitate, thrown off by my strange request. Eventually, I heard her say, "You are an interesting one, take your sword." Letting go of my wound, I reached out and grabbed the weapon with my bloodstained hand. Slowly looking up from my feet, I gave the woman a smile. Taking a deep breath, I stared her in the eyes and said, "I have a few people to kill, but I will come back to see you again, beautiful. I promise."

With that, I lept off the bridge, leaving her speechless. With a deranged laugh and plummeted towards the black goo, sword in hand.