Chapter 137: Trap & Rat King

Ruchir and his team, their spirits bolstered by their victory over the cultists, pressed forward into the heart of the cult's lair.

The air grew thicker with each step, the oppressive darkness deepening, as if the very walls were closing in on them.

The flickering light from their torches struggled against the encroaching gloom, casting long, trembling shadows across the cold, stone floors.

As they entered the main chamber, a wave of nausea hit Ruchir.

The scene before them was one of pure, unbridled horror. The vast room was dimly lit by candles placed haphazardly around the space, their flames casting a sickly yellow light over the scene.

Cultists, their eyes glazed over with fanatical zeal, were engaged in a gruesome ritual. They slashed and hacked at huge and small demonic beasts, the floor slick with blood and gore.

The stench of death and decay was overwhelming, a putrid miasma that seemed to seep into their very souls.

Huge demonic beasts, their forms twisted and grotesque, lay sprawled across the floor, their bodies marred by deep, gaping wounds. Smaller creatures, monstrous in their own right, were piled in heaps, their lifeless eyes staring blankly into the void.

The cultists moved among them with mechanical precision, their faces devoid of any emotion as they drove their weapons into the beasts, over and over again.

The sound of flesh being torn and bones being shattered echoed through the chamber, a symphony of death orchestrated by madness.

Ruchir's stomach churned as he took in the sight. His face paled, and he could feel the bile rising in his throat.

"This... this is monstrous," he whispered, his voice barely audible over the sounds of slaughter. "These people... they've lost all sense of humanity."

Professor Aanya, usually composed and analytical, could not hold back her disgust. "This is beyond redemption.

These creatures, though demonic, do not deserve such senseless brutality." Her voice was thick with anger and sorrow, her eyes narrowing in contempt at the cultists.

"To take life like this, so mindlessly, is an abomination."

Garret, always the brash and confident one, was visibly shaken.

He covered his mouth with his hand, his face turning a shade of green. "I think I'm gonna be sick..." he muttered, gagging as he tried to keep his stomach from betraying him.

He stepped back, trying to avoid the pools of blood that covered the floor. "How can anyone do this?"

Robert, normally the one to keep things light, was silent. His usual smirk was replaced with a grim, tight-lipped expression. His hands clenched into fists at his sides, trembling with barely restrained fury. "These bastards... they're beyond saving. They deserve whatever's coming to them."

In the center of the chamber, dominating the scene, stood a massive altar. It was a twisted and grotesque construction, hewn from dark stone and adorned with chains and spikes.

At its peak was a statue of a demon, its form hunched and gnarled. The demon's face was a horrifying sight—its eyes were hollow, soulless pits that seemed to draw in all light and life. Its mouth was twisted into a cruel, mocking grin, revealing rows of jagged, uneven teeth.

The statue's claws were outstretched, as if reaching out to claim the souls of the living. The entire structure pulsed with a malevolent energy, as if it were alive, feeding off the bloodshed that surrounded it.

As Ruchir's gaze locked onto the statue, he felt a surge of anger and disgust rise within him. His blood boiled at the sight, the sheer atrocity of the scene igniting a fire in his chest. He clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white as he fought to keep his rage in check.

At that moment, the cult leader, Captain Hato, stepped forward from the shadows.

He was clad in dark, flowing robes, his face obscured by a mask adorned with intricate, malevolent designs.

His eyes, the only visible part of his face, burned with an intense hatred as he took in the sight of Ruchir and his companions.

"You... you dare to defile this sacred ground with your presence?" Hato snarled, his voice dripping with venom. "You think you can simply waltz in here and disrupt the ritual? Fools! You'll pay for your arrogance with your lives!"

He turned his gaze to the cultists still engaged in their gruesome work, his fury palpable. "And you worthless dogs!" he spat, his voice rising to a fever pitch.

"You couldn't even stop them! You couldn't even stall them long enough for the ritual to be completed! Useless, all of you! I expect no less from those bastards!"

Ruchir stepped forward, his expression one of cold determination. He met Hato's gaze with a steely resolve, his voice calm but laced with an underlying fury.

"You've committed heinous crimes, Hato. You and your followers have sacrificed innocent lives, twisted the natural order, and desecrated everything sacred. Your sins have reached their limit."

"We are here to bring you to justice, and no amount of dark power or twisted rituals will save you."

Garret, despite his fear and disgust, couldn't resist adding his own quip. "Yeah, and besides, your taste in decor is terrible! Seriously, this place is a nightmare."

Robert smirked, though there was a dark edge to it. "I've seen enough. Time to take out the trash."

But before they could act, Professor Aanya's eyes widened in sudden realization. Her sharp mind had detected something off about the entire setup.

She grabbed Ruchir's arm, her voice urgent. "Wait! It's a trap! The whole chamber is rigged!"

Before anyone could react, the floor beneath them began to glow with an ominous red light, revealing intricate, ancient runes carved into the stone.

The air around them hummed with a dark energy, the runes pulsing in sync with the beating of a colossal, unseen heart.

Hato's laughter echoed through the chamber, a maniacal sound that sent chills down their spines.

"You think you can bring me to justice? You think you've won? Fools! You've walked right into my web. This chamber is a death trap, and now... you're all mine!"

The ground beneath them began to tremble violently, cracks forming in the stone as the runes flared with intense, blinding light. Ruchir's heart raced as the realization hit him—this was no ordinary trap. It was a spell, a powerful one designed to ensnare and destroy.

Garret, his bravado fading fast, looked around in panic. "Uh, guys? This doesn't look good..."

Robert, trying to maintain his composure, muttered under his breath. "Damn it, Garret! You just had to charge in, didn't you?"

Professor Aanya's mind raced as she tried to analyze the situation, but the sheer complexity of the trap was overwhelming. "We need to get out of here, now! If we stay, we're finished!"

Ruchir's mind spun as he desperately searched for a solution, but the trap had been expertly laid. They were caught in its grip, and the walls of the chamber began to close in around them, the very structure of the room warping under the influence of the dark magic.

"Stay together!" Ruchir commanded, trying to keep his team focused. "We'll find a way out of this!"

But even as he spoke, the ground beneath them gave way, and they were plunged into darkness, the laughter of the cult leader echoing in their ears as they fell into the abyss below.

___

As Ruchir and his group plummeted through the darkness, the wind rushing past them, Garret's panicked screams echoed off the stone walls.

"Why does it always have to be falling?! I hate falling! I hate it!" His voice trembled with fear, and he flailed his arms wildly, trying to grasp onto something, anything, to slow their descent.

"Relax, Garret!" Robert shouted over the roar of the wind, though the smirk on his face suggested he wasn't entirely sympathetic.

"It's not the falling that'll kill you—it's the landing!" He burst out laughing, even as he twisted his body to prepare for impact.

"Not helping, Robert!" Garret wailed, his voice going up an octave. "Seriously, who jinxed us?!"

Ruchir, focused even in the midst of chaos, scanned the darkness below, trying to gauge where they might land.

His mind raced, formulating plans and contingencies.

"Brace yourselves!" he called out, his voice firm and commanding. "We're about to hit something!"

The ground appeared suddenly beneath them, and they landed with a thud in what felt like a cavern. The impact sent Garret sprawling, his weird, makeshift outfit providing little protection as he rolled across the rocky floor.

"Owww!" Garret groaned, lying flat on his back and clutching his side. "I think I've broken something... Oh wait, no... I'm just dying of embarrassment..."

Robert snorted, brushing dirt off his shoulders as he stood. "Please, Garret, we've seen you in worse states. Remember the time you tried to fight off that ghost with a broomstick?"

Garret shot him a glare, his face flushed with a mix of pain and indignation. "That was a tactical decision! I was… testing its reaction time!"

Professor Aanya, already on her feet and scanning the cavern, rolled her eyes. "Enough, you two," she said sharply. "We're not out of danger yet."

Her eyes narrowed as she observed their surroundings. "In fact, we might be in even deeper trouble."

Ruchir quickly took in their new location—a vast underground chamber, dimly lit by a sickly red glow emanating from a massive crystal embedded in the far wall.

The atmosphere was thick with an ominous energy, and the air was heavy with the scent of blood and decay.

"That crystal..." Ruchir muttered, his eyes narrowing in thought. "It's one of the cores of the altar. We've stumbled upon something important."

Garret, still groaning, managed to sit up and follow Ruchir's gaze. His eyes widened as he took in the massive crystal. "Oh no... We're in the belly of the beast, aren't we?"

Before anyone could respond, a deep, rumbling growl reverberated through the chamber, shaking the very ground beneath their feet. The shadows at the far end of the cavern began to shift and coalesce into a massive form—a creature of nightmares.

The Mutant Rat King emerged from the darkness, its body towering nearly ten meters tall. Its fur was matted and filthy, half of it stained a deep crimson as if it had bathed in blood.

Its eyes glowed with a maddened fury, and its razor-sharp teeth glistened in the dim light. The stench of rot and decay rolled off it in waves, nearly overpowering.

Garret's eyes went wide with terror, and he scrambled backward on his hands and knees. "Nope, nope, nope!" he stammered. "We've fought some scary stuff before, but this... this is a whole new level of nope!"

Robert couldn't resist a jab, even in the face of the monstrous rat. "What's wrong, Garret? Don't tell me you're afraid of a little rodent?"

"A little rodent?!" Garret screeched, his voice cracking as he pointed at the Rat King. "That thing's a mountain with fur! A murderous, blood-soaked mountain!"

The Rat King let out another earth-shaking roar, its eyes locking onto the group with predatory intent. Without warning, it lunged forward with surprising speed for its size, its massive claws slashing through the air.

Ruchir acted fast, grabbing Garret by the back of his collar and yanking him to his feet. "Garret, pull yourself together!" he shouted. "We need to focus. This thing is guarding the core, and if we don't take it out, we'll never stop the ritual."

Garret swallowed hard, his fear momentarily overshadowed by Ruchir's determination. "Right, right... Focus... I can do that..." He quickly reached for his weapons, still visibly shaken but no longer frozen in fear.

The Rat King unleashed a terrifying attack, "Crimson Maelstrom"—a whirlwind of blood-red energy that tore through the cavern, scattering debris and sending the group diving for cover.

Ruchir quickly called out his own counter-attack, "Ink Barrier of the Immortal Script." With swift, precise strokes, he drew an intricate pattern in the air, forming a barrier of swirling ink that absorbed the brunt of the Rat King's attack.

The inky shield shimmered with ethereal light, holding back the destructive force just enough for the others to regroup.

Professor Aanya was already calculating their next move. "We need to weaken it before we can finish it off," she said, her mind racing. "I'll use my ghost magic to create an opening. Ruchir, you'll need to strike when I do."

Garret, still trembling but resolved, added, "And I'll, uh... be moral support?" He winced, realizing how ridiculous he sounded.

Robert rolled his eyes, but his tone was teasing rather than harsh. "Garret, how about you just stay out of the way and try not to get eaten?"

The battle continued, with the Rat King launching another devastating attack—"Bloodthirsty Frenzy." It charged at them, its claws slashing wildly, each strike creating shockwaves that rattled the entire chamber.

Professor Aanya seized the moment, summoning her spirits with "Ethereal Chains of the Forgotten."

Ghostly figures materialized around the Rat King, their chains wrapping around its limbs and dragging it to a halt.

The Rat King struggled, its strength immense, but the spirits held fast.

"Now, Ruchir!" Professor Aanya called out, her voice strained from the effort of maintaining the spell.

Ruchir wasted no time. With a powerful, deliberate motion, he unleashed "Dragon Stroke of the Eternal Quill," a concentrated burst of energy that shot towards the Rat King, slicing through the air like a razor-sharp blade.

The strike hit true, cutting through the Rat King's defenses and piercing its heart. The beast let out one final, deafening roar before collapsing to the ground, its body convulsing before it finally lay still.

Garret let out a shaky breath, his knees nearly giving out as the adrenaline began to fade. "I... I can't believe we actually did it..."

Ruchir, catching his breath, nodded. "It was a team effort. Now, let's destroy that core and put an end to this madness."

With the Rat King defeated, Ruchir and Professor Aanya approached the core. With a combined effort, they shattered it, the crystal exploding into a thousand shards, its dark energy dissipating into nothingness.

As they stood there, catching their breath, Garret couldn't help but laugh weakly. "You know, I think I'm starting to like these little adventures... Just, maybe, without the giant, murderous rats next time."

Robert chuckled, clapping Garret on the back. "You did good, Garret. Just try not to scream so loud next time."

And with that, the group began to make their way out of the chamber, ready to face whatever came next, but feeling a bit more confident after their hard-fought victory.