The Mines (Part 1)

Kael moved forward, his boots crunching softly against the rocky path leading deeper into the barren landscape. The mountains were growing closer and closer now with every step. Giant, ragged peaks topped with blue ice. 

His stomach churned with hunger, and he pressed a hand against it. His throat burned, craving for water, but he'd set out into this terrain with no supplies.

After a couple more hours of traveling without a break, he came to a stop. Body tired, lungs aching, Kael crouched to the ground.

Kael glanced down at the tablet, which buzzed in his hands. The screen blinked with another instruction: Arriving at your destination. Proceed inside the mines.

The first of the mountains loomed ahead, and an entrance was built into the base, two massive doors outlined with dark brown wooden boards. Kael couldn't see much beyond the doors—just a small flickering light.

He approached the doors and knocked twice. He waited in for a moment, but heard no movement from inside. Pulling the heavy metal door open, he stepped inside.

The entrance of the mine looked like the gaping maw of some enormous beast. Fear cut through him like a knife. What was down there?

His footsteps faltered for a moment, but the hunger that had plagued him since he woke up in the pod pushed him forward. If there were answers, or perhaps something—someone—inside, he had no choice but to move ahead.

Kael descended a set of stairs, the faint smell of iron and sulfur reaching his nose, mingling with the stale, dry air. 

At the bottom of the stairs was another set of doors, guarded by a few men and women, all in similar clothing to Kael. 

He squinted at them. Their faces were hollow, almost vacant. They didn't even glance at him as he approached.

"Uh…my name is Kael Duskborne. I've been sent here by…."

One of the women stepped forward, her eyes unblinking. She had scars across her face, and her knotted hair was gray with dust. She raised a shaky hand and pointed toward the doors. 

Kael entered through the second set of doors. The air was thick with dust, and the sound of clinking tools and muffled voices echoed through the tunnels. The deeper he ventured, the darker it became. 

His heart quickened. What had he been sent here to do? The woman from before had said he'd be harvesting obsidian. Why had he been chosen to do it? 

These people—if they were even people—seemed little more than automatons, as though they were existing rather than truly living.

"Hahaha!" A voice cried out with joy.

He turned to see a figure emerging from the shadows. A tall man, his clothes were unlike Kael's standard issue. Instead, he wore thick, dark fabric that looked more like armor than anything practical for daily use. 

The man's face was obscured by dust, a layer of grime that seemed to have settled like a second skin. He wiped it away, his yellow teeth flashing in an unsettling grin.

"A newborn!" the man called out; his voice surprisingly jovial. "Come on in! Welcome to the Mines of Wexham! I named it myself, you know. Not much of a place for pleasantries, but we get by." 

He wiped more sweat from his forehead, eyes glinting with what Kael could only describe as manic energy.

The man's gaze fell on Kael, assessing him. "Are you a Talker, or just another Soulless?"

Kael blinked, confusion mixing with his mounting discomfort. "W-what?"

The man's grin only widened. He stepped closer, his boots crunching the dust beneath them. 

"A Talker, huh? Well, that's something. You'd be surprised how few of us here can still speak like you. Most are just… well, Soulless. No words left in them." His voice dropped to a near-whisper, the hint of something dark in his tone. "They work, eat, and go to sleep. No dreams. No thoughts. No will of their own. They're like walking corpses, just waiting for whatever this place has in store."

Kael's throat tightened. "Soulless?" he repeated, but before he could ask more, the man waved it off.

"Don't worry about them. They'll just stare at you with empty eyes and keep on working. They only bother you if you start messing around with them. Now, how was your journey from the lab?"

"Horrifying. I…I almost died. How did you know that's where I came from?"

The man nodded as if that was normal. "Everyone comes from the lab. That's where I started out too. Also, fear is something you gotta get used to, newborn. Ain't a moment you're not gonna feel it down here. You got a name?"

"Kael," he muttered. "Kael Duskborne."

"Ah. They're getting creative with 'em now. My name's Rykor. Just Rykor. First of my name, I suppose. Follow me, I'll introduce you to the other Talkers."