Escaping One Prison, Entering Another Pt. 01

The boulder covering the entrance made a cracking sound; soon after, it exploded into pieces. Thankfully, the process was instantaneous, giving Rupert no time to get closer to the boulder. Pieces of stone scattered around the room as Rupert blocked his head with his forearms while standing up straight. Debris hit his forearms, legs, and abdomen, each piece leaving a bulging dent on his body before bouncing off his flesh, leaving behind reddened skin. His body was battered as the debris flew aggressively toward him. Rupert stood his ground and blocked them all with all his might. The pieces were small, palm-sized. He flexed his muscles and endured the pain, adrenaline rushing throughout his entire body, helping him push through.

He lowered his guard and peeked through the gap between his forearms. Light had reached the room—it was blinding. The single entrance let in so much light that it covered the stairs and part of the floor. He was momentarily flashed, his eyes taking time to adjust. After blinking a few times, he made out the shadow of a man cast on the stairs, the outline rippling as dust moved through the air, trying to settle on the ground.

"Get out!"

"Huh?" he murmured.

"Get out now!"

It was the voice of a young man, probably in his 20s. Rupert, confused but at the same time relieved, followed the young man's order without a second thought. He was saved from this grave—what incredible luck!

He moved from the farthest corner to the entrance, skipping stairs and climbing two at a time.

"How many are down there?"

"Huh?... It's only me."

The man wore a dark blue, slightly gray military uniform—a heavy, double-breasted coat with high collars and straight trousers tucked into knee-high leather boots. A leather belt carried square, small pouches, and a peaked cap with a visor sat atop his head.

Rupert couldn't see his face clearly, as the sun cast a shadow over it, but he could make out the structure of his features. Rupert was surprised—for he had never seen an elf before. The man had pointy ears—not long, but the tip was clearly pointed.

Rupert knew elves lived in the western borders, yet he had never seen one in person.

"Get moving," the elf said, grabbing Rupert's wrist and forcefully guiding both his hands behind his back.

"What are you doing?"

Rupert tried to resist, but the adrenaline had worn off, and the pain he had suppressed surfaced all at once. He had no energy left to move his body. He was on the verge of collapse—his vision blurred and darkened, his sense of smell faded, and all he could hear was static noise.

The elf then cuffed him with metallic cuff.

Under the sunny, blue sky, the air was tight and heavy. Above ground, the atmosphere was moist, filled with hues of brown, yellow, and red. Rupert caught a glimpse of this in the corner of his vision before passing out. There was much he wanted to ask, but his body did not allow.

.....

Thudding sound waves entered Rupert's ear canal and soon hit his eardrums, causing them to vibrate and shake the bones in the middle ear. These vibrations then continued traveling through the fluid-filled part of the inner ear, transforming the outer world's energy into brain signals, giving Rupert the ability to interpret the world he lived in through the pitch, volume, and direction of the sound.

He woke up and looked around. A dozen people sat cramped together in the carriage, murmuring and whispering, looking gloomy. Shadows were cast upon their faces. There was a stench of sweat and piss in the air. The carriage body was metallic, and the rear—the opening—had metal bars. Confused by the situation, Rupert turned to the gorilla-looking lady beside him. Her muscles were well-developed, her face slightly round with big ears, nose, and lips. Her hair was neck-short, with a headband preventing her bangs from covering her face.

"What's going on? Who are you guys?"

The lady, deep in thought while staring at the carriage floor, didn't register Rupert speaking to her. He was ignored, so he asked once again.

"Hey lady, can you tell me what is going on?"

"Hmm? You talking to me, kid?"

"Yes. Why am I here, cramped up with you guys?"

"Huh? What do you mean? Have you lost your mind or something?"

"What do you mean? I'm sure I was tied up in some basement, and then the entrance opened up, and I crawled out, but I don't remember anything after that." He ran his hand through his hair, frowning as he tried to recall the events that had led him to this situation.

"Huh? You were tied up in a basement? For how long?"

"I don't know, but I slept around two or three times, I think. It was dark, so I couldn't tell the time."

"Why were you tied in a basement in the first place? Were you kidnapped or something?"

"Yeah. I was naive and got robbed and left for dead."

"So you don't know what happened last night?"

"No... What happened last night?"

"Boy, I don't know if you're lucky or not, but it seems like you were saved by the very people who robbed you, while everyone else was massacred. You were lucky to have been tied up in that basement... Last night, the Efarel Empire attacked our town. We're the farthest town in west, and yet the elves' attack still reached us. Everyone here thinks the kingdom is dead, but I don't believe so. You were probably saved by the Efarelian soldiers going around and dragging survivors out of basements. We are all the survivors of the attack."

She continued, biting her lip, closing her eyes in regret, her face wrinkling and her hands trembling.

"We survived by hiding in holes. How shameful and pathetic is that? I'm ashamed of myself... I hid away while thousands were blown up and ripped apart by explosions, I could hear their screams... I will not forgive the elves, no matter the reason" 

Rupert took in all the information and sat in silence for a moment, thinking and sorting it out.

We were attacked by elves last night, and they killed everyone in town? How cruel... I was saved because I was in the basement? Me getting kidnapped turned out to be a good thing? Don't make me laugh. It was just a coincidence... But if I hadn't been trapped, I would have died in the explosions. I thought those vibrations were too much for a simple student brawl, turns out it was the sound of a massacre. I was far from the crowd, so I couldn't hear their screams of death... It must have been an awful sight to behold.

"So... are we like prisoners now?"

"Prisoners? Give me a break. We're no prisoners. We're going to be slaves. Why would they imprison such easily obtained slaves?"

"Slaves?" Rupert responded, eyes wide and mouth slightly open.

.....

The slave carriage was on the move, transporting a few dozen people—young and old, women and men. The carriage moved through densely populated forests, the deep green blades of grass occasionally illuminated by the shining sun. The tree trunks were full of life, insects crawling up and down, while this unnatural procession tore through the forest, trampling over the lives in its path, crushing them to death.

Eventually, the carriage emerged from the forest and entered the meadows. The land was barren of trees as far as the eye could see, with rolling hills stretching across the horizon. A distant mountain range marked the farthest point, forming a dark gray line that seemed to connect the land and the heavens. Though a few trees dotted the landscape, the majority of the land was covered in knee-high green grass. The scent of earth, tinged with a faint hint of iron, lingered in the air.

Driving through the meadows, the carriage eventually reached the mountains, which had once appeared as nothing more than a thin line on the horizon. Now, they loomed before the travelers—steep and seemingly insurmountable, with only a single road leading to the other side. The road twisted and climbed the mountain in a zigzag pattern, forming a flat path that allowed them to traverse the otherwise unscalable terrain. They followed the precarious mountain trail with the sole intent of reaching the other side.

On the other side, the carriage continued through the forest for a long time, crossing rivers via small stone bridges. The river's pressure was high, its waters crashing against the stones and riverbanks with a deafening roar. After traveling for a while, they finally reached their destination.

A massive, cone-shaped mountain stood alone in the middle of the forest. The land surrounding it had been stripped bare. Around the mountain, separated by a large gap, blocks of stone houses were stacked atop each other in a circular formation with a single opening to outside. Each structure stood three stories high, likely capable of housing a thousand people. In the open space between the mountain and these dwellings, large factory-sized buildings with tall walls and sloped roofs were constructed in a similar circular pattern.

The carriage moved through the gate leading into this enclosed mini-town, passing by the large houses before entering the mountain itself through a massive metal door that swung open to greet them.

"Good day, brother. Nice weather we're having today, huh? Shame I'm stuck here taking notes. How many are there, and which town?"

"Yeah, brother, the weather is nice and sunny. It was a pleasant ride. There are 37. They're from a town in the west called Helsi, oops I meant a former town."

The guard and the carriage driver both laughed frantically, their eyes narrowing and their mouths stretching wide.

"All right, go through and drop them at the bottom. They'll hold a speech once the last carriages arrive from the south."

"All right."

The carriage passed through the checkpoint, and another massive gate, covering the entire mountain entrance, creaked open. The sheer size and imposing nature of these doors made them utterly intimidating.

Once past the second gate, they were met with an astonishing sight.

Inside, the land near the entrance remained level, but further in, the terrain curved downward in a massive circular descent, forming tiered levels with flat surfaces at each stage. Each successive tier lay lower than the last. Words could hardly describe the immensity of this underground excavation—it was a mine, a vast subterranean labor camp.

A single road, wide enough to fit two carriages side by side, wound its way through the descending levels, gradually spiraling down to the bottom. Along these tiers stood more block-like buildings, similar to those outside but far more numerous. Each level had been intentionally flattened to accommodate these structures, which towered five stories high and could house over ten thousand people.

At the very bottom, the air was thick with dust and pollution, and thousands of people had gathered in the open space. Elf soldiers stood stationed on the upper tiers, overseeing the crowd.

A man stepped forward to the edge of the gathering and spat on a soldier's uniform. Then, he shouted,

"You fucking monsters! You devils! I hope you burn in hell for eternity for what you ha—"

Before he could finish, the soldier formed a fireball in his right hand and, with a swift motion, hurled it at the man. A second fireball quickly followed. The man erupted in flames, screaming in agony as he clawed at his burning body, desperately trying to put out the fire. But his efforts were futile. He collapsed to the ground with a dull thump, writhing like a dying worm before eventually going still. The guard threw another fireball, ensuring the man's remains were nothing more than a charred husk, like a dried twig beneath a tree.

The bystanders in the crowd were speechless. Shocked, they stood frozen in place, not daring to make a single move that might provoke the guards—for none wished to suffer the same fate as the man lying scorched on the ground.