Unpleasant Ideas

After Vinncents panic started to subside he concluded that he was likely inside the mine and now that he had gotten in he now needed to find his way out. Deciding that the rail system likely led to the surface Vinncent began to follow it. An unknown amount of time passed as Vinncent followed the rails tunnel after tunnel, turn after turn and over ramps. The mine was a labyrinth in all but name and shifting rooms. Torches and lamps hung on the walls and ceiling but had long since burned out.

Time continued to pass the exact amount beyond Vinncents grasp. As Vinncent rounded a corner he was happy to find a moderately sized cargo elevator. Slowly he walked closer to its fringe on either corner of the square shaft, thick chains and notches in the walls extended farther down into the darkness the bottom beyond sight. Every so often an opening would appear on the side of the shaft, likely the points where another level of the mine opened from. Looking up the same sight lay before Vinncent with the exception of what appeared to be the roof of the shaft.

Slowly and carefully Vinncent grabbed onto the mine walls and began ascending the vacant shaft. Around a minute later he crawled back onto solid ground, like before a tunnel and railway lay before him. With a gentle pace he followed the rail as it snaked around the mine. Vinncent was starting to get irritated before he saw what looked like sunlight around the corner of a tunnel farther ahead. A sense of relief washed over him as he ran forward on all fours and reached the corner in mere seconds. Cautiously Vinncent looked around the corner and looked down the tunnel.

At the very end sunlight peered through a wood barred opening. Some of the wood lay shattered and scattered on the ground while the rest haphazardly dangled or jutted from the wall. At a snail's pace Vinncent approached the opening, his body close to the ground and almost glued to the wall as he tried to hide himself.

Reaching the opening he did his best to hide his body behind some of the more intact boards as he looked out the opening. Beyond the boards trees, large bushes and tall grasses basked in the midday sun and cast small shadows throughout the forest. Some of the grasses and bushes had been bent or broken making the outline of a recently used path. Vinncent guessed that he was likely the culprit as claw marks similar to those in the tunnel were cut into the soft soil.

It was curious as to why there was no sign of recent activity in the area whether it be human or animal. The grass and bushes were grown to a point where they were beginning to bud and no game trails or foot paths lay in sight. The area around the mine was undisturbed almost as if some force protected it from harm. With no animal or person in sight Vinncent slowly exited the mine and darted into the tall grass and crouched into a stalk. His reason being that while there may be nothing around right now it didn't mean there might be in the near future.

As he explored the area while hiding in the tall grass Vinncent came upon what looked like an abandoned warehouse. However, from inside he could hear deep grumbling voices.

"Huh, so dem 'Umies ain't comen round no more." one voice said

"Seems like it boss, what's we gonna do?" another asked

"Is we gonna raid one of der villages den?!" an excited voice spoke

"I's think we gonna 'ave ta, cause if da 'Umies won't come to us we'll go to da 'Umies." the first voice decreed in a more upbeat tone.

"...Go get da rest of da boyz we gonna go raid da 'Umies to da north tonight. We ain't hit dem in a long while so it should be a easy fight."

As they talked Vinncent got closer to the warehouse and looked around the perimeter for lookouts and guards. He guessed that judging by the voices and the lack of any other living thing nearby that the warehouse was likely a base for a band of Orc's. Unsurprisingly as he made his conclusion a burly Orc walked out of one of the warehouse's smaller doors barely making it through.

"Alright den boss I'll get em." The Orc briskly ran off axe in hand into the forest using a small trail trampled into the tall bush.

Having found Orcs near the mine was as good as it was bad. The Orcs would make excellent hosts for more Xenomorphs. However, Orcs were a brutal race while they were relitively dumb they had the strength to compensate and could still make detailed plans of attack. If Kali couldn't bring the hive to more substantial numbers and strength the band of Orc's could wipe them out. Vinncent quickly scampered up a tree to try and find the road and hopefully Llorva. Poking his head through the very top of the tree Vinncent looked around for a linear clearing. About a half mile to the east he saw a long narrow clearing in the tree canopy.

Quickly and quietly he removed himself from the tree and prowled through the tall grass toward his target destination. The forest was silent as Vinncent moved no birds, no wind, no people, nothing. The silence brought both a sense of calm and a feeling of dread keeping Vinncent constantly alert of his surroundings.

The grasses and bushes provided adequate cover and were tall enough that Vinncent didn't need to crawl on the ground. Thus when he reached an area that looked like it was what he had seen from the trees he concluded that he had made good time. With caution he approached the area his body now flat on the ground as he slowly crawled forward. Soon the tall grass in front of his face parted as the clearing came into view. Before him a road with patches of grass and moss extended into the distance.

With the Orc's moving around the forest, Vinncent concluded that it would be best for him to wait in the tall grass by the road. With a small breath he crawled backward until the tall grass partially covered his head and got comfy.

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Llorva ran along the road as the sun got lower and lower in the sky fatigued and exhausted she fell onto her hands and knees as she caught her breath. Wondering how close to the mine she was Llorva lifted her head and looked around at the forest for any clues. To her disappointment she was unsurprised to see nothing besides tall bushes, grasses and trees creating a thick wall along the road.

Taking a moment to reflect Llorva remembered a thought she had while she was running. Had Vinncents actions been because of the demons taking control of his body? When she first had the thought she adamantly denied it because he seemed to be just agitated. But after she remembered how Vinncent said that he heard voices the day prior she began to worry.

'Maybe he was losing control and that's why he ran!' She thought as she again slowly inspected her surroundings.

Taking more time to look around she now found that the road had patches of moss and grass, the forest seemed fuller and greener than before, and it was completely silent. A tingle went up her spine as Llorva felt she was being watched by what she couldn't tell. To her left she saw a metallic brown object barely concealed by the tall grass.

Her curiosity getting the better of her Llorva slowly and quietly crawled toward it. Carefully she pushed aside the grass and saw what looked like one of the demons Vinncent turned into before. It lay completely still with its head and body prone on the ground, wondering if it was alive Llorva took a blade of grass and dangled it in front of the creature's shining teeth. The blade of grass gently moved back and forth. Slowly Llorva backed away and began to whisper.

"Vinncent? Vinncent! is that you?" Llorva whispered for a while trying to get a response but to no avail.

Defeated on her first method Llorva stood up and walked to the other side of the road and reached for a long branch on a tree. As she grabbed it and pulled it came off with a loud 'SNAP' making her quickly look at the demon in the grass. Seeing that it hadn't moved, Llorva released a breath she didn't know she was holding.

Slowly she walked back toward the creature and used the stick to gently poke its dome shaped head.

"Vinncent! Vinncent wake up!" she whispered as she poked it only to get no reaction

Just as she was about to poke its head for the eighth time the demon jumped back about three feet before it got into position to pounce. Its upper body was lowered to the ground and its spear shaped tail waved back and forth over it. As it's eyeless head looked at Llorva it let out a low hiss as its body tensed.