1 Prologue [Press Start]

"It is getting late, I should take a rest." A lass muttered to herself as she entered a dry and dark cave, slowly kindling a small campfire she prepared with small sticks she found nearby the surroundings, using some of her flint and steel to spark a flame.

Placing back the flint and steel into her rucksack, she took a rest by laying her back towards the wall of the cave. Rather rough and crooked, it didn't serve comfortably but it still was considered a shelter, for now.

She stays in this cave, which is situated a few kilometres away from her little village.

She had taken a long day of hunting and searching for resources and food for her village people, it only made sense that she had to take a temporary rest, only that, it was late.

The milky white full moon started to glow around the blue hue of the darkening sky as the wind breezed a cool sensation that will shiver any sensitive skin.

The lass for being independent and helpful for her village people was quite young. She had bravery and intelligence higher than any normal adventurer.

She knew she was independent but at the same time, she always doubted if she would ever make it back the next day alive.

It always came into her mind from time to time.

However, these doubts clouded her as she rested in the cave, slowly munching on some dried meat she brought from home.

Enjoying the aroma and taste it left out, she soon slowly lacked the awareness of her current surroundings.

Only concentrating in her world, floating in her mind.

She hasn't felt the eyes that were staring at her from the deeper corners of this cave. Unnatural eyes, which never blinked nor lost concentration. Similar to a predator, ready to strike on its prey.

Though, this wouldn't worry the lass, as she was trained in using her handgun, which was holstered by her waist belt. Though, did she bring enough ammunition?

While she continued her munching, a small thud echoed throughout the cave. Suddenly springing back her awareness, her alertness rose back up to a critical state.

Using a piece of the wood that was alighted from the small campfire, she brightened her small field of view, looking left and right.

Failure to her eyes, she tried to remember the location of the direction the echo came from.

She made a quick thought and lobbed the fiery stick towards the predicted direction she had guessed.

Nothing, emptiness by the pitch-black surroundings, she sighed of relief. She guessed that it could have just been a small animal or some debris crashing upon the windy exterior of the caves that considered the echo.

Taking a knee back to her rest, she slowly heard an echo from the same direction. This time, it made her feel eerie. This time it made a similar sound to a raindrop, however, it wasn't raining, so who might have caused it?

This cave was dry to the lips, she would know that as she had rested here quite a few times during her past few hunting work.

Slightly getting annoyed, she reached for her rucksack and snapped a flare stack. She shuffled slowly towards the darker end of the cave and listened closely by tunnelling her hearing to the direction of the cave, closing off the ambience from the outside of the cave.

Hearing a soft gurgling mumble, she feared she might have awoken a resident of this cave. Who, what, when? She wondered. Words in her brain slowly started to spiral but she had to keep herself still, composed and calm.

There was no need to worry about this trifling matters. She had to make her decisions quick and indecisive.

She slowly reached her left hand into her rucksack, shuffling, she held onto her handgun.

An old USP fitted with a silencer, reloaded in were .5 millimetre ammunition of the incendiary element, perfect for keeping small burned wounds or small sparks in a vicinity. Its compact and sleek design made it easy to hold and easily shot without jamming.

The lass softly sighed as she loosened her other hand from the flare stack and tossed it over to the dark end of the cave, willing to see who was the resident that resided in this abandoned cave once and for all.

The stick rolled slowly towards the end, it hit multiple small pebbles before it halts onto a mess. It was black and rather sticky similar to tar.

Indescribable, it was latched onto the ends of the caves.

It held lumps of what looks to be flesh, not fresh but rather decomposed and old, there was no sight of bones.

The lump had small splits that slightly open and closed, could it be the way it respired? It could breathe, it was rather alive. That was for sure.

As the sparks of the flare stick started to burn the lumpy flesh a little, it started to get aggressive, a small flash white sphere opened in its middle. It had roots among its "eye". It didn't have pupils but rather a large and black thin ring to compensate for its sight.

It wasn't human and I dare not say it can be described as an animal either.

It was a beast, a chimera...no, a monster.

Black fleshy and slippery like tentacles latched and slithered across the walls, it gave both a grip and also as hands for the monster. The thing noticed the lass, its aggression increased.

It had spotted an intruder that trespassed its home. It had only a basic cognitional thought in its mind, to subdue the trespasser and torture it to its death before consuming it.

'The fuck is that?' The lass muttered softly to herself, she held her gun out and slow-walked backwards, the aggression of the monster may start being physical anytime soon so its best to find an exit as soon as possible. There was only one way in and that means there can be only one way out of this.

As the lass slowly kept on walking backwards, she accidentally stepped on a pebble. It flung towards the lumpy mess before it got absorbed by its horrendous skin. The thing has awoken, its gurgling and mumbling have become louder and its tentacles like arms detached from the walls, it slowly but quickly was trying to reach towards the lass.

The lass realized it was now a fight or flight response, she readied her shots and starting running towards the exit, she turned her back and sprinted for it.

'Goddammit!' she shouted. 'I have no choice, I can only run, and if it tries to catch me, I have no choice but to shoot it.' As she sprinted some of the lumpy and fleshy black tentacles started rooting up towards her, it somehow could crawl onto the walls and the many other surfaces that hold in the cave.

The campfire that once held light was now crumpled and absorbed by the dark entity.

The flame that sparked from it only burned the flesh of the lump and made it even more aggressive, it didn't know what the environment was and neither knew about the existence of flames.

Using her USP, she shot the fleshy tentacles that tried to spring onto her, it splatted to a black mush and flayed onto the floor.

It was pretty much still alive but it could not move. As the entity nears, it absorbs the black lump and only forms a newly tentacle that slowly grows out of its tumour like flesh skin.

'What in the?! It's not working! This gun is not doing anything to it, it's useless!' She screamed.

"I need help! Help!" she called for attention as she almost reached the exit. "I am running out, no way… Fuck this.' She mutters. She continued running but she started losing concentration, only the rush of adrenaline kicked into her and only one objective was stuck in her mind, to escape.

To escape this darn cave that she used to trust, now, slowly trying to kill her with it from this thing.

Starting to lose her focus, she tripped onto a small gap in the cave which made her lose her composure. She knew this would happen but didn't do anything to remind herself of it.

She tumbled achingly on the floor.

She screamed and groaned in pain, her face and her palms smack hardly onto the edged and rocky floor. The smack echoed throughout the cave.

The thing started getting excited, it thought its trespasser failed its escape. It started reached towards its victim, ready for interrogation and torture that await before its fill.

The lass slowly tried to pick herself up, waves of pain spread across her body but she was fine overall, with only a few sprains and bruises. She limped slowly towards the light of the exit. 'Someone please help me…mother. Someone please."

As she slowly started to lose breathe, she started wobbling, she felt as if she was losing consciousness, the pain and stress that came too fast to her. 'No...not now.' She whispered.

As she slowly was about to fall, an arm gracefully held her up. She was slightly nudged and was slowly left to rest by the cave's entrance.

She didn't realize what was happening.

She was too exhausted to understand but she stayed conscious, as much as possible. A gunshot could be heard from the inside of the caves. It made a wheezing sound and made very loud bangs from the inside.

Again and again, small sounds of miniature explosions happened. An unman-like scream could be heard from the inside as soft metal clanking could be heard dribbling from the inside. A loud thump ended all the sounds, the end of the thing. The death of the beast. Whatever that was, may it rest in peace.

An echo of footsteps came from the insides of the cave, it exited the cave and went slowly to the lass.

A purplish hue of a lighted beam was slowly retracted, it turned off and dissipated in the sandstorm of her blurred view.