Ricardo, Cooper, and James quickly rushed through the labyrinthine halls of Dr. Octavio's massive laboratory, hoping to catch up with the insane, disillusioned scientist and get their hands on the energy core that the groundskeeper needed. "We've been all around this basement and I haven't seen anything even resembling the item we're looking for...." James lamented. "You think this Octavio guy is in possession of it?" Cooper suggested. "If he is....we're going to have a heck of a time getting it away from him." Ricardo responded.
The boys were tired and didn't want to combat Octavio if they didn't have to; they were already greatly exhausted from their battle with Stitchfang. "Did you see all of the mechanical parts on his body? I think I saw a grappling hook, a winch, a shining red eye...." Cooper mused, concerning the doctor. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to mess with him. Let's just look for the core and get out of here," James said.
The hallway that Stitchfang was formerly guarding led deeper into the complex. Soon, the three boys began to come across countless giant tubes on either side of the halls, housing various humanoid test subjects. All of them had some kind of deformity, however, ranging from mismatched limbs to tentacles where their heads should have been. "Looks like even Dr. Octavio can't get everything right on the first try," Cooper joked.
Eventually, they entered a large room with several operating tables situated throughout the area, along with one big one in the center. And in the middle of the room, Dr. Octavio himself stood, working on the experiment that was lying on the center bed. Luckily, only the middle of the area---Dr. Octavio's workspace---was sufficiently lit; the edges were bathed in darkness. "Shhh! Don't let him know we're here!" Ricardo whispered urgently. The boys quickly positioned themselves behind a large cabinet, out of Octavio's line of sight.
"Does anyone see the energy core?" James asked. "Umm...." Cooper looked around the lab before his eyes came to rest on a shining, blue object on a counter, some distance away. "I see it! And it's....right next to the doctor. Wonderful." Cooper sighed. "So what do we do? We just sit here and wait for him to---"
James motioned for him to be quiet as the boys heard and saw Octavio moving away from the table. "Pssst! Now's our chance! I think I see another area where we can hide. Quickly! Move behind the weapon rack!" he instructed. As the boys got into position, Octavio soon returned to his work, unaware that the three of them were now nearer to his position. "I can just barely reach it...." Ricardo muttered as he tried to reach for the core without alerting Octavio. Unfortunately, not only was he unable to grab it, but he also knocked down a wrench that was near it, causing it to fall onto the floor and make a clanging sound.
The boys paused briefly in shock. Cooper then urgently motioned for them to retreat into the dark part of the lab to avoid being seen, which they did. Octavio moved to the fallen wrench and put it back in its place, and proceeded to scan the area. Thanks to the dark edges of the laboratory providing stealth for Ricardo and his friends, Octavio did not see them.
"Phew, that was a close one. But how are we going to get to it? It's so close!" Ricardo asked. "Does anyone have any ideas?"
"Maybe we could create a distraction," James suggested. "Here." He snuck over and grabbed the same wrench off of the counter and threw it across the room. It landed in a corner on the exact opposite side of the lab from the boys, this time making a much louder sound on impact thanks to James' forceful throw.
"What? What are you doing?!" Ricardo whispered in a panicked tone. "Quickly! Someone grab the core!" Cooper cried. James ran over and grabbed the core undetected, and slipped back into the darkness. "Nice!" Ricardo exclaimed. "Now all we need to do is get back to the elevator and we're home free!"
However, as Octavio finished his search for the wrench and recovered it, he noticed that the blue cube was seemingly hovering in the darkness. Octavio ran over to the side wall and threw a lever, lighting up the whole room. "Got you!" the doctor exclaimed. "Hmmm....if you're here, that can only mean one thing....Stitchfang has passed, then." "That's right! Shocked him full of electricity, we did!" Cooper bragged triumphantly, seeing no point in trying to be quiet now that they had been exposed. Octavio sighed. "That is a pity....it's a shame he won't be around to witness the purge of humanity....and by attempting to steal the core from me, you've guaranteed that you won't be around for it either. Silkwidow!" the doctor called out.
Suddenly, eight of the ceiling's tiles fell away, and a familiar-looking giant spider dropped down from the opening. "Did he say 'Silkwidow'?" James asked worriedly. "Yes! I believe he has a score to settle with you after your run-in with him in the elevator shaft." Octavio commented. He took the hook winch off of his back and began twirling it around his head in a similar fashion to a cowboy spinning a lasso. With one swift motion, the doctor yanked the core back into his hands. "Hey! Give that back!" James yelled. "No. It was mine first, was it not? If anything, my data analysis indicates you three are the thieves in this situation." Octavio replied. "Please. We need it...." Ricardo said softly. Octavio paused. "....Before I have Silkwidow rip you all to shreds, what do you want it for, anyway? You're certainly not winning any points with me right now since you tried to steal it from my possession."
"....We're trying to save a friend of ours," James explained. "You're trying to....what?" Octavio asked. "Our friend, Rose, was kidnapped by two ghosts that reside inside the mansion above. We were hoping to use that core to power some ghost-hunting weapons in order to rescue her." Ricardo elaborated. "You're trying to save her....? You all must really care for her, then...." the doctor mused, deep in thought. "See? Not all humans are as bad as you think they are, Octavio. Think of this as proof of that." Cooper added. "Hmmm.....perhaps I had your kind all wrong....." the doctor said somberly. He looked over at the giant mutant spider who was still next to him, awaiting its master's orders. "Stand down, Silkwing," Octavio ordered. He then slowly walked over to Ricardo and handed the core to him. "Here. Go save your friend. I will try to research more about whether or not there are more out there like you. My worldview was immensely ruined by Lockwood's treatments." The doctor turned to walk away. "I hope all goes well."
"Awesome! Thanks, Dr. Octavio!" Ricardo said delightfully. "The groundskeeper's going to be so happy!" Just then, the doctor stopped dead in his tracks. "The....groundskeeper? Did you say 'the groundskeeper'?" Octavio asked, needing clarification. "Yeah, why?" James replied.
"......" Octavio remained silent for a moment. "The.....groundskeeper.....NO! I will not do anything to help the likes of him! SILKWIDOW, ATTACK!" Octavio ordered. The giant mutant spider let out a bellowing roar and began to pursue the boys. "What?! Why?!" Ricardo cried. "Surrender that core this instant!" Octavio boomed, also joining the chase.
"Run, everybody!" Cooper yelled in a panic as the three boys made a break for it. While Silkwidow kept the boys on their toes on the ground, occasionally swiping his legs to try and trip them up, Dr. Octavio used the tentacles on his armor pack to grab the plumbing sections of the ceiling and swing from pipe to pipe, keeping tabs on the boys the whole way. Ricardo, Cooper, and James ran all the way from the main lab to Hall 3, then back through the generator room where they had battled Stitchfang, to Hall 2, back through Hall 1, and finally the elevator, with Octavio and Silkwidow just barely behind them the whole way.
As they entered the elevator, Silkwidow made one last attempt to attack the boys, sticking its head through the door and viciously attempting to bite at them. James quickly moved over and hit the button to force the elevator door to close while Silkwidow's head was still in it, thus decapitating him.
Silkwidow was dead.
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Now alone in the basement, Dr. Octavio looked despondently over his failure. "Those....those rats....I've worked so hard for so long, and now, because of them, two of my experiments are dead and my power source has been stolen. Not only that, but they're working with the groundskeeper, too...." By then, the doctor had suffered so many losses that he was fuming with tranquil rage. "I will destroy them, and everything they love," he vowed to himself as he turned around and walked back to his lab.
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The boys yelped in disgust as they were forced to stare at Silkwidow's severed head for the entire ride back up to the B1 floor. Once the car had reached its destination, they were quick to exit. "Ewww....." Ricardo commented, brutally kicking Silkwidow's head away on the way out. "Alright, it was a tough job, but we got the core, my friends!" James exclaimed happily. "You got that right! Let's head back to the bunker, everyone!" Cooper added.
As they re-entered the groundskeeper's safehouse, Elijah suddenly ran up to them in a panic. "Guys! It's horrible! They....they....they....." Elijah stuttered.
"Whoa, whoa, calm down. It's good to see you've made a full recovery, Elijah. Now, what was it you wanted to tell us?" Ricardo asked.
Elijah took a deep breath. "The....The Songsworn! They kidnapped the groundskeeper!"
YOU ARE READING
The Curse of Taloncrest Manor
HorrorThe year is 2010. Fresh out of school and into his long summer break, Ricardo, a high school senior, has just learned that he has inherited a massive mansion from his late aunt, so he takes his girlfriend Rose and his friends Cooper, James, and Elij...
