Sub Terra: Et Reditus

Thirty-Three

Gus

Downstairs, I shoveled spoonfuls of a poorly-made bowl of oatmeal into my mouth. Normally, making such a bowl of oatmeal would be impossible, but my constant worry over my friends allowed it to happen. It tasted awful, but I knew I wasn't going to be able to do much on an empty stomach. I would've preferred something my mom made over that any day. I missed her cooking. I missed seeing her, I had to admit.

 I couldn't help but think something major was about to happen, but I chalked it up to my mind being too active. I sipped a glass full of cocktail made from local fruits. It momentarily calmed me for a bit but then, my Screen vibrated on top of the dining table.

My heart started racing. Mustering up some courage, I picked it up and turned it on.

One new message from Danny

I clicked the notification as soon as I read it, not wanting to wait a second longer.

It took the time between one moment and the next for my mind to change the source of my uneasiness.

"Hey! Nadia!" I yelled up the stairs to the upper floor of the house. 

I didn't hear a response right away, so I yelled her name again.

"Nadia! Can you hear me?"

"You calling me, Gus?" Nadia said about three seconds later, her voice barely audible due to her being being behind a closed door, plus the distance between us.

"Yeah! Listen up. Daniel's coming in like a minute and he has something important to tell us. Come down! And hide Asa in the bathroom or your room or something."

"I'll be down in a sec! I just need to-

Suddenly, I heard the front door open. I hurried to it to greet whoever was coming in.

"Oh, Danny, it's-

"Damn, Gus," he said, not allowing me to finish my sentence. "You look... awful. You good? You look pretty beat up."

I chuckled nervously as he said that. He somehow deduced my mental state within seconds of seeing my face.

"Me? Beat up? Look at yourself? You were running, weren't you?" I said so I could get the attention away from myself. "Were you chased or something?"

"I had to run. There were three little kids up by the granary, and inside there was this glow coming out through the windows. It didn't seem normal at all so I scooped them all up and got them the hell out. And-

"Was that the sound I heard like 10 minutes ago?" I asked, remembering something I observed but neglected to put much thought into. "Did a building collapse or something?"

"Yeah, it did. Crashed into some other buildings too. There's gotta be a crowd around there by now. So, anyways, I found Devi and I handed those kids off to her, so they'll be fine. Then I got here as fast as I could. Now, do you wanna tell me why you were looking rough right when I came in?"

I stared at him, dumbfounded. I couldn't think of a good excuse to give him.

"Well... that's 'cause... I..."

"I'm playing with you, man. You're just worked up about the demon here, I know."

I internally breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Just then, I heard footsteps race down the stairs.

"Sorry, guys!" Nadia said, full of energy. "Did I miss anything?"

"No," I told her. "You're right on time."

With the three of us now gathered together, Danny told us of how our plans had drastically changed, and that we had to leave in three hours time. He told us to start packing up as soon as possible. My heart became frantic. Another problem came just as another left.