The Catacombs Project

Part 2

In the distance, Felix could hear a low rumbling noise. The sound grew. He widened his eyes towards the sound.

    Remember Jennifer?

    Jennifer was another recurring character he made up playing horror games, only Jennifer was a rock. Clutching Stephano, Felix ran away from the noise, until he came across a boar. He got closer and noticed a knife was strapped to its back.

    I’ll give you a hint: you’re going to need that knife if you want to save Marzia.

    The boar caught sight of him and charged directly at him. Felix jumped over the boar and ran until he thought up what to do, eventually concluding that he was going to need to kill the boar in order to get the knife. Clutching Stephano in his hands, he turned around and swung the statue as hard as he could into the side of the boar’s head, sending the boar into the wall where he heard its skull crack. The boar still struggled as it gasped for air and pawed the air with its hooves. Felix closed his eyes and swung the statue one last time against the boar’s head. To his relief, the boar went completely still. He wiped the moisture from his eyes before proceeding to take the knife.

    The rumbling became louder and he could feel the ground move beneath his feet. He resumed running until he came across a hole in the ground, blocked by tightly bound ropes. Assuming it was the right direction, he crouched to the ground and began to saw at the ropes with his knife. The ground trembled more violently.

    Faster.

    One rope was split. Felix didn’t think he was capable of going any faster, but he tried to cut more viciously at the rope.

    Faster, Felix!

    He broke another rope, but it didn’t seem to be enough. He cut at one more, his hand quickly becoming sore as he sawed. The last rope was split, and he threw his legs into the hole just as the large rock came into view. He pushed himself through, but caught his hand in the ropes. The rock rolled over it, crushing the bones in his hand. Felix shrieked out in pain, then retrieved his hand as soon as the rock passed. He fell to the ground, clutching his wrist as he cried out.

    In the midst of dwelling over the unbearable pain in his hand, he recalled the voice urging him to cut the rope faster and questioned its reasoning. He considered the notion that they didn’t want him to die, but he knew it was no longer a harmless game. But why would they encourage him to survive?

    To see me suffer, he figured.

    Marzia returned to his mind and he rose to his feet. He couldn’t waste time dwelling in his own pain. Using only one hand, he used the knife to cut his shirt. He then dropped the knife so he could tear it further until he removed a strip and used it to wrap his broken hand, cringing as he did so. He picked up the knife with his only capable hand, forced to leave Stephano behind, and continued down the hall.

Felix had been running for five minutes and walking for three when he heard moving water echoing in the hall. Another minute of walking brought him to an end to the ground where the path continued with water. He looked up and saw a tunnel in the wall across from him where the water continued just big enough for him to fit through.

    “Oh, fuck that,” he muttered to himself.

    You can still turn around.

    “Fuck you!” Felix shouted at the ceiling.

    Crude remarks will get you nowhere, Felix. That tunnel, however, will.

    Felix studied the tunnel. Swearing under his breath, he placed his arms on his head and closed his eyes as he tried to gain the strength to enter the water and face whatever waited for him.

    There’s no time to contemplate things, Felix. You must go. Now.

    A monstrous roar echoed through the hall behind him. Felix jumped into the water, not expecting to not be able to touch a surface beneath him. He swung his arms over his head and kicked his feet to propel himself through the water.  He entered the tunnel, but the end of it wasn’t visible- just a seemingly infinite length of darkness.

    Something splashed behind him, as if it jumped into the water. Whatever it was, it didn’t require nearly as much power to swim, for he only heard a single stroke every couple seconds. Nonetheless, it was considerably faster than he was. He used all his force to push him through the water, and just as he noticed the exit of the tunnel begin to reveal itself, he felt two slimy hands grip his calf and yank him downward until his entire body was feet under water.

    Felix gripped the knife in his hand and swung at the arm, severing it from its body. It screeched unhumanly, and he thrusted his knife once more towards the source. He felt the knife skim against it, but nothing that did any potential harm. For the first time, he was able to clearly see the face of the creature: it was covered entirely in green moss with a mouth that opened in a circle that took up over half its face and exposed teeth that resembled those of a piranha. Its eyes were black, small and beady. Felix pulled his arm back as he prepared to swing again, but the monster bit at the side of his face. He felt the skin begin to tear, and stabbed its neck, releasing his face from its mouth. It shrieked and Felix stabbed it again. His vision began to blur from the lack of oxygen. He propelled himself upward for air, but was pulled down by his neck just before he reached the surface. He was lowered underwater until he was inches from the monster’s face, the knife still protruding from its head. The last thing he heard was a screech and a gunshot before complete silence.