Trauma's Garden

Serpent's Ground

Barathrum was kept companied by a couple of men. “And then I said, don’t ever keep me waiting like that again.” The men laughed around him. Gastronome was very interested at their buffet. He was very full, after eating almost all of the viands served. Not long, he also noticed that Ruth was missing. So, Gastronome went to Barathrum. “Barathrum! Excuse me, please, excuse me, hey! Where’s Ruth?” He said as he made his way through the crowd.

They both tried to find Ruth and suddenly a voice from the speakers came out. “Hello, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our game called Tower Hour! Everyone of you are included, especially the both of you… Gastronome, Barathrum… The instructions are very simple find three glass tankers hidden in this tower and gather them to the Hall of Serpents. If you don’t succeed in two hours, two things, first this girl dies.” The man said and showed a video clip using the projector. “And second, there are three containers that has a hundred eggs inside. These eggs will hatch and turn into a kind a creature that looks like a winged serpent. He added. The audience panicked for a short time. “Don’t forget, all doors are shut with blast doors.” He had a sinister laugh.

The Tower has three different halls, The Hall of Serpents, the main hall, The Hall of Reptiles and The Hall of Snakes, the minor halls. The party is located at The Hall of Reptiles. “Where the hell are we going to find those tankers?” Gastronome inquired. The mysterious man said, “Clue, the first one is in the last, you see it below but it is above.”

Gastronome kept on repeating the man’s word; he tried to solve his riddle. “Come on man, you can do it!” Barathrum cheered. “Why don’t you help me?” Gastronome cried. “I got it!” Gastronome shouted. He went directly to the stage, “Listen, people, look at all the comfort rooms all of them, search every cubicle!” Gastronome’s hunch was right, a single tanker was located above the last cubicle of the last women’s bathroom in the basement.

“Okay, we have one tanker! Any other instructions?” He inquired. A man’s voice from the speakers came out, “Pick your poison,” he said, “Either you deactivate the security system manually, or it goes off automatically.” Gastronome and the others were in shock. They didn’t know what to do, or what will happen.

“There is just no freaking way out of this mess. Barathrum announced, “Unless, there is! Gastronome was puzzled, so is Mr. Hassle. “We have an hour and a forty-five to find the remaining tankers, so let’s find them and put them in the freezer!” He added. “We have the incineration area,” Hassle said. “Much better!” Gastronome commented.

They had a hard time finding the remaining two tankers. “Gastronome, try the, The Hall of Snakes, in the least visited room or area there.” Barathrum said. Gastronome asked, “What is the most unvisited area or unknown area in the, The Hall of Snakes? Mr. Hassle?” Mr. Hassle hesitated to answer, “That… that would be classified’” Gastronome burst in madness. “It’s a matter of life, your life, and death our death!” Hassle answered, “It’s …the nesting grounds,” he replied. “Why would you have that kind of facilitating area?” Gastronome asked, “Unless… you export these serpents, don’t you?” He added.

Hassle explained every detail of explanation to Gastronome, but nonetheless he and Barathrum was not contented for his explaining. “But really, I just like them very much!” Hassle said, “I would never do anything to hurt nor sell them, please believe me.” Gastronome ignored him and asked Barathrum to keep a close look at him.