Sewer Beast

It was dark down there, down there in the dank and raw sewer. Between all the pipes and wide passage ways, the long twisting corridors, somewhere there was the quiet sound of dripping. A rhythmic beat of water striking against a pipe and making a loud echo that bounced off the walls. To anyone without a map it would've been an endless maze with no end, a vile smelling labyrinth which would certainly be one's tomb if they were to get lost here. It was a dreadful place, that was for sure. But more than that, it was a place that needed constant maintenance and work.

Today was one of those days. The crew that was sent down in the murky stone passageways had to check on a strange pressure they were getting from an older pipeline. A pipeline that ran deep down below and hadn't needed work for ages, there was nothing on file about them. If not for the strange pressure reading they were getting up above it was likely this pipeline would've never been found, it was in a small sub-layer of the sewer, the crew needing to take down another ladder to reach it. This was unlike any job any of the small crew of five had to do. None of them had ever went this deep, nor did any of them want to be this deep.

It wasn't until the reached the pipeline that they realized how strange this job truly was. The pipeline they had gone to inspect had been altered and, by the looks of it, recently. It had been cut, then reattached to the side of what looked like a metal hatch, similar in appearance to submarine hatch. There was no indication as to how this got here or who built it or when it was even made. It looked old, rusting over a bit, a few small scratches. It was something that shouldn't be, but was and for that reason the entire crew felt a lurking sense of dread touch them. It wasn't strong, but it was enough to make them hesitant to further inspect it. It took a good two minutes before anyone actually moved to examine it. Of course, it was the younger, junior staff member who went to it. Someone who thought they were all that. They looked over it quickly, then decided to try and open it. He tried for a few moments and managed to get it to turn a fraction of an inch. This finally got the other crew to join in. Together, they got the wheel turning, and turning, and turning.

And then it was open. They pulled the hatch open and looked down into the dark below. The shone a light down into the hatch and saw what looked to be...a room? No, it was a hallway. It was plated with steel and there looked to be some form of lighting on the sides of the floor, but they were all powered down. The younger crew member, still feeling cocky stuck his head down there and shone his light around, trying to see if he could find anythi-

Before he could finish he quickly pulled his head back up right as a claw came swiping at his face. He almost dodged it, but was struck on the side of his face, a large tear in his flesh that didn't go all the way through, but would leave scarring. He let out a loud scream, falling back onto the cold wet floor. Over his screams the crew could hear the beast below snarl and hiss like a serpent. They helped the younger crewman up and dragged him up the ladder. They darted down the hall, still hearing the hissing noise from behind them, the echo making it near impossible to tell where it was coming from. They all rushed to the surface and reported what they saw immediately.

After a week the sewers were put on lock-down and all work regarding it was put on hold. They sent down a small group of investigator and while they managed to encounter the beast, they could identify it or give a good description. It was a mystery, a mystery that the local leadership decided was best left to the heroes of the city. A notice went out asking for the aid of any hero that was free and available. They were to report to the mayor first and then get a briefing. Afterwards, they'd be free to pursue as they please, so long as no serious damage was done to the sewer.

It took another three days before Samuel Greyson heard the news of the sewer beast and there was not a single strand of him that was not excited to hop into this one. He quickly made his way over to the mayor's office and signed right up! Apparently a few others had signed up as well, but it was unknown if they had acted yet. This didn't matter much to Sam! He was just happy to have the chance at this. After receiving the briefing, talking with a few witnesses, and getting a map (The entire process seeming to be too long for him to bare), Sam was ready to go. He made his way to a nearby sewer entrance, the one closest to where that deeper sub-layer was found and hopped down. He landed with a small splash into a puddle and he grimaced slightly at the smell. Not as bad as somethings he had been exposed to, but still pretty bad.

He shook his head. He had to get focused. He couldn't let the smell get to him. Putting on a confident smile he looked down the corridor, shining a small flashlight he had brought with him down the way. Nothing there. He looked the other way and saw nothing as well. He let out a breath, then cleared his throat and...

"HELLO SEWER BEAST! I AM HERE TO FIND YOU! IF YOU'RE FRIENDLY DON'T ATTACK! THANK YOU!" And then he nodded to himself, pleased with the echo, and then started to head towards where he could reach the sub-layer, unaware of any danger that may lurk nearby.

Of all the powers in the world, Arlandria Vega wished in that very moment that she had the power to fly. No, don't get the wrong impression. She was happy to be on the job, doing good, saving the city, but, gods, did she wish the whole package came with a different smell and maybe a different layer of liquid somehow managing to slosh up onto her boots no matter where she walked. White on a hero suit had certainly not been her best choice. The sewers beneath New York were dark, damp, and delightfully disgusting, all of which one would expect from a sewer. Arlandria held a bright lamp before her face and directed the beams to reach every hidden corner, but she still felt weak as she trudged forward, drained by the surrounding darkness. Each step of her boots in the slick sludge made an awful squelching sound. There was absolutely no way to be quiet without flight.

It had been Tristan Cadbury, primary genetic researcher and father figure in Arlandria’s life, who suggested Arlandria take the opportunity to save the city from its sewers, and she’d surely complain to him about how terrible the smell was the moment she returned back to the lab for reporting and testing. She had capitulated to Tristan’s will, however, making her way to the mayor’s office for a mix of warnings and information. She didn’t waste any time with witnesses, however. Instead, Arla moved straight to the sewer, following the small map she had been provided in the light of her lantern.

“Don’t damage the pipes, just kill the monster,” she reminded herself as she walked, squinting at the map that was nearly cryptic in her eyes. The main detail that she could gather was that the sewer system was an absolute maze, and she was probably going to die down there. (Okay, okay, exaggeration. There was a chance she’d die down there before meeting the monster.) It was fine. She was fine.

“Just a hissing-serpent monster,” she whispered to herself as she neared an intersection, her head tilting as she looked at the map under visor. “Just a terrible, hissing monster with flesh tearing claws.” She turned, heading towards wherever the map pointed was the right way. Up above, she could see faint, light rings where different man hold covers sat, and she wished she had chosen a cover later in her route, if only to spare her from the smell. Even 10 minutes in, the smells was still putrid, nearly putrid enough to distract her from the fear rising in her stomach every step. She could do this, no problem. Monster? Easy. Sewage monster? Easy. Sewage monster in a dark place where Arla can’t use her powers as well as she’d like? A hellish game of dungeons in dragons with disadvantage on every one of her rolls.

She huffed, beginning to accept her fate as she trudged on like a weary soldier when she heard it. A distinct splash, the slosh-sloshing of feet in a thick soup of liquid, and then, for just a moment, silence. The sound came from around the next bend of the tunnel, its musician unseen by Arlandria’s eye. She warily poked her head round the corner. No monster, she sighed. Not unless monsters learned how to take the form of humans and had an affinity for superhero costumes. And she hoped to the gods that no monster was stupid enough to scream like that, the words echoing down the tunnels deafeningly. Curiously, Arla held up her lantern, brightening the light by opening her hand slightly below it. The lantern brightened, and she moved her hand to be a flat, vertical palm facing outwards before her face. Now, light from the lantern seemed magnetically pulled to her hand before bouncing off to another location as if her hand itself were a mirror. She rotated her hand slowly, the light panning across the sewer tunnels like a lighthouse as she looked for her lost ship- or, as the light caught him, the small young man. The light caught reflectively in his green eyes and blonde hair, and a wide grin spread across Arla’s face as she lowered her hand to her hip, allowing the lantern to again shine naturally. She slosh-sloshed down the sewer towards him.

“My, my, Mister Grayson. I was hoping we’d meet again under different circumstances,” she said jovially. “Now, if you’d just continue to not scream for the monster to come murder us, I’d appreciate it.”

Sam nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard his name being called. He hadn't expected anyone to actually answer his call, let alone come sloshing towards him. He let out a few heavy breaths and then turned to face the person who addressed him. He blinked a few times at Vega, not really believing his eyes. He raised a finger and pointed at her, tilting his head one way. He couldn't believe it! Of all the places in the world, of all the cities, and of all the sewers is was Vega! Sure, she was in different attire, but he knew that face! He hadn't seen her for a few weeks, not since that whole situation in India! A bright smile grew on his face and he went over, arms spread wide open, but he didn't go in for a hug, not unless she did the same. If they did hug, it'd be a brief one.

He let out a small laugh, shaking his head. "Arlandria?! Really? Here?!" He laughed a bit more. "It's so wonderful to see you! I didn't think we'd meet again, and if we did, I didn't think it'd be this soon! This is amazing! How have you been? What have you been doing?" He looked around the sewer briefly, blinking once. "What are you doing in a place like here." He snapped a finger as soon as he asked this, like an idea had come to his head. She was in hero attire, that must mean..."Are you a hero?! Are you on the hero job here as well? Are you looking for that beast that has been in the news?!" There were a lot of 'are' questions spewing from him. His smile widened. He loved meeting other heroes, it was one of his favorite things to do! What he loved more was to actually be able to work with them. If she was on the same job they could work together and split the reward! That would be amazing! He didn't know what her power was, but it'd be great to just have someone there with him.

He let out another small laugh. "And no need to call me Mister Grayson! Just Sam is fine!" He shook his head and looked around the sewer, grimacing slightly. "Yeah, the smell isn't great, but hey! At least it's not raining." Right as he said that he felt a drip from a pipe above land on his head, causing a shiver to run down his spine. He cleared his throat once and went to ask another question, but before he could he was interrupted by a hissing pipe, probably steam or something like that? He was about to start asking again, when he let his mouth lock up. He turned and faced the hallway to his right and looked down the dark passage.

Hissing...the beast hissed right? That's what the mayor person said. He swallowed then looked towards Vega. "You-uh-you heard that right?" He swallowed again, hard, looking back down the passage. "I think that's where the sub sub-layer is, where the crew guy got hurt." He pointed a finger down the passage way. "Do you want to take a look?" He cracked a small smile. "That's what we're here for right? We might as well go and solve the issue. After this I'll treat you to coffee or something."

He looked back towards the passage, grinning widely. This was the part of the job that he loved. The moment before conflict, the tension and all that came along with it. It was terrifying, but it was exciting and fun. It was the perfect line of work for Sam. He could help people, entertain them, entertain himself, and do some real good. This moment of excitement though really got the blood pumping and it gave him such a strong feeling. He looked back to Vega, grinning. "You ready?"

“So many questions,” she muttered goodnaturedly as she pulled away from his hug. She tapped her temple, and the periwinkle visor of light before her eyes faded away into the thin metal projector running across her forehead. She matched his grin. “I’ve been great, Sam, really. And yes, I’m a hero looking for the beast. What gave it away?” she laughed, pushing the iridescent cape back to reveal the white and lavender catsuit. The young man smiled often and talked a lot, and, compared to the serious and quiet scientists and heroes she worked with, she enjoyed his bright personality. It was fresh, different, and hard-to-find in a laboratory or on a dark street of a city plagued by crime. It was contagious, too; Arlandria’s fear lessened as she stood and conversed with a familiar face.

The fear on his face was contagious, too, as his attention was pulled down a tunnel whose darkness spilled into the tunnel illuminated by their lights. Her own fear reawakened as she followed his gaze, a low hissing echoing down the cavernous tunnels.

“The hissing? I definitely heard it,” she whispered, patting the air beside her with her free hand to tell him to lower his volume. She didn’t necessarily want to stroll towards a hissing beast that had torn the flesh off the face of what was once a mildly attractive man and, by the pictures, turned him into the poster child for horror movie villains, but she supposed it was her job. She forced a smile, but Arlandria was unable to match Sam’s excitement. If anything, she’d make sure both of them survived so as to take Sam up on that coffee… date? Was that what it was? She’d find out if she wasn’t killed by a swamp monster or suffocated by the awful smell surrounding her.

“Ready,” she assured, and she extended her palm towards him, and, flexing her fingers out slightly, his small flashlight brightened to rival the luminosity of car headlights. She was careful not to brighten it too much; if she did, the bulb could break and leave them down a light. She brightened her own light, a long-lasting lamp specially crafted to withstand the large levels of heat she put it under, as well as the stress of battles and the abuse of fights. At maximum brightness, she could easily make the light into a military searchlight; at minimum brightness, it flickered like a candle. Now, however, she turned her brightness to a similar brightness of Sam’s flashlight. She tapped the projector band around her head again, and the visor flickered on before her eyes. Bracing herself for what she may see, she turned her light down the tunnel. And there, down the tunnel was…

Nothing. She squinted, not yet letting her vigilance falter as she stepped forward and began absentmindedly bending the light of her lamp to unnaturally reach into the corners of the sub-level like a single tentacle extending from her and feeling the room. She began to turn back to Sam, ask him if he was sure this was the right place, if-

She saw it. A glimpse of it, at least, a black mass of claws and sewage diving into the murky depths just as her light, bent at an obtuse angle, hit it and leaving the sludge to undulate in its wake. Her eyes didn’t leave the circle of ripples it had disappeared into, but she whispered grimly back to Sam.

“Sam, it’s in the water with us.”

Sam laughed nervously at she did, truly unsure if she was seriously asking or not. It had been very obvious with how revealing her costume was, at least in terms of her face. Thankfully, at least to some degree, the situation diffused on its own when the hissing began, saving Sam the torment of actually having to think of how to reply to her question. The hissing was still concerning, but at least it was a bit of a relief. in some weird way.

Sam used his light to the best of his ability to search the surrounding area for the source of the hissing. While it was a relief as a distraction, the beast still needed to be stopped. His now improved flashlight shone across the water, its murkiness having a strange glow to it. There were a few...undesirable shapes that moved through the waste water, but thankfully one of Sam had on a pair of waterproof boots which managed to keep most of the dank stuff out. He had also covered his feet with plastic wrap, an extra line of defense against the sewage. Despite all of his attempts to find the beast in this mess of water and...other stuff, he could not seem to find it. He was about to look back to Vega, when, about the same time she saw something, he spotted something in the water too. It had looked to be like...a tail of some kind? It was thicker and originated a left of them from where he had first come from.  Had it been following him.

At her last comment Sam nodded once. "Yeah...I see it too." Though it would be frightfully obvious that he was not looking in the same place as she was. He took a step back towards the dead end of the passage ways. It was where the sub-layer was located and where the beasts had first been sighted. It wasn't an ideal situation, but neither was fighting  an enemy you couldn't see. They had the advantage of being able to go underwater and deal with the horrible horrible sewage. Maybe if they were careful and vigilant they could catch the beast, but...it was better to fight them on solid ground. According to the reports the sub-layer was relatively dry...while they'd be in a corner they would at least be able to see what they were fighting. It was the best bet.

He looked towards Vega and motioned his head behind them as he stepped towards the slight incline. "Come on...this way. I have an idea." He looked over his shoulder for a moment towards the incline, then back to Vega. He gave her a confident smile and nodded once. "The beast is leading us into a corner, but we're gonna turn the tables on him down there, got it?" He looked over his shoulder again, now starting to go up the incline. He stopped a few feet from the opening that led down to the sub-layer. He looked back down towards the water, swallowing hard. As much as he loved being a hero and doing this sort of work...this made something in stomach churn. It could just be the sewage, but somehow he doubted that. There was something about this entire situation that seemed wrong, he just couldn't place his finger on it. No matter now, he just had to keep playing it by ear, react to things as they happened. The normal plan.

“Okay, Sam. I trust you,” Arlandria called genuinely to him as he started away up the incline. She continued to watch the water for any sign of the beast, but, realizing Sam was walking away and leaving her alone in the intersection, she ran after him towards the sub-level. She brightened her light a little further as the darkness closed in.

“Just know if we die, I’m totally blaming you,” she added as she caught up to him. She turned around to face the intersection they had come from, waiting for the monsters to crawl into her beam of light again as the water level fell around her ankles. She looked down a moment. The falling levels of water revealed dark green-brown stains of sludge marring the once white and periwinkle legs of her suit. A slight frown consumed her, but she pushed her dry-cleaning worries away. Now was not the time to worry about that. Now was the time to worry about the watery silhouettes pursuing them. She stayed close to Sam and shuffled sideways up the incline so as to keep an eye on both the way they came from and the way they were going. The incline began to level off, and Arlandria found it as good a time as any to speak.

“So, how are we turning the tables on this thing?” She asked, a certain nervousness infiltrating her bright voice. She was a woman who liked plans, organization, and the works, although hero work offered little of the simple pleasures she so enjoyed. If only just this once she could have the plan she wanted to always have, she’d be satisfied. Thinking of what else Sam’s plan could include, she realized for a moment that she had seen no sign of powers in her companion. Her certainly didn’t have a supersuit, and she could unfortunately believe, as much as it brought fright to her, that the man had decided to take on the monster himself just for a little excitement without the proper equipment or powers. She hoped to the gods that she was wrong, though, but the fear that had further widened her eyes needed to be squashed.

“Actually, Sam, w-what, uh, what powers do you have? You have powers, right? Or something?” She inquired quickly, removing her eyes from the beams of light panning the water temporarily to look up at Sam. If the man didn’t have powers, well, she’d walk right back out of the tunnel and quit. She and a scrawny, normal human were NOT a team able to defeat the creatures in the water. Nope. No way.She turned her attention back down the tunnel, watching the silhouettes float lazily by beneath her beams reach below the incline. The beast had not yet taken to pursuing the pair, yet Arlandria was afraid it was only a matter of time.

It was nice to know that this person Sam barely knew trusted him. It brought a smile to his face despite the horrid situation they were in. Between the amazingly cool ability she had, in addition to this level of trust and kindness Sam could tell that she was in fact a hero. He was lucky to have a person like her on his team, heaven knows he would need it. As he stared down into the semi-dark abyss of the hatch and into the dry hallway below he bit his lip. He wasn't sure if this would be their saving grace or their doom, either way...it was their only option.

Before making the decision to actually jump down into the eerie darkness Sam looked back to Vega and grinned brightly. "I have no idea how we're gonna turn the table! My plan is to just play it by ear!" And with that said, he took a step forward and let himself fall down into the hatch and onto the cold floor below. As he hit the ground he did a slight roll forward and then stood up quickly. He rose his hands for a moment, smiling brightly, a memory of his days at the circus touch his mind before being shoved to the back of his head. There would be other times to remember. He looked up at the hatch and, if Vega took more than a moment to follow suit Sam would call to her. "And you also asked about my ability! I'll show you now!"

Smiling and without moving a muscle and he opened one portal above of him on the ceiling and the connecting point under where Vega stood. If she didn't do something to prevent herself from falling, she'd fall through the point on the ceiling and end up right in front of Sam. Once she was all the way through he'd close the portal and smile at her. If she did go down on her own accord he'd smile at regardless.  "Welcome to my small social club! Nice of you to drop in!" He'd snicker quietly to himself before opening another, smaller, hand sized portal and stick some of his arm through. The connecting point to this portal would be right behind Vega to where he would attempt to poke her on the shoulder. "I can make these cool portals!" He'd exclaim, semi-proudly. He then would use the hand that was through the portal to point at his waist to which there would be an obvious scabbard hanging there. "I also have a really cool sword! It can make these weird fire thing, I don't really understand, but it's really cool! Not as cool as doing all those light things you do, but still really cool!" Unless he was stopped somehow, he'd pull his hand back through the portal and turn around to look down the hallway. "Well! We're down here now! We should try to move, they're probably gonna come down soon too and I don't want them to get the drop on us." He looked back to Vega grinning brightly. "This is the fun part!"

He shone his light further down the dark passage and did his best to illuminate the way forward. It seemed old and rusted, eventually taking a bend. Luckily it was dry and free of sewage, though there was a rather dank smell. It wasn't as bad as sewage, but it was still notable. He shone is light the other way and that hallway was considerable shorter. It was maybe a few feet from them and standing at the end of it was a large metal door with a large circular nozzle for a door handle. It looked a bit rusted, but so did everything down here, probably from all the moisture. How did all of this even come to be? When was it built? And how did everyone above just miss it? He shook his head. These weren't important things to be asking, first thing's first. they needed to get the creatures, then explore.

He turned his attention back to Vega now and nodded. "So! Which way? Down the creepy hallway or through the door?" Above of them, sound close to the hatch, there was another hissing. It was still a bit away, but they creatures were getting closer. After briefly looking up at the hatch Sam looked back to Vega, still smiling. "We should decide quickly, I'll let you lead since you got all the lights!"

The blatant planlessness of her partner provided Arlandria little comfort, especially considering the unfaltering and blind confidence in which Sam seemingly stumbled through most of his decisions and actions. She watched anxiously as he fell through the hatch in the floor, turning her head to look over her shoulder. The beasts were approaching menacingly, the hissing and scraping of claws putting her on edge. She looked back into the hole, where Sam was just as happy as ever, mouthing something beneath the pounding of her heart and the hissing and clawing behind her in her ears.  In an instant, she was falling without context, watching the beasts disappear from view as she hit the ground before Sam, landing on her backside hard. She clambered up, shocked, and further shocked as Sam stuck his hand through a portal that appeared in the air and poking her with a disembodied hand.

"These are yours?" she asked rhetorically, attempting to poke her hand back through the portal as it closed. She smiled lightly as he complimented her own power. "You've barely seen any of my power yet," she mentioned, raising an eyebrow. "There's way more to come, and I'm sure that sword has more than what you give it credit for."

As Sam swung his light around the lower level of the sewers, she did the same, boredly bending the beam around to reach different areas, and perhaps slightly to show off, though she wouldn't admit it.  She was proud of her powers, after all; they certainly weren't as interesting as some, but she liked the fact that she had been given the opportunity to turn something absolutely normal into something absolutely absurd, like solid, malleable light. Arlandria bent her light around the corner of the passage with the elbow, but revealed little more than more, identical walls and tunnels extending farther away. The door caught her attention, however. What would such a door be for down here? What would be so intently sealed away?

"I say we go for the door, we haven't much time," she began, motioning her light towards the door. "We may be able to hide away in there from the monsters, at least for a little bit." She looked up, the hissing growing. She wouldn't dare shine her light upwards; she really didn't want to see what creatures were peeking large eyes down the passage.

"If it doesn't open, we'll at least have a wall to put our backs against as they approach, that way no one can surprise us with an attack from behind," she reasoned. She stepped towards the door, and she prepared to attempt to pry open the door before, with a small smirk growing on her lips, she turned to Sam, a light bulb illuminating in her head. "Say, Sam, you can get us in, can't you? Can't you just portal us in? I doubt either of us has the strength to open the door."

She pleaded with him with her eyes, hoping to whatever gods resided above or below that he would be able to get them in. Her powers would do very little against the door, especially in the dark.  The girl already felt weak as she fed off of the artificial lantern and flashlight lights, and, well, strength was certainly not her.. strength. If he couldn't, well, they could try to open it, but they were running out of time and options. The hissing was growing as an absolutely terrifying gnashing of jaws and chorus of confused, animalistic grunts filtered through the hole above the two of them. "Sounds like we better figure something out fast," she stated obviously as the sounds echoed through the tunnel system.

Sam nodded in agreement. Not only would the door provide a nice blockade to keep the monsters out it was also the more interesting of the two choices! Mysterious door in the sewer, all rusted over! It was so cool! Sam really did want to know what was going to be behind it, but didn't want to push in case that Vega was not comfortable with going in there. There was no point in getting away from danger if someone in the group was not mentally at their best. Though, there was part of him worried about this plan. Opening portals into locations was not only something that was difficult for Sam, but it could also be dangerous. Opening a portal into a flooded area, into an empty wall and bonking your head, potentially opening it in someone, opening it over a ditch or a high up place. It most cases Sam wouldn't have done it, but the rest of this level would be flooded, he could deal with a bonk on the head, this place was abandoned, and if it was over a ditch he could figure a way out of it. In addition, it was better than letting the beasts above get a drop on them.

Concentrating for a moment, two moments, Sam managed to open a portal in front of the two of them, the other connecting to, hopefully, the other side of the door, only a few feet from the main door. No water was pouring out so that was a good sign. "I'm gonna go first, make sure it is all clear, wait for me to give you a signal to make sure it's alright!" Giving Vega one last nod, Sam went in first, head first. No bonk either, that was also a good sign. The other side of the door was a new room and it was...it was not like anything Sam had expected. It sent a shiver down his spine and made something churn in stomach. Well, it could also be the smell, but this room didn't help with that.

The room wasn't a large one, but it was filled with things that Sam could only recognize as things that would be found in an old mad scientist horror film. There were three large cylindrical glass containers filled with a light green, glowing liquid and inside that liquid floated three nearly indescribable beasts, all identical to each other. They looked sort of like lizards, but more fleshy, having some fat to them, but still looking as though they were stretched. The tails of these beasts had what looked like a sharp point and their feet had fins, but they had a pucker like thing at the base of them. The horror didn't end at the monsters though...there were a few tables that were pushed into U-shape in the center of the room. On those tables there were several silver trays, each carrying the tools that were still coated in dried blood and had rusted to some degree. The worst thing though...the thing that made Sam's heart drop the hardest was the doorway on the other side of the room. It looked as though it may have once been a sturdy blockade from whatever was on the other side, but in its current state it looked...eroded, like someone had spilled acid over it. All that remained of the door was a melted base that lay only partially open. On the other side of the melted door was an inky blackness that even with a flashlight, Sam could not see far into it.

He stuck his head back out the portal and was about tell his friend that they should go the other way, but before he could he heard the hissing from above and the slopping footsteps of what produced that vile hissing. His eyes only left Vega for a moment to look up at the hissing before returning to her. "As much as I hate it, we should really go in here. Quickly, get in!" He quickly pulled his head back through and waited for Vega to hopefully follow through. He didn't want to be alone in this room for any longer than he had to. Even with company he didn't want to be in this room for long. It just all seemed to so wrong...

Arlandria attempted to peek around Sam as he began into the portal and tried to get an idea of what they could be walking into. She didn't look long, however, as she was afraid to take her eyes away from the hissing above them for even a moment. She turned away from the portal as Sam disappeared through and looked up to where to sets of eyes reflected her lantern. She rose the lantern above her head and anticipated in slight fear what she would see through the hole. The snapping of long, scaly jaws now had a visual as well as the sound as her light dimly illuminated the two beasts. The sounds echoing from above gave the impression that there could be more behind the duo that peered at her, too. They were faintly lizard-like, but also faintly bulldog-like with wide shoulders and short, bowed legs. An eyelid moved from the front of their eyes, on the side of the head, across the eye to the back. They nearly looked like they were smiling maliciously at her as they tried to muster the courage to jump down with their clumsy land bodies. She gulped and backed into the corner as far as the walls would allow her. She did hope that Sam would hurry.

As if he had heard her silent prayer, a call came from Sam through the portal.

"Why do you hate- oh, what the hell," she interrupted herself. She did not have the time to ask why he hated it, but she was sure she would find out upon entering the room. She followed Sam tentatively through the portal and watched it as it sealed. She was not entirely sure which side of the portal she hated least. Her light, as bright as it was, could not touch the edges of the room. It could, however, touch many horrors in the room. Upon seeing the cylinders holding the beasts, she turned her light away. Her stomach was churning sickeningly beneath her super suit.

"I do not like this at all," she whispered as if she were afraid to disturb ghosts in the room. She understood why Sam had said he hated it, and she strongly regretted suggesting that they enter the room.

"This place doesn't look as old and abandoned as I'd have liked it to," she mentioned, eyeing the dried blood on the instruments. Through the door they had managed to cheat their way around, a commotion of a dull thud of flesh on the ground and a few splashes and the skittering of claws could be heard. The beasts had jumped. For a moment, there was silence. Arlandria watched the door nervously, and she jumped slightly as a thud hit the door followed by more muffled hissing. She shivered. She had been standing there moments before.

"I don't know about you, but I'd rather like to get out of here soon. Let's find a way to put distance between ourselves and the beasts... and this room," she said, adding the last bit as she eyed the bloody instruments again.  The melted door caught her attention, though perhaps not in a good way. She approached slowly and vigilantly, and she directed her light into the darkness. The blackness seemed almost solid and unnatural, sucking up her light quickly. She frowned and called back over her shoulder to Sam.

"What do you think caused this?" she asked quietly as she turned her eyes to gaze upon the damaged door. She turned her eyes to Sam. "You don't think it was those... those things out there? Do you? Or the ones in those tubes, or- or the one who used those bloody tools?" It was becoming clearer and clearer that the two of them had stumbled into more than what they had expected when they took up the mayor's proposition. There were quite a few more monsters and dangers than she had expected, and it made her more and more grateful that she had found an ally in the tunnels. Alone, well, she'd simply be dead already.

A metallic bang rang throughout the room as if the beasts on the otherside of the door wanted to make sure the pair hadn't forgotten them. "I don't want to go through that door unless it's our only hope, Sam."

Sam couldn't agree more with her at statement of dislike against this place. There was so little to like about it, unless you liked horror or monster movies, then this place would be a dream come true. He looked over to her, still trying his best to smile again, and nodded. "Yeah, I agree let's get moving. Before we do though..." He moved over to the center of the room, looking over a few of the items, trying to see if he could find a clue that would further their investigation of what had gone on here. "As much as I hate it, we should look around a bit." He grimaced slightly, but didn't let her see. Heroes don't frown, they smile. That was one the hero rules that Sam followed, or, at least, tried to follow.

As he moved over to some of the tables he inspected some of the tools, not enjoying the sight of them. "I honestly don't know. I'm getting a lot of horror mad scientist vibes creating evil monster in the sewer kind of thing. Though, everything here has long since been rusted or wetted into non-existence." He shook his head slightly as he picked up one of the tools. "I don't think that-uh...those things used this lab. I think they were probably made here? Or something? I don't know, I was never good at science stuff. I'm better at hero stuff." He nodded confidently, believing what he said was well-educated. The addition of "stuff" was perfect. He set down the tool and sighed. He started to move over to her, but stopped as he heard something. It was something new. It was something that sent a shiver down his spin. It was a hiss. Even worse...it was close. It wasn't from the other side of the door that was securely locked. No no...it was coming from in here. There was one of those creatures inside with them. The hissing was low and quiet, but it was so close.

He slowly looked over to his ally and swallowed. He kept a calm expression on his face and slowly rose his hand towards her, sort of in a stop motion. "Alright...did you hear that?" He slowly lowered his hands towards his sword. "Be careful, I don't we're alone in here..." He looked around the room slowly, though he did not move from his spot, keeping both his feet planted. He wasn't sure if that was for tactical reasons or if he was just too scared to move. He looked down to the table a saw a metal tray there, tools still laying on it. He looked back over to Vega and smiled. "Alright...I'm gonna try to lure it out. No good in staying put in a room with a monster and not knowing where it is. Just be ready to do something clever, alright?"

He wouldn't wait for a reply, he couldn't wait any longer himself due to his fear of losing his nerve. It was now or never. He picked up the tray and flung it across the room. When it slammed into the wall it made a loud clang! Followed by a second clang as the tray hit the ground. Then...silence. Even the hissing and banging from the other side of the door had ceased. Everything seemed to go quiet, as if the entire world was waiting to see what would happen. The silence would seem to have lasted forever, unless Vega had decided to speak at all during this time. If Vega didn't, Sam, after a few long moments would let out an annoyed breath. Regardless if he broke the silence or if Vega did he would look over to her, still smiling a bit.

"Well! I guess I was just-" He could feel something tug at his leg and pull him down. He looked down to his feet and found they were tangled in a scaly tail or tentacle that was quickly tightening around him. The beast had been hiding in the cabinet that Sam was standing right next to and had opened the door. Slowly the beast crawled out of the cabinet and for the first time both Sam and Vega could catch a good glimpse of it. It was long, but had bi-jointed segments, four of them. It was covered in dry scales, similar to that of a snake. It had several thin, yet sharp teeth that was held in its mouth which hung open, a green liquid dripping from it. It looked sorta like a snake mixed with a monkey, but with sharper teeth. The tail was also an oddity. It had segments that looked as though it could...shrink? Or recede into itself? At the end of it there looked like a stinger which had yet to touch Sam, thankfully.

The beast had lunged forward, trying to bite at Sam's face, but luckily he managed to grab a near metal bar and block it with that. The beast tried to wrestle it from Sam's hand, but he would not let go. Grunting, he looked over to Vega. "LITTLE HELP PLEASE!"