She’s Following Me! [Eldritch Dungeon Crawler LitRPG]

Chapter Six

She's Not Happy

Splash, squelch, slurp.

"Stop it, Alice!" Arryn hissed as the fiery redhead pulled him into the lake of red wet. The cloying sludge reached the top of his boots and soiled his feet.

Squelch, slurp.

"Don't be such a baby!" Alice barked back at him. Arryn's eyes danced across the wet nightmare. The monster had dived into the water... but this was not water.

The feel of it was wrong.

The sound of it was wrong.

Everything was wrong.

Slurp, splash, squelch.

"That monster is- " Arryn began, his voice rich with panic.

And then he saw the light. Not the [Lesser Glowglobe], which continued to brightly reveal the chunks of meat that filled the horrible swamp.

"The exit...?" Arryn felt a strange warmth fill his belly as Alice dragged him deeper into the sunken cafeteria. Because this was the cafeteria. It had been transformed into a nightmare, but this was the cafeteria.

"The exit, Alice!" Arryn shouted, and the strange warmth became a fire. "Just run!"

He was about to sprint for the light when Alice yanked hard on his arm. Arryn knew a moment of terror as he tripped over his feet. He almost fell into the rich red beneath them.

"We can't leave yet, you idiot," Alice said with a sneer, and Arryn stared at her with wide eyes. "We need to find Dale."

It was as if a lightning bolt struck Arryn's head. Dale! How had he forgotten about Dale?! He had noticed the man's bed was empty, but his mind had glossed over its owner.

Slurp, splash, squelch.

Alice yanked him away from the light of freedom and towards where the cafeteria's counters still stood. They were almost unrecognizable, however, with their red coat of gore.

Arryn opened his mouth. He struggled to find the right words. His eyes continued to dance across the flooded cafeteria for the monster, but it had seemingly disappeared.

Squelch, slurp.

"Dale..." Arryn squeezed Alice's hand. "I don't... I... Alice!"

"What are you mumbling about?" Alice asked with a huff. She shot him a nasty look over her shoulder. "I know he's dead. Everyone's dead. We just need to find his body."

The words hit Arryn with a physical weight. Find the body? He looked down at the slabs of meat that floated atop the lake of blood. He squinted...

"We need to leave!" Arryn hissed as he recognized a set of teeth buried in the nearest slab. The world spun beneath his feet, and he struggled not to retch.

"After we find Dale!" Alice barked. She turned savagely on Arryn and jabbed him in the chest. "Ma'll want to bury something, so help me look for his bits."

Arryn was shocked free from his terror. The [Cleric]'s face was fiery in its indignation, but hot tears flooded her face. Messy snot trickled down from her nose, and her body began to shake uncontrollably.

Arryn looked down at his free hand and realized he had stopped producing [Fanatical Powder].

Alice's mouth opened, her face still set in a ferocious snarl, but all that left her was a horrified whine. She still clutched Arryn's hand, but her knees buckled, and she almost collapsed into the red lake.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Arryn said, and he threw his arms around her. The [Cleric]'s tears were hot against his chest as he started to rub his thumb and forefinger together furiously. She was strong. She was courageous. A monster chewed on her like a toy, and all she did was laugh.

"Get off me!" Alice shouted as the rust-colored powder filled her veins. She wiped away the snot and tears from her face. "We can cuddle all we want after we find Dale's flabby meat."

"No!" Arryn said, and he yanked Alice towards the light. The [Cleric]'s arms were two thin branches. It was not hard to drag her away from the cafeteria counter.

Splash.

"Stop it!" Alice shouted. She yanked and tugged, but Arryn continued his march towards the distant light. "We need to find Dale!"

Squelch.

"Dale's dead!" Arryn hauled the [Cleric] closer as she continued to thrash against him.

Slurp.

Did he put her to sleep? No, she was not that light. [Fanatical Powder] had been a mistake, however. What he needed was for her to be submissive. He needed her docile.

His thoughts were interrupted as the fiery redhead broke free from his grip. She stumbled backwards and fell into the pool of blood with a great red splaash.

"Fuck!" Alice shouted. "That hurts!"

Arryn turned around and hurriedly reached out for the [Cleric]...

...but he was still holding her hand.

Alice lifted the stump of her arm into the air, and Arryn's eyes widened in horror. Something had sliced the [Cleric]'s hand off.

"Give that back!" Alice said as she struggled to her feet. She tried to push herself up with the stump of her arm and fell drunkenly into the red lake.

"The fuck?!" Arryn screamed as he shook free Alice's severed hand. "What the fuck?!"

He heard a wet gargle, and a chill ran down his spine. His eyes were drawn to a ripple in the otherwise placid lake. Alice continued to shout furiously as the world seemed to come to a grinding halt.

Because beneath the surface of the red lake...

Their twisted mouth opening and closing...

Inhuman human words bubbling forth...

Was...