Leave The Monster Alone

"Can we not torch them like before?" Alan asked, being fed up with that noise. It was loud and even got on Mark's head, never mind Alan who had even more sensitive hearing than Mark.

"Airflow would not allow that. When we get out, I'll burn the rest of it inside" hopefully it will be soon.

"How much further do we need to go? I think I can hear them buzzing inside my ears" Mark was not sure how much he was hallucinating or if there were actually monsters inside the vent with them.

"Don't worry. They are not inside here with us. Yet" the yet was very much pronounced in that sentence. It would be a problem for them once these monsters found a way inside these vents. They had to get moving on and they had to find the external vent.

The sound that vibrated throughout the space would not dim down. It was only the delay in the vibration sound that made Alan aware of the true nature of these monster's locations. They were colliding heavily with the grill.

"Can you hear the external wind?" Mark asked the teen who was leading them through the maze. It would be amazing if the other could hear the wind outside and guide them to it. However, he was not counting on it right now.

After all, these pipes were rather thick and were insulated against sound and heat. Not to mention, there was dirt all around them which was a huge blocking factor for the wind and other such indicators.

"Barely but I can tell where we need to go" as soon as the teen said that they arrived at a major junction. The only way forward was to go up and that was not really going to work out for them. Their fingers were not made for this trip up the smooth pipe.

Well, Mark's were not. It turned out that Alan had lucked out on that front and his hands now had a grip rivalling a monkey. Thus, his unique physiology allowed him to effortlessly climb up the steep slope.

"Do you have a rope? I can possibly pull you up" It did wound Mark's pride when the younger teen offered him such an alternative but it was better than dying so he could respect that option.

It was a steep and steady climb where Mark was mostly dragged up the slope. It took no visible effort from the teen to do so and the climb was slowly being conquered.

Then the buzzing voice got stronger all of a sudden. It was much different from the usual buzzing of those bees which was created from beyond the grill. They felt closer and louder all of a sudden.

Was it because of the angle change? Or was there deeper reasoning behind this new twist?

"Shit. They managed to get inside here. Thankfully, I can hear the outside wind now. It should not be far off" Mark hoped that was the truth. He followed behind Alan who certainly picked up the pace. 

Just for the security reason, the rope connecting them remained which turned out to be the right choice when a series of twists and turns followed. Mark was willing to bet this was a design flaw and such a system could not actually function but he had no time to argue his point.

Besides, the only one who would understand his rant was Alan who was certainly busy at the moment.

They were moving faster and then they stopped. The tension in the rope saged and so did Mark. 

"We are at a dead end now. Get back while I tear this wall down" Mark nodded and hid behind the most recent corner. He did not see what Alan did to make the dark insides brighten up but he could guess from the knife-like marks on the wall's vicinity.

They exited the vents to the outside world. Alan had chosen not to open the actual vent because it was connected to a ventilation fan. A smart choice is given what they were about to do.

"Your turn to get back" Mark warned but he had no time to see if his words were being followed or not. He took out the rest of his mint and lightened it on fire. He let the smoke and the burning go inside the vent and it spread like fire.

Alan was not ideal in the meantime. He had already started to fill the gaps in the vent so that these monsters could not escape. This was an effective method between them but one they had to count on to work.

The obvious buzzing noise stopped but that did not mean anything. There was still a way these things were coming inside from which they had to check out. It was pretty obvious where the starting point was.

"Back to the beginning? Have you marked the place down?" Mark had, in fact, marked the place down. His system was also back on track once he did and he wanted to scold himself for not checking it beforehand.

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Warning: Once you enter the scene, you are on a timer. Please hurry up and pick up the content. 

Press start to continue to the next part.

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The timer had expired while they were inside. It almost made Mark hesitate to press to the next part. He was not sure what to expect next from this quest but procrastinating any further was no longer an option for him.

So the only right option for him was to press start.

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Close the Rift to the hidden place and look around for the monster with the key.

Hidden quest activated - Survival mode on Part 2

Parameters: Eliminate the queen bee to stop the swarm from rampaging. The queen bee has the key to your lock with her and a vicious weapon at her disposal.

Prize: 2 keys available. An elite weapon prototype available (Can only be used once to construct the given weapon/can be used for the vial)

Note: The queen bee's poison currently has no cure for humans. Once bitten, you will be part of her swarm till you kill her and take over. Strangely, it doesn't affect any anomaly or beings higher than her in power

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Great, there was an anomaly here now. Mark was more than sure it was talking specifically about him but he could not be so sure. After all, there were far too many things that could be considered as an 'anomaly' in recent times. 

It could be Alan, it could be Liam or it could even mean Luna. So Mark would rather not risk it at all if he could help it right now.

That did not mean he could not take this opportunity to gain valuable materials for his team. In terms of power, he was more than sure Alan had that front covered so it only left the defeat part.

And the swarm. The swarm would certainly prove to be an obstacle for everyone to overcome. Not to mention, the subtext that worried him. The poison could take over you or kill you? That was not something he wished on anyone currently.

"Alan, we need to be careful. Try not to get stung" Mark warned the other. It would have been a nightmarish situation to face such a huge swarm but they had one big advantage apart from Alan.

"Stay inside the skin when you attack. We can take them out easily this way" not to mention, they could find more mint to make the smoke which could drive them away. Mark could prepare a stock as a backup plan just in case.

"Right, we have that too" Alan had honestly forgotten they had the divine snake's skin with them. He was sure he would not need it for himself but Mark certainly would and he could oblige the other in this endeavour.

Mark was reckless enough to leave the protection should the need arise but he would not risk it if Alan was with him. Alan could even stop the other from his reckless endeavours should it come down to that.

So he made that compromise and agreed with the other. The fit was as loose as any other time. The skin really was too huge and they took a few experimental shots to make themselves familiar.

Mark also picked up any familiar looking plants he came across. Even if he was not right about all of them, some of them had to be the type of mints he was looking for. They would suffice should it come down to it.

And thus they made their way to their first location. The swarm of bee monsters loomed all over them like a dark cloud. It looked menacing and it looked terrible. Should they attack any normal base they would be near-impossible to overcome.

However, now Mark and Alan had to face them because they had created this situation and they were responsible for its resolution as well.

Besides, Mark really wanted the reward promised to him.