Written By: Epicstu Wyyvernwriter

Encased within a mountain standing seventeen miles tall, calling Drak’s First Facility a walled city was an understatement. Massive stone doors, too great to be forced open, blocked the beginning and end of every room inside the labyrinth of a complex. Hundreds upon thousands strong, an army of highly trained pure-bred Fennec Foxes of the Northlands, armed to the teeth, made up the fortresses’ security. Forges spitting out great weapons and machines of war and laboratories creating impossibilities of science and genetics made up the lower levels. Entire cities acting as barracks and living quarters for the stronghold’s residence made up its midsection. Seven miles of dense security between the highest city and the mountain’s peak, where Drak Mountainhiem sat upon his throne smiling at his adversaries’ progress.

“Close it! Close it!” Noah shouted, firing bullets made from Nekolich out of guns forged of Nekolich at the angry monstrosity charging toward them as Maggie hacked the door’s control panel. Noah shut his eyes, but kept firing as he was sure the beast would swallow him whole any moment now.

“Dad! Dad!” hearing Maggie’s voice, Noah ceased fire and slowly opened his eyes. The stone wall had closed and the creature could now be heard begrudgingly stomping away in defeat.

The father and daughter laughed their shared near death experience off and leaned against each other in a sigh of relief, “that was overly complicated,” Noah commented.

“Hey, guys?” the Nekolich interrupted their all too short moment of peace. Turning to the Nekolich Noah and Maggie’s pupils dilated and then sank at the countless Fennec eyes staring back at them. Plasma fire lit up the room. Taking the hailstorm, the Nekolich made a barrier of his bodies for them to hide behind.

“You couldn’t have dropped us off a little closer to the top?” Noah layed down fire at anything charging toward them through the haze.

“The only way in or out of this facility is the front gate,” the Nekolich replied. “The entire mountain is sealed, even Drak has to walk it.”

“How are we ever going to make it up to Drak in time?” Maggie questioned, laying down some fire as well, “each of these rooms is a damned puzzle.”

“We can do this,” he smiled at his daughter. “We just keep climbing.”

“Follow me,” the Nekolich funneled himselves forward, taking plasma bolts and tackling charging Fennec knights as he led Noah and Maggie through yet another maze, to yet another stone door that could only be opened through yet some other overly elaborated means.

*           *

“That’s right, just keep climbing,” Drak chuckled. Then he held down a button, “release the experiment.” Letting off the button he put his fingers together and grinned, “let’s remove that outdated Wyyvern of yours from the equation, shall we.”