“Come sit. We have much to discuss about.”

With mild trepidation, Gideon stared quietly at the brown bear seated in front of him, his eyes narrowed. “ …The hell is this all about?”

“ I'll explain everything, Gideon,” the brown bear continued, “ I just need you to sit down with me for a moment.” His voice held a lingering tone of exhaustion, but Gideon couldn't find any malice, or any other negativity of the matter.

Gideon eyed the bear with an unwavering suspicion. Eventually, grabbing a shell-shocked Generator by the skin of his neck, he entered the room.

The bear slowly moved his bulky arms and cupped his paws in front of him on the polished wood desk. “ I’m sure you must be confused right now… but things have changed since you've last been here.”

“ As if that isn't anymore obvious,” Gideon scoffed, blatantly giving a scowl, “ I would've appreciated a notice in advance, though. You’ve wasted my time.”

“ … apologies for that. We weren't able to contact anyone outside for some time.”

“ Hm,” Gideon hummed dismissively, stopping just a few steps away from the desk. Neither he nor Generator sat down. “ Just get to the point and tell me what's going on, Granite. I’m not fond of beating around the bush.”

Granite leaned back on his chair, a frown appearing on his snout. “ … About a month after your visit for maintenance, the new equipment managed to break into a new vein. It was pure mithril.”

A smug grin grew on Gideon’s face. “ Ho? So it looks like my junk wasn’t all that useless after all, huh?”

Granite snorted, closing his eyes. “ Don’t praise yourself, old bird. They broke down not long after, which is partly the reason why I called you here in the first place.”

“ Uh huh… and when exactly did they ‘break down’?”

“ About two months after you left.”

Gideon clicked his tongue, his disappointment palpable. “ Of course… you ruffians don't know a thing about care.”

Granite opened one eye at Gideon. “ We don't have the luxury of patience in these mines. If the equipment breaks, we get new ones and get back to work.”

“ Sounds like nothing more than carelessness,” Gideon responded blandly. Granite sighed loudly, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“ … Our discovery of the mithril got leaked. The news obviously spread fast,” Granite continued, opening the drawer of his desk and placing down a gray newspaper with the bold print "The Daily Pickaxe” on the top. In the newspaper was an illustration of a cave’s interior, with mine workers standing beside a shiny rock stuck in a wall. “ We of course managed to fend off rival businesses and investors, but…we got into a little trouble with the locals.”

“ Locals”? Gideon repeated, staring down at the newspaper thoughtfully, “ all you have around these mountains are nomadic goats. The best they’ve got against you are their horns.”

Gideon’s remark, however, flew past Granite, who remained silent. The bear’s sudden silence was prolonged, his eyes having stared blankly at the newspaper, as if deep in thought. Growing agitated from the random quietness, Gideon snapped his claws.

“ Oi, wake up and get on with it. What in Tartarus did the ‘locals’ do to make the largest mine in this region shut down so easily? It sounds like a ruffle of rubbish.”

Granite snapped away from his dazed state and returned his gaze to Gideon, running a paw through his bushy beard, as trying to choose his words carefully. He chuckled as he replayed Gideon’s words in his head.

“ Hm, Tartarus… the irony of that…”

Eventually, he shook his head, giving a confused Gideon an eerily dead-serious look. “ I’m not talking about the nomads, Gideon. Not even two weeks after the news spread, monsters took over my mines.”

“ Monsters…” Gideon repeated. He ran his tongue inside his beak before a snarky smirk grew on his face. “ I can only think of cave dwellers being the only monsters here… are you saying that you lost your mines to those skinny critters?”

“ No… perhaps monsters was a poor choice of words,” Granite exhaled, rubbing his eyes, “ they're a lot worse than monsters.”

“ Didn’t I just tell you to not beat around the bush? It’s a nuisance, if you haven’t noticed.”

“...” Granite seemed to struggle in what he was about to say before eventually sighing, “... Demons, Gideon. Demons raided my mines.”

“ Dem…” Gideon’s voice gradually died out as Granite’s last words sunk into his head. Suddenly, in an uncharacteristic fashion, he took a weak step backwards, his pupils dilating into pinpricks. “ D-Demons…?”

“ Yes. A group of twenty demons,” Granite’s face seemed to have paled, his body visibly fidgeting, “ nineteen are candle grade. They’re led by a torch grade demon.”

“ Torch?!” Gideon exclaimed in alarm, his wings slightly extending outwards. His sudden outburst jumpscared the confused Generator, who had been quietly and poorly attempting to follow with the conversation. The colt’s stomach dropped as he saw Gideon’s fearful expression. It was the first time he had ever seen anything like this from him.

“ G-Gramps, what’s wrong?” Generator tugged on Gideon’s leg fervently, his own fear swelling as well. “ What are demons? What about torches?”

Gideon slowly closed his gaped mouth, a cold sweat forming on his now pale face. He glanced down at his leg, seeing Generator’s worried, scared, and shakened form. He gnawed at his tongue before glaring back at Granite. “ Is this supposed to be some kind of joke, Granite? Am I supposed to believe that a full squadron of demons have colonized this place?”

“ Gideon, tell me…” Granite stared back with his own glare. It was clear how serious he was. “ Who in their right minds would ever joke about demons?”

Gideon pressed his lips at the question, his brows furrowing. “ …are they still here?”

“ … Ever since their arrival,” Granite huffed exasperatedly, his shoulders visibly slacked, “ they haven’t left since their leader ordered the doors to be locked. They’re in the lowest levels right now, mining all the mithril for themselves…”

“ …tch,” Gideon clicked his tongue, pulling up one of the seats to finally sit down. He ran his claws through his orange-brown crown, his face scrunched in thought. “ How many of your men managed to escape?”

For the first time since introducing himself, Granite gave a genuine smile. “ All of them. None of my men were left behind, nor were any of them sacrificed.”

Gideon narrowed his eyes at the proud claim, the good news unaffecting his now pensive mood. In fact, it only agitated him more. “ Bullshit.”

“ Take it as you will, Gideon, but just know that I couldn’t let any of them be affected by this,” Granite said firmly. Yet even with his firm tone, his paws were just slightly shaken. It was clear he also had some doubt in his own words. “ These are my mines… my responsibility… so I… I made a blood contract with their leader.”

“ You did WHAT?!” Gideon suddenly screeched out, a surge of anger bursting through him as he slammed his clenched claws onto the desk, hard. “ Do you want to die, fool?!”

“ The decision has long been made, Gideon... I’ve come to terms with the consequences,” Granite responded calmly, unfazed from Gideon’s outburst.

“ G-Grandpa, w-what’s going on? I’m confused…” Generator whimpered from the side ,tugging on Gideon again as tears began to form in the corner of his eyes. The griffon’s anger dispatched as he looked down at Generator remorsefully, having almost forgotten of the colt’s presence again.

He tightened his fists until the knuckles of his claws turned white. Eventually, his face shifted to that of finality. “ I’ve heard enough of this, Granite. We’re leaving.”

Strangely, there was no negative reaction. As if a weight had been lifted off his shoulder, Granite gave out a deep and lengthy sigh. “ I… figured you’d say that.”

“ …” Gideon stared at the bear, as if looking for something. In this rare instance of expressiveness from the bird, Gideon showed some resemblance of sympathy. “ … it sounds like there's no longer a need for the equipment’s repair. This place has become Tartarus’s playground, and I don’t plan on staying any longer.”

Cutting himself off, Gideon looked down at Generator’s shaken form, who was trying hard to hold back his tears. This made his eyes soften even more. “ I… I’ve found something worth living for.”

“ Well,” Granite hummed, giving a sparring glance at Generator. Being the first instance where he fully addressed the colt, he held a neutral expression. “...it seems you have…”

“ You’re on your own on this one, Granite,” Gideon huffed, standing up from his seat, “ I suggest choosing your steps carefully from now on… you should already know the agreements of your contract better than anygriffon.”

“ I'd be a fool if I didn't.”

Gideon paused for a moment before shaking his head, making way to the partly closed iron door. Generator silently followed closely, like a chick to a mother hen. “ …Just don't die, Granite.”

“ … that’s a promise I cannot keep, Gideon,” Granite chuckled, leaning his head on his chair. His gaze went up to the ceiling, as if he were staring up to something far in the skies. “ If I fail to comply with any order, even once, then I must compensate for my failure with my dying breath.”

“ Did you even bother to negotiate?”

“ As if I were in any position to bargain,” Granite sighed exasperatedly, “ not like that matters though. My current order was to repair the damaged equipment, and it seems I’ve failed in doing that.”

“...what?”

“ They’ve been using the equipment to mine the mithril,” Granite continued, “ because of that, two of them broke down. They’ve likely damaged them beyond repair, but they still demand repairs.”

“...” Gideon remained quiet in his place, a shadow forming over his face. Having mentally prepared himself for leaving, this new element has added onto him one glaring burden. If he were to leave now, Granite’s fate was sealed. If he were to stay… at the very least, survival was not guaranteed. In other words, the bear’s life was in his hands at this very moment. “ You are a selfish bear, Granite.”

“ …I know… I know that very well,” Granite smiled at Gideon, and it was enough to make the griffon nearly forget his anger. Granite’s eyes were anything from worried or fearful, but held a palpable radiance of sereneness. These were the eyes of acceptance, of a strong-willed resolve. “ I don’t need you to stay, Gideon. Just give me the blueprints and instructions on the equipment and I’ll do it myself. I’ve… already dragged you into this more than I wanted to.”

Gideon was once again plagued by silence, his face baffled. He took into consideration Generator, who buried his face into his feathery side. He slowly and hesitantly placed a claw on the colt's head, ruffling his black mane. Eventually, he pushed the colt away and continued onwards. “ There will be no need for that.”

“ Gramps?” Generator looked up as Gideon left towards the door. In panic, he made haste to follow him. “ Gra—”

“ You will stay here with Granite, Generator,” Gideon ordered, glaring back at the colt. He showed no signs of negotiation. “ I will hear nothing of it. Do as I say until I return. Is that clear?”

“ B-Bu—”

“ Silence!” Gideon boomed, causing Generator to flinch back. He frowned at the colt for a split second before clicking his tongue and pushing through the door. However, before fully leaving, he looked back to Granite. “ Where do you keep your armory?”

“ I… three floors down, second most door due east,” Granite sighed, bowing his head, “ th… thank you, Gideon. I’ll… open the gates for you.”

“ Hm, save your thanks,” Gideon grumbled, his voice echoing through the empty halls.

Kick Start

Chapter 4

The Northern Deficit Mines. Deep and filled with rich abundance of gems, the mine prides itself as being the lead competitor in the jewelry business. With the long and organic structure of tunnels that stretched throughout the mountain range, there is not a single corner that would not lead to a gem vein that hasn't been untapped.

The company that holds jurisdiction of these mines enjoyed the benefit of guaranteed profits. Even as they quickly explore the mines and loot the bountiful resources, there are areas that have yet to be discovered. Perhaps for the better, perhaps not.

In a recent rare discovery, though, great attention has been brought to these minds. Many eyes were set on the prize's mithril that is so rarely seen that its existence still remains partially a myth. A specific set of eyes, though, have managed to take hold of this finding for their own agenda.

Within the dark interiors of the lower levels of the mines, there was a subtle but evident gradient on the gray walls, shifting from a rocky and dusty surface into a slimy and sickly rose-red mucus. The air visibly changed the further one went into the slimy terrain, a foul odor cloaking the stale air. There was no light present, but the subtle pulse of red emitting from the veins on the structure gave enough to view the scene unfolding.

Chipping away fervently at the crystalline-like gem, groups of short, pitch-black imps eagerly hacked away at the crystalline vein of mithril while using crude and severely damaged pickaxes. Their leathery like wings flapped earnestly with each gravelly snicker that came from their throats, their glowing red tongues flickering out in-between their orange fangs like a snake. Thin rat-like tails swung around wildly like a dog, the tips burning with the orange-red hue of a small flame.

Truly, these were the descriptions of demons. And befitting of them, the air around them held nothing but pure negativity.

Behind the group of imps stood a being of greater height and broadness. He held the same features as the imps before him, though what stood out the most was his third eye in-between two erect horns, neither of which the imps harbored. And with similar contrast to the imps, this large demon held a deep and hateful scowl.

“ Can you good-for-nothing fools pick it up already!” He barked out in anger, his fists tightening on his dry and hard skin. “ I don’t have the luxury to wait for your idiocracy, now move!”

The imps began to make an array of crittering sounds. One of them stopped for a moment and raised their voice. “ These tools are weak, boss! We can't—”

The imp didn't get a chance to finish their sentence, for a metal minecart was thrown in their way, crashing into them and sending them flying over their fellow imps and into the slimy wall with a deafening crunch. As the cart slid down and crashed onto the floor, the imp’s body was comically flattened like a pancake, their eyes swirling in unconsciousness.

“ I could care less of your worthless excuses,” The taller demon seethed, his pupil-less eyes widened with rage as he turned to the rest, “ now hurry up and work until your dying breath, or else you’ll meet an end worse than that moron!”

The other imps didn't need any second clarification. With great eagerness, they all went back to fervently mining at the mithril, many times faster than before. But even then, the progress had only just slightly increased; they were still basically in a standstill.

The taller demon growled, slamming his fist on the side of one of the many damaged mining equipment. The stainless metal dent from his attack, but he could care less; they had broken down faster than they could've done anything useful. They were nothing more than heaps of scrap metal, and if they weren't going to be repaired anytime soon, then he was seconds away from permanently ending their further usage.

“ Where the hell is that stupid bear…” He looked up the tunnel, his scowl deepening even further. With the confidence that brown bear had shown when promising to get into contact with a repair specialist, the demon had humored the idea of letting him go on and do as he so fervently pleaded to do. He was starting to regret it now. Letting the owner of these dusty old mines go away was a poor play of his cards, and although he particularly could care less if the bear had broken the contract, he would've much preferred making full use of the bear here instead of letting him die off elsewhere.

He hasn't felt the contract being released, though. The bear was probably just stalling then… a sound reminder to the demon that he should put a timer on his contracts. In any case, until their “maintenance” came along, they were essentially sitting ducks. Something he wishes he could hate more than he already was hating.

There was an awkward silence in the small office. The desk lamp buzzed quietly as Granite sat like a statute, his gaze locked onto his paws in yet another phase of deep thought. Not far from across the desk was Generator, who shifted anxiously in his spot. Many things were clouding the colt’s mind, but one thing that stood out the most to him was the alarming expression Gideon had shown whilst speaking to the bear. This was the first time he’s ever seen the griffon so dead worried about something, and it was genuinely scaring him.

With too many questions clogging his head, Generator seeked for answers. He meekly looked up at Granite, his body innately quivering at the monstrous size of the forest beast. He rolled his words in his head before speaking. U-Um, M-Mr. Granite…?”

“ Hm?” Granite glanced up from his dazed state, his eyes locking onto the colt. Generator flinched as the black orbs bore holes through him, as if two hot poles were stabbing him. But the more he looked back, the more he realized the smaller features of Granite. His eyes looked sunken, and there was a visible sag on his lower eyelids. He also seemed really exhausted, as if he lacked much sleep. “ …Is there something you need, child?”

“ U-Uh, y-yeah,” Generator tried to shake off his fear. Gideon knew this bear, and their conversation sounded like they were friendly… well, as friendly as any conversation with Gideon could get. That would, at the very least, imply that Generator wasn’t in any immediate danger. “ I, uh, j-just want to know what’s going on… and everything…”

Granite’s gaze lingered longer than Generator would’ve liked. Eventually, the bear sighed. “ This… isn’t a topic best suited for your age, child. Just stay here as your… grandfather deals with this matter.”

“ But I wanna know,” Generator insisted, taking a step forward, “ what are demons, and why are you two all jumpy when you talk about them? Are they bad? Please tell me, I really don’t like being left behind.”

“ I…” Granite bit his lips before sighing, seemingly giving in to the colt’s pleas easily, “ ok.. Fine, I’ll explain. But I must warn you that this topic is not for the light hearted.”

“ Light hearted…?” Generator blinked in confusion at the bear’s words. Was it supposed to be scary? Well, this whole situation was already scary for Generator, so that was off the list. Maybe it was too complex? Well, Generator likes complex stuff, so that really isn’t an issue here.

But, suddenly, and for some odd reason, his mind switched into replay mode and went all the way back to a specific night, where he had snuck into Gideon’s bedroom at the highest point of the moon. In this memory, he remembers shuffling through the griffon’s files, eventually stumbling across the ‘Geography’ folder. He had quickly learnt moments later that Gideon had a profound interest in tennis.

Generator scratched his cheek sheepishly with a small smile. “ If you’re talking about the big boy things, I’ve already seen them, so I’m not light-hearted.”

“... big boy things?”

“ That’s what Gramps said was the adult stuff. He never lets me see them, but I already looked at all of them when he was asleep.”

Granite blinked, a sweat drop running down his face. “ Uh, I… don’t mean it in that sense…”

Generator tilted his head. Maybe he had just over-thought it.“ Then what? What’s so bad about demons?”

The innocent question seemed to have irked Granite to some degree, though the bear withheld any visible reaction. He rested his chin on his thumbs with a head shake “ Everything about demons is wrong, child. They’re the residents of Tartarus itself. Their very existence is an insult to life itself.”

Generator awed at Granite’s explanation. He’s always heard the word ‘Tartarus’ and always thought it was simply just a curse word. But apparently it's an actual place, with creatures living in it? “ Insult to life? So… like death?”

“ Precisely. Everywhere a demon goes, there is always death.”

“ A-Always…?!” Generator repeated under his breath. His eyes then widened in alarm as he dutifully remembered that Gideon was, in fact, going into the mines… where these supposed death-inducing demons are currently residing. “ W-Wait, but that means—Gramps is going to them! W-We have to stop him, and—”

“ No, child, you must stay,” Granite raised his voice, causing Generator to freeze in his spot before he did anything. The bear exhaled sharply, rubbing the bridge of his snout. “ Listen to your grandfather’s words. Stay. Demons are not to be taken lightly… just as how they do not take their prey lightly. They do not discriminate in their bloodlust.”

“ B-But Gramps,” Generator stuttered. He felt the tears he had tried hard to hold back beginning to return. “ G-Gramps is going to them, right? A-And you said there’s t-twenty of them!”

“... I understand your concerns, child,” Granite sighed, though a small smile formed on his face, “ but don’t take your grandfather lightly, either. Has he not told you of his time in the military?”

“ N-No…?” Generator shook his head, his overwhelming feeling of concern diluting back into confusion. Military? Gideon was in the military? Generator’s never heard anything like that about his grandfather, like ever.

Granite hummed thoughtfully, taking the colt’s reaction to heart. “ I see… strange, for him to… well then, forget what I had said. The point I’m giving here is that Gideon is very capable of handling himself.”

“ B-But didn’t you say demons bring death?”

“ I did, but Gideon normally reciprocates the action,” Granite leaned back, chuckling. His eyes were filled with a resemblance of nostalgia. “ And much faster and efficiently, I must say.”

Generator kept quiet from Granite’s comment, unsure how to respond. From what he could get of it, Granite was implying that Gideon has fought demons before. But… Generator has never heard of anything like this from Gideon before. Heck, he hasn’t even seen Gideon fight once in his life! It’s like they’re talking about a completely different person altogether.

Still, it bothered Generator that Gideon was going alone when these demons are supposed death-bringers. Was he really capable of handling all twenty of those demons? Gideon is too old… what if the demons overpowered him? Generator quickly shook that thought away for his own good, instead focusing on the next batch of questions still lingering in him. “ Um, you also said something about candles and torches before… what about them?

“ That would be referring to the grading system we give for demons, based on their danger level,” Granite explained. He then raised a paw and showed all five digits. “ There's a total of five grades. Candle grade is the second lowest grade. It implies that the demon is capable of causing havoc to a small general community… something akin to a neighborhood boogey monster.”

Generator leaned in, soaking in every word that Granite said. There was even a whole system to categorize the demons. How had he not heard about this sooner? If he ignored the whole death thing… this was kind of interesting. “ And what about torch grade? It's stronger, right?”

“ Greatly,” Granite nodded, growing an unpleasant frown, “ a torch grade demon is exponentially stronger. They’re capable of wiping out an entire unguarded town with ease.”

“... T-That doesn’t sound good…” Generator was set off from Granite’s explanation. One torch grade demon capable of destroying an entire town? That… really made Generator shiver.

“ Yes, and which is why any citing of a torch grade demon is to be reported immediately,” Granite stretched in his chair, popping his stiff joints, “ unfortunately, my company never had the opportunity to do that… the demon had captured my men as ransom.”

“ Oh… sorry about that,” Generator’s ears flattened on his head. From what he has learnt about Granite, the bear seems to have suffered a lot from this situation. Generator wouldn’t wish this to the worst of his enemies… though, he doesn’t have any enemies to begin with.

“ Ah, don’t mop about it, child,” Granite grinned, though it was clear it was rather forced, “ as I said, I made the contract. All my men have evacuated back to their homes, spot free.”

“... but what about you, Mr. Granite? What about your family?”

Generator’s question cut Granite off from any immediate response. The bear’s smile fell down into a gloomy scowl, his eyes glazed over. He eventually muttered quietly. “ … There’s no family for me to return to. I… only have myself.”

“ That sucks, Mr. Granite.”

The curt response from Generator brought some life back into Granite. “ Ha, you could say that again…”

The room fell back into a silence, though this time with little awkwardness present. Generator felt much more relaxed than he initially had with Granite. The bear seemed nice and wasn’t showing any signs of wanting to devour him. Plus, his outfit was really cool.

Generator watched as Granite slowly returned to his daydreaming state. He must have a lot going on in his head, which was making him look sadder and sadder. Maybe Generator should ask some more questions, just to keep the bear distracted. Granite really did look like he needed a distraction.

“ Hey, Mr. Granite?” Generator started.

“ Hm?”

“ How do you know Gramps? Did you meet in the army?” Generator’s face brightened. “ Oh, and tell me more about Gramps being in the military! He never told me any of that before!”

Granite stared at the colt before chuckling, shaking his head. “ Well, we weren’t actually in the military together. But actually, I had first seen him…”

Gideon stared at the array of weapons before him, his eyes blandly scanning across the full blades. Without any power circulating through the mines, he was left to scan the room with the unhelpful dim light of the moon, which was further dimmed by the dust particles in the air. Fortunately, his keen eyes aided him in seeing the mediocrity of the weapons before him.

“... Such crude designs,” he flicked a claw at one of the spears, a loud but scratchy chime echoing through the armory. He was unable to feel the proper vibration of well-smelted metal. With a sigh, Gideon moved along the wooden racks loaded with similarly poor weaponry. The more he looked, the more he realized just how unprepared this mine was in terms of offense. His doubts began to resurge on how Granite really managed to get everyone to escape without any casualties. Perhaps it was a merely delusional lie…

Gideon’s eyes stopped at a pair of brass knuckles. They were large, harboring chunky but long spikes at each knuckle brace. They hung from thin woven rope, dangling quietly like dream catchers. He stared at them for a moment before grabbing them. In comparison to the other bland equipment, they were the most… passable equipment.

With half of his business completed, Gideon moved towards the armor stands. There was, unsurprisingly, nothing to fully fit a griffon. However, he made use of the claw gauntlets, knee pads, and hind guards that fit too tightly—all of which were, of course, made of crudely smelted metal alloy. In any case, it was better than dying. Hopefully the weight wouldn’t be a substantial hindrance.

With his equipment set, Gideon made his way out of the armory and down the nye infinite flight of stairs. His normally annoyed facial expression turned into a blank canvas, his neutral eyes staring onwards like an artificial soldier. His thoughts were washed away, giving room for one sole and concrete goal.

To kill all demons.

Author's Note

Thanks for the read! I didn't do my usual quadruple-proofreading-that-lasts-nearly-two-weeks-and-involves-lots-of-editing, so do point out anything that is off in this chapter!