Chapter Ten
The Malaise Mines were located in the eastern part of the Ghastly Gorge. The path that led to the entrance to the mines was a vertigo-inducing narrow path sculpted on the rock. It led to a large area above the Gorge, a secluded cavern with an open hole that served as a big skylight. There was a large warehouse where minerals were kept, though those were the minerals the town used on a daily basis, like coal and iron. The bigger part of the mine’s products was taken out in the eastern exit to the mines, across the mountains that rose from the eastern half of the Gorge.
The angry fist of Cid Jetsam banged on the door of the mine’s foreman, Roland. A disgruntled protest was heard. ‘Alright, alright, I’m coming. No need to fret.’ The man opened the door, and to everyone’s surprise, Cid promptly punched him. He fell flat on his back, at which point Cid had kneeled on top of his chest. ‘Where is the
shipment, Roland? Where is the mayor’s secret cargo he’s so eager to leave this town with? Where is it?’
‘What? Cid, I don’t understand, what are you talking about?’ The man was not a very good actor. Cid pinned him down harder and twisted his arm. ‘You bastard. You have a wife and kids. You’re putting them all in danger to help the mayor. He’s
abandoning Deluge Dam. He swindled Gothic Works and once he leaves with their stuff, they’ll take it out on the town.’
‘What? The mayor is abandoning town? What about the townspeople? My wife, the kids, Eve, Marty, Gemma, everyone?’ The man was terrified. ‘
Everyone. Whatever special payment or rise he promised you, that’s a promise he ain’t gonna keep, pal.’ Cid let Roland go, and the man got up, rubbing his face where Cid punched him.
‘You need to help me. I’m taking the mayor’s cargo and I’m going to hide it. No one’s getting it. And we can prove his treachery. We caught him on tape, and soon we’ll have the documents to back it up. Florian Flotsam is going down.’ The Quagmires, behind Cid, had never seen him so angry. Neither had Martha or Chuck. ‘Cid, calm down. I’m sure Roland here is willing to help.’ Martha looked at the man. ‘S-Sure. Just don’t punch me like that again!’
‘Sorry about that. I was mad at you. I couldn’t believe you would help him. I thought you hated the mayor.’ Cid apologized. ‘I do hate him. But he promised he would pay for my kids’ school tuition. I want a better life for my kids than this town can offer. Deluge Dam is doomed, Cid. The mine is drying up, the artificial lake doesn’t give us fish the way it did, and now the dam’s cracking.
‘It can all be explained. Gothic Works must be tampering with the lake, and they are also sabotaging my work on the Dam. As for the mines…It is unfortunate, but with enough time, we can start exploring the other side of the Gorge.’ Cid contested but Roland was not having it. ‘The rest of the gorge is plain old rock, Cid. There’s already been talk all over town. People wanting to go away, start anew someplace else. Can you honestly say you haven’t considered it yourself?’ Roland inquired. Cid was visibly shaken by the suggestion. ‘I
love this town. I love the dam. The lake. The people. The kids. I wanted to
save it. Not abandon it.’
‘You’re a hero, Cid. You’ve kept this town alive almost single-handedly.’ Noticing Martha’s expression, Roland was quick to correct himself. ‘I mean, you and your team. You’ve all kept Deluge Dam alive, for far longer than it should have lived, perhaps.’ Cid was disgusted. ‘I didn’t know about this. No one spoke about leaving. Yes, life’s hard here, but news flash, champ, life’s hard everywhere. You think you can just run away and things will be easier elsewhere? Think again! Not while sleazebags like the Mayor screw everyone over with shady dealings and then abandon them to their deaths. If I don’t get my hands on this cargo, Gothic Works will make sure the Dam breaks. And then everyone will die. You, me, my friends, my sister, Eve…
Everyone.’ Cid was still containing his tears.
‘Everyone talks about leaving, Cid. But not around you. You have such
love for this town. You’re the backbone of this community. No one wanted to hurt your feelings, and no one wanted to abandon this place while you worked so hard. You motivated us all, but now, just motivation alone will not keep Deluge Dam alive.’ Roland said.
‘I’ll show you to the mayor’s cargo. It’s a small crate, the lot of you should be able to carry it. That stuff is tough to mine, I have to say. Let’s go.’ The group followed Roland out the door.
Chapter Eleven
Roland took Cid, Martha, Chuck, Cindry and the Quagmire triplets to the warehouse next to the entrance of the mine. Inside, there was a crate marked with a HAZARD sign. With a crowbar, Cid opened the top of the crate. Inside, many different crystals of grimstone shimmered as the light from above hit them. The beautiful green light filled the warehouse. ‘Wow. I’ve never seen this stuff before. What makes it so special?’ Cid said upon examining a small piece. ‘It’s a high-energy element with various properties. Very rare, very valuable.’ Cindry Fulfillment explained. ‘It’s a crystal with unknown minerals never before seen in this planet.’
‘You mean it came from…
Space?’ Chuck was very impressed by that idea. ‘Yes. The original veil was found in a crater in Syberia, Russia, where a meteorite landed ages ago.’ Cindry was no stranger to Grimstone, living with some of it inside her herself.
‘Then why the hell there is a veil in this country? Syberia is halfway across the world from here.’ Martha asked. ‘I’m guessing the meteorite split into several pieces, scattering grimstone all over the globe. This is my theory, at least. I researched what I could.’ Cindry explained. ‘This ‘veil’ might not be a veil at all, too. Perhaps someone stole a piece of the Grimstone and buried it underground? Just another theory.’ She added.
Cid threw back his piece inside the crate and closed it. ‘Okay. You boys, grab that end. We’re taking this away before the Mayor gets to set his dirty hands on it. We’ll take the elevator this time. We don’t want to be caught on that narrow path.’
The elevator led straight to the mid section of the dam, which interacted with the Mines. There was an entrance to the dam’s internal structures, where Cid worked. When the elevator doors opened, the water came pouring in. ‘Hell!’ Cid shouted. The water coming from inside the dam. Some workers were running around. ‘Cid! Where have you
been? There was an explosion, a minor one, but still, an explosion! The water pumps are defective!The water pressure is rising. We’re doing our best, but if there’s another explosion…’
‘Don’t say it! Try to distribute the pressure to the other pumps. That should buy us more time.’ The situation was escalating quicker than anyone thought. But just when they thought things couldn’t get any worse, they did.
‘Hold it right there.’ A menacing voice came from behind them. ‘Drop the crate. Now.’ Cid turned. One of the workers was pointing a gun at them. The Quagmires had their guns, but they knew better than to star a shoot out in such an enclosed space. ‘What are you doing?!’ Cid shouted. ‘Cid, you forget who hired us? Gothic Works did. Which means we do as they say. Drop the crate and move away from it. I was told to instruct you to get out of here, grab whatever you can of your belongings and head to the top of the dam. Tell no one of what is happening, or they will blow up the dam right away.’
‘The sabotage…it was all of you, wasn’t it? Every day I’d come in and work to fix the dam…and when I wasn’t here, you’d undo it…’
‘True. But that’s not your problem anymore. Keep in mind, you are being closely watched.’
A set of double doors opened, and the workers forced Cid, the Quagmires and the others inside. The doors closed and when they opened, the group found themselves in the mid section of the town. A team of eight workers was there to escort them. ‘What the hell is happening here?’ Cid asked, but no one answered. They were escorted back to Cid’s and everyone grabbed what they could, leaving all unecessary things behind. But as they were leaving, the workers pointed their guns at Chuck and Martha. ‘These two are coming with us.’
‘What?!’
‘They’ll be our leverage against you. They shall go unharmed as long as you…
behave properly.’ One of the workers said. ‘Cid, it’s alright. Just go. We can take care of ourselves.’ Three of the workers escorted Martha and a frantic Chuck to the opposite side of the town. Cid tried to resist, but Duncan jumped in front of him. ‘Cid, don’t do this! You’ll only cause harm to Martha and Chuck that way!’
‘Let’s just play along and go to the top of the dam.’ Quigley said. ‘Do you guys have everything?’ Cindry asked the rest of them.
‘Almost everything.’ Isadora.
The group was escorted to the top of the dam. They were met with curious looks from the townspeople, who knew nothing about what was going on, powerless to stop the impending disaster. The destruction of Deluge Dam, and the deaths of almost every single townsperson was about to take place. And if you would rather not read the next chapter, feel free to do so and spare yourself of the despair contained in it.
Chapter Twelve
By now, you must know that the town of Deluge Dam had only minutes to live as Cid Jetsam, the Quagmire triplets, Isadora, Duncan and Quigley, and Cindry Fulfillment were escorted to the top of the dam by the Gothic Works’ minion workers. As they climbed their way up, the Quagmires could see the townspeople had been contained in the lower sections of the town with barricades and barriers. The town square was where everyone had gathered to debate what exactly was going on, as no one could inform them. The barricades were being raised as Cid, the Quagmires, Cid’s assistans and Cindry headed for the mines, and the townspeople’s demands to know what was going on were met with deaf ears on the workers’ side.
Atop the dam, right in the middle, there was a helicopter, with the sign of Gothic Works visible. In front of the helicopter, Dahlia Winchester and the man who could only be her partner, Ashton, were standing at either side of the bound and gagged mayor, Florian Flotsam, who have been treated with little kindness to say the least. His nose was broken, and his white beard was now stained with blood, one of his eyes black and so swollen it was shut. But what really shocked the Quagmires, Cindry, and Cid was not the fact that he was bound, gagged and suffering. It was the ammount of explosives strapped onto him.
‘My, my, Cid. It’s nice to see you again.’ Dahlia said as the Quagmires, Cid, and Cindry reached the middle of the dam, a large round area. The watchtower was burning now, smoke rising up in the air. ‘And these kids, who are they?’ Ashton asked. He was the same height as Dahlia, but blonde, tan, and had the number 07 displayed on his tank top, which he wore under a black leather jacket.
‘My new helpers.’ Cid uttered. ‘Well, you’ve all done us quite a favor, we have to say. When we searched your place, we found the tape that proved this fat bastard was two-timing us. ‘ Dahlia explained. ‘That tape is history now, as will be this town soon enough, the mayor with it.’
‘Where the hell is my sister?’ Cid shouted. ‘She had no part in her husband’s dirty deeds, so she’s safe. We’ll be taking her as leverage, as well. And the little girl. Don’t worry about them, they’ll be treated with kindness.’ Ashton replied, with a malicious, pathetic grin on his face.
Inside the Gothic Works’ helicopter, the Quagmires noticed Isabella, and the little Flora, crying and banging her hands against the window. Her screams were inaudible.
‘You monsters! She’s a little girl, no more than twelve!’ Cid protested. One of the faceless Gothic Works minions knocked him down, and Cid kneeled. ‘Whoa whoa whoa, big guy. This is all this fatass’ fault. He was swindling Gothic Works. No one does that and live.’ Ashton kicked the mayor. Flora cried, screamed and banged harder on the windows inside the helictoper. It was still her father they were abusing, and Flora had no idea what her father actually was.
‘He sold the town to us, and we let the town live as long as our payment was due. Unfortunately for you, him, and everyone else in this god-forsaken place, our contract is now void. We have no desire to allow Deluge Dam to live, and we’ll be erasing all evidence of our presence here. And the town with it.’ Dahlia explained.
‘You’re insane! You’re comitting genocide because of some damn mineral?’ Cid screamed. ‘Not just some mineral. You’d respect the power of grimstone a lot more if you’d seen it. Naturally, that can be arranged.’ Ashton clapped his hands, and a hatch opened on the dam. The crate of Grimstone was attached to the helicopter by the faceless goons of Gothic Works. ‘Boys, take the mayor to the interior of the dam. In case you’re all wondering, yes, the mayor is already a timebomb programed to explode shortly. We have quite a selection of my favorite explosives planted all over the dam, you see. Just enough to break it. But, just for fun, I decided to add a little…Shall we say,
excitement to the main event.’ Dahlia reached into her left glove, and produced a green object which shimmered under the sunlight.
‘Grimstone?!’ It was Cindry’s turn to shout now. She had seen first hand the power of grimstone. ‘You’re using that as an explosive? Are you INSANE?!’
‘Not a piece this big. Geez. I’m not crazy.’ Dahlia shrugged. ‘Treated grimstone. Refined and made into dust, then mixed with a plastic compound. Better than C-4. Cleaner than dynamite.’
‘We learned a lesson from the collapse of the Great Unknown. The pure substance is too unstable. Dr. Lugae invented the refining process.’ Ashton explained.
‘We could just kill you here and now, but what’s the point of a disaster with no survivors? Yes, we kill indiscriminately, but I want you all to remember this.’ The man smiled. It was a most evil smile.
‘Boys, take Cid and his teenaged companions to the mountains. Quickly.’ Dahlia ordered. What came next was a surprise. Another helicopter came down and soon Cid, the Quagmires and Cindry were shoved inside it, along with their personal effects. The helicopter took flight, and soon the group was flying high above Deluge Dam, but they could still what was happening below.
When Dahlia Winchester and Ashton went inside their helicopter, there was some sort of mishap and to Cid and everyone’s horror, Flora Flotsam ran out of the helicopter. She was too quick even for the Gothic Works’ goons, and climbed down the hatch into the dam. ‘Flora! Noooooo!’ Cid screamed. The Quagmires were too horrified to even say anything, and Cindry looked the other way.
The Gothic Works forces abandoned the dam through the use of jet packs, and they flew away. Dahlia and Ashton’s helicopter took flight, and soon was close to the one in which an increasingly horrified Cid and the incredibly shocked Quagmires realized what had just happened. They
abandoned Flora, not even bothering to go after her.
‘No! Take me back! Drop me off! I need to save Flora!’ Cid shouted, kicked and screamed, but he was bound, and the pilot was not accessible.
What came next was incredible. Time seemed to slow down as Isadora, Quigley and Duncan Quagmire, the desperate Cid Jetsam, and Cindry Fulfillment watched in horror as the first explosions happened. The metallic beam structure of Deluge Dam began to collapse as the explosions continued. Until the last explosion, a gargantual green fireball that nearly blinded them. The dam was shattered mercilessly, and the monstrous flood began, the water putting out the fire and carrying the debris into the Ghastly Gorge. And then, the shockwave hit them. An alarm started, as the pilot seemed to lose control of the helicopter, which began to twirl in the air aimlessly. The pilot seemed to regain control in the last moments, before crash-landing through the same skylight structure they had just seen at the entrance to the Mines. What came next was a blackout, for all of the five survivors inside.
In that day, the town and the people of Deluge Dam were obliterated.
Chapter Thirteen
No one is sure of who regained consciousness first. But when the last of them woke up – it was Quigley – the other four were already awake. The skylight-like structure above them had been greatly damaged by the crash of the helicopter, and the warehouse was on fire. Part of the rock that formed the eastern wall of the Ghastly Gorge had collapsed in the disaster, or in the aftermath. No one could tell. It didn’t matter. When Quigley Quagmire reached his brother, sister, and Cindry and Cid on the edge of the cliff, overlooking what once had been the town of Deluge Dam, no one said a word. Isadora and Duncan were in tears. Cindry was crying as well. Cid was in catatonic state, kneeling, defeated. Broken. Like the very dam he had been trying to fix.
None of them said anything for a while. The day became night, and the night became day again. Nothing made sense anymore. Cid would not leave the edge of the cliff. He would not even budge. He just stayed there, silent, kneeling. For fear that he throw himself over the edge, the Quagmires and Cindry took turns in staying with him. Every once in a while, a corpse would come afloat on the surface of the newly formed river, but would eventually drift away. The water was littered with flotsam, in this case the type of debris that floats on water, and not the name of the Mayor. And Flora. Tiny little Flora.
‘Cid…’ Duncan uttered. Speaking felt strange after so long. It was Duncan’s turn, and Isadora had given him some food she’d found in the foreman’s house. It was their current home. The warehouse fire had ceased, and the crashed helicopter’s as well. The pilot had been killed in the crash. Quigley and Cindry cast his corpse on the river below, tied to a rock. No, they would not let that man float away. He was to remain at the bottom of the river he’d helped create.
‘Cid. We’re worried. You have to eat something.’ Duncan spoke. Cid said nothing in return. Duncan broke the bread into two halves. He looked to the horizon. The world seemed peaceful now. ‘Nothing I say is going to make any difference. But I want you to remember one thing.’ Duncan wasn’t looking, so he did not notice when Cid turned his head. ‘Isabella is still alive. I know she is. Your sister is still alive. Don’t give up on her. Don’t give up.’
After so many silent hours, Cid finally broke down. He crumbled onto the ground, crying. He kicked, screamed, slammed his fists against the ground. Duncan said nothing. He ate his half of the bread and waited.
Cid had cried himself to sleep and now laid on the ground, exhausted. Duncan put a blanket over him, and the bread inside a paper bag with a rock on top. Supporting himself on one hand, Duncan was about to get up when Cid grabbed his hand, startling him.
‘Stay.’ Cid uttered, his voice raspy and rough from all the crying and screaming. Duncan laid down next to him. ‘Go to sleep. I’ll stay here.’ Duncan said.
Above what once had been Deluge Dam, vultures flew in circles in the sky.
- - - - -
EXTRA
If you have read The Dangerous Dam, I hereby grant you the title of
Maleficent Mayor