Ka-chunk
A rickety cart rocked down a beaten path, surrounded by brown grass and patches of mud.
Thunk
Cain was jolted awake by the last bump, momentarily catching air as he landed back in his seat.
He blinked his green eyes, his vision still blurry as it adjusted to the bright sun.
As his vision slowly came into focus, he saw a skinny, pale, bald-headed man who seemed very anxious, hiding away from the others sitting next to him.
The other was a man of decent build, about the same size as Cain himself. He looked like a usual commoner, except for the large scar across his face.
Both men were wearing the same stained and tattered brown shirts and shorts that Cain was wearing.
The scarred man was shouting obscenities at the guards while fiddling with the cuffs bound tightly around his wrists.
"HALT!"
The horses dragging the wooden carriage came to an abrupt stop, mud splashing under their hooves.
A big, fat guard jumped off the front of the cart.
His armor clanked as he ran the butt of his knife along the bars of the carriage, making an eerie thumping sound.
The pale man looked at his feet, inching away from the growing anger of the larger prisoner beside him.
"You can't send me there, you bastard! Do you know who my family is?" the scarred prisoner yelled.
"If they found out you sent me to that demonic place…" Spit flew from his face, hitting the guard's plate mail.
"Shut up, you lout," the guard said, smacking him with the pommel of his knife.
The pale man jumped in his seat as the scarred man slumped forward, blood dripping from the back of his skull.
The fat guard hoisted up his pants, announcing,
"All this time I've been hearing you yammer on and on about your family. Don't you get it? You're here because your family didn't care.
"The only reason I've put up with your constant mewling is because I know where you're going, but that was the last straw."
He grinned.
"In our final stretch together, I've decided it's time to let some of my anger out," the guard said, his smile growing, his rotting yellow teeth showing.
The pale man's scream was cut short by the blunt end of the knife.
"What are you looking at, you sick bastard?" he addressed Cain.
Cain merely glared up at him, or tried to as much as the restraints allowed him to.
Around his ankles, hands, and neck, Cain was bound and shackled by metal restraints, allowing only limited mobility.
Cain adjusted his head upward slightly. For a brief moment, Cain and the guard locked eyes before Cain spat on him.
The guard, in turn, punched Cain in the stomach.
Cain's breath was forced out of his lungs, leaving him gasping for air.
Another punch was thrown, this time to his liver, making Cain's body go numb except for where the blow struck him. A hot pain flashed through his body.
Cain's vision narrowed, darkness creeping in and blurring his sight. He heard the guard's final words.
"Carcosa is going to love you."
Cain was ripped from unconsciousness by a cold shock as water drenched him.
Climbing to his knees, Cain looked forward and immediately sprang backward, trying to get away from the massive drop in front of him.
The scarred and pale men were already awake and sopping wet.
The only shackles that remained on Cain were the ones around his hands, matching the other two.
"Hello again, gentlemen!" the large, fat guard announced.
Cain was not paying attention to him, his focus elsewhere.
On the dark city in front of him. The buildings were tall and narrow, creating the illusion of a maze.
Windows and doors were boarded up with rotten planks. Stones, glass, and fires littered the streets.
Upon closer inspection, Cain realized that some of the stones were grave markers, not just rubble from dilapidated buildings.
Cain noticed the city itself was physically sunken into the earth, as though whoever built it wanted it to be inescapable.
Surrounding the city, a massive body of water crashed against enormous walls that stretched far taller than any of the buildings, meeting the earth where Cain was kneeling.
This place isn't meant to be escaped from, Cain thought to himself as he peered once more over the ledge.
His head spun slightly from looking at the massive drop below.
The fat guard grunted.
"Because of your crimes, you've been sentenced to live your remaining days freeing the city of Carcosa of the beastly scourge."
He leaned down next to Cain's ear before finishing.
"You will live in the filth, fight the beasts, and die trying to save your miserable lives."
Cain turned his head away from the stench of greasy food and alcohol, feeling bile rise in his throat.
The fat guard stood up again, fixing his pants before continuing.
"Because I am a generous man of the church, I will allow you all one question before you enter the city," he proudly proclaimed.
The pale man was the first to speak up.
"What beasts are you talking about? I don't understand what any of this is about," he asked quickly, shifting back and forth and scratching his wrist.
"Well, I'll tell you, son. Deep down there live things ripped straight out of the nightmares you had as a boy when your daddy told you a scary story."
The pale man began whimpering, his eye starting to twitch.
"Next, you," the guard said, shoving his finger into the back of Cain's head.
"No questions. Just unlock these cuffs and give me a blade so I can get to work."
The fat one let out a grunt.
"Now you. Last one."
"Forty thousand," the scarred man said quietly.
"What?" The guard's mouth twitched upward.
"That's how much money my family will pay you to get me out of here."
He paused.
"A mighty generous offer, if I say so myself."
The guard laughed hard.
Then he kicked him into the water below.
"Hey, you bastard! You're supposed to unshackle us and give us something to fight with!" Cain barked at the guard.
"You three have pissed me off to no end. The questions are enough, I've decided."
He pushed Cain off the ledge.