Master of the Deck

Julien had lost all sense of time underground. How long did he struggle in the darkness? He has no idea. But now, standing on soft, springy grass, breathing in the open air, the oppressive weight of the tunnels falls away. Between the boughs of the trees around him, he can see a blue sky and […]

The craggy walls are painted red, and so is the floor. Now that the immediate danger is over, Julien feels some of the tension leave his body, along with a healthy dose of bile. He hacks and coughs to get rid of the terrible combination of sensations. There is a sour and burning acidity in

Julien quickly plants his body against the closest wall. Apart from shielding his back, he tries to gain some confidence from the rough support. He’s not successful. He glances at the body of his ally. Dead! Instantly! And I’m next! In his current position, he cannot imagine how he can prevent rapidly following the stranger

No way out. Seriously?! Julien decides to circle the room for a third time. In the centre, a mound of debris is an indicator of where the ceiling above had collapsed, causing the upper floor to mostly descend into the subterranean room. Daylight streaming in from the upper floor allows him to see, quite clearly,

Julien looks at the colorful apparition in disbelief. “Now? You show up now?” he hisses. “Where the hell did you go?” “I could ask you the same thing! This does not look anything like a civilized place. It looks like some dank cellar crossed with an open sewer. Where are we?” Julien shrugs. “You tell

The smell hits him head-on. It is a stuffy, dead smell, yet humid and full of rot. It’s as if someone has crossed a smoking cellar with a stocked fridge that a student flat forgot to clear out before the holidays. His first breath is a gag. Overwhelmed, Julien spends his first few minutes trying

Emptiness. Julien swerves his head left and right before doing a slow pivot. Nothing. Just an endless whiteness all around him. Everything blends together. The walls, the floor, the ceiling. Earth and sky. There is no indication of Julien’s surroundings being inside or outside. No hysterical screaming. Instead, only a silence that is deafening. Lost,

Just one look at the caller ID has Julien’s gut clenching. Dad. He stares at the screen. Frozen like one of the many statues surrounding him in the Jardin des Tuileries. Blind to the blooming magnolia and impeccably trimmed hedges. A full minute passes before he taps decline. As he pulls up the meetup directions