Searching for Andromeda 54 Arletha's Arrow

"Arletha." Samuel murmured. He murmured whose name? . . . Who was it . . . no! Samuel immediately came back to his senses. Arletha. That's right. The two of them both fell to escape the pendulum bob. He immediately sat straight; upon doing so, Samuel realized soon enough he was in the ground. Not in the middle of two gears, but an actual ground.

Surprisingly his body felt alright, aside from his sore muscles. Samuel stood up and started to look around and examine the place.

He was still inside the clock tower, given the ginormous gears surrounding him. But now he wasn't in those metal handles that can risk his life when a specific time strikes.

Everything was still fresh in his mind. From ANDROMEDA's laboratory to the necromorph being slammed by the pendulum bob in the gears, and now the fall down below with Arletha.

Oddly enough, Samuel knew he fell with Arletha. He knew he fell along with her because he knew she was close to her when they plunged down below. He also woke up only a matter of moments after the fall given he could still hear the hollow sound of the bob going upwards again. It couldn't be that long he was unconscious.

Samuel took the time to look around for Arletha. Earlier he couldn't really focus on the insides of the clock tower because of the monster in front of him, but that changed now. He was accompanied by nothing but a mere sound of the gear moving and nothing else.

"I wonder if England's Big Ben looks like this inside . . ." He muttered to himself. Even Samuel's low voice echoed to him loudly because of how empty the place was. He decided he shouldn't speak much.

Samuel walked around and peered below. Underneath him were moving gears and spiral stairs. He thought he was on the lowermost ground (which was ridiculous), but then reality pulled him back and showed him he was several floors above before he reaches the clock tower's lowermost level.

The whole place smelled of copper and oil, much the same as earlier. But now he was lower, the smell mellowed a bit. He still couldn't see Arletha and was witnessing no sign of her presence. He began to look around to tiny details of the metal rails, the corners, and even the dripping oil from above.

Samuel halted as he realized one thing.

Clean.

The place was clean.

There was no sign of wear in the gears, and peculiarly as it may seem—Samuel noticed that there wasn't even a speck of dust in the place.

It was like this place was being kept by someone.

Samuel remained vigilant. There is a chance that someone was here before even he and Arletha set foot to these grounds—and might even be living in this clock tower. Samuel avidly looked around, but there was nothing. He sharpened his hearing—yet only the ever-present silence welcomed him with open arms along with the gears shifting and turning repeatedly in a synchronized manner.

Samuel hated silence. It makes him remember unpleasant things because of his mind. This is why he had to research every time. Sometimes he considered it his escape. Although Samuel still felt the chills running down his spine from the unnerving silence, he proceeded to walk forward with his footsteps only the noise appending him.

"Arletha?" He calls. Samuel still wasn't sure whether it was a good idea to make a sound, given the fact there are actual monsters just outside (and probably inside) the clock tower. Regardless of his fears, he continued to call for Arletha. She couldn't drop off anywhere further.

Right?

A strange feeling of fear washed over Sam. What if Arletha fell further and might even have—died?

No. Samuel shouldn't think about it. He shook off his thoughts and began to run and search for Arletha frantically. But the possibilities were tremendous. He began to run downstairs, getting deeper and deeper into the darkness of the clock tower.

"Arletha!" He calls.

He did not know how much time he spent searching. Samuel was anxious about Arletha falling to the floor, injured and helpless, and might even be—dead. He had imagined it with his overactive mind and then shook it off several times. But it kept coming, haunting him; rendering him restless.

Until a figure of someone with an arrow proved his thoughts useless.

Standing just a few meters away from him was Arletha; Arletha - who was alive and well, wrapping bandages to her shoulder. A light was shining from above her like those seen in stage plays. Samuel never felt so relieved in his entire life.

"Arletha, thank goodness you're alive—"

Samuel stopped shortly as an arrow flew to his side, its blade scraping a tad on his left cheek. Blood dripped to his chin as he stood still—frozen in spot.

Arletha's eyes met that of Sam—and then, holding her bow firmly she projected the aim straight to Samuel with a cold stare.

"Just when I thought I finally got rid of you, here you go, still looking dumb and alive."

Samuel was stone-cold. He feels his blood running cold—he does not understand. He never predicted this.

"I never thought you'd buy my act. You really thought I'm that weak? Shooting several arrows and then, just end up tired and reliant on you in the end?"

Arletha chuckles dryly. "Don't make me laugh. I thought you'll either save yourself or feed yourself to the monster to protect me, but then it seems like you are smarter than you look."

"Arletha, what in the world are you talking about—"

"Shut up," Arletha exclaims, and then warned Samuel when he began to step closer. "Don't come closer. I would not hesitate to SHOOT."

But Samuel refused to listen. He took another step forward.

Arletha shot another arrow, and once again it dented Samuel's skin. Now it was his arm. Samuel winced in pain as he felt the bleeding.

"I won't miss next time," Arletha says. "Now GO."

"Why?" Samuel asks dauntlessly, daring Arletha with his upfront attitude. That's right. This was Samuel Albrecht. He was never the type to submit. He wasn't the type to let people order him around and tell him what he could and couldn't do.

"Why?" Arletha repeated. "Isn't it obvious?"

Samuel frowned, still confused, but eager to listen.

"The team was trying to get rid of you," Arletha says. "They sent me to get RID of you, Youngling. Now when I thought I did, here you are coming back unscathed."

Arletha then propelled her bow and arrow, aiming for Samuel's chest.

"Well, not anymore." She says, and then in the blink of an eye, she let go of the arrow as it shot in the projected angle she aimed.

And what was left of the place was the sound of the eerie silence and a body falling to the floor.

Chapter end