King Edward the cannibal and two knights remained alive. They crawled along one by one down a slim tunnel burrowed deep beneath a haunted temple. The chances of a teleportation escape had shrunk much like the surroundings.

“Man I really hope this leads somewhere because it’s going to be awful trying to turn around in these cramped quarters” blurted out Mooseman from the rear of the party.

“Let's only think about the instant future from now on. Got it everyone!” commanded the King.

“Yes Sir” said both knights together.

The only light was carried by the smallest knight taking the front Vito. However his frame still blocked much of the light, Edward blocked more, and by the time it reached Vito not much light was left. The circular ice walls surrounding them appeared to be drilled with a massive sharp crystal bit bore into the core of the planet. A distant breeze tickled while the cold leaking from walls threatened to freeze them in place. This not so stale air let them know something was waiting at the end of this tunnel.

Several laborious hours later things had become increasingly claustrophobic.

“The core plays games on the mind, and yet we willingly descend further into it” said a knight.

“Because we have no other path to go, although I really think I failed to capitalize on a few slim opportunities, and perhaps that will be my demise ” said Edward.

“I can only comment on the instant future” said the other knight who was in the rear.

“Yes, that's right,” said the King.

“Vito, your light has dimmed significantly, is it almost out of juice?” asked Mooseman.

“Yup the light is getting dimmer every minute, I suppose we should go until the light falls or we do” said Vito.

“Lets slightly increase our pace,” said the King.

The party crawled forward on the only path remaining to them. The cold walls surrounding them had long ago begun seeping into their bones. The air was becoming stale.

“Whoosh!”

A frigid blast hit them spurring movement. Vito was picked up by the gust and blown into the King who was stopped by Mooseman but not before hitting his head on the low ceiling.

“Well we must be close to something now, go on!” yelled the king pushing Vito forward with all his might.

The smallest member of the party went flying forward. The ground had become well sloped at this point, and being made of ice it was naturally extremely slippery. Vito hit the ice stomach first, and arms outstretched with the light. He began to slide quickly picking up speed. The two remaining were left in the dark. Stuck watching their light slide off with increasing speed down the tunnel.

“Well Knight I suppose sliding on ice beats walking on it” said King Edward.

“Hmm, it depends on what is going to be stopping your motion” said Mooseman.

“Well in my case I'll slide with my crystalized stump where my hook used to be out first, it will break whatever blocks my way,” said the King getting into position.

“Ah I hope Vito is alright seeing how he had a light instead of a stump” said Mooseman.

“Nevermind your worry give me a large push” commanded the King.

“Sigh.. very well let me just find you first” said Mooseman.

“I'm laying on my stomach at the start of this slide up here” said Edward.

“I'm feeling around,” said Mooseman.

He slipped on a patch of invisible ice, and he fell forward, with his arms outstretched. Eventually the King's back was the object to break the fall.

“AaaaRRRG” spit Edward the air knocked from him.

The knight had fallen on top of him launching them both down the slippery slide. Mooseman closed his eyes in the dark, and imagined a field of golden flowers overgrown and in bloom. The air whistles past and the King becomes a speeding sled for Knight.

“I'm blind and being crushed under pressure” hissed Edward.

“Hey I think I see a little hole of light dead ahead trying to slow us King” said Mooseman.

“What do you think? I haven't been trying to slow us down” said Edward.

“Grind your face into it if you have to ye haw” said Mooseman.

“I can take my stump out from anchoring us and dig it into your face,” replied the King.

The ice was cut by the King’s armor, sending small pieces stuck into the King's shirt and blinding his eyes shut. Even then he finally could see light rapidly growing ahead. The combination of light and ice forced his eyes shut”

“AAAARG” cried the King being launched into the air from the ice ramp with a knight still riding him.

“Yeee Haw” said Mooseman.

The two hit the apex of their launch. They fell towards the ground. A knight already below them panicked to get out of the impact zone.

“Smash, Crash!”

The three bodies collided together and collapsed in a heap on the floor. Edward kicked the knight off his back while underneath him Vito was crushed like a pancake. The King stood up and dusted himself off while surveying his newest surroundings. They were in a medium white room. The walls were bare except for rusted chains hanging off them: the same kind of chains ran along a factory door locking them inside.. A similarly rusted meat hook hung from the ceiling lit by a single solid light (the other blinked). Blocks covered by blankets had been packed across the floor on pallets. Frigid air emitted from them.

Edward put his eyes back to the hook that dangled far over his head taunting him. He looked at where his arm had been severed long ago. The scales that hardened his stump had now spread past his elbow. How was he going to climb high enough to retrieve the makeshift murder attachment?

“Vito you still around man” called Mooseman, checking the other knight for signs of life.

“Get your stinking fingers out of my face” screamed Vito, coming alive.

Mooseman jumped back, as Vito rubbed his head.

“Ahh my fucking head.. I was knocked out cold, all I remember is falling myself and then you guys falling towards me from that chute above” sighed Vito.

“You took some damage there,” said Mooseman.

The standing knight turned to study the room. He walked to one of the covered squares, and took hold of the blanket cover. It ripped off easily falling to the wayside.

“Hope you guys weren’t hoping for some food in this freezer” said Mooseman, exposing perfectly cut square blocks of pure white ice.

Their exposure immediately chilled the air, and they all had the transparency of a ghost. The knight looked to see Vito forever frozen in time with his picture remaining knocked out on the floor.

“Vito you alright?” called Mooseman.

“Yup I awake” responded Vito.

“That's creepy,” said Edward.

The King had uncovered another blanket, and this one had something else hidden undercover. A large saw blade first greeted him sitting above its house of metal.

“Hmmm," said Edward.

He inspected the chop saw. It was too cold for normal flesh to handle, however it looked as if this device had handled a lot of flesh over its lifetime. The King stuck his stump to the red covered blade to get a sample to taste. As the crystal stump hit the saw it came alive sparking into Edward’s limb.

“AAAA” cried the King, hastily retracting his arm.

He fell backwards into a mess on the floor. The saw still loudly buzzed nearby. His stump throbbed with incapacitating pain, as blood oxidized crystalizing between his scales.

“We are trapped in a strange meat locker,” yelled Vito, finally standing.

“Get me a bandage, useless knights, yes that sheet on the floor” commanded the King.

Mooseman ran to render aid, with his feet almost slipping on the way. He slowed his pace.

“My apologies King but I must take my time to avoid falling” said Mooseman.

“You are the clumsiest knight to ever fight for the empire” said Edward.

“You got that right. Alright how in the Farc do I turn this thing off” screamed Vito near the saw.

“Check for a lever or switch” cried the King.

Mooseman had finally reached Edward with the blanket taking over one hand he bent to render aid.

“Let me do it myself before you fuck something else up” screamed Edward.

Mooseman yielded over the bandage while Vito studied the spinning chop saw from a safe distance. The closest distance he dared until he spotted the stop switch. Edward wrapped up his wound, but struggled to tie the knot with only one hand.

“Knight you're mighty fine at tying yourself and others into knots. So how about this bandage on my stump” cried the King in frustration.

The bandage was tied tight with a square knot.

“Alright” said Edward standing.

He pushed Vito away while he approached the roaring saw.

“Hmmm” he said, studying it.

“Careful don’t cut yourself on that edge again King” yelled Vito.

The saw was cut off. Edward had found the kill switch. He studied the device some more. A crystal cutting saw blade had revealed itself after the blood underneath had been flung away onto the surroundings while it spun.

“Alright boys, let's push this over to the chained door, and cut ourselves out” ordered the King.

“Yes Sir” said the knights.

Vito joined after the others had already started pushing. The industrial chop saw was large enough to be pushed by a dozen. It must have been very heavy, however the floor was icy enough to help slide it along.

“Careful you don’t roll this thing over your feet it would be just as bad as the blade to the toe I would reckon ha ha” laughed Mooseman.

“Be a silent knight,” said King.

They slowly worked the machinery across the floor taking care to keep feet and hands at a safe distance from respective hazards. As It grew closer, and closer it was getting harder to picture the blade reaching the chains. They had reached it now. Vito stepped back; he wasn't seeing it, and this thing was too heavy an object to angle.

“I used to be a butcher of wild game, you know hence the name” said Mooseman.

“Yeah?” said Edward.

“Anyway I never used a cutter quite that nice but I’ve used a lesser model. Point is I think I can angle it to cut that chain” said Mooseman, approaching.

He was inspecting the saw closer and closer. He moved his hand closer to the blade. Vito had to look away.

“Click!”

“Very nicely done. There’s our key out of this locked room” said Edward.

Mooseman had hit something to unlock the chop saw's blade. The arm swung at an angle, and he held onto the handle above to control it.

“Ok I need both of you to help me hold onto this saw while we cut into thick chains blocking the door” said Mooseman.

“Alright I'll turn it on” said Edward approaching.

In the background Vito carefully scoped things out from a safe distance. He was trying to stay in focus, but he had been awake for too long. He rubbed his sleepy eyes before being hooked by a hand. He was grabbed by the King's only hand and thrown towards the saw. Edward walked forward slowly. He grabbed the knight he had just thrown, and flicked the switch. The blade of the chop saw came to life. Vito closed his eyes and held onto the handle with the others relying on them to guide it towards cutting the chain. He braced for the inevitable kickback of impact.

“Zrrrrrrchewww”

The chop jerked and screeched as it began to cut into metal. Vito was thinking some relief with the gut feeling it would be done soon just had to power throw it. His eyes were shocked back open by hot burning sensations along his arms. The saw was cutting in hot sparks and was being spit back.

“Don’t stop supporting no matter how bad it burns” commanded the King.

“Yes sir” said the knights together.

The saw was still cutting maybe half way done. Vito gritted his teeth. This was taking much longer than anticipated. His shirt was full of holes that burned at his nostrils, and his arms were on fire. Just got to ignore the pain and keep going. This is the ultimate test of endurance. A new pain was joining the others. The constant rumble of the cut had his wrists seriously inflamed. A spark flew directly at Vito’s eye, and he slammed both of them back shut. He would finish this job by tuning out the outside, and keeping to himself.

Edward forced all his weight into it. He was getting impatient to find out what awaited them behind this door.

“Careful stay balanced” yelled Mooseman.

“Don’t tell me what to do,” said the King.

“Clunk”

The chain was cut. It hit the floor.

“Screee”

The saw was working its way deep into the door.

“Shut this death contraption off” cried Vito, opening one eye, and taking both hands off.

The saw came to a stop. Edward, and Mooseman struggled to untangle it from the door. Edward climbed onto the arm above the blade, and started jumping.

“Come on, why does everything in this place have to be a game of resistance training?” he cried.

“Snap!” said the chop saw in response breaking along a weak weld.

The arm broke from the table, the saw was still dug in the door, the king was on the floor, and the table was gliding away slowly pushed in the other direction. The door creaked open revealing darkness behind it.

“Are you alright?” said Vito, picking up Edward.

“Lets go forward” said Vito who had his light shining the lead once more.

“Hmmm” said Edward, studying the broken chop saw wedged into the door.

"King look at this it's your mother she can be seen in the next room" screamed Vito.

"She's with a donkey huh" said Mooseman in disbelief.

King Edward ran into the next room. It was a generic factory setting with big cardboard boxes sitting on stopped conveyor belts. He looked around, and then above. The rafters had stalactites, and dirty lights that barely illuminated nearby catwalks. On the far side of the factory floor was an void of nothing. Around it was the rock wall of a cave. It was a hole that probably dropped forever. Across the void walking over it on a thin bridge of ice was the shadows of two people. Edward sprinted past nondescript packages twice his size. He got closer, and closer to the void.

The Queen was escorted by Mule on the ice bridge. The pair was more than half was across now. Edward got as close to the edge as possible and waved his arms to get her attention.

"Mother" he cried.

The Queen wasn't looking anywhere but foreword. Her and the donkey just kept on moving, as the King kept screaming in vain into the void. Two portals had opened at the end of the ice bridge. Mule and the Queen had gotten close now. The beast had bitten her back. A tentacle covered in crystal scales slowly emerged from one portal. It slowly began to wrap around the Queen.

"Nooooo" yelled the King at the top of his lungs.

The Queen was carried off into the portal that snapped shut behind it. The donkey looked down and smiled.

"Click!"

The King's shotgun was out.

"Shoot that donkey at once" he commanded his two men.

Edward looked and the beast was already mid vanish into the other portal. The two knights ran to his side out of breath.

"What one of them were you wanting us to shoot your majesty" said Mooseman.