DemiGodChapter 16 Betrayal
- 2 years ago
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Day 202:
Their second night in the jungle was when things came apart. They’d traveled for two days, turning to head directly into the thickest, wettest, deadliest part after midday that first morning. The trees they walked between emitted a rotting musk, and their boots squelched deep into soft, clinging, stinky mud. Detouring around puddles eventually devolved into slogging across putrid, stagnant ponds. Anything deeper than their knees had to be avoided, and they lost count of how many times they’d backtracked. There was no way to clean themselves off, and hardly a dry patch to camp on.
Luckily, their one saving grace was a combination of Dulgan’s foresight, and Bokhir’s skills. The Dwimar Master had bought several hammocks as they traversed the various clan rooms; he’d stuffed them into pockets on both his and John’s packs. There weren’t enough for everyone, but the Powry scout showed them how to combine what they had (plus his own) to create a makeshift treehouse where they could sleep in a close group. It was far from the most comfortable outdoor camping John had ever done, and left them vulnerable which grated on John even if there wasn’t anything else they could do.
He continued the two-on-watch policy, specifying that whoever was awake must periodically check in audibly with their partner. The swamp was pitch black at night, dim even to John’s Sight. Hearing was their best asset, but half the Dwarves snored terribly, so sentries were less effective than they might have been. All of which was why only John’s ears caught it, and no one else did.
A crackling noise, like an arc-welder or static discharge. Nothing natural that John knew made a sound like that. And if this world had an animal or person who could, they were undoubtedly a significant threat. He was just beginning to doubt his hearing, when he picked out a faint voice too. Whispering in the dark is more noticeable than just speaking at a very low volume, which this person obviously knew.
Mumble, mumble, “ ... again.”
Followed by a repeat of the crackle. Cursing silently to himself, John clucked their agreed-upon alert signal. The two on watch, John couldn’t tell whom by sound, both replied. He slithered his way across the pile to whisper in the nearest one’s ear.
“Someone’s nearby.” He hissed.
It was Bokhir, who impressed John with a level head.
“Only wake the not-snorers.” The Powry suggested.
Good idea. Then whoever it was wouldn’t know more than half were awake already.
They worked their way around the cluster of bodies, clamping hands over shocked mouths and breathing urgent alerts in straining ears. They were each on their second person when a huge gust of wind picked up and one of the tree branches sagged deeply. John’s face jerked to the side, eye scanning for the source.
They’d seen a few undead animals during the trek so far, though only one had been even a minor threat. A large lizard had burst from its hiding place on their flank. It charged and tried to clamp its jaws around Hekruik’s ankle. The hard-bitten Dvergyr barely broke stride as his blade separated the reptile’s head from its shoulders. With a kick that would’ve done any World Cup player proud, he’d sent the skull winging its way across a nearby thicket.
In addition, John still remembered his extensive examination of the draugyr in the Ice Crag, and of Nefiume during their yachting days. The figure perched a few feet away, where the limb forked looked nothing like any of the above types. It was humanoid, with talon-capped hands gripping the wood. The robe it wore broke up the thing’s silhouette, but John could See right into the hood. Red-tinted eyes stared at him over a fanged snarl. Behind the pointed incisors and uncanny gaze was the same ugly menace he’d Seen in the Onyxhart guard’s superior. A central core of intense heat radiated from the skull and throat, fading to lukewarm along the limbs.
Vampyr! The Tooth called. Burn it with fire!
John wasn’t really in a good position for a throw, but the Vampyr had raised a hand and John had no desire to see what nastiness would result. He backhanded the ax and rolled to follow.
“To arms! Enemy in the trees!” John yelled as he moved.
The Tooth flew true, slamming into the Vampyr’s chest and igniting with a splash of red-orange flames. John monkey-crawled after to knock the enemy off. That was when the Vampyr laughed. A shrill shriek of amusement rang out, giving him goosebumps. The creature grabbed the Tooth and pulled her out. With a casual toss over one shoulder, the ax plummeted toward the ground.
The vamp’s other hand was still raised, and before John could reach his target lightning shot from the Vampyr’s fingertips. With a blast that would’ve made the Emperor in Star Wars envious, a curtain of electricity descended on the Dwarves’ heads. Cries of pain and fear erupted from the half-sleeping troop. Sacrificing himself, John launched into a dive, intending to knock the Vampyr off with his body.
A massive gust of wind blew him right off the branch. He barely snagged a single handhold as he went over, preventing himself from falling. With a kip, he got both hands onto the wood and looked up right into the vamp’s face. Plump lips smiled evilly as it reached out with a single elongated nail to scratch the back of John’s hand. His skin parted like butter under a hot knife, and pain bloomed. Knowing he couldn’t stay like this, and that falling would put him out of the fight, he tried to do a pull-up.
But his arms wouldn’t work properly. They barely flexed. Then came a boom from the trunk below. The entire tree shivered with vibration and John’s hands failed him.
As he fell to the ground below, the Vampyr winked and quipped, “The most important thing in life is learning how to fall.”
In English.
He slammed into the marshy dirt and his head cracked against one of the tree’s roots. Stars burst across his vision as he yelled at himself to get up. All he got for his effort was a ridiculous flop onto his face. After that, he couldn’t move at all.
His body was completely paralyzed. Oh, he could feel everything. He wasn’t numb, and except from an inability to move nothing else seemed to be getting worse personally. Unfortunately, that was enough. He listened in helpless rage as the vamp cackled, a booming crash nearby at ground level repeated every few seconds, and his Dwarf friends’ voices turned from anger to panicked screams.
Then it started raining bodies. Pain-wracked groans accompanied the heavy thuds as Dwarves fell from the tree like overripe melons. A familiar voice hollered an unintelligible war-cry and John heard the ghastly sound of something heavy cracking a skull. Mud squelched nearby as whoever it was stomped around, repeating the life-ending blows on other Dwarves. Unable to help himself, John counted five as he put every ounce of willpower into moving a single inch. Tears dripped helplessly from his eyes into the dirt.
Another gust of wind ruffled John’s hair. He heard a second set of feet moving around. A line of pain scraped across the back of his neck, before he was kicked. The massive boot flipped him jarringly onto his back. Two faces, one he recognized and one he’d just seen in the tree above studied him.
“The King sends his regards.” Kertug sneered.
He kicked John’s side once more, below his ribs. Nausea crawled up John’s throat, burning without an outlet.
“Are you finished?” A high-pitched voice fell from the Vampyr’s lips.
“I have not damaged him.” Kertug defended himself.
The vamp sighed. “Go check the others. Make sure they’re all dead.”
Kertug disappeared. John could only listen helplessly as the brute hammered several more Dwarves mercilessly. Their disregarded pleas for mercy tore John’s heart to pieces.
“You get them all?” The Vampyr asked, when Kertug’s steps continued without any blows.
“I count ten.” Kertug replied after an agonizing moment. “Not including this one.”
John’s blood boiled at that report.
“I left two up there, for my meal.” The Vampyr said.
“One is missing.” Kertug growled.
“Find him!” The vamp insisted.
Another gust of wind and John watched the robed figure leap right up into the branches above. Two more Dwarf bodies were tossed bonelessly into the mud beyond John a few minutes later. Neither verbalized any pain after hitting.
“I don’t see anyone else!” The vamp called.
“Then he is gone.” Kertug sounded indifferent.
“He won’t get far, not all alone out here.” The Vampyr decided.
The vamp leaped back down and produced a set of manacles for John’s wrists and ankles. Then the pair methodically looted the Dwarf corpses. After a while, he was unceremoniously hoisted over Kertug’s shoulder and the half-Orc strode off. The Vampyr grumbled under its breath as it hurried to catch up.
They walked for over an hour before the giant called a halt. He marched up onto a small knoll and slung John to the ground like a sack of grain. John’s head, neck and arms were rubbed raw by that point. He even felt a trickle of blood slowly spreading through his hair. Another thump beside him followed shortly.
“Why do you stop?” The Vampyr asked impatiently. “There are many more hours until dawn.”
Kertug grunted. “Time for me to sleep. Carry him further, if you wish.”
The Vampyr stepped by John’s head, glaring at something else. He assumed it was the half-Orc.
“What are you planning?” The vamp asked thoughtfully.
“Do not worry about it.” Kertug insisted. “Sleep, or feed, or go, it makes no difference to me.”
Robes billowed out as the vamp squatted between John and the Dwarf. A nail traced a line of fire down his cheek.
“Now, you stay still while I’m busy.” The Vampyr muttered.
The black-clad figure bent over the Dwarf lying next to him and John got a front row seat to wet slurping sounds and other disgusting noises. Each time, just when John thought the ability to move was coming back, the vamp would reach back and scratch his arm, or neck. Whatever those nails did was keeping him immobilized. All he could do was breathe, and blink occasionally. He couldn’t even swallow, just drool from the corners of his mouth.
Finally, the Vampyr sat upright with a sigh of contentment. A ghastly, blood-streaked face oriented on him again.
“There.” The vamp said, when done. “Now we wait a few moments for the poison to metabolize out.”
The English word ‘metabolize’ was jarring, mixed in with the others.
John’s involuntary swallows, ridding his mouth of saliva alerted his jailer that he was regaining his motor control. A long-nailed hand rested on his chest. The talons clicked distractingly on his armor.
“Now,” the Vampyr warned, “I can easily return you to the paralytic state, with just a tiny scratch from one of these.”
A finger lifted, confirming John’s hypothesis.
“If you answer my questions, I’ll let you stay un-paralyzed. But if you refuse...”
He coughed. “Wha—what do you want to know?”
A smile that might have once been attractive flashed at him. Too bad the fangs ruined the effect. Well, that and his all-encompassing desire to crush the life out of this cockroach vamp.
“Everything!” The Vampyr exclaimed. “But we will start with the simple things first. Are you a Visitor from Earth?”
The question was in English, so even acknowledging it would give an answer. He needed some information though, and the only way to get it was to play along.
“Not anymore.” John hedged. “I’m trapped here, and can’t go back.”
The vamp looked surprised. “How? You walked all across the Southern Clandoms with your friend proclaiming that you travel using magic rocks. I presume that’s his way of explaining using the funeral portals to people who don’t have any of them.”
“I can use the portals, sure.” John admitted, since he was at a serious information disadvantage. “But I’m not able to go back to Earth. It’s blocked, for some reason.”
The vamp stroked its chin. “That is really strange. You have no messages or updates from the others back on Earth?”
John shook his head. “I’ve gotten nothing from Earth since the last time I came through.”
“When was that?”
John thought for a minute. He needed it to be believable. “Several months ago. I’m not sure of the exact time. They don’t exactly have calendars around here.”
“They tricked you into coming here, like they did to me?” The vamp asked next.
“I wouldn’t say tricked, no.” John denied. “I felt like they were as up front with me as they could be, considering.”
The vamp gave him a disbelieving look. “Considering what?”
“Considering that it’s been months since my body back home’s had anything to eat.” He lied. “If I’m dead, how am I still imagining this? If not, how’s that even possible?”
The vamp smiled again. “Have you not figured it out yet?”
“What’s that?” John frowned.
“You’re not imagining this world, because it’s real. Actually real, not a simulation or whatever falsehood they fed you. If you haven’t been back to Earth in months, it’s likely that your connection to that place is cut or turned off or whatever.” She declared.
“You think so?” John pulled his frown deeper.
The vamp snorted. “I know this to be so. You would be wise to realize that this place isn’t like your world. You would have to perform a task to prove yourself, but if you asked the King for mercy I believe he would consider it. Your escape from the Legion alone proved how resourceful you are. The King is a man who values the highly capable.”
No way would even this monster believe he changed his mind this quickly.
“I ... don’t think I could do that.”
The vamp shook its head reprovingly. “You are an idiot then. And when we return to the Wall, you’ll regret not taking the chance he’s given you.”
“Maybe so.” He hedged. “Uh, can you tell me your name? I presume you already know mine.”
“Oh yes, John Morgan. I know your name.” The Vampyr assured him.
A sly smile bloomed on that horrible visage. “As for me, I’m called L’vira.”
John gave her a disbelieving look. “Elvira? Really?”
He got a finger wag back. “L! L’vira. But it’s funny, no?”
John forced a chuckle. “Yeah, I guess so.”
He spent the next few hours tiredly lying his ass off. Some things he told the truth on: his crippled status (which earned no sympathy, unfortunately), that he was the twenty-sixth ‘subject’ in the project, and admitted to knowing the main project personnel since none of that would help or hurt, here. As for his time in this world, he’d already told the King about doing the Challenges, so lying there would be stupid. He did play up his time with the Raiders, embellishing his enthusiasm for their bloodthirsty ways. But he avoided all mention of Veronyka being in this world, or his other friends. He let the implication be that he’d joined the Raider group by himself.
He did manage to find out that L’vira had been turned into a Vampyr shortly after first arriving. He never got her real name, but L’vira did admit to having once been a subject too. The details were sparse, but John wondered if being changed hadn’t prevented her from going back to Earth for some reason. He seemed to remember ‘Vampyr’ being one of the choices that the guys he’d brought over were presented with, but wasn’t sure. None of it made any sense to him, and from L’vira’s reticence he knew he was missing a large part of the story.
Dawn’s dim light began filtering through the trees before he was done. Kertug stirred then, eyes falling on him with the same studied indifference from the night before.
“You have not fed on him, good.” The half-Orc said.
A biscuit and a canteen came flying into his lap.
“Eat, drink.” Kertug ordered, doing the same himself.
Knowing how bad things could get, John obeyed without complaint. If they wanted to poison him, all the Vampyr had to do was give him another scratch.
When he was done, Kertug stood up and stretched.
“I will be gone for a few days.” He told L’vira. “Will you wait here, or meet me at the fort?”
The Vampyr looked shocked. “Gone? Where do you plan to go? After that last Dwarf? You know he won’t last long. He’s not important.”
“The Dwarf? I will kill him if I see him, but no that is not my purpose.” Kertug asserted.
“Then where? What are you doing? There’s nothing else here for us unless you’re ... going to...” The Vampyr’s voice faded out. “Challenge.”
Kertug was obstinate. “Where I go is my own business. Is this where you remain, or not?”
L’vira pointed at John. “This is our purpose, right here. What could you possibly be going to do that’s more important, other than the Challenge?”
“Wait. Or not then.” Kertug turned away.
The Vampyr was shocked. “You expect me to keep him prisoner, by myself?”
The half-Orc shrugged, not pausing his march into the jungle. “Chain him to a tree, they seem solid enough.”
Which is how John ended up chained with his arms and legs wrapped around a medium-sized trunk, while L’vira snoozed against another tree several yards off. The Tooth and Cleaver appeared sometime later, but he couldn’t reach them in their spots on his belt.
Day 203:
John dozed with his face resting against the rough bark as the day wore on. It wasn’t the most comfortable place, but he was drained emotionally and needed the recharge. L’vira slept until the day’s light faded without once checking on him that he could tell.
If it was the last thing he did, John was going to kill this murderous vamp. Then track down her half-Orc partner and visit more pain on that brute than he could imagine. Various torturous fantasies were running through his mind when he noticed a figure in dark clothing standing on the far side of the Vampyr’s tree. The person was carrying an odd two-headed spear, with about three inches between the blades. To his Sight, this was also a Vampyr, who raised a hand to cover its mouth when it noticed John Staring that way.
John had no desire to be eaten by a random roving blood-sucker. At least with L’vira he knew she was under orders to bring him back. Which fit nicely with his plan to kill her and Kertug as painfully as he could. He opened his mouth to shout a warning, but the new Vampyr was already moving. That strange spear neatly cupped L’vira’s neck from the back and the force of the blow put her face-down into the dirt.
Incoherent threats and demands wailed from her throat. Soon more of the newcomer’s friends slipped between the trees. They filtered in like ghosts until John and L’vira were surrounded. Several glanced John’s way, but once they’d satisfied their curiosity, or evaluated him as no threat their attention returned to where John’s jailer struggled on the ground.
A voice laden with revulsion spilled from one of the new vamps. “You were told not to return.”
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Day 121: Welcome back Traveler, please note that your Visitor status remains defunct. You have a total of seven previously-encountered portals that you may choose to exit using. You have also made a Moral Choice, which places you at odds with your current political master. This meets the Traveler criteria for World number 6,626,070,041,034. Please indicate which destination you desire. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” John exclaimed. “What the fuck does that mean? Argh!”` “Okay,...
Days 122-129: When he was growing up, no ‘action’-labeled entertainment was complete without at least one chase sequence. As time went on, these scenes got more and more outlandish, with all manner of vehicles speeding, dodging, and swerving in and out of the most complex environments imaginable. The drama lay in the audience’s expectation that the main character would narrowly avoid disaster by the barest of margins, often with at least one glancing blow that they miraculously survived. In...
Day 130-140: The Islanders of Sweetwater Port refused to allow anyone off the boat when they anchored. A swarm of canoes launched from shore a short while later. “No dock?” John asked. Vasin shook his head. “No, and the ground underneath the water is quite shallow near the shore as well. The natives consider it part of their protection.” One Islander, obviously the leader climbed up onto deck first, followed by a small, well-armed entourage. “You are a Raider vessel.” The Islander...
Day 140: The angry blue reptilian form charged across the small island, neatly sliding around the central gazebo without pause. She jerked to a stop on the cliff overlooking Nefiume as the undead emperor hoisted Ozur’s body above his head. Typhon raised one double-thumbed claw, pointing at their foe. Nefiume appeared to finally notice the dragon, head jerking in a double-take right before a fountain of water welled up from the sea beneath. The instant wave crashed over the emperor’s body,...
Day 91: After armoring up, including her sword, spear and shield, and stepping out of her tiny barracks cell the Flight Leader led her up a stairway she’d been warned never to use. They passed several passages branching off, until reaching the very top. Geiravuir hammered the iron bound door they found there, and a grim faced Hrund opened it from within. She frowned at Veronyka, but motioned both women to enter. Beyond was a spartan office, holding a desk, several chairs, a weapons rack on...
Day 91-92 / Unknown / Day 140 continued: Shouldering their way through the crowd of standing death made Veronyka’s skin crawl and her stomach heave. The stench was awful, clogging her nose with its eye-watering pungency. Bits of desiccated skin, scraped off by the rough exterior on their armor, clung until scraped off by yet more decaying flesh. The wet smack of still-damp tissues hitting the ground, and liquid squishing as their boots crushed the bio-litter underfoot were enough to make...
Day 90-91: Welcome back Traveler. As you have achieved a journeyman rank from completing a recognized course of study in a field applicable throughout the Network, your provisional status has been removed. You have a total of four previously-encountered portals that you may choose to exit using. You have also met the Traveler criteria for any other portals connected with your organization on World number 5. Please indicate which destination you desire. Veronyka grinned. “The one outside the...
Day 91-92 / Day 140 continued: The ice melted, revealing a woman easily mistaken for Hrund’s twin, with pitch black hair instead. Eyes as clear and cold as the glacier above their heads regarded her expressionlessly. Her shield was round on top, but elongated below like an inverted teardrop, and had a large metal boss in the center. Her other hand carried a long spear, with an axe head sticking out at the base of the blade, and a spike sticking out the other side: a halberd. It was the first...
Day 141-143: The sun was just beginning to light up the Tower’s watery exterior when John and Veronyka got up. The former doctor had strung up a hammock, with enough material for two, between two of the pavilion posts at the island’s north end. In an amazing display of nonverbal communication, Sygraid, Hal and a few others comprehended Veronyka’s desire for privacy. They kept others away while the two lovers reunited. They spent the night pressed together, touching, caressing and finally...
Day 143: John couldn’t be sure from the distance he watched, but this dragon felt like it was the largest yet. If not the biggest, then definitely the scariest. Her head reminded him of the worgh, with sharp spines lining every contour. A ‘mane’ of more horns flared at the base of her skull, leading to a row of them dotting her spine. Her wings were folded, and every joint, including her legs was defined by a jutting tapered spike. Her scales were deep red, with shiny platinum and gold...
Day 149-153: Sergeant Major (Retired) Jeffrey Ellis jumped to his feet as Veronyka barged into the meeting. The unruly looking filthy men and women who’d been seated at the large table with him all stood quickly as well. Dead eyes and hopeless expressions greeted her entrance. It had taken her a week to fly across the Bay of Chaos and track the Ender population down. The high-altitude westward Jetstream sped her trip, but every Raider city she checked, starting at Final Harbor was deserted...
Day 153-158: Though John was unmistakably a prisoner, the Legionnaires never tied or locked him up. They appointed two minders, who rotated every day. This meant he couldn’t make friends, since it was never the same two repeated. But it did mean he could interrogate them, subtly of course. None seemed to be operating under any restrictions on their tongues, so he took full advantage. The unit who captured him occupied a full section of subterranean ‘apartments,’ which emptied out onto the...
Day 179: On the twenty-sixth day that John woke up in chains, he finally followed the formation out into open air. They’d diverted off the Great Road that morning, using a much rougher-hewn ramp to the surface. His head barely cleared the tunnel roof to find a road running straight and true sloping across broken foothills and out into farmland-rich plains. Off in the distance, he could see a wide levee-bordered river formed by the joining of several runoff streams trickling down from the...
Afternoon (Chronological coordinate set undetermined): Welcome back Traveler. You have a total of four previously-encountered portals that you may choose to exit using. This list excludes your Sanctioned portal, and one deemed too hazardous for your use at this time. You have also met the Traveler criteria for any other portals connected with your organization on World number 5. Please indicate which destination you desire. Veronyka sighed in relief. Her entry into the Network via the...
Day 193-200: John had a problem, and Dulgan was its source. Oh, the Dwarf was a fine traveling companion. After departing the camp, the Dwimar led them to a well-concealed entrance back underground. The Obsidian Peaks were honeycombed with passages and caves where far more Clans than John had figured made their homes. They zig-zagged their way between Dvergyr and Dwimar clan areas, never moving in a straight line. At first, Dulgan’s inquisitive nature charmed John while they walked. The...
Day 217: John and Dulgan were being followed. They were a day’s walk into the swamp, on a direct line toward the Hidden Ziggurat. Though he’d been occupied at the time, Vorigan sent his retainers to escort the duo back to their drop-off point via his boat. In addition, Jashul and the three Vampyri who comprised Cain’s embassy to the Dwarven clans traveled with them to the same landing spot. The four would cut across the north end of the swamp and enter the Onyxhart gate to begin their...
Day 219: “Head for that one! Run!” John shouted, pointing at the door to their right. The group veered to that side, picking up speed as they moved downhill. Jashul lagged behind the sprinting duo, and John’s longer legs carried him in the lead as they ran. The gap between all three widened as they closed with the two undead bracketing that opening. On the ledges above, the patrols congregated, staying on their level but clustering abreast of the group as the trio neared the ground-level...
Day 225: “That ... you ... you ... how? Goddamit!” John cursed, unable to explain. “Your Task was your own.” The Patriarch admonished. “Not for any other to know. As you have finished the most difficult part, you are eligible for all three rewards. Are you prepared to select them now?” John held up his other hand. “Just a moment.” He turned around and closed his eyes. Don’t kill him. Don’t even attack him. You have no idea what would happen if you did. Let it go. Something even the...
World number 6,626,070,041,034 Day 140: Welcome back Traveler, please note that your Visitor status remains defunct. You and your companion have met the Traveler criteria for World number 6,626,070,041,034. You both will now be transported to that destination. Sygraid’s massive form disappearing from the platform was the only indicator that he’d arrived. He looked around at the uniform, unfathomable darkness for a clue, and noticed that the flames on the portal arch were now a complete...
Day 236: John and Adam brought up the rear of their little procession as they began the second day of their trek into the Endless Sands, the morning after leaving Southern Oasis. Vorigan and Dulgan were in the lead, with the Vamp interrogating the Dwimar about his newfound enchanting abilities, as well as the subject generally. On John’s advice, the day before when purchasing supplies for the trek, they’d gotten several serviceable daggers for each person, which Dulgan agreed to enchant...
Day???: John dug a divot into the sand with his heel, then climbed back up onto the square stone platform. As a test, he walked through the ‘doorway,’ facing away from the Pyramid. Instantly he was turned around, and a glance at the hole in the ground showed he hadn’t moved to another spot. Okay, what do you think? He thought at Duin. And got no response. So he hopped down onto the sand. What do you think I should do? He asked again. Stand on the dust-cloud side of the platform and walk...
Day??? Adam was leaning in the open doorway when John walked up. “You solve it already?” John asked hopefully. Adam snorted. “I wish!” “Oh? What happened?” John wanted to know. Adam’s headshake was rueful. “You were right; it wasn’t that easy. After I pushed the octagon, there was a sound of lots of feet stomping around, and rock grinding like bricks rubbing together. While I was feeling my way over to the last button, I ran into a column that wasn’t there before. It was about a yard and...
Day??? “Well, that was ... interesting.” John said to Adam as he approached from the floor’s entry spot. The SEAL was leaning against the opposite side of the corridor by the now blank door that had borne Dulgan’s name. “Can you ... talk about it?” Adam asked. John shook his head. “I got a headache last time, so let’s go do yours.” “I wonder.” Adam mused. “Do you think all three of the hidden doors are on this level?” “Let’s keep an eye out.” John suggested. Back in the SEAL’s...
Day??? John stepped through the portal and found himself in a place very similar to the Labyrinth entry, where he’d written his name in the sand, and accepted the Rules. Same doorway with walls extending into the distance, like the first and third base lines on a baseball diamond. Unlike the other however, his stone platform this time was only as big as the ones out in the desert, that he’d looped through three times to enter. Beyond its small, square boundary was an endless sea of sand...
Day 251: As Adam and Master Chief Chatman walked out of the planning meeting for Adam’s upcoming trip to the portal stone in South America, Adam signaled the older man with his chin. “Want to grab a quick bite before we split?” He asked, overly casually. “ ... Yes, let’s.” Chatman replied, after figuring out what Adam really wanted. Chatman put the sound dampener between them while they ate. “Is it just me,” Adam inquired, “or is there definitely something going on that I’m not privy...
Day 258/259: John and company were most of the way to the double-peak Ariel indicated as their navigation landmark when a massive wind and rain storm rolled in from the north. Within minutes, visibility in the air dropped to a yard or two, and the gusts were so rough that they decided to land and continue on foot. The group spent that night miserably trying to camp on the best rocky hill they could find. The rain stopped before dawn, but if anything the wind picked up with the sun’s rise....
Day 259/260: “Ho there, we see you!” The voice floated down from the darkness above. The sound carried an echoing quality indicating that the speaker was using a megaphone, or something like it. None of the four were surprised, given how high the walls of Gluboskal were. After separating from the Wardens: Ililyan and Sygraid, plus Rhys the other four companions flew up and around the double-peaked mountain, Gananora Heralis which Dulgan informed them was the backbone of the city’s...
Day 261: Right before the group departed Dadem’s house, Veronyka took a minute to leave Hal a message before bringing up the rear. A very young Dvergyr, Hotric Oakfall worked as the house doorman slash receptionist slash butler. He promised to pass along Veronyka’s words when Hal returned, and to keep an eye out for any unusual interest in their group. That Dulgan and Thedus had a longstanding relationship was apparent to all, as the two chatted continuously during their hike out of the...
Day 261: With herculean effort, John staggered upright, and brushed off the debris coating his arms and helmet. He searched frantically through the too-slowly-dissipating dust cloud for his friends. After tripping twice on the churned-up slope, he stumbled onto both, crumpled into a pile and covered with a thick layer of earth. Heart in his throat, he pulled the pair apart and laid them side by side on a slightly less-torn patch of ground. Uncapping his canteen, he splashed water over...
Day 262/263: “What the hell’s an Arcane Magi?” John wondered. Duin’s unmissable mixture of excitement and trepidation was palpable. “As I said, tha’s tween you’n th’ other one.” Dulgan insisted. “Then why doesn’t he want me to let you leave?” John wondered. Dulgan blinked in surprise. “He doesn’o’? I dunno. Le’s ask.” Repeat my words, so the Magi can hear them as well. Duin instructed. “Before the Arrival, there was a powerful, and secretive organization of Dwarves called the Dark...
Day 263: “See ‘em how?” Dulgan pressed. John’s hands motioned aimlessly. “Like they’re really here. In this room with us right now. There. There, and there.” He pointed. Dulgan walked over to one spot he’d indicated. Vafthundryr shifted, so they wouldn’t ‘collide’. “Here?” The Dwimar asked. “He moved.” John’s finger indicated. Dulgan peered in the direction curiously. “I see nothin’. Wha’ do they loo’ like?” John kept his finger indicating Vafthundryr. “A Frost Giant, Vafthundryr is...
Day 263/264: Mokul kept John awake for several hours as the man from Earth described his adventures. He avoided giving too much detail about Earth and his life before becoming trapped on this world. But otherwise, he saw no reason to lie about anything he’d experienced since coming through the portals. Dulgan knew almost all of it anyway, and John knew all too well how impossible it was for that one to keep a secret. The Dwimar Huntmaster listened intently throughout, though many of his...