A Quest for Chumps (Departed Dimensions Book 1)

by G. M. Reinstra

Nivin shook his head and gave her a quick pat on the shoulder before swiftly heading toward the vestibule.

  “Goodnight,” Rialta called after him.

  Rialta stood alone in the dark, empty lobby. She looked out the window once again, and a dull ache settled in her heart as she watched the gentle snow flutter through the still night air.

  Chapter 27

  The Curse of the Outlands

  “Rialta!”

  Rialta grumbled and blinked into the dull light of the morning. She began to remove her blankets but stopped the second she felt the harsh chill of her room. She shivered and huddled deeper into the covers instead.

  “Rialta!” John shouted again, knocking on the door.

  “What?” Rialta muttered.

  “Wake up! Time to get some breakfast!” John shouted at her door.

  “Meeeehhhhhhh…” Rialta muttered as she slumped back into bed.

  “Rialta wake up. Rialta wake up. Rialta wake up,” Remmy began to chant.

  “Rialta wake up! Rialta wake up! Rialta wake up!” John had joined in.

  “Rialta wake up! Rialta wake up! Rialta wake up!” They began to pound against the door in rhythm with their chant.

  “What do you want?” Rialta shouted as she flung open her door.

  “Rude,” John said, putting his hands on his hips.

  “Downright disburseful, really,” Remmy said.

  “That’s not a word,” Rialta muttered, rubbing at her eyes.

  “Well now you’re just being a contrarian,” Remmy said.

  “What?” Rialta asked, dazed by the light in the hall.

  “Don’t listen to him,” John said. “It’s time to eat. Put on your cloak and let’s go to that little restaurant on the corner with the really good eggs. I told Lorenza we’d meet her and Nivin there for breakfast last night.”

  “Breakfast is a good idea, but you should see something before we go. Give me a second, okay?” Rialta said. She went back into her room and dressed for the day, then took H’s note from her bedside table, opened her door, and handed it to John.

  John’s eyes widened as he read the note. “Oh shit. Things are about to get serious, huh?” He handed the note to Remmy.

  “Wow,” Remmy said softly. “So this is it?”

  “Looks like it,” Rialta said.

  “Well get ready and meet us downstairs,” John said. “We’ll need to discuss this with Nivin and Lorenza.”

  “About that…” Rialta said, and she grabbed John’s sleeve as he began to turn away from her.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “Well, a lot of things have happened to us since we’ve come here. A lot has changed for us,” Rialta said, looking at the floor. “And before we discuss this with the others, I just want to be absolutely sure…”

  “Sure about what?” Remmy asked.

  “I want you both to tell me that going back home to Ro is truly what you want more than anything else,” Rialta said, looking them both squarely in the eye, first John, then Remmy. “I need to know that’s what you both truly want before—well, before I allow you to put yourselves in danger.”

  John clenched his fists. “It’s what I want, Rialta. I have things to take care of back home.”

  Remmy nodded. “It’s the same for me,” he said, smiling at her. “I have my reasons for wanting to go home too—some of which probably don’t make a whole lot of sense to anyone but myself. But it’s definitely what I want more than anything else.”

  Rialta smiled back at Remmy.

  “And what about you, Rialta?” John said, arching an eyebrow at her. “Do you want to go back too? This is a team effort. We don’t go on this last little mission unless we’re of one mind, right Remmy?”

  “Damn straight,” Remmy said with a solemn nod. “We don’t go anywhere unless you’re on board too, Rialta.”

  Rialta took a sharp, deep breath to keep from tearing up. She leaned in to hug them both but didn’t account for the height differential between her and John. The result was that she hugged Remmy with her right arm while groping aimlessly in the air somewhere around John’s elbow with her left. John awkwardly squatted down to accommodate her.

  “I want to go home too,” Rialta said. “And I want you to know that no matter what happens, you two are the best friends I’ve ever had in my entire life.”

  “Pardon me, folks,” an old custodian said as he used his broom to sweep around the huddled mass of Rialta, Remmy, and John.

  “I mean—really?” Rialta said indignantly.

  “Yeah, learn to read a room, idiot,” John barked at the custodian, who completely ignored him. John stood back up to his full height and cleared his throat. “But uh, for what it’s worth, Rialta… the feeling’s mutual,” he said, blushing.

  “What was that?” Rialta said, leaning toward John with a smug grin.

  “I said let’s go get some damned breakfast, you pain in the ass,” John said, and he stormed off toward the stairs.

  “We love you too, John,” Remmy said with a broad smile.

  “Shut up! Breakfast! Now!” John shouted.

  “Oh come on,” Rialta said, trotting after him beside Remmy. “You don’t need to be ashamed of your feelings.”

  “I just want eggs!” John shouted. He ran ahead through the lobby and out the vestibule door.

  “You three all right?” Amy asked as Rialta and Remmy ran through the lobby behind John.

  “Fine!” Rialta shouted through a fit of laughter. “See you a bit later, Amy!”

  ∗ ∗ ∗

  An hour had passed since Rialta, Remmy, and John left the Pampered Quail to join Lorenza and Nivin at Ellen’s Diner, a little restaurant the five of them had taken to meeting at in the mornings, since the Pampered Quail did not serve breakfast. This particular morning brought with it an unusual dining experience, given that most of the locals had been present for Rialta’s display of power the night before. Nearly everyone in the restaurant gave her and her friends a wide berth. The wait staff in particular treated Rialta with an absurd level of respect, all of them giving her fresh napkins between every bite she took or hovering over the table with a fresh carafe of coffee, despite Rialta’s constant reassurances that she was more than satisfied with their service.

  “Well this has been tremendously awkward,” Rialta said moodily while she picked at her breakfast of oatmeal, toast, and assorted fruit.

  “That’s the royal life for ya,” John said, finishing off his fifth plate of eggs.

  “So this is it, eh?” Lorenza said as she inspected the note from H. She handed it to Nivin, who read the note with particular interest. His arms began to tremble as he read.

  “Looks like it,” Rialta said. “He wants us to go to precisely the same place that you went to for your final mission all those years ago.”

  “Well I suppose we’re at something of an advantage this time,” Lorenza said. “Nivin and I have already been through this ordeal once before, and we can tell you three what to expect once we get up into the mountains,” she said, picking up her mug of coffee and gulping half of it down at once.

  “So where do we go from here?” Remmy asked.

  “Way up north,” Lorenza said. “The journey takes just about two days, so we’ll need to camp out for at least one night on the way there.”

  “No problem, I’ll bring along the tents,” John said. “Anything else we need to be concerned about?”

  Lorenza sighed and stared into her mug. “I’m sure you’ve already gathered that this particular mission is extremely dangerous. Surviving that place is going to be one hell of a task. Hell, just getting there means passing through the northern outlands, and that alone is no simple feat. Are you three sure you want to do this?”

  “We already had an overly emotional conversation about the gravity of our intentions back at the Pampered Quail,” John said, tossing his fork onto his now-empty plate. “We’ve made up our minds. It’s time to meet this H guy and earn our passage home—or beat i
t out of him, if that’s what it takes. Show us where to go and we’ll follow. It’s time to end this.”

  Nivin grinned at John, then looked expectantly toward Lorenza.

  Lorenza took a deep breath and massaged her temples with her hands. “Are you all packed up for a lengthy journey? Because if we’re going to leave the Chasm, we need to be sure we’re prepared.”

  “We’ve been packed for weeks,” John said. “I got both of the tents, three gallons of water, and ten pounds of rations ready to go back at the Quail, so we’re ready to go if you two are.”

  “We’re all set as well. I just need to pick up a few things from home,” Lorenza said, rising from her seat and tossing a handful of coins down on the table. “Shall we get going then?”

  “Absolutely,” Rialta said resolutely. “It’s time for us to go home.”

  ∗ ∗ ∗

  Nearly twelve hours had passed since the Rialta and the others had packed up and left the Chasm. Rialta shivered violently as she trudged along through the snow beside John and Lorenza. Nivin and Remmy trailed close behind her. She cursed herself for how optimistic she had been about this journey back when she was enjoying the warmth and comfort of the café. The outlands were far more brutal and grim than anything she could have possibly imagined.

  Everything here was dead and bleak. The trees in the distance were entirely bare, and their empty limbs swung violently in the strong winds blowing through the valley. Occasionally, a limb would snap and tumble to the ground, causing all of them to jump in surprise. The wind itself was unnaturally cold and unrelenting, carrying with it the occasional burst of sleet or snow. Rialta looked from side to side as everyone relentlessly marched forward. They each clutched their arms around their torsos in a desperate attempt to warm up. Even John would shudder now and then when the wind passed over them.

  No matter how many layers of clothing they retrieved from their bags and draped over themselves, a haunting chill lingered in their bones. It was as if the cold they felt came from some internal place rather than the weather without. Rialta had attempted several times to shield them all from the incessant cold with her fire magic, but to no effect. Her shields would immediately dissipate in the unnatural, chilling aura that seemed to cover this desolate place. Despite their discomfort, each of them pressed onward in a huddled mass, determinedly ignoring the fact that whatever sadistic magic ruled this place would not allow for warmth under any circumstances.

  When the sky finally grew pitch-dark on the horizon, they stopped to set up camp for the night. They did not bother attempting to light a fire. They simply bid each other goodnight and hurried into their tents.

  Rialta desperately crawled into the tent behind Lorenza, her limbs shivering violently as she made her way inside. It was her hope that the meager shelter would provide them with some semblance of peace and safety, but her hopes were dashed within seconds of lying down. The eerie whisper of the wind outside the tent sent her imagination into overdrive. A thrill of terror overcame her, and her heartbeat quickened with every gust she heard. Surely, demons, beasts, and any number of unknown horrors lurked only inches from the flimsy flaps of the entrance to their tent. Without thinking, she scooted closer to Lorenza, only to find she must have done the same. Rialta felt the sporadic cadence of Lorenza’s labored breathing from only inches away.

  “Lorenza?” Rialta said.

  “Yeah?”

  “I am humble enough to admit I am frightened.”

  “Me too.”

  The two of them inched closer, their contact serving as a necessary reminder that they were not alone. A fleeting and most welcome sense of amusement passed over Rialta when she realized that the boys were almost certainly doing the exact same thing in their own tent. Soon she resigned herself to the modest comfort of her sleeping bag and did her best to get some sleep before the morning came.

  Rialta found herself alone in a wide-open field on a warm and sunny afternoon. There seemed to be almost nothing in every direction—just a sprawling, green meadow stretching onward to the horizon of the blue sky. She frowned, confused. She did not know this place. Despite its beauty, it felt foreign and foreboding. She turned around, wondering where she should go. Without any landmarks to guide her, she resorted to looking up to the sky to discern the position of the sun. When she did, she saw that what she had previously assumed were clouds were not clouds at all.

  They were people. Or at least, the wispy, white ghosts of people.

  Hundreds, or perhaps thousands of them floated through the sky above, each of them staring down at her, expressions of malice and loathing distorting their faces. Terror and dread coursed through Rialta, and she awoke with a start to find that she was still in her tent. Lorenza was sleeping fitfully by her side. The wind and snow continued to assail their little shelter. Rialta took a few deep, sharp breaths and felt her heartbeat slow back to normal. She put her head back down, sure she would never fall back asleep. Yet soon, her burning, tired eyes betrayed her.

  And then she was working at Calari’s once again. She was wiping down a table in the dining room when she heard an anguished scream from the kitchen. She looked up to see what had made the noise when, to her horror, she saw a massive fire billowing from the little window in the double-hinged door separating the kitchen from the dining room. Black smoke poured from the inch of space where the door hung above the wood-planked floor. The shrieks continued. It was a terrible, impossibly loud scream that seemed to shake the walls of the restaurant. Rialta wanted desperately to help this person, but she could not think of anything to do to combat the gigantic blaze. Before she knew what was happening, the vision faded to black.

  She was suddenly standing a foot away from her father. The gaze of his gigantic, indigo eyes bored into her like a drill. He opened his mouth to say something, but all that issued from it was a maddening, high-pitched howl.

  Rialta was awoken from her nightmare by a sound so peculiar she found herself questioning whether it hadn’t been part of her dream. The night was quieter now, and the air was still. She listened intently for what felt like several minutes, but she heard nothing. Just as she was about to close her eyes and go back to sleep, she heard it again.

  The sound of a woman giggling.

  Rialta sat bolt upright and looked at Lorenza, who was still asleep. A chill crept over her as she grabbed her wand and crawled toward the flap of the tent. She went outside and found Nivin sitting on a large stump with his back to her. Sitting beside him was someone Rialta had never seen before. It was a woman with long, silver hair. She and Nivin appeared to be engaged in a hushed, intimate conversation, their faces only inches apart.

  “Nivin?” Rialta said. The woman beside Nivin turned around so quickly that Rialta jumped in place. This woman, Rialta thought, was incredibly beautiful. Her hair fell neatly on either side of her bright, blue eyes, and she wore a gentle smile as she looked back at Rialta. But despite this woman’s serene appearance, Rialta felt even more perturbed than she had when she exited her tent. She tightened her grip on her wand.

  “Who is this, Nivin?” the woman asked. “She’s not supposed to be here.”

  Nivin turned around and looked at Rialta. His expression was blank, and his eyes were glazed over.

  “Nivin?” Rialta said again, louder this time.

  The woman’s eyes drifted over Rialta, then paused when she saw the wand at Rialta’s side. Her expression soured at once. “You gave her my ruby, Nivin? Is this how you honor my memory?”

  “What are you talking about?” Rialta asked. “Who are you?”

  “She shouldn’t be here, Nivin. You need to make her leave,” the mysterious woman said, and she leaned down to rest her head against his chest.

  Nivin gently shook his head as he looked up at Rialta. “She’s just a friend of mine, it’s okay, Sera.”

  Rialta gasped and took several steps backward as she regained her composure. “Nivin, listen to me,” she said. “Listen. I can’t imagine how this feels
for you, but you know, deep down, that—that Sera’s gone. You must know that there’s nothing that can bring someone back from death. Clearly you must know that something is very, very wrong here.”

  “There’s nothing wrong, Nivin,” Sera whispered, gently caressing his face with her hand. “Nothing wrong.”

  “See, Rialta?” Nivin said, his voice flat and monotone. “There’s nothing wrong. Everything’s okay.”

  “Not quite everything,” Sera said. “You need to make her go.”

  Rialta looked directly into Nivin’s eyes. “Nivin, you need to get up and come over to me right now. This isn’t a dream, or some kind of wonderful magic. This is something very bad. This is something evil,” Rialta said slowly. She did her best to speak calmly despite her panic.

  “Go to you?” Sera said, narrowing her eyes.

  “Rialta, who are you talking to?” Lorenza said as she exited the tent. “What’s wrong? She added, seeing the expression on Rialta’s face. Then she turned toward Nivin, and her face fell.

  Lorenza stood up and walked to Rialta’s side. “That’s not her, Nivin,” Lorenza said. “I don’t know who that is, or what kind of god-awful magic this is, but that’s not her.”

  “Enough of this, Nivin,” Sera said through her teeth. “Make them go. Make them leave.”

  Remmy and John were coming out of their own tent now. “What’s going on out here? Who is she?” John asked, pointing to Sera.

  Remmy rushed past John. “Who is that?” he demanded in a tone much more confident than John’s.

  Nobody responded. “Who?” he said again, looking at Rialta.

  “Someone who says she’s Sera,” Rialta said. “But—”

  Remmy immediately took out his tome, opened it to the page marked with the thin gold tassel, and stretched his free arm out toward Sera. “Reveal yourself, demon,” he said.

  “Demon?” Rialta said. “What?”

  “Nivin,” Sera said, recoiling away from Remmy and hugging Nivin around the arm, “I don’t like this. Please, make them go away. Let’s just go back to talking. Make them go.”

  Nivin slowly stood and faced the rest of the group, his hands drifting toward the pommels of his swords.