The blow on the side of my skull was solid.
Definitely a rock.
The cave went pitch black again and my stomach felt nauseated as my body dropped. A great thud against my back sent a shockwave through me, crashing my teeth together, except for where my tongue got in their way. All the different pains quickly faded, along with the thought I was trying to hold on to about how bad a day I was having.
~
The pain came back to me, but it wasn't quite as bad as I remembered it. I tasted the copper of blood and could feel the cut from which it came as I pushed the tip of my tongue against the inside of my upper teeth. I had trouble breathing through my nose on one side. I scrunched it and felt both the dried clot of blood in one nostril and the piercing pain radiating from the broken bone or cartilage—whatever had gotten crunched.
I opened my eyes, but my vision was blurry at first. A throbbing on the left side of my head reminded me I'd been walloped by the guy with the rock. I was on my back, but the ground beneath felt soft.
My eyes cleared up and I saw a night sky through a clearing between the tops of several trees. There were a few bright stars and several dimmer ones. A cool breeze caressed my face, and the numerous pains I felt began to dull. A sense of calm washed over me, and I wanted nothing more than to be still and gaze at the stars.
"Who is he?" a woman said.
I preferred to ignore the voice and continue looking at the stars, but a grain of curiosity stirred me to shift my eyes a little to see who had spoken. She was dark-skinned, with short dark hair. She wore loose tan pants and a midriff sports top...with the UnderArmour logo on it.
Huh?
"I'm not sure," a man out of sight said. "The Dark Ones were after him, but he may still be a danger to our people. The council will decide what to do with him."
"Could he be with the others we found?" the dark-skinned woman asked. "You said something about another who was with them."
I started to answer her, but I lacked the energy to speak.
"We can't trust their words yet," the man said. "Not until they've proven themselves."
"And him?" the woman said.
"He'll have to do the same if he wants to stay with our people. And if he fails to do so, he can't be allowed to live. We can't risk the danger he might lead back to our people. We've worked hard to conceal our whereabouts from Kurg. Either he is with our people in truth, or he leaves this world."
I turned back to the stars above me. I felt peaceful and sleepy. The pains throughout my body faded. I closed my eyes to rest them for a moment.
Chapter 14
Something shoved my leg, waking me. I was on my back. I felt rested, no longer in pain. I didn't even feel sore. I remembered the conversation I'd overheard before I fell asleep.
Who were they? She must've been from Earth. That shirt.
I opened my eyes, expecting to see the stars I'd admired before drifting off. They weren't above me. Instead, I saw a light brown canvas-like material. I glanced around. I was in a tent.
"Good. You're awake," a woman said off to my left.
I turned to see her. It was the dark-skinned woman. Sitting on a small bench made of crossed pieces of wood and a canvas seat, she watched over me. I tried to sit up, but I couldn't. Ropes around my shoulders held me down. I glanced past my waist and confirmed what I was feeling on my legs were the same sort of tie-downs. Low-tech, but effective...at least in my current state, I thought.
I felt rested, but not as strong as usual. Maybe it's the residual effect of whatever they gave me, I thought. Been a long time since I've had some time with any of my women, I reflected, knowing I still received a little magical boost each time I was with them. Going over how I had peacefully listened to her and the unseen man earlier as I had drifted to sleep staring at the sky, I knew I must've been drugged.
"Who are you?" I asked. "Why am I tied down? Are my women here? Are you...from Earth?"
Shouldn't have mentioned my women. Maybe they're still safe, hidden.
She chuckled, then stood and walked closer to me. "You have a lot of questions, but it's your last one that's most interesting."
"So, you are."
She crossed her arms and nodded. "You could say I'm taking a break from college."
"Me too," I said, relieved she would no doubt help me now.
"But I have another question for you." She glanced at the ropes around my shoulders, then took another step closer and leaned over me. "Whose side are you on?"
"What?" I tried again to sit up, but the ropes were too strong and well tied. "Why am I tied up? Let me out of these." Then it hit me, what if she and the man I heard earlier are working for the Dark Lord, or maybe some other evil piece of crap? Wouldn't be the first time for one of us Earthers, I thought, picturing Ms. Thompson.
Shit. Are Alara, Nithia, and Tara in trouble? And the boy?
"What do you mean?" I wanted her to show her hand first. It wasn't like I was in a good position to do anything if we weren't on the same team.
She cocked her head a little and stared at me. "You know, the Fektals put me to the test too. It really doesn't matter what your answer is, I guess. You'll have to prove yourself soon enough, along with the others."
Others? Yes. I'm not the only one they found.
"Three women," I said. "And a boy. Are they here? I mean, strangers, like me?"
She nodded as she walked around me. Passing my head, she came back into view on my other side. She seemed to be taking more interest in me, checking me out—which felt awkward, given the circumstances.
"Are they okay?" Forgetting the ropes around my shoulders and legs, I tried to sit up again, but they stopped me.
"My name is Becca," she said, putting her right hand on my thigh. Her hand was soft and under normal circumstances would be welcome to roam, but I only wanted to get loose and find the others.
"My name's Den. Are they okay, or not? Get me out of these ropes!"
"What's the matter? You don't like being tied up?" She puckered her lips at me.
"No. Er. What? Just let me go. I'm no threat to you, but I will be if you don't free me."
Becca chuckled. "That's hardly a persuasive case. Maybe I'm into that."
I realized she was going to enjoy the situation the more I got hostile with her. I changed my tack. "Okay. You're right, but there's no reason for this." I glanced at the rope around my left shoulder. "I just want to make sure my friends are okay. Last I saw them...well, they were running to safety, and I was being chased."
She ran her hand farther up my thigh. "I bet you were."
I ignored the tingling sensation she'd stirred just above her hand. "Seriously? Come on. We're no danger to you or the Fektals. Wait. The Fektals?"
She removed her hand from my thigh. "Yes. Why? You know them?"
"I know of them...from a friend."
"Oh? Who's that?"
"Cormac." Saying his name made me feel sad that he was gone now. "He...saved my life once. More than once, maybe. The Fektals knew him, at least some of them did, I'm sure."
"Hm. Is that right?"
"Let me talk to whoever is in charge. This is all just a misunderstanding. I was being chased by-"
"The Dark Riders. Yes, I know. They told me. Two of our people found you."
"Yes. If you mean the two I ran into in the cave, the ones that knocked me unconscious, then yes. They found me."
"Better than if the Dark Riders got to you, though. Right?"
"Probably. Maybe. That remains to be seen." I glanced to the ropes tying my legs down and nodded toward them, meaning for her to untie them.
She was about to say something else, but we heard someone approaching. She turned toward the sound and I lifted my head so I could also see who was coming.
I couldn't be sure, but the man walking toward us might have been the same one who smacked my head with a rock. At least his hands are empty, I thought.
"How is he?" he said, standing just beyond my feet.
<
br /> "A little annoying," Becca said. "Not cooperative...at least not the way I wanted him to be. But I don't think he had any intentions toward us. I think it was coincidence you ran into him."
"Yeah, maybe. We did see a few Dark Riders as we were bringing him back here."
"He mentioned them."
"Yes," I said. "They were chasing us. Me."
"Don't worry," the man said to Becca. "They didn't spot us. They're probably long gone now. Anyways, they wouldn't have been able to find the passage back to here."
"I hope you're right," Becca said, sounding a little concerned.
I moved my feet to the left, so I could see the man better. He was a big guy, looked like he made a habit of strong-arming people. No wonder he knocked me out with one blow, I thought. I discarded any shame at the fact by reminding myself that it was the big rock he had that did the trick. "As I was telling Becca, I mean no harm to any of you." Almost a lie. I thought about pummeling the guy in the head to make us even. "I just want to find my friends. They're here, right?"
He looked at Becca and she responded to him with a shrug.
"Three women and a boy." I watched the man's face, hoping to learn something from his reaction. "Are they safe? Are they here?"
He stepped around to my side. "They're here, but whether they or you are safe remains to be seen."
"What do you mean?" I didn't like the vague answer he gave and I disliked even more what the vague answer said about my women's safety. "Let me see them. Take me to them now." I glanced at the ropes binding my legs and wondered if I could break them with a strong effort. Playing nice wasn't working, I thought.
Would that be a smart move, though. Not while they're watching me.
"No." He shook his head. "I'm not going to do that." He looked at Becca. "Keep an eye on him for now."
"Okay," she said.
He turned to me again. "You'll see them soon enough...at least one last time."
"What the hell do you mean, 'one last time'!" I pulled against the ropes over my shoulders and I could feel them tightening, maybe even straining to where I might snap them with a little more effort.
He chuckled, glanced at the ropes which were holding strong, and looked at Becca. "You tie a good knot."
"Yeah," she said. "And they're soaked in that sticky tree sap."
He raised his eyebrows and grinned. "You like sticky though, right?"
I watched him turn and walk away, then I looked at Becca. The expression on her face surprised me. She appeared a little ashamed. I could only guess the two of them had something together, at least once. But from her reaction, it appeared she didn't want me to know that.
Couldn't have been that long ago. She's from Earth, after all. Must've gone sour fast. Maybe she could be persuaded to help.
She turned to me and, when she saw me looking at her, she quickly masked her dissatisfaction with what the other man had said. "They're safe. Your friends, they're okay. At least for now."
I was relieved to hear Alara and the others were alright, but I wondered what she meant by 'at least for now'. I decided I needed her more on my side, if I was going to get her to help me. The smoother things went with her, the faster I would be able to get free and find my women and the boy.
"Becca, you know this isn't right. Hell, all of this is crazy. I mean the whole Galderia thing. You said college. UT Austin, right?"
She seemed hesitant, but nodded her head.
"Me too. We might've even had a class together."
She looked me over for a moment. "I would've remembered."
I grinned. I could tell by the way she looked at me that she meant what she said as a compliment. "I, uh...changed a little when I came here."
"Oh?"
"Okay. I changed a lot. Didn't use to be all...strong like this. Not that I was a weakling or anything like that. But-"
"But you were transformed."
I was surprised at how much she took the idea in stride. "Yeah, that's right. Magic."
"It made you the Guardian."
What the? How'd she make that jump?
I didn't know if the fact that she knew I was the Guardian made me in less or more danger. "You know about-"
"One of your friends told me about you."
Alara wouldn't talk about that with a stranger.
"The redhead," Becca said.
"Tara."
She, on the other hand, I could see blurting something out. Probably in defiance or something like that.
"She did, huh? Yeah, well. I didn't exactly volunteer for it, but..."
"You were brought to Galderia against your will. A complete surprise. Like me." She stepped close to me again. "That makes the two of us special." She started looking at me with affection, like me being here helped her make sense of everything.
I knew better than to burst her bubble by telling her she was only one of many women who had been transported from Earth to Galderia. Most people would probably take comfort in knowing they had plenty of company in the same situation, but Becca struck me as a different sort of woman. Until I knew for sure how unbalanced she might be, I decided to keep the details of Sydney, Monica, Victoria, and all the rest to myself.
"Yes. One day I was in my apartment. Next thing I knew-"
"You were fighting for your life," she said.
"Uh. Not at first, but something like that."
Something like going to town non-stop with Alara in her love shack.
"It was rough adjusting at first," I lied.
"And after all this time, the two of us run into each other. I really can't believe it." She leaned over me, and I'm not sure if she was pulling the tail of her shirt down on purpose or by accident, but it drew the cloth tight against her chest. I could see that she was either a little cold or a little excited. Based on how she was acting, my odds were on the latter.
"Do you think about whether it's possible to get back to Earth?" I asked to try to change the tone of how things appeared to be going, wanting to stay focused on getting free and finding my women, but my own question backfired in my mind, probably due in part to how hot she looked.
I could send her back. 'Hey, baby, let's get horizontal, so I can solve your problems. Yeah, that whole thing is an ethical pain in the ass. My luck, maybe I ran out of return trip tickets and end up in an awkward conversation about how I used the creepiest pickup line in history.
"How?" she said. "We don't even know how we got here, or where exactly we are. I mean aside from a world they call Galderia. I think we just have to accept this and make the best of it. At first I was afraid, but the Fektals found me and took me in. They've been welcoming. Brought me in as one of their own...after I passed the test."
"Test?"
Becca's expression shifted. She appeared troubled again. "Yes. It doesn't really make any sense. I mean, how you pass or fail seems to be more chance, but they insist it's not. You'll have to do it. So will the others, your friends."
"What is it? What happens if you fail?"
She held her right arm in front of her, turning her palm up. "I've never seen anyone fail the test. I don't think anyone has taken it since I've been here, aside from me. But here," with her left hand she pointed to her right wrist. "This is where the creature will strike, they say. That's how they know if you belong with them or not."
"What? You mean some creature attacks people on the wrist and that's how they decide who joins the club? That's the craziest bullshit I've heard."
She nodded. "Yes. It's wild." She didn't sound as freaked out at the idea as I felt.
"Wild? It's the dumbest thing imaginable. And for the ones who get bitten? Is it bitten or stung? What?"
She shook her head. "They..." She glanced away for a moment. "They say the creature knows who deserves to stay and who deserves..."
"To what? Die?"
I was more determined than ever to get free of the ropes and find Alara, Nithia, and Tara. And the boy.
These people are screwed in the head.
She looked at me again and shrugged, but I could tell from her eyes that my guess was right.
"I did it," she said. "I never saw the creature. Maybe they made it up. You know, some sort of confidence test or something. You stick your arm into this massive gourd, or whatever it is. It's like a giant boulder with a bunch of different holes in it. You choose which one."
What she described sounded familiar, then it hit me. "Like in Flash Gordon?"
"Huh?"
"The movie, Flash Gordon, the part with the Baron." I could tell from the look on her face that she hadn't seen the movie. "Nevermind."
Three large men came into the ten. "It's time," the one in the middle said.
"Time?" I looked at Becca for her to confirm the guy was talking about the testing ceremony she'd described. I was hoping the man was referring to something else, something less likely to kill me.
Becca turned her attention to the rope holding my right shoulder down. She untied it, then moved to the other side and did the same.
I sat up, facing the three men who were standing nearby, evidently waiting for her to finish freeing me. They must be here to escort me, I thought.
As Becca went to remove the ropes from my legs, I leaned closer to her, catching her eyes. "Do I have any choice in this?" It seemed as if she wanted to answer me, but she said nothing.
The three men surrounded me before the last rope was undone.
Guess that answers that.
"You will come with us for the test," the talkative one said.
I considered punching through them instead, to go my own way and rescue my women and the boy, but the three men matched me physically, and they looked like they were more than ready to tangle with me. In fact, it almost seemed like they were hoping things went that way. I also worried that if I didn't cooperate, at least for the moment, something might happen to Alara and the others before I found out where they were. Becca said we'd all be made to take the test, I remembered.
The three men shifted their positions as little as I stood. It was clear they were ready to tackle me if I tried to run. I might've been able to take them, given my barbarian status and the fighting experience I'd had thus far in Galderia, but I still thought playing along gave me a better chance of finding my Alara, Nithia, and Tara, and the boy, before anything more happened to them.
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