by John Nest
– Part of the Corpos Quentes Archipelago, this Insel has been named Rauchburg by its Light Bringer—König Mitleid.
Smoke took special notice of Mitleid’s new title. Before he could ask Mitleid, his eyes fixated on the fog at the center of the town. ‘No wonder it’s so cold,’ he thought. Then two kids bumped his legs and continued on chasing after another. Instantly, he realized that the residents of Rauchburg were predominantly children. Generally, the people of the floating island looked happy and content.
“They’re mostly from Wysteria,” explained Laernea. “Victims of Burmistrz’s Brandals.”
“I see…” said Smoke, not really knowing what to say. “What about their parents?”
“Don’t know,” answered Sharur. “Maybe they’ve joined up with other places like this? Mitleid’s the one who found them.”
“Something wrong with him?” Mitleid asked Laernea. “I’ve never seen him like this.”
“He’s fine,” said Laernea, defensive.
Smoke also noticed that the few adults there were busy making arrows out of branches. Among the residents of Rauchburg, a young man with a familiar face walked over to him.
“Sir Smoke!” called out the young man. “It’s me, Jeter Pion!”
Smoke recalled the young Avendre Commander who lost his life when they defended Centzo City against the Brandals.
“Jeter! Can’t believe you’re here as well,” said Smoke, giving Jeter a hug.
“Well, what did you expect? Most people here are people whom you and your men have saved before,” interjected Sharur. “We’re all followers of the great Smoke!” he sarcastically added.
Before Smoke could react, a calming song played on a lute filled the air, and then there was singing.
“Swords and arrows wound the flesh, but hurtful words pierce the heart,” sang a middle-aged DarkElf playing the lute. “Before you say things you may regret, think twice and be clever and smart.”
“Who is this guy?” asked Smoke out loud.
“That’s Baba—Mictlan’s traveling Bard,” answered Mitleid, grinning, thoroughly engrossed in the song.
“So, my friends play nice and do think twice. Burn no bridges, make right choices. And let’s all take part in a communal fart!” sang Baba, finishing his song with a fart.
As soon as Baba had done his deed, the children and Mitleid broke into laughter.
“He actually farted!” chuckled Mitleid, shaking his head, and almost struck Smoke with one of his horns. “Baba’s so funny!” he added, wiping a tear from his eye.
Baba bowed as most of the residents of Rauchburg clapped loudly.
“Thank you, thank you. I’ll be here all week,” said Baba. He then walked over to Smoke and offered his hand. “Always a pleasure to meet a fellow DarkElf.”
“Right,” said Smoke, shaking Baba’s hand. “I’m Smo—”
“Smoke! I know, I know,” interjected an energetic Baba. “Everyone’s been talking about your heroics back in the day.”
“Yes, but before that, I’d like to talk to my friend,” Smoke stopped and searched for Sharur, but both Sharur and Laernea were nowhere to be seen.
“First, tell me how you got here,” said Baba, leading Smoke towards Mitleid and the laughing children. “It’s not every day you see a living Sonstwelter here you know.”
“That does sound interesting, but Smoke wants to know if there’s a way to get back to Zectas,” interrupted Mitleid. “Never thought that such a thing would be possible, but maybe you’d have some information about it?”
Plucking his lute, Baba shook his head. “Nope, sorry. But maybe Lord Xolotl would know?”
“Who’s that?” asked Smoke.
TADADA DING!
Baba plucked the strings on his lute. “The God of Sunset and Gatekeeper of Mictlan,” he sang dramatically.
Suddenly, the cold temperature dropped even further. Smoke turned to the center of Rauchburg as he noticed a parting in the mist. The log walls turned into blocks of ice as a spherical icy fog began to shape around the floating island. The Maneators outside the vine-bridge rushed inside as the sole entrance to the town was frozen solid.
“Smoke? How in the world did you get here?” cried out a young female voice, which came from an Ork who stepped outside of the cold mist.
“Do I know you?” asked Smoke, confused. But something about her felt familiar.
Without warning, the female Ork dispersed like the mist. She reformed her shape in front of Smoke and smacked him hard on the head. “I knew you were disrespectful but this is too much!”
“Wait, wait!” said Smoke, quickly backing away. “Meneur?”
“Physical contact. It always works,” said Meneur, grinning at Smoke.
Astonished, Smoke stammered. “But how? Why are you—”
“Young? Beautiful? Oozing with charm?” asked Meneur.
Smoke shook his head. “Why aren’t you blind?”
Before Smoke could react, he received four blitzing smacks to the head before he flopped on the floor.
Again, Baba’s soothing lute playing was heard. He quickly stepped in between Smoke and Meneur.
“Mictlan makes an image of you when you were at the prime of your life,” explained Baba. “Doesn’t matter if you got blind or even decapitated.” He then turned to Mitleid. “You sure you’re all gathered in Rauchburg because of him?”
Mitleid chuckled and helped Smoke up. “He’s special. It’s his unique way of saying hello.”
“Meneur, sorry,” rushed Smoke, lowering his head before the young Ork Priestess. “I didn’t mean for it to come out like that.”
“Yeah, yeah! Forget about it,” replied Meneur, crossing her arms. “It’s bad enough I lectured you about my religion. Tezcazinism was dead wrong. Look at us. We’re all here in the afterlife!”
Baba comically danced in front of Meneur and said. “Now, now, Tezcazinism wasn’t always like that,” he corrected. He plucked his lute and began playing a slow and solemn tune. “The very first Priests never really said that there was no afterlife. In fact, the basic belief is that you should treat your life as if you’re already living in Mictlan. Indulge in all that life has to offer, as you will be a different being when you’ve transitioned.”
“Fine fine. You can stop your annoying singing,” said Meneur. “Let’s just get on with Mitleid’s thing. I need to get back and form the barrier.”
“Right!” said Mitleid and got out the intriguing white orb he was carrying. “Everyone, gather round. It’s time to feast!”
At once, the residents of Rauchburg assembled into a circle. It did not take long, for there were less than fifty of them. Mitleid placed the glowing orb at the center. It began to spin at incredible speeds until a blinding flash of light came out of it. Flowing white gas entered the bodies of Rauchburg’s residents. It was only then that Smoke noticed that everybody’s Soul Points increased in value. When the orb was depleted of its power, it fell down with a clink.
“Deliverance finished!” called out Mitleid.
“Thank you, Light Bringer, we are forever grateful,” said one of the residents. Similar words of gratitude resonated as other citizens of Rauchburg thanked Mitleid one by one. It took a while before they went about their own thing.
“What was that?” asked Smoke.
Before Baba could answer, Jeter stepped in and spoke out. “Soul Deliverance. Refilling and increasing our maximum Soul Points.”
“What about Sharur and Laernea?” asked Smoke, worried. “Did they get their share?”
“They did,” replied Jeter. “They got their share and left.”
Meneur let out a deep sigh. “Was good seeing you Smoke, but I’d rather do my own thing now,” she said and walked back towards the center of Rauchburg, into the icy mist. After she disappeared in the fog, the frozen sphere that covered the floating island slowly dissipated into mist.
“What’s Meneur doing?” asked Smoke.
“She’s defending Rauchburg,” re
plied Jeter. “She’s been casting this frozen barrier ever since Sharur found Lady Meneur.”
“Wait, I thought magic doesn’t work in Mictlan?” clarified Smoke.
“Huh? Who said that?” asked Jeter. “Of course magic works! Why else would Lady Meneur be putting up this barrier?”
“Not completely true,” interrupted Baba. “Magic doesn’t work against chaneques and other beings born into Mictlan.”
“Really? Had no idea,” said Jeter. “Maybe, if some people would let me get out more, I’d have known something like that.”
“But more importantly, weren’t you asking me about Lord Xolotl?” Baba asked Smoke.
“I was, but right now I’m more concerned with Sharur and Laernea,” said Smoke.
* * * * * *
Hiding behind children playing, Laernea was tightly hugging Sharur. “You know I’d never leave you. You know I’ve changed.”
“Sure you have,” said Sharur. “But the lovesick kitten returns the moment you saw Smoke.”
“That’s not fair!” declared Laernea. “You know I didn’t act like that.”
“Well, from what I saw, you sure did,” flatly said Sharur.
“How can you say that?” gasped Laernea, hurt. “I thought you knew me.”
“Pfft! You and me both,” said Sharur. “We’ve been here for years now. But you…You’re still pining over him. Don’t you get it? Smoke only has eyes for Sierra!”
“What are you yammering about? That’s already in the past,” reasoned Laernea. “You told me to be with you always! Isn’t that why we trained our ass off to be Light Bringers?”
“Exactly!” screamed Sharur. “But why are you…Merde! Now, look what you’ve done. You got me talking like a sycophant!”
“I’m not doing anything,” said Laernea. “You’re the one acting all crazy,” she mumbled.
Sharur got up and headed for the vine-bridge, running outside Rauchburg.
Laernea huffed but quickly followed after him.
After racing through a few Insels, Sharur stopped at a grassy floating island.
“It’s like you’re just with me because you can’t have him,” blurted out Sharur.
“No! You know it’s not like that,” said Laernea.
Suddenly, Sharur stood on the edge and peered down into the abyss. “Would you jump if I jump?”
“Of course not!” said Laernea. She quickly ran to him and hugged him from behind. “I know you’d never leave me in the first place,” she added coyly, sliding down her tail on Sharur’s cheek.
Slowly, Sharur slumped on the grass and laid still. Laernea did the same and rested her head in his arms. They stayed that way in silence.
Yet, their peace was short-lived.
A few minutes later, a sweet tune filled the air. It was Baba with his lute. The DarkElf Bard serenaded them in the stillness of eternity.
When his song stopped, Laernea sat up and threw clumped up grass at him. “Way to ruin the mood.”
Baba cleaned the grass from his face. “Tut tut tut, I haven’t even told you my story yet,” he began and sat down alongside them. “Now, have you heard about the fox and the sour grape?”
“Of course!” replied Sharur, grinning. “Don’t tell me you’ve used up all your material?”
“No. Heck, no!” replied Baba, forcibly shaking his head. “But can you tell me how that story ends?”
“You’re kidding, right?” asked Laernea.
Baba smiled but shook his head again.
“The fox makes some lame excuse about the grapes being sour and leaves,” said Laernea.
“Smoke better not be the fox in this story,” added Sharur under his breath.
“Ah! But that’s not how the story ends,” recounted Baba. “First of all, the fox repeatedly tried its best to jump, but it just couldn’t reach the grape, right? So, it does make an excuse about how the grape must be sour.” He bobbed his head, acknowledging this as fact. “But, it doesn’t give up. Instead, the fox went to another vineyard, where it could reach the sweet juicy grapes in a single leap.”
“Say what now?” said Sharur.
“Guess what I’m saying is, it’s good to know when to stop jumping,” said Baba. “Only then will you find the right vineyard.”
The three of them sat there in silence. Baba looked away, as Sharur reached out for Laernea’s hand.
“By the way, Smoke was planning on going to Lord Xolotl’s domain,” said Baba, breaking the silence. “Thought it’d be a perfect opportunity for you two to test what you’ve learned so far. What do you say?”
Laernea turned to Sharur. “I’ll do whatever you want to do.”
“Let’s do it,” said Sharur, smiling at her. “I got the grapes I wanted.”
* * * * * *
On a barren floating island, Smoke and his friends were marching to a merry tune. Baba led the way towards Xolotl’s domain while playing his lute. Smoke and Jeter closely followed behind, with Sharur and Laernea guarding the rear.
“This is nice!” said Jeter, excited. “It has been a long time since I got out of Corpos Quentes. Fighting against Krampus and Brandals tend to be tiresome.”
“That’s well and good, but remember you haven’t done any training to be a Light Bringer yet,” said Baba. “So, don’t attack anything! The same thing applies to you,” he added, talking directly to Smoke.
Upon hearing this, Smoke wondered why Mitleid allowed him to attack the chaneques, sycophants, and various other creatures they met along the way. ‘Did he think I was a Light Bringer?’ he wondered.
“Too bad Mitleid can’t come,” said Jeter.
“What did you expect?” said Sharur. “You know he needs to refill the soul orb.”
“Shh! Quiet,” ordered Baba. “We’re nearing a few chaneques,” he said, stepping onto a grassy floating island. At once, Baba plucked a more serene song.
Smoke expected to see the red horned imps to jump out, but not one of them did.
“Sleepy… so sleepy,” said a child’s voice.
“Nighty night,” added another.
He heard snoring instead of hearing them asking to play.
“They’re sleeping,” whispered Baba, as if reading Smoke’s mental inquiry.
After several hours, they traversed only through barren Insels and grassy floating islands. Baba especially made sure to avoid the ones with the large ponds in them, and strongly told Smoke and the others to steer clear of them.
Having crossed a grassy floating island, they found themselves in front of an Insel with a massive lake in it.
Suddenly, Baba stopped in the middle of the vine-bridge. “Alright, we’ll rest here. Smoke probably needs to go back to his world anyway.”
“Thanks, Baba. I was going to ask,” replied Smoke. “But I’m good to stay for at least three more Insels.”
“No, this spot is fine,” said Baba. “I also have to get Sharur and Laernea ready.”
“But I want to—” protested Smoke but was stopped by Sharur.
“Please go,” said Sharur. “Don’t worry, we’ll be right here when you get back.”
“Oh, alright,” said Smoke, logging out.
Ignoring his headache and nosebleed, Smoke only spent a total of five minutes in the real world. He only took a piss and drank a glass of milk and immediately logged back in, but when he returned it had already been an hour.
“Welcome back,” greeted Laernea.
“That was quicker than expected,” said Sharur.
“So, we ready to go now, Baba?” asked Jeter.
“Not quite,” said Baba. “Mitleid told me that you could put up a Manatl barrier. Think you could cover yourself and Jeter while we’re on that Insel?”
“Definitely,” answered Smoke, putting up a spherical Manatl around himself and Jeter.
“Good. Let’s go,” said Baba, slinging his lute to his back. Then, he took out two thin strings and carried each of them with one hand.
“What’s that for?” asked S
moke, recognizing them as strings for his lute.
“Defense,” answered Baba. “Coyotls tend to dislike my music.”
Before Smoke could ask what a Coyotl was, he heard the croaking of frogs.
KOKAK KOKAK RIBBIT RIBBIT QUAKEN QUAKEN CROAC CROAC
Then, dozens of coyotls leaped out of the great lake. Their bodies were like medium-sized dogs but had the upper body of a coyote and the lower body of a frog. Yet, the throats of these coyote-headed monsters still ballooned like that of a frog’s as they made their croaking noises.
Carefully walking around the lake, Baba had his spare strings ready while Sharur and Laernea were equipped with their bows.
As they got closer, the coyotls instantly moved with blinding speed. But these coyote-frog monsters stopped when they were less than a meter away from Smoke and his friends.
Instead of attacking with their claws, the coyotls whipped out their long elastic tongues and went after Laernea and Sharur’s legs.
WHIPISH WHIPISH WHIPISH WHIPISH
Baba parried each of the monsters’ tongues with a whip of his strings. The coyotls that were hit immediately retreated backward.
SCHILD SCHILD
Smoke’s Manatl barrier held firm against the coyotls sharp tongues. Protected from the coyotls’ attacks, Smoke and Jeter cautiously followed after Baba, Laernea and Sharur.
After retreating, the injured coyotls came back for another round. But before these monsters could even attack, Sharur and Laernea targeted them with their simple bow and arrows. The two of them waited for the moment when the coyotls opened their mouths wide and launched out their tongues. Their arrows pierced into the coyotls mouths, forcing them back into the lake.
“Wow!” exclaimed Jeter. “The two of them could really hit Mictlanders.”
Upon hearing this, Smoke realized how amazing Sharur and Laernea’s feat was. Despite his numerous attempts, Smoke had never hit any of the Mictlan born monsters thus far.
“Remember, don’t kill them,” said Baba to Sharur and Laernea. “We’re only passing through.”
Yet, even after hearing Baba’s words, Sharur still targeted the coyotls that were retreating. The simple branch-made arrows could not pierce the slimy skins of the coyotls. It only bounced off.
