by Clayton Wood
“Can you make a shield twenty feet in diameter?” Darius asked.
“Is everyone here?” Kalibar asked tentatively. Kyle and Ariana huddled up close to the old man. Kyle had no desire to be flung into the dirt by Kalibar's shield again.
“They are now,” Darius answered. The old man paused for a moment, and Kyle sensed a familiar vibration in the air. A shimmering half-globe appeared around the group, some twenty feet in diameter. A few tree branches that were unlucky enough to penetrate the shield snapped off violently, flying far into the forest beyond.
That done, everyone sat down before the fire, and Kyle had the honor of lighting it. He wove the fire pattern without even having to think about it, sending the flame into the branches. Within moments, the campfire was blazing, nurturing them with its warmth. Ariana stayed farther back from it than everyone else.
“I still can't believe we escaped,” Kyle mused, staring into the dancing flames. “I thought we were going to be trapped there forever.”
“I know,” Ariana agreed.
“What was that place, anyway?” Kyle asked. “I mean, what were they doing there? And why did they want us?”
“From what I gather,” Kalibar replied, “...it was a cult.”
“Yeah,” Ariana piped in. “They all worshiped some god named Xanos.”
“Yes,” Kalibar agreed. “The Dead Man called himself a 'Chosen' of Xanos.” He frowned. “From what I gather, the Dead Man isn't the only one of these Chosen.”
“He told me Orik was supposed to become one,” Kyle offered, remembering his conversation with the Dead Man in the Void. “But he screwed up by attacking you.”
“Interesting,” Kalibar murmured. Then he shook his head. “If there are more Weavers like the Dead Man, we're in serious trouble.” He ran a hand through his short white hair. “After I attacked him with my runic stone, he seemed...different. He started weaving so fast that I couldn't follow him. I've never seen anything like it.”
“That gem on his forehead lit up,” Kyle said. “And his voice changed too.”
“I've seen him do it before,” Ariana piped in. Everyone turned to her. “They said when his gemstone glows that Xanos is taking over his body.”
Kalibar frowned at this, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
“I for one don't believe in gods,” he confessed. “But someone is creating these Chosen. And whoever it is, their magic is beyond anything the Empire has ever seen.”
Silence fell over the camp for a while, everyone staring into the campfire. At length, Kyle stirred.
“I still don't understand why they kidnapped us,” he muttered. “Shouldn't they have just killed us?”
“No, not necessarily,” Kalibar answered.
“What do you mean?”
“Their purpose was to build an army,” Kalibar explained. “They wanted their Death Weavers to be stronger than the Empire's...which they weren't, by the way. If it hadn't been for the Dead Man, I might've been able to destroy his army single-handedly.”
“So they wanted us in their army?” Kyle pressed.
“I don't think so,” Kalibar replied, scratching his beard. He hesitated for a moment. “In order to get the strongest Weavers, they needed to...breed them.”
Kyle stared at Kalibar blankly.
“That place was a breeding program,” Kalibar continued, grimacing with distaste. “They were kidnapping people who made the most magic, so that they could breed the strongest ones with each other.”
“Oh,” Kyle mumbled. He glanced at Ariana, who was staring back at him silently. He turned away immediately, blushing.
“We have to get back to the Empire as quickly as possible,” Kalibar stated. “The Grand Weaver and Runic need to know about this cult...and about Orik.”
“What about the Death Weavers?” Kyle asked uneasily. “What if they come after us?”
“The Dead Man was their absolute leader,” Kalibar answered. “They didn't have much of a hierarchy for leadership below him. I suspect they'll be disorganized for some time.”
“But what if they do come after us?” Ariana pressed. Kalibar gave a grim smile.
“I may be blind,” the former Grand Weaver replied, “...but I'm far from helpless.” He stood then, brushing the dirt off the back of his pants. “In any case, I've had enough for one day. Goodnight everyone.”
“Goodnight,” Kyle and Ariana replied.
“And Darius?” Kalibar added, turning in the bodyguard's general direction.
“Yeah?”
“Thank you,” Kalibar said. “For everything.”
With that, Kalibar asked Darius for his sleeping bag, and nestled into it, falling quickly asleep. Darius grabbed two more sleeping bags.
“Hey Darius,” Kyle said, eyeing the bodyguard.
“Yeah?”
“How did you escape your cell?”
“By using my greatest weapon,” Darius answered.
“What's that?” Kyle pressed. Darius smirked, chucking a sleeping bag at Kyle. Kyle flinched, but caught it.
“Surprise.”
Kyle frowned, staring at Darius, who pointedly ignored him, handing the other sleeping bag to Ariana.
“I'll stand watch,” he said.
Kyle and Ariana set their sleeping bags by Kalibar – Ariana bringing hers as far from the fire as she could. Kyle got into his bag, yawning as soon as he did so. Kalibar was right...it had been a long day. He hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in days, not since he’d been taken by the Dead Man. He was about to close his eyes when he saw Ariana step up to him. She leaned over, giving him a quick peck on the cheek.
“Goodnight,” she whispered, standing up and walking back toward her sleeping bag. She got in, then closed her eyes. Kyle touched his cheek with his hand, hardly believing what had just happened. He'd never been kissed before...not by a girl. He smiled, snuggling into his sleeping bag, staring at Ariana as she fell asleep.
“Goodnight,” he whispered back.
Chapter 20
Kyle opened his eyes, squinting against the harsh sun streaming through the tree branches above. He groaned, his whole body aching as he sat up. He spotted Ariana sitting at the edge of her sleeping bag. Darius was standing at the edge of the camp's gravity shield, facing away from them, while Kalibar was still fast asleep.
It took Kyle a moment to remember why he wasn't laying on his narrow, uncomfortable cot underground, near the Arena.
We really did it, he thought, feeling a surge of joy.
“Good morning,” Ariana greeted. Kyle turned, realizing she was talking to him. A few strands of her long dark hair fell in front of her big brown eyes, contrasting with her pale skin. The full day in the sun yesterday had given her the barest hint of color.
“Morning,” Kyle replied, smiling at her. Ariana smiled back, but weakly. “You okay?” he asked.
“I don't know,” Ariana admitted, gazing at the forest beyond the shield. “I still can't believe I'm here,” she added. “It doesn't feel real.”
“Yeah.”
“I'd forgotten how beautiful the surface is,” Ariana murmured, staring up at the sky. She took a deep breath in through her nose, closing her eyes and letting the breath out.
Kyle heard coughing, and turned to see Kalibar stirring in his sleeping bag. The older man rolled onto his side, then fell still again.
“Everything is so colorful,” Ariana said.
Kalibar coughed again, and this time he sat up in his sleeping bag, swaying a little. He grabbed the edge of the bag, swinging his legs carefully over the edge. Then he frowned, extending one hand. His staff – lying on the ground by his sleeping bag – flew up into his hand. He tapped the ground below him with the butt of the staff, then stood up.
“Good morning Kalibar,” Kyle greeted.
“Good morning sir,” Ariana piped in.
“Morning,” Kalibar replied. “Shall we eat breakfast?”
With that, Darius helped Kalibar prepare the same meal they'd eaten the night
before. Nobody complained, their stomachs eager for sustenance after their harrowing journey yesterday. After they'd finished their meals, Darius made Kyle and Ariana put everything away.
“Ready to go?” Darius asked Kalibar. The old man nodded, and the shimmering shield surrounding the camp promptly vanished. Darius grabbed the lone pack laying on the ground, and he and Kalibar took their usual positions in front, while Kyle and Ariana trailed a few feet behind. Kyle caught Ariana staring at him, and he frowned.
“What?”
“Your hair,” she answered. He felt his hair, realizing that it was sticking up on end on one side. He suspected that he looked fairly ridiculous.
“Let me fix that,” Ariana said, creating a small water stream and dipping her hands into the cool fluid. Then she ran her fingers through his hair, smoothing it backward. Then, satisfied with her work, she grabbed his hand, squeezing it gently, and walked with him. It felt marvelous, her hand in his, and he found himself grinning stupidly at her. Luckily, she didn't seem to notice, her eyes on the forest ahead.
Onward they went, trekking through the forest. With the sun peeking just above the horizon behind them, it had to be early morning. Kyle found that he was getting better at judging times without a watch or a phone. Still, it felt a bit strange – and a bit freeing – to not know exactly what time it was. He soon fell into the familiar trance of hiking, idly counting steps to a hundred, then starting over again. It wasn't long before the forest ended, revealing a field of tall, golden-hued grass. It was the same type of grass he'd seen after he'd escaped the Ulfar, before he'd passed on the road so many days ago. In fact, he remembered seeing the grass at the edges of every road he'd been on in this world. He said as much to Kalibar.
“This grass,” Kalibar explained, running a few strands through his fingers as he walked, “is called bordergrass. It magically repels trees, preventing trees from blocking their sunlight. Road-builders planted these fields so that trees wouldn't rip through the roads. Most cities are surrounded by similar plants.”
“Wait,” Kyle replied. “What do you mean, 'rip through the roads?'”
“Without the bordergrass, the trees would slowly migrate through the roads, and into the cities,” Kalibar explained.
“Wait, what?” Kyle exclaimed. “Trees can't move!”
“They most certainly can,” Kalibar retorted.
“Not where I come from.”
“That may be true,” Kalibar conceded, “...but here they are in constant motion. Far too slow for the eye to see, but trust me...their roots dig through the soil, pulling them along at a glacial pace. Without bordergrass, roads would be overrun in a matter of months.”
“Huh,” Kyle muttered. Then he felt a surge of hope. “Wait, does that mean we're close to the road?”
“Very likely.”
Darius stopped suddenly, holding up one hand. Kyle and Ariana stopped behind the bodyguard, watching as Darius cocked his head to the side, as if listening for something.
“What?” Kyle asked.
Darius shoved Kalibar backward.
“Get down!” the bodyguard yelled...and then a huge black shape slammed into him, knocking him to the side.
He vanished into the tall grass.
Kyle heard a snarling sound to his right, and turned, seeing nothing but a wall of tall grass surrounding him. He crouched low to the ground, his heart pounding in his chest. Ariana did the same, her eyes wide with fear.
He heard rustling to his right, heard Ariana cry out.
Something slammed into Kyle's right shoulder, spinning him around and throwing him bodily to the left. He fell to the ground, the air blasting from his lungs. Scrambling to his feet, he turned in a slow circle, seeing nothing but tall grass. Whatever had knocked him over was nowhere to be seen.
“Kyle?” he heard Ariana shout.
“Ariana!” Kyle shouted back. He turned toward the sound of her voice, parting the walls of grass with his hands. Within moments, he found Kalibar. The former Grand Weaver was standing quite still, a gravity shield surrounding him.
“Kalibar!” Kyle exclaimed. “Where's Ariana?”
“I wouldn't know,” Kalibar answered. Kyle glanced at Kalibar's blindfolded face, and nearly slapped himself on the forehead. Ask a stupid question...
“I'm right here,” a voice called out from behind him.
Kyle whirled around, seeing nothing but tall grass. Then the air in front of him rippled, a slender figure appearing there.
“Ariana!” he exclaimed. “How...?”
“My suit, remember?” Ariana replied, gesturing at her black suit. Kyle paused, then nodded. He'd forgotten all about it...and his own suit, in fact. He streamed magic to the gem on his breastplate, feeling the armor hum with power.
“What's going on?” Kyle asked.
“I don't know,” she replied. “Have you seen Darius?” Kyle shook his head. “I'll go look for him,” she stated. A second later, she'd vanished again.
Kyle turned in a slow circle, peering through the endless waves of rippling grass all around him.
What the heck is going on?
He heard panting from behind, and spun around just in time to see a huge black creature leap through the grass right at him, huge, sharp teeth bared in a terrifying snarl!
Kyle screamed, the stream to his armor vanishing.
The beast slammed into Kyle's chest, knocking him onto his back on the ground. Kyle threw his arms in front of his face just as the beast lunged toward his head, and felt teeth clamp on the armor protecting his right shoulder. He cried out, kicking at the beast's underbelly, and felt it release him from its jaws, backing up. He stared up at the creature, his blood going cold.
A huge, wolf-like creature with iridescent eyes stood over him, thick strands of drool hanging from its massive jaws.
An Ulfar!
Kyle froze, staring at the ungodly creature, his breath catching in his throat. He tried to get up, tried to run away, but his limbs refused to obey him. He could only watch as the huge beast hunched down, low to the ground, gathering its hind legs under it.
Then it pounced.
Kyle squeezed his eyes shut, turning away and throwing his arms in front of him as the beast hurtled toward him. He pulled magic into his mind's eye, and pushed it toward the crystal on his armor.
He heard a yelp.
Kyle opened his eyes, seeing a large shape hurtling through the air over twenty feet above the ground. It peaked, then fell, striking the ground with a sickening crunch somewhere in the grass ahead of Kyle. There was a loud, sharp squealing sound, followed by silence.
Kyle hesitated, then rose to his feet, peering into the grass ahead.
“Took you long enough,” he heard a voice say from behind. Kyle whirled about, crouching low...and then relaxed. There, his left arm covered in streaks of blood, with more dripping from his bared sword, stood Darius.
“Thank god,” Kyle exclaimed, feeling immensely relieved.
Darius sheathed his sword, walking past Kyle and into the grass toward the fallen Ulfar. Kyle followed close behind, staring at the crimson fluid dripping down Darius's arm.
“You okay?” Kyle asked.
“Better than him,” he answered, gesturing toward the Ulfar that had attacked Kyle. It was lying in a bed of flattened grass a dozen feet away, whimpering pathetically. “You going to finish that?”
“Huh?”
“Turn off your armor,” Darius ordered. Kyle did so, ending the stream of magic he'd been sending the breastplate's crystal. “Come on,” the bodyguard urged, pulling Kyle toward the fallen beast. It was lying on its side, two of its legs obviously broken. Kyle saw a piece of jagged white sticking out of one leg, and realized it was a bone. He tried to step backward, but Darius stuck one brawny arm out to stop him.
“You gonna let him suffer?” the bodyguard asked. The fallen Ulfar lifted its big head up off of the ground, staring at them for a moment, its eyes wide. It growled, then flopped back onto the ground, its
chest rising and falling rapidly as it panted. A pool of blood expanded slowly around its shattered body. Kyle turned away from the horrible sight, but Darius grabbed his arm.
“Kill it or torture it,” the bodyguard growled, grabbing Kyle's hand and placing it on the Spatha Luna, the sword at Kyle's hip. “Your choice.”
Then Darius walked away, disappearing into the grass beyond.
He heard a high-pitched squeal, and turned to face the Ulfar. It stared back at him silently, laying with the side of its head on the ground. The single eye Kyle could see was wide, the pupil enormous.
Kyle tried to swallow in a suddenly dry throat, and found that he couldn't. He stared silently at the fallen beast, knowing that he couldn't leave until he'd killed it. A good person wouldn't leave an animal to suffer a slow, agonizing death...even if that animal had tried to kill him first.
He unsheathed the Spatha Luna, then took a step toward the Ulfar, his heart pounding in his chest.
The Ulfar lifted its head immediately, a low growl rumbling in its throat. Blood-tinged drool dripped from its oversized fangs, forming a small pool under its jaws. It stared at him unblinkingly, making Kyle freeze in his tracks.
How did I get myself into this?
He took a deep breath in, clutching his sword tightly, and stepped forward again. The Ulfar's eyes locked on him, it’s growling growing louder. It kicked its legs, then squealed, staying perfectly still on the ground.
Kyle held his sword out in front of him, taking another step forward, then another. He kept his eyes locked on the Ulfar's, continuing toward it. He’d never killed anything before…and had no desire to do it now.
Come on, he told himself. Just do it.
He inched forward, now only a few feet from where the Ulfar lay. It stared at him unblinkingly, its growl growing louder, more insistent.
Make it quick.
Taking a few rapid breaths to steel himself, Kyle raised his sword up over his head, his heart hammering in his chest. He cried out, lunging forward...and then stopped, lowering his sword. He stared at its dull blade, then backpedaled away from the beast. He'd almost forgotten to stream magic to the sword first! Without magic, the blade wouldn't have even cut the Ulfar. He'd almost tried to stab the deadly creature with an oversized butter knife.
