Okay, it's been more than two weeks from my latest post, so it's time for another status update. I had a gaming fever recently, which consumed all my available time, and stopped me from focusing on the usual things, such as the next chapter on this Tournament.
But the fever passed couple of days ago, and I'm back at working on the chapter. It's going rather smoothly now, so I try to get it finished and published before 4th of April. It's my grandma's birthday, and folks are planning a big party around that time.
A pile of dusty books and notes slammed onto a table with a loud thud! Sir Killian had found every scrap of paper he could from the tower's 2nd floor and brought them to the commander's table. He placed his burning torch to a nearby holder on a wall, then began to examine the texts one by one. "Supplies... Weaponry... Reports..." the Hunter Knight mumbled to himself as he eyed the old papers, his finger following the lines under each sentence. Whenever a text seemed to be a dead end, Sir Killian placed such book or note onto a separate pile and moved on to the next.
After a while, the Hunter Knight unrolled a dusty map in the middle of the table, wondering if it pictured the tower's floors and secrets, but as the dust scattered away like tiny clouds, it turned out to be a depiction of the tower's surrounding wilds. Faded markings were drawn upon various locations: Arrows, circles, flags, and a grim amount of crosses. Each marked a slain enemy of the tower's soldiers, and the areas which once belonged to dryad tribes were darkened by the sheer number of these crosses.
You acted as monster hunters, but in truth you were more keen in helping the king to build an armada from the sacred trees of dryads. No wonder they ended your operations with force.
Sir Killian put the map onto the "dead end" pile as if it was a filthy piece of trash. About an hour of investigation later, he opened a slim book with plain leather covers and stains from various spilled liquids. The Hunter Knight raised his eyebrows as he saw drawn circular pictures on the first pages and read the cursive text above them: "Tower of Jarlath, Base Floor, 2nd Floor..." Whoever had drawn the tower's layout into the book had done so during recent years, since it didn't include the lost top floors. Right after that realization, Sir Killian turned his eyes at the base floor's layout, and tapped his finger repeatedly at the square symbol in the middle of the floor as he read the text written right next to it: "The Tunnels!" The Hunter Knight felt his lips tense into a smile, but it faded as he saw additional bit of text below the symbol:
"Experiments loose, do not open."
"What?" An ominous chill crawled on Sir Killian's spine. Talk of experiments among Hunter Knights had always reminded them of the most grueling fights against monsters which had been enhanced by alchemists and warlocks. Many knights had perished for facing such unpredictable creatures, even those with long years of service behind them. Sir Killian turned the pages, gathering any information he could about the writer, the drawings, and the experiments. "Page 7: Map of the Tunnels..."
As he was studying the path through the mountain tunnels, a loud slam from the courtyard made Sir Killian close the book on instinct. He put the stained book into his belt pouch while a howl of wind and eerie neighing echoed. The Hunter Knight hurried to the inner edge of the floor, and saw the hidden trap door wide open. Rodolf had found it and opened its elaborate chain lock without a second thought. A living shadow of a horse galloped into a corridor, leaving behind traces of black mana which summoned shades.
"The dead soldiers of Jarlath never left this tower!" Hesiodos's exclamation shed all traces of tiredness from Sir Killian's mind. He unsheathed his greatsword and grabbed the blade with his left hand, preparing to face the approaching horse shade in a half-swording stance. Wind blew at Sir Killian as he stood firm on top of the stairs.
When the large shade horse appeared in front of him, the Hunter Knight quickly stepped aside and thrust the tip of the greatsword at the creature's side. Sir Killian's sword in the shade's supposed flesh forced it to rush towards the commander's office while the blade cut through its entire right side of the torso. Black smoke gushed from the large wound as the horse shade neighed and ran along the floor's walls, breaking through old shelves, chairs, and the commander's table. Notes and pages swirled everywhere with the smoke, like leaves during a forest fire.
The torch on the wall went out, and pitch-black darkness filled the floor. Only a rush of wind warned Sir Killian of the shade's next attack. He raised his greatsword to block the horse's kick, but the unnatural strength pushed the Hunter Knight through the inner wall's window, making him fall to the courtyard below.
Sir Killian hit the ground with the greatsword falling right next to him. He would have groaned from pain if he had any air left in his lungs. Instead he just laid supine while others fought the shade soldiers. Swords clashed, bones cracked, Imilia's undead flies buzzed, Nilfi's flames roared, and Hadid's portals flashed. One shade soldier noticed Sir Killian as he was forcing himself to get up. It raised its rusted sword and thrust it at the Hunter Knight's breast.
Clang!
Someone parried the shade's sword before it connected. Rodolf, who had been fighting near Sir Killian, hit the shade's skull after the parry with the pommel of his longsword, pushing it back a few steps. The shade exhaled monstrously and retaliated by slashing at the Assassin, who easily dodged it by backing off a bit. Then Rodolf swiftly stepped in and cut the shade's skull in half, causing the top half to fly in a wide arc at a stone wall. Red light vanished from eye sockets, black aura flowed into the sky, and the soldier remains dropped onto the ground. Rodolf turned to Sir Killian with his left hand extended.
"Get up!" Rodolf shouted, and when the Hunter Knight grabbed his hand, Rodolf pulled him up to his feet. Then Sir Killian picked up his greatsword and cut an approaching shade soldier's body in half with a broad swing. A third shade attacked, and Rodolf tried to block its blade. He noticed too late that the shade had been strengthened by traces of black mana which the shadowy steed had left behind. The force of the slash caused Rodolf to lose balance and trip over. Black aura grew thicker around the shade's skeletal hands as it prepared to finish off the defenseless Assassin. Sir Killian stopped it with a powerful horizontal sweep.
Crash!
The creature was pushed mere two steps away and only a few bones broke off from its rib-cage, even though the Hunter Knight hit it hard with the greatsword. More black mana flowed into the shade's body and sword as its glowing eyes turned to Sir Killian. Rusty sword turned black and wind spiraled around its blade when the shade raised the charged weapon before swinging it at the Hunter Knight.
Kra-boom!
Dark energy exploded from the shade's sword as it connected to Sir Killian's greatsword, sending his weapon to fly many feet away. On the same moment, the Hunter Knight dashed towards the powerful shade, unsheathed his shortsword from its locked scabbard, and penetrated the monster's skull with its burning white blade. Bright flames consumed the shade as it screamed at Sir Killian's face. He gritted his teeth and pushed the enchanted sword upwards, lifting the shade until only small fading particles of its dark aura remained.
After sheathing the shortsword, the Hunter Knight leaned onto his knees, breathing heavily while drops of sweat fell from his forehead. "You're wide open, get a hold of yourself!" Rodolf said as he walked next to Sir Killian with his sword ready, keeping an eye out for shades that would attack them, but it seemed the rest were focused on the others for the moment. The Hunter Knight regained his strength and looked at the battle around the tower: Shade soldiers outnumbered them three to one, unarmed Hesiodos flew above the courtyard, horses had left the tower in panic, and the shade horse kept galloping around the tower, leaving more mana traces behind.
"We need to get out of here," Sir Killian said and wiped his face with his forearm.
"Yeah, I figured that already!" exclaimed Rodolf in a frustrated tone. "But we won't survive an hour outside, with the horses gone and the Outriders ready to chase us in the middle of the night!"
"We'll escape through the tunnels!" the Hunter Knight yelled and pointed at the trapdoor in the middle of the courtyard, which was pushed wide open by the shade horse.
"Right, into a labyrinth of monsters," the Assassin said with a forced grin. "Better that than this death trap, wouldn't you say?" Both Sir Killian and Rodolf hurried to the door. They quickly looked inside to see if any more monsters were coming from the underground corridor, but they didn't see any glowing eyes in the darkness.
"You go on ahead," Sir Killian said and offered the stained book to Rodolf. "This book has a map of the tunnels on page 7. Find us a way out and make sure there are no surprises awaiting us."
"What will you do?" the Assassin asked as he took the book.
"I'll make sure nobody is left behind."
"I need a light source, and something to leave behind as a trail. My bag of tools was on my horse, and she ran off!"
"Perhaps these might help you in both ways?" Hesiodos asked. The Faerie was suddenly standing right next to Sir Killian and Rodolf, holding a couple of acorn-shaped lanterns. "I have a fair amount of these left."
"Those will do, come with me," Rodolf said and took a few steps downstairs before stopping to turn at the Minstrel, who didn't seem to know what to do. "Well? Are you gonna help us get out of here, or do you have a death wish?"
"Err, no, let us venture forth!" Hesiodos exclaimed with his resonant voice, lit one of the lanterns with a finger's snap, and gave it to Rodolf.
"Go now!" Sir Killian ordered as he saw two shades floating to their direction. Rodolf ran into the tunnel with Hesiodos right behind him. Sir Killian unsheathed his enchanted shortsword and waved its burning blade at the shades, blinding them. Before the monsters could see again, Sir Killian had retrieved his greatsword. "Everyone! Run into the tunnel! Follow the lanterns! Flee now!" Sir Killian's command echoed as he kept shades at bay with one greatsword swing after the next.
Kaigan was first of the Contestants to escape, since most shades didn't even notice the tiny kobold. Hadid conjured a portal at the start of the tunnel. The mage leaped through it, and Elidyr followed him. Multiple skeletal hands of the shades reached out to them from the portal, but when Hadid closed it with a wave of his hand, the monsters' limbs got cut and fell onto the floor to join all the other lifeless bones.
Imilia grunted time after time as her techniques didn't affect the shades. There was no flesh for flies to burrow into nor minds to torture. All she could do was to unleash streams of water from air and whip the monsters away from her, but eventually she got cornered by three shade soldiers. As the creatures growled and raised their weapons, Imilia was blinded by a blast of red flames. When she opened her eyes, she saw Nilfi the Vampire Alchemist standing behind the fallen shades, the crystal on his staff glowing red.
"You idiot!" Imilia hissed as she extinguished tiny flames on her dress. "It didn't cross your mind to give a warning? My attire is ruined!"
"But I saved you!" Nilfi defended, and on that moment, two of the burning shades suddenly grabbed his legs. The Vampire gasped and finished the monsters by crushing their skulls with his staff, but the flames quickly spread onto his clothes. "Not again!" howled Nilfi as he tried to extinguish the flames with his hands in vain. A second later, a large amount of water fell onto his body. Imilia had conjured a water orb and dropped it onto the burning Alchemist. The flames died and left blackened spots on Nilfi's soaked red hair and attire. "Oh, guess we're even now?" Nilfi asked as he shook drops of water off from his head and arms.
"Ha!" the Witch laughed devilishly. "The way I see it, you're now in my debt. Who else is going to cover the repair expenses of my dress except the one who damaged it?" Then she quickly made her way to the underground passage. Nilfi groaned as he also ran there, leaving wet bootprints behind him.
Tika and Hestia were fighting side by side on the 2nd floor. The Ashen Knight carved her way there to aid Sir Killian, but didn't reach him in time. "Go!" Hestia yelled as she finished a shade soldier with a longsword thrust through the monster's skull, no longer blocking the way downstairs. Tika immediately ran as ordered, and Hestia fiercely prevented any shade from following the Contestant, until she heard the approaching clacking of hooves from the 3rd floor. The shade steed neighed monstrously as it charged at Hestia, who in turn took a firm stance and gripped the handle of her longsword with both hands, preparing to drive its blade through the dark creature's heart when it would crash into her. But the horse ignored the Ashen Knight, leaped over her and proceeded to chase down the escaping Elf.
"No!" Hestia shouted as she ran after the shade horse. "Tika! The horse is after you! Look out!" Tika tried to run even faster, but was soon hit by the shade horse as the creature galloped past her, causing the Elf to trip and roll down the last steps.
"Oh no, Tika!" Hestia gasped as she saw the Elf lying on the bottom of the stairs. She hurried to Tika's side, knelt down, and turned her to lay supine. Tika was unconscious and she had a slightly bleeding wound on the right side of her head. As Hestia heard shade soldiers coming from upstairs, she picked up Tika's sword, sheathed it into the Elf's scabbard, then she sheathed her own longsword before picking up Tika with her both hands as quickly and gently as possible. Not looking back, Hestia ran into the tunnel while carrying Tika.
Sir Killian had been fighting in front of the passage's entrance the whole time, stopping any shade from following his escaping companions. "Sturgar!" he called. The Metal Dragonborn was the only Contestant left in the tower somewhere. "Where are you?!" More and more shade soldiers surrounded the Hunter Knight, and there was no sight of Sturgar.
Until the sound of breaking wall echoed from above. Sir Killian looked up and saw Sturgar jumping through 3rd floor wall with several shades hanging onto his scalding body. Crunch! The Dragonborn landed onto two shades, crushing them under his feet. Three shades climbing on him stabbed his golden body repeatedly. Even though they were burning and their rusty weapons didn't bite, Sturgar had a hard time getting them off. He flailed his four weapons around to no avail.
"Stand still!" shouted Sir Killian as he raised his greatsword. "I'll have them off!" When Sturgar stopped moving, he took a defensive stance and focused on keeping surrounding shades at bay while Sir Killian destroyed each clinging shade one by one. "There!" Sir Killian exclaimed as he got the last one. "Now let us leave before that horse-"
As he was speaking, that horse leaped over the shade soldiers in an attempt to run after the escapees in the tunnels, but Sir Killian stepped in front of the four-legged shadow. It neighed as it reared and kicked at the Hunter Knight, who barely dodged the kicking forelegs by ducking. With effort, Sir Killian countered with an upward greatsword slash, opening a new wound across the horse's chest and belly, and making it fall onto its side. As the dark steed struggled to get up, nearby shade soldiers charged at Sir Killian, and they were met by Sturgar's weapons. Black smoke spread from the horse's wound, concealing it once again. It stood up and prepared to run off, but it was blinded by sudden white light right in front of it.
"No more shall you run!" Sir Killian yelled bravely as he plunged the enchanted sword into the shade horse's breast. Its final ghastly squeal quickly faded into a howling wind when its body and black smoke were eaten away by the white flames.
Sir Killian sheathed the shortsword and gripped his right hand as it shook uncontrollably. Sturgar glanced at him while still standing ready to face the surrounding shade soldiers, but they all backed off a bit when they saw what happened to the horse. "I think it's time for us to go," Sir Killian said with heavy breaths. Sturgar nodded, and the two warriors ran into the tunnel with a horde of shades not far behind them.
Footsteps echoed in the dark tunnels. Two warriors ran and ran, slamming against a wall on every sharp turn only to run again, following the light of lanterns. Sturgar ran ahead of Sir Killian, who held his right hand with his left hand. He hadn't been able to move it after slaying the shade horse. Sounds of clacking bones, clanking metal, and ghastly wails followed them like an approaching flood of water.
The lanterns were far away from each other. At some crossroads, Sturgar and Sir Killian had to stop for few seconds to determine which path's walls reflected tiny scraps of lantern's light. They had to choose their path quickly, else the army of shades would find them. After passing five lanterns and running for what's felt like an hour, Sir Killian slowed down until he stopped to lean against a wall. Sturgar noticed this and walked back to him.
"Go on ahead, I'm just resting for a short moment," Sir Killian said, but when he saw how Sturgar wasn't convinced, the Hunter Knight grabbed the hilt of the sheathed shortsword with his left hand and smiled confidently. "I still have the strength to use this blade with my other arm, if I'm found." Sturgar stood silently for a moment before leaving, and when he did, Sir Killian slumped to sit against the cold dirt wall.
A while later, Sturgar reached an underground corridor with numerous arches and candle holders on stone-brick walls. The architecture was similar to the tower's, and some of the candles were burning. Hesiodos had lit them to show the right way out of the tunnels, Sturgar thought.
Art: Cory-Trego Erdner
He ventured through the long corridor, but he couldn't stop glancing at the walls under the arches, believing some of them were hidden doors. He examined a few of them, pressed the most curious looking tiles and pushed with his four arms, but the walls were solid and unmovable.
Sturgar kept going, no longer hurrying, since he hadn't heard any other noises except a constant low hum echoing from ahead where the lit candles led him. And the further he went, the darker the stone-bricks appeared, as if they were covered by drops of ink. Eventually, no more candles burned on the dark walls ahead. Sturgar thought about turning back until he saw lantern's light behind a corner. What's more, he heard faint sounds of chatter echoing. Certain it was one of the Contestants or other traveling companions speaking, Sturgar ran around the corner. Then he fell.
He stumbled in complete darkness and rolled, as if falling down from top of a hill. The lantern was shining far above him until its light vanished. He tried to grab onto something, anything, but it was no use. As he stabilized himself by stopping his rolling and only sliding down instead, he saw faint red light from below: A huge cavern where the hum originated from.
After a minute of sliding, Sturgar finally landed on the floor, which was a rocky platform above the source of the eerie red light. He walked to the edge and looked down: A horrific red lake where humanoid shadows swirled. It bubbled here and there, emanating heat and black smoke. Muffled wails and moans echoed below the surface, which made Sturgar turn away and instead look for an exit.
Art: Loksanor
In the distance beyond the red lake, Sturgar noticed a bright doorway on top of stone steps, but to get there he had to navigate through numerous tunnels inside the cavern's walls, hoping that one of them would lead to the foot of the stairs. As he wondered where the other party members were, he noticed a familiar face nearby...
Your party has fallen into an underground cavern tainted by the Abyss!
You're separated into small groups, and your objective is not to fight, but to escape as quickly as possible. Combating monsters or using magic in a place where the Abyss is leaking to the world has a great risk of inviting more monsters.
Like Sturgar in the previous chapter, each of your traveling heroes (Tika, Kaigan, Hadid, Imilia, and Nilfi) fell into the cavern. Your task is to write a short story chapter on how your hero will act. By what means will they escape? Will your hero work with others or escape on their own? How will they avoid possible monsters wandering in the tunnels?
The Abyss's influence is slowly taking hold of your heroes as they try to escape. They may have hallucinations reflecting their fears and flaws. Their misdeeds and mistakes. Implement these into your stories for characterization and extra points.
Your heroes were randomly divided into three separate groups as they fell.
@FourEyesIsAFish - Tika regained consciousness shortly after falling down the stairs.
Since @shadow123's Lyuben and @ChoyBoi's Conscience aren't part of this event, I send them each an unique Random Encounter to resolve (right after I post this event.)
You have one month to post your event chapter, which means the deadline is 25th of June. On that day, the event will be over and I'll post two story chapters leading to the start of Round 2 of the Tournament.
And once again, sorry for the long wait! Recent times have been full of different occasions, some were happy ones, others, not so much.
In any case, good luck on this event! Got any questions, feel free to ask, as always. I'm eagerly waiting to read your stories again.
I'm rather busy this week due to work and a contest which I'm judging at the moment. So to make this week less busy, I'll hold on to the next story chapter's publication, and push the event deadline by 1 week, to 2nd of July!
Escape [1/4] [A huge thank you to @DrakeGladis who collaborated on this story. They have been exceedingly patient and easy to work with! This is a blend of each of our writing so hopefully it comes together in a unique way.]
Kaigan being first into the cave first was both a blessing and a curse. He was safe for the moment, but without a weapon he was at a huge disadvantage. He trusted that the other champions and their guards could do what they needed but he couldn't help but feel bad for running. He was here to help.
The pitter patter of his little, bare feet on stone eventually grew louder than the noises from outside. He slowed his pace to catch his breath. He jumped as Hadid stepped through a portal right next to him. Kaigan noticed it first. Where Hadid’s portals were usually a vibrant blue, the edges of the gate he stepped through began to turn a deep, oily black. The kobold’s cry of warning was cut short by a loud crack as a wiry tentacle lashed through the opening, shattering several nearby stalagmites. Hadid stumbled to his knees as he fought in vain to dismiss the portal. The tunnel they were in began to rumble and collapse as a hulking creature began to pry its way through the blackened opening.
The two stood momentarily dumbstruck as the hulking abyssal monster forced an arm through the portal. A sharp whistle snapped the two contestants to attention. The assassin, Rodolf, beckoned from further down the collapsing tunnel. “This way!” He hissed through his teeth. “You two are going to get yourself killed!”
They sprinted toward Rodolf as the creature roared behind them. They saw Rodolf’s eyes widen as he stepped out from his hiding spot and leapt toward them. “Keep your head down!” The same leathery lash whipped out into the room and began thrashing wildly, sending stones flying. The assassin reached the two at the same moment that the ground beneath them shifted sharply.
The floor beneath the trio gave way, leaving them suspended in midair. As they began to fall, Rodolf grabbed Kaigan by the arm and Hadid instinctively summoned a portal beneath himself. The blue edges again flickered black as he fell through the gate. The wizard muttered a curse as he saw his exit portal sputter in and out of existence, jumping from place to place. Rodolf snagged a sheathed blade from his belt with his free hand and pushed the scabbard against the crumbling wall to slow their descent. He held the kobold tightly as they tumbled into darkness.
Hadid’s passage through the portals was typically instantaneous, like walking through the threshold of a door. This time however the space between felt far too large. It was as though he was passing through someplace else in between. The air felt stagnant and hot as he flew past a vast red-tinted darkness. Worse, the darkness seemed to be littered with pinpricks of glowing eyes.
He burst through the exit at an odd angle into the crumbling stone wall. His breath left his lungs as he tumbled to the cave floor some half dozen feet below. He glanced over in time to see Rodolf and Kaigan slide safely to the floor and dive beneath a jutting boulder as more stones fell around them. Hadid scrambled painfully to his feet and quickly limped over to join them under the makeshift awning. The three flinched as a huge chunk of debris crashed into the rock overhead.
Moments passed as the three hunkered beneath the overhang. Huge boulders continued to fall, covering what they could see of the tunnel. The old teacher covered his mouth with a heavy sleeve to try to filter the dust and Kaigan covered his ears with both hands. After what felt like an eternity, the dust settled and all was quiet.
Hadid’s breath came slow and heavy through the cloth. His heart pounded in his ears and he winced against a buzzing pressure behind his forehead. He tried to steady his thoughts but conjuring a thought felt like trying to corral a beehive.
The voice caught him off guard. It was his own voice, yet not quite. Familiar but altered. Were those his own words? His own criticisms? Was it out loud or in his mind?
The moment happened so quickly that Kaigan didn’t even have time to cry out. The portal blinked into existence, Hadid plunged through, and then it snapped shut. It was barely open long enough to see tendrils of darkness envelop the mage. Did he even intend to open it and go through, or was this another Abyssal manipulation? The kobold didn’t have time to think about it; the assassin was pressing a pair of daggers into his hands.
“I’m not here to babysit you. Take these - you’ll need ‘em. That foolish old man will have brought the monsters right to us!”
Rodolf pulled out his own longsword and another dagger from his belt, turning rapidly to keep an eye out for where danger might be coming from. Kaigan put his back to the assassin’s butt, too short to fully be back to back. Daggers weren’t his favorite weapons, with his short arms and stature he really was at a huge reach disadvantage with them on his person. It was better than nothing though, he though grimly.
He started as the assassin tapped his tail. “We need to run. We haven't been located ye-”
Rodolf didn’t finish the statement as its inaccuracy became immediately apparent. Dropping in from above the duo, the horrible inky beast landed in front of them and let out a predatory scream.
The monster was inky black, oozing tendrils not of shadow but of tar. It’s jaws dripped with the same sickening ichor. Rodolf and Kaigan brandished their weapons. It snarled and began pacing toward them.
In Kaigan's eyes, it was massive. The creature could devour him in two bites, easily. Hell, it might be able to eat Rodolf in four. Just looking at it, even Prossh might fall to it if it could keep him on the ground. He gulped nervously, feeling its unsettling gaze resting square upon him.
Rodolf was less bothered. This monster was of a sort he’d seen before. While his current ward probably wouldn’t be too useful against this being, his sword would deal with it like it had dealt with the others before. Drawing his blade, he assumed a calm and readied stance. Glancing down, he saw the kobold assuming a similar pose.
The assassin was the first to strike. Dashing forward, his blade bit into the tarry form. Slowed, but continuing to glide through, he gave a quiet hiss of triumph at severing the limb, followed by a sharp intake of dismay. Kaigan had dashed with the assassin, the two daggers gripped tight enough in his hands that his knuckles popped against his scales. Underneath the thing was probably the safest strategy to get to a weak point, he assumed. Ducking past the drooling liquid he narrowly avoided his tail being bitten. Striking at its underbelly, he sunk both daggers to the hilt and dragged them as he came out the other side. Looking back, Kaigan expected to see a torrent of blood, but… nothing.
The attacks didn’t seem to majorly harm the beast. Rodolf had briefly slowed it down, and Kaigan had made it annoyed, but that seemed to be all. The two watched as shadowy magic tendrils began mending the injuries they had caused in their initial assault. They knew they were in for a rough fight.
Hadid stood - or was he lying down? - motionless as pregnant moments passed in darkness, eyes closed. He wasn’t certain if he had conjured another portal or if he had imagined it. Was he still beneath the cave-in or was he somewhere else? He felt his brow furrow. Wherever he was felt subtly warm. He pressed his closed eyes shut against the dry, caustic heat as it began to build.
“̴͎̈́A̴͇̫̙̓̋̌ ̷͉̩̱̈́ẁ̴̨̛͉̮o̸͓̮̖͋̄͊r̶̪͊̕̕k̴̘̪͂̆̎ ̸͇̊t̴͍̂̚o̸̡͔̥̍̂͌ ̷̗̱͆̏͝w̵͇̄́͘ḧ̶͕͓͉ä̶́͜t̷͕̺͆ ̵͕̾̚͝e̸̠͆̈́n̶̊͜d̸̙̬̀?̷͇̘̇͋̀ ̷͕̣͆Y̵̰̓̾̃ó̶͖̣͒͐ͅu̷̼͒̎̓ ̷͕̟̾s̷̗̟͑̌é̶͕͙̅̊e̸̢̝̐̕͜ķ̵̜͗͐ ̵̙͗͑͝ṏ̶͖̫́̅ņ̷̭̱̂̔l̴̩̤̒̚̕y̴̜̼͗ ̸̼͍͎͊̈́y̷͈͋̏o̶͔͐u̵̼̳̚r̵̲͊̕ ̷̩̤͂̃̂ỏ̷͙͋w̸̧̟͚̌n̸̲̓ ̶̠̩́̓s̴͗̊̓ͅĕ̷̘̫̯l̴̝̬̀̆f̸̗̈̍͠-̸͓̙̪̽̏a̵̻̥̯̿͆̇g̷̟̊̐̈g̷̛̻̹̱͑͋r̴̢͔̋ạ̷̛͍͆n̸̛̺͝ḑ̶̰͛͗ǐ̶̗͋͝ż̶̧̼́e̵̪̦̦͊̽͒m̵̛͖̙̆͛ȇ̸̡͎n̸̛̛̺̰̈́t̴͖̜̘̔.̸̭̹͐ͅ ̵̧͇̭͑͑Y̵̼̏̍o̸̧̤̪̔͌̀u̷͓͉̿̀͜ ̶͔̞̽w̸̧̢̙̑̒ȧ̷̝̈́n̷̘̝͎̽t̷̳̃͜ ̶̗̪̊t̸̙͙͍͌̽̚o̷̟̳̓͗̈ ̸̼̑̇̚͜b̸͓͒̑ȩ̴̛̞͖̕ ̴̼̈́̓r̷̨̿͛͝e̶̬͐m̸̰̬̠̏̕ề̷̹͈̓m̸̞̰̯̓̓b̷̨̧͛͒̄e̶̡̧̞̿r̵̫̥͋̿e̶̼͋̎d̴͚̒̾.̵͕̚”̷͖͒͝ The voice hung on the word, tone dripping with pity.
I want… The voice was right after all. What were the years of study for but to make a name? Why did he tolerate the years of academic rigors, the countless hours of lectures, office hours, and instruction? Why would he take on so many apprentices and assistants if not to ensure a legacy? To leave something behind for those after?
He heard what may have been a rush of wind. Perhaps it was lava boiling up from below… or above? That may be for the best. To be forgotten.
“̴̦̻̋͜S̶̪͈̥̈́̚õ̶̠͓͗͜͝ ̴̙̺͎̋l̷̢̛ơ̵̳͋͐n̵̰̥͎͒̏͘g̴̙̮̫̒̃̇ ̵̛̝̪̰̇a̸̡̔š̶͍ ̴͔̄͂́y̵̺̒̅͜ó̸̱̥̓u̸̧͗̕ ̴͓͛̍̍à̴̛͙̠̼c̴̥͕̏̀́k̸͔͖̓̑̽n̵̮̖̾ơ̸̞̦̿̎w̶̪̥̽̔l̸̺͇̎̿ḙ̸̿̀ͅd̷̤̳́g̸̩̯͇̔͂e̵̯̍̚ ̴̢̦̀̃̐ị̸̣̤́͑ẗ̶̨̪̘́.̶̧̦̔̆̄”̶͇͖̇́ The sensation of being enveloped by an enormous pair of claws caused him to shiver in spite of the now raging heat. “̴̪̌̏Ỳ̴̮͌̆o̵͖̾u̶̡̢̮̅̈̏ ̶̞̠̀͊͊m̷̿̓͜ů̶̥͉s̸̮͎̥̓̒͛t̵̞̊ ̸͔͛̃͘r̴͓̚͝e̶̜͆̏̆s̸̹͙͓̆́͂ḯ̶͓̪͎͑̿ǵ̴̻͗n̶̛͖͖̽ ̵͇̄y̶̛̩̮̍̋ö̷̰́̇͜u̶̞̗̲̓ŕ̸̖̲̫͐ş̵͂ě̸͇̺͌͝ľ̸̦f̴͉̱̍́̐ ̷̢͇͔̀t̴̢̰͗̐o̸̭̗͉̒̓ ̷͙͂͆̍y̶̭͔̦̍̕o̷̢͕̱͠u̷͈̿̋r̶̡̟̈́̚ ̵͇̱̄̒̂f̵̤͑a̶͚̐̿̑ṯ̸̣͐̈́͝ę̴̨̖̆.̸̛̳̠̘̆̚ ̷̩̓̅̊F̶̱͎̞͒́͝i̵̢̛͆͋g̸̦̒h̵̡̏t̴͍̀͑i̶̢͗͘n̷̪̽͊g̸͚̃ ̷̤͊̊ä̵̢̤̺͝g̵̹͋̐͋ą̸̫̐̏i̵̢̚͠n̸̯̠̔̕s̶̘̠̬͛͠t̶̼͆̐͜ ̷̳̱̓i̷̧̺̫̇̏͝t̷̟̓ ̸̩̲̭̊ơ̸͖̓n̸̨̟̘͒l̴͙̆͊̚y̵̧̅̏̉ ̵̧̛̲̈m̴̘̎ă̷̭k̸̙̀è̷̟̍̇s̷̲͉̄ ̶̛̠̼̻͌t̷͔̩̉ḩ̴̄ḯ̴̢̯͘n̷̛̳̽ğ̵̳̅̕ŝ̸̻͉̔͒ ̴̜̼̻̉ẁ̵̟͜ơ̴̳̥̍ŕ̶̑͊ͅs̶̯̈́̉̆e̴̟̓.̶̦̠̆̓ ̷̭͔̊F̶͓̪̐o̸̫͒̏̀r̵̠̎ ̷̞́̌ͅy̵̟͎̾̿͊ò̴͍̬̫̾̋u̵̻͆ ̶̨̳͂̀͒ą̶̀̒̕n̷̼̱͒̑d̷̠̟̟̉̋ ̴̳͔̍̈͜ọ̷̩͂̂t̸̛̪͝ḩ̷͑͠e̸̛̺͊͒r̴̙̒͗̑s̵͍͠.̸̥͙̆̉̚”̷̧̈͠
A whirlwind of history flowed through Hadid’s memory. His graduation from academy. His first assignment as professor. His first publication - something about leyline stability? His first personal aide, a spry elven girl with a brain for puzzles. His work on the armillary project. A brief flash of Uriel proudly displaying his own academy acceptance missive after years of private tutelage. Uriel’s expression of deep concern as his mentor filled out a form for a Tournament.
An image of Kaigan’s fiery eyes stared at him through the haze of memory. “Am I ready to give it my all anyway if I make it? Yes. Are you?”
Like a firefly, a small glimmer of blue lit up his mind’s eye. A glowing image of Kaigan and Rodolf battled against the abyssal beast somewhere far above. For the first time in the depths of the earth, Hadid felt piercing clarity.
A bright flash heralded Hadid’s arrival. The brilliant portal shone clearly as the mage stepped through. Locking eyes with Kaigan, he nodded and summoned a second portal behind the kobold and the assassin.
Rodolf turned in surprise, not expecting to see the old man back of his own accord. The shock cost him dearly though, a swipe from the tarry paw of the monster knocked into him, busting the air from his lungs and causing a loud SNAP to ring out. Trying to roll with the blow to recover from it, he ended up falling through the portal. Kaigan dove into it as well, trusting Hadid’s placement. As best he could tell, this was the only plan that would get them all out alive.
Coming out from the other end, Kaigan looked around. They were on a narrow ledge, with what looked to be a walkway into a safer corridor. However, his attention was quickly pulled away by a groan of pain coming from his left.
Rodolf’s leg was broken, and the assassin knew it. That pretty much negated any chance of getting back into combat that he had. Walking on that alone would be a pain, let alone the sort of moves he’d need to keep fighting this monster. Looking through the portal, he yelled for Hadid to get his ass through as well, but he could see that the old man was too busy trying to avoid the monster- and then the portal snapped shut.
____________________
A sharp crack echoed through the tunnel as a whiplike tendril slashed vertically across the portal, sending wisps of aether sputtering across the rock. Hadid stumbled backward. He watched as the abyssal monster stalked closer, tasting the air with its oily forked tongue.
He began drawing on mana to summon another portal, but the fogginess was building again in his mind. The beast seemed to loom over him, exuding an immense psychic pressure. He had never been in this proximity to the presence of the Abyss before - the sheer ancient force was causing his mind to weaken again.
The tendril again slashed across the cave, knocking him to the ground. He scrambled quickly to his feet and gathered his breath, marveling that he hadn’t been pulverized by the power of the blow. He was certain that his injuries were more severe than he realized. Adrenaline was playing a large part of his ability to even focus his eyes, let alone fight.
Another crash resounded through the cavern as more boulders collapsed from the ceiling. He cried out in pain as one struck him heavily on the shoulder. His arm hung limp at his side, tingling with numbness. He dashed away from the advancing creature but found himself at the rocky outcropping where they were trapped before.
Hadid coughed as he turned and slowly slid into a sitting position. He weakly made his practiced motions to summon a portal, but the leylines here felt as dry as the inside of his mouth. He felt tired and weak, suddenly keenly aware of his age. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as the beast tilted its massive head toward him.
He lowered his good arm. He had imagined that when it was his time to die he would have a rush of memories and reflections. Or perhaps he would gain some profound understanding of the universe at the end. The old teacher laughed softly as the only thing that crossed his mind while staring into the gaping jaws of an abyssal horror was an old sailors’ limerick. He mouthed it quietly as he watched the beast pace closer.
Since our hopes ever drift on a volatile tide, Every bowline and coward is fit to be tied.
____________________
“That’s Hadid’s voice!”
Kaigan’s shock caused him to yank the bandages, making Rodolf grunt in pain. “Oh, sorry. He’s probably around here somewhere though. Gimme a sec, I’m gonna look for him. Who knows, perhaps his magic can do better than I am.”
Walking around the stone ledge, following the refrains of the poem, Kaigan was looking with his ears as much as his eyes. The sound was definitely coming from below him, and leaning carefully over the edge on the other side of the pillar he saw Hadid sitting on the ground below him, the monster slowly plodding forward. Running back around the pillar, the patter of his little bare feet told Rodolf that he was frantic for something. Grabbing the massive longsword, he sprinted back toward the ravine without a word to the assassin.
Kaigan knew that what he was considering was stupid - maybe even suicidal - but if there was a chance he could save Hadid, he would take it. He looked down into the darkness and took a deep breath. He leapt from the edge and held the sword beneath him.
Hadid closed his eyes and turned his head as the abyssal monster opened its jaws wide. He involuntarily started as he heard the sickening crunch. After a strange moment of realizing that he hadn’t been eaten, he peeked back at the beast. A sword protruded from the roof of its mouth and black ooze poured out of the wound. Its legs gave way and it collapsed to the cave floor, motionless.
A pained cry drew Hadid’s gaze to the top of the creature’s head. Kaigan lay atop the beast, gasping for air. The kobold clutched at his chest with one hand, the other still gripping the sword that was embedded in the creature’s skull. As soon as their eyes met, the warrior smiled gently. “Sorry we got separated.”
Kaigan dislodged the blade and hopped to the floor, drawing in air sharply as he hit the ground - likely a fractured rib or two. He stepped up and extended an ichor-coated hand to Hadid. The old scholar smiled warmly as he took the proffered claw. The kobold winced as he helped pull the mage to his feet.
“You’re right on time, my friend,” Hadid said weakly. Kaigan nodded and began to reply but was interrupted from above.
“You idiot,” Rodolf shouted from the top of the crevasse. The pain was evident in his voice. “You won’t be able to kill it with that. Get out of there!”
A low gurgle from the beast rumbled into a growl as its wound began to knit itself back together with shadowy wisps. Hadid wasted no time. He lifted his functioning arm and drew a neat circle in the air, blue light glistening through the gloom. He helped Kaigan through the portal and stepped neatly through after him. The two of them stood beside Rodolf at the top of the crevasse. Hadid stared back through the gate as the beast began to pull itself to its feet. Perhaps there’s time to make a difference yet. He dismissed the portal.
Kaigan sheepishly offered the longsword back to its owner. Rodolf huffed quietly as he slid it back into its sheath but had no harsh words for the Kobold. The two contestants helped prop the assassin between them, Rodolf resting most of his weight on Hadid’s good arm and bracing on Kaigan like a crutch between steps. The trio limped toward a grim red light in the distance, echoes of otherworldly roars receding behind them.
Tika slowly stirred from her stupor, waking to near total darkness save for a crimson red emanating from beneath. The young elf took a moment to catch her breath as she rose to her feet before examining the horrific cavern she found herself in. Surrounding her resting place on the bedrock was a smoldering lake of red, wisps of twisted shadows forming half-remembered visages as smoke bubbled from the lake’s surface. Tika gagged slightly as the sulfuric taint of the abyss permeated her nostrils. Tika’s voice filled the air with calls of “Hestie? Hestiiieeeee. Hestia?!” as the elf frantically searched for her ashen friend… but her cries went unanswered.
Instead all she heard was the clanking of metal and the deep reverberations of some slumbering behemoth. Tika was not alone.
Tika immediately stopped her hollering as the clanking grew louder and louder, a march of steel on stone that signaled the arrival of a metallic behemoth whose very presence caused Tika to quake in her boots. She braced for the beast’s assault… but it never came. Slowly, she made out Sturgar’s distinct filigree and blades from the cavern’s dark expanse and breathed a massive sigh of relief. “Oh, uh… hey Sturgar! Nearly gave me a heart attack there…” she said, to which the augmented dragonoid simply responded with a whirr from his mechanisms.
Tika kept glancing about the cavern as Sturgar stood in place, still as any statue. The small elf looked over to the metallic dragonborn, asking “Hey, I know we should probably be seeking out an exit and everything… but I have a friend who’s currently missing. You know Hestia, right?”
Sturgar’s mechanisms clicked and whirred as he nodded in response.
“You mind helping me look for her? It would mean a lot of you did…”
Sturgar’s motions stilled as the dragonborn considered the elf’s plea. Soon however, he placed one of his metallic hands over Tika’s shoulder, and with a nod agreed to assist with the search. Tika was ecstatic at the news, thanking Sturgar profusely as tiny sparks of electricity arced around her.
Tika and Sturgar’s arduous and largely fruitless search through the many winding corridors of the cavern eventually lead the pair to a large, basaltic platform amidst the abyssal sea, the air suffocatingly still. Tika cautiously drew her blade, sensing something amiss, and Sturgar filed suit, his arms now bearing what may be a small armory’s worth of weapons. The two slowly skulked onto the platform, Tika constantly ensuring that Sturgar did not make too much noise… but eventually, she herself made a wrong step, sending an echoing crack throughout the cavern.
The shades rose with a hiss near moments later. Legions of twisted shadows appearing as fallen knights or soldiers coalesced around Tika and Sturgar as two shade horses, identical to the one which had knocked Tika out earlier, blocked off their exit. Among the circling crowd, Tika recognized Hestia’s twisted reflection, the knight’s shining armor appearing worn and corroded… and above the battle, another corrupted but familiar figure circled overhead. Watching. Judging.
There are few things that could infuse an avatar of nature with as much terror and rage as seeing a phantom of one of her own, warped into a necromantic abomination. The other was being forced to fight the shade of a dear friend alongside it. Even as Sturgar tore through the other shades, swords, axe, and mace alike aglow with his inner furnace’s flame, Tika stood paralyzed as Hestia’s shade slowly approached under the vulture-shade’s watchful gaze. The shade of the Ashen Knight suddenly charged with a slash, and Tika was too stunned by her emotions to dodge out of the way. The young elf took the brunt of the hit and was sent back as she reeled from the hit.
She looked out and saw Sturgar stemming the horde with wide swings from his axe and mace, too busy to assist her. She saw Hestia, once her closest friend but now nothing more than a tarnished reflection of her former glory. And she saw Yormudin, formerly a symbol of the peace of death, now only demonstrating the virulence of the Abyss’s reach.
Something within Tika snapped at that moment, and her pained scream soon turned to a roar as lightning flashed across the arena, striking down many shades in a single bolt. Tikaalid slapped the false knight away from her before bellowing at the vulture shade circling above, challenging the impostor apex to a duel. Yormudin’s shade responded by dive-bombing Tikaalid only for the massive amphibian to slide out of the way before responding with a grab of her own. Now helpless, the false Drought’s Whisper could only hiss as Tikaalid slammed it against the ground over and over again, causing the shadow to leak and leak until dissipating completely with a splatter. The other shades dissipated shortly after as Tikaalid and Sturgar mowed down the rest with slam, slash, and storm.
Eventually, after the fighting back down, Tikaalid’s form shrunk back to Tika’s small self before she looked over to Sturgar, examining his (minimal) injuries. The elf smirked. “Don’t tell anyone bout that, ‘k? Now, where were we….”
Sturgar and Tika ventured back into the caverns, renewing their search for the Ashen Knight anew. They left no stone unturned and no passage unexplored, with Tika providing light using her storm magic while Sturgar broke down any barriers or meandering shades in their path.
MTG Cardsmith Community Forums
Comments
But the fever passed couple of days ago, and I'm back at working on the chapter. It's going rather smoothly now, so I try to get it finished and published before 4th of April. It's my grandma's birthday, and folks are planning a big party around that time.
Nineteen
Ruined Sanctuary - Part III (Final)
#toc4_story
Twenty
Otherworld - Part I
Art: Cory-Trego Erdner
Art: Loksanor
#toc4_story
although would tika have been knocked out by that earlier? given her whole thing i'd figured she'd be more resilient to blunt force trauma
Event
In the Abyss
You're separated into small groups, and your objective is not to fight, but to escape as quickly as possible. Combating monsters or using magic in a place where the Abyss is leaking to the world has a great risk of inviting more monsters.
Like Sturgar in the previous chapter, each of your traveling heroes (Tika, Kaigan, Hadid, Imilia, and Nilfi) fell into the cavern. Your task is to write a short story chapter on how your hero will act. By what means will they escape? Will your hero work with others or escape on their own? How will they avoid possible monsters wandering in the tunnels?
The Abyss's influence is slowly taking hold of your heroes as they try to escape. They may have hallucinations reflecting their fears and flaws. Their misdeeds and mistakes. Implement these into your stories for characterization and extra points.
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Monsters you may encounter...
@FourEyesIsAFish - Tika regained consciousness shortly after falling down the stairs.
Since @shadow123's Lyuben and @ChoyBoi's Conscience aren't part of this event, I send them each an unique Random Encounter to resolve (right after I post this event.)
You have one month to post your event chapter, which means the deadline is 25th of June. On that day, the event will be over and I'll post two story chapters leading to the start of Round 2 of the Tournament.
And once again, sorry for the long wait! Recent times have been full of different occasions, some were happy ones, others, not so much.
In any case, good luck on this event! Got any questions, feel free to ask, as always. I'm eagerly waiting to read your stories again.
Music
#toc4_event
Oh boy. that might come in conflict with ToC6 which starts 9'th of June.
Hopefully it will work out anyway or we'll make it work
Also, for those that are not part of the Discord channel.
Tournament of Champions 6 starts in two weeks on Friday the 9'th!
Escape [1/4]
[A huge thank you to @DrakeGladis who collaborated on this story. They have been exceedingly patient and easy to work with! This is a blend of each of our writing so hopefully it comes together in a unique way.]
Kaigan being first into the cave first was both a blessing and a curse. He was safe for the moment, but without a weapon he was at a huge disadvantage. He trusted that the other champions and their guards could do what they needed but he couldn't help but feel bad for running. He was here to help.
The pitter patter of his little, bare feet on stone eventually grew louder than the noises from outside. He slowed his pace to catch his breath. He jumped as Hadid stepped through a portal right next to him. Kaigan noticed it first. Where Hadid’s portals were usually a vibrant blue, the edges of the gate he stepped through began to turn a deep, oily black. The kobold’s cry of warning was cut short by a loud crack as a wiry tentacle lashed through the opening, shattering several nearby stalagmites. Hadid stumbled to his knees as he fought in vain to dismiss the portal. The tunnel they were in began to rumble and collapse as a hulking creature began to pry its way through the blackened opening.
The two stood momentarily dumbstruck as the hulking abyssal monster forced an arm through the portal. A sharp whistle snapped the two contestants to attention. The assassin, Rodolf, beckoned from further down the collapsing tunnel. “This way!” He hissed through his teeth. “You two are going to get yourself killed!”
They sprinted toward Rodolf as the creature roared behind them. They saw Rodolf’s eyes widen as he stepped out from his hiding spot and leapt toward them. “Keep your head down!” The same leathery lash whipped out into the room and began thrashing wildly, sending stones flying. The assassin reached the two at the same moment that the ground beneath them shifted sharply.
The floor beneath the trio gave way, leaving them suspended in midair. As they began to fall, Rodolf grabbed Kaigan by the arm and Hadid instinctively summoned a portal beneath himself. The blue edges again flickered black as he fell through the gate. The wizard muttered a curse as he saw his exit portal sputter in and out of existence, jumping from place to place. Rodolf snagged a sheathed blade from his belt with his free hand and pushed the scabbard against the crumbling wall to slow their descent. He held the kobold tightly as they tumbled into darkness.
Hadid’s passage through the portals was typically instantaneous, like walking through the threshold of a door. This time however the space between felt far too large. It was as though he was passing through someplace else in between. The air felt stagnant and hot as he flew past a vast red-tinted darkness. Worse, the darkness seemed to be littered with pinpricks of glowing eyes.
He burst through the exit at an odd angle into the crumbling stone wall. His breath left his lungs as he tumbled to the cave floor some half dozen feet below. He glanced over in time to see Rodolf and Kaigan slide safely to the floor and dive beneath a jutting boulder as more stones fell around them. Hadid scrambled painfully to his feet and quickly limped over to join them under the makeshift awning. The three flinched as a huge chunk of debris crashed into the rock overhead.
Moments passed as the three hunkered beneath the overhang. Huge boulders continued to fall, covering what they could see of the tunnel. The old teacher covered his mouth with a heavy sleeve to try to filter the dust and Kaigan covered his ears with both hands. After what felt like an eternity, the dust settled and all was quiet.
Hadid’s breath came slow and heavy through the cloth. His heart pounded in his ears and he winced against a buzzing pressure behind his forehead. He tried to steady his thoughts but conjuring a thought felt like trying to corral a beehive.
“̴̹̓Ẇ̵͖̮̙̀̐h̶̥̆ͅa̷̦̘͑͌t̴͇͂̍͐ ̶͔̯͚͘a̸͕͎̙͆̃̈́r̷̖̝͎̔e̸̡̻͇͆ ̶̬̗͚̐͆ỹ̵͉̫̘̓o̴̡͔͍̾̌̓u̴̙̚͘̚ ̷̥̳͊̚d̷͙̀̅̊ỏ̷̢̖͋͊ì̸̜̖͓n̸̼͛͒̇ǵ̷̖̘̺̈͝ ̷̮̗̩͗̂h̸̫̏̽ẽ̵̫̠̹r̷̭̰͂͜͝è̷̤̾?̵͙͓̈̉͝”̷̝͑̓͜
The voice caught him off guard. It was his own voice, yet not quite. Familiar but altered. Were those his own words? His own criticisms? Was it out loud or in his mind?
“̵̡̞͌͐Y̴͉̺̦̾o̶͇̐u̶̖̥̜̾̂͠’̶̤̙̣̍̓̚r̶̲̹̆e̸̗̥̭̍̀ ̷̭̭͝n̶̑̾͜o̵̜͊̂t̷̒ͅ ̷͕̩̂ș̶̡̈́̿͝u̶͚̪͙̓p̸͎͒̍͜p̶̮̀ô̶͉s̸̲͊e̶̞̎̐d̷̡̜̱̂̉͛ ̴̛͎̊͠t̷̺̻̓͂ö̶̤̟̤́̈̂ ̶͇̺̠̎̿b̷͎͌ę̶̪͔̈́̒ ̷͖̅̈̊h̶̪̎̇̆ĕ̶͎̏̃r̶̛͔̹̥̉ë̸̛͎̬̹́.̸͈͇̈́̑͜ ̵̤͌͆G̶͔͎̈́̅o̶̰̊ ̷̛̳̹̂b̴͓̤̞̎a̸̳͑c̷̺̒̀͝k̷̮̝͙͒̎ ̴̦̓̐t̴̹́͠o̷̰̎͌͝ ̵̡̹̂y̶̖̑̒ȏ̵̗͙̃͘u̷̕͜r̵̡̥̬̀̈́ ̴̻͑͠s̸̘͆̐t̷͓̒̎u̷͙̚ḑ̸̘̙̉ỵ̵̝͆.̴̖̮͚͘”̷͚̭̙̊͗
Hadid pressed his palms against his eye sockets. I know, but…
“̵̭̈́̍͝Y̵̨̛͕͑̚ő̵̢̰̞û̸̦͚̤̒̉’̸̺̽̑r̵̥͚̀ḙ̵̬̇͐ ̸͕̲̦͑w̵̻̖̐͠à̶͙̟̪̚s̵̛̖̺̠̓̉ť̸̩͕͈ị̵̻̅̽n̶̒̂̀ͅg̸̼̝̎̑͝ ̸̪̞͠t̴̺̽͝͝i̸̳̼͝m̵̫̯̒e̵̼͝.̴͇͔̆͊̈ ̸͝ͅY̴̛͔͈̰ó̸͇̱̎͘u̴̝̔’̴̡̳̯̐̅r̸̭͑̽e̴͉͈͙͊̍̈ ̴̢̪̈̈́p̶̧̗͒u̷̧͉̥̓͌̚t̴̜́͗̽ț̷͎͂͘ͅi̵̢̬͋̈́̎ͅn̵̟̮̩̕g̶͎̬̀̔ ̵͔̼̩̈́̊͝o̸̩̯͌̚t̶͇̼́̽̄h̷͓͋̀̉ͅē̶̗r̶̥̩͎̂s̸̨͑ ̶͕̙̀͗ĩ̶͇̦̰n̵̻͉͐̀̚ ̸̥͙̓d̵͎̝͐ͅa̷̢̮̕n̴̹̘̄̓g̶̤͝e̷̡̱̒͗͗r̵̯̂͝.̷͚͔̻̆”̷̳̌
But I can still get us out of danger.
"̴̻̰̈́̅̚͜C̶̭̝̓͛à̴̡̰̞̈́̌ṇ̵̝̃̉͜ ̴̡̙͠y̴͍͕͍͗̈́̈́o̴̮̹̓̚u̵̙̅͆͝?̸̢̘̣́"̶͓̉̈́
Images of the dark-rimmed portal flashed across his thoughts.
“̶̞̝͂͗Ỷ̵̧̘̇ͅo̷̡͇͗̾ṵ̸͕͗’̴̞͎̆r̸̺̜̞͆e̴͚̳͉̿̅͘ ̵̞̳̈n̵̳̈́͒o̶̥̺̐̕ẗ̶̬̥́͌ḣ̷̭͑i̸̮̩͋̀͌ṇ̴̄g̷̱͖̃ ̶͉̠͂͘ḩ̶̡́ë̸̡́r̷̭̱̄̋e̴̘̔͝.̸̛̗̍ ̶̫̈͂Y̶̥̦̕o̷̡͖͔̚ų̵̦͊ ̷̩̤̑͝w̴̛͉̥̠̔̉è̴̟̑r̸̪͒e̵̙͖̼̔ ̴̙͐̋̈́ņ̸̟̓̋ơ̸̢͍͊t̴͖̎̔͆h̷̺̃̈͝i̴̎͊̈͜n̵̝̾g̶̩͘ͅ ̸͕̣̪̄̄b̸̼͖̉͜e̶̢̖̱͌̃̅f̷̟͍̥̅ó̵̙̘̖̕͠ŕ̸̰̦̟̏̃ề̷͚̞̠̕ ̵̤̚͝a̸̺̋̏͐n̵̢̳̜͒̽̚d̴̨̰̋͛ ̷̧̖̈́͜y̷̟͓̩͆o̷̫̣͆͗ȗ̴͖’̴̡̅͑̐ļ̴̠̞͆̕l̴̼̰̎̏̕ ̶̰̻͂̚b̴̭̪͛͝e̶̲͍̝̕ ̸̛̖̲͆̏ͅn̷̖͉̼͆̒ǒ̵̗̜̳t̶̗͇̃͜ḥ̸̨̍i̶͎̎͛ṋ̶͔̇͝g̶̬̠̈́ ̵̟̆a̸̩̒͋͘g̵̫̭̪̽̿a̶̼͊ḯ̸̭̰̘̏ǹ̴̫̥͉͑.̶̬̞͑̀̚”̸̢̞̊
That’s not true.
“̷̰̤̒͒͘ͅY̴͇̤̩͛ȯ̴͚͍̺ǔ̶͙̈͒ ̶̙̈́̅͘w̴̮̺͍̔i̸̡̼͙̓l̴̠̀̉͆l̶͙̍̒̏ͅ ̶̺̈́͒d̴̙͔̈́̈ͅi̷̛̠̬̳̓ẻ̵̛͍̫̰ ̸̗͔͔́̀̕ḧ̵̜͚̗́e̴̻̭͉̒r̸̝̬̐e̴̲̓͂ ̷̡̺̖̾̄a̵̡̻̍̚n̵̂́͘ͅd̴̤͋̂ ̴̟̲͆y̷̛͉͋́ǫ̴̨̝́͘u̷̻̘̟̓̀͊ ̵̬̙̻͛w̵̧̻̿i̷͎̖̿l̷̡̥̇l̷͇̚ ̶̪̼͛h̵͔̤̄̌̽a̶͎̣̍̈́v̸̨̬͆̎ȩ̷͎͒̓̎ ̵̳̤̤̓̊d̴͙̞̖̏ō̴̩̠͝o̶͌ͅm̴̭̼̣͑e̶̜̠͌̀ď̶̦͒ ̵͓̓̀̇t̵͚̔h̴̢̼͒̾e̷͔̦̳̍͊̇ ̴̭̜̈ȍ̸̩t̴̖̪͚͐͒h̴̟̪͐e̸̲̦͙̓r̴̜̣̖͆͝s̸̡̨̉̀ ̸͖̠̞̄̓w̵̛̯̩͒į̵̱̤̔̈́ṫ̷̡̮̣̿̄h̴͈̊̊ ̴̦̀y̵̪̠̱̆̿̀ô̴͈͚̞͗́u̵͓̣͆͂̚ŗ̶͕̥̃̔ ̷̼̏̂́i̷̜̼̻̋̉́g̵̦̩͋͑n̶͎̫̅̀o̶̰̟̩̊r̵͍̗̻̈â̶̳̕n̸̢̲͆c̷̞̘͂̓̕e̸͉̘̓͜.̶͍̪̣̄”̵̡̅̅̇͜ͅ
He clawed at his ears, trying to drown out the voice. I won’t.
“̷̞̻̑́̋T̸̩̅͝ẖ̸͍̔̈́̀e̸̜̼̜̿̎̾ņ̷͈̟̈́ ̸̢͍̳͒̃͌p̴̺̥͐̃͑͜r̷̜̀̑̂ọ̸̓͂ͅv̸̟̳̀͆̍ḙ̵̼̻̆̄ ̵͙̮̓̈́͑į̸̣͖̎t̷̡̗͋̍.̴̧͓͘”̸̜͚͊̚
[2/4]
The moment happened so quickly that Kaigan didn’t even have time to cry out. The portal blinked into existence, Hadid plunged through, and then it snapped shut. It was barely open long enough to see tendrils of darkness envelop the mage. Did he even intend to open it and go through, or was this another Abyssal manipulation? The kobold didn’t have time to think about it; the assassin was pressing a pair of daggers into his hands.
“I’m not here to babysit you. Take these - you’ll need ‘em. That foolish old man will have brought the monsters right to us!”
Rodolf pulled out his own longsword and another dagger from his belt, turning rapidly to keep an eye out for where danger might be coming from. Kaigan put his back to the assassin’s butt, too short to fully be back to back. Daggers weren’t his favorite weapons, with his short arms and stature he really was at a huge reach disadvantage with them on his person. It was better than nothing though, he though grimly.
He started as the assassin tapped his tail. “We need to run. We haven't been located ye-”
Rodolf didn’t finish the statement as its inaccuracy became immediately apparent. Dropping in from above the duo, the horrible inky beast landed in front of them and let out a predatory scream.
The monster was inky black, oozing tendrils not of shadow but of tar. It’s jaws dripped with the same sickening ichor. Rodolf and Kaigan brandished their weapons. It snarled and began pacing toward them.
In Kaigan's eyes, it was massive. The creature could devour him in two bites, easily. Hell, it might be able to eat Rodolf in four. Just looking at it, even Prossh might fall to it if it could keep him on the ground. He gulped nervously, feeling its unsettling gaze resting square upon him.
Rodolf was less bothered. This monster was of a sort he’d seen before. While his current ward probably wouldn’t be too useful against this being, his sword would deal with it like it had dealt with the others before. Drawing his blade, he assumed a calm and readied stance. Glancing down, he saw the kobold assuming a similar pose.
The assassin was the first to strike. Dashing forward, his blade bit into the tarry form. Slowed, but continuing to glide through, he gave a quiet hiss of triumph at severing the limb, followed by a sharp intake of dismay. Kaigan had dashed with the assassin, the two daggers gripped tight enough in his hands that his knuckles popped against his scales. Underneath the thing was probably the safest strategy to get to a weak point, he assumed. Ducking past the drooling liquid he narrowly avoided his tail being bitten. Striking at its underbelly, he sunk both daggers to the hilt and dragged them as he came out the other side. Looking back, Kaigan expected to see a torrent of blood, but… nothing.
The attacks didn’t seem to majorly harm the beast. Rodolf had briefly slowed it down, and Kaigan had made it annoyed, but that seemed to be all. The two watched as shadowy magic tendrils began mending the injuries they had caused in their initial assault. They knew they were in for a rough fight.
[3/4]
Hadid stood - or was he lying down? - motionless as pregnant moments passed in darkness, eyes closed. He wasn’t certain if he had conjured another portal or if he had imagined it. Was he still beneath the cave-in or was he somewhere else? He felt his brow furrow. Wherever he was felt subtly warm. He pressed his closed eyes shut against the dry, caustic heat as it began to build.
“̴̬͉̳̚A̵̻̿́̾ļ̶͂̓͘l̶̗͂ ̴̈́͜ṭ̶̄h̶̤̼̅̑ḛ̶̓ŏ̴̝̣̜̌ŕ̵̫̀͝y̸̭͘͠ ̵̩̩͊a̵͚̟̱͑̔n̴̠̦̙̆̐d̵͍̀́̓ ̶͍͓͔̐n̶̘̭͚̓͐͒ö̶͚̲́ ̷̢̗̠̄̓̾p̴̮̻̚r̵̥̯͋̐a̴̛̗͉̅c̵̻͚͐t̶͉̓ī̸̞̠̻̕c̴͎͐è̵̡,̶̧̘̌”̶̜̰̈́̾̕ the voice clucked disapprovingly. “̴̨̭͋̅̔W̷͍̹̘͒̀h̵̨͋̀͠e̶͓͇̎̚͠r̶̠̈́͒e̷̡̍’̴͈͕̀s̸̀͂̕͜ͅ ̸̧̏̈́͘y̴̝̕̚o̶̯̍ù̴̘̿r̵̼͙͙̽̚ ̴̩̲̟́f̴̊̎ͅi̴̪̍͝e̷̻͉̠͛̿̚l̴̜͙͝͝d̷̬̼̍̈́̑ ̴͕̠̦̍̃̋e̵̼̫͒́x̷̢̦͌̽p̴̡͉̆̃͜ẽ̴̢̖̬̂r̵̗͍̈́̋͌i̸̛̞̙e̶͉͙̥̊̆n̷͓̩̭̏c̵̖̍e̵̅͂ͅ?̷̮̗͆͂”̵̨̈́
Ah, a mind game. He clenched a fist as he attempted to ground his thoughts. Experience goes hand in hand with methodology.
“̶̻̕S̵̨̘̾͘ố̶̼̯̽ ̴͕̑̔͝f̸͍͎̼̑a̴̲̲͗r̴̼̅ ̸̨͋y̴̨̭̝̔͘ò̵̻̋̐u̵͔̦̒́͐r̸͙̐̈́ ̵̤̗̙̑̉m̶̳̤͗͜e̶̫̠͒͒ť̵̯̳h̶̦̯̬̊̚ŏ̸͍̪d̶̥͔͐̄̈ͅo̵͈̟̯̒l̵̦̏ȍ̵̫́ĝ̵̙y̸̨̨̯͑̄͝ ̶͈̳͠h̸̡̨̹͌̉͒a̴̢͗̒̚s̶̻̥̞͂̌ ̴̛̣̰̈́͠ö̴͎́͘n̴̩͍͙̓̉̋ļ̵̲͑͌̊͜ẙ̸̰̏͘ ̶̝̾͜l̷̤̬̒́ë̴̫́̀́ḑ̸͂̓̈ ̷̺̣̭͑t̵̜̙̀o̴̡̞̖͝ ̵̣̆̈́d̸̞͗̾ï̶̗̗̄̑s̶̝͈͚͊t̸̢͌́̔r̶͇̘̄u̴̪̘͓̍s̷̱͕̏̓t̵̨̻̀̈́͜ ̴̜́̋͜͜ȃ̴̹n̷̫̮̋ḋ̶͕̈́̋ ̴̺͐̑u̴̠̤͍̿n̷͙͖̟̉͆̈́r̸̜͛͂͘e̵̯̫͘͜s̵͓͓̈́ţ̸̖̦̀̽̂.̵̱͖̒̈́ͅ”̴̙̙̪͂̇͝
It’s… a work in progress.
“̴͎̈́A̴͇̫̙̓̋̌ ̷͉̩̱̈́ẁ̴̨̛͉̮o̸͓̮̖͋̄͊r̶̪͊̕̕k̴̘̪͂̆̎ ̸͇̊t̴͍̂̚o̸̡͔̥̍̂͌ ̷̗̱͆̏͝w̵͇̄́͘ḧ̶͕͓͉ä̶́͜t̷͕̺͆ ̵͕̾̚͝e̸̠͆̈́n̶̊͜d̸̙̬̀?̷͇̘̇͋̀ ̷͕̣͆Y̵̰̓̾̃ó̶͖̣͒͐ͅu̷̼͒̎̓ ̷͕̟̾s̷̗̟͑̌é̶͕͙̅̊e̸̢̝̐̕͜ķ̵̜͗͐ ̵̙͗͑͝ṏ̶͖̫́̅ņ̷̭̱̂̔l̴̩̤̒̚̕y̴̜̼͗ ̸̼͍͎͊̈́y̷͈͋̏o̶͔͐u̵̼̳̚r̵̲͊̕ ̷̩̤͂̃̂ỏ̷͙͋w̸̧̟͚̌n̸̲̓ ̶̠̩́̓s̴͗̊̓ͅĕ̷̘̫̯l̴̝̬̀̆f̸̗̈̍͠-̸͓̙̪̽̏a̵̻̥̯̿͆̇g̷̟̊̐̈g̷̛̻̹̱͑͋r̴̢͔̋ạ̷̛͍͆n̸̛̺͝ḑ̶̰͛͗ǐ̶̗͋͝ż̶̧̼́e̵̪̦̦͊̽͒m̵̛͖̙̆͛ȇ̸̡͎n̸̛̛̺̰̈́t̴͖̜̘̔.̸̭̹͐ͅ ̵̧͇̭͑͑Y̵̼̏̍o̸̧̤̪̔͌̀u̷͓͉̿̀͜ ̶͔̞̽w̸̧̢̙̑̒ȧ̷̝̈́n̷̘̝͎̽t̷̳̃͜ ̶̗̪̊t̸̙͙͍͌̽̚o̷̟̳̓͗̈ ̸̼̑̇̚͜b̸͓͒̑ȩ̴̛̞͖̕ ̴̼̈́̓r̷̨̿͛͝e̶̬͐m̸̰̬̠̏̕ề̷̹͈̓m̸̞̰̯̓̓b̷̨̧͛͒̄e̶̡̧̞̿r̵̫̥͋̿e̶̼͋̎d̴͚̒̾.̵͕̚”̷͖͒͝ The voice hung on the word, tone dripping with pity.
I want… The voice was right after all. What were the years of study for but to make a name? Why did he tolerate the years of academic rigors, the countless hours of lectures, office hours, and instruction? Why would he take on so many apprentices and assistants if not to ensure a legacy? To leave something behind for those after?
“̴̜̠͗̈́Y̵̘͎͑̔o̵̡̥͐̒ư̶̢͕̼̊ ̸̛̫̦̲̈́͠ḽ̸̮͌è̷͙ͅf̷̙͌̓̅t̴̢͎̂̾ ̷̲͈̮͝a̶͈̤͐l̷͇̼̮̅l̸͖̫̃͒͂ ̷̱̃̋́͜t̶̗̗̰̅̀̚ĥ̷̜̞̩͝a̸͍̲̭̓́̋t̷̩̆ ̴̩̈̃b̶̥̘̞̑̋e̷̢͋̀h̴̻̺͖̉i̷̥̗̍̿n̵͈̔̉d̴̰̹͛͒ ̶̠̘͝f̴͖̏̍͘ỏ̵̜̭̂͂r̶͔̄̅ͅ ̷̛̮̺̃̀á̵̞̚ ̶̠̌c̸̻̃̾ḫ̵̤̎̆a̶̩͔̮͘͝n̵̲̾c̷̗̗̀e̸̻̝̋ ̸̨͊͛̀ͅḁ̶̰̥͗t̷̹̣́͘ ̶̹̗̞̈w̷̦͒̐̉h̵͙͈͈̍̋̈́ȧ̸̬̗t̸̬̜̫̏?̴̯͈͆̎̍ͅ ̵̨̞̫̆̽̆E̸̯̰̅͑x̴̠̓t̴̩͕̕ȓ̷̭a̷̱̰͗̎́ ̷͕̝̉g̶̰̼̝̍̂l̵͔͉̖̀̏̊ṍ̶̮̿r̴̻̘͒́͝y̵̠̤̹͋͆?̷͚̣̤́̈́ ̵̻̥̙́B̵̭̩͑̓͗y̴̢͒ ̷̹̠̚͝b̶͔͑̚e̷͔̋c̴̢̼͙͐ō̴̱͈̮̎m̶̡̛̟ȋ̷̟͔͝n̶̨̳͖͂̚g̵̡̣̊́ ̷̟̣̽à̵̘̼̫͠ ̵̛̯̥͋̀g̷̥̃̿l̴̝̘̉̈́͝a̷̱̾̓̿d̶̢̠̘̍í̷̜͓͋͜ằ̴͈̺̳̓t̴̳͝ō̵̝͂̚ṛ̷̼͌́͝ͅ?̷̝̗͂̂̊ ̴̫̤̿Ă̸̻͐͘͜n̷̳̦͊ ̷͈͉̲͌̄è̵̤͜ǹ̸̦̪̿̉t̸͖̞̖̚ẻ̴͉͉r̸̡̈́̑ẗ̶̯̖ḁ̵̹̓͜͝i̴̘͈̼͆̀͛n̷̞̏̾e̵̺͒r̸͓̣͉̀ ̷̗̳̃̑f̵͚̹͎͛́͗o̴̧͈̔̽̚r̶̦̝̀ ̸͇̐b̵͔͉̈l̵̠͒̀̅ͅo̸̭͕͙̔o̶̰͍̙̓̈͝d̵̨̺̓̑͠s̵̩͋̑̊p̸̬̼̌̆̚ȏ̴͙̞̣r̵̠̗̄̓̾t̴͕̋?̴̣̝̌”̷̳̉̍͒
It’s more nuanced than that.
“̷̨̺͌͜Ḯ̶͉̪̈́ș̸̀̔ ̷̟̣̓i̵̢̨̭͑ţ̸͛͜?̴̨͊̕”̸̡̰͍̽͛͆ his voice laughed back at him dryly as a surge of heat caused his toes to curl. “̸̤́͗͝Ỳ̵̩̞͔͠o̵̭͝u̵̼̓͊̄͜ ̴̳̼̔̅̆l̶̹̙̗̎̐͘e̷̥̼̗͂f̷̣̏t̸̨̽ ̵̳̦́̉̐ả̵̖ ̸͚̦̑l̴̟̺̺̕ḭ̶̢̙̒̉f̵̮̃ẹ̷̌́̃ ̸͔̘̋̎w̸͓͆́h̴̝̟̊ȇ̴̱ͅr̸̘̠̂̾ë̸̥́̂̂ ̷̙̯̈́̌͠ô̶̰͙t̴̡̡͉̓̌h̷͈͘ḙ̷͚̑ŗ̷̦̖́̒s̷̱̦̏͛́ ̵̯̹̊m̷̢̩͋ą̶͎̇y̸̜̺͙̋ ̸̧͍̆͠h̷̳̟̥͗̕a̸̮̞͆̓v̷̘͍̊̐̃͜e̸̥̅̾̽ ̴̢̛͕̚c̴͍͆̇ą̶̣̱͆̆r̶̈ͅḛ̷̉͑͝d̵̛̺̰̉̑ ̵̰̙̂̎͠t̵̻͔̽͝ȯ̷̼̎͘ ̵͖̙̖́̓̓t̷̛͓̲͉r̸̘̜͉͑ÿ̴̡͆ ̸̹͂̄̕a̷̛̤͍̳̅̉n̸̫̥͕͒̔d̴̛̟͌ ̵̛̦̫̳i̵̹͐́m̸͙̮͋p̵̘̏̒r̵̨͍̬̈e̵̱͍̖͑̉s̷̢̠̠̒̆̕ş̴͉̠̚ ̶̢̓̒a̷̜̯̍̾ ̵̖̚ͅc̷̡͔͍̍̀̒ȓ̴̳̼̌o̴͈̾w̸̳̥͊͛̀ͅd̷̨͎̱́ ̵̤̺̀̀̋o̴̥͙̠̐f̷̞̒͊ ̸̹̹̰̉͆̚s̴͚̼̕t̸̳̀r̶͎̰̋͊̍à̷̖̪n̷̰͊g̸̹̈́͝ẻ̶̪̬͙̊̕r̷̮̜͈̾̿̃s̸̞̪͒̏̔.̶̼̰̫̍̅ ̵̜̊̀͘Ỹ̵̪o̵͍̱͊u̴̙̺̾͑͘ ̷͍͛͆̅w̴̱̖͘à̴̩ñ̸̛̫̎t̵͈͉́ ̵͖͓̝̈́t̷̟̓̀̏ͅͅh̵̰̒ë̴̱̖́͐̇ ̴͔̮̄̊̈́ä̴̧͍́́p̷̩̑̅̃p̵̜͓͆r̷̫͍̈́̕ȍ̵̳͈̈́v̷͍͋̒̊ạ̵͗l̷͓͒͊̇ ̸̣̮̈̀ͅȏ̷̮̣͒̌f̴͔̔ ̴̧̠̈́̎͂t̸̘̬́͛h̸̹̲́̈́̔e̴̡͐̋ ̸̯͊̔̀v̴̢̥̦̈́̚ä̵̬͎́̊̈́͜s̴̺͓̗͒̿͘t̵̻́͊ ̶͕̻̰̂̿͝u̶͇͙̚͠n̵̟̩͂̈́́t̶̜̐̓ọ̸̼́͌l̸̮̟͎̄ď̵̤̮͋͋ ̴̨̞͇̊̉m̸̮̪͖̈́̒͘a̴̫͈͒̐̑s̴̬̱̚s̸̺͖̒͠ẽ̸̠̽̓s̷͈͌̈́̾ ̸̹́̊͐-̴̘̜̗̌̀ ̶̮̫̈́y̶̯͉̍́o̸̢̬͆u̷̝͑̅͑ṟ̵̙͋͝ͅ ̸̢̟̙̇̓ō̵̭̏͐w̵͉̫̑͘ṅ̷̖͓ ̶̛̖̠͙̈́̅c̸͕̦̈́a̵͙̹͎̒r̴̛̬e̴̺̜͂ḛ̷̰̠̒͆̿r̶̯̈́̎ ̵͍̟̱̈́i̵̥̺̎s̴͉̞͆̌̕n̴̙̥̑͜'̴̩̋̈́t̵̬̹̋͌͊ ̶̩̻̫̐e̵̛͙͗͝ṉ̸̨̡̿́̏o̶͐̓͘ͅǘ̸͇̥̅͑g̶͖̈̀̚ͅḩ̸̗̫̒̾ ̸̟̟̘̿̍͌f̸̭̗͛̆̾͜ȏ̸̜̠r̵̈́͒͜ ̸̨̞̱͂̾y̴͍̰̫͊̈ỏ̴̱͘̕͜ú̶̥͝.̵͖́̏”̶̡̞̋̐̀
But it’s for the greater good. Hadid clenched his teeth at how pithy his own thoughts sounded.
“̴̛͍̈́̏H̶̱́̏͗à̵̱͖͠͝r̷̛͈̪̱͑̈́d̷͉̰͚̏̇͌ľ̵̼y̴̯͝.̷̧̪̆ ̶̤̀̈́͠Ě̶̱͑̽v̸̹̓͐e̵͖͚̟̓̀͠n̴̡̑͌ ̶̼̇̍͝ń̶̬͂͑͜o̷̳͚̅͋ẅ̵̱͙́͝,̸̡̮̌͋͠ ̴̹̒̒y̵͍̜͎̌o̴̡͔͗̈́ü̸̹ ̴̜̥̖̓̌͊à̵̝̲̽b̷͈̙͗̇̎ą̷̩̍̀n̶̡͔̩̋̅̍d̷͈̟̝̔͑͝ọ̷̈́͊̔n̶͔͑̀́ẽ̶̡̱d̸̯̺̮̂̽͊ ̷̙̊t̷̨͇̞̉ĥ̴̲̝ọ̷̹̾̕s̸͍͗̅ͅḛ̶̳̬͌̿͝ ̸͇̏t̵͙̟͑͘͜h̴̹͗̒ȁ̶̛̗̙̭ţ̶̃̋ ̷̢̩̤͒n̵̠̖̪͌e̶̪͂e̷̡̪̋d̶̦͆e̵̙̗̋͆d̶͙̹̃̏ͅ ̷̰̿͘y̶̢̛̭ỏ̶̖͇͆̍ų̶̬̘̊.̴͇̞̖̐ ̵̨͔͋͆͝Ẏ̴̖̠ö̶́ͅu̵̺͑̀̇ ̵̟̠̩̓͋̉õ̷̟̟̦n̷̮̳̘̔͛̋l̸͚̣̜̈́͊̌y̷͇̋ ̵̠̔̉s̷̟͙̐̕͘ô̸͈̄ư̶̗̎̓g̵̠͙̪͝ḥ̵̖̐͗͜t̸̛̠̻͐͌ ̴̡̻̩̂̕t̶̳͔̼́ŏ̷̬͊ ̶͙̰̇̅̊s̸̙̎ͅặ̷͉̞́v̴̳́͂̆e̷͙͒͋ͅ ̸̤̽y̸̦̏o̴͈̥͛u̸̦͔̚r̶̢̬͖͝s̴̭͇͍̏e̶̢̡̻̾̑̕l̴͔̠̒͜f̴̰̣̞̃̌.̴͚̳̐”̵̛̪̖̄
A tingle raced up his spine as he replayed the moments in the cave.
“̴͙̗̂͘Y̵̻͙͙͂̅̚o̸͔̗̘͑̈́͝ủ̶̻͇̖́’̸̢̱̇ļ̴̖́ͅl̸̘̈̒̚ ̸͙̾̒̊n̸͌͋̉ͅé̵̝͍͑̿v̷̹̘̯̄ĕ̷͍r̵̻͇̣̅ ̸̬͛̏̾ȃ̴̖̪͋̇m̸̲̰̅̿̚ͅŏ̵͍̘̹̊ú̴̮̪̲͠n̵͖̒͂̆t̷̲̓ ̷̧͈͚͋t̷̨͔͉̿͝o̷̩̺͌͝ ̶͉̈ȃ̶̧ň̶̦̫͜ỹ̵͍͒t̶͉͑ḩ̴̯̭͌͛͂ï̵͍̫͝n̴͖̹͝g̴̺̩͂̀.̵̪̀ ̴̰̈̓̓H̸̝̗̖͒̀̂ỉ̷͕͇̩͌̇s̴̰̱̰͛̅̔t̵̂ͅo̴̙̣̕ř̷͉̗͑͠y̴͔͙̞͒̆͗ ̸̭̜͆͝ẅ̵̘̥́i̵̟͝l̷̩̎̈́l̸̯̹̙̀͐̑ ̴̟̂f̶̨͓̞͋͝o̸̡̨̫̓̒͝r̶͚̤̐g̸͓͍̓͠ḛ̵̈́̏̕ẗ̷̗́ ̸̤̆͜͠y̷̧̞̑o̶̟̕u̸̥͂͜ ̶̫̱͚̅b̷̫̝̿ͅḙ̵̄̊̈f̵̣̻͠ọ̴̉̊r̷̬̼̓é̷̮̣͕ ̶̚͜ý̶̞̓o̷̗͌ü̴̩̮̒̕͜r̵̡͘ ̴͓͔̦̐b̵͔͇̐̀͠l̶̡̖̒õ̴̤̊͌o̵͔̞̱̽̀͠d̴̛͕̈́ ̸͕́̅͂ŕ̴̦̒̾u̵̪͓͋̈n̶͔̫̽̎s̵͕̆̈ ̶̖̭̼̇ċ̸̢o̴̦̅̕͠l̸͓̤̑ḋ̷̮̫́͜.̶̖̰̤̌̍”̷͓̫̒
He heard what may have been a rush of wind. Perhaps it was lava boiling up from below… or above? That may be for the best. To be forgotten.
“̴̦̻̋͜S̶̪͈̥̈́̚õ̶̠͓͗͜͝ ̴̙̺͎̋l̷̢̛ơ̵̳͋͐n̵̰̥͎͒̏͘g̴̙̮̫̒̃̇ ̵̛̝̪̰̇a̸̡̔š̶͍ ̴͔̄͂́y̵̺̒̅͜ó̸̱̥̓u̸̧͗̕ ̴͓͛̍̍à̴̛͙̠̼c̴̥͕̏̀́k̸͔͖̓̑̽n̵̮̖̾ơ̸̞̦̿̎w̶̪̥̽̔l̸̺͇̎̿ḙ̸̿̀ͅd̷̤̳́g̸̩̯͇̔͂e̵̯̍̚ ̴̢̦̀̃̐ị̸̣̤́͑ẗ̶̨̪̘́.̶̧̦̔̆̄”̶͇͖̇́ The sensation of being enveloped by an enormous pair of claws caused him to shiver in spite of the now raging heat. “̴̪̌̏Ỳ̴̮͌̆o̵͖̾u̶̡̢̮̅̈̏ ̶̞̠̀͊͊m̷̿̓͜ů̶̥͉s̸̮͎̥̓̒͛t̵̞̊ ̸͔͛̃͘r̴͓̚͝e̶̜͆̏̆s̸̹͙͓̆́͂ḯ̶͓̪͎͑̿ǵ̴̻͗n̶̛͖͖̽ ̵͇̄y̶̛̩̮̍̋ö̷̰́̇͜u̶̞̗̲̓ŕ̸̖̲̫͐ş̵͂ě̸͇̺͌͝ľ̸̦f̴͉̱̍́̐ ̷̢͇͔̀t̴̢̰͗̐o̸̭̗͉̒̓ ̷͙͂͆̍y̶̭͔̦̍̕o̷̢͕̱͠u̷͈̿̋r̶̡̟̈́̚ ̵͇̱̄̒̂f̵̤͑a̶͚̐̿̑ṯ̸̣͐̈́͝ę̴̨̖̆.̸̛̳̠̘̆̚ ̷̩̓̅̊F̶̱͎̞͒́͝i̵̢̛͆͋g̸̦̒h̵̡̏t̴͍̀͑i̶̢͗͘n̷̪̽͊g̸͚̃ ̷̤͊̊ä̵̢̤̺͝g̵̹͋̐͋ą̸̫̐̏i̵̢̚͠n̸̯̠̔̕s̶̘̠̬͛͠t̶̼͆̐͜ ̷̳̱̓i̷̧̺̫̇̏͝t̷̟̓ ̸̩̲̭̊ơ̸͖̓n̸̨̟̘͒l̴͙̆͊̚y̵̧̅̏̉ ̵̧̛̲̈m̴̘̎ă̷̭k̸̙̀è̷̟̍̇s̷̲͉̄ ̶̛̠̼̻͌t̷͔̩̉ḩ̴̄ḯ̴̢̯͘n̷̛̳̽ğ̵̳̅̕ŝ̸̻͉̔͒ ̴̜̼̻̉ẁ̵̟͜ơ̴̳̥̍ŕ̶̑͊ͅs̶̯̈́̉̆e̴̟̓.̶̦̠̆̓ ̷̭͔̊F̶͓̪̐o̸̫͒̏̀r̵̠̎ ̷̞́̌ͅy̵̟͎̾̿͊ò̴͍̬̫̾̋u̵̻͆ ̶̨̳͂̀͒ą̶̀̒̕n̷̼̱͒̑d̷̠̟̟̉̋ ̴̳͔̍̈͜ọ̷̩͂̂t̸̛̪͝ḩ̷͑͠e̸̛̺͊͒r̴̙̒͗̑s̵͍͠.̸̥͙̆̉̚”̷̧̈͠
A whirlwind of history flowed through Hadid’s memory. His graduation from academy. His first assignment as professor. His first publication - something about leyline stability? His first personal aide, a spry elven girl with a brain for puzzles. His work on the armillary project. A brief flash of Uriel proudly displaying his own academy acceptance missive after years of private tutelage. Uriel’s expression of deep concern as his mentor filled out a form for a Tournament.
An image of Kaigan’s fiery eyes stared at him through the haze of memory. “Am I ready to give it my all anyway if I make it? Yes. Are you?”
Like a firefly, a small glimmer of blue lit up his mind’s eye. A glowing image of Kaigan and Rodolf battled against the abyssal beast somewhere far above. For the first time in the depths of the earth, Hadid felt piercing clarity.
If not for me, I will do it for them.
His eyes snapped open.
[4/4]
A bright flash heralded Hadid’s arrival. The brilliant portal shone clearly as the mage stepped through. Locking eyes with Kaigan, he nodded and summoned a second portal behind the kobold and the assassin.
Rodolf turned in surprise, not expecting to see the old man back of his own accord. The shock cost him dearly though, a swipe from the tarry paw of the monster knocked into him, busting the air from his lungs and causing a loud SNAP to ring out. Trying to roll with the blow to recover from it, he ended up falling through the portal. Kaigan dove into it as well, trusting Hadid’s placement. As best he could tell, this was the only plan that would get them all out alive.
Coming out from the other end, Kaigan looked around. They were on a narrow ledge, with what looked to be a walkway into a safer corridor. However, his attention was quickly pulled away by a groan of pain coming from his left.
Rodolf’s leg was broken, and the assassin knew it. That pretty much negated any chance of getting back into combat that he had. Walking on that alone would be a pain, let alone the sort of moves he’d need to keep fighting this monster. Looking through the portal, he yelled for Hadid to get his ass through as well, but he could see that the old man was too busy trying to avoid the monster- and then the portal snapped shut.
____________________
A sharp crack echoed through the tunnel as a whiplike tendril slashed vertically across the portal, sending wisps of aether sputtering across the rock. Hadid stumbled backward. He watched as the abyssal monster stalked closer, tasting the air with its oily forked tongue.
He began drawing on mana to summon another portal, but the fogginess was building again in his mind. The beast seemed to loom over him, exuding an immense psychic pressure. He had never been in this proximity to the presence of the Abyss before - the sheer ancient force was causing his mind to weaken again.
The tendril again slashed across the cave, knocking him to the ground. He scrambled quickly to his feet and gathered his breath, marveling that he hadn’t been pulverized by the power of the blow. He was certain that his injuries were more severe than he realized. Adrenaline was playing a large part of his ability to even focus his eyes, let alone fight.
Another crash resounded through the cavern as more boulders collapsed from the ceiling. He cried out in pain as one struck him heavily on the shoulder. His arm hung limp at his side, tingling with numbness. He dashed away from the advancing creature but found himself at the rocky outcropping where they were trapped before.
Hadid coughed as he turned and slowly slid into a sitting position. He weakly made his practiced motions to summon a portal, but the leylines here felt as dry as the inside of his mouth. He felt tired and weak, suddenly keenly aware of his age. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as the beast tilted its massive head toward him.
He lowered his good arm. He had imagined that when it was his time to die he would have a rush of memories and reflections. Or perhaps he would gain some profound understanding of the universe at the end. The old teacher laughed softly as the only thing that crossed his mind while staring into the gaping jaws of an abyssal horror was an old sailors’ limerick. He mouthed it quietly as he watched the beast pace closer.
Since our hopes ever drift on a volatile tide,
Every bowline and coward is fit to be tied.
____________________
“That’s Hadid’s voice!”
Kaigan’s shock caused him to yank the bandages, making Rodolf grunt in pain. “Oh, sorry. He’s probably around here somewhere though. Gimme a sec, I’m gonna look for him. Who knows, perhaps his magic can do better than I am.”
Walking around the stone ledge, following the refrains of the poem, Kaigan was looking with his ears as much as his eyes. The sound was definitely coming from below him, and leaning carefully over the edge on the other side of the pillar he saw Hadid sitting on the ground below him, the monster slowly plodding forward. Running back around the pillar, the patter of his little bare feet told Rodolf that he was frantic for something. Grabbing the massive longsword, he sprinted back toward the ravine without a word to the assassin.
Kaigan knew that what he was considering was stupid - maybe even suicidal - but if there was a chance he could save Hadid, he would take it. He looked down into the darkness and took a deep breath. He leapt from the edge and held the sword beneath him.
Hadid closed his eyes and turned his head as the abyssal monster opened its jaws wide. He involuntarily started as he heard the sickening crunch. After a strange moment of realizing that he hadn’t been eaten, he peeked back at the beast. A sword protruded from the roof of its mouth and black ooze poured out of the wound. Its legs gave way and it collapsed to the cave floor, motionless.
A pained cry drew Hadid’s gaze to the top of the creature’s head. Kaigan lay atop the beast, gasping for air. The kobold clutched at his chest with one hand, the other still gripping the sword that was embedded in the creature’s skull. As soon as their eyes met, the warrior smiled gently. “Sorry we got separated.”
Kaigan dislodged the blade and hopped to the floor, drawing in air sharply as he hit the ground - likely a fractured rib or two. He stepped up and extended an ichor-coated hand to Hadid. The old scholar smiled warmly as he took the proffered claw. The kobold winced as he helped pull the mage to his feet.
“You’re right on time, my friend,” Hadid said weakly. Kaigan nodded and began to reply but was interrupted from above.
“You idiot,” Rodolf shouted from the top of the crevasse. The pain was evident in his voice. “You won’t be able to kill it with that. Get out of there!”
A low gurgle from the beast rumbled into a growl as its wound began to knit itself back together with shadowy wisps. Hadid wasted no time. He lifted his functioning arm and drew a neat circle in the air, blue light glistening through the gloom. He helped Kaigan through the portal and stepped neatly through after him. The two of them stood beside Rodolf at the top of the crevasse. Hadid stared back through the gate as the beast began to pull itself to its feet. Perhaps there’s time to make a difference yet. He dismissed the portal.
Kaigan sheepishly offered the longsword back to its owner. Rodolf huffed quietly as he slid it back into its sheath but had no harsh words for the Kobold. The two contestants helped prop the assassin between them, Rodolf resting most of his weight on Hadid’s good arm and bracing on Kaigan like a crutch between steps. The trio limped toward a grim red light in the distance, echoes of otherworldly roars receding behind them.
Event Chapter
IN THE ABYSS
Tika slowly stirred from her stupor, waking to near total darkness save for a crimson red emanating from beneath. The young elf took a moment to catch her breath as she rose to her feet before examining the horrific cavern she found herself in. Surrounding her resting place on the bedrock was a smoldering lake of red, wisps of twisted shadows forming half-remembered visages as smoke bubbled from the lake’s surface. Tika gagged slightly as the sulfuric taint of the abyss permeated her nostrils. Tika’s voice filled the air with calls of “Hestie? Hestiiieeeee. Hestia?!” as the elf frantically searched for her ashen friend… but her cries went unanswered.
Instead all she heard was the clanking of metal and the deep reverberations of some slumbering behemoth. Tika was not alone.
Tika immediately stopped her hollering as the clanking grew louder and louder, a march of steel on stone that signaled the arrival of a metallic behemoth whose very presence caused Tika to quake in her boots. She braced for the beast’s assault… but it never came. Slowly, she made out Sturgar’s distinct filigree and blades from the cavern’s dark expanse and breathed a massive sigh of relief. “Oh, uh… hey Sturgar! Nearly gave me a heart attack there…” she said, to which the augmented dragonoid simply responded with a whirr from his mechanisms.
Tika kept glancing about the cavern as Sturgar stood in place, still as any statue. The small elf looked over to the metallic dragonborn, asking “Hey, I know we should probably be seeking out an exit and everything… but I have a friend who’s currently missing. You know Hestia, right?”
Sturgar’s mechanisms clicked and whirred as he nodded in response.
“You mind helping me look for her? It would mean a lot of you did…”
Sturgar’s motions stilled as the dragonborn considered the elf’s plea. Soon however, he placed one of his metallic hands over Tika’s shoulder, and with a nod agreed to assist with the search. Tika was ecstatic at the news, thanking Sturgar profusely as tiny sparks of electricity arced around her.
Tika and Sturgar’s arduous and largely fruitless search through the many winding corridors of the cavern eventually lead the pair to a large, basaltic platform amidst the abyssal sea, the air suffocatingly still. Tika cautiously drew her blade, sensing something amiss, and Sturgar filed suit, his arms now bearing what may be a small armory’s worth of weapons. The two slowly skulked onto the platform, Tika constantly ensuring that Sturgar did not make too much noise… but eventually, she herself made a wrong step, sending an echoing crack throughout the cavern.
The shades rose with a hiss near moments later. Legions of twisted shadows appearing as fallen knights or soldiers coalesced around Tika and Sturgar as two shade horses, identical to the one which had knocked Tika out earlier, blocked off their exit. Among the circling crowd, Tika recognized Hestia’s twisted reflection, the knight’s shining armor appearing worn and corroded… and above the battle, another corrupted but familiar figure circled overhead. Watching. Judging.
There are few things that could infuse an avatar of nature with as much terror and rage as seeing a phantom of one of her own, warped into a necromantic abomination. The other was being forced to fight the shade of a dear friend alongside it. Even as Sturgar tore through the other shades, swords, axe, and mace alike aglow with his inner furnace’s flame, Tika stood paralyzed as Hestia’s shade slowly approached under the vulture-shade’s watchful gaze. The shade of the Ashen Knight suddenly charged with a slash, and Tika was too stunned by her emotions to dodge out of the way. The young elf took the brunt of the hit and was sent back as she reeled from the hit.
She looked out and saw Sturgar stemming the horde with wide swings from his axe and mace, too busy to assist her. She saw Hestia, once her closest friend but now nothing more than a tarnished reflection of her former glory. And she saw Yormudin, formerly a symbol of the peace of death, now only demonstrating the virulence of the Abyss’s reach.
Something within Tika snapped at that moment, and her pained scream soon turned to a roar as lightning flashed across the arena, striking down many shades in a single bolt. Tikaalid slapped the false knight away from her before bellowing at the vulture shade circling above, challenging the impostor apex to a duel. Yormudin’s shade responded by dive-bombing Tikaalid only for the massive amphibian to slide out of the way before responding with a grab of her own. Now helpless, the false Drought’s Whisper could only hiss as Tikaalid slammed it against the ground over and over again, causing the shadow to leak and leak until dissipating completely with a splatter. The other shades dissipated shortly after as Tikaalid and Sturgar mowed down the rest with slam, slash, and storm.
Eventually, after the fighting back down, Tikaalid’s form shrunk back to Tika’s small self before she looked over to Sturgar, examining his (minimal) injuries. The elf smirked. “Don’t tell anyone bout that, ‘k? Now, where were we….”
Sturgar and Tika ventured back into the caverns, renewing their search for the Ashen Knight anew. They left no stone unturned and no passage unexplored, with Tika providing light using her storm magic while Sturgar broke down any barriers or meandering shades in their path.