《Mysteries of the Q Files: Rueben's Revelations》


 Preface

    Across all the realms of thought and possibility nothing is more feared than a promise turned poison.


    Or, at least, that is what I¡¯ve been told. Alright, this is going to all be really crazy, unbelievable, and well¡­ I¡¯m not sure how to describe it myself!


    What do you say when you learn that every story you¡¯ve ever written is real?


    What are you supposed to think? What am I supposed to think?!


    Okay, before I get lost to rambling again, I should pin down a starting point. How about this, I¡¯ll start at where the insanity all begins for me. I was told to write everything that has happened like a story. But I guess that makes sense with what little I¡¯ve learned. Finding out that all of my stories have been to some degree or another real, that is shock enough to send anyone to an early grave.


    And with all the stuff that I¡¯ve gone through since the start of summer vacation, it might be better to have been stuck in an early grave! Aaarg! There I go again!


    Please forgive any ramblings and tangents I find myself getting stuck in. I am just a kid in waaaaay over my head! I was told to write this all out by a man I have only glimpsed from afar in dreams and through my stories, and to find out that he actually has any say in all this. Does that make sense? Probably not.


    I said I should start at the beginning and so that is what I a going to do. I just needed to let off some steam and try to get my thoughts untangled from the mess they have become ever since I¡¯ve started learning the Truth. You wouldn¡¯t believe that this is fourth attempt I¡¯ve made at getting myself ready to sit down and write my story, so you¡¯ll just have to take my word on it.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    I¡¯m pressed for time because I am currently traveling to Washington, D.C. Too bad that I¡¯m coming under such circumstances. It would be a lot more fun to go because I wanted to check out the place and throw some trash at the White House or something. But not like this.


    Well, there I go again¡­ Okay, this time for sure, I¡¯ll start at the beginning. Here goes!


    My name is Ruben Garcia. I am from Boulder, Colorado. It¡¯s okay, I guess. I¡¯ve always found it more preferable to be by myself or on the internet, than to be around others. It¡¯s anxiety. And people are just strange. So I am not used to this, being around so many people and stuck in the middle of something as monumental or incredible as this adventure!


    Many of you reading this are followers of my fun, bizarre stories, and I am grateful for your support and patronage. I said I don¡¯t like being around people and I have considerable anxiety. But one thing that many get wrong about people with this disorder is that we do want to be around others. We are social animals, just like the rest of the human race, but we just have a mental block. But through the miracles and advancements of technology, I can reach out to you, and you can reach out to me. You are my friends, and that has brought me some kind of clarity, courage and strength in writing this story for you all.


    My biggest stories so far have been about two characters: Naomi and Trick.


    They have gone from simply crashing FBI investigations, to being the heroes in their own crazy adventures, and finally working side by side with agents steeped deep in mysteries and tales that even I am not sure where they are going. Some of the things I have written have confused and disturbed me. At times, it was like I couldn¡¯t control myself. It all just kind of spilled out.


    I rolled with it, because in the end it was fun and I enjoyed all of your responses to it. But then I learned the Truth.


    It is all real.


    Sounds insane? It should be! But that is what this story is now all about. How I came to discover what has really been going on with my stories. How I met Naomi and Trick, Conturbatio, all of them! And how I¡¯ve learned the terrible Truth of what is going on behind all of the scenes.


    I don¡¯t think any of us are ready for this, but I have to write this all out and post.


    Otherwise, I am a deadman.

 Chapter 1

    Across the keyboard, my fingers flew. As if in a frenzied fever, I was trying to crank out a new story to post. If I ever get around to this one, I hope you¡¯ll all enjoy it. It¡¯s about a girl from a strange, Amazonian-like culture who must travel halfway across the world to avenge the deaths of her sisters. Unfortunately, that story will have to wait until another day, because on the day when this all began, I met two people I never thought I would.


    Normally, this would be where I, or any normal writer for that sense, would regale you readers with what my daily routine is like. How much I hate life when I wake up in the morning. Shouting matches with my mom. Dry toast. A cold shower that takes forever to warm up. And checking to see what updates there are with views to my stories.


    I¡¯m not ashamed to admit it! The rest of you are!


    But yeah, you can easily guess that this is what my summer days are like starting at 7:30. I¡¯m never allowed to sleep in. It sucks¡­


    Since I¡¯m pressed for time, I have to skip ahead and get to just after lunch while I was eating a strawberry poptart and jerky sandwich. It was extremely dry and subversive, just the way I like my Tumblr posts. I was half way through the tasty treat when I heard the doorbell ring.


    ¡°Ruben, get the door,¡± my mother screeched at me.


    ¡°You get it,¡± I called back angrily. How dare anyone try to get me out of the zone!


    ¡°Ruben, so help me you better get that door,¡± she yelled again as the door bell began chiming incessantly.


    ¡°Bastards like these don¡¯t deserve to have the door opened up to them,¡± I muttered under my breath.


    I had to get up and do it. I normally don¡¯t like doing what my mom tells me to do. I¡¯m independent and can take care of myself! Well, at least at home I can. I learned from opening that door that there are many things I cannot take care of or protect myself from. And it doesn¡¯t matter how independent you consider yourself to be. If an ancient cult of magical beings that protects the very fabric of reality fights and order of government funded imagination and dream terrorists, while a madman tries to break down the barriers between 7 billion crazed thoughts and Earth, your free will means very, very little.


    Trust me, this is like coming to know that the Elder Gods are real. You can never go back! And on that note, after everything I¡¯ve learned, I can confirm that the Elder Gods do exist. On at least a few thousand different worlds. So, you Lovecraft fans can now rejoice!


    Or tremble in fear, whichever you prefer the most. In any case, I¡¯m rambling again.


    I marched grumpily to the door and threw it open, hoping that my bad case of halitosis would frighten away the visitors. It did not. Instead two teenagers looked down at me, somewhat disappointed.


    Normally, from a first person advantage, you wouldn¡¯t have the opportunity to fully describe two people you meet in an instant before they shoulder their way into your home, no matter what the stories say. But after being around these two for a little while and getting a chance to better take in their looks, I can properly describe them.


    The one I noticed instantly was a tall, fit, African American girl who had cut and stylized her hair to be a mohawk that she combed over to the side. Where the rest of her head would have normally been shaved, there was a fine layer of hair growing back. She was wearing a white tank top and deep blue jeans. She sported a spiked nose ring.


    Next to her was a boy, just a bit shorter than her, with dirty blond-brown hair that was beginning to get a little too long. He wore a t-shirt obviously ordered from the cheaper side of the internet with faded pants and wearing a flannel shirt over the ensemble. He wore a good natured smile, despite his eyes giving me a wary and let-down glance, while the girl had a mask of resentment plastered to her.


    ¡°Ruben Garcia, I presume,¡± she said in a clipped tone.


    ¡°Yes,¡± I answered, feeling a little anxious all of a sudden; it happens around strangers.


    ¡°We are Naomi and Trick,¡± she said hurriedly.


    I felt a smile come to my lips. This was the perfect moment! The moment when a random story on the internet becomes famous and garneras its first horde of rabid, insane fans! I was so lucky!


    But then it dawned on me that with a following of terrible fans I would be forced to move. And my mom would blame it all on me. There would be a big fight, and a hellish move afterwards. I wouldn¡¯t be able to write for a while. And I would lose all of my fans and forever slip into obscurity! The internet is very unforgiving in that way.


    ¡°Um,¡± was what I managed to say, before Naomi forced her way into my hose, pushing me back.


    ¡°Ruben! Who is at the door,¡± my mother shouted.


    ¡°The girl scouts,¡± the boy called back. ¡°We¡¯ve brought you a wonderful sample of our Samoan cookies!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m allergic to coconut! And the girl scouts are a joke! Please leave,¡± my mother called to them.


    Now you all see what I have had to live with!


    The girl ignored my mother and forced me now to sit down. Her eyes were dancing all over, as if trying to take everything in. The boy on the other hand just looked down at me and considered me for a moment.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°You¡¯re not exactly what I was expecting,¡± he mumbled.


    ¡°What were you expecting,¡± I said, challenging.


    ¡°Someone a little more plump,¡± Trick admitted. ¡°I mean, with the amount that you have written about us, and with all that other stuff you post on the web, I¡¯d have thought you did nothing else but write.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not Trick,¡± I snapped. ¡°And you¡¯re not Naomi either! She doesn''t have a nose ring! Ha! So there!¡±


    The two shared a glance. It was perfect. Too perfect.


    ¡°That¡¯s the strange thing,¡± the boy muttered. ¡°How could you get so much of our adventures right, but get so much else wrong! I mean, I saw what you wrote to one comment about readers shipping me and Naomi together, and you said we¡¯d never be a couple.¡±


    ¡°We started dating right after our first adventure together,¡± the girl said, all business like. ¡°We¡¯ve been together ever since.¡±


    ¡°Even with the rough patches.¡±


    ¡°Nothing that a little D&D sex couldn¡¯t fix.¡±


    The boy sucked in some sai and said, ¡°Oh! That was rough! But oh so g-¡±


    ¡°Okay! Way too much information,¡± I said, hopping out of my chair and waving my arms. You would have thought I was declaring a runner safe. ¡°This has gone far enough!¡±


    ¡°Ruben, they¡¯re just little girls! Punt them off the doormat if you have to,¡± my mother yelled.


    ¡°We have delicious peanut butter ones too,¡± the boy shouted back to her.


    ¡°It makes my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth! That is one of the worst feelings in the world!¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not wrong,¡± the boy replied with a grin. ¡°I mean, just think of what one PB&J sandwich could do Barney!¡±


    That earned him a hard slug to the shoulder from the athletic girl. He just shrugged it off and giggled. Okay, the similarities were getting uncanny, and it felt too perfect.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, trying to calm myself down. ¡°I see that you want to to talk. That you want to impress me with your knowledge of my stories. That is fine. We can go and talk outside. But please tell me your real names.¡±


    ¡°Trick,¡± the boy said with a friendly wave.


    ¡°And I am Naomi,¡± the girl replied. ¡°Now get back in your seat! We need to chat.¡±


    She shoved me back hard and I stumbled back into my seat. I started sweating something fierce. This was getting my anxiety working up to danger levels. And it was clear that these two fans of mine were not going to give up their roles easily. Method actors, i figured.


    ¡°Look Ruben, we¡¯ve come all the way across the country to find you and talk with you. As unbelievable as it seems,¡± the girl explained. ¡°You have been writing stories about our lives for nearly a year now. You have gotten a lot of things right, but there have been some discrepancies. It was almost as if they were on purpose, but from the way you treated our histories it was clear that you thought we were fictional.¡±


    ¡°Here, if you need some evidence,¡± the boy said, pulling out some pictures and papers from his pockets. ¡°Sorry, they¡¯re crumpled. But we have more evidence of who we really are in the unmarked white van parked just up the road.¡±


    This earned him another slug from the girl. It then occurred to me that I had never stopped to question just how bruised Trick¡¯s shoulder should get after just one day with Naomi. That was writer¡¯s oversight on my part.


    I hazarded a glance at the materials the boy was laying out before. There it was, FBI reports, copies of messages, student IDs, driver¡¯s licenses, and more. I gave it all a very thorough. I honestly couldn''t tell if it was all fake or not. I¡¯m not invited often enough to crazy parties after school, so I have no idea how advanced with Photoshop the kids have gotten in making their own fake IDs.


    I decided to play along.


    Reclining back in my seat, I said, ¡°Okay, Trick. Naomi. Welcome to my house. You have me convinced! Why did you two come and find me?¡±


    ¡°Would you believe us if we said we were looking for someone to share in an adventure,¡± Trick asked.


    Naomi rolled her eyes. So like her, it was unnerving!


    ¡°Look,¡± she said. ¡°We¡¯ve come to get you because you are in danger. Your stories have been noticed by people whom we suspect are going around and cleaning up the witnesses and messes we leave behind from our different journeys. A lot of people have gone missing recently, and we¡¯ve received as well some terrifying reports.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve also been shot at, if that helps,¡± Trick added.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to say shot at when they were using tranquilizers,¡± Naomi said.


    ¡°I¡¯m quite certain they were using elephant guns,¡± he retorted.


    ¡°Whatever. The point is that you are in danger-¡±


    ¡°Like you¡¯ve said,¡± I replied, cutting her off.


    She shot me an angry look and continued, ¡°And to keep you alive you must come with us. We need your specific gift of being able to see the stories that happening out there. We believe that you can look into the realms of Imagination. And that is something we desperately need at the moment.¡±


    ¡°Aaaaand this has been a wonderful conversation! How about I get us a snack,¡± I said, wishing I were back with my half eaten sandwich.


    As I got up to go to the kitchen and escape these weirdos for a moment, Naomi caught my arm and pulled me back. Coloring her angry expression was a sense of urgency and even fear. Her eyes were growing wide.


    ¡°Ruben, we need to get going. I¡¯m not sure how long it will take the Syndicate-¡±


    ¡°We just chose that name because it sounded ominous and murderous,¡± Trick interjected with an uneasy smile.


    Naomi shot him another unhappy glare before continuing, ¡°As I was saying, the Syndicate is after you. We were lucky to discover about you thanks to a tip the Sphinx got. And we were also lucky that they were hunting some other people then so they weren¡¯t focusing on you.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t call that exactly lucky,¡± Trick sighed. ¡°At least for the poor bastards who all got killed.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about,¡± I finally managed to ask.


    ¡°Ruben,¡± Naomi said, dropping her voice to a near whisper. ¡°We found out about your stories. They¡¯re all true. Every single one of them. But you always ended them before you saw the ending. If you had, you would know who is coming. They¡¯ve covered everything up, and now they¡¯ll be after you. They are gathering and killing everyone who has a connection to the Realms. You have that connection! We need to get you some place safer so we can find out what is going on.¡±


    ¡°I already know what is going on,¡± I huffed. ¡°My house has been invaded by some psychos who read my stories, found out where I live, and are now badgering me with some crazy story to try and freak me out! Get out!¡±


    ¡°You tell those girls, Ruben,¡± my mother shouted. ¡°Git!¡±


    ¡°Well, since this isn¡¯t getting anywhere, let us have that snack,¡± Trick said, waling off towards the kitchen.


    ¡°Where are you going,¡± I hissed.


    ¡°To make you a final meal,¡± he replied. ¡°I make a wicked peanut butter and jelly sandwich!¡±


    I was honestly dumbfounded and found myself following him. I cannot say how he was able to do it, but he knew his way around my kitchen like he lived there! And sure enough, he whipped up a pretty bomb PB&J. I was kinda jealous of his skills. I told him I would rather have my poptart sandwich.


    I sat down at my table, or would have, but naomi pulled out the chair from under me. I crashed hard to the floor with a yelp.


    And a bullet narrowly missed me.


    It blew a hole into the center of the table. That could have been my head! And then I wouldn¡¯t have had any! I heard the echoing rumble of a discharged gun. And then I registered yelling. From there, it was like everything went silent.


    Anxiety is already a bear to deal with. But when you find yourself under deadly fire, it just robs you of all your senses and any sense you might have had. I vaguely remember Naomi and Trick hauling me away. I know they guided me outside, and into a van, because I came to inside of it after Naomi slapped and splashed me with some water.


    That is the last I saw of my house as the van pulled away, a woman with loose, flowing brown hair crouching and firing out the back with an assault rifle at two other cars chasing after us.


    ¡°What¡­ What is going on,¡± I mumbled.


    ¡°We were found out,¡± Trick answered with a shout.


    Someone called the front, ¡°I think they¡¯ve found a way to track us!¡±


    It was a woman¡¯s voice. A man¡¯s voice answered.


    ¡°We¡¯ll need to ditch this vehicle! I know of a place where we can go! Stacy, get ready to send a message with these coordinates!¡±


    I missed what he said next, but I did hear Naomi shout, ¡°Trick, blow them to hell.¡±


    I saw something fly out of the corner of my eye. I turned to see Trick handle a long rod. He yanked something out of the top and then hurled it at the two pursuing cars. They were both shaded and unmarked, black sedans. I only then realized what it was that he threw at them. It was a bomb!


    One car swerved dangerously and avoided the explosion. The other car was not so lucky. The bomb went off right under the one sedan and made it jump into the air. The first explosion was followed by a smaller one as the engine erupted. The car then drove blindly into someone¡¯s porch.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to get arrested,¡± I found myself saying.


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s either escape or die,¡± Trick smiled and winked at me.


    I just gaped at him as he took out a traditional grenade and tossed it out the open door.

 Chapter 2

    All I could think was that this was a terrible dream. It just had to be! I was convinced then they were insane people who broke out of some institution and had gotten their hands on a car and a bunch of weapons before attacking the police, or FBI, CIA, whoever! If only that had been the truth rather than what I have discovered it to really be.


    But that is getting ahead of myself!


    Again, I apologize if this seems really rushed. But that is because it is! I¡¯ve been typing away as fast as I can while listening to depressing anime soundtracks to keep me moving at a steady pace so I could finish this whole story in time! So, I guess I should get back to the car chase!


    Trick tossed out his grenade, which caused the chasing sedan to swerve. The lady next to him got off a few good shots at the exposed wheel. There were visible sparks and the car kept on its trajectory, plowing right into a sign and mailbox before disappearing behind a bush.


    ¡°I hate their bulletproof glass and armor,¡± the woman growled. ¡°Thankfully the tires and hubs are still vulnerable.¡±


    ¡°That was a good shot mom,¡± Trick said. I guess I should have guessed it instantly, but I was still super panicked then! ¡°But next time they¡¯ll make sure that even those withstand the bullets.¡±


    ¡°Damn their Wisher,¡± Susan snapped. ¡°I want to put a bullet into his head!¡±


    ¡°It could be a girl, you know,¡± Naomi pointed out. ¡°Just saying.¡±


    ¡°They could have multiple Wishers of all kinds of genders, the man¡¯s voice from the driver¡¯s seat called back diplomatically. ¡°In fact, that might be part of why they are able to chase us so proficiently.¡±


    ¡°Wishers,¡± I sputtered, confused.


    ¡°We¡¯ll get to explaining about them in a moment,¡± Trick said with a wink. ¡°Once we get somewhere safe.¡±


    ¡°Look alive,¡± the lady from the front called out. ¡°We¡¯ve got more pursuers! On bikes!¡±


    I could hear them. The revving and changing of gears filed the already noisy air. Soon followed by the ringing of guns and the zipping of flying bullets. I clutched my head and curled into the fetal position, wishing that this was all just some crazy dream.


    ¡°What about Mom,¡± I found myself asking. I still don¡¯t know why.


    ¡°At the moment she¡¯ll be fine,¡± Trick said earnestly, pulling out a shotgun.


    ¡°They¡¯re really after you,¡± Naomi said. ¡°They¡¯re so fixated on you, and because we¡¯ve now got this chase, they can¡¯t quietly kidnap her and cover everything up. They¡¯ll just have to suppress the news.¡±


    ¡°Suppress the news of this,¡± I question in disbelief. ¡°Impossible.¡±


    Trick sighed. ¡°If only.¡±


    He opened one of the sliding door on his side of the van, gun ready to fire. Right as he did, a man dressed in thick, black leather leaped at him. Trick cried out in surprise. He barely managed in tiem to twist to the side. He gave the man a hard shove to the back. Naomi timely opened her door and tripped the man out of the van. He crashed headlong into another assailant trying to leap in.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    The thugs thudded to the ground and were quickly left behind.


    Right at Naomi¡¯s door a biker with his face concealed behind a tinted helmet visor leveled a machine gun right at her. Susan spun about and put two bullets in the man. He fell and shot off a quick burst of rounds. They rattled loudly into the air, but luckily did not enter the van.


    I twisted a little and saw Trick blast another boker right off his bike with a round fired from his shotgun. He spun behind the door as more bullets came tearing his way. Punch marks lined the inside of the van as bullets attempted to bore their way inside. The van swerved and there was a loud thud as it hit something.


    ¡°Unintentional, but I got one,¡± is what I think the man was trying to say. It was hard to tell.


    Guns were roaring all around me and I felt like I was going deaf. They were never this loud in the movies! Or on the YouTube videos I watched when I tried to get down the art of what firing a gun would be like. For research purposes of course. Guns make fantastic devices in a story, but I would never use one myself.


    At least, not before all of this insanity happened to me!


    Susan screamed at the top of her lungs, ¡°We need to get out here! They¡¯re going to kill us!¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re being really sloppy! It is like they don¡¯t care if they die,¡± Naomi shouted in response.


    ¡°It¡¯s like they¡¯re creations of a Wisher,¡± she and Trick shouted together.


    ¡°Everybody hold tight,¡± the front lady screamed.


    I was thrown right into the front of the van. I thought I might have broken my neck, it hurt so much. I heard the doors slam and the wheels squeal. There were three separate thumbs as bikes and bikers slammed into the back of the van.


    In my agony I glanced upwards and saw a man and woman pull out their own machine guns. M-16s I guessed by the barrels. They let loose their own barrage of fire. I clamped my hands over my ears to block the sound of gunfire. With that I realized to my great relief that my neck wasn¡¯t broken. It just felt that way. I could still use my hands!


    Since there was now fighting at the front of the van, I started scooching myself back to the other side. I did want to be anywhere near where bullets could reach me. The van roared to life once again and I saw a man fly over the windshield as it cracked. I could feel the speed picking up.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to get onto the main road,¡± the man informed everyone else. ¡°I know it will put innocents at risk for a moment, and it will expose us more. But they¡¯ll have to call off their main attackers if they don¡¯t want things getting out of hand.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m already calling ahead to make sure that the police are sent elsewhere and the lights are in our favor,¡± the lady said.


    ¡°See if you can also cut out some of the cameras while you¡¯re at it,¡± Susan said, sounding out of breath.


    ¡°This is too intense,¡± I said to myself. ¡°This is insane. I¡¯m going to hyperventilate. I¡¯m going to pass out!¡±


    Someone grabbed me by the collar and proceeded to slap me. I should have guessed that it was Naomi before I even saw her face.


    ¡°Get a grip, Ruben! If you act that way that will actually happen and you¡¯ll become a liability rather than a help! You want to survive! Shape up!¡±


    I was so shocked I could not respond. I glanced over to Trick who just shrugged.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, pal, but she¡¯s right.¡± He pulled over to himself a box and started rummaging around in it. ¡°Now come over here and help me out. We need to make another surprise for any other attackers.¡±


    I found myself crawling over to him, shaking like mad. I didn¡¯t want to help him! I didn¡¯t want any part of this! But I think it was some kind of survival instinct kicking in and propelling me forward to action. I had to do something in order to make it out of this whole predicament alive!


    In the box there was a tone of bottles, small packages, piping, and other materials. It smelled faintly of chemicals. The kind that my mother kept under the sink. I always hate having to clean under there. She makes me do it at least once a month. One of the many reasons why I can¡¯t stand her. In any case, I was baffled for a moment why he was messing around with this stuff.


    Then it dawned on me.


    ¡°You¡¯re making another bomb,¡± I said with awe.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. After that whole experience with the werewolf, I got interested in what I could all do with home goods. Things that anyone might have. It is one of my favorite parts in spy movies and shows when they use regular items to pull off the incredible!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised that you haven¡¯t been investigated by the FBI,¡± Naomi laughed.


    ¡°It¡¯s because I don¡¯t look up the Anarchist Cookbook,¡± he retorted. ¡°I ain¡¯t that stupid.¡±


    Naomi rolled her eyes.


    ¡°She gets upset when I use improper grammar,¡± he replied with a wink.


    ¡°We¡¯re coming up on the highway,¡± the man shouted. ¡°But they¡¯re trying to block us! Three sedans!¡±


    The van suddenly tilted with a sharp turn. I wondered if we were going to flip! By thankfully, we did not.


    ¡°Are we going back towards the bikers,¡± I yelped.


    ¡°Yes we are,¡± Trick said with a dangerous glint in his eyes. ¡°Here, help me out with this. Take that bottle! Yes, that one!¡±


    More guns went off, and someone else shouted that we were being pursued by two of the sedans. It was all I could do to focus on helping Trick. He concocted a vicious mixture on a bottle with a pipe of some kind of substance floating in the middle.


    Trick took it and went up to the front and shared words with the driver. Another sharp turn. Another loud thump. People screaming, shouting, guns firing rapidly, and I was thrown to the back of the van. Naomi threw open the side door where she was and Susan let loose a barrage from her handgun.


    I got sight of one of the cars smoking as we tore back towards the highway.


    ¡°Everyone hold on,¡± the man shouted. ¡°This will be close!¡±


    The van began dancing from side to side. I wasn''t sure what was happening, but I saw the black blur of a passing sedan. It clipped the back of our van and we swerved dangerously once more. But then we tore away and ended up on the highway.


    We sped past other cars, getting very lucky with traffic and lights, which was a miracle in and of itself!  And that is when I felt it. The adrenaline began fading.


    ¡°I think I¡¯m gonna hurl,¡± I said, and then I blacked out.

 Chapter 3

    The sky outside was nearly entirely dark when I finally came to. And I had no idea where I was! We were all gathered in a warehouse with high windows, through which I was able to tell that the sun was nearly set. It was kind of warm inside, and I found myself sweating profusely. It was not helping my anxiety any. And then I saw that I was also tucked into a sleeping bag.


    ¡°Uh? What happened?¡±


    ¡°Excellent, you are awake,¡± the man¡¯s voice from earlier exclaimed. ¡°We have our Scribe back!¡±


    I finally got a good look at the guy. He had slightly wavy, sandy hair and a pointy nose. His eyes were deep and dark, somewhat menacing. He also wore a creepy smile. He was not what I had imagined him to be like, but there he was, still wearing a suit. Even after a deadly, dangerous car trip!


    The Sphinx.


    Zipping right to his side was a beautiful lady with small glasses and frazzled dark hair that reached down to her shoulder blades. She gave me a very stern look, and she was fingering her phone nervously.


    I later learned that she had been working with Naomi¡¯s mom to get the cameras and light all finagled to our needs to escape the Syndicate. The guys have had friends within the FBI and Homeland Security who have been incredibly helpful in keeping us as safe as someone can from the other side of a computer screen. And I don¡¯t think that I¡¯m risking any of them by mentioning that¡­


    ¡°Agents Miles and Conturbatio,¡± I finally ventured, looking up at them.


    ¡°In the flesh,¡± the Sphinx replied, reaching out his hand.


    ¡°Again, I feel like I got you guys wrong,¡± I said, taking his hand. As he hauled me up, I continued, ¡°That, or you guys got the descriptions very wrong as you set  up this very over the top kidnapping. And I really don¡¯t appreciate it if that is what this is.¡±


    Conturbation wiped his hand off on his pants as he said, ¡°No, this is sadly very real.¡±


    I wasn¡¯t sure how to reply to that. I looked around and I saw Trick and Naomi resting together. Susan Brown was not far, checking out some weapons that she had at the ready. I did not like the sight of that.


    ¡°Expecting trouble again soon,¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Miles said, almost snapping. For the past two weeks they have been hounding us! The Syndicate.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m still unconvinced of that name,¡± the Sphinx sighed. ¡°These killers are not something out of a movie or spy show. They are the real deal, and they are getting help from the Realms. And something about that makes my skin crawl in a way I cannot fully describe. Like there is something else at play.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t just go off of hunches, you know,¡± Susan replied from where she was.


    I whooshed my hand over my head. ¡°Look guys, I am seriously out of the loop. If everything that I have written is real, then I am so very sorry for putting you all through everything I wrote. And honestly, I just want to go home. I¡¯ll stop writing immediately and never come back to this story! I really want nothing more of this.¡±


    ¡°Look at who thinks he¡¯s at the center of everything,¡± Naomi suddenly sneered.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Sorry Ruben,¡± Trick yawned. ¡°But our story would have kept going on no matter what you wrote. You just happened to see what was going on and wrote them all down, even if you got some things kinda wrong.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± I said, somewhat uncertain.


    ¡°And that is why I called you our Scribe,¡± the Sphinx said. ¡°That is at least the kind of name that I found among the old records in Egypt.¡±


    ¡°A Scribe?¡±


    ¡°Yup,¡± Trick answered simply.


    ¡°Meaning?¡±


    Naomi rolled her eyes and asked, ¡°How dense are you? A scribe is someone who writes down stuff for people. And you are our Scribe! You have been writing our stories as they have been happening, or just right after.¡±


    Now it all started clicking and making sense. I asked them how such a thing was even possible, and Conturbatio fixed his creepy smile on me and started explaining.


    ¡°Ruben, you are someone who can touch the Realms of Imagination, but you have ye to become a true Crossover as they call them. That is someone who can slip in their sleep into this other universe where all the world¡¯s collective imagination pools. It is a dimension of infinite possibilities worlds, dimensions, people, ideas, and more! But, instead of going into this other place, you have been able to peer through it into the events our lives. At least it seems ever since we started encountering the Realms and denizens trying to escape them.¡±


    ¡°Um, right¡­ So I can see all of these things, but that still doesn¡¯t mean that it makes much sense to me. I was just writing what came naturally to me in the moment,¡± I tried to explain.


    ¡°Which makes sense,¡± the Sphinx replied.


    ¡°And¡­ Does the Syndicate know who, or possibly what I am? At least according to you folks.¡±


    ¡°We believe they do,¡± Conturbatio said heavily.


    ¡°They have been hunting down everyone who we have interacted with during our missions and cases,¡± Susan interjected. ¡°So many people have gone missing and their records disappeared. We know that they have been using a ton of resources to perform this incredible task. We don¡¯t know why they are going after these people, but we suspect that the Syndicate are trying to harness the powers of the Realms.¡±


    ¡°Naomi and I had to use our D&D forms to fight them off when they first came. They had summoned a Grey Bubble through a special talisman. We destroyed it, but then we got chased by a bunch of Matrix-like goons. And then our forms stopped working. The Bubble was gone.¡±


    I looked over to Trick and whistled. ¡°You guys have terrible adventures.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that. They¡¯re just extremely dangerous,¡± he said with a shrug.


    I felt a little incredulous to see his mother and I guess his girlfriend giving him affectionate looks. Naomi went to hold his hand.


    ¡°So, you¡¯ve said that I got some parts of your stories wrong. Can I ask what?¡±


    Naomi was eager to answer and just unloaded. So, to make a long story much shorter and manageable, I¡¯ll sum it up: Naomi reiterated that she and Trick had started dating almost immediately after their first case. And they even kept in touch with the punks who started summoning the werewolves and vampires to make sure that they never pulled any similar stunts again. That was actually helped tip them off to something going dreadfully wrong; they lost all contact. And so did the FBI.


    The whole theater affair had been much goofier. Characters had flickered when they had come out of the screen. There was also more to the letter that Trick had gotten from the interdimensional being in the mailbox. But it had all been in code. It had taken them a ridiculously long time to solve it. It had led them on a strange chase through multiple books to piece together a message to say that they needed to summon Bill Cipher and ask a very specific question.


    They were not too keen on trying that out¡­


    The Mother Jed still gives them nightmares. Apparently looking into the Mother Jed gave them looks into stories they would never have imagined. But they were sure it was locked away in another world. In another story.


    That part had confused me, but I guess that when people dealing with the Realms refer to stories, they are often looking at the combination of not only worlds, but the flow of events that create, well, a story. It makes simple sense at face value, but trust me, it starts causing a headache when you think more about it.


    I also completely left out one of their adventures in the Dungeons and Dragons-like story. They at one point when on a full dungeon raid in a basement set in horror movies. From what they told me, I am very happy that I missed out on all of that. But everything else was spot on. That furry convention still gives me the shivers...


    And for the cursed prom, there was apparently a lot of crazy things that the FBI had to deal with before and during the raid on the shed. And I missed an entire dance that Naomi and Trick had to do at the behest of the fae. They needed to do an interpretive dance of making a sandwich from scratch. Such as harvesting and grinding the grain, and churning the butter.


    In my defense, all of this would have just bogged down what I had already written!


    And get off my case about the lichen =/= lycan!


    Well, after getting all of that the sun was completely gone and it was pitch black outside. That meant it was getting pretty late. Part of me was entirely exhausted, and yet I was energized with fear and wonder. I did not want to trust them, but I found myself believing these crazy people.


    ¡°So, what do we do now,¡± I found myself asking. ¡°And sorry, I know that is super annoying to be bombarded with so many questions.¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s all okay,¡± Susan answered. ¡°We can¡¯t give many more answers but to your first question. We run. They¡¯ve found us again.¡±

 Chapter 4

    Realms of Imagination be damned, this was the worst! Guns blazed outside and bullets tore through the walls. Warehouses have very flimsy padding! Thankfully there was a way out, but it was not what I wanted. There was an electrical tunnel that led outside from under the building. It was an old set-up.


    And it was dusty that I nearly choked to death as we crawled through the tunnel, Naomi shoved me along forcefully to keep me moving. Trick and his mother were the last into the tunnel, rigging it with a nasty surprise they had cooked up. It would be the last they could make; they had used up so many materials already.


    ¡°I¡¯m really not liking this,¡± I gasped.


    ¡°Just keep going and stop complaining,¡± Naomi snapped.


    ¡°How do we know that they aren¡¯t waiting for us at the other end?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t,¡± Naomi said simply, with a small sniff. ¡°But we specifically chose this place because its layout was old and afforded us a quick escape if we needed it and we prepared accordingly.¡±


    The Sphinx called from the front, ¡°Naomi, we should always first focus on the positive! It is better to be optimistic and smart about what we do, rather than being smart and pessimistic! Don¡¯t worry Ruben! We still have a few allies out there in the world. The Syndicate has their hands full with other matters. What matters right now is finding a safe place where we can hide you and put a plan into motion.¡±


    I knew he was trying to be comforted, but honestly, that was the last thing I wanted! I just wanted it all to end! Is that too much to ask? Okay, I already know the answer to that, so I¡¯ll just shut up for now about it. Suffice it to say, we continued crawling along the tunnel as fast we could.


    Trick and Susan caught up with us quickly enough. About two minutes later there was a distant explosion. The door and the trap had been set off. Trick urged us to go faster. That bomb was nothing more than a small diversion.


    ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± Agent Miles huffed.


    There was something that started squealing and creaked, the sound of old metal being forced to move and scrap against itself. A cool breeze wafted into the tunnel, chilling the sweat that was now pouring down my face. I heard and saw the agents clamber up out of the tunnel. Naomi helped me out and led me to one of two large, black jeeps. She quickly pushed me up into one of the seats.


    Hissing in my ear she said, ¡°We are still close to the warehouses. They¡¯ll know we are nearby once we get going, so don¡¯t alert them early.¡±


    ¡°That door might have already done that,¡± I muttered.


    ¡°And they might have figured it out from the direction of the tunnel, a satellite surveillance, or any other means,¡± Naomi said quietly and quickly. ¡°But we still should act like they haven¡¯t figured that out yet.¡±


    Trick and Susan leaped into the same Jeep as us and they made the engine roar into life. The other agents had their jeep ready to go as well and the tired spun as they hit the gas. Just then, something very dark hurled towards us. Someone shoved me painfully towards the floor. Good thing, too.


    Whatever it was ripped the top of our car clean off. It just barely missed us. It also tore off the side as we sped away. There were more gunshots , but soon we were speeding through the darkness. Well, not quite. We had the brights on so we could see where we were going, and that alerted the things that were coming after us.


    I still don¡¯t know what they were exactly. I looked back behind us and all I could see was a roiling mass of darkness. It was soon joined by others just like it. They kept up easily with the vehicles, taking swipes at them. Our spare tire in the back was brutally sheared in two. At one point the jeep lurched as whatever it was nearly took hold of us. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Trick and Naomi still couldn¡¯t use their D&D characters, which meant that this chase was not going to be an easy one for us to get out of.


    The Sphinx continued to lead the way. He took a sharp turn and so did we, nearly throwing us off of a small cliff. One of the creatures took a plunge. I heaved a sigh of relief at seeing that these things could be beaten in some way. And then my heart jumped right into my throat when I saw and heard above the din of the chase that whatever it was was also crawling along the side of the cliff and nearly the same speed as it had on the flat land!


    ¡°Okay, this where these come in handy,¡± Trick shouted. He held up three grenades.


    ¡°You still have some,¡± I shouted hoarsely. ¡°I thought we were running out of explosives!¡±


    ¡°We are. These just came with the vehicles. The Sphinx¡¯s few surviving benefactors made sure to arm up with a means of destroying the trail should we get pursued!¡±


    He pulled a pin and timed his toss nicely. The explosion went off, illuminating briefly something large and black. Not much different from what I had already described to you. But it sure did wreck the trail. And as if by a miracle, it shook the first creature trailing us enough that it also fell off the cliff. It collided with the one following along the side and they tumbled loudly to the darkened trees below.


    There was still at least one more chasing us. Another grenade went its way. This one was smarter about not getting dislodged by the blast. I¡¯m not sure how it succeeded though. All that inky blackness!


    ¡®Tough sucker, aren¡¯t ya,¡± Trick called out. ¡°¡±Naomi! Radio them!¡±


    ¡°What should I tell them?¡±


    ¡°Hit the gas! We need to make it to the airfield quickly! But once we get out of the woods, they should come alongside us! We¡¯ll jump to them and leave the final grenade as a surprise for the creature in our jeep!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re crazy,¡± I heard his mother laugh. She was actually laughing at a time like this!


    Naomi called in the plan to others, and they also agreed! What was wrong with these people?


    I guess I should take a quick moment to address those of you who don;t believe that any of what i am saying right now is real. Well, I can''t blame you. These are really ridiculous events went you stop to think about them. I mean, real life is just not supposed to work this way! And then there are those of you who do not believe what is going on here because of the pacing with this tale. I go from a quick reveal in the first chapter to a car chase, to an info dump, and then to another action packed sequence.


    Wel, my beloved critics, yes, normally you should take your time with these kinds of things. Not everyone can get away with it like Dan Brown, and even then, he does this kind of stuff a little too often! But we are getting chased by an evil government organization that has hidden itself brilliantly since the Cold are and is designed to hunt down people who can overly imagine stuff. This is the kind of stuff that james Bond has to deal with, but because we don¡¯t have our own Q or a nice casino or castle to hold up in, we have had to resort to a lot of running around. I hope that satisfies you.


    Probably not.


    The internet is not a very forgiving place. Especially Tumblr.


    Anway, back to the chase. Once we got out of the dense woods and away from the cliff, we pulled up as quick as we could next to the agents. Naomi and Trick helped me across. I did not go willingly! Stacy Miles had to reel me in. Trick and Naomi quickly followed, with Susan bringing up the rea. Trick left the grenade, without its pin, behind in the other jeep.


    It all went off in a massive explosion right as the next creature came right on our tail. There was a thunderous crash and the ground trembled so hard that even we felt it. But for a sweet moment, nothing else was chasing us. But in the distance, we could see the lights of helicopters. And they were making their way right for us.


    ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± I heard the Sphinx mutter to himself. ¡°Please!¡±


    And then I saw something in our headlights. It was a small plane. We pulled right up next to it and we all sprinted for it. My survival instincts were firing on all cylinders. I did not want to die! I did not want to get caught. Whoever these people were had sent some sort of hell beasts after us, and I did not want any part of that!


    The moment that the Sphinx launched himself into the plane he sprinted for the cockpit and got the engines going. It felt like an eternity for us to get going. And then I heard it. The beasts had returned.


    I am not ashamed to admit that I started crying, and I am proud to say that I had not wet myself. I¡¯m not that much a wimp!


    But then we started rattling along and I could feel ourselves getting higher. The sound of the plane taking off drowned out the creatures from hell and soon I could see lights in the distance. Lights from some kind of city. I did not recognize them. It then hit me that we must have gotten pretty far away from Boulder after I had passed out earlier that morning.


    And I was due for another passing out in any moment. Or so I felt then.


    I saw the light of the helicopter, too. And there was a flash of gun fire. I cringed and ducked insticively.


    ¡°Damn, I think they strafed us,¡± Miles said. ¡°We¡¯ve got too much weight.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m climbing. They won¡¯t be able to chase us forever,¡± Conturbatio said.


    ¡°They¡¯ll be tracking us soon with radar,¡± Susan said.


    ¡°Yes, and I have arranged that where we land we will have some with getting us out incognito,¡± the Sphinx replied. ¡°I can¡¯t say we¡¯ll go undetected, but we will have a chance to split up their forces and resources. And if we are wise about it, I can get us to a safe house eventually.¡±


    ¡°So what do we do until then,¡± Trick asked.


    ¡°We continue filling Ruben in on what is going on,¡± the agent said grimly. ¡°And this time we cut to the chase. No more brandying about with silly adventure, mysteries, and what story points were wrongly conveyed. This time we hit right at the heart of the conspiracy and the true mystery that we need to solve.¡±

 Chapter 5

    Of course we¡¯re in for another info dump! Yeah, I¡¯m basically pulling Dan Brown here, but all I can do is tell you the events as they unfolded. And of course, there is more to it, but you will soon learn of that as we get along longer into the tale. Also, I¡¯m going to be doing a whole lot of summing up, because if I tried to recall this conversation verbatim, it would go on for a really, really long time, and it would make me look more like an idiot than I already feel. And nobody likes that.


    The Sphinx said in a grim voice, surveying the black horizon before us, ¡°After the events in Memmelsruhe, I met with members of an organization that is nearly wiped out now. For simplicity''s sake, we called ourselves Seekers. We went out into the world and into specific professions to find the truths we knew governments, the rich, and other intellectuals kept hidden. A way of monopolizing power and control. I shared with them everything that I learned and encountered in my three previous cases.


    ¡°They said I needed to take a break and make my way to Egypt. There I would assist with recovering some items that would be invaluable to our quest. It was apparent that others knew something of what was going on. There was a word that tipped us off: Tscheapwhetzar.¡±


    I snorted. ¡°Come on! That is such a stupid name! I don¡¯t even know why I used it. It was just something that came to me and I ran with it.¡±


    ¡°It is a very important name,¡± the Sphinx corrected forcefully. ¡°It means ¡®collector and corrupter¡¯, and a very, very important distinction from their early brethren.¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°The Tscheapwhetzars are one of eight orders known in the realms as simply the Accursed. Though most with this knowledge believed them to be extinct. However, our encounters with the realms implies that at least one, if not more are again active.¡± He sighed and then continued, ¡°In any case, the presence of any of the Accursed, along with the Doors, means that they are trying to break the boundaries between the realms of Imagination and our Reality. If that should happen, it would be a violent clash of over seven billion people and all the worlds they have ever created.¡±


    It was from here that I was schooled in the ways of the Realms.


    See, the thoughts, dreams, daydreams, nightmares, idle thoughts, and more of every single person alive goes somewhere. They are not just the random burst of synopsis in your brains. They are the essence and force of creation. It is extreme power that flows with specific purpose into a kind of parallel universe where all that energy takes shape in the form of countless worlds.


    All of these worlds, varied in type, size, function, and life are populated by the beings and individuals we come up with. And there are those of us here in reality who can cross over, and they are appropriately named Crossovers. These are people who when they sleep slip into this other universe.


    No, they don¡¯t disappear from Earth when they sleep; that would be super creepy and sketch! Instead, they take on an avatar that is exactly like them and they walk these different worlds. Some people end up on the worlds or in the places they have created, and others are thrown out at random into the Realms of Imagination. There is no rhyme or reason to any of it. It just is.


    And it¡¯s not just smart or imaginative people who go there either. Some people who are Crossovers have not a single imaginative bone in their body! Others are only mildly creative, and others are super into this kind of stuff. There are even power levels, for what I gathered. They are called Knights and Lords, which I found a little too archaic. I mean, I did write about them once, but again, that was just fantastical, creative whimsy doing its own thing.


    I mean, I can¡¯t be the only person who just lets my fingers fly when I write!


    ¡°Well, compared to Crossover, or the Accursed, we are next to nothing,¡± Conturbatio said, wrapping up that whole long spiel.


    ¡°That still tells me nothing about the Accursed,¡± I pointed out.


    ¡°My best, and easiest explanation for them, is that they are humans just like us who are cursed to walk between two lives: Reality and Imagination. I guess it takes some kind of toll on them, because they would not be called Accursed otherwise.¡±


    ¡°Sound logic.¡±


    ¡°But we Seekers knew that there was once a war between the Tscheapwhetzars and the Whetzarchets to bring Imagination into Reality. And before that, those two banded together to fight a third group of Accursed who took on the name Guardians. They came very close to breaching the boundaries then. It was during the Napoleonic Wars.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I was never any good at history,¡± I admitted.


    ¡°History is the most important of the literary subarts,¡± Naomi spoke up.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a quote from the Way of Kings¡± she said smugly. ¡°You should read it sometime. And take notes from it. It might improve your writing.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Thanks,¡± I huffed. ¡°Very helpful!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡±


    ¡°Ruben, you have written our stories. You should know that you will not get the final word with Naomi,¡± Trick said with a wink.


    ¡°If we could get back to the matter at hand,¡± the Sphinx said sternly.


    Once he got going again, the Sphinx began to explain how the Seekers feared that the Accursed might be working Crossovers, probably very powerful ones, to use Doors to merge the two universes. They wanted to head them off if it were possible. The Q Files were being closed down for an investigation after the debacle at Memmelsruhe and with the Mother Jed. And just after that, Seekers started going dark.


    Conturbatio and his few contacts raced for Egypt to meet with some closed off associated who helped them raid some very deep tombs. These were catacombs that they believed stretched back to the very beginning of Egypt. With their knowledge they had discovered something about a kind of dark agreement, or covenant that had been made. It involved the Doors, and provided ways for those who could not cross over to do so.


    And yeah, I know it sounds super cliche to say that all of this magical hocus pocus comes from a place like Egypt. I think the intellectuals have a name for that, but I¡¯m too lazy to look it up right now.


    In any case, the action began for Conturbatio there. Strange people from clearly two different organizations came to attack him and his colleagues. It was then that he learned for a surety that the Seekers were being hunted and disposed of. One group he was certain were linked with the Accursed, but the second was something much more like a government organization. And that second one was the one the Seekers had started calling the Syndicate. The Sphinx had heard that there might be a more official name for it, but the lady who was doing that investigating was found brutally murdered after he came back from Egypt.


    But then, the Q Files had been brought back online, fully functioning. Rumor had it that a powerful group outside of the government had sponsored its return. Conturbation had been unable to confirm who they were exactly, but he rightly guessed that they had something to do with the people who came and hunted him in Egypt. He knew that the safest thing to do was to play along with their games while scheming with the remaining Seekers for a way to strike back at them, or to escape should he become their target again.


    It was through this forward thinking that we had been able to survive for so long. And now, we were on the run for one of the last known safe houses, so that we could use an artifact that had been recovered to allow us to cross over to the realms and continue their investigations as to what was really going on.


    ¡°I had my suspicions that we would be targeted next,¡± the Sphinx continued hoarsely after his already lengthy explanation. I was surprised that Stacy Miles, nor anyone else leaped in to help him; it seemed that they were content to let him do all the talking.


    I glanced and saw Trick¡¯s mother snoring against the shuddering cabin wall of the plane, as the Sphinx¡¯s voice reached me again. ¡°It all came about when I checked up the survivors of our previous cases. Trick and Naomi said they had lost contact with some people, and when I followed up, I found out that someone was erasing them from the books and from memories.¡±


    ¡°But hold on,¡± I protested. ¡°I know that the Men in Black franchise have this whole thing about erasing minds, but even then we see that it isn¡¯t so easy. People are usually connected in a multitude of ways! There¡¯s no way that you can just erase somebody from existence!¡±


    ¡°Exactly, and these attempts have not been entirely thorough. Evidence still remains,¡± the Sphinx replied. ¡°However, it is effective enough. The Q Files have good enough records stored away that we can validate our claims when the time comes, but for right now we are on the run. I believe that Syndicate is linked with the United States government in some kind of way, and they are the ones responsible for the erasures.¡±


    ¡°And how will going to realms help us out? Unless we¡¯re going to pull some Inception crap and mess around with their minds,¡± I grumbled, before yawning.


    ¡°That is a possibility that we must look into,¡± Conturbatio said with a wry smile. ¡°But for now, we must focus on reconnaissance. We cannot act until we know more!¡±


    ¡°Alright, that makes sound sense. If these people are using the Realms to help them further their aims, then we should not go in blind. Especially if they have any special powers in that place.¡±


    ¡°Now you¡¯re thinking,¡± he congratulated me.


    ¡°Still, why am I being dragged along? I can say with certainty that I have never cross over to the Realms. I¡¯ve just been writing your stories without realizing it!¡± I threw up my hands for emphasis.


    ¡°Naomi came across them while doing some research for me. She sped read through them, shared them with Trick, and then they shared what they had discovered with the rest of us. Before my last remaining contacts with the Seekers went dark, I found out about the possibilities of individuals gifted with the ability to peer into the Realms, or even interact with them, without having to cross over in their sleep!¡±


    ¡°Like a Dreamer, or a Wisher,¡± I said with sudden realization.


    Yes, it takes me that long to connect those dots. I was under duress!


    ¡°Yes, very good,¡± the Sphinx said with a nod.


    ¡°Wait, but back up a moment. If the Seekers are all gone, except for you, who have you been in contact with?¡±


    ¡°We had a network of people who were sympathetic to truth seekers, or those who owed us favors. Nutcases, conspiracy theorists, convicts, people like that,¡± he answered. ¡°I think that the Syndicate has been busy mopping up the last of the Seekers. They don¡¯t want anyone else to possess the same knowledge that they do, or have anyone in a position to foil their plans. Whatever they might be.¡±


    I could tell by the bitterness in his voice, that he was unsure of their endgame then.


    ¡°Ah, now it all comes together. So with everything happening to the Seekers, and suddenly finding out that there was a random kid out in Colorado who could see what you guys were doing, you wanted to see if I could be helpful in some kind of way.¡±


    ¡°Correct, again.¡±


    ¡°So, if I am a Dreamer, which means that I can see what you guys are doing-¡±


    ¡°I believe that when you sleep you do not persey cross over, but you glimpse how the realms affect our reality, and you are then able to write about it,¡± Conturbatio said, cutting me off.


    ¡°And I was going to follow up with saying, it looks like Wishers are able to pull over things from the realms here,¡± I finished stubbornly.


    ¡°Yes, or something close to it. We¡¯re not really sure what they can do, but we once patched into the coms and we heard them use that word. It was easy to make the connection once they started chasing us.¡±


    ¡°How long have you been on the run,¡± I asked, finally getting a sense of empathy for what these five had been going through before finding me.


    ¡°Not including finding you, we¡¯ve been on the run for four days. It was only when they were able to dig up Naomi¡¯s past searches that they realized there was someone out there like you. Which is a very, very lucky break for us.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel very lucky¡­¡±


    ¡°Hey! You¡¯re alive, aren¡¯t you,¡± Stacy asked with a snap to her voice. ¡°Then you should be grateful!¡±


    I shouted, ¡°Do you know my life? And what has it become?¡±


    ¡°Stop this,¡± Trick said, sounding very serious suddenly. ¡°We don¡¯t need any unnecessary teenage angst, and we certainly don¡¯t need to compare who has had the worst life. This is pointless and will only divide u when we need to work together to stay alive!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s right,¡± Conturbatio said. ¡°We need to work together and keep our wits about us. Besides, we are almost there. We¡¯ll be descending soon. Let¡¯s just be grateful that we haven¡¯t been shot out of the sky.¡±

 Chapter 6

    Thought that one was a doozy, didn¡¯t you? Whew!


    Okay, I know that was a lot to cover, and trust me, I really did my best to shorten it! Okay, I could have left out some of the dialogue, but because this is a story, I needed to keep it interesting somehow! Also, it was a way to keep things engaging before I sum up the next boring bit.


    We landed in an isolated airfield, where we disembarked and were greeted by some truckers. They stashed us, or more like squashed us, in the back of a cab for an oil truck. Three separate trucks left the airfield and all went in different directions. We were placed in the care of a particularly smelly and talkative wack job named Sulvie. At least, that is how I think you¡¯re supposed to write his name¡­


    Sulvie talked our ears off about the time he was nearly captured and butt probed by some aliens as he took us to some gas station, once again out in the middle of nowhere! And it was kind of chilly. He dropped us off in time to connect with a bus. And there we finally got a chance to get some real sleep. The Sphinx paid for us all in cash to avoid leaving credit or paper trail.


    It was on this ride that I found out that Trick¡¯s dad was away on an extended camping trip to avoid any run-ins with the Syndicate. Naomi¡¯s mom was held up in the Bureau¡¯s offices to make sure nobody got to her. They still feared for their extended family, but they trusted the chase and the Syndicate seemingly having spread themselves too thin, that they would continue to be safe.


    We eventually made it to Cincinnati. Can you say humid!?


    I mean, the place is beautifully green, and the people are nice despite the traffic. Even the houses are more picturesque than in Boulder, but this is not the kind of place I could see myself living for the rest of my life! I would melt like an ice cream cake! It felt like an inevitability for the first few hours that I would meet my end there.


    How can you guys take this, I thought miserably. I saw the sweat glistening on their foreheads as we made our way into the safehouse, but none of the others seemed affected by it at all. So unfair!


    The house Conturbatio brought us to was nice enough. It was a two story house with four bedrooms. It would accommodate all of us nicely. They had even stocked the place with some food and clothing. That was nice, even though the pants and shirt were a size too large for me.The Sphinx explained that these kinds of places were routinely seen to by families paid by the Seekers to maintain and make it look normal. The neighborhood just accepted it.


    Something about that explanation made my skin crawl a little.


    ¡°Okay, we are all thoroughly exhausted from all of the traveling,¡± the Sphinx finally announced after we got settled. ¡°We adults will sleep right now, which means that you teens will have to keep watch. It also means that you should sleep soundly tonight, which is exactly what we need!¡±


    I was about to ask why that was, when Naomi got excited. ¡°Does that mean that we will finally be given a chance to use it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, that is correct,¡± the Sphinx answered with a smile.


    ¡°I still don''t approve,¡± Susan sniffed.


    ¡°Mom, you never approve of his ideas,¡± Trick complained.


    ¡°Because if we didn¡¯t go along with his ideas, then we might not be in this mess,¡± she threw back.


    ¡°And then the world would be that much closer to its potential doom,¡± Stacy said flatly.


    Susan raised her hands and said, ¡°I know that I¡¯m being the bad guy here, but somebody needs to try thinking straight. However, we are here now, and yes, it is time that we do something to get back at them.¡±


    ¡°I feel so out of the loop,¡± I said, mostly to myself.


    ¡°Then we¡¯ll let you in on the loop,¡± the Sphinx replied.


    From his pocket he withdrew a golden nail with some engravings. They were filled in with black. It looked a little like a railroad spike, just much smaller. And there were thin, golden wires wrapped around the head of the nail.


    ¡°This is what I got from Egypt,¡± the Sphinx said, his eyes growing distant. ¡°This is an ancient device that allowed others to cross over to the Realms of Imagination in their sleep. It is very rare, and very powerful.¡±


    He then shook himself and returned to the here and now. ¡°Tonight, when you three go to sleep, we will wrap these wires around your wrists, while they are still connected to the nail. This nail will pierce the barriers separating our two universes and drag you into this other place. Your minds will form avatars for the Realms. It should work as if you were natural Crossovers.¡±


    ¡°It still sounds like something out of a comic book,¡± I muttered.


    ¡°It is what it is,¡± the Sphinx said with a shrug.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    ¡°I really hate that saying,¡± Naomi said with a growl.


    ¡°While we sleep,¡± Stacy instructed. ¡°It will be important for you three to come up with a place where you want to go. The nail should allow you three to stick together, and you will at the beginning have a kind of lucid dreaming experience, as least that is what we understand. This means that you can select where you will go and what kind of form your avatars should take.¡±


    ¡°Very nifty,¡± Trick said with a grin, eying the nail. ¡°This is going to be real fun!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s work,¡± his mother reminded him. ¡°And it is our survival. So don¡¯t do anything to screw it up! And keep an eye on Ruben here. He¡¯s probably very important to all of this.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m flattered and all, but how do you figure that,¡± I asked, wiping the ever present sweat from my forehead. I must have looked like such a dweeb¡­


    ¡°From what little we¡¯ve gathered, people with your abilities represent something of a club,¡± Conturbatio said dryly. ¡°Lords and Knights look out for their own, and they especially look out for new Crossovers.¡±


    ¡°So we want to get in touch with an all powerful Lord. Sounds good to me,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Actually, we want to get word out to the Accursed. They will take immediate interest. We need to contact the Guardians. Chances are that they are our best bet for figuring out exactly what is going on and they will be the party most inclined to helping stop whatever is going on. My information says that nowadays they really abhor any notion of the realms and Reality meeting; they see it as too dangerous.¡±


    ¡°At least someone out there has their head screwed on straight,¡± Susan muttered under her breath.


    ¡°Got it,¡± Naomi said. ¡°We¡¯ll make a plan for tonight and what we are going to do to get the message out to these Guardians.¡±


    ¡°And we¡¯ll be sure to have a back-up plan,¡± Trick promised.


    ¡°Excellent,¡± Conturbatio smiled. ¡°Now, if we want everything to go off without a hitch, we should take a rest. Chances are that the Syndicate won¡¯t know for at least 24 hours what we have done, but it is best to play it safe. There are some guns hidden here, I¡¯ll quickly show you.¡±


    The guns were hidden in a few cupboards throughout the house. Naomi and Trick stockpiled all of them for themselves. Naomi told me in no uncertain terms that she did not trust me with one, and that there was the possibility I might use them to get out of the house.


    Honestly, she wasn¡¯t wrong.


    Once the agents had retired to their beds, Trick took me into the living room where he and Naomi had a notepad and some pens ready to go. When I asked what they were for, they explained that this was how they were going to draw up their plan for the night.


    ¡°I think we should start with the escape plan,¡± Trick offered, taking out some old paper, rolled up tightly.


    ¡°Wait a second! Are those your Dungeons and Dragons characters? Your character sheets, I mean?¡±


    ¡°Sure, go ahead and check them out,¡± Trick said with a smile, tossing the sheets to me.


    They were heavier than I expected. I unrolled them and looked back at the drawing looking up back at me. There was Trick, shrouded as a thief, more muscular than he was in person. He was giving his signature wink. I saw the Cloak of Transition listed, along with many other items I did not recognize. Naomi made for a very cool, half orc-half elf paladin. That long mohawk really suited her.


    Glancing up at Naomi as she was now, she had let her hair grow out more, and she had trimmed the mohawk back a little to make things look more proportional. It was a really nice hair style. Now if only she smiled more often. It is hard to convey with words just how often she scowls, and how she could probably erode a rock with a long enough of a stare¡­


    In any case, it was incredible looking over their stats and items. This is what really began bringing the whole situation to life for me. I can¡¯t even explain why; I¡¯m not even that big of a fan of D&D, but holding something so tangible¡­ It was like I was holding two lives in my hands, and I just knew then that this was all real.


    And I wanted to run away screaming for my life!


    Trick finally took the sheets back and explained, Should things get very hairy out there, we will use a portal to take all three of us back to the world of our characters. It migth not be the safest there, but Trickster and Ru-ah know their way around those parts, and we should be able to keep you safe there until we wake up.¡±


    ¡°You mean we can¡¯t just wake up if things get bad?¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t count on it,¡± he answered, shaking his head.


    ¡°The portal will have to be something small and proper for us to carry, like a Portkey,¡± Naomi said matter-of-factly. ¡°Otherwise it will just bog us down. But that is the simple part. We need to figure out how we can get to a place where we can connect with many different worlds and send out a message to anyone.¡±


    ¡°So long as it isn¡¯t Tumblr. That place is a mess right now,¡± I said quickly.


    I then paused.


    ¡°How do I know that!? That is so random!¡±


    ¡°And now all I can think about is Tumblr,¡± Trick laughed. ¡°But you¡¯re right, that is probably a bad idea. It is a black hole of the internet, after all!¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s more than that,¡± I said slowly. ¡°I just feel like it is a very dangerous place to go right now. Like it is very real, but also not a pace we should go if we hope to connect easily with a Guardian. But I just don¡¯t get it!¡±


    ¡°It must be because you are a Dreamer,¡± Naomi suggested. ¡°You can glimpse things in th Realms. Maybe you have seen a whole lot more than you have already written, but because you haven''t written it out yet it is not easily remembered.¡±


    ¡°This is proving to be a thoroughly unhelpful power,¡± I moaned.


    ¡°Stop it, Ruben. We don¡¯t need any of that,¡± Trick chided. ¡°Let¡¯s see what else you might know.¡±


    They pestered me for a good while about different internet sites, possible worlds, strange ideas, and so on. I thought about it, and I could recall worlds left empty and desolate, like not just life, but also death had been sucked from them. A natural element of the Realms had also been done away with, another connection between worlds. I saw brilliant Stars. Stars with names of people, because they represented them. They were them!


    I caught flashes of many other stories, but nothing really helpful. A red haired fox searching out his family. A sword getting out of a video game. A planet surrounded by rings. A dragon soaring between the Stars. And then, there it was!


    ¡°Guys,¡± I finally stammered, feeling like I was going to puke. Who knew that raking your brain could be such hard work!? ¡°I think I know where we need to go.¡±


    ¡°Really,¡± Naomi scoffed.


    I ignored her and began writing and drawing on the notepad. What unfolded before us, though a little sloppily, was a gas giant. A planet where trees grew up from the depths of the gas. Massive trees. Trees that became cities. This was a network area, a large trading post, and a place of pirates. I told them that here we could find all kinds of people who would be willing to make contact for us if we had enough money.


    We would have to dream of all those Benjamins that night!


    Both teens were a little wary of my plan, but it was surprisingly Naomi who conceded to it first. ¡°It¡¯s as good as anything. We should trust the Dreamer to some extent, otherwise none of this would be worth it. Also, I¡¯m going to quickly check the perimeter of the house. You two finalize any further plans. We¡¯ll get to memorizing them before we go to sleep.¡±


    Sh yawned before giving Trick a peck on the lips. I yawned too. Couldn;t they be lovey-dovey somewhere else? This is why I did not want them to be a couple in my books! Oh sure, I had them flirt and everything, but that was to reel in the readers! Yes, I know that is a terrible thing for me to do, baiting my audience and all of that. But come on! Every author does it! And my way was much more tolerable than this!


    And oh sure, you might think much of that one little peck. But that¡¯s because you haven¡¯t been around these characters like I have!


    Luckily, Naomi was able to sound the all clear. We were not attacked, and we put together a pretty reasonable plan for getting in touch with the Guardians. When night finally rolled around, we were all good and exhausted. We pushed two beds together so that we would all have enough room to bunch up. The golden wire was stretched just long enough for all three of us to get connected.


    You might be wondering why the adults did not join us. They said it was best to have all three up and ready to move us if there was any hint of trouble. We did not want to get caught unawares!


    The wire cut into me a little, but that did not stop me from falling quickly asleep. It was just one of those nights where once you hit the sack you are out like a light! Or maybe it was the power of the nail. Who knows?


    But what I do know is that when I opened my eyes again, I was speeding right for a massive, light blue gas giant.

 Chapter 7

    And let me tell you, that is not a pleasant feeling, to be hurtling through space right down to a planet. I was sure for a moment that I was going to die! But then I came to my senses. I was in my anime avatar! I was a cooler, darker, edgier version of myself, and one good rule of thumb is that unless you are in anime going for realistic, you will never die from a fall. It¡¯s just one of the many odd rules of anime.


    I took comfort in that.


    Trickster and Ru-lah, or I should say Naomi and Trick, were right along side me. They also looked super unsure of this. It all happened so quickly. We plunged through the chilling, blue clouds and then soared out from underneath them. I could see the massive trees in the distance. They were beautiful.


    We then gilded leisurely towards them, no longer falling. As we got closer, I could see the cities carved into the majestic wood. It was like the tunneling of termites, but much more refined. There was lots of advanced technology, ships flying around, large and powerful balconies that carried large buildings. Which I guess would make them more akin to overhangs. Whatever.


    All three of us landed gracefully on one of these, surrounded by people bustling along, going about their business, and ships flying to and fro.


    ¡°That was easier than it at first appeared,¡± Naomi admitted in a gruff voice. ¡°And Ruben, you look terrible as an anime character.¡±


    I flipped her the bird as I walked off to find some information.


    ¡°Excuse me,¡± I called to a guy with a fish head in a fishbowl. ¡°Can you please tell me where we could find a place to send some messages? It¡¯s kind of urgent.¡±


    The man spoke, and bubbles issued from his mouth, bursting once they rose to the surface and sounding out his answer, ¡°That¡¯s the problem with you anime types, your lips never quite match up with your words.¡±


    And with that he walked off. How rude!


    ¡°Yeah, well, same to you buddy!¡±


    ¡°You are way more confident here than you are back in Reality,¡± Trick commented.


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± I suddenly realized. I thought about it a little further and then I exclaimed. ¡°What the hell, guys! We¡¯re in another universe right now! In different bodies! Why does this feel so natural? I should be freaking out right now!¡±


    ¡°But you are freaking out right now,¡± Naomi pointed out.


    ¡°I know,¡± I shouted, with my hands over my head.


    ¡°You¡¯ll get used to it,¡± Trick said smoothly. ¡°Come on. We¡¯ve got to see if we can find someone more helpful than fish head there.¡±


    I am embarrassed to say that I had momentarily forgotten that the two of them had already experienced weirdness like this before, and they had already gone through the process of figuring out their identities as they were merged with the histories and minds of their avatars! Yeah, as the one who wrote their story, that is kind of sad.


    I wonder if this is how biographers feel when they realize they have made a terrible mistake about the person they are writing about?


    For the sake of brevity, suffice it to say, it took us a couple of hours to figure out where to go and how to get there. We finally found a very nice wolfman who informed us that the best people to hire for sending messages to anyone in the Realms were pirates who helped manage the Thieves¡¯ Web. To get to them, we had to take this super strange elevator that went in all kinds of directions throughout the tree.


    Upwards, downwards, to the side, diagonally, to the side again. Take it back now y¡¯all.


    And there were so many different people who got on and got off. It is hard to even now to keep track of them all. Vampires looking for a good time, Stormtroopers, will-o-wisps, a shaggy bear, two skeleton soldiers, a man with an octopus for a head, a really old Looney Tunes character, and a sentient cupcake who just wanted to die. The Realms have a lot of strange people walking around, I can tell you that much!The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Trick and Naomi took the lead, and they insisted that from this point on that they be called Trickster and Ru-lah. They said that they wanted to blend in. I did see other anime characters running about, along with copious amounts of cartoon characters, and even some drawn figures. There are really all kinds of people in the realms! I know I¡¯ve already said that, but it is incredible!


    I tried talking to some of the other anime people I saw, but they mostly avoided us. Ru-lah teased me that it was because I was going for too edgy and I was not in the right show. I told her that only a desperate man on the run like Trickster would ever want to hook up with a half-orc paladin. I got slugged really, really hard in the shoulder for that one. Trickster just stood there, shaking with laughter.


    When I was about to start asking if we were there yet, our floor finally came.


    We stepped out to look upon another overhang that was about to be engulfed in one of the blue clouds. Nearby was a gigantic tree limb, populated with even more buildings, homes, and overhangs. Where the pirates of the Thieves¡¯ Web congregated, there was a collection of seedy looking pubs, a large satellite dish raised above them all, and docks for repairing ships. There were all kinds of ships moored there.


    Some of the vessels looked like old-time pirate ships, the kind you¡¯d expect in movies. Except these one had rockets and armor plating attached to them. Then there were spaceships of all kinds of varieties. Many of them looked piece together with heaps of junk and scrap metal. There was one that looked to be made of dark crystal. Another ship was straight up an enlarged plastic replica of a flying saucer.


    ¡°These all fly,¡± I found myself asking out loud.


    ¡°They sure do,¡± a thick accent answered behind me.


    I wheeled about to see a purple, six eyed alien, with eye patches over an additional three eyes. He had six, long arms with spindly fingers that came to sharp points. He gave me a pointed, toothy grin.


    ¡°And ain¡¯t they real beauties too?¡±


    I found myself at a loss for words. Luckily, Trickster was there to bale me out of the situation.


    ¡°This is a fabulous shipyard to be sure. And I like the overall decour,¡± he said quickly with a grin to rival the alien¡¯s. ¡°But we haven¡¯t just come here to admire the surroundings, we¡¯re here to see about sending some messages. The scuttlebutt along the tree is that the good people here can send some messages for us.¡±


    ¡°For the right price, anyone in the thieving guilds would happily see your job through, no matter what,¡± the alien replied.


    There was something about the way that he said that, which implied that he expected us to do more than a simple phone call.


    ¡°Can you point us in the direction we should go,¡± Trick asked.


    The aline gestured with a pointed finger to the dish and responded, ¡°You¡¯ll want to go right over there. Ask for Hearny. She¡¯ll see ya straight.¡±


    ¡°Wonderful,¡± Trick said, still grinning. ¡°And if you would please return my compatriots belongings to him, we¡¯d be much obliged. I¡¯d hate to have to get into a fight already.¡±


    Before the alien could respond, and indeed before I could register what had just been said, Trickster pointed behind the alien¡¯s back. ¡°You took his wallet, and some other tidbits from his pocket. We¡¯ll need those if we are going to pay for the message.¡±


    The alien went a shade of blue and then threw my belonging back into my face, before muttering and slinking off hurriedly.


    I juggled my wallet and some other items around for a bt before I got a hold of them again. It was not just my wallet that he had tried to pilfer, but also a watch, a bomb pen (because why not), and a pocket knife.


    ¡°Perhaps you should walk between us,¡± Ru-lah offered.


    I grumbled, but agreed.


    We made our way to the small hut under the satellite. Many different folks gave us strange looks, but none of them bothered interfering with us. It was easy to find Hearny. She was a busty, black and white 30¡¯s cartoon, with curly hair. She wore and apron lined with cruel knives and had a deep, black lipstick on.


    ¡°What can I do ya fer,¡± she asked in a thick Southern accent.


    ¡°We need to send some messages,¡± Ru-lah informed her. ¡°We need to get in touch with any of the Guardians that we can.¡±


    Hearny gave her a stern look. ¡°And what do ya be wantin¡¯ to contact them Gleam Buckets fer?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve been fighting against some dangerous people who want to break the barriers between reality and realms of Imagination,¡± Ru-lah said.


    ¡°Ah, I see ya bein¡¯ Crossovers. Only they would use language like tha¡¯,¡± Hearny chuckled. ¡°Hope you wasn''t tryin¡¯ to be inconspicuous.¡±


    Trick thumped me on the back. ¡°With a guy like this around, we¡¯d draw eyes wherever we went!¡±


    That drew a genuine laugh from Hearny, much to my chagrin. Nobody respects a properly angsty anime character anymore! We just need to go back to the late 90s! I let them know my feelings with a sharp ¡®harrumph.¡¯ This got the busty lady to laugh even more.


    ¡°Y¡¯all be fools fer gettin¡¯ involved with Guardians. Them Buckets be causin¡¯ many problems throughout the Stars. The war they got goin¡¯ on ain¡¯t goin¡¯ as well as they¡¯d expect, I think. Then again, any world can be targeted these days.¡± She then shook her head, getting serious. ¡°Fine, ya came to the right place. I don¡¯ need much convincin¡¯. Them Gleamers be better than the Abominations runnin¡¯ around and causin¡¯ troubles! Stars be damned, but we¡¯ve already had a hard time roostin¡¯ ¡®em out of our homes, ya know?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t, sorry,¡± Trickster said apologetically. ¡°But perhaps you can tell us while we give you the messages to send?¡±


    ¡°Maybe afterwards,¡± Hearny said, considerately. ¡°It¡¯ll take some work gettin¡¯ everything ready to go. Them Buckets don¡¯t like no pirates contacting them, but we have ways of gettin¡¯ messages out to them, no problem there! We¡¯ll just have to encode it so they understand it is important and not some junk for us, ya know?¡±


    Ru-lah handed a letter over to Hearny and said, ¡°Can you please make sure that a copy gets to each known Guardian?¡±


    ¡°We charge a hefty price for each Guardian we¡¯re sendin¡¯ out to,¡± Hearny replied. ¡°What do ya got?¡±


    ¡°More than Republic credits, I hope,¡± I muttered under my breath.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got gold,¡± Ru-lah answered. ¡°Lots of it.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s count it out then.¡±


    Trickster took my shoulder and steered me around. He gave me a look that clearly said that we needed to watch out backs in this area. Hearny could be setting us up to get mugged if weren¡¯t careful. Ru-lah saw out the deal. In the end, we could only afford to send three messages out. They charged an arm, and a leg, plus your first born child just to send one message out to the a Guardian! Highway robbery!


    But then again, these were pirates¡­

 Chapter 8

    Possibility after possibility of something going wrong went through my head as we waited for Ru-lah to complete the transaction. What did occur was not something I would have ever have come up with on my own! Hearny was just telling Ru-lah that the messages had gone through. She was unsure of how long it would take for the Guardians to recieve or answer the calls we sent.


    It was then that a sound of booming thunder split the sky and made the entire tree tremble.


    Alarms blared to life. The pirates around us began cowering. Hearny moaned and then mumbled to herself.


    ¡°Not here¡­ Why would they come here?¡±


    ¡°Who? Who is coming here,¡± Ru-lah asked on edge.


    ¡°The cartoon gave her a frightened look and then her lips parted in an O. ¡°You¡¯re new Crossovers¡­ Oh my, dearie. I¡¯m so sorry, but y¡¯all better run fer dear life. These Abominations will want y¡¯all specifically.¡±


    Suddenly, a giant, black claw shot with blinding speed from the clouds and grasped the tree. It¡¯s black, serrated fingers could reach around to grasp the entire trunk! The entire tree shook, and buildings started cracking and falling apart. A horrible scream from scared citizens rose on the air. There was a feeling of hopeless that crashed down on us. Not even my edgy persona could deal with it.


    ¡°Why do they want us,¡± I shouted to the pirate lady, but she was already scampering off.


    The ships in the yard started roaring to life and the pirates were falling over each other and their supplies to climb aboard their vessels. It was clear that they were trying to get out of dodge, and fast before anything else happened. My eyes, however, quickly snapped back to the massive hand that was gripping the tree. I followed its impossibly long arm back into the clouds.


    The once blue clouds were now turning a dark grey and the smell of rain washed over me. But it was tinged with something else. A kind of rotten stench. Ru-lah wrinkled her nose and sneezed. Trickster followed my gaze and then pointed.


    ¡°Look,¡± he shouted.


    Out of the darkening clouds oozed and feel strange droplets of black liquid. As they fell they formed into mishmashed shapes and then zoomed right for the tree! Down below, abov us, and even around us, they crashed into the tree and the buildings like speeding bullets.


    Security vessels and warships activated and flew away from the tree to engage the things falling from the sky. Lasers fired off and bombs exploded. Soon, a hail of projectiles and counter attack lasers came down in response on the defenders. One of the hideous droplet things landed dangerously close to us and I could now see what it was.


    The best way I can describe it was as a shadow. A shadow that had taken 3D, corporeal form. Shadows are not black like cartoons and movies portray them. They are an odd mix of different shades of grey, coming to form blackness at the deepest center. And from this shadow, there were red eyes. And they locked onto mine.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what that is,¡± Trickster said to all of us. ¡°And I don¡¯t think we should stick around to find out!¡±


    ¡°So cliche,¡± Ru-lah muttered.  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    The thing howled and sped right for us. Ru-lah whipped out her Sword of Heritage and buried it right in the creature. The howl became a scream as it backed away. At first I was confused, but then I remembered I had written about them in their D&D adventures. That blade would become more powerful with everything it slew, and it had helped take down an Eldritch god!


    Of course it should be able to bite into creatures of darkness. Or shadow, or whatever!


    ¡°Trickster! Get the coins ready to send us out of here,¡± she snarled.


    ¡°On it,¡± he said, plunging a hand deep into one of his pockets.


    The shadow punched a fist into the ground and the floor cracked. The cracks emitted a black energy, and the cracks spread and widened. What was more was that they spread in our direction! Trickster pulled me out of the way before the cracks reached my feet. Ru-lah leaped backwards and took hold of some wiring that was hanging down from the dish. She hauled herself up.


    ¡°Got anything that can help us out,¡± Trickster asked me.


    ¡°Does a pocket knife help?¡±


    He gave me a look and said, ¡°We need to work on your Boy Scout skills.¡±


    ¡°But I hate even the Girl Scouts!¡±


    ¡°Heathen,¡± he laughed at me. Laughed! At a time like that, too!


    He then spun with a flourish and two knives soared right into the shadow. Nothing happened at first, but then there was an explosion within the beast. It bulged like a bullfrog. It was distracted long enough for Ru-lah to leap down and bisect the creature with her sword. The two halves of the shadow melted, and they revealed firbolg, cloven in two.


    ¡°That is very disconcerting,¡± I said shakily.


    ¡°Looks like whatever is attacking this place right now takes other creatures and people and turns them into those shadows,¡± Ru-lah said, eyeing down the balcony.


    More shadows were scampering our way, but one of the ships finally got in the air and let loose a barrage of fire on them. They were consumed in the explosions.


    ¡°Good to know that enough fire power will also kill them,¡± Trickster remarked. ¡°Because we are a little low on super magical swords.¡±


    ¡°And you have only so many knives,¡± Ru-lah grunted. ¡°Those coins?¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I was distracted.¡±


    As Trickster went back to rummaging, I looked upwards again. Drops of rain now hitting my face. They were ice cold. And the smell got stronger. It was really bad. The sky was now full of bursts of fire, exploding ships and shadows, and flying, smoldering debris. The tree shook again, and we could feel it start leaning.


    A monster began to emerge from the clouds. It was attached to the arm. I could not tell what it was, but it was big! Bigger than a flying city! Bigger than an island! And it was all black. I could not tell exactly what it was, but I saw other arms and claws reaching for the tree.


    ¡°I hate to say it, but I think this place is done for,¡± Ru-lah said wearily.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe this,¡± I found myself saying. ¡°What exactly is going on here?¡±


    ¡°We really don¡¯t want to figure out,¡± Trickster answered. ¡°Especially if the answer has anything to do with this foul smell, which I bet it has! Ah, here they are!¡±


    ¡°You need to have them in a better place,¡± Ru-lah chided. ¡°What if this were an even more dire emergency?¡±


    ¡°Then I would have you to help bail me out?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t help but feel that something like this happened before,¡± I said to myself.


    Trickster pressed a coin into my hand, explaining, ¡°This is really going to drain you to use it. But this is our best option at the moment. Besides, I know the place.¡±


    ¡°Wait. What,¡± I began to say.


    ¡°Just hold onto it and concentrate on getting out of here,¡± Ru-lah snapped.


    I did just that, and I felt myself falling backwards. I tried to reach out to something. Anything to hold on to. My vision went dark, and something jerked me from behind. My vision returned and I stumbled to stay upright. I slipped a little on something.


    The very first thing I noticed was that it was raining. And it was cold. And then I saw what I had slipped on. Cobblestone. I looked up to Trickster and Ru-lah, who unfairly had come this way without stumbling.


    In response to my inquisitive look, Trickster said, ¡°Welcome to my home.¡±

 Chapter 9

    Nothing is more disorienting than jumping from world to world. It honestly makes no sense. And if you are not exactly prepared for what you¡¯ll find on the other side, it is kind of a rude awakening. Sure, it had been raining where we had been, and it was cold, and this place even had its own funky smell, but jumping from some cool, futuristic tree on a gas giant to medieval, fantasy city really messes with your expectations and sense of equilibrium.


    ¡°Trickster, we might want to cover up the kid who sticks out in all the wrong ways,¡± Ru-lah said, pulling out a sack and reaching into it.


    ¡°Good idea,¡± Trickster said. ¡°We need to get somewhere safe quick! But first, I need to orient myself.¡±


    ¡°Why do I need to cover myself? There¡¯s no one else on this street,¡± I protested.


    ¡°Shut up and do as you are told!¡± Ru-lah threw me a cloak and told me to cover up. ¡°You¡¯re still in anime form. That clashes with everything that this place is.¡±


    ¡°No one appreciates a good, edgy character anymore,¡± I grumbled, throwing the cloak on. ¡°I  know it sounds naive to say this, and we were barely there at all, but I hope everything turns out alright back there.¡±


    The other teens shared a significant look. I knew what they were thinking, and I was thinking it too. It just felt unceremoniously to go on without wishing for some kind of saving miracle for the people left behind. I mean, Hearny hadn''t been all bad after all. They should have given a better send off to the people who very likely died, if they were going to be so pessimistic.


    I heaved a sigh, my breath blooming in the air before me. So, I was now in Erralial, and it was a lot gloomier than I imagined. I told Trickster just that.


    He chuckled as he gently pushed me along. ¡°During the summers this place is extremely beautiful. And the early fall is about the same. However, we here in early spring. I can feel it all across my skin. It¡¯s not the same biting chill as the late fall and winter. But the overall discomfort of spring waxing.¡±


    ¡°How eloquent,¡± I said in a clipped tone of voice.


    As we walked along the slippery cobblestones, the rain started coming down harder and the temperature dropped a little bit more. My breath was now becoming a kind fog cloud before my eyes, continually. I was surprised at how sure Trickster was at being back in Erralial. Then again, I wasn¡¯t sure how long it had been for the real Trickster, not just Trick, since he had walked these streets.


    I jogged to catch up with him and said, ¡°I am impressed that you can walk so confidently about. Aren¡¯t you a marked man here?¡±


    ¡°You fake it ¡®til you make it,¡± Trickster said with a big grin. ¡°And yes, I am. Which is why we should be careful. I¡¯m right now looking to see if I can find any building or street name that will give me a concrete clue as to where we are. With this weather I cannot say for sure. The clouds are hanging low and it is dark, so I can¡¯t tell what quarter we¡¯re in. But we will want to head for the Iron District.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because we¡¯ll find good protection there. The gangs are not welcome there, and those who enter usually find themselves imprisoned or dead very fast. The head sheriff there wields power and justice like Ru-lah wields her sword!¡±


    The paladin spoke up, ¡°But if the Blue Raven finds out that Trickster is here, they would not hesitate to assemble their forces and storm even the Iron District.¡±


    Trickster grimaced and said, ¡°You¡¯re right. Which is why we should keep as low a profile as we can, and make our way down there speedily!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s you two who should be keeping that advice,¡± Ru-lah snarled.


    ¡°Even though I mentioned Erralial in my fourth story about you guys, I didn¡¯t really know how I would even describe the place,¡± I admitted.


    Trickster decided now would be as good as time as any to fill me on some exposition. The northern port city of Erralial was one of seven High Cities in Ukazki Empire. It was ruled over by a benevolent duke, whose family had worked hard to lower taxes and tariffs to encourage trade so far north. They specialized in shipping out gold, silver, iron, and steel. Much of the city¡¯s lower districts were dedicated to smithies that worked the ore delivered from the higher mountains to the north.


    Slaves from northern, hostile tribes were taken as prisoners during raids and campaigns, and then sold to farm lands further south where they would have no hope of returning or causing any further chaos or nuisance. The inner social justice warrior in me wanted to scream at that! There was also a lot of wool processing done right outside of the city at the rivers that converged from the mountains before running out into the ocean to the west.


    All of these goods brought in a lot of cash and also encouraged shipments of fruits, spices, and fine woods from the southern regions, and special items from the southern and western islands. Though Erralial was honestly out of the way, the goods it offered, and the reasonable rates and prices included made it a strong center of trade. It was also the stronghold that oversaw the otherwise difficult to control north.


    However, the city¡¯s nobility wanted a larger cut of the economic pie. With all of the business that now came through the city, they wanted to increase taxes. The duke had not budged in any way on his policies, and now some of the lesser nobility were looking to take away control from the duke. They were aided in this endeavor by the Crimson Rook, another one of the Fingers belonging to the Black Fist.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    ¡°These guys have a thing for birds,¡± I commented.


    ¡°No, the Crimson Rook isn¡¯t a bird. It is a castle. From chess, you know,¡± Trickster said with a wave of his hand. ¡°Anyway, unlike the Blue Raven, the Crimson Rook deals particularly with the nobility. They want to pull the strings of political power. That is what they enjoy. Not just wealth, but the power that comes with high birth and prestige.¡±


    ¡°What is the Black Fist anyway?¡±


    This time it was Ru-lah who answered, ¡°The Fist is the alliance between the five most powerful gangs. At one time they warred against each other, but they quickly realized that working together was far more efficient and rewarding. That doesn''t mean that they don''t try to backstab each other, though.¡±


    ¡°And all the better for it,¡± Trickster said. ¡°If they got along all the time, they would have overthrown all sense of order and justice by now. It is also a good thing that other gangs stand up to them, though it does tend to lead to much more messiness. Take this city for example.¡±


    He gestured to the dirty and wet buildings. ¡°There are seven major gangs that exist here. Three of them belong to the Fist: the Blue Raven, the Crimson Rook, and the Death¡¯s Shadow. There are four lesser gangs, and they all fight for control of different districts in this city. It has led to slaughter in the streets. The city guard is composed of noble guards and guild guards. Because the nobility is trying to undermine the duke¡¯s authority at the will of the Crimson Rook, the noble guard does not step in when they¡¯re supposed to. The Blue Raven and Death¡¯s Shadow have bought out most of the guilds, and they keep them from employing their guards as they should, as well.¡±


    ¡°I get it,¡± I replied. ¡°With there not being any law enforcement, then the gangs can fight in the streets. There¡¯s no one stopping them. Except in the Iron District.¡±


    ¡°Bingo! They used to be the most crime ridden spot in the city, but then this new sheriff came in and cleared everything up. He left a trail of bodies in his wake that could wrap themselves around this entire city!¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re on good terms with this guy,¡± I asked incredulously.


    ¡°We¡¯ve worked out an understanding,¡± Trickster answered. ¡°I helped him bring down a group of thugs trying to set down roots in his place. I also fed him some information about the Blue Raven. Led to one of their best hit squads getting ambushed and captured. And that led to even more arrests. It was a brilliant power play for the nobility and it put the raven and Rook at odds with each other for months.¡±


    He then giggled. ¡°So many of them killed each other over the misunderstandings that ensued that they stopped hunting me for a time.¡±


    ¡°But then they redoubled their efforts to capture and kill Trickster,¡± Ru-lah reminded them.


    I¡¯ve got something to ask you,¡± I said to the paladin. ¡°Are you a part of the same world as Trickster? Or did you both decide it was best to come here?¡±


    Ru-lah answered, ¡°We talked our characters over and decided it was best to share worlds. It just made sense to us. And though it is dangerous to come here, we believed it was best since we both know this world. We wanted a home field advantage, just in case.¡±


    ¡°I feel like we could have gone to a safer place than this,¡± I grumbled. ¡°And less wet.¡±


    It was just then that I saw three people walked towards us. They all wore cloaks and jackets, with the hoods obviously up. I saw something splashed across their chests and arms. I squinted in the rain and was able to make out what looked like a bird taking flight. It was painted in blue.


    Before I could stop myself, I said, ¡°So that¡¯s the Blue Raven.¡±


    Right as our groups passed each other by, one of them tapped the others. The spun on the spot and knives flashed in their hands.


    ¡°Dammit! They heard-¡± Trickster began saying as she pushed me aside and flung himself back at the same time. The blades narrowly missed us.


    Ru-lah slapped her attacker¡¯s blade away lazily. The knifeman jumped back and drew a short sword and wielded it with his knife. As Trickster fell, he threw a knife and it took the man now holding two blades right in the neck.


    He dropped, clutching his throat and gurgling, as a woman shouted, ¡°It¡¯s him! Quickhand!¡±


    Trickster muttered something that I couldn¡¯t make out, and spun on the spot, almost kicking out his attacker;s legs right out from under him. The lady raised a hand and cast a spell. There was a sudden ripple of air and the woman cried out. Her spell was canceled out.


    Ru-lah stood in a boxing pose, having just thrown a punch. Her fist sizzled a bit in the rain.


    ¡°I like this trick,¡± she growled.


    ¡°Paladin,¡± the woman cursed, and tried to jump back as Ru-lah in a single, fluid motion drew out her large Sword of Heritage.


    Ru-lah was quicker than the lady, and swung the sword with great might and speed. She caught the woman in the chest and smashed her against the wall of the nearest building. The hood slid down and I saw the shocked face of a female elf. Blood blossomed from between her lips and slid down her chin. She tried to move, but the attack had thoroughly crushed her. She would not recover.


    The half-orc paladin ripped her blade free and let the elf slump to the cobblestones, expiring in the rain.


    I turned to see Trickster having already used his Cloak of Transition. His attacker also held aloft a short sword, which was plunged into the street. Of course, Trickster was unaffected. That cloak is just way too OP! He turned and saw his companions down, and then turned to run.


    Ru-lah threw her sword at his legs. He managed to jump up, but still got tripped up by the hilt. He twisted in the air and fell. I saw his hand reach for something in his coat. Without really thinking, I took out my pocket knife and threw it at him. He jerked his head to the side and then brought out a small crossbow. Ru-lah covered me as he fired off his quarrel, and grunted as it pierced her armor.


    I heard the man scramble to his feet, and then gasp. I twisted out of Ru-lah grasp and saw Trickster slit the man¡¯s throat. He dropped to the ground without another word. How many knives did he have on him?


    He went right up to Ru-lah and told her to take a quick breath. I was about to protest and say she would bleed more, but it was too late. He ripped the quarrel out.


    ¡°It¡¯s poisoned,¡± Trickster said. ¡°A Raven tactic. We need to heal her quickly.¡±


    He took out a small vial and poured it into the hole where the bolt had struck. Ru-lah grimaced and took a swing from another vial.


    ¡°There, that should be good. But we need to get going quick! No Raven is not without someone checking regularly on them, especially when they flock together.¡±


    ¡°I told you to not be an idiot,¡± Ru-lah seethed.


    ¡°Sorry! It was a slip up!¡±


    ¡°And we need to get you a better weapon,¡± Trickster said hurriedly. ¡°Here! Take this short sword!¡±


    He tossed me the blade before retrieving his knives and stealing some more from the corpses. We hurried along then and soon Trickster found a junction he knew. However, he was not pleased.


    ¡°This spot is always watched. They will mark three unknown figures passing through quickly. And when somebody reports three Ravens missing, they¡¯ll guess it was us pretty soon.


    ¡°Will they know it was you, specifically?¡±


    ¡°Nah, I doubt it, but they will still give chase. The Blue Ravens hate any kind of sleight, and what we just did was the worst. But nice kill ack there, Ru-lah.¡±


    The paladin just grunted and pushed me along. Trickster continue to lead the way. We ran downhill. Luckily, with an anime bod, I didn¡¯t tire easily. I began to notice how the roads curved constantly to the right as we went.


    ¡°Just keep going! We¡¯ll get there quick enough,¡± Trickster panted.


    Soon we reached a high wall with two massive, arched gates. Trickster gave a series of knocks. A shuttered window above the gates opened up and someone called down.


    ¡°What do you want? It¡¯s nearly midnight!¡±


    Trickster called back up, ¡°It¡¯s me, Trickster! I have returned with the paladin, Ru-lah, and a friend, his name is Ruben!¡±


    Ru-lah snorted when he called me friend. I shot her a dirty look. The worst I could manage. I bet my face was shaded epically for it!


    The man in the window coughed. ¡°Why should we let in trouble makers? We know what your presence could do. What it could bring!¡±


    ¡°The sheriff owes me a favor! I am calling that favor in! Please, grant us sanctuary!¡±


    The man grumbled something and retreated. I was worried that he would not be let in, and the minutes passed by. But right when I feared that we would have to go somewhere else, I heard bolts moving. The farther away gate creaked open a bit.


    ¡°Come on,¡± Trickster said, pulling me along.


    Quietly, we slipped into the Iron District.

 Chapter 10

    Is it okay for me to say that I really didn¡¯t feel like I was in the wrong? I know I made a mistake, but so does everyone! It was just a slip of the tongue! Oh well¡­ I guess it doesn¡¯t make too much of a difference. I guess, I am here writing. Which should already tell you how this all turns out.


    That¡¯s a big problem for first person stories. Because the story is already being told, you can already tell that the narrator makes it out alive in the end! And with the exception of Lovecraftian tales, that is usually a good thing.


    Well, we found ourselves surrounded by guards, because the light was very dim in the short tunnel. There were some torches outside, sputtering in the rain. Some dozen or so guards surrounded us with swords and spears of their own. I was surprised to see the diversity between them all. Two dwarves, a halfling, an elf, and orc, something tall and hairy, someone who was shimmering, and the rest were humans. They were all tense.


    The dwarf grunted, ¡°What doe Trickster Quickhand want sanctuary for so late at night? These are dangerous times, lad.¡±


    Lad? Yup, this a medieval fantasy world, I thought.


    ¡°We just dropped into town,¡± Trickster explained. ¡°We¡¯ve also had a run-in with the Blue Ravens.¡±


    There was immediate murmuring.


    ¡°And why should we not throw you back out,¡± the shimmering person asked. It was the sound of woman¡¯s voice mixed the noises of a churning creek. A water nymph!


    ¡°Because I still have information that your sheriff will find useful,¡± Trickster offered.


    Someone snorted and replied, ¡°Not likely. Times are changing, and everything is getting turned on its head.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a Raven¡¯s nest just up the street. I¡¯m sure your goblins would like to know where and how they could best burn it down.¡±


    There was some more muttering and finally the dwarf tugged his beard and said, ¡°We¡¯ve known that there were some spies about, but their exact location was a mystery.¡±


    Trickster followed up. ¡°Give us two rooms, please. And some food. I will give you the address and secret entrances once we¡¯re brought to the doors.¡±


    We were ushered out of the tunnel and back into the cold rain. A mostly bad man with large teeth spat before talking,


    ¡°We¡¯ll keep you locked up in your rooms until we can get word to the sheriff. He¡¯ll see if your information, and anything else you should give us is worth the trouble. This will settle any debts he may have incurred with you.¡±


    ¡°That is fine by me,¡± the thief replied with his trademark grin.


    We were taken deep into a tower near the gate. They led us to a set of rooms on the second level. Trickster shooed me into the second room, which had a rickety bed in it. The other was just about the same. I was about to protest, but the guards shut me in. I just fumed where I stood. What were they trying to hide from me?


    I heard more talking outside, and pressed my ear to the door. It was just some curt goodbyes. I shook my head and decided to make sure that my one window was securely locked. I then lay down on the bed after flinging the cloak to the side. I made sure to strike a very anime pose while I did it. Because, reasons.


    After laying down, I found the adrenaline dissipating, and I started falling asleep again. It was nice that the guards had not taken away our weapons. Trickster must have had some good reputation with them even if they didn''t like him dropping by. As I sat on the bed, straw puffed out the sides, and some dust rose into the air.


    Stifling a sneeze, I lay down. Once I got comfortable, I heard some muffled voices. I shimmed closer to the wall and realized I could hear Ru-lah and Trickster!


    ¡°Ruben¡¯s an idiot! I can¡¯t believe that we are sticking out our necks for him!¡±


    Trickster spoke soothingly to Ru-lah, ¡°Come on! I get that you feel that way about him, but can you honestly say that you would leave him to get disappeared like the others? You¡¯re not that cold.¡±


    ¡°But he¡¯s holding us back!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s just inexperienced. Come one, let¡¯s have a look at that armor and wound.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Ru-lah insisted.


    ¡°Just in case.¡±


    There was a pause, and then she replied, ¡°Look at you being the level headed one for a change.¡±


    ¡°I seem to recall that I¡¯m very level headed most of the time! You¡¯ve just been reading too much of Ruben¡¯s stories. Even if he did get a lot of things wrong, that is one thing he did not,¡± Ru-lah said, and there was now something different about her voice.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    I didn¡¯t hear anything for a while, but then Trickster¡¯s voice sounded again, ¡°Woah! Frisky tonight, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    I barely caught what Ru-lah said next. ¡°We just survived a number of close calls. For two weeks now! I think we deserve a night to relax.¡±


    I found myself blushing a little. Curse anime character¡¯s prudishness!


    Everything else was muffled until I heard their bed creaking to a steady rhythm. We were in another world, getting chased by some murderous gang, held at the mercy of others, and trying to get messages out to beings called the Accursed¡­ and they were having sex! I couldn''t believe them!


    I got up and blew out the candles in my room. I then stuffed straw into my ears, which was kind of painful, and then grumpily forced myself to sleep. I did want to hear any more of their stupid love making!


    I¡¯m not sure what it was that got me up later. Maybe it was the feeling of sudden dread. Or maybe it was the sound of rain that magically got louder. I glanced up from my bed, a little groggy, and saw two figures slip into my room. One had a knife raised and was coming toward me. And I bellowed out a manly scream, as I got up.


    My anime form kicked into high gear. As most of you will already know, when anime people react, they overreact, which is a super power in and of itself. I leaped high out of my bed, easily dodging the knife as it plunged for where my face had been. As I came back down, I kicked out and took the second assailant right in the face. My foot sank deep into their face, crushing bone.


    They howled and fell backwards, dropping their own knife. The first charged forward as I landed, swinging wildly. They slashed me twice, but I dodged to the side. My stolen sword was right with my still wet cloak. I heaved the sword and threw the cloak right at the attacker¡¯s face. They got caught in my cloak and tripped. I then swing my sword like a batter going for a homerun.


    I cut the attacker in two.


    ¡°Just what in the Spheres of Hades are you,¡± someone asked.


    I spun about and saw that a third attacker had entered my room, and was being followed by a fourth. My jaw dropped as they leveled a crossbow right at me. The door then flew off its hinges. It crashed across the room and knocked the fourth assailant right out of the window. The third attacked who had just spoken to me dove for the side. As he got up a knife took him right in the eye.


    His crossbow fired harmlessly to the side as he slumped down in death.


    I twisted once again, and saw Ru-lah in a shift with her Sword of Heritage held at the ready. Trickster was right behind her in pants and his cloak, with another knife held in his left hand. I will admit, seeing Ru-lah like that, I could now tell why Trickster would want to make love to that physically impressive bod. But, let¡¯s just say that such isn''t for me!


    ¡°Ruben, you okay,¡± Ru-lah asked me hurriedly.


    ¡°Yes,¡± I managed to say, as she walked by me and stabbed her sword into the heart of the guy whose face I had just smashed.


    Trickster also rushed past and swooped up a small crossbow from the attacker I had cut in half and fired it right out the window. Someone yelped with pain. He then ducked as three more bolts whizzed right past his head.


    ¡°It looks like there are at least ten more out there, which probably means that thirty have assembled. They must have gone through your window because the candles were out. Thought it would be easier to sneak in. Should have told you!¡±


    He gasped and leaped back right as a firebolt took the wall and blew a hole into it. He used his cloak and was able to survive the worst of the shrapnel. Ru-lah tackled me once again to safety. She growled and then leaped back to her feet. Her sword powered up and through the same hole in the wall she fired off her own blast. Voices screamed in the night.


    Now more voices rang out. Commands on both sides were given. There was another boom and the floor shook slightly. Someone dropped in from above and kicked Ru-lah hard, pushing her backwards and to the ground. Trickster was still incorporeal and unable to help. I screamed and charged in.


    I swung the sword one handed, and the man ducked. I then followed up with a punch. A good anime punch, which as you know always sends people flying. There was a solid crunch and crack, and then the newcomer was launched high into the stormy sky. I uncannily dodged another crossbow bolt as it came my way. I glanced down and saw three of the attackers drop as arrows took them in the chests and neck. I then withdrew back into the safety of the room.


    ¡°That was awesome,¡± Trickster gushed.


    I turned to Ru-lah and she gave me an appreciative nod. ¡°That was very well done, Ruben. Good job, and¡­ Thanks.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t resist and said, ¡°Not so useless anymore, right?¡±


    She blushed a little and said, ¡°No. Right now, you were not useless.¡±


    ¡°And great job defending yourself and raising the alarm,¡± Trickster said. ¡°Though that was a very girlish scream.¡±


    ¡°Come on you two,¡± Ru-lah said, quickly getting to her feet. We need to get out of here before another spell caster hits this room. I took out one, but there are probably others.¡±


    As we left, Trickster said, ¡°That is a definite that they have more! But they will be more cautious after that counter attack you gave!¡±


    The two teens in their D&D avatars slipped back into their room and grabbed their belongings before hurrying me and themselves upstairs. They explained that the attackers would not think to strike up there next, and would be too busy with ground forces from the Iron District to think these things through enough, but we did want to get caught up in the action down below.


    I hazarded a glance below and saw that the gates had opened to let horsemen through. There bodies now littering the street. The Ravens had committed their entire raiding party to the fight now. Ru-lah pushed me aside.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see how they like this,¡± she snarled. ¡®


    She fired off three more blasts from her sword. She blasted two men to pieces and then viciously cut off their two immediate sources of retreat with two successive blasts. More Ravens fell to arrows. A few were making a brave push for the tower by climbing through the windows below. There was now fighting all downstairs.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go,¡± Trickster said.


    He and Ru-lah hurried downstairs. I was kind of in daze at this point and followed them only slowly. Once I got to the first floor, the fighting was over. The rain was the dominant sound. Things passed by a blur until I regained my senses. It''s weird how fighting can do that to you.


    The Ravens had attacked with over forty of their own. It was a full, brutal assault on the district¡¯s gates. Over thirty of the Raven lay dead, and five had been captured. The guards figured two or three might have escaped. Six guards were injured, with another three dead. One horse was dead, too.


    The dwarf from earlier was speaking with Trickster. ¡°They paid the butcher¡¯s bill, that¡¯s for sure. But there will be a coal black sphere to pay for tonight!¡±


    ¡°Not if you strike back quick,¡± Trickster said. ¡°I¡¯ll give you the information of how to take their look out. If they feel like this area has been compromised, they will back off for a while. Plus, with prisoners now that you can interrogate, this will make the Blue Ravens look weak to the Crimson Rook. And once the Shadows smell the blood that has been spilled tonight, there will be battles in the other districts. They won''t be able to retaliate against you. Not in any big way, at least.¡±


    ¡°Maybe so,¡± the dwarf said somberly. ¡°But it shouldn''t be this way. We¡¯ve had peace in the iron works for ten years. Tean years of hard earned peace. We don''t want a war with the gangs!¡±


    ¡°Perhaps someday we can bring peace,¡± Trickster said, patting his shoulder.


    ¡°Who¡¯s that odd fellow,¡± a youthful guard shouted, pointing to me.


    Ru-lah laid a hand on my shoulder and said, ¡°This is why we had to come in secret. Why we were running earlier tonight. This man, Ruben, is an emissary from the far, far western islands. The gangs hope to ransom him. We knew that coming here was the safest bet inside the city.¡±


    ¡°Then why not say so before,¡± an older guard asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple,¡± an elf archer said, lazily. ¡°They didn''t want to be held up at the gates. Our curiosity might have held us outside longer than was necessary. Could have led to an arrow in the back.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that is exactly right,¡± Ru-lah was saying.


    Just then, we puffed right back to Reality as we started waking up. The dream was over. Our sleep was done. I was not sure if I was rested or exhausted! But, here we were. Our night with the magical nail finished. I was not sure if our mission was a success or a failure.


    Aren¡¯t dreams just the worst that way?

 Chapter 11

    More I think about it, the more I am certain the rules governing the Realms of Imagination favor no one! I mean, why end the dream right then! We could have learned something from the prisoners! Maybe we could have actually done some real good! At least apologize for everything that had happened! But nope, we were waking up. And Trick and Naomi rushed straight for the bathrooms. I had a bad taste in my mouth.


    I went into the kitchen to get a soda as the sun began shining through the windows. Conturbatio followed me.


    ¡°How did the operation go,¡± he asked me.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± Where was I supposed to begin?


    I decided that a guy like the Sphinx wouldn¡¯t mind if I just launched right into the whole story and gave him as many juicy details as I could. So I did. And for once, I had a  pretty enraptured audience. He nodded a lot and asked clarifying questions, but he did not press for much until I was done. And I had a lot more to tell than what I have written here! I had to omit some stuff for time purposes.


    ¡°And then we suddenly woke up! I wonder what that was like for everyone. Did we just wink out of existence or something? I don¡¯t get it.¡±


    ¡°Neither do I,¡± the Sphinx said. ¡°The Realms might operate a lot like our dreams do, there is no logical reason why we end up where we do, or why things lay out how they do. And since these are supposedly real worlds, they must either exist within this absence of logic, or something must make up the difference.¡±


    ¡°Or right now everyone is wondering where three fugitives just winked to,¡± I inserted.


    ¡°That too,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    The Sphinx then got serious and steepled his fingers. ¡°Ruben, do you believe that our message made it to the Guardians?¡±


    I shrugged and said, ¡°I think it did. We paid a lot of money to do so! But, the attack came almost immediately after Heany sent out our messages to them.¡±


    ¡°Do you think they might have been intercepted by the enemy?¡±


    That gave me pause. I really had no idea. And I told him as much.


    ¡°Then we should try again tonight,¡± The Sphinx told me. ¡°But for right now, we need to get out and about. Make sure you pack some things, though.¡±


    ¡°Huh? Why is that?¡±


    ¡°The Syndicate is very, very proficient at hunting. They might already know that we are here. If not, they might soon learn and surround us. We are in a suburban area, which is not good for us since we do not hold the home field advantage,¡± the Sphinx explained. ¡°If we go out, it might throw them off a little, it helps take off a little edge and get some fresh supplies. Also, should they decide to besiege the house when we are out, we will be notified when we come back; we¡¯ll be able to spot them.¡±


    I rubbed the side of my face and said, ¡°This is ridiculously stressful. I don¡¯t need to think about this in the morning!¡±


    ¡°Welcome to life on the run.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, I hate it.¡±


    And so we got ourselves ready to go out for a little bit. We made sure to pack some extra clothes and some food in the house, like protein bars and the likes. I needed something much more fresh, and I needed some sugar! Better yet, some caffeine! I¡¯m not sure why I argued for it, but I wanted some fresh doughnuts!


    Crazier yet, the others agreed!


    We traveled about and eventually came across a quaint, little doughnut cafe. It was clearly a Ma & Pa shop that left you wondering how they managed to stay afloat in and day and age of monstrous conglomerates and fast food chains. But that is an economic matter to consider for another day.


    Now, get this, and I swear I¡¯m not making this up, we ran into the writing podcast group Camille¡¯s Harem! Yeah, the Camille¡¯s Harem!


    What? You don''t know about them? Then let me do a shameless, selfless plug-in! These guys run a podcast by novice writers for novice writers, and they have been a major source of inspiration to me! They consist of members Camille, obviously, Nathan, Lars, Vince, and recent newcomer Scott. They have a unique form of humor which is pretty funny and pleasant. I made sure to quickly get my order of three doughnuts and a large coffee (no funny Starbuck¡¯s names here!), and sat down to listen to them.


    This is the best I¡¯ve been able to do to recreate their conversation. They were recording an episode for their podcast on the topic of bad anime tropes that new writers find themselves incorporating into their writing. It went something like this, and I already apologize for any misquoting that happens here!


    Lars, wearing his glasses and sporting a My Little Pony T-shirt, leaned over the table and asked, ¡°Is it really okay for us to get started without Scott?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that jelly doughnut really disagreed with him. Not that there¡¯s anything wrong with this place,¡± Camille amended loudly. Her slightly messy hair was pulled back, revealing her retro Super Mario shirt.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s get into this,¡± Nate shouted. He was wore a growling tiger hat backwards, and had a Legend of Zelda shirt. Classic Nate! (Yeah, I feel like a creep for saying that. Don¡¯t judge me!) ¡°Hello everyone! Welcome to Camille¡¯s Harem, a podcast for novice writers by novice writers, because writing is an adventure, it¡¯s more fun with friends! And today, we are talking about stupid anime tropes that many novice writers use in their writing.¡±


    He said all of this with a voice that switched through like four different accents, one of them beings an old man with very dusty lungs. At this time, Naomi was trying to pull me over to the counter to make my order, but I pulled away. I was seeing a live recording! What a miracle!


    ¡°Can I get us started,¡± Vince asked. He had his fingernails painted blue, wore his hair long, and wore a shirt reading, ¡®It was a Me! Mario!¡¯ ¡°I hate it when the main character is inexplicably attractive to every character while being utterly bland so everyone can project onto them! "My friends are my power!" Shoots biggest laser ever! Inexplicable jumps and leaps in power development. And that one character who is so evil and powerful that people call them "the reaper," but they''re handily defeated by the main character/s in the first season!¡±


    Okay, this a long conversation, so I¡¯m shorthanding it!


    Camille: And to go off of Vince''s first point, the other characters are inexplicably attracted to the main character who is blander than a bowl of old tapioca pudding.


    "The power of God and anime on my side!!!"


    Nate: Every female character has massive breasts


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Vince: Maybe we can just dial that back to "unrealistic body types"


    Camille screamed out: THANK YOU!


    Because I have never seen any real life human as ripped as the ostensibly 15 - year old Ichigo kurosaki


    Or, possibly, the first three JoJos


    Nate: VINCE you keep taking all of my ideas!!!


    Vince: Jotaro is 17 and has the musculature of a silverback gorilla


    Girls/women with bs powers that "require them to be naked"


    Like...you can''t just wave that one off...the writer made the conscious decision to do that


    Nate: Using a tsundere as a way to cover up lazily written characters.


    Camille got up and testified while she danced.


    Vince: And it might work with the story if handled well, but it often isn''t. Also, it''s often children


    Camille started handing out tens she had written on napkins.


    Vince: Foreign characters who can speak perfect Japanese, maybe? Those people exist, but they''re much less common then the average folks like myself. The brooding characters who are just dark and extra for no reason.


    teleports behind you


    "Nothing personnel, kid"


    Little girl characters who are infatuated with their big brother


    That is my absolute least favorite


    Nate: Luckily this one isn''t super common, but still WAY to common... Sibling romances. say no to incest, kids!


    Vince: Thanks for confirming what I¡¯ve said.


    Camille: Especially when the older brother is a perv too


    Vince: Oof


    Camille: Big yikes


    Nate: cough, Araragi! Just! Over-sexualizing characters in any way!


    Vince: Any way that doesn''t actually use that constructively, I guess


    Nate: Yep. Fan service with out a purpose it horrible.


    Camille: I can''t really think of any reason why children need to be sexualized


    Sips tea


    Vince: It''s possible for characters to be over-sexualized in a way that is actually important to the plot, but like...it usually isn''t


    Oh of course, children never need to be sexualized. You can say that it happened without showing it if you have a character with a tragic backstory Oh yeah! Bad gore is also unnecessary! Like...where did all that blood come from? That''s more intestines than the average person has!


    Nate: I''ve only ever seen fan service used for good in a handful of time, and 90% of those times were in bakemonogatari... and that only makes up my be 1% of all the fan service I''ve ever seen. Something needs to chance.


    Oh. I also hate filler. And believe it or not, people do write that stuff when they realize that they have not fully developed their characters. Here¡¯s a random side quest or random conversation to give my character unearned depth!


    Lars who had been up until this point laughing, finally got in on the conversation: Yes! That is terrible. And I¡¯ll admit that I had a hard time with that when I was writing Knights of Halicruz. I had to learn that it was much more rewarding to write the moments of character development in tandem with the action and important conversations. It helps make your story more concise, and it gives your readers a lot more to enjoy and chew on, without dragging things out for too long.


    Camille: Noice! I have to bring things back a bit and say that a pet peeves of mine is making someone of a very, very old age look like a child. It''s usually done to "justify" the sexualization of that character because "hey! She''s actually 450 years old so it''s fine"


    Nate:Stop giving pointless filler that has nothing to do with anything.


    Vince: That''s more a problem of the industry


    Nate:Looks at fjel... A 700 years old 8 year old... Oops.


    Vince: There''s no excuse to do that


    Nate: But I don''t sexualize fjel in my stories. So it works¡­ I hope¡­


    Vince: If you''re the writer, you purposely came up with the excuse to make your character a "legal loli." I''m looking at you, Fire Emblem! If she''s not sexualized, that''s fine!


    Camille: There''s a tasteful way to handle it, but often I feel it''s just used to justify getting off to what is basically a child.


    Nate: Also, when I do "sexualize" fjel. She is at an appropriate age.


    Vince:If I could be 800 years old but look like a little kid for kicks and giggles, I would!


    Nate: Shots fired at my waifu!!!!


    Vince: But you don''t need to sexualize those characters!


    Nate: *accidental waifu, might I add.


    Vince: Fire emblem has like... infinite waifus. Just dress the little girl - looking character in sensible clothes!


    Nate: Fire emblem, more like... Waifu wars.


    Vince: Let''s whittle this down: #1. Don''t sexualize any character who is or looks like they''re under 18


    Nate: Key word: LOOK


    Vince: #2. Don''t sexualize a character because of your own fantasies and then justify it with some in-story garbage.


    Nate: What about character who look older than they are?


    Vince: They need to be both 18 or up and look that way. If they look older but aren''t, don''t sexualize them!


    Nate: I think #2 is the Crux of the issue.


    Vince: Like that character in the MGS game, or hagakure


    Nate: MGS?


    Vince: Metal gear solid The writers of those stories just wanted to have a mostly naked women in their stories, and wrote that in from that desire. If you want an invisible girl character, you can give her clothes! It''s already breaking the laws of physics to have her turn invisible in the first place! Also, the perv characters who objectify women in the story. They''re only there because the writer put them there.


    Mineta gets punched a lot, but he doesn''t get punished in any meaningful way. He gets slapsticked, but not sent to detention because of his actions.


    Camille: And the humor aspect is just there to downplay how pervy and unacceptable his actions are


    Vince: Exactly, they could keep him around for comedic value without the perving. Brock from Pokemon is kind of a perv, but he''s never actually harmful with it. He chases after women, but he doesn''t grab them.


    Nate: #3 Only use sexualization or fan service when nessisary and as a last resort to get your point across. There are usually better ways.


    Camille: I''m just overall uncomfortable with the over sexualization at the expense of (typically) a female''s character. Or that her character is nothing more than a sexual object


    Lars: Yeah... I hate most fan service moments... Except for when Rem is cooking.


    Nate: I Hard that as Ren, and thought of RWBY.


    Lars: Yeah, no character should just be a slab of meat. Hahaha!


    Nate: #wifemeup


    Lars: Ren, too.


    Nate: Another, I don''t dislike redemption arcs for villians, but it happens all to often and inorganically in (mostly shonen) anime.


    Lars: Yeah... So often they are unearned or make no sense! Though I am going to plug in that Esdeath from Akame Ga Kill did not get the ending she deserved.


    Camille: You have strange fetishes for blue haired women, my dude. Ooh! Ooh, I also hate (and you see this outside of anime too) the main character falling for the villain with little justification or redemption.


    Vince: Yeah, you can''t be a villain turned buddy without some serious circumstances. Like literal brain control


    Camille: Like, that''s something I could never understand in yona of the dawn. People ship yona and the antagonist.....the man who killed her father and took her throne It would make absolutely NO SENSE for her to fall for him. And yet, it''s not uncommon to see in romance. The "villain" may not exactly be the main baddie or antagonist, but they''re not a very good person and sometimes they don''t get the proper redemption before they hook up with the main character.


    Nate: with yonas case, it makes sense at the beginning, before he... you know... kills her family. but to continue to do so is just dumb.


    Camille: Right, completely different instance with yona. And I think the author did an amazing job at portraying her grief in losing everything but also getting over that asswipe. But the best part is that she completely gets over him and is stronger because of it.


    Nate: preach


    Camille: CAN I GET A HALLELUJIEHR!?


    Lars: Yona is great for doing that, and I''m not even caught up yet!


    Camille: Yona is bae


    Vince: JoJo''s is pretty good with villains turned friends in the Stardust Crusaders arc - the villains who turn good are literally being mind-controlled by Dio, and removing the part of him that controls them turns them against him, naturally


    Nate: So it¡¯s more like "enemy of my enemy is my friends" idea?


    Vince: It''s more like they remove the thought control, and then they''re friends


    Like "Dio was controlling my actions, and you saved me! Thanks! Time to help you kill Dio and maybe we''ll become best buds along the way on this Bizarre Adventure. Part 4 isn''t so good, it literally has some really bad mental and emotional abuse by a villain character on a main character she''s crushing on. She realizes what she''s done and tries to atone for it, which was good, but in the end they''re together, which I find unrealistic - even if the abuser tried to make up for what they''d done, I wouldn''t be okay with being with them.


    Part 5 doesn''t really have the villains to buds trope, but part 6 is really bad about it. Part 6 is literally about criminals in prison. One of them is a murderer, and he''s a main good guy. Major spoilers! I guess by the end of the part the evil versions of the main characters are disappeared from reality, and they live on as good versions of themselves who never did those bad things, but still.


    Parts 1 and 2 don''t have the villains to friends trope, except for Speedwagon - he was so influenced by Jonathan''s gentlemanly goodness that he went from a street thug to one of the most important forces for good in the whole series!


    Alright.. I''m going to stop talking about JJBA now¡­


    Nate: Speedwagon is just such a perfect boy!


    Vince: He''s the extra most bestest boy.


    Nate: That phrase really tickles me. I blame Little Caesar¡¯s.


    Vince: I mean I was literally quoting Little Caesar''s there.


    Nate: I figured as much.


    That was when the others finally pried me away, reminding me that I was the one who wanted to come here. I reluctantly went with them and ordered two glazed doughnuts. I like to life dangerously. And there might be some of you out there who are going to ask, especially later, why on Earth I would go through the lengths to try and record their entire conversation. The answer is simple:


    These guys do not get enough recognition, and they give excellent advice! For those who read my words, or in this case their¡¯s, it needs to go out there! And inspire other novice writers, such as myself.


    I started munching on my doughnuts as I made my way back over to the Harem to continue listening to them. That was when the front door was kicked in.

 Chapter 12

    Feared are the men in black suits and masks who wear guns and come through your front door. Even more feared are those who belong to the Syndicate and wield incredible, deadly powers!


    I should mention that before pandemonium reigned all around us, there was this brief moment when everything around us rippled. It was like my vision went grey as this happened, but it quickly switched to normal. And I had a very strange feeling tickle its way up my spine. Naomi and Trick stiffened suddenly.


    And that was when the door was kicked in.


    No less than twenty Syndicate agents poured in, ridiculous, chrome and shining guns leveled at everyone. They were followed by these hellish monsters of swirling, bubbling mass. Fangs, horns, multiple eyes, claws, and mouths all protruded from the impossible bodies. And six figures swooped in with flowing and rustling capes of purple splashed with gold stars. They had wands and staffs in their hands.


    It looked like it was going to be a massacre.


    ¡°Rueben, watch out!¡± Trick shouted, trying to shove me under a table. In that same instance I saw people in the shop rising to their feet: the Harem.


    ¡°Dreamssssssss belong in the world of dreamssssss,¡± someone hissed. The voice was unnaturally deep and sounded like a snake trying to speak English.


    Lars fell onto all fours and transformed into a thick, dark substance with gleaming red eyes. Nathan pulled a sword from this air which became ringed with crackling electricity, causing his beard to become poofy. Vince rose into the air as a hole opened up in the floor beneath him. Scott turned in a muscular anime girl with a large sword. Camille simply vanished.


    ¡°Practitioners?¡± one of the robed figures asked.


    ¡°No. Novice writers,¡± Nathan spat. ¡°With highly, overactive imaginations!¡±


    ¡°This isn¡¯t going to be good,¡± Naomi muttered under her breath.


    The dark glob that was Lars sprang at the hideous monster, elongating and taking shape to become something more draconic. Large black claws tore mercilessly into the creatures and a dripping jaws plunged into its putrid flesh.


    One agent leveled a gun at the others and fell to the floor in a heap as his neck was snapped.


    ¡°Invisibility!¡± another robed person shouted. He raised his hand, fingers dancing with power. Nathan sword his sword and discharged his electrical current.


    Another robed figure pointed her finger to, well, probably redirect or conduct the electricity. Her finger bent back awkwardly and the blast hit the enemy. Four were sent to the floor convulsing as Vince moved in. As he approached, the hole moved with him. A howl of wind issued from the unknown depths.


    To my horror, I watched as the four downed persons were sucked into the hole. Stunned as they were, they didn¡¯t put up a fight, but were slurped up by the greedy pit. The others, however, did put up a fight. Guns began blazing. Scott ran with the speed and deftness born only to anime characters, and with his ridiculous sword managed to block and cleave every single bullet.


    There was an explosion at the door. Two suits when Wilhelm-screaming into the air, covered in sticky jam. I crawled out from under the table, much to my handlers¡¯ displeasure. One of the shop workers was throwing their filled doughnuts like they were grenades. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    One of the robed figures yelped and fell to their knees, placing both hands on the ground. From their hands, ringed with magic, burst lines that spiderwebbed out to form an intricate pattern on the floor. The roof burst into the air and a storm formed overhead.


    ¡°We need to get out of here!¡± Naomi shouted to Trick above the din.


    A gun appeared in her face. One of the Syndicate suits leered down at her.


    SWING!


    Scott¡¯s massive sword cleaved head from shoulders effortlessly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything foolish!¡± he shouted.


    Lars meanwhile submerged his strange, new form into the monster, causing it to writhe with pain and bloat with disgusting bubbles. Nathan and Scott attacked the robed figure, but the power of the pattern repelled them. Two more people went down with broken necks before Camille reappeared and fired off a spell from her hands. Two more Syndicate operatives were caught in massive bubbles of water.


    The storm clouds overhead spun themselves into a funnel and descended. Another howl of wind greeted Vince¡¯s own hole. He levitated until he was just under the cyclon and then drifted out of the way. His hole screamed louder and then devoured whatever was being summoned.


    ¡°Don¡¯t waste your time with these small fry! Get the kids!¡± a woman shouted, coming into the broken shop. She was made of metal, similar to Colossos. She raised a gun at the worker with the doughnuts and killed him.


    The monster blew apart, spraying stinky guts in every direction.


    The dark creature flowing from the collapsing corpse and reassembled itself as another, now shorter, draconic figure. It stood before the woman and said, ¡°I Seeeeeeeee what issssssss happening here. How kind of you to expossssssssse yourselvesssss! The child shall esssssscape you.¡±


    To her credit, the woman didn¡¯t just stand there and let Lars monologue. She punched him in his face, but her fist got stuck. She began screaming in agony as her metal hand and arm melted away. I then saw Camille throw out both of her hands and a massive gust of wind hit the robed guy on his knees, sending him tumbling into the vortex of clouds, being sucked into the void. He was gone with a surprised yelp and a flourish of robes.


    More Syndicate suits appeared and were knocked unconscious with electricity. Nathan then went about finishing the downed enemy with his sword.


    ¡°Hang on, I get this is meta and everything,¡± Vince suddenly said, his calm voice carrying through the chaos. ¡°But how are we doing this? Why are we even doing this?¡±


    ¡°Is now really the best time to ask such plot-heavy questions?¡± Camille demanded.


    ¡°I know I would sure as hell like to know what is going on,¡± Nathan shouted. ¡°That¡¯s all I know!¡±


    Lars took the metallic woman by the throat and hauled her over to the pit. He spoke as he walked, squeezing to cut off her cries. ¡°We know better than mossssssst the powerssssss of an unbridled imagination. Conssssssider ussssss convenient plot devicessssss, assssss dumb assssss the trope issssss. But because we novice writerssssss don¡¯t wish to be bound by the constraintssssss of othersssss¡¯ rulesssss, we feel a powerful connection to the Realmssssss of Imagination.


    ¡°These moronssssss shouldn¡¯t have relied on that power and ssssssumoned a Grey Bubble,¡± he explained, casually tossing the woman into Vince¡¯s pit. ¡°They are too green with using their own abilitiessssss, not having taken the time to embrace their own creative potential. It¡¯ssssssss an easy thing to say that you can be imaginative, but sssssssso many people have cut themselvesssss off from dreaming without restraintssssss.¡±


    He transformed back into his regular self and looked around the broken shop and its huddling customers. He then saw us and approached with a grim expression. His friends went to hold the entrance against any other attackers. Trick and Naomi barred his way. I couldn¡¯t believe how brave and how dumb they were being!


    ¡°This Grey Bubble will eventually burst. When that does, all of the damage and deaths caused here will be reversed. Well, except for those pulled in from the Realms.¡±


    ¡°How do you know that?¡± Trick asked, trying to sound confident, but for the squeak in his voice.


    Lars shrugged. ¡°Plot convenience, remember. Anyway, you need to get out of here. But I feel there is something I need to share with you.¡± He muscled through the two teens and came to me, whispering instructions in my ears. Those dreadful words sunk deep into my soul, as if he had branded me¡­


    ¡°How do you know that?¡± I asked, repeating Trick¡¯s question.


    ¡°You¡¯re not the only one who sees the stories in the Realms,¡± he told me with a wry grin. ¡°Every creator has peered in some way into the Realms and brought what they saw to life here. Or what they have done here has fed the Realms. In any case, they have touched that dimension and know it, even if they don¡¯t fully comprehend it. And again-¡±


    ¡°Plot convenience, right,¡± I finished.


    Lars pointed to the door into the bakery. ¡°Get going and let us have our fun.¡±


    I didn¡¯t need a second invitation. I had had enough of this! I sprinted as fast my legs would carry me, and was soon flanked by Naomi and Trick. We burst through a series of doors and wonderful smells before we escaped into the outside world and passed once more through a ripple of grey.


    And in a way that I can¡¯t quite explain, everything was back to normal. But still, the chase was on.

 Chapter 13

    Rather than giving you all the entire play-by-play of everything that happened to us after the insanity in Cincinnati, I¡¯d rather speed things up and take us to where we are currently. Oh sure, I can already hear critics saying, why did you spend so long giving us so much detail until now? And well, the answers are simple:


    For starters, I had a little more time for writing once we got underway to Washington, D.C. And secondly, we got here and now I have to speed things up.


    After what Lars told me to do, and gave me the phrase necessary to call out for help to the Guardians, I got right to work writing as much as I could. We needed to drop by a store to get me a laptop and cable to write while on the go in a car. We also used that time to pick up some news. There was nothing to be heard. That night, Naomi, Trick, and I used the nail again to try and pick up some information. Nothing.


    We did manage to smooth things over with the people of the Iron District. I went with Naomi to get ingredients for a portal that she had designed to take us to another world, while Trick lay a false trail for the Blue Raven, and also got more information to hand over to the officials to further weaken them. He had told me that there was something big happening in the city, but he would not tell me, because according to him it was too long to tell.


    I have found out from these two that when players get heavily invested in their characters¡¯ backstories, things can take some of the oddest turns in terms of how a campaign or quest play out. It is almost tempting enough for me to actually consider playing a game of Dungeons and Dragons. Almost.


    Naomi, or I guess in this case it was Ru-lah an I, went through the city to strange apothecaries and got what we needed for the portal. We slapped everything together and soon had a spinning pool of goop that took all three of us to another world when Trick caught up. With that, we found ourselves in another place full of pirates. A kind of floating island with a city built on top of and bored into a bunch of ancient, towering ruins.


    After some awkward questions and conversations, we met this really cool fox guy, kinda like an anime character, who shed a little more light on the subject: What we had experienced was a Grey Bubble, and that was what took away all recollection or evidence that crazy stuff was going down. And this is where things get a little tricky to explain, so I¡¯ll do my best with limited time, just so you don¡¯t feel lost. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    There are two universes, our Reality, where we live on Earth in a solar system at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy, and the second are the Realms of Imagination, where everyone¡¯s thoughts across seven-plus billion pool into one universe, creating untold numbers of worlds unique to them and what they can imagine, or the lack thereof. Whew, that¡¯s a lot, but there¡¯s more! See, there is an in-between world that filters things to an extent, and makes sure that these two universes don¡¯t collide in a display of collateral damage. This is called the Grey World.


    But recently, there have been people out there who have been seeking to merge our two universes. The means by which they have done this are through Grey Bubbles, pushing the Grey World to a certain extent into our Reality. When this is done, they open the filters a little more and can pull Imagination right here on to Earth. But when the Bubble is gone, because they can only be maintained for so long, everything that was done with Imagination is undone. The only exceptions are what happens to those who can cross over to Imagination naturally in their sleep. Or, those who are caught up in the story of the events that lead to the Grey Bubble.


    I¡¯ll admit, that last part did not make much sense¡­. We¡¯re all still trying to process what we¡¯ve learned since then. I¡¯m condensing a major info dump! But that is basically why Trick and Naomi, along with the agents have been able to have all of these crazy adventures and remember them while the rest of the world has forgotten them. We¡¯re pretty sure that the only records of these events to have survived the Grey Bubbles are my own writings (for whatever reasons), and what Conturbatio and Miles wrote up. And we believe that all of those records and their copies were confiscated by the Syndicate. Naomi¡¯s mom is working on that particular front.


    We finally woke up later, heads buzzing with a ton of information. And we continued on our way to D.C., in an extremely round about way, which is why I was able to write as much as I could! Naomi was not too pleased with me once she figured out what I had been doing. So, everything that follows as a result will be a little more short, and, erm¡­ Not as finely detailed.


    Yeah, I know that really sucks!


    In the end, this has all been nothing more than an intermediary chapter, whose only purpose was to set everything else up and try to provide a little more understanding of what is going on. How Lars knew what to tell me, and if it will even work remains to be seen. But it is the only direct lead we have to contact the Guardians. That or wait for them to respond to our other message, which could very well lead to us eventually getting caught and killed!


    So, here¡¯s to hoping for the best! Man¡­ This feels really weird to write! It is so nerve wracking to write a story out before you know the end! This could end badly for us, but I am hoping against all hope that we somehow win.

 Chapter 14

    A strong breeze helped to cool me down as we walked through the streets of Washington, D.C. It was hot and muggy, and I was thoroughly perplexed that we were even out and about! This is the most surveillance saturated site on Earth outside of the Kremlin, and we were walking around without disguises! And why?


    Because not only is D.C. one of the highest guarded cities in the world, it is also a city absolutely bogged down in traffic, crime, and other, weightier matters than a man hunt for people who anyone else would think are nut jobs for believing in a parallel universe of imagination. And that does not make for a good kidnapping ground, especially if you have your head on a swivel. So, though I had no idea what I was doing, I was surrounded by those who did. It felt very surreal.


    Agent Miles got us all some ice cream as we walked through the streets and the Sphinx explained our next move. ¡°I¡¯ve been in touch with Naomi¡¯s mom, and she has helped to create a window for us to enter the Bureau and enter the story Ruben¡¯s been writing.¡±


    ¡°If he finishes it at all,¡± Naomi snorted.


    ¡°Hey! I¡¯m going to make sure the world knows just how big of a jerk you are!¡±


    ¡°Ruben,¡± Trick said, trying to be patient. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just speed everything up for the last few chapters so we can go in and upload everything and get out of there before we get caught? It would save us a lot of worry and hassle?¡±


    Before I could give my answer, Trick mother asked coldly, ¡°And what makes you think that you kids will be following us in?¡±


    ¡°Because Naomi and I can transform if needed. And we should all be working to protect Ruben,¡± her son offered.


    ¡°This is such a terrible idea,¡± Miles complained.


    The Sphinx nodded. ¡°I agree. This entire affair is very, very far from accommodating or acceptable.¡±


    ¡°Well, Lars told me that I had to upload it to the computers in the FBI offices,¡± I retorted.


    ¡°And why are we trusting a random podcaster who clearly cannot do the epic trailer guy¡¯s voice,¡± Susan needled.


    I gushed before I could stop myself. ¡°You¡¯ve been listening to their show!? Isn¡¯t it great?¡±


    ¡°Fangirling aside, I think we can all agree that we need to stick together because it is the right thing,¡± Naomi said, giving me a sharp glance. ¡°Look, ever since all of this stuff began with Trick and I sneaking onto your cases, we¡¯ve broken all of the rules. It was not right to begin with. If we hadn¡¯t, who knows, but maybe we wouldn¡¯t be in this predicament. However, that is neither here nor there any longer.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°We¡¯ve come this far by doing everything against convention and against the rules. We are dealing with people who can bend all of reality to their whim! And we have only survived by continuing to do what we do best, break all the rules.¡±


    ¡°A girl after my own heart,¡± Trick said with a dopey smile.


    Naomi continued, ¡°It is the unconventional thing to do, keeping all of us together as we infiltrate the Bureau, but it is still the right thing to do. We cannot split up, or that weakens us. If we stay together, we can pool everything together that has helped us survive this long, and we can come out on top. I don¡¯t know how or why those podcasters helped us out, but if dealing with the supernatural has taught us anything, we are only small time players in a much larger game, and we have received help before. We need to take this chance.¡±


    She then took a big lick of her ice cream.


    ¡°Naomi¡­ That was very dignified,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to incorporate that.¡±


    ¡°Please do,¡± she said, cooly.


    The adults were silent for a while as we walked and ate, sometimes slurping. Finally, Susan spoke up.


    ¡°I can reach out to some people. Conturbatio, you still have some contacts within the city you haven¡¯t burned through yet. If we make sure that we are properly escorted to where we need to go, we can bunker down in the offices and call aid to ourselves while Ruben posts the story he¡¯s supposed to.¡±


    She heaved a sigh and said, ¡°Look, this is not ideal, but once we get in there we can force the Syndicate to reveal themselves. They have been using the Grey Bubbles to hunt us, but surrounded by trained and deadly agents, they will have a harder time about it. Plus, it might mean that enough people will get the message that something is up to alert the entire government.


    ¡°Again, this isn¡¯t ideal, but it would mean that we are no longer alone, and the threat would be exposed. Once that happened, we could rally all of our allies, old and new. No more running to survive, but we could have a fighting chance.¡±


    ¡°That might not be the way everything turns out,¡± Conturbatio objected slowly. ¡°We have no guarantee of such a favorable outcome. Everyone in Cincinnati forgot what occurred and that was something as big as Hiroshima!¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Miles countered. ¡°Remember what that guy from Camille¡¯s Harem said to Ruben: there are those in the government who will come to our aid. I think Susan is right, and so are the kids.¡±


    ¡°Kids,¡± I huffed.


    ¡°If we succeed in doing this, we will get help. It will either be that whoever they were referring to will come and help us, and this all still remains a secret. Or, the whole conspiracy is blown wide open. In either case, we get help. You cannot let your pride dictate what happens next! This is not some case that agents are fighting over to see who gets the glory!¡±


    ¡°I know that,¡± the Sphinx snapped, uncharacteristically short tempered. He took a calming breath and licked some ice cream from his fingers before continuing. ¡°I just fear what this would mean if everything that we have learned suddenly spilled into the public¡¯s knowledge. What kind of chaos could it cause?¡±


    ¡°That is something that we¡¯ll have to risk,¡± Miles said. She shared a look with Susan. ¡°Besides, the government lies about everything all the time. If this blows up on them, they will find a way around it.¡±


    ¡°With the current administration I fear more what they will do to exploit it,¡± Conturbatio growled. ¡°But it looks like I will be overruled in this decision. Fine! Then let¡¯s come up with a plan.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me! I have no idea what we are going to do!¡±


    ¡°No one was asking you anyway, Ruben,¡± Naomi said, finishing off her ice cream cone. ¡°Let¡¯s first confer with my mom. I think she will be able to help us out.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just surprised that she hasn¡¯t been caught yet,¡± Trick whistled.


    ¡°No one should ever underestimate my mom,¡± Naomi said fiercely.

 Chapter 15

    Promise, this will be another short chapter, because by now you see what is at stake, and that time is of the essence! However, I still feel obligated to make as much of a story out of this as possible, even while making it fast. I know that you, my loyal readers demand at least some effort from me. My critics will demand to know the inner working of just about everything going on. And I want to make sure that whoever is reading this story knows that this is legitimate and not some kind of prank or trap.


    Okay, so here is the plan that we decided to execute:


    Granted, this is going to sound fantastical, but this is the honest truth. We were all going to enter the FBI offices at exactly 8:30. Susan was going to get in touch with some of her old buddies before she was shunted over into the Q Files. (Apparently, this had all been done to prevent her from rising through the ranks. Some kind of rivalry, politics, sexism, and who knows what else! How can this kind of stuff still be happening in 2018!?) Most of them had already been transferred to other jobs and posts, but a few still remained. They would come in and greet her, and walk with her. With us.


    Naomi¡¯s mom had also scheduled for someone to come and check in at the Q Files, to pick up a case file. We needed multiple witnesses for this to work. Because the Q Files were supposed to be inoperative, all members of security, the overhead, and of course the Syndicate would converge.So many people coming together, and right at the same hour when all of the offices and cubicles next to the Q Files would be the most full, the Syndicate would be hard pushed to get at us.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Naomi¡¯s mother would pull clutch for us once again. She had been hunting down anyone within the Bureau who could be connected to the Syndicate. She had compiled a file, not a very big sadly, but still enough information and names to get some heads turning in the right direction. To give us some protection. We could then tell the story that we needed to garner reinforcements.


    The story we had decided to spin was that I had witnessed a transaction in my neighborhood. I had seen them hand over body parts and occult items. I had made a call into the police, which we had fabricated brilliantly I might add. The police thought it was a bad lead, but I was attacked at a supermarket by people dressed in black. I had made another call to the cops. The Q Files had claimed the case, because of the occult material.


    Yeah, this was all highly illegal. However, stuff like this happens all the time. It¡¯s not just accountants who know how to cook the books. All authorities learn this skill. The most important thing is to get the Man looking into the Syndicate. Conturbatio had another story all prepared to segway us into that.


    Meanwhile, while all of this would provide me time to upload this entire story to the internet. According to Lars, the eyes within the FBI would see the story being uploaded, and they would recognize the key phrase and the pattern scheme running throughout the chapters. They would intervene immediately. And with the Guardians stepping into the situation, we would then supposedly get all of the protection that we needed.


    But where we would go from there, none of us had any clue. We were clearly getting deeper and deeper into a war that we knew very little about, and that entire world at large had no clue even existed!


    What would we honestly do after this?


    We had decided it was better to stay alive and learn as we went, to survive, than it was to simply give up and be killed. Especially when we knew that this Syndicate was already doing terrible things. People were dying all over the world. The people that the agents of the Q Files had saved were disappearing, and their stories were being erased. We could not let that stand.


    Everything about this cobbled-up plan relied on precision and speed. And a lot of faith in others. A LOT of faith.

 Chapter 16

    Turned about is one of describing how I feel right now. Confused. Scared. Anxious. Sick. Hollow. Numb. Exhausted. It¡¯s the night before the final operation that will determine our fate. And I don¡¯t know how I am even still writing.


    It has been a very, very trying few days. I have been cranking out so much writing! Looking back at it now, I could have and should have done it smarter. A good story based on insane events, turned sloppy, because this is real.


    I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m writing this¡­.


    We¡¯ve shared (possibly) our final night together. And the emotions are running high. Or maybe that¡¯s just the way I see things. I really, really, really wish I had not been cursed with this ability to see things that are happening in the Realms of Imagination. I shared this thought with the agents, Conturbatio, Miles, and Brown, but they all said without me they would not have found out as soon as they did what was all going on with the Syndicate. I highly doubt that.


    Maybe it¡¯s just the depressed feelings speaking, but I am confident that it is the truth. Speaking of feelings, I think it¡¯s good to incorporate this quick conversation.


    ¡°We should all get some sleep. Tomorrow is the big day,¡± the Sphinx told us all.


    ¡°Are we sure this will work,¡± I asked.


    ¡°It will, because we¡¯ll make it work,¡± Trick said with a smirk.


    ¡°Can you ever be serious,¡± I demanded, getting upset.


    ¡°I am. Right now.¡± He got up and walked to the small refrigerator we had in the hotel room. Getting out a Coke, he said, ¡°Ruben, you might have been able to look into our lives and write down our adventures, but you missed some really important stuff. Serious is not always about pulling a face and being single-minded. Rather, it is about determination.¡±


    He got up close to me and opened the can. ¡°I am determined to save my family and friends. I am determined to see my father again. I am determined to stop these people who had endangered the lives of so many others, people I like, and people I hate. People I know well, and people I don¡¯t know at all. I am determined to do something noble, like my parents have always wanted me to do.¡±


    He smiled as his mom and took a swig from his can. I was about to speak, but he held up a finger.


    ¡°But I still am who I am, Ruben. It¡¯s not just because I am naturally goofy, but it also how I deal with the world. When I grew bored with school, I got into trouble, looking for adventure. When I found adventure, I got scared, so I found a way to laugh and joke. We could lose everything tomorrow, but I will not lose who I am.¡±


    ¡°You sound like a warrior trying to be a hero before you die in battle,¡± I said sullenly.


    ¡°And why not? Those guys and gals are cool! And I should know; I¡¯m a D&D character.¡± He flashed me a wide grin before he took another sip.


    Naomi sighed and said, ¡°Look, Ruben, you and I have not been on good terms for most the time we¡¯ve known each other. You are dumb when you shouldn¡¯t be, lack social graces, and are a slave to your own anxieties.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Dr. Phil,¡± I retorted.


    ¡°But I can still understand you, to a degree. I don¡¯t think anyone can fully understand another, no matter how similar they are. Because we are all unique individuals. But, I can agree that sometimes Trick¡¯s attitude is too flippant and arrogant. But at least, he is genuine.


    ¡°But,¡± she continued. ¡°I do also feel a little depressed. My mother is putting everything on the line to help us. I am astounded at what she has accomplished right under our enemy¡¯s nose. And I am frightened about what could happen tomorrow. They have hunted us so well and with such power and purpose. I almost feel like we are walking into a trap. But we have to do it. I want to see this all to its end.¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°And so you¡¯re a pragmatist.¡±


    ¡°I am myself, Ruben. A realist, a pragmatist, when I need to be, and also an optimist. Otherwise, I would have never gone along with any of this. Because I have hope that it will all work out. I went on the first Q Files case because like Trick I was bored, and I also wanted to see this idiot make an even bigger fool of himself.¡±


    She reached out and took her boyfriend¡¯s drink. ¡°But we so


    mehow succeeded, and it was incredible. And from that point on, I hoped for more. I acted responsible and tried to keep us firmly planted on Earth and in reality. But I wanted more adventures. I wanted to get to know Trick more. And I wanted to understand what was going on. And I hoped that it would happen, and when it did, I began hoping that it would all work out.


    ¡°And miraculously, it has.¡±


    ¡°Easy for you to say,¡± I grumbled. ¡°You two have amazing powers and are used to these adventures by now.¡±


    This time, it was Susan who spoke. ¡°Ruben, you never get used to these things. I have spent my entire career with the FBI. I have raised a son while an agent. I have danced around relationships, and kept a healthy marriage all while doing dozens of sting operations and raids. I have also been a part of most of the crazy adventures that my son and Naomi have been on. Each time is either a dream or a nightmare.


    ¡°Sometimes you have control, and other times you do not. Even with all the training I have had, and with everything I know how to do, what is programmed deeply within me, I am at the mercy of so many other factors and fate during every case or operation. It is terrifying!


    ¡°But, what makes us who we are, people who can go through all of these adventures and come to where we are today, are those who have learned to deal with the uncertainty. It is okay to feel afraid. It is okay to feel unsure. But what is not okay is for you to throw up your hands and give up!¡±


    ¡°That was a terrible pep talk,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Everyone, Ruben is not looking for us to fix how he sees the situation, He needs to get off his chest how he feels,¡± Stacy Miles said. I only then realized how often I ever just referred to her as Miles, or Agent Miles. But there was something about the way she said that which made me realize more than ever before just how real she was. That she was her own person, and not just the lacky or sidekick to the Sphinx.


    ¡°I understand that,¡± Susan snapped. ¡°But he still needs to hear what has to be done.¡±


    ¡°All he has to do is finish the story and make sure it is ready to upload tomorrow morning,¡± Naomi said pointedly.


    I flushed. At this moment, I was still three chapters behind.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t have them done,¡± Naomi said, rolling her eyes before finishing Trick¡¯s drink.


    ¡°Then let¡¯s stop pestering him and let him get to work,¡± Stacy said, giving me an encouraging smile. ¡°Ruben, some of us understand you, and some of us don¡¯t. And that¡¯s okay. All you need to know from us is that we are all counting on you.¡±


    I opened my mouth to interject, but she cut me off, ¡°Before you say that we are wrong to trust you, or say that you are not good enough, or say whatever else is bouncing around there in your head, think about this for just a moment: Not only were you able to see important things that I have helped us out in understanding better what we are dealing with, but you are right here, right now.


    ¡°You survived being hunted up until this point, and with no prior experience. Sure, you were guarded and guided by us, but you still did everything that you could. You went to the realms of Imagination and came back. You survived an assassination attempt. You were the one who got the information we needed to get here. And you have not given into your anxiety and fears!¡±


    ¡°Not yet,¡± I protested heatedly. ¡°Look everyone, I appreciate this, I really do!¡±


    ¡°Then you might try showing it,¡± Naomi grumbled.


    This time, it was Trick who slugged her in the arm.


    ¡°But I am not that kind of guy! I don¡¯t even know why we are trusting the word of some random guy that I¡¯ve only ever heard over a podcast! Where¡¯s the logic in that? And if my ability was really all that helpful, couldn¡¯t I have helped save others? Huh? What about everyone that you already saved who has gone missing? No, I¡¯m a failure! And knowing that, I think you should all be a little more sympathetic to how I feel right now!¡±


    I held up my hands and said, ¡°Look, I¡¯m not backing out of tomorrow. But I just feel like we are jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire.¡±


    A gentle hand rested on my shoulder. It was Conturbatio.


    ¡°I think you need to calm down and get back to writing, because we are counting on you,¡± he said. ¡°But let me say one last thing. All us agents are also responsible for those we have lost. And we do know defeat. I read what you wrote about the drama in Memmelsruhe, and that was not even close to the true terror we felt then. We lost good people. And somewhere out there is a monster that could destroy us all. It is only contained for now.


    ¡°That is enough to keep anyone awake at night! It is enough to eat anybody up from the inside and destroy their confidence in themselves. We are not exceptions to that rule.¡±


    He now held both my shoulders and forced me to look at him. His breath smelled kinda bad.


    ¡°But we know what needs to be done. You know what needs to be done. With all of your anxiety, doubt, fear, and exhaustion, finish what you need to do. And in the morning, we end this. One way or another.¡±


    And, so now here I am, finishing up everything as best as I can. My fingers ache from writing so much. And nothing had really changed in my way of thinking, even now. And to be all honest, I¡¯m not sure how I am feeling, or what I am really thinking¡­


    Mom, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll ever read this, but I just wanted to say that I love you. Thanks for everything. Thanks for putting up with me!


    Well¡­ Here I am. Still one chapter short. And I have no idea what to write next.

 Chapter 17

    Poisoned by the reality of the situation, our hopes die. Look, I¡¯m right now at Stacy¡¯s computer, typing this up before I upload it all to the internet. This story HAS to come to light! We are trapped, and we will be killed.


    At least I can do that.


    Suffice it to say that our plan worked out exactly as we had hoped, gathering together large and chattering crowd as we made our way to the office. The bigwigs appeared, and Naomi¡¯s mom, who has a similar temperament to her¡¯s, came with the file. Everything was working out well, until it didn¡¯t.


    The Grey Bubble hit and we were swarmed by men in clean, white suits, and strange, ninja-like monsters. I was shoved into the offices right as Naomi and Trick transformed into their D&D avatars. Just right now Trick jumped through one guy to stab a monster with his knife and bring it down. He¡¯s gotten really good with that cloak! And Naomi is blasting things right and left with her massive sword. I must begrudgingly say that she is pretty awesome, if she does get on my nerves. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Okay, despite how well they are fighting, half of the agents who came to us are already down or dead, and the enemies keep coming. And there is a weight bearing down on us. I get this feeling it will soon be like a boot crushing ants. And that is something that this little ant won¡¯t survive!


    For those who lost a little heart with me in the last chapter, well, I still have no idea what I¡¯m doing. But, here I am, doing what I can. I guess I now see a little of what the others were trying to say. They were all right, and all wrong at the same time. I think it comes down to what Naomi was saying about us being individuals.


    Speaking of which, she¡¯s coming right here. I should do what I said I was going to do and get this uploaded.


    So, signing off fo