《Fantasy Road Trip》


 Chapter 1: Slam on the Brakes!

    The sound of my jeep¡¯s engine roared as I stepped on the gas, sending the speedometer upwards into the 70mph range. The headlights illuminated the road ahead as I looked over at the clock on the dash, 11:30pm. ¡°Damn, Pit¡¯s going to howl like a demon when I get home. Probly wake up the the whole neighborhood too.¡± I muttered as I grabbed the soda that sat in the cup holder to my side. Taking a quick sip of the medium sized coke I silently cursed the way most fast food joints did their food these days. You ask for a large drink and they say ¡°Oh I¡¯m sorry sir. We don¡¯t serve drinks in those sizes anymore.¡±


    ¡°Fuckin¡¯ bullshit is what it is.¡± I complained to myself, ¡°If I want to get fat its damn well my choice to do so.¡± My right hand massaged my temples while I held onto the steering wheel with my left. All this mandatory overtime at work was driving me insane. My contract stated 9am to 5pm not 9am to 11pm damnit! Not that my wallet complained, with time and a half for overtime I was able to afford a good apartment in a decent neighborhood.


    The quick massage to my temples made my slight headache dissipate. It¡¯s not that I was over-worked or anything, life as a hospital security guard is relatively simple. You stand around when you¡¯re not needed and look tough, or sit around and catch up on the latest few episodes of a show when you should be watching the feed from the security cameras. Sometimes though, you gotta be tough. Cause when shit goes down, you better be ready for anything.


    Today, fortunately, was a slow day so work wasn¡¯t too stressful. It was just boring standing around the entire time doing nothing. The hospital I worked at had a gym which I would love to work out in, but it was only to be used by physical therapists and their charges. Shame too, as I would have loved to spend some time jogging on the treadmill or lifting some of the free weights.


    ¡°But nooo that would be too distracting.¡± I complained in a nasally voice, mocking my superior. ¡°You¡¯re needed in the reception area not traipsing about on a treadmill!¡± I didn¡¯t hate my boss, on the contrary, I liked him as he was a nice guy. ¡°Man things would be different if I were in charge.¡± I mused, stroking my beard, pleased by the thought of being head of security. ¡°The pay raise wouldn¡¯t be bad either.¡±


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    I shook my head, promotions would come eventually. For now my goal was to get home, take a shower, change out of these blue jeans and black shirt, and then go to bed. Then I''d wake up and do it all over again. I grumbled at the thought of another late shift. Just as I was beginning to lose myself in my thoughts and bright light illuminated the area ahead of me.


    ¡°What the hell¡­¡± I spoke as I squinted at the source of light. It was bright enough to be daytime! Just ahead of me this giant white¡­portal appeared directly in my path. And I was going too fast to slam on the breaks and the thing was too wide for me to swerve and avoid it.


    ¡°Oh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-¡° I yelled and covered my face with my arms as I slammed on the breaks and plunged into the portal.


    -------------------------------


    ¡°Neyehahahaha, worry not little one,¡± A large robed figure spoke to a small girl in a manic voice. The two were in a large clearing within a sparse forest. ¡°The lord of darkness will soon arrive here and plunge this world into chaos! You shall receive the honor of being their first sacrifice!¡± The small girl began to whimper. The whimpers soon turned to cries as the large robed figure laughed and danced in the moon light.


    Instantly the clearing was greatly illuminated as a portal split the air within the clearing off to the side of the small girl that was tied up in the middle of a circle of runes and various objects of power.


    ¡°He comes! The Lord of Darkness comes! Shadows be praised! The Lord of Darkness has arri-¡°


    THUMP


    The small girl watched the large robed man fly through the air. Fearfully, she turned her head towards where the portal once was. In its place stood a large black metallic beast with two bright eyes that focused straight ahead. Then she watched the side of the beast open and from within out stepped¡­a strange-looking man?


    ¡°What the fuck did I just hit?!¡±

 Chapter 2: Petal

    ¡°What the fuck did I just hit?!¡± I yelled out as I jumped out of my jeep. Running my hands through my short brown hair I paced back and forth beside my vehicle. My eyes drifted, casting occasional glances at the lump of red cloth that lay ahead of me and the small dent on the front of my vehicle. I looked around frantically, taking in my surroundings. Trees formed an uneven circle around this clearing in which I had just hit someone. ¡°Oh god, oh god, oh my gooooood.¡± Heavy breaths accompanied my distress, ¡°I hit a damn monk! Please don¡¯t let the Buddhists be right. I am not in the mood to be slapped around by some six-armed goddess when I die.¡±


    I began to take deep, calming breaths in an attempt to regain control of myself. It helped¡­barely. I took my phone out of my right front pocket and dialed 911. A dead beeping sound was my only response. I looked at my phone, no signal. ¡°Damn, damn, double damn! There is no way I¡¯ll be able to afford a hit and run charge.¡± In my moment of great distress, I did the one thing I never thought I¡¯d do. I prayed.


    With folded hands I closed my eyes and began. ¡°Hey God? Yeah it¡¯s me again. I know the last few times I¡¯ve called were petty and selfish but I¡¯m a changed man now. So can you like, bring this guy back from the dead so I don¡¯t get in worse trouble than just a lawsuit?¡±


    Off to the side I heard a faint whimper. ¡®Oh shit ooooohhhh shit¡­¡¯ I turned my head to my side to see a¡­small¡­cat...person¡­thing? She was small, couldn¡¯t have been more than two and a half feet tall. Her white fur covered her entire body and was matted with dirt. She had red eyes that seemed to glow in the moonlight and tracked every movement I made. Atop her were head two large cat-like ears that stood straight up as well as the tail behind her. She was clearly an albino of her species. Poor thing looked like she hadn¡¯t eaten in forever as well. ¡°H-hi¡­¡± I spoke nervously, raising my hand nervously towards the kid¡­kitten¡­kidten? My train of thought was being lost. I quickly shook my head to bring myself back to the present. ¡®Damnit Mark, head in the game here. You just hit a monk, he¡¯s probably dead and the kid saw everything...and God isn¡¯t responding to my calls.¡¯ I stared at the small kitten thing.


    ¡°You did see everything right?¡±


    A nod


    ¡°Of course you did.¡±


    Wellp, I was fucked. Pretty soon the police would be swarming all over this area. Guns would be drawn on me yelling for me to put my hands up and for me to lie on the ground. I hoped to God that this portal didn¡¯t take me to somewhere in Florida. Cops there have itchy trigger fingers and will shoot you even if you do lie down. I would know, I saw that video. That poor guy did everything he was told and still got shot. I looked at the small girl again,


    ¡°Hey kid, if you forget everything that ever happened here I¡¯ll buy you whatever you want. Candy, ice cream, lewd magazines, you name it, just don¡¯t tell the cops alright?¡± The kitten attempted to shuffle backwards with her eyes wide, seemingly in fear. It was then that I noticed a strange detail, ¡°So¡­why are you tied up in this chalk circle¡­¡± realization hit me, ¡°Oh thank God.¡±


    I didn¡¯t hit a monk, I hit some crazy cultist. Probably stopped some blood ritual too. In a way, I¡¯m a hero right? I mean, I still killed a man. But still, better a loony than a sane religious man right?


    ¡°My lord!¡± A manic voice called from behind me. Perhaps I judged the man dead too soon. I turned to see a flurry of dark red robes rapidly approach before kneeling down before me. ¡°Lord of Darkness, you have finally arrived! The world shall tremble at your heel and I am your faithful servant!¡±


    ¡°Uhh¡­¡± I stared at the kneeling man. Judging from his posture he seemed like he would stand at around five feet tall. From under his robes a scaled tail jutted out¡­Wait, tail? I studied the man¡¯s uncovered head. Scales. I was being called Lord by a cultist lizard. ¡°Talking humanoid lizards and tied up furry cat girls, I don¡¯t remember stealing and using any drugs from the pharmacy¡­¡± I muttered to myself.


    Not that I did that sort of thing.


    ¡°Please sire, accept this child as a sacrifice to your will. Crush her bones, drink her blood, rip and tear her flesh as it pleases you! I gift her to you as a means to increase your power so you may destroy their vile town of degenerates. The mere sight of it burns my very soul.¡± The lizard spoke with a disturbing urgency, casting wild-eyed glances towards the tied up child.


    Did he really expect me to kill a child of all things? With clenched teeth I turned my attention to the child who shivered fearfully, tears streaming down her face. I¡¯ll admit, I¡¯m a softy at heart and hate to see people, especially kids, cry. If I were to help this child I¡¯d have to deal with this nutcase first.


    ¡°Stand up.¡± I spoke in a commanding voice. My anger always had a way of acting up and while I was still in control I may as well get some information first. The lizard cultist stood as commanded instantly and kept his eyes to the ground in reverence. ¡°Where can I find this town?¡±


    ¡°M-milord, tis to the west!¡± the lizard frantically pointed behind me. ¡°Tis a few hours journey by foot. Currently a disgusting Mikthar, same as the girl I brought you, leads the town. About eighty Mikthar, twenty Hib¡¯litan and forty Shren live within the wooden walls. The guards there are complacent and weak as there is no threat for days from the town. They should prove no challenge to one as powerful as you! May their lives be short and their people bend to your will!¡± The lizard bowed repeatedly.


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    I shrugged to myself. This cultist was nothing if not informative. Still, guards meant law and I¡¯m sure they¡¯d love to have this nutcase behind bars for abduction. So the cat people were Mikthar eh? I had to wonder what these...Hib¡¯litans and Shren were. In my mind I spoke the names of the species, becoming familiar with them. Answers would come to my questions eventually, for now I had a loon to disable.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± I stated and clenched my fist.


    ¡°Tis no trouble milord, none at a-¡° He didn¡¯t get to finish as I slammed my fist into his head, knocking him out. I quickly rummaged through my jeep and grabbed a pair of plastic zip ties. Without much effort I tied the cultists hands and legs together, lifted him up and tossed him into the back of the jeep. He wasn¡¯t too heavy, without a scale I¡¯d assume he weighed at around 140-150lbs.


    It wouldn¡¯t be comfortable, tied up in the back, but in my mind criminals don¡¯t deserve comfort.


    I then approached the tied up kitten girl who shied away from me as much as she could.


    ¡°You understand me, right?¡± I questioned with a soft tone. A nod, ¡°Ok good, I¡¯m not some Lord of Darkness or whatever so forget what that lizard says.¡± She didn¡¯t relax, if anything her eyes looked at me more wearily. I sighed and sat next to her, ¡°Alright let¡¯s do introductions. My name is Mark, what¡¯s yours?¡±


    ¡°Peh¡­¡± She responded in a small voice barely audible.


    ¡°Peh?¡±


    The girl shook her head weakly, ¡°Peh¡­¡± she looked like she was going to continue but couldn¡¯t. I scratched my bearded chin. The poor thing was weak and very much malnourished, I vowed to see this lizard rot in prison when we get to the town. I rose from my seated position and motioned for her to sit still,


    ¡°I¡¯ll be right back. Trust me.¡± With haste I rummaged through my jeep, pulling out a bottle of water from the back which lay under the lizard cultist¡¯s tail as well as retrieving the hamburger I had bought from the fast food joint earlier. As I returned the small girl watched my every movement with interest. Her small nose sniffed the air with fervor and I noticed her tail whisking back and forth.


    I opened the bottled water and set the wrapped burger on the ground before untying her from her ropes. She shied away from my touch at first but was quickly appeased when the ropes came off. She sat still, her eyes darting from the food and water to me and back again. I sat next to her and handed the bottle of water towards her.


    ¡°Take a drink first.¡± I suggested. Her hands reached forward daintily and gently took the bottle from me. Unlike the cats I was used to she had five fingers, including a thumb, on her hand. Each finger ended in a small, sharp-looking claw. She sniffed the mouth of the bottle before taking a deep drink. Despite being starved and dehydrated, she seemed very well mannered for a young child. Before long she had drained the entire bottle of its contents. I then un-wrapped the burger and handed it to her.


    ¡°Not sure if you¡¯re allowed to eat this kind of thing, but desperate times and all.¡± Once more she tentatively took what I offered her and began with a small bite. Her eyes widened and her tail began to swish back and forth exceptionally fast. With ravenous hunger she devoured the hamburger in seconds, which was quickly followed by a burp. It was so comical I had to laugh.


    ¡°Want another bottle of water?¡± I asked as I rose from my position, already sure of what the answer would be.


    ¡°¡­es¡± she said faintly. I smiled and jogged to the jeep to retrieve another. Just as quickly as the first she drained the bottle and gave a content sigh. ¡°T-thank you¡­¡± I gave her a thumbs-up and a smile.


    ¡°Ready to go home?¡± I asked and held out my hand to the small girl. She studied my hand and then my face before grabbing a hold and using my hand to rise. Her claws pricked my skin but I didn¡¯t care. When people¡­of any species need help, you help them.


    ¡°Pehtal¡­¡± She spoke softly.


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    ¡°My name¡­Pehtal.¡± The girl explained.


    ¡°Alright Petal, let¡¯s go home okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­thank you¡­¡± Petal smiled a small smile, but one radiant enough to brighten even the darkest day. I walked her slowly to the passenger side of my jeep, opened the door and helped her inside. I then buckled her in, which caused her some distress but I explained it was for safety which seemed to appease her. Her eyes then wandered about the vehicle in amazement.


    I then closed the door and walked over to the driver¡¯s side and entered. Petal watched me closely as I buckled myself in, ¡°Safety first!¡± I smiled and turned the key to start my vehicle. The initial roar of the engine made the girl¡¯s hair stand on end in fright which made me laugh. ¡°It¡¯s okay Petal, you¡¯ll be fine. Trust me.¡± Slowly her hair returned to normal and she nodded at me. With a light step on the gas we began to move which brought her hair back to standing on end. ¡°If you think this is scary, you should see me when I get stuck in traffic.¡± With a laugh I increased our speed and drove to the west, avoiding the sparse growth of trees. It was off-roadin'' time.


    _______________________


    Author here, if you enjoy this story please do throw a follow my way. This story seems easy enough to write up a new chapter every 2 days or so. Also, do leave comments and criticisms as I''m looking to grow my skills as an author along the way.

 Chapter 3: Bumpy Road

    Off-roading has always been a pleasure of mine, which is why I bought my jeep in the first place. Every weekend my friends and I would get together after it had rained to go mudding. A jeep isn¡¯t clean until it¡¯s been bathed in mud after all. Then we¡¯d all drive to the nearest Shammy Shine and laugh at the expressions the workers there would give us. Thankfully, the ground I was driving on dry, I didn¡¯t expect to find a car wash in this strange world.


    I glanced over to my passenger, a small cat girl with white fur kept her head near the window that I had cracked. Her tail swished back and forth, clearly enjoying the wind pushing against her. A grin found its way creep onto my face. ¡®Guess that¡¯s not just a dog thing.¡¯ The cultist that was currently tied up in the back of my jeep had awoken earlier in our trip and started rambling and raving about the Lord of Darkness and destroying the world.


    After a minute of insane rambling I had had enough and slammed on the breaks after signaling Petal to hold on tight. A loud thump came from the back and silence returned to our journey. Petal looked at me with a curious expression. ¡°Thought I saw a deer.¡± I said simply. This only seemed to confuse her more but she went back to enjoying the air as we sped along.


    The town we were rapidly approaching was built next to a large lake. Wooden walls formed a semi-circle around the outside of the village, ending just inside the lake. It was the picture perfect ideal of a village from the medieval era. Wooden homes with straw roofs. The part I found most interesting were that some houses were built on the water. I made a note to go see one of those up close when I had the chance, I loved being around water. Jet Skiing being my favorite thing to do when my friends and I went to the beach.


    That was when reality struck me like a linebacker hitting a quarterback.


    Would I be able to go back home? Would I see my friends again? Who¡¯s going to take care of Pit? Questions, questions and yet even more questions piled into my mind as I sped ever-nearer towards this town. Petal must have sensed my increasing duress, for her soft voice broke me out of my spiral of increasingly depressing thought.


    ¡°Are¡­you okay?¡± she stared at me with worried red eyes.


    ¡°Hmm? Me?¡± she nodded, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me kid. I''m right as rain!¡± I gave her a bright smile and patted her head which made her smile in turn before she went back to enjoying her window.


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    It¡¯s a good thing kids can¡¯t read masked emotions, because right now it felt like a storm was crashing through my mind. I took a calming breath and steeled my resolve. One problem at a time, I ordered myself, one problem at a time. I looked down at my fuel gauge and groaned, one more problem to my list.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Petal coked her head to the side questioningly as she looked at me.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be out of gas soon. Was planning on hitting up the local Hess on the way back but¡­you don¡¯t understand do you?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Well you see this gauge?¡± I pointed and she looked. ¡°Well see, when this line hits the E for empty this thing won¡¯t move on its own anymore.¡±


    Her ears lowered in sorrow, a heart-wrenchingly adorable move if I do say so myself. Watch out future cat bachelors, this girl¡¯s got maneuvers that can kill.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Petal, like my dad used to say: One problem at a time Mark. No use worrying about more than the most immediate issue at hand. Once you¡¯ve dealt with that problem THEN you can worry about something else! And our first issue is getting you home and putting that loon back there behind bars. I can worry about the jeep after.¡±


    She nodded but still looked concerned. Such a good kid. ¡°Hey, wanna hear something amazing?¡± This got her curious.


    ¡°Yes!¡± she nodded expectantly. I grinned and turned on the CD player in the center console of my jeep. Shortly after music began to play which made Petal¡¯s ears perk right up. ¡°Magic.¡± She stated simply as if she had figured it all out. I laughed,


    ¡°Nope, technology.¡±


    ¡°Praise the Lord of Darkness for bringing such a glorious sound to this one¡¯s ears!¡± A voice called from the back. I quickly stepped on the breaks before releasing them. A satisfying thump sounded in the back. Petal stared at me with a curious glance.


    ¡°Thought I saw a deer.¡±


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    Short chapter here, decided to post it because writing this story has been really really fun. To the point where I really cant stop. Enjoy!

 Chapter 4: Meet the Matriarch

    Just as the sun arose we had made it to the town of Petal¡¯s origin. The guards at the gate to the entrance saw us coming a ways off and had been moving about. Now it looked like the entire was watching our approach with the guards at the lead, weapons drawn. The majority of the guards were taller, stronger looking versions of petal with a range of different fur colors from tan to red and even some deep orange. Not wanting to provoke some sort of incident, I steered my jeep off to the side of the gate to park.


    Once I parked the jeep I turned the vehicle off, took my keys, and helped Petal unbuckle. Masking my nervousness I smiled at her, ¡°Look at this Petal. What a home coming eh? Looks like the whole town is out there watching.¡±


    ¡°Scared.¡± Petal said, her ears falling down as she watched the crowd nervously. I patted her head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be, I¡¯ll get this sorted out.¡± I hoped I was right.


    ¡°Burn this den of filth to the ground Lord of Darkness! Show them your true power and bend them to your will!¡± the cultist screamed in the back.


    It was time to put this loon behind bars, hopefully for good. I stepped outside of my jeep and closed the door then helped Petal out from her side. I grabbed my jacket from the back and put it on Petal as best I could, it looked rather comical but she seemed happy. I don¡¯t know about the dress code in this town but I didn¡¯t want anyone getting the wrong idea. The guards made a slow approach towards us as I pulled out the cultist from the back.


    ¡°Ah I see your grand plan now Lord of Darkness! You shall give me to them for judgment and increase your standing in their eyes! A masterful plot that ends in their town being inevitably destroyed! Worry not my lord, for I shall never betray you! Remember your faithful servant when you burn this town to ash!¡± The lizard raved and thrashed against his bonds, betraying a fear that he thought he masked with zeal.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, whatever.¡± I replied as I began to drag him towards the approaching guards. Petal followed close behind but away from the cultist.


    ¡°Halt!¡± called the guard in the lead. A large Mikthar who bulged with muscle and a face akin more to a lion¡¯s than a normal cat¡¯s. Scars crisscrossed across their face, a testament to their survival. In their hands was a very sharp-looking sword, one that I wouldn¡¯t want to cross. Metal armor covered their entire body but they moved in a way that made it look like a second skin. Complying with the order we stopped¡­well Petal and I did, the lizard was struggling violently against his binds yelling about the Lord of Darkness. The guard signaled for their companions to hold position which confirmed my suspicion that they were their leader. After sheathing their sword the leader strode towards us.


    ¡°Never seen one of your kind before. But Shimmer Lake is a small town.¡± They said with voice distinctly feminine. She eyed the lizard that I firmly held despite his attempts at breaking free. Shame I didn¡¯t have the foresight to gag him, his yelling made the guard captain hard to hear. The captain signaled two guards forward who then grabbed the cultist and dragged him away. ¡°What¡¯s with him?¡±


    ¡°Oh you know how it is, some loon hopped up on drugs. You people do have drugs here right?¡± the leader gave me a strange look. ¡°Anyways, this insane bastard abducted this girl here.¡± I motioned to Petal who nodded to the guard. ¡°And was using her in some weird ritual in the forest back there. Found her starving and dehydrated. I knocked out that loon, tied him up with those zip-ties and tossed him in the back of my jeep to bring him here for you guys to deal with.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d have just killed him.¡± She said simply. ¡°Let his Dark Lord or whatever he¡¯s yelling about take his soul.¡±


    ¡°Where I come from, killing is only used when all other options have failed. Mostly. Besides, it¡¯d be easier to explain myself to someone like you if I brought proof along.¡± I motioned to the cultist that currently rammed his shoulder into the face of a guard, which earned him a hit to the back of the head before he was dragged away into the town. ¡°There¡¯s your proof, guy¡¯s nuts.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t doubt you there.¡± She chuckled and held out a clawed hand. ¡°Kria.¡± I took his hand and shook it.


    ¡°Mark.¡± Petal then held out her hand when Kria released mine.


    ¡°Pehtal.¡± Smiling, Kria shook her hand as well.


    ¡°A pleasure. Now if you two don¡¯t mind, please follow me to the Matriarch¡¯s. We¡¯ll get both of you sorted out right quick.¡± The guard marched off towards the crowd. Petal looked at me questioningly. I shrugged and held her hand as we followed behind.


    The crowd that had gathered at the gate quickly dissipated when the perceived threat turned out to be nothing. A short humanoid-looking thing burst from the crowd and charged towards my jeep. I couldn¡¯t get a clear look at it, but it looked vaguely human, just much, much shorter and had a face covered in hair. I had the keys safe in my pocket but I still found it unnerving. ¡°Hey Kria, can you send a guard to make sure that person doesn¡¯t damage my property?¡± She nodded.


    ¡°Frid, watch Ovglach and make sure he doesn¡¯t break anything of our guest¡¯s.¡± Kria yelled at a nearby guard who saluted and chased after the small man. Shortly after the guard ran off we crossed through the gate that led into the walled town of Shimmer Lake. Dirt streets were worn between buildings from people repeatedly walking through the town.


    It was as if I had gone back to a time before roads.


    ¡°Not what you expected eh?¡± Kria spoke as she studied my expression.


    ¡°Not really. I expected the streets to be cobbled with stone. The buildings look sturdily made however.¡±


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    ¡°This town isn¡¯t important enough for cobbled streets. We¡¯re just a simple hunting and fishing town. Besides, the stones, if not prepared well enough, hurt our feet.¡± Kria pointed down.


    Looking at her clawed feet and then glancing around at others that walked through the streets I finally made the connection. Nobody wore shoes. ¡°Ah.¡± It made sense, looking around there were different species of residents wandering around.


    As we walked the roads I studied the various races of people, the most familiar being Mikthar. Their bodies were covered head to toe in fur of different colors, some even had stripes. The main difference between male and female Mikthar looked to be that males had shaggy long hair behind their heads, like a lion¡¯s mane. In general these people were quite muscular, though I attributed that to the type of work that fishing and hunting was.


    The second race I saw was the Shren. Large insectoids that made me think of ants. Their lower bodies were set horizontally and had two sets of legs that held them steady as they moved. Their upper bodies however stood up vertically with two arms coming from the top like a humans. Atop the upper body stood a head like a human¡¯s, however two antennae sprouted from their forehead, their mouths were small pincers and their eyes... well if you looked from afar they seemed like one big eye. But up close it was in fact many eyes. Their black skin was not soft like a human¡¯s, if anything it was more exoskeleton than skin. Kria said that the Shren were mostly builders and soldiers as they were a very precise and strong species.


    The final race were the Hib¡¯litan, toad people. That¡¯s the only way how I could describe them. Their skin seemed to always be moist and green. They were very large creatures with webbed hands and feet. As they moved they more bounced than walked. They were like giant green sumo wrestlers. These creatures I saw mostly hawking simple wares at shops. Kria stated that they were very smart with money and could smell where there was money to be made so the majority of these people acted as merchants.


    An obvious over-exaggeration on their smell I assumed, but didn¡¯t say anything. I was the stranger here after all.


    Before too long we stood in front of a large building that reminded me of the old municipal building from my hometown. Except instead of being made of brick, stone, and cement it was one of wood. Kria strode forth and stood before the door, signaling us to stop before we headed inside. ¡°The Matriarch is expecting you. Just ahead is the reception area, but keep going straight through the doorway straight ahead to get to the meeting room where she entertains foreigners of import. Mostly other Matriarchs from other towns.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your help Kria.¡± I held out a hand which she shook with a strong grip. Petal then held out her hand as well.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Kria smiled and gently shook Petal¡¯s hand as well. She then leaned close to me and whispered something that sent shivers down my spine.


    ¡°Good luck.¡± With a laugh Kria walked off into the town of Shimmer Lake.


    Petal looked at me innocently. ¡°Shall we?¡± I suggested and opened the door.


    Inside the reception area was very nice. Well, if you were into hunting that was. Animal skulls and skins were mounted along the walls. The skulls that looked like boars with two tusks and two horns and various pelts from animals I don¡¯t think I¡¯d have been able to even guess what they were. We passed by seats of various shapes and sizes to accommodate the various races. Large seats for the frogs, long seats for the ants and regular-looking seats for the cat people.


    The smell of cooked meat wafted through the air, teasing my nostrils. I hadn¡¯t gotten to eat my burger, but this smelled much better.  I smiled when I saw Petal¡¯s tail swinging around wildly as she eagerly sniffed the air. I opened the door into the next room. A long room was beyond the doorway. Inside stood many different sized chairs with cushions arranged neatly around a table that ran nearly the entire room.


    At the far end of the table sat a regal-looking Mikthar. She wore a very form-fitting black dress that accentuated her curves over her dark orange coat of fur. Behind her stood two Shren wearing very strange blue and white robes and hats with veils covering their faces.


    ¡°Come, sit! Both of you and enjoy this fine meal with me.¡± She rose from her seat as she spoke, gesturing towards the chairs two her right and left. What looked like roasted pig sat upon fine dinnerware on the table, close by to the people who watched Petal and I. With a shrug I walked to sit at the seat to the front and right of the Matriarch. With an unwavering gaze she watched my every movement with interest. I kept a smile on my face. But that gaze reminded me of the way a predator stalks their prey.


    Petal however had chosen to stay near me, following close behind me and sat to my right instead of sitting to the Matriarch¡¯s left. If the woman felt slighted, she didn¡¯t show it, or I didn¡¯t notice it. Either way, what¡¯s done is done. I just had to make sure I left a good impression. Damn I wish I had a breath-mint, nobody likes meeting someone with stinky breath.


    As we seated the Matriarch sat as well. ¡°I am Matriarch Velle, but you can just call me Vee master¡­?¡± she trailed off.


    ¡°Mark, just Mark is fine Miss Vee.¡± She smiled a bright smile, revealing her sharp teeth.


    ¡°I think you and I will get along just fine¡­Mark.¡± She spoke as if tasting my name.


    ¡°I hope we do too.¡± I responded with a smile far more confident than I felt.

 Chapter 5: Oh Bartholomew, I hardly knew thee.

    I smiled at Matriarch Velle who smiled back, exposing her sharp teeth. Images of going to a job interview woefully unprepared barely scratch the surface of how nervous I was in front of this predator. Deep yellow eyes stared straight into mine that I swore could read my every thought. She gestured towards the roasted pig,


    ¡°Shall we enjoy a meal together? I always find it hard to make new friends on an empty stomach.¡±


    ¡°Yes, lets.¡± I agreed. Velle reached forward towards the roast and with a quick slash of her claws diced the meat into neat slices. I held Petal¡¯s plate forward first, the poor girl looked ready to leap out of her seat and dig into the roast by herself. The Matriarch   placed two thick slices upon the plate which I passed back to Petal.


    ¡°Thank you!¡± Petal smiled gleefully at the Matriarch. Once we were all served we began to eat. I felt a little out of place without a fork or knife to use, but quickly followed their lead and ate with one of my hands. It brought back memories of an old barbeque where my friend Harvey forgot to bring forks and knives for us to use. Many napkins were used on that day, good times indeed. I glanced towards the Shren that stood behind the Matriarch in their robes and veils,


    ¡°Won¡¯t they be eating with us?¡± I asked after taking a bite of the succulent meat. The Matriarch waved a dismissing hand,


    ¡°They¡¯ve already eaten. They¡¯re merely here to observe our strange guest.¡±


    ¡°Ah.¡±


    ¡°More please.¡± Petal spoke, pushing her plate forward. The Matriarch cut another two slices for the girl before turning back to her own meal.


    ¡°She¡¯s got a Matriarch¡¯s hunger.¡± Velle spoke fondly.


    ¡°Yeah, poor girl only had a hamburger to eat when I found her. Don¡¯t know when she last ate before that.¡± I rubbed Petal¡¯s head with my clean hand.


    ¡°Hamburger?¡± The Matriarch questioned, perplexed at the word.


    ¡°A bunch of ground beef cooked in a patty and put between two pieces of bread called buns.¡±


    A sigh escaped me, I was never too good at explaining things in depth, but when I had to do something I had to do it. My explanations only led to more questions and answers which led to even more questions. The roast pig, which was called an Ikrel I found out, was gone long before our conversation came to an end. Petal had eaten most of the beast. I was then privvy to Mikthar after-meal cleaning habits where they lick their hands clean of leftovers.


    I didn¡¯t mean to stare, but the Matriarch¡¯s cleaning was very¡­suggestive. She stared back, but where mine was curiosity, hers was seductive hunger. Her smile after cleaning sent a shiver down my spine. I kept a mask of confidence however, and sent a wink her way which only caused her smile to grow.


    Of all the things I could have done, why did I wink? Bravado is a curse, especially when false.


    Before the atmosphere became awkward I began speaking about my job at my home. Velle called my job a noble calling but I shrugged and said it paid the bills. Not that I didn¡¯t enjoy my job, there is no greater feeling than one you get from helping people.


    Our conversation was cut short however when the small man that ran towards my jeep earlier barged into the room. ¡°Stop holding the blasted guy hostage Velle!¡± he yelled, ¡°Hes got some explainin¡¯ to do for me ¡®bout his metal carriage!¡± I studied the short hairy-faced being that had run past me earlier.


    That was no beast, it was a dwarf.


    Short, strong and a beard ZZ-Top would be proud of. He wore a vest that looked like it was covered in oil. My blood froze when I imagined what horrors he could have done to my baby. I had bought and cared for her ever since she was fresh off the lot, paid in full with my money that came from blood, sweat and tears. Ok, mostly tears.


    ¡°What have you done to my jeep?!¡± I yelled standing in a hurry. I could feel the Matriarch¡¯s cold stare at my back but I paid her no mind. ¡°What have you done to Bartholomew?!


    Yes, I named my jeep Bartholomew, everyone names their cars. Mine deserved a special name because it was mine.


    ¡°Eh? I dunno who yer talkin¡¯ about but I found out what this black stuff is fer! Ye see, it¡¯s sucked into the main metal contraption and creates and explosion to-¡° I didn¡¯t let the guy finished, I pushed him out of the way and raced towards the exit.


    ¡°Cheeky sod.¡± I heard the dwarf speak as I burst out the door and ran down the dirt streets through the town. People of the various species moved out of the way as I kicked up a dust cloud all the way to the exit. By the time I had reached the town wall I had a small contingent of guards racing after me yelling at me to stop.


    But I didn¡¯t stop, Bartholomew needed me.


    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.What I saw hurt more than words could describe. My jeep was in pieces. I fell to my knees in shock, just staring at the ruin that was once my pride and joy. When the guards caught up to me and saw what I saw they kept their quiet and their distance. Something inside me broke at that moment. Here I was, alone in this strange place full of weird animal people and the one connection I had with my previous world was now in pieces in front of me. I had spent years saving my money for Bartholomew. Now all that time was wasted in the span of a little over an hour.


    I didn¡¯t cry. Real men don¡¯t cry. It was just a bad day for rain. Yeah. You can never predict those damn summer rains after all.


    I don¡¯t know how long I sat there just staring at the wreck of my beloved vehicle, but it was long enough for him to show up. That damn dwarf sauntered up beside me like he owned the wreck just ahead of him.


    ¡°Should have it all figured out in a few days.¡± He spoke next to me and placed his hand on my shoulder.


    ¡°I¡¯ll kill you.¡± I mumbled, barely able to register my own voice.


    ¡°Eh? Speak up boy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll kill you!¡± I yelled with rage as I got to my feet. I had never been so angry in my life. Angry enough to black out completely.


    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    ¡°Ovglach hurry and follow him.¡± The Matriarch commanded the Dwarf who needed and left. ¡°You should go too Petal, follow Ovglach. Mark likes you so you should be there to support him.¡±


    Petal smiled and nodded, ¡°Thank you! Bye!¡± the small white-furred Mikthar raced after the dwarf.


    After Petal had left Matriarch Velle rose from her seat and faced the two veiled Shren. ¡°Hibel, what did you see?¡± she questioned the rightmost Shren.


    ¡°I have seen the impossible. Buildings of stone and metal rising high into the sky. Metal birds that fly, carrying hundreds of his kind. I have seen destruction the likes of which would make our lands weep. But I have also seen hope in his mind.¡±


    Matriarch Velle was fortunate to have come across Hibel and Crek, two highly psionic Shren that could enter the mind of another and read their emotions and obtain images of their lives.


    ¡°Interesting. Crek, what emotions of his have you tasted?¡±


    ¡°Fear, Matriarch. The man walks this world alone with none of his kind among him. He fears that he may spend the rest of his days lingering here away from his family and friends.¡±


    Velle frowned, ¡°Understandable. His predicament is quite the strange and sad one. And what about when he winked at me, was his bravado true or false?¡±


    ¡°False, Matriarch.¡± They both said in unison. She chuckled,


    ¡°The mouse should learn to not dare the Mikthar.¡± She stated while staring towards the door that led into the reception room. ¡°What about the rumor of this man being the Lord of Darkness, any truth to this statement?¡±


    ¡°None that we can confirm at this time Matriarch.¡±


    ¡°I believe I can answer that.¡± An unfamiliar voice spoke from the entrance.


    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    I grumbled to myself as I awoke. ¡°I really gotta lay off the cheese before bed. I¡¯m having some really fucked up dreams lately.¡± I lifted my right hand and watched some golden¡­grass fall from my arm. ¡°That¡¯s strange, when did my bed have wheat in the mattress?¡±


    As I tried to rise from the bed a strong weight held me down. I looked down towards my body and found a very hairy arm draped across my chest. ¡°Oh god please don¡¯t tell me I drank that much again.¡± But as I looked at the hands attached to the arm I found they ended in claws. I felt whoever was attached to the arm stirring to my left.


    When I looked, two large, deep yellow eyes stared into mine. Matriarch Velle was in bed with me. The good news was that I still had my clothes on. The bad news is she didn¡¯t. She grinned a toothy smile at me, clearly enjoying the situation. ¡°Good morning Mark.¡± She said teasingly.


    Two can play at that game woman. I smiled back, ¡°Good morning honey.¡± For an instant, shock raced through her face which made me smile even more.


    ¡°The mouse is very daring indeed.¡±


    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Free talk space, I guess this end scene means I gotta update the mature tag to have slight sexual content?


    Been writing up a storm for this story cause its so darn fun. Thankfully summer is here so I can write as much as I want!

 Chapter 6: Narrow Escape

    ¡°I¡¯m no mouse. I¡¯m a man!¡± I stated. My head head ached and I was very aware that my voice cracked. Velle smirked, clearly enjoying how nervous I felt inside.


    ¡°Oh? Then show me how much of a man you are.¡± She purred seductively.


    My eyes danced around her body, devouring every curve in sight. I won¡¯t lie. The prospect was very tempting, even if she wasn¡¯t human. It had been awhile since my last girlfriend had left me. I could become this world¡¯s Neil Armstrong, to venture where no man had gone before and brave new frontiers. She breathed deep, seductive breaths as she lay next to me. I could have given in...but those claws worried me.


    ¡°Sorry babe, but the flesh is weak and easily damaged.¡± I attempted to untangle myself from her embrace but she moved too fast. In the blink of an eye had me pinned. Her tail swayed lazily in the air. The crazy cat was enjoying this! I winced as her claws cut into my shirt as her weight pressed against aching spots I hadn¡¯t had the day before. I struggled to remember what happened yesterday but the current situation was far too distracting. She gave me a toothy smile at my discomfort.


    ¡°Worry not little mouse, I¡¯ll try not to treat you too roughly.¡± She leaned down and licked my neck with a rough tongue, lightly grazing it with her teeth. It was time to go.


    ¡°Nope.¡± I said as I shifted my weight and knocked her legs out from under her. With a quick movement I grabbed her wrists as their pressure against me lessened and I pushed her off of me onto the other side of the straw bed. Not missing a beat I quickly rose and walked to the door. ¡°Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope.¡± It was too much too soon and I was facing a mental overload.


    A light giggle escaped her, ¡°I was wrong. You¡¯re no mouse that runs to hide in its hole. You¡¯re more like a bird, flitting away from at the slightest hint of danger. But this Mikthar always gets her prey.¡± I could hear the hunger in her words. Velle was a predator in more than one way. I turned to her and winked,


    ¡°I may be a bird. But you, my lady, are quite the cougar.¡±


    As I walked out of the room I could faintly hear her remark about enjoying a good chase. With a sigh I closed the door and leaned my back against it to catch my breath. The offer was very tempting, despite the whole different species deal.


    ¡°One thing at a time Mark.¡± I mused as I rubbed the back of my head, wincing as I recognized the room I now found myself in. It was the same room the Matriarch, Petal and I had breakfast in the other day. ¡°Well that makes things simple.¡± I moved towards the exit to the reception room which would lead me to Shimmer Lake.


    ¡°So you¡¯re awake.¡± As I walked out into the sunlight a familiar voice greeted me. I turned towards the origin of who spoke to me to find Kria leaning against the wall to the Matriarch¡¯s home. She eyed me wearily with her muscles tense, prepared to spring at any second.


    I raised my hand in greeting, ¡°Yo Kria, why so tense?¡± Kria unfolded her arms and relaxed.


    ¡°Just making sure, can¡¯t be too careful around you.¡± She stared at my shoulders with a grin, ¡°So you had a bit of fun at the Matriarch¡¯s I see?¡±


    ¡°Nothing happened.¡± I quickly responded, ¡°I got out of there like a bat outta hell.¡± She may not have recognized the expression, but its meaning was clear.


    Kria chuckled and grinned at me, ¡°Shame, if you had given in she¡¯d have lost interest after the initial romp around the bedroom. She¡¯ll pursue you far more actively now. She likes her conquests to have fast feet.¡±


    ¡°Great.¡± I sighed. Together we started walking through the town.


    ¡°If you want you can bunk at the barracks in town. Only a few guards use it, most have homes here already.¡± She suggested thoughtfully.


    ¡°I may just take you up on that offer.¡± It seemed like a good idea after all.


    ¡°Though I of course report directly to the Matriarch so I¡¯d have to tell her you were currently staying with us.¡± I stopped in my tracks as Kria strode ahead a few steps, turned, and gave me a sly smile.


    ¡°DAMNIT KRIA!¡± I yelled which caused her to roar with laughter. I stormed ahead of her, attempting to outpace her teasing laughter. I¡¯d sleep in my jeep and lock the doors if I had to. My head ached when I thought about my jeep and memories came rushing back.


    That damn dwarf had destroyed my sweet Bartholomew. Rage thundered through me once again as I clenched my fists. I was going to kill that bastard when I found him! I was going to-


    *Thwack!*


    Pain rumpled through the back of my head as I turned to Kria.


    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.¡°The hell! My head already hurts enough without you adding to it!¡±


    ¡°You need to calm down Mark, you¡¯re thinking about your carriage being dismantled aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°My jeep, yeah that damn dwarf destroyed it!¡± I yelled, causing a few townspeople to stare.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got it wrong, boy.¡± The voice of the person I hated most in this world sounded from the crowd. I turned to see the stout man walking through the crowd towards me. ¡°Dismantled, aye. Destroyed, nay. ¡±


    I stepped towards the Dwarf, fuming. But quickly found myself unable to move. Strong arms had been wrapped under my arms, holding me in place. ¡°Not another step Mark.¡± Kria commanded as she held me back despite my struggle to punch the dwarf in the face.


    ¡°Don¡¯t hold me back Kria! This is between me and him!¡±


    ¡°You told me your people use violence only as a last resort. Yet yesterday I saw it was the first thing you resorted to!¡± I winced, she was right. Memories of me facing the dwarf resurfaced in my mind before I had blacked out in a rage. I took deep breaths in an effort to calm myself and stared at the dwarf.


    I still felt the urge to punch him as hard as I could, but the pure, unfiltered rage was gone. Looking closely I could see a black and blue circle around his right eye. The sight made me happy, which I found very unlike myself. I sighed, ¡°Sorry.¡±


    ¡°Think nothin'' of it boy.¡± The dwarf said, ¡°To be fair I deserved every lick I got!¡± He rumbled with a chuckle, ¡°I got a few hits in me self. Been a long while since I¡¯ve had a good scrap!¡±


    ¡°Mark!¡± A small voice called from the crowd as a small bundle of white fur raced towards me. Her tail whisked about furiously as she herself was followed by quite a few other small Mikthar children. Kria released me as the small child hugged my leg. ¡°You fight again?¡± she said pointing towards the holes in my shirt.


    ¡°Uhh¡­no. That was a different matter Petal.¡± I didn¡¯t want to explain how I was almost cat food not too long ago. Her eyes scrunched in thought before she shrugged.


    ¡°Mark strong.¡± She stated with a nod.


    ¡°Eh? Why am I strong?¡± I questioned, looking towards Kria.


    ¡°Well Petal was watching when you and Ovglach were fighting. When I ordered the guards to separate you two it only took one guard to pull him away. But you¡­well you threw the first one that came for you to the ground without much effort and the next few that were sent met similar fates. It took five of us to hold you down but you wouldn¡¯t quit¡­soooo¡­¡±


    I looked at her blankly. ¡°Sooooo¡­¡±


    She turned away, ¡°I had to knock you out.¡±


    That explained my aching head. Ovglach¡¯s  rumbling laughter made me consciously rub the back of my head in embarrassment.


    ¡°Love to have ye at me side at a dwarven bar, boy!¡± He struck out his hand, ¡°Ovglach, but ye already know that. Sorry fer messing with yer carriage without askin¡¯ first.¡±


    I squeezed his hand as hard as I could which he returned, ¡°Mark. Pleasure.¡±


    ¡°Settle down boys. Or else.¡± Kria scolded us. We muttered our apologies. Petal and her friends looked a little disappointed. Perhaps they were looking forward to seeing another fight? Nah, couldn¡¯t be. Kids are innocent creatures after all.


    ¡°I¡¯ve had your carriage moved into me workshop.¡± Ovglach explained with a twinkle in his eye. ¡°gotta say, your people¡¯s mastery of technology is impressive.¡±


    ¡°So what are you doing with my jeep now that it¡¯s in pieces?¡± I asked in an obviously flat tone.


    ¡°Rebuilding it of course! With a few improvements of me own design. Most loons here rely on magic a wee too much. But us Dwarves are masters with MagiTech.¡±


    I blinked, ¡°Magic? You people have magic?!¡± I looked at everyone around me who looked back as if I were lacking common sense.


    ¡°Aye, all races on this world have magic.¡±


    ¡°Can I learn how to use magic?¡± Excitement poured through every vein in my body. I imagined throwing fire balls, soaring through the air like superman, and maybe creating a mountain in the middle of nowhere. Having the powers everyone dreamed of would be...well a dream come true!


    My fantasy was shortly squashed by the cute little white Mikthar at my legs who happily responded with a wagging tail.


    ¡°Nope!¡±


    Petal, a cute little Mikthar who may enjoy displays of violence. Also a supreme killjoy.

 Chapter 7: In the Workshop.

    I looked down at Petal¡¯s smiling face and couldn¡¯t help but smile myself. So what if she had single handedly crushed my dreams of conjuring balls of fire? I had gotten through life without any hint of magic before today, so what was the rest of my life without it? If anything magic would just complicate matters in my life so I was glad to be without it!


    ¡°Those are the eyes of a broken man.¡± I heard Kria whisper to Ovglach who grunted in response.


    ¡°Seen it many times me self. Mostly after a colleague''s project fails to work the way they designed. Always a shame ta see such young blood lose hope so easy.¡±


    ¡°I can hear you!¡± I yelled at the two who gave me an innocent look. Well, as innocent as a small man with a large beard and a black eye as well as a tall, muscular, scarred cat woman could look.


    In other words, guilty as fuck.


    ¡°Mark don¡¯t need magic. Mark strong!¡± Petal spoke as she looked up at me. I rubbed her head. It always feels good when someone believes in you.


    ¡°Thanks kid, maybe I¡¯ll teach you some moves one day.¡± I may not be the best fighter in the world, but I knew how to hold my own. A few years of judo classes really helped in my early school days after all. My father would always say: ''Boy sometimes someone just gets in your face for no reason and tries to push you around. When this happens you give them three warnings. After the third warning you kick their ass.''


    I may have gotten suspended once or twice, but I was never bothered after that. My father called it the ¡®Talk shit, get hit¡¯ rule.


    Petal nodded her head vigorously at my suggestion of teaching,


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    ¡°Us too!¡± A Mikthar child nearby shouted, the others adding to the volume of requests.


    ¡°Alright, alright sure. Sometime soon okay? I¡¯ll tell Petal when I can and she can tell you all.¡± I spoke, placating them and receiving a small chorus of cheers.


    ¡°It was certainly an interesting fighting style.¡± Kria stated nonchalantly, but the swishing of her tail gave away her true feelings. She wanted to learn as well. It felt good knowing that I had no unconscious way of betraying my hidden feelings. Outside of voice cracks, blood going cold, winces, twitches, mouth hanging agape among other things. But yeah, outside of those my disposition is hidden quite well when I wish it to be.


    It was time to get revenge for her teasing. Pretending to not hear anything I ignored her. From the corner of my eye I could see her tail fidget in distress.


    ¡°Shall we be goin¡¯ to me workshop then? Or will we gab about here all day?¡± Ovglach questioned as he sped off towards the wall.


    ¡°Sounds good, bout time for me to see what you¡¯ve done to my Bartholomew.¡± I stated and walked slightly behind him. Petal had run to her friends to say goodbye before skipping back to walk alongside me.


    Kria jogged up next to me. ¡°Hey Mark. You and I should spar sometime okay?¡± Her tone seemed normal, but you could just hear the anticipation in it if you knew what to listen for. Growing up in a household with two sisters prepared me for moments like these.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± I responded not paying attention to her at all. I heard a light growl come from her before a sharp pain stabbed into my left arm. ¡°Jesus Christ!¡± She stabbed me with a claw! ¡°Fine yes I¡¯ll beat the hell out of you just for that, god!¡± I pressed against the small wound to stop the blood.


    ¡°Oh settle down you kitten.¡± Kria stated, ¡°It was only a small poke.¡±


    ¡°Yeah sorry I don¡¯t have the strength to crush a boulder just by flexing my arm.¡± A small tug on my shirt demanded my attention. ¡°Hmm? Sup Petal?¡± I asked the small girl.


    ¡°Me fix.¡± She stated with raised hands. I turned my injured arm towards her. A light glow emanated from her hands and engulfed where Kria had so shamelessly stabbed me. In an instant the slight pain that throbbed in my arm disappeared.


    ¡°You¡¯re an angel Petal.¡± She cocked her head,


    ¡°Angel?¡±


    ¡°Yup, a pure and innocent soul that helps everyone. And just for that¡­¡± I bent down and hoisted her up onto my shoulders and held onto her legs. ¡°You get the best seat on this trip!¡± She wrapped her small arms around my head for stability.


    ¡°No¡­down¡­¡± she mumbled and shook slightly as she clung to my head, obscuring my vision. I laughed,


    ¡°Relax Petal, I won¡¯t drop you.¡± I backed up my words by lightly tightening my grip on her legs, which seemed to calm the girl somewhat.


    ¡°You look ridiculous.¡± Kria spoke bemused.


    ¡°If it looks stupid and it works, it isn¡¯t stupid.¡± I responded and stuck out my tongue at the warrior woman.


    ¡°Tell that to some of the sponsors I¡¯ve had.¡± Ovglach grumbled, ¡°Pissin¡¯ sods wanted stuff that looked good and worked better than it should.¡±


    I guess in the end, all mortals of all races are vain creatures.


    After many strange looks I received from the townspeople and envious stares from various children we had finally arrived at Ovglach¡¯s workshop. A good-sized wooden structure that I assumed was a warehouse when I first arrived here. It was located close by to the town gate which would explain how quickly he had destroyed¡­dismantled Bartholomew and transported the pieces from where I parked him. Ovglach grabbed the handle at the front of the building, connected to a large sliding door.


    With a grunt he slid the door sideways, revealing the large workshop within. Petal and I gasped at the sheer size of the workshop that was packed to the brim with boxes and barrels of metals, liquids and gems the size of a volley ball. What immediately caught my eye however, was the metal frame of Bartholomew being held up by some sort of what I assumed to be a magical magnet.


    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    ¡°Well don¡¯t just stand there gawkin¡¯ come in!¡± Ovglach grumbled. I set Petal down and together we entered the workshop as the dwarf closed the door behind us. Petal immediately ran over to gawk at the gemstones whereas I strode forth to look at the remains of my jeep.


    Underneath the magical magnet was a wooden planning table with loads over papers on it covered in notes about the various mechanisms found within my ¡®Magical Carriage.¡¯ What caught my eye were the words ¡°Not enough information¡± next to the seat latch mechanisms and the inflatable wheel balloon.


    ¡°Inflatable wheel balloon? Really?¡± I looked at Ovglach who shrugged,


    ¡°Yer the expert.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s an air bag. It inflates when a collision is detected and it pops out of the steering wheel for the driver and dashboard for the passenger to absorb the impact, potentially saving their lives.¡±


    ¡°Ahhhhhh. Mighty crafty of ye. Very intuitive if I say me self.¡± He quickly ran over to his note table and began to scribble words in. ¡°And what of those seat latches?¡±


    ¡°Seat Belts, you wear them. They lock in place when you slam on the brakes or get hit in a collision, preventing you from slamming into the dashboard at full speed. Think of seat belts as the first line of defense, whereas airbags are the secondary.¡±


    ¡°Interestin¡¯. Your people put a lot of stock in safety. I take it yer world be dangerous?¡±


    I immediately thought of the time I was driving through a green light in my dad''s car when I was plowed into from the side by a woman who had been texting on her phone. The resulting crash had totaled both of the vehicles. She walked away fine, but I had to go to the hospital. I stared blankly into space as memories of that day entered my mind.


    "Far more than you realize..."


    Ovglach continued to write down notes in a rapid pace. ¡°Shame I couldn¡¯t figure out how ta turn it on.¡± He grumbled, ¡°had to rip a few wires and try connecting them in different ways. The loud horn sound was the worst.¡±


    ¡°That would be the car alarm. Anti-theft system.¡± I explained, ¡°And to start it you would have needed these.¡± I pulled the keys out from my pocket. They jingled lightly in the air as I handed them over to the dwarf.


    ¡°Ahhh. So you¡¯d put these in the side next to the wheel. I was wonderin¡¯ what that was fer.¡±


    ¡°Mark, mark!¡± Petal called out as she ran towards me with something in her hands. Her tail wagged about rapidly, ¡°Look! Pretty!¡± She held out her hands revealing a small cut ruby within. ¡°Can I keep?¡± Her eyes looked up at me and begged me to say yes.


    Be still my restless heart, I wanted to say yes. But this was Ovglach¡¯s place.


    ¡°Ask the dwarf over here, I can¡¯t say yes to take his things.¡±


    ¡°Please mister!¡± Petal turned to the small man and turned on the puppy dog eyes that would make anyone weak.


    ¡°Yeah sure, plenty more where that came from.¡± He didn¡¯t even turn to look at what she was holding! I stared at the dwarf confused as Petal happily skipped away holding the ruby close to her heart. Never grow up Petal, you¡¯ll break too many hearts.


    ¡°You sure about that? You didn¡¯t even look at what she was carrying.¡± Kria asked ash she stared upwards at the remains of Bartholomew. ¡°Seems irresponsible, letting a kitten take something without even sparing a glance. It could have been something dangerous for all you know!¡±


    It was about time someone else got scolded instead of me.


    ¡°Knew it was a ruby, felt the charge soon as she got here.¡± He looked at us with a large grin. ¡°Shapers like me self can feel the power in each and every gemstone. Speaking of which, that¡¯s how we¡¯re going to make your carriage run again Mark.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± I was stupefied, how was a gemstone going to power a car in place of an engine? ¡°Mind explaining for not not-so-magically-inclined?¡±


    ¡°Ah, right. Sorry, you see every type of gemstone holds a different kind of magical charge. Rubies, Sapphires, Emeralds and Opals are the most common gemstones. Rubies can be charged with fire magic and constantly expel heat from within. Sapphires are charged with water magic and expel cool air. Emeralds same with wind and Opals¡­well Opals are strange. Ye see, they sort of never gain a charge but absorb magic of all types.¡±


    ¡°Now before I complicate things a wee too much here¡¯s the basics of what I¡¯ll be doing with your carriage. First I¡¯ll be replacing this hunk of metal,¡± he knocked on the engine that lay atop a stone slab on the ground. ¡°with this.¡±


    Ovglach opened a wooden box that sat under Bartholomew. Inside it was the largest Topaz I had ever seen. Like a few of the gemstones in the workshop it was the size of a volley ball.


    ¡°This little beauty, a Topaz, is charged by electrical magic and constantly radiates electricity. In me studies I have found a way to move the charge from the topaz around to different sections of an invention. This is what earned me the Shaper¡¯s Medal of Ingenuity.¡± He proudly boasted as he fondled the medal he pulled from his pocket.


    ¡°So you¡¯re going to turn my jeep into an electric car? Will I have to plug it in every few hours or what?¡± It seemed suspicious, our electric cars ran pretty well but still had to be recharged often and some still used gasoline.


    ¡°Every few hours? Boy, a topaz of this size can hold an electric charge for damn near a century!¡±


    That was when I decided to use my Keanu Reeves impersonation.


    ¡°Whoa.¡±

 Chapter 8: Moonlit Stroll

    The rest of the day passed in what seemed like no time at all as Ovglach and I outlined the basics of the various systems at work in a normal car. From the radio to the brake pads and rotors and everything in between we completely mapped out. I wasn¡¯t much help for most of the time as the inside of a car is a mystery to my non-mechanic mind. Fortunately Ovglach was quick witted enough to connect the dots that I missed. When he pointed out a collection of shiny discs that I had stored in a container I was relieved.


    My music collection survived his dismantling.


    Over the course of our mechanical meandering, Kria had left for guard things and Petal had run off to play with her friends. Though before she left she did ask if she could take a small sapphire and opal which Ovglach quickly agreed to so he could return to recording notes. We then decided to take a break to grab some food from the market. Once the food was gone we decided to tinker with the CD player that I had taken out, along with the speakers. Once connected to a small, charged topaz we had music playing in the background as we worked. I even spied the dwarf tapping his foot to the music as he wrote down notes.


    Billy Joel is music for the soul after all.


    By the time the sun set we were sitting in two very finely made chairs with a cask of some form of ale he had brewed between us. It felt good to sit back and relax to good music with a mug of what he called Shaper¡¯s Paradise. He was busy leafing through his notes that looked far thicker than most books I¡¯ve read in between taking sips from his mug as we discussed various ideas on how to make Bartholomew greater than ever.


    ¡°We could replace the tires with large emeralds. Never have to worry about a flat tire again.¡± He suggested.


    ¡°True, but then it wouldn¡¯t be possible to steer with the steering wheel. If emeralds only push the air in one direction, wouldn¡¯t it go straight up?¡±


    ¡°Aye, true.¡±


    ¡°What if we put another emerald on the backside to give it some push. It¡¯d be just like a vertical take-off and landing jet my people have back home. Though we¡¯d need to design a joystick to use.¡± I made motions with my hands, simulating the idea of VTOL to the dwarf.


    ¡°We¡¯d have to completely redesign the vehicle to do that sort of thing.¡± He grumbled, taking a deep draw from his mug. ¡°Though the idea is something I¡¯d really like to try.¡±


    ¡°Well I¡¯ll be a devoted to the Thousand-Faced God, I never expected the two of you to have made up so quickly.¡± The voice of the temptress Velle cooed from behind. ¡°and is that music playing?¡±


    ¡°Yep, this would be the very enjoyable tunes of Frank Sinatra.¡± I explained as Ovglach and I stood up to face the Matriarch. Once again she wore a very form-fitting dress but red with gold trim instead of black.


    ¡°Very enjoyable.¡± Her tail swayed to the beat of the song.


    ¡°Care to join us for a drink?¡± Ovglach offered. She gave a slight giggle as she approached us,


    ¡°You know I don¡¯t drink alcohol Ovglach. Yet you never fail to offer one.¡±


    ¡°Dwarven hospitality Miss.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re missing out Velle.¡± I took a sip from my mug, ¡°he brews great ale.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to take your word for it.¡± She smiled, ¡°I¡¯ve got a present for you in my quarters little bird. Do you mind if I steal our guest for a little bit Master Shaper?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s all yours Matriarch.¡± That back-stabbing dwarf even had the audacity to snicker as he threw me to the lions. I trusted you Ovglach, we were almost friends and now you go and do something like this!


    ¡°Come along little bird. I have many things to show you.¡± She turned and sauntered towards the exit. I quickly chugged the rest of the ale in my mug before placing it atop the barrel.


    ¡°If I don¡¯t make it back Ov, Bartholomew is yours. Treat him better than I ever did.¡±


    ¡°Quit bein¡¯ a wee babe and go have a good time.¡± He waved me off as he began perusing my CD collection.


    Velle waited quietly at the door staring at me as I approached. ¡°Ready whenever.¡± I stated. She responded with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°Oh are you now hmm?¡± I rolled my eyes, opened the door, and bowed.


    ¡°Ladies first.¡±


    ¡°My, how chivalrous.¡± She then grabbed hold of my left arm and linked together with her right. A questioning look was all it took to receive an explanation, ¡°I don¡¯t want my little bird to flutter away into the night.¡± She purred. With a shrug I led her out into the town darkened by nightfall.


    I stared up towards the night sky and gasped. ¡°Woah¡­¡± Keanu would be proud of me, two impersonations in one day.


    In the sky thousands of lights twinkled unabated. The moon was in full view and you could see nebulae in the darkness of space. In all my years I had never seen such a sight. Velle stared up at the sky before turning her attention back to me.


    ¡°Does my little bird wish to fly off into the night?¡± I shook my head.


    ¡°There aren¡¯t many places where I¡¯m from where you can see the night sky so clearly. It¡¯s breath-taking.¡±


    ¡°What about me, hmmm? Aren¡¯t I breath-taking, little bird?¡± Velle pressed her chest against my arm. I laughed,


    This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.¡°You take my breath in different ways Velle.¡±


    ¡°I want to take more than just your breath.¡± She whispered in my ear accompanied by a provocative giggle that sent lightning-like shivers down my spine. I decided not to respond and lightly pulled her arm. ¡°My, eager aren¡¯t we?¡± There truly was no way to win against her.


    Together we walked in silence, arm in arm through the streets of Shimmer Creek. Taking a glance towards the lake the town was built next to I learned how it obtained its name. The star and moonlight lit up the water in a beautiful, shimmering glow. As I admired the lake I felt a weight against my left shoulder. Casting a glance towards Velle I found her head resting upon my shoulder. Her purrs drifted into the night sky as we walked towards her home.


    ¡°I¡¯ve always dreamed of this.¡± She murmured dreamily.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Walking arm in arm at night in the town that I love with one worthy of me.¡± She sounded very tired. ¡°Every few days suitors come to me from other towns looking to increase their status. I¡¯m so tired Mark. I¡¯m tired of all the political games, tired of organization and laws and everything.¡± Her last words came out as a whisper, ¡°So tired¡­¡±


    It was quite the change from her regular demeanor. But I fully understood where she was coming from. At the hospital I worked sometimes interns working towards becoming a doctor would crack under the pressure. I¡¯ve seen men and women in their scrubs, sometimes even full on doctors and nurses, go into a utility closet or some other secluded space to gather their wits. When lives are on the line there is no greater stress than knowing that your choices can lead to life¡­or death.


    ¡°It must be tough, managing a town such as this.¡±


    ¡°I barely have any free time to myself.¡± She nuzzled against me, ¡°I don¡¯t want this to end.¡±


    Unfortunately for her in time our moment together did end. As we faced Velle¡¯s home and town hall she untangled herself from my arm and shoulder and took a deep breath. ¡°Follow me, I have something for you.¡± She strode forth emanating an aura of command. I followed, not having much choice. Before long we stood in the same bedroom that I had escaped her from this morning.


    Upon the straw bed were clothes. Four shirts, just as many pairs of pants and a few undergarments were lain out together. I looked to Velle who motioned me forward, ¡°They¡¯re yours. I¡¯m sure you wouldn¡¯t enjoy wearing a single set of clothes for the remainder of your stay in our world.¡± I picked up a green shirt and was amazed at the texture, it was silk! A touch confirmed that the rest of the shirts and the underwear were made of silk as well. As for the pants, they were made of leather that wasn¡¯t quite leather. It was far more flexible than normal leather.


    ¡°Try a set on.¡± Velle suggested with a beaming smile. I nodded and took off my shirt and jeans, feeling her predatory stare at my back the whole time. I then changed into a dark blue silk shirt and put on a pair of trousers that were almost black but still slightly visibly brown. They fit perfectly.


    ¡°How did¡­¡± I began but was quickly cut off.


    ¡°When you were unconscious I had a tailor take¡­measurements and paid for the work in advance. The Shren are so wonderful at crafting clothing, are they not?¡±


    ¡°Color me impressed.¡± I bowed to her, ¡°Thank you very much for this gift.¡± She turned her head away and her tail fidgeted.


    ¡°Think nothing of it little bird. As Matriarch of this town I take care of my pack.¡±


    I placed my new bundle of cloths atop a small dresser within the room and turned back to Velle.


    ¡°Now, how about I give you a present?¡± I spoke with a mischievous smile.


    ¡°Oh? What can my little bird give me?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll need you to take off that dress and lay on your stomach on the bed.¡± I don¡¯t know if Mikthar can blush, but the look on her face was mighty bashful at my words. I laughed at her discomfort, ¡°It¡¯s nothing like that you cougar. Let me ask, have you ever had a massage before?¡± her ears perked up,


    ¡°What is this¡­massage?¡±


    Moments later I was pressing against Velle¡¯s back and arms, kneading out the stiff joints and muscles underneath her fur and skin. Most of her knotted muscles were very tight and needed a large amount of pressure to work out. The whole while I rubbed and pressed her tail whipped about frenzied as she purred almost as loud as a lawnmower.


    ¡°By The Thousand, this is paradise.¡± She murmured sleepily with a yawn. After working out the kinks in her arms and back I moved down to her waist and legs. The waist was the most dangerous part, as her tail kept whipping me. By the time I had begun to massage her feet she was fast asleep. I chuckled and placed the cloth blanket over her slumbering body.


    I picked up my clothes and quietly stepped out of the room and headed to the exit of the town hall. The night sky was calling me and I aimed to oblige. Moments later I sat upon a bench at the front of the building and stared at the night sky. It was beautiful, no doubt about that, but there was something missing.


    I couldn¡¯t find any of the constellations I had learned as a child. No Big Dipper, Little Dipper or Orion¡¯s Belt¡­I found nothing. I yawned, it was very late. I closed my eyes wondering if I¡¯d ever be able to go back home.

 Chapter 9: Dreaming of Gods.

    Dreams, dreams are strange things. Visions of events, places, people, impossibilities and realities are all possible in dreams. Many people don¡¯t remember their dreams after waking, I am no exception to this. When I was a kid I kept a sort of ¡®dream journal¡¯ where I would write down my dreams before I had forgotten them. Sometimes they were cool dreams, like riding dinosaurs or flying through the air. Other times they aren¡¯t so pleasant. Being chased by crazed killers, drowning and wandering through a city that was completely empty were all nightmares I¡¯ve had. Occasionally you¡¯ll realize that you¡¯re in a dream, most of the time when this happens you wake up. Other times you don¡¯t and gain full control over you¡¯re the dream.


    What I was currently experiencing was no normal dream. I was aware, yet did not wake nor was I able to exert control over it.


    I stood on solid ground obscured by vast amounts of what I assumed to be smoke. No matter where I looked, there were thick amounts of smoke. I moved my left hand through the thick smoke with a gesture, thinking it would roll away from my hand, pushed by the wind. Instead the smoke coiled around my hand, engulfed it and darkened from light grey to black. Strange warmth pulsed within the swirling smoke, it felt almost peaceful. I moved my hand about, closing and opening my fingers. The smoke followed my every move, but when I opened my hand the smoke rushed forward in a small wave. Upon closing my fist the smoke receded back to my hand.


    ¡°Cool!¡± I grinned as I moved about the smoky area, throwing my left hand forward to shoot out bouts of thick black smoke. I began to experiment with different hand gestures. By cupping my hand the smoke condensed into a ball. With a heave I tossed the black ball of smoke. It soared through the air in a straight line, never slowing or dropping. When I closed my hand into a fist the far away ball exploded into a large blast of black smoke, clearly visible despite being far off into the grey smoke.


    It was then that I felt the tug towards the black smoke, as if being called to it. I felt an urge to reach towards the darkness, and so I reached out with my left hand. Before I realized what had happened I found myself within the black smoke. My mind raced at what had just happened and my breathing quickened.


    Had I just¡­teleported?


    My thoughts were a pure mess as I tried to sort through what had occurred. I clenched my fist and the nearby smoke condensed around my hand once more. I sat upon the smoke-covered ground and rubbed my beard in thought. Dreams always meant something, or at least the average person thinks so. I myself believe dreams have a meaning but that doesn¡¯t stop me from raising an eyebrow at so-called ¡®Dream Analysts¡¯. If I were to call one now and describe this dream they¡¯d say some BS such as ¡°Oh, this dream reflects your innermost desire to hide and you feel safe in the obscuring smoke. Are you having trouble in your personal life that you wish to hide from?¡±


    Nah lady, I only got sucked through some portal thing into a land with lizard cultists, Dwarves, lion people, ant people, frog people and who knows what else kind of people? It was cool as hell, I won¡¯t lie. I¡¯ve always dreamed of meeting aliens, but to these people I¡¯m the alien. At least they know I come in peace, I even got to meet their leader! Well, at least the leader of Shimmer Creek. Who knows how many settlements there are on this world? The people here weren¡¯t too technologically advanced, though the Dwarves did have MagiTech. Perhaps I was just dropped off in the boonies by the portal.


    Imagine, a city run with MagiTech! A fantasy New York City with lights and buildings powered by crystals with hovering cars driving around was pictured in my mind. It was sweet as hell. Though Ovglach had said earlier that self-moving carriages weren¡¯t a thing in this world, with thanks to me showing up with Bartholomew perhaps that would change in the near future.


    I may have accidentally started a technological revolution in this world. Oops.


    The sound of footsteps broke me free from my imagination. My ears strained to listen, but the steps seemed to come from all directions. I rose from my seated position, if I was about to have company I may as well face them standing. As I turned my head round and round I could find nothing before the sound of footsteps faded. I scratched my beard. The feeling I was being watched was very strong. But as I strained my eyes to look through the thick smoke I saw nothing. That was when I felt wind.


    It was faint at first, but quickly grew into a whirling storm. My clothes pulled straight ahead, towards the center of the windstorm. I blocked what wind I could by bracing my arms in an X in front of me and watched all the grey smoke be sucked into the whirlwind. As my surroundings cleared of smoke I saw people. They were people of all different races, shapes, sizes, men, women, children and the elderly. Mikthar, Humans, Dwarves, Shren, Hib¡¯litan, Lizard people both with and without wings and many, many, others.


    They all gathered around with me in the center of their attention. The whirlwind had dissipated after all the smoke had been cleared. All around me in a circle were hundreds upon hundreds of people just staring at me in their center. Their clothing was grey, the same as the smoke that had been here moments before. They seemed to be waiting for something.


    Shame I was piss poor at giving public speeches. I raised my hand in greeting, ¡°Yo.¡±


    The sound and sight of a hundreds of robed arms being raised in greeting surrounded me, followed by an avalanche of sound. ¡°Yo!¡± Ah fuck, they were copying me. Well if they were going to play this game then I was going to be entertained. I began to make monkey noises and danced around in a circle, rubbing my belly and patting my head. When I stopped I glanced around. They all stared at me without moving. Someone even coughed in the crowd.


    ¡°Well that¡¯s fine. I enjoy making an ass of myself in public anyway!¡± I called out as laughter rumbled from all directions. Bastards. Silence slowly returned to the gathering that surrounded me. ¡°Well now that we¡¯ve all had a laugh at my expense, please by all means, introduce yourselves. I¡¯m Mark by the way.¡±


    ¡°Greetings Mark, Lord of Darkness.¡± They spoke in unison, ¡°We are what the people of this world call The Thousand.¡± The Thousand eh? That struck a familiar cord with me¡­ah! I snapped my fingers,


    ¡°You mean the Thousand-Faced God that Velle mentioned before. Though there seems to be more than just one of you with a thousand faces. And you remind me more of the demons from the Bible more than anything.¡±


    ¡°We are Legion, for we are many.¡± They did that unison voice thing again which freaked me out.


    ¡°Yeah you can stop that right now or else I¡¯m gonna call an old priest and a young priest to exorcise your asses.¡± Laughter rumbled from all around. Instantly, bright light flashed before me, burning my eyes before I could look away. As I blinked and rubbed my eyes to clear my vision one of The Thousand began to approach me.


    I slowly opened my eyes to see a single person standing before me. A quick glance around revealed that where there were once hundreds of people now stood no one. ¡°Is this more to your expectations?¡± the person before me asked in a fusion of voices both male and female. Their face slightly shrouded by their good constantly shifting between the races I had met and others I have not.


    ¡°Yeah, you got the real Thousand-Faced God vibe going on now.¡± A large spider¡¯s mouth opened, what was either a very deadly smile with venom dripping from its fangs, or a very hungry one. ¡°Yeah stop that, its freaking me out.¡± A chittering sound faded as he¡­shifted form. What he did next was even worse. He used my own face. ¡°Alright, wake me up now I¡¯m fucking done with this.¡± It¡¯s strange, hearing your own voice laugh at you.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    ¡°Sorry, not sorry. I don¡¯t get this sort of chance often. Most times when I visit others in their dreams they kneel and grovel. ¡®Oh I¡¯m not worthy my lord!¡¯ they always say. Gets tiring after a while.¡± He shifted once more, taking the form of a young woman with long golden hair.


    ¡°Alright, then let me ask, the hells with this black smoke around my left hand? Why are you, a god, calling me a Lord of Darkness? And most of all when can I go back home?¡± She smiled at me sweetly.


    ¡°You can¡¯t go home because I won¡¯t allow it.¡± She stated in a bored voice which angered me greatly. ¡°You are here for a reason.¡±


    ¡°What reason?¡± I demanded.


    ¡°That is for you to find out for yourself!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d make a great politician, avoiding questions like that.¡± Her face shifted to that of Richard Nixon¡¯s


    ¡°I am not a crook.¡± He stated matter-of-factly before laughing and changing back. ¡°Sorry Mark, but I¡¯m taking a strictly hands-off approach to this whole affair besides this moment and when you first came to this world.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I questioned curiously. She changed form once more into the familiar lizard cultist I had hit with my car, knocked out, zip-tied up and eventually had imprisoned by the Shimmer Lake guards.


    ¡°Praise the Lord of Darkness!¡± he cried frantically and kneeled before me and then shifted back. ¡°The jeep surprised me, most summons arrive on foot.¡± She smiled, ¡°You¡¯re the first to pass my test sadly.¡±


    ¡°Again, what do you mean?¡± I repeated, still coming to terms that I had assaulted and detained a god.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t the first Shadowmancer I¡¯ve summoned, only the first to pass my test.¡± She changed her face once more and became Petal. ¡°Thank¡­you¡­¡±


    ¡°You mean you¡¯re Petal and the Lizard? At the same time?¡±


    ¡°Oh heavens no! Petal is a real Mikthar just as you are a real human. No, the test was to judge you based on your character. Of the six Shadowmancers I¡¯ve summoned before you are the first one to have disabled the ¡®loony cultist¡¯ first and helped Petal after. The others were over-eager about being called a Lord of Darkness and moved to kill the poor girl.¡± She smiled sadly and stared at the ground,


    ¡°I killed them first. This world doesn¡¯t need an egomaniac. It needs someone that respects life.¡± She shifted back to her golden-haired form. ¡°After each summoning I would wipe the girl¡¯s memories of the whole event and wait until I could summon another. I hated seeing that poor girl suffer. She¡¯d have died much sooner if I wasn¡¯t sustaining her with a magical connection. Thank you for helping her.¡±


    I had heard enough. My fist was clenched and shaking at my side. How dare anyone, even a god or a goddess keep anyone, especially a child, on the brink of starvation. I remembered my meeting Petal. How she looked so skinny, so hungry. Her eyes filled with fear.


    ¡°Forgive me.¡± The Thousand-Faced God begged in a whisper. I looked at her as she looked at me with sadness in her eyes. I threw my fist at her and she did not move. I breathed heavily as I stopped my fist mere inches from her face. To her respect, she didn¡¯t flinch. I dropped my arm to my side.


    ¡°It¡¯s not me who you should be asking for forgiveness.¡± She nodded her head in silence.


    ¡°I¡¯ll seek it in time, but for now we have other pressing matters.¡± A look of determination crossed her face as she stared at me. ¡°As for you being called a Lord of Darkness, well, Shadowmancers have been hunted to extinction in this world. A sort of following had deemed Shadow Magic to be evil in the eyes of their faith. As the faith spread, those able to use Shadow Magic were killed. Now, none remain where there were once thousands.¡±


    ¡°This faith is still around isn¡¯t it?¡± Bad feelings galore with this explanation.


    ¡°It¡¯s more powerful than you currently realize. Now I''m at a point where I have to intervene directly to bring someone such as you here so that Shadow Magic would return to this world.¡±


    ¡°So what exactly is a Shadowmancer then?¡±


    ¡°To put it simply, they were men and women who could walk through shadows, jumping between dark places in an instant. Able to walk the night unseen and unheard, masters of stealth and deception. The faith preached to end those who used Shadow Magic, for there were many who used their powers for corrupt purposes.¡±


    ¡°Assassination is first among those purposes isn¡¯t it?¡± I could see where this was going.


    ¡°Funny you should mention that, an assassination by a Shadowmancer was exactly what started this shift in faith.¡±


    ¡°What? Did the person kill this world¡¯s Pope?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Ah yes, that would start a religious revolution for sure. I can only imagine the backlash that would occur if someone were to kill a Pope on Earth in this day and age. At least he had a bullet-proof bubble car in which to ride around in. In this world they wouldn¡¯t be so lucky.


    ¡°Now as for¡­you¡­do¡­first¡­jump¡­¡± The Goddess¡¯ voice was cutting in and out like a bad phone call connection, but kept talking not seeing something was wrong. I felt something lightly on my chest. The Goddess¡¯ face became frantic as she waved her hands around as she realized what was happening.


    ¡°¡­Up.¡± I heard a voice mutter quietly near my ear. ¡°Wake¡­up¡­¡± I groaned aloud as the dream I was in faded into obscurity. As I opened my eyes I found myself being lightly shaken by Petal who wore a light blue sundress. Looks like I had fallen asleep on the bench out front the Matriarch¡¯s house. A quick glance at a sky full of stars informed me it was still late at night.


    ¡°Wake¡­up¡­¡± Petal repeated as she kept shaking me. I smiled at her worried face and put my arms around her and pulled her into a hug.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I apologized as I held her tight. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry you had to go through it all Petal.¡± I wasn¡¯t going to cry. Nope, not me.


    ¡°Not¡­your fault¡­¡± she patted me which made me chuckle. ¡°Bad man¡­gone now¡­¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, thanks Petal.¡± I released her. ¡°So why¡¯d you wake me up?¡± She pointed towards the gate the led to the town. Outside the town walls were hundreds upon hundreds of torches in what appeared to be a massive gathering.


    ¡°Scared.¡± She mumbled as she clung to me. She then looked at my left hand and then up to my face, her eyes wide with wonder. Curious, I glanced towards my left hand, only to find my arm up to my elbow wreathed in black smoke.


    ¡°Mark¡­Lord of¡­Dark¡­¡± She stated and regarded me with awe.


    ¡°Ah hell.¡± I had some ¡®splainin to do.


    -----------------------------------------------------------------------


    Took a break from writing the other day for a rest and now I''m back in business. Chapter is a bit longer than the others to make up for my day off. Enjoy!

 Chapter 10: Broken Wings

    ¡°Petal, listen close okay?¡± I spoke as I knelt down and placed my hands upon her shoulders, staring directly into her red eyes. ¡°I am no Lord of Darkness.¡± She looked at my smoke-engulfed hand and then back towards me.


    ¡°Yes.¡± I sighed in submission, once kids got an idea into their heads it was near impossible to change it. I would know, I used to be one hell of a stubborn child.


    ¡°But isn¡¯t a Lord of Darkness supposed to be evil? Bad?¡± This made her pause in thought for a moment before responding.


    ¡°Mark good Lord of Darkness.¡± She then patted my head with a smile. Darn kids with simple explanations.


    ¡°Just keep calling me Mark at least. I don¡¯t like being called Lord of Darkness alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Mark is Mark.¡± I patted her head with my non-smoky right hand. The sound of heavy footsteps came running from the direction of the town. Petal and I looked towards the sound to see who was coming. ¡°Kria!¡± Petal called as the guard came into view.


    ¡°Hey you¡­two¡­¡± Kria trailed off as she noticed my smoking hand. ¡°What¡­¡±


    ¡°Long story and I¡¯ll tell you later Kria, promise. What¡¯s the deal with all those torch lights down by the gate?¡± I motioned towards the strange sight. Fear radiated from Kria¡¯s voice,


    ¡°Inquisitors.¡± Ah shit. Those guys always spelled trouble no matter what world you were in. ¡°I came to get the Matriarch. She¡¯ll want to be there when they¡¯re allowed into the town.¡± She motioned for us to follow her into the town hall.


    I grabbed my bundle of clothes before we moved in step behind Kria. ¡°So they¡¯re not just allowed into the town?¡±


    ¡°No, the Matriarch has to be there to let them in. And she has to let them in, or else they¡¯ll burn the town to the ground for harboring what they call ¡®The Unfaithful¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Unfaithful?¡±


    ¡°Those who worship the Lord of Darkness.¡± She eyed my shadow hand with a thoughtful expression, but said nothing.


    ¡°Ah.¡±


    Religious disputes were very common in human history, they still are. But while many of my peers look at religion with hostility and disregard, I look at it with respect. Sure great evil has been, and still is, done in the name of religion, but there is good to be found. I couldn¡¯t even begin to count the amount of fundraisers and projects are made by those of their faith to help their communities.


    When I was a child I remember our local church hosting a neighborhood wide event with bake sales, games and other events. All in an effort to help gather funds for a man and his family so they could afford to treat their child at a specialized hospital. That, I believe, is what the true face of religion is. To help others in their time of need, even if it costs your own time and money.


    It¡¯s a shame that we only remember the bad and not the good that is done.


    We were in the meeting room with the long table, marching towards the door to the Matriarch¡¯s room. But before we could enter she walked out dressed in her very form-fitting black clothes I had seen her in before. She looked great, but plastered upon her face was an expression of great concern.


    ¡°Greetings everyone.¡± The Matriarch spoke before glancing at my hand. ¡°Oh my, how unexpected.¡± Her tone said it was anything but.


    ¡°You knew?¡± Kria and I asked at the same time. We then looked at one another.


    ¡°Jinx.¡± I spoke quickly.


    Velle shrugged, ¡°I had my suspicions and an unusual source.¡± She gave a predatory smile, ¡°Welcome to our humble town Mark, Lord of Darkness.¡±


    ¡°Please just stop with the Lord of Darkness already!¡± I was about ready to pull out my hair in frustration. Me am no play gods!


    ¡°A leader has to use their titles, even if they find them dissatisfying, to give their pack hope. But we can continue this conversation later. Kria, bring him and Petal to the Den.¡±


    ¡°The Den?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll understand when you get there.¡± She said with finality as she passed us to head towards the exit into town.


    We followed Kria towards the chair where Velle had sat at the head of the table. She then grabbed the table and pushed it aside without much effort. Petal and I concentrated on the floor where the table once rested. But no matter how hard we looked we couldn¡¯t see anything besides the wooden floor. As I was about to ask what was the point of that Kria knelt down and used her claws to pull up a small piece of wood that blended into the floor perfectly. It was a wooden ring, and when she had a good grip on it she pulled up, revealing a large, hidden hatch. It was a masterfully crafted hidden entrance, invisible unless you knew where to look. As the hatch was opened I glanced within to see a wide staircase leading downward into darkness.


    ¡°Go down into the den, you¡¯ll be safe there with the others.¡± Kria spoke with a strong sense of urgency.


    ¡°Others?¡± Petal questioned with a curious look.


    ¡°No time, hurry you two!¡± Kria ushered us forth.


    I looked at Petal and shrugged. Together we descended the stairs into the darkness below. When we reached the bottom we heard Kria close the hatch and pull the table back over it. For better or for worse, we were stuck here until we were let out. A wide path carved from the stone all around us led directly ahead into a dimly lit room. The soft sounds of whispering made their way to our ears. They mumbled of another joining their ranks, another poor soul in hiding.


    Petal held my shadowy hand tightly as we walked into the room.


    As we entered the first thing I noticed was how spacious the room was. The walls and floor were carved out from stone and was easily twice as big as the apartment I had back on Earth. The rent was probably cheaper too. What I noticed next was the dead silence from all the different types of peoples who stared at us when we entered. There were a few Mikthar, the two odd Shren who wore robes and veils from before, and more than a few lizard men and women. In the corner hid one of the lizards who had wings. They were all wearing clothing that looked to be in good condition, but probably hadn¡¯t seen a good washing in more than a few days.


    Covering the floor of the room was a thin layer of straw, with large piles clumped together for the people to lie on like a bed. Barrels of water and preserved food sat at the far end of the room. In the middle sat a single lantern that sent dim light in all directions. All eyes followed me as Petal and I moved to sit beside the two robed Shren from before. Not that I knew them or anything, it just that they were familiar and those eyes watching me seemed more reverent than I found to my liking. The only one not staring at me was the one lizard with wings that was hiding in the corner, shivering and holding their wings as if they were a lifeline to sanity.


    As I opened my mouth to speak I was quickly shushed by one of the robed Shren. They pointed upwards as the sounds of footsteps echoed from the ceiling. Everyone seemed to freeze, staring at the spots on the floor where the sounds originated. Petal was staring as well, her ears flitting about trying to hear as well as she could. I couldn¡¯t hear much outside of some muffled mumbles so I just sat and waited.


    Minutes passed as the sounds of footsteps increased as they moved throughout the town hall. It wouldn¡¯t take a genius to know they were searching every nook and cranny for hidden entrances to places such as this. An eternity seemed to pass before the footsteps moved towards the exit. Even after there was no more movement above nobody made a sound.


    ¡°We are safe for now.¡± Both of the robed Shren spoke in unison. The entire room breathed a collective sigh of relief. But the relaxation was short lived as they all turned to stare at me with reverent eyes once more. I didn¡¯t like it one bit. It¡¯s one thing to be the center of attention. But to be a person¡­an object of worship¡­it was too much for a man like me.


    ¡°You are nervous.¡±


    ¡°You must relax.¡± The two robed Shren spoke in alternation. I assumed that they were twins with the way they acted.


    ¡°You would be correct.¡±


    ¡°We hatched from the same egg.¡±


    ¡°Many thought our birth a curse.¡±


    ¡°But the Matriarch considers us a blessing.¡±


    ¡°Now I may be losing my mind, in fact, I know I¡¯m going crazy. But for the record, can you two read minds?¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡± They both stated.


    ¡°Cool!¡± Petal spoke enthusiastically. ¡°Read mine! Read mine!¡± Oh, this ought to be interesting. Petal clenched her eyes and fists, as if she was thinking about something really hard.


    ¡°Brightly colored stones.¡±


    ¡°One red, one blue, and one of many colors.¡±


    Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.¡°Hidden beneath-¡°


    ¡°Ah! No tell hiding place!¡± Petal jumped up to stop the two Shren who now chuckled pleasantly. She must have been thinking of the gemstones she had taken from Ovglach.


    I chuckled, ¡°Well we¡¯ve met but we haven¡¯t exactly been introduced.¡± I held out my right hand to them, ¡°I¡¯m Mark.¡± They stared at my hand, unmoving from their seated position.


    ¡°Hibel.¡±


    ¡°Crek.¡±


    ¡°¡­pleased to meet you two.¡± I spoke, slowly retracting my hand and bringing it back to my side. ¡°So what exactly is this place?¡±


    ¡°It is a refuge.¡±


    ¡°For those who have earned the faith¡¯s ire.¡±


    ¡°And what exactly is this faith? Religious nuts for sure, but it can¡¯t be all bad.¡±


    ¡°They are a faith that call themselves Y¡¯dionis¡¯ Light.¡±


    ¡°They worship the God of Purity and Light.¡±


    ¡°Those who worship any other god are removed from the public.¡±


    ¡°The Dar-Hkan you see here are but a small number of them.¡±


    ¡°Dar-Hkan?¡± That was a new, unfamiliar name I hadn¡¯t heard before.


    ¡°Those you consider ¡®Lizards¡¯.¡±


    ¡°But they more closely resemble dragons from your mythologies.¡±


    ¡°That can¡¯t be. Dragons have wings and there¡¯s only one here with wings.¡± I stated unconsciously. The lizard people, upon hearing my words, stared at the ground. Many wept. Way to go jackass, you just made a room full of people cry.


    ¡°Their wings, when they are sentenced as Unfaithful, are removed.¡±


    ¡°Forcefully.¡± I winced, images that made me sick entered my mind.


    Petal stood up and walked around the room, touching those who wept and whispering that they were safe. Telling them, ¡°Mark strong. Protects.¡± One by one they became calmer. I wish I were as confident in myself as Petal was in me.


    ¡°Then the reason the one in the corner is so fidgety is¡­¡± I trailed off as I observed the one in the corner hugging her wings as they shivered.


    ¡°Hers were almost removed.¡±


    ¡°The Matriarch''s agents put a stop to it.¡±


    ¡°Saved the girl and brought her here.¡±


    ¡°She is physically fine, but mental scars are not so easily healed.¡±


    ¡°We hope, in time, she will come around.¡±


    ¡°Her mind is a raging tempest of images and feelings.¡±


    ¡°Spare me the details, I understand.¡± I watched Petal approach the shaking Dar-Hkan and attempt to put her hand on her. But was quickly pushed away and the shaking increased.


    ¡°No, no, no, no. Don¡¯t touch. Can¡¯t touch. Stay away, they¡¯re mine! You can¡¯t take them!¡± she began to yell in a voice barely more than a whisper. Petal¡¯s ears lowered in sadness as she walked back towards us.


    I¡¯ve seen this sort of thing only a few times, when people were brought into the hospital after an accident of some kind. Most would snap out of it eventually and be cleared to leave once they were deemed safe. But sometimes they would be admitted to the psyche ward for specialists in psychology to handle.


    ¡°She hurts. Hides inside.¡± Petal described as she sat next to me. She looked into my eyes with a pleading expression. ¡°Help her.¡±


    ¡°I¡­don¡¯t know if I can Petal.¡± I wasn¡¯t a psychologist trained to handle mental instabilities.


    ¡°Try. Too sad to not try.¡±


    I nodded, ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± With a push against the floor I stood up and wiped the straw from my pants. ¡°I¡¯ll do what I can.¡± All eyes turned to me as I stepped across the straw-covered floor towards the fearful Dar-Hkan. As I stood before the dragon girl who wore clothes no better than rags, her shaking increased as well as her incoherent mumbles.


    Dark green scales covered her body head to toe, along her back and sides and down her arms and legs. These scales looked thick and strong, like a type of armor. But from under her chin and all the way down to the bottom of her tail and the underside of her legs and arms the scales were a sandy yellow color. They looked to be far less armor-y than the dark green ones. Her head was very dragon-y if I were to use my so eloquent means of description. Spined ridges ran from the top of her head all the way down her back and to the tip of her tail. She looked at me and then away with frantic jade green eyes. Her hands and feet were tipped with sharp-looking black claws. Upon her head were two horns that led from her temples to the back of her head and ended in a point.


    ¡°Nonodon¡¯ttakemywingspleaseIhaventdoneanythingsopleasedonthurtme!¡± the words came out so rapidly I had a hard time keeping up. Her breathing increased rapidly, almost to the point of hyperventilating.


    ¡°H-hey calm down, you need to settle your breathing!¡± I exclaimed before I mentally slapped myself. As if explanations were going to work on a manic person. Expectedly, her breathing increased in short, rapid gasps. I reached out to her with my right hand, only for her hand to smack mine away. Her claws left small cuts on my hand that stung and bled lightly. ¡°Balls.¡± I eloquently stated and rubbed my wounded hand.


    ¡°She has done this many times.¡± An elderly, wingless Dar-Khan mentioned from behind me. ¡°The breathing gets so bad that she eventually becomes unconscious. It is the only way she can get some rest. She hasn¡¯t eaten or drank since coming here a few days ago.¡±


    I gritted my teeth, ¡°Not good. Hyperventilation can lead to worse than just fainting. Seizures and spasms being potentially very dangerous outcomes. We need to get her breathing under control first.¡±


    ¡°I am sorry I cannot be of assistance you Lord.¡± I looked over at the elderly Dar-Khan and he was right. He looked far too frail to help me do what I initially planned. I sighed as my mind went into overdrive attempting to come up with a plan. Well, I had another plan, but I wasn¡¯t sure it would work. But at this point it was either go for it and hope it works, or she knocks herself out from hyperventilation.


    ¡°It¡¯s Mark, actually. Not lord. And don¡¯t worry, I got this.¡± I flashed a smile and a thumbs up before slowly reaching out towards the girl. The plan was simple. First I¡¯d have to stabilize her breathing. As my hand approached her hand that slapped me away before moved quickly, but I was ready. I grabbed it mid swing and before she could use the other to knock me away I reached out with my shadowed hand and gripped onto her shoulder. She froze instantly upon contact, the shivering stopped and her eyes were as wide as they could be as she stared into nothingness, lost in a delusion.


    ¡°No¡­¡± A weak whisper, little more than a whimper escaped her mouth. Tears ran down her face as she stared with blank eyes in fear. It was heartbreaking, seeing something that looked so strong be so completely destroyed. The quick, frantic breaths began to return as she began to panic once more. I then gently moved the hand of hers that I held to rest over my heart and began to make slow, deep, calming breaths.


    The first part of my idea worked in time. Her breathing began to slow to match my lead after a few moments. But the shivering would not cease.  Though her breathing had stabilized, the fear was still deep within her. So I did what my mother did for me when I was a child and afraid. I embraced her, closed my eyes and began to hum. She attempted to struggle away at first, lightly cutting me along my side with her sharp claws. But when the sound and vibrations from my humming reached her ears she began to relax and closed her eyes. I then began to rock back and forth in a calming repetition. I don¡¯t know how long I kept at it, but no matter how long it took, she eventually spoke in a dream-like state.


    ¡°Am I¡­safe¡­?¡± A voice full of pain cracked close to my ear. ¡°I¡­feel safe¡­¡± A heavy weight pressed against my shoulder. I opened my eyes to see her head resting upon my shoulder.


    ¡°You''re safe now, so don''t worry anymore. I won¡¯t let them take your wings.¡± I whispered and began to hum once more. She sniffled as tears dripped onto my shoulder.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Moments later her shaking had ceased and I felt deep, restful breaths coming from her. She had fallen asleep. On me. I turned my head to see wide-eyed stares in my direction that were quickly averted to the floor in reverence. ¡°Little help guys? Poor gal needs a bed to lay in.¡± More than a few Dra-Hkan jumped into action, bringing clumps of straw from the floor and piling it into a decent sized bed. Once the makeshift ¡®bed¡¯ was assembled I let the sleeping dragon lie on her stomach, but she quickly rolled onto her side.


    As I moved to leave, a clawed hand held onto my shadowy wrist in a tight grip. No matter how I struggled I could not break free. Defeated, I sat back down next to the exhausted girl and leaned against the wall. As one, all the Dra-Hkan stood, walked towards me and then kneeled before me and pressed their heads to the ground.


    ¡°Praise be the Lord of Darkness.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Mark, actually.¡±


    ¡°Praise be Mark, Lord of Darkness.¡±


    God damn it.

 Chapter 11: Power in a Name

    Children are evil. I¡¯ve always known this fact. They are ruthlessly cunning creatures that feign an outward appearance of innocence and ignorance. But I know better, I know what lies beneath their confused stares, their begging eyes, their pouting faces. It¡¯s pure, unadulterated evil. And there¡¯s not a damn thing anyone can do about it, least of all me.


    Not long after I had calmed down the female Dra-Hkan and she had fallen asleep I was approached by Petal who held up her arms towards me. With an innocent look across her face she stared directly into my eyes. ¡°Me next.¡± That brilliant, adorable, evil mastermind wanted me to rock her to sleep while humming. And I was in no position to say no, those begging eyes are too strong for any human.


    Gods themselves would fall before such a look.


    I agreed without resistance, for it would have been pointless. Children almost always get their way in the end. Thankfully it didn¡¯t take long for her to fall asleep. On one side, a once manic dragon chick at one hand, gripping my shadowy wrist as she slept for security. On the other was a small albino cat-girl resting at my right. And in front of me was a group of devout Lord of Darkness worshippers, people who worshipped me.


    The elderly Dra-Hkan who had spoken to me earlier gave me a bit of a brief explanation about this whole Lord of Darkness business as he handed me a mug of water. Ever since the faith of Y¡¯dionis Light had killed off all of those who could use shadow magic a small cult uprising appeared to challenge this faith. Members of this cult were simply named Shades. Once the cult revealed itself is when the purges of all faiths began.


    If you refused to accept yourself into Y¡¯dionis¡¯ Light you were imprisoned, tortured and killed. Dra-Hkan who refused to accept had their wings ripped off. Many would break after such trauma and become penitents, servants to those in power. The old lizard scrunched his shoulders as he described how he had lost his. Dragged into the center of his hometown, beaten before people whom he had lived beside for his entire life and then they ripped out his wings with their hands.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe in this cult business.¡± The old Dra-Hkan spoke, ¡°Never believed any of this religious business either.¡± He chuckled sadly, ¡°Punished for apathy.¡±


    ¡°Not gonna lie,¡± I started, ¡°That royally pisses me off. Everyone should be free to live how they wish so long as they don¡¯t endanger others.¡±


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    ¡°I¡¯ll drink to that way of thinking.¡± He smiled and took a deep gulp from his own mug. ¡°You have a chance to do some real good here Mark. I hope that, despite your protests, you lead these people well. You¡¯re the first Shadowmancer in over a hundred years after all.¡±


    I stared into my mug, gazing at my small reflection. I had bags under my eyes from the lack of sleep I was getting in this world. It made me look and feel much older than I was. ¡°I dunno¡­security guard to head of a cult is quite the jump yeah? I guess I should be thankful this isn¡¯t the Kool-Aid drinking kind.¡± I dipped my right hand in my mug and splashed some of the water on my face. Drowsiness was threatening to knock me on my ass.


    ¡°You should sleep, Mark. Take the break you deserve, young people such as yourself push yourselves too hard I¡¯ve seen. And it looks to be true in both of our worlds.¡± He smiled and stood up.


    ¡°Wait, I never caught your name.¡± I called out with a yawn. The old Dra-Hkan turned to face me once more.


    ¡°Nor will you. I lost my name when I lost my wings.¡± Before he could shuffle away however, I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.


    ¡°Sage.¡± The old man turned.


    ¡°Sage? A strange name, from your world I take it?¡±


    ¡°Yep. It¡¯s got a few meanings, but two of them fit you. Firstly it means a wise man, and lets be real, with age comes wisdom right?¡± He and I shared a chuckle, ¡°The second is a type of color, sage green. The same as your scales.¡±


    ¡°Sage¡­¡± The old man whispered as if tasting the name. He smiled a bright smile, a spark of light returning to his eyes where there was once darkness. ¡°Thank you Mark, you¡¯ve brought joy to this old hatchling.¡± He bowed and shuffled away, mouthing the word ¡®sage¡¯ over and over.


    I leaned back against the stone wall with a smile and closed my eyes. As I drifted off to sleep I found myself thinking about names. Names are a wonderful thing. They gave meaning to our existence. I believe that all people should live to have their name be remembered fondly. To live life without a name is to exist without a meaning. And that, I thought, would be a worse punishment than death.

 Chapter 12: Through Eyes of Paranoia.

    Fear, I remember fear. My family had assured me things would be fine, that The Light would never bother us; that they would never find out that we were waiting for the coming of the Lord of Darkness. I believed them, foolishly. They came in the night, as if in defiance of the very powers they feared. I remember being dragged out of bed and hearing the cries of my family as I was pulled through the house by a Dra-Hkan in white robes. At that time I was ignorant, now I can see. His wings were as black as his soul.


    Into our town we were dragged, forced to stand before a crowd of people we once thought to be friends. They cheered as my mother was forced forward as the punishment for being among the Unfaithful was announced. To her credit, my mother smiled even as her beautiful blue wings were torn from her back. She fell to the ground, unmoving. I wanted her to twitch, wanted her to cry, to do something, anything. But she just laid there in the dirt. A doll with their strings cut. My mother¡­killed before my eyes. And the people cheered.


    My father was next, forced to stand beside mother¡¯s corpse. He was furious. He fought them every step as well as he could. But there were too many inquisitors. As if in defiance of the gods, my father yelled to the sky even as they stole his wings from him. He was pulled away as he shouted, taken by the inquisitors. Everyone turned to look at me. It was my turn.


    I couldn¡¯t even manage a whimper as the placed me next to my mother¡¯s corpse and my father¡¯s wings. I didn¡¯t want to die, not like this. I screamed in my mind for them not to take my wings, to not take away what I was. But if they could hear my thoughts they wouldn¡¯t have cared. The crowd fell silent as they watched me in anticipation. Murmurs flowed through the crowd, would I scream? Would I cry? Perhaps I wouldn¡¯t survive like my mother.


    I dared to look behind me, only to find the one with the black scales smile cruelly at me. Two others held me in place, but he was to do the honors of stealing my wings. I felt his rough grip upon them as he slowly pulled the bones downward. The pain was excruciating and I screamed as tears erupted from me. I begged him to stop, to not do this, but my pleading was only met with him slowing down, extending my suffering. I could feel the muscle breaking, my bones would be torn from me soon enough. I wondered why he took his time with me, but now I know. It wasn¡¯t just evil that fueled his black heart.


    While my parents were to be an example, I was to be a lesson. Everyone watched me with hunger. They wanted my wings, to see them torn from my body. Nobody would help me. I was alone.


    I can¡¯t recall much after that moment. Brief memories of flashing lights, the feeling of someone grabbing my wrist and pulling me. I wanted them to let go, to let me go home. But no matter how hard I pushed them they refused to let go. They were taking me away from everything I once knew into the unknown. My breath became short and rapid. I didn¡¯t want to go! I wanted my family, my friends! I wanted this nightmare to end. Not long after my vision faded.


    I awoke to find myself in the back of a large covered wagon. Everyone looked at me. They wanted my wings, but they were already gone. But as I reached backwards I could feel them! I still had my wings! I could hardly contain myself, how had I escaped with them? I shook my head, it didn¡¯t matter. The people around me stared with envy. They wanted my wings. I wouldn¡¯t let them take them. They were mine! No one else¡¯s!


    I held my wings. They were all I had left in a world that abandoned me.


    Later they came with food and water. But I knew better. They would drug all of it so they could take my wings from me while I slept. I watched them until they left. Others ate the food, but not me. I knew better. I saw their eyes staring at me, daring me to eat. I didn¡¯t touch a thing, let them stew on that! Nobody takes my wings. Nobody. Nobody. Nobody. Nobody. I felt my breath racing and once more my vision faded into black.


    This cycle repeated for me for so long. I don¡¯t recall how long, only that it felt like an eternity. The whole time I was watched by those who surrounded me. Some began to look at me with concern when I didn¡¯t eat or drink. Good! They were concerned that I wasn¡¯t falling for their plan. My wings were mine and I wouldn¡¯t fall for such a simple trick. I had to run, somewhere. Anywhere. But I had to wait for the right moment. When that moment came I would run. I would fly! My wings would carry me to safety. I just had to wait. I could feel their eyes coming closer. I was so tired¡­so very tired¡­but I had to stay awake.


    They¡¯d take my wings if I slept. I can¡¯t rest no matter how badly I want to. I tried to think of how to escape, but memories of my mother¡¯s crumpled body on the ground flashed through my mind. I could hear my father¡¯s yell into the night he was taken away. I could see the people around me speak, but could not hear them. Perhaps they were taking me to the capital. Perhaps they thought the small crowd of the village was too small of a crowd. The quick uncontrollable breaths came once again.


    When next I awoke I was in this large room with walls of stone. Barrels placed along the far walls with straw all along the ground. I was alongside one of the walls, directly in the middle. But I was not alone. There were others that stared at me. I couldn¡¯t trust them, I couldn¡¯t trust anyone. With weak movements I pushed myself into a corner and put my back against the walls. This way I would be able to keep an eye on everyone as they envied my wings. I would see them approach if they tried anything.


    I could tell what this room was, it was a dungeon. And I was its prime prisoner. I held onto my wings for security, the one thing they tried so hard to take. But I still had them, they were mine. I kept watching them as they pretended to not watch me. But I knew better, they were merely waiting for the chance to strike. I would not give them the satisfaction.


    So I sat, watched and waited. My eyes darted between them all to watch their movements closely. Footsteps echoed from the entrance and two more entered the dungeon. All eyes went towards the tall one as if in reverence. He must have been the one that would take my wings. I clenched them as tight as I could and tried to push myself into my corner to hide myself.


    Memories of my mother¡¯s wings being torn entered my mind. I whimpered. ¡®Please don¡¯t let that be my fate. I don¡¯t want to die. I don¡¯t want to live without my wings. Please just leave me alone.¡¯ My own voice whispered in my mind. In time the small, white figure moved about the room, touching everyone kindly. It was a trick, it had to be. When she approached me and moved to touch me I slapped her hand away. ¡®No one will touch me again.¡¯ I vowed.


    The small white being moved away to speak with the tall male. I watched them closely, I watched them all. My hopes of them leaving me alone were quickly squashed as the male approached. When he was near I felt myself speak quickly as my heart raced. ¡°Nonodon¡¯ttakemywingspleaseIhaven¡¯tdoneanythingsopleasedon¡¯thurtme!¡± I blurted out, barely able to hear my own voice as I began to shake. He seemed upset and said something, but I couldn¡¯t hear him. When he reached out towards me I slapped his hand away and scratched him with my claws.


    Serves him right. Serves them all right.


    He cradled his wounded hand with a wince. Another came to speak with him but I didn¡¯t pay attention. They were trying to take my wings. This was it, they were going to rip them from me right here and now. The man smiled an uneasy smile and reached towards me again. I threw my hand out to smack his away again, but he caught it. My blood froze as he gripped my wrist. This was it, it was all over. My wings were about to be torn from me without a hint of remorse.


    ¡°No¡­¡± I whispered, begging to the gods to save me from this fate. Deep down I knew they wouldn¡¯t. The gods don¡¯t care for people such as I. Otherwise my family would never have been taken from me. I could feel myself beginning to fade from breathing too quickly. But the male who gripped my hand pressed it against his chest. I could feel his heartbeat.


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    Deep breaths filled his chest in a relaxing rhythm. I could feel myself calming, matching my breathing to his. But still I shook, assured that this was all some terrible tactic to make me lower my guard. Unexpectedly, the male pushed himself forward and held me in an embrace. I reacted instinctively, and cut his sides with my claws. He grunted, but held on. It was over for me, my wings would soon be taken.


    But the pain never came.


    Even more unexpected were the sounds he started making. Pleasant sounds reminiscent of music played by wandering musicians. Then he started the rocking back and forth motions. It was embarrassing, it was childish. But it felt right. Just like my mother used to do when I was a hatchling, hiding from the roaring lightning in the sky during a storm. I felt all the exhaustion that I had been holding back come crushing down. My mind and my body begged for sleep. But I couldn¡¯t, not like this.


    ¡°Am I¡­safe¡­?¡± I managed to whisper, barely audible to my own ears over his humming. ¡°I¡­feel safe¡­¡± my strength gave out and I laid my head upon this stranger¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°You¡¯re safe now, so don¡¯t worry anymore. I won¡¯t let them take your wings.¡± He whispered to me before returning to the song he had been humming. It wasn¡¯t much, but those words proved more precious to me than gold at that moment. All the sorrow I had been holding back broke free as I felt hot tears fall from my face.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± I managed to say before feeling sleep take hold of me.


    I dreamt that I was back in my town. My mother¡¯s corpse lay crumpled upon the ground. My father had just been taken away. It was my turn. I felt myself be pushed towards the crowd that cheered to see my wings torn from my body. I was afraid¡­but¡­I heard his voice above the jeering.


    ¡°I won¡¯t let them take your wings.¡±


    In an instant the crowd was gone, my captors disappeared. I was alone in the darkness. But I wasn¡¯t alone anymore, this stranger had saved me. My father told me when I was a small child that a Dra-Hkan always repays a debt, no matter how large. I vowed in the name of my mother that I would do whatever I could to assist this stranger, even if it would cost me my life. The nightmare that I had lived through had finally passed.


    I woke up lying upon a large bed of straw that I had no memory of making before. In front of me the strange man who had brought me back to my senses slept against the stone wall in a seated position. The first thing I noticed was his strange pinkish skin that looked to cover his entire body. Atop his head stood short brown fur that also ran down his face and under his chin.


    The next thing I noticed was that I held his arm in my claws. An arm wreathed in shadow. It was the mark of a Lord of Darkness that my family had spent so long waiting for. The final detail I noticed was the slight amount of blood that coated the tips of my claws. I stared at his side where I remembered wounding the stranger before he held me.


    It made me sick knowing that I wounded a man who was only trying to help. It hurt even more that it was the Lord of Darkness himself! My parents would tell of the fury that the Lord of Darkness could unleash upon those that angered him. With mastery over shadow, few could oppose him when his ire was raised. I felt the stranger stirring and groan before he opened his eyes.


    He stared straight at me and smiled.


    ¡°Oh hey, you¡¯re awake. Sleep well?¡¯ I quickly prostrated myself as my family taught me to do when I was in the presence of the Lord of Darkness. I only hoped that my submission would lessen his punishment for my transgressions.


    ¡°Forgive me Lord of Darkness, for I was not in a stable state of mind! I truly did not wish you harm!¡± I cried and hoped that he would be lenient in his retribution.


    ¡°Oh these scratches?¡± He motioned towards the cuts across his side. ¡°Psh, I¡¯ve had worse. You try taking down a 250lb guy hyped up on painkillers running rampant around a hospital ward shouting ¡®I have the power!¡¯ Guess I¡¯m lucky He-Man back then didn¡¯t really have the power, but he did end up breaking my nose.¡±


    A pleasant sound assaulted my ears as I faced the ground. Was the Lord of Darkness...laughing? I looked up towards him as he settled down from his bout of reminiscent laughter. When he looked down at me I quickly averted my gaze.


    ¡°C¡¯mon, you don¡¯t have to stay like that. Sit up at least.¡± He spoke in a friendly tone, but I knew it was a command.


    ¡°Yes, Lord of Darkness, as it pleases you.¡± I rose and sat before him, daring a glance at the wounds I inflicted upon him.


    ¡°It¡¯s Mark, actually.¡± He said off-handedly.


    ¡°Mark?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s my name. Mark.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for taking pity upon me, Mark, Lord of Darkness.¡± The man shouted in frustration as I finished speaking. Had I done something wrong? Had I raised his ire? Was my punishment near for disrespecting him in some way? I could only stare in fear as I watched him stand, face the wall and begin to bang his head against the stone wall.


    ¡°Every.¡±


    Bang


    ¡°Single.¡±


    Bang


    ¡°Time.¡±


    Bang


    ¡°They do this.¡±


    Bang


    He sighed and laid down upon the floor.


    ¡°I give up.¡±


    Was this man truly the Lord of Darkness? I couldn¡¯t help but giggle at his strange ways.


    ¡°Glad to see someone is getting some amusement out of my headaches.¡±


    ¡°Forgive me Lord, but you are not what I¡¯ve expected.¡± He chuckled while staring at the ceiling.


    ¡°Welcome to the club.¡± He sat upright and held out his non-shadowed hand towards me, "Pleased to finally meet you. Just call me Mark by the way. None of that Lord of Darkness junk."


    I stared at his hand before carefully taking it in my own so as to not scratch him more with my claws.


    "I thank you for your assistance Lord...Mark..." It felt wrong calling the man my parents would have worshipped by his name. "I am Keena."


    "Well Keena, I don''t know about you but I''m starving, so lets see what they''ve got in those barrels."


    He was strange, this Lord of Darkness. But I know that compared to my imagination, the real one was much better. He had saved me from myself after all.

 Chapter 13: Culture Shock

    Keena, Sage and myself were the only ones awake in the room while the rest slept upon mounds of straw. I shook some pieces that had found their way into my clothes out, very much missing a real bed. As I opened the top of a barrel I was greeted to a very fond sight. Meat. Not just any meat mind, dried meat that looked very much like beef jerky. A single tear dripped down my face as I stared.


    ¡°Are you¡­crying?¡± Keena questioned in a sympathetic tone before she placed a comforting hand, carefully, upon my shoulder.


    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡± She looked at the barrel full of jerky.


    ¡°It¡¯s only meat.¡±


    ¡°Only meat?! Lady do you understand how much money this would be? A single 8 ounce bag of jerky is almost 8 dollars per bag! And you don¡¯t even get that many pieces! A barrel of this size full of jerky is worth thousands! Thousands!¡± I knelt down and hugged the barrel, rubbing my face against its splendidly crafted body.


    ¡°I¡¯m happy to see you enjoy the provisions we provide.¡± I cunning voice came from the pathway to the Matriarch¡¯s hall. She leaned against the stone wall in her black dress that she had met with the inquisitors in.


    ¡°You did this?¡± I asked, slowly rising from my position to face Velle.


    ¡°But of course. A leader provides for their pack after all.¡±


    I walked over to the Matriarch who watched me curiously and looked into her eyes as seriously as I could muster. We held one another''s gaze for a time until I felt I couldn''t maintain a straight face anymore.


    ¡°I love you.¡±


    A very apparent look of shock struck her face as I heared Keena gasp behind me and Sage chuckle dryly. The look on Velle¡¯s face lingered for a few moments before she regained control. She lightly coughed as her tail moved erratically. ¡°S-so little bird, does this mean you wish to be caged by me?¡± She smiled  seductively, ¡°I¡¯ll have you singing a most beautiful tune.¡±


    ¡°Not yet cougar, but this barrel of jerky is a big step in the right direction.¡± I winked before going back to the barrel. I grabbed a large piece and bit into the delicious meat. Vegetarians may protest saying meat is murder, but if god didn¡¯t want us eating animals why did he make them so tasty?


    ¡°Is he always so¡­eccentric?¡± I heard Keena whisper behind me.


    ¡°He is quite interesting.¡±  Velle purred, ¡°He¡¯ll make a good pet one day.¡±


    ¡°P-pet?!¡± Keena exclaimed in a shocked tone. Velle, Sage and I all chuckled at her expense. Poor innocent youth.


    ¡°You¡¯ll understand when you¡¯re a little older.¡± Sage nodded, barely containing his grin.


    ¡°I am old enough to understand very well thank you.¡± Keena huffed as she took some jerky from the barrel and chowed down in an attempt to hide her discomfort. She kept glancing my way every few seconds. I pretended to not notice, save her a bit of embarrassment in the short term.


    The rest of the morning passed relatively in peace. I woke up Petal by holding a piece of jerky below her nose like I used to do to Pit when he was asleep. Her nose twitched when she caught the scent, her ears moved about and her eyes slowly opened.  When she saw what I was doing she took the jerky away with one hand and lightly punched me with the other. The whole time she nibbled on the jerky she gave me the evil eye.


    Together we all left through the pathway into Velle¡¯s home. She had been expecting the inquisitors for some time as they always came around every few months. Now that the threat had passed the passage was to be left open for the time being. Velle forced Keena into her room for some more appropriate clothing than the rags she was currently wearing. After a short wait out stepped Velle who wore seductive clothing as usual. Followed shortly after was Keena who wore snug brown leather pants and a strange black shirt that wrapped around her chest rather than be worn over it. Her pants had a hole in the back made specifically for her tail to fit through, while her wings were unobstructed by the chest-wrap.


    I gave her a thumbs-up, ¡°Lookin¡¯ good Keena.¡± That was when I learned that Dra-Hkan couldn¡¯t blush, but they could most certainly look bashful. We all shared a slight laugh at Keena¡¯s discomfort and everyone except me only laughed harder when Velle told me that I was hers and she didn¡¯t want to share her property.


    Even Keena laughed! At me! At that moment I knew what betrayal felt like.


    A few Dra-Hkan as well as the mind-reading Shren joined us as we left to have a real breakfast in a local inn. Fresh baked bread, giant eggs from creatures known as Kru¡¯okaw and of course a heaping amount of meat formed out meal. To wash down the food we drank cider that had a taste of something similar to mango. As we ate the guard¡¯s captain Kria joined up as well.


    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    After we had filled our bellies and we leaned back in our seats quite content Keena was the first to speak. She wished to tell us her story as an apology for the trouble she¡¯s caused. While we all said it was no trouble she insisted, so we listened. The only ones that weren¡¯t as phased as the rest of us were the Dra-Hkan who had experienced what she had. Petal patted Keena¡¯s arm in sympathy and we all gave our sympathies.


    But an aspect of the story stood out to me, Keena¡¯s father was alive and in the hands of those inquisitors.


    ¡°Velle, was the leader of the inquisitors from last night the same as in Keena¡¯s story? The black scale dude?¡± I asked as I stroked my beard in thought.


    ¡°Indeed, he was the very same.¡± Velle confirmed.


    ¡°What direction where they headed?¡±


    ¡°North, to Pride Hi¡¯ths'' pack. A small town about three day¡¯s travel on foot.¡± She watched me closely. ¡°What are you planning little bird?¡±


    ¡°Oh nothing big.¡± I looked at Keena, ¡°Just thinking about busting your father and any other captives out of those inquisitor¡¯s clutches.¡± An explosion of voices rose around the table, many against such hasty action. Sage and Velle however, merely stared at me. As the protests died down waiting for my response I held up my left hand as the black shadow moved about like smoke. ¡°I was given these powers for a reason.¡± I said simply.


    ¡°But you could be killed. My Lord I cannot let you take such hasty action!¡± A Dra-Hkan exclaimed and slammed the table with a clenched fist.


    ¡°It¡¯s Mark, actually. Not Lord. And whats the point of having power if I don¡¯t use it to help others? What kind of person would I be if I just sat back and hid while others suffered around me?¡± I smiled, ¡°That¡¯s just not who I am, sorry. If I can help, I will.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not even your issue to deal with¡­¡± Keena mumbled. I stared her straight in the eye and smiled,


    ¡°Babe, I¡¯m American. Butting into other people¡¯s business is what we do.¡± I looked at Velle, ¡°Can I expect your support in this Velle?¡± Kria stood up and saluted.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got my support Mark. I also cannot stand idly by while there are others in need of assistance. It¡¯s a guard¡¯s duty to protect.¡±


    ¡°Well said Kria. We are of one mind.¡± Velle stated before nodding to me. ¡°You have my support little bird.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, now if you¡¯ll all excuse me, I¡¯ve got a date with a dwarf.¡± I rose from my seat and walked out of the inn and into the street. But then the realization struck me and I walked back inside. Everyone was still seated at the table and looked at me wonderingly as I approached. ¡°Forgot to leave a tip.¡± I threw down a ten dollar bill on the table and then left for real.


    ------------------------------------------------------------


    ¡°What is a tip?¡± Petal asked as she stared at the strange piece of paper that Velle now held in her hands.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± Velle spoke as she turned the paper over and over in her hands.


    ¡°Perhaps it is an offering left to show appreciation for the service received?¡± Sage pondered as he scratched his chin with a claw.


    ¡°There¡¯s a picture of his kind on here, as well as many other strange ones. Not to mention the writing, The United States of America¡­¡± Velle wondered aloud as she passed the strange piece of paper to Sage. ¡°Perhaps it is a coalition of packs that have formed together, forming a single large pack?¡±


    ¡°Seems reasonable. Americans must be a strange and vain race to draw their own people on pieces of paper to leave behind however.¡± Sage mumbled, ¡°Well he left it here so we must respect his gesture.¡± Everyone agreed and left the strange paper where he had originally placed it. Velle then placed a few silver coins on the table as payment for services rendered as well as a bonus coin, called a tithe, for the server of their food and drink.

 Chapter 14: Bartholomew, Resurection

    As I walked through Shimmer Lake I realized one small fact about myself. I hate being watched closely. That feeling of eyes being on you is a hard one to shake, and its not paranoia when they are watching you. Well, it was my left hand they were watching really. Not every day you see someone walking down the street with his hand engulfed in shadowy-smoke. The children however did more than just stare, they came up and asked a million questions in half a second.


    Most like ¡®How did you get like that?¡¯ were answered with ¡®Dunno.¡¯ When they asked what I could do with my hand I smiled and threw around some small balls of black smoke that puffed into the air for a short while before dissipating. Playing around was rather informative, as I found that the smoke I could create would be easily countered by a quick breeze. I didn¡¯t have many tricks yet, but the one I call Shadow-Teleport I decided to keep a secret. Not that I wanted to keep secrets, it¡¯s just that I¡¯ve learned to trust gut feelings in my life. Right now my gut was telling me to keep that one under wraps.


    The children laughed as they ran through the puffs of smoke that I tossed around. Their fun was quickly cut short however. Worried parents who watched nearby told them to thank the Lord of Darkness before calling them away. I needed a new title. Lord of Darkness just sends all the wrong signals about the kind of person I am. Thankfully the kids knew me as Mark thanks to Petal, so at least they called me by name.


    ¡°I have a hard time believing you are the Lord of Darkness, Mark.¡± A familiar voice spoke from behind me. I turned to see Kria grinning at me while Keena gave me a perplexed look.


    ¡°I agree,¡± Keena began, ¡°The stories my parents told me the Lord of Darkness is supposed to be a being of evil. Not one that plays with children.¡±


    ¡°Ah, but you only see the start of my truly evil plot.¡± I rubbed my hands together with a sinister look. Kria scoffed while Keena¡¯s listened intently. ¡°You see, now that the children have gone with their parents they shall bug them until the parents relent and let the kids roam free once more. Chaos will return to the Town of Shimmer Lake. Muwahahahahahaaaa. Now if only I had a long mustache to curl snidely¡­¡±


    Keena sighed, ¡°I should have expected as much based on my previous observations based upon your person.¡±


    ¡°Wait till you see him when he gets serious.¡± Kria said with a grin, ¡°I¡¯m still waiting on our sparring match Mark.¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes. Later, promise. First I gotta meet up with old Ovvy and see how Bartholomew is doing and how soon we can get him up and running. You two wanna come see?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the plan.¡± Kria confirmed as Keena nodded,


    ¡°Yes I¡¯m quite interested in this self-driving carriage of yours.¡±


    ¡°Then you¡¯re both in for a treat, we got the radio running last night.¡±


    I walked ahead as the two gave perplexed expressions as they wondered aloud what a radio was.


    Before long us three stood before Ovglach¡¯s workshop. In fact, it was more than just us three. A whole group of townsfolk stood outside the building where loud music was coming from. Questions filled the air wondering what was happening inside the building. I rubbed my head and groaned, bemused. Keena tilted her head as Kria¡¯s ears moved about erratically before they looked at me.


    ¡°I take it the source of this sound is your radio?¡± Kria stated as we moved to get into the building.


    ¡°What do you call this kind of music?¡± Keena asked, ¡°I¡¯ve never heard its kind before.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Toto.¡±


    When we made it to the door I held Kria back from entering. I had to explain that these sorts of things needed to be done with precision. With an ear against the door I listened. Yep, Ovglach was singing along to the song. I waited for the right moment.


    ¡°Hold the line!¡± I heard a faint voice sing from inside the building. I chose that very moment to open the door and yell at the top of my lungs, completely in sync with the song.


    ¡°LOVE ISN¡¯T ALWAYS ON TIME!¡±


    It was at that moment I witnessed something magical. I saw the dwarf fall from a step ladder, frightened by my loud voice, onto his back the whole while cursing up a storm that would make a marine blush. When Ovglach stumbled to his feet and saw me laughing at him he took the wrench he had dropped and chucked it straight at my head.


    Unlucky for him I have the reflexes of a cat. It only hit my arm.


    Kria and Keena had to hold us back from getting into fisticuffs. I mean, I wasn¡¯t really mad at the dwarf, but a man has to uphold his honor when he feels slighted. In the end we both calmed down enough to go over what Ovglach had been up to. As of right now he was about two-thirds of the way done fixing up my jeep. He reassured me that he¡¯d be done before sunset so I could, ¡°Go piss up a cactus in the meanwhile.¡±


    Unfortunately for him, that was the last thing I was going to do. I pulled him aside as Keena and Kira played with the radio after I had shown them how to change CDs.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna need one more thing from you Ovglach.¡±


    ¡°Aye, could tell ye were thinkin¡¯ hard fer awhile there boy.¡±


    ¡°I need a carriage, one I can hook onto the back of my jeep. And not a small carriage either. Also it has to be able to handle high speeds without having anything breaking. Oh, and a padded interior for safety.¡±


    Ovglach ran a hand through his beard in thought. ¡°A mighty tall order there boy. Mighty tall indeed.¡± He motioned for me to follow him. Together we walked to the back of his workshop and went out the back door. Outside was a wide metal wagon that was in pieces. It looked as if it were in the process of being scrapped for parts. ¡°This should work decently.¡± He gumbled, ¡°Never thought I¡¯d be putting this old thing back together.¡±


    ¡°No offense, Ov my man. But this looks like junk.¡±


    ¡°Aye, it¡¯s a piece o¡¯ shit. But it¡¯ll do on such short notice. It¡¯s me old Shaper Wagon. Could have it fixed in an hour or so if need be. So what¡¯s with the rush and necessity all of a sudden?¡±


    ¡°The inquisitors that were here last night have prisoners with them. I¡¯m planning on springing them free and bringing them to safety.¡±


    ¡°Ah, them zealots are a pain in the arse. I¡¯m grateful of me Shaper status when they come through.¡±


    ¡°What does being a Shaper have to do with Inquisitors?¡± I asked as we walked back into the workshop.


    ¡°Old laws made before I was a lad. Breaking into a Shaper¡¯s workshop is grounds for hostile retaliation. Them inquisitors like to push as far as they can, but have never had the stones to call our bluff. They fear what us H¡¯grndyr can do so they just leave us alone.¡±


    ¡°H¡¯grndyr?¡±


    ¡°Aye, it¡¯s the name for my people.¡±


    ¡°Huh, and all this time I¡¯ve been calling you a dwarf. My bad.¡±


    ¡°Bah, I¡¯ve been called worse by better people than yerself.¡± I chuckled,


    ¡°I¡¯ll drink to that.¡±


    Together we started to work on Bartholomew. Kria and Keena stood around asking questions to which we would respond either with a technical answer from Ovglach who has far more mechanically gifted than I. Or a ¡®Dunno¡¯ from me when Ovglach was busy. Keena lost interest in the mechanical aspect quite quickly and went back to perusing my musical collection and trying different CDs in the radio.


    She was rather upset when it came time for us to put the radio back in and had to have it turned off.


    By the time the sun had begun to set my whole body ached. I don¡¯t know how mechanics could do this sort of work day in and day out. Though I guess they had much better equipment in my world than in this one to make most of the work painless. But we didn¡¯t have to deal with the entire engine block like normal. We just connected everything run by power to the giant topaz sitting in a custom-made holding unit that would hold it where the engine would go.


    But now, it was the moment of truth. I sat in the driver¡¯s seat as everyone watched with anticipation. I held the key high as King Arthur once held Excalibur before placing it in the ignition slot. It was do or die time.


    Stolen story; please report.


    ¡°This is one small step for Dwarf, Mikthar and Dra-Hkan kind. Well, one giant leap. Us humans do this every day.¡± I turned the key. Nothing happened. No sound, no feedback. Pure one hundred percent nothing. Ovglach scratched his beard as he stared while everyone else let out a collective sigh in disappointment. I popped the hood and looked inside.


    ¡°Ovglach you fucking boob, you forgot to connect the ignition!¡± I took the wire that would start the vehicle and connected it to the metal that held the topaz. Electricity would run from the topaz to the metal, powering everything attached to the metal. However, I am a bumblefuck who forgot to take the keys out of the on position in the jeep. As I connected the wire to the metal, electricity surged up my arm. I had a split moment to exclaim my catchphrase.


    ¡°Fuck!¡±


    Everything went dark¡­for a moment at least. When I came back to reality I found myself surrounded by everyone I knew from this strange new world. Petal was kneeling beside me in concentration with her hands out. A calming yellowy-white glow flowed from her hands. I was being healed. It felt strange, like the tingling sensation you get when you cut off circulation to and arm or a leg and then let the air back in.


    Everyone stared at me in shock as I looked at each of them. ¡°It¡¯s impolite to stare. You guys should know that.¡± As I sat up I felt Petal cling to me in a hug.


    ¡°No go.¡± Those two words made me freeze as she hugged me tight. I could feel her tears falling from her face and pouring onto my arm. No go. My brain cycled through what I remembered. I had taken a full on blast of electricity from something far more powerful than a car battery. And electrical shocks from car batteries are often fatal. By all means I should have been dead.


    I now knew why everyone wasn¡¯t speaking. They were in shock themselves. Two impossibilities sat before them. One was a man who had survived an electric blast strong enough to turn my insides to goo, which felt just fine. And two, the girl who had brought him back to life.


    I hugged Petal close as she cried. ¡°You are an angel.¡±


    She hit me lightly as she cried. ¡°No go.¡±


    ¡°No go.¡± I confirmed.


    As I stood everyone¡¯s eyes shifted from me to Petal and back again. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Cat got your tongues?¡±


    ¡°Arm¡­¡± Keena stated in shock as she pointed. I looked to my left arm and found it engulfed in shadow from hand to shoulder.


    ¡°What the fuck?! I had only just gotten used to the hand and wrist being all shadowy!¡± I didn''t like this, not one bit.


    ¡°I have a theory.¡± Sage spoke as he stared inquisitively. ¡°It is that you absorbed a good portion of the surge of magical energy from the topaz. However, what you couldn¡¯t absorb had killed you.¡± He looked me straight in the eye, ¡°And you did die.¡± Petal slumped against me and breathed softly as if in sleep. When I looked at her she was indeed sleeping.


    I lifted her into my arms and handed her over to Velle who took the sleeping girl with reverence. ¡°I have many questions and I¡¯m on the verge of freaking out. But one thing at a time.¡± I turned to Ovglach, ¡°Is the wagon ready for use?¡±


    ¡°Aye, Kria still planned to go through with yer rescue and insisted I do whatever I had to. Crazy Mikthar was even willing to take yer vehicle and use it herself! Not that I¡¯d have let her, see. I¡¯d have driven it me-self!¡± I could see the gleam in his eyes.


    ¡°Sorry buddy, but your legs are too short to reach the pedals.¡± Just because I had died doesn¡¯t mean I can¡¯t knock people down a peg or two. He cursed at me but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. ¡°I¡¯ll attach the wagon out front so bring that beast around.¡± Ovglach stated as he walked towards the back exit.


    ¡°Alright, Kria I need you to gather up a few guards for this. Bring me the best people you¡¯ve got that can move without being heard. Tell them no armor and blunted weapons only. This is a rescue, not an attack so we¡¯ll be using stealth.¡± It felt good taking charge. It felt even better when Kria saluted me and ran off to gather her people. I could faintly hear Keena whisper something about the Lord of Darkness but I paid her no mind.


    I moved to the front of the workshop and opened the large sliding door. As it opened I noticed that it was midnight in this world. A full moon hanging lazily in the night sky full of twinkling lights. I hoped we had enough time before sunrise, my plan needed to be done at night. ¡°Now or never.¡± I mused as I returned to the jeep, hopped inside and turned it on.


    There was no sound which I found odd. No vibration either. Bartholomew was basically running as silent as a ghost. Everything worked however, I even tested the radio. Everyone watched me as I played around inside.


    ¡°Well don¡¯t be strangers, come hop in! Velle you can take the seat next to me since you¡¯re carrying Petal.¡± I hopped out and helped them all into their seats. Velle held Petal in the passenger seat while Keena and Sage sat in the back. I hopped back into the driver¡¯s side and lightly pressed the gas. We started moving forward slowly. I could hear gasps of awe from all around.


    ¡°If you think this is amazing wait till you see how fast it can go.¡± I smirked and pulled out front the workshop. Ovglach waited for us with his metal wagon that had been reassembled. It was upheld by four large, thick, metal wheels and looked to be able to hold around ten people if we squished them uncomfortably together. We then punctured two holes in the front of the wagon and ran a length of rope through them before tying them tightly to the jeep¡¯s supports.


    We didn¡¯t have to wait long before Kria had returned with a group of guards. They weren¡¯t wearing armor as instructed. In their hands were blunted weapons suitable for what I had in mind. I then told Kria to pick out four of her best. When the four were selected I had two of them sit in the back of the jeep while the other two sat in the wagon. I then had Kria sit in the passenger seat.


    ¡°What about me? I want to come rescue my father too!¡± Keena announced as she stepped toward me.


    ¡°I understand. I truly do Keena. But I need you to stay here.¡± I spoke with sympathy. ¡°People tend to act irrationally when they have loved ones at stake and we can¡¯t afford irrationality tonight.¡± She looked like she wanted to argue. She looked like she was pained by my words. But thankfully, she nodded and stepped back and wished me success. I gave a thumbs-up as I climbed into the driver¡¯s seat and pressed on the gas.


    Other than the sounds of moving wheels and the sounds of Bruce Springsteen playing on the radio, we drove silently into the night.


    ----------------------


    Couldn''t get this out yesterday due to thunder knocking out my power as I worked on it.


    For those interested in what the general races look like I decided to download some pictures for to use for reference.


    For Mikthar: Thanks to Silverfate for linking: http://i.imgur.com/H4TQwgH.png</a> Which is very on-point on how I imagined Mikthar, except they don''t have human hair above their fur on their head. Males have longer fur around their neck like a lion''s mane.


    For Dra-Hkan: http://i.imgur.com/3imwWHe.jpg</a> They basically look like this, however their whole body is scaled, no human skin or hair. Soft scales cover their underside from their chin to their stomach and below. Also the females have flat chests cause lizards dont have mammaries. Sorry boob lovers, flat is justice.


    Hib''litan aka frogmen: http://i.imgur.com/7K5eF7B.jpg</a> is a great representation of the males except they''re a peaceful folk. Females would be similar in structure but have large chests on average.


    Shren aka ant people: http://pre07.deviantart.net/61bd/th/pre/i/2015/120/e/a/ant_warrior_by_n0b0d1-d37rdzb.jpg</a> suits them quite well, except they have two sets of legs and one set of arms, otherwise this is spot on for males and females.


    Bonus unrevealed race: Theyre going to be similar to Katt''s second form from Breath of Fire 2. http://i.imgur.com/GHUYEmC.jpg</a> Main difference being no tails and smaller ears that still look demonic/bat-like. They''ll be showing up next chapter so get hype!


    Also know that I probly won''t be posting a chapter tomorrow or later today. Gonna be busy exploring vast expanses of nothing in No Man''s Sky until I get bored.