ã€ŠSeeker of the Unknownã€‹


 Chapter 1

    Ezekiel''s head turned as heard rustling and thumping coming from just off the trail signalling yet another mob of kangaroos or wallabies ahead. All the animals he had seen or heard today had been acting strangely. Usually the kangaroos at the national park were relaxed enough around people, that you could get within 10 metres or so of them before they started to react to somebody''s presence, used to all the people that visited Wilsons Promontory National Park for a chance to see the Australian wildlife in their natural habitat.

    He had come late october and was planning on to spend a week camping before the work started to get crazy leading up to christmas. The weather was usually just starting to warm up without it being too hot outside yet or without it being packed with tourists and other campers like the summer months were. He had checked the weather in the weeks leading up to his camping trip hoping it would hold good and despite some cloud cover the weather should be good. Ezekiel was using this time to unwind and destress to help him get through the Christmas rush.

    Despite the near perfect conditions for his trip he still felt a bit off about it since he woke up. He had woken with a splitting headache which he had hoped would go away after taking some medicine and drinking plenty of water, his headache had lessened but remained.

    Even the drive out had set him on edge. The animals he drove past were acting strangely, the livestock he drove past were either running around in the paddocks or huddled together in the corners with heads held high reacting to the noise of his car as if expecting danger rather than the normal slow, uncaring attitude they seemed to have while eating grass. He also saw more kangaroos hopping near the road which he usually wouldn¡¯t have seen till he arrived at the park despite knowing they were present in the area; they were most often seen around dusk or dawn. Not the late morning when he was driving. Even the birds were reacting to the slightest noise, quickly taking flight into the air when they heard the sound of his car.

    It was starting to make him nervous thinking of all the documentaries he had seen that talked about how animals often reacted first to earthquakes or volcanic eruptions before people did. Ezekiel wasn¡¯t too concerned about earthquakes or eruptions due to the few volcanoes in Australia being dormant or extinct and not being near any tectonic plates making earthquakes uncommon and weak when they did occur. While he had experienced several tremors in his life, they usually rattled the windows for a couple of seconds and that was the worst it got.

    Ezekiel considered whether a storm might be blowing in. It was unlikely with him keeping an eye on the weather forecast leading up to this trip but was still a slim possibility. Once he got to the top of Mount Oberon he would hopefully be able to get some reception to confirm the weather report. If it was going to storm he would rather wait it out at the carpark near the store and ranger station than be stuck halfway to his campsite hungry, wet and cold in a sudden change of weather. He was here to relax and enjoy himself and his time away from people, not spend it shivering and wet in a hastily constructed tent.

    He was just approaching the top of Mount Oberon when a single wallaby came jumping out of the bushes startling him. It almost felt like the animal had been waiting for him to get close before jumping out but it was just acting as all the other animals he had seen today had been, hiding or running.

    Reaching the top he took off his heavy backpack and hat, placing them on the ground grateful for the relief before continuing the hike. It was a relief to take off the backpack, he was reasonably fit, going to the gym several times a week but the backpack with all his camping supplies would still be relatively heavy no matter how fit he was and he had just walked up the mountain which while not the steepest or largest mountain still added to the difficulty of carrying the pack.

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    Running his hands through his short red hair he shielded his blue eyes from the sun that had just peaked out from behind some cloud cover. Taking a moment to look out over the view of the National Park that was the most southern point of mainland Australia, and the ocean that disappeared over the horizon.

    Wishing the lingering headache had cleared up already Ezekiel took out his phone, checking that he definitely had reception he looked up the weather report which still showed the same as the days leading up to his camping trip, cloudy for a few days before clearing.

    Before putting his phone away Ezekiel considered whether he should take a picture of the view or not. It wasn¡¯t his first time nor would it likely be his last time at this spot and he nearly always considered the same thing. He was never quite able to capture the view as it truly was on a camera or his phone and trying to get the perfect shot took away from his experience of it. Not that there weren¡¯t amazing photos taken by talented people out there but he was not one of those people. He had always tried to imprint the views and the important moments of his life in his memory.

    Ezekiel sat enjoying the view for 10 minutes. He felt like his concerns were disappearing as he looked out and took in the moment, he just wished his headache would clear. Picking up his pack he set off down Mount Oberon towards his campsite. He still had a couple hours to go before reaching it and he wanted to be able to relax for a while after setting up his tent and carrying his pack for several hours.

    He had just started heading down the path when all the birds in the surrounding bushland created an almost deafening amount of noise and took flight. Massive flocks of a wide variety of birds creating chaos in the air. Soon after, he heard animals rustling and moving in the surrounding bushland. While none seemed to be moving towards him at the moment he was sure he would still have them cross his path sooner or later with the way the day had been going.

    Feeling the creeping tension come flooding back after the sudden noise and flight of the birds. Despite his logical mind assuring him there was no immediate danger he still felt the need to get out of there as quickly as possible. He had always been observant and good with animals, quick to pick up their cues and seeing the way the animals had been acting all day had been setting him on edge and to see them all react close to the same time was enough of a warning for him. If animals were acting strangely it was usually a good sign to get out of the area before whatever was going to happen, happened.

    He had been heading back for a few minutes when he heard a ramble, like distant thunder which slowly got louder building into a deafening roar till it felt like his eardrums would burst. Suddenly the noise cut off, making him wonder if his eardrums had burst due to the sudden lack of noise, but he could still hear the birds screeching in the sky.

    A few seconds passed before he saw trees in the distance begin to move as if caught in a mighty gust of wind. Ezekiel started sprinting down the path, if the weather was going to be this extreme and quick to change then he didn¡¯t want to be caught out in the open or in the middle of the forest. He wanted to be either inside a building or his car.

    The wind hit him just after he started to run down the path. He didn¡¯t feel like he was getting blown back by the wind, but when it hit, he felt as if all his strength had been taken away, not due to the wind but his body just couldn¡¯t move forward despite how much he willed it too. It was like he had hit the wall when exercising at the gym despite his mind being willingly his body couldn¡¯t go further. It was with shock that he felt an overwhelming rush of energy flood through his body as he felt both exhausted and more alive than he ever had in his life. It was with this contradictory feeling running through his mind and body that he collapsed backward unconscious.

 Chapter 2

    Ezekiel woke up to the feeling of something heavy landing on his body. Before he even opened his eyes he could feel whatever it was moving up his body. It took him a minute to process the feeling as he was feeling groggy from passing out, when he finally realised that something was on his chest he opened his eyes to see too many legs and fangs too close to his face for comfort, he jerked his arm in surprise knocking it off his chest.

    Quickly scrambling to his feet, heart pounding from waking up to what must be a nightmare. He couldn¡¯t take his eyes off the spider in front of him. Being Australian, he was used to seeing his fair share of spiders both big and small. This spider was on a different scale even by Australian standards.

    The spider''s body was about the size of a cat with legs that spread out making it almost 3 times bigger due to how long they were. It had fangs easily the length of his fingers. The spider was varying shades of grey and brown with an almost blue shimmer to them.

    The spider seemed  to be watching him a little too intently for him to feel comfortable though it was hard to tell with the 8 eyes. He wasn¡¯t sure he could easily squash this spider like the ones that invaded his home and as he took a step back the spider took several steps closer to him.

    Slowly turning his head, trying not to make any sudden moves, he tried to see if he could spot a decent sized stick or something to use as a makeshift weapon on the ground around him while keeping the spider in his sight. Not seeing anything that looked big enough or strong enough to help. Ezekiel slowly started slipping out of his backpack and took three slow steps back hoping the spider wouldn¡¯t follow him.

    As he took the third step the spider started quickly advancing towards him. In disgust and self preservation Ezekiel swung his backpack around and down onto the spider. Unfortunately the spider had slowed just as he swung his bag so instead of getting the spider he only got 2 of its legs, causing it to awkwardly rear up baring its fangs at him threateningly.

    Not giving it another chance he quickly swung his pack, awkwardly hitting the spider''s front half down and into the ground half squashing its head and another leg. Swinging his bag down again onto the spider''s head properly. He was about to back away from it thinking the fight was over when he saw the unbroken legs twitch.

    ¡°AHHH!¡± he yelled as he kept swinging his bag till the spider''s body was completely crushed.

    ¡°Gross!¡± he exclaimed, trying to wipe off some of the spider''s blood from his face. Taking several steps back looking at what was left of the spider. Feeling a rush of adrenaline running through him at the close call with the spider ¡°What the hell kind of spider was that?¡± he asked himself.

    Pulling out his phone to take a picture as evidence, the screen lit up before turning black. Trying again the screen flickered for a second before turning off completely. Knowing nobody would believe his story about a giant spider attacking him without some evidence he did a quick search of the forest around the path. Breaking off two decent looking branches from a tree.

    Approaching the remains of the spider, using the sharper end of both branches he managed to break off one of the spider''s legs off its corpse. This would be his ¡®trophy¡¯ to prove to others that his giant spider was real. He briefly inspected both branches. Seeing the end of the branches covered with the spider''s insides he hurled them into the bushes.

    Breaking another branch from a tree and dejectedly looking at the disgusting state his backpack was in, he opened it trying his best to avoid any of the spider guts on it and pulled out some rope to tie the leg onto his backpack. As he was tying the knots, he remembered eating tarantulas in Cambodia and he briefly considered what the spider would taste like. He wasn¡¯t quite at the point where he was willing to try cooking and eating his ¡®trophy¡¯ or any of the remains, especially with a backpack with actual food to last him several days in it.

    Pulling his backpack on he briefly looked for his hat and not seeing it anywhere set off down the track once more, hoping his trip back down to his car and the rangers station wouldn¡¯t involve anymore spiders.

    While he not quite power walked down the path he checked over his shoulder and his surroundings regularly trying to keep an eye out for another spider or something else that might decide he was a meal. He would need to warn the park rangers and anyone else he saw on his way down to the station and warn people of spiders like that being a possibility.

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    As he walked he started to notice more insects on the path and in the bushes around him. There were always bugs and spiders around, usually flies that would buzz around you while you were walking and other insects just flying or crawling around. He noticed them this time because there seemed to be much larger insects than he was used to, while not the size of the spider he woke up to, they were still noticeably bigger than he remembered some of these insects being. While these insects weren¡¯t anywhere near the size of the spider there were enough around that were two or three times larger than he thought they should be.

    As he continued down the track, keeping his head on a swivel to try and spot any danger he hadn¡¯t thought to look up as something hit him directly on top of his head. He turned around quickly, stick raised ready to hit something and looking into the sky to see if he could spot anything. There weren¡¯t many branches overhanging the path so he had a clear enough view of the sky overhead and couldn¡¯t see anything.

    Looking down he noticed a round gray ball near his feet. It was roughly the size of a tennis ball and from how his head felt, quite hard. Looking around and not seeing anything strange he tapped it a couple times with his stick.

    When nothing happened he bent down to get a closer look at the ball which seemed to be segmented strangely. Poking it again with the stick he saw a crack appear and suddenly a multitude of thin legs came out as it unfolded. Without thinking Zeke stood up and swung the stick as hard as could, hitting the creature into the surrounding trees.

    The ball filled with legs hit a tree before falling to the ground, looking once more like a ball. Watching it and waiting for it to uncurl again, it couldn¡¯t have been more than 5 seconds before the creature uncurled and getting his first proper look at it he realised it was a giant roly poly or pill bug. The bug, seemed unfazed by being hit by his stick, didn¡¯t seem interested in him. It briefly waved its antennas around for a few seconds before it slowly started to walk away from him further into the forest.

    After watching the pill bug walk off into the bushes Ezekiel turned around and continued down the path making sure to look up as well this time. He had probably only walked a few metres before, despite keeping an eye on his surroundings something smacked him in the back of the head.

    Quickly spinning again he saw what he hoped was a different pill bug on the ground, rolled up as a grey ball. It looked a little bigger and darker than the previous pill bug, so he didn¡¯t think it was the same bug as before. Hoping it wasn''t the same pill bug and that this one would be just as uninterested in him, he hit it softly off the path and into the plants beside the path with his stick.

    Being slightly suspicious of the bug he watched it unroll and instead of going into the bushes this one walked back across the path. This one showed as little interest in him as the previous one had. In case they had somehow learnt to fly or fling themselves through the air to attack people he kept watching till it was well out of sight in the bushes.

    Glancing around a final time he hadn¡¯t gone more than two steps when something hit his backpack which felt much bigger than the pill bugs and he could feel that it was moving about as it hit him.

    Dropping his pack as quickly as he could he spun around to see a giant bull ant the length of his forearm. He had been bitten often as a kid by these ants when he tried collecting them or happened to play near their nest accidentally and knowing how painful their bites could be, he didn¡¯t give it a chance to try and bite him and swung his stick down multiple times till it stopped moving. Ezekiel once again felt a rush like he did when killing the spider, not quite as strong but still noticeable. This was a bit concerning to him as usually he was the type to try and avoid killing any animal or bug where possible and to feel the way he did after killing them. This made him wonder if maybe he had hit his head when he fell earlier and caused himself some sort of brain damage. Especially considering all the giant bugs he was seeing, it would explain a lot if he had happened to fall and hit his head.

    Knowing either way answers and questions could be found and asked at the rangers station he decided to wait questioning his health till then.

    Inspecting his backpack to ensure it wasn¡¯t damaged by the ant, he inspected both his stick and the ant. Seeing his stick had held up well and wasn¡¯t too covered in ant he decided to keep it instead of replacing it trusting it to once more do what he needed it to.

    Taking a deep breath he yelled ¡°Is someone out there? Stop throwing bugs at me and come out! I know these bugs can¡¯t fly, and this isn¡¯t funny, show yourself!¡±

    Laughter rang out from the trees just off the path to his right. Being determined to catch whoever was messing with him, he ran into the forest to confront whoever was doing this. Seeing small movement between the trees and bushes, he ran after whoever it was throwing bugs at him. Hoping no other large bugs or spiders would cross his path while pursuing this person he ran deeper into the forest after them.

 Chapter 3

    As he ran through the forest Ezekiel, he was slowed by the trees and uneven ground that threatened to trip him, though it didn¡¯t seem to slow the elusive figure he was chasing as much as it seemed to affect him, as they only seemed to be getting further away as his glimpses of movement became fewer and farther between.

    ¡°Get. Back here!¡± he shouted, between breaths as he ran.

    As he ran around a large tree he saw what appeared to be a purple tear in the air, with its edges cracked and splintered, that looked as if someone had punched a hole in the reality. Not having enough space to stop he tried to throw himself to the side to avoid whatever it was hanging in the air. Just as he thought he was going to avoid making it, his lower leg passed through a glowing crack and he felt the world shift.

    The feeling only lasted for a second before he landed on his stomach. He felt disoriented almost like he had just been on a rollercoaster, with the sharp drops and quick turns he felt a bit lost and confused due to the unusual feeling as he slowly got to his hands and knees and started to stand up.

    As he stood up straight, he heard laughter again from behind him. Turning quickly it took a moment for his brain to register what he was seeing. The person had straight jet black hair, olive skin and was dressed in a black outfit. What really made him stop and consider what he was looking at was the fact she was only about one foot tall with iridescent blue eyes and wings fluttering keeping her several feet off the ground. Though he knew that fairies were only a myth, it was hard to deny what he was looking at with his own two eyes.

    ¡°Are you done standing there with that idiotic look on your face?¡± she criticised, in a sarcastic tone. ¡°I know that I am quite magnificent to look at but even for me this has dragged on longer than I imagine anyone would be comfortable with.¡±

    ¡°Maybe it is something on my face,¡± she said, raising her hand up and brushing away imaginary dirt and then running a hand down one of her wings. ¡°or maybe there is something on your face.¡± she said, as she finished talking she flung a handful of what looked like blue glitter into his face.

    It went everywhere as glitter tends to do including his eyes ¡°AHHH, why did you do that for? my eyes!¡± frantically rubbing and blinking his eyes trying to remove the glitter that felt like it was burning his eyes.

    ¡°Maybe that will teach you to keep your eyes to yourself then, human. You have probably never even had a lady friend with a reaction like that. I know you humans have womenfolk among your people, surely you have seen at least one person of the opposite sex in your life. Maybe you -¡±

    ¡°Would you shut up! What the heck did you throw in my face? Seriously, what are you?¡± Ezekiel said, rubbing his eyes.

    ¡°What do you mean what am I?¡± she responded, almost sounding insulted. ¡°I thought it was plain to see what i am, do you ask everybody you meet what they are? How about you use your own eyes and your own brain to figure out what I am. You are clearly capable of speech so I would assume you are capable of thought. Are you dim of wit as well as sight¡± she continued sounding more and more mocking as she continued to talk.

    ¡°I can barely see anything now because of you, let alone look at you again. Why did you have to throw glitter in my face?¡± he responded with even more anger.

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    ¡°Well you only got what you deserved, looking at me like that. I could have taken one of your eyes to teach you a real lesson, I have done worse to others for lesser reasons than someone looking at me too long.¡± she said, sounding almost too reasonable with her ridiculous statement

    ¡°All I have done since I first found you lying on the ground was try to help you, I saw that you were in need of a bit of extra essence, as you seemed like you had somehow been drained of every drop from within you. I found a spider I thought you would be capable of easily killing and dropped it on you as you were about to wake up. I thought it was something you would appreciate and give you just a bit of something extra to get you up and moving when you woke up. Being as drained as you were, it could only have helped you. Though maybe I should not have tried to help you and left you where I found you for whatever may have come along.¡± she finished

    ¡°What do you mean you put that giant spider on my chest? What if it had bitten me? It could have easily killed me?¡± he yelled back at her in disbelief. His eyesight was finally starting to clear and the burning receded enough that he could start to focus on her figure again.

    ¡°That was not a giant spider,¡± she said, laughing incredulously. ¡°It was not even a baby giant spider. If I had found a giant spider, I would have burnt down most of that forest and I would still be searching for their nest, let alone trying to help a human in need.¡±

    ¡°I would have stopped the spider from biting you if you hadn¡¯t woken up. As a member of the Fae Court, you should know that hospitality is one of our most sacred laws. Hospitality is a sacred law for the fae court. But how we choose to help is not always as simple as you would think¡±

    ¡°That spider was huge, it was as big as a cat¡± he said in disbelief as his eyes finally cleared fully and he could see her properly again. ¡°Are you really a fairy?¡± he asked

    ¡°My name is Ilmarillion, I am one of the fae and a member of the Faerie Kings Court¡± she said with added emphasis ¡°do not call anyone who is part of the Court, a fairy,¡± she said with disgust ¡°I am a faerie, there is a difference and you would do well to learn it quickly.¡± she said while pointing her finger at him, in what he assumed was a threatening manner but was hard to take that way considering the size difference, it was almost funny.

    ¡°That spider was barely worth mentioning," she continued ¡°it had barely any essence contained within it, the only reason I left it for you was that it would not have benefitted anyone else as most beings have more essence than that little spider.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the difference between fairy or faerie? It sounds the same to me. Also that spider was not little, it was as big as a cat!¡± Ezekiel exclaimed, his voice rising in volume towards the end.

    ¡°What is your name by the way?¡± she asked, without answering his questions as she flew higher.

    ¡°My name is Zeke or Ezekiel is my full name. Sorry i should have said so sooner.¡± he answered

    ¡°Well Zeke or Ezekiel¡± she said ¡°You really should have kept your voice down. Better prepare to deal with those¡± she responded pointing behind me.

    As he turned around he saw several large insects coming towards him that almost looked like giant mole crickets. Mole crickets had always seemed a little freaky to him whenever he had found them growing up. These were downright terrifying though. They were not quite knee high and their body was about a metre long. They were all a dark brown colour with black and light brown alternating stripes running down their back. Their front limbs were longer and more serrated than he thought they had any right to be. The top half of their heads was taken up by large compound eyes and the bottom half was taken up by their large mouths which seemed to have four separate mandibles he saw when one opened its mouth and gave a chittering screech.

    Taking a step back he looked up at Ilmarillion for help as she responded ¡°I led you here to see if you deserved my help, everything here should be weak enough for you to handle on your own. Maybe try not being too loud though you would not want to draw everything within this rift to us at once as that probably would be too much for you to handle.¡±

    ¡°I am sure there are more of these insects in the forest so I would not go too far away from this clearing or you might end up with even more of them chasing you¡± she said.

 Chapter 4

    Taking a worried step back he looked at the insects approaching him. Feeling his heart beginning to race, he tried convincing himself that if he had been able to beat the spider, surely he could defeat these as well. He quickly counted how many of the bugs were coming at him. Two of the insects were approaching him from the same direction with one only slightly behind the other while a third and fourth were further away approaching from his right at different angles.

    Looking at the front legs of the giant mole crickets he was able to tell that if they managed to catch him with one it would not end well for him as they looked extremely sharp. Fortunately for him while the front legs were longer and dangerous looking he would still have more reach than them with his stick. He just needed to make sure they didn¡¯t surround him or else he was sure to get cut by one of those legs and that would be enough to cripple him and most likely lead to his quick death by the crickets.

    He could tell that he was faster than the crickets most likely due to their large bodies but he was unsure if they could hop like a real cricket could because they didn¡¯t have the large legs generally seen on grasshoppers or regular crickets. He hoped this meant they wouldn¡¯t be able to suddenly spring forward but he wasn¡¯t sure so planned on being wary of just such an action happening.

    Knowing offense was sometimes the best defense, he slipped his backpack off and raised his stick hoping it would be strong enough to hurt these mole crickets if that¡¯s what they were. He took several quick steps towards the pair in the lead and swung his stick down at one of the crickets in the lead. The stick hit its thorax and glanced off of it and struck the joint of one of the front serrated legs.

    Raising the stick a second time the creature lifted only one of its serrated front legs to attack him. Not giving it a chance to strike he quickly stepped away from the insects and continued to retreat while he took a second to assess the damage that he must have done. While the hit to the thorax didn¡¯t seem to do much if any damage to the insect, the deflected blow to the leg seemed enough to at least damage it enough that it could no longer use the leg properly anymore.

    Knowing the legs and joints were a weakness now he planned on taking advantage of that the best he could by trying to disable first before finishing them off. It might not be the nicest way to finish them but better than any other way he currently had at the moment.

    Backing up further to allow the uninjured one to pull ahead of the other, he took a quick step forward swinging his stick down aiming for the legs. With the swing aimed at the top segment of leg this time it received the full force of his blow and with a crunch he broke one leg causing it to list to one side. As it drew close enough to attack with its remaining front leg he swung his stick quicker but with less force which was still enough to cripple its other front leg. While its main way of attacking seemed to be taken care of he was still not willing to get near its mandibles and let it get a bite of him.

    As the first cricket came limping around the now crippled cricket he swung once more. Zeke expected this to go as easy as the last had unfortunately as he swung the cricket raised its serrated leg in time to catch stick on its legs and instead of breaking as he expected the leg to do it cut clean through the stick. Luckily for him his swing still continued with the remaining stick and connected with the crickets head knocking it to the side but doing no noticeable damage to its head.

    Backing up a few steps to give himself some room from the cricket with the one working serrated leg he checked on the two crickets coming from further away. He still had a few more seconds before the third one reached him and the fourth was not far behind that.

    Taking a careful step forward he swung again making sure to avoid the serrated front leg and aimed for the joint again. Connecting and breaking the joint meant he had now disabled two crickets that while they could still chase him, they were much slower and less dangerous so long as he stayed away from their mouths

    Just because he had crippled two of them didn¡¯t mean the battle was won yet though. Running around both the injured crickets he approached the third cricket hoping to disable the third crickets front legs before the last one reached him as well. Swinging his stick down, he wasn¡¯t sure if this cricket was slightly smarter and had seen what had happened to its fellow crickets or was just due to this particular crickets nature. Instead of pressing towards him as the others had, this cricket stopped and took a step back causing his swing to miss. As soon as the stick hit the ground in front of the cricket it swung its front legs at the stick cutting it in half before lunging forward towards him.

    Quickly backing up he was glad that he had the edge in speed and was able to get out of the crickets reach but the cricket was still advancing on him with its legs ready to swing at him. Looking at the last of his stick, he threw it at the crickets face hoping to distract it while he retreated further.

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    Panicked now he was without a weapon he called out to Ilmarillion as he continued to retreat, circling around the injured crickets ¡°I don¡¯t have a weapon anymore, can you do anything to help me now?¡±

    ¡°I could easily conquer this entire rift with both hands behind my back while I was sleeping. You, I am sure, will be able to manage it. But since you asked human, I will help you.¡± Ezekiel felt a sense of relief before she continued ¡°you should find yourself another weapon¡± she said laughing.

    ¡°THAT IS NOT HELPFUL!¡± I yelled running further away.

    ¡°Well you do need another weapon do you not? I would say that was very helpful advice.¡± she responded fluttering several metres above him as he ran ¡°just remember they are bugs, deal with them how you would any other bug.¡±

    Seeing the faerie wasn¡¯t going to help him he quickly started scanning the area around him looking for another easy to grab stick or large rock he might be able to scoop up and throw at the crickets.

    Frantically scanning his surroundings he couldn¡¯t see any branches or rocks large enough to easily grab and use as a weapon. Seeing a low hanging branch he jumped as ran past another tree and grabbed onto it and using both his momentum and weight pulled the branch off with a crack. Looking at his new¡­weapon he wasn¡¯t sure how effective this was going to be as one end was a mess of smaller branches and leaves. He would be lucky if he was able to get one good swing with this.

    Not having more time to consider his options he swung the branch at the cricket closest to him. As expected he couldn¡¯t swing it accurately or with enough strength to hit the leg or joint hard enough to damage it. Quickly he pulled the stick back before swinging it again, this time with the leafy end, hoping to entangle or blind the leading cricket. Dropping his branch he continued circling the small clearing making some space between him and the crickets hoping to find something better to use. Looking back he saw that the cricket wasn¡¯t slowed much as it used its serrated forelimbs to make short work of his stick cutting all the foliage in its face down quickly.

    Seeing the cricket cut off most of the leaves and smaller branches that had been in its way gave him an idea. Luring the insects away from the stick was not hard as they were only interested in him. He anxiously evaded the two uninjured ones while waiting for the injured ones to move far enough away, as he lured them all into the trees around the outside of the clearing. This gave him the space to circle around them and grab the branch he had just discarded and used as a distraction.

    Scooping up the branch he quickly inspected it and seeing that it was almost usable as a weapon against the crickets he pointed the end with the extra branches and leaves into the lead crickets face again watching as it sliced through them with ease. Leaving him with a not very straight stick he could once again use to attack them with. Seeing that the end of the branch had been sliced at an angle by the crickets it had left him with a pointed end. He hoped he might be able to use it as a spear to stab the crickets with.

    Timing his attack so as not to have his new weapon halved straight away, he attacked on the side that the cricket had just placed one of its front legs down to step with. Knowing the exoskeleton would probably be too hard to pierce with his makeshift spear he targeted what he hoped would be another weak point. Aiming at the creature''s eye the stick pierced it with minimal resistance causing the creature to collapse and its legs to twitch randomly.

    Seeing that it worked once he backed up pulling the branch out of the cricket as he went. As the next cricket approached he once more tried to spear the eye to kill it in one shot. Because of the unwieldiness of his makeshift spear it was not a clean hit and as it hit the cricket, the spear twisted in his grip causing it to not go half as the strike on the last cricket. This caused the creature to release another chittering screech before it again tried to attack him.

    Due to the damaged eye, the pain, damaging some part of its brain or possibly all three things, the creature started to walk in a circle lashing out with its front limbs repeatedly. Seeing that the three crickets left were all injured and the most recent one had some sort of damage to its brain, he let the two he injured first approach him slowly. Taking more time with his next thrust so that he hit it cleanly making sure his grip on the spear was firm so that it wouldn¡¯t shift unexpectedly as he hit the eye he made another clean strike on one of the crickets killing it.

    Backing up to give himself more time to prepare properly for the next cricket he once more lunged forward with his spear catching the cricket just below the eye watching as it slid across the exoskeleton on its face before slipping along its side leaving him over extended and his hand to close to the creature''s mouth as it lunged forward trying to bite him.

    Dropping his spear he avoided catching his hand though it was a little too close for comfort as he felt the wind from its mandibles closing centimetres from his fingers. Circling the clearing again making sure to avoid the cricket with the damaged eye that seemed to be stuck going in a circle he once more collected his spear before attacking the injured cricket still following him. This time his aim was true and he killed it with no more problems leaving one more cricket to go.

    As he approached the last cricket he saw its unpredictable swings of its front legs and with the circle it was going around in made it hard for him to get in front of it. Using his spear more like a club he swung it at the creature''s legs as it passed, disabling first the legs on one side and then the other side. Wanting to end this quickly and put the cricket out of its misery, he started to go around its damaged legs when a sudden blow from behind, knocked him in the forwards causing him to fall onto the cricket.

 Chapter 5

    He heard and felt the sickening crunch of the cricket, quickly followed by a squelch and an awful smell that washed over him as he crushed the cricket beneath him. Closing his eyes and mouth quickly to avoid anything that might splash into them he scrambled to his feet. Turning around to look for what had knocked him over he saw Ilmarillion hovering there with a broad smile on her face.

    ¡°See, you dealt with it like you would any other bug, you squashed it¡± she said smugly. ¡°My advice despite you dismissing it was helpful.¡±

    ¡°Helpful! That was not helpful. Now I am covered in bug guts and stink¡± zeke said crossly. ¡°I had that under control and didn¡¯t need your help to kill that bug you made me squash.¡±

    Breathing through his mouth he could still taste the smell and he had to stop himself from gagging because he knew if he gagged once he probably wouldn¡¯t be able to stop himself from vomiting.

    Ilmarillions eyes sparked with anger as she flew up and into Ezekiel''s face. ¡°You were the one who asked for my help and I gave you the help you needed. First,  get another weapon which you did. Second was to deal with them like you would any other bug which would be to squash it.¡± she explained threateningly ¡°I have helped you four times now and you have yet to even thank me for a single one. You do not want to break the laws of hospitality with one of the fae as it will only lead to your misfortune.¡±

    ¡°Thank you!¡± he exclaimed angrily ¡°for what? nearly letting a spider and these crickets almost kill me! Thank you for nearly getting me killed.¡±

    ¡°You are welcome¡± she replied laughing. ¡°See, was that so hard? You might also want to remember to keep your voice down or you might attract more of those insects.¡±

    ¡°Now I have a few questions for you I am interested in having answered. How did you get yourself into such an abysmal state when I found you? You had almost no essence or mana within you and while being drained of mana is common enough having so little essence within yourself was rather surprising. I have rocks that have more essence than you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, I don¡¯t even know what essence is. I was going camping and animals were acting strange then there was a noise like thunder and a strong wind hit me before I passed out.¡± Ezekiel said ¡°and then I woke up to that giant spider you so helpfully dropped on to my chest.¡±

    ¡°I have already told you it was not a giant spider. By the way you were behaving upon waking and have continued behaving, being manaless and having almost no essence has not been bothering you as much as I would have expected¡± Ilmarillion responded.

    Now that he had a moment to catch his breath and was talking with someone about his experiences it started to hit him how crazy everything that had happened really was.

    ¡°Am I actually dreaming?¡± Ezekiel asked himself out loud ¡°maybe I''m sleeping, fairies and giant bugs and spiders aren¡¯t real. I have to be dreaming¡±

    As he finished talking Ilmarillion darted forward quicker than he expected and stabbed him on the left hand in the fleshy part of his hand between his thumb and index finger with a small dagger. He hadn¡¯t even noticed that she had a dagger strapped to a belt she wore.

    ¡°What the heck!?¡± he exclaimed trying to keep his voice low despite the pain

    ¡°That is a warning and a lesson, I am a faerie, not a fairy and that spider was not a giant spider. I do not like repeating myself. Now if that hurts and you are bleeding¡± she said gesturing at my hand ¡°you most likely are not asleep.¡±

    ¡°Well if you are really a faerie, then show me some magic.¡± Ezekiel demanded, holding his hand watching as blood started to slowly run down his fingers.

    With an exaggerated flourish she conjured a ball of fire above her head that was about the size of a grape ¡°will this prove I am a faerie?¡± She questioned ¡°or do you need something that looks more impressive, like this?¡± Suddenly the ball of fire grew to twice the size of his head and the heat was enough for Ezekiel to take several steps back to avoid being burnt.

    ¡°Now I hope that was sufficient to prove I am indeed a real faerie. I would generally consider this an insult from most having to explain what I am more than once but your situation has me more interested in why you do not believe what I say.¡± she said.

    ¡°Sorry¡± Ezekiel said ¡°I¡¯m just a bit¡­ I don¡¯t know since waking up everything has felt more intense killing those bugs felt like a rush I haven¡¯t felt before. To me fairies aren¡¯t real they are like elves and dragons and monsters under the bed only ever existed in stories¡±

    Then gesturing with his hand at Ilmarillion ¡°or at least faeries and magic weren¡¯t real to me till now¡±

    ¡°You are aware that elves, dragons and monsters are real as well are you not?¡± she questioned.

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    ¡°Though monsters rarely hide under beds I am not sure why you think that. They are more likely to smash through the wall to try to kill everyone and everything¡± she added offhandedly

    Ezekiel stared at her blankly for a second as he processed what she had just said.

    ¡°What do you mean there are elves and dragons as well?!¡± he exclaimed ¡°can I ride a dragon?¡±

    ¡°You could probably try to ride one if you were able to find one in the first place; they are not the most common of creatures. Though it would be a short flight and an even quicker death. Dragons are prideful and rarely let anyone ride them especially if it is just for the thrill of it. Though it might be a more novel approach for them than trying to slay one as so many humans seem keen on attempting.¡± she consideringly

    ¡°I think instead of trying to think of idiotic ways to die in the future, you need to focus on ways to stop yourself dying now. You will not be able to leave this rift until you have killed most of the monsters contained within it¡± she continued ¡°depending on how quickly you deal with the monsters in the rift will affect how quickly you leave the rift. I can not change how slow you are.¡±

    ¡°You mean I have to kill more of those things? Can¡¯t I just go back the way I came though?¡± he asked.

    Looking back at the hole in the air I could see it had turned almost grey and transparent in colour and the colours that once swirled and glowed within were no longer visible.

    ¡°You have already absorbed some of the essence of the rift by killing the monsters, the rift will not let you leave until it has either killed you and absorbed your essence or you have absorbed the majority of the essence in the rift by killing the monsters contained within it causing its collapse.¡± she explained

    ¡°I don¡¯t enjoy killing things though, like I would if I was going to eat it but I''d rather live and let live you know?¡± he said.

    ¡°That is a fine ideal to have but it will most likely lead to something else living while you are eaten. Rifts and the monsters contained within do not care about life, they are not like animals and beasts you will find on your world. Rifts and everything contained within them are one and the same, just a different expression of the same thing.¡± she explained.

    ¡°Everything has its own essence, different to everyone and everything else. The rift and everything contained within it all have the same essence. As you breathe the air here you are absorbing the same essence as you would from killing a monster or eating some plants.¡±

    ¡°Rifts draw in the ambient essence and mana of your world and convert it to their own slowly growing in strength and size until it breaks, releasing the creatures within which will then go out into the world slaughtering and destroying all they come across and delivering the essence gained from that destruction back to the rift. This causes it to grow faster leading to further growth of the rift, rift breaks and more destruction. If rifts are not destroyed they will eventually destroy the planet you are on, turning it into a wasteland till eventually even the rift dissipates on its own due to lack of new essence to help it grow.¡± she explained

    ¡°As you enter a rift, your body will naturally start absorbing the essence of the rift and after a certain amount of time once the rifts excess essence has been absorbed by you or you have killed a creature within the rift the entrance becomes sealed while the rift tries to reabsorb the lost essence or the creatures contained within it will seek out the source of the problem within the rift.¡±she continued

    ¡°So the rift knows I''m here? And is going to try and kill me? I didn¡¯t even want to come here. I was just chasing after you because you kept throwing bugs at me?¡± he protested.

    ¡°No, the rift doesn¡¯t know anything, it is not aware or alive. They are more like an abnormal growth you might have on your body that keeps growing. It will not actively try and hurt what it is growing on but eventually it will lead to their death if it is not removed. That is what a rift is like except on your planet.¡± she said.

    ¡°You mean like cancer?¡± He asked.

    ¡°Excellent, you know of what I am referring to, that makes things a bit easier if you have some idea of what I am talking about as you have seemed rather dull so far. I guess you can use your head after all. Yes, like cancer and it needs to be removed. If you knew the right magic you would not have even needed to enter this rift to destroy it but given how weak you are and how you struggle with even these most basic of creatures that will still be a long way off.¡± she said

    ¡°Is this like a dungeon from a video game? Am I going to find awesome treasure and rewards in here and for defeating the boss? Are you a dungeon fairy then or maybe even my own fairy guide? Are you going to be helping me complete quests and save princesses? Or use magic?¡± I asked hopefully my excitement building with every thought and question I had.

    ¡°I am not sure what a video game is or what connection a dungeon has to this rift, but you will not find treasure or rewards in here. Well you could find things in the rift you could sell as most rifts will have things from the world they are like an echo of another world. Monster parts, plants, the ground or water, I have seen or heard stories of all sorts of people taking all sorts of things out of rifts during my life.¡±

    ¡°But I do want to make one thing clear to you now. I am only here to help you because of how I found you. I am not your guide and if you want to go on a quest or save a princess you can and will be doing that on your own. I have also shown you magic already.¡± She answered.

    ¡°Now you need to stop putting this off because whether you like it or not you will need to kill more of the creatures within this rift or they will kill you¡± she said.

    Seeing my worried look she continued ¡°If you are careful and take your time you should be able to clear the rest of this rift quite easily. It is only small; you will probably only find twenty to thirty monsters in a rift like this. Just avoid drawing the attention of too many creatures at once and you should be fine.¡±

    ¡°Okay, I got this. I can do it. I¡¯ve already killed four of them without being hurt and they weren¡¯t that hard even with just a stick.¡± Ezekiel said, trying to hype himself up to the task.

    ¡°You know you sound ridiculous talking to yourself like that. Actions often prove your thoughts more than words ever will, so hurry up and start doing something. I am already getting bored.¡± she responded.

    Looking at the spider leg he had attached as proof of the giant spider, he realised that the spider wasn¡¯t as much of a threat as the crickets. Still terrifying to wake up to one on top of him though. Removing the leg he picked up his backpack and took his first step deeper into the rift. Ezekiel almost expected something to jump out and attack him. When nothing did he felt his confidence grow it might be dangerous but he could do this. He would be able to clear this rift.

 chapter 6

    As Ezekiel walked, he noticed that the trees around him weren¡¯t what he was expecting. The trees all appeared to be the same species with large leaves about the size of his hand that were a dark green colour and as he passed by a low hanging branch he pulled a leaf off to examine one. It felt almost like rubber and when he tried to tear the leaf it even stretched slightly before splitting.

    ¡°What kind of trees are these?¡± he asked Ilmarillion,

    ¡°I do not know. I have not seen trees like this before and generally only pay enough attention to the plant life to ensure it is not a danger to myself or those around me.¡± she replied. ¡°Now stop looking at the leaves and keep a look out for the creatures that are trying to kill you.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, you¡¯re right. I¡¯m currently studying conservation and the environment and had several classes and assignments about native plants and these aren¡¯t any plants that should be in this area. I¡¯ve never even heard of a plant with leaves like this.¡± he said

    ¡°That is because it is part of the rift and whatever land the rift has copied. Now stop using your mouth and start using your eyes.¡± she snapped at him.

    Looking away from the leaf and the faerie, he continued walking before something struck him on the side of the head. Glancing up, Ezekiel saw the faerie smirking and pointing to his right. Looking he saw the next cricket before it saw him, thankfully this one was on its own.

    He watched it from behind a tree trying to get a better idea of what the creatures were like. He saw it use its front legs to cut down a small tree in two quick swipes of its front legs before slowly cutting up the tree into smaller pieces and eating them. Seeing how easily it reduced the tree into a treat. It was probably more efficient than a wood chipper at destroying the tree. Imagining what the claws and mandibles could do to him made him shudder. He definitely did not want to be caught by one of these crickets.

    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± he asked Ilmarillion.

    ¡°Of course. They are weaker than you and smaller than you. If all else fails just fall on it like you did the last. Now hurry up.¡± sounding annoyed that he had even asked.

    Dropping his backpack quietly to the ground and gripping his makeshift spear he tried to approach as quietly as possible, trying to use trees and bushes as cover. He had made it slightly over half the distance when he missed a dry stick on the ground that snapped loudly in the quiet forest.

    The creature turned instantly and started heading in his direction. After his experience with the first four crickets he fought in the rift he felt more confident. Not feeling as disoriented and panicked as he had the first time due to entering the rift and meeting a faerie definitely helped as well.  Watching as it approached, he realised that they weren¡¯t that fast and appeared to move at the speed of a jog. They could probably go slightly faster if they really wanted but he would easily be able to outrun them if he had to. So long as he didn¡¯t get injured anyway.

    Taking a steadying breath he readied his spear as he let the creature draw near to him. As it got close he maneuvered around a tree forcing it to slow down even more. As it rounded the trunk he lunged forward. His spear easily pierced through its large compound eye and killing it in one blow.

    Feeling a rush of exhilaration, he exclaimed ¡°I DID IT!¡±

    ¡°You really did,¡± Ilmarillion said drily. ¡°Good job. Enjoy dealing with the others now.¡±

    His excitement evaporated instantly. Looking around he saw two more of them coming at him from different directions.

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    ¡°I¡¯m an idiot.¡± he muttered.

    Looking between the two he decided to go for the one on his right first. Cutting to the side of the cricket he forced it to change its direction slightly to intercept him. Running past the cricket forced it to nearly come to a stop as it turned to follow after him. But he hadn¡¯t gone too far but now he didn¡¯t have a cricket approaching from behind, making him feel a little safer.

    Perhaps it was his confidence from the last kill or being worried about having to face two at once again, he could tell as soon as he made his first strike, that it was no good. His grip on the spear wasn¡¯t firm enough and because the spear wasn¡¯t straight his attack missed the eye. The spear scraped down the back of the cricket without even scratching its exoskeleton.

    It tried swiping at him but he had already started jumping back before the creature had even swung its legs down at him. Heart pounding he tightened his grip on the spear. Lunging forward, he successfully pierced the eye, dropping the creature instantly to the ground.

    Looking at the last cricket, he still had a few seconds before it drew near. Seeing an opportunity, he maneuvered around the dead cricket as it came near, forcing it to slow down and climb over its fallen friend or go around. As it hesitated determining how to approach him, he realised that he could still easily reach over the dead cricket with his spear. As the cricket moved around the body he struck out, over the top of the dead cricket piercing its eye. Instead of dropping instantly like the first, this one spasmed for a minute before going still.

    He once more felt a rush of exhilaration hit him. He couldn¡¯t believe how good it felt to defeat the crickets. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was due to putting his life on the line and the adrenaline rush it gave but it felt great.

    ¡°I can see from your face that you are enjoying the feeling of absorbing the essence.¡± Ilmarillion said.

    ¡°Really? I thought that was just like an adrenaline rush. Maybe the feeling of victory and surviving a near death experience or something as well.¡± Ezekiel responded.

    ¡°Those feelings are probably mixed in with your body absorbing the essence. But after defeating the rift creatures you will have received some of the rift essence. It can be a euphoric feeling when you receive large amounts of essence at once. Especially for someone in your situation as you have next to no essence contained within you. You generally gain essence through daily life. Little bits here and there from doing just about anything. Most essence gains from daily life are so minimal you will not even notice the feeling. But destroying both the rift creatures and the rift itself give significantly more essence than you would from killing one of these creatures if it was native to your world. I can also tell you have next to no essence meaning any gains of essence are significant. If I killed one of these crickets I would barely notice the increase to my essence.¡± she explained

    ¡°Now come on, you need to get moving, I do not wish to spend more time in a rift as weak as this, than I absolutely must.¡± she said before flying away.

    Feeling some relief at knowing what he felt after killing the creatures was essence related, he felt some relief. He had been a bit concerned that he was just enjoying killing creatures for no reason, even if the rift was apparently a threat to his planet¡­

    Jogging to catch up to Ilmarillion he asked her ¡°you said rifts will destroy planets, right? How do you know rifts destroy other planets? Are you from a different planet, are you an alien?¡°

    ¡°How old are you, Ezekiel? I thought you were a fully grown human, are you actually a child? it can be so hard to tell sometimes with other races. I know you are not trying to be insulting but calling someone an alien is rude, especially if they have been helping you. To me, you are the alien. Look at you with your great big legs and body, you do not even have wings to fly.¡± she responded.

    ¡°Also if you want to continue this conversation, you should take care of those two crickets over there.¡± she said, gesturing ahead of her.

    Looking ahead he could just make out the form of two crickets. They were in a small, most likely cricket made clearing, as they were in the process of cutting down and eating the trees. Looking down he examined his makeshift spear. While it had served him better than expected, it was too unwieldy and crooked. It had already led to several of his attacks missing and almost getting him injured. He could also see the end was not as sharp as it was at the start..

    Back away to make some distance between himself and the crickets he searched for straighter and more suitable branches that he could use for a spear. Finding several long and straight

 chapter 7

    Backing away before the second cricket could reach him, he was happy to see the thrashing of the dying cricket injured one of the second crickets legs, slowing it and making it an easier target for him. Looking down at his spear ¨C or what was left of it ¨C he really wished that he had fewer crickets to deal with and more spears ready to use. Looking up he saw the faerie watching him with a smile on her face.

    glancing towards the tree where his last two potential spears rested. He had passed it earlier when he ran after the last two crickets had appeared. Regretting his choice now, he circled the injured cricket in front of him before dashing forward to grab one of the branches. He still had a few seconds before the last crickets were able to reach him.

    Returning to the already injured cricket he lashed out at the joints on its legs trying to disable it before the others reached them. He managed to damage or cripple all the legs on one side, stopping it from chasing after him. Glancing at the remaining two crickets he knew he would have to turn his attention to them before dealing any more damage to this cricket. It was effectively out of the fight now so long as he moved away from it..

    Leaving the disabled cricket and approaching the remaining two. He struck at the one on the right. His strike missed the leg because they were both jostling for the front position trying to reach him first, cracking against its back. Seeing his strike miss he knew he needed to separate them even just a little.

    Ezekiel led them over to the closest tree, keeping just ahead of them. Circling the tree caused one to get in front of the other giving him the chance he was after. Striking out quickly he managed to disable one leg before quickly striking another making sure to put enough strength into his swing to damage the other leg.

    Now that one of them was injured it didn¡¯t take him long to disable first one and then the other. Luckily, no more crickets had come during that time, which left him with three crickets he still needed to finish off. Looking at his latest branch he didn¡¯t think it would be enough to easily finish the crickets off.

    Approaching one of the dead crickets he tried using its serrated front leg to cut through his branch. The limb shifted awkwardly scraping at the end of his branch but not cutting enough away to create a point. Placing a foot on the joint and his other foot on the flat side of the serrated limb he was able to cut a clean point on the end of his spear, if a little awkwardly still.

    As soon as he was done, he returned to the disabled crickets and put them out of their misery, feeling the rush of essence once more.

    ¡°What exactly is essence? It feels pretty good getting it, but why? What do I do with it?¡± He asked Ilmarillion.

    ¡°Do you truly have no idea about essence? I thought when you asked earlier it was more due to you being a halfwit earlier, not genuinely ignorant.¡± she responded

    ¡°I¡¯m not a halfwit. I only know what you have told me so far. I can gain it from rifts and killing creatures and they can gain it by killing and destroying things.¡± He responded a bit annoyed.

    ¡°You become more and more interesting.¡± she said.

    Then she smirked. ¡°Alright, I will try not to treat you like a halfwit. Instead I will treat you like a child who knows nothing and is just as likely to eat dirt as actual food.¡±

    ¡°Essence can be gained from more than just rifts and killing.¡± she continued ¡°though those are the quickest ways of gaining essence. Your body will naturally convert your excess mana generation into essence. You also gain tiny amounts through eating, drinking and even breathing. You can also gain it through crafting and various professions as well.¡±

    Floating lazily above him as she talked, he noticed that while her wings flapped she didn¡¯t actually need them to fly. Making him realise it was probably more to do with magic than the wings.

    ¡°When I said that I have rocks with more essence than you I was not just mocking you I was serious. Everything contains essence and mana to some degree and when I first found you, you had almost none. I have never seen that before, except for newborns but even then some still had more than you.¡±

    ¡°Now, there are three main paths people follow to gain essence. The first path are those who seek to gain essence through meditation, enlightenment and often consuming rare and exotic materials that have naturally high essence. They often try to find areas with naturally higher mana and essence spending years in seclusion. Honestly, I do not understand why anyone follows this path. A single monster in the right rift would give you similar essence as you would do following this path. It appeals to lots of pacifists though so maybe you would like it. But when faced with a rift that needs to be closed, someone needs to be able to go in and clear it.¡±

    ¡°Often the people who follow this path seem to suffer delusions of grandeur for some reason. I think it has to do with the months and years in solitude driving them crazy. They will come out of seclusion thinking they know the mysteries of the universe and have gained ultimate power.¡± she said rolling her eyes

    ¡°There are plenty of people who follow this path. It does work which is why I tell you about it, despite my own views on it.¡± she said

    ¡°The second path is through crafting and professions. They will not gain as much essence at once as killing a monster would provide but often the long term essence gained from professions is higher than any other. But this path depends on the materials they work with and the knowledge and skill they have. Each material they work with still contains essence and as they work, refining the materials and combining it with others, improving upon the original material and creating a better product the more essence rewarded at the end. This is why the better quality materials they work with the better essence gain for them. But if they lack the knowledge and skill to work with the materials they will not receive a high return in essence. Many people, especially those not seeking danger or willing to risk their lives will try this path. This can be a good path forward as it is safe and can be very rewarding both for money and essence but it takes time, dedication and skill.¡±

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    ¡°The last path I have already mentioned, is the quickest and most dangerous path. We will call it the path of destruction. Killing creatures will gain you a portion of their essence. Some of the essence will dissipate and return to the world and some will remain with the body which is partly where some professions can gain essence. The most rewarding and dangerous is destroying rifts as you gain the majority of the essence it has accumulated over its existence. This rift has not been active long so you will not get much from it.¡± she finished explaining.

    ¡°There are more ways to gain essence than I have explained, some can be rather obscure. Just experiment and find what works for you. The most important thing about any path is that it is the path you desire.¡± she finished.

    Thinking about what he had heard, he collected his two discarded branches and returned to the cricket he had used earlier to make a spear. Sharpening them into spears he then tied them to his backpack keeping the one in his hand ready to use if needed.

    ¡°So you said crafting provides essence right? So why didn¡¯t I feel the same rush, when I made these spears then, like when I killed the crickets?¡± he asked.

    Ilmarillion laughed. ¡°You think making a stick pointy is the same as killing a rift monster? Maybe if you had used a branch from a world tree, sure. What you have, is a branch from what looks to be a fairly common tree, considering it is the only type of tree I have seen in this rift. You then spent maybe a minute sharpening all of them. When I said crafting takes time I meant that. Yes you will have gained some but you will probably have gained more essence from breathing the air in the rift than by making those spears.¡±

    Feeling slightly embarrassed for how easy he thought it would be to gain essence through crafting. He had hoped it would be easier than it apparently was.

    ¡°Come on, if you move quicker, I will explain as we go. Pick a direction and start moving. You should really learn to fly. Walking is just so slow¡± she said.

    Sighing, he looked around and started walking in the direction most of the crickets had come from. He was glad he had someone to tell him what was going on but the fairy¡­the faerie, he corrected himself. It almost felt like she was as much help as hindrance at times and seemed to enjoy watching him struggle.

    ¡°So what do you do with essence?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Essence is for improving yourself. You will keep accumulating essence over time. You use it to enhance aspects of yourself. You can use essence to improve different aspects of your body, mind, magic or even your soul. You can -¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Ezekiel interrupted. ¡°Is essence like experience in video games then? Gain enough experience and level up and become stronger then choose to improve my strength if I¡¯m a warrior or intelligence if I am a wizard? Are you sure I am not in a game? Maybe some sort of VR game?¡±

    ¡°Do not interrupt me, it is rude. We are not in a video game or VR game. I am not entirely sure what they are. But, yes, it does sound similar in that you can use it to improve your attributes.¡± she said ¡°now please let me finish.¡±

    ¡°Essence can also be used to create a focus which I would recommend you do when you figure out a path you wish to follow as the right focus can make a huge difference in your growth and success.¡± she continued. ¡°It will help you improve your own generation of mana and essence and also allow you to absorb mana from your surroundings without being affected by it.¡± she said.

    Waiting for a second to see if she was done, Ezekiel asked. ¡°So can I be a wizard? Can you teach me magic?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I guess you can be a wizard if you really want to be one. I will teach you the basics for using mana and how to form a focus, once the dungeon is collapsed. Speaking of which,¡± she said with a grin. ¡°You really need to work on your observation skills. There are two more crickets just over there. Honestly, I am amazed you have gotten this far in life without seriously injuring or killing yourself by ignoring the clear danger in front of you.¡± she answered.

    Feeling embarrassed for not noticing the crickets sooner, he dropped his backpack and readied his spear. He wasn¡¯t sure if approaching quietly would make much difference, as he wasn¡¯t able to strike the large eyes without them noticing him first anyway. But he thought it was good to practice stealth anyway. These creatures weren¡¯t ones he could attack from stealth but maybe other creatures he would face would be. Better to practice now than when it was too late.

    He was still several metres away when he stopped, having no more cover he could use to draw closer. Taking a breath he stepped out from behind the last tree he was currently using for cover. Almost instantly the crickets turned and started approaching him. Jabbing forward with his spear it easily pierced the eye and killed the first cricket.

    Turning to the next cricket, it only took a few extra seconds for it to draw near, lashing out in a near identical attack to the last time, killing it once more in a single blow.

    He was amazed for a second at how much easier it was using a weapon which was straight, with a proper point on the end of it. It hadn¡¯t tried to twist as he attacked and had cleanly gone in. The crickets were still a threat if they caught him but the reach the spears gave him made it much easier a safe distance.

    ¡°That was much better.¡± Ilmarillion said. Making Ezekiel feel proud for a moment.

    ¡°It at least did not look like you would trip over your own feet or spear this time.¡± she said laughing. ¡°But it was a lot better than before. Well done.¡±

    Unsure how he should feel after the comment, he chose to ignore the faeries comment. ¡°So are you really going to teach me magic?¡± he asked

    ¡°No, I will teach you how to use your mana and essence. That will allow you to start casting your own spells.¡± she answered. ¡°Now hurry up. The rift will not clear itself of creatures.¡±

    Feeling excited at the prospect of learning magic or atleast how to use his mana, Ezekiel once more set off into the rift to find the next cricket.

 Chapter 8

    ¡°Your body will naturally generate a certain amount of mana over time. Ilmarillion explained. ¡°The more essence you put towards your mana attribute the more mana your body will both have and naturally generate. When your mana is full the excess mana generated will be converted into essence.¡±

    ¡°So, I could just sit around relying on my mana generation to improve rather than almost dying?¡± Ezekiel asked, hopefully.

    ¡°Were you not listening earlier? One of the three main ways people gather essence is through meditation. But they also rely on rare ingredients and high ambient mana and essence areas to achieve that. You currently would be lucky if you got one part in ten thousand converted this way. This is why it is generally quicker to gain essence in ways other than relying on your mana to convert to essence. The crickets you have killed probably provide you with an equivalent amount of essence as you would gain in a year if you did not use your mana once in that time.¡±

    ¡°This is also why I recommend getting a focus, as it-¡±

    ¡°Cricket, there is a cricket.¡± Ezekiel said, pointing ahead to their left. ¡°I saw it first!¡±

    ¡°I already saw that cricket. I was waiting till we were closer to its range of hearing before stopping. Since you have seen it now though, go take care of it.¡± she commanded.

    Eager to finish the fight quickly so he could continue learning, Ezekiel rushed towards the cricket which noticed him immediately since he was heading straight at it without trying to hide. It was as he slowed down to prepare to strike that his foot caught on a root, sending him tumbling to the ground. Looking up, he saw the cricket ready to strike. Instantly rolling over and rising he felt something snag his jeans briefly.

    Taking several quick steps away, he spun to face the cricket which was close behind him. He barely had time to raise his spear, managing to knock away one of its limbs with the bottom of the spear, cutting it shorter in the process. Panicking he swung the spear down like a staff hitting one of its eyes. It let out a chittering screech and pulled back slightly giving him room to bring his spear into position to strike. This time piercing its compound eye and into its brain killing the cricket.

    Taking a breath to steady himself after the close call he looked down at the back of his leg to see what damage had been done to his jeans. His pant leg was starting to turn red with blood. The cricket¡¯s legs had cut through his pants and into his leg without him even feeling it.

    Pulling up his pant leg to inspect the wound, he was relieved to see it wasn¡¯t as bad as he initially thought. The cricket had left a cut on his calf, he could see it hadn¡¯t gone deep, but there was still enough blood to be concerning. Feeling the cut beginning to hurt as he began to pay attention to it, he quickly hobbled to his pack, trying not to use his injured leg as much as possible. Opening his bag he searched for his first aid kit. Finding it, he pulled the bandage out and wrapped it around his leg several times before tying it off.

    ¡°That was too close.¡± he muttered.

    ¡°Never be too confident or in too much of a rush when in a fight. Even the smallest mistake can get you killed if you are not careful.¡± Ilmarillion said.

    ¡°I know, but I thought since I had killed a couple with this spear without injuring myself that this time would be the same. I did that barely knowing how to use a spear and even managed it with just a branch before I got my first spear.¡± Ezekiel said.

    ¡°Well remember this moment, learn from it and never underestimate an opponent. Overconfidence can cost you your life. I would rather not have wasted my time with you.¡± she said

    Standing up, he put some weight on his leg. It felt a bit sore and tight but it shouldn¡¯t slow him down that much. Doing a short walk around he checked the bandage to see how much blood had soaked through the bandage. Not seeing any blood he picked up his pack.

    Looking up at Ilmarillion, he said. ¡°I¡¯m good to go.¡±

    ¡°If you are sure, lead the way.¡± she said, gesturing with a hand.

    ¡°So, mana becomes essence.¡± he prompted the faerie hoping to keep his mind off his leg.

    ¡°Yes, but as I said the conversion rate is abysmal. Being able to improve your mana generation helps but there is still a lot of time and preparation needed to really benefit from it. It is infinitely easier just going to kill a rift.¡± she explained, going quiet.

    Looking up at Ilmarillion to see why she had gone quiet, he walked right into something that seemed to push him back. Staggering back a step, he blinked in confusion. Looking ahead he could see the forest continuing on ahead of him, but as he looked it seemed to blur and shift. Lifting his free hand he tried to touch whatever was in front of him. The surface flexed slightly before pushing back.

    Ilmarillion burst out laughing.

    ¡°You should see your face. You really are clueless. I should not laugh at you, but the look on your face.¡± she said while laughing.

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    ¡°What the hell is it?¡± he asked angrily.

    ¡°That is the outer edge of the rift. What you see beyond reflects the world the rift was from and is now a part of.¡± she said, calming down.

    ¡°What do you mean ¡®it reflects¡¯ the world the rift was part of? Can I get to the other world if I can pass through the edge?¡± Ezekiel questioned.

    ¡°Not quite. Keep in mind that what I am telling you is the simplified version of this.¡± Ilmarillion said.

    ¡°A rift is a failed portal between two or if truly unlucky multiple worlds. Instead of linking two worlds, it has collapsed and formed its own dimensional bubble from the essence and materials absorbed from the worlds. The rift will then create an echo or reflection of one of the worlds it was connected to.¡± she explained

    ¡°The more worlds that were part of the portal originally, the more dangerous and powerful the rift will be when initially formed. Though portals can be created between worlds safely, rifts are often made from naturally occurring portals which lack the safety and failsafe¡¯s of a created portal.¡±

    ¡°Most people call the rift an echo because it uses the essence it has absorbed to recreate everything inside itself. Which is why creatures will generally behave how they would have on their own world until a foreign mana and essence is introduced.¡±

    ¡°Now the reflection you see in the dimensional membrane or edge of the rift reflects the worlds it was connected to, usually favouring the world it took the most mana and essence from. In this case the cricket¡¯s home world.¡± she explained.

    ¡°If I managed to get through the dimensional membrane would I be on the other world?¡± he asked.

    ¡°If you somehow managed to pierce the membrane, you would not only cause the dimensional collapse of the rift, you would then be pulled into the void between worlds, which would lead to a rather horrific death.¡± she said.

    ¡°Won¡¯t I be collapsing the rift by killing all the monsters though?¡± Ezekiel asked worriedly.

    ¡°Of course, why do you think I brought you along? I do not want to die from the dimensional collapse of the rift¡± she said with a mocking laugh. ¡°I already told you I could close this rift with ease if I wanted to. I led you here so you could become a selfless hero, willing to sacrifice yourself for your planet.¡±

    ¡°What the hell, I thought you were helping me! Why bother trying to teach me anything then?¡± he said, both angry at being tricked and afraid he didn¡¯t have any other choice.

    Laughing, Ilmarillion said ¡°I am only joking with you. No heroic sacrifices necessary, I swear.¡±

    ¡°The rift will collapse naturally as it runs out of essence, making it unable to sustain itself. This causes it to naturally dissipate, releasing whatever essence it still has. That is the essence you will gain the vast majority of once it collapses and what makes rifts worth clearing. There will be some that is not absorbed as no transference is ever perfect.¡± she said.

    ¡°Far out.¡± he said ¡°I seriously thought you were setting me up to die.¡±

    ¡°No, as I said earlier hospitality is a very important law to the fae and I am still trying to figure you out as well.¡± she said. ¡°Now come on, we need to keep moving¡±

    Taking one last look at the edge of the rift, he headed off in a direction that took him on an angle from his original path.

    ¡°I have taught you a lot now, I would like some of my questions answered. What planet are you from? It is exceedingly rare to have no idea that magic is real, and even rarer to be able to have as little essence as you have at your age.¡±

    ¡°We call our planet Earth mostly, some people might call it something else but Earth is what it is generally known as.¡± he answered.

    Sighing, Ilmarillion shook her head. ¡°Humans can be one of the most unimaginative races I have ever met. Okay, Earth, I know of at least twenty other planets called Earth, let alone ones called something similar like dirt, rock or sometimes just planet.¡±

    ¡°Okay¡± she said ¡°what else, what else. How many moons does Earth have? Does it only have one sun? What colour, or colours if there are more?¡±

    ¡°We only have one moon which is white though it can look yellow or red at times which I think is due to pollution in the skies. We only have one sun as well which I would say is yellow. And there are eight planets in the solar system with several dwarf planets as well if that helps.¡± he answered.

    ¡°It does help narrow things down a bit. Let me think about it for a while. What is a ¡®video game¡¯? You have referenced them several times but I am not familiar with the term.¡± she said

    ¡°A video game is a game you play on a computer, phone or console that connects to a screen. There are video games based on nearly everything: science fiction and fantasy, adventure, mystery or even just games you need to line up certain shapes to win. I prefer to play action, role playing games where I have powerful spells and abilities.¡± he explained.

    ¡°What is a computer, phone, console and screen?¡± she asked. ¡°I also thought you said you did not know any magic?¡±

    ¡°Computers, screens, phones and consoles are all a type of technology called electronics.¡± Pulling out his phone to show her. ¡°This is a phone, it hasn¡¯t worked since I got knocked out. It runs on electricity which is kind of like controlled lightning we use to power everything. The games are all just pretend. It¡¯s almost like reading a story except I control what the character does in the story. I don¡¯t know magic, it¡¯s just part of the game. I press a button and my character will do the action.¡± he tried explaining.

    Looking at the phone, Ilmarillion said. ¡°Interesting, I would love to look at it further if you can get it working any time soon. Your explanation leaves a lot to be desired though and I think I would need to see it working to truly know. Also this is taking forever, I will be right back, just keep walking.¡± she said before flying up into the sky.

    Ezekiel exhaled, feeling uneasy now he was left in the rift on his own. He hadn¡¯t realised how much he had relied on her. Even though she mocked him and brought more danger his way than necessary, it still felt better than being on his own. Slowing his pace slightly, he carefully scanned the trees as he continued walking, hoping she wouldn¡¯t be long.

 Chapter 9

    Ezekiel had been walking alone for several minutes without encountering any more crickets or Ilmarillion. He had never found being on his own in a forest that troubling before. The unnatural silence of the rift was unsettling though. There was no birdsong, smaller insects or even wind to rustle the leaves, just an eerie stillness to everything. It didn¡¯t help that the only creatures he had seen in the rift so far had all tried to kill him.

    A sudden thump behind him made him spin around, expecting another cricket. Seeing nothing out of place he looked around warily in case something was creeping up on him.

    ¡°Ilmarillion, is that you?¡± he called out cautiously.

    Soft laughter echoed through the forest. looking up he saw the faerie stepping out from behind the trunk of a tree onto a branch grinning mischievously. ¡°You really need to look up more. I have been back for a little while already.¡± she said.

    ¡°Did you find the last of the crickets then?¡± he asked, irritation from the prank evident in his voice.

    ¡°I have found two more crickets, turn to the right a little more and keep walking . You should come across them shortly.¡± she answered.

    Picking up the pace again. He really wanted to finish and leave the rift as soon as possible. It was definitely exciting but he could do with a little less life threatening excitement right now. He would rather try and figure out what was happening to the world he thought he knew.

    When he saw the crickets ahead, he dropped his pack and readied himself. Moving cautiously forward he used the trees for cover but didn¡¯t try to be completely silent in his approach.

    Halfway to the crickets, they reacted to his presence. He stepped out from behind the trees he was using as cover to better see them. He continued taking a slow approach making sure his spear was ready.

    With a quick jab, he pierced the first crickets eye. Taking several steps back he prepared for the second cricket. The second cricket died to an almost identical strike to the first.

    He knew these crickets weren¡¯t the hardest of enemies, they just blindly attacked him without any thought for strategy or self preservation. But he still felt a certain sense of accomplishment. Despite all of his mistakes, he was able to kill so many while only taking one cut. He knew it wasn¡¯t necessarily due any skill or talent he had, the spear''s reach, the size difference between him and the crickets and the crickets large eyes making for an easy target all made it possible. If he had been forced to fight with no weapon or even a shorter weapon, things could have gone very differently.

    ¡°Now I know I said there would be twenty to thirty crickets but I was only able to find these last crickets. Above ground, anyway.¡± she said.

    She took off again flying into the clearing the crickets came from ¡°Come on, it is just in the clearing.¡± she called.

    Ezekiel''s stomach dropped at her wording. Dreading what he was going to find, he followed after her. As soon as he entered the clearing, he saw that it was larger than the others he had come across so far. In the centre of the clearing stood a tree twice as tall as any he had seen in the rift so far. It almost looked as if multiple trees had been planted close to each other before fusing into the one tree. He couldn¡¯t even estimate how large the circumference of the trunk might have been. What really caught his attention though was at the base of the tree he could see multiple dark holes leading below.

    Knowing the answer but hoping he was wrong he asked Ilmarillion anyway. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to go in there aren¡¯t I?¡± he asked. ¡°The rift hasn¡¯t collapsed yet, meaning there is still too much essence left within the rift. That means, any crickets left are down there. Are you sure there were no more anywhere else?¡±

    ¡°Wow, I am impressed. I was not sure you would be able to figure that out on your own¡± she said. ¡°I flew around the rift twice to check. There are no other crickets above ground.¡±

    ¡°Damn, I hate being right.¡± he said, exhaling sharply.

    Circling the tree, he counted the number of holes. There were five separate holes leading under the tree. Two were barely large enough for a single cricket, while the largest was wide enough for two crickets to walk side by side. He wasn¡¯t claustrophobic and had gone caving several times in the past. But going down into a hole, filled with killer crickets, where he would be on his hands and knees, was an experience he could do without.

    Positioning himself on the opposite side of the tree to the largest hole, he banged the butt of his spear against the roots of the tree and yelled out. Then he sprinted as fast as he could to the tree line before turning back hoping to have lured them out.

    Nothing emerged.

    He waited a little longer, hoping at least one would emerge. Circling the clearing while staying within the tree line till he could see the largest hole. Nothing had emerged from any of the holes. Feeling both relieved and frustrated he once more approached the tree. He tried one more time making noise to lure out anything within the tunnels. He glanced at Ilmarillion for guidance.

    She shrugged ¡°Maybe they have a queen that is unable to leave the hive. You will need to go in and check, unless you feel like waiting for the rift to spawn more crickets in.¡±

    Returning to his pack he grabbed out his flashlight. Turning it on, he was relieved to see it still worked. Searching for his spare batteries just in case. He did not want to be stuck in a dark hole with killer crickets. He had seen too many movies where people''s torches had run out in just such circumstances for him to risk it.

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    ¡°Ooh what is that?¡± asked Ilmariliion, curiously.

    ¡°It¡¯s a flashlight,¡± he said, looking up at her. ¡°It runs off electricity like the computers and phones I told you about. This just creates light though.¡±

    As he came near the tree he shined his torch into four of the holes before it started fading and going out completely.

    ¡°Ha! I knew it.¡± he muttered.

    Taking apart the flashlight he replaced the batteries in it and flicked it on. The torch stayed on for almost five seconds before it once more faded. Trying a different set of batteries and hoping they would work, the torch wouldn¡¯t even turn on. Frustrated he shoved them back into his pockets. First his phone and now his torch and batteries, electronics didn¡¯t seem to like mana.

    ¡°Do you have any way to light up the tunnel?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Absolutely, I have multiple ways. My favourite way when dealing with an infestation is fire.¡± she said with a smile. ¡°Burn it to the ground. It kills and provides light. Anything that does not die to the flames will come running out.¡±

    ¡°But, as I have said. This is an experience for you to handle on your own. Good luck trying to burn that tree down without a magical fire of some kind though.¡± she finished

    Wishing he had someone more helpful with him and the ability to burn the entire rift to the ground, or at least this giant tree. He crouched down in front of the largest hole. Keeping his spear up just in case anything suddenly came bursting out he tried peering deeper into the darkness. Not seeing anything he was about to creep a little deeper into the tunnel when he heard the sound of something rushing up the tunnel.

    Tumbling backwards he lifted his spear up defensively. But he didn¡¯t need to worry, the cricket had stopped just short of exiting the hole with both front legs raised threateningly. It slowly backed down into the tunnel moving its front legs in such a way he was positive it wanted nothing more than to attack him but for some reason it refused to leave the hole.

    ¡°See a Queen just as I said¡± Ilmarillion stated proudly.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t bigger than any of the other crickets though.¡± he said.

    ¡°It does not matter, it is protecting something down there and if a rift creature is protecting something it will be something that contains a lot of rift essence.¡± she responded.

    ¡°Well how am I supposed to kill it if it won¡¯t come out and what if there are more down there?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m not going down there, I can barely move in there let alone fight and the only easy way I can kill them is by shoving a spear through their eye. I can¡¯t see in the dark let alone fight in it.¡±

    ¡°That is for you to figure out.¡± she said grinning

    Grabbing the spare spear from his pack, he placed them down a safe distance from the tree, in case his current spear was damaged. Watching the hole he slowly got closer to it, stomping on the ground and yelling trying to lure the cricket into coming out and attacking him.

    He wasn¡¯t sure if anything he did made a difference but as he drew closer to the hole he could see the cricket lurking, just far enough back in the darkness, he almost couldn¡¯t make it out. It probably just hadn¡¯t retreated further back since last time and had just been observing them. As he drew nearer, the cricket, ever so slowly started coming out towards him, front legs raised and ready to strike.

    Being able to see where it was helped him feel more confident in beating it but he would need to lure it further out of the tunnel for a proper strike. The roof of the tunnel, along with the creature already being ready to strike, made him concerned that his attack would either miss or have his current weapon sliced in two.

    Approaching slower now he took one slow step after another, hoping to find the distance that would trigger the crickets attack. It almost felt like playing a game of chicken, waiting to see who would back down first.

    He was within about a metre of the entrance when the cricket finally came charging out. Because he had been expecting it, he easily dodged backwards, the crickets legs slicing through where he had been standing. The creature slowly retreated back into its hole, legs raised aggressively.

    Grabbing another spear he approached slowly and stopped just a bit further back than where he thought the line to attack would be. Being able to see down into the hole he hefted the newer spear up and threw it at the cricket. His aim was better than expected as it actually hit the cricket, scraping along its back dealing no damage and continued into the darkness of the hole.

    Enraged, the cricket surged out of the hole ready to strike at him with its legs. He tried to skewer it with his spear as he had the others, but it swiped down with one of its legs cutting his spear in two. Retreating further he saw the cricket stop once more, front legs raised threateningly.

    Taking the opportunity to grab his last spear, he watched as the cricket gradually backed away. Approaching it before it could retreat fully into its tunnel once more caused the cricket to stop and instead move forward trying to raise its legs even higher. Using the last of his original spear, he tried carefully jabbing at it to make it lower its legs again. The creature barely reacted to him as he was unwilling to get within striking distance of the legs.

    Seeing this tactic fail him, he chose to throw the last of the spear at its head instead. The half a spear managed to hit it in the head causing it to swipe down with its legs from pain and trying to keep him away.

    Seeing his chance now that the legs were lowered, he thrust his spear as fast as he could into the large compound eyes, killing it.

    Pulling the spear out, he walked around it to the large hole once more. He tried yelling and banging but nothing else emerged from the hole. Picking up the half a spear he had thrown at the cricket he returned to his pack. Searching through it he pulled out his camp stove and a spare top. He was about to wrap the top around the end of the stick when he looked down at his top, which had definitely seen better days at this point, covered in insect blood and guts. Swapping to the clean top he wrapped his filthy top around the end of what was once his spear.

    His improvised torch might not last long but it should provide some light, he just hoped it lasted long enough. Praying that his camp stove would work, he tried turning it on. The stove lit with a burst of flame. Even on the lowest setting it was still burning hotter and stronger than what it would previously on its highest setting. Grateful it was at least working he quickly lit the torch before turning the stove off and heading towards the hole.

    Looking at the torch and the black smoke it was giving off, he really hoped that it wouldn¡¯t be asphyxiation from the smoke that killed him. Bending down low he threw his torch as far as he could. It guttered and almost went out but managed to stay lit. Briefly checking the other holes leading under the tree he could spot light from his torch in two other holes.

    Being able to see and knowing most if not all holes led to the same place helped give him confidence in descending down under the tree.

    Taking a deep breath, he crouched down and descended into the tunnel.

 Chapter 10

    The cramped walls of the tunnel felt as if they were pressing closer the deeper he crawled. The flickering of the flame kept making him think there was something moving deeper within the tunnel ahead. The smell of smoke mixed with what had to be the pungent smell of the crickets   All this to say the first few metres of the tunnel were not fun for Ezekiel.

    He picked up the spear he had thrown earlier at the cricket protecting the tunnels as he continued deeper. As he reached the torch he picked it up before throwing it as best he could in the cramped tunnel but preferred to have his hands free for his spears. He could see his tunnel continued deeper and that two other tunnels connected to his, which must have been the ones he saw light in from outside. That left two more tunnels he was unsure of where they led.

    Making his way further in as quickly as he thought was safe he paused briefly before each side tunnel, listening intently before risking a look around each corner to ensure they were still empty. Grabbing the torch once more he flung it further down the tunnel.

    The torch struck a curved wall, bouncing off, it came to rest just short of disappearing out of sight. Looking back, the sunlight seemed small and far away. He knew it was truly that far underground but the close and oppressive feel of the tunnel that was making him nervous, with the very real possibility of being attacked by giant, killer crickets only made it worse.

    Crawling further he tried to keep his spears ready, his fingers gripping the wood firmly only making his descent more awkward. As he picked up the torch again, ready to throw it he noticed that the tunnel expanded just around the curve. Throwing the torch into what he hoped was the end of the tunnel he saw it expand to reveal a chamber with two exits leaving it. There wasn¡¯t enough space for him to stand but he could comfortably crouch without hitting his head being near the roof. It was roughly four steps wide between each wall. The most disturbing thing about the room were the holes dug into the walls as each hollow contained a clutch of eggs.

    Choosing to ignore the eggs for now he checked the other tunnels, they both led up and out. No more crickets or threats. Ezekiel breathed a sigh of relief. It must be the eggs that he needed to destroy, there were too many. The torch''s flame started to flickering lower, he didn¡¯t have much time left before it died. He counted the holes and looked in one to get an idea of how many eggs were in each hole. Twelve holes total and the hole he checked had at least ten eggs in it maybe a few more

    One hundred and twenty eggs at least.

    Grabbing an egg from its resting place and one of his spears he headed out of the tunnel as fast as he could as his torch slowly died behind him, leaving the cave once more in darkness.

    Emerging into daylight he took several deep breaths of fresh air, relieved to be out of the nest.

    Ilmarillion''s voice came from above him. ¡°Judging from the lack of screaming, you did not find any more crickets down there?¡± she asked.

    ¡°No,¡± he confirmed, holding up the egg. ¡°But it was full of eggs.¡±

    Now that he had time to properly inspect the egg. It was about the size of an ostrich egg but instead of having a hard shell, it was soft and leathery making him think of a snake''s egg.

    ¡°There were at least one hundred and twenty eggs down there though, I wouldn''t be surprised if there were more¡± he said ¡°I was only able to do a quick count before my torch died.¡±

    Ilmarillion nodded ¡°If you smash those eggs, it will probably cause the rift to collapse. It is probably why there were not more of the crickets. You might have been even luckier than I thought, that we came to this rift when we did. Could you imagine having to fight over a hundred of these crickets.¡±

    He shuddered at the thought. ¡°Nope and I don¡¯t want to imagine it either. Can you just burn it all down for me now? There aren¡¯t any more crickets to kill so it¡¯s not like you are really helping me, just speeding up the rift collapse.¡±

    Smirking, she said. ¡°Sorry, as I have said, this is your rift. You need to clear it on your own. Sometimes you need to do the things you do not want to do because they are good for you.¡±

    ¡°Can you at least give me some sort of light spell or something so I don¡¯t have to lose another shirt and breathe smoke?¡± he asked hopefully.

    ¡°This time I will,¡± she relented. ¡°You have already explored it on your own and made sure there are no more crickets to fight.¡± she said.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± he said, relieved at not having to make another torch and excited to see more magic.

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    ¡°Do you think I could eat this?¡± he asked.

    ¡°I have eaten plenty of bugs eggs before, it should be fine. Never one that big, as it is over half my size, but it should be fine I would imagine.¡± She said.

    ¡°I¡¯ve eaten strange bird eggs before but never an insect one. I¡¯ve even made custard out of some before which was surprisingly good.¡± He said.

    ¡°Just eat it soon.¡± she added. ¡°You would not want it to hatch.¡±

    Returning to his bag, he gently placed the egg inside. He just needed to remember not to use his bag as a weapon for squashing anything else otherwise the egg would ruin everything inside with how big it was. Returning to the nest again he looked up at the fairy.

    ¡°So how does the light spell work?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Well, choose an object you want me to light up and I will.¡± she responded. ¡°I will imbue it with enough mana to last a short while.¡±

    Picking up a rock he offered it to the faerie. With a casual tap of her finger, the stone in his palm lit up. It wasn¡¯t quite as bright as his flashlight, but significantly better than the torch he made from his shirt.

    Ducking down to enter the tunnel, he quickly crawled his way back to the egg chamber. Half standing again he approached the first cluster of eggs. He tried cracking them like he would a chicken''s egg, but the soft, leathery shell of the eggs didn¡¯t crack. Using the pointed end of his spear he was able to pierce several of them at a time though some still needed a second poke to properly make sure they were actually broken.

    Moving as fast as could, he started clearing one clutch after another. While some of the eggs only contained the yolk and albumen. Others had partially formed crickets in them making him feel a twinge of guilt. Knowing how dangerous they would be if they hatched though he continued the process of destroying the eggs, working that little bit faster.

    He was definitely going to check his egg when he exited the nest. He had tried Balut while traveling in Asia, it wasn¡¯t bad but it wasn¡¯t something he particularly enjoyed. The thought of trying to eat the legs with blades definitely made him reconsider trying to eat the egg.

    Checking to make sure all the eggs were destroyed, he crawled back out of the cricket nest, glad to be done with the task.

    ¡°How long till the rift collapses?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Not long, sometimes the rift will have enough essence to try and create another couple of creatures, but it actively burns essence to maintain itself and just needs to finish burning through the last of any reserves it might have.¡± she answered.

    ¡°You may want to grab your backpack though. Anything you might want to bring back with you should be kept close or it will most likely be destroyed by the rift once it has collapsed.¡± she said.

    Nodding, he ran and grabbed his pack. walking back towards the faerie she floated towards the last of the crickets he had killed.

    ¡°Do you know if my egg is fertile?¡± he asked Ilmarillion as he drew near.

    ¡°Of course it is.¡± she responded. ¡°The rift would not have wasted the essence to create them otherwise.¡±

    ¡°Yeah but has it already developed a cricket inside?¡± he asked

    ¡°I would have no idea as I do not know the cycle of a cricket. Keep it with you for now as it will be useful while teaching you about mana and essence.¡± she said.

    ¡°You also might want to try taking the front legs off this cricket as well. They seemed quite sharp. I was wondering if you would try and use them as a sword or something against the crickets. I was half expecting you to try using one, only to chop off your own leg by accident.¡± she said with a laugh.

    ¡°I did think about it once or twice, but what it ultimately came down to was reach. I could stay well away from them with my spear and that seemed like the best strategy to me. Get close and get stabbed or keep away and be fine.¡± he said before glancing down at his leg. ¡°Mostly anyway.¡±

    Considering Ilmarillions words for a second he decided she was right. A sharp blade could be handy. If for nothing else than creating more spears for himself. Using the butt of his spear, he struck the joint just above the blade part of the leg. It took several solid hits to completely break one off. He quickly moved to the other side and started banging on the joint trying to break the second one off.

    He hadn¡¯t quite managed to break off the leg when he heard a sound that was hard to describe. It somehow reminded him of the sound of jet engine and glass breaking at the same time it sounded almost musical yet ominous drone. Fearing he was about to be sucked out into the void he looked to Ilmarillion, who didn¡¯t seem bothered by noise.

    ¡°The collapse has started,¡± Ilmarillion said. ¡°Grab what you need now or lose it.¡±

    Bending down he grabbed the leg he had broken off, by the joint where it wasn¡¯t sharp. Looking back up he saw the edge of the rift start to darken as patches of grey that started spreading and growing. At least he thought they were only expanding till he realised they were also getting closer as well. Looking to Ilmarillion to see her reaction, she hovered there looking calm and unbothered by it all. Behind her he could still see the grey patches expanding and drawing near. Before he could shout anything he was surrounded by the grey expanse and felt like he was once more on a rollercoaster getting jerked one way and then another. Closing his eyes he really hoped this wasn¡¯t the end.

    ¡°Why are your eyes closed?¡± Ilmarillion asked him.

    Slowly opening his eyes, he looked around. The forest and trees were what he remembered they should be, there was no dead cricket near them, no grey areas drawing closer. No sound. No more feeling of being jerked about. He hadn¡¯t even realised the experience had finished.

    He had done it. He had cleared the rift and survived.

    He was back.