The Weirkey Chronicles: Chapters 28-30 (Patreon)

Let's get right into it.

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Chapter 28

As if the sun wasn't bad enough, it remained perfectly still overhead, hour after hour. Its burning light continually sapped their will to keep moving, and especially to keep sprinting. When next they slowed down to recover, Fiyu was covered in sweat.

"I thought... the Tatian sun..." She stopped to wipe away sweat beading along her mask. "...was horrible, but this... is it always there?"

"I'm surprised it hasn't set," Nauda agreed. "How long can their day be?"

Theo shook his head as he realized that he would be the bearer of bad news. "I don't think it does. At least, I've never heard anyone from Arbai talk about the sun setting, or it being anywhere other than overhead. I'm not sure if their world is tidally locked or if it doesn't obey any rules I know, but the sun is there to stay."

His use of scientific terminology caught Fiyu's curiosity and led to a discussion of how each of them had understood the term, as well as similar words in their own languages. It was irrelevant and incredibly welcome. With nothing to do but trek across such a huge expanse of dry rock, anything that took their minds from the grim marathon was welcome.

They'd located the gemspires, which cast strange colors on the rocks around them, and used those to direct themselves toward the school's location. In theory, anyway. He strongly suspected that it was housed within the plateau, but if it wasn't in that direction, they'd have a serious problem.

When the sandstorm drew near, they began a final sprint toward the nearest cavern entrance that could provide shelter. Careful to prevent the inertia from Navim's body from overwhelming him, Theo wasn't paying much attention, but he heard gasps from the others. As he turned around, he understood why.

What had appeared to be a small cave from the outside was in actuality the beginning of a long cavern that extended beneath the surface. Looking inward was like gazing into the jaws of a crystalline beast. The stalactites and stalagmites were made from brilliantly colored crystals, and as they stepped deeper in awe, soon the ground and ceiling gained a similar rainbow hue.

Even as they walked further in, the cavern remained bright, shafts of colored light shining from above. When the sandstorm hit, those began to dim, but they were still able to see easily. He heard Fiyu murmuring happily in Ichili and guessed that it was similar to the Moonscape. It was certainly beautiful, but at the moment he couldn't ignore the looming deadline.

After they walked for a time, they turned a corner and suddenly came across a Mundhin. His rocky body looked so dull relative to the rainbow cavern that he leapt out immediately, and Nauda readied her staff. But the Mundhin merely turned to regard them extremely slowly, gemstone core sliding forward in something that might have been puzzlement.

"Uh, hello?" Theo started with a greeting - since this one wasn't hostile, they might as well be polite. The Mundhin flinched, then answered in a quiet voice.

"Foreigners. I did not expect to see foreigners here. Do you want some water?"

Just the reminder made his throat burn worse. "We'd be grateful for some."

"I am not carrying any of this substance. But all foreigners I have met demand water and so I thought I would inquire." The core began to shift away from them, back to the crystal spire in front of the Mundhin, which Theo saw was being dismantled by delicate stone tools. "Are you interested in my monograph about the refracting caverns? I do not have water, but I could give you an early draft."

"We're in a hurry." Nauda stepped forward, lowering her staff from defensive position but looking more irate. "Someone from your world is terribly injured and requires medical attention."

"Ah. Your presence has become less inexplicable." The Mundhin scholar started to turn away, as if to go back to his work, and Theo stepped in again.

"He's a student of the School of Emerald Indulgence, and we need to get there as quickly as possible. It's in the plateau ahead, right?"

"That is correct." The Mundhin stared a while longer, started to turn away, then shifted back. "I deduce that you want more information. The best path to the school, perhaps?"

"Yes. Please."

"These caverns will take you very near the entrance, if you take the central passage and then go left, though you still still need to endure this particular sandstorm for a time. I have read that foreigners do not enjoy sandstorms. However, I must tell you that there is no water at the school."

"We'll be fine." Theo pulled Navim along with them as they headed to follow his instructions. If these caverns took them close to the entrance, they'd made the right decision. He could also put to rest his deep concern that they had been entirely misled and traveling further from their destination.

Though Nauda gave an odd glance backward as they left the Mundhin scholar behind, she didn't comment on it. They remained silent as they trekked through the shimmering tunnel. Theo found himself staring up at the ceiling, noting the rise and fall of the sandstorm. It was oddly soothing, like a heavy rain while indoors. Of course, they'd soon be going out into it...

For once, they got lucky: the sandstorm died down before they reached the end of the cavern. That most likely meant the battle had ended, or at least moved. Without knowing whether Nanjuma or his opponent had won, he didn't know if that was good or bad, but at least they wouldn't have to risk heading out into a flesh-stripping sandstorm.

As they finally exited the cavern, they found themselves facing nothing but a final stretch of bleak ground leading up to the plateau. Close as it seemed now, it would take them some time. He heard Fiyu sigh as they left the caverns, but there was nothing to do but endure the final stretch.

Just as he was ready for a grim, silent trip, Nauda spoke up. "You think Magnafor is attempting to rob the vault while Nanjuma is distracted."

"Most likely." He hoped she wouldn't pursue it, but a glance back killed that hope.

"Somehow, he's going to break through a barrier that's beyond even Ruler strength, then disappear with a vault-worth of sublime materials. I'm not doubting you, not after he somehow hired mercenaries like this and destroyed the gate. But I think that you need to tell us more about everything."

"That's... complicated." Theo took a deep breath and considered whether or not to lie. Maybe it was the exhaustion, or maybe the haze of heat waves in every direction as they trudged on, but he found himself telling the truth. "I told you that Magnafor and I have been here before, but it gets worse than that..."

He told them more than he'd planned. Nothing about his old allies, but he did explain about Vistgil and his near death. Somehow he ended up talking about how long it had taken him to return and how much it meant to him before he resolutely shut his jaw. Revealing those weaknesses would accomplish nothing, not when they still had so much to do.

"You called it an Artifact of Elghiera?" Nauda asked. Theo blinked in surprise, not having expected that question.

"That's right. Have you heard of it?"

"Elghiera was an ancient world traveler. I thought he might be just a legend, but it's possible that he was historical. If so, then he spent a great deal of time on every world, including years on Tatian. There's no information about him leaving behind any artifacts, but he was a soulcrafter, so he might have been able to make armaments."

"Where did you learn that?" Theo turned on Nauda, grabbing her arm harder than he'd intended. "I tried to look up more about him and I never found a single thing."

"It was in a library. Not one near Myufuru." Nauda hesitated to say more, watching him cautiously. He didn't think she was harboring bitterness, but learning more about his past had clearly raised her suspicions. They stared at each other until Fiyu poked them both.

"Theo, Nauda, we must continue. Navim requires our help."

She was right, of course, so they began running again. Theo kept his eyes on Nauda, not saying anything but just focusing on her, and eventually she relented. After coughing a few times in the residual dust, she spoke up quietly.

"You said that you traveled across Tatian, but I don't think you really have. Far to the north, much further than our traveling so far... well, I read the tale I mentioned in a library there. Most legends speak about ancients as having more powerful soulcrafting than we do, and most of them are untrue. But if the ring you mentioned was so useful, perhaps it was true in this case."

"Later, once this is over, we should talk about it." Theo wanted to demand more answers, but he couldn't blame her for keeping secrets when he did the same thing. "But Fiyu is right: we have more important priorities right now. Let's hurry and hope they can help Navim."

Now that the end was in sight, they managed to sprint again. The plateau ate up more and more of the sky as they approached, but seeing the tunnels in greater detail was encouraging. Mundhin moved through some passages or sat on rocky balconies. Only one tunnel opened up on the ground level, at least within sight, and so they headed for it.

Two Mundhin stood guard, both of them Archcrafters and armed with body parts covered in spikes. When Theo and the group approached, one of them stepped into their path, deceptively fast for such a large pile of rock. This might be a school, but Theo realized that these two were warriors, not scholars.

"Why have you come to the School of Emerald Indulgence, foreigners? If you require water, we-"

"Not water!" Fiyu pulled Navim's floating body in front of them and pointed angrily. "This is Navim. He is one of your relatives and he needs your help."

As soon as they realized that the body was still alive, the Mundhin rushed to act. Though a few scholars stared at them curiously or ignored them entirely, they were immediately commanded by Mundhin who wasted no time. Several messengers rolled into spheres and disappeared quickly, while others rapidly took Navim's rubble and guided them further in.

Once they reached their destination, they were allowed to sit down, or rather told to stay out of the way. Tired as he was, Theo didn't object. They weren't given any water, but someone brought them a plate of blue cubes that were a bit rubbery, but filled with a sweet juice. Sitting down and getting something into his stomach made him feel much better.

No one asked them any questions at the beginning, as an atmosphere of tension surrounded the movements. Another Archcrafter appeared and cut open the bundle, examining the rocky fragments. He rolled his core at the sight of the damage, but then rapidly set up a gem platform.

Soon, a column of golden sunlight burned in the chamber. Navim's core was eased inside it and began to float, even without Theo's help. In fact, the raw cantae of the column burned straight through his field, so he released it. The healer and his assistants carefully took the other pieces of rock and placed them into the field as well. Slowly but surely, the damaged rocks began to glow with the light.

Only once all of that was done did the healer turn to regard them. "One of our students will live thanks to you, foreigners. When Navim disappeared, we were unsure if he had departed in pursuit of scholarship or if he had been destroyed by the inter-world disturbance. I am relieved that he endures."

"That is good." The relief in Fiyu's voice spoke for all of them, so Theo let it hang for a moment before he pursued their goal.

"The people who did this to him are still on Tatian, and their actions may soon harm others. We can't help Navim, but we can help them." It wasn't quite true, but now that they were safe, every wasted moment weighed on him. "That is why we're begging for your help: we need Master Uvvah Ulim's assistance to return in time."

"Ah." The healer rocked back onto his hind legs, the glittering gems of his core regarding all of them thoughtfully. "Such a curious group. I would hear your story, one day, but I understand that you feel this is urgent. Please understand that we do not trouble our master without due reason. There are a great many with their own crises that are also very important to them."

"Please, can we at least talk to him?" Theo considered bringing up the fact that they'd saved Navim, but decided that would be too far. They weren't idiots and it might just come across as crudely manipulative.

"You will be given an opportunity. Please follow my martial colleague here."

One of the guards raised a stone toward them and began to move down a corridor. Theo stayed back a moment, looking at Navim's body one more time, but it was obviously on its way to recovery. Repairing his soulhome would no doubt take longer, but at least he would have another chance.

Meanwhile, they were led through a twisting corridor much higher in the plateau. They quickly moved from active areas of scholarship to empty chambers with little ornamentation. Finally they were told to wait in an antechamber while the guard moved forward into a larger room behind. Theo strained to hear the conversation, which sounded like a rare language of Arbai, but could only make out a few words about guests.

"You may enter." The voice sounded as if dust had gained the ability to speak, swirling past them with the breeze. Since the guard stood at attention by the entrance, the three of them stepped forward into the main chamber.

At first, Theo didn't see anyone at all, just what he thought was a messy floor. But as he noticed several piles of what looked like gravel, he realized that he was entirely wrong. At the center of the broken rocks lay a vast sphere of stone, studded with countless sapphires in intricate patterns. Theo had never seen an old Mundhin before, but it must be Master Uvvah Ulim.

"I am told that you have returned one of my students to me. I am grateful." The gravel trembled as if an earthquake had begun, but then some of it gathered into a mass that lifted the sphere off the floor. Even only some of the rocks pushed the sphere high over their heads, so Uvvah Ulim must have been massive in his prime. "Hmm. A Tatian, an Ichili, and a Lost One from afar. A curious group. Perhaps your story would be of interest."

"With all due respect, there isn't much time," Theo said. "Do you have a weirkey for Tatian? We need to return to a city called Myufuru, bef-"

"With all due respect, Lost One, you have not yet given me any reason to act. Stepping between worlds is no small thing, especially for an elder such as myself. The price my school would require for such a thing is... beyond what I believe first tier soulcrafters could pay. Unless you saved my student solely as coin to use in such a transaction?"

Theo winced, not having expected such a hard refusal. Fortunately, Fiyu saved him by speaking up. "Navim is our ally and we wanted to help him. But we want to help others too."

"I can hear the truth in your words, young one. Less so in your friend." The sapphires turned to fix on Theo and he felt as though a great weight pressed down on him. "I have had little opportunity to speak to Lost Ones. If I do this thing for you, will you be able to tell me tales of worlds beyond the Nine?"

"I..." Though Theo didn't want to say anything about Earth, he supposed that he was already attracting far too much attention. "If that's the only way to pay, I will. I know two: my home, and a realm where the sky is white and the sun is black."

"Ah..." Uvvah Ulim released a long, heavy sigh. "The Cleansed Lands. I wished to travel them, despite the rumors of the risk, but I was never able to find the appropriate door. If you have traveled so widely, then perhaps you can pay my price... I hope that you live long enough to do so."

Suddenly all of the rocks began to surge together, forming a large body with three legs and many arms. One of the enormous limbs swept down, curling around them, and Theo caught a glimpse of something shimmering within all the stones - a weirkey.

They tipped over the impossible doorway, fell through the emptiness, and then stumbled into Tatian. Not only that, they stood on a central street of Myufuru underneath an enormous rock monster. A local woman sighed that she had dropped her basket and a few others clapped cheerfully, but otherwise most people just stared at them.

"You are not moving quickly, for young ones in such haste." Uvvah Ulim loomed over Theo, core staring directly down at him. "I expect you to keep your promise."

"I will." Theo swallowed, starting to move away. "I mean, I'll try. Thank you."

"You know how to thank me..." With that, the Mundhin vanished from the street, returning to his home. Theo stared a moment before Nauda grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the Landguard Village.

Though they were too far away to see the outer walls, the tree itself loomed high over the city. Its barrier shivered like a candle in the wind.

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Chapter 29

They'd had some time to rest within the Mundhin school, so his soulhome had refilled with cantae, but that didn't mean Theo felt better. His skin was still scoured thin by the wind, his chest hurt where he'd been kicked, and his mind insisted he should lie down and sleep. Yet there was no choice but to rush to the end, because they had no idea how far ahead of them Magnafor was.

Nauda led them wordlessly to one of the special gondolas that took them directly into Myufuru Landguard Village. There was a Farmguard on duty, but she smiled her way past him, then they were off. Theo took the final moment to stay off his feet and ensure that his soulhome was filled with cantae, while he saw Nauda twisting her hands around her staff and Fiyu peering over the edge.

There had been a slight hope that they'd gotten far ahead of Magnafor and that all their haste had been unnecessary... but as Theo looked down, he let that possibility slip away. Demons crawled throughout the village and he saw only a few students in desperate fighting retreats. He didn't see any second stage demons and they hadn't yet spilled over into the city at large, but it was obvious that normalcy had been broken.

"It looks like the Farmguards are keeping the demons in," Fiyu said as they reached the wall. Theo looked back down and saw that she was right: they'd formed a perimeter at the main gate. A group of guards and students fought together to keep the demons from entering the main city, and they seemed to be holding their own.

"Is that him, by the tree?" Nauda leaned over the side of the gondola to get a better look. Theo had been looking at the tree itself, trying to determine if the barrier had already been breached or was only approaching failing, but lowered his gaze. A small group of soulcrafters gathered near the base.

"I don't see Magnafor, but I think I recognize some of them. It might b-" Theo cut off as their gondola lurched violently.

Fiyu realized it before he did, launching a burst of light into the sky. It illuminated part of a dark carapace as a demonic dragonfly swept toward them. Instead of targeting any of them, it ducked underneath another burst and sliced through the second rope holding the gondola up.

Even though Theo threw an inverse gravitational field over all of them as quickly as possible, he wasn't fast enough to stop them from falling. He desperately tried to apply two inverse fields at once to reverse their direction, but couldn't do anything more than slow their descent before they crashed down atop one of the houses surrounding the main courtyard.

Fortunately, they'd all soulcrafted defensive rooms, so the hard landing didn't break anything except the roof. The gondola had smashed below with great speed, breaking open one of the houses and crushing a lesser demon before it rolled to a halt.

Demons crawled all over the courtyard, swarming toward the entrance, but Theo ignored them. Either the Farmguards would stop them, or they wouldn't, but either way he couldn't get distracted. Magnafor was already near the tree, and if he'd been prepared for every other step in the process, he definitely had a way inside.

"Can you bind all the demons while we run through?" Nauda asked. One demon crawled up onto the roof beside them, but Fiyu eradicated it a moment later.

"I don't have any way of exempting you from the field," Theo said. "But I suppose I could make us all weightless and we could jump to the tree?"

"No." Fiyu pointed skyward and he saw another dragonfly flicker at the edge of his vision. "They will attack anything that goes too high."

"Then I'll just temporarily flatten everything ahead of us. Save your strength as much as possible, because Magnafor seems to have mercenaries and other allies."

They didn't have more time to plan, so that would have to be good enough. Theo jumped off the roof first, clearing as many of the demons in the courtyard as he could. As they raced up the first staircase, he extended a gravitational field ahead of them.

Fortunately, the demons were no more immune to gravity than anyone else. Some of them fell to the ground, pinned, but he was surprised how many struggled to rise. He held off on applying a second field because he needed to conserve his strength too, but the demons scrambling to their feet behind them made him nervous.

Without warning, a beastly demon burst from underneath the body of one of the others, lunging for him. Theo desperately started to switch his fields to bring it down, only for it to freeze in midair. Nauda held it fast, then Fiyu shredded it a moment later. They nodded to him and the group rushed on.

Working together, they easily cut through the dwindling demons and leapt up the next set of stairs. Theo barely noticed when they snapped through a thin barrier, one apparently designed to dissuade the demons. That was nothing compared to the barrier past the courtyard above, the flow of its power beginning to tremble more violently.

But first, Trathis stood in their path, blocking the way up the final stair. Their former teammate was carrying a new sword, and as soon as he saw them, he grasped the hilt. "So you decided to show up after all. If you think I'm letting you get in the way of-"

Nauda's binding hit him in the stomach, lifting him into the air with his sword partially drawn. Theo didn't bother to slow down, just marched past him - Trathis was nothing but a distraction. As they passed, Fiyu leaned closer to his face.

"You are an inept sex merchant," Fiyu said, then continued on with a pleased smile on her face. Theo glanced at Nauda, but she just tossed Trathis into the demons behind them and shrugged.

"Well, she's trying."

He smiled, but his amusement died as soon as they reached the top of the stairs.

There were five soulcrafters standing in their path, mostly Fithan mercenaries, and that wasn't the worst of it. Magnafor knelt down just beside the final barrier, working at one of the stakes... and Kuber stood beside him. That was enough to make all of them pause, everything briefly growing quiet enough to hear the sounds of the battle against the demons behind them.

"That's inconvenient." Magnafor glanced over his shoulder and sighed. "You're too late to stop me, if that's what you're trying to do. But if you're willing not to make trouble, then I can cut you in on the sublime materials."

"No thanks." There wasn't really anything else to say, since he didn't trust Magnafor and wanted them all for himself, if he was going to take such a drastic step.

"Kuber, what are you doing?" Nauda asked. She took a step forward and all the mercenaries immediately tensed, but she held her staff loosely at her side. "You were fighting alongside your family this very morning, why would you turn against us?"

"He gave me the answers no one else would." Kuber gripped his armament tighter, his eyes shifting away nervously. "And if there's really so much inside, I... I won't need this family anymore. I'll be able to reach Archcrafter and beyond without any of you."

"And you really believe that he won't just abandon you as soon as he has what he wants?"

That made both Kuber and the mercenaries nervous, but before they could press the point, Magnafor stood up and turned back to them. "You know the flying crane can carry all of you, so if you just defeat them like you're supposed to, it will be easy to take you with me before the Landguards arrive."

And as he finished speaking, the full barrier came down. Theo's eyes widened as he understood: it hadn't been smashed through, but manipulated to enter a repair cycle. That was a trick he'd never learned, and he couldn't guess how it had been done... but most likely it wouldn't stay down for long. Magnafor didn't wait for any responses, just stepped over the line and began to ascend the tree toward the vault.

"Stop them!" Kuber cried out. The mercenaries charged, but there was no more time to play games.

Theo brought double fields down on them, sending them stumbling in triple normal gravity. Just as they'd barely begun to recover, he reversed it, negative gravity sending them into the air. As soon as they were off their feet, Fiyu and Nauda struck without hesitation, Nauda smashing them together and Fiyu flooding all of them with bolts. In a handful of seconds, the mercenaries' soulhomes had been devastated and they floated unconscious.

But Kuber only grimaced slightly at all of the fields, his body now surrounded by a soft orange glow. There wasn't going to be any easy way to take him down, not with that Archcrafter armament. Theo stepped forward, intending to ignore him and go after Magnafor, only to throw himself backward the next moment.

The garnet blast carved a furrow through part of the courtyard, leaving a line of burning air where he'd been standing. When Theo started forward again, Kuber swept the rod in an arc, creating a widespread shockwave that pushed them all back. If Theo had been a few steps closer, he might have been blown to pieces just like Navim had.

If there was any way to fight Kuber, it would be exhausting his cantae, but they didn't have time for that. Not with Magnafor having nearly disappeared in the massive tree, and more importantly, not with the barrier about to return at any time. To stop him, Theo needed to get inside the barrier immediately.

Since Kuber wasn't wasting his strength unnecessarily, they had a moment to rest. Theo glanced back to the others and saw the same thoughts in their eyes. "Fiyu, I need you to distract him. Nauda, I'm going to jump... I need you to make sure I don't die in midair."

With that, they attacked, Fiyu beginning by raising both hands and flooding the courtyard with bolts of light. They scattered harmlessly against the orange sphere that lit up around Kuber, and he raised his armament to release another devastating bolt. Fiyu threw herself out of the way just in time, and Theo chose that moment to reverse his own gravity and jump toward the tree.

As soon as he was in the air, he was helpless, and he saw Kuber immediately target him. The beam of destruction would come at any moment...

Force binding him came first, striking his back and freezing his entire body in place. As Nauda redirected him, Theo was suddenly flung in a completely different direction, dodging the beam of destruction. The force released him on the stairs well above the barrier. It had worked better than he'd hoped, and with Fiyu raining more destruction, Kuber was too distracted to target him again.

Yet, instead of going after Magnafor as he'd planned, Theo found himself hesitating and looking back. If the barrier came back up while he was inside, he could stop Magnafor, yes, but he probably wouldn't be able to get back out. And as he saw Nauda and Fiyu struggle against Kuber, he didn't like what that would mean.

Just when it seemed like Fiyu had him pinned down, Kuber released another widespread shockwave, and the edge of this one struck her. She let out a pained cry and tumbled back across the ruined arena. Worse, Kuber was aiming directly at her for a finishing shot. Theo threw out a hand, trying to pin him down, but from the distance he couldn't establish the gravitational field firmly enough.

Nauda thrust out and her staff's force seized Kuber's hand at the last second, pushing it just to the side. His beam shot out into the village instead, demolishing one of the houses... but he grimaced and began forcing his hand back toward Nauda.

Her eyes widened and she struggled against him, but then his armament flared brighter. She tried to disengage, a moment too late to escape the rush of cantae flooding back at her. Nauda slammed her staff down on the ground, barely defending herself.

Theo saw her staff rupture in half and found himself running back down the stairs.

The breaking of her staff sent Nauda sliding back, and Kuber began to aim at her, but a fierce assault of bolts slammed into him from the side. Fiyu was barely on her knees, targeting him with both hands, failing to penetrate the aura around his body but making him stagger.

Before she could get through, the spherical barrier lit up again and the bolts began dissipating harmlessly. Worse, Kuber was turning to target her, and it looked as though Fiyu might have twisted her ankle in the previous fall.

With few other options, Theo cast a reverse field around Kuber... not aiming for him, but instead affecting all of the fragments of stone around him that had been created as the courtyard broke apart. They shot into the air, accelerating with reversed gravity, and Kuber turned back to look at him.

"You already know that can't touch me. Why are y-" Then normal gravity took over and the rubble slammed down all around him.

Though some of the fragments burned away against his shield, most of them slammed down into the courtyard, shaking his footing. Kuber actually staggered and fell to one knee, but the barrier around him remained steady. Still, it was the most weakness he'd shown yet.

Behind him, Theo heard the barrier thrum back to life. The last he'd seen of Magnafor was him disappearing into the upper boughs near the vault... but he'd made his choice.

He saw that Fiyu had retreated to a safe distance and Nauda had retrieved the top of her staff, neither of them willing to surrender. They needed an opening, and he intended to give it to them. 

Theo created two reversed fields underneath Kuber's feet, targeting the shattered courtyard instead of him. A large chunk of the stone broke and began to rise into the air, nearly making Kuber lose his balance. That actually might have been the smarter move, getting back to the ground, but instead he merely swung around, sending another beam at Theo.

Having expected it, Theo leapt aside without even making his fields flicker for a moment. He'd planned to send Kuber straight into the stratosphere, but the orange sphere crackled to life around him and it was growing. As it encompassed the rock beneath Kuber, the gravitational fields faltered.

Fiyu released her largest burst of light yet, bolts hammering into the side of his sphere until it began to buckle. In the instant it did, Nauda thrust out the broken head of her staff and force finally caught Kuber. Not the arm controlling his armament, but his torso, slamming him down into the ground several times. The glow around him held, but Kuber looked severely disoriented, and when Nauda lifted him back into the air, Fiyu began striking him with more bolts.

"You... you won't..." Kuber clutched his armament tighter and the glow deepened to the red-orange of sunset, making Nauda cry out and slump to her knees. She kept her staff raised, but the exertion was clearly overwhelming her.

Slowly but surely, Kuber began to twist around to aim his armament at Theo again. Too exhausted to dodge, Theo brought two fields down on top of him, but even triple gravity only seemed to slow him a little more. Blood covered Kuber's chin and dripped from his nose, but the armament in his hand seemed to move with its own force, inexorably shifting to aim at him...

Theo targeted the rod itself and reversed both of his fields.

The Archcrafter armament, which had dominated the fight up to that point, fell upwards out of Kuber's hand. He stared at it in shock, and that was long enough for it to shoot skyward. Though Fiyu raised a hand to target him, it wasn't necessary: without the support of such a powerful armament, Kuber collapsed instantly.

So it was over, yet not over at all. Theo began to limp down the stairs, dozens of aches and pains emerging as the adrenaline wore off. He let the armament crash back down to the courtyard once he got close, then kicked it to a safe distance, just in case Kuber had anything left in him. But he appeared to be unconscious, and a glance at his soulhome showed that the great dome and foundation had broken in half.

"What..." Nauda had to pause to catch her breath, slowly working her way to a standing position. "What now? How do we... get through that barrier?"

"We don't." Theo sat down on a piece of rubble and ran his hands through his hair wearily. "I can't copy the trick he used to get in, so none of us can get through. He's probably already reached the vault, and this 'crane' vessel of his must be able to fly out, or his plan doesn't make any sense."

"You knew that." Fiyu shuffled closer, staring at him so intensely that he could feel her gaze even through the mask. "You walked back out to help us fight, knowing that you couldn't catch up."

"Yeah." It should have been a warmer moment, but he was just exhausted. Nauda came to sit down beside him, staring upward toward the silent boughs where the vault lay.

"Are we going to regret this?"

"I don't know." Theo looked up too, wondering what was contained within. Doing all this, he'd probably made an enemy. Magnafor might not be able to fight them now, but he had access to a huge store of sublime materials that could comfortably take him to the Authority tier. If he came for revenge, that might be an impossible threat.

As they watched, reality folded on itself and the tree was consumed by nothingness.

Theo's mind refused to believe what he was seeing at first, as the world itself warped into a tight knot. A rush of liminal power swept past him, but this was nothing like walking through a door into another world. This was the power of the worlds themselves, twisted into a weapon.

The vortex snapped out of existence a moment later, leaving only jagged remnants of the massive tree trunk. No sound, no fires, no remaining destruction. Yet he felt an overwhelming sense of horror and the certainty that nothing could possible have survived that. Power was simply irrelevant if space itself no longer existed.

He only realized he was holding his breath when Nauda let out hers. "Was... was that how Magnafor planned to escape?"

"Impossible." Theo had seen many things, but not that. "No armament can do that, and his power just wouldn't have been capable of it. Could it have been something the Landguards stored in the vault?"

"I... don't think so."

They were silent for a while longer before Fiyu spoke the obvious truth. "It was a trap."

And though he couldn't know the truth for sure, Theo had a feeling that it wasn't a trap set for the Landguards. No one in a backwater like Myufuru could overpower the barrier, so only someone with deep knowledge of barriers could have entered. Someone who had traveled the Nine Worlds before.

Someone like him. If he had made slightly different decisions, or even just been faster than Magnafor, he would have been in the vault when it ceased to exist. Theo took a deep, shuddering breath as he realized that for forty years on Earth, he had been much less paranoid than he should have been.

Whoever stood against him, Vistgil or the demons or someone else, they weren't merely fumbling blindly. If this was really a trap, it had been laid before he even returned. Just how far did their schemes spread? What could be worth this much effort?

A green comet struck the stairs not far from them, but they were too exhausted to care. Nanjuma rose from a crouch, his eyes locked on the remnants of the tree. Though he cradled one arm that was severely burned, that didn't seem to compare to the pain in his eyes as he stared at the space where the tree should have been.

"No..." Nanjuma dropped to his knees and wiped his eyes before suddenly turning, his gaze touching the fallen mercenaries only briefly before it fixed on them. "Who are all these people? Was anyone in there?"

Too tired to answer, Theo glanced toward Nauda. "Magnafor wanted to steal everything from the vault," she said. "He convinced many of the students to cooperate with him. Kuber, Trathis, these mercenaries... they should be alive, but they need to be bound so we can decide what is to be done."

"Students turning against one another... our family cannot heal from this..."

Nanjuma looked more troubled about the loss of community than the demons, though as Theo looked back, he realized that he was wrong. Green flames were dying out over the rest of the village and he didn't see a single living demon, so Nanjuma must have annihilated all of them on his way in.

There were dozens of further questions, but as Theo looked around, he realized that there was darkness growing at the edges of his vision. The core in his soulhome seemed to be rotating unsteadily... when he tried to examine it, he collapsed into darkness.

-

Chapter 30

Theo opened his eyes to shadows and struggled for a moment before he realized that he was only surrounded by sheets, and the shadows were only because of the heavy curtains. It wasn't Fiyu's room, yet those were her curtains. His mind fixed on that fact uselessly until he finally reengaged and managed to sit up.

"You overtaxed your soulhome, drawing so hard on your new core that you did some damage." Nauda sat beside him, wearing a few bandages and cradling the pieces of her staff, but otherwise healthy. She smiled wryly at him. "Repairing it might be difficult, but it will only help you use your strange techniques. We couldn't have survived without you."

"Without any of us." Theo winced as his back twinged, but he was surprised that he mostly felt just exhausted, not beaten to hell. "What happened? Is there going to be an investigation?"

"There's no need for one. The students saw Magnafor use some artifact to trigger the demon attack when he made his bid. Most of them survived, by the way, since it looks like his main goal was to distract everyone else and buy enough time to get inside."

"And I suppose Nanjuma can confirm the rest of the story. Do you know what will happen to everyone who worked with Magnafor?"

Before Nauda could answer, Fiyu slipped through the door. Though she was looking behind her, she seemed to have heard their conversation. "The Farmguards have taken over everything now. They say it is a crime against the community... and they seem very serious about it."

"Tatian can get unfriendly when it comes to some things." Nauda rubbed her eyes wearily. "I suppose we should be glad there's no suspicion on us, and Navim's school can confirm if anyone tries to cast blame our way. Kuber's family will probably do everything possible to avoid a punishment. I don't think they'll succeed, but they'll make this a mess."

"I... do not think I want to be there for that." Fiyu looked back and forth between them, biting her lower lip. "The new Farmguards arriving... I don't like them. This might be your community, Nauda, but it will never be mine."

"No, it's not really mine either. Let's get some air and talk it over."

They headed out together, making their way through the damaged corridor. It seemed that he had been resting inside one of the less damaged houses, but even it had been severely shaken by the battle. No one stopped them, so they carefully made their way to one of the ledges that they'd once sat on, shaded by one of the surviving trees.

He'd slept until noon. It seemed as though it should have been night, yet instead it was obscenely sunny, as if the school hadn't been torn apart.

For a while he just sat there, thinking about what he'd done. The small part of him that regretted not following Magnafor had died during the night. If he'd made the logical choice, he'd have been torn from existence and it would be over. Even ignoring that, he didn't regret going back to help the others.

Just when he was about to say something, a living god descended to the village.

Though she wore the same robes as the familiar guards, there was no mistaking the Landguard for anyone local. She was surrounded by an aura like the sun, flooding out more cantae every moment than Kuber's armament could put into a blast. When the woman finally landed, not so far away, her aura dissipated.

Nanjuma came and bowed to her, and though she bowed even lower, it didn't fool anyone. If anything, her robes seemed even more plain and humble than those of the Farmguards, but it was just for show. The robes themselves were defensive armaments and her staff could have cracked the city in half. Beyond all that, there was an unmistakable vibrancy about her that was only obtained by those who had become Authorities.

"The Landguards are deeply sorry that we could not prevent this loss in your community." Her quiet composure didn't seem to hold much sorrow. Theo found himself moving a little closer, both to put more trees in between them and to hear better. "We had never imagined that the disruption between worlds could end so catastrophically."

"I saw the world... collapse on itself." Nanjuma took a shuddering breath. "Students died, and the spirits of the rest are broken. This... we will not recover from this."

"It is a tragedy, yes, but we must still act to prevent future tragedies. I have a question for you of the utmost importance: did you have any students who came from worlds beyond the Nine? They might have appeared ordinary enough, but there would have been something strange about them, something uncanny."

Theo's eyes widened as his mind scrambled to understand the implications. Fiyu covered her mouth and Nauda grimaced; even Nanjuma sounded surprised. "Why are you asking about students? There is no way that one of them could have been responsible for the final disaster, is there?"

"Not directly. They may even have been good-hearted and unaware that they were doing any harm." The Landguard sighed and lowered her voice, so Theo strained to hear. "The community of Landguards has come into some disturbing information from very high authorities. Certain outsiders from strange worlds bring trouble with them, drawing demons into our communities. Have you seen more than usual?"

"It's true there were more demon attacks, but... I had assumed the cracks that brought so many strangers to us..."

"Most of your students are innocent, and you did important work, but others come from terrible worlds. Some may be working with the demons, others may be unaware, but all must be dealt with. We have met a guide who can assist us, but the Landguards also require your cooperation."

Nanjuma didn't answer for a long time and Theo remained bound in place, wanting to listen and retreat at the same time. "There was a young man named Magnafor," Nanjuma finally said. "I don't know what world he was from, but he made many strange journeys away from the city. They tell me that he attacked the other students, but he died when the vault was destroyed."

"Wonderful." Immediately the Landguard's words exuded warmth and Theo could practically hear her embracing Nanjuma. "You have done well, Farmguard. More Landguards follow after me with weirkeys to restore your students to their homes. We cannot bring back those you have lost, but we will do our utmost to help your community forget about these terrible events."

The Landguard and Nanjuma remained there, speaking in low voices, but Theo slowly stumbled away. Convincing himself that it wasn't all connected would be delusion now. It wasn't just that someone had laid the trap inside the vault, they were working directly with the Landguards to hunt down people just like him.

"Theo?" Fiyu stepped up beside him, watching him anxiously. "Are you alright?"

"I... I am. I'm alive." He realized that it was just like that day so many years ago when he'd been thrown back to Earth. Whoever was behind this should now be utterly certain that he was dead, twice over if they had any doubt. Unless the Landguards found him, he could escape and become invisible.

And he desperately needed to do that, because he couldn't face the forces aligned against him yet. At the moment a single Landguard would be a hopeless battle, much less the forces of other nations and demons beyond them. His only hope was to gain the strength he needed without ever attracting their gaze.

"We need to leave." He was shocked to hear Nauda say it first, but she slipped away from the wall with a grim expression. "Most Landguards may be good people, but I don't want to be a part of this investigation. Even if they resolve everything here, outsiders will never be welcome in Myufuru again. You both want to leave too, right?"

"I do not think I can wait for my relative here," Fiyu said slowly, but then she offered them a slight smile. "But you two are not strangers. May I travel with you? Will you help me find my way home?"

"We can try," Theo said. "Do you think that Uvvah Ulim has a weirkey for Ichil?"

"No." Nauda interrupted whatever Fiyu had been about to say with a sharp shake of her head. "Make no mistake, the Landguards will be investigating Arbai as well. Not to mention... anyone else who might be looking. We need to get away, somewhere they won't expect us to go."

"Where, then? All the nearby gates will be on high alert, if only because of Magnafor's attack."

"We go north. Back toward home." Nauda's expression was somewhere between a smile and a grimace. "If the two of you think you've seen all Tatian has to offer, you're going to be surprised."

Then that was that. Theo took a deep breath as he accepted what they needed to do, meeting the eyes of his new friends. "Then we lay low until the Landguard leaves, quietly gather our tools and supplies, then slip out of the city at night. Agreed?" Both of them nodded in unison, then the three of them split up.

This time, the beginning of his journey in the Nine had been nothing like his first grand arrival. He would have to hope the ending would be different as well.

-

There you have it: first book in the series. Some of my previous novels have ended up two or three times the length of many Amazon books, so I intentionally tried a different model with this series: the books will be shorter, fast-paced, and hopefully fun.

To get the series started, I've made preparations for the first three books in the series to come out faster than I'd be able to put them out long term. I hope this will establish the basic feel and goals of the series, though of course I recognize that I need to do that in the first book as much as possible.

The second book will likely be titled Rainhorn, while the third will be Archcrafter. Throughout those, you'll get to see several ascensions, rivalries that aren't subversions, and some majors twists and characters I can't wait to get to. The plot will also wind its way through Deuxan, Fithe, and other worlds to varying degrees.

Though Rainhorn is close to done, I won't be able to start posting it right away. As such, I've paused Patreon charges for at least one month, possibly longer. But meanwhile, I have some other fun stuff for you this month, including the SC3 launch and potentially some detailed soulhome blueprints. Stay tuned!