Grand Game 303: The Big One (Patreon)

The river was a raging torrent.

The moment my body hit the water, I was swept away, and the hundred dark minds swooping down on me disappeared from awareness.

Limbs windmilling, I tried to right myself, but the current was too strong, and I was pushed beneath the frothing surface. Icy water gushed into my eyes, mouth, and nose. Kicking frantically, I tried to lift my head clear.

It was useless.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I closed my mouth. Calm, Michael, I admonished. I could no more fight the river than the stygians, I realized, and ceased struggling.

Obligingly, the river pulled me under.

But the first blush of my panic had subsided, and I stayed relaxed. Letting my limbs hang loose, I tried to get a feel for the raging currents and take stock of the situation.

The nether creatures—both airborne and landbound variants—had vanished from my mindsight. But one other mindglow still stuck close. “Ghost, are you alright?”

“I am,” she said, sounding distracted. “This is the first time I’ve dived into a river, you know. Who knew it would be so strange?”

By happenstance, the currents flung me up, and not wasting the opportunity, I gulped in a deep lungful of air.

“What’s strange about it?” I asked, resuming my conversation with the spirit wolf, which in itself was more than a little odd.

Ghost sounded as if the river didn’t bother her at all, which on reflection, it likely didn’t. Being without a body was not without some benefits, after all.

“The current is carrying me downriver as fast as it is you,” Ghost said, “but I don’t feel as if I am moving.”

“That does sound weird,” I agreed. It was an inane conversation to have while the river was trying to drown me, but it kept me from dwelling on how dire my situation was.

The turbulent waters wrenched at my body again, this time pulling it downwards, and I dropped like a stone, sinking for what felt like an eternity. How deep is this river, anyway?

A mindglow appeared below me.

For a moment, I almost tensed and fought the river’s pull, but then forced myself to relax. Were there stygians lurking beneath as well?

That could be problematic.

A dry understatement but much better than panic. Reaching out with my will, I analyzed the creature swimming below.

The target is a level 15 river turtle.

Huh. Imagine that.

The river still contained ordinary wildlife. I wasn’t sure why that surprised me, but I found the discovery unexpectedly heartening despite my circumstances. Even as nether-infested as this sector was, it was not irredeemable.

I opened my eyes, and another surprising realization followed in the wake of the first: the river’s waters were clear and unclouded, bearing no taint of nether whatsoever. I wanted to explore the implications of that more closely, but a less happy thought intruded: my lungs were near-bursting. It was time to get some air. “Ghost, are you on the surface?”

“Yes, Prime.”

“Perfect.” Weaving psi, I shadow blinked to her.

You have teleported into Ghost’s shadow.

For a brief instant, I was free of the water. Then predictably, the river pulled me back, but not before I drew in a deep breath of air.

Once more, I sank to the bottom. A second turtle had joined the first, and perhaps curious about the interloper in their realm, they swam closer to inspect me. But as fascinating as the river’s wildlife was, I turned my focus upwards. It was time to get a better handle on the situation.

“Tell me what you see, Ghost. Are the flying serpents still around?”

“Yes. They’ve caught up again.”

“Are they trying to get into the river?”

“No. They’re hanging back.”

That almost made me smile. I should have jumped into the river earlier. But who knew that all it took was a little water to escape the stygians?

Now, though, it was time to leave.

The pack’s exodus should be nearly complete. And every second longer that I spent in the river lengthened the trip back. By now, the raging current must have carried me miles from the portal to the guardian tower.

“The big one is still around,” Ghost added.

Urgh. “Where is it?”

“Flying directly above you.”

Damn. The unpleasant news didn’t change matters, though, even if it complicated them. I still had to get out of the river, and cloaked in shadows, I could make the journey back in some measure of safety.

“Alright, Ghost, here is what I want you to do…”

✵ ✵ ✵

You are hidden.

You have teleported into Ghost’s shadow.

You have cast windborne.

With the spirit wolf’s help and one perfectly executed sequence of psi spells, I escaped the river’s clutches. I had instructed Ghost to reposition herself along one of the riverbanks, then teleported to her and surfed my way to the shore on a windslide.

Wet and bedraggled, I crouched on the riverbank and scanned the surroundings.

The area was thankfully free of stygians. “Follow me,” I ordered Ghost. Ignoring the water dripping from my clothes, I turned northeast and crept through the mists, heading toward the guardian tower’s nether portal.

Without landmarks, navigating the nether-infested sector would have been impossible if not for one thing: my budding explorer trait.

Thanks to the trait, the location of each of the sector’s key points shone unerringly in my mind. Even blind, I knew in which direction to head.

Unbidden, a Game message scrolled through my vision.

Congratulations, Michael! You have completed the task: Resettlement! The dire wolf pack has been transported to their new home in sector 107 of the guardian tower. Wolf is pleased, and your Mark has deepened.

I rocked to a halt, a contented smile on my face. It was done. Safyre had come through, and the pack was safe. Now, all that was left was for me to join them.

“Michael?” Safyre called, speaking through the farspeaker bracelet.

“Here,” I replied and resumed my journey through the haze of nether.

“The pack is through, and I’m about to close the portal.”

“Thank you,” I said, nearly choking with emotion.

“Are you safe?” she asked, sensing something in my voice.

“I’m not in immediate danger if that counts,” I replied.

“It does,” she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice. “Can you make it back to the portal on your own?” she asked.

“I think so,” I said, then added, reluctantly, “But it will take time. I’m miles away.” Not to mention that anything could happen between now and then. Safyre would know that, though.

“How did that happen?”

“I fell into a river.”

A pause. “You’re joking?”

My lips twitched. “I’m not.” Recalling the turtle, I realized Safyre might be able to satisfy my curiosity about them. “I discovered something surprising in the water. There was this—”

“Incoming!” Ghost sang.

I froze. “Where?”

“From up above. The big one is coming down from the sky, as are the other beasts with him.”

“Can they see me?”

“I’m not sure,” Ghost admitted. “But the serpents have not begun an attack dive. They are gliding around the big one. Does that help?”

It did. I pursed my lips. Why were the flying stygians descending? Did they know I’d left the river? And would my stealth hold once they got closer?

“Is everything alright?” Safyre asked. She couldn’t hear Ghost, of course.

“I have incoming,” I replied absently, still puzzling over how to respond to the approaching stygians.

“I’ll leave you to deal with them, then,” Safyre said. “Speak to me when you can.”

“You should go through the portal,” I said, realizing she intended to wait for me. “The stygians could ambush you at any moment.”

“I’m safe enough for now,” she responded, unconcerned. “Their last assault was nothing to shout about. If more come at me than I can handle, I will retreat. Promise.”

Their last assault? How many attacks had she fended off already? Safyre can take care of herself, I reminded myself. Probably better than you can.

I turned back to Ghost. “How long until our guests arrive?”

“A minute, maybe? The big one flies slowly, and the other beasts are keeping pace with him.”

I frowned. “Did the big one descend before?”

“No,” she said emphatically. “He is scary. I would have noticed if he’d come closer.”

“Describe him for me.”

“He’s big.”

I didn’t roll my eyes. “How big?”

Ghost had to think about that for a while. “Bigger than all the other beasts put together? Bigger than a thousand Duggars?”

That was big, alright.  “What else can you tell me about him?” I asked, struggling to contain my rising worry. A monstrosity that size—even if it was slow—couldn’t be taken lightly.

“Uhm… he’s round like a ball and has hundreds of long gray things extending below him.”

“Tentacles?”

“Yes!”

My frown deepened. I could not make sense of the creature Ghost had described, but someone else might. “Safyre, how much do you know about stygians?”

“I’m not an expert,” she replied, “but I’ve been on my fair share of rift dives. Why?”

I fed her Ghost’s description of the big one. “Do you know what that is?”

Palpable silence.

“Safyre?” I prompted.

“Are you sure that’s what’s after you?” she asked, her tone unwontedly serious.

“That’s what Ghost has described seeing, and I have no reason to doubt her.”

“Then you better run,” Safyre said bleakly. “The creature you describe is a stygian overlord, and I’ve not heard of one below level three hundred.”

My eyes widened. “Did you say—?”

“Yes. They’re slow and can normally be outrun, but in a sector like this, already teeming with stygians, that might not be so easy. When the nether gains a foothold in a new sector, the overlords are usually the ones to smash down the defenses of any fortified settlements in the region.”

“Prime!” Ghost said excitedly. “The big one is doing something.”

“What?” I asked tersely.

“I don’t know, but a dark light is forming between his tentacles.”

Was the overlord readying a magical projectile? That seemed like a reasonable assumption. Doubling my pace, I moved as fast as I could while still retaining my stealth.

“What sort of attacks do the overlords have?” I asked Safyre.

“They use blobs of nether primarily,” she said, speaking rapidly as she sensed my urgency. “The projectiles move only slightly faster than the overlords themselves, but what they lack in speed, they make up for in spread. A single blob can drench an area over a hundred yards in diameter.” She paused. “You won’t escape it on your own, not with all those other stygians around. Tell me where you are, and I’ll come to you.”

That was patently impossible. I was too far away for Safyre to reach in time, even if she could navigate through the mist. Besides, I was not about to endanger her. All I said, though, was, “I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’ll handle it.”

“But—”

“Please, Cara,” I said, stopping her. “Go, while you can. And look after the wolves for me.” Since I can’t.

Even through the farspeaker bracelet, I heard her unhappy sigh. “As you wish. Take care, Michael.”

“The dark light is moving,” Ghost reported, interrupting before I could reply to Safyre. “It’s heading this way!”

I cut back toward the river. I had no idea if the water would shield me from whatever casting the overlord had thrown my way, but once more, it was my best hope of escape.

Only hope.

Banishing the pessimistic thought, I dived into the water again.