—— ? ——

  “Well, god damn dude.” Simon said, immediately earning a punch from Kaelalin. “Hey, what am I supposed to say?” He said, rubbing his shoulder.

  “Not that.” Kaelalin said, frowning at him. She turned to the projection of Zerathis. “Please excuse my friend, he basically says whatever thought appears in his thick skull.”

  Zerathis did not break his bow, instead bending lower. “I beg you.”

  There was just something so odd about having a creature twice your size bowing before you. Simon couldn’t just let the guy hold himself there.

  “Look man.” He said as he moved towards Zerathis. “We both want to help. But we really are completely under qualified with this. What did you say your name was? Zerathis? Right? Raise your head.”

  Simon reached forward to pull the reptilian creature up, but his hand went right through the projection.

  Right. Duh. This guy isn’t real? Is he real? This whole thing is way too confusing.

  Zerathis seemed to not notice his attempt, continuing to plead.

  “You may think so, but the fact you are standing here tells me at least one of you is a great mage.”

  Simon’s face went stiff. Oh shit.

  “Uh… I mean Kaelalin uses magic, but I’m more of the hit things over the head with a heavy object sort of guy.”

  “Yet, you can summon objects from nothing and you are able to converse with me easily.” Zerathis said, his voice unmoving.

  “Oh. Right.” Simon ran his hand through his hair, trying to figure out how to explain what was going on. Did he even know what was going on?

  “I do summon things, it's a skill of the system. Which is uh…” Simon scratched his head. “Some type of magical thing… Okay yeah no, I’m not explaining this shit. Kaelalin?”

  The best thing to do sometimes is just pass the buck along to someone else.

  Kaelalin frowned. “What Simon is trying to say is, the power you have seen us use stems from another source. That same source is what brought us here.”

  Zerathis finally tilted his head up, his eyes brighter.

  “So, there is another here that has great power?” he asked.

  Kaelalin gave ‘sorta’ hand gesture. “Not here particularly. Would you allow us to explain how we came to your world? Simon and I come from worlds such as your own, but ours have undergone a much more positive transformation.” She winced as the words escaped her mouth.

  Simon gave her a sarcastic thumbs up, mouthing . “Nice.”

  Zerathis stood straight, clearly confused. “What do you mean, a transformation?”

  “Did you guys ever invent table top games?” Simon said.

  Zerathis gave him a puzzled look. “What would the top of tables and games have to do with this?”

  “Yeah Simon, what would those have to do with this?” Kaelalin joined in, crossing her arms with a smug look on her face. “Care to explain?

  “They uh… Well the system is similar to some of the table top games from my world. Skills, stats, the whole… everything reminds me of…” Simon coughed. “Dungeons and Dragons”

  Zerathis and Kaelalin both stared at him.

  “You know what, how about you just explain what’s going on Kaelalin.” Simon said.

  “I think that would be for best.” She replied, turning to Zerathis. “I will keep this brief. Simon and I are from two different worlds. Those worlds knew nothing of each other until roughly a month ago. A being known as ‘The System’ appeared and froze our worlds. Then we were all swept away into magical realms and it was explained that our lives would be forever changed.”

  She reached to her belt and pulled a large chunk of metal from a small pouch. With a flourish she took the big chunk and pushed it back into the small pouch.

  “The rules of our known reality shifted. Unknown magic, powerful abilities, and strange entities appeared. We were thrust back to a world that was unfamiliar to us after having the barest of explanations given to us. The world we returned to was… a blend of worlds. People from all places found themselves in a new land.”

  Zerathis watched her in rapt attention, his eyes large.

  Kaelalin continued. “Simon and I both ended up in a town called Varnholt.”

  “Well, I actually ended up on a mountainside near Varnholt” Simon chimed in.

  Kaelalin scowled at him. Simon shut up.

  “Yes, Simon is new to our town. His arrival was strange, to say the least. But, we both live in Varnholt now. None of its residents are from there originally. Most of the details of the town are unimportant, save one. It is a cold place, covered in snow and…”

  “What is snow?” Zerathis interrupted, his mouth moving strangely. It was as if he was tasting the word.

  Kaelalin blinked at him. “You… Don't know what snow is?”

  Zerathis shook his head. “The way you speak is strange. You seem to be fluent in my native tongue, yet there are some words that have no meaning.” He cocked his head. “It is very odd.”

  “Did your world ever grow cold? Now that I mention it, it's been insanely hot since we got here.” Simon asked.

  Zerathis looked further confused. “Yes, it does. I remember this cavern was quite cold before the molten tide arrived. Even after it consumed our world, these caves have never been as hot as the surface.”

  Simon whistled. “Damn. So it’s way hotter than Arizona here.” Zerathis mouthed the word. “A-ri-zon-ah”

  “Ignore that word.” Simon waved his hands at the projection. “Basically, imagine the temperature difference from the surface to these caves. Then imagine it getting colder and colder until chunks of frozen water fell from the sky in a soft downfall. That’s what snow is.”

  Zerathis frowned. “Soft, extremely cold water?”

  “Exactly.”

  The reptile shook its head and looked concerned. “And it covers everything in this, Varnolt?”

  “Pretty much.” Kaelalin said. “The world I come from is covered by it almost permanently.”

  Zerathis gave Kaelalin a compassionate look. “That sounds awful. No wonder you came to our world.”

  “I actually prefer it.” She replied. “Your world seems like a nightmare.”

  They both stared at each other, feeling pity for the other.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Simon snorted. “ Shouldn’t we get back to your explanation.”

  Kaelalin nodded. “Like I was saying. We arrived in a frozen town that is, to our knowledge, completely separated from the rest of the world. Our council has been working on a quest to bore a tunnel through the mountain, but it's a long process. I have personally been advocating for efforts to search the valley. That’s where Simon comes in.”

  She gestured towards him.

  “He arrived, and my fellow researcher and I proposed that we have him search the valley. Simon set out and accomplished that task. While he was surveying the valley he discovered ruins or some magical points of interest within the valley. Simon and I went to investigate and discovered a gateway to another world, or as the System calls it a sub-realm.”

  Kaelalin paused and a serious look crossed her face.

  “Now, I want to be clear on this part. The System connects sub-realms to integrated realms through a process called stabilization. I do not understand how it works, but I am pretty sure it is not the same as what your tower is focused on. From my understanding, the process permanently connects the world to System controlled space. I just didn’t want to get your hopes up.”

  She waved towards Simon.

  “That is what we are here to do. The System gives out rewards through things called quests. We have a quest to stabilize and connect this realm permanently. We aren’t capable of even understanding how the system made the connection to your world in the first place.”

  There was a heavy silence as Zerathis processed what they she said. Simon fiddled with his new shirt awkwardly as the projection thought.

  That made Simon think in turn. What was this thing anyways? It had explained so much to them, but called itself a… memory? But that wasn’t how this felt. Despite the lack of a physical body, Zerathis felt like a full being.

  “So… If I understand correctly.” Zerathis said slowly. “You and him.” He pointed between them. “Are here on a mission from a… powerful being? To permanently connect our world to another?”

  Kaelalin nodded.

  “Your story is far beyond what I have ever considered possible. However, you are both here. The magic that you both wield is so foreign to my senses. Your very bodies defy what I believed to exist. So I think I do believe you.”

  His expression clouded and he took on a dark look.

  “If you are from another world, and this entity intends to connect them… Then I believe you should leave.”

  “What?!” Simon exclaimed. “Why? I thought you wanted our help.”

  Zerathis shook his head, downcast.

  “I believed you to be great mages that had somehow found my world. That is not the case. You should leave and then seal the gate to my world.”

  “But, we want to find a way to help you!” Kaelalin protested.

  The reptile’s eyes filled with tears, but he shook his head firmly.

  “And I believe you, stranger. However, If the entity you have named ‘The System’ intends to connect our worlds I am going to do my very best to stop it.”

  “You still haven’t answered. Why?” Simon said with growing irritation. “We fought our way to this place. We listened to the horror of what happened to your people. What has changed?”

  Zerathis met his frustrated gaze. “You know then. The horror that resides here. The creatures that my people have created do not stop. They continue to grow and return with every passing year. Our people doomed our world to this nightmare.”

  He stood taller, filled with resolve.

  “I will not let another world fall to our pride. As the last of the Forged, I will do everything in my power to prevent this. Do you understand?”

  Kaelalin and Simon were silent.

  Zerathis nodded, the sighed. He bowed his head to them.

  “I see you do. It was nice to have such an interesting conversation before the end. I will continue my vigil. I thank you for giving me this gift.” Zerathis turned, and his projection shimmered as it slowly began to fade.

  “No.”

  The shimmering froze.

  “What?” Zerathis said, turning back to them. He looked at Simon who stood arms crossed.

  “I said no, you big scaled moron.”

  Zerathis’s eyes hardened. “What do you mean no?”

  Simon crossed his arms tighter. “No, as in – Hell no. No to you sending us away. No to you moping around as the ‘last forged’.. You think you’re doing the world a favor by dying alone down here, but all you’re really doing is making sure your people’s last stand never meant a damn thing.”

  The reptile’s jaw tightened. “You presume to judge what you cannot understand. My people’s arrogance birthed endless suffering. Now you insist on connecting that horrifying hunger to another world? Better to let the fire die with us then spread again.”

  Simon barked a laugh, ugly and humorless. “Dude, you think you’re telling me something new? I’ve met gods. Real, bona fide deities. Guess what? They’re assholes. Absolute cosmic pricks. The whole reason I’m in this hellish world is because I have to get stronger to survive.”

  He jabbed a thumb toward his own chest. “The System, Zerathis. The thing that dragged us here, the thing that stitched our worlds together.

  Fire raged in his eyes as he looked up and stared down the towering projection.

  “Doesn’t. Give. a. Fuck.” He gestured towards himself. “Not about me. Not about you. Not about Kaelalin. At least that’s the best I can figure. Maybe it has some redeeming qualities, but I sure as hell haven’t seen them. That cosmic level, unimaginable ‘thing’ connects entire realms together on a whim. You really think it's going to stop and sigh because the last Forged said ‘oh no… woe is me, leave us alone. Don’t let our mistakes hurt other people.’”

  Simon took a step closer, jabbing a finger at the fading image.

  “You want the truth? If Kaelalin and I walk away, the System’s just going to shove some other poor bastard through the same door. Or worse – it’ll connect this place at random. Probably at your high mage’s shithole, with all those reliquaries crawling around. You think things are bad now? Imagine those things ripping apart and consuming countless dumbasses before they have a chance to realize how dumb they were for stepping into this hellhole.”

  Simon’s voice cracked through the cavern like a hammer blow.

  “So don’t stand there acting like you’ve got some holy power to stop the inevitable. You don’t. None of us do. The System isn’t asking your permission. Hell it never asked us for permission, why do you get a choice. Now, why don’t you come up with a plan that isn’t meaningless. Aren’t you supposed to be some prodigy or something?”

  The projection shuddered, scales of shimmering energy rippling like disturbed water. Zerathis’s claws flexed as if he wanted to tear the metal beneath him, but his words came low, trembling.

  “You dare… to call my vigil meaningless?”

  “Yeah,” Simon shot back without hesitation. “I am calling it meaningless if you decide to just shove us away. I’m damn sure that the system wants to connect your world for some reason. Hell if I know why, but it does.”

  Simon pointed at himself and Kaelalin. “Evidence of that fact? We are here. Hell if we leave, I think someone else can try in a day or something. I don’t remember. The gateway isn’t magically going to go away.”

  Simon clenched his teeth. Then spat out.

  “Your people gave everything to hold back the reliquaries. They did that to let you survive. To let someone tell their story. Now, I don’t even know if you are alive, or whatever the hell you actually are. But I do know, if you push us out, someone else is going to come for this quest. By that time your scaled ass is probably going to be toast. But I guarantee someone, someday is going to figure out how to fully connect this world. Your world is metal. Some asshole is going to come along and want that metal.”

  He scoffed.

  “And I bet they are going to see the fact it's infused with souls as a bonus.”

  The projection reeled as if Simon’s last words had struck harder than any blade. For a moment, Zerathis’s eyes dimmed, his towering form flickering like a candle in a draft.

  “You…” his voice rasped. “Would use the souls of my people as… material?”

  Simon’s lip curled. “Not me. But someone will. You think some god is going to pass up a shiny world full of living metal? Hell no. They’ll carve it up, melt it down, and pat themselves on the back while doing it.”

  He shook his head. “I’m not sure what type of power people’s soul’s have. The thought makes me sick. But I bet there are powerful beings out there who would not give a shit as long as they can use it.”

  Zerathis stood frozen. His face a twisted mask of rage, despair and hopelessness.

  Kaelalin’s voice cut through, sharp but steady. “Simon’s right. This place isn’t hidden. It isn’t safe. The System has already opened one gateway to it. If we leave and you're lost, you’re leaving them open to be harvested.”

  Simon held out a hand.

  “So how about this plan. Help us finish our quest, then come with us to the outside. To the world filled with that crazy ass system we have been talking about. Someone out there has to know how to fix this pile of mistakes.”

  The world seemed to hold its breath. The glow of the shimmering projection flickered, the lights casting dancing shadows at the companions feet.

  Zerathis’s mouth opened, but for once no sound came out. His chest heaved, a storm of emotion tearing through his spectral form. Under his mask of emotions, something dangerously close to hope emerged.

  “You… would take me beyond?” His voice was a whisper, as if the idea itself might shatter him. “Past the tide, past the hunger… into this world of systems and gods?”

  Simon shrugged, though his gaze stayed steady. “Why not? You think we haven’t seen crazy before? You’re talking to the guy who beat a monster rabbit to death with a kazoo.”

  Kaelalin shook her head at Simon, then stepped closer. Her measured tone rang out. “If you truly wish to keep your people’s story alive, then carry it beyond this tomb. You’ve been guarding their wailing tortured souls. There's no hope left in this place. Out there, maybe there’s a chance."

  Zerathis flexed his claws. His projection stabilized and his eyes burned bright. “For untold years I have been here. I bound myself to this last great work. With every day that passed I held onto hope that someone would come.” He closed his eyes and let out a chuckle. “Perhaps this is merely my madness that has brought this vision of strangers to me.”

  …His eyes snapped open.

  “But, if this is just one last delusion… let us see how far it goes, shall we?”

  Simon’s grin spread, sharp and reckless. “All aboard the short bus, eh?”

  Zerathis blinked. “Wait… what is a bus?”

  Kaelalin groaned.

  —— ? ——

  — AUTHOR NOTICE —

  ~TheBusyBard

  Harmony is offered, growth is earned, Limits are unknown.

  ——————————