—— ? ——

  Several hours later, Kurda called a halt. Simon helped him take down the scaffolding, and then they both fell in behind the last half-loaded cart. Kurda injected mana in, and they started pushing.

  As they moved past side tunnels, it struck Simon just how silent the entire place was.

  “Are we the last to leave?” Simon asked as he took another step, hands set against the cart.

  Kurda shrugged. “Ain’t sure. We might be.”

  “You are indeed the final people left.” A cheery voice rang out, making Simon and Kurda peer over their cart. “I was ready to rip the tools out of your hand, Councilor Kurda.”

  Ahead, Ryne stood in the tunnel. She gave Simon a smile, her amber eyes piercing, then frowned as she turned to Kurda.

  “You know, you would make my life much easier if you simply joined the communication party we have set up.” She said, crossing her arms.

  “Bah.” Kurda shook his head. He and Simon pushed the cart past Ryne who just stood arms crossed. She sighed, taking quick steps then matched their cadence.

  “That’s all I get? Bah?” she asked from Simon’s right. Simon felt her gaze pierce through him to Kurda. He decided it was a really good time to study the cart.

  Woah, this cart is so cool.

  Kurda blinked, slowly replying. “Errrr… well yer’ see I think I could get der-stracted if I was in that there group.”

  “That’s not good enough of a reason, and you know it.” Ryne replied.

  Kurda sighed. “Ryne, yer’ know the reason I like der’ tunnel is that it makes it difficult for the other councilors ter’ come and chat with me. I don’t get along with most of them, and they already ask me every meeting why der’ tunnels are taking so long.”

  Ryne was silent.

  They reached the top of the tunnel and pushed the cart into a holding area. As it locked into place, Simon excused himself and moved towards a stack of stone. Kurda gave him a raised eyebrow, but he just waved him off.

  Out of sight, Simon dug into the pack he carried these days and took out the Garb of the Lagomorph Slayer. He cringed internally as he imagined the stares he would get, but Simon wasn’t going to be walking unarmored.

  Simon had protested removing it while in the tunnel, but Kurda had insisted. Told him he would be far too hot wearing it.

  After quickly changing, Simon walked out from behind the stone and heard Ryne speaking.

  “Look, I understand what you said. They constantly ask me and want me to provide updates, even though they know why our progress has slowed.” She shook her head, her curly dark hair bouncing. “But that’s where you need to just set your foot down, Kurda. You avoid actively addressing your issues with Maelis. I don’t think that’s fair to you. You should let the council know exactly what that sorry excuse for a smith has been saying.”

  Kurda rubbed the back of his head. “Yer’ probably right.”

  “I am.”

  Kurda smiled. “Yer’ know yer’ pretty headstrong, yer?”

  Ryne crossed her arms again. Her face screamed ‘and?’.

  Awkward silence fell over the cleared worksite, the only sound coming from the light wind whipping across the space. Kurda broke the silence with a laugh.

  “Alright, alright! I’ll bring it up in the next meetin’. About time someone did.”

  Ryne beamed. “Fantastic!” She clapped her hands. “Now, shall we hurry back to town? We wouldn’t want to miss the announcement, would we?”

  Kurda nodded. “No we wouldn’t. Come on yer’ two lets see what all the fuss is about.”

  They made their way down the path towards Varnholt.

  “Any idea on what it is, Ryne?” Simon asked as they walked.

  She shook her head. “Despite my inquiries I haven’t come up with anything. But you will be happy to know they will be serving food and drinks. Enough for the entire town. It’s as if they intend for this to become a festival.”

  Kurda and Simon both looked at each other, then Kurda started walking faster. Simon matched his pace and then started moving faster than him.

  “Hey!” Ryne yelled quickly, before being left behind.

  But Kurda had seen Simon move ahead of him, snorted and then started power walking, passing Simon.

  Ryne watched in disbelief as the two full-grown men went from power walking, to jogging, to a flat-out sprint.

  “I swear…” She muttered, but then smiled and increased her pace.

  “Hurrry Ryne! This bunny man’s gonna eat all der’ soup!” Kurda’s shout drifted back across the wind.

  —— ? ——

  Simon bent over and leaned against the stone wall. He heaved air into his lungs as sweat dripped down his forehead.

  “Yer’ still lost der’ race.” Kurda gasped out, similarly leaning, holding his sides.

  “Only because you cheated,” Simon protested. “You knocked me over with that boulder.”

  “It wer’ a snowball.” Kurda said flatly.

  “Snowball?!” Simon turned and his face twisted. “Kurda, that thing weighed half of what I do. How in the world did you even pack that thing while running?”

  Kurda drew in sharp breath. “Ha! It was a big ‘un that’s for sure. Had to make sure I didn’t miss yer’. Yer’ know what they say, if yer’ cant hit the bull, just get level der’ barn!”

  Simon just shook his head. He glanced out down the street and took in the mass of people that were assembling. Tall frost-kin, glowing celestials, humans and Yoreboon. A Yoreboon with facial scars walked past and Simon froze.

  Anger.

  Rage.

  Then numbness. Simon blinked. Weird. His emotions were swirling as he remembered his confrontation with Maelis. His mind was torn between that buried anger and a numb… weight that sunk into him.

  For the countless time, Simon tried to play back what that asshol– smith had said.His brows pinched as he felt like something was on the tip of his tongue.

  What… was it? There was something; his mind just kept slipping over the feeling. He had felt it before, yet he st–

  “Yerpppp!” Kurda blew out the word from his mouth. “It be time to get some of that soup. Yer’ coming Simon?” The towering man shoved himself off the wall. He turned to look at Simon.

  Simon straightened and was about to agree when a Frost-kin crossed their path. His two slightly manic inventor friends came to his mind.

  “I was going to try to find Kaelalin, Brian and Zerathis. If they aren’t here, I’ll go drag them from that lab of theirs.” He shifted the backpack that Kurda had given him, tightening the straps against the furs of his garb.

  Kurda nodded. “Good idea. Good of yer’ to not clear out all der’ soup before others get a chance.”

  “You act as if you aren’t going to clear it out before he gets back.” Ryne chimed in. She moved in next to Kurda and gave Simon a sage nod. “Don’t worry, Simon. I’ll make sure you see more than the bottom of a pot.”

  Simon smiled. “Appreciate it, Ryne.” He looked at Kurda. “I never said it, but thanks for lending me the bag and clothes. If you want, I can pay you fo–”

  Kurda held up a hand. “Yer’ gonna pay me? With all the help you’ve given me, I think it’s more than enough of a payment, although speaking of dat” He scrounged through some pockets then withdrew a small bag. He tossed it to Simon. “Meant ter’ give yer’ that earlier. We just got into der’ stone work and it slipped.”

  Simon’s hand shot up, and he snagged the leather pouch. Crystalline tinkling sounded out as it slapped into his palm. He peered inside and saw the glow of Aethra crystals.

  “Wait, what’s this for?”

  “For yer’ help of course!” Kurda grinned, then made Simon let out an oof as he slapped his shoulder. “Yer’ were instrumental in the last few days.”

  Simon cocked his head, confused. “Are you firing me?”

  Kurda looked shocked. “Are yer’ kiddin’? By my arse no. Yer’ always welcome to come and get work from me.” Kurda sighed. “But yer’ may not know, but we have been talkin’ about letting people go back to those portals buried in the snow. I still don’t know what this announcement is, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the council announced it at der’ same time.”

  Simon nodded. That made sense.

  He stashed the leather pouch in a pocket. “And you think I’m going to run off into one of them?”

  Kurda raised an eyebrow. “Yer’ not? If that's the case yer’ then I’ll see yer’ at the tunnel.”

  Simon felt numb. Wasn’t this the perfect time to bow out?

  He could just thank Kurda and move on. It would be… less of a hassle…

  Simon shook his head.

  What? He blinked. Then he frowned. What was that thought?

  *Ding!* The small chime went off in his head. A system notice?

  “Yer’ okay Simon?” Kurda looked at him with concern. “I didn’t mean ter’ pressure yer’.”

  “No, you’re good, Kurda.” Simon felt strange.

  He mentally dismissed the notice that nudged him. He could see it later.

  “Let’s see what this whole announcement is and then I’ll let you know alright? I need to go find those nerds and get some food. Just been feeling off today.” He smiled weakly. “Probally shouldn’t have run on an empty stomach right?”

  Kurda frowned. Ryne studied Simon intently, her amber eyes squinting.

  “That’s true.” Kurda finally said, a grin reappearing. “Maybe yer’ shouldn’t have tried ter’ beat me in a run then.”

  Simon laughed. “Can’t argue with that.” He walked past the two and made his way towards the crowd. He looked back and saw the big man lumbering towards the tables.

  Simon smiled.

  The man was good people.

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

  Despite his size, he was kind and reminded Simon of some instructors he had during his marathon of hobbies. Salt of the earth, simple in the way they spoke, but experienced in a way that became more apparent the longer you spent with him.

  Simon had enjoyed their talks during breaks. He had gotten to learn a good bit about the man’s race and world.

  Kurda came from a world called Brok. How he described it reminded Simon of Zerathis’s world… but with less ‘murdery’ metal monsters on it. It was once a violently tectonic realm with churning plates and endless volcanic upheaval. But all of that happened hundreds of years ago, according to Kurda. Now his planet was a world twisted by endless elevation changes. Kurda called the warping bands of mountains and hills the “rock belts.” They ran for hundreds and hundreds of miles. Brok was a world built up, down and sideways, smooth or flat spaces a rarity. The belts varied, some curling like sand dunes, others sharp and jagged.

  The ones Kurda’s people took over were the Hollow Hills. Mountains that sheltered ancient caverns. They mostly held towns, but some were large enough to hold entire cities.

  Kurda’s people lived beneath rock, despite the surface being habitable. If nature gave you natural housing didn’t it make sense to take it over? Kurda’s people, the Thurgen, thought so.

  Kurda’s chestnut-toned skin wasn’t uncommon for Thurgen. His stature however, was the norm. Kurda had never heard of a Thurgen that was shorter than seven feet tall. In fact, some grew to almost nine. The shortest of their race were a group that sounded like some type of albino mutation. Their skin was almost translucent and none could remember one of their tribes surfacing.

  Which was a shame, because Simon thought they were missing out based on how Kurda had described their sky. Their sun gave the world a bronze tint, but that wasn’t what was so interesting.

  Apparently, Kurda had been confused with the stars when he arrived. On Brok, their ‘stars’ moved. There was a perpetual haze high in the sky, clouds of something hung far away from the surface. Some had fallen through the ages, revealing them to be metal chunks that had somehow ended up above. Between those mineral-laden chunks, the swirling cloud sparkled and shifted. Thurgen believed the sky was a mirror that would show those who looked glimpses of the strata below.

  Eventually, every stone pattern would be revealed by the heavens. At least, that’s what their elders taught.

  Kurda had wondered what had happened to their sky, and if it was still out there somewhere.

  Simon shook off that somber memory, forcing his mind to stay in the present. Thinking of the past and what had been lost wasn’t going to help anybody right now.

  He made his way through the ever-growing crowd. His eyes searched for the telltale features of Kaelalin, or the floating metal sphere that was Zerathis. He looked out across the heads and spotted a stage that had appeared overnight. It stood in the center of the plaza and was a simple ordeal. Simple slabs of stone stacked to make a raised platform roughly four feet tall.

  On earth, it would have been ridiculous to move thousands of pounds of stone for one announcement, but this wasn’t earth. Here the average person could carry more than some body builders from Simon’s world. Of course, they probably just used the carts that defied physics through magic bullshit.

  On the stage, Simon spotted the unkempt visage of Brian. The man was deep in conversation with Councilor Serel, the two gesturing and going back and forth.

  The two were lit by the changing colors of the setting sun. Simon glanced towards the mountains. It was still a good hour or so before darkness fell. He shifted his gaze back to searching.

  Where are you, Kaelalin…

  Then he nearly physically face-palmed. With an effort of will, he focused on the thought of the tall Frost-kin. He imagined connecting to her as if he were dialing her number. A heartbeat later, he felt a thin invisible ‘something’ rocket out from him. Then he just knew he could speak to her.

  “Hey Simon! How’s the view from over there?” Her voice rang out in his mind.

  “Kaelalin! Wait… how do you know where I am? I have been trying to find you but haven’t seen you. "

  “Well, you kind of stand out, you know that, right?” Kaelalin chuckled.

  Simon glanced around, taking in the various glances directed towards him. There was definitely a wide space around him. It seemed no one wanted to be within a few feet of the corpse carpet.

  “Hey, I can’t help this ugly thing is so comfortable.” Simon replied as he carefully and slowly scanned. “Okay, har har, funny joke. Where are you at?”

  “Look for the building with the garish green paint. Whoever lives here really needs to reconsider their color choices.” Kaelalin said, her tone disgusted.

  Simon quickly scanned, then spotted a building with a puke green paint on its doors and surrounding its windows. He had to agree. And that was coming from the guy wearing a corpse carpet.

  From the shadows of the building, near an alley, a tall frost-kin took a step into the light. Kaelalin waved. Simon moved towards her, the people between him and her quickly stepping out of his way.

  Oh, come on. It doesn’t look that bad.

  He glanced down.

  Okay, its pretty bad. But I’m not getting surprised like that evening ever again. Maybe… I should talk with Kaelalin about it.

  His eyes moved back up. Kaelalin was wearing her lab attire, her appearance was the polar opposite of Brian’s unkempt madness. She sported a grin, and over her shoulder, Simon saw movement in the air. It was the Eight-ball himself, Zerathis.

  Simon smiled back as he stepped closer. He should talk to her about… eh… that feeling bubbled up again, the disconcerting weight.

  Bah, Simon thought, miming Kurda’s favorite response. I can talk to her about it later.

  With that, the weight sloughed off his mind.

  As soon as he broke from the crowd, Kaelalin took a step forward and surprised Simon with a friendly hug.

  “It’s good to see you.” She said, pulling away. Her eyes shifted to concern. “You said you wanted to talk last night? Sorry, I was busy. Want to tell me what’s on your mind?”

  “I am also available to listen to anything you may need to speak of.” Zerathis intoned from above.

  Simon couldn’t help but laugh at the deadpan response. “Wow, Zerathis, I’m touched.” Simon felt Kaelalin’s stare. He met her frowning eyes. That weight returned. Simon clenched his jaw. This was just uncomfortable. He really just wanted to eat some soup.

  “It’s alright… Let’s just enjoy the day, alright?” Simon finally said.

  Kaelalin gave him a long look. “Are you sure?”

  Simon nodded, then mimicked Zerathis. “I will be available to speak my thoughts at a later time.”

  Kaelalin rolled her eyes, then looked up at the floating construct.

  “What? Have I said something offensive?” Zerathis asked, his runic rings whirling erratically.

  Simon exhaled. “You’re good, dude. Anyway, want to catch me up on what’s been going on?” He stepped into the shadowy spot the two had been. “Got any juicy details that have leaked from the mouth of an overly excited lab partner?”

  Kaelalin’s mood shifted, and she practically skipped into the shadows. Simon felt the long gazes of the crowd leave the odd trio, now understanding why Kaelalin had been standing over here.

  “It’s exciting, isn’t it?” Kaelalin buzzed. “But no, Brian doesn’t know anything. I have tried everything to get him to share his secrets, but I’m starting to think he has none. It seems the council is staying tight-lipped about whatever this is.”

  Simon leaned against the wall. He watched Zerathis float over toward a stack of crates and rest on top of it.

  “Any guesses?” Simon asked.

  “Our best guess is that it’s related to the sub-realms. I don’t think it’s about the access, because that’s already openly known. It has to be something significant for them to go through all this effort.”

  Simon nodded. “Makes sense to me.” He paused, examining Kaelalin. She was grinning like a fool hiding a secret. “So… why are you so excited then?”

  Her eyes glinted at him. “Don’t you remember what one of our rewards from that place was?”

  Simon frowned, then his face lit up. “Oh… Oh! The percentage? Shit, I hadn’t even thought about that.”

  Kaelalin scoffed. “ You’ve been moving rocks for the last couple of days. Maybe Emrick has a point. What was it again?”

  She grinned mischievously. “Stone-addled?”

  “Hey!” Simon replied. “I resent that. I will have you know I am not ‘stone-addled’… Well, I mean I almost got turned into a pancake from that cave in. But it all worked out.”

  He paused.

  “I.. I have been feeling kind of off lately.”

  That look of concern shadowed the Frost-kin’s face. “You sure you don’t need to talk?”

  Simon was silent.

  His mind was at war. The anger. The heaviness.

  It would be good to get it off…

  No. He just didn’t want to talk about this now…

  Wait… What?

  Frustration spread through him, the heat and buzzing of it causing his neck to tense.

  What the fuck was going on?

  “Simon?”

  “It’s fine!” He snapped, then immediately regretted it. Kaelalin’s face twisted in pain.

  Simon closed his eyes and breathed.

  After several breaths, he opened his eyes. “Look…” He steeled his face. “I’m just feeling really off right now. I think… I don’t know…” Simon’s words trailed off, refusing to form.

  Kaelalin studied him closely, then shook her head. “It’s alright. It’s been a stressful couple of weeks, right?” She reached forward and gave his shoulder a firm squeeze. “Just know I’m here to talk, alright?”

  “I am also available for discussion.” Zerathis added from his perch on the boxes.

  Kaelalin shot him a glare.

  “What?” The construct asked.

  Simon chuckled. “You have been hanging out with Brian too much, Mr Eight-ball.”

  Now, the glare from Kaelalin shifted to Simon. “And what do you mean by that?”

  “Based on that response, I’m going to assume you still haven’t painted a big sign for him to read.” Simon grinned. “Although… he would probably walk right past it”

  Kaelalin punched his shoulder.

  “Hey!” Simon said. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

  Kaelalin grumbled something. The three were silent, the chattering of the surrounding crowd filling the air.

  “So, what are your plans then?” Kaelalin broke the silence.

  “Plans?”

  “For when the council announces the reopening of the sub-realms?” She asked pointedly.

  “Oh,” Simon replied, rubbing his chin. “I thought you said it would be too risky?”

  “I did.” She crossed her arms. “But that was when it was just the two of us. Brian and I talked through it. We came up with a few ideas to minimize the risk.” Kaelalin gestured between them. “The biggest change would be in how many of us go.”

  “Oh?”

  “Well, think about it. If we had more people when we went into the Realm of the Forger that would have been a game changer. It was a horrifying experience for the two of us. But imagine if we had, let’s say, six?” She snapped her fingers. “Easy.”

  Simon tapped his chin. “True… strength in numbers, yeah?”

  Kaelalin nodded. “Exactly. Quantity matters. Plus, if we improve the quality…” She grinned. “Imagine–if you will–Kurda in that realm… with a massive hammer.”

  The mental image of the big man screaming “Yer’ dead now yer’ overgrown sack o’ scrap!” played through Simon’s mind.

  “Oh yeah. That would have been sooo much better.”

  “I know, right?!” Kaelalin beamed. “But why stop there? Add in some people who can restrain enemies.” Her smile turned sinister. “And those creatures would have been slag in no time. I have already spoken to few people from town, and several have already agreed. Jorik was the bigges–”

  *Bong!*

  The resonating sound stole her words. The trio turned their attention to the stage to see Kurda holding a large mallet next to a metal cylinder. The crowd began to quiet as attention shifted to the stage.

  “We will begin our announcement in just a few moments.” Serel’s voice drifted over the crowd.

  “Guess it’s starting.” Simon heard Kaelalin say, then felt a tug on his sleeve. Kaelalin passed by, gesturing. “Come on, I want to get closer.”

  Simon moved up to falling in step with her. He heard a slight hum from above and glanced up to see Zerathis hovering above them.

  The people in their way would glance toward them and then shuffle quickly to let them through.

  “Well, that’s handy. I need to drag you around wearing that every time I need to get through a crowd.” Kaelalin whispered to him.

  “It’s a hidden feature.” Simon snarked.

  On the stage, the councilors were still talking in separate groups. Brian was saying something to Kurda when he spotted Simon. His eyes grew a bit, and a big smile crossed his face. Kurda nodded, then moved to talk with someone else.

  As they got close to the front, Brian moved across the stage and hopped down.

  “Hey guys!” Brian spat out, then immediately gushed. “Isn’t this exciting? A new town feature! Also, Simon, I see you wore your Sunday best for this outing.”

  “You know it, man,” Simon said. “So, any hints about what’s going to happen?”

  Brian shook his head. “Nope! Couldn’t give you one even if I wanted to. Serel’s been keeping this remarkably quiet.”

  “Or she just didn’t tell you because she knew it would remain a secret for minutes afterwards.” Kaelalin said dryly.

  Brian pushed his glasses back. “That isn’t true.” Pause. “Well.” Pause. “Okay, maybe it has some merit.”

  Kaelalin rolled her eyes.

  Brian’s excitement just continued.“I just can’t wait to find out. They are talking about making this into some type of festival every year.” He beamed. “It will be the first town ‘holiday,’ as it were. History in the making! The best Tuesday of the year.”

  It was like a flashbang exploded in Simon’s mind. The surrounding conversation grew muffled and he blinked rapidly. Several moments went by as growing panic expanded from his mind and made his blood curdle.

  He swallowed, his mouth dry as a desert.

  “B..Brian?”

  The inventor turned his gaze to Simon, his face bright and bubbly. “What, Simon?”

  Simon’s eyes were wide, and his brain struggled to form words. Finally, he eked out.

  “Did you just say ‘the best Tuesday?” Kaelalin and Brian shared a look of concern.

  “Of course, why do you ask?”

  Simon blinked again. “But that means…”

  Brian looked amused. “Oh, of course you would lose track of the days.” He smiled and then patted Simon on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, I have been keeping track. It’s difficult with all the weird time in the events,” Brian mused, then shrugged. “But by my estimate, today should be Tuesday.”

  Simon just stood there.

  Tuesday.

  It was a Tuesday.

  Simon shook his head.

  Calm down Simon. You’re just overreacting.

  His eyes moved to the stage as he tried to breathe and just calm himself.

  It was just a stupid superstition; he told himself.

  No big deal…

  Right?

  —— ? ——

  — AUTHOR NOTICE —

  May have noticed the change in posting day. I will be dropping extra chapters from now until next Tuesday.

  ~TheBusyBard

  ——————————