NBB2 - The chaos rifts - chapter 32

~~

Grav scanned the dark city. Nothing moved, which served his goal well. Examining the wyrm tower at the other side of the square, he saw the thick solid stone door that blocked it. He missed having the ability to slink into all places. He still thought of himself as the shade, even though his form had changed. Soon he would be able to regain the ability though, he had already found the perfect pattern. It had been locked away below the chamber of Drys, together with a bunch of others. Remembering the effort that it took to copy them line by line and take to his hideout made him shiver.

Now all he needed was the thing inside the tower.

According to the rumors Reesh relayed, there was an enormous mana-orb inside. They didn't know how to absorb it, but the shade did. Long ago, he had witnessed a battle between two powerful undead. One had won, ripping apart the other's head and removing an immense orb. The shade had sat far away, hiding and watching as the victor wrapped the orb in its mana-field. The change afterward had left the shade stunned.

Now, if only he could get inside the tower. He had already tried moving the rock, but it was impossible.

Muffled explosions shattered the silence, and a bright blue light shone down on the square. Undisturbed, the shade looked up at the glowing blue dome across the city. Red energy crackled against it as Ygdra flew across, shooting at the field. They disappeared after a few moments, the explosions fading in the distance.

No more time, the shade thought. It was already stunned at how well this city had resisted the Kaots, but time was running out. If he didn't evolve quickly and create a balancing rift, the Kaot Lords would come. It had only witnessed them one time and had barely managed to flee through a rift as they sucked in the roaming undead and Kaots alike like specs of dust.

Looking around the city, he hesitated. Should he revert back to its own form and flee?

His hesitation remained only a short while before he turned and moved away from the tower.

No, no more fleeing, he thought, moving with purpose in the direction of the most popular building in the city. He would speak with Drys, trick the other into giving up the mana-core. Then after closing the rifts, he would end the other. There was no place for a powerful undead besides himself.

~~

Two undead rushed down the hill, sucking in gulps of dusty air as they struggled forward. Ahead of them lay an immense, shimmering barrier, and behind it, their goal.

"They have started bloody attacking Skulltown! How do we get in now?" Tatjie cursed between ragged breaths.

A massive battle was raging in front of the city, Kaots fighting an immense army of defenders. It was hard to see who had the advantage, but there seemed to be more defenders than attackers. Derin wasn't completely sure, though, because it was hard enough to keep them apart when they stood in front of him. Only the screaming, raging madness, and constant aggression gave it away, but amidst the battle, there seemed to be a lot of that going around. Dozens of the Ygdra flew above the city, pelting its blue barrier. That too seemed to be holding.

"There's a way, but if Solus ever finds out we used it, don't tell him how we got inside," Derin said, barely getting the words out in between his labored breathing.

"I promise," Sam said matter of factly. It was the first thing she had said since they arrived inside the hills.

"Bile and puss, who cares about that now? Just get us inside. My arms hurt!"

Derin didn't reply. It wasn't worth the effort. Instead, he turned away from the city, towards a nondescript hill bordering the city.

"Now where are you taking us?" Tatjie asked, laboring to turn and follow him.

"Just never tell anyone we went this way. I'm not supposed to know about this," Derin tried again, at the same time hoping Solus hadn't removed the hidden entrance.

The trip across the open area took them longer than he wanted, their speed slowing until they barely ran at all. Arriving at the bottom of the hill, Derin groaned as he looked up the steep incline. Fully rested it was a tedious climb, but now?

"You do not expect me to lug this thing up there, do you?" Tatjie groaned, coming to a precarious standstill, her body swaying dangerously.

"At the top is a hidden staircase that leads to the catacombs below Skulltown. We can go through them and arrive in the middle of the city…"

"There are catacombs?" Tatjie muttered.

Derin sighed and climbed up using his hands and feet. Every few seconds, he had to stop, his arms and legs cramping up.

"According to my calculations, that barrier should hold for a long time. I am looking forward to meeting this Drys fellow. If he managed to make something like that with such limited resources, he must be quite brilliant."

Neither Derin nor Tatjie replied, both barely hearing the AI. It took them longer to climb the steep incline than it had taken them to cross the planes, and when they finally reached the top, Derin fell on the ground.

"That... entrance… better… be… here…" Tatjie said, breathing for seconds on end between each word.

An explosion rocked the ground below them, and Derin shot up, turning to the city. A cloud of dust and debris hung in the middle of the battle. The undead and Kaots in a large ring around it were knocked down as a ripple of dust still moved outwards. An enormous, hulking white skeleton, its blazing green eye sockets visible even from this far, stood in the center, roaring.

"I think they angered Skull," Tatjie muttered before turning and grinning at Derin.

"Well, I guess that means the end of that attack!" Derin said with a sigh. "We should have waited. We could have just walked inside in a bit."

"If you think I will climb back down now, I'll show you how it feels to fly!" Tatjie said, glowering at the other undead.

Derin shook his head quickly. "No, let's just play it safe." He got up and moved further up the top of the hill. Large outcrops loomed above him, their jagged rocky edges testimony to the power of the one who had ripped himself free here. The ground everywhere was littered with rocks and debris. Below one outcrop, almost perfectly in the middle, was a large oval boulder. It seemed inconspicuous enough, but Derin knew better.

Focusing, the blue patterns on his body lit up.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to draw them all here?" Tatjie hissed, quickly moving between him and the city to block the glow.

Derin ignored her, and the energy tentacles ripped from his skin and wrapped themselves around the rock. With a tug, he moved it aside, revealing a shadowy oval hole.

"Wait, what?" Tatjie said, staring inside. "Where is the stair?"

Derin grinned and shook his head. "There isn't one down, only one up. Now go inside and slide to the bottom. I'll come after so I can close the opening again."

Tatjie's eyes widened, and her arms wrapped visibly tighter around the machine she held.

"Are you afraid?" Derin asked in surprise before nodding. "That's a nice emotion! Savor it, but don't let it hold you back. Now let's go!"

With a scowl, Tatjie moved to the edge and sat down. "If I break something on the way down, I'll hurt you," she said before closing her eyes and disappearing inside the opening with a soft cry.

Derin took a last look around. He didn't see anything, and he hoped nobody saw them enter. He grinned, not that that would matter a lot. They would be in a world of trouble if they entered here without knowing where to go.

He sat on the edge, drawing the boulder closer to him before dropping in the hole, dangling from his tentacles. He dragged the boulder above the opening, shutting out all the light from above. The tunnel now bathed in the blue light from his tentacles.

"Let's see if I can drop on top of her," he grinned, and the blue light disappeared as he plummeted down.

--

"Skull, I told you to hold back!" Drys said, staring at the enormous skeleton.

"Me no listen to you! You no Solus!" Skull rumbled, stomping his feet before walking away.

The group of undead sitting and standing in small groups in front of the open gate in front of Skulltown laughed softly. Drys glared around until the laughter stopped, and he pointed at the gate.

"Get back inside, and remember what I said. If you've found any mana-orbs from those Kaots, hand them over to the bonemenders. Absorbing them will turn you into one of those brainless things."

"A skeleton, you mean?" a female undead shot back, followed by a muted laughter.

Drys looked at the one who spoke. She was of average size but had an enormous amount of hair on her head that draped around her. The individual strands moved jittery, and some grasped at stones or bodies beside her.

"Just remember what I said," he replied, pointing at the gate while glaring at her.

"Yes, yes," the undead said, laughing as she walked off without a care in the world. The rest slowly followed, many injured and some needing assistance to walk.

A drawling voice sounded from behind Drys. "Don't be so upset. They are just happy that they won. None of them have been in a battle like this. The few that were here during the first siege barely managed to help."

Drys turned to Enthrill. "I know, but they need to realize that the only reason we managed to win is that there were more of us and we are better organized. Each individual one of those Kaots is stronger than they are."

"Either they'll fight, driven by fear or filled with confidence and courage. Which of those two options is best, you think?"

Drys froze, then slowly lowered his head and took a deep breath.

"Until Solus or Sumil gets back, you are in charge of the defense. I'm going to see if I can find better patterns. There has to be something in that infernally long list that will help us against those flying things!"

Enthril's drawling laugh followed him as he walked through the gates.

"That's good, and make sure to look for something for me. I am close to maxed out and ready for my next evolution."

There wasn't a reply, and the green large-armed undead took a final look at the bodies strewn about. He would need to have them cleared away before they began to stink up the place. But that could wait. He stomped through the gate, raising an arm as he did.

"Close it, and don't open it without Drys or my orders."

The gates behind him swung closed with a quick and almost final motion.

--

"We are nearly there," Solus said, standing next to Tirella at the tip of the stone platform.

"Those disturbances are gone... You are sure that's where Skulltown is?" Tirella asked, and he could feel her senses spreading in front of them, trying to pick up the minute tremors.

"Yes… I can't wait till I'm back," Solus said.

He felt Tirella's attention on him, both her eyes and her senses. She had been scanning him ever since he woke up as if she feared he would fall unconscious again.

"So, tell me again about this other AI? Domain? I have only hazy memories of him…"

Solus thought for a moment, imagining the large Sphere laying inert on the pedestal. Would Domain notice if he crushed it?" An angry grin spread across his face. If Drys had left it in one piece, which he doubted, he would find out soon.

"It's some high tier AI, and I found it buried in a mountain," Solus said, quickly recapping how he found it and brought it to Skulltown. Then, slowly, he explained how he had been deceived by it.

Tirella was quiet for a while, her eyes tracking the sides of the walls that sped by. "Do you think it took over one of the others?"

Picturing Galg and Sumil last he saw them, Solus grunted. "I don't know… but I hope not."

On the one side, he hoped it wasn't Sumil. He still remembered how he had found her, and although they hadn't had much contact during the last year, he knew she had been working hard to improve Skulltown. But if it was Galg? With his super fast movement? Imaging Domain taking his body and picking some incredibly powerful evolution while maintaining that speed made him shiver. It also got him thinking. What if that was what was going to happen? He needed to figure out a way to fight Galg's speed.

As the stone platform bridged the last distance towards Skulltown, his mind was spinning as he tried to find way's to battle some super fast foe. Trap him? Unlikely, Domain would see it coming. Overpower him? How would he even catch the other?  Ideas popped up and were rejected, and slowly a feeling of horror spread.

"What's wrong?" Tirella's voice jolted him out of it, and he turned to see her look at him. He could feel her curiosity and worry.

"If Domain takes over Galg's body, how are we ever going to deal with him?"

Tirella stared at him, and then she frowned, a worried look spreading on her face. Silently they stood side by side as they passed below the hills that surrounded Skulltown.

"Let me take over. We are here," Solus said. He sensed Tirella's control pulling away from the stone, and the tunnel stopped turning deeper. The platform slowed down considerably as he took over, and the tunnel before them changed direction, curving upwards.

"Aren't we going in below the city?"

"No, I want to see if there are any rifts close to the city. If there are, I'll close those first," Solus said, trying to sense movement above them.

Tirela gasped beside him and grabbed his arm. "Wait, you can close a rift!?"

Feeling the strong grasp on his arm, Solus grinned. "I didn't tell you that, did I?"

The grip on his arm tightened, and he could hear Tirela growl. Looking over, he saw her black eyes glitter eagerly while one of the corners of her mouth crept up in a half-smile. Grinning, he quickly explained how he used his mana-field to shrink a rift down until it disappeared.

"So as long as the rifts are small enough, we can close them!" Tirella's muscles flexed as if she was already anticipating closing the rifts she came across.

Solus was about to answer when the tunnel breached the last of the stone. A moment later, the stone plateau rose until it was level with the ground, and they were out in the open. Drawing in a breath of air, Solus shivered as he recalled he might have to stay below the ground for a thousand years.

"It's not as big as I imagined it…" Tirela said. She was looking at Skulltown that lay not too far away from them. They had risen up halfway between the hills and the main gate.

Looking at Skulltown, the stone and bone spires and towers rising up, the giant Wyrm tower visible far in the distance, Solus frowned. "It's not that much smaller than Tendraal!"

Tirela didn't respond but just grinned at him. "There's something around it?" She asked after a moment, staring at the air above the city.

Solus followed her gaze, but he didn't see anything. "What do you mean?"

"There's some sort of barrier around it. It glitters a bit."

Gazing at the city again, Solus didn't see anything, but he didn't doubt her. He turned his gaze around the area, searching for rifts. After a moment, he realized there weren't any, or at least none that he could see from this far. He did see a large pile of bodies at each side of the gate and a dozen pits and scorch marks.

"No rifts. Good. Let's go and find Drys," he said, jumping forward. Hearing the explosion and the dust, he sighed. Turning to see if Tirella was alright, something blurred in the corner of his eye, and her orange and brown shape shot past him. Behind them were two interconnected fractures in the wasteland, cracks running away from it.

When they landed, Tirela a bit ahead of him, Solus laughed loudly, "Nice! You've been practicing!"

"Try and keep up!" She roared back as her leg muscles bulged, and then she shot up, causing a thunderous boom. Wind and debris struck Solus like shrapnel, and he blinked in surprise. Running a few steps, he leaped after her. He gained on her, and although not fast enough to reach the ground before she did, he passed her and landed ahead of her.

Jumping after each other, it took them only moments to cross the distance to the gate. They landed practically at the same time, grinning and laughing. Seeing the gate ahead, Solus wished they could jump some more. But there was no time.

From this angle, he could still see on the wall, and he quickly inspected the defenders. A group of them stood near the edge, a dozen Blackguards, more than he had ever seen together in one place. Behind them was a group of other undead, energy crackling in their hands. Two drew his attention, fleshy undead but not zombies. They both had mouths that covered over half their head. Wide-open and toothless, a mass of green energy crackled inside, pointed at them and giving him a dangerous feeling.

"Solus?" An uncertain voice was projected beside them.

"Yes!" Solus roared up, wondering who else he would be there.

A loud cheer came from the wall, and mouths closed while energy disappeared from hands as undead swarmed the side of the wall, staring at him and Tirela. A chatter came from everywhere, and a loud voice yelled down the other side that he was back.

"We will open the gate for you."

Solus grinned, shaking his head. "No need!" Then he jumped forward, towards the edge of the wall.

"No, don't!" The projected voice screeched in panic.

Midflight, Solus cursed, wondering what was wrong but unable to change course. With the force of one of Skull's punches, he struck something that hovered a few meters in front of the wall. It felt as if something had slapped him, and he shot back down much faster than he had shot up. A crackling wave of energy branched out from the point where he had hit the barrier, highlighting a large section of it.

Slamming into the ground, his back scraped through the wasteland ground, digging a trench. He blinked as a soreness traveled throughout his body, and it took a few seconds before he could scramble up.

A loud laughter came from ahead, and he saw Tirella. She was bent over, her arms across her stomach, eyes closed, and laughing so loud he thought she might break something. Sniffing, he cracked his neck and moved towards her. As he moved, the sound of her laughter and the genuine mirth caused the anger he felt to fade, and when he reached her, his anger had faded, and he was grinning.

"Sure, laugh all you want. Perhaps I should see if I can throw you through?" He said with a laugh.

Tirella didn't reply but laughed even harder, pointing at the barrier while trying to speak. It took her a few attempts to get anything intelligible out.

"There was a blue form in the shape of your body on it!" she stuttered finally, before bursting out in howling laughter.

In front of them, the gate groaned ones before effortlessly swinging open. Looking up, Solus saw that many of the undead were staring down at them. Some grinning, others looking at the pit he had left behind and muttering to each other with wide-open eyes.

"Fine, funnybone, let's go inside and find Drys," he said, taking Tirela by the shoulder and dragging her still giggling and laughing form with him.