Chapter 20

Going through actual portals was something I thought I wasn’t going to get used to, but much to my shock, the feeling of my stomach trying to catch up with me didn’t happen when we moved into the purple mist. Katie let go of my hand when we were in the camp, and she made no stumble whatsoever.

“I think we’re getting good at this.” I said.

“We just took down a magical elf man and a werewolf without the wolf,” said Katie, “We passed good and went straight into badass territory a while ago.”

The three of us followed Daniel into the main tent of the camp, where Tarron was looking down at a map on the table. He looked up when I pulled the flap back, and smiled when he realized who it was coming in.

“Good to see you!” Tarron said as he ushered us over to the table, “You did it again! You took out another one of the Runners!”

“Yeah, it was no sweat.” said Katie as she pretended to check her nails, like it was no big deal what we had just done. Tarron’s smile widened a little more and he bowed to all four of us.

“Oh, by the way Daniel,” said Tarron when he got to Daniel, “I believe this belongs to you?”

The elf rushed behind the table and put something on it, a crossbow. Daniel’s eyes widened the moment he saw it.

“How… how did you get this?!” Daniel asked as he looked down at the thing like it was some kind of mythical object, “I thought it was lost a long time ago?!”

“The original was,” said Tarron, “However, your old friend, I think you know the one, recovered it from the bottom of the ocean overseas, rebuilt it from scratch, and had it sent here to Xeastea, since he heard you had come here. We only just got a hold of it when you left with the maidens for the mountains.”

“I… I don’t know what to say…” Daniel said, “Thank you.”

I could see Daniel eyes wetting up, like he could start crying any moment now. He took a deep breath, picked up the crossbow, and held it like it was a baby, examining it closely.

“You’re a good shot?” I asked, “I mean, I imagine you can, since this was yours a while ago?”

“A very long time ago,” said Daniel, “Feels like a lifetime ago. I’m probably rusty with my shots.”

“We’ll see about that,” said Tarron, “I’ve heard some stories of your travels, I don’t think we’re going to have any trouble at all.”

Daniel blushed a little and looked away. The man had a story, I was just wondering what it was.

“So, what’s the plan from here?” I asked.

“Right, back to business.” said Tarron as he turned to us, “Congratulations to my fair maidens for defeating another Runner! The rest of the Redemption already has the good news, and word’s being spread throughout the country as we speak. Soon, we’ll have a whole country rebelling against this empire.”

“Sounds like heaven to me.” said Katie.

“Uh, I’m sure that’s a good thing.” said Tarron, “Anyway ladies, please see your medical treatment from Elisen in the medical tent and rest up in your cots, we’ve kept them prepared for you, and by tomorrow, we’ll have a portal ready to take you to the next region.”

“Where are we going next?” I asked as Rhys and Katie left to head to the medical tent.

“The next closest region is Othoe’s Desert,” said Tarron, “Killian Renwick resides there.”

“Oh, the pervy bloodsucker.” I said, “That’s gonna be an adventure and a half.”

“Killian resides in the deserts,” said Tarron, “Our scouts are preparing supplies for your travels, mostly water and food for the journey.”

“But we’ve been able to find the temples relatively easy up to this point,” I said, “Why would it be different this time?”

“It seems the emperor is truly starting to see you as the threat you are,” said Tarron, “Our scouts have discovered that the temple, and a large area around it is protected by a spell that prevents portals from being made there. You’re going to have to go on foot further than usual.”

“How long?” I asked.

“Maybe a couple of days,” said Tarron, “Othoe’s Deserts is a place one should not be unless they have quite a lot of water and food, as well as protection from the sun. You don’t have to worry, Ms. Newman, we’ll have everything ready by tomorrow. In the meantime, you should join your friends in the medical tent and have your arm seen.”

It had occurred to me my arm was still bandaged up, and when I looked down at it, I realized red was seeping through; my wound had reopened.

“Oh damn,” I said, “Thanks Tarron, I better get this fixed. Talk to you later.”

Tarron waved me off and I made my way out to the medical tent - I only figured out which one it was when I saw Rhys waving me over. Her visible eye widened when she saw the dripping red out of my bandages. When the two of us stepped into the tent, a blue-skinned elf who had been inside joined in the widening of eyes.

“Ms. Newman?” the elf asked.

“Riley is fine, thanks.” I said.

“My name is Elisen,” said the elf, “Please, may I see your damaged arm?”

I showed it off. Elisen started removing the bandages, completely undisturbed by the blood seeping out of my torn up arm. Meanwhile, I had to look away the instant the bandages were gone.

“There’s no need to worry,” Elisen said, “You’ll feel a light tingling, but your arm should be fine in a few minutes.”

I thought it would be hard to watch my own torn up arm close itself up, but it was more like when I got bloodwork done; it was too hypnotic to look away from. Skin regrew, the bite marks vanished, and within a couple of minutes, my arm was as good as new.

“Huh, thanks Elisen,” I said, “That was… amazing.”

“Oh, it was nothing too hard,” said Elisen, though I noted a hint of well-deserved pride in her voice, “This type of medical magic is old hat to someone like me, who’s been studying this stuff since I was a kid.”

“That’s amazing!” Katie said, “Is there anything I can do to help you? I want to study medical magic.”

“Actually, I do have some other patients I need to treat in the next tent over,” said Elisen, “If you’re not too tired from the fight you just played a part in, I could show you some basic treatments.”

“Sounds great!” said Katie, “Lead the way.”

“It’s no problem, right?” Katie asked, turning to me and Rhys. I shook my head, while Rhys shrugged.

“Okay then, catch you guys later!” said Katie. With that, she and Elisen hurried out of the tent.

“She’s eager.” Rhys said.

“Hey, medical magic can help us out,” I said, “Besides, are you really surprised that Katie of all people is interested in seeing the results of people fighting bloody battles?”

“In hindsight, not at all.” said Rhys, stifling a chuckle, “Are you hungry?”

“Starving, as a matter of fact,” I said, “It’s been a while since I last ate. I’ve been wondering what kind of food they keep in that meal tent.”

The two of us made our way to said tent, which was serving all sorts of food on a table. Rhys and I piled some trays up and stepped out to a quiet area behind the tent where no one could see us. We ate in silence for a little bit before Rhys broke it.

“So… what’s your home like?” Rhys asked, “Were you learning a trade, or practicing magic?”

“Uh, no.” I said, “Where I come from, there is no magic like this, just science that comes extremely close. As for home, I was in college, higher education, just finishing up my first semester.”

“… I’m gonna be honest, very few of those words mean anything to me,” said Rhys, “So I’ll just assume you were doing something important.”

“Ha, no,” I said, “Mostly the opposite, in preparation for maybe, though probably not, doing something actually important. My mom was so proud of me, since she didn’t get the chance to go to college - it was never in her cards.”

I sighed, thinking of my mother. I missed her so much.

“What about you?” I asked, trying to change the subject, “Aside from your Mama, do you have any other family?”

“Uh… not that I know of,” said Rhys, “Honestly Riley, my memory doesn’t go back as far as it probably should.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“The first memory I ever have is waking up in Mama’s room,” said Rhys, “She told me she found me wandering in the dungeons, incoherent, and passed out in her arms. I don’t remember anything before that, and that was two years ago.”

“Oh, that’s odd,” I said, “Would you ever want to figure out where you came from?”

“I’ve been pretty happy the way things were,” said Rhys, “Mama always took good care of me. I owe her a lot. Sometimes we’d go down to the nearby mill town near the castle and she’d let me get a drink. Those are some of my favorite memories with her.”

“Bet you can’t wait to get back to her, right?” I asked. Rhys nodded and took a deep drink of water from the mug she had grabbed.

“Heh, same,” I said, “Not just your mama, but mine too. My sister too.”

“You have a sister?” Rhys asked.

“Yep, Diane,” I said, “Two years younger than me, and a lot sassier than I could ever achieve.”

“… You’re worried about them, aren’t you?” Rhys asked, “Your breath hitched when you said your sister’s name.”

“Oh, was it that obvious?” I said. I could feel the sadness welling up thinking about my mom and sister. I swallowed, tried to push those thoughts to the back of my head.

“… Why don’t we talk about something else.” said Rhys, “We do need to discuss strategies for the upcoming fights, don’t we?”

“Oh yeah, you’re right.” I said, “First we have to deal with Killian, then we have to deal with Zapp. Out of the two, I have a sneaking suspicion which one might be more difficult.”

“I think I know who you’re thinking of,” said Rhys after she took another swig of water, “But don’t count Zapp out too quickly. Remember, even if he’s been nice to you, he’s still a threat that we need to take care of.”

“Yeah, I know.” I said, “Though do you have any idea what vampires are capable of?”

“Uh, I’ve never met one up close and personal,” said Rhys, “But what I do know from the hours I’ve spent in the library, other than the obvious drinking blood thing, is that he’s super fast, super strong, and can turn invisible to the naked eye.”

“Oh, that last one might actually be a problem.” I said. Rhys nodded in agreement, then started waving when we both noticed Katie coming into the tent.

“Hey girls!” Katie called out, “What did I miss?”

“Not much,” I said, “What about us? What did we miss?”

“Oh my god, you have no idea how awesome healing magic is!” Katie said as she sat down next to me and started helping herself to food from Rhys’ plate, “Instant cauterizations without any need for burning things, closing wounds with little scarring, hell, if Elisen had more resources, we could regrow limbs entirely! Could you imagine how innovative this stuff would be if we could bring all of this stuff home?”

“Honestly, magical healing would be revolutionary.” I said, half-explaining to Rhys, “We don’t have any stuff like this back where we come from.”

“Your world sounds so primitive,” said Rhys, “How do you even survive? Like, what would Katie do in your world to get your arm back?”

“Get an expensive prosthetic, or cope.” said Katie, “Growing the arm back isn’t an option.”

“That’s stupid.” said Rhys.

“Yeah it is, now that we’ve seen what this place can do!” said Katie. She had picked Rhys’ plate clean of what scraps were left, so we dumped the plate at the cleaning area and made our way back to the sleeping tent that had been made out for us, complete with all three of our cots, side-by-side.

“Alright, good day.” said Katie, “Took out another Runner, two left to go, and then we’re done and can go back home! First thing we should do is Take Rhys to the nearest Wendy’s.”

“Huh? Who’s Wendy?” Rhys asked, “Wait, you want me to come along with you?!”

“Well… yeah?” Katie said, “I thought that was a given? You’d rather just spend the rest of your life wandering around in the castle, hiding from guards?”

“Uh, we should probably talk about this…” I said, but Katie was on a roll.

“We could take Ta - I mean your mama, along with us, and all live happily ever after! It’ll be great!” said Katie, “Come on, what do you say?”

“I, uh, I don’t, I’m not…” Rhys stammered her way through, and I knew that it was time to but in.

“Hey, that’s kind of a big decision to make,” I said, “Why don’t we sleep on it and cross that bridge when we get to it?”

“I mean, if you say so.” said Katie as she walked over to a cot and flopped down on it, “See you in the morning, girls.”

She was asleep within seconds. As soon as we heard the snoring, Rhys and I chuckled as we stepped over to the cots ourselves.

“That is an option, by the way.” I said, “I wouldn’t object to the two of you coming with us.”

“Would we even be able to survive in your world?” Rhys asked, “I believe you mentioned before that orcs and elves don’t exist over there?”

“Eh, we’d figure something out,” I said, “Besides, you’d have Katie and I for protection too, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

“I mean…” Rhys said, but I interrupted her.

“You don’t have to answer right now,” I said, “We can talk about it later, when you’ve had time to think about it.”

“Thanks, Riley.” said Rhys. She looked… thoughtful. I hoped she would come with us, but in the end, it was her choice to make. The two of us got down on our cots, and within a couple of minutes, I had fallen asleep.

I’m running in a field full of flowers and bright green grass. The wind is blowing through my hair, and I’m laughing, feeling the air, the adrenaline, the freedom in my bones. Someone is laughing behind me, trying to catch me in the rousing game of tag we’ve been playing this whole time. I’m fast, usually I’m faster, but in this case, he’s just fast enough that he’s able to jump and tackle me into the soft grass.

The two of us roll around in the grass for a moment before it ends with me on top of him, the two of us laughing together. His eyes are gray, almost white, but they’re so beautiful as well. He’s blushing, the silly boy, but I’m silly too, and I help him up as we hurry to get back to the village before dark.

He asks me something, and I answer it. He’s my best friend, and my soulmate. Saulon, my love.

I was suddenly jolted awake, being shaken by Katie.

“Huh?” I grumbled, but I was suddenly jolted out of bed by Felice puppetting my body, standing me up straight while I was trying to wake up.

“What’s going on?!” I asked.

“We’re being raided!” said Katie as Rhys came into the tent trying to catch her breath and stepped over to us.

“The soldiers are coming in!” said Rhys, “Some of us are trying to hold them back, but they’re coming in no matter what at this point, so we have to go!”

“Wait, what?!” I said, “What do you mean?”

“Empire soldiers!” Katie said, “They’re coming in! Come on, we have to go!”

“What’s keeping you girls?!” Daniel yelled from the flap of the tent, “We have to go, now!”

“We’re coming!” Rhys yelled as she grabbed my arm and the three of us ran out of the tent. As we ran across the campsite, I saw some men in suits of armor like the ones from the castle fighting rebels. It didn’t look like we were winning.

“What do we do?!” I asked, “Can we fight them off?!”

“You three aren’t doing anything!” said Daniel, “You need to get to the next region! We aren’t going to risk your lives for this! We’re getting a portal ready.”

“Wait, what about you?!” Katie asked, “Aren’t you coming with us, so we can get back?!”

“I need to help the rebels,” said Daniel, “But I’ll try to keep track of your progress and get a portal ready for when you’ve cleansed and defeated Killian!”

“Get down!” I heard Rhys yell. Felice dropped me to the ground immediately, taking Katie down with me as well, just as a barrage of arrows and magic attacks went soaring overhead.

“We need to move, faster!” Daniel said as he fired an arrow from his crossbow at the carnage behind us, “Go, go!”

We dragged ourselves to our feet and bolted into the forest, soon separated from the camp by the thick trees.

“This way!” Daniel called out. We followed him through the woods into a clearing, where the usual portal awaited us.

“You need to - ARGH!”

Daniel was interrupted when a soldier from the empire jumped out from the woods and tackled him, knocking the crossbow out of his hands.

“Daniel!” Rhys called. She shot a fireball at the attacking soldier, but it was deflected when he pulled his shield. Then the man charged at her.

“Rhys, NO!” I called out, just as the man tackled Rhys to the ground. I wanted to run to help her, and I could feel Felice wanted to as well, but Katie was pulling me towards the portal. Before we could pull away, the portal swallowed the two of us whole.