The white-hot fire coursing through his limbs cut through the adrenaline, the cold, and the fear, blanking his mind, paralyzing his limbs. It was only the intuitive knowledge deep in the back of his thoughts, the knowledge that the Singularity was about to burn him from the inside out and leave him a dried husk, that forced him to return to awareness.
Hanging before his eyes were the notifications he knew he needed to read in order to survive.
With a desperate effort of will, he stirred his vision, focusing on the words in front of him.
Quest Complete: [Deny the Omega]
Reward granted: [Aura Filtering Container — S-grade]
Quest Revealed: [Midmark Quest] → [Restore the Bloodsplatter Clan to their Ancestral Home]
The Bloodsplatter Clan was exiled to the Surface many years past. Help them reclaim their home in the Underworld proper.
Reward: C-rank, the goodwill of the Bloodsplatter Clan, and a return trip home.
Bonus Objective: Restore the Lakarot to power.
Bonus Reward: Variable.
New Quest Given: [Stronger Together]
Every hero needs a team. Find yours.
[5 of 5] living.
Objective: Keep your team alive.
Reward: Variable.
Despite reading the words, his brain couldn’t seem to process their meaning through the pain. He recognized something about his Quest updating, but the specifics fuzzed in his mind. Then there was that reward…a filtering something.
Past the words in his eyes, he spotted a metal cube no wider than his hand. For the briefest moment, he swore there was a flash of light around it, like a corona trying to snag his attention.
His arm was stiff, his hands felt frozen. He tried to reach the cube but realized he was buried in something. Through the pain, he turned his attention to unburying himself. Distantly—as he clawed his way out from under—he realized it was snow pinning him down.
That explains the bitter cold…
He breached the top layer, his hand frozen in a claw shape as he reached for the cube. Well, reach was a strong word. He more threw his arm forward, and his hand-claw flopped on top of the cube.
A notification immediately scrolled into view.
Deposit item, [Unknown], into [Aura Filtering Container — S-grade]?
He had to reread the words three times, his consciousness flickering from the waves of power emanating from deep inside his chest.
Is the Singularity the item? he wondered.
This felt like such a simple question, but the alternating cold and warmth was sapping his energy, turning his thoughts to mud.
Yes, he decided, it probably was.
He thought he accepted the prompt, but the black was slinking in from the corners, narrowing his vision along with his thoughts.
I accept, he said in his head. I accept. I accept. I…
There was no indication if it had worked as he drifted off. His only thought in that moment was that he finally felt comfortable, warm…content. He let his mind go, falling back into the warmth with a soft smile.
Terry’s thoughts crawled out of the cold step-by-step, first in a jumble, then finally lining up into some form of coherence.
The first thing he noticed was the cold wasn’t as bone-biting as it had seemed before. One explanation could have been that the frostbite had fully settled in and he was on death’s door. Then again, the furs draped over his body were another plausible reason.
Furs…?
He jerked awake in a panic—and immediately regretted it.
Everything hurt, from the tips of his toes, up to the ache in his ears. But worst of all was the burning emptiness deep inside his chest—a gaping wound that cried out, a phantom pain that echoed in his soul.
Realizing what that must have meant, he clawed around for the cube, the pain from a moment before now a distant memory in the wake of his panic. He forced his eyes open through the rime that had held them tight, taking in his surroundings for the first time.
He appeared to be in a dark cave, the wind howling through like the wraiths of Wichita. Not too far from where he lay stood the narrow entrance, just wide enough to fit his shoulders and tall enough that he wouldn’t have to bend his head. Past that, snow swirled in the dark, a blanket of white that stormed with a terrible wailing.
Twisting uncomfortably, he glanced over his shoulder—and nearly jumped out of his skin.
Four people-like shapes lingered in the inky dark of the deepest portion of the cave. Only their barest silhouettes were visible and they clearly had something held between them that they were leaning over.
With a flex of his power, he activated Master of Light and—
Searing electricity splashed across his aura, like touching a live wire. He immediately released his hold, falling back into the furs with a silent gasp, his eyes clenched tight against the pain. Three ragged breaths later, he felt along his aura with a tentative touch.
It was raw, frayed from the center extending out…right where the Singularity had been nestled.
The Singularity!
He snapped open his eyes again, ignoring the edge to his nerves and wheel of pain spiraling out from his chest.
“Gah!”
Standing over him were the four silhouettes—now faintly visible against the backdrop of the snowstorm outside.
As he cried out, they too recoiled in obvious shock, though they recovered a moment later. They leaned back in, clearly as interested in him as he was surprised by them.
From this distance, he could see more of the four figures and it was immediately obvious that they weren’t all human.
The first one he noticed was short and wide—barely reaching the waists of the other people, while just as broad as Terry at the shoulders. It had a rodent-like face with an extended snout and whiskers on its cheeks. But from what little light there was, he could see an intelligent glint in its eyes as it surveyed Terry up and down with an almost clinical appraisal.
The next figure was human—a boy roughly Terry’s age, with dark skin and hair and stubble on his chin that either spoke to a teenager’s desperate desire for a man’s beard or the irregular growth of someone who had no access to shaving equipment.
Terry didn’t like what the latter implied about how long they’d been here.
Beside the boy was a lithe and wiry non-human. He assumed non-human because he counted six fingers…and four arms. They were the tallest of the four, but rail thin in comparison to the rodent-faced person.
The last person seemed human too, though there was an exotic cast to the few identifiers that made him wonder if she—he was pretty confident they were a she—was from Earth or some other human-occupied world.
She had a striking jaw with cheekbones sharp enough to cut paper. He couldn’t see her eyes, but he felt their gaze without realizing how. Large, black-rock earrings sat heavy on her lobes, nearly the size of her entire ear and she had a matching necklace visible through the skins she wore.
His eyes tracked down—very purposefully not examining anything else about her that might have sparked an issue—and caught on the device held loosely in her hand.
“Hey! That’s mine!”
He moved to grab the cube that he assumed contained the Singularity, but his limbs betrayed him, a splash of new fire washing across his chest.
The girl pulled away instinctively, glanced down at the cube, then held it out silently. His hand reached up weakly, pulling it tight to his chest.
The other human-looking person didn’t remain silent. He gasped, his eyes widening.
“English?” he asked, his accent sounding familiar to Terry’s ears, but hard to place with the wave of pain flaring throughout his body. “You’re from Earth!”
Terry looked at the dark-skinned boy, his eyes widening once he realized the implication; he had someone to actually explain what was going on.
“Yes! I’m from Earth! Terry from W—” He stopped himself as a thought occurred to him. Wichita—and more specifically, the Emperor—had connotations around it that could potentially affect their feelings of him. “—from West Topeka,” he amended.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
The boy seemed not to notice his hesitation, his excitement getting the better of him.
“Oh, thank God! My name’s Juan. I’m from Mexico City.” He put a hand on the small, rodent-faced alien. “This here’s Chippy—well, Chialpuncritis—but none of us can pronounce it quite right.” The alien sniffed with his large snout, then waved a little paw in greeting. Juan moved to indicate the four-armed alien, when the human girl smacked his arm, her eyes widening with obvious annoyance.
Terry glanced between the two of them in confusion. Juan rubbed at the back of his neck with a chagrined expression.
“Sorry, uh, Terry. We have a rule that we only talk in Team Chat. None of us speak the same language and uh…” Juan looked noticeably uncomfortable, rubbing at his elbow as if remembering some old injury. “…there were some disagreements early on.”
Terry squinted at the four of them, not quite liking what he was sensing. Before he could question Juan further, movement at the cave entrance drew his gaze behind the four of them and his eyes widened in shock.
They noticed his look, flipping around as one to watch the figure approaching the entrance through the raging blizzard.
He felt his heart begin to race as the silhouette grew closer. Whatever it was was large, clearly standing taller than the entrance and noticeably wider. As it approached, it hesitated at the doorway, examining something for a moment before looking inside. When it leaned its head down to peer in, Terry felt a flash of fear grip him.
Long braids dipped over its shoulder, ornamented with beads, bits of glass, and clinking metal shaped into unknown animals. A large fur cloak was draped over its shoulder, giving it a larger silhouette than what was actually underneath—though Terry noted it was still quite large. At its hip, he saw two leather sheathes, but realized a moment later that they were empty.
That was little consolation, given the claws he saw slipping free from its fingers.
He prepared to stir his aura through the raw, abrading pain; at the bare minimum, he could try and blind the creature with his Master of Light.
What happened next threw him off so thoroughly, he could only process it after the fact.
As the thing eyed them with an anger that even its alien anatomy couldn’t obfuscate, notifications rolled into Terry’s view. He ignored them for the moment, watching as the creature—and all four of the people standing over him—became encased in a corona of light.
It was a System indicator…
Quest Updated: [Stronger Together]
Every hero needs a team. Find yours.
Update → Team identified. Marking on your interface.
Next Step: Survive the Underworld.
(Optional) Work together.
[5 of 5] living.
Reward: Variable
Join Team Chat?
Past the words in his eyes, he saw the newcomer waving its hand emphatically at the doorway, then toward Terry. Then, the human girl indicated Terry with an equally impassioned gesture, shaking her head toward the newcomer.
What was strange about it all was that the exchange was entirely silent. At first, he considered they were doing a rudimentary sign language, but then his brain caught up to the notifications and what Juan had said a minute earlier.
With a thought, he accepted the Team Chat invite.
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: I don’t care if she was cold! Now the whole shelter is cold!
[Mara-Lin-Jaid]: It’s a him. And should we have let him die, then?
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: Maybe. Look at him. He’s weak and helpless, just like the rest of them. Just another mouth to feed.
The newcomer, Al’Ruzan, huffed indignantly, stepping back out of the cave before returning a second later with a body clutched by a hindleg. It dragged the body into the cave, throwing it roughly to the floor.
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: Chippy, skin this.
Al’Ruzan tossed a small knife toward the diminutive Chippy, who caught the knife with a little squeak. As Chippy rushed forward, the four-armed alien joined it, helping to drag the body deeper into the cave. As they passed, Terry realized the body was a dire wolf not unlike his father’s summons, Skol and Hati, though this one was far, far smaller.
Behind them, Al’Ruzan studied Terry for a moment, then stomped forward with heavy strides, reaching down toward him. For the briefest moment, he thought Al’Ruzan was going to attack him. But its clawed hand reached down, gripped the furs covering him, and ripped them away.
A wash of bitter cold snatched the air from his lungs and he started shivering immediately. He was only wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and cursed himself—and the Weaver—for not preparing at all for the weather.
No one said anything as Al’Ruzan stomped back toward the cave entrance, but Juan gave him a sympathetic look, while Mara-Lin-Jaid scowled at Al’Ruzan’s back.
A moment later, she took the fur off her own shoulders, draping it over Terry.
“Th-thank y-you,” he chattered, meeting her eyes.
Al’Ruzan whirled around from where he was hanging the furs, his eyes flashing furiously as he stared toward Terry. He crossed the small cavern in a single lunge, yanking the furs off and hauling him to his feet by a grip on his arm.
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: We only speak in Team Chat, fresh meat. Is that clear?
Terry stared into Al’Ruzan’s face, finally getting a close enough glimpse to see his alien features in the dim light. His eyes were yellow like a cat’s, piercing, searching for some hint of defiance. His teeth were long, resting over his lips. At first, they seemed more like fangs, but from this close up, Terry realized they were actually filed into points. His skin was blue-green, pockmarked and scarred, reminding him a bit of Whipvine’s snarling scars.
As they locked eyes, a wave of Al’Ruzan’s hot breath washed across his face, making Terry furl his nose with disgust. It smelled of rot and raw meat. He supposed he couldn’t blame the alien—he doubted there was toothpaste in the Underworld.
Al’Ruzan noticed his expression, his eyes narrowing in renewed rage. He shook Terry violently, sparking fresh pain in his arm.
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: Are you simple? Answer me!
Terry’s eyebrows rose as he forced his thoughts away from the agony spearing through his arm. For a moment, he considered ignoring the alien, but his aura was still raw and his skin frozen; he doubted he could even stand if Al’Ruzan wasn’t holding him upright, let alone fight the towering alien.
All the same, he wasn’t going to let this guy manhandle him whenever he wanted.
[Terry]: I understand. Now let go of my arm.
He saw Chippy and the four-armed alien exchange frightful glances, while Juan’s eyes went wide in shock. As for Al’Ruzan, his eyes narrowed dangerously and Terry knew he’d have to fight back, even if he was currently outmatched.
Al’Ruzan’s free arm reared up to backhand him and Terry clenched his teeth against the pain of his aura as he prepared to strike back with his own Skills—when Mara-Lin-Jaid stepped between them, turning to face Al’Ruzan.
[Mara-Lin-Jaid]: Enough, Al’Ruzan. He’s been here less than an hour and unconscious for most of that.
She placed a hand on his upraised arm, like she was soothing a bucking bull.
[Mara-Lin-Jaid]: Why don’t you go rest. We’ll have the meat ready in a couple hours.
Al’Ruzan clicked his filed teeth together thoughtfully, glancing over Mara-Lin-Jaid’s shoulder to eye Terry.
Terry held his gaze, not giving an inch, but not prodding the alien into a fight either.
Al’Ruzan snarled once, then released Terry’s arm, shoving him hard enough to send him sprawling to the stone floor. It hurt but he wouldn’t let the pain show as he rolled to his hands and knees. With his aura already stirring, he kept it going past the exposed, raw feeling, activating Master of Light to control the infrared light escaping his skin. A simple pull brought it back in, warming him—or rather, not letting him get any colder—as he clambered up to one foot, then the other.
He shook unsteadily as he gained his feet, but kept his eyes on Al’Ruzan as the apparent leader stared into Mara-Lin-Jaid’s eyes. Terry got the impression there was a private chat going on between the two of them—which seemed hypocritical, given all the fuss about only speaking in Team Chat.
After a tense moment where the others stared toward them out of the corners of their eyes, Al’Ruzan finally relaxed, letting out a stiff bark that sounded like his version of a laugh.
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: Fine, I’ll let you live, fresh meat. But you don’t eat unless you contribute.
He waved back toward the dire wolf corpse.
[Al’Ruzan, third of his name]: Help the weaklings skin it.
With that proclamation, Al’Ruzan retreated to the back of the cave where a fur bed waited for him. It was obvious from the way he laid into it that the bed was his and only his.
Which explained why the others hadn’t deposited Terry there, instead risking his ire by claiming the makeshift cave door.
When he turned back from watching Al’Ruzan, he met Mara-Lin-Jaid’s eyes. There was no expression there as they stared at each other—a disinterest, if he had to guess what he was seeing. But then a notification appeared and he raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Mara-Lin-Jaid has request a System chat. Accept?
He shrugged, indicating yes with a thought. Her response rolled in immediately.
[Mara-Lin-Jaid]: That’s the last time I pull your ass out of the fire. Next time you antagonize him, you’re on your own.
Before he could reply, she strode toward the cave exit, picking up the discarded fur to hang it back up against the cold.
Terry turned to see Juan also watching him, a hint of hope and trepidation mingling in his eyes.
He sent a chat invite to the boy, knew it arrived from the panicked look he sent Al’Ruzan, then saw Juan’s reply come back.
[Juan Carlos]: Bro, we really shouldn’t be talking like this. Big Al’s really particular about us talking in secret.
[Terry]: What’s his deal? Why’s he acting like we’re in Lord of the Flies or something?
Juan cast another harried look toward Al’Ruzan, but the temperamental alien had his furs pulled completely over his face. All the same, Juan put an arm around Terry and pulled him toward the dire wolf corpse where Chippy was quietly slicing away its fur.
He crouched down next to Chippy and Terry grimaced as he fought through his frozen, aching muscles to join the two. Juan pretended to be busy helping as he sent Terry more messages.
[Juan Carlos]: Big Al was the first of the team to be summoned. He won’t say, but we think he’s been here for a year. Maybe two.
Terry’s eyes widened at the revelation.
[Terry]: That…really sucks. But this is it, right? We’ve got the five team members and we can start doing whatever it is we need to do.
From the look on Juan’s face, Terry got the impression it wasn’t as black and white as he had thought.
[Juan Carlos]: I’m not sure, bro. Other than going out to get you, we never leave the cave. Mara-Lin-Jaid had a vision that you arrived, which is the only reason Al didn’t rip into us more. He’s the only one that goes out, and that’s only to hunt us food. Even then, we have to give most of it in tribute to the monster.
“The monst—” Terry started, but the startled hisses from not only Juan, but Chippy and the four-armed alien made him clamp his mouth shut.
Chippy slapped his arm lightly, then nodded toward Juan with a scolding look.
[Juan Carlos]: Don’t talk, bro! Or Al’s gonna beat us all up.
He watched Terry as if wondering if he’d violate their rule again. But Terry simply sighed, then nodded for Juan to continue.
[Terry]: What’s this monster, then?
[Juan Carlos]: I’ve never seen it, but I hear it whenever Al brings back food. It scratches the cave wall outside if we don’t have its tribute waiting.
[Terry]: Okay…if you’ve never seen it, why’re you so afraid? Why pay tribute at all?
[Juan Carlos]: Mara-Lin-Jaid was here—she’s been here the longest besides Big Al. She told us once in secret that Al refused to part with his hunt one time and it came into the cave and whooped him around before taking the entire kill. Next time, he gave it what it wanted and it left a quarter for them.
Terry sat back on his heels after reading that message, his mind whirling. Two years…two years with nothing but this cave, the occasional hunt, and dire wolf meat. Not to mention the monster demanding more than its fair share of whatever you did bring back.
[Terry]: What about this Quest? You make any progress? What’s the Lakarot? And any clue where the Bloodsplatter Clan is located?
Terry didn’t know as much about the Underworld as the grandson of Emperor Necroton should—his grandfather had never spoken of his visits here. What little Terry knew of the Underworld had been picked up from Crunch, Hoping Tree, and the visions he’d experienced right before his Awakening.
But the name Bloodsplatter was eerily reminiscent of Crunch’s clan, Bonesplinter. It tracked that they would be of a similar composition, liches, ghouls, wraiths, and so on.
And Terry’s ghoulish had dramatically improved over the past couple of years.
[Terry]: Okay, Juan, here’s the deal. I’m not content with just sitting in this cave for two years and hoping this Quest solves itself.
I have some experience with the denizens of the Underworld and can even speak Ghoulish. So if we’re gonna get back to Earth, I’m gonna need you to tell me everything you know.
Juan’s eyes had widened as he read further into Terry’s message, then shifted as he neared the end. Surprise eventually morphed into excitement, then…hope.
[Juan Carlos]: Okay, let me start at the beginning…
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