curled.
“ Iiiiii wiiiiillllllll, ” Chatterbox hurried to volunteer, his tongue flickering across his lips. “ Yuuuuummmmmmm. ”
“You would. Ewwww.” The little alien shivered.
“That’s just creepy, guys,” I told them, earning my fair share of raised eyebrows. “What? It is…unless you have like, a prior arrangement or something. You don’t just go knocking on someone’s backdoor without calling ahead.”
Rahim, preferring to stick to the business at hand—and no that’s not a masturbation joke—looked to Shaw, who Katon held restrained. “Why did you bring her here?” The wight stood stoic. She’d cracked under pressure out in the woods, but that didn’t meant she liked it.
“Well, as it turns out, a certain someone has an idea as to how we might get out of here.”
All the heads in the room—except the Nephilim’s—snapped in her direction so fast I thought they might break their necks.
“Why don’t you tell the wonderful folks what you told me, Miss Shaw?”
She held her silence until I raised my spear and wiggled the tip in her direction.
“Don’t think all these folks around alters our deal any,” I told her. “You can make yourself useful or I can make good on our arrangement.”
Katon visibly tightened his grip on her, making it clear he understood what was at stake.
Shaw huffed but started to talk. “It would appear there are ripples in the dimensional wall of this world.”
“What does that mean?” Veronica’s question was out in a flash.
Shaw looked at her. “It means something is weakening the structural integrity of the wall in this realm. That particular something also seems to be building in strength, though only fractionally.”
“So you’ve found a way back to Earth?” Karra asked.
“Not necessarily Earth.” Shaw gave a feeble shrug. “The ripples flow past in waves, a multitude of dimensions merging in tenuous flickers similar to a deck of cards being shuffled. There is no guarantee the source of these ripples can be controlled sufficiently to open a proper gate, let alone one to a specific world.”
The sighs were deafening.
“But there’s a chance.” Katon seemed to ease his grip a little, maybe hoping the gesture would earn him good news.
“Definitely a chance, but no certainty.”
“Where are these ripples?” Rahim asked. He had his thinking face on. It looked kind of crinkly.
“I have no idea since we were…interrupted.” Shaw glanced over at me.
“Yeah, forget that you were getting your ass handed to you by a devourer, and I saved you. Way to play the highlight reel.”
“We would have dealt with it,” she answered, gesturing to Venai, “had you not intervened.”
“Whatever, Shaw,” I said, waving her whiny complaint aside. “You’re leaving out the good part in your effort to remain a half-empty kind of gal. Tell them the rest.”
She snorted but did as I asked. “I don’t know where the ripples are reverberating currently, but they are found easily enough as I appear to be somewhat attuned to them. They emanate from the direction of the mountain range just beyond the forest.”
“The sanctuary,” Rahim muttered. “It would appear there are too many coincidences leading us that way to be ignored.”
I had to agree. Seemed like most everyone else did, too, even Mia, who hunched quietly behind everyone, taking it all in. I’d have to keep an eye on her.
“What about the dragons?” Karra fidgeted as she asked. I could tell she wasn’t looking forward to tangling with the beasties given her condition. Unfortunately, it didn’t look as though we could avoid it.
“Just like Rahim figured, the guardians are drawn to the portals opening. It seems to be their job to keep folks on this side of the gate, which is why they popped up when we ported in and when Rala tried the book. It’s also why they’ve left us alone once those portals and attempts were investigated. The guardians didn’t find what they were
“ Iiiiii wiiiiillllllll, ” Chatterbox hurried to volunteer, his tongue flickering across his lips. “ Yuuuuummmmmmm. ”
“You would. Ewwww.” The little alien shivered.
“That’s just creepy, guys,” I told them, earning my fair share of raised eyebrows. “What? It is…unless you have like, a prior arrangement or something. You don’t just go knocking on someone’s backdoor without calling ahead.”
Rahim, preferring to stick to the business at hand—and no that’s not a masturbation joke—looked to Shaw, who Katon held restrained. “Why did you bring her here?” The wight stood stoic. She’d cracked under pressure out in the woods, but that didn’t meant she liked it.
“Well, as it turns out, a certain someone has an idea as to how we might get out of here.”
All the heads in the room—except the Nephilim’s—snapped in her direction so fast I thought they might break their necks.
“Why don’t you tell the wonderful folks what you told me, Miss Shaw?”
She held her silence until I raised my spear and wiggled the tip in her direction.
“Don’t think all these folks around alters our deal any,” I told her. “You can make yourself useful or I can make good on our arrangement.”
Katon visibly tightened his grip on her, making it clear he understood what was at stake.
Shaw huffed but started to talk. “It would appear there are ripples in the dimensional wall of this world.”
“What does that mean?” Veronica’s question was out in a flash.
Shaw looked at her. “It means something is weakening the structural integrity of the wall in this realm. That particular something also seems to be building in strength, though only fractionally.”
“So you’ve found a way back to Earth?” Karra asked.
“Not necessarily Earth.” Shaw gave a feeble shrug. “The ripples flow past in waves, a multitude of dimensions merging in tenuous flickers similar to a deck of cards being shuffled. There is no guarantee the source of these ripples can be controlled sufficiently to open a proper gate, let alone one to a specific world.”
The sighs were deafening.
“But there’s a chance.” Katon seemed to ease his grip a little, maybe hoping the gesture would earn him good news.
“Definitely a chance, but no certainty.”
“Where are these ripples?” Rahim asked. He had his thinking face on. It looked kind of crinkly.
“I have no idea since we were…interrupted.” Shaw glanced over at me.
“Yeah, forget that you were getting your ass handed to you by a devourer, and I saved you. Way to play the highlight reel.”
“We would have dealt with it,” she answered, gesturing to Venai, “had you not intervened.”
“Whatever, Shaw,” I said, waving her whiny complaint aside. “You’re leaving out the good part in your effort to remain a half-empty kind of gal. Tell them the rest.”
She snorted but did as I asked. “I don’t know where the ripples are reverberating currently, but they are found easily enough as I appear to be somewhat attuned to them. They emanate from the direction of the mountain range just beyond the forest.”
“The sanctuary,” Rahim muttered. “It would appear there are too many coincidences leading us that way to be ignored.”
I had to agree. Seemed like most everyone else did, too, even Mia, who hunched quietly behind everyone, taking it all in. I’d have to keep an eye on her.
“What about the dragons?” Karra fidgeted as she asked. I could tell she wasn’t looking forward to tangling with the beasties given her condition. Unfortunately, it didn’t look as though we could avoid it.
“Just like Rahim figured, the guardians are drawn to the portals opening. It seems to be their job to keep folks on this side of the gate, which is why they popped up when we ported in and when Rala tried the book. It’s also why they’ve left us alone once those portals and attempts were investigated. The guardians didn’t find what they were
Similar Books
