Chapter LXXXIX: Spectre

As they made their way through the gilded corridors, Krista passed the time by telling them the tale of the Ruins of Alzadaal. Jinxie scarcely paid attention.

The area was breathtaking, she had to admit. Sretching out as far as she could see were corridors and rooms that looked as if they had been hand-crafted from the floor up. Each piece of intricate metalwork was uniquely shaped and fitted into an incomprehensibly vast pattern, each room another link within it. The walls of the outer chambers were the most impressive part - panes of glass stretching from floor to ceiling, letting occupants see outside into the undersea world which had claimed the Ruins of Alzadaal centuries before.

From what she heard Krista saying, the ruins had been the subject of intense scrutiny in recent years. Excavation teams would regularly travel down to try and salvage what they could of the ancient Imperial treasures, and encounters with archaic monsters set as guardians were not uncommon. The upper levels of the ruins were clear, but down in the depths there were still menaces to contend with. Fortunately, the path they were to take led them nowhere near the more hazardous areas.

"And that's why the Qiqirn are allowed to explore the area," the Bard was saying, concluding some story Jinxie had only half-heard. She rubbed her nose where a slight bruise discolored the skin. "At least, that's how I heard it."

"Issy," Speed tugged on the Puppetmaster's sleeve, his voice a failed attempt at whispering, "that cat is talking."

"Walahra give me patience," the raven-haired woman muttered.

"We are nearly there," Vaala said from in front of them. The Ninja skirted the halls lightly, remaining ahead of the rest of the group. "There is another portal up ahead."

Jinxie took stock of her companions once again. Vaala was a black ops operative for the Imperial military. Sefadin was a Captain of Salaheem's Sentinels. Krista could use the spellsong, and Isset had Shoki, in addition to her own well-developed fighting skills. When Speed's head was clear, he had strength which Jinxie had seen sever the head off a Hydra.

And she stood among them, powerless. She began to feel upset just thinking about it. These people were willing to risk their lives for her son, and she would not even be honest with them. As far as she knew, no one was aware her powers had disappeared as the price for Kkel Solaar's life. They might be counting on her arcane strength to see them through the inevitable oonfrontations to come, and when they needed it, it would not be there. Their lives were being put in danger under false pretenses. But what other choice did she have? If they knew the truth, there's no way they would have let her come along.

She would not let that happen, she resolved. It would be the same as abandoning Drake, and that was not an option.

The loss of her powers stung ever more sharply, and not for the first time she knew she would do anything to get them back.

Sharply, she turned. She heard no voice nor footfall, but the feeling of a presence behind her was inescapable. The pressure of spiritual energy struck her like a thunderclap. A gasp escaped her lips as her eyes fell upon the source of it, staring right back at her.


The Chamber of Passage jolted into view as Kkel returned once more from an Imperial staging point. Stumbling forward, he found his legs in no condition to support him. He just barely managed to put up a hand and brace himself against the cold stone walls so as not to fall. The sword in his grasp fell with a clatter, and for several moments he let it lay where it was. When he finally was able to kneel down to pick it back up, he felt like he might never stand again.

"Walahra," he gasped, "I'm almost too tired to breathe." He might have worried about saying this around his men, except that he was the only one of them to make it back. A fact that did not go unnoticed by those monitoring his progress.

"You're alone," the familiar voice of Aht Urghan's Grand Vizier was devoid of concern, as usual. "Have the others fallen?"

Kkel shot an icy glare at him. "They stayed at the outpost," he forced the words out. He wanted to explain further, but it was taking everything he had to just stay conscious at this point. The dangers of abusing the Runic Portal had been explained to him, but he never anticipated the sheer level of exhaustion. He'd never felt so bone-weary in his life.

Razfahd stood waiting at the end of the hall, watching the Sunserpent. He said nothing else, only watched the General slowly gather the strength to once more make it to his feet. Arms hanging limply, Kkel raised his eyes to meet those of the Grand Vizier. Gradually, he gathered his breath enough to speak again.

"We all made it out. Pixel is helping them recover enough to make the trip back." Even speaking made him want to collapse and sleep for a week. He left it at that, concentrating on keeping his lungs working.

"Mm," his imperious eye looked over the haggard General. "And you left . . . simply to see if you could?"

Had Kkel the strength to bare his teeth, he would have, but Razfahd's assessment was not far from the truth. He used the Runic Portal ahead of his men to test whether or not another jump would kill them outright.

The hours had been full with skirmishes. The elite cadre of soldiers the Sunserpent borrowed from his fellow Generals burned through the early daylight hours with daring attacks against the Undead Swarm's most well-protected strongholds. Only a dozen in number, they used hit-and-run tactics to infuriate their foes and confuse them as to their size and strength. Their assaults had left a swath of destruction across Lamian territory from Periqia to Ilrusi Atoll, causing a general uproar throughout the entire Arrapago Reef. As soon as real confrontation became imminent, they pulled back and retreated to the nearest Imperial stronghold. Thus far, the scheme had worked flawlessly. With only ten soldiers, Pixel, and himself, Kkel Solaar had convinced the Undead Swarm all of Arrapago was enduring a full-scale attack.

With reinforcements rushing to bolster their defenses and their hordes rushing through the swamps, searching for the phantom Imperial army, the path to Medusa herself was quickly opening up. Kkel's gambit was paying off, and Jinxie would be able to recover her child. That was assuming, of course, that he survived using the portal again.

They had gone three times through the radiant blue light which ushered them from one point of the Empire to another before they started feeling it. At first they dismissed it as the fatigue natural from sustaining such an effort. Constant haranguing of enemy forces, striking with such force and precision, maintaining mobility enough to flee at a moment's notice; any of this would wear out even the most conditioned soldiers. After five times through the portal, they knew it was more than that. They began having trouble breathing, and some began to feel faint. Two of the small battalion were powerful magic users, but found themselves unable to conjure up the dimmest spark for several minutes.

At present, they had gone back and forth through the Chamber of Passage eleven times, and Kkel swore that his heart had stopped for a moment after the last one. His powerful blue magic felt as far away as the moon. Only one thing kept him going.

"I owe her my life," he breathed slowly. "And I will repay that debt in full if I have to."

Razfahd gave no outward reaction to the declaration. Instead, he turned to the Tarutaru soldier whose job it was to oversee the Chamber of Passage and muttered some hushed instructions to him. Snapping a salute to the Grand Vizier, the diminutive trooper hurried out of the room. Once he was gone, the dark-haired Imperial gave a powerful sigh, collapsing unceremoniously into a chair backed up against the wall.

"It seems good people are still paying for my actions, Sunserpent," he addressed Kkel, but directed his words to the open air. Composing himself, he returned his sharp gaze to the Elvaan. "Your men won't be joining you for some time. Reports from our scouts tell us all of Arrapago is in an uproar. You can rest a moment."

"If we stop now, they'll know it was a ruse." He wanted to say more, but found the words caught in his throat.

The Grand Vizier's stoic visage returned. "Jinxie knew the risks, Sunserpent, and she would not want you to die for her." He carefully pyramided his fingers, looking down at them contemplatively. "She is a powerful mage and a brave woman. I am certain there is nothing out there she can't handle."


The manner of steed the man rode she had no name for. It looked like a horse - a creature she had seen in fantasy storybooks as a child - but to call the beast a horse would be calling a grand palace a hovel. It stood twice as high as Jinxie herself, and its head alone was as large as her whole body. A coat of gray hair with a sheen like burnished metal covered the animal, and mane richer than the most exquisite fur was draped down across its thick, powerful neck. Two burning red eyes stared towards her as it bucked its head impatiently, snorting flames and baring a mouth full of thick, pointed teeth. Stretching down from its imposing visage, two curled red horns reached out menacingly. Eight hooves beat against the metal ground, four legs of taut sinew and muscle on each side, but where they stamped there was no ring of iron-like hoof against metal. Only a plume of dark flame burst up from the ground on each movement of its powerful limbs.

Seated atop it, impossibly using this fantastic creature as a mount, was a man covered head to toe in armor. Shoulder plates the size of a human head surmounted a gloriously crafted breastplate inlaid with gold. Mammoth silver gauntlets which grasped the beast's reins stretched up to joint guards which had been forged into nefarious-looking blades. Gilt cuisses matched the heavy steel boots in the stirrups of the incredible horse. Every inch of him was sheathed in armor of gold and silver, right up to a helmet which concealed his face entirely. Instead, it appeared akin to a death's head, and like the horse, it was surmounted by two curled and dangerous horns. From behind the faceplate, though she could not see his eyes, Jinxie felt the power of the man's stare. One hand held the horse in place, the other grasped the shaft of a spear bigger than any man, hooked blade on the end gleaming with wicked intent.

What struck her even more than his appearance was the overwhelming power radiating from his being. The rider was at the end of a long hallway, far behind where Jinxie stood now, but the oppressive weight of his essence nearly crushed her. The waves of sheer malevolence emanating towards her froze her in place. She gaped, unable to move as the rider lowered the blade of his tremendous spear, leveling the weapon towards Jinxie's head. The horse beat its hooves impatiently, flames of darkness rising below it. Locked in position, she could only watch as the rider steadied himself for a charge.

"Hey, boss lady, what's up?"

Startled, Jinxie spun around to find Sefadin's confused face behind her. Gasping, she turned back, only to see an empty hall behind her.

Groping fruitlessly for words, she looked at the Paladin, shock still on her face. He returned a quizzical gaze, taking a step back away from her.

"You shouldn't straggle behind, ma'am," he told her. "We almost went on without you."

"There was . . . " she started to talk, but his expression told her everything. He saw no dark rider, felt no presence. She no longer did, either. Only the long, empty expanse of the Ruins of Alzadaal greeted her eyes when she stared down the hallway. "Nothing," she said finally. "I just got turned around. Sorry to worry you."

"Are you alright?" He put a hand on her shoulder, concern in his voice. "I hate to look into those eyes and see an ounce of pain."

She brushed him away gently, collecting herself. "I'll be fine. Thank you, Sefadin."

"Just doing my job, ma'am," the Captain inclined his head briefly. "Let's catch up to the others, Vaala says we're almost there."

When they reached the rest of the group, Vaala was standing before a platform glowing with the same soft glow of the Runic Portals back in Whitegate. "Through here," she told them. "The ruins are connected by a series of portals like these. This one will take us where we need to go."

True to her word, moments later the cadre appeared within an expansive and ornate chamber, at the end of which was a hallway that took them back to the surface. After a brief word with the Imperial guards stationed at the exit, they took their first steps into the Caedarva Mire.

"Welcome to the jungle," Sefadin proclaimed, outstretching his arms with a flare.

"It's a swamp," Krista said, blinking. "Jungles are different."

The Captain slapped his palm into his own face. "Alright, first thing when we get back, we're going over your lessons in being dramatic."

"Yes, sir," she sighed, kicking a clump of soggy ground.

"Half a day's march will take us to the Arrapago Reef," Vaala told them. "From there we will - "

She stopped. They all did.

From somewhere deep in the mire, far off in the insect-laden swamps and bogs, through the muddy marshes and endless muck, a howl had broken the air.

It was deep, like some great horn bellowing, but rough and guttural as well. The gray skies above suddenly became alive with motion as flocks of birds took wing, fleeing from their nests in the howl's wake. For a long moment it persisted, and then slowly faded away, leaving a trailing echo to crawl its way through Caedarva Mire. Not one of Jinxie's group said a word at first, only exchanging glances as they listened to the wail die down.

"What was that?" Isset finally whispered, and Shoki visibly trembled.

"It sounded huge," Krista was gripping her flute tightly in both hands, her eyes darting back to the entrance into Alzadaal they had just emerged from.

"That," Vaala's voice was quiet, and the Ninja had perhaps unconsciously crouched down slightly, "means we need to be very fast, and very careful."

"What is it, Vaala?" Jinxie could not afford cryptic answers. She had to know what was in the swamp, perhaps even lying in wait for them.

"There's a Khimaira out here," she replied, and in a blur a pair of katana appeared in her hands. "And if we want to see Arrapago alive we must avoid it at all costs."

The proclamation sank in to each of them as she spoke, and a crushing silence overtook them. Jinxie was not even sure what a Khimaira was, but even Speed looked spooked at the thought of it. All the Imperials were given pause at the idea of its presence in the Mire.

As for herself, she had frozen for a different reason.

The moment Vaala had told her what the source of the howl was, she had felt the presence of the dark rider wash over her once again.