The beetle-like drones picked the flesh from the dragon’s bones quickly, lacerating the creature with the efficiency of a thousand tiny surgeons. Within less than ten minutes, the only thing that remained was a jumble of bones. The jungle floor was littered, however, with scraps of skin and scales, some of which clung to the bark of nearby trees, and an enormous pool of blood soaked partially into the damp soil. The carnage looked like something straight out of a horror movie. Any normal person would be throwing up violently and turning their head from the sight, but George was far from what anyone might even remotely consider normal.
Verin stepped from the shadows, temporarily assuming a humanoid form, and began to bring a measure of order to the frenzied machines. As George watched the shimmering mass falling into formation, an unfamiliar sensation washed over him; he had never felt anything like it before. It reminded him vaguely of pain, or perhaps even withdrawal, although he was pretty sure it wasn’t possible for a being like him. Ghosts don’t feel, at least not in the technical sense. They do, however, have thoughts and memories.
It only made what he felt right now all the more confusing. Part of him thought it was similar to an out-of-body experience, while another considered a much worse scenario: the sensation being akin to an exorcist forcing his spirit from a mortal body, only in this situation it couldn’t possibly be the case. The only other thing he could compare the feeling to was death. A brief flash of his initial demise upon Desolace raced through his mind. As the disturbing images flickered in his head like a silent, black and white film, another probability screamed up from the depths of his imagination. Perhaps his dread was due to his younger, mortal body succumbing to death. It was entirely plausible, but George didn’t want to give the thought any merit. If it was true, the implications of it could mean the Black Knight knew he’d hijacked his former self and was making sure George didn’t have the fleshy shell to use as a hiding place. My plans might be unraveling, so I’ll have to be more vigilant than ever. It’ll be tricky, but I think I can still do this. I just need to make sure I don’t alert that worm, Verin, to my presence.
Chapter 24
With her emotions raging on the edge of control, Skarr stomped through the jungle at an alarming pace. Although she was bent on destroying the beings who had almost certainly killed Sygax, she hadn’t become the oldest of her race by brute force. Her actions had to be tempered with wisdom, no matter how much her anger insisted to be unleashed. Lost in her thoughts, Skarr nearly missed the distinct sound of the swiftly approaching army. The blood pounding in her head had drowned out the steady thump of falling trees until it was almost too late. Thankfully, she managed to avert the crisis. A few seconds later and she very well could have been surrounded.
Skarr slinked through the foliage, moving to a safer location that was off to one side of the marching column of machines. Her golden eyes narrowed with venomous hatred while she studied the rapidly moving ranks of metallic drones, obliterating everything in their path. She couldn’t figure out how the army had dispatched Sygax, though, unless he had simply been overwhelmed by their numbers. Perhaps he had underestimated the strength of the force arrayed against him. After all, he was young and prone to the mistakes of youth, probably thinking he was invincible. Many youngsters had such delusions, and oftentimes discovered their folly far too late. That was one blunder she would not make.
In the cover of darkness, she watched the shiny contingent as it moved southward. Several different types of machines comprised the marching ranks. Some were so small they were barely noticeable, while the gleaming metal constructs bringing up the rear of the formation looked to be much more substantial; each one seemed to be nearly half her size. Surely they would represent the biggest threat, and were likely the machines that had killed Sygax. She would have to catch the army by surprise if she entertained any hope of getting the upper hand. Therefore, Skarr waited.
It wasn’t long, maybe fifteen minutes tops, when the last machine in the massive column passed by her hiding place. Even so, she didn’t leave the shadows right away. Patiently, Skarr continued to bide her time. When the metal giants at the rear of the formation were nothing more than shimmers of light in the distance, she stepped from cover and began to follow the path of destruction.
Each moment brought her closer to the satisfaction of avenging her young counterpart as Skarr slowly closed the gap between herself and the army. So far, the machines seemed to be unaware of her presence, but she could lose the upper hand in a matter of seconds if one of the giant sentinels in the rear happened to turn in her direction. It wouldn’t be long before she was close enough to launch her surprise attack. With any luck, she would be in range within the next minute or so. Hopefully, she would go undetected until then.
***
Despite his misgivings about traveling without Skarr, Edward instructed Amber to lead the way through the thick, jungle underbrush. His worried thoughts swirled through his mind, every potential problem screaming for his attention. If the ancient dragon was right about Sygax being dead, he couldn’t shake the dread of the possibility that Skarr was rushing headlong toward the same fate. Compound that feeling with the fact he could, once again, hear the steady sound of the forest behind them being ripped apart by the machines; the army was definitely gaining ground on them. When he added in the naked truth of Katie’s deteriorating condition, things began to look hopeless to him. There were simply too many variables for him to consider, and settling his priorities on which was most important gave him a terrible headache. It would likely only take one bad choice for everything to begin crumbling around him. At times like this, he desperately wished that someone else was in charge. He had no desire whatsoever to be the one to decide everyone’s fate. Edward found himself fervently longing for the mechanical horses the group had once acquired. At the very least, it would simplify matters a bit.
Without warning, Amber suddenly stopped. Her ghostly glow immediately began to pulsate wildly.
Keeping his voice low so he wouldn’t attract the attention of potential enemies, Edward whispered, “What’s wrong, Amber?”
For a brief moment, she was barely visible. When her form brightened, she was facing the wizard. “I think we need to make a detour,” she suggested nervously.
“Why? Do you sense something or someone who could help us?” Although no one except the ghostly woman could see it, a glimmer of hope sparkled in Edward’s gray eyes.
Vehemently, she shook her head. “No, I believe there is danger lurking nearby.”
Edward raised an eyebrow in confusion. “That doesn’t make sense. The army of machines is still quite a ways behind us.”
“It isn’t them that concerns me,” her disembodied voice stated gravely. “I’m sensing a strange energy signature close by, one that is reminiscent of the last time I got separated from all of you.”
He scratched his head, trying to recall the last instance of their being without her ghostly guidance. For a moment, he was drawing a blank, but then it hit him. Amber was referring to when he and the others had gone into Outpost 13, disappearing into the alternate version of Earth, where the undead had nearly managed to thwart their return to Desolace. Was it possible? Was Amber trying to indicate that another such structure was nearby, or perhaps she sensed another of the strange portals and feared where it might lead? Either way, the prospects seemed to hold equal parts of hope and danger.
The moist ground masked the sound of Katie’s approach, causing his heart to skip a beat and his mind to race when her hand suddenly appeared on his shoulder. Putting his palm to his chest, he turned his head toward her. “You scared the hell out of me,” he gasped, the words tumbling from his lips in a rush as he exhaled.
“I didn’t mean to startle you,” she apologized, her voice cracking with premature age, making her sound like Edward’s mother, Victoria.
“You’re pretty sneaky for someone in your condition,” he whispered, his lips twisting upward in a faint smile. He’d meant
the comment as a joke, something to lighten Katie’s spirits, but she showed no reaction.
“Did I hear correctly? Is there another one of those strange buildings nearby?”
“That’s what I’m guessing,” Edward confirmed, clinging to hope that it wasn’t a portal instead. They didn’t have time for inter-dimensional travel right now. Getting Katie to the Throne of the Gods was their priority.
Recalling the layout of the last such structure, she prayed there would be beds. Although she was likewise concerned about the rapid aging process she was undergoing, her body had been screaming at her for several hours. No matter the cost, she desperately needed a little shut-eye. Even if only for an hour or two.
“You’re too quiet. What are you thinking about?” Edward’s eyebrows dipped down, knitted with worry.
Katie sighed, her breath rattling slightly in her chest, as if she was catching a cold. “I’m just tired,” she finally confessed. “Until now, I never really understood why old people always wanted to take naps.” Her weak smile looked more like a wince of pain.
“I’ll tell you what. Against my better judgment, if there is one of those Outpost buildings close by, I’ll consent to you getting a little rest.” He glanced toward the sky, and guessed there to be at least a couple of hours until sunrise. “We should check out the situation first, though. If we find a bed, you can lay down while myself and the others search for anything that could help us. However, at the first hint of daybreak, we are leaving no matter what. Agreed?”
Her neck cracked painfully as she nodded in agreement. “I’ll make do with whatever I can get.”
“Then I guess we should see if there is anything worth investigating further in the vicinity.” Edward turned to face the ghostly woman. “I know you’re nervous about the situation, but would you lead us toward the energy signature you alluded to?”
In response, Amber’s glow diminished until the vague outline of her shape was barely visible. Edward started to panic when she almost disappeared entirely, but then her form brightened significantly and maintained its brilliance. Katie and Edward, due to their close proximity, were forced to shield their eyes. It was like staring into a policeman’s spotlight. “As much as I dislike your request, I will lead you. Just don’t blame me if the situation gets out of your control.”
“Fair enough,” Edward replied, inwardly second guessing himself and his decision. If he was a superstitious man, he would likely have crossed his fingers and his toes to ward off bad luck.
***
Fifteen minutes later, floodlights burst to life from the top of a structure they likely wouldn’t have seen in broad daylight had Amber not been guiding their steps. The building was nestled amongst the thick foliage, with vines wrapped around the husk of its wooden façade like several large constrictor snakes trying to squeeze the life from their prey. The rope-like strands gave the building the perfect camouflage, disguising the sharp angles of the exterior. The effect made the Outpost look like a creepy, haunted house that sat long forgotten in a desolate swampland.
The security lights, which seemed to sense motion like the other Outpost had been equipped with, belayed the fact that this location was anything but forgotten. If it was, the place would have remained dark and inactive.
Amber moved to one side, allowing the group to approach the building, and refused to get closer.
As Edward inched toward the entrance, the thick strands of vines making the strange doorknob almost invisible, he spotted movement to his left. Turning his head, he emitted an audible gasp. “Yes! We’re in luck!”
Katie, Julie, and Brian simultaneously whipped their heads in the direction their leader was looking. At first, they were unsure what Edward had seen, but as they stood perfectly still and the floodlights atop the Outpost shut off, they saw what had previously been hidden in the thick underbrush surrounding the structure. An ominous red light filtered through the foliage, and almost instantly Katie knew what it was. “Oh my God! I never thought I would see another one of those things in my lifetime, and I never imagined it would be such a welcomed sight!” As quickly as her newly arthritic bones would allow her, she jogged toward the mechanical beast, triggering the security lights.
The entrance to the Outpost temporarily forgotten, Edward and the others chased after Katie. When they rounded the corner of the building, they found her patting the metallic horse affectionately. All of them were glad to find the two-headed beast, but Katie more so than anyone else. She was acting as if the creature was her long lost friend. Julie wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. Katie’s reaction was similar to the way she’d acted upon finding her on Cemetery Hill, and it was disturbing to think her best friend would act in such a manner for anyone other than her. Julie understood why Katie was happy to see the machine—it meant she would no longer have to walk everywhere she went—but, in another respect, it sort of cheapened their friendship. Either way, Julie forced a smile when Katie glanced toward her, not wanting to deflate her best friend’s mood. She had enough going on with the whole aging thing, and Julie had no intention of belittling what she was going through by being petty. However, if they were back on Earth, it would have been an entirely different ball game; she would have given her all kinds of crap for acting like that.
“As much as I would have liked to find more than one, I suppose I shouldn’t complain,” Edward stated softly, interrupting Julie’s thoughts. “One is better than none.” An almost imperceptible sigh escaped his lips as he glanced from face to face, judging the reactions of his comrades, none of which showed any signs of enthusiasm. They’re probably too tired to care one way or the other at the moment. With grim resignation, he stepped past them and moved toward the building’s entrance again. “Let’s go inside. Hopefully, the interior is laid out the same as the last Outpost. If so, there should be beds in there.” His last statement seemed to get everyone’s attention. Their heads turned in his direction, and each of them bore similar expressions on their faces, albeit not in curiosity. To Edward, it seemed like an unseen finger had hoisted each of their eyebrows, giving all of them the appearance that someone was holding their eyelids open.
Chapter 25
Edward supposed that he should have been ecstatic. The interior of the Outpost was indeed like the last one the group had encountered. Well, minus the putrid stench of feces and death that had overwhelmed them on the previous occasion. The entry door was fitted with the exact same mechanism as he’d used to gain access to the prior building: a metallic circle that could be turned once his palm was placed inside of the hand-shaped depression. Unfortunately, Edward had forgotten about the electrical charge that surged through him as he operated the strange doorknob.
After a brief search for surprises, Katie and the others stretched out on the beds in the adjacent room, while Edward vigilantly went from one monitor to the next, studying the images on the screens. From what he could gather, once he completed his viewing of each display, they were currently in Outpost 1. This information gave him the feeling of being on the edge of the world, considering how far they had traveled to get here and the numerical reference. Finding nothing useful in the images and seeing no apparent threats, he passed the time by opening the sturdy metal hatch opposite the main entrance. The wheel-shaped mechanism, though difficult to move, did not screech or squeal like the one in Outpost 13. For a split second, he considered why this might be, and almost immediately, his mind settled on the most devastating explanations possible. Either the door had recently undergone some sort of maintenance, or—the absolute worst case scenario—the Outpost was still in use, perhaps even at this exact moment.
When he swung the heavy panel fully open, a familiar stone stairway came into view. Much like the prior Outpost, it was lit by bright orbs of light and seemed to stretch on forever. For a moment, Edward hesitated. A nagging feeling in the back of his mind, which picked at his brain as if he had a claw inside of his head, told him to reconsider. He almost turned away and shut the door be
cause of it, but decided he had nothing to lose; everyone else was sleeping, and the bank of computer screens assured him there was no cause for alarm.
Despite his reservations, Edward began to descend the long staircase. After a few minutes, a strange noise echoed down the tunnel to his ears. The sound had multiple elements to it, simultaneously creaking like the floorboards in an old house, and groaning as if the building above was shifting on its foundation. The wooden walls emitted several cracks, as if they were buckling under immense pressure and about to snap in half. When combined with the staccato grinding reminiscent of furniture being shoved across a rough surface, memories of the horrifying experience in Katie's house on future Earth forced their way to the forefront of his mind. As he hurried back up the stone steps, Edward berated himself for complacently thinking his comrades were safe.
Halfway up the stairs, he heard a scream. In a full-fledged panic, he took the steps two and three at a time, suddenly sure he would be too late to help his friends. When he reached the doorway, Julie nearly plowed him over and knocked him back into the tunnel. The expression on her face was beyond terror, it was borderline hysterical. “What the hell is going on?” she screamed, trying to be heard over the cacophony.
“How should I know? Everything was quiet up here when I went downstairs to investigate,” Edward shouted, gently pushing the blonde woman back a few paces so she didn’t accidentally knock him down the never-ending flight of steps. Brian emerged from the adjacent room, rubbing his eyes.
“Is everyone okay? I heard a scream.”
“I’m still trying to figure out what’s happening,” Edward replied, guiding Julie toward the shaman with one hand placed firmly in the small of her back. “Where’s Katie?”
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