Phoenix Quest Adventures: First Three Novels

by K. T. Tomb

  Kadan tried to collect his thoughts. “It’s the game. It’s the first time any humans have ever been this far into a computer. In real life, anyway. It’s almost like getting the bends while your body adjusts to the pressure of surfacing too fast from incredible underwater depths. Same thing. The bad thing is that it appears the people with weaker minds succumb to a more consuming effect than those with stronger minds. I need to get back to the virus. If I don’t stop the world’s hackers from figuring out the game, then nothing will matter anymore. We have about an hour and a half before all hell breaks loose. If you don’t mind, I’d like to stay focused on that.”

  Jonathan nodded. “What can I do in the mean time? I feel helpless just watching all of this going on.”

  Kadan pointed to the game’s manual. “Look up the section on cheats. There might be a way to help Thalia and the others. I wouldn’t worry too much about her, though. She has an ace up her sleeve.” Kadan forced a smile.

  ***

  “What the hell was that?” Peter yelled, as his abdominal pain subsided. “Those men just…I mean…what the hell?”

  Phoe stretched and looked into the cavern where the creature had been seen. She saw something shimmering at the opposite end. It was almost like a wavering curtain hiding something either valuable or terrible. She pointed to the shimmering curtain. “Look. That’s where we have to go. I’d bet my life on it.”

  “You just might do that,” Simon added. “I have to agree though. We can’t stand here and wonder about what’s happening. We have to make things happen. Off we go. Let’s try not to get eaten.”

  The trio walked cautiously into the adjoining alcove. Phoe grimaced as she stepped into some blood. She looked carefully into the water and could see nothing that might eat her or anyone in her group. “Okay. Good luck everyone.” She slowly entered the water in an effort to cause as little disturbance as possible. She didn’t want to shake the web and watch the spider come out to play.

  Once she was treading water, she tried not to breathe as Peter and Simon entered in the same manner. They then proceeded to swim toward the unknown.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The trio got to the edge of the shimmering curtain. There was what appeared to be a beach that extended out about five feet from it. Simon got out onto dry land and started to stomp on the sand to make sure it wasn’t a trap of some kind. He nodded as Phoe and Peter got out of the water as well. At closer inspection, it looked like it was a curtain made of air. It was too blurry to see through, so Phoe took a deep breath and walked right through to the other side. Once she disappeared from view, Peter, then Simon followed suit.

  When Simon walked through, his mouth dropped and his eyes widened at what he saw.

  As far as they could see, gold coins not only covered the entire floor, but there were ten to twenty foot piles of coins placed every few yards. There was no pattern to the placement of the piles. It looked as if whoever had all that gold, just didn’t have enough room and threw them anywhere they could. The cavern ceiling was easily 200 feet high. At closer inspection, there were also various metal weapons, shields, and pieces of armor scattered among the coins.

  “Now it’s a damn video game!” Peter exclaimed.

  “What now?” Simon asked Phoe.

  Phoe looked disgusted. “Why do I always have to have the answers? What am I, the encyclopedia of shit that isn’t supposed to exist?”

  A loud gurgling, grotesque, yet familiar, sound came from deeper in the cavern.

  Peter looked optimistically toward the noise. “Okay. Who wants Grendel? Any takers?”

  Phoe saw wisdom in Peter’s statement. “He’s right. One of us has to take on Grendel.”

  Simon laughed nervously. “You’re not serious. Tell me you’re not serious.”

  “Think about it, Simon,” Phoe replied. “We have no idea if there’s anything after Grendel. If we’re going by the poem, then we will probably be fighting Grendel, his mother, and a dragon.”

  “Three of them. Three of us,” Peter said. He was no longer optimistic.

  “I’ll take Grendel,” Simon said, with an almost heroic tone in his voice.

  “Look around for a weapon or something that can help you,” Phoe said. “You don’t want to go hand to hand with that thing. I figure it to be about thirty feet tall…give or take.”

  Simon smiled. “How many people get to say they have died fighting the Grendel?”

  “No one,” Peter added. “All of the people who have fought him so far are all dead.”

  Simon lost his smile. “I’ll distract him while you two get past him to whatever other lovelies await.”

  Simon looked around the floor and saw an old sword with a shield lying beside it. “Just my size. Just in case I don’t make it…it has been an honor and a pleasure to be acquainted with both of you. If anyone makes it out alive, talk to Jonathan. He will take care of you.”

  Phoe had a knowing smile. “I don’t need any help, but thank you.”

  “Did you sell the Head of Olmec?” Peter asked. “I would have bought it back from you.”

  “No,” Phoe said calmly. “I didn’t need to sell Olmec. I sold something else. I gave the Head of Olmec away.”

  Simon was disgusted. “If we can stop figuring out who will die with the most toys, I have a Grendel to destroy.” He picked up the shield and ran his arm through the strap. He then picked up the sword. “If anyone sees any head gear, let me know.”

  Simon walked around one of the piles of gold as Peter and Phoe followed from behind. The gurgling became louder and louder, until the disfigured head of Grendel leaned over the closest pile of gold near the trio. “Go! Now!” Simon ordered.

  Phoe and Peter tried to run around the side of Grendel, but he was quicker than either of them imagined. With one backhanded swat of his huge twisted appendage, Grendel slammed into Phoe, sufficiently knocking her several yards away. She suffered three bruised ribs and her lip was bleeding. Peter ran to her aid as she struggled to get up.

  Grendel moved with an impossible speed as he dove for Phoe to finish her off. Phoe screamed as Simon barreled into the monster with both feet. He managed to sway Grendel’s course away from Phoe and into a pile of coins. Peter helped her up as Grendel turned his attention to the defiant Simon, who was holding the sword like a baseball bat ready to strike. “Eat this, asshole!” Simon swung with all of his strength as the sword sunk into one of Grendel’s thighs. The monster let out an inhuman shriek as Peter and Phoe took one last look, then moved on.

  ***

  “Dad!” yelled a frustrated Jonathan. “Shit!” He thumbed quickly through the game manual and finally got to the page he needed. “Alright, monster. Your days are over!”

  Kadan smiled as he overheard Jonathan’s battle cry. He continued his mission to get the virus taken care of. He knew that his job was never more important than at that moment. Everyone in the world counted on him and they didn’t even know it.

  ***

  Phoe gritted her teeth as she and Peter ran forward and closer to who knew what. Peter helped her, but she wouldn’t quit. She never did. That was one of the things that he loved about her.

  After making it around many more piles of gold, the area started to become warmer. Phoe looked at Peter. “I think I’m up next.”

  “Why don’t I get Grendel’s mother?” he whined.

  “Because she wants me,” replied Phoe.

  The heat in the area increased rapidly all at once as Phoe pushed Peter down. A swirling flame came out of nowhere and singed Phoe’s legs, just as she jumped out of the way. “Shit that hurts like hell!” she exclaimed, as Peter picked up a large shield from the coin riddled floor.

  “Hey idiot!” Peter yelled, to distract whatever it was away from Phoe. Actually, he knew what it was. He hoped he was wrong, but he wasn’t.

  The sound of powerful wings flapping was heard just overhead as coins were being blown around. Phoe and Peter had a hard time standing in the wind from the w
ings. He looked at Phoe as if it would be his last time. He wanted to say so much to her, but only had time for four words. “I love you, Phoe.”

  With that said, a pillar of fire separated Phoe from Peter. Peter looked up to see the mouth of a dragon open and fire shoot out of it. He managed to get the shield up just in time as the flames hit it with the force of a hundred fire hoses going off at once. Peter was knocked back into a pile of gold, but the shield took the brunt of the attack. When he realized he wasn’t dead, Peter started laughing hysterically.

  ***

  “Eat it, Grendel!” Jonathan yelled, as if he were actually playing and winning against a video game.

  Kadan didn’t want to worry Jonathan. He only had forty-five minutes remaining before hackers from all over the world received their pirated copies of The Lair Of Beowulf video game. It wouldn’t be long after that time, the hackers would figure out what to do with it. Kadan was sweating, he knew time was not on his side. He had two hours of programming to do in less than an hour. He didn’t want to ruin Jonathan’s day any further. After all, if he and Phoe failed, they would be able to play the game for as long as they lived. That wouldn’t be long at all.

  ***

  Phoe’s legs were barely burned, but it still hurt. Every time she breathed, her ribs hurt too. She had a job to do and even if it was her final adventure, she had to finish it.

  The sound of a woman’s laughter echoed all around her, as if it came from everywhere in the cavern at once. She braced herself as she noticed different weapons to choose from lying all around her on the floor. She chose to use what she brought with her. Nothing.

  “Thalia Phoenix!” The words hit her from every angle. She had no idea of the point of origin.

  “Come on out…Symone!” Phoe said confidently.

  Before Phoe could react, something long and wiry wrapped around her leg, picked her up with ease, and tossed her into a pile of coins just as easily. Once she hit the coins, she was attacked so fast that it looked like a blur to her. She felt a barrage of fists hitting her. She had no chance to fight back. She was being beaten to death.

  ***

  As quick as Grendel was, Simon was that much faster. He easily predicted the monster’s moves, once he saw the pattern. He also noticed one other thing. It appeared that Grendel was inebriated.

  Simon knew it for sure when the monster’s mouth got too close to him at one point. He smelled blood and alcohol, which almost made him vomit. Simon was slowly gaining control. Grendel had grazed Simon a few times in the left arm and right leg, but he really couldn’t get ahold of the billionaire.

  Simon waited for the creature to lunge. Then dodged and swung the sword down on whatever body part was available. Simon started to tire each time he dodged and especially each time he swung the sword. The monster seemed to be tireless as he swung his arms and continually bit at Simon.

  After one attempt from Grendel, Simon dodged the attack, but was completely unprepared for an immediate follow-up strike. The monster’s punch fully connected with Simon’s body. He heard bones crack as he flew backward against a hill of coins. By some miracle, even though Simon lost his grip on the sword and shield, the sword was still within a foot of his reach. He made sure that nothing but death would separate him from the only thing that had kept him alive so far.

  Simon tried to move his right arm and nearly cried out when he realized that it was broken. The sword was near his right hand and Grendel was on the move again. The monster appeared to smile as he ran toward Simon one last time.

  Simon gritted his teeth and knew what he had to do. Grendel leapt up and angled himself so that he would land right on top of Simon. His only thoughts were of Jonathan; he didn’t think he would ever see his son again. That was all he needed as he saw the giant disfigured monstrosity arching toward him. He didn’t want that to be the last thing he ever saw. Without looking at the sword, Simon moved his right hand as quickly as he could toward it.

  Grendel let out a triumphant gurgling yell as Simon tried to reach for the sword. Simon screamed from the pain as his right hand grabbed hold of the weapon’s hilt. He rolled slightly and used his left hand to assist the right.

  He was holding the sword in both hands again, in spite of the searing pain and pushed himself up a little further with his feet to position himself for what he had planned.

  Grendel couldn’t stop his descent, and Simon yelled again in pain as he timed his roll perfectly. He rolled over with the sword up in the air. With all of his effort and all of his strength, Simon Kessler sliced through Grendel’s neck. He managed to roll clear as the monster’s head and body hit the ground in two different places. Simon started to laugh despite the tremendous pain he was in.

  Grendel’s body and head slowly started to transform. They started to shrink and grow more recognizable. When the transformation had finished, Simon sighed as his suspicions were correct. Hamilton Armette laid in two pieces near Simon’s feet. It was almost a poetic metaphor. Symone knew that somewhere his son cheered him on. Even if he couldn’t see him, he felt it.

  “Grendel’s dead!” he yelled at the top of his lungs. Never had any victory been sweeter or more appropriate.

  Both Phoe and Peter heard Simon.

  Peter realized one important fact as he took a deep breath. It was his turn.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The claws of the green-hued dragon dug into a nearby pile of coins, as the head leaned forward to keep Peter in its sight. Every description he’d ever read of what a dragon looked like, stood menacingly in front of him. Smoke plumed from its nostrils and mouth, which told Peter that another blast of fire was soon to come.

  Peter looked around for anything viable to add to his arsenal. Unless the dragon had an aversion to gold coins, he was out of luck. He decided to change his tactics. “Excuse me, umm… Dragon? I do believe that you have me at a considerable disadvantage. You are at least 20 times my size, have an amazing distance weapon, and you have home field advantage.”

  The dragon paused and looked at him as it tilted its head in confusion.

  Peter continued with inspired vigor. “You are obviously someone who has been pushed around most of their lives and see this as a means to gain revenge on all of those who have wronged you. A big menacing dragon is definitely a way to do just that. However, I have seen worse in my travels.”

  The dragon started to huff in anger.

  Peter stood up straight and smiled. “The most impressive way to accomplish my defeat, would be to appear in your real form while still retaining all of the powers of the dragon.”

  The dragon spoke with a deep, booming voice. “In case you haven’t noticed, there is a theme here.”

  Peter nodded. “Oh yes. The whole Beowulf scenario. Nice, but it’s a bit overdone. Don’t you think? We all know about Beowulf fighting Grendel, the dragon, and Grendel’s mother. It’s a dull scenario. You seem like you’re creative…Alex.”

  The dragon let out a roar which shook the area, causing the coins to rattle relentlessly. Then the body of the dragon began to change. It started to shrink while the scales receded into the skin and the greenish hue was traded for Alex’s more human shade of dark brown. Alex stood before Peter in human form. His eyes glowed bright red. “How did you know?”

  “Seriously?” Peter replied. “Is that your ego speaking? How could I not know? You and the Armettes weren’t exactly taking care to hide the fact that each of you ingested a main frame pill. Each of you has the ability to control the scenario. Well had, in the case of Grendel. So tell me, Alex. Who’s decision was it to go with Beowulf?”

  “Symone,” Alex said, as he realized what Peter was getting at. “Just because Hamilton and I allowed her to pick the scenario doesn’t mean any…”

  “You’re in love with Symone,” Peter interrupted.

  Alex was getting angry. “What? So. What difference does it make?”

  “The difference my friend…” Peter continued, “…is that I’m sure you have so
me impressive degrees and maybe even a doctorate. All she has is her feminine wiles.”

  “Stop it!” Alex screamed. His anger caused red smoke to emit from his eyes. “You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

  “I have nothing in my arsenal that is even remotely as sinister as feminine wiles, Alex,” Peter replied with a smile. “And yet, it appears that I am getting to you. Let me ask you something, Alex. With all of your expertise, are you experienced with applied physics?”

  “No. Why?” Alex answered.

  Peter grinned as he pulled the shield up to cover his body. “Because you’re a simple minded asshole, who can be led by his genitalia. That’s why.”

  Alex let out a dragon-sized roar as his eyes bled fire. The look on his face pleased Peter as he braced himself behind the shield. Dragon fire blasted from the human-sized mouth of Alex. It hit Peter’s shield dead on. The resulting contact pushed Peter back at least 50 feet. He had to relinquish his grip on the shield because it was red hot. Peter was bruised by the impact.

  Alex walked in triumph toward Peter, while not realizing that his skin was glowing red. Peter was sore and lying in the supine position. Alex stopped about 20 feet from Peter and inhaled. “I think one more should do it,” he said confidentially.

  “So do I,” Peter said.

  Alex tried to let out another blast of fire, but something was wrong. Fire spread throughout his veins and pores and snaked through his body. His skin started to crack as he looked shock.

  “I would have gone with applied physics, if I was you, Alex,” Peter said.

  Alex exploded from the inside as pieces of him rained down over the entire area. Little pieces of burning flesh were everywhere.

  Peter struggled to stand as he looked around. “Poor Alex. Always being manipulated. You should have realized that by keeping the power of a dragon inside the body of a human was not a good idea. Your human body couldn’t contain all of that power. You could have adjusted its use accordingly had you realized what that much power would do to you. And that my dear boy, is why you should have studied harder.” Peter sighed. He was relieved that it had worked.