by Jae Vogel
“We manage,” Kiley responded. “Somehow we pull through every year. Not too many tenant farmers left out here. Most have moved on to the city. This tower once guarded the entire mountain pass, can you believe that? Air power made it redundant and our families leased it from the kingdom a long time ago.”
“Did your family put the elevator shaft and plumbing into it?” another woman in the group asked. This was the one known as Beth Ravi, who was a large white woman. Dion felt she had to be a schoolteacher of some kind from the way she carried herself.
“All of the improvements you see here were made by our family,” Kiley told her. “This place was stark and barren when our family leased it. It was used by the military for a thousand years or more. Think of it, a thousand years as a military garrison. Not much in the way of accommodations for the troops who had to be ready at any moment to march out and defend the kingdom.”
“Is this where the Battle of Blood River was fought?” another one of the women questioned. She was Mary Tangent. With her thick glasses and prim manner of speaking, Dion felt she must be some kind of academic.
“No, that was the river which flows into this one, about fifty miles upstream. This was the tower that defended the troops of Melkor the Obvious from Brandon the Less. You may have read about it in the history books. The battle raged for days until Melkor and his mercenaries retreated back across the mountain pass.”
Dion heard some surprised sounds from the crowd. This had to be some important battle, which he wouldn’t know about. It didn’t matter, as the women seemed to understand what Kiley Mahen talked about. They would be just as confused as he would if he took them to his time circle and tried to talk about the Battle of Bull Run.
More people joined the mob inside the great hall. Dion saw a group of servers move emerge from the stairwell to the warehouse move into the hall. They swerved around the women who’d broken into individual groups discussing what to do next. He noticed the servants wore the same tunics he’d been given once his wet clothes were removed. Although the women from the bus were all wearing gowns, it seemed the basic clothing styles in this world were similar to the ones from the Middle Ages back on his world. There was a strange blend of styles and technology. Some of which he could recognize from his own time period, others which made no sense to him.
This time there were three servants, all men. The oldest one approached the table, bowed just as the others did, and spoke directly to Kiley. “My lady,” he said, “we have a problem with the lift. It doesn’t seem to be responding as it is supposed to. We have the mechanics working on it right now. In light of the seriousness of our current condition, we felt it advisable to let all of you know.”
“Can the lift be used?” Kiley asked him. “As you can see, we are flooded with unexpected guests this evening.” She paused when a clap of thunder drowned out the sound before she continued. “How bad off is the lift? Do we need to order parts again?”
“The mechanics feel they can have it fixed in a few hours. In the meantime, no one should use the lift. The last thing anyone would want would be an accident.”
“I’d advise to shut it down for the night,” Loris told her sister. “Remember what happened ten years ago? They never did find all the body parts when the cable broke.”
“Can’t do it,” Kiley turned and said to her. “We might need it right away if Lilith and her mob break through to more levels.”
“We need to inform these women about her,” Susan interjected. “If they want to take refuge here for the night, they should know what they’ve walked into.”
“Give me a chance, will you?” Kiley snapped at her. “This is worse than the time we lost half the cattle from the near village.”
“Tell them to let us know the moment the lift is operational,” Kiley told the servants. “Let them know the lift is crucial to removing the invaders at the top of the tower. We may need it to transfer men and materials to the top.”
“And we might need to get them back down in a hurry,” added Susan.
“Would you shut-up and let me handle this?” her older sister Kiley snapped at her. Kiley turned to the servants. “Dismissed and keep us updated on the lift.” The three men turned and walked back to the staircase, which led down the ground level of the tower.
Dion could see the angry look on Susan’s face. This was not the first time her sister had put her in her place.
Susan pushed her unfinished bowl away and left the table. She walked over the stairwell that led to the upper floors.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Kiley called after her.
“To my room,” she stopped and called back. “You want to be in charge so much, handle it yourself.”
“You will have a long walk up there without the lift to take you.”
“I’ll manage.” Susan turned and vanished up the stairwell, her long skirt trailing behind her.
“You really shouldn’t be so hard on her,” Loris said to Kiley. “She is an adult you know.”
“Then she should learn to act like one,” Kiley sniped as she lifted her goblet up and took a sip. “Mother and father left me in charge. I make the final decisions.”
“You talk like they will return some day.”
“It would make my life better if they did.”
“But you know that day will never come back,” Loris reminded her as she finished the contents of her bowl. “It’s been five years since their ship vanished at sea. If they were ever to be found, it would have happened by now.”
“No body, no death,” Kiley pointed out. “That is the sovereign’s law, not mine. We are merely place holders until she rules otherwise.”
“I’ve never recovered,” Loris spoke to the empty space in front of her. Dion could see by the look on Kiley’s face that this was a speech she’d made many times. “I expect they’ll walk in that door any minute and put things to right. I know it might never happen, but I have to believe they’ll be back someday.”
Dion didn’t know what to say, so he remained quiet. It appeared he’d walked into a family argument of some kind, so the best policy was to stay out. Until the creatures at the top of the tower were neutralized, there wasn’t much he could do. He was reluctant to use any elemental power to alter the direction of the storm; if what his uncle said was true. He needed to save anything he had for an emergency. Furthermore, there wasn’t a thing he could do until the Aether Elemental Grandmaster returned.
Chapter 8
“Where did you say she went?” Dion looked across the table at his uncle.
“Who?”
“The elemental grandmaster. Didn’t you say there wasn’t much we could do until she returned?”
“I don’t know exactly where she went. When Queen Lilith broke through from the abyss all kind of havoc took place in the upper tower before we could contain them. She took off a week ago and said she needed to bring in some more help to prevent them from gaining control of the tower.
“Why can’t they just climb down the side of the tower?” Dion asked him. “I take it they can’t fly or levitate.”
“They’re grounded,” his uncle responded. “As far as we can tell. She and her troops have a deadly fear of heights, which works in our favor. They are a ruthless bunch and I’m glad we’ve never had to worry about them climbing out of the tower.”
Dion watched as a few more servants came out to bring water to the women in the hall. They were there for the night at least and might as well be made comfortable. Eventually, Kiley Mahen looked over at them and called to the group.
“Why don’t you come sit at this table?” she said to them. “It’s long and was built for large gatherings. There is plenty of room for everyone. I’ve even had the cooks warm up the dinner we were eating before you arrived.”
The women seemed to find this a good idea and soon they were all seated at the long table near the fireplace. The quiet hall now vibrated with the background chatter of voices and discussions. Dion found himself
seated next to one of the women on the bus who was quiet. She continued to stare in wonder at the great hall and took it all in.”
“You don’t usually see places built like this?” he asked her.
“First time,” she told him. “I’m Teresa; this was supposed to be a fun weekend. It was before that storm hit.”
“Didn’t the weather reports call for it?” Dion asked her. “Oh, I’m Dion, by the way.”
“Weather reports?” the woman said to him. “How can you report on the weather? It does what it wants to do and the rest of us just endure.”
Dion decided not to pursue this line of conversation either, but it did tell him a bit about the place where he was. Instead, he went in another direction.
“So you like to write?” he asked her. “Any kind of writing in particular?”
“All kinds,” she told him, “Just nothing scary. I manage a cemetery, so I stay away from those kinds of books.”
“I’m sure your work is important. I’m here waiting for an elemental grandmaster. I can’t do much of anything else until she makes an appearance.”
“I see. What is her name?”
“Phologostron. Mary Phologostron. It’s the name by which I know her, she may have another. We’ve never formally met, but I was supposed to meet her here.” The last statement was true, although Dion didn’t know it when he entered the tower entrance back in his world.
“I think we might know her,” the woman said to him. She turned to the woman on the other side of the table. “Sondasha, didn’t you say that the lady who was supposed to come with us was called Phologostron?”
“I think that was her,” she confirmed. “Tall white lady with short hair? I think she runs a travel agency some place.”
Now Dion was very interested in the group. Did the grandmaster have some kind of connection to them?
“She was supposed to come with you?” he asked. “Does she belong to your group?”
“No,” Teresa told him. “She came by a few times last year. I think she might have family in town. I don’t know too much about her.”
Moments later one of the guards shot out of the stairwell, which led to the upper levels, his breathing labored. Dion knew the lift was down, but this man had run all the way from the upper levels. He recognized him as Izzy, one of the guards who’d worked in the mall. He wore shirt and jeans, which already put him at odds with everyone else in this place. Izzy went directly to Dion’s uncle and whispered something in his ear. When his uncle nodded, the man turned and ran back in the direction of the stairwell. Dion could hear the pounding of his boots as he ran up them.
“Problems?” Dion aske his uncle.
“Not anymore,” he responded. “The opposing force broke into the nursery. I didn’t think they would get that far, but the boys have contained them. They’ve stopped them at the eighteenth level. The creatures were busted up so bad by the time they reached the latest barricade, they couldn’t even pound on them. I hope the grandmaster gets back here soon enough; I’m tired of contending with these things. Back home I could call in an airstrike. Not an option in this place.”
“I thought they had airpower in this world?” Dion spoke. “Is the storm too much or do the sisters not want to get the government involved.”
“More of the latter. You can only do so much with dragons. They tend to burn up everything in their path, but they’re cold-blooded and don’t like storms.”
“Did you say level nineteen?” Loris Mahen asked him from her position on the table.
“Yes, but they’re holding it,” Seth Back responded. “I hope they’ve stopped the advance this time. Those things are really messing up my life. Sorry they got in, but we’ve been through all that.”
“Level nineteen is where our parents’ kept their rooms,” Kiley explained. “We’ve tried to keep it the same way before they took off on that voyage. If they are ever found, and it’s not looking good at this point, I’d hoped they would find their rooms in the same manner when they left.”
“Not possible. The guards will need ever table and heavy object they can find to stop the advance.”
“I would like to know, Mr. Bach,” Loris cut her sister off, “how you expect to recompense us for the damage done by your experiment. You better pray it never leaves this tower because the sovereign will have you on her list if they do get out.”
“I’ve told you,” Dion’s uncle snapped. “When we get this under control, we’ll have a conduit to the abyss and all the money you’ll ever need. Nothing else came through the gate, did it? We managed to close it when Lilith and company breeched the perimeter. It won’t happen a second time.”
“You’d better be right,” Kiley grumbled.
“I think I’m going back up to the guard’s level,” Dion announced as he stood up from the table. “They might need some help up there.”
“Are you sure that is as good idea?” his mother asked him.
“I’m not doing anything useful down here,” he explained. “Might as well go up there and see what I can accomplish.”
“It’s a long walk,” his uncle told him from the other side of the table. “Stick to the stairwells. Don’t linger around the floors. And come back down if anything happens I need to know about.”
“I’ll be sure to keep you informed,” Dion said to him in a dry manner. His uncle was the source of all these problems, yet acted as if he was still in control.
“Elevator’s fixed,” Susan Mahen announced as she strolled back into the great hall. “Mechanics say it should work just fine. I took it down here and didn’t have the least bit of trouble.”
“Appears you won’t have to walk all those stairs after all,” Dion’s uncle said to his nephew. He turned to Susan as she sat back down next to her sisters. “Anything happening where you were at?”
“Just a lot of men shouting and making noise,” she told him. “Nothing to concern me. I decided to come back here if there was going to be more tension up there.” Her older sister Kiley glared at her.
After using the speaking tube to let the lift operator know where he wanted to go, Dion was whisked toward the top of the tower. This time it let him out on a scene of exhausted men who were watching a table nailed over a stairwell entrance. Most of them didn’t even turn to look at him. Whatever they were fighting took every bit of energy to contain.
The level he was on was eloquent, but appeared to be a mess. Fine cabinets and benches were busted up to make wood for the barricades. Saws and hammers lay on the floor and splinters were everywhere. It was a scene of an utter mess. The only good thing was there were no noises coming from the other side of the barricade. Whatever forced their retreat had to be just as exhausted as the defenders.
“Weren’t you the kid we were supposed to keep out of the mall?” one of the exhausted guards looked up and said to him. “What are you doing in this place? And what happened to your friends?”
“My friends couldn’t come with me,” Dion said. “This is good because I don’t think they would have cared very much for this place. How long have you worked here?”
“I can’t remember,” the man said to him. “Seems like a few months. The pay is good and things weren’t too bad until a few hours ago when those things on the other side started pushing their way through. It’s our job to contain them. Right now, I’d give anything for a cheap grenade. It would solve all our problems in a hurry.”
Dion talked with the guards for a few minutes just to make sure they were okay. There were a few scuffling sounds on the other side of the barricade, which caused the guards to jump, but not enough to rouse them into action. They were curious what happened to their former post lieutenant, Karanzen. Dion was able to tell them he’d left the mall and didn’t know where he went. He didn’t tell them the last thing he saw the man do was turn into a swarm of flies.
“Did you get a look at what is on the other side?” Dion asked them, pointing at the barricade.
“All I saw was a whole lot
of furry things with claws and sharp teeth,” the same guard said to him. “It’s all I ever want to see.”
“There was some woman in there with them,” one of the other guards added.
“A woman?” one of the guards asked, “In there with those things? Are you serious?
“I’m not kidding,” he said. “Swear that I saw her back there.”
This had to be the “Queen Lilith” figure they were talking about down at table. How she figured into all of it was something Dion didn’t understand, but he needed to ask his uncle when he returned to the great hall. His parents seemed clueless when it came to this world, but they’d been snatched into it without any preparation. He still thought of them as his parents and always would, but Dion needed to find out more about his real origins. This fiasco at the tower created more issues than anyone could have anticipated.
Chapter 9
Dion thanked the men for their time and returned to the lift. The operator took him back down to the hall. Dion initially couldn’t understand how the operator knew when it reached the right level until he noticed a small switch that was attached to a cord that the lift touched as it made its way past each floor. Every floor where the lift stopped had these and he guessed they were attached to different bells at the lift operator’s station. The people in this place didn’t like to use electricity if they could avoid it for some reason. Since his uncle’s reason for opening a way to the abyss was for the generation of electrical power, Dion guessed electricity was very expensive in this world.
“They’ve got it under control up there,” Dion spoke to his uncle as he sat down across from him. “Doesn’t appear to be much activity for now on the other side of the latest barricade. It could all change very soon.”
“It will all change very soon,” his uncle told him. “The minions are tired. Once they’ve rested, she’ll send them back against my guys again. They don’t want to be trapped at the top of the tower and I can’t say I blame them.”
Dion turned to his parents. “We were talking about my origin,” he said to them, “when I first arrived. You just confirmed everything he told me outside the mall yesterday back in Ohio.” Dion glared at his uncle who smiled just enough to almost make his blood rage. Almost.