Meridias

by Ryan Hodgson

  He then returned to the room he’d slept in and changed into a red shirt and blue jean shorts that he’d been wearing the previous day. As he made to leave Cerra appeared in the hallway and called him out. Felras went out to meet her and was dazzled by her smile. “If you wouldn’t mind, could you show me your magic?” she asked. Felras nodded.

  “Sure,” he replied plainly. He didn’t really mind but he was a bit nervous about his performance. They went to the master bedroom and Cerra pulled away the false wall. Behind it was a door that would lead down to the bunker and from there the barn. Cerra opened it and walked down the stairwell that revealed itself. Felras followed after her and after a brief walk they were down in the bunker.

  Felras looked around. The bunker itself wasn’t very large. Only a handful of people could fit in here comfortably. There were crates stacked to one side with what Felras could only assume were rations of some kind. There was also jugs of water next to the crates as well. On the other side of the room there were some rolled up sleeping bags and a small shelf of books. The center of the room was clear and there were a couple of lights on the ceiling. “There’s a generator in here in case of blackouts,” Cerra explained following Felras gaze. “Currently were running of the grid as father calls it.”

  “Ah,” he replied.

  They spent the next few minutes using magic though what they could conjure was trivial compared to what they could do in Meridias. Cerra frowned at the small shards of ice that hovered above her hand and dispelled the magic. “Hmm, it really is much harder on your world,” she said deep in thought. Felras nodded as he tried to maintain the small flame in his hand. He gave up and let it go away. “Say can’t you also manipulate shadows? Can you show me that?” Cerra asked. Felras shrugged. “I don’t know,” he replied doubtfully. He looked around. There were a lot of shadows here. Back when he’d faced the Behemoth he’d been able to hold it back because of how gloomy the forest was. Maybe it would be easier than using fire magic?

  Felras concentrated on the shadows cast by the crates. He held up a hand and activated his conduits. He was already a bit tired but if Cerra wanted to see this magic then he would try to oblige. He wasn’t quite sure what to do so he decided he would make the shadows stretch out into a tendril. A moment later and the shadow tendril rose up from the ground and deepened. Felras was surprised. It was easier to use this kind of magic when he had darker shadows than it was to use fire magic. It was still taxing though and he had to release his spell.

  Cerra seemed fascinated by his magic. “Maybe being a mage runs in the family!” she exclaimed. “You definitely have potential. It’s a pity you haven’t trained as much as the others.” Felras nodded in agreement. He hadn’t gone very often to Meridias until after his encounter with the Behemoth. He wanted to be stronger so that he wouldn’t hold everyone else back. Cerra tilted her head to the side and said, “You know if you concentrated your magical energy a bit more you could probably use that shadow magic a little more efficiently.” Felras looked back to the spot he’d used his magic in. Cerra was probably right. He’d have to try that later though.

  A sudden clap from Cerra caused him to look over at her. “Anyway I’m sure we’re both pretty much at our limit here. So I want you to tell me more about your world.” Felras wasn’t sure what she wanted to know and wasn’t even sure where to start. Thankfully Cerra started to ask him about the city he lived in and how many people there were. He wasn’t sure of the specific number but it was definitely a few hundred thousand people. Cerra then asked how many humans lived on Earth. Felras said that there were currently around 6.6 billion people on the planet. “With so many people there must be many marvelous sights to see. I wish I could go and see them all someday!” Cerra’s enthusiasm was infectious.

  She asked a few more questions about Earth. When they came to the last question she asked him if there was much violence here. Felras shrugged. He wasn’t too sure but there was one thing going on right now that he knew about. “There’s a war,” he said. Cerra’s brows furrowed. “Really? A war? Why?” she asked.

  “Terrorist hijacked planes and crashed them into a couple of towers on the other side of the country. We went to war to put a stop to their acts.” He didn’t know much else beyond that. Except that the terrorist had chosen to attack on the date of 9/11. The date was significant because 911 was what you dialed to call emergency services. The attack itself had happened almost five years ago. Cerra seemed deeply concerned and confused. “Did anyone survive?” she asked. Felras nodded. “The towers fell though and many people did die,” he answered. Cerra sighed. Felras felt a small pang at seeing her face look troubled. He wasn’t sure if he could do anything to cheer her up though and they returned back to the house to wait for the others. It was nearly the time that they would be starting their rescue, and they wanted to watch the news to see if they could get a hint at what happened.

  ***

  Mr. Elden and the others arrived at Ragnarok just before one o’clock. They hurried to Tel’kedar. Mathias was waiting for them in the lobby and smiled broadly as they approached him. “Good to you see, Jeremy,” he said. Mr. Elden nodded and returned a smile of his own. He’d contacted the three leaders of Ragnaork and informed them of the situation yesterday when they’d arrived at Ellicia. Mathias was here to oversee their operation and to deal with any of The General’s men should they manage to chase them through the portal.

  Mr. Elden glanced at his watch. “Tim, you come with me. Tanis stay here with Alicia and if we don’t make it back assume the worst and return to Ellica without us. Mathias looked like he had something on his mind and leaned towards Mr. Elden. “You know we could send in an armed force. That way we can guarantee that we secure Scott.” Mr. Elden shook his head at the suggestion. “No, that would alarm the people that come here. After all they still think this is a game.” Mathias nodded in reply and stepped back.

  “Well, good luck! I hope this can end without a hitch!” he said.

  Mr. Elden nodded and he went to one of the portals with Tim. The portal opened up and Maria stepped out with her friends in tow. When she saw Mr. Elden there was a look of surprise on her face. “There you are! I haven’t seen you for the last couple of days! Where have you been?” she asked. Mr. Elden wasn’t sure how to respond.

  “Er, well I’ve been busy,” he managed to say. Maria glanced at Tim. She sensed the serious air around them and wondered what they were up to. “Anyway we must go! We’ll be back in a jiffy!” Mr. Elden said hurriedly and dashed around Maria and her friends. Tim nodded and quickly followed after him leaving a bemused Maria in their wake. “Uhh…” she looked blankly at the portal. “Okay, I guess?” she spotted Tanis and Alicia with Mathias. “Oh, hi! You guys have been absent too!” she went over to Tanis and Alicia and looked around. “Where’s Elunduil?” she asked. Tanis and Alicia shared a meaningful glance.

  “Um, he’s not here right now,” Alicia replied as normally as she could. Maria frowned. Something was off. Everyone was acting strange and the air felt tense. She glanced back to the portal. What were Mr. Elden and Tim up to?

  Tim quickly glanced around. He looked through the window outside and saw The General’s men walking towards a van while two more men got out. “Scott!” Mr. Elden called out as he ran towards the office near the counter. The men outside noticed and started running towards the building. “They’re coming!” Tim called out and prepared to use magic. Scott dashed out of the office, vaulted the desk, and ran towards the open portal. Mr. Elden quickly followed behind him and the two jumped into the portal as General Titus’ men burst through the entrance. Tim clicked his tongue and jumped through the portal.

  He almost ran right into Mr. Elden who had turned around. “Do it now!” he shouted and Mathias nodded. He pressed a button on the terminal and the portal shutdown and then he quickly typed something into the terminal and alarms blared throughout the tower. “Lockdown activated. All personnel to emergency stations,” a voice said over the in
tercoms. There was a bustle of movement as several nearby knights mobilized. Six armored knights rushed into the lobby and then took up positions by the portal machines.

  Maria and her friends were at a loss and looked to Mr. Elden for an explanation. “What’s going on?” she asked. Mr. Elden fumbled for an answer.

  “Uh, this is an event!” he said coming up with the first thing he could think of. “The portals will be locked down until the danger passes.” Maria frowned.

  “What danger?” she asked clearly confused. Mr. Elden looked to the others for help.

  “Maria I don’t have time to explain but everything you see and do here is real.” Mr. Elden decided to drop the facade. They would reveal everything to the world soon anyway. He waved to the others to come along and they hurried out of the lobby leaving Maria and her friends watching them in a stupor.

  When the group returned to Ellicia they briefly met with Angurvadel. Scott backed up a copy of the data he had to a database that they had installed in the town hall. They then hurried back to where the portal was in the forest. It only took them about a couple hours to reach it and Mr. Elden looked to Tim who nodded and pulled out his staff. He fed magical energy into the archway where the portal was and it appeared casting a bright blue glow on the forest. Everyone quickly went through the portal and they found themselves back in the small facility by Mt. Hood. “Now then I think we should make a stop by Alicia’s home before we retrieve Cerra and Felras.” Mr. Elden said as everyone piled into the car.

  It was around 4 o’clock by the time they made it back to the outskirts of Gresham. Mr. Elden kept an eye out for The General’s men who were bound to have seized control of the VR center and likely scouring the town for them. As he reached the turn towards Alicia’s street he realized the oversight that he had committed. Two black cars were parked by the curb outside of the house. “Of course they would stake out your homes!” Mr. Elden exclaimed as the black cars came to life and started to drive towards them. “Hold on everyone!” Mr. Elden called back and hit the gas.

  The car shot forward and down the street. Mr. Elden had gotten familiar with the layout of the streets here and used that knowledge to try and lose their pursuers but they managed to keep up with them. “Say weren’t there two cars?” Tim asked as he looked back. Mr. Elden spared a glance to the rearview mirror and saw that there was only one car. “Watch out!” Scott called out as the second car appeared from a side street. Mr. Elden jerked the wheel to avoid a collision and was forced to turn. It would seem their pursuers were also knowledgeable about the area. Mr. Elden decided to head toward the main road and down the long winding street that weaved north.

  The black cars were only seconds behind them. Up ahead Mr. Elden saw a small ravine to his left and a blue car in front of him. In the oncoming lane there was a large freight truck coming their way and there was an intersection. Mr. Elden stepped on the gas until he was just behind the blue car then suddenly swung out and around it barely avoiding a collision with the freight truck. He then took a left at the intersection and heard Scott say, “That slowed them down!” Mr. Elden glanced back as they sped up the hill. Their pursuers were just now turning the corner. He got an idea as he saw many side streets along to his left. He glanced over his shoulder as they rounded a bend in the road. The two cars were out of sight.

  He quickly turned into the nearest side street and charged down it. Up ahead was an intersection and he took a right. He glanced back and saw one of the black cars pass by the street while the other one slammed their breaks on and turned to pursue them. “Drat!” Mr. Elden said as they drove up the street. He turned several more times until they came to the main road. Mr. Elden decided it was better to follow the road back to the outskirts of town and took off. Thankfully they seemed to have temporarily shaken their pursuers and after returning to the highway they drove towards Mt. Hood for a bit before turning off the highway and taking a series of streets that led them to road to the safe house.

  As they came towards the safe house they heard the sound of a helicopter above. “Hm, looks like a news chopper,” Tim commented as they reached the safe house. “All right it’s going to be crowded but let’s go get Cerra and Felras. Mr. Elden said. Tanis hopped out of the car and rushed to the safe house. Cerra opened up the door as he ran towards it and he stopped and exchanged a few words with her. He looked back up towards the helicopter and then to Mr. Elden and the others. Mr. Elden had a sinking feeling in his gut that something was wrong and Cerra and Tanis motioned for the others to come inside. “What do you think is going on?” Scott asked. Mr. Elden shrugged and Tim answered.

  “Maybe we’re on the news?” he suggested. “If The General really wanted us captured could he pull strings and get local law enforcement after us?” he asked. Mr. Elden gulped and exchanged glances with Scott. It certainly wouldn’t be beyond General Titus’ authority to call in the police.

  Tanis rushed back to the car and Cerra briefly went back inside then reappeared moments later with Felras in tow. They hopped into the car as Tanis explained that they were on the news and that local police cars were closing in around them. Cerra and Felras squeezed into the back of the cramped SUV. “We have little time!” Cerra said worriedly as she got in. Mr. Elden nodded and started driving down the street before the door was even shut. They didn’t get very far as they spotted police cars closing in down the street. Mr. Elden whipped the car around and started to go the other way but more police cars were closing in from the others side.

  He looked towards the barn. They could try to escape across the field. That’s when he noticed cars out in the field closing in around them. “Everyone into the safe house! We’ll hunker down in the bunker!” He said as he drove back to the safe house. Everyone piled out of the car and into the house. Mr. Elden led them to the master bedroom and pulled back the false wall that had the hidden door behind it. He quickly opened the lock to reveal the stairs and ushered everyone down into the bunker. When they were all gone he glanced around once and then followed after them.

  The bunker was quite cramped with seven people in it but it would have to work for now. He glanced down at his watch. It was nearly 6 o’clock now. “All right everyone let’s lie low for a bit. We do have a getaway vehicle hidden in the barn but they’ll probably search there first.” Everyone nodded. Scott turned on a small TV that was in the corner of the bunker and they watched the news. They saw the police searching through the house and the barn for nearly an hour. They heard knocking up the stairs as the police found the steel door. They would probably find a way to break through soon. Thankfully they appeared to move away from the barn and now completely surrounded the house. “All right let’s go now while we can!” Mr. Elden said.

  Scott turned off the little TV and then the group followed the narrow passage that led to the barn. They soon reached the stairs and quickly trudged up the staircase. Mr. Elden held up a hand when they reached a trap door in the ceiling that had ladder rungs leading up to it and motioned for everyone to stay quiet. He climbed up onto the ladder rungs and gently pushed the trapdoor open after he undid a latch on it. It slowly swung up and thumped softly as it hit the floor on the other side of it. Mr. Elden quietly climbed up and looked around before motioning for the other to follow him.

  When the rest of the group came up they found themselves in almost complete darkness. Thankfully Mr. Elden turned on a small lantern that cast a bright light into the room. “Here’s the car,” he said motioning towards a large lump in the middle of the room. Scott pulled away the black cover to reveal a dark blue truck with an extended cab capable of seating five people with extra space in the covered bed for more people. “We’ll use this and make a break for it. It won’t be easy to escape from law enforcement but if we can get our data uploaded to the right places it won’t matter if we get caught in the end,” Mr. Elden explained. “Anyway, let’s prepare to lower the wall so that we can escape,” he said.

  He and Scott went to the wall the car was facin
g and grabbed a pair of chains. Mr. Elden dimmed the lantern and then they pulled the chains down with all their might and the wood parted to reveal the rest of the barn. The setting sun’s light seeped in through the cracks. Mr. Elden turned off the lantern and motioned for everyone to pile into the car. Tanis noticed something strange outside that caught his eye and said, “Hey is it just me or is it getting brighter?” His question caused everyone to look towards the barn door where he was pointing and they saw that he was right.

  There was a white-gold light seeping through the crack at the bottom of the barn doors. Suddenly there was a loud cracking sound as the door splintered apart and the light slid to a stop in the middle of the barn. Everyone jolted back in surprise and the light slowly faded away. A moment later Elunduil stood before them with a serious look on his face. “Elunduil!” Alicia was the first on to call out and she started forward. The others quickly followed after her and stopped just short of Elunduil. “How did you get here you slippery bastard?” Tanis asked. Tim nodded in agreement. He was just as surprised as the others. What kind of magic had Elunduil used?

  Elunduil looked towards the cracked door. “I had a little bit of help from Joel,” he said. Everyone looked surprised. He’d met Joel? “Yeah, Joel’s more or less fine. I don’t think we have time to swap stories though. I probably drew the police’s attention, so I’ll give you the abridged version.” Elunduil looked back to everyone solemnly. Everyone’s attention was on him. He took a deep breath and began to briefly tell them what had happened.

  Chapter 27