Chapter 58: Meeting With the Varlan, Part 1

"Brannette gave me a guide to pass out to each of you," Jenny finished drawing the last diagram by the time they'd reach the halfway point to the Ki Reservoir. "I'll be with Howard all night, now, Barabin."

"Good, don't drink his blood when he sleeps," Barabin looked at Jenny with one eye open, staring at the strange drawing emanating light on his hand. For years, he wondered if she had been alive or dead, and now everynight he'd have to see his hands shimmering while he rested in Sally's arms. "You're lucky, Howard. In my day, you had to choose if you got trapped in a love triangle."

"Heh, he's in a square now," Harley held up two fingers, creating a picture frame in the air. "If Monica dies, he's all mine, right?"

"She'll be fine, Harley," Howard patted his seat, welcoming him over with a smile. "Why don't you come sleep with me and Jenny! When I was with Vicky, sometimes other people slept with me at night too!"

"That was some prison," Jenny said, gently rubbing her head on Howard's shoulder. "Why did they have girls around you all the time? Mmm, I wonder if it had to do with that experiment. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you my shot worked! Heh, you should be 25 percent stronger now!"

Jenny had spent a lot of time carefully working with Ki Cells in a lab at her highschool, but had never had enough Ki to sample. However, once she got to the Furnace, this all changed. Now if she needed a sample of Ki Cells, she could just use her own blood. Thinking of all the experiments she could do to change Howard, she smiled wickedly as Harley pulled the bus over and ran to their side.

"I get his left shoulder." Harley yawned and scooted into his chair. "Jenny, want to kiss him on the cheek at the same time with me?"

"No, stop!" Howard smiled, letting Harley jump over him and land by his side. "What are we doing anyway? Where are all the Authoritarians you talked about Barabin."

"There are two just over that mountain. A Sixteen Grey Eyed Frog, and a Lord Barrel Fox. However, because you are here, they are completely ignoring us," Barabin yawned, resting his feet up on the chair as he looked outside.

The interior of the Furnace had dozens of dangerous areas, which were made up of different terrain. The ice tundra's normally had thousands of beings that could freeze entire mountains and rivers with a single breath while places stronger in Earth and Fire tended to have thousands of Authoritarians waiting in the shadows to decimate anyone that entered into their territory.

However, the opposite of what you might think, the most peaceful areas of the Furnace also had to be the most dangerous. Barabin looked out at a large verdant grassland with dozens of mountains. On the surface, you'd see these places passed the suburbs on highways, with usually dozens of farms nestled against the road.

However, here, rather than farms on the placid plains of the Furnace, there'd be battles between terrifying species. Because of his connection to the earth, Barabin could sense shapes of creatures in nearby areas, making it possible for him to distinguish the types of Authoritarians lurking in the shadows.

Normally, these would immediately attack him if he got anywhere near the borders of their territory, however, today, a few even seemed to welcome the bus by moving out of its direction.

'Very strange indeed. If we had Howard a hundred years ago, perhaps all those students of mine wouldn't have died,' Barabin shrugged his shoulders, and crossed his legs before he looked back and noticed Jenny getting closer and closer to Howard's neck.

Seeing her teeth rise in her mouth, Barabin eyes shot open, reaching out his hand as her teeth gently touched against his skin.

"Jenny stop! We'll all die if you bite him."

'Heh, I know," Jenny said with a smile. "I was just practicing for tomorrow," She gently air kissed at Howard, sending out a spell of love that moved towards him with grace. Jenny had always wanted a boyfriend, but had been too busy with school. Having Howard in her grasp, even though they weren't dating, she felt trapped under the spell of his love. "However, what would happen if I did?"

"Those two Authoritarians over there share this territory. If you attacked Howard, they'd both come here and crush us to bits to make sure Howard is okay." Barabin recollected his many experiences with Authoritarians, remembering one that had slashed a mountain in half to defend its child.

"Authoritarians… They will protect children of all other Authoritarians. They-they are as smart as humans, and cherish all things young and beautiful. Even if two dominants were fighting over land, they'd stop immediately if a small child of either of theirs passed by. It's just how they work."

"Hmmm, I'll just lick him then," Jenny smiled and laughed, grabbing Howard's hand as he laid comfortably asleep on Harley's head. "I'm kidding. I'll wait until you tell me to drink his blood. I promise,"

"Good," Barabin kicked back his feet, putting them on the dashboard of the bus as a few strange noises swept through the landscape like unnatural cries from powerful beasts. "Because, remember, we're all dead if you cross the line. In fact, if anyone messes with Howard this deep in the Furnace, they'll probably be dead, hahaha! What kind of fool would dare attack us, anway?"

"Anyways," Reece said, walking over ot Barabin, "Before you go to sleep, I wanted to let you know that the Varlan seem to be on the other side of the mountain. We'll probably encounter them tomorrow. You can deal with them, right Barabin."

"Yup, we have nothing they want right now," Barabin said, patting Reece on the shoulder. "The only reason the Varlan would attack us is if we got in their way."