Chapter 27: Stars and Moons

Chapter 27: Stars and Moons

Stars. Until now Dallion had never realized how much he missed them. Not the few pale dots he saw from the city, real stars, covering the sky like salt on a black napkin. Even the moons had lit up, emanating a crisp colored glow. Lying on his back, Dallion raised his hand up, as if stretching to grab hold of one. It was childish, but right now he wanted to be a child, at least for a little longer.

The fight against the pack had exhausted himmore physically than mentallyto the point of collapse. He had suffered a few more bites, each costing the boy between five and ten percent health, and seen things he wished he hadnt, but in the end he had won.

After the fight, the realm of the Well had become much brighter, not only the rocks and streams, but the air itself. Dallion could smell freshness and the unmistakable sensation of joy with every breath. There was nothing like this on Earth, or even back in the village. Despite the freshness of the air, there was a lingering sensation of unease, probably because everyone was so afraid of the village chief so much.

The seven moons, Dallion whispered out loud.

What did they really represent? Representations of deities? Sources of awakened abilities? Both? Dallion had often come across them mentioned in everyday talk, and still thats all they wereparts of phrases. Everyone knew that there was some order or religion based on them, just as everyone knew that their monasteries were willing to accept anyone, even social pariahs but that was all. It wasnt only that people didnt have answers, they didnt have questions either. Dallion himself had the faintest of interest, everything considered. All his efforts were entirely focused on getting him to level up and improve his skills, almost to the point of obsession.Diiscover new stories at novelhall.com

I really need to live more and level less, dont I? he asked the moons. To his slight disappointment, the moons didnt reply. Unfortunately, something else didthe nagging voice that reminded the boy that the realm was only ninety-nine percent repaired. With a bit of effort, Dallion could easily track down the final creature and end it to get the coveted hundred percent.

Maybe tomorrow, the boy closed his eyes.

The following morning, he continued again. Despite his initial enthusiasm, though, progress was incredibly slow. Lacking Glorias skills, he had to fight for every inch, at times taking hours to climb a few dozen feet. It was only in the evening that he managedafter a few slips and several dozen near fallsto pull himself onto the top.

Once there, Dallion plopped on the hard surface like a steak in a frying pan. This whole endeavor felt more difficult than besting the panther pack. Now he understood why people held awakened in such high regard. Awakened skills made difficult things easy. Without them, a person would have to undergo years or decades of rigorous training in order to partially achieve what skills provided. If Dallion had climbing skills, the whole trip up here might have taken him less than a day, and even be enjoyable.

No pain, no gain, the boy thought, remembering the phrase his mother back on Earth used to say. At least Im here now.

Although that could pass as a huge achievement, it was not why he was here. There was still the minor matter of facing the Wells guardian in order to escape this realm. Given how difficult the fight with the pack was, it was safe to assume that the guardian would be no pushover. Come to think about it, there was no telling what exactly the guardian would be like. In the past each had characteristics of the item they were in. But what were the characteristics of a well?

I guess therell be lots of rocks and water. Dallion mused as he stood up.

The top of the mountain was roughly the size of a tennis court, only composed entirely of stone. There were no altars, thrones, columns, or anything else indicating a battle arena. What the boy could see, though, even in the moonlight was a dark patch right in the middle.

Could it? His heart skipped a beat. Had he just found the last creature in the realm?