Chapter 1765

Chapter 1765

The Lizakh had been assigned to the left flank of the expedition, told loosely to follow the Lancers of the Baleful Court and the ogre delegation from the Nordawn Mountainous Region. They marched up a low slope to top a dusty ridge in the three-day window before the portal manifested. On the exposed hill, the wind forced D’min to clutch the thick cloak he’d been given tightly around his scaled body. They had moved away from the sea, but the wind remained a constant companion.

Finally, it is time to act, he thought tiredly. He meant it as a way of cheering himself up, but it just made him more depressed. His fingers tightened on the cloak. Right now, it was hard to imagine the group of ten Lizakh could do much to help Expira.

Of course, even the chilling wind was better than the waiting had been. After a day of long and grueling arguments that D’min didn’t really follow, the group gathered at that fort on the sea had finally received word regarding a Major Calamity Rift, which would give them the time for the entirety of the seven hundred strong expedition to proceed to the source of the Calamity.

Most of the arguments concerned how much additional support the various political organizations would give the Expedition, beyond what they already had. Specifically, King Phirun, who hosted the Expedition and along whose coast the Major Calamity Rift was appearing, asked for some additional forces to help clear the path and make their entrance easier.

With the exception of Zone 32, every other Zone denied the request. And went as far as to claim that sending additional manpower was impossible. What made matters worse was that from what D’min understood, Zone 32 didn’t have many troops to spare. So King Phirun had attacked Zone 1 and Zone 7, demanding they send some of their reserves.

The representative from Zone 1 had sneered. “Why not ask for help from Kharon?”

The three-headed ogre raised his head. His eyes flashed. “As I have said, I am here as an individual to help lead my people. My presence does not reflect on the policy of Kharon as a whole.”

“Ha, who could believe that Tatiana would willingly let go of her precious secretary? Are you trying to say you are here on a vacation?” Another representative had muttered. The ogre’s left head turned and glared, earning a gulp from the speaker.

But ultimately, the pleas fell on deaf ears. King Phirun had stormed out of the meeting room in a fury, but the Expedition members didn’t seem to mind at all. Considering the powerful auras that D’min was becoming increasingly adept at sensing, he could understand why they were confident no matter what.

However, the day had been even more disappointing for the Lizakh. Under the lead of Yn’ulk, they had tried to create relations with many of the other factions preparing themselves to set out. The Lancers looked at them when they approached but didn’t bother to vocally answer. The Ogres seemed uninterested in anything but listening to the stories of their leader, Wolfram, who D’min gathered had spent most of the last five years in this strange Kharon.

The humans looked like they were sucking on lemons when the Lizakh tried to make polite conversation, although most did try to make their distaste unobtrusive. At the end of that final day in that fort, the Lizakh warriors camped alone by a small fire, doing their best to ignore the laughter and comradery they heard from the other members of the expedition.

D’min looked up at the stars and felt profoundly alone.

The group finally made it to the top of the ridge. Following the Lancers, the Lizakh flowed down to the Southeast, making room for the human warriors of the Great Sea that followed them. There was another ridge between them and their destination, but the Greater Calamity Rift pulsed with gathering power that leaked over the obstruction and warned of its coming.

The Expedition leader Tosam signaled a six-hour break; they had plenty of time before the rift would open, after all. The various groups hunkered down for a short rest before they made their approach. Meanwhile, D’min stood slightly stunned, looking over at the bleeding light of the rift. He had never seen the source of the Calamity monsters up close. Behind him, Yn’ulk began leading the other Lizakh in a ritualistic prayer to the Patron of the Sun, a tradition before the battle.

Ultimately, he nodded. “Yes. I am different from them.”

*****

Perhaps it was due to the blurring of the boundaries between states, but Randidly’s walk to Clarent seemed to stretch and meander. His presence wavered and flickered. He felt like his person had a strange sort of emotional ‘drag’ as he carried the black and the red gauntlets forward, charged with all of the intensity he could muster.

His very passage dug a furrow in the Aether of this place. His potency left Neveah’s working fizzling and trembling in his wake.

This much should still be fine. After a slight pause to inspect the damage gathering up so much emotion inflicted, Randidly resumed his approach.

He didn’t waste that extra time by trying to inject tranquility into his movements. He focused his mind and let the ripples spread out as they will; Neveah’s construction could withstand some abuse.

He dug deep into the actions of D’min, upping the desperation of his pleas. The Lizakh held Clarent and prayed even as black frost crept down his fingers and over his trembling wrists. He was still barred from experiencing temperature, but Randidly felt the sharp frigidity as he watched the swaying of that lonely figure on the black moor.

The layers of the world fluttered and suddenly Randidly witnessed the slow and sputtering end of the hero. The ice-covered his shoulders and head, steadily marching to cover his mouth and seal off his prayers forever. Frost had won. Just as it would win and claim the entire planet.

Still, the voice persisted. Please. Oh Patron of the Sun, hear the prayers of your people. Without you... we...

Randidly sighed. The red gauntlet hummed in sympathy. Without interference from some outside force, you will be nothing. Your people will vanish.

The layers of the world shifted again and Randidly traveled far forward. D’min’ hands had been reduced but bones, corroded by the touch of Clarent, while the rest of him was stuck in the same horrified posture, his flesh perfectly preserved in the ice pillar. Meanwhile, the black tendrils that stretched out from the hilt grew, running down his finger bones and squeezing. Beneath his frozen feet, the ground trembled. The center of this planet had been tainted; it was only a matter of time before it all collapsed.

Randidly shifted his focus; his expression softened as D’min revived before him, once more shivering and begging as he slipped through the fluttering layers. The red gauntlet of righteous fury hummed again, so he reached out with that powerful emotional accumulation and squeezed his hand around the hands of D’min. His grip was crushing.

A wave of red emotion erupted down and surrounded Clarent. Randidly two glowing orbs of observation brightened; he could feel the pleas resonating down the connection to the Patron of the Sun. There was no response from the other end of that System tether. So he allowed that pent-up fury and helplessness of his gauntlet cut that tie and seized upon those released prayers.

Randidly eased his voice into the ear of D’min. “There is a way... but you’ll need to act as a conduit for my power. Are you willing?”