ULTRAMagic Prelude - Chapter 6
Dragoslava was grumbling as she wrote down some notes. “This is so annoying…”
“What’s the matter?” Blood-Wraith asked, looking up from his book.
“I found another planet yesterday, but I can’t write down the coordinates! Every time I try, it turns into something completely unreadable. Look at this nonsense…”
Blood-Wraith studied the numbers. They looked like something he could understand, yet he could not. “Odd. They’re on the tip of my tongue too. What did the planet look like?”
“Blue, a very rich blue. My guess is that it is an ocean world… or a gas giant. Although there were what I think were land masses, so it’s probably an ocean world. Another odd thing is that it has multiple structures, one above each of the biggest land masses. They’re part of the reason why I want to go there; I want to find out what’s going on. Is it a group of interlopers? Or did I just discover an eldritch entity?”
“Very curious… but isn’t Leif coming back today?”
Dragoslava face palmed. “Yes-blast it all. I guess this planet will have to go on the back burner for now. Also I may have or may not have found a black hole… or some kind of dark object out there. It’s almost like it was staring at me…”
“Interesting, but sister? We need to focus on the location Leif is taking us to.”
“Focusing and… focused! Alright, let’s go see if he’s back yet.” Dragoslava then left the office, a slight spring in her step.
Blood-Wraith shook his head and put his book back. “Focused on getting distracted…” he quietly muttered.
The two planned to meet Leif at a balcony on the north side of the tower. The two waited patiently, watching the horizon. Things were peaceful at the moment, creating a tranquility that made the wait tolerable. After some time spent watching the bizarre landscape of the Unlight, flapping could be faintly heard in the distance. Soon Leif’s silhouette came into view and was spotted approaching the tower. Upon reaching his destination, he shrunk down and landed. Leif looked a little tired, but overall he was fine.
“Well that was quite the flight. I haven’t done a round trip like that in a while.” Leif yawned. “How have you two been?”
Blood-Wraith looked concerned. “Are you… do you need to rest? We can wait while you do…”
“Nah, I’ll be fine after a quick pick me up” Leif replied as he went into the tower. “Besides, my friend is expecting us.”
Following Leif, Dragoslava spoke up. “Things have been fine here, by the way. We learned some Alchemy, had some more ice cream, and met a new face. Just the usual.”
“That Valentina individual is quite the interesting person. An accomplished Alchemist too” Leif remarked. Once they were in the kitchen, the dragon sought out a glowing orb of light and began eating it.
“Hey, wait a second! I thought you said you were 5th dimensional and didn’t need to eat, haha,” Dragoslava pointed out.
“Normally, but even we have our limits. I start to run out of energy after a billion miles.” Leif looked like he was enjoying the orb, taking big bites out of it and licking his chops.
“So what is the location like?” Blood-Wraith asked.
“It is very vast, but we only need to see a portion of it. This is thanks to my friend”
“You two would be a pair of living fossils if you tried to explore all of it,” Tyrant added.
Leif finished his food and then spoke once more. “As an aside, it turns out that I had forgotten how to get there. It’s why I went out ahead. I had a vague idea of where it was, I just needed to get there again. You’ll thank me later.”
Dragoslava straightened out her back and dusted off her trench coat. “Sounds about right for typical Unlight nonsense.”
The three left the tower and made their way to an airport in the city. After making sure they had everything, Leif got a running start and took off with a mighty flap of his wings. This was all quite exciting since this was Blood-Wraith and Dragoslava’s first proper adventure with him. The journey was certainly chilly, but seeing The Unlight below them was amazing. They passed over many unique areas and landmarks, some even familiar to Dragoslava. Blood-Wraith was enthralled by all of the new sights he was witnessing. Eventually the journey began to drag on, so Leif decided to come to a temporary stop in a forest clearing.
“We’re nearly there,” Leif announced. “Feel free to get up and stretch a bit.” He then knelt down, letting his passengers get off.
“Well this is a nice looking forest,” Blood-Wraith remarked.
“It’s the Sun & Moon forest,” Dragoslava explained. “My dad found it back in his hay day. One side of it produces golden sap and the other side silver sap. Both make very tasty syrups. Other than that there’s nothing too special about this place.”
“So that’s why the leaves are gold and silver?”
Dragoslava nodded. “Yup. Just remember: gold produces silver sap while silver produces golden sap.”
Blood-Wraith starred at Dragoslava for a second. “That’s confusing…”
“Yeah, but it’s no more complicated than that. Oh, funny story: My parents have told me of people coming to this place, thinking the sap grants immortality or something like that. Usually it was people from outside the Unlight. Obviously there’s no immortality to be found here, just really good syrup. Seriously, it is to die for and I have some back home. You and Desislav really need to try it.”
“Alright then. How far out are we at this point?” Blood-Wraith asked as he surveyed the forest.
“Well this is the farthest north my people have gone, within reason. It’s roughly 400 billion miles out from the city…”
Leif spoke up. “Our destination is 0.1 lightyears from The Iron City.”
“That’s pretty far,” Dragoslava remarked. “Honestly I didn’t think there was anything meaningful past this place, aside from some rather notorious locations…”
“Interestingly my friend feels that there may be something interesting even beyond the land far past his domain, but he has yet to find it. Shall we press on?”
Blood-Wraith nodded. “Sure. I think I’ve stretched and seen enough.”
As soon as the two explorers were on Leif’s back, the trio was on their way once more. After flying over a stretch of barren land past the forest, the three found themselves above an immense ocean. This body of water was most definitely unique. It was like liquid silver and land masses could be vaguely seen far below the surface. All of it was truly beautiful to behold, the water gleaming like shining metal. With a little more flying, a building came into view. Getting closer revealed it to be a temple of some kind, floating on the surface. Leif then began descending to land on it.
“Welcome to the Northern Living Ocean, you two” Leif proclaimed as he let his passengers get off.
A youth made of liquid emerged from the floor of the temple and approached the three. “Welcome back, Leif. And hello to both of you, fine explorers.” First he addressed Dragoslava. “You must be Dragoslava Raynot, yes?”
“That’s me! It’s a pleasure to meet you…”
“You may call me Proteus. In the past I was referred to as The Ocean of Old, however.”
“Proteus?” Blood-Wraith questioned. “That’s an interesting name. Hi, I’m Blood-Wraith!”
A warm sensation was felt as the two shook hands. “Ah, the next one who defies the Cosmos. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.” That was a fairly odd statement from Proteus…
Dragoslava then had a realization. “Wait! Leif! You know a Primordial?”
Leif chuckled. “Of course I do. I get around.”
“Dragoslava, I presume your people are still chasing after my one brother?” Proteus inquired.
“Yeah, but obviously I broke off to go exploring,” she replied.
Blood-Wraith was very curious at this point. “So what are Primordials? Exactly?”
“Here, come inside and I’ll elaborate,” said Proteus. “It is becoming fairly windy after all.”
Proteus explained that the temple was made from his body to accommodate guests. Many treasures, artifacts, and relics were on display. All were things that he had collected over the eons, telling the stories of eras one could only dream of. Dragoslava was thoroughly impressed while Blood-Wraith was utterly amazed. The group then entered a grand hall, being seated at a large, decorated table. With a clap of his hands, entities similar to Proteus began bringing out food and serving the guests.
“Leif and I figured you two would be very hungry after such a long journey.”
Dragoslava nodded… then stuffed her face. “Mm-hm, thank you.”
“Thank you very much, Proteus,” Blood-Wraith said as tried to figure out how to eat the seafood he was presented with.
Proteus cleared his throat. “Now, in regards to the Primordials… oh, Blood-Wraith? You eat the soft bits and discard the carapace.”
“Oh, thank you. That was a little confusing.”
Proteus resumed his explanation. “In the time when God first created the Cosmos, a group of beings were sent into it to test the newly formed realm. While back then we had no name, in hindsight we were called the Primordials. We each had a duty and mine was to see if the water could bear and support life. The Beast’s job was to test the land and see if it could support his weight. And there were many others. The Dragon tested the skies, the Colossus explored the realm as a whole, the Forest experimented with the land, and the Monolith tested the flow of time. Sadly, our time would eventually come to an end.”
“What happened then?” Blood-Wraith asked.
“We were to return to the Ennead, where all souls eventually need to return to. I did and was reborn as what you see now, but some did not, or at least not immediately. Of note are the Beast, Dragon, Vanguard, Monolith, Automaton, Madman, Evangelist, and the Lich. When the Epoch of the Cosmos ended and modernity was on the cusp of beginning, teams were sent out by God to return the rogues and forlorn to the Ennead. Note that some of the ones I mentioned are exceptions”
“Heh, I guess some slipped through the cracks then” Dragoslava pointed out.
“Unfortunately. The Beast is merely afraid and bears no malice. Interestingly he appears to have been granted an exception recently. The same can not be said for The Lich… I know this is sudden, but can I ask a favor of you two?”
Blood-Wraith could sense Proteus’ strife. “YES!”
“Blood, he hasn’t even stated what he needs help with yet…” Dragoslava pointed out, a little shocked at the eagerness.
“DON’T CARE. What do we have to do, Proteus?”
Proteus was surprised by this. “Oh my. Ahem, I sense great potential in both of you. I merely ask that you help subdue the Lich and finish the job the Primordial Hunters could not.”
“Okay then” Dragoslava said as she wrote down some notes. “What is the Lich up to? If you don’t mind me asking?” She inquired.
“I feel that he may be trying to claim realms that are not his. He is seeking the power to do this as we speak. If we act now, we will have the upper hand.”
“And don’t worry, I will have your back all the way on this one” Leif added in.
Dragoslava nodded, taking it all in. “Huh… do you guys really think we’re the ones for the job?” There was a sense that the issue was vastly more complicated that any reasonable explanation could articulate.
“Absolutely, in more ways than you know,” Proteus answered. “What do you say?”
“You know what? We’ll give it our best shot and then some” Dragoslava answered. “Where should we start looking?”
“The Unending Forest seems to be…”
Dragoslava raised her hand in a stopping gesture. “I’ve tried to find that place. That forest is borderline impossible to find, given that it has no definitive location. How are we supposed to get there exactly?”
Leif then spoke up with an answer. “The food you just ate was created by Proteus. You now have his essence inside of you. Not only can you enter the ocean itself, but the forest may also recognize you as its kin now. The Unending Forest is The Forest of Old after all.”
“Jeez, you two seem to have this all planned out, don’t you? Alright, we’ll give it a try” Dragoslava responded.
“Speaking of that essence deal, Proteus, what’s going on down below us?” Blood-Wraith wondered. “It’s had me intrigued ever since we got here”
“Ah yes, that. It is my kingdom, born from my experiments back in the Epoch of the Cosmos. In the time after being reborn, I realized I was very lonely. So I began welcoming the lost and the wayward. They live in peace and joy… Well, for the most part. Sometimes I send out a great beast or a band of Ne’er-do-wells to break up the monotony. An excess of order leads to complacency and stagnation.”
“Interesting. And what of us in regards to your kingdom?”
“Simple, you are my subjects now. You may come and go as you please. And if you ever need a place to stay, I will make sure you are accommodated and comfortable” Proteus answered with a hospitable pride. “And don’t worry, you won’t turn into fish people.”
Blood-Wraith thought about all of that for a second, feeling good about being welcomed. “Thank you, Proteus. That’s really kind of you… ohhh! Life is so confusing considering I keep meeting all of these cool people!” Everyone else joyfully laughed.
“Don’t mention it, Blood,” Dragoslava said while patting him on the back.
“Well personally I’m happy to meet someone as cool as you too, Blood-Wraith,” Leif replied.
After dinner, Proteus invited Dragoslava and Blood-Wraith to stay the night and rest up. They would need their strength for the impending task ahead of them. Proteus’ attendants made sure the two were comfortable and got them ready for bedtime. Once they were asleep, Proteus went to talk to Leif. The black dragon was gazing into the flow of time, anxious over what was about to happen.
Leif shifted his focus. “You know? I’m glad those two don’t have to deal with what the Madman and the Automaton have to put up with…”
“I presume you haven’t told them anything else yet?” Proteus asked.
He moved his attention away from the flow of time. “Not yet. They’ll find out soon enough though.”
“I suppose all of this is your reason as to why you’re postponing your return to the Ennead then? Your duty ended a long time ago…”
“Duty is a funny thing, brother. Just when you complete one, another pops up.”
Proteus thought about that for a moment. “I do suppose that is the case. Remind me, what is your current duty then?”
“To make sure everything falls into place. It’s not just Blood-Wraith that needs this event after all.”
“I see, I see… The Lich was quite foolish for doing what he did, was he not?”
Leif nodded and groaned. “Exactly. Our brothers' arrogance will be his undoing… oh what am I saying? It was his undoing.”
“Hopefully we can all return to normal at some point in the future. I do have a feeling things are going to be a lot different going forward.”
“You have no idea, brother. You have no idea” Leif replied with confidence.
Next: Chapter 7
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
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