Coqoj 36th, 4288: 210 Days in the Mortal Realm
Once I woke up, I wound myself in a mess of dead cows and sewage. I quickly surfaced and breathed in some fresh air, while coughing up the putrid water. I got out of the water and tried wiping the as much of the blood and feces off of me.
Looking around, I could see the port city of Threll was no longer a raging war between mages and the ancient red dragon. In fact much of the town looked to be unscathed. Isaac appeared next to me and suggested that we go find the ornithopter and try using it to get to France again. I was doubtful since we still hadn’t had enough time to make fuel or fix the windows. However, it was worth a shot since there were no more ships left in the port.
After a short time, we found the Roaring Rafters, ornithopter still on top. We walked in and discovered Carl bound and gagged in a closet. Apparently I had returned to the right place the other night. The people who answered were the ones who had tied Carl up.
I figured we’d fly a safe distance from the city, land somewhere inconspicuous, and continue to create fuel and fix the windows. Well, that was the initial thought. Once I climbed the stairs into the control room of the ornithopter, I was surprised to find the windows had been fixed.
“When did that happen Carl?” I asked.
“The glass was cooling when we left the island. After you guys left yesterday, and during a moment the patrons were content, I quickly went and fixed the windows. That’s when I was taken hostage. I had finished putting the final window in when I was approached. The men asked about the contraption and the next thing I know, a gag was placed around me and I was bound and placed in the closet,” Carl explained.
We made our escape from the city. Our flight was interrupted by the red dragon pursuing us. I put the ornithopter in overdrive to hopefully lose the dragon, but after 2 minutes of forest blurring beneath us and the dragon nothing more than a dot on the horizon, the ornithopter sputtered. It was now out of gas.
“I got something that might help. I’ll create an illusion to make it look like we exploded and we’ll land the contraption and wait for the dragon to leave,” Isaac suggest. I shrugged my shoulders and said it was worth a shot. The ghost went about his magic trick while I landed the ornithopter.
We waited about a half hour. With no sign of the dragon, we began to go about making fuel. Carl had stepped out for a moment but quickly came back in stating the dragon was a few hundred yards away watching us.
I felt trapped. No fuel and no way to over take a red dragon with just the 3 of us. Isaac then mentioned that he could teleport us to France. I looked at him incredulously and asked if he could do that why hadn’t he suggested that sooner. He said it was due to the possibility that we’d teleport somewhere vastly different. Considering it was a last resort effort, he figured the opportunity to try was right then. It was fair enough his reasoning, yet I felt irk that perhaps the past few days could have been avoided if we had tried his teleportation method sooner.
Carl figuring it’d be pointless to just leave the ornithopter and tavern as it was. So he set a self destruct mechanism before holding my hand as Isaac took us to Rehm.
We landed in a forest that wasn’t part of Rehm, but I knew it to be in France. With a confident voice I called out for Raæin. A moment later a most welcomed image of a Celestial Charger appeared before me.
“There you are!” he greeted.
“Oh Raæin the stories I have to tell you!” I said throwing my arms around his neck. It felt wonderful to be back with my mentor. He pulled me in with his head to hug back.
“So tell me,” he said.
“Oh Raæin the stories I have to tell you!” I said throwing my arms around his neck. It felt wonderful to be back with my mentor. He pulled me in with his head to hug back.
“So tell me,” he said.
“First, let’s go to a safe place before I just start spewing details.” Raæin nodded. I instructed Carl to place a hand on Raæin’s flanks. Once he did, Raæin took a step.
We were in a large forest like town. It wasn’t familiar to me, but I figured it had to have been one of the Elven settlements. From the looks of the folk walking around though, it was too diverse to be primarily elves.
I looked back to Raæin who had disguised himself in his MIra deguise.
“Still keeping that look up?” I asked.
“Yeah, no one here knows what I am.”
“Is this the place you’re currently healing?”
“Yes. I’ve actually been doing quite well. Let me take you to my place,” we all began to follow Raæin, “I must warn you though, that cult is very much here,” Raæin warned. The mention of Heinul’s cult scared me, yet intrigued me considering how Raæin has chosen to stay in the city.
“Tells us where and we’ll take care of it,” Isaac said.
“Uh, no. I’m not getting involved with that. I know they are here, but I don’t know where their headquarters are. Ah, this is my place,” Raæin said.
He opened a door to a quaint house right off the main road. I was in awe at how well Raæin was doing. I’m still envious, but I have the determination to make my own way. I want to do what he’s doing, what Gemmel’s doing; help those in need with my talents. However my talents aren’t anywhere near what Raæin and Gemmel can do, therefore some side job should help with meeting my physical needs.
I must say, I’m trying to figure out what my talents are. What could I do as a job? I know how to fight... I know how to work with livestock and I can fly. I can fly an ornithopter... I’m sure I’ll figure something out, but enough of that.
The rest of the day was spent telling Raæin about what had happened since my kidnapping. How I almost turned into a lizard. How Gemmel saved me, twice. How Isaac met up with me and how he died. I told him about how we met Carl. When it got to Threll, I purposefully avoided telling Raæin about what had happened in the suite since that wasn’t a shining moment for myself. Isaac elaborated on about how he saved me from Szen while I mentioned how I almost was possessed by him. Raæin was impressed I wasn’t killed though admitted I always had a way of getting out of tight places. I assured him that my luck was soon to run out if I kept that kind of life up.
I can feel my mortality hovering closer to me each day. Not that I think I’m about to die, but each time I’ve come close to death, it has become that more apparent of how mortal I am. This notion that I’ll be protected is thinning. I know I need to strive to be more cautious. Hence my decision to settle down and not pursue the evil. If it comes to me, I’ll deal with it. But for now, I want to try and live the memory that I once thought was real. Where I lived a normal life in which no one revered me. Where I found joy in the daily things and hadn’t a care in the world to what the bigger picture held.
Raæin kindly is allowing the three of us to reside with him for the time being. I think tomorrow I’ll explore the city, get a feel for it and the job opportunities available.
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