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Chapter Twenty-Four: New Quest Part Two
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2024-10-29 19:42:56As we approached the fountain, the debate raged on. The crowd at present was divided into two sides; one side spoke against modern technologies, and the other defended them.
“This so-called internet has no physical substance,” a Victorian-era gent addressed the crowd. “How can we trust this invisible entity? If we lose the power of electricity, so is all the stored knowledge of our magnificent civilization.”
Those who nodded in agreement were from the sixteenth to early twentieth centuries, based on their clothes I recognized.
“Bah, you bunch of old-timers.” A toga-wearing Greek came forward to disagree. “Every generation with grays on and inside their heads feared anything new. In my days, when scrolls first came to be, the old fools feared that these tools and written words would make learners forget. They encouraged that knowledge must be memorized, word by word.”
“That’s stupid,” a surfer-looking dude exclaimed. “Does anybody here want to memorize
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Abraham told everything about Sweet Haven, its rules, benefits, and all. I assumed Alex’s reason for asking was to confirm the city’s details matched what King Rad provided us. “…And I know you’re all newcomers,” Abraham said. “But if you stay with us for a couple of months, you’ll gain enough experience on how to survive in the Yellow Zone before you go to Sweet Haven. You will also get free food and accommodation.” “Just for a couple of months?” Katie’s face expressed that she wanted more explanation. “The Crimson Shadows said this Red Flight Crisis is going to be over soon,” Abraham explained. “Probably by the end of the year, now that all of Blood Eagles’ former lands have been taken. That leaves everyone to deal with the pesky raiders sooner or later. If you get rid of the raiders near our home, we will offer you a big bonus. What do you say? It’s a good deal, right?” It was tempting, but we all glanced at Wilt to hear what he had to say.
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Twenty-Six: War's End Part One
Only two hours before dawn, I made a stealthy run through the empty street. At random times, I stopped to check if no one was tailing me. If that wasn’t enough, I leaped from one building to another before finally reaching the trolley station in the northern part of the Eastern District, still operating through the night as dozens of people came and went. At the ticket booth, all of my friends had gathered. It seemed that I was the last to arrive. “Sam, it’s good that you came.” Katie was the first to notice me. “We can get out….” She and everyone gawked at something on my back. Behind me, nine crates tied together in the shape of a bed frame with thick ropes as slings. I was carrying it like a backpack. It took me until midnight and eighty-nine chaffs to build this. I brought my entire belongings now that we were moving out of this city. Most of them were gifts from guilds that wanted to recruit me. “It isn’t heavy, right?” Katie asked. “A bit, but I
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Twenty-Seven: War's End Part Two
After we went down the slopes, we were about to enter the town when five horsemen appeared before us. One of them came forward. He had the look of a sheriff from the Old West; his right chest had a gold shield badge engraved with a weighing scale. He must be a Libra member. “Greetings, Sheriff Earp,” Zeki said. “Mr. Zeki, howdy,” he greeted with a Texas accent. He then turned his piercing, steely eyes to us. “Where y’all headed?” “Rockflower,” Zeki answered. “I’ll be tagging along with their quest. Coupled with my guild’s business, you see.” “That’s a shame,” the sheriff explained, “all the roads to the north are still infested with dang outlaws. My advice is for y’all to wait until you gather up three caravans before departing.” “Much obliged, sheriff,” Zeki thanked. “Much obliged.” Once the Libra members departed, Wilt asked, “Are we going to wait for three caravans to gather like the sheriff said?”
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Chase Part One
“It’s good to see you again, Sam.” Marseille smiled. I never thought we would meet each other for the second time. My friends had told me Marseille did attempt to help me back in the incident with the Jormungands. Although she tried, I was relieved that she was willing to help, even though we only knew each other for one night. “I hope you’re okay after that pee on the pants incident,” she said. Much to my embarrassment, I was glowing in red until my bones turned jelly that I slumped on my chair. “That was a fruit punch spilled on his pants, by the way,” Alex clarified. “Oh, I forgot Sam did say that. It happened so fast when he smashed through the main doors. You’re lucky the Boston Tea Party got door braves to fix them.” Now that Marseille mentioned it, my memory of that night came back to me. I did crash through the thick double doors to get away. “So, you two know each other?” Wilt said to Marseille and Raja. “Inde
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Chase Part Two
Unmoved and unsure of what the Jormungands would do to us. When the tracker took one step forward, Brock grabbed a nearby trashcan and threw it at his face, knocking him out on the ground. “Brock, what have you done?” Katie snapped as everyone’s jaws dropped from what just happened. “I-I, I panicked.” One of the Wolf Reigns snapped after a moment of dumbstruck, “What’ve you done to our lieutenant?” “Hey, isn’t that Commander Raja?” The Wolf Reign’s gazes fell on the former Jormungand commander. They were flabbergasted as to why he was with us. “It’s them, Commander.” Wilt pointed at them. “They’d been following us ever since we joined you.” Our leader took a bold move to confuse the Wolf Reigns further with a tall tale. “That’s impossible! There’s no way you joined the Jormungands!” “Didn’t you fight each other on that last par-tay?” Suddenly, three Wolf Reign members fell on the ground with arrows on their bac
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Thirty: The Chase Part Three
The three of us slowly and achingly rose on our feet. Ten armed braves approached us with nasty smiles. “We got ourselves a fine catch.” The voice came from a guy with a black tooth. “Isn’t that right, Captain?” A towering guy came forward with a rope in his hand. He was the one who lassoed us. What was worse, he was none other than Madhur the Maelstrom himself. “It’s that big blue guy,” Brock exclaimed, referring to Madhur’s Asura form. No wonder we didn’t find him in town. That meant they were all from the Jormungand Guild. I snapped the rope that bound us with ease while glaring at Madhur with my rage-filled gaze, though he was given me a stone face in return. “Never expected we would run-in with the Raid Breaker Party,” Blacktooth said. “We were waiting for a deserter in case he flees to Sweet Haven.” It must be their former Commander Raja that he was talking about. “But you, folks, would do just fine,” he cackled. “This is gonna be a bonu
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Thirty-One: Andorra's Vein Part One
After three days of running and two silent, wary nights, we arrived at a deep gorge. There was a three-hundred and fifty-meter long wooden bridge hanging over with ropes for suspensions. It was wide enough to be a two-way lane. As the stagecoach began to cross at a slow pace, there was a bit of rocking when we were in the middle. Hoping if it could support everyone’s weight, I held my breath until we got to the other end. The stagecoach stopped about twelve yards. We all went out to gaze at the bridge one last time. Anne stepped forward with her golden bow readied. “Are you sure about this, Chief?” Raja asked. “We’ll be a week away by the time they get around the gorge.” “But, this is King Martel’s bridge,” Marseille protested. “He was your —” “He wouldn’t mind,” Anne insisted. “Trust me on this.” Katie asked Zeki in a hushed tone, “Who’s King Martel?” “He was the first king of Blue Bucephalus,” he answered. “Green Bits used to
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Thirty-Two: Andorra's Vein Part Two
We’d been walking for hours through the narrow tunnel, though we stopped four times to take a break. There was enough space for my legs to stretch for a bit whenever we sat on the ground. After our fifth break, my forearms started to get goosebumps. The feeling was indescribable yet familiar. Like I was watching a horror movie. Maybe we were in one. “Something’s not right here.” Marseille felt it as well. “I know, my lady,” Raja agreed. “You hear that?” Abraham picked up a sound. Many were weaving their heads while their fingers hovering near their weapons. “Sounds like running water,” Mary said. The Green Bits relaxed when the sound was getting louder, and the air became a bit damp. “That means we have arrived,” Miranda said. From the lanterns’ lights shone ahead of us, we reached the end of the tunnel. There was an underground river. The rock formations on the walls and ceiling appeared natural, with no signs of being man-made. We we
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By the next day, while reinforcement would arrive at any moment, Katie had finished our flag’s design. The whole gang loved it when she showed it to us before presenting it to the Mayflowers. Katie and all the seamstresses in the hill-fort gathered together to knit our flag inside Wilt Hall. We were astonished that Katie could knit. We waited by the entrance for hours. Mrs. Smith, Hassan, Commander Raja, Miranda, and the two Green Bit chiefs arrived with a wooden pole and silver ball. “How’s it going?” Hassan asked. Before anyone could respond, Katie came out to present our flag. “What do you think?” The flag was divided diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner, with the blue upper triangle and the green lower triangle. At the center along the dividing line was the fiery silhouette of a foxfire. “Looks good,” Miranda said, and many agreed. “It is.” Commander Raja asked curiously. “What are the symbolisms on those colors?” “L
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I failed! I failed! I was so close… I was about to pass out from the blood loss. My eyes were getting heavy. Once they shut, that would be my end. “I got you! I got you!” Commodus bragged. “Didn’t I tell you that you’re nothing but a bug?” His loud, boastful voice was ringing my ears, which kept me from losing consciousness. I took a glance at him. My fist was still hovering near his face. That gave me one last idea as I quickly grabbed his hand that was holding the spear, grasping tightly so that he wouldn’t escape. “I got you,” I said with a weak voice, concentrating all my super-strength toward my fist. “What do you mean…?” Commodus was no longer bemused when my fist near him shook. He then realized my intent once my thumb released the full force from my bent index finger. “No, no, NO…!” Bam! A flick on his forehead and Commodus was sent zooming down the ground, along with his spear. My scream thundered throughout the sky in excruci
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After I regained consciousness, I was in a different location, lying on the ground with an aching back — again. Once I returned to my feet, my senses alarmed me to duck. A halberd almost cleaved my head. A knight in red armor appeared from nowhere and prepared another swing. I slammed the ground with my heel to rock his footings before sending him flying with a punch. Two more knights, four Greek hoplites, six Chinese armored warriors, and dozens of raiders appeared in front of me. I waited for them to make a move. However, my eyes bulged to find Cara and her friends were among the raiders. They were shocked to see me again. Boom! I caught a cannonball before it could strike the back of my head. Several dozen yards away, a cannon team was reloading. The Eagles were about to gang up on me. I jabbed the ground, knocking them off their feet. Then I threw the cannonball back toward the cannon, and it broke into iron scraps. More enemies got close,
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The raining weapons almost got me as I leaped into a safe distance. While keeping myself out of Commodus’s reach, I threw whatever I could get my hands on at him; branches, trees, and rocks. However, he evaded them with the same grace and agility as Cutler while manipulating the weapons to fly toward me. I had to dodge them with every inch of my life until I hid behind a tree once again. “Damn it, I need to get close.” My blood began to boil. “Wait, why did I say that?” Why did I feel the urge to attack him? My brain told me not to do anything stupid. “Calm down, Sam.” I breathed in and out when my rage grew. “Calm down.” “You’re quite confident for a newcomer,” Commodus’s booming voice wasn’t far from my hiding place, though not close. “I sensed both your fear and rage were conflicting. Signs of experience. Tell me, are you a warrior back in our world?” “I’m a former social justice warrior,” I replied. “I think that counts.” “You sounded doub
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Seventy-Eight: The Duel of the Wits Part One
For a long time, we had a staring contest. My plan was that if Aurelius even flinched once, I’d give an earth-shattering punch before making my escape. Fighting a commander was one thing, but there was no way I could go up against aGuildmaster. As minutes passed, none of us even blinked. If I could land just one blow, it’d be over for him. He would never survive against my super-strength. Still, I didn’t have the confidence to fight him head-on. Aurelius observed me with hate-filled eyes as the raging battle thundered around us. What was he waiting for? I must get back to my friends. “That was genius!” he burst out laughing, to which I flinched. “You masked your escape when Anne unleashed her moon. We expected you to hold your siege or run away. Instead, you blow up your town as a diversion so you can bring the heaven stone to Hammerhorn. A better-fortified position. “Such a shame that there’s no one left in that hill-f
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Seventy-Seven: The Eagles' Resolve Part Three
The five of us remained on guard. Those who were weaponless picked up the bronze knives that were scattered all over the ground. I, on the other hand, grabbed the uprooted tree. As we got close to finishing him off, Cutler cackled again before he was coughing heavily. Eventually, cracks began to appear all over his body. “Cutman?” Brock called him out. “It’s Cutler,” he corrected before coughing again, yet he was motionless. He had no strength to spare a glance at us. “That boy’s name is Wilt, huh? Let me tell you. He went down with a brave face.” His breathing was slowing down. “Thanks for the hunt, Foxfires.” He drew one last breath with a satisfying smile. “It sure is fun….” He slowly became dust. “He….” Katie took a deep breath five times to cool herself down. Her skin was no longer burning red. “He went down like a warrior,” she said begrudgingly out of respect. It wasn’t long for Zeki and Commander Raja to arrive, looking exhausted. “Is everyone
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Seventy-Six: The Eagles' Resolve Part Two
The bugs were the first to charge while the tengu braves followed behind. In a short moment, we were being surrounded, struggling to watch each other’s backs, especially Alex. “Alex,” Katie called while kicking a monstrous wasp in mid-air. “Now’s the time to do your magic.” “I can’t… focus…” Alex struggled to come up with a magic tune while most of the enemies set their sights on her. “I need to focus.” Cutler was observing our battle, waiting for his chance to strike. “Commander Cutler.” Another tengu brave appeared. “Our forces managed to regroup after the enemies ambushed us. We struck them back in a six-pronged assault. King Aurelius is now clashing with Chief Bess as we speak. And Rockflower’s denizens are almost at the river with the heaven stone.” “Good,” Cutler said. “We’re making progress.” “Why are you doing this?” Katie demanded, and the enemies got her attention. Cutler signaled the bugs to stop attacking. “Why are you dest
The Game of Heavens and Earth Chapter Seventy-Five: The Eagles' Resolve Part One
Back on the ground, we were heading to our rendezvous location with the Green Bits to help them stop the Blood Eagles from reaching Mrs. Smith’s group. However, ten seconds had passed, Li had everyone halted. “Look, Storm Brothers!” He pointed at them stuck on a redwood tree, about twelve meters above us. They were back in their human forms, but they had white eyes, scorching burns, and smokes rising from their bodies. “They’re unconscious,” Commander Raja sighed with relief after watching them motionless for a while. “They must’ve been caught by the blast.” “Good, we should finish them off,” Alex stated. “You’re right.” The commander summoned his spears. “We have to make sure they will never be a threat ever again.” The rest of us reluctantly conceded. Even though the brothers were now defenseless, they were too dangerous to be left alive. “Enemies from above!” I cried when my skin crawled in alarm. Twelve tengu braves pierced through
