mogust

In the lead up to the conclusion of arc four, I am releasing chapters daily from chapter 62. If this is the first one that you have read, you may have missed some of the others.

Chapter 63 – Shifting Tracks.

They ended up talking to Millie for the better part of a few hours, Kyla and Melody also pitching in some of their tales, Millie providing them with a little more detail on life at the time of the first Channellers. She didn’t reveal too much on the personal side, seeming to want to keep a lot of it to herself, but rather what it had been like at the time following the Shattering, and the challenges that humanity had faced. They did learn that she was indeed the one who established the great libraries, and that she had not had any children. Crystal couldn’t blame her there, she had no interest in men either, though the prospect of having her own family with Rachael did have its appeal. With Rachael alone though. No surrogates.

that may be less of an issue than you think.

Crystal wasn’t sure what to make of that piece of information from Warrior, filling it away in the to be thought about later category.

It was kind of weird, talking with Millie like that. It had been a thousand years after all, even if only a month and a half had passed for them since they had been brought out of their magical statis. Millie had also lived her life, somewhere around another twenty to forty years Crystal was guessing, before she had withdrawn to Odinsphere to take up her full-time role there. That was a long time, and she would have experienced a lot, especially given the nature of the era, changes etched into her soul. Millie was no longer the girl that they once knew and flatted with, yet here and now, she was presenting herself still as such. It was welcome, and also disconcerting, at the same time.

That and the voice. While Millie’s body and eyes moved somewhat inside her vat, the voice itself came out from the speakers surrounding it. While it didn’t seem to be anything but hers, it could have well been Odinsphere creating it for the illusion of her existence. The titbits of knowledge of their past life together that cropped up did match up, reinforcing that Millie was indeed their Millie, but that didn’t reduce the strangeness of it all.

That Millie’s physical body had survived so long was also nothing short of extraordinary. Rachael’s claim that Millie was immortal was probably not entirely accurate, given that she doubted that any normal person could survive forever, but it might not be that far off the mark either. Magic had a way to sustain things, and combined with technology the results could end up much better than anticipated. The witch that Kyla had mentioned had lived for almost a thousand years, but by the sounds of it her magic had been severely weakened for a good portion of the time, leading to her eventual death. Physically at least anyway. Crystal had no doubt that at least a portion of Millie’s mind was probably digitized inside Odinsphere, existing outside of her body, the interaction between the two something that she didn’t really want to dwell on.

As to what the situation would be with respect to the lifespans of the new races was anyone's guess.

magic sustains.

Crystal did kind of want to live for a long time. She had Rachael after all, and wanted to be able to enjoy her life with her lover as much as she could.

And then that was it. Millie declared that it was time for them to head back to hanger six and rejoin the rest of the group when they finished their exploration. Not that it was a true goodbye, as she would still be able to talk to them via Odinsphere’s system and via the Arkchildren, but the conclusion of the face to face meeting. They had their answer now, but her private chamber needed to go back to being off limits. Like the rest of Odinsphere’s aspects, she had her faith in them in getting them to Tempest and returning Velvet.

And no, she didn’t think that the increased density of mana in Tempest would be an issue for her. Odinsphere had adequate shielding and she was nowhere near her limit. As to the ritual to return Velvet, they’d be the ones channelling that, and while they hadn’t been told any specifics, she assumed that they’d be doing it in the mana flood chamber further below, the only room that wasn’t shielded against the flow of the leylines.

“It’s been a pleasure to meet you,” Kyla stated once they had left Millie’s chamber and were standing back out on the platform, the black knight back to the kneeling position that they had first seen it in. “The journey has been rather informative too.”

“As us of you,” Rachael said in reply. “Clocky has mentioned you quite a number of times, and now we have a face to the name.”

“Not to mention that your singing was oh so very beautiful,” Crystal added, looking at Melody.

“It’s always a pleasure to sing for pretty girls,” Melody said, a seductive smile on her lips.

Kyla gave her a look, Melody chuckling in response. “You are still enamoured with their wings, and I’m sure you’ve appreciated their beauty as well. We both swing that way after all. Cat’s don’t fly though, and dragons are a predator.”

Kyla sighed. “You can be impossible at times.”

“I aim to please,” Melody said as she stepped up to her lover, giving her a deep and deliberately sensual kiss.

“Anyways,” Kyla continued post kiss, blushing, “I’m sure that we will meet again. Especially if you spend any substantial time here post arrival at Tempest. It is our home after all.”

“That I am sure we will.” Rachael agreed.

‘Not to mention that we can communicate if we and they are within range of Odinsphere,’ Spectre added.

“Till then then.” Kyla said, opening a rift behind them, stepping into it as she gave them a wave, her companions following.

“This has been a day of surprises,” Crystal stated as the rift closed.

“As has been our entire journey,” Rachael added.

“True. So very true.” Crystal pulled Rachael close, horns touching as she gave her a kiss.

The trip back was somewhat subdued, both Crystal and Rachael lost in their own thoughts. Spectre put in a request for a full map of Odinsphere, or at least extrapolation of what they had already explored, so that they could form a more practical route back. Librarian complied, though only on the latter part of the request, but it meant that they could follow proper passageways instead of going through floor plates and other areas that weren’t really meant for commuting traffic. There was a lot of processing for what they had learned, and now that they had left Millie’s chamber it had really hit home. She was a part of their past, but the rest was truly gone, and Crystal wasn’t sure if she’d have been happier if it had just been another Channeller instead of Millie, or if the interface had been something else entirely. She just wasn’t sure at all. It was all rather complicated, and draining in its own way.

The common areas were empty when they returned, the day almost over. They made their way straight to their room and to bed, Crystal snuggling as close to Rachael as she could, holding her tight, Rachael doing likewise.

“Together forever, no matter what,” Crystal finally mumbled, hot tears rolling down her face and staining the sheet. Rachael was her pillar and strength. Her soul-mate. Her all.

“Together forever no matter what,” Rachael echoed, kissing her horn.

There wasn’t a lot of time for stray thoughts over the next three days as they laid out all of the groundwork for the crossing. Success was crucial here, and they couldn’t afford any mistakes, not that they were going to fail or make any mistakes in the first place, but the work itself was consuming and on a scale well beyond what they had attempted thus far.

They still had to use multiple leylines for the bridge, as had been the original plan, as if they pulled too much from the target leyline then they wouldn’t be able move along it for a while until the bridge was decommissioned, or in a worse case scenario they’d find themselves without enough power remaining to keep Odinsphere afloat. It was potent enough that they didn’t think that would actually happen, but caution was a necessity. And they’d still have to reinforce it so that Odinsphere could travel along it at anything other than a glacial crawl. It was stronger than the first leyline at its natural state, but weaker than the boosted version. So a portion of the power for the bridge would have be drawn from two other leylines in the vicinity, though both were further away than any links thus far. Not an issue as much as just being time consuming.

There would also be side effects as well, as instead of the flood of mana that had run through The Watch (which would of course come later as they reinforced the leyline for travelling), this time there would be a noticeable drop in its intensity, and any Channeller that used the leylines would notice. And not just a temporarily dip, but a drop that would last from when they formed the bridge to when they decommissioned it. Crystal was kind of hoping that the leylines they were using didn’t run through Caylinhold, but she was aware that it was probably a likely scenario. They could easily check, but having Light or Ashling fly close enough to check would cause it’s own issues if spotted, and the flight would consume time that was better spent elsewhere. Not to mention that the knowledge would have no effect on what they were doing anyway. Irrespective of where the leylines went, they were still using them.

The process was multi-layered. Redirecting both of the core leylines out a couple of stages towards each other, adding in arrays to make sure that they bulk of the power came from the direction that the weren’t travelling from or to, and then pulling in power from the other leylines and using them to reinforce those connections. Rinse, wash, repeat until they joined them in the middle to form the bridge. Then it was a matter of making sure that the bridge was stable and able to handle the load of Odinsphere, as it would be taking power from the bridge and hence putting additional strain on the arrays. Add in any additional connections as required, even if they had to search further for more leylines to tap into, till they were satisfied that it was at the level they needed. Hopefully they could manage all that before Odinsphere reached the bridge location, but if not, then it would just have to wait there till they were. Rushing it was a sure fire way to make a mistake.

As it had been the first time that they had shifted the mana of the leylines, the work was exhausting. By the time night fell they were over it, heading back to Odinsphere to devour as much food as they could find, and then collapsing on their bed to fall asleep straight away. At least they always managed to find their way into each others arms, Crystal appreciative of waking up in the morning to Rachael’s embrace and her scent.

Odinsphere reached the bridge location on the third day of the bridge preparations, but it wasn’t till near the end of the fifth day that they were finally satisfied with what they had created, a scan by Odinsphere confirming that it would suffice.

“--You know that what you have achieved here is by most standards impossible.--” Crystal was pretty sure that it was Millie making the comment, but while the voices were somewhat distinct, she was still having issues identifying which one was which, and it was completely different than the voice that she had used in her chamber.

“Part of Dawn’s aspect is the leylines, which grants them the ability, when combined with the right knowledge.” Arcane’s response confused Crystal. They already knew that, it was how it had all happened in the first place. Yet the Ancient seemed... defensive?

“--Even given all of that, it is still impressive. The possibilities of what they could do is staggering.--”

“Are we going to initiate the crossing or not?” Rachael asked, both of them sitting just outside the hanger door. They wanted to be outside just in case.

“COMMENCING CROSSING IN FIVE...”

“FOUR...”

“THREE...”

‘Who is it that is piloting Odinsphere?’ Crystal queried of Spectre.

‘Driver.’

Of course.

“You have got to be kidding me.” The voice on the other end of the comms was most definitely pissed off.

“Nope. Wish I was, but I can’t deny what I am seeing.”

“Leylines are immutable. That’s a proven fact.”

“And we were the only wielders of magic for a thousand years till the Pulse. At least on our side of the world. Yet they most definitely are moving the leyline.”

“You’re not confusing it with something else?”

“Really? You’re doubting me now of all times? I’d love to be. Hallucinating dragons would be a new experience but at least one that I could pass off and forget about. Except that there have been rumours a plenty about one of late. And it’s here.” Tsugua paused, peering through the high powered binoculars that he was using, tracking the movement of his targets. If it wasn’t for their augmented features he would have lost track of them a while ago, not to mention he wouldn’t have worked out the true nature of the beast, as hard as it was for him to believe. “We can see the leylines. They damn well have grabbed it and shifted part of it miles off to the side.”

“...How many miles?”

“Twenty to thirty? It’s hard to gauge from here.”

“Any idea as to what they are doing?”

“Moving it?” Tsugua shrugged, not that Catlin could see it.

There was an audible sigh from the other end. “Why then. Why are they moving it.”

“I’d hazard a guess that it is related to Odinsphere’s movement. Beyond that I have no idea. Whatever techniques they are using is foreign to me. What they are also. People don’t just materialize limbs.”

“%^$%#.” Catlin didn’t mince her words. “Is the mentioned Channeller with them?”

“Not that I can tell. No guys, just three girls, and a horde of creatures. Like princesses from some story.” They looked like aspected Touched from a glance, but not like any Touched that he had ever seen. The creatures were another matter entirely, and if the dragons were all the same breed, then they had even bigger problems.

That got a chuckle out of Catlin. “So they’re pretty too huh.”

“Miles above you. Sorry to break it to you.” It wasn’t that Catlin was plain, well okay she was kind of, but these ones were something else, even viewed from this distance.

“Eh. Don’t go pinning on any of them. We don’t know if they are hostile or not, but if they are moving Odinsphere, which is a weapon in and of itself, it cannot bode well.”

Catlin wasn’t wrong there. They’d heard the rumours, but it had sent a chill down his spine when he had witnessed it for himself. Then he’d spotted the girls down below, if that was what they even were, and he’d felt it again. And a stray touch of mana, from who knows where. He was sitting on the leyline, so probably just a side effect from what they were doing, but it left him uneasy.

“Well it doesn’t leave us with a lot of options. We can’t sit this one out, and I guess the ball is in our court right now.”

“Do you think you could take them out?”

Tsugua stared back down into his binoculars, pinpointing their exact location before he picked up his sniper cannon, and set it up with the ease of a trained solider. Focusing in on the girls, he pulled on his personal magic, his Predators Instinct. It was very rare for a Channeller to also be Touched, yet he was so, his gift rather strong. Probably because of what he was already. There was something that was familiar about the girls, something that he couldn’t place, and it irked him. Until he worked it out, there would be no point in telling Catlin.

They were within range. He’d augmented the gun numerous times with technology that he’d found, getting it to work together, the weapon a monster in and of itself. His magic flowed around him as he grasped for a feel of what would happen. He’d pull the trigger, a bullet of pure magic streaking across the countryside. The red haired one, his target, would sense it before it reached her, turning to face him, her body glowing a brilliant white. The bullet would slam into her shoulder, throwing her back, like a rag doll, yet she’d stop shortly after, undamaged, hovering above the ground, her wings majestic and yet terrifying. A shot that would have pulverized any normal person. The one dressed in red, if you could even call it that, would then look at him, and his body would be in intense pain. Then nothing.

He broke himself out of his trance, sweating heavily. What the hell? That was a lot more that what he’d normally get. Usually it was just hints and impressions, a feeling of what it could play out like. He’d succeed. They’d flee, badly wounded. A mess on the pavement. Not a crystal clear view of events. And not one that spelled his end. What the @#%^ were they?

Tsugua peered back through his binoculars, to find the one in red and black staring straight at him. Not in his general direction, but straight at him. With a wicked smile on her face. Panic gripped him as he snatched up his weapon and scrambled back down the slope.

“&#$%. No. No I cannot take them out.”

“What happened? You sound stressed.”

“We’ll talk more on it when I’m out of range. I’d suggest plan C or F.”

“Out of range?” Catlin sounded confused.

“Instinct.” It was all he could be bothered to say as he worked his way down across the rocky terrain, loose stones clattering down ahead of him. He’d admit it. He was spooked.

It took him half an hour to reach his bike. Or more precisely, the location where he’d left it. All that remained was a smouldering pile of metallic slag, black flames lazily licking at it.

“Oh you have to be ^%$%# kidding me,” he swore. That machine too had been rather unique, and only of use to a Channeller. An electric motorcycle with a specialized battery that could hold mana long enough for him to travel across distances where the leylines were out of reach, along with some inbuilt weapons. A dream to use. “I guess I’m walking back.”

“What happened to your ride?”

“Wish I knew. It’s more like a puddle now.”

There was a period of silence.

“I’ll send some team to collect you.”

“Please do.”

“What was that?” Crystal asked, pausing and looking at Myne who had suddenly stared off into the distance. She had felt a faint ping of something magical, but that was it.

“Oh just a curious onlooker,” Myne replied cryptically, before turning back to them. It was definitely more than that, Crystal feeling Myne’s magic doing something.

“Change of plans?”

“Not really. Though I do think we will be paying a certain city a visit soon...”

Tsugua was not one to wait around. If he just stood around and waited he’d stew over what had just happened, and that would get him nowhere fast. He probably still would even when walking, but then at least he’d be achieving something. A clear and level mind was essential to success, and as much as he may be angry about what had been done his motorcycle, that had taken him years to fully assemble to its current point, well before it got liquefied, he wasn’t going to let that get to him.

He strapped the rifle across his back, making sure that it was secure, as the last thing he needed was to loose that too, slung his small pack across his back, and checked that the combat knife was still on his belt. Which it was. All of his other weapons had been on his ride, as he didn’t think that he’d have had need of them, and there had been no one in the vicinity. A mistake on his part. Taking one last look at the puddle and sighing, he continued on down the path towards the road. It was going to be a very long day. There was no way that they’d get to him before nightfall.

It had been a warning. That much was clear. How she’d sensed his magic and intent was beyond him, and somewhat worrying. The sheer power that she’d displayed and the fear that she’d drawn out of him was something above that again. Especially the apparent range of her gift. He very much doubted if she was fully human, even if she looked it, and a looker she certainly was, but that was inconsequential to the question of where had she come from. If someone like her had been in the surrounding lands, they would have known about her. That left only a few possibilities. She’d spawned out of Odinsphere, come from the other side of the Outerlands, or hailed from the Innerlands, where magic was actually plentiful. Each option came with its own issues, and given the presence of the shapeshifting dragons, he was banking on the latter of the three. History said that dragons had been used for the crossing before, by one of the most powerful people of that time. Who had one dragon, not three, and hadn’t displayed magic anything like what he’d just experienced.

The questions continued to spiral out from there, so Tsugua pushed them all of to the side, keeping his attention instead on the terrain in front of him. While he had rode his motorcycle through here, calling it a track would be an overstatement of what it actually was. The rocky ground was rough and broken, and if he wasn’t careful a broken ankle was a real possibility. Less loose stones than earlier, somewhat level, but still a decent incline. The girls had it lucky with their wings.

He managed to reach the road without further incident, the sun descending in the sky quicker than he liked. You really didn’t appreciate the benefits of what you had until you didn’t. The road needed some attention, but that was actually on the agenda, albeit at least a year away. It wasn’t as important as some of the other routes out of Caylinhold, given that most of their trade was via the ports or the cities further south. The city had deliberately stayed out of the Brightwater trade nexus, especially as its location wasn’t suitable to rail. Moving himself into the middle of the road, Tsugua stretched, and then proceeded to walk at pace along it.

Tsugua was rather surprised when a couple of hours later he heard the sound of an engine. Ignoring that it was far too early for it to be the recovery team, it was also not coming from ahead of him as he would have expected, but from behind him. He stopped, turned, pulled out the binoculars from his backpack, and gazed down the road. It was a van, an armoured one, with tinted windows. It had the insignia of Bowser’s Peacekeepers on it. Tsugua frowned. What were they doing all the way out here? They had very little to do with Brightwater’s Channeller, and it was a lengthy trip to get out here. More than what such a vehicle could normally manage. He would need to be cautious when they reached him. Turning back again, he made his way over to the side of the road, and resumed walking, listening carefully as the sound of the van grew louder as it steadily drew closer. When it was almost on top of him he stopped, turned and watched it approach.

The armoured van slowed down, the window winding down as it drew to a halt beside him. A young lady looked down at him, a confused look on her face.

“Are you alright? Do you want a lift to the city?”

She looked like a solider, a well toned and muscular body, at least from what he could see, blond hair tied up in a ponytail, and a pleasant face. Bare arms, and a tight black sleeveless top. But at the same time not. Something about the way she was holding herself. Sitting beside her was another young lady, attractive, not in the hot way like the inhuman ones from earlier, but in a regal way, a prominent pair of lioness ears proudly poking up out of her mess of blond hair. He could see the hint of blue satin under the black jacket that she had draped over her shoulders. Now that was odd. He was well aware of Bowser’s dislike of Touched, and the intensity of the discrimination towards them by the nobles of the city, and the second one stunk of nobility.

“You’re heading all the way in?” he asked casually, stalling for time as he discretely activated his ability, giving a start as it triggered. At least the impression this time was just that, even if he had inadvertently ended up using it in a different way than normal. He hadn’t even been aware that that was possible. The day was just full of surprises.

“Yes.” The lady looked confused. “I didn’t think that there was anything else between here and there.”

Tsugua brushed it off, giving her a smile. “That would be appreciated thanks.” At least until they met up with the team heading his way, at which point he’d have to make a decision.

“Door’s unlocked,” the lady said, motioning to the side door of the van behind her.

He nodded, pulling it open and climbing in, closing it behind him. It was definitely one of the Peacekeepers vans, benches lining either side of the back of it for the squad to sit on. Except it was filled with metal cans and tanks, stacked in crates or secured against the side, along with the faint smell of petrol. That would explain how they’d made it this far, but none of them looked the same, like they’d all been collected from various locations. Fuel wasn’t that easy to find outside of the major cities, and even then it wasn’t that plentiful. Biofuel was expensive to refine, distilled fuel even more so, the realm of the rich, and fossil fuels were becoming more and more difficult to locate. He was beginning to suspect that the pair were on a one way trip. He found some space near the front of the van, released his rifle from his back, and sat down.

“Name’s Tsugua,” he stated, looking at them both as the van shuddered back into motion again. She obviously wasn’t the most skilled driver, the lightly shaking head of the lioness lady confirming it for him.

“Carmen,” the driver stated. Tsugua spotted a katana lying beside her seat, within easy reach, her choice of cargo pants an odd one though.

“Petunia,” the Touched finally said after a brief pause. She had a nice voice too, but tinged with the arrogance that came with her upbringing, even though she did appear to be trying to mask it. She was indeed wearing a blue satin dress, the fabric draped over her legs. It didn’t really fit what he would have expected of one such as her, like she was teetering between two worlds.

Tsugua leaned back, listening to the sound of the engine as the van rumbled down the road. At least Carmen was a slow driver. Hopefully she didn’t take them off the road, but they’d obviously made it this far in one piece. At this pace it wouldn’t take them too long to run into the others, assuming that Catlin had dispatched them straight away. Which meant of course that he should probably get it out of the way sooner rather than later, whatever the consequences ended up being.

“So,” he started, leaning forward again and crossing his arms, “how exactly are you two connected to Odinsphere?”

mogust

Another new character, and Petunia and Carmen get the spotlight again. ^^

And a bit of a showcase of exactly how powerful Myne actually is. Tsugua is nothing to sneeze at either, though as to why the characters haven't heard of him...

Thanks for reading as always. Next chapter (64 - Stepping on Others Toes) should be out tomorrow.