[Book II Chapter 134] SILVER: Meeting Jeel

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  “There’s not much to look at.” Kate lamented.

  Outside the windows on both side was a dense, monotone white. The only indication they were moving at high speed were the fleeting glimpses of objects flashing by.

  Railways were the preferred method of fast travel in the Evermist. After arriving in Neon, Reagan had booked them a private cabin on a train to Glimvale. While they were comfortable, there wasn’t much to do. As he’d done on the airship, Reagan was monopolizing the projector, catching up on recent events.

  With a sigh, the immortal close the report he was reading. Silver pounced at the chance. “Could we talk about the Undermist?” Besides him, Kate perked up with interest.

  “Sure.” Reagan opened and glanced through another document.

  “What are our plans when we get there?” Silver asked.

  “We’ll travel to a certain spot and open a portal to the Moonlit Lands.”  Reagan explained. “There’s a sovereign there who is an ally. Speaking with him will give us a sense on the situation.”

  “That realm is filled with nightmarish creatures that feed on fear.” Kate objected. “How could anything be friendly?”

  “Although it’s True Jeel is that type of monster.” Reagan admitted absently. “He’s also a gourmand who’s developed a unique palate, exclusively feeding on the terror of his peers. As you might imagine, he’s widely despised, and this mutual antagonism makes him a valuable source of information.”

  “The enemy-of-my-enemy?” Silver interpreted.

  “Precisely.” Reagan agreed.

  “How did you meet him?” Kate asked.

  Reagan paused, leaning back. “It was after Nolfis fell. He cooperated with us back then.”

  “Could you tell us the story?” Kate followed up. “We know next to nothing about the rupture in the Undermist.”

  “Alright.” Reagan finally shut off the projector.

  “On the day of the rupture, all communications from Nolfis suddenly ceased. Those sent to investigate didn’t return. It took half a day for them to finally call on the Adventurer’s Guild for help.”

  “Angela Greaves, Jake Thorn, and I were the first to arrive. The Undermist was mess, with horrors roaming everywhere. Although there were no survivors in the city, we discovered a sovereign feasting on a few victims in a far-out outpost. Before dispatching it, Jake interrogated the deformed creature, and we learned what had happened.”

  “Figures that Jake Thorn, the Despicable Bastard, would be well-versed in torture.” Kate chimed in impassively.

  “His talents have their uses.” Reagan shrugged. “In any case, a weakness had formed in the veil near Thornbridge Manor. Learning of this, four sovereigns conspired with a Maven, performing a ritual to summon an incarnation of the nightmare king. The rupture was created when this being tore its way to Enera.”

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  Silver frowned. “Jonathan Bark never mentioned any of this when we spoke to him.”

  “It’s possible he doesn’t know. None of us saw him.” Reagan answered. “Supreme primals are so powerful they can’t maintain stable physical forms for any length of time. In this case, he lasted less than an hour, enough time to decimate Nolfis.”

  Adam Bishop warned us he would ‘release the Nightmare King into our world’, Silver recalled. He must’ve uncovered a way to make him last longer.

  “How does all this relate to Jeel?” Kate asked.

  “I’m getting there.” Reagan sighed. “Once Arther joined us, Jake convinced him to hunt down the three remaining sovereigns. He argued they might threaten the Evermist if left alone. Arther agreed.”

  “So you traveled to the moonlit lands?” Silver asked, remembering the abominations Adam had summoned.

  Reagan nodded. “Arther was a master summoner who could easily open passageways to and from that place. With the four of us, nothing could overwhelm us before we could retreat.”

  “Rather, the real problem was tracking down our quarries in a realm the size of continent. After a week of fruitless wandering, we were close to giving up when Jeel approached us. He offered to lead us to our prey, with the catch that he wanted to be the one to finish them off. We were to stand back and prevent others from interfering. Of course, we accepted this deal, and within two days we’d finished our task.”

  “What about the Maven?” Kate asked.

  “Nothing could be done about her.” Reagan replied. “She has too many bodies, and killing a few would accomplish nothing.”

  “That’s all for now.” Reagan stood up, tapping his nose. “We are nearing Grimvale.” A minute later they heard the screeching of brakes.

  Reagan wasting no time once out of the train, moving at a speed they struggled to keep up with. Fortunately, the immortal used his aura to make himself shine like the sun so they didn’t lose track of him.

  “This is good practice for fighting in the dark.” Kate observed. Silver concurred. When moving this fast through the fog, they were forced to rely on their foresight to tell what lay ahead. Despite some close calls, they were able to avoid embarrassing stumbles.

  Reagan didn’t bother with the lifts, jumping straight down the pit to the Undermist. They pursued his glow into the darkness, Silver growing wings and Kate gliding on aura. A short while after landing, they finally caught up. The immortal stood in front of strange rounded rock.

  “Jeel gave us part of his home before we parted ways.” Reagan revealed. “Silver, try using this to open a passageway.”

  Silver placed his hand on the smoothed stone and felt it immediately, a trail emanating into the Ether. With this guide, he formed a misty corridor.

  “Since I fear you lack the ability to do this in the other direction, make it stable enough to last an hour.” Reagan advised.

  Silver complied, and they passed through. On the other side was… a cave of sorts? There was more empty space than rock, with endless intersecting passageways going in every direction

  “This is the Hollow Mountain, Jeel’s domain.” Reagan explained. “Save for him, it’s deserted, which makes it the safest place in the Moonlit Lands.”

  After a couple of sniffs, Reagan dash upwards. A short while later they reached an area where the mountain’s walls were denser and stopped in a large room.

  “Reagan Bard… was it?” Came a growly voice. “I suspected one of you might come, though not yet.” A shadow skulled out of shadows, its form changing yet somehow panther-like.

  “There are those plotting another rupture.” Reagan called out. “I take it you know something of this?”

  A growling laugh echoed around them. “How could I not?”

  “Come.” Jeel slinked away. “Rather than explaining, this way is faster.”

  The sovereign guided them outside to a narrow plateau near the peak. “There, look!” He hissed. “Do you see?”

  Under the moonlight, three long processions marched in parallel across the landscape. Silver couldn’t make out what the distant figures were, but he knew there were millions of them.

  “They gather from all over!” Jeel continued. “It’s not just a few this time, it’s the entire realm.” A toothy grin widened on the sovereign’s black form. “I’ll feast on the stragglers.”

  “Where are they headed?” Reagan asked.

  “The Ancient Gardens.” Jeel replied.

  For a moment there was silence. “This is worse than expected.” Reagan eventually muttered.