“Fancy, that’s really all you need to do to open a wormhole to Pluto?” Melissa asked, having just watched Fulginanis complete the pathway Cal was planning to take.
“It requires a lot more energy than it seems. Ethel, I think you’re first on this one. As we need the atmosphere bubble as soon as we make the trip.” Cal pointed at the old woman.
“And just who told you that you had the right to point at me at your elders, Cal? But yes I do suppose I have to go first. Now let me remember how to make this bubble.” She trailed off as sparks of mana started encircling her. “Frank, I expect you to be right behind me.”
Ethel didn’t wait for a response as she stepped through the newly formed gateway. Frank immediately followed with a single word: “Coming.” He had to duck down and go head-first through it.
“Alright, Onelder, you and Dad are next. And Onelder, just note, I very much remember how many times you’ve killed me. So try to earn some forgiveness.” The one-eyed alien looked at Cal but didn’t say anything. He just followed Stan through to Pluto. Jen and Albert quickly followed.
“Melissa, I appreciate your help with Grannus; I promise we will help you. However, we can next loop. I’d really like to talk about the agency when we return.” Cal stepped through.
He had hoped the trip would be instantaneous. Instead, it lasted several seconds of severe nausea as he felt himself slide across the cosmos. Bright lights flashed across his vision, and just as he thought he couldn’t keep his lunch down any longer, he felt the extreme cold that signaled the end of his trip.
The next thing he felt was a hand yanking him to the ground and a voice he realized belonged to his father whispering, “Stay down. Ethel is working on cover, but it turns out the Gryalth are already here somehow.”
“Seriously? How?” Cal hissed back.
“How would I possibly know that?” Stan whispered back.
“Sorry, rhetorical and frustration speaking. This is going to make everything a ton harder.” Cal sighed.
As Cal wondered what else could go wrong, the universe always provided the answer. The gateway behind them disappeared, and loud sirens started sounding from several smaller aircraft overhead.
“Dammit, it’s not perfect, but we don’t have time for perfect. Get in here now.” Ethel yelled over the biting winds, directing them to her newly built igloo.
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Cal rushed through the entrance after everyone else. To his surprise, she had managed to carve out a ton of ice quickly. He guessed Frank had done a lot of the work. This could work as a temporary shelter, that was, assuming they didn’t just find them and end the loop much earlier than he intended.
“Now, please, Frank,” Ethel instructed. Cal had no idea what the instruction was for, but he quickly learned as the plant man pulled a large stone from below the opening they had climbed through. The opening crashed inward, half burying Frank. He was able to easily pull himself free in moments.
“Well, I suppose that’s one way to get us under cover,” Stan said.
“Yes. I’m working to reinforce the ice walls with my mana, Cal, and Onelder, it would be just peachy if you could help. We need to harden them as much as we can. I can’t overly exert myself at the moment as I’m also keeping us able to breathe and not freeze to death in here, so I will need as much of your juice as you can channel.” Ethel instructed.
Cal spent the next hour exhausting himself beside his several-time murderer as they poured mana into Ethel and the walls. To Onelder’s credit, he kept up with Cal right until they both dropped. “Ethel, I can’t do anymore at the moment. That has to be enough, right?”
“How the hell should I know? I’ve never walked into a secret Gryalth installation on another planet before. This is all guesswork, boy. You should know that by now.” Her response was crankier than usual, and Cal couldn’t blame her. This was a disaster so far.
“Okay, okay, sorry. What exactly did I miss by coming last? I’m guessing it was more than those aircraft?” Cal wanted as much information as he could get before considering their next move.
“There is a large building in the distance, surrounded by a wall. It looks to have a partial dome that connects to the tall building from the walls. I’m guessing that’s how they control their climate. I didn’t realize they were Gryalth at first, or I’d have rushed back through. Jen spotted the aircraft, and that’s when we first realized they were Gryalth. I had already moved forward to make us a small camp to figure out what was going on, and instead, I turned it into this makeshift shelter as I didn’t have time to get everyone back through with the planes incoming.” Ethel explained.
“Well, the good news is, I can feel Grannus’s power a bit stronger in me than before, so I think if we can through some of this ice, I can start working on a better cave down there,” Cal said.
“And then what?” Stan asked, looking at his son.
“Figure out what the hell they are doing here. Scout their city, find a potential way back to Earth with the gate closed, not to mention I need to find the world core, assuming they have already tapped it. That might explain their presence now that I think about it.”
“Yes, I had considered that already. I suspect they are using it as a power source. I wish Bill was here. He’s the closest we have to an expert in magical fields like this.” Albert added.
“Well, good news then, because the last part of my potential plan is we destroy their entire damn base, take the core and make our exit,” Cal said with a giant smile.