“Akerbaza, I presume,” Naomi asked.

“The one and only,” he said softly, given them a short, stiff bow. “And it is rare to see such a small campaign party. Please, give me your names.”

He pointed at Trick and he felt himself unable to keep from answering, “I’m Trickster.”

Woah! What was that? He forced me to answer, but I gave my D&D avatar’s name!

Naomi was just as helpless as she said automatically, “Ru-lah.”

The drow wizard gave them a small smile and nodded to them both in turn. “I can see that you both have had a run-in with Velnir. She is a very dangerous, but helpful creature. I’ve met with her twice before. That’s where I picked up that little trick, Trickster.”

Naomi shared a quick look with him. There was a hint of triumph there, and he understood why. Velnir had coaxed out them their real names and had dived deep into them. Well, deeper than they would have liked. This drow might have copied her, but he was definitely not the witch, and had only partially extracted information from them.

Akerbaza might have felt like he was in power. That he was in control, but the that was not the exact truth of the matter.

“We would ask for your name, Richie, but we already know it,” Naomi said with a smirk. “How about you tell us instead what you have been doing around here?”

Richie jumped when she had said he name and he looked angry. “How do you that name?”

“We’ve been asking the right questions,” Naomi answered cryptically.

He raised a hand, but Naomi drew her sword and snarled, “Paladin vs wizard. We both know who wins this fight.”

“I am very confident that I outstrip both of you in terms of leveling,” he seethed.

“And I am very confident I can freeze you where you stand,” Trick countered, getting up. He put a knife to Richie’s back. “Now, let’s sit down and have a talk. We need to know how to end this whole thing that is going on. You and your friends would appear to be connected to it in some way, this Grey Bubble. So you’re going to help us pop it.”

Richie lowered his hand and said, “Very well. We will talk. But you will address me as Akerbaza. Richie is not of this particular plain of existence.”

“That is an unhealthy way of thinking about, but fair,” Naomi said, gesturing with her sword for the wizard to sit.

Akerbaza took his seat almost demurely as Trick stayed standing right behind. Naomi pulled up a seat right in front of the drow and sat across from him.

Spreading his hands, he asked, “So, what would you like to know?”

“For starters, we’d like to know everything that you know about the Grey Bubble,” Naomi said.

Scoffing, Akerbaza said, “Grey Bubble? What an inaccurate and wholly unimaginative name. It’s the Overlap. Multiple worlds have been brought together, all concentrating on location. It is something that a great engineer worked on, bringing worlds together through another world. It is a way to bring multiple timelines and stories together, intertwining them to become something much more than they were on their own.”

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“That’s clear as mud,” Trick commented dryly. “Come, Akerbaza-doodle-doo! My friend asked you a straightforward question, and you’re giving us crap!”

“On the contrary Trickster,” Akerbaza said, irritatedly. “I have answer Ru-lah truthfully. You call this mix of worlds the Grey Bubble, but it is the Overlap.”

“Then let’s focus on this then,” Naomi said, sounding just as irritated. “How did the Overlap come about? And why everything related to a game or puzzle in some kind of way?”

“Now those are far better questions,” Akerbaza commended. “The Overlap was created through a combination of spell and key. They was once a world that sought to bridge hundreds of others, across all kinds of worlds and realities. That world fell into ruin, but some of it survived. A certain artifact in particular, which happened to be a dungeon master’s journal.

“I happened upon it and read through it. It listed out some incredible details, spells, and plans. I worked them out, and one of them allowed me to speak with the departed spirit of that world. It called me to the forbidden isle where the dead and imprisoned gods may yet be heard. I went there and learned all that I could.”

He gave them a grim smile and said, “I learned there that these beings could not be trusted. But since I had made contact with them, a link was forged, and through that they could possibly find into our world. So I used the book and initiated the Overlap. I am here now to reunited with my team so we can complete my plan, by summoning the champion of these dead and gone gods. Through the rites of combat, when we prevail, we will able to sever the link and seal the breach between worlds once and for all.”

Naomi looked impressed with the tale, but Trick had heard enough. He had seen where the drow’s eyes darted as he spoke. And he had seen Izmerelda to know enough. Plus, Trick had been in the business of digging up secrets, plots, and exposing the truth. That was a major part of what it took to pull off the masterful pranks he was still notorious for. Even if he had hung up his mantle by now.

“That’s a load of bull,” Trick spat. “The Overlap, why you’re here, what you are planning on doing. You’re only telling part of the truth!”

“What do you know about it,” Akerbaza snapped.

“You rolled low on that lie of yours,” Trick said, now grinning over at Naomi. “There was shiver when you said that you came across the book.Were that the case, and your shiver was the awe you felt about the book, you would have explained to us that experience. But you didn’t, and a nerd like yourself loves to describe in excruciating detail the things that get your nerdy heart beating so fast like uncovering a magical book where you least expected it.

“You got it for someone most likely, not somewhere.”

Akerbaza started sputtering. Trick had struck true. It was now time to strike again.

“Trick,” Naomi said in a warning tone.

Trick held up a finger and continued on, “You conjured up the Overlap not to just defeat some god, or champion, or whatever. You did it to impress Izmerelda over there. Yes, she is pretty hot, but she’s with that rugged ranger, with the stupid name.”

“Swordalot,” Akerbaza hissed. “It’s not what you think! I knew they were dating!”

Trick cut him off. “Which is why this whole scenario is just too perfect. Your friends, gone without you on vacation. An almost romantic one at that! And lo and behold, they get caught in a magical trap! And who should suddenly appear with all the answers but Akerbaza! The priestess would only have eyes for you!”

“That sounds so dumb,” Naomi snorted. “Who would honestly think that something like that would work?”

“Have you ever walked through the school library when the social rejects are playing games during lunch? You get to hear things you would never believe any sane person would say! And something about what little Bazzie is saying here is reminding me of those conversations. And not in a pleasant way.”

“You have a point,” Naomi said, scratching her head. “I can see it in his eyes. He does have some special plan in mind.”

Akerbaza frowned and looked out at his friends, playing in the sparkling water. Trick and Naomi followed his gaze. It was like watching a bizarre anime play out before their eyes.

“I wanted to come with them. I could have taken time off, but it just didn’t feel right,” Akerbaza admitted. “I did not want to be the awkward third wheel, like I am so often in real life.”

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Trick breathed.

The wizard sighed, “I had already received the dungeon master’s book from an unknown source. I read through it and it spoke to me. More accurately, it spoke to me in my sleep. I was shown amazing worlds and possibilities. You wanted to know why everything has been game themed? It is because of the book;s nature. It is all about games, and the worlds of those games.”

He slowly got up, even though Trick protested. “I wanted to impress them all. I want to impress her. I don’t care if I will never have her in real life, but hopefully here I can have her eyes all to myself and now her affection. In a place where I feel myself and feel alive.”

“Akerbaza? What are you doing,” Naomi asked, laying her sword across his neck.

“Living out my fantasy. The spell is complete, and the champion has been summoned with my coming here,” Akerbaza said. “Look.”

Trick and Naomi glanced at the ocean and saw massive, black storm clouds growing rapidly in the distance and approaching quickly.

“I must go to them and see that they are prepared for what comes next. It will be a hard fought battle,but I am ready to help my team win. I will be the hero,” Akerbaza said fervently. “And you two will be good bystanders and watch.”

Trick and Naomi felt the spell take effect and they were stunned, held perfectly in place. Akerbaza stepped away from Naomi’s blade. He inspected his handiwork and nodded to himself.

“Trickster, Ru-lah, I am impressed with you two. After the battle is won, we can talk further about your own adventure and how you became tangled up in mine. This was not my intention, but the Overlap was more powerful than I had intended. Well, I must be off!”

Akerbaza strode out from the tent, the sky becoming increasingly darker with each second. The drow changed his clothing with a wave of his hand. He was dressed in battle robes, with a sharp wand in one hand and a large book in the other. His silver hair danced with the cold wind coming from the ocean. Lighting streak across the sky and thunder boomed shortly afterwards.

In the distance, the flashes of lightning illuminated the silhouette of a massive, horrifying monster.