Everything was muted. Like walking into a giant purple cloud of cotton, the sounds were dampened, and the air was thick yet comforting. The world had become different shades of purple, with its edges glittering with dust. In fact, the world was now confined to his investigative office, the place where this whole infernal day had started.
Aaron clumsily looked at the books and papers strewn about. The ashes of cigarettes and the traces of alcohol. Curious, the dwarf kicked open the bottom drawer of his filing cabinet but was upset to see the drawer was empty. There should have been a bottle of cheap whiskey in there. But Aaron could not remember if he had finished it off before leaving this morning.
Aaron…
He turned to the thing he was avoiding. The secret compartment in his bookshelf was wide open. Inside the compartment was the safe that held the arcanatum Tuber he had been cultivating for so long now. Atop the safe was a picture that he could not bring himself to look at, yet he knew it was the picture calling to him. Upon seeing his secret opened wide for all to see, Aaron's first reaction was to rush and discover what had been disturbed. Now, he struggled to look at the scene. He had played out this moment so many times in his head, but now, he hesitated, not knowing what to do. Still, Molly called, waiting patiently.
Aaron…
Outside the arcane portal, the war raged, and it was difficult to tell who was calling his name. Was Molly calling him, or was it Tommy or Jackie? The voices blended together in this muted place, but the raw emotions of loss, hope, guilt, and sorrow, those remained, piercing the thick atmosphere. Aaron stumbled forward to the safe and placed his hand on the picture. It was something he did every day, but he never could do more than that. The picture remained face down because he could not bear to see Molly, and he could not bear to let her see what he had become.
“Aaron, please…”
“I hate pictures,” Aaron said, crossing his arms and looking away.
“You don’t hate pictures,” Molly chided playfully. “You just don’t like that I am more photogenic than you.”
“Ha!” Aaron laughed. “I love that you’re more photogenic than me! I just don’t want to ruin your picture by being in it.”
“Come on, just do this one for me, please?”
Aaron grunted and shuffled his feet.
“Next mission, when I’m away, I want to have a photo with you next to me. Besides, I know you will regret not having a picture of us together. So let’s get this one shot while we still can!”
Aaron huffed, twisted his mouth, then acquiesced. “Fine, fine. But only because you actually said please. Dwarves are never supposed to say please.”
“That’s a lode of malarkey. Since when?”
“Since the days of my Papa, I guess.”
“Get over here, you adorable nugget and smile.”
Aaron stood beside Molly and wrapped his arm around her waist. Standing with her by his side, he could not stop smiling. She was the dwarf of his Core. “I love you, Molly.”
Molly looked at him, smiled, and gave him a quick peck. “I love you, too, Aaron. Never forget it, okay? I will always love you. Now, keep that smile!”
Molly took the photograph.
Aaron Frimslayer, Dwarven Investigator, stood with the photo of him and Molly, holding it with both hands as tears slowly trailed down his tired and worn face. The memory returned to him as if he were truly there, reliving that moment. Her words remained.
“Never forget it, okay? I will always love you.”
He reached out to the photo and touched Molly’s face. “I will always love you, too.”
The pain was excruciating. He felt like his heart would implode and explode at the same time. There was so much more that he wanted to say to her, beg for her forgiveness for leaving her on the island alone, hold her one more time, tell her something, anything! Dwarves aren’t supposed to cry—dwarven customs be damned. Aaron did not have the words, and so he cried.
Holding the picture close to his chest, Aaron collapsed to the floor and cried, screaming through the broken facets of his heart, dying again from the loss of the one who was his life. The memory continued to echo through the hollows of his mind, colliding the simple yet pure joy of that moment with the rage and torment that he carried in his life. He screamed until his throat went raw, finding solace in a pain that was outside his soul.
“Aaron!”
Through his sorrow, the dwarf heard Tommy’s voice. He laid still a moment longer, unsure if that really was Tommy whom he heard.
“Buddy!”
Aaron shook his head—that was definitely Tommy. His brother needed help; that much was clear. The muted sounds of battle from outside the arcane portal could again be heard as Aaron lifted himself from the floor. His face was a mess of snot and tears—he cleaned it best he could with the bottom edge of his trench coat.
One hand still pressing the picture close to his chest, Aaron took in a deep, shaky breath. Though he was no longer living that memory, it remained clear in his mind. Aaron looked at Molly’s beautiful face one more time and kissed her photo. He saw himself beside her, and Aaron knew he was happy in that memory.
Rising from the floor, Aaron put the photo back on the safe, but this time, he left it upright so he could see Molly’s shining face. He took a step back and grunted. “It’s happening again. I have to leave you so I can save Tommy. But I guess this time, it’s a little different. I know you won’t forget that I will always love you. I hope you know I won’t forget you love me, too.”
There was an explosion outside the portal, followed by screams and more yelling. Aaron glanced back at the portal, then at the photo. Tears still lined his eyes. “I can’t say goodbye. But… I hope I can see you again. … I love you.”
The purple-dusted world surrounding Aaron started to darken and flicker as his head felt like it began to slip to the side. Aaron recognized he was starting to fall from his high and grabbed the desk nearby for support. When he grabbed the side of his desk, the dust holding it together gave way, and Aaron fell through, causing dust to spray and shimmer all around. The world was quickly disintegrating around him as the purple dust that held it together began to float away.
His time expired in this portal. Aaron quickly scrambled to his feet, running diagonally and leaping for the portal that would get him out of this world of dust.
# # #
Tommy yelled in pain, anger, and frustration as he punched Yolo’s head off his shoulder. The massive troll released his bite and stumbled back. A line of blood trickled from the corner of his wicked grin as he admired his work on the elf.
“Aaron!” Tommy called out through labored breath. “Buddy! Wherever you are, I could use you.”
“That dusted pebble-eater is gone, Tommy.” Yolo slowly walked in a circle around the elf, predator eyes waiting for a flaw in his prey’s defense. “It’s just us. And when I tire of this game, it will just be me.”
Tommy raised his fists of flames. Yolo charged. Suddenly, Aaron blasted out of an unseen portal and collided with the troll’s head, breaking Yolo’s charge and leaving an opening for Tommy. The island elf, though surprised, did not hesitate and plunged a fiery blade into the troll’s gut.
Yolo roared through rage and pain. He tore the dwarf off his face and slammed Aaron to the ground. The troll then reared back and punched Tommy with a force that sent the large island some distance before crashing into the floor.
“You should have stayed dusted,” Yolo growled as he raised his foot over Aaron’s head.
The dwarf tried to roll away, but his trenchcoat was stuck to the metal and debris around him. He tried to squirm and wriggle out of the coat, but even that was an effort he could not perform fast enough. Aaron stared at the massive clawed foot that hovered over his head, not knowing how to process the end of his life.
Yolo’s foot came down, and Tommy slammed into the massive troll, causing Yolo’s foot to hit the ground next to Aaron. The dwarf’s eyes were wide and pupils large as he stared at the hideous foot—it was nearly as large as him. The foot moved as Yolo renewed his fight with Tommy.
As Aaron looked up to regain his bearings from being in the arcane dust portal, the whole world around him seemed to shimmer and melt. The beauty he had seen before entering the portal was being stripped away as the dwarf became witness to the darkness and gore, splattered and smeared over the whole of the night club. Everything still moved in shadows of the future and present, but the shadows were no longer light—death seemed to reign here.
There was one light, however, that drew the dwarf’s attention. Turning to look at that light, Aaron saw his friend and brother, Tommy, standing high above him. The bronze-skinned island elf moved as if he had a dozen wings at his back, and he fought with a dozen fists, wielding great scimitars of flame. Tommy was angelic in his battle against the darkness before him. It was a darkness that Aaron now saw.
The troll fought with a fierceness that threatened to rival Tommy’s abilities. The darkness oozed and sprayed from the pores of the troll as it slashed, bit, and tore at his opponent. But when the dwarf looked at the face of the troll, he did not see Yolo; instead, he saw himself. Large, ravenous, and intent on destroying the light around him. Aaron stared in horror as he witnessed himself slash and tear at his one true friend and brother. The troll laughed viciously as it looked down at him. Aaron heard the dark, seeping oil of Yolo’s voice as he watched his own face speak the words, “I will make you watch as I destroy everything you have ever cared for.”
The troll slashed and punched as Tommy defended against the onslaught. But, the troll’s boosted skills overpowered the elf, and it looked as if Tommy’s angelic wings were clipped as he was torn from on high and smashed into the ground. The troll roared and stomped on the downed elf, relishing in his victory over the light that Tommy held.
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Aaron cried out as he struggled to untangle himself from his trenchcoat. He realized another was screaming as he freed one arm from the coat. It was a broken scream, one that Aaron had only heard once before. With sudden recognition, the dwarf looked up and yelled for Swift to run away before the orc became another casualty of his demon.
Swift was running straight for the troll that wore Aaron’s face. The skinny orc ran with one hand raised high. Aaron looked peered and was shocked to see the orc was carrying a grenade from one of the bouquets Aaron had spread just moments earlier. The troll took two steps forward, amused by the orc’s heroic attempt. Swift ran, jumped onto a table, and leaped from the table with an arm raised high.
Before Swift could pull the pin and throw the grenade, the troll rushed forward, jumped, and snatched the skinny orc from the air. The troll bit down on Swift’s arm and hand that held the grenade. He grinned as he watched the orc futilely struggle to escape his grip. A flash of a wicked grin was followed by a sickening snap as the troll clamped down, breaking the bones in Swift’s arm.
The orc turned a pale green as he cried out in pain, but a terrible fire still raged behind the orc’s eyes. The troll looked smugly at the orc hanging from his mouth, daring the orc to release the grenade. From his free hand, Swift released the grenade’s pin, and the rest of his body went limp as he let everything go.
The grenade exploded.
Aaron ducked down reflexively into a fetal position while covering his head with his hands. Yolo’s top half erupted in an explosion of blood and burnt chunks of troll that showered all across the nightclub.
Aaron could not see any sign of Swift, but the lower half of Yolo somehow remained standing. The troll still had both legs and pelvis, along with a portion of his torso that was blown open for all to see inside. It was a disturbing spectacle of gore that the dwarf could not unsee. Then, the troll’s legs turned about and began to walk toward Aaron.
The troll’s heart was still intact and beating within its splayed chest cavity. Streams of blood sprayed out with every beat, and still, the legs continued with their slow gait.
The club swayed while every light shimmered, but Aaron was able to grab the floor to keep his focus. He scrambled for his trenchcoat and grabbed his grandfather’s longbore hand cannon. There was one round left in the drum. He cocked the hammer back, aimed, and—something was moving inside the troll’s open torso.
Aaron watched as something began to claw its way up from the pooled blood on the bottom of the troll’s torso. The dwarf’s aim faltered as he witnessed himself, bathed in blood, emerging from the troll’s lower half. His blood-covered demon twin threw its head back and laughed as Aaron faltered in his aim.
“Take the shot, brother.” It was Tommy’s voice, though Aaron did not know where it came from.
“I can’t,” Aaron’s voice broke as his hand trembled.
“You can do this. You need to take the chance.”
“I can’t…” Aaron’s voice quivered and shook though he could not avert his gaze from the emerging horror. “I… I’m scared. I don’t know what will happen to me if I do this.”
Tommy leaned in behind his Aaron and spoke with gentle confidence. “I got you, brother.”
The island elf extended his strong arm alongside Aaron’s and placed his finger next to Aaron’s trigger finger. The dwarf closed his eyes and breathed.
“We’ll do this together,” Tommy said. “On your mark.”
Aaron nodded.
The troll took another step forward. Aaron’s demon laughed as it spoke with Yolo's dark voice, “You are a failure, dwarf. You will always be a failure.”
“Ready.” Aaron raised the revolver and aimed with Tommy’s assistance.
“You will never be able to rid yourself of me!”
“Fire.”
The last remnants of arcane dust swirled and flew up around the dwarf. At the same moment, the fire of Tommy’s ancestral ward also swirled and intertwined with the arcane magic. The magics weaved and coursed over the brothers’ arm, concentrating at the end of the revolver’s barrel. Together, Aaron and Tommy squeezed the trigger.
The bullet blasted through the long barrel as the concentrated magics fused their powers into the round. Enchanted with ancestral fire and arcane energies, the bullet flew through the air, straight through the eye of Aaron’s demon and piercing the troll's heart. Aaron’s one eye stared emptily at him as the troll stopped moving. Aaron and the remains of the troll suddenly exploded in a shower of flames and dust that spread throughout the club before quickly dissipating.
Aaron, the real Aaron, collapsed to the floor in exhaustion.
“You did it, buddy.” Tommy was sitting on the ground beside Aaron, smiling at his friend. One of his arms hung limply at his side.
The dwarf managed a half-smile as he stared up at the twisting ceiling. “I saw myself in him, Tommy. I saw myself in that troll.”
Tommy placed a steady hand on Aaron’s shoulder. “We all have a piece within that leans toward the evil. What’s important is that we don’t let that piece become us because there’s so much more to any one person than that piece.”
“Oh, fukalite!” Aaron sat up quickly, then grabbed hold of Tommy’s arm to prevent the dizziness from yanking him back down to the ground. “Swift! What happened to Swift?”
“I think I might have saved him.” Jackie approached with a slight limp. Corey and the remaining Boomers stood with her.
“How did you save him?” Aaron asked.
“You dropped this when you disappeared.” Jackie raised her hand to reveal the focus rod strapped to her arm and hand. “My Boys got this to me and tied it tight. Turns out I can open portals more easily with this thing in hand despite both hands being broken.”
“So you opened a portal to save him?”
“I don’t know if I saved him, but I hope I did.”
“Oi!” Corey interrupted. “This twittering yous birdies are doin’ ain’t bad, but the Blues are comin’, and they’ll be ‘ere right soon.”
“The cops are coming?” Aaron had difficulty focusing on the individuals standing over him.
“Aye, mate.” Corey gave a farewell salute. “I appreciate the invite, but the party’s done, and now it’s our time to fly. Jackie, would yous do the ‘onors, my love?”
Jackie grimaced as she swirled the arm with the focus rod and opened a portal for Corey and their gang.
“Cheers, mates,” Corey smiled as he hopped through the portal with the rest of his gang.
“I’ll catch up with you later, Corey,” Jackie said after the Boomer gang finished filing through the portal.
“Wait, what?—"
Jackie closed the portal, cutting off any further communication with Corey. She turned to Tommy and Aaron and smiled. “It’s been quite the adventure, hasn’t it?”
Aaron could not make the club stop spinning, but he smiled and gave Jackie a thumbs-up.
“You look like goose shit, Aaron.”
“I’m fine!” Aaron lied.
Jackie shook her head. “Tommy, take care of him, please?”
“You know I will, Jackie.”
“Thanks. The gnomes are still here and safe. I need to go find Swift and take care of him.” Jackie opened a new portal but paused before entering. “I hope I see you two again.”
“I hope so, too, Jackie,” Tommy answered. “Take care of yourself and Swift.”
Jackie smiled and jumped into the portal.
“Ah, coprolites!” Aaron turned a side eye to Tommy. “I forgot about Tequila gnome and his brother.”
“Don’t worry, buddy. I’ll take care of them.”
“Hey, Tommy?”
“Yeah, brother?”
Aaron did his best to make sure his words were not slurred. “I am sorry, brother.”
“What are you sorry about?”
“I’m sorry I broke our promise.”
Tommy raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Our promise—my promise to you. When we started this, I promised I would stay clean during the job. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep that promise.”
Tommy smiled and gave Aaron a loving punch to the shoulder. “I’m proud of you, brother.”
“What? Why?”
“I’m proud of you for making it this far. Today was a hard day, I know. But you did your best, and I am proud of you for trying to be better.”
Aaron let his head relax to the side as he stared at the twisting laces on his boot. “Thank you, brother. That… that means a lot.”
A bright blue portal opened in front of Tommy and Aaron. It shimmered and crackled with magical energies as several yakuza rushed into the club, clip neutralizing anything that hinted at being a threat. Then, the yakuza witch, dressed in silken gold and silver kimono and her porcelain mask, was painted with a neutral, red-lipped smile. Her eyes shone the same blue as her portal, and her voice carried the weight of ancients. “Hello again, Tomatao and Aaron. I am grateful you accepted my offer.”
“Tommy,” Aaron whispered, nudging Tommy roughly. “I’m tripping some serious nuggets right now and am having a hard time deciphering what’s real. Is she really real?”
“Yeah, buddy, she’s real.” Tommy stood and then offered Aaron a helping hand. “Come on, we probably shouldn’t address here while seated.”
Aaron clung to Tommy as he rose from the ground. It felt like he rose two stories before coming back down to the proper height. Both his stomach and brain lurched from the extreme rise and settling, and the dwarf forced everything inside to stay where it belonged.
“Hey, enano!” A familiar voice called out from another side of the club. “Is this our ride out of here?”
The three gnome brothers scurried beside Aaron and stared at the yakuza witch. Some tequila spilled onto the floor as the cursed gnome stared up.
“It is good to finally find you.” The witch said. “Please step through this portal, and you will be taken care of.”
The gnomes looked at the portal, then looked to Aaron.
Aaron peered at the portal, but the swirling magics made his brain and stomach lurch again. He closed his eyes and shrugged dismissively.
“Thanks for helping us stay alive, enano,” The lead gnome said and waved. “Adios!”
The yakuza gangsters quickly gathered up their men, both the injured and deceased and rushed into the portal.
“You have done well, both of you, and your compensation is in your accounts.” The yakuza witch handed Tommy three healing potions before she turned toward her portal. “I will call on you when I need your services again.”
She stepped through the crackling blue portal and was gone.
Aaron could no longer hold his insides where they belonged. He folded over and vomited violently onto the floor.
“Shaat’maz, rockbeard. Mez lookin’ betterz than you!”
Tommy chuckled as he placed a steady hand on Aaron’s back. “You’re still here, Tirez?”
“Luckiez dwarfz or no, mez stillz need payz.”
“Fair enough.” Tommy tossed one of the small health potions to the goblin. “Here’s a start for your compensation.”
Aaron stared at the blood and vomitus that covered the floor and his boots. “I feel like I’m puking my brain through my nose.”
Tommy kicked back a healing potion. “When you’re done with the puking, I’ll give you one of these to help set your brain right.”
Aaron projectile vomited again. He grabbed Tommy for support as he heaved. “How am I able to puke so much slag? I can’t possibly have this much inside me…”
Sirens sounded in the distance, reminding the trio of heroes of Corey’s warning. The cops had arrived.
Tirez shot back his health potion and rolled his head, popping the vertebrae in his neck. “Lok’tar!”
“No!” Tommy cut off the goblin’s smile. “No, Lok’tar. We need to get out of here, fast!”
Tirez frowned but did not retort.
“Sorry, buddy,” Tommy said as he lifted Aaron and slung the dwarf over his shoulder. “We gotta run.”
“I love a free ride,” Aaron slurred.
Tirez followed Tommy through the backstage, down a few halls, and out an emergency exit that led to the back alley behind the club. Once in the alley to the right, they saw the city bustling and alive, where they could find freedom by being lost in the crowd. To their left stood Officer Gundar, who looked utterly surprised to see the trio burst into the back alley.
“Tommy?” Gundar asked. His hand hovered over his holstered handgun.
“Officer Gundar.” Tommy raised one hand while the other kept Aaron on his shoulder. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“Nor I, you. Is that your dwarf friend hanging over your shoulder?”
“It is, sir. He’s not doing too good.”
Officer Gundar mulled the situation over in his mind. “You taking your friend to a healer, then?”
“Yes, sir.”
Gundar nodded and straightened his stance. His hand moved away from his weapon. “Then you best get moving, Tommy.”
“Thank you, sir.” Tommy turned to run down the alley’s exit.
“Oh, and Tommy?” Gundar added before the ran. “Best you remember, now you owe me one.”
Tommy nodded and ran out the exit with Tirez close behind.
They moved quickly, placing some distance between them and the nightclub until Tommy found a small alcove, which he placed Aaron down and handed the dwarf their last healing potion.
“Thanks,” Aaron said as he focused on bringing the healing potion on the same plane as his lips. He carefully sipped the bitter contents of the potion, then waited for his body to begin mending.
“Better?” Tommy asked.
“Getting there,” Aaron answered. “Help me up, would you?”
With Tommy’s help, Aaron stood and stared at the city’s skyline. Dusk was falling. Tall, dark city towers cut jaggedly into the evening horizon, contrasting vividly against the sky’s backdrop of brilliant sunset colors. The sunlight melted high across the sky with long orange and red streaks, followed by deep purple shadows blending into the darker sky that lined the opposing horizon. The end of the day was finally approaching. The dwarf touched his face and realized he was not wearing his shaded spectacles. “This is the first time I’ve watched a sunset with clear eyes since I lost Molly.”
Tommy squeezed Aaron’s shoulder. “It’s a beautiful sunset, isn’t it?”
“I forgot how beautiful it can be.”
“Crazy. It’s taken so long for this day to end.”
“It is crazy. But you know what, this is the first time in a long time that I’m actually curious to see how the next day will begin.”
“Ha! Well, however tomorrow begins, I’ll be with you to the end of days, brother.”
Aaron smiled. “To the end of days.”
THE END OF BOOK 1