Chapter 28: The Void

By now Adam had done a lot of chatting with Thawain, albeit with his stilted and terrible no doubt accent. He had now warmed to the man, put in a terrible predicament he had tried to do his best. The fact that his best seemed to have gone completely pair shaped. Adam could also relate too.

They were sitting in the chieftain’s house, with several others including some very old in the tooth looking residents. He had left the spear wields outside. Thankfully the two Adam had hit were ok. Just unconscious and had been taken off somewhere to be treated.

Adam only now had come to realise how his proportions had changed, sitting next to there normal guys. He had filled out, muscles bulging under his coat and now standing at around seven feet tall. Was seven foot, big in the multi-verse? Who knows. Was it big for Relites, yes. He felt maybe Meca and Trey could do something about him standing out so much. As honestly right now, he could only be considered, menacing. Especially with the whole black look he had gone with. Everything that had been done was practical for his survival but not necessarily tactical or stealthy.

Also they had offered him food, which he hadn’t thought about in a while. Not having needed any with the systems bio lab fixing and enhancing his body every few hours. It all seemed very strange. It all was very strange.

His innards had been altered to be more like those of an Ore beast. Again very practical, Bones and the others had thought. Now he could actually eat rocks like an Ore beast. He could eat normal food too but it would only give him sustenance based on the energy it contained.

He remembered the one sided conversation. Libby had said “Adam, this will greatly increase the speed at which you can temper your body. We need some way that you can gain large amounts of energy without reliance on our pool of SP. Which is rapidly decreasing and cannot be relied upon in the long term.”

Of course he could only nod his head in agreement.

I feel like an ogre now, Adam thought to himself. And I’m not going to be able to munch on rocks in public for some time. Thank fully my mandibles have not been adapted and I still look pretty human. Not pretty but pretty human. I can swallow small rocks. Allowing my Ore beast innards to do the rest. Libby and Trey have messed with my senses so it doesn’t even taste that bad. A better experience than chewing on Ore beasts, at any rate.

Thawain tells me that they have a pressing issue and I am snapped out of my inner thoughts. All the kids from their village have run off into an old mine nearby. But when he went searching for them. He couldn’t find them. He was worried that there had been a cave in or something, as paths he remembered were no longer accessible. But he couldn’t get anyone else to help him move the rocks. Apparently it was a deep shame that the children under his protection had fled. A Relite, thing.

Oh well, at least I could test out my night vision. We tramped off with a few of the senior villagers. I think they just came to keep watch as they stopped near the mine entrance.

I showed off my abilities by striding into the pitch darkness, not waiting for Thawain. Perhaps there was some fun to be had in this new persona. But Thawain out shone me, quite literally by setting ablaze his staff, casting emerald beams of light into the tunnel. Oh well. Cool staff. I wonder if Meca could make me something like that. Actually any weapon would be good. For close range. A bone knife or something, at the very least.

We got to where the tunnel was meant to have split off but just met bare rock. Thawain turned to me expectantly and me to him. Ah, ok.

“Libby, Huba what do think is the best way of breaking through here? Without the whole tunnel collapsing that is. And bearing in mind there may be children. That we don’t want to kill on the other side.” I say leaving the ball in their court, as I have no idea.

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“This is actually much simpler than you’d think. No way the kids could have moved all this rock and to make such a seamless exterior. It’s magic, Adam” said Bones feeling very superior. In actual fact, Libby had used her mana field and found traces of energies which she presumed were a type of magic script on the wall.

The rock disappear before Thawain and Adam’s eyes. As Libby broke the script dismantling the magic.

Now Thawain, could not help but look at Adam for a moment blinking. Adam was at last basked in the adulation, a dark hero expects, from time to time at least in the course of their daily life.

Thawain then regained his composure and nodded at Adam to lead the way into the tunnel. Adam strode majestically forward. Then bumped his head. Fuck. Luckily the ceiling did not cave in on his head and he was saved from further embarrassment. He then bent down and continued.

The children had all been in total awe of Ash. Well after being first being bored with having to wait near the door, in the cold tunnel. Ash had got annoyed at this they had all been excited to see “magic” being done but didn’t want to wait. Ash tried to block them out of his mind as he slaved over the magic script. Carving the symbols into the thick stone on the floor of the tunnel.

Eventually all their efforts were rewarded as a perfect wall of rock appeared blocking the way in. Ash had done, it! He’d seen his father perform such feats but had never been allowed to try such things himself. He had always been told “When you come of age lad”. Adam rubbed his face to rid him of his tears, smearing dirt. Making him look like a panda. The others said nothing of this but just whooped and hugged him, praising him of his efforts.

It was then that they heard a great booming from the other side of the wall and all retreated back into the relative safety of the workshop. Now though they would have to head down further into the Grik and start their journey proper.

Luckily while he had been working Sela had organised a few of the others to pack up as much stuff as they could. It really was a shame they couldn’t take more of the meats. But they planned to move it all from the larder then seal up other sections of wall in the hope of hiding it. That way at least there would be some to come back for.

Their rag tag group made their way into the Grik proper. His father had told him many tales of the Grik but he had only been allowed a few glimpses of the actual place itself. Mostly in the old mine he had spent his time watching his father work, learning as much as he could. Practising his symbols and collecting fire wood. Sometimes he would go with his father hunting but mostly that was in the earlier months before the snow came.

The Grik was as ancient as it was terrible. His father had learnt all his craft from symbols originally found by his fore fathers in the Grik. They had told many stories about the Grik but Adam did not know if any of them were true. Especially as his father often changed or embellished the stories. He would say to his father “That’s not how it is!” but his father would just tell him that he left out bits because he was to small. Adam didn’t believe but didn’t mind. They were great stories and made him proud to be a Relite or at least a crafter.

Deep in the Grik it was said was a powerful energy that had once been used to shape the world. But it had been sealed away because those who used it were unwise and became demons possessed by its power. All Adam knew for sure was that his father had found lots of magic symbols down there that were unique to the Relites. And were kept as much as possible a secret from outsiders. He knew who ever had made this place was amazing!

They had only walked a short way along the usual bland looking tunnels till they got to a passage way that headed down. Then to a staircase, he had been this far before and was looking forward to their expressions when they saw the caverns below for the first time. He was not wrong.

The small ones especially, Bran and Hilag were a sight to see. Their eyes almost popped like small fish.

The immensity of it all was staggering. They stood on a staircase that could be seen running along with similar ones around the whole length of the cavern. Down, down, down they went spiralling away into the darkness below. Illuminated by many Ore lights embedded into the rock face. It was like looking at an upside down night sky, a reflection on water.

In the middle of the cavern rising to the ceiling and down into the depths was a tower with bridges connecting it to the many spiralling staircases. It was of white stone, carved with intricate patterns.

His father had let him copy some of the figures while he worked on copying the many magic symbols found here.

He turned to the others “Well, you see I wasn’t lying was I. It’s the Grik. I hope you never doubt me again.” And they all sang in chorus they would never ever doubt him. Adam, their leader.