Chapter 74

The main lobby of Climber’s Rest was completely empty. Not a single Climber was present and seeing that made my heart sink. Just as I’d expected, they were all already gone for the day, climbing the tower or taking on jobs of their own. Meaning, there was no one around to help with the Jungle Titan. If that creature wasn’t dealt with today, would it simply disappear tomorrow? Or would it linger, keeping the Hunters from entering the jungle until it was slain? More importantly, would it leave the jungle, and try to kill everyone on the floor? Had the others gotten out?

“Back so soon?” A sweet voice said, drawing me from my thoughts. Alexandra was there, suddenly, at her station behind the guild counter. Had she been there when we walked in?

“We’ve got an urgent quest to post.” Alax said as we moved quickly across the large open space to reach her.

“Oh, do you?” She flipped the book before her open, scanning it quickly. “Let’s see. You were both are assigned to the Hutner’s Guild today. Hunting down gorillas…” She made a clicking sound with her tongue and closed the book. “Did one of you kill a baby?”

I didn’t even have to look at Alax to know his face was red. The Overseer’s reaction had been the same as Pren’s. Disappointment and disbelief.

“That…that’s not important right now.” Alax mumbled, trying to move past the subject. “What matters is we need to post an Emergency Rank-D job for the Hunters Guild.”

“To subdue the Jungle Titan.” Alexandra finished. “Because someone killed a baby gorilla, on purpose might I add, and angered the Tower.” She smiled coolly at Alax, and I could swear a few of her teeth looked especially pointed. “So, why’d you do it?”

“I, that,” he looked at me for help. I shook my head. This was his battle. He was the one who’d murdered a baby gorilla, not me. This was all him. “I was mad at the gorillas.” Alax let out a defeated sigh, his voice monotone. “I was killed by one during the Reaping, and it made me hold a grudge. When I saw them, well, I…”

“I understand,” she cut him off, slamming her massive book shut. “And, I suppose its better you learn this lesson now, when its somewhat harmless.” She looked at me, “assuming, everyone is alright?”

“As far as we know.” I said, “our hunter got out safe, and the others were being called out of the jungle. We went back in to distract the Jungle Titan to buy them time.”

Alexandra raised an eyebrow at me, “why did you go with him?” She pointed at Alax, “he was the one with the innocent blood on his hands.”

“I didn’t want him to have to do it alone.” I replied truthfully. “After what he’d been through, I figured he needed, well,” I glanced at Alax, “he needed a friend.”

Alexandra’s smile crept larger on her face. “Isn’t that sweet. Early comradery, budding bonds. I love seeing those amongst my new Climbers. It bodes well for your future endeavors if you can keep growing them.” A strange look crossed her face for a moment, and her tone shifted slightly. “Teams can climb higher, faster, after all.”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“About the job,” Alax said hesitantly, “we were told to rush back here and post it as soon as we resurrected.”

“Indeed, you were. Pren’s an extremely competent Hunter. She makes crack decisions under pressure too. Of all the Hunters I’ve seen over time; she’s got the most potential. And, while your actions were less than ideal,” she shook her head at Alax in an admonishing way, “baby-killer,” she said, a smile playing across her lips, “I happen to know there’s a Climber available to deal with the problem you’ve created.”

“Just one?” I asked, thinking about the Jungle Titan. That thing had been monstrous. It had turned the very jungle floor to quicksand. It could uproot trees like they were nothing. I couldn’t fathom a single Climber being able to do much against it.

“One is enough for the Jungle Titan.” She said simply, “as much as it pains me to say it, this isn’t a rare occurrence. Especially when new Climbers join our ranks. This isn’t the first nor the last time the Jungle Titan will unearth itself. And it’s not the only creature of its kind. The Tower shows its displeasure to Climbers in many ways, just as it also rewards those who please it. Learning both what it likes, and dislikes, are as much a part of what being a Climber is, as is protecting those without the Tower’s Blessing, and climbing the Tower itself.”

“Shouldn’t a warning be posted about such things?” I asked, thinking about how dangerous the Jungle Titan had been. “The Hunters could have died.”

“It’s, not that simple,” for the first time since I’d met her, Alexandra’s tone sounded… sad? Displeased. Remorseful? “There are rules, methods, expectations that everyone must abide by no matter how great their power, nor what their intentions may be.” She looked past us, her eyes losing focus, as if she were looking at something from another time, or place. “We’ve all roles to play, plain and simple. And if you fight against it too hard or press your luck too much… the Tower will find a way to punish you.”

I felt that same uncomfortable shiver between my shoulder blades as she spoke. A feeling of unease, of danger in the shadows. There was more going on around here. Much more. And there was no doubt about it, the Tower itself was at the very center of it. That, at the very least, was the only piece of all of this that made sense. After all, without the Tower, none of us would be here. We couldn’t survive without the Tower. It gave us everything. But, it seemed, there was even more to that. I was starting to get the feeling that the Tower itself was much more active, much more present, in a way that I had never actually considered. One thing was clear though. I didn’t want to get on the Tower’s bad side.

“Now then,” Alexandra was looking once more at us, her smile back on her face. “Let’s go wake the Climber who will clean up after your little murderous mess, shall we?”

Before we could say anything, Alexandra’s body glowed red. The floor beneath us swirled with strange markings, and then, a moment later, we were no longer standing at the Overseer’s desk. We were outside a door. On which floor, I had no idea. Alexandra was beside us, a red glow slowly leaving her eyes, as she raised a hand towards the door. She knocked, once, with enough force to partially crack the door. From within, a startled yell, curse, and slam.

Another knock, and more of the door cracked.

“I’m awake.” A female voice called from within. “What do you want Alex?”

“I’ve a quest for you to do,” Alexandra replied sweetly.

“It’s my day off,” the voice replied, though I could hear it getting closer to the door. “Go get someone else.”

“It’s the Jungle Titan.” Alexandra said, “but if you want, I can-“

The door swung open and shattered to pieces from the force. A woman, nearly seven foot in height, towered over us. She was dressed in some sort of hide armor, though I didn’t recognize any of the fur patterns. She was wearing an eyepatch, from beneath which a massive scar ran. Half her head was shaved, while the other half had a dirty-blonde hair, hanging down to her shoulders.

“Why didn’t you say so sooner,” the woman said. “Let’s get to it.”