Yggdrasil Fallen, LitRPG Series

Book 1, Part 2: Obsidian

Chapter 32: Dreams

Jeff was sitting at the local bar, where he and Trinity were enjoying a few after hike cocktails. It had become the new normal for them to finish cleaning the café then disappear into the mountains for an afternoon of hiking with whoever they could coax in. They would wrap it all up with a drink at their favorite watering hole, which conveniently was located just at the bottom of his apartment building, with the friends who’d joined them on the afternoon adventures. It was a simple life, but they greatly enjoyed bonding in the late spring/early summer sun. It had been a month now since Jeff had last seen Andre, and he couldn’t help but feel unease at his sudden disappearance. As long as he’d known him it common for him to vanish a couple of days, only to turn up dirty, smelling like the backside of a donkey but having more than a few good stories to share about his adventures. Though, typically even those times were carefully planned multiday solo hikes, he’d always check back in with the few people he knew in the area.

“Hey, you about ready to get outta here?” Trinity’s whimsically singsong voice broke through Jeffs worried haze.

“Maybe, I’m kinda hungry and don’t have jackshit upstairs in my fridge to cook. Wanna just grab a couple burgers and fries here before we head up to my place?” The building Jeff lived in, back in its heyday was originally one of the first high end ski resort lodges, complete with oversized lofted rooms, fitness facilities, shops, in building dining and bar: just about everything you would expect from a modern hotel, only a bit more antiquated. The once fabulous resort lodge had seen better days, having been converted into monthly rentals/apartment lodging for anyone they could entice into the aging units; while not the prettiest, they were affordable with a good bar adjacent: exactly what Jeff loved.

“That actually sounds really good! Another round then?” Trinity responded to Jeff, raising her hand to the bar tender, signaling another round. The bartender nodded to her and began pouring the beers.

“Could we also get a couple menus? We are getting quite hungry, and this lazy fuck doesn’t feel like satisfying me… think that’s something you could help with?” Her playful eyes flitted between Jeff and the bartender, who shot them both a mischievous grin.

“Only if Jeff doesn’t plan to beat my ass bloody in the alley out back!” He laughed in response to her mild, passive flirtations. He was one of newer editions to their rapidly growing friend group and had in fact been out with them on several of their afternoon excursions.

“Nah brah, you know I got ya back!” Jeff laughed in response to their exchange. With a look of mock hurt on her face, Trinity let her face slide into her hand, a big-lipped pout playing to his emotions hard.

“Though, uhh… I might hafta beat your ass if you try and make a move on my girl” he continued with false bravado. She continued to stare him down, her lower lip stuck out in an exaggerated pout.

“Awwwww Trinity, what do ya want from me! Im just a fuckin dumbass sittin here!.” He paused for a moment considering the situation, when he remembered something.

“Right! Dontchu worry, I picked you up an extra-large bag of your favorite green, was saving it as a surprise for when we got back to the apartment this evening.” Her eyes brightened, the façade fading, replaced with an overlarge dopey grin.

“So whatcha wanna eat?” Jeff continued as a new set of beers were placed in front of them, their old empty glasses whisked away.

“Iiiiiii dunnnnnoooooo!” She responded in a sing song voice.

“Whaaat are yooouuuu having?”

Jeff rolled his eyes, they often had a quick meal here, so having not even looked at the menu he knew what he wanted:

“Oh common, not this game again tonight! He playfully poked at her, why not get your favorite?”

“I’m not feeling like hummus tonight.” She responded, pouting.

“Maybe I’ll just snack off whatever you order, I’m not feeling the hungriest anyways.” Jeff heaved a deep sigh, looking across the bar at his friend.

“It drives me absolutely fucking insane when she eats my meal… like… im hungry too! Just lemme eat…We’ll have 2 cheeseburgers deluxe, Medium temp with fries... extra if you can swing it. I’ll also take a double of Jack.” Jeff ordered with a sly wink. The bartender cracked a wry smile giving Jeff a knowing nod, turned to put the order in at the terminal behind him. After which he turned to grab a highball glass and poured a very generous “double” of whiskey before setting down on the bar in front of Jeff, next to his beer.

“Sooooo, you’re not planning on getting toooo messed up are ya? I was kinda hoping we could have a bit-o-fun tonight… its sooooooooo nice out, and your balcony is kinda hidden…” Trinity playfully teased as Jeff threw back the hearty glass of booze.

“I think ill be just fine for whatever you’ve got planned.” He laughed as the bartender returned with a pair of baskets overflowing with golden seasoned French fries and their burgers.

“Holy shit bro, that was absurdly fast. You got one of those star trek food synthesizers back there or something?!” Jeff asked.

“Dude… its been 20 minutes… do I need to cut you off?” Came the bartender’s response.

“Naw man, I’m good! Must be I’m enjoying time with my lady so much times just flying!” Jeff said, casting a sidelong glance at Trinity. They both dug into their meals with voracious haste, quickly consuming everything but a few fries each; Trinity beating Jeff out by a large margin in clearing her plate.

“Hoooooo that was delicious!” she moaned, mopping up the last bit of the burger’s secret sauce with the last few of her fries.

“I think it’s about time to veg out on the couch to some dumb show and crash early!” Trinity said, eyeing Jeff like a tasty dessert. She had been spending most of her nights at Jeff’s apartment, with it being a short drive to their workplace, with a conveniently located restaurant/bar and the grocery store right across the road it just made sense, at least for now.

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“Sounds like a good plan to me, though I may hang out on the balcony for a while after the sun fully sets, supposed to be a meteor shower tonight, I’d love to at least watch for a while; missed the last several and I’ve heard they’re quite the sight to behold so far away from the lights of the city.” Jeff responded, playfully, while chewing on the last bit of his burger.

“OH YEAH! That’s tonight! I’ll probably join ya then!” Her eyes lit up again at the prospect of enjoying the cool night air, “watching” the starlit sky. Their bartender wandered over to them, carrying the familiar black pleather fold with the white ticket tape hanging out the top:

“Whenever you are ready to settle up, I did get the happy hour discounts on there for you before it ended.” He hinted slyly to Jeff, who returned a knowing wink. Jeff paid, leaving quite the hefty tip for the minimal price displayed on the receipt. Both he and Trinity stood, stretching their happy bodies and souls before making their way towards the exit and elevator up.

Jeff and Trinity quickly passed through his relatively small abode and quickly found themselves sprawled out on an oversized beanbag chair they had drug out onto the balcony. The faint glow of the town’s lights was easily dulled by the vast starlit ebony velvet backed sky that sparkled like a full jewelers tray cast in a focused backlight.

“Man, I really don’t miss the city on nights like this.” Trinity breathed, the sharp pine of the night air wafting through the chill air.

“I’m cold, get your fuzzy ass over here.” She snuggled closer to Jeff, the thin blanket pulled tightly around them both.

“Hey, look! Right there!” Jeff pointed to a series of lights streaking across the sky.

“Looks like we are in fact in for a nice little light show!” He pulled her closer, the faint scent of coconut from her shampoo filling his nose as he relaxed deeper into the surprisingly comfortable chair. A quiet snore rose from her, as her chest rose and fell in a smooth, rhythmic evenly paced pattern. Jeff turned his eyes back skywards as several more lights streaked across the seemingly vast emptiness. He closed his tired eyes, listening to the distant babble of the river and hooting of several owls on their nightly hunt.

“Our chosen ascended has fallen, he was unfortunate enough to land himself in the world we trapped the Warlord in. Unfortunately, it would seem the series of events that transpired from his arrival there has allowed it to make an escape. We have no idea where it has gone, how it got out or how we are going to find it.” A brusque, angry sounding feminine voice rang out, seeming to surround Jeff. Though he lay comfortably, he could no longer feel the plush beanbag or the gentle embrace of his partner. He felt like he was floating in a warm bath, hot enough to be comfortable: completely surrounded in tension melting haze.

“What?! How is that even possible?” A shrill voice rang out in response.

“We are uncertain, all we know for sure is Tione and Phione have both felt exactly what I have felt. We can no longer feel his soul through our marks; he has vanished entirely.”

“Andastrea, can you really be so sure then that he has in fact been slain and hasn’t just found himself in another one of the Ascendeds’ hide-e-holes?” The first voice shot back to the second.

“Yes, unfortunately we can be certain of his death. While we do not know where his soul ended up, we know for sure his life was swiftly snuffed out upon his encounter with the Warlord. He never stood a chance against the leader of the 4. The Beastmaster, maybe… but the Warlord was an absolute death sentence. It’s truly a shame he never learned to control that interesting ability of his.”

“Is there anything we can do to bring him back? Maybe coax his soul into another body?” A third, calming almost watery voice interjected into the conversation.

“Even if we knew where his soul ended up, that is something beyond our abilities to achieve. Not even a concerted effort on the parts of all 9 sisters could achieve the re-seeding of an Ascended’s soul, especially one as powerful as his.” The second voice responded after a brief pause.

“So, what is our next move then? Do we just wait until another ascended arises from that realm, or do we just abandon it, withdraw our respective energies, and allow it to disconnect from the greater tree?” The first voice spoke softly.

“I mean, the Beastmaster has already taken residence; so, it’s a fair assumption that the Warlord has made that realm its next target.” It continued.

“Andre may be dead, but I don’t believe it is quite yet time for us to abandon this realm, some hope can be held that another will rise. Though, with two of the Supreme Alpha Primes likely targeting the same realm, a newborn Ascended wouldn’t even be able to draw their first breath before their inevitable slaughter. He had the most potential of any I’ve personally marked in several millennia, and to be so swiftly cut down... perhaps we should call a vote.” The second voice spoke faltering several times, seemingly weighing the severity of their own words.

Jeff froze, he couldn’t process what he was hearing while floating in the inky blackness, while he was certain it was all a dream, he felt a trepidation stirring deep in his soul. He attempted to open his eyes, to break the spell he’d found himself caste in but was unable to even move his hands much less open his eyes.

“Andre’s…he… he’s dead….? What did they call him… an… ascended? What the actual fuck is going on here?!” Jeff’s mind was racing with everything he’d just overheard.

“Sisters, I believe it is time for us to call a vote of abandonment.” The second voice spoke out again.

“Vote of abandonment, wait… this really does have to be a fucking dream. It sounds like whoever these women perceive themselves to be, are voting to abandon our world? Beastmaster… Warlord… Alpha whosit-whatsits?” Jeff struggled to breathe, everything he was overhearing, while it didn’t make any sense to him at all had left him a soul crushing sense of deep-rooted dread.

A new, deeply sinister sounding voice spoke out before the others could continue their conversation.

“Sisters, I do believe that before we continue our conversation, we should rid ourselves of the eavesdropper. How you all have failed to notice it, I do not know. But before we decide this realms fate, we should get rid of the ears it has supplanted.”

“Ah, Caliostropa is correct. It would seem that we do in fact have an unwanted set of ears listening in on tonight’s emergency meeting.” The second voice calmly spoke out.

“Let us be rid of them.” A bright flash of light, followed by an immense pressure surrounded Jeff seemingly swallowing him into a brilliant void.

Jeff shot bolt upright dripping cold sweat and gasping for breath. The faintest hints of dawn were beginning to touch the edges of the mountains on the horizon. Trinity stirred next to him, her breath creating gentle wisps in the cold air.

“Oh, it would seem we fell asleep out here watching the star shower.” She propped herself up on her elbow, her sleepy blue eyes staring at him as he struggled to catch his breath.

“What’s going on Jeff? Are you okay?” Her focus sharpened at his obvious distress.

“Yeah, I’m fine… one hell of a freaky ass nightmare though… I think it involved Andre… it did nothing to ease my worries about him… if anything I’m now a lot more worried about him.” Jeff said, shaking his head as the once vivid “dream” faded from his mind.

“Eh, I know I never met the guy, but you made it sound like he’s pretty damn good at taking care of himself. I’m sure he’ll show up eventually. You want some coffee?” Trinity stood, her lithe form stretching in the very early morning light; his long shirt barely covering her scantily clad bottom half. Looking at her phone, she glanced back up at Jeff:

“Good thing the Café’s closed today, we’d already be crazy late! Hahahaha.” She laughed as she crossed through the sliding glass door and into his apartment.

“You goof, that’s why we got extra cozy away from our electronics last night. Yeah, coffee sounds amazing, especially since we must be ready for the hike up to the falls by 7. The rest of the group will be expecting us!” Jeff responded, doing his best to give an excited smile to his lovely companion. She turned to enter the apartment, pausing:

“Do you at least have stuff for breakfast, or are we going to have to wing that one too?”

“Hahahaha, yeah! I have bacon, sausage, eggs, toast, bagels… I may even have the required supplies to make pancakes if you want a solid carb load with a good protein load for the big hike today.”

“Good! Ill get coffee on, you work your magic on the griddle. I really don’t want to be late to the meetup, I’m really excited to see these falls you’ve been gushing on and on about.

Jeff nodded, rising to his feet.

“Yeah, absolutely!” He entered his apartment and began cooking, unable to shake the uneasy fear that had been planted in him by the prior nights’ dreams.