Unbound-Chapter Nine Hundred And Eighty Nine – 989

The sleek Manaship, although damaged, still flew just fine. It rose into the air with little more than a chiming hum, the sound of its Mana engines far quieter than the normal modern-day equivalent. The sleek Cenaran ship hung there in the late afternoon sky, silhouetted against the bright blue and the clouds of an approaching storm.

A skeleton crew manned the ship, hustling about adjusting lines and securing their placement amid the wide deck. Captain Loquis stood at the helm, visible from the balcony where Felix stood. Only a few would fly the ship as they left the city. It would be a longer trip for them than any others, and they couldn't part with too many of their soldiers.

Thankfully, Loquis was more than willing to lead the contingent southeast, headed towards the jungles of Jaast ahead of them. The man was, of course, an Exemplar for Felix's Void Nexus Skill, which allowed him to open the Dark Passages without Felix present. At one point, opening it wide enough to admit a single Manaship would have been impossible—now, however, with all of the bonuses and Authority Felix accrued, it was a simple task.

Still, Loquis nervously glanced over his shoulder. At first, Felix was confused, wondering if the captain was looking for some sort of instruction. Belatedly and feeling like a bit of an ass, Felix realized that Loquis wasn't even looking at him. At his side, Evie stood, hands wrapped around the oversized railing, staring intensely at the ship.

The captain lifted his hand in a half-wave, but she only frowned harder. Loquis cleared his throat and busied himself with the helm of the ship, tilting the wheel so the vessel turned ever so slightly south. He reached up, his mithril armor gleaming with a sudden red-gold light across the tips of his gauntlet. With a whisper Felix could hear in his Spirit more than ears, the captain spoke.

"Void Nexus - Hand of the Exemplar."

A rift split before the bow of the ship. An expanse of blue stars appeared, dashed across the rifts textureless black like the spread of a distant nebula. The rift itself was smooth, the edges almost rounded, as if the fabric of the world had simply been parted instead of torn. Felix tensed, worried for a moment that something might come through, but all was fine. The rift itself was more stable than others he'd felt, especially compared to the ones he’d opened on their way into Amaranth. With the Territory stabilized and in Felix's hands, not to mention in the heart of his new empire, his Authority over the Dark Passages was nearly absolute.

Surprised those dumb Trees didn’t interfere, Pit squawked at him from a nearby roof.

Felix had entertained a similar thought. He was happy to be wrong.

With a single, barked command, the ship glided forward, entering smoothly through the rift and vanishing as it sealed behind them. Little more than a burst of wind remained, and its hot caress hit Felix and Evie dead on as birds chirped into the afternoon sky.

Evie hunched forward, leaning against the railing hard enough that the stone started to crack. She watched the spot the ship had vanished for a long while. "Does he gotta worry about that damn whale?"

"No," Felix admitted. "We took a look. There was no sign of it."

It had been the first of his concerns with opening a Dark Passage here, after the Elders’ potential shenanigans. Shortly after their war council, Ondine and Felix had split open the Corporeal Realm—not with Void Nexus, but Ondine’s Skill Corporeal Breach. It had cut a jagged hole directly into the Void, and Felix had Ondine more or less stick her head inside and look around. Felix himself had stood well away—putting any part of himself into the Void was as good as tossing chum out for sharks, an example that was almost entirely too literal.

Thankfully, it seemed the Whalemaw had abandoned the area—perhaps due to the restructuring of the Territory. Or maybe driving it up against the Desolation had hurt it enough to send it running.

He sighed. "The Dark Passages are more stable than ever. My Skill and Authority see to that. They’ll be fine."

"Better be," Evie muttered. It was clear the two of them cared for each other.

"Don't worry. Captain Loquis is a capable guy, and his team is strong too. That old Hobgoblin is a grandma, I’m pretty sure, and she’s a terror.” Felix patted Evie on the shoulder. “If that’s not enough, he'll meet up with the troops out of Gharion soon.”

“And then to the frontlines,” she muttered before pushing off the railing to stand up. “So we move now and get there first.”

“That’s the idea. The speed boost from my Skill will shorten their trip a lot, but it’s not gonna outperform the Shadowgates.”

Evie grunted in a very Harn-like manner and Felix gave her shoulder a final squeeze before letting go.

The ships out of Gharion had begun leaving too, according to Karys, each manned by just enough soldiers to keep the craft afloat. An Exemplar stood on each, opening their ways through the Dark Passages, but even with his Skill’s speed boosts they would take time to reach the jungles of Jaast. Moving an entire army across the Continent was difficult, and as much as he’d love to repeat their trick in Amaranth again, that was sadly a one time maneuver. It had taken him making a deal with the Grim Nightshade and sacrificing one of his precious Seeds of Remembered Light.

Felix wasn’t going to do either again if he could help it.

They would make it to Jaast in due time, as backup if nothing else. Felix glanced down, beyond the bannister and into the courtyard below. There, the Shadowgate was finally connected, swirling with dark power though not quite active. All around it, filling the courtyard and beyond, were orderly rows of his Legion, backed by the enormous bulk of the Risi, while Chimera lined the rooftops all around them like eager, hungry predators. At their head, gathered around the Shadowgate in a loose circle, were the other Unbound and his friends.

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Minus a few others, this was the heart of his army.

The Shadowgates would take care of the rest.

Evie leaped over the side, chains barely jangling as she floated gracefully down to the courtyard. Felix did the same, though his result was a lot different.

He plummeted to the courtyard like a boulder. He didn’t have any cool mass redistribution abilities like Evie, and Felix weighed a lot now—but he’d gotten good at this. Moments before landing, he pulled upon his Bond to the sky. Lightning flared in his grip, straight up into the heavens, slowing Felix to a near stop just as his heels touched down on the ancient cobbles.

Felix straightened his coat as Evie landed beside him and the assembled army turned their attention on them both. Everyone knew the plan, at least their part in it—the war meeting had ironed out most of those details with the commanding officers. It had taken time, of course, pushing them well into the afternoon and Felix chafed at the glacial pace.

He was done wasting time.

"Evie," he said, "get moving."

She gave one last look at the empty sky. "Legion! Asses in gear! We're marchin’."

The Shadowgate came to life. A subdued rush of displaced air rolled over everyone of them as darkness swirled, thick as pudding between the intricately carved boundaries of the gate. Evie strode through first, taking the First Talon with her. The Second, Third, Fifth, and Ninth Talons followed closely, while the Frost Giant Warriors and the Witches came after.

Felix hung in the back as his friends piled through the gate, followed by the Chimera, until it was just Vess, Felix, and his sister Gabby in an empty courtyard.

"Is this safe?" Gabby asked.

"It is. You just walk through," Vess told her. “And hold your breath, the first time. It helps.”

“Right.”

Gabby was huge, but even Wendell and the giants fit through easily. Next to the thickened shadow of the huge gate Gabby almost appeared tiny. Felix had always found that interesting about the artifacts—they weren’t sized for Humans or even the Nym.

With a tight inhale and several quick steps, his sister vanished through the dark.

Felix was left alone with Vess, who squeezed his hand tightly. Without another word, she passed through the gate, and Felix followed.

Immediately, his Perception was squeezed as sound and light poured over him in a cavalcade of sensation. Opalescent stone rose up to his boot, catching his stride with an almost sure grip as Felix stroded out of the Shadowgate and onto a covered platform. Columns framed the platform on all sides, holding up a flat roof carved with elaborate scenes depicting the landscape around Aeonis. It was one of many that littered this section of his Void Sanctuary, each boasting their own gate and carved scenery, though all of them were grayed out and inaccessible. As much as the place resembled a transit hub, this was merely a transition sequence through a streamlined liminal space. The Dark Passages, refined.

A sea of Legionnaires, giants, and Chimera was ahead of him, though they marched at double speed down wide steps leading to the main thoroughfare through his Mind Skill. Evie still led them, though she’d been joined by several of the Unbound, while Pit flew above them all. He was the one that actually knew the way, though he seemed distracted by the pale tenku that flew close at his side. Felix glanced at Vess, who was waiting for him at the rear, and smiled.

The procession of his small army was noticable, both on the streets and in the air where the Chimera looped in tight circles, but unlike a normal city this place was Felix’s alone. Which was why, after the first long steps from the gates, he was struck by how many people were there.

“What the hell is this?” he muttered.

The city of sweeping spires and beautiful opalescent buildings was filled to the brim with creatures. Ice Golems wrapped in chains were flanked by earth-crusted Delven bearing bright bronze daggers at their hips. Minotaurs moved in what could only be described as herds through the city, while winged Sylphaens and tiny Wyrmlings flitted in the sky between the Chimeras. Kobolds darted back and forth, clambering over steps as they chased one another with bows and sharp sickles. Felix even saw a few Therans, their antlers reaching above the crowds to mark their places almost as distinctly as the Minotaurs.

Every time Felix had entered his Void Sanctuary, it felt like something was different. This, however, was a wild change. Each of the figures roaming about were reflections of his Links with his closest friends—he’d encountered some of them before. Others were new, no doubt reflecting his expanding Links, but Felix had almost expected them. What he didn’t expect was the sheer volume of them all…nor how alive they seemed.

The figures entered and exited buildings that Felix had long thought were sealed shut, some carrying baskets and bags, while others hauled wagons and handcarts. Most surprising of all, many of them were talking.

As Felix passed, he listened in to a pair of Kobolds talking animatedly to a Minotaur. It was a strange, distant buzzing interspersed with vibrant bells in a way that morphed into a vaguely pleasant noise. He couldn't understand it, let alone parse even the vaguest of meanings.

Vess looked around, equally agog. "Do they truly live?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. They were quiet, all of his people, as they traversed quickly through the city toward the center, where his palace rose up against the bright blue sky. Perhaps it was because of the strange denizens around him, but it took a while before Felix felt anything amiss. As they neared the center of the Void Sanctuary, however, Felix felt it. A troubling sensation that slipped around the boundaries of his Skill, prowling at the edges of his awareness until he truly clocked it. A thrill of adrenaline rushed through him, eager heat accompanied by cold unease, followed swiftly by the smooth realization that he was in no immediate danger.

It wasn’t the Whalemaw. This was focused and intelligent. It watched him.

Beast.

The Reunion Calls, Scion. The words rumbled from the horizon, audible only to him, Felix knew. Hurry. Time Grows Short. The Gods Gather. The Destroyer Comes.

He'd heard that name before. The Elder had called the Ruin that, but the Echo of Noctis had called the Beast by the same moniker. Which one was it referring to?

Reunion, he sent towards the clear blue sky above. You've said that before. What are you talking about?What is calling to reunite? The gods?

No.

Lightning flashed across the clear blue sky and the horizon darkened. Ahead, the gates to his palace grounds opened.

What They Stole.