Uru's Third Temple Read online

  Sift entered the tunnel, and Ruwen stood as Sift approached. Lylan stayed at the entrance next to Nak, both of them scanning the cavern.

  “Hamma, you really are an excellent healer,” Sift said, looking down at Juva, who now appeared whole.

  Hamma shook her head. “I didn’t do anything, and he’s still in two pieces. Just the edges have mended. If he continues to heal at this rate, he might walk in an hour.”

  “Well?” Ruwen asked.

  “There’s an easy way and a hard way,” Sift said.

  “What’s the difference?”

  “If you want to help the screamer or not.”

  “You think Slib is still alive?”

  Sift shrugged and glanced at Juva. “I am not sure how to tell here.”

  “And the easy way?” Ruwen asked.

  Sift looked at Ruwen. “There is nothing between us and the exit.”

  Ruwen sighed. Slib had been someone Ruwen had spent years hating. But Ruwen had changed immensely since his Ascendancy. Slib didn’t matter anymore. Ruwen’s problems were thousands of times greater than a school bully. Like Sift said, you died like you lived. And Slib had been a horrible person. He deserved to reap what he’d sown.

  Ruwen looked down at House Captain Juva. The man locked gazes with Ruwen but didn’t speak.

  “If you were in my boots, what would you do?” Ruwen asked Juva.

  Juva squeezed his eyes shut for a few seconds and then looked at Ruwen again. “I’d leave you.”

  Ruwen nodded. “I know.”

  He glanced at Hamma, but she remained quiet, waiting to see what he would do. And he knew what he wanted to do. He wanted to leave them both here. To suffer and die like they had left Sift to die on the street in Deepwell. They deserved it.

  Ruwen also knew as a Champion his power would grow far beyond what was normal. He could already feel it, like he stood on the brink of something vast and terrifying. And how a person wielded power said a lot about them. Maybe even defined them.

  And he didn’t want to be the type of person who left people to die.

  Ruwen sighed and looked at Sift. “Maybe this time will be different?”

  Sift raised his hand and signaled in Shade Speak. Told. You. Hard.

  Ruwen thought Sift had signaled him, but then he saw Lylan respond from the end of the tunnel.

  What? He. Idiot. Lylan signed back to Sift.

  Ruwen and Sift both signaled back at the same time. And for once, their responses matched.

  Agreed.

  Chapter 2

  “Thank you,” Juva whispered.

  Ruwen stared down at the injured man, his emotions still roiling. Hamma stood, and Ruwen focused on her.

  Hamma placed her hand over Ruwen’s heart. “Helping Slib was a good choice.”

  Ruwen placed a hand over Hamma’s. Her approval made him feel better, but he still worried he’d made a mistake. “Time will tell.”

  “We need a plan,” Sift said, and then looked down at his waist. “I remember.”

  Ruwen and Hamma dropped their hands and turned to face Sift.

  “You can hear Io here?” Ruwen asked.

  Sift looked confused. “Why wouldn’t I?”

  Ruwen discarded the first three things that came to mind. Insulting Sift would only lead to bickering. Io, a sentient dagger who loved to tell stories, had once belonged to Uru before she gave it to Kysandra. Ky had let Sift borrow the blade since Sift loved Io’s stories.

  “What is Io saying?” Ruwen asked.

  “Io says it’s dangerous for him here,” Sift said.

  Io, like Rami, was probably indestructible in the Material Realm, so being vulnerable to death might be an unfamiliar feeling for Io. “Give me a second, I want to talk with Rami.”

  Is that true for you, too? Can you be injured here? Ruwen asked Rami.

  Yes. Io and I are mostly Spirit, and we will be a target for those that feed on Spirit here.

  How many things do that?

  Everything.

  Ruwen thought about the bright ball of Spirit his clothes hid.

  That could be a problem, Ruwen said.

  I know. You will need to do some Condensing before we leave this dungeon. You are dissipating and will be easy to track as you are.

  What about Io?

  After you and I, he has the densest Spirit here. He will be a target, too.

  Can you talk to him? Maybe he knows something that will help us.

  I can try. Press him tightly against your ear. We should be able to communicate with vibrations.

  Speaking of communicating, I just used Shade Speak even though I thought abilities and spells don’t work here.

  They don’t. Hey You doesn’t work in real time. The first time you encounter a new language, Hey You unlocks that language in your mind. Or at least the portion of the language appropriate for Hey You’s level. The same holds true of your Observer’s Mimic ability. Anything you’ve already mimicked would still be useable.

  Thanks. Not being able to learn unknown languages was the least of his worries, but it still made him feel better that he could use Shade Speak and communicate with Fractal.

  Ruwen pointed at Sift’s waist. “Can I borrow Io for a minute?”

  Sift pulled Io from the sheath, and Ruwen squinted. While Io didn’t give off much light, the intensity of the light hurt Ruwen’s eyes like he had glanced at the sun. The light had a blue tinge in the shades of grey world around them.

  Ruwen took the dagger and pressed it against the right side of his head.

  Do I need to remove the headwraps? Ruwen asked.

  Let me see.

  Rami vibrated, and Ruwen resisted the urge to rub at the itchy feeling. Ruwen didn’t feel any vibrations from Io, but the ones from Rami continued for almost thirty seconds before she went still.

  Io really likes to talk, Rami said.

  So you could communicate with him?

  Just the last two thousand years of his life.

  Ruwen couldn’t tell if that was a joke or not. Did you learn anything valuable?

  Rami didn’t respond.

  Rami? Is everything okay?

  Rami’s voice was like a whisper in Ruwen’s mind. I love knowledge and hate secrets. I am soulbound to you, and I want nothing but the best for both of us.

  Thank you. But why are you telling me this?

  Because Io has been here before.

  He has? Well, isn’t that good? I should have known Ky would have been here.

  It wasn’t with Kysandra. Uru brought him.

  Ruwen flashed back to the first time he’d met Blapy. He’d just finished the scale quest Killer Recipes for the Busy Shade on level one. Blapy had revealed the dagger had originally belonged to Uru. Ruwen had even figured out that Io couldn’t talk to them about his time with the goddess directly. Sift and Ruwen had meant to ask Io yes and no questions to find out more, but had never gotten the chance. Anxiety crept into Ruwen’s thoughts.

  I thought Io couldn’t talk about his time with Uru, Ruwen said.

  He can’t. I read his memories.

  What did you find?

  Rami remained quiet, and this time Ruwen didn’t rush her.

  Io isn’t the only one who has been here before, Rami said.

  The anxiety inside Ruwen grew. What are you not telling me?

  You have been here before. Twice.

  Ruwen wavered on his feet, and Sift quickly grabbed his shoulders to steady him. Sift took Io and sheathed the dagger. He held Ruwen’s head and locked eyes with him.

  “Are you okay?” Sift asked. “Sit down until you get your balance back.”

  Ruwen sat. That is impossible. I would have remembered.

  You were too young.

  Ruwen’s thoughts scattered as a realization exploded in his thoughts. My parents.

  Yes, they were with you.

  They were helping Uru.

  Yes.

  Do you know if they’re alive? Ruwen asked, revealing his greates
t fear.

  Io doesn’t know. I don’t either.

  What were we doing here?

  We have reached the crux. I’m asking you to trust me. There is valuable information I can share, but the details I want to save until we are safely out of this Realm.

  Why?

  Because you overthink, and the details will paralyze your mind. You need to work on getting your friends to safety.

  At the mention of Ruwen’s friends, his thoughts refocused, and he pushed the anxiety away. Yes, I owe them that. Fine, I trust you, Rami. Tell me what I need to know right now.

  A warm sensation filled Ruwen’s mind and traveled down into his chest.

  That was a hug, Rami said. Thank you for trusting me.

  Hamma squatted down in front of Ruwen. “What’s going on?”

  “I’m okay,” Ruwen said. “I’ll be ready in a second.”

  Okay. Tell me, Ruwen said.

  Your Meridians and their connections to your center must not be severed. It is vital that you protect them.

  Ruwen looked over at Juva. That might be difficult.

  The time you spent Fortifying your body to Copper and Silver will help.

  I hope so.

  Only now do I truly appreciate your importance. I already knew you needed to Condense the Spirit in your center, but to make it to the Iris without damaging your Meridians or their paths, you need to advance your Cultivation Stage, too.

  I’m stuck at nineteen.

  I know. Level twenty will provide options you desperately need.

  So you want us to stay in the dungeon.

  Staying will not be popular, but none of you are prepared for the creatures I’ve seen in Io’s memories.

  The mention of memories made him think of his first moments with Rami, and how when she had absorbed his life, many forgotten memories had resurfaced. When we bonded, I thought you went through all my memories. Why didn’t you know I’d been here before?

  Because your memories hadn’t formed yet.

  Ruwen thought about what that meant. Are you saying I was a baby?

  Details later. Remember?

  Ruwen sighed. Okay. Later.

  The good news is Io has agreed to help. The denseness of his Spirit will be a potent weapon.

  Ruwen stood.

  “Finished daydreaming?” Sift asked.

  “Nightmare is closer,” Ruwen said. “Hamma, will you stay and protect Juva?”

  Hamma removed the Staff of Chimes from the harness on her back and swung it in a circle, but it didn’t make any sound. She looked at it and frowned.

  “Magic weapons don’t work either?” Ruwen asked.

  Ruwen removed the Baton of a Thousand Uses from his right hip and tried to open the shovel, but nothing would fold out. The baton needed magic to function. He slapped the baton against his hand in frustration, and a loud clang echoed down the tunnel. Ruwen winced and immediately looked up at the tunnel entrance.

  Lylan and Nak both stepped out of the cavern and into the tunnel.

  Lylan signaled in Shade Speak. Target. Alerted.

  Chapter 3

  Ruwen cursed, returned the baton to his belt, and jogged with Sift up to Lylan.

  “We have about twenty seconds before it arrives,” Lylan said.

  “And we don’t want to fight in the tunnel,” Sift said.

  Ruwen sighed. “Right, let's take the fight into the cavern. Nak and I will get its attention, and you two try to take it out from behind.”

  Sift and Lylan nodded, and Ruwen turned to Nak. “Follow me.”

  Ruwen sprinted into the cavern. After ten seconds, he stopped and looked back toward the tunnel. Sift and Lylan still crouched there, and Ruwen turned to face what had ripped Juva in half.

  The creature had looked large when hunched over Slib, but now that it stood up straight, Ruwen forced his panic down. The creature vaguely reminded him of an eight-foot wolverine with a beaver’s tail. Instead of teeth, it had a pair of worm-like tubes that moved independently from each other. At the bottom of each wrist, it had a hook that angled toward it. If it could get that hook into its prey and pull, it would split them like opening a zipper. On the opposite side, at the top of its forearm, a large spike emerged like an angled sword.

  As horrifying as all that looked, Ruwen focused on the light that filled the wolverine’s chest and the two smaller orbs of light: one in its right leg, just above the knee, and the other in its left arm between the shoulder and elbow. A pair of glowing lines ran between each orb and the light in the wolverine’s chest.

  No information appeared over the wolverine’s head, so Ruwen didn’t know its level. The creature stuck its nose toward Ruwen, and the teeth-tubes went crazy, almost like they were trying to jerk the wolverine forward. The creature leaned forward, and Ruwen tensed in case the wolverine dashed or leaped at him.

  Instead, the smaller orb just above the wolverine’s right knee flared, and a moment later the stone under Ruwen flowed up and over his feet and calves, locking him in place. Nak, to Ruwen’s right, suffered the same fate.

  Ruwen realized the wolverine had just cast a spell and used the stone under their feet to root them. And another realization struck him. The right leg held the Stone Meridian, the exact orb of light that had flared on the wolverine as the root had triggered.

  The wolverine had cast a spell with Spirit.

  The orb of light inside the wolverine’s left bicep brightened for a moment, and a powerful blast of air radiated out from the creature. Ruwen’s feet, locked to the ground by the root, kept him from falling to the ground. Next to him, Nak leaned forward to lessen the force of the air. The tempest threw Sift and Lylan backward and they struck the wall of the cavern with loud thumps.

  Sneaking up on the creature looked like it would be difficult.

  Spirit from the wolverine’s center snaked through its arms and into the sharp hooks under its wrists. The wolverine’s Air Meridian pulsed again as it jumped, and it appeared between Ruwen and Nak in a blink. The wolverine grabbed them, and Ruwen could feel the pressure of the glowing hook against his ribs.

  The wolverine jumped forward again, attempting to drag the hooks across their torsos. This attack would tear the target in half, just like Juva. Ruwen’s arms were at his side, and he jerked them upward to trap the wolverine’s arm and stop it from ripping him in two.

  As the wolverine leaped away, Ruwen squeezed the arm against his chest, and the creature’s momentum yanked Ruwen backward. The stone encasing his feet shattered and Ruwen landed on his back. Rami had just told him that preserving the connections to his Meridians was critical, and this first attack might sever them all.

  A groan of pain from Nak mixed with a loud slapping sound from behind Ruwen. He still clutched the wolverine’s arm, and he released it as he rolled to his left. Jumping to his feet, he looked down to find the arm remained stuck to him. The glowing barb had sunk an inch into his skin.

  Ruwen pulled at the arm in disgust, trying to get it off his body. After a moment of resistance, the arm separated below the wrist and snapped free. Now Ruwen held the wolverine’s arm, and its hand remained on his side, the wrist hook still embedded between his ribs.

  The slapping sounds grew louder, and as shocked as Ruwen felt at holding the wolverine’s arm, he forced himself to focus on his surroundings. Nak’s body had been severed. His bottom half, still locked in place by the root, remained stationary. But Nak’s top half crawled toward the wolverine.

  The wet noises came from the wolverine as the mouth tubes thrashed wildly, slapping the cheeks and gums of the creature. It crouched but didn’t jump at Ruwen. Spirit escaped like white smoke from the shoulder where its arm should be. He thought it looked confused.

  A confusion Ruwen shared. The creature's attack had only slightly damaged Ruwen but had destroyed Nak. In addition, Ruwen had held tightly enough to the wolverine’s arm to rip it from the creature’s body, and his ankles hadn’t snapped when jerked from the stone root.

&nbs
p; Ruwen held the wolverine’s arm in his left hand and removed the wrist-hook from his side. The hook still glowed. The arm Ruwen held had a spike protruding from it, but it hadn’t been filled with Spirit like the hook. Keeping an eye on the wolverine, Ruwen pushed the spike into his right arm to test it. As he suspected, the spike didn’t penetrate his skin, and as he applied more pressure, it warped. While the spike didn’t feel soft, it didn’t have the hardness the hook possessed.

  Without taking his eyes off the wolverine, Ruwen spoke. “Nak, crawl back to your feet.”

  “That is a really weird thing to say,” Sift said as he joined Ruwen.

  “This is a weird place,” Ruwen said.

  “It’s deciding if it should flee,” Lylan said, staring at the wolverine. “Are we going to let it?”

  Ruwen sighed. “I don’t know, but I think I figured something out.”

  Ruwen snapped the sword-spike off the forearm and handed the arm to Lylan. He gave the sword-spike to Sift.

  “Stick that in your heart,” Ruwen said to Sift.

  “And I didn’t think this could get any stranger,” Lylan said.

  Sift lifted his shirt and placed the spike against his chest.

  “And you’re just going to do it?” Lylan said, her voice rising.

  Sift shrugged. “Juva is literally in pieces and still alive, this will probably be okay.”

  Lylan watched the wolverine, who continued to study them. Ruwen winced as Sift, using his chin to hold his shirt against his neck, jabbed the spike into his chest. All Sift’s organs appeared fuzzy in his torso, but his heart looked completely defined.

  “It takes some pressure,” Sift said. “But it eventually breaks through my skin. When it gets to my heart though, the spike smooshes.”

  “Smooshes?” Lylan asked, still staring at the wolverine. “Is that even a word?”

  “You should hear the words Ruwen makes up,” Sift replied.

  Ruwen pulled the spike out of Sift’s chest. “I don’t make them up.”

  Sift rubbed at the bloodless hole in his chest, winced in pain, and then let his shirt drop. “What was that about?