Chapter 18; And Now I Climb

Chapter 18; And now I climb

/ Gr’Erhin - The King’s Guesthouse.

A comfortable sleep. 

A comfortable environment.
A changed environment.

Adi Walkman lay resting on the lavish—unnecessarily large—king sized big in his quarter of the King’s Guesthouse, in the city of—well—King, in the North of Erhin: Gr’Erhin. Last night he’d enjoyed a comforting mug of ale before going to bed. During the night he dreamed alongside Olivia. She discussed his change of environment and something about how people may not be who they appear to be, or something along those lines. At the moment, Adi lay resting peacefully—so peacefully that you could imagine he wore a satisfied grin across his face.

Moments later, that grin was wiped right off his face.

Thud. Thud. Thud. The hard, careless knocks hit hard against the wooden door of his chamber. Waking up grumpy and groggy, Adi walked himself out of bed and to the door. 

‘Hello M'ro! A morning to you! We go because the King he call you eh?’ Biv said, nonchalantly.

Adi breathed deeply and moved on.

About a forty-eighth—fifteen minutes—or so later, the two men were on their way. Biv led Adi out of the Guesthouse and onto the beautiful, snowy roads of King. Just one or two guards followed behind, one of the King and one in green armour with a Crocodile emblazoned on his armour. A lovely breeze blew towards the two men as Biv led the way to a stable near the main house. He retrieved a horse and helped Adi up. Together they set off. There was something especially warming about the sound of a horse’s hooves on stone to Adi—a sound of nature that was lacking in the modern life of Earth today. A sound of nature that was absolutely beautiful and time-breaking for Adi to hear. 

Beautiful wisps of cloud formed over head, as a lovely—light to the eye—wiola shone up above the skies, reigning it’s enchanting spotlights upon the living beings crawling this land. 

‘It’s your first proper day in Gr’Erhin! I will show you around this beautiful town when I get the chance. To live here, you must understand the culture, understand the way of the people! There is so many—’

‘Sorry to interrupt, Biv, b-but where e-e-exactly are we g-going?’ 

‘The King is taking you to show you the townspeople’s favourite sport.’

‘W-which is?’

‘Wieldknocking.’

‘W-wieldknocking? Jesus—that’s a re-retarded name for a sport!’ 

‘Is not retarded! Is a great sport! You shall say.’

‘Say what?’

‘What you mean say what? With your eyes, M'ro! You will look with your eyes.’

Oh, he meant see.

About a half hour later or so, the two arrived outside a small stadium. It’s walls were mud brown—as if something built in the middle of the desert—and had a rather dystopian feel to it. Inside, however, was an entirely different story. As they entered, Adi got the full scale of just how gorgeous it was. Elegant seating stands were placed across the entire arena, a large ground in the middle comprised both grass and mud, in alternating patterns as if tilled according to the pattern of the sport being played, and finally, in the centre were the sportsman. Dressed in blue and red coloured cloaks, there were visibly two different teams, playing some complex game Adi didn’t understand. However, he did notice that Wielding was involved. Men were shooting guided rays of white light straight out of their palms. They were aiming for a different array of objects seemingly placed in a carefully constructed manner—some even in the hands of the opponent team’s players!

But all in all, it looked far too complicated for Adi to grasp.

‘W-What the hell is this, Biv?’

‘It is a very beautiful spor. Very complex, but once you understand, very intense.’

Adi looked to the stands and found King Tristan on the left, watching the game with keen eyes. He had his guards surrounding the private stand that he was in, alongside a few of—what Adi assumed—his other royal friends with whom he sat, snacked, and laughed with.

‘A-a-are we supposed to go say hello?’

‘Ya ya! We must go now. The King call for you.’ The two of them made their way into Tristan’s stand, as the clanging of swords, falling of objects and the Wielding of light sounded from the arena.

The men and women—both commoners and noblemen—watched intently, as the succession of this oddly complex carried on.

As Adi and Biv stopped at the entrance of the King’s stand, two guards armoured in blue stepped up, ‘Who are you?’

‘An old friend.’ Biv said, stepping forward. The guards quickly scurried aside, and a few ‘my lords’ were said. King Tristan turned around to see the two enter. He got up and smiled as Biv walked over to him.

He whispered something into his ear, Adi catching only a few words—something along the lines of ‘…taking care of him?’

‘Come!’ Tristan said excitedly, pointing a way for Adi. He quickly made his way to the King and bowed.

‘So, how was your first night in King?’ He said, whimpering slightly as he sat back down. A few servants came, offering Adi some refreshments and whatnot.

‘I-It was spent in a well night’s rest,’ Adi said, pausing, looking at Biv, who nodded back at him, ‘m-my King.’

‘Ah! You must see this,’ Tristan excitedly said, pointing at one of the sportsmen in the arena, ‘the Wieldknocker is now gunning for the final point. All he has to do is hit that apple on top of that man’s head. He’s the pawn.’

Adi understood that he was going to hit it off with a ray of light from his palm.

‘And i-if he misses?’ He asked, cracking his knuckles.

he slowly turned his head around and looked at Adi with a serious stare.

‘Nothing good.’ 

‘W-what? The risk of death is involved in this… this sport?’

‘Oh young child of Earth. Here, or anywhere other than your planet, it’s not a sport unless there is that risk.’ He said, rather patronisingly, treating Adi and his planet as if they were all children afraid of death. But then again, after his flashes yesterday, he did feel scared of death. First the three piles of ash with the glowing outline in his dreams, and then the flashes showing him death and disgrace all around a blurry canvas. He’d never felt his senses so strong. In fact, strangely, soaking in the environment around this world made him feel… connected, in a strange way, to everyone around him. But he didn’t fret. After all, this was the reason that Biv, and Tristan, wanted to see him in the first place, right? 

‘My King, I-I have a question to a—’

‘Ohh!’ The King cried out as the Wieldknocker shot his ray of light in the chasms of the pawn’s skull. A deep crack sounded as his legs tumbled like a hopeless beggar falling to the ground after being famished for days. A white layer began forming around the man’s entire body, as he lay dead.

Adi felt a bit shocked, but overcame it soon enough. As unnatural a sight this was to see, he’d seen worse in his dreams, so this didn’t shock him much after a moment or two.

‘And now he sleeps with the fishes.’ Adi proclaimed.

‘My friend, he no sleep with anyone. He dead.’ Biv said, scratching his head.

‘That’s what I meant. It’s j-just a line from a movie.’ Wait, he’s not going to know what a movie is. Oh, you idiot.

‘What is movie?’

‘That’s f-for another time Biv,’ Tristan said, ‘the game is over. I’m sorry you were only able to catch the last bit of the game, dear son of Earth. When I get the chance next, I’ll explain the antics of this sport entirely to you, and I’ll show you the best Wieldknocker in all of Gr’Erhin,’ He said, flaring his eyes,‘Rom Morien. A legend of our country.’

‘I’m sure he-he i-is a great talent, my king.’ 

Damn, I’m really getting a hang of this whole medieval lingo business. He thought, rather satisfied with himself.

A few hours later, they reached the King’s main palace. Biv accompanied Adi, while Tristan walked them around.

‘…and that one is an ancient relic from the time when Chronisc was sent to Erhin from Layonas. He didn’t forget to leave a little… gift for his former comrade.’ The King explained to Adi, pointing at a relic that looked not much more than a trinket.

The three of them were in a grand hall in the King’s palace. A collection of artifacts were kept in this hall, and so it was conveniently called ‘A Walk Through The History of Gr’Erhin.’ It was a book too, which he’d already given to Adi. Along the walls in this hall were intricate paintings depicting war, as far as Adi could tell. Names inscribed in English letters read words like ‘Rolan’ —Nathanial’s last name—and something about the waste that was laid to the Eastlands of Erhin, now called The Cursed Lands.

‘Ah, the walls caught your eyes, eh boy?’ Tristan asked.

‘I-It’s a rather interesting depiction.’

‘That’s the war between the West and the East of Erhin. It didn’t even happen that long ago—what—fifty or sixty years ago, just. Georgon Rolan took away everything from the East. The conquest was truly of epic proportion, lad. It affected our entire world’

‘We had something l-like it back in our world too. Well, two of them actually. The two World Wars.’

‘Must have been huge.’

‘M-My grand father died fighting in one.’

‘Unfortunate circumstance, lad. We all die one way on the other. No prouder way than on the battlefield.’

‘Amen.’ Adi responded.

‘Is that a prayer?’ 

‘Yeah. In o-our religion.’

‘We pray to no one but Krilin on this world. The one and only one we’d call “god” in Earth talk. But we follow no religion and have no diety.’

‘I’ve heard a lot of talk about Krilin, your majesty. B-Biv never f-f-failed to mention it to me.’

‘Yes! This one is true.’ Biv said.

‘Ah, the tale of Krilin and Chronisc. The creation of The Banished Lands. It is truly an epic to behold.’ 

Tristan blinked his eyes and took a deep breath.

‘Lad I’d love to show ya all of Gr’Erhin if I could. And I truly would. Unfortunately, you’ve come—or have been brought—here at the time when turmoil rises. Unrest brews in the West, and things are changing. I am partly a bringer of this change, and with this change comes you—the first Earthian to step foot on the land of our countryside. And so naturally we are on a minor time crunch. Biv, my lord, do you think it’s time?’

He looked uneasy, walking towards the King. He whispered something into his ear, while Adi watched from afar. They both looked and sounded unsettled.

‘Okay M'ro, tell’em.’ Biv said.

Silent footsteps approached Adi. A seemibly wise man’s footsteps. Tristan had this look of measure, calmness and composure, that was unparalleled. Sure, an energetic and excitable man, but he truly was gracious, organised and willing. He was a good man, to Adi’s reckoning.

‘You already know the main reason why you’ve been brought here.’

‘Y-yeah.’

‘There’s a certain skill you are born with—the first on your planet we’ve ever discovered. And it’s a skill a lot of us have too. But yours is beyond the level ours can or have ever reached. You see, The Fibre keeps all our minds connected, in Erhin and in Layonas. But not your planet. Your planet is the only one across the three dimensions that is not synced to The Fibre. Except you. We don’t know if this means you will bring the rest of your countrymen to it or not, but we do know that you have a greater connection than most.’ He took a breath, ‘You see, all men are connected to it to a different degree. Men like Biv are highly connected and in sync with his countrymen. Others remain unaffected by The Fibre.’

What? Adi couldn’t believe. If this planet wasn’t strange enough, now apparently all the people on it are mentally connected to each other? 

‘And I-I-I’m connected to it?’

‘You’re not just a part of it, Adi. Your connection to it is so strong that we can’t even term it as just a connection. You can look over everything, young one,’ he laughed, ‘consciously, you are as unaware of it as the common man. But once you’re deep in your sleep, Adi, oh we know how you can control the realm of the mind. It is unparalleled.’

Validation.

 He hadn’t gotten it in 7 years, and here he was, getting praised by the King of some other planet for being the best in the world at…mind reading? 

‘S-so for what do you need me then?’

‘First, lad, we’re going to train ya. You need to be the master of the mind. A master of the way you can control this realm you have a grip on. And then you will see.’

Why can’t the old fart just tell me now? He shook his head, shut it, he must have his own reasons. Be graceful.

‘This where I come in M'ro!’ 

‘Yes. Biv will journey with you, very soon I’m afraid.’

‘T-to where, your majesty?’ 

‘You’ve seen the Fang peaks right?’ The old man said, pointing out a window to the horizon where the artist of the world’s paintbrush left the colours of white in the shape of the largest mountains he’d ever seen.

And now he was going to climb it.