Chapter 21 – Search and Rescue

  Jack ran through the tunnels as fast as the tight spaces would let him, his Shadow Shifting allowed him to pass through some of the tighter areas without effort. He only waited long enough to confirm Zephyr was sure that the person said their name was Bryant before taking off.

  “Jack, wait up!” Elaine called from behind. Jack looked back to see her and Zephyr following him. “It’s too dangerous to go alone right now. You don’t even know where he is.”

  “Right,” Jack said making himself stop. The jungle was huge, and this was not the time to be impulsive. Zephyr caught up to him first as Elaine was squeezing through the cracks.

  “I can lead you to where I left him,” Zephyr said. “I made sure it was as safe of an area that I could find nearby.”

  “I can’t believe you left him out there,” Jack said.

  “I didn’t know,” Zephyr said. “I didn’t want to lead another Clayton to our group.”

  “She did the right thing,” Elaine said. “How was she supposed to know that your friend was out there. You didn’t even know. Clayton knows all our names. He could have captured another human and had them stumbling through the jungle calling out for us in the hopes of causing us to do exactly this.”

  “Yeah,” Jack said. “I know. I’m just anxious. Sorry Zephyr, didn’t mean to yell.”

  “It’s okay,” Zephyr said. “There should still be some time before dawn. if we are careful, we should be able to get out without letting anyone know.”

  “Are the others coming as well,” Jack asked.

  “No,” Elaine said. “They were going to, but I told them it would be safer for just us to go right now. Rayne would have been good to have along, but she’s still in the Trial. The others aren’t known for their stealth. If we play this right, we should be able to get out there, find him, and get back without Clayton learning about it.”

  “I’ll go make sure the entrance is clear,” Zephyr said flying away.

  “Who is this Bryant guy?” Elaine asked as they made their way through the tunnels.

  “My best friend from Earth,” Jack said. “We were roommates before I came here. I should have known he would come here eventually. He was even telling me the last time we spoke that he wanted to.”

  “There was no way of knowing,” Elaine said reassuringly. “Even if he did go through the portal, why would he end up here of all places?”

  “I guess we’ll have to ask him once we find him,” Jack said. They were just below the entrance now. Zephyr floated down upon seeing them.

  “It’s clear, mostly,” Zephyr said. “There are a couple of Wenduags keeping watch over the cliff, but they aren’t paying close attention to the area. Just be careful and quiet.”

  Jack nodded. He just hoped his novice skill in Stealth and the magical nature of his armor to blend into the shadows would be enough. Slowly, they climbed out of the tunnel. Jack glanced around the area with his True Sight. It gave him an outline vision of the area at night which helped him see in darkness and invisible creatures, but there was nothing around. Not even the body of the Chualtala that originally covered the cave’s entrance.

  Elaine was right behind him, and they stayed as low to the ground as they could. Zephyr led the way down the cliff followed by Jack. He was the only one of the two that could see Zephyr when she was in her invisible state. The whole situation reminded Jack of when they first made their escape from the Wenduags’ camp. It had been the three of them that time too.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  The morning sun was beginning to rise as they were approaching the bottom of the cliff. By the time the sun had completely risen, they managed to get far enough away so that the Wenduags patrolling the cliffside wouldn’t be able to see them through the foliage. But it wasn’t until they made it to the forested valley below the camp that they started to relax.

  They quicken their pace here, trusting in the tree cover to hide them. They still didn’t allow themselves to fully drop from their stealth, but now they were able to take full advantage of their skills as they traveled. Jack’s Parkour skill allowed him to move through the trees and over rocks and bushes with ease. On the occasion Jack came across something too obstructive, he was able to use his Shadow Shifting to bypass or reposition himself. It took a little practice to get used to moving like this after spending so much time underground, but over the course of their travel, the movement started to feel natural to him.

  Elaine had a different tactic as she moved. She didn’t have Jack’s Parkour or teleporting ability. Instead, she flowed around the tangle of plants and trees in strange movements that made her look more like a spirit moving through the forest than a person. Even stranger than her movements, was the Mana Jack was detecting building up around Elaine.

  “It’s called Cyclone Dance,” Elaine said when she noticed Jack watching her. “I’ve used it before in combat. Works pretty well for moving around environments like this and makes me lighter as I move so I leave less to track.”

  “It’s not that,” Jack said. “I’m just not sure what all the Mana is doing. I never noticed it build up like that when you used it before. Not even when we are fighting.”

  “Oh, that’s the item I got from the goblin camp quest,” Elaine said. “Dancer’s boots. They build up charges as I move. The quicker my steps the faster the buildup. I can unleash the energy to give me a boost to movement or transfer it through my weapon to add an electrical charge to my attack. Like a taser.”

  “Neat,” Jack said. He took a moment to pull out the spear he got from his reward from the goblin quest. He totally didn’t forget about it at all.

  They traveled for most of the day without breaks, ignoring the various beasts that they came across as Zephyr led them. A couple of times they had to stop and hide, as Zephyr thought she sensed a Wenduag nearby. It never ended up being a Wenduag, but it was always a large predator. They chose to give these creatures a wide berth to be careful.

  “How far away did you leave him?” Jack asked.

  “It was only a couple of hours by flight,” Zephyr said. “We’re moving slower than I would normally travel.”

  “We can’t just fly through the air,” Jack said.

  “Not yet at least,” Elaine added. “We should keep a lookout for anything worth hunting or plants worth gathering as well.”

  “You want to go hunting and gathering now?” Jack asked. “I figured we get Bryant and then head back.”

  “We need more food anyways,” Elaine said. “And we might not be able to return right away, so we might as well take advantage of being out here.”

  “Well, hunting might be possible,” Jack said. “But I’m not even sure what to look for in plants.”

  “I can show you a few things,” Elaine said. “You’ll need to know that much if you want to work on Alchemy. There should be several plants in the area that are good for making some basic Health and Mana concoctions. I need to work on making poisons, but those ingredients can be dangerous to gather sometimes.”

  “That could be fun,” Jack said. “Could also try and find a good place to set up the city too.”

  “Maybe, if there is time,” Elaine said. “We still have the Lords to deal with.”

  “Speaking of,” Jack said. “How do you even find one of these Lords.”

  “Based on the stories I heard,” Elaine said. “They are more likely to find you. I just hope it isn’t the Northern or Eastern Lords. I don’t think the snake or spider Lord will be willing to listen to us.”

  “Guess we’ll find out,” Jack said.

  “We are almost there,” Zephyr said. They ran the rest of the way in silence until Zephyr came to a stop at a small glade, but there was no one else there.

  “This is it,” Zephyr stated.

  “Are you sure this is the place?” Jack asked, scanning the area.

  “Positive,” Zephyr said. “It has only been a few days. I told him to wait.”

  “Did you have any food or water when you brought him here?” Jack asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Zephyr said.

  “Think he went hunting?” Elaine asked.

  “Probably,” Jack said. “Especially if it’s been a few days. He would’ve had to. Let’s look around.”

  They didn’t have to go far. Almost immediately as they began their search, Jack heard the unmistakable voice of his friend yelling out nearby.

  “Come at me bro!” Bryant yelled. “You ain’t taking me without a fight!”

  Jack and Elaine shared a look before immediately taking off towards the commotion. When they got there, Jack saw one of his worst fears. His best friend was backed against a tree waving a spear at three large Wenduags approaching him.