Soulstream (Rise To Omniscience Book 10), page 31
Grace swallowed nervously as the soldiers all around her readily agreed to commit suicide if it meant the mission would succeed. She didn’t exactly like the idea of running into an impossible situation knowing she would die.
“You’re all free to go. You’re to officially set out in five minutes. Now is the time to take care of any last-minute things you need.”
Grace saw him motion her over as the soldiers all dispersed, going about their business.
“I hope you know that if those soldiers go running into an impossible battle, you are to run in the opposite direction. Is that understood?”
Grace nodded emphatically, grateful that he wasn’t going to make her take part in the most dangerous parts of the mission, or at least the ones that had a good chance of killing her.
“Good,” he said, giving her a lopsided smile. “How does the armor fit?”
“It’s a little small,” Grace admitted, pulling at the strap that ran over her shoulder.
“Sorry about that,” Morgan said. “I had your old measurements. I should have considered your growth when I had these made. I’ll make sure to do that next time.”
Grace nodded her thanks. Though, truthfully, the armor really wasn’t all that uncomfortable. It was just a bit tight in some spots and the pants ended at a slightly awkward length. It wasn’t bad enough to distract her or impede her, though, which was obviously the most important thing.
“So, how are you feeling?” Morgan asked, lowering his voice a bit more. “You were quite distraught the last time we saw one another.”
Grace had a brief flashback to when Morgan had brought her to her father’s manor for the first time. It had been right after going to see the reincarnated Lumia in the Beast Zone where she’d been born. They’d discovered that while her body had regenerated, her mind and memories had not, meaning that the drake was effectively gone for good.
“I’m doing better,” she said. “It still hurts when I think about her, Shul, Hilda, and all the others we lost. But I think the time away from everything was good for me.”
“Really?” Morgan asked with a raised eyebrow. “Because that entire chase with the fountain gave me a different impression.”
Grace immediately felt her cheeks burn a deep crimson.
“You saw that?” she asked in a near-whisper.
“The whole thing,” Morgan said with a grin. “Led those poor gardeners on quite the chase. Had I not been there, you might have even badly injured one of them.”
“Wait,” Grace said as his words finally clicked into place. “You’re the one who…?”
“Who stopped that statue from crushing the man, yes,” Morgan said casually. “He was quite angry after they pulled it off of him.”
“And you’re not upset with me?” Grace asked, feeling her embarrassment mounting.
“Had I believed you actually meant to hurt the man, I would be,” Morgan said. “But seeing as it was an accident and no one was seriously hurt in the end, I’m not too bothered by it.”
Grace’s sigh of relief froze in her throat as Morgan continued.
“When this is all over, you’re going to apologize to those poor people, though. After that, you’re going to replant that entire garden. Then, you’re going to find a job and work until you’ve paid off the cost of the fountain, the plumbing, and all of the damages you caused, both to the people and the property.”
Grace felt her heart sink as Morgan said that.
“But that’s going to take forever,” she complained.
“There are consequences for our actions, Grace,” Morgan said, patting her on the head. “Best you learn them now, rather than later on.”
Grace suddenly felt a lot less grateful that Morgan had come to get her. It would take years to work off all of the damages. She would most probably be fully grown before she finished paying everyone back.
“Cheer up,” Morgan said with a wide grin. “For someone of your skill, you can demand a high price for your services. If you work hard and don’t take breaks, I estimate that you can pay everything off in six months.”
Grace let out an audible groan this time, suddenly wishing that she had the ability to go back in time so that she could kick her previous self in the head and get that idiotic idea out of there before it could manifest in the real world.
50
“Good luck in there and remember to keep your wits about you!” Morgan called as Grace and the rest of the troop entered the Central Kingdom.
Grace threw one last look back over her shoulder as she came to the edge of the dome. The black wall stretched, curving up into the sky and disappearing as it met the skyline. She had only just been reunited with Morgan, and now, she was leaving once more. At least it wouldn’t be boring this time, and she was part of a vital mission to save lives, so she didn’t mind.
“You ready, lassie?” Ivaldi asked.
The dwarf was just as she remembered him – short, grumpy, and generally unwilling to speak or deal with people at all. For some reason, he seemed to have taken a liking to her of all people. Grace had no idea why that was, but she wasn’t about to complain. Ivaldi was a genius when it came to making complicated constructs, weapons, armor, and even strange serums. She would rather have someone like that be interested in keeping her safe than not.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Grace said, then stepped through the dome.
She only felt the barest hint of resistance as she did, as though walking through a thin sheet of water. The feeling left as soon as she was all the way through.
“By the unholy gods,” Ivaldi whispered, stepping through after her.
Grace seconded the sentiment.
The landscape was dark and bleak, the sun, trying to shine through the dark dome, was filtered to a dark red, giving the entire area an odd, flat look. Additionally, seeing as the sun was close to setting, it was quite dark in here, the light of the moon, which had already been rising, apparently not strong enough to force its way through.
“The air in here feels wrong,” Darv said as the last of the team stepped through.
The other men were looking around uneasily, clearly feeling what he did. Grace could feel it as well. The air was still and felt almost oppressive, as though it were weighing her down somehow. Additionally, the insidious voice in her head was far louder in here than it had been out there.
Just as before, she found that she had the ability to ignore it. Grace had dealt with creatures who tried influencing her mind in the past, and she knew she wasn’t going to allow that to happen again.
“Alright,” Darv said, pulling a small glowstone from his pocket and strapping it around his wrist. “Form up and spread out. We want to keep as wide a range as possible while moving to avoid running into unnecessary trouble. Grace, I want you running up front with me. We’ll need your skills for longer range scouting.”
Grace nodded, quickly realizing why Morgan had believed her to be such a vital part of this mission. With her Superior Echolocation, she could see everything within three hundred yards. It would give them all plenty of warning, should there be any monsters nearby.
“I want Gila running in the center with the engineer,” Darv continued.
Gila was apparently the one tasked with lugging around the heavy communicator. Ivaldi didn’t seem too pleased with the idea of being separated from Grace, and he voiced his opinion on the matter.
“Why are you sticking me in the middle when I could be more useful up front?” Ivaldi asked.
“Because I said so,” Darv said, his voice hardening. “Allow me to make myself clear on one thing. While we’re in here, you listen to every order I give without question. We’re in a life or death scenario right now, and any second-guessing will cost lives – lives that I don’t intend to lose. So, if you can’t take orders, I suggest you turn around and leave right now.”
There was a tense moment as Ivaldi seemed to contemplate his words. Then the dwarf shrugged and moved to stand in the center of the formation.
Darv straightened, not showing a hint of whether or not he was relieved that Ivaldi had chosen to stay.
“From here until we make camp for the night, there will be only silent communication. Hand signs will be very important, so make sure your glowstones are properly attached.”
Grace felt a moment of panic as she realized that she didn’t know the hand signs, nor did she have a glowstone. That was, until Darv spoke with her directly.
“Keep scanning the area around us. If you sense any danger at all, just tap me and we’ll call a halt so we can plan a way around it, find a hiding spot, or in the worst case, ambush and eliminate the threat. Stick close to me and do everything I do, understand?”
Grace nodded quickly, glad she wasn’t being left out.
Darv straightened, looking around the group one last time and making sure everyone was ready and equipped.
“Move out,” he said, not yelling the words as was common in most military operations.
He turned on his heel and began to run. Grace stumbled a few steps, then sped up, pumping her arms and legs in time and catching up quickly. It took her a few seconds to correctly match the pace, but it was a fairly easy speed for her to keep up with.
She threw one last glance back over her shoulder to where the edge of the dome sat. She couldn’t see through it, but she imagined that Morgan was still standing out there, staring at the blank wall and wondering what was happening in here. Then she shook herself and concentrated on the landscape in front of her.
This was still the outskirts of the Central Kingdom, meaning they were running across bare, rocky terrain, interspersed with the occasional tree. She knew things would grow denser and wilder the further in they got, but for now, they would be able to move unimpeded.
She clicked her tongue quietly, sending a wave of sound out, washing over her surroundings. They rippled across the landscape, a map of the area soon forming in her mind. Grace turned her head to the side and clicked her tongue again, highlighting the areas she’d missed to her left. She repeated the process to the other side, glad to see that, for now at least, they were in the clear.
This was the only shortcoming of her skill at this point. It only spread out in a cone-shape before her. She couldn’t just click her tongue and get an idea of everything within a three-hundred-yard radius.
Grace snapped her fingers behind her back as she used the skill again, the bodies of all the soldiers highlighted in her mind’s eye and standing out against the dark backdrop of the map she’d created. She used another part of her skill now, keeping all of the highlighted targets within her mind’s eye so she could track all their movements.
So long as they remained within her range, she would be able to see what all of them were doing at all times. This would be extremely useful, especially if an enemy tried a sneak attack, or if someone’s ability to signal or call for help was compromised.
Right now, their group was spread out over nearly two hundred yards, the signals from the flashing glowstones being passed back and forth to adjust direction and speed. They came so quick and often that Grace knew she wouldn’t have been able to keep track had she not been running alongside Darv himself.
It really was amazing to see such a highly trained group working so seamlessly together. Grace kind of wished she could understand what they were saying, if only to feel like she was really part of the team. She stepped down hard, her foot hitting a small crack in the ground which nearly sent her tumbling.
That, in turn, made her realize that she hadn’t been keeping up with checking on her surroundings. A crack like that should have been easily avoided had her Echolocation found it. Her body would automatically have reacted to avoid the crack, as the information would have been present in the back of her mind.
She clicked her tongue again, more of the landscape becoming visible. She snapped her fingers to the left and right once again, then paused. She tapped Darv on the shoulder. The man immediately stopped, holding his arm up and covering then uncovering the light on his wrist in a series of quick flashes.
“What is it?” he asked in a lowered voice.
“A group of well over two-hundred somethings is wandering around on the edges of my range in that direction,” she said, pointing to the right. “There might be more, but we’d need to move closer to see.”
Darv raised his hand again, waving it in a quick circle, then brought it down.
“I’m pulling the right flank in. Our mission is to avoid fighting as much as possible. Let me know when it’s safe to spread out again.”
Grace nodded, and they started running once more. She could understand why their group had split up the way they had. Although it was a relatively small force, twenty-five people bunched together was still a noticeable target.
Spread out as they were, in teams of twos and threes, it would be much easier to hide or avoid enemies. Additionally, they were all close enough for help to arrive, should they come under attack. And, if worst came to worst, only a small fraction of their force would be destroyed, while the rest would slip away.
Grace clicked her tongue, then tapped Darv once more. After he signaled the stop again, he turned to her.
“Straight ahead,” she said, feeling her heart begin to race. “Another large force, well over seven hundred.”
“Right and left?” Darv asked.
Grace quickly checked.
“Right is clear. More enemies on the left. Maybe another four hundred.”
“Seems like they’re planning an attack sooner than anticipated,” Darv said, saying aloud what she’d been thinking.
“Should we go back to warn them?” Grace asked.
Darv actually seemed to think about it for a moment before shaking his head.
“Our mission is to destroy the power source. I’m sure the others can handle whatever comes out of this accursed dome. Let’s pull in tighter, change course, and keep moving. Stay on high alert.”
Darv flashed out another series of signals and changed direction, running through the clear path Grace saw. Now feeling very nervous, she continuously updated the map in her mind, snapping her fingers and clicking her tongue every few seconds. She quickly realized that she couldn’t keep doing this though, as her RP was beginning to dip dangerously low.
She needed to remain calm and space out using the skill a bit more. So long as there were at least fifty yards between them and whatever was out there, Grace felt fairly confident in avoiding them.
It was fully dark out by this point, and although she had excellent night vision thanks to her rank, the lack of any moonlight made it difficult to see. In fact, she could see just enough to imagine things were there when they weren’t actually. Her Echolocation didn’t really help with that all too much, as her imagination seemed to be more powerful than logic when it came to this.
Grace was forced to stop Darv several more times in the next couple of hours, adjusting their course to avoid any fighting. However, getting into an actual battle was inevitable, and judging by the ever-increasing numbers of these strange, twisted creatures, Grace had a pretty good feeling that it would be coming soon.
51
“We’re practically surrounded,” Grace said, fighting to keep her voice calm.
It was nearing midnight and she’d stopped Darv for about the hundredth time since they’d entered. He never seemed upset when she did, nor did he ever question whether she was sure about what she thought she saw. Whenever she told him of a group of the creatures, he took it as fact and adjusted accordingly.
“Is there any way through?” Darv asked, still managing to stay oddly calm, despite their dire situation.
“Maybe,” Grace said, biting her lower lip. “There’s a group of well over a thousand strung out all along that way,” she said, tracing a line with her finger. “They’re about two hundred yards out, but closing quickly.
“There are another two groups in that direction, maybe a hundred yards away. And a line of creatures in the multiple thousands, at the very least, is blocking our way straight ahead. The closest is maybe seventy yards out. I’m honestly shocked they haven’t spotted us yet.”
“Our potential escape route is between the two groups to our right, I take it?” Darv asked.
“Yes,” Grace replied. “There’s a roughly twenty-yard gap between the two of them, but they’ll draw closer the nearer they come. I’d say we have maybe a couple of minutes before they close up. I honestly don’t even know if that is a gap.”
“We can make it through if we cover our lights. From what we’ve seen so far, these creatures don’t see very well in the dark. Unger can cover any sound we might make while moving, but we’re going to have to run. Think you can keep up?”
Grace nodded quickly and Darv raised his arm to give the signal. This was one she’d yet to see and was surprised when all of the spread-out soldiers came flocking to their location in under ten seconds.
Darv began speaking quickly, outlining the plan. Apparently, there were no hand signals that could adequately transmit the entire set of instructions.
“We go in single file, hand on the shoulder of the one in front. We move fast, and not a peep. Understood?”
There were a series of soft affirmations as the soldiers got into line, pulling the edges of their sleeves over the glowstones. Grace placed her hand on Darv’s shoulder, though she had to reach up to do so. She felt a hand hook into her belt and turned to see Ivaldi directly behind her, looking less than happy.
The dwarf said nothing as Darv gave one final signal, before he too covered up his light. They began to move quickly, closing with the pair of groups that Grace had identified earlier. She clicked her tongue softly as they drew closer, seeing that the gap had closed. She felt her heart thumping in her chest as they reached the crossing area, squinting into the darkness to try and spot any of the twisted monsters she knew to be gathered there.
