“So, all roads lead to the Eye of the Isle?”
My-re's eyes fluttered open at the comment. She glanced around at her surroundings in the bright morning sun. The warrior from the Health Alterations Squad sat on a tight canvas covered two-man wagon stacked full of supplies. Riding on the carriage, her seat was little more than an old board. It was hard with rough edges, so splinters were a concern. She traveled down a well-worn path, so going over rocks wouldn’t be a bother. However, the smell of the team of oxen irritable bowels was more problematic. Besides her was an old caravan driver, who she remembered took her to the Isle of the Eye after winning the Blood Games tournament in Valamantis over a year ago. She turned and glanced at the side of the cart. In faded paint ‘Chuck’s Wagon’ was written with the ‘s’ almost completely gone.
“Am I dead?” My-re asked and sneezed twice from the brightness of the sun.
“Nah,” Chuck replied.
“Did I get resurrected?”
“Nope.”
Everything seemed real, but My-re checked over her body to see if she was dreaming. She saw the Grey Wand in her right hand. What in the nine hells was happening? The last she remembered she was at the bottom of the lake battling the Lake of Mist monster.
“That be an interesting stick ye got there lass. May I see it?” Chuck asked.
At the question, instinct caused her to grip the Grey Wand tighter. My-re glanced toward Chuck. His boots and pants were brown cowhide, well faded and stretched out and appeared to have been nice once. He wore a low cut, tan cotton shirt, which revealed white and grey chest hair. She noticed his belt showed an obvious progression of notches corresponding with the man's expanding waistline. His white hairline was receding on both sides of his head, the middle was thinning and was slicked back from sweat.
When My-re met his eyes, something didn’t seem quite right. They were faded, emotionless, like there was no soul behind them. Bringing the wand to the other side of her body, she said, “I’m keeping it safe for a friend.”
“Ah, don’t ye be unfriendly,” Chuck said. “There be a long road ahead.”
As he spoke, she caught something out of the corner of her eye that wasn’t right about how his mouth moved when he spoke, like they were going in different directions. Uneasiness swept through her core. She felt cornered and braced her legs. Keeping a tight grip on the wand, she brought it to her lap, like she was going to let him see it. She forced a smile, hoping he’d return it to get a better look.
Chuck complied. He smiled, but instead of his mouth going horizontal, it went vertical. Serrated teeth of a predator circled its circumference.
My-re’s gladiator instincts took over. She threw a rock-fisted punch of incredible felling power! She struck him in the face. As her hand stuck, it felt like she had hit hardened jelly. Her fist sunk into his face. It quickly reformed with no damage.
“Now, dat wasn’t friendly,” Chuck’s vertical mouth replied.
My-re cursed in the Rirorni native language of Rathiri, which roughly translated to ‘blessed fertilizer’. Pushing from her seat, she hammered down a ferocious forearm smash, striking him again in the face. Her arm stung at the impact, as it sunk into his gelatin-like forehead.
“Lass, all I want is the wand,” Chuck’s mouth unnaturally formed the words, as if speaking wasn’t its biological purpose.
Changing tactics, she’d try to knock Chuck off the wagon and ride away. Her legs smashed outward, kicking with tremendous force! She struck him in the left arm. He toppled over the side of the wagon.
Snorting in satisfaction, My-re stumbled back as Chucks leg slithered, elongated over the seat like a tentacle and wrapped around her waist with incredible quickness. She yelped as it pulled her off to the ground below. Her face bore the brunt of the impact, as stars exploded across her vision.
Groaning, My-re’s front teeth ached, as she spat dirt, turning mud in her mouth. She rose and saw Chuck a few feet away. His tentacle reforming into a leg. Charging, she howled in desperation as she snapped a full force kick at her foe! She struck him in the face. She continued to kick at him.
Between blows, Chuck said, “It’s going to take more…than knocking me to the ground…and kicking me in the face…to keep me…from what…I…want.”
My-re backed away from the downed caravan driver, breathing heavy and looked for a moment’s rest.
Chuck sat up and the various bulges in his body popped back out. Other than some dust, his form was back to normal, despite the beating.
My-re went into a defensive stance using the wand for protection.
Chuck held out a hand is supplication.
“Are you a god?” My-re questioned.
“Yes,” Chucked answered without hesitation, but his tone changed. It sounded like someone gargling phlegm. He paused then continued, “At least how your mind understands the term, child,” he answered in a gurgling voice.
My-re cringed in disgust at the sound as the mouth with serrated teeth moving side to side. She then thought the comment about her being a ‘child’ odd, like an elder addressing a lesser. “You’re the monster?” My-re asked. “What are you?”
“Monster? I suppose that is what an insect would feel towards a giant about to crush it,” Chuck said, as if in thought, as the words bubbled from his mouth. “As to what am I, how would you explain what you are to a rodent, so it could understand? That is how far I am above your child-like race.”
My-re notice Chuck looking at the wand intently.
“You’ll have the wand over my dead body, Chucky.”
“Child, I’m the only thing keeping you alive,” Chuck chuckled to himself. The mouth distorting unnaturally. “I’ll have the wand, but not over your dead body. I was planning on inhabiting that male in the water with you. He was resilient, unlike your female form. However, a change of clothes, so to speak feels nice, so I’ll just inhabit yours.”
“That won’t happen,” My-re said and pointed the wand at him.
“Foolish child. It amuses me you don’t understand. I’m already in your body.”