Chapter 28
TWENTY-EIGHT
H e looks at Thea, a soft warning in his gaze. Turning back to me, he simply stares at me for moments on end, his mouth opening and closing as if it's physically hurting him to say the words.
"I," he starts, swallowing in discomfort. I lean into him, ready to hear the magic words. "I—" He clears his throat, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.
"Welcome to P'davi," a voice resounds from the stage, saving Ze from having to swallow his pride and, God forbid, apologize!
Shaking my head at him, I turn my attention to the stage. I should have known he wouldn't be capable of an apology—he who wastes no time in pointing out how inferior the rest of us are compared to him. I blow out an annoyed breath as I try to calm myself down. It's not worth it to get so incensed over him. Not when I have more pressing things to focus on—like getting ready for the second trial.
Ze puts his hands on my back, his big body a barrier between me and the rest of the crowd. In an unprecedented gesture, he leans down, placing his chin on my shoulder, his mouth angled toward my ear.
"I apologize," he whispers in a barely audible voice. The crowd is so raucous that for a moment I think I'm imagining things. "Will you forgive me?"
I swallow, the heat of his body seeping into mine.
Never did I expect him to actually apologize.
"Do you promise to try to be nicer?" I murmur, looking straight ahead and ignoring his proximity.
There's a pause as he breathes deeply, blowing hot air into my ear.
"For you." He sighs, his voice low and gravelly.
Before I can question him about what he means by that, he resumes his position, his attention back on the stage. Meanwhile, all I can think is how odd Ze is. He keeps surprising me, and at times such as this, it's a rather pleasant surprise. Maybe not all is lost when it comes to him.
"I am so pleased to see so many of you here. I trust that the first trial hasn't been too hard?" Milado calls out.
A chorus of no s resounds from the crowd. They probably didn't encounter a soul-eating demon in their trial.
"As you know, each trial will become increasingly harder. I see a few hundred of you here. I wonder how many of you will make it to the next round." A chuckle. "Some of you might not be aware, but P'davi is an intermediary realm that connects all other worlds together. Every place outside of this complex might lead you to an unknown world, some of which could prove quite hostile. All of you come from different worlds, with different evolutionary mechanisms that enable your species to thrive in one particular environment. But to compete in this game, you'll need to be able to thrive in all environments.
"Regardless of your abilities, or lack of, you all have something in common. All of you have mortal bodies," he proclaims, eliciting displeased sounds from the crowd. "And if you die in this game, you forfeit the immortality of your soul."
I wish I could see him to associate a voice with a face, but with everyone so much taller than me, the only thing I can see is the back of some random person. It's in vain even if I raise myself on the tips of my toes.
"And that brings me to the second trial of The Wishing Game. Are you ready to know?"
"Yes," everyone shouts.
"Good. I like the enthusiasm." Milado laughs. "You see, the moment you stepped into P'davi and left your worlds behind, your clock started ticking."
I frown. What does he mean by that?
"There are only a few worlds whose atmospheres are similar enough for multiple species to live in, as you well know. But that will not be the case with the ones you will encounter in this game. In plainer terms, that means you are all currently dying ."
Gasps erupt from the crowd.
"No need to panic. Yet." Milado chuckles. "The air is toxic for mortals in P'davi, as it is in a lot of the worlds P'davi connects to. Some are more toxic, some are less. Here, you have a fortnight until your body will fail you. Until then, you will get increasingly weaker and slower, until you won't be able to move at all. Of course, if you happen to stumble upon a worse world, that process will be accelerated."
What?
I blink slowly as I take in the new information. Sneaking a glance at Thea, I note she's avidly listening to Milado. But is she surprised? Did she know about this? I find it difficult to believe she wouldn't when she knows so much...
"In response to that comes the second trial. Those who survive at the end of the fortnight will automatically pass to the next trial."
"What is he talking about?" I ask as I turn to Ze.
"Listen." He nods, pointing to the stage.
"Since we want to be as fair as possible, I have a few clues for you. P'davi is the only realm that hosts a wide range of healing plants, among which there are three of them that can give you immunity not only within P'davi, but in every world in existence."
My eyes widen.
"For the next two weeks, your task will be to search the wilderness of P'davi for these three plants. But the ticking clock isn't your only enemy. You must be careful not to stray into another world—it might prove fatal. And you must be wary of your competitors. Starting with this trial, inter-contestant fighting is officially encouraged. You can take out competition as you like, or only when you feel they are a threat to you."
"How is all that even possible?" I ask, appalled. It seems like a straight-up death sentence. Not only will we weaken progressively over the course of the two weeks, but now we also have to contend with traps that lead into other worlds and belligerent competitors who will have all the incentive to attack us.
"Now for the clues. The plants you will need to gather are as follows: ridea , doyen , and saelica . Every team will receive illustrations of the plants. But you will have to be very careful, as there are plenty of other similar-looking plants that have completely different effects."
Great! Add poisoning by the wrong plant to the list of obstacles of this trial. Everything is a double-edged sword here. I wouldn't have expected it to be simple, but not this difficult.
"There is a library in the complex, and you may avail yourself of its resources to track down the plants. But remember, the clock is ticking. If you survive your death day—exactly fourteen days from the moment you arrived in P'davi—you will be visited by the messenger wraith to secure your spot in the third trial. If you die..." he trails off.
"That will be all for today. The illustrations will be waiting for you at your accommodation. The second trial has officially commenced!"
The crowd erupts in claps and shouts and soon, everything turns to mayhem.
Ze grabs my hand, steering me away from the crowd. Cer and Thea fall into step with us, their expressions grave.
"We need to come up with a plan," I say. "And fast. We only have thirteen days left."
Ze's lips flatten into a thin line as he nods.
"You three will go to our accommodation to get the illustrations. I will meet you there."
"Where are you going?" I frown.
"Library. We will need maps of P'davi, perhaps a book on flora and fauna if there is one. Everyone will be crowding the libraries soon, so having a head start will be useful."
He doesn't wait for our acknowledgment before he disappears.
"Did you know about this?" I ask as we reach our suite.
Thea purses her lips.
"I was aware of the incompatibility issue, but I didn't think they would make a trial out of it. In past editions, the brew was provided to participants on arrival."
I take a deep breath, slumping into a chair. Just as Milado said, three illustrations await us on the table, each depicting a plant. One of them has blue, elongated flowers, another yellow ones, while the other is comprised solely of leaves—very common -looking leaves.
"Can anyone pass this trial?" I whisper, hopelessness lacing my voice.
There are just so many variables involved, which makes the entire ordeal even more dangerous.
"Of course," she promptly replies.
"There are some species that have an affinity for plants," Cer adds grimly.
"Great," I mumble.
In less than a minute, Ze makes his appearance in the room carrying a stack of books. He drops them onto the kitchen table with a thud.
"I took everything that might be of help to us. Maps, botany books, and some history tomes."
"There's just one issue," I point out as I pick up one of the books. "We don't speak this... language."
The letters look like hieroglyphs. The maps, too, are not designed in the way a map would be in my world. Everything is foreign and strange, and tears of frustration stab at the back of my eyes.
My hands tremble as I put the book down, and with a startling realization, I note that I may be close to my boiling point.
From the start of the game, everything has happened so fast, I've barely had time to grasp all the strange events leading up to this. But this goes beyond just the game. It all started with the accident, after which I became semi-numb to reality. Maybe if I weren't so desperate for any modicum of hope, I would have never entertained the thought that other worlds might exist—that there might be other species out there.
But because I was so devastated by Nikki's loss, I was able to push aside the rational part of my brain and give in to the irrational.
Yet now that it's slowly catching up with me, I can't help but wonder.
What the hell did I get myself into?
From demons, fox people, gods, and other strange beings to toxic worlds and other hellish dimensions, I've barely had a moment to catch my breath. And now? If we don't get these plants in time, I'm going to die.
I swallow hard, closing my eyes as I try to get a hold of myself.
Inhale. Exhale.
My heart is pounding in my chest, my anxiety poking its head at the most inopportune moment. Reality dims until all I can hear is my erratic pulse.
"You may not, but Cerenios and I do," Ze replies with a huff.
I take a deep breath, holding onto his voice as I attempt to hold onto my sanity.
"It's part of their military training," Thea whispers.
My eyes flare up with renewed hope just as I succeed in calming myself.
"You do?" I squeak, all but jumping out of my chair. "Then what should we do first? Where to?"
I don't say, however, what I'm really thinking—we have to do something before I become a slave to my emotions and dangerous thoughts again. I force a smile on my face so they don't see the turmoil inside of me. The less time I have to overthink, the better.
Cer spreads out a map on the table, pressing the palms of his hands onto the edges to hold it in place. The illustration is nothing like the high-resolution maps you can find in my world. The design is more antiquated, with mountains depicted by raised peaks, water by wavy lines, and other elements in a basic composition that reminds me of ancient parchment maps.
"We're here." Cer points to a spot on the far right of the map. There are drawings of trees all around, indicating a large forest.
"The host said P'davi is an intermediary realm. What exactly is that?"
"It is a buffer zone between worlds. These realms were specifically created to avoid conflicts," Ze replies. "It is why their atmosphere is poisonous for all who trespass, so that it would prevent the imperialistic ambitions of certain worlds."
"But how come there were other species in my world? Like the foxes? Or the other furred people?" And how the hell do humans not know about their existence? How are we coexisting with such different species without realizing it?
Ze's lips flatten in displeasure.
"There was a Great Migration some thousands of years ago when the intermediary realms were weakened. Worlds meshed together and people were separated from their families. Back then, the inhabitants of Alopea, the fox realm, originally could only maintain their humanoid form for a brief period of time. But after the Great Migration, they adapted to living longer in their humanoid skins in order to avoid detection by humans. It is the same for other species that made Anthropa—your world—their home as well. They can pass as human, but they are not human. You will notice that others prefer their non-humanoid form in this game, and that is because they are endemic to a different world," Ze explains.
"That's a lot to take in," I swallow.
"There is more to it that I will not get into at the moment, but the aim of intermediary realms is to keep individual worlds at peace and independent. The only beings who can traipse freely are deities."
"What about demons, then? They are able to move between worlds too, are they not?"
Ze straightens his spine, his hands behind his back as he paces back and forth while talking.
"They can only travel between worlds in their spiritual form. Once they become corporeal, they are stuck in that world. But you do not need to concern yourself with demons. They are unlikely to make their home in P'davi because there are no souls to consume."
"One less problem to think about. Yay?" I laugh nervously before I quickly sober up. "But how come you guys are able to cross worlds?" I raise a brow. Now that I know they are from a world called Aperion, that only raises more questions as to what they are. I don't doubt that Ze and Cer are part of the military, or that Thea failed some exams, as Ze is prone to point out, but I don't know more than that about them. What's their relationship with the game? Or with the deities hosting the game, for that matter, since they seemed to be familiar with them?
"We hunt demons," Ze replies curtly.
I nod thoughtfully. That makes sense, but why do I feel like there's more to it? It hasn't escaped me that they've been quite cagey with their identity aside from a few crumbs that they let drop here and there. It's odd that despite that, my gut is telling me that I can trust them. And so far, all evidence points to the same conclusion. Their origins might be mysterious, but they are on my side.
For now, that's enough for me.
If what Thea said was true and their presence here would endanger them, then I will not force them into revealing their identities. I trust that they will tell me themselves when the time is right.
"Does that mean you don't need the plants?"
Both Thea and Cer turn to look expectantly at Ze.
"That is correct." He clears his throat. "We are, however, a team. Your weakness, our weakness, isn't that so, Cerenios? Erithea?" he asks in a booming voice.
"Yes," they both answer, amusement brewing between the two of them.
"So it is settled. Rest assured, you will not die, human." Ze gives me a confident nod.
He might be annoying with his supercilious attitude, but he is good at what he does. That means I have to put my trust in him—well, not that I have much choice considering I'm the only one dying here.
"Back to the map?" Cer interjects.
"You may proceed, Cerenios." Ze gives him a nod.
"As I said earlier, we are here. There are two major forests in P'davi. There is one that is located right next to our complex, here." He points to the gathering of trees represented next to our complex. "But there is another one here."
Ze narrows his eyes. Picking up one of the history tomes, he rapidly sifts through the pages, his pupils moving at the speed of light. Before I can even blink, he closes the book, placing it back on the desk.
"One of the plants is endemic to the western forest while the other two are found in the eastern one."
Did he just read the entire book in a matter of seconds?
"That's...impressive," I mumble in awe.
His lips curl up as he soaks in the praise.
"The most efficient way is to split up. Two of us will go to the eastern forest and two will go to the western one. We would then meet again at a designated location to make the brew."
Ze nods.
"It should be a medial location to the two forests. The farther away from the complex the better. We don't want to risk an ambush when we return with the plants," I offer.
"Cerenios and Erithea will tackle the eastern forest. I will take the human to the western one," Ze declares.
"And we have no say in this?" I raise a brow.
"No. You do not." He pins me with his gaze. "This is the optimal division of labor." He doesn't wait for a reply as he turns his attention to the botany books, flipping through them and absorbing all the knowledge.
"I am ready," he proclaims, grabbing my hand and pulling me to my feet. "I will communicate a meeting place at a later date," he tells Cer.
"Just be careful, Ze. Don't overdo it. Now more than ever..."
Ze gives him a tight nod.
"What are you doing..." I hiss as he all but drags me toward the door.
"The western forest is a good distance away from here. We need to depart now if we want to make it in time."
"Fine," I exhale deeply. Wrenching my hand from his grasp, I follow behind as he leads the way.
Thirteen days.
In thirteen days, I will be dead if we don't find those plants.
A shiver goes down my spine as I realize just how precarious the situation I'm in is. And it's not even just about me anymore, or Nikki. It's about my teammates too. If anything happens to me, not only will I cease to exist. So will they.
Maybe Nikki was right. Maybe this is too dangerous. But what is the alternative? Living without him for the rest of my days? Taking my own life so I could see him faster? But even then, who's to say we'll even meet again in the next life?
I cannot continue on without him. The only reason I've managed to do it so far has been because I refused to give in to my grief. I chose to focus on my goal to bring him back instead. But until now, I haven't let myself think of the possibility of failure. I could not even entertain the thought that I might lose.
But what if...
No! I shake myself the moment that thought enters my mind.
I can't let myself get distracted.
Gazing up ahead at Ze's broad back that radiates with strength, I get a renewed burst of confidence.
"Ze?"
He half turns toward me.
"I'm glad we're on the same team." I smile tentatively.
His brows shoot up, his expression one of surprise. His cheeks heat up before he suddenly looks away.
"As you should," he grumbles—but his tone isn't as biting as before.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what I call progress.