The Unbidden: A New World (1) (Short Parts)

Part 32

"Aurias sensed a potentially dangerous situation."

"Who's Aurias?" she asked.

Oh, I forgot to tell her about him, I thought.

"My horse. I'll tell you more at another time, but I need to make preparations right now."

I jogged back to the inn with Jayde on my tail. When we got back, Thea was lying in Her bed with a solemn look about Her. I wanted to call out and ask what was wrong, but I needed to worry about what was happening in the moment.

She looked at me as I barged in and doffed my armor from under the robe. I grabbed a wooden spike from the end table and shoved it into my storage pocket. From there, I sat on the bed and breathed deeply.

There's no cause for alarm, yet. I don't know if this person is hostile. There's got to be a valid reason they came here. Thea can't pull some fate cards because she's not sitting on her throne. If they came here to fight though... How will I even fare? The fact that he has a Tarboleth at his disposal means he's extremely powerful. I might be outclassed...

I sat on my bed for a few hours mulling over different scenarios and plans. During that time, Jayde and Thea sat on their beds looking at me with concern. My thoughts were loud as I tossed around different plans. I didn't even care to listen to things the two of them talked about or asked me. It was around three in the afternoon when Aurias spoke to me.

"Xavier. We know each other's locations. Shall I attempt to overpower the Tarboleth?"

I swallowed a glob of saliva that had built up as I thought.

"... Yes."

I really hope this is the right method, I thought. I waited for several minutes. I didn't feel or hear anything during that time, and I felt increasingly concerned every second that passed.

"... Aurias?" I asked aloud.

Silence.

I waited a few more moments before trying again.

"Aurias?"

There was another long pause of silence before he replied.

"I have succeeded, Xavier. I feel control slipping though. Do you wish you enter the Ethereal plane?"

"Yes," I said.

A familiar, yet alien energy surged through my body. I felt not only my conscience but my physical body being pulled. A second passed and I found myself on a cloud drifting in space.

Galaxies surrounded me in all directions, and beneath my feet was a similar looking cloud. Next to me stood Aurias in his true form. A light green line was stretching from his forehead to about sixty feet in front of us, connecting to another Tarboleth. The other Tarboleth was cyan in color but looked similar to Aurias in all other ways. Next to it stood a man wearing grey robes with his hood up. I couldn't see his face from where I was.

"Uhh ... Hello!" I spoke unsteadily.

"You must have great power to have taken control of Galen," the man said in a thick British accent.

"Yea, sorry about that. I wasn't really sure how to proceed with communicating with you."

The man stepped forward about ten feet and took his hood off. He had short, aged white hair with a goatee that matched. He looked human and he appeared to be in his fifties.

"I see. Then... Do you plan on fighting me?"

"Not if I don't have to," I stated as seriously as I could muster.

I felt tense. Too tense.

"Then, what do you want?"

"I just want to know what you're doing here and if you planned on coming after me."

He took a moment to respond.

"Galen said he felt the presence of a fellow Tarboleth a few days ago and we proceeded toward it to see if there was an owner. Once he was certain it had an owner, we decided to proceed into the city to identify your nature."

His Tarboleth sensed us three days out!? I thought.

"I can assure you my nature is as passive as I have to be. I do apologize for the offensive action. Now that you have seen me and know that my Tarboleth has an owner, do you plan on leaving?"

"We do not. I planned on gaining a second Tarboleth, for personal reasons."

Not what I wanted to hear, I groaned a little.

"Unfortunately, he's not for sale. I kindly request you depart. This really doesn't have to turn into a fight. There are four more that still have no contracts for you to search for."

He seemed to contemplate it for a moment.

"I consider myself a gentleman, so I will tell you why I am going to still plan to take it from you."

My entire body tensed up. I felt a shiver run down my spine. Out of all the scenarios I had thought about, this one ranked in the top ten worst.

"You used the power of the Tarboleth to subdue my own. At which point attempted to persuade me to give up on getting it. That tells me that you are not as powerful as your Tarboleth, and as such, you are trying to use alternate methods to prevent its loss, or your death."

"You really don't have to do this," I repeated.

"You are correct; however, it has taken me seventeen years to find your Tarboleth. A man will only live so long."

"Come on, man. I really don't want to fight you," I pleaded.

"I do apologize. Tell me your name before I attack. I will keep you alive in name."

"...Xavier" I said with a mix of fear and anxiousness.

"Xavier. A strange name. I am Roy. I shall remember you," he said as he moved.