The Abstraction Chronicles: The Abstract

Chapter 14: I Fight Myself

I wouldn't recommend walking to what could be your death, but when people's lives are in your hands that option tends to be ripped from you. The thought of not coming back to my home almost buckled my legs as I walked into the wormhole. The smoothness of the wormhole surprised me. Instead of the turbulent rollercoaster that I'd grown used to it was like walking into a cold shower. Emerging from the other side humid air hits my lungs like a weight of bricks. A red glow emanates from a large crimson moon above, just like those visions I'd had.

Surrounding the golden wormhole are dead trees planted in red dirt. "The red is hurting my eyes," Cynthia says with her bow out.

"Mine too. I'm glad there's a road for us to follow." Looking ahead there's a simple pavement road illuminated by the moon's red gaze. Looking up further down the road I see a small hill in the distance with a pair of large golden gates the size of the Statue of Liberty.

"Time to rescue Atticus," Cynthia says starting to run down the pavement path presented before us. Following her lead, we start running, but as we continue running towards the Gate it

just feels as if we're not making any progress. The trees stretch on endlessly. "Why aren't we getting any closer?" I gasp out of breath.

"Vinieus is probably messing with us," Cynthia says catching her breath. "For what reason, I don't know. Probably for his entertainment."

"I wouldn't be surprised."

"What's that?" Cynthia asks darting her head towards a crashing sound in the dead woods off to the left. Emerging from the woods is an eyeball the size of a baseball with a black iris and a white pupil.

"What in the world!?" I exclaim. Readying my sword.

"There's more coming out behind it." Looking, sure enough, there were now ten eyeballs staring at us. Blinking they start flying towards us as black smoke trails from the back of the eye. "Run!" Cynthia says letting a few arrows loose hitting one of the eyeballs. On contact with the arrow, the eyeball splatters across a dead tree with that same black ooze that came out of Dwellers. Not being needed to be told twice I start running along the path.

"Zane, up ahead!" Cynthia says stopping suddenly. Up ahead is a much larger eyeball staring at us with black tendrils coiling around it on the ground.

"Great, they're getting bigger," I scowl. "Can you keep the little guys off of us while I take care of the big one?" I ask getting ready to run at the big one.

"Yeah, but not for long," Cynthia says knocking a few more eyes out of the air with her arrows, but more just keep on coming. As I start running towards the giant eyeball a crack appears in the middle of the giant eye.

Opening its mouth to reveal rows of jagged teeth. Speaking in a raspy deep voice it speaks, "Hello consciousnesses, stop shooting my children or I'll devour you instead of assisting you."

"Cynthia?" I ask looking behind myself to see her speechless for once. "Why would you help us? Aren't you a Dweller like the rest of them?" I ask.

"Such insolence, I'm not like them at all, those lesser creatures of despair. I'm one of the Great Greys. Birthed from the Beyond before this realm came into being," it says whirling around its black tendrils with rage. The mini eyeballs that were chasing us surrounded us from all sides staring intently at us, some blinking rapidly. "I would help you in turn for your assistance."

"With what?" Cynthia says with mock confidence as she walked up next to me staring at the large eye.

"The lesser human known as Vinieus has been given too much power by one of my brethren and I seek to correct it."