The Keepers: Song of Sorrow

Chapter Five

They spent the night in the old temple, thanks to the hole in the roof the starry sky was visible. Maria hadn't asked many questions about Jesper's past or pried too deeply about what or who had sealed him into the avatar originally. He'd answered her questions with quick, short answers. It had been cold without a fire and Jesper had allowed Maria to press herself close to him to keep warm as she slept. He'd watched her chest rise and fall steadily, he didn't need to sleep, didn't need to eat either, the only thing he'd ever needed was to cause destruction and chaos. Now he found he didn't even need that, he sighed and pressed his palms into the cold, rocky ground until the sharp stone bit into the flesh of his hands. Alone with his thoughts Jesper thought about the other bringer of destruction he'd spent so much time with before everything went wrong, Addac his other half, Screaming God of Death. He wondered if what he felt for Maria was love, if he was capable of it, and whether he felt the same way with Addac. Sure they'd been intimate, but sex didn't mean love, they spent every waking moment together; traveling between planes of existence, razing whole continents, moving across worlds inside the Dream. He hadn't seen Addac in any of the other times he'd gone through this. Was he dead? Did he believe that Jesper had left him? Betrayed him? It was possible, and he didn't like the thought that it was possible. Finally morning arrived with Jesper more disturbed by his own dark thoughts than relieved. Maria stretched in the early morning chill.
"So where do we start?" She asked, looking over her shoulder at him.
"We have to get to the middle of the Dream, that's where the Sleeping God is." Jesper said then sighed.
"What?"
"It's easier said than done. The middle is swarmed by my people, and not all of them look like me." He explained.
"Oh."
...
"So we'll just have to be careful." Maria said simply. Jesper turned to her.
"You still want to do this?" He asked incredulously.
"I said I would didn't I?" She snapped. "Let's get started then." He sighed again.
"Alright follow me and stay close." He turned towards the back of the temple and led the way. He grabbed his sword as he passed it by and sheathed it. It wouldn't actually work on any Eldritch worth two cents but it was better than nothing, not to mention it would make a wonderful distraction for sneak attacks of his own. At first glance the back wall was solid stone, Jesper simply walked through the wall. He heard Maria let out a soft noise of surprise. He chuckled and went back to her.
"It's a hidden walkway."
"To where?"
"The InBetween." Jesper said. "A hidden pathway known to only the Eldritch and those who commune with us."
"Is it dangerous?"
"Only if you stop walking, stay close and try not to look around too much. They can spot a tourist." He let her walk in past him and then followed quickly behind her. He placed a hand on the back of her neck to keep her moving in the right direction. Soon the stone wall of the temple fell away and they were consumed by swirling darkness, it seemed to move around them with claws and teeth and flesh. These living tunnels were known to devour those who stopped walking and if you weren't dead by the time another Eldritch found you, you would be devoured for both food and power. He knew because he'd done it to lesser beings he'd crossed paths with. The tunnels were the only way to reach the other worlds of the Dream, there were three in all, this one was called Thera, the second was Fresia, the last held no name because nothing grew there it was inhabited only by Eldritch and was believed to be the resting place of the Sleeping God. That's where they were headed. It was dangerous, and it would probably kill Maria, but he could always set everything back to how it was before and try again. He had before.
He was so stuck in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the shadow creeping up on them until a large knife-like limb crashed into the wall in front of his face and dug out a section of the living walls which screamed in agony and the limb was ripped out and swung at Jesper's head. He dove out of the way dragging Maria with him to the ground. He picked her up and hauled himself to his feet, turning quickly he saw the four long knife-like legs of Addac, the Eldritch's lower body was that of a spider his thorax could shoot out acidic webs, his upper body was humanoid in shape with a multitude of mangled arms and his stomach held a large mouth filled with teeth, his head was malformed without eyes of any kind and two mouths of either side of his face rather than in the middle. His skin was grey green like a rotted corpse and seemed to break open and spill pus. He screamed his rage and betrayal at Jesper, who held Maria close and backed away.
"What's happening?" Maria shouted, Jesper had a hand pressed firmly against her eyes.
"Nothing good. We need to run. Can you do that without turning around?" He questioned  as Addac started closing the gap between them.
"Yes."
"Good, I'll find you later." He practically threw her, she kept her footing and raced into the living tunnels. Jesper turned and raced into the other direction. Addac followed, ripping chunks of the walls out and throwing them at Jesper. He kept out of reach as best as he could.
"Addac." He shouted back. "It's not what you think. I didn't have a choice in this!" Addac screamed fury in response. Jesper found the exit and ran through tripping over his own paws as he did so and hit the forest floor. Addac was quick to grab him and haul him into the air. If the spider like Eldritch had eyes they might've been filled with rage, as it was Jesper was left staring into the twisted, two mouthed face. Addac had been furious at him before, but it had never been like this.
"Addac," he started but was quickly cut off by his former lover violently shaking him and screaming. That was it.
"Speak your piece I tire of your tantrums!" Jesper shouted. Addac growled and dropped him to the ground, stepping on him to keep him from moving.
"You left" Addac gritted out of his three mouths.
"I did not." Jesper stated crossing his arms.
"YOU DID!"
"Does this form look like I picked it for myself!"
...
"Sorry that was rude." Jesper corrected himself, Addac was fundamentally blind, he could however feel his way around with both arms and webs. Jesper carefully pushed Addac's leg off of him and stood keeping one hand on the other being to allow him to know what was happening.
"I would never have willingly left you. Out of anyone who should know that I thought it would've been you." Jesper said. "Feel me Addac you know this form wasn't my by either design or choice." Hands moved out and ran themselves carefully across Jesper's body, caressing every inch of him and stroking his hair. Jesper pressed himself into those hands and sighed.
"You're aware of the looping time?" He asked Addac.
"We all are, I'm also aware of your new name, Jesper. What was wrong with the other one?"
"Needed something that mortals could pronounce easily." He hadn't noticed that he'd started speaking in his own tongue, how easily it came back to him.
"I have to go. I have to stop the Sleeping God from waking, we'll all vanish if I don't." He said, stepping away from Addac's wandering hands.
"Do you plan on following the curves?"
"No corners are easier to navigate. Besides following the curve means having to be near mortals." An idea came to his mind. The seam in his back began to split.
"Shall we run together? One more time?" He asked as his avatar form split apart and his true body pushed out of it. Addac grinned wryly. The Dancing God of Destruction and the Howling God of Nothing once again reunited.
"The halfling I was with we need to find her and then we can be on our way." Jesper said. Addac nodded.
"She'll be the only halfling in this world." Addac said, he sent out several shoots of webbing they'd scatter to the winds and help in the search.
"You're different." Addac remarked as they started on their way.
"What do you mean?"
"You like fighting more than trying to talk me down."
"I remember I liked doing lots of things rather than talking you down. Plenty of villages died that way. I'd egg you on." Addac laughed at that, a sound very much like chewing ice.