The atmosphere in the room was tense, with everyone staring at Edmond, either still in shock or waiting for him to make his next move.
I saw Baltar watching me out of the corner of his eye, waiting for anything he could use as a diversion.
There has to be something that might surprise or even scare the man. Think, Jake, think.
'What's so funny?' Edmond asked me as I closed my eyes.
Whilst his attention was focussed on me, it approached him from behind. A monstrous white spider, with sharp fangs and balding hairs of silver.
Edmond recoiled at the sight, just as we all did. Baltar was closest, this time grabbing Edmond by the throat and slamming him up against the wall.
'You're no match for me!' Edmond croaked, trying to yank the bigger man's fingers away.
Butland whistled again, and his loyal dogs tore through the open doorway as a pack, each of them gnawing at Edmond's limbs. Violet sprang up to dart to her master's aid; I had to grab on to her, suffering several nasty blows to the head in the process.
'Master!' The stranger called out, diving in front of one of the dogs.
'Call him off you sick bastard! Don't let him die for you!'
Edmond wasn't listening to me, though, and the huskies began tearing into the stranger as he used his body as a shield. It was a pointless sacrifice, one proving that we would never be able to reason with Edmond.
Alistair decided to help me with Violet; she wouldn't break free of his iron grip any time soon.
'It's time for you to die for real this time!' Sameth roared.
I stepped in front of the Elf without thinking. 'Not yet. We need him to talk.'
Sameth lowered his hand ever so slightly.
'How do we restore their minds?' I demand, turning to face Edmond.
My fellow student laughed at me; I should have expected nothing less after what he'd done already. 'Do you think I came here alone?' He drawled.
As soon as he said it, the outside world beyond the cabin door turned red, and a raging hellfire seemed to engulf everything. 'Like I said,' Edmond smiled. 'Not alone. Step outside, I dare you.'
'What do we do?' Sameth asked, looking to me for answers.
How am I supposed to know? This retort was one of the first to come to mind. I didn't want to say what came next, but I knew it was the truth. 'He's not going to help us.'
Baltar grinned. 'Then there's no reason to keep him-'
The cabin shook as explosions blossomed all around the perimeter, drawing closer and closer until the windows imploded, showering us with glass and wood. The dogs were yelping, having been blown aside, but surprisingly Baltar was still standing toe to toe with Edmond.
'You lose.' Baltar said bitterly; his grip was tightening around Edmond's throat to the point that the man's eyes were bulging, and his face was flushing red. Then an involuntary gargling sound seemed to creep out of his mouth as he took one final breath.
Baltar let go, eventually, dropping Edmond's limp corpse to the ground. His passing seemed to be having a domino effect on the events outside. The fiery maelstrom let up, unveiling acres of sizzling grass. When the haze cleared, I noticed four people stood there in Runeball armour, confused, and gaging their altered surroundings with an apparent lack of familiarity.
'Lockwood? What are you doing here?' Falcrest asked.
'Was going to ask you the same thing.'
'In here.' I call out, waving.
I didn't recognise the other two players as they followed Falcrest inside, but it never hurt to have more friends. Falcrest took one look at Edmond and shook her head. 'I never would have guessed he could side with Skargar. What was the point in creating a world, only to watch it fall into ruin?'
'I wanted to say something. To warn you all, but the words would never come,' Violet was sobbing now. 'I'm so sorry.'
'It wasn't your fault.' Alistair said, taking the words right out of my mouth.
Butland was finally stirring after having hit his head. 'Bingo, no!' He wailed, running over to see one of the whimpering dogs. Several shards of glass had pierced its thick woolly hide, with the seeping blood only causing the dog's coat to matt even further. Bingo was hobbling into the corner, no doubt searching for somewhere quiet to rest.
I turned to Violet. 'You're up. If it weren't for them, we'd all be dead.'
Everyone stood in awe, most of them clapping or whooping with joy, but no one cried out louder than Butland who proceeded to hug Violet and ply her with no end of kisses. She just laughed, though.
'I told you. No, I told you.' Asher was arguing with himself, still flitting around outside as his magic continued to fail him.
'What the hell is he doing?' Falcrest asked, unsure whether to laugh or say something else. She looked back at me instead.
'Do you remember telling me he was fine, Violet?'
She shook her head, staring at the ground.
'Have you tried rune magic as a means to stabilise him?' Sameth queried.
'I have.' Butland interjected.
'You're familiar with the magic then?' I ask, trying my best not to sound sarcastic.
He caught on to it anyway. Not only did he seem to possess super hearing, but he also appeared to be an expert with body language. 'Yes.' He replied bluntly.
When it became evident that the others didn't believe what he was saying, Butland yanked open one of the kitchen drawers to reveal eight rune stones, but only three of them were complete. Next to them lay a peculiar looking quill, glowing with orange light that only sparked brighter when the man's hand moved closer to it.
I wasn't sure who gasped first, me, or Violet. There was no question about it, though, this man, going by the name of Butland, was somehow able to inscribe empty stones, and grant them the Rune magic of old.
'You may have guessed already; I don't reveal my identity often, especially not whilst living in another student's realm,' Butland said, smiling at Violet and me. 'The Grand Council of Earth demanded this strict level of anonymity in exchange for my desire to roam the cosmos as I saw fit.'
'Who are you really, Butland?' Violet asked, staring at him with wide eyes.
'Mmmm.' Butland grumbled, still, no doubt trying to decide whether he'd revealed too much of himself already.
'You can trust us.' I add.
'Very well, you did save my life. Ever heard of the Ingara people?' He asked.
'The supposed creators of the runestones?' Violet demanded in shock.
'Yes, well, I'm not one of them,' He laughed, walking to pick up something else out of the drawer. 'How would you all feel about joining me for this year's Outcast Runeball game? Come on; we can talk more.'
'What about Asher? He needs help.'
'No, I don't.' He replied with a grin.
'So it's settled then; you'll be joining me.' Butland noted.
'Why not?' I ask everyone else. They didn't have time to reply before Butland started talking again.
'A different group of Outcasts are chosen each year; those with powerful magical gifts or those similarly unsuited to life in everyday society. These are often the prime candidates.'
Falcrest snorted. 'And here I thought we'd been playing against the best of the best. How come I haven't heard of this Outcast game if it's such a big thing?'
'Pardon my manners, but you lot are small fish compared to this bunch.' Butland held up a poster, showing the ten that were going to be playing, and at the forefront of the motley crew was none other than the great dragon, Avrae.