The dread of seeing the familiar light screen appear was minimal next to that of hearing the accompanying domineering voice once again.
And it was mad.
[NOT ONLY HAVE YOU DEFIED THE SOURCE EXPECTATIONS BY CEASING YOUR PERFORMANCE INNUMERABLE TIMES, BUT YOU HAVE ALSO INTERFERED WITH THE SOURCE ITSELF!]
[THERE ARE WAYS TO MAKE YOU COMPLY]
The force a mere voice could exert over Walker's body and psyche was unable to be understood by words alone.
The presence and authority of the voice was undeniable. Simply being the target of its anger made Walker's chest tighten painfully.
The waves of force he felt caused him to struggle to remain coherent. He found it impossible to move and difficult to breathe.
The presence behind the light screen seemed to grow more substantial as each moment passed. The area above the light screen was slowly losing color and beginning to look as if it were crumpling together.
Walker looked around fearfully and noticed an oddity. Everyone and everything around him had frozen in mid-action.
Turning back to the light screen and the warping area above it, Walker cried out in alarm.
The crumpling, warped area had changed into a vertical oval. Walker could see through the oval into…somewhere else.
The realm he could see into made no physical sense. It was a mixture of whorls of color and random three dimensional shapes of innumerable variation.
Two things were clear within the oval portal. An incredibly distant pillar glowing orange that seemed to stretch into the sky forever.
The Pillar was the same one Walker saw being struck by an unknown polygonal figure that had erased his memory and changed his entire life circumstances.
Seeing it again evoked feelings of longing within Walker that he found difficult to repress.
However, the reason for his alarm was the terrifying figure staring at him from within the portal.
Although it looked vaguely like a muscular old human at first glance, a closer study of it quickly dissuaded that notion.
The massive figure had mottled green and grey skin barely covered by a tattered purple and gold robe. Any visible flesh was devoid of life: discolored and rotting, while covered in wounds that leaked a thick black ichor.
Its eyes were missing and only the darkness of the empty sockets remained. Its ears were long, starting in the same position as a human but continuing over and behind its head.
Above its head was a floating halo of different colors: most prominent were bands of light and dark blues, followed by greens and browns of varying shades. There were thin lines of yellow, but they were few.
The halo crowned its brow like a wide brimmed circlet of colorful majesty, yet Walker felt nothing but terror at the sight.
It raised its right arm with the palm facing upward.
Walker suddenly covered his eyes in pain as a bright, strobe-light-like effect erupted from above its hand.
Momentarily blinded, Walker rubbed his eyes furiously to clear them. When he was able to see once again the rift above the light screen had vanished.
However the light screen had enlarged and read as follows:
{Emergency Quest: Trailing Chains}
Having been marked with a mark of corruption upon your arrival in this world, the enemy forces have been able to sense your location and have been following from a great distance very carefully.
Sensing an opportunity, a small squad of enemies have now been teleported to a place near your current location to launch an assault on the convoy.
Defeat the enemy squadron (0 / 1)
Survive the assault by the squadron commander ( 0 / 1 )
Note: The royal family members of Rostovo must survive the ambush!
- - -
Stupified for a moment, Walker stood staring at the screen blankly until it faded.
The Quest Tracking System updated by adding those quests to the list with the earlier two.
Looking off into the distance he began eyeing the surroundings for any possible movement or enemies.
At this time, everyone nearby became unstuck, moving smoothly as if there had been no interruptions.
To them, there truly hadn't been any pause.
Wilford and Amberlin both hurriedly turned to look at Walker with some concern because he had cried out before they were frozen, when the light screen had suddenly appeared in front of him.
"Is somethin' amiss?" Amberlin asked, her eyes quickly flashing to a solid gold color before resuming their natural colors just as quickly.
Walker felt that Amberlin began looking at him strangely as he had an idea on how to present the information concerning the ambush which he suddenly obtained.
After all, would anyone believe him?
Walker couldn't be sure, but why not put the idea out there somehow and hope it takes hold?
"I'm sensing something I can't quite explain, uh, through the Mark, I think. But I believe it is the evil forces that destroyed the Capital, and they are very close."
Wilford immediately had a serious, troubled expression before he hurriedly made an abrupt turn and hiked off the highway, heading through the fields off the group's left flank.
Amberlin looked skeptical. After a moment of watching Walker carefully, she nodded but said nothing.
Instead she suddenly untied her robes and opened one side to dig around in a pouch hanging there.
Because he was looking right at her when she did this, Walker was unexpectedly afforded a brief view of Amberlin's incredibly full figure that had been hidden underneath the formal robes.
She wore a tight-fitting leather top reinforced by studded leather strips. The top was obviously made for combat because it covered her torso's vitals completely. Yet it somehow made all of her upper assets more obvious by contrast.
While staring, Walker noticed that he could make out detailed tattoos of numerous shapes and letterscovering every inch of her neck that was visible, yet the tattoos clesrly stopped just shy of reaching her face.
While Walker stared, Amberlin paid him no mind as she hurriedly continued digging around through several pockets and other pouches inside her robes.
Pulling out an orange candle wrapped with golden wire she cheered and handed it to Walker muttering "Hold this for a minute."
She fixed her robes so they were firmly tied together and grabbed the candle from Walker's hand.
"Seen enough? We might have some real work to do if you're correct, so stop gawkin' an follow me."
Amberlin strode ahead quickly, heading for the carriage plodding along up ahead.
Walker followed behind ruefully. A hint of red flushed his pale cheeks but he didn't let the slight embarrassment get to him.
Amberlin was stopped ahead speaking to several imposing warriors clad all in plate mail etched with runes.
Their leader was listening to Amberlin carefully. As Walker approached the man, whom he learned was the Knight Captain of Rostovo, he turned his head and watched Walker approaching with a sharp and wary gaze.
The man studied him and then spoke quickly and authoritatively. "Hoy there, scout. This cleric says you have information about a possible ambush. What light can you shed on this dark matter?"
Walker sighed in resignation, trying to figure out how to explain. He opted for the short but simple version.
"I was present at the Royal Court when the King attempted…" Walker paused, trying to think of the proper word.
"When the King attempted the summoning ritual."
Several knight nearby hissed or cursed at Walker's words.
The Knight Captain instead had a somber expression.
"I thought I recognized you from then."
Walker's expression now turned wary.
"You were the one intended to be the final sacrifice, correct?"
Walker flinched and Amberlin now stared at Walker, mouth slightly agape.
The Knight Captain looked at the ground before muttering "I honestly don't know what His Majesty was thinking, but I can only assume he was just so driven to madness by his grief."
Amberlin covered her mouth with one hand and pressed the other against her heart to calm herself from the shock.
Walker looked out in the distance away from the highway and coukd make out Wilford, who had stopped at the top of a low hill.
"I think the ambush will be here near the rear of the convoy, but I can't say anything more than that, not with any certainty." Walker said while watching Wilford moving away.
The Knight Captain nodded and looked to Amberlin, "You said you might have something that can help?"
Nodding she held up the orange candle wrapped in gold wire, now lit and burning with a tall green flame. "I'm workin' on it now."
She stared into the flame, quietly but audibly praying. "Under Lord Mono's light, we flourish."
The flame showed an image of a crowd of undead, imps, and red-skinned bestial humanoids with horned heads.
Amberlin peered closer, studying the number of creatures and trying to glean any information about their surroundings.
Walker suddenly had a sour feeling in his stomach as he had a bad premonition about the flickering candle.
Acting on wild instinct, he jumped forward and hurriedly shoved Amberlin with one hand while trying to knock the candle away from her with the other.
Amberlin was caught by surprise, yelling out a shrill "Whaaa?" as he shoved her.
As the candle left her loose grip, Amberlin noticed the golden wire around the candle was already blackened, which should have been impossible.
At that moment, a thick black chain shot out from the flame, its tip affixed with a wickedly barbed spike.
The spike struck the spot directly where Amberlin's head had just been, but instead found nothing, falling to the ground once its force was depleted.
They all stared while the spike and green flame around it vanished.
The candle landed on the road with an audible splat. All that remained was a reddish-black blob.
Walker sheepishly helped Amberlin up while several of the nearby knights and men-at-arms continued to stare in confusion, or shock.
"I can't decide if it was gentlemanly that ya saved me or dastardly that you shoved me like that." Amberlin said dryly. "But how did you know?"
Walker shrugged. "I didn't know. I just had a bad feeling."
The Knight Captain and Amberlin both watched Walker, studying him before the Knight Captain used his authority to have one of the pages go to inform the royalty up ahead.
Everyone was quiet as they began moving forward once again.
Walked voiced his concerns about leaving Wilford behind to Amberlin.
She laughed. "I'm sure he'll be more'n fine. He's a damn good scout."
Walker noticed the intense look in Amberlin's
eyes. A fervent look that hadn't left her face since the Knight Captain mentioned the time in the royal court.
A time Walker desperately wished to forget.
To pass the time he checked the laces on his bracer, which were secure, and the condition of his bow and arrows.
Walker found that they all seemed to be in top condition.
'I guess I'm as ready as I can be. I hope we all are ready.' Walker thought with some reservations.