Chapter 136
Ruins of Flange Orphanage, Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat, the Year 2038, Planet: Grimoire
They were abruptly dragged inside without warning, and no sooner had they matched their hands to the glowing areas. Not only that, but the barrier snapped shut as firmly as before.
Grifton's hair stood on end. "Oh boy, that thing just became poison-tipped spiky on the exterior!" he exclaimed nervously.
"Yeah, in case you didn't notice, we're floating." Firenze held onto Grifton's hand tightly as they were directed in a specific area.
It didn't take them long to realize they were alone. The other two men had vanished.
"Huh, I guess they had other things to retrieve," Grifton murmured.
"This is weird," Firenze muttered warily. "What do you call this type of thing again?" Grifton noted with amusement that his curiosity was kicking in.
He liked it when Firenze rambled absently like this. "It doesn't feel like levitation magic, nor does this have the feel of psychic kinetic built into it." He stopped when it occurred to Firenze that Grifton wasn't really responding.
Grifton sighed. "I believe this is anti-gravity and being used for a specific purpose." What confused him was that he hadn't known Moline was able to do such a thing.
"You never know," Firenze murmured. "While he was in that cocoon, anything was possible." He reminded Grifton of what could've happened. "He could've learned any manner depending on how badly he was wounded."
That was true, Grifton nodded. "I had all number of lucid and precognitive dreams a few times when I was very ill and on the verge of death." He grimaced. "I can say all, or at least most, came true."
Firenze was somber. "So, was this with the Orphanage going down in flames one of them?"
Why not tell him the truth? Grifton hesitated when he responded. "Yep," he said. Now came the most uncomfortable part, as he was concerned. "However, what happened earlier and this moment, not at all."
Firenze harrumphed. "Did you not ever have any good moments?"
Grifton smiled. "I did have a few." A sigh escaped him. "I'll be frank, I never actually had any dreams that featured you or the others."
Firenze rolled his eyes. "I'm glad about that." When Grifton glanced at him in shock. "From my perspective, it would've made you even leery of me if I had shown up in your dreams." He pointed out wryly. "It is bad enough that you've seen too many of your loved ones perish through horrible means."
Ehh, that didn't happen all the time, Grifton shook his head. "I didn't always have horrible dreams." Come to think of it, there'd been that one dream featuring his pregnancy with Firenze. "I did have a dream with you in it quite recently."
Firenze blinked. "Ah, right, that one." He rubbed his nose. "Well, I suppose that wasn't half bad. Since we managed to stop some of what showed up in it."
"So, you see," Grifton nodded with a smile. "Some of them were quite pleasant." The smile faded, though, and he frowned when confusion hit him. "Come to think of it, I don't always catch everything."
Firenze nodded. "I did notice that."
Grifton grimaced in disgust. Just the worst parts that feature flames."
Firenze looked around them. "I didn't get that impression even when you did tell me some details of a few that you still recall vividly."
"Maybe so, but when it comes to roaring flames," Grifton shuddered. "That is a weakness that always brings back horrible memories."
Firenze was looking ahead of them. "Ah, yeah, speaking of roaring flames, look sharp."
Grifton looked and then blanched. "What the hell is that?" He was frightened indeed, and then it hit him: There was no heat, just pleasant warmth. Nor were there any dangerous sparks flying, either.
Shadows danced in the flames' reflection, which indicated movement. "Someone is ahead of us," Grifton said skittishly. "Who could it be?"
As they neared the area, the pull on them lessened, and they drifted leisurely into the ample enclosed space. Finally, they could walk independently on the piles of rocks that formed a pathway they could follow.
Grifton was rendered speechless when they reached the area where the shadows resolved into solid forms. It was an image out of time. However, it wasn't one that he recognized at all.
"What is it?" Firenze murmured.
"I don't know." Grifton watched the images play out.
Much to their shock, it was Doyle Moline, clearly hours before the implosion. In a distant corner of the space, Grifton clearly made out the forms of Darmono and Lamberton standing transfixed. They, too, were watching the scene.
"It looks like they'd seen something from a horror scene," Firenze muttered. "Oh, wow, it is starting over."
Grifton nodded. "I think we are also meant to watch this." he'd seen how it cut short before the implosion occurred.
The scene replayed, and they all winced when the moment of implosion occurred.
When the smoke cleared, they blinked and were shocked. Now, it was the present. All kinds of artifacts and valuable items were neatly stacked along the walls of the enclosed space.
There was an explosion of spirits mingling around Grifton. Even Firenze saw their arrival. "Uh oh, we've got problems," he staggered as he spoke. "The ground is turning unstable as we speak."
Grifton heard an imminent rumbling. "We don't have much time before this place collapses," he warned the others.
"I know that. However, I still don't know why we were called here." Darmono complained.
Lamberton grunted. "I do. Come with me." He dragged Darmono after him.
Grifton sighed. "Well, they're headed toward where the life signs are very prominent and strong." He looked around. "We were meant to gather these items and use them later."
Firenze was identifying them. "Oh yeah, I'd say so." He sucked in his breath. "I think I found the items smuggled out of the various Empires and Kingdoms. Though how they wound up here and still intact, I don't know."
When Grifton came over, he flinched. "Take a look at the date." He muttered after a moment.
"2018." Firenze did, and he was stunned. "Isn't that the year of your birth?"
Grifton nodded with a sigh. "Yep, exactly twenty years ago, give or take a few months." He shrugged in bafflement because there'd always been some controversy because of his accelerated growth. "Either that, or I'm older than we originally thought, and this is off by a couple of years." Grifton shook his head. "We don't have time to dawdle and speculate." He hesitated, staring at the boxes. "I don't think we should mess with them." He stated. "Take a look at what is attached to them."
Firenze stared and recoiled. "Bombs?"
"Yes." Grifton nodded and gestured to signs of forced entry. "Whatever is inside those boxes," He swallowed hard. "Moline doesn't want it found, much less reopened ever again."
Even now, faint scratching sounds could be heard from some of the boxes. That made Grifton even more uneasy. "Now that I think about it, we should move away from them." Besides, other things needed retrieval.
Between Firenze and Grifton's patient exploration and efforts, most of the artifacts were sorted into different carry bags to be inventoried later. When Lamberton and Darmono came back, they were encumbered with four heavy glowing objects.
Grifton took one look at what they carried and snorted. "Eggs?" This wasn't something he expected to encounter.
"Yes," Darmono informed him. "Is there room in some of those bags for these things?" He was panting heavily. "They're lively ones. We got to them before they hatched."
Lamberton sighed. "All four of us have to go back there." He shot Grifton an unreadable stare. "There is a teleport portal located in that fiery chamber."
Ugh, that wasn't a good sign of what Grifton would have to endure in order to leave this place. "I think there's another reason why it's set up in there." Grifton gestured at what he'd found earlier. "These boxes have something inside of them that is trying to escape. They're rigged with bombs."
Darmono immediately went over to look. He blanched. "We have to depart now. Whatever is left here, leave it." He looked around and gaped. "What the...so you two managed to find room in those bags?"
"Yes, rather Grifton did." Firenze dusted his hands off. "Shall we depart?"
All of them felt the increased rumbling. Cracks began forming on the walls around them. It was past time to go.
They left without looking behind them. They headed for the chamber, where the heat was intense. At first, Grifton didn't want to enter it, but he knew he had no choice.
However, as soon as he walked in, welcoming cool breezes swirled inside, lowering the temperature. Each of the brightly burning fire pits went out with poofs of air. Gradually, only the teleporter stood waiting in a single ray of light.
As soon as all four walked into it, they were sent elsewhere into darkness.
Booms, rattles, crashes, and crackling alerted Grifton to their close call. Once more, a brightening signaled their arrival to an exit from the portal. A door opened, and they stepped out cautiously.
A receptionist in the Lamberton dormitory for students awaited them. "Welcome," the maternal-looking woman greeted them with a relieved smile. "We were worried that you wouldn't return in time." She gestured to the others who had joined her.
"We? What do you mean?" To Grifton's surprise, Brinton and quite a few familiar faces were gathered in the room. "Uhm, hmm..." He decided he'd better remain quiet right now.
Brinton grinned at his reaction.
Well, that is after he hinted at the problem facing them now. "Ugh, what a quandary," Grifton grumbled. "So much for peace and quiet to figure out what to do next." This differed from what he'd wanted to do right after returning home. It really wasn't.
He glanced over his shoulder and muttered. "Yes, we definitely have authoritarian company." Once, Grifton was sure that Darmono and Lamberton caught his drift. "Oh dear, at least they were patient this entire time," Lamberton murmured.
"I just hope they had the decency not to snoop around," Darmono commented sourly.
With that, they nodded in acknowledgment of his warning.
Reassured that no one was left unaware of what challenge faced them next, Grifton stepped out first, followed by Firenze, Darmono, and Lamberton.
Three authorities stood upright and saluted Darmono. Two more spoke enchantments and pointed their hands at the portal still hovering in the middle of the room.
The temporal space snapped shut and vanished.
They all heaved sighs of relief.
However, their momentary calm wasn't lasting. The fact that they came back emptyhanded earned furious glares from a few of the gathered officials.
"How dare you waste our time with that rash action of going to that place?" One of them demanded.
"Do you know how much trouble you've caused us?"
"I can't believe you went through all of that hassle and brought nothing back that was valuable and could be used for negotiation."
There were several more insults, and furious complaints blasted at them.
Not a single one of them would respond.
After grilling all four of them, they left with anger and suspicion radiating from them.
Grifton frowned after them. "Well, that wasn't pleasant at all." He stated wryly.
Firenze stared after them. "What are the odds they've installed something to spy on us?"
"High," the receptionist said with a sigh. "I wasn't always able to remain in here." She scowled with displeasure.
Lamberton's face darkened when he listened to her story.
The woman growled. "They didn't even have the decency to let me call someone in for a coffee or tea tray."
Darmono arched an eyebrow. "Ah yes, they harbor archaic notions of what a woman can do." He shook his head. "Fools, they cherish their outdated traditions over common sense."
The receptionist nodded and completed her recital of events that she knew about. "They made me leave and bring back both trays myself." She huffed in outrage. The receptionist looked down at her hands. She held a cup of tea, and it steamed gently. She shuddered, took a sip of tea, and then calmed herself.
A brief silence dragged on for a bit.
At least until Brinton cleared his throat with a slight frown.
The receptionist roused herself from her daze. "However, they showed more respect when I came back," she clarified when Brinton cleared his throat again.
At that point, she glowered at Brinton. "Do you want to finish this for me?"
He shook his head and held up his hands to fend her off.
She nodded tersely. "I happened to hear someone arrive somewhat late." She glanced at him curtly.
Brinton held up his hands in a signal of peace even though he hadn't made a sound this time.
"You sure you don't want to continue now?" She inquired.
He nodded calmly.
"Just finish this already." Lamberton snapped.
She rolled her eyes and finished. "So, I checked and found it was Officer Brinton." She scowled at Brinton. "Please take over. I want to finish my tea while it is still drinkable."
Everyone laughed right then because she was clearly in a huff over what had happened. Grifton couldn't blame her. Darmono shook his head. "Unbelievable."
"Well, I would like to get to the end of this tale," Lamberton muttered, sighing. He leaned back in his chair. "So please, everyone, do take a seat so that we can hear the end of this stupidity that happened before our arrival." He waved a hand, and everyone immediately sat down.