Chapter 77: Rescue Preparations
"What does it say, Chief?" Hamish asked, his voice tight with anticipation, the unspoken fear gnawing at everyone. Robert's mind raced as his eyes turned skyward. His hand trembled slightly as he passed the telegram to Hamish. "It says… we need to go to Edinburgh. It says the capital of Scotland has fallen."
Hamish grabbed the paper, scanning it once, then again, as though disbelief blurred the words. Finally, he read it aloud, his voice cracking slightly as Clan Chief Laird Ewan MacEwan and Sorcha, the Seeress, approached.
"Robert. Edinburgh under attack. STOP. Thousands dead, city under siege. STOP. Massive Portal. STOP. Please send help. Freya."
Hamish's hands tightened around the paper, crumpling its edges. Memories of Edinburgh's cobbled streets flashed in his mind, now likely stained with blood. His voice faltered as he whispered, "…I was born there."
Sorcha's expression darkened at the words, her gaze flickering with alarm. "Thousands dead? A massive portal? What could have happened there?"
"We don't know," Robert said, pacing anxiously. His thoughts churned as he called out, "Moira? Any word?"
Her voice entered their minds, cool and quiet. "No… My influence hasn't reached that far yet. But here in Albion, the Blacklands have been too quiet, and the rot has shrunk. A little, at least. I wonder…"
Impatience flared in Hamish's voice as he interrupted. "You wonder WHAT, Moira? People are dying, we don't need dramatic pauses!"
A sigh echoed in their thoughts, tinged with understanding. "I'll forgive you for that, Hamish," Moira said evenly. "I know you're upset. But I wonder if the disturbance I felt, the give in the eternal storm, was the Warlock pushing his power into Earth. Freya mentioned a 'massive portal.' That could only mean one thing. It takes an immense amount of power to open even a small portal to Earth from Albion. For something this large… exponentially more so."
Robert stopped pacing. His voice was calm but determined. "What kind of things would need a portal that big, Moira? Things from Albion?"
Her response came after a moment of hesitation, soft but foreboding. "It could be anything. Once-beautiful, pure beings can be twisted into something grotesque. Corruption knows no limits… It could be literally anything."
Clan Chief Ewan's jaw tightened as he straightened. "How can we help?"
Sorcha raised her hand, already resolving herself. "I will perform a seeing ritual. Perhaps through magic, we can divine what has happened." Robert nodded his approval, gratitude unspoken but clear. Sorcha turned and hurried off, her tartan robes swaying as she called for her acolytes to prepare a circle of ancient stones for the seeing ritual. "Fetch the runed granite from the grove," she instructed sharply, "and align them to the north star. Sprinkle heather and salt for protection, and light the braziers with elderwood, quickly now!"
"Ewan," Robert began, his tone firm. "We'll need to prepare for refugees. A lot of people will need somewhere to go, and quickly. Can you speak with STEVE? Tell him we need four large buildings constructed outside the city walls for now, we can enclose them later. Lumber, stone, and metal for plumbing should suffice for now. We'll also need a power source. Torches and candles won't be enough for city folk trying to rebuild their lives."
Ewan nodded solemnly. "Consider it done." Without hesitation, he strode toward the settlement's center to discuss the plans with STEVE.
"Moira," Robert added, his voice softening, "please focus your efforts on aiding Sorcha's ritual. We need answers. Soon."
The next couple of hours were an intense flurry of activity as Robert went to different groups in the settlement. He issued orders to people of all types and professions, to be doing something. Food was gathered from Dagda's Garden and stored. Meals were prepared, dry meals that would keep for some time and could be handed out easily to refugees. Crafters and smiths went into high gear, crafting new garments and clothing that could be passed out to those in need, assuming many would have had to abandon everything to survive. Healers prepared first aid kits, while potion makers supplied them with healing potions. Bandages were prepared, and mages of the clan readied for battle, sharpening blades and enchanting gear with minor enchantments.
STEVE had begun construction on an area outside the walls but near the gates. A residential area, not with single homes or cottages, but a circular dome with sides made of some sort of glass that shimmered with mana. The dome's interior was cloaked in silvery mist, concealing all that was being created inside.
The dome covered a massive area, curving a quarter way around the settlement, its glassy surface shimmering with colorful hues like a giant soap bubble infused with mana. Ewan had told Robert that STEVE called it an Arcoplex. "It said it's an Arcology Complex. Whatever that is," Ewan had said.
"If it is what I think it is, that'll be perfect," Robert replied. He remembered exactly what that was from a game he used to play back in college, Simulation Settlements 2001. "I can't believe we had the resources for one though…" Robert let the thought trail off, and Ewan picked up, "Oh, we didn't. STEVE's tapping into the sanctum's mana to kickstart it. As we gather resources, he'll expand it deeper into the ground.
Something about a… um, a 'sub strata of solid rock reaching miles down at the construction location,' or some such. If I didn't know better, I'd say STEVE is actually excited for this project. He said it'll have running water from magical creation and underground reservoirs, air temperature controls by combinations of wind, ice, and fire magic, and the underground portion will have sealable tunnels to act as escape routes into the walled portion of the settlement.
Oh, and light magic spheres will decorate the interior to provide light. They just need mana from time to time to keep them going." Puffing his cheeks, Ewan nodded once, assuming he got everything right.
Robert was astounded and wondered aloud, "How long is that going to take?" Ewan replied, folding his arms over his chest, "Oh, 24-36 hours, depending on the stubbornness of the rock foundation." Robert blinked. "And… how many people will it comfortably house?"
Ewan smiled again. "Oh, that's what sold me on it. Nearly 65,000 by itself, when completed to maximum capacity." Robert tried to imagine that many people at his dig site. He couldn't. "…That's… what?" His mind boggled at the enormity of a population like that.
Could the grove possibly feed that many? Robert wondered. Not without major upgrades, more hands to work it, and maybe even accelerated magical enhancement from the druids of the clan. He supposed if they got that many people, there'd be plenty who'd need work, and they'd have plenty of work that needed doing at that point. "And we can train some as mages, perhaps. They could help with food production, healing, and anything to ease the strain," he said, finishing his thought aloud.
Ewan furrowed his eyebrows at his words. "Mind running away with ya there, Robert?"
With a chuckle, Robert nodded. "Yeah, you could say that. I need to talk to DAVE. Thanks, Ewan." Ewan smiled at Robert paternally. "My pleasure. Oh, and one more thing…" He paused, and Robert turned to look at him. "Lillia really has got it bad for you. Make it real for her, son, or cut it off.
Don't let things stay vague. It's not fair for her to wonder." Robert stared at the man, not expecting that at all. He knew Ewan was right, but everything had been so busy, he hadn't had time to nurture a proper relationship. Turning his eyes to the ground for a moment in thought, he finally replied, "Thanks… You're right… I needed you to say that, I think."
Robert smiled weakly at Ewan, who chuckled and said, "It's wise to listen to your elders, boy. I'll keep you on the right path when you need it." This made Robert smile fully. "I'd appreciate that, sir. I'm always open to free wisdom." Ewan chuckled and clasped Robert's arm. "Good. Now, you said you had to talk to DAVE."
Upon heading to the portal that led to DAVE's sanctum, Sorcha caught up with Robert, a small troupe of about eight other acolytes in tow behind her. They all looked tired and thoroughly mussed. Apparently, the ritual had been rough on them. "What happened to you?" Robert demanded.
Sorcha waved off his concern. "There was… resistance. I'll just say we had to fight for what we learned, and it wasn't easy." She spoke enigmatically. "It's a Nuck. There's a Nuck in Edinburgh." She gazed at him seriously, expecting him to understand the gravity of her proclamation. Robert didn't and said so.
"Forgive me, I have no idea what that is." Sorcha rubbed her cheek distressedly. "It's the Nuckelavee. A… ah, I suppose in America you'd call it a bogeyman. It's a centaur-like demon, body of a horse, torso of a human coming from the body, and a demonic face. It's said to spread death and famine everywhere it goes from its very aura, exhaling death in its very breath.
It was just a scary bedtime story to tell children to keep them away from the sea on their own, safe in their rooms at night. A harmless lie of a threat, every Scot has heard of it at least once in their life."
Robert listened to the seeress in utter disbelief. "And… now it's real… and destroying Edinburgh with an army of Cu Sith mutts." Having delivered her discovery, Sorcha shook her head in bewilderment. "We saw a giant portal, made of flame and lava.
And the great skinless monstrosity crawled out of it, looked right at us, and destroyed our sight, breathing a plague of pestilence at us, flinging us across the field we were in, in all different directions. We came to you straight away."
Robert had seen a lot since receiving Moira's presence. He'd fought kobolds, earth elemental golems, fairies, a giant grubworm, corrupted beasts, and a giant forest guardian, now turned gorilla.
But those were things pulled from ancient stories and fantasy novels. Why was a children's nightmare destroying the capital of Scotland? Finally, Robert nodded to Sorcha. "Thank you, seer. I don't know how you fight that, but we're preparing to receive a lot of refugees.
Get some rest, all of you. And see if you can help out anywhere." Sorcha nodded stoically, her wise face grim.
Before Robert could step into the Sanctum Portal that housed DAVE, a five-person team of questors emerged, each bowing before Robert as they exited.
The last to appear was a man Robert had met before. His name was Jackson, a redhaired giant with intense blue eyes, a full head of unkempt wild red hair, and a proud red beard. He wore a large number of metal armor pieces, signifying his success in various dungeons and the rewards he'd earned.
He had a bloody gash across his chest, healing rapidly thanks to his party's healer, a small slip of a woman with a clover tattoo glowing on her cheek. His whole team was well-equipped, and Robert was impressed.
Robert didn't have time to run dungeons as much as he'd liked. It was fun, meeting deadly challenges head-on, coming out victorious, and receiving tangible rewards for the effort. Life itself had lost this magic. Too often, people worked for others, hoping for scraps.
Here, the work you put into a goal met with rewards that were fair and just, matching the challenge conquered. The world could use that everywhere, once again.
Jackson smiled broadly at Robert, his big voice bursting out. "Robert! Goin to run the gauntlet solo?? Damn man, that would be one hell of a feat! It ain't so easy anymore!" His team chimed in with their opinions. "It's six floors deep now! And not just kobolds and brutes anymore.
The damned fairies are impossible!" one said. "Yeah! The traps are getting harder and harder to break," said another. "I can't wait to see what the final boss is now. DAVE is a beast, sir! He loves putting us through hell!" They all laughed at their buddy's comment, but Jackson continued, "We can't finish it anymore, but damn, the rewards are good!"
He showed Robert his double-sided great axe, gleaming with a fiery sheen, heat pouring off it in waves. "A little further every time, and DAVE is merciful enough to let us out when we've had enough. He's awesome and always praises our efforts, even though he's been kickin' our arses!" Robert smiled helplessly at Jackson and his team. "It sounds like you know that dungeon pretty well.
I can't wait to see how it's grown." Then a thought hit him. "Hey… you didn't happen to see Langston in there, did you? He was supposed to be running it… I didn't realize DAVE had gotten so much stronger." Jackson and his team glanced at one another, all shaking their heads.
Jackson's voice was grave. "If he's in there by himself, may Dagda be with him. It ain't easy in there anymore." Robert frowned. He'd told Langston to run it solo a few times, not realizing DAVE had gathered enough power from the other adventurers' efforts to turn it into a death trap.
Robert nodded thankfully to Jackson and said, "Keep up the good work! We might need your strength soon, brother."
Jackson gave a thumbs-up and a wink, grabbing his slim healer by the shoulders. "We're off to get a drink! See you!" They followed the overbearing, yet charming, man to Sarah's Café for a hearty meal.
Frowning now, Robert stepped inside the Sanctum and was immediately greeted by the bootlicking DAVE.
"Welcome, sir! It's so good to see you again! It's been far too many days since your last visit! I'm thrilled you haven't forgotten me!"