The King's Knights

Chapter Forty-Six: To Another World

When Arcturus went through the portal, it was a new experience.

Even though he knew the science behind it, it didn't change a kind of mystical sense you got. The ring was engraved with all kinds of sacred markings, and the armored guards had been serious. For a moment, he'd stood before the gleaming yellow surface, like reflective water or mercury. It was psychic energy in raw form, channeled into a wormhole.

But there was a problem.

Sheer complexity.

Since planets within a system rotate around their sun, they are always moving. The farther a planet got from another, the harder it was to maintain the connection. Within the bounds of a single system, this could take the portal network down at rare points. Usually, when two planets were on opposite sides and even then when they were distant. But when creating a portal between worlds in other systems, it was a lot more difficult.

The connection was always flickering and weak.

All of this went through Arcturus' thoughts as he passed through the portal. Stepping beyond into Kadan, Arcturus found himself in a wide-open marble area. On the floor was a huge sigil of a unicorn and a dragon locked in mortal combat. Vines were growing around the unicorn from behind, and the dragon had fire behind it. Above both was a powerful warrior clad in white armor with a shining sword upraised.

The symbol of Bretus.

And there were many men clad in white with ceremonial breastplates and pikes. Some of them also had guns, and these were toward the back. One of them came forward, looking somewhat cordial. "So you're the emissary of-

"Hang on, put a leash on that damn crocodile immediately!"

Arcturus blinked.

Crocodile?

Was that a reference to a local religion? Some cultures did regard crocodiles as a kind of manifestation of death. "What?"

"The thing behind you," said the guard.

"I think he means me," said Renfield.

That's right, Renfield was a seven-foot-tall lizard man who wouldn't be seen normally in this world. Nobody commented on it in Erian. Actually, the place seemed remarkably open-minded compared to some places Arcturus had been.

Bloodthirsty.

But nobody was perfect.

"Renfield is not a crocodile," said Arcturus, noticing the guns going up and looking. "He is a sentient being from a different species other than your own and a friend."

"Right, so not only are we sending through Prince Schezar to appease these idiots. We're letting them take their pets in," said one of the white-clad ones. "What's the reason for your visit, you slant-eyed brat?"

Slant eyes?

Oh, right, Arcturus did have facial features different from them and darker-hued skin. This was a Western civilization with a lot of focus on eugenics. "I'm carrying a message from High King Relma to the Demoration Embassy.

"Other than that, my business is my own."

"You want to reconsider that answer, brat?" asked the man at the front.

'I don't think these guys would dare shoot me here. It seems like they're just blustering.' thought Fate to himself. He wasn't overly impressed with the reception.

Obviously, they'd been taken off guard and were showing their true colors.

Arcturus doubted Bretus thought very much diplomatically of Erian, to begin with. From what he had read, Emperor Charlton had a tendency to ignore rules that did not suit him.