21: Arrival: Rude Awakening

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Again, I had the briefest glimpse of the far side before that giant's club hit me on the head again. I saw an open door—or perhaps an open wall—with huge trees in the background. Someone was standing right in front of me, and I had just enough time to realize that the man's face looked familiar, before I blacked out.

* * *

The next thing I remember was a pain in my ear. Not the eardrum—something was causing pain on the outside of my ear.

I stirred, and heard a voice hiss in a sharp whisper, "Wake up!" The pain intensified.

I opened my eyes with difficulty, and beheld the most wrinkled face I have ever seen, before or since, with nose and ears as large as the rest was wrinkled. Gender was uncertain, and I wasn't entirely sure it was human. A hand appeared to be holding my ear, pinching it with sharp nails.

"Don't talk," the face whispered. "We only have a few seconds. You have to stop him. This is all your fault, and you are the only one who can fix it. If you don't stop him, he'll kill us all!"

"Who?" I tried to say, but my vocal cords weren't working. I heard an angry voice off-camera somewhere, and I faded out as the face moved away.


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