The Terral Gate

Chapter 7

Darwin’s lab was also his living quarters. There was a small bed in the corner and a small counter with dirty pots and plates near it, but the dungeonesque room was filled mainly with tables full of various mechanical contraptions and alchemical projects. The only light in the room was artificial, coming from glass globes hung on metal chain fixtures spiked into the dark stone walls. They had descended several flights of stairs to reach Darwin’s lab and so were technically below the first floor of the Arcane College. Lodi wondered just how far above the thousand foot drop from the floating city to the waters below he was standing.

“So,” Darwin leaned comfortably back against one of his tables in an attempt to hide his excitement. “You’ve actually seen- fought- the yellow creatures of energy? How powerful are they?”

Kat exchanged glances with Gallus before removing her glove and stepping towards Darwin. She showed him the back of her right hand, where the dark mark was as bold as it ever was.

“Does this mean anything to you, Darwin?” she inquired. Kat’s voice carried a desperation that kept Darwin from playfully reminding her that he asked his question first. He studied the mark closely and carefully. His eyes darted around the floor as he thought for a few seconds before they widened and he looked up at the group.”

“Do you all have one of these?” he ran up to Lodi and grabbed his hand as if to help him remove his gauntlet.

“Yes...well...the 4 of us do...” Lodi awkwardly identified everyone except Gallus with his left hand while he tried to help Darwin with his right.

“And are they all different?” Darwin answered his own question as Lodi’s gauntlet came off. It was clearly different than Kat’s. The others looked at Darwin with surprise and wondered how he was able to predict such a strange detail. Darwin dropped the gauntlet on the floor and ran over to one of many boxes stacked against the wall with papers stuffed inside. “The four of you, come over here and show me your hands!” He was throwing binders and papers and trinkets on the floor, making a mess around him, but eventually rose with a small notebook in his hands. He flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for. Darwin then started examining each person’s hand, one at a time. Gerberkan stifled a laugh as he held the wrong hand out. Darwin smacked it and Gerberkan switched sheepishly. Eventually Darwin looked satisfied. He cleared his throat, smiling as he began. “Okay, here’s my story. I’ll assume you’re all familiar with the Terral Gate. I know you are!” Darwin pointed at Lodi, identifying the mark of The Order on his armor. “It’s an ancient stone gateway carved inside of the volcanic Loralay Mountain. It’s a giant arch that doesn’t physically go anywhere- it’s just more rock behind it. Anyhow, people say that it was a magic portal hundreds of years ago. Fine. Great. Starting about a month back, I’m sure you’ve noticed or heard about the dark clouds that’ve been floating above the mountain, right? It looks like a big stormcloud full of weird yellow energy. It’s gnarly.” The group remained still, save for several slow nods to indicate they were following along. “About 25 years ago, when I was just a little kid, I remember seeing a similar cloud. In fact, I’d say it was exactly the same if I trusted my memory a little more. It wasn’t there for long, though. I remember a startling burst of lightning, and then it was gone.” Darwin looked around and gave another dramatic pause. “And it was nowhere near the Loralay Mountain.”

“That’s pretty interesting, Darwin, but not entirely convincing.” Gallus had no reservations about remaining skeptical if nobody else in the party would.