Knights Apocalyptica

Erec stood in front of the gate that would lead to another world. His Armor now fully functional, and reinforced. At this point, about 25% of the exterior plating was reinforced with scrap, and a portion of the interior wiring had to be redone and soldered with whatever he could find.

Normally, around this point would mark the start of structural integrity issues. But thanks to VAL and its nanites, they were a long way off from that being a concern. Aside from some weaker metal alloys now on the exterior, it was still pretty near the condition he left the Kingdom in.

The most important part was that his Armor would meet Boldwick standards, and he’d beat the Knights and Pendragon’s preparations.

Right now they still rushed around pulling together the last few pieces to enable the mission.

“Not much longer…” Erec mumbled, Boldwick told them to be ready in the next couple of hours.

His eyes roamed over to the end of the tunnel; the steel rings that lined the totality of the tunnel narrowed until they blended together, ending in a solid piece of steel, welded from the walls to the back. There was a secondary ring of what seemed to be copper, and other metals, along with electrical equipment blinking and glowing, wires running off from that…

Yeah, an old-world contraption on a grand scale, Erec was sure. If it worked, the rings would light up, and open up a temporary rift right where that steel wall was.

Then, he’d step into another world.

“You nervous?” Garin asked Erec, one of his arms wrapped around Colin’s shoulder as they approached. Like him, as initiates, and those going on the mission, other then getting their gear together, there wasn’t much else to be done for the Initiates who were going. And they’d had significantly more time to sit and ponder the current situation then Erec, who’d needed to make repairs.

“Who wouldn’t be? At this point though, how many times have we faced threats that could end us? This one’s different, but still the same in a lot of ways. I’ve always been curious about what it’s like on the other side of one of these.”

There seemed to be an infinite possibility of worlds, based on the monsters they’d encountered. Yet the accounts of Knights were limited. Some made the trip for research, others by necessity, but as a general rule, they avoided crossing into another world.

“Though I don’t understand why you decided to come along, Colin,” Erec asked.

“Isn’t it obvious? If you’re so accomplished and the same age as I, even from a lesser station, it wouldn’t behoove me to reject this opportunity.” Colin answered too quickly.

“Your father refused to participate, probably on grounds of his rank, which you should have too.” Garin answered, “Listen, if you’re worried about Erec, you can just admit that. It’s why I decided to go along, though to think he’s doing it chase a girl…”

“It’s not about Enide.” Erec answered, crossing his arms. And that was true, partially. Some of it was about her, but some of it was about him. There were plenty of reasons to go, but the most important is because deep down he knew he had to. And he wouldn’t let that instinct go anymore, how much of that was a change influenced by Enide, or natural progress he couldn’t say.

The jury was still out on whether or not it’d lead to his death, but it would make life worth living. He felt sure of that.

“Mhmm. Well, Liv chewed me out for going along. Wasn’t happy that we were engaging with this at all, but I can’t lie. I’m curious.” Garin stepped forward. “You guys feel it too right? The call of the unknown?”

“It’s like standing on the steel wall and looking down, knowing you could take a single step and fall, but unable to look away,” Colin mumbled to himself.

They sat in silence for a bit, each of them in their own heads, making their own mental justifications for what led them down this path. All of them well aware that in a couple of hours, they’d never be quite the same.

— - ☢ - — - ☼ - — - ☢ - —

Lights flared around the rim of the gate-maker. The Knights stood in the forefront as a whirring noise began, stemming from the components that surrounded the steel wall. Erec felt a flush of anticipation as they announced the start of the expedition. Due to the power consumption and strain on the equipment, they had an hour minimum before the gate could open again—and it would only remain open for up to five minutes.

Enough time to get in, ensure it was safe, then begin their exploration. Boldwick would make the call on how long he thought their mission might take, based on whatever lay on the other side, with a maximum of a day.

They couldn’t know ahead of time what was there. Seven-Snake’s team wiped any information about that, and the thugs left behind weren’t told or refused to answer.

So be it.

Erec braced himself as the lights flashed red and whirring intensified—the metal on the sides took on a deep orange-to-white glow again, pulsing as the air at the gate tore open. Though he was in Armor, this time, so near a Rift opening, he felt something deep within him stir and react to the change in the world.

It started with a silent crack in space. Light spilled out and bled an ethereal rainbow into the world. The light twisted around, gathering at the edges of the tear, breaking across reality like glass. More and more cracks, until the interior and most highly fractured bits of the world bled away into a pure white light, which faded into a twisting distortion of space, with which one could see the steel behind it, the air itself alternating between too-light and too dark.

It’d stabilized.

With a lifted fist as a signal, Boldwick marched forward. When he met the steel wall at the end of the hallway, his body simply twisted away into the air, leaving nothing.

Thirty seconds later, he walked back out, appearing in a shifting of light, and motioned for everyone to follow. Their signal was that it was safe to breach the gap.

As a unit, the Knights moved, Dame Robin slightly ahead of the initiates when Boldwick didn’t wait for them before vanishing into the Rift again.

Next went Robin.

Erec led the way for the initiates, his stomach twisting the closer he got to the vortex of light and shadows. The cast on the steel wall behind it was unnatural. His skin crawled as if it were acknowledging something against the natural order. The air, even within his Armor, felt viscous, like oil.

For every step closer to the light and shadow, the way ahead seemed further away. Space itself stretched impossibly around him, turning from an approach toward a wall to walking down a steel tunnel. Behind him, the room, the people, and the world itself twisted out of shape.

Then he was alone. Each step required considerable force as a rush of sound flooded his ears—crackling like a log on a fire.

The world twisted in an instant from an endless steel hall to an oppressive dark corridor. VAL instantly activated the light on his helm and saw Boldwick and Robin slightly ahead.

Massive wooden shelves lined the path ahead, stretching high enough into the sky to leave sight and make it impossible to say how tall they were. Erec stepped forward, his leg heavy as he lunged; the support of his Armor caught him.

[Expect some motion sickness.] VAL cautioned. [I’ll help you keep upright until you adjust since we just flung ourselves through space. Gravity also seems off here.]

Erec took small cautious steps, his breath quickening as his head twisted to take in all he could see.

Rows upon rows of wooden shelves, more than the largest library he’d ever entered. Some of them were chained down; others had plaques written in indecipherable script. Upon them were stacks of paper, scrolls, and books shoved in; the occasional blank space and other-worldly statues dotted the landscape.

Above was a dim light. Floating candles charted their course through the maze of shelves.

Erec flinched as far above a shadow flickered from one of the shelves to another. His hand groped around for his axe as he wobbled closer to the other Knights.

Garin and Colin popped out the twisting distortion, which appeared different from this side. Instead of a wave of rainbow and light and dark, there was a mass of black in the middle of the hall. Not long after came the confused Pendragons, though Enide and Rochester seemed fine with the shift in reality.

This wasn’t what he’d expected.

When he pictured an alien world, he envisioned trees with eyeballs. Maybe purple fauna. A whole landscape of slime, or even a lush red field of flowers… Something to match the eldritch monsters he’d faced.

But this was like the world’s creepiest library, with an almost oppressive atmosphere. He couldn’t get over the feeling of being watched.

“…Do not touch anything.” Boldwick cautioned as Rochester reached a hand towards one of the nearest shelves. He yelled in surprise as his hand brushed the back of a book, only for the thing to twist around and dive at him, its binding flaring open to reveal jagged teeth as it snapped at his hand.

Enide appeared right next to it, the barrel of her las-rifle on the cover, blasting a hole through the book.

It fell to the ground, burning away.

“Dear Goddess,” Colin said. “Even the books here want to kill us?”

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