Taalook had only led the group a few hundred metres toward a large archway leading into a dimly lit tunnel when Rex stopped two paces from the doorway. “What’s this?” Rex asked, tracing his eyes over the archway, one eyebrow raised. “What’s what Rex?” Cassius asked, halting beside Rex and staring, confused at the arched doorway. “There is another film of magic over this doorway. Another shield?” Rex asked turning to face Taalook and Hussin. “You can see the zone magics?” Hussin asked, his small beady eyes growing a little larger in surprise. “Zone magics?” Cassius asked, snapping to look at the archway once more, squinting heavily before sighing and turning to Rex. “I don’t know how you do it. Is it something you can teach?” “The queen has the zetas set zones that allow certain types into certain zones, preventing those from going into places they shouldn’t be,” Taalook boomed. “Hussin can tell you about it once we meet the queen, and if you are allowed to continue living afterwa
“Balrog!?” Rex spluttered, his mind whirling. “But Fafnir said she was…”“A demon?” The hive queen said, her voice almost like a low growl sending a tingling sensation down Rex’s spine.“Uh, yeah,” Rex sighed, hoping his admission did not seal his fate earlier than expected, “I believed it because he was a dragon and she didn’t look anything like the crazaks that attacked earlier on my journey, or now I’ve seen you, doesn’t resemble you either.”“Do all humans look the same?” The queen asked, raising two eyebrows over two eyes on the left side of her face while looking down at Rex.“Well, no,” Rex replied. Then it dawned on him, “Same race, look differently. I must admit I’m now curious about how that happens. Our looks differ due to quite a lot of things like race, gender, and heritage of the parents, is that the same for you?”“No,” the queen replied with a quirk to the edges of her mouth. “You are tempting and intelligent, quite the tantalising mix indeed. Our looks depend on our l
Doing his best to keep his heart rate and thoughts on the correct path, Rex took a step back out of instinct, causing the hive queen to stop one step above where he stood and raise the two eyebrows on the left side of her face.“Do you not intend on agreeing to our deal?” she asked, her voice going flat.“Uh, sorry. Old habit to give myself room for a fight if needed,” Rex said, a bead of sweat trickling down his forehead as he realised he had also unknowingly taken an unarmed fighting stance.“Hold out your hand,” the hive queen said, smirking seeing Rex relax from his fighting stance in seconds.Doing as requested, but keeping his muscles taut and ready to react at a moment's notice, the hive queen strode forward, striking the tip of his thumb with one of her claw tips so fast Rex did not even see the queen move her hand. After feeling the pinch, he looked at his thumb, seeing the blood now slowly trickling out from the tiny wound.“Uh, that’s strange,” Rex said, still staring curio
“Now now Dorian,” the younger, gentler female voice said in an almost sing-song tone before Rex could reply, “I remember, gods quite a long time ago now, where a man once told me, ‘A man’s secrets are his very being. The ability to strip a man’s secrets and lay him bare is a travesty to his core.’ With that in mind, how could you allow any of us to assault his mind and take away that which doesn’t belong to us?”“Sounds like Tillian has found herself a young interest,” the older woman’s voice said, almost mockingly.“I can admit, unlike some of us, that this young…I am sorry, Rex was it?” the voice from Tillian said.“Yes, my name is Rex,” Rex nodded, finally being able to have a voice amongst the seemingly ending squabbles of beings unknown to him.“I had forgotten if you classed yourself as an adult or child still,” Tillian’s voice said softly. “I know so little about your race I’m afraid. I doubt even Gillart could shed any light on this.”“Hullans would be the closest to his race
Chapter 104Thirty minutes later, and with great effort, Rex was able to be upright without nausea or a pounding headache and was now seated at a small table in the cavernous room he was placed in.“Uh, I feel worse than ever,” Rex said, reaching out and picking up a strange blood-red coloured food object he guessed was fruit from a stone bowl in the centre of the table he was sitting at, Grub to his left and Cassius to his right. Both men, he could see, had a worried expression poorly hidden in their facial features. Turning the food over in his fingers, he could not attribute the shape nor colour to any fruit he had seen, during his time in Oak, nor even during his time in Dracoterrum and this realm.Clearing his throat slightly before speaking, Cassius broke the silence that came after Rex’s declaration, saying while also looking at the food Rex was studying, “They call it a “Smuur”, whatever that means. I have not been able to ascertain a translation to our tongue, but I believe i
Quickly dashing sideways to flank Telagus, Lacey and Minet both gripped their weapons tightly, waiting for Rex to close the distance front on, ‘Surely she cannot dodge an attack from the three of us at once’ he said through their connection.“Amusing,” Telagus said with a wide smile, watching the three assailants intently as they reached their destinations around him.“Won’t be so amusing when I shove my sword up your…” Lacey started to curse, getting cut off mid-sentence by a gust of air striking her in the chest, staggering her slightly.“No need for cuss words young filthy mouth,” Telagus growled, lowering his hand after pointing it at Lacey, “Your connection to each other is strong,” he continued his eyes darting to Minet and then back to Rex.‘When he hit Lacey, I felt it as well,’ Minet said.‘So did I, he must have noticed your flinch,’ Rex warned, “We must be careful of what strikes we take.’‘I’ve never seen anyone throw air like a weapon,’ Lacey added in, rolling her head fr
“If that is the case, mind telling me where we are?” Rex asked defiantly, angry at Telagus’s apparent pride at whatever he had done.“We are in a place that resides between your mother’s and your own mind, I have you in here to enjoy the show,” he replied with an evil smile.“Show? What show?” Rex asked, scowling while eyeing him suspiciously.“Oh right, I forgot, since your mother’s shell is technically in command of your actions, with my influence of course, I will help you see what you’re doing,” he continued, his eyes glowing red for a second, producing a large round disk between them.“What I’m doing…what the f**k are you on about?” Rex replied aggressively, he had no idea what was going on and was doing his best to try and stall Telagus to try and figure out a way out of his current predicament.Growling disdainfully, Telagus snapped his neck from side to side sharply, “Oh such filth from young mouths, it is disgusting to hear.”“Don’t like cuss words?” Rex asked, smiling.“I am
“You have set me up!!” Telagus roared in a panicked voice.“I did NO such thing! YOU did this, so now the sacred battle is null and void, Markus, Ley and Marcia, signal the full charge!” Rector roared.As they nodded their acknowledgement of the order, Telagus yelled at Rex, “Kill them all!!”Obeying the order, Rex immediately lit his hands on fire and began throwing fireballs into Rector’s charging army, killing scores of soldiers as they charged Telagus’s army, leaving many screaming in pain from burns.“Son, that is enough!” Rector said loudly, his voice echoing, quickly moving to be in front of Rex.“He does not listen to you,” Telagus said with an evil smile, “His connection to his mother is strong, stronger than even I predicted.”“We will see about that, Rex, that is NOT your mother, not your real mother,” Rector pleaded, staring into Rex’s eyes, trying his best to make it through the spell.Rex stopped throwing his fireballs after hearing his name called, snapping his head to