Continuum

The Encounter #2

After the portal closed, Jack looked around him and noticed that all the demons were gone.

“What just happened?”, Jack said with a confused voice.

As he was observing the surroundings and trying to comprehend what happened, the ADL’s Snebolig Garrison Regiment Captain, Lev Morozov, who appeared to be in his late 20’s, approached him.

“Are you alright, your highness?” asked Lev.

“I’m fine, Captain Morozov. Hold on, why are you with the MedSquad? Shouldn’t you be guarding the fort?”

“It was a Tier-1 ExCOM alert, sir.”

“Interesting…”

“In any case, check with the villagers and do the necessaries”

The captain nodded and told his garrison to secure the perimeter and his medical team to tend to the wounded. Meanwhile, Jack was occupied with many puzzling questions. He then called out the young villager who had cooperated with him earlier.

“Hey you, come here.”

“Yes, sir”

“Summarize what happened here”, enquired Jack.

“It was in the evening around sunset. A horde of demons appeared from the horizon, the sky became darker and darker and the weather became ice-cold. Before we could do anything sensible, the demons were already at the gates. With what little time was left, we could barely hold them while the children escaped. Just when the elderly were about to escape, they outnumbered us and got everyone tied up and held to the ground.”

“Any idea why?”

“I’m not sure but they took the elders to a separate house. Maybe they will know something.”

“Let all the villagers rest for now. They’ve been through a lot. What is your name, by the way?”, asked Jack.

“It’s Feliks sir.”

“ OK, listen Feliks, take care of the villagers and be on the lookout for demons. If something is unusual, Contact the ADL’s EmerCom(Emergency Communications) immediately.”

“Yes, Sir.” replied Feliks.

Jack patted Feliks’s shoulder as Feliks left to check on his family. A kid was running towards Feliks yelling “Brother! ”. After a glance, Jack noticed it was the same kid from earlier.

“You’re his brother, huh?”

“Yeah, I am” replied Feliks.

“He was a brave guy,” Jack said with a chuckle.

Feliks smiled and headed back to his family. Jack then took a walk towards the outskirts of the village, thinking as to who could that be from the portal.

While Jack was thinking, his head slightly vibrated, indicating that someone is trying to contact him telepathically. Jack attended the call and the same woman whom Jack asked to send medical support from earlier.

“Prince Eclair, Are you alright, Your Highness?” asked the woman.

“I’m alright and I need to know something. What triggered the Tier-1 ExCOM alert?”

“A few moments after you requested MedSupport, there was a massive spike of dark energy detected by the ADL’s Demons Erkennung Division. Here is the interesting part: that level of the spike has been detected only three times since the formation of ADL.”

“So whatever demon that you encountered…. “, the woman said.

“...could possibly be one of the three demon kings who invaded before”, Jack finished the sentence.

“For a demon who invaded an entire nation, even you wouldn’t be able to hold your ground against that entity. No Offense, Sir”

“None taken. Good job.”, Jack said.

“Thank you, Your highness. Is there anything else?”

“Not for now”Jack replied and hung up the call.

“So that was one of the three demon kings, huh? After two centuries since the last invasion, they are coming into the land of living. I need to know why.”

Meanwhile, The Captain approached Jack and told him everything had been taken care of, for which Jack appreciated him.

“I’m headed towards Beauford city. Make sure to send them a message, Captain.”

“Yes, sir”

After the conversation was over, Jack was preparing to hit the road.

“Alright then, let’s go, Matheou(his bike). To the private hanger”

Jack went to the royal family’s private hanger, which is located at the far end of the valley from which he left for the Beauford International Airport.

Jack took a rest on the way, and continued to ride to the city after arriving at the airport. After reaching the city’s southern east gate, he was received by King Charles Beauford and his Royal Guards at the gate. Jack parked his bike at the bike station near the gate and approached King Charles.

“I’m sorry to disturb you this early, Mister Beauford.”

“Anything for the Royal Eclarian Empire besides it is a state of emergency now, Master Eclair”

King Charles and Jack walked through the city towards the palace.

“I assume you are informed of the recent incident in the valley.”

“Yes, Prince. The Snebolig Garrison regiment informed us of everything that had happened. The Pentagon’s DE(Demons Erkenung) Division is working on a day-night cycle to keep a 24/7 eye on the Radar. Fortunately, nothing unusual has happened till now. Our scout party is also on the lookout. ADL’s Beauford Garrison Regiment is also standing by. ForCON tier-1 has been declared and the city is in lockdown.”

“Good, Can you arrange a teleconference with the emperor and the high elders?”

“Yes, Prince. However, it will take some time to stabilize the connection. I suggest you rest while we are at it. We’ve arranged one of the palace’s rooms for you. May, Here, will take you to your room.”

Jack thanked the king for his generosity and left with May for his room.

On his way, he noticed the city was very quiet and there were rarely lights lit on the streets and, of course, it was early morning, so most of them were asleep. There was a river flowing through the city called Sobek which starts from Mt.Snebolig to the Predemer port, which lies on the bottom left of the Iropa Continent. It flowed in the shape of an inverted ‘L’ through the city. The city was fortified with cement walls which stood at a height of 40ft and a thickness of 8ft. Upon crossing the bridge, the first thing he noticed was the palace, which faced perpendicular to the bridge and opposite to which was the Pentagon Building where both ADL and the military do their tasks. The front of the palace had a fountain of a lady pouring water on a swan. Around the fountain, there was grass and well-maintained bushes, and a path made of cement for reaching the palace. He then followed May into the palace. It had 3 floors which stood up to 45ft. Upon entering, there was a huge oval courtyard that had stairs to the first floor and the throne room was facing the entrance from the first floor. Upon reaching the first floor, the remaining stairs for the rest of the floors are on the other side's corner, which is above the entrance.

“The master room we’ve arranged is on the 3rd floor, Master Eclair.”

He followed her to the stairs, which are on the right corner. They reached the third floor and it covered the entire palace, unlike the second floor. There were a total of 15 rooms which were divided into three columns. Jack and may reach the end of the first column.

“This will be your room, Master Eclair. If you need anything, please ring the bell that is placed near the bed.” May said, pointing towards it.

“Thank you very much, Miss May...? ”

“It’s May Swann, Master”, May interrupted and said

“Thank you very much, Miss Swann.”

“No problem, Master Eclair. I wish you a good stay.”

Jack nodded and closed the door. He first removed his boots and placed them in the footwear stand. He then removed his white coat and placed it in the hanger and placed his sword in the sword stand. He then climbed onto the bed and positioned himself to sleep.

“What a wild day.”

“So, After all these years, they finally decided to show up, huh?”

“Things have gained real momentum now.”

TO BE CONTINUED…..