Ascendants of Ancients Sovereign (Worlds of the Crystal Moon, Book 1) (48 page)

Kepler shook his big, furry head. “Though I’m unsure what this word ‘time’ means, I believe you’re rambling. Why speak of matters that you cannot change? I hope you have a point to this nonsense. And who’s this Athena?”

George frowned. “Just forget about Athena. She isn’t our focus at the moment anyway.”

“Fair enough,” Kepler replied.

George looked down at Maldwin. “Since 12 Peaks is a long period of moments, why don’t we leave Maldwin here for now. We can travel to Lethwitch so I can grab some supplies. This should kill 6 or 7 Peaks. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find something to put over my hands. Maybe a pair of gloves will work. Damn, I hope they work.”

Without validating George’s plan, Kepler sent his brothers to gather his warriors. The jaguar then looked past the fire at Maldwin and spoke in the rat’s language. “It appears it will be a while before we return, my new friend. Stay with your family until then.”

Maldwin’s nose twitched as he acknowledged he understood.

Kepler stood and jumped down off Kroger’s lap. “George, perhaps you could explain the meaning of this word ‘time’ as we travel to Lethwitch. Many of your words are foreign to me. If I’m to hunt at your side, we should have an understanding of each other’s ways ... agreed?”

George grinned. “Totally. Maybe we should get going. We can talk along the way.”

With that, George smiled at Maldwin, threw his backpack over his shoulder and then headed for Lethwitch.

IT’S A NEW MORNING
on Grayham, and Sam is getting ready to catch one of the hippogriffs to travel to his next fight. Shalee is also making the trip, along with their trainers. The next arena is located just outside of Lethwitch. They intend to stay 7 Peaks before moving on to the next town.

The tremors are increasing, and they have Sam worried. Upon further communication with BJ, Sam has determined how he’s going to gain an audience with the King of Brandor. He must fight twice every 7 Peaks over the next 77 Peaks—22 fights in all—and win. His ambitions are adding up to one city, town or village every 7 Peaks. He must fight in the city of Champions for the Golden Chalice of Brandor before he’ll be able to meet the king.

MOSLEY
attended the ceremony honoring Bassorine’s passing. The wolf has decided to join Bailem’s team. He is with them now, telling them everything he knows, or at least everything Bassorine wanted him to share.

MALDWIN
called his family out of the cave. They have gathered around the stone statue of Kroger as the rat explains he will leave with his new travel companions. Soon, they will have a better, safer place to live. Maldwin hopes that George will be okay with the size of his family. There are easily over 250 of them. Imagine the noise and the rat droppings on Kroger’s lap.

GEORGE
and
KEPLER
are still on their way to Lethwitch. They walked through the night and agreed to stop to rest just after the Peak of Bailem. George set the alarm on his watch to ring five hours later and showed the jaguar how the Rolex works. At this very moment, Kepler is asking questions about the device—questions George wants to avoid, but cannot.

CELESTRIA
is going crazy. The elven witch family has been nagging her to answer every question their small minds can conjure. If it wasn’t for her baby’s safety, the goddess would end them.

ATHENA
is sitting behind the counter at her work, going through the logbook and singing. She has been happy since her breakfast with George and looks forward to seeing him again.

LASIDIOUS
is more than ready to step down as the leader of his team. The gods have been called to a meeting that is scheduled for Late Bailem. He plans to announce where he’s going to hide the first piece of the Crystal Moon.

Thank you for reading this edition of the Grayham Inquirer

CHAPTER 19

What Irony

George and Kepler’s Napping Spot

“SO, YOU HAVE YOUR Rolex watch,” Kepler said after hearing much of what George explained. “I understand it keeps what you call ‘the time’ according to your Earth’s day, which has 24 hours, and it takes 24 of these hours for your sun to rise, travel across the sky and then rise again. I also understand what you call a ‘minute.’ I think this concept would make things much easier if we had something like your Rolex on Grayham. But what I don’t understand is how did you get here?”

“That’s the fuzzy part for me, too,” George replied. “One minute, I’m driving with this beautiful woman in an RV ... I’ll explain what an RV is later ... and the next thing I know, her eyes changed color, her teeth grew sharp, and the cold was like needles to my skin. After that, I woke up in a great hall with huge pillars and golden doors. I was one of three in that hallway. The others were also from my world, and they had no idea what was going on. The man said his name was Sam, a pompous bastard if you ask me, but he was pretty smart. The woman was annoying and not worth talking about. We found a statue, and this guy, Sam, was able to read what was on it. It had a prophecy about the three of us and talked about a crystal. I think he called it the Crystal Moon.”

The demon-jaguar interrupted. “You mean the Crystal Moon in the Temple of the Gods?”

George shrugged, “I don’t know. I can’t remember. Everything was so crazy that day. The inscription on the statue talked of a man’s great victories and how he brought home the power to control worlds the other gods had lost. Apparently this power, which Sam said the crystal generates, is what keeps five planets from colliding. It said something about the planets rotating around a single sun. I know there’s more, but I can’t recall it all right now.

“Wait, I remember Sam saying there were five planets and some guy named Bassorine was turned into a god.”

The demon jumped in. “The place you’re talking about is the Temple of the Gods above Griffin Cliffs. The man you speak of is the God of War, Bassorine ... the mightiest of prowlers. But we can speak more about him in one of your Earth’s ‘minutes.’

“The Crystal Moon is the divine object that governs the worlds. Bassorine protects the crystal to ensure that no one can send the worlds into chaos.”

Kepler stopped talking when he saw the expression on George’s face change. “What is it? You seem bothered.”