Drifting Through Realities
Chapter 20 - Bad dog! Very bad dog!
It had been a few weeks since the escapade that had landed Cloud Stuffer in the dungeons at last. I had my own functional place, with no less than five crystals going full time to power everything. I was still wary about flipping half the switches in any of the rooms, but I was slowly learning the layout for all the buttons. More often than not, there was a helper clank of the second generation of helper clanks in the room, ready to stop me from doing something foolish. Occasionally, Tick Tock himself was around to make sure I knew what was going on.
All in all, life was good. I managed to make enough from my bouncer job to pay back Vinyl and make rent, though I still supplemented my income with the stuff the smith and glassblower sent me. I still needed to eat after all.
And that was when I found out that there was a gryphon-run stall at the very back of the market. Selling, of all things, both meat, and a meat substitute. The substitute was substantially cheaper, and I could guess why, though it still promised to take care of all the needs a meat-eater could have. I was uneasy about eating anything that might have once talked, so I stuck with the substitute. If I really craved red meat, I could always try some...when my morals degraded a bit more.
In the end, my new niche life here was good. I was lying at home one night after a long day of work, contemplating pulling out my bag of holding to see what trophies had survived the many, many drifts I had gone through. It would probably be a good idea to test them anyways, see what did and didn't work in a new world.
And then I heard something scratching upstairs.
A feeling of dread washed over me, my skin getting goosebumps and my hair on the back of my neck standing on end. It was probably just a clank working around up there.
But if it was just a clank, why was I so afraid? I was only afraid like this for one sort of thing, and I hoped, I prayed, that I was wrong. I drew Origin and walked up the stairs. The scratching was joined by a sort of huffing and snuffing.
No. Please no. Anything but this.
I gripped my sword all the tighter and reached out with my left hand. The moment my hand contacted my doorknob, the sounds stopped, and I breathed out. I pulled the door open and raised my sword to defend myself.
The massive black dog with eyes as red as hellfire jumped out of my room and at me, deftly avoiding the sword as I tried my best to keep it from pinning me to the ground. A Black Dog. A harbinger of doom. My old master's favorite pets. He only ever used them for one thing. To start the Hunt by finding the prey. I couldn't let this one leave. But if I killed it, I would only be buying myself time.
Time was better than nothing. I did my best to draw my sword up, and the dog howled as I cut into it, causing it to fall back. I did as well, to regain my breath, and noticed that it didn't seem too bothered about its wound. It was up and coming at me again within seconds of registering the pain I'd caused it.
Time to bring out a bigger gun, then. I charged up my anti-magic field and allowed the dog close. It jumped up, trying to bite my face again, only to fall back and howl in agony as it reached my field of causing it extreme pain.
Yeah, just like all the other things from the Fae realms, this thing was more magic than flesh and blood. It obeyed certain rules and commands, but the only real thing that could actually kill it would be slicing it in half.
Something that I quickly did, chopping its head cleanly off and causing it to disperse in a flash of magic. It left behind a slimy residue on my floor, and I sighed.
Fuck.
The Wild Hunt would be on in about three day's time.
And I would be the prey.
I guess having my scars healed didn't make it impossible to find me.