Auberon awoke submerged in water and complete darkness. Had he died in the sky’s embrace? Was this Taydir’s Well, where his soul would commune with the dead? Thoughts flooded into his head as he attempted to make sense of the situation, but a searing pain that ran the length of his side told him quickly he still had a body.

Moreover, he could feel himself being pulled. No, he wasn’t dead. He had fallen into the river. Once he realized, he kicked his legs and tried to reach the surface. He must have only been down there for seconds, but he didn’t recall the moment when he hit the water. Only closing his eyes to be taken by the Empyrean Embrace.

Which was not granted to him.

His lungs burned for air as he frantically kicked to the surface. He wasn’t dead yet, but he may yet drown.

Thankfully, his arms and face breached the surface of the river and he gasped for air. He struggled to keep his head above water, then realized his armor was pulling him down. He took a great breath, then fell beneath the surface, attempting to untie the leather ties holding his half-plate armor in place.

The water made the job more difficult, and he once again felt his lungs burn as he drifted beneath the surface.

Finally, the leather ties on his side loosened, and he pulled off the armor, letting it drift to the bottom of the river. He kicked again for air.

This time he was able to take a few breaths before he kicked off his boots. His vision were blurry, but they could still make out the light of the setting sun. The sound of the giant flying demons over the camp were still present.

After a moment, he was able to clear his eyes enough to get a sense of what had happened. The giant insect hovered several men high over the surface further upriver. It seemed to be inspecting a large mass floating limply in the water.

Vetzsche. It was Vetzsche, and he lay still beneath the beast. Auberon looked around. The banks of the river were wide, and the shore closest to the encampment was too far. The current was moving too fast for him to swim back to it. If he tried, he’d miss the end of the island and be swept further downriver into parts unknown.

During his scouting of the area, he recalled seeing a number of small ships moored at a wharf of some fashion further along the riverbank. Auberon scanned for it, then spotted the ships on the opposing bank from the island. His first goal was to get ashore, hide until night fell, then he could figure out what to do.

He glanced back at the giant insect. It still hovered over Vetzsche’s unmoving form. But thankfully, it was facing away from him. Now was the time.

He swam with all his might, moving closer to the shoreline and kept watch for the ships as the river swept him toward them. After a few minutes, he was able to make his way to the hull of a small ship. A rope hung down its side, and he held on to it, pulling himself along the hull until he was safely out of sight, then ventured a look back.

The great beast had now been joined by what appeared to be men in small, sailless boats. Auberon was shocked to see the speed at which they maneuvered their way through the river, kicking out water from behind it. He pulled himself further into the dark as they drew near to him, but none had pointed or otherwise acknowledged that they’d seen him.

Eventually Vetzsche’s form started to float past him. Much too far away to do anything about.

Auberon muttered curses under his breath. First Rustam, then Rost and his mount. And now Vetzsche?

In a matter of moments the Outworlders had taken everything from him. Even his right to die in the Empyrean Embrace.

As they floated past the end of the island, he saw the men in boats hook ropes up to the strange giant insect. That’s when Auberon noticed the man inside the beast. His jaw dropped. The Outworlders had Empyrean Riders as well.

But their mount was no demon. Like their rubber-wheeled carriages, it was a machine.

After a few moments, the men in the boats departed, and to Auberon’s horror he saw Vetzsche being lifted into the air by the machine. Were they going to eat him? What use was a dead Wyvern to those who could build machines that fly?

He watched as they flew over the trees and out of sight. He turned his attention back to the island. He could see the top of the World Tree. He wouldn’t be able to swim to it, and with the Outworlders able to watch him from the skies, he was concerned about being seen trying to cross one of the bridges upriver.

No, if you were going to hide from an Empyrean Rider, you did it in the woods. Thankfully, there were trees all around the riverbank. He knew he needed to get out of the water soon. Who knew what manner of water creatures were swimming around at his ankles?

Suddenly, a great horn blew, surprising him. That wasn’t the Horn of the First King, it was something the likes he’d never heard. The sound echoed from all around him and seemed to make the air itself shudder. He looked to the source, and his heart fell.

Coming up the river was a ship so large it shouldn’t have had the right to exist. Moreover, it had no sails and yet was coming up the river, against the current. It was easily the size of the Ciel Palace in Freia, if not the House of Caradoc itself.

And here they were just floating it up the river like it was nothing.

What arrogance did the King possess to ever make him think coming to Outworld was a good idea? That all the combined forces of Embrayya, the strongest army in the Eastern Mass could ever hope to compare with the forces of Outworld?

He had thought they were linking their worlds to avenge those they had lost. But instead, they may have doomed those they love.

Auberon quietly pulled himself up onto the dock, making sure to watch his surroundings. It was quiet there, not a soul to be seen, and yet there were lights everywhere, lighting every corner of the docks. It made Auberon feel exposed. He ran toward a gangplank that led directly to the shore. Tall, wide buildings surrounded him, as well as a few Outworlder vehicles, but the area looked deserted. 

Still he didn’t want to take chances. Further upriver, he saw a copse of trees. They would provide him some cover in the meantime.

He made his way there quickly, trying his best to ignore the pain in his side, then continued to follow the pathway while hidden in the trees. Occasionally, he disturbed some animal the likes of which reminded him of a polecat. It hissed at him, warning him off, and Auberon heeded it.

Eventually, he reached an area thicker with numerous trees, and found his way inside. He scouted around the edge of the area. To the north was a road with more of the strange red, yellow and green lights. He watched from the trees as several Outworlders passed in their self-powered vehicles. They were few and far between, and now that the sun had gone down, he could see them approach by the light they shone ahead of them as they traveled.

Across the street was a single, narrow pathway. He continued onward, but saw lights shining in the distance, as well as voices. Soldiers?

He didn’t want to risk it. He quickly ran across the road and ducked into the pathway.

He didn’t like it. Only one way in, only one way out. He looked further up the pathway-- thankfully it was dark. He made his way up the pathway and crouched in the shadows as he reached the other end.

The roads here were wider, more strange. Vehicles whipped around all over the place just ahead of him.

But unlike the other roads he’d seen, this one wasn’t lined with buildings. The vehicles didn’t seem to be stopping anywhere, they just sped past.

On the other side, he saw another copse of trees.

Staying in the dark, he walked along the side of the large roads, making sure to keep out of sight. He was exposed to the sky there, if those flying machines came around, they would see him. He was tired, he ached. But across those roads was a large area he could find refuge in.

Eventually, he found a ditch alongside the road that led to a metal tube. He looked into it. It stank of mold and death, but a breeze came through. The tube appeared to go out to the other side of the roads.

Venturing inside, he could feel the vibrations of the vehicles as they passed overhead. He wouldn’t be seen from the sky at least. He might be safe, but it wouldn’t do as a shelter. If he was seen, he had nowhere to run to.

No, he had to keep going.

How long had it been since he’d fallen? An hour? Were they looking for him or had they forgotten all about him? He hoped for the latter.

Eventually he came out the other end of the tube and climbed the hill into the copse of trees.

He had assumed it to be thicker, but he was surprised to find a number of small buildings lined up behind wooden fences.

Homes. They were Outworlder homes. He could see lights from inside, and people speaking from within.

He couldn’t hide there, he would have to keep--

--wait. One home was devoid of lights. Was it vacant? He moved closer toward it, then jumped over a fence quietly. He remained there, unmoving, listening carefully. Could they be sleeping?

Only one way to find out. He moved up to the house and went along the side of the wall until he found a window. He peeked inside. It was dark, except for two small points of light. He looked around. The other homes were close, but not close enough that they would hear every sound. He reached up and rapped on the window, then ducked off to the side.

He waited.

Nothing.

He did it again, but louder.

Again, nothing.

Finally he started to inspect the window. There had to be a latch or something. Some way to open it, but he could find nothing. He moved around the house, making sure to test each window, but found no give. He could break a window, but the noise might alert other Outworlders.

Eventually he found himself at a wide and tall set of windows. He again peeked inside. There was darkness, but curiously, this window had a handle. He pulled on it.

The window slid open, and Auberon quickly and quietly entered the home, closing it behind him.

Once inside, he listened quietly for a few moments to ensure he couldn’t hear any movement. He knocked on a wall, loudly, then listened again, readying himself to run away if he needed to.

Again, absolute silence. He felt his way along the walls until he found a room with enough light that he could see. It bore some resemblance to a kitchen and had a great many cupboards and drawers. He followed it through into the next room, where there were a number of cloth chairs and sofas and carpet, and a flight of stairs leading up to a second level.

Again, he knocked on the wall and listened, but again heard nothing. He climbed the stairs and saw three doors, all of them open. Inside, darkness and silence.

He was reasonably certain now that the house was empty. But the residents might return at any time. He needed to rest, to nurse his wounds, but he needed to ensure he would be alerted to Outworlder presence before they were alerted to his.

He made his way back downstairs and returned to the first room. If he needed to escape, it would be best done there.

But for now, he needed to rest, then he needed to find a way home.