The 'Extra' Lord (Unlimited Plunder) - Chapter 80 (End of Book 1)

The week was over faster than he expected. He spent most of his time finalising everything from the farm, to the buildings, to the mines, to the defences. He left no stone unturned.

On the last day, they had an enormous pyre near nightfal. Clark the Cook had spent the entire day whipping up an enormous feast. Along with fresh cheese from Coo, and glistening fruits from Bimpnottin’s garden, it was a spread worthy of kings. 

Everyone feasted until they couldn’t eat anymore in risk of imploding. Then, they danced around the fire, showcasing their dances from wherever they came from. They have lost their memories, but some things were ingrained into them, lodged firmly into their bones. Some sang songs, some beat drums that they had crafted themselves.

Owen wasn’t much of a dancer. In fact, he hated it. He couldn’t think of anything more awkward; getting up on the stage, everyone looking at you, judging. Owen always steered away from social gatherings like that. It was better to never try rather than risk making a fool of yourself.

But here? He didn’t get the chance. Rizael dragged him in front of the fire to join in the group dance. It reminded Owen of a Scottish caeli. A simple dance, one with a lot of spins and turns. Owen thought he’d hate it, but instead, he joiend in the laughter. 

Cindrelle and Mirian joined too. 

After a while, Owen finally managede to leave the dance. Where’s Pyris? He looked around, but couldn’t find her. The sky was glowing orange, and soon, the world would be cast in darkness. 

It wasn’t until he scanned the castle did he notice Pyris watching the event from atop the walls. 

Owen grabbed a platefull of food, and then approached, climbing the walls, and stood next to Pyris. All he could hear was shouting, the beating of drums, and laughter coming from the pyre that reached into the sky above.

“Don’t feel like joining in?” Owen asked, sliding the plate of food on the battlement in front of her. “This is the last time we’ll see them before heading out tomorrow.”

Pyris plucked a piece of crab meat from the plate, and gently placed it in her mouth. She chewed once before swallowing. “In my culture, we save the celebrations for when we return.”

“That would make sense,” Owen said, lips curling into a smile. “But people also need to believe that just because I’m gone, there are others to prop them up.”

Pyris turned silent as she watched the pyre, the reflection of fire dancing in her eyes. Owen knew that she was thinking about her home. How could everyone celebrate when she herself didn’t have a single victory? How could se celebrate when all she knew, everyone she loved—was dead?

Owen bit his lip, before saying, “We’ve been fighting everyday to better our future, to become stronger. Tomorrow, we head out in search for a Gateway. To evolve. Everything changes once we get through to the other side. Back to Earth.” Owen placed his hand on her shoulder. “One step closer to revenge.”

Pyris tightened her grip into a fist so hard, her bones creaked. She nodded, the blaze in her eyes growing stronger. “One step closer,” she muttered under her breath.

“You should rest. I’ll be relying on your strength for the coming travels, you know?”

Glancing up at the stars that spread across the skies, even without nightfall, she said, “Sleep won’t affect my power. The stars make certain of that.”

***

Five days had passed since Owen, Justin, and the other humans had left his kingdom in search for an Outpost. The longer he stayed in the Cursed Lands without evolving his Class meant he was forever going to be stuck at Level 50. For his people, he had to find it. 

Stopping, Owen gazed up at a canyon. The grand, towering mountains loomed overhead, evoking a sense of breathtaking awe. Owen wasn’t sure why, but he could feel the history exuding from the rock. He could feel the life that once was.

Footsteps lead inside.

“What do you think?” Owen looked at Justin and continued, “Think they’re human steps?”

“Probably not,” Justin said. “I just know I want out of this hellish sun. I feel my skin peeling from my face. Literally.” Justin walked ahead, Owen followed. 

“It looks like it too,” Owen said, looking disgusted at Justin’s face. “Like a shrivelled, peeling fruit. We need to get you some moisturiser or sunscreen. Or both. You should wear this.” Owen pointed to Dune’s Crest. 

“I won’t say no,” Justin replied. 

They all decided to follow the footsteps implanted into the sand not just in hopes of finding survivors, but at the very least a reprieve from the alien sun above.

Owen’s sight wandered to the cliffs above. Some parts of the walls looked odd. Like they were handcarved, instead of naturally formed. Owen even swore he saw a window, the edges were too perfect to be formed by nature. Then he even saw steps, like someone had created a walkway on the edge of the cliff. 

Then Owen’s widened. 

In the distance, on either side of the sheer cliff walls, were battlements. In the middle of the path lay a… body.

Justin grabbed hold of Owen and dashed to the nearby cliff walls. They were cast in shadows. Owen could take the hint. Something had killed whoever lay face first in the sand. His heart sped up. He gazed up all around him, to the paths carved in the mountain, to the battlements, to the other areas covered in shade.

“Stay here,” Justin said. 

Owen nodded as Justin disappeared from sight. Five minutes passed and Owen was beginning to worry. What was taking him so long? 

Thankfully, he popped out of the shadows right in front of Owen. Owen jumped. “Holy shit, you scared me,” he whispered. 

“Hey,” Justin said with a smile. “I can only take so many bad comments about my appearance before it starts to hurt my feelings, you know?” 

“Well?” Owen ignored him.

Justin pouted, but said, “do you want the good news, or the bad news?”

“Good news first.”

“There’s some folk up ahead.” 

“Really?” Owen asked with eyes wide.

“Yeah,” Justin replied. 

But Owen squinted his eyes at the black haired young man. It seemed like something was wrong. 

“And the bad news?”

“There’s monsters stalking this place,” Justin said. “There’s tunnels in the walls. It’s difficult to see, but look over there, where the shade meets the rock.”

Justin pointed into the distance. Owen followed his finger. Right where he was pointing at, was a dark shadow. But there was a small entrance where it became even darker. It was a tunnel. 

“Monsters have been coming out of them, hunting them,” Justin said. “A lot of them are scared. I say we leave them.”

“What?” Owen asked. “Are you serious?”

“If we go beyond this point, we can’t escape without a fight,” Justin said. 

Owen shook his head, and said, “No. We need to try something. If it’s too risky to fight, then there has to be another way.” 

Justin smiled helplessly. “I knew you’d say that. That’s why I told them we’d come up with a plan. When I left, I took the time to scout out one of the passageways. A lot of them are dangerous with signs of monstrous activity. But there is one with no evidence of being occupied. And look–”

Justin nudged his head up. The sun was dying down. It was moving over the hills. Owen estimated they only had four hours or so of light left before the nightmarish tsunami washed over the land. They were stuck here.

He continued, “We don’t have time to look for another place. We either leave them and find a place of our own, or forge ahead, into whatever lies beyond those battlements.”

Owen thought it through, then said, “The fact that the monsters live in the tunnels means that it’s safe. If there are no signs of life in the passage you’ve found, that means that it might fill up with sand during the night.”

Justin nodded along, agreeing with him.

“That means we’ll have to find a safe place further in the canyon,” Owen said. “We should act fast. Take the survivors through the tunnel, and find a safe place to hide out the dark night further in the canyon.”

“Then let's go. Stay close behind me. Protect your left side. There’s no way of knowing what may leap out from the walls,” Justin said, jogging ahead.

Owen followed. He kept both hands tight around Heartseeker’s Edge. They ran for five minutes, turning a corner in the canyon. It was then that Owen spotted more holes in the walls. They were approaching one. 

As they passed, Owen couldn’t help but look within. The fine hairs on his nape raised. Something was looking at him. He could feel it. Owen picked up his pace. 

They arrived at a larger passageway. Just as Justin walked forward, a spear tip was thrust at his face. He ducked underneath it, blasted forward with a quick step, and grabbed the person’s throat.

“Woah there,” Justin warned. “Did your mother never tell you not to poke your sharp stick at people’s throats?”

“Justin,” Owen said, stopping him. Justin retracted his hand. 

“It’s good to see you all,” Owen said. 

He looked at everyone. It was a group of six. They were scared. Some had large wounds carved into their flesh, while others were relatively unharmed, apart from a few scratches here and there. Some of them already had their Remembrances summoned. One man had long armguards, one had a shield, and one had a weapon. The rest of them seemed to lack any Remembrances at all. Or at least they hadn’t summoned them. 

The thing that surprised Owen, however, was that none of them had dried lips. Sun damage was evident on their exposed skin, but their lips were fine. Like they had been constantly drinking water.

Justin also noticed. He wasn’t shy about asking, “Oi, which one of you has water? I’m dying here.”

“I do.” A hand raised from the back of the group. He had brown hair, just short of touching his shoulders. Freckles across his nose and under his eyes.The young man wore a slender leather armour adorned with gold. It was a Fragment.

He had a kind smile and a friendly face, but it was clear he was scared like the rest of them. He kept looking behind Owen and Justin, outside, scared that something would leap at them. 

He materialised a Fragment in his hand. It was a grey, polished metal container. Etched onto the front was a water drop. Below it was an eternal symbol.

“You’ve got the good stuff,” Justin clicked his tongue as he snatched it from the young man’s hand. With haste, he drank the water within.

“Sorry, he doesn’t have much in the way of manners,” Owen said with a wry smile. “I’m Owen, thank you for the water. We really needed it.” He didn't really. Before he left, he had gathered tonnes of water in his storage. But they didn’t have to know that.

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” he replied with a weak smile. “If I can help in any way, then I’m more than happy to. Drink as much as you want, it’s endless. Or well, technically it isn’t, but I don’t have to worry for a long time, if you know what I mean.” 

He laughed nervously, scratching his head. He glanced at Owen’s hand. His eyes widened. He quickly grabbed Owen’s hand and shook it, and said, “Sorry! Where’s my manners? My name is Elian. Elian Ash.”