Distant Reality Chapter Twenty
GRID Traveler Trinity: Distant Reality
Author: J Carrell Jones
Table of Content
Chapter 20
Destiny is a funny thing. One never knows when it is truly destiny or a deep seeded desire to fulfill a long- standing fantasy. Do we just toss our reservations to the wind and take charge or back away and rethink our decisions. Either way, who is to say that destiny is not being fulfilled? Destined to step forward, destined to step back. Both are points of views from the same vantage point.
Chapter 20
Agegi let go of Randals’ head. He dropped to the floor like a ragdoll – lifeless. Agegi waved his massive arm in the air and recited, “Itahl, toghan, moghan. Behold!”
Randals jumped up looking like he was in a daze.
“Who is your master, one called Randals?”
His head jerked a bit. He said, “You are my Master. You are Agegi, an Ancient one, giver of new found powers, giver of immortality and new strength.” Randals, jerked walked toward Sean and Loggar. Those of the group left standing retreated to the entranceway. One of the robed fellows had his hand placed on the button to turn the force shield on.
Agegi turned his attention to the group and said, “Follow me and I will grant you power beyond your wildest dreams.” He lifted an arm and Randals lifted several feet off the ground with his arms outstretched and his feet crossed. Agegi toyed with them by displaying Randals in this crucifixion pose. Agegi said, “Who am I?”
Randals coughed.
“Who am I?” Agegi said again, his voice echoing in the chamber and another one of the older members collapse from heart failure.
Randals said, “You are the one who controls my life and if I fail you my life is yours to end.”
“Again!”
Randals shouted, “You are the one who controls my life and if I fail you my life is yours to end.”
“Again!”
“You are the one who controls my life and if I fail you my life is yours to end.”
“Never forget it,” and he closed his fist and Randals collapsed to the ground like a puppet with severed strings.
The group looked on at the scene terrified. The robed fellow hit the power on button and the entranceway sparked into a frosty blue film.
Agegi laughed and opened his fist. “This is how I reward my minions. One called Randals, turn that device off.”
The limp body of Randals jerked several times and he inhaled a deep breath of air. He jerked up and walked toward the field. At first, he seemed to be some sort of Frankensteinian monster, movements stiff and jerky, but by the time he reached the field his walk was normal, almost graceful.
Herb was on the other side of the field. When Agegi grabbed Randals head and seemed to have killed him, Herb whispered to himself, ‘thank you for killing that ass.’ But when he saw Randals get up he nearly soiled himself. He took an involuntary step back as Agegi’s new follower approached the field. The force field was a level 9 barrier. At the last minute Loggar decided to disable the organic safe mode. Now, anything moving through it would be disintegrated.
Randals felt like a new man. His eyesight sharpened and he felt like he could do anything. He understood that Agegi could cut his existence off by his will, but Randals was thinking that maybe this was indeed a blessing. He stepped toward the force field. His new body wasn’t quite working. It took a few steps. He stared at the barrier and through the frosty film he saw Herb. A burning desire to finally shut the fat fucker up drove him toward the field. He knew that Agegi was all- powerful and would allow him to walk through the field and live. So, Randals placed his hand through the barrier and he felt searing pain but he continued to move forward.
The others watched in absolute horror that someone would willingly walk through a level 9 field. They heard Randals’ scream. It was loud, unnerving, an absolute horror. It was the screams of souls being skinned alive. It resonated throughout the chamber and down the entranceway, deep in their bodies and bones. Randals screamed louder but continued to walk through the field.
Sean looked with a morbid fascination. He saw Randals’ fingers and then hand, wrist and arm boil up in a pink cloud of smoke. His sleeve curled up in a kind of black flake. Pieces broke off and fell to the ground. Randals screamed louder and continued walking and walking and walking. Sean stared closely, then he saw that Randals’ fingers, hand then wrist was forming on the other side of the field. The appendage was a black semblance of an arm but turned pink then pale yellow. Randals walked through the field, clothes, skin, flesh, bone being burned and boiled off on one side only to be reformed into a smooth new layer of bone, flesh and skin on the other side.
What seemed like forever, Randals emerged from the barrier anew feeling like never before. He stood naked, breathing heavily, reached out his hand. The robed fellow dropped his hood and stepped aside. The power switch turned off and the barrier sparked, flashed off.
Agegi laughed and enjoyed this game. He had their attention now. He simply said, “Who wishes immortality?”
There was a moment of silence. It hung in the air for a bit. Then the robed fellow stepped into the chamber. Five others followed. Randals took his place next to his master and watched him turn his fellow scientists and Most High Goddess worshipers into Ancient minions.
Loggar watched in absolute and total disbelief. ‘What have I done?’ she asked herself. ‘I have unwittingly awakened an Ancient one.’ She gasped as Randals walked through the barrier and survived and nearly cried as six members stepped up to become Agegi slaves!
Sean caught Robin’s stare and nodded. He grabbed Loggar and moved her away from Agegi and the group. No one seemed to notice. They made it to the doorway. Two more members stepped in line. Herb, Milkens, Robin, Kurp, Loggar and Sean stepped away and ran. Sean didn’t care where just as long as it was away from the chamber.