Sleeping Player (Project Chrysalis Book 3) by John Gold (novel24 TXT) 📕

time and the pressure is a small building. In the pre-space era, it would have been called a fortified bunker. It looks like a half sphere sitting between the ruins of three buildings.

It’s a manmade structure that isn’t as old as everything else. Did someone really get down here before we did?

The closer I get, the more I sense that the aura of death is coming from it. Judging by the long, panoramic windows, the building is three stories tall.

One minute and we’re leaving, Sagie!

Taking off at a run, or as much of a run as the water allows, I get over to the building. Femida runs behind me, thrilled to the core—her excitement even infects me. I signal for her to go around one side of the building; I go around the other. When we meet on the other side, we know that there’s no way we’re getting inside to shelter. All that remains is the panoramic windows, though they look strong enough to take a direct hit from a plasma torpedo.

Climbing up to one of them, I see that the room is outfitted with modern furniture. There’s a snowboard, billiard tables, a ping pong table, and even food dispensers. Near the glass, I see a furry snowboarder’s hat.

Fem, I think we found the game masters’ room.

Idiot! Thirty seconds.

Quick, give me your sword.

Femida hands it to me, and I quickly get to work on the plan I came up with. Suddenly, it hits me that someone is looking at me. That fur scarf! Yes! I remember that shapeshifting cat! We met five years ago in the Sea of Calm, and the animal looks stunned that something could be on this side of the glass.

Ten seconds! Your mushroom will only survive fifteen seconds after the buff wears off.

Five seconds.

After the last stroke, I leap toward Femida and take a screenshot.

The portal flashes, and we’re on my island in the astral, both coughing the water out of our lungs. I couldn’t be prouder of myself.

***

Tiamid woke Idzumi up in the middle of the night. Neither of them was dressed, but the boss showing up meant something unusual was going on.

“Your kiir won’t let me sleep. He’s all hissing and dragging my slippers around.”

“He’s pretty smart, so he wouldn’t just be getting on your nerves for no reason.”

“I know—that’s why I woke you up. Ask what he wants.”

Sitting up on the bed, the sleepy man called his pet over and placed his forehead against the kiir’s. A minute went by. Then another. Tiamad was already thinking about making some coffee, as the kiir apparently had some bad news.

“He said he saw the strong person who beat him but didn’t kill him.”

“Well, he looks fine, and there wasn’t any noise. Could he have dreamed it?”

“No. He says he saw him on the other side of the glass in the break room.”

Tiamad pulled his death costume out of his inventory and walked out. The portal keeper followed him, throwing on his battle outfit as he went. The kiir transformed into the lightning king when he saw how serious his master was.

“Incredible. The chosen ones are getting into the officers’ quarters in the middle of the night.”

There wasn’t anyone in the break room, and everything was where it was supposed to be. The kiir pointed at the window where he’d seen the trespassers. On the other side of the glass, there was some writing.

Sagie, Femida, and Isaac were here. Next time, I’m going to write a petition about human rights violations, so make sure there’s enough glass!

***

Femida finally finishes wailing on and on about how stupid I was. Regardless, I can tell that she’s tickled pink. And she should be! I mentioned her in my message on the glass, too.

Slender is somewhere nearby. The parasite disappeared when the mental damage went above a million, another useful bit of information.

After eating, Femida calms down.

“Where to next? What about Katain? Roni’s been waiting three months for us to visit.”

“Nope. When you’ve had a chance to rest, we’re leaving for Kongul, and the center of the Hashan Desert.”

“Why? What are you looking for?”

“An entrance into the world of the dead.”

“And you think it’s in the center of the desert?”

“Not necessarily. I just know that there’s something in the middle. There’s an enormous stone stake that was used to kill Bernard when he was a god, a river of souls flows through it, and that’s what creates the mental damage all across the desert. I saw it close up about six years ago. If that stake isn’t the gateway to the world of the dead, I don’t know what is. The game masters’ house is at the bottom of the Sea of Madness, and it covers the whole sea with mental damage.”

Before leaving, I make sure I completely charge my astral source. Quite a bit of the ocean of mana has seeped away over the last three weeks. Femida gets herself going with some exercises, and I notice she’s no longer having any problem with the enormous sword. Our work in the city of the dead and all the underwater battles did wonders for her.

We polish off the rest of our supplies and decide to drop by a market in one of the cities before our trip. Some normal food would really hit the spot.

It takes us days to get to the center of the desert, though most of that time is spent looking for the path out of the astral nearest to it. Our seventh try drops us an hour’s run from Hashan.

Femida’s mental resistance should be high enough for us to run straight to the center of the desert. Once there, if I recall correctly, the damage grows exponentially.

On the way, we kill everything that moves