Of Deities and Dimensions: Book 1
Chapter 7: Welcome to the Unknown

Zack fell. Pitch blackness surrounding him, cold wind rushing past him from below, his jowls flapping as he dropped. His mind screamed in alarm ’Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! Something definitely went wrong in the middle of the transfer between dimensions. No, someone or something hostile to Akmadouric did this to me.’ he could see nothing but black, it didn’t matter where he looked or even if he had his eyes open, darkness was everywhere. He realized that falling was what his enemy wanted him to do and Zack liked to be uncooperative when it came to an enemy’s plans. Then the fear gripped his nerves in a paralytic grasp. His body froze and with every fiber of his being he willed himself to stop falling. He landed on something hard chest first, the wind drove itself out of his lungs.

’Rise!’

He flew upwards like a rocket and looked above him to see a dim orange light in the distance.

’Okay! Darkness bad, light good! Let’s go there! Come to think of it, why is this working?!’

Zack passed a glowing orange sphere with black veins on it and shot out of a hole. Catching a glimpse of the dark purple world around him before landing on white sand. And with his whole body aching he groaned “Ohh…you can never really appreciate the little things in life until they’re gone. Like having something to stand on. Now where the hell am I?” he would have sat up but curiously enough it didn’t seem like he even wanted to do it.

From what he could tell on his prone position on the ground, all around him were the same glowing orange ellipsoids with black veins growing out of extremely dark purple roots. The field stretching for as far as he could see, which was only about one hundred feet in the poor visibility. Whether it was night time or if whole dimension was stuck in a perpetually dark state remained to be seen. The sky above him was filled with orange stars, curiously enough they had the same color as the seemingly bioluminescent vegetables growing around him. One corner of Zack’s mind wondered if they were edible, such information would be useful if he were to be forced to remain in this place for the long term.

“Zack!” Akma appeared out of his vortex, but this time his hair was completely white.

Zack blinked several times and groggily spoke “Akmadouric I presume?”

The blue kid combed his white spiky hair with his hand “Keep your voice down to a whisper, you have no idea what could be lurking about in a dimension like this.”

Zack looked around warily and said in a hushed voice “Great. So get me out of here.” suddenly feeling like he didn’t want to go on anymore.

The little Akmadouric shook his head “I can’t, or at least it would take too much energy. I don’t even know where ‘here’ is. Wait a minute, your willpower energy is extremely low. How did you do that?” the blue kid’s eyes widened in surprise “I just checked your recent memories and I must say that unlocking that ability is an impressive feat for a newbie who can’t even form hydrogen.”

[Willpower energy: .3/34]

Zack closed his eyes and spoke in a whisper “Great, I’m just gonna take a rest now. Good night my little smurf friend.”

Akmadouric screamed “Don’t! If you make the conscious decision to rest then your heart will stop and you will literally give up on your life. You’re not accustomed to using willpower energy like you just did and the backlash is nasty.”

“Sure whatever.” Zack’s eyes began to close, his body had plenty of energy but he just couldn’t seem to care enough to even move a muscle.

Akmadouric frowned and his brows sloped inwards in anger “Wake up!” then he slapped Zack across the face, it stung but no force struck him.

He rubbed his cheek “Ow. What?” another slap and another came down on him and Zack yelled “Okay! I’m up.” He stood up.

Akmadouric shook his head “Idiot.” then something wet started to loudly gargle within the pit “Time to go.”

Zack ran as fast as he could away, hopping over glowing orange vegetables and dark purple tree roots. A dark shape emerged from the pit in the distance and started wriggling in the air. It snorted and inhaled, the thing sounded massive. Then it audibly slithered back in it’s hole.

Zack’s mind kicked into overdrive “That thing is an ambush predator, and if it’s that big then it must have prey that large as well.”

Akmadouric shook his head “Actually it’s a guardian of the realm, it’s simply designed to kill trespassers. And by the way, you should still be running, you know, just in case it comes up out of the ground or spits acid or something.” Zack took off with a single thing on his mind; hide.

With eyes darting around like a hunted beast in the wilderness he cautiously ran until he found a stone archway half buried in the ground. He looked inside to see a hole that was just large enough to fit his body and climbed inside.

A two dimensional white haired Akma appeared on the left wall and said “Now that you have the time to recuperate, lets go over what you gained since entering this dimension.”

[+3 Maximum Willpower Energy]

Zack nodded sleepily “Seems about right.”

[Secondary Body stat gain]

[+3 mind]

[Skill Learned: Telekinetic Force Push Rank: Newbie]

[Description: The ability to push things with your mind, can be enhanced with] [additional willpower energy]

[Requires: Brain evolution 7GI82T, Advanced Pineal Gland]

Zack asked in a whispered voice “What is all this?”

Akmadouric said “Didn’t you think that what happened back there was odd? The only reason why you are alive right now is because your mind, in it’s fear driven state, released a burst of willpower energy to advance itself further down it’s natural path of evolution.”

“It can do that?”

”I’m just as surprised as you are. In fact, are you sure you didn’t have any help in doing what you did?Maybe from a deity other than myself?”

Zack shrugged “Not that I know of.”

Akmadouric let out a thoughtful “Hmm.”

[+8,932 Favor added]

Zack was perplexed at this “Nobody told me how to make favor yet.”

The miniature Akmadouric’s expression grew tense “The currency of Favor is earned by helping the war effort in any way. These favor points were earned by discovering information about this unknown dimension that none of my forces have ever tread before.”

The fact that he was way out of his depth was beginning to sink in “How does new information about this dimension help the war effort?”

”If I get enough of it then I will be able to send a rescue party and open up a new offensive front against this realm.”

Zack exclaimed “There’s no rescue coming? Wait! Is the reason why Akma disappeared back there because this is a new dimension to you?”

“The strand was cut and it took a minute to reestablish contact with you.” Akmadouric admitted.

Zack said “I remember being told that if I were to die, then the Akma network would have transported my consciousness from this body into my true body.”

Akmadouric frowned “Yes that is true.”

“So I almost died for real back there!? I was told that there would be no threat to my life when I joined your army.” Zack pointed an accusatory finger at the moving Akma drawing on the wall.

The mini Akmadouric twiddled his thumbs, bit his lip and sheepishly turned away for a moment “Um…Yes. But this almost never happens. You’re just extremely unlucky.”

Zack pressed his lips together and scowled but berating a deity would not help his situation in both the short and long terms “Fine, but promise me that it will never happen again. Now tell me what I need to do.”

The little Akmadouric drawing on the wall acted like he was filing his nails “I can’t even make that promise because there is a chance that another deity has taken an interest in you. But now that I understand the technique on how the strand was cut it will not happen like that again.” then he snapped his fingers and a screen came up.

[Mission: Go exploring]

[Situation Briefing: You are trapped in a hostile dimension. Death is the only way out]

[Objective: Gather as much information as possible, then someday Akmadouric will be able to ]

[locate this dimension for an offensive assault.]

Zack said “You can’t locate this dimension even though you are projecting this Akma image here.”

Akmadouric said “I know where you are because I know everything about your physical make up. And I cannot locate this dimension because I do not know everything about it. Thus far you have learned that this place has orange glowing vegetables growing out blackish purple plant roots, there is a large monster at the bottom of a pit, there are orange stars in the sky and most importantly these ruins indicate that there was once a civilization here.”

Zack ran his hand over the stone archway, slowly looking over the unreadable symbols so Akmadouric could get more data, then he began to dig “These are ruins. Archaeologists like to dig in ruins, so lets dig. That will be a safe way to get more information about this place.”

“Don’t cut yourself on anything. Unless you think you can magically unlock some kind of ability again and heal yourself.”

Zack dug for two feet with his bare hands then brushed off something metal.

Akmadouric nodded approvingly “So they had metal working. But how did they use it?”

He continued brushing away dirt until a handle was revealed, Zack pulled until a sword came out. A blue screen popped up, displaying the weapon’s stats.

[Unknown Rusty Blade]

[Weapon type: Bladed Melee]

[Damage: 2-30 cut damage]

[Description: A cumbersome and large yet lightweight sword with a very wide grip. Once] [considered to be a type of stainless steel, age has proven otherwise.]

Zack frowned “I can’t even wrap my fingers around it.”

Akmadouric said “That sword was made for someone much larger than you.”

Zack waved it around and said “It’s nothing like those lightsabers I’ve seen your people use, but it will have to do.” he jumped out of the small cave and rested the oversized blade over his shoulder, then he said “Well, wish me luck in my scouting mission. I hope I find enough information for you to open a portal to here.”

“That would take a lifetime. But the information you gather will become useful someday, the next time one of my minions falls into this trap then maybe they will be able to succeed at your doomed mission.”

Zack smirked and joked “Well I have the telekinetic force push. So I’m a Jedi now, I can do anything.”

Akmadouric blandly said “If that is the context and mentality that you need in order to proceed. Then so be it.”

Zack left the sanctuary of the stone archway and entered a large tunnel. Making his way as quietly as he could and gripping the oversized blade with both hands, ready to swing at anything that moved. He took a step up a ramp and nearly tripped as the gravity shifted.

He regained his balance and then found himself standing at an angle “That’s strange.”

Akmadouric pointed “Walk over to that wall.”

Zack walked and then the gravity shifted again, he fell forward and landed on the wall. He spit out some dirt and said “What’s going on here?”

Akmadouric said “Yet more extremely useful information. The gravity in this dimension extends outward from the empty space. This is not a cave and those orange stars you saw earlier were actually more glowing vegetables.”

Zack asked “What are you saying?”

”I’m saying that the whole universe within this dimension is like this. Nothing but these caves going on for lightyears in every direction. Some deity rewrote the physics in this place.”

Zack winced “Still no rescue party coming?”

The white haired blue kid shook his head and Zack began his trek again, walking and running on the circular walls in order to get used to how the gravity worked, also doing loop de loops like Sonic the hedgehog was really fun. He threw several rocks into the air to see how they would move, even getting one to stop for a moment in the center of the tunnel.

He entered a clearing that had more of those orange glowing vegetables than the areas prior. The place was so bright that it was comparable to daylight. Dark purple roots covered the entire floor. Then Zack looked up in awe to see the towering tree of which all the roots belonged to. Bus sized pale pulsating cylinders shown through the gray leaves that seemed to smoke at their edges. The tree’s dark purple trunk standing like an obelisk.

Zack said aloud “There are skyscrapers in New York city that aren’t that big.”

Akmadouric looked at it and said “I’m going to take an educated guess and assume that this dimension belongs to the deity Ulgroth.”

Zack asked in a hushed voice “What makes you say that?”

”Because he likes to make mockeries of that which exists in other realms.”

A whistling sound caught Zack’s attention and the hairs on his arm stood on end as he went into an alarmed state of mind. Something large crashed onto the roots in front of him, sending splinters everywhere. All Zack briefly saw was a pair of musclebound gorilla like arms and a cat-like face twisted in rage, before jumping into the tunnel. Successfully aiming for the center and flying down the tunnel with the gravity pressing against him from all sides. Carefully using his telekinesis skill to stay in the center as he accelerated through the tunnel, adjusting his course as the passageway curved. He shot of the tunnel like it was a cannon and flew several feet.

In the middle of the air Akmadouric floated cross legged and solemnly said “The first death is always the hardest.”

Zack landed and rolled across the ground, then picked himself up and ran but then stopped suddenly as he realized he was running back towards the pit, where that unknown huge monster lay in wait. Zack turned around and raised his sword in air, thinking that he would much rather face the smaller one.

Claws emerged from the tunnel and the monster ran on the wall then leaped high into the air above Zack. He ran beneath the monster so that it would land with it’s back facing him, it came down with a crash and Zack raised his sword to strike it from behind but all it took was one rage filled look from the monster’s bobcat like face to get him to stop before he took another step.

Zack screamed “Stay the hell away from me!” and used his telekinesis skill to push the beast away with all his might. It fell backwards a few feet but immediately stood up and charged unhindered. Zack’s eyes widened and a plan formed in his mind, then he repeated to himself over and over in order to overcome the fear ’I will not die no matter what happens. The Akma network will take me back to my true body.’ then he charged with his telekinesis skill pushing him forward. Surprise appeared in the face of the monster as Zack crossed the ten foot gap between them in an instant, ducking underneath the beast’s claws before they could slice his torso into five separate pieces. His blade came down on it’s shoulder but it caught on something and the grip was ripped out of his hands. Their eyes met briefly and strangely enough there was a glint of light at the center of it’s pupil. Then Zack’s momentum carried him five feet away.

Akmadouric said nonchalantly “That’s interesting.”

Elation crept into Zack’s voice “Ya, I actually got him in the shoulder.”

”I was talking about the light in it’s eye.”

Zack looked at the monster as it turned then the blood drained from his face as he could see that it’s long thick fur moved of it’s own accord and wrapped around the blade, completely absorbing the impact. The monster let the blade loose and it harmlessly clattered to the ground.

Akmadouric said “Touch it’s face where there is no fur and it will be a major victory.”

Zack replied “Easy for you to say.”

The monster charged again, it’s claws digging into the ground as it advanced with lightning speed. Zack barely had time to put his hand into the air before the beast opened it’s mouth to reveal two rows of dagger-like teeth. Zack touched the monster’s cheek as it’s jaw was just about to snap shut around his head.

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