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“Urban Mystic” by Aelius (part 1 of 2)
College students by day, paranormal investigators by night, John, Alexis, and Lance face a demon incursion brought on by a comet’s passing.
Today’s story is the first of two parts of “Urban Mystic” by Aelius, who can be found at FurAffinity under the same username, showing both stories and artwork in his gallery. He has also been published twice, in Inhuman Acts and ROAR 8 by FurPlanet.
Read for you by Khaki, your faithful fireside companion.
Transcript
You’re listening to The Voice of Dog. I’m Khaki, your faithful fireside companion,
Speaker:and Today’s story is the first of two parts of
Speaker:“Urban Mystic” by Aelius, who can be found at FurAffinity under the same username,
Speaker:showing both stories and artwork in his gallery. He has also
Speaker:been published twice,
Speaker:in Inhuman Acts and ROAR 8
Speaker:by FurPlanet. Please enjoy:
Speaker:“Urban Mystic” by Aelius, Part 1 of 2 Beyond Chicago’s late night inner-city bustle, some of the region’s older sections remained oddly silent.
Speaker:Amidst dilapidated buildings,
Speaker:only the wind disturbed the night air until footsteps pounded on an old
Speaker:creaking fire escape ladder.
Speaker:Two figures climbed to the roof of an empty building
Speaker:and waited, listening to the gasping breaths of a third as he made his way to the top.
Speaker:A skunk finally crested the top of the ladder
Speaker:and tumbled onto the gravel roof.
Speaker:His gear clinked and rattled with his movement
Speaker:and the wind billowed his old leather longcoat,
Speaker:threatening to blow away his wide-brimmed hat.
Speaker:He held out his paw, panting,
Speaker:“You two… really need to slow down…
Speaker:when we do this…” The two others traded glances
Speaker:—a ferret clothed in black
Speaker:and a rabbit doe decked out in a headband and a form-fitting coat that wavered in the wind. “C’mon
Speaker:John, this is nothing,” muttered the ferret.
Speaker:“I thought you said you’ve been exercising…”
Speaker:“I have!” said the skunk.
Speaker:“Last week I actually managed to jog two miles.”
Speaker:“I run ten miles every other day, and on the off-days I lift weights for an hour.”
Speaker:John stood straight and adjusted his coat.
Speaker:“Well, I’m not a fitness nut like you, Lance.”
Speaker:The ferret tilted his head.
Speaker:“What might help is not wearing that big coat or strapping yourself down with all that heavy gear.”
Speaker:Lance pointed at the skunk’s belt,
Speaker:where a secured hardcover book dangled against his hip.
Speaker:“Especially that. Why do you think you need to carry an entire five-hundred-page book with you when we go out and do this?”
Speaker:John walked past them to the other side of the roof.
Speaker:“Because there are no ancient mystical tomes in ebook format.
Speaker:Besides, you never know when we might need some way of quickly referencing the exact words to a spell or
Speaker:a method on defeating frost wraiths or the motions to conjure…
Speaker:stuff… Plus I haven’t memorized the entire thing yet.”
Speaker:The rabbit giggled and followed him.
Speaker:“Kinda makes you wonder about the market for cursed spell books in electronic format.
Speaker:You’d think it would be pretty lucrative if it
Speaker:weren’t for all the skeptics.”
Speaker:John glanced across the horizon
Speaker:and pulled a red lens from the belt on his hat.
Speaker:“I dunno what’s worse, Alexis…
Speaker:that the majority of the public refuses to believe the things we’ve seen,
Speaker:or that the only ones that do seem to believe us are complete lunatics.”
Speaker:Lance approached.
Speaker:“Well, except for that secret order of mystical warriors you keep telling us about.”
Speaker:John grinned.
Speaker:“Yeah… What I wouldn’t give to be inducted into the Order of Aurora…”
Speaker:“If they even exist…” said Alexis, winking.
Speaker:John fixed the lens to his spectacles and chuckled.
Speaker:“We all know they do.
Speaker:They’re just better than we are at keeping secrets.”
Speaker:The skunk looked up into the sky for a moment
Speaker:as his tail swayed in the slight breeze.
Speaker:“The ley line should be...
Speaker:There!” He pointed east.
Speaker:“See it?” He turned
Speaker:and noticed them looking at him oddly,
Speaker:not having the special lens themselves.
Speaker:“Er, of course not. But it’s there.”
Speaker:Lance tilted his head.
Speaker:“I thought ley lines were just geological connections.”
Speaker:John grinned. “People once thought wraiths were just luminous phenomena, too.”
Speaker:“Actually, they still do,”
Speaker:Lance replied. “Well, we know better.”
Speaker:John turned and gestured as best he could.
Speaker:“Geological consistencies are the result
Speaker:of ley lines. With the right tools, you can see ley lines along both the sky and ground.
Speaker:This one stretches all the way from
Speaker:the Yellowstone Caldera.
Speaker:Thanks to that comet, it’s already warping,
Speaker:and that means we’re gonna be busy fighting off whatever spawns from it for the next few nights.”
Speaker:Lance sighed. “Right when final exams start.”
Speaker:“It won’t be so bad,” said Alexis.
Speaker:“We’re already pretty good at this. We just gotta pace ourselves.”
Speaker:John pulled the lens off
Speaker:and glanced over to another patch of sky
Speaker:where the Schwalzi-Berner Comet was clearly visible among the stars.
Speaker:“You think if I can figure out a descent thesis on
Speaker:why comets screw with ley lines so much, I might get noticed by the Aurora?”
Speaker:“You might want to wait until after the semester is over before starting that,” said Alexis.
Speaker:“You haven’t even studied for your chemistry exam yet.”
Speaker:John shrugged. “Chemistry’s just another variant of alchemy.
Speaker:It’ll be a cinch.” Alexis’ ears swiveled.
Speaker:She turned and leaned over the roof’s edge.
Speaker:“It’s starting already.”
Speaker:John and Lance gathered at the edge
Speaker:and saw two homeless raccoons ambling along the sidewalk.
Speaker:Movement shifted in the shadows surrounding the weak streetlamps.
Speaker:Lance pulled a mask up over his muzzle.
Speaker:“Time to work.” The two raccoons froze,
Speaker:hearing shuffling sounds behind them.
Speaker:They turned and saw an eerie,
Speaker:wire-thin lizard-like creature emerging from the shadows.
Speaker:Its fangs dripped with glowing fluid and ash continually shed from its body.
Speaker:A bright flash erupted
Speaker:and Lance landed on top of it, jamming a sword through its skull.
Speaker:The creature shrieked
Speaker:and writhed under the blade until finally crumbling away into dust.
Speaker:Lance twirled the sword around and stood to face two more preparing to lunge.
Speaker:He crouched, ready to fight back,
Speaker:and summoned a fiery orb in his free paw.
Speaker:“Bring it…” Another pair of creatures lashed out from the other side,
Speaker:rushing for the raccoons,
Speaker:but Alexis landed between the two
Speaker:and flung her arms out.
Speaker:A glowing sphere burst out and enveloped all three of them.
Speaker:The creatures collided with it
Speaker:and lightning arced out,
Speaker:turning them to dust.
Speaker:“They’re serpent imps!”
Speaker:Alexis shouted. Nearby, Lance effortlessly dodged his two assailant’s furious swipes,
Speaker:spinning to slice back with his sword.
Speaker:He split one demon in half,
Speaker:then teleported to escape the other’s retaliation
Speaker:and reappeared behind it to fling a fireball.
Speaker:Three more darted toward the group
Speaker:and then burst into flame.
Speaker:Behind them, John stood aiming a bronze-colored pistol with glowing runes hovering around the barrel.
Speaker:“I hear more coming!”
Speaker:He pulled back his coat
Speaker:and grabbed a vial of red-colored fluid from his belt
Speaker:then slid it into his pistol grip.
Speaker:Shadows warped all around them and imps darted out, screeching in fury.
Speaker:Alexis kept her arms spread,
Speaker:maintaining the glowing protective sphere around herself and the frightened raccoons.
Speaker:She calmly reassured them,
Speaker:“We’ve got this, don’t worry.
Speaker:Um, but it’s best if you don’t watch…”
Speaker:Flames engulfed Lance’s sword as he continued his agile display,
Speaker:shredding anything that came close,
Speaker:while John expertly sniped down the imps lunging from afar.
Speaker:Another shape lurched out of the shadows,
Speaker:this one much larger.
Speaker:It opened its enormous dripping mouth
Speaker:and shot out multiple tooth-laden tongues.
Speaker:Lance backflipped into a teleport,
Speaker:escaping at the last second.
Speaker:The tongues embedded themselves in a brick wall and pulled free,
Speaker:ripping portions away as they went.
Speaker:Glowing-red projectiles nailed it from afar,
Speaker:but the creature absorbed them into its skin
Speaker:and leaned toward Alexis and the raccoons.
Speaker:John blinked and lowered his pistol.
Speaker:“That’s new…” The beast lunged at the protective sphere,
Speaker:slashing at it with its toothed tongues
Speaker:and trying to bite through it.
Speaker:The lightning ejecting from the sphere
Speaker:did not even phase it.
Speaker:Alexis’s eyes widened.
Speaker:“Guys? Do something!!”
Speaker:Lance reappeared above it
Speaker:and jabbed down with his flaming sword,
Speaker:but the creature’s oily skin jolted out and grabbed the blade, sucking it into its body.
Speaker:“What the…? John! It’s immune to fire!”
Speaker:John unlatched his book and frantically thumbed through.
Speaker:“Just keep it distracted for a minute!”
Speaker:“Are you serious??” Alexis winced.
Speaker:“I can’t keep this shield up much longer…”
Speaker:Lance tried to pull his sword out but to no avail.
Speaker:He flipped back and charged his fist with ki,
Speaker:then launched a powerful blow.
Speaker:The creature warbled and split,
Speaker:growing a second head that turned on the ferret
Speaker:while the first continued to eat away at Alexis’s sphere.
Speaker:Lance backed away
Speaker:and threw poisoned shuriken at it.
Speaker:“John!” The skunk kept looking through the book.
Speaker:“Just hold on a little longer!”
Speaker:He finally found the entry he was looking for.
Speaker:“No wonder! They’re weak to the water element!”
Speaker:He ejected the red vial from his pistol
Speaker:and shoved in a vial of glowing blue fluid,
Speaker:then pulled the slide to vent it.
Speaker:The second head pulled free from the creature it spawned from and rushed at Lance,
Speaker:but the ferret quickly sprang back and tossed a powder bomb, halting it.
Speaker:Blue streaks sliced through and tore the creature open.
Speaker:John fired again
Speaker:and the demon dissolved from within, shrieking
Speaker:as it died. John spun and fired into the first monster, killing it with the same effect.
Speaker:Alexis let out a breath and lowered her paws, collapsing the sphere.
Speaker:“Nice job…” The two raccoons stared back
Speaker:in mute shock. John approached.
Speaker:“You two okay?” Alexis muttered a soft chant,
Speaker:waving her paws in front of the raccoons.
Speaker:After a glow surrounded their heads and dissipated,
Speaker:she turned to her friends.
Speaker:“That should help them forget.
Speaker:Let’s go.” The three made their way through the empty streets
Speaker:until they were able to call a shared ride into the city proper.
Speaker:After stowing their specialized weaponry at the storage depot,
Speaker:the trio finally arrived back at the college,
Speaker:tired and weary from their walk.
Speaker:“I still think we should go back to using the L…”
Speaker:John muttered, panting.
Speaker:Lance raised an eyebrow.
Speaker:“Right, they’re gonna allow me… carrying a sword… or you… carrying an aether pistol
Speaker:—well, any pistol… on board a public train.”
Speaker:“True…” *** The next day,
Speaker:Alexis arrived at the males’ dorm
Speaker:and knocked on the door.
Speaker:John opened up. “Hey Alex. C’mon in.” Alexis entered
Speaker:to find the living room table
Speaker:covered by two books
Speaker:and multiple note pads.
Speaker:“Wow, which exam are you cramming for?”
Speaker:“Huh? Oh, nah, these are for my study on the comet.
Speaker:That beast we fought last night was way too big for a simple ley line tearing.
Speaker:Either this comet’s closer than everyone’s predicting, or it’s
Speaker:affecting more than one ley line.”
Speaker:Alexis’ ears flattened.
Speaker:“John, you need to get serious.
Speaker:Your G.P.A.’s been slipping ever since we started going out on these missions.”
Speaker:She put a paw on his shoulder.
Speaker:“I’m beginning to think you’re using the world of magic and mysticism to escape your college priorities.”
Speaker:John leaned back,
Speaker:removed his glasses,
Speaker:and ran a tired paw through his white hair.
Speaker:“I know, I know… It’s just
Speaker:so much more interesting than all this
Speaker:boring… practical, real-life stuff.”
Speaker:“Even hobbyists need a break every once in a while.”
Speaker:“I’d hardly call this a hobby,
Speaker:considering we’re protecting innocent people from demon attacks here.
Speaker:There’s a serious need for what we do.”
Speaker:“Yes, but remember, you said you geared your studies toward what you expected to use as an Aurora member.
Speaker:I’m sure they would demand you follow through.
Speaker:Y’know, to prove you know the basics and can commit.
Speaker:And remember how much money you spent to enroll?”
Speaker:John sighed. “You’re right…”
Speaker:He closed the books and leaned up to stretch.
Speaker:“Okay, I have a calculus exam this afternoon.
Speaker:You and Lance wanna help me study?” * * *
Speaker:The sun shone brilliantly over one of Chicago’s many parks
Speaker:overlooking Lake Michigan.
Speaker:John, Lance, and Alexis sat on the grass enjoying the cool breeze,
Speaker:having taken a rest from over an hour of hard studying.
Speaker:John leaned back and attached the red lens to his spectacles.
Speaker:“The mystical properties of that ley line are actually visible in daylight now.
Speaker:That’s a bad sign.”
Speaker:Lance lay back in the grass with his eyes closed,
Speaker:enjoying the breeze against his fur.
Speaker:“So does that mean we’ll be facing bigger opponents?”
Speaker:“Yes, but if the line is this visible, there’s definitely something more than just the comet interacting with
Speaker:it.” He paused, narrowing his eyes.
Speaker:“Wait a minute…” The skunk stood
Speaker:and focused on the horizon.
Speaker:“There’s two of ’em.”
Speaker:Alexis tilted her head.
Speaker:“Two different ley lines?”
Speaker:“Yeah…” John grabbed his smart phone
Speaker:and pulled up a satellite app.
Speaker:After several minutes of looking from the line to the maps, he scratched his head.
Speaker:“It’s only visible now due to the comet.
Speaker:Before then, no one even knew it existed.”
Speaker:“What does it connect?”
Speaker:“Well if I’m reading this map right, I think it goes from Chicago to Holland, Michigan.
Speaker:It intersects with the Yellowstone Caldera line directly over the lake, roughly three or four miles east of where we are now.”
Speaker:He turned to them with widened eyes.
Speaker:“This isn’t good. Two intersecting lines means a deeper fracture with the Underworld.”
Speaker:Lance leaned up. “So the monsters that come out will be stronger?”
Speaker:“Yes, but we should be more concerned about the volume of demons that might spawn.”
Speaker:John sat down in front of them.
Speaker:“Have either of you read up on the Great Chicago Fire of 1871?”
Speaker:Alexis shrugged. “Only in history class.”
Speaker:“Well, that’s mostly what I was researching this morning.
Speaker:Some people assumed the fires that spread all over the region were caused by
Speaker:passing by around the same time.
Speaker:You know how everybody used to call comets ‘doom-bringers’?
Speaker:Well, in a way, they were.
Speaker:The Biela’s Comet didn’t directly cause the fires,
Speaker:but demons escaping did.
Speaker:The Underworld is incredibly hostile and, well,
Speaker:fiery, so when the tears opened that released the monsters, fire was also released,
Speaker:and that’s besides the fact that some demons breathe fire.
Speaker:Now, there’s not much of a threat from fires nowadays due to advances in firefighting technology.
Speaker:However, the threat of demons still exists,
Speaker:and given how large the Chicago Fire was, we can expect a lot of paranormal activity going on soon.
Speaker:Not only that,
Speaker:but dark occultists typically use the presence of comets to strengthen their summoning rituals.
Speaker:Remember how they wait until eclipses,
Speaker:comet passings, and so on to perform major conjurations?
Speaker:Celestial phenomena interact with ley lines and
Speaker:weaken the separation between our realm and the Underworld, which allows demons and other monsters to escape.
Speaker:Now, ley lines are part of a geographical network that seals Earth and our local realm from other realms like the Underworld.
Speaker:The reason people thought they made patterns between geological anomalies
Speaker:was because the land itself can warp and reshape
Speaker:when the seals are ruptured.
Speaker:Those fractures distort anything around the opening.
Speaker:Notable comets, such as those that are really bright or really close to Earth,
Speaker:can affect the ley lines more severely.
Speaker:Two nights from now, the Schwalzi-Berner Comet will be closest to Earth,
Speaker:and the ley line mystical fractures will be at their severest.
Speaker:If there’s gonna be a ritual,
Speaker:it will be then…” John pointed out at the lake,
Speaker:“…and there.” “Notice how ‘there’ is over water,”
Speaker:said Lance. “Most creatures from the Underworld don’t like water.”
Speaker:Alexis’s ears fluttered.
Speaker:“What better way to ensure whatever’s summoned doesn’t run away before the summoners can get it under control?”
Speaker:“Good point,” said John.
Speaker:“The ritual could occur on a barge, or it’s even possible that an island will actually rise up out of the water from the fracture event.”
Speaker:Lance squinted his eyes
Speaker:as he glanced out at the lake. “Okay then… We’ll need to rent a boat. Something fast so we can zoom in and interrupt the ritual.”
Speaker:Alexis tilted her head.
Speaker:“Um, it might help if we can actually confirm a ritual will occur.
Speaker:Sure, conditions will be right,
Speaker:but right now all we have are inclinations.
Speaker:We don’t even have hushed rumors to go by this time.”
Speaker:John sighed. “The lack of rumors is particularly disturbing.
Speaker:I know we’re not the only mystics in the world, but for this particular city,
Speaker:I fear we’ll be alone on this one.”
Speaker:Lance grinned. “Of course we’ll be alone.
Speaker:We’ve been doing this by ourselves from day one.
Speaker:The only reason we know there are others out there is because of that internet support forum for
Speaker:other mystics you stumbled upon last year,
Speaker:and its lack of activity proves how rare we are.
Speaker:I’ll bet that’s where you learned about those Aurora rumors, too, isn’t it?”
Speaker:John smiled. “Well, I actually knew about them from stories my grandfather taught me.
Speaker:Did you know they’re the reason the world didn’t end on 2012?”
Speaker:Alexis snickered.
Speaker:“Seriously? There was a doomsday event occurring then?”
Speaker:“There would’ve been,
Speaker:but the Aurora joined with some other leagues of mystical defenders from different nations and
Speaker:faced some of the most horrendous apocalyptic eldritch abominations known to our kind.
Speaker:The Aurora saved the world while the general public was completely oblivious, as usual.”
Speaker:John’s smart phone beeping interrupted them.
Speaker:“Time to head back for my exam.
Speaker:Can you two look into some boat rentals in the mean time?”
Speaker:The trio went their separate ways,
Speaker:a plan in mind and just enough hope to act on it. * * *
Speaker:Hours later, Alexis and Lance met John at one of the L stations and boarded the train home.
Speaker:“How’d the exam go?”
Speaker:Alexis asked. John set his backpack on the seat.
Speaker:“Not as good as I hoped,
Speaker:thanks to me being a nervous wreck over what we might be dealing with over the next few days.
Speaker:Plus, I wonder if we might get followed.”
Speaker:“By something like from last night?”
Speaker:“Yeah, but luckily I haven’t caught any sulfuric scents that normally surround those creatures yet.”
Speaker:Alexis rubbed her chin.
Speaker:“Y’know, I wouldn’t be surprised if we were followed somehow.
Speaker:Some demons are frighteningly smart,
Speaker:but I’ve never known them to be able to cover their scent trails the same way we can.”
Speaker:John looked out the window at the eastern horizon
Speaker:where he knew the ley lines were crossing over the water.
Speaker:The sun had already begun to set,
Speaker:making the Schwalzi-Berner Comet easily visible in the sky.
Speaker:“Yeah,” he said, “but remember… Cerberus
Speaker:might have his paws full with these fractures.
Speaker:Some of the more dangerous ones might have escaped.”
Speaker:The train descended into one of the rare few subway tunnels along the L,
Speaker:darkening the interior.
Speaker:John turned back to the rabbit.
Speaker:“Well, where are we on the boating situation?”
Speaker:“Stuck on dry land.
Speaker:People are saying there’s been a cargo spill, but I haven’t seen anything out there.”
Speaker:Alexis blinked. “Hey… what if that’s meant to discourage occultists from performing rituals out there?
Speaker:It’s not like the government is completely oblivious to the mystical underworld.”
Speaker:“That’s a possibility,” said John. “But I would also think if that’s the case there would be police patrol boats moving about over the water.”
Speaker:The lights went out and the train halted,
Speaker:shifting everyone forward.
Speaker:“Uh oh…” said Alexis. John’s eyes widened.
Speaker:“You feel something, don’t you?”
Speaker:“Yep.” The entire train jolted
Speaker:and violent sparks flashed outside the windows.
Speaker:“I really wish I had that same ability to detect demons…”
Speaker:John unzipped his backpack and pulled out his tome.
Speaker:“We gotta get everyone out of here.
Speaker:I smell a faint scent of sulfur this time.”
Speaker:Something slammed the train,
Speaker:throwing everyone to one side.
Speaker:Metal groaned, followed by loud clangs from the cars ahead.
Speaker:At a deafening, fiery burst up front,
Speaker:cracks raced along the walls and the train pitched
Speaker:downward. People in the forward cars pulled the doors open and spilled in,
Speaker:trying to escape the flames at the front.
Speaker:The trio forced their way past the frightened civilians
Speaker:and shouted for everyone to get to the back of the train.
Speaker:After passing everyone,
Speaker:Alexis flashed a barrier spell to protect the passengers along with a mental ward
Speaker:to keep their curiosity at bay.
Speaker:She let out a breath from the mana discharge
Speaker:and turned to join her friends.
Speaker:When the mystics finally reached the front,
Speaker:they saw portions of the train torn away as if ripped by giant claws.
Speaker:Beyond the mangled metal, small fires illuminated a horrendously
Speaker:deformed tunnel and broken rails splayed out in an unnatural shape.
Speaker:Alexis pulled a rod out of her backpack,
Speaker:which extended in her paw to form a staff that glowed at each end.
Speaker:“There’s mana residue all over this place.”
Speaker:A chill ran down John’s spine.
Speaker:“That’s not good…” The skunk cautiously stepped out
Speaker:and sniffed the air.
Speaker:“Its scent is still lingering.” Lance pulled out
Speaker:spell tags and ducked back into the train.
Speaker:“I’ll go seal it from the civilians.”
Speaker:They turned to face the train
Speaker:and saw shadows moving over the tunnel’s ruined ceiling.
Speaker:Alexis climbed up and saw a hulking beast hanging from the tunnel,
Speaker:drawn to the shouts emanating from the rear of the train.
Speaker:The rabbit gasped,
Speaker:“John, it’s heading back!”
Speaker:She held her staff out
Speaker:and lightning pulsed at the tip
Speaker:before streaking toward the creature.
Speaker:The beast jolted
Speaker:and landed on the train’s roof,
Speaker:then contorted to twist and face her,
Speaker:snarling as it went.
Speaker:Its body was devoid of hair or fur,
Speaker:a scaled combination of serpent and demonic goat
Speaker:with spiny horns and glowing eyes lacking pupils.
Speaker:The demon roared and charged.
Speaker:Alexis dropped down,
Speaker:missing its claws as it sailed over.
Speaker:She flung up a shield covering her and John
Speaker:while it kicked off one of the walls and spun to face them.
Speaker:John already had his book in paw,
Speaker:skimming through pages.
Speaker:“I don’t think I’m gonna have enough time to figure out what this thing is…”
Speaker:He stood and muttered a hurried incantation,
Speaker:conjuring a glowing crossbow composed of pure mana.
Speaker:Lit runes danced along his arms,
Speaker:bonding the weapon to him.
Speaker:The demon opened its mouth
Speaker:and shot a searing stream of acid,
Speaker:nailing Alexis’ glowing shield sphere.
Speaker:Lightning arced over the liquid,
Speaker:but had no effect on the demon.
Speaker:Alexis winced. “I hope you have a plan…”
Speaker:The beast charged and slashed at the shield.
Speaker:Acid soaked its claws.
Speaker:Every strike sprayed more on the cracked tunnel walls and portions of the ruined train,
Speaker:letting poisonous vapors steam away on contact.
Speaker:The shield collapsed from strain,
Speaker:leaving the pair vulnerable.
Speaker:Alexis waved a quick incantation
Speaker:and a bright glow surrounded John’s form.
Speaker:The skunk lunged
Speaker:but the demon swatted him away.
Speaker:“John!!” John hit a wall hard and sank to the crumbling floor.
Speaker:All the while, more cracks opened up around them in the tunnel,
Speaker:spouting fire. Alexis backed away against the mangled train and held out her staff.
Speaker:A glowing wave pulsed from it,
Speaker:but it only shoved the beast back without harming it.
Speaker:It opened its mouth
Speaker:and prepared to spit acid, but a sharp burst nailed it from the side,
Speaker:knocking its head sideways.
Speaker:John held his conjured crossbow out
Speaker:with a circle of glowing runes wrapped around it.
Speaker:Trying to ignore the pain and trail of blood streaming down his face,
Speaker:the skunk shouted a second chant
Speaker:and the weapon blasted out more bolts,
Speaker:striking the demon’s neck.
Speaker:The crossbow then dissipated,
Speaker:drained of mana.
Speaker:The demon roared in anger
Speaker:and charged at him,
Speaker:ripping more cracks in the ground as it went.
Speaker:John dove away before it crashed into the wall,
Speaker:unleashing a storm of fire from the impact.
Speaker:Alexis sprinted over
Speaker:and smashed it with her mana-charged staff,
Speaker:then sprung away from its retaliation
Speaker:and helped John up,
Speaker:singing a quick healing spell as she did.
Speaker:“This place is gonna cave in if we don’t do something!” she yelled.
Speaker:They split and dove away, avoiding another charge.
Speaker:John rolled to his feet
Speaker:and dodged a flaming geyser.
Speaker:“This fire is not natural!
Speaker:We’re right in the middle of a dimensional fissure!
Speaker:The ley line must be running straight through here!”
Speaker:Alexis hopped over a sudden gap
Speaker:and darted behind a large rock to avoid the demon’s gushing acid.
Speaker:The beast rushed at her,
Speaker:but three shuriken struck its head and exploded,
Speaker:shrouding it in poisonous dust.
Speaker:Behind it, Lance stood with enormous glowing claws summoned over his paws.
Speaker:“Attacking my friends was a big mistake…”
Speaker:The ferret lunged and slashed,
Speaker:then teleported to avoid the demon’s acidic retaliation.
Speaker:Alexis and John regrouped on the other side of the tunnel,
Speaker:but more cracks appeared under them.
Speaker:Alexis stared in disbelief.
Speaker:“We’re powerless…” The entire tunnel shook
Speaker:as the creature shrieked and flailed.
Speaker:The ground split
Speaker:and flames erupted from underneath,
Speaker:tearing apart anything they touched.
Speaker:The trio leaped back in shock but the floor beneath them gave way,
Speaker:plunging them downward.
Speaker:They grabbed rock outcroppings,
Speaker:but John’s handhold crumbled.
Speaker:Alexis reached out
Speaker:and clutched her staff with the skunk dangling at the other end.
Speaker:Far below, a hellish sight greeted them.
Speaker:Fire violently swirled
Speaker:and the loud, angry screams of countless demons
Speaker:deafened the three mystics.
Speaker:Multitudes clambered over each other trying to reach the surface, shrieking for blood.
Speaker:Nearby, the acidic demon
Speaker:grasped at anything it could, trying to crawl back out even as more parts of the tunnel collapsed.
Speaker:John gasped in wide-eyed fright.
Speaker:“Pull me up! Pull me up!”
Speaker:Lance and Alexis strained,
Speaker:drawing him back as the creatures below slashed at his feet and tail.
Speaker:The intense heat threw flames up all around them,
Speaker:embers sparking on their fur and clothing.
Speaker:John finally grabbed a solid portion of rock
Speaker:and climbed up. “We need my book!
Speaker:It’s the only way to close this back up!”
Speaker:Alexis looked over
Speaker:and saw John’s tome,
Speaker:resting on the edge of what remained of the subway’s tracks.
Speaker:The rails glowed from the heat
Speaker:and more flames arced up,
Speaker:threatening to ignite the pages.
Speaker:Down below, demons suddenly scattered and a chorus of
Speaker:ghastly roars echoed all around.
Speaker:The flames surged higher
Speaker:and a gigantic black paw reached out.
Speaker:Lance quickly teleported and grabbed the book,
Speaker:then flung it back to the others.
Speaker:Alexis caught it
Speaker:and held it out while John grasped the other half
Speaker:and skimmed the pages.
Speaker:The giant black paw
Speaker:grabbed the acidic demon and dragged it back down as it violently protested,
Speaker:screeching and slashing.
Speaker:John found the incantation needed
Speaker:and directed Alexis to hold the book out,
Speaker:freeing his paws.
Speaker:The skunk quickly motioned and chanted,
Speaker:trying to close the otherworldly fissure
Speaker:and seal it back from their realm,
Speaker:but another burst of flame interrupted him.
Speaker:Alexis nearly dropped the book
Speaker:and a corner of it caught fire.
Speaker:Lance teleported over and swiped it out.
Speaker:“Hurry!” The black paw emerged again and reached for them.
Speaker:Through the flames,
Speaker:Alexis plainly saw three pairs of glowing eyes staring back.
Speaker:John quickly tried again
Speaker:and finished just in time for Alexis to pull him out of the paw’s grasp.
Speaker:Fire faded and rocks shifted below them,
Speaker:filling in the hole until finally closing up.
Speaker:The tunnel became
Speaker:eerily silent, lit only by scattered orange glows left from the heat.
Speaker:John, Lance, and Alexis
Speaker:sat there panting,
Speaker:bewildered. “What…” said Lance,
Speaker:“was that?” John slowly closed the book
Speaker:and replied, “Cerberus.”
Speaker:The trio remained silent on the shared ride home.
Speaker:They sat close, alternating between staring at the floorboards or aimlessly out the window, unsure of what to say about the encounter in the tunnel.
Speaker:Lance fiddled with his smart phone,
Speaker:checking every streaming site and newsfeed he could find.
Speaker:There was nothing covering the incident,
Speaker:proving Alexis’ barrier spell and mental wards had effectively stopped the passengers
Speaker:from recording or even seeing what had happened.
Speaker:The incident had been deemed a catastrophic natural gas explosion.
Speaker:He sighed. When they finally reached the campus,
Speaker:Alexis nervously rubbed one of her ears.
Speaker:“Guys… what we encountered back there really freaked me out…
Speaker:Can I spend the night in your dorm?
Speaker:I don’t want to be alone.”
Speaker:John put a warm paw on her shoulder.
Speaker:“I don’t blame you.”
Speaker:Lance stepped closer.
Speaker:“Nor do I. This whole comet thing is beginning to make me wonder how prepared we truly are to face what’s out there.”
Speaker:“We’ve only been at this for about a year.
Speaker:There’s a whole lot we haven’t experienced yet.”
Speaker:Alexis glanced back at the city lights.
Speaker:“We’re not ready for tomorrow, are we?”
Speaker:The two males did not answer,
Speaker:but knew she was right.
Speaker:John sighed. “At the very least,
Speaker:we know where to be.”
Speaker:Lance glared. “Are you suggesting we go back there?”
Speaker:“That portal was no mere dimensional fracture.
Speaker:It was purposely created.
Speaker:The residual mana was all over the area and it disrupted the already-unsteady bond
Speaker:left from the weakened ley line.
Speaker:We’re definitely dealing with dark occultists,
Speaker:and they’ve been experimenting.”
Speaker:He pulled out his smart phone and activated the maps.
Speaker:“That fracture goes from where we were
Speaker:all the way to the crosspoint at Lake Michigan.
Speaker:The ritual, and there will be one,
Speaker:isn’t going to take place over the water.
Speaker:It’ll be underground.”
Speaker:“You can’t be serious,” said Lance.
Speaker:“I am. My guess is there’s a hidden tunnel buried somewhere beyond that subway line,
Speaker:accessible only to mystics
Speaker:who can bypass the magic that locks it from the rail tunnel.
Speaker:Kinda like those hidden passages in New York’s subways.”
Speaker:John paused, brow furrowed in thought.
Speaker:“Guys…” he said, glancing up.
Speaker:“We have to stop it.
Speaker:We’re the only ones capable of dealing with this sort of supernatural phenomenon.
Speaker:Chicago has a population of two-and-a
Speaker:-half million and we three are the only mystics in it.”
Speaker:“We’re not capable enough.”
Speaker:said Lance. “We didn’t defeat that demon. We didn’t even hurt it.”
Speaker:“But we survived,” said John.
Speaker:“It has to be us. We chose to use our talents to help protect others.
Speaker:We chose to be urban knights.”
Speaker:Lance ran a paw through his hair and sighed.
Speaker:“When do you think the ritual will happen?”
Speaker:“The same time any important ritual takes place,”
Speaker:said Alexis. “Midnight.”
Speaker:This was the 1st of 2 parts of
Speaker:“Urban Mystic” by Aelius,
Speaker:read for you by Khaki, your faithful fireside companion.
Speaker:Tune in next time to find out how John, Lance, and Alexis cope with their newfound discoveries
Speaker:and fight back against the forces of the Underworld.
Speaker:As always, you can find more stories on the web at thevoice.dog,
Speaker:or find the show wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker:Thank you for listening
Speaker:to The Voice of Dog.
