Surgit felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see a familiar face. His jaw dropped and his eyes popped wide open. He looked around him. He was in some kind of chapel. There was an altar at the far end of the structure. Behind him, a door creaked open. "Surgit, no matter what you do, do not look up." Although he heard her familiar voice and her saw her standing before him, he couldn"t believe it.
"This must be an after effect of that pill," he thought. "How are you..." he said then.
"Alive?" Karla asked. "I should ask you the same. I thought you died back then."
"I"m a hunter," Surgit replied. "Hunters don"t die."
"What?" Karla asked.
"It"s complicated," Surgit replied. "How are you still alive?"
"It"s a complicated story," Karla replied. "We should get out of here, that thing gives me the creeps." She shot a quick glance upwards then averted her gaze.
Surgit looked up. The chapel had a high ceiling, about twenty feet high. Above the door that had just opened, a gigantic creature lurked about. It had multiple limbs, like a spider. And like a spider, it crawled above the door. Surgit was but a small fly compared to the monster"s size. Surgit"s heart leapt to his throat.
"This thing..." he said in a deep voice. "I"ve seen this thing before, but as a statue."
"In Yahar"gul?" Karla asked.
Surgit nodded. "Have you been there too?" he asked.
"I got kidnapped by this giant man," Karla replied. "This thing"s creepy."
"Where are we?" Surgit asked.
"Near the Great Cathedral," Karla replied. "I saw that moon descend and the sky turning crimson. Then I heard a loud bang in the chapel. I came to inspect it then found you."
Surgit took a step forward. His eyes never left the beast that hung above them. When he saw it as a statue back in Yahar"gul, he felt great apprehension. This time around, the feeling of dread intensified tenfold.
"Beasts all over the shop," he said as he took another step. "What have we gotten ourselves into?"
"Don"t get too close to that thing," Karla warned. "We don"t know what it wants."
"It would have attacked us already if it wanted us dead," Surgit said. "Besides, I think I know what to do here."
Surgit searched his pockets then produced a stone shaped like a tonsil. He showed it to Karla. "I got this back at the Forbidden Woods," he said. "Don"t you think it looks like this creature"s head?"
Karla tried to take the stone and inspect it, but it wouldn"t leave Surgit"s palm.
"I kinda have to have it with me at all times," Surgit said with an awkward smile.
"What do you think it doe –"
Karla"s eyes widened. Surgit turned around just in time to see one of the creature"s multiple limbs extended toward them. He saw its gigantic hand open, then a rift opened, similar to the ones Rom produced.
"Oh s.h.i.t!" Surgit tried to pull Karla aside and jump, but the pulling force emanating from the rift was too strong. It pulled them both toward the beast"s hand. The latter closed its long bony fingers around its victims then pulled up for closer inspection.
Surgit and Karla squirmed as they tried to get away from the monster"s grip. Its head was as big a regular chapel. It had a spherical shape, and looked eerily like a cage with hexagonal bars. Inside the cage, an organic shape pulsated as though it was a heart, but hairy on the outside.
Surgit and Karla heard shrill laughter around them then.
"Heh heh heh heh...Oh Amygdala, oh Amygdala...Have mercy on the poor b.a.s.t.a.r.d...Hah hah hah!"
The beast squeezed its fist shut, and the two felt darkness envelop them. The next thing they knew, they were standing in a dark room. Faint sunlight slithered through the small windows on top.
"Where the h.e.l.l are we?" Karla whispered. "I thought we were dead."
"I"ve been had, as always..." Surgit said, crestfallen. "The gift of the G.o.dhead will grant you strength he said..."
"Who said that?" Karla asked.
"Whoever gave me this stupid stone!" Surgit said. He tried to throw the thing away but it wouldn"t leave his hand, save for when he pocketed it.
"Now what?" Karla asked.
"You tell me how you survived first," Surgit said. "I just can"t wrap my head around it. Maybe I really am mad..."
"That hunter sent me back in time," Karla said. "I met the forefathers of the Order of Hunters. I even know how this whole mess started."
"Do you know how to get us out of here?" Surgit asked.
Karla shook her head. "I doubt even Gehrman knows that."
Surgit"s heart skipped a beat. "How do you know that name?" he asked with squinted eyes.
"Didn"t you hear what I just said?" Karla asked. "I was sent back in time. I met Gehrman and Laurence."
Surgit began laughing. "You"re f.u.c.king with me," he said. "I bet you"re not even real! I must be imagining things. Is this what you wanted by giving me that pill? Huh?!" he screamed.
Karla looked concerned. "Surgit, I"m real, as real as can be, here." She took his hands and squeezed them. "Here, you can feel my touch, right?"
Surgit nodded.
"Everything I told you is true," Karla said. "How about you take a seat? Clear your head then we"ll speak."
Surgit nodded then looked around for a chair. The room was dark and damp. There were some books stacked on one desk, while jars similar to the ones in Byrgenwerth lay all over the place.
"I think I know where we are," Surgit said. He started walking around the room. With his insight, he could see anything that could be of use to them. "Aha! There you are." He deactivated his insight then headed for the lantern he spotted.
"What are you doing?" Karla asked.
"I"ll be back in a second," Surgit said. "I just want to clear a suspicion."
He approached the lantern then activated it.
"What"s that lantern do?" Karla asked.
Surgit turned to look at the woman in surprise. "You can see it now?" he asked.
"What do you mean now?" Karla shot back with an annoyed frown.
"You couldn"t see it when we fought the Cleric Beast... Did you receive blood ministration?" he asked.
Karla nodded. "I didn"t ask for it though... Why do you ask?"
Surgit switched his attention from the lantern to Karla. "Have you ever died before?" he asked.
"What?" she asked, confused. "How would I be able to speak to you then? Have you lost your mind?"
Surgit approached the woman. "Do you trust me?" he whispered. He didn"t expect to, but his voice came out faint.
"I guess," Karla said. Surgit"s change in att.i.tude made her feel uneasy.
"This is for your own benefit," he said. Without warning, he quickly drew his sword and plunged it deep within Karla"s chest. Karla gasped then squeezed the blade. The fury in her eyes made Surgit"s ears heat up.
"I"m sorry," he said. "You"ll understand soon enough." He twisted the sword then Karla let go of it. Her body went limp then dissipated.
Surgit let go a heavy sigh then turned toward the lantern. "Here goes nothing," he said then teleported toward the Hunters" Dream.