Sins Chaos

Chapter Forty-Two

Aerin

GWARCHEIDWAD DIMENSION

REALM OF THE GWARCHEIDWAD O'R GORFFENNOL

I groaned, coughing as the dust around me settled back into the dirt and scattered patches of grass around me. Rolling onto my back, I opened my eyes to the darkness I knew would be wrapped around me like a blanket.

The landing field in the elusive Guardian Dimension was a small square of packed dirt with sad looking clumps of grass spread throughout. The Guardians dispersed throughout the many realms really didn't need to keep up the landing field like most of the other dimensions. Why? Well, it was simple really.

The landing field was pitch black. You couldn't see your hand in front of your face. The Guardians did this for a reason. Their reasoning was this: Why do you need to see anything when you need a guide or permission to enter the actual realms of the dimension? You will see all that you need to see once you have been granted access to whatever realm your quest takes you to.

This was the kind of logic one must deal with when dealing with the oldest race of paranormal immortals ever recorded.

"This is the second time in less than two hours I have been shot at," I stated to the darkness, sitting up as I rubbed my left side. "I'm now starting to believe this is extremely personal. Not to mention I think that overgrown mutt may have actually hit his mark. That's just awesome. I think falling out of a vortex fifty feet in the air has honestly been the highlight of this really shitty week, though."

"Sarcasm isn't going to help you much here," River pointed out dryly from somewhere off to my right. "And you'll heal. Eventually. When we leave this dimension."

Ah, yes. Then there was that lovely quirk of the Guardian Dimension. No powers worked here. No magic, not even an immortal's healing capability. While an immortal could not die in this dimension, all nonlife-threatening injuries sustained while in the dimension would heal immediately upon departure. This dimension honestly could care less if you were good or evil. Your quest was welcome. You were just doing it as one hundred percent human, no matter what paranormal creature you were. In the spirit of fairness, of course.

Fairness my immortal hybrid ass.

"At least you know the wound—if, and that is a really BIG if, Colin actually hit you—isn't fatal," River added. "You know as well as I do that no one can be harmed during the fall. Your healing capability has been stripped, which, in this hellhole, means that any injuries sustained in the last hour will reappear."

I stood up, dusting myself off blindly. "Yes, thank you, Wikipedia. I was being totally facetious when I said that, but please continue with your lecture. Your Dr. Phil moments are quite entertaining... See what I did there? That was me being—"

"A smartass. Yeah, I know," snapped River. I heard him shuffling around, but couldn't figure out what he was doing exactly.

"You going to say something, Lysander? Or are you just going to stand there in the shadows like the creeper you are?" I demanded warily of the Guardian of Time somewhere off to the left of me.

"I was rather enjoying the show," Sabatin Lysander replied in an amused voice. "Whoever sent you two here together definitely has a sense of humor. Or really, really hopes that only one of you returns."

"Or is an Ascended Immortal in so deep over his head that he needs a map, possibly a backhoe, a few spells, and a good ass-kicking to find his way back to sanity," River grumbled.