[STORY] -> Awaken - Part 7 - Orvus Restores Order

Orvus had found himself in a room alone. It appeared to be the same tomb as before, with the fluorescent walls, but the pillars dividing the room were gone. The stone levitating above the altar was gone... and so was the old man. He was just alone in a room. “You're not dead,” said a soft, booming voice from behind Orvus. Orvus turned around, his heart skipped a beat and yet nothing was there. “Who is here with me?!” cried out Orvus to the room, looking over his shoulder. “I need you to wake up now,” said the voice. Confused, Orvus called out to the room, “I am awake, am I not?”. Orvus checked to be sure and patted himself on the cheeks.

Suddenly a flash of golden light illuminated the whole of the room. Orvus looked to his right and shielded his eyes from the figure who had just appeared there from out of thin air. Despite being difficult to look directly at, Orvus could make out a gorgeous woman of considerable height, clad in a fine set of golden armour. Her helm, breastplate, gauntlets and grieves were highly polished and inlaid with bees and floral designs made of steel. She wielded a long, golden tipped spear in her left hand and stood there and stared at Orvus.

Image Source

“My apologies,” she said as she stepped toward Orvus, “it took me longer than I expected to connect with your level of vibration.” Orvus had nearly fallen backwards as she neared, “What do you want with me? Who are you and where am I?” She stopped dead in front of Orvus and looked down at him, put her hand on his shoulder and said sternly, “I need you to wake up!” Her touch electrified his body. He felt his everything vibrating all at once and suddenly he had an idea of what it was she could mean by 'wake up'. He was suddenly aware of another him. Another Orvus somewhere else.

She removed her hand, “Do you understand now?” Orvus nodded his head. He could feel the coldness of the stone floor on his face as his body lay unconscious. “What about...” Orvus started, and then she cut him off. “He received a direct hit. I'll need more time to reach his level of vibration. Until then I'm invisible to him entirely.” Orvus grew concerned. The old man was hit even harder then he was and Orvus could feel the pain in his body as it lay there motionless. “You may be able to get to him first,” she reassured.

“How can I force myself to wake up?” Orvus urged her to answer. She looked over Orvus' shoulder and then pointed with her spear, “This way.” They both approached the wall of the room, she put her hand up to it and it passed right through. She grabbed Orvus by the shoulder and pulled him through the wall. Orvus stumbled out the other side to find himself in another room, much larger than the last. A large pyramid made of polished opulent stone sat in the room's centre. At its' apex shone a golden light that gave the room light and warmth.

“That's where I am sealed,” she said, pointing at the pyramid. Orvus stared in awe at it for some time. She continued, “Wake up, gather your friend, and use the stone to find this room.” Orvus looked at her like she was asking the impossible. “I have to try it,” he said with top-heavy confidence. Orvus closed his eyes and steadied his mind. Once again the apparent sensation of having two bodies flooded his attention. His breath was shallow and his heartbeat was dangerously irregular. He managed to locate sensation in his fingers, then in his hand. The sensation worked it way up his arm into his shoulder. “I almost have it,” Orvus stammered. He lifted the arm of his semi-conscious body, raised his fist into the air and then slammed himself in the chest.

Orvus gasped for air and rolled over, sitting up slowly. His vision was blurry but he could make out his travel-pack nearby on the ground. He crawled over to it and turned it over to open it up. “Hang in there my friend!” Orvus called out across the room to the old man. Orvus shook the contents of his bag lose upon the floor. The scrolls he was looking for tumbled to and rolled about the ground. Orvus stumbled after them and grabbed hold of one. “I always bring at least one of each!” Orvus exclaimed as he struggled his way to the unconscious old man. Orvus reached him and even though his vision was blurred, could tell the old man wasn't breathing. “It's now or never," said a determined Orvus as he knelt by the old man's side.

Orvus unrolled the scroll to reveal a crudely depicted bolt of lightning surrounded by a border of alternating spiral patterns. The ink illuminated the page as Orvus recited, “Electric river currents gather your wrath, Flow as One and seek out your path!” A bolt of energetic lightning welled up and zapped Orvus and the old man. Orvus stumbled over the old man, who suddenly sat up which caused the both of them to bump heads. “Ouch! Damn it, what in the twelve?” complained the old man as he sat fully upright. Orvus could feel his heart beating normally once again. “You're alive!” said Orvus, which echoed in the room. “Of course I'm alive!” boasted the old man, “Why can't I see very well?” Orvus experienced this himself. “Don't worry it starts to wear off after a few minutes,” Orvus reassured him.

The two collected themselves for a few minutes, gathering their belongings once they could stand up. “What in the name of the twelve happened, Orvus?” questioned the old man. Orvus leaned on one of the rooms dividing support pillars, and sighed heavily. He explained, “I awoke in a room alone, and then a beautiful, tall woman appeared clad in golden armour. She told me I had to wake up in order to save you, and that together we could release the seal on her tomb.” The old man stared at Orvus in jealous disbelief. “Well alright then! I want to meet her myself,” said the old man eager to know. The old man noticed the look on Orvus' face. “What's the problem, Orvus?” asked the old man, raising an eyebrow at him. Orvus paused for a moment, then pointed across the room at the levitating stone... “We have to touch that again.”

Awaken

Part 01 - A Message to Orvus
Part 02 - The Lake Beckons
Part 03 - Night of Rest
Part 04 - The Tomb's Secret
Part 05 - The Deep Gouge
Part 06 - Dismay Down Deep
Part 07 - CURRENT