fanfiction Ragnarok, The Aventure Continues

[rpicardi1]

Ark, The Adventure Continues, 2017

 

In the continuing update as Ark approaches official release and my game play hits 1000 hours, our adventurers find themselves in new locations. In this version they will be on Ragnarok, a Viking Fantasy Land with many actual and historic reference.

The map itself, when finished, will be a staggering 144 square kilometers of highly detailed explore-able terrain complete with caves, ruins, dungeons, and a base story to discover.

The map, developed by a team of gamers that have done several other maps, is a highly believable world containing landmarks that appear in real life. The carefully sculpted terrain looks so real right down to the flowing water in the streams in Scotland, to the castle ruins of the highland, to the pressure plate traps in the jungle caves straight out of Raiders of the Lost Ark. There are even ship wreaks to explore and a huge canyon system with a high bridge and numerous waterfalls cascading down from above. There are geysers and a volcano that can erupt spewing lava bombs and rivers of lava. A Death Zone of brutal cold beckons the hardiest of explorer to find clues and battle the Ice Worm Queen. A second Death Zone of extreme desert heat will soon be available to explore as well.

The map continues to develop as it is updated with creatures appropriate for the area with new fantasy ones to fit the Viking Lore.

 

Chapter One. Our Research Vacation.

 

As part of our agreement at the end of our Bermuda vacation, the seven of us have all kept in contact with other. I am working part time at the University with Mary on her research with her husband Joe helping out on the occasions that he can get away from his sporting business. Michael, Caroline, Denny, and Julia get up here at least once a month to check out Mary’s work and just to get together with us as we talk about life in general.

I have been helping out with modeling of the dinosaurs that we have actually seen in person. The 3D printer at the university had been a big help in creating the models themselves. It has helped to have the digital photos when it comes to painting their colors.

“I wish we could have tamed us a raptor to get photos of it,” I tell Mary one day as I am struggling to get the model to look right. We ended up with an argument with Dr. Sanders, the head of the archaeological department, about raptors having feathers on the back of their heads, their forearms, and the end of their tail. The next day, he shows up with a research report from one of his colleges who has discovered such feathers preserved in a fossil on a Utah Raptor. So, I can now add feathers to the model I am working on.

The feathers are a pain to get to look right. I find a way to make them using modeling paper and aircraft dope with a wire in the core. The semitransparent look is what is needed for them to look natural on the 1/12 scale I am using.

Just for the fun of it, I find a doll house figure, dress it up in a primitive outfit, and craft a leather saddle for the model raptor. Dr. Sanders thinks we are nuts to suggest such a thing. “Think of the possibilities if we could have tamed one,” I tell him. He leaves shaking his head but he likes my scale models for use in his lectures. He still doesn’t believe that we have had that rare privilege of walking among real dinosaurs.

It is the week of Graduation when Dr. Sanders receives a research grant and an invitation from his college, Professor Narcy, to work with him on an archaeological dig in Norway. Among the artifacts being uncovered in a Viking village, there has been a discovery of well preserved dinosaur fossils in that dig. Most rare, they have found well preserved hide and feathers on some of the fossils. An expedition is put together with the three of us, Dr. Sanders, and two of his graduate students, Tod and Sarah. Michael, Caroline, Denny, and Julia are scheduled to go on a summer cruise in Alaska. They will not be able to join us. We will be conducting our research throughout the summer months when the weather is most comfortable and the daylight almost continuous.

“Dinosaur fossils with the hide intact,” comments Dr. Sanders. “It will be most interesting to discover how they got so well preserved.”

We find that the arrangements have been made, through the unknown donor for the grant, for our visit. Our accommodations and research gear are already on the way. We will be staying aboard a research vessel anchored in the remote bay where the village has been located.

We travel on a charter flight that makes a refueling stop in Boston, then London, and finally landing in Oslo. The trip, by an offshore supply boat, takes some 16 hours to reach the dig site.

It is in a beautiful bay with large sandy beaches, with pine forest, that abruptly end at the steep mountain sides with lots of boulders at the base. It’s an old Glacier valley where there is still ice and snow visible high up in the mountain.

Our research ship, anchored in the bay, will be our home for the next three months. We will be living in tents at the actual dig retreating back to the ship should we have several days of foul weather to contend with or need to bring back artifacts for the archives.

We head to the dig site, located at the base of the south slope, to examine what has been found so far. “I see what looks like an old mudslide scar on the slope,” comments Joe to Mary. “It is as if the soil on the side of the cliff just slid down burying the village and preserving the fossils.”

“It looks like that is exactly what happened here,” answers Professor Narcy who has been working on this site with his two grad students, Ahab and Cleo. “We are amazed at how well preserved the dinosaur fossils are.”

“What has puzzled us,” Professor Narcy tells Dr Sanders, “is that the fossils seem to be layered in with the remains of the viking village.”

“It could be because the fossils may have been in the soil that slid down the slope,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Has anyone gone up there to look for any signs of fossils being up there?”

“We did a couple of days ago,” answers Ahab. “There appears to be an entrance to a cave up there, but no other signs of any fossils. It is very rugged climbing to even reach where the cave is.”

“We should plan on exploring that cave,” answers Dr. Sanders. “It may provide us with a clue to what happened down here. Lets plan to do so in the morning. In the meantime, lets have a look at what you have found.”

We head to the dig site where a part of what looks like a Trike head shield has been exposed. I am in shock when I see it and take Mary off to the side. “That head shield, it looks so much like Trixie,” I tell her.

“You are right,” answers Mary. “It is not the classic Trike shield.”

“Where have you seen this before?” ask Professor Narcy.

“You would not believe us if we told you,” I answer. “The horns, those horns up on the crown, the texture of the hide on the bone shield. It looks so much like Trixie.”

“Halsey has constructed 1/12 scale models of extinct creatures for use in my lectures,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Trixie happens to be one of his what if hybrids models he was playing with. I have to admit that he might be right about this find. This crown looks so much like that fantasy model he created. We may be looking at a new species of trikes and a well preserved one at that.”

“What I find most interesting is the location of this find,” answers Professor Narcy. “It seems to be just laying in the village, as if it was living there when the landslide hit. That just doesn’t seem to be possible.”

“Could the village have been built, buried in the landslide, and rebuilt?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“That doesn’t seem to be the case here,” answers Professor Narcy. “It was never rebuilt because the Vikings considered this bay the sacred grounds of Njord, a God that was killed in Ragnarok. Their local lore tells of dragons and giant sea creatures living in this valley and the bay. We only found out about this site from an old Viking map we found in another village nearby.”

“That is most interesting,” answers Dr. Sanders. “No wonder you gave me a call. Do you know who is this mysterious donor that is financing this expedition?”

“I don’t know,” answers Professor Narcy. “The Norwegian Government contacted me a month ago about this project asking if I would be interested in doing the dig. It was when we found the trike fossil that I asked them for permission to bring you in on the expedition.”

“Wow. I didn’t realize how late it is already. Doesn’t the sun ever set around here?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“It will set about 11:00 PM and rise at 1:00 AM at this latitude in the summer months,” answer Professor Narcy. ‘We are very close to the Arctic Circle.”

Between the jet lag and the long sailing trip, we are all eager to get in a good night’s rest before tackling the climb to the cave in the morning.

The next morning, the sun rises low in the eastern sky shining through the glacier up in the valley as we get up and prepare for our hike to the came. Packing our basic hand tools, climbing gear, and flashlights, we start the long climb up the slope to where the cave was located. Cleo takes the lead with Professor Narcy and the rest of us following.

The going is steep as we navigate around boulders, fallen trees, and work around slippery slopes in the newly growing areas of the pine forest.

Finally, we reach the cave entrance which is mostly blocked by the fallen rock and tree limbs. “We’re going to have to clear our way in,” announces Professor Narcy. With an hour of careful hard work, we have removed the rubble blocking our way into the cave.

“I hope that was worth it,” grumbles Dr. Sanders.

Heading inside, we find some very unusual cave drawings among those that have been seen before. “Check these out,” Tod tells Dr. Sanders. “That look like a drawing of that Trike fossil down below in the village.”

“Well, we have the usual Mammoths, woolly rhino, saber cat, dire wolf, and giant elk,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Just what is this Trike doing here? An Anklyo? This raptor? Is that a Dragon?”

“It looks like a wyvern, a two legged variety of a dragon,” answers Professor Narcy. “The Vikings have them in their lore. They decorated their longboats with the head carvings and often used them on their war banners. Having these other prehistoric creatures here among those that were still around at the end of the Ice Age is most unusual. Perhaps the answer lies further back in the cave.”

We continue deeper into the cave finding a place where we need to crawl through into what looks like a primitive room. As soon as everyone has entered, something attracts the attention of Dr. Sanders. I suddenly recognizes what it is as a beam of blue light shines on it. “Don’t touch it!” I yell to Dr. Sanders as I rush to push him aside. Too late, he reaches inside and places his hand on a matching hand print.

There is a blinding flash as we are all knocked unconscious.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 2, Ragnarok.

 

Regaining conscious, I find myself on the beach in the bay where we have started our expedition. It is early morning according to the angle of the sun, but everything has gone terribly wrong. My clothes are now missing along with the tent, all of the tools of the dig site, the dig site itself, the survey ship, and everyone else that was working there. The glacier is still located high up in the valley, the temperate and pine forest up on the slope, the bay as well with its rock formations, but the beach area now has tropical palms growing there along with tropical bushes and other items.

Up on top of the temperate forested east ridge, against the glare of a rising sun, the ruins of large Viking castle can now be seen. There are some new rock formations along the beach that weren’t around when we first arrived, but the valley and bay looks exactly like they were when we first came here.

Behind me I see something most unusual by the cliff side. It is a giant skeleton of some four legged creature, its jaw is huge with massive leg bones half buried in the sand. I see extinct creatures on the beach such as a Dodos, a pteradon flying overhead, and a spitter hunting something in the distance.

“Oh oh,” I think as I see the Specimen Implant back in my left wrist. “When Dr. Sanders touched that alien alter back in that cave, I was teleported back to Ark, except, this Ark is Viking Bay, our dig site. Better get busy and craft some weapons and clothes, then go see if anyone else is here with me.”

I have just finished crafting a pick, hatchet, three spears, and some thatch clothes when a naked bald headed man goes running past me with a spitter hot on his tail. “Augh, I cant see,” Dr. Sanders yells in a panic as the spitter blinds him. I chase after it killing it with my spear.

“Dr. Sanders I presume,” I ask as I go help him back up on his feet.

“What kind of joke are you people playing on me?” he yells back in disgust. “How did I get back on the beach? Where are my clothes? What is this thing in my left wrist? What was that thing chasing me, one of your remote controlled toys?”

“Dr. Sanders!” I yell back at him. “Next time that I tell you not to touch something that is unfamiliar, Don’t Touch It!”

“You always thought that Mary and I were nuts when we talked about living among the extinct creatures of your research. Well, guess what? You are now walking with, or rather running away from them, for real. Welcome to the Ark. Come over here and take a look at what was chasing you.”

“Disgusting,” Dr. Sanders grumbles back. “That looks like one of those animated props from Jurassic Park.”

“If it was, could you do this to it,” I answer as I start to butcher the dilo for the meat and hide.

“My God, is that thing for real?” answers Dr Sanders in astonishment.

“To add insult to your mental injury, here are the glasses Dennis was wearing when that dilo in that movie killed him for its lunch.” I answer. “It was in his inventory.”

“Inventory? Just what are you talking about?”

“All creatures on Ark, including us, have something we can access with these Specimen Implants call an inventory,” I answer. “Like us, they can carry all kinds of things in them,”

“That trike we found in the dig you were calling Trixie, is it that it over there for real? Is that a parasaur grazing down the beach? What is that giant skeleton by the cliff?”

“Wait!” I tell Dr. Sanders as he starts to walk over there to investigate the find. “Leave it alone for now. It is much too dangerous in Ark to just go wandering around. There are predators here far more dangerous then that spitter that was chasing you. Lets get some clothes and weapons for you before we do anything else. Help me by gathering some thatch from those bushes. If you are hungry, you can eat the berries that you find but don’t eat any of the black or white ones. They will either knock you out or badly dehydrate you. Save the purple ones for taming the herbivores.”

“Taming? Are you nuts?” responds Dr. Sanders.

“Most every creature we will see here can be tamed,” I answer. “We did so on Thieves. I see nothing different from us being able to do so here.”

I show Dr. Sanders how the implant works for crafting items, for leveling up, and for selecting skills to aid in survival. “Isn’t that seawater in the bay?” Dr. Sanders questions as I go to get a drink from it.

“It’s fresh,” I tell him. “Just don’t wander too far out into it. There may be prehistoric sharks and other hungry predators out there waiting for an easy meal to wander by.”

I build a fire pit by a huge boulder that we can climb up on to get away from any danger and put wood in it to cook the raw meat. “Help me gather wood, thatch, and fiber so we can build a shelter up here for the night. Not only will it get cold after dark, there will be other, more dangerous, predators roaming out there once the sun sets.”

“Are those Compys staring at us?” ask Dr. Sanders as we are gathering stuff for our thatch hut.

“They are definitely not friendly,” I warn Dr. Sanders “Place your spear down low, go backwards, and pike them once they attack. Don’t let them swarm you. If your spear breaks, use another.” One broken spear and ten compys later, the threat is over.

We get a thatch hut built up on the boulder overlooking the bay. It is high enough so nothing can get up there without us seeing it come up the stone ramp. With the extra hide, I have crafted a sling shot and some bolas. I set Dr. Sanders to work crafting up a bunch of arrows for us to go with the new primitive bow we now have access to.

“There is another one of those spitter things,” warns Dr. Sanders as he readies his bow to shoot it.

“Don’t shoot it,” I order. “Let me show you something about the creatures on Ark.” Using my slingshot, I drop the dilo with two stones to the head. “Come over here and examine it.”

“What does this mean that you can tame it?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Just about every creature in Ark can be tamed for our use,” I answer. “I’m going to feed him some raw meat while he is knocked out until the taming bar is full. He will then become one of our tames we can use to carry stuff for us, or to act as a guard dog.” I show Dr. Sanders how the taming process, that is called a knockout tame, works.

“Is he safe?” ask Dr. Sanders when the dilo wakes up chirping happily.

“He is safe,” I answer. “You can come up here to examine him. He will probably enjoy all the attention.”

“That is a most amazing creature” Dr. Sanders answers after doing a complete examination of the dilo. “You gave him the name Fido, Does that mean that the Trike you were calling Trixie was actually one of your tames?”

“Yes she was,” I answer. “She was a loyal protective friend. She even had a saddle that I was able to craft for her. I want to wait until tomorrow before I attempt to tame a Trike. They are good berry harvesters. I just need tranc arrows to knock one out. Their head is just too hard for the slingshot. Besides, they, and their nearby friends, get really pissed off when you try to knock one out for taming. Before we go after any, we should get us some parasaurs for fast transport. They are easy to tame. I can immobilize one with the bola and knock it out for taming with the slingshot.”

“That’s amazing,” answers Dr. Sanders. “I wonder if the others are here with us?”

“Lets wait until tomorrow morning when we are better prepared to go looking for them,” I answer. “Joe and Mary will be all right. They have been through this before. I’m just worried about Professor Narcy and the Grad Students. None of them have ever been on Ark. I hope that they are able to find a place of safety until we can locate them. In the meantime, lets get some hunting done. I am going to need a lot more hide to craft saddles for the parasaurs we will need for our fast mounts.”

By nightfall, we have cleaned out every compy, dodos, and other small creatures nearby. We have more then enough meat and hide for our needs. I craft up leather clothes for the both of us, a spawn bed, and the Parasaur saddles as twilight approaches and place them in a storage box in our new hut.

I have Dr. Sanders knock out a female spitter he has spotted nearby and tame her. He finds the process most interesting.

Just before dark, we find several wood crate half buried in the sand on the beach. Breaking them open, they give us some crossbows, metal hatchets, pikes, some tranc arrows, a sword and shields. “That was a good find,” I tell Dr. Sanders. “It was three days on Thieves before we were able to craft metal tools and weapons. We are now better equipped for defending ourselves.”

I craft up the mortise and pestle and show Dr. Sanders how to make some Narcs. “What does that stuff do?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Unlike the narcoberries,” I answer, “narcs will not spoil. I may need them later for taming a higher level creature as it could wake up really pissed off at us before it is fully tamed. They are also essential for making tranc arrows, which are very effective for dropping a larger creature with the crossbow. Later, when we have access to gunpowder weapons, I can make tranc darts that are capable of stopping a T-Rex.”

“What! Those things actually live around here?” exclaims Dr. Sanders.

“Yes indeed,” I answer. “Hopefully, we won’t run into any until we are strong enough to deal with them. They are not called a Thunder Lizard for nothing.”

We retire for the night up on the rock in our thatch shelter. We bring the dilos inside. I level them up. “You mean that you can level them just like we can?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Like us, we can level them to strengthen their abilities to our advantage.” I answer. “We can make them stronger, tougher, and more capable of taking on anything that tries to attack them. A pack of them working together are fully capable of bringing down a Carno. Later, we can tame one if we so wish and use it as a mount or hunter for our needs.”

“Those can be tamed too?” questions Dr. Sanders.

“Yes, even a T-Rex,” I answer. “But, they require a lot of effort to knock them out especially a high level one, and, they can take days to tame. The one that attacked our base on Thieves took nine of us and over 50 tranc arrows to drop. It then took several minutes for us just to kill it with metal hatchets and a Marsupial Lion.”

“You tamed one of those too?” comments Dr. Sanders in astonishment.

“It was an opportunity literally given to us when we found one in a fight with giant scorpions. It killed them, then fell unconscious from being stung several times. It took me all day to tame it. Kitty was such a loyal tame.”

“Giant scorpions, marsupial lions, your story gets stranger all of the time,” answer Dr. Sanders.

“Given the history of this place, I would not be surprised if we actually see some wyverns,” I answer. “They are some of the most dangerous creature that we have ever found due to their being so intelligent. Yet, if treated with respect, they can become very loyal friend.”

“Now, I know you are nuts!” responds Dr. Sanders. “There are no such things.”

“You might want to ask those early vikings that lived here,” I answer. “They created those drawings on the cave wall. They carved their heads on the bowsprit of their long boats. We became friends with them on Thieves. You just cannot tame them unless you raise one from a stolen egg. But, then you would have every wild wyvern angry at you for doing so.”

“That is so nuts,” answers Dr. Sanders as he steps outside the hut. “What is that vertical blue beam of light in the western sky just over the ridge?”

“That is the location of the Blue Obelisk,” I answer. “There will likely be a green and red one somewhere out there. They float above a base plate containing an alter similar to the one that you placed your hand on in the cave. They are under the control of The Keepers, the creators of this Ark. When you activated the teleporter, we became part of their experiment to see how we are going to react to this environment and survive.”

"Who are those Keepers?" ask Dr. Sanders.

"They are the extra terrestrials that have created this place," I answer.

“Can’t we just go over there and access the terminal to get back?” ask Dr. Sanders. “I don’t like the idea of becoming a lab rat in a maze.”

“Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way,” I answer. “If we are deemed worthy, The Keepers will allow us to go back when they have completed their study of us. Otherwise, we could be stuck here forever.”
“Is that a fire burning over by the far shore?”

“I believe so,” I answer. “Hopefully, it is one of the others members of our group camping nearby.”

“Lets head over there and see who it is.”

No, I answer. “It’s far too dangerous to travel out there after dark. Lets get some rest for now. We can go check it out in the morning once we can tame some parasaurs for fast mounts.”

 

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 3, Finding the others.

 

With our Dilo guard dogs to warn us if anything dangerous came close by, we were able to get a good nights sleep. That, in spite of being awakened by the storm that rolled through followed by something screaming in agony way up on the ridge above the giant boneyard.

While I haven’t seen any in the area, I have kept a pair of torches lit all night to keep any Troodons away. Our wyvern friends on Thieves found them quite tasty, so we were rarely bother by them near our base. It may be a different story here. So long as they stay up high in their jungle home, we shouldn’t be bothered by them.

I prepare some tranc arrows for the new crossbow that I found in the crate along the beach. With those and the bolas, it should be easy to take down some low level Parasaurs to tame for our first transport.

Wearing our new leather armor, Dr. Sanders and I head down the beach to where a pair of Parasaurs have been grazing. Following my lead, we both wind up the bolas and snag them both in the legs immobilizing them. They struggle to get away as I hit each of them twice with tranc arrows to the back of the head. They are soon out cold. “Take care of this one,” I tell Dr. Sanders as I go check on the male. “If her torpor drops below 50%, let me know.”

With mejoberries on them, the taming goes quickly. We soon have a mate boosted pair that I name Perry and Patty. “Saddle up Patty and see what she can do,” I tell Dr. Sanders.

“How do I control her?” Dr. Sanders ask.

“Just pretend that you are riding on a horse,” I answer. “Guide her to the bushes and have her gather some berries. When she levels up, go for speed and stamina. Then, we can head around the bay to see who is over there. If you see any Pegomaxes getting curious about us, just hit it with a tranc arrow. Don’t hit any of the gulls fishing in the bay. They will get pissed off and grab your weapons from you.”

I whistle for our Dilos to follow as we leave our camp to travel to the other side of the bay. “Why didn’t we just build a raft to cross the bay?” ask Dr. Sanders. “I see it in the crafting list.”

“Look out in the bay,” I tell Dr. Sanders as a fish the size of a whale surfaces nearby. “That is a raft killer known as a Leed. I don’t know why, but they have a bad habit of attacking a raft on sight. Once we build one, we have to be careful where we sail so that we stay out of their agro range.”

About half away around the bay, we spot a pair of riders on horseback heading towards us. “It’s Joe and Mary,” I tell Dr. Sanders. “Where did you find the horses?” I ask them.

“They are living up on the slope in small herds,” Mary answers. “We found Rockarrots growing wild down by the pond. That made it easy for us to tame this pair. How is Dr. Sanders enjoying living with the dinosaurs?”

“He nearly became a Dennis when I first saw him running down the beach with a spitter chasing him.” I answer.

“That was not funny.” grumbles Dr. Sanders. “I have to admit that you three were right. This is an archaeologist dream in spite of its dangers.”

“Have you set up a base yet?” I ask Joe.

“No,” Joe answers. “With your parasaurs and our new horses, we will need to build a secure pen to protect them from the Allos we have seen high up on the slope. We have a large flat area with a pond and plenty of wood nearby to build the pen. There are large numbers of round boulders and metal bearing rock along the beach and cliff side.”

“Then it sounds like your location is best suited for a base and secure pen for out tames,” I answer. “We can get a Forge and Smithy going there. Dr. Sanders, take Mary back to our camp and bring back the spare metal tools and crossbows that we found in those wooden crates along the beach. We’re going to relocate our base to their campsite.”

Dr. Sanders and Mary head back to the thatch camp to retrieve the spare tools. Narcs are crafted up from the narcoberries the Parasaur and horse have collected, then, they head back to the pond site where Joe and I have started building a pen for our tames.

“We should build some watch towers in the corner,” I tell Joe “That way, we can safely fight back at anything that tries to break in after us or our tames.”

“Agreed,” answer Joe. “That pack of Allos hunting high on the ridge have been getting closer. Our horses, we had tamed, ran down here to get away from them. We will certainly need the long neck rifles if we have to deal with them. At least, we have those crossbows you found on the beach.”

“Here comes your wife and Dr. Sanders,” I answer. “They can help us get the pen built much quicker now.”

“Did you know that there is an old Viking castle up on top of the hill behind us?” Mary tells us.

“Yes,” I answer. “We could see it from our campsite. Once we get established with some long neck rifles, we should ride up there and check it out.”

We get our tames hidden behind the boulders along the beach as we quickly get to work on a wooden pen with watch towers in each of the four corners. That pack of Allos, hunting up on the ridge, have been getting closer to the beach, so, we need to get this done before they take an interest in us or our tames. It takes the better part of the morning to get the pen built to secure them from danger.

I take Dr. Sanders with me to go mine metal ore from the round boulders as Joe builds four Refining Forge and a house for our stay. Mary is gathering wood and other materials as she keeps an eye on the wandering Allos. She manages to tame two more horses for us when they came down from the ridge to get away from the Allo threat. That is good as we now each have a fast mount that has good weight carrying ability. We use the parasaurs for pack animals as we continue mining metal ore and crafting spark powder.

With the Allos getting ever closer to our new base, we decide to craft up a spike wall to surround our base with. We place a gate at each end and one for a dock where we will later craft up a raft. Joe and I do some hunting taking out the local spitters and compys for their hide. The spike wall has taken a lot of it for its construction. I hope that it will be enough to keep those Allos away from us.

With plenty of stone nearby, we start working on building a stone wall to reinforce the wooden one. The extra crafting is helping us get leveled up so we can obtain the long neck rifles that we will need for our protection. “Why don’t we craft up some pistols?” ask Dr. Sanders when he spots them on the crafting list.

“I found them to be nothing more then pea shooters from our last visit,” I answer. “I emptied an entire clip on a low level raptor before I was forced to use a pike to drop it. Besides, we need the metal and gunpowder for something with much better hitting power.”

It is late afternoon by the time we get started crafting the stone wall sections to place in front of the wooden one. We have worked the rest of the day gathering additional wood, stone, flint, metal ore, so we can craft up the rifles and enough ammo to defend against the Allo threat.

The Allos have made it into the valley as we secure ourselves in our base for the night. They find our base, patrolling the spike wall looking for a way in, but soon go chasing, a wild parasaur nearby. “They will be back,” Joe tells us “By morning we will be ready to deal with them.”

It is a most sleepless night as we watch the allos on patrol from the watchtower. Even though it gets dark out when the moon sets, we can see the orange glow from their alpha leader. “Why does it do that?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“It is a trait unique to Ark,” I answer. “The Alpha leader has that orange glow around it. Even the wyvern I became good friends with, who we called Red Alpha, had that same glow.”

“I still think that you’re nuts,” answers Dr Sanders. “There is no such thing as a wyvern.”

It remains a sleepless night as we start dozing off, then we are jarred awake by the sounds of something screaming in agony along with the combined roar of the Allos attacking it.

Joe spends the night tending the forge to refine all the metal ore we have collected for them. By morning, he has crafted four long neck rifles and 40 rounds of ammo for each.

We are startled by a terrible crash along with a scream of pain. “The Allos have penetrated the spiked fence.” warns Mary who has been on watch.

“Up to the watch towers,” I order. “I hope that you know how to use a bolt action rifle,” I tell Dr. Sanders as I hand him a rifle with ammo.

“I have gone hunting with one before,” growls Dr. Sanders.

“Shoot that wounded one in the head,” orders Joe. “When it drops, go for the second low level. Then, take out the alpha leader.

The wounded allo is dropped in the first salvo as we switch to the second that charges our stone wall slamming into it. It holds as we hit it with two more salvos before it drops. “Take out the Alpha,” I order as we start hitting it with salvo after salvo. Badly wounded, the alpha starts to run off.

“Halsey, grab a horse and lets go after it before it gets away,” orders Joe. “Mary, shut the gate behind us.”

We both scramble down the ladder grabbing the nearest Equus and take off flying out the gate. They both jump over the flattened spike fence in hot pursuit of the fleeing Allo. Seeing us in pursuit, it turns to attack. Jumping off our panicking mounts, we take cover and fire at the charging Allo. Our second salvo drops it as it goes chasing the fleeing Equus that are racing back to the safety of the pen.

“Metal armor, a crossbow, two swords, a long neck rifle, This Alpha had a lot of loot on him.” Joe comments. We find more stuff on the other two as we butcher them for their meat and hide.

We head back to calm down our mounts as Mary gets the cooking fires going to cook up the prime. “Where can we find some oil for the preserving bin so we can convert the cooked meat into jerky?” Mary ask.

“Lets get a raft built and see if there are some oil nodes in the bay,” I answer. “Joe, can we make harpoon guns yet?”

“We should be there once we craft up a raft,” Joe answers.

“Lets get one built, then get those harpoon guns before we go sailing out in the bay,”

“Didn’t you guys have trouble using them on that Leed that attacked you in Thieves?” ask Mary.

“That one was a high level Alpha,” I answer. “The one out there should go down with a couple of shots to the head.”

We proceed to gather the wood for the raft. When it has been crafted and launched, Joe is able to go craft up a pair of harpoon guns. Dr. Sanders and I prep up the raft for launch. We add crates to the front, place a spawn bed on one corner, add a mortise and pestle, a fire pit on the back corner, and a pair of torches at the rear. That is the standard build I used for the game.

With a pair of harpoon guns and a dozen darts each, we head out on the raft to a spot that we can see some wreckage in the middle of the bay. We find the Leed down at the mouth of the bay. Mary will keep an eye on it while we go diving.

“How are your swimming skills?” Joe ask Dr. Sanders.

“I’m in the pool most every morning,” answers Dr. Sanders who appears to have been insulted by the question.

“Whatever you do down below, watch your oxygen indicator and your stamina.” I answer. “If it gets low, head for the raft or you could drown. Keep an eye out for anything large below. Don’t touch anything down there. There may be dangerous creatures down there that we have not seen before. We are looking for oil seeps. They can be seen by the black goo that leaks from them. Keep an eye on us. If either one of us motions you back to the surface, swim for the raft.” With the raft tied up at the rock with the wreckage on it, the three of us dive overboard to go looking for oil.

What a sight to behold as we spot the sunken wreak of a Viking Longboat. Dr. Sanders takes an imminent interest in it. So does something else that neither of us has seen before.

As Dr. Sanders sets foot on the deck of the Viking Longboat, he is ambushed from behind by a creature that looks like a giant shrimp. He is imminently in trouble as we respond by hitting it with a harpoon dart. Three more show us forcing us to dart them as well. We go to Dr. Sanders aid finding him unconscious with zero stamina. The both of us are needed to bring him back to the raft.

“Help us get him back onto the raft,” I tell Mary. “He was stung by something I have never seen before in the water.”

“His torpor has gone through the roof,” warns Mary as she examines him. “Just what did you see down there?”

“He was ambushed from behind by something that looked like a cross between a scorpion and a shrimp.” I answer. “It was about as big as us and was moving quite fast for a creature that was just walking on the sea floor. It stung Dr. Sanders in the back when it attack. He was unconscious in seconds.

That sounds like we have Eurypterid down there,” answers Mary. “They are bottom dwellers that travel in packs and are extremely dangerous to us and anything else our size swimming below. Bring one of the dead ones up so I can examine it. Harvest the others. They may have oil on them.”

We jump back down soon finding the four Eurypterid that has attacked cutting up three of them, then bringing up the fourth to the raft. Fortunately, we are able to recover the expensive darts from the carcasses so the can be reused later.

“You will not believe what we found on them,” Joe tells Mary as we bring one back to the raft. “Not only did we get oil, we got black and white pearls.”

“That is a good find,” answers Mary. “Black pearls are very rare.”

“Ohhhh, what happened,” moans Dr. Sanders as he starts coming to.

“You were bushwhacked by a Eurypterid,” I tell Dr. Sanders. “This is the first time we have ever seen them on Ark.”

“You were lucky that Joe and Halsey saw it attacking you,” answers Mary. “Otherwise, you would be waking up naked in a spawn bed.”

“These guys can quickly knock you out with their poisonous sting. If you are not eaten by them, by the time you wake up, you will have drowned. I had the guys bring one up so you can examine it,”

“What an ugly thing that is,” responds Dr. Sanders as he looks at it. “How did they manage to kill it.”

“We used the harpoon gun,” I answer. “They are one of the few creatures here that cannot be tranc or tamed.”

“We got what we had came here for,” answers Joe. “Lets head back to the base so you can recover from your mishap. We can come back later to explore the wreak once we are able to craft up some scuba gear.”

“While you are resting, Halsey and I are going to go riding along the beach to see if we can find any signs of Professor Narcy and the grad students.”

 

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 4. Tod and Sarah.

 

“What just happened,” Sarah says in a panic as she wakes up lying on a sunny tropical beach facing up into the sky. “Eek! Where are my clothes?”

Nearby, Tod has just regained conscious and is now scrambling to find something to cover up his nakedness. “Here, use this palm leaf,” he tells a shocked Sarah.

“What just happened to us and how did we get here?” she ask Tod.

“The last thing I remember was Halsey screaming at Dr. Sanders to not touch something that had a glowing blue light shining on it. When he put his hand in that light, everything just went blank.”

“One fact is for certain, we are no longer in Norway. Not on this tropical beach with that jungle nearby.”

“What is that floating in the sky?” Sarah ask in alarm as she points to a huge floating blue object floating in the sky above them.

“Oh! My! God!” Tod says in alarm as he see the object embedded in his and Sarah’s left wrist. “We are actually on Ark.”

“I always though that Ark was some video game that my little brother was hooked on with his Playstation.”

“I always did too when I was playing it on my gaming PC back in the dorm,” answers Tod.

“Oh Crap! If this place is like that game for real, we are in extreme danger.”

“What do you mean” ask Sarah in concern.

“This place is going to contain prehistoric creatures, some of which would love to have us as their next meal. Forget about using that fig leaf as a dress for now, help me get some stone, wood and fiber. We need to make a stone pick for each of us, get some flint from that boulder over there, then make a hatchet and some spears to defend ourselves with.”

A pick is crafted in short order as both Tod and Sarah are adjusting to the facts that the strange reality they now find themselves in is not a video game. A level up gives them the hatchet, spears, and some basic clothes. “I’ll concentrate on making us weapons while you craft up some clothes” Tod tells Sarah.

“Where do I find some fiber?” ask Sarah.

“We can gather it from the bushes,” answers Tod. “Just be aware of the berry types if you are hungry and want to eat any of them. Just don’t eat any of the black or white ones. Place the purple ones in your hot slot 0.”

“Oh, oh,” warns Tod as they hear a shriek nearby. “Grab your spear, we got spitters in our area.”

“Eek, it looks nasty.” warns Sarah.

“Jump to the side! It hood is flaring, It’s going to spit at you.” Sarah jumps sideways just as the green spit goes flying by. “Spear it!” Tod orders.

“But, I don’t want to kill it!”

“Kill it before it kills you! I got my hands full with this other one.”

“Ow! That thing bit me in the leg. Take that you nasty creature. Oh crap, it broke my spear.”

“Use your hatchet and hack it to death.”

“Get away from me you nasty creature!” screams Sarah as she hacks the attacking spitter in the head. It hits the ground dead, then vanishes after several more wacks to make sure that she has killed it.

“What just happened?” asks a visibility shaken and upset Sarah.

“Check your inventory by looking into the Specimen Implant on your arm,” Tod tells her.

“Oh, that is just like my Brother’s game. I forgot about harvesting using a hatchet. I got 12 raw meat and 22 hide on me from that nasty thing.”

“Lets go over by the water and clean up that wound,” Tod tells Sarah.

“Isn’t that salt water?” ask Sarah. “That will sting like heck.”

“It’s fresh,” answers Tod.

“I could have sworn that thing took a chunk out of my leg, yet it is nearly all healed.”

“That’s one of the strange things about this place,” answers Tod. “We heal up quickly here when injured. Still, it is possible to be killed on Ark, so we need to be careful. Lets build a fire to cook up the raw meat for food. You can use some of this leather to make us some gloves and boots.”

“That is so amazing how I can just make something by just using the implant.” remarks Sarah.

“Good, lets start building some shelter now,” Tod answers. “I got the walls, foundation, and storage box engram, you learn the door, doorway and ceiling ones. Start picking bushes for fiber, Place the narco, stimm, and mejo berries in the storage box. Put any extra stone and flint in there as well. We will need that stuff later. I’ll gather the wood and thatch for our shelter.”

With their combined effort, a three by three by two thatch hut is crafted in no time.

“Maybe, it will not be so bad here after all,” answers Sarah as they look at their new thatch shelter.

“It will do for now until we can craft something stronger,” answers Tod. “There are creatures here that can rip this shelter to shreds in no time. As soon as we can, we will reinforce it with wood and stone before it gets dark.”

“I wonder if the others are here with us?” ask Sarah.

“When we are strong enough, we can go looking for them,” answer Tod. “Lets take a break for now and go inspect that Blue Obelisk. It looks like it is safe over by it.”

“Oh, the Dodo Birds are so cute.”

“Don’t get too attached to them,” warns Tod. “We may need to kill some of them for hide. If you find any of their eggs laying around on the beach, you can pick them up for the storage box. Don’t pick up any other eggs, the mother will attack you if it is nearby.”

“Oh, I see what you mean,” answers Sarah. “Is that really a Trike grazing over there?”

“It is,” answers Tod. “So long as you don’t harm any herbivores on Ark, most of them won’t bother you.”

“Place tribute inside to access,” says Sarah as she examines the alter of the Blue Obelisk. “Looks like Dr. Sanders can’t mess this one up.”

“Good thing,” Tod answers. “We are in a big enough mess as it is.”

“Did you place some crate along the beach?” ask Sarah.

“No, I didn’t.” answers Tod. “Lets go check them out. They may belong to one of the others.”

“There is no lid on them.” says Sarah.

“Interesting,” answers Tod. “They don’t look like any of my crafted crates. I wonder if I can break them open to see what is inside.”

Using his hatchet, Tod is able to break open the sealed crates, some of which are floating in the water.

“That is a good find." he tells Sarah. "Take these new weapons. We each have a crossbow with some arrows, a metal pike, a sword, and a metal hatchet. There are also primitive bows and spears as well. I’ll put those spears, primitive bow, and extra items away in the storage box. The pike and crossbow are much better weapons, so, lets use them. I’ll keep the flint. We will need that to make more arrows as soon as we have learned the engram for them.”

“Oh, you are such a cute little thing. Ouch! You bit my ankle.”

“Pike to the ground and go backwards so they don’t swarm you,” Orders Tod, “Those are what attacked that little girl in the Jurassic Park movie. It will have a bunch of its carnivorous friends with him.”

A dozen compys soon bite the dust. “Gee, does everything here want to take a bite out of you?”

“Only the carnivores,” Tod answers. “Looks like we have plenty of meat and hide for now.”

Tod crafts up some Bolas as Sarah gets a mortise and pestle prepared. A slingshot is made up as well. “We can use these to immobilize any raptors that try to get us or to tame some parasaurs.”

“Hey, you little thief.” yells Sarah. “Now what? Tod, What is this thing? It wants to be friends. But, it looks so ugly.”

“Looks like you got your first tame,” answers Tod “I bet that your mejoberries are now missing. That little thief is known as a Pegomax. It’s a herbivore. They like Mejoberries. She can keep guard for any danger while we get to work reinforcing our hut for the night.”

The hut has been reinforced with wood and stone as night approaches. A Refining Forge has been built and stocked with metal ore from the round stones and the metal bearing rock nearby. Tranc arrows are soon available and added to their weapons stock as Sarah is able to craft up the narcs for them. Torches have been lit for the night as both for signaling and to ward off any predators.

“It really is quite pretty here,” Sarah tells Tod as they sit by the fire pit, which wards off the chill of the night. “So peaceful with the light of the Blue Obelisk pushing away the darkness surrounding us.”

A scream in the distance of something in agony shatters the calm of the moment as all the sounds of the night suddenly come to a stop. The pegomax hugs Sarah for comfort.  "What's going on?" ask Sarah with concern.

“That is Ark reminding us that not all is peaceful around here after dark,” Tod answers as the natural sounds of the night slowly return. “Time that we should turn in for the night. Bring your tame inside with us. She will act as a watch dog should something dangerous show up while we are sleeping.”

 

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 5. The search continues.

 

As Dr. Sanders is ordered to recover from his ordeal from the dive on the Viking Long Boat, Joe and I saddle up a pair of Equuis to ride down the beach to look for the others. We go armed with both the crossbows with tranc arrows and the Long Neck Rifle. With our fast mounts, we should be able to deal with any danger we find along the beach and out run anything that we cannot handle.

“It looks like we can head West for quite a ways towards the Blue Obelisk,” I tell Joe. “I could see a cliff coming down to the sea heading East. We may have to sail a raft in that direction.”

“West it is to the Blue Obelisk,” answers Joe.

We head out around the bay crossing the stream with the skeleton laying in it. “That skeleton by the cliff, it’s huge,” Joe tells me. “Was Dr Sanders able to identify it?”

“No,” I answers. “He has no idea what it is. It appears to have carno teeth and it is way bigger then any known fossils ever found. My guess is that it is not from our world but from some other alien world that The Keepers have visited.”

We continue on past the thatch camp and on to the mouth of the bay. Wild parasaurs, Trikes, and other smaller creatures are abundant along the shore here. So are the spitters and compys, but, they keep their distance from us given that our rides can pack quite a wallop with their kick or stomp. We also have our long neck rifles handy and can shoot them from our mounts if needed.

“We’re out of beach,” reports Joe as we round some higher ground.

“I rather not swim these guys in any deep water,” I answer. “They are no match if we run into any sharks or Mantas.”

“I hate to have to travel any distance inland, especially in this jungle area,” answers Joe.

“I do too,” I respond. “It could get nasty real fast in there. Lets stay as close to the shore as we can. Oh drat, we need to cross this gorge.”

“I see a possible crossing spot a short ways inland,” answers Joe. “Lets go for it.”

A steep path goes down to a place where we can safely cross. “Raptor,” warns Joe. We quickly drop it with the long neck.

Heading back to the safer beach, we come across an unusual rock formation. “Really strange,” I comment. “It looks like a house with a window in the ceiling.”

“I see more of those wood crates you and Dr Sanders found,” reports Joe. “Lets leave them for now. We can come back on the raft to recover them.”

Heading over another hill, we come back to the beach area where there are a bunch of connecting islands that head out to the Blue Obelisk. “They look clear,” reports Joe. “Lets wade across to them.”

The going is pretty easy as we canter along the beach islands, jumping across logs and dodging the boulders. We just run across one spitter that pushes his luck earning a kick to the head that sends him flying into a boulder killing it. Otherwise, the ride remains quiet.

“I see a wood and stone hut up ahead,” reports Joe. “Lets check it out.” Inspecting the site, we find the name Tod and Sarah attached to the structures, but, they are nowhere around.

“Looks like they have survived quite well,” I report back to Joe. “They found metal weapons and have the forge going refining more metal for the long neck rifles. They have the engram for one in the Smithy. They must be out hunting or looking for us. I’ll leave a note that we were here in case they come back before we do. Lets see how much further we can head down the beach.”

Continuing on we soon run into a dead end as the beach ends by a steep cliff. “That’s as far as we can go before we are forced to climb up into those jungle mountains,” says Joe.

“Here comes a pair of raptors with a pack of Hyaenodon close by,” I warn. “Wait, they are tames. The raptors are being ridden.”

“Tod, Sarah, how did you manage to tame raptors and Hyaenodon let alone survive on the Ark?”

“I’ve played the video game before,” Tod answers. “So far, everything that we have seen and done has been like that game, only its for real.”

“We bola the raptors and did the conventional knockout tame on them when they came after us as we went looking for crystal. We found some up near some ruins in the jungle.

“We found these four Hyaenodon up near where we found crystal. We had to tranc two of them so they wouldn’t attack us. Strangely, all we had to do was pet the other two to tame them. When the tranc ones woke up, we just petted them until they became tame. We are using them to pack supplies, but they work great together killing those nasty troodons that live up there.”

“Where did you find the horses?”

“They run wild on the slopes on the East side of Viking Bay,” answers Joe. “They were easy to tame with rockarrots we found growing by a pond.”

“Vikings Bay? You mean we are still near the dig site?” ask Tod in surprise.

“Yes,” I answer. “It is the dig site for sure, yet strangely different. It is as if we were sent back to the past just after the Vikings had abandoned it,”

“Follow us back to our base on the east shore. Mary and Dr. Sanders are back there. We have plenty of room in our secured pen for your tames. We can come back later with a raft to get your spare items. We also found more crates along the shore we need to check out for good items.”

“Has anyone seen Professor Narcy, Cleo or Ahab?”

“No,” Tod answers. “We were going to go look for them and you once we got back to our camp to unload the crystal and craft spotting scopes.”

“Lets head back to your camp, get those spotting scopes crafted, if you have enough, craft a scope for the long neck rifle, and head back to our base before nightfall.”

Riding back along the shore, we spot two more Hyaenodon hunting Dodos. They spot our pack and come running over. “Two more easy tames,” Sara says as she orders the pack to stand down. It is fascinating to see how those two wild ones respond to being petted until they become tamed and are accepted into the pack.

“Having six of them has made this pack even stronger,” Sarah tells me. “With their combined strength and quick healing ability, they are capable of taking on a Carno with ease.”

As we ride back along the shore, reaching the West side of Vikings Bay and the location of my overnight camp, I see one of our tame Equuis come running towards us with a pair of wild raptors chasing it. “What’s going on?” I think. “Did something attack our base and breach the stone wall?”

Instinctively, I grab the long neck with the new scope and take a bead on the lead raptors head. I drop it with the first shot as Sarah turns the Hyaenodons loose after the other. Attacking it, they rip it to pieces.

“Wow! I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that,” comments Joe.

The loose Equuis promptly seeks the assurance of our protection as I check her for any injuries. Sarah calls the pack back as she dismounts petting every one of them and praising them for a job well done.

“What was Cindy doing out here alone?” ask Joe.

“I don’t know,” I answer. “We better get back to the base and find out what happened there.”

Racing back at a gallop with the tamed raptors and Hyaenodon pack close by, we round the bay finding our base intact. Mary is in a panic as we open the gate to return. “What happened?” I ask.

“Dr. Sanders decided that he wanted to go find the cave of the alter,” answers Mary. “Before I knew it, he had taken Cindy and disappeared.”

“We found Cindy with a pair of raptors after her on the West Shore. There was no sign of Dr. Sanders.”

“You better go find him before it gets dark.”

“How do we track where he has gone?” ask Joe.

“Maybe my Alpha Hyaenodon can help,” answers Sarah. “Find me something personal of his.”

“Will the bed he was resting in work?” ask Mary.

“Most certainly,” answers Sarah. Bringing the alpha into to our hut, Sarah shows her the bed Dr. Sanders had been resting in. The alpha Hyaenodon lets out a laughing howl, then runs over to the gate. “She’s got his scent. Lets go follow them.”

We all bolt out the gate on our rides as we follow the Hyaenodon pack in hot pursuit of the scent. The trail leads us back around the bay, then up a path into some very dense jungle in a canyon. Vines cross both sides along with a spine of some huge creature forming bridges above. We continue on until there is a pile of rocks where we can see a cave entrance above. The Hyaenodon are climbing up the rock pile to the cave entrance. “He must be in there,” says Mary.

“We can’t get our mounts up there,” I answer. “Someone will have to stay here to protect them.”

“I’ll stay,” says Tod.

“Here, take the long neck rifle with the scope and the ammo. You should be able to stop most anything with a head shot.” I continue on with the others as we climb up the loose pile of rocks to the cave entrance high above.

“Agggggh,” we hear Dr. Sanders complaining as he is getting a face washing from the Hyaenodon that have found him hiding in a corner of the cave. “Good girl,” Sarah tells the alpha as she pets her.

“Don’t you ever take off like that again,” scolds Mary. “You could have been killed. You nearly got Cindy killed by raptors.”

“But, but.”

“I don’t want to hear it,” scolds Mary. “Now, what were you looking for that was so important? Was it worth the risk you placed all of us in?”

“There are the same cave drawings on the wall as I saw before,” answers Dr. Sanders. “I just cannot find the tunnel leading to the temple.”

“That may be because it doesn’t exist,” I answer. “The outside location of this cave doesn’t even come close to the one we entered when we got teleported here. You were lucky that Joe and I found Tod and Sarah with her Hyaenodon pack. We would have never been able to find you without their help. Now, lets get out of here and back to the base. I don’t want to be stuck in this jungle after dark.”

Suddenly, I hear a rifle shot, then another. The Hyaenodon go flying past us as we scramble outside into the twilight to see what is going on. They attack the Rex as Joe gets his long neck out to help Tod deal with this new threat. Two more shots and the Rex is down with our raptors clawing on its side.

“This is why you don’t want to be out here after dark,” I yell at Dr. Sanders.

After checking our tames for any injuries, we butcher the Rex. We find the Rex has a pike and long neck rifle on it.

As we head down the path with our torches lit in the evening gloom. I see several pairs of glowing eyes up ahead. “Damn, there are Troodons in our way.” Before I can finish with the warning, Sarah’s Hyaenodon pack attacks and rips them to pieces.

“They appear to be immune to their poisonous bite,” Sarah announces after a quick examination.

“That’s good to know,” Mary answers back.

We reach the West shore as darkness approaches making the trip around the bay to the base with no further problems.

“Oh, oh,” warns Mary as we approach the South gate. “We left the gate open.”

“Where are our Parasaurs?” I ask.

“Here they are in the corner,” announces Joe. “Oh, we got a Phenoma in here with them.”

“Chase it out,” I answer. “It’s nothing more then a predator magnet.” Slapping it on the rump, it goes running back out the open gate.

Closing the gate, we get settled down for the night as Tod and Sarah tell us about their adventure of the first few days.

Hopefully, Dr. Sanders has learned a lesson about taking off on his own thinking that he knows better. But, I doubt it. I just hope that he doesn’t get one of us killed trying to protect or find him.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 6. Searching and Researching at Viking Bay.

 

It is early morning as Tod and I prepare to take the raft to his camp so we can pick up the extra metal and other supplies there. We plan on stopping on the way back to raid the crates on the shore for their content, then sail through the Stony Islands to see what lies in that direction. We have the harpoon guns in case the Leed in the bay becomes an issue.

Dr. Sanders want to examine the giant skeletons near the dig site. He, Joe, Mary and Sarah will take the horses on that trip. With Sarah’s Hyaenodon pack, I will not have to worry about them being attacked by the predators in the area.

With the entire front of the raft packed with small storage crates, Tod and I set off to his camp at the Blue Obelisk. Dr. Sander’s expedition heads the other way around the bay to the giant skeleton site.

“Where is that Leed?” Tod ask me.

“It was near the mouth of the bay the other day,” I answer. “Oh, it is at the wreak site.”

“Wreak site?” ask Tod.

“We found a Viking Long Boat down there,” I answer. “We never had a chance to explore it because Dr. Sanders was ambushed by a Eurypterid. We had to bring him back to the raft after we killed three others with the harpoon gun. We may go back down there once we have the ability to craft scuba gear. There looks to be an underwater cave down there as well.”

We round the rock formation at the entrance of the bay, then spotting the Building rock formation, we decide to stop to loot the crates. “Well, we have more crossbows, metal hatchets, swords, and pikes in case Professor Narcy, Ahab, and Cleo need them.” I answer.

Author note, those loot crates are near Viking Bay Spawn Point One, not near the house shaped rock formation which is Jungle Spawn Point One.

Reaching the camp, I help Tod, craft up two Long Neck Rifles with ammo, transfer them and the leftover refined metal to the raft, and leave a Go Box with basic supplies by the spawn bed before we lock up the hut to keep any predators out. The Go Box supplies. A metal pick, hatchet, pike, crossbow with 50 arrows, and a leather outfit. Arrows are so easy to make with flint, thatch and fiber being so easily obtainable.

“Looks like we still have plenty of time to sail to the Stony Islands,” I tell Tod. “We can reach them by noon.”

The Stony isles are a series of steep rocky pillars rising several hundred feet into the air. Many of them have small sandy beaches filled with driftwood and Pelegorsis nest. The cliff side of the mainland comes to the water in places. There are terrace steps in it where one can find a slope path to head up to the mesa high above. A quick survey with the spotting scope finds sabers cats hunting along them for herbivores that live in the narrow path. They, and the towering pillars are studded with metal ore rocks. “Too bad most of those are out of our reach,” I tell Tod.

“I see pearls below,” Tod tells me as we sail into the weedy shallow.

“Lets grab some, but watch out for sharks and mantas.” We get a couple of quick stacks and place them in storage. The sharks and mantas seem to be elsewhere in the shallows.

Sailing a bit further east, We can hear a deep rumbling sound with explosions that sound like artillery going off. “Something is going on up ahead,” I tell Tod. Then, I spot something on the beach and pull the raft in to investigate. “There is obsidian rock here.” This is a rare find since obsidian is usually found high up on a rugged mountain peak or deep in a dangerous cave. We quickly get several hundred pounds of this rare material and place it in a crate on the raft.

Rounding the point on the cliff side as the stony isles end, we come upon a sight to behold and the source of the rumbling and explosions. “An active volcano,” I say to Tod.

We stop the raft to watch the show for a moment.

Just pass the terrace cliffs is a smoking valley with the volcano beyond. We see geysers spewing steam high into the air. There is dead and charred vegetation everywhere in the mushroom shaped dark rock studded terrain.

We watch the volcano itself with and without the spotting scope. Lava is pouring down its slopes like rivers with glowing orange waterfalls. Many of them terminate at the sea in huge clouds of steam. “Wow, the wildlife living there is nasty,” I comment as I observe giant scorpions, titanboas, and giant centipedes scurrying about. I also see several wyverns in the distance including a silver white one of a type I haven’t seen before.

I watch a lava bomb get launched from the crater high above. It sails out in a huge arc and comes down close by with a splat causing it to form a mushroom shaped boulder on the shore. Others either explode in mid air or as soon as they hit the ground.

Even though we appear to be a safe distance away, I decide that we should turn around. Why take a chance that one of those bombs are going to travel further then we have seen them. After all, there is evidence of them having landed in the eastern edge of the Stony Isle, the Obsidian being one of the byproducts of such volcanic activity.

“It’s safe to say that our missing threesome is definitely not living over in that area,” I tell Tod as a small piece of rock splashes in the water to the side of us making a loud hissing then bubbling sound. “Time to leave.” as I turn the raft around picking the shortest course back to our base camp.

We stop at the far West end of the Stony Isles gathering driftwood and metal before returning to the dock at our base in Viking Bay.

At the Sander’s expedition, the foursome is setting up camp in preparation to go explore the area. The trip around the bay has gone smoothly with only a group of compys quickly becoming Hyaenodon chow.

“Why do we need to build a double wall corral for the horses?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Have you forgotten about the T-Rex that threatened them when we had to go look for you?” answers Mary in disgust.

“I suppose you’re right,” Dr. Sanders answers. With an abundant supply of wood, thatch and fiber in the area, it doesn’t take long to build the pen complete with a feeding tray and storage for anything of interest that may be found.

With a Hyaenodon escort, the foursome hike over to the huge skeleton by the cliff. “Any idea what that thing is?” Mary ask Dr Sanders.

“A giant Rex head with the teeth, a body like a titanasaur, way too big to be either. That leg bone half buried in the sand that is as big as a diesel locomotive. I have no idea what this giant is.”

“There is one possible answer,” says Sarah. “It may not be from our world.”

“Given that we saw morellotops, thorny dragons and giant death worms on Thieves, none of which ever existed on Earth, I would have to agree with Sarah,” answers Joe.

“Could it be a dragon? They are suppose to be much larger then the wyvern we made friends with.”

“No,” answers Mary. “There is no evidence of any wing bones anywhere. Even they, according to the Viking lore, were nowhere near that large.”

“Just what is holding this thing together?” ask Dr sanders as he walks over to touch one of the rib bones. “I don’t see anything tying the backbone pieces together. That huge jaw looks like it is suspended in midair.”

“Could it be the same mysterious gravity forces that we experienced on Thieves that formed those floating islands?” ask Mary.

As Dr. Sanders places his hand on a rib of the giant skeleton, the ground starts shaking. We are instantly engulfed in a huge cloud of dust as the Hyaenodon scatter towards the beach.

When the dust finally clears, we find Dr. Sanders with his hand still on the only bone left standing. The unsupported skeleton has collapsed into a giant heap of shattered bones. It falls over when he removes his hand from the still standing rib in astonishment. No one says a word.

Looking around to see where the Hyaenodon went, Sarah ask, “Is there a fire at the castle.” We see billowing clouds of dark smoke rising high into the sky far beyond with what looks like sparks shooting into the air. The air and ground vibrates from the low rumble in the distance.

“There must be a volcano way past the castle that has just erupted,” comments Joe. “It’s a good thing we were not standing under that skeleton when the ground started shaking.”

“We better be careful exploring around here so close to the cliff side,” warns Mary. “We could have aftershocks that could cause a landslide or send some of those rock formations crashing down on us.”

“What’s next?” ask Sarah.

“Lets check out why there are those convenient land bridges heading up to those rock shelves,” answers Mary.

Sarah and Mary head up the logs creating the bridges as Dr. Sanders and Joe follow behind. The Hyaenodon follow single file across the log behind Sarah. “There is crystal up here,” Mary tells the others after she has cross the second log over the stream.

“Augh, I don’t like this!” complains Dr. Sanders as he starts crossing the second log.

“You should have stayed on solid footing,” Joe tells him.

“Auuuu,” Splash! And, Dr. Sanders is in the stream below.

“Are you all right?” Joe ask as he dives in after him.

“I’m all right,” Dr. Sanders answers in disgust. “Is that a cave behind the waterfalls?”

“Indeed it looks like it,” answers Joe. “Mary, we are going to check it out.”

“Be careful,” answers Mary. “That one on Thieves was loaded with traps.”

“I’ll watch for them,” answers Joe.

“We’ll join you as soon as we get this crystal in storage.”

Back across the bay;

After unloading the raft, Tod and I decide to sail across the bay to check out how the Dr. Sanders expedition is getting along. “Where is that Leed?” I ask Tod.

“It’s still in the South end of the bay,” answers Tod.

“Good, we can sail across to the mouth of the stream by the skeletons.”

We find that a wooden pen has been built for the horses among with some storage bins, but, no one else is around.

“Where’s that giant skeleton?” I ask. Then’ I realize that it has collapsed into a giant heap of rubble. “We better get over there and see what happened.”

Running over there, we see that the bones are all piled on each other, but there are no signs that anyone was hurt. “That’s a relief,” I think.

We can see the cloud of smoke and the sparks flying from the volcano way beyond the old castle. Then, the Hyaenodon find us and lead us to the waterfall where they sit waiting patiently.

Joe, Mary, Dr. Sanders and Sarah emerged from behind the waterfalls where they are greeted by the Hyaenodon pack. “Find anything interesting in there?” I ask.

“There is a nice big room back in there.” answers Mary. “Other then a Bronto skeleton stuck in the ceiling, it is just a large chamber with nothing of interest.”

“What happened to that giant skeleton out there?”

“Would you believe that it fell apart when Dr. Sanders touched it?”

“That had to be incredibly embarrassing given how careful he is with the fossils,” I answer.

“It was a coincidence,” answers Joe. “When he touched it, the ground started shaking. I suspect that the volcano past the castle was the cause. There wasn’t much holding it together. Anyhow, no one was hurt.”

“That is certainly good news,” I answer. “Any idea what that thing was?”

“I hate to admit it, but Sarah likely has the correct answer,” Dr. Sanders responds. “It is not from our world.”

“How was your trip on the raft?” ask Mary.

“We found more good stuff in the crates down near that strange rock formation,” I answer. “At Tod’s camp, we picked up their spare supplies after crafting more long neck rifle. Then we set sail to the Stony Isles to see if we could find Professor Narcy and his grad students.”

“On one of those islands, we found pearls and obsidian. There is tons of driftwood and metal ore along the beach. The mainland is a steep cliff with what looks like slope terraces that one could climb to reach the mesa above. One would have to watch out for saber cats.”

“The volcanic eruption forced us to turn around when it started raining lave bombs close by. I saw one huge boulder form a mushroom when it went splat on the shore. The slope had rivers of lava pouring down to the sea.”

“I don’t know how but there were titanboas, scorpions, and giant centipedes living on the slopes between the flowing lava.”

“The valley separating the volcano from the mesa was alive with steam vents.”

“There are wyverns living near the volcano. I saw what looked like an albino lightning flying in the distance through the spotting scope.”

“We found no signs of the others in that area.”

“As soon as we can, I would like to take the raft for an extended trip past the volcano to see if they are somewhere in the highlands beyond.”

“We better head back to base soon before it gets dark,” answers Joe. “Halsey, take the crystal with you. We’ll meet you back at the dock.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 7. Lightning, or Ice.

 

It’s early morning as Tod and I prepare the raft for an extended cruise East to sail past the volcano towards the Red Obelisk to look for the others. Dr. Sanders and Mary plan to make the trip up to the castle to check it out. Sarah’s Hyaenodon pack has grown to eight with the addition of two more individuals that showed up during their ride back to the base. They are now a force with to fear for any predator that may threaten them.

We now have a problem with the Leed in Viking Bay. It has parked itself just offshore of our raft. “How are we suppose to get by it this time?” ask Tod.

“We get everyone armed with the Long Necks and shoot it,” I answer.

Everyone comes down to the dock as the Leed beaches itself trying to get at the raft which we have pulled ashore. It ends up with several salvos to the head which finally kills it. We, the raptors, and the Hyaenodon pack have a fish feast. A bunch of prime gets harvested, cooked, and into the preserving bin as the resident sharks move in to clean up the rest. An hour later, with the bones picked clean and stacks of cooked prime fish, we are able to launch the raft and start our journey.

“Looks like The Keepers are smiling at us today,” I comment as we sail past the Stony Isles. The volcano now lies dormant as vapors of steam gently rise from the hot springs in the valley. Still, we have to strip to thatch clothes as it gets quite hot during this stretch of sailing. We find many areas where the water is still boiling from the cooling lava below near the shore.

“What is that awful smell?” Tod ask as we get past the lava fields and mushroom rocks. We soon find out when we see several rotting dead whales that beached themselves when they tried to escape the scalding water.

“Lets get upwind of that before we land,” I answer.

Finding a place to tie up the raft at an abandoned stone dock, we pack our supplies for an inland survey. We find Rockarrots and Savroot growing both wild and in abandoned fields as we head up the slope to the highlands above. Sheep and horses are observed grazing among the scattered herbivores of Parasaurs, Trikes, Brontos, and nervous Gallys.

As we climb over a ridge with some rock outcroppings, I spot several Wyverns in the distance. Putting the spotting scope on them, I go looking for that albino I saw yesterday.

“Aguuh!”

“We are so dead!” Tod yells at me as my field of vision suddenly goes white.

“Behind the rock! That is a lightning Wyvern!” I yell as the white wyvern attacks us. We are hit with a glancing blow of freezing cold. “It’s a frosty,” I yell to Tod as I shake off the cold. “Quick, tranc dart to the neck.”

“Squak, it yells in surprise as two darts find their mark.

“Again,” I yell. Two more darts hit behind the head. Then, with a loud thud, the frost wyvern hits the ground out cold.

“Now what?” Tod ask as we examine her up close.

“One thing is for sure,” I answer. “They can’t be tamed. I can’t even keep her under with narcs. She is going to wake up before we can make it back to the raft unless we kill her. If we do that, it will piss off every wyvern out here.”

“What are we going to do?” ask Tod

“I got an idea. Give me your extra cooked fish. Take my long neck and get out of here. I’m going to keep her distracted so you can get away. Head back to the base. If I am killed, I’ll respawn back there.”

I sit on the semi conscious wyvern as Tod races back to the raft to sail away. “Ohhh, My Head,” I hear her say as she regains conscious and looks around for us. Then, she suddenly realizes that I am sitting her and goes into a blind panic.

Still groggy from the trancs, she flies into the side of the bluff nearly throwing me off. I can only hang on for dear life as I have no control over her at all. She is all over the place screaming “Aguhh, there’s a human on me!” She heads straight up, then inland in her panic, as she dives and rolls trying to throw me off until she is totally exhausted. With her stamina gone, she drops like a rock until I can gain enough control of her to flare her out to land in a safe spot of level ground which we hit hard. The impact sends me flying off as I hit the ground rolling.

She is lying on her side breathing hard as I return to her side to stroke her on the forehead. “You win,” she tells me in a totally exhausted voice.

“So far so good,” I think. Like the wyverns on Thieves, we can, at least, communicate with each other. Even better, she is bound to the old school rules of dragon lore from the board game Dungeons and Dragons. You defeat one in battle without killing it, they are pledged to become your friend.”

“Get some rest,” I tell her. “Then, we can talk.”

“That feels sooo relaxing,” she finally answers after catching her breath. “How did you know where to pet me?”

“From my wyvern friends on Thieves,” I answer.

“Where is Thieves?” she asks.

“It is located on another Ark similar to this place,” I answer. “Do you have a name?”

“I’m called Sandy,” she answers. “What brings you out this way?”

“I’m looking for three of my friends,” I answer. “We got separated when we were accidentally teleported to this place.”

“So, your not one of those awful Vikings that used to live here,” Sandy answers.

“No,” I answer. “Whatever happened to them?”

“Several years ago, they fought a horrible war for dominance, It raged for days. A female leader, who’s name was Daenarys, had fire wyverns allied to her that she had raised from stolen eggs. They were killed during that final battle. When it was over, only a few Vikings survived. The other wyverns decided that they were still a threat, as they had killed Daenarys wyverns by using a giant crossbow that fired iron spikes, so, they attacked them and dropped their bodies into the volcano.”

“A Ballista,” I answer. “A fixed ground weapon that is very deadly when used in an ambush setting, but can be easily avoided if you spot them ahead of time. Was one of the viking leaders named Njord?”

“Yes,” Sandy answers. “Why do you ask?”

“His name comes from an ancient Viking legend on Earth,” I answer. “1200 of our years ago, there was a war fought for dominance on Ragnarok where he was killed in Viking Bay. We found the remains of his village along with a Trike skeleton buried there. Dr. Sanders found a switch to an Ark portal that accidentally brought us here. Our party of nine was scattered all over the area during the teleport. Three of them are still missing. Have you, or any of your friends, seen any other humans the past couple of days?”

“You are the first I’ve seen since the Viking War,” Sandy answers.

“Another time warp,” I answer. “Only seven years here since the great battle that took place 1200 of our years ago. You already have been a big help with your valuable information.”

“How did you knock me out without hurting me when I attacked you?” ask Sandy.

“We used tranc darts,” I answer. “They can quickly drop most any creature here without harming them. Their only side effect was that headache and disorientation you experienced when you first woke up.”

“You could have killed me for attacking you, but you didn’t. Why?”

“I would have every wyvern angry at me if I ever killed one. That’s why we chose to use tranc darts on you instead of bullets.

“I’m sorry that I was so scared of you,” Sandy tells me.

“That’s all right.” I answer. “With the history of this place, you had every right to fear us.”

“Are you hungry?”

“Why yes, I was out hunting for sheep when I saw you two.”

“Is cooked prime fish OK?”

“I’ve never had anything cooked before, it has always been frozen. Ohhh, that is delicious. Can I take you back to your base?”

“You won’t panic if I get back on you?”

“No, I’m fine with you riding me now.”

I get on her and sit on her shoulder in the natural saddle. “How are you feeling?” I ask.

“It feels so natural,” Sandy answers in surprise. “Where shall we go?”

“I have the rest of the day if you don’t mind me using you to look for the others.”

“Sounds interesting. How will I know where you want me to go?”

“I can guide you with the spike on your back of your neck.”

“You’re right about that.” as we take off. “This feels so enjoyable.”

“You can still take control anytime that you like.”

“Lets go see Annie,” answers Sandy. “She may be able to help you.”

We head over to near the Volcano by the edge of the redwoods where an Alpha wyvern is resting. “Is she going to be safe?” I ask with concern. “Alphas can be very touchy around humans when they have had a bad experience with them the past.”

“Did you see an Alpha when you were in Thieves?”

“Yes,” I answer. “We became the best of friends.”

“You got a human on you!” Annie says in alarm as we land next to her.

“It’s all right,” Sandy answers. “He is a friend.”

“Would you let me rub your forehead?” I ask.

“Go ahead,” Annie answers as she comes over to us. “Oh, that is so relaxing.”

“Have you, or any of your wyvern friends seen any humans on Ragnarok the past couple of days?”

“Terry saw what looked like a log cabin being rebuilt in the meadow by the Green Obelisk. It is possible that your human friends may be there.”

“Thank you very much,” I tell Annie.

“I like him,” Annie tells Sandy. “He is so nice to be with.”

“That looks like a long way to the Green Obelisk. Can you fly that far before it gets dark?”

“Not a problem,” answers Sandy. “I only got so tired because I was in such a panic.”

“Lets go find my missing friends,” I answer as we set course to the Green Obelisk.

I get the total birds eye view of Ragnarok as we fly around the volcano, then the plateau where the castle is down below. There is a swamp East of it with broken arch bridges that span it. The swamp ends in a series of lakes that empty into a series of waterfalls and rapids. That river continues East into a narrow canyon where it disappears over another waterfalls.

“What is that four legged flying creature down below?” I ask Sandy.

“I believe it is called a Griffin.”

“Will it try to attack us if we fly closer to it?”

“No,” Sandy answers. “It will likely fly away.”

“Can they be tamed?”

“I believe so,” Sandy answers. “They are just hard to knock out and will fly away if they realize that they may fall asleep while under attack.”

“Very interesting creature that is half eagle, half lion. Dr. Sanders is going to be in total shock when he sees one for real. Come to think of it, he is going to be in total shock when he sees you for the first time.”

“That sounds like fun,” Sandy answers.

We follow the river through the narrow gorge which then opens up into a spectacular landscape of towering cliffs and surrounding waterfalls. A crumbling old castle is up on the narrows where a stone bridge crosses the gorge separating the plateau. “That’s what is left of Daenarys castle,” Sandy tells me.

We hear south, out of the canyon and up over the plateau which comes down into a valley with a meadow by the Green Obelisk. Beyond, I can see the land dry up into badlands, then arid desert. We land by a wood cabin which has a fire lit in the fireplace inside.

“Anybody home,” I shout as we land next to the cabin.

“Halsey, Is that you? Is that thing safe?” a voice answers back.

“She is safe Professor Narcy,” I answer. “Come on out and see Sandy.”

Cautiously, the threesome come out of the cabin to see us.

“You and Mary were right when you told me that Wyverns actually existed.” Professor Narcy tells me. “She is beautiful. What kind of a wyvern is she?”

“Sandy is a frost wyvern,” I answer. “Instead of roasting something with fire, she freezes it.”

“How did you manage to tame her,” ask Professor Narcy.

“I didn’t,” I answer.

“Sandy, what wrong? You look like you are lost.”

“I so miss my mate Sammy,” she answers. “I wish that he were here with me.”

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner that you have a mate?” I answer. “It would be unfair for me to hold you bound to the rules of the Dragon Lore. I’d prefer to have you as a friend, not my slave. You are free to go home to your mate. Come back to visit any time that you like.”

“Thank you, thank you so much. You are a true friend.” Sandy answers as she lowers her head so I can stroke her once more on the forehead. Then, she is off flying to the North.

“Talking Wyverns? Rules of Dragon Lore? How did you manage to accomplish all of that?” ask Professor Narcy.

“She still had us cornered on the Scottish Plains after Tod and I tranc her. They were wearing off quickly. I took a chance and sat on her so Tod could get away. When she woke up, she tried to buck me off. I stayed on her until she fell out of the sky totally exhausted. When she told me that I won, I knew that she was bound by those rules to accept me as a friend.”

“You two have such a wonderful friendship,” Professor Narcy answers. “I can’t wait to see the look on Dr. Sander’s face when he gets to see a live wyvern.”

“I can’t either, especially once I can tame some Griffins.”

“Griffens too? This is a most interesting world. Were you able to find everyone else?”

“Yes, we are all together at the dig site in Vikings Bay. It is now a tropical beach.”

“That is most interesting,” answers Professor Narcy. “You are going to have to tell us all about it this evening.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 8. The Castle Expedition.

 

Back at the base Dr. Sanders and Mary are getting ready to explore the Viking Castle up on the ridge. They are taking long neck rifles with them in case they run into another Allo pack. With Sarah’s Hyaenodon pack, there should be little danger from the predators in the area.

Joe is in lead with Sarah next as the expedition rides up the trail that heads up the slope to the castle. It is a long climb to where the terrain levels off. The castle appears to sit high up on a bluff. “How are we going to get up there?” ask Mary.

“Lets look around for a way up,” answers Joe. “If we remove some of those boulders, we should be able to climb the ridge line to the base of the castle.” With the boulders removed, they are able to scramble up the ridge with the horses with the Hyaenodon in the lead. They soon reach the entrance at the base of the castle. “We can secure our horses here in this courtyard, then continue on foot up the causeway.”

Continuing on, Dr. Sanders takes the lead in his eagerness to see what is inside. “Slow down,” warns Mary. “We don’t know what danger may be waiting inside.” As usual, he ignores Mary’s warning as she loses sight of him around a turn.

“Aggghhhh!”

Dr. Sanders comes flying out of a hole in the castle wall with dozens of bats swarming him. Sarah turns the Hyaenodon loose on them. They tear up the bat pack taking out dozens of spiders that soon follow.

Poor Dr. Sanders. He comes out of that mess with his clothes ripped off and is covered in bites and scratches. Joe gives him his spare set of thatch.

As Joe and Sarah go to clean up the mess and check the dead bats and spiders for any gear, Joe makes a frightening discovery. “Some of those bats are infected with mega rabies. Sarah, check your Hyaenodon and see if any of them have been bitten.”

“What are we going to do about the rabies?” ask Sarah with concern. “Three members of the pack were bitten by them.”

“Fortunately, I had the foresight to learn how to make Lesser Antidote.” answers Mary. “I made up a stack of it last night. Sarah, give one of these to every one of your Hyaenodon. Everyone, take one if you have been bitten or not. You will be protected even if you are bitten again.”

“I’m not drinking that!” answers Dr. Sanders. “That stuff looks nasty. I saw what you had to use to make it last night.”

“Take it anyways, unless you want us to lock you in a cage, before you go mad and die a painful death.” With a grimace on his face, Dr Sanders proceeds to takes the medicine.”

“Looks like we got them all,” announces Joe. “There was good loot on some of them. Here is a set of hide armor for Dr. Sanders. Lets proceed with caution.”

With the Hyaenodon close at hand, Joe descends down several levels deep into the interior of the castle. “Careful of the loose stone in the stairs,” warns Joe as they continue down through the dark dungeons.

Finally, they reach the cellar where several inches of muddy water is covering the floor. “Anything in those wine cask?” ask Dr Sanders.

“No,” answers Joe. “It looks like everything leaked out of them when whoever raided this castle chopped holes in the base of the barrels so they could celebrate their victory.”

“There is a hole in the wall,” reports Sarah as the others come to check it out.

“Looks like there is a flooded passageway going down further.” reports Joe. “It may have been an escape tunnel before it was submerged. That’s way to dangerous to try to swim down in that blackness without some kind of artificial light. Lets head back up into the turrets and see what is up there.”

Back up to ground level, the group proceeds to head up into the ramparts above. “Watch out!” warns Joe. “I hear more bats up ahead.”

Sarah sends in the Hyaenodon pack which tears into the bats and spiders. Joe and Mary pick off those flying higher with the long neck. Two dozen bats later and the threat is over.

“Be careful of these crumbling stairs,” warns Joe as the group climbs up into the tower. Reaching the top, there is quite a view to behold.

“This place looks like it is straight out of Game of Thrones,” says Mary. “There is the bay to the East, the Murder Mountains to the South, a dismal moat with a crumbling stone causeway, the plateau to the North, and the smoldering volcano to the East. It’s just too bad that there isn’t anything of any value left in the castle. The invaders must have taken everything that wasn’t nailed down.”

“Well, we did get some good spare stuff from those bats,” answers Joe. “Lets head beck before we have to pick our way down the slope in the dark.”

“Do you think that Halsey and Tod found Professor Narcy and his grad students?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Will find out when they get back,” answers Joe. “Halsey told me that they planned to be gone for a couple of days.”

“There’s the raft,” reports Mary as the expedition Rides down the slope to the base. “They must have found them.”

“What happened,” ask Joe when he finds that Tod is the only one back at the base.

“We were attacked by a frost wyvern,” answers Tod. “She totally surprised us as we were exploring the meadow highlands past the volcano. We managed to tranc her but we couldn’t keep her out long enough to escape. Halsey got on her and told me to make a run for it. The last thing I saw was that frost wyvern tearing up the sky trying to throw him off. They disappeared somewhere to the South.”

“You’re crazy, there is no such thing.” answers Dr. Sanders in disgust. “You were around that volcano too long.”

“Don’t be so sure of yourself,” answers Mary sternly. “Several of those wyverns that you claim don’t exist became very good friends of ours back in Thieves.”

“Halsey must be still alive. Otherwise, he would have shown up back here on a spawn bed.”

“There is no such thing as reincarnation,” states Dr. Sanders.

“I don’t know if it can happened or not,” answers Mary. “We have yet to be killed and reborn on either Ark. If there is a way for him to get back here, he will find a way. Lets take stock of what we have learned about this place so far and make plans for more exploration to find a way back to our world.”

 

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 9 Back together.

 

“Sandy, you’re back,” Sammy says in surprise. “I was so sure that I would never see you again when Annie told me that you were bonded to a human by the rules of the Dragon Lore. What happened to him?”

“Halsey is with his missing friends.” Sandy answers. “When he scolded me for not telling him that I had a mate, he told me that he wanted to have me as a friend, not his slave. He gave me back my freedom so I could return to you.”

“That’s so incredible. Nothing like that has ever happened before. How did he defeat you in battle? Did he slap you with the flat of his sword? Was his armor too strong for you to bite through?”

“When I attacked him, he ducked behind a boulder. Then, he and his friend used some kind of a weapon that went pop, hitting my neck with some kind of a dart. He called it a tranc dart. I hardly felt it hit. Before I knew what it could do, I passed out.”

“When I woke up, he was sitting on my shoulder. Try as I might, I couldn’t reach him to bite him, so I tried to shake him off. I ended up falling from the sky totally exhausted.”

“What happened after you had told him that he won?”

“He came back, rubbed me on the forehead and told me to get some rest so we could talk. It felt so good.”

“How did he know how to do that?”

“He said he learned it from his wyvern friends on Thieves.”

“Fascinating, He found a way to defeat you in combat without using any weapons to harm you or wearing armor for his protection. Why didn’t he just kill you for attacking him and his friend after you were rendered helpless by the tranc darts?”

“He didn’t want to have the rest of us angry at him for killing me.”

“That is so interesting. No human has ever been that concerned about us, even Daenarys with her egg tames. He really gave you back your freedom back after you had pledged to serve him?"

“He was even concerned that I might be uncomfortable having him ride on me.”

“How was that experience?”

“It was great. It actually felt so natural. I really enjoyed having him fly on me. His missing friends were the ones in the cabin by the meadow. They were very fascinated by me.”

Meanwhile, Annie and Andy have been listening on the conversation. “Somehow I knew that this human was different when you came to see me,” answers Annie. “It was a pleasant surprise when I let him rub my forehead.”

“How will he and his missing friends get back to Viking Bay?” ask Sammy. “That is a long rugged dangerous trip for any human to make on foot.”

“Could we fly them back there ourselves.” ask Sandy.

“That sounds like fun,” answers Sammy. “We should do it.”

“Lets do it,” answers Annie. “We’ll come help you fly them back.”

It is early morning as I get up to survey the valley and figure out how to best proceed to hike it out to Viking Bay. The valley is deep in the interior of this Ark with the only stream heading back into the canyon. It looked impossible to go that way without having a flier. I sit down with Professor Narcy to discuss the best way we should try to get back.

“We were lucky to have been transported to this valley,” Professor Narcy tells me. “We had no idea what to do with these implants or how to survive. We were just lucky that nothing dangerous has been in the area. Fortunately, we were able to learn how the implant and the level up process works. We have been able to find food, craft up clothing, and restore this shelter. But we are lacking the resources to advance into metal tools or weapons.”

“How far have you been able to explore from here?” I ask.

“We attempted to head South towards the badlands but ran into some kind of shimmering barrier. It was probably a good thing because it looked to be very dangerous in the desert beyond.”

“Heading West, we saw Mammoths and Woolly Rhinos. There were also Direwolves. It was the bitter cold that made it impossible to continue in that direction.”

“Following the river North led us into an impossible canyon to get down. We saw Carnos and raptors down there as well.”

“What about West through the forest?” I ask.

“We got part way until we could see the sea way beyond a vast swamp.”

“That could be a way out although from past experiences on Thieves, those swamps are extremely dangerous to be in. Still, we will need to find a way down there and build a raft unless we can find and tame some Argys or Griffins.”

“There are Griffins here?”

“I saw several of them in the upper canyon yesterday when Sandy was bringing me here. An eagle front with a lion back. Such a strange looking creature. It looks awesome. We need to have tranc darts in order to drop either flier for taming. Unfortunately, without a source of metal ore, we appear to be stuck here for now.”

“There are four wyverns heading this way,” Cleo alerts us.

“Is one of them white?” I ask.

“Yes,” answers Cleo.

“I’ll talk to them when they arrive. We may have just found a way to get back to the others.”

“Halsey, were hear to help take everyone back to your base,” Sandy tells me.

“I’m so glad that you came back of your own free will.” I tell Sandy as I stroke her on the forehead. “I see you brought Annie with you. Who are the two males with you?”

“This is Sammy, my mate. That’s Andy, Annies mate.”

“Glad to meet you,” I answer.

“Thank you so much for setting Sandy free,” Sammy tells me.

“I can see why she is so fond of you,” I answer.

Professor Narcy, Cleo, and Ahab come out to be introduced to the other three wyverns.

“You have done well to become friends of an Alpha,” Professor Narcy tells me. "She looks fabulous. I can’t wait to see the look on Dr. Sanders face when he sees them.”

“It sounds like fun,” answers Annie.

“She has a great sense of humor.” I answer. “Annie, would you let Professor Narcy ride you back to our base in Viking Bay?”

“I’d be delighted,” she answers.

“I would be most honored to fly on you,” answers Professor Narcy.

“We’ll take Ahab and Cleo, the two males answer back.”

“Sandy, you are a life saver,” I tell her.

“How do we get on them.” ask Ahab.

“Just carefully climb up the forearm and sit on the shoulder behind the spike on the neck. You can control their flight with that but just let them do their own thing. They’ll take good care of you.” With everyone mounted we take off heading South towards the canyon.

“Sandy,” Annie tells her. “You are so right, This feels so natural having a human fly on us.”

“That was so unexpected,” answers Sammy. “it feels great.”

“I like this too,” answers Andy.

“It is going to be such fun when we scare Dr. Sanders and his friends.” answers Sandy.

“Don’t scare them too much,” I warn. “They do have access to harpoon guns and a Hyaenodon pack of eight.”

“You won’t have to worry about Mary and Joe. They have made good friends with wyverns in the past. Be easy with Tod and Sarah. They have had no experience with your kind.”

“We’ll be careful,” answers Sandy.

“There is a flock of wyverns coming towards us,” warns Sarah. “One of them is an Alpha.”

“I see that white one that attacked us the other day,” answers Tod.

“There are humans riding on them.” Joe reports after placing his spotting scope on them. “That looks like Professor Narcy riding on the Alpha, Cleo and Ahab are on the two males, and Halsey is on the white one.”

“He did it,” shouts Tod. “He actually made friends with her.”

We come in to land in front of Dr. Sanders as his jaw drops in total shock. Professor Narcy lands right in front of him. “Dr. Sanders, How do you like my new ride?”

“I, da, da, da.”

Everyone starts laughing including Sandy and Annie.

“Come see her up close and personal,” answers Professor Narcy. “She is very charming with a fabulous knowledge of Viking history.”

A timid Dr. Sanders approaches. Then he runs off in a panic as Annie looks directly at him. She torches his pants with a short puff of fire. Sandy quickly puts outs the fire with a puff of frost. Everybody is laughing up a storm. “I’m sure that he is believer now.” I answer.

“That was fun,” answers Annie. "I just couldn't resist doing that."

“Thank you for getting us back together,” answers Professor Narcy. “Is there anything that we can do for you?”

“Just your friendship will be reward enough,” answers Annie. “We’ll let the others know that you are our friends.”

“Thank you for your help,” I tell Sandy. “You are such a great friend.” With our good byes, the four wyverns fly East towards their home by the Volcano.

I will be taking a break for the next week due to other commitments that will be demanding my time.

To Be continued.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 10, What’s Next?

 

Dr. Sanders is thoroughly upset with us, especially with having his pants set on fire by Annie, by a creature he had refused to admit existed. So, we let him sulk for the rest of the day as we prepare to show Professor Narcy and the two grad students Vikings Bay. Tod and Sarah ride the raptors, We put Ahab and Cleo on the Parasaurs, the rest of us ride the horses. We have seen what looks like a cave high in the mountain by the edge of a glacier we want to check out. With the Hyaenodon pack in the lead, we set off up the mud slide up to the glacier.

We see wild raptors and saber cats on the way up. They keep their distance when they see Sarah’s Hyaenodon pack with us.

The weather gets cold as we continue the climb with the temperate forest quickly changing to scrub land with dead trees. Numerous fossilized skeletons dot the muddy landscape. We stop to inspect them so Professor Narcy, Mary, and the grad students can take notes and take photos. Yes, Mary has been able to craft up a camera thanks to some more crystal Tod was able to find near the volcano by a lava tube just prior to his returning after I had taken off on Sandy for parts unknown. He had spotted it as he was scrambling back to the raft and had came down further West then planned. (Game play, there is crystal by the lava tube at the edge of the volcano terrain by the shore.)

“Are you going to be able to bring those pictures back when we can return?” ask Professor Narcy.

“We were able to from our last visit,” answers Mary. “Dr. Sanders swears that we photo shopped them. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, that’s exactly what we did. That is why we never published or mention them in any of my research reports.”

“As this area looks a lot like the Viking Bay back in the real world, they could prove valuable on the research of the creatures that may have lived there in the past.”

We continue our climb as the weather gets colder and starts snowing finally reaching the base of the glacier where there is an ice cave ahead. “We are going to need cold weather gear to continue.” I report. “Light your torches, I am already getting warnings from my implant that it is too cold for us to stay here much longer.”

“This is the same issue we had in the valley by the Green Obelisk,” reports Professor Narcy.

“Then, we need to craft fur armor,” answers Mary. “Tod, you said that you saw a lot of sheep over in the Scotland area.”

“Yes, I did.” Tod answers.

“Then, we should sail over there, capture, and shear as many sheep as we can catch.” Mary answers. “We can come back once we can dress for the conditions. Lets head back so I can show Dr. Sanders what we have documented up here, build some more rafts, then plan to go sheep shearing tomorrow.”

Returning to the base, we find Dr. Sanders missing. “What happened to him this time?” Mary ask in disgust.

“Well, the dilos are still here,” I answer. “Sarah, see if your Hyaenodon can find him.” They pick up the sent and head towards the glacier but soon stop looking up at the sky.

“Now what?” ask Mary.

“The trail ends here next to his chair,” answers Sarah. “It is as if he took off flying.”

“Is that possible?” ask Mary. “He wanted nothing to do with anything that flies.”

“I do see fresh wyvern tracks here,” I answer. “I find it hard to believe, but it looks like he actually walked out here to see one, sat in his chair with it for a while, then took off flying on it.”

“That is most interesting given how upset he was at Annie for setting his pants on fire,” Mary answers. “That is going to be a most interesting story once he returns. I just wish he would have left us a note or something so we don’t have to worry that he did something else stupid.”

“Who do you think he flew off with?”

“That is a good question,” I answer. “This footprint shows a crooked claw from some injury that healed improperly. None of our four wyvern friends had that crooked claw. He must have been paid a visit by a wyvern we haven’t seen before.”

“I hope that he is all right,” comments Professor Narcy.

“As there doesn’t appear to be any signs of a struggle or anything being damaged, we can assume that he must be OK. We’ll just have to wait for him to return or for one of our wyvern friends to tell us where he is.”

“Looks like all we can do for now is continue our exploration of the area.” responds Joe. “Lets plan to sail east to where you found the wild sheep, catch them, and shear them for wool. We can also tame some to bring back to the base. One raft is no longer enough for our needs. Lets get three more built, get them outfitted, and plan to sail East along the shore to look for clues to find a way back.”

“We can leave a note back here where we have gone in case Dr. Sanders returns.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 11, Where is Dr. Sanders?

 

Where did he go? Was he attacked and carried away? So far, he hasn’t returned on a spawn bed, so what did happen to him while the others were out exploring?

It all starts with Dr. Sanders being upset that his friend, Professor Narcy, returns riding on an alpha wyvern named Annie. On her own, she sets Dr. Sanders pants on fire when he runs off after she looks him in the eye. It is a most embarrassing moment that is saved when Sandy then puts the fire out by freezing it.

It is some time after we have left that there is a whoosh, then a thud outside of the hut. Looking outside of the door, Dr. Sanders sees a black, with reddish trim, male lightning wyvern has landed outside in front. He has a crooked foot, the result of an old injury that never healed up properly. With a sad look on his face, he lays down and just stares at him.

Dr. Sanders is not sure what he should do. He doesn’t want to get his pants set on fire again. He doesn’t want to be eaten. Yet, he is curious why this wyvern came to the base and is just laying there looking at him. Then, he remembers Professor’s Narcy’s advice, “You really should sit down and talk to them.” So, he goes inside and brings out a chair.

“You’re not going to hurt me or set my pants on fire.” he asks as he places the chair next to the wyvern.

“I won’t harm you,” the wyvern answers.

“What is your name?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“I’m called Terry.”

“Why did you come here?”

“I wanted somebody to talk to. The others tend to ignore me since they all have mates of their own. It has been so lonely out there.”

“What happened to your mate?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Several years ago, there was a great battle among the kingdoms on Ragnarok. There was fighting everywhere among the humans and the other factions for control of this land. While we were looking for a place to get away from the fighting, we flew into an ambush. I was hit in the foot by some kind of metal spear that went straight through it. My Trixie was impaled in the chest by the same kind of spear. She managed to make it to the Snowy Mountains before she fell from the sky. I so miss her!” Terry says as he starts crying.

It is a stunned Dr. Sanders that gets up, walks over to Terry, and starts stroking him on the forehead. “It looks like we have something in common.” he tells Terry. “Several years ago, I lost my loving wife in a terrible accident. I watched her die in my arms. It is something you can never fully recover from. I have found that talking about it will start the emotional healing process so you can move on with your life.”

Dr. Sanders brings his chair up close so he can stroke Terry’s forehead as they continue talking. “That feels so good,” Terry tells him.

This unusual turn of events continues for the rest of the morning as the conversation drifts from the spouses to the history of the Vikings and Dr. Sander’s research. “If you are willing to ride on me, I can show you so much more about this world,” Terry answers.

“Tell me what I have to do,” Dr. Sanders answers. Following Terry’s instruction, they are soon on the way to the Scottish Highlands.

“This is great,” Dr. Sanders tells Terry after they fly past the castle heading East. “No wonder Professor Narcy liked flying on Annie.”

“I never knew that an Alpha would let any human fly on her,” answers Terry. “Yet, I now understand why she did it. It actually feels good having you fly on me. I’ll fly around the volcano so we don’t get caught up in the excessive heat in case it erupts again.”

“I’m seeing a lot of abandoned settlements down below.” says Dr. Sanders as they start flying over the highlands.”

“The houses and gardens are all over the place in this area,” answers Terry. “We sometimes come here to hunt for sheep. They and the horses live in flocks all around this area. We will also hunt and kill the predators so they don’t wipe them out.”

“So, you are in effect, managing them as a food source.”

“We only take a few to control their numbers. Our main food source are the predators that come in from the surrounding area for some easy prey.”

“How do you hunt them?”

“I hit them with my lightning bolt to knock them out. Let me show you on that carno that is chasing that parasaur.” Terry unleashes a four second burst of electricity that kills, then cooks the carno.

“Wow! that is scary,” Dr. Sanders. “That is worse then Annie setting my pants on fire.”

“Annie was just playing with you.” answers Terry. “She could have easily burned you to a cinder if she had wanted to. And, Sandy only chilled you enough to put the fire out. She could have easily frozen you solid in seconds.”

“I’ll land here so you can cut off a piece of cooked meat for yourself. Then, I’ll have it for my lunch.”

“That is interesting,” Dr. Sanders tells Terry after slicing off a chunk of the cooked Carno and eating it. “It taste like a fine steak. You are a good cook. I’m going to check out this overgrown garden while you are eating.”

In the garden, Dr. Sanders finds savroots and rockarrots. He harvest them to save for later. Both can provide an equal amount of water and food when consumed. A nearby stream provides him with a drink and water to refill his canteen.

Exploring the remains of a nearby farmhouse, Dr. Sanders finds an old chest. “This is an excellent find,” he tells Terry who has finished eating and comes over to see what is going on. “I found a map of Ragnarok and an old journal. Mary will be most interested in this.”

“That is indeed the map of the entire island,” answers Terry as he looks at it. “This is the first time I have seen what it looks like beyond the barrier.”

“What is the barrier?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“It is a shimmering transparent wall across the southern half of the island. It extends far out to sea and higher then I can fly. Lately, it looks like things are happening on the other side. I have been seeing terrain taking shape, old structures showing up, creatures different from what are living here, lots of scrub-land and desert areas. It is so different from the high plains, the snow capped mountains, the great forest, the central canyon by Daenarys castle, the high meadow by the Green Obelisk, the Western Jungle, and the great swamp.”

“Can you take me to the barrier by the Green Obelisk?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“It will be getting dark by the time we can get there,” answers Terry. “You can stay in your friend’s cabin overnight. Then we can fly over to it in the morning. You will need to fabricate some warm clothing as it gets quite cold over there during the night. Lets go get a ram so you can take its wool.”

“That sounds like a plan. I found a sheering scissors in the old farmhouse. We only need to capture it so I can take its wool. Lets head over there as soon as I can fabricate the warm clothes from its wool.”

Note on game play. One can shear the wild sheep for their wool. However, a Smithy with lots of metal is needed to fabricate the heavy fur armor. What Dr. Sanders is getting will be woven into heavy woolen clothing of little armor value.

It is quite easy for Dr. Sanders to catch the wild rams by the horns so Terry can hold onto them while he shears the wool. Two of them supply all the wool that is needed for the cold weather clothing. With those in his inventory, he gets on Terry and they take flight.

The flight path takes them to the edge of the Redwoods, then down into the canyon past Daenarys castle which is high up on the plateau. “What a marvelous piece of mid evil engineering,” comments Dr. Sanders as he sees the high bridge spanning the canyon. “It defies logic how it could have been built so long ago and that it is still standing in spite of the poor condition the deck is in.”

“Daenarys had the towers built so cables could be used to support the construction until the keystone was put in place.” answers Terry. “She had her wyverns fly the rope cables across. Then the slaves continue weaving the cables until they were strong enough to support the stone arch as it was constructed.”

“That is amazing given that such bridges were constructed using a timber frame.” answers Dr. Sanders. “That was truly an engineering feat way ahead of its time.”

“Is there anything of value in her castle?”

“No,” answers Terry. “Like the Viking Castle near your base, anything of value was looted long ago.”

The flight continues over the plateau into a valley with a flowing stream and meadow. The sun is starting to set when they reach the old restored cabin. “Where will you spend the night?” Dr Sanders ask Terry.

“I’ll be right outside.”

“Then, let me set up some torches and we can both enjoy the evening together.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 12. The barrier.

 

The eight of us have prepped the four rafts for an extended voyage to look for clues for our return. Having four rafts will allow us to gather additional resources that are not available at our location. We will be on the lockout for more metal ore, obsidian, pearls, and crystal. We will be leaving our tames in the base for this trip. Supplies have been packed to build some outpost as we push east to the Highlands. We may be able to gather more wood along the way as well. A stop is planned in the Highlands to catch sheep for their wool so we can craft some winter clothing for the ice cave.

We are still wondering where Dr. Sanders has vanished to this time. Yet, with all clues pointing to him having flown off on a wyvern with a crooked foot, we have no way of knowing where to look for him. So, our best course of action is to continue our exploration without him. If we should see Sandy or Annie, we will ask them for their help.

Setting sail, we have no issues with any Leeds as we clear the entrance to the bay and head into the Stony Isles. We stop to dive for pearls and some easy to get Obsidian and metal ore. Several crates are packed with wood and thatch as we run out of fiber for crafting more building sections. We will look for more fiber before we reach the badlands of the volcano.

A second stop is made to harvest fiber along the beach with the new sickles. That process goes quickly. “So that is what a Kentasaursus looks like,” comments Professor Narcy as one is spotted close by. “I never knew that a creature could grow so many spikes all over its body.”

“They are very deadly against anything that attacks it,” answers Mary. “We saw one on Thieves impale a raptor that was after it. They can be tamed, but, there is no place one can place a saddle on them.”

Back at the raft, four of us use up the spare wood and thatch to craft more building supplies as the other four sail the raft. The extra fiber is stored in place of the used up wood and thatch.

Continuing on, a stop is made where Tod and I had first landed. Tod takes Professor Narcy and Ahab to look for crystal. “Be careful,” I tell them. “There are some nasty predators that live on the edge of the lava fields. Stay upwind of those dead whales if you can.”

We find silk flowers as we head up to where I first encountered Sandy. We also find some sheep. “Let just see if we can walk up to them,” says Sarah. We find out that we can do just that and sheer them for their wool while one of us holds it by their neck.

As we are busy with the sheep, Sandy sees us and flies in to visit. She is curious about us just taking their wool and not harming the sheep otherwise. “Do you know anything about a wyvern that has a crooked foot?” I ask her. “It appears to have paid us a visit while we were gone exploring. Dr. Sanders seems to have flown off on it.”

“That must be Terry,” she answers. “He has been so lonely since he lost his mate in the Viking wars years ago. He travels a lot trying to forget the pain he suffered from that event. I don’t believe that he would do anything to harm Dr. Sanders. He just wants someone intelligent to talk to besides us.”

“Any idea where they could have gone?”

“He could be anywhere. Ragnarok is a vast place of many biomes. I’ll let the others know to keep an eye out for them.”

“We are going to be out exploring for the next couple of days. If you see him, let him know to wait for us at the base to return.”

Returning to the raft, we have more then enough wool and silk to outfit us with fur and desert armor. Professor Narcy’s group has obtained more crystal by a lava tube. They have also used their spare time and the local resources to fabricate the forges needed for crafting the clothing. We plan to do so when we set up a camp for the night.

It is mid afternoon as we set sail further East. There is an old stone dock and a stream with stone bridges crossing it, but no other ruins are visible. Further East, a nice beach location by a path up the cliff side and a waterfall is found where we decide to build the outpost for the night. There are few trees there but there is plenty of sticks and branches laying about. With boulders plentiful, we can craft spark powder to fuel the forges all night. As a bonus, there is also additional metal ore on the beach. We even find savroot and rockarrot growing wild with the berries along the stream.

“We are going to check out the tower up on the hill,” Mary and Professor Narcy announces. “We’ll take Joe and Ahab with us.”

“Be careful,” I answer. “Watch out for any bats and spiders. The rest of us can handle the chores here. Just be sure to get back here before dark. We’ll get the shelter up and the metal cooking down.”

With evening approaching, the outpost is completed with the metal on its way to being processed. “We shall have both hot weather and cold weather clothes by morning,” I report.

The others are coming back as the sun sets. “The view from the old tower was outstanding,” reports Professor Narcy. “You could see from the castle all the way to the Snowy Mountains, the glacier, the Redwoods, and along the coast to a desert looking terrain that suddenly shows up.”

“Did you run into any trouble?” I ask.

“The tower was in bad shape as a result of being damaged in battle,” answers Mary. “Otherwise, there were no dangerous creatures in or around it. We did find more rockarrots and savroot growing wild in the fields below.”

“Other then some sheep and a nosy Diplodocus we had to chase away, it has been pretty quiet around here.”

Everyone gets settled in for the night. We will press on in the morning.

 

Dr. Sanders and Terry have spent a most remarkable night forming a close bond with each other. “I can’t believe that I have made close friends with a fantasy creature that is not suppose to exist,” Dr. Sanders thinks to himself. As promised at daybreak, he gets on Terry and they fly past the Green Obelisk following the stream to the barrier.

“It’s not there!” Terry tells Dr. Sanders. “Not only it is gone, but there is a lot of new terrain that wasn’t there a week ago.”

“Should we continue to see what is out there?” Dr. Sanders ask Terry.

“Most certainly,” Terry answers. “I’ve been flying along this barrier for years wondering what has been going on at the other side.”

“Then, lets follow the stream and see where that leads us.”

The terrain quickly changes from a pine forest meadow as the stream drops over a waterfalls. It becomes scrub land similar to the outback of Australia. The stream area itself remains an oasis of green with deciduous trees and bushes.

Up ahead, an old temple comes into view. “That looks extremely interesting,” Dr. Sanders tells Terry. “Any idea what it is?”

“It looks like it was the palace of Njord, the leader of one of the Viking tribes that were fighting for control of Ragnarok. Should we land there?”

“Yes, by all means. Just make sure that it isn’t full of bats. I don’t want to be tore up by them again.”

Terry lands at the entrance to the temple which has a large door that is opened. It is large enough for Terry to walk inside. It appears to be free of any bats.

“AUCKKK!” Something make a sound from back of the temple.

“AUCKKK!” Terry responds as he tenses up.

“What is it?” Dr sanders ask Terry.

There is no response as Terry stares at a shape that is as big as he is that is showing up as his eyes adjust to the darkness.

“Who is there?” demands Dr. Sanders.

“Are you Dr. Sanders?” a female voice responds.

“Dr. Croft? What are you doing here?”

A set of torches light up reveling the main temple. A female lightning wyvern is facing them with Dr Croft standing in front of her. Both wyverns are now staring at each other in shock as each recognizes the other.

“I’d thought that I would never see the day when you would ever admit that wyverns existed let along finding you riding on one.” answers Dr. Croft.

“What’s going on with these two?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“They must know each other,” answers Dr. Croft.

“Terry, Who’s the female wyvern?”

“It’s my mate Trixie,” Terry answers in tears. “I so miss her. I thought she had died after falling from the sky into the snow biome and becoming unresponsive. Somehow, she must have recovered from her injuries.”

“You better let me get off of you and go see her,” Dr. Sanders answers. The two are quickly together talking and shedding tears of joy.

“Lets head off to my camp while those two get back together.” answers Dr. Croft. “Seven years is a long time to be separated from each other.”

“How did you end up in this place?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“I arrived at your dig site shortly after you had left to explore the cave, so, I decided to hike up there to find you. When I stepped inside the cave, a strange wave of light hit me knocking me unconscious. The next thing I remember is waking up naked by a pond in an oasis in the middle of a vast desert wasteland.

“How did you meet up with Trixie?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“She showed up just as a raptor had cornered me in a palm tree. I had no weapons at the time. She killed and ate the raptor, then asked me if I was OK. I was shocked that not only this creature existed, we could actually talk to each other and was concerned about my well being. She was so glad to have someone to talk to after years of being alone in the wilderness.”

“She told me about the great battles of seven years ago, how she and her mate Terry, got caught up in an ambush where she was badly hurt by a bolt to the chest. Terry must have pulled it out when she fell into the snow and passed out. She said that she was unconscious for days. When she finally woke up, a shimmering barrier prevented her from heading back. When she tried to fly, she ended up tumbling down the hillside to the desert by the oasis where she later found me. She was able to get a meal from a trapped parasaur which helped her to start recovering. She told me that it took several weeks before she had the strength to start flying again.”

“She has been my savior and protector in this strange new world.”

“How did you end up here on Terry?”

“When I placed my hand in that strange terminal in the cave, my team of eight was teleported into this alternative world called the Ragnarok Ark. Halsey, Joe, Mary and I ended up back near the dig site of Viking Bay. There was no signs of our expedition, the support group, or the dig itself. Tod and Sarah found themselves by the Blue Obelisk. Halsey found Professor Narcy, Ahab, and Cleo in a valley near the green one while riding on a frost wyvern. Terry showed up yesterday when the others went exploring after I had a fit about having my pants set on fire by Annie. I couldn’t believe how much we had in common as we talked to each other. We spent the night in Professor Narcy’s camp. We found that the barrier is down when we flew over to the Green Obelisk. We followed the stream here.”

“Who is Annie?”

“She is an Alpha fire wyvern,” answers Dr Sanders. “Professor Narcy rode back on her. I still think that he put her up to it to get back at me for claiming that wyverns never existed.”

“So, there are more of them across the barrier?”

“There are a family of them living by the volcano.”

“That is so amazing that they became friends with your party after what the vikings had done to them.”

“You can thank Halsey for that. He made first contact with a frost wyvern that he and Tod knocked out after she attacked them. He rode on her until she was exhausted and gave up the fight. They brought back the rest of the missing party from the Green Obelisk. Like your Trixie, they are all wild, yet loyal friends.”

“Let me show you what I have found about this place. Would you believe that it just showed up a couple of days ago along with the lush vegetation along the stream that comes down from the Green Obelisk?”

“Terry mentioned that to me as well. It is if some unknown forces are terraforming this half of Ragnarok a little at a time.”

“Indeed, look at what has shown up here. Statues of various creatures with viking warriors engaged in combat or other activities with them.”

“In this room, there is a giant sloth. Next to it is a room with a Griffin. There are also sabertooth cats, direwolves, t-rexes, and other extinct creatures.”

“I have seen a rex and heard about the existence of griffins,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Professor Narcy told us about mammoths, sabers cats and dire wolves in the mountains. What creatures have you seen around here?”

“I have seen raptors, and the usual carnivores. There are cute little Jarboas that are great at warning about bad weather. This a strange flying insect the size of a dog called a Jug Bug. They either have water or oil on them. Also giant mantas, titanboas, those moths big enough to ride on, a large monitor lizard that throws quills like a porcupine, and a creature that looks like a giant camel with a reptile head. Here is a drawing of one.”

“That looks exactly like one of Halsey’s what if models. He calls it a Morley. He tells me that they store water in that hump that a survivor can tap into when they run out.”

“That what Trixie tells me. I have seen them gang up on creatures that attack them. They are tough customers to get on the wrong side of.”

“Are there those death worms out there?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“Yes there are,” answers Dr Croff. “They are so big and dangerous that they even scare Trixie. Fortunately, they can only live in the sand dunes. How did you know about them?”

“Mary and Halsey told me about them. It seems though they have visited an Ark called Thieves a year ago. I passed it off as nonsense until I saw that unusual well preserved Trike head that Halsey kept calling Trixie. He tells me a Trike with that name was one of his tames from that last visit.”

“Are you telling me that the creatures on the Ark can be tamed?”

“I find it hard to believe. I actually tamed a dilo and a parasaur. The others have tamed Mongolian horses, raptors, even a pack of Hyaenodon. It is just so unbelievable. I can show you when we get back to Viking Bay.”

“That make take quite a while,” answers Dr. Croft. “It appears that our rides are occupied with getting to know each other again.”

“Lets let them enjoy themselves and continue our study of this place. We don’t have to go back right away. There is so much here to document that it will take us all day. We can wait until later tomorrow to return to the rest of the group.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 13. Dr. Sanders Returns.

 

By morning, the metal has been smelted down to ingots. Joe and Mary are able to craft up both hot weather and cold weather gear. We shall now be prepared to deal with any temperature extremes we may have to face as we explore this land looking for clues on how we can get back to the real dig site.

As we continue sailing East, Mary comments about the waterfalls along the cliff. “That looks so much like ones I saw in Iceland years ago. Those basaltic rock formations along the coast are very familiar as well. Oh, My, Gosh! I have been in that cave before. If it is anything like that real one, there will be nothing inside but basaltic formations.”

Sailing inside, we confirm Mary’s description of the interior. In fact, we cannot find any place we could land to look around. It is just an orderly jumble of six sided columns of all heights, even the ones coming down from the ceiling. “Lets continue on South to the Redlands,” Joe says.

As we continue sailing, we reached an island forested with small trees and bushes with the alter of the Red Obelisk and land there for a minute. “Those trees on the mainland are huge,” Joe comments.

“Those are the trees that were later found petrified in the Southwestern states,” answers Professor Narcy.

A scrappy microraptor insist on being an annoying pest like the Compys. A couple of tranc darts put it down. “Anyone got any rare flowers on them?” ask Sarah. I have some and place them in the microraptor’s inventory. Five minutes later, we have an instant tame.

“Now what do we feed it?” ask Sarah.

“Just raw meat like any other carnivore,” answers Mary.

“Oh, she can sit on my shoulder,”Sarah finds out.

“It’s very pretty looking,” Mary tells Sarah.

Continuing on, there is a series of waterfalls heading up the steep slopes of the Redwoods. It is pretty country inhabited by Parcers, dangerous Dire bears and packs of Terror Bird that show up on the spotting scope. “We stay on the raft for now,” I announce.

Continuing South, we can see a sudden contrast in the terrain up ahead. The steep slope to the mountains above is vertically split like a line had been drawn through it into a sudden contrast of humid Redwood Forest to desert terrain. We can see desert palms and other vegetation up on the hill beyond. Then, suddenly, everything up ahead starts looking like heat shimmering.

“Is that a sudden change in temperature up ahead?” ask Tod.

“No, heat mirages don’t behave that way.” answers Ahab. “It is getting worse and more distorted the closer we get.

Bam! The raft runs into an invisible wall of visual distortion.

“What is it?” ask Professor Narcy as his raft catches up to us.

“An Ark force field,” answers Mary. “This is something we’ve never seen before. The Keepers are not allowing us to go any further South at this time. Given the sharp contrast at the barrier, it has to be a biome that they have not finished terraforming. We might as well turn around and head back to Viking bay. Then, see how far we can head in the other direction.”

 

Back at the temple, where Dr Sanders and Dr Croft are, it is morning as those two have finished up documenting everything inside. “Where’s Terry and Trixie?” ask Dr Sanders.

“They took off yesterday afternoon to go on their second honeymoon. Trixie said that they would be back sometime in the morning. We can go outside and do some work outside until they come back.”

It is mid morning before Dr. Sanders sees the two wyverns flying back. They land in front of them. “We’re sorry that we are late,” Terry says. “We just lost all track of time.”

“I understand,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Seven years is such a long time to be separated from someone that you so dearly love.”

“Thank you so much,” answers Terry. “It has been so wonderful to find my Trixie alive and well after all of those lonely years without her. I have you to thank for enabling the chain of events that finally brought us together.”

“Wow, you are not the Dr. Sanders that I know,” answers Dr Croft. “Terry must have made quite an emotional impact on you.”

“He so reminded me of losing my loving wife about the same time he lost Trixie. It’s been an emotional roller coaster for the both of us as we both tried to comfort each other. We talked about it for hours as I stroked him on the forehead.”

“You never told me about losing your wife,” answers Dr. Croft.

“I’m so glad that Terry was able to find his mate again. He never knew that she was still alive when he believed that she was mortally wounded. I know that will not happen for me. Sandra died in my arms in that terrible car accident. She has been buried for seven years to the day we ended up here.”

“Let me get my things so we can head back. You are going to have to lead the way since I have no idea where Viking Bay is from here.” With everything packed, the two get on their wyverns and take off.

“Lets head West to the coast and fly it North. We may be able to spot a raft if the others are out exploring.”

The flight heads down the hill along open rock encrusted grasslands ending at the sea. Turning North, they see a vast swamp broken up with sections of open water and rocky hills studded with crumbling stone structures. Flying lower, it becomes apparent that the area is loaded with alligators and titanboas. “Those ruins look interesting,” comments Dr. Croft. “But, not with all of that dangerous wildlife roaming down there.”

“It seems to go on for kilometers,” answers Dr. Sanders. “There’s the mouth of the river to the canyon up ahead.”

“Lets check out those brown flying creatures.” ask Dr. Croft. “I’ve never seen anything like them before.”

Terry flies in close with Trixie in formation. “That is totally unbelievable.” responds Dr. Sanders. “Halsey was right. Those are real live Griffins. They actually do exist.”

The flight continues up the coast which starts turning West at the Blue Obelisk. “That must be the campsite of Tod and Mary,” Dr. Sanders tells Dr. Croft. “Tod said he knew exactly what to do in order to survive on Ark.”

“I see more ruins up on the ridge in this tropical jungle,” announces Dr. Croft. “We need to check them out as soon as we can.”

It is late afternoon when Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft arrive at Viking Bay. There are four rafts tied up by the base.

“I see two wyverns flying in from the West I’ve never seen before,” announces Tod.

“I don’t believe it,” says Joe as he places the spotting scope on them as they get closer. “Dr. Sanders is riding on the one with the crooked claw. He must have made friends with it. I have no idea who is riding on the female lightning.”

“I thought that we were all accounted for,” answers Mary. “Someone must have been close by when Dr. Sanders activated the teleporter.”

“Mary, get your camera,” responds Professor Narcy. “No one is going to believe me when I tell them that Dr. Sanders is riding on a wyverm.”

“Professor Narcy, How do you like my ride?” Dr. Sanders announces as he has Terry land in front of him.

“Are you now going to set my pants on fire?” ask Professor Narcy.

“I’m not going to try,” answers Terry. “I can’t control my lightning discharge the way Annie can control her fire attack. It would be too dangerous for you if I attempted to light your pants on fire.”

“Thank you,” Professor Narcy answers as he walks up to Terry. “As you probably know, It was Annie’s idea to play a joke on Dr. Sanders, not mine.”

“Who are your friends that came with you?” I ask Dr Sanders.

“This is Dr. Croft, a close associate of mine. She got caught up in the teleportation when she came up to the cave looking for us. She ended up on the other side of the barrier in the badlands.”

“The wyvern is Trixie, Terry’s lost mate. He thought she had died when she fell from the sky badly wounded during the final battle seven years ago and became unresponsive. She has been trapped alone on the other side of the barrier until she came to Dr. Croft’s rescue. We found them both yesterday morning when the barrier came down at the Green Obelisk as we flew to it. They were living in an old temple by the stream.”

“Mary, you will be interested in what I found in an old farmhouse in the highlands.”

“A map and a journal!” Mary responds in surprise as Dr. Sanders hands her the two items.

“Something extraordinary has been going on over on the other side of the barrier. Terry and Dr. Croft have been witnessing the changes taking place over there. It is as if The Keepers of the Ragnarok Ark are still experimenting with terriforming it.”

“We saw that this morning when we ran into a shimmering wall with our raft,” answers Mary. “You say that the barrier is now down at the Green Obelisk?”

“And all along the Western coastline. From the temple by the stream in the Outback scrub land, there is a grassy slope similar to the Highlands. That goes down to a vast swamp along the sea which continues up to the mouth of the canyon. We saw Halsey’s Griffins flying up on the table rocks. There is a set of ruins in the jungle we need to visit. They are nothing like what we have seen so far.”

“I see where those ruins are located,” answers Mary as she is studying the map. “It is a rugged area. We will have to be careful with the predators that are sure to be living in there.”

“Then, we should plan to explore the jungle next,” I answer.

“Can we fix up a place so Terry and Trixie can stay with us here?” ask Dr. Croft. “They want to stay with us.”

“Looks like we have ourselves another Tammy and Tarmac,” answers Mary. “We can do what we did for them on Thieves. We can build them a landing platform that they can live on. They can even construct a nest there if they desire.

“Lets get started before it gets dark,” answers Joe.

The construction goes well given the plentiful availability of stone and wood in the area. “That looks so wonderful,” Trixie tells us as we get it finished. “We will be well out of reach of any Rexes in the area.”

“Who are Tammy and Tarmac?”

“They are two fire wyverns we first made contact with on Thieves,” I answer. “We rescued Tammy from certain death when she became trapped by a chain shackle pirates had placed on her as several T-Rexes moved in to attack. Tarmac, her mate, became friends with us as a result. Those two made the decision to live at our base. They built a nest on the platform and started to raise a family in it.”

“That sounds so wonderful,” answers Terry. “There have been no wyverns hatched on Ragnarok since the three Daenarys raised from those stolen eggs. It would be wonderful to have young ones around again.”

“Tammy’s twins were so cute,” answers Mary. “It would be great to see young wyverns here as well.”

“If The Keepers are willing, it will become a reality once again,” answers Mary.

“Lets get some rest as we will have a busy day tomorrow if we want to go check out the jungle ruins,” answers Joe.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 14, The Dungeons in the Ruinous Jungle.

 

“Trixie!” says a shocked Annie in total surprise when the two wyverns fly in to visit. “We thought you were dead. What happened to you? Where have you been the past seven years?”

“When she fell from the sky and was unresponsive, I thought that she had died,” answered Terry. “I pulled the bolt out of her chest to no avail. Yesterday, Dr. Sanders and I found her beyond the barrier in an old temple with a female human as her companion.”

“When I fell from the sky, I was unconscious for days,” answers Trixie. “When I finally woke up, I found myself on the other side of the barrier. I was marooned there, alone, for those seven years. It was such a relief when I found Dr. Croft to keep me company until Terry and Dr. Sanders arrived to bring us back together.”

“I’m so glad that you took my advise to go visit the humans,” Sandy answers. “You picked Dr. Sanders, of all humans, to become so fond of? How did that happen?”

“We found that we had so much in common with the sudden lost of our mates seven years ago,” Terry answers. “I’m so glad that I got to talk to him instead of diving into the volcano. Besides, no one else was at their base at the time.”

“That is so unexpected,” answers Annie. “I’ll have to apologize for setting his pants on fire. Do you think that his mate will ever return to him?”

“No,” answers Terry. “He told me that he saw her die in his arms from a terrible accident. She was buried days later as is the custom of the humans. I do see the possibility that he and Dr. Croft may get together in the near future. Having both lost their mates, they have a lot in common as well.”

“Where is Dr. Sanders now,” ask Sandy. “The humans have been out looking for the both of you.”

“He is back with Dr. Croft and the others in Viking Bay.” answers Terry.

“We asked them if we could live there with them.” Trixie answers. “They have built us a platform where we can rest safe from the predators.”

“Mary told us that we reminded her of two of their wyvern friends, Tammy and Tarmac, from Thieves. She said that they built a nest on their platform and hatched twins. They were the first young ones born on Thieves since the pirates had been driven out.”

“That’s amazing,” answers Annie. “The last wyverns born on Ragnarok were those egg tames of Daenarys. They wanted nothing to do with us. You have my blessing to build your nest and start raising a family there if you so desire. There are so few of us left.”

“The humans now have a map of Ragnarok and a journal,” Terry tells Annie. “They plan to start exploring the caves and ruins to look for clues so they can return to their world. We want to help them in return for getting us back together again.”

“Tell them to wait until I can talk to them,” answers Annie. “The caves are extremely dangerous to anyone that ventures in them. I’ll come visit first thing in the morning.”

“It is close to midnight when the two wyverns come back landing on the new platform we have built for them. “How was your visit?” Joe ask who is on watch.

“Everyone is so excited to see Trixie again,” Terry answers. “Annie said to wait for her before you go cave exploring. She wants to warn you about the dangers you may face in some of them. She also wants to apologize to Dr. Sanders and thank him for saving me from jumping into the volcano.”

“What you did with Dr. Sanders was the right thing for the both of you,” answers Joe. “Talking about what happened is the best therapy for overcoming grief. Even Dr. Sanders has settled down now that he has Dr. Croft to be with. Those two have been talking to each other all evening.”

We’ll wait for Annie before we continue exploring in the morning.”

--------------------

It is Day Eight, or is it Day nine on the Ragnarok Ark, as another morning approaches. Both Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft are up on the platform with their favorite wyverns asking about their visit with Annie and her friends. Mary, Professor Narcy, and I come up to join them.

“Terry was going to jump into the volcano? That would have been a tragic for the both of you. Dr. Sanders, you are a lifesaver.” Mary tells him.

“Here comes Annie,” Professor Narcy announces. “It looks like that she brought a bunch of her friends with her.”

“Lets head to ground level,” I announce. “There is not enough room up here for that many of them.”

“I’m sorry that I embarrassed you the other day by setting your pants on fire,” Annie apologizes. “Your friendship with Terry saved us from losing another one of our kind. As you can see, this is all of us that are left on Ragnarok. Your finding Trixie has given us hope that we can continue to thrive.”

“I’m sorry that I doubted your existence,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Terry has been as big a help to me as I have been to him.”

“We witnessed a similar scenario on Thieves,” I tell Annie. “When we had to leave, both Tammy and Red Alpha were in the process of raising a family. They had moved in with a village of surviving slaves from the Pirate uprising. I’m sure that several other wyvern pairs were in the process of following in their steps when we left.”

“What brings you here today?”

“We’re hear to help you check out the dungeon in the Ruinous Jungle,” answers Annie. “We can make the trip there easier for you by flying you to the ramparts at its entrance. Just be aware that when you go to explore the cave below that it is filled with various traps of all kinds.”

“That sounds like the same traps we ran into in the mystery cave on Thieves,” I answer. “We better leave our tames here for today. We’ll take you up on the offer of transportation. You can drop us off up there and come back for us by mid afternoon. We can send up a flare to alert you when we are ready.”

“Sounds like a plan,” answers Annie. “Crystal, Night stalker, Torch, and Smoker are most interest to experience humans flying them.”

“Then, lets everyone get their weapons and pack and pick out a ride.” We are soon packed and off on our ride.

“This is great,” comments Sarah as she rides Crystal for the first time. “I wish I could take her back home with me.”

“Red Alpha wanted to do just that before she became intimate with a mate,” I answer. “I had to convince her that it would be too dangerous for us all if I were able to bring her back from Thieves.”

“Halsey is right,” answers Dr Croft. “The authorities in our world would be more brutal to them then those leaders fighting for control in Ragnarok back in the Middle Ages. Let us just enjoy them where they are on Ragnarok.”

Being a direct flight, we make it in no time to the stone ramparts where we land and disembark one at a time.

“Professor Narcy thanks Annie for having her friends giving us a lift up to the ramparts. “It was my pleasure,” Annie answers back. “Crystal, Night stalker, Torch, and Smoker really enjoyed the experience.”

Gathered outside, we prepare to enter the doorway to the room carved into the side of the cliff. The stone rampart we landed on has a bridge over a waterfalls on one side. It lands into a pool below. “Annie told me that the cave entrance is behind the waterfalls. There is a surface entrance above. We need to be careful in there due to the traps and spiders.”

(Game play, the scene described below, does exist in the game. It is not for the weak minded to explore.)

Entering the chamber hollowed out in the side of the cliff, our torches reveal a sight of horror. We find the bloody petrified remains of a Viking that has been butterflied, laying on the floor as he had attempted to crawl away. (The Viking Butterfly, a death sentence where the ribs are hacked away from the back and ripped open exposing the lungs. If the victim cries out from the pain, the belief is that they will go to hell.) We find another tied to a rack, having been skinned alive. Still another is suspended in a wooden cage also having been skinned alive.

“Disgusting,” Sarah says as she has to look away.

“That early Viking culture were known for such savagery,” answers Professor Narcy.

Back in the room is a war map of Ragnarok. Table and chairs are set around it. We also find three crates similar to what we have found on the beach. They yield up more crossbows, pikes, swords, hatchets, shields, and other useful items.

Shaken by the brutality that has taken place here, we wrap up our documentation and head outside.

“What next?” Sarah ask.

“We head for the cave,” Mary answers.

“Lets look for the upper entrance,” I answer. “Hopefully, that will place us above the traps below.”

“What’s this about traps?” ask Dr. Sanders.

“On Thieves, we ran into a cave that contained pressure plate traps.”I answer, “They were well hidden. Step on one and a poison dart can pin you to the wall.”

“According to Annie, we need to find a tribute down there if we are to use one of the Obelisk to return back to our world,” answers Professor Narcy. “We need to find and retrieve one from each of the major caves that are marked on the map that you found. So, you better pretend that you are Indiana Jones, because it could be nasty in there.”

“I made us up several reusable grappling hooks for the crossbow,” answers Joe. Let Halsey and I use them if necessary to retrieve the tribute artifact inside.”

Heading up above the ramparts, we find a pond with the upper cave entrance partially hidden by the bushes. Lighting our torches, we carefully head inside. “Looks safe so far, Joe says as he takes lead.” It soon opens up into a huge chamber with a deep pit below to the water. There are spiders galore roaming down below as we see the same mummified webs of dinosaurs and people we saw on Thieves.

“How did a Rex end up suspended in a web?” ask Dr Sanders. “My God, It’s still alive.”

“Lets find and retrieve the artifact, then, we can put it out of its misery when we leave.” I answer. “We certainly don’t want to join them to be eaten alive by the baby spiders.”

“There it is,” says Joe as we work our way around up above.

“Lets try grappling there,” I answer.

“Here comes those spiders,” Joe warns as we swing down to the artifact.

“Drop your torch down below,” I order as I take the artifact from the pillar base. The spiders head for the lit torches as we grapple our way back above to the others.

“Lets get out of here,” Joe orders.

I stop for a moment and place a bullet to the head of the suffering rex to put him out of his misery, then race out with the others.

“Wow, that was nasty,” comments Dr Sanders. “Are all the other caves going to be like that?”

“Yes, and most likely, much harder to get the artifact from then this one,” answers Joe.

We fire a flare to signal Annie that we have completed out mission. All ten wyverns land by the pond area. “How did it go?” she asks.

“The dungeon was as shocking as you described,” I answer. “Those people were just plain brutal to their enemies and each other. I can understand why you ended up wiping out the survivors before they took you all out.”

“Thanks for the tip on an upper entrance to the cave with the traps. We were able to avoid them and the spiders by using grappling hooks to reach the tribute artifact. There would have been no way to get it from below with all the spiders down there. It looked like that they took out many of the vikings before you did. They had even dragged in, cocooned, and hung from the ceiling a live T-Rex. I put him down to end his suffering of being eaten alive. I hope that we never see another spectacles of either event.”

“I never knew those cave spiders could target and bring down a T-Rex,” answers Annie. “We’ll be sure that none of us ever go in that cave to end up like that Rex. Are you ready for us to take you back to your base?”

“We’re ready.” I answer. We fly back to the base where we thank our wyvern friends tor taking us to the Ruinous Jungle ruins. They tell us it was most enjoyable having us as friends.

Back at the base, Trixie has asked if she can build a nest on the platform. “I’ve never done anything like this before,” she tells us. “No one else has made one since the Vikings arrived here.”

“I can guide you,” answers Mary. “I observed Tammy and Tarmac construct their nest. It is not that difficult. You and Terry can obtain the needed materials nearby from the other side of the pond. I can guide you in its construction. Lets get to work. You should be able to complete it by nightfall.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 15. The Ice Cave.

 

With Mary teaching Trixie and Terry how wyvern nest are built, the construction is going well. She finds it odd that the Ragnarok wyverns have forgotten how to build one, but, given the past events of seven years ago, it is likely a lost art that hasn’t been passed down from their parents.

Dr. Croft has also been involved as she observes the progress of nest building by her friend Trixie. “How did you learn how Wyvern nest are constructed?” She ask Mary.

“I made detailed notes when Tammy and Red Alpha constructed their nest while on Thieves,” answers Mary. “Normally, they build them on top of crags or in the hollows of cliffs so the eggs and hatchlings are protected from predators. The landing platform works just as well and is far more stable. Those two are doing quite well, now that I have shown them how to start one. I suspect that they lost that ability when there were no elderly wyverns left to pass on those skills to the younger generations.”

With the nest under construction, the rest of us are busy fashioning up the fur armor we will need when we go back into the ice cave. It takes most of the evening to complete that project. “Is there any information about the ice cave?” I ask Mary as she searches through the journal Dr. Sanders has found.

“Not much,” she answers. “The writings just warn about it being brutality cold in the interior of the glacier. It says that we need to find a secret passage to where the Artifact of the Pack is guarded by something called the Ice Worm Queen.”

“That does not sound good,” answers Professor Narcy. “Not if that place is anything like the Frozen North of the Ice King from the Game Of Thrones novels.”

“Definitely Not good!” I answer. “The Death Worm on Thieves was bad enough. They even frighten our wyvern friends over there.”

“We had better be prepared to face the possibility of zombies after what Terry has told me about the past battles on Ragnarok,” answers Dr. Sanders.

“If that is the case, where would we find Dragon Glass and what does it look like?” ask Dr Croft.

“Lets ask Terry,” I answer.

Dr. Sanders and I visit Terry up by the nest. He is visibly frightened by our mention of where we plan to go explore. “As far as I know, both sides were wiped out in that final battle,” he answers. “The Ice King was killed in that battle when a group or archers, armed with arrows tipped with dragon glass, shot him off a zombie Wyvern. The zombie was once one of Daenarys dragons that the Ice King killed with a magical homing spear. His minions pulled it out of the water where it then became a zombie. Daenarys was killed in the showdown between her dragons and the zombie. I do not know much else about what happened after Trixie and I were attacked.”

“What does Dragon Glass look like?” I ask.

“It is a black shiny brittle rock that breaks off into sharp shards,” Terry answers.

“Just a moment,” I tell him as I go to the raft and bring back a piece of Obsidian. “Is this what it looks like?” as I show him a piece of Obsidian.

“That’s it,” Terry answers.

“Then, we have our Dragon Glass,” I tell the others. “We will need to craft up spears and arrows tipped with that material. That, flaming arrows, and our torches, should give us the weapons we need should any of the undead remain in the Ice Cave.”

Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft stays up on the platform with Terry and Trixie for a while in order to calm them down. They don’t want us to go in there and are frightened for our safety. The rest of us get together for our planning for the next day.

“Do we really have to explore the Ice Cave?” I ask the group. “Terry was visibly shaken by our questions as if he had some kind of knowledge about what is hiding in there. I didn’t think that there was anything that would frighten a wyvern besides a Death Worm in the desert.”

“If it wasn’t for the fact that we need the artifact hidden in there, I would agree with you that exploring that cave is not worth the risk,” answers Mary. “At least, Terry was able to tell us what type of weapons will work against anything undead that may be in that cave.”

“It’s a good thing that we turned around the other day when we were in there,” says Joe. “That would have been a most unpleasant surprise to run into any of the undead while totally unprepared for them. Halsey and I will prepare some obsidian weapons to take with us.”

Our rides have expanded to seven horses and a unicorn as we prepare for the trip ahead. Both Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft are amazed that such a creature actually exist. It is soon accepted that this unusual creature is just a rare variant of the Equuis that are common to this area of Ragnarok. Tod and Sarah plan to ride up with their raptors with the Hyaenodon pack.

The trip to the ice cave is uneventful with the usual wild creatures to contend with. One stray T-Rex that threatens us is dispatched with a couple of rounds from the Long Neck Rifle. Anything else keeps their distance thanks to the raptors and the Hyaenodon pack. We stable the horses inside the cave entrance, then put on our fur armor and proceed inside taking the raptors and Hyaenodon with us.

It is hours of searching later that it seems we have ran into a dead end. “I don’t understand what Terry was so worried about,” comments Dr. Sanders as he smacks his metal pick into an ice sheet wall. It shatters reveling a huge cavern beyond. The air becomes bitterly cold. The raptors and Hyaenodon get very nervous, then bolt back to the cave entrance.

“Light your torches,” orders Joe. “Be alert. There has to be a reason why Sarah’s Hyaenodon pack left us and why that barrier was there.”

We proceed into the interior as we start hearing strange noises beyond. “Is that the bats and spiders?” Dr. Sanders ask nervously.

“No,” I answer. “It could be something else, only much worse. We best proceed slowly. This place would be so ideal for the undead of the Ice King to be hiding in. They could be anywhere.”

Suddenly, from behind us, there is a terrible shreak, a sound that a Wyvern might make only much more haunting. “We are so dead,” warns Tod as he sees a ghostly white wyvern coming up behind us.

“Oh crap,” I say as I place the spotting scope on him and see those glazed over blue gray eyes. “That thing is a zombie. RUN!” We race into the chamber as a freezing electrical charge goes flying ahead of us.

Up ahead, we see pillars containing eggs of death worms that are about the size of us. “Don’t touch any of those,” I yell as we scatter hiding behind them as another freezing electrical charge goes blasting between us shattering several of the eggs on their pillars. Then all hell breaks loose as a huge creature burst from below the ice ahead emitting an ear piercing scream.

“What is that thing?” a frightened Dr. Sanders ask me as we both scramble for cover.

“That looks like an Alpha Death Worm,” I answer him in a panic. “It must also be a zombie.” as I dive behind a frozen boulder.

We try to sneak out of the cavern as the Zombie Death Worm and wyvern attack each other, but find the way is being blocked by flying chunks of ice and shattered death worm eggs. The wyvern slices a huge chunk of flesh out of the death worm’ side with its ice ray as it grabs him by the body shaking him violently.

Then, it happens, a glowing icy spear is knocked out of the zombie wyvern and lands in front of me.

I don’t know why, but, I lunge at it with my metal hatchet and bring it down hard on the spear shattering it. It erupts into a brilliant flash of light. The zombie Death Worm and all of her eggs suddenly vanish. With a loud thud, the zombie wyvern falls to the ground on his side.

We are all stunned by what has happened as we go over to look at the zombie wyvern who is now changing back into the colors of a fire wyvern. He is in really bad shape.

“Halsey, is everyone OK?” as I hear a familiar voice from a wyvern calling for me from inside the cave towards the entrance.

“Annie?” I answer in return. “What are you doing here?”

“Terry came to visit telling us that you were going exploring in the Ice Cave. He was so worried about you and Dr. Sanders going into this cave.”

“It was with good reason,” I answer. “There was a zombie wyvern and ice worm queen in here with us.”

“Was that zombie wyvern Viseryon?” answers a puzzled Annie. “I thought that he was killed in the final showdown.”

“I don’t know, he’s over here,” I answer as I walk over to where he is laying.

“Ohhh!” I hear a painful groan coming from the badly injured wyvern as he raises his head slightly to look at us. Everyone grabs a weapon.

“Hold your fire,” I order. “He is no longer a Zombie.”

“Annie, forgive me,” Viseryon says in a pain filled very weak voice as he looks at her. “I’m so sorry if I had hurt any of you. The past seven years has been a living hell. I’ve had no control over what I was doing for so long.”

“I forgive you,” Annie answers in return.

“Thank you,” Viseryon answers in a dying breath. “Halsey, thank you for releasing me from my torment.”

“Rest easy, my friend,” I tell him as I am now stroking him on the forehead. He looks at me, then closes his eyes for the last time.

“Who is this wyvern?” Tod ask Professor Narcy.

“He was one of Daenarys three dragons,” Professor Narcy answers. “He’s the one that was turned into a zombie when the Ice King killed him using that magical homing spear that Halsey destroyed.”

“I didn’t know that he was still alive after all of these years,” Annie answers.

“In a sense, he wasn’t,” I answer. “He was an undead until I shattered the magical spear that had killed him.”

“What are we going to do with him?” ask Professor Narcy.

“If you can help us rig up a sling so we can carry him, we will give him a proper burial by fire in the volcano,” Annie answers.

“Lets see if we can use our horses to pull him out of the cave,” I tell Annie. With our lassos and saddles, our eight horses are able to drag Viseryon out of the ice cave to where he can be picked up and carried for burial.

We rig up more ropes on Viseryon’s broken body so four of the wyverns can pick him up to fly to the volcano. They are made from the eight lassos so each rope is held by a loop that the wyverns can hold on with their feet. We switch to desert armor leaving the fur on the horses and ride on the ten wyverns that are in the procession. Terry is one of the four carrying Viseryon with Dr. Sanders riding. Viseryon is heavy but the four are able to carry him to the volcano which now lies dormant. Flying over the crater, a short farewell is said to Valhalla and the rope sling is released.

“Terry is in trouble!” I shout as I see him and Dr. Sanders being dragged down into the crater. One of the ropes have caught up on Terry’s crooked foot resulting in all of the weight of the deceased wyvern being placed on him. Viseryon’s body lands in the lava but the rope is in such a place that it is not burning off.

“I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die!” Terry keeps crying out in a panic as Dr. Sanders decides that he has to do something and quick. He leaps forward on Terry’s neck who is now flapping his wings in a panic trying to stay out of the hot lava and makes a desperate leap to Terry’s crooked foot. Taking his hatchet, he swings it below cutting the rope. They lurch upward with Dr Sanders hanging onto the crooked foot for dear life. They collapse on the outside of the crater with Terry totally exhausted.

“Are you all right?” Dr. Croft asks in concern as she lands next to them on Trixie.

“We made it,” Dr. Sanders answers as he stands back up with the desert armor smoking from the heat. “Let me check on Terry. He was so scared.

“I’m all right,” an exhausted Terry answers. “Thank you for cutting the rope. I don’t know how it got tangled around my foot.”

“The rope just got itself hooked on your crooked claw.” Dr. Sanders answers. “Had we not been in the lava, you could have just landed and it would have fallen off on its own.”

“Such an irony,” Terry answers with a nervous laugh. “A couple of days ago, I was ready to jump into that lava and kill myself. Today, I was so afraid that it was actually going to happen.”

The ground is starting to shake as the crater begins to smoke from the burning wyvern. “We better get out of here,” I warn everyone. “Its getting ready to erupt again.” We take off flying back to the cave to get our tames.

Landing, we bid the wyverns a farewell as Terry and Trixie heads back to our base. “We forgot to get the artifact,” Mary says as we get ready to mount our rides.

“We’ll get it,” Tod and Sarah announces. They ride the raptors into the cave finding the artifact just past the bottomless pit where the Ice Queen had came out of. It is retrieved. We all ride back to the base.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 16. Continued exploration for artifacts.

 

“What an incredible day,” says Mary as we all get together for the evening. “We find one of Daenarys dragons still alive as a zombie, somehow managed not to get killed by it when it attacks us, and later, Halsey touches him and lives to tell about it.”

“I find it so hard to believe as well,” I answer. “Destroying the homing spear of the Ice King must have broken the zombie spell. It’s just too bad he was so badly injured due to the fight with the Ice Queen. He could have told us so much about Daenarys and being raised by her from an egg.”

“I’m surprised that he was able to talk to you and Annie,” answers Professor Narcy. “There is no record of any of Daenarys dragons ever speaking to her, Jon Snow, or anyone else.”

“She must have been able to communicate with them telepathically,” I answer. “Breaking the spell may have enable him to talk directly to Annie and I during those last moments he was alive. He was in so much pain. At least, he left us peacefully while I was stroking his forehead. I hope that he has returned to Daenarys in his afterlife to live with her in peace.”

“One thing is for certain,” answers Dr. Sanders. “No one is going to believe that there are any facts to those Game of Thrones novels. I’m still finding it hard to believe after seeing that zombie dragon for real.”

“I never knew you had it in you when you saved Terry and yourself from certain death when he was being pulled into the lava,” answers Dr. Croft. “That was so brave of you.”

“Sometimes, one has to react and think about the consequences later,” Dr. Sanders answers. “I wasn’t going to let him die, due to a silly accident, when he now has everything to live for.”

Well, at least we got what has to be the hardest artifact we ever had to go for,” answers Mary. “Lets check the map to find where the others are located so we can plan to get them and return back to the dig site in our world.”

“I think that we will need the help of our wyvern friends to get The Clever. It is located in the trench where they live.”

“I can take you there,” answers Terry. “It’s not far from here. There’s nothing dangerous in there. You will just need to dress for the heat.”

“I’ll go on Terry,” Dr. Sanders answers. “I’ve already have been exposed to the heat and survived.”

“I’ll take Dr. Croft with me,” Trixie tells us. “She is used to the desert heat. If we leave right now, we can easily be back before dark.”

“How do you like my desert armor?” Dr Croft ask Dr. Sanders as she returns with her new set of crafted clothes.

“It looks stunning.” answers Dr. Sanders. “Unfortunately, My clothes are all burned.”

“We have some extra silk on the raft,” I answer. “We can craft up a new set for you before you head to the Dragon Trench.” With a new set of clothes and full canteens, they are soon off together on the new quest.

“Why do I feel that Terry and Trixie are trying to get the two doctors to hook up together?” ask Mary.

“It may have to do with how happy Terry has been after being reunited with Trixie with Dr. Sanders help.” I answer. “He knows about Dr. Sanders losing his wife about the time he thought that he had lost Trixie. He just wants to return the favor and see him happy with a mate.”

“That certainly makes sense,” answers Mary. “I hope that it works out between them.”

As Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft leave on the wyverns to head to the Dragon’s Trench, Sandy and Sammy come flying in for a visit. “Where are they going?” Sandy ask me.

“They are going to the cave in Dragon’s Trench to recover an artifact.” I answer. “Actually, I think that Terry and Trixie are hoping that the two doctors will fall in love with each other while they are together alone.”

“That would be so wonderful. Terry has been so happy since Trixie has returned into his life.”

“I hope so too. What can you tell us about Wallace’s Cave?”

“All I know is that it is located in the ravine of the stream.” answers Sandy. “But, the entrance seems to be hidden by boulders. I can take you there if you want.”

“That sounds like a plan and an excuse for me to ride on you again,” I answer. “Cleo, you’re with me on your friend Sammy.”

“It looks like the rest of the artifacts are too far away to tackle before dark,” Mary says to us. “Joe, see if we can get some scuba gear crafted. We’re going to have to go diving after one of these in the morning.”

Back with Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft, They have now reached the western edge of the Dragon’s Trench where a waterfall of red hot lava cascaded down to a red river deep below. The two wyverns dive deep into the trench leveling off well below the giant crystals and bridges of stone. The air shimmers from the rising heat below as it reverberates from the rumbling sound of the flowing lava. Several nesting coves show up high on the canyon walls.

“How can you withstand the heat to build nest in here?” Ask Dr. Croft.

“It is not that hot in the alcoves,” answers Trixie. “It has always been done in the past to protect our eggs from the predators. Unfortunately, we couldn’t keep the Vikings from stealing our eggs once it got dark. They would drop nets across the trench making it too hard for us to attack them. Eventually, we just stop laying eggs for them to steal.”

“I do hope that you will start laying eggs again. I would be so sad if your species became extinct as a result of how you were treated by the vikings in the past.”

“I may be laying one soon,” answers Trixie. “Mary tells me how she so enjoyed watching Tammy raising her little ones. It will be so wonderful to be able to raise a family at your base.”

“That would be wonderful. I hope that we are still around to watch the blessed event when it happens.”

“Here’s the entrance to the cave,” reports Terry. “The artifact is located just inside.” Landing in the entrance, Dr. Sanders dismounts Terry and goes inside to gather the artifact.

“I hope that the rest of them are like this one,” answers Dr. Sanders after he returns to Terry with the artifact. “That ice cave was so brutal.”

“That’s as bad as they gets,” Terry says. “I was so afraid for all of you when Halsey asked me about Dragon Glass. I knew that Viseryon was trapped in there somewhere as a zombie. I was so afraid that in his zombie state he would have killed you all if he found you.”

“You knew that he was in there and didn’t tell us? Why?”

“I was praying that you wouldn’t find the secret cavern where he was trapped in. You would have thoroughly explored the cave, found nothing of interest, and would have left.”

“We almost did,” answers Dr Sanders. “It is only when I slammed my pick into the ice in disgust that the wall fell apart revealing the hidden cavern. Why did you tell Annie that we were in there?”

“I was so worried that Viseryon had found you when I saw the Hyaenodon and raptors come bolting out of the cave.”

“He had found us after I had shattered the barrier with my pick. By a stroke of fate, Viseryon damaged the Ice Worm eggs while chasing us and ended up fighting her until Halsey destroyed the homing spear that was dislodged in the battle to break the zombie curse. It caused the Ice Queen to vanished and Viseryon to return to normal.”

“Annie told us all about what happened next when Viseryon asked her for forgiveness. She was really surprise to see Halsey approach and comfort him during his last moments alive. He is in a much better place as a result.”
 

“I hope that he finds Daenarys in his afterlife,” answers Dr. Sanders. “Her ghost has been haunting Our Vikings Bay for the past 1200 years as she keeps looking for him.”

“If he has Valhalla’s blessing, she will find him.” answers Terry.

As they head back, Cleo and I have landed in the ravine of Wallace Creek. It is a tight fit for Sandy and Sammy who follow us as we search for the cave. “It should be somewhere on the left,” Sandy tells me as we wade upstream.

“I see something dark behind these boulders,” Cleo tells me.

“Lets mine these boulders and see what is back there,” I answer. They break away revealing a cave entrance.

“The opening is too small for you two to enter,” I tell Sandy. “You can sit up on the bridge above if you want while we go in after the artifact.” With lit torches, we head inside.

It is a long way inside when our torches light up a grizzly scene. “That looks like Littlefoot from Game of Thrones,” I tell Cleo. “He did not die from a hail of arrows to the back in the story, he had his throat slit by the Queen’s sister when he was confronted in an inquiry by the Queen about his past scheming. This place has not followed any of the stories even though it looks like that justice was served for what he had done.” We continue on to find a bed, abandoned supplies, crystal deposits, and the artifact hidden there.

“Is everything OK?” Sandy ask me as we return back to the entrance.

“We’re fine,” I answer. “We found Littlefoot’s petrified body stuck full of arrows in there, but, otherwise, everything else was normal.”

“So, that’s what happened to him,” answers Sandy. “It explains why the cave entrance was blocked with boulders.”

“This has been so strange,” I tell Sandy. “Game of Thrones is a work of fiction, yet we seem to be finding bits and pieces of that story that are totally out of place here. From this place being all wrong, according to the story, to your presence when only Daenarys three dragons existed, to finding Littlefoot’s body stuck full of arrows, and finding a zombie Viseryon in the ice cave, none of it is making any sense.”

“But then, talking wyverns, tameable extinct creatures, other creatures that are not from our past, and this strange world doesn’t make any sense either,” responds Cleo.

“You’re right,” I tell Cleo. “We can only observe, learn what works, and just live with the strange things that are happening here. Hopefully, The Keepers will tell us more about their Arks and what they are doing with their experiments on them. Lets head back and give this to Mary. Perhaps, she can piece more of the story together with the journal Dr. Sanders found in the farmhouse nearby.”

We get back by evening to find Trixie up on her new nest. “We got back here just in time,” Dr. Croft announces. “Trixie has laid an egg.”

“That’s wonderful,” I answer. “it gives me hope that their species will continue to thrive on Ragnarok.”

“Can I build my nest here?” Sandy asks me.

“Most certainly,” I answer. “It looks like we better make our base much bigger so Annie, Crystal and Torch can build their nest too.”

“It will be so much nicer here then down in that hot trench with the alcoves where the little one could accidentally fall into the lava below.” answers Dr Croft.

“That sounds like a plan for tomorrow,” reports Mary. “While Joe and I go diving for the last artifact, the rest of you can enlarge the base for our wyvern friends. Trixie and Terry can show them how a nest is built.”

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 17. Back to the real world.

 

It is another beautiful morning in Viking Bay as we are all up early to start a major base expansion for our wyvern friends. Sandy has brought them all back here to see Trixie’s egg, they are all so excited at the prospect of raising youngsters free from any of the threats they had faced in the past. We lay out the platforms first, then proceed to build the stone walls. Terry takes over nesting duties so Mary and Trixie can show the other wyverns how a nest is constructed. The males are kept busy ferrying building panels to the expanding base as our work teams have to go much further away from the base to harvest the raw materials needed for the expansion. Joe is kept busy repairing metal hatchets and picks while Sarah has the raptors and Hyaenodon pack out to protect the work crews from any predator threats.

With all of that crafting, we all reach the maximum level of 100.

It is mid afternoon as Joe and Mary take the raft out to the ship wreak in the middle of the bay to retrieve the artifact hidden in the underwater cave there. Joe had fabricated the needed scuba gear for that mission. The trip takes them well over an hour. They are forced to kill a shark that wants to eat them with the harpoon gun.

Returning to the finished base expansion by evening, Mary gathers everybody together including all of the wyverns to make an announcement. “The good news,” she tells everybody. “We have recovered the final artifact needed for the tributes. The bad news, The Keepers have left us a note saying that we have to leave Ragnarok tomorrow by noon.”

“We are to go to the cave that Dr. Sanders found and place our tributes in the alter. When it activates, we will be returned to our world in Vikings Bay.”

“Annie, I’m so sorry. We so much wanted to stay to see your friends enjoy raising families again, but we must leave or face the prospect of being trapped here forever.”

“I understand,” a disappointed Annie responds. “You need to be back in your own world. We will never forget the kindness you humans have shown us during the past week when Sandy first made contact with you.”

“Thank you for your understanding,” Mary answers. “Let us spend the rest of the evening enjoying each other’ company.”

“Where’s Sandy?” I ask Annie.

“She is on her nest,” Annie answers.

I head up there to see what is going on finding her sitting on her nest. She shows me her new egg. “That is so wonderful,” I tell her.

“I’m so glad that I became friends with you,” she answers. “It has been such an enjoyable experience.”

“Tammy, Red Alpha, Tarmac, Sleeper, Tesla, even Viseryon during his last few minutes with us. It has been a wonderful experience with all the wyverns that I have known, even ridden. Yet, you are special. I had to earn your friendship the old fashion way under the rules of Dungeon Lore. I believe that I will miss you the most when I have to return to my world tomorrow. You were the key that made this all possible.”

I don’t think that anyone has slept in their bed that night. They are all up on the nest with their wyvern friends. To ease Sarah’s concern, Annie has told her that they will care for our tames making sure that they get some attention, their exercise, and protection from the area predators.

All too soon, morning has arrived. Annie has laid an egg during the night. It is also her first since the Viking occupation. We end up doubling up on the males who ferry us to the cave in the canyon where we bid them farewell, then go inside.

“Why didn’t I find this room before?” ask Dr. Sanders as we enter through the hidden passage to the shrine where it all started from.

“Probably, because you were not suppose to find it until now,” answers Mary. She places the tributes inside. “Dr. Sanders,” Mary says as the rest of us gather around the alter. “Do us the honor by placing your hand on the alter.” A shimmering mesh surrounds us as everything goes blinding white.

It is mid afternoon as the dig site workers are shocked by the sudden presence of a glowing light on the beach followed by everyone but me re-materializing inside of it. Two new visitors walk up to talk to Joe and Mary, then introduce themselves to the others. It is Dee with her boss, Jerry from MIB. “Dr. Sanders, How was your visit on the Ragnarok Ark?” Jerry Asks. “You can answer the question freely. We vetted your work team before they were even hired to work for Professor Narcy.”

“Absolutely, out of this world,” he answers. “I find it so hard to believe that I became best friends with a dragon.” There is laughter among some of the locals nearby.

“Don’t be so sure of yourself that dragons don’t exist,” Logan, who is of Viking heritage and is familiar with the legends of Game of Thrones, says to his co worker O-Brian. “We saw Daenarys ghost flying with them again last night.”

“Where’s Halsey?” ask Mary.

“He was standing right next to me when the mesh surrounded us,” answers Dr. Croft.

“He vanished during the teleport,” answers Professor Narcy.

“Was he inside the mesh with the rest of you?” ask Dee.

“Yes,” Mary answers.

“The Keepers must have had something special planned for him,” answers Jerry. “We will just have to wait for his return. Lets everyone get together for a debriefing. Your dig team is also invited to attend.”

The debriefing is interrupted an hour later when there is a flash of light and a low muffled boom high in the sky near the glacier. A large bird like creature emerges from the light which soon vanishes. As it gets closer, it becomes obvious that this flying creature is as big as an aircraft. O-Brien places his spotting scope on it, then drops it in shock. “I must be going crazy. That looks like a real live dragon,” he says in a panic. “It’s flying straight in here and somebody is riding on it.” He runs for cover as the dragon glides over the dig site, circles around, then comes in to land in front of the rest of the team.

“That’s Halsey!” Tod shouts as he recognizes me. “Just who is the wyvern that brought him back to us?”

“That looks like Daenerys missing dragon Viseryon.” Logan announces. “No one has ever ridden on him before.”

“It must be his reincarnation.” Mary answers. “We saw him die on Ragnarok after he had returned from a zombie state. Halsey became friends with him during his last moments alive.”

“Logan, would you like to pet him?” I ask as I dismount and walk towards the group.

“But, according to the stories, only Jon Snow ever touched one of Darnarys dragons and lived to tell about it.”

“It’s OK,” I answer. “You can be the third person ever to do so. Rub him on the forehead like so. He really likes that.”

“This is a dream come true. I never knew that they could be so docile.”

There is another flash of light as the ghost of Daenarys appears with her riding on Drogon with Rhaegal flying in formation.

“Now, I understand what is going on,” I tell Logan. “The keepers plan to get them back together. Viseryon, let them know that you have returned.” He looks up into the sky letting out an ear splitting shreak. There are two shreaks in return as they bank hard, then fly towards us landing next to us.

Everyone has now scrambled for cover as I stand next to Viseryon with my hand on his neck, even Dee and Jerry. “What are you doing with my dragon?” Daenarys says angerly to me.

“Ask him,” I answer back.

There is dead silence for over a minute, then Daenarys responds back.

“My sincere apologies, I never knew what had happened to him after he became a zombie. He really likes you.”

“I know,” I answer. “But he belongs in your world, not mine. Go with her, Viseryon, so she no longer has to keep searching for you.”

“Thank you for all you have done,” Daenarys answers as she takes off.

“Goodbye, my friend.” I tell Viseryon. He looks at me for the longest time, then takes off in a cloud of dust to join the other. They fly into the sunset and vanish. The rest of the team come out of hiding.

[rpicardi1]

Chapter 18. Debriefing and the followup.

 

“That, was, awesome!” Jerry tells me as they all come out of hiding. “How did you pull that off?”

“It is a long story that starts back when I destroyed the ice spear that had turned Viseryon into a zombie,” I answer.

“As the others have told you, we were searching for an artifact in the ice cave in the glacier that overlooks this valley. Actually, the valley on the Ragnarok Ark. Dr. Sanders had accidentally discovered the hidden chamber in the cave when he destroyed the ice barrier with his metal pick. When we went inside, Viseryon, in his zombie form, attacked us. As we ran for cover, he destroyed several of the egg casings of another zombie called the Ice Worm Queen. She attacked him dislodging the spear that had turned him into a zombie. With the spear destroyed, the queen vanished and he returned to normal. Being fatally hurt, but thankful that the curse had been broken, he let me comfort him until he had left us. Our wyvern friends gave him a Viking funeral of cremation by lava.”

“When Dr. Sanders activated the teleport for our return, I was sent directly to The Keeper’s Mothership which is in orbit around a strange world. Outside are thousands of Arks in their own containment forcefields orbiting that planet. One section of that ship contains terminals where the various creatures are genetically created, then sent into an ark. Another section of the ship sends supply drops down to the arks below.”

“I found Viseryon lying on the floor in what appeared to be their medical bay. He was still in bad shape from having his back broken by the fight with the Ice Worm Queen. He was scared out of his wits and kept asking for me to come stroke him on his forehead. I believe that is why I ended up on the mothership so I could be with him in his hour of need.”

“We talked for what seemed like hours as I comfort him. He told me his entire life story from when Daenarys first hatched him up to the moment when he saw the ice spear homing in on him. He says his life was like a living hell afterwards until the spear was dislodged during the fight.”

“During our talk, The Keepers were healing up his broken body. I never actually saw or spoke to any of them. When he became fully healed, he asked me to get up on his shoulders, then, he walked into a large bay where we could see the worlds and arks all around us.”

“A glowing net surrounded us, just like the one that transported everyone else back to Earth. It lifted us up and outside of the ship.”

“I thought that we were being transported back to the Ragnarok Ark or to Valhalla. You can imagine my shock when the sphere demateralized and I saw that we were flying above the real Viking Bay with the dig site below.”

“What was I going to do with Viseryon in our world? How would I be able to protect him from being discovered by the authorities? Then, I remember Logan telling me about Daenarys ghost that was searching for him. It finally dawned on me that The Keepers had deliberately planned all of this as a way to return him back to Daenarys and break the cycle of her endless searches.”

“Of all of the wyverns I have ever ridden on Ark, Viseryon was the greatest of them all because it happened here for everyone to see. What an awesome adventure it was, getting him back to the person that raised him from an egg.”

“I have to admit that I am now very jealous,” answers Jerry. “Having your entire team becoming best friend with the wyvern was fantastic enough, even with Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft becoming close friends with a pair of them. I just envy you having been taken aboard their mothership and returning to tell about it. No one else on Earth has ever been given that privilege.”

“If it wasn’t for Viseryon, I don’t think that it would have ever happened.” I answer. “I believe that they did it just for him.”

“What happens now?” ask Jerry.

“I will stay with the dig team and compare notes with what is found here and compare them to what I have seen on the Ragnarok Ark.” I answer. “The two locations appear to be almost identical, even from up in the air.”

“We will return at the end of August before you leave to see what you have found,” Jerry answers.

“That was a thrill of a lifetime to actually touch a real live dragon,” Logan tells me.

“I thought that you would enjoy that after you had told me the entire story of Game of Thrones,” I answer. “I just couldn’t tell you any sooner about any of my other wyvern friends from my visit on Thieves.”

“I would love to actually ride on one sometime,” Logan tells me.

“If The Keepers are willing, that could be a future possibility.” I answer.

It is quite a night as we finish the debriefing and visit with the dig team. They are still in awe and shock over the visit of Daenarys and her three dragons. O-Brien is still in disbelief that he saw it for real. I tell him about Dr. Sanders, who never believed that they existed, becoming such good friends with one.

The following morning, Dr. Sanders proposes to Dr. Croft. “If it wasn’t for Terry and Trixie, we would have never got together to really know each other. I accept your proposal,” she answers. We spend the day celebrating as the ship captain performs the wedding ceremony on board our research ship in the bay.

I ask Logan if there is a Wallace Creek. He shows me a map of where it is located. “Is there a cave up there in the ravine?” I ask him.

“I don’t know,” he answers.

“On Ragnarok, we found one hidden in the boulders. I am curious if that will be true back here in Iceland.” I make the proposal to Professor Narcy. As the location is some 20 miles away, he makes arrangements for a helicopter to fly us over there.

The next morning, we take our digging tools and board the helicopter to fly East along the coast.

As we fly over the ridge towards the coast, I get my first good look of the area from above. “Oh! My! God!” I tell the pilot. “This looks exactly like the Ragnarok Ark. There is that valley of the hot springs. Is there a crack in the ground by that volcano with lava flowing in it?”

“Yes there is,” He answers. “Have you been here before?”

“Yes, and No,” I answer. “There will be a flowing stream in the highlands beyond with small waterfalls near an old stone bridge. Above that there will be a ravine with another stone bridge. If this is all for real, we will find a cave hidden by the boulders about 100 meters upstream from that.”

“There is what is left of your bridge in the ravine,” the pilot announces.

“Land on the east side,” I tell him. “Then, shut down. This is going to take a while should we find Wallace Cave.”

Logan and I descend down a sheep path to the stream below. “Lets count to 100,” I say as we walk upstream among the boulders and vegetation of the icy cold stream. A familiar pile of rocks shows up. Removing several of the boulders on top, we find the cave and crawl into it.

Lighting our lanterns, we proceed inside as it opens up into a roomy cavern. “I never knew that this was here,” Logan tells me.

“It was just well hidden, just like on the Ragnarok Ark,” I answer. “If this cave is anything like that one, we will find the remains of Littlefoot.”

We reach the end of the cave where we find some crumbling remains of chain mail, a rusty sword, and a black stone dagger.”Is that made of Dragon Glass?” Logan ask me.

“It is definitely Obsidian,” I answer. “Lets photograph everything that remains and bring the dagger back with us. Be careful with it as it is as sharp and brittle as glass.” We document everything in the cave, wrap up the dagger, and leave the cave placing the stones back that we had removed.

“What did you find?” the helicopter pilot ask us as we return.

Not trusting him I answer, “We will let you know when we file our report to professor Narcy.”

I have him fly South of the volcano so I can get a good look at the ridge above by Viking Bay. We come into the valley of the waterfalls and rapids with the bog. We fly over to where the viking castle should be located but only find piles of broken masonry at the site. Similar piles are in the swamp where the causeway had stood before. “It looks like those landmarks still exist as they were on Ragnarok, they have just been destroyed by time.” We head back landing on the stern of the research ship and report directly to Professor Narcy with our findings.

“I wonder how many more of these location will turn out to be real?” ask Professor Narcy as he examines the obsidian dagger.

“One way to find out is to go visit those actual location,” I answer.

I show Logan a picture of Nessie Cave. He tells me that it does exist but that there is no stone lighthouse left on the bluff. Like the castle, it is just a pile of broken rubble.

Dr. Sanders and Dr. Croft head out on the helicopter to locate the temple where they were reunited. They come back disappointed. “If it is still out there, it is now buried under the glacier,” Dr. Sanders tells us.

During the next couple of months of our research, we do find the dungeon of the Ruinous Jungle. That location has now reverted to a desolate wasteland of barren stone and ice. The waterfalls to the cave is no longer there, the cave itself has collapsed upon itself and is no longer accessible. There is a crater above where the roof used to be for the main chamber.

From the research ship, Professor Narcy sends down a remote controlled sub to the location of where we had found the viking longboat. To our surprise, it is still there exactly as we have seen it, perfectly preserved by the icy waters below. “Someday, we need to bring it back to the surface,” Professor Narcy announces. “We just don’t have the resources to do so at this time.

It is approaching the end of August as we start packing up for the return trip to Reykjavik before the winter storms set in with 22 hours of darkness. Our grad students have returned home earlier so they can get prepared for their upcoming classes. As promised, Dee and Jerry fly out to see us to get a report on our research.

It is the following morning when Jerry tells us to come outside. He asks Logan to join us. “As a reward for your outstanding behavior on the Ragnarok Ark, The Keepers have prepared a little surprise for you.” he announces. It will only last for an hour.

“What could that be?” I wonder. “Why did Jerry ask Logan to join us?” To the East over the glacier, there is a flash of light and a low rumble like a distant sonic boom. Placing a spotting scope on it, I see eight adult wyverns with four junviles flying in formation heading our way.

“Oh My Gosh!” I say in astonishment. “It’s Sandy, Annie, Sammy, Andy, Terry, Trixie, Torch, and Smoker. They have been allowed to come and visit us. They even brought along their young ones.”

We all race up to our favorite wyvern friend as they land. They are so glad to see us. The four mothers introduce us to their offspring who are now four times our size but a bit shy of us at first. Then, they are all over us for attention.

“Logan,” I tell him. “Go over and get acquainted with Torch. He is very easy going. Dee, go see Smoker so he doesn’t feel like he is being left out.”

“This is so wonderful,” Logan tells me. “I never knew that they can talk to you.”

“Daenarys dragons were different,” I answer. “Even though I was able to talk to Viseryon while on the mothership, they communicate telepathically. That is how I was able to be in contact with him when I came back riding him the day that you saw us.”

“That is so incredible,”Logan answers. “Do you think that I can go for a ride on Torch?”

“Why don’t you just ask him,” I answer.

“He says that he would be delighted to take me for a ride.”

“Looks like we are all going for a ride of our lifetime,” I answer.

“Where should we go?” Sandy ask me as I get on her.

“Lets just head over to the hot springs,” I answer. “We should be able to get back in plenty of time before you have to leave us.”

It is a most enjoyable flight over to the hot springs. “This is so awesome,” Logan tells me. “It’s like a dream come true. Torch is even enjoying this.”

“Am I wrong or does it look like there is a lot more activity from those hot springs down there then normal,” I ask Logan.

“You are correct,” Logan answers. “It is getting quite active down there.”

“We better get back then,” I answer.

As we fly back in and land, the ship captain comes running up to us with some alarming news. “There is a hiking party of 15 trapped on the west slope by the volcano. Lava is blocking their way from escaping. The nearest rescue is 10 hours away. I don’t think that it will reach them in time.”

Without hesitation, Annie looks at me and says, “We can rescue them. If they throw away all of their gear, we can double them up just like we did for your flight back to the cave.”

“Annie,”I tell her. “You could all be trapped here forever. Are you willing to take that risk?”

“Yes, we will,” she answers.

“Logan, you are in charge of this flight,” I tell him. “When you get there, have everyone pitch their gear and ride double on the wyverns. Radio the hikers that some very unusual help is coming their way.” They quickly take off with the four youngsters following.

“Oh Drat,” Mary says. “I hope that their kids will be OK.”

It seems like it is taking forever as we now see a huge plume of smoke and bolts of lightning coming from the volcano location. We are all in suspense. Will our wyvern friends be able to reach the stranded hikers? Will they be able to rescue them all? Will they be able to escape? Will they all be stranded here on Earth facing an unknown future? Will we be able to protect them if they are stranded here?

Finally, we get a radio message from Logan. “We are coming back with all survivors,” he says. I’m so glad that the kids flew out with them. There were four small children with that group. They are riding back on the kids.”

We soon see all of the wyverns flying back to the dig site with two riders each, the four wyvern kids each with a child. They are all tired from the long flight back carrying more weight then they are used to. The hikers, mostly Icelanders, are still in disbelief of how they were rescued. They are heaping praise and gratitude upon their wyvern rescuers.

I walk up to sandy who lowers her head so I can stroke her on the forehead. “Good job,” I tell her. “You and your friends deliberately sacrificed your safety to rescue these strangers. That was so brave of you.”

The volcanic activity has now subsided when Jerry walks out to see us. “Have all of your wyvern friends gather over here. I have some good news for them.”

“The Keepers have contacted me to say that they are very proud of you sacrificing your safe return to Ragnarok by volunteering to rescue these human strangers from certain death. As a reward, the portal is going to be reopened in another hour so you may return home. In the meantime, get some rest and enjoy each others company.”

We bid our wyvern friends farewell as evening approaches. They all fly in formation with Annie in the lead, then vanish through the portal in the western sky. Our 17 new guest and their four children find temporary quarters on board the research ship. We will be setting sail on the morning tide back to Reykjavik. Those kids are still so excited about being with juvenile wyverns and having actually ridden on them. The adult, many of which have heard about them in their folk lore are still astonished at their existence. Jerry just tells them to treasure the moment, no one else is going to believe them anyways.

Regardless, it was a most exciting way to end a three month research vacation in the northern wilds of Iceland.

[rpicardi1]

A character upgrade is coming along with added content. I will be editing all chapters when it is done.

With the new Ragnarok update, I finally have a screenshot of Sandy. She is gorgeous!