Chapter 3
Gloomuck Swamp
Hey guys sorry for the delay but me and Dream Dragon are back again with a whole new story hope you like and please review and let us know thanks XD
Dream Dragoness: Sorry I was late beta-ing. I was swamped with schoolwork after schoolwork.
"Soggy" was what Tom was feeling when he began to regain consciousness. This was shortly followed by a pungent smell that made him open his eyes.
"Ugh. What happened?" he asked.
His vision cleared as he sat up, seeing a dank, smelly, gloomy swamp in place of the academy's basement. Memories of what had previously transpired flashed in Tom's mind: Jycella and Reggie, the transport device, Peyton's gambit.
Standing up, Tom looked at his uniform and groaned while brushing off sticky leaves and other things.
"Aw, man. Ophelia's gonna kill me."
That comment wasn't because of the filthy uniform, but rather about him not being in school. Not being inside the Earth Dome, more likely. After smacking the side of his head to rid himself of the murky water he had been lying in earlier, Tom scanned the area until he spotted an orange-red patch of hair in the mud. Tom's sapphire-blue eyes shot wider after immediately recognized who the hair belonged to.
"Kaz!"
When Tom reached his childhood friend's side, the flame-haired boy sat up and began to search for his glasses.
"Tom? Tom! I can't see."
It took little effort for Tom to find Kaz's glasses, using a nearby river to wash off the mud it had accumulated during the crash before giving them to Kaz. Kaz took his only clean spot on his uniform left to clean his glasses before placing them onto his face, granting him clear vision once more.
"Thanks, Tom. I hope it's not going to be one of those 'I wish I didn't have astigmatism' days."
But upon seeing the landscape around them, Kaz's focus shifted.
"Where are we?"
Looking at the swamp around them, Tom gave Kaz his answer.
"I don't know, Kaz. But one thing's for sure: we are not in the Earth Dome anymore."
As Kaz got up, a familiar sound reached his ears. The sound of someone scolding another.
"I think I hear Sarah."
Hearing this as well, Tom trudged through the mud as he and Kaz followed the sound. It wasn't long before they could hear the argument more clearly.
"I can't believe you, Peyton! Random chance on a device that was never tested outside the Dome is NOT a good idea!"
"Chill, Sarah! How was I supposed to know we'd end up here?"
"You didn't! And now we're stuck here!"
Tom and Kaz didn't need to see them to know that the two voices belonged to their friends: Peyton Steele and Sarah Cornwell. Once the pair passed another thick group of trees, they found the pair in the middle of a small clearing. Both were covered in mud and Sarah's face was red with absolute fury.
Happier to see his friends rather than backing away from Sarah's anger, Tom called out to the pair.
"Peyton! Sarah!"
The rotund boy and the fiery blond halted their argument as they turned to face Tom and Kaz.
"Dudes!" Peyton cried out, happy to see them.
Sarah was just as relieved as she made her way to the thinner boys.
"You're ok!"
Tom and Kaz smiled as they began to catch their breath.
"Glad to see you're alright, too." Tom spoke as he recovered from his panting session.
Looking around, Kaz spoke warily.
"Yeah. I just wish I know where we are."
The quartet looked around and noticed something almost immediately.
"There's something familiar about this place." Sarah muttered.
The four thought for a moment, thinking of their Chaotic Cards when Tom was able to identify the place.
"Guys. I think I know where we are?"
Kaz, Sarah, and Peyton quickly turned to the dark-haired boy with demanding looks in their eyes.
"And?" Kaz asked warily.
After double-checking his memory, Tom was able to make a verified connection.
"I think we're in the Gloomuck Swamp."
The group gasped in shock. Tom was right. They each had plenty of battles in the foul-smelling Gloomuck Swamp during their Chaotic matches.
"I think you're right, Tom. I've been through this location in the Coliseum with my sister, Cora. But I've never thought I would be here in real life!" Kaz exclaimed as he remembered the various Chaotic matches he had with his elder sister in attempts to "toughen him up" as Cora so eloquently put it.
Even though everyone was still mad at Peyton for teleporting them without their permission, the scenery was just amazing. They were never allowed to ever leave the Earth Dome unless they were ambassadors, scholars, merchants, farmers, or even Codemasters. Only through Chaotic matches where they able to capture the view. But this was real life, not an illusion. They could feel it the misty air, the sounds of the foliage and wildlife around them, even the smell. Especially the smell.
"Ok. I'll admit. This is amazing." Tom admitted, keeping his gaze on the land around them.
"Yeah" Kaz muttered.
It was then he noticed the smell of the swamp. He gagged as he tried to cover his nose and mouth from the stench.
"Oh, flaming hell! What is that awful smell?"
Smelling the stench, Sarah cringed as she turned to Peyton before punching him in the shoulder.
"Peyton! Did you eat some spicy death rats, again?! I told you those things can give you atomic-level gas, you idiot!"
Peyton recoiled from the punch as he tried to defend himself physically and verbally.
"Ouch! Hey! That wasn't me! It's coming from all around us."
Sniffing the air again, Kaz had to keep himself from vomiting.
"Ugh! It smells like rotten eggs and dog vomit."
Tom covered his nose as he remembered something that his sister, Ophelia Majors, told him about.
"Ophelia told me what this smell means and it's not natural gas. It's sulfur! We must be near some sulfur deposits around here!"
The group groaned as they began to look for a place with little-to-no sulfur. Sarah was the most vocal, by far.
"Damn it! Of all the locations in our decks, why did we end up here?"
She, Tom, and Kaz proceeded to glare at Peyton, who chuckled nervously in response. Wanting to get the situation under control, Tom spoke as he took point.
"We better get the heck out of here before any of us pass out from this stench. Or worse. By now, Reggie and Jycella must have found out we're gone. Let's just lay low in case of danger."
Kaz gulped as another thought struck his mind.
"Yeah. And before our sisters, and your brother, Sarah, find out. Or we'll all be dead."
He then pointed toward a part of the misty forest, looking a bit more confident.
"Luckily, I know of a large, hollow tree not far from here. Cora and I would go there to regroup and plan during tag-team Chaotic matches. We can stay there until rescue comes."
"And exactly how will rescue come?" Sarah asked with annoyance and frustration in her voice.
Wanting to keep tensions at a low, Tom took the chance to speak.
"There's a chance Reggie and Jycella may have some sort of emergency plan in case something like this would happen. Let's just find this tree and wait."
He then turned to Kaz.
"Think you can lead us to the tree from here, Kaz?"
Kaz took a good look at the area they were in and looked into his memory to get a good idea on where to go.
After a few minutes, Kaz pointed to a specific direction.
"The tree's that way."
The three other teens looked at each other in concern before Peyton spoke.
"You sure, dude?"
Kaz nodded as he pointed to a mossy tree nearby.
"I'm certain. Cora taught me survival tactics a while ago and I remember her telling me that moss always grows north of trees in the northern hemisphere of Perim. The tree we're looking for should be southeast of here."
Getting the idea, Tom picked up a sharp-looking rock and made a mark on nearby tree. It was the simplest symbol he could think of: the symbol of the Earth Dome.
"We'll make marks like these so we won't go in circles."
Liking the idea, Sarah and Peyton picked up sharp rocks of their own while Peyton handed another sharp rock to Kaz. As they started their trek to the southeast, Sarah spoke.
"When we get back, remind me to ask Cora about survival tactics or see if Ophelia can find me a book about it in the library."
Peyton agreed quickly.
"Make that two, dudette. Don't know what food out here is edible and what's not."
Hearing this, Tom and Kaz looked at each other and nodded. All four of them would attend survival classes and study on the subject. But as they walked on, a figure began following them. It slithered in the mud like a snake, eyeing the humans as its next prey. As it slithered into a nearby clump of bushes, Tom noticed the sound of the rustling leaves and spoke with apprehension in his voice.
"Guys? I think we should make some weapons. Just in case."
Though the group wondered why, they did not question their friend. Having weapons of any make would be a good idea.
Sarah was quick and pulled off the straightest, thickest branch of a nearby tree. She broke the smaller branches off until she left with what would resemble a walking stick. Her brother, Darius Cornwell, had insistent she'd take some form of self-defense class when she was younger. She chose martial arts and favored staves as weapons. Darius was similar, though he chose bladed pole weapons like halberds.
"Better be safe than sorry," Sara spoke as she tested the strength of the branch.
But just as the boys were about to find their own makeshift weapons, the figure that was following them launched out of the bushes. The figure held no body, but rather two large tentacle-like vines of a crimson-gold color. The surprised teenagers have yet to know that the body was in another part of the swamp. Still, the four barely got out of the way as the two vines slapped the muddy earth in an attempt to capture their prey.
"Sweet Ancestors of Kiru! What are those?!" Kaz called out as he backed away from one of the encroaching vines.
"I don't know! But I highly doubt they're friendly!" Tom called out as he searched for a weapon of his own.
Sarah, having her weapon already in hand, provided the assistance needed as the boys searched for their own weapons.
"Hurry up with your weapons, guys! This stick won't hold it off forever!" She shouted as she whacked one of the vines with her staff.
The first to acquire a weapon was Tom. After finding some vines, Tom fashioned a few into a homemade sling and like the Biblical David, he gathered some rocks and slung them at the vines.
Kaz was the next to make his weapon. Having learned a few things from Cora, he found the sharpest, longest rock he could find and sharpened it on a nearby stone. After wrapping some vines around one end, he had fashioned himself a knife.
Peyton looked hard for a weapon. But as the vines thrashed about, he settled on a rock and waited until one of the vines got near him. Once it was in position, Peyton used the large rock in his hands to smash the vine, causing it to recoil in pain.
Tom fired rock after rock while Kaz made his way to the other vine. With Sarah backing him up, Kaz was able to stab the vine hard enough that it sliced through. With one vine sliced off and the other smashed, the plant/creature that owned the tentacle-vines recoiled them as the teenagers could swear they heard a screech coming from miles away.
"What was that?!" Peyton asked, hugging his rock in defense.
Sarah looked around warily, gripping her staff.
"I don't know. But I don't wanna find out."
Tom shook his head as he gathered more rocks and placed them in the pockets on his uniform.
"Me neither. How close are we to this tree you were talking about, Kaz?"
Kaz was quick to answer as he started to climb a tree.
"Let me get a bird's eye view."
With Peyton and Tom giving him a boost, Kaz was able to climb a tree that resembled one of the cypress trees of the Everglades growing in the mud and climbed past the canopy. Hugging the tree tightly, Kaz scanned the area until he found what he was looking for. About a mile from where he and his friends was a treeless part of the Gloomuck Swamp. And in that swampy grassland was a lone tree that resembled a giant bird.
"I see it, guys! It's just east of here! About a mile!" He called down as he started to descend the tree.
"A mile! For crying out loud!" Sarah complained as the boys helped Kaz from the tree.
"Well, it's either that or wait for those vines to come back with friends. Or worse." Tom countered.
Sarah grumbled as Peyton picked up a sharp stone and started to carve on the tree.
"What are you doing, Peyton?" She asked, annoyed.
"Marking our trail. If we are getting rescued, we want them to know where we are, right?" Peyton replied logically as he carved an arrow with the Earth Dome's symbol over it.
Tom and Kaz smiled in agreement. Sarah, however, remained pessimistic.
With that, the four teenagers made their way east, completely unaware that a rescue effort was on its way.
And three angry sisters.
While the Four were fighting the monstrous vines…
Reggie and Jycella were working furiously on the Teleportation Orb. They had returned from getting a required part of the machine when Tom and the others were transported away. Jycella discovered the Gloomuck Swamp card in the scanner as Reggie made calculations after calculations. It didn't take much for the pair to figure out that their friends were in the Gloomuck Swamp and had no way back.
"I can't believe they didn't wait until we gave them the wristbands! Didn't they think about how they would get back?" Jycella muttered angrily as began to gather survival supplies while Reggie worked on calculating where the four would have landed in the swamp.
"It doesn't matter now. What matters is that we find them and get them back here before anyone finds out."
"Find out what?" An older male voice spoke out.
Looking towards the door, Reggie and Jycella gulped as they found a young man in his twenties standing in the doorway, looking cross. He was blond and had the same teal eyes as Sarah. He was dressed in blue pants and brown shoes, a white long-sleeved shirt with a brown sweater-vest over it, and a blue tie. It was Jycella who spoke the man's name.
"D-Darius! I-I mean, M-Mr. Cornwell! What…what are you doing here?"
The man, Darius Cornwell, frowned as he leaned against the doorway.
"I was looking for my sister when I saw a flash of light coming from down here. When I came down, I overheard you talking about a mishap involving four people?"
He folded his arms, giving the pair a stern look.
"Who is missing?"
The two inventors looked at each other and gulped. There was no way they could lie to their homeroom teacher. Not only was he Sarah's big brother, but he was the best homeroom ever had. So, Reggie wheeled forward and confessed.
"Mr. Cornwell. It's Tom Majors, Kaz Kalinkas, Peyton Steele, and…your sister, Sarah. The-there was an accident. Right now, they are in the Gloomuck Swamp with no way back."
As they explained the function of the teleportation system and gave their guesses on what happened, Darius sighed. Looking at his students with disappointment, he spoke calmly.
"I know Sarah can take care of herself for a time. The others, however…"
He let out a shudder as a thought crossed his mind.
"I need to call their sisters."
The two students looked at their teacher with confusion.
"The guys' sisters? Why them?" Jycella asked.
Darius answered her question as he gazed at the glowing orb in the center of the room.
"I can't leave in the middle of my teaching job. But Cora Kalinkas is the strongest of the three, Liliana Steele has the medical expertise, and Ophelia Majors would slaughter me if I didn't include her in this rescue mission."
