=========================== CHAPTER II =============================











The travel to the mouth was very short, considering the new sources of transportation. The rails carried to three places: the Five Hills, the enterance to the Great Diggings and a varried amount of mining locations. It was a very bumpy ride, but it was better than walking on the hard steel floor.

The sky outside was dusky and menacing. It made me think that the sky was reflecting the evil of the Sennites. Usually I would condemn myself for thinking so foolishly, but this was Everworld after all. Evil did exist here. The Old World had evil in a certain prospect of morals, but this was beyond just morally sound, this was black hearted, malicious, baneful actions. Things that you had no way of descriping as truly evil. Maybe it was the restrictions of Old Earth, or maybe just a moral conscience that Everworld depleted, but you didn't really see these actions commonly in the Old World. In Everworld you coudn't go anyplace with out finding some deep- seated corruption.

Merlin was standing at the enterance, an interested sparkle in his large eyes as he beamed at DaggerMouth castle. Behind him trailed three Coo- Hatch. They looked very sad, even for a Coo-Hatch. Their normally fierce, pernicious eyes seemed sunken and depressed.

The Coo-Hatch were an superior race to humans in a few ways. Firstly, they could create a metal that could slice through anything like it was styrofoam. And secondly, they could adapt and even advance technology more than any other creature in Everworld. If anyone could destroy Ka Anor and the Hetwan threat, they could.

Merlin smiled deeply at me and preformed his old bow and scrape to where his beard nearly touched the ground. He seemed to be waiting for me to say something, because he just stared intently. I heard a loud clicking noise come from behind me and saw April, David and Christopher scrambling from the mouth of the enterance.

"Er, welcome back," I said hurriedly to Merlin. April did a small curtsy that made her look very much like a red nymph. David marched forward in his army-like way and did some kind of fumbled salute with the tip of Galahad's sword. Christopher seemed to just hang back, glancing back at the mouth slightly.

"Hello, good friends in arms. I suspect it is nearly time we head back towards the great Mounatin Olympus to meet with wise Zeus and his harem," said Merlin, his eyes twinkling brilliantly in the dusky light. I had no idea that Meerlin would be traveling with us back to Olympus, although it seemed the thing to do.

"I have retrieved magnificent steeds for your travels. Odin has been so kind to birth Sleipnir and give you the offspring, quite a strange happening that Loki's spawn would birth without a mate, but I think I shall avoid the design of such." Merlin suddenly looked somewhat tipsy, yet thoughtful. I exchanged a quick look with Christopher. I could tell that he too was weary to the idea of riding on the backs of the children of Loki's child, even if Loki was now on our side.

Merlin seemed to see that we were thinking this. "This is quite a gift, I assure you. Sleipnir's progeny are among the fastest mounts you could hope for, though I dare say it shall be hard to top mighty Pegasus, but I think we shall have no problems." Merlin smiled deeply. Well that added to Loki's bizarre list of kin. We had the Migaard Serpent named Jormungand, Fenrir the giant wolf, Hel, who was no more than a pile of rotted flesh connected to a beautiful, lascivious woman.And now to add to the list was a horse. What next.

Merlin smiled thoughtfully. He looked oddly tired and old at the moment. "King Baldwin has been so kind to postpone the wedding of him and young princess Etain," he said suddenly. I saw his eyes deepen and look long at Christopher. I was sure that he had told them to suspend the wedding for his sake. I felt something odd bubble up inside me. Was it pity?

The silence went unnoticed for a few seconds. I did nothing but contemplate what would happen we all died in Everworld. April suggested that once we died in Everworld we would go right back to Old World. None of us had the passion to argue. We all wanted to believe her.

David unexpectedly walked forward, his hand clutching Galahad's sword. "When do we depart?" he asked loudly, like he was talking to his drill seargent. Merlin's eyes got very dutiful and proud.

"We embark for great Olympus in the following night. King Baldwin wishes to show his heartfelt gratitude to your party. He is to hold a banquet of magnificent proportions. Your company should hold gratitude for this, for the likes of such a banquet are rarely seen in the land of the dwarves..." Merlin stopped talking abrubtly. His brow was furrowed and he was staring avidly at the sky, a huge brown bird flying straight towards them. Than there was Loki.