Nightmare Realm Summoner

“This is our last stop for the day,” Teddy said. He drew to a stop at the base of a looming, curved wall of marble.

Alex and Claire walked up alongside him. They stood at the entrance of the enormous arena — and they were far from the only ones. It was, by far, the busiest part of the Empty Court. People milled about near the entrance, talking avidly as a steady stream of them flowed into and out of the huge entryway.

Teddy had spent the last thirty minutes or so showing them around the Empty Court on their way down the mountain, pointing out some of the more interesting weapon, item, and other shops that filled the cloudy city. They hadn’t actually gone into any of the shops. Teddy had laughed when Alex suggested the possibility.

Apparently, Credits weren’t accepted in the Empty Court. They seemed to have a different form of currency. One that Teddy said they’d figure out soon enough and had then refused to provide any more context on, citing a lack of time.

Alex and Claire had been a bit too preoccupied just taking in the Empty Court to protest that. They’d already registered that the Empty Court was huge. But everything here was so… different. Even the brief glimpses of items that Alex caught through the shop windows made him practically start salivate.

There had been so much magical power within some of them that he could literally taste it in the air outside the stores like an electric charge on his tongue. A single one of them probably would have been powerful enough to clear out the Gorgonaga entirely on its own.

The scale here was nothing like what he knew back on 274-50.

And this arena was no different.

Magic buzzed against Alex’s skin from battles unfolding within it. There was a subtle pressure in the air that almost reminded him of the Forsaken Grounds. It felt like the mere presence of the arena was bearing down on his chest and trying to squeeze the air from his lungs.

He wasn’t sure if he was feeling the people within the arena or the structure itself.

“What is this?” Alex asked.

“An arena,” Teddy said, somewhat unhelpfully. He jerked his chin toward the entryway, where the majority of the crowd had gathered. “This is where the majority of your challenges will unfold. The Empty Court is very strict on following the few rules that they’ve set. Those include not damaging the city with a fight. Same goes for collateral damage on bystanders. For that reason, pretty much every fight you have will be in here.”

“Are fights rare or something?” Alex asked.

Teddy let out a burst of laughter. “No. Not even slightly.”

“Then how can everyone do it in just one arena?” Claire asked, tilting her head to the side. “Is there just constantly a queue to use it?”

“Ah.” Teddy beckoned for them to follow him as he headed toward the entrance. “No. The arena can handle any number of fights at once.”

“What, it’s sectioned out or something?” Alex asked as they passed by the crowd and stepped into the inside of the arena.

The ground jerked abruptly beneath him. He stumbled as he suddenly found himself standing on sand rather than stone. Alex blinked.

Huh?

Cold, crisp air nipped at his skin. There was no trace of any of the sound that had been in the air a moment ago. It was completely silent. Around him rose looming marble stands, all completely empty. The only ones here were him, Teddy, and Claire.

“The arena is instanced,” Teddy said with a grin. “Pretty damn sweet, isn’t it?”

“Like a game?” Alex asked.

Teddy’s grin fell away. “No. Not a game at all. This is definitely the most powerful piece of magic within the Empty Court. Well, the most powerful piece that isn’t a defense. You can think of it like a small, pocket universe. It gets created for the duration of a fight and ends the moment you leave or someone is defeated. All the instances are displayed outside, so you can tap into any of them to watch people fighting and learn from them. That’s why there was a crowd. They were waiting for a good fight.”

“Damn,” Alex said. “That’s actually pretty sweet.”

Claire looked a bit more concerned. “You’re telling us that this place is creating entire universes… just to make fighting a bit more optimal?”

“Pretty much.” Teddy nodded. “I mean, it’s not exactly an entire planet. It’s just this space. But it’s a fully separate universe. One with its own rules. The arena can tell who is entering as a group and separates them out into their own occurrence within the arena.”

“Is it intelligent or something?” Alex asked, glancing up at the looming, empty stands. “Is the building alive?”

“It’s… something. Even I’m not sure what,” Teddy admitted with a shrug. “But what matters is that it will enforce any rules you agree upon during your fight — including ending the battle the moment someone is critically injured. You can fight to your hearts’ content here. It’s impossible to actually kill your opponent. So don’t be afraid of going all out in a fight. This place is for everyone to hone their skills. And you can’t do that if you’re scared of death or of going too far.”

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“Seriously?” Alex asked, blinking in disbelief. “We’re immortal?”

“No. You can die. You just don’t stay dead,” Teddy said. “Best as I understand it — we’re not actually here. This is a pocket-universe rendition of our consciousness. Our powers, thoughts, everything, it’s all copied over. But our real bodies are back somewhere in the Empty Court.”

“Does that mean we can’t get magical energy for winning a fight?” Claire asked.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Teddy said. “All you get is the memory of the fight. But that can go quite a ways. I’ve grown a ton just by taking fights here. This is the greatest resource the Empty Court has to offer. You should use it as much as you possibly can.”

“Damn,” Alex said. For a moment, he completely forgot his anger at Teddy. All his mind could do was try to process the immensity of what he was surrounded by. This was the perfect training ground. Even without the ability to get magical energy, if he fought someone stronger than he was here, there could be no limit to what he could learn. The ability to simulate true life-and-death battles without actually dying almost felt like a cheat code.

“Damn,” Teddy agreed. His grin returned. “Pretty sweet, right?”

“It’s impressive,” Claire admitted. “Incredibly so.”

“It is,” Teddy agreed. He glanced down at his watch. Then he grimaced. “But I’m afraid I’m just about out of time. It’s been a lot of fun, Alex, Claire. We’ll have to catch up properly sometime soon. Until then, I need to make my closing statements. I’ve left you both a gift. You’ll find a large coin in each of your pockets when you make it back from the arena. Don’t lose it. That’s your ticket to just about anything in the Empty Court. It’s called a Denarius.”

“That’s the currency here?” Claire guessed.

“Exactly,” Teddy said. “Well, there are a few. But it’s the main one. The Empty Court distributes them based on accomplishing tasks. I didn’t have a chance to show you, but if you go to any of the taverns around the city, there will be information about what requests are for 274-50.”

“They’re customized to whoever is looking?” Alex guessed.

Teddy nodded again. “Yep. You can place them too — but that doesn’t really matter right now. You don’t have the funds. What does matter is that people use Denari to make a challenge more interesting. If you’re a hell of a lot weaker than whoever you’re challenging, you better have some to offer up to make it worth their time. It’s just a respect thing. You don’t want to go harassing people to teach you without offering something in exchange.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” Alex said with a slow nod. He could already feel a buzz in his chest. “They seem pretty damn valuable. Why’d you give them to us for free?”

“Would you believe me if I said it was an apology for some of the shit I’ve put you through?” Teddy asked.

Alex thought for a moment. Then he shook his head.

“No.”

Teddy chuckled. “Well, I tried. Let’s just say I’m making an investment, then. It’s not entirely untrue.”

“So long as you don’t expect us to pay it back,” Claire said.

“Don’t worry,” Teddy said. “They’re all yours to do with as you please. I’m not a loan shark.”

Teddy looked like he was about to say something else. But, before he could, his watch let off a shrill beep. He sighed.

“Out of time?” Claire guessed.

“Unfortunately,” Teddy said. “It’s been fun catching up, Alex. And Claire — it was a pleasure to meet you. I’m sure we’ll have a chance to speak at some point in the future. But I’ve got to be going.”

“We’re not done with you, you know,” Alex said. “You’ve got a hell of a lot to answer for.”

Teddy let out a noncommittal grunt. “I imagine I’ll have even more to answer for by the time we meet next. You probably will as well.”

“We’ll see,” Alex said. He glanced over his shoulder. Then he frowned. The entrance they’d taken to step into the arena was gone. All that remained around them were sheer walls. “Hold on. How do we get out of here?”

“How do you reckon?” Teddy replied. “It’s not a hard guess. I figure you’ve got it.”

The air around Alex shimmered and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. His senses suddenly screamed a warning. He spun back to Teddy, grabbing for his magic as he called Glint with a thought. “Oh, you son of a—”

“I’ll be seeing ‘ya around,” Teddy said with a grin.

And, even as the air beside Alex shattered and Glint leapt out into the arena, the gravity around him seemed to magnify a thousandfold in the span of an instant.

There was a loud crunch.

Then everything went black.

***

Alex drew in a sharp gasp. His eyes snapped open and he took a step backward, his heart slamming in his chest. He stood in the shadow of the arena once more, a dozen paces away from the entrance.

“That fucking rat,” Alex breathed, his eye twitching.

Claire popped into being beside Alex an instant later. She blinked, her gaze distant for a moment. Then her eyes narrowed.

“I hate your friend.”

“Yeah,” Alex muttered. “That makes two of us. He jumped us! Please tell me you at least took him with you.”

“No,” Claire said with a sigh. “But I did stab him in the stomach before I died. He’s got gravity magic. Really fucking strong gravity magic.”

“Of course he does. Lazy bastard,” Alex said. He shook his head, trying to suppress adrenaline still pumping through his veins. “That was so damn cheap.”

I can’t believe he killed us both so easily. Jesus. I mean, Teddy is Stargazer. He placed really high on the Local Leaderboard. But I didn’t think he’d have been able to smoke me so easily. How strong has he gotten?

Alex’s lips thinned. He’d been too slow. It was hard to say if Teddy had intentionally been trying to show him that or not, but he’d gotten his point across. If that had been real life… Alex would have been dead. Just like that.

I need to be ready next time. If I’d summoned Glint and my other monsters faster, that would have gone very differently. I wasn’t ready.

But this place seems like the perfect place to rectify that shortcoming.

A chuckle came from a few feet behind Alex.

He and Claire turned as a thin man in sleek, expensive looking clothes and a dagger at his side approached them with a hand raised in greeting. He had sharp features and a leather patch covering his left eye.

“Forgive me for intruding,” he said. “But if I’m not mistaken, the two of you just died. First time?”

“That obvious?” Alex asked.

“Your faces are a bit white,” the man said. “And I haven’t seen you around before. If I’m not awry… would that make you Claire and Alex?”

“Depends,” Claire said warily. “Who’s asking?”

“Samuel,” the man said. “And I happened to catch wind of your presence here today from a man who may be a mutual acquaintance of ours.”

Fuck’s sake.

“Stargazer?” Alex guessed.

Samuel nodded. “Quite. Not the most pleasant fellow.”

“Tell me about it,” Alex muttered.

“Was there something you wanted from us?” Claire asked.

“Not both of you. It’s rude… but I’m afraid I’m only interested in your companion. Teddy informed me he was an Evoker,” Samuel said, looking to Alex. “I had to come meet him myself. It isn’t often that one of us enters the Empty Court. People with our class don’t tend to be the type that makes it here.”

“Us?” Alex asked. He took a closer look at Samuel. “You’re an Evoker?”

“I am,” the other man said. He raised an eyebrow. “Would you care to see what we are capable of? If you’re not too traumatized from your recent death, that is.”

Alex and Claire exchanged a glance.

Then Alex grinned. There was no way he could turn down an offer like that.

“You’re on.”