Getting back to business

[Erik Vrell]

Erik's horse stepped through the portal before hesitating when it felt the intense heat of the dunes. The psychic urged his mount onwards, pulling his hood over his head as he did to block out some of the intense sun. The dunes were much the same as he remembered them, not that there was much to remember about miles of near featureless sand dunes. Sighing, he urged the horse to move faster, reluctant to see what state Nippur would be in when he returned. 

The gates of Nippur came into view, looking worse for wear but still standing. Erik passed under the concerningly unmanned gates. As his horse moved through the city towards the centre, he noticed how deserted the place was compared to the bustling city it had been before the King had been banished. The few people he did see were only through quick glimpses of people peeking through windows out of the corner of his eye. If he had been more well known, like Shay, for example, the people might come out to see what was happening, but he was the newest member of New Babylon. Being a psychic cultist probably didn't help either.

 Erik arrived at the King's former home and council. While it was manned, it was by a pair of guards who wore dazed looks and broken expressions. They didn't even turn to look at the psychic as he dismounted and went to walk inside, before deciding to bring his horse in with him. Sadly, this was no longer a place to leave your mount unattended. As he walked through the abandoned halls, he remembered his first, and last, day in Nippur. He had attended a council led by Sasuke himself, and was getting ready to hunt down a cannibal leader before a thief and a weasel attacked and everything went to hell. 

Erik found a desk unattended in what probably used to be someone's office. The room had been picked clean, whether by the poor citizens or by bandits, Erik couldn't be sure. The psychic sat down in the chair, and a cloud of dust rose up, causing Erik to cough lightly. Clearing his throat, Erik got to business planning his next move. He couldn't do this alone, that much he knew. But who could help him? Erik thought for a moment before coming to a decision. If there was anyone who could help him out, it would be Victor. Erik raised his hand and a wisp of violet mist rose from his sleeve, before concentrating in front of his face. The ball of mist then widened to form a screen of sorts in the air. The words "Welcome to the Dataverse!" were displayed on the screen.

[Erik Vrell]

The psychic was lost in thought when he realised that Victor had responded. Quickly reading the message, Erik nodded to himself. He had some work to do. First, he needed to set up a war room. The office he was in right now was far too small, he would have to find a larger one if any planning was to take place. Erik left the room and stated exploring the abandoned halls. Erik was far from a nervous person, but the eerie atmosphere that surrounded the building seemed to bear down on him. 

After peeking into about a dozen rooms, Erik found one that he decided would be a good size. It was quite large, and although Erik wasn't sure what it had been used on before it was abandoned, there was already a large table in the middle of the room. Producing his omnillium orb from within his robes, Erik summoned up a map of the dunes, as far as he knew it. Admittedly, there wasn't a lot on the map, mainly just Nippur, the abandoned base of Ganondorf, and a few assorted town and settlements near the verse portal, but it would serve its purpose.

Next, Erik had to deal with the heat. Erik had lived in a mountain monastery all his life, so was used to the cold and he thought he could spend his whole life in the dunes without adjusting to the scorching heat. There were a half dozen mystical or divine objects Erik could summon to reduce the room's temperature, but not without both a great amount of difficulty or reducing the room to freezing temperatures. Instead, Erik summoned a modern air conditioner, levitated it onto the wall with his telekinesis and turned it on, although not without some difficulty. Erik wasn't the greatest with technology. 

Finally, Erik decided that he want content to leave the guarding of the building to the stunned soldiers at the front. Instead, Erik went to the front of the building and dismissed the pair. He wasn't sure if they recognised him, but took the order and left regardless. Drawing Mageslayer, Erik stood to attention at the front of the building, sword between hands pointing straight down, waiting in anticipation for Victor or contempt for anyone who wanted trouble.

[Erik Vrell]

Erik's eyes snapped open. He had fallen asleep on the stairs to the New Babylon court while waiting for Victor. The psychic rubbed his eyes, disappointed that no one had shown up. Maybe it was foolish to believe that he could resurrect New Babylon, even with Victor's help. Everything he had tried to do recently had fallen flat, and he didn't know what to do anymore. 

Erik stepped inside the hall and dropped to his knees. He drew a rough sketch of the mad god's crest in the dust with his finger. The visage of a sword piercing through a mind soothed Erik in a perverse way. The psychic clasped his hands in front of his chest, and did his best to pray to his patron. He didn't even know if his thoughts would reach his God from the Omniverse, but wanted to try nonetheless. 

"Oh great Gal'skap, our mad father in the outer reaches of the world, he who shatters the minds of the unworthy, hear the prayer of your chosen son. I am lost in this world, and I need your guidance. Please, give me something." Erik said quietly. Suddenly, his prayers were interrupted by uneven footsteps. Erik rose to his feet and turned quickly. A bandit, rendered mad from the harsh sun and lack of water, came stumbling into the hall, clutching a bloody dagger. There was only mania in his eyes as they locked onto Erik, and he lunged at the psychic. 

Erik drew Mageslayer and cut the half-dead bandit down in one swipe. The man fell to the ground silently, and the blood sprayed from Mageslayer's edge in an arc, spraying the impromptu prayer area in blood. At first, Erik was mad at the desecration, but then a thought occurred. What if this was the sign. Erik's eyes switched from his sword's edge, still dripping blood, to the holy symbol bathed in red. Of course, the mad God was calling his prophet to war. Erik dropped to his knees once more, hands crossed in fervent prayer. "Thank you, mad lord, for delivering this sign to me." 

Erik rose to his feet, sheathed Mageslayer and grabbed his horse. "Come." He said to his mount. "Gal'skap has given us work to do." The horse's ears twitched at the sound of the mad god's name, and eagerly set off out the New Babylon gates after Erik was seated. A grin split Erik's face, the psychic eager to finally have a purpose in this world that he could carry out alone.