(Previous chapter - Var explains his origin as a vampire. He is shocked from the fact that Gauge came from a system 43 systems away.)
"43 systems!!!"
Var shouted again, unable to believe his own ears. He ran his hands over his face, trying to calm himself down.
"What the hell happened on your planet? To create a gate that breaks through 20 systems requires the power of at least a low-tier celestial—let alone 43 systems."
Var pulled out his study notes and immediately began scribbling down the extraordinary phenomenon.
"Forty-three systems… that's even higher than the 17-system warp north of Vel Kartha city," he murmured to himself.
Gauge noticed Var had turned his back to him, frantically writing. He walked up with a concerned look.
"Hey Var, is something wrong?"
Var realized he had reacted out loud. He cooled his head and forced a smile.
"Come, let's walk through the market. I'll tell you why I panicked."
As they strolled through the busy marketplace, something caught Gauge's eye. It was an armory shop, filled with gleaming weapons and armor. One sharp dagger drew him in. Its name glowed on a holographic showcase—'Feryx.'
"How much for this dagger? I'll trade it with you for 500 Azorians," Gauge offered confidently.
The shopkeeper looked utterly confused, sizing him up as if he were an idiot.
Var overheard, burst into laughter, and nearly doubled over.
"You really have no idea, do you? Azorians? Which kingdom even uses that—the kingdom of 'a lost speck in the vast universe'?"
Still laughing, he threw an arm over Gauge's shoulder for balance.
"As I told you, kid… Vel Kartha is a city based only on gates. That means the currency here is gate energy."
Wiping away tears of laughter, Var reached into his bag and pulled out a hemispherical device with a glowing digital screen.
Gauge's eyes widened. "What is this? How do words appear out of nowhere?"
Var gave him that same look an older brother gives a clueless kid.
"Tadaa! Introducing the Riftcore Space 3.0—a personal gate energy measuring device. I bought it from a traveling merchant who came from Raftar, the city of knowledge on the Zephyros satellite. The prototype only measured gate energy, but this updated version can collect and store it for trading purposes. Almost everybody in Vel Kartha owns a Riftcore."
He tapped through the device's menu and brought up the payment screen. Looking at the merchant, he asked,
"How much for the dagger?"
"Seven hundred gate units," replied the shopkeeper.
Var froze, staring at him with suspicion.
"Seven hundred units? I bought this Riftcore for 300 units, and you're telling me a primitive dagger costs 700?"
The merchant sighed, clearly used to this argument.
"All you outsiders are the same—none of you understand quality materials. This dagger was forged from the spine of a primitive creature that roams the wilderness of Vel Kartha. It channels magma energy through its bones and can emit beams of searing blue fire. A weapon made from its spine can be imbued with those same flames. Rare breed, rare blade."
Var glanced at his Riftcore balance: 270 gate units.
Gauge leaned over, spotted the number, and chuckled. Var flushed red with embarrassment and quickly changed the subject.
"So, as I was saying… currency is gate energy. But what do we do with it? Each gate is unique. By that, I mean the way it affects mortals who pass through. Gate energy is used to shield us from those effects. Without it, the gate drains you."
Var held up the device. "This energy is stored in rare ores that occasionally drop from gates. One ore is so powerful it can be worth 10,000 units. The gate I walked through, for example, accelerated time inside its domain. That's why I aged 15 Nytherra years."
He stopped and asked the Riftcore:
"How much is one Nytherra year in Earth equivalents?"
The device beeped: 34 Earth years.
Var turned the screen toward Gauge.
"According to the Riftcore's reading, the gate you walked through must have accelerated the rate of life force depletion."
(Mordan remembered the soldiers falling to their deaths near the gate.)
"You can expect nothing less from a gate that warped across 43 systems," Var continued. "What you can't expect… is a mortal walking through it unfazed. Maybe there's more to you than meets the eye."
They locked eyes for a moment. Var suddenly realized he'd been talking endlessly without even asking the boy's name.
"What's your name, kid?"
"Mordan Gauge."
"Ahhh… well then, Mordan Gauge—there's more to you than meets the eye. Now that you're here, what is it you seek?"
Gauge thought hard. He had no idea. This wasn't what he had expected when he first crossed the so-called gates of the Enderworld.
"I came here seeking answers. But… this place isn't what I expected. Honestly? I just want to go home."
Var stopped dead in his tracks. His face twisted with a mix of astonishment and annoyance.
"Go home? You cut off my head just so you could go home? You gatewalkers never learn. You think every world beyond your own is going to hand you wisdom on a silver plate. But listen—43 systems? That's impossible. And gates are one-way. You walk in… it's over. There's no walking back through."
Gauge's face went pale. He grabbed Var's arm.
"What?? Then how am I supposed to go home?"
"You should've thought of that before stepping into a distortion. The only option now is to find an alternative pathway. Luckily for you, Vel Kartha has a handful of such gates."
"That's the lucky part? A handful?"
Var sighed. (These gatewalkers truly know nothing.)
"Yes, that's lucky. Gates are rare phenomena. A handful in one city is a miracle. There's a 17-system warp north of here… but no one knows where it leads."
Gauge smirked mockingly.
"So what—you want me to just jump through and hope I land in my bedroom?"
Var actually chuckled at that.
"Ha! You might just have to. Now give me a minute, I need to track the exact location with the Riftcore—"
Suddenly, the device spiked with shrill beeps.
"Ah, shit. I should've expected this."
Gauge leaned in. "Why? What's wrong?"
Var's face darkened.
"With your ability to walk through such a gate, you might be what's wrong. How did I not think of this sooner… He would notice."
"He?" Gauge repeated. The beeping grew faster, louder, frantic.
"The Riftcore is being disturbed… by someone with the same powers as the gates themselves. It can only be him. And he's here."
The beeping cut out. In an instant, both Var and Gauge vanished from the bazaar.
A whisper spread through the crowd:
"It must be him again… the Gatekeeper is on the prowl."
Next Chapter – The Descendant of an Unknown Lineage