OVERSHADOWED
by Graveyard Greg
Overshadowed
Copyright 2013 by Graveyard Greg
All my love to Joshuwain for the edits and TaoRen for the cover art!
“You shouldn't be with me,” Jolly said, ducking as he entered a smaller tunnel in the cave's network underneath the Nevada desert, his flashlight piercing the absolute dark ahead. “You should be on the cruise with my family.”
“That's nice, but here I am with you.” Robey had no such problems entering the tunnel, but he was of average height at around six feet. Jolly lived up to his species as a Giant Panda, towering over the lion at ten feet and almost three times the feline's width.
“Damned narrow tunnels,” Jolly groused as he slouched. “Remind me again why we're going to see him?”
Robey took Jolly's massive paw with both hands. “Because we have to know if they came to see him first.”
“They” were the Cult of the Jotunn, and the cultists were going around in Vegas selling a new type of drug. A drug which caused the users to become raging berserkers. The authorities thought it was simple PCP abuse, but Jolly and Robey knew better.
One user was a personal friend, a ring-tailed lemur who barely managed to come up to Robey's chest. When the police finally took him down, he was almost Jolly's size. If it weren't for the discolored fur “birthmark” on his cheek, neither of them would have known the lemur was dead.
“Of course they did,” Jolly said. “I don't know of any other substance which can alter someone's size and make them go berserk.”
“You never know,” Robey said, brushing a lock of mane down over one side of his face. He had a lazy eye, and didn't want people to see it. Not even Jolly. “Stranger things happen in this world.”
“And we're usually the ones who get to clean it up.”
“You're not usually this grumpy, even when things go bad.” Robey brought up Jolly's hand and kissed his knuckles. “If you want me to talk to him...”
“No,” Jolly said, scratching his vast belly. He was heavy with muscles everywhere except around his waist, but it was solid like the rest of him. No matter how hard he tried to diet, though, he couldn't lose the weight. Buying clothes off the rack was not an option for him. “No, I'll be all right. I just don't want you to be there, is all. Besides, I doubt he'd acknowledge your presence.”
“It's not like I don't know what to expect. You told me about him, remember?”
The air was getting warmer the further down they went. “I remember.”
“You gonna be okay? I don't want you overheating on me.”
“Relax, I'm a panda bear, not a snow leopard. I can handle the heat.”
Robey chuckled. “If you say so.”
The cave ended. What lay beyond it was a spiral staircase hewn into the rock. There was barely enough space for Jolly, which meant Robey could maneuver just fine. Torches lined the walls, so Jolly and Robey shut off their flashlights.
“We're almost there. Maybe a half mile to go.”
“Just watch your step, panda bear,” Robey said, squeezing Jolly's hand once again.
“You worry about yourself, lion. I'm not afraid of a little half-mile fall.”
Robey smirked. “And how many half-mile falls have you experienced?”
Jolly gave the lion a sheepish grin. “Well...none, but I'm still not afraid of a little half-mile fall.”
Robey shook his head, and they continued down the spiral staircase in silence.
The air was now stifling hot, like a desert at noon. Jolly slowed his pace, occasionally leaning up against the rough wall. “Okay, I don't remember it ever being this warm.”
“You need to do more cardio,” Robey teased.
“Maybe I should let you carry me.”
Jolly felt the gentle touch of Robey's paws on his lower back. “No way that's going to happen,” Robey said, “as much as I'd love to be able to, panda.”
“I'll be alright,” Jolly said, gulping a deep breath of air. “Just a little more to go and we can finish it.”
As promised, they reached the bottom of the stairs, and the entrance to another narrow tunnel greeted them.
“I hate low ceilings,” Jolly said.
“Every ceiling is usually a low ceiling for you.”
“I know,” Jolly sighed. “No sense in complaining about it, I guess.”
Robey patted Jolly's arm. “That's the spirit. Let's go.”
Jolly led the way, and soon they emerged into a vast chamber. The ceiling above them was barely visible, and they couldn't see the other side of the chamber. In the center was a pool filled with bubbling lava. The heat didn't bother either of the two, due to who was submerged inside the pool.
Even though the polar bear was chest deep in the lava, he still loomed over the panda and lion, his head nearly touching the ceiling. The chains which bound his wrists stretched his arms on either side of the chamber.
“Wow,” Robey whispered. “It's one thing to be told about him, it's another thing to actually see it. How is the lava not burning him?”
“Because you're looking at the last frost giant on Earth.”
“I HAVE VISITORS.”
Robey stumbled as the polar bear's voice shook the floor under his paws, and he clutched at his ears. “D-damn. Can't he at least whisper?”
Jolly managed to keep his footing, and seemed otherwise unfazed by the thunderous voice. “That's a good point. How about you keep your voice to a dull roar, Roald?”
The giant bear craned his head forward, his yellow eyes reflecting the light of the lava. “IT IS YOU.”
Robey fell down this time, hands pressed up against his ears. “This is worse than a dubstep concert,” he whimpered.
Jolly snarled, and whipped a finger up at the giant. “WHISPER, DAMMIT! Or else I'll flood this place up to your neck in lava!
Roald bared his fangs, but when he spoke again the chamber no longer shook. “WHAT DO YOU WANT, JOLLIN, SON OF CORTLAN?”
Jolly frowned at the sound of his real name. It reminded him of bitter times, times best left forgotten. “Have you had any recent visitors, Roald? Visitors that may have taken something from you?”
“PERHAPS. YOU TINY THINGS ALL LOOK ALIKE TO ME.”
“Wow. Arrogant much?” Robey said as he slowly got to his feet.
“OH, MY APOLOGIES, SHOULD I SPEAK NORMALLY AGAIN? YOU OBVIOUSLY ARE ABLE TO HANDLE IT.”
“At least you were wrong about him not acknowledging my presence,” Robey said.
“Don't you dare, Roald. Just answer the question. Did anyone take something from you? A tuft of fur? Maybe even your blood?”
“AND IF I ANSWER YOU? WHAT WILL YOU GIVE ME?”
“Ask me what I won't do. I won't drown you in lava, how's that?”
The bear scowled, lifting his head up in a haughty air. “THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME YOU HAVE USED THAT THREAT.”
“It won't be the last time either, but do you really want to test me? I'm capable of following up on it.” Jolly shrugged. “Hell, I'd be happy to do it. You caused a lot of people some unnecessary suffering before we caught you in the Netherlands.”
The silence grew heavy; Robey shifted on his paws. Jolly kept his gaze up on Roald, trying his level best to ignore what could happen if the giant bear did somehow manage to break his bonds. He might survive for a few seconds. Robey wouldn't have such a luxury.
When the bear looked away Jolly found himself releasing the breath he'd been holding. “I HAVE HAD VISITATIONS, YES.”
“What did they take from you?”
“A DROPLET OF MY BLOOD.”
Jolly nodded. A droplet for the frost giant could produced a significant amount of the drug being peddled in Vegas. Now they knew of the drug's potency, which didn't reduce the
danger of getting rid of it.
But now they knew how to track it.
As Jolly made his way out of the chamber, he looked over his shoulder. “I hope I don't have to come back here.”
“YOU WILL, THOUGH. YOU ALWAYS COME BACK.”