shockwave through the storm and halted the worms for a moment. Alexander tried to use the brief distraction to get away. He escaped, but not in the way he had intended. The two explosions had opened a fissure in the plateau. The huge opening swallowed Alexander before he could leap out of the way. Darkness swallowed him as he fell into the unknown darkness below.
A sudden drop into deep pits wasn’t an unfamiliar event to Alexander. He righted himself to try to control his fall and triggered his compact rocket belt. He was met with an anticlimactic whine instead of the usual chuff and roar of the rockets. The supernatural storm had managed to ice up the complex system.
Altitude warning lights flashed in the augmented reality vision provided by his goggles. It was an unnaturally deep hole so he had time to try repairs before he hit bottom. He kept calm and began mid-plummet emergency repairs. Alexander’s clever hands flew over the rocket belt. His hands dipped into his inner pockets pulling out spare parts and a small toolkit. A vertical contrail of soldering iron smoke and odd broken parts trailed him as he fell.
Graphics overlaid on his vision showed the estimated distance to impact. He was less than a thousand feet from the bottom of the chasm. Alexander ripped out a small circuit board and replaced it with a twisted bundle of wires. He slammed the control box on his belt closed and reattached the retractable rockets with three hundred feet to spare. He clicked the activation button, and was once again met with an anticlimactic whine.
Alexander pressed the button as fast as he could while cursing a blue streak at the rocket belt. At less than one hundred feet the rockets roared to life bringing a brief cheer from Alexander. The control box then exploded into flames and the rocket belt accelerated out of control. He was sent bouncing off the walls. Rocks and debris filled the tunnel as Alexander smashed back and forth against the rough stone of the chasm. The rocket belt slammed him into the wall a final time before he blacked out and the thrusters deactivated. Silence and darkness filled the chasm as he fell.
Rich and exotic garden scents were the first thing Alexander noticed as he regained blurred consciousness. His body felt like one giant bruise. He could feel where he had broken several bones on his fall and subsequent sudden stop at the bottom. The bones had already set themselves and were on their way to healing. He didn’t want to open his eyes yet. He had a throbbing headache from the savage repeated blows to the head he took during his fall.
“It seems that your companion is waking,” said an unfamiliar voice.
“Indeed. As I told you, Master Alexander has quite remarkable recuperative capabilities,” said Sir Waldron. “Master Alexander, I assure you that you are safe. Please don’t exert yourself any more than need be,” the tiny mechanical man continued.
Alexander tried to talk. Instead he dry heaved. Deciding that he was not yet up to snuff he allowed himself to slip back into his recuperative coma.
It wasn’t until sometime later that he regained consciousness again. The throbbing in his head was gone. His body no longer felt as if every other bone was broken. Alexander opened his eyes. His vision was no longer blurred. The same intense garden smells filled his nostrils. He sat up, this time without any issues.
He was in a warm humid cavern. Flowering vegetation covered the walls, stretching out of sight into the darkness above. Radiant nourishing light came from an indeterminate source. Small waterfalls flowed from various small caverns higher up in the cave, feeding small rivers or turning into mist that hung in air like miniature clouds.
“It is good to see you awake and aware again, sir,” said Sir Waldron. He was sitting on a small moss covered shrine at the edge of a clear pond near the center of the cavern, smoking a tiny ornate pipe and sipping what appeared to be tea from a miniature cup. “I’ve taken the liberty to prepare you a cup of fresh hibiscus tea and a thin yet nourishing gruel made from some of the edible tubers found here,” Sir Waldron said, motioning to a stone bowl filled with steaming broth and a matching stone cup next to it.
“Thank you,” said Alexander, sitting cross legged next to the small meal. He was always famished after healing major damage. “Where did you get the cup and bowl?” he asked, sipping the fragrant tea from the worn stone teacup.
“From Lama Jungnay,” said Sir Waldron as he blew a series of smoke rings from atop the shrine. “He’s a very friendly chap. We had several pleasant conversations during his visits while you slept off your fall,” said Sir Waldron.
“About how long have I been out,” asked Alexander between bites of gruel?
“A day and a half, give or take. Time hangs slightly off here-a tad wibbly wobbly- but not so much out of synch that returning home will be an issue.” said Sir Waldron, checking a miniature pocket watch.
“Not the worst news,” said Alexander, sipping tea. “Is the Lama going to return?”
“He said that he would check in. I explained our situation, and he seemed amicable to helping,” Sir Waldron said.
Alexander finished his sparse meal then washed the cup and bowl in the cool waters of the underground pool. Sir Waldron made him another cup of hibiscus tea which Alexander gratefully accepted as he inventoried his gear. He built his equipment to take a beating, but best to be certain what was working before setting out again.
The contents of his coat and belt could have been better. He didn’t often go shopping for groceries loaded for bear. He was out of explosives and lost his primary toolkit on the fall. His rocket belt was totaled. His first aid kit was intact-it was meant for other people, not himself. He still had his kukiri and multitool. His goggles were still intact, and they held the bulk of his portable computer power as well as his environmental gear. It wasn’t much to work with, but it would have to do.
Alexander explored the cavern after taking inventory of his gear. It was like a greenhouse. He would normally guess that it was some sort of geothermal heating, but in places like this it could be anything from sleeping dragons to miniature underground suns.
“I am glad to see you well,” said an unaccented voice in perfect English.
“Lama Jungay, I presume,” said Alexander as he turned, offering a traditional Tibetan Buddhist bow. The monk was short and wiry, wearing a monk’s red robe. He was shaved bald, and of an indeterminate age. Smile lines creased his brown face, and bright eyes shone from beneath a narrow brow.
“Welcome to Shangri-La, or at least a small piece of it,” said Lama Jungay, bowing in return. “You must have very good karma to have landed here, as opposed to the myriad of hells connected to Leng,” said the Lama.
“I recycle,” said Alexander.
“Your mechanical companion has told me much of your adventures so far. It is unfortunate what happened to your people, but not uncommon,” said the Lama.
“I’ve never known Yeti to be anything more than opportunistic raiders. Technophile slavers are something new. It doesn’t matter what’s going on, anyways. They had the gall to kidnap people from the supermarket. They have families, and don’t deserve this. I can do something about it, so I will,” said Alexander.
“Your conviction is admirable. It is good to know that champions such as yourself are still active in the mortal world,” said Lama Jungay. “My brothers and I know some of what goes on in the surrounding domains. There is little we can do on our own. We have been long retired from the world. But we can offer you some aid in your quest,” he said as he walked over to a small gap in the wall that Alexander had failed to notice before. The Lama placed his hands on the wall, and the crack expanded into a small passage that ended in a pool of clear churning water.
“This pool will take you to the underground river that feeds into the ancient Hyperborean temple where the Yeti now reside. It is the surest way there in this fractured realm,” said Lama Jungay.
“Anything that I should look out for during my swim,” asked Alexander.
“I cannot guarantee a safe journey, only that this passage will take you straight to your destination. Many places touch and intersect through Leng,
” said the Lama.
“So it’s an interdimensional grease trap,” said Alexander.
“It would not be an inaccurate comparison,” said Lama Jungay. “But Karma favors you. I am certain you will make it,” he said.
Alexander went back to the bright cavern for the last time and secured his remaining gear, including Sir Waldron.
“I prepared for a deep sea expedition, Sir,” he said with excitement. The clockwork robot had traded his pipe and teacup for a deep sea diver’s helmet and spear gun. Alexander hadn’t remembered adding those details to Sir Waldron. As a matter of fact, he didn’t know where he got the teacup or pipe, either. He hated it when his own meager magical talent surprised him. Technomancy was supposed to be predictable. So much for that.
“Thank you for your hospitality and allowing me to convalesce in your beautiful garden” said Alexander as he bowed to the Lama.
“The pleasure was all mine. It is rare to have visitors from the outside that are not immediately eaten by the temple dogs,” said the Lama, not joking at all. “Shangri-La is a sacred place, and the Scattered Gardens are not to be entered lightly. You are a good man, Crimson Overcoat, and your reputation precedes you in many places,” said the Lama as he bowed.
Alexander tapped the center of his goggles. A series of interlocking