Cadryn turned to walk down the street wanting nothing more than to blend in with the crowd. Immediately though, he notices a multitude of differences. Had things changed that much since he had been here last? Things felt sped up just a bit, and a bit brighter, people moved past him not giving him a second glance, which on the one hand was good but he clearly was not dressed like anyone else. Someone should have reacted, and the sidewalk felt different, like it resented him walking on it. All of this was subtle but taken together it was something he couldn’t overlook.
Nevertheless he tried. He matched his pace to the crowd, moving with them, just trying to be one with the humanity of this planet. Each step makes him more comfortable but also distances him from the arcane instincts of his world.
As he walks he senses ripples in the fabric of the flux of this world. He knows they are from the Overlords elite that are tracking him. The disturbance in the flux is strange though. Too much disturbance, and not enough definition. If he didn’t know better he would say… But no. He felt he was jumping to conclusions. Better to wait and see how this develops. Still the flux itself seemed different, something that shouldn’t be possible.
Cadyn realized he needed to stop before this carried him away. Immediately he turns and heads back the way he came. He sees Art Brown’s Bookshop and feels compelled to go inside. Things were getting more and more curious.
He opens the door and enters. The smell of old books greets him. This is comforting because it reminds him of his own library on his world. Again though, things are subtly different. Books have been rearranged, something Art would never have done. He moves deeper into the store and becomes hidden in the stacks and narrow aisles.
He feels another disturbance in the flux. This one is closer, faint still, but distinct. A smile, not at all friendly, crosses his face. He recognizes the signature. It is Cian, a tracker, The tracker. The Overlords Pet tracker. How very clever of the Overlord to select him. Who better to track him than Cian. He whispers to himself, “Ah dear Cian, There will be no delight in taking your life, but make no mistake, kill you I will.”
Cian is closer than he realized. Things were moving too fast. His escape plans need to be modified and he must do something to lose his pursuers.
He turns to leave and stops and pauses amidst the musty stacks of old books, trying to understand why Earth’s flux behaves like a stranger, and why this world—once familiar—now feels as though it is humming with something hidden just beneath its skin.
Ridgewalker's Notebook 