Chapter 23

The entire time I was wondering. If these guys can make portals. Why didn't they just open it to the pole directly? It turns out that they used to do just that till the bad guys figured it out. They have made it impossible to go there by using a portal. Because the moment it opens they are greeted by shooting flames. Only a handful of places were safe in Oymyakon and now when trouble ensues these places are mostly occupied by the affiliated hooligans.

As we drove I watched the sunrise and felt the warmth. I felt like I can start fresh. I closed my eyes and remembered the places I used to want to go. I could try and go there after this adventure. I just had to figure out how this world operates. I was wondering where we were going and why they won't tell me what I was supposed to do. But like the merpeople these guys kept their mouths shut. I was starting to have a bad feeling. So I tried to focus on how to escape if this turned out to be a trap. I could always turn to bats and fly. I searched my pocket and found the mirror. The inscription on the back was written 'Think of Me' The first person I thought was Brita. She appeared on the glass surface and smiled that I thought of her. She wished me well. I blushed red and wished her the same.

We reached Oymyakon and found the huge sign in Cyrillic and other guests as well. There were a few tourists near the sign who were blowing bubbles and laugh as they watched it solidifying. Others threw water into the air and watched it turn to ice. They were so excited to be here. The locals were inviting them to a special place for a ritualistic welcome where they hold hands and danced while chanting in the local lingo.

Ice maiden subtly told me that we are near the place I just need to be really quiet. She pointed at a hut far beyond my sight. Since we reached the sign we must now go by foot. We walked till we saw the resident dark elves. These are the human sized elves that use dark magic to trap their victims. They had white hair, pointy ears and pale skin. They were dressed in medieval outfits. They were drinking heavily. And laughed merrily as they roasted an ox for dinner. I started to see a lone dilapidated hut that was looked like it wanted to collapse on itself. The roof had a lot of holes. Only half the door was there. The other half was long gone. The windows were smashed. The walls had cracks so wide I could stick my hand in without cutting myself.

When we got there we saw a few ghost sharks floating in the air. It looked like a great white shark that had a huge chunks of it's body eaten away. Their bones were exposed here and there. It was swimming in the air like it was the deep blue sea. I wished I had brought Tiamat with me. She could have wiggled her fingers and electricity would shoot from her fingertips. Those things would be fried in the blink of an eye.

I kept my head down and slowly moved so it won't notice me. When I reached my destination I was about to enter but the ability of night vision showed me that Poseidon was lying on the floor. Barely holding on to life. I realized these women had brought me here to bleed me dry so he could be healed. The dark vampire's blood burns like acid because it feeds off the blood of the innocent and it won't restore anyone. Whoever drinks this poisoned blood will die painfully. But not the blood of a good vampire. It has the ability to heal. I turned into bats and flew as far as I could.

I fished out the mirror and thought of Zuni. When she appeared I pleaded for help. I told her that I was betrayed that I need a lot of help. The image change and the mirror showed me to go toward the Indigirka river. I got there as fast as I could. I kept checking back and forth in case they were behind me. The ice on top of the river started to crack and started to emit steam because it began to thaw. Soon it started to create waves just like you would see on the beach. The waves got larger and finally the waves resembled tsunamis. The wave was shaped like a herd of angry horses charging at me. It crashed on me and I got up to see watery figures rising from it. The water slid off to reveal Tiamat as well as Zuni and Brita. I reached out to touch them but they told me to wait. They came out of the river to ask me what had happened. I showed them what I saw and they screeched at the betrayal. The water bubbled violently then rose an army of Mermaids one battalion after another. I directed them so they could give the traitors a piece of their minds. We found them trying to flee from the hut. I faced the Ice maiden while Brita faced Matilda. Tiamat and her cousin Zuni faced a crippled Poseidon. He could barely stand let alone fight them. They used swords and sliced him to pieces like I had originally intended but I didn't get a chance since the sharks started to eat him. I turned to bats to avoid the Ice maiden's attack. Then when I felt that she could be distracted I waved my hand and she got attacked by a lot of bats. Then I ran towards her and twisted her head one hundred and eighty degrees around. She died immediately. Matilda screamed in anger and tried to attack me but she was facing Brita. She tilted her head and Matilda fell face down and started to spasm. She waved her hand and Matilda was turned into an ice sculpture. The ghost sharks tried to attack us. Like I said Tiamat took care of it with a flick of her wrist. They were extra crispy before they had any opportunity to bite us. We scoured the area to see if there were any more. This time I built a bonfire and burned Poseidon's remains to make sure he is gone for good. The others threw the other dead bodies in as well.

The dark elves saw what was happening and raised their hands claiming this was neutral land and that they apologize for not informing the authority when they saw Poseidon. They thought they were imagining him due to excess Mead they had consumed. They had to pay the penalty by means that their leader had to cut off his left hand. The mermaids accepted it and left with me in tow.

The merpeople opened the portal and took me with them. One of the mermaids of Alta's clan was waiting for me. She was badly injured so I cut my wrist and healed her injuries. She drank till she healed completely. She happily got up and thanked me. She also gave me a conch shell and left. I had to feed so Tiamat opened a portal to see Angelina and she gave me a blood bag and slipped a little gossip as well.

Apparently my healing ability was different from James'. He could partially heal me. For example reverse the more deadly injuries like spinal cord injuries or shattered bones or organ damage. If they are mortal they still need to stop by the hospital. With my blood a hospital was not required. This made things complicated. So I was asked to stay with the mermaids unless my assistance was required. The question was where do I stay? Skull Island? Kong Island or The City of Gold.