Space Odyssey: Spect Chapter 320: Ravens and Wells

Chapter 320: Ravens and Wells

The bandit was tied up in a chair in the Saloon. Most of the miners and lumberjacks had gone ho. So the Saloon was almost completely empty. The only ones who were in the room were the bartender, Mada Oracle, her son Jebidiah, the counter working man, Yuti, and a few other drunks who stayed at the Saloon late into the night.

Salem was more focused on the bandit at the mont. She was sitting in a chair sitting across from him. He had so sort of natural shielding in his mind. Whether it was training or just experience. It was taking her a few minutes to get past it.

anwhile Mada Oracle watched from the side and judged her. "That is the wrong way. I told you to stop trying to brute force it." Mada Oracle sighed as she leaned on her cane.

Salem felt a twinge of annoyance but sighed as she closed her eyes and tried again.

In front of her appeared a hedge maze. It was the simplest of ntal defenses and the easiest one to put up. The sky was black while the ground was a simple white plain. The hedges were the only complex thing about this. Standing next to her was Mada Oracle’s avatar.

She was in a decorated outfit but still had her staff. She had a black cloak that was covered in feathers. While her hands had silver bird-like claws. Then on her head was a giant bird skull turned mask with a pointed beak.

[Rember what I said. First you enter the trap.] Her voice was wispy like a bird was talking to her.

Salem stepped forward just up to the entrance of the maze. So the maze’s trap could be triggered. The world seemingly got darker and thorns began growing on the hedges. While the hedges themselves began to slowly close.

She could not go through again. But she could not try to brute force her way through. She could just avoid it entirely. But as she looked over at Mada Oracle who turned into a Raven and sat on her shoulder she realized that was not possible for her.

She had certainly strengthened her abilities. But she lacked enough control to attempt sothing so complex. So after a few minutes of thought a pair of hedge clippers appeared in her hands. She then began walking through the hedge. But every ti she ended at a dead end she gently clipped through the hedge until she had a new entrance.

After a few minutes of this she arrived at the center of the maze where an old well sat with a creaky wooden pulley system. [Good job. You used the hedge nature against itself. Instead of just destroying them you trimd them down and got past. It also prevented the hedge maze from closing in on you. A naturally fearful response to you being able to trim it down.] Mada Oracle cawed out from her shoulder.

Salem nodded her head as she got closer to the well. "So this is his mind. I usually see a door. Why do you think it is a well?" Salem asked. Mada Oracle never had enough power to dive into these peoples minds since they were always hostile towards her. So she was piggybacking off of Salem’s power at the mont. So this was the first ti she had been inside one of the Bandit’s minds.

[I do not know, but I have seen a few different things. Usually when it is not a door it is because of a trauma that shaped their personality. We also have to be careful as we take a look down.] She answered as Salem looked down into the well. The bottom had a pool of water. At the bottom they could see a happy image.

Then they were in the event as they watched children run around. The bandit was happily watching the children. But after a few monts they were covered in a large shadow and he looked up. A giant spaceship was coming towards the ground. The bandit only had a mont to scream a warning before an explosion threw him clear and into a well that had grass surrounding it. The bandit was stuck at the bottom of the well as the children scread and fires suffocated the air above.

He managed to climb out injured several days later to see the lush forests and greenery of the planet had not even left a trace. All that was left was sand and so tal. The tal was from machines, automated ones.

Then the man stood up and started walking. The next scene was of him collapsing and then being found by a group in clothes that would protect them from the sand. The bandit was carried away as a ship landed and picked them up.

The next scene was of the man in the hospital talking to so people. He then angrily thrashed around but was cald when a person in what looked like military garbed walked in and spoke to him.

After that was a scene of him on a battlefield. They were fighting automatons but fighting with them were an array of species so that Salem had never seen before. Along with machines of their own.

Then the scene was of the bandit smashing a view screen as what looked like a human and a machine were shaking hands. After that was him being arrested with what looked like a destroyed automaton in the background. Then he was freed along with others by Salem’s bandit version who already had a scar on her face.

The next image was of their camp that should be by the mountains. This ti Salem focused as she looked at the images. They had no strong barricades. They were mostly made of wood. While they had an entrance into the mine. The mories of the mine itself were accessible. Almost like the mind was struggling with what even happened inside of the mine. But from the information she gleaned she figures that Drakon Lesden is inside of the mine.

Salem took a deep breath and pulled her mind back out. She looked over at Mada Oracle to see her shedding a tear of blood. "Oh... young man... How tragic. You must be so full of anger." She consoled the bandit.

Salem turned to Yuti, "Okay, I have an idea. It is ti to get ready."