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Series Description
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
A man discovers he can open doors to other realities.
Jason Leaper was supposed to live an ordinary life. Instead, he’s thrown into a brutal fight for survival on a world that shouldn’t exist … and that’s only the beginning.
Across an infinite multiverse, every version of reality is out there. Different worlds. Different laws. Different versions of himself.
Rescued by a crew of interdimensional hunters, Jason is pulled into something far bigger than survival. To stay alive, he has to learn how the multiverse actually works, and how to control the one ability that changes everything: the power to rift between worlds.
But every step forward comes with a cost.
Because when you can move between realities, every decision multiplies. Every consequence echoes. And in a universe where everything exists somewhere…
Jason has to decide what actually matters.
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about survival across impossible worlds, reality-bending power, and the search for meaning in an infinite universe.
Shortcuts:
Main Series: Book 1 – The Wyvern in the Wilderlands
Main Series: Book 2 – The Minotaurs of Mazeworld
Main Series: Book 3 – The Heart of a Necromancer
Main Series: Book 4 – The Giants of Shattered Swamp
Main Series: Book 5 – The Manticores of Pristalline Paradise
Main Series: Book 6 – The Dragon of the Quantum Void
Main Series: OMNIBUS ONE – Box Set of Books 1 – 3
Main Series: OMNIBUS TWO – Box Set of Books 4 – 6
Fan Exclusive: A Bond Between Man and Monster
Related Short: Goran the Slayer
Related Short: The Helion Depths
READ A PREVIEW OF BOOK ONE HERE!
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“The Wyvern in the Wilderlands”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Book 1
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Jason Leaper’s life isn’t going anywhere.
Then something impossible lands on his doorstep, and pulls him into a world that should not exist.
Stranded in a brutal wilderness filled with prehistoric monsters and constant danger, Jason is forced to fight for survival with no understanding of how he got there … or how to get home.
But Jason isn’t just lost.
He’s been chosen.
Somewhere out there, a group of interdimensional hunters is searching for him. Because Jason has a rare ability that lets him open pathways between worlds.
He just doesn’t know how to use it yet.
To survive, he’ll have to learn fast. Because in a world ruled by predators, there’s only one way out:
Become something stronger.
The Wyvern in the Wilderlands is the first step in a multiverse sci-fi adventure about survival, reality-shifting powers, and what happens when an ordinary man is thrown into an infinite universe.
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. If that sounds like your kind of story, dive in and start the adventure today.
Book 1 focuses on survival. But it expands quickly into something much larger. The larger multiverse and reality-rifting elements expand as the series progresses.
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“The Minotaurs of Maze World”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Book 2
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Jason Leaper survived his first world.
Now he has to learn how the multiverse actually works.
With access to a device that can open pathways between realities, Jason begins training with a crew of experienced interdimensional hunters. The rules are more complex than he imagined … and far more dangerous.
Every world is different. Every jump carries risk.
And Jason is not ready.
When a hunt takes them to a hostile world filled with powerful, intelligent predators, Jason is pushed beyond survival into something new: control.
But something else is hunting them too.
Other hunters. Other agendas. And forces that understand the multiverse far better than he does.
Jason wanted a way out.
Now he’s stepping into something much bigger.
The Minotaurs of Maze World expands the reality-rifting adventure with deeper systems, higher stakes, and a growing understanding of how dangerous infinite worlds can be.
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. As Jason’s control grows, so do the consequences. Continue the journey.
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“The Heart of a Necromancer”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Book 3
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
If infinite worlds exist…
Do any choices matter?
As Jason Leaper’s control over his abilities grows, so does the weight of what he’s part of. Every hunt leaves damage behind. Every decision echoes across realities.
And in some worlds, the consequences are impossible to ignore.
When a mission draws the team into a collapsing world ruled by a powerful necromancer and a desperate population on the edge of extinction, Jason is forced to confront a question he can’t escape:
If everything exists somewhere … does anything he does actually matter?
Not everyone answers that question the same way. And not everyone survives it.
The Heart of a Necromancer takes the multiverse adventure into darker territory, where power, consequences, and meaning collide.
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. As Jason’s control grows, so do the consequences. Continue the journey.
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“The Giants of Shattered Swamp”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Book 4
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Jason Leaper is getting stronger.
But strength isn’t enough.
When a routine job turns into a disaster on a world dominated by an impossible, reality-warping giant, Jason is separated from his team and pushed to his limits.
He can’t win by force. He can’t outgun the problem.
The rules he’s relied on no longer apply.
To survive, he’ll have to think differently; using everything he’s learned about how reality itself can be manipulated.
Because some threats can’t be defeated.
Only understood.
The Giants of Shattered Swamp raises the stakes with larger-scale threats, deeper control of reality, and a turning point in how Jason uses his power.
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. As Jason’s control grows, so do the consequences. Continue the journey.
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“The Manticores of Pristalline Paradise”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Book 5
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Jason Leaper can open doors to other worlds.
Now, he has to survive without them.
Captured, stripped of his gear, and hunted across hostile realities, Jason is forced to confront the limits of his abilities. The tools he relied on are gone.
What remains is raw understanding … and instinct.
Meanwhile, something else is closing in. Other versions. Other hunters. And something that knows exactly what Jason is becoming.
To escape, he’ll have to evolve.
Because in a multiverse where anything is possible…
He’s no longer the only one who can bend reality.
The Manticores of Pristalline Paradise is a turning point, where survival, identity, and power all start to merge.
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. As Jason’s control grows, so do the consequences. Continue the journey.
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“The Dragon of the Quantum Void”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Book 6
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
For Jason Leaper, everything is coming together.
And everything is coming for him.
With enemies closing in from across multiple worlds, Jason must push his abilities further than ever before. The limits placed on his power are no longer acceptable, and removing them may be the only way to survive.
But unlocking that potential comes at a cost.
Because the deeper Jason dives into the mechanics of multiple realities, the more unstable everything becomes.
Worlds. People. Consequences.
And at the center of it all: something vast, ancient, and deadly.
Jason wanted control. Now he has to define it.
And he has to decide what he’s willing to become to keep it.
The Dragon of the Quantum Void brings the multiverse arc to a head with escalating conflict, reality-bending power, and final consequences.
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. As Jason’s control grows, so do the consequences. Continue the journey.
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“Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit” OMNIBUS ONE Box Set
Books 1-3
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Love a Good Deal?
If you’ve been reading the Monster Hunting series, purchase this ebook Omnibus to get Books 1, 2, and 3 at a big discount!
Includes:
Book 1 – “The Wyvern in the Wilderlands”
Book 2 – “The Minotaurs of Maze World”
Book 3 – “The Heart of a Necromancer”
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. If that sounds like your kind of story, dive in and start the adventure today.
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“Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit” OMNIBUS TWO Box Set
Books 4-6
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Love a Good Deal?
If you’ve been reading the Monster Hunting series, purchase this ebook Omnibus to get Books 4, 5, and 6 at a big discount!
Includes:
Book 4 – “The Giants of Shattered Swamp”
Book 5 – “The Manticores of Pristalline Paradise”
Book 6 – “The Dragon of the Quantum Void”
The Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series is a multiverse sci-fi adventure about learning to move between realities, mastering the rules of different worlds, and deciding what matters in an infinite universe. If you enjoy dimension-hopping stories, strange worlds, and characters growing into powerful abilities over time, you’re in the right place. As Jason’s control grows, so do the consequences. Continue the journey.
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“A Bond Between Man and Monster”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Special Feature
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
A FREE NOVELLA just for Fans!
Riley Wyatt didn’t always run with the Reality Rifters.
During a disastrous mission to hunt some Night Hags, everything goes wrong, and their leader pays the price. Later, back home, while the team regroups and tries to figure out what to do next, Riley is asked a simple question:
How did he and Gliath become partners?
The answer begins on another world.
Before the multiverse. Before the team. Before any of it – Riley was a mercenary, sent on a routine acquisition mission that went off the rails. Bad intel drops his squad into the middle of a brutal war between the native Krulax forces and something far worse … and one by one, his team is wiped out.
Alone, outmatched, and trying to survive, Riley makes a decision that he wasn’t trained for:
He saves a Krulax warrior–one of the very beings his mission was never meant to involve.
What follows is not an alliance, not a negotiation, but something far stranger:
A bond.
Riley left that world as the only survivor of his squad…
…but he didn’t leave alone.
A Bond Between Man and Monster is a multiverse sci-fi story about survival, first contact under fire, and the moment a single decision changes everything that comes after.
This story within a story is a special treat JUST FOR FANS, going into some exciting and bizarre backstory of the Reality Rifters and the cyborg/beast-man duo that rescued Jason Leaper 934 in “The Wyvern in the Wilderlands”. This novella is not available in stores–it’s a FREE GIFT for anyone who enjoys the “Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit” series and signs up for the Eddie Patin Fiction mailing list. Download your copy NOW!
— Only Available to Fans on my (no-spam) Mailing List
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“Goran the Slayer”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Short Story
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Goran the Slayer loves his job.
Drop into a hostile world. Find the target. Burn it down.
Simple.
As part of an interdimensional hunting team that travels between realities, Goran lives for the chaos – bigger monsters, bigger weapons, bigger fights!
But when a routine mission turns into something far more dangerous, the team is pushed into a situation where raw firepower isn’t enough.
Cut off, under pressure, and facing something that twists both mind and reality, Goran has to prove that he’s more than just the biggest gun in the room.
Because in some worlds, even monsters hunt differently.
Goran the Slayer is a fun, fast-paced multiverse sci-fi adventure featuring reality-rifting missions, brutal combat, and a glimpse into the dangerous work of interdimensional hunters.
This story takes place in the same universe as the Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series – a multiverse sci-fi adventure about reality-rifting, strange worlds, and the search for meaning across infinite realities.
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“The Helion Depths”
Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit – Short Story
Explore other Universes.
Shatter Infinity.
Defy the Absurd.
Before he learned to navigate the multiverse…
Riley Wyatt was just trying to survive his first mission.
Recruited into an elite interdimensional mercenary group, Riley is sent to a strange and hostile world unlike anything he’s ever seen: a living, layered planet where the laws of physics don’t behave the way they should.
Deep beneath the surface, something is attacking the mining operation.
Something fast. Something relentless. Something impossible.
When the mission breaks apart and Riley is left isolated in the depths, training and firepower aren’t enough.
To survive, he’ll have to think differently.
Because this world doesn’t follow the rules, and neither do the things hunting him.
The Helion Depths is a multiverse sci-fi survival story that explores first missions, strange worlds, and the terrifying unknown waiting beyond reality.
This story takes place in the same universe as the Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit series – a multiverse sci-fi adventure about reality-rifting, strange worlds, and the search for meaning across infinite realities.
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Preview of “The Wyvern in the Wilderlands”
“Monster Hunting for Fun and Profit” Book One
Chapter 1
The colors were as brilliant and varied as they were terrifying.
“Jason!” Riley shouted against the noise. “What do we do? How can we stop it?” He could hardly hear his own voice above the din that sounded like white-hot lightning arcing around them, tearing constantly through the world. Underneath all of the deafening chaos was the crinkling noise of cracks and splits spreading through glass.
Above the soldier was a prismatic spread of blue and indigo; shades of red and yellow. The tearing and crinkling racket—Riley was sure that the deafening roar would rupture his ears if they weren’t cybernetically fortified—was shaking the house to pieces. Crystals constantly erupted into vast and rapidly shifting geometric patterns as the world was being torn apart. Rainbow fractals built upon themselves, bigger and bigger, expanding to the size of clouds. The slashing sound scratched and tore at Riley’s synthetic eardrums—bizarre noises of glass shattering and crawling along the earth and metal; piercing through the concrete foundation and the walls of Jason’s living room. From here, Riley could only barely see the deadly rift, still yawning open in the garage. It twisted violently. The colors lashed out all around the portal’s swirling form. As the roof of the house was being torn away with each shriek of the crystalline air expanding from the incompatible universe, the soldier could see Earth’s sky filling with rainbows and streaks of color that glimmered in the sunlight as if made of stained glass.
The other Reality Rifters were dead, and Jason Leaper 113 lay dying.
Riley Wyatt crouched down next to his friend, afraid to touch him because it looked like Jason was melting. Parts of Jason were melding into the floor. His boss’s warped and half-crystalized body was bathed in dangerous shades of violet, green, and orange.
Jason Leaper 113 tried to speak, and broken bits of colored glass fell from his lips.
Riley’s good friend and employer struggled to stay conscious.
Half of Jason’s wizened face had hardened into translucent, ever-sharpening gemstones—one of his blue eyes was like a sapphire, half of his salt-and-pepper dusky blonde hair had stiffened into translucent crystalline growths. His distorted hairs expanded into a brittle lattice—growths finer than Riley could make out even with his enhanced vision—reaching and branching off in endless symmetry until cracking under its own weight and falling to the floor.
“Riley…” Jason croaked. “Gliath…”
Riley’s Krulax bodyguard ran up to Jason’s side, crouching down with an easy grace, his huge and bipedal feline form a stark contrast against the brilliant and colorful crumbling landscape. Gliath’s glossy, black fur was bristling all over, and his brilliant yellowish-green eyes darted around at the incomprehensible madness around them. The leopardwere’s long, dark tail swished back and forth frantically.
“Jason, tell us what to do!” Riley exclaimed. “How can we close the rift?”
“Listen,” Jason snapped, the crystals of his hair growing like spreading ice as a flash of red and violet rippled over his face. “There isn’t time—the light won’t last. You’ve got to take this…”
Jason pressed his OCS into Riley’s hands. The soldier felt the hard, metal lines of the device—it hardly ever left his employer’s side—and saw that the screen was still on. Riley stared down at the large gadget in shock but didn’t protest. He knew that Jason wasn’t kidding. They were surrounded by an intense sphere of white light, which was blocking the weird atmosphere of universe 1240 from overtaking them for now, but the sphere was using a hell of a lot of power to keep it blazing. Those fusion cells wouldn’t last for much longer.
If Jason was giving Riley his OCS, then this was bad.
“Aren’t you gonna come with us?!” Riley asked, running a hand through his short beard in fear. A broad, vivid rainbow suddenly streaked across the room outside the light sphere, crashing through the wall near the couch. It punched through drywall and wood framing as if the house was made of paper. The young soldier saw the fragile structure remaining suddenly overwhelmed and crawling with rapidly-growing crystalline forms and beautiful colors. Time seemed to be moving strangely as adrenaline coursed through the soldier’s enhanced system. “Jason, I don’t know how to—”
“Shut up and listen!” Jason cried. Gliath drew in closer, his large, black form shading Riley from a yellow and orange flare that popped by on his right. “I’m going to open a rift here before the light goes out. It’ll take you to Earth of universe 934!” Their leader stopped to cough. Jason’s voice was turning hoarse and scratchy, and the dying man grimaced for a moment as his legs and left arm spread more into the floor like rainbow jelly. “Find Jason 934! I’ve watched him. He’s a good fit—no attachments. There’s a portal to—oh God, it’s happening!—portal to the Wilderlands behind his house!”
“What’s the Wilderlands?” Riley shouted over the noise. He suddenly felt too young for all of this. He and Gliath were about to be on their own again…
“Take a portable gateway!” Jason cried in pain. He tilted his head and grimaced, then gestured to the big satchel near his overturned armchair, still protected within the sphere of light. “Use it to—holy hell, this fucking hurts!—to get to the Market from there if you need to. Other Jason … might not be able to use the focus key. Give Jason 934 this infinity crystal and—”
They were interrupted by a loud crash of one of the house’s exterior walls falling down into a sea of green and purple, then disintegrating into colorful dust. Riley looked around and gasped—his cybernetic eyes let him see through the glare and brilliance of the light sphere protecting them. The walls between here and the garage were now gone and the rift to Universe 1240 stood brilliant and horrific, swirling like the center of a storm, spitting colors out all around it like a monstrous tesla coil bursting with lightning and rainbows. The piercing streaks and sizzling hues crackled and boomed and hissed. Even the concrete floor of the garage below it—and the earthen ground below that—was gone. It was all gone! Crystal branches like the nightmares of fractals and lightning frozen in time extended in all directions, swallowing clouds, reaching for the stars themselves…
Riley felt disoriented, trying to make sense of the incomprehensible details all around him. It was as if the passing seconds pulsed in and out of minutes and moments; speeding and slowing…
Time was becoming weird, but everything was happening so fast!
“Gliath!” Riley shouted over the noise. “Get the bag with the gate!”
The tall, black leopardwere stood and dashed over to the bag on long, nimble beast-legs, hefting its weight onto one muscular shoulder. It was no doubt pretty damned heavy with those fusion cores inside, but Gliath was strong.
“Riley!” Jason exclaimed again, and the soldier leaned in close. He could hardly hear his friend’s voice over the deafening sound of unmaking. His words were distorted by the crystals growing in his throat. “The infinity crystal is special … focus key to the Wilderlands! Get more, start over!”
The soldier felt a stab of panic and sadness.
He didn’t want to lose Jason. He didn’t want to lose his leader.
“But we need more gear!” Riley replied. “We’re low on ammo and everything after… Shet! And all of my guns—”
“No time, Riley!” Jason shouted. Fruk—it really looked like he was melting into the floor! Did that mean that the invading crystals under the floor were coming up to them, too? There really wasn’t much time at all! “Give Jason 934 the OCS! I’ve tuned its informational … set point to 934! I’ve also restricted—” Jason voice hitched up and he writhed through a spell of being wracked with pain then he focused on the two of them again. “I’ve restricted ninth dimensional travel to within … a 95% tolerance to the physical laws of—” He clenched his good eye closed in pain. The other eye remained open and unmoving like a solid gemstone, no longer part of a man. “… Laws of 934 … so this doesn’t happen again! Now go!”
Riley Wyatt stood, his duster jacket flaring out around him. He felt Gliath’s powerful hand encouraging him to his feet as Jason opened a rift right next to them. The portal unfurled and roared—loud as hell but drowned out by the madness around them—protected for the moment within the brilliance of the white light sphere.
One last rift.
“Jason…” Riley offered, not knowing what to say. I love you? I’m sorry? Jason was his good friend of four years now, and the soldier had failed to protect him. His boss was dying. Riley didn’t want to leave. He felt like he’d never see Jason 113 again, and a crushing feeling in his chest grew like bags of sand keeping him from breathing. What was probably a second or two felt like much longer…
Dust and splinters of wood showered down around them through the white light.
“Gliath, get him out of here!” Jason shouted. Riley felt the firm push of his feline friend, guiding him toward the portal, which swirled and spit and fluttered at the edges, revealing a vista of a dark mountain town covered in snow with wet streets and rows of quiet houses under a grey night sky. “Find Jason 934! He can get you to the Wilderlands with that infinity crystal!” Everything roared in Riley’s ears, and he could hardly understand Jason now. “Use the portable gate … Reality Rifters … start over!”
Riley looked around at the apocalyptic, prismatic sky.
The colors were bold and deep—as deep as space—and he could easily lose himself inside that infinity of blue … indigo … violet…
Shaking his head and scratching his beard with a trembling hand, Riley looked back down at Jason 113 with a frown.
“Goodbye, Jason!” Riley finally said, shouting above the chaos.
“Yes, goodbye, Jason Leaper 113,” Gliath added with his low, rumbly voice.
“Goodbye, you two…” Jason replied. “Now hurry before I die and this portal goes away!”
Riley glanced up at his leopardwere friend when he felt Gliath’s strong, black-furred hand on his shoulder. The Krulax looked back down at him, grim and stoic, all the colors of the rainbow bursting and flashing past behind his shadowy face. Then, the two planeswalkers—the last of the Reality Rifters—both looked at the swirling rift together and stepped through to the other side.
Chapter 2
“All of you make a reflex save,” Tom said suddenly, putting down his diet soda and gathering several six-sided dice from behind his cardboard DM’s screen.
“Wait!” Jason cried. “I’m at thirteen—don’t I get to go next?”
“Jeez!” Amanda scoffed. “Patience!”
“We’re still at the cult leader’s initiative,” Tom replied to Jason flatly. “He’s at fifteen. Do your reflex saves.”
Ben rolled a twenty-sided die, sitting across from Jason. His green die tumbled to a stop against the man’s ratty Player’s Handbook, then, he read his result aloud after running numbers in his head. “Twenty-two,” Ben said with a wry smile. He took a sip of his own diet soda, plucking up the can with his dark, nimble fingers.
Amanda also rolled.
Jason Leaper frowned. The big bad guy was almost dead, and Jason was looking forward to finishing him off. He already had nine six-sided dice clattering around in his hand. Disappointed, Jason put his clutch of dice down onto the table and rolled his d20 instead.
His lucky red die rolled to a stop on a 12.
“Damn it,” Jason said, then, after doing some math in his head, announced, “sixteen.”
“Fifteen for me,” Amanda said, sitting back in her chair with a nervous sigh. The light of the kitchen seemed harsher since all of her and Tom’s stuff was packed away, and all of the wall hangings had been taken down. Now they played in an almost empty room, and Jason could see that Amanda was really starting to look older. They’d even taken down the Halloween stuff, which made sense since they wouldn’t be around for the 31st…
“Okay,” Tom said, rolling a frightening amount of dice behind his screen. The DM furrowed his brow, and the light reflected off of the areas of Tom’s head where his hair was thinning. Jason hardly ever noticed these things, but now that the comfortable environment of Amanda and Tom’s apartment was changing—back to blank walls and empty spaces—everything seemed different in little ways. “So, the minotaur leader is in rough shape, and he’s coughing up blood as he glares up at you all, but when you drop his champion, he suddenly points to you all…” Tom pointed for effect across the table cluttered with books, dice, and empty diet soda cans. “He grunts out some words in his dark language, and you guys see a single point of inverted light fly at the champion’s body! It lands in between all of you and explodes in a huge burst of black fire! Amanda, your character takes thirty-four damage. Jason, you barely made it, and take half … seventeen.”
“Ouch,” Amanda muttered, scribbling on her character sheet with a frown.
“Holy shit!” Jason exclaimed, crossing out his hit point total and penciling in the new number below. “Is he a higher level than—?”
“Of course he is, Jason,” Amanda interrupted.
“I have improved evasion,” Ben said with a smirk.
“I know,” Tom replied. “So, Ben’s character flips and tumbles with great skill—maybe using the body of the minotaur dark champion to get away from the explosion—and Jason, your guy manages to dodge back quickly enough to just take the edge of the attack. But Amanda’s paladin is caught right in the middle of it. The minotaur leader laughs with his low, bellowing voice, then pulls his great-axe, looking like he’s thinking of charging. Jason, now you’re up!”
Finally!
“I cast lightning bolt at him!” Jason exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear as he collected nine d6’s from the mess of papers on the table in front of him.
“Okay, roll,” Tom replied, as Ben took another sip of soda. The DM then rolled his own d20 to see how the monster would be able to resist, but Jason knew that it was hopeless—they had this battle. It was already won. Unless the minotaur wizard was immune to lightning or something, there was no way it would survive…
Amanda lifted up her sheaf of papers and started scrutinizing her inventory.
“Don’t I have any healing potions left?” she asked herself.
Jason rolled his big handful of dice, and counted up the damage as Ben pulled out his phone to check its screen.
“Thirty-six damage!” Jason exclaimed.
Tom sighed, then gave a thin smile.
Must have had something else planned, Jason thought with a broad grin.
“Okay, well,” the DM said, “that definitely did it. So … as your lightning bolt streaks from your hand to the wounded leader, the magic hits him full force, and the minotaur throws his big bull head back, crying out in pain and dropping his axe to the floor! He falls, disintegrating bit by bit, but to all of your surprise, he laughs with a booming voice, saying ‘Fools! You cannot stop Baphomet from rising out of the abyss! It has already begun, and he will be here soon to bring about a vicious, dark world of beasts and slaughter! There’s nothing you can do to prevent the end of your world! Bwahahaha!’ The minotaur’s laughter fades into the crumbling and crashing of the castle’s black walls. The whole place starts to fall down all around you as he falls down dead…!”
“Crashing?” Ben asked, cocking his eyebrow. “The castle is literally falling down around us?”
“Yes!” Tom replied, his eyes gleaming as he looked at all of them over the rims of his glasses. “Huge chunks of the black stone walls are falling inward as the entire castle begins shifting under your feet! A huge crack opens in the middle of the room, and some of the dead minotaurs’ bodies slip down into darkness. It looks like mere moments before the ceiling collapses on your heads! What do you do?!”
“The amulet!” Jason exclaimed. “Get the amulet!”
“I’m on it,” Ben replied, looking at Tom. “I go in as fast as I can and take the demon lord’s amulet from the minotaur’s neck…”
“You do that,” Tom replied.
“I pick up his great axe,” Amanda said, then, she looked to Jason. “Time to use that teleport scroll!”
“Okay!” Jason replied with a grin. “I pull out the teleport scroll and get to where I can reach everybody…”
“You do that,” Tom said, looking at his wife, “Amanda, you’ve got the axe. It’s big, made of a shiny, black metal, and looks either really ornate, or like it’s probably enchanted. Are you guys going to let Jason’s character touch you for the teleport?”
“Yes,” Ben and Amanda replied at once.
“The castle continues to fall around you, huge pieces of stone smashing down nearby. Where do you teleport to?”
“Okay,” Jason said, rubbing his hands together. “Teleport to … the magical forest!”
“Alright,” Tom replied with a smirk. “Where in the magical…? Oh well … you already said it.” The DM looked down at his papers, and started rolling dice, hidden behind his screen. “Let’s see where you end up…”
“The magical forest?” Ben asked dryly, raising his eyebrow again. Even though Tom and Amanda were starting to look older, Ben was still as thin as he was ten years ago, and didn’t look much different. The faintest lines showed around his eyes. “Not somewhere more specific? If you don’t know exactly where you’re going—”
“It’s just regular teleport,” Amanda added. “Not teleport without error. Besides, the magical forest is magical! Areas with high magic might make you more likely to miss!”
“Well, hey … it’s better than the collapsing castle, right?!” Jason asked, hiding behind a long sip of soda. He smiled uneasily as his friends sighed.
“So,” Tom said finally, capturing all of their attention. “You guys all teleport away from the dark castle with a flash, and reappear in a beautiful green meadow surrounded by a forest of tall pine trees, with the colorful lights of tiny fairies drifting around you, high above the ground. The problem is, you also teleport in too low, and each of your characters appears waist-deep in the ground, taking nine points of damage.”
“Damn it!” Jason exclaimed.
“See what I mean?” Amanda asked, adjusting her hit points.
“Through the extreme pain of having rocks and dirt mingled with your legs,” Tom went on to say, “you recognize the village in the distance where they told you about the minotaur cult and gave you the map to the castle.”
“Trying to get out of the ground,” Ben said.
“Okay, all of you can roll strength checks until you hit … fifteen.”
All three of them started rolling their d20’s. After a short while, Tom looked down at his papers again, and rolled more dice.
“What are you doing?” Jason asked. He rolled his red d20, getting a twelve, then a nine, trying to break free…
“I’m out!” Amanda said.
“Random encounters,” Tom replied. “Okay, while your characters are trying to pull your lower bodies out of the ground, you all hear a terrifying screech in the distance!”
“That’s not good…” Ben muttered.
Tom went on. “If any of you choose to look in the direction of said screech, you’ll see a large creature flying through the air, heading your way. It’s got long wings, scales, looks reptilian, with a long neck and lots of teeth and spikes on its head. The long tail behind it is tipped with a big stinger, like one on a scorpion’s tail, and—”
“Wyvern!” Jason exclaimed, rolling his lucky d20 again and again, but not passing fifteen. “Come on!”
“Okay, seventeen—I’m out,” Ben said. “I’m helping Jason’s character.”
“Alright, add two to your rolls, Jason. The wyvern is flying toward you guys quickly!”
“Does anyone have a healing potion I can have?” Amanda asked. “I’m almost dead…”
“I have one!” Ben replied, looking up at Tom. “I give her one.”
“Finally!” Jason exclaimed, rolling a sixteen. “I’m out! Running for cover!”
“Running for cover,” Amanda echoed.
“Running for the village!” Ben said. “Come on, guys!”
“As you three run for cover and toward the village, the wyvern catches up. It’s much larger than it seemed when you first saw it, and it dives down in your direction! Roll initiative!”
Everyone grabbed for their dice…
“Mommy?” a small sleepy voice said suddenly, pulling Jason out of the fantasy world and making everyone gasp.
Coming from the hall leading away to the bedrooms, Tom and Amanda’s little boy stood, rubbing his eyes. Josh, Jason thought. They must have been making too much noise; getting too excited.
Amanda stood, rushing over to the little boy standing in Minecraft pajamas, and hugged him close to her legs.
“Hi, Joshie,” she said. “You okay, honey? Did we wake you up?”
Ben took another drink from his soda, tilting the can all the way back to empty it. He set the empty can down on the table with a ting.
The little boy made a small sound. “Is it tomorrow yet?” Josh asked, mumbling against his mom’s leg.
“Not yet, baby,” she said. “Go back to bed now. It’s late. Get some sleep, okay? We’ve got a long drive in the morning.”
With that, little Josh turned and disappeared down the hall, his little feet padding away on the carpet. Tom chuckled, looking after the boy with a smile. He gazed up at Amanda as she made her way back over.
The energy changed in the room, and Jason felt a stab of loneliness.
It was over. Everything was over…
Ben stood, pulling all of his papers and books together.
This was the end.
“Yeah…” Tom groaned with a stretch, folding up his DM’s screen, revealing his dice and papers behind it. “It’s probably a good time to stop.”
“It is getting late,” Amanda added with a sigh, walking up and giving her husband a little side-hug.
Seeing his friends starting to pack everything up, Jason suddenly felt a crush of disappointment. This was it. It was finally the end of the group. It’s not late, he thought. It’s only—he looked down at his phone—not even midnight, after all!
“Come on, guys!” Jason said, staying in his seat. “Let’s kill the wyvern and finish the quest! How long will it take to get back to town and total everything up? Not even an hour, I bet!”
“No, it’s alright,” Ben replied, pushing in his chair. “It doesn’t matter. This is the last game. We don’t need to total up.”
The words were chilling, but for some reason, Jason noticed that his friend didn’t seem all that broken up about it. Ben’s thin, black face was serene, and he smiled at Tom and Amanda while he packed up his things into his laptop bag.
“But we used to play until like three,” Jason said. “Hell—it’s the weekend, right? Do you guys even have to work?”
“Well, we don’t have to work,” Amanda said, “but we do have a long drive ahead of us. Sorry, Jason, but it’s nineteen hours to Portland, and Tom’s new job wants him there on Monday morning. We’ve really got to wake up early to get going.”
“Yep, unfortunately,” Tom added, organizing all of his stuff into a neat pile. The longtime DM smiled at all of them, then looked warmly at Amanda and pulled her in close. “Hey, it’s gone on a long time, right? Good, long game. Things change. I’ll miss our gaming, but, you know, we’re really looking forward to the move. It’s a good thing!”
“Bittersweet,” Amanda said.
“But how about just another hour?” Jason asked. “If you wake up an hour later, what difference will it make?”
Jason felt comfortable with Tom and Amanda, and Ben was the closest thing he had to a best friend. But still, after his last-ditch effort, Jason decided to pull back and preserve some form of his dignity. He didn’t want to beg. But it felt bad—terrible—like the end of an era. Ever since Jason’s accident, he’d been playing DnD with these guys since … God, had it really been over ten years now? A little more? Players came and went over the years, and some of them were part of the group for a long time, but eventually, they all moved on to something else. They all moved on with their lives.
But he, Ben, Tom, and Amanda were the core of the group.
And now the core was breaking. The game was over.
Jason didn’t want to face it.
They were leaving him all alone…
Amanda sighed and gave Jason a smile, which also became a hug when she sauntered over. Jason stood and returned the hug, squeezing her tightly, feeling a strange, intangible desperation in that she was almost gone from his life. Jason felt like Amanda understood him more than any of them. She had to know that their moving away would be hard for him. As Jason moved around the edge of the table with her hug, his bad right knee complained.
“We don’t want to get into Portland too late on Sunday,” she said gently.
“Yeah, we’ve got to be prepared in case there are any delays,” Tom added.
Jason sighed miserably. “I’m gonna miss you guys. Ten years, you know?”
“Thirteen, actually,” Amanda replied.
“Yeah, and I’ll miss you, too,” Ben added, directed at the two of them. Then, he walked up to Tom and gave him a long, solid handshake. “Good luck in Portland, Tom. Keep in touch.”
“Of course, Ben.”
“And hey—I’m always looking for new clients all over,” Ben said, “so if you come across anyone in the company that needs some web design or content or anything…”
“Sure, we’ll pimp you out, Ben,” Amanda said with a smirk.
Ben walked over and gave Amanda a hug while Jason stood, feeling like he was drifting away on an iceberg, broken off from a very large piece of his life…
“Bye Amanda,” Ben said with a broad smile. “And you guys be careful on the road. It’s probably still pretty slick over the pass.”
“We will,” Tom said. “Jason…” Tom extended his hand, and Jason shook it.
“Maybe we can play some more next time you guys visit, if you do,” Jason offered. He smiled, desperate for a glimmer of hope that one day he’d have his friends and his life back again…
“Sure, probably,” Tom replied quickly. “Take care of yourself, Jason. Take care of your folks’ house, alright?”
“Okay,” Jason said, giving one last uncertain look at Amanda. She smiled and gave him another hug.
“Bye, Jason,” she said. “I’ll let you know when we get there safe and sound, okay? I’ll call you.”
“Alright.”
Jason picked up his things, wanting nothing more than to rewind several minutes and stay there forever. But then Tom walked to the door to see them out and Amanda started picking up around the kitchen. Ben lifted his bag and turned to leave as Tom opened the door to the apartment building’s bland and empty hall.
Grabbing his books, his CamelBak backpack, and picking up his cane from the corner of the room, Jason cast one last look and smile at Amanda, who smiled back, then followed Ben to the door. Tom clasped Jason on the shoulder as he limped through.
Everyone quietly goodbye said to each other then Jason made his way out into the hall, leaning on his cane to take the stress off of his right knee.
He didn’t want the night to end just yet. He didn’t want to feel alone.
“Ben, hold up!”
These were the first two chapters of
“The Wyvern in the Wilderlands”
