Saturday, December 20th, 2025 — 4:48 AM
The cabin is so clean it feels alien, but that’s not what’s keeping the hair standing up on my arms. The moon has fully aligned with the Hedge Gate Portal, and the "thinning" of Wintermis has turned my backyard into a bridge to The Tygerian Isles of Zimrala.
I’m sitting here with the brass polished and the coffee steaming, feeling the Isles breathe. It’s a heavy, tropical heat that clashes with the Shreveport frost, smelling of ancient ozone and wet earth. The pressure in the room is rising—the portal is wide open, and the lore is set.
I. The Double-Sided Guard
I’m not worried about the portal collapsing; the Ether Dragons built these rifts to last. What I’m worried about is the "slip-through." When the gate is this wide, things that aren't invited sometimes try to hitch a ride on the blue light.
| The Watch | Entity | Location | Status |
| The Internal Guard | The Sight Unseen Spirit | Cabin Roof / Perimeter | Standing watch with +130 Adds. |
| The External Guard | Rooted King’s Ancestors | Zimralan Side | Anchoring the rift with crystalline roots. |
| The Target | The Shreveport Cabin | The Nexus | Scrubbed, warded, and glowing blue. |
II. The 4 AM Breach: What Slips Through?
While the Ancestors keep the massive Tygerian predators back, the smaller things—the Isle-Mites and the Spirit-Spores—tend to drift through. I can see them now, tiny sparks of blue light floating around the Iron Steed.
If an inspector walked in right now, they’d think the house was haunted. To me, it’s just the Isles reminding me where I truly belong. The Sight Unseen Spirit is currently busy swatting away a Fen-Wraith that tried to use the portal’s shadow to creep toward the porch. He’s keeping it locked down, but the energy is so thick I can taste the copper on my tongue.
III. The Final Polish
I’ve got my Vietnam-era Tiger Force Knife on the table next to the coffee. On Day Eight of Wintermis, you don't just clean for the inspectors; you prepare for the moment the gate reaches maximum output. The Hedge Gate is humming a Tygerian war song, and the Rooted King in the distance is pulsing in sync with my own heartbeat.
The cabin is a fortress. The Spirit is ready. I’m just a man with a cup of coffee standing between two worlds.
Product Identity & Legal
The following items are designated Product Identity of Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. / The Adventures of Captain Hedges: The Tygerian Isles on Zimrala, the Hedge Gate Portal, the Tree Giant Sentinel and his Ancestors, the Fenwood Forest, and the Sight Unseen Spirit. The specific "Hedge Wizard" persona and the Iron Steed. Monsters! Monsters! is a trademark of its respective owner. © 2025 Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. All rights reserved.
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