| Hearth and home to thee, Wayfarer. Stay or come as ye myghte wish. No snares shal catch. No enigmas shal tease. No creatures shal trouble. Yet knowe ye this. Such morsels as thou myghte fynd shal not sustayn. For this place ys not for thee. |
“What language is that?” Lynnria asked after I finished translating it for her benefit.
“I’m not sure,” I admitted honestly.
Her face crumpled up in confusion. “How can you know a language, yet not know its name?”
“It’s complicated.”
She let out a sour grunt before turning back to the dilapidated installation.
Unlike most of the crystals I had seen in the Dungeon, this one looked extremely old. It was nicked and chipped in several spots, and the edges of it had been smoothed and rounded as though worn away by the elements.
Stranger still, it had been sitting as though completely dead in an old ruin right in the middle of the island. Most of the crystals I had encountered thus far had an almost eager blue glow to them, as though they were signaling you to investigate. Not this one. It barely flickered even when I had tapped at it.
“Why call you Wayfarer, though?” she asked after a moment. “I’ve never heard anyone called that before.”
I shrugged. “Well, from the funky spelling this thing uses, I’d have to assume it’s what people used to call Questers. Languages have a habit of changing over time, you know.”
“Really?” She seemed surprised. “How do you know that?”
I took a breath, but she quickly interrupted.
“And don’t say it’s complicated!”
I had to chuckle. This girl was a real spitfire. “Fine. To put it simply, every generation, children and young people, like you—“
“Not a child,” she growled, but I continued unperturbed.
“—make up new words or find clever ways of expressing old ones. Sometimes they even invent whole new pronunciations of things just for fun. Some of those stick. Some don’t. But the end result is that the language drifts along, pushed and prodded over the years by the people who speak it. And eventually, it becomes unrecognizable. Even a wholly new language.”
She looked at me thoughtfully for a moment. “Does that mean that all languages were once the same language?”
I pursed my lips. That was difficult to answer. I only had a passing familiarity with the topic even back on Earth, but my suspicion was that human beings had already begun to disperse by the time language had started to develop. So it was unclear whether all languages had a common ancestor.
Here, though? With all the different races, it was entirely possible that each had started with their own separate proto-language that had then begun drifting with both time and interaction with one another.
Or not? I could have been completely talking out of my own ass.
“I suppose it’s possible,” I said eventually. “You’d have to ask someone who studies linguistics.”
“What’s ‘at mean?” Gezer asked in his slow and oddly deep-for-his-size voice. When I glanced at him, he jerked his hand down guiltily. He had a bit of a scab next to his horn that he had been picking at, and from his demeanor, I had to assume someone had been regularly admonishing him for it.
He and several of the others—though I did not see Mik among them—had caught sight of us along the way and, being children, they could not help but be curious both about me and what we were doing. To my chagrin, they had been peppering me with questions almost constantly ever since.
Of course, their questions were not all about me. They also had quite a few about their situation, the fate of their parents and siblings, and a great many other things I had no answer for. I only counted myself fortunate in that they had already been there a few days, so most of their tears had dried.
On first seeing them, I had quickly realized that, like Lynnria, a large portion of their number had been a part of the same game-ball match—the very one I had been spectating with Arx. Most of them still had on their blue and red bandannas, too.
My question though, was whether these were the only children to have survived or merely ones that had been in the same approximate location. I could only hope it was the latter.
In any case, going from the crystal’s message, I was assuming this was some sort of ‘daycare’ island. Plenty of food and nothing particularly dangerous? It was a sound theory. Although why the Dungeon would gather them all here instead of putting through the same rigors as everyone else was an unknown.
I mean… why bother with the whole ‘lord of the flies’ scenario? Could it not simply let them loose? And why I should be led here was most curious.
But I was quite used to having far more questions than answers, and at the very least, I could answer the one Gezer had posed to me. “Linguistics is the study of language,” I explained simply.
“Den why not jus’ call it ‘at?” he persisted.
I could only shrug. “That I don’t know… but a linguist could probably tell you.”
A few giggles drifted out of the semi-circle of children.
“Still, this doesn’t tell us much more than what we’ve already figured out,” Lynnria said, bringing us back to the topic. “Didn’t you say you were here to find something?”
I bobbed my head uncertainly. “I’m not actually sure. I found a riddle back in the… well, I don’t really know if I could call it the main area. But anyway, it said there were two paths. One led to my uh… well, my mate—”
“You have a mate?” Lynnria asked. I was not positive, but she almost looked crestfallen at the news. Which was good! Anything I could do to curb her apparent interest was for the best.
“Two of them, actually,” I admitted. “They usually assist me in the Dungeon, but they’ve been kidnapped some—“
“Aww!” she gushed, interrupting me again. “You all Quest together? That’s so sweet!”
For some reason, she had perked up visibly at that. The rest of the children noticed too and began oohing and elbowing one another. Lynnria blushed furiously and, fists clenched, she turned to stare them down… which was easy enough for her. She was only a little shorter than me, so she must have seemed huge to this bunch.
I cleared my throat. Loudly. “Anyway… that path was some kind of darkened maze, so I figured I’d check out this other way first. The riddle said it was to help me see, after all. Then it dumped me into the sea.”
The kids laughed uproariously at that. I grinned a bit myself. It was a stupid joke, but even they can be funny when they happen to somebody else. And hindsight helps with that sort of thing.
“Still, in my experience the Dungeon doesn’t tend to do entirely pointless things. So I’m sure there’s more to this than what’s on the surface.”
“Maybe ya gots ta swim a bit, eh?” Gezer suggested. “If it ain’t on da surface, I mean.”
“Oh, I like swimming,” one of the younger girls chimed in. I did not know her name.
“Me too,” I returned with a smile. “But there’s an awful lot of ocean out there. Let’s see if this crystal has more it can teach us before we start deep-sea diving.”
As I turned to kneel in front of the crystal, I heard one of the others whispering softly behind me. “What are you doing, Lynnria? You can’t take him as your mate.”
“Hush, you!” she whispered back fiercely. “Nobody said anything about that. And besides, I can do what I want.”
“But he’s not a laoi!”
I hesitated for half a second. Interspecies relations or no, I really did need to nip this in the bud, but I could not bring myself to say anything with all these kids around. I would have to wait for the right time.
“Ha! Take you as her mate, is it?” Mia chimed in, and I jerked before I could stop myself. I had not known she was awake yet. “I swear… these laoi women.”
Quiet!
I focused the thought at her as forcefully as I could, but either she did not hear it or she was not paying me any attention.
“I’ll bet that she would open for you with nothing but a caress to her cheek. Quivering like a leaf and dripping for you.” She chuckled darkly. “She’d make a fine lilim, too. She’s already quite strong.”
What the fuck? Careful to keep my face composed, I whispered trough my clenched teeth, “She’s a child!”
“What are you waiting for?” Lynnria asked, and my back stiffened before I could stop myself.
“Oh, uh… just trying to frame the proper question is all,” I replied evasively.
“Technically, yes,” Mia continued dismissively. “But she’ll be granted a Class within the month, unless I miss my guess.”
“That doesn’t have anything to do with it!” I whispered, perhaps a tad too loud.
“Of course it—oh!” I could practically hear her grinning. “Really, Donum. A nineteen-year-old laoi girl? I guarantee you she does not lack for experience.”
My eyes goggled. “That’s not—!” I stopped. I was not having this argument.
“That’s not what?” Lynnria asked.
I glanced at her and almost jumped. She had drifted quite close while I was mumbling. “Nothing. Just thinking out loud.”
Her eyes—purple like her hair—roved my face for a few seconds, and she unconsciously licked her lips. Then she must have realized just how close she was to me and she straightened, her cheeks pink. “Are you talking to this… Mia of yours again? She’s… she’s awake now? I take it?”
I did not reply save to nod, though her questions were making Mia swear rather violently somewhere in the distance. It sounded like she had stepped away from the microphone… or however this thing in my brain worked.
Which was fine. It was distracting having two conversations at once.
“W-well… I’m sure she’d tell you the same as me. I mean what is there to think about?” she reasoned. “Just ask the crystal how to find your mates. You said they were taken, right? Imprisoned somewhere?”
I nodded again with some relief, happy to finally return to a comfortable and safe line of conversation. “That… sounds reasonable. I’ll try it.”
True to form, its answer was… ambiguous.
| Youre ambitions portray, Manie pathes, manie wrathes, Thornes along the weigh. Perhaps a guide ys needed. |
I combed my fingers through my beard. On the surface, all this was saying was ‘Dungeon hard. Get help.’ And setting aside how exactly I was supposed to accomplish that, I could not help but wonder whether there was not more to it.
Strange that it would spell it ‘weigh’ instead of ‘way.’ Was that on purpose? Hiding a clue in plain sight? Or just another strange quirk in how this thing spelled words.
At that moment, I could not be sure, but it was something to keep in mind. However, the children had begun clamoring for me to read the message for them, so I obliged.
“That doesn’t help at all!” Lynnria exclaimed. “Is this the kind of garbage you have to put up with as a Quester?”
I grunted out a sigh by way of answer. It was a sound packed with long and continuous suffering. Then I reached out and tapped the crystal again. “Okay… so how do I find a guide?”
It replied immediately.
| Pick oon |
My face fell.
“Pick… oon?” Gezer repeated, confused.
“I’m pretty sure it means ‘one,’” I clarified.
“You mean… one of us?” I had not seen who had spoken, but it had sounded like one of the younger boys.
Slowly, I climbed to my feet once more and turned. Most of them were starting to back away from me fearfully, though there were a few who were trying to put on a brave face. Including Lynnria, I noticed.
In fact, she was sporting quite the expectant little grin.
Fuck me…
*****
“Pleeeeeease!”
“No. No, no, no. I said no a hundred times, and I meant it!” I proclaimed as I strode back toward the beach.
Most of the children had dispersed after I had walked away, more than willing to fade into the background since one of their number was such an eager volunteer. Though, there were a few who were still trailing after us, presumably out of simple curiosity.
Or just to watch Lynnria making a complete spectacle out of herself.
“But the crystal said you needed to take one of us!” she argued.
“No, it very clearly said perhaps,” I countered before lengthening my stride. “That implies I can do it without. And I intend to. I am not going to take an untried newbie into the Dungeon. You’re not even a Mono!”
That was my excuse, but in reality, I was much more concerned with what would happen were she to continue following me. I knew what my aura could do to a person given enough time.
“So what?” she exclaimed before heading me off, and I was forced to walk around her. “I’ve been training to become a member of the Fleet Foxes for years now. I can fight! I can take a hit with the best of them. I know all sorts of weapons. And I’m the fastest runner in all of Raialie.”
“And? Look no offense, Lynnria, but there is a reason you were put on this island instead of the tutorial. And I will not be held responsible for what might happen were I to take you with me.”
“I don’t need a tutorial!” she shouted before running out ahead of me again. “I told you, I’ve been training. I know all about the Dungeon. Besides, it’s not your responsibility. It’s mine! I’m the one making the choice.”
I sighed and stopped to address her fully. “Yes, it is. Taking responsibility for those that cannot is part of what being an adult means.”
She clenched her fists and marched right up to me. “How many times do I have to say it? I am an adult. You don’t get to make decisions about what I can or will do. And just because you have a pretty face, don’t think—“ Her sentence abruptly turned to a mortified squeal as she realized what she had just admitted to.
I just closed my eyes and ran my hands over my scalp. Fine. If that’s the way she wants to play it…
“Okay, then. Since you’re an adult, let me ask you a question.”
I took half a step toward her and drew myself up to my full height in an effort to look imposing. It must have worked, because she retreated slightly before stiffening.
“Have you been having… inappropriate thoughts lately? More so than normal? Say… over the last hour?”
Her eyes widened and she glanced toward the ground. “That’s… none of your business.”
“Maybe.” I took another step closer. This time, she practically jumped back. “But it is definitely yours. You see, I have more than just a pretty face…” I cringed in saying that, but I knew what my Charisma was. And I had seen how people reacted to me. “I told you before that my spells have a tendency to induce… pleasurable responses from people.”
She nodded. She remembered.
“But I failed to mention one other thing. I have a passive skill—an aura—which is meant to gradually increase a person’s luck until they cannot help but succeed.”
She blinked a few times and glanced up at me. “I… I don’t understand. That sounds incredible!”
I bobbed my head in acknowledgment. “Yes, but you see, I can’t turn it off. And the side-effect builds with it.”
“So then… I’ll gradually start feeling… pleasure?” Her cheeks were burning brightly enough to glow by that point.
“No,” I clarified. “It will make you wanton. Extremely so.”
She took several steps back. “What? Who would take a skill… What are you? Some sort of… of Defiler?”
I shook my head before gesturing above me. “Clearly not. And I would prefer not to become one. That’s why I only travel with my… mates.”
She sucked in a breath and stared at me for several seconds. “You’re saying that if I come with you… I’ll become one of them?”
I did not answer immediately. But I could not deny the eventuality. So unwilling, I admitted, “If you travel with me for long, then yes. Most likely. It is possible to resist, but… you would not have the benefit of my abilities. And the more I use them on you… well.”
She fell silent, staring at the ground. For several seconds, I merely watched her, but when she did not say anything more, I nodded and directed my steps back to the beach.
This was for the best. I was well aware that there were plenty of guys who would not have hesitated in claiming an apparently eager and technically ‘legal’ young woman, but it was that very youth that repelled me. I might have only been seven years her elder, but I had been through too much—seen too much—to foster that sort of burden on someone so young.
She deserved to find her own path. And I knew that if she followed me, her life would almost certainly be changed forever. In a very real sense.
“Would you help me find my grandfather?”
I paused before glancing back. Lynnria had shrunken in on herself, far less confident than before, but she had apparently not yet given up.
“Your grandfather?”
She nodded. “If I were to… to come with you, I mean. Would you help me look for him?”
I sighed. “He’s in the Dungeon, I take it?”
Another nod. “He came to watch my game, so he’d have to be. He… he’s my only family. And he doesn’t have much time left. We were…” She swallowed and fidgeted with her hands before marshaling on. “We were going to have a little party. Afterward, you know?”
I looked off into the distance and slowly closed my eyes. What would the Dungeon even do with an old man like that? Stick him in some assisted living complex like it had done for the children? Or put him through the same trials as the adults. Damn it. “You realize there’s no guarantee we’d ever run into him. It’s almost certain he’s in a completely different area.”
She only shrugged. “I have to try. And you’re my only chance at seeing him again before…”
I took a slow breath then turned to address her fully. “And the rest?”
She twitched slightly. “We’re different kinds, you and I. So even if I take you as mate, no children will come of it.”
I snorted. I had suspected as much, but even so, “I can assure you, that’s about the last thing I’m worried about. What about the children here? With you gone, who’d look after them?”
“There are a couple of others who could do it,” she assured me quickly, more confident now that she had broken through my resistance. “Pulean is seventeen and looks after his younger sister all the time. And Giffy is very responsible for her age.”
I sighed in defeat. “Fine. Follow if you wish. But never say I didn’t warn you.”
A gigantic grin plastered itself over her face, but then she clicked her heels together and saluted me smartly. “Yes, sir!”
Then she had to scurry to catch up, as I had already begun walking again.
*****
Once we arrived back at the cliff, I wasted no time in casting my latest spell and floated my way back to the sand below. Now that I knew what to expect, it was really quite simple. I just kept my eyes focused on where I wanted to go, and the acceleration was so gentle that I landed without mishap.
Curiously, while I had still felt the connection to Mia spark back to life for the duration, I had not heard any wails of pleasure. Must not be near the microphone. What does she even do in there?
Now that I thought about it, it was a really strange concept to have some alternate dimension within my own mind… and having an uninvited guest rummaging around in there. Who knew what she could get up to?
I shook my head. There was time enough for speculation later. Turning, I glanced back up at Lynnria. “Can you climb down?”
She started to nod then hesitated. “Yes, but… well, every time I’ve tried, this wind picks up and pushes me back over the lip.”
Hmm… some sort of magical safety net?
“Try again. Now that you’re with me, things might be different.”
She pulled a face before gesturing vaguely at the ground. “Can’t you just magic me down?”
I nodded before a cocky little smirk found its way to my lips. “I could, yes. But as I said, there are consequences to my magic. We should avoid using it on you as much as we can. And I may have forgotten to mention it before, but my mates can be quite… protective of me. They won’t like it if you do anything without their approval.”
“No one is going to be doing anything to anyone just yet, oh mighty Quester!” she yelled. “And besides, if they’re so protective, why’d they let themselves get kidnapped in the first place? Shouldn’t they be here? Protecting you?”
I just shrugged. “Couldn’t help it. They were dead at the time.”
She blanched. “I’m sorry. What?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Damn you!”
I had to chuckle a little. It was almost funny now that I was trying to look at it through someone else’s eyes, but my life was such a mess. How would I even start to explain it all?
“Short version? I cast a spell on them that makes them… sort of immortal. If they die, they come back to life the next day.”
Her eyes widened in disbelief. “You can do that?”
I nodded.
“What… what Layer are you, anyway?” she breathed. “How can you possibly be so powerful?”
I waved a self-deprecating hand through the air. “I’m not so great as all that. Sure, I have a few tricks up my sleeve, but it comes with a lot of drawbacks.”
“Tricks up your…?” She shook her head. “Never mind. Can you cast that spell on me, too?”
“No. I can only maintain the two at a time right now. And only on my mates.” I hesitated briefly before adding, “There’s more to it, but… like I said…”
“It’s complicated,” she finished for me. “Ugh… I’m starting to hate that word.”
I just spread my hands. “Hey, you’re the one who insisted she was an adult. Best get used to it. Now, climb down, and we’ll get going.”
“Alright already. Hold on,” she groaned before turning backwards and swinging her legs over the edge.
The way she moved, it was clear she was every bit as practiced as she claimed, and I had no doubt she would be able to make short work of the climb. Though, to be safe, I began mentally rehearsing my levitation spell anyway. I probably would not be able to get it out before disaster struck, but I intended to try.
However, my worries were for nothing. Before her head even crossed over the lip, a huge blast of air hurdled her up and over, and she somersaulted out of control before landing in a heap. Curiously, I did not feel even a breeze from where I was standing.
“Are you alright?” I called, somewhat concerned. That landing had not looked all that controlled.
A moment later, her head poked back over the side. “Yes. And I told you so.”
Waving a dismissive hand, I said, “Yeah, yeah… There must be some sort of domain line set up around the edge of the cliff.”
“Domain line?” She frowned. “But I’m not some monster. How could it affect me?”
“Couldn’t tell you. But I’ve heard there are different types. And given what I know about magic, it’s not impossible to imagine.” While I talked, I began pacing. “I think… all you’d have to do would be to replace your limiting factor—a Word like Monster or what have you—with something to keep you lot in. So maybe Children… or Classless? If so, even my spell wouldn’t help, but we can try it anyway if you want.”
“What choice do we have?” she called back. “It’s not like I can summon a Class out of thin air!”
“Much as I would… love for you to cast that spell again, mon petit sorcier,” Mia said suddenly. “I believe you are correct. She will need a Class before she is allowed out.”
I sighed. Then I frowned. “Was that French?”
“Suck my dick!” Mia yelled. I would take that as a yes.
“What did you say?” Lynnria called.
“He said your mother bleaches her asshole!”
If I had been trying to drink something just then, I probably would have done a spit take. Instead, I managed to keep it to a pained wheeze. “Just thinking out loud.” Then I turned away to whisper, “Shit cow, Mia!” I took a calming breath. She can’t help it… she can’t help it… “Okay, if that’s out… well, we’re going to need some sort of solution.”
She let out a deep-throated chuckle. “Lucky for you, you happen to know someone who might be able to help with that…”
“I might, huh…” I replied, expecting the worst. “And it’ll cost me something, I’m assuming.”
“Why should I expect you to pay a price?” she countered. “You don’t want her to come at all. Asking you would just provide yet another excuse to leave her behind.”
I raised my eyebrows slightly at that. “And making her pay the price might dissuade her from this b.s. altogether. Clever. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to divulge what this price might be?”
“No, that’s—shove my tit in your mouth!” A slap sounded in my ear. However, before I could ask, Mia continued as though nothing had happened. “That’s not something I have much control over. Believe it or not, these sorts of things have a great deal more to do with the recipient than anything you or I might get out of the arrangement.”
“Hmm… some sort of monkey’s paw scenario, then?” Then I quickly waved the question away to forestall her swearing. “Never mind. Hold on.”
I turned back to look up the cliff side. “Lynnria… Mia says that she might—“
“Shove a fart up your pussy! Shoot! I’m sorry. I tried to hold it.”
“—hnn… might be able to help get you a Class a little early.”
“Really?” She squatted down eagerly. “How does that work? Do I get to pick one? Can I be a Weaponsmaster like my grandfather? Or something fast like a Duelist? Although, an Elemental Knight might be fun, too. Could I do that?” I slowly drew my lips back over my teeth. I could already hear Mia start to mumble uncontrollably under her breath. “Oh, something with a shield, maybe?! I met a Shieldmaiden at the pub, once. She was so cool! Ooh! Can I be a—“
I frantically began waving my hands in the air. “Okay, stop stop stop! I need to—“
“—shitting tit-slapper—“
“—need to—“
“—spunking whale-trough of a—“
“—n-need to tr-try and ask—“
“—amputated cock dictator—“
“—ask Mia to—“
“—weaponized roach fucking—“
Finally giving it up, I sighed and held a finger up for Lynnria to wait.
This one was going to take a while.
Seleroan
New characters are fun, huh?
Well, until next week!
And something something obligatory Patreon shilling...
| Hearth and home to thee, Wayfarer. Stay or come as ye myghte wish. No snares shal catch. No enigmas shal tease. No creatures shal trouble. Yet knowe ye this. Such morsels as thou myghte fynd shal not sustayn. For this place ys not for thee. |
“What language is that?” Lynnria asked after I finished translating it for her benefit.
“I’m not sure,” I admitted honestly.
Her face crumpled up in confusion. “How can you know a language, yet not know its name?”
“It’s complicated.”
She let out a sour grunt before turning back to the dilapidated installation.
Unlike most of the crystals I had seen in the Dungeon, this one looked extremely old. It was nicked and chipped in several spots, and the edges of it had been smoothed and rounded as though worn away by the elements.
Stranger still, it had been sitting as though completely dead in an old ruin right in the middle of the island. Most of the crystals I had encountered thus far had an almost eager blue glow to them, as though they were signaling you to investigate. Not this one. It barely flickered even when I had tapped at it.
“Why call you Wayfarer, though?” she asked after a moment. “I’ve never heard anyone called that before.”
I shrugged. “Well, from the funky spelling this thing uses, I’d have to assume it’s what people used to call Questers. Languages have a habit of changing over time, you know.”
“Really?” She seemed surprised. “How do you know that?”
I took a breath, but she quickly interrupted.
“And don’t say it’s complicated!”
I had to chuckle. This girl was a real spitfire. “Fine. To put it simply, every generation, children and young people, like you—“
“Not a child,” she growled, but I continued unperturbed.
“—make up new words or find clever ways of expressing old ones. Sometimes they even invent whole new pronunciations of things just for fun. Some of those stick. Some don’t. But the end result is that the language drifts along, pushed and prodded over the years by the people who speak it. And eventually, it becomes unrecognizable. Even a wholly new language.”
She looked at me thoughtfully for a moment. “Does that mean that all languages were once the same language?”
I pursed my lips. That was difficult to answer. I only had a passing familiarity with the topic even back on Earth, but my suspicion was that human beings had already begun to disperse by the time language had started to develop. So it was unclear whether all languages had a common ancestor.
Here, though? With all the different races, it was entirely possible that each had started with their own separate proto-language that had then begun drifting with both time and interaction with one another.
Or not? I could have been completely talking out of my own ass.
“I suppose it’s possible,” I said eventually. “You’d have to ask someone who studies linguistics.”
“What’s ‘at mean?” Gezer asked in his slow and oddly deep-for-his-size voice. When I glanced at him, he jerked his hand down guiltily. He had a bit of a scab next to his horn that he had been picking at, and from his demeanor, I had to assume someone had been regularly admonishing him for it.
He and several of the others—though I did not see Mik among them—had caught sight of us along the way and, being children, they could not help but be curious both about me and what we were doing. To my chagrin, they had been peppering me with questions almost constantly ever since.
Of course, their questions were not all about me. They also had quite a few about their situation, the fate of their parents and siblings, and a great many other things I had no answer for. I only counted myself fortunate in that they had already been there a few days, so most of their tears had dried.
On first seeing them, I had quickly realized that, like Lynnria, a large portion of their number had been a part of the same game-ball match—the very one I had been spectating with Arx. Most of them still had on their blue and red bandannas, too.
My question though, was whether these were the only children to have survived or merely ones that had been in the same approximate location. I could only hope it was the latter.
In any case, going from the crystal’s message, I was assuming this was some sort of ‘daycare’ island. Plenty of food and nothing particularly dangerous? It was a sound theory. Although why the Dungeon would gather them all here instead of putting through the same rigors as everyone else was an unknown.
I mean… why bother with the whole ‘lord of the flies’ scenario? Could it not simply let them loose? And why I should be led here was most curious.
But I was quite used to having far more questions than answers, and at the very least, I could answer the one Gezer had posed to me. “Linguistics is the study of language,” I explained simply.
“Den why not jus’ call it ‘at?” he persisted.
I could only shrug. “That I don’t know… but a linguist could probably tell you.”
A few giggles drifted out of the semi-circle of children.
“Still, this doesn’t tell us much more than what we’ve already figured out,” Lynnria said, bringing us back to the topic. “Didn’t you say you were here to find something?”
I bobbed my head uncertainly. “I’m not actually sure. I found a riddle back in the… well, I don’t really know if I could call it the main area. But anyway, it said there were two paths. One led to my uh… well, my mate—”
“You have a mate?” Lynnria asked. I was not positive, but she almost looked crestfallen at the news. Which was good! Anything I could do to curb her apparent interest was for the best.
“Two of them, actually,” I admitted. “They usually assist me in the Dungeon, but they’ve been kidnapped some—“
“Aww!” she gushed, interrupting me again. “You all Quest together? That’s so sweet!”
For some reason, she had perked up visibly at that. The rest of the children noticed too and began oohing and elbowing one another. Lynnria blushed furiously and, fists clenched, she turned to stare them down… which was easy enough for her. She was only a little shorter than me, so she must have seemed huge to this bunch.
I cleared my throat. Loudly. “Anyway… that path was some kind of darkened maze, so I figured I’d check out this other way first. The riddle said it was to help me see, after all. Then it dumped me into the sea.”
The kids laughed uproariously at that. I grinned a bit myself. It was a stupid joke, but even they can be funny when they happen to somebody else. And hindsight helps with that sort of thing.
“Still, in my experience the Dungeon doesn’t tend to do entirely pointless things. So I’m sure there’s more to this than what’s on the surface.”
“Maybe ya gots ta swim a bit, eh?” Gezer suggested. “If it ain’t on da surface, I mean.”
“Oh, I like swimming,” one of the younger girls chimed in. I did not know her name.
“Me too,” I returned with a smile. “But there’s an awful lot of ocean out there. Let’s see if this crystal has more it can teach us before we start deep-sea diving.”
As I turned to kneel in front of the crystal, I heard one of the others whispering softly behind me. “What are you doing, Lynnria? You can’t take him as your mate.”
“Hush, you!” she whispered back fiercely. “Nobody said anything about that. And besides, I can do what I want.”
“But he’s not a laoi!”
I hesitated for half a second. Interspecies relations or no, I really did need to nip this in the bud, but I could not bring myself to say anything with all these kids around. I would have to wait for the right time.
“Ha! Take you as her mate, is it?” Mia chimed in, and I jerked before I could stop myself. I had not known she was awake yet. “I swear… these laoi women.”
Quiet!
I focused the thought at her as forcefully as I could, but either she did not hear it or she was not paying me any attention.
“I’ll bet that she would open for you with nothing but a caress to her cheek. Quivering like a leaf and dripping for you.” She chuckled darkly. “She’d make a fine lilim, too. She’s already quite strong.”
What the fuck? Careful to keep my face composed, I whispered trough my clenched teeth, “She’s a child!”
“What are you waiting for?” Lynnria asked, and my back stiffened before I could stop myself.
“Oh, uh… just trying to frame the proper question is all,” I replied evasively.
“Technically, yes,” Mia continued dismissively. “But she’ll be granted a Class within the month, unless I miss my guess.”
“That doesn’t have anything to do with it!” I whispered, perhaps a tad too loud.
“Of course it—oh!” I could practically hear her grinning. “Really, Donum. A nineteen-year-old laoi girl? I guarantee you she does not lack for experience.”
My eyes goggled. “That’s not—!” I stopped. I was not having this argument.
“That’s not what?” Lynnria asked.
I glanced at her and almost jumped. She had drifted quite close while I was mumbling. “Nothing. Just thinking out loud.”
Her eyes—purple like her hair—roved my face for a few seconds, and she unconsciously licked her lips. Then she must have realized just how close she was to me and she straightened, her cheeks pink. “Are you talking to this… Mia of yours again? She’s… she’s awake now? I take it?”
I did not reply save to nod, though her questions were making Mia swear rather violently somewhere in the distance. It sounded like she had stepped away from the microphone… or however this thing in my brain worked.
Which was fine. It was distracting having two conversations at once.
“W-well… I’m sure she’d tell you the same as me. I mean what is there to think about?” she reasoned. “Just ask the crystal how to find your mates. You said they were taken, right? Imprisoned somewhere?”
I nodded again with some relief, happy to finally return to a comfortable and safe line of conversation. “That… sounds reasonable. I’ll try it.”
True to form, its answer was… ambiguous.
| Youre ambitions portray, Manie pathes, manie wrathes, Thornes along the weigh. Perhaps a guide ys needed. |
I combed my fingers through my beard. On the surface, all this was saying was ‘Dungeon hard. Get help.’ And setting aside how exactly I was supposed to accomplish that, I could not help but wonder whether there was not more to it.
Strange that it would spell it ‘weigh’ instead of ‘way.’ Was that on purpose? Hiding a clue in plain sight? Or just another strange quirk in how this thing spelled words.
At that moment, I could not be sure, but it was something to keep in mind. However, the children had begun clamoring for me to read the message for them, so I obliged.
“That doesn’t help at all!” Lynnria exclaimed. “Is this the kind of garbage you have to put up with as a Quester?”
I grunted out a sigh by way of answer. It was a sound packed with long and continuous suffering. Then I reached out and tapped the crystal again. “Okay… so how do I find a guide?”
It replied immediately.
| Pick oon |
My face fell.
“Pick… oon?” Gezer repeated, confused.
“I’m pretty sure it means ‘one,’” I clarified.
“You mean… one of us?” I had not seen who had spoken, but it had sounded like one of the younger boys.
Slowly, I climbed to my feet once more and turned. Most of them were starting to back away from me fearfully, though there were a few who were trying to put on a brave face. Including Lynnria, I noticed.
In fact, she was sporting quite the expectant little grin.
Fuck me…
*****
“Pleeeeeease!”
“No. No, no, no. I said no a hundred times, and I meant it!” I proclaimed as I strode back toward the beach.
Most of the children had dispersed after I had walked away, more than willing to fade into the background since one of their number was such an eager volunteer. Though, there were a few who were still trailing after us, presumably out of simple curiosity.
Or just to watch Lynnria making a complete spectacle out of herself.
“But the crystal said you needed to take one of us!” she argued.
“No, it very clearly said perhaps,” I countered before lengthening my stride. “That implies I can do it without. And I intend to. I am not going to take an untried newbie into the Dungeon. You’re not even a Mono!”
That was my excuse, but in reality, I was much more concerned with what would happen were she to continue following me. I knew what my aura could do to a person given enough time.
“So what?” she exclaimed before heading me off, and I was forced to walk around her. “I’ve been training to become a member of the Fleet Foxes for years now. I can fight! I can take a hit with the best of them. I know all sorts of weapons. And I’m the fastest runner in all of Raialie.”
“And? Look no offense, Lynnria, but there is a reason you were put on this island instead of the tutorial. And I will not be held responsible for what might happen were I to take you with me.”
“I don’t need a tutorial!” she shouted before running out ahead of me again. “I told you, I’ve been training. I know all about the Dungeon. Besides, it’s not your responsibility. It’s mine! I’m the one making the choice.”
I sighed and stopped to address her fully. “Yes, it is. Taking responsibility for those that cannot is part of what being an adult means.”
She clenched her fists and marched right up to me. “How many times do I have to say it? I am an adult. You don’t get to make decisions about what I can or will do. And just because you have a pretty face, don’t think—“ Her sentence abruptly turned to a mortified squeal as she realized what she had just admitted to.
I just closed my eyes and ran my hands over my scalp. Fine. If that’s the way she wants to play it…
“Okay, then. Since you’re an adult, let me ask you a question.”
I took half a step toward her and drew myself up to my full height in an effort to look imposing. It must have worked, because she retreated slightly before stiffening.
“Have you been having… inappropriate thoughts lately? More so than normal? Say… over the last hour?”
Her eyes widened and she glanced toward the ground. “That’s… none of your business.”
“Maybe.” I took another step closer. This time, she practically jumped back. “But it is definitely yours. You see, I have more than just a pretty face…” I cringed in saying that, but I knew what my Charisma was. And I had seen how people reacted to me. “I told you before that my spells have a tendency to induce… pleasurable responses from people.”
She nodded. She remembered.
“But I failed to mention one other thing. I have a passive skill—an aura—which is meant to gradually increase a person’s luck until they cannot help but succeed.”
She blinked a few times and glanced up at me. “I… I don’t understand. That sounds incredible!”
I bobbed my head in acknowledgment. “Yes, but you see, I can’t turn it off. And the side-effect builds with it.”
“So then… I’ll gradually start feeling… pleasure?” Her cheeks were burning brightly enough to glow by that point.
“No,” I clarified. “It will make you wanton. Extremely so.”
She took several steps back. “What? Who would take a skill… What are you? Some sort of… of Defiler?”
I shook my head before gesturing above me. “Clearly not. And I would prefer not to become one. That’s why I only travel with my… mates.”
She sucked in a breath and stared at me for several seconds. “You’re saying that if I come with you… I’ll become one of them?”
I did not answer immediately. But I could not deny the eventuality. So unwilling, I admitted, “If you travel with me for long, then yes. Most likely. It is possible to resist, but… you would not have the benefit of my abilities. And the more I use them on you… well.”
She fell silent, staring at the ground. For several seconds, I merely watched her, but when she did not say anything more, I nodded and directed my steps back to the beach.
This was for the best. I was well aware that there were plenty of guys who would not have hesitated in claiming an apparently eager and technically ‘legal’ young woman, but it was that very youth that repelled me. I might have only been seven years her elder, but I had been through too much—seen too much—to foster that sort of burden on someone so young.
She deserved to find her own path. And I knew that if she followed me, her life would almost certainly be changed forever. In a very real sense.
“Would you help me find my grandfather?”
I paused before glancing back. Lynnria had shrunken in on herself, far less confident than before, but she had apparently not yet given up.
“Your grandfather?”
She nodded. “If I were to… to come with you, I mean. Would you help me look for him?”
I sighed. “He’s in the Dungeon, I take it?”
Another nod. “He came to watch my game, so he’d have to be. He… he’s my only family. And he doesn’t have much time left. We were…” She swallowed and fidgeted with her hands before marshaling on. “We were going to have a little party. Afterward, you know?”
I looked off into the distance and slowly closed my eyes. What would the Dungeon even do with an old man like that? Stick him in some assisted living complex like it had done for the children? Or put him through the same trials as the adults. Damn it. “You realize there’s no guarantee we’d ever run into him. It’s almost certain he’s in a completely different area.”
She only shrugged. “I have to try. And you’re my only chance at seeing him again before…”
I took a slow breath then turned to address her fully. “And the rest?”
She twitched slightly. “We’re different kinds, you and I. So even if I take you as mate, no children will come of it.”
I snorted. I had suspected as much, but even so, “I can assure you, that’s about the last thing I’m worried about. What about the children here? With you gone, who’d look after them?”
“There are a couple of others who could do it,” she assured me quickly, more confident now that she had broken through my resistance. “Pulean is seventeen and looks after his younger sister all the time. And Giffy is very responsible for her age.”
I sighed in defeat. “Fine. Follow if you wish. But never say I didn’t warn you.”
A gigantic grin plastered itself over her face, but then she clicked her heels together and saluted me smartly. “Yes, sir!”
Then she had to scurry to catch up, as I had already begun walking again.
*****
Once we arrived back at the cliff, I wasted no time in casting my latest spell and floated my way back to the sand below. Now that I knew what to expect, it was really quite simple. I just kept my eyes focused on where I wanted to go, and the acceleration was so gentle that I landed without mishap.
Curiously, while I had still felt the connection to Mia spark back to life for the duration, I had not heard any wails of pleasure. Must not be near the microphone. What does she even do in there?
Now that I thought about it, it was a really strange concept to have some alternate dimension within my own mind… and having an uninvited guest rummaging around in there. Who knew what she could get up to?
I shook my head. There was time enough for speculation later. Turning, I glanced back up at Lynnria. “Can you climb down?”
She started to nod then hesitated. “Yes, but… well, every time I’ve tried, this wind picks up and pushes me back over the lip.”
Hmm… some sort of magical safety net?
“Try again. Now that you’re with me, things might be different.”
She pulled a face before gesturing vaguely at the ground. “Can’t you just magic me down?”
I nodded before a cocky little smirk found its way to my lips. “I could, yes. But as I said, there are consequences to my magic. We should avoid using it on you as much as we can. And I may have forgotten to mention it before, but my mates can be quite… protective of me. They won’t like it if you do anything without their approval.”
“No one is going to be doing anything to anyone just yet, oh mighty Quester!” she yelled. “And besides, if they’re so protective, why’d they let themselves get kidnapped in the first place? Shouldn’t they be here? Protecting you?”
I just shrugged. “Couldn’t help it. They were dead at the time.”
She blanched. “I’m sorry. What?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Damn you!”
I had to chuckle a little. It was almost funny now that I was trying to look at it through someone else’s eyes, but my life was such a mess. How would I even start to explain it all?
“Short version? I cast a spell on them that makes them… sort of immortal. If they die, they come back to life the next day.”
Her eyes widened in disbelief. “You can do that?”
I nodded.
“What… what Layer are you, anyway?” she breathed. “How can you possibly be so powerful?”
I waved a self-deprecating hand through the air. “I’m not so great as all that. Sure, I have a few tricks up my sleeve, but it comes with a lot of drawbacks.”
“Tricks up your…?” She shook her head. “Never mind. Can you cast that spell on me, too?”
“No. I can only maintain the two at a time right now. And only on my mates.” I hesitated briefly before adding, “There’s more to it, but… like I said…”
“It’s complicated,” she finished for me. “Ugh… I’m starting to hate that word.”
I just spread my hands. “Hey, you’re the one who insisted she was an adult. Best get used to it. Now, climb down, and we’ll get going.”
“Alright already. Hold on,” she groaned before turning backwards and swinging her legs over the edge.
The way she moved, it was clear she was every bit as practiced as she claimed, and I had no doubt she would be able to make short work of the climb. Though, to be safe, I began mentally rehearsing my levitation spell anyway. I probably would not be able to get it out before disaster struck, but I intended to try.
However, my worries were for nothing. Before her head even crossed over the lip, a huge blast of air hurdled her up and over, and she somersaulted out of control before landing in a heap. Curiously, I did not feel even a breeze from where I was standing.
“Are you alright?” I called, somewhat concerned. That landing had not looked all that controlled.
A moment later, her head poked back over the side. “Yes. And I told you so.”
Waving a dismissive hand, I said, “Yeah, yeah… There must be some sort of domain line set up around the edge of the cliff.”
“Domain line?” She frowned. “But I’m not some monster. How could it affect me?”
“Couldn’t tell you. But I’ve heard there are different types. And given what I know about magic, it’s not impossible to imagine.” While I talked, I began pacing. “I think… all you’d have to do would be to replace your limiting factor—a Word like Monster or what have you—with something to keep you lot in. So maybe Children… or Classless? If so, even my spell wouldn’t help, but we can try it anyway if you want.”
“What choice do we have?” she called back. “It’s not like I can summon a Class out of thin air!”
“Much as I would… love for you to cast that spell again, mon petit sorcier,” Mia said suddenly. “I believe you are correct. She will need a Class before she is allowed out.”
I sighed. Then I frowned. “Was that French?”
“Suck my dick!” Mia yelled. I would take that as a yes.
“What did you say?” Lynnria called.
“He said your mother bleaches her asshole!”
If I had been trying to drink something just then, I probably would have done a spit take. Instead, I managed to keep it to a pained wheeze. “Just thinking out loud.” Then I turned away to whisper, “Shit cow, Mia!” I took a calming breath. She can’t help it… she can’t help it… “Okay, if that’s out… well, we’re going to need some sort of solution.”
She let out a deep-throated chuckle. “Lucky for you, you happen to know someone who might be able to help with that…”
“I might, huh…” I replied, expecting the worst. “And it’ll cost me something, I’m assuming.”
“Why should I expect you to pay a price?” she countered. “You don’t want her to come at all. Asking you would just provide yet another excuse to leave her behind.”
I raised my eyebrows slightly at that. “And making her pay the price might dissuade her from this b.s. altogether. Clever. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to divulge what this price might be?”
“No, that’s—shove my tit in your mouth!” A slap sounded in my ear. However, before I could ask, Mia continued as though nothing had happened. “That’s not something I have much control over. Believe it or not, these sorts of things have a great deal more to do with the recipient than anything you or I might get out of the arrangement.”
“Hmm… some sort of monkey’s paw scenario, then?” Then I quickly waved the question away to forestall her swearing. “Never mind. Hold on.”
I turned back to look up the cliff side. “Lynnria… Mia says that she might—“
“Shove a fart up your pussy! Shoot! I’m sorry. I tried to hold it.”
“—hnn… might be able to help get you a Class a little early.”
“Really?” She squatted down eagerly. “How does that work? Do I get to pick one? Can I be a Weaponsmaster like my grandfather? Or something fast like a Duelist? Although, an Elemental Knight might be fun, too. Could I do that?” I slowly drew my lips back over my teeth. I could already hear Mia start to mumble uncontrollably under her breath. “Oh, something with a shield, maybe?! I met a Shieldmaiden at the pub, once. She was so cool! Ooh! Can I be a—“
I frantically began waving my hands in the air. “Okay, stop stop stop! I need to—“
“—shitting tit-slapper—“
“—need to—“
“—spunking whale-trough of a—“
“—n-need to tr-try and ask—“
“—amputated cock dictator—“
“—ask Mia to—“
“—weaponized roach fucking—“
Finally giving it up, I sighed and held a finger up for Lynnria to wait.
This one was going to take a while.
Seleroan
New characters are fun, huh?
Well, until next week!
And something something obligatory Patreon shilling...
