《Supra Caelum》


 Prologue part 1

    Chopping another piece of log to throw into the growing pile of firewood at my side, I had to take a break. I have been at this for hours now chopping enough wood to make a sizable pile and after all that, there is still more. I really should have started sooner with this. Looking at what''s left I won''t be finished before sunset.


    Viewing the pile of firewood I have cut, I reason that it will be enough for tonight at least and if it isn''t I can always go back out again. That is, of course after my clothes dry out. Me getting into a snowball fight with the kids wasn''t the best decision when we arrived at the cabin this late.


    Loading the wood up in the sled, making sure it''s not too heavy, I make my way back to the cabin. Pushing the load forward, feeling the weight, makes me glad that I stopped now rather than later.


    It took a minute or two to make it to the cabin with only a few minutes extra to deposit all the wood next to the fireplace. With that task done I now had to find out where everyone else is.


    Looking around the cabin one could notice that the lights weren''t on yet, meaning that I need to find out why a certain someone hasn''t done that yet.


    Walking further inside to the back of the cabin, I could hear sounds of effort and the sounds of tools being used.


    It was Lyssandra that told me that it would be no trouble turning the power on, though turns out it was more trouble than I thought. I stood in the doorframe for a moment to see if she would notice me.When she did not, I had no choice but to call out to her. I try calling low at first, but there is no reaction at the attempt.


    "Lyssandra?" I try again, saying it louder this time going higher in volume each time, but her instruments are still too loud compared to me.


    "Lyssandra!" I finally shout.


    At my final attempt, she heard me. A light I first notice now, turns in different directions inside the room, lighting up various part but moves too quickly for me to really see anything. It doesn''t take long before it finally centers on me, specifically my face and blinding me in the process.


    "Oops, sorry about that." Was the first thing Lyssandra says to me. "Are you done already with the firewood?"


    Blinking my eyes to make sure I can properly see first I answer.


    "Yes, I finished just now. It took a few hours." Putting on a smirk I continue. "Sure makes me wonder why you''re not done when you said it just one button."


    Giving her own smirk right back, she showed a remote in her hand and pressed one of the buttons. The action causing the room and probably the entire house to light up.


    "When I said that it was with the expectation that nothing was broken. Instead, I am met with multiple wires needing replacing and a few pests that did not belong there."She showed a triumphant look. "Now it''s one button."


    "So where are the kids?" I asked, changing the topic.


    "They are outside, with Frederic watching over them, they got restless after the long ride here and needed to spend some energy." She pointed outside and asked. "You should probably check on them."


    "Me?" It''s not even five minutes since I got back.


    "I can check on them instead of course, but someone" Her she points into the room she was just in. " has to clean up while I''m gone and I''m not sure I took out all of the pests."


    Peering into the room she was just in I could see that in the process of fixing things, she had left a lot of stuff strewn around and to watch out for pests too while cleaning.


    A quick tour out in the snow is much more preferable than cleaning up this mess.


    "I''ll go, but could you put on some hot drink while I''m out. I want something to warm me up when I come back." I answer in the end and start dressing up before a tug stops me.


    "Aren''t youforgetting something?"


    Not really knowing what it is, I give her a hug and quick kiss. That is usually the answer when she asks me that, but not this time with my actions being met with laughter.


    "No, not that. Not that it wasn''t appreciated, but I meant their backpacks, they forgot them and probably forgot to bring with them the snacks too." Pointing to three backpacks piled up near the kitchen.


    Feeling a bit embarrassed I make the rest of the preparations in silence before another tug stops me as I''m about to leave.


    "I''m sur-" Is all I get to say before Lyssandra turns me around and kisses me.


    The kiss was completely different from mine. I was a bit hesitant and careful when I went for my kiss. Lyssandra went on the offensive now that it was her turn, stealing my breath away and making me feel ready for something more with how passionate she''s getting. When she was done, I had to steady myself with how out of breath I was.


    "Something to keep you warm," She says innocently before she goes closer to my ear and whispers. "and an appetizer for later."


    With that, she closes the door on me and leaves me with only my imagination for what the rest of the menu will be.

 Prologue Part 2

    Making my way through the forest, while nibbling on some snacks, it doesn''t take long before I find Frederic and Frida. I finish the snack before I call out to them and get two different reactions.


    Frida''s reaction is expected with her sprinting towards me when she hears my voice. Frederic seems to jump when he hears my voice and his hands move a little too fast behind him to be natural.


    Looking away from his poor attempt at hiding and back towards Frida, I notice she is quite excited and makes me wonder what he is hiding.


    "Having some fun with your cousin Frida?"


    "Yeah, it''s fun!" Was all she said, before giving me a gesture to crouch down. "But did you know that Frederic could breathe fire?" She whispered.


    Fire? I''m not sure that is possible by natural means, though there are a few ways one can imitate that, one possibility being something he promised he wouldn''t do.


    "Was there actual fire coming out or just smoke?" I asked to confirm my suspicion.


    "There was smoke since he used up his fire for the month he said. And he was making all these shapes with it too. There was a circle, a snake, a donu-" I stop here before she goes on a speech about all the different shapes with most of them probably the same thing only with different names,


    I move the backpacks to one hand while I hoist her up on the other. I make my way to Frederic, where he is still sitting on that same stump only noticeably more nervous after he heard what she told me.


    He tries acting normal but my only answer to that was a stare that many fathers have to learn.


    The ''I am giving you a chance to confess now'' stare.


    It doesn''t take long before he gives up and takes out what he hid behind his back.


    "You do know that smoking isn''t as dangerous as when you were you were young, right?" He complains.


    "I know, but you promised your parents to wait till you were at least 18. I just want to make sure being honest to yourself." I explain while pocketing the wares.


    "Where is Helena though, wasn''t she supposed to be with you?"


    Frida comes into the conversation and answers the question for him. "She heard some bird noises and took off after it. Said something about completing the collection."


    Meaning that I need to go after her. I give two of the packs to Frederic and tell them to go back. Better hurry too, the look Frida had when I said Lyssandra was preparing something warm meant that there might not be much left when I get there.


    I walked the path she took by following the imprints of her shoes that went a lot further inwards than I thought they would.


    The walk went on for a bit before the path ended, the trail stopping at a large tree. I wondered why she would stop here of all places, I haven''t heard a sound from the birds she said Helena went for either.


    Stepping closer to the tree one could hear someone panting, did she really get that tired from running her?


    "Hele-" Is all I get out before something grabs my face and starts clawing at it. The claws are small and don''t do much damage but the creature, for this is definitely not Helena, has a good grip.


    While I''m trying to fight it off, I manage to trip and I consider it good that there aren''t any steep cliffs near me to fall in. But I notice something amiss when I don''t feel any pain from an impact.


    It goes from something unusual to terrifying when I''m still falling long after I should have hit the ground. The realization that I''m still falling makes me fight much more desperately to get it off but the creature barely even moves and only bring up a fresh wave of agony from trying.


    Finally, the creature gets tired and starts to let go, giving me the chance to get it off my face.


    The victory is shortlived though with my own strength disappearing so rapidly that I can''t even open my eyes to see what''s happening and my consciousness going with it.


    Back at the tree Helena, who is wondering what that strange sound was, walks to where she last heard it. Seeing nothing there, she shrugs and goes back to fiddling with the camera.


    After getting the settings right, she casts a glance at the clock to see the time and notice that the clock is almost six.


    "Only one hour till sunset, better hurry back or they will get worried." She says for herself not really knowing that someone already came but disappeared without a trace.

 Chapter 1

    Waking up, my body felt terrible. Feeling like I ran an entire marathon without warming up, a thing I actually did do once and remember the feeling vividly.


    Standing up was slow and painful but I was finally standing, with only minimal difficulty.


    Looking around myself I couldn''t help but notice something quite odd with my surroundings. The snow that went up to my ankles before is completely gone and replaced with blooming flowers. The dense foliage overhead almost blocked the light from seeping in.


    "I know they said that the climate was becoming unstable these days, but this is ridiculous."


    I could almost think I''m dreaming but none of the usual tricks for waking up works. I can''t even conjure something to drink or make myself fly when you realize you''re in a dream.


    I''m just going to pretend this is all real until I wake up or until I find the others.


    Not far from where I was one could see the backpack that I was carrying and giving me another question of what is real. I have no idea how it could be this close, I clearly remember losing it when the creature attacked me and then falling for a long time.


    I leave those questions for later though, with both my thirst and hunger crying for sustenance not taking care them will only hinder me further.


    I grab the backpack and sit down on a large rock that functions pretty well as a seat. Once I get comfortable I start getting a handle on my situation.


    I take off my jacket first because it getting a bit too warm with it and also to check my pockets. There isn''t much in them since I wasn''t exactly planning on staying out for long.


    I only have a wrap for the snack I ate earlier, Frederics lighter and my... phone. A phone that I can use to call for help!


    I facepalm not thinking about using this earlier, I guess the weirdness of my surroundings distracted me more than I thought.


    Even if there isn''t a signal, something not unusual so far out in the wilderness, I can still use it as a flashlight. Tapping the screen, unfortunately, doesn''t even give me that with the screen remaining inactive. Pressing the ON button gives no results either as the alert for low battery remains unseen as well.


    "This is weird," turning the phone around to inspect it, "I can''t see any damage or a scratch that would indicate why it''s like this."


    Putting the phone back in my pocket for later, I start rummaging around the backpack hoping for something more useful.


    The search is successful with there being a bottle of water, snacks, a packed lunch, and a compass. I don''t know why Helena packed a compass but I consider it lucky that she did.


    If I remember right, I walked towards the sun while it was setting, when I went to get the kids, so by walking westward, I will eventually get back.


    I have a small meal before packing up everything and head west, hopefully towards home.<hr>


    Unseen beneath the bushes the wounded creature was still recovering from its battle with a Two-legs when a smell so wondrous alerted it.


    Moving carefully to not disturb the bush it was hiding in, it observed.


    The Two-legs had shed its coat after their battle, an ability the creature envied for it was something it wished it could do.


    Sniffing the air one could sense the smell of meat, not the raw one had to hunt for themselves, but the precious Meat that only a Two-legs would have.


    The creature almost lost itself to its imagination until the Two-legs started packing everything into its portable den and started moving, taking the wonderful Meat with it.


    The creatures injuries from the battle hadn''t healed yet but the smell of food around the area is scarce so taking a chance it started following, waiting for the perfect moment.


    I don''t for how long I walked but I didn''t stop until the light that seeped through the foliage started to lessen.


    I debated if I should continue walking since I couldn''t be that far away but walking in a forest will just lead to me getting lost.


    I start gathering up leaves from the low-hanging branches in order to make a bed. I don''t have much training when it comes to surviving outdoors, but I know that you at the very least need to have some divide between the ground and yourself. I think it''s meant to make sure you don''t lose too much body heat and it does make sleeping much easier.


    Laying down on my ''bed'' to test it, with the bed being more comfortable than I thought it would be. I can finally start on my meal.


    I walked for at least a couple kilometers and the entire time I kept looking out for other sources of food and water. I didn''t find any during the entire trip, meaning that I need to make sure that what I have last as long as possible.


    Taking out the bags filled with food and water out of the backpack, I started diving them up to make it easier to ration. The little food I have made it both easier and harder, with the food allocated for today only being one snack and 1/8 of the packed lunch.


    Eating that didn''t exactly fill me up, but I wasn''t feeling hungry anymore at least.


    I had just one more thing to do before going to bed, which was to make sure that everything valuable was secured properly. The most valuable thing I need, after the food, being the compass.


    Looking at the compass I had to really count myself lucky that I had this or I would be lost.


    Looking closer though I noticed something I didn''t notice before now, the needle wasn''t moving or to be more precise it was always pointing in one direction no matter what. I can''t quite believe it when I first see it and looking back I never looked at it for long, only to confirm I was on the right course.


    I walk over to a patch of the forest that still had some light shining through to get a closer look.


    And my fears were proven right.


    "Are you fucking serious?!" I can''t help but shout in frustration at this.


    Thinking even more about this I can remember that certain parts of the forest looked the same. I now understand that those parts might have been me walking through there more than once.


    I calm down eventually and decide to leave those problems to a more rested me than to solve them now.


    Turning around I spot a new problem though, one that can''t wait until tomorrow. Considering that something is currently dragging my backpack into the forest, it''s not something that can wait until tomorrow.


    I cautiously start to step towards it but I take only one step before it starts running, prompting me to sprint after it.


    Running after a thieving animal through a forest with minimal visibility, I consider it a miracle that I don''t trip on anything while pursuing it. The creature also seems to be slowing down, making it easier to catch up.


    Eventually, the creature stops in a clearing, clearly exhausted, with its body actually having collapsed. I force my body to run faster so I can catch up before it regains its strength.


    I slow down the last few meters, more out exhaustion than meaning to and the action saved my life. What I thought was a clearing turns out to be last few meters before a sheer drop.


    I manage to stop not far from the creature I get my first good look at it. Looking at its features one can clearly see that it''s a fox one that still has its winter coat on as well. Another abnormal thing to add to my rapidly growing list of strange things I don''t understand.


    Walking up to it, it gives no reaction as I walk closer to it and offers no resistance as I retrieve my backpack.


    Putting it on my back, I once again feel secure in my survival for now and I will be able to live for another day. I was going to just turn around back to the camp if I could somehow find my way back, but I realized that I had a great opportunity here.


    An opportunity to see things from up high and finally get my bearing. I might recognize some landmarks even, invigorated with the idea I step forward to see what I might find.


    What I see leaves me speechless.


    Looking downwards I could see nothing but clouds and the open sky. The sight making me almost dizzy with the thought about how high up I must be.


    But it was the sight in front of me that invoked the most awe in me by just floating in the sky.


    "Is that an island?"

 Chapter 2

    I blink once, then twice and three more times but the sight before me doesn''t change.


    In front of me lies a floating island, there is nothing holding it up and I can''t see anything that let it stay up either.


    The Island itself doesn''t look like anything special, even with how dark it''s getting, I can still sort of see something that looks like a forest similar to the one I just ran into.


    I don''t know what I''m supposed to do seeing something that should definitely not be possible. I wait for who knows how long, but nothing changes about the status of the floating island.


    I''m seriously starting to reconsider if this is real and not just a dream.


    Or maybe I died and this is some kind of afterlife.


    Eventually, I decided that watching the island is not helping me and lay myself down to gather my thoughts. Turning around to do just that, I was met with another problem that got less important when I saw the island.


    The fox that led me here in the first place.


    The fox hadn''t moved from where it was and still looked to be catching its breath.


    "You don''t look so good." And that''s an understatement. Looking closer one could see it was a wounded, with many small wounds littering its body, most of them centered around the face and limbs. Its white fur looked to be more red than white in some places.


    As I observe it I slowly walk closer to it until it gives me a warning growl, making me stop, stopping more out of surprise than intimidation. I heard that fox noises are more high pitched than a dog but didn''t think there was that much of a difference, doesn''t help that it''s wounded too.


    And it looks hungry with how thin its body is.


    "Both hurt and starving, what happened to mess you up to this bad?" My question doesn''t give me an answer as expected, except for another growl.


    Stepping a few steps back before sitting down, I think about what I should do in this situation and wonder why an injured fox is suddenly the most important. You would think that figuring out where I am, a place that allows floating islands to exist and how I got here would be more important, but this is preferable. At least I have options when it comes to the fox, I have no idea where to even start when it comes to everything else. I honestly should just go to bed... and I just remembered that I started running with no way of actually remembering where it was.


    At least I only forgot my jacket there.


    While I was wondering whether I should try to find my way back to camp through the darkness or just find a spot here, the fox stood up.


    Or it tried too at least, it almost seemed like it didn''t know how to use its legs, with how much it was struggling.


    It gave up eventually, after a few tries and laid back down. The fox started licking its wounds while keeping its ears pointed towards me. And watching it do something so normal was surprisingly relaxing.


    After some time it turned to me or to be more specific, the backpack next to me. Considering what it contains, it isn''t hard to connect the dots.


    "You just wanted my food, didn''t you?" Taking out an apple confirms that theory, with it actually managing to stand up.


    I leave the apple on the ground and walk a few paces away to make sure I''m not threatening it. I don''t have to walk far though, as it goes for the apple as soon as I turn my back to it.


    How long has it been since the fox last ate?


    After eating up the apple, even the core, it simply turned around and sprinted away. I didn''t think just one apple would help that much.


    At the speed it was running it doesn''t take long before it disappears into the forest.


    That was one problem solved and now I, unfortunately, don''t have anything to distract myself from the more pressing problems.


    Looking to the sky one can definitely say that the day is nearing its end with the stars coming out in all their glory. Wherever I am, at least the night sky is pretty.


    In the end, I settled for just sleeping here and take the ground that looks the most comfortable.


    When I lay down, the ground feels much softer than I thought with how relaxed, I already feel. I must be more tired than I thought if it doesn''t even take a minute...<hr>


    My hand being wet is the first thing I sense when I wake up, the sensation makes my body seize up. The reaction comes from memory from long ago of a field trip, a group of friends and a prank, that would scar me for life.


    It takes a moment for my sleep-addled brain to wake up properly and remember that the event happened decades ago when I was a kid. Though it makes me wonder why my hand is wet.


    Opening my eyes, I find the culprit instantly and it turns out it was just me drooling on it. Looking towards the forest I see that I had someone to share the night with, as the fox has returned, sleeping close to where I last saw it.


    Getting up leads to me finding out why one shouldn''t sleep on the ground with my body feeling stiff all over. While stretching, I look back to the place where I last saw the floating Island, hoping what I saw was just a dream. Those hopes are quickly crushed however with the island still being there, though it appears to have moved a little to the right.


    Of course, the island doesn''t just float, it moves too.


    Looking closer I notice something that I must have missed last night.


    "Is that smoke?" The smoke was a thin stream that came out from a point deep in the forest and its a good chance that there will be people close to it.


    Unfortunately, there was one thing stopping me from reaching it. The smoke was coming from an island that was floating at least a couple of kilometers away from me, and I had little idea on how to get over there.


    While I was thinking of ways to get over to the other side, I felt a small push against my leg. Peering down there, I could see that the fox has woken up and its mood has completely turned around from what it was yesterday.


    When the fox saw it had my attention, it stopped pushing and started walking towards the forest. It didn''t run like last time though and actually stopped for a second to bark at me before continuing forward again.


    "Is this normal behavior for a fox, one day it wants to steal my food the next it wants to take me on an adventure." I sigh.


    I look back to the island and then towards the place the fox just walked through, before shrugging. I might as well follow it, using more time to think of a way over would just be a waste of time.


    Securing the backpack with all my stuff, I start walking after it. I would be going in a random direction anyway with the compass broken and it might lead me to some food too. It didn''t look as hungry as it did after it left.


    It can''t be worse than the floating island, right?<hr>


    At first, the journey was actually quite pleasant, following it almost felt like a guided tour with the way it always went at a speed that was easy to follow.


    The path we took even went by a few berry bushes and when I stopped to pick some up, the fox stopped as well, waiting for me to finish.


    The walk went on for quite a while, with the vegetation around me getting more abundant as I walked. The trees were starting to get taller and thicker too with them being almost ten times my height, at this point. It was almost getting impossible to traverse the path it wanted me to go until I reached the end and literally tripped into a clearing.


    Lifting myself up I could see the fox in front of me, laying comfortably down and I assume that I have reached the place it wanted to lead me to.


    Looking past it I could see that the fox is going to keep up its ways of leading me to strange places, but at least it isn''t trying for something even more ridiculous.


    Because past the fox, I could see a graveyard, something that I can at least consider normal even if a graveyard in the middle of a forest is unusual.


    Standing up, one can actually see that it goes on for quite a while, the area it occupies is at least the size of a mall. There is a stone wall that encircles the entire thing, the wall appears to only reach knee height since I can still see inside while sitting.


    Looking inside I can see dozens, maybe even hundreds of graves occupying the place, each tombstone that marked a grave looked quite distinct from one to the other. Some seem to be made with polished stone, while others just have two sticks as a marker and then there were many that just looked out of place.


    There is one that has an actual statue as a tombstone.


    I walk closer to see what more design I can see until I can see something that''s only visible now that I''m much closer.


    Hidden in the tall grass surrounding the wall there was a corpse and by the looks of it, it wasn''t long since its death.


    And the three giant wound that ran across its stomach told me it wasn''t a peaceful death either.

 Chapter 3

    The instant I saw the corpse, my body became tense. Seeing the wounds it had, spoke of a particularly large animal with claws that could easily pierce my skin.


    If I was still home, I would have considered the wound coming from a bear or a wolf, but the signs I have seen ever since I woke up tells me that far from home now.


    It could be a lion, a puma or and animal I might never have even heard off.


    I kept glancing in every direction to see some sign of it still being here or where it could have gone. I saw no sign of any of those.


    The grass around me was tall, too tall for something so big to have vanished without a trace. My observation leads me to the fox, one that has been laying on the same spot since it brought me here and strangely enough that calms me down.


    The fox sleeping peacefully is what makes me focus enough to properly observe the scene in front of me. Though it would be more accurate to say that I smelled it.


    And what a stench it was, making me wonder why it''s only now I can sense it.


    The stench could best be described as being similar to me filling a bag with rotten eggs, mouldy cheese and shit. And then I leave it outside for a month, in a heatwave. Just the image of that makes me sick.


    I have read that corpses will start to smell bad after a certain amount of time, depending on the circumstances. Considering that it''s not underwater or currently in a swamp, I would say it has been at least a day since it died.


    Knowing that gives me some comfort that whatever killed it is not around, for now at least.


    I decide to move closer to get a better look at it, almost puking with how strong the smell kept getting and had to stop before I got too close. I was close enough to notice more details now. The corpse gender being male was the first thing I could observe. It was easy to find that part out, now that I was closer since I could see that the attack had made a certain part of his lower body visible.


    The clothes he was wearing was a shirt, pants and shoes. What someone would normally wear on a sunny day like this. The only thing that stood out is how worn out they were, with the pants especially being a good example of it. It had several miscoloured patches that covered holes in the clothing.


    The only unnatural thing about this scene is how I couldn''t see a single fly circling him. I thought rotting bodies were supposed to be like a buffet to them.


    Putting that question on the growing list of things to figure out later, I head towards the graveyard while giving the corpse a wide berth.


    Looking at the first grave on my path, a simple gravestone, I notice something peculiar.


    I can''t recognize what it says.


    It''s not that the writing on it has started fading away, but I couldn''t recognize any of the letters. What is written on the gravestone is in a language I have never seen before. That isn''t a strange thing, considering how many languages and different ways of writing that exist. It''s when I move to the next one, a plaquette made of bronze, that things get weird. I can recognize the writing on this one and it simply says in Russian:


    ''Here lies Aleksandr Bok


    Arrival in 503 A.R. - Died in 611 A.R.


    Let the cold winter give way to spring''


    The second line confuses me, why would they use the word for arrival instead of birth. It could mean that they arrived in the world as in birth, but I have never heard or read it in that context before.


    Going further down the path confuses me even more. Each gravestone couldn''t be more different from one another, in both design and what language they are written in.


    Sometimes it would be in a language I knew or could at least recognize, but more often then not they would be in a language I had never seen before.


    Why are there so many different gravestones gathered in one place? Why would people from so many different cultures pick this specific place, and how did they even get here?


    I sigh, so many questions that nobody here can answer.


    Before I knew it, I had walked down the entire path that I chose and was at an exit on the other side. Even then, it was only a small portion of the graveyard that I could see.


    Walking out of one of the many exits to the graveyard I spot an actual sign that could give me some semblance of knowing where I am. Technically it was multiple signs written in multiple languages, some I recognize and some I remember reading on the gravestones.


    Though they all say different thing, they still point in the same direction. Down a path that sticks to the graveyard before going into the forest.


    Reading the signs again I try to see if I could glean any more information from them. But they aren''t much more informative than you would expect from a strange place like this.


    They only tell me the distance, that changes from sign to sign, presumably because of the different ways they had of measuring length. And the name of the place, Traviselde.


    With nothing more for me to do here, I start walking down the path to Traviselde.<hr>


    By the time the path started widening into a road, the sun was on its way down.


    I was wondering when I would get to Traviselde, going up one of the many hills on the road, when a familiar stench hit me.


    It didn''t take long before I came upon the source as it laid there in the middle of the road, with the smell just as bad as last time. The corpse looked similar to the previous one, with the same clothes and wounds.


    But one detail there was one detail that stood out to me. In his hand, he held a bag and it was for some reason glowing too.


    Preparing myself mentally, I walked towards it while holding my breath. The stench was quite strong coming closer, but as long as I do this fast it won''t be a problem.


    Of course, a problem pops up when I try to take it. Because it hasn''t been that long since he died, his body is still stiff and is holding onto it tightly. I might have to touch him if I wanted the bag.


    My lungs were starting to hurt so I had to take short breaths that felt like torture each time I had to breathe in. I''m starting to get a new appreciation for people who have to take care of dead bodies now and hope that this will be the last dead body I see for a while.


    Fortunately, I came up with a better plan before I had to touch him. He''s only holding on the actual strap to the bag, I only need the contents inside, especially wanting whatever it was that''s glowing inside.


    Opening the bag, I start transferring its contents over to mine. There isn''t much inside as it''s not a big bag in the first place.


    Once I''m done, my backpack now contains some extra food, a few trinkets and some rolled up papers.


    The last thing I find is a blue crystal ball, the source of the glowing, but it stopped glowing once I got a hold of it.


    I would consider that just barely hitting the top-ten list of strange stuff that happened this week.


    After making sure it was all secured, I continued on my way to Traviselde, hoping that I can finally find some answers there.