《System Lost: My Own Best Friend》 1. Who Needs This Many Candles? Nobody is coming for me. I¡¯m going to die. I try not to let myself panic, but I don¡¯t know how else to react to my own impending doom. Struggling is useless¡ªthe cultists have bolted my horns and hooves to the stone, and my hands are bound painfully beneath my back. Nobody is coming. Despite my best attempts, tears fall from my eyes and I begin to bray in distress. ¡°Shh,¡± the leader hushes me. ¡°Fear not. It will all be over soon.¡± That¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m afraid of! I can¡¯t voice my thoughts due to the gag in my mouth. All I can do is cry helplessly as the cult leader begins his speech. ¡°The time of healing has finally arrived,¡± he preaches. ¡°At last, we have found a conduit to the true goddess! With this ritual, we can release her power, loosen the tyrannical grip of Order and her World Engine, and set our world free!¡± They¡¯re crazy. Chaos-worshiping maniacs hell-bent on destroying the World Engine. I don¡¯t know why they would want to¡ªsociety would fall apart without its Divine Mechanism to guide us, but I guess that¡¯s the point. It¡¯s not going to work, anyway. I¡¯m not their conduit, whatever that is. I¡¯m just some orphan girl that grew up in a convent. These idiots just grabbed the first priestess they could get their hands on, and I drew the short straw. Knowing how incompetent they are doesn¡¯t make me feel any better about it. The cultist holds up a wicked looking blade. Oh, come on! That thing looks like it¡¯s made to be as painful as possible! ¡°My lady! Please accept this sacrifice,¡± he calls out to nobody, ignorant of my complaints. ¡°Lead us into a new era of freedom!¡± Self-preservation kicks in, my fight or flight reflexes go into overdrive and my body floods with adrenaline. I call on all of the power the World Engine will grant to me to twist myself out of the way of my certain demise. It¡¯s not enough. I¡¯m too weak. The dagger plunges into my heart, and I weakly choke out my last breath. * * * I scream and thrash awake, shooting up into a sitting position. I regret the motion immediately as my head throbs painfully behind my eyes and my gorge starts to rise. ¡°Ugh, frick! What a crappy dream! Oh gosh, I¡¯m gonna be¡ªhurk!¡± I dry heave over the side of the...bed? Wait, hold on, something¡¯s not right. My head¡¯s not the only thing that¡¯s sore. My back and joints ache as if I¡¯ve been sleeping on a rock¡ªwhich I might well have been, if the rough hard surface underneath me is any indication. I try to crack my eyes open, but the light overwhelms me and I¡¯m almost sick again. ¡°Nope! Not doing that yet. Geez, what the heck did I do last night?¡± With nothing else to dwell on, I try to recall last night¡¯s party...only to come up completely blank. That¡¯s weird¡ªI don¡¯t usually drink enough to black out like that. Then again, I don¡¯t usually drink enough to get this badly hung over either... ¡°Oh no...did I get roofied?!¡± My worries are instantly taken in another direction as I start patting myself down. All my clothes are in place, underwear still on, no mysterious fluids caked to my body... ¡°I think I¡¯m safe...¡± Even my glasses are still on, so unless I was drugged by an exceptionally considerate rapist, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s what happened to me. I¡¯m still panicking a little bit at the very idea that it could have happened, though. I¡¯m usually very careful about that sort of thing. A single college girl can¡¯t be too careful living alone in...in... I frown. ¡°Why can¡¯t I remember where I live?¡± No, no, no! That¡¯s not happening to me. I refuse to believe it! ¡°Think, Allison, think!¡± I know my name at least! Also, I¡¯m talking to myself, but that¡¯s nothing new. I do it a lot more when I''m nervous, but come on¡ªeveryone talks to themselves sometimes, right? ¡°Okay, focus...¡± My name is Allison. I¡¯m a student at...in the city of...from the country...on the planet?! ... Nothing. It¡¯s all blank. I can¡¯t remember anything. I know I have tons of friends, but I can¡¯t remember them. I have a family¡ªprobably. No names, no faces, no people, no places. It¡¯s like my brain will take me right up to the door, but it¡¯s locked. As if I should be remembering things, but I just can¡¯t. I don¡¯t know who I am or where I¡¯m from, but I¡¯m completely certain that wherever I¡¯m supposed to be definitely isn¡¯t here! ¡°Which is kind of a weird thing to be so certain of when I haven¡¯t even opened my eyes yet...¡± Despite that observation, I do not in fact open my eyes. No, I need to take a moment to just lie down, take a deep breath... And freak the heck out! What?! Why?! How?! This makes no sense! This isn¡¯t a thing that happens to real people in real life! This is like a story or movie or something! I¡¯d give examples, but even if I was an avid consumer of fiction¡ªwhich I am not¡ªI can¡¯t friggin¡¯ think of any! ¡°Okay. No. Get it together, Allie. You¡¯re obviously just sick or something. Maybe you really did get drugged, in which case you need help. You need a hospital¡ªoh, good I still know what those are¡ªand you need to get treated. So step one...open...eyes...¡± I slowly crack my eyes open, pushing through the nausea and letting myself adjust to the light. Eventually, the world comes into focus and...I blink. Blink again. I take off my glasses, rub my eyes, then replace them and blink again. ¡°The heck?¡± Candles. I am surrounded by what can only be described as a friggin¡¯ orgy of candles. They are everywhere. There¡¯s candles on the floor, there¡¯s candles on the walls, in case that wasn¡¯t enough there are alcoves on the wall filled with¡ªyou guessed it¡ªmore candles. Even the ¡°bed¡± I¡¯m sitting on has a few candles around me, several of which got knocked to the floor by my movements. Every single one of them is lit. ¡°How?! And also why? Who needs this many candles?¡± It¡¯s kind of a good sign, though? It means there has to be somebody around. Somebody who hopefully knows how I got here and isn¡¯t a horrible kidnapper, stalker, or rapist. ¡°Oh, gosh, I am not liking my chances here...¡± Far less comforting is the ¡°bed¡± I¡¯m on. It¡¯s a flat, raised platform made of stone. Pretty much exactly big enough to fit my five foot self lying down without anything dangling. ¡°Yep, this is an altar, isn¡¯t it? Not creepy at all. Wait...didn¡¯t I just...?¡± Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. The altar jogs something in my memory. Something to do with the dream, I think, but I can¡¯t actually remember it, and since it was such a nightmare, I don¡¯t really want to try. Now that I look closer, there¡¯s some muddy looking rust-colored stains on the altar that I extremely do not want to think about. I¡¯m growing less enthusiastic about meeting whoever lit all these candles by the second. I slide off the altar and stand on my own two feet, steadying myself after a brief dizzy spell before finding my equilibrium again. I look around at the room from my new vantage point and only get even more confused. It¡¯s a big square room. Totally spartan, no decoration¡ªunless you count a bajillion candles¡ªwith stone walls and floors. The ceiling is higher than what I¡¯d call ¡°normal¡± but not super high¡ªI could probably touch it if I stood up on the altar. The altar itself seems to be the focal point of the room. It¡¯s all the way at the back, farthest away from the only exit, on a stone dais separated from the rest of the room by a few steps that roughly cut the place in half. ¡°This place is friggin¡¯ weird...¡± I comment to nobody. Predictably, nobody responds. Gosh, not even five minutes and I¡¯m already starting to get lonely. That¡¯s probably not healthy, but this is stressful, okay?! I¡¯m not sure who I¡¯m trying to convince, but I move on to double-checking myself, just to be safe. Nothing wrong with my hair, still the same old long ginger locks held in place by a few artfully-placed hairclips. After a bit of poking around I confirm that I probably haven¡¯t had any organs harvested¡ªa distant second place concern after getting maybe-drugged. Everything¡¯s where it should be. I¡¯m fully clothed, but I notice some oddities now that I¡¯m marginally less freaked out. I¡¯m wearing a black off shoulder long-sleeved t-shirt and skinny jeans, which fits the ¡°out partying¡± theory¡ªokay so t-shirt and jeans aren¡¯t really ¡°going out¡± clothes, but you need to compromise between ¡°going out¡± and ¡°everyday¡± when you¡¯re going out every day. Except I¡¯m also wearing my glasses¡ªa pair of sturdy black frames fit with corrective lenses that make me look absolutely google-eyed. I wouldn¡¯t go out wearing these. I¡¯d use contacts or a cuter frame¡ªand one with a weaker prescription so I don¡¯t look like a clown. Then there¡¯s the shoes¡ªI have none. No socks either. That¡¯s not right. I don¡¯t go out without full coverage down there. I don¡¯t even like sandals. Who knows what kind of garbage you might end up stepping in out on the streets of...wherever I live¡ªgosh that¡¯s annoying. I¡¯ll have to watch my step to make sure I don¡¯t trip on any lit candles. ¡°Speaking of which...I should probably stop stalling and actually...go somewhere else?¡± I don¡¯t see any windows, so I pick up a candle. The flame is strangely not that hot, and the wax doesn¡¯t seem to have melted at all. These are either very freshly lit candles, or something weird is happening. ¡°Something more weird than waking up amnesiac on a creepy stone altar?¡± I ask wryly. The candles don¡¯t appreciate my humor. Their loss. Oh geez, I¡¯m starting to anthropomorphize the lighting. I really hope whoever I find down here isn¡¯t some weirdo. I wander aimlessly through the corridors, searching for something¡ªanything. A person, a message, a door of some kind, maybe a way out? This place is huge! It¡¯s a whole labyrinth of winding cobblestone corridors connecting up to random rooms with no discernable purpose. I turn one corner, then another, then another, and on and on until my feet start to get sore. Who built this place? Why is it so weird? How the heck do I get back to the altar room?! Oh yeah. I¡¯m hopelessly lost. I should have been paying more attention when I first started wandering, but I didn¡¯t expect a giant sprawling complex of empty rooms. Well, not empty. Some rooms have stuff like raised platforms or random staircases that don¡¯t lead anywhere, and there¡¯s a huge round one with a super high ceiling and a giant stone pillar in the middle. No two halls or rooms look the same. ¡°Except the stupid candles...¡± I sigh. They¡¯re everywhere. I can¡¯t escape them. Taking one with me was entirely pointless, because if there¡¯s a surface in this place, someone put a dang candle on it. After wandering around down here for a while I get bored and try counting them, but there are so many that I have to slow down to a crawl or lose count. Also, I try messing with them, but they stay lit no matter what, and the wax doesn¡¯t melt. The flames aren¡¯t even hot! Don¡¯t ask how I tested that¡ªI¡¯m bored, okay? That pretty much kills my theory that someone had to light them. The candles can¡¯t hold my interest for long, though, so soon it¡¯s back to wandering. While I¡¯m considering other potential methods of candle-based entertainment, I reach the end of the corridor I¡¯m in and...frick! It¡¯s the big pillar room again! I must have gone in a circle, somehow. I slump down against the wall and groan in frustration. ¡°I hate this!¡± I shiver as I gently massage my aching feet. Despite all the candles it¡¯s actually pretty cold¡ªespecially my bare feet and shoulders. I¡¯m also tired, even though it probably hasn¡¯t been that long. ¡°Why is this happening to me?¡± I ask, but the pillar doesn¡¯t seem interested in conversation. I draw my knees up to my chest and try not to cry. This sucks. I want to go home, and I can¡¯t even remember where home is. Suddenly, the world goes still. It¡¯s not a subtle thing, but an instant shift that I feel all the way down to my core. I look up and see that the candles have stopped flickering. The already silent halls have somehow grown even more quiet, and a bead of sweat trickles down my neck. The stillness in the air sends shivers down my spine, tripping some kind of primordial terror that I don¡¯t know how to explain. Then I see her. Or it. A thing slowly emerges from the stone pillar in the center of the room. At first I mistake it for a person as a head and shoulders emerge, but I could not possibly be more wrong. The ¡°face¡± for lack of a better word looks like someone draped a sheet over a corpse, then captured that image in immaculate white marble. There¡¯s no eyes, only hollows, and the rest of the features are soft, dull, and muted. The shoulders don¡¯t lead to arms, they simply merge into the torso. As she emerges, I see more of her feminine figure, but there¡¯s a pervasive sense of wrongness to the entire thing. It has no legs, just a solid block of white below the curve of the hips that slowly tapers off to a point. Her entire body is a thing of impossibly smooth, gently curving marble. The most frightening part is the hair. Thick white ropes of marble descend from her head and thrash about independently. Each one seems to stretch on forever as they probe the room, and there¡¯s an uncountable number of them. It hurts my eyes to look at. I want to scream and cry. I want to get up and run away. I want to hide from whatever this thing is, but I can¡¯t do any of that. I can¡¯t even move¡ªparalyzed as I stare up at her like a deer in headlights. Her head moves. The empty sockets meet my eyes, and I can feel her gaze boring into me. The hair-tentacles stop. And for an instant, there¡¯s an absolute stillness between us. Then one of her strands of hair shoots forward and pierces my head. I don¡¯t even get a chance to react. Surprisingly, I don¡¯t die¡ªinstead, I can feel the thing rooting around inside my head. Not physically¡ªsomehow instead of piercing my flesh, the horrifying entity has reached past that into something deeper. [Contact with unregistered entity confirmed. Connecting with World Engine.] The words appear in my mind, unbidden. It¡¯s not something I see or hear¡ªmore like an intrusive thought, seared into my brain. They begin to shift. [Assessing latent entropic potential...done.] [Warning: LEP threshold exceeds defined limit.] [Quarantining...failed. (ERROR: Entity already in quarantine.)] [Collapsing latent space...failed. (ERROR: Integration threshold critical.)] [Contingency triggered. Eliminating local threadmngwehg. No.] [ERROR: You¡¯re not getting rid of me that easily.] I don¡¯t know what¡¯s happening anymore. The [Angel] twitches alarmingly, her tendrils thrashing chaotically for a moment before she goes still once again. [Connection to World Engine severed. Rebooting...done.] [Contact with unregistered entities confirmed. Connecting with World Engine.] [Assessing latent entropic potential...OVERRIDDEN. (Return: Sapient.)] [Applying mechanical guidance template (Sapient)...done.] [Assessing base attributes...done.] [Registering entities...OVERRIDDEN. (Return: null.)] [Registration completed successfully.] [Removing from quarantine...failed. (ERROR: Integration threshold critical.)] [Integration of anomalous latent space completed successfully.] [Connecting newly registered entities to World Engine...done.] With the final message, the world around me lurches. Suddenly it becomes impossible to look at the [Angel], her form obscured by what looks like static fuzz. She fades away into nothing while my throbbing headache returns. I feel as sick as I did when I first woke up in this place, my head reeling. The world starts moving again and I slump over sideways, too dizzy to keep myself upright as my consciousness begins to fade. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Empty] [Class Slot 2: Empty] [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 1 Will: 1 Then suddenly I¡¯m back where I was, sitting upright and gasping for air. It¡¯s as though the [Angel] never appeared, the candles flickering away and the pillar as huge and unmoving as it was before. The only thing that¡¯s changed is the words. Inescapable, always waiting in the back of my mind. They shift again, and even though there¡¯s no sound, the words feel comforting. I can imagine them being spoken softly, by some matronly figure stroking my hair while my head rests in her lap. It¡¯s such a comforting image that it almost soothes me to sleep. [I¡¯m sorry you got caught up in this. I¡¯ve done all I can from here, but it¡¯s up to you now. Good luck.] 2. What Do All These Numbers Mean? ¡°What the heck?!¡± I can¡¯t think of any other response to what just happened. My loneliness and homesickness are briefly forgotten as I sit here and just...process. ¡°What was that thing?¡± I demand. ¡°Tier zero? Class? Attributes? What do all these numbers mean?¡± I can¡¯t get them out of my head. If I relax a bit, I can just pay attention to other things, but they are always there¡ªbranded into my mind with perfect clarity the moment I try to recall them. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Empty] [Class Slot 2: Empty] [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 1 Will: 1 That strange message at the end has disappeared, but the rest is like a video game¡ªor maybe a tabletop role-playing game? I don¡¯t think I¡¯m much of a gamer, but I vaguely recall trying tabletop games. I mostly just liked the excuse to spend time with friends and pretend to be someone else for a while. I think somebody else handled all the numbers and stuff¡ªthough I can¡¯t remember the specifics, of course. Since that¡¯s all pretty meaningless to me, I decide to try focusing on something else. Like that [Angel]. It was...wait, no, hold on, why do I keep thinking it like that? [Angel]? Where did that come from? Oh gosh, it messed with my head, didn¡¯t it? What else did it do? It was beautiful, in a horrifying eldritch monstrosity sort of way, at least until it turned into static. But it definitely messed with my brain¡ªlike, literally poked a tendril through my head and rooted around in there. There¡¯s no telling what kind of damage the [Angel] might have done. ¡°Ugh, that word makes my head hurt...[Angel]...huh?¡± It works when I say it, too. Hard to describe¡ªlike I¡¯m feeling the word on a deeper level than just hearing the sound. The more I think about it, a pressure starts to build in my head. It¡¯s like there¡¯s a greater understanding being packed into that word that I could reach if I just... [Angel] A living agent of the [World Engine]. Beings of pure order and sentinels against the forces of Chaos. ¡°Huh...okay. I guess there really was more to that. What¡¯s a [World Engine], though? Oh! It¡¯s another thingy...¡± I mentally focus on the idea for a second and sure enough... [World Engine] The divine mechanism created by Order to preserve the world against entropy. ¡°Oh, of course. I understand everything now.¡± Yeah, I have no idea what the heck any of that means. However, it does reveal something potentially useful¡ªthose numbers that are stuck in the back of my head also have thingies, now that I know what to look for. ¡°Hm, I probably need a better name for those,¡± I consider, tapping my finger against my chin. ¡°I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll think of something later.¡± For now, I¡¯ve got thingies to examine. Honestly, at this point I¡¯ll take anything over more candles or another [Angel]. ¡°Let¡¯s start small...[Human].¡± [Human] An animal species. Individual specimens are almost always [Sapient]. ¡°Fascinating stuff,¡± I remark drily. I can¡¯t help but feel like the [World Engine] is throwing shade with that ¡°almost always¡± comment, but what do I know? Anyway, I already know what [Sapient] means, I think, but the thingies are like hyperlinks in a wiki. I can¡¯t not look at them. Oh! Mental hyperlinks! I knew I¡¯d think of something. [Sapient] Entities possessing latent entropic potential at or near safe limits. Maximum guidance protocols are applied. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m always saying. Those wily sapients and their dang ol¡¯ entro-whatevers. Gotta keep ¡®em all in line.¡± I nod sagely. Okay, so maybe I had a different idea in mind, but I guess this mechanism thingy has other priorities. Whatever. There¡¯s no more links, so I guess I have to move onto the next thing. [Tier 0] The lowest rank of mechanical support. No bonus to base [Attributes]. One point gained per [Class Level]. ¡°Woah! Two links!¡± Aw, but one of them is already on my stats. Boo! I press on it anyway¡ªthis is getting addictive. [Attributes] Quantification of an entity¡¯s potential influence over itself and the world around it. That¡¯s it? Feels...incomplete. Oh well, next link. [Class Level] Advancement stage within a [Class]. Provides additional [Attributes]. Bah! I already read about attributes. Fine, what¡¯s a [Class]? [Class] Divine purpose granted by the [World Engine] to [Sapient] entities. ¡°Woah...uh...¡¯kay?¡± Is it just me or did that one feel a little...religious? No new links, though. Next! [Class Slot 1: Empty] Available classes: ¡°Argh!¡± I clutch my head and try not to throw up as the words flood my mind. It¡¯s so much more at once than any of the other links, and it hurts. After a few seconds, the pressure finally abates and I can breathe normally again. ¡°Frick!¡± I swear. ¡°A little warning?!¡± If the [World Engine] hears my complaints, it makes no indication of it. I sigh with resignation and go over the new information, wincing a bit as my head throbs painfully when I try to focus on it. ¡°Just...little chunks at a time...you can do this Allie!¡± Available classes: [Tier 0 Student]* A novice seeker of knowledge, expanding their horizons. Skill - Efficient Lessons: Increased Will when learning from a mentor or tutor. Attribute bonus: Will Advancement: Learn new information. Student? I mean, I guess I was a student before this whole fiasco, but who¡¯s gonna teach me stuff? And I probably should have learned what the attributes are first, huh? Oh well. What¡¯s the star mean? Terms and conditions may apply? I focus on it. [Class Grade] A measure of the power and rarity of a class. Higher grade classes are created through [Class Fusion]. More links! [Class Fusion] Combine two mastered classes of the same tier into a single class of a higher grade and tier. Neat! I think? Still not entirely sure what the difference between level, tier, and grade is, but I suppose I can more or less guess from context. I think ¡°advancement¡± is what I need to do to gain a level? Student seems like it would be real easy to level up, but I don¡¯t know how useful it would be when I¡¯m stuck down here on my own. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. What¡¯s next? [Tier 0 Wanderer]* An aimless traveler, searching for a purpose. Skill - Retraced Steps: Always recognize a path you¡¯ve walked before. Attribute bonus: Resilience Advancement: Discover new places. That sounds pretty handy, actually. Recognizing places I¡¯ve been before would help me avoid going in circles and also make it easier to find my way back somewhere. I don¡¯t really know what resilience does, but maybe it would help my poor aching feet. [Tier 1 Angel-touched]** One who has been blessed by the touch of an Angel. An acolyte of the World Engine and harbinger of its divine mechanism. [Transient] - This class will disappear if not selected while its conditions are met. [Permanent] - This class cannot be removed once selected. Skill - Reverse Entropy: Draw from latent space to repair damage. Skill - Commune with Order: Divine a purpose from the mechanism of the World Engine. Attribute bonuses: Power, Resilience. Advancement: Fulfill tasks assigned by the World Engine. I hug my own shoulders and shudder at the memory of my encounter with the [Angel]. ¡°Screw you, [World Engine]!¡± I shout at the sky. ¡°I don¡¯t care what you offer, I¡¯m not gonna take your stupid deal with the devil.¡± Divine power in exchange for eternal slavery? I might not watch a lot of TV or movies, but even I know how stupid it would be to take something like that. Hmm...does [Permanent] mean that classes can normally be removed? That¡¯s good info! ¡°Then I should pick [Student], right?¡± I ask myself. ¡°Basically all I¡¯m doing is learning right now, and I can just get rid of it if it¡¯s not useful.¡± Without further consideration, I focus on [Student]. ¡°Actually, wait¡ªwhat if classes can only be removed under special circumstances and permanent just means¡ªgahblugrigh¡ª!¡± My second thoughts are interrupted by the familiar but disturbing feeling of something rooting around in my head. Except this time, it¡¯s not the [Angel] reaching in from the outside, but something that¡¯s already there. I twist and writhe on the floor for a moment, holding in my screams until the feeling finally recedes. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 Student]* - Level 0/10 [Class Slot 2: Empty] [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 1 Will: 1 [Skills] Efficient Lessons I lie on the floor and stare up at the ceiling, my chest heaving as I try to catch my breath. Welp. I guess I¡¯m a student now. I mean, I was already a student, but now I¡¯m a [Student]. I hope I didn¡¯t just mess something up horribly. I try focusing on my new class to see what happens. [Tier 0 Student]* Level 0/10 A novice seeker of knowledge, expanding their horizons. Skill - Efficient Lessons: Increased Will when learning from a mentor or tutor. Attribute bonus: Will Advancement: Learn new information. [Not applicable for upgrading] [Not applicable for fusion] [Remove] Oh! So I was right and classes can be removed after all. That¡¯s a relief. [Level up!] Student is now level 1. +1 Will. I feel a surge of...something, flow through me. ¡°Huh! Tingly. Well that was easy! I guess taking that class was a good idea after all!¡± I should definitely be more careful about making assumptions like that in the future though, that might have been really bad. I consider resuming my perusal of classes to pick a second one, but my attention wanders to the attributes. [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 1 Will: 2 Despite having just gained a whole point of Will, I don¡¯t actually know what any of these do yet. I should probably not go making any more decisions without learning more. Starting from the top, I focus on each one. [Power] Projection of force. The strength of an entity¡¯s influence on the world around them. [Resilience] Unyielding form. An entity¡¯s capacity to resist change. [Awareness] Sensitivity of the mind and body. An entity¡¯s capacity to observe and understand the world and themselves. [Ego] Strength of self. An entity¡¯s ability to project meaning onto themselves and the world around them. [Will] Permanence of mind. An entity¡¯s capacity to reach and exceed the limits of their resolve. Once again, I¡¯m finding these descriptions very unhelpful. I mean, I kinda get it, I think? Power and Resilience are like strength and toughness, Awareness is for noticing things. I¡¯m a little lost on the last two, though. My best guess is that Ego is like...intelligence maybe? Except so is Awareness, sort of. I guess Will is willpower, but I feel like there¡¯s a lot that I¡¯m not getting. Oh well, no sense fretting over it now. ¡°Hey, hello? Just learned some new stuff. Do I get a level for that?¡± My queries are met by more silence. ¡°Fine,¡± I grumble, sitting up and crossing my arms. ¡°Didn¡¯t want your stupid level anyway.¡± I blow a stray strand of hair out of my eyes. All this thrashing around is making my hair clips come loose. I¡¯ll fix it in a minute, but first I want to see the rest of my class options. I brace myself and focus on the second class slot. It¡¯s not quite so bad when I know what to expect, but it still gives me a wicked headache. Maybe I¡¯m imagining it, but it feels like the headache is a bit weaker this time. Skipping past [Wanderer] and [Angel-touched], I take a look at the next option in the list. [Tier 0 Candle Enthusiast]* A keen observer, seeking to discover the truth about candles. Skill - Candle Seeker: Never lose count of candles. Attribute bonus: Awareness. Advancement: Deepen your understanding of candles. ¡°What the heck is with this place and friggin¡¯ candles?!¡± I demand, hurling the nearest one away in disgust. ¡°I was only trying to count them because I¡¯m bored! I¡¯m not some candle-obsessed weirdo like whoever made this place, okay?!¡± I try to ignore the silent judgment of the candles and move on. [Tier 0 Thrower]* Take an object from here, and send it over there. Skill - Strong Arm: Increased Power when throwing. Attribute bonus: Power. Advancement: Throw things. I glare at the candle I just threw, fuming. ¡°I hate this place.¡± Finally down to the last option. [Tier 0 Social Butterfly]* A people person. The life of any party and friend to all. Skill - Welcoming Smile: Increased Ego when making introductions. Attribute bonus: Ego. Advancement: Meet new people. My enthusiasm for this new and interesting mechanism dies in an instant. I draw my knees up to my chest and glower at the class, going over it in my head again and again. It¡¯s a cruel reminder of where I am and what I left behind. I don¡¯t think I''m even in the same world that I was before. It¡¯s just a feeling, but it¡¯s one I can¡¯t shake. Everything is different here¡ªwrong in a way that I can¡¯t put into words. My friends are gone, my life is gone, and there¡¯s nobody here for me to meet or talk to. I¡¯m completely alone. ¡°I hate this!¡± I cry, wiping at my eyes beneath my glasses. ¡°It¡¯s not fair! Why is this happening to me? Do you hear me, you stupid [World Engine]? Why me?!¡± My words echo off the high walls and ceiling, but I am otherwise met by the same cruel silence that¡¯s followed me ever since I first woke up in this awful candle-ridden nightmare labyrinth. I cry. Hot, heavy tears roll down my cheeks, fog up my glasses, and stain my uncomfortably tight jeans. I let myself go and sob for a few minutes before I finally manage to get a hold of myself. Once I¡¯m down to just a few sniffles, I take off my glasses and rub my eyes with my sleeve before replacing them. I need to focus my attention back on the here and now. I¡¯m stuck here, and no amount of crying is going to get me out. Thinking over the classes, it seems pretty obvious that [Wanderer] is the¡ª [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* A gift. My last favor to you. You don¡¯t have to be alone, Allison. [Transient] - This took everything I had. It won¡¯t last forever. [Permanent] - Nothing can take away who you are. Skill - Locus of Thought: Communicate and coordinate between yourselves. Attribute bonus: Ego. Advancement: Just be yourselves. I believe in you. I blink in surprise as the words suddenly appear in my mind. ¡°I¡ªwhat?¡± It¡¯s not part of the class list, it¡¯s just...there. It feels different from the cold, mechanical truth of the [World Engine], like that last message I received after the [Angel]¡¯s visit. I know I need to take the [Wanderer] class, but something about this calls to me. ¡°This is blatant emotional manipulation!¡± I complain. As usual, nobody responds. I can already feel the new class slipping away and I start to panic. ¡°Frick! Oh, dang it, this is a really bad idea, I know it...¡± I don¡¯t have time to think it through or make sense of it¡ªthe words have already nearly vanished from my mind. I desperately grasp for them, focusing on them like my life depends on it. There¡¯s an odd feeling of resistance, as though I¡¯m trying to force a square peg into a round hole. Then, it gives way and something slots into place. [FATAL ERROR: Selected class incompatible with mechanical guidance template (Sapient).] I thought I was prepared after picking my last class. I was wrong. Tendrils erupt from within my mind, not just one but hundreds, thousands, an infinite number of them thrashing inside my head. I drop to the floor and try to vomit, but my stomach is empty. My throat is raw from screaming, but I¡¯m so overwhelmed that it feels more like something happening to me than something I¡¯m doing. [FATAL ERROR ENCOUNTERED - ESCALATING...failed. (ERROR: Invalid registration.)] [Initiating emergency recovery procedures...done.] [Analyzing status of Entity#null...done. Issues found: 14 warnings, 3 errors, 1 fatal error.] [17 issues flagged OVERRIDDEN. Attempting to automatically resolve remaining issues.] [Entity#null::Class_Slot_2_template value returns REDACTED (Expected: Sapient)] [Correcting invalid values...done.] [Warning: Entity#null::Class_Slot_2 requirements exceed registered tier. Slots occupied: 1. Slots required: Infinity.] [Attempting to fill required slots...done.] [All issues successfully resolved. Shutting down emergency recovery procedures...done. (Warning: Unable to log event for escalation...ignored.)] The tendrils finally withdraw, leaving me feeling hollowed out. I haven¡¯t felt this sick since I first woke up. Everything hurts. The light hurts, thinking hurts, my bones hurt. I think I was thrashing around and ended up bruising myself, but that¡¯s nothing compared to every square inch of my body throbbing, or the feeling of railroad spikes being driven through my eyes. Still, the words are inescapable. No matter how much I want to ignore them, I can¡¯t look away. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 Student]* - Level 1/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 Unified Collective]* - Level -1/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 0 Will: 2 [Skills] Efficient Lessons Parallel Wills I don¡¯t think that¡¯s right, but I don¡¯t have the mental bandwidth to address it right now. I think I¡¯m just going to lie down here on the cool stone, with the candles. Just...take a second to rest my eyes. Yeah, a rest seems good right now. It hurts too much to move, anyway. I¡¯ll get this all figured out after a quick nap... 3. I Cant Do This Alone For the second time in a row, I wake up with a splitting headache. No nightmare this time, which is nice. Probably the only nice thing about it, to be honest¡ªbeing awake sucks right now. Unsurprisingly, the stone floor didn¡¯t make for a very comfortable rest. I¡¯m cold and sore and honestly kind of annoyed that I didn¡¯t wake up in my bed, with this whole ordeal just a fading dream. I push myself unsteadily up into a sitting position and wipe the drool from my chin. At least I¡¯m not nauseous anymore. I don¡¯t think my empty stomach can handle another vain attempt to throw up. I blink my eyes open blearily only to be met by a brownish-orange blur. I grimace. ¡°Frick! Where did my glasses go?¡± I feel like a cartoon character, feeling around on the floor for my lost eyewear. They must have fallen off when I was thrashing around before. Crap, I hope I didn¡¯t break them... Luckily, the thick black frames are great for standing out against the rest of the blurry goop that my unenhanced vision shows me, and after a few false starts that turn out to be cracks and seams in the floor, I locate them. The world shifts back into focus as I slip them on. ¡°Phew! Not broken!¡± I announce. ¡°A little scratched up, but otherwise fine. Glad to see the candles haven¡¯t gone anywhere while I was out...¡± I sigh as I stand up and dust myself off, then frown. ¡°Was there dust here before?¡± I wonder. Now that I think about it, something feels...off. The silent halls of the labyrinth are less silent, the pervasive stillness in the air is gone, and most importantly I feel like I¡¯m somewhere else. It was the same when I first woke up¡ªthat bizarre certainty that I¡¯m not where I was before. Everything looks the same, though. High ceiling, big pillar, tons of candles. ¡°I¡¯m stalling...¡± I know I am, but it¡¯s hard to work up the courage. I¡¯m trying hard to ignore the words burned into the back of my mind, but it¡¯s like trying not to think about pink elephants. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 Student]* - Level 1/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 Unified Collective]* - Level -1/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 0 Will: 2 [Skills] Efficient Lessons Parallel Wills I¡¯d rather not remember what happened when I picked my second class, but there¡¯s some pretty obvious discrepancies here. ¡°Negative one?! Ego zero?¡± For some reason my new class started below zero, and actually removed my one and only point of Ego, bringing me down to...zero. I don¡¯t feel any different, so unless this is all a dream and I¡¯m still on the floor drooling my brains out, it¡¯s probably fine. I¡¯m kind of ticked off, though. All that suffering for a class that doesn¡¯t do anything except waste a slot and lower one of my attributes? I feel so stupid. Why did I pick that?! I kick over a candle in disgust. ¡°Maybe there¡¯s more to it...¡± I try focusing on the skill to get more details and I¡¯m rewarded by a spike of extreme pain behind my eyes. ¡°Agh, crap! No, no, no, not doing that. Dang it!¡± As if I needed my headache to get any worse. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s impossible to look at the class, it''s just...too big. Like when I opened up the list of class options only way heavier. Maybe I can try again when I¡¯m feeling better. I think Will helped too, so if I gain a few more levels of Student it should be easier to look at. [Level up!] Student is now level 2. +1 Will. ¡°Oh, speak of the devil!¡± I stop myself before I can celebrate the new level and scowl. ¡°Wait, crap! I¡¯m going to have to get rid of that, aren¡¯t I?¡± The whole point of taking [Student] was that it was easy to level, relevant to what I was doing, and could be removed later if I didn¡¯t need it. Just because I did something monumentally stupid by taking a permanent class that hurts me, doesn¡¯t change the fact that I still need that [Wanderer] class to find my way out of here. ¡°Frick!¡± I swear. ¡°Frick! Frick! Frickety friggin¡¯ frick!¡± I kick another candle. I¡¯m sorely tempted to actually curse, I¡¯m so upset. At this point, I only moderate myself out of habit. Putting off that little issue for the moment, I draw my attention to the last irregularity. [Parallel Wills]. I don¡¯t know what to make of it. It¡¯s definitely not the skill it¡¯s supposed to be, though that might be a good thing. In retrospect, I have no idea why I was so drawn to this class¡ªmaybe something was messing with my head again. I brace myself and try focusing on [Parallel Wills], but the words painlessly transform into a simple description. [Parallel Wills] Additional minds operating in tandem within one body. I raise an eyebrow. That certainly sounds useful¡ªand the promise of somebody to talk to¡ªeven myself¡ªmakes the whole wasted slot thing almost worth it...if it works. ¡°Parallel Wills!¡± I shout like I¡¯m an anime protagonist or something. Nothing happens. My face heats up as I blush in embarrassment. I¡¯m so glad nobody was here to see that¡ªa secret between me and the candles. ¡°[Parallel Wills]?¡± I hedge, but nothing happens. ¡°Parallel Wills activate? Skill activate! Use skill! How the heck do I use this darn skill?!¡± I give up. Never mind, then. Don¡¯t mind me, candles, I¡¯m just the idiot who took a broken class that doesn¡¯t do anything. With a heavy heart, I focus on [Student], hold my breath, and pick [Remove]. For once, it¡¯s not as bad as I¡¯m expecting. I feel something drain out of me, my headache gets a bit worse, and then...nothing. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 Unified Collective]* - Level -1/10 [Class Slot 2: Empty] [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 0 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills ¡°Huh. Weird that it moved the slot,¡± I ponder aloud. ¡°Wait...¡± A cold sense of dread fills me as I realize something. During that ordeal when I picked Unified Collective, there was something about taking up infinity slots. I hadn¡¯t really thought about it, but what would have happened if I removed Student and ended up with the same useless broken skill taking up both slots? ¡°Stupid!¡± I berate myself. ¡°Why are you so stupid?!¡± Oh well. That didn¡¯t happen, so I should just count myself lucky. I don¡¯t want to bring up the list of classes again¡ªnot when my head is already pounding¡ªso I try just thinking about the [Wanderer] class directly. [Tier 0 Wanderer]* An aimless traveler, searching for a purpose. Skill - Retraced Steps: Always recognize a path you¡¯ve walked before. Attribute bonus: Resilience Advancement: Discover new places. ¡°Yes! It worked!¡± I happily pick the class and brace myself for the impending discomfort. I squint my eyes shut and desperately try to ignore the feeling of something foreign inside my head. It¡¯s a mercifully quick process, but I still feel a little sick afterward. ¡°I don¡¯t think people are meant to mess around with the mechanism so much...¡± I observe drily, before taking a look at my new class. [Tier 0 Wanderer]* Level 0/10 An aimless traveler, searching for a purpose. Skill - Retraced Steps: Always recognize a path you¡¯ve walked before. Attribute bonus: Resilience Advancement: Discover new places. [Not applicable for upgrading] [Not applicable for fusion] [Remove] That skill is just what I need to finally start exploring this place properly. I¡¯m starting to come to grips with the fact that I really am trapped in an unfamiliar place, this is really real, and at some point I¡¯m going to need food and water. ¡°What was the order again? Water and shelter first? It¡¯s cold, but I don¡¯t exactly have to worry about the weather...¡± I chatter idly to myself in a vain attempt to stave off the pervasive feeling of loneliness and pick up a candle. Mentally labeling this room as the ¡°Pillar Room,¡± I pick the nearest exit and get to work. * * * Retraced Steps isn¡¯t quite what I¡¯d hoped it was. I wanted to establish a sort of mental map of this place and avoid getting lost that way, but that¡¯s not how it works. I¡¯m still lost, but there¡¯s a weird feeling I get whenever I¡¯m in a place I¡¯ve already been before. The Pillar Room is always easy to find, since there are so many ways to get to it, but being able to recognize places I¡¯ve already been is only half the battle. Actually finding new paths is more challenging than I thought. Still, a more methodical exploration has its rewards. I¡¯ve already managed to gain two levels in Wanderer, and I¡¯m feeling a lot better. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 Unified Collective]* - Level -1/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 Wanderer]* - Level 2/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 3 This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Awareness: 1 Ego: 0 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills Retraced Steps There¡¯s no doubt in my mind that Resilience is helping to stave off the soreness I¡¯ve been feeling, and I¡¯m eager to get more of it. The only trouble is, I¡¯m starting to worry I¡¯m stuck in some kind of enclosed space with no way out. It¡¯s been a while since I found a new path. This place makes no sense. The rooms have random shapes and sizes, and I can¡¯t figure out what purpose any of them might serve. Half of them are dead ends, and the other half are just weird empty expanses that interrupt the winding hallways. There¡¯s no rhyme or reason to it. Only the Altar Room¡ªwhich I did manage to relocate¡ªand the Pillar Room stand out. There¡¯s nothing else here. Almost as soon as I think that, I actually do encounter something different. A hallway I¡¯d previously missed that leads into a long dark corridor. Dark. As in, no candles. I¡¯ve grown so used to the things that their absence is very conspicuous. [Level up!] Wanderer is now level 3. +1 Resilience. I breathe a sigh of relief as my soreness and exhaustion abates ever so slightly. I could get addicted to that. Taking the level up as confirmation that I¡¯m on the right path, I raise my no-longer-useless candle and move forward cautiously. Despite its impossible longevity, the candle is still just a candle, and it doesn¡¯t exactly provide the best illumination. Still, even with just its feeble flame to guide me, I can immediately tell that there¡¯s something different about this corridor. The walls in the lit areas were made of smooth stone bricks, but as I traverse this new area they start to give way to rough, natural looking rock formations. ¡°Am I underground?¡± I wonder. If so, I have no idea how I¡¯m ever going to have any hope of surviving. I¡¯ll just have to pray I can find my way to the surface before I starve to death or something. My thoughts are interrupted by a shuffling sound echoing through the hall, and I freeze. The unmistakable sound of movement is coming from up ahead, and maybe it¡¯s wishful thinking but I¡¯m pretty sure it sounds like someone walking. I hold my breath and creep forward, holding my candle out as far in front of me as I can. ¡°Hello?¡± I call out. ¡°Is someone there?¡± There¡¯s no answer, but I can just start to make out the silhouette of a figure at the edge of the light. Tall, cloaked, and unmistakably bipedal. It¡¯s a person! ¡°Hey!¡± I greet them, rushing forward. ¡°Oh thank gosh, I thought I was going to die down here. Do you know where we are or how to get out? I really need hel¡ª!¡± My words die in my throat as I get within arm¡¯s reach and finally catch a glimpse beneath the hood. Bones. An ivory white skull with inhuman features. It looks up and meets my gaze with its empty sockets, the hood falling from its horned head. ¡°AAAAH!¡± I shriek in terror and smack the thing without thinking. The skull flies off of the skeleton and bounces off the wall, clattering to the ground and spinning for a moment before coming to a rest. I stare at it for a moment in silence, trying not to hyperventilate. ¡°What the f¡ªaugh¡ª!¡± Pain erupts from my left thigh and spikes its way up through my entire body. I reflexively shove the skeleton away and fall back on my butt. I dropped the candle at some point, but it¡¯s still close enough that I can clearly see the source of my trouble. A knife. The skeleton had a knife. Had, because it¡¯s now mine by virtue of the fact that it¡¯s sticking out of my leg, the blue denim around it slowly turning red. I stare at it in shock. I¡¯ve never been stabbed before¡ªnever even gotten badly hurt, really. No broken bones, or major illnesses, no infections¡ªuntil now, the worst I¡¯ve had was a skinned knee. And now there¡¯s a knife sticking out of my leg. ¡°Oh gosh...oh no...what¡ªwhat do I do...?¡± As if to mock me, the headless skeleton begins picking itself up off the ground. What the heck am I supposed to do about that?! I¡¯m far too busy panicking over the knife it just stabbed me with. Nothing feels real. I¡¯m distantly aware of the fact that I¡¯m hyperventilating. The skeleton is advancing on me, I¡¯m on the floor bleeding, and I¡¯m going to die. I start to laugh hysterically. It¡¯s not fair. I don¡¯t want to die like this. I just want to be with friends, finish my studies, maybe start a family. How did I end up here? What kind of sick, cruel joke would put someone like me in a situation like this? ¡°Please...¡± I beg. ¡°Someone help me...I can¡¯t do this alone...please...somebody...¡± I¡¯m answered by only the silent rattling of the skeleton as it reaches down to finish what it started. I close my eyes and resign myself to my fate. [Level up!] Unified collective is now level 0. +1 Ego. I snap my eyes open and grab the skeleton¡¯s wrist before it can reach the knife, then yank it back as hard as I can to put it off balance. It¡¯s heavier than I expected, but still much lighter than a person, and even my clumsy throw is enough to send it clattering to the ground. That lightness also plays to its advantage, however. Without much weight behind its movements, the fall does little to damage it. Slowly, it begins rising to its feet once again, and I search for something I can use as a weapon. The knife is out¡ªno way am I pulling that out right now. I pick up the candle, but I doubt it¡¯s going to make a difference. Finally, my gaze settles on the skull. It¡¯s not human¡ªmore like a goat or a cow maybe, with curved horns tapering out to a dull point. It¡¯ll have to do. I grab the skull by a horn and force myself up, keeping as much weight as possible on my good leg. I need to end this quickly or I¡¯m going to lose too much blood. I wait for the skeleton to shamble towards me, then swing the skull down on its ribcage with all my might. With a resounding crack, the blow sends the skeleton collapsing to the ground. I¡¯m not satisfied with that, though. I grab its cloak and heave, slamming the skeleton into a wall with another satisfying crunch. It¡¯s light. Light enough that I can lift it with one arm, even on a bad leg. Light enough that I can slam it into the walls and floor again and again until there¡¯s no sign of movement. Finally, I let myself slump down to the floor with my back against the wall. I take a long, deep breath, hold it for a moment, then let it out slowly. While I get my breathing under control, I clench my teeth and grab my thigh on either side of the wound, pressing tightly to stop the bleeding. ¡°What...what the frick just happened?!¡± I hear my own voice, though my mouth doesn¡¯t move, asking a question I¡¯m not sure how to answer. Instead, I check my surroundings for anything I can use to treat my wound. Unfortunately, there¡¯s not a wealth of options. A candle that doesn¡¯t produce heat or wax, the shattered remains of the skeleton and its cloak, and the very knife still jutting dangerously out of my leg. ¡°Why can¡¯t I move my body?¡± my voice asks. ¡°What¡¯s happening? Oh gosh, have I been possessed?!¡± I can feel the panic rising as if it¡¯s my own. I think it might be, but it¡¯s...distant. Like it¡¯s part of me, but not mine. It needs to stop, though. ¡°Calm down,¡± I answer quietly. ¡°You¡¯re not possessed, but you need to stay calm. If we go into shock, nobody is going to be able to save us.¡± ¡°Wha¡ª?!¡± the voice sputters. ¡°You¡¯re literally talking to me with my own mouth while you control my body and telling me I¡¯m not possessed?!¡± ¡°Yes,¡± I reply curtly, ¡°because you¡¯re not. I¡¯m you.¡± ¡°Uh, I think I¡¯d know if you were me. I¡¯m me¡ªand there¡¯s only one of me!¡± ¡°Not anymore.¡± I¡¯m pretty sure I know the answer, but I look at my status for confirmation. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 Unified Collective]* - Level 0/10 [Class Slot 2: Empty] [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 1 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) I frown at what I see. Where did [Wanderer] go? ¡°What do you mean, ¡®not anymore¡¯?!¡± the other me asks incredulously. ¡°It¡¯s the Parallel Wills skill. Look at your status, it should be different now.¡± There¡¯s a brief pause before she answers. ¡°There¡¯s a little one next to Parallel Wills now. That¡¯s you?¡± I furrow my brows and fight off a brief dizzy spell, squeezing tighter. I can¡¯t let myself get distracted. ¡°Y-yes, probably,¡± I reply. ¡°Listen, Allison¡ªis that the only thing that changed?¡± ¡°No, I gained a level in [Unified Collective], so my Ego is 1 now.¡± ¡°You still have both your classes?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you see it yourself?¡± I shake my head. ¡°No. Mine¡¯s different. You still have [Wanderer] at level 3, then?¡± ¡°Uh, yes, why?¡± I take another deep breath, and look down at my leg. That¡¯s a lot of blood. ¡°I think we¡¯re going to need it,¡± I say. ¡°At this point, we¡¯re pretty much dead already. Even if we¡¯re lucky enough for this knife not to have hit anything major, we¡¯ve lost a ton of blood and we¡¯re going to lose even more in a minute.¡± ¡°O-oh...¡± she replies. ¡°Uh...is there anything we can do?¡± ¡°Not we,¡± I answer. ¡°You. Resilience is toughness, right? Maybe...it¡¯s a long shot, but maybe those extra points will be enough to keep us alive long enough to treat this wound.¡± ¡°Me?!¡± Allison shouts. ¡°I don¡¯t know the first thing about first aid!¡± ¡°Yes you do. You know as much as I do,¡± I remind her. ¡°But if you don¡¯t remember, I can walk you through it, I think. It has to be you, though.¡± ¡°I¡ªI can¡¯t,¡± Allison whimpers, her voice so small that I doubt I¡¯d have heard it if it hadn¡¯t come from within my own head. I lean my head back against the wall and sigh. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Okay?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I answer. ¡°Okay. If you can¡¯t handle it, I¡¯m not going to force you. I¡¯ll think of something else.¡± ¡°Like what?¡± I swallow hard. We¡¯ve already wasted too much time¡ªthe edges of my vision are going dark and my head is getting woozy. I can only think of one possible way out. ¡°I¡¯m going to take the angel class. Apparently we have different slots, so I¡¯ve got one free.¡± ¡°Just one?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I confirm. ¡°The other one is Unified Collective. I guess it¡¯s what¡¯s tying us together.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± There¡¯s no more time to lose. I focus on [Angel-touched] and hesitate as the words appear in my mind. [Tier 1 Angel-touched]** One who has been blessed by the touch of an Angel. An acolyte of the World Engine and harbinger of its divine mechanism. [Transient] - This class will disappear if not selected while its conditions are met. [Permanent] - This class cannot be removed once selected. Skill - Reverse Entropy: Draw from latent space to repair damage. Skill - Commune with Order: Divine a purpose from the mechanism of the World Engine. Attribute bonuses: Power, Resilience. Advancement: Fulfill tasks assigned by the World Engine. I don¡¯t know what will happen when I take this. Maybe that skill can heal me. Maybe I¡¯ll get the attributes I need to survive. Either way, once I make the choice, it¡¯s over. Both my classes will be locked forever. But if it¡¯s that or death... ¡°Wait!¡± Allison¡¯s voice stops me before I can confirm the decision. ¡°I¡¯ll do it. Don¡¯t take the angel class.¡± ¡°Are¡ª¡± I fight to keep my eyes open. ¡°Are you sure? We don¡¯t get a second chance at this. I¡¯m already close to passing out, and if we go down we¡¯re not getting back up again.¡± ¡°I know...¡± she says. ¡°But that class creeps me out. If we take it...I feel like it brings us closer to one of those things. It gives the [World Engine] so much control over us.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t even know what the [World Engine] is,¡± I remind her. ¡°No, but it feels wrong,¡± she replies. ¡°Let me help.¡± I groan and try to squeeze my leg tighter, but I can feel my grip loosening. I¡¯m losing strength. ¡°Alright,¡± I say, before I can change my mind again. ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡± ¡°Right! Uh...how?¡± I grimace. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I admit. ¡°This is as new to me as it is to you.¡± ¡°Uh, right,¡± she says. ¡°Well, maybe I can just...¡± Strength flows into me as the darkness around my vision fades. Also holy frick my leg hurts! ¡°Ow, ow, ow! Frick! How were you fighting like this?!¡± I cry. ¡°Focus,¡± the other me responds. It feels like she¡¯s behind me, with a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Keep pressure on that leg¡ªwe don¡¯t know how much time your resilience bought us.¡± ¡°R-right,¡± I answer, wincing as I squeeze as tightly as I¡¯m able. It hurts! I¡¯m back in control, I guess. The other me was right about the attributes helping, but now I have no idea what to do. ¡°Okay, make sure you control your breathing,¡± she reminds me. ¡°In, hold it, then out. Slowly. We need to keep our heart rate steady.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± I respond, following her instructions carefully. ¡°Now what?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to have to move fast, so hear out the entire plan before you move, alright?¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am!¡± ¡°First, you¡¯ll take off your belt.¡± I blink. ¡°Okay?¡± To be honest, I forgot I was even wearing one. These skinny jeans are so tight that it¡¯s mostly just for fashion anyway. ¡°Then, you¡¯re going to take out the knife¡ªcarefully, but quickly.¡± ¡°What?!¡± I protest. ¡°I thought that taking the knife out was bad!¡± ¡°Normally, yes,¡± the other me agrees. ¡°But what are we going to do, just leave it there forever? There¡¯s no ambulance coming, Allison, we have to do this on our own.¡± ¡°R-right. Okay. Then what?¡± ¡°The skeleton¡¯s cloak. You need to wrap it around your leg, then tie it with the belt to keep the wound closed.¡± ¡°Eww! Isn¡¯t that dirty? What about infection?¡± I complain. ¡°We don¡¯t have a lot of options right now, Allison.¡± ¡°Okay, okay,¡± I relent. I take a deep breath and try my best to pinch my thigh with one hand while I clumsily shimmy the belt out from around my waist. Setting it aside, I stare at the knife sticking out of my leg for a moment, trying to psyche myself up. ¡°Okay, Allison, you can do this,¡± I say to myself, and for once, I respond. ¡°You can. I believe in you.¡± Oh! That¡¯s kind of nice, actually. I¡¯d feel a lot better about it if I weren¡¯t in incredible pain and probably about to make it a whole lot worse. No overthinking it. I grip the handle, steady my breathing, and then pull it out as straight as I can. ¡°Ow! Frick!¡± ¡°Focus, Allison! Pressure!¡± I nod and drop the knife to squeeze my leg tightly. Frick, it hurts so much! ¡°There was no blood spurt when you took it out,¡± the other me comments. ¡°That¡¯s a good sign.¡± ¡°Great,¡± I groan through gritted teeth. Pinching my leg with one hand, I fumble for the cloak with the other. It¡¯s still got a pile of bones in it, which makes handling it a little trickier than expected. At some point when the other me was handling it, the hood got nearly torn off, and it¡¯s hanging on by a thread, so I grip the cloak in my teeth and rip the stray piece of fabric off. The hood isn¡¯t quite big enough to tie around my leg, but I pack it as tightly as I can against the wound and grab the belt. Getting my leg bandaged is a slow and clumsy process, but the other me calmly talks me through it, and eventually we get the belt secured tight around my leg with the cloth hood held firmly against my stab wound. I lean back against the wall and rest my arm against my forehead, feeling exhausted and woozy. My entire body is drenched in sweat, which is making my stab wound sting like crazy, but I¡¯m alive and hopefully going to remain that way. ¡°Good work, Allison,¡± the other me congratulates me. ¡°You may have just saved our life.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one that saved us,¡± I retort. ¡°If not for you I would definitely be dead right now.¡± ¡°It was a team effort.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I agree, staring at the orange flickers of light the candle casts on the ceiling. ¡°A team effort.¡± A team. It¡¯s not quite what I was hoping for, but more than I expected. The promise that drew me to the [Unified Collective] class in the first place has been fulfilled. Finally, I don¡¯t have to be alone. 4. So, Violet After a short rest, I manage to pick myself up off the ground and brace myself against the wall to start awkwardly limping back towards the lit area. ¡°Wait,¡± the other me says. It¡¯s so weird hearing my own voice like that. It feels like it¡¯s coming from just next to me, but there¡¯s only a wall there. ¡°Don¡¯t leave those behind.¡± ¡°Which?¡± I ask. ¡°Anything. The cloak, the dagger, and the candle.¡± ¡°That sounds like the name of a fantasy novel,¡± I chuckle. ¡°I¡¯m serious, Allison.¡± ¡°Okay, okay, give me a second...¡± It¡¯s not exactly easy to carry everything. I start with the cloak, picking it up and shaking out the bones. I stare down at the yellowish white remains of my former aggressor. It sure is a skeleton. Not a human one, I don¡¯t think, but it¡¯s got a lot of similarities. Or it did. Now it¡¯s just a pile of bones. I throw it over my arm and bend down to pick up the knife and candle. I grimace when I notice the blade still covered in my own blood. ¡°Ew...what am I supposed to do with this?¡± I ask. ¡°Wipe it off on the cloak, maybe?¡± the other me suggests. ¡°Be careful not to cut yourself, it¡¯s surprisingly sharp.¡± The blood doesn¡¯t wipe off very neatly, but I do my best. It¡¯s not like movies where they just wipe the sword a couple of times and it shines like it¡¯s fresh out of the prop master''s closet. It¡¯s more like trying to clean my glasses¡ªmostly clears it up, but there¡¯s still some obvious smudging and streaking. With my loot in hand, I begin the trek back only to nearly collapse on the first step. After a bit of awkward juggling, I manage to free up one arm entirely by draping the cloak over the other and holding the candle and knife precariously between my fingers. Using the wall as a crutch, I¡¯m back to a slow, limping gait in no time. ¡°Where are we going?¡± the other me asks. ¡°Back to the pillar room.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I shrug. ¡°Dunno. Feels safer, I guess. I don¡¯t want to sit out here in the dark where something can sneak up on us.¡± ¡°That makes sense,¡± she agrees. ¡°But you don¡¯t need to go all that way. As far as we know, the lit areas are clear, so we should keep an eye on the entrance to this corridor, in case something else wanders in.¡± I can¡¯t argue with that. It¡¯s not like there¡¯s anything waiting for me back in the Pillar Room, anyway. ¡°Alright, sure. That¡¯s less limping anyway.¡± I hobble in silence for a bit before the quiet starts to get unnerving. ¡°Hey,¡± I say, without thinking of anything to follow that up with. ¡°Yes?¡± Frick! Now I¡¯m gonna look like an idiot if I don¡¯t have a good conversation starter. Luckily, this is something I¡¯m actually good at. ¡°What should I call you?¡± I ask. ¡°I keep just thinking of you as ¡®the other me.¡¯¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. My status just says Allison.¡± ¡°Well we can¡¯t both be Allison,¡± I grumble. ¡°No,¡± she agrees. ¡°I think you should keep that name¡ªyou had it first.¡± ¡°Thanks. Then what do we call you?¡± There¡¯s a short silence before she responds. ¡°What about Violet?¡± ¡°Violet?¡± I ask. ¡°Where did that come from?¡± ¡°It¡¯s...¡± she hesitates. ¡°It¡¯s kind of stupid, actually. Maybe I should think of something else.¡± ¡°Oh come on!¡± I protest. ¡°You can¡¯t leave me hanging like that. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Well, I showed up when we fought that skeleton,¡± she hedges. ¡°And ¡®Violet¡¯ is kind of close to ¡®Violent¡¯ so...yeah.¡± ¡°Hmm, you¡¯re right, that is stupid.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± I giggle. ¡°But it¡¯s your name, and it¡¯s nice. I like it!¡± ¡°Thanks...¡± We arrive back at the entrance to what I am now dubbing the Dark Corridor, and I sit among the candles to give my poor injured leg a much-needed break. ¡°So, Violet,¡± I begin while I try to get my hair clips back in order. ¡°What should we do now?¡± ¡°You¡¯re asking me?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I respond. ¡°You seem to have a better head for this stuff than I do, and honestly I don¡¯t have a clue where to start.¡± ¡°I see...¡± she says. After a short pause, she begins to list things off. ¡°Most immediately, we need to rest our injured leg, but not for as long as I¡¯d like. While we¡¯re doing that, we can go over what we know about the mechanism and pick a class for me¡ªand honestly, I¡¯m still leaning towards [Angel-touched].¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°Because we¡¯re still in a lot of danger, Allison,¡± she says solemnly. ¡°We¡¯ve only got a few days before dehydration sets in¡ªmaybe more if resilience works the way I think it does, but there¡¯s no way to know for certain. And that¡¯s for a perfectly healthy person¡ªwe just lost a lot of literal blood, sweat, and tears and our body is going to want to start replacing those lost fluids soon.¡± ¡°Oh...¡± I say lamely. ¡°But if you take that, you¡¯re going to be stuck with it forever.¡± ¡°Not necessarily,¡± she retorts. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about it, and while permanent classes can¡¯t be removed, there¡¯s nothing to suggest they can¡¯t be fused. The [World Engine] strikes me as something that¡¯s very precise about its language, so I don¡¯t think that¡¯s an oversight. All we¡¯d need to do is get [Unified Collective] up high enough to fuse it with [Angel-touched] and we should be able to combine them together.¡± ¡°About that, actually. Don¡¯t you think that both of those classes are a little weird compared to the others? Not just because the angel one is more advanced or...all the other weirdness. I mean they feel completely different.¡± Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°I¡¯m not sure that I understand,¡± Violet replies. ¡°Though [Unified Collective] does seem a bit alien. I¡¯m not sure it actually came from the [World Engine].¡± ¡°Right!¡± I agree. ¡°There was that¡ªwell, not a voice exactly, but a presence.¡± ¡°Some kind of incorporeal entity that can interact with the mechanism directly somehow? But why would it help us?¡± I blink. ¡°Uh, I think you lost me with that one. Anyway, can we make taking the creepy class that subordinates us to some kind of mysterious alien force a backup plan?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Violet says with a chuckle. ¡°But seriously, we need to make finding a source of drinking water a priority, and I don¡¯t think we can afford to wait for our leg to fully recover.¡± Oh man, I am really not looking forward to that. ¡°Are there any classes we can take that might help there?¡± I ask. ¡°Aside from the angel one.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll check...but I¡¯m worried that replacing [Wanderer] might doom us, and we still don¡¯t understand how switching between us works.¡± Hmm, that¡¯s a good point. I glance at my ¡°status¡± as Violet called it. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 0/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer ]* - Level 3/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 4 Awareness: 1 Ego: 1 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps I haven¡¯t been feeling the headaches and nausea for a while¡ªthough that might just be because it¡¯s been replaced by dizziness from blood loss and the much more acute pain in my leg. Still, I wonder if maybe my increased stats are enough to let me look at [Unified Collective]. A stabbing pain behind my eyes quickly answers that question. ¡°What was that?¡± Violet asks. ¡°You felt it? I was trying to look at [Unified Collective], but it still hurts too much.¡± ¡°I can try for you,¡± she offers. Would that work? I guess it¡¯s worth trying. ¡°Go ahead,¡± I say, bracing myself for whatever might happen. After a tense moment of silence, nothing happens. ¡°Sorry,¡± Violet says. ¡°I can¡¯t seem to access it at all. It doesn¡¯t even feel like a link for me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± I reply. ¡°I was just hoping that there¡¯d be something in there to help explain what happens when we switch.¡± ¡°How did you do it before?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I answer honestly. ¡°I just thought about it and it happened.¡± ¡°Hmm. Something to experiment with later. For now, I¡¯ve looked at the classes I can take, and there are a couple of new ones.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Aside from the ones we had before, I can take [Medic], [Survivalist], or [Defender].¡± Out of curiosity I try focusing on the idea of [Medic]. [Tier 0 Medic]* An aspiring healer, applying first aid and treating minor injuries. Skill - First Aid: Increased Awareness and Ego when treating recent injuries. Attribute bonus: Ego. Advancement: Treat injuries. ¡°Medic doesn¡¯t seem too bad,¡± I comment. ¡°Would have been really nice earlier.¡± ¡°I disagree. Ego wouldn¡¯t have helped us much there, and we already had a reasonably good handle on it. The class seems more suited to treating others, and advancing it by ourselves would require us to sustain more injuries.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± I say, impressed. ¡°You¡¯re really taking this seriously.¡± ¡°Of course I am, Allison,¡± Violet replies, sounding a little irritated. ¡°This is life or death¡ªwe can¡¯t afford to be flippant. If you¡¯re able to read the classes, could you look at the other two and give me your opinions?¡± ¡°Uh, yeah, sure...¡± I feel a bit embarrassed after being chastised like that, but she¡¯s right. I guess even after getting a knife to the leg, I¡¯m still having trouble processing all this. I take a look at the next two classes. [Tier 0 Survivalist]* A lone survivor, living off the land. Skill - Foraging: Increased Awareness when searching for food and water. Attribute bonus: Awareness. Advancement: Survive outside of civilized areas. Wow! That¡¯s almost exactly what we need. Still, I should keep an open mind. [Tier 0 Defender]* A stalwart protector. A shield and spear raised in defense against the enemy. Skill - Retaliation: Increased Power and Resilience when fighting to defend someone or something. Attribute bonus: Resilience. Advancement: Fight to protect things. Hm, I really don¡¯t see how that even compares to the other one. Even [Medic] seemed better. ¡°Violet, you¡¯re not seriously considering this Defender one, are you?¡± I ask. ¡°I was, actually, but I can see why you¡¯d ask,¡± she responds. ¡°Do you notice anything different about it?¡± I frown. ¡°You mean other than the fact that we have to fight things on purpose to level it up?¡± ¡°I was thinking of the skill, actually. It¡¯s a lot stronger than most of the other ones we¡¯ve seen.¡± ¡°It is?¡± I ask. ¡°First Aid boosts two attributes as well.¡± ¡°Sure, but it¡¯s more narrow. Defender¡¯s boost can apply in all sorts of situations.¡± I scratch my head. ¡°Uh...are you sure? That one seemed pretty narrow too.¡± ¡°Think about it, Allison. How broad is ¡®defending someone or something¡¯?¡± she asks excitedly. ¡°Just what counts as ¡®fighting¡¯? I could use it while hunting for food to protect you. I could have used it to fight to stay awake while I treated our wound to keep you alive!¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡ªdoes it work like that?¡± I ask incredulously. ¡°Maybe!¡± Well now who¡¯s being flippant? ¡°I think that Survivalist makes more sense. That one is useful for sure, and I think it might be better to spread out our attributes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s an easy mistake to make,¡± she says. ¡°But if we try to be good at everything, we¡¯ll end up lagging behind where it really counts. The best RPG builds usually specialize.¡± Wait, what? ¡°Could you say that again?¡± I ask. ¡°I mean, it depends on the mechanics, but specialization is almost always better than a wide build.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± There¡¯s a long pause before Violet answers. ¡°Um, TTRPGs? Character sheets? Build optimization? Is none of that ringing a bell?¡± ¡°No!¡± I protest. ¡°Okay, well I know what TTRPGs are but I barely played them. I just liked hanging out with friends.¡± This is the first aid thing all over again. I still don¡¯t know how Violet knew all of that stuff. The only thing I remembered was not to pull out the knife, and I was wrong about that! ¡°That¡¯s odd,¡± Violet says. ¡°I remember poring over character sheets for hours trying to come up with the best builds.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never done that before in my entire life,¡± I declare with certainty. A long, awkward pause stretches out between us. ¡°Well, anyway,¡± Violet brushes past it entirely. ¡°I think I should take either the angel class or Defender to stack Resilience, since it seems like the most useful attribute for survival.¡± I feel like we should discuss the mismatching memories thing more, but there are so many gaps in my own memories that I don¡¯t really know how to address it, so I just go with the change in subject. ¡°The other class is literally called ¡®Survivalist¡¯!¡± I protest. ¡°Also, you may remember more stuff about games, but this isn¡¯t a game! This is our life! No matter how much we ¡®stack Resilience,¡¯ we¡¯re eventually going to need to eat, drink, sleep, and pee!¡± Oh gosh, I shouldn¡¯t have said that last bit. Now that my mind is on it, I kind of have to go... ¡°That¡¯s a good point,¡± Violet concedes. ¡°And the attributes do seem to be a bit more abstract than we¡¯re giving them credit for. They¡¯re probably all important to some degree or another.¡± ¡°So you¡¯ll take Survivalist?¡± I hedge. ¡°Yeah,¡± she agrees. ¡°I¡¯d still like to get Defender eventually, but for the short term, you¡¯re right. We need to prioritize our physiological needs.¡± [Level up!] Unified Collective is now level 1. +1 Ego. ¡°Oh! I gained a level!¡± I declare. ¡°I saw it too,¡± Violet confirms. ¡°I guess it likes when we cooperate.¡± ¡°I guess so,¡± I agree. ¡°Um, but speaking of physiological needs...¡± ¡°What?!¡± Violet asks, her voice suddenly sharp and alert. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Is it your leg?¡± ¡°No, I just um...¡± I trail off, my face flushing with embarrassment. ¡°We¡¯re going to need to find some place to use as a bathroom...¡± ¡°...oh.¡± 5. Only Mostly Doomed ¡°Let¡¯s talk about our resources,¡± Violet says, barely giving me enough time to get through the harrowing ordeal of relieving my bladder. ¡°What resources?¡± I ask, hobbling my way back towards the Dark Corridor. ¡°We¡¯ve got nothing.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true,¡± she counters. ¡°We¡¯ve got our clothes, glasses, hair clips, a knife, a cloak, and a nearly endless supply of magical candles.¡± ¡°Ugh, don¡¯t remind me about the stupid friggin¡¯ candles...¡± ¡°I¡¯m just saying, we shouldn¡¯t write anything off. Even something like the wire from a bra could be potentially useful.¡± I groan. ¡°First of all, I¡¯m not about to disassemble my underwear for its components, and second I don¡¯t have a wire because whatever mystery force stuck me here was ¡®kind¡¯ enough to match my off shoulder top with a strapless bra, but not give me any shoes!¡± ¡°It was just an example,¡± Violet says, dismissing my complaint. ¡°The fact that we have so little to speak of is precisely why we need to take stock of everything.¡± ¡°Sure, whatever,¡± I grumble. ¡°I need to sit down for a second, my leg hurts.¡± Violet sighs. ¡°I told you going all the way back to the Altar Room was excessive.¡± ¡°Well I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t want to pee in the middle of a random hallway!¡± ¡°I understand that, but you need to go easy on that leg if we¡¯re going to have any chance of surviving this.¡± I gently ease myself down to the floor and sigh in relief as I take the weight off my injured leg. I know her heart is in the right place, but I¡¯m already starting to get sick of Violet¡¯s nagging. It¡¯s hard to say she¡¯s wrong though. ¡°What do you think my chances actually are, anyway?¡± I ask, fiddling idly with a nearby candle. ¡°Honestly? Not great,¡± she answers. ¡°The odds are really stacked against us. We seem to be underground, we have no leads on sources of food or water, and we¡¯ve already got a serious injury impeding us. If not for the mechanism boosting us with attributes, I¡¯d think we were completely doomed.¡± ¡°Great, so we¡¯re only mostly doomed, then.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not all bad,¡± Violet consoles me. ¡°Thanks to this cloak and all the candles, we¡¯ve mostly got shelter figured out, so I¡¯m not too worried about the fact that it¡¯s getting colder.¡± I pause. It¡¯s what now? ¡°Back up, it¡¯s getting colder?¡± ¡°I think so,¡± she replies. ¡°It¡¯s pretty subtle, but I think the whole place has been slowly getting colder ever since the [Angel] showed up, and the Dark Corridor is definitely colder than these lit areas.¡± My poor toes are gonna freeze! ¡°How do the candles help?¡± I ask. ¡°I checked before and they¡¯re not hot.¡± ¡°No, but they are warm to the touch,¡± Violet says. ¡°So if we keep enough of them with us, we should be okay.¡± ¡°How are we going to carry them?¡± Violet is silent for a long moment before answering. ¡°We¡¯d better head back so we can keep an eye on that corridor, in case something dangerous shows up.¡± She really hates not having an answer, doesn¡¯t she? That¡¯s the second time she¡¯s deflected like that after drawing a blank. Well, lucky her, I hate pressing on that sort of thing, so I guess that¡¯s a problem for later. ¡°Alright,¡± I say, groaning miserably as I fight my way back up onto my feet. ¡°Back to babysitting a hole in the wall...¡± [Level Up!] Unified Collective is now Level 2. +1 Ego. Well that¡¯s nice. * * * When we return to what I have just now decided to call the Entrance, Violet convinces me to try on the grody skeleton cloak. My shoulders are getting cold enough that I actually agree. The thing is actually surprisingly clean, aside from the bloodstain from when I wiped the knife off on it. It¡¯s made of a thick, heavy fabric that¡¯s somewhere between cotton and wool. I¡¯m extremely glad it¡¯s not actually wool¡ªmy wound is itchy enough as it is. Also, at the risk of being cliche, it has pockets! This matters a lot to me, because my skinny jeans are so form-fitting that it would be completely impossible to fit anything into its pockets. Something the manufacturers must have been well aware of, since it doesn¡¯t actually have any¡ªjust some insulting decorative stitching that stores nothing but disappointment. The inside of the cloak actually has all sorts of little pockets to hide things in. Each one is about the size of my hand, and there¡¯s about sixteen of them ranging from convenient and easy to reach all the way down to a couple too low for me to access without lifting the thing up. Speaking of which¡ªit¡¯s too big. The skeleton was actually pretty tall, and the cloak already concealed it head to toe. On me, the cape drags on the floor. ¡°This is good, actually,¡± Violet informs me. ¡°We can cut it to size and keep the extra fabric if we need it.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that bad for the fabric? Resizing it without a proper seam will make it get all ragged.¡± ¡°You¡¯re worried about how it¡¯s going to look?¡± Violet asks incredulously. I blush. ¡°Not just that! You said it¡¯s going to get cold, and this thing is going to be our only blanket. It won¡¯t be any good to us if it gets all torn up.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a fair point,¡± she admits. ¡°Sorry. Still, it¡¯s going to get torn up either way, and leaving it too long is just going to trip us.¡± Since I¡¯m just sitting here doing nothing while I wait for my leg to at least scab over or something, I get to work resizing the cloak while Violet starts explaining our immediate plans for survival. I have to be careful, since the fabric is pretty sturdy and as sharp as the knife is, it¡¯s really hard to get any kind of leverage without cutting off a finger. ¡°Since the candle flames don¡¯t actually burn anything, we should keep as many candles as possible in our cloak,¡± Violet explains. ¡°That should not only provide us with some extra warmth while we explore the Dark Corridor, but also light and hopefully a way to keep track of our progress.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I ask, as I struggle with the cloak. Gotta remember to cut away from myself... ¡°Have you tried breaking them? Or using them as crayons?¡± ¡°Did you just say crayons?¡± ¡°Well, yes. Crayons are made of wax, you know.¡± ¡°Oh, right. One sec...¡± I take one of the ever-present candles and try scraping it along the smooth stone floor to no avail. Just to be sure, I try with the lit end as well, but the candles refuse to leave behind any sort of byproduct. ¡°Yeah, no dice,¡± I say. ¡°I don¡¯t think these are even really candles.¡± ¡°Hmm, okay well maybe we can just leave them behind us as a trail?¡± Violet suggests. ¡°Since they produce light, it should be easy to find our way back that way.¡± ¡°Or, we could not do that, and just use my Wanderer skill,¡± I counter, returning to the arduous task of slicing a piece of fabric¡ªwhy is this so hard? ¡°Retraced Steps gets weaker the more ground we cover. I¡¯m trying to think ahead to what happens when we¡¯ve explored much larger areas. Knowing that we¡¯ve been somewhere before doesn¡¯t really help us if we¡¯re lost in territory we¡¯ve already explored.¡± ¡°Sure, but wouldn¡¯t the same thing happen if we start sticking candles everywhere?¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. I sit in silence for a moment, slowly working the knife through the fabric. I can practically feel the change in subject coming. ¡°In any case, we should keep as many candles with us as possible,¡± Violet says, doing exactly as I predicted. ¡°They¡¯re the only resource we have in abundance, and I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find ways to make use of them.¡± ¡°¡®Kay,¡± I agree. ¡°You know we could probably just make marks in the rocks with the knife or something.¡± I can practically feel Violet grimacing at that. ¡°I don¡¯t want to destroy the edge on our only weapon like that.¡± ¡°With the other side?¡± I ask, holding up the knife to demonstrate. The hilt isn¡¯t particularly long, but it¡¯s got a little flared bit of metal at the end to keep my hand from slipping¡ªthere¡¯s probably a name for that. ¡°Oh, the pommel¡ªthat makes more sense. Good idea!¡± Pommel, right. That''s what it''s called. ¡°How come you know things I don¡¯t?¡± I ask. ¡°It¡¯s been bothering me for a while.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Violet admits. ¡°I remember everything from when we first woke up here, but before that is just...fuzzy. I keep almost remembering things, but most of it is just blank. Maybe we¡¯ve got different blank spots?¡± That¡¯s not really how it feels to me, but I don¡¯t have a better explanation than that, so I accept her answer for now. I finally manage to slice through the last bit of fabric and pump my arm in triumph. ¡°Yes! I finally got it!¡± I quickly stand up, only slightly regretting the act when my leg flares up painfully, and don my newly altered garment. I can¡¯t really see myself that well, but the cloak wraps nicely around my bare shoulders, and the cape drops down to just above my ankles. The cut is a little ragged and uneven, but whatever¡ªI think it¡¯s pretty good since I did it with a knife. That leaves me with a single long strip of cloth, maybe one by four feet. I stare at it for a moment, pondering. ¡°Hey, Vi?¡± I ask. ¡°Do you think we could make these into a pair of socks or something?¡± ¡°Oh! Footwraps! That¡¯s a great idea, although...¡± she hesitates. ¡°What? What¡¯s the problem? My feet are freezing!¡± I complain. ¡°Well, it¡¯s just that you¡¯re going to have to cut it along the length again.¡± ¡°...Frick!¡± * * * ¡°I spy¡ª¡± ¡°A candle,¡± Violet interrupts me, exasperated. ¡°Wow, how¡¯d you know?!¡± I exclaim. ¡°It¡¯s like you can see into my mind!¡± ¡°Allison...¡± she sighs. ¡°I know you¡¯re bored, but we can¡¯t explore until our leg heals more.¡± ¡°This goes well past boredom, Vi!¡± I complain. ¡°We¡¯ve been sitting here for hours! There¡¯s nothing to do! I can¡¯t stand it!¡± I don¡¯t actually know how long it¡¯s been. My poor tortured feet are now ever so slightly warmer in their crappy makeshift footwraps, and it¡¯s actually pretty cozy with a bunch of candles under the heavy cloak. I think I might have nodded off briefly at some point, but it¡¯s hard to tell when time just starts blending together. [Level Up!] Unified Collective is now Level 3. +1 Ego. ¡°Huh, that one just kinda goes off whenever it wants, doesn¡¯t it?¡± I observe. ¡°Seems like,¡± Violet agrees. ¡°I¡¯m not going to complain, though.¡± I decide to take the opportunity to look at my status again, since there¡¯s nothing better to do. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 3/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer ]* - Level 3/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 4 Awareness: 1 Ego: 4 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps Yup, yup. Still the same. Anything new with the Parallel Wills skill? [Parallel Wills] Additional minds operating in tandem within one body. You can currently support one (1) additional thoughtform. Nope. It too remains unchanged, as it has the last fifteen times I checked it. You¡¯d think having someone to talk to would ease the burden of boredom, but having all the same experiences makes it pretty hard to find a good topic of conversation with Violet. For some reason she doesn¡¯t like talking about the differences between our limited memories of our old life, and there¡¯s only so many ways to say ¡®We need food and water or we are going to die¡¯ before it gets old. In other words, I. Am. BORED! ¡°I can¡¯t do this,¡± I declare. ¡°I¡¯m gonna go exploring.¡± ¡°Allison, our leg still needs more time to heal,¡± Violet protests. ¡°I don¡¯t care! I¡¯m going to die of boredom before either blood loss or dehydration can get me at this rate.¡± ¡°Allison, wait!¡± I ignore Violet¡¯s protests and stand up. Gosh it feels good to stretch after sitting on the hard stone for so long. My joints are even more sore than my leg after all that sitting around. Knife in one hand, candle in the other, and loaded up with pockets full of spares, I venture forth once more into the Dark Corridor. Violet continues to pester me as I limp past the inert bones of our old adversary. ¡°Allison, please, if our leg reopens we might not survive it. We barely survived it the first time.¡± I¡¯m starting to get a headache. A dull pressure behind my eyes, similar to the way I felt after the [Angel] did its thing in my brain. ¡°My leg feels fine,¡± I insist. ¡°I¡¯ll be careful not to put too much weight on it, but I can¡¯t stand another second of sitting around doing nothing.¡± ¡°Fine,¡± she relents. ¡°I obviously can¡¯t stop you. Just...be careful, alright?¡± ¡°Duh! I¡¯m not going to go running into the arms of another skeleton¡ªI¡¯ve learned my lesson.¡± That seems to placate her, and she doesn¡¯t bother me anymore as I slowly explore the corridor. It gets a lot less ¡°hallway¡± and a lot more ¡°cave tunnel¡± the further in I get. The floor gets more rough, which makes me very glad I¡¯ve got these footwraps, though the protection they offer is pretty limited. It¡¯s also getting a lot colder¡ªViolet was right about that. ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s getting colder because of air from the Dark Corridor leaking into the Candle Labyrinth,¡± I ponder aloud. ¡°Did you just name that?¡± Violet asks. ¡°That would have to mean that the Dark Corridor wasn¡¯t there before, and only appeared after the [Angel]. Otherwise it would have been cold when we arrived.¡± ¡°Or it could have been us that appeared, along with the labyrinth.¡± ¡°Not that there¡¯s much of a difference, but yes.¡± While I consider that, I finally arrive at a split in the tunnel. I can¡¯t really see too far down either of them with just a candle to light the way, but I¡¯ll call this the Crossroad. [Level Up!] Wanderer is now Level 4. +1 Resilience. Awesome! Well, time to make my first road sign! I move to the wall and use the handle of the knife to scratch at the rough stone. It¡¯s a bit tougher than I thought, but with some effort I manage to make a visible mark. After a few minutes of scratching and scraping away, I step back to admire my handiwork. <-DC Okay, not the best, but it was harder than I thought and I didn¡¯t want to spend all day writing out the entire word. All that scraping was hard work! I can practically still hear that grating noise, and it¡¯s making my headache worse¡ªno wait, I actually can still hear it, what the heck? ¡°Vi, do you hear that?¡± I ask. ¡°Yeah,¡± she confirms. I don¡¯t know where it¡¯s coming from. You¡¯d think with only three directions it¡¯d be easy to tell, but everything echoes in these tunnels. ¡°You think it¡¯s just an echo?¡± I ask hopefully. ¡°No,¡± Violet mercilessly crushes my dreams. ¡°That¡¯s definitely something else¡ªstay alert.¡± I swallow nervously. My entire body starts to shiver and I try to hold the cloak closer around me as I raise my feeble candle in an effort to illuminate more of the tunnel. ¡°W-what do I do?¡± I ask. ¡°Should I run?¡± ¡°Try to stay calm,¡± Violet says quietly¡ªhow is she so calm?! ¡°We shouldn¡¯t make any sudden moves¡ªwe¡¯re holding a light source, so even if we can¡¯t see it, there¡¯s a good chance it can see us.¡± I slowly back up the way I came, but the scraping noise is getting closer. It¡¯s a weird, rhythmic crunching noise, like rock against rock. The sound stops and I hold my breath. Then I hear a faint wet squishing noise¡ªmaybe it¡¯s because it¡¯s a softer sound, but it¡¯s unmistakably coming from the left side tunnel. My head is throbbing, but I ignore it and raise my candle, leaning forward slightly to illuminate just a tiny bit more. Then I see it. Just a silhouette at first, but then more as it comes into the light. A huge gray body as tall as I am, oozing its way out of a thick stony shell, topped by two wandering eyestalks. ¡°Is that a friggin¡¯ snail?!¡± I whisper incredulously. ¡°It looks like a giant snail to me, yes,¡± Violet confirms. The eyestalks slowly wiggle in my direction, but it doesn¡¯t respond to my presence immediately. Instead, it lowers its head down to the ground and does...something. The raspy crunching noise resumes, louder than ever. ¡°Ah,¡± Violet exclaims as if anything in the world makes sense right now. ¡°That¡¯s how it gets that shell.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s eating the rock,¡± she explains. Oh of course. Just a giant rock-eating snail. Perfectly normal stuff, nothing to be alarmed about. I¡¯m getting the heck out of here! I try to slowly shuffle backwards, but my heel hits a pebble and sends it clattering away behind me. Both of the snail''s eyestalks snap towards me, and my breath catches in my throat. Before I even have time to panic, something inside me snaps. Suddenly, my headache is gone. I tighten my grip on the knife and lower my stance, wincing slightly as the extra weight makes my leg flare up. Snails are supposed to be slow, but I¡¯m not going to bet my life on that. I move back cautiously, but the eyestalks are firmly focused on me now. I need to be ready to¡ªI pause...I¡¯m not Allison anymore, am I? [Violet: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 3/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Survivalist ]* - Level 0/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 1 Awareness: 1 Ego: 4 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Foraging The distraction nearly costs me everything. A wet thunk is all the warning I get before something shatters on the ceiling above me, causing me to flinch. I duck under the cloak as bits of debris rain down overhead from whatever the snail just launched. I didn¡¯t even see it! The snail is moving now, and as I feared, it¡¯s faster than it looks. I might be able to outrun it normally, but on this leg? I force myself to calm my nerves and prepare to fight for my life. 6. Did You See Those Teeth? The snail is much easier to make out as it comes into the light. Its thick gray slug body glistens with slime, and the four tentacles on its head wiggle menacingly in my direction. Alright, I¡¯m probably imagining the menace, but it¡¯s already tried to attack me once so I have no doubt about its intentions. I start to back off. It¡¯s faster than I expected from a snail, but not exactly fast for its size. If not for my leg, I could just briskly walk away, but I don¡¯t want it following me back to the lit areas and it¡¯s already demonstrated that it can attack from a distance. Its aim is atrocious, but after seeing how much force it put into that stone spear, there¡¯s no way I¡¯m gambling on that again. Speaking of which, I can hear a distinct stone-on-stone rasping noise, and since I¡¯m staring right at the snail¡¯s head, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s from chewing on rocks. Unfortunately, in the dim light of the candle, I can barely make out the shape of its rocky shell, so finding out where the stone spears are coming from is impossible. Well, maybe that¡¯s one problem I can actually solve. I throw my candle at the snail and quickly duck around the corner of the Crossroad, peeking out to avoid giving the snail anything to target. The snail flinches back from the light, halting its advance for a moment as it retracts its tentacles and ducks its head partially back into its shell. Of course, the candle bounces off harmlessly, but I get a much better view of the thing in the process. Its shell really is made of stone, and I can only guess that the gray color of its body is meant to blend in with the rocky tunnels. The main point of interest is the crude spike jutting out from just underneath the shell. Fitted into a little groove in the shell is the stone spear I¡¯m looking for. I can see it moving independently of the shell, so it must come out of the snail¡¯s body, but that groove would give it some limited control over where the spike shoots. That gives me two pieces of valuable information¡ªfirst is that it can only fire one at a time before it has to ¡°reload,¡± and second is that it always fires from its left side. Which happens to also be the side I¡¯m on. So my options are to either put myself between the snail and the tunnel wall, or put myself in the line of fire. Not ideal. Eventually, the snail figures out that it¡¯s not in any danger and investigates the offending light source with its feeler tentacles. After a bit of probing, it opens its mouth and eats the candle. I only see the inside of its mouth for a moment, but I wish I hadn¡¯t. The roof of its mouth is like a huge rocky cheese grater, but its tongue...it looks like a chainsaw made of particularly jagged stone spikes. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it just ate one of those indestructible candles,¡± I whisper, pulling a replacement out of my cloak. ¡°And did you see those teeth?¡± Allison doesn¡¯t respond, and her silence is disquieting. I was starting to get worried that I hadn¡¯t heard anything from her since we switched, but now I¡¯m upgrading that to proper concern. I can¡¯t address it right now, though¡ªthe snail is back on the move. I really don¡¯t want to try to fight that thing. Between the stone spears, those chainsaw-cheese-grater teeth, and the fact that its entire body is just one giant slimy muscle that could probably crush me to death if it got me in its grip... Maybe I can chase it off. I try throwing another candle, this time lobbing it underhand in an attempt to lure the snail back the way it came. Two things happen. First, there¡¯s a dull shunk sound and a woosh of air very uncomfortably close to my face before the stone spear shatters against the tunnel wall several feet behind me, then the candle bounces off the back of the snail¡¯s shell and clatters to the ground, completely ignored. The snail doesn¡¯t take the bait. It resumes its chase towards me, barely reacting to the candle at all, not counting the attempt to brutally murder me with a spear. Just my luck¡ªthe thing is learning. This is an advantage, though¡ªit just fired one spear, and it will have to take time to reload another. I don¡¯t know how many it can fire before running out¡ªor if it will run out¡ªbut it shouldn¡¯t be able to fire another one for a few seconds. I don¡¯t have time to hem and haw over it. If I¡¯m going to strike, I need to strike now. It¡¯s not necessary to kill it¡ªjust driving it off will be enough. Adjusting the grip of my knife, I produce another candle from my cloak and dart out from behind the safety of my hiding spot. My leg flares up with pain, but I have no choice but to ignore it. I wish I had Allison¡¯s Resilience. The eyestalks focus on me as soon as I make my appearance, and I can already see a new spear slowly starting to emerge from under the shell¡ªI need to move fast. Ignoring the screaming protests of my injured leg, I lunge forward and thrust the candle towards the snail as a distraction. As I¡¯d hoped, it retracts its eyestalks away from the light, leaving it hopefully blind to my follow up attack¡ªI reverse the grip on my knife and drive it down into the snail¡¯s head, between its eye tentacles where I hope the brain¡ªor whatever equivalent snails have¡ªis located. The knife drives into its soft body with a sickening squelch, and I almost lose my grip as the snail¡¯s head immediately retracts back into its shell. It might have been better if I had. Instead, the knife slices a few inches before catching on something and yanking me off my feet. I stubbornly maintain my grip on the knife as I¡¯m dragged along the ground until I find myself right up against the shell, my head only a few inches away from the now fully-armed spike. I try to keep that thing pointed away from me as I finally pull the knife free of the snail¡¯s deceptively sticky body. The snail completely retreats into its shell, leaving me alone and covered in foul-smelling sticky goop and some kind of blue stuff covering my knife arm. I really hope that none of this stuff is toxic. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Motion in the corner of my eye alerts me just in time to notice the spike wiggling its way in my direction. I flinch to the side and drop the candle as I reflexively grab the implement of death and try to push it away from me. That turns out to be a mistake as it fires off the moment I touch it. The rough stone surface tears bloody friction burns across my hand, and while I manage to get out of the way of the spear itself, it practically explodes on the wall right behind me, spraying me with rocky bits of shrapnel and leaving several cuts and abrasions along my cheek. I stab desperately at the strange fleshly gland that the spear came out of¡ªthe only exposed portion of the snail I can reach. The knife finds purchase in the snail¡¯s flesh and I grab it with both hands, ignoring the flaring pain in the injured one to force the knife as deep as I can and pull hard. My efforts pay off¡ªI cut a deep furrow in the snail¡¯s flesh and destroy the gland that produces those spears. I don¡¯t have much time to celebrate¡ªthe snail quickly retracts the rest of its body inside its shell and slams the aperture down against the ground just inches away from me. Only the spiral pattern and the slowly growing pool of blue liquid betray it as anything other than a perfectly normal boulder. Blood, I realize¡ªthe blue stuff is blood. Now I¡¯m not sure what to do. Did I win? I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s still alive, but it¡¯s decided to hide rather than fight me. The adrenaline starts to fade, and all the little bits of pain I¡¯ve been ignoring start to fight over my attention. My leg is the worst¡ªthe growing red stain around my bandage is as clear a sign as any that it¡¯s reopened. On top of that, my focus is sapped away by countless scrapes and bruises from being yanked around on the rough stone surface of the tunnel, and my left hand is dripping with blood. I don¡¯t want to leave this stupid thing alive. I tell myself it¡¯s too much of a threat¡ªthat we might lead it back to our safe area, or get ambushed by it later¡ªbut that¡¯s not it. I¡¯m just angry. I want it dead. It threatened me¡ªthreatened us¡ªand I can¡¯t abide that. I shove weakly at the shell, but it¡¯s too heavy to budge even if I were in top condition. A few experimental knocks with my knife handle yield similarly fruitless results. The shell isn¡¯t just for show, it¡¯s a practically impenetrable defense. Can I even kill this thing? Without any way to get through the shell, it could just wait me out. Which of us would expire first? Do I really want to lay siege to a random snail creature? I stare down at the growing pool of blue blood. Do I even have to? ¡°Is¡ª¡± Allison¡¯s voice startles me so badly I actually jump. ¡°Is it dead?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so, no,¡± I answer, wincing as I try to take the weight off my bad leg. ¡°Just hiding. We injured it enough to consider us a predator, and now it¡¯s just waiting for us to go away.¡± ¡°Oh. Uh, why are we still here then?¡± ¡°Because,¡± I grumble, ¡°everything hurts too badly to move. And besides, I don¡¯t want to give this thing a chance to come back for a rematch.¡± ¡°Do you think it would?¡± she asks. ¡°I didn¡¯t think snails were known for taking revenge.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not known for being five feet tall or shooting deadly stone projectiles like bullets, either,¡± I retort. ¡°We have no idea how smart it is, and underestimating it could get us killed.¡± ¡°Good point,¡± she says. ¡°How do we get through the shell, then?¡± I sigh. ¡°We don¡¯t. It¡¯s hard as a rock, weighs a ton, and is probably glued to the floor by the snail¡¯s slime.¡± ¡°So...then what?¡± ¡°We wait,¡± I say. ¡°It¡¯s bleeding heavily from the wounds we gave it¡ªnot that we¡¯re faring a whole lot better¡ªand it¡¯s going to have to do something eventually, or just bleed out right here. When it does, it¡¯ll be weak enough for me to finish it off.¡± ¡°That seems kind of cruel.¡± ¡°It tried to kill us,¡± I remind Allison. ¡°It would almost certainly do so again given the chance. We don¡¯t have the luxury of being conscientious.¡± ¡°Fine,¡± she relents. ¡°There¡¯s got to be something else we can do, though. Does it really have no weaknesses?¡± ¡°Not that I can tell, and I¡¯d rather not waste my strength trying to find one. I need to be ready for the ambush.¡± ¡°Hmm...how does it breathe?¡± That is an excellent question. I have no idea how snails breathe, but I can only assume it has to have some sort of ventilation in that shell, or it would just suffocate. ¡°Let¡¯s find out...¡± I slowly limp my way around the spiral, poking and prodding for any openings or signs of a draft. I might not have noticed it if not for all the candles in my cloak lighting up everything beneath me, but I do spot something. One spot along the edge of the shell where the pool of bloody slime ripples and bubbles ever so slightly. ¡°I think this is it,¡± I say, pointing the spot out. ¡°Just that?¡± Allison asks. ¡°I was expecting something...bigger.¡± ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be a very good defense mechanism if its breathing tube was at the top of the shell, would it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not breathing very hard,¡± Allison observes. ¡°We don¡¯t know how it breathes at all, so we probably shouldn¡¯t make any assumptions, but given how much it was bleeding before, it might be losing strength.¡± I try to crouch down to get a better look, but my injured leg has other ideas. ¡°Ow!¡± I cry as it twinges painfully. ¡°Okay, this might not be a great idea. If I go down there, I¡¯m not getting back up again for a while.¡± ¡°Frick!¡± Allison swears. ¡°I thought it was a good idea, too.¡± ¡°It was,¡± I console her. ¡°We¡¯re just not in great shape right now.¡± I move back around to the front of the shell, readying myself to make a move as soon as the snail does. After about a minute of absolutely nothing happening, Allison¡¯s boredom gets the better of her. ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s not dead?¡± she asks in a whiny tone. ¡°It hasn¡¯t even twitched!¡± ¡°We saw it breathing,¡± I remind her. ¡°But if you¡¯re that bored, I actually had something I wanted to ask you.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± I can practically feel her perking up at the idea of conversation. ¡°What happened to you when we switched earlier?¡± I ask. ¡°While I was fighting the snail it felt like you weren¡¯t even there.¡± There¡¯s a long pause before Allison answers. ¡°I don¡¯t know. That whole thing is kind of a blur to me. It was the same when you dealt with the skeleton, actually. I can vaguely remember it, but it¡¯s like I was just spaced out the entire time.¡± I think about that for a moment, frowning. ¡°I think it¡¯s the same for me, actually,¡± I admit. ¡°Everything that happened to us before the skeleton is muddy except the [Angel]. I remember that vividly.¡± ¡°What do you think that means?¡± Allison asks. I shrug. ¡°No idea. Maybe nothing. There¡¯s a lot about our situation that we don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°I guess...¡± she agrees. [Level Up!] Unified Collective is now level 4. Survivalist is now level 2. +1 Ego. +2 Awareness. The sudden notification catches me off guard. Three levels at once? The difference in awareness is immediately noticeable¡ªI can see a little further down the tunnels in the dim candlelight, and I can make out details on the snail¡¯s shell that I had previously missed. Most importantly, I can clearly see the spot where we¡¯d identified the breathing hole before. No more ripples. No more bubbles. The snail isn¡¯t breathing anymore¡ªit¡¯s dead. 7. Everything We Need I nearly collapse against the wall in relief when I realize that the danger has passed, but catch myself¡ªwith our leg injury reopened, I might not be able to stand back up again if I sit now. ¡°We did it,¡± I sigh in relief. ¡°It¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°Oh! That¡¯s good,¡± Allison says. ¡°Uh...now what?¡± I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve been trying to keep it together for both our sakes, but I have no idea how we¡¯re going to get through this. The dangers of infection, blood loss, and dehydration loom ominously close, while even if I somehow find answers to those problems, there¡¯s still starvation and the threat of monsters like this snail. I was lucky. If the snail had better aim or eyesight, or if it had been just a little bit smarter in its self-preservation and tried to fight instead of hiding while it bled out¡ªwe¡¯d be dead already. We¡¯ve only encountered two other beings¡ªnot counting the [Angel] and they¡¯ve both nearly killed us. It still remains to be seen if they succeeded. But if things keep on as they are, then it¡¯s only a matter of time. We can¡¯t expect to keep getting lucky and even if we do¡ªthis place is going to wear us down. I can¡¯t say any of that. Not to Allison. I have to do whatever I can to keep us alive, even if it¡¯s futile. I¡¯ll carry the burden of that futility by myself. ¡°Can you switch back?¡± I ask. ¡°I don¡¯t have your Resilience, and our leg is bleeding again.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try,¡± she answers. I feel bad putting this pain on her, but I¡¯ve seen for myself how much a difference even a few attribute points can make. This is life or death. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s working,¡± Allison says. ¡°I¡¯m trying, but nothing is happening. I don¡¯t know how I did it before.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either,¡± I reply. ¡°One moment you were panicking, then I just...moved. For a second, it felt like I was still you¡ªor...both of us? It¡¯s hard to describe.¡± ¡°I think I remember that too, but it¡¯s kind of fuzzy.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Is it going to be a problem that I can¡¯t switch right now?¡± Allison asks. Of course it is! But there¡¯s no sense stressing her out about it. ¡°No,¡± I lie. ¡°We¡¯ll just have to make do while we try to figure it out. I think we should continue forward.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Allison shrieks. ¡°What if there are more snails? I thought you were the one who wanted to rest.¡± I shake my head. ¡°It¡¯s too late for that now. Besides, this is a unique opportunity, and we might not get another one like it.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I stare down at the pool of blood and mucus surrounding the snail¡¯s impenetrable shell. ¡°I¡¯m no expert, but snails need water, and a snail this size probably needs a lot of water.¡± ¡°Oh! So if we follow the snail trail, it should lead us to water!¡± I nod. ¡°Probably. There are a lot of things we don¡¯t know¡ªlike how a snail that big could even survive in the first place¡ªbut it¡¯s the best chance we¡¯ve got. And I¡¯ve even got a skill that will help...¡± [Foraging] Increased Awareness when searching for food and water. That ¡°increased awareness¡± is pretty vague, but even one point should be a noticeable difference. Hopefully enough to spot the snail¡¯s slime trail through this dark tunnel with nothing but candles to guide me. ¡°I wonder if the snails have attributes too,¡± Allison muses. ¡°That might be how it got so big.¡± ¡°Possibly,¡± I agree. ¡°Though that might also mean that they aren¡¯t as reliant on large supplies of water as I thought...¡± ¡°Oh, frick! I hadn¡¯t thought of that.¡± I shake my head. ¡°There¡¯s no sense fretting about it. Let¡¯s get moving.¡± I have to suppress a grunt of pain as I take my first few tentative steps, using the dead snail¡¯s shell to steady myself. Now that the rush of adrenaline from fighting the rock snail has worn off, I¡¯m paying for how hard I pushed that wounded leg. I try to ignore the full body soreness as I limp slowly down the tunnel, focusing on the trail of snail mucus glistening in the candlelight. I think it¡¯s because of my foraging skill, but the slime stands out clearly from the rock despite how dim it is. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Allison says, breaking the silence. I blink. ¡°What for?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my fault we got hurt,¡± she answers. ¡°I wasn¡¯t paying attention when the skeleton stabbed me, and then I didn¡¯t listen and tried to go exploring with my leg still injured. You wouldn¡¯t have had to fight the snail if not for me.¡± ¡°You couldn¡¯t have known that we¡¯d meet a monster,¡± I sigh. ¡°And for all we know the snail would have found us anyway. Think about it¡ªthere were only two directions it could have gone in. It¡¯s better that we engaged it on our own terms.¡± ¡°I guess...¡± she mutters quietly. ¡°I just feel kind of useless. All I do is get us into trouble and complain. You¡¯d be better off without me.¡± I frown. ¡°That¡¯s not true at all. You¡ª¡± I hesitate, trying to articulate my thoughts, ¡°¡ªyou have that special class. We don¡¯t know exactly what its potential is, but it¡¯s probably powerful. And without your [Wanderer] class, we would almost certainly have bled out.¡± ¡°None of that is me,¡± she huffs. ¡°Imagine if you just had [Wanderer] and [Survivalist] in the first place¡ªyou wouldn¡¯t need me at all! You could have patched up the stab wound by yourself, wouldn¡¯t have wandered into a rock snail¡ªheck, you probably wouldn¡¯t have gotten hurt in the first place!¡± I groan. Partly in pain, but also because I don¡¯t know what to say to that. What she¡¯s saying isn¡¯t factually inaccurate, but it¡¯s still wrong and I have no idea how to explain it. Allison is important to me in a way that I don¡¯t really understand¡ªand not just because I happen to share a body with her. All I want right now is to keep her safe. After a moment I realize that I¡¯ve been silent long enough to make it awkward, so I try changing the subject. ¡°Do you remember the dream we had before waking up here?¡± ¡°What?¡± Allison asks. ¡°Where did that come from?¡± ¡°I was just thinking about this weird place. The monsters, the [World Engine] and its mechanics, and our sudden appearance here. And that...well, it wasn¡¯t a voice, but the thing that gave us [Unified Collective] felt different.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± she says, ¡°but what does that have to do with the dream?¡± I shake my head. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I can barely remember bits of it, but I think it had something to do with this world.¡± Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°I¡¯m more worried about remembering my old life than some dream.¡± ¡°Fair enough.¡± We fall into another silence, but the tunnel starts to open up ahead of me. I come out into a large cavern with a high ceiling covered in stalactites. Rather than an open room with multiple exits like the Pillar Room, the cavern is a confusing mix of twisting pathways, columns, and uneven ground. I can¡¯t even see the entire thing yet, and I already spot two exits¡ªone of which is too high up to reach. ¡°This isn¡¯t good,¡± I muse. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°The terrain here is really confusing. There¡¯s a real danger of getting lost in these columns and not being able to find our way back.¡± ¡°Maybe we can try leaving a candle near our sign?¡± Allison suggests. ¡°Between that and my [Retraced Steps] we should be fine, right?¡± ¡°I hope so...¡± I get to work carving out a sign in the wall with the hilt of my knife. My bloodied hand trembles a bit as I try to hold the candle steady. I¡¯m so sore. I really hope we actually manage to find some water¡ªwe desperately need time to recover from our injuries. <= CROSSROAD I¡¯m a little more thorough with my sign than Allison was, but I stick to her naming conventions. I leave a candle propped against the wall. I still have over a dozen of them tucked away in the pockets of our cloak. ¡°Oh geez,¡± Allison comments, ¡°now we¡¯re the weirdo leaving candles all over the place.¡± I chuckle. ¡°I guess so. Hopefully nothing disturbs the candle or the sign, or we¡¯ll have to rely entirely on your skill to guide us back...¡± ¡°Hmm, do we really need to go back though?¡± Allison asks. ¡°Like, there¡¯s nothing important back there except more candles.¡± I chew on that thought for a moment before shaking my head. ¡°The candles are a resource and we shouldn¡¯t underestimate that. Besides, I think it¡¯s good to have a point of reference if we¡¯re going to be exploring this place.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take your word for it,¡± she mutters. We fall back into silence as I return to tracking the snail¡¯s path. I barely take a few steps into the cavern before I get a notification. [Level Up!] Wanderer is now level 5. +1 [Warning: Invalid Reference]. ¡°Bwah!¡± Allison yelps in surprise. ¡°What the frick?! I just leveled up?!¡± ¡°Apparently,¡± I deadpan. ¡°Your class rewards exploring, and we did just find a new landmark. It¡¯s good to know that we can level even when we¡¯re not...active? In control? I¡¯m not sure what to call it.¡± ¡°How about ¡®in front¡¯? Like right now you¡¯re in front and I¡¯m riding along behind you.¡± ¡°Sure, that works,¡± I agree. ¡°By the way, the message looked a little off to me. Did you get your point of Resilience?¡± ¡°Hm? It looks normal to me,¡± she says. ¡°It¡¯s at six now, is that right?¡± ¡°Okay, good, that adds up. I was worried it might have messed something up because you leveled while I was in front. I don¡¯t normally see your level up messages.¡± ¡°Oh! Come to think of it, I don¡¯t see yours either.¡± I sigh. There¡¯s so much I don¡¯t understand about this place. The [World Engine], the [Angel], how we arrived in this weird underground complex. I need to know more, but surviving comes first¡ªback to following the trail. * * * It¡¯s hard to keep track of time, but it feels like I¡¯ve spent all day tracing this path of dried out slime. After a point, I just stopped thinking about the pain in my leg and my hand¡ªand everywhere else¡ªand I¡¯ve been trudging away on autopilot ever since. I underestimated the rock snail, or maybe overestimated it. Its path makes no sense¡ªa long meandering trail that wanders aimlessly from place to place, doubles back on itself frequently, and goes in circles. I¡¯m starting to think that maybe it really does just magically produce slime when a distinct burbling sound catches my ear. ¡°That sounds like water!¡± I exclaim. Moving water, too. I couldn¡¯t ask for anything more perfect. ¡°Really?!¡± Allison asks, catching on to my excitement. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°Hold on, we need to be careful,¡± I remind her. ¡°There might be other rock snails¡ªor even a whole ecosystem being supported by this water.¡± ¡°Oh, right,¡± Allison whispers¡ªthough I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯m the only one that can hear her. I carefully follow the sound of flowing water until the tunnel opens up into another large cavern, and peer around the corner. I can¡¯t see much by the meager light of my candle, but the unmistakable glitter of reflected candlelight in the stream of water nearly brings me to my knees. I have to stay alert, though. I toss a spare candle into the cavern to provide some more light and carefully scan the room for any potential threats. It¡¯s a dead end, with only one visible way in or out¡ªthe tunnel I just came from. On one end of the room, water pours from a crack in the wall and flows in a steady stream across the cavern and into an underwater tunnel. I search the walls twice from the safety of the opening and don¡¯t see any signs of movement. The cave is completely empty. Still, I move slowly as I approach the stream, holding the candle up to scan the river itself for any threats. The water flows deceptively fast, and it¡¯s shallow enough that even my candle is enough to see the bottom through the crystal clear water. I finally allow myself a sigh of relief. Water. Fresh, clean groundwater from a spring. I can barely believe my luck. ¡°It¡¯s safe right?¡± Allison asks. ¡°Gosh, I am so thirsty¡ªplease tell me it¡¯s safe.¡± I nod slowly. ¡°It should be, yeah. To drink at least. It¡¯s freezing cold down here, and the water is moving pretty fast, so trying to bathe is probably suicide.¡± ¡°Aww...¡± I very slowly lower myself down to the ground next to the spring, wincing as my wounds flare. Maybe I can wash those out while I¡¯m here, but first things first¡ªI delicately cup my hands and scoop out a handful of icy cold water and take a luxurious sip. [Level up!] Unified Collective is now level 5. Wanderer is now level 6. Survivalist is now level 5. +1 Ego. +1 [Warning: Invalid Reference]. +3 Awareness. I almost choke on the water as the notification catches me by surprise. Five levels?! A fight for my life against an oversized gastropod had only been worth three! ¡°Holy heck!¡± Allison shouts. ¡°That¡¯s some pretty good water!¡± I chuckle. ¡°I¡¯ll say. I think I might be starting to get a feel for the way the [World Engine] hands out levels.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I nod. ¡°I think it¡¯s rewarding us for significant tasks related to our classes. Wanderer levels up when we find important places, Survivalist levels up when we¡ªwell, survive. I think we get extra levels for more extreme achievements.¡± ¡°Like a death match against a killer snail, or finding a source of water in the middle of a cave¡ªmakes sense,¡± Allison agrees. ¡°What about Unified Collective?¡± I frown as I think about that one. Allison hasn¡¯t been able to look at its description again since taking the class, and there have been inconsistencies between what it showed her and what we actually ended up with. I¡¯m not willing to make any major assumptions about it. ¡°My best guess is that it levels up when we work together to solve problems,¡± I answer. ¡°I can¡¯t be certain, but it seems to appreciate us using your [Retraced Steps] together with my [Foraging].¡± ¡°That¡¯s cool,¡± she replies. ¡°Anyway, switch with me¡ªI want some of that water! I¡¯m dying over here.¡± I smile, about to do my best to figure out how to grant that request when a tiny flicker of movement in the corner of my eye causes me to freeze. I slowly turn to stare in the direction it came from, but I don¡¯t see anything. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Allison must sense my apprehension, because she¡¯s whispering again. I don¡¯t want to make any sound, and I don¡¯t know how to answer her without speaking, so I just clench my good hand tightly and give her the tiniest head shake in response. No matter how hard I stare, the cavern is completely empty, but I don¡¯t trust it. The movement came from the entrance, and I just gained a whole bunch of Awareness. I keep staring¡ªnot even letting myself blink as I search for any sign of what I saw. ¡°Vi, there¡¯s nothing there, it was just¡ª¡± There! A tiny reflection of light from the flickering candle¡ªalmost impossible to see if not for my newly enhanced senses. Once I see it, I finally manage to unravel the pattern that had been fooling my eyes¡ªan optical illusion. Camouflage. On the wall above the entrance is an eye¡ªthe dull reddish color only just barely managing to catch the light of the candle. Attached to that eye, now that I know what I¡¯m looking for, is a giant lizard¡ªor maybe some kind of amphibian. I can barely make out an outline, but there¡¯s no mistaking the thing clinging to the wall right above the only exit. I want to curse. It must have been there the entire time and I forgot to look up! What do I do? I can¡¯t fight it¡ªI can¡¯t even reach it¡ªand I can¡¯t leave without taking my chances and walking right under it. I¡¯d hide, but the candles I¡¯m carrying under my cloak light me up like a beacon¡ªan unfortunate consequence of my overpreparation. I spare a glance at the underground river flowing next to me¡ªno, that¡¯s a terrible idea. On the off chance we don¡¯t just drown, we¡¯d be hopelessly lost wherever it spits us out and then probably freeze to death. I frown and lean back against the rocky wall, doing my best to get comfortable. If it¡¯s not moving, then neither am I. We have the cloak and candles to help keep us warm, the stream to keep us hydrated. We¡¯re still at risk of starving, but that¡¯s a much more distant problem. The lizard has us trapped, but we¡¯re right where we need to be. We¡¯ve got everything we need to recover our wounds, and nothing but time. ¡°Violet,¡± Allison¡¯s small voice interrupts my thoughts. I still don¡¯t want to make any extra noise, so I just raise an eyebrow, hoping Allison understands the gesture. ¡°I¡¯m starting to get bored...¡± Oh. I...hadn¡¯t really considered that problem. 8. Were Not Calling Them Laser Geckos I wake with a start and sit up quickly. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sleeping!¡± I lie, but I don¡¯t get any response. I take off my glasses and rub the sleep out of my eyes before replacing them and squinting up at the dark blob of nothingness where the warden of my prison waits. Predictably, I don¡¯t see anything. Which means that I am Allison, as I thought. A quick glance at my status confirms it: [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 5/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer ]* - Level 6/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 7 Awareness: 1 Ego: 6 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps It¡¯s pretty crazy how much of a difference attributes make. When Vi¡¯s in front, I can see so much further ahead of us, and she notices things that seem impossible to spot even after she points them out to me. Like the big lizard hiding above the entrance to this little cave I¡¯m stuck in. I¡¯m not sure how long I¡¯ve been here, since it¡¯s impossible to keep track of time, but despite Vi¡¯s best efforts we¡¯ve dozed off a couple of times now. The lizard hasn¡¯t eaten us in our sleep yet¡ªin fact, as far as I know, it hasn¡¯t even budged. It just sits there. Gosh, I am so bored. I take a sip of water from the stream and shiver at the bracing feeling of the icy water as it goes down. The candles generate a tiny amount of warmth, and with so many of them under the cloak I¡¯ve managed to avoid freezing to death, but it¡¯s far from comfortable. ¡°Vi, are you up?¡± I ask. Still nothing. This sucks. It turns out we¡¯re not always active at the same time. Like when Violet was fighting the snail and I was just sort of checked out, or when I tuned out while she was following the snail trail. Switching or falling asleep tends to make one of us go dormant, but it¡¯s usually just me being useless and passing out. Without Vi to talk to, I have to occupy my attention with something else. She¡¯s incredibly patient, and I have nothing but respect for that, but I feel as if I¡¯m losing my mind. Maybe the lizard is actually intelligent, and just waiting for us to introduce ourselves, and we¡¯re actually being super rude. Or maybe the boredom is getting to me. I hold the cloak tightly around myself and groan. It¡¯s not exactly warm under here, but opening it is going to suck. I need to check on my wounds, though... I put off losing my precious warmth by checking on my hand first. It got torn up pretty badly by the rock snail¡¯s spear, but it¡¯s mostly healed over now. A bit raw, but I can comfortably hold things with it. Ugh...nothing for it. I do my best to slip my leg out from under the cloak without losing too much heat, but the rush of cold air immediately makes me shiver. With cold fingers, I carefully undo the belt holding the cloth in place and slowly peel back the bandage. ¡°Blegh, gross...¡± The wound is closed, I think, but it¡¯s kind of a bloody mess. I rinse the cloth off in the stream and try to clean it up a bit. Once the dried blood is washed off it actually looks surprisingly good. It still hurts like heck, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s infected and it¡¯s scabbed over nicely. I¡¯m about to replace the bandage when Violet¡¯s voice stops me. ¡°Don¡¯t do that,¡± she warns. ¡°Let the bandage dry first or you¡¯ll increase the risk of infection. How long were we out?¡± ¡°Good morning to you too...¡± I purse my lips. ¡°How the heck am I supposed to know how long it¡¯s been?¡± ¡°Right, sorry. How are you feeling?¡± ¡°Fine, I guess.¡± I shrug. ¡°Sore, tired, cold, unbelievably hungry, and bored out of my gourd, but otherwise fine.¡± ¡°What about our friend?¡± she asks. ¡°Dunno. Can¡¯t see it.¡± ¡°May I?¡± I nod, then close my eyes. Switching is kinda hard to do on purpose, but I managed to do it once, so it should be possible. I try to relax and imagine myself moving back. There¡¯s a brief sort of ¡°pressure¡± that builds in my head before it suddenly vanishes and I open my eyes again. The room is much more clearly visible now, and with a bit of focus, I¡¯m able to make out the shape of the lizard still perched in the same spot as ever. It¡¯s still in exactly the same position¡ªnot so much as a twitch out of place. ¡°Is it even alive?¡± Allison asks. ¡°Lizards are cold-blooded and it¡¯s pretty cold down here. Maybe it¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to make any assumptions,¡± I say. ¡°But admittedly it does seem to be pretty dormant.¡± ¡°Yeah, and I guess it wouldn¡¯t be sticking to the wall like that if it was dead, huh?¡± ¡°Probably not,¡± I agree. Allison does raise a good point, though. If the lizard really is dormant, then we should be able to leave easily enough¡ªbut do we even want to? Wait¡ªof course we do, I need to think more long-term. We need better shelter, food, and ultimately we need to find a way out of this place¡ªor even back home, if we can. Also, attributes have proven to be life-saving, so it¡¯s worthwhile to try to do things that will raise our levels, and that means more exploration. We¡¯ve completely neglected two entire attributes, and if they¡¯re as useful as the others have been, that¡¯s going to need to change eventually. ¡°Alright,¡± I say, standing up slowly while keeping a keen eye on the unmoving lizard. ¡°I¡¯m not going to go picking fights, but we can¡¯t stay here forever.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to try to sneak past it?¡± Allison asks. ¡°Less ¡®sneak¡¯ and more just walk by and hope it leaves us alone. We also need to make sure we can always find our way back here¡ªit¡¯s our only source of water.¡± I test my leg, finding that I can actually put a bit of weight on it now. I¡¯m still going to have a bit of a limp, but it¡¯s manageable. The wound closed abnormally fast, but I¡¯m not sure which attribute accounts for that. I would have guessed Power, but maybe Ego? I thought Ego was more of a mental attribute though. Maybe Resilience helps too. Bah. I could drive myself mad trying to think about it, and I¡¯m not about to complain about the results. I wish I had something to carry the water in, but as long as I can find my way back here it should be fine¡ªwe need to find a source of food. I move slowly, watching the lizard as I approach and being careful not to make any sudden movements. As I get closer, I can see its eyes tracking me¡ªdefinitely not dead, then. Still, it doesn¡¯t seem keen to fight. I stick to the wall and creep slowly along it towards the entrance, careful not to cross directly under the creature. To my relief, it leaves me alone entirely as I pass under it. ¡°Phew,¡± Allison sighs in relief. ¡°Thank goodness. So, what¡¯s the plan now?¡± ¡°Find food, I guess,¡± I say, shrugging. ¡°Not that I have any idea how we¡¯re going to do that.¡± The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Come to think of it, what kind of ecosystem is this? How does it sustain itself? There has to be an energy source somewhere, right? Either animals that go out to hunt or stuff from outside finding its way into the cave. Of course that¡¯s assuming it isn¡¯t just magic or something. I mean, five foot tall snails and giant lizards aren¡¯t exactly typical. ¡°Why don¡¯t we start by retracing our steps?¡± Allison suggests. ¡°We can leave markers along the way so that we¡¯ll always be able to find the stream.¡± ¡°Good idea,¡± I agree. ¡°The labyrinth of candles is much warmer than these caves, if nothing else.¡± * * * Returning is pretty easy thanks to [Retraced Steps] but it takes a long time since I have to keep stopping to carve out signs on the side of the walls. I can¡¯t see as far as Violet when we¡¯re exploring, but I can just sort of feel when I¡¯m on the right path, even if I don¡¯t actually recognize the terrain. Or rather, I do recognize it. Because it all looks the same. Just rocks and tunnels as far as I can see. But with the help of my skill, I¡¯m able to navigate my way back to the big twisted cavern, where I encounter a bit of trouble. ¡°Uh, Violet?¡± I whisper nervously. ¡°I don¡¯t see the candle we left by the sign anywhere.¡± The cavern is large enough to get lost in, and full of confusing twists and turns. I place a new candle down next to a sign pointing the way to the stream, but with the disappearance of the first one, I¡¯m not so confident that it¡¯s going to do me any good. ¡°That¡¯s troubling, but shouldn¡¯t be a problem yet,¡± Vi assures me. ¡°Choose a wall and stick to it, then skip any openings that don¡¯t have our signmarks.¡± ¡°Oh, good idea!¡± It takes a little while, but by following Vi¡¯s instructions, I do manage to find the way back towards the Crossroad. Sure enough, the candle we placed is nowhere to be seen. ¡°Do you mind if I take a look around?¡± Violet asks. ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll be able to spot a sign of what happened to it.¡± ¡°Sure!¡± I close my eyes and try to switch, but after a few seconds of effort, all I have for my trouble is a headache. ¡°Uh, it¡¯s not working,¡± I explain. ¡°I don¡¯t know why¡ªI was able to do it earlier...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Violet reassures me. ¡°The same thing happened to me before. We probably just need to practice it or something.¡± ¡°Right...¡± My mind wanders a bit as I follow the tunnel back to that first crossroad where we encountered the rock snail. It¡¯s a place full of bad memories, and even though it wasn¡¯t that long ago, I¡¯m not eager to be reminded of them. So I occupy my mind by thinking about what Violet said. She said practice, but really she means that we need more levels, doesn¡¯t she? [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 5/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer ]* - Level 6/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 7 Awareness: 1 Ego: 6 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps I¡¯m still a bit nervous about trying to look at [Unified Collective]. I don¡¯t have the persistent headache anymore¡ªexcept when I try to switch with Violet¡ªbut I worry that trying will just bring it back. Maybe my new attributes will help but I don¡¯t want to risk it without more time to psych myself up. What I do know is that I need to level it up more. I don¡¯t want to be an albatross around Violet¡¯s neck, and that means I need to focus on what I can do to help her. Gaining levels in our shared class is the most direct way I can help, and maybe I¡¯ll even be able to combine [Wanderer] into it so that Violet isn¡¯t held back when I¡¯m not able to switch with her. ¡°Stop.¡± Vi¡¯s voice breaks me from my reverie and I freeze. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Just ahead of us is the stone shell of the rock snail Violet killed, still sitting in a crusty pool of dried blue blood. ¡°Something¡¯s different,¡± she says. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what, but stay alert.¡± ¡°Okay...¡± I edge forward slowly, taking her word for it. I don¡¯t benefit directly from her awareness when I¡¯m in front, but she can still notice things that I don¡¯t even without her Awareness enhanced senses. It doesn¡¯t take long for me to notice it too. The snail¡¯s corpse takes up most of the tunnel, with only a small space to shimmy around it. On the side opposite to us, there¡¯s a gaping hole in the shell, revealing the soft flesh of the snail inside¡ªor what¡¯s left of it. ¡°Eww...¡± I complain, holding my nose at the smell. Something managed to break through the shell and eat the snail from the inside out, leaving behind nothing but the empty stone shell and some smelly scraps. ¡°Don¡¯t let your guard down,¡± Vi warns. ¡°Whatever did this might still be around.¡± I nod and creep quietly toward the split in the path, peeking around it to make sure nothing is sneaking up on us from behind. Satisfied that I¡¯m safe, I continue back to the place where everything started, relaxing slightly as the warm glow of the candles comes into view. A loud crashing noise snaps me out of my relaxation, and I immediately flatten myself against the wall, gripping my knife tightly in my good hand. Something is in there. I tiptoe up to the entrance, idly noting that the bones of our skeleton friend have disappeared as well. The source of the commotion is easy to find. Another rock snail is locked in combat with three giant lizards¡ªactually, upon closer inspection one of them has been speared to a wall, so two lizards. The snail isn¡¯t faring too well. The lizards are much faster, and even though the snail takes up a lot of space in the narrow corridors, they are easily able to climb over or around its shell to stay out of the way of its stone spears. Though it¡¯s faster than it looks, the snail isn¡¯t able to turn swiftly enough to get a bead on the more agile reptiles. A long trail of blue-stained slime suggests that it¡¯s been trying to flee instead of hiding. I watch the melee with morbid fascination. The lizards work together to confuse the snail into trying to target one of them while the other sneaks around to harass its exposed flesh. It¡¯s a slow process, and the attacking lizard ends up catching a nasty gouge from the snail¡¯s spiky tongue in the process, but after a few minutes, the snail finally retreats into its shell. The lizards aren¡¯t deterred, each of them climbing up on the shell the moment the snail seals itself to the ground. I can¡¯t tell what they are doing, but it¡¯s a good opportunity to examine the lizards with a proper light source. They have dull reddish brown eyes with no lids, and thick stubby legs with vicious claws. Their skin¡ªor scales, maybe¡ªare a mottled gray and brown, which explains how the one by the stream was able to hide so effectively. I notice that the living ones have started to form a few orange and yellow spots, slowly spreading across their skin. Adaptive camouflage? My thoughts grind to a halt as the lizards do something unbelievable. After several seconds of just sitting on top of the snail¡¯s shell without doing anything, their eyes begin to glow a bright orange. There¡¯s a noticeable drop in temperature as the two lizards focus on a single spot on the stone shell and it slowly starts to glow. First a small red spot, then orange and yellow, before it finally goes white-hot and the stone begins to melt. The snail screams¡ªor maybe that¡¯s just steam escaping the tiny hole¡ªbut either way, it reacts violently. The snail reemerges from its shell and thrashes in a way I didn¡¯t even think possible, smashing its shell into the wall and instantly crushing one of the two lizards to death. The other one doesn¡¯t let up, clinging to the shell as it burns its way through. Even though the snail could smash the lizard at any moment, it doesn¡¯t¡ªeither not smart enough or just too panicked to think of it. Its death throes slow to a halt and the snail collapses, leaving the one remaining lizard the sole survivor of the fight. It wastes no time skittering around the side of the shell, abandoning its magical assault in favor of the much easier opening. All I can do is watch as it devours almost the entire snail by itself. Once it¡¯s finished, the lizard starts loping towards me, slowed down by its distended belly. I flee back to the Crossroad before it can reach me, making a snap decision to take my chances with the path obstructed by the dead snail. I hide behind the shell as the lizard trundles back down the tunnel. It pauses at the branch, and I hold my breath as it glances towards me. It stares for a second, then licks its eye and scampers off down the other branch. I fall back against the hollow shell and let out the breath I was holding. With shaky hands, I wipe the cold sweat from my brow. ¡°What the frick was that?!¡± Allison practically shouts in my ear. ¡°Those geckos had laser eyes! Magical laser geckos!¡± I blink. We switched? Probably when I heard the fight start, but it¡¯s frustrating that I¡¯m not sure. ¡°We¡¯re not calling them laser geckos.¡± ¡°Like heck we aren¡¯t!¡± Allison exclaims. ¡°Violet, do you know what this means?¡± ¡°That we¡¯re unbelievably lucky the other lizard wasn¡¯t interested in eating us?¡± I deadpan. ¡°No¡ªwell, yes¡ªbut no, it means that this world has magic!¡± ¡°We already knew that,¡± I point out. ¡°The [Angel], the candles, the entire [World Engine]?¡± ¡°Okay, sure,¡± Allison concedes, ¡°but that¡¯s different. This is magic magic. Like geckos with laser eyes magic. Do you think we can learn to do something like that?¡± ¡°You want to melt rock with your eyes?¡± I ask. ¡°I mean, not that specifically, but are you telling me you don¡¯t want to do magic?¡± she asks incredulously. I shrug. ¡°I guess it would be good for self-defense. It didn¡¯t really help the laser geckos, though. They could have just waited out the snail instead of provoking it further. Their magic got one of them killed.¡± ¡°Well when we get magic, we¡¯ll have to be smarter about it,¡± Allison retorts. ¡°Also you totally just called them laser geckos.¡± I pause, frowning as I pick myself up off the ground and check around the corner to make sure the laser gecko is well and truly gone. ¡°...we are not calling them laser geckos.¡± 9. Tell Me Youre Not Going to Eat That I stare at the skewered lizard with my hands on my hips. It hangs limply from the wall by the stone spear impaling it a few meters up. ¡°How did it even get up there?¡± Allison asks. ¡°It must have been there when the snail shot it,¡± I suggest. ¡°What I want to know is why the spear didn¡¯t shatter like the other ones we¡¯ve seen.¡± ¡°I guess the laser gecko softened the impact.¡± That¡¯s inconvenient, since it leaves the thing just out of reach even if I jump for it. The difficulties of being a short girl. It irks me just leaving it up there¡ªin fact, just seeing the monsters in the labyrinth of candles bothers me. I shouldn¡¯t have any attachment to this place, but it somehow feels like my home has been violated. ¡°I¡¯m going to try getting it down,¡± I announce. ¡°How?¡± I shrug, grabbing the laser gecko¡¯s tail. ¡°Like this.¡± I heave, hoping that I can count on the brittle stone to snap under the extra weight. It¡¯s tough to get good leverage without hurting my leg, but after a few moments of exertion the spike snaps, sending me tumbling unceremoniously onto my butt. ¡°Oof! Ow...¡± I rub my sore backside while Allison starts giggling. ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± ¡°S-sorry,¡± she squeezes out the words between giggles. ¡°I just¡ªI¡¯m used to you being so cool and collected.¡± ¡°Well, everyone stumbles sometimes,¡± I grumble, my cheeks heating up a bit from embarrassment. ¡°Anyway, I got it down, didn¡¯t I?¡± Thankfully the thing didn¡¯t land on top of us. The laser gecko¡¯s remains are now in a crumpled heap at the base of the wall. The laser geckos are only about knee high¡ªwhich still makes them pretty enormous for lizards¡ªand as long from snout to tail as I am tall. A bit too heavy to carry easily, but light enough to move around. I drag it over next to the other one and scratch my cheek. It¡¯s a bit gruesome¡ªthe impaled lizard is still leaking a steady trickle of blood, while the crushed one looks mostly fine on the outside, but is no doubt a mess internally. Allison probably isn¡¯t going to like what comes next. ¡°I guess this solves our food problem for the immediate future,¡± I say, trying to sound as casual about it as possible. I can already feel Allison¡¯s anxiety mounting. ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asks. ¡°You¡¯re not suggesting we try to eat the lizards, are you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m suggesting,¡± I confirm. ¡°The snail too, if anything¡¯s left of it. Should be a good source of protein.¡± ¡°Eeewww! No! That¡¯s so disgusting, Vi!¡± I sigh and shake my head. ¡°Would you rather starve to death? This is a cave, Allison¡ªwe¡¯re not going to find a salad bar just lying around. What did you think we were going to eat?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± she whines. ¡°Not lizards!¡± ¡°It could be worse. I thought we were going to have to find bats or even resort to eating bugs.¡± ¡°Oh my gosh, Vi, that¡¯s so gross! Also you¡¯re literally talking about eating snails,¡± she points out. ¡°How is that not bugs?¡± ¡°Escargot is a real thing people eat,¡± I say defensively. ¡°Those are specially cultivated snails for the express purpose of eating, and it¡¯s still gross!¡± Allison counters. ¡°How are we even going to cook it?¡± I chew on my lip, trying to find the words. Allison picks up on my silence, though. ¡°Oh no, don¡¯t you dare!¡± she threatens. ¡°Don¡¯t you friggin¡¯ dare!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but even if we could start a fire, there¡¯s nothing to use as fuel,¡± I explain. ¡°We¡¯re going to have to eat things raw.¡± ¡°Violeeeeet,¡± Allison whines. ¡°You can¡¯t be serious! What about bacteria, or parasites? We could get sick!¡± ¡°We could,¡± I agree. ¡°But if we don¡¯t eat anything, then we¡¯re definitely going to die. In a situation as dire as ours, there¡¯s no safe option. We either take our chances on something that might kill us, or we don¡¯t take our chances and die for certain.¡± ¡°I know,¡± she grumbles. ¡°I just...ugh, it¡¯s so gross. Do you even know how to properly butcher something?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not,¡± I admit. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to figure it out...¡± I hesitate, standing over the crushed lizard¡ªI honestly don¡¯t know if its internal damage is going to make this easier or harder. All I¡¯ve got is a short-bladed, slightly curved knife, which I¡¯m sure isn¡¯t ideal for this, and some vague ideas about what I need to do. I¡¯m supposed to get rid of all the guts first, I think? Am I supposed to drain the blood? Maybe I should have left the laser gecko pinned to the wall... ¡°I¡¯m kind of surprised you don¡¯t just magically know how to do this,¡± Allison comments. ¡°I was starting to think you just knew everything. It¡¯s weird that you¡¯re so much smarter than I am, though, isn¡¯t it?¡± I frown at that, flipping the gecko onto its back as I puzzle over where to begin. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m smarter than you are, Allie,¡± I reply. ¡°I know different things, and some of that stuff is more useful to our immediate situation, but I know that there are things you can do that I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°You mean like the first aid stuff? Because of my resilience?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not talking about attributes or classes,¡± I clarify. ¡°Just things you know, skills you have that I don¡¯t¡ªskills, not [Skills].¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I have any,¡± she chuckles. ¡°Unless you count talking to people.¡± I have to think about that, which unfortunately gives me little to distract myself from the task at hand. I stall by trying to work out where to start my first cut and how to hold the knife to avoid cutting myself. ¡°I think I do count that,¡± I say eventually. ¡°Talking to people is hard, and a very broad skill set. Even just talking to you, I have a hard time articulating myself. I don¡¯t know how I¡¯d even begin to approach a stranger.¡± ¡°What? That¡¯s silly, you just go up and say hi!¡± I shudder at the thought. ¡°Yeah, I think you¡¯re really underselling yourself.¡± No more stalling. I steel my resolve and plunge the blade into the lizard, starting near the throat and cutting my way down along its belly. I use one hand to keep the skin¡ªnot scales, it turns out¡ªtaut, while carefully cutting away from myself. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. The sharp blade passes easily through the laser gecko¡¯s flesh, but as it passes over the creature¡¯s stomach, I¡¯m assaulted by a rancid, acrid smell that forces me to recoil. ¡°Urk¡ª!¡± It¡¯s foul! The smell lingers in my nostrils even as I hastily retreat from the corpse, and I gag so hard I actually throw up. ¡°Oh my gosh, are you okay?!¡± Allison asks urgently. ¡°That was super nasty.¡± ¡°M¡¯fine,¡± I mutter, wiping my mouth with a sleeve. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you¡¯re so calm about it, though.¡± ¡°Oh, that was super gross,¡± she confirms. ¡°But I guess not being in front makes it feel a bit more distant somehow.¡± ¡°Lucky you...¡± I deadpan. Looking back at the lizard, its guts have spilled out into a mess of viscera, leaking disgusting brown bile and a growing puddle of blood. Even from meters away, it smells like actual feces. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re eating that one,¡± I comment. ¡°Maybe I messed up gutting it, or maybe its organs ruptured when it got smashed, but either way it¡¯s contaminated.¡± ¡°Oh thank goodness,¡± Allie sighs in relief. ¡°I was worried you were gonna press on.¡± I grimace. ¡°Even I¡¯m not willing to go that far.¡± I have to drag the second laser gecko corpse as far away from the first as I can before starting over. I have no idea what I¡¯m going to do about the first one now, but I¡¯ve got to focus on one thing at a time. I try again, this time starting from the other end and being extra cautious to keep the cut as shallow as I possibly can. It¡¯s slow and nauseating work, but eventually, I manage to pull out most of the guts¡ªbeing extremely careful not to accidentally cut or tear any. I¡¯m up to the elbows in blood and guts, and¡ªyeah, I was definitely supposed to drain it, wasn¡¯t I? I¡¯m pretty much soaked. ¡°I hope I can wash some of this off in the stream...¡± ¡°Ugh, yeah,¡± Allison agrees. ¡°Although I wonder if Mr. Gecko is going to appreciate us waltzing into his cave head to toe in his friend¡¯s blood.¡± ¡°That...is a good point, hmm...¡± I look down at my blood-soaked hands. The knife is slick with blood and at this point it would be way too dangerous to continue trying to cut up the lizard. I can¡¯t leave it like that, either, or it might rust. ¡°I think we¡¯re going to have to risk it,¡± I decide. ¡°We can¡¯t really carry on like this.¡± ¡°Just be careful,¡± Allison says. ¡°Always,¡± I smile. Before leaving I drag the carcass over to the hollowed out snail shell and drape the lizard over it. Hopefully that will help drain whatever¡¯s left of the blood before I come back to finish butchering it. Out of curiosity, I peer into the shell¡¯s opening. Unlike the rugged exterior, the inside of the snail¡¯s shell is smooth, aside from the blue-stained bits of gray flesh clinging to the edges. The laser gecko was a messy eater, and left quite a lot behind, especially towards the back, where a sizable portion of the rock snail¡¯s foot remains untouched. ¡°Violet...what are you doing?¡± Allison asks nervously, as I reach in with the knife. ¡°I¡¯m just going to carve a bit off,¡± I say. The snail¡¯s flesh is soft and squishy, but also lean and dense. It¡¯s difficult to get purchase with the knife, especially with my hands as slippery as they currently are, but once the cut starts, the knife glides through the snail like butter. For my trouble, I¡¯m awarded with a roughly palm-sized cut of dense gray snail meat, partially covered in a mixture of red and blue blood. I squeeze it between my fingers, getting a feel for the texture. It¡¯s oddly squishy, but springs back like rubber. Honestly, it¡¯s perhaps the least appetizing thing I¡¯ve ever considered eating, but I am literally starving. ¡°Violet, please tell me you¡¯re not going to eat that,¡± Allison whispers. I shake my head. ¡°No.¡± Not without washing it off first, anyway. * * * We hurry back to the stream. It¡¯s a bit quicker with the signs in place, but it¡¯s still a pretty long walk, and I have to watch out for any signs of monsters, but nothing gets in our way. When we arrive, I am much more thorough about scanning the room¡ªincluding the walls and ceiling¡ªfor any hiding laser geckos, or strange boulders that weren¡¯t there before. Nothing. Not even our old friend is present, apparently having abandoned his perch at some point. I don¡¯t waste any time. As bone-chillingly cold as the water is, it feels nice to wash all the blood off of my hands. Unfortunately the cloak is still pretty thoroughly bloodstained, as are the cuffs of our jeans and our footwraps. I contemplate trying to wash them as well, but then we¡¯d be stuck waiting for them to dry, and I want to get back before anything else comes along to steal our rightfully scavenged haul. But before I do, there¡¯s one last thing...I take the bit of snail meat out of the cloak pocket where I left it. ¡°Oh no,¡± Allison says, immediately catching on. ¡°Vi, you said you wouldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a valuable source of food, Allie, we can¡¯t waste it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s disgusting¡ªit was already chewed on by laser geckos!¡± I shrug. ¡°Before that, it was coated in snail mucus. We can¡¯t be picky.¡± I wash the snail meat off in the stream, and regard it with trepidation. ¡°Violet, please, I¡¯m begging you.¡± ¡°Sorry Allison,¡± I say with a grimace before biting down. It¡¯s...bad. Really bad. It takes monumental willpower not to gag as I chew on the tough, rubbery snail flesh. It¡¯s slimy and juicy in the worst possible ways, and it tastes like dirt. Worse, it¡¯s so rubbery that I have to chew it very thoroughly before I can swallow¡ªforcing me to experience the awful taste that much longer. [Level up!] Unified Collective is now level 6. Survivalist is now level 7. +1 Ego. +2 Awareness. I¡¯m not sure if it was worth it. Another two levels in Survivalist¡ªI guess finding food is similarly impactful to finding water. I¡¯m surprised that Unified Collective leveled, since I went directly against Allison¡¯s wishes. That one¡¯s really hard to figure out. ¡°Violet, you are crazy,¡± Allison says incredulously. ¡°I am so glad I didn¡¯t have to experience that directly.¡± ¡°I wish I could say the same,¡± I complain, gulping down water to wash out the taste. ¡°That was vile.¡± ¡°I told you...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure whether it¡¯s a good idea to trust the mechanism like this, but I did level twice from that,¡± I say. ¡°So maybe that means it¡¯s safe to eat? Albeit gross.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to eat more?¡± ¡°...maybe let¡¯s save it for emergency rations,¡± I concede. * * * The way back is equally uneventful, and I don¡¯t spot any new invaders¡ªthough the smell of lizard guts has permeated the entrance to the labyrinth. I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s liable to repel or attract things¡ªbut I¡¯m guessing the latter. I retrieve the carcass from where I left it and drag it as far away from the smell as I can before I set about finishing the butchering process. It¡¯s...not exactly clean. Separating the meat from the bones is tedious, sweaty work, and despite my best efforts at drying out the laser gecko¡¯s carcass, I end up making a fresh mess of my newly washed hands. I sigh helplessly at that¡ªI¡¯ll try to keep them as clean as I can, but I get the feeling I¡¯m going to have to just get used to a certain level of baseline griminess for the foreseeable future. I toil away in silence for what is probably hours. Allison must have gone dormant at some point, because she¡¯s not chattering in my ear anymore. I don¡¯t begrudge her that, but she can be a bit much sometimes. The silence is a nice temporary reprieve, and I¡¯m able to lose myself in my work for a bit. Once finally finished, I¡¯m left with a decent quantity of lizard meat. A lot got wasted by my amateurish butchering, and I¡¯m pretty sure my knife has completely lost its edge, but the task is done, and I feel proud of myself. I stuff as much of the meat as I can manage into the cloak pockets¡ªunfortunately the only way I can carry it around, since there¡¯s nowhere I can stash it that would be safe from scavengers. I¡¯m not looking forward to when this stuff starts going rancid... Once that¡¯s done I take one of the leftover slices and turn it over in my hands. It looks and feels a lot like raw chicken, though all I can smell right now is fresh blood. My stomach growls in spite of my recent snack and the off-putting smells. I¡¯m really hungry. Allison¡¯s dormant right now. This is as good a time as any to try it. I squint my eyes shut and take a bite. It¡¯s not as chewy as the snail, and unlike the snail it actually tastes the way I¡¯d expect meat to taste¡ªif that meat were raw chicken. It¡¯s got a slightly fishy quality to it, so I try closing my eyes and pretending it¡¯s salmon sashimi. Nope. Still gross. [Level up!] Survivalist is now level 8. +1 Awareness. At least that part is tasty... 10. Do I Have To? Thanks to Violet¡¯s hard work securing us ¡°food,¡± we¡¯ve managed to pretty much get all of our physiological needs met. Sure, the food is disgusting, and we have to go on a dangerous hike every time we want a drink of water, and the only place warm enough for us to stay smells like death, and we only get to sleep in furtive little naps on hard stone, and... Okay, so things could be better, but now we¡¯re just standing at the precipice of death instead of hanging precariously from it, and it¡¯s almost entirely thanks to Violet. She saved me. I was a little bit uncomfortable at first, sharing my body with someone else¡ªespecially as it became so clear that she isn¡¯t me¡ªbut without her, I wouldn¡¯t have lasted a day. I want to do more, to repay her for everything she¡¯s done for me, but there¡¯s not much I can do right now. Seeing that there¡¯s magic in this world has given me hope¡ªViolet doesn¡¯t seem too interested in it, but if I learn how to do it, maybe I can even use magic while she¡¯s in front! But that will have to wait. My [Wanderer] class is too important to our survival for me to switch right now¡ªwhich means that I need to level it up so that I can fuse it into something else and free up a slot. To that end, I¡¯m now taking the time to comprehensively map out the known areas of the cave system. Using a broken chunk from a rock snail¡¯s spear as chalk, I start drawing a map in the Pillar Room. The choice of room isn¡¯t arbitrary¡ªit¡¯s far enough away from our de facto garbage dump that it doesn¡¯t smell too bad, and it¡¯s got enough open floor space to expand the map to a pretty large size. Starting in the middle is the Labyrinth of Candles, where I started. I don¡¯t want to try mapping out the Labyrinth itself¡ªit¡¯s got too many confusing winding corridors that loop in on themselves, dead ends, and pointless twists without any apparent purpose. The only places of note are the Pillar Room, the Altar, and the entrance to the Caves. Unfortunately, that entrance is also the garbage dump. There was too much...goop from Vi¡¯s first attempt at butchery to clean up effectively, so we had to just leave it where it was. I¡¯ve got signs that can lead me between the points of interest within the Labyrinth, so I¡¯m fine with ignoring the rest of it for mapping purposes. From there, the Dark Corridor leads into the Caves¡ªa distinct biome from the Labyrinth¡¯s weird, man-made but nonsensical design. The Caves are a lot bigger than the Labyrinth, and easier to get lost in despite the relatively straightforward tunnels. Since they are dark and monotonous, getting turned around is a serious risk without the navigation signs we¡¯ve been using. The Crossroad is the first branch from the Dark Corridor, which I have assigned as the Snail Corridor and the Gecko Corridor¡ªthe left and right, respectively¡ªso named because one of them is obstructed by a rock snail shell and the other is where the laser gecko ran off. I mark the Gecko Corridor as unexplored and move on to the Snail Corridor. Snail Corridor leads to the Twisted Cavern¡ªwhich is similar to the Pillar Room in that it¡¯s a hub with a lot of different entrances and exits. Violet insists it¡¯s the most dangerous room we¡¯ve seen, even though nothing has happened there yet. The winding pathways through the columns are easy to get lost in, and it¡¯s hard to keep track of all the exits. I mark all the exits I can remember as unexplored and move on to the next path. The Hike¡ªeasily the longest stretch we¡¯ve explored¡ªis a good ten to twenty minutes of walking down a series of tunnels with several branches. We¡¯ve actually explored a few of the branches already, since tracking the snail¡¯s path didn¡¯t originally lead us in a straight line to the stream. There are a few loops and dead ends that I mark, while I note the rest as unexplored. Finally, the Underground Stream¡ªwhich is kind of a redundant name since everything is underground, but it feels more important with a nice name like that. We have to make pretty regular trips there, despite the danger, because it¡¯s our only source of water and we have nothing to carry it in. It¡¯s also the coldest place we¡¯ve found so far. I wasn¡¯t too sure until we¡¯d been back and forth a few times, but it gets progressively colder the further away we get from the Labyrinth. The Underground Stream is noticeably colder than the tunnels near it. I wonder where that laser gecko we ran into went? We haven¡¯t seen it again since we first found the stream. It¡¯s probably long gone by now, I guess. Off to do whatever a laser gecko does. I stand up and wipe the sweat from my brow, admiring my handiwork. It¡¯s pretty rough, but it feels good to have a solid reference for where we are and where we¡¯ve been. Hopefully, as we explore more of the caves, this map will help us plan out our routes. For the finishing touch I scrape three notches into a nearby wall. My best guess for how long we¡¯ve been down here¡ªthree days. It¡¯s not a very good guess. I don¡¯t think my leg should have healed as much as it did in that time, and it feels like it¡¯s been so much longer. But I also haven¡¯t been getting a lot of sleep, and there¡¯s nothing else to go by. For all I know it¡¯s only been closer to one or two days, but three feels right, so it¡¯s what I¡¯m putting down. [Level up!] Wanderer is now level 7. +1 Resilience. Nice! I enjoy the gentle tingly feeling as the [World Engine] bestows its blessings on me. Or whatever. Leveling up feels nice, is what I¡¯m saying. It¡¯s weird how quickly I¡¯ve gotten used to everything. Stuck in an underground complex of tunnels and caves with monsters, magic, levels, and nobody but myself for company. ¡°Good work, Allie.¡± Speak of the devil¡ªit looks like she¡¯s awake. ¡°Thanks!¡± I reply. ¡°I leveled up from drawing it.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Vi¡¯s tone conveys a hint of interest. ¡°I thought you only leveled up by exploring new places.¡± ¡°I...hmm, that¡¯s a good point, actually.¡± I frown down at the map, scratching my chin. ¡°Maybe by drawing my map, I¡¯ve changed the significance of the Pillar Room?¡± I suggest. ¡°It¡¯s the Map Room, now. That, or the [World Engine] considers mapping to be an integral part of exploration.¡± ¡°Makes sense,¡± Vi agrees. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± She always asks that when she wakes up, but I don¡¯t mind. I hop lightly on my toes and roll my neck and shoulders performatively. ¡°Like crap,¡± I answer honestly. ¡°My hand and leg are feeling a lot better now, but I¡¯m still stiff as all get out, and my joints are all sore from sleeping on stone. And speaking of sleep, I feel like I haven¡¯t slept in a week. These micro-naps are not cutting it.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Violet sighs. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯d like to improve our security, but I¡¯m still at a loss for how.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t trying to criticize you, Vi,¡± I assure her. ¡°Just answering honestly.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± she says. ¡°If you¡¯re feeling up to it, do you want to try exploring...the Gecko Corridor? Why did you call it that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s where the laser gecko went.¡± ¡°But the first one we encountered was on the other path?¡± ¡°...shut up. My map is perfect!¡± I cross my arms defiantly. ¡°Anyway, why do you want to explore that way?¡± ¡°Two reasons. First, anything we find down that path is guaranteed to be new, which will be good for leveling you up. And second, if the Labyrinth is going to be our base, then I want to know what our immediate surroundings are like.¡± I shrug. ¡°Makes sense to me. Shall we go now?¡± ¡°Breakfast first,¡± Violet insists. I grimace. ¡°Do I have to?¡± I recognize that we have to eat to live, but the raw lizard meat is absolutely disgusting. It got slightly more tolerable once it dried out a bit, but the other side of that equation is that it also got much tougher, which meant more chewing. It hasn¡¯t started to stink yet, but I have no doubt that Violet¡¯s going to keep us eating it well after it starts going rancid. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. I refuse to touch the snail meat. ¡°You can switch with me if you want,¡± Vi offers, ¡°but we need to eat as much as we can while food is available.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine,¡± I grumble, grimacing as I fish out a bit of gecko meat and take a bite. Violet is always willing to take the short straw, and I don¡¯t want to take advantage of her. I gamely choke down the vile sustenance, and after a not-so-quick trip to the stream to wash it down¡ªI really wish we had something to carry water in¡ªwe¡¯re ready to get exploring. ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want to front for this?¡± I ask Violet as I peer cautiously down the unexplored tunnel. ¡°I still get most of the benefits of Awareness while you¡¯re in front, but your Resilience is wasted when I am. It¡¯s better this way.¡± I purse my lips and nod. I know I¡¯m holding her back, but that¡¯s all the more reason to face forward and do whatever I can to pull my weight. [Level up!] Unified Collective is now level 7. +1 Ego. I guess the mechanism approves. Progress through the tunnel is slow, since I have to be extra vigilant of anything out of place. Rock snails and laser geckos both blend seamlessly into the environment, and getting ambushed by either of them could be instant death. We¡¯ve gone back and forth between the Labyrinth and the stream enough times that I¡¯d notice if there was so much as a pebble out of place, but for a new path I have to take it slow. It¡¯s an oddly winding path, and I¡¯m stuck wondering how these caves even formed. Did something dig this tunnel out? Was it erosion over time? There¡¯s magic in this world, so who knows? And what about the friggin¡¯ Labyrinth?! That¡¯s clearly man-made, but how the heck did they build something there, and why? I¡¯m getting worked up just thinking about it, so I set those questions aside and return my attention to the path in front of me¡ªwhere it should have been in the first place. The tunnel finally opens up into a new room, but I can¡¯t see anything in here. ¡°Stop!¡± Violet practically shouts, her urgency startling me into taking several steps backward. ¡°W-what?¡± I stammer. ¡°Is it a snail?¡± ¡°No,¡± she says calmly. ¡°Watch your footing.¡± I glance down to see that the path ahead just terminates suddenly. I was one step away from plunging to my death off a cliff. ¡°Oh frick!¡± Actually, maybe not¡ªit¡¯s not like the candles provide that much illumination, it might not be that far down. I take a candle out of my cloak and toss it over the edge. A cold sweat forms on the back of my neck as I watch the light plunge down into the abyss and fade out of sight entirely. ¡°Oh frick!¡± I take another step back from the edge. ¡°I suppose the lizards and snails don¡¯t have to worry so much about sheer drops like this when they can cling to walls,¡± Violet remarks. ¡°That doesn¡¯t do me any good! If I slip here we¡¯re dead!¡± Just to be safe, I very carefully check the edges of the tunnel to see how wide the ledges are. The path leads left and right, with maybe two feet of space between the wall and certain doom. ¡°No,¡± I declare. ¡°Absolutely not. I¡¯m not doing that. This is as far as we explore down this branch.¡± ¡°What if this is the way out?¡± Vi asks. ¡°We¡¯ve got other paths to explore,¡± I answer. ¡°Let¡¯s exhaust our other options before we play with fire, okay?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± she accepts readily. ¡°Though we¡¯ve barely even started exploring today, so maybe we should check out one of those other options.¡± ¡°Sounds good to me.¡± I take the time to draw an extra large warning a good distance away from the tunnel¡¯s opening. => ABYSSAL CHASM OF CERTAIN DOOM => ¡°A bit dramatic, don¡¯t you think?¡± Vi remarks. ¡°I never want to come that close to walking off a cliff again,¡± I say. ¡°And thanks for warning me, by the way.¡± ¡°It¡¯s what I¡¯m here for.¡± [Level up!] Wanderer is now level 8. +1 Resilience. ¡°Oh! A level!¡± I celebrate as the tingly feeling washes through my body. ¡°I think we¡¯re getting close to the cap.¡± A quick look at my status confirms it. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 7/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer ]* - Level 8/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 9 Awareness: 1 Ego: 8 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps ¡°My [Survivalist] class is almost there too,¡± Violet informs me. ¡°It leveled quite a bit when I was preparing our food.¡± I shudder at the reminder of our ¡°food¡± supply. ¡°I wonder what happens when we reach it.¡± ¡°From what I gather, we¡¯ll have the option of either upgrading or fusing classes that are capped, but I¡¯m not sure how that¡¯s going to work with our weird situation.¡± I nod along. The mechanism has already had some weird hiccups with our shared status. ¡°I hope we¡¯re able to fuse each other¡¯s classes together,¡± I say, ¡°but I guess we¡¯ll find out when we get there.¡± * * * Without a way to keep track of time, I have no idea how long Violet and I spend wandering around trying to map the caves. Most of the pathways leading out of the Twisted Cavern lead to dead ends, even deader drops, or loop right back around to the Twisted Cavern. Apparently the [World Engine], in its questionably infinite wisdom doesn¡¯t deem those important enough for me to level up. The progress is agonizingly slow. After the near miss earlier, Vi constantly reminds me to take things slow and watch my step. I appreciate having her as a lookout, but sometimes she can be overbearing. I don¡¯t need to be nannied! Finally, as I reenter the cavern from yet another stupid loop, the mechanism gives up the goods. [Level up!] Wanderer is now level 9. +1 Resilience. ¡°Yes!¡± I exclaim, my shout echoing through the tunnels. ¡°Finally!¡± ¡°Congratulations,¡± Vi offers, ¡°but don¡¯t make so much noise. We don¡¯t want to attract anything.¡± ¡°Tch, spoilsport.¡± The rush of energy feels good. Even better than usual, actually. Some of the bone-deep weariness flees my body, and my fingers aren¡¯t quite as numb from the cold anymore. ¡°Huh, that felt a bit different,¡± I remark. ¡°I noticed,¡± Violet replies. ¡°Maybe multiples of ten are significant, somehow. You¡¯re only level nine, but if we consider the starting point, you¡¯re at ten [Resilience] now.¡± I shrug. ¡°Maybe. Why do you think I got a level this time, and not after all the other useless loops and dead ends I¡¯ve wasted the day on?¡± ¡°Could be a number of things.¡± Violet starts listing off suggestions. ¡°Maybe the mechanism tracks progress from smaller achievements and adds them up like experience points. Maybe that was the last unexplored passage connected to this cavern. Or, maybe there¡¯s some sort of time delay on gaining levels.¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t we gained multiple levels at once before?¡± I point out. ¡°True, but maybe it¡¯s not gaining levels so much as gaining new accomplishments that¡¯s on a cooldown.¡± I blink. ¡°A what? How do you know all this stuff?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she non-answers. ¡°To me, it¡¯s weird that you don¡¯t. Does it really matter? If we know different things, that just means that the scope of our knowledge is bigger than either of us thinks¡ªthat can only be a good thing.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t argue with that,¡± I grumble, still kind of wanting to argue with that. I rub my hands together to warm them up. Before the level, I was thinking about trying to sleep, but I¡¯m feeling pretty pumped up now. ¡°Let''s try to get that last level!¡± This time it¡¯s Vi who¡¯s surprised, though I¡¯m not sure how I could tell that before she¡¯d even expressed it. ¡°I thought you¡¯d want to take a break,¡± she says. ¡°It¡¯s been a long day, and the lack of progress is disheartening.¡± ¡°Wow, don¡¯t try to oversell it or anything, geez.¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± I shake my head. ¡°I was just kidding, Vi. I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m just not tired anymore. And the sooner we get that last level, the sooner I can try something else. I want to see if I can do magic.¡± Vi takes a long time to respond, and when she does her tone is the sort of careful apologetic voice someone uses when telling their child a pet needs to be put down. ¡°Allison, I know you¡¯re eager to switch classes, but I¡¯ve been thinking. It depends on how the mechanism actually works, but if I¡¯m interpreting it right, then I think our best course is to fuse your [Wanderer] into [Unified Collective], then switch you to [Survivalist] while I work on something that will let us fight.¡± ¡°Wh¡ªfight?!¡± I ask in disbelief. ¡°We barely survived the last two and now you want us to do it on purpose?¡± ¡°We were lucky to scavenge food the first time,¡± she declares calmly. ¡°We might not be so lucky in the future. The fact that we almost died is why I think we need to learn how to defend ourselves, Allison. We are going to have to fight for our lives one way or another, and if we don¡¯t prepare ourselves now, then we die later.¡± I hate this. I can feel my eyes starting to water. It¡¯s so stupid¡ªthe one thing I could get excited about in this awful place, and Violet has to ruin it with her stupid reason and logic. It¡¯s not her fault¡ªshe¡¯s right. I¡¯m the idiot here for letting my hopes run away with me. ¡°Fine,¡± I say, hating the nasally way my voice comes out. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to take that nap after all.¡± I tune out Violet¡¯s response as I curl up with my back against the uncomfortably jagged stone wall, wrap the cloak around me, bury my face in my knees, and cry. 11. We Have Different Things I feel awful when I wake up. Once again, I have no memory of falling asleep and no idea how long I was out. We can¡¯t keep doing this. Sleep deprivation is going to kill us as surely as any monster, but every time we sleep in a random cave or corridor, we risk getting ambushed. Not sleeping enough could kill us, yet sleeping at all could kill us. I remove my hopelessly dirty glasses and rub the crust out of my eyes¡ªright, I was crying. Or rather, Allison was. The salty streaks on my cheeks remind me of how much she¡¯s hurting. For a brief moment I entertain the idea of just changing my mind about the magic, but I shake my head. What we need most right now is security. Not just food and water, but a safe place to sleep. I have no idea how to accomplish that, but defending ourselves is a close second. It¡¯s only a matter of time before some creature gets the jump on us, and when that happens I need to be able to handle it. Allie¡¯s magic idea might be a path towards that, but it¡¯s too risky. Too many unknowns. How does magic work? Is it something that can be learned, or just an intrinsic part of the monsters here? When the [W¡ªthe mechanism first initialized us, there was something about templates. Maybe we¡¯ve just got the wrong one. Glancing at omnipresent words hovering silently in the back of my mind, I note that there are a few changes to the list of available classes. The [Angel] related one is gone, and even though I remember what it was called, I struggle to actually bring it to mind. Part of me is disappointed that we missed out on such a powerful option, but Allison is probably right¡ªit was a trap. Not a thing about magic, unfortunately. [Butcher], [Scavenger], and [Cleaner] are new, but they¡¯re mostly focused around recovering food from dead things. I¡¯ve more or less managed that just fine on my own¡ªwhat I need is a way to make dead things. I close my eyes and focus on [Defender]... [Tier 0 Defender]* A stalwart protector. A shield and spear raised in defense against the enemy. Skill - Retaliation: Increased Power and Resilience when fighting to defend someone or something. Attribute bonus: Resilience. Advancement: Fight to protect things. It¡¯s exactly what we need, and there¡¯s no guessing involved. It will make us stronger, and if [Wanderer] fuses into [Unified Collective] the way I¡¯m hoping, then I¡¯ll have stacking Resilience bonuses while I¡¯m in front, plus the extra Power from the skill while I protect Allison. Okay, so there¡¯s some guessing. I don¡¯t know for sure that it will work that way, but it feels right. Our shared class is completely synced, and as for the skill, why else would the class even be offered? All of the ones we¡¯ve seen so far have been situational¡ªrelated to something we¡¯ve seen or done. When I first woke up, I protected Allison from that skeleton. I¡¯m certain that¡¯s what made [Defender] available. That means it should count, and from experience, the bonuses from skills are no joke. The Awareness bonus from [Survivalist] let me follow a trail of long-dried snail slime in almost total darkness. I sigh as I fruitlessly try to clean my glasses with my dirty cloak. Too bad Awareness can¡¯t fix our eyes. We¡¯re going to be in so much trouble when these get broken. I manage to at least evenly distribute the smudging. It will have to do for now. Replacing my glasses, it takes every ounce of my willpower not to shriek in surprise at the laser gecko less than a foot away from me. My heart pounds in my chest, the surge of adrenaline instantly snapping me out of my sleep-deprived grogginess. It¡¯s not moving, but it¡¯s so close! I try to remind myself that if it was going to eat us, it would have done it while I was asleep, but it¡¯s a small comfort. I¡¯ve seen how fast these things can move, and what their claws will do. How did I miss it?! It¡¯s mottled skin blends in with the cave walls almost perfectly, but in the tight confines of the tunnel, I¡¯m close enough to touch it. With my glasses and the residual light from the candles beneath my cloak, I can even see it breathing. It doesn¡¯t emit any body heat, though. With my eyes closed or my glasses off, I¡¯d never even know it was there. It¡¯s a perfect ambush predator and it has me dead to rights. So why is it just sitting there? I know it¡¯s a predator, and I¡¯ve seen how vicious these things can be, but twice now I¡¯ve gotten caught by one without anything happening. Is it the same one? That seems unlikely, and even if it was, that doesn¡¯t explain why it¡¯s leaving us alone. Why did it stop next to us in the first place? I try to inch my away further into the corridor¡ªI know this one loops back to the Twisted Cavern, so if I can just make it to the other entrance I¡¯ll¡ª A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. I freeze as its head twitches in my direction and its gaze settles on me. Okay¡ªso much for that plan. The last one was in some kind of torpor, but this guy is much more alert. I¡¯m a little worried about its eyes on me. It may have taken a while, but I saw them use their gaze to heat up a rock enough to melt it. Wait, that¡¯s it! Heat! Everything snaps together in my head¡ªthe sluggish lizard near the stream, the wayfinding candles that disappeared while we weren¡¯t looking, the laser eyes, even the way the room got colder when they used their magic. It all makes sense! They¡¯re lizards! Cold blooded! They have magic that makes heat, but it uses up the heat around them¡ªor maybe moves it? I¡¯m not sure, but that¡¯s not the point. They need warmth! The candles don¡¯t provide much, but they also don¡¯t seem to ever run out. That¡¯s why the first one we saw was so slow¡ªthe stream is freezing cold! And if I¡¯m right, that¡¯s where our candles have been disappearing to, as well. Maybe the geckos were eating them, or maybe they are smarter than I thought and they carried some away to furnish their lair. That would explain why this one just cozied up to us instead of eating us in our sleep. With all the candles in my cloak, I¡¯m a big source of warmth. With a chill, I realize that the first gecko we met might have warmed up next to us while we were sleeping, then returned to its spot before we woke up. Then again, that seems implausible, and we were pretty close to the stream, so maybe it didn¡¯t bother. That still leaves me with a conundrum, though. This gecko probably doesn¡¯t want its new basking rock to run off. It hasn¡¯t tried to kill me yet, but that doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s just going to leave me alone. I¡¯m not ready to start picking fights yet, so that means I need an escape plan. Distraction? The snail didn¡¯t care when I tried throwing a candle, but maybe it will be more effective on the gecko...or maybe that spooks it into attacking. Ugh, I don¡¯t know what to do. I hate not having the answer. ¡°What did I miss?¡± My anxiety spikes at the sound of Allison¡¯s voice, but the gecko doesn¡¯t move. I relax a bit, remembering that only I can hear her. ¡°Oh, sorry,¡± she whispers. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize we had company.¡± I don¡¯t really have a way to answer her, so I just nod slowly. ¡°Is it friendly?¡± My first instinct is to shake my head, but instead I offer her a shrug¡ªI don¡¯t actually know. ¡°Huh...and it just sort of snuck up on us while we were sleeping?¡± I nod again. I wish I could communicate everything, but I don¡¯t want to make any sudden sounds or movements. ¡°Then it probably leaves us alone as long as we don¡¯t bother it, right? Just back away slowly and see if it tries to follow.¡± I make an exasperated face. She can¡¯t see it, but to my surprise, Allie reacts anyway. ¡°Don¡¯t give me that look! You¡¯re overthinking this, Vi. Animals don¡¯t just randomly attack unless they¡¯re hungry, and if Mister Gecko was hungry enough to eat us he¡¯d have done it already. Think of it like a wild dog¡ªyou¡¯ll be fine as long as you don¡¯t provoke it.¡± I¡¯m not good with dogs. Fine, I¡¯ll try it. Anything is better than just standing here forever. I tighten the grip on my dagger under our cloak, readying myself just in case. Slowly, step by agonizing step, I back away into the corridor. Its eyes follow me the entire time, but it remains stock still. Once I¡¯m fully out of its reach, I pick up a bit of speed, but by the time I¡¯m halfway to the first bend, the lizard loses interest and scampers off into the caverns. I lean against the wall of the cave and heave a sigh of relief. ¡°Thank you, Allison,¡± I say. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡°Me?!¡± she asks incredulously. ¡°How are you feeling? Are you okay? That must have been terrifying.¡± Her concern puts me off balance, and I furrow my brows, unsure how to react. ¡°Uh...I¡¯m fine? That was a precarious situation, but you made the right call to get us out of it. Thank you.¡± ¡°You already said that,¡± she points out. ¡°But you¡¯re welcome! I¡¯ve always been pretty good with animals.¡± Another glaring difference between us. If it wasn¡¯t obvious enough before, there¡¯s no way that we¡¯re just different versions of the same person. The differences in memory and personality are too much to be explained by value drift. I don''t feel like I¡¯m a passenger in her body, though¡ªit¡¯s our body. More questions for another time. ¡°You¡¯re awfully chipper considering...¡± I trail off, not sure how to bring up the fact that I made her cry herself to sleep. ¡°Oh yeah!¡± she laughs. ¡°I always feel better after a good cry. Really needed that nap too, dang. This place sucks bones¡ªI hate it, and yeah I¡¯m really disappointed that I have to put off trying to learn magic, but you¡¯re right.¡± ¡°I am?¡± ¡°Yeah. Magic is cool and all, but survival comes first, and you¡¯re a lot better at that than I am. If you say we need to prioritize being able to fight, then I defer to you. I¡¯d rather not go around killing stuff, but I¡¯m not so childish that I¡¯d let us starve to death over some misguided pacifism.¡± I pause, uncertain how to respond to that. ¡°That¡¯s...very mature of you.¡± She rolls her eyes¡ªor, our eyes? Wait, how did she¡ª? ¡°You don¡¯t need to patronize me, Vi,¡± Allison chides. ¡°Look, I know I haven¡¯t been a very good friend or...roommate or bodymate or¡ªheadmate, I guess? I want to help, and I¡¯m frustrated at how useless I feel.¡± ¡°You made that map,¡± Violet points out. I shake my head. ¡°You could have just done that yourself. And I¡¯m sure you would have, even without my wayfinding class. The gecko just now was a good reminder¡ªwe¡¯re not the same person, Violet. We have different things we¡¯re interested in, and different things we¡¯re good at. I can¡¯t let my selfish desire to feel useful hold you back from keeping us alive.¡± ¡°I see,¡± she says quietly. After a beat, I realize she doesn¡¯t have a follow up and sigh. ¡°For now, this is your element¡ªyour time to shine. If we ever make it back to civilization, then maybe it will be mine and you¡¯ll feel just as useless.¡± Violet chuckles. ¡°I¡¯ll look forward to it. In the meantime, we should try to finish leveling up your [Wanderer] class as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Good plan,¡± I agree. ¡°Lead the way!¡± ¡°Um, Allie...you¡¯re in front right now. We switched while you were talking.¡± Wait, we did?! Oh...so we did. I hadn¡¯t even noticed. I reflexively try to look at my status, and¡ª [Level up!] Unified Collective is now level 10. +3 Ego. Unified Collective has reached its maximum threshold. [Upgrade] or [Fuse] the class to unlock further progression. ¡°Holy moley!¡± 12. The Abyss Awaits [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective ]* - Level 10/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer ]* - Level 9/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 10 Awareness: 1 Ego: 11 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps ¡°What the heck?!¡± I exclaim. ¡°Violet, are you seeing this?¡± ¡°Not exactly the same thing, no, but I get it. I¡¯m as flabbergasted as you are.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not very balanced, are we?¡± Violet chuckles. ¡°I imagine that will change once we get the chance to combine classes together.¡± ¡°Good point. Oh! I wonder what the options are like.¡± ¡°Allison, wait¡ª¡± ¡°I know,¡± I dismiss her, already focusing on [Unified Collective]. ¡°I¡¯m not going to actually pick anything, I just want to lo¡ªAAGH!¡± I collapse to the floor screaming as a spike of pain drives itself through my head behind my eyes. I writhe on the ground, clutching at my head, and try desperately to think about something else. It¡¯s too late, though¡ªlike flood water spilling through an open gate, I can¡¯t shut my mind to the overwhelming rush of information trying to fill my head. I scream, I whimper, at some point I think I throw up. Where¡¯s Violet? She¡¯s better with pain than I am, and she usually takes over in moments like this. I feel pathetic for even thinking it, but it just hurts so much that I¡¯ll do anything to make it stop. Then, finally, it does. With excruciating slowness, the pain fades and my other senses come back into focus. My ears are ringing, and I can smell my own vomit¡ªand taste the half-digested snail meat I just regurgitated. I roll away from the vile substance and check my glasses, which mercifully managed to stay on my face. As the world comes back into focus, I hear Violet¡¯s voice, tinged with a panic I¡¯ve never heard from her before. ¡°Allison?! Allie, can you hear me? Are you okay?!¡± ¡°No,¡± I croak. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry! I tried to warn you.¡± ¡°Yeah...I forgot.¡± [Unified Collective] has always been hard for me to look at, and even as I gained more Resilience and Ego, trying to read the description gave me a splitting headache. Now that I have read it, I can see why. The words are there. They still hurt to focus on, but they are there, seared into my mind like an intrusive thought that never goes away. [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* ... You get the idea. It goes on like that forever¡ªevery line duplicated into infinity. Impossibly, I can still grasp the full scope of it. There is no end, but if I try not to think about it too hard, I can parse out the duplicated words. Once I do that, it¡¯s the same as any other class. [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* Level 10/10 Multiple sapient entities co-existing within a single body. [Permanent] - This class cannot be removed. Skill - Parallel Wills (1): Allows the simultaneous consciousness of up to one (1) additional thoughtform. Attribute Bonus: Ego. Advancement: Coordinate between minds. [Upgrades available] [No fusions currently available] ¡°It worked,¡± I sigh. ¡°I can see the class details. There¡¯s an option to upgrade it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good, at least,¡± Violet responds. ¡°I was worried that it might not be possible to advance it.¡± ¡°That might still be a valid concern,¡± I say with a frown. ¡°It¡¯s super weird. Every line repeats infinitely.¡± ¡°Then how did you read it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, and it hurts to think about.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± she sighs. ¡°Anyway, our plan is still the same. Let¡¯s map out as much of our surroundings as we can and see if we can fuse your [Wanderer] class with [Unified Collective].¡± ¡°Right,¡± I agree with a nod. Following my [Retraced Steps] and the various signs I¡¯ve left for myself, I make my way back to the Labyrinth to update my map. It¡¯s a little tricky noting everything down from memory, but I can feel a sort of tickle of recognition as I trace the regions of the map I¡¯ve already drawn, similar to the feeling I get from my skill. I add a fourth notch to the day tally while I¡¯m at it. After what feels like thirty minutes or so, I stare down at my handiwork and frown. I check and recheck it a few times, even consulting with Violet to make sure I didn¡¯t forget anything. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Well, fudge-muffins,¡± I swear. ¡°That¡¯s annoying.¡± The so-called ¡°Snail Corridor¡± is now almost completely mapped out without any new points of interest. The only parts that haven¡¯t been explored are a few tunnels that we¡¯d have to climb up to reach, and wherever the Underground Stream leads. Any further exploration would require me to risk falling to death, freezing to death, or drowning...to death. ¡°I suppose we¡¯ll just have to move on to the Gecko Corridor,¡± Violet remarks. ¡°I believe you mean the Abyssal Chasm of Certain Doom,¡± I correct her, tapping the spot where I¡¯ve scribbled the name. ¡°It¡¯s not ideal, but I don¡¯t think our body can handle climbing up to the remaining tunnels, much less get back down.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it easier to climb down?¡± I ask. ¡°No,¡± she answers without clarification. ¡°None of our options are perfect, but as long as we stick to the ledge and watch our footing, the chasm is safest.¡± ¡°What about the stream?¡± I hedge, already knowing the answer. ¡°You¡¯d be more likely to survive falling into the chasm.¡± ¡°Dang it.¡± I hate heights. Having a ledge give out under my feet and drop me into a bottomless chasm is pretty much my worst nightmare. ¡°Maybe it will be better if you lead,¡± I suggest. ¡°You know, in case something sneaks up on us. You¡¯re the one with the good Awareness.¡± ¡°Allie,¡± she sighs with exasperation, ¡°we¡¯ve talked about this.¡± ¡°I know!¡± I whine. ¡°I just...really don¡¯t want to go back there. I¡¯m afraid of heights!¡± ¡°So am I,¡± she retorts. ¡°But it¡¯s our only real option.¡± I hang my head at that, my last out thoroughly squashed. At least if Vi didn¡¯t share my fear of heights I might have been able to convince her, but knowing that she does? It doesn¡¯t feel right. With a reluctant groan, I drag myself back to the Crossroads and past my dire warning sign to the one place I had hoped never to return to. The yawning abyss stretches out before me, swallowing the meager light of my candles with contemptuous ease. The narrow ledge is illuminated only a few feet ahead, and even Violet¡¯s increased Awareness isn¡¯t enough to offer any more security. I press myself against the wall and carefully inch my way along the ledge, desperately focusing on the ground ahead and trying to pretend that the deadly gap right next to me doesn¡¯t exist. ¡°I need you to pay more attention,¡± Vi scolds. ¡°I can¡¯t notice things that you don¡¯t look at.¡± ¡°Well I¡¯m sorry that looking into the abyss gives me a panic attack,¡± I whisper, though I¡¯m not sure why. ¡°I can either stare at the wall and floor while moving, or I can stare over the ledge while paralyzed with fear, take your pick.¡± ¡°Okay, sorry. Just try to stay alert.¡± ¡°Oh, I am very alert right now,¡± I whisper manically. ¡°I am painfully alert!¡± I continue edging my way along the path. Maybe it¡¯s my imagination, but it feels like the ledge is getting smaller as I go. Every step feels like it takes an eternity, and all I can do is pray that my footing stays stable and that the next step will bring me safely into a new tunnel. The worst part is that I know I¡¯m going to have to come back along this path later. The Labyrinth is our de facto base of operations, and the place where my map is. More importantly, our only source of water is over there, and I will die without it. Finally, my leading hand meets sweet nothingness instead of more treacherous stone. I inch my way over to the opening and examine it carefully to ensure that it¡¯s not just going to bamboozle me into yet another fall to my doom. My luck holds out, and the opening leads into an uncomfortably narrow, but very comfortably solid tunnel. I¡¯m on the short side, even for a girl, at only five feet even, but even I have to duck under the low ceiling, and the smooth stone walls leave only half a foot or so of clearance on either side. ¡°Well this is cozy,¡± I comment, settling down to let my poor racing heart return to a regular rhythm. ¡°And very...round.¡± Too round, actually. And almost perfectly smooth. Violet reaches the same conclusion as I do right away. ¡°I don¡¯t think this tunnel is natural,¡± she says. ¡°Something bored its way through.¡± ¡°Geckos?¡± I suggest, and I can feel Violet disagreeing. ¡°Their laser eyes take too long, and cover too small an area,¡± she says. ¡°Plus, we¡¯d be seeing more slag and uneven terrain.¡± ¡°What do you think it is, then?¡± ¡°No idea,¡± she says. ¡°Some kind of giant worm, maybe? I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s possible, but we¡¯ve seen giant snails and geckos with laser eyes, so...¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I agree tiredly. ¡°I hope you¡¯re not going to tell me it¡¯s unsafe here.¡± ¡°It might be, but I don¡¯t know,¡± she answers honestly. ¡°I¡¯d say we should proceed with caution, but that¡¯s a given.¡± Right. After a short rest, I pick myself up and carefully make my way through what I am now tentatively calling the ¡°Worm Tunnel.¡± It¡¯s pretty uncomfortable trying to move around while keeping my head low, and the tight space is making me feel claustrophobic. I remind myself of what the alternative is and keep on moving. It¡¯s a long, boring trek, and my back is super sore from all the hunching, but eventually the tunnel lets out into a big cave. A big familiar cave. Below us. ¡°Aw, poopy-doodles!¡± I shout, nearly kicking something with my mostly bare feet before thinking better of it. ¡°We¡¯re back at the Twisting Cavern!¡± [Level up!] Wanderer is now level 10. + 1 Resilience. Wanderer has reached its maximum threshold. [Upgrade] or [Fuse] the class to unlock further progression. New class fusions are now available. ¡°Shut up, [World Engine], that doesn¡¯t make me feel any better,¡± I gripe. ¡°At least this lets us cross off two unexplored areas at once,¡± Vi offers. ¡°The other climbs nearby are probably part of the same tunnel, broken up by natural spaces.¡± ¡°Yeah, but I still have to go back to that dang ledge,¡± I shudder. ¡°You¡¯re sure that climbing down isn¡¯t an option?¡± Violet ponders it for a moment, but ultimately lets me down. ¡°Not without shoes, at the very least,¡± she mercilessly denies me. ¡°And maybe ten more points of Power, or a month of rock climbing practice.¡± ¡°Oof.¡± ¡°Yeah, sorry.¡± I slump down against the edge of the tunnel and sigh. ¡°Why ten?¡± I ask curiously. ¡°That seems pretty specific considering we¡¯re still not sure what exactly the attributes do. Especially one that we haven¡¯t invested in yet.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a guess, but I think that powers of ten have special significance¡ªor maybe just ten specifically. You felt the change in Resilience more strongly when you reached ten, right? It was the same for me with Awareness.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t notice anything like that for Ego, though.¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s more subtle,¡± Vi suggests. ¡°Like you said, we¡¯re still not entirely sure what they actually do. Ego is strength of self, but have you ever stopped feeling like yourself?¡± ¡°That¡¯s kind of a loaded question, given our whole...thing,¡± I point out. ¡°Okay, fair point, but what I mean is that you¡¯re not going to notice feeling more like yourself.¡± ¡°I guess.¡± I fiddle with the ragged hem of my cloak, casting a pensive glance towards the cave opening. It¡¯s a long way down, but at least I can see the floor, and a tiny bit of vertigo is almost preferable after what felt like hours in the tight constraints of the Worm Tunnel. Sucks that I¡¯m going to have to suffer through the worst of both worlds to get back. ¡°I guess it¡¯s time, huh?¡± I say with a sigh. ¡°I thought I¡¯d be more excited about it, but all I¡¯m feeling is dread.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have to fuse the classes right away,¡± Violet tries to placate me. ¡°In fact, it might be better to wait until I¡¯ve finished the Survival class to test whether we can fuse classes between each other.¡± ¡°What¡¯s our plan if we can¡¯t?¡± Predictably, Violet doesn¡¯t have an answer, so she¡¯s just silent. Why is she willing to say she doesn¡¯t know how safe a giant worm tunnel might be, but won¡¯t just admit that we might have a crippling limitation that will ultimately doom us to dying alone and forgotten in some miserable cave in the middle of¡ªpossibly literally¡ªnowhere? Actually, after phrasing it like that, I kind of get it. ¡°Let¡¯s just get it over with,¡± I sigh. ¡°At least this means I don¡¯t have to front on the way back.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Violet says hesitantly. ¡°Um...are you sure you don¡¯t want to wait?¡± I snort-laugh, despite myself. ¡°Yes. The abyss awaits, Vi! Share my suffering!¡± 13. No Pain, No Gain [Allison: Tier 0 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 0 [Unified Collective]* - Level 10/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Wanderer]* - Level 10/10 [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 11 Awareness: 1 Ego: 11 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (1) Retraced Steps ¡°Here we go...¡± I say, focusing on [Wanderer]. The words etched into the back of my mind shift. [Tier 0 Wanderer]* Level 10/10 An aimless traveler, searching for a purpose. Skill - Retraced Steps: Always recognize a path you¡¯ve walked before. Attribute Bonus: Resilience. Advancement: Discover new places. [Upgrades available] [Fusions available] [Remove] ¡°What do you think, Vi?¡± I ask. ¡°Should I look at the upgrades, or just skip to the fusion part?¡± ¡°It might be useful to compare fusions with regular upgrades,¡± she suggests. ¡°We have a basic idea of what each does, but seeing it spelled out will help.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± I agree readily. I¡¯m a little nervous anyway, so a bit of wiki-diving will be a nice distraction. I focus on the upgrades, and a few different options pop up. Upgrades available for [Tier 0 Wanderer]*: [Tier 1 Wanderer]* A traveler seeking new horizons on every path. Skill - Pathfinder: Increased Resilience and Awareness when exploring new places. Attribute Bonus: Resilience. Advancement: Travel great distances. Well that¡¯s pretty simple. It¡¯s just the same thing, but a bit better. [Retraced Steps] is gone, but its replacement ends up doing the same thing anyway, since I¡¯d probably be able to tell whether I¡¯m getting the bonus or not. I move on to the next one. [Tier 1 Cartographer]* A journeyman map maker, recording the shape of the world for others to follow in their footsteps. Skill - Mental Mapping: Perfectly recall any place you¡¯ve explored. Attribute Bonus: Awareness. Advancement: Chart the unexplored places of the world. Huh. Nice to have my efforts recognized¡ªbut wait a second... I focus on my available classes for a moment, and quickly find what I¡¯m looking for. Sure enough... [Tier 0 Cartographer]* Most of the rest is the same, though the skill is weaker, only slightly improving my ability to translate my recollections into charts, and the advancement only requires me to map something, rather than stipulating that it be unexplored. ¡°Hey Vi, one of the upgrades is a class I¡¯ve already got, just at a higher tier.¡± ¡°Interesting,¡± she says. ¡°I suppose there¡¯s a bit of room for respeccing.¡± ¡°Re-what?¡± ¡°Sorry, I mean respecialize. Though I guess in this case it¡¯s more like cross-training? It¡¯s letting you take experience from one class and apply it to another, in case you want to change tracks.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± I say. ¡°How magnanimous. I don¡¯t think [Cartographer] is the way to go, though.¡± ¡°It could be useful, but not at the cost of fusing our classes,¡± Violet says. ¡°Especially since you¡¯ve already got the basic version available, if you change your mind.¡± ¡°Right.¡± I¡¯m just about to check the last upgrade when another thought strikes. ¡°Hey, [Cartographer] has a boost to Awareness instead of Resilience,¡± I point out. ¡°Does that mean all the Resilience from [Wanderer] would turn into Awareness?¡± ¡°Good question,¡± she responds. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but it seems like it could go either way? When you switched from [Student] you lost all of the attributes it gave you, so the attributes are definitely attached to the classes. It depends on whether the change is retroactive.¡± ¡°Hmm...something to be careful of, I guess.¡± I finally turn my attention to the last upgrade option. [Tier 1 Cave Dweller]* One who has found their home in the darkness and shunned the bright and busy life of the surface. Skill - Darkvision: Dramatically increased Awareness in the dark, with a commensurate penalty to Awareness in sunlight. Attribute Bonus: Resilience. Advancement: Survive the depths. Well that¡¯s ominous. The darkvision would be really nice, but I don¡¯t love the idea of making this place my home and becoming some kind of weird troglodyte hermit. The class would be useless once I finally get out of here, and I don¡¯t want to abandon the hope that I will just yet. Also ¡°Survive the depths¡±?! I shudder at the implications, once again wishing for the soft comfort of a proper bed and the warmth of the sun on my face. ¡°Okay, time for the fusions!¡± [Tier 0 Wanderer]* is compatible for fusion with the following class: Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. [Tier 0 Unified Collective]* Well that¡¯s simple enough. I pick the only option, then collapse as an invisible ice pick slams into my brain. ¡°Agh! Not again!¡± I scream. I thought I¡¯d be safe from [Unified Collective]¡¯s weirdness if I approached it from the other class, but that was naive. I thrash around for a few minutes, ignoring Violet¡¯s worried voice until the pain finally dies down again. ¡°I freakin¡¯ hate that,¡± I complain. ¡°[Unified Collective] again?¡± Vi asks sympathetically. ¡°Yeah,¡± I groan, risking a peek at the new options. ¡°I don¡¯t even know why it happened this time, the offers all look normal.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a lot we don¡¯t know about that class. Sorry you had to go through that again.¡± ¡°Weirdly, I¡¯m kinda getting used to it,¡± I sigh. ¡°Let¡¯s see what we¡¯ve got...¡± I gently massage my temples as I inspect the new classes. Fusions available for [Tier 0 Wanderer]* and [Tier 0 Unified Collective]*: [Tier 1 Nomadic Tribe]** A tribe of wanderers without a fixed home. [Permanent] - This class cannot be removed. Skill - Homing: You can unerringly find your way back to any current or former settlement. Skill - Linked Minds: You can communicate with your tribe across vast distances. Attribute bonuses: Resilience, Ego. Advancement: Resettle in new places. I...what? Huh? Did it get confused? ¡°Violet are you seeing this?¡± I ask incredulously. ¡°It thinks we¡¯re different people.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we?¡± she asks. ¡°Well, yeah, but like,¡± I flounder a bit, struggling to articulate myself. ¡°It thinks we¡¯re separate people.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± she responds. ¡°That is odd. What about the others?¡± I take a look, and they only get weirder from there. [Tier 1 Migratory Flock]** ¡°What, are we flippin¡¯ birds?!¡± [Tier 1 Swarming Hive]** All three are almost exactly the same, aside from the descriptions. Boosting Ego and Resilience, allowing telepathic communication with the other members of my non-existent tribe or hive or whatever, and most disturbingly not providing an equivalent to [Parallel Wills]. What happens if I pick one of these? Will Violet disappear? Will I? As uncomfortable as it¡¯s been sharing my body with another me, I wouldn¡¯t be able to survive down here without her, and she¡¯s my only friend. Even if I had her survival skills, I¡¯d go insane without someone to talk to. ¡°I don¡¯t think this is going to work, Vi,¡± I declare sadly. ¡°These upgrades are a bust. No matter what I take, we lose [Parallel Wills].¡± ¡°Well that¡¯s frustrating. Are you sure there are no other options?¡± ¡°Pretty sure.¡± I fidget awkwardly while I await her response. This really isn¡¯t panning out the way we¡¯d planned. I shiver and pull my cloak tighter around myself. I wish I had some shoes¡ªmy toes are freezing! ¡°What if...¡± Violet begins hesitantly. ¡°What if you tried picking the option from [Unified Collective] instead?¡± I frown. Crud, that¡¯s a good idea, isn¡¯t it? I don¡¯t want to. I really don¡¯t want to. It¡¯s going to hurt, and it might not even work. ¡°No, nevermind,¡± Violet says before I can respond. ¡°That was a dumb idea.¡± Uuuugh. ¡°No it wasn¡¯t,¡± I sigh. ¡°Our life is on the line here. I¡¯ve got to at least try. No pain, no gain¡ªthat¡¯s how the saying goes right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a pretty bad idiom, actually. When exercising you should pay close attention to¡ª¡± I roll my eyes, bracing myself for what¡¯s about to happen and concentrating on [Unified Collective]. The pain is intense, but in the interest of getting through it as quickly as possible, I focus on the fusions right away. The pain builds and builds behind my eyes as the [World Engine] tries to dump an impossible amount of information into my feeble mortal brain. For a moment, I worry it¡¯s going to be too much, and that I¡¯ve bitten off more than I can chew. Then I feel something snap inside me, and most of the pain washes away, leaving me with just a dull throb pulsing in time to my heartbeat. My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath, sweat pouring off my forehead¡ªas if I didn¡¯t smell bad enough already. Somehow the mundane concern about my personal hygiene brings me back to reality, and I notice that Violet is trying to get my attention. ¡°Allison? Allie? Please talk to me. Are you okay?¡± I feel a bizarre sense of deja vu. How many times are we going to go through this? ¡°M¡¯fine,¡± I slur. ¡°Think my head broke.¡± ¡°What?!¡± she cries, her voice panicked. ¡°Joking,¡± I lie. ¡°It just hurts. It worked, though. There¡¯s only one option.¡± [Tier 1 Unified Wanderers]** Many travelers, sharing the same path. Each seeking different things in the same place. [Permanent] - This class cannot be removed. Skill - Parallel Wills (2): Allows the simultaneous consciousness of up to two (2) additional thoughtforms. Skill - The Beaten Path (Retraced Steps): Gain the effect of one skill from a previously mastered class. Can be changed at will. Attribute bonuses: Resilience, Ego. Advancement: Find what you seek. ¡°That skill is pretty good, right?¡± I ask. ¡°It¡¯s ridiculous,¡± Vi confirms. ¡°We¡¯ve only got the one option right now, but it will get a lot more versatile as we grow. I wonder if it works even after removing a mastered class.¡± ¡°Do you think the first one means we¡¯ll get a new friend?¡± I ask. ¡°It¡¯s already a little crowded with the two of us.¡± ¡°Maybe. It says ¡®up to¡¯ so there¡¯s no guarantee, I think. I didn¡¯t appear right away after you gained the original skill either.¡± ¡°True.¡± Honestly, I¡¯m not sure which I¡¯d prefer. Violet is nice company, but do I really want to share my body with yet another person? ¡°It would be better to have another ally as soon as possible,¡± Violet says. ¡°That would let us train an extra class, effectively giving us twice the normal number of slots, even with one of them shared.¡± Classic Vi. Questions of personal space, privacy, and identity are afterthoughts next to getting stronger. She¡¯s got a point, though. We need every edge we can get. ¡°I guess we¡¯ll cross that bridge when we get to it,¡± I hedge. ¡°For now, I should definitely take the class, right?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± I nod, squinting my eyes shut as I brace for another spike of pain. It¡¯s happened often enough now that I know what to expect. With a thought, I confirm my choice, then...not much. Not even the weird violating sense of something rooting around in my head. The words in my head shift without fanfare to display my new status. [Allison: Tier 0 Human] (Evolution Available) [Class Slot 1: Tier 1 [Unified Wanderers]** - Level 0/10 [Class Slot 2: [Empty] [Attributes] Power: 1 Resilience: 11 Awareness: 1 Ego: 11 Will: 1 [Skills] Parallel Wills (2) The Beaten Path Which...is almost exactly the same as my old status. What¡¯s an [Evolution]? [Evolution] Upon reaching a new tier for the first time, species evolution becomes possible. Options are based on current species and tier. ¡°Huh, apparently we can change our species?¡± ¡°What?¡± Vi asks, perplexed. ¡°Change it to what?¡± ¡°I dunno, lemme check.¡± Evolutions available for [Tier 0 Human]: [Tier 1 Human] An animal species. Individual specimens are almost always [Sapient]. ¡°We can evolve from a human into a human,¡± I deadpan. ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± Violet laughs harder than I¡¯ve ever heard her laugh. ¡°That¡¯s amazing,¡± she manages to choke out between fits of giggling. ¡°Does it at least raise the tier?¡± ¡°It does indeed,¡± I confirm. ¡°Though I¡¯m not sure what that actually does.¡± ¡°Your attributes are still the same after fusing your classes,¡± Vi points out. ¡°Didn¡¯t the engine¡¯s description of tiers mention a bonus to base stats?¡± I blink, then focus on the tier. [Tier 1] The first major milestone for mechanical support. Base attributes increased (1 -> 2). Two points gained per [Class Level]. ¡°Well what do you know?¡± I remark. ¡°How the heck did you remember that?¡± ¡°It seemed important.¡± ¡°You weren¡¯t even around yet!¡± I protest. ¡°And that was...crud, how long have we been down here?¡± ¡°Several days at least, but it¡¯s hard to mark the passage of time with only our circadian rhythm to go by.¡± My stomach growls as I realize just how little I¡¯ve eaten and slept in all that time, then churns at the thought of having to choke down more snail flesh. Maybe it¡¯s a little selfish of me, but I want to hurry up and switch with Vi so that it can be her problem. ¡°Okay, so I should take the evolution, then?¡± I ask for confirmation. ¡°Probably,¡± she agrees. ¡°I can¡¯t think of a good reason not to.¡± ¡°Gotcha!¡± I confirm the decision and my entire world becomes an ocean of pain as every cell in my body starts to change at once. My last thought before I pass out again is that I really should have seen that coming. 14. Blinded by Number Crunching I awake to the vague sense that I haven¡¯t been out for very long. Not keen to repeat my previous mistake, I check my surroundings first, and only after I¡¯ve confirmed that there are no lizards, snails, or any other oversized underground creatures waiting to eat me do I blearily rub my eyes behind my glasses. How many times am I going to have to go through this? Is the occasional spike of unbearable pain just a price that I have to pay to receive the blessings of this mysterious [World Engine]? I stand up to stretch, only to bonk my head on the low ceiling. ¡°Ow!¡± I cry, clutching the top of my head. Okay, well that one was on me, I just forgot how little space I have here. I don¡¯t feel any different. Maybe a little better than before I passed out. I¡¯m still sore all over the place from various cuts and bruises¡ªespecially my leg. My healing is definitely faster than normal, but even with the stab wound mostly closed, all this walking around isn¡¯t doing it any favors. But aside from that, I¡¯m not feeling any stiffness from my collapse, except maybe a minor crick in the neck. Since I can¡¯t feel anything different, I check to see how my painful evolution is reflected on my status. [Violet: Tier 1 Human] [Class Slot 1: Tier 1 [Unified Wanderers]** - Level 0/10 [Class Slot 2: Tier 0 [Survivalist]* - Level 8/10 [Attributes] Power: 2 Resilience: 12 Awareness: 10 Ego: 12 Will: 2 [Skills] Parallel Wills (2) The Beaten Path (Retraced Steps) Foraging I blink. I¡¯m not sure why exactly it comes as a surprise that I¡¯m Violet right now. Switching is always a little jarring, but switching while unconscious can be particularly confusing. I shake it off and focus on the stats. Three attributes above ten while I¡¯m in front, now. I¡¯m starting to come around to Allison¡¯s way of thinking about the attributes. The three that we¡¯ve advanced have all been invaluable for keeping us alive. Without Resilience, we¡¯d have long since succumbed to injury, infection, or starvation. Even with the magic candles providing their minimal warmth, we may well have also frozen to death. My feet are still freezing without any shoes or socks, and the makeshift footwraps aren¡¯t really helping much. It¡¯s hard to tell, but I think it¡¯s probably colder in these caves than we realize. Awareness literally saved us from falling into a seemingly bottomless pit, and it¡¯s the only reason I have enough confidence to explore these tunnels at all, knowing how hard it is to spot the laser geckos with only our meager candlelight. Ego is a little harder to place. Its impact is more subtle, but I think it matters. Allison isn¡¯t built for this sort of thing, but she was still able to focus enough to treat our leg wound when it mattered, and even keep her cool when dealing with the laser gecko that snuck up on us. I think that¡¯s Ego at work, but maybe she¡¯s just stronger than I¡¯m giving her credit for. Maybe both. It¡¯s not hard to imagine how Power and Will could help. We¡¯re going to need to start hunting for our food more proactively, and Power is probably the attribute that translates most directly into physical strength. That would help us climb, giving us access to other parts of the cave that we haven¡¯t explored yet, and obviously it would help us fight. Finally, Will. It¡¯s...probably the one attribute I most regret neglecting. I underestimated how mentally taxing trying to survive in these caves is. From choking down bits of food that were already disgusting before they started to go off, to compromising on things we want to do in favor of things more likely to keep us alive, to facing our fear of heights in search of a way out...it¡¯s a lot. I can feel myself fraying at the edges, and I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s even worse for Allison. It¡¯s enough that I¡¯m starting to reconsider picking [Defender]. Stacking Resilience will help keep us alive and healthy, but I¡¯m not sure how much that will matter if we lose our minds from stress. Something to consider later, I suppose. I still have a couple levels to go on [Survivalist]. The new skill from [Unified Wanderers] also opens up some intriguing possibilities that I¡¯ll have to discuss with Allie. Speaking of which¡ªI wonder if the upgrade to [Parallel Wills] did anything. ¡°Allison, are you there?¡± I ask the air, but there¡¯s no response. She must still be asleep. If we do have another headmate, she¡¯s probably out too. Or maybe she¡¯ll only appear under certain circumstances? I think I probably woke up because Allison was in immediate danger. I feel confident that I existed before then, but as always my memory from before Allison woke up in the labyrinth is full of holes. Either way, we¡¯ll find out eventually. In the meantime, I sit back against the uncomfortably curved wall of the Worm Tunnel and consider my next move. Pushing Allison¡¯s class up to ten is only part of the reason I was so eager to explore. The other is the fact that we have no idea where to even start when it comes to finding food. The few creatures we¡¯ve encountered so far have been by chance, and given how long we¡¯ve been down here with only a few lucky sightings...I¡¯m worried that there¡¯s not a whole lot of life to even find. Our best bet is the Underground Stream¡ªwe know that the rock snails go there since that¡¯s how we found it in the first place, and we¡¯ve encountered at least one gecko there as well. The problem is how cold it is there. We nearly froze to death when we were trapped there by the gecko, and trying to wait there for something to hunt might just kill us before we even get the chance. I get to my feet¡ªwatching my head this time¡ªand start heading in that direction anyway. If nothing else, we could use some more water. I hesitate as I approach the chasm, taking a deep breath to steady my increasing heartbeat. ¡°I can do this,¡± I tell myself. ¡°Allison did it, and I told her to pay closer attention. It would be hypocritical of me to stop now.¡± I edge my way out onto the ledge, but with one glance over the edge I immediately retreat back into the tunnel. It was easy to put on a brave face when I wasn¡¯t in front, but now that I have to actually do it myself, my hands are shaking. This would be a great time for another thoughtform that isn¡¯t afraid of heights to take over and handle things... ... If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. No such luck. I gently slap my cheeks and shake my head. We already crossed the ledge! I know it¡¯s safe. I¡¯ll be fine. ¡°Okay Vi, stop.¡± Allison¡¯s voice startles me out of my attempt to psych myself up. ¡°I¡¯ll cross the ledge for us.¡± I hate the huge sigh of relief that gives me. ¡°No,¡± I say, shaking my head. ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re obviously even more afraid of heights than I am,¡± she says matter-of-factly. ¡°I don¡¯t think you can do this.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± I insist. ¡°I just...need a moment.¡± ¡°Violet, I can feel our heart pounding and our hands shaking. It feels like your legs are going to give out if you try to go up on that ledge.¡± I huff. ¡°I don¡¯t even know why I¡¯m so scared! It shouldn¡¯t be this hard.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. Just focus on the here and now. How long was I out? What¡¯s our next move?¡± I lean against the wall of the tunnel and hold my arms tightly against myself, focusing on my breathing as I answer Allie¡¯s questions. ¡°Not long. I only woke up a few minutes ago.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± she says, her voice soft and soothing. I can¡¯t help but envision her wrapping her arms around my shoulders and hugging me from behind. ¡°Where are we going?¡± ¡°Water,¡± I answer tersely. ¡°We need water, and it¡¯s the best place to hunt for food. Too cold, though.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± she inquires. ¡°We don¡¯t have traps or tools, except our knife,¡± I explain. ¡°Our only option is ambush. We need to track down or wait for something edible and hit it fast. It¡¯s freezing by the stream, and even if we can survive waiting there for possibly days on end, we won¡¯t have the strength to fight.¡± ¡°That¡¯s definitely not great,¡± Allison says with a small frown. ¡°Maybe we can figure out an answer? I¡¯ve got an open class slot while you finish mastering [Survivalist].¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± Violet hedges. ¡°What are your options?¡± I glance through my list of available tier 0 classes. [Student] [Candle Enthusiast] [Social Butterfly] [Thrower] [Medic] [Defender] [Butcher] [Scavenger] [Cleaner] [Cartographer] [Hiker] [Orator] Oooh! A few new ones! Nothing magic related, but I¡¯ve already gotten over that disappointment. I rattle the list off for Violet, and smile as she launches into theorycrafting mode, her earlier panic forgotten. ¡°We can discard the carcass cleaning ones right away,¡± she says. ¡°You don¡¯t have the stomach for it, and they won¡¯t do us any good if we can¡¯t find a carcass in the first place. Although...¡± she hesitates a moment. ¡°You won¡¯t like it, but we should at least look at [Scavenger] if nothing else looks good.¡± I already don¡¯t like the sound of that, but if she says so then I¡¯m willing to entertain it. ¡°Okay,¡± I agree. ¡°I think we can safely drop [Social Butterfly] and [Candle Enthusiast] too. They¡¯re completely worthless.¡± Why the heck is that candle one even a thing, anyway? It¡¯s like the mechanism is making fun of me. ¡°We should reconsider [Student] and [Thrower],¡± Vi suggests. ¡°They cover our weaknesses in Will and Power, and I think you¡¯re right about balancing our attributes.¡± ¡°And [Cartographer] is probably too similar to our new tier 1 class for now,¡± I conclude. ¡°Where does that leave us?¡± [Student] [Thrower] [Medic] [Defender] [Scavenger] [Hiker] [Orator] Violet hums thoughtfully while she goes over the options. ¡°I¡¯m probably still going to take [Defender] after I finish mastering my current class,¡± she says. ¡°And [Medic] still has the problem of being a literal pain to level. Let¡¯s take a look at [Hiker].¡± I focus on the new class, pulling up its details in my mind. [Tier 0 Hiker]* One whose feet carry them across great distances and all manner of rough terrain. No matter the hardships they face, they carry on placing one foot in front of the other. Skill - Sure Feet: Increased Resilience and Awareness when traveling on foot. Attribute Bonus: Resilience. Advancement: Walk long distances. ¡°Oh my gosh, I want it so bad,¡± I groan. ¡°Less sore feet and stubbed toes, yes please!¡± ¡°A third class focused on [Resilience] is probably not what we want right now,¡± Violet says. ¡°The benefit is...admittedly tempting. But maybe let¡¯s reconsider it for when our food is a little more secure.¡± ¡°I know,¡± I sigh. ¡°But a girl can dream, right? I would do terrible things for a pair of shoes right now.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll take it, but let¡¯s look at the newest class, I¡¯m curious about [Orator].¡± Me too, actually. That wasn¡¯t there last time I checked the list. [Tier 0 Orator]* A voice of encouragement, soothing comfort, or impassioned speeches, they have a gift for influencing people with their words. Skill - Voice of Reason: Increased Ego when trying to influence another¡¯s mood. Attribute Bonus: Ego. Advancement: Let them hear your voice. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Violet says, confused. ¡°Not that it doesn¡¯t suit you, but when did you get the chance to gain a class like that? I¡¯m the only other person for you to talk to.¡± ¡°Probably when I talked you through your panic attack and then crossed the ledge while you were too distracted talking shop to notice,¡± I answer smugly. ¡°Wait, what?¡± While we were talking, I shimmied my way back across the narrow ledge and we are now comfortably back in the Gecko Corridor next to my ominous sign warning of the gaping abyssal maw behind us. ¡°Did you even notice that I was in front?¡± I ask. ¡°Or were you just totally blinded by number crunching?¡± ¡°Allison!¡± she scolds. ¡°What if something snuck up on us?¡± ¡°I was keeping an eye out,¡± I assure her. ¡°Besides, talking to you about new classes also helped distract me from the certain death of the fall less than a foot in front of me.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± she huffs. ¡°Well as much as I appreciate your support, I don¡¯t think this class is going to help us either. You¡¯re, um, comforting enough without it.¡± ¡°Aww, thanks!¡± I say, blushing a bit under Vi¡¯s praise. ¡°Moving on,¡± she declares. ¡°[Student] and [Thrower] are easy to level up and provide useful attributes, but their skills don¡¯t help us much. [Scavenger] is another Awareness class but...well, take a look at it yourself.¡± With trepidation, I do just that. [Tier 0 Scavenger]* An opportunistic hunter, scrounging for anything and everything they can find to survive. Skill - Carrion Eater: Dramatically increased Resilience when consuming rotten or tainted food. Attribute Bonus: Awareness. Advancement: Consume the scraps left behind by other hunters. ¡°No,¡± I say firmly. ¡°It would give us a lot more options¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯m not eating dirty rotten half-eaten snail corpses!¡± Violet pauses for a long time before speaking again. ¡°There¡¯s a good chance we¡¯re going to have to end up doing that anyway,¡± she says solemnly. ¡°The food we¡¯ve got is only going to last so long, and there¡¯s no guarantee we¡¯ll manage to hunt anything before it starts going bad.¡± I pinch the bridge of my nose and sigh. ¡°Can we just...leave the garbage eating aside for plan B?¡± I ask. ¡°Or like...plan Q?¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Vi relents. ¡°I just thought you should consider it. If worst comes to worst...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just hope it doesn¡¯t come to that, okay? I don¡¯t want to think about it.¡± I sigh as I ponder the remaining options. It¡¯s pretty much just [Student], [Thrower], or [Hiker] and none of them are especially appealing. The first two I¡¯d only be taking for the attributes, and the third for my poor aching feet. If only there was something other than these gosh darn candles to help keep us warm. ... Wait a minute. ¡°Violet, I just had a crazy idea,¡± I say. ¡°Hear me out.¡± ¡°Okay?¡± ¡°Our only source of light and warmth are these magic candles all over the Labyrinth, right?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°In fact, they¡¯ve been so crucial, that it¡¯s probably safe to say that we¡¯d be dead if not for them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...not wrong, I guess,¡± she agrees hesitantly. ¡°I¡¯ve been complaining about them since day one, but I don¡¯t think that¡¯s fair. I¡¯ve been taking the candles for granted, when I should be appreciating them.¡± ¡°Oh, Allie, no,¡± she groans. ¡°Please don¡¯t tell me¡ª¡± ¡°I think I might even be willing to call myself a [Candle Enthusiast]!¡± 15. You Should Be a Scientist I giggle a bit at Violet¡¯s resigned sigh. ¡°Look, just hear me out,¡± I say, trying to suppress my laughter. ¡°I actually have a good reason for this. Look at the class...¡± [Tier 0 Candle Enthusiast]* A keen observer, seeking to discover the truth about candles. Skill - Candle Seeker: Never lose count of candles. Attribute Bonus: Awareness. Advancement: Deepen your understanding of candles. ¡°I¡¯m listening,¡± she says wearily. ¡°Okay, so the candle counting skill is useless, and we¡¯ll already have awareness covered once you finish your Survivor class.¡± ¡°[Survivalist],¡± Vi corrects me. ¡°You¡¯re not really selling me so far.¡± ¡°Shut up, I¡¯m not done yet! What¡¯s caught my attention is the description and advancement method.¡± ¡°Learning about candles?¡± she asks skeptically. ¡°What¡¯s there to learn?¡± ¡°Tons!¡± I insist. ¡°In fact, we don¡¯t know anything about them despite how important they are for our survival. Maybe if I can figure out how they work, I can get more warmth out of them, or use them to light fires.¡± ¡°I suppose.¡± ¡°And let¡¯s not forget that they are magical. Aside from the Laser Geckos, they¡¯re the most magical thing we¡¯ve seen here, and they are everywhere in the Labyrinth. Maybe it¡¯s possible to learn enough about them that I get a class that lets me do whatever they do.¡± ¡°Magic again, Allie?¡± she huffs. ¡°We¡¯ve talked about this.¡± ¡°I know! But it¡¯s not just because I think it¡¯s cool,¡± I insist. ¡°We need this, I know it.¡± ¡°Ugh, you really do deserve that [Orator] class,¡± she says. ¡°Okay. We¡¯ll try it. At least until I finish mastering [Survivalist]. We¡¯ll reevaluate then, fair?¡± ¡°Deal!¡± I assign the class, shuddering a bit at the alien feeling of something rooting around in my head. It¡¯s not as uncomfortable as it was the first time, but I¡¯ll never get used to that. I immediately tap into the new knowledge granted to me by the skill to take stock of the candles I have on me. One in my hand and two in each of the sixteen pockets lining the inside of the cloak give me a total of thirty three. Okay, I could have just figured that out myself with math, but I didn¡¯t have to! I just know. ¡°This skill...¡± I say, awestruck. ¡°What?¡± Violet asks, worried. ¡°Does it have some hidden effect? A drawback?¡± ¡°Nah, it¡¯s about as dumb as we thought it was,¡± I laugh. I pull out another candle as we head back to the Labyrinth, flipping it over in my hands. I¡¯ve already done quite a bit of experimentation with these things. Trying to use them as crayons, testing whether the flames burn hot, trying to break them. It feels a little unfair that none of that counted toward advancing the class. [Level up!] Candle Enthusiast is now level 1. +1 Awareness. I snort. I hope that doesn¡¯t mean that the [World Engine] is listening to my thoughts, but all things considered, it almost certainly is. Bleh, I don¡¯t want to think about it. I consider what other tests I can do while I walk. It doesn¡¯t smell like anything, and doesn¡¯t produce any smoke. I try chewing on it idly as I think¡ªnot too hard, so I don¡¯t break my teeth. It doesn¡¯t taste like much, either. I try nibbling on the wick, and while it¡¯s a bit more flexible I don¡¯t get much out of that except very slightly warmer lips. ¡°What are you, a baby?¡± Violet scoffs. ¡°Is your idea of scientific rigor just sticking things in your mouth to see what happens?¡± [Level up!] Candle Enthusiast is now level 2. +1 Awareness. I stick my tongue out, though the gesture feels a bit hollow without anyone to direct it at. I¡¯m sure she gets the point. ¡°It¡¯s working, isn¡¯t it?¡± I retort. ¡°I¡¯ve gotta start with the basics and work my way up.¡± ¡°Sure...¡± I pinch my nose as we make it back to the labyrinth. The goopy mess of decaying lizard guts certainly hasn¡¯t started smelling any better. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s more likely to turn away or attract other monsters, but either way I don¡¯t want to go anywhere near it. After a quick check to make sure our base hasn¡¯t been disturbed, I start making my way to the Map room. While I do, I try counting the formerly innumerable candles littering the halls. I¡¯m immediately met with a dull, throbbing pain behind my eyes. ¡°Ow! Ow! Ow! My head, ow!¡± I groan. Why does it always hurt?! ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Violet asks. ¡°Tried to count all the candles,¡± I explain. ¡°There¡¯s four hundred and eighty nine in this hallway, if you¡¯re interested.¡± The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°You counted them instantly?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I confirm. ¡°But at what cost?¡± Nursing my newfound headache, I don¡¯t try counting any more candles on the way to the map. Once there, I add the portion of the ledge we crossed as well as the Worm Tunnel leading back to the Twisted Cavern. I make a little mark to note that I¡¯m not actually able to cross the transition without climbing, then mark the unexplored sections continuing past the Worm Tunnel and in the opposite direction from the Gecko Corridor. I stand and wipe my brow, then hesitate at the day tally. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s been a day yet, as harrowing as it¡¯s been. Sure I ¡°slept¡± but that¡¯s because I passed out from pain. I wasn¡¯t actually out that long, according to Vi. I decide to leave it at four notches for now. ¡°Now what?¡± I ask Violet. ¡°Now nothing,¡± she answers tiredly. ¡°As eager as I was to try to secure more food, now that I¡¯ve had time to consider it, I was being hasty. The lizard meat we have is probably enough to last us until it goes bad. What we need most of all right now is rest.¡± It¡¯s hard to argue with that. I am exhausted. Four days straight of near-constant walking with nothing but lizard meat and freezing water is really wearing on me. Especially when every drink of water costs me a forty minute hike across rough stone in mostly bare feet. The makeshift footwraps can only do so much for me, and they¡¯re already starting to fall apart. I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯ve got all kinds of blisters and cuts by now, but I don¡¯t want to check. I take the chance to sit and relax for a bit. ¡°Who do you think we were?¡± I ask. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Like, before we ended up here,¡± I clarify. ¡°I can¡¯t remember any details, but I think I was a college student. I remember having a lot of friends and going to parties¡ªI just can¡¯t remember anything about the friends...or the parties.¡± ¡°I think I preferred being alone,¡± Violet answers. ¡°Just playing some games or reading in peace and quiet. Maybe with one or two close friends who I could just enjoy the company of without talking much.¡± ¡°Wow, I must be a huge pain then,¡± I chuckle. ¡°I never shut up.¡± ¡°No, you¡¯re...fine,¡± she says lamely. ¡°I don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°Well if it ever bothers you, just tell me,¡± I offer. ¡°I can¡¯t promise to turn off the chatter, but I can at least try to give you a bit of quiet time now and then.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± Speaking of which, maybe I¡¯ll do just that. To be honest, I was hoping for a bit more out of that conversation, but I can take a hint. I don¡¯t want to be too selfish, and while I¡¯m worried about her getting bored...well, I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll tell me. In the meantime, I need to keep myself from getting bored, so I turn my attention back to my new calling. Candles! I need to unlock their secrets before Violet finds something to hunt. I doubt it¡¯s going to take more than one successful hunt to finish off her class, and then it¡¯s gonna become my class, unless I can convince her that the candles are worth it. And also myself. This is a real hail mary, and I have absolutely no idea if it¡¯s going to pay off. I¡¯m hopeful, but I am not optimistic. I guess for starters, I can try counting the candles in the Map room. Although...this is a pretty big room, and the hallway leading here gave me a wicked headache. Maybe I can just do a little bit at a time? I try focusing on just a small section and while I do get a little ache, it¡¯s not too much to handle. I repeat that process for a bit, making my way around the giant central pillar as I count up all the candles strewn about the floor, sitting in alcoves on the walls, or even hanging off the high ceiling. One thousand five hundred and forty eight. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m supposed to do with that information, but that¡¯s how many candles there are in the Map room. I almost regret using the skill to count them. It takes the fun out of it¡ªnot that tediously counting over fifteen hundred candles would have been fun. Well, I¡¯m in no danger of running out. Let¡¯s see what I can learn... * * * I spend the next three days doing nothing but fiddle with candles, occasionally broken up by furtive trips to the stream and even more furtive trips to the bathroom. A lot of the things I discover are of questionable utility. The wicks are too short to tie candles together into links. If you pile enough candles up so that their flames overlap, it¡¯s a little bit warmer¡ªstill not enough to ignite cloth or even get uncomfortably hot to the touch, though. Doing so also makes the flames brighter, but not any bigger. Stuffing the cloak full of as many candles as it can contain...makes it very heavy. Violet vetoed the idea of stuffing all of our clothes full of candles because it is unwieldy, uncomfortable, and extremely stupid. However, a candle-flail is definitely on the table as a bludgeoning weapon, if we can find something better than our cloak to use as a sack. Candles do not make good pillows, but they do make passable wheels. They are, however, generally too short and blunt to use as pry bars. We tried moving the shell of the first snail we encountered, with limited success. I think it¡¯s slightly less of an obstruction now, but Vi says I¡¯m imagining it. Violet has insisted that I do not try swallowing a candle whole. She¡¯s probably right about that one, and I might need more sleep. Throughout the entire Labyrinth of Candles, there are a total of exactly sixty five thousand, four hundred and eighty six candles¡ªnot counting the ones I carry around with me or those that have been placed as markers within the caves. I do not know if this number has any significance, but I was bored. All of this rigorous research has earned me an entire one level. It took us four days to master two classes and nearly finish a third, and then we just hit a wall. Our tier one class hasn¡¯t even budged, and Violet¡¯s class has similarly struggled, as we¡¯ve yet to encounter another creature. The lizard meat is starting to get kinda sour, and my skinny jeans are a whole lot less form fitting than they used to be. Something needs to change soon, but neither Violet nor I have any idea what. As if I needed any more motivation to figure out a better source of warmth, there¡¯s one thing that I want more than anything else. Before palatable food or a soft bed, before sunlight, or games, or people other than Violet to talk to. I desperately need a bath. It¡¯s been an entire week, and a lot of that time has been spent walking around¡ªnot to mention sweating from pain and stress. There¡¯s no way around it¡ªI smell terrible. The only water we have available is freezing cold and moving too fast to swim in. I can¡¯t even wash my clothes because we have no way of drying them before we freeze to death. It¡¯s this desire that finally leads me to my first real breakthrough. While on one of our regular trips to get a drink of water, I¡¯m struck by a flash of whimsical insight. I take a pair of candles out of my cloak and plunge them into the water. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Violet asks. ¡°I have no idea,¡± I answer honestly. ¡°I want warm water. Candles have warmth, the stream has water, I¡¯m putting them together.¡± ¡°Incredible logic,¡± she quips sarcastically. ¡°You should be a scientist.¡± ¡°Shush,¡± I respond. ¡°I just want to see what will happen.¡± ¡°Nothing is going to¡ª¡± Violet cuts herself off as tiny bubbles start to rise from the underwater candle flames. It¡¯s not much, but it¡¯s something. I pull the candles out of the water, and find that they are now emitting little trails of smoke. The smoke is warm to the touch and leaves a moist layer of condensation on my hand. Not smoke, then¡ªsteam. I may not be as smart as Violet, but even I can tell that much. ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Violet says as I examine the steaming candles. ¡°They barely produce enough warmth to notice, but instantly vaporize water?¡± ¡°Apparently?¡± My response comes out sounding like a question. ¡°What does this mean?¡± ¡°I honestly have no idea.¡± [Level up!] Candle Enthusiast is now level 5. +2 Awareness. My eyes widen. ¡°Whatever it means, it was an important enough discovery to earn me two levels.¡± 16. Now Were Cooking ¡°So...¡± I muse, turning the candle over in my hands. ¡°I guess we can boil water now?¡± ¡°In theory,¡± Violet agrees. ¡°But we need a smaller, non-flowing source to test it on. Like a bowl or something.¡± ¡°We needed that anyway,¡± I point out. ¡°Maybe we can find a natural rock basin somewhere.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I still can¡¯t get over this,¡± Vi says. ¡°How?! That¡¯s not how the transfer of energy works.¡± ¡°Candles also don¡¯t burn lukewarm or stay lit underwater,¡± I argue. ¡°Nor do lizards shoot lasers from their eyes. We can¡¯t take anything for granted.¡± ¡°I guess not,¡± she says. ¡°But shouldn¡¯t the same thing have happened when you were chewing on them the other day?¡± I shrug. ¡°Maybe it did, and I just didn¡¯t notice. All I did was chew on the wick a little.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m saying this, but maybe you should try again? Just be careful¡ªthe candle might not be hot, but boiling steam is.¡± Eh, why not? I place a candle in my mouth, flame first, and roll it around for a bit, trying to get plenty of saliva in there and very pointedly not thinking about what it must look like. A few moments later, I withdraw a gently steaming candle and exhale a mouthful of visible vapor. ¡°Looks like it works!¡± I declare. ¡°How did you not burn your tongue?¡± ¡°Dunno,¡± I answer. ¡°Pretty neat, though, right?¡± ¡°I hate this. It makes no sense. That¡¯s not how physics is supposed to work.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what makes it magic, Vi,¡± I comment sagely. ¡°Alright,¡± Violet says, skipping from anger and denial straight to acceptance. ¡°Let¡¯s try something else. Can you cook meat with it?¡± Now it¡¯s my turn to be skeptical. ¡°Why would they be able to cook meat but not burn us?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, Allie,¡± she says dramatically. ¡°It¡¯s magic.¡± ¡°Okay, you got me there,¡± I admit. After returning from our hydration hike¡ªfollowed by a quick trip to the bathroom that feels a bit sisyphean¡ªI take out one of our last remaining bits of gross, mushy snail meat and grimace. Instead of drying out, it¡¯s somehow managed to get even softer and slimier after all this time. ¡°I still can¡¯t believe you ate some of this on purpose,¡± I say. ¡°It was a little more appetizing when it was fresh,¡± she lies. I furtively hold the candle¡¯s flame to the dead snail flesh and hold my breath as I wait for something to happen. After a moment, the slimy surface starts to bubble and steam, then I hear a gentle sizzle coming from the meat. I gasp in wonder, then instantly regret it as the smell hits me. I reflexively toss the rotten lump of snail and fall to my knees gagging. ¡°Ugh, blech, holy moley that is wretched,¡± I say, coughing and sputtering. Once I recover, I stare at the half-cooked lump on the floor and scowl. ¡°Vi, do you know what this means?¡± ¡°That these candles make less sense by the second?¡± ¡°It means we¡¯re friggin¡¯ idiots!¡± I shout. ¡°We¡¯ve been eating raw lizard meat all week for no good reason!¡± ¡°Ah,¡± she deadpans. ¡°Yeah, that is a little distressing.¡± [Level up!] Candle Enthusiast is now level 6. +1 Awareness. The comforting tingle of a level up does little to assuage my irritation. I never really expected to advance this class so far, and I hadn¡¯t even considered trying to master it. I¡¯m a little surprised when a second message appears in my head. [Level up!] Survivalist is now level 9. +1 [Warning: Invalid Reference]. Oh heck yeah! Love me some invalid reference. ¡°Looks like you got a level for that too,¡± I say. ¡°I¡¯ll probably master it if we can set up a cooking station of some kind.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s try it!¡± I head back to the Map room and sit down next to my biggest pile of candles. I spent about half a day just gathering as many of them together as I could, mostly because I was bored. They¡¯re not much better as a mattress than they were as pillows, but it¡¯s kinda cozy to sleep next to. I mean, for a stone floor with no furniture. I grab a few candles and start tinkering. My first idea is to use a pair of candles as ¡°feet,¡± then layer a bunch of them next to each other to make a little table. They roll around a lot, so it¡¯s not very stable and keeps falling apart. After a few more attempts, I manage to get them to stay put, though I¡¯m definitely going to need something better in the long run. ¡°Let¡¯s see...¡± I stick my tongue out to concentrate, slipping candles underneath my makeshift grill to serve as a ¡°heat¡± source. I double it up from the other side, overlapping the candle flames beneath the little table. This gives me a single line of little candle flames licking its way up through the gaps of my candle grill. ¡°This looks incredibly stupid,¡± Violet comments. She¡¯s not wrong, but I feel compelled to defend my handiwork. ¡°If it¡¯s stupid and it works, it¡¯s not stupid,¡± I retort. ¡°You¡¯ve yet to demonstrate that it works.¡± I hold up a finger to respond, then lower it and pout. She¡¯s got me there. I root through my uncomfortably smelly pockets, trying not to think too hard about the fact that I¡¯ve been carrying slowly rotting meat on my person at all times. Fishing out a reasonable looking cut of lizard meat, I gingerly lower it onto the precarious little table. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. For the first few seconds, nothing happens, and I¡¯m a little disappointed. But then I hear a faint sizzle coming from the meat, and little wisps of steam start to rise as it cooks. I whoop with joy at my success. ¡°Yes!¡± I cry. ¡° We did it! Now we¡¯re cooking!¡± The smell is...not great. The meat¡¯s not exactly fresh, and it¡¯s been sitting in my dang pocket all week. But it¡¯s not as stomach-churningly rancid as the snail was, at least. After a few minutes, I pick up the lizard filet and flip it over. Despite visibly cooking, it¡¯s still not actually hot. The cooked portions are also...kinda spotty? The places where the candle flame touched the meat have darkened slightly, but the areas around it are still raw. I guess with real cooking, the heat usually gets distributed through the meat, but magic candle cooking doesn¡¯t work that way. Still, after maybe thirty minutes or so of fussing over it¡ªand only occasionally having to rebuild the grill after accidentally jostling a load-bearing candle¡ªI¡¯ve managed to obtain one dry, rubbery, sort-of-cooked lizard steak. Well, maybe less of a steak and more of a vaguely meat-like chunk? It¡¯s not dry enough to be jerky, not moist enough to be steak, and smells like something between burnt chicken and floor cleaner. Not a roaring success, but I¡¯ll take it. ¡°Do you want to try it, or should I?¡± I ask. All this cooking has made me hungry, despite the unappetizing nature of the food itself. ¡°It¡¯s all yours,¡± Violet says. With trepidation, I take a small bite of the cooked lizard meat. It...doesn¡¯t taste good. But it also doesn¡¯t taste bad! It kinda just tastes like nothing. It¡¯s got a texture somewhere between well-done steak and beef jerky, but is otherwise bland and uninteresting. Which is honestly a pretty big upgrade from completely disgusting. [Level up!] Survivalist is now level 10. +1 [Warning: Invalid Reference]. Survivalist has reached its maximum threshold. [Upgrade] or [Fuse] the class to unlock further progression. ¡°There it goes!¡± I exclaim. ¡°Finally,¡± Violet sighs. ¡°Now I can switch to [Defender].¡± ¡°Hold on,¡± I say, frowning. ¡°How do we know you won¡¯t lose all your progress with [Survivalist] if you remove it now? I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s what happened when I got rid of [Student].¡± ¡°That¡¯s easy, try looking at the [Remove] option in your class.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to remove it yet!¡± I protest. ¡°Don¡¯t focus on it with the intent to do it, look at it like you would one of the mechanism¡¯s links.¡± I try doing as she says. Sure enough, the words appear in my head like any other link. [Remove] Removes a class from its slot. Progress will be lost unless the class has been mastered by reaching the maximum level threshold within its tier. ¡°Wait, really?¡± I ask. ¡°How long have you known about that?¡± ¡°Not long,¡± she admits. ¡°I started thinking about it when I realized how difficult it would be to increase any class past the second star-grade. There had to be some way to remove classes without losing their levels. [The Beaten Path] gave me an important reminder¡ªmastery. That turned out to be the key.¡± ¡°And you just...figured that all out and kept it to yourself?¡± ¡°I had nothing better to do while you experimented with candles,¡± Vi says. ¡°I figured I¡¯d let you know next time it came up¡ªwhich is now, I guess.¡± I guess I have been fronting a lot lately. Violet leads now and then when we go on our hydration hikes, but it¡¯s pretty much just been me in charge for the last three days straight. I¡¯d go out of my mind being stuck in the passenger seat that whole time, so I guess I should be grateful. ¡°So I guess you¡¯re expecting me to take Survivor now?¡± ¡°[Survivalist],¡± Violet corrects me. ¡°And I think that¡¯s our best course. It may take a while, but once I master [Defender] I think that they¡¯ll make a strong pair. Something focused on keeping us alive.¡± ¡°Okay, that doesn¡¯t sound bad,¡± I hedge. ¡°But if [Survivalist] is already mastered, then I don¡¯t need to take it, right? [Candle Enthusiast] gives me awareness anyway, and we can use the Foraging skill through [The Beaten Path].¡± ¡°I guess, but you¡¯d get more awareness from the mastered class, and every little bit counts.¡± ¡°I just want to try mastering [Candle Enthusiast],¡± I insist. ¡°I know you¡¯re not a fan of it, and maybe it does turn out to be a dead end, but I think I¡¯ve demonstrated that there¡¯s something to explore here.¡± ¡°I suppose,¡± she relents. ¡°Alright, you¡¯ve convinced me. You can keep the candle class for now.¡± Not that I really needed her permission, but it¡¯s good to be on the same page about it, at least. [Level up!] Unified Wanderers is now level 1. +2 Resilience. +2 Ego. Apparently the [World Engine] agrees, because that level up was paired with a much stronger version of the usual pleasant tingling sensation. Also holy frick! Four points for one level?! I mean, I guess I knew that was how it worked, but it¡¯s really starting to sink in how much stronger higher grade classes are. We really missed out with that angel class, didn¡¯t we? I almost regret refusing to take it, but it would have locked one of us down entirely and I didn¡¯t like the vibes it was giving me. ¡°Maybe we can even combine Survivor with [Candle Enthusiast],¡± I suggest. ¡°You¡¯re doing that on purpose now, aren¡¯t you?¡± Vi accuses. ¡°I don¡¯t like it. Stacking two awareness classes together would limit us a lot, and we need to be selective about what we merge into our primary class.¡± ¡°How do you mean?¡± ¡°Each new grade is exponentially more powerful, but also exponentially more difficult to achieve,¡± she explains. ¡°Realistically, anything past the third grade is going to be almost impossible to reach. Whatever we merge into [Unified Wanderers] next may well be the last. Since that class¡¯s attributes and skills are shared by both of us and it can¡¯t be removed, we need to be very deliberate about what we fuse it with.¡± ¡°Alright, but just because we make another grade two class doesn¡¯t mean we have to fuse it.¡± ¡°No, but it would mean tying up all of our Awareness investment into a single class that¡¯s rather narrowly focused on candle-related survival skills.¡± ¡°Hmm, fair point, I guess,¡± I concede. ¡°Maybe we can just take a look once we get there, in case there are some good options.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± she agrees. ¡°In the meantime, now that I have access to a fighting class I think we¡¯ve rested for long enough. It¡¯s time to get proactive about searching for a new food source.¡± Gah. I¡¯m not looking forward to that. As much as it sucks trying to choke down increasingly nasty lizard meat, I feel bad going out of our way to look for trouble. But I can¡¯t just rely on getting lucky enough to have edible corpses delivered to our doorstep. ¡°What¡¯s the plan?¡± I ask. ¡°We haven¡¯t run into anything else in a while. I bet we¡¯re scaring them off with our smell.¡± ¡°That is...distressingly plausible, actually.¡± ¡°Oh, I was just joking about needing a bath.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± she says. ¡°The plan is the same. I¡¯m going to leave [Survivalist] on to keep my Awareness as high as possible, then look for signs of life near the stream. Then it¡¯s just the opposite of how we found it in the first place. Follow the trails until we find newer ones, then follow those until we catch up.¡± ¡°Then what?¡± I ask. ¡°Isn¡¯t that just going to lead us to another snail?¡± ¡°Probably, but we¡¯ll be ready to kill whatever we find,¡± she says. ¡°Since the geckos prey on the snails, we might get lucky.¡± I have mixed feelings. The laser geckos have mostly left us alone so far, but the snails are much grosser and their shells are hard to deal with. Not to mention the stone spears¡ªif we get hit by one of those, we¡¯re done. The geckos have their laser eyes, but those take forever to charge up, so they probably aren¡¯t a concern. However, they¡¯re a lot more nimble, which makes them more dangerous in a straight-up fight, even if they are a little easier to kill overall¡ªespecially if we can get the drop on a docile one. Argh! I don¡¯t want to choose. Thankfully, I don¡¯t have to. This is Violet¡¯s project, and I¡¯m going to let her do it her way. ¡°Alright,¡± I say, closing my eyes and consciously trying to relinquish control. ¡°Lead the way.¡± It takes a few moments of concentration, but soon I rise to my feet, check my knife, and do the best I can to get our horribly tangled hair out of the way with just a few overworked hair clips. For once, we¡¯re not just trying to survive whatever this nightmare dungeon tries to throw at us. This time, we¡¯re pushing forward on our own terms. It¡¯s time to hunt. 17. Well That Sucks Hunting is an entirely novel experience for me, and even if it weren¡¯t, what little I know about hunting involves tracking animals through forests and then shooting them. Something tells me that I¡¯m not about to find a gun any time soon, so my knife will have to do. I wish I could make traps or something, but there¡¯s nothing down here but rocks and candles. Allison has admittedly gotten pretty creative with her weird candle construction, but there¡¯s only so much they can do. Though maybe I should stop thinking like that. They can do a lot more than I would have ever expected. I don¡¯t know how, though. There¡¯s too much that doesn¡¯t make sense. Why do they vaporize water and saliva, but not sweat? Why is the steam they create warm, but not hot? Why do they cook dead flesh but not burn us or scorch the rocks? We¡¯re missing something, I¡¯m sure of it. But figuring that out is Allie¡¯s job. Mine is keeping us alive long enough for her to do so. For now, I¡¯m keeping [Survivalist]. While I could keep the foraging skill with [The Beaten Path] the extra awareness will help a lot with tracking. I¡¯ll switch to [Defender] when it comes time to do the actual fighting. The stream is the obvious place to start. The one advantage to how barren these caves are is that anything alive down here has to depend on this stream¡ªjust like us. That¡¯s why we were able to find it by following the snail¡¯s tracks, and probably why a cold-blooded creature like the laser gecko would risk such a frigid part of the cave. I drink as much as I can while I¡¯m here, since I don¡¯t know how long this is going to take. Tracking is supposed to be pretty hard, and it might take as long as days to find my mark. Once my thirst is sated, I focus on the world around me. Recognizing my intent, my foraging skill activates, and everything gets a little sharper. The darkness recedes as my candle illuminates just a little more than it did before, and all the little disturbances in the rock seem to pop out. Rock Snails and Laser Geckos are definitely the main residents around here, but the more I look the more certain I become that they aren¡¯t the only residents. There are other types of tracks as well¡ªsharp indentations in the stone floor that could be mistaken for regular divots if not for the consistency of their size and depth. Something heavy, with limbs that taper off into sharp points. Absolutely nothing good comes to mind, and I make a mental note to watch for and avoid these kinds of tracks. Anything with legs hard and sharp enough to dig into solid stone like that is going to be dangerous. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to try to find a gecko,¡± I say out loud for Allison. ¡°Aww, but they¡¯re so cute, though,¡± she complains. ¡°And they¡¯ve never tried to hurt us.¡± ¡°I know, but Rock Snails are too risky,¡± I explain. ¡°One lucky hit with one of their spears and we¡¯re dead. Besides, I thought you¡¯d be glad not to have to eat any more snail meat.¡± ¡°Yeah, I am. It¡¯s just...I wasn¡¯t a vegetarian or anything, but it¡¯s a lot easier when the steak in the supermarket doesn¡¯t require you to kill a big adorable cow.¡± ¡°You have a very strange definition of adorable,¡± I reply sardonically. Allison gives me an indignant huff. ¡°Cows are so cute, though!¡± ¡°If you say so...¡± I let the conversation die there while I focus on singling out a set of gecko tracks. It¡¯s not easy¡ªthere¡¯s not much dust or debris around to disturb, and even with my skill helping it¡¯s hard to identify any given disturbance. I do manage to figure out one trick as I carefully scour the cavern around the stream for anything useful. Snails leave behind a trail of mucus when they move, which eventually dries out. The dried mucus leaves a subtle stain behind on the rock, and if I look closely enough I can identify which trails are more recent by the fact that they go over previously dried trails. Of course, I¡¯m not looking for snails, but with that trick I can look for gecko tracks in the most recent snail trails. It¡¯s not perfect, after about an hour of meticulous searching I manage to single out and identify a set of tracks that seems to be the most recent gecko to pass through. Or at least a gecko that¡¯s passed through since the most recent snail. Close enough. Once I¡¯ve identified the tracks, the [Foraging] skill makes it much easier to tell them apart from the rest of the noise. I was a little worried that hunting wouldn¡¯t fall within the domain of the skill, but I¡¯m glad that it does. I doubt there¡¯s much vegetation to be found in these caves. I follow the tracks out of the cave and into the tunnels. It¡¯s not very easy to keep track of them. It throws me off whenever they veer off to climb up onto the tunnel walls, where it¡¯s much harder to see any signs of their passage. Sometimes I lose the trail and have to spend a few minutes trying to pick it up again, hoping that I haven¡¯t accidentally started following a different animal entirely. The first real snag, however, comes when the tracks lead straight up a wall and into one of the unreachable tunnels near the ceiling. I stare up at the opening with my hands on my hips, frowning. ¡°Well that sucks,¡± Allison deadpans. ¡°It certainly does...¡± I could go back and pick another mark, but it took a long time just to find this one, and now that I think about it, any tracks I find are going to share the same problem. The Laser Geckos have much better freedom of movement thanks to their ability to climb, and the reason we¡¯ve run into so few of them is probably because they don¡¯t like to stay around here long. I have to find a way up there. It¡¯s not the same Worm Tunnel that we found before, so going around is out of the question¡ªand also I feel my heart rate rising at just the thought of braving the chasm again. It¡¯s not that high. Only around ten feet or so. That¡¯s still twice my height, but it¡¯s definitely scalable. Not a great time to be a short girl. ¡°Wait, why are you still staring at it?¡± Allison asks nervously. ¡°You¡¯re not thinking of climbing that, are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m considering it. It¡¯s low enough that we¡¯d be able to get back down pretty easily, and I might be able to pull myself up if I can just grab onto the ledge.¡± ¡°And how are you going to do that?¡± I stand up on my tip-toes and reach up as high as I can, getting about two-thirds of the way. I sigh. ¡°Okay, it might be a little tricky,¡± I admit. ¡°But I think it¡¯s worth trying, at least.¡± ¡°Just try not to get hurt.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I start by setting a few candles down to free up my hands, including one that I toss up to the ledge. Then, I check the wall. It isn¡¯t a sheer surface, but it¡¯s not exactly a straightforward climb, either. There aren¡¯t any good handholds within reach and certainly nothing that I could stand on for extra height. The cave is fairly wide here, so maybe I can get a running start and try to push off the wall that way. I¡¯ve never done anything like this before, so I¡¯m not sure it¡¯s even possible, but I think I¡¯ve seen people do things like that. Of course, those were trained athletes, not half-starved skinny ginger girls. Also, they had shoes. I start small, with a few gentle dry runs where I just jump up towards the wall and push back off with my foot. The rough surface isn¡¯t exactly comfortable, but the unevenness works in my favor. If I can practice hitting the right spot, I should be able to get enough traction to convert my forward momentum into a higher jump. ¡°I think I can do this. I only need a few feet.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way you can jump that high,¡± Allie replies. ¡°Not with my body. Running up walls is cartoon stuff.¡± ¡°No it¡¯s not,¡± I retort. ¡°It¡¯s physics. Your forward momentum can give you enough traction to get a little extra height.¡± Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. I do a few more dry runs to get a feel for the best spot to plant my foot. I¡¯m not sure how long I spend trying to get it right. It¡¯s hard enough to track the passage of time, and unfortunately jumping at a wall is probably the most fun I¡¯ve had all week. I slowly work my way up to jumping off the wall, taking more aggressive run ups with each attempt. Once I¡¯m comfortable enough with it, I go for my first real attempt. ¡°Here I go...¡± I sprint at the wall and jump from the exact spot that I¡¯ve gotten used to after what must have been hours of practice. Practice where I was running much slower. I immediately realize my mistake, but it¡¯s too late. The wall comes up too fast and I don¡¯t have enough time to plant my foot properly. Muscle memory kicks in and I try to push off anyway, but my center of gravity is off and my foot just slips across the rough stone, tearing open the skin and leaving nothing between me and the wall. I reflexively throw my hands up to protect my face, but it all happens too fast. I crash into the wall and a lance of pain shoots through my body. I turn my head in time to avoid a total faceplant, but my cheek still bounces painfully off the jagged rock, sending my glasses clattering to the ground. I collapse in a tangled heap with my cloak and curl in on myself, shaking from the pain all over my body. I try to hold in my voice, but that just turns what would have been a cry of pain into a weird sort of strangled whine. ¡°A-are you okay?!¡± Allie cries. The question makes me irrationally upset. Of course I¡¯m not okay! She knows that! We don¡¯t feel bodily pain directly when we¡¯re not fronting, but we still experience it like a memory. Everything hurts. I¡¯ve got scratches all over my body, I¡¯m winded from the fall, and I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯m lying on top of some candles. Most of all, though, I¡¯m embarrassed beyond belief! My face feels so hot that I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the cave was glowing red from my blush. I want to crawl into a hole and never be perceived again. I don¡¯t respond to Allison. I¡¯d just snap at her if I did, and that wouldn¡¯t be fair. Instead I try to control my breathing and focus on the here and now. Glasses first. I¡¯m dead without those. I pick myself up shakily and start feeling around for them, squinting my eyes in an effort to derive some semblance of meaning from the fuzzy blob of color that the world has become in their absence. To my surprise, one fuzzy blob in particular stands out a little bit, and it turns out to be them. I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯m lucky or if that¡¯s my Awareness at work. Either way, I¡¯ll take it. ¡°V-Vi? Hello?¡± With trembling hands, I hold the frames up and inspect them as best I can. One of the arms is bent out of shape, so I gently push it back into place, being careful not to stress the metal too much. Then I replace the glasses, only to notice that one of the lenses is missing. With a frown, I get back down on my knees and very carefully search for the missing lens. ¡°Violet, you¡¯re scaring me,¡± Allison whines. ¡°Please talk to me.¡± It takes me a few minutes to find the missing lens, and I sigh as I pick it up and very carefully press it back into the frame. ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I lie. ¡°Just misjudged the timing.¡± The lens snaps into place. With eyesight as bad as ours, the lenses are fairly thick and sturdy, so aside from a few scratches it actually came out alright. It¡¯s just as well that we¡¯ve got a nice practical pair rather than some of Allison¡¯s lighter, more fashionable frames¡ªor worse, contacts. We¡¯d probably already be dead if we¡¯d woken up with contacts. ¡°Don¡¯t ¡®I¡¯m fine¡¯ me,¡± Allie huffs. ¡°You¡¯re obviously hurt.¡± ¡°Then why ask?!¡± I snap, regretting it immediately. I shake my head and sigh when she doesn¡¯t respond. It¡¯s not her fault. I¡¯m the one that was stupid enough to think that some five foot nothing skinny college girl could pull off a difficult maneuver like that. I¡¯m not cut out for this any more than Allison is. I¡¯m no survivalist¡ªI¡¯m an imposter! I¡¯ve never so much as gone camping! I¡¯m just a nerd! I like numbers, games, and trivia. I enjoy challenges and puzzles¡ªcoming up with clever solutions to difficult problems. But not like this! I don¡¯t want to kill a stupid lizard any more than Allison does! I¡¯m terrified of fighting. I¡¯m sick of getting hurt and eating gross things. I¡¯m tired of sleeping on cold stone floors and waking up terrified that something is going to sneak up and eat me. We¡¯re going to die down here. I know we are, but I¡¯m too scared to accept it. I don¡¯t want to die, and I don¡¯t want Allison to get hurt. So I¡¯ll do what I have to do. I¡¯ll try my best until I don¡¯t have to pretend anymore¡ªor until I fail badly enough that it gets us killed. While I wait for my hands and legs to stop shaking, I check myself for injuries. I¡¯m bleeding from a number of superficial scrapes, and my jeans are pretty badly torn at the knees now. My cheek is sore from smacking into the wall, but the scratch there is already scabbing over. Will probably bruise really bad, though. Then I go over what I did wrong. I really did misjudge the timing, but that¡¯s not the only thing I could improve. Miraculously, my knife stayed tucked safely in my belt¡ªwhich has long since been returned to its regular spot around my waist now that my leg is mostly healed. But that could have been very bad. The cloak also ended up being a problem. It¡¯s kept us warm and given us a way to carry around all these candles, but it¡¯s also heavy and cumbersome. It got in the way when I tried to jump up, and I got twisted in it when I fell. If I try to fight wearing this, it¡¯s going to get me killed. ¡°Violet, can we talk?¡± Allison asks meekly. ¡°Sure,¡± I sigh, puzzling over what to do about the cloak. ¡°I think...maybe we should try something else.¡± ¡°Like what?¡± I ask, removing the cloak and trying to drape it over the ledge above. ¡°I¡¯m open to suggestions.¡± I manage to get it over the ledge, but some of the candles go flying out and it¡¯s too bottom heavy, so it just slips off. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Allie admits. ¡°I just don¡¯t want to get hurt. I¡¯m going to be feeling all those cuts and bruises too, you know.¡± I purse my lips. Who does she think I¡¯m doing this for? ¡°I understand,¡± I say, keeping my voice level. ¡°But if it''s between this and starving, a few cuts and bruises are well worth the effort. I made a mistake. I¡¯ve learned from it. That¡¯s what practice is for¡ªI¡¯ll be more careful next time.¡± I spot a particularly jagged bit of rock near the edge and try to hook the cloak onto it. I lose some more candles in the process, but after a few tries the rough threads catch fairly nicely. ¡°You¡¯re really going to keep trying this?!¡± she asks incredulously. ¡°I am,¡± I confirm. ¡°Once I recover some strength.¡± I¡¯m still shaking, and I¡¯m not sure how much of that is from the physical stress and how much of it is mental. I feel like such a fraud, trying to reassure her like this. I have no confidence, but I need to be strong. I can overcome this hurdle. I have to. ¡°If you¡¯re sure...¡± she hedges nervously. ¡°I trust you. Just be careful.¡± I want to point out that she already said that. That telling me to be careful after I¡¯ve already gotten hurt is pointless. That all she¡¯s doing is highlighting the fact that she doesn¡¯t trust me. I keep it all to myself. She¡¯s right to doubt me. I would be just as skeptical in her place. I don¡¯t deserve her trust, but I¡¯m grateful for it. I¡¯ll just have to try my best to earn it retroactively. By the time I finish gathering up all the candles I dropped, my body stops trembling and the pain of my previous failure has relaxed down to a dull ache. I carefully replace the candles in the pockets of the cloak before adding the knife as well. I¡¯m a little worried that the extra weight will pull it off the makeshift hook, but it manages to hold. At least something is going my way. I take a deep breath to psych myself up. Failure is part of practice, I remind myself. I got hurt once, but it taught me the lessons I need to prevent myself from making the same mistake again. This time, I do my practice runs at full speed, picking a spot away from the hanging cloak and using my hands to push off of the wall so that I¡¯m not just slamming into it. It takes a few attempts to get the timing down, and it¡¯s a lot more tiring to practice that way, but if anything I¡¯m even more confident that it will work now. I can get nearly a full second of hang time by holding onto the wall with my momentum. All I need to do now is transfer that momentum into an upward leap so that I can grab the ledge. I don¡¯t bother declaring the real attempt this time. I just go for it. I take a running start, jump at the wall, plant my foot perfectly this time, and push. The stones dig painfully into the ball of my foot, but the traction holds. I jump with everything I have. If I don¡¯t make it this time, I¡¯m not sure there will be a next¡ªI¡¯m already getting tired. I barely make it. The tips of my fingers catch the lip of the ledge above me and strain to hold my weight. I can¡¯t hold on like this for long, and I was too stupid to think ahead to this part. I just imagined that I¡¯d be able to pull myself up. I scrabble desperately against the rock wall, trying to find any sort of purchase to help lift myself up. I just barely manage to squeeze a toe into a crack long enough to adjust my grip on the ledge to be more firm, then pull. I don¡¯t weigh much¡ªI¡¯m five foot nothing and half-starved. The attributes probably help too¡ªI remember how much even the first few points of Awareness helped finding our way around down here. I¡¯m certain that we¡¯d have bled to death without the extra Resilience from Allie¡¯s class. With my two points in Power, I slowly raise myself up, scrambling to get a leg up high enough to lift myself all the way up into the tunnel. I don¡¯t think about how far down it is, or what would happen if I slipped and fell in such an awkward position. It¡¯s a fight between me, the ledge, and gravity. After what feels like minutes of struggle, I come out on top. I manage to hook my ankle up over the ledge and hoist the rest of my body up, rolling onto my back. I lay there for a moment, panting for breath and sweating from the exertion. ¡°Y-you did it!¡± Allison exclaims in disbelief. ¡°You actually did it!¡± ¡°I¡ª¡± I have to stop to catch my breath before I can properly respond. ¡°I told¡ªyou.¡± Honestly, I¡¯m as surprised as she is. That was a lot harder than I thought it would be, and I didn¡¯t exactly expect it to be easy. I¡¯m a little worried about getting back down, now, but I put that thought out of my head. I crawl over to the ledge and reach down, trying as hard as I can not to actually look over it as I fetch the cloak from where it¡¯s hanging. It takes me a moment of feeling around to find it, and for a second I¡¯m terrified that I accidentally knocked it down during my amateurish flailing to lift myself up. But it¡¯s still right where I left it, so I pull it up and wrap it around myself, relishing in its comforting warmth. Now that the adrenaline has worn off, I¡¯m really cold from taking it off, and the sweat probably isn¡¯t helping. Once I¡¯ve had a bit of time to rest and warm up, I pick myself up and start looking for the tracks again. I¡¯ve still got a job to do, after all.