Chapter 16 [Loading | Kyle]

Despite how tired he was, Kyle could hardly contain his excitement as he read the Ability description in his Grimoire.

[Innate Ability | True Sight]

[Tier | 0]

[Stage | 0]

[Mastery | 3]

[IAP | 0/1]

[The Host has seen beyond the physical realm and can now sense that which was once out of reach]

[Effect 1 | Host has the potential to sense Energy within a specific range.]

[Governing Attributes | Vigor. Vitality. Force.]

[Range | 0.045 yards.]

[Effect 2 | Host has the potential to sense Mana within a specific range.]

[Governing Attributes | Force. Intuition. Acuity.]

[Range | 0.087 yards.]

It ain’t much, but… Kyle caught a flicker of blue from the corner of his vision, but when he turned to look, it was gone. Soon after, another followed, but this time he didn’t jerk his head to catch it. He simply stared forward without looking directly at the mist that swirled toward him. A moment later, he felt it lightly brush against his shoulder.

Stuff’s a lot easier to feel’n it is to see. That’s all well an’ good… but now it’s workin’ I can feel my Core throbbin’ like a heart in my head. Knowin’ it was crammed in there an’ feelin’ it movin’ like any ol’ part o’ me are two different things.

He glanced at Maeve, who’d grown bored of the blue and purple flame and was trying to look farther down the tunnel. It didn’t seem she’d gained anything from looking at the magic fire—likely due to her not yet having True Sight.

“Good to go?” Kyle whispered.

Leah nodded and looked behind him. “I don’t think I can get anything else from it… and it looks like there might be more of them further down. Should we take one?”

“We oughtta leave ‘em fer now…” He rubbed his chin and looked back up the curving slope. It was getting dark out, so if anyone happened to poke their heads in the tunnel, they’d probably see the light. “Ehh… I Reckon we prolly should, but let’s see what’s waitin’ down yonder first. If’n it’s clear, we’ll run back up and snatch ‘em so’s maybe no one’ll foller us. I wanna try an’ lock this here place down ‘fore we go gettin’ others o’er here. Reckon if we need help to do it we can stick a couple o’ ‘em on the hills tomorrow night an’ hope some o’ the better folks spot ‘em.”

“That… sounds a bit risky…” Leah commented while holding onto Maeve’s shoulder to keep the little girl from poking her head too far out.

“It is,” Kyle agreed. “But I ain’t keen on thinkin’ we can do everythin’ourselves. I know a bit here an’ there, but I ain’t no master carpenter… I ain’t a smith… an’ I ain’t got no green thumb. Course, I ain’t in no rush fer nothin’ ‘cept to get to Greyson. We oughtta make sure we’re way ahead ‘fore we go attractin’ other folks, then once we got you an’ the kids set up I can try an’ find ‘em. I’m hopin’ whatever we find in here’ll help us do one or the other. Iroh still seems purdy certain it can. Them flames already got my hopes high.”

“Daddy hurry up,” Maeve complained while still trying to stretch her neck to see around the curve. She didn’t whisper, and her voice carried in the empty space.

“Alright, alright. Keep yer voice down.” He gently flicked her forehead. “We ain’t got no way o’ knowin’ what’s lurkin’ down there. Now, stay with yer ma. Leah, I’mma go on ahead but I want ya to keep where y’all can see me.”

Leah nodded and Kyle readied the short cudgel while proceeding down the tunnel at a brisk pace. They’d gotten distracted by the flame, and their conversation—though brief—reminded him that this wasn’t a situation where they could afford to relax. Not until they knew more. He glanced at his Grimoire and the timer that was slowly ticking toward the end of the transition period.

[4h 22m 40s.]

Ain’t got long to go. Assumin’ that’ll be midnight… means it’s almost eight now. We ought not have to worry ‘bout anyone stumblin’ on this place o’er night. Already getting’ dark an’ it oughtta be near pitch in the next half hour. No lights… bet the stars’ll be somethin’ special.

Squelch Squelch

Kyle slowed down and pressed himself against the wall, then waved for Leah and Maeve to do the same. It’d been quiet since the last two Slimes had passed them, so the sudden noise felt out of place. He crept forward, passing two more sets of torches before spotting what he assumed to be the end of the path. The tunnel they were following stopped abruptly and a stream of blue light spilled onto the walls and floor from an opening to the left.

From what he could see, the opening didn’t look special in any way. Of course, he wasn’t sure what to expect from this place. He’d been half-expecting to run into a decorative door or some kind of portal leading deeper into the Domain.

But… no. It seemed the tunnel just stopped and turned off into another area. He closed his eyes and listened to the movements of the Slimes within.

Or maybe… Slime? Don’t tell me there ain’t but one in there.

His brow furrowed in confusion, then he took a few steady, quiet steps, hugging the wall until he was standing next to the entrance. Slowly, he poked his head around the corner… and nearly toppled over in surprise when he saw what was waiting for them.

“What…”

All pretense of stealth was lost in the wind as he stumbled to the center of the entryway to get a better look at the place. Much like the tunnel they’d walked through, the cavern seemed to be natural… mostly. Though the walls were rough and jagged in some places, the inside formed something close to a cylinder. There were a few stalactites hanging from the ceiling with one so long it met the floor, forming an oddly shaped pillar off to one side.

Though the space alone was an awesome sight, that wasn’t what had rendered Kyle speechless. No. His eyes were set on the back wall, directly opposite the entrance. Instead of coming face to face with some monster or magic portal like he’d been prepared for, he was looking at what could only be described as a medieval boutique… only… built by a caveman… and with a mix of modern and ancient material.

“Kyle! What is it?” Leah hissed, causing him to snap out of his daze to look her way. She was struggling to hold Maeve with her free hand while clutching Rowan against her chest with the other.

“I…” He took another look inside before answering. “I ain’t really sure… but, y’all can come on. Just… stay close fer now. Whatever this fuckery is… it ain’t somethin’ the Slimes did.”

“What are you…” Leah gave him a curious look, but trailed off when she finished rounding the bend.

“Daddy… think they have chicken tenders?” Maeve asked, oblivious to the absurdity of what they were looking at.

“Ha… Hahaha!” With that question, all the tension that had built up in Kyle over the last several hours faded away. He tousled his daughter’s hair, earning a glare from the girl, then proceeded toward the Bojangle’s sign that glowed with the same odd blue light as the torches hanging from the wall beside it.

The sign was embedded in the stone above one of two… stalls—both of which were carved into the rock face and extended back several yards. At least, they looked like stalls as far as he could tell. The one on the left—below the glowing sign—was open, and he could see stone shelves lining the outer walls with miscellaneous objects on them. There was no way to enter unless they jumped over the stone counter that stretched across the opening.

As for the other stall, it was dark. There was no sign above it, there were no lights, and what was visible of the interior was empty. Unlike the first space, which had a counter stretching across, this one was shaped like a long U that stretched into the open area, and a single, massive stone block the height of a table had been placed in the center. It reminded him of the layout of a strip mall jewelry store.

Between the two, there was a dark space not much larger than a door. Kyle squinted and tried to see what was inside as they walked closer, but all he could see was an inky black. Two similarly dark passages were carved into the wall on either side of the two strange rooms.

Strange, he thought. Reckon my thinkin’ a portal o’ some sort’d be in here won’t too far-fetched. Ain’t no way them’s just normal holes.

Squelch Squelch

“Hold up.” Kyle stopped and held his arm out to stop his family from going any farther. After a quick scan of his surroundings—he’d read too many novels and wouldn’t risk any hidden Slimes dropping from the ceiling to attack his family once he’d ventured off—he determined that there were no hidden threats, then proceeded with his advance.

The cavern was huge—about half the size of one of the local high school gymnasiums—and they’d only made it to the center. It was far enough that, even though he knew the sound was coming from one of the five locations, he couldn’t tell which. Once he’d closed the distance, however, it became clear that the Slime was hiding somewhere behind the counter in the lighted room.

Still ain’t but one of ‘em. An’ seein’ how it’s behind the bar here, I reckon there ain’t nothin’ to worry about. Gotta be a low Stage anyway if’n it’s too small to see.

Feeling less apprehensive about the situation, Kyle approached the stone divider and leaned over it to try and find the culprit. He found several large piles of what he could only consider junk taking up nearly the entire space of the floor. In the piles he could see books, clothes, figurines, tools, bags, pillows, and many other random household items that looked completely out of place.

It took a minute to spot what he was searching for. Crawling around the base of one of the shelves was a small Slime—slightly larger than a beach ball—but it was unlike any he’d seen up to this point. Instead of any of the usual colors, this one was almost perfectly clear, and he could see an old boot within its membrane that it promptly spit out onto one of the lower shelves. As if it were second nature, he examined the creature and then turned to his Grimoire.

[Slime | ???]

[Genus | ???]

[Tier | ???]

[Health | ???]

[Energy | ???]

Hey, uhh… Iroh..? Did somethin’ happen to Appraisal or is this lil guy somethin’ I ought not to fuck with? Kyle sent his thoughts to the tome. He wasn’t sure what to think. The Slime wasn’t very big and should have only been a late Stage Two or early Stage Three if he had to guess.

[Nothing quite so serious. Why don’t you reach your hand out toward one of the shelves?]

Reach my..? Kyle looked at the book suspiciously, and he could almost imagine Iroh grinning at him. He examined the objects on the shelves, and with his focus no longer being so pointed, he could see that there were many items of interest.

The shelves closest to him held stacks of poorly folded rags, sticks, rocks, and other random odds and ends that didn’t make a lot of sense to him. Farther away, there were pieces of clothing that looked like they’d been cut from old sacks. Behind those were a few pairs of jogging pants and various farming tools leaned against the wall.

The pattern continued to the back wall, where he could make out stacks of jeans, pieces of clothing and armor that looked like they’d belonged to a cosplayer, similarly crafted weapons, backpacks, and some other odds and ends. As for the strange Slime, it didn’t seem to be paying him any mind. It just dragged itself between the piles and shelves, slurping up random items before depositing them on a shelf and then going on its merry way.

Oh man, clothes. Could damn sure use a pair o’ boxer shorts. An’ a buncha tools an’ campin’ gear, too. With this, we could…

His thoughts trailed off when he considered what Iroh had suggested he do. Almost instantly, his plans were shut down as he realized it wouldn’t be as easy as he first thought. Kyle walked to the end of the counter and reached across to grab one of the tattered rags—which he only now realized was an old, shredded tunic or poncho of some sort.

Just before his fingers crossed the threshold that separated the cavern from the little boutique, they ran into a strange, gel-like substance that completely halted his movements. It was cool to the touch, and no matter how hard he pushed against it, he couldn’t get any closer to the cloth. As if to mock him, the little Slime stopped and jiggled slightly before going back to whatever it’d been doing.

“Hahhh… So much fer thinkin’ we’d hit the jackpot,” Kyle groaned, no longer bothering to keep his thoughts within. If the Slime hadn’t attacked him after that, he didn’t feel he needed to worry about it. “That there’s the same feelin’ I get when I try grabbin’ one o’ them Slime’s Cores ‘fore whittlin’ down their Health first. Like… some kinda mix between jelly’n rubber.”

[That is a powerful barrier, and this is the Domain Shop I spoke of. There should be an impression on the center of the counter before you. Locate it to access the Shop’s Interface.]

Kyle clicked his tongue when he realized that all the gear displayed in front of him was for show, but at least it gave him an idea of what to expect. It also didn’t lessen his excitement at the prospect of interacting with an actual fantasy shop. He turned and gave Leah a thumbs up before waving her over. Maeve took off first, slipping past Leah before her mother could grab her hand.

He sighed and shook his head, noting that he’d have to scold her once they found a spot to settle into. It was hard to tell how much the little girl understood about their situation, but she obviously didn’t find it as dire as she should.

Reckon I can’t blame her… hell, I’m prolly just as excited about all o’ this as she is. Killin’ monsters. Getting’ stronger. Shit’s like a dream come to life.

“Girl ya can’t be runnin’ off like that,” he said seriously when his daughter got closer. “What if somethin’ jumped out from one o’ them rocks fore ya got here an’ me or yer momma couldn’t get to ya in time?”

“I didn’t think…” Maeve looked down at her feet and shifted awkwardly. He reached out and gently lifted her chin so that he was looking in her eyes, which were already starting to water.

“It’s alright, Littles. But ya gotta be more careful, okay?” Kyle smiled and patted her head. “I just don’t want nuttin’ to happen to ya. It won’t be so awful once I get some o’ this figured out an’ can help ya use yer points. Ya think ya can be patient fer a bit longer?”

“Yes, sir.” She nodded rapidly. “I’ll be good. I promise!”

“That’s my girl.” Kyle’s smile broadened and he turned back to the counter and quickly found the impression that Iroh had mentioned. It was rectangular in shape and the perfect size for any of their Grimoires. Notched in the stone on either side of it, designs much like those around the edge of the Grimoire’s pages ran along the counter before branching off and dispersing between the many shelves within. “Right, let’s see what this here’s all about.”

He scratched his beard and traced his finger along the edge of the impression. As soon as he touched it, his Grimoire hovered to the forefront of his vision where he could see a prompt neatly inscribed on the open page.

[Welcome, Host, to the Tier 1 Domain, Unnamed. Interact with Domain Shop? Y/N]

“S’long as it won’t hurt nuttin’, sure,” Kyle agreed. The tome closed, then floated gently down until it was nestled snugly within the sunken section of the stone counter. Once it was seated, the light in the shop pulsed, and the chiseled-out circuits along the back wall started to glow dimly. He watched as one line after another was illuminated by the slow-moving substance.

Mana, I reckon. Kyle felt a hand grab onto his and looked away from the phenomenon to see Leah standing next to him. He laced his fingers between hers and nudged his head toward the back wall. “Remind ya of somethin’?”

“Oh, hush!” Leah chided him but couldn’t hide her blush or the spark in her eyes as she recalled some of their earlier days. She squeezed his hand gently, then scoffed and looked away when she saw the sly smile he was giving her.

Kyle chuckled and turned his attention back to the shop. The lights reminded him of some of the decorations they’d had in their bedroom many years before… when some of Leah’s old friends would stay from time to time. Of course, they’d put an end to that after having kids, but the memories remained.

“It looks like a computer booting up,” Leah commented.

Kyle nodded, then glanced down at Maeve to make sure she wasn’t about to wander off. Thankfully, the usually inattentive little girl was watching the scene with rapt interest. Seeing that everyone was fine, and it would take a few minutes for the process to finish, he turned his back to the shop so he could keep his eyes on the entrance and took a seat.

“Ahhhh,” Kyle sighed in relief and leaned against the stone wall beneath the counter. Man, this sucks. It’s like my whole body has that second day soreness after havin’ pushed too hard in the gym. I ain’t felt like this in years.

He bent forward to stretch and touch his toes, but only managed to reach just below his kneecap. Damned belly. Reckon I’ll have to lose it sooner rather’n later. Why the hell am I hurtin’ so much? Cause the adrenaline’s stopped? Could be it’s my Energy bein’ plum out… or my Health not bein’ full… There damn well better be somethin’ to help understand all this in a few hours. Not that I can do shit about it if’n there ain’t.

Kyle sighed again and rubbed his burning eyes with his filthy hands. “I need a shower.”

“You and me both,” Leah agreed, smiling down at him.

He looked up and frowned. “Why don’t ya set Rowan down? Ain’t yer arms tired yet?”

“Hmm?” Leah scrunched her brow and looked at the little boy in her arm, then moved her neck and shoulders. “No. I feel fine. Tired if anything. It certainly feels like I’ve been up for more than nine or so hours.”

“How’s yer Energy?” Kyle asked curiously.

“Mmm…” Her Grimoire’s pages shuffled, and he could see her eyes moving back and forth along the lines. “Eighty-two out of four hundred ninety-five. And since I’m sure it’s your next question, my Health is at a hundred sixty-nine out of two sixty-five.”

“So… still o’er half yer Health an’ low on Energy.” His mind felt muddled as he tried to fight against the sleep that threatened to overtake him. “I reckon yer tired an’ I’m exhausted ‘cause o’ our low an’ depleted Energies. I’m prolly so sore ‘cause my Health is nearin’ a quarter its total.”

After a moment of silence, Leah spoke again, “What I don’t get is why we aren’t hurt.”

“What ya mean?” Kyle raised an eye.

“I mean that even though I’m nearly at half of my Health, I’m in no way half-dead,” she responded. “Other than my skin being burnt around my arms and a few other places, I’m mostly fine. Every hit I’ve taken so far has just been… surface damage, for lack of a better term. Your pain tolerance has always been ridiculous in the first place, so you probably couldn’t tell, but the acid from those Slimes hurts. I’d compare the worst of it to having boiled water poured on you. They should’ve easily caused second-degree burns. Third if it sat long enough. All of my wounds are bad first-degree burns, at most.”

“That right?” He held up his hand to get a closer look. Every inch of his skin was covered in so much dried and crusty ooze that he couldn’t tell whether what his wife had said held true for him. As far as he was concerned, nothing the Slimes could throw at him had been nearly as painful as his Awakening.

Pop

A sudden and loud pop—much like the sound of busting open a bag of chips—echoed in the open chamber. Kyle shot to his feet, stumbling back slightly before catching himself against the counter’s edge. Leah had already dragged Maeve against her thigh and was looking around for the source of the noise.

“There!” She pointed at the floor not too far from us, just in front of the dark opening between the two stalls. Kyle followed her gesture and saw three tiny Slimes awkwardly struggling to disentangle themselves from the others. He stepped forward and used the wooden cudgel to swiftly dispatch the three monsters before claiming their Cores.

“Ain’t but a few Stage Ones,” he said, scratching his temple with the tip of the weapon. He glanced at the dark space beside him before backing away. It felt eerie. A cold draft seemed to constantly flow from the space and even standing right next to it he couldn’t see what lay beyond. Thinking of how the Slimes had just appeared suddenly, he felt more assured in one of his first guesses. Definitely gettin’ portal vibes.

“That’s a relief,” Leah responded, then made a tsking sound when she caught Maeve looking curiously between the two holes. She shook her head. “Looks like whatever Iroh was doing has finished. We’ll be sitting by this pillar over here away from the mystery hell gates.”

Kyle chuckled and glanced at his Grimoire, which was glowing slightly now that what he assumed was Mana had finished filling the carved pathways. “Y’all do that. I’mma get a feel fer this here an’ I’ll let ya know what’s what in a minute.”

He watched them walk away and get settled down before approaching his Grimoire. “Alrighty there, Iroh. Lay it on me.”