Strange Happenings

Chp 73

When the hero party went to sleep, I decided to check in on the pair they'd left on the surface. The human woman and what I found out was a Lepusan after some research. Standing relatively short for her kind at six feet, she was an interesting blend of human and rabbit-like features. One of the many species attributed to the goddess Lorrel, whom the mountain range was named after.

Her face was human primarily in appearance though the construction of the nose was broader and flatter than a human’s, with leathery moist skin at the end of it. She had rabbit ears in a strawberry blond matching the fine fur covering her head and what I could see of her legs. Those were the least human aspect of her aside from the ears. Her legs were digitigrade and ended in rabbit paws.

I'd have been lying if I tried to pretend she wasn't one of my major points of interest. I had built a temple for Lorrel, but was pretty curious about what someone who actually worshipped her would think of it. So the idea of baiting the pair over for a look as a test case was deeply tempting.

The pair was sitting in the farmhouse sharing a lovely dinner, courtesy of Elim's fake family. There was an odd tension between them. The human woman had trouble moving around in candlelight but resented the Lepusan trying to help her. It had a weird lovers quarrel kind of atmosphere to it.

"Mira, you really need to rest more. I doubt we'll have an easy time in the desert after this," the Lepusan woman said, as I spied on them with my security feed. I tilted my head, a little confused by her solicitous attitude toward the woman. I hadn't missed the collar around her neck or the matching key this Mira had. That did not sit well with me.

That I could hear them talking also sunk in. That was different, to say the least. It also lacked a ready explanation. I did a quick check and found I still couldn’t hear anything when I looked in on the Hero party. I put that on my list of weird things to figure out eventually.

"I don't want to rest. We should have left already. We have to leave in the morning. The others might turn back, and if they do, I don't think I'll be able to resist the control," Mira replied. That had 300% of my attention.

"Hey, Aaron, can you cast a sleep spell?" I asked as an idea occurred to me.

"Yes?" He said, not looking up from whatever he was working on. We were the only ones left in the Necropolis's bleachers. Everyone else had filtered out after the hero's party had settled into a safe zone for the night. Not that I could blame them. Aaron remaining felt less like a conscious decision and more him just forgetting where he was.

"I might have some shenanigans for you and Chris later," I replied. I had an idea, but I wasn't sure about it yet. Aaron made an irritated click but didn't stop what he was doing or leave. Mira and Hetcha had been locked in a staring contest while I chatted. I waited for someone to give in and hopefully provide an exposition dump.

"We'll leave in the morning if you rest properly," Hetcha said finally. Predictably they didn't deign to enlighten me as to what the fuck was going on any further and went to bed. Together. Well, that did explain the tension, if not the collar.

I closed the security feed. I wasn't keen on getting an eye full of questionable romance.

"Hey, Aaron," I called to get his attention. It took a moment, but he looked up, irritable.

"I want to know what's up with that collar. So I figure you can cast sleep on them so they can't wake up and examine it. Take it off if you can safely. Maybe figure out if they have anything worth copying on them," I said. Aaron looked like he was going to protest, then seemed to change his mind and become thoughtful.

"Do I really need to take Chris?" Aaron asked sourly. I had to fight down a chuckle. Aaron objecting to someone like that felt like a pot and kettle kind of thing. Most dungeon denizens weren't terribly fond of either of them.

"Look, he has a particular set of skills," I started, not making it easier to keep from laughing.

"So put up with him for a bit, and maybe you'll get something interesting to research," I added quickly. Aaron looked away but not to his book, pouting from what I could tell. Reluctantly he nodded in the end.

"Thank you," I said after I floated over to give him a pat on the shoulder. He didn't flinch but looked surprised, if not outright startled.

"Sorry, that's not something you're okay with?" I asked. I'd assumed in Henry's case and didn't want to make that mistake again. It could have been that I'd offered the gesture, but it might have been the gesture itself or that Aaron didn't like to be touched at all.

"I don't even understand what it was. I thought you were going to hit me, but… That was a sorry showing," Aaron said, perplexed.

"Uhm, that was a shoulder pat. It's a friendly gesture where I'm from. It's not meant to hurt or anything," I explained. That a shoulder pat didn't translate hadn't really occurred to me. Aaron cocked his head to the side as his confusion deepened.

"Then when you put your arm around someone?" Aaron asked.

"A hug, usually. Which is also friendly and not meant to hurt either," I explained. It was a little too simple, but the nuance of touch wasn't easily explained. Of course, you could be a dick and make either gesture hurt, but that wasn't the intended use, as it were.

"I see. So you're attempting to be affectionate when you do things like that," Aaron summarized. I flinched a little internally. That sounds like a bit more than I was going for, but it wasn't exactly wrong.

"Yeah, though I'll stop if you prefer. Like I said, it's supposed to be nice, not uncomfortable or painful," I clarified.

"I don't particularly care. I just found it odd… I suppose I should go find Chris if we're going to fulfill our mission," Aaron said, flatly changing topics.

"Yep, sounds good. I'll put you both directly outside the farmhouse once you explain things to him," I said simply. No sense in making things stay awkward longer than they needed to be. It didn't take long for Aaron to return with Chris in tow.

Chris was excited to have a mission and only mildly disappointed it wasn't an assassination like he was first hoping. I observed once I placed them outside the farmhouse but was pleasantly surprised. They both behaved in what I was willing to call a professional manner.

I zoned out once Mira and Hetcha were put under the sleep spell. My head had started to hurt, though it wasn't severe, just a faint throbbing pulse just at the edge of my awareness. It was honestly more distracting than painful. Also, there was a flicking in my vision. Something like symbols that felt familiar, but made me feel nauseous if I tried to place them.

"42?" Henry's concerned voice broke through my thoughts. I found him right in front of me, looking panicked. A hand on my cheek and the other on my shoulder as he peered at me.

"Oh! Hi?" I sputtered, not sure what the fuck was going on. There was no way he'd gotten this close without me noticing, even using a movement ability. Something was wrong.

"You didn't answer when I called out or even shook you," Henry said, seeming relieved but still worried.

"I… I was just lost in thought," I lied, though I couldn't explain why. I shouldn't have lied, but the more I tried to think of what the truth was, the more it slipped from my grasp.

"That was more than l-lost," Henry countered.

"Well… oh fuck," I said, realizing I had three missed messages and two missed calls. All of them were from Aaron and Chris.

"W-What?" Henry asked, worried.

"Chris and Aaron were outside, but I didn't get their messages. I need to," I cut off at the sound of the mirror rippling. Aaron and Chris walked in through it.

"We walked back," Chris said tersely as he walked past me toward the Necropolis. Like a rude little shit. I felt something as I saw his retreating back that I wasn't accustomed to.

Anger. Not at the fact that he was rude, but that he dared to feel anything at all. As if his ability to be a petulant little bastard weren't a gift he was unworthy of.

"Aaron, this isn't right!" Henry said sharply. I looked at him and saw stats, flaws. Everything weighed and measured and found wanting because why should I accept something less than perfect into my service? This was my domain, and it would be as I desired.

I could see it taking shape, the dungeon I was meant to have. An intricate labyrinth of breathtaking beauty to entomb all who trespassed. One full of monsters who would do as they were meant to rather than behave in the frivolous manner of the living.

A fucking murder hole as silent as the grave to go insane inside of while I toiled alone for eternity or until my core shattered.

"Fuck. That," I growled, hands clawing at my own head. Chris was mad because I'd fucked him over, and Henry was fine how he was. I'd take the messy imperfection of good company over the alternative.

No, not quite my own head. I was clawing at something, no, someone. They looked remarkably like me and fought back ferociously. Only that vision shimmered, and I realized I was on my back, unmoving despite the vision of a struggle.

"I have no idea what's going on," I heard Aaron say in a hushed and worried voice. It sounded strange coming from him.

"Her flames turned red earlier- Look, they're normal again," Henry said. I had a moment of vertigo as I looked at him as he leaned over me and from a higher angle. Like I was seeing him both with my orbs and from the security feed without the interface. He was holding me with an arm behind me, supporting my head and neck. His other hand was entwined with mine. Aaron was kneeling on the other side, looking confused and more than a little helpless.

"I'm… Something… Awake," I offered. Henry helped me sit up, and I found he and Aaron weren't the only ones present. Really, it looked like the entire population of the Necropolis had shown up. I wasn't sure what to say but was cut off by an unexpected sight. The hero party lined up at the mirror, seeming to look in curiously.