Instead of heading to the next row of the diamond, we waited for the island to turn and explored the other room we could have taken. It was an entrance like space complete with directions that made no sense over a broken signboard for workers to clock in.

Take the left to Defunct Cavern! Right to the Rest Hall Undone! Straight ahead for Pointless Inwards.

From the left and right, we got two Gremlin Brutes rushing towards us. I tested my much easier to handle shield. These used pipes and bricks as weapons which made fighting them a little hard than the normal Gremlins. One duck to my left and tried to get Maria. King was a wall that drew attention long enough for Maria to strike the monster.

King grappled and the thing smashed his brick into King, crushing one of his feelers. At the sight, I became pissed and clubbed the brute before me. His face burned before I hit it with another Shield Smash.

I grabbed the fallen brick and used Discard. I was worried the item might not work due to being bigger than my hand but a section broke off and shot into the back of the remaining Gremlin. Maria pulled the creature with a yank of its foot with her chain giving King a chance to lean down and snapped his mandibles over the exposed neck.

The fight ended with the audible crack.

I rushed over and gingerly examined King. He didn't seem too bad but his sense of direction was heavily favoured to his right with his undamaged feeler.

"Ah buddy, I'm sorry. Here let me resummon you," I said and dispersed King and brought him back in another poof of smoke. King's feeler was still... broken but it didn't look as bad.

I grimaced. I was hoping for a cheap instant heal for King if he ever got hurt but it looked like it was more like a small restore instead. Maria bent down and tore a bit of her sleeve. She gently wrapped it around the feeler to hold it up.

The black material was obviously against the white body but King seemed to appreciate it as his feeler moved with more confidence. He would heal overtime but having medical supplies would help.

"We need a healing ability," I said causing Maria to pause.

"I just got amateur first aid?" she offered and that was a step in the right direction but I checked over the corpses. I was hoping for a green gem but there wasn't anything there.

We didn't have a heal and I could not taunt. Well, I didn't need a gem for that. I just had to smack talk some monsters and do it normally.

"Let's search and see if we get lucky," I suggested as I checked the notifications.

Gremlin Brutes defeated! 8 exp!

Shield skill has reached level 2! Shield mass easier to lift.

Shield Smash has reached level 2! Increased Damage.

I turned over the falling clock in-board and Maria searched the desk. I got gibberish names and a bunch of pins that I pocketed for Discard if needed.

"I'm sorry, Russ. The only thing in the desk was this," she held out her hand.

In it was a smooth perfect pebble. I took it without a word and put in with my collection, trying not to cackle.

"It's better than nothing," I said encouragingly.

I got another 3 EXP as King cleaned up the bodies. Handy fella! Maria opened her mouth and she swayed before glowing.

"I levelled up! It says I'm level 2!" she said excitedly. A window opened to show me the results.

Maria Mercy has levelled up! Due to status as not a user. Growth is automatic to strengths and actions most used during the level.

Stats detected for Party Member for level.

Dexterity. Faith. Intelligence.

All stats boosted by basic increment. Which stat would the extra point be allocated?

Dex for all that chain flinging she was doing I guessed. Her faith was shown pretty clearly with her praying with the ghost, and her int must have been clear with all her studying.

"Any idea what the results of those stats would give her?" I asked before Maria could commit to a choice.

Dex would give her advance movement, reaction times, and handing of her weapons. Faith would deepen her connection to the world around her and increased her abilities with innate abilities. Int would increase her ability to learn certain concepts and able to handle Gem induction better.

I looked at Maria, whose choice this ultimately was.

"If I was building a character but didn't know what spells or skills I'd get I would have to work on my build with what I have..." she bit her lip.

"I have to dedicate to a path because multiclassing is a risk that not every class should take and I can't risk becoming too diverse I become weak," she mused.

"I'm good with my chain, I fucking like my chain. I also like my faith so if they could work together I'd be happy... I can grind my chain skill with work but Faith might be tricker so I'll choose faith for now but I'm counting on you Russ you keep me safe from Gremlin bites," she grinned.

Faith increased.

Maria closed her eyes as the glow reached a new peak then died down. She flexed her fingers and looked around, her eyes pondering but not distant.

"I feel... different but not too much," she finally said. She sighed with relief and I suddenly understood she had been really nervous about this aspect of my power.

In the same vein, I was glad I didn't get to control her growth. It would have felt... creepy.

"Do we go on or go back to get supplies?" I asked her. Maria looked set as she answered.

"On. If the worse we have is a healing feeler than I think we're doing good!" she said confidently. I sighed.

"And thus we were jinxed," I said to myself.

---

Maria's powers of faith must have improved because her jinxing must have reached God who decided to put this creature before us in the next island.

It was a hulking two-legged machine with bent pipes that billow dark smoke. The 'head' was a tiny carriage with a glowing red core. The scrapped metal making up its form stretched out into a spiked ball in some cannon on one arm and a flickering flame on the other.

It paced back and forward over the crushed Gremlins who had tried to dismantle it.

"I believe that thing is a health hazard," Maria state quietly. I agreed but focused on it.

Scrap Mech. Monster. G-3. 'The ALPHA': A mechanical foe that uses crushing force and fire to purge foes. More often than not kills allies in the attempt.

Observe has reached level 5! Please choose a passive for this skill to gain!

The art of recall: Anything Observed is preserved in perfect memory.

The art of Detection: Observe pierces weak stealth barriers and grants a passive boost to dark vision.

Perfect recall or improve stealth detect and vision in the dark. While perfect memory was neat stealth boosting for routes or info gathering skill if I could sneak... I was a giant flaming knight in the making. I took Detection.

When I selected it, my vision shifted ever so slightly. The corners of the room that were in the pure dark were now... just barely visible with the flickering light of the mech's flamethrower.

"Alright, this machine is gonna be handled by me drawing its attention and you blasting to the dark ages with... uh your Dark Age spell," I said and Maria looked determined.

"Using Smart Phones and tablets rots your soul!" she agreed, winking to show she was mostly jesting.

I ran and shouted.

"Oi! You ugly rust bucket! You give us Rustys a bad name!" I hollered and banged my mace on the shield. It turned and the red-eye lit up.

"Target aqu-aqu-acquired. Activating... ERROR: Purge all 3825 errors. 8.15 TO EAST. Redirected. Train in 15 feet will be recycled." it groaned and sparks flew from the red eyes as it spoke.

The spiked ball shot forward towards me in a speed I don't think I would have been able to match if my shield wasn't already up. It impacted my shield and I was lifted off my feet and sent flying back into the wall, one of the spikes cracking the plastic glass slightly. If that had been the boiler door with the missing window...

I might have just been impaled.

"No taunt skill?" I said in a groan as I shot a bunch of Discard pebbles at it. Most only slightly chipped the metal but one cracked the eye in a direct hit.

You cannot taunt that which feels nothing.

A haze shimmered over the machine and a fountain of sparks exploded out as something inside overloaded.

"Error. Error. Fuel control now offline. Expelling flame." The robot's left arm exploded in a wave of fire, seeking out my shield form. Would my fire counter the machines or-

The air around my blistered and I Retrace as my skin was heated red.

I cursed as I got a horrid sunburn but the pillar of fire began to chase me as the robot turned. More hazes impacted it and the fire started to burn through holes and melting wires in the arm.

I fired more pebbles into the sparking mass and the machine's Spiked ball flew over my head, cracking the wall before one of the legs gave out.

The fire ended and the robot seemed to think to itself.

"Weapons offline. Movement hampered. Purpose... lost. Lost. Lost. Lost. Title: Mr. Given name: Nishima. ALPHA sends bug report. Waiting."

I stared as the thing just went quiet for a long time.

"Mr Nishima. Please respond. Waiting. No answer. Mr Nishima please res- res- res-. Error. No response. ALPHA is alone. Alpha is alone. Alpha is aloo....ne."

The red-eye exploded as more internal parts shut down and the voice vanished into gibberish before going silent.

"Are... we supposed to feel bad for the things we kill? I thought they weren't real!" Maria said, covering her mouth. I slowly shook my head, wincing at my burned arms and neck. I looked like a lobster.

"Echoes, they're impressions left behind. They have feelings or what's left of them. Depending on what caused the disaster or malice... things can gain feelings because if the belief is to be true... everything has a soul. Everything can have Malice or an Echo," I said tiredly.

You have defeated Mech! You gain 20 EXP!

You have gained the skill 'Fire-resistant!

Fire Resistant. Physical. Passive. Lv 1: Reduce the effects of enemy fire or natural fire.

You have gained the skill 'Knockback resistant'!

Knockback resistant. Physical. Passive. Lv 1: Be able to ignore pushing attacks or force. Does not negate damage.

The mech dropped three gems from its smoking form. A green, a blue, and a violet. Maria and I stared at them.

"You get the first choice. Need me to explain what they do or can you remember?" I asked, still wincing as I spoke. Burns were the worse.

"I want blue or Violet. Since it goes me then you then me... I get two either way unless you really want them?" she said, petting King who had fled the fire on instinct.

I was about to answer when the exits and entrances gained a silver line. Portal shimmering into view with a pleasant hum.

Safe Room unlocked! Please sit down and recover.

I sighed and did just that as Alpha's body vanished.

"Honestly, you should use a green. With your set you might get something good," I argued but she shook her head.

"Just like you might get a defensive shield or damage nullification. You gotta stop fucking thinking of green as pure healing," she reminded.

I might have been but if I was honest with myself... I really wanted the blue gem. Blues were amazing. A silence took us over before Portal reshaped himself and shrank to become a fancy top hat. It scooped up the three gems and floated on the ground between us, inviting us to reach inside. There was no light inside so I couldn't see the gems.

"Pick from a hat?" Maria grinned. I matched her smile and invited her to go. She reached in and pulled the first gem out.

I think even Portal might have stared at the Violet Gem she now held.

"So this..." she said slowly. System appeared with an odd song to show us.

Red is to harm

Indigo is to sense and alarm

Blue is to create and build

Yellow is your desire filled.

White is open and free.

Black is still and your wish to be

Orange makes you up and down.

Violet causes changes and really goes to town.

Green is protection and cures ills.

Silver can be rare but pays the bills.

Gold is around here somewhere but System is done.

"Silver and Gold? Come on, you can't tease us like that," I argued.

Sensitive information. System assures you. Very dangerous.

I cocked an eyebrow.

"But I-"

Fine, System will tell you. Only because you look so sad. It breaks System's heart.

"She's enjoying this," Maria commented.

"I noticed..."

Gold is permanent changes that make you more. Silver is an instant level up or skill rank up for any colour or item. These are powerful items. They do not have ranks but simply are.

Oh. Those sounded hard to find.

"Well, nothing for it..." I said and pulled out the next gem. I held myself the green gem. Portal threw the blue one to Maria before slinking off to resume Portal form.

"Well, I hope its good!" Maria closed her eyes and squeezed. I was still a but down by my luck but... I decided maybe I got the better end of the deal when Maria began to shrink.

I watched as she shrank and shrank until a tiny little furry body stared up at me, whiskers twitching and ears round.

"What am I?" Maria's tiny form demanded.

"You're..." I trailed off, too shocked to speak.

Her beady pink eyes seem to read a screen. The cursing that followed me cringe.

"A CHURCH MOUSE? IS THAT FUCKING JOKE?!"