I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary the remainder of that day, yet despite that, I never felt as relaxed as I had for those few moments after the defeat of the Tainted Beast.

Sleep didn’t come easy that night, and for the first time in a while, I dared to pull out that mysterious orb and allow my MP to be thoroughly drained. Someone would wake me in the morning, and by that time my MP would have regenerated to a safe level.

There were no odd visions depicting past or present or future, just total blackness. Like I was staring at an empty consciousness. There was, however, a message for me. “Hurry before it recovers!” “It will never be weaker than now, don’t waste time!” Those two phrases repeated in my mind endlessly the entire night.

Even the next day, those phrases constantly circled in my thoughts. Not from a voice, but from being drilled into my mind endlessly. Had the seed been harmed? Or was the orb speaking of something else—something beyond the seed to the source of this entire mess?

I decided to hold the orb again the following night, but nothing happened at all. The orb still drained my MP, but my dreams were normal: without voices or visions. There wasn’t really any indication when holding the orb would give rise to new insights and when it wouldn’t.

There wasn’t any new information coming from our scouts, and we hadn’t encountered anything else like the Tainted Beast. The tide was still near the east coast and hopefully wasn’t aware of our presence. The tainted creature we had killed was an anomaly, most likely created by the parasitic sludge over-riding any instruction the seed had provided.

We continued cutting our way through the thick forest as we made our way farther west towards the coast. It took us an entire week to journey the short distance to the sea, and when we did reach the coast, I found it to be completely outside my expectations.

The edge of the land was a rocky monstrosity filled with pitfalls, deep crevices, and deathly cliff drop-offs that would leave even the highest-level characters among us mortally wounded. In my mind, the prospect that the seed was located somewhere here skyrocketed. Only birds and vegetation would be untroubled by the severity of the landscape.

There were endless nooks and crannies that disappeared an unknown distance into the earth. Caves and other crevices opened up every hundred feet, scars in the rock that could be filled with nothing at all or any amount of treasures or life.

The issue was accessibility. It was a tough challenge to find footholds that allowed us to descend, or climb, or even push forward through a terrain that was full of rocky obstructions. The sea creatures that lived on this western coast were a threat to us as well.

The caves we spotted were filled with beady eyes. Claws as large as a human thigh appeared under every other rock and emerging from every other crevice. I assumed these monstrous coastal creatures had not joined the waves of other creatures heading for North Maledith, as they couldn’t survive the journey to do so.

I was liable to lose an arm or leg if not careful, but we didn’t have any other choice but to keep looking.

“Watch your step!” Bryan yelled from the front. His full metal armor provided him a bit more protection from an unwelcome attack. We were carefully heading down a cliffside, in order to check the next cave.

“I’ll send Pixie ahead. Slow down please.” Pixie had proven invaluable. Her ability to fly and relay information was perfect for finding out what areas were worth exploring, and which were not. We had visited two caves so far, and both were shallow enough for Pixie to clear in moments, saving us valuable travel time.

Bryan stabbed his shield into the sandy surface and sat on a nearby rock. Moving any further would be a waste if it was another dead-end cave. Everyone looked exhausted, and scrambled to find a safe spot to sit on.

Pixie worked fast, and there usually wasn’t much time to rest. This time she took longer than expected. “Is everything okay?” Briele asked Vichi after a while.

“Pixie is fine… but I don’t know why it’s taking so long.” Vichi had a connection to her summoned allies, and could feel their presence and well being. “It feels like she’s gotten quite deep.”

This report meant the cave wasn’t as shallow as the others, but was that good news or not? I turned my head to look at the treacherous downward path to the mouth of the cave. It wouldn’t be easy to get down from this height and angle.

My anxiety levels rose at the thought, and we waited another three or four minutes before Pixie returned. “Apparently she couldn’t see the end of the cave…” Vichi confessed. We would need to go down and clear the cave ourselves.

It wasn’t even just the cave that was worrisome. Descending to reach the cave was incredibly dangerous as well. One slip would have you tumbling downwards and into sharp, jagged rocks.

“I can help with our descent.” As though reading my thoughts, Vichi addressed my anxiety. She summoned vines that wound themselves through the rocks around the pathway. “Hold on to them as you go down,” she said. They acted like railings on a staircase.

“Careful!” Zachary yelled out. Even with the assistance of the vines, Luther slipped and nearly toppled over. Zachary managed to grab the hem of his shirt and pull him back on steady feet. After that, everyone made sure they had a buddy close enough to support them at all times. Mine ended up being Rot.

Fortunately, there were no slips after Luther’s. At last my feet touched moist sand and an open cave mouth towering dozens of feet in the air loomed in front of us. The cave looked much more menacing up close. Stalactites hanging from the cave entrance looked like sharp teeth on an open mouth, waiting to swallow us.

“Shall we go?” Bryan asked. The only path was forward, one foot at a time. I felt a sudden rush of excitement at the thought this could be it. There was a chance the seed was located here, and if we could destroy it our troubles would come to an end. That excitement died immediately upon entry.

The entire cave floor was uneven. Water covered most of it and very few plateaus were dry enough for walking upon them. Our feet were drenched up to our ankles and visibility was terrible. Luther sent out a light that hovered above and illuminated our path. Pixie was incredibly interested in the mini-me version of herself, and followed it curiously.

Every step and every splash of water created an echo that disappeared deeper into the cave. There was no end in sight, and judging by the distance we walked it was clear we were now far from the sea and under the forest above. “Pixie says this is as far as she reached.” Vichi warned everyone.

Beyond this point everything was unknown. My every step was careful and measured, so as to not fall down a pit or hole and disappear forever. The water became deeper and went above our ankles now. Just walking forward was tiring.

“Stop!” I yelled. “There’s something in the water ahead. Be careful.” The entire group froze like statues. A signature was moving back and forth in the water at decent speed. I couldn’t make it out, whatever it was.

Luther brought the light closer to the surface of the water that was now over a foot deep. Something moved like a shadow just below the light, and as if out of a horror movie, a serpent-like creature jolted from the water and swallowed his Heirophant’s helper.

Bryan repositioned himself to be dead center of the path, shield slammed down into the water as he braced himself. Zachary, Cid, Rot and I waited several feet behind him. There was total darkness for a moment as Luther struggled to summon another helper.

The light returned and the monster in front of us appeared from the shallow depths. A towering eel-like sea creature, it had fins of red and gold surrounded its neck like a vibrant mane. Pure-white scales seemed to shift colors like a rainbow that traveled like a pulse down its body.

I cast Inspect without delay.

Dragon Eel** LEVEL: ?? BEAST UNKNOWN

HP: 299999 MP: 10

STR: 50

AGI: 40

DEX: 60

VIT: 99

INT: 99

An ancient eel with the blood of a dragon coursing through its veins. Its incredible intelligence makes it gifted in learning magic.

A ninety-nine INT and a flavor text warning of the magical gifts it possessed. No words needed to be spoken: this Dragon Eel was a deadly spell caster. “How should we proceed?” Bryan called back. It was the first time I’d seen him so indecisive.

Eyes looked back and forth for a moment without answer. There was no good answer. Magical abilities were the deadliest forms of attacks. Some were channeled, some were instant, and some had huge cast times. That alone wasn’t the issue.

The issue was the randomness. A spell could form under your feet, above your head, behind your back, on either side of you. It didn’t need to have a travel time, or even a tangible ability that existed in space. Spells could happen in an instant, and anyone of us could be targeted at any time.

Bryan couldn’t shield us from abilities that formed where the caster wished. His body that physically blocked attacks would not work the same on a beast like this. That was the issue.

“Take it slow…” Vichi gave an unconvincing answer. She could not summon her treants here, nor her vines. She would not prove very useful in this situation.

“Let me build agro first and then we’ll try our hand at ranged attacks and finally bring in melee once we know a bit more. SPREAD OUT!” Bryan yelled his orders. He pulled his sword out for the first time since we left camp. He needed to deal damage, prove himself a threat, and funnel any magical abilities he could towards himself.

Our tanks greaves were submerged to their top as he slowly waded through the chilling water. A shout escaped his mouth—the same I’d seen used in the Egestor sewers over a year ago. The entire cave rattled as bits of stalactite fell and splashed into the water. His roar continued to travel downward before coming back and escaping the mouth of the cave.

The threat he demonstrated proved useful, as the Dragon Eel eyed him with more interest. Its mouth opened and a hiss escaped. It wasn’t a simple hiss, but a spell.

You have been cursed with Mind-Numbing.

Casting Speed reduced by 30%.

INT -15.

The spell was a curse, and an absolutely devastating one at that. Luther and Briele’s face both grew a deeper shade of red. Thirty-percent longer casts were already a monumental burden, but minus 15 INT was the cherry on top. Luther would have a hard time reacting to any AOE damage, keeping everyone healthy would be near impossible in that scenario.

Rot didn’t show any indication that the curse had affected him at all. Zachary, Cid, and Bryan didn’t need to cast spells so probably didn’t feel the side-effects. The casting speed would affect me too, and the loss of damage from INT as well, but I could also fight in melee if need be. Our healer struggling was definitely going to be the worst consequence of the curse.

Bryan inched closer and the Dragon Eel struck at him like a viper. It had 99 INT, but 50 STR was also a high amount for a beast of that size. And worse, Bryan’s every step was uneven, his balance unsteady due to the water that was nearly up to his knee and the slippery, crevasse-filled floor below.

Despite that, Bryan parried the attack without obvious effort. His shield showed no signs of weakness after Rot’s repair. He was as steady as ever, and even more so now. The pressure was on, mistakes couldn’t happen, not now. We all needed him.

He swung his sword diagonally while moving forward. It was reckless, but calculated. He needed the Dragon Eel to attack him, to demonstrate its abilities. At the same time, he needed to damage the Dragon Eel in every way possible. He needed to be threatening.

Our tank pushed forward as hard and as fast as he could move. The water split and splashed as his feet plowed forward. A sword attack across the Dragon Eel’s underbelly proved futile. The scales were hard, incredibly hard. There wasn’t a response from the Dragon Eel upon being struck, only the sound of grating metal.

No spell was cast by the Dragon Eel in retaliation, and it opted to strike out like a snake again. The distance this time was enough to send Bryan tumbling back a foot and onto one knee. His sword slashed out again for his next strike, but again it slid across the scales without the slightest mark or dent.

These scales were unbelievably sturdy, tougher than steel no doubt. “Rot!” Bryan yelled. Calling in Rot was an obvious way forward, he had abilities that potentially nullified such a ridiculous armor. No further words were needed.

Rot pulled a syringe from his pack and held it between three fingers. It wasn’t the same as the one he had used on the Tainted. It was a lighter green, and there was a clear liquid that occasional floated up through the green substance—a mixture of Acid and Poison I guessed.

The syringe flew with a hiss no different than that of the Dragon Eel. I couldn’t be sure if it was luck, or incredible skill, but it did not deflect off the creature’s scales. Instead, it landed directly in between two scales, plunging into the minutest gap and the only location where softer tissue could be reached.

It took merely a moment for the syringe to empty, and as it did the Dragon Eel ripped it from its flesh with its maw. By then, the mix had entered into its blood stream.

The rainbow of colors traversing from top to bottom of the monster made it hard to understand exactly what was happening, but dark green and purple colors started to permeate the wounded area under those pure white scales. The Dragon Eel let out a menacing hiss in frustration.

Bryan rushed forward once again, determined to not give the monster any moment of respite. The poison was clearly showing an effect, but how much of an effect I couldn’t be sure. It was only after Bryan managed to stab his blade inches deep between two scales that the Dragon Eel showed some of its magical prowess.

The rainbow effect pulsing over its body disappeared completely, and instead began turning orange. Its body radiated intense heat that grew with the deepening shade of color. In mere moments the water surrounding it steamed and bubbled.

“Back away!” Bryan yelled at both Zachary and Cid. They were off to the side awaiting their chance to go in, but were much too close. The water was seething and boiling and the heat was spreading through the air. No one knew exactly what this ability was. A real fear of some sort of explosion entered my mind.

The ability ended abruptly, and the reason for this was outside of everything I had anticipated. It wasn’t an attack at all. Putrid gas began escaping between the gaps in its scales and a stench filled the cave. “It… it cleansed the poison from within by burning itself?” Cid asked in awe.

“Does that mean it’s impervious to magic?” Briele voiced a worry. No one had an answer in response, but the evidence was clear in front of us. A pure white body returned and the green and purplish spots were no longer there. The acid and poison had been incinerated from within, and the Dragon Eel’s body didn’t show the slightest sign of damage for it.

The only win was that Bryan got in a single attack on its abdomen, and therefore built a little more threat. “We can’t know for sure… use some spells.” Bryan said from the front. His voice was not confident, but he wouldn’t show it, even if he was out of all hope.

Up till now, we hadn’t tried a single magical attack on the Dragon Eel. Melee going in was suicide, and if spells didn’t work either… we were in trouble. Briele and I had the exact same idea. We both cast Ball Lightning and sent it out.

The Dragon Eel showed interest, but only for a passing moment. Both balls of lightning moved incredibly close to the monster, and when they seemed as if they would connect—disappeared. Was disappeared the right word? They were broken down.

Somehow or another, the Dragon Eel had deciphered and nullified our magic mid-flight. Was this a fraction of the power a dragon held? I was in awe, but Briele was determined. “Again?” She asked Bryan.

“Again!” And so we both picked different abilities this time. I opted for a simple Fireball and Briele cast an ability called Earth Splitter. Earth Splitter was a ground attack that caused spikes of earth to jut from below into their target. Her belief was that maybe under the cover of water it wouldn’t be able to react.

We timed them well, and cast them nearly at the same time. The Dragon Eel showed that same brief concern, and then my Fireball dispersed in midair. There were no spikes of earth from the cave floor either. Both spells had been nullified at the same time.

The Dragon Eel’s eyes focused on Briele and I, which prompted Bryan to rush forward and attack. What happened next terrified me. The Dragon Eel opened its maw and spat out a fireball directly at him. Was it a coincidence?

Nearly a second after that, I felt the presence of incredible danger. My instincts told me to move, and so I Phase Stepped immediately. Earth Splitter had been cast directly under my feet, nearly impaling me. It had first cast Fireball on Bryan, and then Earth Splitter on me.

“It’s mimicking our abilities…” Briele was distraught. Her magic didn’t work, and had even turned out to be a detriment to the group.

“Maybe it can absorb spell attacks and then use them once?” Zachary suggested from the side. It was a valid thought, but proven wrong in the next moment. Another Fireball was shot out directly at Bryan.

“I think that it can only use the abilities we just demonstrated,” Cid said. “If that’s the case standing still is even more dangerous. We need to move, now.” There was some merit in what he said—Earth Splitter was hard to detect and even harder to avoid in this water—but it was obvious he was chomping at the bit to fight.

Cid had acted bothered ever since the battle with the Tainted Beast. He hadn’t contributed anything then, and perhaps that thought was haunting him. We didn’t need him to prove anything to us, but clearly he was wanting to prove to himself. Bryan hadn’t given the go ahead when Cid repositioned and moved behind the Dragon Eel.

“Don’t be hast—” Bryan couldn’t even finish the words before Cid had rushed forward and jumped into the air.

“Cid!” Luther yelled. It was practically suicide to do something like this, and definitely out of character for him. All of us could only watch him attempt this haphazard attack.

The Dragon Eel was unfazed by his sudden ambush, and didn’t even turn its head. For a moment I thought Cid would connect. That wasn’t what happened though, not at all. The entire cave grew bright, so bright it blurred my vision and dots floated around my view.

It was a jolt of electricity; an arc of lightning that engulfed Cid mid leap. His eyes instantly grew white and his body stiff as a rock. The momentum kept him flying forward before thumping into the back of the Dragon Eel and plummeting into the water below.

“GRAB HIM!” Bryan rushed at the Dragon Eel in a flurry of attacks while Zachary moved around before scooping Cid up. The situation was at a crossroads. We were standing in knee-high water with a beast that could channel electricity to such a degree. As soon as that thought crossed my mind the Dragon Eel turned bright yellow.

“Zachary, JUMP! Luther BARRIER!” I yelled. Zachary jumped with nearly super-human strength and managed to bring Cid and himself up into the air. At that same moment, Luther’s barrier appeared in front of us and separated us from the Dragon Eel.

A discharge of electricity rushed through the air and water that sounded like buzzing bees. The barrier cracked like glass but didn’t shatter. Zachary was not spared in the air, but the damage was not nearly as bad as if he had been in the water. Still, he fell lifelessly with Cid still grasped in his arms, the electrical damage having stunned him.

Barrier fell and there was nothing to protect us from this demon. “We’re retreating!” Bryan yelled. He rushed forward and helped up Zachary who was still holding Cid. I was relieved to see that our healer’s numbness was fading fast, and once Zachary was on his feet he could move, albeit slowly.

The idea that we could defeat the Dragon Eel with some kind of methodical strategy was hopeless. Magic didn’t work, and the monster boasted a near impervious defense from physical attacks and AOE magic of multiple elements that could be used instantly—we were standing in a foot of water for God’s sake. Everything about this was a mistake.

The Dragon Eel didn’t seem to want to chase us, and I hoped we could run out. My feet felt like they were encased in concrete as I ran through the water. There was a hiss behind us after only a dozen feet. I had the chills.

You have been cursed with Lethargy.

Action Speed reduced by 50%.

My mind instantly flashed all the way back to that early day with the kobolds and goblins. Compared to that curse, this one was much more insane. Even if it only lasted for a short duration, that would be long enough for the Dragon Eel to catch us.

There was no longer an option of running away. Every one of us looked back to see the Dragon Eel racing towards us. I had one trump card that I hadn’t used yet, mainly because I was not good at controlling it, but also for fear of the consequence if the Dragon Eel could turn it against us: World Cutter.

Bryan let go of Zachary and trudged his way towards the back as though in an attempt to block its path. I shook my head and held my hand across his chest. He would die, and we would all die. I had to gamble that my idea would work—that such a skill couldn’t be nullified.

I hadn’t learned much about how to control World Cutter, but I did know that if I used both hands the blade would be longer. It needed to be as wide as the cave, so there was no chance of missing, no chance of it being dodged.

Mana-pulsing Rod returned to my back and my hands rose in front of me as I started to force my MP out. I didn’t plan on holding anything back at all. The Dragon Eel’s curse caused my MP to move slowly, but somehow this was a benefit. I could feel the actions, the flow that much better. I was understanding in real time better how to control the blade I was shaping.

This slowed casting time didn’t allow me to comprehend the intricacies of World Cutter, but it helped. The spell quickly grew out of control and within a second every drop of my MP was pouring out of me through my hands. I would explode if I didn’t let it out, and so I did.

A magical blade formed between my palms and my vision was quickly tightening on either side, like blinds were being closed on my eyes. Then I let it go. World Cutter flew through the air without a sound. It was half-way to the Dragon Eel when the curtains closed.

The sky was dark when I awoke and my head was resting on something squishy, a beige blurry figure just above me. As my vision grew clearer, the stars in the night sky became more apparent, as did the beige shape resting just above me.

It was Vichi’s face. My head had been resting on her lap. I leaned up slowly while looking around at the others. Everyone was huddled around the campfire. We were still on the shore, completely exposed to the elements.

“Is everyone okay…?” I asked slowly. “Where’s Cid?” As I glanced around the group I didn’t see him. The muscles of Bryans jaw strained, and I could almost hear his teeth grinding. Luther held his head low, and yet no one would answer me.

My eyes kept scanning, until I spotted what appeared to be a tarp. I looked closer, and then I realized. It was a tarp, but Cid rested under it, completely covered. “He… didn’t make it?”

The silence was haunting, and it seemed no one from my party wanted to speak the words. Zachary couldn’t take the tense atmosphere, “…No. He didn’t make it.”

My head fell back down as I replayed his final moments in my head. Was there something I could have done to save him? Maybe if I had used World Cutter immediately, perhaps, but there were unique problems that could have arisen from that as well.

My feeling of loss wasn’t as strong this time as it had been for my close friends, and that scared me. It didn’t hurt as bad as when I lost Aaron, and Isabelle, and Steven and Kimmi. I realized that death would never hurt the same; never feel the same. I would never be the same as that naïve kid who had entered this world.

I leaned up after my realization and looked around the group. It didn’t seem anyone else was hurt, which meant the Dragon Eel was defeated or at least wounded badly enough that it couldn’t chase you.

“What happened after?” I asked.

“It died after your spell, whatever that was,” Briele said. Her voice had a nasty undertone, a bitterness I didn’t understand.

Then Bryan spoke, and I understood. “Why… why didn’t you use that sooner?” His voice grew louder. “Cid didn’t have to die!” I half expected Luther to also say something, but instead he kept his head low. I couldn’t understand what he was thinking.

They were blaming me, resenting me. It was true that my spell had worked at the end, but hindsight is twenty-twenty. I couldn’t have known that before it happened.

“It was a gamble…” I said.

“It didn’t look like a gamble to me. What was the gamble? The blade sliced it clean in half with no chance to react. One hit,” Bryan said. He was fueled by his emotions.

Briele was about to speak up and it seemed from her expression that she was going to accuse me as well, when Vichi cut them both off, “Enough. You don’t see it now because you’re upset, but I’m sure you will in the morning. What if that spell hadn’t worked and the Dragon Eel copied it? What if the Dragon Eel nullified the blade and Joseph passed out during the fight? What if it started cutting us in half? We should be grateful to Joseph not angry with him. He took a risk when there was no other choice and he saved us.” She looked at everyone, one by one, before changing the subject. “It’s time for bed, go to sleep.”

Bryan and Briele both stood, and grabbed Luther as well before moving just a bit away from the campfire. There was no igloo-shaped enclosure tonight and we would be sleeping under the stars. They lay down and faced their backs toward us.

Zachary and Rot left immediately after, and then it was only Vichi and I. She stood as well, “Wait.” I said before she left. “Why?” Her face showed confusion for a moment before she understood, but I still finished my sentence. “Why did you stand up for me? Why do you treat me differently than the others do? Do you have feelings for me?”

This was a question I’d wanted to know the answer to since we had met. Why had she taken an interest in me from the get go? Why did I feel that she looked out for me? Was her obvious favoritism an indication she was interested in me as more than a friend? I could tell her mood took a complete one-eighty when she heard the urgency in my voice.

It went from carefree to almost embarrassingly serious. “I’m so stupid!” she spoke with a low-tone under her breath. “Did I mislead you? I’m sorry if I mislead you… It really isn’t like that.” She sat back down with those words.

“You remind me of someone, someone that I cherished and held dear.” I listened intently. “I don’t know why, but from the moment I saw you, you gave me the same feeling my brother gave me.”

“Your brother? I didn’t know you had a brother, where is he now?”

“I did have a brother, and if he was still alive he would be around your age. He disappeared a few years ago in a dungeon and never came back.” I regretted my earlier question immediately, but at least had a reasonable answer.

“I’m sorry.” I knew the words didn’t count for anything, but I didn’t know what else to say. “I also have a brother, but I don’t know if he’s alive or dead.”

The frown on her face turned into a fake smile, “I’m sure he’s fine. Once we get through this you two can reunite.”

“Right.” Empty words of agreement were all I could muster.

“Anyway… if I made you misunderstand I’m truly sorry,” she said again. “I got carried away with the idea your spirit was somehow connected to my brother, and my behavior must have been confusing.”

I weighed my response carefully. “It’s fine. I just wanted to know your thinking is all. There’s no problem.” There wasn’t any time for romance, not that it was even on the table now. It seemed my luck with women was as bad on Yetera as it was on Earth.

Her chest heaved a sigh of relief and her smile this time was genuine, “That’s good to hear. You scared me for a moment. I’ll be more mindful of it. Let’s get some sleep now though.” She stood and found her own little plot to sleep on.

It was only me left at the campfire, and I decided to just lay down right there. Why waste a good fire and move to far away? Sleep didn’t come easy despite my being exhausted. I felt a deep chill that night; the fire couldn’t warm the cold permeating throughout my being.