Vanta Squid; Decabrachia nigranea, A large squid species that is nocturnal. The largest specimen ever fished out of Cern’Orbis’ deeps was 10 mesurs; It is rumoured however that this creature can grow even larger. The appellation in its name lends itself to its defensive mechanism, the excretion of ink so black it drinks in the light. Many an unwitting fisherman has also been the victim having their boat hulls colored black so much that a normal [Cleanse] spell would have trouble getting the ink out. As a result, its rare ink is a prized alchemical ingredient for permanent inks and clothing dyes that do not wash out easily. Because of its shy nature, the creature’s encounter’s are rare which makes the bounty acquired even more expensive.from Philiarz Warnerskemander’s Bestiary for Adventurers: ‘Exotic Beasties and Where To Find Them.’

Sleep came in fits and starts. Every small squeak of the tree branches waving in the wind above put her on edge as her eyes fluttered open every now and then. At one point she realized there was a shadow cast over her. With a start, her eyes flew wide open before she saw who it belonged to.

The older twin sat cross legged with the sword on his lap as his eyes peered into the darkness. His breaths were steady and his back was as rigid as an immovable cliff. She relaxed, reassured that all was well for the time being. Dreading nightmares of giant spiders was not doing her sleep any favors. However, her tranquility was shattered by a loud growl that made her body shudder―it was coming from her stomach.

Her stomach rumbled from hunger; the evening meal of weak tea and baguettes had been frugal at best. They had planned on rationing things until they ascertained the dug up tubers and the fruits were safe. Even moreso after one of the fruits gave their plant expert the runs―he must have run through a roll of tissue by then.

Thank whatever gods existed she managed to snag some of those; pre-pandemic habits had deeply ingrained themselves in her psyche. As for cleaning up, well, Mako and her had a bath in what had probably been an animal’s trough. It was the other girl’s idea to put a fire beneath the stone container and warm their water. The fresh clothing were mostly some tees she had pinched elsewhere. Smelling of fabric conditioner she could close her eyes and pretend it was just another weekend after the laundry had dried.

The incessant grumbling of her stomach soon pushed her out of the little sleeping area, leaving Mako and Benny sleeping in a corner. She had draped a bed sheet over her body as she walked towards their campfire. The older twin was sitting on a stone bench they’d dragged from somewhere while a few tubers were baking in the ashes and cinders.

There was also some tea steeping on the rocks and in cans nearby. George emerged from the darkness, walking bowlegged as if a fire had been set up under his ass. Samantha chuckled , approaching Iriwn’s bench.

“Can’t sleep?”

“Mmh, too many thoughts…” she hummed, then groaned as the ache in her knees made themselves known in her sitting. “I have no idea where to start. As in…magic? I can barely get it into my head, ” She smiled ruefully. “ I would pick something familiar like hallucination anyday―”

“Haha, you’re kidding. ” Irwin chuckled deprecatingly. He stared at the fire, flames dancing in his irises and his seldom used glances. His hands traced the symbols on the broadsword fuller. There was a cloth underneath his lap and a rug he’d used to clean the grime. The blade’s keen edge was surely not for show.

“It's surreal . Like this sword; who knows how many decades it’s been out in the weather? And yet…there’s no sign of dulling on the blade or good ol' rusty.” He pursed his lip, blowing air into his auburn bangs. “You alright bro?” he turned his head, regarding his brother.

A palish George who was chugging water, wiped whatever liquid was dripping from the edge of his lips with the back of his hand. “I’m sore,” he griped, setting down his water flask as he gingerly sat on another bench of stone. “One of those fruits was poisonous, or part of it was. I don’t know which one though.” He frowned, looking at the pile of red, ashy purple and yellow fruits. “At least the water is safe,” he added. George always kept a stash of water purification tablets at hand for his excursions.

“So, Miss Drill Sergeant…what next?” Irwin smirked.

Samantha furrowed her eyebrows. A gusty breeze made her pull her covers closer to fend off the cold. She felt the wind nip where the bed sheet didn’t reach and made her wish she’d worn socks. Sighing, she strangled the retort that she was about to hurl at the man―it wasn’t personal but it hit too close to home. Whichever few friends she had always told her she was the shoot first ask questions later kind of girl, whatever that meant.

“ Our objective still remains, find our bearings…ugh! Even if we find our bearings where would we go? Are we on Earth even? Maybe medieval Earth had knights and magic? Merlin and the round table?” she frowned, biting her lip. “Maybe they called it the dark ages because they didn’t know jack about shit and magic was a real thing and mystical creatures and magicians simply went underground?”

Irwin shook his head wryly. George was silently cleaning his glasses with a faraway gaze in his eyes.

“I guess it sounds far-fetched then,” for the first time she seemed lost and resigned to let the whims of events take her wherever.

“Tea?” Irwin offered, pouring the steaming liquid into a camping enamel mug.

“Yes please,” Samantha murmured, unfurling her impromptu cloak to receive the tea. A cursory sip confirmed the sugar was just right. Meanwhile, Irwin used a pair of leather gloves to pop the can of oolong tea, a taste he’d acquired from his girlfriend and took a deep draw as if he was drinking a beer.

“ I think you made the right decision,” Irwin said, staring at the embers. A piece of firewood crackled from the heat sending up sparks which faded into the air. “ Who knows how long we might have waited in that tower for help that would never come?” he said cradling the can between his big palms, a big contrast to his younger brother’s slender wiry ones.

“I've always been the do kinda girl...not the wait and see type like my brother. If I stayed behind and waited―I'd have waited forever. I had a gut feeling something was alien…make sense?”

“Uh yeah, I guess.” Irwin replied. “ I also had a feeling that there is just a vague wrongness to this place…like we’re intruding in someone’ house or something.” He paused, taking another sip from the can. His eyes lingered on the dark sky, devoid of celestial bodies as the clouds meandered overhead. They'd been gathering all evening and they looked ready to disgorge their torrential wrath upon the land. “George and I have travelled to some of the strangest and isolated places on Earth and let me tell you―none of them provoked what we are feeling right now—”

“That’s why we thought we were better off finding our bearings―correction, it was the best course of action we could have taken under the circumstances,” George chipped in. He picked the leather journal from his pack, and with a rechargeable flashlight he began scrutinizing the illegible language. “Maybe we’re on one of the lost lands of Lemuria, Hyperborea or Thule…maybe even the Mu continent.”

“Erm, you lost me there…lost lands?” Samantha sputtered incredulously; she’d almost sprayed her tea. The woman couldn't tell if George was being sarcastic or not. Irwin chuckled at her expense as he set down his empty can and eyed his brother.

“Have you ever watched Underground Worlds?”

Samantha shook her head, “No. But I’ve heard of it though; or watched it in passing I wouldn’t know.”

“Ah…right,” Irwin said. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter…All I wanted to say is, we haven’t even unraveled half of what our own planet is hiding from us,”

“Like the Bermuda triangle’s unexplained disappearances.” George added.

“Or the deepest reaches of the Mariana Trench…” Irwin commented.

“Eh…look guys,” Samantha interrupted. “I appreciate you trying to let me down slowly.” She settled the half empty enamel cup on the stone bench. “But you don’t really have to sugarcoat it you know…I know we are irrevocably and utterly lost right now.”

“We don’t even know where the rest of the plane went. Alien abduction seems like a plausible thing right now…even though I have never been one for conspiracy theories y’know?” she said, voice almost breaking. “ But so far we haven’t seen hide, feather or slime or whoever brought us here and I very much want to shout at someone right now.” She added, throat feeling strained as if she was strangling the words out of her own body.

Hot tears threatened to spill out of the twenty-six-year-old. Try as she might, she could not restrain a couple of sniffles as her voice trembled. “ I don’t know how to solve a problem I can’t shake my fist at…I’m sorry I dragged you along.” Samantha exhaled, turning her face away from the fire. She couldn’t let them see how hard she’d been fighting back her tears.

A gentle squeeze of her shoulder made her flinch.

“You don’t have to do everything Samantha…can I call you Sam?”

“I’ll punch you…” Samantha murmured, crying-laughing all the while.

“ Haha, “ Irwin guffawed as he pulled back. “Leave the thinking to us, you just stay doing you alright?”

Samantha nodded, wiping off a stray tear she’d desperately tried to blink away.

“How old are you two anyway?” Samantha asked.

“ Eh, mid-twenties…why?”

“Nothing.”

And they continued talking. They would have continued into the middle of the night were it not for the cloudburst that immediately sent them scuttling to their little refuge. Luckily it had a raised floor made of stone so they didn’t have to worry about soaked beddings. Samantha and Mako had the next shift of watch so she woke up the other girl. Benny, well…Benny was still in a pitiful state without his body pillow so they left him out.

As lightning flashed and thunder boomed above and two souls sat beside the makeshift curtain, placing rocks so that the rain would not be blown in. The wind was moaning hard outside but somewhere along the line, the sleeper’s internal voices eclipsed it, speaking to them for the first time.

[…]

[Conditions Met!]

[Hidden Class Ratified!]

[Hidden Class-Lost Worlder!]

[Temporary Derivative Skill- Fast Acclimation Instigated!]

[Affinity- Ter acquired!]

[Affinity- Aqer acquired!

[Conditions Met! Guardian Class acquired!]

[Guardian Level 1!]

[Skill- Earth Guard acquired!]

[Skill- Tremor Sense acquired!]

[Skill- Lesser Strength acquired!]

[…]

[Conditions Met!]

[Hidden Class Ratified!]

[Hidden Class-Lost Worlder!]

[Temporary Derivative Skill- Fast Acclimation Instigated!]

[Conditions Met! Herbalist Class Acquired!]

[Herbalist Level 1]

[Skill- Insight Acquired!]

[Skill- Basic Herbal Lore acquired!]

[Skill- Lesser Poison Resistance acquired!]

[Skill- Erythean Common acquired!]

[Heritage Derivative Skill- Fast Learner acquired!]

[…]

[Conditions Met!]

[Hidden Class Ratified!]

[Hidden Class-Lost Worlder!]

[Temporary Derivative Skill- Fast Acclimation Instigated!]

[Affinity –Ter acquired!]

[Conditions Met! Rune Scrivener]

[Skill- Basic Rune Lore Acquired!]

[Skill- Mnemonic Memory Acquired!]

[Skill- Diagnostics acquired!]

[Heritage Derivative Skill- Fast Acclimation acquired!]

“ Ahh!” a loud yell jolted Samantha to wakefulness. She threw off the coverings she’d used to keep warm aside and reached for the small knife in her shorts pockets. Eyes wide open, she realized there was no attack from a beast or otherwise. In fact, Mako had been awake the whole time and had barely reacted apart from a subtle twitch of her brow expressing annoyance. Samantha sat back, making sure to keep the bed sheet between her bum and the cold floor. It was morning and Samantha realized, sometime in the night, she’d dozed off.

“ Keep it down man,” Irwin groaned, pulling his blankets tighter. George got up, moaning like a zombie; he blearily looked around at the strange surroundings before he realized he didn’t have his glasses on and reached for them.

“What was that all about?” Samantha growled at Benny’s corner. The rain had cut off to a drizzle and the cold morning was freezing her extremities . A haze of fog haunted the immediate vicinity, obscuring the house and the well.

“The System!” Benny bellowed, pumping his arms in the air. “It exists…I got a class!”

“Huh…what?!” Irwin shot up, throwing up his blankets in shock. “Me too…I got a class. I thought all that talk about magic yesterday was a dream. It was real?” the older twin asked incredulously as he smacked his face to clear away the sleepiness.

“Yay…me three,” George said sarcastically. “I got a [Herbalist] class.” He seemed rather subdued “…and even got mocked for it.” he added.

“ Hold up…” Mako said. “ I didn’t get it…Samantha?” the Asian girl looked at her the other woman.

“ Me neither,” Samantha said, half-yawning and rubbing at her eyes. “ Did you guys decide to come up with some sort of prank?” she squinted her eyes dangerously, staring at Benny as if he was the ringleader.

“ Hold on hold on, why would we do that?” Benny put up his hands. “ By Jove, I swear I’m not one for childish japes. Irwin back me up here.”

“ Prove it,” Mako said, a narrow scrutinizing look becoming slitted. Irwin let out an audible gulp.

“ Er...hold on a minute,” Irwin said. He scampered to the corner where his shield and his sword lay, hoisted against the wall. As if he’d practiced for it, he slid his hands across the enarmes in his off hand and held the sword in the other and then started walking towards the doorway —barefeet—in his underclothes. Samantha turned her face away, blushing furiously like a ripening tomato. Even though she’d been one of the guys back home, she was not used to overt displays of…such.

“Uh…mate. Better be getting dressed before we do that eh?” Benny said, flushing with second hand embarrassment.

“Wha— Oh…sorry,” Irwin apologized, dropping the shield and running back to the wall where his backpack lay. He didn’t even look flustered as he dressed; his girlfriend merely clicked her tongue. It must have been something that she had gotten used to.

And so it was that, in the misty morning four people gathered some little ways off from the fifth. Two were expectant males and two were skeptical women.

“ Earth Guard!” Irwin bellowed, thrusting his shield in front of his body. He said it with so much fervor you would have thought him a valiant knight roaring forth into battle. Save for the whooshing and displacement of mist which swirled lazily in its wake, nothing happened.

“ Uh…what’s up with that?” Irwin murmured. Samantha would have laughed but the other girl motioned for her to watch and whispered. “That stance…the air movement. His strength increased.” Mako pointed out.

“ How would you know from just looking at him?”

“ I would know because I use him to practice kendo and aikido,” Mako grinned. "Care to spar sometime? Those muscles aren’t for show are they?” Mako grinned devilishly as she sized her up. Samantha shuddered, draping her hands about herself and shuffled away from the woman. That was more words than Mako had ever said in a sentence.

‘Fricking hell…that woman’s dangerous. Those nimble movements…silent footsteps in the forest and the fight…is she some ninja?’

“ Gah, you plonker! Imbue your intent to the skill mate!” Benny shouted, hands on his head with costernation. “You just don’t say it for the sake of saying else normal conversations would be filled with skills firing off!”

“ Oooh,” Irwin wanted to smack his forehead in realization and then realized he had a shield in his off hand. [Lesser Strength] made it look as if he was holding a sheet of cardboard.

“Here we go then— [Earth Guard]!,” he bellowed again, repeating the same stance. This time, he imbued his intent into the skill. The amethyst gem in the center of the shield shone as lines of rune craft came alive on the old thing.

What took their collective breaths away was the amalgamation of cloden mud and dirt that peeled away from the ground and rushed towards Irwin. The earth whirled around him as more was added to its volume and until finally, it coalesced into a half dome in the direction Irwin was pointing the shield.

“So, how did I do?!” Irwin said out loud to his audience.

“Great mate!” Benny said with glee.

Samantha picked her jaw off from the ground.

‘What in the freaking hells?!’