My breath caught in my throat. I internally cursed myself for not being careful. For not checking a mirror. Something. Anything!

‘Gah! I’m such an idiot!’

I hastily turned, grabbed Ivy’s hand, and hurried toward the lake. I needed to get away from people and figure out what was happening. I knew it was connected with Chaos in some way… but I didn’t have the staff any more. Plus, I didn’t even have any of her powers! So why were my eyes like that? I needed answers. And fast.

Not many people liked Chaos… and all it would take was one person to scream or shout or do something to point out the oddity. Then, my life would be over. Or I would have to fight off an entire village. Either way, it wouldn’t go over well.

I wrestled with my wailing insides as I walked. My self pity. I had already dealt with the whole Lonely Briar horror… and now this? I wondered why things just couldn’t work out. Why couldn’t I just get my feet on the ground for five seconds before something awful popped up again?!

But my thoughts were quickly interrupted.

“Buddy, hey, buddy,” a man shouted behind me. I ignored the voice, assuming he was calling someone other than me. I kept walking till he said, “The guy with the Alraune and a slime on his shoulder.”

That was definitely me…

I slowed and glanced back his way, being sure to be careful to use only my peripheral so he couldn’t easily see my eyes.

An unkempt, early thirties man jogged up to me. Slightly taller than myself, he stood as a shirtless warrior covered in runes, tattoos, and glyphs that shifted and glowed every few seconds; with muscles and scars that told of wisdom, fortitude, and experience. There were even stones and crystals embedded into his skin. Hanging over his back, a rugged metal sheath held a rather large and decorated sword; at least according to the grip’s appearance.

A smile appeared as he came up and stopped a few feet away. “I thought so…”

‘Oh no…’ I internally sighed and willed myself not to panic yet. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

“Nah. But, I’d recognize a Chaos follower anywhere, any day of the month,” he said with a grin. I cringed. Growing tense and readying for anything he would try. He noticed my angst and held up his hands defensively. “Woah there, friend. That’s not a bad thing. I know your kind are hated almost as much as the Hated…” He grinned and nodded to himself, “Good pun, good pun.”

‘That wasn’t a pun though…’ I thought to myself, easing up a little.

He continued without a care, “…but, I like yer kind of folks. Living on the edge. And best yet, you know what’s what in life. No boundaries but the ones you set. No alliances but to yourself. Just living to live.” Crossing his arms, muscles bulging, he nodded to himself. “Let’s be traveling buddies.” The sudden offer didn’t register for me. I played his words through my mind before it finally hit.

‘Wait… what?’ The confused surprise must have shown as a hearty laugh left him. Ivy smiled. I could tell she enjoyed his oddly blunt behavior and seemed to believe he wasn’t a bad guy already. I wasn’t so trusting.

“You want to be traveling companions… why?”

“Because I know I can’t trust you,” He said honestly.

“And… what kind of logic is that?” I asked in disbelief. That made no sense whatsoever!

He set his hands on his hips, then crossed his arms, then tapped the stubble on his chin in thought. “Well, see… when you partner with someone who’s with a guild or a Morality or just some group, you always got to watch yourself. You can’t trust them at all entirely because, well, in the end, they’re gonna shiv you in the back if it serves their order or some honkey like that. No warning, no thought, just blind devotionism to their thing.”

His finger pointed at me, “But with Chaos followers, you know that as long as you’re useful to them, they’re going to be useful to you. A mutual understanding of distrust that makes you more trustworthy than others. I’ve paired with your kind before. Funnest people to be around. They make great friends. Life’s always interesting. Plus, I get the chance to run across Chaos occasionally. Now she…” he emphasized the ‘she’ heavily, “…is a goddess.” He nodded, a bit of a wistful look coming to his eyes.

My tension diffused as I understood. I recognized that look. The want. The way he said her name. I could barely believe it. This guy was just a love stuck fool infatuated with that sadistic nut-case of a goddess.

“So you’re chasing after her attention…” I blurted out.

He quickly waved his hands and shook his head. “Me?! Naaaah. It’s just that a… just that… umm…” My faced showed my utter disbelief in his excuses at this point. Knowing he couldn’t dissuade me, he hung his head in defeat, “Fine. I admit it… If I have even the tiniest chance of meeting her again, I want to take it.” His boot lightly kicked the ground in shame.

‘What are you, some lovestruck schoolgirl?’

I asked, “You’re hoping that by traveling with me, you’ll get that chance?”

His head bobbed in a nod, “Yeah. I’ve seen Chaos Eyes before.”

“Chaos Eyes…?” I pointed at my eyes, “These?”

He nodded slowly, “Yeah…”

‘Maybe I can use him…’ I thought. I didn’t want to tell him that I literally had no idea what the eyes were, but I also really wanted to learn about it and figure out how to control it. His infatuation with Chaos seemed real enough… and any other reason to approach a Chaos follower with such a lame excuse wouldn’t make sense. He didn’t know I was a Thalwesse… hopefully. So his desire seemed valid enough. And I really needed someone who could give me information before I landed in another fire.

I decided that, for the moment, I would give him the benefit of the doubt and trust him.

“Then I’ll be frank with you. I have literally no idea what Chaos Eyes really are. She just picked me up from my own nation, off the Mortalis’ mainland, and plopped me here. After teasing me and personally teaching me a few things… she left. Hasn’t spoken to me since.” That was a pretty bad story, but I was hoping it would work because I intentionally mentioned that she ‘personally’ taught me a few things. That suggested she had an actual interest in me.

The sparkle in his eyes told me he had taken it hook, line, and sinker. “She personally taught you?! As in… face to face?”

“Hand to hand too.” I said, further playing it up with, “Said she’d be watching me with interest.”

“Really really?” He suddenly looked slightly disbelieving. He took his time looking me over. “That’s a bit of a stretch there, buddy. She’s notorious for being hands-off when it comes to her followers. Giving private lessons is a bit… well, pretty rare.”

I pointed toward Ivy, “She’s one of my summons.” Ivy cocked her head quietly, looking at me.

Macsen chuckled and shook his head. “Yeah right. I know enough to call on that. So prove it.”

I motioned for him to follow and I headed closer to the lake and further from the busy streets. Once there, with a quick look around to make sure no one was really paying attention to either of us, I cut my finger and willed a nearby patch of flowers to bloom and change to a reddish color. A small stream of blood flowed from me and into Ivy. I didn’t know if it would prove anything… but I was hoping it would work.

It did.

The man’s jaw dropped and after a moment he snapped it back up. “You… you contracted an Alraune?” Disbelief and shock dripped from his voice.

“That’s correct.”

“But… that’s literally impossible.”

“Except for me,” I said, patting Ivy on the head. “I figure that factors into Chaos’ interest in me. She mentioned visiting sometime again too.” That was a half truth, but would undoubtedly happen as she would want to cause me more trouble someday. But, it was enough to reel the man in. He was quiet for a spell, thinking.

Then, like lightening, his hand shot out in an offering for a handshake. “I’m Macsen. Just Macsen. You let me tag along and I’ll make sure to be useful.”

“Prove to be a reliable traveling companion and I shall strive to allow you your meeting with Chaos,” I said, accepting the handshake. We both gave a solid handshake and he grinned.

“For someone pretty young… you’ve got a lot of strength.”

“I’m not that young…” I chuckled, releasing his hand. ‘Well, in appearance I’m not that young…’ I pointed to my eyes, “How do I turn these Chaos Eyes off? They keep driving people away.”

He nodded quickly and explained, “You have to lock yourself. From my understanding, the Chaos Eyes activate naturally when your connection with her is full strength. They’re weird things too… have bizarre effects and can do insanely powerful things.”

“Like make everyone terrified of me?” I tried sensing for the connection with Chaos. I didn’t want to be connected to her! And yet, I was. Apparently.

Macsen grinned and brushed his chin, “Yeah, like that. Though if I ever got some… I wouldn’t care either way. They’re too neat looking to turn off.”

I let out a little sigh and continued focusing inwardly. I could feel the connection with Ditto. It seemed stronger than before, like a stream evolving into a river. Ivy’s was larger as well. When I really focused on it, snippets of her emotions and thoughts bled through the link; her presence becoming a burning torch in a starless night. Currently she was curious. A bit worried, but overall mostly interested in the oddity of the human calling himself Macsen. She also wanted to try poking the stones embedded in his skin to see if they were like regular rocks. Or river rocks. Or the rocks that grew under roots.

Inwardly chuckling at her curiosities, I searched more and more for Chaos’ presence. Searching myself felt like wading through a sea of vines. Every shifting vine an individual thought, memory, or emotion. So jumbled and tangled I could barely tell which was which. But with enough searching… I found something that felt like that mad goddess. It was small. Barely present.

I lightly tapped it. Something hit me like a gut punch. Power beyond my recognition. Reeling back from the sudden burst flooding my head, I stumbled. My eyes went dark. I lost my body. Everything spun. And like a lens coming into focus, everything snapped back to the present.

The ground was beneath me. Grass. Ivy was worriedly hanging over me. Macsen was looking down at me, slight worry on his features as well.

“Nnnn!” Ivy hurriedly asked me, threatening to cry. Her hands pressed on my chest, palms open. She pushed and lightly shook me. “Mnnn!”

I sat up and gave her a little hug, though my body still felt like it was spinning a bit. “I’m fine.”

She hugged me back. “…nmmm?”

“Really really. Thanks for worrying.” With a quick kiss to her forehead, I calmed her. Macsen offered me a hand up. I accepted and then helped Ivy to her feet as well.

Macsen looked at my eyes, “Well, I’m not sure what just happened there, buddy, but the Chaos Eyes are gone.”

“Thank goodness…” I sighed in relief and rubbed my head. Ivy began rubbing my shoulders to try and help too. Her subtle, loving motions, her tiny hands, her warmth… I relished the feeling. I shot her a grateful smile over my shoulder before checking on Ditto who was still on my shoulder. It seemed fine… though now it was entirely crimson, like some form of strawberry jello. Or cherry.

I looked to Macsen and offered a dip of my head, “Thanks, Macsen. Being free of that really helps.”

“Anytime, buddy.” He gave me a friendly pat on the arm. “So I’ll just tag along with you, if that’s all good. I don’t really have anything better to do, so wherever… just, I prefer some adventure in my life, so let’s not lock ourselves up in some musty library… please? I need excitement.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at that. He chuckled slightly, obviously not sure exactly what was so funny.

I finally said, “Macsen, if there is one thing I cannot seem to escape… it’s excitement.”