Pandemonium formed into a light, hazy outline of herself, a figment of concentrated mist and nothing more. I could see the outlines of her attire. Some type of open headdress with only three chiseled metal sheets holding close to her face, one in the center that reached to nose and the other two lying on either side of her eyes. A large circlet clung to her neck with various chains looped around it. Other than that, she seemed to wear rather simple attire that blended with her outline as they were fabric and thin; and based upon the outline, she was most definitely more shapely than Chaos in the best ways.

I was curious as to why she had chains hanging off her, but I held my tongue. Waiting. Anticipation building.

Pandemonium waved her hand over the scene around us. Flawlessly pirouetting on a single foot, then abruptly stopping, her waist-length hair weaving around her form like some ghostly veil. She pointed toward the ash being turned to water, then slowly swung over the scene again as she began speaking.

“A circle. Cycle. Birth and rebirth, born and death come. Endless flows doth create magic’s infinity.” The vision changed to that of a person. Their arm held out, a magic circle before it, and a fireball forming in front of them. “Chaos hath basics fed, knowledge bred, truth said concerning a caster’s invoke. But fail did she of great import spoke.”

She moved up to the vision and tapped the head and then the heart of the caster. “Traditional magic though it be, cast with glee, in jubilee, thine magic is different from other’s yarn. A different beast. Monster aflung from all else. Whilst logic deemed allows thy powers, you do not conform to Mana and Chi. Only Spirit. Spirit only. Hold not the capability to control the two latter. In this, Chaos lied.”

I sighed a little, ‘Why am I not surprised?’

“Then no matter what, I cannot use Mana or Chi? I was almost certain I was using some Mana…” I said, a little saddened by the revelation.

“Mana twas not. Illusion, ignorance, twas so.” She replied. I nodded solemnly. If I couldn’t use Mana or Chi, then I literally couldn’t learn any magic at all, besides what Goddesses taught me, or what I taught myself.

Pandemonium noticed my mood dropping and said firmly, “Take heart. Take heed! For whilst Mana and Chi evade thine touch, yourn powers deem ill of want to dilute thee to such weakness.” She held out her hands and in one hand hovered a ball of roiling steam. In the other, a ball of ice. In between, a ball of liquid water floated. The hand holding the steam raised, “Chi.” She did the same with the other hand, raising the ice. “Mana. Both diluted forms of the same. The same diluted. Power alluded. For you, ill-suited. For why must thee suffer defeat whence thine hands hold the source of both? The entity concentrated, most vicious, that takes life and yet grants it full? Whom all must bow to? Whom even the mountain surrenders to?”

I looked to the ball of water, “Spirit.”

“Spirit. Spirit. Spirit!” She spun again, as graceful as a ballerina before stopping a foot before me. “Tis true! Truth uttered.” The ice and steam vanished as she cupped her hands around the water and held it out before me. “Spirit the master be. The source of both. The raw, untainted, weakness unacquainted, power painted…” She lowered her voice to a whisper, “Any spell. Any magic. Any wish, lust, or desire grant… for if water have, both steam and ice possess…” A piece of the orb became steam, the other, ice, while the center remained liquid. “Mana and Chi, Chi and Mana, masters of mimicry. Two forms copying the source’s abilities. Diluted, allow doth they for the weaker to mimic their true ancestry. Their master.”

“Wait… so you are saying that Mana and Chi are just copying what Spirit magic already has? Just… weaker forms?”

Her ethereal lips curved into a smile, “Tis so. Even I amongst all grandeur and strength surrender to the delusions of the weaker forms. Long doth I for Spirit. But nay, nay, nay, nay… nay can I touch the source as thine hands can. Nature deems it illegal. For in form I am far from required regal. As a seagull, fly above the waves doth I, wishing for above sky, where heavens drip of bursting stones and flaming pearls and suns of godling’s eyes. I cannot that dream reach…” she said softly, placing the orb of water into my hands, “…but the Thalwesse can.”

My emotions swelled as I looked at the swirling water, excitement growing. I chuckled a little, “Cool, would be the fitting term. Then… I really am a world bender?”

“Tis so. So it is… so you are. Tonight I finish with simple wisdom,” she reached forward and tapped my head, then my heart. “Thine strength come from mind and heart most. Emotion raw. What Spirit doth grant. Knowledge to act. The will to do. The body shall follow. Study. Learn of all spells thine mind can harbor. Mana or Chi. Tomorrow’s eve shall I teach thee to use both, but not of they, but of their source they mirror.”

“Why… not tonight? If I may ask?” I wanted to hurry up and learn more already. “I only have a week.”

“But a week doth have. Thine mind is weary. Thine body tired. Thine exhaustion evident. For it, weariness resonant. Rest. Sleep. Let the new dawn birth fresh power for thine breath,” she said. A finger slid under my chin and tipped my head upward. Leaning forward, she pressed her dainty lips to my brow, then pulled off with the faintest audible “pop” I could hear. “Sleep well, mine sun. Chaon.”

I smiled and dipped my head, “Thank you. You have a fine evening.”

“I shall.”

And with that, the vision faded away.

A songbird chorus sounded outside. Sunlight filtered through my closed eyelids. Warmth bathed my form as morning welcomed me to its bosom. It seemed a perfect start to a new day; a comfortable one especially with my back to a mattress and my head to cushions. Rest and serenity danced within my muscles. Energy filled my lungs.

“Aaaah…” I sighed happily, but then noticed an odd feeling. The sensation of something wet, warm, nibbling my fingers. A slimy feeling enveloped my hand and suspended it in warm jello that lightly pet and pulled on my fingertips. Constantly. I felt no one beside me. Ivy had probably gotten up already…? Maybe?

So that left just one.

“Ditto…?” I wondered groggily. Opening my eyes, I stared into the face of a crimson jelly bearing a fearsome resemblance to a human woman. She had no eyes. No cemented features, but the general outline of her body was there, along with her defined, feminine face and lithe yet audaciously breasted frame. Her body shifted every few seconds, threatening to take its rounded, globbish shape from before, but then snapped back into the female form again.

Straddling my chest, she leisurely held my fingers between her lips and sucked them.

I jerked up in surprise, “Ditto?!” It accidentally tossed her off. She rolled off to the foot of the bed, her body becoming that of a bulbous slime once more. Vibrations ran through her skin and she bounced a little, and from the link I felt the slightest, faintest zap of annoyance aimed at me. “…sorry…” was all I managed to say. Slowly sitting up, I leaned down to pet the slime on the summit.

That seemed to calm her. Her?!

‘Is Ditto a she? Do slimes even have genders? I didn’t hear anything about that…’ I hastily slid out of bed and pulled out Chaos’ tome to read over the entry about slimes. The typical Field Slime quickly proved to have no gender according to its entry.

“But you aren’t a field slime anymore… since their colorations only consist of basic, bland colors. Let’s see…” I began flipping through, “Elemental Slime…” I zipped through the entry, “…and their colors and cores denote their elements. A red body and burning core means fire…” I looked at Ditto and though I saw the red body, I saw no fiery core suspended within her. “So not a Fire Slime…” I kept flipping through. “Magma Slime. Dark Slime. Ocean Slime. Emotion Slime… that’s weird. Queen Slime… Crimson Slime!”

I quickly opened the book to the entry, looking through it. “Crimson Slimes are a rare pre-species of Queen Slime. They have the chance of being born when a non-Queen slime is assaulted by high concentrations of Spirit. Due to the concentration amount required, they are only naturally birthed when in contact with Blood Storms; with Blood Storms being raw, rampaging Spirit-based maelstroms that result from mass genocide or battlefields, where the dead release too much Spirit into the area at one time.

If the Blood Storm envelops a slime, the raw Spirit trapped within the storm can force an evolution of the slime. This process can take one to two months passed the slime’s initial contact with the Blood Storm. It is unknown why they take on a red coloration. Many believe it is due to the blood tainted Spirit the slime absorbs from the Blood Storm. Blood Storms, on occasions, make Crimson Slimes. If you ask me, if makes a lot of sense.”

I paused. That wasn’t the most cheery birth by any stretch; just the name Blood Storm made me imagine a wretched, gory thing with crimson rain and the smell of the dead.

My thoughts turned to Ditto’s predicament. It definitely hadn’t been one to two months since I contracted… her. And she hadn’t come into contact with a Blood Storm. But then again, I was a Thalwesse and had used my blood to help power her magic. Also… there was the slaughter we passed through. Maybe the incessant assault of Spirit from my blood and Lonely Briar’s dead had sped up her evolution?

“Sped up… by a lot,” I mumbled.

I continued reading, “Seen as cursed by many… varied powers… can evolve into a Queen Slime… and here we are!” I tapped the paragraph talking about their genders. “Crimson Slimes technically have no genders, however, they hold enough intelligence to adapt their procreative capabilities to those they attach to. Curiously, this does not simply mean manipulating their body to the desired gender; the slime imprints that gender upon its existence, effectively becoming that gender and recognizing that it is never the opposite. In this way, the Crimson Slime evolves a gender that, even till death, the Slime clings to.”

“So… you’re a girl now…” I thought aloud, looking at the slime. She was back to her simple, dollop of jelly form, but I could feel a presence within her. The feeling of a simple intelligence. A… female one. “Wow, okay… this will take some getting used to.” I held out my arm for Ditto to slide onto my shoulder; she happily did so. “Well, good to have you along, Ditto.” I stood and set the tome back.

I hadn’t the faintest idea of how to respond to the sudden revelation. She was now a female Crimson Slime… that was just how things would be.

With a shrug, I opened the door out, “Now to see what Ivy is up to…”

I headed downstairs to find the Bessy moderately busy. Croon was once more tending the bar. Patrons were eating delicious-smelling fish, the husky, smoky flavor causing my stomach to tumble in sheer desire. I decided right then and there to have fish for breakfast. It was still early morning based upon the sun’s low light streaming through the windows.

“A new day.” I smiled and headed down. I stopped only when I caught green in the corner of my eye. Turning to look, I spied Ivy sitting with Anniate. A plate of rolls, two glasses, and bundles of wool yarn sat on the table. Anniate held a pair of sticks, as did Ivy, and she slowly showed Ivy the motions to weave the yarn while chatting. Ivy smiled and seemed to be happily chatting back.

I focused on Ivy’s presence, curious as to how she was communicating. Her presence was stronger. And I could feel words being pulled from me. Used. In fragmented fashion, but she was definitely speaking by using the words I knew!

That fascinated me. ‘Like how I can pull spells from her for my use, she can pull knowledge from me for her use? Quite intriguing. A summoner’s contract is certainly powerful.’

A hand slapped my shoulder and stole away my attention from my musings. Before I even looked to confirm it, I knew who it was. Macsen.

“Mornin’ buddy! How’s the stupid strong feeling today?” he chuckled to himself at that. I couldn’t help but join him.

I turned to face him, finding Macsen dumbly grinning, “I am doing well, Macsen. How are you?”

“Greeeeaaaat!” He threw his fist into the air, “Ready for another day of training and drinking!”

“What, the last two hangovers were not awful enough for you?” I asked.

He shrugged, quickly shaking his head, “Not in the slightest! I’d like some Dwarven ale to floor me… but they don’t have any.”

“Maybe we will have to visit the Dwarve’s domain then.” I was curious as to what the short, hairy folk acted like. ‘Assuming they are short and hairy folk in the first place…’

Stars lit in Macsen’s eyes. He bounced, like a kid promised a stop at the candy store. “Yes! That’d be amazing, buddy! We should go to Dwem. They have a GMP guildhall there and I have more than a few friends there! It’s a great place…” His head bobbed wildly in a frantic nod as he pat my shoulder, “Great place!”

“Dwem? A Dwarven city I assume?”

“Yeah. Deep within the Lonely Hearth. It’s this massive mountain up near the northeast a ways.” He tossed a thumb in the direction.

“Then we will have to go eventually,” I promised. Another term caught my interest, so I asked. “And what is the G-M-P?”

“Ummm… Guild for Mortalis… Peace. Yeah,” he swung his arms wide, “It’s basically this massive over-reaching guild that parents most other guilds across the entire continent. It’s run directly by the Council. Part army. Part law enforcement. And lots of adventurers, scientists, magicians, craftsmen, and those types. My guild is… well, was a child of the GMP. That just means they helped us out and supported us by giving us quests built for our strength levels.”

“Fascinating…” I mumbled, musing over the new information. It would do me well to understand this GMP and the Council. If they were as wide-reaching as Macsen claimed, then earning them as allies could go a long way to protecting myself against the Goddesses. I had to get every ally I could on my side to help avoid the dangers of discovery. If I could get important people to trust me, I could avoid suspicion.

That was what I hoped, at least.

“So when do ya wanna start training today, buddy?”

“Later in the day,” I replied, eyes following a plate of food being carried by one of the waitresses. Saliva filled my mouth. However, I could feel the unpleasant stickiness that came from not bathing the night prior. I needed to remedy that first. “I wish to study beforehand.”

“O’course, buddy. Then if you’ll excuse me… I see more beer waiting for some company,” he said before hurrying off toward the bar.

I sighed a little. He was a good person as far as I could tell, but between him, Ivy, and now possibly Ditto, I felt like I was becoming more a babysitter than a leader. But, at least they kept life interesting without the death and danger.

“Maybe I should just live in the bath from now on…” a lazy sigh left my lips as they curled into a satisfied smile. The warm water caressing my skin. The soaps mixing their scents to fill my lungs with their herbal incenses. The fading feeling of worries and stress leaving my body. I planned to waste away a while longer.

But, something happened.

Worried voices and shouts arose from the main room. I quieted and listened. The sounding of many feet. Hurried movements. Scraping chairs. Even a glass shattering on the floor.

“What’s happening… I wonder?” I asked to Ditto who sat next to the bath, occupied with absorbing a loaf of bread Croon’s wife had given her. I didn’t expect an answer though, and true to my expectations, she gave none.

Hastily pulling out of the bath, I dried off as the noise began to fade as people shuffled out of the building. I dressed. Placed Ditto on my shoulder. Hurried out to see what was going on while brushing my wet hair back messily with my fingers.

Macsen was at the doorway leading out, along with Ivy who hid slightly behind him.

“Hey,” I called out. Ivy turned, worry overflowing from her, her face faded and tight in concern. She rushed over to me and hid behind my back. Macsen held a solemn look on his face.

“Buddy, we need to keep a low profile. They won’t bother us if we don’t bother them…” he whispered.

“They? Who is they?” I moved up to the door and looked out.

My breath caught in my throat. My heart clenched in dread. Blood turned to ice.

Soldiers. Outside. Rushing about like hectic fire ants in their vicious armor of reds, blacks, and dark gray. Swords hung at their sides. Spears clung to their fists; a few carried a staff. Tall, wider topped helmets jangled upon their heads while they hurried to round up every citizen in the town.

They placed them in neat little rows. Forced them to their knees. The entire town… hundreds… and more being brought in every moment. They barked orders. Sneered at the citizens. Tossed them roughly and threatened with their weapons. Every townsfolk shivered slightly. Many turning white from the fear. Children softly cried as their mothers tried desperately to shush them. All their heads were bowed.

They bowed to a group of beings on fine horses. The riders dressed in golden gowns, silver suits, and full armor made of onyx and gems. Their flamboyant colors and pristine appearances; their delicate hair styles and finely preened forms; their haughty aura and sneering grins told of aristocrats. They sat there. Relishing in the terror before them. Gazing down at the townsfolk with eyes of glowing red. Fanged smiles.

On each of their breast, no matter male or female, sat a crest of blood and a thorn ripping through.

My eyes fell on the most powerful force. A presence of overwhelming strength poured from her. Silver hair crowned her with an ethereal shine, as if each piece a plucked moonlight strand. Her skin, a ghostly pale and smooth as marble. Her features so finely formed she appeared as though a regal, life-sized doll. She was beautiful. Yet, terrifying, as her eyes glowed the brightest of them all.

Instincts told me who she was.

“…Kamra…” I whispered breathlessly. And to my utmost horror, she turned to look in my direction.

Our eyes met.