With Cel highlighting the ripe nuts and Don harvesting them, it didn't take long to strip the branch bare. A small pile of 18 Kaeru nuts was his reward. It seemed like Don was making decent progress towards paying back his debts until he discovered each nut was only worth 0.4 units of food each. They were worth even less after Don ate them all. At least his Hunger effect lessened to rank 2 and he only had a 40% penalty left on his SP regen.

The duo left the tree in order to find more vines. Don's previous rope was still at the top of the Kaeru tree. It was much easier to turn a few vines into a rope this time. When Don got back to the tree, he looked up into the branches. A couple of jagged stumps there made Don hold his ribs absentmindedly.

With only a slight hesitation, Don ventured back up the tree. He made it to the nuts without issue this time and instead of tearing free another whole branch, Don just began stripping individual nuts and dropping them to the ground. Don picked all the nuts he could reach without putting himself in too much danger of falling. He had to take a few breaks in the crown of the tree but when he climbed back down, which was surprisingly more difficult than ascending, the ground was carpeted in the hard shells. Don took a few minutes to catch his breath while he ate his fill. When he was finally sated, he had another 43 nuts remaining. That would be enough for over 17 units of food, more than half of what he owed!

Cel showed Don how to use his inventory. The screen now consisted of 12 empty squares. It turned out that 'inventory' was a bit of a misnomer. It was more of a storage locker. Don could simply take a nut and press it against one of the squares. That action coupled with intention was apparently enough for the nut to shrink until it fit comfortably in the 2-dimensional square. Don was worried he ruined it until Cel showed him how to retrieve it. Don tapped the box. Instead of feeling like a glassy plane, the box depressed like a soft button and when it sprang back, the nut popped out. It expanded back to its original size. [Natural Resonance] confirmed that it still had nutritional value too. Don spent a minute just putting the nut away and retrieving it, entranced by the magical way the nut shrank down to fit. Cel finally got him focused after a bit and Don set about storing all the nuts he could.

Because of his Herbalist profession, Don should have been able to put two nuts in each square, so he was surprised when a third nut fit just as easily as the first two. Instead of seeing 3 nuts in the box, however, there was an image of a single nut and a small number 3 in the corner. When he asked Cel about it, she told him that his Herbalist profession had "leveled up" so he checked his profession screen to see what had changed.

Herbalist: Initiate 2

+4% herb potency

+2 herb stacking in inventory

Skills:

Harvest: Initiate 2

You can now harvest plants while preserving a measurable level of potency

Max Potency: 2

Cel's [Natural Resonance] had improved too. Apparently, that was how she knew about Don's skill increase. She could now maintain the resonance for 20 seconds at no increased cost. She also told him that she could now resonate with higher frequencies of life energy, whatever that meant, for the initial 10-second duration.

Even with his increased capacity, Don could only store 36 of his haul. Don wasn't about to leave the other 7 behind and he chewed through the stem of a plant with absurdly broad leaves. He used one of the leaves to wrap them up in a makeshift bundle and synched the top with a vine. The leaf tore and he tried again. He eventually discovered that he could use multiple leaves and wrap vines around it to make a lumpy package. There was no way to open it without destroying the wrapping but it was easy enough to carry.

Don was proud of the progress he made. It would be great to get enough food to pay back his debt fully tonight but now that Don was well fed, he was starting to feel tired. His Status screen had a couple of new additions that told him why.

HP: 52/95 SP: 65/65 MP: 21/50

Active Effects:

Sleep Deprivation (Rank 1/5): -10% Mental Attributes

Fatigue (Rank 1/5): -10% Physical Attributes

Don decided it would be better to head back and get some sleep. He was starting to run low on MP and the beginnings of a headache were settling into his temples. That was when he realized he had no idea where he was.

'Cel?' He asked hesitantly

"Yup?" She answered cheerfully

"Do you know how to get back to the nest?"

"Sure, it's just back the way we came." Her answer instantly relieved Don, but he should have known better by now.

"Okay, so which way is that?"

"Umm..." There was a pregnant pause "maybe that way?"

Don suppressed his urge to start shouting. He didn't think of any means of navigation either. In their collective defense though, what lunatic designed a place like this anyways. They could have at least put a couple of level corridors in this mess.

You don't sound all that certain. Don pointed out flatly when he settled back down.

"Well it is super dark out here but I'm pretty sure that we came from this side of the tree." She pointed to the side that was missing a few limbs.

I have a feeling that 'pretty sure' isn't going to cut it. Even if we knew the direction we came at this tree from, there's no way I was walking a straight path beforehand. The refuge could be in any direction! Don was starting to lose his composure. He didn't like this feeling. It was dangerous to move around without accurate navigational data.

Cel bit her lip, looking uncertain for the first time in Don's experience.

"Well, we may as well try and move in the direction of the nest. We can look for a safe place to sleep as we go in case we don't find it. There's no reason we can't keep searching for food and those flowers too."

Don thought that sounded reasonable so he agreed. There weren't any more ripe nuts here so there wasn't much reason to stay. Cel flew around the tree a couple of times, trying to get a better idea of the side we first approached it from. Don shut his eyes to block out her bright glow. She landed back on Don's shoulder and they started trudging through the woods again, leaving the stripped tree and it's newly trampled surroundings behind. Cel used her [Natural Resonance] every 6 minutes to keep pace with Don's Mana regeneration. The hint of a headache remained but didn't worsen as Don hovered around 1/3 of his total mana.

Cel took the time to teach Don a bit more about the screens. She introduced Don to the Settings, an overwhelming list of options that could change the way the screens behave. They talked about what was desirable and what was not. Don got her to show him how to tie the screens appearance to intention as well as the keyword so they wouldn't pop up on accident anymore. Cel guided him through a couple of other settings.

Don now had an instinctual feel for his pool levels. Instead of reading a screen, he was constantly aware of his status. Cel insisted that would be vital during fights and Don gave in instead of arguing that he wasn't interested in fighting. She also changed another setting that would alert Don to important changes in his Status, attributes, quests, and professions. Immediately after confirming that selection, a few notifications popped into existence, stacking on top of each other.

STR: 12 --> 13 AGI: 10 --> 11 Don opened up his Attributes to go over the changes.

STR: 12 (13)

CON: 18

INT: 9 (10)

DEX: 10

AGI: 10 (11)

END: 13

WIS: 10 (11)

It looked like his fatigue and sleep deprivation was working as advertised. It wasn't that bad. Only his INT dropped below 10. It seemed like he didn't have much to worry about yet. Cel suggested a few more changes like having notifications wait until after battles to present themselves. Don didn't argue on those. He wasn't going to fight so it wouldn't make a difference to him either way.

After a few more hours of aimlessly exploring the maze of vegetation, they were completely turned around but there were a couple of things working in their favor. The light filtering through the leaves had been growing brighter for some time and Don was finding it much easier to pick his way through the forest. They also managed to find another fruiting tree.

This one was different from the Kaeru tree. It was wider and had more branches making it easy to climb. It's branches bent under the weight of oblong bulbs. They glowed with a blue light when Cel resonated with them. Despite the better lighting and easier climb, Don nearly fell a few times when his concentration slipped. His sleep deprivation had increased in rank and was starting to drag on him. When he finally got to the fruit and picked one, he was surprised by a notification.

You have picked an unknown fruit

+4% Harvest skill exp

Type: food

Potency: 0.936

It looked like he was missing out on tons of information before he and Cel fiddled with his settings. He was also happy to learn that this "fruit" held more than twice the nutritional value as a Kaeru nut. More than that, the calorie content seemed to be linked to potency and was boosted by his Herbalist profession! It was an almost negligible difference now but Cel assured Don that it would grow in time.

He couldn't help but taste it out of curiosity. He wasn't disappointed, the fruit burst with delicious juice when he bit into it. There was no hard shell and it was sweet! Don's eyes rolled back as he savored the sugary juice. He wanted to eat more but contented himself with storing a dozen of the fruits in his inventory. He dropped nuts from his inventory to the ground, to make room for each blue fruit and got Cel to show him how to switch the Harvest notifications to only show up when he harvested something new or specifically wanted to see the details. He was stretching out for another one of the sugary treats when he was startled by a squeak from above.

Don lost his concentration and his grip. He plummeted to the ground. This time he had the presence of mind to put his arms between himself and the rapidly closing ground. He tore a hole in his palm when he tried to grab a passing branch. It worked momentarily before the branch snapped and Don fell the last few feet to the ground. He lay there in a daze, looking up at the little ColoColo who startled him. It stared back with it's bulging black eyes, tail swishing from side to side, the rest of its body, perfectly still even as the branch it was on swayed.

"We have to go," Kat said from his perch well above Don.

"Urrgh," Don responded. Kat jumped gracefully down to a lower branch and hunkered down, lying flat, its tail winding around the limb. It was wearing some kind of harness Don didn't remember seeing before. It held a few gourds and a small pack balanced on his back.

"We have to go now." He insisted. Don thrashed around half-heartedly until he was free of the bushes.

"Kat? Okay, okay. Just let me gather up these nuts and we can go. You know the way back right?"

Don was relieved that his long night was finally going to end. He groped around in the nearest thicket before remembering to ask Cel for help. Before the discarded nuts could start glowing Kat spoke up again. The fear in its voice finally pierced Don's sleep deprivation.

"We have to go now!" Kat was twitching every second or two, his perfect stillness ruined by the need to see if something was sneaking up behind him. Kat bolted as if his perch was suddenly electrified. Don immediately lost sight of him in the gloom. In a few seconds, just at the limit of Don's vision, Kat's head popped down out of the foliage to beckon him forward. Don snatched up his makeshift pack but left the other discarded items strewn around the tree as he took off after the ColoColo.

Instead of carefully picking his steps, Don charged through the obstacles in front of him. He tore aside vines and low hanging branches with his free hand as he crashed through bushes he would have gone around just moments ago. Kat whispered through the treetops, covering far more ground than he had any right to while Don lumbered through the undergrowth, cutting a path anyone could follow. Especially if the person following could smell all the fresh blood Don was leaving behind on the countless thorns. Don quickly learned the advantages of seeking out solid footing. Instead of sinking into loamy soil or slipping on decomposing leaves, It was faster and safer to plant a foot on a secure bit of rock or the sturdy roots around the base of each tree. Don did his best to jump over a couple of bushes but after nearly disastrous results, Don decided it was faster and safer to just run straight through them.

It didn't even take a minute for Don to drain his SP again. Don was unable to lift his heavy legs high enough and a protruding root snagged his ankle. Don went down hard and rolled straight through something leafy and thankfully, not too pointy. He tried to regain his feet but his shaking, torn legs refused to support his weight. Small rivulets of black blood ran down his ruined legs as he gasped for breath like a landed fish. Kat continued to urge Don forward but he wasn't going anywhere. Don's SP refilled rapidly but the drain of moving an extra heavy body through uneven terrain was too much. Kat was unwilling to wait however and unhooked a gourd from his harness before tossing it Down to Don.

Don was loath to increase his debts any further but a furious roar made him reprioritize. Even with all the distance Don just made, the roar reverberated in his lungs with an impressive base rumble. There was no mistaking the rage filling that inhuman bellow and there was no mistaking the direction it came from. Something was very unhappy about Don's visit to the fruit tree. The bellowing stopped only to be answered by another, thankfully more distant beast, with a similarly impressive vocal range.

Without further hesitation, Don downed the contents of the Gourd. Unlike the healing potion, this one was oily and slick. Like the healing potion, it was completely unpalatable. Don still gulped it down. Immediately, he felt the effect. His heart and lungs thrummed with new energy and his SP shot up. In seconds, Don was ready to start running again. The veritable hurricane of snapping branches and tearing undergrowth chasing him down helped greatly with his motivation. Don followed Kat in a crazy headlong dash through the woods. It wasn't enough though. Don kept stumbling and it was easy for anyone to tell that something big and angry was gaining on them. Cel supplied her own brand of encouragement which Don did his best to ignore. He just focused on putting one foot in front of another, making sure his footing was sound and then repeating the process.

That's why he was taken completely by surprise when he came to a clearing. The steel-grey light that only appears just before dawn painted a rippled pattern across the clouds and bathed everything in an even light. There were very few shadows and Don found himself marveling at the open space. He had an impression of the vast size of the cavern on a few occasions but just keeping this space filled with atmosphere must take an incredible amount of effort.

A gentle, cool breeze played across the tall grass, a sudden shift from the constant sharp undergrowth. The green stalks, heavy with dew, reflected the silvery light of morning a like a pond in the middle of the forest. One burnt husk of an enormous tree stood like a ruined tower at its center. Looking up, Don got his first unimpeded view of the ceiling. He gaped. There was no ceiling or walls in sight. Don could see for miles. Even more incredible, there were weather patterns forming in the enormous space. Water vapor coalesced in great banks of moisture, just waiting for the right conditions to come crashing back down in liquid form. Beyond those, there was something even more incredible. Stars.

They were faint, waning in the morning light, half-hidden behind clouds, but there was no mistaking a starscape. Don stood transfixed. Stars, real stars, not from behind a screen.

Oh rust. Don thought as his body went cold.

He suddenly felt very exposed. There was nothing between him and all the horrors of stellar radiation. He had to get underground. Another furious roar sounded behind him and Don remembered why he was just running.

He started following Kat around the outskirts of the field. It was much easier going than it was in the jungle and Don risked a glance over his shoulder. Something huge and shadowy passed between two trees and something else crunched as it was trampled. Don focused back on his feet. Every step now accompanied by the thought: go go go, as he tried to urge a little more speed from his poor mistreated legs.

The shadow stayed in the trees as it chased them around the clearing. Don could hear bellows from across the clearing. Another one was closing fast. Don dove back into the tangle of vines and shrubbery which crowded the edge of the clearing and followed Kat frantically for another minute. The fire in his chest was fading and his legs felt like lead weights but he kept moving right up until the ground just stopped being there.

Don's heart rose into his throat as he plummeted downwards. He hit the riverbank awkwardly and tumbled into the icy water. He burst from the surface, spraying water everywhere as he looked around for Kat. He just spotted him diving into the water from an overhead branch. He didn't come back up. Don started to panic before he remembered the entrance to the refuge is underwater. The beast sounded like it was right on top of Don so he didn't waste any more time.

Ignoring her squawk of protest, Don grabbed Cel and plunged them both under the surface. He spotted an area where the bank fell away on one side and water flowed into darkness. He prayed that he was right and lunged into the shadows. The water pulled him along and Don set to feeling the stone above him. His hand popped up into the air.

He tossed Cel inside and pulled himself against the current. The rock was smooth and slick but his weight helped him for once and after he was most of the way out, he rolled into the dark cave. Don panted, adrenaline still coursing through his veins but too bone-tired to do anything about it. Until a huge soggy paw slapped the stone next to Don's head.

With a yelp, Don scrambled away from the entrance as best he could. Cel chose that moment to sputter back to life and her glow illuminated a leathery humanoid hand, it's back covered in wet black hair which continued down the arm. It finally found purchase and hauled. A smashed face rose out of the entrance. It was also covered in the black hair, except for small areas around its eyes and snout. It roared at Don and smashed the ground next to him with a sodden fist. Its roars were deafening in the enclosed space. Don scrambled back further until his back was pressed against a wall. He could barely breathe as the monster bellowed it's hate at him and tried to claw its way into the entrance chamber. This only went on for a minute before it became clear that the opening was too small for it and the monster grudgingly sank back under the flowing water. It's eyes filled with promises of violence if they were ever to meet again.

Don shivered, and it wasn't because of the cold water.