This will be my first journal entry since I arrived here.

Life had not been too bad, after all. I was on my merry way to the Opalis institute of magistry. Well admittedly, only a local branch, nontheless I was so proud to have made it in. But yeah, I wouldn’t be writing in the past tense if I didn’t run into a slight hick-up.

How do I say this? I appear to have accidentally made my way into some kind of pocket dimension. My first impression is that it's basically an inverse of a small planet. Like living in a hollow marble so to speak.

So far the experience hasn’t been too kind to me. Upon my sudden arrival I must have landed in some kind of liquid. It was definitely not water. How do I know? Well I accidentally swallowed a few mouthfuls when I appeared into it. tasted kind of minerally - is that a word? With a distinct metallic aftertaste. Not the worst flavour, I had to admit, bit like sucking on your own blood, if you have a scrape or something. I’m rambling a bit, my excuses.

Anyway I lost conscience soon after. When I woke up, Only Alvide knew how long I was out for, I was laying in a puddle of blood and other gunk. Not very pleasant I can tell you.

The gunk stuck to, well, everything. It pretty much ruined my cute but pragmatic travelling clothes. As sad as I am to inform you all about my sorry state, that wasn't really the worst of the damage. I don’t know exactly what happened while I was unconscious, but something must have gone wrong. Literally ALL of my hair had fallen out. Including my eyebrows!

This is a disaster. Those take forever to grow back! Such a pity. Oh well, as I was inspecting my newfound hairlessness. I discovered that my left hand was missing. Severed cleanly just below the elbow. Must have happened When I transitioned from one dimension to the other. Okay, so the strange thing was that I hadn’t felt it missing whatsoever. Until I tried to push myself up on my stump. That’s when the pain punched in. It was nauseating. I faintly remember tasting my stomach acid before I fell unconscious again.

I’m still alive obviously, otherwise I wouldn’t be writing this. The odd thing about my missing hand is that I should have bled out. Somehow the wound has closed up on its own. More mysteriously is that I have never seen it as an open wound... I think? I mean I just don’t recall my stump as a pumping blood fountain. You’d think that would leave a visceral impression. Even in a chaotic situation like that. Oh well, stranger things have happened.

All of that happened a while ago. It's been impossible to tell how much time has passed since my arrival. There is just no day and night cycle here. It’s also rather dark with only dim lit floating balls in the middle of this space.

Thankfully some of the vegetation is luminescent. Looks lovely to be fair. Most of the colours here are pretty intense, even in this low light kind of setting. But I digress. It took me some time to get a grip on the situation and make an inventory of all the things that came with me.

not a whole lot to be honest:

My backpack

A thin rolled up mat to sleep on (not very comfortable)

Small pocket knife.

Flask with my favourite fruity syrup.

My comb, very happy about that one haha ;)

Cooking pot.

2 of the schoolbooks I had started reading in

- Magus nubius, Principles of mana manipulation.

- Your first steps into rune mastery, by Huron Piette

A Water condensation charm. (bit more useful than the comb to be honest)

A simple utility wand.

Some salt and pepper.

Dried fruits and nuts.

12 Nutrient packs.

This brand new notebook

But here is the catch: Dear old me didn’t have a pen. So now you might be wondering how in Valkin’s name am I writing all this. Well I’ve found some kind of hollow stinger. They are a good 6 centimeter long, I filled it up with some fluffy flower that absorbs moisture really well, and the juice of some kind of intense coloured berry. I haven’t tried eating them of course. Not entirely sure if they are edible. Anyhow those stingers aren’t all that hard to find.

I’m not sure if I’m writing this for myself, or for the lucky person who will stumble upon my remains. But I’m not that down or anything. I’m still hoping to make it out alive, and have you all read this. Maybe not if it gets too personal. But those are worries for later I’m afraid.

The heroes are watching over me, Thulla Bardeabu.

~

Thulla pulled herself away from her notebook. She wiped away a tear forming in the corner of her eyes. “Nearly messed up my writing there, mister tear. Not nice.” She chuckled to herself while she closed the thin leather bound book and put it in her backpack.

Writing everything down had helped put things in perspective. It definitely soothed her nerves. She only now realised just how tense she was. “I am actually lucky to still be alive, What if I lost my head coming here?” Thulla mused. “heh I probably wouldn’t have noticed that at all. and straight up become a headless ghost or something along those lines… Yea best not dwell on this.” she sighed. Thulla gathered herself up, and set her new goals: “I’ve got not dying on my to do list, and making a grand escape would be neat as well. But first let’s find shelter and food!”

Thulla was currently sitting between a cramped formation of rocks overgrown with some type of ferns. It was a nice hiding spot, but not much more than that. She slowly got up and peeked through the ferns. The space she was in was actually enormous. It was not all possible to see the other side of the crust. She took in all the smells and sounds. there were high shrieks in the distance and low rumbling noises vibrating through stone and air alike.

“No immediate threats detected” She channeled her best survival expert impression. “Ok, get going now.” She carefully got out from behind the rocks. It was hard not to instinctively use her stump for support. A seething pain was a quick reminder that the limp was in fact partially gone. She cradled her arm, as she hunched over.

The terrain here was not a smooth roadway. traversed by thousands of travelers before her. It was wild and ferocious. She had to pay a good amount of attention just to place her feet. Rocks would shift under her weight. and most of their surfaces were overgrown by soft green moss that was a bit slippery to stand on. She felt like a little mouse in a lush garden, trying to move unseen.

“What even is edible here?”...She groaned: “I’m going to have to just try things aren’t I?”... The world around her fell silent for a moment. “Ok. I see how it is.” She looked around her, and then down to her feet. “I might as well sample some of that moss” She muttered under her breath. “Hey there, mister moss. sure you don't mind me taking a little nibble out of you?”

…

“No? then don’t mind if I do” She pinched a bit of moss between her fingers and held it in front of her face for a moment. It smelled a bit like earth. She stuck out her tongue and awkwardly gave it a little lick. “Ah, fuck it. If I die eating a piece of moss then so be it!”

She resolutely put it in her mouth and started munching on it. The moss was chewy and a little dry. The little amount of sap inside the moss tasted an earthly bitter. She still felt the plant prickle down her throat after she had swallowed it. “Ugh! this would go great with a glass of sand and a few rocks to break my jaw on.” She tapped her upper chest with her fist to make the feeling in her gullet go away. “Delightful! I would recommend this over starving to death.”

She moved on whilst trying to make out memorable landmarks. Rock formations that looked like sharp teeth. fields of dark purple grass that seemed to pulse faintly. The curve of the crust made it possible to see a lot further. despite the misty veil in the atmosphere. There was a surprising lack of wind here, but it certainly wasn’t stale.

The air moved around gently, carrying a rich amount of oxygen, and the fresh smell of nature. So far she hadn’t encountered a lot of wildlife. Sure, there were cute lightning bugs everywhere. But nothing big and intimidating. If it wasn’t for all the screeches and cries echoing off the rocks she’d deemed herself moderately safe.

Then she heard a deep rumble. the pebbles and sand vibrating alongside it. Thulla immediately made herself as small and insignificant as possible. “Shit, that is close by.” She whispered to herself. Her heart was thumping like a drum. As was the creature's heavy steps pounding and grinding on the rocks. a rustling sound of wings and high pitched whistles joined the fray.

She dared to look up from behind her cover. The spectacle she witnessed was chilling to the bone. A large armored shell-like creature was being bombarded by a swarm of flying critters. They threw themself at the moving rock in a mad frenzy. Aiming for fist sized holes in its shell from which long ethereal appendages were swinging wildly. trying to fend of the overwhelming amount of attackers.

The majority of the kamikaze critters crashed into its hard shell, bouncing off and sprawling on the floor. twitching in the aftermath. Some however made it through the holes. disabling the creature’s tentacles. Causing it to wail in despair. More and more made it through, and the creature collapsed and stopped moving entirely. An eerie silence washed over the field of battle. Interrupted by the occasional chittering of a crippled bug.

Thulla’s mouth was wide open. An aghast look on her face. She remained where she was, stifled with fear. “T-that was ruthless!” Thulla slowly let go of a breath she had been holding. “Oh that poor waddling rock monstrosity, done for in mere seconds!.” She said with disbelief in her voice. “It was absolutely massive too… If they had found me instead... I’d be dead too, but it’d be dead even quicker! hmm” Questions came bubbling up in her mind. She furrowed her brow: “Why did the suicide mosquitos sacrifice so much to take it down? It didn’t seem dangerous to them.” “time to investigate!”

Thulla made her way over to the desolate battlefield. She crouched down next to one of the more intact flying bugs. It was remarkably big for a bug. She estimated that it was a good 15 centimeters long. The body was made out of 3 segments; a head with a long and sharp stinger, a round thorax with 4 translucent wings attached to it, a fairly long fin-like tail, and oddly enough no legs. It was a sleek streamlined thing that seemed highly maneuverable in the air.

Thulla poked at the stinger with her finger. “I now know what my new pen is made of.” She looked up and glanced over to the no longer walking boulder. She sighed. Her eyes fell back to the critter littered field once again. “What am I doing here in the midst of all this carnage? Why am I not running away like a more sensible person.” Thulla questioned herself. “Back at home I would have let out a girlish scream and then hid into the safety of a thick and warm blanket.” she reminisced. “...and then my father would have simply taken care of my problems.” The realisation hit her like a slap in the face. “But he’s not here” the words quietly left her mouth, not to be heard by anyone but herself.

A thought trembled through her mind: “I am here facing my fears, because I just need to know. Without understanding of this place I will surely not make it.”

Thulla pulled herself together and got up. carefully placing her feet between the insect corpses. She walked up to the shell of the slain creature. Up close it was even more imposing. It was well over 2 meters in height, and of even greater girth. Thulla placed her right hand on the rocky armor. It felt smooth to the touch, dense and hard. Fresh nicks and scrapes were all over it. The force of the assault was evident. “No wonder the insects don’t survive their own attack.” Her eyes were drawn to one of the holes in the side of its shell. A thick leathery membrane was behind it. She felt residues of magic originate here.

She peeked up to one of the holes that were breached. What she saw was a right bloody mess. The leathery membrane was completely torn apart by the first bugs that dove into it. The bugs that came after obliterated the ones that came before. Sinking deeper and deeper into the soft flesh of the rock monster. Then she noticed a bubbling of small round pellets in the wound. She gasped: “Oh that’s it! They are laying eggs. Hundreds? no thousands of eggs! Their prey must be a host for their offspring.” Thulla whistled: “Whew, okay that’s scary. but it does explain their suicidal tendencies. It’s like their final act. Death and rebirth.”

Her curiosity was satiated for now. A stark awareness of where she was, and what she was doing overcame her. “Ok, no time to be all profound and stuff, I need to skedaddle before another suicide squad targets me as their next juicy egg laying prospect.” With big awkward steps she tiptoed through the scattered remains.

In the end she decided to grab a few of the bugs, and hastily move away, until she found a sheltered place under some overhanging rocks not too far from the crime scene. She could hide under there, and be out of sight from anything flying. But it was still a bit too open for her liking. She placed her things inside. Next she went looking for a few big stones. Soon a stone wall was scrambled together to block off the front of the overhang. With some dirt pressed into it to smear off the holes. It wasn’t great. but It would do for now.

Thulla squatted down, grabbed her utility wand, and the small pocket knife out of her bag. Her eyes looked at her travel rations. So far she only ate a little bit of it. It would be enough for a couple days at most. What she was about to do was necessary. The bugs were a potential source of food, that she simply couldn’t ignore. Reluctantly she placed once of the insects in front of her.

Her hand moved over to the utility wand. She set it to the cleaning mode by turning a knob around. She pushed her mana into it, The wand hummed, and it emitted a small cone of violent red light. Thulla aimed the cone over the insect, and brushed over it. The light crackled and sparked: The grime and dirt on the insect washing away effortlessly. “Nice, and now for the next part: Let’s dissect the insect!” Thulla chuckled to herself. The knife flipped open with a twist of her hand. She pressed it to the shell of the bug, and tried to press into it. Just for the knife to slide away into the ground. “...Ok.”

She tried it again and the knife pushed the bug away while it slid off its carapace. “Ok.”

This time she tried to stab the knife right into it. But the blade didn’t find any purchase on the ball-like shape of the thorax. “OK.” Thulla growled. “I’m beginning to see the downsides of only having one hand.”

She looked a little closer at the make up of its body. Identifying the joints between the three segments as obvious weak spots. With a snap the parts separated easily.

The head part looked like the least appetising part of the bug. Only the underside of its head was soft and easy to slice open. Mushy pink and grey matter spilled out. “Oh, I see you all have a tough, and mean exterior, but are actually really soft on the inside. Typical.” She let it all drip out on a flat stone in front of her.

A small sac with a feverishly yellow liquid was found near its stinger beak. “Is that a poison gland? how intriguing; so I definitely have to make sure the sac is still intact, before I, eh, slurp the yummy out of the skull. Duly noted.”

Next was the tail’s end. It had a long and thin cone-shape, with thin fin-like protrusions on the top and underside, at the far side was a small hole. Thulla squeezed the whole thing, A stream of eggs squirted out of it. “Eeek! Oh Gaz Tarah, Thankfully I only ejected out your babies, and not a colon full of feces. Nice going there, Thully.” She could practically hear her fathers voice through her own words. It wrung at her, But she decided to ignore it. “I bet these bad boys are going to be a treat.” she said, as she collected a hand full of egg pellets, and placed them on another flat rock.

“And now for the main course of the evening. I present you this: The elusive pearl of the sky. An utmost delicacy, only found in the most exotic corners of the hidden worlds.” Thulla said in a mocking voice. “Harvested by the bravest of adventures known to mankind, who dare tread these lands in search for the tastiest of foods.” She held the ball between her fingers. “Now let’s see what is inside.” She smashed it against a rock to crack its hardened shell. The inside was a bit meaty with loads of small unidentifiable organs.

She looked at the assorted mess in front of her. Truth to be told It looked rather revolting. But most of her civilised inhibitions were already becoming undone. This was a matter of survival, and hunger will make you do things.

She grabbed her bag once more, and retrieved her pot, water charm, and her stash of salt and pepper. She put the water charm in the small cooking pot, and set it aside for a while. “Tsk, I forgot how long it takes to collect water this way. should have put it on right away.”

“Now where do I begin?” She said to herself as she brandished her utility wand and set it on fire mode. Her mana streamed into the wand. A small dancing flame appeared at the tip. She adjusted the nuzzle into a tighter, more focused stream. Now a steady jet of blue flame was blazing out of it.

“Definitely have to make sure these eggs don’t hatch in my stomach, and start to eat me from the inside out.” She shuddered at the thought as images flashed in her mind. “Ok stop. I did NOT want to imagine that in great detail.”

With a determined blue glint in her eyes she went to torch the eggs. The slimy moisture around the eggs started cooking and fizzling almost right away. “Easy there Thully, No need to turn my meal into charred coal.” The eggs solidified into a swell creamy colour with a glossy brown glaze. “Ooh, Splendid! Now this looks somewhat promising.” She popped one egg pellet into her mouth: the outer membrane crunched between her teeth, and a smooth delicate flavour spilled out. A smile appeared on her face. “Maybe this isn’t so bad afterall.” she mused.

~

Thulla woke up inside her dark cave. After a long nap. She smacked a dry tongue against her lips. Her mouth felt like parched paper. She crawled over to her cooking pot. A paltry layer of clear water surrounded the cold metallic charm now. With fervent gulps she downed the water, until the charm clinked around in the empty pot. A heat wave of anger came over her, And she smacked the pot against the rocky floor. It bounced off into a corner. Thulla hissed trying to suppress a seething scream. She clawed into her left arm as it began to throb again. Her self inflicted pain trying to overpower that of the aching scar. She rocked back and forth in an aching daze. Sobbing quietly until she calmed down again.

The water charm had stopped working once it was submerged in water. That was not nearly enough to quench her thirst. Thulla gathered herself, and set her focus back on the pot. It lay there pitifully in a corner with the innocent charm next to it.

She grabbed them both and inspected them. The pot was dented, but thankfully not breached. The charm was still diligently working. As she felt her tears evaporate on her cheeks. “So sorry mister pot, and missus charm for blaming you.” Thulla sniffled almost inaudibly. The thoughts in her head started churning: “I’ve been doing something wrong. haven’t I? The water droplets need to drip from the charm into the pot. And not surround the charm. But... if the body of water is not connected to the charm it will waste all of its energy recycling the already collected water won’t it?” She felt the frustration well up again in her chest. Her head was foggy and thinking felt sluggish. Ideas were like elusive lights in a mist. Dissipating once she tried grasping for them.

However this problem urgently needed a solution.

She stopped trying to think, and started taking in deep manual breaths. Closing her eyes, to welcome a calmer mood. It didn’t come right away. But when it did, the fog washed away. The lessons on mana awakening resurfacing in her mind.

Find the source. The words echoed in her mind.

An image of herself formed in her mindseye, sitting crossed legged in a shallow pool of silver liquid. Surrounded by a pitch-black darkness, that stretched on endlessly. Her breathing stirred her body of mana, carefully pulsing a wispy light into motion. It hummed into the liquid, creating ripples that reflected the delicate light back at her.

Guide it, give it direction.

Thulla extended her will into the liquid. small bubbles formed and rose up around her. The ones in front of her congregated and merged into a round silvery blob. It floated in front of her. She saw the reflection of herself staring back at her. With eyes of white silver. The image scattered. When she awoke from her meditation.

Don’t be so scared of yourself.

The dust around her settled once more in the quiet of her cave. She felt cold sweat cling to her body. Drenching the back of her shirt.

This hadn’t happened before. Up until now she had trouble finding her source, directing mana around in her body, and controlling simple mana attuned items was the most she could do. Afterall it hadn’t been that long ago, since she awakened her magical abilities. That was why she was traveling to school for. To learn to control, manipulation and cultivation methods.

The inner domain was often a reflection of one's state. The metallic liquid was definitely not there before. But it listened, reacted to her whims, and felt like a part of her. What it meant to her she didn’t know. She concentrated her will, directed her mana through her fingertips. It whooshed out like a whispering wind. White wisps evaporating into the surroundings. The current felt stronger than before, still very much directionless, and fleeting… But definitely stronger. And her mana had a visible form now. That was new too.

She let out of a sigh. “this is all well and good, but I’m still thirsty.” She took off her sweaty shirt. And placed it above her water collection pot. Thulla inspected herself; she was surprised to find all kinds of small scabs and bruises. Her skin felt dry to the touch.

“I’m an actual idiot!.” Thulla exclaimed. she immediately hushed, and strained her voice: “This thing has been draining precious moisture out of me. How! Just how did I overlook something so elementary.” She had to stop the urge to slam a rock through her skull, although It would have surely served as an adequate replacement for the stale air inside her head.

“OK think. All I really need is a separate place for my pot, and a solution to collect more water...” She looked at her drying shirt. An idea popped in her head. “ What about a little hammock for my charm, with a thin thread to guide the water down to the pot.”

A few Moments later, and the water charm was dangling over the pot. Nice and snug in its new hammock. Thulla picked up her shirt and put it back on. It was a bit shorter, and had already started fraying without the hem. She looked satisfied at her creation. A layer of moisture had already started forming.