Somewhere Someplace

The sun was high in the sky, its radiant light shining down upon the rather…chilly yet still warm world below. Waves…turned and twisted, water flowing back and forth, back and forth, over and over. An assortment of avians made their many avian noises, these birds being the sort to only ever linger near and around the coasts of these lands.

Coast…the foreigner was trailing along a beach, trailing the edges of the coastline. Her boots—now…regular non-heeled outdoor ‘lady boots’ which were…surprisingly durable—stuck themselves deep into the soft…very soft…absurdly soft…sand as she strolled and wandered, a large, marked, and rather…stuffed goop-dripping sack being held in hand.

The foreigner was lucky that her former associate had an extra pair of such ‘regular’ boots at hand…since…she dreaded imagining what a nightmare walking across this terrain in heels would have been. In retrospect, she wondered why it had taken her so long to finally ditch those tavern heels.

Though, boots were not the only thing she had so…repurposed…from her former associate. Donned on her waist belt was a holster…one which could fit neatly and comfortably that same revolving firearm from before. Now that she was a registered adventurer, she could get away with carrying such a thing…openly.

Firearm aside, though, she had another holster or ‘sheath’ of sorts on her…one somewhat more stranger than anything else she had on her. It was hard to describe really, for it was simply ‘different’ and ‘weirder’ than a typical local holster.

Likewise, holstered and sheathed onto it was what ostensibly seemed to be a ‘rapier’-esque sword of sorts…yet one that was rather different and about as strange as the holster upon which it was sheathed…if not more so.

It was bland, very bland, somewhat angular in a few ways. Besides the hilt-handle and somewhat the ‘blade’…the entire thing was largely the same uniform and bland silver-white color.

The ‘blade’ itself…was also rather strange; it seemed short…yet also…not; retracted…the strange blade was retractable and could extend when deployed; it was also rather potent as well, and could pierce quite the things even if it did not seem able to.

This strange rapier-like ‘sword’ and especially its blade were clearly made from materials that were alien in many ways, yet such was hard to really notice at a glance. Indeed, for as alien as the rapier seemed to be…it was also rather unremarkable and unexceptional.

Besides, even if the locals did notice all of the peculiarities of this strange alien rapier, most…were so utterly desensitized to such oddities, having seen even more extreme and stranger things throughout their short and finite lives—especially from high-ranking adventurers.

It was simply the world they lived in, one full of the bizarre and the absurd; one full of monsters, arcane creatures and objects of seemingly unnatural powers, never mind Gods that ruled upon their rotting thrones along with their legion of divine servants.

Indeed, having herself witnessed the many…strange and exotic…‘gears’ and weapons equipt by the couple or so high-ranking adventurers she herself had seen, she was rather confident—now that she was an adventurer and could wield such things openly—that she could finally be, for the first time in more than a year, equipt with this…important something…of hers without sticking out at all.

This important something of a rapier-like sword…was…not actually a sword—or rather it was…but…she did not really use it as such. It was her conduit of the arcane, that medium by which her arcanity could be thoroughly expressed; that instrument by which her essence could be more thoroughly and completely commanded.

A ‘conduit of control’ or ‘command conduit’ was usually…largely mandatory for all…most…forms of the arcane, or at least it made expressing complex arcane sequences…easier and more efficient.

An arcane conduit was essentially the conducting baton of an arcane tradition and practice. It was not the thing that directly commanded essence as much as the thing that facilitated and guided the expression and commanding of essence. An arcane conduit did not have to be objects…it could be many things—several things at once even.

All that mattered was that there was a clear, distinct, and deeply internalized pairing between the conduit, the practitioner, the arcane tradition, and essence’s own capability for expression.

For the Far West it was a ‘wand’, for these lands it was a ‘staff’, for her…it was a rapier and…also her true mask…though such was not really a conduit as much as…well…something different…and also right, she could use her fingers…right, she had…several methods; she would not be what she was if she were not adaptive and multi-functional.

At any rate, she had decided to retrieve and take her rapier-conduit with her before venturing beyond the confines of Coastfield…primarily and principally as a precaution.

She did not plan on using it and her arcanity openly and haphazardly…it was exclusively on her just so that she could respond properly should…anything beyond the domain of the local denizens…happen—not as though such would matter…considering that the last time such a thing had happened she was lanced in the head, an affair that would be more than simply fatal should it happened again.

Regardless, it was perhaps simply comforting and ease-inducing to have her conduit on her…even if…she could not necessarily comprehend such feelings. Though…she was missing one other crucial half, one missing piece which completed her arcanity to its fullest extent.

Though, such was necessary, for it would not at all blend in…never mind that she did not want to stretch her luck…even more…and extend the risks to beyond herself…even though…perhaps deep down inside…she did feel rather strange and incomplete…to have such an empty back.

At any rate, besides her conduit and firearm holster, she also had two extra satchels equipt on her waist-belt, both being borrowed from her former associate, of course. One for her Guild card and other related essentials, and another…somewhat more larger…one for carrying additional premade paper cartridges and primer-caps for her firearm.

She continued to stroll across this beach, her eyes attentive and evaluative of all of the…weird sea-things which had washed ashore. She was at one of the marked locations for finding these so-called ‘Clamfield sea shrubs’. She was not too far from Coastfield, still within the boundaries of this small county, though she had to request and…pay for transportation to even get here.

How many days had she been at this? She did not even know, but…it was likely almost an entire week since she had begun. This process was taking…quite the time, too much time, frankly.

She paused, her eyes noticing…a disgusting slimly looking thing…that matched the quest description of a Clamfield sea shrub. She approached closer, kneeling down, evaluating it…poking and prodding it.

Hmm…no, too slimy, too fresh, too new…the color was too green and not enough…dried out yellow; it was not more than or equal to five months of age.

She sighed, standing back up as she continued onwards.

Indeed, the hyper-specific requirement of needing a sea shrub that was five months old or older…made this entire process even more tedious and time-devouring. There were a plenty of sea shrubs…but hardly any five months old…and she was also not the only one out and about searching…no no…there were multiple copies of that same quest distributed in mass by that so-called ‘United Central Trade Company’…which she had vaguely heard of prior.

Such was to be expected from such an apparently gargantuan Far Western ‘trade company’, it would never send only one meagre request; it had sent hundreds across multiple Guild branches all throughout the western coastal realms.

Yet…miraculously, despite all of that demand, she had, in fact, located almost all of the necessary sea shrubs which had met the precise requirements within the first couple or so days of her beginning this quest…all besides one…last…sea shrub.

For whatever reason, it appeared almost as though every. single. sea. shrub. which was five months of age or older had seemingly dematerialized from existence itself as soon as she had collected her second-to-last sea shrub.

She had spent day after day since then…returning to this beach and others…searching and prospecting to no avail, minded…paying for transportation each and every time until she had inevitably run out of silvers entirely.

Though, thankfully, she had managed work out a deal of sorts…with a certain wagoneer whom she would pay back in full once this quest was completed, having showed him the quest-sheet and its stipulated reward.

That same wagoneer…had agreed, as part of this arrangement, to transport her wherever she needed to go…so as long as he got his cut by the end. This worked well enough for her since…well…she had no real need for these trinket coins besides to pay her rent—and she should still have a plenty left for that.

She continued to wander about this beach; she sighed…such an empty and desolate place this beach was.

Yet…hmm…she suddenly paused…her nose sniffing…a smell…there was a smell? Ugh…what was that putrid smell? Her eyes searched and scanned around and about before…ah, behold afar…a dead…bulky sea animal of sorts.

Hmm…curious; she made way through this soft…stupidly soft…sand as she approached this dead decaying…sea creature. The smell only became worse and worse as she got closer, but…she could tolerate it…to a point.

She halted before it…inspecting.

Hmm… « Quales creațura est…haec? Fasçinanter… » she mumbled to herself; what…manner of creature was this? Interesting…well ecology was by no means her forte, but…she still knew quite a few many things; a basic understanding of such ancient and primordial animals was mandatory for those like her, or at least…those of the same color designation as her.

She circled around this strange decaying corpse of a creature, peering and inspecting ever-more.

« Estne…ehm…quo af modo iterù nominatùr ețiam? Quidda verbù…șcjo quod șcja…modo mî memorathéon est… » she mumbled to herself, contemplating in mind as she…attempted to figure out…a word… « …‹ çetaçea ›? Ea’stne quid nominetùr? Ita…quèda çetaçeanè’st? » she mumbled further; a…cetacean? Was that what this…was? Those were…a kind of gargantuan oceanic mammalians of sorts…right? Intelligent ones that squeaked high-frequency sounds…and sung…or something?

Hmm…well this one appeared rather small…was this just a species thing or…were they a…child?

They had been dead for some time, seemingly, though likewise…still rather recently. Cut all around, much of their thick blubbery skin was missing, their organs were spilled out. Clearly, this was no ordinary death.

Hmm…she did not know much about these oceanic animals…but…this one seemed to be, even for such a small size, rather heavy and massive—unable to move around on land. No doubt, they had strolled too close to the shore and got caught by…something, perhaps a tidal force or…something—she was violet, not red, the ocean was not her domain at all.

Regardless, it had somehow ended up on the beach…trapped and entangled in this web of air and solid surface. Then…most likely, the locals had taken noticed and arrived…and then had seemingly…done, well…this to the poor thing, cutting at it, stripping off its blubber and skin, slicing it open, and stealing whatever it was they had so wanted…all the while…they could do nothing besides endure it.

Hmm…strange, she felt rather strange staring at this corpse of a likely baby cetacean. In a sense, she could not help but relate to this thing deep down within.

In a way, she was also beached in this place, stranded and trapped…waiting to be butchered and cut apart. Though, at least she had the luxury of being able to move around and fight back; this…one on the other hand…had clearly not died a pleasant death; the misery was self-evident.

Indeed…deep down within the depths of her mind’s shadow…she was suddenly reminded of…how much she…truly did not like…death, of how much she truly disliked…seeing things suffer and die.

She hated it. She despised it.

She hated…causing such things to others…or anything really.

Yet, causing such things was…all that she seemed to be good at; it was something so…easy for her to do in the moment…only ever lamenting after the fact and…only just barely. No matter how hard…she tried, she always seemed to default…back to being…the same as always.

Though, such discontent deep down within was…of course…hard for her to truly comprehend consciously.

All she knew…was that…her eyes did not appreciate what…they were staring at; not at all, in fact.

Hmm…death…killing things…that was what this Guild did quite a lot of…wasn’t it? Killing and killing…all such things needing to be slayed and killed…inevitably she would have to do such things…too.

She did not really…know what to feel regarding such a reality…and even if she did…she would not be able to deeply comprehend them.

So cold and numbed, so dissociated and detached…yet so clearly…was there something going on inside of her, quite the many things…in fact; all kept at bay…locked behind the swollen walls of her mind’s entrenched shadow.

All she knew was that she had very clear engagement protocols and conduct regulations that superseded anything local to which she needed to strictly adhere…provided that…she could actually…help it.

She sighed. This path of being an adventurer…she had only just begun walking it; so much of it remained obscured behind shadow. In the end, all that mattered was the here and the now, the immediate present and her current immediate objective: finding that one last…stupid…accursed sea shrub.

« Uțina semper paçe aeternalid eșessís, misería finitù jam est » she said quietly before…departing away, waving to that forever-sleeping creature a sweetly solemn goodbye; may they solemnly be with peace everlasting, their misery was over.

Although her regulations and protocols of engagement were largely specific to…people, she…and most like her…could not help but…find value in those other living things, often neglected, yet still from that same cradle as they.

After all, it was hard to not value and appreciate something so very rare and scarce…though…it was so very easy…to pretend…otherwise.

-|||-

Dark…yet not really; humid, warm, and groggy…most certainly.

This was her second time navigating through this so-called ‘sunny-cave’. It was by no means…sunny, but it certainly seemed to pretend as though it was.

Glowing ores and crystals were all around, in addition to a myriad of bioluminescent fungal species. It was largely narrow with dozens of central points that were rather wide and spacious…quite so, in fact, large and wide enough to fit an entire mini-ecosystem within them, seemingly. She had not any the idea of how deep this glowing abyss went.

Her carried sack was…heavy…even with only twenty-five of these so-called ‘glow-stones’…which were, of course, not at all stones…but were in fact…exotic crystals of sort. She had already spent…some time collecting all of the turquoise glow-crystals…and had turned them in to the Guild. Now, she was back for the magenta ones…which were trickier to spot and find, even more so than the turquoise ones.

The majority of this cave was full of…yellow and gold glow-crystals with some blues here and there, the two target ones being…seemingly rare. Though, by this point her mind had developed a decent… internal map regarding its layout…to a point…for it was a rather large cavern.

Regardless, because of this…she was finding the rarer magenta ones…a lot faster.

She was alone…well…largely, discounting a few separate adventurers rummaging around with their own glowing sacks of crystals…oh and of course…the local wildlife…which were…not exactly…friendly. In particular, this sunny-cave was full of arachnids…unnaturally large and stupidly aggressive ones at that.

Right…the quest-sheet did mention these strange creatures.

They were somewhat attracted to these crystals seemingly, and also seemed to have…crystalline growths all over their arachnid figures. It seemed as though…much of these strange and exotic crystals were…perhaps produced by these arachnids themselves or…perhaps they simply ate these crystals and they…somehow…hmm…she did not really know, such was not her domain.

All she knew was that neither these crystals nor those arachnids were natural at all, nor even this…cavern for that matter; this place felt rather structured…the paths made sense…things led to sensible things and destinations; natural caves tended to…not be so conveniently easy to navigate.

Though, regardless, she herself had not run into any problems with these local most-certainly-chimeric arachnid inhabitants. Other adventurers had made quick work of them, so she had only really stumbled…upon their crystal-looted corpses.

However, she had at one point…stumbled upon a few crystalline arachnids feasting upon the remains of…a few would-be adventurers who had failed in that regard—she had left those arachnids alone and simply snuck by.

She looked around…hmm…she got turned around…seemingly. She was in an area of this cave that…she had not been in prior. It was darker than before, not as many bioluminescent fungi or glow-crystals.

Hmm…oh well…not a problem, she will manage.

As she wandered through this narrow cave pass, she picked up any magenta glow-crystals she could find…hmm…though there was a ‘wild’ one she needed to find; she assumed that meant…the same strange gradient or colors that…‘wild’ magic had?

Hmm…these crystals…were certainly arcane, though…they did not seem completely arcane.

Regardless…she had picked from the walls and ground around…three magenta glow-crystals; now, she just needed…one more…right, the number was twenty-nine not…huh…well, excellent, then.

The foreigner continued on, exploring and searching…as always, unable to find with any ease at all…that very last one of all things needing to be collected.

Time passed; she was unable to keep track of how long, given she was deep in the middle of this large cavern system.

Eventually, however, she stumbled upon an entry-point that led…into a wider and more spacious area, though one that was…deeper and lower in elevation, the entry-point to it…just being a hole in the wall that led to a drop down below.

She did not need to peak her head and snoop at the area below in order to know…what was down there; she could hear it very easily. Crystalline arachnids, a bunch of them…in fact.

She carefully placed her sack of glow-crystals to the side and went somewhat prone; she crawled to the edge of this drop below, evaluating.

Hmm…the drop itself was not too deep, she could jump down and survive no problem…though her limbs would probably…complain greatly. She could see the crystalline arachnids clearly, their crystalline growths glowing and illuminating the space below.

She counted no more than five of them; they were…feasting, seemingly—most likely an adventurer or local…or…no no…it was one of their own, they were eating…one of their own.

She quickly noticed, however, something peculiar…one of the arachnids was large and big…and rather…fat, even more stupidly so than the others. And…more specifically, at the center of its arachnid…back-part place…was a crystal growth which luminated and glowed a…haphazard gradient array of colors simultaneously all at once; its arachnid eyes were also…somewhat ignited in a way, though no sigil, just glowing wild-white radiance.

This only confirmed to her that these arachnids were…chimeras not animals, for only chimeras had such arcane exoticisms.

Though…regardless, how…convenient. There was that one last object of interest down there which she needed to complete her directive, those chimeric arachnids being the only obstacle.

She sighed…there was no helping this, then.

A strangely cold and numbing calm suddenly fell throughout her being as all that she needed to do became so clear…and easy to do; her thoughts slowed as her mind sped up, time slowing down…as she quietly kneeled herself up and unholstered her revolving pistol.

It should had the range and caliber to quickly dispatch them. She quickly cocked the hammer and aimed…though wait…she usually targeted the spine, never the head or brain rather…but…invertebrates, right…oh well…no helping it…hmm…oh wait…actually…what if she were to…

Pop, she fired an echoing ear-piercing shot as black-powdery smoke filled the air, striking an arachnid right in its largest of crystalline growths, which burst in a small yet energized crystalline poof, killing the arachnid instantly…scattering some of it about.

Ah…so those crystals were produced from…those arachnids or rather…their strange chimeric essence. Interesting…so…wait instead of making ‘webs’—which arachnids apparently did, she did not necessarily know—did they just go around…plopping these crystals all about?

Huh…whatever, she fired her fourth shot, having already fired the other two as she cogitated, each piercing shot bursting each struck arachnid’s principal crystalline growth. Though…she was surprised that she was actually hitting her marks…the sheer kick-back and recoil of this primitive pistol was something…she was not at all used to.

Suddenly, an energized crystalline spike came lancing—dozens of them, in fact. They struck right into the rocks above her position, detonating in a small burst. Hissing and purring as it began to…somehow climb the walls up to her…was that larger ‘wild’ crystalline arachnid, sharp and spiky crystals being relentlessly volleyed from these strange pores.

Oh, something was clearly angry. Funny.

She quickly retreated away as the wild crystalline arachnid came lunging up. Screeching and hissing relentlessly, its arachnid legs flailed away as the large chimeric invertebrate attempted to squeeze its way through the smaller entry-point. Being unable to do so…and becoming stuck, it persisted…relentlessly, nevertheless.

Ah, how convenient, so blood lusted it was stupid.

She calmly aimed as she cocked the hammer, firing a single targeted shot…into its head area.

Glowingly radiant yellow-green ‘blood’ spewed out; it hissed yet…continued to persist.

She quickly fired her last shot; the heavy round pierced; wop and down tumbling it went.

She…as fast as able…loaded and cap-primed two new shots before returning to the edge…peering down cautiously, the wild crystalline arachnid twitching and throbbing down below…the wild chimeric radiance flickering and withering.

It was dying.

She reloaded the rest of her pistol.

Though now…hmm…she stared below…how was she even going to extract and bring that glow-crystal back up here? Hmm…oh well, she will figure it out…in due time.

So very calm and focused, so very cold and inhibited, so very attentive yet so very detached; the foreigner simply cogitated her next steps in completing her most immediate directives…paying no mind to the contradictions eating within.