There was a stunned silence that sat there for a while. The eccentrically dressed moth winked at me and fell back into his chair, with no one around us being any wiser.
The guy just hit me with a Wu Tang forever. He didn’t even try to hide it. Suddenly the Ryzzah name made way more sense too. Follow the music. It was the departing words of the king, and I held them close to the berry chest. So these people were like me, a Resurfaced, and if they had a reason to hide who they really were then maybe I should do better about that too. I gave Ryzzah a nod, letting him know I understood where he was coming from, then sealed the deal just to reassure him.
“Thank you, Ryzzah. That was very kind. May your neck ever be protected.”
The eccentric moth chuckled and seemed to relax, letting go of some tension I hadn’t even noticed he carried. Ryzzah fell back into form, addressing us as a group and going over whatever his titlesmith profession was; but I think I could have guessed.
“Honored Ryzzah, it would be most appreciated if you could honor us by unlocking our dormant titles,” Fogwarth said, taking a seat and sighing like an old dad after a long day’s work. “We have had many battles, and shared in many losses. There must be some which we have earned, especially my Companions here.”
Ryzzah looked from me to the Golem beside me, then to Fogwarth. “Alright, Heir 7th. Let us see what we can find. We may start with the Golem, as unbound familiars are more difficult to smith titles for. Please, Golem, approach and kneel so that I may smith for you a title worthy of your experiences.”
Huh? Was this really needed? I mean, I’ve heard Fogwarth’s ridiculous titles. Sounds like they were plucked from thin air and not really something that needed so much ceremony or ritual. One of his titles was like The Phenomenal Lard Ass or something. How much was really needed for something like that?
Ak-Lok obeyed and took its place, allowing Ryzzah to place his hands on both sides of its stone, solemn face and emit a low glow from his palms. The moth stirred, eyes closing and breath growing shallow as he concentrated on Ak-Lok. A humming came from Ryzzah’s mouth, rhythmic with an ever changing flow of highs and lows in repetition. It started slow then grew in speed, being bouncing but keeping the same somber notes-
“Hey! Knock it off!” I said, folding my stem arms and tapping my foot in frustration.
I knew the notes of Dr. Dre’s song Still D.R.E when I heard them.
Ryzzah chuckled, letting go of Ak and relaxing in his chair again. “Oh, just a bit of fun! The humming helps me concentrate, so it is not the waste of time you may believe it is. At times of tumultuous tension one must remember the hymns of the old world goats.”
“Goat? Dre?” I asked, shaking my berry head. “We can unpack that at another time. So, what did you actually do to Ak? What’s the point of all of this?”
Ryzzah returned his attention to the Golem, reaching out a glowing finger like ET and tracing tight patterns over Ak’s forehead. The swirls and pivots of the glowing runs danced down Ak’s face and neck, running over its chest and stopping where a normal person’s heart would have been. The glow of the white dunes lasted for just a few seconds longer before fading away altogether. I quickly brought up Ak’s status screen under my Companion tab lingering over its titles. Sure enough, where it once had nothing, there were three new titles to see.
[The Missing Half], [The Empire’s Bane], and [The Hallowed Archer] all set in tab. I could even see that Ak-Lok had chosen to display the archer one as I watched it move to the front of the list, and when I went back to its normal status page it was available right below its name.
“Okay, I can see Ak has titles now. But so what?” I said, still confused. “From my experience you can’t see anything but the displayed titles unless you are Companions, so I’m clearly missing some purpose to all of this.”
Foggy chuckled. “Sir berry! You would make a marvelous court jester, if we still had a court that is. Please, allow Ryzzah to show you the purpose of obtaining new titles. It is far simpler to merely show then it is to tell!”
Resigned and intrigued, I stepped forward and allowed the moth’s hands to rest on either side of my berry. The same glow came from his palms, and I felt the odd sensation of cold radiating from his hands while the sensation of something being pulled from inside of my mind caused my head to throb uncomfortably. It wasn’t necessarily painful, but it wasn’t a feeling I would say I enjoyed. It was like standing outside in January with a vacuum cleaner hose held to your head. Odd, I know. I let it continue and just concentrated on the humming coming from Ryzzah’s moth mouth.
This time it was Gin & Juice by Snoop Dogg. My dad used to like this song, and it put me in a nostalgic place for a minute while the ceremony went on. Ryzzah continued the song even throughout his ET finger trick, tracing glowing tunes over my berry head, around my crown thing, over my stem arms, between my eyes, and even over my mouth like a mustache. I partially believed he was just fucking with me at this point but Foggy looked genuinely excited so I let it slide.
Finally the moment passed, and my eyes bulged as new notifications sprung up in my vision.
[Titled Complete: The Calypso Herald. Rarity: Scarce. Summary: Earned by being the founder of the Calypso Blueberry race on the world of Palea. Effect: +5% experience earned from all sources]
[Titled Complete: The Goliath’s David. Rarity: Uncommon. Summary: Earned by felling a foe more than three times your own level. Effect: +1 to highest ranked Expertise when facing a foe of a greater level than your own]
[Title Complete: Hero Of The Blood Orchard War. Rarity: Unique. Summary: Turned the tide of battle and allowed for a victory in the face of imminent defeat. Effect: +10% Maximum Health, +10% Maximum Mana]
I was speechless. These were… these were game changers. Plain and simple. They gave the passive boosts I desperately wanted but could never choose. Extra experience would never go to waste, and I still had no idea what the Expertise were but the king had made it sound like something incredibly useful. Then the Health and Mana bonuses? Talk about a life saver. The best part was that it seemed these effects stayed regardless of if the title was displayed or not. I understood now why having a Titlesmith was such a boon to a town or kingdom now. It was great! That is, until I looked at my last title.
[Title Complete: The Friend’s End. Rarity: Common. Summary: Showed mercy and ended the life of an ally at their request. Effect: Companions within a 12 yard radius receive an addition +1.2% Health regen]
Bittersweet was an understatement. I resented the title, even if the effect gave me some kind of passive healing aura for my people. It would always be there now, I supposed. Always there as a reminder of what we faced in the mist, and potentially what more we would face in the future. The [Common] rarity almost mocked me, promising more loss if I wasn’t careful. I chose to display my [Hero Of The Blood Orchard War] title.
Fogwarth went on to receive his own, which of course had some real dumb names, along with one similar to mine. I watched on my Companion interface as they were added to his already staggering list of titles. [The Unfelled Chumbus], [The Tubby Terror], and, the less fun, [The Sibling’s End], which had to be similar to the one I had received. Foggy’s expression was equally as conflicted as my own. Trying to alleviate his obvious tension, I had to ask the question that's been lingering in my mind for a long time.
“[The Unfelled Chumbus]?” I asked. “[The Tubby Terror]? Dude, what the hell is that about? There is no way those are real titles. No way in Hell.”
Ryzzah looked around nervously. “W-What? You dare to question my work? Sir, I will have you know that I am a renowned Titlesmith and a valued asset to this kingdom! My work is impeccable! To even question it is hurtful beyond measure…”
The eccentric moth threw himself back, a hand to his bug forehead as if he has been overtaken by some illness. I wasn’t buying it.
“No, you don’t fool me,” I said as my companions stood, preparing to leave. I leaned in, keeping my voice down after my Companions gave their thanks and began to move on. “Foggy is a good guy. Stop messing with him for your own amusement, got it?”
The moth sighed, and nodded. He moved in close to me, speaking equally as low. His voice changed, losing the odd way these people spoke and instead sounding more like a typical 1990’s New Yorker. “Fine, I’ll stop. It was fun while it lasted. But listen, Barry, dude. Be careful, okay?”
I pulled back, raising a brow. Odd advice seeing as how in this world I could literally do nothing but be careful, or die.
“This place ain’t good to us. The Resurfaced. Keep your circle tight, keep your head down, okay?”
“Okay…” I nodded, still confused but taking the advice anyway. The king had alluded to as much as well. “Are there many of us? Who else here is one of us?”
Ryzzah shook his head. “None else here. We are alone, unless there are others who don’t know about using music as a secret language for us. It sort of… makes sense, when you think about it. Music let’s us know what era you’re from typically, although it can be tough if it's from an area of the world we didn’t live in, or from a time after we had already resurrected here. I got lucky when the king let me in on it, because he wouldn’t have known my references at all. You just make it too obvious with how you talk.”
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“Noted,” I said, then gave my thanks before turning to follow my now distant Companions. Ryzzah reached out, stopping me again and muttering quietly.
“Look, man. There is a… rumor, let’s say. A place they call Presley. It’s said to be a home for Resurfaced. A whole town of them. A guy had come through here, a real weird dude, who called himself Cash. He was trying to recruit any Resurfaced to his town, but the king advised we both stay quiet. Didn’t trust the whole thing. Anyway, might be worth looking into if you find yourself leaving Mothric.”
[Quest Received: Discovering Presley, Home of the Resurfaced. Quest Giver: Ryzzah. Description: You have heard a rumor of a place called Presley, which is said to be a home to the Resurfaced. Success Condition: Find out the truth of Presley’s existence. Reward: Experience]
I briefly looked the quest over, then shut down my notifications. I still had a metric fuck ton to go through at some point later, then I could mentally unpack what it meant to have an entire town of people like me here. It was more tempting than I wanted it to be, and I could tell it was the same for Ryzzah. I made a note to myself to find out information on the place for him, if I did leave Mothric for any reason.
“Thanks, Ryzzah. I appreciate it,” I said, giving him a smile.
Ryzzah nodded, changing his demeanor back to the regular Titlesmith moth of Mothric. “Why yes! Most certainly, young berry! May you go in peace! Remember to not be too Notorious here at the kingdom! And, if you do leave our humble home, then do not forget Tupac!”
Alright. I couldn’t help it. I lost my shit at that. I couldn’t help but shake my head and laugh as I made my way up alongside my Companions.
The next stop was Aspenoc. I grimaced at the thought of climbing the stairs of his spire on my own. Yeah, I know it’s lazy. I get that I got lucky being chauffeured around by Foggy and his sister the first time, but you didn’t see those spire stairs. I shivered just thinking about the climb ahead of us.
We really lucked out twice when we hit the hallways that brought us to the spire entrance. The first time was not being hit with whatever illusion the elder wasp had used on us the first time around that made us walk endlessly along the same corridor. The second was seeing the two Mothric guards at the entrance, along with Aspenoc and his grandson just beyond the entrance at the base of the stairs. I was grateful for the short leash they kept his Aeronik on since it saved me a painfully long trip that I would have described in intense detail over three full paragraphs.
That wouldn’t be fun for anyone.
The guards parted, greeting us and allowing us the pass by without any interference; they had even warmly welcomed me, possibly due to my new title or just knowing I had helped in saving what remained of the kingdom. I gave them a smile and a casual “Hey” in return.
“Ah, you have made it. It is about time,” Aspenoc said before even looking in our direction. “It is not kind to keep an elder waiting.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, yeah. How are you holding up, oh elderly one?”
Scrappy leapt from my head, with me totally forgetting he was even up there, and made his way to Aspenoc. He put up his dukes, gave some practice jabs and bounced from foot to foot, then was promptly picked up and placed on the Oracle’s shoulder. What the hell…
“It is good to see you, my orchid friend. I am glad to see you well! Ah, you have grown some. That is good. You will be a wonderful ally to Barry as you both continue on your paths together.”
“Really?” I said, pulling up the status for Scrappy and noticing it was now level 3. Huh, would you look at that. The little fighter would have easily hit level 5 if it wasn’t for the -40% experience gain for him. “Oh, oh yeah. Must have been the…” I looked to Foggy, then decided not to bring up the fight with his brother.
“Grandfather, you entertain dealings with this abomination?” Aeronik grunted, sitting in a lower step. He had been stripped of his armor and weapons, being left with only a tattered burlap robe.
“Easy there,” I said, glancing over at him. “That’s my flower you’re talking about.”
“Talking about you,” Ak-Lok added.
“Me?” I raised a brow. “Me? I’m a damn blueberry! Abomination my ass.”
“You are an abomination,” Aeronik scoffed. “A curse put on this world in the final hour of Juniperscar! Our God of Growth and Harvest has sent you to claim his vengeance on this world for his fate at the hands of this false moth king! My father has seen such events! He has foretold the-“
“I’m. A. Blueberry!” I shouted, interrupting him. “Dude, you think some vengeful dead God really decided the best revenge would be to take some fucking guy from another world and shove him into an oversized, worthless fruit?”
I knew I had been warned twice to keep my whole business being Resurfaced to myself, but, like, fuck this bee. For real.
“I wouldn’t say worthless,” Foggy added. “An excellent source of antioxidants, potassium, and vitamin C while remaining a leading anti-inflammatory! You think too little of yourself, sir berry.”
“Thanks for the infomercial, Foggy,” I answered.
Aspenoc stepped in just before his grandson was about to speak, raising his arms and silencing the oncoming verbal assault before it could happen. Scrappy mirrored the movements, and it actually did dissipate a bit of the tension. The elder Oracle rubbed the top of his head and sighed as we quieted down.
“Yes, Aeronik. I do consort with the berry,” Aspenoc said, causing his grandson’s face to contort into a disapproving scowl. “However, you have not known this berry as we in Mothric have. He has been an ally to these people, and I have sensed nothing but good intentions from him since the first moment he stepped into my tower. Ah! Speaking of such, you all have a reward from the king’s quest…”
Aspenoc reached into one of two pouches at his waste. The first one was plain like Foggy’s, looking like an average pouch despite its magical capabilities. The other one? Well, it was clearly made of some kind of purple velvet and it shimmered in the light. A golden drawstring sealed it, and Aspenoc gingerly reached within, being careful not to disturb the pouch too much. I was curious as to why there would be one so fancy, until I realized it was the kings.
I wasn’t sure how it worked when someone died, but if Aspenoc could use a soulbound item from someone else, similar to Foggy and I, then he must have been the king’s Companion.
He retrieved several things, all of which were comically large in comparison to the pouch, and then distributed them accordingly. Ak-Lok only received their currency, which were small flattened squares of gold, silver, and copper. Foggy had also received some money, along with a leather bracelet thing that he wore outside of his armor. It had shimmering threads sewn through it and I had little doubt that it was magical in some way.
For me, I first got the money, same as the others. Unlike them I didn’t have a mystical storage pouch and had to put both the money and my dinged-up sword on the ground. What he handed me next was… strange. And ugly. Strange and ugly.
[Uuranaki Skin Gloves. Type: Armor, Hands. Rarity: Uncommon. Defense: +4% slash resistance, +2% blunt resistance, +22% poison resistance, +17% elemental resistance. Effect: N/A. Description: Gloves crafted with tanned and tailored skin of an Uuranaki. Warning: Uuranaki have a 25% chance to become enraged at the sight of this armor]
[Uuranaki Skin Boots. Type: Armor, Feet. Rarity: Uncommon. Defense: +7% slash resistance, +4% blunt resistance, +19% poison resistance, +15% elemental resistance. Effect: N/A. Description: Boots crafted with tanned and tailored skin of an Uuranaki. Warning: Uuranaki have a 25% chance to become enraged at the sight of this armor]
They were just as hideous as they sounded. I didn’t know what the Hell an Uuranaki was, but apparently their skin was an oily, wrinkly gray. It looked like old, preserved ballsack skin that had been stitched together to make into clothing. I couldn’t even look at them too long, seeing what could have potentially been an eye socket and a mouth on one of the boots. Thanks for the rewards, king. I hated them.
Reluctantly, I put on the gloves and boots. The inside wasn’t so bad, with a bit of padding and soft fur that made it tolerable. It may have been psychological, but I did feel a bit more durable. After being completely naked this long, or encased in a big metal ball, it was just nice to not be so exposed.
“Alright,” I said, grabbing my sword and my money. I wasn’t in a rush, but I really wanted to look over my notifications. “Thanks for the rewards, Aspenoc. Foggy, who-“
“Not so fast, Barry,” the Oracle said before we could head off. “We have things to discuss. And, while you may have assisted with saving our kingdom, I fear we are facing a new foe. Or, to be exact, we are facing two. With my power returned I have begun to see glimpses of what could be, and the visions are… not ideal. It brings me no great joy that I might ask, Heir 7th, that you and your allies leave by dawn’s first light.”
I wanted to speak up, but Foggy had this one. No way we could do that. After all we have been through? After the mayhem we have endured back-to-back? Nope. Foggy would shut this old wasp down.
“Hmm…” Foggy answered, pretending to be deep in though. Yeah, no way he agrees. “Where is it you would have us travel, elder?”
There it is. Foggy is just appeasing him now. Good job, Foggy.
“You must… You must return to the southern border.” Aspenoc paused and swallowed hard, as our jaws metaphorically and literally dropped. “You must find that which we have hidden for so, so long. You must find and enter the dead God’s husk.”
“What?!” Fogwarth exclaimed before I could, taking a step back in disbelief. “Elder, you have no idea the horrors which we have witnessed there. The atrocities of beast and man which had lingered in that place, cursed by the flesh of… of what my father had done. You cannot force our hand. I will not danger my friends again.”
Ak-Lok was silent. Its carved, solemn face stood idle and lifeless, as if it were retracting from the world to process it all.
Me? Nah. I wasn’t silent.
“You’re out of your fucking mind!” I shouted, practically foaming at the mouth with rage. “We aren’t going back! Why would we? What could even be so fucking important?”
Aspenoc’s shoulders slumped, and he shook his head in shame. The elder Oracle took a seat on the steps near his grandson and let out a long, ragged sigh.
“Fogdahn is there… or, at least he was,” Aspenoc answered after a stretch of silence. “From what we have heard of his skirmish with Foghurdt, the news of Juniperscar’s body struck him like a bell. The 6th heir fled the northern border by air after their battle, heading for the location. I had hoped your party would have had a sign of him once you returned, but from the sounds of it you did not. He had to have made it there prior to your arrival, but if the grounds were as dangerous as you say, perhaps he fled again…”
“N-No…” I answered, things fitting together like a puzzle. “His scythe… The mists. The girl we met there, Toki, she called them Canaan mists. The same kind that stupid scythe mentioned…”
“Barry…” Fogwarth said, turning to face me with realization creeping over him like the light of a new day. “I fear you are correct. If that was Canaan mist as we suspect then… then Fogdahn was there. He may still be there. And if he is…”
“Then he has found and entered the husk of the dead God,” Ak-Lok answered.
[Quest Received: The Dead God’s Husk]
“Well… shit.”