Chapter 10

Kalex found himself at the front door of a grand mansion. He could’ve sent himself to the actual spot where he found that bright signature, but he hadn’t had an adventure in a long time. He was going to meet back at the cave shortly anyway. Looking around, he saw the grand courtyard where he had opened his eyes for the first time in this world. Seeing everything from this perspective was eerie as all he saw were dust-covered streets, torn clothes, and the stain of blood.

Shaking himself out of the morose thoughts, he turned to the door and attempted to open the handle. It was locked shut as expected, and there were no points of ingress as the windows were covered with metal grates and nasty-looking spikes. Focusing on the handle, he sent a sliver of the myst he controlled into the locking mechanism. After feeling around, he heard a click and the door swung open.

Pure opulence greeted Kalex upon taking a step into the residence. With a mischievous grin, he started taking everything that looked valuable. To his surprise, most of the items were fakes and were just painted in golden colors to assume the status of wealth. Scanning the objects, he found that they were mostly made of mundane pot metals. Kalex started looking closer at the things he was taking and luckily found a few that had a relatively strong myst signature.

With the knowledge that most of the things in the building were just for show, Kalex moved to the staircase that led underneath the building.

Unlocking doors had become child's play, as Kalex had to unlock a total of thirteen doors to reach the entrance of the room he saw in his presence sight. There was only one thing keeping him from finding out what that intense myst signature was. There was one more door in his way, and in front of that door, a man stood. Kalex immediately obscured himself with his presence and leaned into a darker corner.

“Who goes there? Is that you, my lord?” The man saluted loudly. “I have done as you asked and guarded the treasury, my lord. Is the abomination dealt with? May I see my family now?” Kalex felt slightly miffed as he knew the guard was referring to him. “Uhh, hello. I’m not who you’re looking for but you can leave and see your family if you want. I was just about to go into that room."

The guard swiftly turned in the direction of the voice as the low torch flame shined off the well-polished armor he wore and the newly brandished spear. “No one will break into the treasury! I’ve been tasked to guard it with my life!” Seeing a small figure in the shadow, the guard rushed in.

To Kalex, the world seemed to have ground to a halt as the guard began running towards him. He inadvertently spread his presence out into the room and engulfed the man in it. The entire room was still, the torches adorning the wall became steady and the shadows they cast became a shade darker. Kalex had merged his presence with everything in the room and with barely a thought, he pulled.

A fraction of a moment later, the room lost its light and everything went quiet, if only for a second. A bodily thud echoed throughout the room and a scream soon followed. “What have you done to me? I can’t get up! You monster! Don't come any closer!” Kalex attempted to contact Lex and it worked as if he was back on Diat. “Lex can you scan this guy and show me his status? Kalex felt a wave of warmness inside of his skull. “Of course, Mr. Wounder.” A screen filled Kalex’s vision.

Name: Voric Evertie

Race: Human (Enternia)

Rank: Foundation

Maturity: 0/0

Path: Twisted Guardian (Novice)

Vitality: 23/100

Myst: 0/0

Strength: 1

Wisdom: 1

Agility: 1

Charisma: 1

Luck: 2

“I am the head of the guards! This atrocity will not be overlooked!" Voric yelled. Kalex stepped into the light and tilted his head to the side. “You look familiar, do you remember a small child that was born here a few days ago that was full of scars?" Voric grunted and managed to prop himself onto an elbow. “How could I forget? If it wasn’t for that creepy purple-eyed girl, I would've been able to add its blood to the steps of the square. I was so close to ending this horror we find ourselves in and bringing back the Days of Many, but instead, I was drawn out to guard this place. At least I saw where the girl went." The guard snickered

"It’s the guard's duty to pin down anything that could harm the civilized life we’ve made here. I knew from the moment that she produced an orange light with the eclipse fragment, that she was going to be trouble. Damn Roamers, always fouling up the place.” Even on Diat, Kalex had never felt so much anger and hatred towards another being. This man was planning on confronting Lyla, and with the first confrontation Kalex had with the man, he knew it would end badly. Also here was the man who Lyla had needed to save him from. If she wasn’t there, Kalex’s journey in Enternia would’ve ended as swiftly as it had started. This man was ready to take Kalex’s life and harm the only person he trusted in this world. This was going to end here.

“Voric, the child you wished to crush on the steps in the town square is standing before you. I am that scarred child and I will not allow you to further harm Lyla or myself.” Voric’s eyes went wide as Kalex lifted his bare foot intending to stomp on the man’s head. Voric reached for the amulet around his neck and crushed it. A blast of light and force pushed Kalex onto his back.

Once the blast was over Kalex could hear a strained laugh. “Heh, I choose when my end will be, you malefactor, and my life will go to a good cause. Now every leader in the Realm of Seeds will know your description and the location of your little hidy hole.” Voric began to cough. Blood poured from his mouth and he smiled. “I hope… your life… is filled with all the anguish… you brought upon us…and once they kill you…I’ll be there…waiting for you… in the afterlife.” Voric spat in Kalex’s direction as his eyes glazed over.

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Kalex stared at the vile corpse of the man in shock. His first thought was to get back to the cave as soon as possible. He didn’t know how quickly the amulet Voric wore acted, but Kalex still had the treasury to search. To be cautious, Kalex spread his presence over the area of his cave. He only saw Lyla picking some berries outside of the cave and little else, which allowed him to breathe easily for the moment.

Kalex called for Lex. “Lex, can you tell Lyla to gather her things, we need to leave.” Kalex felt a warm pressure in the back of his head. “Certainly, Mr. Wounder. She has been notified.” Kalex stepped over the guard, pocketing a small jingling bag that was tied to his waist, and pushed the door open with his presence. What he saw was something even a Wounder heir wouldn’t scoff at.

Golden coins set in neat piles filled the room. Scattered across the floor and sitting atop pedestals were jewelry, clothes, and pieces of armor that were in a different style than Voric’s had been, but no less shiny. One entire corner was filled with shoes and boots of all different kinds. Kalex didn’t have time to go through everything so he promptly surrounded everything with his presence and pulled it towards him. As the various spoils got close, he activated his storage the same way he would if he were using his cube. Everything was swiftly transformed into motes of light and shot towards his center. Once the room was cleaned out, he felt for the items inside himself and could instantly recall everything he had stored. Kalex grinned. “This is the best. Now to get Lyla and leave.”

Kalex appeared directly in front of Lyla, causing her to fall backward in surprise. “Kalex! You need to warn me before you do that! And what was with your message? I’ve been scrambling to pack everything up and head to Fulrog, I thought you were in trouble!” Kalex backed up slightly and put his hands in front of himself. “I’m sorry I didn’t give you any details, I had just seen a man kill himself by crushing an amulet and I ended up storing away a whole city’s worth of treasure. I know you have questions, but I’ll explain on the way. That Voric said he sent out an alert to all the important people about us and where we live, so we have to go. I noticed a large city not far from here and I thought we’d head there."

Lyla shook her head. “You definitely will be explaining everything. With you, it’s one crazy thing after the other, and I’m having a hard time figuring out what's real and what's not.” Kalex stepped closer and laid a hand on her shoulder. “I have a feeling things are going to get crazier, so thank you for sticking with me." He smiled and turned to Lyla’s old bag. It was full of holes and the handles were hanging on by a thread.

“Hang on, before we go.” Kalex pulled a bracelet out of his inventory. It had one of the strongest myst signatures of the things he had taken and it would fit his purpose. With the help of Lex, he expanded the inner area of the bracelet while holding its physical shape firm. As he funneled his presence into it, the expanded space solidified and thrummed with its latent energies. Looking at the bracelet, he felt a sense of pride as this was the largest storage artifact he had ever made.

“Here, for your things.” Kalex held out the bracelet and Lyla gingerly accepted. “This is amazing, but how do I use…” Lyla’s legs gave out and her belongings swiftly made their way into the bracelet. “There’s so much space in here. The things I have don’t even make a dent in the space. Thank you so much! I’ll cherish it forever!” Kalex looked at the discarded bag. “I did get some stuff that will help us on our journey.” Kalex pulled out multiple sets of clothes and shoes that seemed to be a good fit for her. Lyla looked dumbfounded but soon gathered the clothing into her bracelet. Kalex in turn, took out a pair of ordinary-looking brown boots. They had by far the highest presence signature out of all the items he had and when he put them on, he could see why. The boots formed to his feet and felt like he was standing on a cloud.

Kalex also had many sets of clothes that would fit him, but he took a liking to his current attire and decided not to change. “Alright, I think we’re ready to go. Goodbye, cave!” Kalex jovially waved to the entrance of the cave. Lyla, freshly changed into a pair of loose fabric pants, a lilac shirt, and a small leather vest, joined in. “I think we should give it a name since it was the first place you called home in this world. Goodbye, Cave of Wounder!” Both turned around with smiles on their faces and proceeded to walk down a path in the direction of their destination.

The first day of the trip was as uneventful as it was informative. Kalex told Lyla everything that happened in Fulrog and Lyla increased her pace with every word. “What he broke was a mind sigil, it transmits the user’s last thoughts to whomever it’s connected to. If he said that information about us was sent to the superiors of the Realm, we have to take that as fact and plan accordingly.”

Fear crept up Kalex’s spine and he hailed for Lex. “Lex, do you know how my transportation works? How is it that I can teleport myself to anywhere my presence sight can see?” Lex had been steadily blinking behind the duo and moved to the front. “It’s a trait of your path, Mr. Wounder. As a Shifting Wanderer, at the level of novice, you were able to seek out places of refuge easily. At the adept level, you were able to easily shift others' perceptions of you. At the level of master, you received the added benefit of translocating yourself using your advanced rank and control of your myst.”

Kalex stopped walking. “Woah. That helps me make sense of a few things. Thank you. Do you know if I’m the only one who can move, or can I take someone else with me?” Lex lifted higher into the air and blinked at a rapid pace. “There is a chance that you could do that. I suppose you want to teleport both Lyla and yourself. Try to wrap your presence around her and move 10 feet forward using your skill.” Kalex turned to Lyla who looked afraid but determined. “Let’s try it. If it means getting out of the open quicker, it's worth a shot. Just try to not fling me into the air or anything.” Kalex nodded and set his mind to the task.

Gently moving his myst to enshroud Lyla, Kalex focused his every thought on moving. “MOVE!” Kalex whispered but seemed to echo throughout the forest. Opening his eyes and turning around, he noticed Lex slowly meandering its way toward them. “Congratulations Mr. Wounder, you have succeeded.” Kalex looked to his side where Lyla was standing. “Ready to see the big city?” Lyla returned a stiff nod. “Ready.” Kalex closed his eyes. “LET’S GO!” All three of them vanished.

They opened their eyes and were greeted by a paved road leading up to a stage in front of a large stone wall. “This is where eclipse tests are held. I've already passed the test when I entered Fulrog, so I can go in, but I think you need to do the test. As our luck would have it, it looks like a test is going on right now. There’s only a few people left in line so let’s hurry!”

Kalex nodded his agreement and they ran towards the end of the line. A minute after they arrived, a gate official came up to them with a large rectangular box in his hands. Without any preamble, the box emitted a light focused on Lyla and Kalex. “Young lady, you show the eclipse mark and are permitted to enter, but you young sir are not.”

Lyla furrowed her eyebrows at the man. “Aren’t I allowed a plus one? Why can’t I bring him with me?” the man raised a single eyebrow. “The rules state that if, and only if one is found worthy of rejoining civilization, they can choose to enter with one other on the day they pass the test, with an audience of adjudicators present. I say, if we let everyone bring a plus one every time they entered a new town, there wouldn’t be any roamers and we’d be in the same position as we were before the Consolidation.” Kalex tried to look as innocent as he could and grabbed onto Lyla’s sleeve. “It’s alright sister, I’ll take the test.” The official tucked his device in the crook of his elbow and walked away. “Good luck boy, may the Lumen grant you their blessing.”

Ten minutes later, Kalex made it to the front of the line. The majority of the people he had seen take the test had not passed and a group of spectators grew as Kalex stepped up to the floating eclipse fragment. Before touching the fragment, Kalex felt a sense of worry flood through him. If he understood the test correctly, there was no chance he would fail. Still, he looked over to the side of the stage where Lyla stood in wait with an encouraging smile plastered across her face. Focusing, Kalex sent as much of his myst to his outstretched hand. A small wave, like a stone hitting the middle of a pond, spread out from Kalex but was only sensed by the Silvers in the crowd. Kalex inched towards the fragment and with a final lurch, he grabbed it. The moment Kalex touched the fragment, it turned to dust and flew away on the light breeze. Kalex looked at his hand agape, matching all the spectator's expressions. “Kalex!” Lyla yelled as the officials rushed the stage.