PART II - FIRST REVELATIONS

“Pixyl is a little out of it,” Vanis said. “Her wing was in a great deal of pain when she woke, so Fidas gave her a painkiller. It apparently worked, but …”

“But I’m really fuzzy,” the Pixie finished. “But I’m awake! Just … fuzzy.”

“That must be some really good stuff,” Callie said, having raised her head to look at Pixyl again. “The pain is gone?”

“Mostly,” Pixyl said, slurring her words a little, but oddly without a stutter. She had a bright gleam in her eyes. “You told me that I got this. So, I got this.”

“Yeah, Pixyl. You got this.” Callie said.

“I even learned a new skill!” Pixyl said, raising an arm limply with narcotic excitement.

“Oh yeah?” Callie said, lying on her back and returning her head to the pillow. “What’s it called?”

“Ethereal Blast. I’m not sure how to use it, and I wouldn’t want to try it here, either. I think that would be bad.” Callie could hear Pixyl’s excited grin in the tone of her voice, even without seeing her face.

“Nice!” Callie said, truly happy for Pixyl. “How do you learn these? Do they just suddenly pop into your head and ‘boom’ you know it?”

“Boom?” Lena said.

“-ism” called out Xin’s pillow-muffled voice.

Pixyl and Lena both giggled, with Lena’s ending in her trademarked snort.

“That’s right,” Callie said. “I’m an -ism! But really, how does it work?”

“I also received a skill,” Lena said.

“What did you learn?” Vanis asked.

“Instinctive Dodge. I know it’s a pretty basic skill, but it is a core part of what makes a Bladedancer. I’m not sure how to actually use it, though,” Lena added with a verbal frown. “I only know I have it. I have a feeling more skills and perks will trickle in regularly.”

“Callie, you mentioned to the Healer that you talked to your Symbiote? What did you mean?” Vanis asked. “For me, one moment I felt it entering my ear, then the next I was waking in the darkness of the blindfold.”

“Same with me,” Pixyl sang in a happy tune.

“Really? I had a long conversation with mine. It wasn’t sure it wanted to bond with me, so we had to talk through whether it was worth it and what I might do if I find a way home. Or if I’m stuck in this world, for that matter. Well, I did all the talking, it just communicated back to me in emojis.”

“Ee-mo-gee?” Lena asked.

“-ism!” Xin called out again, raising her clawed arm into the air before letting it fall back.

“Um. Remember when I talked about texting on my world?”

“The instantly-delivered messages,” Vanis said, recalling the earlier conversation. “Sent with your handheld devices called spellfones.”

“Cellphones!” Callie corrected with a laugh, although spellfones had a fun ring to it, she had to admit. “When you send the message, you can include little pictures that have different meanings. We call them emojis, because they can convey an emotion in picture form. For example, if I included a smiley face picture, it would mean I was happy about what I was sending, or what someone sent me.”

Vanis groaned slightly as he shifted position, his hand rubbing his forehead. “If you need to rest, Callie, I understand, but I’m very interested in your experience. I’ve never heard of someone actually communicating with their Symbiote. Are you sure it wasn’t a dream?”

Callie shrugged on instinct, even though nobody was looking at her. “It could have been. I have no way to know, really. But unlike you, I did feel time pass between when the slug entered my ear and when I woke up.”

“Interesting,” Vanis said, suddenly taking in a huge yawn. “Sorry about that. The berry is having its effect on me. You were saying, Callie?”

“Mostly, it wasn’t sure if it was a good use of its knowledge to bond with me. I might find a way to go back to Earth, or decide to settle down with some boring bookkeeping job. It didn’t really seem to like either of those, and I can see how it would be a waste to carry a rare Symbiote for the rest of my life and not use it.”

“If this wasn’t a dream, this implies that Symbiotes are sentient,” Vanis said. “I don’t think that’s ever been seriously considered by any Scholars in the field.”

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“He’s gone all academic on us,” Lena droned. “He’ll talk your ears off if you let him, Callie.”

“Lena, you know it’s a field of interest I have,” Vanis grumbled.

“I know, and I guess it is actually interesting,” Lena said, yawning. “But she was certainly just dreaming.”

“Perhaps,” Vanis agreed. “Callie, what finally convinced your Symbiote to join with you? Dream or not?”

“I gave some thought to what I wanted to do if I end up stuck here for the rest of my life. It felt like a waste to become a bookkeeper while I was still young. I threw a few ideas around in my head, and then stole your idea, Vanis.”

“Oh? Which one?”

“The idea of becoming a worm hunter. I could use my Ranger skills, but not having to spend my life actually killing things. This is assuming I get rid of this Conscription Curse and such.”

“That’s actually a really sound vocation for a Ranger,” Lena said. “There might be a few more skills you need, but with some study you could learn them. I guess it depends what skills Rangers get; I don’t really know them all.”

“You’re Symbiote approved of this?” Vanis asked.

“Once I explained that ‘hunter’ in this context didn’t literally mean hunting to kill, I think it was far more open to that future. I pitched the idea as helping wild Symbiotes find their hosts.”

“Callie the Pretty Worm Finder,” Pixyl muttered in her drugged-up daze.

Lena glanced over to the Pixie, noting a tiny pool of drool leaking out of her mouth. “She’s really out of it,” she laughed. “I don’t think Fidas took her small size into account when he gave her the painkiller. Hopefully it wears off by morning.”

“Who knows what could happen in the future,” Callie said. “But at least having a thought about the future seemed to be the tipping point in joining with me.”

“If you were not dreaming,” Xin interjected.

“Always a downer, Xin,” Lena growled.

“But still true, Lena,” Callie said. “It all could have been a dream. But at the same time, I don’t think it really matters. As of now, the Symbiote appears to have jo…”

NEW PERK: BOWYER/FLETCHER

Callie was stunned into silence mid-sentence.

“What’s wrong?” Lena said, sitting up to look worriedly at the Gnome.

“I think I just got a perk,” Callie said hesitantly.

“Oh?” Lena said.

“Really?” Lena said. “What did you learn?”

“Bowyer/Fletcher. I suppose that’s knowledge of how to make arrows and stuff, right?”

“That is indeed a basic Ranger perk,” Vanis said. “I think we can say without a doubt your Symbiote is working. Congratulations, Ranger Callie.”

“I got a perk! Holy wow! I got a perk!” Callie said excitedly. She started to stand up in order to jump up and down, but the world started to spin and she quickly lay down again with a groan. “Oooo, that wasn’t a bright idea.”

“Stay down, Callie,” Lena chastised. “You don’t want to be standing if it hits you.”

“When what hits me?” Callie asked warily. Suddenly, Callie’s normal dizzy state turned into an acute attack of vertigo. She groaned loudly and held a hand over her eyes. A few seconds later, Xin moaned as well.

It took about a minute for Callie’s world to stop spinning. When finally it righted itself, Callie groaned and held her hands over her face.

“I tried to warn you,” Lena said with a laugh. “When I got my skill reveal, it was followed by intense dizziness. I wasn’t sure it would happen to others, so everyone make sure you sit down or brace yourself if it happens while you are standing or walking around tomorrow.”

“Good warning,” Vanis said. “Pixyl didn’t mention it happening to her, but she could be so out of it she didn’t even notice.”

“It was a twirly world,” Pixyl gibbered and Lena let out another snort of laughter in response.

“Someone make sure to let Tazrok know, as well,” Vanis suggested. “The last thing we need is an Ogre falling on someone.”

“No kidding. It is like being a glass of water,” Callie responded with a long groan, finally feeling somewhat closer to normal drunk, not blackout spinning drunk.

“I have just received a new skill as well,” Xin said in a muffled voice. “Elemental Bolt.”

“That’s great, Xin!” Lena said, obviously excited for the Lizardkin.

“So I have this new perk. Now what? I don't feel any different,” Callie said.

“I’m sure the knowledge will come in time,” Vanis said with a yawn.

The room got quiet as the conversation seemed to peter out. Without moving her head too much, Callie glanced around again at her five new friends. Xin’s tail had stopped swishing at some point, and her breathing was deep. She was probably asleep. Vanis seemed to be having problems keeping his head upright and Lena had turned on her side and seemed to be slowly drifting off. Pixyl hadn’t moved at all, but her eyes were closed, that same silly grin still on her slightly drooling face.

“You should lie down, Vanis,” Callie said in a low voice.

“You’re right,” he replied. “I just wanted to make sure everyone was set.”

“Thank you, Vanis. That means a lot to me. And I’m sure to everyone. Get some rest if you need to. We’ll all be here in the morning.”

The Elf nodded, and shifted on his bunk to lie down. It took mere moments before his breathing deepened like the others in the room. Callie herself shifted slightly to get in a more comfortable position, working to wave off the spinning feeling as she did so. For a moment she felt nauseous, but once she was settled, the feeling faded.

RACIAL TRAIT REVEALED: MANA-ENHANCED HEARING

Callie’s eyes shot open in sudden surprise, and then she remembered the chaos that would soon follow. She shifted slightly in her prone position and closed her eyes in preparation, taking in a deep, calming breath. As the world began to spin, she rode it like a tilt-a-whirl, hanging on tight and simply trying to push through. As the episode finally began to recede, berry-induced sleep began to creep in on her, and Callie simply surrendered to it. She was a Ranger. She was a Ranger.