I didn’t move onto the desert again until the next morning. I didn’t make a conscious choice to wait so long, that was just how long my ankle took to heal. The passing of time was barely noticeable during my recovery, all my focus on slowly and perfectly rebuilding the pathways I had ruined. I only opened my eyes once the draconic crystals completely rewrote the magical circuits per my memorisation.

I hesitated a moment, unsure of the difference in sunlight. I then noticed the dew on the ground further into the park behind me, which helped me put two and two together. The rumbling in my stomach and dryness in my throat were the second signal that more time had passed than I might have thought. Surviving on the strangely well-cooked food from defeated enemies wasn’t going to work in the long or short term.

I grimaced at the prospect of returning to Clive’s, but steeled myself quickly. Survival came over mental wellbeing. Even as I made the choice, I sensed the changes to myself from just a single day ago. I was more glib about the idea of the dead than anything, really. Was it the newly bound Aspect of the Dragon changing my mentality? The 50 attribute points in the Mental stat? Simple shock?

Whether it was the semi-permanent scarring of trauma or a more intrinsic change brought on by the mystical transformation I was undergoing, I couldn’t look down on any positive. Keeping my head straight, aiming myself at the ideals I still hadn’t finished absorbing into my psyche, was all I could hope for over the coming days.

I used the Yo Staff as a walking stick, though my ankle was as good as new. My new skill promised mastery of its use, and even in this casual instance, it proved true. Slight alterations in grip position, angles of leverage and even the specific landing spot for the base of the staff all slipped into incredibly natural perfection. Along with the grace granted to me by my raised attributes, the difference between myself now and a day before became even more strident. I opened my newest System page and signed with contentment.

Aspects

Fortitude - None

Speed - None

Mental - Dragon (1/4)

Will - None

The feeling of my own potential was intimidating and exciting at the same time. I knew I had barely scratched the surface of my dormant power, yet I doubted any human alive pre-System would be able to put up a fight against me. It looked like I could use three more Guidance Stones on just the Dragon Aspect alone. Just how powerful would I become with four Aspects?

A flicker of the dragon’s roar rumbled through my soul as I aligned further with the Aspect. God, this is addictive. As Clive’s came into view, I also saw the crater I had made in the battle with the turtle. It was quite noticeably empty. I waited in the treeline. From this distance, I could see no groove had been tilled in the soft ground. It didn’t seem like the failed assassin amphibian had been dragged somewhere. Something else was going on.

I activated my mana, cycling power in preparation for danger. The effect of the Aspect on the flow was shocking. While binding had not increased the depth of my mana pool, it had massively improved its efficacy. The stimuli from my enhanced perception was overwhelming in its beauty. I almost forgot where I was in my excitement but a snapped twig drew me back to the situation at hand.

A half second later I was in full sprint. Another rustle had given me the direction of the runner, and they were heading away. I had hesitated because up to now everything had tried to kill me on sight. Whatever was escaping from me was no mindless animal. The distance between us was further than I could see, but once I started crashing through the brush, my quarry gave up discretion, too.

Whatever it was, it was escaping with the pace of an old-world athlete. Unfortunately for them, even olympians would be unable to compete with my speed. Using the Yo Staff to manoeuvre through the forest turned obstacles into opportunity and within moments, the gap between myself and the mysterious sounds close to nothing.

It wasn’t until I was right on top of the noise that I accepted my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. I watched as two bushes were pushed apart and then came back together, the leaves and dirt on the ground getting disturbed. Clearly, something had run through the foliage, but my eyes had been watching the source of the sounds the whole time.

“Are you invisible?”I asked, keeping a short distance with the sound. A noise of distress and increased desperation to get away from me was the only reply. Without a doubt, something was here, running away from me. It was also definitely invisible. “I promise not to hurt you if you don’t hurt me!”

A second later, everything went dark. With mana coursing through me, even my own movements were more clearly highlighted. I could do nothing to stop my face from crumpling as all my momentum stopped at once. I bounced backwards and landed hard on my back. I opened my eyes and screamed, but wasn’t quick enough to dodge the incoming Yo Staff.

The heavy stick landed right on the bridge of my just broken nose and I howled in pain, stamping a foot onto the floor from my lying position. I swiped the staff to the side, ready to defend myself when I stopped in confusion. To my right, a few metres off, someone was doing everything they could to hide their laughter. I turned my eyes to the sound, blinking away the tears, but saw nothing.

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“It’s yer own fault,” a distinctly Irish accented voice chuckled at me, “you promised, then ya go an’ nearly step on me! Yeh can’t break yer promises that quickly, human.”

“What the- ack.” Speaking was out of the question for a minute. It seemed like I wasn’t in immediate danger, or maybe so much danger it didn’t matter how careful I was. Either way, I could afford to calm my mana and repair my nose. The process wasn’t nearly as lengthy as my ankle the night before, but even I could tell that it was still just a sloppy use of powerful magic.

My guest, whoever or whatever they were, seemed content to watch this proceed. Actually, they didn’t just watch. “That’s pretty disgusting. Think a dragon’d kill ya if they saw this.” I didn't have any retort to the critique.

“I thought the same thing, actually.” I admitted in the vague direction of the voice. I couldn’t help but shiver a little as I spoke to what might as well be a ghost. I did, however, recognise an opportunity to finally get some answers. “I’m sorry for my rudeness, I’d bow if I weren’t already on the ground.”

Another giggle, this time at my joke rather than my expense. “Have ta say, it’s quite a lowly look for a human, I’ll give ya that. You gonna get up anytime soon?” Even though I could see nothing but the clear sky above me, the voice was coming from directly in front of my face. An almost silent buzzing whistled a high pitch whine.

Wings? “Thinking about it. Weighing up my options.” I was tempted to reach up, but my politeness was not an accident. I had an inkling of what I might be dealing with here and while I didn’t trust the System not to make strange, jarring changes, it was time to start using my head where I could. “What would you suggest? Oh, and what are you?”

“Questions from thee, expecting answers from me? For free? Without fee?” The voice became charged with power and I felt the air become still. Nature no longer held sway over the space. The feminine voice barked a laugh and the pressure disappeared. “Naea’s me name and it’s the best ye’ll get for now, but don’t go trying to guess the rest or I’ll have yer knackers in a pouch before yeh can get the word out. Names are too important to share with just anyone.”

“Oh, right? I’ve heard that before. Like the actual Fae?” I asked. Promises and the importance of names? This was all stuff I had studied in my spare time. Gaelic mythology.

“Ah, what would you know, human?” The invisible fairy snorted. “Can you even turn your eyes on properly? And you think you know me? Not bloody likely.” Despite the derision in the words, the tone didn’t match. They were clearly amused.

Honesty was always the best policy with the fae. “I have literally no clue what’s going on beyond what I can see in front of my face. Right now, that’s clouds and trees.”

“Like I said,” the voice was now to my left a few feet, “yeh hent even turned your eyes on yet.”

“Right, yeah, what does that mean?” I was already sending mana of different compositions and strength to my eyes but clearly that wasn't the answer. Neither my ‘plain’ mana nor the new draconic crystals changed my vision beyond sharpening it. “Am I just being dumb?”

“Sooo many questions!” In complaint, I saw the ground get disturbed. Had the fairy flopped the floor? “Ya did make quite a big promise though, so I suppose yeh deserve some real answers.” I felt two small hands touch my eyebrows. I tried not to flinch but didn’t manage it. “Don’t send it to the eyes themselves, but here instead. Don’t use the Dragon’s mana.”

I did as I was told, sending mana to the two spots the fairy highlighted. Apparently, being specific was important as I noticed a previously unseen pair of reservoirs. There were whole mana wells sitting just above my eyes which I had been completely unaware of. I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed as I sent mana to the empty spots and they began to fill. The process was quick, only costing a fraction of my total mana. The effect was immediate and I was rewarded with a System prompt.

Skill Unlocked - Manasight

There are many layers to the world. Now, there is one less veil.

The sharpness I had experienced with my crude use of mana up to now felt like a joke. The world around me danced with colours I had no name for, vibrations shimmered through the air and, of course, the mystery voice now had a face to go with it. I suppressed a deep shudder.

Fair folk?! I forced a smile to my face as I tried to casually inch away from the insectoid woman. Large, multifaceted eyes were far too close to mine now she wasn’t invisible. Long, dragonfly wings buzzed quickly and quietly behind her and her limbs were long and spindly. Sharp, wiry black hairs dotted some of her scalp. She wasn’t grotesque, exactly, but it was shocking all the same.

After a moment of calming myself, I was able to speak. “You’ve done me a great service, thank you very much.” I bowed my head and closed my eyes. I kept it bowed, and them closed, until I heard her move away slightly. Ready for round two, I opened my eyes and looked at the ‘fairy’.

Not quite Tinkerbell, Naea looked like a small, emaciated woman. Her skin was a pale, shiny blue. Her large bug eyes were dark, though an amber tint could be seen where the light hit them. Just above a thin forehead, dark black hair offset her skin and sat above her wings in a frizz. She wore a small, flimsy looking blue dress which hugged her from her neck to her knees, a gap in the back for her wings.

“Didn’t think humans were such grovelers. Now yeh can see properly, you can check for yourself what I am.” She was right, of course. Filling the small pools above my eyes had sequestered a tiny portion of my mana out of reach. I could deactivate the skill and get it back, but it was so tiny it didn’t matter. The benefits were clear and I doubted I would ever recall that energy if I didn’t have to. I turned my attention to the little alien woman properly.

“Naea” - Dungeon Fairy - Level 8

Like with the other creatures, I didn’t get any more information than a name. The System very clearly didn’t call her a monster, which was probably why we were talking and not fighting. “Well Naea, it’s genuinely lovely to meet you. It’s weird to say that seeing a fairy has made me feel less crazy but here we are. Crazy few days. My name is Grant.”

“A lifelong promise and a portion of your true name? You either don’t know the rules or you must really fancy me.” The fairy spun around in the air and wiggled her tiny rear at me. I held back a wince and shrugged. I didn’t know the rules, clearly. On her second revolution, Naea looked at me and a look of realisation hit her. “Hold me wings, you’re strong. That explains the Dragon in ya! It was you what killed the tortoise?”

Huh. “I guess they are tortoises, aren’t they? Why do we call them turtles?”

“Who’s we?” Naea asked.

“People who grew up in the eighties or nineties, mostly. Don’t worry about it, the System is getting to me. Yeah, it tried to kill me, so I put it down.” I heard myself hedging words, defending myself before I had been attacked. Sure sign of guilt there, Grant. I hardened my voice and stuck out my jaw. “What about it?”

Instead of becoming scared of me, like I worried, Naea’s huge eyes lit up. She rubbed her tiny hands together and paced back and forth in the air while licking her lips. The result was undeniably sinister. She stopped her and slowly turned in the air, all the aura of a mediocre comic book villain coming over here.

“You and I,” she said ominously, “are going to get along great.”