I woke up feeling slightly better than before and focused on my surroundings. I didn't hear or see anything below the tree or on the bank and pulled up the countdown. The statue was crouching beside the tree, unmoving. I quickly climbed down and pulled a new Vengeful Spirit into the inert wood. As soon as it moved, I climbed back into the tree. I needed to do some other things before leaving.

> Death will occur in fourteen hours and two minutes

So, I slept for over seven hours?

I cast Share Lifeforce, grabbing the tree beneath me. Now came the dangerous part. Would my life force still be saturated? Because if it was, I wouldn't be able to increase the time.

> Lifeforce saturated

> External lifeforce slowing down poisoning

> Death will occur in fourteen hours and thirty-one minutes

Shit.

I stared at the message for a while, wondering how I was going to get my lifeforce unsaturated. The only ideas that came to me made me cringe at the prospect. Either I'd have to get hurt, or I needed to use it some other way. Noticing another minute drop from the countdown, I cursed and pushed the status-info away. I needed to get rid of this poison, meaning I was going to have to get help.

Let's see what Rap is doing in my bloody mindscape, I thought. I wasn't really looking forward to it, but besides the fact that having a potentially dangerous deity in your mind was probably a bad thing, Rap might know of a way to get rid of this chaos poison. If I could get him to tell me that was… and if I trusted the answer he'd give me.

As I closed my eyes, I focused on my mindscape, and a moment later, my small blue soul-flame hovered inside the now-familiar white space. The black and red heart was still hovering in the middle, but before I could even say a word, a soft ping came from my status, and the small version popped up to the side.

> Transition will be finished in one day, nineteen hours, and three minutes

Par was just hovering there, but I could feel his attention on me.

"Why are you here," I asked, deciding to get that out of the way. I had a good idea why he was here, but I wanted him to confirm my suspicions.

"Why do you think!" Raparion grunted. "Because I had to get out of Fnip's prison! Do you have any idea… any at all, how it feels to be locked away for eons with only that fool to speak to? I would rather lose part of myself than stay there another thousand years."

Wait, lose part of himself? I had no idea what he meant by that, but after a second deliberation, I wondered if it had to do with the transition the status was telling me about.

"And how did you get in here without even Fnip noticing?" I'd wondered about this, especially as Fnip seemed more powerful than Rap back in the library. Which reminded me. Was the library truly locked, or had Rap just hidden the entrance?

"It wasn't even that hard. My presence was disturbing him, causing his mind to be in constant chaos. It was harder to get in without you noticing than that fool."

The answer made sense, but without guarantees that Rap wasn't lying, I was going to have to verify it at some point.

"And how did you get in without me noticing?" I grunted.

A soft burst of laughter came from the heart, and the drops began falling faster.

"When you sleep, you dream. Your ability to lock your mind-scape isn't strong enough to hold it while sleeping."

I cursed as I looked at the chaotic clouds beyond the barrier that surrounded my mindscape. Images of it dropping during my sleep and all of the nasty mind-bugs beyond pouring in played out for a moment.

"Bah, don't worry, you weakling. You can sleep sound now - with me here, the barriers will stay up even if you are unconscious," Raparion said, projecting a feeling of superiority that made me want to slap him. After a second I regained my calm and looked at the heart.

"What do you know about chaos-poisoning?"

It was quiet for a split second, then I felt mental feelers from Rap surge towards me, trying to inspect my mind.

"Stop that," I snapped, slapping the feelers away.

"Did you do something ridiculous, like get poisoned?" Raparion hissed. I sensed an undercurrent of fear this time, but not the projected one. Instead, it almost felt like Rap was afraid.

"Yes," I said.

A wave of fear and anger came from Rap, but none of it was directed at me. It was more like an internal bubble that burst over for a moment. It lasted for only a moment before fading.

"Wait. You're still alive- how is that possible? With no resistance, you should have died within moments," Rap said, the heart floating closer towards me.

I didn't immediately respond, wondering what I should and shouldn't tell him. Then I decided that it might be best to tell him as little as possible until I exhausted all other options.

"I've found a way to buy some time," I said.

"How?" Raparion snapped.

I didn't respond, and after a few moments he seemed to realize I wasn't going to respond.

"You don't trust me… Fine. I can understand. I don't trust you either," Rap said, and this time a slight projection of fear was sent my way. To my surprise, it barely touched me, and the barrier glowed for a second causing it to dissipate. Raparion released a muted howl of pain.

"Fine! I won't do it again," he said, and slowly the barrier stopped glowing.

"Don't tell me then," Rap said. "It doesn't change a thing. Unless you can hold it back indefinitely, you need to cure yourself. The easiest way is to ask your deity for help. How is your connection with it? Can you call for help?"

I felt like shrugging, but the blue flame didn't allow for that. Instead, I sighed. "That's problematic at the moment." As soon as I'd said it, I felt stupid. I shouldn't tell Rap any of these things.

"By the bleeding Despotins of old, things can never be easy," Rap said. "That means you need to find another way, and I don't know one."

"Would there be information on it in The Library?"

Rap was quiet for a while, and I sensed a slight worry from him. "Probably, but when I left, the entrances were all removed. The Deities will need to actively recreate them, and until one does, there won't be a way to get in."

For a short moment, I was stunned silent, then anger soared. "Are you telling me that all of the entrances created in Rathica knows how long, are gone forever?" I shouted.

"Yes!" Rap roared back, anger filling his voice. "When I left, Fnip’s mind reset to undo the damage of my presence!"

"You knew this would happen?" I asked.

"Of course I did, and if you had just taken me along, none of this would have been needed," Rap snarled. "Now stop bitching like a little toothless Wurgin! We need to figure out a way to get rid of the poison in your system, or we will both stop existing!"

The chaotic clouds outside the barrier swirled by as I tried to calm my nerves. The idea that I might not get back into the library was disconcerting, and having Rap in my mindscape didn't do anything to make me feel better. I had to contact Rathica, there was no other way about it, and if shouting and praying didn't work, it was time to make another statue. I took a filthy look at Rap, which he seemed to catch even with my lack of a face, and was about to leave when I thought of something.

"How do I quickly drain my life force?"

Rap was quiet for a while, then sniffed. "You don't want to do that. Without lifeforce, the chaos poison will spread faster. This will cause its nasty effects to appear."

"Just answer the bloody question," I snapped before the last part of what he said registered. "Wait. What nasty effects?"

Rap barked a laugh which didn't convey any hilarity. "Why do you think it's called chaos poison?"

"I don't care!" I snapped. "Answer the questions already!"

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"Fine!" Rap roared, and for a second, I felt his fear-aura spread. It snapped off so fast that the barrier had no time to even light up. "If you had a single resistance to chaos poison, you would have survived for a few days, but the ambient magic in the air would begin going crazy. As you're still alive, that will probably happen. Expect bursts of fire, sudden gales, and monsters that get drawn to you for no apparent reason."

Great. What else could go wrong, I thought, feeling the anger fade away.

"And Lifeforce?" I asked with a weary sigh.

Rap was quiet for a bit, then sniffed. "Don't do anything stupid. The best way is to grow your mind-scape. The pain from the practice should do wonders... "

"You wouldn't just tell me that because it's what you want, right?" I said, not even caring for the answer.

"Of course not," Rap said, sounding aggrieved.

I didn't care how he felt and jumped out of my mindscape. I was still safely in the tree, and a quick look around showed no fire, monsters, or other unexpected dangers.

Rathica's statue or mind-scape growing and topping my lifeforce, I thought, weighing the pros and cons. I remembered that crafting the last small statue hadn't taken all that long, but the fear of drawing Nimron's attention was still strong. If that happened, I needed to flee… but that would probably drain my lifeforce so I could draw it back from the plants. With the knowledge that there wasn't a single portal into the library left, I felt a greater urgency than before, and in the end, I couldn't resist the allure of having Rathica fix my problem.

A few hours later, I was behind a tree, not the same as before, with a small statue in my hands. As I examined it, I couldn't help but notice that my skill had increased again. The lines were crisp and clear, and the small statue already had a vibrant sense of life to it. It wasn't finished yet but close to.

The massive wirg statue sat close by, crouched low and ready.

"Get ready to flee," I muttered. The statue gave no response, and I sighed. It was only a poor mimicry of a real living being, and I wondered if I would ever manage to keep a living companion around for longer than a few days or weeks.

Rathica, if you are listening, this would be the time, I prayed. Nothing happened, and with quick, effortless slices, I finished the statue. For a few seconds, nothing happened, then the statue became warm in my hands, and the arms wriggled around.

Est, finally!

Rathica's voice sounded weak but hearing it made me feel like everything would be alright. At the same time, I felt my fear fade into the background.

"Rath-uduh," A mental hand clamped over my mouth, and the rest came out as garbled mutter.

Hush! Don't speak my name out loud. That old bastard is actively searching for me. Any mention of my name might draw him here.

A thick, undercurrent of anxiety came from our connection, and with it a sense of haste. It felt like time was running out for something. For a moment, I forgot my own troubles.

What is wrong? I asked.

Nimron has been non-stop hunting after me, trying to find my followers and kill them. He has gone as far as creating a new pantheon with Lisschen, Percussion, and Fin'r. How he got powerful enough to create one is beyond me… Rathica's voice trailed off as curiosity came through our connection.

What is a pantheon, I asked, wondering if it was similar to what I recalled from the earth. I felt Rathica's mind push against my mind-scape, probably in an attempt to detect what I was thinking. Then a wave of surprise and joy burst from her.

You have a mind-scape! Est, that is fantastic!

I didn't respond as I felt her mind scan the outer range of my mindscape, and as she did, the surprise grew deeper.

How? This is… impossible, Rathica seemed distracted for a moment. I suspected she was trying to gauge how much she could tell me, and I expected that to be very little. I wasn't sure what would happen if I was the one to speak to her about what I had done, but it was probably better to do the more important things first.

I've been poisoned by chaos poison, I said.

The curiosity and joy turned off like a lamp, to be replaced by worry.

That is not good. If you can let me in your mind-scape for a moment, I can quickly scan your mind to see what has happened-

Rathica's voice faded as I shook my head.

I'm not sure that's a good idea, I thought back. Something… wormed its way inside my mindscape when I was in the library.

What? No! That is beyond dangerous! Open your mindscape; I need to see what it is.

I felt Rathica exert a slight pressure on the barrier, and it shivered. I knew if she wanted to, she could burst it with little effort.

Alright, but don't go fighting in my mind-scape! I don't think it can handle that, I thought. Then I opened a slight hole in my mindscape, at the same time closing my eyes to enter. With Rathica here, I didn't expect anything to get the jump on me.

"What are you doing here!"

A small, glowing version of Rathica hovered in the center of my mindscape. She was staring at the bleeding black and red heart with narrowed eyes and pursed lips. I couldn't sense anything through our connection anymore.

"Damn you, mortal. You said you had no way of contacting your deity!" Par snarled before turning to Rathica.

"Hah. You are young, incredibly young! When did you form? Last year?" It sounded like an insult, but I mentally grinned as it was pretty close.

Rathica just snorted, moving closer towards Par, who began backing up. "You are close to reverting," Rathica said, sounding incredibly intrigued, and she flitted around Par's heart shape, prodding it.

"Hey! Stop it, don't just-"

Rathica raised her hand, and a glow of golden light erupted around Par, shutting him up. It lasted for a moment, and when she stopped, she turned to me. Her lips were turned into a positively predatory smile, and for a moment, something passed through our connection. A calculating feeling, unlike any I had sensed from Rathica before.

"Est, do you know what you have here?"

I wanted to shrug, failed again, and grunted. "Some nasty deity that has no more followers and says he is one of the oldest in this 'backwater' universe."

One of Rathica's thick black eyebrows rose, and she glanced across her shoulder. "Is he now?" Then she turned back to me. "He is also a chance, a chance for you to gain something very precious. Having a mindscape is already a great feat and something that will help us immensely in the future, but having a Sentient keeper…? You could move beneath Nimron's very nose, and he would not notice you unless he focused."

"So it makes me undetectable by deities?"

I felt immensely let down, as I had hoped to gain far more from having one.

"No, no- that is just a part of the benefit. The biggest thing is that your mindscape will start growing under the Keeper’s guidance."

I was surprised at how much Rathica was telling me, and she let out a peal of laughter.

"Yes- it is not a good thing to speak too much about these things, but I am only explaining something the Keeper would have soon enough."

I nodded, slightly annoyed at the fact that she had once again read my mind. Another question bubbled up, and I waited for her to answer it. None came, and Rathica smiled at me and said nothing.

"Will Raparion being an evil deity be a problem?" I asked, causing an angry bellow from Rap and a nasty grin from Rathica.

"Not for you," Rathica said. "But Rap will have to deal with being changed into a being of little power and free will for as long as you live." At this, she turned to Raparion with a frown. "You know this, yet you still did it? Why?"

The heart lowered a bit, now close to the ground.

"It is the only way to stay who I am and to rid myself of that horribly annoying book!" Rap said.

I felt Rathica's interest grow again, and this time I interrupted her.

"It's fine for you two to chat, but how about you help me fix my Chaos Poisoning first?"

Rathica nodded, then hovered closer to me with a sad look. “It is too dangerous now. If there was no other choice we could have risked it, but from what I’ve read in your mind you will be alright for a while. If I remove the chaos poison, Nimron will find us and the chances of you getting out alive will be small. For now, keep traveling, don’t stay in one place and try to make your way back to Steadfast.”

I blinked, my hope plummeting at her words. Was she kidding me?

"Not. Est, I can't do it now," Rathica said. "If there was no other choice, we could take the risk, but Nimron's new Pantheon is working together to hunt down all of my new followers."

All of her new followers? Had the other earthlings exited the pods already? And what was a Pantheon? Wait… how was Eliandra doing? A host of questions came to me, and I turned to Rathica.

"You can ask him about pantheons later when there is more time," Rathica said, pointing at Raparion. "But yes, many of the people of your world have started waking up and taking me as their deity. Not all," she frowned at that, "but many. They are increasing the defenses of Steadfast because I can't show myself there."

"That's great," I said, happy at the idea of a bunch of earthlings creating a new home for us on Kernstalion.

"It is," Rathica agreed.

"And Eliandra?" I asked.

"Still asleep and healthy," Rathica said, smiling at me. "Don't worry, Est. Even with all their strength, Nirmon and his pantheon of goons can't get into my realm. No matter how much they hover around its barriers to try."

I nodded, slightly appeased by that.

"Where are Haltir and Laurel?" I asked after a moment.

"Haltir is currently in charge of Steadfast's growth, teaching the earthlings what they need. He asks for you all the time," Rathica grinned. "He is afraid you will forget the weapons tournament!"

I shook my head, wondering how something like that mattered in comparison to what was going on.

"For him, it matters greatly, and I'd try to reach him in time to go there with him. He has been practicing incessantly and will be pleased that you have not forgotten your training."

Realising Rathica had seen into my mind, and at my ax training, I sniffed.

"I'll need to get out of this forest before that."

Rathica nodded, then turned to Raparion.

"Teach him everything he needs to know, or I'll have words with you…" the threat in her voice surprised me.

"Don't think I fear you, youngling," Rap said, growling.

Rathica moved closer, raising her hand that began glowing.

"Fine!" Rap said with a snarl. "I wasn't planning anything else."

"Good. Let's get out of here, Est. It's time for me to leave, and you need to do something with that statue of mine you made."

Curious, I closed my eyes, exiting my mind-scape.