A soft, cool wind blew across my face, waking me from a nightmare where I was being boiled alive. Luckily the painful images faded, and for a moment, I just lay there, not recalling where I was, just wondering why my back was hurting. Then my mind recalled the previous events, and the image of Libidi, blood pouring from her eyes and nose, made me shoot up. Something slid from my chest, and I heard a soft groan as a weight rolled over my legs.

I looked down to see Libidi lying there, her face covered in blood, breathing normally. Although covered in blood, her arms seemed fine, but to be sure, I gingerly touched her back, feeling for any bones poking from below. There were none, but she moaned softly, frowning but staying asleep. I sighed in relief that she seemed fine and looked around.

I froze in shock.

Two arm lengths from me stood Casiron and the demon, both unmoving in what looked like a perpetual hug. Casiron's wooden frame was ravaged, long gashes lining his frame, and the tentacles, gray like stone, fully wrapped around him. The demon's head was gone, and I quickly found it a few feet away, the beak partially open and the eyes closed.

Casiron?

There was no reply, and I tried again, but the Dracoserp remained silent. The only sound came from the wind that howled through the corpse-filled ruin and shutters and doors that creaked and thudded.

My heart rate slowed, and I felt relieved before blinking and shaking my head at my own idiocy. The quiet was an illusion. Someone would come to see where these soldiers had gone. Worse, someone might have heard the violent battle.

Need to get out of here, I thought as I searched for my ax.

I carefully pushed Libidi from my legs, got up, and looked around. Puddles of tadpole-filled blood sat in different locations, and remembering the horrible things, I fearfully scanned my armor. After a second, I drew a relieved breath. All I had were some bits of purple demon blood.

Odd, I thought as I noticed something about the parts where the blood sat.

The leather of the armor below the blood looked cracked and dry, and I carefully touched it. It pulverized into dust that blew away in the wind, making my hairs stand on end. As that happened, I noticed that the Boltcasters on my arms were all gone, but I was happy to find that the toolbelt was mostly intact. I looked at Libidi, then crouched and quickly scanned her body for any of the tadpole blood. There was none, although, like mine, parts of her leather armor easily crumbled under my touch, revealing her charcoal skin below.

Ignoring it, I looked around until I finally found my ax lying in a puddle of red blood, small squirming things across it. How it had gotten there, I didn't know, but I took a deep breath and began casting Controlled Conflagration.

Almost ten minutes later, my shoulders sagged, and I let the green flame that had bathed the surrounding area fizzle out. Then, I took a wary look around to inspect my work.

The cobblestones were covered in soot, all of the blood gone, as were the guard corpses. Casiron and the tentacle demon had turned to a pile of debris beside us. I'd bathed them in the fire in an attempt to get any remains of the blood off from Casiron, but his body had broken apart. On closer inspection, I found that every part touched by the purple blood, the metal-like wood had turned brittle as if it had rotted.

I can't believe that I consumed that, I thought as I looked at a bit of purple blood that lay some distance away.

I moved to Casiron's corpse, inspecting the pack with my supplies. It was badly torn and broken, and the contents had spilled out. Worse, most of the wood that I'd so carefully collected had fallen into the purple blood and was now brittle and unusable. Still, after some rummaging, I found a ruddy, small bit of softwood that seemed unharmed even after it had been mostly covered by the blood.

It took me a moment to recall what it was, then I whistled. It was Torpel wood.

Makes sense, I thought as I recalled how the trees had grown so close to the sea and lived by sucking up the demon blood from the rains and the demons foolish enough to rest beside them.

Still, the bit was too small for anything, and disgusted, I squeezed it in my hand, wondering what use it was. After some more rummaging, I found my black knife and a few dozen seeds that survived. As soon as I picked up the knife, I had an idea and looked around until I found what I was looking for. There was a small area with a layer of still liquid purple blood not too far away. I created a small container from the Torpel wood by hollowing it out and making a screwed cap from the same wood. I filled it with some purple blood and held it.

Let's hope I don't need to use any more, I thought.

Still, it had made it, so I didn't die, and Libidi seemed fine, so Share Lifeforce had worked.

I was about to move away when I noticed the rags the demon had been wearing before. It bulged on one side. Curious, I moved towards it and poked at it with the tip of my ax. It was solid, and I carefully pulled it off to reveal a square leather container with a flap that was bound by a dull gleaming clasp and a long shoulder band.

After a second of inspecting it for blood, the red kind, I picked it up and opened it. Dozens of papers sat bundled together, and I blinked as I pulled one out. The words resembled chicken scratches, but I recognized them. They were similar to the symbols on Libidi and Dibidi's original daggers. Skimming through the papers quickly, I didn't find any words I could read, and I closed the bag before turning to Libidi.

"When she wakes, she can tell me what all this shit means," I whispered, my voice still shockingly loud in the silent ruins. I shook my head as I put the leather bag across my shoulder.

"Now, why don't you wake up," I muttered as I kneeled beside Libidi and shook her.

She moaned softly, and I could see her eyes move behind her eyelids, but she remained asleep.

"Well, we can't stay here!"

I sighed before lifting her from the ground. She weighed almost nothing, and as I wrapped her up close to my chest, more of her armor crumbled and fell away, making her even lighter but also annoyingly unclothed. The previously white, now heavily stained undergarment luckily didn't give away, and I wondered if it was because Rathica had made it.

I took stock of what I had and didn't like it: a handful of seeds, a container of demon blood, and my ax, which wasn't even completely intact. The edge where I'd struck the tentacle demon was cracked and partially crumbled, leaving me with only one functional side and an off-balance weight.

I sighed and looked at Casiron's body, or what remained, then turned and made my way through the village towards the opposite exit. I snuck through the gate and looked ahead, praying to Rathica that I wouldn't spot any incoming riders. Luckily there weren't any. Still, the muddy road beyond the village suddenly seemed a lot more impressive now that I didn't have Casiron to ride on, and a quick look on my map showed it would take us four days to reach the Gougian Connect and a few hours longer before we reached Tenzrian. A whole lot longer than the half a day we had left before.

I squared my shoulders and stomped forward, the mud leaking through the gaps in my boots. Keeping a constant look at the area around us, I decided to get to the top of the next hill to get a better few.

"Let's find a safe place to take shelter," I muttered.

--

I clasped the stone ridge, grunted, and pulled myself up. Rolling on my back, I blew out a strained breath, then got up and looked around. It was getting dark, my vision toggling between dull colors and gray tints as my night vision kept switching on and off depending on where I looked. The road lay a few miles further, a thin brown line, snaking through the yellow hills.

Trees, I prayed as I looked around. Just some trees, Rathica, it doesn't matter which ones.

My prayers weren't heard.

All that I found was more of the sprawling grassy plains that stretched for as far as I could see.

"Dammit," I groaned

I examined the area around the cracked pillar I was standing on. It was part of a jagged hill, almost a small mountain, with rocky outcrops stabbing up like fingers.

There!

I focused on a small shadowy cavern previously hidden from view by some boulders. It was far enough from the road and out of sight to hopefully be safe. When I got down, Libidi was still unconscious, lying to the side. I picked her up before climbing across the two feet square rocks dotting the area.

It took longer than I'd anticipated to reach the cave I'd spotted, and when I did, it was almost completely dark. I put Libidi down a few feet from the entrance before sneaking forward. Besides some crumbling and clattering rocks, it was deathly quiet, and a cold pungent odor hung all throughout the narrow canyon. Looking around and up, I saw no movement or danger.

How big is the chance that this place is empty, I thought as I grabbed my broken ax tightly in two hands and snuck inside.

A small, rounded cave, gray in my night vision, appeared before me. The ceiling was bowl-shaped, and the sides were smooth as if sanded down. There was no movement or visible traces of any previous habitats—just a dark, cold and empty cave.

It looks like it was hollowed out by water, I thought, slightly confused. It reminded me of a documentary I'd watched about the old coastlines before the water swallowed them.

I inspected the few sections hidden behind the occasional boulder but found nothing dangerous and moved back out. A minute later, I returned with Libidi placing her down on a smooth surface before turning back to the entrance. It was roughly five feet high and almost just as wide, and the boulders inside seemed plenty to close it off.

Work, work, I thought as I dropped my ax and wrapped my arms around the nearest boulder.

As I lifted it, straining under the weight, a sharp, odd ping came from my status that echoed through the cave, and the boulder seemed slightly lighter suddenly. I dumbly stared at the entrance as I recognized the specific sound, which I had only heard once before. I called up my status, and for the first time in what seemed like ages, one of my bars filled up.

> 33/33: Muscle mass (maxed)

> 02/120: Fat

> 31/40: Coordination

> 30/30: Stamina (maxed)

> 06/10: Learning rate

> 539/744: Knowledge

> 07/60: Well spoken

> 87/200: Karma

A rush of strength and energy flooded me as I looked at my capped strength with utter surprise. I'd tried to increase for such a long time back in the library, and no matter what I'd do, it just stubbornly stayed a point before the cap. Now, just by lifting some random boulder, it increased? After a second, I shrugged. In the end, it didn't matter how it happened.

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

Did it do anything? I wondered as I closed the window and focused on my body.

The boulder I was carrying felt lighter, but not greatly so, and besides that, I felt strong and fit as if I'd slept well for weeks and had a good meal—none of which I had.

Probably because I finally filled a bar again, I thought before scanning for anything else.

There wasn't anything additional I could find, and a quick look at my avatar in the center of the status window didn't show any notable changes. I'd been gymnast-level muscular before, and that seemed the same now.

After a moment, I closed the status screen again and carried the boulder to the entrance, placing it in front. It blocked only a small section, and I sighed wearily as I turned and continued moving more boulders to the entrance. Although my body was fine, I was mentally exhausted.

It took me twenty minutes to completely block the entrance, leaving just a tiny hole through which I could look and from which air could enter. I looked at Libidi, then at myself, the ax, and remembered all our supplies and the ease of having Casiron around.

"Fantastic," I muttered, forcing a smile. "At least we are still alive!"

I cringed as soon as the words came out, cocking my head and almost expecting something to deny that fact. Nothing happened, and I moved beside Libidi, who was shivering softly, and put a hand on her arm. She was freezing.

Dammit, I hope I never have to explain this, I thought as I lay down and pulled her close before closing my eyes and doing the last thing I wanted to do before sleeping.

I gasped as I appeared inside my mindscape.

A slight fog hung across the small world, and I looked around, absently noting that the white room had grown again. Likely from my last time practicing. More noticeable, though, was the origin of the thin fog. It swirled away in long tendrils from a crystal clear pond nestled between the two massive trees in the center of my mindscape.

Dozens of young plants grew around it, and tiny insects flew everywhere, their buzzing adding to the rustling leaves and lapping water to create an almost idyllic image.

A large dragonfly-like thing buzzed across the sparkling water, and I followed it in awe.

This is what Par did? I thought.

I was about to call out for the squirrel god of fear when something moved in the corner of my vision. I turned, just in time to see a bright red flash shoot from the lowest branch of the left tree and snatch up the dragonfly before landing on the bank of the pond and gobbling it up.

I whistled as I looked at the beautiful bird that majestically stood there, hungrily looking around for more, before flying forward.

"Impressive, right?" a haughty voice asked from behind me.

I turned, or my cloud self did, and I saw Par stand behind me, his chest puffed out. His eyes were gleaming with a deep superiority, and his odd squirrel lips were pursed.

I agreed with him, but I couldn't get myself to say it. Instead, I sniffed and turned around.

"Casiron?" I called, ignoring Par.

"Hey, don't just ignore me!" Par cried, which I ignored.

A loud yawn came from the left tree, and a tremor moved through it as something immense moved behind the cover of the thick canopy of leaves.

"Est, you are finally back!"

Casiron's voice had such a deep rumble that the leaves on the tree shook, and another beautiful red bird shot out, zipping towards the other tree. It moved so fast that it looked like a beam of red light.

"Did Libidi survive?" Casiron asked.

"She did, but she is still unconscious," I said as I saw Casiron's two massive golden eyes appear, glowing dimly through the foliage of the tree.

"Fine, I guess you don't want to know another way to grow your mindscape then," Par grunted as he skittered off towards the right tree.

I blinked in surprise, watching him grumpily leave for a second, then turned to Casiron.

"I didn't think Deities could act like little children," I said, wishing I had eyebrows to raise.

Casiron's laughter rumbled through my mindscape, and the two birds screeched as they flew up from the right tree, looking panicked. The water in the pond rippled, causing a few dozen insects that had been on it to whisk away.

"Stop scaring them!" Par shouted, halfway up the tree trunk, his mohawk shaking as he glared at the other three.

I felt some of the weary stress that had filled me fall from my shoulders, and I hovered towards Par and floated beside his head.

"So, what do those birds do?"

"Bah! Now you want to talk, mortal?" Par grumbled.

He had his arms crossed across his furry chest, and his head turned from me, but I could see him look at the birds with gleaming little eyes.

"Don't act like a mortal baby," I said as I spun around his head. "Now tell me what do those mental purifying birds do!"

"Baby… bah, don't insult me even more," Par grumbled as he pointed at the birds that landed beside the pond. "They aren't that special, really," he said as he barked a laugh.

Sure, I thought.

"What's important is what they do!"

I quietly waited, but Par didn't continue, and I finally couldn't resist.

"What do they do?"

Par snickered evilly, and I realized what he was doing. He wanted to draw it out to punish me for ignoring him. Pretending a deep sigh, I floated away.

"Fine, I guess you don't want to talk. I'll just go finish my business with Casiron then."

I continued across the pond and was starting to wonder if I'd misread the situation when I heard an angry cry from behind me.

"Fine!"

I turned to see Par grumble as he looked at me, pointing one of his little fingers my way.

"So?"

"They will remove stress and mental fatigue from you, effectively making you less vulnerable to mental illness," Par said, puffing out his chest.

"They what?" I blurted out, my good mood fading slightly. Although I didn't know what, I had expected something different. Something more impressive. "That's it?"

"What do you mean, 'that's it?" Par snapped. "What do you know! Of all the things I've missed while in that blood book, the things I missed most were my mental purifying creatures!"

Par's face was contorted angrily, and I could see he wasn't joking. Slowly my feeling of being ridiculed dissipated, and curiosity bubbled up.

"Explain," I said.

"Damn you! Rude mortal," Par said as he skittered up the tree and sat down on the first branch he came across.

"Don't you even understand the things that you do know?"

I mentally frowned and floated closer, waiting quietly.

"Whatever," Par said. "I'll just explain… again!" He sat back and gazed at the birds.

"Remember how Deities are formed from a seed when a mortal touches them? And how they take the mortal's strengths, weaknesses, and all that?"

Like a lightbulb going off, I suddenly realized what he was insinuating.

"Deities get stressed?" I blurted out.

"And then some," Par said as he sighed.

His eyes seemed to haze over, and his mind seemed to drift away a bit. Then he shuddered and looked up with a scrunched face.

"Why don't you try to be connected to hundreds of thousands of mortals that constantly project all their most horrible thoughts, desires, and failures towards you!"

"But what does that have to do with me?" I asked. "I've never been that stressed."

As soon as I said it, I knew it was a lie. Although I'd never needed professional help, I knew I had some unresolved things in my past. They had been buried after my bond with Rathica, but they were still there.

Besides, I thought as I recalled when I'd just arrived in the Harrowing Hills, what felt like ages ago, and all the things that had happened before that. I can honestly say I'm over losing Earth... With a sad sigh, I focused back on Par.

"I can't answer it directly, but it has to do with your mindscape," Par said, sounding surly.

It took me a moment to figure out what he meant; then I recalled I'd asked what the stress had to do with me. His words reminded me of what he had said before.

"You said there was another way to grow my Mindscape?" I asked.

Par turned his attention from the birds to me, his snout rimpling into a frown. It somehow made him look cuter than he deserved to be.

"I need two hundred karma," he said gruffly.

"What for?" I asked in surprise before wondering how I was going to do that. If I was lucky, my titles would be used again, but that hadn't really happened that much anymore. Then I thought of something else that had troubled me subconsciously before.

"How much karma can normal people get?" I asked just as Par opened his mouth. "And what about Primes?" I added quickly.

"Quiet," Par snapped as he jumped up on the branch. "Don't go and ask three questions before waiting for an answer!"

He glared at me, almost seeming to dare me to ask something else. I didn't, far more curious to get answers than to fool with him.

Par finally sniffed and nodded, about to speak, when a deep rumbling voice came from the tree.

"Normal mortals can only get ten karma, which they usually use for crafting."

Pay jerked upright and spun around. "Hey! I'm the one answering questions."

"If you actually would, that would be fine," Casiron said.

"Est, those mental purifying birds won't only help you. They will work to soothe that stressed evil deity as well."

"I don't need soothing," Par shouted as he stomped his foot on the tree.

"Enough," I said, grinning at the idea that two millennia-old creatures could bicker like an old married couple. "Par. Karma. Go!"

Par sniffed and sat down again.

"As that smelly serpent said, it's ten for mortals, fifty if they have a class and a profession, and a hundred for normal Primes."

"Don't anger me, little deity," Casiron rumbled.

"So, what do you need two hundred Karma for?" I asked, quickly interrupting Par before he could take the bait.

"To create a Ulixer'sin nu-"

"Are you absolutely crazy?" Casiron roared and his massive serpentine head shoved through the plants, the movement of his bulk causing the tree to shake. His maw was partially open, his teeth gleaming and his eyes glowing bright golden.

"No," Par said, suddenly calmer than I'd seen him before. "It is the best way for Est to increase his Mindscape and become-!"

"Become insane!" Casiron hissed.

"What is a Ulix-something?" I asked.

The two beings gazed at each other for a while, then Casiron growled.

"It's a nut from an Ulixer tree that changes into a demon that will run rampage in your mindscape until it tears it apart and takes over your mind!"

"No," Par said as he shook his head. "It is an opportunity that no other prime has because they can't get a mindscape. Even if they could, they wouldn't have a capacity of two hundred karma like you."

"Explain," I said as I examined Par.

"An Ulixer'sin will grow into a small primal chaos demon that will fight you for dominance, like Casiron said," Par stated. "But, what that serpent isn't mentioning, or doesn't know, is that if you fight it and beat it, its essence will flow out and into to your mindscape, boosting its growth. A single one will be the same as practicing for over two hundred days."

I frowned, then nodded as I began contemplating what that could mean. If I could get the mindscape to the next milestone, that meant I would get many good things, and if I didn't have to use that painful training as much, that would be even better! I turned to Casiron. "How likely am I to beat a demon like that?"

"It doesn't matter," Casiron said. "I know about those Ulixer very well. The essence of a demon is tainted. If you use them as a shortcut, your mind will not stay the same."

Well, that sounds bloody fantastic, I thought as I sniffed and turned my attention back to Par. "Is that true?"

"That is why you need more mental cleansing beasts," Par snapped.

"They won't undo the damage," Casiron said sadly. "Some of my kind attempted this in a final attempt to survive, and…" Casiron's voice petered off as his head slowly pulled back. "And now the only ones left of my kind are unrecognizable demonic monsters," he said, his voice a muffled rumble from inside the tree's dense canopy.

For a moment, the pain that came from him was like the tide of a massive sea, and the barrier around my mindscape darkened as if to show sympathy, then it disappeared together with Casiron's voice as he fell silent.

"I don't think it's a good idea," I finally said as I focused on Par. "But if you can find another way that doesn't involve mutating me into a demon, let me know."

Par didn't respond, and I saw that he was staring at the tree with a confused frown.

"Par?"

The mohawked squirrel jolted, looked at me, and scowled. "Sure. Maybe I'll just happen to find another solution. It's not as if innumerable deities haven't searched for that for eons."

"Who knows," I muttered, slightly disturbed by the numbers. "Maybe you'll get lucky."

Par didn't respond, but when I floated away, he suddenly hissed.

"Don't forget that you can still increase one of your attributes from the first milestone!"