I had fallen asleep for the remainder of the night and woke up at around seven in the morning to Clio whining and Shadow meowing loudly. They were hungry, and so was I. My clothes were damp, but they were the only ones that I brought with me. I grimaced as I slid them on, put on my old shoes, and got into the car. The first place I went was the nearest supermarket: there I picked up a bag of cat food, and a bag of dog food, and brought them back home so that the two of them weren’t hungry all day while I went around doing the mundane things I had to do.

Very few people were up and about early that morning. Fog clung to the ground, and some people stood on the sidewalk taking pictures of the visible doors. People talked excitedly about them in the line in the store, and a sense of urgency filled me. What was I doing? Shouldn’t I be going in and making sure that whatever was in there didn’t come to Earth and kill these people? No. This was a necessary step.

When I got home, I tore open the food bags and brought handfuls into the kitchen to dump on the floor. I had forgotten that we didn’t have any dishes I could feed them out of. I watched them eat for a little while, before heading back out toward Walmart.

On the way there I got a phone call: it wasn’t a number that I recognized, so I didn’t answer it. They called again immediately after it went to voicemail. I sighed and answered.

“Lawrence, you bastard, why are you worrying Mom and Dad?”

“Mark?”

“Yes it’s Mark, what were you thinking?”

“What do you mean? You always told me to, ‘hurry up and leave, so they could actually enjoy their old age,’ right?”

“You know that’s not what I meant you piece of shit.”

“Then what did you mean?”

“You know what, Lawrence? Fuck you. You still owe me money, how could you afford to move out if you couldn’t even afford to pay me back?”

“I’ll pay you back,” I said.

“Good. Give me your address and I’ll be by later this evening for my money.”

I sighed and hesitantly gave up my address. I did owe him money, after all. It was only right to pay him back. I suppose I should go into some more doors. 1000 dollars was more than I currently had on me. First, though, I desperately needed some clothes at the very least. These were beginning to smell a bit like mildew. I got the cheapest clothes I could find at Walmart, some soaps and shampoos, and a set of dishes to use. In the tools section, I bought a crowbar and a flashlight. Currently, I don’t need much else aside from food.

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While wandering around the grocery section, something caught my eye: a wooden mortar and pestle set hanging on a rack in a black net. I picked it up.

“So…” I whispered to the Shard, “Alchemy is real, right?”

Yes. Why do you ask?

“Like making potions and things. Can I do something like that?”

Ah, that’s not alchemy, that’s more akin to herbal magic. Yes, you can.

I add the mortar and pestle into my cart and also get a box full of mason jars. I also buy new notebooks and pencils and pens. I wanted to start the decryption of the language of Efra as soon as possible, and I wanted to start keeping a journal of herbal experiments.

After that, I went and got a microwave, some TV dinners, and some treats for Clio and Shadow. After everything was bought and paid for – nearly 400 dollars worth of stuff, I loaded it all in my car and drove back home. It took nearly an hour and a half to unload everything, and as a result, I got a +1 in Endurance.

I put the clothes in the counters for now, because I didn’t have a dresser to put them in. Perhaps I should stop by a thrift store too, when I save up more money. I eat a quick meal: a cheap TV dinner that I picked up at Walmart. While finishing up the cheap food, a question comes to mind.

“So, we talked about the elements, right? Then what is Aether, and why is it included in the ‘elemental,’ section.”

Because it’s the fifth element?

“Okay, but what is it?”

It’s….how do I explain it. It holds things in place.

“Like gravity?”

No, not like gravity. It’s like an invisible water. Alright, what lies between the Earth and the Moon?

“Uh. The atmosphere?”

...what lies between the atmosphere and the moon.

“Space?”

And what is space?

“Nothing.”

So there is nothing between the Earth and the moon, right?

“I suppose.”

So, that’s illogical. If there’s ‘nothing,’ in between two things, it is a given that they’re touching, right?

“...I suppose?”

Aether. Aether is what lies between them so that they’re not touching.

“I don’t really get it.”

...just think of it as a force.

“Will do.”

“Am I able to create new spells?”

What do you mean?

“I’ve been thinking about it since learning Fire Bolt; if one word was enough to change Ember into Fire Bolt if I change another word, would I be creating a new skill?”

Why not try it out?

I could practically hear a wicked grin behind my patron’s voice.

I toss the toys and stuff I bought onto the floor.

“I’ll try it out here in a bit.” I said, “There’s one more place I need to go today.”

Where is that?

“The library. I want to know about how our world actually is.” I answered.

I took off the damp clothes and put on some of my new ones: one that I had already decided would be a set I would use specifically to interact with the world so that I didn’t accidentally wear a blood-stained shirt out. I put on a new jacket I had. Slipped the wavy dagger, the wand, my phone, and the Shard into the front pocket, and hopped into the car.

The drive to the library was actually fairly short. Our town’s library had burned down a couple years back. It had been a two-story building in the past, but now this one was apparently much, much smaller. I hadn’t really gone in to see since it was open, but just judging by the size of the building; it was much smaller, but there was something off about it. Across what should be sleek black sliding doors, there was a gate: A pair of giant wooden doors held in place by giant stone pillars on either side of the entrance.

Perhaps it was something left over from Halloween? Were they that low on staff that they couldn’t even afford to take it down? I pulled open the fake door…

What are you doing?? That’s a level 12; you’re going to die!

What? Wha—

I fell through the blackness. The thought didn’t even cross my mind that it could have been a door into Efra.