Neither Mia or Frederich, nor most other citizens of the kingdom, for that matter, are really familiar with the differences between stores and houses. One has to travel a fair distance to reach any sort of human business, not an impossible one, but significant enough to not be considered worthwhile, especially considering most made a point to avoid any human buildings, rare exceptions aside. There were, of course, the occasional explorers, scavengers and even small communities like the one the nameless mouse was formerly a part of which are house adjacent, but they still very rarely went within the actual Maker domiciles.

Kay was quite familiar, however. Within the more dense city, proper lone houses were the minority and instead most of the buildings were either businesses or the strange tall structures made up of countless smaller units, built more vertically than horizontally. The difference was simple enough: a house was a place where the Makers lived and slept. She had little sense of actual money or business, of course, but still recognized a store as a place where items and materials were, well, stored. Intruding within a Maker's home or shrine, as the mice call them, is dangerous work, but there are ways to stay reasonably safe. For most of these places there are times of day where the occupants are asleep, even absent, making being discovered unlikely. Unless, of course, there happens to also be a dark lord living there, which isn't even remotely uncommon.

A store, on the other hand, is a virtual treasure trove of food and materials, where no humans live. One would think that that would make them significantly safer, but even though none make such places their home, people are always coming in and out, considerably more frequently than from a shrine. Sure, there are hours where the lights go out and such places are left entirely deserted (well, most of them, anyways) but getting into such buildings tends to be considerably more difficult than getting into a house, and traps are much more common.

This building is clearly a store, one of many built alongside one another, boxy with huge, lit up signs above the many entrances to the respective structures. The pillar of light doesn't cover the entire building, thankfully, only the end portion, which narrows things down considerably. Unfortunately, like so many stores in the mid day, many slow moving, lanky figures can be seen moving about it.

"A Maker's store." Kay says, which is helpful as neither of the other two can make out many of the details. The nameless mouse's eyes have improved significantly over the past days, even if she doesn't realize it. "There are a lot of them."

"How many do you consider a lot?" Frederich asks, squinting, just barely able to make out the shapes of the moving figures in the distance.

"More than zero." Kay replies, bluntly.

"Huh. yeah, I guess there is a lot, then."

The three stand within the grass in silence, looking ahead at the massive structure and the many vehicles which frequently pull up in front of it and drive away. The silence remains for quite some time before the armored mouse finally speaks up.

"Well this isn't fair! We're only at the first one! It's supposed to be the easiest, and we already have to deal with a bunch of Makers?"

"There's no reason to believe this one is any easier or more difficult than the others. We basically picked it at random." Mia says.

"It's the closest one, though! That means it's the easiest! Things always get more challenging the further you get from the starting point!" Fred replies.

"The starting point wouldn't be your city, it would be my old village, so this is probably the furthest one away, really." Kay says. At the time, all three had felt a similar distance apart, and one was as good as any other, but looking back, it feels as though she might have chosen poorly. Not that it really matters much in the end, as she intends to visit each one in time. "Wait, what am I talking about? That's ridiculous. The distance has nothing to do with, well... anything!"

"Trust me. I've been adventuring for a lot longer than you. I know how these things work." Frederich nods.

"Um, I hate to interrupt this... interesting conversation but..." Mia says, looking back towards the building. "What now?"

She considers adding the question of whether they should give up and go home but decides against it, figuring that even if unspoken, the sentiment is quite obvious.

Kay barely considers the idea. As much as she told herself that she was only going on this journey on a whim, that it didn't matter, that she was simply going forward because it felt just as easy as standing still, seeing the actual light before her, not simply a distant echo, she's all the more drawn towards it.

"Well, we can't possibly fight all those Makers. even one would be really tough!" Frederich says.

"We don't need to fight them, just avoid them." The small sorceress interjects. "I mean, even that is pretty risky."

"I'm going." Kay finally speaks up, rising to her feet, the other two remaining crouched in the grass, even though the three represent far too tiny of targets to be seen by the humans. She doesn't insist that the pair follow her, or tell them they can go home if they wish. For the moment, at least, she's forgotten they are even with her, her unnatural eyes focused on the no less unnatural glow before her.

"I'm with you." The armored mouse grins before pausing. "So, what's the plan?"

More silence.

"Maybe we should try to get closer? They're so big that we should be able to go unnoticed if we're careful. Once we can get a better look and figure out exactly what we're dealing with, maybe we'll be able to figure something out?" Mia says, the statement not quite a question but coming out as one.

In the meantime, Kay, the one who was so cautious about the dark lords just minutes before, has already started to move. The road ahead isn't a dangerous one, at least not at first. A long, fairly steep hill is ahead, covered in the same dense grass which renders them invisible to all but the most acute eyes, which human eyes certainly don't qualify as. She doesn't approach with this knowledge clearly in mind, however, just the feeling of being pulled in by the warm glow. It isn't grass all the way to the building entrance, as that would make for a rather poor business. The grass stops a non-trivial distance from the glass door, leading to a tall curb and a dark, unnaturally flat surface. This space isn't entirely an open desert, and cover and shelter does exist. Unfortunately, it exists in the form of the massive, metal vehicles, the engines of which roar and belch out vile fumes, their positions constantly changing as more arrive and depart, the heavy wheels of them more than capable of crushing an unwary mouse underneath, and at the moment? The naked mouse is very much unwary.

While she wouldn't have stepped directly under a moving set of wheels, she would have found herself dangerously exposed and similarly unprepared for the far from lethal fall over the curb ahead, were if not for Frederich grabbing hold of her shoulder. This immediately pulls her from the trance she had no idea she was even in, her eyes which for a little while could only see the beautiful green light suddenly becoming aware of all else around her. She looks about, startled, and pulls back into the grass without needing to be told. Kay curses herself, ready to be lectured by Frederich for her carelessness, and a well earned lecture it would be, considering the hard time she had given him earlier. It doesn't come, however, instead the smaller armored mouse simply wears an expression of concern.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, I think so." Kay says, blushing a bit. She closes her eyes and rubs her head, not that closing her eyes accomplishes much with the pillar in such a close proximity. Even her usual defense of looking downward proves almost useless, the green glow all encompassing.

"Good." Fred says. His relief only lasts for a moment before his attentions are entirely taken up by the huge building ahead, and he's not the only one, either.

They've all seen windows before, of course. Most human structures, even a few mouse buildings have them, but Kay is the only one who has ever encountered a massive storefront one, and really this is the first time she's paid such a thing significant attention. They are used to windows being tiny things one can occasionally peek out of, but in this case it is practically the entire wall. Normally a wall exists for support, protection and privacy but in this case almost the entire inside of the building is visible, even if the details can't quite be made out. Above it is the standard human writing, the letters unnaturally thick, and glowing red, the message they write out completely unintelligible to all three, with Mia being the only one who can even recognize the individual letters, but even she fails to connect them into a coherent meaning.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

As for Kay, in reality, she's paying little attention to the details, her eyes focused not at the window but through it, at the tiny pinpoint of light that makes up the core of the unnatural pillar.

"It's inside." She says, abruptly looking away, afraid that she might find herself hypnotized by the enticing glow once more. "That one at the far end, through the window. I can't see exactly what it is, but it's in there."

"If we're careful we can get a lot closer." Mia says, pointing to the trimmed shrubbery which is set beneath the window, alongside the metal door. "We can take short trips between the vehicles, using them for cover until we reach those bushes. We just have to avoid any noisy ones, and only move when we're sure nobody is looking." she pauses. "Um, you know, if we're going to do this."

"We've come this far. We at least need to learn as much as we can before we decide whether or not ti give up." The armored mouse says.

"Follow me." Kay replies, still driven towards it, but similarly still spooked at how she had briefly lost herself only moments before. Although a tiny voice in her head tells her to simply rush forward, a far louder one urges caution, and she has no intention of arguing with it. If the only other option were turning away and leaving, the careless voice might have been harder to fight off, but knowing she's moving forward, even if a little slower, is enough to placate that strange urge.

The journey isn't quite as dangerous as it feels. They spend very little time in the open space, and even were a vehicle to somehow go unnoticed and speed towards them right at one of those moments, an advantage of being small (something Jerin can attest to), is that unless the wheel strikes a mouse directly, the vehicle will pass harmlessly overhead. Obviously, the three have no interest in putting that theory into practice, though. There are a lot of stops and starts, waiting in the shade of the massive, terrifying machines, watching the feet of the Makers pass dreadfully close by where they sat, expecting at any moment for the slumbering vehicles, some nearly as large as the mouse city itself, to roar to life. It isn't just being stepped on or run over, of course, they don't wish to be seen, either.

Makers are simultaneously seen as both more and less dangerous than dark lords. Less in the sense that they're both less observant and not prone to looking downwards, making it easy to escape their notice. More, in the sense that a single determined one can destroy an entire mouse civilization, and their reactions can be very difficult to predict. Generally speaking, even if seen by one, Makers will largely ignore you so long as you're out in the wilderness and not traveling in large numbers (but even that is hardly a guarantee), but when you intrude on their territory? Your presence will not be tolerated at all, and this store and the area around it very much qualified as human territory. As a rule, the Makers are to be avoided, even if there is a bit of a superstition about how seeing a Maker is actually good luck, and the closer you are, the luckier it is. Of course, conversely, being seen by one, even if they don't actually attack or threaten you, is considered terribly unlucky.

Within this open plain where the Makers store their vehicles, not too many of them are to be seen. It isn't a place they linger, only walking through it to either leave or return to their machines, so the three adventurers don't find themselves experiencing any close calls, even if it certainly feels otherwise from their perspective. There's a sense of palpable relief as they rush past the final stretch after taking a good, long look to make sure nobody is around, passing over the open pathway where they find themselves dangerously exposed before diving into the greenery which frames the stone structure.

"Wow, I've never seen a Maker so close before!" Mia blurts out excitedly. Naturally, mouse voices are extremely quiet even at best, hers all the moreso, so being detected is hardly a concern. Humans are known for having weak senses all around, and being seen by one is the only significant concern. "Hmmm, I think I like the dark lords more. They're a lot fluffier."

"Look at the size of them!" Frederich says. "I mean I knew they were big, but I didn't think they were that big! How do they stay upright? Can they even see the ground from up there?"

"I guess that's why they're considered higher beings... because they're so high up?" The mouse magician says. Kay narrows her eyes at the younger woman, but says nothing. She can't tell whether that was meant to be a legitimate observation, or a poor effort at humor, which makes it difficult to come up with the appropriate objection.

The three are interrupted by a strange digitized chiming sound and all look towards the source. A pair of human feet, presumably connected to a body as well (although they have no proper view of it from their vantage point), standing directly in front of the metal and glass doorway which, even from a distance, the three could recognize as an entrance. While theirs are not nearly as nice looking, for as poor as mouse technology can be in many ways, they're familiar with doors if nothing else. It stands atop a flat black surface in sharp contrast to the pale stone of the pathway. Barely stopping mid-stride as the huge gateway effortlessly slides open, the feet step past the threshold and the door sweeps shut behind them.

"Is it just me or did that sound happen and the door start opening before they even reached it?" The armored mouse asks.

"No, I'm sure you're correct. As we were approaching I didn't see a latch or a knob either. It must open through some sort of magic." Mia replies.

"It doesn't really matter. If we're going to do this, I don't think strolling in through the front door would be a good idea." Kay says, finally speaking for the first time since their stealth mission began.

"While I understand your sentiment, I'm not sure we can count on there being an abundance of possible entry points." Mia says.

"Well... just... let's look around anyways. Maybe we'll get lucky." The naked mouse replies, even though she's nearly positive they won't. She isn't wrong, either.

The good news is that exploring the perimeter of the structure proves considerably safer than approaching it. Since the humans tended to be either leaving or arriving either that door or to door of one of the neighbouring structures, far less foot traffic existed at the side and rear of the business. This gives the trio plenty of time to explore and study the surroundings, but sadly there is very little to be found. Hardly anything at all along the side, just a single barred vent which is far too high up to reach, and even if they could, clearly quite secure and impossible to enter. The rear door is similarly impassible: Massive, metal and clearly impossibly heavy for the mice. Even if unbolted and openable, which is unlikely, even were they able to reach the door knob, they couldn't hope to muster the strength to turn it, let alone pull the door open. In this small alley behind the structure, if nothing else, it was a cool, shaded place with nothing but garbage littered about, and no obvious threats in sight.

"So, now what?" Frederich asks.

"Hmmm, well, there is a door here, and it's considerably less visible. If there is a door, it must be opened sometimes, right? Perhaps we could just wait?" Mia says, giving the matter some thought before shaking her head. "No, no, that won't work. Even if it does open regularly, and we don't know that, we would need to wait for a Maker to do so and risk being seen by them. Plus, even if we can get inside, we may find ourselves unable to leave which could pose a serious problem, especially should we find ourselves discovered and need to make a quick escape."

"So it's impossible? We have to give up?"

"No. We'll go in the front door." Kay speaks up.

The other pair respond with brief silence. "Nothing personal but that sounds just a little bit... suicidal?" Fred says. As much as he appreciates excitement, even he has his limits.

"No, no, this could work. While I couldn't make out all of the details of what was inside the building, clearly there are a lot of objects within, which means plenty of hiding places. If we can sneak in and hug the wall, we might be able to go unnoticed." the smallest of the mice says.

Frederich shakes his head. "Hey, don't get me wrong, I'm all for a super dangerous life and death mission. I just don't see how this will work. Even if we can get through the front door without being seen, how do we open it?"

"There's only one way to find out." Kay says, walking back towards the front of the business without another word. She's cautious, of course, all of them are as they return to the shrubbery, the three of them studying the black matt.

"Do you think the door opens when you step on that?" Mia asks.

"Maybe. Who wants to find out?" Fred says, looking between the pair. Ultimately, without a word, Kay volunteers. She doesn't rush, looking from her hiding spot to make sure no Makers are about, and quickly hops onto the rubber surface, immediately diving back into the greenery. Nothing happens. With equal hesitation she tries again, waiting for an opportunity to stand on it for a few seconds, once more ready for the mechanical chime to alert the Makers to their presence, or the sliding door to open revealing her, ready once again to dive away at a moments notice. Once again, nothing happens, and she rejoins the others within their hiding place.

"Hmmm, perhaps it's some sort of soul detector? Maybe it only works for the Makers?" Mia says.

"Maybe. We're back at square one, though. We still can't get inside." Fred says.

"Yeah, we can." Kay says, looking up towards the door as another human approaches it, the barrier obediently sliding away. "We can follow one of the Makers inside. Anyone hearing the noise will just assume it's caused by the Maker and they won't think to look for any intruders. We'll only need a moment. We saw some shelves through the window, so once the door opens we can slip inside, hug the wall as Mia suggested, and get into cover within a few seconds without anyone noticing us or even thinking to look."

"Yeah... yeah, that could work." Frederich says, rubbing his chin. "It's still risky, though. Maybe nobody will be actively searching for us, but it will just take one of the Makers coincidentally looking towards the floor of the door to spot us."

"If that happens, the door takes a few seconds to close anyways. We can run back outside and hide again before they can react." Mia says

"Well, I'm going. You two should just wait out here." Kay says.

"No way! If something goes wrong, we might need to back one another up. At the very least, one of us will be able to make a distraction to help our escape. Plus, we still don't even know what's in there. That pillar of light could lead to some monster or something, or be a treasure too heavy for one of us to carry." Frederich says. "We all have to do this together!" he pauses, looking to Mia. "Um, I mean you don't have to if you don't want. It's up to you. It's going to be dangerous."

"I wouldn't dream of passing up an opportunity to see a structure of the Makers up close and personal!" Mia says, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "Let's do this!"

The naked mouse simply nods her head. Now, they just have to wait.