The journey across the vast plains of stone wasn't terribly long, as reaching the other side of the cave should have taken no more than a few hours, but the roaming hungry and desperate creatures that crossed paths with Charlie slowed him down enough that it turned into a day-long endeavour. Still, reaching the other side safely was more important than speed.
Charlie had not quite reached the other wall yet, but could already see the changes in his environment. The air became drier, the coves had become less tightly knit together and even the creatures that called this place their home were of different species. Whether it was due to the absence of the river, or some other unknown Magical effect, Charlie didn't really pay it much heed. The wonders of Magic and the breadth of what it could do spanned further than Charlie could ever hope to understand, tempering his reactions a great deal.
The discovery of Magic had truly opened Charlies eyes to the wider world, and in turn helped quell the extremes in his emotional states. Not fully, but enough to where Charlie felt some semblance of normality. Though there were still times when he was struck by an indescribable fear, and sending him into a panic attack - but they were becoming more rare each day. The encounter with the calamity in the desert had left mental scars that have yet to heal, and Charlie wasn't certain they would.
Retrieving control over his mind again, Charlie dashed the nightmarish memory to the back of his mind and returned to the present. There was still a lot that he needed to do, and not much time left before the dangerous claws of sleep found their purchase in his mind. He'd reach the wall and the glimmering lights in the morning, but now he needed to find somewhere to sleep - and maybe a snack to tide him over.
Finding shelter had become second nature to Charlie, and he didn't spend a lot of time before finding something suitable to his needs. An opening in the floor that was small enough to keep large and dangerous creatures out, but large enough for him to barely fit.
Without wasting time, Charlie slithered inside, only to find a surprised inhabitant. Some sort of vermin-dog hybrid, with large and pointed front teeth and the build of fleshy brick, quickly fell to Charlie's [Hollow Fang]. It let out a strange yelp upon being startled, but quickly went silent.
After filling himself for the evening, Charlie got comfortable in his new temporary home before allowing sleep whisk him away into the ethereal lands. Charlie wanted to pay a visit to his soul, but he needed to be in tip-top shape if he wanted to explore the other side of the cave safely, so instead, Charlie succumbed to the dithering sleep and fell into a wonderful dream.
Normally, Charlie would have spent a lot longer to find a more remote location, something more hidden, but ever since his [Mana Sense] had reached Level 2, he found that it had finally achieved what he had been dreaming of - the ability to wake him when a dangerous creature approached too close.
[Mana Sense] and [Worm of Envy] had formed a powerful relationship, especially since both of them had leveled up higher again. The ability, to learn the danger levels of the creatures he used [Worm of Envy] on, was able to perceived through the use of [Mana Sense] - and with how long Charlie had been using it, allowed his subconscious mind to finally make use of it. Now, if anything approached too close, Charlie would suddenly wake.
The first few times it was startling, and filled his still waking mind with ephemeral fears, but over time he became used to the jarring sensation.
Morning came without issue, and Charlie continued his journey to the other side of the cave, in the hopes of finding out what those glimmering lights were. The coves that lined the paths were taller here, less wide and seemed to hold creatures that were taller in turn. There were green patches of some sort of vegetation atop the coves, which the tall creatures nibbled on with great fervor. Though the competition seemed less intense, it didn't mean that there was none - in fact the competition for what little greenery there was seemed to be just as bloodthirsty as the competition for flesh, if not simply different.
The diving difference was that when a creature had lost the fight, they were not immediately jumped on by hundreds of hungry mouths from all directions, but instead were shamefully forced to retreat to somewhere unseen - usually an empty hovel-like cove to lick their wounds.
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Charlie used [Worm of Envy] on one of the fallen creatures, and found out their species were called the Algerant. Their features were seemingly made for the tough-to-reach vegetation, as they had long and thin hooved legs, a thick and powerful body - with an incredibly large neck that was topped with a weird head. Long, spiraling horns descended down the neck like curly locks made of bone, two side facing eyes and an elongated maw.
Charlie considered pouncing on the beaten creature, but without knowing where it's Core was located, Charlie would be unable to reap the rewards. If Charlie had been alone, then he might have tried, but with the still standing victor nearby, he didn't want to take an unnecessary risk. The spikes of bone that protruded from Charlies back and neck were initially seen as simply an aesthetic tool, but he eventually found out that they could be used to help him in the search for the hidden Core.
Without fingers, Charlie was forced to dive head first into the chests and other open cavities of slain creatures, but with the addition of the bone spines, he was able to at least keep the flesh off of his face. Though, even with that, they still felt more useful as a visual deterrent.
Slithering past the heavily breathing Algerant, Charlie continued on his journey and eventually made it to the other wall - and finally uncovering the mystery behind the glimmering lights.
A familiar fear struck Charlie as he realised what they were.
Human homes.
Though no human could be seen as of right now, it was unmistakable, what he saw before him were the glimmering lights of human homes carved into the impenetrable stone. They were nothing more than small windows and doors jutting out of the stone, but Charlie could see the lights glittering through the translucent windows and shadows moving within.
The more Charlie learned of the humans, the more he realised just how terrifying they were. What insane human would want to live within the cave that housed hundreds and thousands of vicious, feral and insane creatures. What monstrosity would they have to be to find such a place viable for life?
Well, Charlie wasn't one to speak on the subject, as he was one such monstrosity that returned to the cave of his own free will - but he was different! He had no choice, being a creature himself, but these people did and they chose to remain here.
Charlie wanted to get closer, to find out the what and the why - his curiosity had peaked and burned brightly within his mind, asking question after question. Yet, he remained still. There were too many issues.
[Mana Sense] could not penetrate the stone, and he was essentially blind as to what lay within. His enhanced hearing and sense of smell were also useless here, as if there was something protecting the human settlements from being perceived through both Magical and mundane methods. There were also no creatures approaching the homes, which did not bode well either.
If he couldn't approach closer, then Charlie did the next best thing, and followed the human-home-littered wall deeper into the depths of the cave. Charlie wanted to see just how much of the cave was taken up by the human population.
Yet, the further down he traveled, the more homes Charlie could see. Charlie had descended deeper down the cave than ever before, mostly due to the fact that the creatures of the cave avoided this place like the plague, and because his curiosity drove him crazy.
What are they doing here? What does this even mean? Why were all of these vicious creatures let through the giant gate if humans lived down here?
Unfortunately, Charlie didn't dare to descend any deeper, as the human housing had branched off of the walls and created a small town. He didn't know if they could sense him using their own version of [Mana Sense] or if that was even something they knew how to do - not that he wanted to find out, though.
Erring on the side of caution, Charlie returned higher up into the cave and nestled in between the coves of the more docile herbivorous creatures. Still, Charlie remained alert and weary of the creatures that ate the green vegetation, as he knew well that desperation would turn even friends into mere animals.
Yet thoughts of his neighbours were quickly discarded, as Charlie wracked his mind for answers to the presence of the humans within the cave. He also thanked his lucky stars that he had yet to come across a living person, suspecting that it was due to the sleep cycle the creatures had fallen into within the confines of the cave. There was no sun here, so they slept when they could, but the humans could have ways of knowing when it was night and day. Charlie could have simply arrived when they were waking up, or going to sleep - luck must have been on his side.
If the residents were anything like the powerful warriors that were posted at the gates, then Charlie needed to flee and return back to the river. Staying this close to the humans was a death sentence waiting to happen.
Yet, if anything were to kill Charlie, it would be his insatiable curiosity.