Alyssa woke up, head throbbing with pain. It was so bad, and so dark, that, at first, she idly wondered what time of night it was. For a few seconds. Partly because it turned out that she was in a cave, but mostly because she discovered that she didn’t have a body.
It was just gone. Poof! So, how was she seeing? And thinking. Why was she seeing normally? Like she had eyes. No smells, though... That was weird. And why, how, was her head throbbing?
She tried searching through her memories – how, you ask? No clue - but nothing helpful turned up.
She had just gone to bed, all cosy and snuggled up, thankful it was going to be Saturday, and now... No Saturday.
Probably.
She sighed. Mentally. Then yawned, mentally. She was still tired. Somehow. Hah, imagine. Being tired in a dream. Because this was totally a dream, right?
She waited for herself to wake up.
Spoiler: she did not.
She screamed. Mentally.
As she did so, something in the room pulsed with power and violet light, shocking her out of her screech. Which made it disappear.
For science and research, she screamed once again. It pulsed once more.
So, she turned around. Somehow.
The cave itself was rather small, and generic: dull brown rock was the style of choice, arranged in a vaguely semi-spherical pattern to create the room, with an oddly rectangular tunnel in one direction.
She spent little time caring about that, though, as, sitting somewhat ceremoniously on a grey altar in the centre of the room, was her.
Not her. Not the self she knew. She wasn’t a ball of crackling violet energy, after all. Until now, at least.
But it was definitely herself. Her new self. She couldn’t fathom how she knew, she just did. Like staring at oneself in the mirror. Just with the help of Dr Strange. Or drugs, for a similarly surreal out of body experience.
So...she was now a crystal ball? Great? Where was she? Why was she? What could one do as a crystal ball?
At that, a thought popped into her head, unbidden.
I’m a Dungeon Core.
Wait, what? I didn’t just think that.
Except, she totally did.
Why the fuck am I a dungeon core?
...
...
...
..
...
No response.
She sighed. Mentally. Again. This time, the orb...she...dimmed.
Talk about wearing your heart on your sleeve, sheesh.
She hoped no one saw her; her emotional state would be sending them running for the hills in no time. Or trying to kill her in self defense. Not that she could currently do anything offensive. She couldn’t even talk, so verbal abuse was out of the equation.
Well, since she was currently incorporeal, though probably not a ghost, as she was totally invisible, and didn’t feel like she had a body, she decided to look around some more. There was that tunnel to look down, after all, and not much else to do. She wasn’t yet willing to confront her supposed reality with a rational mind.
Alyssa walked/floated/drifted through space-time, ending up a good ways from her Core room, which brought a random thought to her head. Or whatever her head was, currently.
Her room was bathed in the violet glow of her Core, as now that she’d actually noticed it...noticed herself, it...she had properly activated, it seemed? She had jumpstarted herself, basically. But this corridor was pitch black, so how was she seeing? Ignoring the ever present thought that she had no eyes and the other problems that presented, anyway. Maybe that was why? She had no eyes, so something was substituting? Maybe Cores just had Darkvision.
Doesn’t that usually have a max range though...Well, anything goes when it’s real life. Real life, huh.
Fortunately, mental breakdowns over her current condition were on hold; better to be sure she’s safe to have one in case her...body...becomes a disco ball. Not that there’s anything wrong with them! She just didn’t want to do a poor imitation. Yes, that was totally the reason.
She sighed.
This sucks.
Was currently about the only thing on her mind, so when she slammed into nothing, she paused for a few seconds as her mind performed a reboot.
This really sucks.
A partial one, at any rate.
She – or her projection – could not leave. This tunnel lead out into a large cavern, that, while similarly unimpressive, had daylight streaming through an entrance on the far side, so it was really quite aggravating.
Alyssa was not at all prone to bouts of sudden sunbathing, but being forcibly cooped up like this was...horrible. She didn’t even enjoy the outdoors that much, but this just felt wrong.
However, even as restrictive as it was, her disgust felt stronger than she thought it ought to have been...
Even still, she continued to feel it, so when something fluttered down through the opening like a miniature rainbow given wings, she felt little trepidation, and more of a curious anticipation.
That is, until the small creature made a beeline for her position, streaming through the air with the speed of a lightning bolt.
As it zoomed closer, and then further away after passing right through Alyssa, she was able to catch a closer, albeit brief, look.
It was a small, lithe woman, that looked not unlike pictures of fairies or fae, but her tiny presence and features were a little different. She was naked, though her long, pitch black hair unnaturally coiled and flowed, which covered everything important, but unless Fae skin was commonly dotted with twinkling motes of starlight, then it seemed it was a not-fairy. Maybe a cousin?
Her brain – or whatever substituted for it – caught up a second later, as she realised that it had flown through her.
Right to the dungeon core! Herself. Her body!
She pulsed with visible worry as she followed in fairy-ish things wake, panicked, violet light flooding even the beginnings of the tunnel.
Then a voice, of perfect smoothness and moderately high pitch, resounded out around her, just as she re entered her core room.
“Oh, wow! This is perfect! I just knew I felt something odd around here! Some strange mana for sure, and its coming from something I’ve never seen or heard of!”
The fairy thing bounced around happily, excitedly, and as if she were high all at the same time, her voice gaining in pitch with each syllable.
Alyssa idly wondered if she was about to faint, an unnatural and intense fear welling up within herself at this strangers presence, when the newcomer suddenly slapped herself.
“Naughty! Too much excitement! Be careful and pay attention! Or death from demons awaits!” she exclaimed, as if repeating a slogan.
The way she had said that sounded far too practiced and normal...Alyssa hoped this wasn’t a common occurrence, for the fairy-things’ sake.
She watched as the thing slowly turned and examined the room, looking for things Alyssa couldn’t see.
As the intruders' eyes grazed over Alyssa's position, she saw that they glowed with a soft blue light, which intensified, morphed into a frown, then fluttered closer.
“There is...something here? Or someone? Hello? Can you hear me? Or see me?”
Alyssa blinked. Well, not really, but she felt like she did. She could see her? Even though she was invisible? She tried to respond, but words could not be formed. She didn’t know how; without vocal cords, how did one talk?!
Instead, she resorted to darting around in a frantic manner, trying, somehow, to get her only line of support to notice she could understand.
“Whoa whoa whoa! Calm down there, you’re like a new-born Fae! Well...you haven’t thrown a hunk of a ice at me yet, so it’s not a truly fair comparison but...I can’t follow you so well! You are far too thin. Just, stay still. Let me look.”
So she did. And so she was looked at.
Her core was looked at too. Quite a few times. With a furrowed brow. And simply insane mutterings. Her whole situation was insane, on the level of weirder than most dreams she had had, but still. At least she still had a body in her dreams. Even if it was sometimes without clothing.
She snapped back to attention as the fairy-thing waved at her.
“So, firstly, some yes and no questions if that’s alright, as I assume you can understand me. It’d be really weird if you couldn’t. Like, really weird,” wait, shouldn't it be the other way around? “then move side to side once for yes, two for no. Got it?”
She moved once.
Her new friend smiled brightly.
“Perfect! Oh, this is a great start! I hope I remember all this...ah, anyway! You’re connected to this thing, right?” she gestured at her core, glowing incandescent now that someone else was present.
She moved once.
“I thought as much. Your auras are identical. Are you a projection?”
Was she? She had no idea what she was.
She hesitated, then moved once uncertainly.
“Hmmm...you’re not sure...or don’t know if you should say...please, there’s no need for caution! I will bring you no harm.”
...Huh. Well, okay then.
Wait, what? What was that? Why did that feel so...so...indescribable? It was like the feeling when a loud bass reverberates through you. It had power.
“Well, whatever the reason, now you know! So, I have a perfectly normal idea. Mana transfer!”
Internally, mentally, whatever, she cringed slightly. The fate series had really given that term an...odd reputation. Alyssa could only hope it wasn’t like that here. She knew more than one scenario, in fiction, where it was applied, unfortunately. Or fortunately, depending on the time of day.
“Er, oh! Do you know what that means?”
She shook twice.
“Hmmm... Odd? Or perhaps not. You’re new-born, I assume...first of your kind and all that.”
She was? The first dungeon core? Well, that’s some pressure...better hope she didn't die soon or it’d be a pretty pitiful page in the non-existent history books about her.
“Ah, anyway, it’s essentially as it sounds. I will give you some mana, unless...” she trailed off for a moment in thought, “this...you,” she gestured at my core, “seems positively packed to the brim, but you don’t. So, I’ll give you some! Unless you can take some from your main...body? Is that the right term?”
She shook once in confirmation, and then wondered how she might go about doing that. She hadn’t exactly had any time to experiment or even think about...anything really, bar her immediate surroundings and lack of body. Partly because she didn’t want to fall into an existential crisis.
So, she focused. On herself. And her actual self. She floated over to her core and attempted to visualise, or at least sense, mana. Which she had no idea how to do, but imagination was the limit! Right?
Right?!
She sighed, then forced herself to properly focus.
Mana... A magical, mystical energy believed to be the realm of fantasy and make belief. By most people. Much like ghosts, really. So, how did one go about seeing it, and then manipulating it?
She found that it was just as easy as breathing, apparently.
As she thought about mana, and tried to focus on the supposed abundance of it within her core, it responded, getting all, for lack of a better word, jumpy. Like it was excited, and wanted to be used.
As she imposed her will on it, which was little more than thinking “give mana for body pls thx”, it did just that, acquiescing eagerly.
Immediately, all of her senses began to tingle at once, as if she had mild pins and needles, and she had to close her eyes as they began to swim with depth and true colour; turns out the rainbow was not the be all end all of colours.
“Ooh, that was fast! Are you actually new-born? Clothes, too! And cute ears, with a fluffy tail! You are so unique I might faint with joy!”
Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
Ah. Perhaps her subconscious had slipped in a few unnecessary things... She could already feel the large, fluffy tail swishing about behind, and the ears atop her head...clothes, though? What clothes did she choose?
Upon opening her eyes, and spending several seconds/minutes blinking out the strangeness that she immediately began to ignore, she received her answer. A miko outfit adorned her, largely simple from what she could tell, but positively gleaming and perfect in every sense of the word.
The look was further enhanced, if possible, by the vulpine tail she spied upon looking behind her, and the similarly foxy ears she ran her fingers along, sitting atop her head.
I have made myself into a kitsune...well played, me!
She actually congratulated herself, then hummed, wanting to get a better look. So she flattened a section of the cave wall perpendicular to the tunnel, and conjured a mirror to hang from it.
How did she do that? Well, she certainly didn’t know. It just happened as she thought about it.
“How did you just...?”
Seems her bubbly companion didn’t know either, so how would she?
The mirror showed her in all her glory. A perfect kitsune, complete with wavy, caramel hair; playful, heterochromatic green and hazel eyes; a thin, cheeky grin, all enhanced by a perfect miko outfit, in a perfect cave...at a perfect...shrine...
She frowned as her thoughts trailed off. She was a nearly-perfect kitsune, then. What if she simply made this her shrine?
At that errant thought, something even stranger occurred, as a prominent idea came to mind.
Transform Core room (Current: Basic Cave) into Shrine?
...
...
Who...who was that?!
...
...
Well, okay then. Yes.
This was apparently an acceptable answer, as she and her support lifeline were torn out of the room in less than a second, and forced to wait in the tunnel, which closed the entrance to the room at the same time.
“It’s like a caterpillar, then,” she mused aloud, calming herself with some inane thought.
“A caterpillar? Is the room changing right now, and that’s why we were thrown outside?” the fairy-like thing asked, in a far too inquisitive manner as she flew up close to Alyssa’s face.
“Yes. I am turning it into a Shrine,” she replied, nodding lightly.
“A shrine? A shrine to who?”
“Uh... I don’t know. No one?”
“...Why are you turning it into a shrine, then?”
“...Because I’m a Kitsune Shrine Maiden?”
“Oh, I see!”
Alyssa didn’t know what she saw.
“That’s what race you are, then? A Kitsune? What’s the deal with the purple orb? Is that your soul or something? You have pretty eyes! Is that a Kitsune thi-“
Before she finished, she had slapped a hand over her own mouth, even as she continued her muffled avalanche of questions with an apologetic look.
Alyssa simply blinked and giggled. Physically this time. Finally. She had had no body for barely a few minutes and it was enough to scar her for life. Never again, please and thank you!
She decided to choose her responses carefully, as there was just a small lack of understanding, and she didn’t want the excitable fairy-thing getting the wrong ideas.
“What I am appearing as, currently, is a Kitsune, yes, dressed in the traditional garb of a Shrine Maiden. I think it’s simply what my mind subconsciously conjured when I used the mana to form my body, but I don’t think I will change it, even if I can. I already feel at home as this. The orb is... I don’t really know. It is my Core, but I know only that.”
Her responses were met with a covered mouth, but very emphatic nodding. She began her avalanche once again, but apparently forgot her hand was muffling her, which sent Alyssa giggling once more.
She received an annoyed look in return, but no other punishment as the room suddenly opened up, albeit with little fanfare.
The entrance was free of anything; as before, it was still just the tunnel opening, which allowed them to get a lovely new view of her home.
Because it was obviously her home.
The room was vastly different and changed, in essentially all aspects. It was still in a cave, but the features of the room took away from this garish fact; largely because it had seemingly doubled in size, and was now a cubic shape.
As she stepped inside, breath held as the moment of sudden elation - that came from somewhere, she didn’t know where – stretched onwards, her emerald and hazel eyes swept around to take it all in, eventually coming to rest on the nearest item of interest.
A pretty, quaint, stony pond had been etched into the corner of the room, on the right. The water glistened and sparkled like diamonds, and was just as clear too. It was empty, except for the greenery in and around it, growing out of the cracks in the rocks and making its new home in the dark, dank environment.
Her dark, dank environment.
It was simple in its beauty, really. Small patches of long, lush, green grass gave life to the scene, and miniature towers of bamboo stood as proud sentinels, watching over the tiny domain.
...Didn’t plants require light, though?
Create artificial lighting in Core room (Current: Shrine)?
Well, yeah, of course!
The two of them then both squealed, at the same time, as what felt like a flashbang blinded them for a few seconds.
Blinking and rubbing away the brightness, Alyssa’s eyes were treated to yet another stunning sight – she hadn’t even gotten to the actual shrine yet.
“This...this is not what I had in mind when it said artificial lighting...”
Sunlight streamed down from the new ‘ceiling’ of her cave.
If one were to look up, they may have experienced a brief moment of awe, mixed with confusion. Because they might have suddenly wondered if they were outside again. But they were inside. Right? So, how did you explain the blue sky, with clouds floating lazily overhead, and rays of a fiery orange sun beating down on you?
You didn’t, really. You just took it in, frozen for a moment in time, wondering whether this was all some fancy trick, or illusion.
It wasn’t. Not really. And even if it was, it wouldn’t have taken away from the surreal, otherworldly feeling, and almost alien senses.
It didn’t just look like the outside, it felt it, too. Even though the walls and floor were still that same, brown, boring rock, it seemed that ‘artificial lighting’ was just a touch vague; a soft breeze had begun to sing, and the clouds periodically blocking out the ‘sun’ created an ebb and flow of warmth that spread across her body, which felt quite lovely on her newfound appendages.
“Am...am I essentially a goddess in here...?”
“Wh-wha-who are you?! Are you actually a goddess?! A new one?! Or-or some sort of demon lord?! Because this is way too exciting! I feel like I’m being seduced! With...with stuff!”
A small grin played at the edges of Alyssa’s mouth as she came to a quick decision.
“I don’t know...perhaps I am! Perhaps I’m something even greater – would you like to stay and find out with me?” she asked, smiling, playing up her enticing offer with a sweet voice.
The small girls’ face became a look of mock horror after hearing the words.
“You are a demon! Succubus! Of course, I accept! Wait, you don’t want anything in return, right?”
“You didn’t consider that?” Alyssa asked, still smiling.
“W-well... I get excited easily!”
Alyssa shook her head. It was quite obvious.
“Not really. All I want is to learn, same as you. If you seek out random things frequently, then you must know a fair bit, so I’d like to learn from you, too. I’m not a new-born, per se, but I am new here.”
“A...a student?! But I’m so young! Agh, fine, it’s too tempting, but I’ll have you know I prefer practical teaching and learning! Like this!”
At that declaration, she began to glow in a myriad of colours. Colours Alyssa didn’t know the names for slowly swirled around her like the tiny motes of starlight dotted around her skin, until they became just that. A miniature galaxy was formed, with a proud being of fluttering, rainbow wings in its centre. Much more alluring than a black hole, at any rate.
“I am a Lyrakien Azata, and my name is Selaria,” she revealed, and smiled expectantly.
Alyssa was certainly impressed, and a small feeling of pressure began to rise. Was this like an anime in a magical high school?
She simply bowed succinctly by way of introduction.
“Don’t worry, you’ve outdone me. I am Alyssa, a Dungeon Core currently portraying a Kitsune. And I have no idea what my existence means.”
Selaria simply giggled, her reply holding a prideful note.
“Not many could best my introduction! And fear not! We can just find out together! I’m sure it’ll be interesting and super exciting!” Selaria grinned excitedly.
“I would be quite happy for it to be something completely mundane, thank you very much. Don’t go jinxing my existential crisis, please," Alyssa replied flatly.
“Fiiiiine...don’t you want to finish looking around though? I know I do.”
Alyssa blinked. She had totally not forgotten to look at the bulk of her changed shrine. Not at all.
“Right. Of course. I was just getting to that.”
The rest of the cavern was arranged as the courtyard, and then the building itself. The ground became more gravelly as one walked towards the entrance - even a vague pathway had been etched out, winding through a collection of random foliage, with the odd stick of bamboo standing guard, adding to the whole theme.
In fact, it was so well done that she could only wonder how, but was also slightly miffed at how vague an option it had been. The same with ‘artificial lighting.’
Her thoughts lasted only moments, because the Shrine itself looked wonderful. It was as if they had reached into Japan and just plucked it right out. It consisted of a long, rectangular main building that hugged the entire back wall of the cave, and two side buildings on opposite ends, running perpendicular each to form a ‘C’ shape.
It appeared to be built entirely of wood, and the roof of the main building was also slanted and curved in such a traditional fashion that her inner weeb threatened to crawl out even further. She couldn’t fangirl. She couldn’t. This was her new home, and she was a kitsune, but she had to keep it together. At least until she was alone.
The main building also stood a feet or so off the ground, stilts, also wooden, giving it a sense of authority and depth. She expected the few wooden steps to produce some creaking noise, but it was silent except for the clop of her sandals.
She held her breath before opening the front, sliding door, which was still wood, but lighter than the rest of the building. A dark section on the bottom was etched into it, creating a pattern that looked to her like crashing waves at a beach.
Perhaps, because of her preconceptions, it felt more momentous than it actually was, but she couldn’t help but let out a gasp as what awaited her inside, was her.
Her Core, sat on a much different, more ornate wooden altar at the far side of the room, glowed gently, the violet light like a soft guide, rather than the piercing disco ball it had been poorly imitating before.
In both bodies, it seemed, she felt very comfortable and fit for this new home.
The place was otherwise bare however; the tatami mats were clean, and the dark wooden shuttered shelves looked polished, but they were devoid of anything ornamental.
As far as homes went, it was a lovely start, but it wouldn’t be allowed to remain. And while she could probably just think ‘furniture’-
Install Furniture within Core room? (Current: Shrine)
-she really didn’t want to, unless she had no other options. A tiny part of her felt like it was cheating, and if it was as vague as before, she might end up with statues worshipping some random god. Or worse, herself.
Besides, she had always believed in the idea that things gotten on your own merit were better enjoyed. Though this probably counted as her own merit, being a dungeon core, she still felt largely human.
It was one thing she had yet to really consider, obviously, and probably wouldn't for a while, but would being a dungeon core affect her mentally? Probably, right? What even was a dungeon core? Added on to this concern was her Kitsune body; would that also affect her? Would it be a good or a bad thing? Or a both-thing? She would have to see, but remind herself to try and keep on top of it and note down any changes.
Noted.
Well, okay then.
...
Yeah, she was definitely already somewhat different.
Noted.
Thanks.
“Hey, this place is really nice, honestly. A little bare...are you trying to just magic up everything again?” Selaria spoke up, in approval.
“The opposite, actually. My abilities feel somewhat like cheating, at least to me, so I’m going to hold off on creating any more spectacles for now," Alyssa denied.
“Oh, good! I can’t say I’m not slightly pleased. I’ve never fainted before, but I think I might come close if you somehow do anything even more impressive.”
“I want to see if I can explore outside a little. Before you came charging in, I tried to leave, but couldn’t. Now I have a body, it might be different, as it could be I was protecting myself in that vulnerable state.”
“As sound a hypothesis as any! Let’s try! Oh, there’s nothing else left to surprise us both in here, is there?”
“Shouldn’t be...I’m eager to get outside and look around anyway. Properly outside. With authentic sunlight and all that.”
“Right! I will happily serve as both protector and guide! How far does your domain stretch anyway?”
They began to walk – well, walk and fly – back out, into the inside/outdoors of her shrine. The tunnel stretched on ahead of them, and looked entirely unchanged, as expected.
“To the end of this tunnel. That’s where I couldn’t leave from, before, too.”
She was really quite eager to get outside, if she could. She had a sneaking suspicion about something, and would happily embark on an adventure to confirm it.
It was something she was just getting used to, but she seemed to process things a little faster now. Or perhaps that wasn’t the right way to describe it. It simply felt like she was more aware of what she was processing, and what her subconscious was thinking or remembering. Which sort of defeated the point of a subconscious, but whatever.
All this was to say, she was remembering bits and pieces that she hadn’t earlier, idly, with each step. Just a few sentences here and there, of something that had been said by someone while she slept. It was not a voice she recognised, nor thought was really human. But that was back on Earth – assuming this isn’t Earth, what with the whole magic thing – so things weren’t really adding up.
She also felt like the voice hadn’t just been talking to her. The way it phrased things indicated it was talking to a group, at minimum, which was the basis of her suspicion.
She was once more brought out of her musings by the end of the tunnel. Except this time not by an invisible wall, but by walking straight through with nothing seeming amiss, and Selaria none the wiser.
“I guess I was right? Unless my ‘domain’ extended out to this cave too?”
“Let’s find out! But if you ask me, this section of the cave, while still saturated in mana - like all caves - is not so much saturated with yours.”
“Hmmm... Mana has identity?”
“Sort of. Its less that it has an identity and more that its tainted by the internal well of each individual, thought this tainting isn’t permanent. Every being capable of casting magic draws it in from the surroundings, and similar to breathing, converts it into something usable, where it is then stored until use. Like breathing, though, every bring also naturally emits mana, which is why I can guess at your domain," Selaria lectured, for the first of many times to come.
Alyssa nodded. That made a lot of sense, considering it was magic.
“It’s stored? Is it measurable, then?”
“Oh, no, not at all. While there is an organ in each being that deals with internal mana, as its called, nothing about it is measurable, or indicative of its current capacity. Otherwise someone like me would have next to no mana, and a simple Enlarge spell would cause ones mana to skyrocket.”
“Bigger isn’t always better?" Alyssa asked, already knowing the answer this time.
Selaria grinned happily.
“Precisely!”
Before the conversation moved any further along, with too many burning questions left unanswered, they arrived at the cavern entrance.
Once again, there was nothing particularly special about it. A simple, small yet steep incline, and a roughly human sized hole lead to the outside.
“Oh, wait! If we are planning on leaving, shouldn’t we at least close this off?” Selaria asked, turning around and gesturing to her Shrine tunnel entrance.
Hardly a moments thought was enough to send her a very strong return that she could not do that under any circumstance. It was so strong she visibly winced, which the Lyrakien noticed.
“No? Then how about this?”
She pointed at the tunnel, said something incomprehensible in an incomprehensible language, made Alyssa wince, again, and then the tunnel...disappeared. It simply became the surrounding rock, as if it had never existed.
Alyssa wondered if she should be worried, but she still felt her ‘connection’ to her core, if what she was feeling was right. It was as if a thin hair were touching her from a mile away. So, rather than worry, her eyes widened in excitement.
“Did you just...?”
A proud, wide smile was on Selaria’s face as she replied.
“Yep! A simple illusion spell. Probably not noticeable, either! The cave is saturated, as I said, so it won’t look much different to the surroundings, and I don’t see why anyone would go running their hand over it. All we have to hope for is that an Earth Elemental not choose this opportunity to do just that. Let’s go!”
This Lyrakien was very eager, even more so than Alyssa herself, and she wondered if it was due to her race, or just her personality. She wondered about races in general – Selaria had had no idea what she was, so perhaps humans existed, and animals, but no beastkin? She should probably just ask, but it wasn’t exactly a priority...
And with that lingering thought, she stepped outside.
And stood on grass.
It was pretty anticlimactic, honestly. She was outside, and not too sure what she expected. She could see trees. And plants. Other trees, and other plants. More grass. It was very mundane. Looked like Earth, mostly.
Except for...
She spied something in the distance, a few motions amongst the thick foliage. Rustling not caused by the wind. As she focused on it, she realised the distance was a little bit further than she was used to. Further even than her glasses had allowed. Everything was slightly more clear, and her focus was larger – she wondered if this would make her aim any better. Probably not, but she could dream, damnit.
Blinking herself back into focus, she still couldn’t make out what was causing the commotion. It seemed to be getting bigger, or at least more active, but it remained entirely hidden.
“What is going on over there...?”
That had come from Selaria, which reminded her that senses other than sight existed.
She listened. And heard rustling. And insects. Hopefully normal sized. And a... Growl? And was that a...scream?
Again, unbidden, last night’s sleeping words came to her, and she frowned. What if...? It seemed crazy, but everything was already far beyond crazy.
She immediately took off at a run. A sprint, at a breakneck pace, that world record holders would have been proud of, began, the dense forest barely slowing her down as she dashed towards the noises. They got louder, and sounded distinctly like fighting, until they went eerily quiet.
“Hey! Alyssa! What are you – agh, I’ve never trained my speed!”
Her companion fluttered fiercely after her, eventually catching up, not long before they appeared in a small clearing.
The sight that greeted them was beyond discordant, and caused Alyssa to frown as she panted, exhausted from the mad dash.
A number of people – humans - were strewn haphazardly on the ground, blood covering many of them. Some looked in incredible pain, while others looked as if they were merely sleeping.
Amidst the blood and mild carnage, what looked like wolves were also mixed in. Two lay unmoving, another lay twitching.
The discordance came from multiple things, but what caused her to frown was the lack of damage. There was blood everywhere, and she had most definitely heard screams, assuming they came from the people here, who seemingly came from every country on Earth, but yet, she could see no wounds, and as she looked, every one of them was breathing. Including the wolves.
“So there are people here...humans are here...” she breathed between pants.
With the clothing choices...suspicion confirmed?
“Hu-mans?” Selaria asked in a questioning voice, as Alyssa turned to look at her with an ever deepening frown, which earned her an innocent reply.
“What’s a human?”