Randidly was in his childish body again, sitting in the middle of his bed with his arms wrapped around his legs. The limbs were almost offensively gangly. But compared to the previous time this had happened, his vision was relatively stable. The walls fluttered like they were cloth rather than wood and drywall, but the ground wasn’t heaving beneath him.

A frown creased his face as he tried to track how he had ended up here. I was just meditating on the third layer. Was I really resting enough to dream? Well, I suppose my body should be strong enough to weather any surprise attacks, either from Xershi or from a stranger…

Besides. I think these dreams are the key to my new Attribute. Getting Muse’s Reverie to five should have a very powerful effect.

Randidly hopped off the bed. His feet hit the floor and he stumbled and fell. His face twisted in annoyance as he used his slender limbs to push himself up to his feet. Why the hell couldn’t he dream of himself in a body with his normal capability? Adjusting back to the reactions of a child was irritating. His musculature left a lot to be desired.

Finally back on his feet, he walked to the door. As he placed his hands on the doorknob, he heard the resounding laugh of his mother. Again, the shadow of her flashed in front of him. He couldn’t remember anything but the curl of her mouth as she tried to smile while her entire world collapsed. When Randidly had unknowingly handed over those divorce papers.

Randidly shivered but pushed past the fear. Even the greatest journey began by making an attempt. He twisted the knob and walked out into the hallway with his head raised in the face of his own fear. But instead of the cramped area he had expected from his childhood home, Randidly found himself in a relatively large stone chamber. The huge expanse was hung with thick shadows, making it almost impossible to make out anything in the gloom.

These walls seemed quite solid. The darkness weighed everything down and erased the dreamlike qualities, leaving only the confusion and fear.

Still, he turned and began to move. There was a single, rotating bright spot in an otherwise completely featureless space. Randidly stumbled forward, seeking that one source of light. It was the size of a dinner plate-

Randidly stopped in front of the rotating light source. His gaze turned increasingly sour. “Are you… fucking kidding me? What the hell is this supposed to be?”

It was a massive trading card. On the back was sometimes a tree, sometimes, a spear, sometimes a Chimera, and sometimes an empty eye. And on the front was a massive question mark. With a sigh, he reached out and touched the floating card.

Applause! You have obtained the Item the Torch of Harsh Truths!

With a pop, Randidly found himself holding a burning torch. Already, his young shoulders ached with the effort of holding the item aloft. The light bounced off the walls and gave him an understanding of the area. Mostly, the cavern housed doors. And above each one was a name.

Ezekiel.

Tessa.

Sydney.

Ace.

Shal.

Emilee.

“My dream is some sort of convoluted mystery game?” Randidly growled to himself. He half wished a narrator would answer. But the act of picking up the card was enough to shatter the doze and suddenly the world warped. He returned to his current, monstrous form. He was kneeling in the middle of a grassy clearing, surrounded by trees. Xershi was over to one side, doing his own meditating.

Randidly sighed and shook his head. The headache he had earned forcing his Nether into Drum’s body lingered after that strange vision. But as Xershi had stated, this floor seemed devoid of all settlement. When they arrived a soft image involving flute music had filled the ring with an incredible symphony, but it crumbled like thousand-year-old paper at their presence. Soon, they were alone in the tree-filled ring.

They both took a much-needed rest.

Without insects or animals, the area felt curiously dead. For the purposes of recovery, it was convenient, but it didn’t help the bleeding guilt that encountering Drum had reawoken in Randidly. He remembered the bird woman in the Dungeon and how sure he was that his actions had been necessary. Her ghost stood behind him, seemingly all the more intent and foreboding now that she had been rekindled in his heart.

Randidly released a long breath. Those sort of mistakes are exactly why I need to focus and protect the Alpha Cosmos so they don’t-

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

The thought was bitter in his head. So they don’t need to become like me, adopting the same sort of violent and domineering behavior as Elhume, but convincing myself that I have a higher justification for it. What I’m trying to do is carve a path for them, outside of this cycle of violence. Is that… really possible?

Randidly reached up and rubbed his eyes with the butt of his palm. The headache continued to linger. It was a true thought that he desperately wished to escape from, but had no idea how to flee from it. Not when it rang so true. Not when so many of the questions about how his crusade against Elhume would end had no easy answers.

He dealt with these doubts the same way Azriel accused him of with the Grey Creature’s emotional affect: turning his focus away and moving in different directions.

Randidly returned to the Alpha Cosmos briefly, checking in on the Patron of Feathers. At this point, the Patron of the Sun and the Patron of Blades remained by her side almost constantly. For fear of her flickering life, they held their long vigil to try and stabilize her Health. When asked, the information they gave hung heavily in the air.

Her deterioration slowed in the Sonara, but she was so far gone at this point. In another week or two, she would unravel completely. Another one of the seven original Patrons will have died.

Randidly returned to his body. He was still mentally exhausted from the confrontation with Drum, but he couldn’t wait any longer. The silence of the clearing around him continued to irk him as he pushed himself to his feet. Xershi immediately hopped up and Randidly turned to him with a question. “How many floors are in the Sonara?”

“I believe the legend is that it possesses a hundred rings, although anything past forty-one is patrolled by some of the autonomous defense forces left by Elhume,” Xershi said.

Randidly’s heart sank. Making it up a hundred floors in a week would not be simple. He turned away from the metal ligerman. “Then let’s leave immediately and head for the exterior stairwell. We don’t have time to waste.”

*****

Xershi watched the Ghosthound carefully as they moved directly from climbing up to the fifth floor to heading to the sixth. Whether it was bloodlust or some inner fire, the Ghosthound hadn’t stopped moving since recovering from his execution of Drum. And Xershi could tell how exhausted he still was; the area stabilized by his spatial image had shrunk by a fold. Yet the firm will to drive himself forward was exactly the sort of attitude that made him glad he had followed this stranger on a whim.

This would be a journey that saw them push their limits. That was extremely valuable.

…just Xershi wished some of that value would be located in the present.

Sweat poured down his brow as Xershi forced himself to climb up the next staircase. His own limit fluttered in front of him, teasing him with its possibly imminent arrival. It made his breath quicken. Would a particularly bad spatial flare smash into his side and cause him to collapse? Would he go to lift his foot and find himself unable to move? Would he die here?

Although it was painful, arriving at the golden portal to the next ring was almost a disappointment. Another ascension without any climactic moments. Just the long toil of movement.

Shivering, Xershi forced himself through the area of high image static and stumbled through to the other side. His head butted up against the Ghosthound’s back, who looked around warily at their surroundings. A group of about twenty individuals was standing around, clearly waiting for their arrival.

They stood in another forested area, with each tree seeming to have a hawk-eyed and powerful Tier III Citizen.

“Well met, travelers of the Sonara,” A short humanoid woman with bright blue hair stepped forward and spread out her hands. She offered them a sweet smile. “Welcome to Idylla. The only city of the Sonara. It can be the jumping board for you to find your destiny. Please, follow us and we will help you with your applications for visiting passes.”

“I’m not interested in visiting, but thank you for the offer.” In the face of the group, the Ghosthound shook his head. His spine was straight and strong. “We will just be heading to the exterior stairwell and continuing on our journey. Oh, unless you want to linger Xershi.”

Xershi shrugged, unwilling how sweaty and drained he truly was. “Nah, why wait here? Let’s see how far we can climb.”

A stick-thin man stepped out of the crowd. His gaunt face curled into a cruel look. “Pullas might have phrased it as a request, but it was not one. Do you think so many turn out for peaceful arrivals to Idylla? We know of your brutal actions in regards to Drum. He was a close friend and staunch defender of this city. We cannot in good conscience simply allow you to pass. You will be held accountable for your actions, even if we need to do it ourselves.”

Even as the Ghosthound’s shoulders rolled back and steam began to waft off his body, the woman raised a finger and showed a disapproving frown. “Easy, Rod. The city of Idylla has no judicial authority, even over those who call it home. It is a loose association-”

“Damn your fucking regulations and arrangements to hell.” Rod took another step forward. He was a full foot shorter than Randidly and so thin it looked like an intense emerald gaze could blow him away. But the crystalline image he released glittered in the air around him. “Rules are dead and people are alive. And on my life, I swear I’ll deliver justice to this prick.”

Some of the other gathered individuals offered some inside smiles. About half spread out and became a circle around the group. Their individual and varied images flashed up to become a barrier.

Pullas sighed and shook her head. “This is not in the spirit of Idylla. We founded this town exactly to escape the barbarism of using violence as a source of determination-”

Her voice was drowned out in the boos and hoots from the circled-up individuals. Xershi’s metal tongue flicked out and danced across his lips. He reached out and put a hand on the Ghosthound’s shoulder. Adrenaline was coursing through his body. “I don’t suppose… I could have a go?”