[Once I begin to break the barrier, we will have to be ready to move very quickly.]

"How quickly?" James asked, crossing his arms.

[The shop strongly suspects that breaking through the barrier will alert the soul authorities. The shop will relocate itself an instant after the barrier breaks. At that time the shop recommends the representative refrain from making any deals of extremely high value or giving out direct access to our utility powers. While our actions thus far have been within the technical limitations and should not be possible to trace back to us, they have been undeniably disruptive to these local worlds.]

"Understood." James paused as a thought occurred to him. “If we’re going to be in hiding, does that mean we can’t call Archaniel? We should check on him before we go.”

[I have already contacted representative Archaniel. He wishes all of you well and congratulates you on recruiting a reliable employee. He wishes to pass along his well wishes and compliments representative James’ efficiency.]

"Ah, alright. Well, then let's go break the universe."

[Representative James, the shop does not believe that breaking this barrier will cause any harm to the universe. It is a fully internal process. However, there is a small chance the soul administrators may notice the discharge of energy. Whatever this seal is, it was made very strongly and I do not know what we will find. It may be that this action is unnoticed as well, but taking it will trigger a large number of contingencies and precautionary measures. The shop will therefore act as though it will be the worst case scenario. It is advised that you find a comfortable position and are fully prepared for abrupt movement.]

"I have just the thing." With a wave of his hand, the theater seats expanded and curled around them, creating cozy little cocoons for their inhabitants.

Ivy bounced up and down in hers, abusing her own co-owner permissions until the shop's sternly worded warning reappeared.

"Fine, fine. I'm being serious now." Ivy settled down in her chair and it wrapped snugly around her. "How long is this going to take?"

[Once we decide on a suitable world to hide in until we can ascertain what if any attention we have attracted, the attempt will be made immediately.]

“What makes a world suitable?” Shen Ai asked.

[The shop will still need sustenance, but for the immediate future and until we know whether it is safe to resume standard operations, it will be best to obscure our activities with another form of power consumption which is permitted. Hiding within such a world should mask our presence fully, while providing ample opportunities for obtaining power.]

“Power… you mean lifespan, right?” James inquired.

[Yes and no. The representative and his companions are going to be traveling among unknown people in a dangerous region in search of people desperate enough to make a deal with the shop. It would be prudent for you all to obtain the ability to defend yourselves, independent of reliance on the shop’s utility. Since this attempt will consume the vast majority, if not the entirety of our stored lifespan, you will need to rely mainly on yourselves until we have accumulated enough of a stockpile again.]

“An adventure of our own!” Ivy cheered. “I’ve been wanting to do this for ages!”

“Shop, please provide a list of recommendations that meet the criteria of cloaking our presence there while you’re occupied and giving us the ability to have a fun adventure we can gain our own power from.” James’s eyes widened when a long list appeared.

“That’s a lot of options,” Ivy muttered. “Please filter them to the top three and provide descriptions and reasoning for the recommendation.”

[Kavgor: a land of magic and life. The world is overwhelmingly filled with verdant plants and monsters of many varieties with enough soul strength to make them useful targets. The localized tribes have extensive practice in their methods of extracting monster souls for use in magic, so it would be fully possible to obtain increased lifespan for the shop without doing anything out of the ordinary that would attract any attention. You would be able to explore vast areas with whichever group you end up traveling with, and their customs are highly welcoming and protective of strangers so you are unlikely to be in danger.]

“Except from the monsters,” James grumbled.

“Don’t worry, Senior James, I will protect you.”

[Euriste 3: a world poised on the edge between unstoppable expansion and utter ruin. At this point in its history, it faces a potential disaster in the form of the parasitic Tower that has claimed its system for itself. The Tower warps magic into ‘cards’ which can be used to hold and control spell-like manifestations which have been heavily integrated into their society and technology. You could collect these cards and carry that power with you, and the Tower provides an environment of increased tension which is ideal for making deals with many people.]

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

“I’ve always liked card games,” James said, cheering up a bit. “And it would be nice if our presence could prevent an apocalypse for a change.”

[Cyrel: the arena world, fully dedicated to battle and magical technology. Its planet was long ago rendered uninhabitable, at which time they retreated underground and soon discovered that their world’s core was the source of magic. Being closer to it and also desperate, their society underwent a very rapid development phase in the creation of powerful armor and weapons with which they compete for everything. You could practice your personal combat abilities without risking your lives and learn techniques which are far more advanced than most worlds.]

“All three look like really good options…” Shen Ai muttered, rereading each option again. “Kavgor sounds nice.”

“It doesn’t sound like a very fun place to live for a hundred years though. A few years visit, maybe, but killing monsters would get tedious after a while. If we can’t find people to contract with very easily…”

They talked about the options for some time, but none of them could come to an agreement. James shrugged. “Rock, paper, scissors?”

“I don’t see why not. It’s a fair enough way to make a selection,” Ivy agreed.

“What’s rock, paper, scissors? If it’s a fight to the death, I’ll concede my choice…” Shen Ai said, a crestfallen look on her face.

James and Ivy looked at one another and broke into laughter for several minutes. Once they got their wits about them, James explained what rock, paper, scissors was, and Shen Ai gave a sigh of relief.

“That seems far more reasonable. I would like to play this game.” They played a few practice rounds to get her used to the timing of when to shoot, but then she eliminated Ivy in their first bout. “I see! This game is very fun!”

James felt a trickle of sweat down his neck. They were doing best two out of three, and Shen Ai unhesitantly countered Ivy both times, almost as if she knew what Ivy was throwing before Ivy knew.

“How are you so good already?” Ivy grumbled, crossing her arms in indignation and puffing out her bottom lip to pout. “I really wanted to cosplay a gladiator though.”

“Nothing says you can’t in one of the other worlds,” James offered, trying to soothe her.

“It won’t be the same! Cyrel is a whole arena world, but cyberpunk! Would it be so cool to go into these massive arenas in neon power armor with superweapons we could only dream of back home?” she grumbled.

Shen Ai pursed her lips. “Please take my spot then. I don’t care too strongly about which world we go to next and was able to play this rock, paper, scissors with you. That is enough for me.”

James internally sighed in relief. “Then that’s that.” He turned to Ivy and grinned. “Keep in mind you’ve never beaten me before, Ivy. Let’s see if you’ve gotten any better.”

“I’m gonna win so we can go have fun in the cyberpunk arenas!” she said, holding up her hands and positioning them for the conclusive duel that would decide their fates for the next century. “Prepare yourself!”

James rolled his eyes and held up his hands.

“Rock, paper, scissors… shoot!” they both called.

James threw scissors, and Ivy threw paper.

“Just like old times. Once more. Let’s finish this up.”

Ivy glared at him as they both prepared.

“Rock, paper, scissors… shoot!”

James threw scissors again, and Ivy grinned as she brought her closed fist down. “One to one.”

“Don’t get too cocky.” He shook his head at her playful grin. “I’m still winning this.”

“Prove it.”

For the third and final time, they raised their hands.

“I didn’t know this game could get so intense…” Shen Ai looked between the two of them and took a step back. “This… is so exciting!”

“Rock… Paper… Scissors… Shoot!”

James stared Ivy in the eyes the whole time, watching her every movement as she threw rock again. He’d seen through her. “Nice try.” He covered the rock with his paper. “But you’ve still got a lot to learn.”

“Tower world it is then,” Ivy grumbled. She reread the description and shrugged. “It seems pretty unique. Let’s see what kind of stuff it’s got going for it.”

“An adventure is an adventure, and nothing says we can’t go to Cyrel after we finish up everything with the shop and collect a bit more lifespan.” Ivy grinned excitedly. “This is awesome. Have I mentioned that? The shop is so cool. I can’t wait to learn the answer behind the mystery of what the shop actually is.”

“I’m right there with you,” James agreed, turning his attention to the shop in question. “Shop, can you show us—”

Ivy cut him off. “Let’s see what we get first. It says here that everyone has a natural heart card that awakens through a ritual. I’m curious what this tower thinks would be suitable for me. Plus, there are plenty of options to upgrade whatever we start with, so let’s just do this.”

“I guess you have a point.” James shrugged.

[Please don’t get yourselves killed. You are the most successful and interesting representative the shop has had in a long time. I would hope you remain for many eons yet to come. This would be an inconvenient time to be without a representative, however. Do your best to survive.]

“No worries there,” James began. “I fully intend—”

The world lurched without warning.

Being intimately connected to the shop, James felt the moment that the barrier splintered apart. Not physically, a deep echo that reverberated disconcertingly through mind and spirit.

Something shattered. The amount of sheer mental force the shop brought to bear was far too much for the barrier to withstand.

Then, before he even fully registered the impact, they were already moving. Moments passed, three heartbeats, and they came to an abrupt stop as suddenly as they’d started.

Ivy patted the arm of her cushioned chair. “Good thing we were in these.”

James couldn’t think how to reply. The flickers of memories and powers and vast unknowable something more resonated through him uncontrolled as the shop’s control wavered and strained.

[The shop has arrived in the world, ‘Euriste 3.’ Please stand by.]

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