Bert looked around at the faces of his people. A lot had changed in the last day or two in the mists.

Which was the point of this little meeting.

“So, it seems our attacker, Felicia, may actually be gone for good.” Bert dropped the bombshell, and… nothing.

“I had a little visit from… something. It dragged me off to a weird office and informed me she could never interact with us again.” Bert went on. “It was weird, but I believe it.”

“You were kidnapped again?” Wendy asked.

“While I was asleep, I was… taken… visited… whatever it is,” Bert confirmed.

“Like the Goddess thing?” Wendy asked.

“Yup.” Bert sighed.

“Wait, a Goddess visited you?” Lily said, shock overriding her reluctance to speak up.

“Oh yeah,” Wendy laughed. “Every other time Dad goes to sleep, he gets abducted by something.”

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to be rude.” Lily looked abashed.

“No, I’m serious.” Wendy reached over and hugged Lily. “It actually happens.”

“Way more often than I would like,” Bert confirmed.

“Wow.” Lily gulped. “That must suck.”

“It really does.” Bert smiled at Lily as her sister Rose tried to quiet her.

“So!” Bell clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention focused again. “It means whatever these shell things are, they aren’t her doing.”

“And neither are these mists.” Bud guessed.

“Correct.” Bert nodded to his friend. “Which brings us to our next problem.”

“Why is there always a next problem?” Wendy banged her head on the table, making scruff laugh.

“We can’t actually seem to find a way out,” Bell said flatly.

Silence fell as everyone absorbed the news.

“Can’t we just drive back out over our own tracks?” Scruff asked.

“No, we tried that last night,” Bert told them. “Our tracks are gone.”

“In short, we are lost?” Bud asked.

“Yes and no,” Bert said. “It seems we are being led in circles, somehow.”

“How can we know?” Lily asked timidly. “And can my class help?”

“I popped a Multi Bell out the side of the Waystation and kept an eye on her position. It moved several times even though the Bell was sitting on a tree, not moving.” Bell grumbled. She did not like things that messed with her Multi-Bells.

“As for your class,” Bert said. “I think it might help, but not directly.”

“Anything I can do,” Lily nodded.

“You have a plan?” Bud asked while he ran a cloth over his bow.

“We are going on an outing,” Bert grinned. “You, me, and Bell.” He looked over to Lily, “And I would like you to come, but it is your choice.”

“I’ll come.” Lily smiled.

“Great.” Bert smiled. “We are going to take the Express to help deal with the Shell creatures. While we are gone, Wendy is in charge of the Waystation.”

===========

Wendy caught Bert as he left the barn.

“Hey, why am I being left here?” She asked, her hands on her hips. “I’m just as capable as anyone else!”

“More than most,” Bert smiled. “But with the Express with us and you here, we can be in contact the entire time. You are the only one of us that can be in two places at once.”

“No, Mum can too,” Wendy argued, but she seemed slightly mollified.

“Her Multi-Bells still have to communicate with her; it takes time. You will be able to see and hear everything around the Express in real-time and just talk to us straight away.” Bert laughed. “You’re our own private cheat code.”

Wendy couldn’t help but smile. Knowledge of her father’s world was something only the two of them shared. It always made her smile when he could reference something with her that no one else on the planet would understand.

“Okay, But be careful, please.” Wendy hugged him, and he felt her trembling slightly. “I’ve had enough near misses lately.”

“Wendy,” He smiled. “I doubt there is anything that your Mum and I can’t handle together, with Bud as well? Forget it.” He laughed. “Plus the Express and a couple of Pretties?”

“You want to take some with you?” She grinned.

“Of course, if you don’t mind?” He asked.

“I’ll let you take three. Two for the mission and one to help protect Lily.”

“Thanks,” Bert hugged her. “No wild parties while the parents are away, okay?”

Wendy laughed.

An hour later, Bert waved to the others as he climbed into the Express. He missed driving the fantastic vehicle and was excited to have an excuse to do it again.

Bud was sitting comfortably on the opposite side, but he seemed distracted. Bert reminded himself to make sure they got a chance to chat while they were out. It had been too long since he and Bud had a quiet moment to catch up.

Bell dropped into the chair next to him with a 'pop' and a flash. She was in her human form again, and Bert had to admit it was nice to see that crooked smile on her face. She took the form a lot more often lately, and he had to admit it was distracting at times.

As a pixie, she was good-looking, but a pixie is a pixie. As a human, she was… stunning. Shaking the thoughts from his head, he waited for the last member of their party to join.

Lily came fluttering over a minute later, looking flustered. Bud let her in, and she sat in one of the second row of seats, blushing at her lateness.

“Come sit up here with us,” Bell waved her forward.

“Are you sure, M’Lady?” Lily hesitated.

“Of course,” Bell grinned at her.

Lily fluttered forward and fidgeted as she settled into the seat,

“Thank you, M’Lady,” Lily said.

Bell cocked an eyebrow and smiled slightly. “You know what, call me Bell.”

Bud almost dropped his bow.

“I didn’t get to call you that for ages!” he protested. “You made me call you Miss Bell or Lady Bell!”

“You weren’t a pixie,” Bell stuck her tongue out at him. “Different rules.”

Bud laughed as they moved down into the mists, leaving the Waystation behind them as the Express crushed the Shells in front of them.

Bert put his feet on the pedals, activating the giant mandible collectors on the front. Curious, he crunched and gathered a few of the shells into the Express.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“Wendy?” He called.

“Yeah, Dad?” She called back. Her voice came from the speakers in the dash.

“I just gathered some of these things. Can you tell if there is anything weird about them?” Bert asked.

“I’m still checking, one sec.” They waited. “Fuck! Dad, these things are made of crude oil!”

“What?” Bert laughed. “Seriously?”

“Yup,” Wendy sounded confused. “How could they be oil?”

“Fuck knows,” Bert shook his head, “Add it to the weird shit list.”

“Will do, Dad,” She laughed. “Good Luck!”

“We should be far enough away now,” Bert nodded to Bell.

“Okay, Lily, we want to find the cause of this mist,” Bell explained. “Can you lock onto anything?”

“Ummm,” Lily closed her eyes, hands weaving a complex dance in the air. “I can’t really, but there is something strange….” She opened her eyes and pointed. “That way.”

“Let’s go take a look,” Bert said, turning the Express.

“I think it might be connected, but I’m not sure.” Lily frowned. “Sorry. It is just showing as magical, rare, complicated, important, and wide influence.”

“What do you mean?” He thought about the lists she gave, “Can you see a map or something?”

“I guess,” Lily shrugged. “It’s kind of like a mini version of the area I can spin and make bigger or smaller.” She winced. “But most of it is hidden, and stuff I haven’t seen is just marked with a cluster of words. Like the thing we are moving towards now.”

“Oh my God!” Wendy squealed. “She has a GPS skill! That is so cool!”

Lily jumped. “Lady Wendy? Is the message spell still active?”

“Just call me Wendy, Lil,” Wendy replied. “And there is no message spell. The Express is part of me.”

“Wow!” Lily blanched. “Is it okay for me to be here? You don’t mind?”

“Not at all!” Wendy laughed. “It isn’t the first time I’ve had a girl inside me!”

“Eww.” Bert grimaced. “Too much detail, hun.”

Bell and Wendy both cracked up as Lily blushed furiously.

They piled out of the Express in front of a large stone archway. Thick stone walls vanished off into the mist in both directions.

Bert summoned his shield as they approached the entrance; Bell was to his right with her Ringer, now human-sized. Bud took the left, a couple of steps behind with his bow strung and an arrow nocked and ready.

Lily followed a few steps behind with the three Pretties to either side and behind her.

Bud had been quite impressed with the young half-pixie. She had only screamed for a second when the horrific things unfolded and surrounded her.

“We move slow and careful,” Bert rolled his shoulders as his prosthetic left hand morphed into the unholy combination of crossbow and nail trap he used as a ranged weapon.

The nail gun-like creation had quickly become his favorite weapon.

“Just like old times!” Bud chuckled as they moved through the archway.

“With a couple of changes,” Bell pirouetted with the Ringer spinning like a whirlwind around her.

Bert paid careful attention to NOT noticing how her lithe form moved as she did that.

“Movement,” Bert called as a shell creature scuttled across a wide stretch of grass in front of them. Unlike its floating brethren, this one was all legs, at least a dozen mismatched ones propelling a creature the size of a Great Dane across the grass.

Bert’s bolt was too slow, Bud’s arrow leaving a swirling trail in the air as it smashed the shell, and the creature crumpled.

Clicking sounds erupted as the mist around them seemed to solidify into more of the creatures.

Bert started firing immediately, one knee on the ground and shield set.

Bud fired calmly as he weaved his arrows between the blows Bell reigned on their attackers with her hammer flying back and forth as she threw it in large arcs.

“More coming,” Bert announced as the bodies piled up, and he switched his prosthetic into a hammer to save ammo.

“There is a structure not far ahead,” Lily called over the clicking and the sound of shattering shells.

“Let’s move,” Bert said, wading forward, his hammer and shield slamming into any of the creatures in range.

“Stay close, Lil,” Bell said as she took hold of Ringer again, striding forward with it spinning and slamming into one enemy after another.

Lily moved closer, with Bud walking backward to keep anything from coming in behind them.

He flipped his bow onto his back as they moved, drawing a dagger and sword to fight the occasional attacker.

A faster-than-average shell crawler managed to duck under the Ringer as they moved and lunged at Lily, only for the two nearest Pretties to slam it aside and then rip it apart. Their sharp forelegs parted the brittle shells like butter, and in seconds, there was nothing left but black ooze and scattered remains.

The party kept moving, coming to a series of stone steps that took them to a small stone parapet. The Shell crawlers refused to set foot or pincer onto the parapet and piled up on the stairs.

Bert paused once they were a decent distance away and then took a single bolt out of his storage; he added a heat rune to the sharp tip and handed it carefully to Lily.

“Throw this into the middle of the stairs.” He smiled, “Then duck.”

Lily did as he asked, ducking as soon as she saw the little metal bolt disappear into the throng.

Light and noise blossomed as a blastwave pushed against them.

Bert held his shield in front of the little half-pixie until it had passed.

She stood, eyes wide.

“I made five levels!” She gasped. “At once!”

“Congrats,” Bert patted her gently on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s go find that thing your skill found.”

“How many levels had you guys made?” She asked as she followed the group.

“None,” Bert admitted. “They were too low-level to give us anything.”

“They were only level eighteen,” Bud explained. “Bert and I are around thirty, and I have no idea about Bell, but I would bet she is higher.”

“Wendy, get back in that tower,” Bert said suddenly, eyes fixing on the nearest Pretty.

“You can see me?” Wendy’s voice was small and tiny, coming from the Pretty.

“Wendy!” Bell warned.

“Gods! Fine!” She sounded grumpy but still guilty. “I was just going to kill a few of them.”

“When we get back, we will wait while you and the others grind out a few levels,” Bert laughed. “But only if you stay in the tower.”

“Okay!” Wendy’s voice cut off.

“How did you know?” Bud asked. “Can you see her?”

“No,” Bert laughed. “But she does take after us.”

“It’s what we would do,” Bell grinned at Bert, who felt a flush of warmth as she winked at him.

Clearing his throat loudly, he waved them on.

The stone parapet took them around past solid walls decorated with frescos and finally to a large metal door with words inscribed above the entryway,

PRIVATE

INTRUDERS WILL BE KILLED

A symbol was inscribed on either side of the door. It looked like a wand with the tip glowing and a half-moon behind it.

“I’d like to see you try,” Bell giggled and gestured at the door. “I’ll knock.”

Bert raised his shield as Bud dove aside.

Bell’s ringer slammed into the door like a meteor. The metal was warped, and the stone surroundings cracked. She hit it again, and the whole thing fell inwards.

It landed with a loud, echoing crash.

“Good luck closing that again,” Bud muttered as Bell laughed, stepping over the wreckage.

“Come on,” Bert shook his head and moved in front of her as Bud and the others walked over the busted door.

Bell clicked her fingers, and a bright orb of light appeared above the group.

A long hallway stretched ahead of them. It ended in a set of stairs that led down into the earth.

============

The stairs narrowed as they reached the bottom; Bert guessed it was almost ten meters below the entrance when it ended.

A pair of small rooms flanked the stairs on either side as they came into another hallway. A large cut-out from the walls allowed anyone inside to see out and observe the hall.

Thick doors had guarded these rooms, which Bert would be prepared to swear were guard stations. One of the doors hung open, while the other was shattered.

Looking inside, Bert saw a skeletal body in each one. Aiming carefully, he and Bud put a bolt into the two bodies at the same time.

He didn’t fancy dealing with undead down here.

When nothing moved or so much as twitched, they entered the room with the shattered door.

The body was only half a body; everything below the ribcage and one arm was gone. Tattered remains of what looked like a thick cloth shirt and one steel pouldron were still clinging to the corpse. There was also a small metal bangle on its upper arm. There was nothing else to see, so after grabbing the pauldron and bangle, they moved to the other.

There was a complete body this time. It lay reaching towards the door, with a single skeletal hand still grasping the bottom of the door. They looked like they had been crawling towards the door when they died.

Whoever, and whatever they had been was not clear. A series of faded and smeared writing on the walls was completely illegible.

Bert tried Reclaim Knowledge, but nothing happened. Moving to the body, the armor was all removed and had been stacked on a small counter to one side of the door.

It was a nice set, so Bert gave it a look-over. To his surprise, the set was made of skyship-grade steel. It was quite a find.

A short spear was leaning against the wall and looked intact. It was incredibly light and very well made, with not just the tip but the entire spear made of metal. A small counterweight on the base made sure it would fly true if thrown.

“Lily?” He offered her the spear, “I think this might work for you.”

“Thank you,” She smiled, feeling how light and well-balanced it was. “I love it.”

Bert smiled and looked over to Bell, who was slipping a small necklace off the remains.

“Look what I found!” She said, holding out both hands. One had the necklace, the other a ring. “Storage items!”

“Nice,” Bert smiled.

“Lily?” Bell called. “Why not take these for you and your sister?”

“Can we?” Lily gaped.

“All yours,” Bell gave them to her, and she put the necklace on before pocketing the ring.

“I’ll give you the stuff from inside as soon as we get back,” Lily promised.

“No, keep it,” Bell said. “There is not much, but maybe you can trade it or sell it when we are at the next town.”

“Thanks!” Lily popped her old spear into the storage item and back out a few times. She saw the others watching and blushed. “Sorry, it’s my first one.”

“It never gets any less fun,” Bert chuckled as he popped his shield in and out of his storage.

“Really?” Lily laughed, relief visible on her face.

“Never,” Bud agreed as he summoned and then stored some arrows.

“Come on!” Bell clapped her hands together. “There is a mystery to solve and much more loot to get yet!”