Chapter Four

Duke looked between the bad smelling man and his Mo. Everything felt wrong. The smells were different; they sank into his nose with a strange intensity. Ever since the blueness happened, he’d felt like he’d awakened, like the fog had lifted. And with the fog gone, he needed a purpose.

Mo. His Moira. She wasn’t prepared for this strange smelling place. He could smell her weakness. And there was something wrong—off. She couldn’t smell it. He nodded to himself. That would be his purpose. He’d protect his Mo.

#

“Earth?”

“Yes.”

He took a step back, considering her words.

“I’ve never heard of Earth. Where in Caelum is it?”

“Caelum? What’s Caelum?”

The stranger’s eyes widened, and he assessed her carefully, taking in her clothing and general lack of supplies.

“Outworlder,” he murmured.

“What?”

He strode away, muttering to himself again, “You’re an Outworlder. It all makes sense. Of course, the gods sent an Outworlder. They had no other choice.”

“Huh?”

“Never mind, it doesn’t matter. You’re an Outworlder.”

“Okay, first, what’s Caelum? Second, what the hell is an Outworlder?”

The man sighed, clearly exasperated by her.

“Caelum is where you are right now. The very world you’re standing on.”

“Okay, then, I’m in Caelum. Where in Caelum are we exactly?”

“You’re taking this better than I expected,” he said, eyeing her carefully.

“There are purple trees. Of course, I’m in a different world!”

“No need to get so emotional.” He crossed his arms.

She simmered, pursing her lips. “Excuse me, I’ve just been thrown through a portal and dropped into a different world. How I react is none of your damn business. And honey, that wasn’t even close to being emotional.”

He threw his hands into the air and stormed away. Moira looked over at Duke and crossed her arms.

“Can you believe him?”

Duke barked once in reply.

“You didn’t answer my question. What’s an Outworlder and where are we?” she yelled across the glen.

His eye twitched as he turned back to face her. She could already tell they weren’t going to get along. If he was already this frustrated with her, he had another thing coming. All she’d done was ask a few valid questions.

“We’re in the Silivea Forest.” He gestured around them. “And Outworlder, it means you’re from another world. They’re beings brought by the gods during times of great need in Caelum.”

“You’re saying one of your gods brought me here? Why? What could I do?”

“I don’t know. You’re not what I expected from an Outworlder.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Exactly what I meant. You’re low-leveled. You clearly don’t even have a class yet. What could you do to protect Caelum from the void?”

“The void?”

“Son of Dagda,” he swore and turned away, determinedly heading toward the edge of the glen.

“Wait, you can’t just leave me here. Not if I’m supposed to be some hero.”

“You are no hero. You are nothing. Powerless. Just a lost little girl. The gods made a mistake.”

“Fine. Then leave me here to die. Are you willing to have that on your conscious?”

The man stopped and paused for a moment before slowly turning around.

“Fine. Come on.”

“Wait. Is there a way for me to get back home? To Earth?” she asked. Maybe he knew of a way to get back. Something faster than playing along with the rules of the world.

He sighed. “I don’t know. In the past, Outworlders have disappeared when Caelum is safe again.”

“So, there’s a chance I could get home again?”

“I suppose. I’m not an expert. There is a man I know, he specializes in Outworlders. He may know more,” he said as he moved toward the forest.

Moira breathed. It wasn’t a guarantee, but it was something. If the other Outworlders had disappeared, it could mean she was right. She had to talk to this expert.

“Will you take me to him? This expert?”

The man groaned. “Can we just get out of here first? We can talk about this all later.”

Moira held his gaze for a moment. She didn’t want to push too hard; she needed him on her side. “Fine, what about the core? And how are we supposed to get out of here if the forest moves?”

The man searched the forest for a moment, ignoring her first question. When he didn’t find what he was looking for, he sullenly faced her.

“We’ll spend the night here.”

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

“Great, something we can agree on.” She stuck out her hand. “I’m Moira, by the way.”

“Cyrus.”

“It’s—well, I won’t say nice to meet you. Uh—yeah,” she finished awkwardly.

“Same to you.”

“So, the core, then?”

“Go ahead. You said it was yours. Go get it.” He crossed his arms.

“Uh.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s right, you have no idea what a core even is, do you? You just didn’t want me to have it.”

“Guilty, but can you blame me? I killed the lizard. You just laid there bleeding. It’s mine.”

“Like I said, go ahead and get it then.” He smirked.

“I—can’t,”

“Guess it’s mine then, fair and square.”

Moira glared back at him, her blood boiling. He was getting on her nerves. But she needed him. She needed a guide. And at the moment, he was her best option.

He unsheathed a serrated blade from a leather bound hilt from his thigh and approached the dead beast. It leaned precariously against her spear.

“Did you plan on just leaving your only weapon lying around or are you going to come get it?” he asked.

Moira glowered at Cyrus and strode toward the monster. She bent her knees as she grabbed the spear, bracing against the ground. She yanked hard. And nothing happened. The spear had lodged itself tightly in the lizard’s skull. Moira leaned back and yanked again, using her legs to press against the monster.

Squelch

Suddenly, it popped free. The force pushed Moira onto the ground, and she smoothly landed on her butt, in a puddle of blood and slime.

She glanced around to make sure Cyrus didn’t see. Only to discover him smugly covering a laugh.

Moira grumbled to herself and pushed back to her feet, wiping off the dirt and guts from her pants.

Ding!

Would you like to Loot?

Yes/No

Her lip twitched up. It looked like the core was hers, after all. Cyrus began carving up the creature, stabbing right below its rib cage, and carefully created a hole big enough to fit his arm.

Moira selected Yes.

The lizard dissolved into black mist, thick enough that Cyrus disappeared. She laughed as she heard the faint sound of coughing. He stumbled out of the shroud of mist, his face twisted into a look of disgust.

“Something wrong?” she asked sweetly.

He glared at her. “Clearly.”

A layer of black dust coated his entire body, leaving a pair of brown eyes glaring down at her. Moira covered her nose; he smelled terrible. Like a mixture of sewage and death.

“What did you do?”

“You told me to get the core. So, I did.” She twirled the spear in her hand, grinning at his discomfort.

“But, how?”

“It gave me the option to loot. Can’t you do that?” she asked innocently.

“Obviously not, or I wouldn’t have been digging into the beast.”

“Oh, lucky me, then,” she smirked.

“Must be an Outworlder skill,” he muttered.

“So, I’m useful after all.”

He shook his head and reached into his pack, ignoring her. After a minute of searching, he pulled out a blue crystal. He clutched it in his hand and closed his eyes. A blue gaseous substance leached out of the crystal, surrounding him. Moira stepped back, watching closely. It swirled around him, going up his arms and legs. It cleared each section of any dirt and debris. The blue substance turned gray as it picked up the material. Once it finished, it returned to the crystal, turning it a dull shade of pewter.

Cyrus looked spotless and smelled of fresh lavender. Like he’d just showered and changed. Moira looked down at herself and grimaced. She was still coated in lizard guts. Cyrus smirked at her and returned the crystal to his bag.

“Well, are you going to tell me what you looted then?”

She glowered at him, but opened the notifications that had been flashing, anyway.

(1)Monster Core

(1)Lizard skin leather pants: +1 Constitution

(2)Dried lizard meat

She listed them off quickly, but stopped when she noticed a second notification.

Congratulations! Racial Ability: Loot is unlocked.

Congratulations! Racial Ability: Spatial Storage is unlocked.

Moira quickly dismissed the notification. She’d think more on what it meant later. She still hadn’t unlocked her Race, even after learning about Outworlders, which was curious. And now with two Racial Abilities unlocked, it still listed an Error. She’d keep that information to herself. Cyrus didn’t need to know that looting was a racial ability or about the spatial storage ability. The storage space wasn’t unexpected, it kept with the theme, and all RPG games had some sort of inventory.

She shook the thoughts from her mind; she had other things to think about, such as how to deal with Cyrus.

Jealously brewed on his face, he swallowed. “I’m impressed.”

“Hmm. Impressed enough to give me one of those crystal things?”

He looked her up and down—lizard blood and guts coated her clothes and hair.

“Nope. I think you can suffer a bit more. Think of it as payback. Plus, these things are expensive. I can’t just be using them on every strange girl I find in the woods.”

She pursed her lips, glowering at him. He returned her glare, not backing down. Tension filled the air. She refused to break first. Duke growled at Cyrus, showing his teeth. Cyrus jumped, breaking eye contact.

“Good boy,” she whispered, patting Duke on the head. He nodded once with confidence and pointedly scowled at Cyrus.

Moira tilted her head, considering Duke for a moment before turning back to Cyrus. “If you won’t give me one of those crystals, at least explain what the core is.”

“Fine. Give me the core, and I’ll tell you what it does.”

“Not gonna happen.” She sneered.

“Well, I guess you’ll have to figure it out yourself, then.”

She scowled at him. Duke, sensing her anger, growled again, prowling closer to Cyrus.

“Okay, okay—fine, just call off your beast.”

“Duke, here.”

Duke ran back to her side, sitting stiffly at her feet.

“Well? What’s a core?”

He grimaced. “A monster core is essentially all the experience that a monster collects over its lifetime. The core is a form of energy that’s been condensed into a ball. As a monster gains experience, it pushes that experience into its core, growing it until the monster can evolve into a bigger, deadlier monster. A core can charge and form enchantments, and depending on the size and natural affinity, the core can be worth a bit of money.”

As he talked, his eyes flickered back and forth from the edge of the forest to Duke, and finally stopped again on her.

“You’re holding something back. What else can you use a core for?”

“I’m not holding anything back. That’s it.”

“Liar. You haven’t made eye contact with me once since you started talking. And don’t tell me you desperately want the core for some extra money. There’s something else,” she said.

“Fine. Sometimes a core can be absorbed for a minor power-up, on occasion, if you’re stuck in a risky situation. But if you consume them too often, it can halt your progression.”

“So that’s why you want the core.”

“Yes,” he said stiffly, holding her gaze.

She considered for a minute. Something had scared him. A monster maybe? And he had likely been chasing it with his friends before changing course and going after the lizard creature. He wasn’t strong enough to handle whatever it was. He needed the core. She could use that.

“Alright, I’ll make you a deal. The core for a fresh one of those crystal things.”

“Deal.” He said, a little too quickly.

“Wait, I wasn’t finished. The core, and a new weapon. The spear is awkward for me, and not very sharp. I need a proper weapon. Finally, you help me find a way back home—to Earth.”

“It’s a deal.”