<~> CHAPTER 8

I watched as that huge pile of bones disappeared into Maxwell's tiny bag with interest. It was bizarre watching the bones disappear without any outward effect on the bag. He noticed me watching and said something in his language but I couldn't understand what he was getting at so I just took a small step back. He just shrugged and got back to stuffing the washed bones inside until they were all gone. The redheaded woman, Piper, walked over to her brother and started talking to him about something.

I turned to Luna. ("Are those two siblings? They look similar.")

She smiled and nodded. ("Yes, the two of them have been my friends since I was little. After my father died I had nowhere to go, so the three of us left to the dungeon city of Ironcastle to become hunters. After a while we decided to move here to Fallow, a new dungeon city that was discovered only twenty years ago.")

("That's what this place is called? Fallow?") I asked.

She shook her head. ("The city is called Fallow, this place is the Fallow dungeon. Only a small distinction but people might be confused if you just said Fallow.")

I nodded and watched as Maxwell finished up what he was doing with the bones and dusted his hands off. Like Luna said there were only a few of the cracked and chipped bones left, the rest he had managed to completely stuff in his small looking bag.

He said something to them and Luna turned to translate for me. ("We've been up for a long time and we plan to go back to the lake to camp after this. You're still coming with us, right?")

I paused before nodding. ("Right. We're sticking together now, that means I should stay close doesn't it?")

She smiled and nodded before standing up and walking over to Maxwell. I didn't really know what else to do so I followed. Luna was the only one able to speak to me regularly so I should probably stay close.

I led them back through the twisting tunnels using my markings. This place was confusing but I had my system down by now so it wasn't difficult to find our way back to the lake. I could tell my new 'party' had been on edge in the tunnels but I couldn't hear or smell any of those gross creatures around so I didn't waste any time heading back. I could smell their tension relax once we reached the lake again, the cool air felt nice against my skin despite being so lightly dressed.

As soon as we were back to their camping spot Maxwell started putting up two tents with his sister while Luna stayed by my side. Was she watching me or was it just not her job to help put up the tents?

("We only have two tents with us but we can work around it since two of us will have to stay up at a time to keep watch.") She looked over the silk wraps that were covering my body with a slight but noticeable blush. ("Aren't you... cold like that? It's a little chilly here by the lake, even with the fire.")

("Is it?") I asked. ("I don't feel cold at all. I probably don't need to share your tents either, I'm comfortable sleeping in my wolf form for now. I'll just sleep on the ground outside when it's my turn.")

Luna gave me a strange look. ("Sure... that would be fine. Are you sure though?")

I nodded and smiled. ("I'm sure, no need to worry about me.")

Maxwell called something out to Luna but I still couldn't understand any of it. I wonder if I could convince one of them to help me learn... better wait on that though. They don't know me that well, it'd probably be better to prove myself first. Right now we were still acquaintances, if I can help them stay alive down here then they'd be more likely to teach me. I should wait until I could prove it would benefit them before I ask.

("The soup is almost ready, it's made from our rations. We have more than three weeks of rations left and we were considering heading back up sooner than that so there's plenty to share. Don't feel bad having some.")

I nodded, I wasn't that hungry though, I still felt satisfied after eating those icy salamanders in the cave on the other side of the lake. I watched as they all ladled their soup into some wooden bowls for themselves. Luna made a point to pour me a small bowl and hand it to me as well. It was a thin soup and they didn't use any utensils for it, preferring to just drink directly from the bowls. I followed their lead and took a sip.

Bland. That was the only way I could describe the food. The thought brought me back to the salamander I devoured and how much better the raw meat tasted to me in the moment.

("How is it?") Luna asked.

I jumped, shaken from my memory. ("Oh, it's... fine. It has a very mild flavor.")

The fox girl smiled wryly. ("It's true, it doesn't taste like much. We're tight on money so we didn't spend much on spices. Most of the taste comes from the salted meat we used.")

I nodded. ("Thanks for the food but I've already eaten recently, I'm not that hungry.")

Her brows furrowed. ("What did you eat? There isn't much more than goblins and tunnelers on this floor.")

I pointed at the cave I found the cold salamanders in. ("There were these cold salamanders in that cave over there. My... abilities let me eat raw meat. I also ate one of those tunnelers too but they're harder to find.")

Maxwell noticed that I pointed off in the distance and quickly said something to Luna. A questioning tone perhaps?

After a moment Luna turned back to me. ("You ate frost salamanders? Were you able to kill them yourself? Their freezing breath is very dangerous and their meat isn't considered edible.")

I shrugged. ("They were cold when I fought them but it wasn't so bad. They were harder to fight than the goblins but at least there were fewer of them.")

Luna turned to Maxwell before pursing her lips and turning to Piper. After a moment Piper and Maxwell began to have a conversation, likely about what I said.

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This looked like my chance to ingratiate myself to them. I tapped Luna on the shoulder. ("Would it help if I promised to help them hunt the frost salamanders tomorrow? I could eat their meat and they could take whatever they wanted from what was left. Or if they wanted part of the meat I could share that as well.")

She tilted her head before relaying what I had said to Piper again. Perhaps Maxwell had run out of mana? After another quick discussion among the three, two out loud and Luna via writing that I also couldn't understand, they came to some conclusion.

Luna turned back to me. ("Frost salamanders are too dangerous for us to fight but if you think you can kill them without any problems we could take some of their organs to sell. There's this gland that produces a cold mucus that they use to attack with, an extracted gland can be very valuable to an alchemist or enchanter because of its cold properties. We'd be able to sell them and you would of course get a cut of the gold.")

Gold ey? ("Sure, that sounds fine with me. We should hunt them after we rest though, I'm not hungry yet and the three of you said you were tired.")

She nodded and smiled. ("Of course! Thank you for your help!")

I was a little caught off guard by how earnest her telepathic voice was. The amphibians weren't that difficult for me to fight but this sounded like a windfall to them. ...There was something else there though, the enthusiasm of her reply sounded like more than just greed to me. I wasn't quite sure what that meant yet.

Luna seemed to communicate with Piper again who excitedly told Maxwell. His response was a bit more measured, he seemed happy but he also looked at me with wariness. Perhaps I underestimated the value of what I offered, maybe I was coming on too strong? No, it was important to show how valuable to them I could be and more cynically, how dangerous it would be to piss me off. This would be fine, there would have to be a balance to this. I couldn't just give everything away but I could still help them, for a cut of course. I needed to make sure our interests continue to stay aligned.

It was time for first watch, I offered to do it alone but I got the impression that they didn't fully trust me, which was fair I suppose. I didn't fully trust them either. They decided it made the most sense to have Luna stand watch with me first. Maxwell and Piper were the ones who needed rest the most being a frontline fighter and a healer with a nearly empty mana pool. I was a little surprised to hear the woman was a healer, she didn't fit the stereotype of a priest or a cleric that I had in my head from fantasy novels. Luna giggled at my reaction to that information for some reason.

Maxwell crawled into one of the tents with his sheathed sword and his boots still on. I wasn't sure if he always did that or if it was because he wanted to be ready if I turned out to be a threat. I could understand the caution but I can't say it didn't grate on me a little. Piper seemed a bit more trusting from the words that were relayed back to me but she also dragged her sword in the tent with her. I just put it out of my mind. It would take a while for them to trust me and I couldn't blame them for it so I shouldn't stew over it either.

I sat on a rock a small distance from the fire and looked over the lake and surrounding area. It looked peaceful despite the amount of violence here not even that long ago. No matter how much time I've spent here so far the view of the moon through the hole in the ceiling never changed, the view was entirely artificial. A strange thought but it reinforced the idea that I was in a 'dungeon,' some kind of place where monsters exist.

("Do you mind if we talk for a while?")

I turned to see Luna standing near me bundled up in her robes.

("Sure, I don't mind. Should we talk closer to the campfire?")

She rubbed at the back of her head. ("If you don't mind... I would appreciate that yes.")

Laughing, I followed her back to the campfire where it was warmer. The cold didn't seem to bother me much anymore. I sat down near the fire and to my surprise Luna didn't sit across from me but right next to me. It took me a second to reason out why, I was facing the directions the goblins had run to, she was probably just being safe.

("What did you want to talk about?") I asked.

Luna didn't reply right away, she tapped her chin for a moment before finally deciding. ("What's your favorite color?")

I was caught off guard, I didn't expect her question to be so... mundane? ("Um. Red I suppose?") I looked at the color of her robes, it was an interesting dark red color that I liked. ("Something like the color of your robes, the color looks nice on you.")

She blushed and looked away in an almost overly exaggerated way to the simple compliment. ("Oh, thank you... Mine's green.")

There was a bit of an awkward silence and I turned to study her face. She acted cute and her face was gorgeous. I hadn't focused on her looks much with everything going on but not that I'm getting a good look at her, she's rather attractive.

("Um, you don't mind my ears and tail do you?") she asked bashfully.

Well, since she brought them up... ("Are they uh... real?") I asked.

She turned to me and tilted her head, confused by the question. ("Real? Uh, yes...")

I looked at her ears again, I already thought they looked real before and with the same woman literally throwing fireballs it was hard to doubt her. But a woman with animal ears seemed so... strange.

("I've never seen someone with fox ears before... can I touch them?")

Her eyes widened slightly and she blushed. I was about to take it back but she suddenly nodded. ("O-okay. Just be gentle, they're a bit sensitive.")

The way she said it made me think that I asked something pretty inappropriate but she had already given permission and I was too curious about them to change my mind now.

I reached out and touched the fur along the top of her left ear. It felt as real as it looked, there was a slightly cold thin membrane of skin near the edges and her ears got thicker towards the center and near her head. The fur on the top of her ear was soft and plush. I trailed my fingers up her long ear and played with the tip with my thumb. I was worried when she told me they were sensitive but she didn't seem to be reacting much, she was just staring at the ground with a blush on her face. Cute.

I didn't want to push my luck any further so I pulled my hand back. ("They're very soft. I've never seen someone with... ears like that before. They look really pretty.")

She smiled, ("Thank you...")

I felt a bit awkward as the two of us sat together quietly after that. I couldn't bring myself to say much until it was time to wake Piper for the next watch. Neither of us had the courage to keep talking after that exchange.