I got to take first watch after our quick meal while Gash'zur curled up in the back of the nook to get some sleep. At first I was wondering if we would get any sleep at all. The place wasn't very comfortable after all, lacking even the most basic amenities. Before I even had a chance to ask about it the soft snores of the giantess reached my ears. In the end I was left to wonder if I would be able to fall asleep like that as well, once it was my turn. I felt dead tired now that the worst of the tension had fled my body but I still had some doubts.

The next issue we faced was how to keep track of the time that passed. I had no idea how long we had been down here already. I could only guess that it had to have been more than one day. That was my best estimation based on how hungry I had been and how tired I still was. It might have been barely more than one day or almost as much as three. There just was not telling. And how long should and could I let my companion sleep now?

My companion's answer to the latter question before she turned in to catch some sleep had been as surprising as simple. Apparently telling the stories of Doo'rie the dour sheep at a well measured pace took just about the right amount of time to equal one watch shift. Just counting would have worked as well but it would have put me at risk of falling asleep. The humorous rhymes about that little sheep on the other hand were well suited to keep someone awake, unless they were entirely too tired to be on watch duty anyway.

Now I would only have to see if I could recall all the rhymes of all twelve stories about that silly, adorable sheep. Who would have thought that a silly children's tale could be used like that. Oh, and of course I would have to make sure not to laugh out aloud. Waking Gash'zur up just because I broke down into a giggle fit would have completely defeated the purpose of splitting our rest up into two watch shifts after all. We both would need our sleep to preserve our strength. Gash'zur probably even more than me, as she was the one guiding us through the depths.

Well, at least I would be well entertained. At the same time I was left wondering what other methods of timekeeping, however rough, the giantess might know. I was sure that there had to be more. Any one tale would go stale and put the watcher to sleep after a while if they repeated it too often after all. I would have to ask her at some point. Maybe she could even teach me one or another. We probably would have plenty of time after all. Yes, that sounded like a pretty solid plan.

We had extinguished our lamp for the time being. It wasn't completely dark but still dark enough to make me a little uncomfortable. Or maybe I was uncomfortable because it wasn't exactly dark? I wasn't quite sure. No, it probably wasn't the latter. I probably would have felt much worse in complete darkness. Combined with the limited room and the knowledge that an immense mass of rock hung over our heads, possibly just waiting to crush us, complete darkness would have been the last ingredient for a recipe that would quickly have us, or at least me, descend into utter madness.

For this reason and because I wanted to see anything that might try to get at us coming I cast a Light spell as well. I didn't center it on my location. Instead I placed the little dot of light roughly in the center of the cavern beyond our nook. I didn't feed too much Mana into it either, afraid that too bright a light might draw more attention than we would like. On one hand I felt a little silly, almost like I was a little child again, setting up a nightlight like that. On the other hand it did allow me to see better which was essential to keeping watch. I kept my ears perked as well but it was always better to rely on more than one sense.

Nothing happened though, as I kept watch, silently retelling the silly adventures of the dour sheep to myself. In the end I kept watch a little longer, just in case. Only once I felt my eyes slowly drift shut for the first time did I shake my companion awake.

I renewed the light spell one last time before switching places with the giantess and she nodded in appreciation. I reheated some of the stones as well. Not to the point where we could have cooked again but just enough to provide us some more warmth. “Later.” That was the only thing I said as I rested my head on my bundled up gear.

I wouldn't have been able to tell by myself but I must have fallen asleep as soon as I closed my eyes. Thankfully no dreams haunted my sleep. I half expected they would as I had experienced a lot recently but apparently I was too exhausted for even that. It was almost as if no time had passed when Gash'zur shook me awake again.

I almost knocked her over as I startled awake.

She managed to brace herself against the ceiling of our small nook with one hand at the last moment. She didn't mind though. “Can you reheat one of the stones? I'll get us some more of those mushrooms and some fresh water to go with them.” She held up our half empty water skins as she spoke.

I nodded and rubbed some sleep out of my eyes as my heart stopped beating like mad and I sat up. “Will do.” Before I did I renewed our magical nightlight though.

The giantess flashed me a smile and lowered herself to the cavern's floor. “I'll be right back.”

I took her word for it. The prospect of a meal, even if it was not any kind of meal I would have usually eaten after just waking up, helped me come awake for good. I did as she had asked me to do and reheated one of the stones. The same one we had used to cook before settling in for the night or rather our rest. I had no idea if it had actually been night or not.

Afterwards I lowered myself to the cavern floor as well to properly stretch. After being cooped up in that hole in the wall I really needed that. That much became obvious as my joints creaked and cracked as I went through a short series of stretches. My muscles hurt as well. I checked myself over and quickly found all the bruises I pretty much expected. As long as those were the worst though, I would be fine. Eventually. I would heal faster if we were to find an actual bed and some more balanced meals. The chances for that happening were rather slim though. Ha, who was I trying to fool. We would find neither down here.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

I was barely done with my stretches when Gash'zur returned with filled water skins and a handful of mushrooms. My stomach grumbled a little at the sight. The giantess climbed right back up and started preparing our meager morning meal. I on the other hand took a good, long sip from my water before I joined her. We would need to refill our water reserves once more before setting out again and leaving this place behind. Just in case.

Together we silently munched on our mushrooms, sipping a little water in between bites to help wash them down. It wasn't a bad silence though. In a way it was the peace and quiet I had been lacking recently.

I was still pondering what that could mean for me in the long run when a weird squeaky sound reached my ears. I was tempted to ignore it at first, assuming that I had just imagined it. That changed when I noticed that my companion had perked up as well. For a moment we just looked at each other. Then the squeaky sound repeated itself. Together we leaned out from our nook to get a look at the source of the weird noise.

There in the direction we had come from, just a little ways off, was a little pale blob pulling itself along the floor. It wasn't big, barely the size of my fist or maybe a little smaller. And its consistency and color seemed off. It seemed rather rubbery and it was almost completely transparent. It was not at all like the slimes we had encountered on the surface.

A slime. A slime down here? I looked over at Gash'zur. “Should we be worried? Should I kill it? A single Magic Missile should be enough.”

She shook her head though. “No, don't use a Magic Missile. Can you kill it by heating it like the stone, boiling it from the inside?”

I frowned. “Probably. But why?”

“Slimes down here are different. I think they aren't corrupted by the Devourer. They are still dangerous since they are predators but not in the same way those we encountered on our way to Gothol'gathrak were. They mostly eat rock. Sometimes salt and some plants. Their digestion is rather slow. The silly thing probably followed our scent trail, hoping for a change in its diet.” She flashed me a smile. “Don't ask me why or how but if we can kill it without bursting it by slowly heating it, it will turn into a kind of milky opaque pudding.”

I nodded and looked down at the little creature that was about to become a little snack. What a curious turn of events. “I can try.”

Applying the heating spell to a living creature required some careful modifications of the spell matrix. For a moment my mind drifted off as I considered the possibilities the spell offered. It could be quite useful both on the battlefield and off it as well. Need to warm someone who is cold? Just be careful not to over do it. I probably could kill most living things, and not just that little slime, with that spell as well. If I overdid it I might just outright vaporize the target.

At that thought a shiver ran down my spine. That was no nice mental image. I promptly resolved not to use the spell like that unless it was my absolutely last resort. Lets not turn people or even just beasts into clouds of vaporized meat and blood with some bone shrapnel on top. Not as long as I could help it anyway.

For now I focused on the little slime. I felt almost sorry for it. Except it had followed our trail hoping to snack on us. Turnabout was just fair in that case. I carefully built the modified spell matrix and drew in some Mana to feed it into the spell.

The effect became obvious almost immediately. The slime stopped in its track and started wobbling. Its transparent insides started turning milky white almost right away as well. Only a moment later it stopped moving altogether.

Gash'zur put a hand on my shoulder. “That's enough. I think it is done. Come on, lets cut it up.” Before I could reply she jumped down, knife in hand.

I followed her. The thing had really been small. It had swelled a little as I cooked it inside out but it still was smaller than my fist.

The giantess sliced and diced it and as she did so it became obvious that it had really turned into a milky white kind of jelly or pudding. The giantess jabbed the tip of her knife into one of the little cubes she had produced. “Eat them in small bits like this and drink enough water with every bit. You mustn't eat too much either, but with one as small as this one that isn't an issue. And don't expect it to taste sweet. They are usually pretty neutral tasting. If anything it will be slightly salty.”

I followed her example and speared a little cube with the tip of my knife. She was right. It really wasn't sweet. It wasn't really salty either though. I'd even go so far to call it a little bland. The texture was nice though.

The giantess kept explaining as we ate our little surprise snack. “They are rather rare down here. If you can get one they are a good find though. They are usually rather rich in minerals. A good supplement to whatever else one can find here in the Deep Dark.” She washed down her helping with a gulp of water and so did I.