The sun’s light radiated from the sky up high, shining to the cool yet warming world down below. Waves turned and twisted, water ebbing and flowing back and forth, over and over. Avians of sorts made their many noises as they circled, flew about, and landed around; birds that only ever lingered at the very edges of these continental masses.

  A coast… Indeed, the foreigner was trailing along a coastline—a ‘beach’. Her boots implanted themselves deeply into the soft…stupidly soft…sand as she wandered and strolled; her mask-obscured eyes were attentive to all things about, scanning for more to add to that sack which she held in hand… A sack that oozed with dripping and drooping goop.

  Truth be told, she could only be thankful that her former associate had an extra pair of more…‘appropriate’ boots—boots befitting both a lady and…resisting the outdoors, durable against the elements. Indeed, she could only dread imagining the nightmare walking on this terrain would have been with those prior heels.

  Adventure-appropriate boots, of course, was not the only the thing she had so…co-opted from her former associate’s secluded inventory of such things. Affixed to her belt, closer to her right thigh, was a holster of sorts, one that went comfortably along with that same revolving pistol she had discreetly kept on her priorly. Indeed, now that she was a registered adventurer, she could get away with carrying such a thing openly.

  That pistol was her primary weapon, and thus she wanted to have quick and immediate access to it. Likewise, she had a well-sized carry satchel also affixed to her person, which carried additional premade ‘paper cartridges’ that her firearm, well, fired, in addition to the necessary ‘primer-caps’ that facilitated its firing function. She also had another satchel on her as well, this one smaller than her ammunition satchel but slightly larger than her previous personal carry satchel. It comfortably fitted her Adventurer Guild card and other related essentials.

  All things so borrowed from her former associate, certainly, yet the foreigner did have…at least…one thing that so belonged to her and her alone.

  Affixed to her waist near and above her left thigh area, sheathed within its own more peculiar and stranger carry unit or so-called ‘scabbard’ that was attached its own exclusive harness, was a strange ‘rapier’-like sword—one even stranger than the sheathe that so sheathed it.

  Bland—very bland—and perhaps rather ‘angular’ in a few ways; besides the ‘blade’, this ‘rapier’ was largely uniform, being of the same…almost sterile silver-white color. For many eyes, this so-called ‘sword’ would no doubt appear to be…suspiciously short and awfully condensed, however such was only because the blade was retractable and thus extended out to its full length when in use. The blade itself—being composed of materials exotic and esoteric—was also rather…potent in its effects, being able to pierce through quite the many things with relative ease.

  However, although it could technically be utilized in the similar function of a proper sword, she had little intention to use it in such a way. For this rapier was, in fact, no mere ‘sword’, but rather her conduit of the arcane; that medium by which her arcanity could be thoroughly expressed; that instrument by which her essence could be more properly commanded.

  Such ‘conduits of control’ were essentially the conducting baton of an arcane practice and tradition, being even mandatory for some. Arcane conduits were not typically the thing that directly commanded essence necessarily, but rather were simply objects that…facilitated and guided the expression and commanding of essence, making the execution of more complex sequences…easier and more efficient—nominally.

  And an arcane conduit did not have to be objects per se; it could be many things—several things at once, even. All that really mattered was that there was a clear, distinct, and deeply internalized pairing between the prescribed conduit, the practitioner, and essence’s capability and form of expression.

  For the Far West, it was apparently these ‘wands’; for this continent, it was these ‘staffs’ or ‘staves’; and for her, it was this silver-white rapier. Although, she also had her true-mask, but that was not truly a ‘conduit’ as much as…well, something different; and, of course, she was capable of limited utilization of her arcanity in absence of her conduit, as was demonstrated via her weaving fingers…

  Indeed, she would not be what she was, were she incapable of adaptive multi-functionality.

  Regardless, the foreigner had opted to…painstakingly retrieve her rapier-conduit from where she had been keeping it this past year, before venturing beyond the outer-wall walls of Coastfield and into its immediate periphery. She did not plan on utilizing it or her arcanity neither openly nor haphazardly; this was…simply and principally a precaution.

  For, indeed, she was doing exactly what she was hesitant to do: go beyond the safety of Coastfield and into the world around… Although she was still within its dominion and not too far from the city proper, she was nevertheless…still technically outside of that settlement.

  And, besides her rapier-conduit, she was without any of her proper and usual equipment. No additional eyes to overwatch; no additional senses and gizmos for detection; nothing at all besides her own ears and eyes… And that made her feel…vulnerable.

  At any moment; at any time; it could suddenly happen, again… Of course, should it happen again, it would not matter; she had no protection obscuring her head to shield her this time from any sudden…lance-to-the-face. Nevertheless, this rapier-conduit improved her odds of surviving any sudden engagement with those unknowns; such in of itself was enough to…make her feel, perhaps, eased and…calmer deep down within, even if she was without the other crucial piece that made it complete, without which she would be unable to utilize her arcanity to its…fullest and most advanced extents.

  Abruptly, the foreigner paused as her mask-obscured eyes identified… A disgusting and weird slimy…thing of sorts. She immediately rushed to it and began to inspect as if both eager and excited, only to…immediately simmer and flatten…

  The foreigner sighed… Even though it matched the quest description, it was…too slimy, too fresh, and too new… The color was too green, and not enough…dried out yellow; all characteristics of being less than five months old.

  ? De corsad… Semper dom victoría praesumetùr… ? Exhaling, she departed off and continued her stroll…

  How many days had she been at this? Searching for these…so-called ‘Clamfield sea shrubs’… She did not even know; time had long become lost… Though, it was probably near or around a week or so since she had begun. Indeed, this process was taking…quite the time—too much time, frankly. The rather specific requirements for the type of sea shrub needing to be collected certainly did not help this process, either.

  Certainly, she had managed to find a plenty of these ‘Clamfield sea shrubs’, but none of them seemingly matched the outlined description of being more than or equal to five months of age. And, likewise, the foreigner was not the only the would-be adventurer rummaging out and about searching for these sea shrubs… Not at all, in fact.

  There were multiple dozens of copies of this same quest circulating not only within the Guild branch with which she was registered, but also several others in the nearby localities and ‘realms’, all having been mass distributed by that so-called same ‘United Central Trade Company’. Quite frankly, it was rather miraculous that she had managed to even get this far in this ‘quest’ of hers.

  Indeed, despite the sheer competition, she had actually managed to collect almost all of the necessary Clamfield sea shrubs, besides, save, for one. And, ever since collecting that second-to-last sea shrub, it was as if every. single. one. of. them. had dematerialized from reality itself. She had spent the last couple of days specifically returning to this beach—and many others—with this aging goopy sack that had stained her apartment’s flooring, looking for that one last sea shrub—walking the entire way each and every time.

  She could handle the walk, granted, but it was the time she disliked wasting… Inefficient and impractical, indeed… If only she had the coin, then she could have hired a wagon or something to ferry her back and forth—she had observed others doing such.

  Yet, with another sigh, the foreigner nevertheless continued her strolling way, scouring this beach to no avail as the sun continued traveling in its arch, the sky transitioning from blue to yellowish.

  Suddenly, however, she once again so paused… Sniffing, her nose was picking up…something that was blowing in the air… ? Hic odor… ? This smell… ? Phí, oi quid síet? ?e foedos repugnants…? What was this…putrid smell?

  However, it did not require her mask-obscured eyes to scan around in-depth to immediately identify the source. It was something far off and away in the forward distance ahead… Massy and blobby looking… Stationary and immobile.

  Hmm… Curious, she wondered. She headed way through the stupidly soft sand; the smell only worsened more and more as she approached… Even for the likes of her, this specific pungent stench was difficult to tolerate; her nose was not necessarily used to actually smelling things unfiltered either. Nevertheless, she tolerated it as she halted in place, staring down with evaluative sight…

  Bulky, blubbery, and fat; it was obviously some kind of…sea animal of sorts… And it was, so very clearly, dead—a conclusion inferable well beforehand… A corpse rotting and decaying within the sands of time.

  Hmm… ? Quale animal est…hoc? Fas?inanter… ? What manner of animal even was this? Interesting… Of course, ecology was hardly her domain or forte whatsoever… Although, she did have basic knowledge regarding a myriad of primordial creatures that tended to inhabit places such as here, such understanding being mandatory for those of her color designation. Thus, the answer was likely…somewhere in the abyss that was her head.

  The foreigner proceeded to circle around this dead and decaying sea creature, evaluating and…trying to figure out…what it was.

  ? Estne… Ehm… Qu’af modo iterù nominatùr? ? she mumbled to herself, as if familiarties entered mind… ? Quidda verbù ?cjo quod ?cja, modo…m? memorathéon est… ? She just needed to remember…a name, yet her mind… ? ? ?eta?ea ?? ? It suddenly popped in; ? Ea’stne quid nominetùr? Itaque oi síetne quèda ?eta?eanè? ? A cetacean… Was that what this was?

  Hm… She began to recall… Cetaceans were some kind of…gigantic oceanic mammalians, right? Ones that…squealed high-frequency sounds and sung or…something? They were remarkably intelligent and affective, according to her records…

  But this one was quite small; no bigger than she herself. It was either belonging to a smaller cetacean species, or maybe it was just young—a child. However, even from its small size, it was still quite…heavy in appearance. No doubt, due to its mass, the cetacean was unable to move once it had somehow found itself ashore… Entrapped within this web of sand and air… And what happened to it after was evident from the scene.

  Organs gutted with whatever left having spewed from its stomach, extensive gashes and cuts evident on its figure; chunks of flesh and especially fatty blubber were missing. It was clear that this small cetacean had been…sliced and torn at by the locals; there was no other explanation for the condition of its body and type of…cuts and severed parts it had. It seemed that they were after only specific aspects, likewise, with the rest having been left for nature to reclaim.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Though, what a fate, indeed… To have found itself stranded in a most alien of place, no doubt struggling to find a way back to the ocean… Only for the denizens to take notice, and enact…this upon it, all the while it could do nothing but endure being stripped and plundered.

  Indeed, the foreigner felt strange…so very strange…deep down within as she continued to stare at this…hapless corpse of a once-alive cetacean baby.

  In a way, she perhaps could find a commonality between her and it… In a way, she too had found herself washed ashore in a place most alien, riddled with unknowns waiting to slice and cut her apart. However, she at least had the luxury of free mobility and…being capable of fighting back. This small yet sized animal, meanwhile, could only do nothing whilst it was butchered, waiting for it to all finally end; the misery of the its death was self-evident, indeed.

  Yet, in a way… What was she…if not the same? For as much as she moved, she remained in place… Static in perpetuity. In a way, was she not also…simply waiting, trapped within the sands of time, for it to all…finally end? As it should have had…all those ages ago…

  Whatever. Pointless cogitations were pointless cogitations. Flattening on the inside as terminating affect took hold, she stepped away from the corpse and readied herself to turn around and…leave… Yet, only for her to stop and…relook at that little cetacean…

  A very slight and momentary shiver bled from her teeth and breaths, something evident within even if uncomprehended…

  Truly… These sights of death and suffering… Deep down within, she hated them. She despised these sights…as much as she detested those very stars hiding behind the blue-sky’s shadow up high, coldly glaring down as if little eyes…

  To cause things to suffer; to see things suffer; to cause things to die; to see things die… Suffering and death were fundamental parts of nature, yet… Yet…

  She did not know. All that could be vaguely comprehended in this moment, just a little, was that…she seriously did not like what she was looking at; what had happened to that cetacean.

  Hmm… Yet death and killing… Such was something this Adventurers’ Guild did quite a lot of, no? To slay and hunt all manner of things needing to be eliminated… ‘Monsters’ and those likes. Inevitably, she was going to need to do such as well.

  She did not know what to think regarding such a reality, and whatever was befalling within was obfuscated within her mind’s shadow. All she knew was that she had very clear engagement protocols and conduct regulations that superseded anything local, to which she needed to adhere.

  The foreigner sighed… ? U?ina semper pa?e aeternalid stassís tu; misería finitù jam est, ?eta?ée parve. ? Thus, with a warm waving goodbye, she finally turned around and…departed away, leaving the body to the rust of time.

  May solemn peace be found for them, everlasting; for their misery was over. Such were her words.

  -|||-

  Dark yet not really; moist, humid, and groggy…most certainly.

  This was the foreigner’s second time venturing into this so-called ‘sunny-cave’, with nothing sunny to be found. Instead, it was a labyrinth of fungal bioluminescence, glowing ores, and crystalic growths; thus, it certainly pretended to be as if ‘sunny’.

  This cavern seemed largely narrow with its paths, but tended to connect to many points and places that were rather wide and spacious, some being quite so… In fact, she garnered an entire mini-ecosystem could be fit well within some of them, frankly.

  Nevertheless, she did not know how deep or how far this cavern of glow truly went, only that it seemingly went on and on, requiring care and caution in navigation.

  Being carried over her shoulders as she attentively strolled through was a heavy sack, even though it was only stuffed with twenty-five of the necessary twenty-nine ‘glow-stones’—which were hardly ‘stones’ as much as crystalized rock.

  The majority of this cave that she had explored thus far seemed to largely be yellowish colored glow-stones, with a few blues and greens scattered about here and there. It seemed that the crystals targeted by her quest were quite rare. She had already collected all of the thirty turquoise glow-stones and turned them in to the Guild. All that was left were the magenta ones, but these seemed even…rarer than the turquoise ones.

  However, by this point, she had a vague internal map of the general…layout of this sunny-cave, and since she had already been through this way before, she was finding the rarer magenta glow-stones remarkably faster this ‘session’.

  The foreigner was alone throughout most of this, or, well…largely… Discounting the few other adventurers rummaging about and…of course, the local wildlife—which were by no means necessarily friendly.

  In particular, this section of this sunny-cave was full of arachnids or…some kind of creature akin to them. They were unnaturally large, stupidly aggressive, and most certainly chimeric. These so-called ‘glow-spiders’ were seemingly attracted to these glow-stones, and their figures seemed to be riddled with similar exotic crystalized growths. In particular, a central growth at the center of their back figures roughly corresponded to those so-called ‘glow-stones’ scattered about needing to be collected.

  This suggested a direct relationship between these glow-spiders and these glow-stones that riddled this cave… Although, it could also just be a twisty correlation—maybe they were merely mimicking the environment… Or maybe they were responsible for producing them… Or maybe they just ate them for all she knew.

  She seriously did not know; this was not her subject domain, and she could only hypothesize in circles.

  Regardless, her only encounters with these glow-spiders were largely in the form of their despoiled crystal-looted corpses left behind by other adventurers who had passed through…or the occasional and infrequent happening upon them whilst they feasted upon an adventurer who had so attempted to do so but failed—in which case, she ignored them and…snuck by.

  Overall, however, it seemed that these crystalline arachnids were ignoring her as much as she ignored them, oddly enough… Even in areas where she could certainly…get a sense that they were present, watching her almost.

  Hmm… The foreigner looked around, noticing that the cave around was no longer as luminescent; the ratio of bioluminescent fungal matter had decreased noticeably, becoming more darkly crystalline… This path was not familiar…

  Hmm… Had she gotten turned out at some point? She wondered… Odd, since this cavern overall seemed almost conspicuously easy to navigate, as if it were designed to be intuitive.

  Oh well. She will manage.

  Thus, she continued heading down this way. As she did so, she kept attention to whatever crystalized glow-stones seemed glued to the ground or walls about. Strange and arcane-looking crystals, indeed… Rough, hard, and certainly not small… Their exotic appearance alone further suggested some relationship between them and those crystalline arachnids—after all, such things like did not naturally come into existence, usually… Although, neither did chimeras, for that matter; indeed, chimeras were definitely unnatural.

  Regardless, she would only manage to pluck two magenta glow-stones as time passed, unable to find the last two she needed. She headed deeper and deeper, perhaps straying far too away from where the quest recommended—for the sheet did explicitly state an advised avoidance of darker and more crystalline dense subsections.

  Eventually, however, she stumbled upon an entry hole of sorts in the cavern wall; one that led into a wider and more spacious area that was lower in elevation relative to the entry point, thus a short but still noticeable drop down.

  And the foreigner did not need to actually stand near and peep down to already know what downs there; the sounds alone were self-evident enough.

  Indeed… Carefully placing her sack of glow-stones to the side, she went somewhat ‘prone’ as she quietly crawled to the edges of this wide crevice, evaluating down and below…

  Yep. Glow-spiders. She counted no more than five of those crystalline arachnids, and they were actively feasting, seemingly—most likely an adventurer or hapless local or…

  No… No… They were devouring one of their own, she immediately saw.

  Hm… One of the arachnids, however, was rather peculiar. It was larger than the rest, being plumper and fatter in a way; protruding ‘spikes’ of sorts, pulsing with glow, riddled its back.

  Yet, more especially, at the center of this arachnid’s back figure was…a potent and bright crystalline growth, one which luminated a haphazard and chaotic gradient of colors simultaneously all at once. Its many eyes were also ignited somewhat, glowing in a wild-white radiance.

  Ah… The foreigner immediately realized; that must be that so-called ‘wild’ glow-stone that was also required to finish this quest. Indeed… While turquoise and magenta were rare, this ‘wild’ glow-stone had remained completely and utterly allusive to her both times she had been in this sunny-cave—up until now, at least…

  Magenta and turquoise, she had managed to find by scavenging either already dead corpses of crystalline arachnids or was already affixed to the ground… However, in this case, there was…no other alternative; she did not know if she would find another wild glow-stone anytime soon.

  The foreigner sighed… There was no helping this, then.

  Suddenly, a strange cold and numbing calm befell throughout her being and soul; her thoughts slowed as her mind sped up, time slowing down… As everything that she needed to be done became so clear and…easy to do.

  Quietly, she kneeled herself up and unholstered her revolving pistol. It should have the range and…heavy caliber to quickly dispatch them, maybe… She only had six shots, however; thus, she would need to be very targeted and make each count. She cocked the hammer and so quietly took aim whilst those arachnids feasted.

  Hmm… Usually, procedure was to target the spine—never the head…or brain, rather. Yet… Right, these were…invertebrates? Did they even have spines? Although, hmm… These arachnids were weird; they had discernable heads and jaws that munched, and outside their crystalline growths and shells, seemed awfully…squishy…

  Hmm…

  No, actually, wait… Those pronounced center growths, what if she were to…

  Pop. She fired a piercing ear-ringing shot as black-powdery smoke filled around, the fired round striking an arachnid right in its largest of crystalline growths; that one which pulsed as if a beating heart. Immediately struck, that central glowing growth shattered in an energized poof that was small, yet killed the arachnid instantly, shards scattering about, striking the others.

  Ah… Well, that was one hypothesis confirmed. So those central crystals were not merely produced by them, but were rather essential or important to their exotic biophysiological functionality and strange chimeric essence… Condensed and hyper-concentrated, so a deferred or redistributed source affixment, perhaps? Or…

  Hm. She did not know.

  Whatever. She fired her fourth shot, having already fired the others, each piercing strike shatter-bursting the targeted arachnid’s central crystalline glow-stones. She was slightly surprised she had hit each of her marks, considering she was not used to her weapon have so much…recoil and kick-back.

  However, as quickly as she had begun her attack, suddenly came a lancing fury of crystalline spikes, charged and energized. They struck around and into the rocks near and above her position, causing her to drop back and away, as they shattered into small piercing shards.

  Indeed, hissing and purring as it began to…somehow climb its way up to her position was that larger and now certainly enraged wild-glowing crystalline arachnid, those sharp and spikey protrusions being relentlessly volleyed from its strange pores… Regenerating as if being materialized and reforged, it seemed…

  Oh, well, regardless… Something was clearly angry. Funny.

  Quickly, the foreigner withdrew away from that crevice and towards the cavern wall behind, readying herself as that wild crystalline arachnid came lunging up. It screeched and hissed, spit and acidic slob spewing out of its razor-infested mouth; yet its arachnid legs merely flailed away, the chimera being far too large to squeeze its way fully through the entry hole; it was it utterly relentless, as if infatuated with her.

  Ah. How convenient… So blood lusted it was stupid.

  Calmly, she cocked the hammer and took aim, firing a single targeted shot straight into head area. Glowing radiant blood of a yellowish-green color spewed out; it hissed yet continued to persist, completely brushing it off as it…began to actually squeeze through.

  Tsking, she quickly fired her last shot; the heavy round pierced… And with a final wheezing hiss, wop and down…so tumbling it went.

  Breathing in and out, she—as fast as able—loaded and cap-primed two new shots into her revolving pistol, before approaching that wide crevice, cautiously peering down…

  Its body twitched and throbbed, its limbs broken from the fall… The lively chimeric glow dimmed and withered, even if wild radiance persisted.

  It was dying.

  She reloaded the rest of her pistol. Breathing in and out, she continued to stare… A strange adrenaline surged within her, pumping as she felt so…

  She did not even know, but she merely watched as it died.

  A headshot, she finally recognized… She was lucky, really lucky; that headshot could have potentially ruined the entire point…

  Though, speaking of point… She began to inspect… Now began the question of… How was she even going to extract that wild glow-stone? The drop itself did not seem too steep or deep; she could make it, although her legs might complain. However, making the fall was one matter, but… How was she going to…bring it back up here? Climb up with that heavy sack…

  Hmm… Well, if there was a will, then there was a method to achieve. She will figure it out.

  And, thus, so very calm and focused; so very cold and inhibited; ever-attentive yet becoming ever-detached from the situation; the foreigner merely cogitated the next immediate and most relevant steps to fulfilling her present objective…

  Paying no mind at all…

  To the contradictions within.

  To loathe what you were designed to do, best.