Chapter 17: Chap. 14 : Path Walkers

This isn't over ? Dammit ! It had been roughly a week since Zoemie last had one of these dreams now, the scary one with the falling star. Although it did not mean her sleep had been great, as instead nightmares from school plagued her. But right now she was dreaming, again.

Before Zoemie stood a strange scene, on a rocky backgruond of white, single-piece stone. A red-haired figure was engaged in a screaming match with other people she didn't know. The lone figure's body seemed to have grey patches in spots, and the air around seemed to be thinner somehow.

Zoemie couldn't make out the words, but last words were uttered, and then the figure exploded, a flash of extremely bright light starting to spill out, before the dream went grey. As an unpleasantly familiar mechanical voice started talking, Zoemie stared at the expanding flash with a suspicious glare.

"we know the cost of r e c k l e s s n e s s

 

N2 becomes N8

ThU from beneath feet

 

a symphony born of magic

world-scorching, cursed f l a s h

 

never again

 

never again"

And at that final sentence, the dream ended.

---

Zoemie woke up with a grumble. God did I not miss these. I am so fucking tired. She shook her head, and sighed. "First order of business... food." She teleported to the kitchen, something she was starting to do more and more. It was a convenience Zoemie appreciated, especially when her energy was drained by one of these dreams. Means I don't bump into shit anymore.

Zoemie hadn't made any progress on her time magic experiments in the past week. Seems like I'm stuck here. Zoemie wasn't sure if she truly hated it, however. She had tasty food she could eat until full, running water, a comfortable bedroom, and her only company was perfectly tolerable. I miss Dad and Neth, though, Zoemie thought while she sat down at the table.

Still, yesterday was decent. Zoemie thought, refocusing on her gaming. She had nothing else to do and no reason to do anything else. She had made major progress on several of her currently played games, and was intending to continue today, or so she hoped. Future challenges needed to be anticipated and prepared for, and unexpected developments dealt with as well.

That said, Zoemie wasn't going to game right now, and she wasn't sure she would today. She always played worse than usual when very tired, something she disliked. "Urgh... Probably gonna have to nap.", she grumbled, finishing her post-breakfast routine.

I've settled in, Zoemie realized as she started her bath. "This place really is home." She thought about decoration for a short while, but decided against it. Zoemie never felt the need for heavy decoration. It felt tacky and got in the way.

Even back in the other place her room lacked posters of any kind. Everything Zoemie cared about was on her computer. It was a life necessity for her, and she was glad both her father and Xajymzia understood it.

Still dunno what to do next, Zoemie thought, changing her focus. Her time magic experiments had been an utter failure, so they might not be worth further research in, especially with how frustrating it was to bang her head against z wall.

Still, she had everything she needed for now, and Zoemie couldn't say she was unhappy here. It was definitely better than the Before. "No need to wake up really early and scramble to get prepared. No school with the jackasses that hate me." There were parts that she missed, but overall ? "This place... is nice."

Zoemie finished drying herself and thought about what to do next, but she interrupted herself with a wide-reaching yawn. "Alright, naptime." she decided as she teleported to the bedroom. The days are getting warmer. Gonna have to start sleeping in panties soon, Zoemie constated.

---

Zoemie woke up from her nap not very refreshed, and also very thirsty. After teleporting to the bathroom to fix the problem, Zoemie considered. She still didn't feel up for a gaming session, and wasn't sure what to do. Xajymzia walked up to the door, putting her out of her reverie.

"Oh, hey." Zoemie greeted, flipping her palm upward as the maid nodded, and cocked her head to the side. Zoemie stared at the maid for a short while. She had gotten used to Xajymzia's... pale red-purple-pink-grey skin, would be her best description. Kind of only partially human.

"More nightmares ?" she asked, surprising Zoemie out of her musings again. The girl nodded, Xajymzia staring at the side. Xajymzia didn't do eye contact, something Zoemie actively appreciated. Zoemie hated eye contact, and hated people who insisted on it even more.

"Yeah. This one wasn't as awful as before, but it's still... annoying, you know ?" Zoemie answered, The maid nodding in turn. "This time it involved... some kind of argument, and a flash." Zoemie sighed, and continued. "Not sure what I'm gonna do. I don't feel up for either another nap, or gaming either." The maid considered for a minute before she talked.

"Maybe you should consider going out for a walk ?", Xajymzia suggested. "The weather is dry and nice today, and..." She looked to the side, then stared at Zoemie's bed. "Your beddings really need to be washed laundered, and the room should probably be aired for a while as well."

Zoemie considered the suggestion. Is that really necessary ? I mean, since she's telling me... Zoemie grumbled, in thought. Leaving her room alone was something Zoemie didn't like, although thankfully her father was sympathetic about it. But there's only her and me here. So it's probably safe to leave the room.

Zoemie came to a decision eventually. She stared at the maid. "Just... put everything back where it was once done, yeah ? Please." Zoemie continued. She could say she trusted the maid... but there was trust and trust. And trust did not come to the black-haired teenager easily. The maid nodded. Zoemie picked up her music player, the earbuds, and teleported out of the ruins.

---

Zoemie sighed. She was currently wandering within her territory in the forest, and she did have to admit, "This place is pretty." She was unused to the soft, loamy soil, being more used to asphalt and the compacted, lifeless dirt of lawns.

Zoemie never really did have a backyard she could enjoy in the other place. Her father had an apartment without the room, and to boot the neighbors tended to walk their dogs unleashed outside. Something that really raised Zoemie's hackles, although it was more because of her dislike of animals in general.

Zoemie absentmindedly grabbed and cracked a fallen branch, before throwing the chunks and watching them arc through the air, the music in her ears drowning out everything else. "We control your fear... We disconnect you..." Zoemie growled, her singing out of tune and generally poor, making wide arm gestures as she sang. Not that anyone would make fun of her here for that.

Zoemie walked around a thick, moss-covered log, spreading her mana into the ground, and feeling the connection. Zoemie knew very little about nature, but here she could feel it, a network she couldn't name right beneath her feet, sharing nutrients and water between the plants, compacted from leaves decayed over aeons.

She looked at the closest tree, its trunk she thought to be over 10 meters high – it was actually around 50 meters tall, so while she was correct, she had underestimated the tree. The taller trees covered the smaller ones, which in turn filtered out excessive sunlight for the plants on the ground.

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As Zoemie extended her sight, she remarked the trees behind the mountain in which her dungeon dwelled were different, although she couldn't identify them as being swamp trees. For indeed, the Seaguard Greatwoods did truly extend to the sea, but it was not a clear boundary, the southermost end of the forest being a swamp that progressively thinned into the sea.

Zoemie took in a breath of the forest air. Maybe she would dawdle a little bit more before going home. She wasn't sure how long she'd been out, but it probably didn't matter very much.

---

Xajymzia confirmed the air quality with a spell. Good. Zoemie's bedroom had really needed to be aired out for a while now, and the beddings needed to be laundered as well. Thankfully, she had made Zoemie aware of it before she left. It would not do to do such things in her back.

An ancient spell she had used for all her existence was cast, and dust was collected and removed, the energy it was converted into used to maintain, repair, and counter entropy's eternal decay on the items in the room.

She then walked out, cleaning the corridors and checking the kitchen and bathroom, quickly cleaning them out. She walked into the path dug into the mountain, the rugged rocks and magical darkening effects not bothering her the slightest, and looked at the magical wall.

This was a variant on a spell she had possessed since her creation, a modification she designed to improve and reinforce it. If her analysis was right, this would defeat the tools the invaders used so long ago, denying them the opportunity to enter.

Maybe they would find ways around it. It was likely, in fact. But the time and energy they needed to prepare to defeat it would be taken from their other preparations, and therefore leave them slightly weaker.

The beginning of a battle always favored the attacker, regardless of scale : the attacker had all their ducks in row, no men are injured, and the defender is disorganized. As the battle dragged on, friction, supply depletion, injuries and deserters weakened the attacker, while the defender organized and united their men.

Xajymzia smiled as she considered her next move. Was there anything urgent ? Right now, the only thing that came to Xajymzia's mind was the vitamin pill idea, but she still wasn't certain on how truly beneficial that would be. So then, it would be... the dish for tonight ?

Xajymzia went to the laundry room. It would need more time for the beddings to clean, so she conjured a duplicate of Zoemie's beddings and set these up instead. She cast another magic spell to put everything back in its original place, as well, like Zoemie had requested. The window were closed again, and she made a mental note of bringing up regular airing to Zoemie. It was always beneficial.

Her charge had wandered back into the room. She looked still tired, but better overall. "How long I've been out ?", she asked, a bit out of it still, and clearly affected by a bit of physical exhaustion.

"Around an hour", Xajymzia answered. "Your beddings didn't quite have the time to dry, so I conjured clean duplicates.", Zoemie nodded in acknowledgment. "Anything you want for tonight ?", the maid asked in turn.

Zoemie thought for a while. "...Cheddar pasta. With... mozza ? I think it was mozza you put in that pasta dish." she said. Xajymzia nodded in turn. She was pleased to see Zoemie was doing a bit better. She didn't mention the cream sauce, but that to be fair Xajymzia was going to put it in anyway. Her charge was a dyed-in-the-wool cream lover.

Zoemie went back to her room, and she opened up her computer. It appears she was feeling well enough for her games, or at least shaking on the bed, hugging her pillow, while muttering repeteadly names of game characters. Good. Xajymzia considered what to do on her own for a while.

The food wouldn't be served for at least two hours, so she decideed to return to the deeper parts of the dungeon. There were things to confirm, but she was starting to get a better understanding of what this body could use as upgrades. She hadn't been too aggressive about it, however, partially because of the lack of need at the point in time, and partly to give Zoemie time and space.

---

Qareva smiled as she woke up and shared breakfast with her companions. The other night she spent at the brothel had been nice, but not exceptional. It was to be expected from such a small countryside town, however, so Qareva did not mind very much.

Her fellow adventurer Varnec had noticed a watch patrol had been set up, so after a bit of thinking they had decided to camp overnight in the forest before approaching the Warden. Normally camping overnight in the Seaguard Greatwoods was tantamount to suicide, but advanced magical items they possessed made it a non-issue.

If Qareva had to describe the forest in a single word, it would be "empty". It was wild, untamed, a virgin untouched by man, full of some of the deadliest beasts known to mankind that weren't one-off freaks spoken of in stories.

But right now, it was empty. The beasts had desperately fled from the path they trod upon, the magical item granted by their backer overwhelming their senses, and they were advancing in the soft, loamy forest soil unharmed. All of this made Qareva convinced they were on the way to the dungeon.

Wild monsters avoided dungeons like the plague if they weren't part of it. It was a known fact, although Qareva didn't know why nor did she care about it. But it meant that paradoxically, the dungeon might be the safest place in the forest.

And, as she was starting to doubt her information, in the edge of her perception, she felt it. The increasing density of mana, so thick so you could swallow it. The aura, the feeling, she felt sparks on her arms. Target found. She smiled, and so did Welanjie next to her, who cracked her knuckles with a smile on her face.

"So, this is the place the clerk told you about ?" she said, her blonde ponytail behind her as she activated an magical item that changed her into her battle outfit, enchanted top and short pants that left Welanjie's muscular limbs and and scarred midsection visible, and her special shoes. Battle-worn gauntlets of thick, enchanted monster leather wrapped around her hands.

Qareva activated her own as well, changing into an enchanted green and brown outfit that increased her power and stealth, and retrieved her enchanted bow. It had been an excellent acquisition. It didn't need arrows, only ambient magic, something there was aplenty in a dungeon. It packed a lot of firepower, easily enough to slay one of the Shredders who wandered this forest, and great range too.

Her outfit was less revealing that Welanjie's, but Qareva unlike her didn't have supertough skin, so she appreciated the extra coverage. Although, as an archer, if an enemy got in close range it spelt bad things for her either way. Hence the special shoes. As for Varnec, they had no need for such an item, for they were always in full armor when on the clock. To the point Qareva had never seen their face – not that she cared either.

The taciturn defender took the lead, Welanjie to their left and Qareva behind looking for threat, as they approached the dungeon, who started abruptly in the forest. A circular barrier that spoke of death. They could've backed down at this point, their curiosity satisfied. But they were here to either negotiate with the Warden... or conquer the dungeon.

---

Zoemie stared with barely contained fury at the three fuckers who dared to step into her territory. AGAIN ? Come on ! Today was starting so well too ! She grabbed her mask, activated the detecting curse... and hastily took it off as it heated up quickly, Zoemie fearing it charring her cheeks, the mask clambering on the ground while Zoemie swore. Zoemie hated dropping things.

"Who are you fuckers, what are you doing here, and just what are you planning ?" Zoemie snarled at no one in particular while levitating back her mask on her head. Xajymzia stomped up rapidly behind Zoemie, clearly worked up as well, her steps emitting loud mechanical clatter. "You sensed them too ?", Zoemie asked, the maid nodding wordlessly in answer. Fuck. I can feel these cunts are gonna try something fishy.

If there was one reason, one singular reason, why Zoemie absolutely loathed people to her core, it had to be this one. They did it all the time in the Before, every last one of them, tricking her into doing something awful or making her into the butt of the joke or worse the fall guy. And what more, Zoemie fell for it far too damn often – she never managed to anticipate people.

And Zoemie hated it. And she hated herself for falling for it. And she hated that even kids half her age could run circles around her. And she hated that she could never get people, get them to stop, nor get them to understand what she was trying to say. So she had given up on doing these things.

Zoemie knew that she was going to fall for it again – that these three were likely to succeed at roping her into or doing to her something dubious, like always before. Zoemie gritted her teeth in frustration.

The unpleasant feeling in the back of her head wherever she stared at them, the archer in particular, did not help one bit. Urk. It's like with the Wraith bandit guy, but it feels worse somehow. It messed with her focus and made it hard to make decisions. So Zoemie started talking out loud to focus herself.

"They're good at this shit. They've got two hot women, probably money, the intimidation factor... Okay. Gonna need some hardcore drastic measures." She breathed in. "If they start to talk, and I believe them, I'll fall for it." The thought led to the realization Zoemie needed to decide on a course of action. If I believe them. She just needed to force herself into never believing them.

She couldn't deduce their motivation just from overwatching them, for they were quiet and precise, and she risked feeling some sympathy for them. Bastards are experienced. "But if I curse them so that they can't make me trust them they're gonna know I'm onto them." Xajymzia stared from behind with concern on her face as Zoemie realized.

And cursed herself.

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