As soon he entered the doorway, Isaac was greeted with the sight of rows upon rows of shelves. Shelves filled with cloud weapons lined the room in an orderly fashion. There were a handful of weapons he recognized like sharp looking cloud swords and misty looking spears, but there were also weapons of the likes of which he never seen before. A majority were ranged ammunition based weapons just like what he seen the cloud people used back at the battle for Nat's town
Mary was waiting inside the dimly lit storage room. She was looking through the map’s contents when she glanced back to see Isaac enter the room.
“You took your time. This looks to be the mansion's armory. According to this map, Slar is already ahead of this room. If we keep going, there should be a hidden passageway behind this room. The hidden passageway might be hidden in plain sight so be sure to look around." Mary said as she looked down the map, not giving a single glance towards Issac as she continued to study the map.
Isaac simply nodded. He didn’t really have the energy to talk after the rough conversation he had with Dark Isaac just a few minutes ago. Not to mention the shock he had when he found out Mary over heard them mentally talking about Ilivir's fate. What does she think of him now that she knows the truth? Does she hate him? Does she fear him? What does she think of Ilivir's fate? She has been quiet and her face has been unreadable ever since he gave back her fencing sword.
But but despite his urge to find the answers, Isaac didn’t want to start a new conversation so soon in fear of making the situation worst.
...This they went exploring the dark and strange armory in strained silence.
---
Minutes passed as Isaac watched the shadowed shelves of cloud weapons pass by them.
As they walked though the isles searching for the hidden passage, Isaac couldn't help but wonder about what Dark Isaac said. Was he really not putting enough effort into deciding on who he want to be? Granted, circumstances haven't given him much of an opportunity to really think over his actions. But if he is going to choose who he wants to be, he should also be more proactive, thinking of ways to solve his problems like finding a way to free all the souls trapped in his body.
But does he really want to be a dark paladin or dark knight? He's been a paladin for years. Does he really want change that? Being a dark paladin or dark knight requires using the power of corruption. Is he really willing to commit himself to using the corruption? He knew the risks and mistakes he could make if he were to channel such dark power. Does he want the take responsibility for that?
Didn't he wanted to overcome the corruption and find ways to stop relying on it? Is he willing to even give up any of the paladin codes he pledged his life to follow? To completely live a new darker code of honor and life?
But Dark Isaac did have a point. He hasn't been acting like a paladin lately. Looking back at his journey so far, he’s already broken his code, the holy text he swore to live by and defend at all costs, multiple times by now. He can't keep blaming his actions on the corruption when his mind is not even being touched by the corruption because of it being in the ring of purity. He already braced himself for the possibility that he might never be human again. But he’s still not sure if he’s fully accepted that he might no longer be human ever again... If possible, he would do everything in his power to be human again once his personal quest is over. But if he can’t find a way to change back...
Isaac shook his head.
If he's to continue this journey, he’ll have to adapt. In time he must decide to either embrace the corruption or figure out ways of getting stronger without it. And decide on the tenets of the new personal code he’ll potentially have to create and follow. If he learned one thing on this journey, it's that he’s already done some things neither a paladin nor dark knight ever accomplished before. However… he doesn't necessarily need to be a dark paladin. Maybe he can become something else entirely? Perhaps something that can overcome the need of corruption and move past it? He remembers Mary mentioning that the village elder’s family specializes on many different trades. When this Sky King business is over, maybe he can ask him to teach him some things? Perhaps he might even lean new ways of combat? Maybe the elder knows some techniques similar to the ones those eastern warriors Isaac heard about use... Anything that has nothing to do with the corruption will do... He really doesn't think he's capable of using the corruption without some kind of ris-
"You think too much," Mary interrupted with her annoyance clearly stained in her voice. "You could spend less time pondering your existence and help me look for that secret passage."
So she finally wants to talk huh?
Isaac was still a little sore from when he found out that she listened on to his conversation with Dark Isaac. He returned the annoyed tone and said, "You know, it's rude to read someone else's thoughts without their permission."
"How would you know?" Mary challenged.
Says the one who's doing the eavesdropping.
"I'm fairly certain it's the same principle as eavesdropping," Isaac huffed, "And it's not fair that you can read my thoughts, yet I can't seem to read yours."
"I don't really have a choice. I don't know how to stop myself from hearing your thoughts." Mary retorted.
"You don't? Hmmm." Isaac held his chin in thought.
Mary suddenly looked Isaac in the eyes. "Were you telling the truth when you said you can't hear my thoughts?" She snapped.
Isaac was taken aback by her sudden ferocity. "Y-yes! Why would I lie about that?"
"Well try harder!" Snapped Mary.
"W-why should I? It'll be hypocritical for me to invade your privacy after saying how rude it is the read other people's minds." Isaac explained, holding his four arms up palms wide, doing a gesture of self defense.
"Just do it!" Mary shouted.
He didn't really understand the urgency, but he tried anyways. Mary stayed silent as he concentrated.
Isaac concentrated as he tried to read Mary's thoughts...Nothing.
According to Mary, it's as effortless as simply hearing them, so maybe, he should focus on his hearing and see if he can hear anything...
...Besides from physical sounds such as breathing, he couldn't hear anything.
"Are you thinking of anything?" Isaac asked. Maybe he's not hearing anything because there are no thoughts to hear.
Mary looked a little insulted. "Of course I'm thinking of something! Everyone has to be thinking of something!"
She does have a point... If hearing her thoughts doesn't work, then maybe he needs another of the five senses in order to read her thoughts.
Isaac closed his eyes and focused on his five senses. He tried to find something, anything to connect himself to Mary's thoughts...
...Nothing. Blank. He can't see her thoughts.. He can't taste them. He can't hear them. He can't smell them. Can't can't touch them. Even with his eyes closed to block out any interference, his senses can't seem to pick up on Mary's thoughts. Not even his more instinctual sixth sense.
It's as if he can't grasp the foreign entity known as Mary's mind. Which is strange considering the red cuffs did established a bond between him and Mary. It's a hunch... but maybe he does not know Mary enough for him to latch on to her thoughts? That would make sense. Come to think about it, he doesn't even know her motives for wanting to assassinate the Sky King. A lot of the things she told him don't exactly add up. Could she be lying to him about the many things she informed him about? Perhaps... She does seem to be the secretive and loner type. He wouldn't put it past her to tall him half truths and out right lyes.
It appears that Mary was listening in on his thoughts again. And she appears visibly relieved by Isaac's assumptions.
The intensity left Mary's voice. "Good...You don't need to know all my dangerous information." She almost muttered to herself.
Then suddenly the intensity returned. "After all, how could I possibly trust you with it now that I know you didn't tell me you betrayed your friend and selfishly stole his power!? How can I trust a word your saying after that?" Mary demanded.
Isaac was slightly offended that Mary would even come to that conclusion!
"It's nothing like that! The demon that possessed Ilivir tried to absorb me!" Isaac narrowed his eyes. "Beside... How can I trust YOU! You abandoned your friend just so you wouldn't reveal your location to the King's men!... Normally, I would respect those kinds of decisions. I know from experience that in times of war or dire need, if saving one person could potentially jeopardize a mission to save many, then it would be best to abandon that one person... even if that one person is a innocent or a loved one... But in my world, a friend or family member is precious and if you lose that person when you know you could possibly save them... You live your life in regret. I lost too many dear to me already to my world's twisted and tragic nature. I may not fully understand the reasons or unurgency to hide yourself from the King's notice, but if there is a chance to protect your friend and prevent revealing yourself to the enemy, then I say it's best to take that chance. A few seconds might be enough to determine if you never see a friend again or not... I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if someone else has to pay for my actions... Though I may be hypocrite myself... After all, I don't know if the many creatures I killed had families to go back too... And I may never will, now that they are dead. Be it monster or one of the king's men, every living thing has a life of their own..."
Mary was silent for a few moments... A part of her was annoyed by Isaac's arrogance. If he could read her mind, then he would know that she already did risk her mission to save Nat. If she didn't convince 'The Storm' to spare Nat and her town... She would never forgive herself. But she held her tongue. If she mentioned how she negotiated with the air dragon to spare Nat, Isaac would be asking more questions then he already has... She already given him more information about her personal mission then she intended.
So instead of explaining herself, she asked a question instead.
"So what makes you any better? You're telling me to be less selfish, yet you absorbed your companion. Why? And what did you mean by a demon possessing Ilivir?" Mary asked, a tinge of curiosity in her voice.
Isaac scratched his head in thought. "Where should I start? Things have gotten pretty complicated recently.”
He took a deep breath. “I guess I should start with when the demon first appeared. After all, it's the reason why I had to absorb Ilivir again. Well, right before me and Ilivir found that portal to the cloud plane, we wandered into some kind of basilisk shrine. In case I haven't mentioned before, a basilisk is a lizard type creature who has the ability to turn others to stone if it males eye contact. After defeating the basilisk and storing it's petrified victims into my body, Ilivir touched a purple crystal imprisoning the demon soul of Azaviel , the lust demon. The crystal shattered upon touch and the demon sou went into Ilivir's body and tried to take him over. Luckily, I managed to erm.... tire the lust demon into hibernation. But little did I know that the demon was slowly waking up and consuming Ilivir from the inside overtime he... commits lustful actions. I believe you seen Ilivir commit some of those actions yourself. I didn't realize why Azaviel was doing until it was too late. During the battle for Nat's town, Azaviel revealed himself and tried to absorb me into Ilivir's possessed body. I managed to defeat Azaviel, but not without some consequences. I was forced to absorb Ilivir's body into my body in order to seal Azaviel into my body. But on the bright side, I managed to save Ilivir's soul." Isaac explained
Mary listened intently, trying to find holes in his story... Yet in some strange way, it seemed sound and truthful, even if it all was more than a bit farfetched. But there is still one thing he hasn't explained yet...
"That's an explanation for what happened to Ilivir, but that still doesn't explain why you're wearing that dark armor." Mary pointed to the pitch-black armor that wasn't there before the attack on Pegasus Shoe Town.
Isaac looked down on that. "That's... another long story."
But before he went to explain his battle with the air dragon, something occurred to him.
"A few minutes has passed since we entered this room. What’s Slar's location now?"
Mary glanced down on the magic map in her hands. Her eyes widened as soon as she laid her eyes on its contents. "Star is more farther away now." Mary looked Isaac in the eyes with her warrior face. "We can worry about dangerous information later. We need to find that secret passageway and catch up with him!"
So, for the next few minutes, they did just that. Neither of them spoke to each other as they wandered the dimly lit isles of the large storage room and headed for the general location Slar is located. The talk about secrets were put on a hold.
Isaac watched as the passed hundreds of those strange projectile weapons he seen the towns people and king's men use.
"What are these strange weapons?" Isaac asked curiously.
Mary gave him a look and said, "You don't have these in your world? These are what we call 'guns'."
"Guuunsss." Isaac rolled the foreign word off his tongue. He looked around toward the many futuristic weapons around him. So these are guns?
"Yes." Mary replied in a annoyed tone.
Isaac was a little miffed that she invaded his private thoughts again, but he'll let is slide this time.
"How do they work?" The concept of guns seems so alien to him. He saw some of them in action during the battle for Nat's town, But besides from shooting nearly invisible projectiles, he knows little to nothing about them.
Mary let out a audible sigh. "How should I put this... Tell me... What is the most advance and commonly used weapon in your worlds?" Mary asked.
"Swords and magic. If we need any projectiles, we would use projectile magic or weapons such as bows or throwing spears. To my knowledge, guns do not exist in my world." Issac replied.
Mary held her head in thought. "Well, in this world, magic is not very common. So we have to make do with guns. But since your world has swords, then maybe the concept of guns would make sense if I explain it like this? Guns are like stiff tubes with one end closed off. Inside the closed end is a dormant storm cloud that can explode at any moment with the right joint. Placed in front of that dormant storm cloud is a razor sharp cloud pellet. On the outside of the tube, underneath the storm cloud is a devise that acts as a handle to hold the tube in a vertical position with and a switch that allows you to blow up the storm cloud and send the pellet propelling through the air at high speeds."
"What do these 'storm clouds' look like?" Isaac asked. How could storm clouds be that manageable.
Mary held her chin in thought. "There are many types of storm clouds. The storm clouds we use in guns are called 'black powder'. They're called that because of their liquid-like structure and how easy to transport they are. Most types of storm clouds explode upon contact. But black powder requires a small jolt before they can explode. Features like those makes black powder easy use in guns."
Isaac scanned the different guns lining the armory, all of them ordered by their size and shape.
"Why do you need so many different variations of guns? Are they like swords where different types serves different purposes and styles?" Isaac asked.
Mary held her chin in thought. "I suppose..."
"If you are going to be staying in this world for awhile, then it might be a good idea to explain a few gun types to you." Mary stated.
She waved to a shelve full of short tubed guns. Similar to the ones saw the cloud folk use in the battle for Nat's town.
"These are the more common types of guns. Our people calls them 'Cloud Razors'. Their small and light enough to be wilded with one hand each. However, the small supply of storm clouds inside the gun is still enough to jolt it overtime you pull the trigger. So while it may be easy to carry, it's also doesn't have the most precise hit rate." Mary explained.
She then waved over to a shelf full of guns with long tubes.
"For those looking for a better chance of hitting something on the first shot and reduce the amount of amor being wasted, these long tubed guns make it easier for the cloud pellets to be propelled were they were aimed at. Because of the more precise and more reliable hit rate, it's all more likely to kill on the first hit. As a result, this type of gun are called 'cloud hammers', named after a legendary weapon of a similar name that's said to instantly kill in one hit. These types of weapons are not necessarily harder to find then cloud razors, but they do require a bit of skill and experience to use it reliably and at it's full potential." Mary explained.
'Hmmm.' Isaac thought. A weapon that can kill it's target from a distance in a one hit does sound dangerous. Even the most powerful long range magic doesn't have a guarantee to kill it's target instantly. When it comes to killing a target at a precise and fatal spot, then it might be more reliable to just use bows and arrows or swords.Issac pondered, mentally weighing the advantages and disadvantages of each weapon.
Feeling a sense of pride for her knowledge, Mary gestured towards a row of large guns sitting on the ground with wheels instead of being on a shelf.
"Cloud Hammers may be deadly but they're not very effective when it comes to destructive capabilities. Cloud pellets are small so they can pierce, but if you need to break something larger then a pellet like doors or buildings, you use cannons. Cannons are a type of gun that shoots large, heave, compact cloud calls that has the force of demolishing walls or crushing people... Of course, launching large and heavy cloud balls like that requires large guns and a hefty amount of storm clouds to even launch. Since they’re so heavy and unable to be carried by a single man, they put them on wheels." To emphasis, Mary gesturing to the wheels underneath one of the canons.
Those cannons reminds Isaac of something... "These large guns reminds me of the catapults from back home. They’re not guns... They're more like giant sling shots. They are wooden computations, that are made of wood and relies on a system of ropes and pulls to to swing the builder into the air. But my kingdom hasn't relied on catapult very often ever since the crusades of before the age of magic. Ever since my kingdom discovered magic, we found it more efficient to just cut to shoot large flaming fire balls through magic, then reply on a slow wooden catapult to shoot flaming balls or boulders at our enemies."
Mary held her head in thought for the moment.
"Catapults... If I recall correctly, the Sky Kingdom used catapults too... But they are no were near as common ever since guns were invented." Mary thought out loud.
"Invented?... Who invented the guns?" Isaac inquired.
"The Earp family of course!" Mary looked as if she was recalling something important. "According to history books, there was once a great civil war that took place here in the sky kingdom. The war led to the invention of guns. If it wasn't for that war, guns probaly wouldn’t exist today! The invention of guns far outclassed any weapons before their invention, so they’re the most common to see now." Mary explained with pride.
"What was the civil war about?" Isaac asked.
Mary's pride filled face suddenly soured with sadness. "It was a civil war of the races. Some call it the Great Sky War. As you know, the Sky King has been oppressing his people even before he had a air dragon to serve him. Even the non-cloud folk weren’t immune to his influence. Anyone who were not cloudfolk were treated like animals. The Sky King would hire many poachers to hunt down and capture non-cloud folk to work as slaves, live stock or beasts for his army. This has been a problem for centuries, but since the cloud folk are not the ones being hunted, they tend to stay quiet about the whole ordeal. But as you know, us cloud folk weren't left off scot free. Even if we are not the ones being hunted, we are still constantly bullied by the king's men."
Isaac was listening intently. “May I assume that these non-cloudfolk are capable of thinking and speaking for themselves just like you and I? If that’s the case, it's no wonder a civil war was fought over this. But judging by the current state of this kingdom, I'm assuming the non-cloudfolk lost the war?"
"Yes. The invention of guns won the war in the Sky King's and cloud folk's favor." Mary answered sadly.
"What happened to the non-cloud folk?" Isaac asked.
"All the other players in the war scattered and went into hiding. Some races went into near extinction. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the races who participated in the Great Sky War are extinct now. The surviving non-cloud folk races were either never seen again or are still being hunted to this day." Mary responded.
Isaac is not sure how to feel about that. Just like in Isaac's world, there exists non-human creatures. Except that in his world, the corrupt are considered demonic invaders who deserves to be exterminated. But to hear that in this world, there exists inocent non-human-like creatures who are not corrupt... and that they started a war because of the cloud people doing them wrong... It just felt so backwards to him. He was raise to believe that anything that's not human is the enemy... But in recent days, his beliefs are starting to waver. Now he knows that even non-humans can be people too... and he's not sure if he could accept that yet.
"May I ask who were the players in the Great Sky War?" Isaac asked. Maybe he should learn more about the non-humans who fought against the Sky King and the cloud folk. They might not be as inhuman as he assumed them to be.
Mary thought for a moment. "The Great Sky War happened generations ago. Almost all records of the many races who participated in the war was lost. Off the top of my head, I do know a race called the Elflords who participated in the war."
"Who are these elflords?" Isaac asked
"I'm not really sure myself. The few records I read simply said there are differences that separated them from cloud folk." Mary explained.
"What kind of differences?" Isaac asked curiously.
"The ancient books I read didn't give any details. That just say that they are different from cloud folk. But they are most likely currently extinct considering how I never heard anyone ever mention the elflords outside of history books. And I haven’t really heard of any real sightings of them either. They’re kind of a legend nowadays.” Mary answered uncertainly.
Hmmm. All this talk about the Sky Kingdom's history has been interesting. It further solidifies the need to do something about the Sky King's abuse of power. But there are other mysteries that still needs to be solved.
"Mary. What can you tell me about the gun Slar has been holding?" Isaac asked. There was something about that weapon that bothered him. It wasn't made of cloud vapor like the other guns he seen. It was made of metal.
She waved to a shelf full of guns similar to the one Slar used. "Slar's gun looks just like these. These are Mist Scatterers. As you can see, they have a long tubes just like the cloud hammers. The main difference is that they have two long tubes instead of one. This allows two pellets to be shot at the same time instead of one. Though ironically enough, the extra power also lowers the firing range as well. Mist Scatterers are more well know for their firing power rather then their hit rate.
Mary held her hand to her chin. “But Slar’s Mist Scatterer is different. It’s general shape is like a typical Mist Scatterer but the material it’s made out of looks... unnatural. According to Slar, he got it from a 'lucky raid'. He also mentioned that his gun was from the material plane." Mary mused.
Isaac did a double take at that. “Mary. Is there anything in in this world called the ‘material plane’?” There was a slight edge of seriousness in his voice.
Mary had a thoughtful look on her face. “No. As far as I know. The only other time I heard the phrase ‘material plane’ was when you referred to your world by that name.”
She had a somewhat confused look on her face. “Why would you ask such a strange question? I thought it was pretty easy to make the connection that Slar got his version of the Mist Scatterer from your world.”
That edge of seriousness spread to Isaac’s face. “Mary... That gun does look like it was made from material from my world... But I never heard of or seen a gun untill I came to this world... As far as I knew, guns don’t exist in my world. Otherwise, I would have heard of it by now...” Isaac relayed slowly.
Mary couldn’t understand the seriousness. “Is that a problem? Just because you haven’t heard of guns in your world doesn’t mean a variation of them doesn’t exsist in your world.”
Isaac paused and thought about it for a moment. “Well... I supose it’s not impossibe for a weapon as revolutionary as the gun to exist in my world... But in all my years of hearing rumors of far off lands, I never heard of a ‘gun’. I hope you understand my skepticism. I would have heard of something as amazing as guns by now.”
Mary stared pointedly back at Isaac. “If guns are such a wonderful weapon in your world, then maybe perhaps whoever invented it in your world has kept in a secret from the masses.... guns are horrible weapons...”
Isaac held his armored chin in thought. “Perhaps...”
Even though Mary’s reasoning is sound... Something still doesn’t feel right...
“Ouuuf!”
Isaac looked down to see that the shorter woman has tripped over something. It looked to be a ten foot long and 8 foot wide faced down portrait. And just like everything in this mansion that’s not nailed down, it’s made of material from the material plane. It’s frame was made of gold and the painting itself was made up of material Isaac recognizes.
Mary got back up and saw the hole in the wall behind the fallen painting.
She put two and two together and looked at the map in her hand for confirmation.
“This must be the hidden passage way on the map. Slar is down that tunnel.” She stated.
Without anymore words, Mary ran into the tunnel.
Isaac followed suit.
...
As they moved down the dark tunnel, Mary was deep in thought.
“What did you mean by absorbing him again?" she brought up, "How could you have absorbed him before?" She recalled Isaac mentioning that he absorbed Ilivir on two separate occasions when he was talking to Dark Isaac. But he didn't really go into detail during the mental conversation.
For the next few minutes, Isaac briefly explained how he met Ilivir, how he had absorbed the werewolf corruption from him before Ilivir was swallowed by a granite golem. Isaac absorbed that golem and was able to recreate Ilivar's body as his spawn.
When Mary started asking questions like how he got his enchanted dagger, Isaac started recounting his encounters starting back to when he first entered the corrupt arable field. He detailed his changes, the equipment he obtained and how he obtained them, and the creatures he encountered up to when he and Ilivir first entered the cloud plane.
Mary was somewhat amazed by how strange and dangerous Isaac's world was, but then again, her world has pliantly of it's now dangers and differences that may seem strange to Isaac. His world just seems so different and fascinating! It's kind of hard to imagine a world were Magic is just as common as guns are in this world.
But there are certain things Isaac glossed over.
"So, if you were able to...spawn Ilivar before, why not do it again?" asked Mary.
"It's not that simple," said Isaac, "Being a spawn is like being the child of whoever spawned you. But the price to life that that you are born a willing servant to whoever birthed you. In other words, I became his... father and he became by child and servant as my spawn. When you met him, he was submissive towards me and a lot less talkative. Before he became my spawn... His personality was very different. He was a lot more brash and arrogant, and quick to boast his title as a paladin. Was nothing like his spawn counterpart...When you become a spawn, you basically lose your free will." Isaac let out a sigh. "When I resorbed him, he returned to his original self. Ilivir made it very clear he didn't want to be a spawn again. He wanted his own independent mind and body."
Mary thought of the two females he said he assorted.
"So did absorbing those two females give you a womb to birth spawns with?," Mary asked with curiosity.
"Absolutely not! spawning is a completely different process!," said Isaac sharply.
Mary gave him an intrigued look and said, "Is it? Didn't you just say you 'birthed' Ilivir as a spawn? Then were did the spawn come from? He had to come from somewhere "
"I... haven't thought of it like that.," Isaac paused for a moment to give it some thought, "But I’m not really sure if Spawning and Natural birth is the same process. If I recall correctly, spawning required separating materials from my body in order to create Ilivir's body. Suppose that alone makes spawning similar to labor, But when I spawned Ilivir, it was completely painless. It was… realese in more ways then one. So… I don’t think I have a womb. Goodness, if I do have a womb, I could only imagine the horrible ways the corrupt could penetrate it on my return trip to the crypt." Isaac said with a cringe
"So you're saying women are more open to corruption than men?" asked Mary, in a curious tone. The concept of corruption seems so alien to her. Are women in that much of a disadvantage to it?
"Yes actually. Throughout history, females seems more likely to fall to the corruption. Back home, women tend to stay in the safety of their homes rather then risk getting penetrated by the corrupt. It's pretty common knowledge that females are overall more vulnerable and have less resistance to the corruption then men. Their... openings are a lot more assessable to the corrupt then men. That's the main reason why women don't tend to wear skirts these days. That's also why it's usually only men and rarely women who venture outside of settlements. Male or female, you risk loosing your humanity and identity when going outside." Isaac stated as if it was fact.
"Are the changes corruption cause really that significant? Don't people change anyways as they mature? Is there a difference." Mary asked.
"Yes. Corruption and maturing are two very different processes. Changes through corruption are a lot more instant and drastic. The corruption does more then just changes you. It completely warps you and mentally reborn you into something unrecognizable. You wouldn't even recognize your original self after your corrupted. I've known many people who were changes to mindless animals. Corruption is capable of changing you into wolves, horse- like creatures or much worse. When you are corrupted, all you care about is lust and reproduction. You spend the rest of your life constantly having sex and nothing else. Newly transformed corrupt would even abandon their dreams to have successful careers and being with their families all to live a empty life of sex. The corruption works in very unnatural ways and bends the rules of reality." Isaac explained.
Mary was a little shocked from hearing that. It's true that villagers don't tend to leave their villages for fear of being attacked by bandits, wild animals or one of the king's men or any of the other dangers found here in the cloud plane. But to be afraid of going outside your very home out of fear that your sense of self might be warped and replaced by something else completely... She can't really process that kind of danger. Is Isaac's world really that harsh? It's kinda hard to believe.
Isaac could hear Dark Isaac laughing in his head. 'Ha! Your fear of losing your identity isn't the only reason you don't want any female parts on you! Deep down the real reason you don't want to become female is because you want to remain dominant. You can't stand the thought of submitting to anyone else.'
"Are women submissive in your world?" Mary asked.
"That's not it at all!" Isaac exclaimed. "It's just that... There was many occasions in the crypt were I was helpless as creatures tried to rape me. On both those occasions, I was forced to swallow he cum of other males. I'm afraid that if I submit even once, I will lose myself. Women are more likely to submit to the corruption in my world, so I'm afraid that if I gain any female parts, I'm more likely to submit to the corruption. It's just that... I just don't want to lose my sense of self and identity. My biggest fear is to wake up one day, replaced by a different person. To look back at my own past and not recognize as my own... I seen it happen to many people... Including my love ones. When I say 'replaced', I don't just mean in body. I mean replaced by a completely different mind and person. I don't want to be replaced too." Isaac said solemnly.
"Just because you have female parts doesn't make you any less vulnerable. You're still a man at heart right? Even when you were helpless as you were raped, you still managed to get out with you mind because of who you are and your survival skills. Your gender doesn't decide that. " Mary explained.
"I was also pretty lucky. If I haven't found the Ring of Purity when I did, my mind wouldn't have been protected. I would have fallen to the corruption weeks ago." Isaac noted.
"Luck does play a big part in survival." Mary agreed.
"I'm a woman. But I never really viewed myself as that different from a man. I may not fully understand how your world works, but here in the cloud kingdom, it doesn't matter if you're male or female. We all suffer from the same dangers. I'm a woman, yet I have to take arms and protect myself from the dangers of my world just like any other man.," Mary stared into Isaac's eyes. "It doesn't mater if your born a certain way. If you can't figure out how to defend yourself with the body you have, you're dead. In times of need, you just have to accept what you have and learn to work with it. That includes the life and occupation you're born in to.." Mary paused for a moment.
Isaac didn't say it out loud, but Dark Isaac's and Mary's comments about feminity really struck a cord of him. He's truly is afraid of becoming the other sex. It's just.. so different. Maybe a small part of himself doesn't want to lose any masculinity out of fear of losing dominance. But it's more then that. He's truly afraid of losing his identity. The other sex is... just so unknown to him. Sure, Mary may be right that both genders suffered from the same struggles. But he thought back to the visions he had about becoming a female dragoness, and that other vision were he let Alicia make him a female. He could feel everything his counterparts were feeling. That unfamiliar feeling vagina... Those powerful female dragon urges... It brings him confidence that his counterparts were willing to endure the unknown sex in hopes of accomplishing his goals and possibly finding a way to turn back... But he already fears losing himself in this unnatural corrupt body. He doesn't want to drift farther away from his former human self by suddenly changing sexes. He's already enduring enough of a identity crisis as it is.
Mary could hear Isaac's worries. She wanted to give him more confidence in himself.
"Besides, how can you possibly consider the opposite sex to be so scary strange when you have voices in your head? That sounds pretty hypocritical to me." Mary added with a smile.
Isaac let out a chuckle at that. "I guess I have no right to consider the female sex to be so intimidating when having voices in my head already makes me seem crazy.... But can you please try to stop reading my thoughts?" Isaac reminded. "It's a little unfair considering that I can't seem to hear your thoughts. And you reading my mind just makes me uncomfortable. I'm afraid that you my think that I'm crazy with these voices in my head." Isaac asked politely.
Mary nodded. "I'll try. But like I said before, I don't really have any control over my ability to hear you thoughts. I haven't really figured out to stop it yet. But I'll let you know when I do."
The two relaxed as the tension dissolved from the air.
Mary head tilted in thought. "By the way, if you're not crazy, then can you explain why you have voices in your head?"
That's another detail Isaac failed to mention.
Isaac knew that question will come eventually. "I'm not sure if you'll believe me, but I recently discovered that when I assimilate a creature, their soul is stored in my body. I also found that out that my soul is being stored and protected in the floating metal halo above my head." He pointed to the metal halo ab one his head. "That halo was formerly the Ring of Purity. The voices you have been hearing in my head is another soul and a strange part of myself. The other part of myself is a entity I call Dark Isaac. His origin seems a bit unknown even to himself. The other soul in the Halo is Ilivir. Now that he's no longer a spawn, he's back to his arrogant self. But he has been quiet ever since we've been been connected by the red cuffs. I'm getting a little worried of him." Isaac explained.
"I'm sorry for saying this, but you really do sound crazy. But on the off chance that you're right, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt." Mary admitted.
"It might seem impossible, but in my world, magic and corruption has made the impossible possible. I grew up living in a world of impossibility. But I understand if I might seem strange." Isaac explained.
"To be honest, I'm a little curious as to what it's like to have your strange state of being. What is it like to have that fascinating body? What is it like to have voices in your head?" Mary asked.
Mary got right in front of Isaac's face. "...What is it like in that metal halo of yours?"
"I... It's kinda hard to explain." Isaac responded.
"If I can hear your thoughts, then I wonder what will happen if I touch the metal halo carrying your soul?" Mary asked with innocent curiosity.
Isaac let out a shrug.
He willed the halo to float down to Mary's level. "Give it a shot. The worst that could happen is that nothing happens."
Excitement bubbled up in Mary as she reached to grab the halo...
==========
Suddenly, Mary found herself in a very strange place. It looked like she was standing on a very high tower. All around her were dark, roiling clouds, except for a circle directly above her in which the clear sky and sun shown through. Looking around, she could see it was more like she was standing on an uprooted well. There was a wide ring-shaped path for her to walk on, but in the center was a dark pit. Looking down it, she could see many shapes squirming in the darkness.
"How did you get here?" Mary jumped and turned to see who had spoken. What she saw looked like a cloud folk, but a lot more solidly built and wearing armor. For some reason, he looks very similar to herself. It's as if he was her long lost twin brother or something.
"Isaac?" asked Mary, "Is that you?"
"Well, yes, my inner self at least," said Isaac, looking at himself, "This is what I looked like before I became twisted by the corruption. I'm glad my true self still exists here. And I'm surprised that you actually get a chance to see me like this."
"I thought you said you were a human? It this what you originally looked like in your world? You don't look very different from a cloud folk." Mary said.
Isaac looked honestly confused. "Humans seem to be very similar to cloud folk in shape and appearance. The only real difference between cloud folk and humans is that humans aren't made of clouds. We are... I don't really know what we're made of. I do know that humans are made of something more solid then clouds."
Now that Isaac mentioned it, he does look a lot more solid then a typical cloud folk. His skin also seems to be a different color then cloud folk skin.
"And where is here?" asked Mary, noticing Isaac was rather handsome for being so solid.
"Where else could it be?" asked another voice. They turned to see a dark twin of Isaac, wearing black armor and with seemingly darker hair. But he didn't seem to be particularly evil or even malevolent. Strangely enough, he seems to be transparent and not really solid. Like a cloud ghost from her children's books from when she was younger.
"So you're Dark Isaac?" asked Mary.
Dark Isaac bowed and said, "That I am. And I welcome you to Isaac's messed-up minds cape."
"Why are your transparent? You looked a lot more solid the last time I saw you." Isaac asked.
"Ah, but this is all just a perception of your mind. If you see me as a ghost, then there's probably a reason for it." Dark Isaac replied with a knowing smile.
"How is this my mind?" asked Isaac. He recalled his mind scape looking like a black void before.
"It's a basic construction that was formed for our guest's comprehension," said Dark Isaac. He gestured to the circular path they are currently on. "This represents the Ring of Purity, where all your uncorrupted thoughts and higher thinking still resides." He pointed down the dark pit where creatures squirmed out of sight. "Down there is your body and all the filth you've picked up, including the many souls you've captured."
Isaac looked down at the pit with nervousness. "Ilivir isn't down there, is he?" asked Isaac.
"No, I think he's sulking around somewhere up here," said Dark Isaac, "I ought to go find him later."
"How could we not see him?" asked Mary, "There aren't exactly that many places to hide." She gestured towards the relatively-confined path and the open air around them.
"This is a mental landscape. Perception isn't always true here," said Dark Isaac.
Mary looked down into the pit and asked, "How many souls are down there?"
"I have a lexicon that shows my, er, progress on this quest," said Isaac. At least he thinks the lexicon records his progress. He used to have a traveler's journal that he kept around at all times but it was lost when that ice ghoul destroyed his master paladin armor and his belongings back at the crypt. Not even his flask survived getting frozen and shattered. Good thing Mary bought him a new one back when they were in her village.
Just then, there was a keening wail coming from the pit. Dark Isaac looked down it and raised an eyebrow. "This is interesting. Apparently there are a pair of souls trying to crawl up here. It seems that they want to speak with us," he said.
"There are?" asked Isaac, looking down with both dread and curiosity.
A large pulley-operated crane appeared at the edge of the path with a long rope reaching down into the pit. Dark Isaac walked over and started operating the pulley, bringing the rope up. "Again, this is the mindscape," he said, "This is more for visual aid than to be taken literally."
Eventually, the end of the rope was brought up into view and it was tied to the top of a cage. Inside the cage were two women, or woman-like creatures. Isaac recognized them immediately. They were Rieletta the succubus and Sera the tainted witch, two of the first souls he has absorbed after venturing into the crypt.
"It's about time," said Rieletta, "I thought we'd never be out of there."
"I was starting to think we've been forgotten," said Sera.
"I haven't forgotten you," said Isaac darkly, "I remember what you did to me."
"We didn't get to do anything to you," Rieletta corrected, "You absorbed us before Landreust and Xadrion were even finished with you. That was pretty inconsiderate."
"Inconsiderate? You were going to rape me!" snapped Isaac.
"I suppose you prefer your partners being boys then," said Rieletta with a sneer.
Isaac's face went quite red at that. "I...I don't know what you're talking about," he said.
"Oh drop the act," said Sera, "Ever since you've started absorbing others, you've been going after males exclusively. And I suppose you'd blame the corruption or wanting to keep your dominance and 'identity' rather than admit you're gay."
"Well, he can't be completely gay," said Rieletta, "He's definitely feeling some lust towards Mary, even if she is just a cloud."
Isaac felt like his embarrassment was going to make him sink through the floor and he didn't dare look at Mary. "How do you know any of this?"
Rieletta flashed a sly grin. "You think we would be shut away from the world after assimilated us? Fat chance. All of us share the same body. That also means we hear, smell, see, taste and feel everything you do."
Isaac had no idea. He kinda feels bad for that. He basically took away their bodies and forced them to watch as someone else controls the body they inhabit. It's a similar fate to losing your identity. Hearing this makes him even more determined to find a way to give back their bodies and their lives. Even if their not human, it's not his place to take away their independence. But that still begs the question. Why did they want to speak with him?
"Is there a reason you called or did you just want to embarrass me in front of my traveling companion?" he asked through gritted teeth.
"Actually, we didn't call for you, we called for her," said Sera, pointing at Mary.
"Me?" asked Mary.
"You see child, we're pretty much the only women down there," said Sera, pointing at the pit, "There are far too many males down there. It's a real sausage fest."
"Granted, it was pretty enjoyable at first, but even a succubus can feel stifled from so much masculinity," said Rieletta.
"And what do you expect me do about it?" asked Mary.
"It's quite simple. You're wearing the Red Cuffs, otherwise you wouldn't be here," said Sera, gesturing at the mental landscape.
"What do you know about the Red Cuffs?" asked Mary.
"I am a witch, I know about magical artifacts, especially the more notable ones," said Sera, "The point is that the Red Cuffs allow transfers between the people bound by them. Of pretty much anything, really."
"What we're saying is that we want to jump ships. Trade over. Join your side," said Rieletta.
"They can't do that. Can they?" asked Isaac.
Dark Isaac shrugged. "I don't know more about the Red Cuffs than you do. It could work. It would be two less souls to carry around and less corruption to deal with," he said.
"And shove them onto Mary? I can't ask her to do that," said Isaac.
"And why would I want to have them?" asked Mary.
Rieletta gave a seductive grin and said, "Because it would give you power. With me enhancing your body, you'll have power over men. They'll find it very hard to resist your charms. The Cloud King's soldiers won't be able stand in your way."
"And with me enhancing your mind, you'll be able to tap into magic," said Sera, "You think your friend is the only one capable? You can learn more and do more than she's able to gain in a year."
"Anyways, don't you want to help your paladin lighten his load?" asked Rieletta, "Surely you can bear two souls compared to his several ones."
"The two of us leaving his body wouldn't even drain his strength," said Sera, "He doesn't even use our power. It will benefit everyone."
"Mary, I don't think it's a good idea," said Isaac, "They were planning to do...very wicked things with me when their male companions were done. I don't think it would be good for you to let them into you."
Mary thought it over. She wasn't sure if she could trust the succubus and the witch, but they made rather convincing arguments. If they were going to stop the Cloud King, she couldn't just rely on Isaac being their only powerhouse. She wasn't particularly helpful at the moment, bound to Isaac like she was. But was it worth opening herself to corruption? According to Isaac, corruption is not a good thing right?
Isaac stepped in between Mary and the two female souls.
"No." He said sternly.
"Ahhh, come on. Why hog all the power to yourself when you don't even want to use it?" Rieletta whined.
Isaac looked absolute. "Because I know what it's like to use the power of corruption. I can be very beneficial to the user but can bring sorrow and tragedy to others. The corruption in my body grants me strength that I will use for my quest. But I also used my body to take away your bodies and your freedom. Now that I'm aware of the sins I committed, I deeply apologize for your lost. I will do everything in my power to return your freedom and bodies."
"Aww, that's sweet of you. But your concern doesn't really solve the problem now does it?" Rieletta retorted.
"That's right! Besides, we were asking Mary to be our host. Not you! Now let the girl speak for herself!" Sera added.
Isaac turned towards Mary. "These souls may grant you power, but the power of corruption can bring misery. What if the corruption consumes you and irreversibly change you in mind and body? You don't have the ring of purity to protect your mind. And even if the red cuffs allows the ring of purity's protection to extend to you, imagine what your corrupt powers could do the others. What if you do something irreversible to someone else? No mater what, someone has to pay the price for your actions. I know that from experience."
Isaac gently grabbed Mary by the shoulders. "No one is fully capable of resisting the corruption. Not even you. If I haven't found the ring of purity, I would have succumbed to the corruption long ago. Judging from what I seen so far, you're strong willed enough to resist the corruption for awhile. But just like me, you have your limits. Without the ring's power, you will eventually fall to it. Just like I would have without the ring." Isaac answered honestly.
"I didn't choose to have the corruption change my body. To make me stronger. I’d much rather stay as my original self. I did not want to change species. I did not have a choice. But you do. You have a choice to take in the corruption... Will you take the risks? Will you take responsibilities for your actions? Do you really want to share my fate and potentially never be a cloud folk again? You could lose your humanity. Do you really want to risk losing your mind, body or both?" Isaac let go of Mary's shoulders.
Mary stared calmly into Isaac's eyes and nodded in acceptance. She felt touched by Isaac's concern. She can tell that his speech came from his heart.
Just like Rieletta's and Sera's argument, Isaac's argument is also really sound. Does she really want to endure the risks if she could just avoid them?... But then again, everything has a risk. There is a cause and effect to everything. But... he made a good point. She might become something else and never be able to become a cloud folk again. Does she really want to risk permanent change for herself and possibly permanently change others? Is she willing to take responsibility for the possible suffering she could cause?
Mary turned towards Rieletta and Sera. "Thank you for your offer, but this is all a little too sudden. I really need time to consider it. Is that okay?" She asked politely.
Rieletta had a knowing grin on her face when she gave a nonchalant shrug. "Fine by me. But don't take too long, or we might have to jump ships without your permission."
Sera nodded in agreement. "Sure."
Mary nodded back. "I'll let you know my decision when I'm ready."
Rieletta pointed towards Isaac. "Don't be like that guy over there and take forever to be 'ready'."
Mary nodded again. "I'll give my answer at a reasonable time."
Isaac turned towards Dark Isaac. "So what do we do with them now? Do we send them back down the pit?"
Rieletta was quick to respond. "Heck no! We already spent enough time in that sausage fest! We want a change in scenery! Let us stay up here until Mary makes her decision!"
"Can they stay here?" Isaac asked Dark Isaac.
Dark Isaac returned a shrug. "That's up to you. YOU are supposed to be captain of this ship. Take responsibility for once. But if you want my opinion, they're here now. I can't see why they shouldn't stay. I don't really see any Besides, having a female voice in your head might teach you something."
Isaac choose to ignore that moment.
"So how is Mary suppose to leave this place?" He asked Dark Isaac.
"This is all pretty new to me too. But if I had to guess, it should probably be as simple as Mary letting go of the Halo." Dark Isaac explained.
"I'm still holding on to the halo?" Mary asked in surprised.
"You'll be surprised by what you do when you're asleep. Just take a look at Mr. Paladin over there. He’d been holding a hand mirror in front of his face in his sleep and he hadn't even realized it." Dark Isaac pointed to Isaac.
Mary considered Dark Isaac's words.
She closed and eyes and concentrated.
It took a moment, but Mary could feel her body still holding the halo.
"So I just need to let go of the halo?" Mary asked Dark Isaac.
"Why is everyone asking me these questions? This is a first time experience for me too. But it would make sense if it does work." Dark Isaac clarified.
Mary nodded in understanding with her eyes still closed.
"See you in the real world." She said to Isaac.
Isaac nodded. "See you there."
Mary opened her eyes.
==========
Upon opening her eyes, she was no longer surrounded by the souls in the Halo of Purity. Instead, she is holding the halo in her hands with Isaac standing in front of her.
Mary was breathless by what she just experienced.
"Isaac... I need to make a apology." Mary looked towards Isaac with determination.
Isaac looked somewhatI puzzled.. "What for?"
"For not trusting you. Ever since I gained the ability to hear your thoughts, I've been hearing things you didn't want to tell me physically. At first, I felt somewhat betrayed. You came across to me as someone who always tell the truth. Even if it's something less then savory. I trusted you. But to find out you've been keeping secrets from me annoyed more than it should. And that's because the more I find out about you, the more I realize how similar you are to me. And that frustrates me. Seeing my own flaws inside you makes me feel like I'm seeing a mirror at times. But now that I seen a glimpse of the dangers you face in your world and in your own body, I feel that you are justified for not being ready to share everything with me. I know now that it's okay for people other then myself to have dangerous information they don't feel ready to share. There's no need to rush. We'll tell each other our dangerous infor-... Our secrets when we feel ready. Though keeping information from each other might prove difficult with these cuffs forcing me to intrude on your thoughts. Like I said before... You're still you." Mary expressed.
Isaac was surprised by Mary's speech.
"I'm glad you accept me for who I am. But unfortunately, it's natural to judge someone by their appearance. This body might be permanent. I might never be human again... My people may not accept me any longer. Even if I do succeed in my quest, I feel as though I have no were to go back to." Sadness clouded Isaac's eyes.
"You may be different... but you are still a living being with emotions... with guilt. Emotions is what defines life. And no matter the size or the variance, a living being is still capable of potential... and potential equals value. I see you as a living being just like anyone else, and if your people doesn't value you, then you are very welcome in my village. I... once choose not to return to my home... and I had nowhere to go... That was when the elder accepted me into the village. .. And if he can accept me as a living being, then he can accept you as a being of value as well." Mary honestly said."..I accept you no matter if you have voices in your head, what has happened in the past or how impossible your body is... Your soul is what maters and you shouldn't be afraid of that. You shouldn't be afraid of yourself and you most defiantly not need to be afraid of me. We are in this mess together. Don't be afraid to reveal anything to me... But take your time... you don't need to reveal everything to me if your’re not ready... To be honest, I'm not ready to reveal everything about myself either... Let us take our time and focus on what we are willing to do now... like finding Slar." Mary explained.
The smile on Isaac's face was hardly noticeable but no less genuine."...Thank you."
Isaac felt a weight lift from his shoulders when he heard Mary's kind words.
“Awww. The two love birds realized that they are not the centers of the world. How sweet.” A voice taunted
Isaac went into his battle stance.
“Who are you!” Isaac demanded.
“How rude!” The voice huffed. “We just spoke a few minutes ago. How could you possible forget my voice!”
“Rieletta….?” Mary voiced.
“Still here! And Sera too!” Rieletta answered. “Hi!” Sera chipped in.
“How are you speaking to us?” Isaac asked aloud.
“Did you forget already? We’re in the Halo now. The very same holo that carries your soul. We’re close enough to speak with your soul directly. That means we’re soul mates now! And thanks to those red cuffs, Mary can communicate with us too!”
“Like it or not, we’re along for the ride! It’s been forever wince we got to chatt with another from the fairer sex, and we’ll take full advantage of it!” Rieletta assured.
Isaac liked it better when Dark Isaac and Ilivir were the chatty ones.
"With all the aside, we must hurry and hurry down this tunnel if we are going to catch up with Slar." Mary changed the subject as she looked down at the magic map in her hands.
“Hey! Don’t ignore us!” Rieletta demanded.
If they did hear her, they didn’t answered. With all their current burdens finally out in the open, the two lone travelers walked down the dark tunnel, completely oblivious to the fact that they are holding hands.
...
How long is this tunnel going to go on?
Slar has been walking through this dark hidden tunnel for what feels like a month! It's been a straight hallway made of bricks and the occasional turn. When is he going to reach the end of this passageway? This better not be a dead end! There better be something worth it at the end of this tunnel! This better not be a waste of time!
The lone part-time mercenary and full time writer's agonizing wait came to a end when he found a door at the end of the tunnel.
Slar slammed open the door and inhaled the fresh air on the other side. Except that the fresh air was filled with chemicals and who knows what else.
Slar quickly covered his nose as he saw that he's currently in what looks to be a mix between a laboratory and a workshop. Wait a minute, aren't laboratories and workshops the same thing? But then again, this place looked just like a mad scientist laboratory from science fiction novels. Questionable liquids, test tubes everywhere, experiments that scream 'DO NOT TOUCH', disembodied organs, magical relics of unknown function. Not to mention all the machinery. Yep, he's in a Mad Scientist's laboratory out of a science fiction novel.
Star was somewhat amazed by the somewhat fantastical room he found himself in. He wondered what kind of treasures could be hidden here.
Just in case, he readied his material shot gun in case something tries to attack him. If those science fiction novels taught him anything, it is that there is most likely a monster created by the mad scientist lurking about. Sure, finding something from fiction in real life might be a little far fetched, but judging by all the impossible stuff relics he has seen in this mansion so far, it's not farfetched for some kind of impossible creature to be living here as well. After all, he already seen one of this mansion's residents take Mary prisoner, and it doesn't look like it was made of clouds at all. But that does begs the question... is Mary alright? He was so sure of the kid's ability to defend herself when he ran awa-... when he trusted her to defend herself. But man, just thinking about her just makes this mission all the more urgent. Just his luck that he happen to find her here of all places... Geez, to think that this mission would actually get more complicated.
Even though his mission is to find a weapon to fight dragons, the mansion mission is really just a low priority mission. The Boss would be satisfied if he had just looked inside the windows from the outside. There's no guarantee that Slar will find anything useful in this place. But Slar decided to investigate anyways on the off chance that there is something of worth. Besides, he was curious. The mansion in the middle of the woods has been a mystery for years and to finally get a chance to explore it is a opportunity for actual adventure the he couldn't resist at least checking.
That brings him to his current moment. As Slar explored the strange laboratory/workshop, he noticed the aspect of this place that defines it as a 'workshop'. Most curiously of all, there are gems stones everywhere. Despite all the things that just screamed mad scientist laboratory, there are a bunch of tables and counters filled with gem stones and tools scattered about. Not to mention the household items scattered about on the same tables as the gem stones. Some of the the objects had gems stones attached to them. A hour glass with a grey gems fixed on the middle where the powder should fall through. A blazing gem attached to a crown. Yet, there were also lot of ordinary and more normal objects scattered about as well. Like a shirt that has holes for three heads and six arms with a gem stone fixated on the center collar. It's stuff like that that help gives the room a 'Workshop' feel alongside the 'laboratory' feel Slar already got from the questionable potions and test tubes scattered about. But just like the other relics Slar passed up, Slar didn't make any move to grab anything. He didn't want to trigger any traps in this crazy place.
Yet... there's one gem in particular that caught Slar's attention.
Sitting on a counter was a snow crystal floating suspended in the air inside a small jar with a cork on it. The jar was small enough to fit in someone's palm. What's more, there's a chain hanging off the jar so it can be worn as a neckless.
Slar doesn't want to risk any traps... but... why not. It'll be a waste if he doesn't take at least one gem with him.
Picking up the jar, he placed around his neck.
He lifted up the jar the marvel at the crystal floating inside it.
He jiggled by the string to see if the crystal would bump into the walls of the jar.
It didn't.
How does it keep floating in the center of the jar like that?
While Slar was gazing into the small jar, he noticed something in his line of sight.
Ahead of him was some kind of strange device. Slar came closer. It looks like some kind of vehicle. He's not really sure what it does or how it woks, but judging by how much harder it looks compered to cloud material and how it's reflecting light, he can only assume that it's from the material plane.
Out of curiosity, Slar mounted the strange vehicle. He's got to say that the seat is firm but comfy. That was when he noticed some kind of key lodged in the side. Not really thinking, he turned it.
*RRAAAARRRRR!!!!!*
The strange machine purred to life. Slar subconsciously smiled as he felt the vibrations of the engine. But he quickly turned the key back. The vehicle became lifeless again.
Star got off the strange machine. He knows he should leave it alone... but he kinda likes it. He decided to take it with him.
*Slar obtains a motorcycle!*
Not feeling like turning it on again, he decided to just roll the strange two-wheeled viecle on it's wheels as he walks.
Getting his hands on a pretty gem and a strange machine with wheels is nice and all, but he really needs to finds something, anything that can help in a fight with air dragons. He's already taken a risk by taking this extra stuff.
That was when he noticed another strange device somewhat hidden in the corner. It was another material machine attached to a bag on one end and some kind of tube on the other end.
Out of naive curiosity, Slar pushed a button on the machine.
The next thing he knew, The machine was pushing him back as the force of gem stones, test tubes filled with who knows what and all kinds of other objects were getting sucked in the tube into the machine and from there, into the bag! It doesn't mater how large the object was, they all fit in the bag!
In a panic, Slar pushed the button on the machine again. The suction imeadiely stoped, but that didn't stop the debris already flying towards Slar.
*SPLASH!* *CRASH!*
In stead of going into the impossible vacuum tube, the remain debris crashed into Slar. It seems the machine has to be on in order for it to impossibly suck in objects large or small through it's small cone-shaped tube head.
"Ughhh." Slar groaned.
In a tut of annoyance, he brushed off the physical debris. Namely broken glass and lab equipment. But he can do nothing about the strange substances soaking his cloths and vapor composed body. He was hit by a decent amount of different colors of potions, so he is now in a somewhat rainbow color. Though most of the parts of his body was covered in a blue hue. He sure hope this isn't permanent.
But what he was hit with was small compared to all the other stuff the vacuum sucked up. But were did it all go? That was enough stuff to fill a ursula (cloud bear)! Don't tell him that it all when in the bag. The bag attached to the vacuum doesn't even look full!
Slar detached the bag from the machine and looked inside the bag.
What he saw astonished him. Inside the bag was a void with the captured objects floating harmlessly inside.
Star reattached the bag to the vacuum.
A bottomless vacuum huh... It's not exactly what he expected but it's close enough. This should come in handy if he ever has to fight air dragons! Hopefully, air dragons can't break through a endless void...
For the sake of convenience, Slar sucked the strange vehicle (the motor cycle) into the vacuum pocket and took the vacuum with him. Luckily, the hand vacuum is pretty small. Small enough to be held by one hand. The bag may also be small, but it's pretty obvious that is magical. Once that whole thing blows over, Slar is going to use this bottomless bag to carry his stuff!
Man, walking around this laboratory is like walking through a market place. It make you want to get the next thing you see.
But alas, he probably shouldn't get greedy in a creepy place like this. He got what somewhat fits his job description, to find a weapon to fight dragons. He should probably leave this place...
...This was way too easy. In adventure stories, there's always some kind of trap or guardian protecting the treasure. Yet he was able to walk in and grab whatever he wants without any consequences. He didn't even get his memories wiped just like in the rumors... But then again, monsters protecting out-of-place objects are not really realistic. This ain't some stereotypical fiction! This is real life!... He should be happy that he might be able to leave this place with all these cool new toys without any pursuers on his tail! Real life is just that unpredictable. Sometimes, it gives you a freebie...
...yet... Just before he could start leaving, he noticed a strangely interesting, yet empty book pedestal conveniently sitting out in the open. Now what used to be on that pedestal? Intuition is telling him that it must have been something important.
Oh well.
If it's not there, then he can't steal it. Now to get out of this crazy place.
But as Slar was about to leave... he felt a presence behind him...
-----------------
Note: For those who are wondering the real life equivalents to the cloud guns:
Cloud Razors: Hand Guns
Cloud Hammers: Long Range Rifles
Mist Scatterers: Shot Guns
Special thanks goes to AccentedName and Alphagor (in that order) for revising and editing this chapter. Really guys. That was a huge load of stress off my back. Thank you so much!
And another special thanks goes to dragontransformation for world building ideas regarding the cloud guns and the Elf Lords. Your creative ideas really helped shape the paladin universe!
This chapter is just a sneak peek of what's to come. So look forward to seeing more sometime in the future!