Book 3, chapter 16

Zee stood on the edge of a murky creek, corpses, blood, and smoking bushes around her. She faced the far bank, cupping her hands around her mouth.

"Bastion! How is Yukna?" Zee shouted. Bastion cautiously peered out from behind the smoking, arrow-riddled tree, his expression concerned.

"I got the arrow out and gave her a healing pill. It came out fine, but the wound is already festering, I think the arrows are poisoned!" Bastion shouted, his deep voice carrying across the wide creek.

"Keep watch! I will see if I can find any antidote on the bodies." Zee shouted back, whirling in the mud.

With Dern's help, she quickly set to scavenging the dead, anxious for her friend. Any distaste for robbing a corpse was pushed aside at the thought of Yukna being injured.

What kind of lizard-loving jerks used poison on their arrows? Turns out, all of them did. Their arrow tips and even swords smelled foul, reeking like they were dipped in excrement.

After that realization, she no longer felt bad about Dern killing those three who tried to escape.

No, these creatures, whatever they were, were asking for it. If they didn't want to be killed and robbed, they shouldn't have attacked Ilukna.

Speaking of which, she needed to hurry. A quick search of the bodies didn't reveal much. They all had packs, stuffed with basic necessities, like food and water.

Only two of them, on two members of the group who tried to flee. Dern savage execution of the fleeing lizard men left the potion cases a smashed mess. Zee found their hard leather cases, opening them, only to be disappointed. All she found was shattered glass, the contents spilling to mix with the mud and blood staining the forest floor.

Zee was no expert when it came to antidotes, but she did have a good sense for concoctions. As much as she tried to avoid it, she was the daughter of a prestigious alchemist clan. That was how she knew that the five shattered glass containers still in their case were the real deal.

Sadly, the only glass vial that remained unbroken was a mid f rank healing concoction. It was a valuable item, even if it wouldn't help with their current problem. She tucked it away In her spatial storage, along with a surprisingly light pouch of Dara.

The small bipedal lizard people had been surprisingly poor, which was probably why they were attacking Ilukna.

Zee left their weapons and armor to rust, not wanting to accidentally poison herself by touching them. She wasn't losing much by leaving them, as they were low quality, not to mention tainted by poison.

After ransacking the dead, she dismissed Dern and crossed the wide shallow creek in a puff of mist. Reappearing on the far side of the creek she clambered up the steep, root-infested muddy bank. Zee found Bastion crouching next to Yukna behind the arrow-riddled tree.

Yukna sat on the leaf-strewn dirt, propped up against the base of a thick tree. She looked pale, the left half of her chest covered in tainted black and red blood.

"Did you find an antidote?" Bastion asked, worry crossing his handsome face.

Zee knelt down beside him, reaching into her spatial storage and pulling out a vial of brackish brown liquid.

"I found them, but I have bad news. The vials carrying the antidote were broken in the fight. We will have to hope this all-purpose antidote works." Zee said, gesturing to the concoction she extorted off duke Drakus.

"Did you get the people who attacked me?" Yukna asked, blinking rapidly, her eyes unfocused.

"Ya, Dern and I got them all," Zee said coldly.

"Good, those assholes deserved a gruesome end. Can you believe it? They just attacked me for no reason?" Yukna asked baffled.

"Yes, I can believe it. Most people are assholes. Now, stop jabbering and drink this." Zee ordered.

She uncorked the vial of all-purpose antidote and put it to the very groggy Yukna's lips.

The woman coughed and sputtered, half of the liquid ending on her shirt. "Don't spit it out! Peak F-grade concoctions don't grow on trees you know." Zee said.

Yukna gagged, leaning away as Zee pulled out a second concoction. "One is more than enough, that tastes like lizard shit," Yukna said, blanching and spitting to one side to get the taste off her tongue.

Zee glanced over at Bastion, ignoring Yukna's statement. "Did you give her a healing pill already?" Zee asked.

"Ya, right after I pulled out that arrow," Bastion said.

"Are you sure you gave her the right one? She looks like she is high." Zee asked, as Ilukna groggily reached up and ran a hand through Zee's silky red hair.

Bastion laughed nervously. "Yep, I definitely gave her the right one. I left all of my drugged concoctions back on Iztara." Bastion said.

Zee looked into Yukna's wide deep brown eyes, her stomach clenching. The woman was looking more delirious by the second, despite taking both an antidote and healing concoction.

That made what she had to do next even harder. She wanted to stay here and let the woman recover, but Zee was worried. Their fight hadn't exactly been subtle. She was worried they might get unexpected company if they stayed here.

It would be risky to move Yukna, but that was a risk she would have to take. Decision made, she stood. "Help me get her on my back, we need to get out of here before anyone else shows up," Zee said.

Bastion nodded in agreement. But instead of helping her, he leaned down and easily slung Yukna across his shoulders.

"I got her, you can be on watch," Bastion said, giving her a cheeky smile. Zee would have normally argued, but they didn't have the time for that.

Lying atop Bastion's shoulders like a sack of wheat, Yukna looked up.

"Don't forget my grenade launcher," Yukna said, her arm flopping around as she pointed towards the grenade launcher lying a dozen feet away.

Zee rushed over and leaned down, hefting the weapon. It was surprisingly light, with the butt and stock of a crossbow. That was where it turned bizarre.

It had no bow limbs or string, instead, it had a thick short metal tube covered in etchings. She had no idea how it worked, but after watching it in action, she was impressed.

Those projectiles it fired were incredibly destructive. Not wanting to accidentally set this thing off she tossed it into her spatial storage. It should be fine in there, hopefully.

She quickly scanned the thick brambles and small bushes one final time, to make sure she didn't miss anything. Nothing stood out, so Zee turned to leave.

Burdened by their poisoned and delirious passenger, they moved through the forest at a slow but constant pace. Zee ranged around Bastion, careful of ambush, as they pushed further away from the site of the battle.

After an hour of pushing through the dense jungle, they were forced to stop, as Ilukna wasn't looking so well. Zee wanted to continue for a few more hours, towards the two signals broadcasting on her tracking crystal. One glance at Yukna's pale face was enough to push aside that thought.

She wanted to regroup with the team but knew they couldn't keep going. Any more jostling was risking making Ilukna's injuries get worse.

They stopped, and set up shelter in a dense grove, using the thick foliage as cover.

Zee was no expert at medicine but she pulled aside the wrapping on Yukna's shoulder anyway. Yukna lay on her back on a soft blanket, using a small root as a pillow.

Zee knelt beside her while Bastion stood to watch. She cringed as the sight of the puncture wound was revealed. The wound had already closed, but the skin was a sickly black, lines of rot spreading from the entry point.

It looked ghastly, with small tendrils of rot spreading outward. Aghast, she stared down at the lines of rot, getting a sense of spirituality from the poison. That was not a good thing at all.

What sort of lunatics used spiritual poison? From personal experience, Zee was well aware of how hard that kind of thing was to get rid of.

After all, she used something just like it. Spirit echo's second effect, spiritual decay felt very similar. Zee cautiously reached out to touch Yukna's rotting skin. Just before touching the jagged black lines of rot, she recoiled, her heart skipping a beat.

"That bad?" Yukna asked, her voice soft and weak.

She nodded. "Something is wrong, the flesh is healed, but the poison is still there. I think it might be spiritual in nature." Zee said, anxious to touch the poisoned area.

Yukna gave her a weak smile. "That doesn't sound so bad," Yukna said.

Zee grimaced, noting how the dark lines were spreading towards Yukna's neck, and her heart. She had a disturbing premonition that if it reached her heart, it would kill her.

"It is really bad, and I don't know what to do," Zee said, feeling useless. A wave of uncertainty filled her mind, coming from Dern's splinter.

"Call me out, I will try to eat the poison," Dern said, hesitantly.

Zee was taken aback by that. "What do you mean, eat it?" Zee asked, both excited and nervous.

Dern sent her a mental shrug. "If it has a spirit or a soul, I can eat it," Dern said. Zee narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"You are not planning on eating her spirit as well, are you? "Zee asked.

Dern sent her a miffed expression. "Don't be insulting. Why would I use such a roundabout method if I wanted to kill and eat her soul." Dern said.

Well, he did have a point. Zee nervously refocused back on Yukna. The woman was incredibly pale, sweating profusely, her eyes fully dilated, her breaths coming weakly.

She really didn't want to go with Dern solution, but she didn't have any other ideas. Neither she nor Bastion knew much about poisons, so she doubted Allison or Greg did either.

Dern's risky solution might be the only viable method. What if there were some side effects like him accidentally injuring Yukna's spirit?

Zee worried at her lip for a long moment, wondering what to do. Allison and Greg were still a good distance away, judging by how weak the signal of the tracking crystals was.

On the other hand, If she didn't do anything Yukna might die from the poison. After a long silence, she spoke, hoping she wasn't making a huge mistake.

"Yukna, Dern says he might be able to help," Zee said hesitantly. Yukna blinked several times, smiling weakly up at her.

"What does he want to do?" Yukna asked, softly.

"He thinks he can eat the poison," Zee said, doubtfully. Yukna let out a soft laugh, looking up at the canopy above.

"Sure, why not. It sounds like a novel experience." Yukna said, her eyes unfocused. The woman seemed too delirious to agree, but it's not like she had much other choice.

Nervous that she might be making a mistake, Zee called out Dern in the palm of her hand. He jumped off, landing softly on Yukna's chest. Letting his glaive turn to mist, he scrambled over the bandoliers on her chest, most filled with small metal canisters.

The small suit of silver violet and blue armor stood on her bare shoulder blade. Dern peered down at the black lines of energy snaking up her neck, worming under the skin like a parasite. He simply stood there for a while, unmoving. Nothing happened for what felt like an eternity, gauntleted fists held in front of himself, palm down.

Then it happened. Silver smoke poured from between the spiked metal plates of his gauntlets, swirling around his metallic body. Like a dam bursting, Dern's aura spiked, a sense of dread radiating outward.

His aura was heavy, and made her skin crawl, like she was staring at some sort of Eldridge abomination. It was enough to make both Zee and Yukna freeze, staring at Dern's small form.

How could something so small radiate such a horrifying presence?

"Brace yourself, this is going to hurt. "Dern said, his voice forcing itself into their minds. Yukna nodded, her eyes widening at his proximity, her slender hands clenching her fists. Bright silver energy danced around Dern, condensing into a long slender spear.

It hovered in the air for only a moment roiling wildly before suddenly lancing downwards.

The spear of silver energy pierced Yukna's skin, flooding along the thin black lines of rot underneath. Zee watched on with wide eyes as Yukna yelped in pain, thrashing.

"Hold her down. This flailing isn't helping." Dern ordered, projecting his voice into her head.

Gritting her teeth Zee held Yukna down with her body, as the silvery smoke flooded into the freshly made wound. Zee held her friend down, doubt clawing at her chest.

Yukna thrashed in pain, but she didn't let up. After all, she could see the effect Dern's energy was having. The black lines of rot, seemingly having a mind of their own thrashed underneath the skin, slowly being pursued and devoured by the silvery smoke.

Dern's energy was relentless, tracking down and consuming every spec of the rot away. All the while Yukna thrashed, squeezing Zee's arm soo hard she was worried it might break.

Zee held her friend down until the last of the rot was consumed, the process lasting for what felt like hours. With one final push, she watched the last of that rot get expunged. Dern relaxed his stance and pulled all that silvery energy back. Like a poison-hunting fisherman, Dern tugged on the line of energy, reeling it in. Only now, his pure silvery energy was tinged a sickly black, radiating rot.

Dern didn't pull it back into himself but instead launched the ball of yuck into a nearby bush. Zee could hear a hissing sound and even sense the poison begin to rot a poor tree. All that was left was a thin needle prick that dripped clean red blood.

Dern's efforts left Yukna exhausted, breathing hard, her eyes watering from the pain.

"Are you alright?" Zee asked, releasing her grip on the woman. Yukna collapsed back onto her blanket, sweat dripping down her forehead.

"That was rough," Yukna said, her hands shaking.

"Sorry about that, didn't have much of a choice," Zee said, leaning over the woman to get a good look at her shoulder.

A smile tugged at her lips, as she took in the wound. There was a little bit of blood, but it was red, and the skin was untainted by the rot.

Yukna let out a tired sigh, looking up at her, her eyes much clearer than before. "If you are done leering, mind giving me some space?" Yukna asked.

Zee only then realized she was inside the older woman's personal space, looking at her halfway bare upper chest, far too close for comfort. Flushing, Zee moved back, giving her friend some space.

"Dern, you mind keeping an eye on her while I go scout the area?" Zee asked.

Dern, who was currently about the size of her fist leaped up onto a nearby root. "Sure, it's not I am not doing anything important," Dern said, taking a seat on the root, his glaive reforming in one gauntleted fist.

Zee left the small copse of they were hiding in, eying a particularly large tree that towered above the others. Using her wayward walk skill, she floated up on a low-hanging branch. She didn't stop there, using the second and third steps, teleporting all the way to the top of the massive tree.

Her stomach leaped into her throat as the gloom of the forest floor was suddenly pushed away, replaced by a sea of trees as far as the eye could see. Her eyes flicked upwards, towards the dense, bright yellow clouds covering the sky.

Her eyes widen as something dawned on her. Those were not clouds, that was the toxic smoke that was incredibly pervasive in the dead world.

More curious, she couldn't see the tale tell signs of a star. Maybe the cloud cover was just too intense to reveal the star above. Or, was there even a star lighting this place?

This was a planar space, so all bets were off. Zee scratched the side of her head, uncertain how exactly it worked.

She took a deep breath, the wind rustling her silky red hair. After traipsing through the desert she had sort of gotten used to the taste of burned metal. That was until she got above the canopy, and took a deep breath.

Each breath tingled the back of her throat, tasting metallic, and sour. Zee grimaced, pulling a small pill from her spatial storage. She tossed it into her mouth, swallowing. The pill would protect her from the deadly smoke, but it came with a price that wasn't yet evident.

Every one of the pills had impurities that would build up, a large downside that she knew was necessary. Zee and the others would need to pay for cleansing herbal baths afterward, ridding themselves of the toxins they got from eating the pills.

It was a price she would gladly pay, given all the opportunities reported to be found in planar spaces. Granted, there were some risks, but they all knew that before coming here.

Glancing around to make sure she wasn't being watched, she reached into her spatial storage and brought out a plate-like metal disc. It was deceptively heavy and was covered in dense etchings.

Just holding it gave her the chills, making her wonder if it was more than a mere compass. She hadn't just climbed the tree for some sightseeing, but to get some privacy.

Petrie's threat hung like a guillotine in her mind, filling her with a sense of urgency. She had no idea just what kinds of skills the woman had, or if she could even see inside the planar space.

It was a question that filled her with no small amount of anxiety. Zee stared down at the plate-sized disc, getting a headache from looking at the dense etchings. Holding it she suddenly felt a soft tug, urging her in a specific direction.

Zee cocked her head, in the direction it pointed, deeper into the jungle. The damned compass was urging her to go deeper into the planar space, where the most danger presided.

The thought made her mind wander to her friends, some of who they still were not reconvened with. She was strongly considering telling them, if not the whole team, then at least the princess.

Finding and stealing the heart of the planar space by herself just sounded like a suicide mission. Besides, there was no way Allison would just go along with her and not find out eventually.

That woman was far too perceptive for her own good, and would surely catch Zee. Might as well just be upfront about it, and get some help. She sighed, taking a seat on the swaying branch.

Zee was tired of doing everything on her own. After plenty of near-death experiences, she was hoping the team could help. Zee tucked the sketchy item back in her spatial storage, right next to the second item Petrie had given her.

Even through the spatial storage, her mind recoiled just by looking at it. Whatever it was, it was something profane, meant to steal the heart of the planar space.

Zee didn't even dare take it out, afraid of what might happen. Instead of risking her neck by poking a clearly malicious D-grade item, she pulled out her team's tracking crystal.

It was far less complex than the compass Petrie gave her, but it also didn't make her scared to hold it. Zee turned on her branch, getting a sense of her teammates, who were noticeably closer than a few hours ago.

Based on the fact there was only one, powerful signal, she was assuming they were already teamed up, and moving in her direction. Or, one of them was dead. She was hoping for the first, though she did worry.

It would be just her luck for one of their team to die on the first day. Hours of patiently waiting and keeping an eye on her surroundings left her anxious.

She wasn't able to relax until two harried figures approached the small copse of trees they were hiding in. Both of her teammates looked exhausted, their clothes were torn and even stained with some blood.

They looked like shit, but she couldn't help but smile. She was happy to see them both alive and kicking. Excited, Zee leaped down from her perch atop a branch, turning into mist mid-air. She reappeared right next to Allison, startling the woman.

Allison's sword came out of its scabbard in a flash, the air suddenly as hot as a furnace.

Zee raised her hands. "Hold on there, let's not be hasty," Zee said. Allison glared at her, slamming her sword back into its scabbard.

"You really shouldn't scare me like that. I might accidentally run you through." Allison glowered.

Zee laughed. "Don't be like that, just having a little fun," She said.

Allison let out a tired breath, running her hand down her face. "I don't have the energy for you today. Where is the camp, I need a break." Allison said.

Zee eyed the women's torn, blood-stained robes curiously. "What happened to you two? It looks like you fell into a pit of angry lizards." Zee asked.

Allison grimaced at that, glancing back at Greg. "Greg accidentally pissed off a herd of angry deer. Turns out, those little horny assholes were extremely vicious." Allison said.

Greg held up a plump bird covered in dark brown plumage. It "What? I think it was worth it. How was I supposed to know shooting this bird off the deer's back would piss off the whole herd. I thought they would run away." Greg said defensively.

Zee cocked her head at the unmoving bird. " What kind of bird is that?" Zee asked.

"It's a willow grouse. Do you know how rare and delicious these things are?" Greg asked.

"No, I don't. Are you willing to share?" Zee asked.

"Of course, come on, help me pluck it. We can have it for dinner." Greg said.

Zee walked over to the large Armenian, already forgetting Allison's grievances. The princess simply shook her head, before walking away.

"Why is everyone I hang out with a lunatic?" Allison muttered.

Zee and Greg were already discussing the finer points of how to properly pluck a grouse when Allison paused. "Where is Yukna," Allison asked.

Zee looked up from the grouse, holding a handful of soft feathers in one hand. She gestures towards the copse of trees behind her.

"Yukna is over there. Keep walking straight for a minute and you will find her. She is sleeping off Dern's attempt to eat poison she got from an arrow wound to her shoulder," Zee said casually.