EPISODE THIRTY-THREE:

A CONVERSATION WITH MYSELF

"Their Danger Sense will alert them before the Scalebacks get close, right?" Vash said to himself, trying to shake off the feeling of dread. Through his Dungeon Sense, Vash saw the Scalebacks organizing themselves into three groups of four. The largest bull, a hulking, scarred creature with one cloudy, blind eye, laid out instructions to the other hunters. Vash couldn't understand the words, but he was an Eth Mitaan, a servant of Kyrinos, Lord of Hunts and Hunters, and the leader's intention was clear. The hunters would keep their distance, track the Wayfarers, and when they came to a suitable ambush location, they would spring their trap.

They're in trouble.

"But Jabez is a Master Wayfarer, a seasoned adventurer with a magic hammer." Vash said, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his gut.

He's wounded, badly enough that Corwin is dragging him up the side of those rock faces.

"Corwin has become a damn good fighter."

They're outnumbered six to one.

"I'm hours behind them and on the wrong side of the river. What can I do?" Vash snarled, annoyed that his own conscience was getting so loud.

I don't know, what CAN you do?

Vash hesitated, realizing that he wasn't sure what exactly he could do with his new Talent. Using mana had allowed him to use it at a greater distance and with specific intent. The layering trick that he had used back at the Guild Lodge, during the Gauntlet, had opened up new options for him to use and combine his Talents.

"Let's think this through." Vash said, opening his eyes and looking around. He still maintained his connection to the Dungeon Sense vision, making his head swim slightly as he tried to process the images that his normal sight was giving him, and the ones from his Dungeon Sense. It was like seeing double, and Vash took a few moments to adjust.

"All right, hold the vision in your head. Maybe think of it like a memory rather than something you're actually seeing." Vash told himself, fighting against the feeling of vertigo.

Slowly, Vash pushed the vision into the background, into his thoughts rather than his eyes. He could still 'see' the vision, but it no longer sent waves of dizziness through him. For now, he was steady.

"That's a good first step." Vash said, keeping up the self-encouragement.

No one else is going to do it down here.

"Next, let's see if we can keep our connection while not knuckle-deep in mud," Vash said, slowly pulling his fingers back out of the soft black mud of the riverbank. As he withdrew his fingers, he felt his hold on the Dungeon Sense get more tenuous. The vision in his head started to fade and lose detail. "Contact seems to be necessary for this kind of connection."

Is it? Or is it simply a matter of focus?

"I am fucking focused!" Vash snapped.

Not focused, like concentration, focus like where in your body you are centering the connection. Does the connection NEED to be in your hand or can you shift it elsewhere, like your feet?

"That's a good question." Vash said, considering the thought. In the same way he had shifted the focus of his Dungeon Sense vision, he moved his awareness of the connection point away from the tips of his fingers.

Slowly, the connection moved up his fingers and coalesced in his palm, which was resting on the damp sandy soil.

Now the tricky part.

Rather than shifting the awareness all along his body, which would mean pressing his whole body into the mud, Vash focused a second point of awareness on the ball of his right foot. Piece by piece, the connection drifted through the ground to Vash's foot. It was a taxing process, very much like learning to tap into his Core the first time. He was having to split his awareness and focus into several parts in order to maintain the link.

After several tense moments, Vash felt the connection solidify in his foot. It was an interesting feeling. He felt more grounded, more aware of where he was and what was around him.

Maybe a different focus does different things?

He carefully lifted his fingers from the ground, but still maintained the connection. Standing upright, Vash rocked slightly, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. It took a little practice, but soon he was shifting the link from foot to foot, smoothly maintaining the connection while lifting each foot a bare inch above the ground and then setting it back down again.

"I can walk, that's good." Vash said, slowly walking to the north, following the river again. Even though he had stretched his awareness using Dungeon Sense, he really couldn't affect anything close to Corwin and Jabez. He had to catch up to them.

Maintaining the connection was tricky at first. Vash kept his mind focused on shifting the link from foot to foot as he trudged along the river. He got the hang of it before long. Within an hour, he was effortlessly keeping the link while moving at a decent pace.

It's just a rhythm, like breathing.

As he walked, he checked in on the Scalebacks and the Wayfarers. Corwin and Jabez had passed through the worst of the vertical climb, and were now passing over a plateau that stretched from the river's edge and disappeared into the murky distance of the cavern. The same pale grasses that Vash was passing through carpeted the plateau growing to just above Corwin's knee.

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"An open area." Vash breathed. "The Scalebacks will want someplace with less visibility for their ambush."

With Corwin and Jabez 'safe' for the moment, Vash could concentrate on what he might actually do to help them.

"I doubt I can just shout warnings across the river." Vash said, glancing over at the dark water on his right. His Dungeon Sense told him that the opposite bank was only about a hundred yards from where he stood, but it also told him that the river was teeming with creatures like the Hammerworms, and worse. The shadow essence of the Underlands could create some genuine horrors.

A good thing that only a fraction of them ever make it to the lands above.

Vash nodded in agreement. It was one thing to be told of the dangers of the shadow, to have someone preach about it on Temple Day. But it was completely different to experience those dangers for yourself.

"No wonder Wayfarers always seem so grouchy." Vash said, idly wondering if he would end up that way if he continued along this path.

Perhaps, but you're only here because Iona and Byar need you for something within the Wayfarers. You're not going to make this a career.

"True, this is only short term…" Vash began, then trailed off. "Wait, am I talking to myself and answering?"

I was wondering when you'd notice.

Vash stopped, feeling cold dread grip him. He remembered the old temple, the vision of the king who placed the soulstone upon his forehead and the demonic eye that lodged there afterwards. When he woke up, the soulstone was nowhere to be seen.

Don't over-think this. The voice in his head said. As it did so, the tone changed. Before, it had been using a voice similar to his own. Now it shifted to a woman's voice, a pleasant alto with just a hint of huskiness. I'm no demon, no matter what old Telemachus thought.

"Then what are you?" Vash asked, cautiously.

That is a very long story. The voice sighed, sounding endlessly weary. One we don't really have time for at the moment. Just know that I'm very similar to you in most of the ways that count. I am a soul and I was trapped in that construct. I ended up in the hands of a jackass named Telemachus Mardu, a sorcerer who thought to make a kingdom for himself down here. You saw how that turned out.

Vash said nothing, too stunned to truly process what was happening. "Why can I hear you?"

A Therial latticework. The voice said proudly. You absorbed a soulstone. Usually, a sorcerer uses a soulstone to yank your soul out of your body. After pummeling you for a good long while and getting you to the brink of death. You, however, absorbed a soulstone somehow and now have a nice, microscopic lattice of Therium crystals running throughout your Core and your meridians.

"That doesn't help." Vash said, frowning.

Oh gods, there's not much book-learning in here, is there?

"The place I grew up in didn't like part-elves learning too much." Vash said, irritably. "Didn't want dangerous half-breeds running around."

Ugh, I know the types. The voice said, a hint of disgust tinging her tone. Very well, the simple version is this: because you absorbed a crystal designed specifically to link Celestial energy, your soul, and Arcane energy, mana, you now have a very solid link between yourself and anything linked to mana. That's why you've got some new Talents like your Dungeon Sense, and why I could help you out in the tunnels. Then, when you touched my altar, I could "hitch a ride".

Vash felt his insides twisting with panic. "So I have an unknown soul inside my body right now."

Thoughts of the shadow-taint, possession by Drae demons, raced through his mind.

Calm down. The voice said, as soothingly as possible. I told you, I'm not a demon. I was a human, just a very long time ago. Also, I can't control you. That's not how this connection works. If anything, it's the other way around. I'm just along for the ride. I can talk to you, see how things are working in here, but not actually affect anything. The best I've been able to do is get your magic book to scribble out a few messages.

"Magic book? What magic book?" Vash asked, confused.

The old green book in your pouch. The voice said. You didn't figure out it had an enchantment on it yet?

"Corwin said they weren't enchanted."

My guess is that's true for other copies, but whoever used to own this one laid a big whammy of an enchantment down on it. And boy, does it have some OPINIONS.

"All right, since there's nothing I can do about this right now. I suppose we just go on as we have been?" Vash said, beginning to walk again, but his connection to his Dungeon Sense felt shakier, likely in response to his entire world just being shaken up.

Better. The voice said, firmly. Now that you know and have accepted that I'm here, I can give you some help.

"What sort of help?" Vash asked, suspicious.

You are a prickly one. The voice said, though it had an air of friendly banter. First, you don't have to keep shifting your point of contact like that. It's clever, but you're using far too much mental energy. All you have to do is expand your aura slightly and push the contact through there.

"Aura?" Vash asked, confused.

Gods, I'm going to have to teach you everything from the ground up again, aren't I? Your aura is just a field of magic that surrounds your body. It's what draws ambient mana into your body to feed your Core. You can also use it to affect the world around you at more of a distance. Try to push your awareness to the top of your skin, kind of the reverse of how you might sink into your Core.

Vash frowned, unsure, but did as the voice instructed. Reversing the method he used to connect with his Core took a few tries, eventually he felt a slight tingle all over his body, similar to gooseflesh but followed by warmth. He could feel his aura drawing in motes of magical energy and incorporating it into the thin field all around his body. The motes would then flow to the meridian lines and then down into his Core. He had often wondered how his Core replenished itself, but he had always been too busy with training how to use his Talents to really study how they worked.

We can work on that, if you like. The voice said.

"It's going to get very awkward if you keep reading my thoughts." Vash said.

I wouldn't worry too much about it. The voice said, wearily. Communicating with you takes a lot of energy. I am going to have to go rest soon and build up my strength. While I do that, you're on your own. I'll also teach you some techniques to maintain some privacy. Which, incidentally, will help you when you're dealing with mental attacks, charms, that sort of thing.

"Fair enough."

Why don't you see if you can get your aura to maintain your Dungeon Sense? Then I'll go rest and see if I can't come up with some ways to help your friends.

"All right." Vash said, uncertainly. He focused on his aura, pushing it out slightly, like blowing up a bubble. He was afraid it might burst if he pushed too hard. It was a strange feeling, like fingertips brushing your skin, only from about an inch away from your body. He could sense the connection with the ground, however, and centered his Dungeon Sense there. No matter how he walked now, he could keep a solid connection with the ground.

Vash began walking faster. His Dungeon Sense did not waver. Soon, he could shift his focus away and think about other things while he walked.

There, isn't that better?

"It's…interesting." Vash said, still not sure how he felt about sharing his mind with a passenger like this.

This isn't a lot of fun for me either. The voice said, her tone more quiet, tired. Now I have to go rest for a while. Wake me up when you get closer to the Scalebacks. I have a few ideas we can try that will probably slow them down. "All right." Vash said. He felt the voice recede, like a part of him falling asleep. "Wait, just a moment!"

The 'presence' of the voice returned, like a lantern being turned up for more light.

Yes?

"This is going to get awkward if I keep having to call you 'the voice in my head', do you have a name?"

The voice laughed, a lovely, musical sound. My name is Cassadia. You can call me Cass.

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