“Again, I'm so, so sorry,” the frogkin, whose name was Vovian, said. “And also thank you very much.”

  Merijest didn't reply. She was busy yanking teeth out of her mouth and pressing them into the ground around the Carcilisk. A big beast needed a big spell.

  Thesa, who was petting the soft head of the Foxtapus, nodded. She didn't know exactly what to say in this instance. She was glad the fighting had stopped. She was glad the Foxtapus was ok and there was even a part of her that felt some kinship with the now-undead creature as a fellow [Familiar] experiencing a [Half-Life Revival]. And she could understand where Vovian and their crew were coming from. Frostbite chirped happily and crawled from Thesa’s arm onto the Foxtapus’s back.

  Still, she didn't want to say something like ‘it's ok’ or ‘no worries’ because it probably was not ok. If not for Merijest's magic and sigils, the Foxtapus would be dead right about now. Thesa would be dead too.

  As Thesa pondered her options for a response, her attention drifted to Witmie and Durn drilling Rilriss for information. Thesa hadn't realized just how wicked those two could act when the opportunity arose, but she also found it didn't bother her like it might have a few months earlier. She didn’t know if that was good or bad.

  Yabba squeaked and poked Thesa with its face peg. Thesa took the opportunity to stand up, holding onto her [Minor Familiar] for balance.

  “Who’s such a helpful little baby,” she cooed, quietly. Her tone was soft and made clear the contemplation she’d emerged from. “You’re such a good, good little silly,” she added in her more customary tone of obnoxious affection for the Nest Walker.

  Thesa's coddling was interrupted as one of the Vovian’s allies approached. With their hood removed it was clear they were a human. This was the one who had sparred with Merijest and brandished a pair of gleaming knives and a triple-barrel flintlock pistol.

  “I'm Drisha,” they said. “Sorry again for the misunderstanding. Is there anything else we can do for you all?”

  Thesa was again uncertain how to reply to the apology, but the offer seemed potentially fruitful. “I guess we do need some things,” she began. “Let’s see…We're looking for a way out of ItherBeau and I'm looking for a prosthetic leg, although, I doubt that's something you all can help with.”

  “Actually, I might be able to help with that,” said one of the still-hooded figures. She removed the hood to reveal a red-haired, halfling face. “I've never made a prosthetic before and I'm just a low-Level [Contriver], but my forge is in the back and I'd be happy to give it a try.”

  “In the back?” Thesa asked.

  “In our dwelling,” the halfling replied.

  “And one of you is the [Dungeon Core]?”

  “Oh yeah,” Drisha explained. “The five of us share the role of [Core].” Thesa was nodding but her confusion was apparent on her face so the halfling, who introduced herself as Layk, continued, “we’re all members of a Mystery Cult with a horizontal structure. Our dwelling is attached to the room we poured out of before.”

  Thesa continued to nod awkwardly as she thought, a mystery cult? Aren’t those dangerous? I was warned about mystery cults back at–on second thought, maybe I shouldn’t trust that…

  She realized she’d been zoning out so she tried to act like she’d been listening the whole time.

  “--but this place was abandoned when we found it, so we're still renovating a lot of the interior design,” Layk concluded.

  Thesa wasn’t sure she knew it was possible for a [Core] to take over an abandoned [Dungeon], let alone for multiple people to share the role, but she kept on nodding.

  Crrrrrrrrrrh! Just then the Carcilisk roared to half-life. Its crustacean-like antennae tasted the air and the front of its large body lifted into the air. Coagulated blood sealed the cracks in its shell and the previously severed eyestalk remained broken. Merijest patted the creature's head.

  “Carcie!” Layk and the other members of the Mystery Cult shouted more-or-less in unison. All five surrounded their revived friend, offering attention and affection to the hulking, undead monster.

  With the help of Yabba and her halberd, Thesa neared Merijest and asked, “is it going to be ok?”

  “It's better off than you were,” Merijest said. “Physical damage is easier to address than the divine injuries that killed you. It should feel better in a day or so.”

  “I’m glad they were all so open to letting the Carcilisk become your [Familiar],” Thesa said.

  Merijest hooked an arm around Thesa’s shoulder and the two sat down. Thesa leaned into Merijest’s shoulder and continued, “did you know about the whole Mystery Cult thing?”

  “What part?”

  “I don’t know. I guess all of it? I don’t know a thing about Mystery Cults except what I learned at the Convent.”

  “What’s to tell? Just another form of worship as far as I’m concerned. Obviously a lot of the details are secretive by design.”

  “Wait, should we be helping Witmie and Durn right now?” Thesa asked.

  “I think they’ve got it covered,” Merijest laughed. “I’m sure they’ll relay anything important later.”

  Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

  Before they could continue chatting, Vovian turned their attention back to Merijest and Thesa. “Do you all want to join us in our quarters for a bit? It will probably take some time for Layk to get that prosthetic ready.”

  “We’ll catch up in a minute,” Witmie said. “I think we’re making progress.”

  ***

  “I’m not talking to any of you,” Rilriss said, shaking her head so vigorously that some of her own purple hair ended up in her mouth. Pfft! She tried to get it out.

  Witmie’s foot was still hovering over the disarmed [Bard]’s chest.

  Durn sat on the ground beside her. She traced a hand on Rilriss’s face to clear the hair from the woman’s mouth.

  “But if you talk we’ll be nicer,” Durn replied.

  Rilriss pursed her lips and looked away. She was struggling against the ropes, but like many [Bards], [Strength] was not her strong-suit. Still, she didn’t reply.

  “Fine, fine.” Witmie said. “I won’t even ask anything sinful,” Witmie replied with barely hidden sarcasm. She turned a question to Durn. “Should we fix her hair?”

  “If we let her sit up, we’ll need to bind her arms,” Durn replied.

  Once they had her sitting up with a rope tight around her torso and another rope binding her wrists, Durn took Rilriss’s purple hair together and tied it into a ponytail.

  “You know, Thesa was telling the truth when she said Beautuk has been lying,” Durn said. “His realm is actually really bad. Like really bad.”

  “That’s right,” Witmie added. “Plus, Merijest and her followers are all way cooler and nicer and hotter than he is.”

  Although she remained silent, a light blush began to form on Rilriss’s cheeks as she twisted her face into a strained expression.

  “Oh right, you blushed when you saw Merijest earlier,” Witmie said with a mischievous smile. “Got a soft spot for naked demonesses, huh?”

  Durn snorted, trying to cover her laughter.

  “You have no power over me,” Rilriss said with a defiant expression, although her cheeks remained red. “You probably think I’m some sheltered idiot, but I’ve had my share of trials and I know temptation when I see it.”

  Durn whispered into Witmie’s ear, “do you think she’s one of those Beautuk followers who struggles with ‘sexual urges’?” But she hadn’t covered her mouth nor whispered quietly at all and Rilriss’s face said it all.

  “Oh dear,” Witmie said with a chuckle. “Maybe if Merijest were asking the questions she would talk.”

  “I would not!” Rilriss said, squeezing her eyes closed.

  “Listen, Rilriss,” Durn said. “We just want some information, then we can let you go. What have you heard about Merijest?”

  “Nothing,” Rilriss said.

  “You know what, I’m going to go get Merijest right now,” Witmie said. She stood up.

  “Wait, no I’ll talk!”

  ***

  The [Dungeon Seal] in Room Q opened into a large collective dwelling space. The front room was spacious but cozy with three adjoining hallways, a large seating area with worn sofas, and books on various shelves around the room. A painting of a distant island hung on the wall.

  “So does your Mystery Cult have a name,” Merijest asked as she entered carrying Thesa on her back.

  “Not exactly,” Vovian explained. “We bounce around new names all the time but nothing has stuck. I guess right now we're the ‘Crossbone Mysteries’, but that could change.”

  Merijest set Thesa down on one of the sofas and took a seat beside her.

  “And what exactly are you all, uh, about?” Thesa asked. She worried she had worded that weirdly but she couldn't be any more specific without demonstrating her complete lack of knowledge about Mystery Cults. Unfortunately, the vague wording was just as transparent to everyone else.

  “Well, I can’t exactly share everything unless you go through the initiation,” Vovian explained. “Basically, instead of focusing on a [Deity], we’re all about cultivating power within ourselves and within our community. That’s why we all share the work of a [Dungeon Core]. I’m mostly focused on visual design so I’ll be redoing the murals and stuff when I get elevated. Layk wants to rework the weaker puzzles. And so on.”

  Layk nodded. “The design already has a strong theme but some things need work, like that mirror maze and the cramped stairwells aren’t very–” Layk's eyes widened as she realized she forgot something. “Yes, right! The prosthetic! I should get to work on that. I can't promise it will be very good but I can put you in touch with some other [Contrivers] I know through the [Forums]. One of them might be able to help you later in your travels.”

  At the end of one of the hallways off of the front room, they descended a short decline in the ground and entered a cave-like chamber. The room was round with a pond of hot water surrounding a central platform of stone on which various [Contriver]’s implements were set up. A well-made wooden bridge connected the platform to the room's entrance.

  “Go ahead and sit up there so I can get some measurements,” Layk said.

  Thesa reclined on the long table as Layk grabbed a roll of metal twine with colored markings at regular intervals.

  “So where did you say you all are headed?” Layk asked as she wrapped the twine around the end of Thesa's residual leg.

  “The ocean,” Merijest replied. “We need to get out of ItherBeau and the coast seems like our best bet.”

  “Yikes! I’m glad I’m not traveling with y’all. No offense…” Layk measured from the front of Thesa's knee to the back, tracing along the place where her leg stopped. The scar was pretty visible, as was standard when Merijest healed a wound. Thesa was covered in scars at this point, mostly minor.

  Merijest shrugged. “Your group came in from the ocean, right? Anything in particular to watch out for?”

  “I guess just don’t piss off Owtem,” Layk said with an awkward laugh. She took a final measure of Thesa's other leg to determine the foot-to-knee distance that the prosthetic should match.

  Layk continued, “out on the ocean, there’s no real hiding. And she’s got critters. The stuff of nightmares. Just keep an eye on the side of your vessel.” She stepped back from Thesa. “Ok, you can relax. This will just take a few hours.”

  “Do you want to go back to the front room?” Merijest asked.

  “No, I'm actually sort of comfortable here,” Thesa replied. After all that battling, she was starting to feel sleepy, too.

  Merijest kissed Thesa's forehead and she drifted off while the demoness continued the discussion with Layk.

  ***

  Rilriss was given a moment alone with the burial spot for Zamantha and Kronzue. Honestly, she hardly knew either of them, but it was weird to know someone and then not know them.

  Mostly, she was furious that the chances of her former party members receiving a proper delivery to Beautuk’s Realm was basically none. Someone had confiscated the Deliverance Dagger Zamantha had carried. Even then, Rilriss would have been forced to choose one or the other to stay behind. How could she ever?

  Merijest and her lackey’s had offered some truly absurd accusations against Beautuk’s realm, but Rilriss wasn’t convinced. That would mean that she was…

  Rilriss pushed away the painful memory and said a short prayer.

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