The Fool's Freedom

Alan lost track of time enjoying his new home. The fruit was delicious, the water made all his worries melt away, and the stars above reminded him of things he had forgotten to enjoy for a long while. Enid’s presence was like a refreshing breeze, a touch of something wild and kind and true to itself.

The spirit played as she wished, changing sizes and forms and telling him of strange places where honey flowed out of clouds in the sky and magma tasted like strawberries. Of rainbows that were secretly constrictive traps, of the evil gnemses – rejects of the gnome race that were believed to be the beginning of all lesser evils and small annoyances. She even spoke of the dragons and how being born into power twisted them to better reflect their natural gifts, and of the lisarni who believed themselves destined to ascend to be true dragons.

Alan just listened and enjoyed it. He had many questions but something about feeling safe for the first time in a long while was intoxicating, and he didn’t allow himself to delve deep. Even the shadows bleeding from his skin were gone as if having decided to rest for once. Their whispers hadn’t left his side apart from a few incidents but this time it didn’t feel weird at all. Perhaps it was the world interfering, or perhaps it was his state of mind.

It was a good time, but it was time passed nonetheless and Alan soon found himself wishing to return to the gruesome reality. He wanted to share this place with the few friends he had… Walter, Emerson, perhaps Rosalyn. He wanted to find Ashlyn. He wanted to grow stronger and earn this time of peace he was currently experiencing.

As it was now… Alan almost felt like he was avoiding things and hiding away. For once he had enough power to affect the world around him. And he was afraid he would lose the little advantages he had managed to get if he gave into the comfort and safety of this gift he had received. It was a dangerous thing in a world such as his.

He stood up and exited the pool, enjoying the sensation of water dripping down his skin. Of all things to miss, he missed showers a whole lot. However, the waters of the pool were whatever temperature he wished them to be, and had something like an inbuilt [Cleanse] that Enid didn’t think worthy enough to mention. His clothes were in a pile next to the water, and after a dip, they were like new too.

“Aw, but there’s so much we can do and talk about! I know games! When you get used to the Spirit World and become able to venture out, I’ll take you to my place! It’s huuuuge and super beautiful!” Enid protested. She was like an insatiable child once they had fallen into games and leisure and had gone from calling him a boy to teasing and complaining to him all the time. She was different now once again. Her emerald skin still shone and reflected the starry skies above, glistening with ethereal beauty, but her features had grown cleaner and her hair was billowing smoke rather than ropes falling down her body.

“I run on human time, Enid,” Alan said, unable to suppress the smile on his lips. “Thank you for everything. It has helped me a lot. However…”

“Yes, yes. Leveling awaits. It’s always the same with you System dependents…” she pouted, turning into her pixie form. “Can I stay a while? I might make things a bit better. Only with your permission though, and don’t worry, I won’t ask for payment.” She winked.

The request caught him unprepared, but he saw no issue with that. What was the harm? She was responsible for creating everything he had enjoyed, and they had grown even closer during the short rest he had allowed himself. It was a strange relationship forming. Spirits were obviously doing their best to act human, but there was some form of inability to understand some things beneath it all. To Enid, almost everything was joy and death was but an impossibility. At least that was the impression she gave to him. It was difficult to fully accept her shifting presence, which made him feel a bit of guilt, but perhaps it was just the differences of strength between them. He had no idea how strong exactly she was, but what she had done to Bonez had been impressive.

“As long as you want. We’re friends, aren’t we?” And those are in short supply around here.

“Friends?”

Enid’s form glowed and she threw herself at Alan, bringing him to the ground in a flurry of limbs and giggles. “Friends! Yes, we’re friends! I won’t call you boy any longer!”

“That sounds good. I haven’t been a boy in a while.”

She was suddenly on top of a tree, leisurely sitting on a branch that hadn’t been there before and eating a fruit. “It’s good to find a safe place to open the passage when you wish to return here. While no one can enter, some can sense a portal without permission, some might sense it, and not everyone looks favorably on communing with spirits like us. I’ve taken care of it this time. It also takes a bit of time, so don’t do it in the middle of combat.”

Alan nodded. He understood. Everything hid danger, and everything had a price. He clothed himself and looked around one last time. It was like a constant spring, but the shadowy mists surrounding it all reminded him of who he was, and who he was becoming.

“I’ll see you later, Enid,” Alan said. Then with a thought, a hole in space appeared before him. It was an easy thing, but what he found strange was that [First Pathfinder] found nothing wrong with the act. Was the passage not related to space? Another question that would remain unanswered for a while.

He heard the giggles of the spirit behind as his feet found soil and grass and the forest welcomed him back. The air was different here. Natural, clean, and the sense of the swirling mana hit him like a wave. It took a few moments before he realized that he had been constantly utilizing his ability to sense the flow of mana and perhaps part of the reason he had found comfort in his domain was that he had to shut it out completely for once. Each meeting with the spirits brought him gains he didn’t think he deserved.

It was early morning now, which meant that he had spent the rest of the previous day and a whole night in his domain, together with Enid.

[Void Step] brought him further and further. He was weaving away from the direction of the Sanctuary now rather than circling it, opting to delve deeper into the endless forest and find at least some of its secrets. Blind chance had brought him far, and perhaps it was time to just take a long look around.

The sounds of the forest slowly washed over him and he felt as if his mind was coming back from somewhere far away. Roars and tweets of invisible birds and insects and the shifting of endless leaves. With all of that, the whispering shadows, his constant companions, returned as if awakened from slumber. They were still quiet, as if vigilant, but also seemingly more distinct and relaxed. Perhaps the stay in the spirit world had affected them in more ways than one.

He ran into a few creatures and even a whole group of what looked to be some sort of monkey monsters. They felt weak, nothing like his two previous encounters. There were no signs of the rotting bastards, but perhaps as night came it would be easier to find traces of them. Rosalyn had said there had been almost no trace of them after the first few months of battle, but it was highly doubtful they had given up. Alan had a sense of danger by now, and the forest floor hid many secrets.

He passed by a few beasts that could probably prove a challenge, but conflict was not his goal right now. With his current speed and the [Void Step], he could cover amazing distances in a short amount of time. He was looking for something familiar – any of the landmarks from his previous life.

The foliage grew denser and darker the further he went and finally, he felt the mana converging. It was a small flowing movement but the closer he got to the source the more familiar it became. As if he had felt it before, without knowing he had felt it.

[First Pathfinder] also activated like a sixth sense, telling him that space was behaving weirdly here. It was minutes later that he stood gazing at a stone door. The dungeon’s entrance was overgrown with weeds and moss, and trees surrounded it almost as if to try and hide it from vision. However, it was unmistakable.

The oath I made. I wonder… how much of what I agreed is true, and how much was just another sort of manipulation. I was not in the right headspace then. Should I go in?

The memories he had avoided rushed back in, and Florence’s face swam up from the depths of his mind. There was lingering pain there, but Alan brushed it aside. It was impossible to tell at this point how much her abilities had affected him and what had been true or not. He, himself, recognized his own desperation for some sort of a meaningful connection. Even now he yearned for it, but there was also that voice in the back of his head that whispered to him how everyone was in it for themselves, and everyone would betray him.

Not Ash. Not Emerson. Zirida was also among those he considered friends, while Kalyntha was a mystery. It was hard to relate to someone who freely admitted to not being the real thing.

There had been some amazing people on the fractal and he was sorry there hadn’t been time to get to know them outside of their roles and goals. Perhaps someday he would have the chance. He imagined himself holding a barbeque in his domain with everyone and laughed. That would be great. He had never been able to hold get together, since his sarcastic personality and assholish behavior left little room for friends. With his illness, a lot of that had left too though.

Not all of it. He thought and with a grin pulled at the curses, reminding Cole who held his leash, and ensured the witch was looking at each shadow as if it was her last. Maybe he should’ve just killed them, but a side of him – the one that had brushed with Bonez and his Patron, and seen how willing the powerful were to do whatever they wanted, opposed the idea of wasting them like that.

Cole would suffer until his dying breath, and it remained to be seen whether the witch, who was actually a [Warlock], would come around and become useful. Her skill certainly sounded so.

Alan shook his head. The dungeon could wait a bit more. He wanted to check on something else first. Perhaps they would know more about the situation in the world. He tried to remember the direction of their Sanctuary. What was his name… Rey-something. I’ll remember on the way.

This was an unexplored corner of the world and Alan felt a bit of trepidation at the thought of reaching their Sanctuary. Who knew how he would be welcomed? Who knew what they had found or what they had been through?

The beasts seemed to grow stronger on the way and Alan actually felt some presence that gave him the creeps. He snuck carefully around those, opting to just go on his way rather than start a fight for his life right now.

The power level quickly returned to normal as if the strongest were just used as a barrier between distinct Sanctuary territories. It was an interesting thought. The forest was significantly different in this part as well, as the trees were grayer and darker and did their best to now allow even a stray ray of light to pass through.

It was a fitting mood when it came down to being the home of cannibal Elves, and ‘gloomy’ was his thing as well.

It took hours, but by the day’s end, Alan finally stumbled upon what he was searching for. It was not the elven Sanctuary.

It was an elf like the ones from the dungeon.

Or at least fresh parts of one.