Chapter 4 – Gate

[I’m sure you’ve heard of Magical Guardians summoning items from thin air. It is a fairly well-recorded and discussed phenomenon.]

“Yeah…” I trailed off slowly. It would have been hard not to hear about it with all the videos people constantly took whenever an MG did… well, anything. In the clips I’d seen, the MG would make a dramatic motion, a glowing magical circle of light would appear, and some item would pop out of it. People had theories about what was really happening, but I’d simply chalked it up to “magic” and moved on.

[Yes, well they are making use of what is called the “Gate,” and it is one of the two major boons you have access to now. Simply put, it is an interdimensional network of magic that allows Guardians to purchase something with points they have earned. The item is then teleported directly to the Guardian from the Zenith. Half-second delivery or your money back!]

I squinted at my Familiar, trying to see if it was joking or not. It stared back with unblinking eyes. The feeling of hot, sticky warmth spreading beneath my hands drew me back from the moment.

“Okay,” I finally groaned, shifting as my wound throbbed. “What do we need to do? How bad am I hurt?”

[I am sorry to say your injury, while not immediately fatal, is extensive. Fomorian Hounds consume their victims in a way similar to how lampreys eat. Using the suction cup of their mouth and teeth, they dig into the flesh. Then they use their serrated knife-tongue to rasp away any protective layers before they puncture and gouge into their victim. Whirling their tongue around, they mulch the flesh within the wound to be easily sucked up. Right now, your intestines look like they went through a blender.]

I felt an intense nausea rise in me as I stared in horror at the rabbit. It seemed entirely unconcerned by what it had just described. I swallowed, the pain of my injury becoming more prominent as I thought about it.

“Is there anything I can even buy to fix that?” I asked, my heart in my throat.

[Of course. There are items that fit any number of situations! It is not an exaggeration to say there are millions of different items and Vaults in total. As such, I have taken the liberty of selecting what I believe to be the best options. First I would recommend unlocking the First Aid Vault (Common) for 100 points. With that, you will be able to purchase the three items needed to stabilize your condition and begin the healing process. The total cost will come to 140 points. Would you like more information on the individual items, or-]

“Just do it,” I shook my head, the pain in my stomach bubbling up in intensity.

[First Aid Vault (Common) Unlocked!]

[-100 Points]

[Purchased: Pain-Relief Inhaler]

[-10 Points]

[Purchased: Emergency Clot Spray]

[-10 Points]

[Purchased: Greater Restoration Gum]

[-20 Points]

[Remaining Points: 130]

Words flashed in my vision along with the Familiar’s voice, and then a spot next to me on the ground began to glow. A magic circle bloomed into existence with deep violet light. It consisted of two concentric circles forming a thin ring filled with runic letters. The inner circle was wrapped around a seven-pointed star drawn like my Familiar’s eyes had been, seven straight lines intersecting and overlapping. There was a hum from the magic circle, and a small matte black box rose from within its glowing interior. Then the circle dimmed until it disappeared completely.

I stared at the box for a shocked second.

It really had just… teleported in.

[Open it,] my Familiar urged.

I reached out and grabbed the box. It wasn’t big, maybe the size of two particularly thick hardcover books placed next to each other. There was a silver button placed in the center, between the seams, so I pressed it. With a click, the top came unlatched and popped open slightly. I pulled and flipped it the rest of the way, forcing myself up slightly as I looked inside.

It was filled with some kind of black foam that wrapped around three distinct items. The first looked like a simple inhaler, the second a spray paint can with a cone-shaped nozzle, and the third, a purple marble wrapped in a clear plastic wrapper. The inhaler and can were colored black, but both also had some kind of icon on them: a crescent moon with a silhouette of a bunny head around it, both in a metallic silver.

[First, the inhaler,] the Familiar said. [It operates the same way as a normal one might. It is filled with a fast acting medication that will target any nerves sending pain signals over a certain threshold.]

I fumbled the inhaler to my mouth, exhaled deeply, and then depressed the top of the inhaler even as I took a deep breath in. The air that entered my mouth tasted of mint, and was somehow fresh like morning air filled with dew. I held the breath in my lungs as long as I could, and then gasped out, causing my abdomen to move in response.

Sharp pain flashed through my stomach only to be washed over with a cool, relaxing feeling. I blinked in surprise as the agony seemed to disappear as fast as it had come.

[Very good! Next is the emergency clot spray. Press the cone of the nozzle over the puncture tightly and then hold the button on top of the can. Do not release the button until the can stops spraying. The spray itself is a fast forming foam that will close your lacerated internals. It will also serve the function of helping lock your intestines in place and prevent further agitation.]

I followed my Familiar’s instructions. When I pressed down on the nozzle, there was an odd feeling of some kind of thick liquid spraying into my abdomen. It didn’t hurt, but it was slightly cold, and the sensation of it packing into me was downright weird. I did my best not to squirm, and the can stopped a moment later. When I pulled it away, I saw a small mound of foam over the injury. It quivered slightly, and then seemed to lose its viscosity, slipping off me until only a thin seal over my injury remained.

[Excellent,] my Familiar said. [Finally, you have the gum. Remove the wrapper, place it into your mouth, and chew. As a greater restorative agent, it will work to repair what it can of your internals while also promoting an increase in blood reproduction. Your blood levels should be back to full within the hour. Should you grow tired of chewing on it, you can also swallow it.]

I took the small little wrapper and pulled out the gum ball. Even the candy had the same silver crescent moon and rabbit head icon branded on its violet surface, and I shook my head as I popped it into my mouth. When I bit into the candy, it didn’t explode in flavor but sensation. It was like drinking hot chocolate on a cold winter day, a gentle warmth filling my body with satisfaction. I’d only experienced that taste and sensation once before, and it was a soft, comforting bliss that I wanted to let myself slip into.

Unfortunately, I was still in a mall filled with murderous alien monsters.

I forced myself to start getting up. My abdomen let out a distant and dull throb, but left me otherwise unhindered as I stood on shaky legs. Only now did I notice the entire lower half of my clothes were covered in either my blood or sticky alien ichor, and I forced myself to ignore the queasy sensation that began welling up.

I looked back and forth down the hall in a quick check, but found nothing coming. As swiftly as I could move, I stumbled to my backpack, picking it up and grabbing my discarded ice axe along the way. Then I ducked into a clothing store, crouching near the back while keeping a view of the outside.

[Now that you are mobile and we have a moment,] my Familiar said from seemingly nowhere. [May I suggest going through a small portion of the introductory tutorial? There are some important matters that must be discussed.]

“What do you mean?” I hissed, looking around for the rabbit. “I was… very loud about how much pain I was in. More Anathema are probably coming, and we need to find Brian. Where are you, anyway?”

[It is unlikely more are heading this way. The mall is made of a hyper sound-absorptive material to prevent echoing and excessive noise pollution, a necessity due to its size and layout. Except for the hallway you were just in, the noise would not have traveled far. The only rooms you must worry about noise traveling in are the larger, more open rooms such as the food court. Otherwise, you can rest easy that any noise made will not escape your immediate vicinity.]

“Oh,” I frowned. Now that the rabbit mentioned it, the noise of the mall had been oddly subdued when I was going through it earlier.

[Besides, most Anathema don’t respond to human screams unless they have a specific reason to.]

“Why?” I asked, furrowing my brow.

[Because a scream means they are winning.]

I shivered as a chill went down my spine.

[As for where I am, the quick answer is that I exist within you now. Where you are, I am. I can create an apparition of my form in your vision, but only you will be able to see me. If you wish to spend some of your magical energy, your mana, I can also produce a physical manifestation. My enchantments will still render me invisible to all who I do not wish to see me, but it does allow me to move about independently from you.]

“That’s… really cool, actually.”

[Indeed. I am quite the catch, as it were.]

A breathless, surprised laugh left me, and I felt my shoulders relax slightly.

[Now, you expressed your wish to find the child you were protecting first. This seems like a reasonably safe decision. From what I observed before the Contract Ceremony, he ducked into the toy store across from you. Unless he has moved, he will still be there.]

I bit my lip softly as I looked at the store’s exit. “Are you sure there’s no more of those monsters coming?”

[Reasonably. Unless a random patrol comes through this area, it should be clear. After Anathema enter through their rift, they work in a preset search pattern. Only the stronger and more intelligent deviate, neither of which should be active at this stage.]

I swallowed. So far, I hadn’t really had a choice but to blindly trust what my Familiar had said. I didn’t have a reason not to, but that didn’t help the unreasonable fear swirling in my belly. I didn’t want to go back out there, to throw myself into danger again. The memory of that thing’s tongue stabbing into me and swirling…

A blender, my Familiar had said. It looked like my insides went through a blender.

I shivered, trying to keep the phantom sensation away. I’d almost died a slow, painful death only a few moments ago, and now I had to go back out there and potentially face more of those things. I hated that I was scared, that the anxiety and terror were beating me into meekness. It was the same, suffocating feeling I got whenever Katie was near.

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Trying to push the fear away, I reached blindly for a thought that could give me the courage to move.

The image of Lily giving me a bright, laughing smile, her eyes filled with mirth flashed through my mind.

And then the image of Brian, scared and hiding, hands clamped over his mouth as he cried.

Suddenly I was moving, my fingers clenched so tightly around the ice axe it hurt.

I had someone to protect, and I had someone to get back to.

What more could I possibly need?

I moved quickly, hunching over slightly as I crossed the hallway and went into the toy store. It was one of the smaller ones with only an aisle or two, its few shelves lined with various action figures and dolls. The only real place not in view of the entrance was behind the cashier’s counter. I stopped halfway in and knelt, setting my ice axe down.

“Brian?” I called out gently. “It’s me, Mai, the girl you were with. I’m okay, and the monster is gone now. Come on out. We’ve got to keep moving to the shelter. Your mommy and daddy are probably waiting for you.”

I waited as a shuffling sound came from behind the counter. A few seconds later, Brian’s head popped out. When he saw me, he let out a cry and came running. I caught him as he leapt into my arms, wrapping his arms around my neck.

“I was so scared!” he whimpered. “I thought the monster got you!”