They’d stepped off the horses and were taking a walking break along the foothills. Spoon in the lead because he’d grown tired of listening to Bodi getting his thousandth talking too about not agreeing to lift a dragon ever again. The area had a few overhanging trees. The warm summer weather made the path comfortable to walk and it didn’t have as much dust now they’d gotten off the cattle land and into more rolling hills alongside a small creek bed on their right. It’s tiny chuckle of only a hand’s width of water calmed them all down to a few degrees. As did having no westernization. The path and creek had separation. They could only hear it through the brush of bushes slowly starting to take over the diverging path of roadway and bushes before the trees.

  It could have been a perfect day, which Spoon had been looking into the sky for. Nervous about the potential for rain. Thus, on what should be a straight open road, he’d fallen into the pit without even slightly noticing the danger. He squished in all the way up to his chest and grunted in frustration. He knew better than to do anything. He froze and waited. Without having called out, the others ambled up to him looking down with only a vague interest.

  “Quicksand. What do I do?” Spoon demanded.

  Nettle hurried back scanning the ground everywhere around him fearfully.

  “Toss him a rope so they can get swallowed up whole and then drag themselves out for an epic scene?” Laural answered quickly. “Or one of us can perform a heroic act of strength and pull them out. Although Bodi might still be too tired for that. Maybe the horses can help.”

  Bodi nodded at that.

  Nettle rolled his eyes. “Much as I like this whole story as much as the rest of you, it’s not needed. Real quicksand isn’t typically dangerous. Just don’t struggle and relax then slowly swim out. No big.”

  Nettle put out his shields very cautiously and grumbled to himself about it. The kinetic energy glowed a very light green making searching grid like patterns. Once he settled on a sound shape, a faint glowing light connected between it all. Nettle moved it out over the sand. Spoon grasped the edge and climbed onto it. The angle of the shield lifting dumped Bodi back in, sinking lower. Nettled grunted and crept the magic out ever so slowly to expand the shield.

  “Don’t bother. I have the perfect thing.” Day pulled out a locket and with a quick air of confidence walked over. Taking one tiny hair out of the locks within, she dropped it into the edge of the quicksand.

  The sand burbled as it suck in the hair. A faint sign before the hair going down left out rolling bubbles the sand spitting. As they watched it increased the hardness of the bubbles being too slowly roil across the quicksand pit. Spoon gently lifted into the air staring down and straightening himself like an ancient sandy tree to start going up in the correct direction. It was strange as the sand grew ever more frantic and spitting bubbles around him.

  “Time to move back.” Day suggested. The sound of a bubbling lifting up in bubbles then popping, and pooing back sand bits into the ground filled the air with sounds of snap, crackle, splat.

  “This is not a terribly clean way,” complained Spoon as chunks of sand splattered his face.

  “We should move back,” Nettle complained as he went even further away.

  The sand bubbled filled and filled and filled up spitting more and more sand into the wind. A volcano of mud and sludge slowly lifting Spoon into the air. Spoon moved slowly, walking carefully on the now uneven and strange surface. As he did so he started giggling.

  “It tickles,” he explained through the laughter. Finally, he stepped back onto the ground and stared back as the quick sound bubbled and frothed like a cauldron. Since he’d already been covered in the sand and mulch, he alone stood close by inspecting the area closely.

  After some thought, he suggested. “What if we a leave a rope or vine for the next guy? Maybe we could even put out a warning sign or something? Not everyone has fancy hair.”

  Day shrugged. “No need. Anti-quicksand will make sure that thing will leave for a less populated area. Not all monsters are brash.”

  “You’re saying the quicksand is a movable monster?”

  “Yes, of course.” Day squinted at them. “Natural quicksand has specific geological features. You all just thought you could find quicksand anywhere and deep enough to kill people. What are they teaching you all in schools?”

  “I mean, not enough apparently.” Nettle muttered with a sullen frown.

  Spoon glanced between the two. “Wait that thing could have totally killed me and Nettle was wrong?”

  Laural confirmed his possible demise with a bored shrug. “Seen a few dead horses given away to Quicksand pits outside Adville. The zombie ring keeps them away, so it’s a convenient way to remove any carcass.”

  Spoon turned another greener shade.

  “Maybe with one of the hairs I could lure it out or direct it and finally I could try to ride it.” She looked curiously at Day’s unusual supplies. “How many of those do you have? A leave me alone communication spell via hair can’t be easy to collect. How do you make hair like that in the first place?”

  “Laural, you’re not riding anything but the horses. Come on now.” Bodi sounded miffed about the whole thing.

  “I don’t think you all fully appreciate how high level my riding skill is. I can ride anything it doesn’t even need to have skin.”

  “Why this is fascinating, is nobody going to talk about how Day wears a secret hidden locket and none of us noticed?”

  Kriti rolled her eyes at him. “Bodi, all of us knew she had it. It’s just rude to ask about people’s jewelry that’s kept under the shirt. You never know when it might be an indication of family curses, or an unfulfilled destiny, or a dead family member, or given by a magicians, or secretly it turns into a lighting sword, or occasionally it enhances haggling. Whatever the use, you should never ask about none visible jewelry. Not here anyway.”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Day shrugged. “It’s alright. I’ve had the anti-quick sand in other places and it wasn’t as useful as you might think behind the sack of apples and the bottom left corner of the crate. Fortunately, that guy had always been a bit of an ass so I let him get fed on, but I do feel bad about his war pig. That pig had to deal with way more shit than any animal should have to put up with.”

  “Be that as it may be, do you have a shower spell where you can make a localized rain cloud over me to help with all this mud?” Spoon wanted to know.

  “You should just let it cake onto you and then flake off. It’s actually been known to be quite good for skins of all types. And it’s a natural sunscreen, plus the medical powers are known to help create a minor shield on certain skin types. It’s especially useful to orcs.”

  “How do you know all that?”

  Bodi now stared at the bubbling quicksand with much more interest. “I guess I should have jumped in.”

  “No more nearly killing yourself, Bodi. The dragon’s enough. I started researching more about you guys with the books I have.” Day admitted.

  “But I’ll look really dirty and muddy?” Spoon grimaced. “And I don’t have very much orcish blood. See no tusks,” he jutted his lower jaw to show the teeth then awkwardly snapped his mouth closed before anyone could look into his mouth and see his vampiric teeth.

  “Right, but the armor class increase lasts for life. Just make sure to cover your ankle and it has to be live quicksand, not the bits you just got off Spoon. The place you get grabbed can be extra vulnerable especially if you have a Greek name. Like Achillies.”

  Bodi rubbed his chin. “I would increase my skins natural defense? Think of how much less of a worry it could be for everyone. That’s what it sounds like you’re telling me.”

  Spoon glanced down at himself and grumbled. “I was wearing too much clothing to get invulnerability skin. Plus, still not orc enough. Stupid sand.”

  Bodi started dusting Spoon off and patting the sand onto himself. “Next time we find a quicksand pit, I’ll jump in, in the buff!”

  “First, remember Bodi, they can eat you. Second, what are the chances of finding a second quicksand pit nearby?” Day countered. “They’re solitary creatures by nature, at least normally.”

  “Normally?” Laural had scrunched her nose and then pointed. “But I’m pretty there are at least two behind that bush.”

  “How could you know that?” Nettle asked curiously.

  “Why didn’t you notice earlier?” Spoon grumbled.

  “All the animals get annoyed if they get sucked in and eaten. And just presently a lizard escaped one to get eaten by another pit meaning there must be at least two over there behind the bushes over there.” She pointed accusingly.

  The bushes waved innocently. They had sharp nettles, but nothing alarming like eyes or berries or human shaped pods. Ears too might be a warning sign. Not that Laural’s warning signs got listened to much, but carnivorous plants had more chances of being considered.

  Bodi lit up. “Well, my head and face are the most likely thing currently needing the armor benefits you talked about. If I take off everything and wade in then you can throw the hair in, and then I’ll be in even better shape. In fact, I could do more than one to try and power up the armor class.”

  Day and Nettle gave frustrated sighs. “It’s a traditional spell.”

  Spoon still muddy grumbled, “Just tell us and don’t give us the your ignorant about magic speech again for the millionth time.”

  “Fine. Traditional spells only work three times max.” Day clarified. “Many stack even less than that. Since Spoon fell in once he’ll only be able to power up the spell two more times. Why else do you think so many spells cannot be used repeatedly to create a huge power of some kind? There are single uses and flagellate spells and know the meaning or the word spells, but traditional spell, cast in threes in proper ways reach their potency at the primary point of the pressure of properly put together peerage and pears and spears. Oh wait, do I need to explain the exceptions list?”

  Nettle shook his head. “Are they exceptions or just none traditional spells?”

  Together the spellcasters chimed in together. “It’s depends on your definition of classical!”

  When nobody else understood, Nettle took up the explanation. “Triples are the way. Why do you think so many authors write in trilogies? Trends of three’s have power in many ways.”

  “Is this a trilogy?” Kriti asked.

  “Damn, I hope so.” Spoon, with sand everywhere, complained, “I can only handle this poor dialect, shitty jokes, and fourth wall breaks for so long.”

  “Whatever.” Bodi waved the negativity away. “The point is I need to go jump into the quicksand monsters and use your hair spell to get me out and then my skin will be toughened after to avoid blows of weapons.”

  “Hold on,” Kriti raised her hand. “Shouldn’t we all get into the quicksand then to make our skin tougher or at least better moisturized? I haven’t had a facial in so long and my pores are positively enormous. And Laural, as you know, is in need of a facial.”

  “I do not know what you mean.” Laural crossed her arms. “I am a perfectly fine elf.”

  “You could use a beautifying treatment.” Day said offhandedly. “We can tell you don’t exactly know how to take care of yourself.”

  “That’s ridiculous. I can take perfect care of myself. It’s just that I’m always doing all the work. Way more than the rest of you. All of expect me to managing all the needs of all the horses all the time. A few of you could pitch in to help with their care more!”

  “The sand,” Nettle moved away from Laural’s topic, “doesn’t have the same effect on every species. Humans, Fae, elves generally don’t get much. Or at least not as much as an orc. Since orcs are heavy, they often die quickly in the sand pit, without having access to the proper safety magics of the kingdom or to the pits which apparently Adville knowingly attracts to handle the disposal of animals. Plus, some pits seem have specific tastes for different creatures.”

  “How many orcs have you ever seen fall into quicksand anyway? No, if humans or other creatures fall in, they all get different impacts. Few are lifelong or significantly helpful.”

  “What happens to vampires?” Spoon asked his quest slightly too quick.

  “Generally, they dry out and get the husky expression. Many people mistake that to mean an ancient vampire, but it’s just the unlucky one who got the sand facial. They get the wizened cheekbones thing and often,” Day had annoyance flashed across her face, “more rude attitude about life.”

  Spoon inconspicuously patted his face to feel if it had shriveled. But then his head hadn’t gone in. He’d have to check his feet tonight. Did they feel smaller? He tried to wiggle his toes. Too late he saw Day’s smirk creep out. He glared at her.

  “Nettle, what happens to you?” Day asked.

  He flushed. “Often, you turn into multiple colors. It’s a well-known hair styling technique to take quicksand and have your dying done. But please don’t tell anyone that. It can be embarrassing to be forced to live your life with purple hair because a short-lived species thought it would be funny to anime you out of curiosity about how bad your hair can get.

  “I even once heard of a guy calling himself an Egyptian god who was stuck with yellow and purple which stood directly into the air in all directions. How horrifying. Apparently, he could pull it off, but you know, I’d rather not get the unexpected rustles of an untrained stylist.”

  “Looks much as I love show and tell are we going to check on the other quicksand monster behind the bush,” Laural asked, “or breakdown the most likely result of everyone getting quicksanded?”

  Spoon spoke up, dusting away imaginary sand on his arms. “So long as the useful lifetime effects are used, we shouldn’t bother to keep others out. And we have no way to mark them if they move.”

  Kriti finally spoke again. “It’s important as a group that we decide what happens to this resource. Because we know loot splitting ninety percent of the time causes failure of long-term partnerships. Our success rate in staying together depends on how well we share this.”

  “Fine, fine, but I just think we should skip this time since it’s not really that useful to anyone except Bodi.” Nettle suggested.

  “Guys! Go look through the shrubbery.” Laural snapped at them, pointing and already walking towards it.