“Not so fast,” Finn said, extending a hand to help me up.

  I took it and pulled myself to my feet. My legs trembled from the fight, and my arms still burned from a hundred tiny cuts.

  I brushed myself off, knocking crystal dust, and spider gore from my clothes. “How are you doing, Vexa?” I asked.

  She held her hand flat and swayed it from side to side. “Eh, so-so.” Then she jerked a thumb at the dead spider. “Better than her, though.”

  Looking up, I could still feel the beady eyes of thousands of spiders watching from the glittering web canopy overhead. They stayed back now, tucked among the threads, but their little bodies shifted and clicked eerily in the light.

  “Do we need to worry?” I asked.

  “No-no,” Chimelet said, suddenly appearing on my shoulder with a soft chiming buzz. “Small Hard scared. Big Soft strong. Reward now. Come-come.”

  “Now, wait a second,” Finn replied. “If that was a mini-boss then—” He hit something with his foot and toppled backward onto his back. His eyes popped open. He scrambled up, suddenly excited. “Ah, there it is.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “Silver chest,” Vexa replied, already stepping toward it.

  “How do you know?”

  Finn flicked his nose with his thumb. “There are three threat levels, and they correlate to three chests: bronze, silver, and gold. Mini-bosses drop small chests, and bosses drop regular ones. Size determines how many items you can get, and color is rarity. This spider bitch was threat level yellow, so that should be a silver chest and, lookie here…” He kicked at the object half-hidden under spider limbs and cracked mirror shards. “A small silver chest.”

  The little chest was barely a foot wide and maybe half that tall, wedged in sticky webbing and splashed with blue blood.

  “Hey!” Vexa said. “I killed the damn thing. I should loot the chest—”

  Finn wasn’t listening. He already had the lid open and was rummaging through with greedy fingers, and when he pulled his hand back out, he held a spindle wound with glowing thread that shimmered pale silver in the cave light.

  “That’s it?” Finn said, clearly disappointed. “I wanted some shoes like Torren has.”

  I took an instinctive step back and glanced down at my Nikes. I suddenly felt very attached to them.

  “Stop being a baby,” Vexa said. “I’m sure it has uses. Maybe the Quartermaster could use it?”

  Finn put a hand to his chin. “Ah yeah, we could sell it to the Quartermaster for some XP Cores. Good idea, Vexa.”

  “That’s not what I said.”

  “It isn’t? Well, it counts as my idea then.”

  “Big Soft,” Chimelet cut in. “Go now. Reward. Breeblets’ home. You come?”

  “‘Breeblets’ home,’” I repeated. “You want us to go to your home?”

  Chimelet vibrated in agreement, little crystal growths along his body catching the cave light.

  “Can we?” I asked Vexa. “Isn’t the crew waiting for us?”

  Vexa nodded. “They are, but not all islands are the same. Some are short romps. Others are a few days. Some even a few weeks. Those larger ones we alternate. That said, we shouldn’t take more than a day or two without returning to the ship to debrief and rest. We can speak to Raela in emergencies, but it’s often best to do it in person.”

  Finn suddenly looked excited. “So we can stay then?” he asked. “In the Breeblet village? We can get our reward?”

  Vexa sighed. “You’re like a kid in a candy shop.”

  “Wouldn’t know,” he replied. “I’ve never been in one… born on the street as I was.”

  “You won’t make me feel pity for you,” Vexa said, although I had a feeling she did. “And yes, let’s go. I need to rest. That took a lot out of me.”

  She took one step and dropped to one knee. “Ugh… guess it took more than I realized.”

  “I've got you,” Finn said.

  Then he did something strange.

  He reached to the side and pushed his hand straight through the air. The space warped around his wrist, rippling. When he pulled back, he held a tapered glass bottle filled with red liquid.

  “No,” Vexa said. “I’ll be fine—” she coughed into her hand. Blood flecked her palm. “Shit…”

  “Alright, shut up and take your medicine,” Finn said. “Say ahhh… down the hatch.”

  Vexa snatched the bottle from his hand and downed the contents in one go. She gagged, shuddered, then stood straighter almost immediately. “Ah, that’s better,” she muttered. “Still tastes like shit, though. We need a new Alchemist.”

  “Don’t let her hear you say that,” Finn replied.

  “Who?” I asked.

  They both gave me the same coy smile.

  “Oh, you’ll see,” Finn said. “But let’s stop wasting time.”

  “Ready?” Chimelet asked, spinning in a little excited circle. “If so, follow-follow. Big Soft, see-see. Hush-hush.”

  ***

  Chimelet led us back toward the skiff, at least according to the anchor still shining high above like a star through a break in the spires. Before we reached it, we veered south instead.

  We left the spider caves behind and crossed through stranger and stranger parts of the reef. The heat shifted as we moved, dry in some stretches, damp in others. Glass spires rose from the ground in spirals, some clear, some cloudy, and some even full of swirling ribbons of color that looked almost alive.

  We passed crystalline trees whose branches chimed softly when the wind touched them. Small animals darted between them; things I recognized only from old books and cheap illustrations in market stalls. A squirrel, I thought, except its fur looked like translucent fibers and its tail crackled with tiny sparks when it leaped.

  Was anything normal on this blasted island?

  Eventually we reached a broad clearing sheltered by leaning windglass pillars. The air changed the moment we stepped into it; it was warmer, wetter, and it held a mineral-like smell to it. I could hear water nearby, not a river exactly, but a constant trickle, like many small streams running over smooth rocks.

  This place had been inhabited. Clearly.

  Polished crystal shelves lined the clearing in clusters. Tiny circular piles of pebbles had been arranged in neat patterns. Silver dust lay brushed into spiral streaks. Shallow pools connected by little runnels gleamed between stones.

  A message box appeared:

  Hushpool Village

  Chimelet glided into the center and hummed a low, melodic tune.

  Slowly, Breeblets, hundreds of them, emerged from hiding behind glass formations and frosted crystal roots. They drifted upward, and then gathered around us in a buzzing cloud.

  “Think they can eat our faces off with those little suction mouths?” Finn asked, making a noisy sucking sound with his own.

  “Shut your mouth or I’ll shut it for you,” Vexa murmured.

  “Touchy…”

  “The Big Soft kill Brood-brood,” Chimelet announced proudly. “We reward Big Soft. They stay. We give.”

  “Give?” I asked. “Give what—”

  I didn’t get to finish.

  The swarm of Breeblets descended and started pushing me forward. Dozens of soft little bodies bumped my chest, back, arms, and legs, steering me with surprising force toward a shimmering pool enclosed in warm mist.

  I resisted. They spun me right back around. And somehow, so quickly I barely understood what was happening, I was stripped of my clothes.

  Finn whistled and laughed. Vexa clapped her hands over her eyes and turned away, stifling a laugh herself.

  “No, wait a second—”

  Too late.

  The Breeblets dragged me to the edge.

  “No-no-no—”

  Splash!

  I went under.

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Warm water swallowed me whole, clean and mineral-rich. It felt heavy, but it was surprisingly pleasant after the heat and grit of the reef. I kicked upward and broke the surface, gasping.

  The water was warm, but not scolding. Steam curled around the pool in thin ribbons. The stone beneath my feet was smooth and had a slight spring to it in places. Faint pale-blue light glowed from veins under the water.

  It felt… incredible.

  I heard Finn and Vexa start protesting as the Breeblets swarmed them next. Surprisingly, they seemed to understand gender norms, or at least some version of them, because they ushered Vexa behind a large clouded rock on the far side of the spring, one of the few stones on the island that wasn’t translucent. Finn ended up dumped into the pool near me.

  We both sat there for a beat, staring very hard and very respectfully at the horizon.

  Then we both burst out laughing.

  I splashed water in Finn’s face. He tackled me, dragging me under. I shoved him off as we surfaced, both coughing and laughing harder while Breeblets chimed in delighted circles around us.

  Eventually, we settled.

  I found a spot where I could lean back on warm stone with my legs stretched out, steam rising around my knees. Nearby, little Breeblets floated half-submerged, pulsing softly in the heat. Others skimmed the water’s edge, polishing crystal deposits with their bellies.

  “So,” Finn asked after a while, “how are you liking it so far?”

  “Liking what?”

  “Being a Skyrat.”

  I thought about it, watching condensation gather and drip from a crystal ledge overhead.

  Then I shrugged. “I guess it’s okay. When you get down to it, it’s not so different. Either way, living was a struggle. Struggle to eat. Struggle to sleep. Those are monsters in their own right.”

  Finn nodded, more serious than usual. “But that’s not what I’m asking. Do you like being here? With us? On the Skycutter?”

  “Yeah,” I said without thinking. The answer came out so easily that it surprised me. “Huh. Look at that.”

  “Look at what?”

  “Nothing,” I said, waving him off.

  Finn stood and stretched, the waterline just below his waist. “Alright. I have a secret plan. Are you in or are you out?”

  “A secret plan?” I asked. “For what?”

  “Are you in… or are you out?” He held out a hand.

  I stood too, shoulders squaring on instinct, and shook it. “In.”

  Finn grinned and started climbing the rock beside the pool.

  I stared after him. “Why? What are we—”

  He was already halfway up. I tried very hard not to focus on his bare ass while the Breeblets buzzed excitedly around us like they knew exactly what this was.

  Against my better judgment, I followed.

  The rock was warm and slick with mineral steam, but easy enough to climb. We reached the top. Finn dropped flat immediately. I stayed crouched, peering over the edge.

  “What are we looking for? I don’t—”

  Finn grabbed me and yanked me down. “Shh!” he hissed, slapping a hand over my mouth. “Shut up—”

  “I hear you,” Vexa said from below.

  Before I could stop myself, I looked.

  I saw her in the spring on the other side of the stone, completely nude, reclined with her arms spread along the edge and her feet propped up while a cluster of Breeblets happily exfoliated them. Steam curled around her skin. The glow from the water made her look almost unreal.

  I froze. Completely speechless.

  “If I weren’t so relaxed,” Vexa said, eyes closed, “I would come over there and kick both your asses. But seeing as I’m in a good mood, take it in. You have three seconds, and I’d best not hear a peep out of either of you. Three… two… one…”

  Finn grabbed my ankle and dragged me backward off the rock.

  Splash!

  We hit the water hard. I surfaced, coughing and sputtering, while Finn laughed like a maniac.

  “Are you crazy?” he whispered. “Talk about cutting it close.”

  From the other side of the rock, I could hear Vexa humming softly to herself while Breeblets chimed along.

  Quieter, I said, “Next time warn me.”

  “You wouldn’t have come if I had.”

  “You’re damn right.”

  Finn smiled, unrepentant. “But hey… quite a view, eh?”

  I flushed red… and then, despite myself, smiled. “Yeah,” I admitted. “Quite a view.”

  ***

  Vexa did everyone a favor and didn’t mention what had happened. Whether she truly didn’t care or simply enjoyed making us suffer in silence, I couldn’t tell. She was content enough, at least. More than content. By the time we got dressed again, she was practically glowing and would not stop talking about how smooth her skin felt. She spent half an hour chatting to Raela in her head—or so she said—trying to convince her to let her bring a Breeblet back to the ship.

  Her mood soured when Raela rejected the idea outright.

  Apparently nothing born on the island could leave the island. People had tried before. Anything taken from the island that lived faded into mist when brought too far from it. Some fool had even married a sentient being he met on the island after knowing them for a few weeks. She faded in his arms. He leaped back into the mist to be with her. Ugly business all around.

  We spent the night in the Hushpools.

  The Breeblets gave us bedding made from surprisingly soft, spongy plant-like mats that smelled faintly sweet and held warmth well. They used them as beds too, nested in little groups, chiming sleepily while the crystal reeds sang in the breeze. It was the safest sleep I’d had in… maybe ever.

  By morning, steam clung low to the basin, and everything glowed pale yellow-gold under the rising light.

  Finn, already awake and impossible to ignore, reached into the air again and pushed his hand through that rippling space again.

  “What is that?” I asked, sitting up.

  Finn pulled out a strip of dried meat and tossed me one. I caught it and took a cautious bite. Salty and tough; it reminded me of home. Of a past life. I thought of Moranco, and my mood soured a bit.

  “It’s called a Pocket,” he said around his own mouthful. “Raela’s doing. We can store items inside that she’s examined.”

  “So like XP Cores?”

  Finn shook his head. “Not those. They’re special. If we put XP Cores in the Pocket, the ship automatically uses them as fuel and to fuel the aethermatter. But things like food, water, and items Raela has already seen? Those can go in.”

  “So I could put my Nikes in the Pocket?”

  Finn nodded. “Once identified, yeah. It’s one of the upgrades Raela offers. For a price.”

  “Price?” I asked. “What price?”

  “What everything costs,” Vexa said as she stretched and rolled her shoulders. “XP Cores, to be precise.”

  I was beginning to understand how life on the ship worked. You either worked your duties aboard or went to islands. You earned Cores—Echo Cores and XP Cores. Some went to ship maintenance. Some went to trade. Some to level yourself so you could survive higher-level islands and earn more.

  It was a loop. A brutal one, but a clear one.

  “By the way,” Vexa said, “you should check your level.”

  “Check my level? Why? I haven’t given any XP Cores to Raela.”

  “Sorry—not your level. Your class level. Changer. You should’ve gained experience.”

  As if summoned by her words, a box appeared before me:

  Changer — Level 1

  Experience to level: 56

  “Still level 1,” I said.

  “Pity,” Vexa replied. “You’ll likely gain a skill point once you do.”

  I opened my mouth to ask what skill points were, then stopped myself. At this point, every answer only seemed to produce three new questions. I’d learn when I learned.

  Vexa stood and dusted herself off. “Alright. Time to work. We should wrap this up by nightfall.”

  “Big Soft kill Bell-Bell,” Chimelet said, floating in a tight, anxious circle. “Bell-Bell ring-ring. Breeblet die.”

  A collective buzzing of hatred rose from the surrounding Breeblets.

  “Yeah-yeah,” Finn said mockingly. “Kill the mob with the bell, and you’ll give us another reward. We want something better than a bath—”

  Vexa nudged him sharply in the ribs. “The bath was enough. Thank you, Chimelet.”

  Chimelet buzzed with satisfaction and puffed up a little.

  “Follow-follow,” Chimelet said, then zipped off to the north.

  We followed

  For a while we passed through what looked like a crystal garden, then down into a valley of thread-like grass that hissed softly against our boots. The wind died as we went deeper. The bright chiming of the Hushpools faded behind us until all that remained was the crunch of grit and the occasional ping from the glass walls.

  Then the terrain changed entirely.

  The valley narrowed into a barren trench devoid of anything that could be called living. No reeds. No Breeblets. No little crystal animals. Just jagged stone and windglass fins protruding from the cliff walls like ribs.

  Even Chimelet seemed afraid here. He hovered close to the wall, vibrating so quietly I could barely hear him.

  “Is it that dangerous?” I asked. “More than the Broodmother?”

  “Yes,” Chimelet hummed, and the surrounding cliff faces, scattered with spiked crystal structures, echoed the sound back in warped whispers.

  Then Chimelet went silent for the first time since we’d met him, as if even noise itself was dangerous.

  Ring.

  A distant sound sprang to life farther down the trench.

  Ring…

  Louder this time.

  Pressure built in my head like a mounting headache. I looked at Finn and Vexa. They heard it, and felt it too.

  “Danger-danger,” Chimelet buzzed, then zipped upward and away.

  “Coward!” Finn yelled after him, voice cracking against the trench walls.

  “You leave him alone,” Vexa replied. She’d taken on a big-sister tone with the Breeblets, whether she meant to or not.

  Ring……

  Louder still. Drawn out. The damage could no longer be ignored. I felt the sound vibrate through my feet and into my bones. It rattled my teeth. My vision swam. Another chime like that and I thought I might drop where I stood.

  Then I saw it.

  A massive crab stumbled into view down the trench, its shell faceted and glass-hard. One claw was smaller and shaped almost like a mallet. The other was huge and hollow and curved like a bell.

  It struck one claw against the other.

  The sound rippled visibly through the air.

  As the wave passed, the crystal fins along the trench walls lit up and hummed, amplifying the ring until it became an incursion.

  Finn spun and threw up a blood shield around us, but the sound-wave hit and shattered it instantly, sending globules of his blood spraying across the ground and all over us.

  Vexa was yelling something, but I couldn’t hear a thing. Just that ringing, ringing, ringing in my skull.

  When some of my hearing finally returned, I shouted, “What do we do?”

  “Run!” Finn yelled back. “We run!”

  Vexa wasted no time. She turned and sprinted. I pivoted with her—and stopped cold.

  Something enormous blocked the way we had come.

  Long in an unnatural way—at least thirty feet if not more—it had dozens of legs made of crystal, each one needle-sharp and moving with terrible coordination. It kept low to the ground, body segmented and armored, with tiny beady eyes and a spiked mandible. Its whole body seemed to vibrate with rage.

  “What… the… fuck?” Finn asked.

  I had no answer.

  It dropped from the cliffside, and the impact shook the trench hard enough to bring stone and crystal rubble down behind it, sealing the path we’d taken.

  The thing surged toward us.

  Vexa grabbed Finn and me by the backs of our clothes and hurled us sideways just before it thundered through where we’d stood. But it wasn’t aiming for us.

  It wanted the bell-crab.

  There was a screech, then a horrific clash of diamond on diamond.

  The giant creature wrapped around the crab and squeezed while dozens of spiked legs stabbed down over and over and over, punching holes through shell and flesh. Blue blood poured out in thick streams, pooling and running down the trench floor.

  The crab convulsed once, then went still. A small chest popped into existence beside the corpse.

  The monster had done the job for us… then it turned.

  Its many legs clicked and scraped as it faced us, searching for its next victims. It let out a skittering roar that set every crystal fin in the trench ringing in sympathy.

  Dozens of legs struck the ground at once, scratching a metallic shriek against the cliff walls as it charged.