Chapter 88: The Glowing Scale

A crisp cracking sound echoed through the narrow cave.

The skeleton trembled slightly as soul fire ignited within its skull. Propping itself up with its right arm bones, the skeletal figure raised half its torso.

Wade sat up and examined his ribcage, noticing specks of sand and dust that had fallen from the cave ceiling onto his bones. Based on his experience, a normal dormant cycle wouldn’t accumulate this much debris – he must have been lying here for quite some time. The passage of time in the wasteland seemed equivalent to his nine days of activity beyond the door.

Using that mysterious twenty-sided die, he had crossed through the door to Tania’s northern border for nine days. In the final moments, he had passed Radiance to Lucas before his consciousness returned abruptly to his original body, like waking from a dream.

A considerable period had truly passed, filled with a heart-pounding journey.

He could only pray those Tanians reached safety successfully.

Withdrawing his thoughts, Wade examined his left hand. Clutched in his palm were three translucent pure crystals – he hadn’t expected to bring these back. They were gifts from the Grudging Spirits. In that plaza, after breaking through his limits with the dead’s assistance to behead the necromancer and pierce his heart, Wade had freed all spirits tormented by Quasimodo.

Upon Quasimodo’s death, those spirits finally gained freedom. Both the Grudging Spirits and released dead souls floated freely into the distance, returning to nature while relinquishing the power born from fear and suffering. Before departing, the spirits expressed gratitude to Wade, their starlight coalescing into these three pure energy crystals in his hand.

When first receiving them, Wade noticed their weightlessness. Skeletons perceive weight sensitively – lacking tactile sense, they rely on external vibrations and weight changes to understand their surroundings. A mosquito landing on Wade’s back might go unnoticed, but even a pebble striking his spine would register more clearly than for living beings.

These crystals didn’t seem material. Had they been physical objects, he couldn’t have brought them back to the wasteland. Like that iron helmet and sword – he’d grown fond of the helmet during those nine days, becoming accustomed to its limited vision. Upon “awakening,” he’d hoped to bring it back, but failed. Without an enclosure for his skull, he felt oddly exposed.

Not that he needed head protection here anyway. In this dead, ruined wasteland, no living humans screamed for help at the sight of a skeleton – at least, Wade hadn’t encountered any yet.

Placing the three crystals on a cloth mat, Wade observed they seemed composed of pure soul energy. York the gnome had never mentioned such crystals during their conversations. Though condensed from Grudging Spirits’ essence, they contained no resentment or negative energy. Regardless of value, their rarity was certain – recreating the exact conditions for their formation would be tremendously difficult. Best to store them carefully for now.

Beyond the crystals, Wade had brought back other presences. He could sense those souls who voluntarily followed him, willing to fight alongside him, now residing within his consciousness. They dwelled in that blank space Wade entered during dormancy – his mental space where the twenty-sided die existed.

After breaking through his limits, Wade felt greater control over that space, which had undergone other changes from his growth. New elements had emerged, though he lacked time to investigate properly. Having just risen from his cloth bedding, returning to sleep would be too indolent. Besides, after nine days lying down, he needed to inspect the cave for changes, hoping nothing had collapsed.

Still, upon awakening, he’d vaguely sensed developments in that mental space. Approximately fifty souls had returned with him. Hundreds had perished shielding him from the sewn beast’s explosion, while most remaining souls chose departure after the necromancer’s death. Only about fifty, still clinging to attachments, desired continued existence and chose to follow him.

Compared to Mia, these souls were considerably weaker. Before Wade freed them, they’d been formless “phantoms.” Many wouldn’t have naturally become phantoms after death – only the necromancer’s forced compression within that pile of negatively charged corpses enabled their transformation.

From Wade’s readings, such souls would manifest as mere floating “flames” in the outside world, easily extinguished. Yet they seemed to exist stably in his mental space, which now functioned like a Valhalla where souls required no sustenance. There they slept until Wade needed to awaken them.

Their uses likely extended beyond combat assistance. Wade understood his newfound abilities more profoundly – like breathing or blinking, though untested, he sensed he could awaken souls in other vessels. He could “manipulate corpses” like necromancers, but fundamentally differently – not through spells or control. Suitable vessels were required, none currently available in this sparsely furnished cave.

Best to set aside such matters for now. Like baking bread step-by-step, other tasks followed similar logic.

Priority was checking his home’s condition and any wasteland changes during his absence. Contemplating this, Wade dusted off his bones and stretched.

Mia awoke from her small bed, the little ghost emerging from her bedding to perch on Wade’s shoulder. Sleepily hugging his neck, she seemed exhausted despite the cave’s tranquility – mere minutes ago (for her), they’d battled the necromancer and encountered an ancient balrog. Creating ice golems must have drained her, especially after consuming part of the necromancer’s soul.

Eating always made Mia sleepy, yet after days confined to her sleeping bag, she longed to play outside before resting. Wade stroked her forehead, thinking he’d take her to the open area outside if weather permitted. He’d promised playtime upon return, but home inspection came first.

Bending low, Wade stood awkwardly in the cramped cave. His first inspection target was the glowing moss. Unattended for nine days during continuous events, he hoped it hadn’t withered without watering.

The moss indeed survived, still emitting faint light. Having endured years by that mage’s bones in the arid desert, nine days without water couldn’t defeat it. But Wade froze upon noticing something else glowing.

The scale he’d found near the Nameless Ruins – this palm-sized, bowl-like scale he’d used for digging and water collection – now shone like the gnome’s bald head. Before crossing the door, Wade had placed it beside the moss since he used it for watering.

The moss seemed to have colored the scale, which now pulsed with light as if breathing, brightening and dimming like a living thing.