Chapter 132: Achievement Hunters (Patreon)

“To think that was us a month ago.”

Melia listened to Jessica as she watched a group of young adventurers wobble up to a guild advisory table set in the ruins of a barn in Sickledrop. The guild wasn’t able to uplift the building to modern standards, once again confirming Melia’s suspicion. Once Chaos chose an area for her dungeons, it was more or less locked into the state she wished it to be.

But just because they couldn’t make it “better” didn’t mean they hadn’t done some basic repairs, mostly to the fortifications. They’d built a second set of doors on top of the original barn doors, ones that could actually lock and keep unwanted pests out, plus movable barricades next to any windows. A small crowd of what could only be described as “nooblets” was huddled closely together, receiving critical information about the “renovated” dungeon.

How was it renovated? Melia had no clue, but she suspected they were merely trying to gloss over the fact that the guild forgot it existed until [Sunrise] rediscovered it. And Jessica was right: based on the gear and levels of the young recruits, [Sunrise] was in similar circumstances.

Now, they were considerably over-leveled. Even Jessica, the lowest in the group, was over 100 levels above the recommended cap. Melia wondered how they'd react and how they’d feel if they ran it back exactly as they’d done it the first time. Surely they’d see a world of improvement in their coordination, teamwork, and proficiency of their own skills.

But that wasn’t the point of today’s exercise, since the group wanted to practice with Melia as the tank and Alastair as the healer. To make their time worthwhile, they went in synced once again. Some of the monsters would probably be easy, since they’d effectively be level 250 in a level 200 zone, but the fact that they’d lost almost all of their good gear would help balance the scales.

Melia didn’t want them challenging the dungeon dresses in all whites, but she didn’t kit them out in full epics, either. She hooked them up with what would have been considered “standard greens” back in the game, and even then the group was mightily impressed. It seemed Melia’s understanding of magical gear was still…lacking.

Since they’d already been to the dungeon, they didn’t need to buy a map or hire an escort. The same couldn’t be said for the packs of noobs wandering around, though Melia found it nostalgic and heartwarming seeing the old town bustling with life. As one of the earliest zones for human players to level, Gold Coast (and Sickledrop in particular) held a special place in her heart. Seeing so many young adventurers reminded her of the early days…before the level caps, the stat squishes, the expansions, when everything was fresh, vibrant, and unknown. The guides weren’t written and there were no “best of-” or “best in-” metrics players “needed” to follow or else “they weren’t doing it right.”

Just the open plains, the joy of discovering new quests, and wondering what loot the monsters would drop.

[Sunrise] approached the old, dilapidated barn that concealed the dungeon tunnel, passing young groups poking around and investigating the area. Some must have declined to seek guidance from the guild, since the outpost was in the open and the dungeon entrance was not. Or maybe they didn’t want (or couldn’t afford) to purchase the introductory kit. Either way, a group of 18- and 19-year-olds noticed [Sunrise] walking nonchalantly into the barn and quickly stuck their heads together. Melia heard them argue about whether to follow or ask for instructions. One person even argued they might be leading rookies into a trap, and Melia smiled as they earnestly debated with each other about what they should do. She deliberately slowed down as the group decided to tail them cautiously, making sure she made enough noise that they could track her even if they couldn’t see her.

Al and Ellesea gave her weird looks, probably wondering why she was extra clumsy today, but Y’cennia could hear them too, and Jessica (as a [Hunter]) was already tracking them. They thought briefly about pulling a prank on the kids, like leading them the wrong way down a tunnel and letting them get lost, but that sounded cruel. After the small hike, they found themselves back in the basement holding the dungeon portal.

The kids following them stumbled in, their eyes locked on the swirling vortex in wonder. Al stuck out his arm and caught the first young man, making the rest of his party realize they'd been caught. [Sunrise] took a moment to calm their nerves, still spiked by their initial surprise, and gave them a single bit of advice.

Watch out for the first pack; it’s a good measure of things to come.

And with that, they made their way through the portal.

​

“Whoa,” Jessica said as soon as they entered the instance. The [Hunter] held her arms out in front of her and rotated them, as if searching for something only she could see. “This is so weird. I feel like I’m wading through mud. Was I really this weak a month ago?”

“Technically, weaker,” Al said. He did a few light stretches and cast a single healing spell. He frowned, noting the cut it took from his mana pool. “Medium and light heals only, got it. Let’s not pull too many packs at once.”

“It’s not like we were trying to last time either,” Ellesea grumbled. “The mummies ambushed us.”

“Fair, but if it’s all the same to you, I’d still rather not die.”

Melia listened to them murmur amongst themselves, taking the time to really feel what it meant to be synced. They took experimental swings of their weapons, tested their reduced stamina, and tried to gauge their limits. Meanwhile, Melia had crouched in front of the fireplace grate concealing the ladder leading to the sewer tunnel. She rummaged through her inventory, arranging the pieces into something she hadn’t used in a very, very long time.

“Melia…what are you doing?” Jessica eventually asked. Her replacement bow was slung across her back, and she held the [Harpoon] in her hands. The others heard her and looked over, but didn’t come close.

“Melia,” Alastair said warningly. “You know that’s the entrance to the tunnel, right? The first pack of monsters is hiding beneath that.”

“Make sure you don’t trigger them by accident,” Y’cennia added fretfully.

“Oh, I know,” Melia chuckled. “Relax, I won’t pull them until we’re good and ready…which is just…about…now!”

She stood up, proud and satisfied, showing off her work. Jessica and Y’cennia were the most curious, so they took a cautious step forward.

And then they inspected the bundle she placed on top.

​

[Small Seaforium Charge]

​

Level: 200

Requires [Engineering] 200

Rarity: Uncommon

Quality: 5-Stars

Made By: Melia the Magnificent

​

On Use: Place a small seaforium charge, primed for detonation. Upon activation, trigger an explosion dealing 400 damage in a 5-yard radius.

​

Boom, baby.

​

Jessica and Y’cennia both turned and sprinted toward the other end of the room. Al’s eyes widened as he watched them run while Ellesea was immediately drawn to the bizarre device.

“Elsie, stay back!” Y’cennia yelled. “It’s a bomb!”

“Sheesh!” Al yelped, grabbed the small woman, and pulled her behind him. “What are you trying to do, kill us?”

“No?” Melia replied with a chuckle. “Trust me. I’m a qualified [Engineer].”

“Oh gods, she’s one of those people,” Y’cennia moaned. “I knew this was too good to be true.”

“I’ll have you know my bombs are perfectly safe,” Melia pouted. Her friends’ disbelieving looks of pity told her all she needed to know. She waited as they scooted to the far end of the room, right up against the wall, and put Alastair in front of them. Melia rolled her eyes, but she understood.

At their reduced stats, the charge would instantly own Ellesea and would take Al down to a sliver of health. Melia could admit that their fears were justified. But just because [Engineers] had a reputation for blowing themselves up didn’t mean Melia was one of them. Her janky bombs were safe, darn it!

“Fine,” she said, laughing slightly. “You’re safe over there. Happy? Are we finally ready to start the dungeon now?”

The girls huddling behind Al all gave him a concerned glance. His status as a living shield wasn’t lost on him, but he didn’t blame them for it.

“As ready as we’ll ever be,” he eventually sighed. “Let’s get ready to fight.”

Melia grinned savagely, picked up the connected wire, and skipped several feet away to safety. She looked back at her team, clutching their weapons…and gave the string a good pull.

Melia’s powerful ears heard the initial click as the charge's components whirred to life briefly…before an enormous explosion rocked the entire basement. Though it was contained to a relatively small space, the walls shook, the basement rafters rattled, and layers of dust showered down on their heads. Melia saw her team do their best to wave the cloud of smoke and debris out of their face, trying to get ready to attack…but there was no need to rush. Of the four [Vampire Bats] waiting in ambush, one was already dead, two were injured and dazed, and Melia was casually tanking the fourth, making sure it was focused on her.

Unlike nearly every other dungeon in the game, the entrance to [Boondocks] presented a unique opportunity. No other instance had a group of monsters lying in wait, already spawned, but wouldn’t aggro the player until the correct trigger was met. In this case, activating the secret passage under the fireplace grate. Melia took that opportunity to ambush the ambushers. Technically, she didn’t need to use a bomb; an area-of-effect attack would do. But in a strange twist of fate, her [Small Seaforium Charge] was actually safer than something like, say, Ellesea’s [Arcane Explosion]. The [Arcanist] would need to be close enough for her spell to penetrate the grate, and then all the angry bats would try to swarm her.

Instead, Melia was already through the second by the time everyone else got in gear. Jessica impaled one on [Whalebane] while Ellesea nuked the other. By the time Al finished casting his first heal, the entire group was dead. He watched the small chunk of Melia’s missing health refill and Jessica stared at her hands.

“That…was very different from last time,” Al said evenly.

“Is this really the same dungeon?” Jessica asked.

“What happened to feeling weak?” Ellesea grinned. “Ohhh, that felt so good laying into those bats! Did you see? Just chunk chunk chunk and it’s dead.”

“Sure,” Jessica grinned, “But I stabbed one with a spear. Now I have a bat-kabob!”

Jessica held up her [Harpoon] with a dead [Vampire Bat] and Y’cennia smirked, reached out a hand, and looted it.

“Hey!” Jessica complained. “Hoarder!”

Y’cennia stuck out her tongue and was subjected to the [Hunter] going on a diatribe explaining how a real [Looter] operates. But nobody was hurt, not even a scratch, and Melia felt much better about this dungeon than the last. As they descended the ladder, she started humming. It was a simple, jaunty tune featured in old-timey pirate movies. As a fan favorite, the [Boondocks] featured many amateur films and machinima, and the song was a popular choice. By the time they reached the first fork in the sewer, Melia had everyone humming along. Melia slowed down and everyone stopped behind her.

“Hey, so, technically there’s a boss over there,” she said, waving down the path. “But he’s optional.”

“That’s the [Rodent of Unusual Size], right?” Y’cennia asked with a shudder. “You mean we didn’t have to fight him?”

“Did it not go over very well last time?” Melia asked.

“You saw the state we were in when we finally got done,” Al said softly. “None of it went over ‘very well’.”

“Ah,” Melia nodded. “It’ll be better this time, I promise.”

“It’s great that we don’t have to,” Jessica mused. “But why would we want to? As in, what kind of loot does he drop?”

Melia grinned. Spoken like a true goblin.

“Sadly, I don’t think it’ll be of much use to us. It’s mostly cloth fighter gear…like for [Martial Artists] or [Boxers]. While Ellesea might favor light armor, the stats wouldn’t do her any good since they’re all Agility or Dexterity. Likewise, it might help you, Jessica, but you use chainmail, right?”

“Mostly leather, actually,” she said. “I’ve tried chainmail and it’s a bit rough.”

“And you?” Melia turned to Y’cennia. The catkin pointed at herself, as if confused that somebody would ask what kind of gear she preferred. “Yes, you,” Melia chuckled. “If we find gear that fits you, it’s yours.”

“Wow,” the cat muttered. “I guess I could use it. Normally my outfit is leather, but I wouldn’t say no to some Dexterity.”

“Eh, in this case, I’d recommend we pass, then,” Melia said. The others waited for her to go on, so she did. “You fought this guy last time, which means you got locked out of a secret. If you’re feeling up for it, there’s a surprise at the next boss.”

“The giant squid?” Ellesea asked. Melia shook her head.

“No. There’s a group of bosses before that. I think you told me you passed them up: [Angsty Adolescent Aberration Terrapins].”

Jessica stared down at her, judgingly.

“What,” she said, flatly.

“It…doesn’t really roll off the tongue,” Melia admitted, wincing. “Most of us used to call them the [AAAT].”

“WHAT,” Jessica repeated, just as flatly but more insistently.

“What do you mean, most of you?” Ellesea asked. “Are you talking about Visitors back in the day?”

“Sure! We used to run this place all the time. Pretty sure I maxed out all the achievements.”

Jessica and Alastair shared a look, and Melia realized the term might not carry over.

“Think of it as… self-imposed challenges,” she explained. “There wasn’t a real reason to do it other than bragging rights. It didn’t get us better loot or more experience. In fact, a lot of the time, it made dungeons significantly harder.”

“Then why the heck would you do it?” Jessica demanded. Melia shrugged and grinned up at the taller girl.

“Because it was fun.”

​

Melia’s words didn’t win them over immediately, but the group had plenty to think about as they made their way through the sewer. Melia hummed, the group killed any monsters in the way, and eventually they reached the last threshold.

“[AAAT] that-a-way,” Melia cheered, pointing down a sewer branch. “Do you want to check it out?”

“Is it dangerous?” Ellesea asked.

“Are we going to get killed?” Y’cennia chimed in.

“Will it give us better loot?” Jessica angled.

The others turned to stare at her and Al shook his head.

“This time?” Melia mused. “No.”

“Why would we fight a boss for no loot?” Jessica demanded, as if it was the silliest thing she’d ever heard. “That makes zero sense.”

“Because we don’t have to fight at all,” Melia grinned. “Since we didn’t fight the first boss, the next set isn't hostile. We could fight them; we’d even have the chance to set up a good ambush again. But…I think you might enjoy it more if we don’t. I also think you might be the first people in the modern age to discover the secret. It won’t take long; we don’t have to wait around if you don’t want to, and you even get free food out of it if you wish.”

“Hold on,” Jessica said, flipping her entire demeanor. “Free food? I’m in.”

The others gave the [Hunter] a hard time, saying she’d need to go back and adjust her fancy new pants if she kept this up, but she hit ‘em with the truth.

“Jokes on you, I need to go back anyway. They were in my inventory when we ran [Az-tiki]; they’re already gone.”

Al, at the very least, was slightly abashed, but Y’cennia and Ellesea continued to play around. Fortunately, Jessica could dish out just as well as she could take, and before anyone realized it, they were standing in front of a large, round gate blocking a decently sized room. The gate's door was open, and inside stood four tall, humanoid turtles wearing colored bandanas and wielding weapons. Melia instantly spotted several boxes of pizza on the table, but everyone else was hung up on the mobs.

“What the shit?” Jessica spat, peering in. “What the heck are those?”

“Not any beastkin I’ve ever seen,” Y’cennia confirmed, shaking her head.

“They wouldn’t be,” Ellesea said. “They’re dungeon monsters.”

“Obviously,” Jessica countered, “But don’t they gotta be based on something, you know, real?”

“Who knows?” Melia laughed. It was impossible to describe a meme dungeon to residents of this world, and she didn’t even know if Chaos knew the truth. “But that’s not important. I want pizza.”

“You’re serious?” Jessica asked. “You’re actually going in there?”

“You bet,” she grinned. “You don’t have to follow. You can stay here and watch.”

“We…shouldn’t let you go alone,” Alastair said. Even though he wasn’t tanking this run, he still clearly had the mentality to keep everyone safe.

“It’s not dangerous,” Melia assured. “I’ll be fine. If you’re nervous, just wait here.”

She sheathed her sword and started waddling forward. An amusing thought struck her as she crossed the lair's threshold; with her shield strapped across her back, she kind of looked like a turtle, too.

As soon as she stepped through, the four bosses noticed her at once. They turned in unison, jumped to their feet…and smiled.

“Duuuude!” said the one with the orange bandana.

Melia felt her grin widen. She tossed him some finger guns and answered back.

“Broooo!”

“Dude!”

“Bro!”

Melia hopped up on the armchair of a ratty old couch. She managed to fudge her way through one of those overly complicated “secret handshakes,” where she gave a high-five, slapped palms with the turtle, did a fist bump that led into an explosion, and ended with squid fingers propelling away.

Very quickly, the other bosses were getting in on it, and amidst a chorus of dude and bro, Melia found herself getting lifted up, placed on some shoulders, and getting paraded around the room. On one of the circuits, as they passed by the entrance, Melia caught sight of her teammates.

Al, Y’cennia, and Ellesea were all speechless.

Jessica, on the other hand, sported the world’s biggest shit-eating grin.

“Oh, I got this,” she said, stowing her [Harpoon]. With a single step forward, she too had crossed the barrier, and the Melia-carrying procession halted.

This time the red bandana called out.

“Maaaaan!”

“My guy!” Jessica called out, mimicking Melia.

“Maaaaaan!”

“Myyy guyyyy!”

“Duuude!!!”

“Broooo!”

And now, Jessica was getting carried around the room.

On the next pass, Meila saw the others hadn’t moved an inch, but not because they were nervous or afraid.

Ellesea, acting as a spokesman for everybody else, summed it up best. She wore a look of weariness, as if nothing could ever surprise her again.

“I think I’m getting dumber by the second.”

Eventually, the rest of the team joined in. They did not, however, elect to parade around the room, merely nodding respectfully at the initial greeting and not taking part in the secret handshake. Despite the rowdiness of the optional bosses, they returned to a more relaxed, “normal state” after several minutes, practically ignoring [Sunrise]. As Melia explained, unless they were attacked, their dialogue was done; so she helped herself to some pizza, ate two slices, and moved on.

​

“Did…that just happen?” Y’cennia asked as they headed toward the next boss.

“Sure did,” Melia answered.

The catkin was so distracted that she’d barely taken part in the next two battles with patrols. Thankfully, they didn’t need potions and they kept the DPS away from her. However, now that they were about to take on the first “real” boss of the dungeon, they couldn’t afford to have her space out.

“Hey, so…this is the squid boss,” Melia said with a slight cringe. She could probably have phrased that more tactfully, but it simply came out. “I know last time was a bit traumatic. Do you want to wait until we clear it?”

“No,” Y’cennia answered firmly. Melia instantly backed down. She didn’t want to insinuate that the girl was a coward or anything like that, and it looked like she was confronting some inner demons of her own.

“Okay,” Melia nodded. “This one’s straightforward. We poke it with sharp objects until it dies. Stay away from the walls. Once the tentacles retract, watch the holes. Water gushes out of the holes the tentacles attack from, so as long as you’re on the opposite side of the room from them, you’ll be safe.”

The group stared at her.

“It’s that easy?” Al asked. Melia shrugged.

“I don’t know what to tell you,” she replied. “You don’t know what you don’t know, and once you do know, it’s easy. You get me?”

“I…see.”

The fight was exactly as straightforward as Melia said. The only achievement she remembered was beating the thing, which they did. She held aggro, the others peppered it with arrows and spells, and Alastair got off some timely heals. Y’cennia stayed out of the way and never once got within range of a reaching tentacle. Sadly, the loot was even stingier this time, and it didn’t even drop a duplicate [Whalebane] for Jessica to hoard.

It wasn’t until they reached Copperpot’s arena that Melia had an idea.

“Say,” she asked. “Speaking of achievements, do you want to try one?”

As far as she knew, achievements weren’t a thing here like they were in the game. At the very least, she’d never heard anyone boast about them or use things like achievement points as a way to gatekeep others. And from what little she’d seen of the adventurer’s guild, she was sure as all heck someone would be waving them around if they were there.

“Those…challenges you were talking about?” Alastair asked. “You said they were dangerous. What are we talking?”

Melia thought it was a good sign he was even considering it. So far, the dungeon was going incredibly well. Not just because they were killing things easily, but everybody was having a fun time. Legitimately, they were having a blast. Everybody was laughing, singing, and joking around. The atmosphere was completely different from their last failed attempt. Encouraged, Melia perked up.

“For this one, I would say it’s not an immediate increase,” she explained. “But rather, there's an added challenge from the fact that you take out the room for error. Do you remember how this fight works?”

“Sure,” Y’cennia agreed. She was the one who figured it out last time, and honestly, Melia was impressed. They did it on their own, without the help of a guide or a walkthrough.

“Okay,” Melia nodded. “You remember how the floor falls down, right? Good. So the challenge…is to let the floor fall.”

“Wait,” Ellesea said, crossing her arms. “Then we’d be dead.”

“Let me finish,” Melia chuckled. “We let it fall…until there’s only one platform left. And here’s the real kicker: we can’t progress the fight until we’re down to the last segment. Once we are, then we have to do the whole thing. Simple, right? But challenging!”

“If you ask me,” Alastair said slowly, “I think this is one of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard. Who in their right mind would willingly let go of their safety net? No…actively sabotage themselves? That’s risk you don’t need to take.”

Melia’s face fell, but she understood. She’d hesitated to bring it up for those exact reasons. Strangely, Jessica spoke up next.

“You say ‘right mind’,” Jessica cut in. “The answer to that is: nobody. These are the Visitors we’re talking about, and if I’ve learned anything about them from Eluna or this gremlin…ain’t none of them in ‘a right mind’. They crazy. But you know what? They were damn good at what they did, and I want to see if we stack up. Those clockwork things this boss spits out aren’t super strong. Melia can handle ‘em. The real question is…do we think we can handle everything else and not make a mistake? This is a confidence check, and I think we can do it.”

For a brief moment, the group seemed lost in thought. Each one was wrestling with their own thoughts; only they could make their minds up for themselves. Melia and Jessica’s vote was already cast; they were simply waiting on Al and Ellesea. Y’cennia, as usual, did not strictly need to participate, but they’d honor her wishes no matter which way her vote fell. Ellesea was the next to give in, not because of peer pressure, but because her own sense of pride was rising with each new accomplishment. She’d reached level 400. She evolved her class. She enchanted a [Flying Carpet].

She could join her friends in overpowering a dungeon boss under self-imposed restrictions that might cause others to label them clinically insane!

And once she was in, Alastair's choice was made for him. Truthfully, he was never going to abandon them; he was just waiting to see where he was needed most.

But to Melia’s surprise, Y’cennia wanted to come, too.

“Hey, you’re going to need somebody to activate the runes, right?” She purred. “That’s my job!”

Melia led the group in…the door shut behind them…and the boss launched into his speech. Melia hadn’t heard it for what felt like years, but she knew it by heart. She was ready. Her team was ready. They could do this.

The hardest part was waiting.

To absolutely no one’s surprise, in real life, people didn’t like watching their safety net fall away. The first group of [Mechanical Widows] crawled down the walls…and the group repelled them. But they didn’t activate the rune, which would have advanced Copperpot’s downfall. The mechanical contraption built into the walls ground to life and the first chunk of floor crumbled away.

“Watch your feet!” Alastair called. “Mind the gap!”

Melia didn’t begrudge him his leadership position. He was more than just their spokesman. Al was the glue that held everything together, whether as a tank or a healer, and Melia was certain he could do anything else he put his mind to, too.

The second group of spiders came…the next chunk of floor caved in.

“Steady, steady!”

A third chunk fell. A fourth. The fifth chunk crumbled to dust and [Sunrise] was left stranded on a tiny strip of stone connecting the outside wall to the island in the middle where the lever was stuck in the pedestal.

“Now!” Melia called out. “We’re on the last one! No mistakes! We’ve got this!”

“We’ve got this!!”

It…wasn’t the most clever battle cry, but it was theirs.

And…they did, in fact, have it. Melia tanked, Al healed, and Jessica and Ellesea dispatched the spider-bots with extreme prejudice. Y’cennia had been laser-focused on the runes the entire time and she made sure to activate them accurately and swiftly, not missing a single beat. As the floor fell out beneath Copperpot, once again screaming his regret into the void, the group was awarded their treasure box.

But it wasn't just the loot, a pair of blue boots Ellesea might want to use; they found something else. A deep sense of pride and accomplishment. They carefully made their way out of the arena, and once they were no longer in danger of falling to their deaths, they let out cries of excitement and delight.

“We did it!” Ellesea cheered. “Did you see?! We did it! We beat the boss under ridiculous circumstances!”

“Take that, Visitors,” Jessica grinned. “Your challenges are nothing to me.”

Melia smiled and laughed alongside them, letting them have the moment. No, not letting them only…she partook, too. She was just as important to their success as any member of the group, including Y’cennia. They couldn’t have finished off the boss without her controlling the lever.

And yet…pride, euphoria, and loot were not the only things they received.

Y’cennia got it first, choking out a rough squawk, and soon everyone had two system notifications hovering in front of them. They were simple things…with very deep ramifications.

​

[Astoria Boondocks: Feats of Strength]

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[We’ll All B Flat] - complete!

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+Enter Copperpot’s arena and wait to engage until all platforms have fallen except the last.

​

In the ancient alphabet, it begins with an I.

​

Melia was speechless. There, in front of her, was something she never thought she’d see. To her great surprise, her teammates weren’t all that shocked. Blown away that they received one? Yes. But astounded at its existence? Not at all.

“A [Feat of Strength],” Jessica muttered, awed. “We got a [Feat of Strength]. Only the best in the guild can say they’ve earned one of these.”

“You’ve heard of these?” Melia asked. “But you didn’t recognize achievements!”

“That’s ‘cause that’s not what they’re called!” She hissed. “You didn’t tell me the Visitors were pioneering [Feats of Strength]! I might have thought twice; this shit’s crazy!”

“Hey,” Y’cennia muttered quietly, but Jessica was getting worked up.

“You know the kind of people who get [Feats of Strength]? The [Breakers]. You know how they get them? By dying. A lot.”

“Hey,” Y’cennia tried again.

“So…are you happy or upset?” Melia asked. “I’m confused.”

“I’m…” Jessica started, gesticulating wildly, then sighed and gave up. “Tired.”

“Hey!” Y’cennia shouted, making everyone jump. “Have you looked at the second window?”

“No,” Alastair admitted. “What’s it say?”

​

[Quest Updated. Order is pleased]

​

The group was speechless. Yes, deep ramifications indeed.