[A Title Has Evolved]
[Title: Marked → Bound]
[Description: Prolonged exposure to the one who scarred you has drawn your souls into alignment. What was once hidden beneath the skin now shows upon it — a living brand that hums when she draws near.]
[Effect: Residual Awareness → Resonant Awareness] — The link attunes you to her presence. From afar, you can sense her emotional state and approximate direction; the closer she is, the stronger the echoes become—distant feelings sharpening into faint fragments of thought.]
[New Skill Gained: Mindlink]
[New Passive Gained: Minor Mental Resistance]
...Great. Because what I needed most in life was a loyalty card for psychic stalkers.
The notifications flared the moment I was out of range—System's way of keeping me focused, probably. But this… this was ridiculous.
The light from the Bloom shivered against the stone. I hadn't moved in a while—just sat there, knees tucked, staring at the new title like maybe it was a mistake.
Resonance.
That sounded almost nice. Like music.
Except the musician in question was a fox-shaped existential crisis who'd nearly folded my brain in half.
I rubbed at my shoulder where the mark was visible now, swirling blue patterns faintly burning above fur. It didn't hurt that much but it did hum. Soft. Constant. Like a heartbeat that wasn't mine trying to sync up.
Maybe that was what she meant by connected.
Guess congratulations are in order. Matching tattoos…we're official now
No laugh echoed back, but I could almost feel the ghost of one. A memory smile curling at the edge of my mind that wasn't mine.
Right. Not unpacking that today.
The tunnel ahead breathed faint light—thin bands of blue smearing across wet walls as the Bloom pulsed weakly.
I lifted it higher. The reflection on the stone turned my face into something hollow-eyed and stretched. The voice from before whispered uninvited in the back of my skull.
When I reached, you reached back. You broke me. You fixed me.
My steps echoed.
Each one louder than I liked.
Each one proof that I was still here.
That I hadn't died, even if maybe I'd regret that one day.
System, I thought quietly, because silence felt heavier. That new resistance passive—how does it work?
[Mental skills below threshold D- will have reduced effect. Resistance will grow through exposure.]
Meaning it'll suck less next time a certain someone tries throwing a tantrum in my head. Great.
The tunnel began to climb. The smell of damp gave way to soil, then to the faint rot of leaves. Roots thickened around the walls like veins, tangling together until the stone disappeared completely.
The slope sharpened. My claws dug into loose dirt, slipping, catching, slipping again. Every muscle complained, but my legs kept moving. The image of the girl—sweating, twitching, breath shallow—dragged me forward faster than fear could.
By the time the air turned thin and bright, I was half crawling.
Then, suddenly—
Light.
Not the blue of the Bloom. Real light. Sunlight.
It hit me in the face like a slap.
I squinted into it, blinking hard as color bled into the world—green, gold, sky-blue. The cavern's black weight fell away, replaced by the wet smell of morning and the lazy song of water somewhere ahead.
The Green.
Still here. Still pretending to be peaceful.
For a long minute, I just stood there, breathing. The wind tugged my fur. A bird called twice. Nothing else moved.
[Listen]
Sound poured in—gentle, mundane, alive.
Leaves whispering. Distant stream. No growling, no droning wings, no voice in my skull.
[Listen Lv.2 → Lv.3]
I hadn't realized how much I'd missed ordinary noise.
The Bloom's glow softened in my paws, matching the day's rhythm. Like even it was exhaling.
We made it. Kinda.
The echo of the cavern pressed faintly at the edge of thought, like a wet fingerprint that wouldn't wash off.
That thing was still there.
Not near. I'd feel it if she were. But there—somewhere under all that green, breathing and waiting and watching.
The thought made my fur prickle. My new tattoo started heating up.
Stay far, I pleaded silently. Please.
The heat faded. Maybe that counted as agreement.
Sunlight speared through the canopy. It was warm on my nose. The first warmth that didn't hurt.
I turned toward it, scanning the clearing until I found the half-hidden hollow that served as our burrow. Relief loosened my shoulders.
Still breathing, still stupid. Let's go save a girl.
The world shrank to movement: paws through grass, heartbeat in ears, the rustle of branches brushing past. Every breath tasted of sap and damp earth. Every step came with the quiet fear that I'd be too late.
When I slipped under the roots, the air changed again—cooler, close. The same burrow, still messy, still smelling faintly of fever and dirt.
She was there.
Still as I'd left her. Pale as parchment. But breathing. Barely.
I knelt beside her, setting the Bloom on the ground. It pulsed weakly in the dim, that faint sweet scent curling through the small space.
Alright, miracle plant. You better be worth it.
The thought of the fox—the laugh, the psychic vice around my skull—made my hands tremble. But hesitation wasn't an option anymore.
I cut the Bloom open.
The skin parted with a soft hiss, and that bright blue liquid rolled out, thick and luminous.
I lifted her head gently, tilted the stem, and let it drip into her mouth.
C'mon. Just swallow. Please.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then her throat moved. Once. Twice.
Her breathing hitched, stuttered, and steadied.
Color crawled back into her face, so faint I almost didn't notice. I stayed there, frozen, afraid that moving would break whatever fragile miracle I'd bought with blood and dumb luck.
Then the Bloom dulled, turning from blue to clear.
That was it. It was empty.
I set it aside and let my arms drop.
The silence that followed wasn't heavy this time. It was soft.
Okay. She's alive. You're alive. Great job, team.
My body disagreed. Every muscle pulled inward, trembling, as if to say we're done now. My vision blurred at the edges, the world swimming in and out of focus. I dragged myself closer to the burrow wall and let gravity finish the job.
Dirt felt warm. The smell of leaves was almost kind.
I closed my eyes.
For the first time since that tussle with the Bramble Cub, there was no one to fight, no one to run from.
No voice. No laugh. Just quiet.
Almost quiet.
At the edge of thought, something brushed me—light, curious.
Not a word. Not a command. Just presence.
The same feeling I'd had when I first reached the lake.
[Title Activated: Fractured]
[Passive Triggered: Spirit Sense]
Uggh. I'm just too tired for this.
For a heartbeat, I swore I felt a smile. Then it faded.
Thanks.
My eyelids drooped.
System… if the scary fox girl comes about… do wake me up.
[Your brand will trigger an alert when she is in proximity.]
...Perfect. Can't wait.