"...so…do you think there's a body in there?"
"What?!"
"It took the two of us to haul it outta the Monolith and that….smell… ugh."
A trio of girls stands around a long, rectangular navy blue box with a star motif painted on it, which lies flat on the ground in the middle of a desert.
A blond-haired girl in a short-sleeve white dress and skirt with a sword holstered across her back pinches her nose shut with her right hand.
She stares at the box in the middle of them.
"...even looks like a coffin." She squints her eyes to take a closer look at the lid's edges. "Yeah, I really don't want to know what that ooze is either." She looks down at her left hand, noticing the grimy residue left over from when they hauled the box out of the Monolith.
Most of it had flicked off, but rancid residue still clung to her skin from where she'd gripped the box during their frantic escape.
"Noya, we haven't wished yet, there shouldn't be anything in there." A violet-haired girl next to her is also staring at the box.
"Well." Noya stops pinching her nose as she puts some distance between herself and the box, then asks a question. "Maybe this wishing box is unique? I've never seen one this huge before. Ever read about anything like this, Iris?"
"Hm…" Iris hums as she crouches down to get a closer look.
She looks every bit the scholar, clad in a black beret and white flared cape, the skirt and uniform would look out of place were she a genuine combatant. Luckily, she isn't, her job is to investigate things like thi-
"Ugh!" She reels back when the scent finally hits her.
Both Noya and Iris share a sideways glance as they end up standing farther away than they started.
"If it looks and smells like that, it's been there a while." The last girl, wisely having stood too far to even catch a whiff, comments.
She's using the hooded, white cape she has on to cover her nose in case of the scent even getting close to her. The beige coloured shirt and dark stockings are really just for fashion, not practicality. [1]
Noya lets out a muffled, dry laugh as she edges back toward the box, her fingers clamped tightly over her nose. Her voice sounding nasally.
"Amber, we've got to atleast try to wish on this box." She waves a hand behind her and at Amber. "We didn't do all that work to chicken out here, let's go." Noya walks forward,
Iris looks a little green but does follow at the thought of whatever may be inside that box.
As they inch closer, the sand around the box shifts a little, they both pause at that but write it off as nothing to be concerned about. Until…
"It's…it's shaking!" Iris shouts out.
Iris and Noya stop in their tracks as the box is now undoubtedly moving on it's own, all without any wish being made of it. Amber opts to find a nearby rock to hide behind, her hand close to her waist near the twin pistols she keeps at her side.
"Uoo…what in the world? Cod…they….they trynna keep ya boy down…." It's difficult but a voice can be heard inside. "Yeah, clam up buddy, I've got the cred to talk like that, lemme bust outta here first though. It's clear I've been…ooh…it smells like rank boof in here, dang, and it… it... holy shit!" The shout at the end is far more audible.
Nothing more is heard before the lid of the wishing box explodes upwards, tearing through the air.
It slams back down on the ground and kicks up a cloud of dust which obscures the box completely. A shrill, continuous whistling noise pierces the air, but that disruption pales in comparison to the biting, unnatural frost that follows, it comes in waves and feels like the dead of winter. It's impossible to see what's happening with the dust obscuring everything around the wishing box but it can certainly be felt.
In sharp contrast to the desert heat, this cold brings goosebumps on contact with its mere proximity, involuntary gasps escape the mouths of the three girls in the surrounding area.
The whistling noise ceases along with the cold, the dust slowly lifting; within it a tall silhouette can be made out.
It's only a matter of time before the dust clears enough to see exactly who was in the box.
The glittering armor plates reflect the harsh desert sun perfectly, making it a little difficult to look in this mysterious person's direction. Through squinted eyes, more details can be made out.
The armor itself looks bulky enough to impose an intimidating figure just by itself; aiding this sense of fear is the height of the person. Neither of the three girls reach even his shoulders. The armor itself is painted a bright blue with black paint highlighting the edges of every heavy armor plate.
Looking upwards yields no face to speak of, instead being covered by a bright red mask carved in the shape of a skull.
From her vantage point behind the figure, Amber is the only one who can see the back of his head. The short black, straight hair and pale skin are the only signs that the creature inside the armor is actually human.
The dust clears fully, finally revealing what's left of the wishing box.
"...A-a…." Iris's face goes pale. "The….the Wishing Box!"
She points at the perfectly rectangular ice cube that lies in place of the wishing box. Noya and Amber both look baffled at the ice cube's perfect opaqueness, though more importantly, the fact that it's not melting at all under the desert heat.
"Wishing box?" The mystery person, speaking with an unmistakable male voice, turns to look at Iris. "Did you need that thing?" He holds his hands up in faux surrender. "Not that it doesn't look cool, sick design I' cannot lie." An awkward chuckle comes out as his hands return to his side. "But…ah….I was in lock and chain in there, so…" He shrugs.
Iris sprints forward and to a quick stop before the rectangular ice cube, running her hands frantically over its surface as if verifying if it's really there.
Breathing rapidly, she tears her hands away from the cube and to the laptop at her side, she flips it open and begins tapping away at the keys with her left hand. [2]
The keys themselves are inscribed with many different sigils.
A soft cyan glow emanates from Iris's left hand as she holds it out over the rectangular ice cube, gazing at it expectantly; yet, nothing happens. Her eyes widen slowly.
"Nonono…" She mutters.
The man stares at Iris's freakout for a few more moments before a voice from his side catches his attention.
"That's some nice armor.."
"Mhm, tha's for sure." The words slip from his tongue as he turns to find Noya flashing him an approving thumbs up. "...normally, I'd hear that from someone in like…dunno….Superior Dragon Armor. But you don't got anything on. Why?"
The quick attempt at conversation distracts him from seeing past Noya's facade. A thumbs up it may be, her wary gaze and shaking hand underpins her current feeling of tepid fear, her free hand is behind her back and ready to unholster her sword.
"I can't be quick in armor. Besides, some of the Stellaroids I've fought…" She glances off to the side, but the mysterious person doesn't follow her gaze. "...I don't think armor would've helped."
"Psh." He scoffs. "That's why you put on things that make you quick so you get the best of both worlds—stay fast, protected, secured, and all that jazz."
"And what are those 'things'?"
"Maxing Speed is...not that difficult? Eh, I don't remember everything, maybe ask me….uh…" He trails off. "Is she…?" He points to his side where Iris is. "Gonna say something? Or she?" He points behind himself without looking, exactly where Amber is peeking out. He then puts his hands back at his sides. "Or…I..I ca….don't know. These's Tumultuous Circumstances. So I'd like to know who I'm surrounded by."
"...tumultuous circumstances?"
"Mhm." He hums.
Noya blinks, thinking about his words from before, they seemed pretty serious and definitely not from someone who would say something like that... unless...
She lets out a small, breathless chuckle as her hand falls from the holster of her sword and to her side.
"Amber." Noya looks past the man and gestures for her to stand up. "This guy seems fine."
Amber lingers for a comment before reluctantly standing up and facing the man.
"That's Noya." Amber says.
"What? I can't even introduce myself? I was waiting to…" Noya pouts.
"...you introduced me first."
"Oh…" Noya gives a placating smile as she shrugs. "Dang…"
The newfound vibe is promptly shattered by a maniacal laugh, everyone's focus is shattered as they spin to face the source.
"Ehehe…Hahahaha!" It is Iris, in the process of falling backwards onto the sandy floor, a ice cube where the Wishing Box once laid is infront of her. "One step away from the Artifact and it freezes! My magic doesn't even affect it?! Ho…how…ahaa…" She peters out mid-way through her sentence, incredulously cradling her face with both hands; the next words come out muffled. "Ah…it's all over! Without the money from the Artifact, there's nothing to cover our expenses, we haven't even gotten that far yet!"
"...yo…." The man scratches the back of his head. "...you know what? Fairs. That's some real shrimp chief, real shrimp, mhm."
"Shrimp?" Amber questions, but isn't given a response; instead:
"I think she's losing it…" Noya sighs.
"We'll have to find a real job, but we've only been Trekkers our whole lives. Nn…" Iris groans pitifully. "This is the end! Aaah!" Then gets one more scream out of her system
Iris finally stops covering her face in place of sprawling out on the sand for a more effective display of futility.
She stares up despondently at the desert sky, or, she would have if it weren't for the human form that's blocking it.
The sun shining directly above her made it impossible to see their features; as she squints against the glare, the silhouetted figure looming over her has the face of a demon...
Her eyes shoot open as she scrambles back. "Wha-" She spots Noya and Amber in the corner of her vision, her gaze grows wary. "Stay back!" Iris scrambles to her feet and brings up her laptop case, ready to batter this thing with it.
"Heh." A carefree laugh escapes the 'Demon.' "Are you sure about this?" The 'Demon' sounds very much worried about her well-being, "Very confident. That's respectable." He points over his shoulder and behind him. "Check your friends though, it's all good, stand down."
"Huh?" Iris looks past him and spots Noya and Amber waving. "...were you in the wishing box?" Her fingers inch away from the laptop's keys
"...ye…yeah." The man pauses. "The…th-the wishing box's vibes were immaculate, I cannot lie, the way I was chilling in there I was doing Jerry's Workshop dirty"
"Was there anything else in the box?"
"Tch…" He clicks his tongue, looking off to the side. "...I expeditiously escaped that box, no time to analyze my surroundings, the only thing in there was this key." He reaches behind himself for a brief moment before bringing forth a key made of some exotic metal given the way it's glowing faintly.
"Hm…" Iris takes it from him and gives it a look over. There's nothing more to it besides its odd glow, which… "Do you know what this unlocks?"
"Nah. It ain't mine, but I'm just going to keep it on me, you know?" His arm blurs. Before Iris can even blink, her palm is empty.
"Wha-?" The key isn't there anymore.
"Besides, it's literally glowing, I mean..." The man has turned around to dangle it in eyesight of the other two. "Noya. Tell me this ain't something you'd haul around just because. It couldn't have 'Secret Vault Opener That's Full of Bread' written more all over it if it tried."
"That just has to unlock something cool." Noya nods. "With a ton of money in it."
"That's…what I just said."
"You said it'd have bread in it. I just thought you were really into that? Whatever floats your boa-"
"What do you think bread means?"
"Maybe it's locking away something sparkly and pretty?" Amber interjects.
"Hey, hold on!" Iris shouts out, catching everybody's attention. "What's the deal with this ice?" Iris taps against the ice cube in the shape of a perfect rectangle, conveniently covering the entire Wishing Box. "And who are you?" Then she points at the man.
The man pauses purposefully, glancing at the three girls surrounding him, before then walking off to the side. He turns around to face all of them at once, at the same time putting away the mystery key by reaching behind himself…somehow.
"What? The armor not tip you off?" He drums his fingers against his chestplate, radiating braggadocio. "Come on, y'all are so unserious, is Foraging your specialty?" He shakes his head as he spreads his arms out wide and flaunts himself. "Can't think of any other way you wouldn't know me. Goodwill_Cashier." He shrugs before adding, "Most just call me Will."
…
"Goodwill….Cashier?" Amber raises her eyebrow.
"Will? Uh…" Noya seems to be in deep thought.
"You didn't answer my entire question." Iris gives him a flat stare.
"...what?" His arms fall slowly to his side. "Uh…shrimp man, those uh…" He scratches his head. "Localized…ice… storms, yeah. Localized ice storms, chief, Phoh." He whistles. "Movin' like Zenith, straight ice cold!" He frantically throws up some sort of hand gesture that Iris isn't familiar with in any way, her mind is more focused on: [3]
"...Localized... ice... storms?" Iris can scarcely believe the audacity of the words coming out of her mouth, or his for saying such a thing.
"Were you someone in a random town in Nova?" Amber questions.
Will turns to face Amber like a statue before responding, armor plates actually grinding subtly as he does, the statement having taken any of the previous frenzied wind from his sails.
"...mm." He grunts as he wags his finger, more to himself than to her; he eventually regains his composure. "Nope….gotta…" He mutters to himself. "N-no….I….w-what's Nova?"
"You don't know what Nova is?" Noya asks.
"Nope. 'In Nova' huh?" He looks down at his feet. "Tch…I have a feeling…" He reluctantly looks up and around him.
As he looks up, the expansive desert landscape finally registers: rolling hills and the occasional gust of wind carrying sand particles, all blurred by the shimmering heat distortion.
"...ohhh…." He turns around to look behind him.
Far in the distance is a mountain lush with greenery, outside the boundary of the desert. Such a sight is foreign to one who knows exclusively a singular mountaintop with eternal snow upon it and no other ones that aren't located in a different time pe-
"Ohhhhhhhhhh….." He turns around to face the girls, but instead looks up and past them.
There's more desert beyond them, but towering above even the mountain from his perspective is a massive black monolith with a bright blue star motif at its center. Clouds drift lazily around its midsection, far below the peak. Will can see its pinnacle but can't understand such a height. Where he's from…
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh...." He really drags it out, more of a groan than anything exclamative. "Huh. Yeah that makes sense…well, it makes sense 'cause it doesn't. Can't even build that high…not even on a private is-" He suddenly remembers an item he has that could bring this all into perspective.
He reaches at his side and pulls out a glowing star shaped item that wasn't there beforehand.
Amber's eyes widen at the way he fidgets with the handheld star, almost like he's using a phone….
She slowly inches towards him.
"4:30 PM. That seems right, so it can still tell time… Floris Month? Soul Waker Day…" He sounds confused as he continues looking over the info he's being given, mumbling to himself. "996???" He whisper-shouts. "What in the world? How did I end up back in time? This ain't even another dimension; it'd say that…" He begins to frantically tap away at the star.
"Is this your phone?" A female voice at his side causes him to pause in his tracks.
"No, it's my Nether Star, I'm just checking my loc-" He stops mid sentence and flinches away.
It's Amber who has managed to end up at his side. She looks at him for a second before nodding her head at his Nether Star, prompting him to continue.
Will pauses for a moment before returning to his original position, shoulder to shoulder. Well, maybe a little closer than before. Amber doesn't seem to mind.
"Y-yeah. My Nether Star usually displays little tidbits of info." He hands it to Amber who carefully takes it and inspects it.
She sees the same info he did. The date is in a yellow font with a cute graphic of a palm tree next to the month. She chuckles softly at that.
"It should tell me when and where I am but…" He looks up from Amber's hands and at Iris. "Hey…Iris, quick question, you seem like a knower. That correct?" He asks.
"Mhm. Iris knows a lot." Noya agrees before Iris has even said anything.
Iris seems conflicted before nodding along.
"Alright, simple, light work. Yes or no, that's all." As Amber continues to inspect the star, Will reaches behind him; the item suddenly vanishes from her grasp, she looks baffled. "You ever heard of the name Jythar?" He allows the name to hang in the air.
He says it with a heavier timbre than anything before; for the first time in this conversation, his attention is laser-focused on Iris's every micro expression, scanning for the faintest flicker of recognition.
She looks up in contemplation and racks her brain for any mention of that name.
Plenty of historical texts, stories or even legends have many names or mentions in them. Too many to remember at once...but...
Iris's eyebrows scrunch together, she closes her eyes.
…
Noya stares off into the distance, not knowing what to do with the extended silence.
…
"Tsk…" Will clicks his tongue, idly scratching his hair as he does.
…
"I don't remember any name like that, were they someone close to you?" She eventually concedes, opening her eyes to look at Will as she does.
Will looks surprised at the response but still gives a quick response.
"Hmph. That thing? Couldn't be any further from that. Though, it's interesting you haven't heard of it, it should be around the time he appears." Will snaps his fingers a couple of times. "...Eh, probably wrong on that, wasn't paying attention to the yap sesh." He shrugs.
"Should we be worried about him?" Amber says.
Will snorts at that.
"Nah, don't worry about it." He takes a step away from Amber to wave away her concern. "Matter of fact, forget you ever heard that name, let's get back to boondoggling or whatever we were doing before."
"Huh? Wait, forget who?" Noya's gaze refocuses. "Boon…doggling? What?"
"See? She gets it."
"No I don't…that's why I'm asking."
"I get it buddy, you'll hold it down."
"...fine." Noya sighs.
Will seems none the wiser as he steps away from Amber and far enough to have his own space.
"Alright, so, I've got a proposition for you. Or y'all…what are you guys exactly?"
"We're Trekkers." Iris slowly says that, waiting for the expected response.
"I…know that. Had to break out the fancy words to say y'all are wandering, huh? Why else would you be out in the boons?" He seems to be smirking behind the mask.
…
Iris and Noya exchange sideways glances.
"No…that's not right." Amber shakes her head. "Trekker is a job title." Amber then twirls her finger around her ear.
"Tch." He throws his hand up in exasperation. "Jobs these days…just say you're homeless."
Iris snaps toward Will the moment he speaks.
"What???"
"No need for all that." Will wags his finger. "No shame really, I mean, I live in someone else's base. My own is like…." He chuckles to himself. "A bunch of chests, the Experimentation Table, my harp and some other things. All useful but I slapped them in my base wherever."
"...okay?" Iris attempts to glean something from rambling. head throbbing.
"We…do kind of live in Loxy, so…" Noya awkwardly chuckles.
"Yeah…" Amber looks off to the side.
"Loxy? Look, point is, you don't have to make up job titles to make yourself seem more dignified." Will says.
"No, I'm serious, we're Trekk-" Iris gets cut off.
"Becauseee…" Will drags the word out. "There's the title of Adventurer right there." He facepalms. "Goofballs, this type of title already exists, it's simple. You ain't get the talk from someone experienced yet?"
Noya and Amber take time to consider that thought.
"Didn't you have a proposition?" Iris refuses to indulge this any further.
"Oh…yeah, that." Will acquiesces. "Got way off track. Um… okay."
He clears his throat and stands a bit straighter.
"Y'all are clearly some sort of group so, here's my proposition. You cornheads are in desperate need of someone with a...let's say, winning mentality…" He tilts his head. "Not something that comes by often." That part is mumbled to himself. "So I'd like to join you temporarily."
Iris cringes once that sentence is uttered.
"Yo, chill…" He holds his hand in a placating manner. "I said temporarily, besides, I can more than pull my weight. I dunno where y'all are going next but I'd like to tag along until we get to civilization, I'll decide what to do from there."
Iris stares at him.
"...what? You want money?"
"No, well, actually yes but…." Iris grimaces. "It's just…" Iris glances to her right at Noya, who doesn't reciprocate the look.
Instead, Noya pipes up, "Well, it's not up to me, but that doesn't sound bad!" She flashes a thumbs up at him, he responds in kind.
Iris's mouth hangs up slightly at the sight, she then slowly turns to her left and glances at Amber…
"Nn." Amber shrugs. "You seem interesting."
…
"Are we…" She stares at Will for a while, really taking in the fit.
Heavy plate armor painted sky blue, red demon mask and bright yellow leather gloves. It is quite obvious to her he is a massive fan of the primary colours. He looks more like a mural in some rural alleyway rather than an intimidating warrior, although...
Iris blinks once.
The way he's acting...however fast he moved to snatch something from her without her noticing...but, no, no no no. Can't be this guy. Someone like this...being like that?
Iris attempts to explain this to herself before everything seems to stop. Thought process, the aftereffects of the meltdown a few minutes ago, it all seems rather simple now in hindsight.
…
"Nothing that has happened in these past few minutes has been serious at all…" Iris cradles her head in her hands; were the desert sand not excruciatingly hot, she would be in the fetal position.
"She cooked, this entire thing has been so unserious. What're y'all supposed to even be?" Will says.
"We're the New Star Guild…" Noya says that slowly. "...has it really been like that? I mean, it's not like we have a formal process for this."
"If it's a temporary thing then it should be fine." Amber awkwardly looks off to the side.
"Just…ugh…" Iris takes a deep breath before looking up from her hands and directly at Will. "Anything else to add? We can get moving now…" She sighs. "Preferably right now."
"Not really, I'm more than up for doing side tasks before we get back to civiliz- actually, nah, don't care. Take your time with whatever you wanna do before you return, I'll tag along, be real diligent or comprehensive ....whatever the word is."
"It's diligent…" Iris groans out.
"Yeah that."
"...where'd you get tutelage?"
"Trying too hard, could just say 'school', what're we doing here buddy?"
"That's not the point…"
"Top tier boondoggling from you. Holy carp."
"You're just making up words now."
"You need to be more tuned in, not my problem."
"Into what?"
"Into the streets. Tell me you haven't picked up some words by now? Genuinely ignorant on your part. Where have you been?"
"Out…doors. In the wild." She sighs. "Which…is my….job."
"Not an excuse."
"You're horrible." She throws a hand up in exasperation.
"Psh. Yeah alright, buddy." Will shakes his head before walking over to where Noya and Amber are and engaging in more conversation.
Iris tunes it all out in favor of turning around and looking at what remains of the Wishing Box.
The interesting thing is that nobody even had a chance to make a wish on it, this guy just decides to pop on out of it like Wishing Boxes have something in them to begin with.
They don't.
She would like to look at other parts of this strange Wishing Box like the strange ooze coming out of it but the perfectly rectangular block of ice is blocking it.
There's also that. They don't freeze either, even if they did, what type of ice is this that she can't even manipulate it with her ice magic?
It itself is blatantly magical but completely immune to anything she tried on it.
The extreme desert heat causes her to sweat slightly which reminds her again. It hasn't melted at all yet it's still cold???
Iris takes a deep breath.
No, it's all fine, just temporary as he said. Sure, the fact that the Monolith they've been tracking for the past two weeks turned into a complete dud—despite having actually completed it—is a setback.
Is a setback, quite the setback...maybe...a bit more than that? Just...a little more...
Iris forcibly unclenches her fist once she notices it's doing that.
It's all fine. After all, this Will guy said he'd help, he's clearly an actual warrior and not a mere Trekker. She's sure he's competent, maybe they can hit another Monolith? Hope to the God of Grace that another freak doesn't pop out of the Wishing Box.
All fine.
She tunes back into reality and-
"That's...really big. Lemme hold it..."
"Psh. You can't handle this, not with th-"
-!
Iris's head whips to the source of the noise.
"WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?!"
Iris screams out before her eyes can even process the scene, her mind instantly jumping to a bizarre conclusion.
Her eyes dart around as her voice dies down, landing on Will and Noya standing there with both of their respective swords drawn. Amber is simply watching off behind them.
Nothing too weird happening here then, might've been an overreaction on her part.
Noya is simply holding out her sword to compare it to Will's...
Will's...
"...Iris? You alright?" Noya asks.
Even Amber looks worried, but Iris needs an answer to a question right now.
"Did..." She's staring at Will. "You just stick a slab of metal on a handle?"
"It's a claymore dawg, that's the point."
"She's not a dog, Will." Amber chips in.
"I swear y'all are too formal."
"Claymores are supposed to have a crossguard, it is kinda just a slab." Noya taps the guard on her normal looking sword.
"Look, the things I fought couldn't be guarded against with just a measly guard, that type of blocking would've gotten me cooked. Well...I'd be fine but...eh nevermind. Just know I don't need one."
Iris walks up towards the trio, points at Will, and says, "I'm going to have to ask you to stop doing that."
"...what?" He says.
"Leading off. You say crazy things and just leave it at that. Stop." [4]
"Bruh. You want me to elaborate? Do we have all day?" He dismissively waves his hand. "Miss 'Let's get going, preferably now.' " He does air quotes with his fingers. "Let me have something to myself since we clearly don't have the time."
Iris's lips draw into a thin line, grimacing.
"Let's just get this moving, wherever the next stop is." Will shakes his head and raises his claymore and puts it behind his back, promptly disappearing from reality.
Noya stares for a few seconds. "Huh." She mutters before putting her sword in a holster on her back, like a normal person.
"...do you feel like explaining that?" Amber, who was behind him and thus got a perfect view of the blatant space manipulation, asks.
"Mm..." Will hums. "Nah, ask me in like a few days or something."
"Nn." Amber also hums in response.
"We're going to be heading towards another Monolith, just so you know." Iris finally says something.
"Bet, cod..." They can't see behind the mask but he is licking his lips. "Can't wait, can't wait..." He mumbles to himself, rubbing his hands together rapidly.
Iris blinks once.
Before shaking her head and pointing in the direction where they'll be going.
'...O...God of Grace.' Iris thinks. '...p-please.'
Authors Notes (Always been wanting to do this because wallah, I love hearing my voice.)
[1] Ay, you look up Amber (Stella Sora) and you tell me what she's wearing. Gave it a shot.
[2] I'm pretty sure the game says that it's a book but, no it's not, trust my judgement over the devs. It's a laptop, I refuse to believe it's anything else.
[3] Yeah, that's actually a gang sign, I'll elaborate more on it probably 3 chapters from now. He did literally throw up his set, nervousness does wonders to dipshit over here.
[4] Had a friend tell me that this type of conversation would piss them off IRL so I thought, eh, if their relationship is oil and water than may as well have Iris check him on this everytime it comes up. He stays bullshitting though.