For the second time this year, I found myself in the belly of a beast. I must be a nice snack.

  Richard was still out cold, which was concerning as fish ribs poked at me.

  The rope caught my foot, and my team and the fish pulled against each other. Then, my lifeline tether snapped on a tooth the tug-of-war battle having sawed it in half.

  Clutching Richard, I spread out my feet, my toes digging into the membrane of the fish's esophagus. It distended as I kicked and punched. I didn't have a weapon.

  My efforts were for naught as its slimy muscles undulated, forcing me deeper into its digestive tract.

  The fishy stomach was a lot smaller than our [Trial Dungeon] experience; the watery contents floated with us. The bandages across my chest had slowly unraveled, revealing a small light source—the hole in my chest was glowing faintly as magical webbing had replaced what had been a whole lung. My heart clenched in fear for a moment, as I questioned whether I could actually breathe.

  I released a cloud of panicky bubbles.

  Obviously, I could breathe.

  In the dim light given off by my magical lung. The contents of the fish’s stomach were uninspiring. A chunk of rudist membrane floated by with a lamprey-like parasite attached. A blob of fat from an ammonite sat next to a flake of ochre. In the bottom of the stomach, giving off the stomach-churning rank of infection, sat a fishbone lodged in the tissue. An angry red pustule surrounded the offending bone.

  I grabbed a half-digested fish scale, hoping it would be razor sharp. It flaked apart in my hand as the digestive acid burned my skin.

  Mentally, I reached out with my [Slime Manipulation]. The goo unimpressively wriggled.

  I knew what I had to do. I just didn't want to do it.

  Grabbing the fishbone with my free hand, I braced. It was slippery, but slime was my life now. With a yank, I pulled the bone out of the fish's gullet.

  Pus and blood started filling its stomach immediately at the newly agitated wound.

  [First Aid] triggered, telling me the predator would be fine if it gargled with salt water twice a day and stayed away from spicy food for a month.

  I didn't intend to let it recover.

  As the muscles clenched, set on expelling me, I held the fishbone like a lance just waiting for my opportunity.

  The fish coughed, sending me straight into the mouth. I aimed the lance between the top ridges of the mouth and plunged it into the soft tissue, spearing it in the brain.

  The wall of teeth in front of me opened, slack-jawed.

  [Triehold defeated. You have earned experience. [Gills] detected. [Gelatinous] detected. [Animal Intention] detected. Class override for evolutionary gear engaged. Reward: [Blessing of the Waters] unlocked. You now have access to one of three pre-existing magical properties: [Dimensional Storage]. [Lael's Workshop Key] empowered one of three.]

  I had my own dimensional storage in Lael’s ring this whole time? I couldn’t wait to try it out, but I wasn’t about to use it in the bloody soup I was swimming through.

  I’d completely forgotten about the [Lael’s Workshop Key], as it sat at the bottom of my pack with my lucky nails. If all I had to do was kill giant sea monsters, I think I’ll pass at trying to earn access to it.

  [Quest Updated: [Legacy of Lael Voss]

  You have unlocked one of the three powers of [Blessings of the Waters]. Unlock the other two powers and empower [Lael’s Workshop Key] two more times to prove to Rhi you are ready to take on Lael's coastal workshop and clear out the [Corruption]. Adventure Onward!]

  I swam through the mouth of the fish, cursing. My elation over having a dimensional storage space had evaporated as I realized Rhi had tricked me. Rhi Voss had purposefully given me a useless key that needed to be empowered? That [Lich]!

  I kicked furiously, swimming with one hand free as I held the ball that Richard had become tightly against my chest.

  Meredeath and Ash helped pull me through the shimmering wall of the bubble. I'd never been so glad to see their relieved faces.

  Coughing, I handed Richard to Meredeath as I hacked up seawater. Ash gave me a couple of helpful pounds on my back before I realized we were still standing dangerously close to the barrier. Wheezing, I stood back up, my land lung fully kicking into action.

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  "Let's move someplace..." I trailed off, examining the much smaller enclosure. The reality hit, we were missing two more of our party, and the bubble had shrunk accordingly. Meredeath huddled in front of the fire with Richard, a miserable-looking Argin, and an angry Leyla. What the hell happened?

  "This is so cool!" Ash was touching my chest a little too intimately for comfort. Shrinking away, I looked down. A warm golden light glowed from the hole where I’d been punctured. Tandy's magic had saved me. A shiver raked my body as I realized just how close to dying I'd actually come.

  Ash pulled me over to the magical fire.

  "Meredeath, it's like he's Iron Man!" Ash pointed to my bare chest. Meredeath's green eyes swung up from her examination of Richard as she gave me a once-over. I cringed at my skinny physique.

  "More like Iron Lung," Meredeath responded, unimpressed as she almost shoved Richard in the fire.

  "Ouch, man." Ash gave me a consolatory pat on the back. The insult may have gone way over my head, but I didn't need Ash's pity.

  Going for my pack first, I pulled out my last shirt. It was a stained blue number, but I didn't think anyone was going to hold my laundry skills against me. I sat cross-legged next to Richard and Meredeath, pack in hand.

  Richard was curled into a ball as though he'd gone into some sort of hibernation. His skin was wet but not particularly slimy, which I took as a bad sign. His skin was icy, which was why Meredeath, knowing his [Heat Resistance] was all but barbecuing him on the magic flames.

  "If we had Tandy here, I'm sure she could fix him up with her power." Ash waved his hand around in a poor imitation of a [Mage].

  Argin shrank into herself, as though she'd like nothing more than to hibernate with Richard.

  "Yeah, about Tandy." I leeched all the warmth from my voice, eyes seeking Argin's. "Tell us about your grandfather."

  Argin's eyes swept around the campfire seeking support, but even Leyla had her arms crossed waiting for an explanation. Argin wilted further, her dark hair falling like a curtain before her down-turned face.

  I wasn't buying it. This was part of the helpless act she and her grandfather had put on for the caravan. The all-powerful [Archmage] wouldn't leave his granddaughter helpless.

  "Where is Tandy?" I put all the [Chill] I could into my voice as I started rummaging around for my first aid kit. It'd been getting far too much use. "Ash, can you get some freshwater boiling? Meredeath, you keep doing what you're doing. We need to warm him up. Do we still have Tandy's pack? There should be a wool blanket that we can wrap him in."

  Leyla found Tandy's pack, and as she pulled out the green wool blanket, I couldn't help but catch a scent I associated with my friend. The cinnamon and nutmeg in her granola mix. Meredeath wrapped the slug up, leaving only his head exposed as she faced it towards the fire. His tentacles were completely inverted tucked into his body. His breathing was slow. A bite mark along one of this black spots oozed the gray-blue blood of a banana slug.

  Handing Ash a cloth to sterilize, I grabbed my bottle of alcohol and began cleaning out his wounds. The slug had multiple bite marks, and a whole chunk of his tail taken out. If he were human, he'd already have been dead. Thankfully, the [Immortal] banana slug had more lives than an undead [Lich].

  I broke out some plantain, my go-to for wound treatment. Using my last poultice bags, I packed them with the core herbs for wound closure. Using some of the water Ash had provided, I moistened the bags and wrapped Richard up with the sterilized bandage.

  The [System] must have been impressed, as it rewarded my efforts.

  [Skill Upgrade: [First Aid] has been upgraded to [Combat Medicine]. You retain all capabilities with [First Aid] and have gained the following abilities:

  [Triage] - Allows for quick assessment and prioritization of injuries to an individual or group of individuals.

  [Sterilize] - Can be used multiple times a day at the cost of 10 mana per use. This skill decreases the chance of infection by 30%.

  [Basic Herbalism] - You now have a basic understanding of herbs and their medicinal uses. Through use, you can gain the ability to find helpful herbs in any environment.]

  While the upgraded skill was nice, I'd have traded it for Richard to regain consciousness.

  "You still haven't answered his question." Leyla's voice cut through everyone numbly watching me care for Richard.

  "What do you want me to say?" Argin's voice was bitter. "My grandfather is an [Archmage], you already know this. He took Tandy." And not me. She left the words unspoken. "To safety."

  "But why?" I asked.

  "And where?" Ash added.

  "None of it matters if we don't make it out of here alive." Argin pointed to the giant monstrosity eyeing our small enclosure. I wasn't positive it couldn't just reach in and snatch us out of the bubble.

  "That may be so, but for your own health, I need to know what happened to my friend and why." The words came out tight. I was shaking. I was so angry. My heart pounded in my chest. Leo and Tandy, and now Richard. I was so alone, and it enraged me.

  Argin looked up. The facade of helplessness fell away as she looked at me. I could end her. I could grab her arm and throw her into the abyss.

  Meredeath watched me, her green eyes flaring. She wasn't going to save me from this darkness.

  "Cole," an annoyingly gentle voice called my name. "Cole, let's let her speak." Ironic words coming from Ash. I looked at him, his soft brown eyes beckoning me to sit down. I'd snatched the pot of boiling water off the campfire and held it as though I was going to swing at her.

  Argin sat on the ground, eyes closed as though she was at peace with the consequences of her grandfather's actions.

  I sat back down, sloshing water in the sand as I set the pot back on the fire. Embarrassed, I set to mixing an herbal tea for the water.

  Argin opened her eyes, surprised that the end hadn't come. She relaxed, sensing that, for now, her death was commuted.

  With a sigh, she started her story.

  "My grandfather is an asshole..."

  Reck Well

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