Callie was really disappointed when her brother didn't put her back down in her bassinet. Instead, he tightened his arms around her and began to carry her away.
Callie considered crying out, but the look on her brother's face made her decide this would not work out the way it did with their mother. Her brother wasn't as nice as mother was. And Callie really didn't want to test how much more her increased abilities would allow her to survive.
So, Callie could only stare up at her brother's scary face, until he apparently decided he didn't like that. Suddenly, his grip changed, and Callie was looking forwards instead of up.
This really wasn't a safe or healthy way to carry a baby! However, Callie was pleased. She could finally see more of this strange, new world.
They were obviously in a very small house. There seemed to be only about 3 or 4 rooms in total. Callie supposed it was better than the 1 room hovels she'd read about in fantasy novels. Still, Callie got the overall impression that they were relatively poor, especially as she got a good look at the dilapidated structure overall.
The house looked like it was going to fall down at any moment! It would have been condemned for sure, back on Earth.
Callie sighed. Maybe she should invest in some of those strength stats, after all. Who knows if she'd survive if the house collapsed, as it was!
After they left the house, Callie noticed it was very dark outside. Only torches lit the deep gloom, making Callie wonder if this world even had a moon. She was unable to look up from her current position, so her curiosity would have to wait, but Callie promised herself, someday she'd see what the night sky of this world looked like.
They travelled through the night for what felt to Callie like a long time. She cursed her family mentally, annoyed by the time waste. She'd like to be investing stat points, but she didn't know how long she'd be sleeping if she did and this situation appeared to be dangerous. Callie didn't feel like it was worth the risk, but she still cursed her family for interrupting her work. Couldn't this trip have been done without her?
Callie ignored the obvious reasons why her family wouldn't leave her behind. After all, who leaves a baby alone? And, certainly, her brother couldn't be trusted with her care!
Callie long grew bored of studying the woods around her. Sure, the trees weren't any variety she had seen back home, and the plants that grew were strange and eye-catching with their loud colors and beautiful designs. However, after the 1000th of such plants, Callie was over it.
She was ready to go back to her comfy bassinet now.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Callie spotted a large building ahead. She studied it with interest, but couldn't help the shiver that coursed through her.
It was a large, imposing building, made of a black stone of some kind, almost like marble. The stone itself seemed to eat the light from the torch her mother carried, lending an even creepier cast to the building. No vegetation grew anywhere near those stones, making Callie wonder what kind stone it could possibly be.
Her mother and brother didn't hesitate before it, however, and went straight to the towering door. It was made of the same black stone as the rest of the building. But on the door, there were these designs carved, of large mouths and seeking hands that almost seemed to move in the dark.
Thoroughly creeped out, Callie wished to return staring back up at her brother's sneering face again.
The door suddenly opened, making Callie's eyes widen as she stared at the large, terrifying sight before her.
A big skeleton stood in the entranceway, holding the door ajar for the group as they walked inside. Callie had no idea why her mother and brother didn't seem to mind the giant skeleton, but to her eyes, he was monstrous. More than 3x as big as her mother, this creature had to stand at least 15 ft. tall! That was unsettling enough, but the absence of skin and eyes and anything remotely humanoid left Callie shaken.
As they continued past the monstrosity, Callie was not reassured. More skeletons, these more proportionate of a human, lined the long room, standing at attention before the family as they walked upwards towards a large dais in the back of the hall.
This dais had large, glittering steps made of the same black stone leading up to it. On the top of that dais, a throne as big as the creepy door sat. But the man sitting on the throne was the scariest thing of all, with his purple, glowing eyes watching the family as they advanced towards him.
Callie didn't know why he was so scary. He certainly looked more normal than the skeletons did, with skin and eyes and everything seemingly normal besides the color and the glow in his eyes. However, there was a malevolence practically seeping from his skin, that travelled the length of the great hall and shivered over Callie's skin like a terrifying, hungry thing. Callie could feel that hunger, feel the need to feast on the lifeforce within her body.
It was not a pleasant feeling.
Callie wanted to cry. She wanted to squirm and crawl. Maybe even run, if she could figure out how in this little body.
If Callie had needed a reminder she wasn't on Earth anymore, that this wasn't just a game she was playing, the feeling of that malevolence would have done it. But Callie hadn't needed the reminder, she had barely been holding on to her sanity by reveling in the system as it was.
Her brother and mother stopped at the bottom of those stairs, and bowed deep towards the ground. Her brother lifted Callie's body up above his head as he bowed, presenting her before the purple-eyed man like she was a new cub atop the big rock in that lion movie she'd watched as a child.
Callie stared at the purple-eyed man, as he stared right back. He quirked a small smile at her, his eyes seeming interested in her for some unknown reason. He said a few words and gestured towards her brother.
Her brother obviously understood the man, and walked towards him while still in a deep bow, Callie pushed even more in front of him. For the first time, Callie felt her brother shaking, his body weakly shivering much as hers had when she'd seen this place. She couldn't blame him for his fear but she failed to understand why he kept getting closer to the strange man.
Finally, the strange man reached out and snatched her from her brother's arms, making her cry out, startled. She quickly cut off the cry, sure that this man was even more of a threat than her brother had been if she angered him.
The man laughed, seeming pleased by her quick silence. He held her snugly, the way one should hold a child, cradling her as though he found her precious. One hand reached out and rubbed her cheek beneath her eyes. Callie barely held in her instinctive flinch.
Callie's breathing was uneven as she stared into this man's strange, purple eyes. She felt a panic attack coming on, and strived to control it with everything she had.
Weakness here could be her undoing.
Desperate, Callie called up her status panel. She quickly added 10 points both to her control stat and her endurance stat, hoping this would give her the wherewithal to hold her emotions in in this moment.
The expected headache burst behind her eyes with equally expected brutality. Callie controlled her flinch, but was more relieved than pained as she felt her panic attack subside. The urge to sleep came upon her once more, but Callie forced herself to stay alert.
--New Ability Acquired: Fear Resistance Lv. 1--
--New Ability Acquired: Sleep Resistance Lv. 1--
--New Ability Acquired: Mental Resistance Lv. 1--
The series of pop-ups suddenly appeared before Callie's eyes, obscuring her view. She wanted to growl in annoyance, but instead lectured the system inside her head.
'This is not the time, System! Can't you see I'm in danger here? Obscuring my view right now is a huge problem!'
--System Preferences: Saved--
The pop-ups quickly disappeared, and Callie didn't even think about them anymore, staring up at the man above her with real fear beating in her heart.
This man could kill her, right now. This man's power, which she could still feel sliding across her skin, could eat her like she was nothing right now, and there was nothing she or her family could do about it. For the first time in this new world, looking up at this creature, Callie realized what the goddess had meant about creatures hoarding power.
This man above her had been hoarding power for a long, long time. Callie didn't know how she knew, but she could just feel the age from this man, just like she could feel his malevolent, hungry power.
The man suddenly gestured above Callie's head, and Callie tensed without conscious thought. She stared at his hand, as a book suddenly appeared there. He smiled down at her as he brought the book down towards Callie. Callie didn't know why, but she really didn't want that book to touch her. She almost squirmed, the need to get away became so strong, but managed to control herself, just barely.
When the book touched her skin, it burned her, making her cry out from the pain. She tried to stop herself, sure the man would be upset, but he only laughed as she continued to cry. The book dissolved on her skin and the burn intensified, until Callie couldn't even hear his laugh above the pain in her veins.
It even eclipsed the pain she felt in her head. This burning sensation traveled throughout her body, like a river of lava had been poured directly beneath her skin. She could feel it pumping with the beat of her heart, burning through her insides, eating her up like she'd been afraid the man's power would do. For a long moment, Callie felt sure she would die here, like this, burned up by the fire that was coursing through her.
'What a waste.' She thought.
But, finally, the pain subsided. This pain ended much quicker than the pain of adding points to her stats. Callie continued to cry, this time in relief that the biggest pain she felt was only her headache once more.
When she looked up, the man was smiling down at her, seeming overjoyed about something. Callie couldn't imagine what, could only tremble in fear and remembered pain as she stared up at the purple-eyed monster before her. He finally looked away from her and said something to her mother, who replied in a shaking voice. Callie had no idea what was said, and honestly, no longer cared.
'Please, just let this be over.'
After what seemed like a long discussion, the man finally handed Callie back to her waiting brother. He gestured with explicit finality, before Callie's brother and mother finally left that awful hall.
As soon as they were outside the terrible doors, Callie's mother snatched Callie from her brother's arms, and cuddled her against her body. She began to cry as she looked down at little Callie, rocking her as she began walking her children back home.
Callie had no idea what the soft-spoken words her mother said, but the sound of them quickly soothed her into a deep, dreamless sleep.