It was a very primitive form of magic, but the way the patterns flowed within itself makes me believe that it uses a fundamentally different way of storing and utilizing mana in its body. Many other mushrooms here have said property, and I've been storing away any and all I can find as I wander the mycelium-infused caverns.
It's me, Avery, by the way.
That just now was off… I felt as if my perspective shifted for a short while when I emerged into this mushy and disgusting world of rot and sinew.
The ground feels like silver skin from a fatty bison, and the walls ache and quiver with a pus-filled collection of sores and holes; like a brothel down in the human's districts.
I cannot help but wonder what form of purpose such a world holds, as I recognize that each mushroom here holds invaluable potential in terms of usage for ingredients in various reagents. I imagine some of these mushrooms, especially these pink and red ones I've been plucking from the walls, may be interesting.
Of course, I'm no mushroom expert, but I know where I can find one. The mushrooms I plucked were shaped like shofars or cornucopias, with swirls of color that pulsed with Primordial magic.
I've sent two automata to scout out the area while I moved towards the main threat, which, believe it or not, were the animated corpses that we encountered. Undead, Zombies, Skeletons, whatever you call them… these risen corpses didn't make sense to be in such a world.
This Primordial Realm's epithet was clearly either rot or mushrooms, and undead really don't match that stigma. Granted, you can infuse and move corpses with mushrooms but that isn't necessarily what's going on here. These are properly summoned and maintained undead with wisps of necromantic power, the kind that should typically be expunged from a world.
I cannot allow this to continue if I wish to establish a connection
I have no hatred for the undead, but this sort of behavior is alarming to me particularly because it means that this realm is either colliding with the realm of undeath or is under attack by a necromancer.
In the distance I gleamed the dull white of scattered and displaced bones lining what seemed to be a tunnel through the cavern walls- hand carved it seemed. I stood before the entrance, letting myself down from my flight, and looked forward down the dark entrance.
I felt a presence staring back at me, and between our two gazes locking a flash of familiarity hit me. The works of necromancy are seldom shared, but these undead-carved passageways have the undoubted stench of a Visceramancer spawn. In other words, the presence of a Chimera is within this place. My face twisted and scowled, hoisting my spear over my shoulder ready to throw.
I lined myself up into a stance and unleashed my presence. The glare on me flared back in response. The beast inside the cavern, whatever it was, has now accepted my challenge. Immediately, the walls began shifting- the floor underneath me rupturing as stone lifted itself around me into an earthen prison.
I closed my eyes, and with a breath, released the spear from my hand.
It sailed straight through the earth with a loud whistle, taking off like a jet from my throw and piercing straight through the mycelium-filled dirt around me. When a soft *thud* resonated throughout the hole, I smiled.
"Come on out." I approached the tunnel's entrance, bashing away the remaining dirt with my fist. "No point in hiding, let's settle this like beasts!"
A dull message tinged in my head- "A foreigner comes to challenge me in my domain… hah! So be it, let's have a great fight o' maestro-! I'm sure the songs of your death will be a grand addition to my orchestra-!"
'Well, like all Visceramancer Spawn he certainly is a loony.' My smile bittered.
It's no fun to fight the insane type, they'll laugh and laugh until they can't laugh any more. It's like walloping a punching bag with a happy face taped on, though these types do possess more of the unique powers. I cracked my neck and my knuckles, before walking straight forward into the crevice of bones.
"Ah-! So you do come forth when beckoned, excellent!" The voice came to me, this time from his mouth. Or, rather, I could not affirm their gender- the masculine voice cracked once between his words. I gazed upwards as the tunnel opened into a large room filled with dangling cages, and saw a disgusting sight.
His skin was a sickly gray color, dotted and splotched with a deeply inked black all over in an ugly pattern that swirled across his body like waves upon a beach. The hair of it's humanoid figure was made from sickly maggots stitched together and wriggling in an upright horrible display. His smile sickened me as well, and my scowl darkened my face. My spear was being twirled within his grimy hands made from stitched beasts and elven species.
His stained eyes made from a snake and boar both judged me, as I glared back at his prideful facade split. "Y-You… what the fuck?!"
"I'm not here to dance to your strings, clown." I lifted my hand into the air and summoned my spear back to my hand, ripping it from his grasp with a thought. I wiped it clean from his ink-stained grasp… fuck, his body is infused with magical ink. What sort of power did he hope to gleam from such an interaction?
"H-Hah, alright then-!" His smile returned despite the sweat beating from his forehead now. "Then, I suppose another time-?"
In an instant before I could react, his body was swallowed whole by a large wave of ink that exploded from the ground. I grit my teeth and dropped a light burst of Chaos Flame to burn down the carved room before stomping my way back out. Clicking my tongue, I was a bit irritated, I didn't even get a good look at the room as I left- my frustration and anger hit a point immediately as I spoke.
'Rotten bastard…' I cursed, walking my way back towards my automaton compatriots. I had left them behind earlier. I'm hoping they'd find something of interest while I search elsewhere, but I didn't wish to test my luck.
"Ha…" I sighed audibly as I crossed through an archway of mushroom growths. "Just my luck, damn things."