The rock walls in the expanse seem to be softer than what we had to dig through near my heart, the tools making quick work of it. Instead of saving the debris, we let it tumble down. We can afford not to keep it with the amount of stone we will get from Oberon tunnelling toward us. I did think about possibly using it to fill in the tunnel from which we came from but I decided against it. It’s better for us to be able to access the old tunnel and know if it's being used than to block it off and get a nasty surprise.
After what felt like a day, we ended up reaching the bottom. Luckily my defenders do not suffer in the stamina department and are able to work endlessly. Every so often I would swap with my unarmed defender to overlook this new place. The site is still as beautiful as ever. Finally, we reached the ground. From above, the moss looks as if it's coating the expanses floor but once you reach the bottom you realise it's actually masking what lays underneath. Crevices, small passages and little nooks cover every inch of the rock that lay beneath. The perfect places for all manner of insects to hide. With Oberon continuing the dig to my location from his newly built entrance, I decide to call back the defender that was digging to meet him. With three mantis defenders in tow, I take my first step into the mossed roofed passages.
Bare stone walls make up the entranceway but as we walk in further we find the walls come to life. A variety of small fungi and mosses that love the dark humid conditions cover every viable surface. There are even a few of the glowing mushrooms dotted about, too small to produce their first light. I grab a clump of moss from the wall that has a circular lip like a bowl and use it as a makeshift basket. I take samples of the surrounding mushrooms and moss placing them inside before giving the basket to my unarmed defender. We then continue on down the corridor. The further we go more on edge I get as more crevices and nooks appear in my blind spots. The feeling that something may jump out any moment looming in the air.
The sound of tumbling stone comes from a crevice in front of us. We stop and while keeping low to the ground, we wait. More rocks tumble but nothing makes an appearance. I pluck a mushroom from the wall and throw it into the crevice but nothing comes from inside. Instead, From a nook to the side of us a shadow darts out toward the mushroom. Instinctively I stab outwards at the shadow's path. The shadow dodges to the side before continuing toward the mushroom id thrown. Now that it’s still I can make out what it is. A small black beetle-like creature has latched onto the mushroom, gnawing at it with its pincers. I creep forward, tool at the ready to swing down. The beetles long antennae twitch with my movement but it continues to ignore me. I step forward again, getting into striking range and swing down. The creatures shell lifts up at the back. Two wings unfurl, quickly moving its body out of the way of my strike. It crashes into the wall with its momentum before flying towards me. With my weapon still against the ground, I brace my arm in front of my core but the hit never comes. One of my mantis defenders scored a direct strike from the side of me. His sickle-knife tool lodged into its face and sticking out of its underside. The bug twitches a moment more before stilling. Well, I wasn’t expecting it to start flying of all things. The bug was going to get a hit in too if it wasn’t for my defender. Are all of the insects going to be this aggressive? Though I suppose I did try and strike it first. I get my defender to pull the bug off of its tool and place it into the basket. It may be useful as a material.
We start to move forward once more. But it doesn’t take long until I feel an all too familiar sense of fatigue. I must be reaching the end of my influence. I could push it like I did before but I don’t feel as if there is much point, I’ve found plenty of new things to test out. I make my way back to the entrance to the expanse with my defenders. Now. Do I want to make my way back to my heart now or wait for Oberon to make his way here? I close my eyes and try to sense Oberon’s position. He’s not too far away. I could spend the time that I’m waiting for him going over the bits I’ve found. Then when he breaks through, make my way back to expand my influence. I sit down just inside of the cavern entrance and will my unarmed defender to bring me the moss basket. Then I give my tool to it in exchange before sending all three of them to start digging towards Oberon’s location.
Let's go with the bug first. Looking more closely I think it's an Aphis beetle? Ah, so that's what a glowing mantis was doing down here. If I recall correctly they are a stable in their diet. That does mean I will most likely find a lot more glowing mantis down here though. I pull on the limbs testing their strength and it's pretty much what I expected, they snapped instantly. I then go for the only other part I feel will be of use, its shell. I pull the two hardened pieces of carapace that protect its wings off its back and test them. Although quite small and curved they are actually about as strong as the front plates from the mantis. They are also a lot easier to obtain, as aphis beetles are swarmers. I'm actually surprised I found only one. Every time I saw them while still in the community they literally blocked out the light from the glow mushrooms. The only time the underneath was truly dark. I set the plates down next to me and throw the rest of the corpse off the edge, right into the expanse. Then I look to the next item, mushrooms.
The first is a young glowing mushroom. After a few tests, I find nothing of note. It would be good as a light source but our cores do a good job of that already. Next was a strange bulbous looking mushroom with a fibrous husk. I checked the bulb and couldn’t find anything of use. The husk however is another story, the fibres are long and its strength comparable to the chitin so I put the mushroom in the keep pile. The last one was a mushroom with a shrivelled brown cap. After testing I couldn’t find anything of note and so it was thrown over the edge.
“Elysia, We have made it through!”
Perfect! I pick myself off the floor and decide to inspect the mosses on the way back to my heart. I walk to where Oberon met my defenders when digging. “Oberon I am going to my heart to expand my influence. The exploration was fruitful”. I give Oberon the carapace and bulbous mushroom. “There is a black beetle-like critter in the passages beneath and this fibrous mushroom. both seem like they could be of use. Explore the area below in teams to find more of these and any new things you may uncover. Only attack the beetles if they are alone as I have a feeling it will go badly if they swarm you.
“Yes, Elysia! What about the mosses you are holding?”
“Still in the process of checking them, I will update you if it’s useful.”
With a nod, he begins to direct a few of the defenders down the ramp while the rest stay to guard the entrance. I take my mantis defenders with me so they can help defend the heart while I'm in my soul realm.
I pass the basket back over to my unarmed defender and take one of the mosses. The moss is vibrant red with small dry and brittle fronds. I snapped a bit off and an orange liquid seeps from the exposed ends. I touch the ends together and pull them apart. The liquid sticks, forming long strands that bridge the gap… I could use it as glue? I get my basket holding defender to take the red moss instead while I take the basket — the last moss to look at. If I remember, the moss seems to grow into this bowl-like shape naturally and so they could be useful as containers but what else? I try to pull off a chunk of it to find it's actually really hard, not as much as the chitin but similar to the stone. It has the added benefit of being much lighter too. When I inspect it more closely I find that the leaf-like tops are encrusted with some sort of mineral. Although I can't figure out a use right now I can see its potential.
“Oberon both mosses are now the priority”
“As you will.”
I reach my heart much quicker than the journey would have been previously. I place down the basket moss in the corner of the room and get the defender to continue holding the red moss before closing my eyes and shifting to my soul realm. The lights around my crystal heart have increased slightly since the last time I saw it. It must be from killing the Aphis Beetle. It makes me excited for the future and what possibilities more mana will bring. I'm then reminded of the floating pathway that leads to the mists. Maybe more will be uncovered this time around?
I sit down in front of the well and begin the process of feeding my mana to the sphere that encompasses this area. I feel it as my mana drains away and more is added to the sphere, pushing back the mists. Oberon wasn’t kidding when he said the cost increase exponentially. This time I throw all of my mana into it but only make half the progress. I open my eyes and look around to see what's changed, to see if the path now leads somewhere. Nothing. I'm now out of mana and with Oberon harvesting from the expanse, this is as good of a time as any to regenerate it. I close my eyes and fall into meditation.
