I ended up sending Svilran to the watermelon jungle and went to the dormitory instead—best strike while the iron’s hot and all that. I was just going to check on Elma and make sure she was adjusting well to our whole lot of nothing. If she was feeling up to talking—then great.

So, I was in front of her room’s door—I just kind of knew she was in there—and I heard a disturbing sound.

“Mmm—urgh—bfft—“

I knocked on the door clearly. “Elma?!” The sounds were giving me bad relapses—I should have gotten rid of the sounds from my memory. “Elma, I’m coming in!”

Best to ask for forgiveness than permission.

The locked door opened for me, and I walked in to see Elma on the floor holding her mouth, the half-eaten melon next to her, and a lot of pink vomit before her knees.

“Oh, Elma,” I said, overcome with pity.

Her eyes went wide as she shook uncontrollably. She looked down at the vomit and then back at me. 

“Wait, no!” she screamed, her voice cracking and her eyes darting all over the place. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to waste your kindness! I’ll clean it up right now!” She looked around frantically and pulled the sheet from the bed next to her. “I’ll clean it—ahh! No, wait! This is yours—NO! I’m sorry!”

I was taken aback. This wasn’t the same girl. What had happened? When we saw her earlier, she was cognizant and bold enough to say ‘no,’ but now... Did she relapse into something?

She noticed the rags she was still wearing and quickly ripped them off, exposing her breast to the room. “I’ll clean up—“

“Stop.”

I found the bathroom. It was to the left of the doorway. I went in, pulled one of the white towels from the bathroom, went over to where the shaking Elma was, kneeled, and started cleaning up her vomit.

I’msorryI’msorry—I’m so sorry—Please don’t bite me—“

“Just be quiet.”

Err—I didn’t realize how bad that sounded until a second later. I really wasn’t good with this type of stuff.

“Listen. Just calm down. Take deep breaths and calm down. No one’s going to hurt you.” I kept my eyes on the vomit I was wiping up. “Just reclaim yourself.”

I listened as I heard her ragged breathing slow. A few minutes later, she was calm again—at least—that was what her breathing indicated. I looked up at her once I had cleaned everything up.

“Sorry...” she said as she cast her gaze to her knees. She held her left arm up and across her chest, but was still shaking. “Sorry for the mess.”

“It’s not a problem. I saw a washing machine downstairs or something like that when I came in... I’ll just ask Svilran to clean up later.” She kept looking at her knees. “How are you feeling?”

“I don’t understand... I swear, your fruit was delicious. The most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted. But... it made me ill. I didn’t mean to offend you...”

“I’m not offended.” I looked at the watermelon. She cut it open with a knife that I assume she got from this dormitory and really chowed down. I could see the clear bite marks. “You’re probably not used to eating something like this. How much were you eating before?”

“Before?” She looked at me and shook her head. “I wasn’t eating anything.” She calmly pulled her long hair away from her neck and showed them to me—the many puncture wounds. “The family that kept me would bite me and inject me with nutrients.”

I was in absolute shock. I asked a dumb question because of how flabbergasted I was. “You weren’t eating?”

“No.”

“Shit. Sorry.”

She looked at me and slowly shook her head. She inhaled sharply and seemed to laugh at herself. “I’m sorry too. I’m a sorry waste of space. Here I am, hungry and sitting in my vomit”—tears started streaming from her eyes—“and I can’t even eat and fill myself. I’m such a wretched thing—“

“No, you’re not.”

She looked at me.

“You’re not.” I grabbed the watermelon. “You know, today was the first day in a long time that I had something that wasn’t rotting.”

She furrowed her brows. She wanted to hear what I had to say.

“But even though that was the case, I only had a single slice.”

“Why? Aren’t you hungry too?”

I nodded. “I am. But see, you can’t be too rough on your body. In my case, my stomach probably isn’t used to having so much after so long.” I tried to laugh a little. “I can’t even imagine how it works for you when you actually weren’t eating, period.” I looked at the watermelon and then at her. “You have to take it slow. And when I say slow, I mean nibble a little at a time. Go easy on your stomach.”

“And I’ll be able to eat properly?”

I got up and extended a hand to her. “Come on. You’re a woman some random guy and a former goddess plucked out and said could be a hero. You can definitely enjoy a watermelon soon enough.”

She smiled and tried to take my hand with her left hand before realizing doing so would leave her chest exposed. She chuckled nervously and took my hand with her right.

I helped her up and pointed her gaze to the washroom. “You can clean up in there. Just turn the faucet. We probably have cold and hot water... Maybe. Anyway, you wash up, and I’ll go take this towel downstairs.”

She nodded and smiled, showing her crooked teeth as she did. “Thank you.”

***

I went and put the towel in the washing machine. After that, I went outside of the dormitory. The good thing about living on such a small plot of land was that everything was so close. I yelled at the top of my lungs and alerted Svilran to the laundry that needed to be done. She yelled back that she heard. It was a humorous interaction. 

It was strange to be telling a former goddess to do these kinds of tasks, but it didn’t seem like she minded so far...

Anyway, I had returned to Elma’s room and was sitting outside her washroom’s door.

“This water... Never did I think I could enjoy such luxury.” She giggled. “Never did I think the word ‘luxury’ would leave my lips.”

“Yeah. It can be a bit of an adjustment... Though, I haven’t really adjusted myself, either.”

Elma was soaking in her bathtub. I had come in when she was being overwhelmed by the luxury. After that, we just started trying to talk. I also got to take a real good look at the room. It was nicely furnished with a bed, nightstand, dresser, and a desk stocked with stationery and other useful items. There was also a small closet. Honestly, the luxury was appreciated. I didn’t feel bad about making Heroes have to stay here. Heck, this was a step up from my childhood home.

“I still can’t believe all of this...” I heard her say.

“Say, can I ask something, Elma? It might be upsetting.”

“Sure... I would like to ask you something in exchange afterward.”

“Are you okay? Earlier—you just seemed so different... The woman who said ‘no’ to us gave off a different vibe.” 

I knew we were broaching a tough topic, but I needed to make sure she was okay. In my memories of my time on Earth, I had the fact of witnessing someone go through extreme mood shifts before ultimately getting themselves killed. I didn’t have the imagery anymore, but the fact was there, and it scared me.

“I...” she said, “I’m as astounded by it as you are... When I spoke with Madam Goddess—it was strange. I felt stronger. I felt like I could really listen and actually understand. My mind was so clear. You know... my life was miserable. My father was a stud, and my mother was breeding stock.”

Holy shit—what the hell? What was I even hearing? I didn’t think I would be hearing this.

“I lived my whole life in that dungeon. Every day, though, I always heard a little voice in my head... It kept me awake. I learned language from my masters... though I find it easier to speak here. I learned how to tell time by looking at the shadows that came from the tiniest grate at the edge of the wall. I learned mathematics too... That little voice was in my head, but it never came out with my masters. When I spoke to the Madam Goddess, it felt like she let that voice out.”

“Wow...”

“The further I got from her, however, the more that voice receded. When I got into this building, I was scared, and I ran to my room. It was strange... And then, well, here we are... Did you not experience the shift with her?”

“Maybe...” I thought back to when Svilran and I first met. It was a little hazy, even though it only happened a few hours ago. Or did it? I felt like she was talking to me for hours. “Huh, maybe she did have an effect on me... Hey, how did you know where to go?”

“When I came in, lights were pointing me in the right direction.”

“Wow. We barely have anything, so I kind of forget, but yeah, we actually have some magical stuff here.”

“It’s amazing. Truly.”

“I think I need to ask Svilran exactly what we have here... Where does the waste go, even?”

“I don’t know, but given who you two are, this seems correct... I still can’t believe gods saved me.”

“Hey, I’m not a god,” I said with a chuckle.

I heard her get up from the tub.

“Elma?” She opened the door, and I almost fell backward. “Whoa, warn a guy—oh, uhh—“

She came out wearing nothing but a towel and went over to her bed, where she took a seat. It was a little disorienting how she didn’t seem to react—then again, she was probably used to wearing less.

“I want to ask you about your eating rotting food... Are you like me? Were you saved too?”

I nodded slowly. “I was. Saved I mean. I wasn’t imprisoned or anything like that. My world just blew up. Before it did, I knew I was going for days and days without speaking to anyone or eating anything.” I got up and dusted myself off. “That’s what Svilran saved me from.”

“We’re both blessed then...” Elma whispered.

I nodded and held the thought for a little before letting out a breath. “Well, I’m glad to know you’re okay. We’ll bring you another watermelon. Just remember not to eat it too quickly.”

“Yes.” She wore a feeble smile. “I’ll do my best to resist the temptation.”

Sebas_Guzman

This volume will feature at least five different images, not counting any variations or archive entries. I hope these images will enhance the experience for you.

Anyway, we'll definitely have one more chapter this week, likely on Wednesday.