Time.

Stood.

Still.

There was no sound, no movement as Veigar stood at the base of Mount Volkan and peered up toward the peak. The volcano seemed to stretch infinitely before him, a climb that grew and grew as he stood there and his vision faded in and out, blurring painfully as neon green ooze dripped down his cheeks. His idle paws twitched, his body calling him to climb, climb, climb while his mind protested. The tug-of-war between body and mind was constant, incessant, merciless. Climb. Stay. Flee. Stay. Run. Stay. He had no mother, no family. They were all gone, sick, dead in his mind. For weeks now he'd distanced himself from them as his paranoia grew, first latching on to anything that made him feel needed.

But now it was too late. He was nothing, nobody, just a vessel for decay. The pustules that had begun to appear on his legs were a sign of his body succumbing to the sickness, a sure sign of his impending death, and his wavering sight was yet another sign among so many. The world seemed permanently blurred now, even when the oozing periodically slowed. You are a waste, anyway. No one will even notice when you're gone. He was as good as dead, he was sure of it. Veigar heaved a shuddering breath as he began walking again, trying to find a way to escape his thoughts, but they hung heavy over him like a hovering rain cloud.

It was probably best that the girl didn't leave the safety of Habari anymore. After nearly yeeting herself into a pool thanks to the evil thoughts invading her feeble mind and the blue glowing ooze that dripped from everywhere imaginable, now the girl suffered from large blisters across her cheeks and legs that ran the risk of bursting with each and every gentle touch. Despite the pain, the erratic thoughts, and everything else that plagued her, her newest possession was all that had her going. With the sack of whatever she had bought from the strange cloaked man gripped tightly between her jaws, completely covered in ooze, Fortune had found herself a quiet spot at the base of the volcano to dump it's contents.

Her attention wasn't held on the sack much longer though as her clogged ears somehow picked up on someone moving through the area near her. "Who's there?" She called out, her lavender eyes oozing blue goo too much to see much of what was around her.

"Speech."

Who was he, anyway? He was sure the thought came before the voice did, cutting through the sudden sharp ringing that sounded between his own ears. The voice came next and he gave a long moment of pause before responding. "I am no one. Not anymore," he answered plainly. His voice spoke of the kind of despair that this sickness had created within him. He was nobody, he had no purpose, he didn't matter. Eventually he would die, just like his mother and father did. He would become one with this very mountain he stood on, no longer flesh and bone but returning to the soil beneath his paws. That day seemed like it was growing closer and closer with every passing day; perhaps it would be an end from this immense suffering he had endured, and he wasn't even a yearling yet. "And who are you? I cannot see you," he breathed hard, blinking and trying to regain any hint of eyesight, but everything was blurred and unfocused.

She paid no mind to wait laid out between her paws and instead her infected eyes searched for the source of the voice that responded. It was impossible to pin point with the goo filling her ears as well, but when he spoke again she at least though she turned in the right direction this time. The voice sounded vague familiar to her, but hollow and strange. There was the sound of fluid in her ears of course, and the ever present whispering in the back of her mind. She fought against the voices hard since the time at the springs, but it was getting harder each passing day. She wasn't sure how much longer she could hold on and based on what she could hear the other one say, they didn't seem to be any better off.

"No one?" She repeated, both questioning if she heard correction but also finding a strange sense of meaning in the words. If he was no one, then who was she? The whispers got louder and became voices, although there were many and it was nearly impossible to focus. Was who she was talking to even real. "Are you real?"

"Speech."

They were both blind fools stumbling around with little idea where they were; perhaps if he was more conscientious of the fact he might find some humor in the predicament they'd found themselves in, but he felt nothing, only hollow and empty. The Ooze left little room for anything else besides pain and misery, anyway. Everything else was a strange blur; quite literally; it filled his eyes and obscured his vision beyond the most basic of shapes and lights, making navigating in the darkness nearly impossible. "I'm Veigar," he said finally, quietly. His name felt strange on his tongue as he felt his identity slipping away, quite literally in a puddle of ooze. He deserved no name, no identity. He really was no one. "I might die," he said finally, resolutely. "If I do, can you tell everyone goodbye for me? Tell them I loved them. Deathbelle and Aryn and Recluse - please?" He hoped the voice he was hearing was real and belonged to someone who could pass along his message, not a figment of his imagination, something brewing inside his mind.

F̷̢̢̢̨̨̢̛̛̬̜̩̹͇̝̗̪̜͙͕̝̫̟̥͖̯̱̰̹̗̺̜͈̰͚͎̜̘̩̠̱̱͈̜̭̀̍̇̋͊̉̂̈̑̓̉̄̈́͗̑͗̓̽͋̾̍͛͗͛̏̐̑͐̒̔͋̕͘͘͜͝͠͠͝͠͝ͅͅÍ̷̡̢̞̘͖͙̮̺̝̼͉͈̼̣͕̲̜̤̦̦͚̗̃̊̕͝ͅR̵̨̨̳̭͚̻̱̥̮͓̫̤̺̱͕̹͚̲͕̼̙̯̟̻̠̖͙̘̦̀́̊̒͑͊͋̏́͑̈́̔̌̈́̒́̂̑̃̅͗̅̄͆̍͆̃̓̾̀̾̒̎̾̓̿̅̏͊̕̕͝ͅȨ̸̡̛̤̬͇͍̬̗̙̠͔̓̅̄͊̀̃͐͐̄̏̈̍͗̓̋̏̀̈́̉̐͊́̄̅͘͠F̸̡̡̢̣͔͎̭̳̱̙͖͍̣̳̣͓̰̠̳̜̲̣̠̖̖͉̘̗͙̖̼̜̖̞͙͇̲̫̺̻͙̥͈̬̤̬̩͒ͅͅĻ̸̳̟̘̫̺͓̺̊̋͑̈́͊̇̽̏̒̔̉̊̽̇̉̔̑̉̔͋̈́̈́̃̐̽͘͝͝͝Y̵̡̡̛̛̦͙̬͙̮̘̺̗͕̜̜͙̟͍̺͙̖̫͕̩̆͊̊̈́͛͛̈́̌͊̀̾̿̄̅̏̿̽̑̌͂̇̋̎̐́̑̈́͂͊͒̏̕̚͘͜͝ͅ ̷̨̢̢̢̨̛̣͓̭̘̯̜̗͔͇̜̟͕͙̬̘͖̠̫̫͚̩̠̬̠͍̦̰̯̈́̂̄̂̐̆̀̅́͘͘͜S̷̡̧̡̛̬͕̫̮͖̹̣̖͓̥̹͓̹̹͉̩̠̩̻̠̝͕͐͐̈͒́̈́̄̿́͊̉͊͐̈̆͒̈́̈́̍͊̊́̾̾̄̕̕̚͠ͅͅḨ̵̪͍͓͍̓̎̽͐̐̇͊̈́̊̐̓̎̄̔̋͐̔̏̽͐̿̑̏̏̅͐̆͂̂͒͆̒̄̉̏̈́͌̒̉̎̆͘̕͝͝Ŏ̵̢̧̢̗̬̰̣̹̘̰̥̗̥̦̫̙͈̞̣̘̞̯̟̱̖̀̏͝ͅͅP̵̨͚̟͚͇͎̣̝̞̈́P̶̨̛̛̘̣͍͎̱̙̲͚͚̼̟̈̀̍͆̍̎́͐̈́͐̐̓̆͂̃́̋̍͆͠E̵̢̨̧͍͕͖͍̰̹̦͕̼̺̤̙͉̫̝̠͇̯͙̬̩͉̱͍̔̓̉͋́́̆͐̇̈́̔́̂̓̄͋̈͗͘͝

Everything in your vision is blue, you think you should hold your breath until you do the same.

You gain:

• Glowing Saliva.- Your saliva now permanently glows.
  
• You also find 8 Crystals.- Used in Firefly Shoppe, and perhaps elsewhere...
  

You blink, and you're face to face with a figure who seems as if it's clipping through d̴̰͚͖̮͙̥̥̙̥̬̬̼̙̟̤͖̘̺̩͓̙̣͙͇̤͓̰͕̺͉̳̰̰̺̠̠̟͓̘̭̘̿̈́͛̈́̇̈͗́́͂͌̓̈͛́̀̿̽̓̈́̈͘͜͝͝į̸̡͔̖͈͕͙̺͈̺͔͇͍̭͖̖̟̙͚̠̯̻̘̼̙͇̮̬̳̹̼̣̻͖͉̪̾̀̆̔̉̽͋̄̇̄͂̈́ͅͅm̶̧̢̱̯̲̻̳̞̦͚͖͎̼̹͙̩̹̟͕̥͉̤̭̠͔͎̜̪̲͈̰̼͙̟̱̺̯̼̐̿͛͑͛̅̍́̇̔̎̀̾̉̒͋̾̒̿͛̀̕͠͠͝è̸̢̡̧̥͓̩͉͉̙̺̫̦͍̮̤͙̩̭̹̬̰̭̮̫̹͉̦͔̘͛̈́̍̓̒͌͊͌̌̍̽̓̏̎͘̚͜͝n̴̢̧̝͕͇͚͉̩̱̫̭͇̬̹͎̈ͅś̷̨̨̡̖̩͚̖̱͇͇͔̪̺͎̮̤̻̹̯͔̺̰̯͉͔̼̗̙͈̯͙̮̳̤̹̳̹̝̝̦̻̃̇̌́͒̊̓͋̌̍̐̕͜͝͝ͅi̸̧̧̨̧̭̳̦̲̣̜̼̙̅͛̓͊͆͌̔̿̋͆̑̍̏̔̏̓̌̕̕̕̕͠͝o̴̧̢̦̗̘͔͕̮̼̣̬̥̠̱͚̱̣̩̭̟̺̲̠͕̹͓̲̜̙̝͇͓̩͚̦̿̇̽ņ̶̧̢̢̛̥̣͎̦̬̫͍̪̣̣̦̜̹̝͖͚̟͕̮̫̣͉̗̘̼͎͕͈͉̇͂̊̒̅͛̄̄̅́͂̍͌̌̀̀͂̎̍̆̉̈́̐͋͂̍̈́̽̌̽͘̕͘͘͘͜͜͠ͅs̸̢̧͚̖̟̞̲̥͔̣̼̰̥͔̲̟̮̟̹̠̱̩̬̹͉̯͇̣̭̦̪̱̣͉̭̖͖͚͊̃͋̐͑͌͋̊̕͝ͅ. In front of him, a small wooden stand, which thankfully looks firmly placed in your dimension. On the table lay three items, with their prices beside them. "Choose if you ḑ̴̛̠̲̰̪͎̮̻͕̝̻͉͇̳̙̗̬̤̖̙͚̰̲̑̆̎͆̉̉̈́̍̂̑͂̽͐̽̔͌̈̈́̓̒̂̅͘͘͜ͅą̵̪͙̦̖̮̮͈͖͇̭̗͈̖̫̲̗̜͍̀̾̾̎͂̈́̓͗̎̎̿͋͛̒̑̅̐́̔́̓̕̚͠ͅŗ̵̧̧̛͉̝̰͉̖̯̘̜͉͍̥̟̖̫̤̪͖̬͇͖͓̪̩̫̊̍͂̄͘͜ę̴̡̢̧̢̳̲̹̬̻̫̦̣̣̠̳̼͍͇̜̓͌́̚͜͝, and if you can a̵̘̜͇̱̽̌̇̅̐̏͗̑̂̽̊͆̏̒͝f̵̨̨̜̭̬̠̞̫̮̲̺̼̝̻̟͖̯̼͚͕̻̤̤͉͉̯̈́̾̈́͐͝f̷̟͓͖͔͕͎̥̖̝̞͈͆́̏̀͐̌̈̀̓̎͒̾̃̊̏͛̍͗͜ơ̷̡͓͙͓͚͙̪̖̻̣̞̹̻̻͇̫͓̟̹̔͌̑̈́͛̀̀̀̑̚͝r̷̢͈̝̝̲̼̦̺̜͔̲̳̀̈́ḑ̵̣̜̤̲̹̠͖̪͖͔̗̫̮͎̼̯͎͕̫̭̣͈̥̏ͅit," the figure says. You can't bring yourself to look away without some effort. You are keenly aware of his gaze. He does not seem like he's in the negotiating mood...


Į̴̧̘̹͙̘̲̤͖̔́͑͌̅̾̊͐̍͋̀̓̅̉̇̑̍͠͠ń̶̯͉̫̤̳͚̣̖̳̯͍̤͓̟͉̥̩̀͋̌ͅv̵̡̧̳̠̬̰̺͔̖̠̳̥͉͉̜͕̗͕̋̈͘ͅę̸̧̢̢̯̠̜̟̘̺̳̟̃̑͌̀̉̓͋͊̃̍̑̂̐̇̓̌͆̈́́͗̓͘͠n̵̡͙̲̞̰̭͖̠̮̺͊̉̑́͒̓͌̈́͐̅̚͝ţ̶̢̛̠̮̼͙͙̗̣̘͇̘͓͈͈̱̮̩̲̩̱̠͎͌̽̈́̒̍̎̀̋͗̇̔͊̇̀̀̋̈́͋̉́͌͜͝͠ơ̸̢̨̨̱̟̹̘̩̤̠͈͕̠̪̥̥̙̓͋̎͛̌͐̓̈́̐̌̂͂͑̋͘̚͜͝͠ȑ̴̠̬̫̻̠̘͔͖̦̰̩̖͎̜̞͉̘̭̙̮̰̹̙͔̳̬̱̆̎̍̿̌̇́̍̒͆͗̀͒͐͋̄̓͆́̕͘͠͝y̴̧͎̟̦̘̝̠̣̮̻̥̰͆͆͋͐͂̈́͊͛̈͋͆̊̇̄̾̈́̔̓̽͂̋̽̚͘:

• Xtra Grow Potion- 2 /
  It comes in an extra large bottle. There’s way more than one drop!
  
• Mushroom Bath Bomb- 2 /
  It looks like a bunch of mushrooms, grass, and plants rolled into some mud. The seller assures you it’s good for styling your coat pattern exactly how you’ve always wanted it.
  
• ??? Potion- 3 /
  This potion is a surprisingly light looking purple liquid, clear and slightly fruity smelling. Something floats in the middle of the bottle, what it looks like changes depending on how you look at it, from one angle a crystal, from another a mushroom and from yet another a firefly? Weird...
  

Veigar.

That was the boy that momma took in while she was lost, right? Or something like that, she wasn't entirely certain of the story and wasn't sure she exactly cared to know. Not that it was crossing her mind now, at least. All that was there was really just his name and who he was, nothing more and nothing less. Fortune was pondering it for a long moment, the infection making it far too difficult to think properly. She needed to clear her head, but with what he said next filling her clogged ears, she furrowed her brows a moment before she coughed up a lump of slime.

"No-" was all she could muster out between coughs, but after a second she regained herself. Although she couldn't see him, she turned her head in search of his voice. She stood then, her legs wobbly as they adjusted to the weight of her heavy head. Something about standing though seemed to change something. Perhaps the rush of ooze was equivalent to head rush, however instead of dizzy... she forgot what she was doing entirely.

"Speech."

Fortune

You begin to cough so hard you can't breathe. You become dizzy to the point of needing to lean on something to stay upright.



You gain:

• Mushrooms (8x)- Used in Firefly's Shoppe, and perhaps elsewhere...