Mythical Shadows

Chapter 3: The Mansion

"We're not just going to go in there, are we?" asked Melon. "We have nothing."

We all continued staring up at the eerie mansion that towered over us. There was no way I was going to enter it without any protection. I couldn't assume who the silhouette was or why they brought us there, but I was not ready to trust that it was for a harmless reason.

What is this place?

"Is there pain tolerance?" asked Mine, scanning the dark area.

Typo took a step toward him and punched his arm. Mine grunted. "Bad news," said Typo. "We can feel pain."

I looked to the mansion again, and a powerful fear crept into my mind. "So death, too," I said. Because that's how it seemed to work: where we could feel pain, we could die—we could die a death that didn't end. I had never liked imagining that, and I didn't like it then.

"Let's see what that house had," said Melon, changing the subject. He took an uncertain step in the direction we came from, waiting for somebody's approval of his idea.

"Yeah," I said quietly, averting my eyes from the mansion. Melon started toward the wooden building with the rest of us behind him.

In comparison to the great manor, the small cottage was similar in color and design, but was altogether divergent in its size—the mansion was colossal, and the cabin was minuscule. At the door, there was an adjacent sign that read, Victor's Shop: Potions & Rares.

I entered the cottage first and looked around. Immediately I knew it was abandoned: there was nobody around, the fireplace looked cold and dry, and cobwebs were everywhere. There was also a bed, and other miscellaneous items scattered about, but the real point of interest was a couple of chests.

Typo opened one of them. "There are two chestplates in here. Also a sword, and some food."

"Food . . . a pair of leggings . . . and a chestplate," said Mine, who was rummaging through the other chest. "Not much to go off of, I'll be honest with you guys."

I felt like sighing. Some armor and a single sword? It was meager. "Let's try the graveyard," I said, grabbing a torch that I thought would be useful.

"Can I stay here while you search?" asked Melon. "The entire place is horrifying."

I looked at him, and exasperation began to rise up inside me. None of us were fond of the place we were in, but nobody else was trying to hide from it—and Melon especially, who always seemed eager? Look who's eager now, I thought. But nonetheless, I said, "Sure. Who wants to stay with Melon?"

"I will," said Kiqy, continuing to look around the building. She glanced at me, then said, "Actually, never mind. I think I will go with the rest of you."

"I guess I will," said Mine.

I glanced at Kiqy's facial expression, but it told me nothing. "Okay, we'll see you soon," I said, and I stepped out of the cottage. Everybody except Mine and Melon followed me as I walked toward the cemetery. A graveyard isn't the most comfortable place to go to at night, but at least we weren't exploring the big, sinister mansion . . . yet.

We passed by the gate, and continued following the path uphill. When the path stopped, we found ourselves in front of a stone brick structure.

"I think this is going to be fun," said Typo. If he wasn't being sarcastic, I'd think he was crazy.

My teammates and I eventually stepped out of the structure, totally unharmed. We had, much to everybody's relief, encountered nothing dangerous—except for a bottomless pit into the void, which we decidedly avoided. Even better, though, we also got quite a few resources: torches, food, potions, armor, and weapons.