Cherished blasting wand

The inside of the chest was abnormally large. It was much more like a shipping container than a chest.

“What the hell…” I mumbled.

“Pretty neat, huh?” Elana smirked and elbowed me in the love handle.

“Definitely. Now I want it even more.”

She whistled and looked away while resting her head against the wall, using her hands as cushions.

A plethora of items had sprinkled the bottom, somewhat sorted into piles separated based on the type of item. Most were just normal stuff. Clothing and hygiene items.

“How did you come across an accolade like this, anyway?” I asked. It should have belonged to the commander, or an officer. Someone who had use for the immense space inside.

“First come, first served. I found it before there were a bunch of us. No one wanted to haul it back to base,” she shrugged and smiled widely. “Most regret it now that their rooms are bursting with shit.”

A bunch of valuables cluttered one corner of the coffer. If she got this back home, she would make a killing based on quantity alone. Her nose for profit impressed me. It kind of reminded me of a certain someone. Though Elana worked as a receptionist. Not the best paying job. She needed the profit, unlike a certain someone.

None of the contents in the jewellery pile interested me. I could get my own hoard. What I needed was enough power to survive. I could join the group, hoping they found my thread weaving blessing impressive enough to let me coast. But Sera didn’t trust them. I didn’t know her well, but I knew her better than I knew anyone here. Getting some distance before I deciding what to think of the group would be best. That John guy rubbed me the wrong way. And I hadn’t even met the Commander yet.

“Where are the accolades?” I asked.

She groaned and got up from the bed, then she sat down by my side and pointed inside.

“There, can’t you see for yourself?” she complained.

She sat close, and she smelled good. Must have had a bath of her own in the sick-bay.

I swallowed. “Yeah, got it,” and traced the arc of her pointed finger.

There, a pile smaller than the others, and much less eye-catching. It looked like a small hoard of junk, but looks could be deceiving.

“They're organized in terms of power. Little baby whispers to the left, Unsung to the right.”

Organized my ass, I thought and nodded, thankful for the information. Unsung seemed to be a step above whisper, which made sense considering I also started out of the rank whisper. Accolades seemed to rank using the same system.

Red runes swirled above the pile like a storm.

Mask of filtering

Rank: Whisper

Type: Armour

Description: The toxic fumes of the Layered empire made for rugged working conditions. Staff in the employ of the empire had to wear Masks of filtering during their commute to the inner circles.

Embroidery: Filter

Effect: The mask makes toxic fumes breathable and smells bearable.

Glasses of welding

Rank: Whisper

Type: Armour

Description: The fires in the Layered empire burn white and hot. Those who embraced the divine inferno to create tools wore glasses of welding to see through the terrifying bright light and weather the heat of divinity.

Embroidery: Simple glasses

Effect: Protects the wielder’s eyes from bright lights.

Serrated sabre

Rank: Unsung

Type: Armament

Description: A sabre of unknown origin. Once, it was rumored that the Sabre belonged to a warrior of noble heritage. One who set sail to cross the seas in an attempt to escape the all-encompassing wall. He, like those before him, fell prey to the grim beings that inhabit the seas. The Sabre specialises in cutting, this one especially so.

Embroidery: Maim

Effect: Any wound left by the blade will bleed and fester.

Another weapon that enhanced bleeding. It reminded me a little of Silent Scream, but this one told a grander story. The unsung tag attached to it made me want it. But getting close to fight wasn't very appealing, and my last resort if I could avoid it.

Shoe polish

Rank: Favored

Type: Miscellaneous

Description: Some wear armor to work, others wear a dirtied apron, yet neither need to be more noble than the other. This shoe polish belonged to an unnamed cobbler who defied the wills of society and rose in rank despite his lowly beginnings.

Embroidery: Flammable

Effect: The polish is flammable and creates a nigh unquenchable flame.

Now that was interesting. Someone had left behind shoe polish and made it into an accolade. Their affinity with the item must have been staggeringly high. It was completely useless, though, unless you wanted to create an insanely dangerous Molotov cocktail.

I sighed and kept looking. There had to be more in the pile.

Even if it didn’t, there were a few solid options lined up already. The glasses could come in handy should I ever need to go near the inferno in the Chambers of Crushing again.

Then I saw it. A great stick. It was stuck in the bottom of the pile. The metal tubing of it reflected dull lights. The wood was stained dark, the steel lusterless. It had a large patch of beige leather strapped to its buttstock and a strap for carrying it comfortably over the shoulder.

A fucking rifle.

I inspected its runes.

Cherished blasting wand

Rank: Unsung

Type: Output armament

Description: The weapon of choice for all soldiers of the Layered empire. This wand was gifted to an officer of forgotten renown by Commander Seluvis herself. The wand discharges a burst of ambient mana to expel bullets and vial ammo at the enemy.

Embroidery: Blast

Effect: The wand is enhanced with a magickal input port, allowing someone with an output to charge it with magick to imbue the already high fire-power with blast.

“What about the rifle?” I asked.

“Actually, it’s a wand,” she corrected me with a smirk. “A great buy. It comes with a few bullets, too.”

“Only a few?”

She sighed and glanced at me with one eye open, “Yes. Only a few bullets. I know. Who in their right mind would carry around a gun with little to no ammunition? But think about the price it would fetch back home. The gun collectors would go absolutely crazy! Nothing of the sort has ever made it to the market.”

“You know what an accolade could mean. If I don’t have any ammo, it’s useless to me as well.” Unless I just happened to have a shit ton of ammo lying around in my satchel. I thrummed my fingers against the coffer’s edge. “How about this? I’ll take it off your hands. But I want something more.”

"Sure," she said.

“A breastplate.” I pointed to one that looked like the one John wore. It wasn’t an accolade, but it looked much more valuable. And useful.

She stared at me as if I was insane, “Get out.”

“Don’t be like that. No one wants the rifle. I’m helping you out here.”

She snorted, “You’re helping me out? You’re practically extorting me for all I’m worth! Do you even know what I had to go through to get that? Get the fuck out.”

I sneered, “I thought you were thankful to me for saving you.”

She shouldered me, “Too far. I am. But if you take that, you might as well just have left me to die.”

“You’d rather die than part with the breastplate?” I snorted. “Then how about some food? At least get me some dinner before you fuck me.”

“You got it,” she beamed and spat in her hand, gazing at me expectantly. “Ten cans of food, the wand, and the ammo. That’s my last offer.”

I smiled, spat in mine, and sealed the deal.

She whistled a jolly tune while fishing out the rifle from beneath the pile of accolades. As her arm went inside the coffer, it elongated and adapted to the large space. It looked like the arm of a giant. The rifle looked like a toothpick in her hand; she fished it out dexterously. Somehow, she didn’t topple the whole thing.

She handed me the rifle. It smelled of leather and was smooth to the touch. It was a nice piece of craftsmanship that laid perfectly balanced in my hands. I pushed it to my shoulder and looked through the iron sights. It felt great. Like I was in a war movie. It was pretty heavy, around five or six kilos. It would put a strain on me, but it wouldn’t be unbearable.

I ran my hand along its side. The wand had a bolt and a compartment for ammunition, just like rifles back home. The only difference seemed to be that it used compressed magic as opposed to gunpowder. This would help me stay out of harm's way.

I felt satisfied with the bargain when I realized, “Wait. Is it loud?”

Elana burst out laughing. “It’s a magical gun, dumbass. Not having a lot of ammo isn’t the only reason people don’t want it. It also makes you the prime target for the damn Slitherstitch. No take-backs!”

I didn’t mind. If I had to shoot with it, I wasn’t planning on sticking around for long, anyway. I faked a groan.

“Anywhere I can test it out?” I asked and hung the rifle on my shoulder.

“Not anywhere close. But I got a spot if you can wait for me to heal up,” she smiled and dug up the promised cans of food. “And about the dinner thing. Things might get a little turbulent in the coming days. But after that, I promise I’ll take you up on it. Until then, don’t make hasty assumptions.” She smiled mischievously.

I didn’t know what she was talking about, so I just nodded along. She handed me can after can. Most were of different, which was nice. It would be terrible of her to give me what she didn’t like. Some cans looked like veggie soup, a few other like canned meat. Kind of like spam. I placed them all inside my satchel.

Elana’s eyes bulged as she glimpsed its contents.

“Where did you get that?!” she pouted.

I smiled widely, “No take backs.”

I left her room and took another bath. The water didn’t come out nearly as dirty as it had the day before. I finally looked like a human again. With my hygiene taken care of and out of the way, I strolled over to my room, locked the door, and stared at my reflection.

“So,” I began, “mind filling me in about this whole time thing?”

“What parts confuse you? You just have to evolve faster than your time is running out.”

“And why didn’t you tell me any of this before?!”

She rolled her eyes, “What difference would it make? You needed my powers to escape.”

I groaned and rubbed my eyes while sitting down on the hard bed with a thud. “Still, it would have been nice to know you put my life on a fucking timer… Sorry. I don’t know what’s going on with me lately. I don’t feel like myself.”

Sera didn’t answer.

I glanced at her and cleared my throat. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to sound all emotional,” I chuckled.

“No... It makes sense,” Sera piped up. “Have the runes changed?”

Name: Caleb Kane

Race: Human (94%) ??? (6%)

Title: One of reviled flesh, Outsider’s mark

Blessing: W??ver

Acclaim: Whisper

Accolades: Silent Scream, Cruel whip, Battle-worn thimbles, Cherished blasting wand.

“What the fuck,” I exclaimed. “My humanity?!”

Sera grimaced, “Our time just got a little shorter.”