A/N: Happy New Year! Finally, December's over, and with it comes a new chapter. Let me know what you all think so far! It always helps to know if I'm on the right track or not.
It won't be much longer before night approaches, but I'd say we can fit in one more camper before the plot advances to the next stage. Who's it gonna be?
Thanks to DiLithiumDragon and SandrC for being HUGE helps this chapter! And thank you to IronTiger26 for giving it a peek, too!
When Frazie finally finished piggybacking Chloe to the beach, Lili was right there waiting for them as promised... and she did not look happy.
"There you are!" The girl marched up to them, her hands on her hips. "I already had to fish Nils and J.T. out of the lake while I waited for you! I put them with the others."
Crap, Frazie thought. How many was that now? At least five kids, with yet more unaccounted for. It might not sound like much when there were twenty kids total, but who knew how many were currently missing, and how many more were on their way back? They were disappearing and popping back up frighteningly fast.
Frazie knelt down to let Chloe hop off, a grimace on her face as she met Lili eye to eye. "It's getting that bad already?"
"Mmhmm."
"What are you two talking about?" Chloe asked from the side.
"Oh, uh, nothing," Frazie assured her, not wanting to scare her with the debraining pandemic going on behind the scenes. "Buuuut... if you happen to see any giant, monstrous lake creature things, stay away from them, alright?"
"That sounds more like common sense than a necessary warning."
Frazie couldn't really argue with that. "You're not wrong, but... be careful anyway, okay?"
"Roger."
With that, it was time to get back to business before they had even more brainless bodies on their hands. Frazie had brought Chloe here for a reason, after all. She turned back to Lili. "I take it Blahby and his yes man haven't budged?"
In response, Lili pointed off across the water towards the two tiny terrors still lingering on the docks, now tormenting a poor little trout they'd tossed onto the planks.
Their disturbing display of aquatic animal abuse aside, it was relieving to see they hadn't been nabbed yet - even if it'd have made getting to the bathysphere easier. Now they just needed to fill Chloe in.
"Here's the plan," Frazie began, ready to cash in that favor. "See that big sphere behind Bobby? We need to use it, but the little snot broke off a piece of it. He won't listen to us... but he might listen to you. Think you can convince him to undo the damage and then get him out of here before he makes everything worse?"
Chloe tutted, her helmet swaying as she shook her head. "Oh, Bobby. Earthling stubbornness is so obnoxious. If you think my communicating with him might help, I'll give it my best shot."
Lili gave the girl a friendly nudge. "I always knew you were one of the good ones, Chloe. Let's go, we're burning daylight!"
"Right. The solar orbit stops for no one." Chloe took the lead, marching boldly towards the far docks. "Onwards!"
The three set off through the boat shack and across the pier, the caw of seagulls ushering them towards where the bullies awaited. When they approached, the two boys looked up from their finny victim. "Eh? You dorkazoids are back already?" Bobby snorted. "I thought I told you the bathysphere's busted! And I'm gonna break you next if you don't-" He cut off when his eyes finally fell on a certain astronaut. In an instant, he deflated. "I-if... if you don't... um... h-hey, Chloe. W-what are you doing here?"
"Hmmmm..." She tapped her helmet in thought, swiftly calculating an excuse for her sudden interest in the diving ball. "I thought it might be fruitful to scan the lake bottom for signs of crashed spaceships and seafaring alien lifeforms. But I've been informed the bathysphere's malfunctioning?"
Taking the chance while Bobby was distracted, Frazie discreetly nudged the poor fish back into the water with the side of her foot. "Yeah - sounds like she was reeeally looking forward to it, but we told her it was a no go." She hummed. "How did you put it again? 'You'll never get that piece of junk to work without this doodad I took-'"
"-Mmph!" Frazie's lips suddenly snapped shut of their own accord - or Bobby's, anyway, as his telekinesis held her mouth closed.
While she tugged and pulled at her face, Bobby chuckled nervously, wringing his hands. "W-what can I say, accidents happen! That stupid sphere's so old, the thing was practically falling apart anyway. It didn't stand a chance against the Zilch's muscles!"
He flexed his scrawny arm for emphasis, netting a blank stare from Chloe. "I see," she replied flatly. "That's a shame. I suppose I have no reason to stick around, then..."
"W-wait, wait, wait!" Bobby threw a hand out to stop her, fishing the broken lever out of his pocket. "I'm really handy, you know! I can have it fixed in no time! Y-you'd like that, right?"
"You are?" Benny wondered aloud. "I thought you were better at breaking things than-"
He found his lips zipped, too, and Bobby's sharp glare in his face. "SHUT. IT."
Chloe quickly stepped in before anyone else ended up tongue tied. "I would very much appreciate it, yes."
Bobby turned on a dime and ran down the pier, motioning for them all to follow. "Then what're we waiting for?! Come on, slowpokes!"
Frazie and Lili shared a look. The world wasn't ready for a Bobby this eager to help someone... but at least it was them he was helping. It was still Bobby, though. "Leeeeet's make sure he doesn't break anything else," Lili pointed out.
"Good plan."
"Agreed," Chloe chimed in.
By the time the three girls (and Benny) caught up with Bobby, he was already inside the bathysphere, trying to roughly reattach the rod by sheer force. "Come on, you stupid thing! If you had a butt, I'd kick it!"
With a roll of her eyes, Lili stepped inside with him. "Cut it out, dummy. Just hold the lever still while I weld it back in place."
Bobby relented, steadying the shaft in place while Lili readied her hottest thoughts. Fingers to her temples, she directed her pyrokinesis outwards...
"GAH! You burned my pinkie!" he howled.
"Oops. I must've missed."
Bobby looked like he had some far harsher things to say, but one glance at Chloe made him shut his trap and grumble to himself. Sneering to herself, Lili got to work properly. Like a mental blowtorch, she made the metal glow red hot with psychic heat, filling the sphere with the acrid stench of burning steel.
It was a sloppy operation, but before long, the jagged bits melded together solidly. After it cooled, Bobby jiggled the lever a bit, pleased to see it was functioning again. "Haw! Told you I was handy. What do you think of that, Chloe?"
"Hmmm." The other camper peeked at their handiwork. "Passable."
Bobby sighed dreamily. "She thinks I'm passable~..."
Then, remembering why he'd bothered helping these dweebs in the first place, he jolted upright. "Oh yeah, you wanted to use this thing! H-heh, lemme just uh, scootch over and we can r-ride together...?"
Chloe glanced back and forth between Frazie and Lili, remembering the next part of their plan. She shook her head. "I have changed my mind. I've decided I'd rather go for a walk. Somewhere far, far away from this particular location."
"Oh..." The bully instantly deflated.
At least, until Chloe spoke again. "You may come with."
"Heck yeah!" Shoving his way past the other girls, he followed her after she turned to leave. "L-let's go!"
The two departed, leaving a certain purple lackey behind. Benny fidgeted in place a moment, then ran off after them. "Wait! I can come along too, right? Bobby! BOBBY!"
"And remember! No giant lake creatures!" Frazie shouted after Chloe. It was more a wish than a warning at this point, though. Whatever was making off with the campers was really good at staying out of sight... almost as if it already knew the layout of the camp, the best routes to take to stay hidden.
Frazie promptly shelved that chilling thought and held out a hand for Lili to high five. Mission accomplished! At last, it was just the two of them again... and one properly functioning bathysphere, ready to go.
It took about three seconds for the glow of victory to vanish, replaced with a nervous gnawing in Frazie's gut as she remembered exactly where the bathysphere was designed to take them.
Frazie swallowed loudly, feeling a faint sweat on her brow. Ah, right. She'd forgotten that she'd have to throw away all sense of preservation and head underwater if they wanted to find any clues. And she couldn't put it off any longer - Lili was already inside, fiddling with the controls. "Come on!" her friend called. "It's all ready."
Every nerve in her body screamed at her to run, to charge back to shore and dive headfirst onto the sand, but she ignored her instincts long enough to shakily duck down and climb inside the structure. The very old, rusty, likely dangerous structure. "That's, uh... that's great."
"Do you wanna pilot it?"
"NO." Frazie cleared her throat. "I-I mean... nah, you can do it. You know how it works, right?"
Lili quirked her brow. "...Ooooookay," she murmured, giving her the side eye. "It's really not that hard, though. All you need to do is lower it, and then you can use telekinesis to propel yourself through the water. It's a bit harder than the canoes, but not much different. Sure you don't want to?"
Frazie closed the machine's hatch tightly. Very, veeery tightly. And triple checked that it was locked, secure, and still. "Noooo, no, you do it, I insist."
With a shrug, Lili pulled the lever, making the whole thing lurch and groan. Frazie screamed, pressing back against the wall... then screamed again as the bathysphere suddenly plunged, its heavy frame crashing, splashing, and slowly sinking down beneath the surface.
Their view of the afternoon sun was swallowed up by murky water, bubbles rolling over the porthole during their descent. Frazie breathed hard and fast, eyes shut tight - then she squeaked again when they jerked to a stop, Lili's telekinesis keeping them from colliding with the lake's floor.
Held afloat under the waves, with not a single sound around them but Frazie's hyperventilating, there wasn't anything to focus on but the endless expanse of lethal liquid around them.
It was impossible to ignore Frazie's gradually intensifying panic attack, either. By her side, Lili stared at her, concerned. "Uhhhh... you can relax now. Everything's alright. I know it doesn't look like it, but the bathysphere's pretty sturdy."
Fat chance of her calming down. Frazie's nails dug into her palms as she struggled to nod. Lili put a hand on her arm, her voice concerned. "What's gotten into you?
"The curse!" Frazie hissed through her teeth. "The one I mentioned before! If I get submerged, I'm a goner. It's kinda hard to relax when water itself wants to kill me and oh look what we just dived into!"
Lili squinted at her. "Uhhhh... you do know curses and all that junk aren't real, right?
If it wasn't real, then why was there a pair of hands floating just beyond the window, stubby fingers pressed against the glass? There was two of them now! Frazie leaned back even further, pointing a shaky finger at the ghostly limbs just ahead. "T-then explain that!"
Lili glanced out the window. "That's water. Dirty, gross water."
"The hands!"
"Frazie!" Lili grabbed her, even her strong grip unable to steady her. "There. Is nothing. There."
Maybe not for Lili, but Frazie could see the Hand(s) of Galochio clear as day... and it was just waiting for the slightest mistake, an errant bump against a stray rock, so it could flood the chamber and finally claim another Aquato.
"Frazie..." Her friend scowled at her, but the longer she looked her way, the more her eyes softened. She finally turned her head, sighing. "I still don't think magic and curses are real... but your fear is real, and I don't like seeing you like this. I'm sorry... I just thought you couldn't swim or something, this is way beyond that." After a moment's thought, she grabbed the controls again. "Hold on, I'm taking us back up."
By all accounts, Frazie should've breathed a sigh of relief. But instead...
"No!" Frazie shouted, surprising herself. "We're... we're already down here, okay? Two pairs of eyes are better than one. I can handle it." Or at least, she hoped so.
Equally surprised, Lili stared blankly at her closed lids. "I don't think it counts when your pair of eyes is shut."
Frazie finally peeped her eyes open just a teeny bit, forcing the most lopsided grin in history. "See? Fine." Oh, she was a filthy liar. But for the sake of the camp, for finding out just what the heck was going on... she'd endure. Plus, with a lake-dwelling threat about, she knew she'd have to contend with the water sooner or later. Best get it over with.
Lili didn't look sure at all. But, finally, she took her hands off the controls and started to gently propel them forward with her mind. "You're clearly not fine... but you're pretty brave. I'm still going slowly, though. And if you start screaming again, I'm resurfacing, got it?"
Fair enough. Frazie knew she'd be more of a hindrance than a help if she started banging on the walls demanding to be let out. For now, she focused on trying to calm down as Lili steered them gently through the deep.
It took time, but Frazie finally managed to slow her breathing and quell her shivers. The ride itself wasn't so bad... but the pair of hands constantly leering through the window kept her from fully relaxing. She watched them more than she did the lake bottom.
"Do you, ah... do you see anything that might relate to that tower?" Frazie finally asked, still eying the hands warily. "Or the lake creature?"
Lili shook her head. "Not yet. This lake is humongous, though, and we're only covering a small bit of it. I'm not seeing any clues down here, and if we wanted to go up and check every landmass we come across, we could be out here for hours."
Somehow, the idea of being in this tiny claustrophobic death sphere for a long time wasn't the most appealing idea. Plus, the longer they were down here, the higher the odds of whatever lurked in the water finding them. The one upside to these miles and miles of water was that if the creature was around right now, there was too much area for it to just stumble on them.
Yet.
The search continued. Every wayward shift or groan of the bathysphere made Frazie jump and suck in a breath. But despite the pounding of her heart, she did her best to scour the lakebed with Lili.
And what they found was... surprising, to say the least.
It started normally enough - fish (duh), big clams, crayfish, your typical lake fare. The girls weren't entirely sure what they were looking for - giant markings, an aquatic lair, a hidden underwater evil base perhaps? - but they found none of the above.
What did they find after heading a bit further in?
Destruction.
For a moment, Frazie's fear was replaced with awe as they stumbled on wreckage as far as the eye could see. Sunken ships, their worn masts pointed towards the sky. Old buildings, their wood soaked and long rotted from decades of neglect. Splinters and debris littered forsaken roads - and lots of crates of nails for some reason. Amidst all the mess, a sign bobbed gently from its lone remaining chain, giving a name to it all.
Shaky Claim.
Judging from Lili's face, she had no idea where all of this came from either. "Look at all this stuff... it's like Atlantis. Only falling apart and made out of junk. Craplantis."
Frazie dared to lean in for a closer look. "You don't think whatever's in the lake had something to do with this, do you?"
"Not unless it built an entire city just to demolish it," Lili replied with a shake of her head. "This stuff must've been here for ages. Something this big right next to camp this whole time, and I never knew! Unbelievable!"
"...Why do you sound annoyed?"
"Because the most interesting thing about camp's been under my nose this whole time!"
Frazie wasn't sure under what circumstances it was alright to find a long ruined city and think 'boy, I wish I'd stumbled on this sooner', but now wasn't the time to question her friend's thought process. Instead, she squinted, trying to spot anything that might help them prove their case amidst the wreckage. "What's that building say? Is that a nail factor-"
Galochio rudely reminded her of its existence by slamming its palms against the window, making Frazie yelp. "What is it?! Are you alright?" Lili questioned.
"I'm fine... I'm fine... I'm fine..."
"You sound like you're trying to convince yourself more than me."
"Yes, I freaking am!"
Galochio knocked again, and Frazie felt her shakes coming back as she shut her eyes and tried to drown it out. But Lili had already seen enough.
The bathysphere slowly swiveled around. "Allllright, that's enough searching. Whatever that thing is, it's sneaky. There's some strange stuff down here, but not anything worthwhile enough for us to stay any longer. Let's go back."
Thank god. Not the lack of evidence part, that sucked. Frazie definitely wasn't moping about it when Lili took the controls and guided them back up to the surface, though.
But now, they had even more questions, and even fewer answers.
One agonizingly long drive later, the bathysphere finally popped back up where they'd first arrived.
The exact instant they breached the surface, Frazie was already fumbling with the latch, tumbling over herself to get the hell out of there. She didn't care one bit when she tripped in her rush to escape.
Frazie fell to her knees on the planks, sucking in great, heaving gasps of air. She'd be tempted to kiss the docks if it wouldn't taste like fish and splinters. "Ooooogh... that was the worst hour of my life."
"Children?"
A familiar, concerned voice made her jerk her head up. Not far from the dock, Milla levitated over the water itself, floating on air like some sort of disco goddess.
She hovered closer, offering Frazie a gloved hand up while Lili climbed out of the bathysphere to join them. "Oh, children, you really shouldn't be going underwater without adult supervision!"
Frazie shook her head vigorously. "Don't worry... pfah... I'm not going down there again anytime soon." Though now that she was feeling more like herself again, a question came to mind. "...Why are you here, anyway?"
"Oh!" Milla fanned a hand out over the water. "I was just going to levitate across the lake and check on Oleander. He still hasn't found the kids and hasn't responded in awhile... he might need a little help. Morry always did have a little trouble with admitting when he needs assistance."
Frazie felt her spirits soar. Finally, one of the adults around here was actually doing something. Milla and Sasha definitely cared about the campers, but their faith in the camp's normalcy had been aggravating to no end.
In that vein, Frazie wasn't going to keep her busy any longer than necessary. "That's great! I mean, uh, it's great you're helping him out. Don't let us stop you, we're not going back underwater." For a while. Hopefully, a loooong while.
Pleased to hear it, Milla smiled softly. "Thank you, darlings. I shouldn't be long... if you need anything in the meantime, just check with Sasha, okay? Be good."
"No promises," Lili hummed.
"Oh, you. ...But no, seriously, dear."
"We'll be fine," Frazie assured her. "Promise." To her relief, Milla seemed satisfied, turning around in midair to face out across the lake.
Milla floated away, waving farewell. "Tsau, children! We should all hopefully be back before dinner."
Dinner. After all they'd done today, that was only a couple hours away. Frazie had been busy, hopping through minds and trying to solve the mysteries of the missing campers. Only now that Milla mentioned food did Frazie realize she hadn't eaten all day.
She held her stomach, the gnawing starting to become apparent after all this running around. It was honestly probably a good thing she hadn't eaten, or else that ride underwater could've been a lot messier. But now that she was aware of it, she was starving.
Even Lili could tell, eying her arms. "Hungry?"
"Surprisingly, after all that." Frazie shot a glance at the bathysphere, quickly looking away again.
"We've definitely earned a break. You in particular." Lili rubbed the back of her head, looking ashamed. "Sorry again. If I'd known just how it'd affect you, I would've gone down by myself. And we didn't even find anything about the lake monster..."
"Don't beat yourself up," Frazie insisted, putting a hand on her shoulder. "At least the bathysphere's fixed if we need it. And I really, reeeeally hope we won't." But that was a fool's hope.
Lili didn't look any less guilty, but she nodded. "Well, it's still really cool you faced your fears. Or, uh... tolerated them, I guess. To the mess hall?"
"Please."
Nodding, Lili pulled away and ran down the pier, the planks clunking underfoot. "And while we're there, we can check on the brainless kids!"
"Right. We can..." Frazie's words died on her lips. That was right. A bunch of brainless kids they could've shown to the counselors this whole time, and a mind stealing threat on the loose they should probably tell Milla about.
Milla, who'd already left.
"WAIT!" Frazie hollered across the water, but it was no use. Milla didn't hear her nor stop, her speck on the horizon floating further and further away. Desperate, Frazie tried to reach out to her mind, but she was already out of range of her telepathy too.
Damn it. If Chloe was still around, she could've had the gifted child contact her with her enhanced telepathy. It was too late now. She just had to have faith in Milla's expertise - she was a veteran Psychonaut, surely she could handle herself. At least, that's what Frazie told herself.
She smacked her forehead. Forgetting to show the counselors all the children... at least she could comfort herself with the thought they'd try to explain it away. She'd been on the move so much, it'd slipped her mind. She really needed a breather to think and eat.
Frazie turned to go, still eying Milla as she walked away. Wishing her good luck, she finally jogged off to catch up with Lili.
The main area of the camp, normally abuzz with the sounds of playing children, now stood eerily quiet with little more than the distant tweet of birds giving any signs of life. With the sun drifting lower in the sky, kids should've been gathering around the lodge for supper, but only a couple lingered around.
A blond girl stomped across the path, cupping her mouth. "CHOPS! Get out here! I know you're hiding Nils from me!" She clapped a hand over her lips. "I mean J.T.!"
Frazie grimaced, fully aware both of them were drooling in the TV room right now. Proooobably shouldn't tell her that. Aside from her, though, she couldn't see anyone but Ford raking away.
Putting her hands around her mouth while she walked with Lili, Frazie shouted out as well. "Chloe? Phoebe?" Frazie called, to pure silence. "Clem? Crystal? ...Dogen?"
The little green boy suddenly popped his head out from a nearby bush. "Hi."
Startled, yet relieved, Frazie pressed a hand to her chest. "Well... that's one." But it didn't bode well for the remaining four, or any of the other missing campers.
It wasn't any better inside the lodge. Normally abuzz with wild chatter or the pleasant lull of the Firestarter's/Levitator's tunes, they entered into dead silence.
At least Ford was still here. Frazie didn't even mind that she'd literally just seen him outside. With the camp so empty now, it was relieving to see a familiar face.
But was he still deep in character?
While Lili grabbed them trays, Frazie leaned over the counter. "Psssst... Ford, are you still acting weird?"
"I dunno, do you still not know how to address your elders?"
That was a yes. She sighed. "Never mind. Any chance you could spare another Dream Fluff?" It sure would be handy to have another one of those if she ended up dogpiled by an entire zoo again.
"I can spare one if you got fifty arrowheads on hand, missy."
Even without checking her pockets, Frazie knew she didn't have that. She'd been a bit too busy fighting for her life and getting to the bottom of things to go around picking little purple triangles off the ground. "Come oooon," she pleaded. "We're on the same team! Can't you give me a discount?"
Ford's empty eyes filled with confusion briefly, before he pointed his spatula at her. "I dunno what you're on about, but the only thing I can give you for free is home cookin' Or a whoopin', if you keep trying to haggle."
Frazie held her hands up. "Alright, alright, sheesh." She had no idea what'd gotten into him, but it was clear she wasn't getting a sweet treat or a second chance. Lili walked over with the trays, and Frazie held one out to him. "Load her up."
"You're lucky I got plenty of lunch leftovers," Ford muttered, grabbing a bag of buns. "Barely anyone showed up today. You kids had better stop stuffing yourselves with marshmallows."
Reheated hot dogs and macaroni. Milk and green beans. Frazie was practically salivating as the two girls claimed one of the many empty tables. "Ugggggh, I needed this," Frazie groaned, biting into one of her buns. A little too soon. "GAH! Hot!"
Lili snickered, and Frazie shot her a look. Mild tongue burning aside, it was exactly what she needed. She had to get her energy back after all she'd done today already, and if things kept up, she was going to need some more.
The two girls discussed their plans while they ate. "What do we do next?" Lili asked. "Do we just let Milla handle it?"
Frazie could tell from her hesitant tone that Lili was hoping they wouldn't let their counselor keep all the excitement to herself. "I don't know," Frazie admitted. Her eyes drifted towards the stairs that led up to all the brainless children. "At the least, we might not have filled her in, but I think I'll show Sasha the kids after this. Maybe he can reach out to her?"
"Good plan." Lili stirred her fork through her noodles, humming with thought. "Still... we've been out and about all day, and all we've learned is there's something in the lake. But what? And what was with that underwater town? The tower in our dreams? Nothing's adding up. We can't do much if we don't even know where to go and what to prepare for."
It was true. They had the bathysphere now, they could reach wherever the kids were being taken... but where was it? What was it? What were they even facing? Frazie sipped from her carton, unable to answer any of it. "Sasha helped me look into my dream earlier, but we ran into some... problems. He said to come back when I'd trained a little. Maybe I'm ready now?"
"Maybe." Lili shrugged... but before they could say any more, a new, monotone voice spoke up.
"I thought I heard someone out here. Want to come join storytime?"
Both girls looked up towards the TV room, spotting a boy peering around the door frame. His black hair poked out from under a flat hat, his eyes locked on them.
Before Frazie could respond, Lili did for her, rather abruptly. "No thanks, Vernon. We're trying to have a discussion here."
"Yeah," Frazie agreed. "We're trying to figure some things out."
"Oh?" Without their permission, he started heading downstairs to join them. "Maybe I can help. I'll let my audience have a break to get some snacks."
Frazie was pretty sure his captive audience wasn't going anywhere. Lili groaned, though, and Frazie wondered just why she had an issue with this kid. Vernon didn't seem to notice, sitting across from them and folding his hands. "Proceed."
Confused, Frazie shrugged him off, focusing on Lili. "Anyway... I'll go see Sasha, but I'm not sure how much it'll help. If only we had more to go on. We still don't fully know what the dream means, and I don't know if I can make it through Sasha's hair tumbler yet. We know there's some sort of thorny tower..."
"A thorny tower?" Vernon interjected. "Ohhhhh... I think I know exactly what you ladies are pondering about."
That got Frazie's attention. "You do?! Tell us!"
"Frazie...!" Lili rolled her eyes, her face simply oozing 'oh boy, here we go'.
"What?"
Vernon motioned for them to settle down. "Relax a bit and let me give you all the answers you seek. You see, I've thoroughly studied all the camp lore just in case I ever had to retell it. I might not see the future, but no one can say I don't plan for it."
Frazie was skeptical, but if it might give them some answers, she'd give it a shot."Alright, cool. So what is that tower?"
Vernon stood up on his bench, arms waving as he talked. "Seventy five years old, with bricks older than all of us combined, and probably falling apart from years and years of mildew and decay. Infested with rats and long forgotten by everyone... I shudder to think of what it would be like to explore it today. There's probably ghosts and stuff. Though it wouldn't be the first time I've dealt with ghosts, so I could probably handle it better than other people would."
Frazie blinked. "That's, uh... that's neat. But what does it mean exactly? Are you saying the tower is real? Or is it some kind of mental metaphor?" she asked.
"Ah, when you walk the path of the narrator, you come to see there's a bit of metaphor in everything. The birds, the grass..."
Lili rolled her hand, motioning for Vernon to get on with it.
"Okay, okay. Let me start from the beginning. Over seven decades old. I said that, right? The introduction is the most important part to any story, and establishing the setting is vital. And the bricks... I mean, I've never seen them myself, but they have to be pretty old. That's called inferring."
Frazie was starting to get annoyed. She could see why Lili had been so dismissive. "Hrrrrg... look, how about you tell us WHERE is it? Is it near here? Past the lake?"
Vernon tapped his chin. "Mmmm... I saw it marked on a map. Of course, a map is a poor secondhand reference, truly nothing compared to seeing it yourself. That's why I tried to climb up high and see if I could see from the mountaintop. But I didn't realize until afterwards that there wasn't a way back down, and I hadn't worked on my Levitation yet. Figuring out how to get back to camp is another story entirely... I had to eat my sleeve to survive before I got the idea to start a signal fire."
"...Your sleeve?" Frazie repeated. "How long were you stuck up there?"
"About two hours."
...Wait a second. Frazie smacked her cheeks gently, realizing she'd started getting lulled off track as well. "Look! Can we get the abridged version?"
Lili put a hand on her arm, shaking her head. "Forget it. The only abridged version we'll get is the one we build ourselves in the time it takes him to get to the point."
Vernon furrowed his brow. "Not into non-fiction? That's a shame. It's a good thing you didn't join us, then. I was telling everyone about my ancestors back during the Civil War. But no worries... I'm an accommodating storyteller. Maybe you'd rather hear about my dog instead? Everyone loves dogs."
Not waiting for their response, he launched into a new story, just as boring, verbose, and off-topic as before. Lili nudged Frazie with her elbow. "Let's get out of here," she hissed.
Frazie pushed out a hand. "Wait."
Lili look baffled. "You're not really gonna wait for him to tell us what we want, are you? We'll be here for days. We don't have days! We might not even have hours!"
"There might be a way to get the cliffnotes," Frazie whispered, Vernon still rambling in the background.
"How's that?"
Frazie pulled out her Psy Portal, holding it before Lili's eyes. "Ooooh," her friend hummed. "...Are you really sure you want to go into his head? I don't want to imagine how convoluted it is."
"We've already used the portal to get information earlier," Frazie pointed out. "I can handle it. Gimme a sec..."
She gripped the door with her telekinesis and slid it under the table, sneaking it behind the boy to set it on the back of his head. It clicked open as usual... but he didn't even seem to notice, continuing to monologue on and on to his inattentive audience.
"Wow. He's dedicated." Frazie shut her eyes, trying to focus on reaching into his mind. "You stay out here and keep him distracted, alright? Make sure he doesn't notice the portal."
Lili's face fell immediately. "You mean I have to listen to him?"
"Or at least pretend to. I'll try to be quick. Just say yep or something every now and then."
"Uggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggh." Lili put her cheek in her hand, already looking bored out of her mind. "You owe me big time."
"Believe me, I know." But that'd have to wait. For now, it was time for an internal inspection. Frazie locked in on his mind and projected herself into it, descending into his head even as he droned on and on.
Now entering:
Vernon's Vernacular
At first, there was nothing. Then, there was flame.
A single flame amidst a sea of darkness; a bonfire roaring in the distance. Frazie blinked and shielded her eyes, its warmth flowing over her. This place was pretty cozy, for a black void.
The environment might've been nondescript, but it wasn't empty. Rows of seats and benches sat on one side of the fire, filled with giant ears sitting silently. Frazie shuddered a bit, ignoring them and checking what was on the other side. A giant loom sat across from the crowd, surrounded by shelves, one filled with books, another filled with all sorts of silks and thread. And manning the loom was a strange figure.
It was an old man, his white beard long enough to reach down to his legs. He wore a hood and a robe, completely silent as he worked away weaving something together.
Curious, Frazie crept closer, approaching him and making herself known. "Excuse me...?"
"Hmmm?" The man turned his face to her... a very familiar face. "Ahhhh... a weary wanderer. You're just in time for my latest storytelling masterpiece. Go on, take a seat and listen."
"Vernon?!"
"I see my reputation precedes me."
She was used to encountering the campers inside their own minds by now, but they always looked like themselves. Here, Vernon looked more like... a wise sage. Was this how he saw himself?
"Please, sit, miss."
"Oh... right." Complying, Frazie circled around the campfire to grab an empty seat amidst the crowd of ears. Understandably, she was a bit skeeved out, keeping her hands in her lap as she glanced back and forth at the giant body parts surrounding her.
Vernon stood up from his seat, pulling his work from the loom. Flapping it a bit, he spread it out wide, then threw it up into the sky. The cloth flew up and hung in the air, a cloth canvas frozen in place.
And boy, was it ugly. So many different threads entwined together, of all kinds of colors and fabrics. Some sort of frankencraft, looking like someone had puked a rainbow all over a blanket. Some figures could be barely made out amidst the mess - something that barely looked like a dog, and a lamp. No, wait, that was supposed to be a boy?
"Behold!" Vernon called. "I present to you a tale I like to call... The Walk of a Lifetime."
Frazie's eyes widened as the fabric began to shift and move, the figures on it playing out the words Vernon was speaking. It was amazing, like a quilted movie screen adding images to his story. It was also amazingly awful. The colors were an eyesore, and the movements were janky and nonsensical.
Basically, it had the same quality as the story he was telling. He went on about a walk he took with his dog, and within seconds, he'd already diverted subject to an interesting rock he'd found, then the kind of leash they had, then the weather. It was a barely coherent mess, and the parts that could be understood were a complete snoozefest.
The audience had been listening quietly, but before long, they grew irate. One ear booed, and before long, they were all hopping and raving as they made their displeasure heard.
Tomatoes flew, alongside rocks, all aimed at the tapestry. It was already barely holding together with the many different components used to make it - the first stone punched a hole in it, and it fell apart the instant the rest struck. It unraveled, raining threads down on its creator as his story came to its conclusion.
Vernon held his arms out, catching the string falling down on him, soaking in the roar of the crowd. "Such a loud response... they're really cheering me on, huh? Truly, my best work yet."
Frazie's face scrunched up. Yeeeeeeah, she didn't get that impression at all. Vernon seemed pleased, though, turning around to start work on another tapestry. "I'm on a roll today. I've already got inspiration for my next piece. Oh, muse, you are too kind to me..."
Frazie approached him again, watching him grab books off one shelf, skimming very briefly, then grabbing a bunch of unfitting spools. His materials were completely unorganized, and clearly, so were his ideas.
"Hey," Frazie said, drawing his attention. "Would yoooou, by chance, want some help...?"
"Mm?" Vernon paused his work, swiveling in his seat to face her. "A collaboration? Hmmmm. A risky proposition... but also an exciting one. Perhaps. Do you know anything about bureaucracy?"
"..." Frazie didn't even know what he'd said, but she nodded. "Yes?"
"Good. Good. Perhaps you can help me with my next piece after all. One moment..."
He shut his eyes and hummed. Suddenly, something whistled overhead. Frazie looked up - just in time to see pillars falling from the sky.
The void quaked as three bookstands slammed down, massive tomes resting atop each one. "These are some of my favorite ideas," he explained. "Feel free to take a look, see if there's anything you can add... so long as I get to tell the story."
The problem was things needed to be removed, not added... but Frazie nodded. "Sounds good to me. I'll let you know when I've got something you can work with."
Leaving him to his work, she cracked her fingers, crossing over to the first of the pillars. "Now, let's see what we've got..."
She pulled the book open, grunting a bit as she hefted the heavy cover. Pages flapped as it landed somewhere in the middle of the book... displaying a mish-mash of overly articulate sentences and mismatched pictures.
Hoo, boy. Clearly she had her work cut out for her. She rested her hands on the paper, leaning in for a closer look... only to almost topple over as her palms sunk into the pages.
"Eh?" The book almost seemed to ripple as she dipped her fingers in them. She stuck her entire arm in, not grasping anything, but not stopped by anything either.
So it was something like the TV in Dogen's mind. She already knew what she had to do.
Frazie took a few steps back, taking a moment to ready herself. Then, she charged forward, jumping high. She somersaulted through the air, finally straightening out so she could slide smoothly right into the tome.
When people said to dive into a good book, she didn't think it was meant to be taken so literally.
This is gonna be a wild, varied world. There's entirely different ideas inside each tome. Vernon's stories might be bland, but his mind sure isn't. For the most part.
Since it's the last camper mind we're going to see, at least for awhile, what'd you all think of the roster? Dogen, Phoebe, Clem, Maloof, Chloe, and Vernon. I've had a ton of fun peeking inside their heads, and I hope you have too.
