The Flower Called Nowhere (I)

"Alright, let me go through the list… Sleeping bags, check… Provisions for four days, check… Copper ingots… Ah! I forgot to ask: Do the monsters still barter with copper ingots?”

Uatchita cocked her head.

“Hmm… I don’t think so? At least, I’ve never seen any.”

Miriyam was nodding whilst taking notes.

“Fascinating! A change of currency within the last 80 years… hmm… Do you know more specifically when they stopped? And why did they switch...?"

"Well, uh..."

"Ah! More importantly, what are they using now?”

Uatchita sighed.

“I don’t know. I guess these days, people just… trade stuff? Like, whatever’s on hand.”

Miriyam’s mouth widened.

“That means… not just a change in currency, but in the whole economic system?! A regression, even… What may have caused this…?”

Uatchita did her best to suppress a groan. Honestly, this girl…

“Miri, please. I’ve only lived here for 3 years. Don’t worry about it for now. You’ll be meeting tons of monsters who can tell you all about those copper thingies soon enough. Some of them may have even traded them with your grandpa!”

Miriyam’s mouth opened even wider. Her eyes were sparkling. Uatchita lightly tapped the journal.

“So, do you have everything, or…?”

Miriyam flinched.

“Oh, right! Sorry, I got stuck on… uhm… Bellows, check…”

Uatchita couldn’t help but chuckle as she watched Miriyam fumble around with her backpack and her notes, both constantly threatening to fall to the ground. The erratic bobbing of her head as her eyes shot from object to object caused her green ponytail to wag like the tail of an excited puppy. She had tied it up like that following Uatchita's advice. Long and open hair could easily get caught in narrow passages or be grabbed onto by enemies. Uatchita knew all about it: a painful lesson she had learned on one of the many adventures of her teenage years. 

Preparing for another adventure after such a long time filled her with old and somewhat foreign feelings. Most of them were quite petty and childish things that baffled her with how much they used to mean to her, but there was also a powerful, almost forgotten sensation: Pride. For the first time in three years, she felt like she knew what she was doing. Besides, her friend’s enthusiasm was contagious.

Humming quietly, Uatchita leafed through the maps Miriyam had handed her. As far as she could tell, the layout of the rooms had mostly stayed the same, but many of the descriptions, notes, and markings were no longer accurate. Some of the listed inhabitants had moved to other rooms. Many of the names were entirely unfamiliar to her. What most caught her eye was a cluster of rooms on the second floor. 

There were multiple small rooms arranged around a large central hall, similar to the one containing the forest, except this one framed a large crosshatched blob with "lake" scrawled next to it. The potential presence of a lake of this size shifted her entire understanding of the second floor, which had long become part of her daily life. She had never had a reason to go in that direction, and she had learned within the first few days after her disfiguration that loitering around anywhere without a good reason only led to trouble. But now, with Miriyam's mission...

Uatchita's eyes wandered back up to find her friend looking at her expectantly, a sheepish smile on her face.

"So, where are we going first?"

***

The ponytail was bobbing up and down in front of her. They had already covered the majority of the second floor. Despite the long walk and her bulky backpack, Miriyam had a real pep in her step. The way the torches flickered as she walked past made Uatchita think that some magic was involved in lifting the bag. She would have asked about it, but her mind was occupied with something else. 

"Say, Miri?"

"Yes?"

"That tour of the first floor must have done wonders for you, huh?"

Miriyam slowed and did a half-turn to face her. 

"How so?"

"Well, you used to be so afraid of monsters, always sneaking around and stuff... Now, you're marching through here like you own the place."

Picking up the pace again, Miriyam turned her gaze towards the ceiling.

"Hmm... Honestly, I was never that afraid of monsters, per se. More than anything, they fascinate me. Even when I first saw you, I thought... um... A-anyway, it's more so that I wanted to avoid direct confrontation."

"Is that so..."

Miriyam nodded, still facing the other way.

"Yes, yes... I am here to study the dungeon after all, and monsters are an integral part of that. Keeping a professional distance and not disturbing the natural processes of your object of study is key in observation."

"Professional distance, huh..."

For some reason, those words crystallized as a lump in Uatchita's throat. She swallowed.

"So, what would you do if you did get into a fight?"

Miriyam laughed hoarsely.

"Well, you saw it yourself, didn't you? I would run away. If you had chased after me when we first met, I would have summoned a gust of wind to push you back. That's what I like about wind magic: you can keep all the bad things far away from yourself."

Uatchita thought she noticed a slight quiver in Miriyam's voice.

"Still... It's not exactly safe for a human down here, you know."

Miriyam stopped and turned around, a beaming smile on her face.

"Yes, but I've got you by my side, don't I?"

For once, Uatchita was glad about her fly-head. It hid the fact that she was blushing profusely. Miriyam started walking again.

"Ever since we started exploring together, the monsters have been avoiding me, unless you reach out to them. It's almost making me sad, to be honest. I would have liked to get to know more about them..."

Uatchita sighed.

"Sure, but that's because the ones in these parts know me. They know that I'm under Kiyah's protection. I have no idea what's waiting for us where we're heading."

Miriyam turned around again, giving her a reassuring smile.

"We'll be fine, I'm sure of it!"

Uatchita wasn't.

***

Soon enough, they had reached the hall with the lake that had earlier caught Uatchita's attention. Lakes were a rare sight in the desert, but even compared to the meagre selection she had seen before, this one was on the smaller side. Still, there was something imposing about it. It only took Uatchita three tentative steps into the lake for the water to reach up to her knees. Something slimy touched her leg, sending shivers up her spine.

"Utchi, look!"

She turned around to find Miriyam pointing at something ahead of her. Right in the center of the lake stood the biggest flower Uatchita had ever seen. The stem that emerged from the water's surface had the girth of a young tree's trunk. Its sepal was lined with thick red petals that looked like slabs of meat hung up by a butcher for smoking. Dozens of thin yellow filaments peeked out over the petals' top. The anthers at their ends looked like little hands. Miriyam's eyes were sparkling.

"I've never seen a flower like that before! Isn't it fascinating? Come on, we have to get closer!"

"What?! Are you planning on swimming...?"

Miriyam shook her head.

"No, I can't swim. Don't need to, though! There's a stone bridge a bit further down the shore!"

Once again she pointed, and once again Uatchita followed her finger. Miriyam was right. A row of rocky protrusions led straight from the shore to the flower. How had Uatchita not noticed them before...? Something about the whole situation felt off to her.

"What if you slip? The water's deep here, you know..."

Miriyam was fidgeting.

"Fair point, but... Well... I have to investigate that flower...! I realize you might not understand why, but this is very important to me."

Uatchita sighed. All this trouble over something so silly... Suddenly, Uatchita understood how Kiyah must have felt whenever she left for one of her city trips. It was time to compromise.

"Ok, how about for now, only I go? I'm not that used to them yet, but I should be able to catch myself with my wings if I happen to slip."

After some back and forth, Miriyam reluctantly agreed.

***

Uatchita made her way over the rocks. They were even more slippery than she had expected. It took her multiple minutes to close a distance she easily could have walked in one, but finally, she stood face to face with the flower. She looked back at Miriyam. 

"So, uhm, what exactly am I supposed to do now?"

"Just gather as many impressions of the specimen as you can! What does it look like, how is it constructed, how does it feel to touch..."

Uatchita turned back around and scratched her head.

"Well, alright then..."

She leaned in to get a closer look. The flower's crown was emitting a sweet smell. Her mind was telling her that the stench was nauseating, but this judgment felt disconnected and rehearsed, like suddenly remembering a single verse of a poem she had long forgotten. The much more prominent reaction was one of intoxication. There was something deeply enticing to her about it. She reached out to touch one of the petals, but almost immediately recoiled her hand when she felt an entirely out-of-place sensation on her fingertips:

The convulsions of a pulse.