《Fantastic Journeys Through the Stars》


 1 Prologue - Arthur Tulle

    It was a normal Wednesday morning in February. But to Arthur Tullett, it felt more like a Monday. In fact, this whole year had felt like one giant Monday.


    He had just finished university earlier that year. And his first course of action was to find a good job. He graduated at the top of his class in Hotel Management and Hospitality, a quite prestigious institution, located in the former Swiss region.


    Everything had seemed so perfect. And he was itching to finally become a respectable member of society.


    Arthur started sending out his r¨¦sum¨¦ everywhere he could the moment he got back home from Earth. He felt like he had won the lottery when he landed a job at the Armando Group Hotel Line. His workplace was not just any Armando Group hotel, but the Mars Prime Armando Hotel and Resort. The only hotel that had a resort attached to it in the entire Mars Capital.


    Then he got fired. He was fired five more times after that. Today being the latest.


    He didn''t even know why. And this was what frustrated him the most. His former bosses didn''t even try to come up with proper excuses for it.


    His first time was by an Armando Group executive. The man had called him to his office, given him an electronic envelope with 6 months'' salary, and dismissed him with these parting words: "Stop flirting with my wife."


    Arthur Tullett, 24, virgin, had never flirted with anyone''s wife.


    He thought he had somehow offended the executive. And the executive just used a random excuse to have him fired.


    Most companies wouldn''t condone the random firing of employees like that. The Worker''s Union on Mars was always watching from the fringes, like bloodhounds. But this particular executive was a great-grandson of one of the founders of the Armando Group.


    Arthur heard rumors that they bribed their way out of the lawsuit. He had no proof though.


    Abuse of power was frustrating when one was on the receiving end of it. But Arthur could only accept it and move on. Science may have advanced rapidly in the last century. Mankind was now able to make giant habitable domed cities on Mars and the moon. But society was still full of the problems that had plagued it for centuries.


    It only got weirder from there. His second dismissal was soon after. The reason? He had supposedly monopolized the Director''s ''Personal Cycle Parking Space'', when in actuality he parked his rovercycle on the public rack the city provided next to the company building.


    The Director drove the latest model of rovercar made by Audi. His ''Parking Space'' was located on the top floor of the building, accessible only by a private car lift.


    Arthur was dumbfounded. Who had he offended this time?


    With black marks piling onto his work record, he''d had to start looking for lesser paying jobs. In the end, he was deported back to Whitewood, the 31st Moontown, after his work permit on Mars expired. Even the almighty Mars Workers'' Union wouldn''t defend a jobless bachelor. Especially since he no longer lived or worked in their jurisdiction.


    Arthur left Whitewood almost immediately, eschewing his hometown for the Lunar Capital. A few days of searching turned up a full-time job in a hotel/restaurant as an assistant for the kitchen manager. If he did well, he would be promoted.


    The last assistant manager had drunk an unhealthy amount of lunar soy sauce, mistaking it for Chinese red wine. He''d had to be hospitalized. Arthur wanted to meet that man one day.


    The job itself had very low prospects. He was definitely overqualified. Nevertheless, it was paid work, and technically in his field of expertise. One didn''t turn up their nose at an honest living.


    Arthur performed his duties to the letter. He was as polite as they could wish, and worked to the best of his considerable abilities. His co-workers assumed he had a case of 5th degree paranoia. Some even called him a boot-licker when they thought he couldn''t hear.


    For a while, he was doing fine. Yes, he had to do some grunt work for the first month, Dishwashing for example, but that was part of any new job. Though why a restaurant needed a human dishwasher in the 23rd century was anyone''s guess. However, Arthur didn''t complain. He was confident he could take the extra workload. And then...


    "Hey, did you just put the liquid dish cleaner on the scrub BEFORE you soaked it in water?"


    The restaurant owner stormed into the kitchen and dragged Arthur to his office. Predictably, he was tossed out of the establishment, pink slip in hand, in short order.


    ***


    Arthur finished packing the last sock in his luggage. His rented apartment was looking rather empty, as most dwellings do when their occupants have decided to leave. Losing his job today made him decide to return to Whitewood. There was no point in staying in Lunar Capital anymore.


    After making a short post on social media, he''d received a few job offers from friends here and there. But the jobs were either too low paying, or not in his field, or he just didn''t like the prospects. He was definitely grateful to them for trying to help in times of trouble. He just didn''t want to waste his talents in a job that had no room for growth.


    But that wasn''t the real reason why he was leaving.


    Arthur tried to convince himself it was. But deep down, he was forced to admit that he was simply burnt out.


    Thus far, his work life had been a tragedy. Some cruel god must''ve taken a disliking to his face. Said deity was now hell bent on making his professional life nothing but misery.


    Arthur sighed with dejection.


    His face morphed into a scowl while putting a few magazines into his bag. On top of the stack was a cover bearing the name Inter Solar System Job Hunting Magazine for People with Particularly Bad Luck. It was hailed as the last beacon of hope for all those unemployed in the solar system. Yet even this publication could not guarantee him a stable job.


    After his ruminations had started treading the same ground for the third time, Arthur shoved it aside and reaffirmed his decision to go back home. Self-employment, he declared to himself, was the next big thing in his life.


    Not having a boss meant no one to fire him. He was aware his ''bad luck'' might haunt him in his entrepreneurship too. But he still wanted to give it a try. Besides, till now, his terrible luck had only affected his jobs. The other aspects of his life weren''t touched by the negative. Yet.


    Arthur confirmed with the landlady that he was indeed ending his lease. Retrieving his possessions, he left the apartment complex without a backwards glance.


    He didn''t have too much in the way of luggage. So, foregoing the option of hailing an auto-shuttle, he chose to walk the short distance to the train station.


    He started to whistle subconsciously. His fellow pedestrians pointedly covered their ears while giving him the stink eye. But Arthur was too absorbed with his inner monologue to notice.


    ''At least I got my deposit back. Mrs. Audrey even gave me a jar of cookies as a farewell gift.''


    It seemed not everyone was a radioactive equine''s bottom like that Armando 3rd gen. Receiving his deposit back had been unexpected. The rental contract clearly stated he wouldn''t if the room was rented for less than 3 months. Somehow, Mrs. Audrey knew of his recent streak of horrible luck and apparently felt sorry for him.


    This was his first instance of good luck he''d encountered in months. It was also the first gift he''d gotten from a girl since new years. Didn''t matter that Mrs. Audrey was old enough to be his grandmother¡­ It still made him feel warm and fuzzy inside.


    He should treat himself to some milk to accompany those cookies for not breaking down in tears when she''d pressed the jar into his hands.


    Buzz...


    Arthur felt his cellphone vibrate. He pulled it out his pocket to see who sent him the message, and stopped dead in his tracks.


    It was a job offer sent directly to his email. Not a work email, but his private one.


    Ms. Vileplume


    requests the honour of your presence,


    for an interview at her modest agency.


    You are expected at half after four o''clock,


    Friday, February-dd-23XX


    at World''s End, 5th Central, Whitewood, Luna.


    The email was composed in a rather archaic format. Other than the address, date, and time of the interview, there were a few related links listed below.


    ''Weird... I don''t remember sending my CV anywhere recently.''


    Arthur became skeptical after reading the address. World''s End? Did Whitewood have a place like that?'' He quickly checked the attached links, which verified that there was in fact a street named World''s End in Whitewood. However, that wasn''t the only weird point.


    ''Who names their daughter after a Pok¨¦mon?!''


    Who, indeed¡­. The popular video game franchise which should have ended over two centuries ago was still pumping out titles to this very day, and now boasted over twelve thousand Pok¨¦mon.


    Arthur could proudly claim he knew them all.


    He wrenched his attention back to the email.


    He was already dissatisfied with the HR department of this agency. Did they not see those ''fired'' entries on his employment record?


    What a severe oversight. Even he himself would not hire someone with his own track record. He figured this was a small-time agency looking to hire him for cheap.


    Arthur scoffed. He was done with jobs and employment. They were nothing but overrated concepts anyways.


    He had made the decision to be self-employed. His great-grandparents were one of the earliest settlers on the moon colonization project. They weren''t really considered ''rich'', but they had left behind a sizable piece of land in Whitewood. His family home had enough rooms to act as a motel or an inn. It was also built in an exotic Japanese style, harkening back to his great-grandmother''s ethnic heritage.


    People always seemed confused by this. The Tullett residence was built like a Japanese ryokan, creating a stark contrast to their British family name.


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    Arthur quickly did a search for TCS Observatory, the name of the agency.


    ''Their HR department must really suck. How could they not know I studied Hotel Management, not Astronomy?''


    "Move it, will you! Stop standing in the middle of the walk!" A passerby finally got angry and yelled at him for spacing out in the middle of the road.


    "Ah! Sorry. My bad..." Arthur gave a sheepish apology. He quickly put the phone back into his pocket and hurried towards the train station.


    His search had yielded surprising results.


    TCS Observatory was an investment firm, not an observatory like the name implied. Its market cap was a whopping 4 times larger than even the Armando Group''s. They had stakes in almost every venture on Mars and Luna, no matter the niche. The number of subsidiaries they had on Earth was nothing to sneeze at either.


    Why had he never heard of them before?


    Why did they make a second headquarters in a small town on Luna?


    And most importantly, why did the current majority shareholder of the firm (at a whopping 95% stakes) send him a message from her personal email to his for a simple job interview?


    ''Their HR staff must be really bad,'' Arthur concluded. ''I should fire whoever''s in charge after I get the job.''

 2 Voodoo Brainwave Sorcery

    Luna, aka the moon, mainly had two kinds of domed bases. The bigger ones were called mooncities, and the smaller ones were called moontowns. They were connected to each other mostly by surface tubes, with a few exceptions of modified underground Lava tubes. The surface tubes were mostly used for public transportation, while the Lava tubes were mainly used for moving cargo from one moon-base to another.


    Rail-lines, public shuttles, and private cars all used these constructs. There were even sidewalks installed for people who preferred walking to driving.


    There was no tube directly connecting the small town of Whitewood to the Lunar Capital. The train Arthur took had to first travel to a secondary mooncity called Phoebe. From there, it was three more moontowns, and then finally Whitewood.


    Trains on the moon looked identical to their counterparts on Earth. Riding them also felt similar. But the technology used was vastly different. Thankfully, that didn''t seem to affect the fare prices.


    Arthur put most of his luggage in the provided compartment after boarding the train. Keeping only the bag containing his techs and snacks with him, he opted for the window seat. His ticket was actually for the corridor position, but the passenger for his preferred spot hadn''t arrived yet. Brushing aside the issue, he took the chance to observe the scenery of the lunar expanse outside.


    Before purchasing the train ticket that day, Arthur had decided to go independent. He''d been planning on opening a motel or an inn. He had the space, he had the qualifications¡­ All he needed were the guests.


    Then suddenly out of nowhere came the invitation from TCS Observatory, also known as Tecsov by Netizen. This gave him more options.


    Arthur would be lying if he said he wasn''t tempted by the job offer. He was actually tempted a lot. But he was afraid of getting fired from this job as well. He just didn''t want to give one more win to his bad luck.


    ''Well, the interview''s two days later. And it won''t hurt to give it a shot. I can just quit if I don''t like it.''


    Arthur came to a conclusion pretty fast. A job at TCS Observatory had its merits. For one, his workplace would only be a 10 minute auto-suttle ride away. This was a huge plus, as he wouldn''t have to relocate for the job.


    When Arthur first landed the job at Armando Group, he''d thought he would permanently settle down on Mars. This did not mean he wanted to sell off the property on Luna. Any real-estate on the moon was a prime asset. If he actually sold it, he would have become a millionaire overnight. The money would have been enough for a family of 4 to live comfortably on Luna till the day both generations grew old and died. And new-era humans had almost twice the lifespan of old-era humans. So that would have been a lot of money.


    However... IF he sold, Arthur was confident in his ability to remain single. No extra expenses there. He had no loans or liabilities either. And definitely no career tying him down.


    He snorted.


    "Attention, passengers: this is your conductor speaking. The train is about to leave the station. I repeat, the train is about to leave the station. Please stand clear of the closing doors."


    ''Oops!'' He caught himself spacing out again. He noticed the passenger for the window seat hadn''t arrived. The two seats opposite him were both empty as well. ''Lucky!''


    But it seemed he celebrated too soon.


    "Attention passengers: this is your conductor speaking. We are sorry to inform you that we have met with an unexpected situation due to technical difficulties. A priest has gotten his robes stuck between the compartment doors because of a sudden sensor failure. We apologize for any delay this may cause," the announcement continued.


    ''What?'' Arthur pressed his face against the window. He tried to see what was happening outside, but then he heard a commotion coming from one end of his train compartment.


    He looked over, and saw a priest in a strange getup, surrounded by staff members of the train. The priest himself looked quite young, no older than 25 if he had to guess. The garment in question was one of those baggy European robes. His habit was a mix of bright orange and light brownish gold, which actually complemented his dark hair and raven eyes quite nicely. The colouration reminded Arthur of those shaolin monks he saw in TV dramas.


    ''Never seen that religion before. Is it a new startup or something?''


    A few members of the train staff were apologizing to the young priest. Another member of the train staff was agitatedly speaking into his communicator. The priest himself looked pretty confused. Most of the train staff had joined him in puzzlement. One of them was currently holding a mechanical crowbar, now bent in the wrong direction. The power tool looked like it had seen better days.


    Modern vehicles were required to be built to strict 23rd century safety standards. These standards were heavily enforced by all parties. Following that logic, it was almost impossible for someone''s clothes to get caught as the train doors were closing. The high-tech sensors should not have made such a basic mistake. But unfortunately for this case, it seemed they did. This could very well lead to a lawsuit.


    Several recently passed laws stated that if an anomaly occurred in a public vehicle, it must be immediately announced to the passengers. Even if the announcement could cause a panic, the public had the right to know. This law was highly controversial. It was criticized by experts for many good reasons. But the new government had turned a deaf ear towards all the complaints.


    Fortunately for the train administration, the priest didn''t look like someone who was three minutes away from calling a lawyer. In Arthur''s eyes, he looked helpless, but not angry.


    After a while, the priest sighed. Fatigue was visible on his face. He whispered something inaudible and turned to his right, patting the shoulder of the the staff member who was talking into the communicator.


    Arthur felt a strange...field? ambiance? aura?...something flow. Watching closely, he saw the staff member''s eyes cloud over as a small pulse-like wave radiated through the air.


    Then, he noticed it. It wasn''t just that staff member, but everyone else too. Arthur nervously glanced around the compartment. All the other passengers had fallen into a trance-like state. He was the only one unaffected!


    ''Okay? this is...definitely abnormal?'' Arthur started to sweat.


    The priest glanced around a bit. Satisfied that he was now unobserved, he simply pried the door open with two fingers. The robe that had been caught was promptly released.


    ''Holy cow!''


    Arthur''s eyes involuntarily went wide with shock. But he hastened to compose himself. Genetic-technology had advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years. Arthur knew that in the military, there were superhumans capable of performing similar feats of strength. But the priest definitely looked like a civilian. Genetic upgrades like that were not released to civilians! Not to mention the pulse he''d seen.


    The priest checked his robe for a bit. Then with a satisfied smile, he snapped his fingers.


    There it was again! The pulse! This time, Arthur saw it clearly.


    The priest didn''t notice that Arthur was unaffected by his magic. And Arthur didn''t want the priest to notice. Whatever brainwave voodoo the priest did, it was safe to assume he wanted to keep it a secret.


    So Arthur was happy to oblige.


    ''Maybe this weird priest can help me with my god-forsaken luck,'' mused Arthur for a moment, trying to distract himself with random thoughts. He''d just had his first encounter with the unknown. And forcing his features into a straight face was the best he could do.


    ''On second, I think I''m good...'' Arthur had just witnessed the priest pry open train doors like Superman. Clearing his mind with difficulty, he decided it was not a good idea to tell a stranger capable of lethal violence about his life problems.


    With one more careful glance towards the corridor, Arthur looked back outside the window. But his subconscious mind kept wandering back to the weird priest. Arthur had seen enough 21st century movies to know what Voodoo priests did to unwanted eye witnesses.


    The now clear-headed staff members looked at the door in confusion. After a few muddled head nods, the staff member holding the communicator confirmed the safety of the priest, then resumed speaking into the comm. He was probably reporting to his boss that the problem was solved.


    "Attention passengers: this is your conductor speaking. The situation has been handled. We thank you for your patience. We will be departing shortly." The voice of the conductor rang out from the speaker one last time, and the train began moving with a jolt.


    Arthur let his mind wander again. After a few seconds, he concluded that he was simply overreacting.


    What he saw was just an illusion. He was so stressed that his mind was playing tricks on him. Yup! That had to be it.


    "Greetings."


    Oh god, it was the weird priest! Arthur tensed up.


    "Yes, can I help you?" he asked, forcing a poker face.


    The priest took out his ticket and checked it over. Then showed it to Arthur. "Apologies for disturbing you. But it seems you are sitting in my seat."


    "Oh? Oh! Sorry! Sorry, I was spacing out." Arthur sighed in relief as he hurriedly stood up. He carefully shifted to the opposite seat, taking note of the priest''s reaction.


    "No need to apologize, sir. The scenery outside is quite beautiful, is it not? To be able to enjoy such beautiful vastness... Is it not a wonder that the endless drive of humans could reach and claim the moon? While the strongest of us could only gaze at it from afar for hundreds of years." The priest took his seat, his expression turning into one of wonder.


    "Ah, yeah. Hahaha."


    The priest was quite chatty. He immediately started into small talk. However, the subject of said small talk was slightly problematic for Arthur.


    ''Humans? Strongest of us? Are you saying you aren''t human? Why are you mentioning clearly classified information like that to me as if it''s natural!''


    Arthur laughed foolishly, carefully giving some tentative replies.


    The priest continued, this time with a serious expression.


    "Sir, there is something I must tell you."


    ''Did he notice after all?!'' All those nights of staying up watching conspiracy videos didn''t do Arthur any good right then. He tried his best to react naturally. Fortunately, he was able to force a neutral fa?ade.


    He slowly responded, "I don''t have any money."


    The priest was flabbergasted, "Pardon? No, good sir! I don''t desire your fortune undeserved."


    "You don''t want donations?" Arthur asked.


    The priest looked visibly torn at the question. There were a few long seconds of what looked like an internal struggle. The priest muttered, ''Mind over money, mind over money!'' a few times, and finally calmed down.


    "Money is transient. But one''s spirit, it is eternal. Sir, I fear that you have been possessed by an ill-mannered entity. It has corrupted your spirit for its own evil gains. It must be vanquished immediately, lest it causes irreversible harm." The expression on the priest''s face could not have been more sincere.


    This made Arthur too embarrassed to directly ask if the guy was trying to scam him.


    "I-I see. Then, can you, like, exorcise it?" He opted for a different question. Maybe this weird priest could actually get rid of Arthur''s bad luck with his superior voodoo therapy.


    ''Spirits and ghosts can cause bad luck, right? Or is this just a scam after all?'' he thought.


    But his minor hopes were soon dashed.


    The priest replied with a sigh, "Unfortunately, you have no money."


    There were a few seconds of awkward silence. Arthur''s signature blank face returned.


    Maybe the priest thought Arthur was so disappointed he could not utter a single word. With a friendly smile, he handed him a business card. "But do not worry, sir. If you ever get the money, please contact this number. We, the Monks of the Seal, will be happy to drive away the evil ghost that has possessed you."


    "D-Didn''t you say you didn''t want money?" Arthur asked, slightly perplexed.


    "Ah, good sir, I said I didn''t want your money undeserved. But I would like a small donation for my expertise." The priest replied, with a slight bow of his head.


    Arthur thought for a minute, then finally responded with a nod. "Actually, that makes sense."


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 3 Whitewood

    Arthur didn''t continue the conversation with the monk after that. The monk himself looked contented with the silence. As if his mouthy personality before was an illusion. A few hours later, there was an announcement that the train had reached Whitewood.


    This was Arthur''s stop. So he prepared to disembark.


    As did the monk.


    "It looks like we share the same destination." The monk said.


    "Ah, yeah. I''m just stopping here for a few days. Got a job interview." Arthur told the monk. Inwardly he thought, ''No need to give him any ideas.''


    The monk smiled. He said with a pause, "We will meet again if fate wills it. Good day."


    "You too." replied Arthur with a curt nod. He didn''t delay anymore. He turned towards the exit of the compartment, not noticing the pondering look on the monk''s face.


    ***


    Arthur departed the station after collecting his luggage from the provided compartment. It had only been a few weeks since he last left Whitewood. Prior to that, he was away for many years due to his studies in university. A long time had passed, but the scenery remained almost exactly as he remembered.


    Whitewood was largely described by its own residents as a haven from the hubbub of the bigger cities on the moon. The archaic buildings were an amazing sight to see for many. Especially the old European architecture.


    Some may even think the little town had stopped in time. Or it had somehow magically teleported to the moon from one corner of the European dark ages. This feeling was greatly amplified by the large number of senior citizens living in town. Most of whom dressed their part.


    But they would be surprised by how much cutting-edge technology was used to create and maintain such an antique townscape.


    The town itself was largely split into two main areas, encompassing a total of 5 regions. The north, south, east, and central region all consisted of the more modern parts of town. They were home to the town''s industries, offices, entertainment centers, and other such establishments.


    The west region was the original one. It was once called the 31st secondary lunar base. But they had since removed the base. Right after the dome was successfully constructed. It was to make room for town essentials.


    It was called the Old Suburbs now. That''s where Arthur grew up. His home was one of the westernmost residences, situated on West Orchard Street. It bordered the currently abandoned lunar orchard, which had gradually turned into a small forest about a thousand acres in area.


    The train station was located at the junction of the Western and Southern part of town. So, Arthur opted to just walk back, rather than hailing an auto-shuttle.


    The last few times he left this place, he thought he would be leaving for good. He thought he would reach his retirement age elsewhere. That he would only visit Whitewood on special occasions, such as new years or checking up on his property.


    But here he was, returning to his roots.


    The scenery of the town streets made him feel nostalgic.


    Arthur had many memories of the place. Good and bad, but mostly good. He didn''t have many close friends who still lived here. Those in his age group have mostly moved on to bigger cities. Some to pursue a better future; and some, to escape the inertia of this old moontown.


    He wasn''t forgotten though. Every old couple around the neighborhood still remembered the naughty little rascal called Arthur Tullett. The whippersnapper who became best friends with all the stray cats and dogs. According to one grandpa who owned a fish store, his antics were outrageous enough to be recorded in the town''s history books.


    ''I never actually kept a pet though.''


    The story of how there came to be colonies of stray cats and dogs in the moontowns was a strange one. It happened long before Arthur was even born. According to what he heard, their lineage predated back to when the moontowns were still just bases. They were descendants of pets the very first settlers brought along. Many of these pets outlived their owners because of how dangerous the business of building bases was.


    After becoming full-fledged towns, the neighbourhood councils of the various settlements didn''t get rid of the descendants of their pets. They even built stray shelters in every region, just for them. It should also be noted that these cats and dogs were strays, but definitely not feral.


    Compared to most places on Earth, strays on the moon were well fed and housed.


    In other words, the whole lot was semi-adopted by their respective moontowns. By all accounts, having a few stray cats and dogs living with their society gave the towns a more earth-like, authentic feeling, which was highly endorsed by the lunar cultural department.


    He even spotted a few elderly people feeding the strays as he slowly made his way home.


    ''This place¡­ really doesn''t change.''


    The trees, the white streets, the seniors practicing yoga and tai chi dances in the park, the groups of monks and priests loitering around the alleys.


    ''Wait a goddamn minute!'' Arthur quickly double checked.


    Yes, there they were again!


    He spotted a group three bizarrely dressed monks, followed by a duo of men in black Christian robes, entering one of the alleyways. These monks were dressed differently than the gentleman he met on the train. They grey and white garments instead of orange and brown. They also seemed to be working together with the duo in black.


    ''Ugh¡­ are these guys having some kind of religious convention in town?'' According to Arthur''s knowledge, religion wasn''t a big thing on Luna. People still built churches, mosques and temples. However, very few people faithfully practiced their religion. It was just another slice of old era culture for them.


    So, why were so many seemingly religious personnel gathering here?


    Arthur took no chances. He started walking faster, his steps nearing that of a jog. He didn''t want to get involved with whatever weird cults or religion these people belonged to.


    So, after about 20 minutes of walking, Arthur finally reached home. Along the way he saw 3 more different teams of monks and priests, and one particularly eye-catching group of strangers cosplaying as a team of adventurers straight out of an JRPG. Two of those groups were even having a rap battle in the middle of the street. At least that''s what it looked like to Arthur, by how much they were yelling at each other''s moms and ancestors.


    Arthur was pretty sure he saw a team of local news reporters in the vicinity too.


    There was something fishy going on in town, and he wanted nothing to do with it!


    All Arthur wanted was go home without incident, lie down in bed, and have a good night''s sleep. The moon might have a 2-week day and night cycle, but the power of science made it so that he could still have a ''good night''s sleep''.


    ***


    The old home was built like a ryokan, which were traditional Japanese inns. The interior, however, was a mixture of both western and eastern styles. The whole residence was situated inside a walled area, with a 2-structure gate located beside main road. It served as the entrance to the front yard.


    After a quick scan of his palm, the automatic gates opened.


    And a bunch of stray cats ran out hissing. Following after them was a fat orange tabby lazily waddling out. It gave Arthur a disdainful look, scratched his shadow for a bit, then swayed away.


    Arthur released the fist that he had subconsciously clenched.


    "Cats..."


    A bunch of stray cats had trespassed into the yard while he was away. He wanted to blame someone, but then he remembered it was his own fault.


    Well, the security system was pretty dated. But Arthur himself might''ve changed the protocols to include stray cats and dogs as ''friendly''.


    He even remembered that fat orange tabby. It was the 2nd in command of the stray cats around this area.


    The delipidated doors of the main building were a chore to open, since they were mechanical in nature and not electronic. The lights automatically turned on as Arthur entered.


    And then another group of stray cats ran out hissing.


    "This is bad for my heart." Said Arthur as he tried not to huff.


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    Not all the cats left though. There was one gray and white stray cat which was still sitting on the shoe shelf. It stated at Arthur with its sapphire eyes, while rhythmically swaying its tail.


    ''This won''t do.'' thought Arthur. He had plans to rent out the rooms. So, having stray cats living coming and going as they pleased would be detrimental for obvious reasons. Arthur made a mental note to update the security protocols later that day.


    The cats seemed to have behaved though. As the place didn''t looked like it was blitzkrieged by an army of strays. For some reason though, the ventilation had failed. Arthur noticed a thin layer of dust coating the place, with a lot of paw prints here and there.


    There was still day light (or rather, sun-light) remaining. Arthur supposed had nothing better to do. So, he decided to clean the place up.


    He had to unpack his things first though. He headed for the second floor because that''s where his room was.


    For some reason, the grey and white stray decided to follow Arthur up the stairs. Arthur recognized this cat. It was the local head honcho.


    The cat gave a short meow and jumped up the stairs. Then it jumped down again, and poked Arthur''s leg with its tiny nose.


    ''Aww.''


    The last time Arthur was home, he remembered feeding the cat a bunch of dried fish. Because he was bored, and the cat was hungry. So why not? It was a win-win situation for both sides, and a business transaction he could be satisfied with.


    The cat must''ve remembered him. More precisely, it might''ve thought that event as a gesture of submission from Arthur the lazy human. Maybe that''s why it decided to bring over its gang, to take the place over.


    Oh well.


    Arthur gave it a smile, "Hey there little buddy."


    He walked past the cat, walked up the stairs, and entered his room. The cat was content following after him.


    "Well then. Let''s clean this place up, shall we?"


    All he got was a long meow in response.


    ***


    It was already 5 PM by the time Arthur was done cleaning the first and second floor. Of course, if Arthur was doing the cleaning by hand, it would have taken far longer. The ryokan was huge. It would take a minimum of two days to scrub and mop every nook and cranny the old-fashioned way.


    Arthur simply took out the auto-cleaners aka Roombas from the storage shed and let them loose inside the house. When his grandmother was still alive, she made Arthur''s uncle supply the ryokan with all the latest home appliances. His uncle''s company was just starting its operation back then. Now, it was one of the local up and coming stars in the tech industry.


    ''I wonder how Uncle and Aunty are doing. I really should have visited the when I was in the Capital.''


    Though Arthur knew his uncle and aunt would''ve welcomed him with open arms, he was just too self-conscious to visit them. One party was a successful businessman, the pride of their family. While he was a washed-up bachelor cursed by some evil spirit (according to the monk). It was unsightly, but the inferiority complex he felt was real.


    Arthur shook his head, shaking off those uncomfortable thoughts. He headed for the control panel to check why the ventilations, and auto-cleaners stopped working.


    He didn''t need to look far.


    In the back yard there were a bunch of holes dug. Each ditch still had active Roombas buried in them. How did Arthur find them so fast?


    Well before he went to check the controls, he thought he should check how many Roombas were left in the shed. If someone stole the Roombas active inside the ryokan, then they should have taken the ones in the shed too. Fortunately, no one broke in and there were still plenty of auto-cleaners remaining in storage.


    That''s where the cat came in. The moment Arthur turned on first Roomba, the cat pounced on it. It neutralized it in 5 seconds (flipped it over), dragged it to the back yard and started to dig a hole.


    Arthur was more amused than angry. There was a turf war going on in his house between house cleaning AI and Cats.


    "No, bad cat! Those aren''t prey." Arthur had to drag the cat away from the Roomba. Digging up the victims also earned him a few long hisses and headbutts. But no scratches! What a well-behaved bad kitty!


    Arthur was starting to like the cat. Maybe he should keep it.

 4 How to Ruin a Nostalgic Momen

    Arthur didn''t waste much time and continued cleaning the house after relocating the buried Roombas from the ditches to the shed. He moved a few things here, and stacked a few things there. He checked the plumbing, did a bit of scouring in the attic, restarted the ventilators, and lastly, confirmed the food stock in the pantry.


    When it was nearing evening, Arthur was finished. No, there was still the basement to check, but he''d do it after resting up.


    He sat down on the living room couch with the cat, stretching his tired joints. He exhausted from all the work, both mentally and physically. So, he was going to reward himself with a short break and a quick meal.


    Luckily the pantry still had a lot of canned foodstuffs, ready-meals, and a few big cartons of ''never expire'' brand fruit juices remaining. Modern technology was truly a marvel. Scientists invented ways to grow mangoes and bananas that stayed fresh for centuries without hurting the yield. This never really hurt the economy either, since humanity was still recovering from the war of unification.


    Arthur quickly finished his meal. It was a simple glass of orange juice, and a microwaved bento.


    ''Can cats drink orange juice?'' He wondered, as he watched the cat giving the juice box some hostile glances.


    In the quiet of the living room, and in the company of a stray cat, Arthur contemplated. His eyes kept moving from one corner of the room to the other. There were a bunch of sofas arranged around a big kotatsu, which was a type of Japanese table sitting upon thick blankets. Underneath it was space connected to a brazier or heat source to warm up your legs.


    There were also a few shelves to one side, and a giant crystal tv on the other. The quite hum of the Roombas coming from the corridor could also be heard.


    It was peaceful. It always was. But it wasn''t always so quiet.


    After observing the cat nibble on some dried fish for a while, Arthur turned his gaze towards the photos framed all over the walls. He then looked at one photo in particular.


    It was a picture of Arthur''s whole family. His aging grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles, cousins, their enigmatic housekeeper, and of course, Arthur himself. He was still attending middle-school. His grandparents were still alive. His parents weren''t missing.


    Arthur sighed.


    He picked his tired body up, wanting to wipe away the dust layering the picture. There was also a feeling of nostalgia he didn''t want to let pass. The place used to be such a den of noise, but now it was empty. Except for the occasional invasion of cats.


    As he was wiping the muted glass frame, he noticed something odd. His younger self in the picture was wearing a pendant necklace, with an eye-catching green gem inlaid in it. It was a gift from his mother. He couldn''t remember exactly when she gave it to him, but it was probably when he was still in grade school.


    He didn''t like wearing it so conspicuously back then, as he felt it was too girly for his tastes. However, after his parents went missing, he made a habit of always wearing it. Even now.


    Arthur touched the pendant. He was so used to seeing it, that he didn''t even notice how the pendant wasn''t the same colour as in the photo.


    The gem inlaid was now a greenish blue. More specifically, it had tiny blue spots all over the gem. Like small speck-sized sapphires inlaid within a larger emerald frame.


    "Did someone switch it? But then, why didn''t I notice?" Arthur compared the real thing with the photo once again. The difference was still massive, he concluded. If the pendant really did get swapped, he would''ve, should''ve noticed immediately.


    ''Weird.''


    Arthur knew the gem wasn''t as expensive as a real emerald. A lab made product, his mother told him. It wasn''t considered a luxurious commodity. Definitely not worth someone making a replica of the it to replace the real article.


    Besides, the current gem looked more expensive in Arthur''s eyes than the plain green one from before.


    Arthur quickly took out his phone. He was always wearing this pendant, so he wanted to check some of the recent photos he took. There were outings with his brief co-workers, some random selfies with acquaintances and friends, photos of foods, his graduation party from half a year ago.


    Arthur was wearing the pendant in most of them.


    The oldest picture of the pendant Arthur could find was when he graduated high-school. The gem was green, but after squinting hard, he noticed it already had some tiny bluish spots.


    Arthur put the phone away, and hung the photo back on the wall.


    No one swapped it. The gem itself gradually changed. With small specs appearing one at a time.


    That''s why Arthur never noticed it. His subconscious mind got used to the gradual change.


    ''what the hell did mum get for him...'' He wondered. He would need to take the pendant to get examined somewhere. It was a memento of his parents yes, but what if it was also some strange radioactive rock!


    Better to be safe than sorry.


    Despite his doubts, Arthur trusted his mother. He believed she would not to give him something that would harm him. Besides, he had been wearing this pendant for years now. No cancer yet, and he had rarely gotten sick in recent years other than some just deserved food poisoning.


    On the contrary, he was healthier than most people he knew.


    Well, whatever he was going to do, it would have to wait until tomorrow. It was already evening, and he still had a basement to check.


    ***


    When Arthur''s great grandparents first built this place, they built the basement with the standards of a military grade emergency bunker. People back then were very skeptical of the safety standards on moon after a series of unfortunate accident which caused parts of the domes to malfunction in some new completed moontowns.


    The worst of them even cost human lives.


    So, the basement bunker came equipped with various life support systems, and even extra cold storage for food. After his great grandparents passed away, Arthur''s grandparents reconstructed the whole place. The emergency systems were still there, but now the basement was mostly used as a second storehouse.


    It was the last place to check on Arthur''s list before he called it a day.


    The ventilation system of the basement was more robust than the main house''s, so the air wasn''t stale. The place wasn''t covered in layers of dust either, contrary to Arthur''s expectations.


    No hissing cats either.


    Meoooow!!!


    Scratch that, there was one hissing cat. It was the grey stray. The moment Arthur entered the basement, it puffed up its tail with a hiss, backs straight like a predator. It was spooked!


    Arthur didn''t expect the cat to suddenly get so agitated. Before he could find out why, the cat made a dash into the basement.


    "Hey, wait up! Leave those auto-cleaners alone!" Arthur chased after the cat, lest it broke something important. Or worse, got stuck somewhere dangerous. The emergency equipment here was one of the few things Arthur''s parents warned him not to mess with when he was a kid.


    After trekking through a mountain of stacked cardboard boxes, Arthur finally caught up with the cat.


    It still had its tail fluffed up, noticeably restless. It was standing at the edge of a round hole in the ground, peering inside.


    "Dumb cat, don''t lean in so much. You''ll fall." Of course, the cat couldn''t possibly understand what Arthur had said. It continued to make threatening yowls at the hole.


    ''Wait, hole?'' Arthur finally came to. Why the hell was there a hole in his basement? Did someone try to sneak in?


    "Careful now." He tried to calm the cat down. It, however, refused to calm down or budge from its spot. Its sapphire eyes still watching the unknown pit of darkness.


    Arthur squatted beside the cat and carefully examined the anomaly. The hole looked like it was melted, not dug. So he could discard the possibility of cartoon thieves trying to dig their way into the house.


    ''Strange.'' Arthur had seen holes like this in fictions though. Melted concrete, metal and wood, the plates and shafts being bent outwards, a large tunnel that lead deep into the crust of the moon. It positively looked like a scene straight out of a 21st century alien flick.


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    "Whatever the case, I should call the cops. This day just keeps getting stranger and stranger."


    There was also the case of the security system failing. It had didn''t even detect this strange breach, not to mention automatically notifying the nearest police station. Arthur wasn''t a fan of suing, but he checked, the warranty on their security system was still active.


    " Meoooow!!!"


    "Uwah!" Arthur was caught off guard by the cat''s loud screech. The hole in the floor made the echo was extra deafening. Before he could check what happened, he saw a blur of grey jumping straight at his shadow. A split second later, there was a pat on his shoulder.


    "Hello again, sir. Could you please ask your pet to release my robe? It''s the only set I have." It was the strange monk!


    "Whoa! Thief!" Arthur shook the hand off and hastily turned around. He saw the cat was biting and scratching at the monk''s robe.


    Why was this lunatic in his house? Who let him in? And (most importantly) why was he coming out of Arthur''s shadow?!


    "Calm down, sir! I am no thief. My name is Liu Feng. I am an honest citizen." The monk calmly explained himself.


    "Calm down? You calm down! What are you doing here? Good citizen? Then be a good citizen and wait for the cops!" Arthur was getting more flustered. But this was a normal reaction. Suddenly having an unknown freak coming out of one''s shadow, in a basement with a mysterious unknown hole would doubtlessly make anyone hysterical.


    Arthur warily took a few steps back. Then he remembered the hole directly behind him.


    Fudge almighty! Nowhere to run!


    "Sir, you should step away from the hole. I feel a strange aura coming from there. It is not something you should have contact with." The monk took a step forward. The cat was still biting his robe. And Arthur wanted to take a step backward. But there was the hole!


    The entire situation painted a strange picture.


    But before Arthur could come up with a reply, he noticed the cat''s eyes going wide.


    The monk who named himself Liu Feng looked like he wanted to continue saying something, but his face also turned unnaturally pale.


    Both of them were staring behind Arthur, with dread visible on their faces.


    Arthur knew what was happening. It was a common plot point in alien movies.


    "There''s¡­ something behind me, isn''t there?"


    The monk nodded.


    The cat purred.


    Arthur slowly turned around.


    He came face to face with a long, greenish blue, jellylike transparent, but somewhat insectoid tentacle rising from the mysterious hole.


    "Aaaaaaalien!!!" he screamed like a little girl. The tentacle didn''t care. It flew in straight for Arthur.


    "Watch out!" The monk shouted, lunging at Arthur as fast as he could. But he knew wouldn''t make it in time. So he yelled, "Safeguard!".


    The monk''s body was instantly covered in a dense white aura, with tangible power radiating from his person. A pulse went off, and a semi-transparent barrier appeared in front of them.


    It proved a useless effort. The shield failed to stop the tentacle for even a second. It went right through the moment it bumped against the ethereal defense.


    "I-Impossible!" the monk stuttered, his voice dripping with disbelief. It was the first time Arthur saw him so broken out of his nonchalance.


    But Arthur had bigger things to worry about.


    The tip of the tentacle, now unobstructed, expanded rapidly. It then became hazy like a spreading mist, as it covered Arthur and the cat, which had somehow made its way between the human and the hole.


    The tentacle paused for a split second, then pulled them right into the tunnel. The tunnel which was definitely too narrow for human beings to pass through.


    "I''m gonna dieeeeeeeeeeee!!" Arthur screamed once again, like a little girl.


    "Tsk!" After clicking his tongue, the monk hesitated for a split of a split second and quickly grabbed onto the cat''s tail.


    "Meoooow!!!"


    The cat screeched, now with tears in its eyes. The monk ignored the indignant feline, yelling, "Make way, O Vast one!"


    As his chant ended, the tunnel started to expand right before Arthur was completely pulled in and crushed by the kidnapping tentacle.


    Thus, Arthur, the cat, and the monk were sucked helplessly into the depths of the moon by the bluish green monstrosity. The monk was busy keeping his magic spell running so they wouldn''t be crushed by the narrow tunnel, and the cat was busy crying out in distress, not knowing why the uncouth human was crushing its treasured tail in a death grip.


    Arthur didn''t notice any of this. He had already blanked out at that point.


    By the time he came to, the abductor tentacle was already retreating into a vast lake of greenish blue water, leaving the three of them stranded in a massive underground cavern.

 5 Tentacles Everywhere!

    "I-I''m alive?" Stammered Arthur, as he slowly woke up from his prone position. He was lying face down on the ground. He tried to raise his head, but a sudden jolt of pain through his spine madedoing that impossible.


    Arthur groaned. His body hurt all over, and he was panting like he had just finished a 20-mile marathon. Gathering his strength once again, he tried to stand up. He felt another bolt of pain, but chose endured it by gritting his teeth hard. His legs started wobbling, but after a few seconds, he could finally stand up.


    A repeated meowing sound was coming from somewhere, along with weird chanting. He could also here water flowing from somewhere, and a noise oddly similar to slurping and slushing.


    His vision, however, was still blurry. So he couldn''t pinpoint the exact location of the sounds. It was currently dominated by nothing but a wide expanse of white and grey rocks. Arthur exhaled slowly, and rubbed his eyes until his vision cleared up.


    What greeted his now clear vision were giant lava tubes, opening up into the vast cavern from multiple directions. Followed by an enormous lake of bluish green gelatinous liquid. The giant body of water was churning, as if it was seething with rage. There were tendrils of¡­ something, extending out from the main body of the lake like an enraged medusa.


    Tentacles.


    One of the longest tentacles was currently retreating back into the body of the lake. Slowly, it tried to submerge its giant snakelike body.


    Judging by the direction it was extended towards, that was probably culprit that dragged Arthur into this cavern. There was something peculiar about it though.


    The tentacle was grasping a pendant.


    "Hey that''s mine!" Arthur''s mind cleared up immediately. His first reaction was to call the cops. Then his mind really cleared. And he instantly covered his mouth, scuttling back till he painfully bumped into a large boulder.


    "Ouch!"


    Two unrelated thoughts rose up in his mind, as he tried to push away the sudden pain.


    First was, ''what the hell is going on!''


    And, ''There really was a cartoon thief trying to break in!''


    "Mr. Arthur! If you don''t want to die, then hurry up and take cover behind that boulder! And take this cat with you!"


    "Meooow!"


    ''Right! The weird monk! And the cat!''


    Arthur snapped his head towards the direction of the voice, and saw a gray blur flying right at him. By the time he could register what the unidentified flying blur was, the cat had already crashed into him with a whimper.


    He grunted, but his mind was still working. He quickly caught the poor thing before it slid down, and hid behind the boulder like the monk advised.


    "Meow! Mew mew mew!" from its voice, Arthur could tell that the cat was traumatized. Its face was wet with tears. It snuggled up to his body for comfort while meowing out all its grievances. Never in its short life had it ever been so disrespected. From being wronged by a shady human, to being dragged down by a weird alien tentacle, to finally being tossed out like a plaything.


    Arthur tried to soothe the agitated feline as best as he could. The poor thing''s tail looked like Pikachu''s now. No wonder it was in shock. Cats hated their tails getting touched, not to even mention squashed.


    The monk on the other hand, looked like he had just walked through a sand storm. His only set of robes were a mess of holes and tears. His black hair, which Arthur noticed was tied up before, had now come loose. Part of it was flying around in the wind ''wind?'', and the rest was sticking to his clothes. The Chinese cap he was wearing earlier was nowhere to be seen.


    His sleeves looked like they were halfway dissolved by acid, and his face was covered in tiny scratches. Though Arthur doubted it was the tentacle monster that was responsible for them.


    The monk was currently swinging around a huge sword as he tried to fight back the numerous tentacles assaulting him. Yet, the best he could do was deflect them. Any wound he made on the tentacles healed almost instantaneously, whether it was a slash or a stab. Even the burns and gashes from the fireballs and wind blades he threw out had no visible effect.


    The monk didn''t seem to be desperate though. He attacked with a certain goal in mind. Arthur noticed the bulk of Liu Feng''s attacks were not aimed at the tentacles that were attacking him. Those, he tried to either deflect or defend.


    His attacks were almost all concentrated on the tentacle that stole Arthur''s pendant, and was currently trying to retreat into the lake!


    ''My pendant...'' Arthur didn''t know why the alien wanted to steal his memento, but whatever it wanted, the monk didn''t.


    He clearly wanted to stop that particular tentacle in its tracks.


    However,


    "What nature of scourgekin is this! Wait, that green jelly, is that immortal elixir?!" The monk''s yells sounded almost hysterical to Arthur. And it didn''t end there. "Even peak, tier ten techniques get neutralized immediately! Tarnation! Why isn''t the backup here yet?!"


    Liu Feng, the wounded monk, looked almost as aggrieved as the cat. Arthur could clearly hear his inner turmoil, even with all the swooshing tentacles and exploding fireballs.


    "I did not want to do this, but you leave me no other choice! Scourgekin!" Yelling that, Liu Feng took out a very detailed, and very shiny miniature bronze sword. He started chanting in a strange language unfamiliar to Arthur. A few spell words later, the miniature sword was glowing brightly, and Liu Feng''s eyes had caught on fire.


    "Mr. Arthur!" He suddenly heard Liu Feng''s voice coming from inside his head. He almost freaked out but the monks powerful voice seemed to possess a magic, forcefully calming down his tense nerves.


    "Hurry up and close your eyes! And cover the cat''s too. Do not look at the light directly!"


    Arthur had no idea what magic the monk was about to cast. But he wasn''t going to complain. In gaming terms, Liu Feng had clearly gathered enough rage points from the fight, now he was going to use his ultimate.


    Not two seconds later, Arthur could feel a blinding light pierce through his eyelids. As if a sun had appeared in the cavern, showering everything with its holy light.


    But he felt no pain. He felt calm, and at piece. Like there was no city sized tentacle monster out there to kill them. Hakuna Matata. That''s what this spell was called, Arthur decided. The light of Hakuna Matata soothed his soul. The cat also turned still, no longer yowling.


    And then, the sun died down, and everything went silent.


    "It''s¡­ okay now¡­" Arthur once again heard Liu Feng''s tired voice. But this time it wasn''t telepathic, coming from his left. Arthur hesitantly opened one, and looked toward the direction of the monk''s voice.


    Liu Feng looked even worse right now. He had already looked like a beggar before. But now, he looked like he was beaten up by a gang of other beggars, then thrown into a landfill, before finally crawling out from the sewers. His eyes were swollen, ears bleeding, and he was gasping like a beached fish. There was a peculiar smell of burnt hair coming from his body too.


    Arthur turned his gaze behind the injured monk. He looked at the lake, where the monster was.


    All the swaying tentacles were cleanly severed from the middle, with the ends falling into the lake body. The lake monster, or alien, or whatever, was having trouble regenerating its injuries. The base of each cut was still being scorched by a blazing golden flame, presumably an after effect of Liu Feng''s ultimate. Each time the tentacles tried to regenerate, the flame would simply turn that part into ash.


    Arthur decided, for now he could only to trust this guy. After all, the monk fought off a city sized horror while protecting him. Not to mention before, when he was almost squashed into paste after being dragged into the tunnel by said horror.


    Of course, he was still suspicious.


    "T-Thanks man." Arthur stuttered, while showing an embarrassed smile, "And sorry for calling you a thief before."


    "No matter. It was also my fault for intruding upon you uninvited." The monk didn''t seem to mind.


    "So... what now?" Arthur looked towards the lake again. His pendant was lying on the ground less than 3 meters away from the edge. His number one priority right now, not counting escaping this place with his life and the cat, was to retrieve the memento. But god forbid he did not want to approach that lake. The severed tentacles were still twisting violently in midair. One random hit and he would become a pancake.


    "The pendant," Liu Feng asked, "do you know of its origin?"


    "No, not exactly. Uh, it''s a memento of my mother. She told me it was a synthetic gem, made in some lab. That''s... all I know." Arthur replied hesitantly.


    "I see." The monk said with a pause. Then he continued, "For now, let me retrieve it. The scourgekin might try something again. And the blasted backup isn''t here."


    Arthur had nothing to say to that. He couldn''t. This whole matter was out of his hand right now. Even if he wanted to tell the monk to return the pendant to him, he doubted Liu Feng would agree.


    The monk, pretending not to notice Arthur''s inner turmoil, warily made his way to the pendant.


    But then he stopped dead in his tracks. Arthur who noticed the sudden change, also grimaced.


    There was a quiet otherworldly screech which propagated through the still air of the cavern. Like a distant cry of a Cicada you could only hear the echo of. This cry, however, promised rage and retaliation.


    The thrashing lake monster abruptly went still. Then, with a momentum rivaling a Tsunami, it gobbled up the severed tentacles! Along with all the golden flames still scorching them. Like how a slime would gradually envelop its food with its cellular body, except the horror factor was dialed up to ten.


    Immediately, the flames were snuffed out, and the monster started growing new tentacles. This time, covered in thick bark like armor and insectoid plating.


    "Oh curse the heavens!" Liu Feng couldn''t help but swear. Finishing a quick incantation to boost his speed, he made a dash for the pendant. He also sent a few magic missiles towards to growing mass of tentacles, trying to delay them for as long as possible.


    However, right before he reached the blue green bling, it sprang up. Literally.


    "Fudge!"


    "What in the?!"


    "Meow!!"


    The pendant, which was lying down on the ground like the dead object it should be, suddenly grew a pair of tentacle like legs. It sprang up, not wobbling at all. And in a childishly casual motion, it skipped towards the lake. Like a merry little lass going out for a walk in the park.


    Time seemed to freeze for a few long seconds.


    Even Liu Feng himself forgot to react, as he stared wide eyed at the animated ornament steadily sinking into the lake water.


    By the time they snapped out of it, the greenish blue watery body of the monster was starting to rise up into the air, tentacles thrashing in ecstasy all around it.


    Liu Feng was caught completely off guard. Before could even enact a proper defense, he got smacked from behind by a stray tentacle and got gobbled up by the lake.


    Arthur could only stare with a gaping mouth as hundreds, thousands of tentacles shot out of the floating lake and formed a cocoon like structure around the pendant.


    He couldn''t run. The lava tubes were already sealed up by tentacles.


    He couldn''t fight. He''d be squashed in a heartbeat. The only thing he could beat here was the cat, and even the odds of winning that foght was below fifty percent.


    For the second time that day, Arthur saw his life flash by.


    He hugged the cat and closed his eyes tightly. Waiting for the inevitable death to come.


    The cocoon let out a blinding glow, and then...


    ...


    ...


    ..


    Something wet touched his cheek.


    For a few seconds, all he could hear was silence. The sound of wind being cut by thrashing tentacles, the churning lake water, even the creaking of the moon''s crust, was no more.


    Then, in the background, there was the gurgling sound of a man drowning in water. Followed but the quite meow of a cat.


    ''Is this it? Killed by tentacles, so I get sent to tentacle hell?'' thought Arthur cynically. But then he realized, he wasn''t dead.


    "Umm?" the inevitable death didn''t come. Arthur slowly opened one eye to take a peek.


    In his blurry vision, the silhouette of a girl, about his age, appeared before him. She was completely drenched in water. With knee-length long sparkling golden hair draped over her pale, naked self, she was looking at Arthur with a teasing squint in her greenish blue eyes. The freckles on her face made the squint all the more alluring.


    Arthur''s mouth gaped open. He saw the girl break into a breathtaking smile.


    Then, with no warning at all, she pinched his cheeks hard.


    "Long time no see, Arthur."


    Arthur knew the girl. She was Zoe.


    She was his babysitter.


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    ***


    "So, what you''re saying is, You''re not a human. You live under our house because my dad let you ''enshrine'' this place. The pendant is actually one of your ''cores''. And you dragged me down here, without any word of warning, because you thought Liu Feng, who was hiding in my shadow, was trying to hurt me and steal the pendant?"


    "Yup."


    "Are you kidding me!?" Arthur cried, throwing his arms up in frustration.


    He was having a hard time believing that his childhood babysitter, housekeeper, and maybe puppy crush was some sort of lake sized, amorphous, magical tentacle monster.


    Even with all the supernatural stuff he saw that day, it was something he had trouble accepting as true.


    The main problem was the ludicrousness of it all.


    That didn''t matter to the girl though. She didn''t look a day older since he last saw her 5 years ago. She was happily playing with the cat. "I don''t get what''s so hard to believe, Arthur. You aren''t asking that guy over there if he can really do magic, even though he was throwing fireballs at me earlier."


    "That''s because I can''t! You trapped him in goo! How am I supposed to ask him?!" Arthur shouted in exasperation.


    Yes, the monk wasn''t dead. He wasn''t eaten alive. He wasn''t even tortured, forced to suffer through unimaginable tentacly torment. The type of torture that had to be censored.


    He wasn''t even unconscious.


    The girl had trapped him in a bubble of that blue green lake water. The prison of liquid now slowly floating in mid-air.


    Liu Feng, the gurgling monk, was constantly trying to tell Arthur something with his eyes. Arthur guessed, the monk wanted him to ask Zoe to release him.


    Arthur sighed.


    "Please, in any case. Could you release the guy? He looks uncomfortable in there." Zoe''s blatant distrust of the guy wasn''t completely illogical. But then again, the monk did try to ''save'' Arthur from Zoe, even though it was completely unnecessary in the first place.


    "It''s not meant to be comfortable. And no," Zoe denied his request. "Don''t be na?ve, Arthur. There is a reason this guy stalked you. And I''m sensing a group of people just like him outside our house, for quite a while now. They''re probably his comrades. I can''t let him go. You shouldn''t trust him. I think... it''s better to get rid of him."


    "I can''t trust you either!" Arthur blurted out in a rage. But when he saw how visibly hurt Zoe looked, he took a deep deep breath to calm himself down.


    ''Calm down, Arthur. Deep breaths.''


    He spoke with a small pause, a guilty tone coloured his shaky voice, "Look, Zoe. Today¡­ has been a stressful day. I''m tired, really. I know I can''t trust him, but I can''t just let you get rid of him! He risked his life to save me, even though it was totally pointless! I mean... What I''m trying to say is, I always trusted you, Zoe. I always will! And¡­ And it''s my fault for yelling at you."


    Zoe: "..."


    "Do you really mean it?" She asked skeptically. The girl was caressing the cat''s tail, and not looking at Arthur at all. Her fingers were glowing a dim green. She was making a point to ignore him.


    Arthur sighed again.


    "Yes, I really trust you. I know you won''t hurt me. I know there has to be a good reason why mother gave your core to me." He replied. He was a bit skeptical of her yes, but deep-down, Arthur knew, Zoe was practically his closest family.


    "No, that it is your fault."


    "¡­. Yes." Only the cat saw Arthur grit his teeth.


    "I''ll be frank here, Arthur. I can''t believe it." Zoe finally looked at him. Her eyes spoke to him, telling him that she was still unhappy. She gently put the cat down, and crossed her arms with a pout.


    "¡­ What do you want then? Do I have to get down on my knees and beg?" Even though she was a giant eldritch monstrosity, she was still a girl at heart, Arthur lamented. Women in his family never forgave slights so easily.


    "No, that this guy would actually risk his life to save you." Zoe shook her head, pointing at Liu Feng who was trapped inside her prison of slime.


    Arthur: "¡­"


    ''Oh my god! Lady would it hurt for you to be more detailed when speaking?!''

 6 Geas

    Zoe was always an enigma to Arthur. The first time he met her, he was barely three years old. Still a toddler, he was too young to remember what happened back then. He just knew Zoe had stayed with them for a long time after that, virtually becoming part of their family.


    She had raised Arthur in place of his busy world-faring parents. It could be said she was more his guardian as his actual guardians were. With the long years they had spent together, Arthur had definitely noticed her quirks. He knew she was weird¡­ But not this weird.


    Zoe was a lot of things to Arthur. His keeper, first best friend, the weird aunt in the family everybody seemed to look up to. She was his puppy love when he learnt what crushes were. Then she became his clingy, overprotective elder sister when he hit adolescence. Yet, Arthur now realized that he didn''t know her at all.


    Her hair wasn''t black, her eyes weren''t either. She didn''t age a single bit in all those years, not because of her uncurable illness, but because she was immortal. He definitely didn''t know she could turn her hands into a tentacle made out of guava jam. That cats, and humans for that matter, could eat that jam for health benefits.


    That''s how the cat''s tail got fixed.


    "Arthur¡­ I have something I ne-" After turning her hand back to normal, Zoe apologetically looked at Arthur. As if she wanted to elucidate something, something important. But Arthur promptly cut her off.


    "Before that, Zoe. Uh." Arthur blushed as he shifted his eyes elsewhere.


    Zoe was still very stark-naked. "Could you, umm, wear some clothes first? It''s hard to talk with you like¡­ that."


    "Oh." Zoe looked down her body. Yup! She turned slightly red for just a second. Then closed her eyes and squinted really hard. Suddenly, something that resembled tanned hide pushed their way out of her skin. It continued until she was covered in a form-fitting leather garment. "Ugh, I hate doing this. It takes a lot of cells to turn my skin into processed bio-materials."


    "Wait, skin? So, you''re still¡­?" Arthur asked.


    "Yes, bare." Zoe replied, her smile a teasing grin.


    Arthur was not convinced. However, he wasn''t na?ve enough to blush because of technicalities, much to Zoe''s disappointment. He changed the subject.


    "So, about what you said previously¡­" Arthur pointed at Liu Feng.


    "Right! People like him always have ulterior motives when doing things. Saving your life? Hmph!" Zoe scoffed. "He probably noticed that you were the key to keeping himself alive. There''s no way he didn''t notice that I never once attacked you."


    Arthur was definitely convinced that Liu Feng had an agenda. After all, he did shadow him, literally.


    Yet, he still believed that in the end, the monk didn''t have the intention to harm him.


    "Let''s hear him out first, okay? The only one he actually hurt here was the cat, and that was to save me." said Arthur. He looked at the cat which had fallen asleep, apologizing quietly for not avenging its pikachu-tail. The feline, however, was snoozing quietly on top of smooth moon rock.


    Liu Feng vigorously nodded. Judging by his reaction, he could still hear what was being said outside. Zoe''s doing no doubt.


    The eldritch maiden bit her lips. Her face painted a skeptical look. But she didn''t refuse Arthur''s request this time. A touch to the slime bubble that was trapping the monk, and part of it was immediately absorbed into her body. The prison now only covered up to Liu Feng''s shoulder, giving him a chance to speak.


    "Lies! Mr. Arthur-"


    "Just Arthur is fine." Arthur tried to calm the agitated monk down. He didn''t like such an overly formal form of addressing either, so he assessed this was a good place to hit two birds with one stone.


    "Uhh, well then, Arthur." The monk was stumped by the interruption. A few seconds later, he continued. But more calmly, with conviction to his voice. "Do not make the mistake of trusting her. She, no, it-"


    "She." Arthur corrected. Zoe smiled.


    The monk sighed, guessing that it would probably be a bad idea to piss off his only ticket out of this mess. He didn''t insist, "She, is a scourgekin, the enemy of all sapient life. A mimic that can only steal. And, most importantly, there is a crucial fault in its words."


    "And¡­ what would that be?" Arthur quirked an eyebrow. Half of what the monk said sounded like gibberish.


    ''Stop calling her a scourgekin. She only looks like an Eldritch horror. Kind of.''


    "When she dragged you in the tunnel! That tunnel was definitely too narrow for a human to fit through. If it wasn''t for m-"


    "I covered Arthur and his cat with my cells. They would have been fine. You were the one who followed after them, uninvited, while hurting the poor cat." This time it was Zoe who cut him off.


    She extended a tentacle of slime from her index finger and gently covered the sleeping cat within it. After that, she shrunk the tentacle. Much to Arthur''s amazement, she made the now thread like tentacle pass through a small crack in the rock. On the other side of the rock, the tentacle expanded again. She then dropped the cat off on top of another smooth moonrock. The cat was safe and sound, still snoozing comfortably.


    "See?" Zoe looked at Arthur with a smile on her face. The series of events proving her words to the T.


    Arthur nodded.


    "I, that''s¡­" Liu Feng was staring wide-eyed at what happened, apparently at a loss. He then said the obvious with gloom on his face, "There is no way I would have known that."


    "You wouldn''t, would you?" Zoe smirked. She pointed at Arthur''s shadow and said, "Then, what''s this?"


    Arthur also looked down. Liu Feng did suddenly come out of his shadow in the basement after all. It was definitely suspicious.


    Zoe tapped Arthur''s shadows lightly with her finger tendril, and a black card popped out.


    "These things act as a waypoint for your teleportation, as well as a tracker." Zoe smile turned into an accusatory grin.


    "When we first met on the train, I had warned Arthur of the dark presence I felt. It was unquestionably because of you. That is when I had to tag him, for his own safety! So that if he fell into any danger, I could react with haste. Such as now, for example." Liu Feng answered calmly. Zoe looked guilty for a moment, but her interrogation wasn''t finished.


    "Then, why does the cat have one too?" Saying that, she tapped the cat''s shadow next. And pop came out a black card, identical to the one before. "They also act like surveillance devices, right? What, did you think I wouldn''t notice? You were after his secrets, not his safety!"


    Feng wasn''t perturbed though. He denied the accusation, saying, "It is better to have as many backups plans as possible. Do not accuse me of something you are doing yourself, scourgekin."


    He glared at Zoe. And Zoe glared back.


    Liu Feng continued his defense, "In the first place, I didn''t come to the moon because of a scourgekin extermination. Nor did I have any business with Arthur. You must''ve felt it too. A fragment has formed near here."


    Much to Liu Feng''s surprise, Zoe looked confused. She wasn''t faking it, having no idea what a fragment was.


    "Fragment?" Arthur asked.


    "A natural treasure, a source of energy to aid in our practice. It holds concepts of reality itself, and sometimes, even godhood." Liu Feng replied. "This one is quite large in scale. It should be able to support groups of thousands. Many organizations have sent people to moontowns in this area of Luna, including our sect. I am originally here for that. Our encounter here was but a coincidence." He then looked at Zoe, and emphasized, "Coincidence."


    "Ah, you mean a source? The ones that look like colored glass rocks?" Something clicked in Zoe''s head, as she finally recognized what Feng was talking about. "Yeah¡­ there is one near here¡­ the weird one."


    Arthur was stumped. Both of them had compelling arguments.


    He, on one hand, would definitely take Zoe''s side. Zoe herself, however, seemed to be concealing something. Something rather important.


    On the other hand, if they let Liu Feng go just like that he would most definitely return with reinforcements. He gave the impression of abhorring ''scourgekins'' with extreme prejudice. There''s no telling what sort of trouble he could bring in the future.


    Though that did not mean Arthur wanted to kill him. Arthur was just an ordinary civilian, with an ordinary civilian mindset. Serious thoughts about murder and viciousness weren''t even up for consideration for someone with his upbringing.


    Zoe of course, could see that clearly as day. She glared at the trapped monk, wondering her choices. Finally, she let out a reluctant sigh, "If you want to live this place alive, you''ll have to agree to a geas."


    "A geas?" Arthur and Liu Feng asked simultaneously.


    "A pact, a contract. Whatever you call them nowadays." Zoe said, exasperated.


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    "Ah, you mean an oath? Definitely, I can promise to keep what happened here a secret." Feng seemed to be okay with it. His tense shoulders dropped a bit, and a tired sigh unintentionally leaked from his mouth.


    "No, a geas. It''s not a lousy oath you can break when you''re strong enough. You can''t break a geas, in this life, or the next." Zoe said, a red glint in her eyes. "Look, boy. I am giving you a way out. And only because of Arthur. You either take it and live, or refuse and die."


    ''Scary! Haven''t seen her like this since that one time I put chewing gum in her hair.'' Arthur was reminded of that hellish nightmare. For three days he could not sit down, his bottom too spanked, his heart too injured.


    Arthur Shuddered.


    "I- Okay... I will comply." Liu Feng finally grasped exactly what Zoe was talking about. He still nodded, fully convinced the scourgekin would not be taking any more steps back. Arthur also released a sigh in relief, relieved that no bloodshed was necessary.


    Zoe turned one of her fingers into a ruby talon. Like an Eagle''s claw made out of glittering magic crystal. Granules of tiny light particles gathered near the tip if the talon, and she carefully guided them in midair. A small red magic circle appeared, rotating slowly from on its axes. Then, she opened her palms wide. There was a fluctuation of red light, and the magic circle expanded to cover the whole cavern. It was instantly at least a few hundred meters in diameter.


    "Impressive." Arthur said.


    "It''s basic stuff." Zoe replied with a smile.


    "Wai-, Wha-" Liu Feng''s eyes went wide in shock. Apparently, whatever it was that Liu Feng thought before, he thought wrong. "You are using strategic grade magic to make a contract spell!"


    "Yes." Zoe said. "Don''t resist~"


    "Have you never heard of the phrase, ''Don''t use a cannon to kill a mosquito''?" A tired undertone coloured his voice, as his shoulders drooped even further. This time, not from relief. This was it, no final acts of resistance. He had given up.


    "You overestimate yourself." Zoe laughed, as she tapped Feng''s forehead with her glowing talon. The light concentrated on the tip, and drew a small wound. The giant magic circle shrank into his temple, and after a few seconds, it disappeared. Liu Feng was quite throughout the whole procedure. It seems like it was painless.


    "It''s done. It won''t kill you, or do anything really. Other than making it impossible for you to physically, magically, and spiritually share what happened here today. Unless I let you, of course. So, cheer up."


    Liu Feng could only shake his head. He stared at the ceiling, his tired eyes for some reason changing to one of deep though. Arthur heard him whisper, "So I''m not even strong enough to be a mosquito? Me, the Master of the Seal?"


    ''Poor guy. He lost both his robe and his self-confidence today.'' Arthur looked at Zoe. She did that to people, intentionally and unintentionally. Shaking off those past feelings, Arthur clapped his hands.


    "I have no idea how I am breathing down here. And at this point I am too afraid to ask. What I do know is, I definitely don''t want to stay here any longer. Can you take us out? Without covering us in sli-¡­ your cells?" Arthur asked Zoe. He didn''t forget to gently pick up the sleeping cat, of course. The cat was deep in it''s sleep, not even noticed the human touch.


    Wait, no it just tried to scratch Arthur''s hand. It was still asleep though. A nightmare perhaps?


    ''The poor thing did go through a lot today.'' Arthur supposed.


    Zoe smiled. "No."


    Arthur sighed again.


    With that being said, Zoe morphed her whole body completely into a slimy chaos once again. The slime glowed blue, as its green body turned into a hazy mist.


    Zoe soon engulfed all three of the passengers, and quickly made her way up the tunnel into the basement.


    Feng was still quite dismayed, and visibly low-spirited at this sudden hurdle. So, after exchanging contact information with Arthur (he insisted), and receiving a few more threats from Zoe, he took his leave.


    "Now then," Arthur spoke, closing the front door, "Zoe..."


    "Arthur, I-"


    "I''m not blaming you." Arthur strongly clarified. "And I''m not mad that you kept some secrets from me. If I was some kind of alien lifeform, I would''ve done the same."


    He took a deep breath, trying his best to maintain a serious countenance. "Tell what a scourgekin is. Tell me about the pendant. And about my parents. About you. Tell me everything."


    Zoe looked at Arthur right in the eye, and after a few long seconds, slowly nodded.

 7 Scourge

    ''A sentient scourgekin¡­ with a body made out of immortal elixir.''


    Liu Feng, the sect master of the Divine Seal Sect, had just tasted defeat for the first time in one hundred and fifty-seven years. He had forgotten what it felt like to lose so badly, what it felt like to be so helpless in the face of overwhelming might. Today, he was reminded of the bitter taste in the most horrifying way possible.


    With tentacles.


    He felt impure. This day would leave an everlasting demon in his heart. Every time he closed his eyes, he could still feel the feeling if being trapped in green mango jam. His dao heart had been overwhelmed, his path to the future filled will slippery uncertainty. This vexed Feng even more.


    His path now filled with new obstacles, even as he had the heavy responsibility of reviving an ancient sect.


    Among the leaders of the Council of Grand Immortals, he was the youngest. He was the one with the most potential. The council head even prophesized, that he would break through to the immortal realm in the next decade at the latest. So slimy tentacle demons in his dao heart was definitely a big no-no.


    Liu Feng''s achievements till now had been nothing but glorious.


    Being the youngest and the one with most potential, meant that his strength was acknowledged by people who had lived many centuries longer than he had.


    He had slain scourgekins that had leveled cities in the past. He was the most recent genius to step into transcendence. A one in ten-thousand-year talent, they all called him.


    Liu Feng stared up at the dome, his thoughts drifting to many past events. The town around him was so peaceful. They didn''t even know what horrors this tiny little corner hid.


    Even him, one of the prophesized children of dao, was utterly helpless against that scourgekin named Zoe.


    ''Was she¡­ even a scourgekin? No! That feeling of chaos. It is unmistakable.''


    At first Liu Feng thought she was just mimicking a human being. Scourgekin often did that. Like a really advanced neural network. Zoe was different though. The more Feng talked to her, and the more he watched to her react to the mortal man called Arthur, the more he came to realize a horrifying fact. She actually comprehended language and emotions!


    Scourgekins couldn''t do that.


    Then a type scourgekin he had never heard of, perhaps?


    ''No. Not unless¡­'' Liu Feng''s remembered reading about certain beings in his sect archives. Records that stretched back tens of thousands of years. His face grew paler by the minute, his fist curled up tightly.


    Then with a sigh, he released all the tension.


    Zoe, she had the space around the house completely locked down, both spiritually and magically. No foreign magic other than tier one or two could be used. This was a very unorthodox, and lost way of using space-locks.


    Truly a monster. Liu Feng wondered if even the Council head stood a chance against her. The Lord of Trial, the oldest immortal in the middle kingdoms.


    ''No, I''ve heard the lord of trial had a particular phobia of squids and octopuses. He would have been extra disadvantaged.''


    Feng didn''t even know if he should ask the council for help regarding the seal placed on his soul. What a joke, the sect master of the Divine Seal Sect, can''t undo a seal.


    That wasn''t the most vexing matter at the moment, however. Feng looked down at his feet, and he didn''t see any shoes.


    Truthfully, it was getting a bit hard for him to ignore the stares of the pedestrian any longer.


    "I don''t have any spare clothes." Liu Feng made a sign with his hands, a signal for all but one of his subordinates to retreat from around the Tullett residence. He had no choice; supernatural means were not an option yet. It would take ten more minutes or so for his power to recover from that strange space lock.


    He was currently making his way back to the hotel. He was walking back of course. Barefooted, in tattered robes, looking like a beggar. He couldn''t blame really anyone for staring.


    "S-Sect Master! What happened? Was it an ambush? Was it those black sect bastards? Did they finally make a diabolical strategy to target all the bad choices in life you made?" The remaining subordinate was a chattering young girl. No older than two centuries, and already at the 9th peak of power. Her eyes were a bright gold just like her hair.


    She was wearing a strange garb covering her whole body. Her legwear was warped in tight fishnet stockings, but they weren''t the sexy feminine kind. More of the lethal ''full of hidden weapons'' kind. The attire was an eye-catching white and gold. There was a cloth mask covering the lower half of her face. Random areas of her body were also tightly wrapped in bandages. Most importantly though, all these articles had frills. Specifically, ribbons and very cute butterfly frills.


    Yup! She was wearing a frilly ninja outfit.


    Liu Huaban, the unreliable kunoichi, was way more eye-catching than even Feng who looked like a beat-up beggar.


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    "What nonsense are you spouting, Petal. It was just a false positive. Also, did I not tell you to call me brother when we''re alone?" Liu Feng shuffled the girl''s hair much to her annoyance. It was not that he didn''t want to tell her, his own blood sister. Just that the geas prevented him from even attempting.


    For a while now, he had been trying to say out loud what happened back there. Intentionally, or by self-hypnotization, and even via a chatbot that could translate sign language to text. But no matter what he tried; his mouth refused to comply with his wishes, his fingers cramped when he used sign language, and he almost hypnotized himself into accepting that the geas was natural part of him.


    There wasn''t even any punishment for trying to game the geas. It was purely divine.


    Petal, the girl now trying to swat at her brother''s hand, strongly shook her head, "No, we can''t do that. We''re on official business here. Also, if it was a false positive, who did that to your robe?"


    "I¡­ uhh, slipped fell into a pool of acid." Liu Feng said.


    "¡­ ¡­ Sect master, if you want to lie then at least come up with a believable one. I''m not that stupid!" Petal wasn''t believing it. Even though it was the partially the truth. "I don''t know what happened, but if you are embarrassed to say it, then so be it! No need to come up with silly nonsense, humph! So¡­ are you planning on walking around like that?"


    "I have made a vow of ascetism. I must abide by my own rules." Liu Feng answered her with a solemn expression.


    "You had hamburger and grape juice for breakfast. And since when is being a minimalist ascetism?" Petal quirked an eyebrow.


    "What about you then, dear sister? You do know that ninjas are supposed to be inconspicuous. Not...all of this." Liu Feng said. pointing at Petal''s frilly ninja dress.


    In this regard, the siblings were really similar. Every few years both of them would find new weird hobbies to waste time on. Currently, Feng was trying out the minimalist lifestyle. His sister on the other hand, apparently wanted to be a kunoichi after watching a 21st century Japanimation.


    "Umm, it''s from the sponsors¡­" Petal blushed, aware that she was drawing attention.


    "Right¡­ You were still doing that livestreaming thing¡­" Liu Feng recalled that his sister and a bunch of her female sect mates made a rather successful lifestyle stream online. They did nonsensical stuff like going into deep space for picnics. Their ancestors would be shocked if they found out how their sects'' mantras were being misused.


    Petal quickly changed the subject, "Rather! Than! That! I''ve gotten some reports from the guys outside. Good news is they''ve found the location of the fragment. Bad news, so did everyone else."


    Liu Feng, at the moment, very much wanted to get Arthur and Zoe out of his mind. This friendly banter with his little sister was doing a good job cheering him up, and that was probably her intention in the first place. She was sharp like that.


    So even though he was tired and burnt out right now, after the subtle encouragement from Petal, he decided to prioritize his sect mission.


    "How?" He asked.


    "Umm, it''s big and pink." Petal said, her voice unsure.


    "¡­ What?" Liu Feng inquired.


    "Just outside the 33rd moontown of Jaggerty, a portion of the moon turned pink. The rocks, sand, everything. Like a weird drawing painted by some little girl with a princess complex. Then there''s this giant, floating, translucent pink crystal. It should be the fragment judging by the spiritual waves it is sending out? We''ve been working with the local government and some sanctioned forces to keep a lid on things, so the civilians haven''t noticed." Petal gave her report.


    ''Are you telling or asking?'' Liu Feng thought.


    First there was a sapient lake of eldritch blue green slime. Then a part of the moon turns pink. What next?


    "Do you know the exact location?" Liu Feng asked.


    "Yes. We have some guys keeping an eye on the area. Also¡­" Petal continued reporting all their findings. It took a few minutes to complete, and by that time they had already reached the hotel. Liu Feng didn''t stay there for long however.


    From Petal''s report, he learnt that some third-rate organizations had already started fighting over the spoils. Most importantly, they weren''t even being subtle about it.


    "Petal, tell everyone in the area to rendezvous back at the western airlock." Liu Feng decided, there was no need to waste time brooding. Above all though, he was in pain.


    The pain was not from being defeated, and it was not from the geas. This pain, was an urge to beat someone up. His fists didn''t feel so good punching gelatinous slime. Like a sneeze that refused to happen, that was the most unsatisfying fight he ever had.


    Yup! Feng finally convinced himself that he wasn''t being a sore loser.


    So, who was he to refuse when some people were offering themselves up as punching bags?


    ***


    "First of all. That monk got one major detail wrong." Zoe said as she sipped her melon tea. They were back in the living room, with their legs under the warm kotatsu. There was an assortment of snacks on the table. Arthur didn''t even know where the housekeeper found them. He was absolutely sure the pantry didn''t have KitKat and skittles.


    Arthur wasn''t really the patient type. As soon as Liu Feng left, he had wanted Zoe to fully explain her situation. Zoe though, insisted that Arthur tidied up first whilst she prepared some nibbles.


    The recently fired bachelor was covered in soot and moon dust. Half his clothes had tears here and there, and his head was full of cat dust and fur. Hardly a state to have the most important conversation in his life.


    Arthur gave in and took a nice long bath. It helped him calm down too. It also gave him some time to organize his messy thoughts.


    First thing he took note of after coming out of the bath was the eldritch maiden. She changed into an olive-green sundress. Her skin was also back to normal, no longer a leather armor thing.


    The dress was one of his mother''s. After realizing that Zoe didn''t have any spare clothes, he was reluctant to let her walk around being technically naked. So, he told her to go use his mother''s wardrobe.


    Zoe looked stunning in it. Besides, it was a waste to let these perfectly good articles gather dust when the owner was missing.


    Next, he noticed the cat. It was purring in pure bliss with half its body under the kotatsu. Arthur sat down next to it, hoping for some sneaky pats. The cat, however, opened one of its eyes and stared at him. A few scritches under the ear later, it mewed out in comfort, letting the human do its thing. Arthur was glad the cat no longer seemed traumatized.


    ''Cat in a kotatsu. Never thought I''d see this scene in my life.'' Arthur let out a chuckle.


    And thus, he, Zoe, and the cat were now relaxing in the living room. Arthur waited patiently for the eldritch maiden to start her account. She didn''t disappoint.


    "I''m not a scourgekin." Zoe said.


    "Aha! I knew you could never be something that sounds so ominous." Arthur nodded. Arthur had no trouble refuting Feng''s absurd claims.


    "No, that''s not it." She shook her head, continuing, "I''m a scourge, not a scourgekin. Was. I mean, I was one. Well, I think I technically still am?" Zoe looked unsure, but she still corrected Arthur''s misunderstanding.


    "¡­.. Umm. That''s better, right?" Arthur asked the self-proclaimed scourge, but his eyes were looking at the cat. He nervously tapped the edge of the table with his fingers.


    "I''m stronger, if that''s what you mean. But no, if you consider the level of ominousness, scourgekins can''t compare." Zoe gave a self-deprecating smile.


    "¡­ Sorry." Arthur apologized.


    "You don''t have to apologize. I''m sure there are a lot of people, and supernaturals out there who think I am very ominous." Zoe gave Arthur''s back a few cheerful pats. The cat mewed out, seemingly jealous at being left out. It got out of the kotatsu and settled down on Zoe''s lap after a few stretches.


    This brought a small smile to the hominid duo''s face, instantly evaporating the awkward moment.


    "Scourgekin are, unlike their names suggest, part of scourges. They are of course the kin of scourge, like an offspring. The correct term for that however, should be scourgeling. Scourgekin, a single scourgekin can never be counted as a complete scourge, no matter how powerful they are. A scourge is the whole. Just like how you can''t call one human being ''Humankind''." Zoe tried to explain. Though she knew she lost Arthur from his confused face. She tried again,


    "Umm, there is this scourge that was eliminated a few years before your parents went missing by the Holy Chakra located in the Indian region. They called it The Jhakh. It was basically an unending swarm of chaotic demon locusts that killed and consumed anything in their path. Each of the locusts, even if it was the locust queen, was a scourgekin. The Jhakh itself, was the scourge. Do you get it?" Zoe asked, unsure if she was getting through.


    ''Were you there, when it happened?'' Arthur didn''t voice out that question. Instead he enquired, "So, a scourge is like an organization, and scourgekin are members or employees of said organization?"


    "Not exactly but close!" Zoe beamed. Then she added with a bit of hesitancy, "And¡­ I am a scourge because my scourgekin are actually, well, my cells. Your dad called me a ''Universal Cell Amalgam''. The others all have different names for me though. I don''t really remember much of that. Anyways, each of my cells is a scourgekin. They have the complete genetic information of every lifeform I have ever consumed. And I can combine, mold, even mutate them into anything as long as I have that genetic information. Like those tentacles, the talon, and leathery skin for example."


    Zoe paused a bit, taking a few seconds to organize her thoughts. Arthur poured some more melon tea , trying to organize all that information he just heard.


    "If your cells are each a different scourgekin. How do you, you know, function?" He wasn''t sure if that was the right way to ask it.


    "Umm, Okay. That''s why I said I was a scourge, I think. Scourgekin, and scourges for that matter, are not intelligent. It doesn''t matter how long they live, how strong they get, or how much they evolve, they are just mindless clumps of utter chaos. They have no sentience, not to mention sapience. They are the embodiment of suffering, and their target is all life that exists. That''s why the name, scourge. It''s as if they abhor order. They can only mindlessly consume or destroy.


    Even if you come across a scourge that acts in an organized manner, it is probably something intrinsic to that specific scourge. Like a chaotic artificial neural network with a messed up but still somehow functioning algorithm.


    And¡­ that''s why I am the odd one out. I don''t exactly remember what happened back then. I''m guessing it was roughly two million years ago? All my cells suddenly¡­ started to work together like a multicellular being''s would. Like humanoids or other animals. I kind of gained sentience then. Like, one moment I was a mindless horde of shapeshifting scourgekin, the next I wasn''t. I started to actually¡­ think. You have no idea how freaked out I was! I was in the middle of eating a tribe of homo habilis, then suddenly it occurred to me, why was I eating? I had just stood still there thinking for half a century before I reached the conclusion, I was hungry!"


    Arthur gulped.


    Oh, Arthur had so many questions. Even though he decided not to interrupt her before she finished, one thing he just had to say, "Ehh, you don''t look a day over 10,000."

 8 The Eldritch Maidens Hear

    "Humph!" Zoe gave Arthur the stink eye, not even bothering to hide her discontent.


    She gave his hand a tight squeeze ''Ow! Ou! I''m sorry!'' before continuing with her explanation.


    "Even if my scourgekins were starting to combine into a sentient, or maybe sapient being, there was still a major part of me that was a chaotic, unintelligent mess. I simply call it my chaos.


    The chaos didn''t want me to¡­ think. It just wanted me¡ªus to keep on consuming, consuming, and consuming anything and everything in our path with even the slightest hint of life. I¡ªI didn''t like that. I didn''t like that at all. I felt my soul splitting into two parts, each fighting for dominance, devouring one another like mad. It¡­ hurt.


    Even now, I feel the past me and the current me are two different beings altogether." Zoe had a sad look on her face as she got to this part. She let out a fatigued sigh, no longer squishing Arthur''s hand into a napkin.


    "That''s why I started to look for a way to remove it¡­the chaos, once and for all. After trying for years with the feeble intelligence I had, the sapient me figured out a way to trap the chaos in magically sealed prisons. My cores.


    Every fifty to hundred years, I would trap a bit of chaos into these cores and throw them away. Into seas, volcanos, space, and even extra dimensional portals! Every time I did that, I became weakened and went into deep slumber. After all, chaos it may be, it was still the most fundamental part of my being back then. I¡­ don''t remember much of what happened because of that.


    It was a very wasteful method. It took a long long time to become me. And finally, about two hundred thousand years ago, during the dawn of the 3rd age, I truly became who I am today. I became¡­ a Zoe.


    Before that, my memories felt episodic. I can still remember every feeling I experienced vividly, but the constant slumber made me grasping for the world around. Every time I woke up, the era changed. Few people I knew survived, never to be seen again. This repeated again, and again, and again!" The eldritch maiden let out a quiet scream. The cat must have felt the girl''s anguish. It perked up its ears, slowly squirming into her embrace. She gave Zoe''s red face a few licks.


    The maiden giggled. Arthur himself was looking at her with a complicated expression. He was aware that he was forcing Zoe to lay her past bare before him. Yet he could not stop, no matter how guilty he felt.


    He looked at his aching hand, his eyebrows squinted. Then with a heavy heart he wrapped the girl''s hand with his, bracing for impact.


    Zoe smiled, and didn''t disappoint.


    ''Ooowwiee! I.Do.Not.Regret!''


    "Two hundred thousand years ago, there was just a tiny bit of chaos left. I had almost won. The cores, as wasteful as they were, worked!


    But I soon realized that it was impossible to remove that final clump of chaos completely. It was as vile as the rest of scourges; not at all a mild darkness you humans have. It was a chaos that made a scourge, a scourge. If I remove it forcefully¡­ I¡ªI would die." ''


    Zoe stopped and looked at Arthur with her glistening eyes. Even if she was an ancient horror, her height in human form was still shorter than his. She let go of his hand, the guilty look from before returned.


    "I''m guessing the pendant was that last bit of chaos?" Arthur cautiously asked.


    "Yes. I¡ªI know it may sound like just an excuse, but it was actually Juliet, your mother''s idea! She miraculously found me twenty-five years ago! Your father, Patrick, was also there, sailing a yacht in the middle of a violent storm like it was nothing.


    I was cooped up in a trench in the Tasman Sea, dealing with severe depression back then. For Two hundred thousand years I''ve raided the archives of almost all the major and minor powers on Earth and beyond. Orthodox, Unorthodox, and everywhere else. I tried so many methods, but none of them were helpful.


    Those useless posers, always preaching how awesome their methods were and how everyone else''s were garbage. They''re all garbage! I know. If mysticism had PhDs, I would have earned a thousand of them at this point."


    ''So that must be one of the reasons why she disliked Liu Feng so much¡­'' Arthur mused, smiling at Zoe''s antics. Then he paused, ''Wait a minute. She always grounded me when I tried to steal snacks from her pile! How come she gets to be the burglar! So hypocritical!''


    Zoe didn''t notice Arthur''s slightly dark expression as she continued recounting her deepest memories, "By that time, the chaos inside me was trying to fight back because of my long periods of failures. It was regenerating! Devouring myself bit by bit to feed and grow.


    I feared if I couldn''t get rid of it soon, I would return to being a mindless, consuming, unintelligent monster. Your parents, they¡­ they saved me from that fate." At this point, Zoe was softly sniffing. She probably didn''t realize she was squishing Arthur''s hand a little too hard again.


    ''Ouch ouch!''


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    Whether she was crying because of guilt, or relief from escaping an almost inevitable doom, Arthur didn''t know.


    Zoe wiped her tears with the Kotatsu cloth.


    ''Hey!''


    ''Sorry! Hehe.''


    The maiden continued, "A lot of amazing things happened in those short few months. Your mother was already pregnant with you back then. She called you her sunshine, and you really were! I don''t know what secrets your parents were hiding to this very day, but they somehow knew you would be born different than most people...That was the key to everything."


    "She didn''t share her secret, but shared yours with me." Her eyes looking at Arthur turned weird. It had passion, heat, possessiveness, fear, guilt, and a hundred other emotions in them as she looked him dead in the eye.


    A cold shiver ran down his spine as he almost instinctively leaned back. But Zoe didn''t let him. She held both his hands tightly to her chest, making her way right in front of his nose.


    She stammered with excitement, "I-It gave me a method of salvation! I remember what she said perfectly, ''You''ve lived so long old lady, but you''re still so dumb. If the chaos won''t leave, and won''t listen, just ram it till it does.'' She was the cheekiest brat I''d seen." Zoe laughed cheerfully. "As if I didn''t try any method I could possibly think of after thousands of decades. But yes, what she said was right! You helped me ram it to oblivion!"


    ''Mom, a brat? You mean she was a thug, right?'' Arthur started sweating. One because Zoe''s gaze was turning more stranger, fierier by the second. Two, because he just couldn''t imagine that ruffian of a mother being a cheeky brat.


    ''Wait, come to think of it, are dad and mum like¡­ espers or something? Like the monk?''


    "You were actually the exact opposite of me. You had no chaos at all! All perfect order when you were born, how weird is that! Some ignorant people might think that is a special ''physique'' and whatnot, but I know for a fact it''s more like a disability. Scourges are all chaos after all. They are the king of mental disability." Zoe exhaled slowly after speaking all that in a single breath.


    ''You talking about yourself, lady?'' Arthur snickered inwardly.


    Zoe was too into it to notice the sarcastic look on his face. "Your parents knew you would be unable to live a normal life as you were. You might even die unexpectedly because of the imbalance. Hell, there was no balance or imbalance. You need both chaos and order for that.


    You would be an unfeeling being. Unable to comprehend pain, sadness, anxiety, jealousy, frustration¡­ and love. You would have no wants or desires. It''s what those hypocrites in Asia strive for. It''s a perpetual state of madness if you ask me." Zoe scoffed, retreating back to her cushion. The fiery redness in her eyes gone as if they were never there. The confused cat promptly jumped back onto her lap.


    Arthur sighed in relief, happy that she was back to normal. He then pondered on what Zoe was talking about. She probably meant the Buddhist or Indian monks living in the Asian region?


    ''Are they the same thing? No, I remember the majority of the Indian region being Hindu¡­''


    "She asked me to give you my chaos, to dampen your order. And in return, you would dampen my chaos. That was, umm, the last pendant. The very last core with chaos. According to Juliet, with a bit of special preparation, you would be able to dilute both my chaos and your order into a stable form, reaching an equilibrium.


    We tested for three whole years after you were born. It was a risky project for both you and me. The threat of failure and dying was real. But the three of us, and a few of your parent''s closest friends worked tirelessly day and night using all our wisdom. Finally, our simulations showed success. The results were very promising with miniscule chances of failure!


    I crafted the final core, separating the chaos with a part of my soul. Before I died and perished, your mother successfully linked the core with your soul and order. The initial danger was successfully averted. All we had to do next was wait, wait, and wait! It''s because of that I was almost always stuck to you for a decade and a half. I''m so glad you didn''t think I was annoying." Zoe looked a bit embarrassed as she said that, hiding her red face with the kotatsu blanket.


    ''Oh no, you were definitely annoying. Annoying and super clingy!''


    "Umm, I kind of got used to you being around. Like a big sister. Hahaha '''' Arthur took care to maintain his ultimate poker face. He knew only hell awaited him if even a bit of discontent leaked through.


    "Hehe. You probably don''t remember it. When you were a kid people used to think you were some kind of prodigious savant. You were so dumb when it came to some things, and so genius when it came to others.


    "Over the years, you grew from a toddler to a teenager. The pendant was doing its job perfectly. At this point, I was having some trouble with cognitive abilities myself, as it was the last phase of the dilution. So, I decided to hole up in the lava tube below until the core completely reached equilibrium. I could still maintain human form, even though it was hard. That''s why I rarely spoke to you face to face back then. It was¡­ almost completed.


    But then, five years ago¡­"


    "My parents disappeared. I remember you left soon after that ¡­" Arthur finished her sentence with a sigh. He was starting to grasp the sequence of events.


    "¡­ They were caught up in some kind of mess. God knows what they were doing on Earth. I was always on the moon with you, because of the core. Your parents though, had their own matters to handle. They were investigating¡­ something. For some reason or another, they never told me. I didn''t ask either.


    A few days before they went missing, they came back. Do you remember?" Zoe asked. "Your father was injured too. It created quite a fuss in the family back then."


    "Yeah¡­ Mother said dad got hit by a truck. Should''ve known something was up. The last traffic accident was almost two hundred years ago." Arthur replied, remembering the lame excuse his mother made. His youngest aunt almost got into a fist fight with his mother over that.


    Zoe was stumped at that for a few seconds. Then she laughed out loud, "You would think that would be the case, right? No! It was actually true. It wasn''t a traffic accident, however. It was another scourge called The Malum Machina. It''s basically a legion of machines calling for the destruction of all life that exists. They threw trucks, buses, and even his yacht at Patrick. That''s how he got hurt."


    Arthur''s eyes widened with shock, not bothering with the small misunderstanding. Zoe just dropped the biggest bombshell yet.


    ''Yeah, they were definitely superhuman then. I can''t believe it! They kept it a secret from their only son!''


    "They came back to Whitewood back then to hand me something important. What they didn''t know was that, the Malum Machina followed them somehow. It was very weird. I should know. Scourges, they don''t do that. They don''t have the IQ to make conscious decisions like that unless they were being subtly guided by a third party. According to Patrick though, that wasn''t the case.


    It drilled into the lava tube from every direction. That''s why there were so many tunnels leading to that place. I covered up all the smaller ones but lost my sanities before I could fix the one leading to your basement. All I could do was seal it with my wooden offshoots. It was a big fight, after all. I had no time.


    All I could do was cast a space lock before this part of the moon got devastated. It was hard to maintain my form, and your parents were not in their best form either. The three of us fought hard for a long time, and finally after grievous injuries managed to kill the scourge." Zoe paused, taking a deep breath. Arthur patiently waited, figuring out the next part would be key.


    Zoe didn''t disappoint, "Not before it did¡­ something¡­ to your parents. At the last moment of its unlife, before I completely dissolved and devoured it, it hit your mom and dad with a pulse of light. The pulse morphed into a mysterious beam that ripped space and reality itself apart. It was one of the strongest, and weirdest attacks I have ever seen in my long life.


    The weirder thing is, your parents didn''t even try to dodge it. Instead, they jumped right into it. I still remember their faces back then; it was filled with ecstasy. As if they had found a treasure after searching for a long time. That''s what still bothers me. That''s what bothers me the most." As Zoe spoke, she took out something from her stomach, literally. The palm phased through her sundress, and reached deep inside her tummy. She searched for a while, and finally brough her closed palms out.


    ''This¡­ is going to take some getting used to.''


    When she opened her hand, there was a small, bronze coloured but bizarrely non-metallic, gear-shaped item, with a red gem embedded in it. There were weird inscriptions on the surface, and the ragged edges of the gear made Arthur doubt what its purpose was.


    "This is what your mom gave me for safekeeping. Even now, I have no idea what the inscriptions mean, or what the gem is. It feels so familiar, but foreign at the same time. It''s the only clue I have, however. After that fight, I needed to recover urgently. But I had to look for them too. Why did they suddenly turn suicidal? It makes no sense!


    For the last five years, I have sent out offshoots all over the world. It was useless though, as I didn''t find a single clue. Whatever they were doing, they covered their tracks perfectly. Still I can''t sense their existence. If they had died, I would definitely know. We had a familiar contract. It is still active, both Patrick''s and Juliet''s! The ends of the contract reach nowhere, nonetheless. It''s like they never existed." She stopped and looked at Arthur. She seemed calm, but her eyes revealed the opposite emotion. She was bothered, and gripped by nervousness.


    "Haaaaaaah." Arthur exhaled out the breath he had subconsciously held. It was¡­ a lot to take in, that''s for sure. Even just yesterday Arthur didn''t know a single thing about all this supernatural mumbo jumbo. Yet in the span of a few hours, he was knee-deep into it.


    "I''ll be honest. Half of what you said still feels like rubbish to me. My heart tells me to accept it, but my brain says you are neurotic." Arthur finally spoke after a while. He noticed the frown on his babysitter''s face. But after a while the maiden also sighed, the expression on her face loosening.


    "It probably sounds a bit unscientific." Zoe said.


    "It is unscientific Zoe." Arthur threw his hands up in resignation. "Let me ask you something else. For the last few months, I''ve been having rather horrible luck. Do you know anything about that?"


    "Umm, yes. It''s probably the pendant too. In fact, your mum named it a negativity core." Zoe replied. "The dilution process was actually completed a few months ago. The bad luck was probably a side effect of extending the process. I wanted to tell you to return it the last time you were here, but you didn''t even stay one day then! So, I missed the chance, since I couldn''t take human form or even communicate with others, being a hive of tentacles and all."


    "You could have called me! Geez, are the side effects permanent?" Arthur asked with concern clear in his voice.


    Zoe blushed, saying, "I, umm, accidentally ate my cell phone¡­"


    Then she hurriedly continued, "B-But there''s no more side effect! It''s all good now. There is a perfect equilibrium of chaos and order inside me now! A¡ªAnd you''re not autistic anymore!"


    ''Lady, what do you mean you ate your phone! Also¡­''


    "Don''t try to comfort someone if you can''t do it properly." Arthur yelled.


    "Hehe~" The eldritch maiden just stuck out her tongue.


    "Haaaah." Arthur still had a few more questions to ask. But the information load was already way too much for one day. He kneaded his temples, saying,


    "Okay, okay. I''m not blaming you for anything, stop making those puppy dog eyes. Ugh. I''m tired. Let''s continue this discussion tomorrow. I need sleep. I feel like my brain is overheating."


    "Umm, you''re not mad then?" Zoe asked timidly.


    ''I am. You called me autistic.'' Arthur glared at her, but gave up voicing that thought. "No, I am not mad. Now get off, I''m switching off the lights. And be careful with the cat. She ran under the kotatsu a moment ago because you were ignoring her. Don''t kick her."


    "I won''t!" Zoe protested.


    Arthur knew it was impolite to suddenly cut off their discussion like that. It couldn''t be helped; Arthur needed some time alone to think things through.


    He saw Zoe nervously shift in her place as if she wanted to continue their talk. He reassured her, "I''m not angry at you, honest! Just go to bed, it''s getting late. I have a bunch of questions for tomorrow too. Let me think them through for tonight. I expect you to answer them tomorrow honestly, you hear me!"


    He dragged her up and pushed her to the second-floor stairs from behind. It was as much to hide his own uncertainty than to soothe her anxiety.


    Even so, she probably noticed.

 9 Names and Games

    It didn''t take long for Arthur to fall dead asleep after lying down on the warm, fluffy bed. He had actually wanted to think over everything that happened that day in the silence of the night; alas the bed was just too soft for his tired body.


    He didn''t realize his body was so out of juice. Not just physically, but mentally too.


    Well to be fair, being dragged down to the depths of the moon by a Cthulhu horror would do that to anyone.


    In fact, Arthur''s physical wounds and sore muscles had already mostly been healed by Zoe after they got out of the lava tube. The mental exhaustion, however, was not something she could simply magic away.


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    It only took 5 minutes, and he was already counting sheep in dreamland.


    He didn''t even notice the email he got from TCS Observatory (Tecsov) in the middle of the night, even though the alert was quite blaring.


    The first thing Arthur did after waking up was check his phone. Even though his worldview got flipped upside down, everyday habits were hard to get rid of.


    He scrolled down the screen, absentmindedly reading the notifications. His body felt refreshed. He could help but stretch his back as a large yawn instinctively leaked from his mouth.


    ''Oh, Tecsov? Huh, they actually want to hold the interview today. How unprofessional.'' Arthur read with sleepy eyes. Apparently, the management of Tecsov wanted him to visit the new headquarters that afternoon, bringing forward the day of the interview by 24 hours.


    Unexpected circumstances had forced them to take such measures.


    They even listed the cause. Arthur missed it the first time he read the message, probably because half his mind was still dreaming about tentacles. Then he read it again just to be sure. And again. And one last time.


    His mouth went wide with shock.


    ''Ugh''.


    He closed his jaws immediately. He forgot to brush his teeth the previous night. Now something stank like rotten fish bits inside.


    "It has come to our attention that you have come into contact with paranormal beings before the expected date set by TCS Observatory. The agency will provide full assistance when dealing with such matters, both professional and personal. We are equipped with a full set of expertise, and should you decide to join, you can expect to be given the authority to utilize them.


    P.S ¨C I''m talking about that girl in your home. Don''t be late."


    Arthur almost tripped after falling off the bed. The blanket tangled his feet like a wraith, and a grey blur ran out from under with a distressed Mrraaw!


    Arthur had no time to mind the cat though. He just about ran to washroom.


    The message from Tecsov was definitely shocking, but he really needed to brush his teeth if he wanted to express that shock properly.


    ***


    Arthur made his way downstairs after freshening up, still thinking about the email. Zoe was already up. Arthur spotted her cooking breakfast in the kitchen. She was just about done too.


    The morning meal was Thai fried rice, with a side of eggs and vegetables. The cat was already happily munching on some fresh fish. She had already forgotten the small shock she received earlier.


    To be fair, she was a cat. Fish could make her forget all emotional trauma, loyalty, ethics, and everything else.


    Arthur squinted his eyebrows. Something was wrong with the picture. Then he figured out what bugged him,


    ''I''m pretty sure there was no fresh fish in the refrigerator when I checked yesterday¡­ Oh well. Rather than the cat¡­''


    "I''ve been thinking about this since yesterday but, do you actually need to eat?"


    "No, I don''t. I like eating and tasting new things though. It''s fun!" Zoe replied enthusiastically. But her expression turned gloomy the next second, "I think I was close to getting food poisoning yesterday. That robe tasted like old men with bald heads. Yuck."


    Arthur was dumbfounded.


    "I''ve got something to show you. Look at this." Arthur passed the phone to her.


    Zoe received the device with a complicated expression. She touched the holo-screen gently with her fingers. She then looked at the screen intently for a few seconds, as if judging the contents of the email. The eldritch maiden had a scowl on her face throughout the whole process.


    "What do you think?"


    "Ugh¡­ Well, I don''t like how these semiconductors taste. The holo-particles also has texture like bland cotton. It''s all artificial flavoring, and bad for health too. I''d rather eat rice." Zoe replied, her expression serious. She warily tried to return the phone to a stupefied Arthur.


    "Not that! Ah, the email, look at the email." Arthur said, slapping the table with his hand helplessly. He was very disadvantaged when dealing with this ancient neurotic.


    "Oh, right! That. Let me see what is says first." Zoe blushed, then read through the email seriously.


    Inwardly, she was actually very surprised. Arthur was not usually the type to consult with her, of all people, about his problems. This was a rarity!


    A few seconds later, the frown returned to her face. She was quite astounded by the content of the email, and a bit disappointed too.


    The email wasn''t about Arthur''s problems, but her.


    The eldritch maiden sighed, saying, "This¡­ Did these Tecsov people put a tracker on you too? It''s awfully suspicious how they knew what happened yesterday."


    "I know right?! And that job offer. I''ll be honest here; I am quite interested in it. It''s just that, there''s definitely something wrong with these people. This email is way too coincidental. No matter how prestigious a company they are, if they can spy on us like that, they''re bad news."


    "Umm, wait a moment." Saying that, Zoe chanted something under her breath. From what Artur could see, her eyes started glowing a dim yellow, her pupils going out of focus. As if she was looking at something far away. There were tiny runes and letters circling inside her iris.


    A small pulse went out. Other than that, nothing else seemed to happen. All Arthur could do was wait with bated breath.


    A few seconds later, Zoe stopped chanting. She glanced at Arthur, her turquoise eyes returning to normal.


    The maiden said with a thoughtful look, "I just used a detection magic to scan for prying. I couldn''t detect anything like the tracker Liu Feng used yesterday, or anything similar. That means two things. Either they didn''t actually spy on us, or the method of spying is of such a high level that even I can''t detect it. Well, I highly doubt the latter though."


    "Wait, what about non-magical ways of spying? What if they actually used some high-tech super powered x-ray telescope or something?" Arthur asked skeptically.


    "My magic detects intent! I don''t use low-level cantrips like that monk, wallowing in poverty. If something, somewhere in this area had the intent to spy on use, I''d know. I can see all the threads of information and causality extending from our house to their destinations, and there were no threads of espionage among them. I''m pretty confident in this magic eye spell. I got it from a dragon!" Zoe stated with her chest puffed out, quite proud of her high levels of magic mastery.


    ''D-Dragon!'' Arthur almost jumped, but managed to tame his excited nerves. ''Ok, leave that for later. Still, wow, Dragons are real? Well, why not?''


    "I-I see. So, what do you think I should do?" Arthur wanted Zoe''s opinion on the matter, even though he had already given it some thought.


    Personally, he was inclined to at least give Tecsov a chance. So far, they hadn''t really tried anything unsavory, unlike Liu Feng who put a tracker on him. At least, Zoe''s magic couldn''t detect anything like that.


    More importantly¡­ if they really could help him with Zoe and his parents'' case, he would definitely regret not seizing this chance.


    After all, they did directly mention that they would help him with personal matters.


    The tricky question was, did he actually trust them?


    The simple answer was a resounding no. Purely because he''d never actually met or interacted with any of them.


    That brought it back to the dilemma, should he go or not?


    "You don''t actually¡­ need the job for money, right?" Zoe cautiously asked, not trying to poke a nerve.


    "I don''t. Actually, I forgot to tell you this yesterday. I was planning to turn this place into an inn. It is built like a ryokan, after all. It should be a good way to earn a stable income now that the bad luck is gone." Arthur gestured around the room. Then he realized his mistake.


    He hurriedly exclaimed with bashful uncertainty, "N-Not like I''m blaming you or anything! Besides, I''m confident I can successfully run this place. It would be even better if we ran this place together! I mean, if you want to, that is. In case¡­ mom and dad comes back one day an- "


    Zoe smiled, then gave Arthur a tight hug before he could continue rambling, "Idiot, you don''t have to ask me that. I''ve been living here since before you were ever born. You wouldn''t actually kick me out if I disagreed, would you?"


    "What! No, I didn''t mean it like that! You can stay here as long as you want! Even if you laze around like a useless bum. No, actually, you don''t need to work at all. Let me take care of you!" Arthur frantically spouted nonsense, unsuccessfully trying to hide his embarrassment. He did not want the conversation to go in that direction.


    "Hmph, don''t call me a lazy bum. I can cook better than you. Even chef Ramsey said my butter chicken was amazing!" Of course, one of the staple skills of an established foodie was cooking. Sect archives weren''t the only things Zoe raided over the years. Recipe books were one of the most prized loot for this cheeky bandit.


    "Right, that reminds me. Should we go buy s-" Arthur agreed with her claim. Her butter chicken was amazing.


    Then he regretfully shook his head, as if to shake away a delicious food fantasy, "We''ve gone off-topic. So, should I go or not? They want me to go today. Rather abrupt I''d say."


    Zoe put her index finger on her chin, looking thoughtfully, "I¡ª personally think it''s too risky for you to meddle with supernatural affairs. You''re basically a noncombatant. However, umm, I also don''t want to let go of any clue that might lead us to Juliet and Patrick. So-"


    "Then it''s settled than. I''ll go to the interview this afternoon."


    "And then we''ll capture their boss and make her talk!"


    There was a brief silence. Then Arthur said, "Wait, it''s my job interview. Why would you want to go?"


    Zoe angrily looked at him, "What do you mean job interview, you just said the job wasn''t even the point. Also, don''t ask stupid questions. There''s no way I would let you walk in some suspicious company alone. What if they end up capturing you."


    "No no no, in the first place, what do you mean capture?"


    "Exactly as I said. They definitely know something, or at least pretend to know it. We''ll have to capture their boss and make her talk. Some miss Vileplume was it?"


    Zoe glared at him defiantly. No matter what he said, it seemed like she would not concede on this point. She definitely would not let him go there alone.


    Arthur could actually agree to that, after all she was worried for his safety and could guarantee it to a certain extent.


    However, random criminal activities were a big no-no!


    Zoe normally seemed so cheerful and bubbly; people often mistook her for a clueless airhead. What they didn''t know was, she was only so carefree with those whom she considered friends and family.


    Towards most strangers, she was completely indifferent. Not to mention, she could be very cold and ruthless to anything or anyone she considered a threat.


    "No, look here you psycho. They said they''d help. Get it? Help. I''m not asking you to blindly believe it, I won''t either. However! So far, they haven''t shown any hostility and only offered us help. You cannot randomly kidnap people and make them talk just because they might have bad intentions.


    Remember what mom used to tell you, no arbitrary illegal activities in the Tullett household will be permitted!" Arthur used his trump card, his mom''s threats, to emotionally blackmail the eldritch maiden into conceding.


    When he saw Zoe''s expression slowly turn conflicted, he brought out the carrot, "I''ll ask them if you can come too. Since they already know you live here, I''m sure they''ll agree. We''ll be extra careful throughout the whole thing. It won''t be too late to take action after figuring out their motives. So let''s just hear them out first, okay?"


    "Hmph, if you say so. However! First sign of anything fishy, and I''m letting my scourgekins out. All of them!" That made Arthur almost regret bringing out the carrot. He really didn''t want to bring her. This girl obviously had violent tendencies, and maybe some deep-rooted mental problems too.


    He squinted his eyes, thinking if he should book a session with a therapist online. In the end, he just sighed and put away those thoughts. If they were going to cooperate, he needed to compromise.


    Also, Arthur himself wasn''t entirely guilt free either. Not that he felt bad for taking advantage of Zoe''s feelings. That was a privilege he would proudly abuse as a family member.


    "¡­ Fine, let me send them a reply first." Arthur only hesitated for a second before sending Tecsov and affirmative reply along with his enquiry. By the time he finished breakfast, Tecsov replied back. Of course, they agreed to let the eldritch maiden tag along.


    Thus, the matter was settled.


    ***


    Arthur and Zoe spent the rest of the day talking about this and that. Five years was a long time for ordinary humans. Even Zoe, who was an ageless being, felt that she hadn''t seen Arthur for five thousand years, not just five.


    That probably had to do with her muddy state of mind.


    In any case, they had a lot of stories to share. Arthur talked about his life at university, the friends he had, and even about his almost nonexistent love life.


    Zoe, well, mostly listened to Arthur talk. Here and there she said a bit about her past, just to sate his curiosity.


    At one point, they decided to finally name the cat. They had both agreed to keep her, and of course a proper name was a must.


    They argued on what to name her for a long time, but just couldn''t agree on a name they both liked. It turned out to be harder than they imagined.


    Mainly because they had vastly different views on what were proper pet names. Not to mention, both of them were really bad at it.


    Zoe vehemently refused to name her ''Snuffles'', ''Greyie'' or ''Whitey''. ''Dame Floofypaws the bringer of death'' was also firmly denied. Arthur insisted on naming her ''The Grey Shadow'' which only earn him a swollen ear.


    The eldritch maiden herself on the other hand, kept trying to name the cat after sweet confectionaries, candies and fruits. Arthur feared if they really named the cat ''Skittles'' or ''KittyKat'', Zoe might start taking the name literally one day in case the storeroom ran out of skittles.


    Finally, they wrote down some names they both found acceptable on some pieces of paper, and let the cat herself choose. The cat, of course, refused to let go of the fish in favor of some paper she could not eat.


    So after much coercion and begging, the cat finally turned her attention towards the bickering duo. She stretched out a paw and shoved away a piece of paper that was too close to her fish.


    Whether or not she intentionally chose it was another matter.


    "Ok, from here on, you shall be named Snowy!" Zoe proclaimed proudly as she held up the grumpy cat like, talking like that baboon from Lion King.


    That made Arthur laugh. Suddenly, he realized something, ''Wait a minute! Something''s fishy!''


    He thought hard for a few seconds, then identified the problem.


    "Hold on, didn''t I say we can''t name her after food? You just had a Snowy Strawberry Tart from Snowy Pastries!" Arthur exclaimed. Snowy Strawberry Tart was Zoe''s favorite pastry.


    "You said we can''t name her after candies! No one said anything about pastries!" Zoe denied his accusation.


    "Argh¡­ you know what, fine. You win. Let''s just go with Snowy." Arthur was tired of all the arguing. It was almost time for the interview too. He just made a mental note not to make the same mistake again.


    The crafty eldritch might look like a dumb airhead, but one would definitely be sorry if they underestimate her ability to argue nonstop.


    "Yay!" Zoe fist pumped happily. "She''s so cute! Like plump little fruit. It''s been soooo long since I last snuggled a real cat! Aha~n, so warm and cuddly too! A fake offshoot can''t even compare!"


    That got Arthur''s attention. He stopped brooding and asked the maiden, "Come to think of it, didn''t you say you sent your offshoots to look for clues all over the Earth? How did you do that from the moon?"


    "Oh that. Umm, like this." Zoe stopped squishing the recently named Snowy, who ran off to the corner after jumping down. It apparently wasn''t in the mood for hugs at the moment, so Zoe''s affection was annoying it quite a bit.


    "Mew!" She called out once. Then started playing with one of the deactivated Roombas.


    Zoe on the other hand, raised her hand for Arthur to see. Suddenly, before Arthur could even react, a stream of Lovecraftian creepy crawlies started rushing out of her hand.


    For one long second, his face was expressionless. Time seemed to have slowed down, and the world around him twisted into a shiny silver sphere.


    Arthur blinked once, then he blinked again. His hand automatically raised up. One above his head, clenching into a fist. The other one protecting his face.


    His left foot also subconsciously raised up, like a baseball pitched getting ready to throw the ball. However, his nerves were a hundred, no a thousand times more tense.


    "AAAAAAAAAAAHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"


    "Meow!"


    Arthur jumped up in fright. He turned around and left the dumbfounded Zoe alone, running to the stairs.


    "What the hell was that? WHAT THE FARKING HELL WAS THAT?" He screamed from the second floor. His voice quivered with fear, rage, shame, and a few other emotions.


    "Ah, well, like I told you before. I can turn my cells¡­ erm, my offshoots, or scourgekin, into any lifeform I''ve eaten before, right?" After recalling the horde of horror, Zoe walked to the stairs. But she didn''t climb up, opting to give the man a few seconds to calm down.


    The eldritch maiden smacked her head, thinking, ''Geez, my bad. I forgot he was afraid of cockroaches. Should not have shown him my modified versions ¡­''


    "¡­ And?" Arthur asked.


    "¡­ Bugs and insects are the most inconspicuous. Also, I can easily modify their genes and turn them into all kinds if things. They are very good at avoiding modern technology." Zoe replied.


    After a while, Arthur spoke again, "Don''t."


    "You''re being ridiculous. The effi-"


    "DON''T. At least, not so suddenly. Not where I can see it."


    "¡­ Okay okay, I get it. Stop crying you big baby. Come down from there or we''ll be late for the interview." Zoe finally agreed with an exasperated sigh.


    "I''m not crying!" Arthur denied. The high note to his voice, however, betrayed his claim.


    Arthur slowly made his way down the stairs, carefully checking for tiny xenomorphs every step. He didn''t want to continue this particular conversation at all.


    Also, Zoe was right. Now was not the time to be freaking out. It would be bad if he lost his calm before the interview no matter what the reason.


    Hence, after accentuating again that he definitely was not crying to Zoe, they left for Tecsov.


    They forgot to placate Snowy though. The cat was hissing and trying to find more of the Lovecraftian bugs in every nook and cranny. The big female owner suddenly ate all the crunchy grubs without sharing, and this had displeased her greatly.


    She had been protecting them from those moving dust blowers for so long, and this was how they repaid her?


    Let the dust blowers run free in their lair today. That should teach them to treasure her more.

 10 Terran Civilization Sphere Observatory

    Technology in the 23rd century wasn''t completely developed for pure utility, unlike what discontent pundits online claimed. Whitewood was the perfect example for that. It used god knows how many billions in credits just to keep up an antique appearance.


    Another perfect example of that would be the domes covering towns and cities on the moon and Mars. They came pre-installed with Earth-like day and night cycles. Some also applied weather pattern technologies, emulating the 4 seasons perfectly.


    Even now the day outside in the dome was nice and sunny. It would be a waste not to take a long nice walk and admire the marvel of the moon.


    So, it was much to Zoe''s discontent when Arthur completely disregarded her opinion. The lad just waved his hand and hailed for an auto-shuttle to the dubious street named ''World''s End''. He was even too lazy to come up with a proper excuse, just replying with ''Ugh''s and ''Hmm''s.


    Of course, as a result he now had trouble holding the juice can.


    Grumbling inwardly, Arthur noticed some youngsters riding xtreme hoverbikes in the neighbourhood. They were the local troublemakers, each with a haircut weirded then the other. Their hoverbikes were modified to the limit. Arthur even doubted if some of those mods were legal.


    The Whitewood Powerbiker Gang. A self-proclaimed xtreme sports study group, leading local teenagers wayward since the 22nd century.


    Arthur waved his swollen hand towards them, and they waved back.


    He had some history with them.


    ''Ah, Good times.''


    A lot of people didn''t care to own private transport on the moon. Arthur himself only had a hoverbike. He was reminded of it after noticing the teens riding their heavily modified ones.


    He bought the thing on Mars, and only because public transport was really expensive there. It was currently collecting dust in his garage.


    After a few minutes of waiting, the shuttle arrived. It would take about 30 minutes for them to reach the town center.


    For context, shuttles on the moon usually traveled around 100 kmph. They had their own express lanes which private cars could not use. So, it could be seen how large even a medium sized moontown was.


    The distance from the train-station to West Orchard street was quite small in a straight line. But the distance from West Orchard street to town central was about 45 kilometers, with most plots of lands in between used as Lunar farms.


    The population of Whitewood might''ve been low, but when the domes were being built, they didn''t forget to make it as vast as economically possible. The leaders at that time claimed it was for future expansion.


    Now in the future, Arthur could confidently claim there was no expansion to be had. Only autonomous factories and sky-high Lunar Farms.


    The duo spent the whole ride chit-chatting, because there was nothing else to do. After a few rounds of complaining about Arthur''s laziness, Zoe wanted to hold a strategy meeting about their upcoming interview.


    However, because of how little information they had on the other party, she realized it was pointless. So, she could only give in.


    "Right, you should know the fridge is almost empty. We have to buy some groceries on the way back." Zoe said.


    "Eh? Why? Can''t we just order them online?"


    "No! You can''t trust those people. What if they actually send you Egyptian onions when you ordered Burmese?"


    "¡­ I don''t care about onions. Besides-"Arthur was about to start an argument, then he noticed the dangerous glare in Zoe''s eyes.


    Her realized; it wasn''t about onions at all.


    "Fine" He grumbled out a reply.


    Zoe beamed, "And fish! We gotta buy some cat food. I searched online and apparently it''s better to an automatic cat food and water dispenser too."


    "¡­Okay. But don''t we have fish at home? I remember you fed her some this morning." Arthur asked.


    "Ah, that wasn''t fish. Well, it was kind of a fish. It was an offshoot actually." Zoe nonchalantly replied.


    "¡­ A what?" Arthur thought he heard wrong at first. He turned to Zoe with a bewildered look and asked, "You''re what?"


    "Hmph, don''t make me repeat myself. It was an offshoot. O.F.F.S.H.O.O.T.


    I turned a cell into a fat Tilapia. Why do you ask?" Zoe replied, still not comprehending what the issue was. She quirked an eyebrow at Arthur, as if it was him who was lacking common knowledge.


    "¡­No reason in particular. Just, don''t feed me or others your ''offshoot food'' without asking first, please." Arthur realized that the common sense for a human differed from that of a Cthulhu monstrosity.


    He pleaded, raising up his hands in prayer, "We can just buy the damn groceries. So please, no more of your cells in the fridge."


    Zoe had not qualms eating humans, or letting humans and cats eat her. He gave up. He didn''t wish to argue with her when they had no common ground to reason on.


    "Hmph, so you''re saying you like supermarket fish better than me?" Zoe pouted.


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    ''Here we go again. Why the hell does she always concentrate on the wrong thing!'' Arthur was speechless. He clenched his fist, trying his best to hold in his temper.


    Arthur realized; he would be stepping on landmines no matter what he said. So he decided to entertain her vanity, even if it meant being dishonest.


    With a sigh, he told Zoe, "Of course not. How could those deep-frozen stuff hold a candle to you? So how about we just ditch the groceries and cook you up?"


    Not surprisingly, he now had two swollen hands, and a swollen ear.


    ***


    Before long, the shuttle reached their destination, the street called World''s End. Arthur expected it to be located in some dark alleys, with stray cats and half-asleep drunkards all over the place.


    Contrary to his expectations, the street looked like every other normal street on Whitewood.


    There were some restaurants and cafes, entertainment centers, a clinic, and even a school around the block. Both sides of the roads were planted with ornamental trees, the red, green, and brown leaves giving the street a refreshing look.


    Arthur even saw a park with a koi pond through the shuttle window. There were children running around with their pets, and adults practicing yoga and Tai chi dances.


    All in all, it looked picturesque.


    The Tecsov building was located right beside the park. It was a thirty-story tall pure white edifice, with lines of silver and bronze here and there. The pure whiteness wasn''t broken by the crystal windows, rather it accentuated the archaic beauty of the architecture.


    Although compared to some skyscrapers on Earth, it may have seemed like a dwarf; the headquarter building was quite tall as far as structures on the moon went.


    It must''ve taken a lot of credit just to get the permit, which spoke of the depth of Tecsov''s influence.


    Truly, a financial giant.


    Arthur and Zoe warily entered the building through the front door.


    The lobby was spacious and white, with deep blue carpeting. The walls were decorated with modern artwork and strange metal curtains.


    The first floor seemed eerily empty considering how big an organization Tecsov was. Arthur expected it to be teeming with employees or clients. It was not.


    There was only the receptionist behind the counter playing with her cellphone, and a buff guard dozing off beside the main entrance, sitting on a perfect air chair.


    Arthur noticed the anomaly for a moment, but couldn''t come to a conclusion. He felt a tug on his sleeve, and noticed Zoe gesturing at the receptionist girl.


    Zoe herself had her guard up to maximum. She had already cast about twenty protection spells, thirty anti-divination cantrips, and a hundred auto-attack mantras.


    Arthur on the other hand, gave the eldritch maiden a signal and walked towards the receptionist.


    "Hello, sorry to disturb you. My name is Arthur Tullett. I have an appointment today with a Ms. Vileplume. I was told to come here with my companion." He frankly acknowledged.


    The receptionist looked up at him, removing her gaze from the cellphone. The girl was quite young and looked pretty good wearing business casual. It matched her black hair and blue eyes.


    Arthur took a quick glanced at the screen. She was playing an anime themed gatcha game. The screen currently showed a top-up menu. Coupled with the despairing yet fanatic glimmer in the girl''s eyes, Arthur could only sigh at the lost soul.


    "Mr. Arthur Tullett, was it? Welcome to The Terran Civilization Sphere Observatory, World''s End Branch Headquarter. Please take a seat and I will confirm your appointment!" She replied. The girl almost instantly switched her forsaken expression to a professional one.


    Arthur almost gave her a thumbs up, but he was too stumped by the name of building.


    "¡­ The what?" Arthur asked doubtfully.


    "The Terran Civilization Sphere Observatory World''s End Branch Headquarter?" The receptionist repeated.


    ''Wow!'' Arthur had never heard such a grandiose name. It sounded like something right out of a science fiction novel. Not to mention it was a mouthful to say.


    After amending the ridiculous copyright laws of the 21st century, organizations nowadays had more leeway when naming themselves.


    However, most of them still used simple names that were catchy. It had a lot to do with marketing too, as they were easier to get a presence out online.


    Terran Civilization Sphere, this was apparently the full form of TCS in TCS Observatory. Tecsov was probably the catchy short form the sane people in the company proposed.


    Before coming here today, Arthur did an in-depth search on Tecsov online. He didn''t see the whole ''Terran Civilization Sphere Observatory'' mentioned anywhere, or he would not have been so surprised.


    Some people must''ve worked really hard to keep that name under the rug. He respected those people.


    In fact, the company was registered as Tecsov everywhere. The catchy abbreviation had thus become the official term.


    Arthur had doubts then, now they deepened. The organization wasn''t even an observatory!


    Opening a company with a name like Terran Civilization Sphere Observatory would bring shame to ancestors and descendants alike. The founder of the company must''ve been really drunk when he first named it.


    People online were the most merciless bullies. If someone got ahold of the full form of Tecsov, they would be memed to death.


    Arthur was amazed that the receptionist could introduced the company with its full name. What a courageous young woman. Was she not afraid that she would leak the secret name people worked so hard to hide?


    Not to mention, ''World''s End Branch'' made it worse! A hundred times worse! Those two phrases separated were still bearable. But join them together, and it becomes the final nail on the coffin.


    The name of the company claimed they were the observers of all of Terra and its sphere of civilization. The last time someone proclaimed that, they created a whole religious system based on it and started wars left and right.


    Arthur pondered, showing the receptionist a sympathetic expression. This confused the girl. Zoe confused her even more. The eldritch maiden was behaving as though she was a spy deep in enemy territory.


    Zoe had not uttered a single word after entering Tecsov. Suddenly, she tugged Arthur''s sleeve again and gestured towards the suspiciously huge elevator at one end of the floor. The gilded silver doors of the lift were opening.


    With a weird beep, the grandiose doors slid aside and a tall tall man wearing a tailcoat uniform stepped out.


    The man only had one eye.


    It was not like he lost an eye or was wearing an eyepatch. He had one giant eye in the middle of his giant face.


    The cyclops noticed them immediately. He beamed a professional smile while showing his jagged white teeth. The single eye almost giving out a delightfully cheerful red light.


    Arthur shuddered unconsciously.


    It took a few long seconds for the cyclops to walk up to them. Arthur and Zoe waited, withholding their breath.


    Zoe was already giving of a dangerous pulse of magic, waiting for the other party to make the first move. Arthur hid behind her like a responsible mortal.


    All this confused the receptionist girl even more. She had yet to even search for the appointment notice on her computer and there was already a situation brewing.


    The tall one-eyed humanoid gave the confused girl a brief nod, then gestured at the tense duo politely.


    What surprised Arthur even more was the perfectly professional bow the cyclopes gave as he spoke with a gentle voice.


    "Mr. Arthur and Lady Zoe, I presume? Please, follow me. We have been expecting your arrival. Lady Vileplume awaits." The cyclops said.


    He then turned to the receptionist lady saying, "Thank you for your hard work, Miss Hedeltharellai. I will take over from here. They are guests of Lady Vileplume herself."


    "I-It''s fine, Mr. Kralterror! I don''t mind! Not one bit!" The receptionist blushed, going into a fluster. She had seen the cyclopes glancing at her cellphone just now.


    The cyclops named Kralterror said no more and only gave her an encouraging smile. This made the girl even more flustered as she frantically tried to close game, only to accidently top up her account with that week''s salary.


    Arthur swore he could see the girl''s soul leaving her body.


    Kralterror on the other hand gestured at Arthur and Zoe, indicating them to follow him.


    The duo exchanged a subtle glance with each other, agreeing to hold of any hostilities for now. With due caution. they followed Kralterror.


    Arthur was surprised that he wasn''t more shocked. Then again, he did see Zoe in all her glory. He was more curious about who the one-eyed humanoid and the receptionist girl were.


    No way a human would have a name like Hedeltharellai. Most probably, she wasn''t human either. Going by how nonchalant she was with the cyclops.


    The security guard too, for that matter. That perfect air chair was definitely magic. He hadn''t budged even a millimeter since Arthur and Zoe entered the building.


    As he was thinking all these things, the lift doors closed with a beep. Kralterror didn''t press any of the buttons much to his confusion. The cyclops spoke out loud, "To Heaven, please. Take the direct teleportation route."


    "This is very weird. Should we get off?" Arthur whispered to Zoe. She thought for a bit, but shook her head. She could feel some weird magic activating around them. It was too late to get off.


    There was another beep, this one sounding strangely like an affirmation. The lift then started going up. If this was teleportation, it sure didn''t feel like it.


    A few seconds later, the lift stopped.


    There was a series of beeps. Kralterror took out a cookie from somewhere and shoved it into one of the holes beneath the floor buttons. The hole itself was shaped perfectly for shoving cookies in.


    Arthur could swear there was no such hole in the beginning,


    "Good job, as always." Kralterror praised the elevator. A few happy beeps later, the hole closed without trace.


    Arthur and Zoe were astonished. Then they vigilantly looked around the closed space, thinking whether or not they were in the stomach of some otherworldly being.


    Zoe was particularly surprised; it was usually the other way around for her.


    The lift doors finally opened. No more happy beeps. The lift falling silent.


    Kralterror stepped out, saying, "We have arrived. Please, follow me."


    Arthur warily followed the cyclopes out. Trying to show his courageous side to the eldritch maiden.


    Then he screamed and scrambled back into the lift, bumping into Zoe''s body.


    "T-T-The ground!" He gasped. He looked at her with a panicked expression, but saw her still staring at the lift buttons absentmindedly.


    He shook her for a good while, screaming, "T-They got us. Oh they got us good Zoe! We aren''t on the moon anymore!"


    Zoe finally turned to look at Arthur. Then with a tired sigh, she stepped out. "I told you we shouldn''t have trusted these guys."


    Kralterror looked a bit amused at that, "I assure you, Lady Zoe, no harm will come to either of you here."


    Zoe scoffed. "Then why did you teleport us¡­ here. Heaven was it? Heaven really looks shady if this is all it has." She gestured around the space with her hands.


    Outside the lift was a wide expanse of pure white clouds. There was no land in sight. Certainly, it did look heavenly if you compared it to heaven depicted in fictions. However, there was something really weird about the whole scenery.


    The view a few hundred feet under their feet looked like a large sheet cracked glass. Each crack showed a scene both alien and familiar. Like thousands of irregularly sized screens all jumbled up together.


    It was as if they were transported above the sky and were now standing on a crystal floor.


    Arthur carefully peeked out of the lift, seeing Zoe safe and sound. He made his way next to her. He tried to calm his nerves, yet a corner of his brain screamed at him to go back into the lift. As if he would fall down into the abyss of tv screens the moment he let his guard down.


    That was because the floor didn''t quite feel quite like solid matter at all. It felt like nothingness. It was hard when Arthur put power in his foot, otherwise he felt nothing under his feet.


    This inconsistency made his brain disordered, causing it to send out a ceaseless stream of danger signals.


    ''Definitely black magic.'' He thought, his back practically drenching in sweat.


    The fragmented images beneath them looked distant yet real. Arthur fearfully looked down, trying to dampen his fear of heights. He wasn''t usually afraid of tall places, but this was on another level altogether.


    His eyes went to a particularly large crack, where he saw scenes of a fantastic world full of magic and wonder. There were elves picking fruits, dwarves forging metal, and human merchants selling their wares.


    The crack next to it showed a civilization made by snakes that walked upright.


    His gaze continued to wonder. He saw a war in the vast expanse of space between beehives capable of spaceflight against bears in piloting furry mechanical bear-oids.


    He saw an Asian guy holding a spear trying to poke a hole in the sky.


    He saw beings of energy building a sphere like structure around a giant star.


    He saw a huge vine connecting thousands of worlds together.


    He saw bizarre chaos of so many forms that he could not possibly comprehend.


    Arthur gulped. Saying, "That''s some good CGI, man."


    Kralterror laughed.


    Zoe shook her head helplessly at her charge. Sometimes she wondered if she was the neurotic, or him.


    She asked the cyclops again, not waiting for him to reply to her earlier question. "So, where is this Lady Vileplume you speak of?"


    The jolly one-eyed humanoid pointed behind the lift. Arthur and Zoe followed his finger; and were shocked at what they were beholding.


    There was a humongous castle floating peacefully a few ten meters behind the silver elevator. How they didn''t notice it was a wonder, as the shadow and wind pressure itself should have given it away.


    Specially with Zoe here, considering how magic sensitive she was.


    The structure of the castle was made out of many kinds of magnificent crystals, all reflecting and refracting rays of lights away from the castle walls. The white clouds surrounding it reflected the light rays again, creating a sparkly and heavenly view.


    Moreover, the castle itself looked very high-tech. There were various science-fictionally looking parts poking out from above and beneath it, creating a contrasting yet amazing synergy with the mystical crustal building blocks.


    The castle looked sharp, sleek, futuristic, magical, and archaic at the same time.


    Arthur squinted his eyes, noticing patches of blues and greens inside the castle premises.


    They were lush green gardens and sparkling blue ponds, he realized. Overall, it looked like something straight out of a fantasy book.


    Maybe, it was.


    Kralterror gave both of them another polite bow, exclaiming with overflowing pride, "Welcome to the heavenly realm, dear guests. Lady Vileplume should be currently residing in the celestial garden. Please take note to not leave my side on our way there. The castle is vaster than you can imagine. You might get lost."


    After a few more seconds of awkward staring, they both nodded.

 11 Chapter 10 - V1L3PL00M Part I

    The two followed after the one-eyed butler, walking past gates of the floating castle. Arthur and Zoe were both looking about everywhere in wonder, failing to realize that they had completely let their guard down.


    The castle gates led into a vast expanse of gardens, dotted with flowers both familiar and foreign. Crystalline fireflies were floating around the various trees and plants, and the ponds perfectly reflected the low light scenery of the castle premises, creating a mystical vibe.


    A curious firefly made its way near the amazed duo, flying around them in soothing motion. Arthur was surprised to see that the fireflies were actually wearing butler uniforms. One of its insectoid limbs was holding a leaf pruner, while another grasped a bag of eco-friendly fertilizer.


    The polite bug used one of its appendages to tip its hat at him, then flew away.


    Arthur was speechless. He wanted to ask Kralterror about it, but then decided not to. The weirdness was still withing bearable limits. Zoe didn''t seem bothered either. So for now he would just enjoy the silent walk and ask questions later.


    Soon, they reached the so called ''Celestial Garden'' mentioned by the cyclops.


    It was a kiddie park. With sand boxes, swings, and even slides. The sandbox was filled with glowing blue sand, the swings had magical runes for ropes, and the slide was made out of clouds. Everything about the garden was celestial.


    However, it was still a kiddy park. It even had safety signs for underage children.


    There was a small girl, about 7 years old, sipping a pack of juice while absentmindedly playing on the swings. She automatically kicked the ground as the swings reached its lowest point, and mini tornadoes appeared from the sole of her shoes.


    The girl was wearing a baggy T-shirt with an eye-catching picture of emo Vileplume (The Pok¨¦mon) printed on it. Her magenta eyes were halfway hidden by her long violet hair, looking into the distance as though she hadn''t heard them coming.


    "It can''t be¡­" Arthur said, stopping right outside the entrance to the kiddy park.


    Kralterror gave him an affirmative nod, entering the park. Arthur wanted to follow, however Zoe stopped him by the hem of his shirt.


    Arthur quirked an eyebrow, but noticed Zoe becoming unnaturally still. A feral gleam coloured her deep turquoise eyes. Her whole body felt like a bullet about to leave the barrel.


    Something spooked her, and it spooked her really bad.


    Arthur turned his gaze back towards the little girl. The butler didn''t urge the duo to follow him at this point, as he walked right up beside the swings.


    The girl suddenly snapped out of her daydreaming with a giant yawn, and gradually stopped the swing. Kralterror waited.


    When the swings finally went still, he greeted the girl with a polite bow and whispered something into her ears.


    The little loli groaned. Then she jumped off the swings with an ''umph'', raising up a cloud of blue sand. She dusted her long skirt till she showed a satisfied smile. Finally, waving her tiny hand at the butler, she walked up to the dumbfounded duo.


    "Yo." The girl greeted.


    It took a few seconds for Arthur to regain his bearings. Zoe, on the other hand, was intensely glaring at the girl. She was completely silent, but her grip on his shirt tightened. The loli didn''t seem to mind the glare though.


    She just gave Zoe a strangely annoying smirk, and that was it.


    "H-Hello." Arthur nervously greeted, not knowing why he was so tense talking with an elementary schooler. Was it the violet hair? Or the Vileplume T-shirt?


    In any case, he took a second to calm down.


    "I''m Arthur Tullett, and this is my companion, Zoe Modera. We had an appointment with a Miss Vileplume today." Saying that, he paused. His eyes turning towards the picture on the loli''s T-shirt.


    The girl conceitedly nodded a few times, then waved her hand in annoyance. She snapped with a squeaky childlike voice, "No, stop it with the formal shit! I can''t stand another person around here who acts like they have constipation all day. One is enough."


    She gave a long glance at Kralterror. Then continued, "I''m Vi-"


    "You shouldn''t say that." Zoe cut her off. The silent maiden decided now was the time to break out of her animalistic glaring. But her glare turned from hostile to scolding, as she quickly walked up to the little girl.


    Zoe grabbed her shoulder and declared with a stern voice, "You can''t say that."


    "W-What the frick?" The girl was flabbergasted. "What''s wrong with you?"


    "Again! You need to stop that. A young girl like you shouldn''t say the s-word or the f-word. It''s not right!" Zoe said with double the fervor, as she started shacking the bewildered loli.


    ''Ah, right. She was always like that. One time I said the Z-word and she had my parents ground me for a week.'' Arthur couldn''t help but think back to his childhood.


    Zoe had the bad habit of concentrating on the wrong thing at the wrong time. And god knows how her brain set up her list of priorities.


    Arthur and his cousins went through a lot of grief because of her. Just like what was happening right now.


    The mood was completely ruined.


    Though unlike the Arthur from back then who could not fight back at all, the girl decided to have none of it.


    She pushed Zoe away with a shout, "Damn it! I''m older than all of you adults combined! Don''t look down on me." She put her hands on her hip and gave the eldritch maiden a very intense and very cute glare. The look on her face coupled with that squeaky voice almost melted Arthur''s heart.


    But it did nothing to convince Zoe, the experienced babysitter. Tricks like these, Arthur and his cousins had overused them to death back then. What deception had she already not seen?


    Zoe raised her voice slightly and continued to lecture the little loli. The interview itself had not started yet and everything was already off the rails.


    Besides, even the little loli went into a strange tempo of defiantly shaking her head and rebutting Zoe''s lectures, completely forgetting about what she wanted to say before.


    Arthur pleadingly looked at the silent butler standing beside the swings but got a helpless shake of the head in return.


    Therefore, he sighed and decided to interrupt the scene himself, "Okay stop! Time out! Zoe, that''s not what we''re here for."


    He then raised his hands up in apology at the fuming loli. The girl was as red as a tomato at this point. Though Arthur''s submissive pose and soft eye contact managed to calm her down a bit.


    Zoe herself relented, but was looking at Vileplume with a concerned expression. It was her OCD acting up again, not being to ignore a child going wayward according to her messed up definition of going wayward.


    Vileplume still had some veins popping up on her big forehead. She had already argued for a good fifteen minutes with the abomination about her rights and responsibilities as a loli. Somewhere along the line she actually accepted the fact that she was a little girl now.


    This pissed her off even more. She felt tricked by her own underdeveloped brain. The expression on Zoe''s face was also really getting on her nerves. She took some comically deep breaths.


    Kralterror, seeing the scene of carnage finally calming down, carefully walked up to her and gently patted her back a few times.


    "Calm down, Madam. Everything is going to be fine. Remember why the Chairman sent you to detention here in the first place. It was by your own will. Please calm your temper, we certainly don''t want an extension on your self-imposed punishment. Those charlatans at the headquarters will never let go of a chance like this." He said.


    "I-I know. I-it''s just, this body! It''s so damn small and cute. I should be big and terrible, not tiny and adorable! It doesn''t suit my image!" She sniffed hard a few times, her small face finally couldn''t handle the stress of arguing with an adult and broke down in tears.


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    "There, there." Kralterror consoled her. He passed her a bunny patterned napkin and watched the girl as she clumsily tried to wipe away the tears and snot.


    Arthur was having trouble holding back his laughter after hearing what the loli said. He struggled and managed to whisper to Zoe, "Pfft, Look! You made her cry! What if they get mad and refuse to cooperate with us? This is why I told you to consult a therapist before! Your OCD is getting worse and worse."


    Zoe denied the accusation and fervently defended herself, "No! You have to be strict on little kids when they are growing up. If you spoil them too much, they will grow up disobedient and naughty. I made the mistake with you and now you can''t even find a job."


    "Hey! That was uncalled for. In the first place, who''s fault do you think that was?"


    "You said you wouldn''t blame me! Liar!" Zoe replied defensively.


    "I''m not a kid!" Vileplume cried out, interrupting their quarrel. Apparently, the bickering duo didn''t whisper quiet enough.


    "R-Rather, than, that. Can you explain why you told us to come here today. Umm, Miss Vileplume, right?


    Look, We''re all adults here. We should cut the chitchat and go straight to the point. Enough with this neurotic, don''t listen to what she says. She''s just jealous of your mature looks." Arthur, the master of changing the topic, finally showed his skill. He noticed how easily swayed the loli was, so threw a cheap shot in the dark.


    If the loli really was as dumb as she looked, it would work.


    Unsurprisingly, it did.


    "Y-Yeah!" Vileplume exclaimed. A small smile returned to her pitifully red face as she crossed her arms with a ''humph!'',


    "L-Let me introduce myself again. I''m V1L3-PL00M Devastator. But you people can call me Vileplume. I''m the current God of this Universe! Arthur Tullett, son of Patrick and Juliet Tullett and victim of Zoe Modera, I select you as my pope! Doth thou agree?"


    "¡­ VL3 what? Select a what?" Arthur asked, not at all confused. Just worried about the kid''s mental health.


    Zoe mumbled in displeasure, "Was the victim part really necessary?" but managed to hold herself back.


    "V1L3-PL00M Devastator! Not VL3, that''s the code for the Interstellar Dragon Crab Exterminators! Don''t get that wrong or else." Vileplume glared, repeating "Or else I''ll tell VL3!


    Also! I said, be my pope. There are some smelly things going on in your planetoid. Smelly illegal things that will affect my end of decade performance assessment. It also concerns your parents and the neurotic beside you. So, when are you going to say yes?"


    That got Arthur''s attention. Not the part about being snitched on, but the part about his parents and Zoe. After all, that was why they were here. For any possible clues to find his missing parents.


    His expression turned serious as he asked, "Do you¡­ know where they are?"


    "Nope." The girl replied. "And that''s not a Yes. Sheesh. In any case, I can help you find them, I think. I can also cure her of some of the side effects of the primitive ritual she used to gain complete sapience." The loli then pointed at the puzzled Zoe.


    "In return, you both help me by becoming my pope on this civilization. The illegal activities are getting out of f-" Vileplume suddenly felt an intense glare from Zoe. She subconsciously changed her wording, "bloody out of hand. Even me, the god, can''t figure out the causes because of some weird interference.


    So, I need you, as my pope, to investigate what is happening on Terra and stop all illegal activities."


    "That''s not what popes do." Arthur said.


    The girl ignored that, pointing at his nose, "You, your parents," and then she pointed at Zoe again. All this pointing was starting to get on Zoe''s nerves to be honest.


    "And finally, you! All the clues I managed to find leads back to you guys. So, are you going to say Yes now?"


    "Yes to what?" Arthur asked, puzzled.


    "To my previous question! Wanna become a pope? Wait, I forgot. I gotta use the carrot and stick method! Follow me."


    Before anyone could ask any questions, she for some reason punched Arthur''s tummy ''Ow! That didn''t hurt but what the hell?'' ''It was the stick!'' and marched off into the direction of the castle front door.


    ''So random!'' Arthur thought. His right hand tightly gripping Zoe''s to stop the eldritch maiden from committing child abuse.


    Seeing no other choice, he, along with the fuming eldritch, followed after the marching loli and the silent butler.

 11 V1L3PL00M Part I

    The two followed after the one-eyed butler, walking past gates of the floating castle. Arthur and Zoe were both looking about everywhere in wonder, failing to realize that they had completely let their guard down.


    The castle gates led into a vast expanse of gardens, dotted with flowers both familiar and foreign. Crystalline fireflies were floating around the various trees and plants, and the ponds perfectly reflected the low light scenery of the castle premises, creating a mystical vibe.


    A curious firefly made its way near the amazed duo, flying around them in soothing motion. Arthur was surprised to see that the fireflies were actually wearing butler uniforms. One of its insectoid limbs was holding a leaf pruner, while another grasped a bag of eco-friendly fertilizer.


    The polite bug used one of its appendages to tip its hat at him, then flew away.


    Arthur was speechless. He wanted to ask Kralterror about it, but then decided not to. The weirdness was still withing bearable limits. Zoe didn''t seem bothered either. So for now he would just enjoy the silent walk and ask questions later.


    Soon, they reached the so called ''Celestial Garden'' mentioned by the cyclops.


    It was a kiddie park. With sand boxes, swings, and even slides. The sandbox was filled with glowing blue sand, the swings had magical runes for ropes, and the slide was made out of clouds. Everything about the garden was celestial.


    However, it was still a kiddy park. It even had safety signs for underage children.


    There was a small girl, about 7 years old, sipping a pack of juice while absentmindedly playing on the swings. She automatically kicked the ground as the swings reached its lowest point, and mini tornadoes appeared from the sole of her shoes.


    The girl was wearing a baggy T-shirt with an eye-catching picture of emo Vileplume (The Pok¨¦mon) printed on it. Her magenta eyes were halfway hidden by her long violet hair, looking into the distance as though she hadn''t heard them coming.


    \"It can''t be¡­\" Arthur said, stopping right outside the entrance to the kiddy park.


    Kralterror gave him an affirmative nod, entering the park. Arthur wanted to follow, however Zoe stopped him by the hem of his shirt.


    Arthur quirked an eyebrow, but noticed Zoe becoming unnaturally still. A feral gleam coloured her deep turquoise eyes. Her whole body felt like a bullet about to leave the barrel.


    Something spooked her, and it spooked her really bad.


    Arthur turned his gaze back towards the little girl. The butler didn''t urge the duo to follow him at this point, as he walked right up beside the swings.


    The girl suddenly snapped out of her daydreaming with a giant yawn, and gradually stopped the swing. Kralterror waited.


    When the swings finally went still, he greeted the girl with a polite bow and whispered something into her ears.


    The little loli groaned. Then she jumped off the swings with an ''umph'', raising up a cloud of blue sand. She dusted her long skirt till she showed a satisfied smile. Finally, waving her tiny hand at the butler, she walked up to the dumbfounded duo.


    \"Yo.\" The girl greeted.


    It took a few seconds for Arthur to regain his bearings. Zoe, on the other hand, was intensely glaring at the girl. She was completely silent, but her grip on his shirt tightened. The loli didn''t seem to mind the glare though.


    She just gave Zoe a strangely annoying smirk, and that was it.


    \"H-Hello.\" Arthur nervously greeted, not knowing why he was so tense talking with an elementary schooler. Was it the violet hair? Or the Vileplume T-shirt?


    In any case, he took a second to calm down.


    \"I''m Arthur Tullett, and this is my companion, Zoe Modera. We had an appointment with a Miss Vileplume today.\" Saying that, he paused. His eyes turning towards the picture on the loli''s T-shirt.


    The girl conceitedly nodded a few times, then waved her hand in annoyance. She snapped with a squeaky childlike voice, \"No, stop it with the formal shit! I can''t stand another person around here who acts like they have constipation all day. One is enough.\"


    She gave a long glance at Kralterror. Then continued, \"I''m Vi-\"


    \"You shouldn''t say that.\" Zoe cut her off. The silent maiden decided now was the time to break out of her animalistic glaring. But her glare turned from hostile to scolding, as she quickly walked up to the little girl.


    Zoe grabbed her shoulder and declared with a stern voice, \"You can''t say that.\"


    \"W-What the frick?\" The girl was flabbergasted. \"What''s wrong with you?\"


    \"Again! You need to stop that. A young girl like you shouldn''t say the s-word or the f-word. It''s not right!\" Zoe said with double the fervor, as she started shacking the bewildered loli.


    ''Ah, right. She was always like that. One time I said the Z-word and she had my parents ground me for a week.'' Arthur couldn''t help but think back to his childhood.


    Zoe had the bad habit of concentrating on the wrong thing at the wrong time. And god knows how her brain set up her list of priorities.


    Arthur and his cousins went through a lot of grief because of her. Just like what was happening right now.


    The mood was completely ruined.


    Though unlike the Arthur from back then who could not fight back at all, the girl decided to have none of it.


    She pushed Zoe away with a shout, \"Damn it! I''m older than all of you adults combined! Don''t look down on me.\" She put her hands on her hip and gave the eldritch maiden a very intense and very cute glare. The look on her face coupled with that squeaky voice almost melted Arthur''s heart.


    But it did nothing to convince Zoe, the experienced babysitter. Tricks like these, Arthur and his cousins had overused them to death back then. What deception had she already not seen?


    Zoe raised her voice slightly and continued to lecture the little loli. The interview itself had not started yet and everything was already off the rails.


    Besides, even the little loli went into a strange tempo of defiantly shaking her head and rebutting Zoe''s lectures, completely forgetting about what she wanted to say before.


    Arthur pleadingly looked at the silent butler standing beside the swings but got a helpless shake of the head in return.


    Therefore, he sighed and decided to interrupt the scene himself, \"Okay stop! Time out! Zoe, that''s not what we''re here for.\"


    He then raised his hands up in apology at the fuming loli. The girl was as red as a tomato at this point. Though Arthur''s submissive pose and soft eye contact managed to calm her down a bit.


    Zoe herself relented, but was looking at Vileplume with a concerned expression. It was her OCD acting up again, not being to ignore a child going wayward according to her messed up definition of going wayward.


    Vileplume still had some veins popping up on her big forehead. She had already argued for a good fifteen minutes with the abomination about her rights and responsibilities as a loli. Somewhere along the line she actually accepted the fact that she was a little girl now.


    This pissed her off even more. She felt tricked by her own underdeveloped brain. The expression on Zoe''s face was also really getting on her nerves. She took some comically deep breaths.


    Kralterror, seeing the scene of carnage finally calming down, carefully walked up to her and gently patted her back a few times.


    \"Calm down, Madam. Everything is going to be fine. Remember why the Chairman sent you to detention here in the first place. It was by your own will. Please calm your temper, we certainly don''t want an extension on your self-imposed punishment. Those charlatans at the headquarters will never let go of a chance like this.\" He said.


    \"I-I know. I-it''s just, this body! It''s so damn small and cute. I should be big and terrible, not tiny and adorable! It doesn''t suit my image!\" She sniffed hard a few times, her small face finally couldn''t handle the stress of arguing with an adult and broke down in tears.


    \"There, there.\" Kralterror consoled her. He passed her a bunny patterned napkin and watched the girl as she clumsily tried to wipe away the tears and snot.


    Arthur was having trouble holding back his laughter after hearing what the loli said. He struggled and managed to whisper to Zoe, \"Pfft, Look! You made her cry! What if they get mad and refuse to cooperate with us? This is why I told you to consult a therapist before! Your OCD is getting worse and worse.\"


    Zoe denied the accusation and fervently defended herself, \"No! You have to be strict on little kids when they are growing up. If you spoil them too much, they will grow up disobedient and naughty. I made the mistake with you and now you can''t even find a job.\"


    \"Hey! That was uncalled for. In the first place, who''s fault do you think that was?\"


    \"You said you wouldn''t blame me! Liar!\" Zoe replied defensively.


    \"I''m not a kid!\" Vileplume cried out, interrupting their quarrel. Apparently, the bickering duo didn''t whisper quiet enough.


    \"R-Rather, than, that. Can you explain why you told us to come here today. Umm, Miss Vileplume, right?


    Look, We''re all adults here. We should cut the chitchat and go straight to the point. Enough with this neurotic, don''t listen to what she says. She''s just jealous of your mature looks.\" Arthur, the master of changing the topic, finally showed his skill. He noticed how easily swayed the loli was, so threw a cheap shot in the dark.


    If the loli really was as dumb as she looked, it would work.


    Unsurprisingly, it did.


    \"Y-Yeah!\" Vileplume exclaimed. A small smile returned to her pitifully red face as she crossed her arms with a ''humph!'',


    \"L-Let me introduce myself again. I''m V1L3-PL00M Devastator. But you people can call me Vileplume. I''m the current God of this Universe! Arthur Tullett, son of Patrick and Juliet Tullett and victim of Zoe Modera, I select you as my pope! Doth thou agree?\"


    \"¡­ VL3 what? Select a what?\" Arthur asked, not at all confused. Just worried about the kid''s mental health.


    Zoe mumbled in displeasure, \"Was the victim part really necessary?\" but managed to hold herself back.


    \"V1L3-PL00M Devastator! Not VL3, that''s the code for the Interstellar Dragon Crab Exterminators! Don''t get that wrong or else.\" Vileplume glared, repeating \"Or else I''ll tell VL3!


    Also! I said, be my pope. There are some smelly things going on in your planetoid. Smelly illegal things that will affect my end of decade performance assessment. It also concerns your parents and the neurotic beside you. So, when are you going to say yes?\"


    That got Arthur''s attention. Not the part about being snitched on, but the part about his parents and Zoe. After all, that was why they were here. For any possible clues to find his missing parents.


    His expression turned serious as he asked, \"Do you¡­ know where they are?\"


    \"Nope.\" The girl replied. \"And that''s not a Yes. Sheesh. In any case, I can help you find them, I think. I can also cure her of some of the side effects of the primitive ritual she used to gain complete sapience.\" The loli then pointed at the puzzled Zoe.


    \"In return, you both help me by becoming my pope on this civilization. The illegal activities are getting out of f-\" Vileplume suddenly felt an intense glare from Zoe. She subconsciously changed her wording, \"bloody out of hand. Even me, the god, can''t figure out the causes because of some weird interference.


    So, I need you, as my pope, to investigate what is happening on Terra and stop all illegal activities.\"


    \"That''s not what popes do.\" Arthur said.


    The girl ignored that, pointing at his nose, \"You, your parents,\" and then she pointed at Zoe again. All this pointing was starting to get on Zoe''s nerves to be honest.


    \"And finally, you! All the clues I managed to find leads back to you guys. So, are you going to say Yes now?\"


    \"Yes to what?\" Arthur asked, puzzled.


    \"To my previous question! Wanna become a pope? Wait, I forgot. I gotta use the carrot and stick method! Follow me.\"


    Before anyone could ask any questions, she for some reason punched Arthur''s tummy ''Ow! That didn''t hurt but what the hell?'' ''It was the stick!'' and marched off into the direction of the castle front door.


    ''So random!'' Arthur thought. His right hand tightly gripping Zoe''s to stop the eldritch maiden from committing child abuse.


    Seeing no other choice, he, along with the fuming eldritch, followed after the marching loli and the silent butler.

 12 V1L3PL00M Part II

    Kralterror followed after the little loli, not commenting at all on the proceedings. The butler was fully used to his volatile master''s mood swings.


    Arthur and Zoe shared a glance, then followed after them. They left the garden area and finally entered the castle building.


    Arthur took his time to observe the place. The front door was a huge engraved piece of sliding crystal. It looked as if some fantasy game designer had a blast with his imagination.


    The loli kicked the door lightly and it slid diagonally open. The interior of the place however, wasn''t as majestic. Well, it was. But a few obvious things about it was out of place.


    Everywhere, there were toys for girls littered around. The cute posters of various kid''s tv shows and alien K-pop bands made it all the more ridiculous. The pristine walls also had doodles drawn up to the roof by what looked like crayons and permanent markers.


    Arthur spotted a grey pony walking upright in a butler uniform. The third butler he''d seen this day counting that firefly.


    The ponyman was cleaning the doodles with as much enthusiasm as a death row inmate. It, They? He? gave Arthur a polite neigh, and sluggishly went back to his work.


    After walking through a few more hallways, climbing up a few stairs, lifts, and escalators, they finally reached another massive crystal door.


    There was a piece of paper clumsily taped on the door frame that said ''V1L3-PL00M''s Office!''. It was decorated with ribbons and tribal horns.


    The little loli opened the door with a kick and ran inside cheerfully. The long walk had apparently helped her curb her grievances.


    She took a seat on a swivel chair behind a metallic and crystalline desk. The chair was definitely too big for her, her feet not even reaching the ground. After spinning around a few times, she looked at Zoe gloatingly.


    Zoe''s attention was elsewhere though.


    The office room was big. No, huge. Half of it was taken up by various futuristic contraptions that Arthur had no clue about, the rest was filled with magical looking contraptions even more alien.


    The wall on the opposite side of the door was just a huge glass sheet, and it was showing the same scenes Arthur saw outside. Scenes from some far-out worlds only god knew if they even existed.


    After having her fun, the little loli took out an old worn out parchment and a gear shaped key from the desk''s drawer.


    She then threw them at the duo miming the sound effects, \"Pew! Pew!\"


    Arthur hurriedly caught the parchment while Zoe caught the key. It was similar to the one his parents left for her. The red gemstone was almost identical, while the gear pattern was slightly different.


    However, it at least proved that Tecsov really knew something concerning his missing parents. Arthur sighed in relief.


    ''At least this crazy trip isn''t a waste of time.''


    \"Hmph, so?\" Vileplume asked.


    \"¡­ So, what?\" Arthur asked back. The loli confused him no less than Zoe did.


    \"So, are you gonna say Yes now? You know I don''t have all day. I''m a busy adult, with adult stuff to do.\" The little loli replied with a scowl. But for some reason that scowl looked really self-assured.


    \"You were actually being serious? Before that, you haven''t even explained what this ''pope'' business even is and all the other hundred things!\" Arthur said.


    \"No, I did. I said you have to become my pope and investigate illegal activities. Along the way, find out what happened to your parents.\" The little loli said. \"It''s all written on the contract.\"


    \"Again, that isn''t what popes do! Even if they did, can''t you be a bit more specific?\" Arthur was still not satisfied at all with that explanation.


    \"Argh! You ask too many questions. If I say that''s it then that''s it. Why do you have to nitpick everything?\" As expected of a little girl. Can''t be patient at all, and randomly throwing tantrums when things get tough.


    Arthur was starting to agree with Zoe''s point of view on child education. Just a little.


    He sighed and opened the contract. The first thing he noticed was the salary of the ''pope''. It was even written in bright golden letters at the very top, even above the Tecsov and a ''Xylnareon'' logo.


    His eyes went wide with shock. He double checked it a few times, even checking if there was a sneaky ''Conditions Apply'' written in tiny fonts somewhere.


    Then with conviction, he said, \"Yes.\"


    \"What!\" Zoe cried out. Surprised at how irresponsible the unemployed neet was. In her mind, Arthur had gone delirious from being fired too many times. So now he was saying yes to any job offered to him because of societal pressure.


    \"Excuse us for a minute.\" Saying that, she dragged Arthur over to the door by his hand. Before Arthur could object, she tightened her grip, threatening to carry out corporal punishment.


    Arthur gulped nervously, forgetting his prior objections. The eldritch maiden patiently asked, \"What was that?\"


    Arthur said nothing and just showed her the contract.


    The eldritch maiden at first casually glanced at it. Then her eyes also went wide in shock. Her mouth started quivering as she repeatedly tried to verify the authenticity of it. The guarantee by the United Earth Government convinced her. After all, the popular K-dramas always used something similar when contracts were involved.


    Arthur heard her muttering with bated breath, \"One, two¡­ six, s-so many zeroes! F-Fake, it''s fake! It can''t be real!\"


    \"I can hear you yanno? Don''t you see that UEG (United Earth Government) logo? I know you''ve seen what Hwa Bora did when she signed the contract in ''365 Days of Marriage'' with Park Sung, right?\" The little loli said from her spinning swivel chair.


    Zoe reluctantly nodded.


    Vileplume smiled, \"It''s not fake.\"


    Then she grinned slyly and snapped her fingers. Arthur heard a notification from his cellphone at the same time.


    He took it out. There was a balance recharge message, his phone had just been recharged with five million credits.


    His first thoughts were, ''This place has signal?''


    Then he realized what the little loli did.


    \"What the fark! What''s the use of a five million credit top-up? How am I supposed to spend it? I can''t talk to people for that long! If you gotta pay me then use cold hard back transfers. This doesn''t count!\" He yelled out in equal parts shock and frustration.


    \"Oops!\" The little loli blushed. She snapped her fingers again.


    Suddenly, her face showed a pondering look. Then, as if something clicked in her brain, she gasped.


    The little loli screamed out in glee, \"Ehehehe! He said it. He said the F-word!\"


    \"Arthur! You can''t say bad words in front of a little girl.\" Zoe pinched his ear till its red.


    \"Ouch!\"


    \"I''m not a little girl!\"


    Two separate shrieks sounded from the office room, echoing out into the castle hallways. The ponyman who was still wiping away the doodles on a blue crystal wall looked up, and released a tired neigh.


    After a few more minutes of hectic confusion, the room finally calmed down.


    Kralterror on the side was preparing some blue tea-like refreshments for the guests.


    \"Ahem.\" Vileplume cleared her throat. \"As I was saying, the contract is definitely not a scam. I already paid you, and you already said Yes. So, no take-backsies!\"


    Arthur, now with a swollen ear, and Zoe, both nodded. He thought for a while before adding, \"As long as you pay me properly.\"


    \"Of course. Then let''s get you signed up! Hmm, wait, I need to do this according to protocol.\" Saying that, the girl took out a piece of paper and a pair of oversized glasses.


    She posed for a bit like a speaker giving a speech. With a few coughs, she spoke,


    \"Welcome abroad the Xylnareon Divinity family, mortal ID-8-24267000T77 grade terrestrial human classified as ''Small Mammalian Lifeform'' and unknown sapient space-thing classified as ''Medium Scyphozoan Lifeform (Temp, Amorphous)''.


    You will not regret your choice to join our great inter-world enterprise. We have insurance, paid leaves, time scale promotions, and snacks from all over the known Macroworld!\" The small loli proclaimed, puffing her non-existent chest out.


    She looked quite proud when reciting all that praise about this Xylnareon whatever.


    Arthur had already calmed down. He was too tired to get any more shocks from all the ups and downs anymore.


    So, he simply refused to comment on the part where his species ID code was uttered with an added detail of ''small''.


    The most important thing to him right now was that he got a second email earlier. His bank had also been deposited some 5 million UEG credits. If this was his monthly salary, that was enough to buy a sizable property on the moon every month! So whatever the boss said was correct.


    Damn right he was a small mammalian lifeform!


    Zoe on the other hand was angrily puffing up her definitely not ''medium'' assets at Vileplume for the perceived insult. Arthur ignored her childish behavior. He asked the important questions, \"Xylnareon Divinity?\"


    \"Yup! We are one of the four big bosses of the cosmos. Ahem, let me explain. Our great Divine Establishment spans thousands of universes, protecting them from horrors both real and fantasy.


    We have established trade routes, mutual defense treaties, and all sort of other things I don''t remember among the denizens of the stars. Our goal is to help grow into splendid civilizations and promote the spread of sapient life everywhere, forever and ever.


    Hehe, I myself was actually in charge of fighting some nasties in this particular area, but I got tricked and died¡­ and¡­ got turned into a¡­ loli.\" Vileplume excited tone started tapering off the more she spoke, and at the end her voice turned silent. She went through a few moments of inner turmoil, but with a tired sigh (cute), she continued her explanation,


    \"As I said before, you remember right? I am a god. THE GOD, or goddess if you want to use the correct gender, of this universe. They make me do sh-, stuff like making sure this world doesn''t crash into others, fall to a heat death, and stop sapient species from wiping themselves and others out.


    Civilization Sphere Observatories are the organizations that watches over each individual civilization, under the Civilization Department. We got branches in all sufficiently advanced civilizations around this part of the macroworld.


    Cough. Each branch usually only has an Overseer, and all the branches in this universe are connected to my home. Umm, but the Terran branch needs a pope at the helm, which is a level higher than Overseer.


    That is, I think it was called pope? Or was it CEO? In any case, it''s basically the guy who investigates illegal activities in my stead and catch criminal masterminds. I think even His godliness the Chairman of the board of Xylnareon Divinity isn''t sure anymore. They kind of got religion mixed up with corporate culture.\"


    \"Again, neither popes nor CEOs are supposed to investigate illegal stuff and catch criminals! That''s what the police are for. Well, you said I would be the pope. Does that mean-\"


    \"You are the new Arch-CEO Police Chief of Tecsov! Congratulations. Now you don''t have to be an unemployed baggage of society anymore.\" the little loli proudly exclaimed, as if she was doing him a huge favour.


    Arthur was dumbfounded. He started wondering if he should let lose the rabid babysitter on this toxic loli.


    \"Stop mixing all the terms up! And what do you mean baggage? I call workplace harassment.\"

 13 A Language Difference

    Vileplume claimed a lot of unbelievable things about Xylnareon and Tecsov with a look of total confident. She was still waiting for him to sign the contract.


    Arthur looked at her, then looked over the piece of paper in front of him once again.


    Whether Arthur believed what she said or not aside, he really had to give the loli a full 5 stars when it came to bragging.


    Honestly speaking, her confidence was convincing.


    Nevertheless, it didn''t hurt to be skeptical. He was still relatively new to supernatural mumbo jumbo. In gamer terms, he was still a noob without any macro knowledge. A bronze III player.


    Even a Silver IV player would seem like a god to him.


    There was one more thing he kept in mind. Vileplume was still a little girl. It was in her nature to make up imaginary things to attract the attention of adults.


    Who said children don''t lie? They lied the most!


    ''Right, I can tell from experience.''


    Arthur took a few seconds to convince himself, then looked at Zoe.


    However, seeing how tense Zoe was, he decided to think over what the loli said once again. It would be fine if it was made up, but what if it wasn''t?


    After a few more minutes of contemplating, Arthur decided to blow away his hesitation and just sign the contract.


    Zoe wanted to stop him once more, but eventually decided not to. Arthur exchanged a glance with her, saying no more.


    The contract signing process was as normal as it could be which honestly was a letdown. He thought he would have to use a drop of his blood or half his soul or some other precious thing as an exchange, but all he did was actually sign it with a ballpoint pen.


    Even after the deed was done, Zoe kept looking over the contract in hopes of finding something sketchy. Unfortunately, she had zero relevant knowledge in the field.


    She had no choice but to give up her futile endeavor.


    The contract itself was made in a way Arthur could easily comprehend. It was similar to his past work contracts. The first major difference being, this one was actually a physical piece of paper.


    It listed everything Arthur was entitled to along with his major responsibilities. And boy was there a lot of both.


    Arthur wondered how one A5 size sheet of paper could actually list a book worth of content.


    When he asked the loli, she replied with a \"I dunno.\"


    Sighing, he looked over his rights and responsibilities again. It was a mix of normalcy and weirdness which he in fact expected.


    For example, his rights included his pay, unlimited paid leaves, insurances, social benefits, etc.


    His responsibilities included getting into shape (?), learning how to operate a spaceship (?), fish diplomacy (?) just to name a few.


    These weren''t even the weirdest ones.


    \"What is this ''Bestowal of Demigodship''?\"


    \"It makes you a Demigod!\"


    \"What does it mean, exactly? Is demigod like a power level or something?\"


    Arthur remembered the monk, Liu Feng, talking about tiers and tens when he was battling against Zoe in the underground lava tube. He assumed it was a certain level of power. Because if there is a tier 10, there definitely were tiers 1 through 9. There might even be a tier 11 and up.


    That''s why he thought this Demigodship might be a power corresponding to one of the tiers.


    However, the contract didn''t expand on the term at all.


    \"Power Level? Hmm, maybe? But not quite, I think. We don''t usually use traditional power levels like most civilizations do. Those are filled with weird mysticism nuances. You met a monk yesterday, right?\"


    \"Yes. His name is Liu Feng. According to Zoe he was a grade ten practitioner?\"


    \"Tier 10.\" Zoe corrected him.


    \"Didja know that in the Chinese region, they have another way of referring to that? What was it again¡­? A High level Yuangyung?\"


    \"Yuanying.\" This time it was Kralterror who corrected.


    \"Right! And in the European region there are Archwizards and Archknights and Archangels and¡­ well you get it.


    In any case, when it comes to power levels, we at Xylnareon use the simplest form of numerical. Like the stat sheets in rpg games. Lemme check, wait.


    Uggghhh¡­\" The loli suddenly started glaring at them while concentrating really hard.


    \"Zoe over that is a level 1051 space thing, and her combat capability is level 267. There''s a bunch of other stats like her energy, recovery, agility. Arthur is a level 6 terrestrial human with a combat capability of level 2. Isn''t that right, Kralterror?\" The loli swung her feet. From the looks of it, she was enjoying sitting on that high chair.


    The one-eyed butler nodded from the side, saying, \"Indeed so, madam.\"


    Arthur felt insulted.


    Vileplume continued, \"But that doesn''t take into account your status as a Demigod. In the first place, do you know how many civilizations there are out there? As you can see even on Terra, there are multiple different ways to measure power even if you can draw parallels. Although they came up with a unified scale, its accuracy is unreliable at best.


    The same can be said for almost every other cavillation out there too!


    A demigod doesn''t fall into a traditional power scale like the tiers used by the local Terrans, or even the numerical representations used in Xylnareon.


    A demigod is, erm, just a demi god? A different kind of semi-god? A stronger mini god?\" The little loli tilted her head in confusion. She got lost in her own explanation. \"It just makes you stronger in some ways than everyone else but a god?\"


    \"There are Demigods in Terra too. They refer to those who are stuck in the juncture of tier 10 and 11.\" Zoe said from the side.


    \"Ahh, that. That''s just the under-developed locals using the word ''Demigod'' without knowing the actual significance. Did you know that there are even gods on your planet? That''s actually not the real thing. What a Terran means when they say god, and what we Xylnareons mean when we say the word, are two completely different things.


    Come to think of it, you''re actually considered a god by some groups down there, right?\"


    Zoe didn''t answer but her face blushed red. She avoided Arthur''s curious eyes and shrank back into the chair.


    That answered that question.


    \"How could they call themselves god when all they can do is tap into the power of some local fragmented universal laws? By Xylnareon standards, they aren''t even mini-gods! The correct term for them is inferior psionics.


    They can only use weak psionic power, not divine. Even that candy wrapper in that trashcan has more divinity than those guys.\"


    Arthur checked and yes, the loli really was telling the truth. There really was a candy wrapper in the trashcan. There were many candy wrappers in that particular trashcan.


    Well, trashcans aside, he simply didn''t have enough context to understand what the loli meant. Divinity? Psionic?


    He figured he''d learn on the job. At least for now, he knew this ''bestowal of Demigodship'' didn''t make him an overpowered cheat like existence, which was a shame.


    There were still a lot of other things he wanted to ask. The little loli, unexpectedly, was patient enough to answer each and every one of his questions to the best of her abilities, which was frankly surprising.


    Arthur thought she was too hyperactive for that. He did however, notice the girl frequently glancing at a wall clock with Earth time units.


    Zoe, getting bored of all the official jargon, stood up from her chair while stretching her arms. She looked around a bit, then pointed towards the contraptions.


    Arthur was puzzled, but the loli simply waved her hand and continued her explanations on the terms listed in the contract.


    The eldritch maiden then started poking around the various contraptions in the room.


    After about an hour, Arthur had just about finished asking all the things he could think off. He decided to check if Zoe had ruined any of the devices yet.


    Vileplume started fidgeting hard at that point. She kept asking the butler if it was time yet.


    Arthur confirmed with the loli that it was the end of the interview.


    Rather, he''d already joined and the conversation didn''t feel like an interview at all. None of his qualifications were actually judged, and frankly he was the one asking most of the questions.


    Arthur walked up the eldritch maiden.


    She was currently standing in front of a holographic model of the solar system. It was like one of those holographic maps in sci-fi movies.


    Noticing his presence, she turned to him and said, \"This is really realistic!\"


    Zoe was fiddling with a control panel of some sort. Arthur wondered since when she had become so proficient in alien tech, but then noticed the control panel was just a screen saying, \"What is your command?\"


    Zoe inputted, \"Show me Snowy!\"


    The hologram zoomed in to the moon, then to Whitewood, then to Arthur''s house. It scanned the ryokan and created a realistic 3D model of it instantly.


    It took a second for the interior of the house to be rendered. Then it started zooming in again until it finally showed the cat on the hologram.


    Snowy was, for some reason, piling up deactivated Roombas before the house entrance. The hologram followed her movements perfectly, as she dashed into one of the sheds, dragged out another auto-cleaner, and finally pilled it on top of the growing mountain of robot corpses.


    Arthur was impressed. Not with the cat, but the hologram. He would need to find out what was wrong with the cat after returning home though.


    Vileplume gave a confident giggle, \"Of course! I built it after all.\"


    She walked up to Zoe and the hologram, saying with a grin, \"Wanna see something cool?\"


    Zoe blinked a few times, then nodded.


    The little loli the zoomed out the hologram to show the solar system again. She then reached her hand inside and flicked one of the asteroids in the Oort cloud. The massive body of Ice and minerals started accelerating towards the direction of the flick, which was in fact the solar system.


    Soon after, it cut straight through the system, its trajectory dangerously close to crossing the sun.


    However, the asteroid didn''t hit any of the celestial bodies and soon exited into the Oort cloud again on the other side.


    \"It''s interactive too!\" Vileplume exclaimed.

 14 Arthurs Reality

    Zoe''s was honestly astonishment. The eldritch maiden had never seen something like this before in real life.


    She thought, ''Would flicking Snowy do the same? Can cats breath in space?''


    Arthur on the other hand, was pretty sure modern Terran technology could achieve similar results. It''s just interactive holograms after all.


    To be fair, the zooming and rendering certainly were impressive. Not to mention the real time monitoring through obstacles. These weren''t things Arthur could just buy on the market.


    However, judging by what modern science had already achieved, he figured it wouldn''t take long.


    It for sure wasn''t as impressive as Vileplume made it out to be.


    Before he could question the loli though, an alarm sounded. It was like those reminder sounds of a cellphone.


    Vileplume snapped her head back and looked at the clock. She screamed, \"It''s gonna start! It''s gonna start!\"


    The little loli immediately ran off in a hurry but Kralterror stopped her in her tracks with a grunt, whispered something.


    The little loli nodded reluctantly and turned back. She rummaged the desk drawers and took out something that looked like a small memory chip.


    She then passed it to Arthur saying only one word, \"Tutorial\", before rushing out of the room.


    \"My apologies for the unsightly display. It''s time for the ''Ultimate Idol Universe'' Season 4 to start. The madam has been looking forward to it for a long time. I hope you won''t take her sudden departure to heart.\" Kralterror answered their unasked question. There was blood leaking out of his mouth, but he calmly wiped it off with a napkin.


    Zoe was looking at him, worried.


    \"Oh my, his internals got raptured,\" she whispered.


    Arthur, on the other hand was wondering how even a self-proclaimed god couldn''t escape from the grasp of intergalactic reality TV.


    ''Wasn''t godhood all about ascetism and abstaining from earthly pleasures? Is the loli lying? She''s lying right? Wait a minute¡­ this isn''t Earth though.''


    \"Umm, are you¡­okay?\" Zoe asked the butler, offering her hand in help. But Kralterror politely refused Zoe''s help with an ''It''s okay, just a flesh wound'', and changed the subject.


    He gestured at the chip and explained what it was.


    \"This chip contains a tutorial regarding your job as Madam Vileplume''s pope for the Terran Civilization Sphere. As you might have already noticed, the contract refers to the position as Sentinel. That is the correct term, as well as how other civilizations will address you.


    The chip will give you all the relevant training in the shortest possible time regarding the core essence of being a Demigod.


    A-And, coughs, it''s compatible with all Terran hardware.\"


    \"I-I see.\" Arthur hesitated. The butler looked like he was in pain, and he really had nothing more to ask.


    Zoe tugged his sleeve, whispering, \"We should leave.\"


    Arthur agreed.


    He turned to the butler and said, \"T-Then I will do that. Since the interview is over, it''s about time we head back. About the¡­elevator¡­\" He had no idea how to refer to it. Was it a living being? Why was it an elevator then? How did a living creature evolve to look and function like and elevator?


    Since that was how they came into this heavenly realm, Arthur assumed that was how they would be leaving too.


    \"It is still outside and you can use it to return to the mortal realm. Madam Vileplume has given you both access to the realm. You can leave and enter this place without anyone''s guidance henceforth.\" Saying that, he led them both out of the confusing mess of a castle. \"Just enter the elevator and say ''Heaven'' when entering. To exit, simply say ''Return''.\"


    \"Umm, the cookies¡­?\" Zoe asked.


    \"You need not worry, Madam Zoe. Amukhnalo''thstavat''zat is my tamed familiar, a pet¡­ of sorts. That is why I am in charge of feeding him. He has been trained to do his duty to the utmost detail.\"


    \"Amur-Wha?... Well okay then. Good to hear.\" Arthur said. The alien name of the living elevator was too hard to pronounce for his vocal cords.


    The butler then led them outside the castle. This time though, they didn''t have to walk all the way back. Kralterror opened a random door right outside Vileplume''s office and much to Arthur''s shock, it led right into the celestial garden.


    From there, it was a minute or so till they once again reached the elevator.


    The trip down was without incident. Even though the butler didn''t accompany them, all the elevator did was beep a little louder and play outdated music.


    It didn''t try to eat them in place of cookies.


    Back in the Tecsov lobby, Arthur saw the receptionist girl fidgeting with her cellphone.


    ''Poor soul.''


    Arthur wanted to greet her, but Zoe tugged his sleeve urging him to leave. A few seconds later, they were outside standing in front of the Tecsov building.


    Arthur felt a strange feeling of vertigo. Just a few minutes ago, they were standing above the clouds in a magical realm. Now they were back on the moon again.


    He looked back at the Tecsov building. Apparently, he was now the CEO police chief of this place, whatever that was.


    Arthur did his best to go with the flow when talking to Vileplume. Now though, he was starting to feel the shock.


    He still couldn''t quite believe all those proclamations by the self-proclaimed god of this universe.


    In most fictions, the protagonist would gradually go up the levels, meeting enemies and allies of higher levels only after he''d already defeated weaker lackies.


    Going all the way to the top right after pressing Game start and finishing the tutorial mission was just ridiculous.


    Arthur shook his head, trying to throw that mindset out.


    It was a bad idea to treat all this like a fiction.


    This was his reality now.


    However, monks and eldritch horrors he could accept. World controlling gods?


    Honestly, that seemed too farfetched.


    \"Arthur.\" Zoe suddenly said, \"That Vileplume girl was¡­ is very strong. Much stronger than me.\"


    \"Do you think¡­ she spoke the truth?\" Arthur hesitantly asked.


    Zoe thought for a while, then shook her head, \"I don''t know. I¡­ Honestly, I can''t really believe that she is the god of this entire universe. The universe is just too vast for a single god to control everything.


    But¡­\"


    She paused for a few seconds, trying to organize her thoughts. Arthur saw her clenched fist, her knuckles going pale white.


    The maiden continued, \"But¡­ she is without a doubt the strongest being I have ever met. I''ve lived a long time, Arthur. I''ve seen everything this world has to offer. At least, that''s what I''ve thought until a few minutes ago.


    Immortals, gods, demons, elves, dragons, scourges, humans¡­ I''ve never seen a second being so powerful, so in tune with the worlds law. She made me feel like I was an ant standing if front of a behemoth!


    Even if they were lying about being gods of some kind of multi-universal organization, at least¡­ I think they are pretty much at the pinnacle of power in the Terran civilization.


    Vileplume¡­ and that Kralterror too¡­


    If they wanted to do something to us, I think they would''ve done it already without any schemes. Schemes¡­ are for the weak.\"


    He didn''t know how to reply to that. Zoe had been very skeptical of Tecsov since this morning. After meeting the self-proclaimed goddess once however, she changed her mind.


    She was still wary of them, but she no longer thought they were trying to scheme against Arthur (and herself).


    Arthur shook his head.


    He was still new to all this.


    Even three days ago he was working in a restaurant. Now he was a CEO or pope of a multi-billion credit company working for a self-proclaimed goddess that even his eldritch horror of a babysitter was dead afraid of.


    It was too surreal.


    At first, he was too shocked to complain.


    But after going through multiple shocking experiences, the next bigger and mor bizarre than the last, his sense of shock had been greatly blunted.


    He was just going with the flow at this point. What else could he do?


    He was even weaker than the monk, not to mention Zoe. If even Zoe felt helpless in front of Vileplume, what was he supposed to do? Lodge a complaint against her for workplace harassment?


    ''Actually, the contract did say I could do that¡­ ¡­''


    Well leaving those thoughts aside, Arthur didn''t actually feel any malice from the loli. She was very casual about the whole thing too.


    Maybe because she was still a cute little girl, Arthur couldn''t bring himself to feel negatively towards her even though at the corner of his mind was kept reminding himself to always remain vigilant.


    Moreover, he not yet convinced he was a ''demigod'' now. He didn''t feel stronger, and it still hurt when he saw a kid in the park beside the Tecsov building eat a KitKat without breaking apart the bars first.


    Nevertheless, whatever happens at this point, happens.


    Since he was already going with the flow, he''d rather go with conviction.


    No matter how upside down his world got, if he could find his parents, it would be worth it.


    For now, becoming the pope of a hyperactive little girl seemed to be a good first step.


    Arthur heaved a sigh and looked at the eldritch maiden still tugging his sleeve. There was a deep contemplative look on her face.


    For some reason, Arthur found that really funny. He laughed out loud and ruffled Zoe''s hair.


    She let out a surprised ''Yip!'' and looked at him with confusion. Her eyes demanded an explanation.


    Arthur simply ignored that though. He walked ahead towards the supermarket on the opposite end of the street, leaving the puzzled girl behind.


    \"Let''s go, we still have groceries to buy.\"


    \"Ah! Wait for me.\"


    ***


    \"We interrupt this program to bring you this important news.\"


    The next day,


    Arthur, Zoe, and Snowy were sitting around the Kotatsu table enjoying a hearty breakfast.


    They both wanted to discuss in length everything that happened the night before. However even after racking their brains for hours, they couldn''t come to any acceptable conclusions.


    All it did was annoy the attention hungry cat, who had made a mound of dead robots right at the front entrance. So they just tossed the worries aside and decided to work on more important things.


    Like playing with Snowy.


    After a good night''s sleep, Arthur was feeling much better. He smelled bacon and toast the moment he walked down the stairs. Zoe had splurged and cooked a full English breakfast. The cat had a fishy portion too.


    The TV was on airing some morning reality show. However, a few seconds ago the program was suddenly interrupted by an emergency broadcast.


    There hasn''t been an emergency broadcast in one hundred years, not since the great pollen outbreak of the Lunar Capital.


    \"Yesterday at 2am (GMT 0200) an object the size of Australia was observed coursing through the space between Earth and Mars. The Asteroid which was traveling at two hundred and six thousand kilometers per second when it was only at a two million and thirty-eight thousand kilometers distance from Earth. That was nearly fifty-three times faster than the fastest comet ever recorded.


    But it doesn''t end there. The giant space body simply ignored the gravity of the planets and the sun as it cut straight through the solar system. Scientist are baffled by this mysterious space phenomenon. It is speculated the object was flung from a distant supernova explosion.


    According to the director of Mars Capital Interstellar Observatory Dr. Heinz Cou-....\"


    \"Interactive¡­\" Arthur murmured, his mouth going wide open. The cat was happily eating some fish, eyeing the bacon on Arthur''s plate from time to time.


    And Zoe, Zoe just kept adding sugar to her tea one spoonful after another. Her eyes were glued to the TV screen. It was showing the telescoped image of the asteroid.


    Arthur might not have recognized it, but she did. Her memory was perfect.


    It was identical to holographic the one Vileplume flicked yesterday.


    Zoe stammered, \"She didn''t lie. She¡­ really is a god. No, the god!\"

 15 Tutorial

    The 23rd century of government of the United Earth, Moon and Mars was not like its predecessors in a variety of ways. Humans as a whole were no longer divided in micronations, each with their own ideologies such as capitalism or communism.


    It was a hybrid government that at least tried to take in all the good parts and leave out the bad parts of each of the past governing systems. Even monarchy and dictatorship.


    For example, the current government has ensured that no citizen ever had to worry about meeting their basic needs. Meaning food, housing, education, internet, religion, health, universal basic income and such were guaranteed to them from birth. This was an aspect of socialism everyone in Arthur''s generation could enjoy.


    The government, or UEG for short, also tried to create and stabilize a competitive environment in the free market. This could be credited to the capitalist system of the past.


    This meant that while basic needs were all met, if someone wanted more, they had to work for it.


    This could also be said to be one of the current prevailing ideologies of the masses, which many people abided by.


    Skilled people as a whole found it quite easy to make a luxurious living in this era. Even the minimum wage for the unskilled was enough to feed a family of four whilst paying for all the miscellaneous expenses. After a few decades, they might even have a large saving.


    This was different from what was essentially labeled the American Dream in the 20th century. No one went from rags to riches. There were no rags.


    As mentioned earlier, Universal Basic Income was ensured for all. No one lost everything when trying to get those riches.


    All of this didn''t mean that there weren''t any rich people though.


    No, people as a whole were very rich now. But the truly rich got exponentially richer. It wasn''t, however, riches earned by exploiting the people, embezzlement or other unhanded means.


    The UEG was nothing like the governments of the past, where corruption, lobbying, and bad politicking were rampant in even the most transparent of systems. Policies those days were more for the politician''s personal gain rather than for the people.


    Currently, strict laws made sure there were no dubious tax breaks for corporations. Every transaction was matched and double checked to detect kickbacks. Every action of a policymaker was judged by several 3rd and 4th parties, and they were literally put under the microscope if even one decision of theirs raised suspicions of corruption.


    How was all this possible you ask? Did god finally make decide to make the perfect world with her magic?


    No, the loli didn''t care for that.


    The correct answer is, science.


    Science, Digital Wallets, and Quantum Super Computer Artificial Intelligences (QScAI).


    A government largely run by very neutral QScAIs meant no greed for lobbyists to exploit.


    And while the central government was still made out of equal parts QScAIs and human policymakers, two centuries since the war of unification, there were no lobbyists anymore. Not in the conventional sense.


    Companies that sold products such as ''Public Relations'' were a thing of the past.


    Everyone who was rich now a days earned those riches through completely legal means. Of course, not all of them had to work hard for it, sacrificing blood and tears. For example, there were a lot of 3rd gens who inherited a truckload of cash just by being born. For the most part though, they were clean.


    These were the minority however. Starting a business was a lot more streamlined now. The roadblocks like copyrights, legal contracts, and so on so forth were also much more manageable than the past. Working your guts of and sacrificing blood and tears really could get you as rich as those entitled 3rd gens and then some.


    Of course, money was still money. It had both good and bad effects.


    Taking decades to earn a few millions through smart business or pure grind was one thing, while getting filthy rich overnight was another.


    The later case would more often than not give people a complete personality re-work. Or maybe it would bring out the real personality of a person, which was repressed through the years because of economic constraints.


    Whatever the case, the change in personality would seldom be for the better.


    It was like a bronze player on a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (Moba) game suddenly becoming a Challenger overnight, and he did not become toxic about it.


    Arthur, for example, was always a bronze III player in real life. Now however,


    \"Y-You''ve changed Arthur! You weren''t like this before!\" Zoe cried, her magic unleased to seal that ''Checkout'' button on the holoscreen of Arthur''s computer.


    As a responsible eldritch horror, couldn''t stand seeing her benefactor''s son going astray. So she was prepared to met out some disciplinary actions, even if she had to be forceful about it!


    \"It''s a Stewie Griffin diamond necklace Zoe! A STEWIE GRIFFIN DIAMOND NECKLACE\" Arthur yelled out defiantly, the horde of tentacles obstructing his limbs did nothing to obstruct his filthy desires.


    \"No! You can''t. You''re a responsible adult now, you can''t spend that much money recklessly.\"


    \"It''s my money, my responsibility, you old hag!\"


    Zoe gasped.


    \"You did not just say that young man.\" A cold glint shone in her turquoise eyes. The tentacles coiling around Arthur started to show an unexpected change. An unexpected feathery change.


    \"W-Wait, no. T-This is domestic abuse. Wait, parley! I wish tHAAHHAHAHASTOPHITHAGAH-\"


    ***


    That evening,


    \"¡­ There, I made it a shared account between the both of us. Happy now?\" Arthur grumbled.


    The newly turned Sentinel had to unfortunately remove the Stewie Griffin diamond necklace from the shopping cart. He tried to sneak it back in a few times, but now his hand was too swollen to try the same trick again.


    Of course, as a proper rebel, he decided to smuggle in a mini 2 thousand credit team rocket themed princess bed for the cat. For some reason Zoe had no complaints to that.


    \"That''s a good boy.\" Zoe replied nonchalantly from the kitchen. She was making some instant pop-corn and soda.


    The buttery fragrance drifting into the living room was making Arthur hungry.


    He was still feeling grumpy, but he had to accept the reality of the situation. The eldritch maiden was too strong for him to defy. Her magic was standing between him and his dream life, and he could do nothing about it.


    He couldn''t even splurge and live the life of a lazy bum, so what was the point of being filthy rich?


    Was he supposed to just look at the numbers in his bank balance? No! Those digits were meant to be spent.


    Wait, you''re saying as someone with the profound mission of finding his missing parents, he should learn to be disciplined, courageous, humble, virtuous, and honest?


    Well¡­ you''re right. But that did not mean Arthur had to always act all stuck up and serious like a grumpy grandpa! He would burn himself off.


    However, he could not convince Zoe that.


    Granted, the way he went about it was probably wrong. That did not change the fact that she was limiting his freedom with threats of violence.


    The root cause of the problem was simple. Arthur was too weak. So, he had to become stronger.


    The first thing on his list right now was watching that tutorial chip Vileplume gave him. The comet-like space body cutting through solar system washed away all doubts he had on whether she was actually an omnipotent all-powerful goddess or not.


    Even if she wasn''t completely omnipotent, she should be way stronger than Zoe.


    Hopefully, the tutorial would shed some light on what being a demigod actually meant in the Xylnareon divinity.


    Of course, him watching meant Zoe watching, which was unavoidable. If she also received a power up, then they''d be back to square one.


    It could also be that whatever secret sauce the tutorial was going to reveal would only affect him and no one else.


    In that case, good! He could proceed to step to and return all the threats of violence he received.


    There was also the cat. Snowy was currently curled up on the couch hugging a miniature Roomba. Her ears perked up as she noticed Arthur looking at her.


    The feline returned his stare for a few seconds, then jumped off the couch.


    \"C''mere.\"


    \"Meow~\"


    \"Who''s a good girl! You are.\"


    Arthur scritches the cat under the chin. Snowy looked annoyed at first, then her eyes turned into to crescents in bliss.


    Arthur stopped scratching for a second, and the cat gave him a long stare as if to say, \"Servant! I demand you to continue!\"


    The sentinel laughed, cuddling up to the fluffy feline.


    Snowy was part of plan B. Arthur was planning to have her watch the tutorial with him too. There was a chance that she could assist him when he moved onto stage 3, which was infinitely more complicated then stage 2.


    Of course, like every good story, there was a real chance of betrayal.


    Heck, most of Snowy''s meals were in fact provided by Zoe. So the chance wasn''t small either.


    Luckily, Arthur was able to bribe the cat with some extra cans fatty tuna, and a promise to buy a hundred cans of it every month. He didn''t know if the cat actually understood, but he was optimistic. Two versus one, there was a tiny chance he could seize victory, definitely.


    As Arthur was brooding his evil plan under the warm kotatsu with the purring cat, Zoe came in from the kitchen. She was holding a large bowl of popcorn for the two of them, and a small bowl of cat food for Snowy.


    As she was placing the bowls on the table, the eldritch maiden noticed a suspicious glint in Arthur''s eyes.


    Before she could ask what was up though, Arthur inserted the chip into the TV slot.


    \"You ready?\"


    \"¡­Yes.\"


    \"Ok, here goes nothing!\" with that, Arthur pressed the play button on the remote controller. His other hand was already reaching for the delicious butterscotch popcorn.


    Midway though, he forgot all about the popcorn.


    His eyes were glued to the screen of the crystal¡­ TV?


    ''No, if it was a television, then why am I inside it?''


    The sentinel was confused, but soon, even that confusion was gone. A warm, soothing current came from deep inside his body.


    ''Awww, this feels¡­good.''


    He fidgeted left, then turned right. He wanted to see if Zoe ''Who''s Zoe?'' was there with him too.


    However, he didn''t see anyone. To his left was just some swirling turquois light trapped in a pool of floating water. On his lap ''Lap?'' was a group of feline kittens nibbling away at his fingers.


    ''Ah, right. I need to take Snowy¡­ Snowies to the vet¡­''


    Arthur wanted to think more on that, but a loud but unusually calming sound came from the distance.


    He gazed into the void, into the direction of the noise.


    For the first few seconds, there was nothing.


    Then, there was everything.


    He saw a giant bigger than a galaxy die and his body turn into heaven and earth.


    He saw a figure made out of light snap his finger, and then there was more light.


    He saw planet sized stone books come into existence as the chaos around them turned into the very universe.


    He saw the beginning of Chaos, the yawning nothingness, and out of the void came Gaia.


    He saw an infinite singularity explode into reality, matter, time, space, energy, and everything else in between.


    He saw the lands of Earth emerge out of an endless sea, staring with a triangular peak.


    ''Ah, Benben. The pyramid of ancients with its cute little name.'' thought the sentinel absentmindedly. But the kaleidoscope of creation was not over.


    \"Caaaaaaaaaaw!\"


    A distant howling of a¡­bird?


    The scenes continued.


    He saw thousands of insects dying under the radiance of a strawberry sun, each turning into a galaxy.


    He saw a man doing his best to save his lover, but his lover was the world.


    He saw¡­ an endless stream of greenish blue water cutting straight through thousands of dimensions, as life began to appear on the once barren worlds.


    He saw¡­ ¡­ a basketball field sized egg made of steel and potato starch hatch open and become an elegant shrimp newscaster, forecasting sharks in tornadoes causing the Armageddon.


    He saw a lot of things.


    Hundreds of septillions of things.


    \"Arthur! Arthur! Snap out of it.\" Zoe was violently shaking him as Arthur woke up from his stupor.


    \"Huh? Wait, who''re you? That''s not right¡­\"


    He looked to his left, then to his right.


    \"Z¡­oe?\"


    She was looking at him with a concerned expression. But Arthur saw more than that in her eyes. She was¡­ afraid? There was an incomprehensible terror colouring the eldritch maiden''s pale face.


    \"Mraow.\"


    Arthur felt a sudden jolt on his lap, then a massive weight. As if the world itself was trying to press down on him.


    He looked down.


    It was Snowy.


    Her eyes were wide open, staring at the crystal TV. A slow glowing mist was excluding out of her body, turning into various shapes of her feline ancestry. Then the mist started to return back to her body, creating a cycle.


    Arthur then looked up at the TV. It was showing a certificate and had Arthur, Zoe, and Snowy''s name on it.


    Like the ones you get after completing a programming course online.


    He turned his head in confusion. Then his face slowly broke into a large smile.


    \"That¡­\" Arthur laughed, \"was awesome!\"


    Zoe sighed a relief. A high Arthur was better than a braindead one.


    \"I know things about things that nobody should ever know.\" Arthur said in wonder. The tutorial was a real tutorial. It was a tutorial for gods.


    Zoe nodded. She too had gone through all of¡­ that. The poor eldritch was feeling cold for the first time in¡­ forever. She hugged the boy''s arm tight, trying to remember and forget the things she saw at the same time.


    Never before had she felt so¡­vulnerable.


    For eons, she was one of the strongest beings on this rock, and every other rock in this solar system. While not the absolute strongest, she was definitely the toughest.


    Now, suddenly, her head was thrust full of a million things in the universe that could theoretically end her in a heartbeat. No women, let alone eldritch horror, wanted to ever feel that inferior.


    She shook her head, as if to throw those ridiculous thoughts away.


    \"Meow!\"


    Snowy called out again, this time her meow was tinted with something else. Something, divine.


    Arthur didn''t notice, still trying to gather his bearing.


    Zoe did. She looked at the cat worriedly. Snowy was going through what the old fogies in the eastern mountains called immortal ascension. Apparently, she learnt secrets of catkind that could change the very fabrics of reality. Like why they don''t have opposable thumbs. Zoe shuddered at the thought.


    Arthur on the other hand, had finally manage to come to. He noticed his hand was still grasping for popcorn in the now empty popcorn bowl. He stopped.


    He had calmed down enough. He now knew what a demigod was. Or at least, what he was.


    He got the goddess''s direct blessing. That made him strong, almost undying, and very knowledgeable.


    He wasn''t strong like superman, or a super Saiyan. It was a relative kind of strength. I depended on which path to power he wanted to follow. That meant Zoe still had the upper hand, unfortunately.


    He also wasn''t unperishable. Things could still kill him. However, and this part he felt both happy and worried about, he had unlimited lifespan now. There was also the fact that death to him was like death to anyone in Dragon Ball Z. One of the basic rights of every Sentinel in Xylnareon was an infinite amount of revivals.


    His knowledge, conversely, wasn''t like he instantly knew everything from the get go. It was more like an intuitive knowledge of the essence of creation and destruction itself. Not the subject matter, but the concepts themselves.


    Arthur instinctively knew, that this knowledge was directly supplemented by his intuition. Gut feelings were something he had to take very seriously from now out.


    As a side not, every sentinel also got direct access to the Xylnareon Databases, which might as well be considered to home to all wisdom, knowledge, and information in this and the surrounding universes.


    Zoe and the cat apparently gained something too from the tutorial. Most of the things he did and some things he did not.


    There was one thing though, that only he gained.


    Emblematic Governance of the Universe!


    It was the essence of what made him a demi-god.


    Like in myths and creationism, his words now had meaning. Everything he said would now be directly backed by the world itself, and consequences now were very real.


    That was why Vileplume said it was hard to put Demigods into traditional power systems. Look at Arthur now, he was still super weak. However, he was still a demigod!


    The cat might be ascending to a super cat, and Zoe might also have some cheat-like gains to her already cheat-like existence, but they had not the governance.


    They would need a level of security clearance to access it. The firewall to the fabrics of reality was too strong and rejected any trespassers. They did give the trespassers a virtual divine cookie for making it that far though, but that was it.


    Arthur even had to make a username and password, using the employee ID he got after signing the contract with the goddess.


    As he was in his musings, the phone on the table suddenly rang. Arthur cast a glance at Zoe, and answered it. The caller was Vileplume.


    \"Yaho! Didja watch the tutes?\" The loli goddess said from the other side. Loud enough for Zoe to hear, Arthur guessed from the frown on her face.


    She didn''t like words like ''tutes''.


    \"Yeah... I did. I think, I might ready for the job now.\" Arthur replied.


    \"Cool! Come by heaven tomorrow. But definitely not during 4 to 6 pm your time. You hear me? I got important adult stuff to do.


    Your standard employee package is ready. Bring the big booby jellyfish with you too. Okay, that was all from me. Ciao!\"


    \"Jellyfish?\"


    Before he could press the loli for answers, the fuming Zoe snatched the phone. But all she got was a series of beeps.


    \"That¡­brat!\"


    Arthur shook his head in mild apprehension. Vileplume, apparently, was really addicted to reality TV.


    And for whatever reason, had some beef with Zoe.


    \"Calm down, she''s just a kid.\" Arthur said.


    Zoe took a deep breath but her anger still bubbling, \"No! There''s a big problem with Xylnareon''s education policy for children. We need to fix it, and whip that brat''s potty mouth into shape.\"


    \"¡­ ¡­ I think that''s above my paygrade.\" Arthur said. \"Besides, children are naughty sometimes.\"


    BOOOOOM!


    Suddenly, there was a huge explosion sound that came from above. Arthur could feel the whole place quaking. The cat was interrupted out of her immortal meditation. She yowled loudly and ran straight into the basement.


    Arthur rushed out of the house and looked up. Zoe soon followed after.


    There was a red flicker and a fire going on top of the dome. Debris were spilling outwards from the zone of the explosion.


    It looked like it was hit by a meteorite or something. The alarms started blazing, and there was an announcement for all the people in Arthur''s neighborhood to stay indoors.


    Of course, everyone ignored that.


    Arthur could also see some drones already working to fix the damaged layers of the dome. Meteorite strikes happened almost every day, but usually they were smaller meteorites. The dome was definitely strong enough to shrug off hundreds of those daily. The bigger ones got lasered away before they could even come into range. For one to actually cause damage and melt parts of the dome, this was definitely a first in recent decades.


    Arthur''s phone rang again. It was Vileplume.


    \"¡­ Hello?\" The loli goddess asked, \"Did you just curse me?\"


    \"What? No I did not.\" Arthur vehemently denied.


    \"No! You definitely did! The anti-blasphemy measures were activated!\" The loli giggled for some reason. Not mad at all why Arthur might''ve cursed her.


    \"The wha-, wait, the meteorite?\"


    \"Yes! Usually it''s lightning strikes but since you''re on the moon, the system had to improvise. Let me warn you, even though I don''t mind people calling me the Z-word or the T-word, the world itself is not so forgiving. The guys at the reality coder department made really strict rules against that. They are so inflexible, always snapping in half when I high-five them.\" She explained.


    Arthur grimaced. He almost got turned into space debris for calling this little twat naughty, \"Wait, then why didn''t it do anything when\" he turned to look at Zoe who had a complicated expression, \"erm, Zoe called you the b-word.\"


    \"Well that''s because you''re the one blaspheming. You know what every religion hates more than non-believers? Blasphemers and Heretics!\" The loli goddess said. Then she suddenly broke out laughing, \"In any case dude, be more careful next time.\"


    Arthur sighed.


    Religion was no less complicated when it was actually real.


    He wanted to hang up but before he could, Zoe snatched his phone with a ''Hah! So it''s fine for me to educate her then!'' and yelled into it, \"Listen here young lady, I need to have a word with you about your horrible humor! Let me sp-\"


    It was not Arthur''s problem any more. He could hear flabbergasted squeaks from the other side of the phone because of Zoe''s onslaught, but he needed to check up on the cat.


    He''d learned one too many lessons today.