Aespia drank her bowl of creamy potato soup. Looking around the bright forest, she suddenly felt lonely. It wasn’t the dull loneliness that was constantly with her, but one that was sharper. She wondered why she was feeling it.

  Then she remembered their faces. The faces of the two ladies—their faces weren't filled with scorn. However, if they knew she was a witch, their perspective on her would most likely change. Feeling curious, Aespia headed toward the beach. She arrived and found them talking to each other with smiles. Their faces were happy; she wished she could be like them. She wished she could feel the warmth and happiness they felt from others.

  Fearing to be seen and despised, Aespia headed back into the forest. A thought came to her; she clapped her hands to make a friend, but nothing appeared. It seemed making a friend with hand-clapping was not possible.

  Suddenly, she heard footsteps. She turned quickly and found Atero with a bored yawn. He looked at her with a small, friendly smile and tilted his head. His gaze was different; it wasn't the dead gaze from yesterday. He passed her by with a calm smile and lively eyes. Had she misjudged him yesterday? She couldn't tell. Once he disappeared, Aespia headed back toward her shack.

  Along the way, she heard music. It was beautiful and peaceful; she felt drawn to it. Aespia cautiously headed toward the sound. After a short trek, she found a small house in a tree. In the treehouse, Pera was playing a wooden instrument with strings. He had a stick with strings on it that he used to fiddle on the instrument's strings. He looked at peace. Aespia sat down, hidden, and listened carefully. The music made her feel at peace; it was wonderful.

  A piece of paper appeared in front of Pera. "Oh wow, I didn't think you knew how to play the violin."

  Pera stopped playing and read the paper. "I don't. It's my first time playing."

  A piece of paper appeared. "Huh. I guess you really are talented."

  Pera gave a nod. He had always found many things easy while others found them hard. If there was one thing he wasn't good at, it was feeling emotions. He knew and understood what they were, but they were hard to feel. "Any reason you appeared here?"

  A piece of paper appeared. "Oh, just wanted to check up on you. Poki became a player, by the way. I tickled her feet, and it was quite fun."

  Pera looked beyond the trees toward the beach. Unfortunately, the view was blocked by leaves. "Is that so? Do you plan on tickling my feet?"

  A piece of paper appeared. "Hmmmm, you have very nice feet. I would love to tickle them; however, you're not a player, so I won't. And I think you should save your laugh for someone special. You've never laughed once in your life, right?"

  Pera tilted his head curiously. "Someone special?"

  A piece of paper appeared. "Shrugs. Who knows? Life is all about connections, right? You just have to find the right connections to make."

  Pera's voice became soft. "I doubt many people can understand me."

  A piece of paper appeared. "Perhaps. Do you feel like making connections?"

  "No. Why do you ask?"

  A piece of paper appeared. "I think you'll be more beautiful if you smiled more."

  Pera's mind wanted to blush, but his body remained calm. "You have quite the way with words. I'm guessing you like teasing people?"

  A piece of paper appeared. "Absolutely. I love making people blush; it's so fun."

  Pera gave a soft sigh and smiled a little. The Host was quite eccentric from his point of view. He wondered how the Host lived to become what it was. A thought came to Pera's mind. "I don't know how old you are, but perhaps I'll see your perspective when I get older."

  A piece of paper appeared. "You want to know my age? Honestly, I can't say. Transcending the time of this world means I can't really define my age since time exists because I think. Let's just say: older than the time of this world."

  "Older than time? I don't think I ever want to get that old."

  A piece of paper appeared. "It is what it is. See you later."

  With the Host gone, Pera got back to playing the violin. Nearby, Aespia continued to listen. She had seen the Host communicate with Pera and wondered what they were talking about. Perhaps the Host was attracted by the music, too.

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  Far away by a river, Atero roasted a fish with a smile. The river was clear and gentle. Water washed against rocks and continued on. Flowers of all colors bloomed by the river. In the trees, yellow mangoes hung. Birds chirped and flew as they caught insects for snacks.

  Long ago, in a land of torn iron and blood, there was a clan of cannibals. They lived under a tree that led to a cavern. The clan preyed on travelers. Atero was the only child of his parents. The clan’s days of hunting humans lasted long, but they were finally caught one day and killed by an army, only Atero survived by running away. The clan name Carney became synonymous with Cavern Cannibals.

  Lost in a forest and alone, Atero found obsidian-colored mushrooms. He ate them and his perspective changed. Like a blind man being able to see again, Atero renamed himself Mercy to separate himself from his primal self. No longer did he move on all fours, but on two legs. No longer did he feast on raw flesh, but cooked flesh. No longer did he fail to understand, but understood.

  With a change of perspective, who he was changed. The mushroom gave him the perspective of wisdom, but he also understood how insane wisdom was. He named the mushroom the Insanity Mushroom. The effects lasted an entire day. If he did not eat them again before the day was up, he’d go back to his primal self again. Throughout his life, Mercy tried to find a way to make the effects permanent but couldn't.

  One day, Mercy stumbled upon a lost and scared boy named Mante. He helped Mante and guided him. The two became close friends. During one of their days, Mercy had so much fun he forgot to eat an Insanity Mushroom. He was sure he would go insane and tear Mante apart, but he did not. A primal savage could still feel softness; that’s what Mercy truly learned. After that day, Mante became Mercy’s cherished friend.

  By the river, Mercy snapped his fingers and an Insanity Mushroom appeared in his hand. He ate it and fell into thought about the Host's nature. As for why the Insanity Mushroom appeared from thin air without him clapping his hands, that was because Mercy had found clapping hands was simply an action for the mind. It was the thought that made things appear.

  “Hey, Host.”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Heya Atero, or should I call you Mercy?”

  Mercy studied the paper; it looked ordinary. “I’d prefer you call me Mercy unless I start going feral. Say, can you read minds?”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Of course, though it's usually background noise. I don’t read thoughts, I hear them. Some thoughts are loud while some barely make a noise. Your thoughts are quiet, like everyone else's. If I had to say who has the loudest thoughts, it’d be Poki, she’s always thinking loudly in her head.”

  Mercy gave a smile. “Are you saying I don't think loudly?”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Not at all, I’m just saying your thoughts aren’t emotionally loud.”

  Mercy could only agree. “I guess you’re right; my thoughts aren’t very emotional. They’re all positive thoughts with some negativity.”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Indeed. So, anything else you called me for?”

  Mercy became silent for a moment. “….. If I wanted you to bring a friend of mine to this island, could you?”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Of course, but only if he’s dead, and right now he’s not dead—unless you ask me to strike him down with lightning, which I won’t do. Also, I don’t want to bring two people from the same world to this island. However, an exception could be made if I feel like it.”

  Curiosity filled Mercy. “Tell me, Host, is he happy?”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Hmmmmmm, define happy, because right now he’s a depressed drunkard who is still grieving over you dying in his arms.”

  Mercy’s mouth hung open for a moment and then he sighed with a smile. “I…. Yeah, I saw that coming, honestly. Hopefully, he’ll be able to move on with life. He’s strong, I’m sure he’ll be able to get back on his feet sooner or later.”

  Mercy looked at the clear blue sky. “Host, I don’t think I have any more questions. Thanks for answering my questions.”

  A piece of paper appeared. “No problem. Later.”

  The day passed and the third day came. Poki woke up and stood by the beach with Reyn. She had Reyn watch her as a confidence booster and a witness. “Hey, Host!”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Ah, my cute Poki Woki, what is it?”

  A blush crept up Poki, but she quickly suppressed it. Reyn could only stare in silence. “Please don't call me that again.”

  A piece of paper immediately appeared. “No. For now, you’re the island's temporary mascot.”

  Poki stared at the paper, shocked. “Mascot?! What’s that?! Am I supposed to act cute on the island?”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Yep, until I find someone cuter than you to wash up. Honestly, you barely pass the cuteness level to meet the island mascot requirement.”

  Poki's mind stopped for a moment and she took a deep breath. Reyn felt bad for her and could only watch with pity. “Let’s move on. I want to play the first game.”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Ah, the ten-minute feet tickling. Are you sure?”

  Poki’s face became determined. “Yes.”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Let’s begin then. Remember, you have to last ten minutes without saying stop.”

  The tickling came and Poki fell to the ground with her legs and feet shaking. “Ahahhahaha!”

  Poki grabbed her legs as she laughed. She tried to hold them steady. Reyn looked at her with fear and amusement. Mercy walked out of the forest and gazed upon Poki, who was struggling. The game looked quite easy to win.

  Poki rolled through the coarse sand. “Ahahhahaha. I hahah hate ahhah you!”

  Time passed as Mercy and Reyn watched Poki struggle. Reyn became worried for Poki even though she knew Poki would be fine. Mercy wanted to sigh at Poki’s simple mind; the answer to winning the game should be pretty simple.

  A piece of paper appeared in front of Mercy. “Oh Mercy, you’re so clever.”

  Mercy gave a small smile. “Are you saying I’m right?”

  A piece of paper appeared. “Maybe. Keep it a secret. By the way, do you know how much time has passed? I wasn't counting.”

  Mercy stared at the paper, blank-faced. A smile crept up Mercy’s face. He fell into laughter. Reyn and Poki looked at him, wondering when he appeared.

  The Host sighed formlessly with a formless smile and called upon its powers. It checked the time for the game and found it had been nine minutes and thirty seconds so far. Another thirty seconds passed and the game was over. The invisible fingers tickling Poki’s feet stopped.

  A piece of paper appeared in front of Poki. “Congratulations, you won.”

  Poki tried to catch her breath and replied with a tired voice. “Yay.”