Learning to Love Time Loops Without Going Insane

“So, ugh, what are you?” Cal looked the creature over again as he grew closer. His Initial comparison to Grannus wasn’t quite right. This was a much more imposing figure. The kind gruffness of Grannus wasn’t here at all. Cal was sure this being could kill him without breaking a sweat if it chose to.

“I am akin to the spirits you have befriended. However, I am not exactly the same. They are dogs, and I am a wolf. An old and tired wolf.” It stepped forward towards Cal. Plants grew from the cavern floor at every footfall, trailing behind like a carpet.

“Okay, I have no idea what that means. Look, my life has gotten very strange the last few years…” The creature interrupted Cal.

“You may speak freely. I’ve peered into your core. I know all you know. It is why I am able to speak your language. I understand you are much older than you appear.”

“Do you have a name?”

“Many.”

“Which name is your favorite?”

“Hm, I’m not sure I have a favorite. The last of your kind to visit here called me Marley. He found the name funny, but humor does not translate well. Would you like to use that name?”

“Yeah, I like the man’s sense of humor. Let’s go with Marley.” It wasn’t lost on Cal that Marley had said there had been a previous human here.

“So it shall be. I am Marley.”

“Hi Marley, I’m Cal. Why did you need me to find you so badly?”

“My life is nearing its end. Eventually, I will be too weak to fend off the abyssal beasts, and when that happens, they will drain all the ambient mana from this chamber, my core, and my final inheritance. I would like to pass that on before it is lost. I had grown worried that with the Gryalth invasion, it would not be possible, but it seems fate has decided otherwise.”

“That was a lot of words. I even know what some of them mean these days. How much time do you have left? Because I have a ton of questions, and you seem to be the first person I’ve encountered that has some concrete answers.”

“I likely will not die before the end of your loop. We may commune for as long as you wish.”

“Alright, then, first up, what are the abyssal beasts? Those are the condorpions, right?”

“Amongst many other things, yes. Abyssal beasts are the best translation into your language. They are monsters from the space between realities. The emptiness that spiritual realms grow into. The more mana-dense an area is, the more likely it will tear holes into the emptiness, and when that happens sometimes these creatures come back through into our worlds. They want nothing more than to gorge themselves on as much mana as possible and escape back to their homes.”

“That makes some sense. Is this something I need to be worried about as my bonded spirit realms grow?”

“Yes, from your memories, it looks like you’ve already encountered several of them. The tentacle bears and squid creatures.”

“Hrm, I thought the tentacle bears were working for the Gryalth.”

“Oh, they likely are. Their actions show much more structure than you would usually see in abyssal beast tactics. I’d guess they have been captured and bred as living weapons.”

“You said there had been another human here?”

“No, I did not. I said of your kind. I may have meant that too broadly, though. Several sapient creatures from your planet have visited here before. None of them have been human. Although two of them were apes. The most recent visitor was a few hundred years ago. He was a small treefrog, called himself Renard.”

“So animals have been learning magic on Earth long before humans?”

“Some very rare animals, but yes, and generally, they decide to leave the Earth to pursue their magical education. Unlike us spiritual beings, you mortals need a huge variety of experiences to best learn how to enhance your magical talents, especially considering how young your race is. I doubt there are any magical teachers available to you on the planet.”

“Other than my brother, no, I haven’t found any.”

“I recommend you find your way to Titan then. It is the nearest location I know of with a former inhabitant of Earth. Your magical skills are rudimentary at best. They may be willing to take you on as a student.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. You said something about your inheritance as well?”

“Yes. I have watched over this planet for millions of years. I knew from the beginning that one day, that would all end. I desire that a relic of my work passes on from this planet before all life is truly lost.”

“So no Martians have gone out into the wilder universe?”

“They have, but I wish to give you a seed of Mars itself. It’s a mana seed, forged in the world well deep within Mars.”

“How do I get this seed?”

“In the center of this room is a lake of mana. The seed rests at the bottom.”

“Alright, so I just need to take a swim. I won’t explode, will I? I’ve had that happen before with mana pools.”

“I do not see why you would. You will need to take the seed into yourself in order for it to remain with you at the loop’s end.”

“What does that mean? Do I need to eat it?”

“No, go retrieve it and return to me. I will help you open your code to the mana seed.”

“Is there anything else I should know?”

“Infinitely many things, but of things I think most relevant to share? I believe the abyssal beasts numbers will increase once the seed is no longer resting at the lake’s bottom. They may also begin to hunt you as they try to hunt me.”

“I can handle that, probably. If that’s it on the advice, I’m going for a swim.”

“It is.” Marley sat down, leaning his back against a small tree. He looked exhausted.

Cal walked to the lake in the center of the room and looked down into its depths. There was an object glowing brightly at the bottom. He assumed this was the seed and dived for it. The water was deceptively deep. His lungs strained the deeper he swam, but he was determined to retrieve this. He had no idea how useful it would be, but it seemed like something powerful, and he was pretty sure this was what the side quest had called for. He reached the bottom and grabbed it in one hand, turning his body around and kicking hard. His head burst from the water. He gasped for air. His lungs were not happy with the swim.

A soaking-wet Cal dripped his way back over to Marley. “Alright, I’ve got the seed. Now what?”

“Focus on your core. Envision it as a fire consuming the seed.”

Cal did as instructed. He felt something flare in his hands. The seed had burst into flame. It turned to ash in his hand, but he felt a change in his core. There was something else there now. It was a reservoir of power, a vast reservoir. He tried to tap into it and felt his brain scream.

“NO! Do not dare try to use that power.” Marley loudly rebuked him. “One day, perhaps you will be able to channel it, but to do so now could burn your core and mind. In a way, even restarting a loop will not fix.”

“Understood, holy shit, that hurt.”

“Yes, I imagine it did. Come, it is time for you to rest. Tomorrow, I will guide you to your friends.”