Chapter 176 A Map Of The Darkness

"This had better be a damn good future, woman! I did not just drink your piss to have you tell me that I was going to die in three days!" I snapped, and Chi put up her hands in defense.

"I do not control the way that the leaves read! Do you want to get my reading, or are you going to continue to shout at me?" Chi snapped back, and I tossed my hands up.

"Fine!" I growled, and the other two girls giggled at me.

"Don't worry; we have both drunk the bitter brew, so we know your pain. Chi always likes to tell people that complain about how she makes the leaves to shut them up," Sakura laughed, but Mishal seemed to share my displeasure.

"I lifted the woman off her feet when I found out and nearly called down the storm on her. I was not very impressed with the trickery. While I don't share the same feelings as most of my people, I do not like the trickery that they all seem to like to play. Most think it is harmless fun, but it tends to get on a person's last nerve when they do it all the time," Mishal growled, and I nodded.

I could clearly understand where she was coming from, and I was also not a fan of that kind of trickery. Still, this was not enough to sour over, no matter how bitter the horrible concoction was.

"Let's just get on with this story. I have something that I need to take care of, and the sun's glow had almost left the sky when we entered the tent," I explained, thinking about Eliza.

"Yes, Yes, I am studying them now," Chi said as she peered into the cup. "I see veins like nothing I have ever seen before. The leaves are unnaturally covered in them. This means that you have many connections to this world. There were twelve leaves placed in the cup, but now there are thirteen. All of them line the cup perfectly to imitate our islands, but we do not have a thirteenth island. I am not sure what that means, but the pattern says that you will travel to each of the islands."

"Can I see the cup?" I asked, and Chi nodded, offering it to me.

It was as she said, and the leaves had arranged themselves like a map. There were also other bits that looked like they could be smaller islands.

Something about the leaves pulled at me in a strange way, almost like they were asking me something. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the feeling, but I instead started to pull in astral energy.

Around me, I heard gasps and felt the girls pull back from me, but my eyes stayed closed. This feeling was asking me to give it life, and that needed my astral energy.

Once I felt that I had drawn in enough, my eyes opened to the universe stretched over my lap that I was still pinning down. The girls were both now sitting beside Chi, and all three had their hands up to their mouths like they were about to chew all their nails off.

"Sorry, but something is asking me to do this," I said, and then I fed my energy into the cup.

Slowly, the leaves and bits floated up into the air, glowing blue and growing. I watched as they grew and started to look more like maps as they flattened out.

"Lagoona, please watch over me in the presence of one that is so great as this!" Mishal prayed with her eyes closed, both thumbs pressing the blue lighting bolts under her eyes. The other two both just looked shocked beyond words.

Then my attention was pulled back up to the glowing blue map that was floating in the air. Reddish black glowing patches started to appear on each of the islands, but in more than just one place on each. While I didn't know what was on each island, I knew what was on this one for the most part.

One of the red dots that was spreading was where the Riftwalker summoning circle. The other was where I assumed Bramma to be. The far north seemed to be clear of anything, but looking over to the other islands was not encouraging.

The Undead Island was covered in the dots the most heavily, counting over fifteen of them. Others had much less, but I spotted four on Goldey's island alone. I had assumed that there was only the one in the dungeon that had been talked about, but it seemed there were a few problems.

The only problem with the map was that I had to assume that the point in Bramma was Xena. That point looked the exact same as the one past the south wall, so I had no way of telling how many of the points were which.

Still, this map was excellent. I took a mental image of it, but now that I had given it my power, I could summon it at any time. It wouldn't give me exact locations, but knowing the general area of something was better than not.

"Thank you very much for this. Even if the drink was distasteful, to say the least, you have provided me with a valuable tool. I will make sure that you all get a safe place where you can live without prejudice, I said as I slowly stood up.

"You should take me with you tomorrow. I know my people well, and I be the best person to make sure that you won't be getting yourself into more trouble than you need to," Mishal suggested, and I nodded.

"That would be good, but I will be going as a cat. If you still want to, that is fine, but you will have to transport us then," I said, and Mishal nodded.

"I can take us on the wind. I will ask Lagoona to bore us; she already wants to meet you. Unlike everyone in the world, she is not connected through the Vine. So, Lagoona is very interested in you," Mishal explained, and I nodded with bent knees.

"If we have time, then I wouldn't mind meeting her. I thought that there were only goddesses of each island," I said, but Mishal shook her head.

"We are all goddesses in our own rights, but some of us stand much higher than others. Lagoona is nothing like Tallia, our Goddess, but she is our mother that protects us in the open water. I will explain more tomorrow if you would like to hear," Mishal explained, and I nodded.