As promised, Sarisa and Rowan were completely uninterested in joining them for the adventure the next day. Tresk and Theo stuffed their inventories with enough provision to last them many multiple years. Even if they didn’t need to eat while within the dimensional spaces, or at least not as much, they wanted to be prepared. Joining him on the trip this time was alchemy equipment. If he needed to brew potions this time, he had various stills and glassware to see him through.

“Should we tell anyone we’re going?” Tresk asked, slinging a backpack over her back and nearly tipping over backwards.

“Nah, it’ll be fine,” Theo said with a shrug. “We shouldn’t be gone that long, and if anybody needs to find us, they’ll ask Sarisa or Rowan.”

“Oh, yeah. Those two just went to another dimension for a bit. Just sit around and wait,” Tresk said, doing her best impression of Rowan. “Come on, let’s go.”

Theo and Tresk had decided to leave Alex behind. Not because they didn't think she could pull her weight, but because of her size. She had grown to a point where fitting into tight quarters was impossible, and entering an unknown situation meant they could appear anywhere. It was a paper world the last time, but Theo feared they would be sent into a series of tunnels in which she would certainly be a hindrance. The dragon-goose didn’t care either way, and got to scouting the Southlands Alliance the way she normally did.

Dropping into the void was the same as it always was, but what came after was anything but normal. Theo brought them just above the mortal plane and waited, spreading his senses and feeling for those invisible dimensions. It was harder than he had expected, but eventually, he latched onto something. “I think I feel one of the dimensions,” he said, not entirely sure of its flavor.

"What are we talking about here?" Tresk asked. "Volcano world? Another paper world? Maybe an islands-in-the-sky kind of world?"

No matter how much Theo could focus, he couldn't figure it out. He released his gaze from that world and dragged it across the void, eventually finding the paper world. There was nothing on the outside that indicated it was anything but another nondescript dot. He couldn't obtain any information beyond that and shrugged. “I've got absolutely nothing,” he said, centering his focus on the first one. “But once I find them, I have a decent idea of where they are, so I suppose this means we can catalog them.”

"Good enough for me. You want to take us in?" Tresk asked.

Theo nodded, forcing his will into the action. This time, he intended to fold himself into the space, a feat that proved more challenging than expected. However, there was only so much the void could do against his absurd willpower. They were soon careening through what felt like a tunnel, only to emerge above an endless streak of blue. It was a stark contrast to the endless roll of black that represented the void. Just like the void, there were distant shimmers on something that appeared to be a horizon, small gems that distracted the alchemist long enough for him not to realize they were falling.

Only when Tresk shouted did he realize. What felt like a moment passed, and they were plunging into icy water, thrown amongst white-capped waves and the churn of some salty sea.

“What the hell!?” Tresk shouted, sputtering as she surfaced. “Why did you pick a water world!?”

"I didn't mean to pick an ocean world," Theo said, treading water as he looked around. "This one might be a bit too hard for us to survive in.”

“Nah, just use that Water Sorcerer’s Core,” Tresk said, a smile on her face as she doggy-paddled around. “This isn’t so bad.”

Theo fumbled with his cores, swapping one out for his water sorcerer's core before commanding the surrounding sea. He turned the ocean into a calm body of water and then directed it forward, pushing them along like a great surfboard on the open ocean. It was disorienting, and after about 20 minutes of intense effort, he gave up on finding anything that resembled land. Instead, he spread his senses downward, where he felt the seabed.

“New plan,” Theo said, slotting his Earth Sorcerer’s Core in another slot.

It was hard to tell how far down solid ground was, but Theo reached out with his willpower and brought the rocky bottom of the sea up to where he wanted it. He struggled with the displacement, but the alchemist refused to let it go. He pulled the land up and held the sea where it was. Eventually, black stones rose beneath their feet, pushing them above the surface of the ocean and affording them a moment's respite from the churning waters. He pulled more material up, giving them enough height and area to rest comfortably. That provided them with ample time to inspect their surroundings.

"Those aren't real stars, are they?" Tresk asked, looking upward.

Theo shook his head. He didn’t think they were real. Instead, they were representations of the night’s sky, perhaps relating to something he didn’t quite understand yet. The only thing the alchemist understood was the connection between this world and the paper world Kuzan had created. He had made the paper world as a place to make chimeric monsters to attack the mortal races back in the day. But what purpose could an ocean world serve?

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“I doubt this is something Kuzan made,” Theo said, speaking above the sound of the waves rushing against his island.

“Yeah, I dunno. Think there’s anything useful here?” Tresk asked.

One thing Theo was certain of was the conceptual power of this place. Something about the way the ocean and seafloor were oriented made him think they were important. As the alchemist’s senses spread wider, he felt something alchemically useful. Although he couldn’t tell what it was from afar, he knew he could use it.

“Let me catch my breath,” Theo said, scanning the horizon. He had to squint against the darkness of night and had to wonder if there would ever be a day in this place. “The layout here is confusing. I can’t tell if this place is massive and tiny.”

Theo found himself staring at the horizon, trying to make sense of where the ocean stopped and the sky started. He was brought to his senses when Tresk slapped him on the butt.

“Hey! Didn’t you say the paper place made you go all looney?” Tresk asked.

“Ah, crap,” Theo said, surrounding them with his aura. His mind cleared the moment after he reinforced the barrier with every bit of willpower he had. Now that his thoughts weren’t wandering, he turned to his companion. “Are you immune to the effects of this place or something?”

“Maybe. I don’t know,” Tresk said with a shrug. “I just saw you spacing out and thought I’d give your tush a good smack.”

Theo looked back at the horizon, this time through the haze of his barrier. On the outside, he could feel the disconnecting effects of the area pressing in. Within his aura was a piece of Tero’gal, no matter how small. He brought his own flash of influence to this place, preventing the nameless world from draining him of sense.

“Thanks for that,” Theo said, finally feeling well enough to send a fragment of his aura out to scan. “There’s something on the seafloor that feels important. I can’t tell if I’m feeling a reagent or just an object.”

“Well, let’s get going! Hope you didn’t just wanna stop at one place today,” Tresk said. “I wanna see all the weird worlds! An ocean world is cool, sure… But come on. I wanted to see something weird.”

“There are plenty of dimensions to see,” Theo said. “Calm yourself. Besides, an ocean world is pretty cool. I’m excited about such a novel concept.”

“No, you’re just lame,” Tresk said. “Can you even find the other dimensions? Or are we stuck with this?”

“I’ll have a better sense for it when we get out,” Theo said.

Now came the monumental task of parting a planet’s worth of water to get to the ocean’s bottom. Using the same technique he had used before, Theo created a bubble of air around them as they descended to the ocean’s bottom. The pressure pressing in from every side wasn’t as bad as expected, and more of the familiar black stones made up the entire seafloor. It was a truly desolate environment.

“Not what I expected,” Tresk said, scanning the area outside the bubble. She squinted, shaking her head. Kicking the stones on the ground, she grumbled. “There’s nothing living down here, dude. Living stuff makes alchemy stuff… right?”

“Usually,” Theo said. “But not always. And we’re not looking for reagents exactly. I’m looking for an object of great conceptual magnitude. If you think about it, we’re using a super-powered version of shavings. The job of a catalyst is complex, but in this case I’m using it more like a binder.”

“So, a fancy rock maybe?” Tresk asked. “Perhaps a sponge?”

“Sponges are living,” Theo said, pressing forward.

Instead of debating more about what object would work for their purposes, the duo pressed on in their bubble of air. The surrounding ocean was impossibly dark, pressing in on them with none of the pressure Theo expected. Things were going well enough, until the alchemist sensed something strange pressing in on him. It wasn’t a physical pressure, but more of a spiritual pressure.

“Ya feel that?” Tresk asked, looking around with a look of concern on her face.

Theo stopped in his stride, time slowing to a crawl. He reached out with his willpower, gathering a circle of stone below them and forcing it down with everything he had. The duo dropped, going weightless for a moment as they fell into the fifty-foot circular hole, the lid of which was replaced when they hit the bottom.

“Ow! My knees,” Tresk said, bumping into the wall. “Ow! My face…”

The marshling withdrew a lantern from the shared inventory, illuminating the tight space. The ground beneath their feet rumbled as something passed by overhead. Theo felt it in his senses, brimming with curious energy. He piled more stone above them when the rumbling turned into impacts. Stone and dust fell from the ceiling, cascading on top of their heads.

“That’s a problem,” Theo said, digging them as deep as he could. He smashed forward with his willpower, creating a staircase that led them deep. “Did you get a look at it?”

“No! You dropped us too quickly,” Tresk said. “Theo, I really don’t like sea monsters.”

“I’m not a fan,” Theo said, sensing the path forward. Again, he was reminded of the weird makeup of this place. It was hard to tell if they were going deeper or wider. He grumbled as they moved along. “This place makes no sense. I’m not sure if ‘up’ and ‘down’ makes sense down here.”

“Sweet. Giant monster above, non-Euclidean space below! What in the name of cyclopean landscapes are we gonna do?”

Theo clicked his tongue, spreading his senses as far as they would go. He sent the path sprawling forward and down some more, taking a step. Then he stumbled forward, his mind spinning as ‘up’ became ‘down’. Cursing as he tumbled forward, the alchemist twisted and blinked away his confusion. Tresk came falling shortly after, having less trouble with the sudden shift in gravity.

“Drat! I think we found the other side of this planet’s gravity,” Tresk said, clicking her tongue.

“This is a tiny planet, then,” Theo said, punching forward to make more of a path. “We’re getting the hell out of here.”

“This is the part where I go ‘ruh-roh’,” Tresk said, narrowing her eyes.

The ground beneath their feet rumbled. Loose stones shifted, falling only to be caught in the air by Theo’s sorcery. Water rushed in through the cracks as boulders the size of houses were cast aside. The massive maw of something ancient and angry snapped, crushing between its jaws those same rocks.