D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad-Chapter 1884 Mushrooms on Walls

--- Kat ---

Kat’s enthusiasm born from avoiding mushrooms was quickly crushed... by murals of mushrooms. After exiting the water and taking a few steps out of the room the ’pool’ was contained in Kat found herself in a corridor lined with mushrooms murals. They were all bunched together, sometimes more intensely as if they were trying to push themselves out of the walls and into reality. This was helped by some of the larger mushrooms in packed groups expanding into the corridor itself. All eerily lit by her purple flame of course.

Most mushrooms had at least some definition to them, either sinking further or expanding out of the walls but one particular fly agaric mushroom was so large it’s top poked out to halfway down the corridor and forced Kat to move around it. Kat jogged past them all, keeping an eye out for anything that could be a secret until between one step and the next Kat felt like she was shaken around for a moment.

She was back at the start. Kat knew this because a quick glance behind her revealed the same pool she’d crawled out of about ten minutes ago. *That’s not good.* Kat decided to do a quick test. Kat summoned another bit of demonic fire and sped off at her maximum speed, making sure not to get caught by the red and white fly agaric in her rush while keeping time along the way. It didn’t take her ten minutes this time, but Kat was shaken and then placed back at the start of her run.

*Alright so it’s not time but distance based. I’ll need to make note of where exactly it happens.* Sprinting off again, Kat kept count in her head to measure pace. Just before the 3 minute mark, the same time she’d been sent back. Kat slowed right down and took a look at the area around her.

There were some long, spindly mushrooms that looked almost like kelp stalks growing between a ’stinkhorn’ mushroom which looked like coral. If that was all Kat would think this the underwater section or something, but there was also a big tree trunk with chicken of the woods growing on it. Those giant mushrooms that look a bit like stairs for fairies. Kat only knew what those were called because the name was so silly. They didn’t look anything at all like chickens.

Moving her eyes to the ground there really wasn’t anything odd there either. There were square stone tiles but it wasn’t a fancy pattern that ended here or anything similar. They really were just basic stone tyles set in a grid formation. Perhaps one of the lines between them was the ’mark’ for where the teleportation would hit but... it’s not like the tiles were large. Kat could easily step over three sets of tyles with a single stride if she really wanted to.

So Kat decided to mark the floor. Just a quick scratch on the ground and then she inched forward. Slowly stretching her foot further ahead as she waited for the teleportation to happen. Kat frowned as her leg got to the point of full extension. Did I guess wrong? Kat took a proper step forward and tried again. This time she was quickly ’rewarded’ with the teleportation effect she’d expected and was sent back to the start of the corridor.

"Alright, back I go..." mumbled Kat. *Lily any idea what sort of tricks I should be looking for?* Kat asked as she was sprinting down the corridor.

[Um... try walking backwards over it?] Kat shrugged, it wasn’t the craziest idea she could think of so when she made it back to the markings on the ground Kat got ready... by making a more obvious line. She smashed the tiles in an obvious line, letting them crack under her heel. It was a satisfying way to mark the point of no return. Kat took in a deep breath, spun around and then stepped backwards.

Back at the start. Interesting enough she was facing the correct way once again. *Is that relevant do you think?*

[No idea really. Um... try throwing something over the trigger and see what happens?] One run down the corridor later and Kat was chucking rocks from her tile destruction through the trigger point. It seemed to be working fine. They didn’t teleport away, and while the flame she had didn’t show her everything it still let her see pretty far. The rocks all seemed to be there. Though...

Kat pushed her demonic fire over the trigger... and nothing happened. Shrugging at this lack of informative information Kat decided to crab walk over the trigger. Once again, back at the start, this time in crab walk position but facing the correct way. Deciding to try something new, Kat dove back into the water... and found it was just the same as it was before. It had looked different for a moment but really that was just from the fact it was backwards.

Kat swam her way back to the ’endless’ corridor as she considered her options. *So... what can I really do here? I’ve tried the easy things. I could try and dig under the trigger? Or maybe fly over it? Yeah I’ll do that first, that seems easier. Less likely to work but easier. Then... what, looking for a hidden switch or something in amongst the mushroom mural?*

[Seems like it.] So Kat was back to running. Stopped at the mark, and then flew over... and ended up back at the start. [Why not try a bit higher? Like knees tucked in and right near the ceiling.] So Kat ran back down the hall, leapt into the air at the mark and glided over the trigger... and fell on her face as the teleportation tried to put her in the correct spot but with her knees tucked up it just sort of threw her on the floor.

[Um... sorry.]

*Not your fault, and it didn’t really hurt. Just embarrassing a bit. Secret switch time?*

[Yeah I guess so? Maybe one of the mushrooms is meant to look wrong? Well, that or the big one that’s sticking super far out of the wall has a switch?]

I like that idea. Another sprint down the corridor and Kat was soon at the giant fly agaric. Bending down to look underneath it didn’t reveal anything special, as far as Kat could tell anyway. The gills underneath looked normal, the stalk was bent sure but that was because it was being ’pushed’ out the wall. Running her hands along it nothing gave way. No obvious secret button and with this being stone there was nothing to brush aside or check under.

Kat sighed and made her way back to the mark on the ground at the ’far end’ of the tunnel and glanced around again. There wasn’t anything that stood out. Mushrooms, broken floor. *Am I really going to have to dig through this?*

[WAIT!] Kat paused. [Go check those mushrooms, just back a step at the very bottom.] Kat shrugged and did so. They... looked like normal mushrooms to her. A bit small perhaps and they were quite uniform looking.

*What am I meant to get from these? I think they’re some of the least crazy mushrooms here.*

[Right but that’s now what’s important. I think they’re BUTTON mushrooms.]

*That... really? In another dimension?*

[Might as well try it.]

Kat pressed the mushrooms. They clicked. Kat sighed as the ceiling started to emit an odd grinding sound before opening up and letting a rope ladder drop down. Not trusting its quality Kat flew up into a room with... a three hour orb inside. Kat pouted at the thing. *Dammit really? That’s it? I could’ve earnt more time just by exploring around!* Kat shoved it into her bag. Gently of course. She didn’t want to shatter anything.

Now... where do I go? Kat looked around the room. It was... well it was just a cube. An especially small empty cube now that the orb had been taken from the little wall nook it had been sitting in. Kat shrugged and did the only thing that made sense. She jumped back down and tried to cross the invisible line that had been tormenting her.

Kat’s foot hit the ground. Nothing. She was over the line. Probably. Kat took another step and waited. Still nothing. Letting out a long sigh Kat started to up her speed as she continued down the corridor. The mushrooms in the walls seemingly retreating now that she’d passed the teleportation point.

It didn’t take long for her to see a staircase leading upwards, and hopefully out of this place. Kat followed it upwards until she reached a blank rock wall that swiftly moved aside as Kat climbed, some unseen trigger prompting it top move. So Kat stepped outside and into the mushroom forest no ruby in sight. Kat was confronted with the knowledge that she had absolutely no idea where she was. *Shit.*

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