All the Dust that Falls

Chapter 28: Bristling with Fury

Bee wanted to say she was handling things before Void showed up. However, she couldn't convince herself of that. Bee was relatively sure she was about to be imprisoned or beheaded. However, Void showing up had certainly distracted these adventures; it wasn't quite in the way she'd expected. He showed up, and they panicked.

You know, like you would when you see a powerful unknowable being that you assume is a demon. That seemed quite reasonable of them. What was unexpected, though, was Void's reaction. Instead of doing his usual thing of just continuing to clean or staring at the new humans, it released some hideous monster.

Out of nowhere, a creature as big as a pig seemed to expand impossibly out of Void's back. Muscles bulged and rippled under its fur, with long teeth and a tail that snapped like a bullwhip. It resembled a rodent but of an unusually large size. The monster charged the adventurers as Bee dove to the side and out of its way. She scrambled back, sighing in relief that it hadn't come after her.

Two of the newcomers dove left, and one of them flanked it on the right. This left ample empty space between them that the monster charged through. It snapped its tail like a whip, smacking the lanky human out of the air as he dove. He was sent flying several feet and crumpled to the ground. Bee saw him start getting up soon after, but he struggled.

The other two managed to avoid the monster's initial charge. Beatrice watched as all three began to engage in an epic battle with this giant rat-like thing. Between its size, strength, and dexterous tail, it took all three adventurers their full attention to contain it. The one who did the talking was up front with a sword trying to block its claws and teeth, occasionally taking a swipe at it. The others shot arrows or flung powders at it, dodging out of the way whenever they got the monster's attention. However, it didn't seem to be very effective.

Void trundled up next to Bee, just watching the chaos it had unleashed.

---

I was 90% sure that was not the same thing I had sucked up. Mostly because I hadn't vacuumed up a beast; I'd sucked up a small, fuzzy mess maker hiding in a small crack in the wall. This was not that. If this tried to crawl through a wall, I imagine it would leave a significantly larger hole (and mess).

I don't think I could safely let this one run around. The humans had started slowly working their way back towards the stairs outside of the front door. They were being forced back by the monster and its very disagreeable attitude. Letting it outside was to make sure that it didn't make a mess or bother any humans. However, if it was going to do both anyway, it was less harmless than I first thought. Maybe I made a mistake here?

Luckily, it looked like the other humans were handling things. They had subdued the overly-large mess maker, though they seemed to be making quite a mess themselves in the process. I observed Beatrice as she moved in front of me a few steps. She seemed to be staring intently at the other humans. Hopefully, she wasn't learning from their example.

Soon enough, the mess maker stopped moving altogether. The other humans were yelling and shouting at each other. It must be some sort of custom here to be so loud when meeting someone new. It would explain why nearly all the new humans I had met seemed so excited.

They looked at me briefly before shifting their focus to Beatrice. I watched as they rushed up to talk to my human.

---

Bee almost smacked herself in the face. She had forgotten to use the scan again. It had become a reflex to use scan, even in tense situations like this. As soon as she remembered, she moved closer to the ongoing fight and focused on the first adventurer.

Name Matthew, Race: Human, Class Type: Tank, Level: 15

Her scan had improved. She was able to see the exact levels now and the class type. That in itself made the whole thing an advantageous battle ability. Even if it never got any better, she could still identify healers and levels of anyone fighting her at a glance. Even in cases where people went to great pains to hide that information, she would be helpful. She hoped the next step would be to be able to see actual classes. Maybe she'd even see a person's entire character sheet one day. She would love to see her own stats in particular.

Putting aside her excitement at her skill progression, she focused on the details of "Matthew." A level 15 adventurer wasn't super advanced, but to be 15 at his age was mildly impressive. He looked like he was only 30 or so years old. Most people only got to 15 sometime in the late forties if they actively practiced their class. Adventurers were even faster, some making 15 by their 30th year; if they were lucky, some managed to make it higher. And that was with them killing monsters all the time.

Bee smiled to herself. If Void kept messing with the system, she would reach beyond level 15 quicker than she had ever heard. Faster than even royals and people with rare, quickly leveling classes. She would be among the legends. Though she was starting to think she might not be on the right side of those legends.

Bee quickly scanned the other members of the group before she forgot.

Name: Patricia, Race: Human, Class Type: Magic, Level 14

Name: Arnold, Race: Human, Class Type: Ranged, Level 14

By the time she finished her scans, the creature Void had released was defeated. But, unfortunately, she found that she couldn't scan it, suggesting that her skill only worked on living targets. Bee frowned in disappointment. Maybe that would work at a higher level?

However, she had more significant problems. Now that the adventurers had dealt with the immediate threat, they had decided to drop all pretenses of diplomacy. They rushed at her, with Matthew taking the lead, sword raised. This was not good. This situation probably only solidified that she was "possessed" in their heads, and she wasn't near fast enough to get away. Bee braced herself and raised her forearm to block as best she could, unsure of what else to do. She squeezed her eyes shut in fear.

Mathew struck at her with the flat of the blade. He must have taken some sort of mercy on the little girl. However, the difference in levels was still more than Bee's small body could handle. She felt her bones break for the second time this month. The blow sent her rag dolling away.

---

I turned to watch the humans as they approached. I could understand that they were all humans, but they didn't seem nearly as friendly to each other as they should. It confused me since this was unfamiliar territory. Then one of the humans swung its counterbalance, "sword," at my human. As a result, she flew through the doorway in a distinctly uncomfortable-looking manner.

Shocked as I was, I didn't hesitate. I moved as fast as I possibly could. My tires squealed on the stone, but it didn't slow me down. Dust shot everywhere, but I didn't care.

The world slowed again, even more than my improved processing speed should have allowed. It seemed as though all four of the humans were standing still. Beatrice floated gently down from where she was flying. But I could see that she was still alive if damaged.

I braked, putting myself right between the aggressive humans and my injured human. I beeped at them angrily. This kind of behavior was completely out of line. Humans didn't act like this! Beatrice hadn't even done anything wrong. This was... Just… Rude!

They blinked and stumbled back. It seemed that I had told them off successfully. One of them called to the other in a somewhat worried tone.

"It's too fast! I can barely keep track of its movement!"

"Patricia, keep your eye on it."

I thought quickly. There would be time to process all of the new information I had gathered once this was over. However, for now, I just wanted these humans to leave. They were still humans, so I didn't want to hurt them, though they seemed more like mess makers than humans. I remembered some of the movies I had watched with my old humans. Perhaps there was a way for me to frighten them off?

It was worth a try, even if it might mean I have to clean up afterward. Besides, I had to hurry and ensure that Beatrice was taken care of. So, puffing myself up as much as possible, I tried to intimidate the humans.

---

Bee lay stunned, cradling her broken arm. She was sure she was about to die. They hadn't chopped her in half so she wouldn't die immediately, but likely she'd be imprisoned and who knows what else. It wouldn't have been pleasant. But she was just as surprised as everyone else when Void stood between her and the adventures.

It let out a terrifying noise. She had never heard it sound so angry. It wasn't even close to when it was chasing the cat. Typically it was calm, upbeat, and pretty cheerful. Well, once you got to know it, you got used to the terrifying power. But for all that, it seemed to only care about the cleanliness of everything more than showing the extent of its power. This time though, it decided to make an example.

Bee felt more than saw the change in atmosphere at first. Even from this far away, Void's power tugged at her hair and clothes as though to pull her in. The sheer force of the suction was enough to create a small cyclone around the black disk, loose dust and dirt whirling around inside. The whole thing started to glow with an eerie light.

Then it began to breathe out.

At first, it was more dirt, spinning around in a whirlpool of darkness. Then it was a series of other materials Void had consumed. Glittering crystals, fine powders, sparkling salts, and magical components still brimming with power. Then Bee heard the screams, the screeches of demons that she had become all too familiar with. Though these were different - they were screeches of terror.

Bee could only imagine how it looked to the adventurers. Seeing the faces of demons swirl in front of them. Of course, the demons' faces weren't snapping in glee like they stereotypically should. Still, the face of a terrified demon is arguably more frightening than a happy one. She watched in awe as demonic faces and eyes began to swirl, surfacing briefly in the cyclone before being sucked back in. The whole thing formed a cacophony of terrifying sounds and sights centered on Void. As much as it was expelling, nothing seemed able to escape its inexorable pull.

Void began slowly advancing on the humans, who stood in slack-jawed terror. Finally, the edge of the cyclone inched closer, and they began to panic. The two in the back had already started sprinting for the outer gates. The man with the sword tried to stand his ground, but once he realized he was alone, he took off after them. He left some colorful curses that Bee would have to remember in his wake.

Once they had passed the gate, Void seemed to breathe back in. Everything that had been swirling around it vanished in a couple of seconds. Soon, it looked as though the event had just been a dream. Void made a happy-sounding chime as it came closer, gently bumping into Bee's uninjured shoulder.

She smiled weakly at it, "Thank you, master. For protecting me."

With great care, she got to her feet and bowed low. Then, it beeped again, and they retreated to the library. She had to carry it upstairs with only one hand this time, which was much more nerve-wracking, but they made it safely. It seemed to thank her, and then once they reached the library, it went off to do its own thing.

Bee decided to put aside the tiny bit of abject terror at Void's display of power, instead focusing on the fact that its display was used to defend her. To better distract herself, she focused on fixing her arm. She needed to gather supplies and make herself another healing salve. This was much less debilitating than her broken leg but would make cleaning difficult. She stopped in the middle of sitting down. Oh, what was she doing with herself? She was thinking about cleaning as though it was a priority. What a month it had been.