New Scientist—Feature

  “Misty Cap”: The Mushroom That Changes Its Mind and Yours

  Misty Mountain brought a different kind of trouble to the Indian subcontinent. Unlike the other dungeons, Misty Mountain had a readily available food source—a pale mushroom called Misty Cap.

  Young caps were safe to eat. When matured, it became something else—it became the most potent psychedelic known to man. Colors sang, music tasted sweet, pain floated away, fear disappeared, and there was no dopamine crash associated with other drugs.

  There was no way to tell a young, edible cap from a mature, psychedelic one. The caps were everywhere, and many from the Crossing died after eating them. Some stepped off ledges. Some walked into the water. Others went into the fog searching for someone.

  Scarce supply and a blazing high created a black market overnight. But the difficulty in identifying mature caps remained. Rumors spread about folks with dungeon-granted skills—True Harvest, Foresight; it went by many names—who served as sorters for the black market cartels.

  It is not all bad news. Research is being done on the medicinal capabilities of the cap, focusing on alleviating depression, PTSD, dementia and more. Field kits for flagging mature caps are in development, but none are reliable yet. The bottom line is that unless you have a reliable way to identify mature caps, caution is the only defense.

  Rohan POV

  “It is going to be dangerous, Naga. We barely survived the last two encounters.” Rohan could still remember the sight of the spider munching on Allen’s face. The damp air held close, and the pond smell carried a sweet rot that stuck in his throat.

  “We could wait for the boars to go away.” Adit moved closer to Rohan for support. “There’s no need to attack these monsters on our own. “

  “What happens when they attack us, huh? This is a chance to take the initiative. We have the element of surprise this time,” Varun said. His tone was curt, stance angled forward as if the argument itself was a fight.

  “Alright, alright. Show of hands—who wants to fight? Raise your hands.” Naga glanced around the dim forest.

  Varun’s hand went up at once. Imran, the restaurant manager, raised his hand, followed by Bunty, the cook. Then Sid, and finally the backpacker. Naga let the count settle, then raised his own, evening it out.

  “Sid, Mahesh,” Naga said, eyes on Sid. “Keep tabs on the boars. Even if we don’t fight, we need to know their movements. One of you comes back if anything changes.”

  Mahesh’s lips parted, protest half-formed.

  “Let’s go.” Sid started walking back to where they had found the boars.

  “So, half of us want to fight and half do not,” Naga said, listening to the small shuffle of feet. “I just want to make sure we consider all the factors before deciding.” His voice had the smooth push of a salesperson selling a risky idea.

  “Rohan, you and Varun picked up powers after killing monsters, right?” Naga fixed his gaze on Rohan.

  “Yes,” Rohan replied, guarded. What is he aiming at?

  “This place is not safe. But we can get stronger,” Naga said, pointing at Rohan and Varun. “If you never take chances, you might survive the day but not the week.” He met the no-voters, holding their gaze long enough to register agreement or doubt.

  If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  “Boar meat could feed us,” Varun said, practical and blunt. “We solved water, but food is still a problem. Two packed lunches do not go far,” he added, glancing at Aditi, expecting pushback.

  “Rohan, we need your help,” Naga said. “You have the ‘Mana Web’ skill. We need that to control the fight. I cannot promise safety, but without risk we run out of options.”

  “Okay.” Rohan’s voice was flat with reluctance. “But we need a proper plan. There are two boars this time.”

  Naga turned to the group. “That is seven to five in favor of fighting.” He watched the faces fall and softened his approach. “You do not have to fight. Help with preparation and setup.”

  “How are we gonna take down two boars with only 7 people?” Varun raised his eyebrows.

  “By setting the board in our favour.” Naga’s tone carried the quiet, patronising confidence of someone who believed the game was unfolding exactly as planned.

  “How far can you hit accurately with your Mana Web?” he turned to Rohan.

  “I haven’t tested that yet,” Rohan admitted, the flush on his face betraying his discomfort.

  Naga walked to a nearby tree, about twenty feet out, and marked two lines in the moss with his spear. “Try hitting between these.”

  Rohan nodded. A white translucent ball formed above his mouth, pulsing faintly. The sphere cut through the air, skimming bark before vanishing deeper into the forest.

  “Varun,” Naga said, already thinking ahead, “see if it hit anything. I want to know its range.” He looked back at Rohan. “Move five feet closer and try again.”

  Varun hesitated, taking a few steps before stopping. “I’ll wait,” he said, lips twisting. “I don’t want to get webbed again.”

  “I can’t.” Rohan stood still, head raised, but nothing formed.

  “It must have a cooldown,” Varun said. “Track the time.” He caught Naga’s eye, then jogged off along the flight path. “Don’t shoot until I’m back,” he called over his shoulder, fading into the trees.

  “He should not be shouting here,” Naga said, stepping beside Rohan. “Shift left, change the angle, and keep trying to shoot the web. We need a true recharge time.” He raised his phone; the dim screen lit his thumb as the stopwatch ticked in the mist.

  They held the silence. Rohan loosed another shot. The web struck clean and spread over the trunk, pulling tight.

  “About four minutes,” Naga said, stopping the count.

  “How long does it stay like that?” Lauren, the blonde woman from Naga's group, stepped forward.

  “One to two minutes,” Rohan answered. Naga restarted the timer, eyes on the white mesh as it trembled in the damp air.

  Varun trotted back through the trees. “Could not find where it landed.” He was panting from exertion.

  “How often can you Dash?” Naga’s eyes were still on the web as it thinned.

  “About every three minutes, I used it to return.”

  The web paled, went cloudy, then fell away in fine strands. Naga clicked the stop. “Two and a half minutes.” He looked towards the others. “Let’s go to Mahesh and Sid now. We need to set the field before we engage the boars.”

  “What’s the plan?” Rohan matched Naga’s pace, voice low, asking what everyone else was thinking. His fingers flexed once, then stilled.

  “Fighting two of the monsters at the same time is less than ideal. We need to lure one of the boars into a trap, then we can jump the other one.” Naga did not slow down; his steady cadence made the idea sound simple.

  “That’s a general goal, not a plan. What’s the plan exactly?” Varun angled a look at Naga, barely masking his irritation.

  “We can set up a pitfall trap and lure one of the boars toward it,” Naga said. His chin lifted as if seeing the layout in his head. He still sounded sure, though a thin line of doubt edged the words.

  “Really? That’s your big plan? I thought you had something extraordinary in mind,” Varun said. A small smirk tugged at one corner of his mouth as he waited for Naga to flinch.

  “The idea need not be complex, Varun. It is in the execution.” Naga kept his eyes on the ground, measuring distance and slope, every word firm.

  “Keep watch for any surprises.” Rohan cut short the exchange. The undergrowth pressed close, and the air held a damp, earthy smell.

  They slid into the lookout spot near the boars and settled behind a broad bush against a rough-barked trunk. From here they could see a patch of trampled ground and a dark shape shifting now and then between the brush.

  “Where’s Sid?” Varun asked. His voice came out louder than he intended, with an edge riding the question.

  Mahesh brought a finger to his lips. “He is out collecting some of these mushrooms,” he said quietly, pointing to a small heap near a tree root.

  “Why?” Varun picked one up, sniffed, and frowned.

  “Sid threw one near a boar, and we saw it sniff, then eat it,” said Mahesh. He kept looking back at the boars every five seconds, making sure that they were not noticed.

  Naga rubbed his hands together once and nodded. “Good, that gives us a lure. We can build a plan around this.” He held Varun’s eye for a beat, then looked to Rohan, already fitting the steps together.