“We hope to be back in three hours,” Elanya says, putting a Water Rune in her pouch, “Besides scouting, I want to see if we can salvage any extra supplies here.”

“But we still have more than enough runes with us,” Orantal said.

“We’re in enemy territory and we don’t know how long we’ll be here,” Rigesh took Morio’s spyglass, lopping it through his belt. “If we end up here longer than intended, we will eventually run out.”

Yahna looked nervously at the boarded up window, catching some glimpses of the ominous sky. She had awakened as Rigesh and Elanya were gathering their things, well after Nemedion’s meeting. “The faster you check everything out, the better.”

Elanya moved through the front door quickly with Rigesh trailing on her heels. Once the two of them walked half a block away from their vacated hideaway, they both exhaled deeply, exhaustion pouring from their bodies. Then they turned to one another, laughing as they made their way down to the entrance of the alleyway.

“It’s obvious that a majority of these monsters are stationed in the heart of the city,” Elanya started, “there is something that they’re protecting there.”

She knew that the Flesh Hoarders were staying close to their Queen Hoarder to protect her. But she wondered if Countess Eman really needed protecting. If she was the one controlling the creatures then she would be more powerful than they would expect.

“Some sort of magical artifact? Maybe there’s a leader controlling them?”

She bit her tongue, but nodded in agreement with him. “It has to be. They were way too organized in Yulin-dai despite the few ferals outside of the city.”

Rigesh held one of his pistols over his shoulder, walking in deep thought. “It’s strange that there’s so many ferals this far out, but no one is looking out for us.”

“What do you mean?” Elanya asked.

He pointed to a nearby roof, grinning like a small child with candy. “Let me show you.”

As they walked further from their hideout to the inside of the city, a lot of the buildings were looking a bit nicer and taller. Unlike the slums, a lot of these upcoming buildings were more spread apart and tall, skinny towers were scattered across the area. They came across a medium sized building--two stories of heavy concrete--that was covered in thick, green vines. It was stationed between one of the tall towers and other buildings that looked like it was part of a large market.

Elanya watched Rigesh scale the side of the building with ease, pulling himself up using the thick vines. She was very athletic, spending many years being trained by her father, but she hadn’t any experience scaling buildings in less than ten seconds. When they stayed at the half-destroyed hut outside the city walls, he opted in using Air Magic to propel himself on top of the roof. She hadn’t seen how he climbed the roof of their new hideout, but she witnessed how he leaped down, crouching down on his knees like he was a predator searching out his prey.

Climbing after him, she tugged on the vines to pull herself up, not as easily as Rigesh did prior. Once she made it to the edge of the roof, he pulled her up by her arms and squatted behind the rim of the building. Thrilled by how fun and knowledgeable Rigesh was, she was eager to hear his explanation of strategic positions.

Both squatting behind the edge, they leaned forward on their ankles, looking toward the center of the massive city. From his memory of the ancient map that they held of Sogara-dai, Rigesh knew that the center of the city would be marked by a large, luxurious villa--Countess Eman’s residence. He wasn’t sure if the monsters were crowding around out of memory or routine, but the majority of them had to have resided there. The villa stood very high at three stories and long enough to take over three blocks. The front of the massive structure was held up by marble columns, still standing tall on its pristine foundation. On every level, there was a wrap around patio decorated with large glass windows about three feet from each other. Dimmed light from the orange sun reflected off them, creating a beautiful mirage of blues, reds and purples. Magic lanterns were hung all around the structure holding a small flame of blue fire. The outside of the villa was painted in a blush of red, with the roof of a darker maroon.

He also took note of the larger buildings that still stood strong despite all the mounds of crumble and rock. A few miles from the lovely villa he noticed a temple, or church rather, that seemed to still be in use. There was no way to be certain, but it looked a lot cleaner on the outside than the other buildings, which was suspicious. He handed Elanya the spyglass he borrowed from Morio, assisting her in peeking out the wide canvas of enemy territory before them.

Without prompt, he placed his hand on the small of Elanya’s back, leaning her forward and close to him, hoping to teach her every possible spot for a lookout. Since he was used to scouting long distances and his eyesight was virtually perfect with his continued use of Eagle’s eye, he hadn’t struggled to point out small things in the distance that she could only see with the spyglass.

“I would have a lookout at the top of that villa,” he pointed, then turned to the right a bit, “then, I would post two men below him on the patio, constantly walking up and down the floors. If we don’t think about the big ass hole where we came from, two men would be posted at the back entrance of the city, a few on the outside in a desert ditch. Two at the front entrance, where I assumed would be facing the front of the villa, and several--maybe seven, each within six to seven blocks of the villa stronghold regularly rotating.”

Elanya chuckled. “You sure know a lot about this.”

He gave her another child-like smile. “Well when you’re with the Knights for four years and in the military for almost eight, you kinda just know those things.”

“Do you miss being in the Knights? And how many battles have you fought with them?” Elanya asked, excited like a child hearing a fantasy story for the first time.

In embarrassment, he leaned his head away from her, chuckling. “I do miss being in the Knights. I never felt idle, that’s for sure. My squadron got deployed outside Zalatine a lot to fight against rebellers from Titaneous and the occasional bandits, but I didn’t get to experience that much when I was preparing my departure because we were having concrete treaty talks with Titaneous.”

Elanya smiled, another rare sight that was becoming common with him. “I’m really envious.”

Rigesh returned her smile with twinkling eyes. “I’m more envious of you. If I had half the talent you have, then maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad.”

Still not used to genuine compliments, Elanya fidgeted in awkwardness. Nemedion was quick to speak on her accomplishments to others, but he never complimented her out of appreciation. Maybe Orantal had, but her friend was one to constantly sugarcoat things to make others feel better in general, but she believed Orantal was often too kind to her out of pity.

“Ah! I’m sorry, did I say something wrong?” Rigesh asked, pressing deeper in the dip of her back. She bent her head slightly downward to her back, to which he quickly removed his hands. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“I don’t mind it.”

“I thought maybe I crossed some boundaries a few days ago on the roof, even though I knew you didn’t like being touched.”

“I may have seemed like I was moping.”

“Maybe a little,” he teased.

She subconsciously rubbed her hand up and down her arm. “I’m rarely touched by other people unless it’s Nemedion or Orantal. It was just an unfamiliar feeling and I didn’t know how to deal with it.”

Rigesh leaned back to sit on his bottom, relaxing his tired ankles, and tilted his head with concern. “What do you mean?”

“No one wants to be associated with someone who can control the very essence of darkness, nor a no-named pauper that doesn’t look like everyone else.”

“I will touch you however you like,” Rigesh blurted. He paused then, covering his face with his hands, groaning about his stupid remark.

Elanya chuckled while she looked out into the horizon with decimated buildings on a dark grey canvas. “You’re making me think you’re flirting with me.”

“Do you mind it?” He splayed open his fingers looking at her through the gaps as he still hid his frivolous face.

Elanya turned to face him with timid, dark maroon eyes, a small splotch of red rising up her brown cheeks. She wasn’t used to silly gestures and acts from many men, nor had the experience of them flirting with her. She knew that Rigesh was different. He always looked at her with such an awed expression, surprising her seeing as Yahna was a true beauty. Ignoring the woman’s terrible attitude, she was beautiful, ranking high on what Elanya thought would be the highest of womanly standards. But Rigesh had found himself staring at her, attracted to her. Not using her vulnerability.

“I don’t mind it,” she repeated her earlier phrase with more conviction.

Rigesh leaned forward again. Like on the roof of their hideout, he reached out to move her wild, curly hair from her flushed cheek. Instead of moving it away, he kept his fingers on her face, a small stroke on her warm cheek.

“Is this okay?” He asked with an unsure grin.

Closing her eyes, she leaned into the palm of his hand feeling his warmth on her cheek. It was a gesture that made her feel safe. She reached up to rub her thumb along his wrist, feeling his rapid pulse. “Yes, this is okay.”

Maybe it was wishful thinking, but she thought she felt the hole in her cold, shattered heart close just a little.

An hour or so later, Elanya found herself squatting behind a corner building while Rigesh provided cover for her from the rooftops. As much as she wanted to fully enjoy their moment earlier, they needed to be focusing on scouting. A secondary hideout closer to downtown was preferred, especially when tracking the Flesh Hoarders’ movements. They were far out, but there were still enough ferals roaming around that would cause an issue. Every time she whipped around a corner, she found a few ferals wandering around, lost to the dead world around them. She would focus on killing one, while Rigesh snipped the rest of them from his hidden position on top of buildings. There was a range to his pistols, so he would have to leap from roof to roof to keep up with her. Each time they thought they had made progress, they were still always a few steps behind, still a long way before they reached anywhere near downtown, and the amount of crazy ferals would drive them back another mile. They would have to kill off the ferals day by day to be within even fifteen miles of the villa. Rigesh had a suspicion that the temple was also another stronghold for the creatures, but he couldn’t explain the feeling.

Rigesh yelled down to Elanya to start diverting a path nearby to try to snoop the area. The library wasn’t too far deep for them, so a detour wouldn’t hurt. They couldn’t always rely on Elanya to hide them in shadows and still have enough magic left over to fight the Flesh Hoarders.

A large group of Flesh Hoarders awaited her as they came upon a big street. Instead of immediately retreating, she dashed forward with Valla and swung her way through the crowd, Rigesh shooting magical bullets from afar. Once she secured two blocks, she found herself enervated, too overwhelmed to keep going even though she wanted to proceed. She moved backwards, retreating away with her front towards them, killing one that flanked her right. Another one came from her left, but was quickly disposed of as Rigesh jumped down from his hiding position on a nearby roof, shooting the Flesh Hoarder through the head.

He grabbed her hand and they started running back to their hideout, weaving in and out of the blackened streets that they had previously cleared. It would take a couple of days for them to clear a proper path so they wouldn’t be overrun by the Flesh Hoarders, they couldn’t do it now. The ferals were easier to deal with, but they were still unpredictable. Some of them held no other interest but survival, opting to kill one another and steal their flesh and organs for nutrients, though many of them wanted vigorous flesh that was still steaming with heat from a fresh kill. They would need to come back and deal with them instead of trying to face them head on.

Before they entered the neighborhood of their hideout, they sagged against a cornering building, struggling to recover from their brisk escape. Next time, they needed to take their scouting slower.

“Hey, El,” Rigesh breathed, a little mischief in his voice, “if I was a bit too forward--”

She stopped him with a tired head shake. “You’re fine.”

“Are you sure?” he asked, resisting another urge to touch her.

“Yes, but I doubt your Yahna would be too appreciative.”

He scoffed. “She definitely isn’t mine. Though, I could say the same for Nemedion. You guys aren’t dating, are you?”

A miffed shiver ran up Elanya’s spine, then she felt anger swell in her chest. “Me and him are just friends.”

“You hesitated.” He moved closer to her, then frowned. “He’s basically claimed you.”

“He sure has a funny way of claiming me, huh,” she mumbled to herself through gritted teeth.

“El,” she looked up at Rigesh, whose handsome face tried to look understanding and patient, “do you not like that he’s smitten with you?”

Annoyed, she turned away from him, crossing her arms underneath her chest. She felt her skin sting from her nails digging into her forearm. “I don’t like anything he does in public. Why does it matter, Gesh?”

“Because I may or may not be smitten myself. Definitely interested.”

It was her turn to scoff. She had a speculative twinkle in her eye. “Oh? You’re interested in me?”

Rigesh leaned forward, looking down at her with her back pressed against the wall. He reached up to twirl a fiery red curl of her hair around his finger. “Would that be a problem?”

“No, I…” She reached up to swat his finger away, moving her loose curls behind her left ear. “I just haven’t had many people show interest in me. Besides, how do I know this isn’t a ploy to get in my pants before we face imminent death?”

Rigesh smirked. “I wouldn’t want to seduce you in this wasteland. Doesn’t seem like a wonderful first time.”

Elanya fought against the blush forming on her cheeks and wrapping around her throat. She hadn’t realized how attracted she was to a blunt speaker. It felt refreshing to not deal with a fake like Nemedion where she had convinced herself that it was fine to live in his delusional world he wanted for them. Rigesh never hid behind his words, speaking whole-heartedly and earnestly at all times. Before Rigesh, all she had heard were sweet words to make her feel special, but she knew that if she weren’t a powerful mage then Nemedion wouldn’t have wasted his time. Elanya was observant, she had always known that Nemedion would never pick her first. She just didn’t want to accept it.

“Look, I know I’m not a rich man, nor am I talented with my limited magic, but I’ve heard that I’m generally a great person,” he scratched underneath his chin, embarrassed, “most of the time. Obviously this isn’t something most people want to be talking about in the middle of a death trap, but I couldn’t help myself. ”

“I’ll think about it,” she said as she leaned forward, her face only a few inches from his, “and I’ll give you a chance if I feel like it.”

She knew she was being coy, hard to get for no particular reason other than out of uncertainty. Elanya made a vow not to get distracted from her mission, but what they had between them couldn’t be helped. Her stomach rolled within itself sickly with thoughts of another guy not taking her seriously. Fighting the thoughts away, she turned on her heel and headed in the direction of the others. Rigesh smirked as she walked toward their safety net, chuckling behind her. He hadn’t flirted with a woman in a while, too preoccupied by his pistols and work to care about anything else, but he was enjoying himself now. The aloof woman he met in the busy and mobbed streets in Yulin-dai was not the one in front of him now. And he would follow her anywhere.

The two scouts explained their next plan of action with the rest of the group, mentioning the Countess’ villa, the temple and the library. Orantal had little information about the temple, but judging by the time period that Sogara-dai flourished in, she assumed that it was a temple dedicated to their worship of the Three Gods--Raylith, Karnov and Umbara. They were heavily devoted to Umbara, the Goddess of Death, which Elanya thought ironic taking into account who they were cursed by. Rigesh had a suspicious feeling about the temple, and though he couldn’t explain his guts, he knew that going into that temple would change the course of their mission.

For the next five days, Elanya and Rigesh would kill any Flesh Hoarder blocking their paths to the library while at the same time establishing a safety block for the rest of the group to settle. Being alone with one another for nearly most of the week also allowed the two to get to know each other more, even when at times Elanya seemed hesitant to put her whole self into their conversations. Rigesh wouldn’t be as forward with her once he saw her drawing back from him, patiently waiting for her to open the small doors of herself on her own.

However, those small moments were quick when in comparison to the battles they found daily to make leeway into their scouting, coming closer to their destination bit by bit. Once they got closer, along with everyone else nearby, the two would scout inside the temple looking for any information available. If what the Goddess of Death told was the truth, then Elanya surmised that she left her a clue within the temple. But why would the Goddess care about the temple if she was offended by the people of Sogara-dai and cursed them to a horrible existence?

Rigesh and Elanya agonized on whether they should venture closer to the villa or not. From Rigesh’s military experience and what info Elanya acquired from Umbara, the villa would be the most dangerous place to go. Most of the Flesh Hoarders would be surrounding the stylish stronghold and creating a path toward it would draw too much attention. The twenty or thirty Flesh Hoarders that they had disposed of earlier seemed minor compared to the possible hundreds that could be lying in wake in the heart of the city. They told the rest of them as much, frustrating Nemedion, Morio and Orantal even more. Morio was certain of his driving abilities if they were to get trapped, but the map couldn’t be trusted and he had even less trust in the terrain. He didn’t think his truck would be able to take a beating while he drove through a horde of Flesh Hoarders even with the new and improved magical barrier. The barrier would still need to be refreshed with new magic and they didn’t want to test how durable it was in the middle of a horde.

“I mean, if we’re throwing more time into scouting, then taking a detour into the temple won’t hurt,” Orantal said as she circled more locations on her map, “but I just worry that we may not be able to make it out in a timely manner once we stay too long near the villa.”

“Routing the Flesh Hoarders and making a path is a big priority. We’ll be able to backtrack easily if we feel like we’re being trapped.” Rigesh said, digging his knife into the ground.

“You’re going to be killing those things for an entire week, won’t that be exhausting?” Yahna asked, her worried face turned mostly to Rigesh as he continued to look at his knife in thought.

He nodded. “It will be worth it in the end.”

Morio agreed, scratching a finger under his rough looking goatee, looking over the map thoughtfully. “I like this plan. It’s a bit time consuming, but we’ve already travelled for nearly a month.”

Nemedion pursed his lips conflicted, mulling over everything in his head. He wanted to do much more than sit back to protect the weaker ones of the group, but he felt that he would be in the way. He trusted Elanya, but they had been overwhelmed after a while by more Flesh Hoarders before the pair returned back to their hideout. “I don’t feel too comfortable with you going out alone for another week.”

“Rig is with me,” she replied.

Nemedion made a face, opening his mouth to retort on something insignificant as Elanya called Rigesh by a nickname, but Yahna had spoken first. She pushed her legs underneath her body, leaning to her right as she nonchalantly ran her fingers through her curly hair.

“Instead of Rig being your bodyguard, he should be staying behind to defend us. Why can’t we just stay together and move forward into the city? No one wants to be stuck in this piece of shit house for another week.”

“If we move together with that big steam truck and all of our stuff, we will bring attention to ourselves when we’re sneaking in,” Elanya said with barely concealed displeasure, “the point is to not be seen during reconnaissance.”

“Then what’s the point of the rest of us even being here if we’re just gonna sit here?!” Yahna yelled, scraping her nails against the ground.

“No one told you to come. You imposed yourself.” Nemedion retorted.

“Yahna, you chose this when you decided to follow me, so deal with it,” Rigesh snapped at her, stabbing his knife into the ground, “you can either be a burden and get yourself killed, or comply with the rest of us and be useful.”

Offended and lost for words, Yahna held her tongue. She couldn’t deny that her true intention was to tag along because she wanted to be close to Rigesh. It was obvious from first meeting her, but she hadn’t been useful at all. When Rigesh was thrown from the steam truck injured, she tended to his wounds, but Orantal could have easily healed him without using even a quarter of her magic. She didn’t understand what anyone was talking about most of the time from surveying areas and reading maps--nor could she provide any extra insight to their mission. Even Morio had been more helpful than she was--he could drive the steam truck expertly, read the terrain and a magical engineer. He and Rigesh modded a steam truck with Runes, Magic and Magitech, something that she knew nothing about. Despite being the most wanted nurse at the Airport, her magic wasn’t even close to Morio’s.

“So, what’s the plan?” Morio asked.

Elanya trailed her finger from the spot that she and Rigesh traced from the library, tapping it against a tall building adjacent to it. “We think that this place would be a good hideout. It’s across from the library and not too far from the temple. If we can clear out this area in a week, then we should be able to move around as freely as we want without getting caught out.”

“But I’m concerned about them coming back a few days afterward,” Orantal started etching small scribbles in the corner of the map, “won’t they feel suspicious of the area after we weed them out? Even a wild animal isn’t dumb enough to be fooled that long.”

Rigesh crossed his arms, sighing, “Well, we have two ways we can handle this. We can either one, clear out the area and immediately snoop out the buildings before their absence generates more suspicion, or two, take our time with the area and fight through whatever horde we run into. I don’t know if I feel comfortable with all of us fighting like this in the city since we still don’t know any accurate numbers nor where we would be going. I prefer the first option.”

“I agree,” Elanya nodded, “that’s the most efficient way of carrying out the mission. If we play our cards right, we can get information and be out of the city on the same day.”

“Even if we don’t get accurate numbers, we can still pilfer as much history as we can from here and hand it over to the Magus Meisters,” Orantal said looking a little brighter as she continued to scribble on the edges of the map.

Nemedion leaned back on his hands and crossed his legs at the ankles. Rolling his head in different directions, he worked out the kinks in his neck, hoping it would allow him to feel less tense about everything. He wanted to object to the ongoing scouting mission, but he couldn’t deny that continuously securing the nearby perimeter would be a good idea. As much as he wanted to fight, he wasn’t the most quiet, nor delicate fighter, and bound to cause more commotion than needed. Finally, after arguing with himself, he relented.

“Alright, but I want me and Ora to provide any backup for you. If you ever get stuck in a sticky situation send out a flare.”

Elanya felt a heavy weight being lifted from her shoulders as she relaxed, thankful that she wouldn’t have to endure another unhappy lecture from Nemedion. “I can accept that. Just be careful getting to wherever me and Rigesh are if we do need to send a flare.”

Orantal clapped her hands together happily, beaming as she looked around at her companions in the circle around her. “Okay, now that we have all come to a resolution, let’s get some rest for tonight. This area is safe so you don’t need to keep watch tonight, Ellie.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Elanya ruffled her friend’s hair. Straight, blonde strands stuck out everywhere itching around Orantal’s forehead. After smoothing her hair back, she shot her friend a large smile and rolled up the map to place in a canister.

As the two turned away from everyone else to whisper among themselves, Nemedion turned to watch the other non-University persons. Rigesh, vexed about stabbing his knife all the way into the ground, but laboring over it, trying his best to sharpen the blade on a whetstone. Morio started chatting with his subordinate, not showing any reaction to Rigesh fiercely sharpening a knife a little larger than a normal citizen would have. Yahna ignored Rigesh’s harsh strokes against the whetstone and tried her best to passively apologize for her incompetence while at the same time, being oblivious to how useless she had been the entire trip. Suspiciously, Nemedion subtly looked over the Rune Specialist, taking in his build and thinking back to the man’s skills from the previous battles they encountered. He hated to agree with Elanya about an outsider, but the man was much more than what he seemed. Behind his nonchalant, country aura was a hidden warrior, poised to strike at any time.

When Rigesh collapsed from pain after being thrown from the steam truck, he saw a little of the man’s back, festered with dozens of small cuts. They varied from a short inch to deep curves that must have hurt when he got them. Nemedion had gotten his fair share of bruises and cuts being a close-combat style fighter, but he had always been healed immediately after. His light caramel skin was durable, free of any long lasting scars, at least for the time being. Rigesh’s darker, golden brown skin was scarred with many, some could have been easily healed, but he kept his skin marred. What had Rigesh done besides being a Rune Specialist that could have inflicted those scars?

Maybe this could be a perfect time to test the commoner, Nemedion thought as he pulled himself to his feet.

“Rigesh, would you mind sparring with me?” he asked, masking his eagerness.

Morio looked up at the student first, wariness stamped on his face. “Huh? Isn’t it a little late for that?”

Nemedion shrugged his shoulders, walking closer to the unorthodox group. “It’s never too late to get some exercise in, especially before getting to bed. If I’m going to be idle for a while longer, I still want to keep in shape.”

Rigesh finally looked up from his knife sharpening and narrowed his eyes in suspicion. The younger man had been eyeing him for a while, trying to gauge how much of a threat he could be. If the spoiled kid thought that this would be an opportunity to beat up on someone lesser than him, then he was in for a rude awakening. It wouldn’t be the first time Rigesh fought against a Meister of Combat Arms and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

“It’s surprising you’re asking someone beneath you to spar,” Rigesh said as he tucked his knife in its sheath, “I don’t know whether to feel honored or not.”

Nemedion scowled down at Rigesh, holding in his aggressive temper. “You should feel honored. I would have asked Ellie if she was available.”

Elanya scoffed from behind them, alerting them that she had heard everything and that Nemedion was being ridiculous. She and Rigesh were both heading out tomorrow in the morning, not just her. If Rigesh were banged up or sleep deprived, it would leave her less secure on their scouting.

Rigesh stood up from his spot, glaring into Nemedion’s calculating, blue eyes. There wasn’t the usual malice setting in his eyes like there usually was, but the sudden proposal and presumptuous swagger made Rigesh unsure of what to expect. He really could be asking for a proper spar as he had been stationery since they arrived in the city and most of the trip and there wasn’t anyone else among them that looked like they would want to do hand-to-hand combat. He couldn’t proposition his friend with a serious spar in front of strangers. Sparring matches between Nemedion and Elanya were held near and dear to the ostentatious man, like a sacred ritual that he preferred to be done in private rather than in public. However, Rigesh was confident that he was being tested on his strength. Accepting the challenge, he made his way over to his bags and searched for some sturdy ribbon to wrap his hands with. Nemedion did the same, except his ribbons didn’t look as broken down and torn as Rigesh’s.

“Rig, you’re not about to spar with him, are you?” Morio asked, looking back and forth between the men. “Nemedion is a Meister of Combat Arms. And aren’t you--”

Rigesh eyed his friend heedfully. Morio took in the uncomfortable expression Rigesh shot at him and swallowed hard. Yahna leaned back into the wall, relaxing herself as she watched the men prepare themselves. Despite her obvious infatuation with Rigesh, she let her eyes wander to Nemedion who took no time to change out of his regular shirt into a loose, grey tank top. Rigesh changed out of his own shirt, but opted to be shirtless instead, flaunting the small scars spread across his chest and back.

It was the first time Elanya had seen a lot of his skin. On his upper right back was a small eagle insignia, an old tattoo that looked a little familiar. He was more defined and tone than she previously believed of him and suddenly, she was curious to see him fight against Nemedion. Two distinctive auras clashed against one another within the air, making it thick with heavy tension. If Elanya wasn’t used to feeling such harsh and emulous emotions thickening her senses, she would have choked.

“I have a feeling you both aren’t going to spar very lightly, so I’ll stay up and watch you,” Elanya turned her head to Orantal whose face was a mess of turmoil, but a bit relieved to not be focusing on anything that didn’t involve looking over any more maps and textbooks. “Ora, you should stay up a bit, too. I don’t want anyone complaining about injuries in the morning.”

He wasn’t sure about Nemedion’s personal intentions, but Rigesh felt that the girls were treating their sparring match as entertainment. Morio decided on heading to bed early, not because he was tired, but he feared what he would say to Rigesh while he was fighting. The last thing the man wanted to do was baby Rigesh, but it was hard considering that Morio was the first friend he had met in Yulin-dai after departing Zalatine. He knew everything Rigesh experienced before his untimely departure from the capital, why he had moved and what he was running away from.

Once everyone, sans Morio, walked outside, the tension continued to thicken. The usually chill, nighttime air was enveloped in an uncomfortable heat, clotting with heavy uneasiness and anticipation. Elanya and Orantal leaned on the nearby brick wall while Yahna sat on the ground closest to the door, away from the rest of them. Excitement oozed out of her as she fixed her eyes on the two men in front of her, still wary of one another as they assumed a stance. This was a battle that she could fully get behind. In her crazed and unstable mind, having been secluded in an enclosed home for the last couple of days, this sudden urge of bloodlust was something that she had eagerly been awaiting. As much as Elanya and Orantal hated the bickering among the ground, they couldn’t deny that they were also drawn in by the bloodlust.

Nemedion started pulling his heavy dreads into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. He walked over to his friends, cautiously handing over his glasses to Orantal for safe keeping. After turning back to his opponent, he rolled his shoulders back and cracked his neck, eyes locked forward on his hated prey. “Since it’s obvious that my magic is stronger than yours, I suggest we fight without any.”

“I can abide by that. I just ask that you don’t go easy on me.”

“Oh, trust me. You will feel the wrath of my fury.”

After a solid beat, the two went forward on the offensive. Elanya and Orantal had been to many of Nemedion’s sparring bouts back at the training grounds at Laoshin University. A year and a half ago, he had been given the title of Meister of Combat Arms after flawlessly passing the Meister test. For weeks after his advancement, Nemedion had been challenged by a multitude of opponents ranging from wealthy students to the basic ones trying to best him and become an upstart. But he was virtually unbeatable, being one of the strongest Meisters of Combat Arms in the history of Laoshin. It would only be a matter of time before the other Meisters of Combat Arms from the other two magical universities come to challenge him as well.

One thing that Elanya had never witnessed, however, were people outside of the students challenging Nemedion. She knew of a powerful Meister of Combat Arms in Zalatine that would show him his first defeat, one that would humble his hubris, but even Nemedion would be crazy accost such a foe no matter his strength. While Nemedion’s magic was strong within, his physical skills could easily be matched by the others--Knights included. Rigesh hadn’t shown any of them his true potential besides his remarkable aim with his pistols and a little bit of his battle knowledge. Elanya suspected that he was being secretive about his time with the Knights and that he had more talent that he was allowing them to see. Was he holding back to show respect to her since she was the leader?

Nemedion punched forward with his right fist heading straight for Rigesh’s face. In turn, Rigesh shoved his elbow downward into the fist, bringing Nemedion forward and into his space. With his right hand open, he slammed his palm against Nemedion’s ear. Staggering back with ringing in his ears, Nemedion was caught off guard by the hard kick in his stomach. Orantal’s mouth dropped open, questioning the type of fighting style she had just witnessed. Who blocks a punch to the face with their elbow then slaps someone in the face in quick reaction?

“I told you not to go easy on me,” Rigesh cracked his neck, his face devoid of emotions, all except for the slight peak of anger rolling in his bright green eyes. “I’m insulted.”

Eye twitching in irritation, Nemedion growled at his opponent. Elanya could see sparks of fire from the edges of his lips as he huffed and puffed. She hadn’t seen his magic do that in a long time. He didn’t usually get so unstable after someone landed a hit or two on him, but right now he was the very image of a raging fire.

He stepped forward again, this time bringing a leg out for a kick. Rigesh moved out of the way, pushing away Nemedion’s leg with the palm of his hand. He returned with a kick of his own. Instead of landing another attack, Nemedion spun out of the way and brought his fist to Rigesh’s face, finally connecting a blow on his cheek. Rigesh fell back, staggering as he tried to keep himself from blacking out. That punch was a lot harder than he thought it would be, but he should have expected it, nonetheless. The spoiled brat was finally taking him seriously. However, as long as Nemedion was on the offensive, Rigesh could continue to keep the attacks away from him and his opponent unbalanced.

Spitting out a glob of blood, a cut on the inside of his mouth formed. Instead of expectant anger, he smirked. He stood up, dusting the dirty sand from his worn pants. “That’s what I like to see! I knew that title wasn’t for show!” Rigesh taunted him.

They lunged for each other again, learning each other’s attacks and movements with each encounter. When Nemedion leaned forward to grapple Rigesh, he was surprised by the man’s speed as he spun around with Nemedion’s hands on his persons and threw him onto the ground. As Nemedion came back up, he barely dodged two attacks from Rigesh, who kicked out with his right, then turned to kick out with his left in a fluid motion. He wouldn’t let his adversary see his surprised face, so he bent down and jumped to tackle Rigesh. They both went down into the ground with a huff, Nemedion landed on top of Rigesh and threw out a quick blow to his face. Before he could get more, Rigesh bucked underneath and kneed Nemedion hard in the middle of his back. They both rolled away from each other to catch their breaths, then took their positions. Again, they lunged toward each other with Rigesh using a lot of foot movement and deflecting blows with his hands and elbows and Nemedion throwing punches and dodging at the last minute. Their fighting was becoming more erratic the longer they went on, but the girls still felt a bit entertained.

Yahna purred whenever the men grappled themselves, both trying to lock the other into submission. Orantal glared at the woman, disturbed by whatever weird fantasy her crazed mind could be cooking up. In the beginning of the match, she was astounded and delighted at the possibility of loosening up and sparring for fun, but as the match continued on, she became worried. The men were bloodying themselves into an unsteady pulp. Her repeated pleas for them to stop fell on deaf ears. At this rate, she would actually need Yahna’s help to heal them. Bloodied noses were the least of her concerns, they were bound to have several cracked ribs and internal bleeding. And on top of their bruising, she could see that they were both serious. Too serious to be distracted from their fight. It was like watching wolves fight for the top spot in the pack. But to Elanya it looked like two guys trying to wave their dicks around.

She enjoyed watching Nemedion meet his match, but she was a little worried about how long this would go on. The longer it went on, the more confused she became when it came to Rigesh. He created a multi-elemental pistol that is capable of killing non-magical creatures and now he is fighting toe to toe with one of the best Meisters of Combat Arms in the nation. If they were using magic then Rigesh would have lost a while ago. Nemedion’s mastery of the four elements, along with his physical attributes, would have demolished a normal person. But here, he was being hit by a country boy who worked as a Rune Specialist at Yulin-dai’s Transit Bureau. He could have been lying to her when he said he had been apart of the Knights. On the roof, he told her grievances of not becoming a proper Knight to present to his parents, so maybe he had been something else while he stayed in Zalatine. A spy, perhaps?

“Ellie, I think we should really stop them,” Orantal said softly, her lips trembling.

Elanya sighed and pushed herself from the wall. “I suppose so.”

But before Elanya could raise her voice, the men did their final blows. Nemedion and Rigesh had simultaneously punched one another in the face, blood dripping from torn skin on both of their knuckles. They both held their positions as they growled at one another, fury blazing through their veins and body. Suddenly, Nemedion’s eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell unconscious. Rigesh stood still, smirking wildly as he inhaled and exhaled harshly. He took one step forward, then collapsed, following his rival into a state of unconsciousness only a few seconds later.

Groaning to herself, she walked over to both of the unconscious bodies to inspect the damage. “What a bunch of fucking idiots. Rig is going to hate himself in the morning.”

“At least he’ll get a good night’s rest.”

“What a pain,” she grumbled, “they both lost.”

Technically, Rigesh had won by being more conscious than his opponent, even if it were only a second longer. He definitely didn’t come out unscathed against a Meister of Combat Arms, but Nemedion had also taken a significant amount of damage. If Nemedion were used to people making constant contact with his body while sparring, then maybe Rigesh wouldn’t have outlasted him. In other words, Rigesh was just a bit more sturdier.

Elanya commanded Yahna to get Morio to help her bring their heavy bodies back inside. He blanched once he laid eyes upon the beat up and heavily bruised men, their faces swollen and bloody. After a silent prayer to his favorite goddess Raylith, he hunched over to grab Rigesh under his shoulders and dragged him back inside. Elanya could carry Nemedion with no help, but she didn’t have time to deal with his heavy weight, so Orantal held onto his legs while she grabbed him from under his arms, dragging him into their small corner within the hideout.

Orantal exhaled deeply after dropping her friend onto the hard floor. “It could take all night to heal both of them. They almost beat each other to death.”

“Imagine if they were using magic,” Elanya said, leaning over Nemedion’s swollen face.

Yahna placed her hands on Rigesh’s chest and abdomen, doing her own inspection. “A few broken bones shouldn’t be too much to fix over night. Just know that I’m sleeping all day tomorrow because this will literally drain me of my magic.”

At least the morning will be a lot more quiet for once, Elanya thought.

“You get some sleep, Ellie. Me and Yahna can handle this.” Orantal said, resigned to her fate as she dampened a rag. Carefully, she wiped blood from Nemedion’s face, cleaning his face before she started looking into his wounds. Yahna did the same for Rigesh, looking every part of the nurse she claimed to be in Yulin-dai. Her hands never shook, nor did she display an untoward face while she gently wiped away the mess on his.

Elanya turned away to her makeshift pallet on the ground, her face a bit green with envy. She was never much of a great healer, barely being able to soothe her own cuts and bruises from her other missions, but she was a little jealous that she wasn’t the one healing Rigesh. Shaking the jealousy from her, she laid her head down on a pillow made of her shirts. Each day these foreign feelings were becoming stronger and more new. Any other time she wouldn’t have even shown a slight interest at Nemedion fighting someone, but her interest piqued tenfold when Rigesh accepted his challenge. The magic coming from him shifted into something different--a dark tinge of red fury, light purple of lust and and a cold blue of distance. Not the usual colors and feelings that she felt from him, leading her to enjoy Nemedion struggling against someone who hasn’t even a Meister. But the feelings were still too unfamiliar for her to fully accept that Rigesh could exhibit such emotions, feelings and auras.

Was that why Morio was so hesitant for his friend to accept the sparring match? Morio tried his best to relay his fear without speaking about an obvious secret that he and Rigesh knew. His panic along with Rigesh’s severe glare toward him was something that she couldn’t ignore. Even if it bothered him, she would have to do her best to extract as much information from him as possible. If there was something he could do to make their mission end a lot faster, then she needed to know it.

---

Elanya felt like a babysitter when she awoke in the morning finding everyone asleep except for Morio. There would be no summary of today’s events as a team and no early morning breakfast, so she would need to pack a few snacks in her pouch. Nemedion, healed and less swollen than last night, lay sprawled out next to Orantal who slept curled into a ball beneath two blankets. Yahna looked super pale as she leaned against the wall in a nearby corner, completely tired and drained of her magic. Her magic was nowhere near the level that Orantal’s was, so she was slumped over as she slowly gained her magic back. It seemed like she didn’t know how to siphon from nature to refill her magic.

Morio stood near a half-boarded window as he sipped on some coffee. Through the cracks, he kept his eye on the modified steam truck as it sat outside with a black tarp covering it. He looked over to her, motioning to another cup of coffee he brewed while she was still sleeping. She walked over to him, accepted the cup and blew at the steaming, hot liquid. They didn’t say anything to each other as they both drank from their mugs, but they liked being in one another’s presence. Initially, Morio looked like a chatty and goofy man that would only complain and slack on his work, but he turned out to be a lot more serious than he looked. She noticed his hands shook slightly when he raised his mug to his lips again. A few drops of coffee spilled into his tawny brown goatee. She reached in her pocket to hand him a handkerchief and pointed to her chin. He chuckled to himself and wiped the coffee from his goatee. She insisted that he keep her handkerchief.

“You be careful out there today. I know Rig will be with you, but you never know what those fuckers are planning.” Morio said after she finished her cup of coffee.

“I will. I thank you for being patient with us. I know you hate being trapped here.”

He nodded. “As much as I wanted to regret coming, I’m glad I did. Rig needed me and I couldn’t let him come here by himself.” He took another sip of his coffee, this time being careful of dripping it on his chin. “And I think you needed a friend, too. You’re not as cold as you were a couple of weeks ago.”

She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall, trying her best to see through the cracks in the window. “I don’t trust very easily. But I’m starting to open up and trust my comrades a bit more.”

“I think you have someone rubbing off on you,” Morio said, his eyes twinkling as he took another sip.

Elanya rose from the wall, turning her head so that he couldn’t see her small flush. As she walked away and over to the exhausted body of Rigesh, Morio snickered to himself, taking note of the small red spot on the side of her cheeks.

She gently tapped her fingers against Rigesh’s cheek, healed but still a little swollen. After a few seconds of coming out of his slumber, he cracked open his eyes to see Elanya hovering over him, staring at him flatly. He winced as he turned his head to look around the room at three sleeping bodies and a coffee-drinking Morio.

“Come on, it’s time to go.”

He groaned. “Give me, like, three more hours.”

She pinched his nose. “It was your decision to throw fists with a Meister of Combat Arms. Let’s go.”

Rigesh put on a shirt, gathered his bags and pistols, and headed out behind Elanya who had already walked nearly a block ahead. Speeding around the corner, he caught up to her as she placed a skeptical hand on her hip, watching him struggle to catch his breath. He winced, but he wasn’t sure if it was because of the pain in his backside or her scathing glare. Taking a moment to stretch his body, pulling at his stiff muscles in his shoulders and thighs, he apprehensively watched Elanya as she penetrated him with her darkened glare. She was obviously upset, but he didn’t know the reason why.

“You’re upset,” he said.

She crossed her arms, pursing her lovely lips. “Am I, huh?”

Resisting the urge to tease her, he stood in front of her, shrugging his shoulders as though he had no idea how to resolve the issue. “El, I’m sorry for oversleeping.”

“Mhmm.” She turned toward one of the crumbled main streets and started retracing her steps from yesterday. Since they cleared the area ahead of time the previous day, there were no Flesh Hoarders in sight. There was an eerie feeling surrounding her as she gazed up and down the long street, it’s foundation destroyed and buried beneath chunks of ancient buildings.

“El, are you upset with me?” Rigesh asked softly.

“No. I’m just annoyed by yesterday,” she turned to face him, arms still crossed beneath her chest, “you didn’t have to accept his challenge. You both ended up looking stupid.”

“Well, I won, so…”

Elanya rolled her eyes and turned away from him, walking forward into the street as she clashed with herself to control her emotions. “Nemedion had more hits on you. He only lost to you because he isn’t used to people being able to bash his head in.”

Rigesh beamed as he stepped in front of her. “You’re saying I’m more sturdier.”

“I’m saying you’re an idiot.”

He feigned pain as he slung his forearm over his forehead and sighed. “Why, I never! You’re really cutting me deep here. And while I’m in pain, too!”

Elanya reached for the arm on his forehead and pushed it away as she inspected his semi-swollen face. He would need another round of healing when they returned from scouting. She rubbed her thumb down one of his eye brows, fussing over him like a mother hen does her chick. A knot was still prominent above his eyebrow and his left cheek was hard to the touch. Specs of dried blood hid in the small hairs in his eyebrows, his hair and behind his ears.

“You still have some blood on your face,” she sighed, turning his head slightly to the left and right inspecting him further.

Rigesh smiled, ignoring the pain in his jaw. “You’re fussing over me.”

“I’ve seen Nemedion’s opponents after they lose their matches. They’re usually out for days, even after being healed, yet here you are, walking and talking like nothing happened.”

“You really thought that I would end up like them?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied honestly, “even though I knew you were talented, I didn’t realize the extent. What were those fighting moves from yesterday? Did you learn that while you were with the Knights?”

He shook his head, looking away from her and into the dilapidated area. “No, there aren’t too many people who know that style. I learned it from my father. It’s a fighting style known in the rural parts of Gong-dai.”

She lifted a curious eyebrow and she moved her head to be in line with his distracted sight. “A fighting style you learned in the country? I’ve never seen it.”

“Of course not, are you from Gong-dai?”

“No, but I have seen many different fighting styles and I’ve never seen that one.”

“Keyword is many. You haven’t seen them all.”

Elanya touched his face abruptly, turning it toward hers so they could look at one another. “Gesh, you’re being awfully defensive about this. Where did you learn to fight?”

Rigesh sighed as he brought his hands to touch the ones on his face. “I’m not being defensive. You just won’t believe me.”

Tilting her head slightly, hands still on his cheeks, she kept silent, hoping that he would explain everything to her. Whether she believed him or not, she at least wanted to have an understanding from him on why he fought the way he did.

“My father taught me how to fight when I was five years old. The fighting style is called Baokun, something that has been passed down in our family for generations. Because my family line never bore any mages capable of wielding enough magic to be noticed, they started using their physical bodies instead of their fingers. You could turn any battle in your favor by throwing your opponent off balance, disrupting their senses and shifting all weight into your feet. You fight with open palms so your arms move faster with more force, whether you are blocking or attacking. Kicks are the main way to fight.”

Elanya had never heard of Baokun before and she didn’t think her father would know anything about it either. A fighting style that is only passed down through familial generations didn’t sound very logical, however, Rigesh was adamant that it was something that his father taught him.

She narrowed her hazel eyes in doubt. “If this fighting style is passed down through the family due to their lack of magical talent, then why teach you about it? You have more than the average amount of magic, and especially more than the people in the country.”

Rigesh shrugged, honestly clueless. “I don’t know. I think my father taught me because it was a family thing, though he was pretty confused once he realized I had a lot of magic as a child. He told me that only a few other people know how to use Baokun, and if they do know it, they were taught by monks in my family.”

“Monks?” Elanya scoffed. “You mean to tell me you’re a monk?”

He shook his head, both of their hands on his face still holding onto him. “No. I didn’t want to become one, hence why I ended up in the military.”

Understanding and belief began to register in her eyes. She felt a little bad for him. “You left home to become a Knight, instead of a Monk. Is that why you didn’t go home after you left Zalatine?"

He grasped her hand tighter, obvious pain flashing in his bright, green eyes. “It’s hard to talk about. That’s probably why Morio was so adamant about me not fighting. I can fight many different ways, but Baokun is how I prefer to fight if I’m doing one-on-one.”

Still feeling guilty about drilling him about his fighting style and suspecting that he was a spy, Elanya rubbed her thumbs across his cheeks and smiled. “I’m sorry. I was just nervous. I really thought that Nemedion would kill you.”

He chuckled, then leaned his forehead to touch hers. “It would take a lot more than a beating to kill me. You still have to give me a proper answer, you know.”

---

Pinpointing the location of their next possible hideout, Rigesh peered over his hiding spot on the roof of a nearby building. Below him was Elanya, crouched behind what looked to be a wooden cart. Moss had grown all over it, along with the aging wood darkening around the edges. She darted forward behind a half standing pole as she spotted a few mindless Flesh Hoarders. Some of them had recently feasted on human flesh from the look of their illuminated yellow eyes. A few of the blank eyes monsters started tearing at each other, chopping their teeth in savage hunger.

Elanya threw a pebble to the left of her hiding spot, alerting some of the weaker Flesh Hoarders to run toward the sound, falling over themselves to get to it. A Flesh Hoarder meticulously observed the area with his yellow eyes and signaled for a few of the stronger ones to follow him. Elanya tsked to herself, upset that there were more competent Flesh Hoarders in the crowd. Compared to yesterday, they had killed many of the bottom feeders and only had to retreat back because they were overwhelmed by numbers. This time the numbers had diminished, at least after she caused a distraction, but there were more powerful ones here. It seemed like it progressed deeper into the city, there were more intelligent Flesh Hoarders. They were acting like leaders and commanders instead of the brutish savages that the others were. Elanya remembered the medium-sized group of Flesh Hoarders that overtook the Airport back in Yulin-dai and how calculated and precise with their actions. It was starting to become a bit frightening to run into more and more of those.

She looked up to Rigesh who aimed his pistols around her and nodded, letting her know that he would cover her. As they came closer to her, she held fast to Valla and swung out, sending crescent-shaped attacks of her Moon Magic. The main leader and three of his minions dodged out of the way, but one was unlucky, catching the full brunt of her magical attack and perished into the wind. She earned a hiss from the rest that noticed her, the leader narrowing his yellow eyes and pointing at her to attack.

This Flesh Hoarder was the first time she had seen wearing normal clothes. They didn’t seem to be too dirty, considering the dirt and dust blowing up in their faces, but it wasn’t torn or wrinkled. The gender of the creature seemed to be male, and he had distinguished himself from the other three. His skin didn’t appear to be grey of rot, but of a smooth, sickly grey. There were lines in his skin that were stitched together neatly, unlike the others whose grotesque muscles and innards hung from their open wounds. His coarse hair was aptly pulled back into a knot on his neck, few strands of dirty blonde flailed in the wind. This Flesh Hoarder seemed more human than the rest.

Casting some Earth Magic to her defense, she surrounded her front with a short wall of earth. Stepping back into the pole, she waited for them to climb over so Rigesh could shoot them from above. Two of the Flesh Hoarders leaped over the wall and Rigesh shot them down immediately, the palish light evaporating the creatures into black dust. The leader and the last minion separated from one another and attacked from the side. Elanya took a second before she changed elements, then coated the tip of her blade with her Moon Magic. A quick two step ensued and she was on the last lackey, slicing his head clean off with Valla.

Rigesh aimed his onyx pistol at the last Flesh Hoarder, the leader, as it encroached onto Elanya. He shot another pale pink shot, but the leader quickly dodged away, shielding himself with his own elemental magic. Rigesh gritted his teeth in irritation as he threw himself over the edge of the building and began to scale down, ignoring the aching pain in his knees. As he climbed down, Elanya ducked and parried the attacks from the leader throwing Fire Magic at her. She ran around to the other side of her Earth wall but the leader smashed into it with his fist covered in earth. He lunged toward her, opening his wide mouth to flash grimey, off-white teeth. Pivoting on the heel of her right foot, she brought her leg up, kicking the Flesh Hoarder in the chest.

A shot barely grazed the Flesh Hoarder as he moved away from Elanya and to the left of the Earth wall, growling at Rigesh. Rigesh dashed forward, casting a spell with his pistols and creating a large explosion of magic. Not quick to shield itself, the monster’s arm was torn from the explosion. Black blood dripped from his ripped socket as he sat on his back in pain. Rigesh walked up to him, stepping furiously on the Flesh Hoarder’s stomach. After shooting three shots back to back, he watched as the leader struggled to regenerate, his very being slipping away into the stale air. He was taking a lot longer to fade away than the others after being touched by Elanya and Rigesh’s magic. Instead of crying out in pain, the Flesh Hoarder looked him directly in the face, yellow eyes dimming, but still full of fury as his life force ebbed away.

Rigesh fell on his bottom, huffing as he took a rest on a pile of uncomfortable, but safe rocks. Elanya went to help him up, but he held his hand up, trying to catch his breath. She was distressed while he struggled to catch his breath and she couldn’t erase the worry creasing her face.

“Are you alright? Maybe you shouldn’t have come down here, you’re still hurt from yesterday.” Elanya kneeled next to him and wiped his face.

“I’m just a bit out of shape, is all.” Rigesh exhaled in staggered breaths.

“Well, while you catch your breath, I’m going to get rid of the rest of those Flesh Hoarders,” she pointed to the hysteric group still follicking in the corner trying to find the pebble she threw earlier, “they’re too dumb to put up a fight against just me.”

Rigesh winced. “Yeah, sure, whatever.”

Elanya walked to a fallen post near the deranged Flesh Hoarders who had begun to tear apart at each other. In pained awe, Rigesh watched as she drew a circle with the tip of her rapier, purple runes signaled around in an incantation. Her nice, plump lips spoke softly and quickly as she spoke in the Mvag language. Once the purple runes brightened in the incantation, a burst of magic shot from the tip of her rapier and ravaged destruction upon the Flesh Hoarders. Almost instantly, they evaporated into a defeated, black cloud of dust. After seeing no trace of them left, Elanya sheathed Valla and walked over to Rigesh, who observed her with a gawky stare.

“What?” she asked.

“You’re a show off,” he replied, slowly getting to his feet.

Elanya grinned as she put her arm around Rigesh’s waist, steadying him as they started walking back to their hideout. “A bit. Let’s stop here for today since you still have some healing to do. We can come back and clear this area tomorrow.”

Orantal’s eyes nearly popped from their sockets when she saw the sorry state Rigesh was in. As much as she wanted to chide their secondary healer about her methods, she knew that not everyone could bind bones and heal ripped skin as well as she could. Yahna had spent most of the day sleeping, as well. She stayed up well into the morning to make sure Rigesh was healed as best as he could be, then passed out in a corner in the middle of doing another task. But she still fared better than Nemedion, who had spent most of the day rising and sinking into his pallet with a repulsive headache. Whenever he caught the shivers, Orantal would wrap him in another blanket then heat his back with a little bit of Fire Magic.

Morio held his scolding back as he sipped on another cup of coffee, watching three of the most obnoxious people, Rigesh included in that bunch, writhe in agony. He knew that the three were stubborn, but he didn’t expect them to be stupid, too.

Elanya sighed as she shrugged Rigesh off onto his pile of blankets and pillows. She gave a concerned look to Orantal who waved her hands, reassuring.

“He’ll be fine. His bones aren’t broken, he’s just probably still bruised,” Orantal kneeled next to him and touched his back, hands glowing a pale yellow. “One more healing session should be enough. Did you overexert yourself while you were out?”

“Just some extra cardio,” he said, wincing as Orantal brushed her fingers over his ribs.

“We came across a different type of Flesh Hoarder today,” Elanya commented, crossing her arms in disbelief as Orantal used Earth Magic around Rigesh’s ribs. “He was smarter, faster and had magic. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were more of those types near our destination.”

Morio placed his half-drunk cup of coffee on the half-broken window sill, concern maring his light features. “Is this something we should be focusing on instead? If there are more sophisticated Flesh Hoarders roaming the streets, then we can’t keep sending just the two of you.”

Rigesh shook his head. “It’s fine. He wasn’t really a hassle for me and Elanya to take on.”

“That’s because we came across only one of them. What if more than one decides to attack us at once?” Elanya asked.

“I don’t think more than one would attack us at once,” he said, craning his neck downward to watch Orantal heal the slight purple bruises on his ribs, “for what I noticed, there is usually only one of those exceptional creatures in every group of crazies. It’s possible that the smarter ones are tasked with a certain group of Flesh Hoarders to patrol their respective areas.”

“And how did you come up with that absurd idea?” asked Nemedion rising from his pallet in rough shape.

“Call it intuition,” Rigesh replied looking at Morio who shrugged and picked up his cup, a sudden thing for his own anxiety, “but when they planned to ambush us at the broken wall on the east side of the city, I noticed one of them seemed more coherent and decisive than the others that were around him. He didn’t have as much magic as the one from today did, but he did have enough to be leading the rest of those lackeys around.”

“It would mean that someone is commanding them and they obviously know we’re here.” Morio remarked.

“They would have come dealt with us by now if they had that much power to command,” Elanya argued.

“No,” Rigesh disagreed, “no, they want us to come to them. These random strong Flesh Hoarders were dispatched as a test for us.”

Nemedion tapped his fingers on his crossed thighs, avoiding the repeated banging on the inside of his ears. His typical response would be that the group pack up and depart for Yulin-dai before the danger gets any worse, but he was starting to become watchful of the city they were in. Sogara-dai held secrets and dark magic here, he was sure of it. It was his duty as a Meister to make sure that those did not fall into the wrong hands.

“I don’t think we have any choice but to keep going the way we have. Once this damned headache disappears I will be accompanying you both on your scouting.”

Rigesh narrowed his eyes to Nemedion before he brought his face up to look at Elanya who had sat in front of him as she watched Orantal heal him. In a silent, but brief conversation, the two came to a decision. They couldn’t afford for Nemedion to leave their hideout in the case of them being held up by the Flesh Hoarders in the city. He was the only one who could protect the rest of the group and get them to safety if Elanya or Rigesh were to fail. The Flesh Hoarder from today was strong, but not enough to take down two people. If they encountered a stronger one the next couple of days of their scouting, Nemedion would just get in their way. He could protect the group, but he could not protect himself.

Elanya tried to play devil’s advocate and disagreed with her friend. If he were to fall in battle here, she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself. “We need you here, Nem. We can’t have you out there.”

Outraged, he stood up, swaying. “And why not? He’s out there with you.”

“I’m not fucking useless out there. You’ll just be bait for us.” Rigesh contented with the agitated noble.

“How can you say I’m useless? I’m a Meister of Combat Arms! I may have lost consciousness during our fight yesterday but I did more damage to you than you did to me.”

“They aren’t stupid, Nemedion, once the smarter ones figure out you don’t have magic to kill them, they’ll target you and use you against us.”

“What would you know about them using me as bait?”

“I know enough!” Rigesh yelled.

“Stop,” Orantal pushed Rigesh back down from his half-kneeling position, “you will just work yourself up for nothing.”

Elanya sighed, rubbing her knuckles on the sides of her forehead. “Look, we don’t have time to argue. We need to be in a new hideout in two days and go into the library the day after. It’s important that we stay focused on the goal at hand before we run out of time. Nemedion, I want you to stay here until I give the okay to move from this position. And Rigesh, you’re with me, but no more stupid shit like fighting until you’re fucking braindead.”

She stood up, still rubbing her knuckles against her temples and went outside to take some time to herself. The room went silent, awkward looks were being passed around the room. No one liked making Elanya upset because it just stressed her out further. Their constant bickering would only make her leadership harder for her. Nemedion heaved as he walked to the corner that had their food supplies and rummaged through it for anything that would calm his nerves, grumbling his displeasure of everything. The hate between the two men had boiled over into an unnecessary death match leaving them both licking their wounds in shame. Everyone else was uncomfortable by their alpha-like behavior. Rigesh understood at an early point in their journey that he would have to hold his tongue and accept being the bigger person since he was older and a lot more likeable than the latter, but his growing admiration for Elanya had disrupted his maturity.

Morio picked up a dark violet mug and poured fresh coffee in it from their outdoor coffee maker. He held out a cup to Rigesh, jerking his head toward the door--a sign that he should go and make everything less stressful for the rest of the group. Before he could argue with his friend, Orantal pressed her tiny, warm hands on his newly healed ribs and pouted, looking every inch the spoiled, rich princess. Her clear, blue eyes held the same intent as Morio’s coffee offering. Unable to stand the pressure of two stubborn people, he relented, throwing a quick shirt over his head and making his way to the door, albeit slowly.

The hot headed Moon user leaned against the shalky building, arms crossed like a disappointed child. Tendrils of Moon Magic flickered off of her body, raging around her in a matched fury. Her hazel eyes were forest green dark, her pupils small and slanted like a predator watching over an ingenuous prey. Specks of gold, maroon and black were peppered in the iris of his eyes, swirling around like vast colors going to war. Her vermillion colored hair fell at her shoulders instead of the usual short knot that clinged to her neck. Almost like static had pulled around her, her hair was standing up on the side of her head and neck. Her silent anger seemed a lot more frightening than what her blow up could be.

Rigesh stepped forward, earning him an aggravated glare from the fuming Elanya. She had never directed her anger toward him before and the new stare churned his insides into mush. Fumbling with his words, he stared into the violet coffee mug steaming with piping hot liquid. What could he possibly say to her that would lessen the edge in her mood?

“El, I’m sorry.” He apologized for the second time that day.

Elanya turned her head away to look toward the broken street, arms still crossed in anger. She said nothing to him, but he didn’t fail to notice some of the tension leaving her body.

“I was being a child trying to prove myself like that. I shouldn't have fought with Nemedion knowing he could have killed me, knowing that I should have put one hundred percent into scouting in the morning,” he reached out to grab her hand where he was met with no resistance as he placed her coffee mug in it, “and I’m sorry for troubling you like I did today. It won’t happen again.”

Sniffing with apprehensive eyes, she lifted her mug to her lips, taking a large gulp. The hot liquid slid down her throat, calming her tense nerves and heating her slightly cold body. Still, she did not speak to him, leaving him with uncertainty weighing heavy on his tight shoulders.

“I am serious about you, you know.” He started again, standing in front of her, reaching out to touch her cheek. Her face turned towards him, but her eyes still looked away, cast downward in slowly, simmered anger. “I don’t like making you upset. All I want to do is help you as much as I can. I just get so frustrated with that asshole because I feel like I’m competing.”

Elanya lifted her eyes, the colors spinning together to create a dark green with gold tints. “I thought you knew that you didn’t have any competition, Gesh.”

“I guess I just wanted reassurance. It’s not like I can talk to you or express myself like this around the others.”

“I don’t care about what the others think.”

“I know, but this wouldn’t be good for group morale.”

Elanya brought the cup of coffee to her lips once more, savoring in the bitter liquid as she looked at the man before her. “Well, maybe you can fix the group morale when you wake up bright and early.”

Rigesh ran his fingers through his rough black hair, sighing at his confliction between responsibility and desires. “Alright, bright and early. No more fighting. My dedication will only be to you.”

“To help secure the area.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Elanya took another sip of her coffee and motioned her head to the door, signaling for him to leave her alone. Their discussion was finished. She had nothing more to talk about with him and it shouldn’t have taken her short responses to let him know that he needed to get his head back in the game or he would become as useless as Nemedion. Her feelings were just as strong as his, but she couldn’t allow those emotions drive her from her goal. The Goddess of Death gave her too many hints for her to get distracted now. In a few days time, when they were all settled at the next hideout, she promised herself that she would give Rigesh a proper answer. The lines had already been blurred, but no words had been said. Interested was a weak word to describe what she felt. Roused was a more accurate word for her frustrations. The more and more she came closer to Rigesh, the more and more she found out new things about herself.

Rigesh slumped onto his pallet disharmonized with himself. Morio and Orantal gave him concerned looks, noticing he had returned without Elanya. Nemedion smirked to himself, thinking he had made a good decision by leaving his friend by herself. From his years of disagreements with Elanya, he knew that she preferred to cool down by herself. Talking to her in such a state would only worsen her mood further. Of course, that wasn’t the case with Rigesh, but Nemedion didn’t know that. In fact, he was oblivious to everything else that didn’t center around himself.

Yahna was still sleeping in a corner, heavy healing had completely drained her of everything. Feeling sorry for her paltry situation, Morio picked her up from her sleepy corner and led her to the bed in the only available room. While thankful for the reprieve from her nauseating antics, he was concerned about her heavy use of Earth Magic while healing Rigesh. She could be out for a couple of days because she wasn’t experiencing extensive use of magic. He was no expert in magic, and lacked the skills to do so himself, but she didn’t possess the knowledge to restore her magic through nature. He had seen Orantal do it last night when she dug her petite hands in the dirt and sucked magic from the earth. On occasion, when he spied on him in the park across from the Tower, he would watch Rigesh do the same thing, sometimes switching between the earth and meditating under the cool breeze. Morio hoped that she wouldn’t be a nuisance when they packed up everything and fled to their next destination.

Half an hour passed before Elanya made her way back into the house. She noticed a missing member from the unsettled living room, but didn’t comment on it, instead she started making soup from a can in their reserves. They ate with minimum conversation, the room still heavy with awkward tension between Nemedion and Rigesh. Elanya believed that the two could become friends if Nemedion wouldn’t have such a stick up his ass about being wealthy, noble and magically inclined. She knew, despite the Water Magic handicap, that Rigesh was well versed in magic, but she couldn’t discount the tips and skills that Morio must have taught him when they were working for the Transit Bureau. Morio had an above average talent of magic himself, talent he preferred not to show off unless it was working on Magitech. Yahna, although convenient in some areas, hadn’t really proven herself to Elanya, but maybe time would tell when they got closer into the city.

The next couple of days passed without any problems. Rigesh, in top shape after being healed by the honorable Orantal, had provided decent help to Elanya as she dealt with the Flesh Hoarders on the ground. Like a hungry predator, he had followed her while scattered across the rooftops of buildings, sniping out singled-out enemies like frantic ants. When they came upon their building, the main street in front of it had been cleared, but they couldn’t be so sure about the inside. Rigesh was stationed on top and she was on the bottom. It would be a risky move, but they could clear the building of stragglers with one cleaning up from the bottom and the other from the top. There wouldn’t be the other there to provide cover in case of sticky situations, so they would have to rely on their own strength to keep them alive during the whole ordeal.

The building looked to be an old-style shopping market, four stories filled with food so rotten it looked like hardened rocks and materials so old, they broke down at the slightest touch. Furniture was covered in cobbed webs and other insect nests, possible fecal matter sprinkled on cushions. Windows broke and scratched so badly that looking through them were futile. A few dazed Flesh Hoarders, the ones similar to the lifeless ones outside the city, were standing around lost, their attention on nothing in particular. One looked out a cracked window, a sad longing hiding in his vacant eyes. They were a lot skinnier than the other Flesh Hoarders, specifically the ferals that survived on anything that moved in front of them. Their eyes looked like white pearls mismatched on a dark canvas with their grotesque skin. Hunched over, many of them cried in agony, clawing away at their throats, hoping for death.

Elanya didn’t have time to stop to feel sympathetic toward the creatures, but she would end their misery to further her cause. Swiping through them like a knife slicing through butter, she killed them as she sprinted through the floors, trying to meet Rigesh in the middle. She was lucky to have gotten the Flesh Hoarders without wills, but she couldn’t be so sure about his luck. Exhaling deeply she focused on the monster’s wailing and shooting sounds on the floors above her. Instead of an easy slaughter, it sounded as though he was actually fighting against some of them.

Propelling herself up the second flight of stairs, she barely dodged parts of the ceilings crashing down. What was expected was a crazy feral screaming and swinging his arms around attempting to grab a hold of flesh. What Elanya saw was a Flesh Hoarder standing nearly seven feet, bulky muscles bulging, thrashing about as Rigesh hung onto it with his arms around its neck. His right held his dagger, which was dug firmly into the creature’s shoulder. She hadn’t seen this type of Flesh Hoarder before, nor would she have expected such a big one hiding out in this small building. It couldn’t reach behind his big body to throw Rigesh off, so it rammed its shoulder into the wall, rattling Rigesh as he fell to the side. His black pistol lay a few feet away, the other barely being held in his left hand.

“Rigesh!” She yelled.

The giant Flesh Hoarder turned its attention to her, thick looking drool foaming at his large, corrupted mouth. Unlike the other Flesh Hoarders who had either yellow or white eyes, this one was red, like it was under a spell of rage. Across its large body were uncongenial scars of stitches, the different patches of dark skin sewn crudely together like a lazy attempt to suture a wound. Its muscles were so bulky that it’s charred black skin could barely contain it, skin straining as glimpses of grey organs could be seen through the rips. If eating humans with magic could turn the Flesh Hoarders into the hunter they ran into the other day, then what could have this Flesh Hoarder possibly eaten to get this big?

It roared loudly, then stomped over to Elanya as fast as his body could muster. It wasn’t very fast, nor could it move gracefully, but she was nervous about the raw strength it demonstrated as it punched a large hole into a wall after Elanya ducked away from his fist. Her sword sliced across the Flesh Hoarder’s side as she dodged. The bad feeling in the pit of her stomach roared with uneasiness as she watched the creature slowly turn to face her, unattractive yellow teeth gritting in a fusion of pain and anger. Bringing her forearms to her face, she blocked his harrowing fist from knocking her out, instead it threw her across the hallway with raging force. Her back hit against the opposing wall next to a large door of an old glass shop. Whatever hadn’t been destroyed and cracked during the last three hundred years had shattered at her impact as she went through the plastered drywall.

“Elanya!” Rigesh shouted as he got to his feet, holding up his amber pistol at the creature. He shot two shots into the creature’s back but the bullets soaked into its body. The holes and long gash did not regenerate, black blood oozed down and dispersed once it hit the ground. Around the large wounds were small specks of black particles, the ones similar to when the Flesh Hoarders died to Elanya’s Moon Magic or Rigesh’s pistols. This enemy held a strong constitution like the leader of the small band of Flesh Hoarders they previously fought a week ago. Their magic would indefinitely be their downfall, but these two examples would need an overwhelming amount of magic to meet their demise.

Rigesh dashed to his second pistol, but was cut short by a large chair being thrown at him. The massive opponent started grabbing anything it could find surrounding them on the third floor of the abandoned shopping center and flung it at Rigesh. He ducked under and jumped over the large objects as he made his way to his pistol. Clutching his pistols in both hands, he moved his Runic Slides to the side so only Air could be used and cast an Air piercing spell. The Flesh Hoarder would be able to heal the sudden holes in his calves, but it would slow him down enough for Rigesh to check up on Elanya. He stepped over the hole to the Glass Shop and helped Elanya to her feet, dazed and confused.

“Are you okay?” He asked, checking her over for any wounds. “Do you have any broken bones?”

She shook debris from her head, coughing out dust stuck in her throat. “I’m fine. Nothing’s broken. What the fuck is that thing?”

“I wish I knew, but that thing isn’t fucking normal. He doesn’t have magic and his body is built like a bear.”

“We need to hide somewhere until we can figure out how to defeat that thing.”

Elanya looked around the small room full of shattered glass, hoping for a hiding spot. Looking through the chained doorway of the shop, she looked at the shops across the hallway. One of them was a store full of different minerals ranging from a ruby to amethyst while the others were of wooden figures, artwork splintered and scratched beyond recognition.

“Let’s hide inside the clothes shop until we figure out how to get out of this mess,” Elanya said rising up with her back against the wall, out of the view of the hole, “can you shoot another Air piercing spell like you did earlier?”

Rigesh nodded. “Yep, just say the word.”

They fled from the room as quickly as they could. The giant Flesh Hoarder noticed them and lunged forward to them, shoving chairs and tables out of his way. Summoning as much Air he could muster while running, Rigesh put Air underneath his feet and using his own momentum, he shoved Elanya into the shop. Using both his pistols, he cast a tornado of wind to the Flesh hoarder, cutting at its skin and slashing at its legs and arms. It doubled over in pain and focused on healing itself while Rigesh rolled into the shop.

Elanya pulled him to a dark corner and they both squatted while they listened to the annoying wails of the monster. “That was risky.”

“Risky’s my middle name.” Rigesh quipped.

She ignored him, putting her ear to the wall to listen to the Flesh Hoarder’s loud steps. It ran up and down the hallway looking for them, but hadn’t decided on looking into the individual shops yet. While being more advanced than the other Flesh Hoarders, it lacked intelligence.

“How did you come across that thing?” She asked concentrating on the external sounds outside the walls.

Rigesh gulped as he scratched at the back of his neck, processing the last hour in the building. “Uh, well, it’s pretty fucked up. After clearing the top floor, I ran across that big bear tearing into another big Flesh Hoarder like him. The ferals were terrified, hiding behind anything they could find so they wouldn’t get eaten. I put them out of their misery, but the big fuck wasn’t phased by anything. We ended up scrapping and crashing into the third floor after he freaked out when I stabbed him.”

He seemed to be annoyed that his favorite knife was still stuck in the Flesh Hoarder’s shoulder. Elanya could only sympathize with the man, remembering the times she threw Valla into the chest of criminals who tried to run away from her.

“So, there was another one of them? I guess it’s good that he ate the other big one or we would have been dealing with two of them.”

They both shivered at the thought. Rigesh placed a hand on her shoulder and sighed. “I don’t want to make assumptions, but I think these bigger ones get like this after eating a ton of ferals. Let’s give the smart ones we ran across the other day a name, something like--Hunters sound good. The Hunters evolve into intellectual beings after consuming a lot of flesh and magic. They’re adept, skillful and magically inclined. Now these big boys, we can call them Stoneguard or something, are pumped up with eating weak ferals that they evolve into these large monstrosities. They’re like a chimera of other Flesh Hoarders and can’t be described as one being--they are multiple Flesh Hoarders melded into one. That’s probably why it’s resistance to our magic is so high.”

“When did you think about all that?” Elanya questioned.

“I just had a lot of time to think while I was hanging off the thing’s back after shooting it seven times,” he shrugged, “but he’s still affected by our magic. He can’t heal his wounds and I think it’s slowly killing him.”

“What’s the chance of us running into another one of those Stoneguards while we’re stationed here?”

Calculating his chances, Rigesh grinned. “I don’t think we will run into another one of those soon. We’ve cleared most of this area and he already ate the other big guy. What’s the plan, El?”

Elanya leaned over her knees as she squatted, thinking about how ridiculous her plan would sound. However, knowing Rigesh as much as she did now, she knew he would agree to it no matter what. “The only logical conclusion is to overload it with our magic until it explodes.”

“I like this plan.”

She sighed. “I knew you would. We need to catch it off guard somehow, so I will distract it while you litter it with bullets from the back.”

“Suddenly, I don’t like this plan.”

“Don’t worry about me. I just need to climb on top of it and stab it with as much Moon Magic that me and Valla can do.”

Rigesh shook his head, eyes wide, aghast. “I know it’s been a while since I’ve seen it but won’t you become immobile after using your soul sword’s magic? If we don’t kill him before you freeze, that thing will throw you across the room.”

Elanya smiled, then patted her hand against his aghast face. “Then you better move fast, Gesh.” Then she stood up from the darkened corner and ran out of the clothing shop, making her presence known by throwing some balls of ice at the Flesh Hoarder.

“Oh great Karnov, fuck me.” Rigesh dashed behind her, surging in the opposite direction shooting at the creature from afar.

The Stoneguard looked between the two in opposite directions; Rigesh shooting powerful piercing spells at it’s back and Elanya throwing lobs of Moon Magic at its front. The wounds sizzled as blood dripped down its body as the wounds grew bigger inch by inch still unable to regenerate. Slabs of its back melted off as it started to run forward, deciding to take his attention to Elanya. She did her best to dodge all attacks, knowing that blocking another dangerous attack like before would see her flying across the room. Sprinting as fast as she could, she zoomed down the hall, knocking down any furniture or debris she could get her hands on to slow the creature down as she charged up her magic for more damaging hits. He absorbed the magic in his abdomen, blood spurting out of the gashes like a water fountain, and continued to charge forward at her while Rigesh kept shooting holes in his back.

Pieces of skin were starting to fall off his body in large chunks and disappearing into black dust after hitting the ground. When he slammed his fist against a nearby wall, chunks of his knuckles slithered off his hand. Each time Rigesh shot a bullet into his back, the hole in his back grew and its grey, rotten organs tumbled out and sloshed from side to side while the angry beast raged after Elanya. Rigesh didn’t like how close the Stoneguard was gaining on Elanya and wasn’t sure if this plan was bound to work, considering that he had to have shot the thing with enough magic to destroy a town. Elanya had been doing her best to outrun while staying on the offensive, sinking as much Moon Magic into the frontal would as possible. It looked like it was close to becoming overwhelmed with their magic. All she had to do was stab it with Valla to deal the final blow.

The end of the hallway was approaching with no feasible exits in sight. Rigesh panicked as he started to run closer to the Flesh Hoarder but Elanya surprised him when she leapt up on the creature’s swinging arm and latched onto it. In one quick motion, she climbed up its back and crossed her strong legs across its thick neck, squeezing on to dear life as she stabbed her rapier into her target.

The Stoneguard wailed as Moon Magic channeled through the sword and into its body. Arms too bulky and short to reach Elanya on his back, he tried his best to pry her small body from his neck.

“Rigesh! Shoot him one more time!” She screamed.

“I can’t shoot him with you hanging onto him!”

The Flesh Hoarder’s body was deteriorating at a faster rate, but it wailed and thrashed around trying to get the sword from its throat. He slammed his back against a wall, but she still held onto her sword as she drove more magic through it. The Moon Stone brightly pulsed as its darkness started to slide over them, burning away at the crying enemy.

“Gesh, please shoot him! I can feel myself going numb!”

“But--”

“Shoot him!”

Wasting no more time arguing, he shot two more bullets at the raging monster. Swirling magic pumped inside of its body, destroying it from the inside out. It froze as the magic started to consume its whole being, skin reducing to nothing to black tar and organs burning into a noxious pit. The tensions pulled inward, then suddenly, it exploded, throwing Elanya several feet away from the explosion. Rigesh ran to catch her, falling onto his knees under her sudden weight. He could feel her starting to stiffen in his arms, eyes closing and lips cracked. After catching his breath, ignoring the brief dizzy spell coming over him, he picked her up fully in his arms and walked out of the hallway and back into the clothing store they hid in earlier.

She leaned against his shoulder as she rested, her limbs still useless from the summoning sickness. Rigesh knew a little bit about Soul Swords-- they use the wielder’s own essence with the magic of the embedded stones which leaves them vulnerable after a certain amount of time. He overheard a conversation between her and Nemedion that her summoning sickness would last about five minutes then she would be free to move again, though he wasn’t sure if it allowed her to use her magic at normal strength. Looking at his pistols, he remembered the feeling he felt when he first used the amber one in the park. It suspended his whole body after his big burst of magic. The same thing happened at the Airport too, but he couldn’t confirm if it was from being in the explosion or the new usage of his pistol. Since then, he hadn’t been too tired from using both his pistols at the same time, a few dizzy spells and sometimes his eyesight would darken, not that he would admit that to the rest of his party. He would have to experience the pros and cons of his new weapons if he wanted to get stronger.

As Elanya continued to rest against him, he ran his tired fingers through her coarse, red hair and held her close, letting her tight coils itch his cheek. With his free hand, he clenched his newly freed knife, turmoil running through his veins. Tonight would be the last night at the hideout before they moved everything over to the abandoned shopping center, but a cold threat settled in his stomach. It hadn’t been too much of a shock by the Hunters appearing to confront them after seeing how they operated at the Airport, but Rigesh was taken aback by the big freaks they fought today. Even Nemedion’s devastating magic wouldn’t have been able to match the raw and inhuman strength of the Stoneguard that they faced. Elanya was a fool to think that she could block an attack like that. He was a fool to think he could take the thing on in a wrestling contest. If those two advanced creatures existed, he shuddered to think about what would await them in the center of the city.

The others thought they would get all their answers in the library, but he knew that they wouldn’t be leaving after that. They were bound to be stuck in the city. So while they were all thinking about ways on how to get deeper, he was formulating his own plans on how to get them out. He could smell a trap from a mile away, he knew the rest of their adventure wouldn’t be easy.

Tonight would be the night that he gets a confession out of Elanya. It was foolish to put feelings before a mission, because it often caused more problems than solutions, but if he found himself unable to make it out this hell, he wanted to express himself properly. At least, for the first time in his life.

He sighed to himself. How did all this happen in such a short amount of time? This wasn’t part of the plan, nor did he expect anything like this would happen when he decided to pledge his life to help. He thought it would give him a chance to brag about his weapons, to feel as though he accomplished something that couldn’t be done--something that was repeatedly told to him when he was in Zalatine with the Knights. His squadron would laugh at his bad luck and chide him for leaving, wasting away his life like this, but he had no regrets. This was what fate had created for him, and by Karnov, God of Magic, if he managed to survive this catastrophic chance of fate, he would be thankful he was allowed to live past twenty five.