《Ace of Capes [Superhero LitRPG] [Isekai] [Card Crafting]》 1 - Everything Was Fine The universe sent Lexie signals all day. Subtle hints of the danger to come. Unfortunately, she would only realize what they were after it was too late. Right now, she tried unsuccessfully to clear the dots in her vision as she blinked at her laptop screen, interrupted by panicked conversation surrounding her. ¡°Oh shit, oh shit!¡± The quivering voice of her classmate seated on the neighboring desk went off, loud enough for everyone around her to hear. ¡°I can¡¯t do this.¡± ¡°Relax, Cassie, relax,¡± said her friend seated beside her. ¡°You don¡¯t understand,¡± Cassie snapped at her. ¡°I can¡¯t!¡± ¡°Just open your portal. I swear you got in. I just know it.¡± Cassie didn¡¯t seem confident as she pushed a few buttons on her brand new MacBook. And she was right to be unsure, because just seconds later she took off running in a teary fit. ¡°Cassie!¡± Her friend chased after her. A few of their classmates laughed, and others made sounds of sympathy. Meanwhile Lexie tried unsuccessfully to tune all of it out. It was hard enough to focus without the noise. Her head felt foggy, her brain heavy like she had to drag it along. She¡¯d managed two all nighters in a row to finish this research paper and she was still only halfway done. And she felt like she might pass out any second now. Maybe she should take a break. Breaks are for the weak, her inner voice countered mockingly. You¡¯re fine. Just need more caffeine. She rose to get just that, feeling a little woozy as she did. Then as she left her classroom, a buzz of anxious conversation followed in her wake. Everyone was on edge, even though they tried to pretend they weren¡¯t. They spoke in hushed tones, forced laughter, and said stuff like, ¡°Oh yeah, I didn¡¯t want to get in anyway.¡± As she passed the bathroom, Lexie heard someone throwing up. The intercom beeped every hour to remind everyone to stay calm. It wasn''t the end of the world though it might feel like it. The anxiety was eating a hole in Lexie¡¯s stomach too, but she maintained a calm exterior. Her hand shook a little, the nerves buzzing underneath her skin. But no one here would see her sweat. Early Decisions week was here and the heat was on. Saint Juana¡¯s Preparatory Academy was a school full of dramatic overachievers, like Lexie, who took Early Decisions week very seriously. For a lot of them, their entire life hinged on getting into a good school. And doing it early¨Cbefore the rest of the less educated plebeians who didn¡¯t go to SJP and hence could only get into schools regular decision¨Cgave them a sort of privilege, solidifying their status as the best and brightest of New York Society. At the end of the day, they all got to send their acceptances on this big class group chat. Anyone who didn¡¯t get in early action or early decision to an elite university was quickly identified and tagged as a loser. Lexie had only applied to one school early, and she was awaiting the email. It felt like the most important email she would ever get in her life. It occupied most of her mind this morning. Until she turned the corner and froze upon the last thing she wanted to see. A bunch of boys surrounding an even smaller one in a leather jacket. Lexie¡¯s mother always warned her to avoid guys with leather jackets, but somehow she didn¡¯t think Mom meant this one. For one, he was only sixteen years old, the same as her. He was short for a guy too, only a few inches above her five-three-and-a-quarter. His jacket was clearly not a stylistic choice¨Cit was worn, with patches and tears in the elbows, and faded from frequent use. The boy wore it so often, she figured it might be the only jacket he had. It disappeared during the summer but always made an appearance right before the winter months started. And even when some classmates had thrown it in the trash full of yesterday¡¯s lunch, as a cruel joke, she¡¯d seen him fish it out painstakingly, seemingly unbothered by the smell of rotten food that clung to it. Must be warm, she¡¯d thought to herself. Leather jacket boy¡¯s name was Tate Reynolds and lately, he was having a lot of problems. The tallest guy surrounding Tate, whose name Lexie didn¡¯t care to know, playfully shoved him into the locker. ¡®Playfully¡¯ in quotes because Tate didn¡¯t look like was enjoying the treatment. The other boys prevented his escape, so he could do nothing but stand there, stiff in defiance, shoulders hunched in defense, while they pushed and smirked and murmured whatever they were saying with those cruel looks on their faces. No one was being explicitly violent yet. It was too early for that, and the security cameras were right there. Still, it was meant to be humiliating and psychologically draining. And judging from Tate¡¯s reddened face, it was working. But also, none of this was any of Lexie¡¯s business. Even though frustration had her clenching her fists, and the avenging side of her wanted to sock at least one of those bullies in the face. No, not violence. That wouldn¡¯t help. But maybe she could reason with them. Tell them how unfair and stupid it was that there were five of them picking on the smaller boy. Tell them they looked like total losers doing it. But they wouldn¡¯t care what Lexie thought and getting on their radar would be bad for the rest of her school year. She ran through the scenarios in her tired mind and came up blank. Try as she might, there was nothing she could do for Tate right now. At least, nothing she was willing to do. It¡¯s none of my business, Lexie reminded herself, forcing her fists to unclench and her jaw to unknot. She turned around and walked away, deciding to take the long way to the vending machine. Something in her, that crazy urge, wanted her to go back, to do something about what she¡¯d seen. But what would I even do? She reminded herself that she didn¡¯t have time to worry about someone else when her life was chock-full of activity as is. She woke up at 5:00 am and had online Spanish and Mandarin classes with tutors in Madrid and Shanghai respectively. Then she took the train to get to school early enough for violin practice. And that was before classes began, with eight AP classes and a full roster of extracurriculars. Lexie was constantly exhausted. But even hinting at her exhaustion would only earn her a proud smile and words of encouragement from her parents. "You can do it, Lexie." "We believe in you." I wish you didn''t, Lexie would think uncharitably. So then maybe I could get some rest. She finally got to the vending machine and fed it her card. Then she leaned her head against the cool metal to rest her eyes for two seconds while it hummed. A few seconds later, her fingers wrapped around two cool soda cans, retrieving them from the vending machine. She felt woozy when she straightened but she ignored it, taking a breath as she walked back into the classroom. Tate was at his desk when she got there, his leather jacket gone. His head was propped on the table, eyes closed. A twinge of guilt squeezed her chest. Before she could change her mind, she walked over, put the second can of coke on his desk and walked away back to her seat. It was an empty gesture. She almost hated herself for doing it. The coke wouldn¡¯t actually do anything to solve his problems, most of which surrounded the intense bullying he¡¯d been receiving for the past few weeks. Lexie didn¡¯t know what brought it about, probably something stupid. But she¡¯d seen it with her own eyes yesterday after hours, when most of the staff and students were already gone. They¡¯d cornered him in the back by the cafeteria, where she could see them through the study room window. Tossing his jacket into the trash was only a small part of what they did. And she¡¯d heard stories about other things. Peeing in his locker. Stealing his gym clothes. Occasional shoving in the hallway. For a bunch of smart kids, SJP students were truly juvenile and uncreative with their bullying. Tate never responded to any of it. His eyes would remain carefully flat as they taunted him, as though he knew that expressing emotion would make everything a thousand times worse. Except yesterday, his eyes met Lexie¡¯s and they¡¯d blazed with a rage that seared right through her. She¡¯d frozen when their eyes locked through the glass window, not knowing what to do. Should she have called someone? But no one would have cared. And those who cared wouldn¡¯t have acted. The people behind the bullying were the richest of the rich kids, with well-connected parents. The kind of kids that you never wanted to be on the radar of. One of them was the senator¡¯s son. The staff wouldn¡¯t do much more than give them a slap on the wrist, and it would make things worse for the boy in the long run. And if it got out that she snitched, she would get bullied too. So yesterday, after she saw him, Lexie had steeled her heart, and done the sensible thing. She¡¯d turned back to her textbooks and ignored the problem. Just like she did five minutes ago. And now she¡¯d just given him a coke as though that was supposed to make up for her inaction. Because that was essentially the kind of person she was. A sensible, people-pleasing coward. A part of her was truly terrified that she would always be this person. She fought the rising guilt and self-disgust, and tried to tell herself it wasn''t her fault Tate was getting bullied. She shouldn¡¯t even care. They weren¡¯t friends and Lexie wasn¡¯t ''Ms. Popular'' either. And she didn''t get him the coke because she felt guilty. It was just supposed to be a nice thing. She repeated those thoughts again and again, as she kept typing, but it wasn''t convincing. She was never very good at lying to herself. He¡¯ll still get bullied tomorrow, and I¡¯ll still pretend not to see it. She thought for a second she felt his gaze at her back, but when she sat and glanced over, his eyes were still shut, not looking like he¡¯d stirred. After the school day had run its course, she got on the subway and finally pulled out her phone. She hadn¡¯t wanted to open up her portal at school, and she didn¡¯t want to do it at home either. But in the subway, no one cared if she got into a good school or not. No one would be disappointed or laugh at her if she cried. So the train was the ideal place to open up the portal. With a pounding heart, she entered her login details (for some reason they never auto-saved), went to the inbox, and opened the newest letter. She read the first line, then reread it three times. Her breath caught. Everything inside her seemed to soar and plummet at the same time. It took a full minute before she could get herself to believe it. ¡°Shit.¡±
¡°Think fast, loser!¡± Lexie heard her brother¡¯s running footsteps before he even spoke and ducked on instinct, avoiding his hand that was about to smack her in the back of the head. Missing his target, he stumbled forward a few steps and then righted himself, spinning around to grin. ¡°Damn, almost had you.¡± ¡°Almost doesn''t cut it,¡± Lexie responded smugly. Despite being two years younger than her, Logan now towered over her, his lanky frame looking extra stretched out in his jeans, which he¡¯d outgrown only a few days ago. Her mother had finally given up on buying him new clothes because as she put it, she couldn¡¯t "buy a new wardrobe every two weeks". Logan was growing so fast that he seemed to gain an inch every time Lexie saw him. And now his new puffer jacket had a tear in the armpit. Lexie nudged it open and said, ¡°Mom¡¯s going to freak when she sees that.¡± Logan shrugged. "Mom always freaks. It¡¯s like her favorite thing. I think if she didn¡¯t freak out at least once a day the world would stop turning, and an interdimensional wormhole would open up." Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Yeah, I know she can be a lot, but you don¡¯t have to make life harder on her. Her tenure got revoked and you know how Dad gets. She¡¯s going through it, you know?" "And I¡¯m not?¡± His voice was a little sharp and Lexie swallowed whatever other admonitions she had. She knew her brother was undoubtedly having a tough time. While Lexie was at least trying to live up to her parents'' lofty expectations, Logan had completely given up on that. He refused to take any extra classes, slacked off when he could, and spent most of his time in his room playing video games. As such, he¡¯d completely bombed the entrance exam to SJP and now went to public school. Which, in their parents'' eyes, was a massive failure. But Logan didn¡¯t really fit in at his school in Brooklyn either. Lexie¡¯s brother may be a slacker but he was also pretty intelligent and was probably the smartest person at that school. And in public school, ¡®smart¡¯ was sometimes a very bad thing to be. ¡°Sorry,¡± she said, and he shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s whatever,¡± which was his way of saying all was forgiven. Still, an awkward-ish silence followed. ¡°I got into MIT,¡± Lexie blurted out. Logan stopped in the process of kicking a piece of snow-covered gravel and gaped at her. "What?" ¡°Early decisions came out today. Just checked mine.¡± She released a sigh. ¡°I got in.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Words seemed to fail her brother and Lexie smiled. He was usually so quick with retorts, part of why he got into so much trouble. To see him dumbfounded was surprising and satisfying. ¡°Good?¡± His breath formed a puff of fog in the frosty air. ¡°Is that a question?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s supposed to be a good thing, but you kinda look like someone peed in your locker.¡± ¡°So that''s really the new thing teenage boys are doing now? Peeing in lockers?¡± He shrugged. ¡°Don¡¯t ask me. It¡¯s not like I participate.¡± Lexie sighed, as they continued walking, making a sport of kicking snow and a random stone she found on their path. They had been fixing up the street before winter began, and so there were bits of gravel everywhere. Exhaustion weighed on her shoulders. There was still a long silent stretch of road to walk before she got home. A dull headache throbbed at one side of her skull. And she still had that paper to finish. ¡°So¡­can I ask? Do you want to go to MIT?¡± ¡°I suppose.¡± The words passed Lexie''s lips before she realized it was a lie. She had never wanted to go to MIT. She¡¯d always just felt like she had to. It was one of the best schools in the country. MIT was also the school her mother wanted to go to. But she never got in and Lexie¡¯s father saw it as a weakness. He made passive aggressive comments about it all the time. Lexie was thirteen when the passive aggressive comments her parents traded like sport turned into something else. She didn¡¯t know why but suddenly they were having daily fights and everything was slowly but steadily falling apart. Then Mom cut her hair and dyed it red. Dad bought a Camaro and barely came home at night. They each became jointly fixated on the idea of Lexie going to MIT. Sometimes Lexie felt like that goal was the only thing keeping her family together. And now that she¡®d achieved it, she didn¡¯t know what would happen. ¡°I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d get in,¡± she admitted to Logan. ¡°I thought¡­¡± She thought that her hard work wouldn¡¯t be enough and she would get rejected. She didn''t think her application was all that special. All she had were her grades and very minor leadership roles in a couple of clubs. Her letters of rec were probably so-so, since it was just an extension of how smart she was although most of her teachers probably saw her as an annoying know-it-all who asked too many questions and corrected them at times. She had a personal statement about how she played card games with her grandpa in hospice. Yeah, sad; but everyone had a story like that tucked away. All in all, Lexie didn¡¯t feel exceptional at all. And MIT notably liked exceptional. So she didn¡¯t think she would get in. She had almost made peace with that. It would suck at first, and her parents would most likely make her feel horrible about it, but then maybe they would get over it. Lexie would cry and feel like a failure for a few weeks. But then she would get over it too. Maybe then, she could explore other options and figure out what the heck she wanted to do with her life beyond school. But now that she got in... ¡°You make everything harder for me, you know that?¡± Logan huffed. ¡°Now I look like even more of a failure.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not a failure. You just don¡¯t want to be their focus.¡± She kicked another stone weakly. ¡°You botched the entrance exam to St. Juana¡¯s on purpose, didn''t you? ¡°Obviously. If I didn''t, I would turn into one of you nerds moping about getting into MIT." Lexie shoved him and he chuckled. ¡°You could just not tell mom and dad that you got in. And buy me off so I keep your secret too.¡± He rubbed his hands together schemingly. ¡°I can be convinced for the right price.¡± Lexie shook her head. "I have to tell them. I''d just feel guilty, otherwise." He gave her a disappointed look. "I wouldn''t." "I know." Lexie stared up at the yellowing sky. They walked in silence for some time until a gas station came into view. Once again, Tate came to mind. He worked at that gas station. Lexie thought maybe his dad owned it or something. She¡¯d seen him there a few times and now as they were approaching, that unsettled feeling came back full fold. Maybe I should check if he¡¯s okay. "You go ahead," Lexie said to her brother. "I gotta grab some snacks for studying tonight." "Get me twizzlers." Logan snapped her bag strap and ran off before she could retaliate. As her brother became a blip in the distance, Lexie turned back to the gas station. She dragged her feet across the concrete floors vaguely wondering if she could manage another all-nighter. She was almost at the steps when she noticed: she didn''t see anyone behind the counter through the glass. Instead, she heard voices around the corner leading to the alley. She approached out of curiosity and that was when she noted that the voice was familiar. She peeked around the corner to make sure. Robbie McBride. He went to SJP but she didn¡¯t know much about him, only that he was in her grade, his dad was a senator and he once offered her Xanax during a Chemistry lab. He was also one of Tate¡¯s bullies. ¡°Do it,¡± he drawled cheerily. "Get on your knees and kiss my feet first. Then admit to the whole school what a pathetic piece of shit you are. And how you had to beg me for money last month." Robbie wasn''t alone. He was surrounded by his chuckling goons, one of whom was holding up a smartphone recording their victim. Opposite them was Tate who was giving them all that annoyed, tired look. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t showing everyone what a ¡®pathetic piece of shit¡¯ I am also implicate you?¡± Tate asked. ¡°Because I didn¡¯t beg you for anything. You paid me to take an exam for you.¡± ¡°And you got me a B!¡± ¡°Because, with your academic history, an A wouldn¡¯t have been remotely believable. We would have gotten caught.¡± He sounded exasperated, like he was tired of explaining this again and again. Someone snickered at that and Robbie shot them a dirty look. ¡°Fuck you. Are you calling me stupid?¡± ¡°No. But this is going too far.¡± Tate retorted heatedly. ¡°I got you to pass the class and I don¡¯t see why I¡¯m getting punished for it.¡± Robbie¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°That wasn¡¯t the plan, asshole. Why would I pay you all that money for a B? My parents expected me to ace the test. You wanna know what happened when I didn¡¯t?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry but that¡¯s not my fault. It¡¯s not my fault that your Daddy ignores you and Mommy is sleeping with her yoga instructor. It¡¯s not my fault that none of them give a shit about you. It¡¯s also not my fault you can¡¯t pass a fucking Calculus test on your own.¡± Damn. Lexie was shocked. Those were fighting words, and she¡¯d never heard Tate fight back before. She¡¯d barely heard him speak before now. And she didn¡¯t know he could cut someone down at the knees like that. Lexie was a little impressed. And Tate appeared surprised by his own audacity too. Robbie''s face turned red as one of his goons snickered. ¡°Robbie,¡± Tate said, holding up his hands. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that. Listen¡­¡± In a harried, flustered move, Robbie reached behind him and pulled out a fancy, historic gun from his waistband. Lexie froze. Tate froze. Even a few of Robbie''s goons looked at him like he was crazy. ¡°Are you insane?¡± Tate asked, his voice stunned and also alarmed. ¡°Ha. Not so tough now," Robbie chuckled. ¡°Bro, is that real?¡± one of the goons said. ¡°Yup. I grabbed my dad¡¯s custom Stetson on the way out. Thought maybe I could have some fun with it at Parker''s house. But this loser just gave me a better idea.¡± He turned back to Tate, a manic look on his face. ¡°You really want me to forgive you? To tell everyone to leave you alone? Beg for it. Grovel like I told you to." ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°Dead ass.¡± Lexie heard a distinct click that had her heart leaping in her throat. Robbie definitely just took the safety off. Lexie¡¯s heart began racing. Is this really happening? It was easy to believe it wasn''t because Tate looked to the sky with a ¡°Why me?¡± look on his face. As though what was happening was merely irritating. He clearly didn''t appreciate the gravity of the situation. He even said, in a steady tone, ¡°Robbie, I¡¯m sorry I¨C¡± ¡°Nah, I don¡¯t give a shit about that. On your knees.¡± ¡°Come on my guy, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s another way we can work this out.¡± Tate¡¯s reasonable tone only made Robbie madder. ¡°Grovel. Now!¡± But Tate didn¡¯t get on the floor. He stared Robbie in the eye for several seconds and then his eyes flicked to the gun. In a split second, he seemed to come to a decision and he took a step forward. ¡°And if I don¡¯t?¡± Lexie didn¡¯t know who was more surprised, her or Robbie¡¯s goons. Robbie¡¯s face burned. She was even more surprised when Tate suddenly stepped close enough that there was only a few inches between the barrel and his forehead. ¡°Go ahead.¡± His eyes met Robbie¡¯s gaze once again. His expression had not changed much from that carefully expressionless face but Lexie could swear there was a crazed gleam in his eyes. ¡°Put me out of my misery so I never have to see your ugly ass face again. I¡¯m actually curious to know if you have the balls.¡± Oh. My God. Everyone here is crazy. Maybe he doesn''t get it. Lexie thought, heart racing with panic. She retreated a few steps, then pulled out her phone, dialing 911 as quietly as she could. He doesn''t get how much danger he¡¯s in. Even if Robbie¡¯s joking around, accidents happen. "911, what¡¯s your emergency?" "There''s a lunatic with a gun pointing at my¡­friend." She said it in as low a voice as possible. "What¡¯s your location?" She rattled it off and then tuned back into the conversation to see that the two boys were still in a stalemate, with Robbie looking madder and madder. "A lunatic with a gun you said?" The operator repeated and impatience bit at Lexie. "Yes." "Can you describe him?" ¡°The lunatic or the friend?¡± ¡°The former.¡± "Um¡­Shaved blonde hair. Blue eyes. Looks like a preppy skinhead. Do you really need this right now?" she hissed. "Yes ma''am. And do you personally know this person?" Jesus, by the time I answer all these questions, Robbie might actually shoot him. Lexie peeked once more around the wall. Robbie¡¯s hand shook around the grip, his finger skimming the trigger. Tate eyed him steadily, doing a great job of hiding the terror he was probably feeling. Robbie swallowed, and his nose flared, his shoulders squaring. He took another step to press the gun against Tate¡¯s forehead. Lexie¡¯s heart rate spiked. This was getting out of hand. She should get out of here before she got dragged into it. But if she left, Robbie might shoot Tate before the police even got here. Tate would be dead and Robbie, with his family¡¯s political influence, might even get away with murder. "Hello? Ma''am?" With a single thought, Lexie hung up and went on Instagram Live, aiming the camera to capture what was happening. She didn¡¯t have a large following, mostly acquaintances she¡¯d met through her closest friend, Mickie. But she waited until at least one name popped up on the bottom of the screen. Good. Now at least one of the viewers will call 911 and video evidence would dissuade Robbie from taking this any further. Lexie took a deep breath and stepped out of the corner. "Drop the gun, Robbie. Get away from him." Bang! It turned out that was the wrong thing to do, startling an unhinged maniac. Because Robbie jerked around in shock, still pointing the gun. And then the gun went off. It was facing Lexie¡¯s direction. She had a second to think about how all this could have played out differently. She could have stayed on the phone with 911 instead of trying to play hero. Maybe if she hadn¡¯t been so exhausted she would have realized how stupid of an idea this was. Maybe if she wasn¡¯t so bothered by Tate¡¯s problem, she would have minded her own damn business. But all those maybes didn''t matter anymore. It was hard to describe everything that happened after. A burning pain seared through her chest. There was yelling and she felt her body hit the ground hard, elbow dislocating on impact. She tried to get herself back up but slipped again on blood that was pooling over black tar. It was hard to move any of her limbs, like all the strength was being siphoned out of them. An excruciating agony burned from her chest all the way down to her abdomen and up to her throat. Was it getting harder to breathe? Or was she choking on her own blood? Then, Lexie was lying flat on her back and Tate''s face loomed above her, his eyes wide and horrified. ¡°Oh shit.¡± Contrary to how mellow he¡¯d looked confronting Robbie, he was now pale, and shakily dropped to his knees. ¡°What the hell, Lexie?¡± A harsh whisper emanated from his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± It was what Lexie wanted to say but her mouth couldn¡¯t form the words properly. Her eyes could barely stay open as they held his. ¡°Everything¡¯s fine.¡± Tate¡¯s eyes were a pale green, so iridescent they almost seemed to glow. How did she never notice before? ¡°I need to stop the bleeding.¡± Tate¡¯s voice was harried, tight and high. Lexie felt his palms pressing down on her abdomen "Why¡­why did you do that? You shouldn¡¯t have¡­I was finally going to¡­God, it won¡¯t stop. Why?¡± "Yeah, you¡¯re right." She shouldn¡¯t have gotten involved. And maybe he shouldn''t have provoked Robbie either. But that was all moot now. She was dying and it was mostly her fault. The hints throughout the day became clear. It all started with that damn coke can. It unearthed everything else that she¡¯d buried deep and tried not to think about. Her guilt. Her anger at herself and her parents. Her need to prove to herself that maybe somewhere deep inside, another¨Cbetter¨CLexie existed. All that led to this point. The words were fighting with her breaths but she needed to get the last bit out. "I¡¯m sorry for being¡­coward. You should go¡­" Her tongue was now heavy. Vision blurry. "You know, before Robbie..." She coughed, and she heard a gurgling sound in her abdomen, followed by the pressure of hands trying to plug it. Shit, that hurt! It hurt so bad. What was she trying to say again? ¡°Phone¡­¡± The phone was evidence. He should get it before Robbie could or Tate might get framed for the crime. Even with the one viewer who saw everything. Robbie¡¯s dad was a senator after all. ¡°Lexie, don¡¯t speak.¡± His voice was firm. His hand tightly pressed down on her stomach. "And don¡¯t¡­Just don''t." Don¡¯t what? Die? She wondered as life bubbled in her chest, pain flooding her nerves, and her eyes slid shut. Not really my choice here, buddy. That last thought drifted into the wind. She was too tired to think anymore. All that surrounded her was pain and noises and someone grabbing her shoulders, and yelling from far away. Despite how it all turned out though, Lexie wasn¡¯t too upset. At least she got to go out on her own terms and not in a lame way, keeling over an SAT textbook or something. This wasn''t a bad way to go, all things considered. Though it was stupid, it was nice to actually do what she wanted for a change. To be a different person and do the brave thing, not the sensible thing. I might have actually saved a life today. Maybe because of her, someone else was alive. That was good enough. Well, it had to be good enough now, seeing as how she was dying and all. Sirens echoed in her ears but she didn¡¯t know if it was her imagination. She saw a bright white light. And with that anticlimactic act of heroism, Lexie died. 2 - Until It Wasnt
[INITIATING SYSTEM] [NEW LIFE FORM DETECTED: HUMAN] [INTEGRATION BEGINS] [ANOMALIES DETECTED] [INCOMPATIBILITY DETECTED] [INCOMPATIBILITY RESOLVED] [INTEGRATION COMPLETE] [NEW LIFE FORM: LEXIE SPARROWFOOT, EARTH 9, HUMAN, RANK AND STAT TBD, ROLE TBD]
DUE TO FALLING QUOTA OF CARD USERS, YOU ARE PREDICTED TO BE A CARD USER. DUE TO PAST-LIFE HEROIC POINTS DETECTED, YOU ARE PREDICTED TO BE A HERO Pre-Affixation: [Card User Hero]
Lexie¡¯s eyes popped open with a startling flash of light, and she found herself staring at a cream-paneled ceiling, with sparkling lights embedded in a spiral pattern. ¡°Where am I?¡± she mused aloud. ¡°Lexie?¡± an unfamiliar dark-haired man sat at the foot of her bed, holding her hand. His eyes were red like he¡¯d been crying. ¡°You¡¯re awake. Thank the system, you¡¯re awake!¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± Lexie asked again, trying to yank her hand out of his hold, but he gripped firmly, as he stood, moving closer with an intensity that frightened her. His light brown eyes looked familiar and the eyebags surrounding them almost made her feel sorry for him. She might have, had he not been a stranger who was clearly holding her captive. ¡°Let me go.¡± Fear rattled in her chest and she pulled her hand out of his. She tried to recall the last thing she remembered. Being shot. Bleeding out on the road. And now she was in a strange room, surrounded by a bunch of soft pillows that smelled distinctly floral. Speaking of floral, pink flowers were painted on the wall, but not like wallpaper or childish drawings. It was like an artist of Michaelangelo¡¯s calibre had painstakingly etched each petal to be as beautiful and entrancing as possible. Lexie was distracted by it for a second, before ripping her gaze back at the man with tear streaks on his cheeks who looked like he hadn¡¯t slept for days. She came to a single logical conclusion. Tate had left her on the road to die and this lunatic had kidnapped her before the ambulance arrived. ¡°Are you hungry?¡± the man asked, gesturing frantically as he spoke. ¡°I cooked all your favorite meals every single day and kept them warm for you in case you ever woke up. Silly, I know, but I didn¡¯t have much else to do and it kept my mind off worrying.¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Lexie tried not to panic. She didn¡¯t want to alarm the lunatic. His eyes were wide and glassy already, hair haphazard, stubble breaking out over his chin. His entire being radiated desperation. He seemed on the verge of a breakdown. ¡°I¡¯m not hungry,¡± she said in a calm, unalarming voice. ¡°But I think I might need to go to the .¡± ¡°Why?¡± he asked. ¡°Do you have a headache or nausea?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± she lied. ¡°I¡¯ll request a healer to come see you.¡± ¡°No, I don''t want the healer to come see me,¡± she said, trying to keep from screaming the words. ¡°I need to go to a . I think I need a CT scan, or an MRI or something. I might have a brain injury.¡± Lexie paused after her speech. Why did it sound like she said ¡®healing house¡¯ twice now? She hadn¡¯t. She¡¯d said hospital. The man frowned and cocked his head like she¡¯d just uttered a bunch of gibberish. Then he laid his palm on her forehead, and Lexie noted the silver bangles wrapped tightly around his wrist. ¡°Let me get you something to eat first,¡± he said. ¡°Then we can go to the healing house.¡± She swallowed and nodded. She knew better than to argue with a kidnapper, so she simply waited for him to leave and then she got out of bed, landing her feet on the cool wooden floor. She glanced around, trying to orient herself. She was in a bedroom. A tall, ornate closet stood in one corner and next to it was a standing mirror with intricate carvings on its borders. Lexie walked in front of it and did a double-take when she saw herself. She looked younger. At least six years younger by her estimation. She¡¯d lost six inches of height, her face still had that childish chubbiness that she struggled to get rid of, and her light brown eyes looked way too big for her face. Her light brown hair fell in curly waves down her back framing her features. As she reached up to touch it, it felt slightly electric. As a matter of fact, the air around her felt different, almost static. There was a constant buzz of energy and if she focused on it long enough she could feel it permeating her lungs. ¡°What on earth?¡± she wondered aloud. ¡°Why do I look ten again? What¡¯s going on?¡± That last statement seemed to trigger a whizz and suddenly a window appeared in her vision. Like a computer window. Except there were no computers and it was just hanging in thin air. When it popped up, Lexie screamed and fell back. Instantly, she heard footsteps running up stairs and her door tore open. ¡°Lexie? Are you alright?¡± She shook her head, pointing at the blue screen still hanging in her vision, moving with her head movements. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°What is what?¡± ¡°Th¡­that thing. It¡¯s like a screen in my eyeballs.¡± He frowned. ¡°You mean your system interface?¡± ¡°My what?¡± The stranger bent, his eyes meeting hers through the blue screen. It seemed for the first time, he was actually evaluating her. ¡°Lexie, do you really not remember who I am?¡± Lexie shook her head. She had a sinking feeling that this was more than just an ordinary kidnapping. ¡°Do you know where you are?¡± the man asked and she shook her head again. He bit out a curse and ran his hand through his longish black locks. ¡°He warned me this might happen,¡± he muttered and then rubbed his face. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, honey bee. I should have explained earlier but I thought¡­I mean I was just so happy to see you awake¡­¡± ¡°Explained what?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Who I am. Who you are. Where you are.¡± ¡°I already know who I am,¡± she told him slowly. ¡°I¡¯m Lexie Evans from Brooklyn, New York. That¡¯s where we are right?¡± He stared at her, sadness creeping into his expression as he shook his head slowly. ¡°Your name is Lexie Sparrowfoot. I¡¯m your father, Aiden Sparrowfoot. And you¡¯re in Hovelton, Orinia, District 9, Earth 9.¡± Lexie blinked at him. ¡°Is that a new Soho address?¡± He shook his head and sighed. ¡°Let me get you back in bed with some hibiscus tea. Then I¡¯ll tell you everything. It¡¯s going to be a long story."
Lexie counted down from ten and then opened her eyes staring straight up at the ceiling. She released the breath she was holding, her last shred of hope dissipating. This wasn¡¯t a dream. She really was in a new world called Earth 9. According to the man¨CAiden, who said he was her father¨CEarth 9 was only one of the Earth dimensions and it wasn''t divided into continents but into districts. He was going to say more but there was a knock from a downstairs door and he disappeared. Lexie was glad he didn''t say more. She was having enough trouble digesting what he did say. And she wouldn¡¯t have believed him except that there was the pesky blue screen still taking up a portion of her vision. Aiden taught her how to deactivate it. It could be activated by saying, "System Screen on" or "System Interface on" but the AI could also detect questions ¡°What is going on?" or "Where am I?" and that would trigger the screen with an immediate explanation. Of course, to turn it off, she could simply say, "Screen off," or ¡°System Interface off" "Screen on," she muttered and then looked at the words flashing on the blue background.
[Welcome New Player! Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the welcome manual.]
And then like a Discord channel, there were a lot of topics to explore including the so-called welcome manual, character sheet, something called an ability deck, weapons inventory and a whole bunch of other things. She focused on the character sheet for a few seconds and it opened up to a table.
[PRIVATE WINDOW] Name: Lexie Sparrowfoot Age: 10 If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Race: Human Location: Earth 9 Guardian: Aiden Sparrowfoot (Father) click to open family tree. Status: Unawakened. Full status screen available upon awakening.
It was her second time viewing this window. At first, Lexie had thought the unawakened meant that this whole thing was a dream that she could wake up from. But she¡¯d tried every trick in the book, including pinching herself, rolling herself out of bed (which brought Aiden up again in another panic), and then closing her eyes and attempting to sleep her way back to reality. None of that worked. What is going on? she wondered. Did someone implant a video game in my head for some sick joke? Like in Black Mirror? Am I on some billionaire¡¯s island right now with my confusion televised to sadistic rich folks as some kind of social experiment? Or did I actually die and wake up in a video game? That last one would have sounded crazy an hour ago. Now, it was starting to seem like the only logical explanation. Lexie and her brother had watched a couple of isekai anime so she was familiar with this as a concept. But while Logan always wanted to be isekai''d, Lexie always thought the whole thing would be far too stressful for her temperament. And she was right. She was incredibly stressed out, and trying her hardest not to show it, or let it consume her. Logan would be having a field day with this. She wished he was here. He wouldn¡¯t be on the verge of freaking out like she was. He was a video game nut, he would know what to do. Thinking about her brother brought back memories of their last conversation. A tentative thought followed, carefully so as not to trigger the brimming mania underneath her calm surface. I hope Logan''s okay. I hope he''s not too upset that I''m dead. Hang on. Was she dead? Lexie got up, the combination of her tumultuous thoughts and the buzzing sensation underneath her skin driving her mad. She tried to breathe steadily as she went to the window, looking out of it, marveling at the glittering lights outside. She certainly wasn¡¯t in New York anymore. It wasn¡¯t like any place she¡¯d ever been before but if she had to give a guess, it looked closest to the Scottish countryside, lush greenery, distant mountains and low clouds. She¡¯d gone on an exchange trip to Edinburgh in sixth grade and this looked kind of like the places they visited, lots of grass and trees with cottages and brick buildings littered about. Lonely lanes made of stone connected each home. Only difference was the sky had two moons. That¡¯s right. Two big fat moons sitting up there, driving Lexie crazy. The two neighboring houses didn¡¯t look inhabited. The grass was overgrown, windows dirty, cobwebs on the walls and the roof shingles. Lexie¡¯s new home was in the middle of the deserted homes. The perfect place to stage a murder. Thunder crackled, echoed by a knock on the door. Lexie spun around to find Aiden standing there. He was wearing a loose linen shirt and leather pants, with boots at his feet. Glasses perched on his nose. His neck sported the same silver bands that encircled his wrist and she was tempted to ask what they were but she didn''t. There was too much going on in her mind already. I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s supposed to be my dad. Lexie supposed he looked kind of like her, except that his hair was darker. And her eyes were a surer brown while his were closer to hazel. He was a virtual stranger to her, but something about him also looked and felt achingly familiar. Where have I seen him before? Or am I simply getting confused by the emotions that the owner of this body would have toward her own father? ¡°Lex,¡± he said, and she guessed that was his nickname for Lexie Sparrowfoot. ¡°I¡¯m popping over with Max close by. A dungeon portal is about to open and he needs my help getting rid of it.¡± "A dungeon?¡± she blurted out. He nodded. ¡°One of the unstable ones. I hate to leave you alone but the dungeon portal is less than a kilometer away and we need to get rid of it before it spawns otherwise we¡¯ll be in danger. Anyway, I¡¯ll be back soon. Stay indoors and keep the doors locked. Nothing will be able to get in without your permission. And remember the rules - no using the stove, or the manaronics while I¡¯m gone. Okay?¡± She nodded slowly, and he hesitated at the threshold. She wondered if he was debating whether or not to leave her. Maybe he thinks I¡¯ll run away. Maybe he is holding me captive. And then it also occurred to her that maybe he was waiting for something from his daughter, a hug or whatever. But Lexie certainly couldn¡¯t give him one. She didn¡¯t know him and still wasn¡¯t entirely sure he wasn¡¯t a lunatic who had kidnapped her. Still, she felt a little bad when his face fell and he turned away. ¡°I¡¯ll see you in a minute. I love you, honey bee,¡± he said. Lexie flinched a little. She hadn¡¯t been expecting the ¡®L¡¯ word so blatantly. Even her parents didn¡¯t really say it all that often to her, nor to each other. She was sure they loved her, but they just weren''t that kind of family. It was¡­weird hearing it from a stranger. Lexie said nothing as he shut the door, and she heard his footsteps walking down the stairs. She felt a little hollow as his steps grew farther away. Maybe I should have told him something nice back. Not ''I love you¡¯ obviously, but maybe to come back safe. But this was all too confusing and frankly crazy for her to digest. As she watched, lightning cracked across the skies and the lights in the home flickered. Through the window, she saw the trees in the distance sway although there wasn''t much wind. Probably a storm coming. Left with nothing to do, Lexie went back to her bed and lay down. If she really was kidnapped this would be the perfect time to escape, but where would she even go? She didn''t recognize this place with its two moons. And the kidnapping excuse was holding less and less weight as time passed. After all, what kind of kidnapper would just leave her there, where she could easily escape? And the man did look genuinely relieved when she woke up, like he¡¯d been tortured by the thought of her dead. Lexie Sparrowfoot''s father seems to care about her. A lot. Lexie wondered how her real parents were dealing with her death, if she was indeed dead. She wondered if Logan had told them about her MIT acceptance. She wondered if that would make it hurt extra or if that would soften the blow because at least she''d achieved their dream before she died. How morbid. Lexie and her brother often liked to joke that their parents had them as an experiment. Two highly intelligent academics got together to see if they could create genius children. Lexie was a culmination of their dreams. Straight A¡¯s all throughout elementary and middle school. Acing one of the toughest high school programs in the country. Would have probably continued that trend in college and graduated summa cum laude. In their eyes, they could probably already see her giving a TED Talk or an inaugural address of some kind. She would of course have to mention how much her parents motivated her and made her the woman she was. She might even manage to squeeze out a few tears. That would probably make them happy. She¡¯d thought maybe after she was done achieving their dream, then she could finally live life on her terms. Except, laughably, she didn''t actually know what living life on her own terms even meant. Her entire life, she was raised to be a try-hard and a study-machine. She knew nothing else. With a sigh, Lexie opened up her System Screen again and hovered over the Welcome Manual.
INCOGNITO WINDOW> PRIVATE ACCESS ONLY. ¡°Welcome Human to your new life!¡±An excessively cheery voice sounded in her mind as she read the words on screen. ¡°You have been given a new form, as a candidate of the Interdimensional Soul Travel System (ISTS). ¡°Take a second to familiarize yourself with your pre-affixation:¡± !ERRORS DETECTED! !ERRORS RESOLVED! ¡°[CARDUSER HERO]¡± ¡°FULL STAT WINDOW WILL BE AVAILABLE UPON AWAKENING ON SYSTEM DAY. Would you like to access the preliminary stat window now? [Yes] [No]
Out of curiosity, Lexie clicked the yes button. How to do it took some getting used to but she essentially let her eyes linger on the yes button for three seconds and it opened up a new screen.
[STAT SCREEN OPEN] !ERRORS FROM ANOMALIES DETECTED! !ERRORS FROM ANOMALIES RESOLVED! Name: Lexi Sparrowfoot Race: Human Age: 10 Class: Restricted Subclass: Restricted Cumulative Level: Restricted (For individual levels, open the individual tabs) Affinity: Restricted Physical Rank: Restricted Mental Rank: Restricted Mana Rank: Restricted. [STAT SCREEN CLOSED]
Well. That was helpful. It told her absolutely nothing.
[RESUMING INCOGNITO WINDOW] Your current location is Earth 9 which may change in the future. You may travel through the Earth Dimensions with Travel Points.
WARNINGS: DO NOT SHOW ANYONE ELSE THIS WINDOW (INCOGNITO WINDOW WILL NOT BE DISPLAYED OR ACCESSED ON YOUR PRIVATE SCREEN). DO NOT DISCUSS OR DISCLOSE YOUR ASSOCIATION WITH THE ISTS WITHOUT PERMISSION. VIOLATION OF ISTS RULES MAY RESULT IN FINES OF UP TO COST OF DIMENSIONAL TRAVEL (THIRTY BILLION CREDITS) AND ASSORTED PENALTIES UP TO AND INCLUDING COMPLETE SOUL TERMINATION. [OPEN HERE TO FAMILIARIZE YOURSELF WITH ISTS RULES]
Anomalies were detected upon transport and were resolved. You have been allowed to bring 1 item from Earth 2. Would you like to access it? [YES] [NO]
Lexie once again visually hovered over the yes. With an audible click, a glowing familiar thing spun in her vision, seemingly suspended in mid air. She gasped. It was her cell phone. At first it looked like a hologram, but it became solid when she touched it. She plucked it out of the air and stared at it, unable to believe it. The screen flashed showing the screen saver of her favorite Dino Fury Power Ranger. Then she opened it up seeing that everything was just as it had been when she died. The battery percentage was 87%. All her apps and pictures were gone, except for the messaging and call app. The last number she called was 911 and then underneath that was Mickie''s. Her friend had called her on the way home to see if Lexie wanted to walk home with her. Lexie told her that she would be staying late at school to study, but that had been a lie. Truly, she just didn¡¯t want the company today. And now I may never have Mickie¡¯s company ever again. The thought triggered a separate storm within her, as tears pushed behind her eyes. When she tried to call Mickie¡¯s number, it didn¡¯t work. No cell service. The pain stabbed at her chest and she rubbed at the hollow ache. But she swallowed, refusing to cry just yet. I need to get back home. She opened up her messages to find that only her text thread with Logan remained, and even then it was a handful of messages. She tried to text him just to see if it would work. Hey, she sent but it didn¡¯t go through. No service. Defeated, she walked back to bed and scrolled up to read her brother¡¯s messages, feeling the sharp ache of loss expand as she did. Most of what Logan sent were memes or conversations about whatever game he was playing or how annoying their parents were being. No pictures of him and her together. The last convo was about Heroes Online where he had sent Lexie a few photos of the characters that the company had released to the public. And then a picture of himself eating a slice of pizza the size of his head. I hope Logan¡¯s okay, Lexie thought although she couldn¡¯t imagine how he would be. He was alone now. He would have to bear their mom and dad¡¯s obsession on his own, with no one as a buffer. He could no longer escape to her room when their parents fought. Before they would distract each other with meaningless conversation or by playing video games while the storm raged around them. Now that Lexie was gone, so was that bit of comfort. He would have to carry the heavy burden of their grief and their expectations alone. And he was so young. And stubborn. Unlike Lexie, he was less likely to bend to their will and more likely to simply break. A tear escaped running down her cheek. Her throat grew tight. Her finger shook as she scrolled. At least he was too far away to hear the gunshot. I hope. That would have been traumatizing. Okay enough of that. Lexie wiped her face and decided crying right now was unproductive and would only make her more depressed. She needed to plan her next moves. But she couldn''t stop herself from scrolling, even as the sobs tore out of her chest, muffled behind her hand. And then her finger hovered as Lexie froze on an image her brother had sent her. The accompanying message had several exclamation points, talking about how hyperrealistic the graphics were and how interesting the character''s backstory was. But it was the image attached that caught her attention. It was of Aiden, the man whose home she was in, the man who claimed to be her father. Underneath it, her brother had written out the following: Take a look at this character. He¡¯s crazy OP. NAME: AIDEN SPARROWFOOT (AKA THE ARCHMAGE) RANK & CLASS: S-RANK MAGE, S-RANK SCHOLAR ROLE: [SUPER-VILLAIN]. 3 - The Unstable Dungeon Aiden Sparrowfoot watched as the dark swirling mass continued to grow in the air, whistling louder with each passing moment. The portal, like most dungeon portals, was dark and crackling with chaotic energy that thundered through the air. Unlike most other dungeon portals though, there wasn¡¯t a surrounding insignia that represented a seal. Aiden released a heavy sigh. The squatting Max shot him a glare with his one good eye and held up a ball gag dangling on his finger. ¡°You make that sound one more time, I¡¯m going to shove this in your mouth.¡± Aiden cocked his head at the larger man, bemused. ¡°Why do you even have that?¡± Max continued rifling through his rustic backpack, magically reinforced to fit in more items than it appeared. ¡°We don¡¯t know what kind of creature could come through this thing. It could be a gang of chaos canaries or something like that harpy I was obsessed with that one time. Or the siren I dated that other time, remember her?" He smirked at the memory but then the smile immediately fell away. "Or it could be worse. Could be a creature like my ex-mother-in-law.¡± He shuddered a little at that last one, his muscular shoulders shifting dramatically with the movement. ¡°Anyway, I like to be prepared for anything.¡± The man finally pulled out a long shotgun that was decked out with all sorts of make-shift buttons at the side. He handed that to Aiden, then pulled a rifle out for himself. ¡°So,¡± he said as he straightened, brushing dust off his leather pants. ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°I think you should reevaluate your taste in women.¡± Max threw him a droll look, while Aiden glanced at the buttons on the shotgun uncertainly. ¡°How does one work this thing exactly?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not rocket science, professor. You point at something and shoot. Any of the buttons should do decent damage.¡± Max frowned at him, his well-formed wrinkles etching deeper into his forehead. ¡°And I wasn¡¯t asking your opinion on my sex life by the way. I was asking what you think about the fact that this is at least the fourth time this year that we¡¯ve seen this.¡± He pointed at the swirling wind. ¡°What¡¯s going on with all these unstable dungeons?¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not a dungeon master.¡± Although he did have extensive experience with dungeons in the past. As The Archmage, Aiden had raided and taken down entire level 7 dungeons on his own. And as a superhero, he¡¯d been on the front lines of the battle against quite a few unstable dungeons. But that didn¡¯t mean he understood their mechanism very well. Unstable dungeons were unpredictable things, and he knew first hand how dangerous they could be. Especially since Aiden, once the famous Archmage, was essentially powerless now. Most dungeons were sealed upon spawning and the seal could only be broken by a party that met the minimum requirements to enter. Barring that, the dungeon would remain sealed so the monsters inside couldn¡¯t escape. But unstable dungeons spawned without a seal, so they needed to be destroyed immediately, otherwise a dungeon creature might escape to terrorize the town. It was especially dangerous because it spawned in Olden Street. Close to home for Aiden. They needed to get rid of it quickly, and for that he needed to focus. Unfortunately, there were so many thoughts currently crowding his mind, fighting for prominence. A wolf howled in the distance and the full moons illuminated the silvery dust over green grass. Max checked his barrel and then rechecked it. He also adjusted his eyepatch so it would readily flip open more easily. His muscles were coiled with tension, his eyes eager, hand prepared. All the while Aiden stood by, waiting. He wondered what Lexie was doing right now. Was she staying put as he advised? Or was she up to mischief as usual? A wistful smile crossed his lips. His daughter, though quiet, had always been the inquisitive type. It was how she got hurt in the first place, because he was gone to work one evening and she snuck out to follow him, curious as to what he was up to. But she hadn''t made it very far. Aiden nearly went crazy when he found her on his way back passed out inside a ditch, bleeding from her head. He wanted to kick himself a million times over, the blame falling squarely on his shoulders. He just couldn¡¯t seem to get this fatherhood thing right, no matter how hard he tried. He was a terrible father for many reasons, not least of which was the many years with her he''d already missed out on. And just when he was finally making up for lost time, there she was close to death. And now, she didn¡¯t remember him. What cruel irony. It¡¯s what I deserve for being away for so long. All that time was spent working, teaching, fighting. Now that I¡¯m back¡­I¡¯m just a stranger to her. And I deserve it. He sighed again. Max gave him another dirty look. ¡°Sorry,¡± he apologized. ¡°Just worried about Lexie.¡± Some of Max¡¯s anger dissipated. ¡°You said she woke up?¡± ¡°Yes, but that fall really messed with her head. She doesn¡¯t remember much about anything. Doesn¡¯t remember me.¡± It was a painful pill to ingest, but he swallowed it down. ¡°The healer I consulted said that might happen. He said her memories may come back with time, or they may not. But at least she¡¯s alive and that¡¯s what matters. We can always make new memories.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Max watched him uncertainly then turned back to the spawning dungeon believing the conversation was over. But now that Aiden had started, there was a lot he really wanted to get off his chest. ¡°I mean,¡± he said. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s better she doesn¡¯t remember, right? I wasn¡¯t exactly a great father to her. I missed a bunch of her birthdays, and other important moments. Even her mother¡¯s funeral.¡± He¡¯d seen a video of it though, from a maximum security jail cell. He¡¯d watched his poor daughter standing there, quietly weeping as they lowered her mother¡¯s ashes into the ground. An emotion more devastating than guilt threatened to swallow him whole. ¡°I let my Lara die, and then I let our daughter get hurt on my watch.¡± He grimaced, disgusted at his own failure and shook his head. ¡°Scratch that, I¡¯m a terrible, terrible father. And Lexie likely knows it. Or at least she knew it. But this way it can be like a new beginning. I promise to be better from now on. We can start doing all the father-daughter things we used to do when she was younger. Picking flowers in the forest. Teaching her to ride bikes. I get to plan her birthdays now. Her mother said she liked to visit antique shops. Maybe we can go to the one in Alberton and check out¨C" ¡°Do you want me to call Luke?¡± Max interrupted flatly. ¡°No offense, but all this mushy crap is more his expertise than mine. And it''s making me sick to listen to it.¡± Mushy crap? ¡°Er¡­no that¡¯s fine.¡± Even though they were brothers, Max and Luke couldn¡¯t be any more different. While Luke, acting mayor of Hovelton, was a people person, Max was the opposite. He wasn¡¯t a great talker. He wasn¡¯t much of a listener either. But dungeon delving and fighting magical beasts, Max excelled at that. It was why, despite having little mana capacity or affinity, Max still led one of the most famous dungeon parties in the world. With no magic to call on, he¡¯d doggedly leveled up his physical and mental stats and specialized in long-range weaponry, specifically guns. Now, he had dual classes as a C-Rank Level 6 Rogue Type Fighter and a B-Rank Level 8 Gun Meister respectively. While his stats were only fairly impressive on paper, what he¡¯d done with it, becoming one of the youngest, most prolific dungeon masters alive, was nothing short of legendary. Even Aiden didn¡¯t quite know how Max had managed to lead his team in and out of so many dungeons successfully. Max didn¡¯t give interviews either, and never spoke about what happened in the dungeons after it was gone. Unlike some Dungeon Masters who chased after fame and fortune, Max was solely focused on the fortune part and nothing else. So, Aiden had to chalk Max¡¯s success up to his dogged drive, insane courage and unexpected flashes of ingenuity. If he wanted to, Max could have easily picked up a hero support role, if not become a [Hero] himself. He could have gotten a lot more fame and fortune that way. But Max hated heroes with a passion, likely because of how some of them treated dungeon delvers like disposable tools. Heroes also tended to be more physically and magically powerful than delvers, and they often lorded it over them constantly. Not to mention a few who took credit for the delver¡¯s work in resolving a dungeon. In any case, Max had shirked all offers from The Hero Association preferring to affix as a [Mercenary] instead, with a specialty in dungeon delving. The [Mercenary] role gave one a certain type of freedom, but also meant higher taxes and more local government oversight. After all, it was very easy for a [Mercenary] to transition into [Villain]. And once the dreaded [V] was attached to one¡¯s name, it was a stain that was really hard to get off. Aiden knew that firsthand. After all, he was once a hero beloved by many. Nowadays, strangers either froze in fear or spat when he passed by. A slide of a window had them both glancing up. They were currently standing between two apartment buildings, one of them a brick building that served as a retirement home. An elderly lady with purple eyebrows and rollers in her bright blonde hair stuck her head out. ¡°You rascals aren¡¯t done yet? How long is this going to take?¡± Max completely ignored her so it was up to Aiden to answer. He shrugged. ¡°Not sure. Maybe a few hours.¡± ¡°Well make sure you get it done by morning. The girls and I have a nature hike at dawn.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll do our best madam.¡± He attempted a smile, but the woman didn¡¯t smile back. Apprehension skittered over her face, then she swallowed, harrumphed and shut her window. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Ouch, Aiden thought, fingering the band at his neck. At least she¡¯s not a spitter. The silver bands were penance, identifying him as a former villain serving his sentence. The cool silver prevented him from using any kind of magic and kept his physical strength below a certain minimum too. And for an extra sadistic bite, the bands sometimes itched for no reason. He scratched at the line of his neck, frustrated that he couldn¡¯t reach under the band to get the spot he really wanted. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to respond to the old witch, you know,¡± Max muttered, shaking his head. ¡°There was no reason for it.¡± ¡°No reason to be rude either.¡± ¡°You could afford to be rude sometimes. Your niceness is off-putting.¡± Max squatted again and began to wiggle a modified bear trap out of his backpack next, carefully avoiding the green goo laced jagged teeth. ¡°And it¡¯s especially irritating because you¡¯re not even a [Hero] anymore. So you don¡¯t have to put on the whole overly accommodating PR act.¡± ¡°It''s not an act. It¡¯s called basic courtesy, something you could use a little of.¡± He snorted. ¡°Right. Is that what they teach you at that stuffy boarding school you went to?¡± His scoffing tone made it clear what he thought of Aiden¡¯s former academy, and it immediately made Aiden defensive. ¡°Yes, my stuffy magic boarding school that trains only the best hero-mages, best school across at least three districts, also taught us excellent manners.¡± And as much as Max made fun of him for it, Aiden was proud of his alma mater, if only for that. ¡°Good for you,¡± Max responded. ¡°But you¡¯re a villain now so you might as well act like it. Which means manners go down the toilet where they belong.¡± Aiden cocked an eyebrow in response. He frankly didn¡¯t see what one had to do with the other. Yes, he may be a villain now¨Cwell ex-villain really¨Cbut that didn¡¯t mean he couldn¡¯t be a polite one. He didn¡¯t get a chance to vocalize an answer though as the still-spawning dungeon suddenly sang at a higher register. ¡°Get ready,¡± Max said, aiming his gun. Aiden aimed too. Unstable dungeons were not like regular dungeons in which a portal appeared in a set location and entering it revealed an expansive universe with different levels, unknown treasures and occasionally monsters. Unstable dungeons weren¡¯t fully developed and acted more like monster spawners. They were chaos personified. Anything that went in got trapped, and then when the dungeon disappeared, it would spawn somewhere else and release whatever it trapped earlier. Most often, these were monsters. So it was in everyone¡¯s best interest to disable an unstable dungeon before its portal finished spawning. That would, theoretically, freeze them or send them back to wherever they came from. The idea was to shoot as many times as possible at the same time, right when the spawning reached its peak and was at its weakest. But unstable dungeons, as mentioned before, were not predictable. And before it reached its so-called peak, a white force shot out of it and sped past, shimmering in the air. ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Max said, swiveling with his gun. Aiden didn¡¯t know. But it looked like the thing was heading for his house. Lexie. His daughter was home alone. His recently comatose, ten-year-old daughter who lost most of her memory was home alone and a thing was headed right for her. Aiden''s stomach dropped. Heart seized. Oh, I am an utter failure of a father. He forgot all about the dungeon and ran.
There was no service in the house. Lexie tried just about every room, which was really only four other rooms, to find service. She was in a two-story cottage, made with wood and red brick. Her room was on the top floor, next to another neatly organized room that she thought was probably Aiden¡¯s. Then she descended the stairs to the living room; neat but eclectically decorated with pastel blue and rust brown accents throughout the room. A shelf was built into the back wall, and each column was filled with books. A table beside that held a reading light and next to that was a loveseat and a yellow embroidered throw pillow, with misshapen ducks on it. It was eerie how normal everything looked. There was even a flat-screen TV made of shimmering glass fixed to the wall, and a vase full of flowers that looked like lilies. It looked like she was still in the normal world. And technically, she was on Earth. Earth 9 according to the manual. And it shared many of the features of her earth except they had a different name for a few things. Like instead of Hospital and instead of jeans. What was the point of that? She thought. Why would the game creators just give random things different names? Her phone screen also constantly showed no signal. No matter what angle she stood at, or how much she extended herself nothing changed. She sighed. Was there really no way to reach anyone at home? At the very least to let them know she was alive and stuck in a video game? Lexie nearly giggled at the thought. I wonder how they would even respond to that. They would probably think it was a prank call or something. Her amusement died the moment she thought about her family and Mickie, her good friend since freshman year. She¡¯d barely spent any time with Mickie these past few months, too busy catching up on several assignments and perfecting her application. One of Mickie¡¯s last correspondences had been asking Lexie to accompany her to a party during the weekend. Lexie had turned her down as usual, because she¡¯d had to study. She¡¯d thought she would have time to attend all the parties Mickie wanted when she was done with school. And now she might never have that chance again. She also thought about her brother. Most fourteen-year-olds didn''t want to hang out with their older sisters but Logan was different. They''d always been close, and he didn''t have any other friends except her and the online people he gamed with. She wondered what he was doing now. How he was coping. Just yesterday, I was worried I wouldn''t get into MIT. Now I¡¯m trapped in a weird video game dimension. Life really comes at you fast. Or in her case, death did. She paced the living room, her thoughts flying about but orbiting around one thing. I need to go home. Perhaps if she understood more about the game then she would find a way out of it. She opened up her brother¡¯s old texts again scrolling through. It was hard not to get a little emotional reading it, imagining him dealing with her death. I hope Mom and Dad aren¡¯t too hard on him. But Lexie forced herself to focus. According to the welcome manual, the point of the game was to complete quests at her given role. But it notably didn¡¯t guarantee her escape. It did say that once she was assigned a role, she would also be given chances to level up and earn rewards when she completed said quests. One of those rewards was known as a Travel Point, and with enough travel points, she could move between different earth dimensions. The manual also highlighted that travel points were really hard to obtain. They required ¡°Acts of Exceptional Heroism, Revolutionary Discovery, or Unbeatable Leadership.¡± How these things were calculated Lexie didn''t know, and neither the manual nor the texts from her brother helped her find out. Most of them were character sheets, the occasional pontification about how hyperrealistc the graphics were and how it had expansive worldbuilding for a beta version of a videogame. And the only thing the manual spoke about, apart from a brief intro, was the ISTS and a whole bunch of rules she had to abide by, most of which concerned keeping her identity a secret and performing her civic duty as a ¡®Chosen¡¯ once she was of age. They also hammered in on the possibility of complete soul termination if she broke confidentiality. And the thought of that should make her panicked, but this whole thing was just so bizarre nothing had sunk in yet. It was like the most realistic fever dream ever. Suddenly a loud bang ricocheted through the air. Lexie screamed a little, and instinctively dove to the floor. She had never been shot at before ¨C well, until she died that is ¨C but she¡¯d heard that was something you were supposed to do during shoot-outs. Lay low and stay there. But this didn¡¯t sound like a shoot-out. It sounded like something slammed into the side of the house. As it reared back and slammed again, the china rattled. The light fixture swayed in the aftermath and Lexie stared at it, her heart pounding. What was that? What was out there and why was it trying to get in? Wait, relax. Aiden assured her nothing could get in unless she wanted it to, and while she didn¡¯t know the man, he sounded pretty sure about that. Then again, he was a supervillain. What if he lied to her? Wasn''t that what villains did? He seemed like such a nice guy though. Yeah, I¡¯m sure Ted Bundy¡¯s victims thought the same thing. She glanced around. What was she supposed to do now? Hide? Tempting, but where would she even hide and what if it found her anyway? She would be crouched in a corner defenseless. No, that wasn''t the answer. And then that was immediately followed by the insane thought. Maybe if she fought that thing she could level up. Fight it with what? An equally hysteric response screamed in her mind. A cell phone and a can-do attitude? Another slam rattled against the house, but this time Lexie kept from screaming. No time to panic. She needed to think. Luckily, she''d always done pretty well under pressure. It was why she tested well. Lexie tried to convince herself that was all this was. Just a test. A test she hadn¡¯t studied for and was very ill-equipped to handle but a test regardless. She just had to ignore the pesky little detail that if she failed she might die. But on the bright side maybe if she died, she would end up in her old world. Or maybe not. Maybe she¡¯d go somewhere worse. Somehow that wasn¡¯t an experiment she wanted to try. The next slam shattered the window and Lexie ducked to avoid being hit by shrapnel. The thing was growing in ferocity and power with each slam. It was being kept out likely by whatever protection Aiden had placed, but she doubted it would hold forever. She needed weapons. ¡°Um System Interface on,¡± she spoke out loud, too panicked to think the words clearly. ¡°Can I access my weapons inventory?¡± The response was swift . Great. Of course, it made sense. She supposed the system didn¡¯t want ten-year-olds hauling grenades and such. ¡°Okay so is there anything you can do? Anyway, you can help me?¡± . Yes, but it didn¡¯t sound like whatever was out there gave a damn about a protection artifact. And if she did nothing, it would eventually break in and hurt her. ¡°Screw it,¡± she muttered, getting up and running to the cabinets, throwing them all open. Aiden Sparrowfoot was a villain. There was no way he didn¡¯t have any weapons lying around. However, what she found wasn¡¯t what she wanted. There was a deck of cards, vials of different colors, and varied assortments of pens. But no gun, no dagger, not so much as a pen knife. What the heck kind of villain is he? That was when she remembered he was an Archmage. Meaning he used magic. Which also meant his tools were probably useless to her since she didn''t know how to use them. Crap. Still, it might help. Lexie grabbed the cards, a few cauldrons, and the carved stick that looked like a wand. Then for good measure, she ran into the kitchen, grabbing all the knives in the holder. Her hands were full and she went back to crouch behind the couch and wait. She felt something pulsing in the air. And then with one final hiss and slam, the door flew open. 4 - Lexie Vs The Ghoul Lexie instantly flung one of the kitchen knives at the intruder without wasting any time even looking at what it was. And then as the knife whizzed through the doorway without the sound of impact, she shifted to the side to take a peek. Nothing was there. Through the open doorway, she only saw a manicured lawn with trimmed hedges and her neighbor''s cottage in the distance. But as she squinted, she realized that it wasn''t quite nothing. There was something there, a ghostly presence that shimmered in and out of existence with each blink. And then the second she realized, the thing rushed at her. Lexie squeaked but jumped out of the way in time as it slammed into the couch, sending it flying. She threw another knife, but once again it passed through without impact. Safe to say that the thing was permeable. But that didn¡¯t make sense; how was it able to slam into the door and also throw the couch? The thought was cut short as it charged at Lexie again and she jolted to the side. This time, she wasn¡¯t fast enough. Her fingers wrapped around a knife hilt, as icy cool digits grabbed her ankle tugging her upside down into the air. A scream remained trapped in her throat but she immediately swung into action, driving the knife into the ghostly film wrapped around her ankle. The creature screeched and released her. She dropped to the floor with an oomph but ignored the pain of the collision, got up, and ran. As she got to the kitchen she slammed the door closed, knowing it would only keep the creature out for a few seconds. In the meantime, she needed to process what she just discovered. The thing was both tangible and intangible and could seemingly switch at will. No, not at will. It was kept out by the door and had hit the couch, so it couldn¡¯t pass through furniture. It couldn¡¯t pass through human beings either, so it would appear that physical blockages like that turned it corporeal. And then, once it turned physical, it could be hurt. Lexie braced herself from when it would come through the door. She gripped the last knife in her hand waiting at the other side of the door. The second the door flew open and the creature grabbed her she would stab it again, hopefully enough to kill it. Or wound it enough to leave her alone. She still felt chilly in her ankle where the creature had touched her and the cold rendered her movements a little stiff as she hustled to the other side of the door. She bit her lip, pressing her ears against the walls, trying to hear it coming. And then finally, the door was sent off its hinges. The creature had black liquid on it now. Ink? Or maybe that was its ghost blood. No time to figure it out. As one of its ghostly projections reached for her again, she grabbed it and stabbed, feeling elated when her knife sunk into it. It roared and ripped itself away, with the knife wrenching out of her grip. But it wasn¡¯t enough and she was out of knives. She barely had time to panic before it grabbed her neck. This time, she could barely move. She clawed at her neck and kicked her feet to struggle but it was no use. Frost iced over her lungs and spread through her limbs too fast. She couldn''t breathe. Her movements turned jerky and then stilled. She stared into nothingness that seemed to expand like a gaping mouth around her head. ¡°Lexie!¡± She heard Aiden but didn¡¯t see him until his body slammed into the thing from behind. The creature dropped her and she gasped for breath, feeling like the air was lacerating her throat. When she turned back it was to find Aiden physically holding the creature off, as it reached out ghostly arms for him. It tried to reach for Lexie too, but Aiden kicked at the projection and it reared back. His teeth gritted and he met her eyes. ¡°Card,¡± he barked. ¡°Get my cards!¡± Lexie didn¡¯t hesitate. She ran for the living room where she¡¯d stashed the cards and brought them back. When she returned Aiden had slammed the creature against the opposite wall, but it was still reaching out for him and his face was turning white. ¡°Search for the card, ¡± he choked out. ¡°Activate it.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Follow the¡­" His words wheezed, like he couldn¡¯t breathe and then she saw that the thing was wrapped around his neck. ¡°Instructions.¡± Lexie quickly flipped through the deck looking for the card that he was talking about. The cards didn¡¯t feel like they were made entirely out of paper¨C they were hard, smooth and glassy. The card Aiden was talking about was slightly thicker than the rest, with the image of a ghost imprinted on it. Immediately, a small blue screen with a system prompt appeared on top of the card reading:
Deck: N/A Type: Effect Card Power: N/A Description: Excellent card for those who hate to be the center of attention! Once activated, you fade into the background, and become unremarkable, and unmemorable to your target. Maximum active time is twenty seconds. Activation Prerequisites: To activate this card, simply flash it to the target you would like to be invisible to. Make sure the target isn¡¯t looking at you, touching you or otherwise interacting with you during activation or the card will remain inactive. Avoid too much interaction with the target after activation, or card will deactivate. No other protocol required.
O¡­kay. That seemed easy enough to understand. But how to tell if a faceless ghoul was looking at her? She glanced up and swallowed. It seemed pretty occupied with Aiden but she couldn''t be sure since she didn¡¯t know if the thing had eyes in the back of its...head? or not. Lexie retreated into the living room until she was shielded by the wall, and stuck her hand out flashing the card to the creature. The card suddenly shattered in her grip but she didn''t feel it. It became holographic instead and it exploded without making a single sound. Then the shards disappeared in the air, leaving only a mild sparkle in its wake. She felt something move in and through her. It was odd, like a tiny zing that flitted around her body. She stared down at herself. She wasn¡¯t invisible, but as she stepped back in through the doorway, she did get the idea that the ghostly creature couldn''t see her anymore. And to confirm that the card was active, a notification appeared, eventually becoming a timer that was placed at the corner of her vision. ACTIVE TIME: TWENTY SECONDS. COOL OFF TIME: TWENTY SECONDS. Okay she guessed her invisibility would only be active for the next twenty seconds. So she needed to do whatever she had to do fast. She crept back out to the doorway, and found the Ghoul was still strangling Aiden while he tried to bash the side of its head with a chopping board. He wasn¡¯t strong enough and the thing wasn¡¯t budging. It was no longer even reaching out to her, solely focused on Aiden. Like she was truly invisible but only to the creature. But how was this going to help Aiden? Or maybe... Aiden''s eyes met her and he gave her a small smile. He also mouthed the word "Go" and that was when, with a sinking heart, Lexie realized what he''d done. He didn''t do this to help himself. He did it so she would escape. For a split second, she thought about it. About running. But where would she go? And she couldn''t just leave him to die. He was her...dad. Okay, Lexie. Time to be brave again. With the gift of invisibility, Lexie ran back to retrieve her knives. She then jogged back and with all the force she could muster, she impaled the creature¡¯s back again and again, not wasting any time even as her shoulders ached. "No! Lexie!" Aiden screamed but it was no louder than the creatures wailing. Suddenly, it wrapped around her leg again and flung her across the room. She slammed into the wall and her head collided with a resounding crack. Pain shot through her temple as she slid to the floor. A sickening wave of nausea overwhelmed her. A health bar suddenly appeared in the corner of her vision, the red square blinking an alert. But before she could pass out, the blue screen flickered to life again with an announcement.
CONGRATULATIONS! YOUR STATUS HAS CHANGED. VIEW CHANGES NOW ON YOUR STAT SCREEN.
[STAT SCREEN] Name: Lexie Sparrowfoot Age: 10 Race: Human Location: Earth 9 Guardian: Aiden Sparrowfoot (Father) click to open family tree. Status: Pre-awakened.
Lexie came around to the sensation of someone gently rubbing her head. It somewhat soothed the pounding in her skull, and she also felt a cool ice pack on her temples. Someone was murmuring in a voice that sounded like they smoked about ten packs of Marlboro a day, but then as her eyes started to open, another voice said, ¡°Shh. She¡¯s waking up.¡± She recognized the second voice as Aiden¡¯s which meant that it was his gentle hands that were running through her strands. Gentle but trembling hands. She wanted to keep her eyes closed to enjoy it more, especially when he softly massaged the ache from her scalp. Neither of her parents had been the touchy type growing up. Lexie didn''t think she was either. But this was¡­nice. Nevertheless, she had to face reality at some point. Her eyes slowly opened to meet Aiden''s smile. ¡°Wakey wakey,¡± he said. ¡°Hi,¡± she said and then sat up, embarrassed that she was lying on his lap. They were both on the couch that had been righted, and the house no longer looked like a windblown mess. Even the glass had been fixed. She was tempted to think the whole thing was a dream, but she knew it wasn''t. ¡°Are you okay?¡± His gaze softened. ¡°You were worried about me?¡± She nodded and he seemed surprised. Wasn¡¯t it obvious that she would be worried about someone who was going to die? Who had risked his life to save hers? "You saved me." ¡°I think it was the other way round.¡± Aiden untangled a tuft of her curled hair from his shaky finger. ¡°No. You did it first. It was going to eat me before you came around.¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± He toggled his head mildly. ¡°Not to be pedantic, but ghouls don''t technically eat people. They¡¯re pneumatarian for the most part, and sometimes mildly vegetarian. But they only possess bodies and occasionally kill them for fun.¡± At Lexie¡¯s stunned silence, he nudged her with his shoulder suggesting it was a joke, before he continued, ¡°Besides, I''m your father. I¡¯m supposed to save you from crazed, pneuma-hungry ghouls. It¡¯s practically in my job description.¡± Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Lexie swallowed, feeling touched despite his offhandedness. ¡°Thanks. Did you get hurt?¡± ¡°No. You don¡¯t need to be worried. I may not look it but I¡¯m pretty strong, you know. I¡¯ve been exercising occasionally with your Uncle Max too. Just look at these muscles. Feel.¡± He flexed his arm in a very goofy way that almost made Lexie smile. Someone cleared their throat very loudly, and she noticed there was another man in the room, a man with an eye patch and a few nasty scars on his face, who was giving Aiden a pretty disgusted look. His face looked familiar too. Probably one of the character sheets that Logan had sent her. Or maybe Lexie Sparrowfoot knew him too. While Aiden was graceful and lean, this man was stocky and broad with lines etched in his forehead that made him look permanently grumpy. His one exposed eye was blue and he had red hair widely sprouting out of his head. Lexie jerked when his eye was suddenly fixed on hers, blushing at being caught staring. The large man was kind of terrifying, but strangely she didn''t find herself too scared of him. ¡°Glad to see you back in the land of the living," he greeted. "I''m the aforementioned Uncle Max, by the way. No relation. Your father told me you were having issues with your memories." That''s one way to put it. Lexie nodded to answer his question. She also noticed she didn''t feel as bad as she should considering how hard her head hit the wall. She should be suffering a concussion right now. Also, her ankle no longer felt frozen. She recalled the health bar she saw, when before she''d passed out. Did her health bar automatically refill, or did they heal her? I guess I''ll find out later. ¡°What happened to the creature?¡± she asked. ¡°I killed it,¡± Max announced casually. ¡°How?¡± she asked. ¡°Well, I started by shooting it and then I sliced off its¨C¡± ¡°Not really sure that¡¯s an appropriate explanation for a child,¡± Aiden cut in with a warning look to Max. Max raised an eyebrow. ¡°You realize this ''child¡¯ stabbed that thing twelve times right?¡± He then turned to Lexie with a small grin, something she could tell came rarely to him. Lexie tried not to be intimidated by the fact that his smile made him look even scarier. ¡°That was pretty badass of you kid,¡± he continued. ¡°Great fighter instincts. Most people would have been frozen in fear. You managed to slow it down enough that I only needed a few shots to finish it off.¡± Lexie swallowed and managed a weak shrug, the memory of the ghoul attack still haunting her. She had frozen in fear at first, but then she had to think of it as a game so she could gather the courage to attack. The only reason she seemed brave was because she was operating on video game logic. Most of what was happening didn¡¯t feel real to her yet. So it certainly didn¡¯t feel real that that thing could have killed her on her first full day on Earth 9. Also there was something to be said for the adrenaline pump when placed in a life or death situation. What was that thing her brother liked to say when he played video games? Oh that¡¯s right. Win or die. ¡°I don¡¯t think I did all that well,¡± she said, blushing under Max''s scrutiny. ¡°You did good for your age. Took a ghoul down with a kitchen knife. And you definitely did better than your father who seemed to conveniently forget he was holding a gun.¡± The accusation was unmistakable and Aiden flushed a little then stuck his nose in the air defensively. ¡°I couldn¡¯t use it. The ghoul had Lexie and the bullet could have hit her by accident.¡± ¡°Not if you were a good enough shot. That¡¯s why I always ask you to come train with me, but no. You¡¯d rather spend all your time in that healing house where you¡¯re practically useless because you can¡¯t even use magic anymore.¡± ¡°What happened with the dungeon?¡± Aiden asked and Lexie got the sense Max was itching to continue the argument and Aiden was eager to change the subject. ¡°One of the Elementals is taking care of it,¡± Max finally replied. ¡°Elementals?¡± Lexie butted in, curiosity taking over. Max glanced at Aiden. ¡°She really forgot everything, didn''t she?¡± Aiden nodded solemnly and then Max sighed. ¡°The Elementals are unbound magic users. A race of powerful families most of whom are [Heroes]. They¡¯re also some of the biggest pricks you¡¯ll ever meet.¡± ¡°Max!¡± ¡°What? She¡¯s ten, I guarantee she knows way worse words than prick.¡± ¡°I do,¡± Lexie admitted, nearly smiling at Aiden¡¯s affronted look. ¡°Anyway, one of the Firebringers came and they seemed to have handled it. They¡¯ll probably be stopping by for our statement any minute no¨C¡± The front door swung open suddenly without a knock and a man in a red coat walked in. He exuded an aura of importance, like the air around him shimmered just a tad. Underneath the coat, he had a bronze spandex suit, with royal blue trimmings on the chest. The suit matched his copper-colored hair and his angular face as he scanned the room with a faint look of distaste. As he got closer, he brought a faint, uncomfortable heat with him and Lexie realized the air around him really was shimmering, but less like a sparkle and more like a desert heatwave. ¡°What did I tell you,¡± Max muttered as the man walked up. ¡°Absolute prick.¡± ¡°If it isn¡¯t Mad Eye Max, the Dungeon Diver.¡± The man spoke in a heavily projected voice that reminded her of every cheesy superhero movie she¡¯d ever watched. ¡°Keeping horrible company as always.¡± His eyes scanned Aiden with disdain. Aiden stiffened underneath his regard, but he kept his tone pleasant when he said, ¡°Hey, Luth.¡± ¡°That¡¯s Luther Firebringer to you, Professor Sparrowfoot.¡± His eyes skipped over me and his lips tightened. ¡°I thought she was sick.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you don¡¯t get paid for thinking, Luth, only for following orders,¡± Max responded. Luther narrowed his eyes at Max, flames seeming to flicker in his gaze. Max appeared wholly unconcerned. ¡°Just ask your questions, Firebringer, and let''s get this over with. I have somewhere to be at nine.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t tell me what to do, Max. Know your place.¡± ¡°Oh really?¡± Max¡¯s hand rested casually on his holster where he had a pistol tucked. "And who''s going to show me that place? You?¡± Luther smirked. ¡°You think that little thing is going to hurt me? I¡¯m almost tempted to see you try so I can explode it in your face. Maybe take out your remaining eye while I¡¯m at it.¡± ¡°Enough,¡± Aiden said sternly, rubbing his forehead, while Max grinned sharkishly at Luther. Aiden¡¯s hand still shook slightly like he¡¯d been electrocuted. Lexie wanted to ask if he was okay but he kept talking. ¡°My daughter needs sleep and you¡¯re both being childish and wasting time. Just ask your questions, Luther.¡± Luther looked suddenly furious but no longer at Max. He faced Aiden with a deep-seated loathing, animosity vibrating in the air around him. Aiden¡¯s expression though gave nothing away. ¡°Fine,¡± Luther spat. ¡°First question. When did you notice the dungeon spawning?¡± ¡°Earlier today," Max answered instead of Aiden. "At around evening time. Six thirty.¡± ¡°Did you alert the proper authorities?¡± ¡°I did as usual.¡± Max smiled humorlessly. ¡°But we all know that Hovelton is priority ten to the Hero Association, so I had little faith that they would get here in time. And it looks like I was right.¡± ¡°And so you acted on your own. Without guidance.¡± ¡°I did what all your crisis ads tell us to do. Called the [Hero] hotline like I was supposed to and prepared for the high probability that you might not show up on time. And once again, I was right. ¡± Luther¡¯s eyes glittered. He seemed to want to argue against what Max said, but he couldn¡¯t find the right words for it. Uncle Max stared right back at him with the same degree of animosity. So instead, Luther asked, ¡°Was all your equipment licensed?¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t, you think I would tell you?¡± ¡°What about injuries? Did the ghoul hurt you?¡± ¡°A Level 4? Don¡¯t insult me, asshole.¡± Aiden gave Max a sidelong look but shook his head without saying anything. Luther crossed his hands over his chest, chin rising and looking down his nose at Max. There was a challenge in his eyes, a tension that radiated between the two men for several minutes. ¡°Fine. Then I just need to do one final check before I go. Give me access to your screens, stat and health.¡± Max suddenly exploded with a creative string of words all of which were way worse than ''prick''. Lexie¡¯s eyebrows flew into her hairline. Aiden sighed and covered his daughter¡¯s ears. ¡°For system''s sake, it was only a level 4 monster. We don¡¯t need a damn wellness check!¡± ¡°It was a ghoul, a possession-type creature. You know symptoms for that can show up weeks later. I need access to your screens to make sure you¡¯re still who you say you are.¡± ¡°How does that even work? You¡¯re just doing it because you¡¯re a dick.¡± It seemed Max had upgraded the PG rating of his insult. Luther shrugged. ¡°I can¡¯t help your prejudices against me.¡± Max¡¯s jaw clenched and he didn¡¯t say anything else, but he looked like he really wanted to punch Luther in the face. Luther had a superior smirk that reminded her of Robbie, and looked at Max for a few seconds longer before nodding and turning to Aiden. His smile disappeared when he looked at Aiden. And he seemed to scan him for an even longer time than he did Max, until suddenly it felt like he was in a hurry to look away. And then he turned to Lexie. A second after he did, her status window blinked open.
LUTHER FIREBRINGER [A-RANKED HERO] REQUESTING ACCESS TO YOUR PRIVATE SCREENS. GRANT ACCESS? [YES] [NO]
She glanced at Aiden who nodded at her in approval. Lexie was resistant to the idea of showing anyone else her screen but she couldn¡¯t find a reason to refuse. She was concerned about that ISTS incognito window, but the manual already mentioned that the ISTS information couldn¡¯t be accessed through her private screen. So theoretically, she was good. She visually clicked on the [YES] button and then her private window opened. Luther frown deepened, and apprehension spiked in Lexie¡¯s chest as she had a small crisis of faith. Did he see her Incognito Window after all? Did she inadvertently break the rules? Was her soul about to be terminated? ¡°She¡¯s pre-awakened.¡± Both Aiden and Max seemed to pause. ¡°What?¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± Lexie asked. Luther glared at Aiden. ¡°She doesn¡¯t know what a pre-awakening is?¡± ¡°Take it down a notch, Luth,¡± Max drawled. ¡°That has nothing to do with you.¡± ¡°It does if he¡¯s being an irresponsible father and neglecting his child¡¯s education! How can his daughter not know what pre-awakening is? That¡¯s in the basic elementary curriculum. Has she not been attending school? And how exactly did you get her to pre-awaken without a coach? Perhaps, child services need to be called.¡± Aiden¡¯s face turned stony, but there was some guilt that flashed in his eyes as he looked at Lexie. Lexie looked back at him not knowing what any of this meant. Max was the one who finally broke the silence. ¡°Oh, get off your high horse, asshole. You¡¯re giving parenting advice now? Give me a break.¡± Luther shot Max a chilly look at the latter''s wholly hostile tone. ¡°How he raises his kid is none of your business. Call whoever you want but if you¡¯re satisfied that we¡¯re not possessed by evil spirits, then get the hell out¡± Luther glared at Max, whose hand once again was on his holster. Then, the Firebringer ripped his gaze away and stared at Lexie until she started to feel uncomfortable. He sighed, stepped back and said, ¡°Don¡¯t leave town in the next three weeks in case we have follow-up questions." ¡°Of course,¡± Max scoffed. With a tight expression, Luther strutted out of the house, shutting the door behind him. The minute he did, the remaining men stared after him with annoyed expressions of varying degrees. "Why did he look at me like that?¡± Lexie asked, drawing Aiden''s attention. He softened when he looked at her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Luther, bumble bee.¡± He gave her a comforting head pat. ¡°He was more mad at me than anything.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Aiden made a noncommittal sound and shook his head but Max was all too happy to answer. ¡°Well, it''s because your father was once his mentor." At Lexie''s shocked look, and Aiden¡¯s horrified one, Max continued, "Aiden was also one of the most powerful [Heroes] on Earth 9. Then he did something really cool, but kinda stupid, for the first time in his lame, goody-two-shoes existence and as a result, he became system-marked as a [Villain] for eternity. And then, since he so moronically accepted a [Villain] sentence, he¡¯s now cursed to a life of powerlessness.¡± Max shook his head and glared after Luther as though holding him personally responsible for Aiden¡¯s misfortune. Then he turned his attention back to Lexie. ¡°You¡¯re pre-awakened, and given who your father was, a lot of people will try to get you on the [Hero] fast track. I¡¯d turn them down if I were you. [Heroes] are a bunch of ungrateful assholes.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not all like that," Aiden said. ¡°You don¡¯t have to defend them just because you were on their team. None of them defended you when it counted." Max turned his scowl from Aiden to Lexie. "I stand by what I said, kid. There are many other roles where you can earn a decent living. As a [Researcher] for example.¡± ¡°A [Researcher]?¡± ¡°Yes. If you have even half of your father¡¯s intelligence then that should be an easy path for you. You end up with a nice, safe, cushy life; traveling to different planets and maybe even dimensions, and figuring out how the things in this world of ours work. That sounds more suitable for you. Unless you¡¯re somehow thirsty for fame, have an oversized God-complex and a masochistic need to be cannon fodder, stay far away from the [Hero] path.¡± A part of his statement caught Lexie¡¯s attention. Figuring out how this world worked? That sounded like a great way to make an ''Revolutionary Discovery'', one of the requirements for earning Travel Points. She already knew the ''Unbeatable Leadership'' and ''Exceptional Heroism'' were probably out of the question for her. It was just way out of her wheelhouse and she wouldn''t even know where to start with that. But research...that she could do. And maybe if she did it enough, she would get to go home. Or maybe she was reading too much into what Max said, because she was desperate to go home. She was trying to find the clues she could put together to decipher her path back to her original world. She had to be here for a reason right? It couldn¡¯t have just been random. There had to be a storyline here that she was supposed to be a part of, a mystery to solve. Right? Otherwise, why would she be in a video game? Unless of course, this was what happened to everyone who died. They just isekai¡¯d into a random video game planet. Maybe this was purgatory. Her breathing was starting to gallop again at that thought and she reeled herself in. No, don¡¯t go there. Don¡¯t start thinking hopeless thoughts. You¡¯ve been given a idea, you just have to be patient and work it out. Learn how viable it is. Maybe that [Research] thing Uncle Max mentioned might be her ticket out of here. And if not, maybe, she could find out more about this ISTS business and find a way home with or without the Travel Point. ¡°So what does pre-awakened mean?¡± Lexie asked next. The men shared another look. Max shook his head. ¡°You¡¯ll have to explain it to her yourself. I think I¡¯ve fulfilled my godfather duties for the night.¡± He stretched. ¡°Besides, Flavi is going to kill me if I¡¯m late for our date.¡± 5 - The Pre-Awakened Hero A while later, after Lexie confirmed that her health bar was full and there was no lasting damage, she got off the couch and peeked into the kitchen, where Aiden seemed to be brewing the most complicated tea imaginable. He had about six different mortars of ground herbs and he kept scooping a pinch here and a pinch there into the two different mugs of steaming water, swirling and then tasting the spoon. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Lexie asked and he turned around. ¡°Making us some Muan tea,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s your favorite. Sorry, it''s taking so long, but it has to be made exactingly to turn out right.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± She stepped in and sat at the farmhouse dining table slightly too big for the small space. ¡°I thought you were just trying to delay the pre-awakened talk for as long as possible.¡± He smiled wryly. ¡°That too.¡± ¡°Is it that bad?¡± She asked. She was getting apprehensive with how everyone was acting like it was a terminal disease. She supposed she could check her welcome manual to know for sure what it was, but it would be a hassle to search through the pile of topics. Plus, for whatever reason, she wanted to hear it from Aiden. Despite being a villain, she trusted him more than the blue screen in her head. He seemed to care about her, or at least he cared about who he thought she was. ¡°Not at all," Aiden said in response to her question. "A pre-awakening isn¡¯t a bad thing. Most people regard it as a very good thing actually. It¡¯s just that, for me it¡¯s a sign that you¡¯re growing up. And I just wish I could slow the hands of time on that, you know?¡± Lexie felt a pang of guilt and a strange yearning. He was saying these things to her because he thought she was his daughter. But she wasn¡¯t. Not really. She had no idea where the real Lexie Sparrowfoot was¨Cpossibly back in her body on Earth 2¨Cbut Lexie felt like she was robbing the real Lexie Sparrowfoot of a relationship with her father, by taking her place. At the same time, Lexie herself kinda wished she had a dad who brewed her favorite tea for her and wanted her to not grow up. On the contrary her real dad, Dr. Eric Evans, didn¡¯t so much as know what her favorite food was. He didn¡¯t spend much time with her as a kid, and seemingly couldn¡¯t wait for her to grow up and finally give him some return on his parental investment. Lexie swallowed those feelings and drummed her fingers on the table as she waited for him. When he was finally satisfied with the tea, he filled both flower-patterned cups and then brought them to the table. "You must like flowers a lot," Lexie commented as Aiden took his seat. He shot her a look that was halfway puzzled and halfway amused. "I don''t. But you did." "I did?" "Yeah. You were obsessed with them when you were younger. It''s why I had that painting in your room commissioned. Your mother told me you would most likely gain a botany class at some point. She would talk all about it in her messages." "Oh," Lexie didn''t know what to say about that, but then another thing piqued her curiosity. "Where is she? My mother?" Aiden''s face seemed to freeze, and a deep pain flashed in his gaze, as though she''d dealt him a mortal wound. "Sorry," she said instantly. "No, it''s fine." He swallowed thickly, his voice deeper. "Um...she died. A few years ago." Sympathy settled in Lexie''s chest, both for Aiden and for the other Lexie who lost her mother. "I''m sorry for bringing it up." He waved his hand as though to brush away the ugliness and then took a sip of his tea. ¡°Okay,¡± he said, in a tone that was forced to be brighter. ¡°Now, to explain pre-awakening, I have to first tell you what awakening is.¡± Lexie nodded. She could tell he needed to change the subject right then and she was eager to find out what the big deal was about pre-awakening. ¡°Every year, on a day dubbed System Day, every child who turned eleven in that year¡¯s cycle gets given access to the full System Interface. There, they can observe their full stats window including their rank, class, mana affinity, physical attributes, role points and all that jazz. This is called an Awakening.¡± ¡°So what I¡¯m seeing now, on my system interface, is not the full stat window?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not. You¡¯re a minor so you¡¯re only given the basic information. On System day, you¡¯re given an indepth look into your physical, mental and mana stats and you can choose a class and sometimes get assigned a rank. Your rank can be anywhere from S to C, with S being the highest. Of the ranked individuals, some go on to be system-selected for important roles like [Hero], [Mercenary], [Saintess], [Researcher] and a bunch of others.¡± ¡°A role is like a specialist class? Like a job?¡± Aiden chewed on that. ¡°Of sorts, I suppose. More than that, they¡¯re positions that you must meet certain requirements to fill. So roles are only given through rigorous system testing, unless of course they¡¯re pre-affixed. Since roles have such stringent prerequisites, not every ranked person is suitable for a role. In fact, most of the ranked individuals don¡¯t get a role, only a class. Roles are typically seen as something of a higher prestige and more specificity.¡± He shrugged. ¡°And not everyone gets a rank either. The ranks only go from S-C because nothing below a C is of adequate strength for the System to recognize. So if you don¡¯t meet that minimum requirement, you¡¯re automatically assumed to be unranked in that discipline. That simply means that you lack the building blocks required to develop ability in a relevant class.¡± At Lexie¡¯s confused look, he continued. ¡°For example, if you have no mana ranking, you can¡¯t be a mage, with no physical ranking you can¡¯t be a fighter, and with no mental ranking, you can¡¯t be a scholar.¡± ¡°Oh I see. So what if you lack all three?¡± ¡°Then you¡¯re a mundane.¡± Lexie flinched at the term. ¡°Sounds kinda rude.¡± Aiden palmed his cup. ¡°The name isn''t ideal but unfortunately we don¡¯t have a better word for it right now.¡± ¡°I feel like ¡®unranked¡¯ would have worked just as well, but okay. And so what happens with these¡­mundanes?¡± He sighed. He seemed almost hesitant to convey the rest. ¡°Well, in that case, your options are limited. Since you¡¯re locked out of any ranked classes, you can only take on unranked ones, which are usually service-based. There are jobs that do take both ranked and unranked candidates, but usually most jobs show a preference for ranked people. It¡¯s also easier to get promoted if you¡¯re ranked.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± That seemed brutal. ¡°Yeah. It''s a little more complex but that''s the long and short of it. Once your rank is set on System Day, it cannot be changed, only leveled up. Like I hinted at before, one¡¯s rank is decided using affinity and capacity in three measures: physical, mana, And mental. If you have at least one of those beyond the System threshold, then you will receive an S-C Rank in an associated field. A ranked physical score could render you a fighter or a builder of some sort. Ranked mana score usually means mage. Ranked mental score can mean scholar, or cleric, or an expert, or a tinkerer, meister, and the list goes on. There are a also a few combinations of rankings that give you interesting classes. For example, high physical and low mana rankers usually become weaponists. But underneath those broad categories, these are the most common ones.¡± He smiled at her. ¡°Am I losing you sweetheart?¡± ¡°Uh no, I think I¡¯m good.¡± She blew out a breath. ¡°So just to recap, three categories where you can get a rank is physical, mental and mana. And if you don¡¯t get a ranking in at least one, then you¡¯re mundane.¡± ¡°Exactly?¡± ¡°Can you get more than one ranking in a single category? Like if you were both an S-Rank Fighter and C-Rank Builder?¡± ¡°No,¡± he shook his head. ¡°Those are both physical classes and you would have one physical ranking. In that case, an S or a C. What you chose to do with that ranking is up to you. You could choose to be a fighter and then have a subclass as a builder. But it¡¯s typically regarded as pointless to do something like that. You would have to work really really hard to do both and you still wouldn¡¯t be as good at either.¡± Lexie nodded. ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°Yes. And unless you¡¯re pre-affixed, you can choose which class you want, within reason. It also depends on your affinity. But also one thing I want to point out about being a mundane, because it¡¯s important. If you don¡¯t have a mental or physical ranking, that does not mean that you¡¯re not intelligent or physically capable. It just means that¡­¡± "The system did not deem you worthy,¡± Lexie completed instantly seeing the system for what it was. Yet another tiered organization of society. You were either genetically gifted with physical attributes, intelligence, or mana, or you were less than. Then again, wasn¡¯t that how the real world worked too? Kinda? Nah. At least the real world gave you the illusion of a shot. But Aiden shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s not a question of worth. It just means that the System did not deem you compatible with any of the ranked classes. Your physical, mental and mana makeup are just not compatible with it, that¡¯s it. There are plenty of worthy classes that don¡¯t require a ranking. Botanist, for example." Lexie nodded but she recognized the comforting words for what they were. Pretty lies. Aiden was like those parents that told you that it was okay if you weren¡¯t number one, and that all that mattered was that you tried your best. Lexie¡¯s parents had never been one of those. They had at least been honest with her. They had let her know that she had to be the best no matter what. It was perfection or nothing. ¡°This is part of the reason why this is such a difficult conversation to have with a loved one,¡± Aiden sighed. ¡°Especially when they¡¯re as young as you.¡± ¡°No it¡¯s fine,¡± Lexie said and took a sip of the tea. It had a melting effect and tasted slightly sweet and cinnamony with a spicy kick. And there was a slight milkiness to it too, almost like a boba tea. All in all, it tasted very...homey. "This is really good.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ve been practicing.¡± He beamed. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°So what¡¯s pre-awakening? Does it mean that I awakened earlier than others?¡± Aiden mulled it over before he explained. ¡°Yes and no. A pre-awakening is not a full awakening but an acknowledgment from the system that the individual has manifested an exceptional talent or affinity in a particular discipline.¡± ¡°So that means that I¡¯m more likely to be ranked?¡± He nodded. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re pretty much guaranteed a ranking and it¡¯s usually mana-related. As I said, it¡¯s typically a thing of pride for most families. Only about 10% of ranked people ever experience pre-awakening and pre-awakened people often become more powerful over time. No one knows exactly what causes it but it¡¯s said to have both genetic and environmental components. For example, if your parents are both S-ranked, with high mana capacities, then it¡¯s more likely that their child will be pre-awakened, because they have good genetics. But there are also environmental factors like stress and sometimes it¡¯s said that feats of extraordinary bravery can trigger a pre-awakening.¡± He winked at me over the mug as he sipped his tea. ¡°Extraordinary bravery like saving one¡¯s father from a Level 4 Ghoul.¡± Lexie avoided his eyes, looking down at her tea. She still didn¡¯t think it was all that brave. It was just a video game. I was just playing a video game. But she couldn''t deny that in that moment, she''d felt a real threat. ¡°Usually it¡¯s a combination of genetics and environmental factors,¡± he said. ¡°Sometimes the top-ranked families intentionally put their children in stressful situations so they can pre-awaken.¡± ¡°Stressful situations like what? Fighting a monster?¡± He nodded. ¡°Sometimes.¡± Lexie gaped. ¡°They would intentionally put their kids in danger just for them to be selected by the system?¡± ¡°More or less. The children first undergo rigorous training with so-called ¡®pre-awakening experts¡¯ before they put them through this though and they¡¯re monitored closely to make sure they don¡¯t really get hurt.¡± ¡°Still. That¡¯s pretty insane.¡± Aiden smiled weakly. ¡°Maybe, but to them it¡¯s worth the status symbol.¡± ¡°That¡¯s horrible.¡± But Lexie was familiar with the type of parents who would do things like that. Parents who only saw their child as a reflection of themselves. They monitored their children¡¯s movements closely, made their kids study every waking moment, just to be able to pass the PSAT. That was the closest reference Lexie had for a pre-awakening, and she assumed an awakening was like the actual SAT. Except no one had ever been gored by the PSAT before, she didn¡¯t think. ¡°There¡¯s another aspect of pre-awakening that I think you should know about,¡± Aiden continued, while Lexie tackled the news and vision of running away from killer textbooks. ¡°which is called pre-affixing. This is the tough part, and the part that makes a pre-awakening a death of childhood. Now, since you¡¯re already pre-awakened, on System day, the system assigns a class and occasionally a role to a pre-awakened individual. This is called a pre-affixation." "Ok,¡± Lexie nodded. ¡°Why would this be a negative thing?" He took a deep breath before continuing. "Because the system doesn''t always pre-affix based on what the individual wants. It''s largely due to their skill set but also due to a need in the system. So even if say, you wanted to be a mage, but the system decided the world needs more melee fighters, they would pre-affix you as one." "Oh." Now Lexie understood Aiden¡¯s hesitation. Yeah, getting stuck with a class they didn¡¯t want would certainly make anyone resentful. "And you don''t have a choice? You can''t change your pre-affixation?" Aiden tilted his head. ¡°You can,¡± he said hesitantly, ¡°But it¡¯s difficult and the system discourages it. Some people get around it later by earning an additional class or a sub-class and building up on that instead, but for the most part, it''s fixed." Lexie frowned as she suddenly realized that she did see something about pre-affixation in her welcome window. It said she''d been pre-affixed as a [CARD USER HERO]. Shit. It had already happened for her. And she didn¡¯t even know it. And what did her pre-affixation mean? She understood the [Hero] part as being a role, but what on earth was a card user? Before she could ask though, Aiden seemed to think her silence suggested troubled thoughts and rushed to reassure her. "It''s not all bad, Lex," he said. "In those months before a pre-affixation, it''s possible to nudge the system into a certain class that you want." "It is?" "To some extent. There are things you can do to earn points in whatever class or role you want, although the system really isn¡¯t clear about what those things are. Like I said, it doesn¡¯t encourage changing pre-affixation. But usually a tutor might be able to help you.¡± Aiden said. ¡°Also the beauty of being pre awakened, is that you get a head start on that and your skill grows much faster. A tutor teaches you to exploit that, and the idea is to convince the system that you would be great in that class¡­but again, nothing is concrete. The system might decide it doesn''t care about what you''re good at if there is enough of a need somewhere else." Lexie''s mind was spinning, her hands gripping her cup. So that meant that she more than likely couldn''t change what the system had given her. She was a [Hero]. Disappointment shot through her. There went her plan of being a [Researcher]. Unless she could somehow do both. But why had the System given her that? Did this world not have enough [Heroes]? Was it because she was from a different dimension? Furthermore, why had she gotten her pre-affixation so quickly, even before her pre-awakening? "And pre-affixation always happens after a pre-awakening?" she asked Aiden carefully. "Never before?" Aiden nodded firmly. "Yes. Typically pre-affixation happens for the pre-awakened on System day, although it can be delayed sometimes. And a pre-awakening usually happens around your age too, although I''d hoped you wouldn''t be pre-awakened. It¡¯s a terrible thing, I think, to decide a child¡¯s future before they even know who they are. Normal affixation isn''t even usually recommended until you''re about to enter adulthood. And some people never affix." ¡°Why wouldn''t they?¡± He shrugged. ¡°I suppose they don¡¯t have a strong affinity towards any role or class. The disadvantage is that they never grow any skill to its full potential. The advantage is that they can use the skills they do obtain more fluidly and they¡¯re not bound by the affixation. It¡¯s the reason that I never affixed.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s stop here,¡± he said, putting his mug down. ¡°We can continue the affixation talk in the morning after you¡¯ve had a good night''s sleep. There¡¯s still so much to get into with the roles and classes and your eyes are starting to glaze over.¡± ¡°They were?¡± Lexie thought. She wanted to hear more, but then maybe Aiden had a point. Her head was starting to hurt from all the information she was getting, and she had a feeling he hadn¡¯t even scratched the surface. ¡°Wait one more thing,¡± she said as Aiden stood. ¡°What is a card user?" Aiden grabbed the cups from the table and took them to the sink. "Cards are a type of bound magic. So a card user would be a mage." "Could a mage also be a [Researcher]?" "Yes. A mage is simply a class, but it can aid a number of different [Roles]. [Researcher] is a role.¡± "And what Max said, was he right? If I wanted to travel to other planets or maybe across dimensions would [Researcher] be the best way to do that?¡± ¡°There are a few ways you can achieve that goal.¡± ¡°But becoming a [Researcher] is the easiest way?¡± He sighed and returned, sliding his hands onto her sides and lifting Lexie into his arms. Lexie felt a little awkward at being carried at her age, but this seemed normal for Aiden so she allowed it. Also, he smelled comforting, like cinnamon, nutmeg and pine. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to decide anything right now,¡± he said as they walked. ¡°You¡¯re still so young and being a [Researcher] can be a very difficult life. Lonely, with a lot of time spent holed up in a dark room studying algorithms endlessly day in and day out. Max was only seeing the monetary incentive and the fact that [Researchers] don¡¯t have to face monsters every day, and I suppose to him that seems like a better deal. But not everything that seems better is.¡± Lexie considered his words, but as he reached her room, one thought remained. Studying endlessly does sound a lot like me. As depressing as it is, it might be the one thing I''m good at. Once she was laid in bed, with Aiden gone, Lexie took a deep breath and then called up the system window again.
YOU HAVE BEEN PRE-AFFIXED AS A [CARD USER HERO].
Her memory was right. The words blinked and she tried to figure out what to do now. Maybe I need to read up more on roles. Maybe there''s more to the [Hero] Role than I understand. She went to the manual and looked for the information. Helpfully, she found a Roles tab and opened it up. Man there were a bunch of roles, even for politicians, military and other things. She would take her time to go through them later, but for now, she selected [Hero]. The description was short and kind of what she expected.
The [Hero] role is one of the most important in the system. You bring balance to society and act as a primary defense against dark forces, and instability. Your heroic deeds serve to instill confidence in the populace, encourage humanity to fight for what''s right, and you save them from supernatural and extraterrestrial threats. The highest achievement a [Hero] can obtain is to become a [Superhero].
Yeah that all checked out. The perks were things like a high salary, fame, and fortune, guaranteed entrance and authority in every city of a district, but none of that excited Lexie. She clicked back to the Role column and then selected the [Researcher] Role.
The [Researcher] role sets one up as a pioneer of discovery. In this role, you seek the advancement of the System and humankind as a result. You¡¯re vital in creating a better, fairer world for all humanity. The highest achievement a [Researcher] can obtain is to become a [System Developer]. Perks: High salary Occasional travel credits where necessary. (System Developers have unlimited travel credits) Access to the ISTS.
Lexie didn''t continue reading past that because she immediately doubled back to that second point. It said that System Developers got unlimited travel credits. That was it. That was all she wanted. Her heart raced as she sat up. With those travel credits, she could go home. And that pretty much sealed the deal for her. Screw being a hero and bringing balance. That was not for her. She had to figure out a way to change her pre-affixation. Maybe, since my pre-affixation happened so early, there''s still time to change it. Aiden said it was possible to nudge the system into a different direction. Maybe I can do that by studying more, or doing more research-y things. And he did say it was difficult to change a pre-affixation but not impossible. I should ask him tomorrow Maybe she was getting ahead of herself here. But if it was at all possible to study her way out of this mess, then she would do it. There was one good thing that her parents instilled in her, and it was the mindset that she could pretty much do or achieve anything she set her mind to. She could ace any test she wanted to, overcome every challenge as long as she put the work in, planned properly, and pushed her body to the brink, barely sleeping or eating until she achieved her goal. Perhaps, it wasn¡¯t always the healthiest mindset to have but in this case it worked to give her the confidence she needed to continue. She reminded herself that she got into MIT, a school that only accepted a small percentage of people in the world. She could definitely change her affixation if she worked hard enough. Heck she defeated a ghoul today with minimal training and impressed Uncle Max, which she somehow knew was the even harder thing. He seemed to think she could become a [Researcher] and he didn¡¯t feel like the kind of person to joke about something like that. So, she could definitely do it. But the question remained in her mind. How did I become pre-affixed before I pre-awakened? Was that what the ¡®error¡¯ on my stat screen was for? Does that mean that it was a mistake¡­ and maybe it could be fixed by somehow influencing the system to make me a [Researcher] instead? There was likely no correlation between those two things, but Lexie didn¡¯t want to give up on that thought thread. It gave her hope, and she struggled to hold onto all the hope she could afford. Lexie wanted to read more about [Research] but her eyes grew weary and she noted how tired she actually was. So instead, she reluctantly waved away the welcome screen and pulled up her inventory instead. Her phone floated in the air. It had somehow gone back to her inventory when she dropped it before the fight with the ghoul. She plucked it out of the air and went back to read through messages from her brother while trying to remain hopeful and not wallow in depression. I''ll come back, Logan, she told him mentally. One way or another. I''ll figure my way out of this mess. I promise. She fell asleep with his "Think fast, loser!" ringing in her head. 6 - Bound Vs Unbound Magic Lexie woke up the next morning to the scent of freshly baked bread. Who¡¯s baking? Neither of her parents cooked. Her father attempted sometimes, but her mother had a famous hatred for cooking ever since she worked as a fry cook at a fastfood restaurant to put herself through college. Maybe it was Logan experimenting in the kitchen again but usually her brother¡¯s food experiments didn¡¯t smell that good. Or maybe Mom had catered from that bakery on 5th Avenue. But if she was catering then it meant she was about to entertain visitors, and high academia strangers would be in Lexie''s house soon. Ugh. Lexie groaned. I need to get lost before they get here. She opened her eyes, to do just that but then she found that she didn''t recognize her room. And then it all came rushing back. She wasn¡¯t home. She was in a video game world with [Heroes], and [Villains] and dungeons and a system and also a ghoul that had definitely tried to eat her last night even though it was reportedly vegetarian. It all sounded absurd, but not as absurd as it sounded yesterday. Especially since she¡¯d woken up in the middle of the night, and continued reading the welcome manual until she fell asleep again. Most of it was getting her acclimated to her new earth, teaching her how to use her System Interface and even showing her exact location on a map. It also showed her how to work the TV¨Cthough the manual noted that TVs were archaic because you could just project any video you wanted from the NET onto a flat surface or visual pad. Oh and the NET was Earth 9''s internet, but more cohesive and streamlined. Unlike the internet there weren¡¯t different websites that kind of all did the same thing. With the NET, there was a place for everything, but everything also had its place. They had a video section called Video Alley, an article section which collated all the news of the day, and a search section she could use to search for anything she wanted. Like a fantasy Google. It was very helpful. But also highly restrictive. They were certain things she didn¡¯t get a lot of information for. For example, when she wanted to look more into the ISTS and how it worked, she was asked for a Scholar ID before she could proceed. She tried just looking at inter-dimensional travel and what to do when you had your soul stolen from your body and thrown into another person¡¯s but there would only be brief mentionings in articles that, whenever she tried to open up, would always ask for her Scholar ID. That was a lesson in frustration. She would have to ask Aiden what a Scholar ID was and how she could get one. Overall, Lexie was more relaxed but slightly resentful. In most of the isekai she¡¯d watched, it always seemed so easy. The system automatically bestowed the main characters with all the knowledge they needed and what they were supposed to do. Or most often, they were isekai-d into a book they¡¯d read or a game they¡¯d played and it was all a grand adventure. But no. She literally had no clue about this game except that her brother apparently played the beta version. She¡¯d also read through her brother¡¯s text about Heroes Online again. It listed out the names of the major players and their classes but little else. But he seemed really excited about playing it and it reminded Lexie of all the times he would hang out in her room, playing MMORPGs games on his phone while she studied. They¡¯d mutually ignore each other, but he¡¯d yell out, ¡°Hell yeah¡± when he cleared a level, and she would roll her eyes and tell him to keep it down. The memory of it had threatened to overwhelm her. She''d had to stop reading his texts at that point or she would have ended up crying again. Now, she got out of bed and padded toward the door to the bathroom. Helpfully, the welcome manual also showed her how to work the sink and the shower. It wasn¡¯t too complicated, except there were more dials she needed to adjust to get perfect temperature hot water. It took her about thirty minutes of fiddling to get it right and then when she was done, she went to her closet and skimmed through the clothes. There were a lot of pants and tops but none of the material was denim. Instead, her pants were made of wool, leather, and a coarse woven material that was kind of like denim but softer. She pulled on that one and a cotton T-shirt and went downstairs. Aiden was in the kitchen, watching a projection on a pad screen that was propped on the counter. As she approached him, she could hear a disembodied woman¡¯s voice saying, ¡°...whisk whisk whisk ladies! Keep mixing up all those ingredients until they¡¯re uniform. And when you''re done, you can add another cup of flour and a pinch of dragon dust¨C¡± ¡°A pinch?¡± Aiden grumbled in response. ¡°Really, Nancy. I told you last week in the comments; it¡¯s exactly those types of imprecise measurements that make things more difficult for your viewers.¡± He kept muttering as he measured out a cup of flour, from a plastic container full of it. "Your pinch and my pinch are very different madam¡­¡± Today he was wearing a t-shirt and some sweatpants. On top of that, he''d tied an apron with flowers that looked like they were hand-drawn by a kid. The apron was now dusted in flour. Aiden didn¡¯t seem to hear Lexie as she walked into the room. He was still bent over, muttering and scowling at a black pad in front of him as Nancy continued talking. ¡°Oh and guys! Someone mentioned in the comments the other day about how they didn¡¯t know what a pinch was. A pinch in this case is essentially about half a teaspoon.¡± ¡°Now that¡¯s more like it.¡± Aiden''s scowl disappeared into a self-satisfied smile, as picked up a tiny measuring spoon, dipping it into what looked like a tupperware full of grey powder. ¡°This is why you¡¯re the baking queen, Nancy. You read our comments and incorporate feedback better than any of those other V-Bakers. Especially that Edna fraud¨Cdon¡¯t know what I was thinking listening to her after that croquembouche fiasco. Anyway, I¡¯m glad I learned my lesson. I¡¯ll never again stray from what we have.¡± They have croquembouche here? Lexie thought, immediately followed by, Wait, did that lady say to put dragon dust in the dough? Aiden spoke to the video like the woman was there in the flesh, but her voice continued speaking while he ranted, proving that this was only a prerecorded video. As she got closer, she saw that he was watching a Video from Video Alley, and it was projected onto the pad in extreme high definition. Lexie knew, from reading the manual, that he could also adjust settings to make the video 3D or 4D. But for now, he settled with boring old 2-D. Lexie watched as Aiden dedicatedly measured out the powder, sliding one finger over the tiny grey mountain so it was flat on the spoon. After adding the pinch of the grey powder, Aiden turned to reach for the jug of water on the table behind him and finally spotted Lexie. ¡°Hey busy bee," he smiled. "You¡¯re awake early. Did you sleep well? Have any good dreams?¡± Lexie shrugged as she walked in. She felt like she did have a dream but she couldn¡¯t remember it. That was pretty normal for her. She always forgot her dreams in the morning, but she was pretty sure that was because most of them were about as boring as her life. She probably just studied in her dreams too. On the bright side, she wasn''t having any nightmares about being shot. She barely remembered the sensation beyond a brief pain and disbelief. Probably the adrenaline numbed her to most of the worst parts of the experience. That''s good. I don''t know if I could deal with PTSD on top of all this. Although some might say that her distinct lack of emotionality and strange resignation to her situation might be a form of PTSD. She slipped into the same seat she sat in last night. ¡°What are you making?¡± ¡°Pumpkin Bread,¡± Aiden said happily. "With a twist." ¡°Another of my favorites?¡± ¡°You remember?¡± His eyes glinted with hope that fell a little when she shook her head. ¡°I just assumed, because everything you¡¯ve made so far has been my favorite food.¡± He gave a cough-laugh. ¡°I guess I may be overcompensating a little.¡± A little is an understatement. She cocked her head. ¡°Overcompensating for what?¡± He poured a little bit of water into the mixture as Nancy directed.¡°For not being around enough when you were younger. Always working. Missing a bunch of your important childhood moments, because I assumed I would have time to make up for it later.¡± He paused on that thought. ¡°Although I guess I was somewhat right. Being a convicted Villain gives tons more free time than being a hero ever did. Funny how that works out huh?¡± "Yeah, but I¡¯m sure there are better ways to get time off." Aiden chuckled but he still looked a little sad. Lexie didn''t know what else to say. Her parents had barely been around either when she was growing up, but she didn''t think she minded much. When they were around all they wanted to talk about was school and her ''plans for the future¡¯ anyway. But Aiden seemed torn up about it so she offered him a boon. "It''s okay that you weren''t around. I mean, I understand your work is important." His expression fell and the guilt on his face only grew. ¡°My work shouldn¡¯t have been more important than your needs.¡± He sighed and returned to his bowl. ¡°And it wasn''t just work. After your mother''s death, I was...I couldn''t stop searching for answers. It consumed me. I let it take me down some very dark places and I left you behind in the process." "Answers?" That part piqued her curiosity and that was easier to address than the emotional landmine of the rest of his statement. "You were looking for answers on how my mother died?" He whisked harder, the metal clattering the corner of the glass bowl. His throat bobbed as he swallowed. "They said it was on a mission gone wrong. A high-level dungeon had opened up, so she and a few more high-level fighters were sent to clear it. None of them made it out." His expression grew haunted. "I don''t know what the government was thinking, sending them in. They had no mage with them. No healer." "Mom wasn''t a mage?" ¡°Your mother?¡± He snorted. "She didn¡¯t have a mana ranking. She had some mana affinity, but zero capacity and zero interest in learning anything magic-related. She thought thaumaturgy was a kind of soup and she didn¡¯t like mages very much.¡± His smile turned warm and a little sad. ¡°But she was an amazing fighter, a high-level A-Rank, Soldier Type. But, she wasn''t a [Hero] and they had no business sending her in without backup. And no one could tell me why they did." The last sentence was said in an angry tone, a dark shadow passing over his face. "I wasn''t around when it happened. The Association had me working off the planet. When I came back she was already..." Once again, he couldn''t finish the sentence. Lexie felt a sudden wave of pity for him. She could picture it now, a hero off saving the world, and coming back to meet a dead wife and a young, probably grieving, daughter. And then later his daughter falls into a coma. Thankfully, she returns but it''s not really her. And every time Aiden smiled warmly or patted her head, Lexie felt even more like an imposter. She felt guilty even though none of this was her fault. "That''s how you became a villain?" Lexie asked quietly. "Searching for answers?" He nodded and released a heavy breath. "Something like that. But I''d rather not get into my villainous past right now. That conversation will come when you''re older." Aw. That was too bad. Lexie was curious about the "really cool but kinda stupid" thing he''d done, but she understood why he didn''t want to talk about it. She supposed he probably didn''t want his daughter to know too much about his life of crime. Maybe he''s scared that I''ll judge him. Or that I¡¯ll follow in his path. But he needn¡¯t have worried. Lexie had been a rule-follower all her life and planned on remaining one. The [Villain] life was definitely not for her. On the other hand, she could probably look up his crime later on the NET. She probably should have done that already. Just to make sure that whatever he did really wasn''t that bad. "Does being a convicted [Villain] make it harder to find jobs?¡± she asked Aiden. ¡°In a sense. I can¡¯t do anything magic related, or strength-related. There¡¯s also a limit on how much I can earn and all my communication regarding employment must go through my parole officer.¡± He traded his whisk for a spatula to turn and fold the sticky dough. ¡°Mostly, the system assigns me menial labor whenever there¡¯s a shortage, and I help out in other service roles. Lately, I¡¯ve been working in the Healing House, helping them make their medicinal potions.¡± He carefully placed the spatula on a cloth on the counter, and began kneading the dough with his hand. ¡°It''s nothing compared to my previous work, and making potions without magic is difficult to say the least. But the kind folks at the healing house were willing to overlook my criminal past when they contracted me and so I try my best to make it worth their while.¡± What about the rest of the world? Lexie wondered. She didn¡¯t know what Aiden had done but given how Luther treated him yesterday, a lot of people probably hated him. Lexie didn''t voice her questions though. She asked something adjacent to it. ¡°When you say previous work¡­¡± she ventured carefully. ¡°Do you mean villain stuff? You know, planning world domination, meetings with minions and such?¡± ¡°Not quite.¡± He chuckled. ¡°My ¡®villainy¡¯ as it were, was relatively recent, short-lived and not really prolific. I made no minions in that time and formulated no plans to take over the world.¡± Ok. That was good to know. Assuming she believed him, that is. ¡°My previous job was as the Professor of Unbound Studies at the Victoire Hero Academy. My alma mater.¡± ¡°Unbound Studies? What¡¯s that?¡± Done kneading, he covered the bowl with a clean napkin he retrieved from a hook. Then, he washed his hands, carefully cleaning dough from underneath his finger nails. Once he was done, he sauntered over to take the seat opposite her. ¡°There are, broadly speaking, two different types of magic: bound and unbound. At its simplest definition, bound magic uses artifacts, like wands, spells, weapons or cards to generate a skill. Unbound magic does not. Under the mage class, you will eventually be asked to affix either of the two.¡± ¡°Why would someone choose one over the other?¡± Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡°Well, for starters only S or A Ranked mages can choose Unbound Magic. Since its magic is conjured without any aids, it requires a large mana capacity and mana affinity to master. Occasionally a B Rank might be able to use some types of Unbound magic, but not as well. On the contrary, any rank can use bound magic, but it¡¯s better suited for people with low mana capacity and affinity. It doesn¡¯t require one to have a large mana capacity or affinity because whatever tool you use already contains some mana, and is designed to help you channel it better. Sort of like magical aids. But, after affixing bound magic, you need your chosen tool for your skills to work. So if you were a wand-user for example and you didn¡¯t have a wand with you, you would be essentially powerless.¡± Lexie nodded her understanding. ¡°So Bound Magic has more limits.¡± ¡°Precisely.¡± ¡°And Unbound magic is better.¡± He hesitated. ¡°Some people might say that.¡± ¡°But you wouldn¡¯t?¡± Lexie watched him carefully as he drummed his now clean fingers on the table. He appeared to consider his next words carefully. ¡°It¡¯s easier to see the value of Unbound magic because it¡¯s very straightforward,¡± he said measuredly. ¡°You have people with lots of internal mana, who can generate powerful skills without needing any conduit. Bound magic often looks like child''s play in comparison. But saying one is better than the other is too simplistic.¡± Lexie didn¡¯t think so. Unbound magic certainly seemed like the better option from just about every angle. She could only imagine how much it would suck to break your wand or lose your magical weapon in the middle of a ghoul attack and die as a result. But Aiden grinned as though he could read her thoughts and found them funny. He rose and Lexie turned as he walked to the cabinet she¡¯d opened yesterday, selecting the deck of cards before returning to his seat. ¡°Bound magic simply serves a different purpose than unbound," he said. "An example is card magic, which is often seen as one of the least powerful types of Bound Magic.¡± He laid his hand on the back of the card, which had intricate purple swirls tunneling a center gem. He flicked the card on top over, revealing a border with a more elaborate design, and a center of dancing heels. ¡°Cards are heavily misunderstood and as a result, denigrated for not adequately doing something they¡¯re not meant for in the first place. Most people can only point out their flaws. Cards usually deal with low-capacity magic. It¡¯s not an attack-heavy tool and it¡¯s notoriously difficult to activate under pressure, also requiring a cool-off time. Cards lack flexibility too, sacrificing that for complexity. They''re fine for an entertainer or educator to use, but horrible for high-stakes situations. It¡¯s why no [Hero], or [Villain] for that matter, has ever been a card-user." "Wait, never?" Confusion ricocheted through her. "There''s never been a [Card User Hero]? Ever?" He shook his head. "Never. For all the reasons I just mentioned." Lexie frowned. ¡°So, let¡¯s say hypothetically, someone was pre-affixed as a [Card User Hero]. What would that mean?¡± Aiden¡¯s lips pursed as he thought about the question. Then he shook his head. ¡°Well, assuming it wasn¡¯t some system error, it would be kind of a tragedy, wouldn¡¯t it? For one thing, I think that individual would be laughed out of any [Hero] program they tried to apply to. I don¡¯t even think they¡¯d make good hero support either. And even if they manage to get in and want to do hero work, they would probably have to endure a fair amount of mockery and would only be given low ranking assignments.¡± Great, Lexie thought sarcastically. So it seemed that, without any qualms, the system had rendered her a freak and a failure. Why on earth had it preaffixed her as a [Card User Hero] then? Was it a mistake? Random? Or was her class broken just because she came from a different dimension? She really wanted to ask Aiden more about it, but she didn''t want to give away her pre-affixation quite yet. She wanted to gauge him properly first. Perhaps because she didn¡¯t know how a [Villain] would feel about his daughter being a [Hero]. He didn¡¯t seem to hold much animosity toward [Heroes] but she didn''t know him well enough to be sure. And also she didn¡¯t know if her early pre-affixation had something to do with the ISTS. Maybe it was part of the things she wasn¡¯t supposed to disclose. Either way, she was playing that particular card close to her chest. "But cards are an excellent teaching tool,¡± Aiden continued. ¡°Teaching tool?¡± ¡°Yes, especially when it comes to mana pathways.¡± ¡°What are those?¡± He traced his finger around the cards. ¡°Well, if you become a mage, they¡¯re a topic you study at any mage academy. A mana pathway is the mechanism by which a magical skill is activated, the flow of mana through and out of your body, the movement of magic. Each skill has a different pathway and if you try to activate a skill without the proper pathway, you can get a drastically different result than what you wanted, or worst case scenario, you could harm yourself. So the first thing any mage learns is how to properly activate and navigate mana pathways. Most professors use cards as a teaching tool because it¡¯s the most unforgiving when it comes to having strict mana pathways.¡± Lexie furrowed her eyebrows. Aiden pulled in a salt shaker to explain. He shook enough of the salt onto the table and began to draw lines through it resembling a series of connecting tunnels. ¡°For example, let¡¯s take this as a pathway for a particular spell. You say the spell, but you don''t properly go through the activation protocol, maybe you used too much or too little mana and it twists the pathway instead. You could still get a good result just by saying the spell correctly because the spell pathway is more flexible and will end up adjusting to allow for your skill. And with unbound magic, you can just ignore proper protocol and pump your body with ungodly amounts of mana, and some of that is bound to flow in the right pathway, even if it¡¯s a terrible process that generates a lot of waste.¡± Aiden¡¯s face showed his disgust for such a method. ¡°But none of that is possible with cards. As I said before, cards sacrifice flexibility for complexity. They are completely unforgiving when it comes to process. The mana pathway and activation protocol have to be completed exactly right, or the card simply won¡¯t activate. This is their strength. They¡¯re the best and safest type of magic to learn pathways with.¡± He placed the first card down on the table and flipped the next one. ¡°Unbound might seem like the better option at first glance, but that¡¯s because it prioritizes simple raw power output. So if that¡¯s what you¡¯re looking for then that¡¯s the way to go." He tapped the card. ¡°But cards are a subtler type of magic. It¡¯s also said that they were the first magical tools that the system created, before spells or wands or runes. Eventually, as other magic types became popular, things like cards were seen as outdated, and archaic with a lot of redundancies. But I still believe that it¡¯s the best way to fundamentally understand how magic works in our world. It''s the truest form the system gave us." Lexie glanced down at the card. She didn¡¯t know how to feel about anything she¡¯d just discovered. Finding out that card magic was one of the weakest types didn¡¯t make her feel good, but if it made it easier for her to learn then that was a good thing. She was aiming to be a [Researcher] anyway, and not a [Hero]. There was one thing though that she didn''t get. Everything Aiden just said about pathways implied that there was at least some learning curve involved in activating them. But activating that card felt effortless yesterday. She''d barely even noticed the energy that rushed through her. ¡°That card you used yesterday doesn¡¯t count though,¡± Aiden said as though he could sense what she was thinking. ¡°Its skill works independently of the user. It doesn¡¯t require the user to have any magic for it to work, so even a mundane could activate it.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Lexie¡¯s interest peaked. ¡°So there are cards like that?¡± ¡°Not usually,¡± he admitted. ¡°This is the only one I know of still in existence.¡± ¡°How come? It seemed like a pretty useful tool. It could help people who don¡¯t have mana to be able to do things like protect themselves from ghouls, and other mildly vegetarian creatures of the night. Why doesn¡¯t the system make more of it?¡± Aiden cocked his head, looking pleased. ¡°I love that you ask the right questions." But for whatever reason, he didn''t answer the question. Instead, he held up another card, similar in design to the others, but with twisted legs in the center of it. ¡°You wanna try to activate a card?¡± Lexie¡¯s eyes widened. She didn''t even take a second to think about it. ¡°Uh, yeah.¡± He passed her the card and she took it, apprehension mixed in with a bit of excitement. Maybe this was a stupid idea but she was curious to find out how these cards worked. Besides, what other chance would she ever get to use magical cards? "Close your eyes," Aiden said. Lexie obeyed and tried not to fidget. "Try as much as possible to feel your internal mana. Take deep breaths if you need to. It should feel like a faintly buzzing sensation, similar to a bolt of less intense lightning. Now, it might take you a few minutes to identify, so don¡¯t worry if you¨C¡± ¡°Got it," Lexie said. She heard Aiden make a sputtering sound. ¡°Are you sure? That fast?¡± ¡°Uh-huh.¡± It didn''t take Lexie that much time at all. Almost as soon as he started speaking she felt it. She probably always felt it but just took notice of it when she turned her attention inward. It was similar to the buzzing in the atmosphere, but different. More her. She could sense pieces of herself in the mana, her fear, her longing for home, her sadness, and even her curiosity. ¡°What do I do next?¡± she asked Aiden, who seemed to have been struck silent for a moment. ¡°Um,¡± he said ¡°Okay, next thing you need to do is push your¡­.awareness slightly outward towards your hand, and feel the mana in the card.¡± Lexie took deep breaths and pushed the skittering sensation outward toward the card. When she focused on the card, she saw a glowing path radiating in the darkness that looked like a complicated ladder, with rungs laced around each other. ¡°What do you see, Lexie?¡± Aiden asked. "A weird ladder," she answered honestly. "Really?" Aiden sounded surprised. "You found it already?" ¡°Yeah. Is this supposed to be hard?¡± ¡°Well¡­yes. Especially since it¡¯s your first time. Frankly, I expected you to struggle a little at the beginning, and then I was going to impress you with the fact that I actually activated my very first card in under a minute. But now it looks like you¡¯re going to beat my time and I won¡¯t get the chance to be the amazingly cool mage dad.¡± She didn''t know if he sounded disappointed or proud. Lexie didn¡¯t want to lose her focus so she merely smiled. ¡°So the ladder is¡­.¡± "It''s the activation pathway for the card. Direct your mana through it, to activate the card. Then the card will help you generate a skill.¡± "Okay. So I just direct my mana through the path?" "Yes. Like you''re tracing the lines of the ladder." Lexie steeled herself, took another deep breath, and then started pushing her mana towards the ladder, watching it enter from the bottom left leg and slowly rise winding through the rungs. It was slow and strenuous. Like working a muscle she didn¡¯t know she had, and had never used before. She found herself frowning hard. But she kept going because she was just fascinated by the process. The mana glowed even brighter as it passed each spot in the pathway it touched and she had to remember not to hold her breath. It was truly beautiful. As it reached the top, filling the ladder, Lexie asked, ¡°Alright, what now?¡± ¡°Now is the harder part. You need to direct the external mana in the atmosphere inside you, using the card as a pathway stabilizer.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Lexie said and then a knock on the door further broke her concentration. "Ah, hang on. That¡¯s probably Max," Aiden said. The chair scraped on the floor and Lexie''s eyes popped open as he rose from the table. His footsteps thumped on the wooden floorboard as he went to answer the door. In the meantime, Lexie remained seated examining the card she was holding. It was similar to the dancing feet card, but instead, the feet were twisted around each other. She focused on it and a blue box popped up. was the title of the card. Before she could read more, the door creaked open and Aiden said, ¡°Rose.¡± ¡°I¡¯m so sorry to disturb you like this.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was frantic, pleading. ¡°But I have no one else to turn to. Evan¡¯s condition has gotten worse.¡± Lexie turned to see a petite woman standing on the porch, holding the hand of a sandy-haired boy of about three or four years old. She thought the boy looked fine at first, but when she squinted, she could see there was a reddish rash spreading over his neck. ¡°When did it begin worsening?¡± Aiden asked in a quiet tone as he squatted in front of the boy, gently holding his chin and turning his head one way then another. Evan looked like he was used to being manhandled because he simply grinned as Aiden lifted his arms to check underneath it. ¡°I have stinky pits,¡± he warned with a giggle. ¡°I can tell.¡± Aiden waved his hand in front of his face, a tad dramatically making Evan giggle more. ¡°But I¡¯m getting used to your unique tang of moldy cheese.¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± Rose cringed. ¡°I haven¡¯t been able to shower him for three days. He screams bloody murder whenever I try.¡± ¡°That¡¯s probably because the water is reacting with the rash. Also could be the hydrophobia kicking in.¡± ¡°Do you think it got worse because of the dungeon opening? I heard an unstable one opened last night and something got out. Do you think that¡¯s what¡¯s causing this? Old Man Lochlan said half his crops shriveled up and died overnight too.¡± Aiden was quiet. Lexie couldn''t see his face, but she got the impression that he was carefully considering his words. ¡°I doubt it,¡± he said. ¡°The creature last night was a possession type, not a pestilence type. It wouldn''t have done this.¡± That didn¡¯t calm Rose. If anything, it made her more frantic. "What if there was another unstable dungeon then? One that they didn¡¯t catch? They¡¯ve been occurring more frequently than before.¡± ¡°The system would have alerted us if a dungeon had completed its spawning. We would have had to evacuate. I don¡¯t think there was another dungeon.¡± ¡°Then why did Evan get worse overnight?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. You should go to the Healing House. They¡¯ll run tests over there.¡± Rose heaved a heavy trembling breath. ¡°I¡¯m tired of going to the healing house.¡± Her voice was strained. ¡°All they do is run tests and give us potions that don¡¯t work. The rash always comes back. We need a healer, someone with magic.¡± ¡°Emma has called for a healer.¡± ¡°Yes. Three weeks ago, yet no one from the Healer¡¯s Guild or Hero¡¯s Association arrived. They probably don¡¯t think we¡¯re worthy of healing because we¡¯re all lower-middle-class mundanes.¡± Bitterness dripped from her tone and she reached forward and took Aiden¡¯s hand. ¡°Please, Archmage. Is there nothing you can do?¡± ¡°You know I can¡¯t use magic anymore, Rose.¡± Her eyebrows furrowed in desperation, voice lowered. ¡°Not even a little bit? I promise I won¡¯t tell anyone if you do.¡± Aiden sighed and shook his head. As he straightened, he ruffled Evan¡¯s hair. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± He said. ¡°Go to the Healing House. I¡¯ll be there shortly, to help Emma with the potions." Rose eventually assented but she looked slightly dejected, shoulder slouched as she took her son¡¯s hand. ¡°Thanks anyway.¡± After she left, Aiden returned to the dining table. The easy smile on his face was gone, and tension coiled in his shoulders. ¡°You really can¡¯t help that lady?¡± Lexie asked quietly. He met her eyes and gave her one of his sadder smiles. ¡°Not with magic. As Max said, part of my punishment is that I can¡¯t use any. These...¡± He pointed to the bands on his neck and the matching ones on his wrists. ¡°...restrict me.¡± ¡°Yes but can¡¯t the system make an exception for when you need to help people? Or can¡¯t you get your sentence reduced for good behavior?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not how it works. There is a lot of flexibility with the system, but unfortunately, this is one of the things it¡¯s strict about. Once a [Villain] sentence is accepted, convicted [Villains] must carry it out. My sentence is these bands. For life.¡± "What happens if you try to use magic?" "Pain," he said almost casually. "Excruciating pain and burning. And sometimes you suffer aftershocks that feel like you''ve been struck by real lightning and it''s ripping through your veins." Lexie shuddered internally at the description. ¡°That¡¯s inhumane.¡± Lexie burst out, and then a thought occurred to her. ¡°Is that why your hands were shaking so badly yesterday? Because you tried to use magic?¡± He grimaced at being caught. ¡°Yes. It was stupid but instinct is hard to beat. When I saw the ghoul heading back for you, I ran but I wasn''t moving fast enough. I was too panicked to think. So I tried to teleport here based on pure muscle memory and I swiftly paid for that mistake.¡± And still, he¡¯d come. He¡¯d ran in here and confronted a ghoul with his bare hands while in excruciating, vein-rending pain. Despite Lexie¡¯s attempt to stay distant from most of what was happening here, her heart melted. He must really love his daughter if he¡¯s willing to put himself through torture for her. It¡¯s just sad for him that I¡¯m not the real thing. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said. ¡°Don''t be sorry, bumble bee. It¡¯s not your fault and I don¡¯t regret it for a second. Besides, the shakes don¡¯t hurt that much and they go away after some time.¡± ¡°Still, it¡¯s horrible.¡± And sounded kind of excessive. Although she didn¡¯t know what he did, she really couldn¡¯t imagine someone like Aiden committing murder or attempting to take over the world or something heinous enough to warrant living with painful bands for the rest of one¡¯s life. Max called what he did ¡°really cool but kinda stupid.¡± Aiden himself said he was searching for information. Maybe he accessed information that he shouldn''t have, probably by magically hacking this dimension''s equivalent of the CIA. And yeah that was wrong, but Lexie didn¡¯t think it deserved this kind of sentence. Then again, she didn¡¯t know any of these people and maybe she was simply jumping to conclusions. She pulled herself back to reality. You don¡¯t know him. He could be a mass murderer for all you know. A ding announced the oven timer was done counting down. ¡°Oh good, the vanilla bread is done,¡± Aiden said. ¡°Unfortunately I won¡¯t be able to wait for it to properly cool down, or finish baking the pumpkin bread, but we can have a few slices before I go.¡± He donned some oven mitts and bent to retrieve the tray from the oven, placing it on a machine made up of metal tubes. He pushed a button and cool air blew out of the tubes onto the bread. And then he reached for a bread knife. Throughout, Lexie still couldn''t stop staring at his bands. ¡°What you did¡­" she started. "You know, to become a [Villain]. Was it that bad?¡± Lexie was somewhat surprised when Aiden paused for a moment, turning to her with a strange expression on his face. Like regret but also anger. ¡°It was,¡± Aiden said. He didn¡¯t say anything else, just quickly turned away and began slicing the bread. 7 - Plots and Plans Lexie decided to accompany Aiden to the Healing House. She was bored of staying home all day, and this was a chance to see if she could maybe get cell service from somewhere else. Besides, despite his [Villain] status, she wasn¡¯t scared of Aiden. Not yet anyway. Plus he was the only one who could tell her about this world. So she went out testing her phone to see if she could get anything. The dreaded ¡®no service¡¯ bar persisted, no matter what direction she turned it to on her walk. The sky was overcast as they strolled the cobblestone walkway, snaking onto paved roads. Aiden told her he enjoyed walking long distances but he could buy her a bike if she wanted. That led to a detailed explanation of the different transportation services on Earth 9 including bikes, hoverbikes, trains, air trains, sea trains, different flavors of cars, and the whimsically named skybirds (which were like...artistic planes?). Aiden said that, while he wasn¡¯t much of a car guy, he was knowledgeable about many things and cars just happened to be one of them. He also apparently enjoyed sharing that knowledge, judging from the satisfaction on his face as he discussed the intricacies of a multi-turbo mana-engine 6th-edition road rocket which, from the sound of it, was a very nice, very fast car. Like her dad¡¯s Camaro. Aiden also provided, completely unsolicited, Rose¡¯s entire backstory, including the fact that she was once the daughter of a widowed nobleman and a once-famous opera singer. While Orinia was now a district full of semi-independent states ran by separate governments, it was once an Empire and tendrils of that still remained, with old lords and nobles claiming some attachments to the now merely symbolic Orinian royal family. Rose¡¯s father was one such man and, although he was not super wealthy or prominent in any way, he gave his daughter a strict upbringing, including an arranged marriage that went by the typical noble formula. But then his daughter, Rose, had made the gruesome mistake of hooking up with a man she fell in love with, some ¡®scallywag¡¯ (Aiden¡¯s word) who got her pregnant and then disappeared. After her father kicked her out, she had nowhere to go, so she came to Hovelton to start a life with her son. She worked at a bakery and currently lived on the first floor of a retirement complex called Green Fox, where the retirees helped her watch Evan while she worked. He mentioned a few other people by name too, but Lexie blanked out on their stories because she had no face to attach to the facts. Eventually, in a rare silent moment, Lexie whipped her phone out of her inventory to check the signal on it again. Still nothing. At least the battery percentage remained the same, which meant...something but she wasn''t sure what. The first time she¡¯d taken out the phone she¡¯d expected Aiden to comment on it, but he had not. She knew they had phones here. There weren¡¯t really used anymore, mostly seen as archaic relics of the past. But she thought he would at least ask where she got it from, in which case, she would tell him the lie she¡¯d prepared about how she¡¯d found it in their backyard or something. But Aiden had simply smiled sadly when he saw it and looked away. She didn''t know what to make of that. Did he already know about the phone? Did Lexie Sparrowfoot have one? Maybe she would ask at a different time, when he didn¡¯t look so melancholy. In any case, it didn''t look like she was getting a signal anytime soon, so she put the phone back in her inventory. While there, she briefly looked at Aiden''s deck of cards that she stored there. Aiden showed her how to upload the physical cards to her system storage, which involved having the card in her hands, visually focusing on it, and just telling the system, ¡°Add Cards to Inventory.¡± Of course, Aiden also had to approve the transfer, since the system recognized him as the original owner of the cards, but then now they were in her inventory, they were as good as hers. Aiden allowed her to bring them along, to give her something to do while he was making potions at the hospital. She was curious to try out the cards and wanted to know why the system would make her a [Card User Hero] when the two things seemed counterintuitive. Judging from everything Aiden had said, a card user would undoubtedly make a craptastic [Hero]. And the last thing Lexie wanted was to be craptastic at anything. You have to be good. The mantra her parents taught her remained resounding in her mind. Better than good. You have to be great. On the plus side, cards apparently also made learning much easier because she could safely experiment with magic. Aiden also told her on their walk that the Orinian Department of Card Magic was always searching for more scholars and [Researchers], and being a card mage, in addition to being a scholar, would give her a significant advantage over other applicants. All she had to do was to gain a scholar class, in addition to her mage one. Aiden said she could nudge the system into giving her that on System Day by simply doing scholarly things, convincing the system that she was well-suited for it. So, up to this point, her plan was a no-brainer. Learn more about card magic, study them like hell, make revolutionary discovery, profit, and then go home. Or learn about card magic, earn enough points to change her pre-affixation to [Researcher], study hard to become a [System Developer], and then go home. She didn¡¯t know which one would take longer, but she would try both simultaneously. She was also open to other possibilities being a better way out of here. It was just hard to know because of how restrictive the Net was about such things. She would of course take time to do her own research about other magic disciplines and whether those would be easier to earn points with. She¡¯d chosen card magic because it was the easiest to learn with, and the system seemed to want her to use that medium so she didn¡¯t want to fight it on that. She wanted to focus all her energy on changing the [Hero] part of the equation. So for now, her plan seemed like the way to go. She¡¯d also been tempted to ask Aiden about the ISTS and all but she hesitated. She didn¡¯t know how much she was allowed to reveal and she didn¡¯t want to unknowingly tip Aiden off that she wasn¡¯t his daughter. Did normal ten-year-olds know about the ISTS? Could Lexie pass it off as something she¡¯d heard in school or something? She didn¡¯t know. There was so much she still didn¡¯t know about this world and she didn¡¯t want to inadvertently say anything that would get her in trouble. Aiden was technically a [Villain] after all and even though he seemed like a nice guy so far, she didn¡¯t actually know him. He was only nice to her because she was his daughter. If he suspected she wasn¡¯t¡­well, she didn¡¯t know what he would do. I wish I¡¯d paid more attention to Logan when he talked about this damn game. Of course, she also needed to research more about cards and card magic to figure out what she wanted to focus her research on. But it still bothered her that the system hadn¡¯t made things easier for her, by making her a [Researcher] instead of a [Hero]. If they really evaluated her past life, like it said it did, then they should have known that what she did for Tate was probably the single heroic thing she¡¯d ever done in her entire life. But she studied every single day, aced every single test. Her entire history and being was better suited toward scholarly pursuits. So why not make her a [Researcher]? Could it be that it had no faith in her research capabilities? Were the people here so advanced and evolved that they were leagues in intelligence ahead of anyone on Earth 2? The thought bothered Lexie more than she wanted to admit. She hated to think about it but she did anyway: Were there much smarter people than her in this world? Probably, considering they had magic and better technology than anything she¡¯d ever seen on her earth. The system probably thought it would be too much for Lexie to catch up. Regardless, it should have given her a chance. She sighed. There were no answers to be had now. Only more questions. Aiden and Lexie were now on another cobblestone pathway behind a row of old buildings in various states of disrepair. They looked like apartment complexes with broken windows, layers of cracked red brick stacked upon each other, walls bleeding muck and mold, and the scent of dirt and decay staining the air. The houses were packed so close together that there was barely space for two bodies to pass through at a time and even just staring at the tiny matchbox windows made Lexie feel claustrophobic. ¡°What are these?¡± Lexie asked. Aiden¡¯s response was once again quick. ¡°These are the miner flats. Lower-income housing, mostly used by miners.¡± ¡°Miners mine what exactly?¡± ¡°Dungeons. Remember how I said dungeons spawned randomly, stable and unstable?¡± She nodded. ¡°The stable dungeons are usually raided by parties of either [Heroes] or [Mercenaries] like Max. They clear it out and get loot, gems, and occasionally magical items and slay whatever creature might be there. Solve whatever puzzle they find that could make the dungeon dangerous for the layman. And when they''re done making sure it¡¯s safe, miners are sent in. They go and mine the ground for more gems and magic stones. Once they meet their quota, it¡¯s sent to the local government and they¡¯re paid a fee for it. Dungeon mining is hard, back-breaking labor and it¡¯s also dangerous because you¡¯d have to get out of the dungeon before the open time elapses and the dungeon disappears.¡± ¡°Wait, dungeons do that? Just disappear?¡± ¡°Of course. Dungeons don¡¯t stay open forever. They spawn, stay for several hours to days, sometimes weeks or months, and then they resolve.¡± ¡°And they can disappear with people still inside?¡± ¡°Yes, although the system tries its hardest not to let that happen. When the resolution time is imminent, and it detects people still in the dungeons, it will alert any [Heroes], dungeoneers, delvers and local law enforcement nearby. Then the system will attempt to interfere with the resealing of the dungeon to give the person more time to get out. But if all that fails then yes, the dungeon will be sealed off and it will disappear with whoever or whatever is still inside.¡± ¡°And then what happens? Do they die?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t know.¡± He stared off in the distance. ¡°We don¡¯t know where the dungeons go when they disappear. There are many theories, but no one is sure.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Lexie said. The more she heard about the mundanes, the more she felt bad for them. It seemed they were forced to do all the crappy labor, and were completely reliant on the ranked individuals for their survival. It was a somewhat symbiotic relationship but the system certainly gave them the shorter end of the stick. All for what? The sin of not being born ¡®right¡¯? ¡°What¡¯s wrong with Rose¡¯s son, Evan?¡± Lexie asked next. She saw the rash on his neck, but she had a feeling it was something more serious than that. Why else would Rose be panicking like she was? ¡°He has what they call, loiter sickness. It¡¯s an infection that can be caught from sick animals or sometimes from eating enough sick plants, although that¡¯s rarer. When bit by a sick animal, the rash is the beginning. Then the smell. Then we move onto general hydrophobia and sensitivity to sound. Then the individual slowly grows rabid and in the final stage, they lose their sanity. Once they''re past that, they''ll have to be put down.¡± Like Rabies, Lexie thought but she still asked, ¡°And there¡¯s no cure?¡± ¡°There are potions that can help symptoms. But only a healer will be able to cure him, and it¡¯s recommended for them to do it before the final stage. If not, it¡¯s harder.¡± ¡°So? Why not call a healer to come heal him now?¡± ¡°We did.¡± Annoyance glinted in his eyes. ¡°Several times.¡± ¡°But they haven¡¯t come yet? Why? Because most of the town is mundane?¡± He glanced at her. ¡°I see Max¡¯s prejudice is wearing off on you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not Max¡¯s prejudice. Rose implied as much too. And to my own observation, you¡¯re telling me a little boy is going to die from a curable illness because a healer can¡¯t be bothered to show up here?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that simple. There are too few healers circulating in the country and they¡¯re needed in so many places. So many of them are stretched thin.¡± Lexie wasn¡¯t convinced. ¡°Tell me this. If instead of Evan, it was a mage or a pre-awakened person like me who had contracted loiter sickness, would a healer already be here or not? What if it was the mayor, someone who was rich and could offer them financial incentives? Would they come then?¡± Aiden didn¡¯t answer the question. And that was answer enough. Lexie faced forward, her lips pressing tight. This is just a video game, she tried to remind herself. It¡¯s not Aiden¡¯s fault. He¡¯s simply abiding by the rules of the game. But that mantra didn¡¯t make her feel any better. Because why is it like this? Even in a game that was made up of fantastical creatures and magic systems, where the game designer could probably at least had everyone start out at the same rank and leveled the playing field, given a meritocracy, they still decided to make some kind of arbitrary separation that existed in every facet of the normal world. Why not just give everyone powers? Or at least make sure there were enough healers to go around? If the system could force her to become a specific ultra-lame niche of [Hero] why didn¡¯t it pre-affix enough healers? With each second, the thought made Lexie angrier until she was practically fuming. Internally, she knew that she was probably extra sensitive about this topic because of her Grandpa. His medical condition was a huge strain on her parents, not just mental but financial as well. Although they did okay in their respective careers, Lexie¡¯s parents were not quite upper middle class, and they spent so much on Lexie¡¯s education and tutoring already. They also had to sacrifice a lot to keep up with his care. Sometimes, Lexie thought that Grandpa chose to die earlier than he was supposed to, just to save them the effort. He always said it was pointless that they kept seeking treatment even though none of it could cure him. And when her mother found something that maybe could work, it was too expensive to try and insurance refused to cover it. And there would be no one to blame because that was simply how the system worked. No one cared. Until money and power were involved. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Aiden said. For some reason, his apology only made her angrier. ¡°Don¡¯t apologize. It¡¯s not your fault.¡± ¡°But I''m part of the order that makes things the way they are.¡± He tucked his hands into his pockets, uplifting his face toward the sky. ¡°For so long I was blind to the unfairness of the system¡­no not blind. That would be giving me too much credit. Rather I was willing to ignore the unfairness, ignore how it benefited me while disenfranchising others. I felt like everything I had was because I earned it, not just because I was fortunate enough to be born as a double S-Rank.¡± He looked down at Lexie. ¡°It took a lot to get me to see what you see so easily.¡± She released a breath. She didn¡¯t want to take her anger out on Aiden. He was already dealing with enough. ¡°So there¡¯s really nothing that can be done for Evan?¡± she asked quietly. ¡°The potions Rose mentioned? Why aren¡¯t they working?¡± ¡°Potions are arguably a category of very mild bound magic. Though they don¡¯t need the user of the potion to have any internal mana, the creator should be some kind of mage. That¡¯s because the end step of creating every potion requires magic bonding, or the potion can be ineffective at best, and defective at worst.¡± ¡°So¡­you created those potions without magic and that¡¯s why they are not working?¡± ¡°Yes. Ideally, we would use already-made potions from official potion makers but we¡¯ve run out of those and the town budget isn¡¯t enough to buy more. The Governor also isn¡¯t giving us more money, even though the population of the town has more than doubled in the past three years.¡± His annoyance leaked into his tone. ¡°In the meantime, I¡¯ve been helping Emma, the head caretaker at the Healing House, to make potions while Luke, our Mayor, appeals for more funding. Emma and I have been using forest-grown mana-infused herbs to try to supplement that final magical step but it¡¯s not even remotely as effective. As such, the potions we make have very low healing properties and can only treat the simplest of symptoms. We¡¯ve been experimenting with a potion that delays advancement of a disease and it seems to have been helping a few patients like Evan. But it¡¯s not a hundred percent sure.¡± When he finished, Lexie¡¯s mind worked fast and then she ventured, ¡°That card you had me use yesterday. You said it was the only one of its kind.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± he said. ¡°And mundane people could use it too.¡± ¡°Yes. By nature of its construction, it doesn¡¯t require any internal mana from its user, only external.¡± Lexie stored that piece of information about internal versus external mana for later, and then finally voiced out her question. ¡°Is there a way to make more of those then? If each card had some kind of healing magic, or could at least treat the symptoms, we could give that to all the mundanes in Hovelton. That way they wouldn''t need to keep buying potions and they could heal themselves as regularly as they want. They could even share it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult for a card to do that,¡± Aiden said. ¡°First off, like I mentioned earlier, cards are limited in time, power, and they¡¯re immensely difficult to make. It requires perfect control of mana pathways, in-depth knowledge of the etymology and origin of whatever ability you''re trying to imbue, and enough mana to power the creation. Most people can never even create the most basic of cards, much less a card like that.¡± Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°If people aren''t creating them, then where do cards come from?¡± ¡°Usually? The system. They¡¯re made by [System Developers] working with medium to large groups of mages and scholars. A party of about a dozen of them is usually assigned to research and create a single card with a little help from a Fae overseer.¡± ¡°Fae?¡± Her eyes widened. ¡°Yes. Extraterrestrial species that we share an interplanetary alliance with. I¡¯ll tell you more about them later. But for now, just know that it is incredibly difficult to make cards.¡± ¡°Okay, then we can tell the system to make more of those mundane-friendly cards.¡± ¡°They won¡¯t.¡± ¡°They did before.¡± ¡°No, they didn¡¯t. The system didn''t make that card, Lexie.¡± A smug look eased his features when he admitted. ¡°I did.¡± Lexie gaped at him. He smirked. ¡°I made it a long time ago, back in my Academy days. I was about four years older than you are now, and going through a¡­let¡¯s say, less-than-ideal time in my life.¡± He looked to the sky again. ¡°I was the only mage in my small town of fighters and mundanes, and this nobleman¡¯s son had had it out for me since I was a scrawny child. It only got worse on System day when my supposed best friend announced that I awakened as a high-rank mage. It made my tormentor jealous and vengeful.¡± She could see the tension and annoyance still in his face as he remembered. Then he released a loud breath. ¡°I couldn''t use magic against him because that would get me kicked out of the Hero Academy. And I wasn¡¯t strong enough to fight back physically. So during my second year at the academy, right before summer break, I tried to create something that would make me invisible so I could hide from him. I started out with potions and when that didn¡¯t work, I moved to artifacts and eventually cards. They were the cheapest to work with and I didn¡¯t know how to use spells or unbound magic that well at that time. Anyway, I worked on it day and night every waking hour and after many failed attempts, I finally got that card. It wasn¡¯t exactly what I wanted and it only worked on one person at a time. But it worked.¡± "Wow." For the first time, she wondered just how powerful Aiden Sparrowfoot was. He just admitted that he created something that typically took a team of mages to do, and even worse, he did it as a teenager. And he said it like it was a casual Tuesday activity. She could see a younger Aiden ticking it off his to-do list one by one: Homework. Check. Bake banana bread. Check. Create a magical item that takes others years and entire teams to master. Check. ¡°So you¡¯re the only one who¡¯s ever made a card?¡± ¡°Well, maybe not the only one, but there¡¯s certainly not many of us.¡± He stuck his nose up a little higher. ¡°You know they used to call me a generational genius? They didn¡¯t do that for no reason now.¡± Lexie fought the urge to smile but she was too impressed to roll her eyes. And Aiden clearly enjoyed impressing her, strutting with an extra pep in his step and giving off a very ''look-I¡¯m-a-cool-dad'' energy. It took her a while to remember the main point of her question. ¡°So if you could make that as a teen,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Then, maybe another, older, more trained, card mage could make a healing card, right? I mean that would work as well as a potion but it can be used over and over again. Surely the government would love to give funding for that because it would solve the healer shortage problem." Aiden¡¯s light dimmed a little as he shook his head. ¡°That won¡¯t work,¡± he said. ¡°Even if the government funded it, healing magic is one of the hardest types of magic to master, and creating a card like that would require more mana than I think anyone has. The card I created was pretty weak in comparison and I experienced the worst burnout after creating it. So creating a healing card might actually kill them.¡± Lexie deflated like a punctured air balloon. Disappointment and frustration curdled in her belly. She thought her idea had promise but it got shut down so easily. Still, she would keep trying. Maybe that was her purpose here. After all, if she was going by video game logic, this would be the point where they introduced a problem that the main player needed to solve. What did they call that in literature? The inciting incident? ¡°But Lex, I¡¯m happy you''re thinking this way,¡± Aiden interrupted her thoughts, laying a hand on her shoulder. She thought she detected a kind of pride in his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s how your mother used to think too.¡± His face contorted. He swallowed. ¡°Despite never being an official [Hero], Lara was more of a hero than anyone I know.¡± And even though it pained him to talk about her, Aiden Sparrowfoot couldn¡¯t seem to help mentioning his wife any chance he got. And in doing so, he finally pulled Lexie¡¯s attention back to reality. Aiden wasn¡¯t her father and Lara wasn¡¯t her mother. She had to constantly remind herself of that, so she didn¡¯t lose track of who she was. And maybe she shouldn¡¯t be so concerned about Rosa¡¯s son and healers in Hovelton. This wasn¡¯t a real place after all. It was a video game that she was somehow transported into and rather than getting involved, she needed to find a way to get home. ¡°I think I¡¯ve decided to be a [Researcher],¡± she started. ¡°With cards as my field of focus.¡± Aiden seemed hesitant to answer. ¡°It¡¯s a valid field of research. A little underfunded at the moment but that also means there¡¯s little competition. But bumblebee, are you sure about this [Researcher] thing?¡± ¡°Why are you so against it?¡± Lexie asked, a tad defensively. ¡°You want me to be something else? A [Hero]?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± His reaction was so genuinely taken aback that Lexie believed him. ¡°I¡¯ve never wanted to push you to be a [Hero] just because I was one. In fact, I thought I went out of my way to make it clear that you didn¡¯t have to do anything you didn¡¯t want to, particularly not following in my footsteps.¡± He looked so distraught that she would think such a thing, that Lexie felt bad for assuming. It was just that, for a second there, it felt very much like how her real parents had steered her entire life. Picking which school she went to, which classes and extracurriculars she would take, not to mention extra classes and such. They turned down anything that didn¡¯t feel ¡®useful¡¯ to Lexie¡¯s future, like art and dance. Even Lexie¡¯s free-time was carefully rationed and if her grades slipped even a little, they would sometimes go through her phone to make sure that she wasn¡¯t getting too much screen time. She¡¯d already gone through that in her past life. She wasn¡¯t about to do it again. ¡°Sorry,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s just that you¡¯re very adamant that I don''t choose research.¡± ¡°Yes. For all the reasons I said. With your personality, I don¡¯t think you would enjoy it. It¡¯s a very isolating experience.¡± ¡°You sound like you¡¯re speaking from personal experience.¡± ¡°Well, I do have some personal experience. My class is often heavily encouraged to become researchers and I tried it out for a little bit, before discovering it was not for me at all." ¡°I thought you were a mage.¡± The corner of his lip quirked. ¡°Yes, and a scholar.¡± Oh. She forgot about that. ¡°I have two classes, one mana-based, one mental-based. Double S-Ranked.¡± He had that air of pride again which warned Lexie he was about to start bragging. ¡°There are less than 0.1 percent of people who have such high ranking in two classes. It¡¯s technically possible to find someone with a ranking on all three¨Cmana, mental, and physical. But those people are extremely rare and you''ll probably want to stay away from them. They tend to be awfully arrogant with terrible personalities. Unlike your father who is the picture of humility, despite being a world famous mage at one point.¡± Right. Lexie thought with some amusement. Picture of humility indeed. A new question then occurred to her. ¡°Is it possible to affix both [Researcher] and [Hero]?¡± Maybe instead of replacing one with the other, she could just do both. ¡°No," Aiden said definitively. "The system avoids giving one person two roles because it''s very overwhelming. Roles are important because, once affixed, they get special system-quests and the logistics get complicated when one person carries multiple roles. They could get different quests regarding both roles at the same time and not be able to accomplish one or the other. Not ideal.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Well, that was out of the list of solutions. Aiden released her shoulder and took her hand, as they crossed the street. Though the roads were strangely empty, Lexie caught sight of a hovering car in the distance, on the winding mountain road. ¡°Besides," Aiden continued. "Even with multiple classes, the system tries to make you prioritize one over the other so you don¡¯t get too overwhelmed with both. For example, I¡¯m¨C or was ¨Ca level 9 mage, but only a level 7 scholar. And I started out as a Level 5 so I only went up two scholarly points, which is below scholarly average growth. Of course, it didn¡¯t help that I didn¡¯t specialize in any scholarly discipline but the point remains that you¡¯ll eventually have to prioritize one of the classes over the other. It can be tedious to develop both equally, even for geniuses like you and me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a genius.¡± Lexie pointed out. She didn''t want him to get his hopes up. ¡°I¡¯m just above average and good at studying.¡± Lexie had learned that about herself when she was younger. Even though her parents touted her as some kind of prodigy, she really wasn¡¯t. She just studied a lot, practically every waking moment. She had to work twice as hard as some of the other people in her AP classes just to stay ahead. And she wasn¡¯t great with numbers which was why she¡¯d needed so many math tutors in the past. ¡°Right,¡± Aiden snorted like he didn¡¯t believe her. ¡°You know that¡¯s similar to what I used to tell the press back in the day so they would write articles about how humble I was. The public ate it up.¡± He flourished his hand, and spoke in a very deep, reporter voice. "¡®Breaking News: We¡¯ve received word that the Incredibly Talented and Heroic Generational Genius Archmage Aiden Sparrowfoot, is also super laid-back. Hear him in today¡¯s interview, how he downplays his own genius. Now, look at him in this photo, out and about drinking a hot beverage in a totally down-to-earth way. He¡¯s just like us! He even tells us he occasionally reads tabloids, like this very one. Buy this issue so you can learn more about how great and handsome Aiden Sparrowfoot is, although he does not realize this himself.''¡± ¡°Ok, I get it. You can stop.¡± Lexie cringed at the elaborate headline as Aiden laughed. ¡°Yes, but I actually mean what I said. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m a genius, so I don¡¯t want you to expect that from me.¡± She may have to act as Aiden¡¯s daughter for the time being but she wasn¡¯t about to waste her time trying to impress him like she did with her real dad. Aiden was a stranger. She may have buckled to her parents expectations, sacrificing her own happiness to meet the standards they set for her, but she didn¡¯t feel as obliged to do that for someone she just met. Also, it felt surprisingly empowering to lay down the boundaries now after not having it in most of her real life. And since Aiden wasn¡¯t her real dad, she wasn¡¯t too worried about offending or disappointing him. But he didn¡¯t look disappointed. Instead, he looked impressed. ¡°That,¡± he said, ¡°was perfect. You should say it exactly like that if you¡¯re ever asked to give an interview. ¡®I¡¯m not a genius so don¡¯t expect it from me¡¯. Cindy Burley on Channel 9 would go crazy with that soundbite.¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious,¡± Lexie finally broke and smiled. ¡°I¡¯m no generational genius archmage. I¡¯m just a normal girl.¡± ¡°Oh, the press would love you. You¡¯re very good at this fake humility thing. If you weren¡¯t my daughter, I¡¯d almost be convinced.¡±
The healing house turned out to be a tall dull-gray building sitting on top of a shallow hill. Below it was a sprinkle of smaller cottage, and behind the hill sat the sun. At the porch entrance, a woman with warm chocolate skin and grey eyes stood, talking to another shorter plumper woman. They were both wearing white long robes and Lexie immediately figured that those worked the same as scrubs in this world. The minute the first woman spotted Aiden she abandoned her talk with the nurse and she approached him quickly. ¡°Thank the system, you¡¯re here.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Aiden frowned. Instead of answering, her eyes flickered to me and a smile crossed her face. She bent over, with her hands on her knees. ¡°Hey, Lexie." She spoke in a gentle tone that felt like a warm hug. "I¡¯m so glad to see you feeling better.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Lexie responded politely, wondering who the woman was. Aiden answered immediately. ¡°This is Emma Cole. She¡¯s a nurse who runs the Healing House.¡± To Emma, he added, ¡°Lexie can¡¯t remember anything ever since she woke up.¡± ¡°I know, the poor thing. Max told me yesterday.¡± ¡°You saw Max?¡± ¡°Yes. He showed up in the middle of the night with a nasty gash on his side that wasn¡¯t healing fast enough." Aiden¡¯s eyes flared. ¡°I didn¡¯t even notice he was hurt." ¡°No one ever does right up until that one-eyed jerk drops dead.¡± Emma¡¯s tone was annoyed and affectionate all at once. ¡°The only reason he came to me to stitch him up is because he had a hot date, and didn''t want to get blood on his cashmere.¡± She rolled her eyes and then straightened, before smiling at Lexie again. ¡°Anyway, to reintroduce myself, I¡¯m Emma. You call me Aunt Emma most of the time and I sometimes sneak you candy when your father¡¯s not looking.¡¯ ¡°You do?¡± Aiden frowned his disapproval. ¡°That¡¯s foul, Emma. You know Lexie can¡¯t have too many sweets, they¡¯ll hamper her growth and she¡¯s already small enough as is.¡± Lexie frowned, objecting to that last comment. She didn¡¯t think she was that small. She was about the same height she¡¯d been at the start of middle school (4¡¯6) and a doctor then had told her she was in the 35th percentile of kids her age. That meant she was only slightly below average, and he''d assured her it was fairly normal and that she could even still have a major growth spurt in high school that would put her at a solid five-six. Of course, it hadn''t happened by sixteen, by which point she¡¯d only gained four inches and was still the shortest person in her class, but that didn¡¯t mean it would never happen. She¡¯d heard of people having growth spurts in college too. Maybe that would happen to her. Power of positive thinking and all that. Hopefully with that, she just might some day reach the appropriate height for an adult. ¡°Sweets don¡¯t hamper growth Aiden,¡± Emma said, nudging him with her elbow. ¡°I should know I¡¯m a nurse. Plus I think her size is fine.¡± Exactly. Lexie nodded, liking what the woman had to say until Emma added, ¡°Besides when Lexie eats jawbreakers, her cheeks puff out like a widdle baby squirrel.¡± Lexie went right back to frowning but it didn¡¯t deter Emma. ¡°Yes!¡± she said, poking and pinching Lexie¡¯s cheek. ¡°Just like that. Aren¡¯t they cute?¡± ¡°Leave my daughter¡¯s cheeks alone,¡± Aiden said sternly and apparently he wasn¡¯t ready to let the earlier argument die, so he added. ¡°And no more sweets. You¡¯re going to create bad habits.¡± ¡°Every child deserves a few bad habits,¡± she said and then turned around, gesturing for them to follow her. Aiden firmly grasped Lexie¡¯s hand and Lexie hurried to keep up with their longer steps. The inside of the building looked very much like a hospital, with white walls and a waiting room in the entryway, next to a welcome desk. Each chair in the room was occupied, and white-robed people rushed up and down talking amongst themselves. Someone in the waiting room coughed so hard, they hacked a loogie onto the guy in the chair beside them. The victim stared at the cougher like he wanted to beat him to death, but Aiden and Emma barely noticed as they walked past the welcome desk, through swinging doors leading to a thin hallway with a staircase at the side. At a point, Aiden saw that her tiny steps would never be a match for his and Emma''s so he stopped, leaned down and scooped her up. Lexie blushed. It was even more uncomfortable and undignified than it was last night, especially now they were in public, but she couldn¡¯t say anything as Aiden had turned his attention back to Emma. ¡°Since last night we¡¯ve had a steady influx of new patients, most of them with infection," Emma started. "A dozen of them seem like they¡¯re from animal bites, but quite a few are waterborne. Also, Mrs. Frazer had a bad fall. She¡¯s stable now, but she¡¯s crankier than the time she went swimming in Clear Valley and a jellyfish stung her in the¨C¡± ¡°Emma,¡± Aiden warned and his stubble scratched Lexie¡¯s cheek as he spoke. ¡°Oh I wasn¡¯t going to say it,¡± Emma said but met Lexie''s gaze conspiratorially over her shoulder. ¡°And don¡¯t pretend to have your panties in a twist now, since you were the one who told me the story.¡± ¡°Yes, in strict confidence.¡± Emma tutted, turning away. ¡°Should have been stricter.¡± Aiden sighed and shook his head. ¡°No, you¡¯re right. I should have known you would gossip.¡± ¡°Takes one to know one, sweetie.¡± Emma threw him a smirk. ¡°Anyway, my point is, we¡¯ve got more people here than usual. Like a lot more.¡± "And their health bars aren''t refreshing?" ¡°Some of them are, just slower than normal. And there are more random cases that don¡¯t make sense. Mr. Foster has blood in his urine and we¡¯re running tests on that. Chase Thornton has a weird sensation in his chest that isn¡¯t pain. Isobel Wynan says she feels unusually sad, and broke up with her eighty year old ¡®boyfriend¡¯ over some bad fishcakes.¡± ¡°Rose says Old Man Lochlan¡¯s crops died.¡± Aiden rubbed his chin. ¡°But I don¡¯t understand why this is happening. It was a ghoul that escaped from the dungeon. A ghoul wouldn''t cause all this." ¡°Max said the same thing.¡± They finally turned into another hallway where there was only a row of doors with three art deco seats at the end of the hall. Seated in one of them was a tall girl who looked about Lexie''s age, with warm tawny skin and long black hair that shielded most of her face. She was staring down at a large tablet, with a video projected onto the screen. As they approached her, Aiden called out, ¡°Hello, Xena.¡± The girl ignored him. Aiden didn¡¯t act surprised or offended. ¡°Still not talking much, is she?¡± he asked Emma. ¡°Nope. Except for when she¡¯s making a concerted effort to be a pain in my ass.¡± ¡°I can hear you,¡± the little girl warned. ¡°I know,¡± Emma responded in a saccharine tone. She shifted her attention to me. ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve met Xena yet, have you, Lexie?¡± Before Lexie could respond, Emma said, ¡°Oh that¡¯s right you wouldn¡¯t know if you have. Lexie, this is my daughter and personal cross to bear, Xena. Xena, this is Lexie.¡± ¡°Hey,¡± Lexie said but Xena ignored her, not looking up from her screen. ¡°I¡¯m not your daughter,¡± was all she said. ¡°Saying it enough times doesn¡¯t make it true,¡± Emma said offhandedly as she regarded Lexie. "Lexie, can you wait out here with Xena while I talk to your father inside? It¡¯s about private, patient confidentiality stuff.¡± "Um..." Lexie didn¡¯t mind waiting but she wasn¡¯t sure about the ''with Xena'' part. She glanced uncertainly at the girl and Emma waved a hand dismissively. ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry about her. She has the charm of a kidney stone, but her bark is much worse than her bite.¡± ¡°Um¡­ okay.¡± Lexie nodded. Aiden lowered her and she went to settle next to Xena making sure to keep a seat between them. Xena stiffened when she approached but otherwise said nothing. As the two adults walked into one of the rooms and shut the door, Lexie couldn¡¯t resist taking a peek at Xena¡¯s screen. The image projected there was of two men in costumes fighting in what looked to be a colosseum. There were scoreboards and switching perspectives as they charged into each other. A man with announcer-voice said something that sounded fairly technical as one of them dipped to duck a blow and slammed his fists into his opponent''s face, sending him flying. ¡°What are you watching?¡± Lexie asked, curiosity beating out her social discomfort. Xena threw her a glare. ¡°Grand Fighters Tournament.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± She saw the other guy, the one who took a blow to his face, extended his hand and something like a forcefield hit the other in the chest. ¡°Are they using magic?¡± ¡°No, they¡¯re using balloon animals.¡± Sarcasm dripped from her tone. Well, she¡¯s just lovely. At the same time, Xena kind of reminded her of Mickie when they first met. That started as a rocky situation too. In any case, Lexie wasn¡¯t necessarily scared of the girl''s temper but she had nothing else to say, so she just fell silent. Lexie was wondering if she should take the cards out now, when a familiar little boy bounced around the corner, trailed by his mother. He paused when he caught sight of her, and then his entire face brightened up. ¡°Lexie!" He ran to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, burying his face in her belly. ¡°You¡¯re not dying anymore!¡± ¡°Uh¡­yeah.¡± What a disturbingly accurate statement. Lexie hadn¡¯t realized they were close, but the boy seemed ecstatic to see her. He also genuinely did smell like moldy cheese, but Lexie still helped him climb into her lap, trying not to visibly gag the whole time. ¡°How are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m stinky,¡± Evan said, arranging himself so his legs could splay entirely over her thighs. Lexie ruffled his hair with a grin. ¡°Yes, but don¡¯t let that define you.¡± He was too young to have insecurities. His mother finally reached them, giving Lexie a warm smile. ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re okay.¡± ¡°Yeah, thanks.¡± Rose was very pretty and looked like she was in her mid-twenties but stress had aged her somewhat. There were dark circles under her eyes and permanent lines on her forehead. It was easy to see the toll her son¡¯s illness was taking on her. ¡°Sorry about Evan,¡± Lexie said to Rose. ¡°I am Evan,¡± Evan announced with a hand up sending even more fumes of glory Lexie¡¯s way. Lexie pinched her nose tight, making Evan giggle as his mother shook her head indulgently. . ¡°Thank you. Hopefully, your dad and Emma can figure something out. Where are they?¡± ¡°They¡¯re in there.¡± Lexie pointed at the door. ¡°Talking about patient confidentiality stuff.¡± ¡°Oh. I¡¯ll just knock and tell them I¡¯m here. We had to go back to the apartment because I left the door unlocked, but I told Emma I would return.¡± Rose walked to the door and knocked, with Evan hopping out of Lexie¡¯s lap to follow her. But before he took two steps, he stopped. And let out a loud and throaty bark. Rose spun around in alarm as a violent jerk ripped through her son, contorting his body one way and then another. And then he dropped his knees, foaming at the mouth. Another loud bark. And then another. Color washed out of Rose¡¯s face. Horror overtook her expression. Lexie was pretty horrified herself at the rapid change from beaming boy to rabid animal. Veins popped out on his face, eyes reddening. His hand clawed on the floor and his body twitched erratically, trembling in between. The door opened and Emma and Aiden hustled out, then froze in step. Aiden¡¯s eyebrows rose. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Rose rasped, looking like she was trying very hard not to panic. Aiden¡¯s expression was grave. ¡°It seems Evan¡¯s about to enter the final stage." 8 - Enemies and Allies Xena and Lexie shot to their feet as Evan snarled, remaining in a crouch on the floor. His eyes were veined and red, saliva dripping out of his mouth. His head moved erratically from side to side, tendons snapping with each oscillation. ¡°Oh no.¡± Rose¡¯s horrified whisper echoed in the air. She attempted to run to her son, but Aiden snagged her elbow quickly, holding her back. His eyes were fixed on Evan and he spoke in a tight, steady voice. ¡°Lexie. Very slowly, step back from the patient.¡± ¡°You too Xena,¡± Emma said in a similar tone. ¡°Try not to make any sound.¡± Xena and Lexie met each other¡¯s eyes for the first time, suddenly aware of their precarious position. They were standing closest to Evan and hence were closest to danger. The disease worked like Rabies, so if either of them got bit, they would probably get it too. Xena¡¯s face was a shade of grey as she stepped back from Evan. Lexie swallowed, shuffling slowly until she had put a few feet between her and the snarling boy. For whatever reason, Evan¡¯s head snapped to Xena and she froze in step. Everyone in the room held their breaths as he began crawling to her, on all fours, movements jerky. He ate up the distance between them, step by step. Closer and closer. Saliva dripped onto the floor leaving a trail behind him. Xena swallowed and her eyes flared even wider as the child stalked her like an animal. Her hand shook. Her face showed she didn''t know what to do. Maybe there was nothing she could do. Maybe he would attack her anyway. In a flash, Emma rushed to block her daughter pushing her back. Evan launched himself and Aiden leaped forward to catch him by the back of his shirt but it was too late. His teeth snapped into Emma¡¯s arm that she used to ward off the attack. Emma cried out as he dug in, shaking his head like a dog as he snarled. ¡°Mom!¡± Xena screamed as Aiden yanked Evan off, pulling Emma in the process. She fell and got dragged halfway across the floor. Xena tried to run to her but Lexie jumped in and grabbed her wrist as Aiden managed to dislodge Evan''s teeth from Emma''s arm. Lexie didn''t want Xena to go over yet. Emma was sitting up but she was close to thrashing Evan and Aiden didn¡¯t have him under control yet. Xena turned around and glared at Lexie, trying to claw her fingers off her wrist. ¡°Get off me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t go there. You¡¯ll make it worse.¡± Already Evan was twisting around trying to get a chunk out of Aiden and the sight made Lexie¡¯s chest twist with fear. Aiden was in danger. The very thought scared her, so viscerally that she couldn¡¯t deny the terror clenching her heart. She just met him. She shouldn¡¯t be feeling that strongly. Was it because she was in his daughter¡¯s body? Were Lexie Sparrowfoot¡¯s emotions taking over? Or was it simply because she liked Aiden? He may not be her real dad but he seemed like a good guy who cared for his daughter and had already been through tragedy and¡­heck, he was her only family in this strange, crazy world. So, yeah, while she held onto Xena for the girls'' safety, it was partially a selfish move too. Because if Xena ran in there, and put herself in danger, Aiden would probably instinctively try to keep her out of harm''s way and then he wouldn''t be able to focus on not getting bitten. Xena still struggled and eventually managed to tear out of Lexie''s hold. But luckily, by that time, Aiden finally managed to tackle the little boy onto the floor, face down. A few white-robed individuals came running, one of them staring at Emma in wide-eyed horror. Another one, a woman with a blonde ponytail, ran into one of the rooms and returned with a blanket, tossing it to Aiden. He caught it and pressed it over Evan¡¯s face, muffling his growls. ¡°Oh God. My poor baby!¡± Rose screamed from behind Aiden. ¡°Don''t hurt him!¡± ¡°In this state, it would be really difficult to,¡± Aiden bit out. ¡°His body is extremely resilient.¡± Aiden spoke as the boy attempted to bite his fingers off through the blanket. Thankfully the material was too thick, but Lexie still bit her lip, feeling on the edge. Still struggling to corral Evan, Aiden rushed into a different room and Emma finally got to her feet, cradling her bleeding arm and following him. Xena went after her mother and so did Lexie and all the nurses, crowding into the room. They all watched as Aiden pushed the struggling Evan into the hospital bed. The white robes rushed forward and they helped hold Evan¡¯s limbs down, fishing out sheets and tying his limbs down the corner of the four-poster bed. In the meantime, Aiden held the blanket over the boy¡¯s face, a bead of sweat in the corner of his head as the boy continued to gnaw at him. He caught Aiden''s finger between his teeth a few times, and Aiden winced, but luckily it didn''t draw blood. At some point, the woman who tossed Aiden the blanket returned to the room with a muzzle. With a lot of difficulty and clumsiness, she and Aiden managed to secure it around Evan¡¯s face. ¡°We need to sedate him,¡± said another dark-haired woman. ¡°How are we supposed to find a vein when he¡¯s twitchier than a hypokalemic sewer rat?¡± the blonde woman retorted. The shorter older woman sighed. ¡°Someone call Godfrey. He¡¯s the only one capable of getting a line into him at this point.¡± One of the male white coats nodded and left. Soon, he returned with a tall man with whitish hair holding a plastic container full of syringes, and medical tubes attached to a bag. The man placed the container on the table beside Evan and efficiently began setting up a drip, attaching a thin tube to the syringe. He hummed while he worked and seemed to be in the zone, completely ignoring Evan¡¯s snarling and snapping and jerking in the bed. He almost lovingly caressed the syringe before he attached it to the needle. Then he eventually brushed one of the other nurses to the side, firmly held onto Evan¡¯s arm despite the latter''s efforts, and slid the needle inside him. The drug was brutally effective. Almost immediately, Evan¡¯s jerks reduced and his snarls drawled into low growls. ¡°Good work team,¡± Emma said. She was holding a blood-soaked cloth at the bite wound. Evan must have really torn her up, but she still managed to give everyone a tremulous encouraging smile. ¡°Excellent response times as usual. Especially Godfrey, you little IV god, you.¡± Godfrey inclined his head once to accept the praise. The male nurse who went to get Godfrey approached Emma, face streaked with concern. ¡°You got bit?¡± ¡°Yeah." She sighed like it was just a bother rather than a life-threatening injury. Her voice shook though, her face beaded with sweat as she swallowed her pain. "But I should be fine. Sparrowfoot was nice enough to make a dozen potions while he was here last time and thankfully I think we have the ingredients to make more.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a loiter bite,¡± Xena said quietly from Emma''s side, her gaze intense on the wound. ¡°Potions can¡¯t cure it.¡± ¡°No, but they can delay the symptoms in time for the healer to arrive.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been three weeks since you guys called for one!¡± ¡°Which means that they should be here any day now.¡± With her free hand, she touched the tips of Xena¡¯s hair affectionately and gave her a comforting smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, dear Xena. It¡¯s not my first loiter bite.¡± Xena¡¯s face showed her struggle to rein in her emotions. She kind of looked like she wanted to scream and cry at the same time. ¡°What happened to my son?¡± Rose asked in the silence that ensued. Her eyes were red, her face pale. Her head whipped around the room, searching for answers. ¡°You told me just yesterday that you had slowed the disease down in the first stage. How did it develop this quickly? He never even got to the second stage.¡± Emma and Aiden shared a look. Finally, Aiden sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not sure why this happened,¡± he said. ¡°But I have my suspicions.¡± ¡°What is it then?¡± ¡°In rare cases¡­the extended use of the potions as symptomatic relief can cause the symptoms of a disease to accelerate. This is because the infection grows an immunity or evolves in some way to advance faster. In lieu of a healer, we¡¯ve been using the potions to delay Evan¡¯s symptoms for far longer than we should have and thus, we gave the disease more time to evolve, and become much stronger than anticipated.¡± ¡°So the potions you gave my son did this?¡± Aiden¡¯s forehead wrinkled. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it. Then he nodded. ¡°In a sense. But¨C¡± ¡°You murderer!¡± Rose launched herself at him, slamming her fist into his chest. ¡°You¡¯ve killed Evan!¡± ¡°Rose.¡± Emma jerked forward to stop her but Godfrey beat her to the punch. He held both of Rose¡¯s elbows, trying to drag her back from Aiden. But for such a small woman, Rose was hard to wrangle and packed quite the punch, getting Aiden in the gut again and Godfrey in the face. Godfrey cursed and Aiden reared back at the blow but didn''t make a sound. ¡°Calm down,¡± Godfrey ordered. ¡°Or I¡¯m going to sedate you too.¡± ¡°No, you won¡¯t.¡± Emma countered. ¡°Godfrey, don¡¯t scare her.¡± ¡°It¡¯s your fault he¡¯s like this!¡± Rose didn¡¯t even appear to hear them. Her eyes glowed with hatred as she spat at Aiden. ¡°It¡¯s my fault too. I knew that I never should have let a [Villain] near my baby.¡± Aiden had flinched at the words ¡®villain¡¯ and ¡®murderer¡¯ but otherwise didn''t try to stop Rose, only putting up his hands intermittently to avoid blows to the face. His expression was carefully flat. ¡°He didn¡¯t murder your son, Rose,¡± Emma explained as another of the female nurses joined Godfrey to hold the woman back. ¡°All potions and medicines have side effects, as we warned you in the beginning. Your son simply caught a rare one. There was no way to know what would be the result¨C¡± ¡°I trusted you.¡± Rosa''s voice broke as she faced Emma. Tears flowed down Rose''s face and her breath hitches matched her son¡¯s muffled murmurs.¡±When you told me to let him treat Evan, I trusted you would keep my son safe.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Emma''s gaze dropped, then returned with a sheen of sympathy. ¡°We didn¡¯t predict this. And for that I¡¯m sorry.¡± At that point, Rosa collapsed to the floor and wept bitterly. The two nurses stood over her, watching her with pity and conflicted feelings. The rest of them eyed Aiden with some sympathy but traces of accusation or at the very least suspicion. Emma was the only one who seemed entirely understanding when she turned to Aiden. ¡°Are you alright?¡± He nodded, but he didn¡¯t meet her eyes. Instead, his hollow gaze was on her bite mark. ¡°We should get some poultice on that instantly. And get you started on the potions.¡± ¡°The same potion that drove that kid coo-coo?¡± Xena asked sardonically and Emma gave her a quelling look. ¡°It was a rare side effect,¡± Emma said. ¡°We¡¯ve given plenty of others the same potion before and nothing like that has happened.¡± Xena pressed her lips together but her distrustful eyes didn¡¯t leave Aiden. Lexie glared right back at the taller girl. She understood that this was a very tragic circumstance and what happened to Evan was truly heartbreaking but she was tired of everyone piling on Aiden as though he wanted this to happen. Especially since Aiden looked a little worn by it all, as much as he tries to act unaffected. ¡°It¡¯s not his fault,¡± she said, drawing all the eyes in the room. ¡°He tried to help Evan. It¡¯s not his fault that this happened.¡± ¡°Oh? Then whose fault is it genius?¡± Xena challenged. ¡°It¡¯s no one¡¯s fault. It was an unforeseen side effect. The disease evolved.¡± Was antibiotic resistance not a thing here? Because back on her earth it was common knowledge that sometimes bacteria and viruses could morph and gain immunity from medicine that was supposed to treat it. Heck, she''d had pneumonia three times as a kid back to back, partially exacerbated by the bacteria''s resistant nature. "It''s not right for you to put it on him as though he''s the one who infected Evan. He couldn¡¯t have known for sure the potion would do this." ¡°He''s an Archmage,¡± Xena argued back, her voice echoing around the room and probably down the hallway. ¡°Isn¡¯t he supposed to ¡®foresee¡¯ stuff like this? Isn''t that his whole thing, being smart and magical?¡± Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Yeah, but he¡¯s not all-knowing.¡± Lexie¡¯s voice got louder too. She hated how it was high pitched and made her sound childish but she couldn¡¯t help herself. ¡°And it¡¯s not like he can use his powers anymore, but he¡¯s still trying to help. As I understand it, without him, Evan would have already been dead." ¡°Oh great, he¡¯s trying to help, just like everyone else here.¡± Xena threw up her hands. ¡°Let¡¯s build a monument in his honor.¡± ¡°Are you even listening to me?" Lexie yelled back because now the other girl was being willfully obtuse. "That¡¯s not what I said. All I¡¯m saying is there¡¯s no need to crucify him for what is, at worst, a mistake.¡± ¡°A mistake? He just killed that kid and you call it a mistake? Of course, because people like you only see our lives as nothing. We¡¯re just experiments to you. That¡¯s how all you rankers see mundanes." She pointed at Aiden. "He may be a [Villain] now but I bet if he was the one with a loiter bite, his old [Hero] buddies would send a healer for him immediately. Or his fellow [Villains] would pitch in for his treatment. But since it¡¯s just a little mundane boy called Evan, no one cares.¡± Even though Lexie had expressed a similar sentiment and frustration just this morning, she hated how Xena was using it to attack Aiden, like all the blame in the world rested on his shoulders. She disliked Xena¡¯s accusing nature in general and it even seemed directed at Lexie who literally (metaphysically) just got here. ¡°So?¡± she said. ¡°How is any of that Aiden¡¯s fault? You think being jealous and nasty is going to solve that problem?¡± ¡°Ha. You think this is nasty? Cause I can show you nasty.¡± ¡°Xena,¡± Emma said at the same time that Aiden said, ¡°Lexie.¡± Both girls stared at the adults in angry unison ignoring the few nurses who were either staring at them from beside Emma, or clearing out of the room. Emma released a breath. ¡°I think something very stressful just happened and you¡¯re both a bit tense. Xena, I think you should go home. I might be here for the rest of the day so I won¡¯t be able to make you lunch like you wanted.¡± ¡°Who the hell cares about lunch? You¡¯re going to die!¡± ¡°Lexie, that same goes for me,¡± Aiden said. ¡°I¡¯ll be here a while so you should probably get home. You remember the way, right?¡± Lexie nodded reluctantly. ¡°But I can stay if you want me to help...¡± He shook his head before she could finish. ¡°I¡¯ll feel a lot better when you¡¯re home safe. Don¡¯t forget to lock the door.¡± ¡°You too, Xen-Xen. And don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t die. You just called me ¡®mom¡¯ so there¡¯s no way I¡¯m going to die now.¡± Emma gave her a smile that trembled a little bit at the corners, and Xena¡¯s face was filled with palpable devastation that Lexie''s anger melted away instantly. The other girl looked like she was trying very hard not to cry. Beyond that, she looked terrified. Like her nightmare had come to life. She didn¡¯t say anything else. She swung around and stalked out. Lexie hesitated for a second but at Aiden¡¯s encouraging nod, she also left. And then on her way out, she heard one of the nurses in the room say, ¡°The kid has less than a few hours before the disease eats his brain.¡± ¡°What do we do?¡± That was Emma¡¯s voice. ¡°We need Max,¡± Aiden murmured in response. But then as Lexie got to entrance of the hospital, her guilt worsened. She thought that maybe she was too hard on Xena. The girl just watched her mother get bit and infected with a deadly illness all because she saved Xena¡¯s life. She was entitled to be upset about it. Sure she shouldn''t have turned it on Aiden, but Lexie should have tried to de-escalate rather than make it worse. After all, she was older than the girl, at least mentally. She should have kept her cool better. And on a deeper level, she could relate somewhat to what Xena was feeling right now. Lexie had reacted similarly when her grandpa died. Grandpa Morris, her mother''s dad, had often been snarky and mocking, calling her Point-Dexter, and crowing endlessly whenever he beat her at spades. Not to mention the obscene things he said when he lost. He was a sore loser and an even worse winner. But he was also the only one in her family, apart from Logan, who encouraged Lexie to pursue a life she wanted, not one that her parents planned out for her. "You''re a smart girl, Point-Dexter," he would say in that heavy, raspy voice of his. "And you''re wasting it on good grades and a formal education. Pah! Wasting the best moments of your life on pleasing those wardens you call parents." ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Lexie smiled as she shuffled the cards. ¡°I don¡¯t mind. I like studying and getting good grades. I enjoy most of my subjects too.¡± Plus it wasn¡¯t like she had a ton of friends to hang out with, or even other hobbies to participate in. She hadn¡¯t cultivated them because of her upbringing. Her parents limited the amount of fiction she could consume every month and her phone and TV time was monitored. Apart from occasionally gaming with her brother, and even less occasionally hanging out with Mickie, reading textbooks and research papers was really her only means of entertainment. And getting good grades gave her something to do, gave her purpose. Without it, she¡¯d probably just be lost and depressed. She didn¡¯t think she said anything wrong, but Grandpa Morris had stared at her for a long time after she spoke. And then he¡¯d responded in the most sober tone she¡¯d ever heard him speak in. ¡°You know, Lexie, there¡¯s a difference between the prisons others make for us, and the ones we make for ourselves. The former sucks, but the latter is a lot harder to break out of.¡± Lexie never figured out what he meant by that, but she could appreciate that it came from a good place. And so she continued to visit him every Sunday because she knew her mother probably couldn''t visit often and her dad hated him, and Grandpa Morris didn''t have any other friends or family. Until one Sunday, the one time her mother could visit with Lexie, they were met with devastating news. Lexie knew the old man would die eventually but she didn¡¯t expect it to happen like that, so suddenly without warning. One second he was there and vibrant and full of sarcastic life. And the next second, he was gone and the doctor was delivering the news in a monotone, exhausted voice of someone who¡¯d been on-call all night and was probably heavily questioning the validity of their own existence at that point. Lexie¡¯s mother caused a scene, railing at the doctor for not trying hard enough to save him. Lexie was silent but she mostly agreed. She also had a split-second thought that maybe the sleep-deprived doctor intentionally let her grandpa die so he wouldn¡¯t have to deal with him anymore. After all, not everyone could tolerate Grandpa Morris¡¯ special brand of humor. She just couldn''t understand how he was dead. He wasn¡¯t even that sick the last time she¡¯d seen him. What changed between then and now, and why wasn¡¯t her mother informed? It had to be the hospital''s fault, and right then and there, the doctor was responsible as a representative of the hospital. But it had just been grief making her thoughts irrational and cruel. Thinking about that now, made her cringe, regret flogging her. To be honest, it was probably Grandpa Morris¡¯ choice to go out like he did. He probably just made himself stop breathing out of sheer willpower. And even if that wasn¡¯t how it happened, it still likely wasn''t the doctor¡¯s fault either. She wished she could rewind time and go back and apologize to the poor medical resident, who was probably fighting his own emotions at watching someone die. She wished she could tell him she was sorry that she and her mom had acted so thoughtlessly, blinded by their own despair and probably a fair amount of guilt on mom¡¯s side. Xena was younger than Lexie had been when Grandpa Morris died. And Xena was losing someone even closer to her. She was losing her mom. Lexie saw Xena¡¯s back retreating in the distance. She ran to catch up, needing to give her an apology. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Lexie said when she was sure Xena could hear her. ¡°About what I said. I shouldn''t have called you nasty. I get that you were just upset about your mom¨C¡± ¡°She¡¯s not my mom,¡± Xena interrupted without pausing her long, angry strides. Now Lexie was confused. ¡°That¡¯s not what you said when she was bitten.¡± Xena stopped, turning that fierce greyish-blue gaze on Lexie. ¡°I''m an orphan,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t have real parents or family, but the orphanage was getting filled up, so the system paid Emma to take me. I have to live with her till I turn eighteen or get a decent job, but no one said I had to like her or treat her like my mom. But for some reason, she thinks I should.¡± Ah. So like foster care. Annoyance bristled over Xena¡¯s face as her eyes flickered over Lexie¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m not sure I like it here. There''s nothing to do in this town and everywhere smells like old people. Emma¡¯s always working. And when she''s home she is always in my business trying to talk to me. Calls me that stupid nickname ¡®Xen-Xen¡¯ like I¡¯m a toddler. Burns all our food, because she¡¯s scatterbrained and whatever she doesn¡¯t burn just tastes like ass. She also constantly plays these annoying holiday songs even though it¡¯s not the holidays and then calls me a pill for not singing along.¡± She took a breath after that long rant. ¡°But she¡¯s not a bad person. She doesn¡¯t deserve to die.¡± ¡°You are kind of a pill.¡± It slipped out before Lexie could stop herself. Xena shot her a look. She attempted a comforting smile in response. ¡°But your mom¡¯s not going to die.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not my mom. And I won¡¯t let her die.¡± Xena continued walking, and Lexie followed behind her. Xena didn''t seem like she''d accepted her apology yet and Lexie still felt bad for not being sensitive enough about Xena¡¯s feelings. But she also didn¡¯t know what to say next. Maybe by the time they reach their destination, she might. Lexie kept track of the path they took, but it was really only one straight road, surrounded by rolling hills, with vast expanses of nature and a few lakes in the horizon. The crisp air stung her nose, carrying the scent of grass and sea to her. A light mist hung low in the sky, and the two moons were now too blazing suns on opposite sides of a distant mountain. It really was a beautifully quaint town. But clearly deserted. She didn¡¯t see a lot of buildings and at least half of those she saw didn¡¯t look like anyone was living there. Single branching lanes lead to stone cottages that littered the hillside on the left. The right side of the road revealed a town center, with low brick buildings that were either gray or brown and had wooden shop signs out front. She saw a few older women riding mopeds that hovered over the ground, with bags of groceries in their baskets. The shop buildings were often intercepted by grassy plains rather than roads and were arranged in winding rows. Train tracks soon intersected the main road, bordered by stone ruins and what looked to be a rune carved on them. The train station itself was on the right side of the road, the platform so small and dated that it was almost ignorable. Xena turned and headed that way, but Lexie frowned. She thought Xena was going home, but there were no buildings beyond the platform. ¡°You live at a train station?¡± Xena sighed. ¡°You know, you ask really stupid questions sometimes.¡± Fair enough. Lexie shrugged and followed. The station was made up of faded awning over cracked pavement with walls that had several layers of dust on them. A single wooden bench, with uneven cracked panels stretched across the middle of the platform, bordered by the worn pillars holding up the awning. Right next to them were metallic trash bins, sleek glass podiums, and vending machines that were half empty. As opposed to the dilapidated nature of the train station, the tracks themselves looked new and shiny, the gleaming metal cased with a transparent bluish fluid like substance that seemed to crackle with energy. What was that? Xena continued moving until she approached one of the glass podiums with a curved stand and a square surface. She tapped the surface a few times and a hologram appeared in the air, with buttons. Lexie couldn¡¯t read them from a distance, but as Xenae continued pushing buttons, Lexie surmised that she was about to take a trip. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Lexia asked. ¡°To the Azures¡¯ party.¡± ¡°The who?¡± Xena gave her another ¡®you¡¯re dumb¡¯ look and Lexie got tired of looking stupid so she finally explained. ¡°I lost my memory, okay? I fell into a ditch and hit my head and I can¡¯t remember anything. So I don¡¯t know who the Azures are.¡± Some of the tension on her Xena¡¯s face fled. ¡°Really?¡± Lexie nodded. ¡°Oh.¡± Xena visibly relaxed, eyeing her with less suspicion. ¡°You probably should have led with that.¡± Would it have made a difference? ¡°The Azures are a loaded family that live in a mansion over a hill, in Arcadia. The dad is the Governor of our tri-state and is also a retired cape called Blueman whose whole thing was changing people¡¯s vision to only see the color blue. Dumb ass superpower. No wonder he got benched.¡± A mild gust of wind blew hair into her mouth and she spat it out before continuing. ¡°They''re holding some kind of gala for the Arcadian [Heroes] in Coventry Garden today. I saw it on NET, so it''s probably being live streamed right now." ¡°Okay.¡° At least she knew what ¡®Arcadian¡¯ was. Arcadia, according to the map, was a city close to Hovelton. ¡°So you¡¯re going there in order to¡­¡± ¡°To get help.¡± Determination was set on her face. ¡°The capes are all about their image and looking like good guys. They won¡¯t want the public to know that they¡¯re over there partying it up while a kid is dying. I mean yeah, everyone knows that there¡¯s a healer shortage and other places get priority over our mundane little town, but to have it be so blatantly in their face, especially with the fact that we''ve been requesting a healer for three weeks¡­it just doesn¡¯t look good. So, I¡¯ll go crash their stupid party, stand in front of the cameras, and expose to the world how much they suck until someone there gives me a fucking healer.¡± Lexie blinked. She wasn¡¯t used to hearing kids swear. Even at sixteen years old, she still hesitated to drop f-bombs but this little girl said it like it was her birthright. And Xena¡¯s idea was wild and crazy¡­ but if it worked, it would save Evan and Emma. Which Lexie wanted desperately. Though she had just met them, she felt some kindredness towards them. Maybe it was because Evan¡¯s name was Lexie¡¯s last name. Or maybe it was because Emma pinched her cheek and seemed to find her adorable. In any case, Lexie didn¡¯t want anything bad to happen to those two. And it seemed, if a healer didn¡¯t come, something bad would. Lexie watched Xena for a while weighing her options. She didn¡¯t know much about this world, and didn''t know if ten year olds could go on a trip to a different town by themselves. Aiden didn¡¯t seem to mind that she was walking home by herself but that was a whole different thing than hitching a ride to a different city. Was that normal here? Would Xena be safe? Lexie felt conflicted, biting her lip. On one hand, it wasn¡¯t Lexie¡¯s business. She¡¯d done what she came to do, which was apologize, and she could leave Xena, go back home and focus on her own problems. But two images remained imprinted on her brain¨CEvan, switching from a smiling boy into a rabid creature, and Emma, holding her bleeding arm, smiling despite the pain. She couldn¡¯t forget it. This was a game but it was starting to feel more real to her. If those two died while she did nothing to stop it, she would feel awful. And if this mundane little girl was willing to risk herself to do something, then Lexie had no excuse not to. ¡°I¡¯ll come with you,¡± she found herself saying. Xena turned to stare at her. ¡°Why?¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°I feel bad about what happened to Emma,¡± she said. ¡°She was a nice person.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say ¡®was¡¯ like she¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°No, I meant it like¡­you know, I don¡¯t even know what I meant. Were you planning on going by yourself?¡± She narrowed her eyes. ¡°Not like I have anyone to go with.¡± The short-tempered, sarcastic, unnecessarily abrasive girl had no friends? Shocker. Lexie chewed on her options once more and then said, ¡°It might be too dangerous to go alone. I¡¯ll go with you. I can help." ¡°How?¡± ¡°I¡¯m pre-awakened. So I can use my dad¡¯s cards to get us into the party.¡± Though her plan for that was a little fuzzy, she knew the cards may be able help. They were magic after all. Besides, she was curious to see what this cape party was about. Maybe she would see a few characters she recognized from her brother''s notes. Maybe one of them could help her. A word of mental caution told her that it was risky to wander off with someone who could barely stand her to break into a party of super-powered people. But then again, she was in a video game and getting out of it would require some risk. The more information she had the better and seeing the world from a perspective that wasn¡¯t Aiden¡¯s would give her a more fleshed out view. Besides, if anything went wrong she would call Aiden. He showed her how to use the call function on the system to contact her guardian. It also had a location feature that she could turn on and off at will. ¡°There might be security and stuff so I can help cause a distraction so you can get in,¡± she told Xena. Xena raised an eyebrow but she appeared to be thinking deeply about it, her eyes holding the air over Lexie¡¯s shoulder. A rumbling sound in the distance, along with a loud horn warned that a train was coming. They didn''t have much time left to wonder. She looked from Lexie to the approaching train and then back to Lexie. ¡°Fine. But no yapping and no dumb questions on the way there.¡± Lexie made a zip and lock gesture over her mouth. ¡°No yapping. No questions. Deal.¡± 9 - The Party Planners Deck Xena didn''t talk much while they were on the train. Her eyes were fixed resolutely on the video playing on her black metal pad and Lexie didn¡¯t mind because it gave her time to survey the environment freely without being worried she looked like a complete idiot. The train was very similar to the New York subway, except for the incorporation of glass panels intersecting the metal body of their currently empty carriage. The outside of the train seemed wrapped with some shimmering material, similar to the make-up of the podium Xena had bought a ticket from. Speaking of the podiums, there were a few on the train too. By Lexie''s calculation, there was one between every six seats on each side. She didn''t know what they were for, but she''d promised Xena she wouldn''t ask so she tabled the question for Aiden later. The trains also had clean and comfortable seats, made of a semi-flexible material that Lexie had never experienced before. Somewhere between plastic and rubber, but with the smoothness of glass and the comfort of a cushion. Nevertheless, the underside of the train was actually what she found most interesting. Turned out that the trains didn¡¯t have wheels, and instead were held onto the tracks by that same glistening, almost-liquid substance that covered the tracks. Lexie didn¡¯t know what it was nor did she know its utility, but she thought maybe it helped the train move smoother and faster. She decided to look that up later too. There was so much to look up, a seemingly endless stream of questions flooding her mind. Honestly, now that her anxiety was receding a little bit, she was actually getting increasingly interested in finding out more about this new world and how it worked. The technology and mystery was captivating. Maybe even exciting. No, that was too far. There was nothing exciting about getting separated from her family and thrust into an unfamiliar world. But, it was a curious new world, and Lexie was a curious girl. And until she could figure out a way out of here, she might as well indulge her curiosity. The train moved for about five minutes and many miles of nothing but grass, proving just how remote Hovelton was. Lexie could see bright lights in the distance on a hill and a disembodied voice had announced when they left that they would be arriving in Arcadia in about thirty minutes. Which meant she only had thirty minutes to get ready for what was to come. She¡¯d already spent most of the first five minutes watching the Hero Party online. It was being live streamed on Video Alley, and it showed various people walking around a decorated garden in the most elaborate and outrageously feathery outfits she¡¯d ever seen. Seriously. Some of them looked like actual creatures of flight. To be fair, about half the people were dressed more normally than the rest, and the ones in the gaudy outfits looked fairly uncomfortable with what they were wearing. But still. These were supposed to be [Heroes]? Lexie wasn''t sure what she expected but it wasn''t this. They looked more like celebrities attending a met-gala or something. I guess they can¡¯t be in costume all the time. Sometimes they liked to trade in their spandex for white, monstrously large, feathers. Since Lexie didn¡¯t have a video pad, she had to watch the live stream on her blue screen, which didn¡¯t give her quite the video quality that Xena¡¯s pad had, but it wasn¡¯t exactly a staticy VHS tape either. Especially since whoever was taking the video apparently went to great lengths to make sure the images looked crisp and well-graded. The shots showed different perpectives of the garden and switched seamlessly from wide-angle to close-ups, to profile to a shoulder-level shot and even a few Dutch angles were thrown in. The footage looked less like a live stream and more like a cinematic masterpiece, with clear 4k quality images. And the camera guy, whoever it was, seemed to have a real knack for getting people¡¯s best sides. Or maybe heroes were just more photogenic than the rest of the populace. Was that natural? Or was it something you had to work at when you were a hero? Yet another question she couldn''t ask yet. After watching a few seconds of the feed, she waved it away and opened her inventory. Aiden hadn¡¯t quite finished telling her how to activate the cards but she thought she could probably figure it out on her own. After all, he claimed she had a knack for it, and though that last step had sounded confusing, maybe it was just the phrasing that was the problem. If young mages could activate cards, then Lexie, mentally almost an adult, could do it too. Except that young mages probably had the advantage of knowing how magic worked here. Regardless, she would try. And yes, she knew she was probably in over her head, and this may not work, but at least she was fairly certain the cards wouldn''t harm her. And if there was ever a time to get daring and adventurous, it was now. Ha. Look at you. Acting completely out of character. The thought was followed by another: It¡¯s a video game. I can be a different character here. The thought comforted her as she visually scanned through the cards in her deck. The deck itself was conveniently named the Party Planner¡¯s Deck with the tagline, "SHUFFLE TO ENSURE A GOOD TIME ALWAYS." Lexie chuckled. They may have been going to a party but they certainly weren''t going there for a good time. More importantly though, she needed to know what the cards did and how to activate them. Luckily, the instructions were fairly laid out on each card.
PARTY PLANNER¡¯S DECK: TO ENSURE A GOOD TIME ALWAYS Deck Difficulty: Moderate Number of Cards: 12 WARNING! In cases of injury to self or others, The Torad Card Corporation holds no liability. Read complete Terms of Use before continuing.
The terms of use was a thirty page document which Lexie didn¡¯t have time for so she simply moved on.
Card Type: Effect Card. Power: 4 Description: You¡¯re the type that likes to lighten things up with a little mischievous fun! Crack the tension with a harmless comic relief character, by making someone else the clumsy sidekick to the story. Reduces coordination in the target''s hands and feet. Just be careful they don¡¯t hurt themselves, or hors d''oeuvres aren¡¯t the only thing that will be served ;D. Active Time: 5 Seconds Activation Prerequisites: Complete Activation Protocol A minimum mana output of 40. Target pathways must not be in defense mode. No further prerequisites.
Card Type: Creature Card Power: 3 Description: Are you bored and lonely? Summon an animal companion to execute a series of acrobatic feats for you! Wow the crowd by showing off your little friend¡¯s skills. Guaranteed party pleaser. Everyone loves a backflipping frog! Active Time: 5 Seconds Activation Prerequisites: Complete Activation Protocol A minimum mana output of 60. No further prerequisites.
Card Type: Ability Card Power: 4 Description: At busy parties like these, you need to be light on your feet. This card gives you a slight speed boost for ten seconds so you can be everywhere at once. Card has individual levelling capabilities and can be levelled up to . Active Time: 10 Seconds Activation Prerequisites: Complete Activation Protocol A minimum mana output of 30. No further prerequisites.
Card Type: (Alternate and Combined) Ability/Effect Power: 6-9 Description: Dance the night away! A card like this is perfect for balls and EDM festivals. It increases coordination and boosts rhythm. Activate with two or more targets and they will be able to keep up with your moves, for a synchronized choreography of up to 30 seconds. Active Time: Up to 30 seconds Activation Prerequisites: A minimum mana output of 70-100. Must begin dancing before activation Targets must be standing in an organized configuration (see recommended arrangements) within 5 meters. When used as an effect, the target pathways must offer no resistance. Silence is golden as talking can distract you and ruin coordination, thereby prematurely deactivating cards. No other prerequisites.
Card Type: Ability Card Power: 6 Description: You¡¯re the hostess with the mostest and naturally everyone wants a piece of you. They want drinks refilled, introductions to be made, and tension to be eased. They need you, but you may not always know who, what or when! This card gives you a sixth sense, like a spider¡¯s, that helps you detect who is watching you within a 50-meter radius. They probably want some attention but are too shy to ask! Active Time: Up to 30 seconds Activation Prerequisites: A minimum mana output of 60. No other prerequisites.
Card Type: Ability Card Power: 7 Description: Who doesn''t love a good confetti cannon? End the party the right way, by showering the air with colorful sparkling lights and flowers. Note: Confetti is self-cleaning and disappears after 3 minutes. Active Time: Instant, One-shot Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 70. Must perform the accompanying choreography while directing mana through the path. (Watch Video for choreography) Follow the pathway to completion.
Card Type: Ability Card Power: 6 The music¡¯s loud and the party is bumping. But you have an urgent announcement to make. This card helps you project your voice at 50 decibels higher for a speedy announcement of ten seconds or less. Make it quick, so we can get back to the party. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Active Time: Up to 10 seconds Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 70 Complete activation pathway. No other protocol required.
Card Type: Creature Card Power: 9 Description: Understaffed and overwhelmed? Get back on top of things! Summon an extra set of phantom hands to do the job for you. How many? The more the merrier but NOTE, more hands increases activation time and reduces active time. The effect will shut off after a maximum of 50 seconds or if exhaustion is detected. Active Time: Up to 50 seconds. Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 110 Complete activation pathway A contract with an acceptable helper creature within the vicinity.
Card Type: Ability Card Power: 5 Description: Did you know that charades remain the number one most popular party game on Earth 9 (and a few other planets)? Bust it out at your next party, and wow everyone with your accurate guesses. This card boosts perception to help users read the target¡¯s body language. Tried and tested to ensure accurate guesses 75% of the time. Active Time: Up to 20 Seconds Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 50 Complete activation pathway. Target must remain silent for skill to work.
Card Type: Ability Power: 5 Description: It''s your big night. No one can blame you for wanting to be the belle of the ball. Use this card to give you a slight charisma boost for one whole minute. Works especially well when standing next to a less physically appealing target! Always keep an ugly friend on deck, and shine like the star you are. Active Time: Up to 20 Seconds Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 50 Complete activation pathway. Must already be reasonably appealing for skill to work.
Card Type: Effect Power: 8 Description: We all have that one guest who hates every single song on the DJ¡¯s playlist. But Torad Card Corp. loves to accommodate the special needs! Have them pick from a list of songs and the card will play that song only for them. For one whole minute! It¡¯s a music party of one. Active Time: 60 Seconds Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 80 Complete activation pathway. Target must hum a song that they want. Other prerequisites may apply.
Card Type: Ability Power: 5 Description: You don¡¯t have to get organized if you stay organized. This card helps you out by removing spills and returning dishes and party items back to their last known origin. Works within a 10-metre radius. Active Time: 20 Seconds. Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 60 Complete activation pathway. Point at the items that you want to be returned to their origin. No other prerequisites.
And then of course, there was her which looked very different from all the other cards in the deck, both in construction and design.
Deck: N/A Type: Effect Card Power: N/A Description: Excellent card for those who hate to be the center of attention! Once activated, you fade into the background, and become unremarkable, and unmemorable to your target. Maximum active time is twenty seconds. Activation Prerequisites:\ To activate this card, simply flash it to the target you would like to be invisible to. Make sure the target isn¡¯t looking at you, touching you or otherwise interacting with you during activation or the card will remain inactive. Avoid too much interaction with the target after activation, or card will deactivate. No other protocol required.
Lexie read the cards again, frowning as she considered what she learned. Now she understood what Aiden meant when she said that cards sacrificed flexibity for complexity. They seemed to be only good for doing very specific things, for a pretty short time period. And those things didn''t feel particularly impactful in the grand scheme of things. Sure all those skills generated by the cards made party planning easier, but you could still plan a kick-ass party without that. Heck, jocks with single-digit IQs and zero magic could plan great parties. So it wasn''t something that Lexie necessarily thought needed magic. Plus with every card, you would need to wait for it to recharge before you could use it again? Yeah, that was kinda lame. Lexie could understand why the card user population was declining. On a more personal level though, Lexie was fascinated. Maybe because she¡¯d never actually had magic before and she just generally loved to learn about new things. But to people who¡¯d had magic their whole lives, this was probably underwhelming. After all, how many magic users wanted to be able to be party planners, when you could probably do that too just as well without magic? And in times of crisis, you would much rather have a gun than a back-flipping frog. Thankfully, they weren¡¯t going to the party to shoot anyone. But had she been, she would have been shit out of luck. Yeah, there¡¯s no way I¡¯m supposed to be a [Hero] with cards like these. How? Am I supposed to entertain people into submission? Of course this was only one deck to consider. Maybe there were more decks that had more of a combat lean. She''d check later, but for now, her problem was starting to get clearer. Right now though, she decided to start again with the card that Aiden made her activate, the . She selected it mentally and the card materialized in her hand, a hologram screen popping out next to it reminding her of the requirements. She read over the requirements and then began trying to make it make sense in her head. First, what was Power? Did that correlate to how much force the card emitted or simply how difficult it was to activate? ¡°What¡¯s Power in this scenario?¡± she muttered to herself and her System AI was happy to answer.
WITH CARD MAGIC, POWER IS A MEASURE USED TO ASCERTAIN THE RELATIVE EASE BY WHICH THE CARD IS ACTIVATED BY MOST USERS. CALCULATING POWER TAKES INTO ACCOUNT ACTIVATION PATH LENGTH, COMPLEXITY, MINIMUM MANA OUTPUT AND VARIOUS OTHER UNKNOWNS. MOST CARDS HAVE A MAXIMUM POWER OF 10. CONTACT A CARD SCHOLAR FOR MORE INFORMATION.
Ah. So it was the latter then. So it was good she was starting with one of the easier cards to activate. Next was the part that required a mana output of 40. How was she supposed to know her mana capacity? She repeated the question to the system and it said,
PRE-AWAKENED MINORS CAN GET ACCESS TO THEIR PRELIMINARY STAT. SCREEN. WOULD YOU LIKE TO? [YES] [NO]
Upon accepting, it brought her the screen she¡¯d seen before:
Name: Lexi Sparrowfoot Race: Human Age: 10 Class: Restricted Subclass: Restricted Cumulative Level: Restricted Optimal Mana Range: Restricted Affinity: Restricted Physical Stats: Restricted Mental Stats: Restricted Mana: Avg. Restricted Pre Awakened Mana Capacity: 400
Okay. That was very doable. She had more than enough to work with. Now, time to activate the card. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and followed the steps. The hum in the atmosphere was constant but she separated it from the noise inside. It was even easier to do now that she¡¯d done it before, easier to even sense where the energy was strongest in her body, at her core. She pushed that buzzing sensation down to her hand, where she held the card, and suddenly the pathway opened. She saw the ladder. Excitement fluttered in her heart. She filled it up slowly with her mana tracing until the end. Then as the stairway glowed brightly, she tried to remember Aiden¡¯s next words. Something about directing the outside mana inside? Using the card? How? She took a second to think about it, then Lexie decided to try something. First, still keeping her focus on the glowing ladder, she tried to get a feel for the external mana again. She found she could still feel it, and it now felt thicker somehow, almost like mana particles had shifted closer to her, crowding her. The vibration in the air had gotten more intense. Maybe that was what Aiden was talking about? Activating the card might have caused the mana to shift closer to her and now she was supposed to lead it inside her. But how? He said using the cards to stabilize. Could she push the mana to her hands? It was worth a shot. She felt the mana around her hands and then tried to somehow push it closer. But it was too foreign an act. She didn''t even have the knowledge of how to do that and didn''t know what internal muscles to activate. But suddenly, she saw the pathway changing. Huh? Her heart skipped a beat because she didn¡¯t quite know what she¡¯d done to trigger it. Maybe because she¡¯d focused on her hand? Or maybe it was going to be triggered anyway because it didn¡¯t feel like it was done through much effort on her own part. As the shape morphed into more of a staircase than a ladder, it began getting filled up again, this time a purple color that felt more like the external mana than the internal one. The fizzing inside her grew. She felt it prickling in her chest, and in her core, and maybe also in her brain. It felt like she was being filled with life and it was an amazingly intoxicating feeling. This is what I¡¯ve always imagined being drunk to feel like. Not like the one time Mickie had convinced her to try her father¡¯s scotch. Lexie had only had two glasses before she blacked out, puked most of it out, and then fell into a dreamless sleep. That was totally not fun. This was more than fun. ¡°Do you know how to use that thing?¡± The voice cracked her focus and Lexie¡¯s eyes flew open. She was a little startled to find Xena staring at her and also jarred when all that mana that had been growing inside her dissipated rudely into the air. She felt bereft and cold. ¡°What did you say?¡± Lexie asked, trying to fight her annoyance at being interrupted. Xena was staring at her doubtfully. ¡°I asked if you knew how to use it. Because you kept muttering to yourself and it was taking forever.¡± Oh. I was muttering? ¡°I kinda know how to use it,¡± she said. ¡°And according to Aiden, I may be good at it too. In theory.¡± Xena gave her a funny look. ¡°You really have pre-awakened?¡± ¡°I mean I wouldn¡¯t lie about that,¡± Lexie quipped. Xena watched her carefully. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re going to be a [Hero] like your dad?¡± ¡°No,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m trying to be a [Researcher].¡± Xena scoffed like she didn¡¯t believe her. Lexie supposed the little girl found researchers to be lame also. ¡°What would you want to be if you had mana?¡± Lexie asked her. ¡°A Healer," Xena said without hesitation. Lexie wasn¡¯t surprised, but she gave her a wry smile. ¡°I thought you hated [Heroes]. Aren¡¯t healers part of the Hero Association too?¡± ¡°Not all of them,¡± Xena said. ¡°Some work solo, some register only under the healer¡¯s guild, or some work for mercenary groups. The Hero Association just pays more, but I don¡¯t care about credits. I want to help people.¡± ¡°You mean like a Hero would?¡± Lexie joked but Xena didn¡¯t find it funny. ¡°Heroes only pretend they want to help people. Most of them just do it so they can be famous and have money and go wherever they want and be recognized.¡± Lexie thought that might be a bit harsh. ¡°Yeah I mean I¡¯m sure some of them suck, but are all of them that bad?¡± Xena upper lip curled. ¡°Of course, you wouldn''t get it. Your father was a hero. He probably told you a bunch of stories of him saving people and doing amazing things. He never told you the bad parts.¡± ¡°Meaning?¡± Xena pinned her with a look. ¡°Do you know that a hero can get away with a crime that a regular person can¡¯t? And even if they get punished, it¡¯s like a slap on the wrist kinda deal. Emma says there¡¯s even a law called the ¡®Caring Cape Clause¡¯, which basically means that if they do something wrong to someone else in the middle of a mission, it gets brushed under the rug. Like if they try to help you and end up killing you instead, they won¡¯t get charged because their ¡®intentions were good.¡¯ Can you believe that? It basically giving them the right to murder people.¡± "Well that''s not exactly what it is," Lexie said, much to Xena''s ire. But she had to be honest. They had Good Samaritan Law on Earth 2 as well, and, though she understood it could be exploited, ultimately the law was meant to protect people from legal consequences in case they tried to rescue someone and it went awry. "I mean, I know it''s not great to hear, but without a law like that they might hesitate to act in an emergency because they don''t want to get sued or something." Xena''s eyes narrowed. "Yeah, except they don''t only use it during emergencies. I saw a Cape once steal a man''s sandwich right out of his hand because he said he really needed it before he jetted off. And sometimes, if they''re chasing a bad guy and you''re in their way, they could end up killing you in the process and they would get away with it." Lexie¡¯s eyebrow shot up. ¡°Really?¡± Okay the Good Samaritan Laws back in Earth 2 didn¡¯t extend that far. Or at least Lexie didn''t think so. ¡°Yeah. I know for a fact. The orphanage told me that my parents, the real ones, were killed by heroes. It was supposedly a mistake. They were chasing a bad guy down in a supposedly evacuated area, tried to shoot at him, and then zapped my parents. Lasered right through their skulls.¡± Lexie winced. That sounded brutal. And Xena wasn''t done. ¡°It was marked as an unforeseen casualty and the [Hero] who did it just got put on mental leave. He never even got a trial.¡± She tried to sound casual as she spoke, but I could sense the anger bristling, and the bitterness in her tone. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s still serving as a [Hero] too. They probably gave him a cushy job on another planet.¡± ¡°That¡¯s horrible,¡± Lexie said quietly. The girl had really been through a lot. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s whatever. I don¡¯t even remember them much anyway.¡± She took a deep breath and seemed to deflate, her expression looking lost. ¡°Just goes to show you that [Heroes] can get away with a lot of stuff that no one else can. They would have to do something pretty bad to get punished like your dad was.¡± Her eyes met Lexie¡¯s suddenly. ¡°Kinda makes you wonder what he did, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Xena''s gaze seemed to bore right through Lexie but she held it. The words were like loud bells in Lexie¡¯s mind, gnawing at her. It made her uncomfortable. More than uncomfortable in fact. And Lexie felt an inexplicable urge to say something in defense of herself, of Aiden, but she couldn¡¯t. Instead, she looked away, turning to stare out at the grass until Xena went back to her video pad. Then, with her heart racing, Lexie promptly went back on the NET and tried to look up Aiden¡¯s crime. She probably should have done that earlier but to be fair, so much had happened and she didn''t have any reason previously to think he¡¯d done something egregious. Now she did. Unfortunately, she didn¡¯t find much on the NET. She didn¡¯t find much information about Aiden in general, which was strange given that he had supposedly been a powerful, and presumably popular, [Hero]. It was like someone had gone out of their way to wipe out much of his presence from the NET. Like they wanted him erased, forgotten. Maybe that was what happened when a [Hero] became a [Villain]. All evidence of their heroic deeds were wiped away so that history wouldn¡¯t remember them as who they had been but who they currently were. A nobody. A [Villain]. It was the sort of thing she expected from the System. But unexpectedly, she didn¡¯t really find out much about his crime either. All she got was one article that announced he was going on trial, and it showed him with large handcuffs being walked to a courthouse, surrounded by about a hundred armed guards. Aiden looked rough in the picture, overgrown beard, bloodshot eyes, his hair long and ratty. She almost didn¡¯t recognize him. But the most unfamiliar thing was that hard defiant look in his eyes, the same ones that often shone with affection and kindness when he looked at her. Suddenly, the train came to a smooth halt. ¡°You have arrived at the City of Arcadia.¡± ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± Xena said. 10 - Luther Firebringer and the Party From Hell (Luthers Interlude) Luther Firebringer was constantly assailed by incessant tufts of plume. He was getting really sick of it. He should have expected it coming into this party. The Azures were known for nothing if not throwing very flamboyant events and outfitting them with whatever fashion pundits decided the fabric of the season was. Last year, it was Peluda fur and so all their parties had featured what looked like spiky, red pubic hair around their entrances, accenting the walls and even on outfits. The year before that it was dragonscale and people got creative about how to graft that onto their actual skin. And this year, it was goose feathers which meant plume. Lots and lots of plume. It had attacked him almost as soon as he arrived. When he¡¯d walked through the doorway, stepping cleanly through the forcefield that would only allow guests and staff to enter, he was greeted by a face full of goosefeathers from a woman in a large fluffy bustle who crossed his path at the wrong time. The plume went right in his mouth and he had to splutter to spit it out. That still didn¡¯t help get the dry taste of raw perfumed poultry off his tongue. He just hoped none of the drone cameras whizzing about caught spitting. So freaking undignified. But that was nothing compared to what happened when he was on his way to get a drink. Someone crossed his paths wearing wings made of plume and once again it got him in the face. This time stray particles went up his nose and he had to fight the urge to snort and sniff long after she¡¯d passed. And then came the overwhelming urge to sneeze. It wasn¡¯t just one dainty little sneeze either. He could sense multiple violent sneezes on the horizon and it would involve lots of sniffling too, and probably snorting to get the leftover particles out. Panic clawed his chest as he held it back. Can¡¯t do that in front of the cameras. Apart from looking undignified, if he began snorting and sniffing like a druggie, rumors might start and that was the last thing he needed. It might seem like an overreaction but it was true. He was one of Earth¡¯s most famous heroes and one ill-timed screenshot with his hand under his nose, could cause public uproar. He might even get called into the hero''s association for a random drug test, which would make the rumor mill worse whether he came out clean or not. His spotless reputation would be tainted. And then there was his family to worry about. His grandmother would kill him if she even thought he was doing drugs. Even worse, she¡¯d also call one of those long, boring family meetings and his older sister, Stella, would be there and she would cackle mockingly and say something like, ¡°Glad you finally loosened up, Luthy. I¡¯ve always thought drugs would be good for your personal development.¡± He got annoyed just thinking about it. As if he would ever display a weakness like that. Luther had better self-control than anyone he knew, and was actively disgusted by people who gave in to their vices and baser urges. His exceptional self control was also how he held the sneeze until he got to the bathroom. He first checked that there were no cameras in there. And then he let it rip, a series of successive sneezes followed by a loud snort. Then once he was done letting it all out, he washed his hands and ensured his hair and face were still camera ready, before he stepped out. As he walked over to grab a glass of wine, deftly avoided the plume paintings on the gazebo, and then stood near the orchids while he observed the party. The Azures had outdone themselves this time. Swathes of threaded gold and red silk swang around the garden seemingly suspended in air by nothing. White glass flamingos floated on artificial ponds. The garden itself was gated by perfectly manicured shrubbery with flowers of reddish pink and gold. They even got their shimmering forcefield, which was usually clear, to have a golden cast. People milled about in their pink, red, or golden dresses most of which had blown-out skirts like they were at a prom. And they all looked silly. Luther could only imagine what their stylists were thinking and wondered if the invite mandated they show up as ridiculous and uncomfortable as humanly possible. He might have thought it was all an elaborate joke on Vera Azure¡¯s part, if she were smart enough to actually pull off such a thing. ¡°Luth!¡± Speak of the devil. He turned around to see the petite woman skittering to him. Her tight pink dress, which looked like it was made out of shiny snake skin and chain mail, clung to her thighs and practically plastered them together, restricting her movement. Behind her was a train of feathers that looked like they had been plucked from every creature of flight imaginable, with a matching feathered shawl circling her shoulders too. She was the living embodiment of plume. ¡°You came!" she squealed happily in a girlish manner unbefitting of the nearly forty-year-old woman. "And in the correct dress code, thank heavens! I was so frightened you wouldn¡¯t get my message in time informing you of the hue change.¡± I¡¯m in dress code? Luther frowned and scanned his own outfit, worried that he looked as ridiculous as the rest of them. But then he realized that she meant the colors. He was wearing a red button down shirt and rust-brown pants but that was just a coincidence that had nothing to do with any dress code. Those were simply his family colors which he usually wore to formal events. Vera reached in for a brief impersonal hug and her perfume wafted around him making him slightly ill. ¡°Cousin Vera." He greeted and pulled back with a forced smile. "You look¡­¡± Stupid. ¡°Interesting.¡± ¡°It¡¯s beautiful isn¡¯t it?¡± She turned to show off more of the train. ¡°Can you believe that this is an authentic Maragialo? Flown right in from Silia. He had to make it last minute because my other dressmaker was murdered and you wouldn¡¯t believe the state she left the fabric in. No other designer would touch it, and I¡¯d spent nearly a hundred thousand credits on special Fae goose feathers already so it¡¯s not like I could just throw it all away. So I went to my friend Maragialo and told him, ¡®I will positively perish if you don¡¯t help me.¡¯ It took a lot of convincing, but he agreed.¡± She sighed, shaking her head. ¡°Still, getting it done was a nightmare. Like I can¡¯t even express to you how stressful it was, you had to be there.¡± As stressful as foiling a demon-led bank heist? Luther wondered, amused. Or resolving a level 6 dungeon solo? ¡°Your forbearance is admirable,¡± Luther said, trying to keep the sardonic bite from his tone. "I''m glad it all worked out." ¡°Me too.¡± She beamed. Luckily Vera was largely immune to sarcasm. ¡°This fabric in this color was also a nightmare to get because it¡¯s super rare. Cost me nearly a million credits just to get put on the waiting list. And another million to ship it in without those space pirates getting to it. So much effort...I¡¯m glad it didn¡¯t go to waste. What do you think?¡± She turned around again to show off the full dress. I think your husband should grow some balls and tell you to stop wasting his money on clothes. ¡°Looks great.¡± ¡°Thank you, again. Anyway, I''m so surprised to see you here. I thought you couldn¡¯t make it. Didn¡¯t you say you had to deal with a terrorist attack in District 5?¡± ¡°Yeah, but I got summoned at the last minute for a dungeon in Hovelton.¡± ¡°Oh, you poor thing.¡± She shot him a sympathetic look. ¡°That town always depresses me whenever Harold goes to campaign.¡± Luther agreed. Everything about Hovelton was drab and grey and depressing. Arcadia was more advanced and leagues more colorful. In some cases, like at this party, too colorful. ¡°Yes, but they reported an unstable dungeon problem and no one in Arcadia would have been able to tackle it," he continued with a long-suffering sigh. "The Association sent me in to take care of it instead.¡± Although, by the time he got there, the dungeon was pretty much on its last leg and Mad-Eye Max had killed the escaped ghoul. Thinking about that worsened his mood. Luther didn¡¯t like Mad-Eye Max and he especially disliked that someone like him, who didn¡¯t have any formal training as a [Hero] nor did he have any magic, was able to disable a level 4 unstable dungeon and kill a ghoul without much damage. It wasn¡¯t that he wanted Max to get damaged¡­.much. He wasn¡¯t that petty. It was more so what Max¡¯s lack of damage meant for the larger society. Max was a [Mercenary], a role that wasn¡¯t bound by heroic codes, and was only contracted for dungeon work because they had a knack for doing just about anything to make a quick buck. [Mercenaries], like Max, were selfish, greedy, and opportunistic. The total opposite of heroic. He didn¡¯t hold it against them. That was all they were supposed to be. That was all Max was supposed to be. Max was not supposed to be able to take down unstable dungeons and save his drab little town from ghoul attacks. And it shocked and bothered Luther that he had. Something like that skirted too close to vigilantism for his liking. And vigilantism like that could start to get attention. It could encourage others to do the same. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Which, amongst other things, was totally destructive for society. Luther clenched his jaw as he thought about what should have happened with that unstable dungeon portal. Max should not have touched the portal no matter what. At most, he should have evacuated everyone closeby and waited for the proper authorities¨Cmeaning Luther¨Cto show up. He shouldn¡¯t have been able to destroy the portal by himself. That was¡­unprecedented for a second-rate mercenary like him. Max had no magic. Luther had checked when he¡¯d been given access to Max¡¯s private window. The man had medium physical traits, higher on the strength and dexterity component. His intelligence was at a B Rank but he¡¯d focused nearly all of it on gun knowledge. He was also crass, mercurial, and according to what Luther had heard, quite vulgar as well. He was not [Hero] material. So why was he now acting like it? It would be different if it was a one-time thing, if it was just about the dungeon. But Max had already built a somewhat modest name for himself as a young expert Dungeon Master who always ensured that everyone who entered a dungeon with him left alive, and frequently with all their limbs attached. As such, he''d been building a small cult following in underground scenes, and had other delvers scouring to be on his team. It wasn''t unusual for people to die during dungeon raids. If anything, it was probably more normal for parties of ten to reduce to parties of one before leaving a dungeon. Yet Max had only ever lost two people to a Dungeon raid, and it was right at the beginning of his career. He reportedly never lost another, even if it meant he had to give up everything else he''d scoured from the dungeon to get people out safely. Again, that attitude was unprecedented for a [Mercenary]. And it pissed Luther off. He internally scoffed. Max liked to pretend like he didn''t care about fame, yet he did stuff like that, obviously for attention. There was no way he was doing it simply because he was kind. That man with the vindictive eye didn¡¯t have a kind bone in his body. Luther knew that for a fact, and he was rarely ever wrong about people. Yet, despite how unpleasant the other man was, Luther didn''t have any personal problems with Max. It was just that the concept of him, a [Mercenary] who did heroic things, shouldn¡¯t exist. He was not a [Hero]. He should know his place. Unlike Max, Luther was a [Hero]. One of the best actually. He did have magic and he outranked Max on the Physical level too. He also had his family bloodline. He was a Firebringer, arguably the most powerful race of trained [Heroes] in the entire world. Even without his family¡¯s wealth, he had enough sponsors to own one of the most expensive condos in Capital City. He was so famous that sometimes people camped outside for days just to take a picture with him. It was annoying sometimes, but that was the type of treatment only [Heroes] of his caliber got, and frankly only they deserved it for all the sacrifices they made. If people like Max started sprouting up seemingly doing the same things Luther was doing, (though on a much smaller, less efficient scale) the prestige of being a hero would be reduced. And without that prestige, they would lose sponsorships and funding and it would make it difficult for them to do their work. It would also be difficult to recruit more heroes. It was bad enough that they were already facing a hero shortage. Polls showed that younger high rankers were less likely than previous generations to dream of being heroes. A bunch of them were choosing paths in entertainment instead. If being a self-serving [Mercenary] started growing in popularity then it would make things worse. Those kids would think, "What is the point of being a hero and going to hero school, and abiding by heroic code? I can just do whatever I want anyway and save people when I feel like it and also get a bunch of sponsorship money." And just like that, the era of [Heroes] would end. Stella always thought he was overreacting when he told her his concerns, but Luther knew everyone else was underreacting. It was maddening that the association wasn¡¯t considering what Max did as an active threat, and clearly didn¡¯t see where their world may be headed if things like that continued and people took notice. Max was also a unique problem. Unlike other stray vigilantes who had come and gone over the years, foolhardy beings that had either died in obscurity or joined the Hero Association, Max already had that cult fanbase, had at least enough skill to save some people, yet he hated [Heroes]. So he would neither be obscure enough to forget, nor would he join the Hero Association. He was a primed danger to their way of life. And to make everything bloody worse, Luther also had to worry about Aiden Sparrowfoot, with his recovered, newly pre-awakened daughter. I¡¯ll have to report that last piece of news to the association, he thought. A powerful [Villain]¡¯s pre-awakened child was certainly cause for concern. ¡°Wait, you resolved a dungeon in Hovelton yesterday and you stuck around this long?¡± His cousin¡¯s surprised tone dragged his attention back to their conversation. ¡°I''m shocked. Usually, you zap back to Capital City the second you¡¯re done with your mission.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Yes, but I decided to stay a while. You know, in case more trouble arises.¡± It was a lie but it sounded better than admitting that the Hero Association asked him to stand by and survey the situation at Hovelton for a little longer. There¡¯d been three unstable dungeons spawning there in the last year and that was highly unusual, to say the least, to have so many spawn in the same area. The Association was trying to make sure that it wasn¡¯t linked to a larger trend they were seeing. To that end, Luther was supposed to stay in Hovelton and report whatever he witnessed. But he hated Hovelton. So he got a hotel in Arcadia instead. It was fine since he could easily move back and forth thanks to the teleportation orbs he bought. He hadn''t mastered fire flight yet but he could also jet himself there in twenty minutes through brief spurts of pyro-velocity. Either way, he refused to get a hotel in that dingy, run down town that smelled like moth balls. Nevertheless, Arcadia though leagues better than Hovelton, was drastically lacking in adequate entertainment. So he decided to come to his cousin¡¯s party after all and meet some of the heroes of the town. Or more accurately, he thought it might be good for them to meet him. He could already see them watching him, whispering behind their hands, some in awe and jealousy and others to size him up. The last part excited him. The possibility of a fight always excited him especially if he could be televised putting someone in their place. [Heroes] and other high rankers used to mess with him all the time, especially when he was younger, scrawnier and didn¡¯t have a good hang of his powers yet. Every ranker at Victoire wanted to make a name for themselves, to be acknowledged as powerful, and what better way to do that than by beating up a Firebringer. Even if they got in trouble for it momentarily, ultimately it would help their reputation somewhat in the heroic circles. His older sister Stella was too much of a threat for them, but Luther was a significantly easier prey. So he¡¯d been a frequent target of bullying throughout his Academy. It was why he fought so hard to get stronger. And eventually, he made sure everyone who¡¯d ever tried to humiliate him lived to regret it. Now, very few [Heroes] were at his caliber, much less the ones at this party. Though to be fair, he only recognized a few of them. There was Tophat, the object summoner, showing off his new headpiece. Lucy Frank, the young arithmancy genius who could predict an opponent''s next ten moves, was dancing with another woman by the pond. Both were beneath him in both strength and popularity so he didn''t bother introducing himself to them. The only other hero worth noting at this party was the one in a flower-patterned shirt and casual slacks laughing at something another guest said. Monty Ward, a B-Rank telepathic spell-caster who had saved a group of people from jumping off a building last month. It was some kind of cult mass suicide and because of that, it had made big news across all of Orinia. Monty''s name has been trending on the NET for a month and he was currently the number ten most popular hero in Orinia right now. We¡¯ll see how long that lasts. A few paces away from Monty, a quiet platinum-blonde woman stood, looking bored out of her mind. ¡°Kids!¡± Vera suddenly called out and beckoned over his shoulder. ¡°Come say hi to your uncle Luther.¡± Soon, two children rushed up, one of them a girl with strawberry blonde hair in gentle curls around her face and a smile practiced to reveal a dimple on her cheek. Next to her was her shorter, pudgier brother who had similar coloring but had a square face and owly eyes behind huge glasses. He was in a suit with a tangled bowtie that Vera frowned at. ¡°Hi, Uncle Luther,¡± the girl said and it took Luther a second to recall her name. ¡°Veronica.¡± He remembered only because the name was so similar to her mother¡¯s that it bordered on narcissism. ¡°How nice to see you again. You look adorable.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± she beamed. ¡°I got pre-awakened last week, Uncle.¡± ¡°You did?¡± he smiled. ¡°That''s great. Congratulations!¡± ¡°We always knew she would.¡± Vera beamed as she wrapped her arm around her daughter¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Our Veronica has always been so smart and talented. And we¡¯ve worked hard this year, haven¡¯t we Vero?¡± Vera didn¡¯t even wait for the girl¡¯s nod to continue talking. ¡°Madam Clementia is the best pre-awakening coach I¡¯ve ever seen and she says Veronica is a talented student. She predicted that Vero would be preawakened within five months and wouldn¡¯t you know it, a week ago a horse flung her and she preawakened just like that.¡± ¡°What a nice story,¡± Luther lied and then turned his attention to the bespectacled boy standing behind his sister eyeing him owlishly. Luther couldn''t for the life of him remember this one¡¯s name. Thankfully Vera helped him out. ¡°Dewitt, greet your Uncle Luth.¡± ¡°Greetings, Uncle Luth,¡± Dewitt said and executed a random and extravagant bow. ¡°Thank you for gracing us with your presence on this fine evening. Did you happen to see two gnomes on your way here?¡± ¡°Two¡­gnomes?¡± ¡°Yes. The lizard people told me they¡¯d be here soon.¡± Lizard people? What the hell was he on about? ¡°Dewitt.¡± Vera¡¯s smile grew tight around the corners. ¡°Remember what I told you about making polite conversation." "I thought that''s what I was doing." He sounded puzzled. "I welcomed him to the party and said ''thank you for coming''." "Yes. But then you said something...strange. Remember you''re not supposed to do that. What did we say about offering normal, publicly-necessary information?¡± Dewitt opened his mouth to say something in response, then pressed his lips together. He nodded soberly, seeming disappointed he couldn¡¯t share more. His mother sighed. ¡°Ignore him. It¡¯s just Dewitt and his nonsense. He¡¯s always had an active imagination and I think maybe he¡¯s making the wrong friends who are encouraging that behavior.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t have friends,¡± Veronica pointed out helpfully, and Dewitt scowled at her. ¡°That wasn''t publicly-necessary information,¡± he said. ¡°In any case,¡± Vera interrupted. ¡°We¡¯re working on his preawakening now but it¡¯s giving us some trouble. Dewitt¡¯s not as naturally talented as Veronica so we don¡¯t know if he will get there but we¡¯re trying our best.¡± Poor kid, Luther thought as Dewitt¡¯s shoulder deflated, hurt flashing across his face before he hid it. ¡°It¡¯s better to let these things happen naturally. Besides, a preawakening isn¡¯t everything. He can still be an excellent [Hero] even if he hasn¡¯t pre-awakened.¡± After all, Luther had never pre-awakened and he was one of the best heroes in the district, currently number four in Orinia. ¡°Yes, but you know that pre-awakenings are a big deal for Victoire. It¡¯s one of the things they look out for in their applications.¡± ¡°There are many Heroic institutions that aren¡¯t Victoire. They make good heroes too.¡± ¡°Victoire is the best [Hero] academy in the country and that¡¯s where the entire Firebringer clan has gone. I don¡¯t want my children to be different." Well, technically your children are not Firebringers. It was what he wanted to say. Though he considered her a relative, Vera was only his cousin in the sense that her husband¡¯s brother had married a Firebringer cousin of his. It was a thin tether of a relationship but Vera insisted on acting as though her kids had Firebringer blood. For the most part they let her have her delusions. ¡°Is Aunt Stella coming?¡± Dewitt asked, hope perking up his voice. ¡°Or Cousin Theo?¡± Ah. It was clear from his enthusiasm that those two were his favorites in the family. Luther felt less bad for the kid now. ¡°I wouldn''t know.¡± The answer was most likely no. Unlike Luther, Stella and Theo probably had better things to do this evening. He wished he did too, as Vera launched into another overly detailed explanation of the making of her dress. Meanwhile, Dewitt Azure listened to the conversation with half a mind and wondered when the gnomes would arrive. He hoped it would be soon because he was bored out of his skull. 11 - How To Break Into A Hero Party The station at Arcadia stood in stark contrast with the one at Hovelton. For one thing, it was much larger with storeys and multiple lanes on the stretched platform. It also seemed leagues more advanced, from hoverboard racks to moving walkways that morphed and shifted, blending seamlessly on the futuristic sleek floors. Also, the station had far, far more people. Once the doors of the train opened, Lexie and Xena tried to get out but they were inundated by a bunch of tired faced adults, colorfully dressed teens, and a bubble gum popping girl who nearly kneed Lexie in the eye on the way in. Lexie and Xena pushed their way through anyway, Xena snarling at a few people in the process. No one seemed surprised to find two young children on a train alone. Only one person, a man in a white robe that looked like Xena¡¯s mom''s, threw them a curious look but even then he didn¡¯t stop them as they made their way out onto the expansive platform. There were several train lines intersecting the platform, at least a dozen on each side. The decor of the open space was predominantly made of steel and reflective glass with curved ergonomic surfaces and absolutely zero spray paint. Their ticketing podiums also looked a step above Hovelton¡¯s, larger and glowing with LED lights. One woman had pulled up a 3D hologram map on a podium and was turning it around in the air, drawing dots on it and connecting it. When she was done, a series of text appeared next to the hologram, which Lexie surmised might be direction or information on the train lines. A few of the podiums were not solid at all, and seemed entirely holographic, which made Lexie curious about what that meant. Was it a more advanced type of podium? Or simply a decor choice. Or maybe it served a different purpose entirely. She didn¡¯t have time to ponder. Xena was already walking in that direction, moving through a turnstile that seemed to glow green when she stepped through. It also turned green when Lexie did the same, hurrying to follow Xena¡¯s determined, long steps. They were heading for a holographic exit sign marked over an automatic sliding glass doorway. Lexie caught up to Xena at that exit, and they walked through the sliding doors together, turning into a marble staircase that would lead them above ground. ¡°I guess you know your way around here,¡± Lexie quipped. ¡°What did I say about stupid questions?¡± Lexie frowned at her. That wasn¡¯t even a question. But before she could retort, they appeared at the top of a busy street. Wow. Arcadia was very¡­colorful. With bright neon streetlights that were on even in the afternoon and crowds of people walking everywhere, the city felt like it was overflowing with energy. Kind of like New York although it didn''t look like New York necessarily. The city itself reminded her more of Tokyo or Singapore sprinkled with the vintage Romanesque and Baroque architecture of Old London. The vibe was a mixture of classic and ultra-modern and Lexie admired the effortless fusion of both styles. Logan was really into architecture for a while, she thought as they kept moving. He would have loved this. The roads looked normal enough except that they were choked with traffic, unlike anything she¡¯d ever seen before. First of all, the sheer variety of cars (hovering sedans, cars that looked like mini airplanes, trucks with bird wings) stunned her. Secondly, these cars were stacked on top of each other with inches of space between them. Of course, they were only stacked in twos and threes, a shimmering line in the air seemingly mandating that the stacks should not rise higher than that point. Or maybe it was more so an unspoken rule that there couldn¡¯t be more than three cars stacked above each other. Either way, the whole thing was a sight to behold. Lexie had never been a fan of sitting in traffic. But hovering in traffic strangely sounded kind of appealing right now. ¡°Maybe we should take a cab?¡± Lexie suggested. The last word didn¡¯t auto-translate which meant that the word ''cab'' was still used in this world. Interesting. It felt like some of these changes the game maker made were arbitrary. Things differed in a lot of ways that mattered and a lot of ways that didn¡¯t. ¡°It¡¯s not far,¡± Xena said. ¡°We''d probably get there sooner by walking. Plus I don¡¯t have enough credits for a cab. I had to spend it on getting you a ticket.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Lexie said. ¡°I¡¯ll pay you back once I figure out how to access my credit account.¡± ¡°Whatever,¡± was the taller girl''s response. They turned a corner and continued down a thinner street, with shops lined on each side. She knew they were shops because the neon signs basically exclaimed it to everyone who walked by, and they seemed to be battling each other for the most in-your-face advertisement possible. The text styles were all bold and practically (and sometimes literally) jumping out the page. As they passed by, Lexie spent some time reading ads that raised more questions than answers in her mind. GET YOUR HAIR CUT BY HEROIC BARBER SHEFFIELD SLICES! 20% DISCOUNT TODAY THROUGH FRIDAY. A heroic barber? Lexie wondered. Is he a hero that also cuts hair or a barber that does haircuts for heroes? Or both? GET YOUR DUNGEON-DELVING TOOLS HERE! APPROVED BY 9/10 DUNGEON DELVERS Why did the one disapprove? Lexie mused. LOST AN ITEM? HEAD TO THE LOST AND FOUND ON FIFTH STREET! *FOR A SMALL FEE* YOU CAN FIND ITEMS YOU NEVER LOST What does that even mean? Lexie thought. Xena interrupted her perusal by pointing. ¡°See that big shiny ugly building right up that hill? With the garden in front? That¡¯s Coventry Garden.¡± Lexie peered at it. The building wasn¡¯t ugly but it was prominent. It looked more like an old cathedral, with an iron wrought gate that surrounded the garden. Lexie nodded. ¡°Alright. But do we have a plan for getting in?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I mean I¡¯m pretty sure there¡¯s going to be security. Big guys with guns and swords...maybe. How do we get past them?¡¯ Xena looked at Lexie like she had said something stupid. ¡°Why would superheroes need security? They are security.¡± ¡°Yeah, but don¡¯t they need guards to keep away their crazed fans?¡± She smirked. ¡°They like their crazy fans. That¡¯s why they put on events like these with huge signs and so many ads that tell everyone where it¡¯s going to be held. So that crazed fans would know where to find them.¡± Lexie could see her point, but still. ¡°Aren¡¯t they scared that the fans will, I don''t know, mob them or something?¡± Xena simply snorted and kept walking. As they got closer, Lexie noticed that the crowds were getting even thicker, moving in the same direction they were. Dozens of people were standing in front of the gate, some of them interacting with a tiny floating orb and posing with a ''peace'' sign. She noticed that every once in a while they would snap or tap a finger against their leg or something and it would elicit a click from the orb. ¡°What are they doing?¡± Lexie murmured, low enough that Xena didn''t hear it. The system screen automatically activated.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO TAKE A PICTURE? FREE-FLOATING PHOTO-TAKING ORBS PRESENT.
Ah. So they were taking pictures. She glanced at the orbs again, and whispered to confirm, ¡°So those orbs take photos?¡± The system came in clutch with another explanation.
PHOTO-TAKING ORBS (PHORBS FOR SHORT) ARE TOOLS USED TO PRODUCE IMAGES, BOTH TWO AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL, WHICH CAN THEN BE PROCESSED INTO OTHER MEDIA FORMS. THESE IMAGES CAN ALSO BE STORED IN YOUR SYSTEM INVENTORY, TRANSFERRED TO EXTERNAL MEDIA STORAGE OR SENT AS A MESSAGE. ADDITIONALLY, YOU CAN USE PHORBS TO TAKE VIDEOS OR STREAM AN ACTIVITY DIRECTLY TO THE NET. ADVANCED INTELLIGENT PHORBS CAN WORK INDEPENDENTLY TO GET THE BEST POSSIBLE SHOT IN A SCENE AND CAN AUTOMATICALLY CUT AND EDIT THE VIDEO AS YOU FOR MAXIMUM ENTERTAINMENT. [TO LEARN MORE, CLICK HERE¡­]
No, that''s cool. Lexie already had what she needed. Thanks for the info, system. Lexie bet that the last part about the advanced PHORBS would be great for streamers. Not having to hold a camera and worry about angles. It would also just edit it for you. She wondered if that was how the [Hero] party was getting all those cool shots, even though it was being live streamed. Speaking of live-streamed¡­ ¡°What Fighters were you watching back in the train? For the All Fighter¡¯s Circuit?¡± Lexie turned to Xena as they continued toward the continuously thickening crowd. Lexie had already searched it up on the train and learned that the AFC was a federation, kind of like the UFC, that organized fighting matches all over the world. And just like MMA, people brought different fighting styles to the ring, and simply used whatever they could to win. Lexie had never been into MMA so she asked Xena about the AFC, not necessarily because she wanted to know more, but because the silence between them had gotten kind of awkward and she just wanted to break it. But, given the girl''s attitude, she also expected Xena to not answer. To her surprise, Xena did. ¡°There¡¯s only two fighters worth watching right now,¡± she said. ¡°Conrad Grace and Top Dog. Conrad is sixteen and he¡¯s the son of two [Heroes]. But he doesn¡¯t want to be a [Hero] himself and said during an interview that he wanted to be a [Mercenary] instead. His parents didn¡¯t approve and basically threatened to disown him for that and so he uses the AFC to raise money so he can emancipate from his parents. He¡¯s an A-Rank Berserker Type Fighter so he¡¯s really unpredictable and that makes him fun to watch. He¡¯s new but he¡¯s already climbed the ranks pretty quickly in just a few months and a lot of people consider him to be number two in the junior league." Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. The wind blew hair into her face again, and she tucked it behind her ears before she continued talking. "And then there¡¯s Top Dog. He¡¯s been number one in the junior division since forever. He¡¯s kind of an ass, but he¡¯s a really skilled A-Rank Warrior Type Fighter and a C-Rank Weaponist. His parents are mundane so he has a huge chip on his shoulder especially against Capes. He really wants to take a bite out of Conrad. Bad.¡± She shakes her head. ¡°Anyway, their fight is scheduled for next month. It¡¯s the preliminaries for the Golden Glove Juniors. I watched their preliminary matches against other opponents and honestly, it¡¯s going to be close but I still put my money on Conrad.¡± Lexie was surprised. She¡¯d really expected Xena to blow off her question or give her usual clipped reply, instead of that shockingly detailed, passionate layout. She supposed she¡¯d stumbled in on the one topic that the girl liked to talk about. But then almost at the same time, Xena seemed to realize that she was having a conversation without sass, and she decided to sass it up by quipping ¡°Move faster, kid. With those little legs, by the time we get there, the party will already be over. ¡°They¡¯re not little,¡± Lexie muttered glaring at Xena¡¯s back as she followed her. ¡°You¡¯re just freakishly tall. And stop calling me kid, we¡¯re probably the same age.¡± Well, Lexie was technically older but not right now. Xena gave her a disbelieving look. ¡°Aren''t you like eight?¡± ¡°I¡¯m ten.¡± ¡°You¡¯re short for ten.¡± ¡°I¡¯m in the thirty-fifth percentile. That¡¯s almost average.¡± Xena didn''t look convinced but she didn¡¯t say anything else. Finally, as they reached the top of the hill, they saw the hordes of people collated around the garden. But when they got close Xena paused. There seemed to be a forcefield or something over the entire garden and cathedral, about five inches or so from the outer gates. The forcefield was golden and glittering in the sun, pulsing with energy. The minute Xena saw it, she frowned, ¡°Shit.¡¯¡¯ Which probably meant that the forcefield acted as some kind of security. Lexie tried to resist the urge to say I told you so. Tried and failed. ¡°Told you so,¡± Lexie said with only a tiny bit of smugness. Xena¡¯s lips pursed. She glared at the forcefield as though she could make it manually combust with her gaze. ¡°You didn¡¯t have a plan for getting inside?¡± Lexie asked, a little disappointed. Maybe she shouldn¡¯t have been since Xena was a ten-year-old kid and all, but she¡¯d somehow thought she¡¯d be smart enough to have a plan. ¡°I did,¡± Xena bit out lowly. They were surrounded by the din of the crowd and no one seemed to be paying particular attention to them, too busy taking selfies or observing the people at the party. ¡°I just didn¡¯t expect a forcefield. They didn¡¯t have that last year.¡± ¡°Ok. But even without the forcefield there¡¯s still the gate and the crowd to worry about. How did you expect to get in?¡± ¡°You see that small woodsy area by the gate, on the right of the garden? You can access that through Clifford Street, right by the Aveyard building. Their gates aren''t interconnected but two of the rods are broken and there''s a hole between them you can sneak through. It''s hidden by the woods over there so it''s a pretty easy way to get in." ¡°How do you know?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Spend your time sneaking into cathedral gardens?¡± ¡°That¡¯s none of your business. In any case, we can¡¯t do that now, because of the forcefield.¡± Lexie didn''t want to give up just like that, so she told her, ¡°Show me the place.¡± Maybe they could figure something out when they got there. Xena sighed and then set off, not towards the garden, but towards a street before it. She turned right into the street and hurried, turning left into the first alley. She took another right and then left, which brought her in front of a small white building that reminded Lexie of the DMV. Xena squeezed herself behind a brick wall, and Lexie followed as the pavement bled into a woodsy area sectioned off by a low gate. They hopped it pretty easily and approached the second gate, which was significantly higher and spikier, matching the one they found in front of the cathedral. Xena led her to the missing rods and there was just enough space for two little girls to squeeze through, admitting them into a mini forest. The trees shielded them from the crowd surrounding the garden, and they seemed to be at the back of the cathedral itself. The forcefield was right across from them, mocking them. They hid behind bushes as they saw about two servers come out, carrying trays of half-eaten food. Lexie guessed that this acted as some kind of server''s entrance. The two men passed through the forcefield without effort. ¡°How do you think they¡¯re getting in?¡± Lexie asked, pointing to the server while crouched. He had his side to them, walking down a path, leading away from them and towards a huge truck. ¡°Probably that badge at their hip,¡± Xena said. ¡°Or maybe facial recognition software. Although my mom, I mean Emma, used to be a server at these things, and she told me once that they usually don''t use facial recognition for employees who are only contracted for the night. I think keying a forcefield with each individual''s facial features is kind of costly, especially since you have to take into account adjustments if they gain or lose weight, or if they have eyebags, or something else. And then there''s shapeshifters and long-lost twins to worry about also. Plus, it''s a lot of paperwork. So if it¡¯s short-term employment, they just have the waiters and staff use badges. It also makes it easier to fire and replace someone on the spot." ¡°So he''s most likely getting in with a badge.¡± ¡°Probably. But who knows?¡± Lexie thought a little and opened her system interface, and her card deck. ¡°Let me see if I can find something that can help us get in. ¡°You barely know how to use that thing.¡± ¡°Yeah, but I¡¯m a fast learner.¡± She read each card carefully, trying to ascertain which one could best serve her needs right now. showed promise because of the whole phantom hands thing. She could use that to maybe snatch the card while the server''s back was turned. But it was a whopping 9 in power which meant it would be very complicated to activate. Not to mention she didn¡¯t know what the ¡®contract with a suitable creature¡¯ entailed. was another card she considered. She thought of running and snatching a badge from one of the servers who was coming out of the garden. But that plan wasn¡¯t great for two reasons. One, she didn¡¯t actually know how much more speed the card gave her and since she was tiny, the server might be able to catch her even with a speed boost. The second and most important thing was that, even if she snatched the badge from him and managed to get away, he could simply call someone and tell them that his badge was compromised, disallowing access before Xena could get in. Unless they planned on knocking him out, which Lexie neither had the strength or inclination to do, that was a bad plan. They needed to take the badge without the server knowing it was taken. Which was going to be more complicated than she thought. But she focused on reading through the cards again, and again, trying to think outside the box. Saint Juana¡¯s Prep had held regular ¡®Thinking Skills¡¯ classes every other Friday, where they would give each student a problem, and have them solve it, using only limited tools and information. While most SJP students groaned at those classes, Lexie used to look forward to them and became quite good at them too. Now, she just needed to be good faster. She was about to read through the cards again when her eyes lingered on the first and last cards in her deck. Suddenly, she had an idea, a plan that bloomed in her mind. ¡°Okay,¡± she told Xena, who had been tapping her feet not so patiently as she waited for Lexie to come to her conclusion. "I think I know what to do.¡± ¡°Care to share with the class?¡± Lexie frowned at her. ¡°Not if you¡¯re going to be a pill about it.¡± She was kind of getting sick of the other girls¡¯ snark. Xena pressed her lips together but said nothing else. Satisfied, Lexie relayed the plan. ¡°We need to wait for another server to come out. I have a card that, I think, could get him to trip over himself. When he does, I¡¯ll run over to help him and pretend he dropped his card. And then I¡¯ll give it back to him. After he walks away, I¡¯ll activate this other card, , which says it returns things to their last known origin. I think, theoretically since I was the last one to hold the card before giving it to him, that should bring the card back to me.¡± Xena looked doubtful. ¡°Sounds complicated. Are you sure it would work?¡± She shrugged. ¡°Maybe not but it¡¯s the best I have so far.¡± Xena nodded. "Fine. Let¡¯s do it." Lexie went around the trees and got into a hidden position near the forcefield to wait. And wait. She''d told Xena to alert her when they saw a server coming through the garden toward the gate. The minute she got the signal, Lexie got to work. Lexie knew that it would take at least a minute to activate the card, so she wanted to start when the person was far enough away that she would have time for the activation. Hence, Xena''s signal ideally meant that he was a minute away from walking in front of her hiding spot. She took a deep breath and focused inward until she saw the activation symbol, this one looking like a tree with looping roots which she then filled with her mana. After, she switched her attention outward, to the mana around her hands, she saw another shape, another tree with twisted branches. She began filling that one too, slowly, with the external mana, until it got to the edge. Once it was done she got a ding at the corner of her vision
ACTIVATION COMPLETE. POINT AT TARGET NOW.
She opened her eyes and luckily her target was already out of the garden sauntering over at her right and muttering while carrying three garbage bags. Lexie pointed at him and instantly his foot caught on a stone and he fell. She winced as he crashed onto the ground, the garbage bags flying around his head. Shit. I didn¡¯t think it would be that violent. I hope he¡¯s not hurt. ¡°Are you okay?¡± The concern in her tone was genuine as she jogged over to him. But her eyes immediately searched for the identification badge on on a metal magnetic lapel looped through a belt buckle. Lexie rushed forward and grabbed the badge while he was still trying to right himself. She played it off that she was helping him pack up some of the trash that had fallen out of the bag. He wasn¡¯t paying attention to her at first, muttering about damned heroes and overbearing cooks. But when he saw her, his features eased. ¡°Hey kid,¡± he said. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be here.¡± ¡°Yeah. I know. I was gonna sneaked into the hero party through there, but there¡¯s a forcefield.¡± She used her best little girl voice and pointed at the wrought iron entrance while giving him the most innocent look. "That''s where I came through. But now I''m gonna go back because my mommy is probably looking for me." Am I laying it on too thick? Do ten-year-olds still say Mommy? He smiled. "Yeah, she probably is. I would walk you but that slave-driver Philipe will have my ass if I''m gone more than a minute." "It''s okay. My older sister''s on the other side waiting for me," she said. ¡°Do you need help?¡± "That¡¯s very kind of you but no. I got it." She nodded. "Oh here. You dropped this.¡± She gave him back the ID badge. He frowned and looked down at himself as though trying to figure out how he dropped it, but then he just shrugged and took it. "Thanks.¡± And then as he walked off, she immediately activated the card. This time the activation symbols were a squarish bird and a¡­ llama? She didn¡¯t know. It took her forty-five seconds to activate. Luckily enough the server was still within her radius by that time, and once she was done, there was a pop and the ID badge was in her hand. Xena, who had jogged down to meet her once the server was out of view, gaped at Lexie¡¯s palm. ¡°That was so cool.¡± ¡°Yeah," Lexie grinned proudly, handing Xena the card. "But we should hurry before he gets back." Xena nodded and they both jogged to the forcefield. Xena held the badge against it and the flat metallic disk glowed green, but the moment Xena tried to move forward, she was blocked as the forcefield turned back solid. ¡°Shit,¡± Xena swore. ¡°I think they use facial recognition too.¡± "They use both?" Xena huffed. ¡°Yeah. Of course. The Azures have lots of money to blow. Why not have two-step authentication?" "Darn." Lexie bit her lip in thought. Was it over? Was it the end? Then suddenly she had a crazy idea. "Hang on.¡± She opened her inventory again and pulled out her card. It was a long shot, something she hadn¡¯t thought through fully. But the adrenaline was making her thought processing faster than it would normally be. It was actually the image of the forcefield that gave her the idea. When it became solid, a flash of memory came to her, of something becoming solid or permeable at will, both corporeal and not. It was exactly like the ghoul she fought. Aiden said he designed the card to make himself invisible to one person at a time. The forcefield wasn¡¯t technically a person but neither was the ghoul. It wasn¡¯t even alive. Just a semi-intelligent being that acted on its instinct. The forcefield also seemed to have some intelligence. And instinct. There was no reason why the card wouldn''t work on a forcefield right? ¡°Here." She materialized and handed the card to Xena. ¡°Flash it to the forcefield.¡± Xena raised an eyebrow. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Just do it. Hurry before the guy comes back or realizes his badge is gone.¡± ¡°What about you?¡± "I''ll hide somewhere. Xena, you should really hurry." Xena took a deep breath, turned and flashed the card to the forcefield. To their relative surprise, the card instantly shattered into soundless glass shards, like they had when Lexie first used them, floating and disappearing in the air. Xena blinked. ¡°Does that mean it worked?¡± ¡°Only one way to find out.¡± Xena swallowed apprehensively. She held up the server''s badge in one hand and she inched towards the forcefield, shifting one foot forward. Her foot went through. ¡°It worked.¡± She gaped. ¡°I know.¡± Exhilaration whipped through Lexie. She couldn''t believe that actually worked. She didn¡¯t really think it would. It was just a lucky try. "Thanks." Xena gave her a single grateful look and then passed through the forcefield. She hesitated then turned around to Lexie and tossed her the badge. It passed cleanly through. ¡°Put it on the ground somewhere,¡± she said. ¡°He¡¯ll think he just dropped it.¡± Lexie nodded. That seemed like a solid idea. Xena then gave her another nod and then bolted in without looking back. ¡°Hurry Xena,¡± Lexie muttered to the air watching as the tall girl stormed across the garden. ¡°Whatever you¡¯re going to do, do it quickly.¡± 12 - Party Pooper Monty Ward was the only telepathic spell-caster in all of Orinia and maybe the entire ninth district. As such he typically got a lot of questions at parties like these. Questions like: What''s a telepathic spell caster? Does it mean you can recite spells with your mind? Can you see the future? Can you control what I¡¯m thinking? Can you read my mind? The answers to those questions were typically no, ''no'', ''hell no'', and ''it¡¯s complicated''. But he usually didn¡¯t elaborate much beyond that, keeping them guessing, partially so he could laugh at the funniest answers. It was amazing the lengths the human imagination could get to when faced with a mystery. There were no true telepaths left on Earth and he was the closest thing to one that most had ever met. Hence their fascination. But another reason why he didn''t speak much about his skill was that the true strength of telepathic spell-casting lay in its mystery. If people didn¡¯t know exactly how it worked, then it was much harder for them to guard against it. And it made him a particularly useful hero for [Villain] capture and hostage negotiation work. Still, contrary to popular belief, Monty Ward could not read minds nor could he predict the future. So when the tall slender girl in a black boots and cut-off jeans strutted to the middle of the grass, he didn''t know what she was going to do. Not until it was too late and she was already screaming. The scream pierced through the din, shocking several people into spinning around and brandishing weapons. Some even immediately had their hands out ready to act and the girl may never know how close she came to being sliced to pieces or blasted into the stratosphere. ¡°Listen up everyone!¡± she said each word clearly and efficiently, not screeching at all. ¡°While you guys are over here having fun in your stupid outfits, a child in Hovelton is on his deathbed, dying from loiter disease. And if we don¡¯t get a healer, he¡¯s going to legit die in the next few hours and it will be your fault!¡± ¡°Who the hell is that?¡± he heard someone say but the girl kept going. ¡°Hovelton has been asking for a healer for three weeks now! No one has come or even bothered to give us a timeline of when they''ll be there. A little boy will die within a few hours. And then a mundane doctor will probably die in the next three days because she''s one of the few people who actually tried to help him. And not just him, she tries to help everyone. So many other people are hurt or sick in that town and none of you gives a damn. The Head Nurse has put in like fifty requests for a healer and it''s been three weeks of nothing!" Monty¡¯s heart, now that it had gotten over its initial alarm, clenched in sympathy for the girl. Damn, that had to suck. He¡¯d never actually met a loiter-diseased patient but he¡¯d heard stories about the illness and it was truly a tragic way to go. And the worst thing was that no one here could do anything about it. There was no healer at this party, and probably only one other heroic healer in Arcadia. The healer shortage had been something the Hero Association had been trying to tackle for months now and there was no easy solution. At the same time, his eyes immediately travelled to the biggest threat in the room. Luther Firebringer. Monty didn¡¯t like Luther. He didn¡¯t hate Luther, but he didn''t like him. The guy was a trigger-happy elitist snob and right now he was looking at the girl like she was a bug. Monty had to act. Fast. He put down his wine glass and began approaching her. But when she saw him coming she took a step back and she shouted louder, repeating everything she¡¯d just said. ¡°A little boy in Hovelton will die within hours if we don''t get a healer. Another person, a mundane nurse, will die in probably three days. No one here cares about that? Seriously? Is it because we¡¯re lowly mundane people?¡±| ¡°It¡¯s not that simple,¡± Monty said calmly. Her only response was to glare at him. He tried to explain.¡°Between Arcadia, Hovelton and about five surrounding cities there are only twenty healers. Most of them have been sent to Turnwall to deal with an outbreak. And the rest are busy in their own towns.¡± ¡°So it screws us then?¡± she said without missing a beat, like she¡¯d heard this explanation before. ¡°It¡¯s fine if we die right? Because Hovelton doesn¡¯t have any superheroes or celebrities living there, so we¡¯re not a priority.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what it looks like.¡± ¡°For system¡¯s sake, Monty, get that kid out of here.¡± Another voice cut in. Monty shot a look at Orbiter, aka Wesley Hunter, who glanced pointedly at the PHORBS above them. The whole thing was being televised live. A techmage was probably scrubbing and adjusting in real time but still. Clips might make it through to the Undernet and might surface again in the future. He needed to end this. He could see some heroes approaching in his peripheral vision, probably having their own ideas on how to de-escalate the issue, but Monty held his hand up to stop them. Then he squatted. ¡°What¡¯s your name, friend?¡± ¡°Nunya.¡± ¡°Your name is Nunya?¡± Unusual name. ¡°Nunya business.¡± Someone snorted in the background and even Monty had to smile. He¡¯d walked right into that one. ¡°Very funny. Listen, Nunya. Tell you what. How about I¡¯ll come with you right now and you can tell me all about the problems in Hovelton?" ¡°Are you a Healer?¡± ¡°No. But I can take you home and try to help you fill in the priority form. That would push you to the top of the list of people who want a healer.¡± She bit her lips doubtfully. ¡°We¡¯ve done that already.¡± ¡°Well, maybe you filled it out wrong. Is there a Healing House in your town?" ¡°Yes. My mom runs it. Well, not my real mom, but she pretends she is.¡± Monty grins. ¡°Of course. Your mother must be a very strong and brave woman, like you.¡± ¡°She¡¯s a mundane. She got bit by a loiter-diseased patient. His disease has a mutation so it advances quickly. She''ll die if no one comes." Her voice was now more pleading than hostile. Once more, Monty felt a sadness sweep through him. But he held it back. He couldn¡¯t let his emotions distract him now. ¡°And someone will come,¡± he told her gently. ¡°I assure you of that. But it¡¯s getting late and your parents might be worried.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have parents.¡± She said it but an emotion passed across her expression. Hope. That should be enough. He put his hand on her shoulder, and mentally felt for her pathways while pushing a gentle soothing spell.
Lexie watched it all play out from behind a well-pruned broom shrub that was next to the forcefield. She was keeping an eye out for the server''s return, but also trying to watch what Xena was doing. It was hard to see properly from her angle, with the cathedral mostly in the way, but she managed to have a full view of Xena''s back. And she saw the man in a Hawaiian shirt approach her and put his hand on Xena¡¯s shoulder. She noticed Xena grow unusually still. Lexie could almost sense a change in the atmosphere and it set her teeth on edge. Maybe this was a colossally bad idea after all. The more she watched, the more nervous she got. Hawaiian-shirt man was doing something to Xena. Lexie was sure of it. She was scared that Xena was in trouble, mostly because the heroes looked poised, getting ready to pulse into action. Even the servers had stopped to watch the commotion. No one was coming out, but she needed to get in. What could she do? Lexie opened up her inventory watching the timer at the corner of her vision. The active time for the card had elapsed for Xena, and the card reappeared in Lexie¡¯s inventory, just like Aiden told her would happen once he signed over the card to her. He said even if she gave it to someone, once they used it, it would return to her. That was the beauty of being assigned as the new deck owner. It had now entered its twenty-second cool-down with fifteen seconds on the clock. That wasn¡¯t that bad. Fifteen seconds of waiting was nothing in the grand scheme of things. But for some reason, Lexie felt so anxious. So much could happen in fifteen seconds while everyone stood around staring at Xena like a zoo animal. Fourteen, thirteen¡­ Seeing Xena surrounded by all those heroes made the reality of what they were doing finally hit her. Xena¡¯s a helpless mundane little girl surrounded by all these superpowered people. Just because they say they''re [Heroes] doesn''t mean they''re decent people. This could get lethal very quickly. Eleven, ten¡­ To be honest, Lexie didn''t think that this mission would be particularly dangerous. Potentially embarrassing maybe but not dangerous. She half-way didn¡¯t even think they would get in. And if they managed to, she thought the worst the heroes could do was kick them out. And she also hoped there would be a small chance the heroes would actually send them home with a healer if only because they were shamed into compliance. That was the ideal scenario for Lexie, the one that would have brought her joy and peace. It would have saved Emma and Evan. It would have cleared Aiden¡¯s name too. She didn¡¯t admit it to herself at first, but that was a big part of why she was doing what she was doing. But the [Heroes] didn''t look like they wanted to help Xena. They all stared at her with varying levels of distaste, confusion, worry and pity. But no healer was popping out saying, ¡°Sure let me help!¡± And no one was stopping Hawaiian-shirt man from whatever he was doing to her. Lexie checked again. Eight seconds. God, this was taking forever. He still had his hand on her shoulder. He was still talking to her. And Xena was almost¡­smiling. That was odd, considering how furious she was coming here. And Xena didn¡¯t seem like the type who was easily amused. He was doing something to her. She needed to get him away from Xena. He may be virtually drugging her. Or even mind-controlling her. Lexie opened up her inventory and pulled out the card again. Maybe if she got him to trip, he''d let Xena go. Lexie hastily and clumsily activated the card, her heart racing as she tried to go through the steps quickly. As quickly as they could anyway. God, mana moved slowly. She could see why people hated these things. Wasting over a minute trying to do something simple was irritating. But when she got to the final step, when she pointed at Monty, nothing happened. She frowned. She followed the steps. The card shattered. Everything was done right. But it didn''t work. Did she miss something? Was it because of the forcefield? She glanced at the card again and saw that it was going through a 20-second cooldown. While it did, she opened up information on the card, reading through the instructions again. The only condition given for the card not to work was to target pathways in defensive mode. Was he in defensive mode? Why? No time to think. The man was still talking to Xena and the rest of the heroes seemed like they were turning back to their normal conversations, bored of the spectacle. Lexie had to try again. She glanced beside Hawaiian-shirt man at one of the servers holding a tray of champagne glasses. He was still watching the show, probably storing up on gossip for later. Lexie activated the card again, this time targeting the waiter. Once she pointed at him, it acted almost instantly. The waiter suddenly fumbled and sent the glasses flying, including one that flew to Hawaiian-shirt''s face. The [Hero] spun around and caught it and Lexie took that chance to flash her card and badge to the forcefield and run in. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. She sprinted as fast as her little legs could carry her and caught Xena¡¯s hand in hers. ¡°Run!¡± she said as she pulled and thankfully Xena complied, the two of them darting back through where they came. People shouted and called out but no one stopped them. Not even the forcefield. Either someone had let them through, or it was designed to keep people out, not in. The two of them dropped the server¡¯s badge on the floor as they ran and squeezed themselves through the first fence. And then they heaved themselves over the second. Even as Lexie''s lungs burned she didn''t stop going, following Xena''s jog back to the train station. The adrenaline must have done its job, because Lexie had never been a runner. And she doubted Lexie Sparrowfoot was either. But they managed to cover the 2-mile distance relatively quickly and were back at the train station on their return platform. Only there did they stop to catch their breath. Lexie collapsed onto the floor to heave in breaths. Xena bent over with hands on their knees unable to do much but gasp in air. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Lexie finally asked when her chest was no longer burning. Xena nodded and looked behind her. ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯re coming after us.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so either.¡± The [Heroes] probably had bigger things to worry about probably. Like damage control. ¡°But the sooner we get home the better I think.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Xena swallowed. Lexie analyzed her trying to see if she looked different but she looked fine. ¡°What did that guy do to you?¡± ¡°What guy?¡± The one holding your shoulder.¡± ¡°Oh. I don¡¯t know. He was just trying to convince me to go home saying he would help me fill the priority form. Probably just giving lip service to the orbs.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Lexie glanced at the approaching train. ¡°So he wasn¡¯t doing anything magical or something?¡± If not then why was she smiling? Xena thought about it. ¡°I don¡¯t know. At a point, I started to calm down a little, but I thought that was maybe because I already yelled and got it out of my system. And the whole thing seemed kind of funny in retrospect.¡± She frowned. ¡°Although not so much now.¡± Oh.¡± Lexie could have sworn that guy was up to no good. Was she mistaken? Should they have stayed? Maybe he wanted to help them? ¡°Anyway,¡± Xena said. ¡°Maybe they might send someone now. If the footage was live at least some of it made it into the stream. They can¡¯t scrub everything in time and someone from outside crowd may have recorded it as it was happening." ¡°Mhmm,¡± Lexie really hoped it worked but she wasn¡¯t too optimistic. In her experience, high-powered people with influence could be very good at covering things up if need be. Xena watched her out of the corner of her eyes. She sensed there was something the girl wanted to say, just from the struggle in her features. She probably wants to say thank you but doesn''t know how to. And then Xena said, ¡°You talk weird.¡± Lexie frowned. That wasn¡¯t a thank you. But Xena wasn''t done. "You sound different from how you were before too. Like, older. And also like a robot.¡± She sighed. "But you¡¯re pretty smart and it was cool of you to help me, so I guess it¡¯s fine." Lexie considered the words. That also wasn''t a ''thank you'' but she guessed it was as good as she was going to get. They waited about ten minutes for their return train and in that time, Lexie fought exhaustion that weighed her down. She would probably sleep on the ride home. She felt like she needed a nice long lap. After they boarded, Lexie sat and Xena distractedly sat next to her, glancing at her pad where footage from the livestream played. ¡°They cut the sound.¡± She sighed. ¡°But the video is still there. Maybe someone got the uncut version. Hopefully, they reshare it and someone reposts it. Or maybe the Undernet people have it.¡± But that might take a long time and we need a healer today. But Lexie didn¡¯t want to discourage her, so she simply said, ¡°Great.¡± Xena nodded and then slid the video out. Underneath that, in the recommendations was a video titled Conrad Grace Vs Buzzshot preliminaries. ¡°Which one of them is Conrad?¡± Lexie asked tiredly. ¡°The brown-haired one. I already watched that fight. He wiped the floor with Buzzshot. Buzzshot is a weaponist that uses fake lightning-infused arrows, but Conrad is a berserker which means he¡¯s really good at taking damage and he¡¯s also really good at using an opponent''s weapons against them. The more you have the better. So each arrow he shot became a weapon for Conrad.¡± ¡°Uh-huh.¡± Lexie was only half listening. Her eyes were drooping closed, and her head sunk onto Xena¡¯s shoulder. Xena jerked away. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sleepy,¡± Lexie said. ¡°So? Do I look like a pillow?¡± ¡°Oh, come on, I did you a favor. Just let me sleep on your shoulder.¡± ¡°In your wildest dreams.¡± Xena lightly shoved Lexie but the latter simply rebounded and her head landed on Xena¡¯s lap. She snuggled in. ¡°Get off me, you pervert.¡± Lexie didn¡¯t respond. She was so tired. Suddenly, Xena stopped trying to push her off, as though suddenly realizing that something was seriously wrong here. ¡°Hey Lexie,¡± Xena said, shaking her shoulder. ¡°You good?¡± ¡°Shh. Stop talking pillow.¡± ¡°Hey, wake up. Don''t fall asleep.¡± Xena shook her again. ¡°I don¡¯t think you should fall asleep. Something¡®s wrong. Shit, I¡¯ll have to call Emma.¡± But before she could finish her sentence, Lexie was already conked out.
When Lexie woke up, she was staring at the white ceiling. Sunset blasted in through the windows bathing the entire room with an orange glow. She saw in clear detail the tube that ran from her arm up into a IV bag. She was in the hospital. And it was so easy to believe that this was a hospital back in the real world, in New York and she was waking up from the fever dream she was having after being shot. But then one of the nurses who held Evan down opened the door and dashed those hopes. ¡°Hey, kiddo.¡± She smiled, one curly blonde strand escaping from its low bun. She tucked it behind her ear. ¡°You''re awake. Good. Your father will be happy to know.¡± ¡°Where is he?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°He¡¯s still in the infirmary helping Emma. They¡¯re developing more potions for Evan. Trying to see if they can somehow reverse engineer a mutation and maybe get a cure.¡± ¡°I thought there was no cure.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what we said but¡­well, your dad is a pretty stubborn guy.¡± ¡°Can I go see him?¡± Lexie asked. The nurse hesitated. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I think it¡¯s better if you rest.¡° ¡°I¡¯m fine now,¡± she said. She no longer felt sleepy or tired. She wanted to see Aiden. He was her anchor in this world and she¡­.she just needed to see him. ¡°Can I go see him? Please?¡± The nurse sighed. "Alright. I¡¯ll take you to him.¡± She came over and dislodged the empty bag from the hook, taking out the syringe from Lexie¡¯s hand. She cleaned the insertion site and then held out her hand. Lexie gripped the woman¡¯s palm as she stood and though she felt a little nauseous from the sudden movement, she didn¡¯t feel weak. At the very least, she didn¡¯t feel nearly as weak as she did back on the train. Speaking of which, how long ago was that? How did she get to the hospital? And where was Xena? ¡°What happened?¡± she asked the nurse as they walked down the hallway toward the front of the hospital. She could see the waiting room through the glass panel and once again, the seats were packed with anxious patients waiting. There was an air of anxiety amongst the staff too. Lexie could tell from their strained faces, the way they muttered on themselves that something was wrong. One nurse snapped on another when asked for a pen, and practically flung it at her like a projectile. Everyone seemed on the edge. The nurse that was escorting Lexie caught the commotion, grimaced, and then shook her head at Lexie. ¡°Well, my dear, you had what they call a TMB. Total mana burnout. You¡¯d completely used up all your mana so your body essentially went into shutdown to recover. ¡°Oh.¡± That made sense. That was why she felt so tired. But she¡¯d only used a handful of cards, and one of them didn''t need her mana. By her calculations, she hadn''t used up to her allotted 400 mana points. So what gave? Why did she burn out? Did Lexie Sparrowfoot have a weakness she didn''t know about? ¡°How long ago was that?¡± she asked. ¡°You¡¯ve only been out for about forty-five minutes. Luckily, Xena called the second it happened and so we met you right at the train station and got you on recuperative fluids immediately.¡± ¡°What would have happened if you didn''t?¡± ¡°Probably death.¡± Lexie¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Really?¡± She could have died from that? How did no one warn her? But then an irreverent smile split the nurse¡¯s lips and she said, ¡°Nah, I¡¯m just messing with you. You would have had a terrible headache and maybe felt like death for a few days, but you wouldn¡¯t have died.¡± She suddenly got serious. ¡°But seriously don¡¯t do that again. You may not be able to kill yourself but you can cause irreparable damage to your pathways if you keep wiping out.¡± That sounded dire. ¡°I won¡¯t,¡± she said. Maybe I should have read the card terms of use after all. They turned the corner and the nurse gave her considering look. ¡°So. You¡¯ve pre-awakened huh? That¡¯s pretty impressive.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Now that she knew what it meant, she felt a little bashful under the scrutiny. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s to be expected given who your dad is but still. Only about 10% of rankers are pre-awakened, you know?¡± ¡°Yeah, I heard.¡± ¡°Do you know what you want to be yet?¡± She asked. ¡°Because I gotta tell you, we could really use a healer around here.¡± ¡°A healer would be nice.¡± And she was seriously considering it after the fiasco today. ¡°But I haven¡¯t made any decision yet.¡± ¡°Well, let me know when you do decide. I¡¯m Ashley by the way.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Lexie.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Ashley grinned. They turned left in the hallway and approached a door. Ashley knocked and opened to reveal a lab of nurses and Aiden standing at the head of the table. A wave of relief filled Lexie when she saw him and she wasn¡¯t sure why. It¡¯s not like she thought he was dead or something. Yet she had an urgency that she couldn¡¯t explain, and it only calmed after she saw that Aiden was indeed there. This is what it feels like to be a kid again, and lose your parents at the mall. Or maybe it because he was the first person she¡¯d met in this world, her supposed dad. Whatever the case might be, she felt more stable around him. Emma was next to him. Her wound was completely bandaged and her index finger was poised over what looked to be a petri dish. She smiled when she saw Lexie. ¡°Well if it isn''t my deviant daughter¡¯s, deviant friend.¡± Max was there too, next to Emma, and he also grinned. ¡°I heard you broke into a cape party, rascal. Bad ass. Glad to see some of your mother in you after all.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t badass,¡± Lexie told them. ¡°We basically just broke in to ask for a healer and then ran away.¡± ¡°Smart. If you¡¯d stayed any longer the cowards might have tried to get you arrested or something similarly ridiculous.¡± Aiden wasn¡¯t smiling though. Lexie realized it was the first time she¡¯d seen him look this unhappy and it was all directed at her. It made her want to duck her head, which she did. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be resting,¡± he said sternly as he lowered his test tubes, took off his medical gloves, and walked to her. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Aiden muttered something under his breath and then Max said, ¡°Don¡¯t be too hard on her. She was just trying to help.¡± ¡°Stay out of this,¡± Aiden shot back, and then to Lexie he added tersely, ¡°You¡¯re going back to bed.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Lexie said but Aiden didn¡¯t ask again. He simply swept her up into his arms and she had no choice but to wrap her arms around his neck as he carried out of the room. . He walked with a stiff silence, his eyes directed straight ahead. After they walked a little away Lexie had to ask. ¡°Are you mad at me?¡± He shot her an incredulous look. ¡°Lexie, of course I¡¯m mad at you! Do you have any idea how dangerous what you did was? I told you to go home and yes, I expected maybe a few detours due to your infernal curiosity. What I didn¡¯t expect was for you to hitch a ride with Xena¨Cwho I¡¯m realizing now is a terrible influence¨Cto go to another city, and break into a cape party. For system¡¯s sake, what if they thought the two of you were some undercover spies sent by a [Villain]? They could have vaporized you before they asked questions.¡± ¡°Undercover spies? We¡¯re ten.¡± ¡°The Spy academy starts training young,¡± he said. ¡°An eight-year-old nearly took out a prime minister in District 8 last year.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Now that sounded like an interesting story. But the answer she got was a brief glare from her father. Lexie sighed. Aiden was right. She did realize how braindead what she did was. Old Lexie, who was sixteen and cautious, probably would have thought twice about it. But this new Lexie, stuck in a ten-year-old body, seemed to have gotten some of its childish tendencies too, including impulsivity and that young naive fearlessness kids often had because they thought nothing bad could ever happen to them. ¡°Ok, I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said finally, hoping it would end there but Aiden shook his head. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not done.¡± Each stride bounced with his agitation and he pushed his glasses up to secure them. ¡°As if that wasn¡¯t bad enough, you, my completely untrained, only-pre-awakened-yesterday daughter used enough cards for her to completely burn herself out in a transportation system that all types of creeps and reprobates use. And you might say I¡¯m overreacting because, ¡®normal people also use the train too¡¯ but my ten-year-old daughter and her friend won¡¯t know who¡¯s normal and who is vermin from the very valleys of hell. Do you know I almost had a heart attack when Emma told me? I thought it was a bad joke for a second but no she was serious. I couldn¡¯t believe it. I couldn''t believe you activated a bunch of cards and burned out on the train! I know I told you that cards are safe to practice with but only when you don''t do deliberately stupid things with them!¡± ¡°Three cards.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You said I activated a bunch of cards but it was only three cards. And one of them was the card which you already said doesn¡¯t use mana.¡± She pointed out. ¡°I checked my pre-awakened mana capacity and it said it was 400 and by my calculation, I only used about 140 mana points. So I thought I would be okay. I don¡¯t know how I burned out from just that.¡± She bit her lip, hating to admit the next part. ¡°I think there might be something wrong with me. Maybe I¡¯m weak? Or maybe you were wrong and I really suck at this.¡± He met her gaze as though shocked by her gall. ¡°That¡¯s what you''re worried about? That''s the only thing you retained from my whole rant?¡± ¡°I already said I was sorry. I¡¯m not sure what else to say.¡± ¡°You¡¯re supposed to tell me you won¡¯t do it again!¡± ¡°I probably won¡¯t do it again. Passing out in Xena¡¯s lap was kind of embarrassing.¡± He sighed and threw open the door for the hospital room and put her down finally on the bed, gently despite his anger. Then he drew the covers over her and said. ¡°You didn¡¯t pass out because you were weak. You passed out because you were untrained, and your pre-awakened mana is only a fraction of your full awakened capacity. You don¡¯t have enough practice with pathways to not waste mana.¡± ¡°But I did it exactly as the instructions said.¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter. Each time you activate a card, you waste mana. Even if you do everything right, you probably still waste at least half the minimum mana indicated by the card. It¡¯s the nature of it, that when using any power or skill some mana will be wasted.¡± Ah. Just like force. When kicking a ball, not all of the force is transferred to enact on the object, some of it is wasted as friction. Damn. She really should have read the terms of use. ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°With training, you¡¯ll learn how to activate mana pathways with as little waste as possible.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll teach me?¡± She sounded hopeful. Aiden¡¯s face was conflicted. ¡°Later. If you promise never to do anything like this again.¡± ¡°I promise.¡± His eyes remained uncertain and then he sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to grow up too fast. You¡¯ve barely had a childhood. I want you to enjoy it a little more. Your mother would have wanted the same thing too.¡±¡¯ Lexie was quiet for a little bit. ¡°You said she was a fighter?¡± A pained look entered his eyes. ¡°Yes. She was also brave. Sometimes stupidly so. And stubborn. Like you. At least I never had to worry about her suffering magical burnout.¡± ¡°Because she didn''t have magic.¡± He swallowed. ¡°No, she didn''t. I¡¯ll have to get back and help Emma with the potion. Can I trust you to stay put?¡± Lexie nodded. She knew that Aiden had intentionally changed the subject to avoid talking about her mother because it hurt him to do so. Even though he was the one who brought it up in the first place. He straightened to leave and then hesitated. Then he turned back and brushed his lips over her hairline. ¡°I appreciate what you were trying to do,¡± he said in a much gentler tone. ¡°And I¡¯m sure Emma appreciates it too. But it would be a sad day indeed when kids started doing the work for the adults. Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯re doing the best we can for Emma. We¡¯re handling it.¡± ¡°What about Evan?¡± Lexie didn''t want to think about it, but since the nurse had mentioned that Lexie had been unconscious for forty-five, she thought maybe he was already¡­ She swallowed. ¡°Is he dead?¡± Aiden''s face was grave. ¡°Not yet. We¡¯re working on a potion that will place him in a medically induced coma. That way his body and mind will be stuck in limbo until a healer arrives. It will prevent further damage. In the meantime, I¡¯m also trying to see if there is a way to heal him with a potion.¡± ¡°How? You said it wasn¡¯t possible without magic. And Evan doesn''t have a lot of time. And what if the first potion doesn''t work? What if he takes it and the medicine makes him worse? They¡¯ll call you a murderer again.¡± Lexie had whispered the ¡®m¡¯ not wanting to hurt Aiden¡¯s feelings. But Aiden merely smiled. ¡°I know you¡¯re worried honey bee, but you should have a little more faith in me. Though I don¡¯t like to toot my own horn, you should remember that father wasn¡¯t just an Archmage. He also happened to be a generational genius.¡± 13 - A Gruelling Battle Aiden didn¡¯t come home all night. He didn¡¯t leave the hospital at all and volunteered another nurse called Rowena to take Lexie home and babysit her for the night. Rowena was a little old and a little bent, and had a stern croaky voice. She also expected Lexie to go right up to her room, shower, and sleep the second they got there. Lexie obeyed without question. Rowena intimidated her, the same way her Sunday school teacher had. She just had that elderly no-nonsense air about her that said she was not to be messed with. When Lexie was heading up, Rowena had already locked all the doors and was settled in front of the TV. Just in case another ghoul got in though, Lexie snuck a knife from the kitchen and got into bed with it. But she couldn¡¯t sleep. She wasn¡¯t sure why. It was probably anxiety or left-over adrenaline or maybe a bunch of other things. Whatever it was, she lay in bed and stared at the ceiling, her thoughts racing with no destination and no pattern. She needed something to distract herself, something to center her mind before it fractured. Then she remembered the video of Xena breaking into the party was online. She wanted to watch it. She wondered which parts had made it into the clips. Could people see the desperation on Xena¡¯s face? Did the cameras catch Lexie running in there to pull Xena out? She had to know.
SYSTEM INTERFACE> VIDEO ALLEY LOADING>
The two alerts flashed back to back, so fast it was almost like they were happening simultaneously. And soon Lexie was welcomed to a new web page, with a series of videos scrolling down it. ¡°Woah.¡± The top of the page indicated that there were currently two million videos in priority circulation on this day. From the context and clicking around she figured out that meant that two million videos were trending across Earth 9. That was an insane amount. But the viewership was insane too. In just the first page alone, the least of the top twenty videos had 500 billion unique views. At the top of the stack was a video of a [Hero] called Stella Firebringer. She had red hair like Luther, and they shared similar eyes too but hers had more humor in it, sporting crow''s feet and lines that showed she was prone to laughing. The actual video itself was more of a gif of her winking at the camera over and over again. It was titled, "The Queen of Dragons gives us a rare wink!¡±, and had 89 trillion views and a bunch of people fawning over Stella in the comments. She must have been very popular because the video was only posted this morning and was already the highest-viewed video trending. The one underneath it, with thirty trillion views, was posted five days ago. It was a video of a Fae ambassador eating a cookie. Lexie only knew he was a Fae ambassador because that was what the title of the video said, but he didn''t look anything like what Lexie thought a Fae would look like. Well, maybe the long hair tied in a knot at the top of his (its?) head and the sharp pointy ears matched. But that was where the resemblance ended. The man had serpentine features, a flat nose that was basically slits in his face, yellowing eyeballs with blue pupils, ridges in his neck, and strange smooth shiny skin. He looked very much like the alien Aiden said Fae were. And the alien seemed to like the cookie because after he took a bite, he was asked what he thought by reporters and he responded, in an oddly human-sounding voice, ¡°It was a delightful dessert.¡± He even managed a human-like smile while he was at it, while his audience clapped and laughed. Lexie thought she saw the tip of his ear twitch a little when they did. Was it from annoyance or mirth? She only watched the video halfway before x-ing out, feeling strangely disconcerted. Lexie kept clicking down from video to video, trying to numb the worry in her brain, until she got to the second page, with a video that had 10 billion unique views. The video was titled The MIGHTY SHOWDOWN, Conrad Grace Versus Top Dog HIGHLIGHTS. Lexie clicked on that video. It was about six minutes long, and it began with two announcers, sitting at a very ESPN-like desk with a huge screen behind them, showing the same colosseum Lexie had seen on Xena''s iPad. ¡°Mallory, I gotta tell you, this was the fight of the year." The burly male announcer started. "Heck, of the past ten years. Ever since I started this job, I have never seen a fight quite as exciting as this one.¡± ¡°I agree with you, Harold and this is why.¡± The pretty blonde in a business suit chimed in. ¡°From the start, you can see the audience is already eager and roaring to go. We''ve got Conrad fans there with their signs and Top Dog¡¯s ¡®bullies¡¯¨Cthat¡¯s his fan base¨Care on the right in their T-shirts. Both sides are waiting and cheering on their competitors. Conrad''s trying his best to respond to the crowd''s energy, poor thing, but this whole thing is new to him. But Top Dog is a professional. See how he works the crowd? He gives them a show." Mallory¡¯s voiceover led to a zoom-in of the screen behind them which showed a tall dark-skinned boy in a gas mask with fangs at the end of it. He was wearing a sweater with ripped-off sleeves and black techwear cargo pants that were baggy at the thighs but tight around the calves. Also, he had on big black boots that Xena would probably appreciate. On his arms, he wore black fingerless tactical gloves with metallic protrusions at the knuckles. Silver metal also covered much of both forearms. They flashed and gleamed in the sunlight as he threw both hands up and the crowd roared. He did it again and they made an even louder sound, some drumming their feet for him. ¡°Oh, they love him,¡± The square video of Top Dog swam away as they switched back to Mallory. ¡°Top Dog is the longest-running junior champ we¡¯ve had for a while, you know?¡± ¡°Yeah, and the funny thing is he came out of nowhere. Just like his competitor today Conrad Grace. You know Grace is Julia and Mechanico¡¯s son.¡± ¡°I know but you know he doesn¡¯t like to disclose that fact. You probably shouldn''t mention it.¡± ¡°I know love, but it¡¯s just so rare to find a kid with two famously hero parents, who doesn''t want to be a hero himself. I mean kids used to dream of being heroes. What is the world coming to?¡± ¡°Well, we''re in the new gen now and Conrad¡¯s a special breed. He¡¯s also special in the fact that he¡¯s most likely the only Junior in the circuit today who stands a chance against Top Dog.¡± ¡°Yes. And if you ask his fans, the Gracers, they¡¯ll tell you that Conrad will almost certainly beat Top Dog today.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see about that. Look, he¡¯s getting himself ready with a little stretch to warm up.¡± The square arena video was back, and it showed Conrad actually doing stretches. Unlike Top Dog who was dressed like an assassin, Conrad was dressed very much like an 80''s jock at the gym. He was wearing loose basketball pants, with a loose graphic t-shirt and striped headband that held back his hair. Clean sneakers on his feet. No mask, and no gimmick. He had some metal on both arms but shorter, only around his wrist. He didn¡¯t look like he was there to fight. He looked like he was there to have fun. But his unassuming nature immediately made Lexie identify him as a threat. ¡°And then now we see the start of the match with Conrad Grace getting in position.¡± Mallory¡¯s voiceover continued, as both boys walked to each other. ¡°He¡¯s loose and ready to go. Top Dog is too. And at the sound of the bell¡­¡± Gong! ¡°Oh, they charge! TD just went for it, did you see? He doesn''t waste any time at all and that¡¯s the beauty of TD¡¯s fighting style. He doesn''t hesitate to go for the finishing move early. He knows how to take a risk.¡± He certainly did. And he was fast, faster than should be humanly possible. Lexie literally saw Top Dog leap from the other side of the field, clearing nearly forty feet in a single jump. He landed right in front of Conrad, aiming a kick to the side of his face. ¡°Beautiful! I love that guy. But Conrad expects it. There¡¯s no surprise in his expression and he doesn''t block. He leans right into TD''s kick.¡± Lexie was a little confused as she watched Conrad do just that, until at the last minute, as Top Dog¡¯s foot connected with his chin, Conrad hooked both arms underneath Top Dog¡¯s leg and flung him far away, toward the concrete wall at the side of the Coliseum. Top Dog quickly adjusted and landed on the wall sideways with his feet. Like Spiderman, he used the wall as a springboard to propel himself back to Conrad. Conrad once again accepted a blow to his stomach and didn''t bother blocking the connecting blow to his face. Instead, he grabbed Top Dog¡¯s head, twisting it so the fangs faced away from him, and then drove his forehead right into TD''s. Lexie winced at the sickening crunch. "Ooh, that one''s going to leave a mark." That was brutal. Lexie couldn''t see Top Dog''s face, but she imagined there were birds floating around his head. And then Conrad did it again, harder. And again. Conrad kept head-butting Top Dog. The mics picked up the ''thunk'' sound each time. It was a brutally efficient move, because Top Dog was stunned motionless. And Lexie couldn''t look away. But after about the sixth thunk, TD brought up his hand and a curved but squarish forcefield sprouted out of the metal, about the length of his arm and a few inches wide. It blocks Conrad''s next head-butt, though it cracked under the force. That allowed Top Dog to escape, by hopping up and driving both feet into Conrad''s chest. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. The force of his shove threw both men in opposite directions and they landed on their backs. Top Dog got up faster and immediately jumped to the other side of the field. ¡°Damn, that was a savage start." The fight screen went away and they were back to Mallory''s wide and white grin. "You a betting man, Harold?¡± ¡°I am. And I put a bet on Conrad winning this whole thing.¡± ¡°Well TD is my favorite to win and he has to win to keep his undefeated status.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡± Lexie also wasn¡¯t sure. It seemed like Conrad had the advantage in this case because, despite the powerful blows TD had landed, Conrad still looked pretty steady while TD was very obviously wounded in the nasal area. Top Dog leaned against the wall and a vial of green liquid appeared in his hand. He upended it into the mouth of his dog mask and swallowed. Instantly an alert came up on the screen to announce that TD had used his only allotted health potion for this match. For the next few seconds, Lexie could see Top Dog trying to think of what to do next as Conrad got to his feet. What she didn¡¯t understand was why Conrad was giving him the break though. The latter clearly had the upper hand there, and wasn''t even halfway as beat up as Top Dog. He should have charged TD the second he got his bearings, and kept wailing on him. But Conrad seemed to be watching Top Dog too, as though trying to figure the other boy out. And then suddenly, their temporary ceasefire was over. Lexie saw it coming, the gleam in Conrad¡¯s eyes before he rushed Top Dog. Top Dog instantly went into a boxer¡¯s stance and as Conrad tried to swing at him, he put his arms up to block. Conrad''s right hook was powerful and probably would have snapped TD''s arm if the latter didn''t have the metal protection. TD also threw up his forcefield shields, which rattled with each blow that Conrad dealt while TD stayed protected. ¡°God, Conrad is dog-walking him here,¡± Harold''s voice-over said. ¡°What do you think Mallory?¡± ¡°Well, everything''s going in Conrad¡¯s favor but if experience has taught us anything, it¡¯s to never count Top Dog out early.¡± And just as he said it, Top Dog''s hands did something. It took a pause and a replay for Lexie to tell exactly what. The knuckles of his tactical gloves, the metallic parts suddenly exploded up into spikes with blunted edges. The forcefield fell and the spikes met Conrad¡¯s fist blocking his blow, and nearly getting him in the eye. Conrad leaned back and threw up his own forcefield to block. That allowed Top Dog to spin around, drop low, and shoot his heel right up into Conrad''s chin. It connected with a resounding crack! Conrad''s head snapped back and he stumbled. But TD wasn''t done. He performed a double combo of powerful kicks right in the stomach and then a roundhouse kick to the face that sent Conrad side-spinning to the ground. Conrad caught himself on his elbows and coughed, spitting out blood. ¡°Ah, see what I mean." Back to Mallory. "What did I tell you? Let¡¯s not forget, Harold, Top Dog isn¡¯t just a brawler. He¡¯s also a weaponist and those gloves of his are weapons. Now let¡¯s fast forward a little to one of my favorite scenes from the match. This scene is why we love Top Dog." In the next shot, which was sometime after Conrad had gotten back up, Top Dog swiftly parlayed a parry of kicks and attack combos that Conrad struggled to keep up with. Top Dog focused his attacks on Conrad''s face, side, and stomach. At one point, Top Dog flew into the air, grabbed Conrad''s head, and drove it into his knee. Mid-air, he then wrapped an arm around Conrad¡¯s neck, trying to RKO him into the ground, but Conrad reversed the move at the last moment, positioning Top Dog to bear the impact. ¡°Shit,¡± Lexie thought, but Top Dog wasn¡¯t done. He aimed one fist at the ground and caught himself on his metal spikes that pierced through the earth. At the same time, he wrapped both legs around Conrad¡¯s neck, and using just one hand to twist himself around in the air, he flipped and flung Conrad to the other side of the field. Lexie winced again as Conrad crashed into the ground, rolling in and scraping his skin probably. But she kept watching. She couldn¡¯t look away. She was impressed by Top Dog¡¯s artistry, strength, and resourcefulness. She could see why he was number one. And also watching him was fun because he just put so much flair into every move, making it look almost like he was dancing. But she had to give Conrad props too, because the guy just kept getting back up. He even grinned as he did, as though being flung halfway to Mars had been fun for him. Lexie thought she saw a crazed look in his eye as Top Dog jumped on the offense again. This time, Top Dog was even faster, employing more combos, not giving Conrad space to catch up. But Conrad was catching up for some reason. He was getting faster too. But he wasn''t blocking all the blows. He seemed to be deliberately taking some while blocking others with force fields generated by his metallic armband. At a point, it almost felt like he was matching up to Top Dog''s speed. Finally, Top Dog dropped into another finishing move where he squatted low and clearly planned on shooting forward to impale Conrad with his blunt spikes. But Conrad stepped back at the last minute and twisted around to side kick Top Dog in the middle of the movement. ¡°Duck,¡± Lexie muttered and Top Dog did, just barely dodging the blow. Relief bloomed and the scene immediately freeze-framed with the announcers coming back to say, ¡°I mean did you see that last-minute duck by Top Dog? He literally had a split second to correct himself and he did.¡± ¡°Well," Harold sounded a little grudging to admit. "We¡¯ve always known Top Dog¡¯s reflexes are legendary.¡± ¡°What¡¯s legendary is the blow he lands right after, right to Conrad''s midsection.¡± The video plays again, and they see the blow. ¡°He keeps targeting that spot, perhaps because he knows Conrad suffered a broken rib during his last match. But Conrad is a Berserker-type fighter and they''re known to be tough and have amazing reflexes. The berserker skill also helps them match up to their opponent''s strength or speed, so the longer the match goes on, the faster Conrad gets. You see he''s almost as fast as Top Dog now. One second, Conrad''s on the floor, and the next, he is sweeping TD''s feet and stomping him into the ground. I mean did you even see him move?" "I didn''t!¡± Harold sounded excited. ¡°And that''s why I still think Conrad''s going to take this whole thing." "We''ll see about that. Now in this next highlight, we see Conrad punch TD so hard he flies into the wall. And here, he stumbles as he regains his balance. But he''s not giving up. He gets right back into attack mode. Oh, Harold, this match gave me chills. I¡¯ve never seen two more evenly matched candidates than these.¡± Lexie had to agree. She was even smiling while watching the match, her heart pounding as she became increasingly engrossed. The holographic nature of the video made her feel like she was there, in the arena. It was weird because she¡¯d never been interested in sports before and never watched MMA with Logan. But there was something different about this. Or maybe she was different. Either way, she kept watching. She didn¡¯t know why she was rooting for Top Dog here. Maybe because both his parents were mundane and they probably needed this win more than a [Heroes]¡¯s kid. Or maybe because Top Dog seemed more dedicated and like he was taking the fight a lot more seriously. Or maybe she just liked his fighting style and his resourcefulness. Because despite his relative experience, Top Dog was the underdog in this fight. He landed more hits, but his opponent''s hits dealt more damage. Conrad was stronger than him, could match up to his speed during brief bursts, and could take damage better, which meant that Top Dog had to fight smarter. Lexie liked smarter. But she also liked that none of them seemed ready to give up yet, even though they''d been at it for nearly an hour already. Even when it was obvious that Top Dog''s strength was flagging¨Chis whole body was dripping in sweat, his breaths panted, one leg limping slightly¨C he kept going, never letting it slow down his moves. ¡°The next highlight is where the tides turn in Conrad¡¯s favor,¡± Harold spoke first. ¡°You see here, that he totally has the hang of Top Dog¡¯s fighting style now. He can predict the angles Top Dog is going to try for, and he can even predict how much force he''s going to exert on each attack. Conrad is indefatigable and so he uses Top Dog''s predictability against him. When Top Dog feints for the left, Conrad uses his own momentum to knock him off his feet.¡± ¡°But then you forget, that this was Top Dog¡¯s intention the whole time," Mallory countered smugly. "Watching the fight live, many thought that Top Dog was a goner at this point. That he did too much too quickly, and showed all his hands. By the second round, they thought he¡¯d be exhausted and Conrad would win easily. But no one saw that Top Dog''s real plan was to force Conrad¡¯s true nature to the surface. You see, the very strength of a Berserker is also its weakness. In the middle of serious, extended battles, when they feel significantly threatened, their mind often shuts down and their instinct takes over. They go into Madness. All they want to do is destroy their opponent and they lose sight of strategy and leave themselves open to fatal attack. You can see it here, in the middle of the second round, where Conrad starts to behave more erratically. He leaves his midsection wide open for that blow from TD, and this other time, he doesn¡¯t even try to block this leg kick that dislocates his knee.¡± ¡°Yes, but look how amazing he is. He stands on said dislocated knee and still uses his other leg to send TD packing.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s not the point. The point is if this continues, Top Dog is going to systematically dismantle Conrad¡¯s body until he can¡¯t move anymore. Or Conrad¡¯s going to go all out and do something stupid to get himself disqualified. Either way, Top Dog will win.¡± ¡°I gotta tell you, that¡¯s an evil plan Mal.¡± Harold sounded disgruntled. ¡°Evil, but genius. Back to the match, we see Top Dog gets back to his feet, and a time-out is called by Conrad¡¯s team.¡± ¡°A well-timed time out, giving Conrad time to calm down.¡± ¡°Yes, but it might not be long enough to control The Madness. There''s a single one-minute-long time out in this match and most Berserkers need to sleep the blood-lust off. So Conrad''s in a tough spot. If he goes too far in the next round he can get eliminated. And Top Dog''s not letting himself relax either because, even though he probably planned this, it''s still a dangerous position for him to be in. Conrad could literally kill him when he¡¯s in Madness state, or at least gravely injure him. He¡¯s on edge because of that. Even when he speaks to his team, his eyes are still on Conrad Grace.¡± As they spoke, they showed an video of TD, surrounded by three people, a tall, broad man, a brown-haired girl, and a shorter boy. The boy whispered something in TD¡¯s ear. Top Dog nodded. A bell sounded calling an end to the time out. ¡°And they¡¯re back. This is the third and final round. The fight has been ongoing for an hour at this point.¡± ¡°It¡¯s one of the longest preliminary fights this season, hasn''t it?" "No, that title goes to Kane the Mundane and Eric Stewart. But God, what a dull match that was. But anyway, this is still anyone¡¯s game. Both competitors are wounded and handicapped in different ways.¡± ¡°But once it starts, Top Dog still goes all out and watch here. This is where Top Dog executes his finisher. ." Lexie sat up, literally and figuratively at the edge of her seat at this point. Top Dog leaped into battle and just began wailing on Conrad Grace. He was even faster than before, milliseconds between each strike, not giving Conrad any room to see, react, or correct. It was just right hook, left, kick, everything all at once. And Conrad was getting backed into a corner, snarling and groaning but unable to fight back. ¡°It¡¯s called because once he gets you in it, it¡¯s almost impossible to break out,¡± Mallory explained. Lexie already figured though. But she could also see that the moves put a strain on Top Dog''s body. Plus while Conrad was starting to become immune to the blows, not looking like he felt the pain anymore. He started fighting back with powerful jabs of his own. He made huge, hard moves that weren''t as coordinated as he snarled, missing more times than he connected. One such blow seemed to dislocate Top Dog¡¯s shoulder, but the latter still kept going. Yes, he swung with a dislocated shoulder. It was the craziest thing Lexie had ever seen. And then Top Dog finally got past Conrad''s defenses and got him into a chokehold. He had his good arm wrapped around his neck and both legs around his midsection. He activated the forcefield to press down against his neck and his spikes turned and pushed into Conrad''s pulse. Conrad had his eyes squeezed shut but he couldn''t hide the pain on his face. And he was growing purple. Finally, his hand slapped the floor three times and he tapped out. ¡°Yes!¡± Lexie cheered, throwing her hands up and feeling an exhilarating wave of relief flood through her. She smiled and sagged back in bed. ¡°Way to go Top Dog!¡± Her heart raced and euphoria flooded her mind. Now she saw why people liked sports so much. This was the feeling it gave? Incredible. And to Lexie¡¯s delight, the men didn¡¯t seem to hurt after the game was over. They both drank health potions and while it didn¡¯t heal everything, they looked better than they did before. They even shook hands at the end, so that meant that there was no bad blood between them. And then they smiled for the camera, while they did it, with Conrad throwing a wink and Top Dog, giving a loud and throaty bark. Lexie wanted to watch more of Top Dog¡¯s other battles, but she decided to do something else before that. She¡¯d put it off for long enough. Steeling herself against the cringe, she went to the search bar and typed Arcadia Hero Party. It was the third result with 1 million views. ¡°Crazy Kids Crash Hero Party. Monty Ward saves the day.¡± 14 - An Unexpected Visitor ¡°Crazy Kids Crash Hero Party. Monty Ward saves the day.¡± Lexie took a deep breath, the euphoria from the match win fading. She''d indulged in that for long enough. It was time to face her problems once again. She clicked on the video. It was a clip from the party. It began with Xena stomping in to yell ¡°Listen up everyone!¡± But then the sound glitched right after that, and the video was scrubbed forward to where Lexie grabbed Xena''s hand and ran out there. There was no mention of what Xena said. Lexie went out and searched more videos trying to find one that would show the truth. But none of them had any sound. All the comments found the whole thing hilarious. Some of them thought it might have been a prank staged by [Heroes] who were not invited to the exclusive party. But the [Heroes] in attendance were clearly confused as they watched the girls run off. Yet no one made any move to stop them, as though it weren¡¯t worth their time. In the first video, Hawaiian-shirt did try but someone in a weird hat stopped him with a hand on his chest. And that was where the video ended. Lexie finally released the breath she was holding, disappointment curdling like spoilt milk in her gut. And with that, she had to accept the mission was a total failure. Everyone thought the whole thing was a joke, so there would be no social outcry pressuring the [Heroes] into saving Evan. And unless her dad could somehow create a potion in twenty-four hours to heal an incurable illness, Evan was going to die. She imagined the boy''s face as he threw his hand around her waist. She saw him struggling to climb into her lap. Lexie pressed her lips together and swiped back to her system screen showed that her assignment here was as a [Card User Hero].
DUE TO FALLING QUOTA OF CARD USERS, YOU ARE PREDICTED TO BE A CARD USER. DUE TO PAST-LIFE HEROIC POINTS DETECTED, YOU ARE PREDICTED TO BE A HERO Pre-Affixation: [Card User Hero]
She sighed. She was trying to keep an open mind. But she was really starting to hate the [Heroes].
Lexie¡¯s dad came in the next morning, looking exhausted. Lexie was also pretty exhausted too, but that was because she had spent the rest of the night watching Top Dog Highlight Videos. She''d watched like five more of his matches, then went to a few fan sites that had exclusive information about his stats and his personal life, and who they thought he would fight once he graduated into the adult division. And that also led her to find out about everyone else on Top Dog''s team, including another fighter called Dust Bunny who fought like an acrobat on steroids. According to her stat board, she was an A-rank Martial Arts Type Fighter and a C-rank Illusionist (she used spells to create minor illusions with dust that distracted her opponents during fights). Lexie liked her. Like Top Dog, her fighting style had flair and grace, and she made up for her lack of strength with speed and efficiency. She was the definition of death by a thousand small cuts. Plus she had a move called , where she would deliver like a hundred kicks in the space of a minute, before pouncing off into a backflip and landing like a gymnast with her hands in the air. The crowd loved that one especially. They also loved that, no matter how much pain or trouble she was in, or how tired she seemed, she always pulled a funny face for the cameras whenever it first focused on her. According to the Leaderboard, she was number nine in the teen division right now. The third member of TD''s team was TechnocRat. To Lexie¡¯ knowledge he didn¡¯t fight much, but he was responsible for most of their gear and was a B-Rank Technomage (which was a kind of Bound Magic). When he did fight, he used rubber bullets and some fancy lasers for attack, and a jetpack to increase his speed. Oh, that was another thing. According to the rules of the circuit, no sharp objects or excessively damaging weapons were allowed. For example, all guns had to have rubbery bullets, sharp weapons had to have blunted edges, plus a few other criteria that governed the games to make them safe, if temporarily painful, for everyone involved. Top Dog¡¯s team was called the Mundane Society because they were all kids of Mundanes. Lexie had done a little more research on them and by morning she was officially a Bully Pup (Top Dog''s fanbase), a Mitten (for Dust Bunny), and a Fleabag (for TechnocRat). At breakfast, she was still checking out Dust Bunny¡¯s social media page, while sipping some hibiscus tea. Rowena made her tea before she left for work this morning, and though it wasn¡¯t as good as Aiden¡¯s, Lexie thanked her for it. A few minutes after Rowena left, the door opened again. Lexie shot to her feet and turned around. Aiden stood there with his hair harried around his head, lines in his face, red-eyed and pale. ¡°Hey¡­dad.¡± The word came out naturally although it sounded wrong at the same time. But it didn''t feel right calling him Aiden, especially because she didn¡¯t want him to suspect she wasn¡¯t his real daughter. She couldn¡¯t disclose her true identity until she got a hang of the situation and knew what the ISTS really was. So she might as well get used to playing his daughter, at least for however long she was here. She hurried to his side, taking his hand. ¡°You look awful.¡± He managed a weak smile and put his hand on her shoulder. ¡°Thanks, honey bee. That¡¯s what every father wants to hear when they get back home after a long day of work.¡± ¡°I¡¯m only saying it because it¡¯s true." She trailed him to the seat. ¡°And I don¡¯t think it¡¯s fair that you give me hell for burning out and you look like you¡¯re on the verge of it too.¡± ¡°Unlike you, I know my limits," he said a tad smugly, but the effect was ruined after he overshot his landing and nearly slipped right off the chair. And Lexie couldn¡¯t resist the urge to point it out. ¡°You almost face-planted, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I did not. That''s just a new technique of sitting you''ve never heard of.¡± He threw his hands in the air, much like Dust Bunny would. ¡°And see how fast I made that flawless recovery.¡± Lexie giggled and rolled her eyes at the same time and he smiled. ¡°How did you sleep?¡± ¡°Good,¡± she lied. She¡¯d probably only gotten a combined three hours of sleep all night but she hoped that Aiden was too tired himself to notice. ¡°You don¡¯t look so good yourself,¡± he said. "Were you worried about me?¡± Lexie ducked her head and she realized with surprise that she was. That was part of why she couldn''t sleep. Between thoughts of Evan and Aiden and Emma and the potion, she felt so restless and helpless that she¡¯d had to distract herself with the videos all night. ¡°Yeah,¡± she admitted. ¡°I¡¯m also worried about Evan and Emma.¡± Aiden rubbed his hand over his face. ¡°Yeah me too. On the bright side, we managed to create a comatization potion for Evan. He¡¯s currently in a medically induced transient state which should slow the growth tremendously and give more time for a healer to get here.¡± ¡°Do you have to wait for a healer?¡± Lexie blurted out because she had little faith that there were even any healers coming. ¡°I mean, are you sure you can¡¯t craft some kind of cure using human medicine? You said you were running experiments right?¡± Aiden sighed. ¡°Yes. We¡¯ve tried the whole night, but it¡¯s not proving easy. All our options need a lot of experimentation which takes time. Evan¡¯s strain is a mutation which adds an extra layer of difficulty. There¡¯s also the fact Evan¡¯s mind has already been at least partially destroyed and it would be near impossible to reverse that too even if we did manage to get the potion to work. I made a potion last night, but the best it can do so far is heal him as he is, which isn''t ideal, to say the least.¡± He sighed. ¡°Even that needs further experimentation.¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Lexie blew out her breath. ¡°What if there was something he could have taken to prevent getting sick in the first place?" Aiden frowned. "Something like what?" "Like a potion that would give him and everyone who drinks it immunity to the disease by producing antibodies..." She wasn''t sure she should continue, since she wasn''t sure that antibodies were a thing here. Because when she''d checked on the NET, there had been no vaccines present in the world. It was weird. Apparently, several vaccines had been in circulation several hundred years ago, but they stopped being produced due to redundancy. It happened around the time that the System was created, and though the article she read didn''t go into detail, Lexie figured that it was the advent of Healers and Saintesses and Potion Makers that made vaccines no longer relevant. So essentially, the advent of magic had stifled some regular human invention and medical discovery. Most things in this society seemed far more advanced than on her earth, but other things, particularly things to do with mundanes, seemed less so. So maybe, the presence of magic and healers slowed the development of regular human medicines? It made sense. Why spend years and money to develop a cancer cure, when a magic person can just fly over and zap your cancer away? And even as she tried to explain what a vaccine was to Aiden, he only nodded vaguely. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s also part of the research I¡¯ve been conducting at the Healing House. Only Emma knows about it. The rest think I¡¯m merely doing volunteer work. But I¡¯d rather not give anyone false hope in case such a thing isn¡¯t possible anymore. A lot of the ingredients used to make them are no longer being produced.¡± Lexie nodded, but she felt crushed. It was good that Aiden was thinking about making a vaccine. But it was also tragic that he hadn''t made one earlier to save Evan from this horrible situation. ¡°Now I know I promised you a card lesson eventually but I need to get some sleep.¡± Aiden yawned. ¡°I''ll have to go back later today to monitor his condition and continue on the potion.¡± ¡°Can I go with you?¡± ¡°You really don''t have to,¡± he said. ¡°I want to,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m bored staying at home and I¡¯d rather be there doing something useful.¡± Although she didn¡¯t know how useful she would be, she couldn¡¯t watch videos all day or she would start to feel sick. And as much as Lexie wasn¡¯t necessarily extroverted, she did need human companionship once in a while. Aiden gave her a tired smile and reached out to smooth her hair back. ¡°Alright,¡± he said. ¡°You can come.¡±
The rest of the week was much of the same. She spent so much time at the healing house that she learned the names of almost everyone working there. There was Nancy at reception who gave her cookies and pinched her cheeks. And then Riordon, a male nurse who knew all the gossip about everyone there and was always ready to share it, doctor-patient confidentiality be damned. And of course, Ashely and Lisa who were roommates that argued as much as they got along. Lisa was also the one who threw the pen at Ashley that other day in frustration. And then Carissa who wanted to be a social media star, Godfrey the guy who could get a needle into any vein, Tion, the elderly security guard and Rowena Lexie''s occasionally babysitter. Plus Lacey, Gemma, and Horace who she didn¡¯t know that well, only by name. In any case, it was a small group of people and they were basically in charge of all the health needs for the entire town. Seriously. It was crazy to Lexie, crazy for her to even think about. A group of about ten people who generalized in human medicine, ran the scans, tests and did everything at the healing house. No wonder everyone was sick all the time. Meanwhile, while the nurses kept Lexie company, Aiden spent most of the time in the lab working. He was doing testing on a species of mice that Max had brought from a forest, which according to Aiden, were the best kind of mice to test potions on because they had a physiology even closer to humans than regular mice. Lexie had only been in the lab once to watch him work, but then he''d kicked her out after some time because he didn''t know how the chemical fumes would affect growing children. Emma rolled her eyes and told him that the fumes wouldn''t do anything, but Aiden wasn''t willing to take the chance with his daughter. So, Lexie found herself exploring the hospital more often than not. Sometimes, she even found herself peeking into Evan¡¯s room. He was in a coma, his skin looking white, body stiff as a board. Rose was constantly with him, holding his hand looking just as drawn and pale as he was. Once when Lexie stood at the doorway, their eyes met and the other woman didn¡¯t look away. Lexie couldn''t stand the strong emotions pulsing through her, so she simply averted her gaze and kept walking. In her spare moments, she searched the NET for information and also watched more matches on her pad. She would sometimes even read about spells or aliens or subway trains or anything else she found curious about this world. She was desperately trying to occupy her mind with something, anything so she didn''t have to think of the passage of time and Evan''s incoming demise. And then she would also check her cell phone and read old messages from her brother. She was scrolling through the phone, walking down the hallways when she nearly ran into Ashley who was coming in from the other side. "Oh it¡¯s so cute," Ashley said. ¡°I haven''t seen one of these in forever. Where did you get it?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Lexie wasn¡¯t sure what to say. Was she referring to the phone? She''d seen it before. Lexie figured, judging from Aiden''s reaction, that there were probably phones in this new world, but she hadn''t seen any yet. Probably something else that was rendered archaic thanks to the System. Thankfully she was saved from answering by the arrival of Xena who walked in and was about to head straight down the hallway but stopped and stared at Lexie. She didn''t smile, neither did she scowl. Just stared straight at her. Despite herself, Lexie was happy to see the other kid. ¡°Hey.¡± ¡°Hey,¡± Xena said, less enthusiastically. ¡°You¡¯re not dead.¡± ¡°I know,¡± she grinned. ¡°Isn¡¯t it great?¡± ¡°I guess.¡± Lexie tried not to take her lack of enthusiasm to heart. After all, Xena was probably still worried about her mother. Lexie couldn¡¯t forget how horrible this situation must be for Xena, especially after she risked so much to break into that party all for the video to not even show what she said. And then suddenly, Lexie remembered Xena mentioned a¡­subnet? Darknet? Undernet. Yeah that was it. Lexie had been exhausted at that point, but she thought Xena said something about the video being in the Undernet people. But as she opened her mouth to ask, she realized Ashley was still around listening to their conversation. If this Undernet was really like the dark web, perhaps she should wait to ask for it when they¡¯re in private. ¡°Oh and I watched the fight by the way,¡± Lexie announced instead, mostly to take Xena¡¯s mind off her worry with some lighthearted teasing. ¡°Top Dog kicked Conrad¡¯s ass.¡± Annoyance replaced Xena¡¯s wain expression. ¡°That¡¯s only because Conrad got distracted at the end. And Top Dog cheated.¡± ¡°How did he cheat?¡± ¡°He used his weapon to force Conrad to surrender. Even after Conrad cut him some slack in the beginning." ¡°Top Dog never asked Conrad to cut him any slack. It¡¯s not cheating if you use your enemy''s weaknesses against him." And in this case, the weakness was that Conrad didn''t seem to take Top Dog as seriously as TD took him. Perhaps he simply thought he would win because he was stronger. ¡°Yeah well, it was lame of Top Dog to do that. And dishonorable.¡± ¡°He did what he had to do." Lexie shrugged. "You¡¯re just on Conrad¡¯s side because you think he¡¯s cute. ¡°I do not!¡± Her face flamed. ¡°I like that he''s a good person and I like what he stands for.¡± ¡°Which is?" ¡°He¡¯s not an asshole, and doesn¡¯t want to be a [Hero] despite his [Hero] parents.¡± What lofty standards. ¡°And that makes him great, how?¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t understand. Your dad was a [Hero] so you think they''re all great.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯re all great. I went to that party with you, didn¡¯t I? But I don¡¯t think being anti-[Hero] makes him a good guy either." ¡°I don''t care what you think. You support that cheater Top Dog with his stupid magic gloves." ¡°They¡¯re not stupid and it wasn¡¯t cheating.¡± ¡°Not that all this quibbling isn¡¯t fun and all, because it totally is.¡± Ashley sounded amused. "But I have to deliver these test tubes to Emma in room 5, I''m going to go." "I''m going there too," Xena said. "Me three," Lexie concurred then when Xena glared at her, Lexie added, "It''s not like I''m following you. My dad''s there." "Oh, he''s your dad now huh?" Xena quipped. "What''s that supposed to mean?" "You called him Aiden on the train." Oh shit she had, hadn''t she? "I was confused. I have memory loss, cut me some slack." As they walked side by side still quibbling they finally met up with Emma and Aiden in a hospital room. Emma was on the bed while Aiden stood in front of her, looking grave. Emma was wearing a scarf to cover her rash, and her face looked a little strained too. Xena instantly went to her. "Are you okay?" "Yes I''m fine," she said quickly with a weak smile. "Just....we tried the new potion and it didn''t work quite as well as I wanted it to." "Oh." A tense silence hung between everyone in the room. ¡°I¡¯ll keep going,¡± Aiden said even though he looked pale and like he was on death¡¯s door, dark eye bags underneath his eyes, stubble on his cheeks. ¡°I must have missed something small. Or maybe my calculations were wrong somewhere. I¡¯ll run it over again.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay Aiden,¡± Emma said with a sigh. ¡°I think you¡¯ve done your best.¡± "Mom," Xena whispered, but they were interrupted by another knock on the door. "Um Emma." Riordon stuck his head in, his face a mixture of shock and feverish excitement. "You''re not going to believe who''s here." Emma bolted out of bed and Aiden straightened. "A healer?" He shook his head, smiling secretively. "You should probably come see for yourself." Emma, Xena, Lexie, and Nancy all filed out of the room, following Riordon who was basically rubbing his hands in glee. He walked in hurried steps, and they matched it, their excitement building as they went. They were scared to hope. But they couldn''t help it either. And when they finally got to the waiting area she saw why Riordon was so giddy. A tall, radiant blonde woman was standing at the welcome desk, chatting with Carissa. Or more like Carissa was chatting and basically fawning and the woman was merely smiling pleasantly. Emma froze first gaping at the woman. Nancy''s reaction was no less stunned. ¡°[Saintess],¡± Emma whispered. She finally flicked her gaze over to us, and when she smiled it was like the sun parting the clouds and warming up our skin. "Someone asked for a healer?" she said. 15 - Healing and Purification Lexie stared at the tall golden-haired woman, wondering why she felt the urge to weep for joy in her presence. Not just weep. She felt like getting on her knees and thanking her for being alive. And then confessing every bad thought she¡¯d ever had, every naughty thing she¡¯d ever done. She wanted to ask the woman for forgiveness and a hug to make all her guilt go away. Which was an odd way to perceive a stranger, but to be fair it wasn¡¯t even the top three oddest things that had happened this week. Still, Lexie saw that she wasn¡¯t the only one feeling this effect. Multiple other people in the hospital were silent and slack-jawed at the sight of the woman. Lexie didn¡¯t blame them. The woman was radiant, filled with health and beauty and something else that Lexie couldn¡¯t quite pinpoint. Later, she would try to recall exactly what feature made the golden-haired lady so captivating. And it would be incredibly difficult because apart from her hair, there wasn¡¯t anything truly special about her looks. She was of average height and had pleasant unremarkable features. She even looked like her nose had been broken a time or two, but at that moment, Lexie didn¡¯t care about any of that. She thought that the woman was the most beautiful thing she¡¯d ever seen in her life. ¡°Saintess,¡± Emma whispered again, addressing the woman. ¡°What are you¡­I mean...I didn¡¯t think¡­¡± She sputtered for a second and shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m sort of at a loss for words. I mean we asked for a healer but I didn¡¯t think they would send you.¡± The Saintess¡¯ smile widened and once again, Lexie thought of the sun. Was there a halo around the woman''s head or was it simply her imagination? ¡°Well," she said. "I was kinda busy but then someone called in a favor and that put me on this trajectory. Plus I heard some crazy kids needed a healer to save their friend.¡± She glanced between Lexie and Xena but the smile curling her lips let the young ones know there were no hard feelings. ¡°That would be you two?¡± Lexie and Xena both nodded numbly and the Saintess chuckled. ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure greetings are in order, but I heard there was a child in need of saving.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± That seemed to jog Emma out of her stupor, and she gestured down the hallway starting to walk briskly to lead the Saintess there. ¡°He¡¯s right down here. We¡¯ve kept him stabilized in the meantime but we''ll have to move fast since he''s already in the final stage." Lexie and Xena along with several other nurses followed them in time to hear the Saintess ask, ¡°For how long?¡± ¡°Nearly a week?¡± She raised an eyebrow. ¡°He should be dead then.¡± ¡°He isn''t," Emma said. ¡°We created a potion that would keep his body and mind in limbo while we waited for a healer''s arrival." ¡°Oh? A comatization potion? I didn¡¯t know they started teaching those formulas at mundane clinics.¡± ¡°Yeah me either. But we met a mundane man some time ago who taught us a few things,¡± Emma''s eyes dropped from the Saintess when she uttered the lie. And even then the guilt in her face gave it away. Is Emma a bad liar, Lexie wondered, or is it the Saintess'' influence messing with her skill? "It was necessary," she said as they turned the corner. "The disease moved much faster than anticipated.¡± ¡°A new strain?¡± ¡°Maybe." The voice came from Evan''s doorway, and Aiden was standing there. He had shirked his lab coat and his gloves, wearing his normal button down and linen trousers. Apart from the tired eyes, he did not look like he''d been conducting experiments all day. He looked like maybe he was here for a visit. The Saintess paused to regard him. She did a good job of hiding her shock, and whatever other emotions she must have been feeling. ¡°Archmage,¡± she finally greeted. ¡°Saintess.¡± ¡°I should have known. I assume you''re the reason the mundanes have a comatization potion. You are aware it¡¯s dangerous to create it.¡± "Pretty sure leaving Evan to die is more hazardous to his health," Xena quipped but it lacked her usual snarky tone. The Saintess glanced at her. "It''s not just dangerous for the patient," she said but didn''t elaborate before staring straight at Aiden, who met her gaze head-on. "I''m not sure what you''re talking about," Aiden said and he lied a lot more convincingly than Emma did. Lexie suddenly realized that not only were her father¡¯s experiments risky, but they might be illegal too. Probably had to do with the whole ¡®ex-villains were not supposed to use magic¡¯ thing. Also the potion itself was clearly a grey area. Lexie wasn¡¯t sure how bad Aiden¡¯s crime was, but with the way the Saintess and Emma were acting, it was clear that he had committed, at the very least, a minor misdemeanor. ¡°He informed us of the risks,¡± Emma assured the Saintess hastily when it was clear the other woman wasn''t buying Aiden''s non-participation. ¡°And in any case, it worked. And it''s the only reason Evan is still alive. We permitted him to do it so if there are any sanctions they should fall on us." "No," Aiden said. "I acted on my own. You may sanction me." The Saintess looked between them, sighed, and said, "You know what? I suppose I can let this one slide." Then she walked into the room. Lexie watched from the doorway squatting so she could see in between the legs of the nurses and others that had gathered and pushed ahead of her. Rose was already on her feet. She greeted the Saintess enthusiastically, hope and fear still battling in her eyes. Hope that they could somehow save Evan. Fear that it was too late. The Saintess walked beside the bed and held out her hand over Evan¡¯s face, palm down. She closed her eyes and hovered it over his whole body, muttering to herself as she did. Lexie couldn''t hear the exact words she was saying but her furrowed eyebrows and downturned lip told Lexie that the Saintess didn¡¯t like what she was seeing. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of structural damage to his pathways,¡± she said. ¡°It will take time to heal. Possibly multiple rounds and weeks to get it done completely. And we should start with his mind because that has the most damage, and is the hardest to reset." Pathways? Lexie thought. Evan had pathways? But he was a mundane and just a kid? Did he have magic too? She decided to ask Aiden about it later. ¡°But it can be done?¡± Rose asked, wringing her fingers. ¡°You can heal him?" The Saintess didn¡¯t answer at first. Instead, she did another pass over Evan¡¯s body. And then another. ¡°I can," she said and relief flashed through Rose¡¯s face. The atmosphere eased, like the entire room collectively exhaled. ¡°Thank you, Saintess,¡± Rose said. "Thank you." She reached out to touch the woman but Emma immediately intercepted. And a second later, Lexie saw why. The Saintess had already begun work, closing her eyes and muttering to herself once more. She did another pass and this time, her brow furrowed from the concentration. She hesitated around his skull area, and then continued with her hands moving in a circle. Evan wasn''t moving during all this. In fact, no one in the room was moving, too entranced by the sight of the Saintess performing her magic. Although Lexie couldn''t really tell what the magic was yet. There was no flashiness to it, no light show or floating glass cards that shattered in the air. But Lexie knew that the golden-haired woman was doing something because her face was increasingly more strained. While it was previously youthful and full of color, it paled rapidly. Then she touched Evan¡¯s forehead and emitted a raw bark that was much like the one Evan had ejected when he''d turned. Lexie and half the people in the doorway jerked. At which point, the Saintess'' being seemed to glow just a little. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. ¡°Is she healing him?¡± Lexie whispered to no one in particular. "She¡¯s doing even better." It was Godfrey who looked back to answer, smirking when he saw her squatting. ¡°She¡¯s purifying him." Lexie wanted to ask what that meant but before she could, someone gasped so loud that it echoed down the hallway. And when she turned back to the Saintess, she saw why. Evan was awake. Not just awake. He was awake and his face looked as healthy as ever. Color returned to his cheeks, his eyes were bright and he grinned at the woman who still had her hand on his forehead. ¡°I have stinky armpits,¡± were his first words. ¡°Oh Evan,¡± Rose ran to his side and fell to her knees before him. ¡°Oh, my poor baby! You¡¯re okay. Mommy''s here¡± ¡°He¡¯s not out of the woods yet,¡± the Saintess¡¯ voice was slightly hoarse and she looked a little ill but she managed a smile as she stepped back from him. ¡°He might look okay, but I only pushed back the first wave, and the disease will try to come back again in a few hours. I¡¯ll have to purify him multiple times to convince it to leave for good.¡± She glanced at Emma. ¡°He was close to death so he¡¯ll need a little time and some warm food for his pathways to recover. And I''ll visit him tomorrow to continue the healing." Emma nodded. ¡°That¡¯s very generous of you. Thank you.¡± ¡°Thank you so much, Saintess.¡± Rose hugged her son and then turned to Emma, teary-eyed. ¡°Thank you, Emma.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t thank me,¡± Emma said. ¡°Thank Aiden. He¡¯s the one who created the potion that stopped the spread of the disease.¡± Rose¡¯s gaze turned to Aiden and her face dimmed. She opened her mouth to say something. She didn''t manage to get it out and her gaze dropped. Finally, she nodded once and muttered unintelligible words, before turning back to her son. Despite her sympathy for Rose, Lexie got annoyed. Aiden might not have healed Evan, but he was the one who kept Evan alive this long. And it had cost him a lot of sleepless nights, and endless days spent working. After all Aiden¡¯s hard work, even after Rose accused him of being a murderer, she couldn¡¯t even say thank you? No apology? All she could manage was unheard words? Lexie wanted to say something, but Aiden caught her eye and shook his head. Let it go, his expression said. He didn¡¯t want to make a scene. It only made Lexie angrier, but she bit her tongue to respect his wishes. Apparently, Xena wasn¡¯t so inclined. ¡°He¡¯s the only reason Evan¡¯s still alive you know.¡± She spoke up, facing Rose directly. ¡°You could at least apologize for what you said to him." True, although ironic coming from Xena. ¡°She¡¯s right,¡± Riordan said. ¡°He was basically killing himself trying to save Evan,¡± Godrick chimed in, and the other nurses nodded murmuring their ascent. Aiden blushed as one by one they came to his defense, gently asking Rose to make things right. Shame took over Rose¡¯s features. She finally looked Aiden in the eye, a mortified blush spreading across her cheeks. ¡°Thank you. I¡­ I¡¯m sorry for what I said, it''s just...¡± ¡°I understand,¡± Aiden said graciously. ¡°Don''t worry, talk to your son.¡± Rose¡¯s face reddened even more, and her eyes dropped again. She nodded and murmured more words of gratitude before turning her attention back to Evan. The Saintess watched the drama with a keen eye and then refocused on Emma. ¡°You were bitten too?¡± Emma seemed to have forgotten because she looked at the bandage on her arm as though surprised it was still there. ¡°Oh yeah, I guess I was.¡± The Saintess reached out for Emma¡¯s arm but Emma didn''t give it right away. Instead, she hung back and said, ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re okay? Mine can wait. You probably need to rest.¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± The Saintess smiled kindly. ¡°I''ll get all the rest I need after I''m done here. But for now, let me look at your arm." ¡°But you look a little¡­¡± ¡°Mom,¡± Xena said, tugging Emma¡¯s robe. ¡°Just give her your hand.¡± Emma glanced at Xena, still whiffling with her decision, and then bit her lip. She reluctantly held her hand out and the Saintess took it, closing her eyes again. Within a few seconds, the rash on her neck was gone, although the Saintess looked more than a little nauseous. ¡°While I¡¯m here,¡± she said, despite it. ¡°I might as well see your sickest patients. Those whose health bars aren¡¯t refreshing. I heard there were quite a few reports." ¡°Yes,¡± Emma said and then gratitude shone in her face. ¡°Yes, that would be great. Thank you so much, Saintess.¡± ¡°Please. Call me Dee.¡± Dee leveled a final look at Aiden as she followed Emma and the nurses out of the room, flanked by Xena. It was just Aiden, Lexie, Rose and Evan left. The latter two were in their world and barely noticed as Lexie approached Aiden. ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± He put his hand around her shoulder and dragged her close. His hand shook. ¡°Just a little tired.¡± ¡°You should come home and get some rest. Evan¡¯s fine now. It¡¯s time for you to recuperate.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Rose spoke softly, turning to regard them. ¡°Please go and rest. You¡¯ve earned it.¡± Aiden looked like he wanted to argue but he finally sighed wearily. ¡°Fine. Let me just tell Emma that I¡¯m leaving. I¡¯m glad Evan¡¯s okay, Rose.¡± ¡°Thank you for everything, Archmage. I¡¯m¡­I¡¯m truly sorry about how I acted. I guess I lost my mind a little.¡± ¡°You have nothing to be sorry about,¡± Aiden said. ¡°All is forgiven.¡± Rose pressed her lip together and nodded. But it was clearly not all resolved. There was still a lot of tension between the two, and it was clear that Rose was uncomfortable with them still being here. So they left the room with mumbled goodbyes and went in search of Emma. On the way, Lexie asked her father, ¡°What¡¯s the difference between purifying and healing?¡± Luckily, Aiden wasn''t too tired to answer. ¡°Purifying is healing with something extra. It¡¯s hard to explain or quantify what that ¡®extra¡¯ is but essentially, with Evan purified, he won''t get loiter disease any time soon. Probably not for the rest of his life even if he¡¯s bitten. He¡¯ll have some boosts in vitality and strength too, for the next few months at the very least. Any disease or pestilence will literally avoid him.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Now Lexie saw why the woman was so revered. ¡°Yes. Usually, Saintesses aren''t dispatched for single patients. They aren¡¯t used as Healers necessarily, but to purify lands after disease outbreaks. Occasionally they''re called for summonings too. But they¡¯re usually reserved for large-scale events. It¡¯s a wonder she¡¯s here.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Lexie responded. She too wondered why the Saintess was here. Who called in the favor? On the way home, Lexie had a second question for Aiden. ¡°Oh, by the way, why did she keep talking about Evan¡¯s pathways? I thought only people with magic have pathways." Aiden smirked. ¡°No, bumble bee. Everyone has pathways even if they don¡¯t have mana. And there are different types of pathways too." At her puzzled look he continued, "All life is simply a series of systems and pathways. It¡¯s how we operate. Mundanes have pathways too, but they¡¯re usually less flexible than the pathways of rankers. It''s part of the reason why they have low mana affinity. Because rather than their pathways adjusting to control the mana flow, they would just rupture." Ah. So pathways were probably similar to veins and arteries in one¡¯s body. And mundanes had much stiffer arteries, like they had atherosclerosis. ¡°Healers are pathway experts,¡± Aiden continued. ¡°They have to be able to do what they do. Not only that, they have to have the most flexible pathways to direct the disease to an elimination channel in a way that gets rid of it.¡± ¡°Elimination channel?¡± ¡°Yes. Healing isn¡¯t as easy as it looks. A healer links their pathway to the patients through a link channel, and then draws some of the patient¡¯s disease to what we call an elimination channel in their own body. That means they take a sample of the disease into themselves, but contain it in a specific part of their body, as their skill generates an accelerated cure. Then, they direct the cure back to the patient''s body. That''s how healing works.¡± ¡°Wow, that sounds complex. And painful.¡± ¡°It can be, particularly when the individual is close to death, meaning the healer has to work faster and take on more of the infection.¡± ¡°I see.¡± No wonder the Saintess had looked so awful after healing Evan. She felt sorry for the woman, and sort of regretted every nasty thing she¡¯d ever thought about the healers from the Hero association. Lexie had also briefly, and very briefly, considered being a healer but not anymore. It would undoubtedly be a noble skill, but she wasn¡¯t that sacrificial to put herself in pain every time she had to use her powers. Another reason why I''m not hero material. But as she thought more about what Aiden said, another realization came to her. ¡°Doesn¡¯t the healing mechanism sound a little bit like how cards work." She pointed out. "Activating the card with your mana, and then using a card as a link to external mana. Right? And then drawing the external mana inside to generate a skill. That¡¯s basically what you just said about how healing works.¡± Aiden sighed with a wry smile, but there was that hint of pride on his face again. "Did you get more clever after you lost your memory, or were you just holding back before?" Oops. Lexie kept forgetting to act like a ten-year-old. But surely a ten-year-old would probably also notice that parallel. Right? Well, whatever. She¡¯d already made the mistake. In for a penny, in for a pound. ¡°If she healed him with a potion, or say a card, or some other magical artifact it wouldn¡¯t be as painful right?¡± ¡°Not this, again.¡± Aiden¡¯s amusement dropped. ¡°Lex, I don''t want you to focus too hard on that, because I don''t want you to get disappointed. As I already told you, crafting a healing card would be an extremely difficult, probably pointless endeavor.¡± ¡°Notice you didn''t say impossible.¡± He sighed again. ¡°No. I didn¡¯t say it was impossible.¡± Lexie thought about it. "Can you teach me how you created your first card?" He glanced up at the sky, hesitation clear in his stance. ¡°Lexie¡­¡± ¡°You said you weren¡¯t much older than me when you made it. And you didn''t have a generational genius father to guide you, did you?¡± Lexie thought stroking his ego might help her argument. But Aiden shook his head. ¡°Making cards at your age is dangerous. I did it because I was young and foolish, and even then I had an appropriate lab at the academy where I could perform experiments. You don¡¯t have that, so it¡¯s even more dangerous for you. And I won¡¯t be able to help you since I can''t even visualize mana fields anymore.¡± ¡°Mana fields?¡± ¡°See? You don¡¯t even know what that is. There¡¯s so much you need to learn before you even think about crafting a card.¡± ¡°Then teach me.¡± Lexie pointed out the simple solution to their predicament. ¡°Or at the very least, teach me proper card activation so I won''t waste so much mana. You said you would.¡± ¡°I did say that, didn''t I?¡± He sighed, then ruffled her hair. ¡°Fine. I¡¯m going to go home and we¡¯re both going to take a long nap. And then, I¡¯ll teach you everything you need to know about proper card activation.¡± Lexie grinned and resisted the urge to pump her fist into the air. She would count that one as a win. 16 - Card Lessons Much later that evening, after said nap, the card lessons officially began. Even though Lexie had pestered Aiden right after he woke up from his nap in the early evening, he''d insisted they have dinner first, and told Lexie that she had to eat all her asparagus before he taught her anything. It wasn¡¯t a chore. The asparagus he made was buttered to perfection, but according to Aiden, Lexie had a habit of hiding her vegetables underneath the table napkins when she was younger. So he kept an eagle-eyed gaze on her as she ate. Lexie dutifully cleared her plate of steak and potatoes, ate all her veggies, and then helped her father clean up, earning herself a loving head pat. After that, they''d retired to a low table, and Aiden had finally asked Lexie to present the deck. ¡°Alright,¡± Aiden said to start. They were sitting cross-legged on the floor at opposite ends of the table. ¡°The first thing you need to know about cards is the kind of deck you¡¯re using.¡± He gestured to the cards neatly stacked on the table. ¡°This one is called the Party Planner¡¯s deck. I got it a while ago at an antique shop because I was going to my first ever party and wanted to impress a certain someone who was throwing that party.¡± ¡°My mother?¡± Lexie inquired. He shook his head. ¡°No, this was before I knew Lara. It was another girl, but that didn¡¯t work out. Anyway, I got this at the antique shop, but you don''t have to do that. Most people just buy their decks from the system store directly and keep them in their inventory so they can easily summon them. But these were pretty cheap and I preferred antiques at that time." His gaze grew soft and he allowed himself a little smile. "So did your mother. She and I used to visit antique shops a lot when we first started dating. And after we had you, we would take you along. There''s even one in Alberton that you used to love. We can go there when you''re feeling better." "Um...sure." Lexie felt a little uncomfortable under the intensity of his gaze. Once again, imposter syndrome was poking her guilty conscience, reminding her that she was an unwilling accomplice in robbing Aiden''s real daughter of these touching moments and loving words. "Yeah, we can discuss that later." Aiden coughed to cover the slightly awkward silence. "Where was I? Right. There are different card decks you can choose from, usually bearing about twelve cards each, and each deck is dedicated to a specific purpose. For example, the Party Planner¡¯s Deck is all about planning and entertaining at parties. You also have the Juggler¡¯s Deck, which helps you learn to be a better juggler, the Dancer¡¯s Deck for dancers, the Librarian''s Deck and so and so forth. They¡¯re probably hundreds of them, including different variations of the more popular decks. All can be bought from the system store. Are you following so far?¡± ¡°Lots of decks with terrible names. Got it.¡± He smirked. ¡°Alright. Now you have your deck. Again, typically comes with twelve cards, although not always. The next thing you need to know is that each card has an activation time, an active time, and a cool-off time. The activation time is how long it takes you to activate a skill. The active time is how long that skill stays in play. And the cool-off time is how soon you can use the card again after it¡¯s no longer active. You can activate two cards concurrently, and typically most decks are arranged to optimize for this so that it¡¯s relatively easier to activate the next card after you''ve activated one already. But you still need to take into account your cool-off time and how much mana you spent during your last activation so you don''t burn out. It''s recommended that you wait at least a minute between each card activation." Lexie nodded. No wonder she''d burned out. She definitely hadn''t done that. "You also cannot activate two cards at the same time." "Why?" Lexie wondered aloud. "Safety reasons. Also logistical reasons. It''s a lot easier to focus mana on one pathway than two and it''s mostly advisable to activate a skill at a time. This is a general rule that most other mages, bound or unbound swear by. And with cards, it''s even more important that you have that waiting period in between activations because typically card users don''t have a ton of mana capacity to begin with. You need time for your stores to refill." "It refills in a minute?" He shook his head. "No. That''s why I said at least a minute. Your mana stores won''t completely refill by then but it makes it less likely you''ll burn out. Some better trained mages wait less than that. But most card mages, particularly beginners, have to wait longer and waiting longer usually nets better results." Jeez, she might have to wait longer? A minute already sounded like a long time. And that wasn¡¯t even counting the time it would take her to actually activate the card, all for a few seconds of use. Yeah, it''s definitely not something I can use in an emergency. Which begged the question what was the point of card magic. Just as a teaching tool? Even for entertainment, it sounded so lame. "Is there any way to shorten the activation time?" Lexie asked. Aiden hesitated to answer. "There are some ways, but it''s not straightforward. Usually, that just comes with time and getting used to your pathways. I''ll explain it more once I actually show you how to activate the cards." "Okay." She nodded. "I''m assuming that if you try to activate two cards at the same time, nothing bad would happen right?" "No. If a card senses that you''re trying to activate another at the same time, it will just deactivate." "Wait, the cards can sense each other?" "Of course. When they''re in a deck, they''re all linked. So they can play off each other in a sense." Hmm. That was interesting. Lexie was already thinking about the logistics of it and perhaps how to use that to her advantage. She was also thinking of a way around the no-double-activation thing. That could be one way to save time, and she wondered how the shut off system worked. For example, say she didn''t take the recommended minute-long cool-off time, and simply wanted to activate one card right after another. What was the minimum in-between time she could get away with before the card tagged it as simultaneous activation? A second? A millisecond? A microsecond? At what point would it shut off? And what was the role of the deck in coordinating this? ¡°Question,¡± Lexie put her hand up like she was in class and Aiden grinned. ¡°What¡¯s the point of a deck? Just for the aesthetic and organization?¡± ¡°No, it also serves a practical purpose. Card developers create decks to increase cohesiveness and efficiency. Card activation, as you¡¯ll come to find out, is all about time management. And having cards arranged in a deck makes everything easier, and reduces the activation time for each card.¡± Lexie could see how that would be useful. ¡°How does that work?¡± ¡°Well, card pathways in a deck are designed close to each other on the mana field, in such a way that the pathways actually flow into each other.¡± He grabbed a salt shaker, shook some tiny white crystals out, and once more drew connecting tunnels on the table. ¡°Think of these as pathways. See how they¡¯re all interconnecting? This pathway even flows directly into that pathway. This would be how a deck would look on the mana field. Two cards that are not part of the same deck, will likely be much farther apart from each other and less likely to intersect." "And the mana field is?" Aiden cocked his head, thought for almost a minute, and then shook it. "That''s something that''s going to be difficult to explain at this stage. And it will only confuse you more. For now, simply think of it as a collection of all the pathways in a single item or body." "That doesn''t sound that difficult to explain." "That''s because it''s not the complete explanation. But it''s what we tell young mages who are just starting out. You have an internal mana field, an external mana field, and an object mana field, in this case, the object is your card. Card magic influences all those mana fields, forming links between pathways that were previously not connected." Lexie was still somewhat confused and it showed in her face. Aiden nodded, then he cleared his previous salt drawings to start a new one, the excitement of teaching in his eyes. "You see, your internal pathways are typically correlated with where a skill is generated. For example, the card''s pathway is in the feet, and core, and the card pathway is in the mouth. So say, you wanted to dance, and right after that make an announcement. Your feet and your mouth are on opposite ends of your body and so are their pathways. But as long as the two cards you use are part of the same deck, it creates an artificial link between all those pathways thereby making the mana travel easier and smoother." He kept drawing different pathways on the salt and linking them with a dotted line."When mana congregates on one side of your body, it''s termed a mana cloud. And once a card in a deck is activated, your internal mana creates a cloud that moves in the direction of that card, and binds to the deck, making it easier for each subsequent card to be activated. So you see, this makes everything even more streamlined, and reduces waste. Some cards in a deck even share sections of the same pathway, which cuts down the activation time even more¨Cespecially if you do one after another¨Cbecause of mana cloud binding." His eyes glinted up at Lexie and he adjusted his glasses. "Do you understand what I''ve said so far?" She nodded. "I think so." She tried to mentally reiterate it to herself, and explain it in her own words. Basically, a deck connected the activation pathway for all the cards, and also bound her mana cloud to make everything easier and faster. So the first card activated gets the least advantage, but then each subsequent card becomes easier. That means when activating more than one card, I should always start with the lowest powered cards and save the more complicated, highest powered cards for last. "So this linking effect a deck has," she continued. "Does it last only as long as the card is active?" He shook his head. "Lasts about twenty four hours after the deck is active. That''s also why you''re not allowed to use more than one deck within a twenty-four-hour period." "Seriously?" So many rules. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. "Yes. If you used a card from the Party Planner''s deck and then tried to activate a card from the Dancer''s deck right after, the latter wouldn''t activate. Partially because the mana cloud is somewhat attached to pathways in the first deck." "How?" "That''s another thing that''s too complicated to explain at this stage, honey bee." Lexie swallowed her frustration along with her impatience to find out more. ¡°It''s typically not seen as a problem," Aiden said. "Because Card Mages often affix and specialize a few decks in their entire lifetime. You see, it helps them level up faster if they only focus on a handful of decks. But we¡¯ll get more into deck management in the future, including how to create your own deck.¡± Lexie''s eyes widened. "You can do that?" "Of course." He wiped off the salt diagrams, creating a clean board. ¡°Not from scratch though, not unless you''re an official card crafter working with system developers. You can mix and match cards from different decks to create your unique deck but note, this is also liable to system approval.¡± ¡°Why would the system not approve a deck?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°If it¡¯s not cohesive enough or the mix-and-match may potentially endanger its users, the system will not approve and will not give a deck signature which is what links all the cards in the deck together." "Endanger how?" "Well, the most frequent way is by having too many high-powered cards in the same deck. If most of the cards in the deck have a power of seven or higher, then the system will not approve. And in a less specific sense, if the system thinks that the deck can cause harm to oneself or others, it will not allow it either." "Oh." She guessed that was another reason why the cards themselves were limited by time and potency. So they wouldn''t cause harm. "Again, this is all advanced knowledge that we¡¯ll get into when we¡¯re discussing card crafting," Aiden said. "Right now, I just need you to understand the rules. 1. Work with cards in a single deck for now until you master it. This will make it easier for you to learn mana control and also not burn out. 2. Don''t use more than one deck within a twenty-four-hour period. 3. Don¡¯t activate more than one card at a time. 4. Leave at least a minute of rest between each activation. More depending on total activation time and how much waste you produced." Lexie nodded and noted down the rules on a writing pad her father had given her. It was called a study pad, and it was a clear glass screen that transmitted the words directly to her system notes section. When she was done writing, she looked at Aiden expectantly. He picked up the cards, shuffling them as he spoke. ¡°Now let¡¯s move on to the basic mechanism of card action. First, let me explain mana and the three different types of it. There¡¯s internal mana, object mana, and ambient or external mana. Internal mana is the mana that is contained in your body. This is dependent on your mana capacity. Then external mana is the mana in the environment. Object mana is the mana stored in an artifact a mage uses, which in this case is the card. Each card has its own personal mana which was imbued during its creation.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s released upon activation?¡± ¡°Exactly. So what causes the skill to be generated you see, is usually some combination of object and ambient mana. But it all starts with the internal mana, and aiding the interaction between these three types of mana is basically what you need to learn to have smooth and low waste activation." "Okay." She nodded again and noted that down. "So first off," he said. "To activate the card you need to guide your internal mana along the card¡¯s activation pathway, as I showed you before. Once that¡¯s completed successfully, the card¡¯s mana is then suffused to open up an internal pathway for the mechanism of action. It stabilizes or disrupts the target pathway enough for you to guide the external mana into it. And this is then used to generate a skill.¡± He waited and smiled. ¡°Did that make sense to you, bumble bee?¡± ¡°Yeah, I think so.¡± She tried to visualize since that always helped her understand complex topics. ¡°So basically, the internal mana activates the card and the card tells the external mana what to do in the target pathway?" His lips ticked up. ¡°Precisely. Of course, in truth, it¡¯s a little more complex than that. But that¡¯s good for the basics.¡± "Right," she said. Though he said that, nothing she was hearing felt basic at all. ¡°Now you have to be careful when directing mana through both the card activation pathway and the target pathway. Like I said before, if you use too much mana or too little, the card will deactivate. Also, any attempt to use the mana to change or deviate from the pathway will also cause the entire mechanism to shut down and mana to be wasted." ¡°I see.¡± And then she asked. ¡°Could deviation also cause damage to my mana pathways? Or the card pathways?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Highly unlikely. First of all, cards don¡¯t deal with any high-capacity skills likely to cause damage. Secondly, there are several contingencies placed along the pathway that ensure that the card deactivates if it detects any anomaly along the pathway. One of those contingencies is at the very start of the pathways. If you push too much mana into the card at the very start, far more than is required to activate, the card will not activate. Too little mana and it won¡¯t activate either. If you try to force the pathway into a different shape, it won¡¯t be long before it deactivates too. These are all safeguards. And then the final safeguard is if, for whatever reason, a card detects that the skill you''re trying to generate will damage your pathways, it will direct all the mana back to the card and the card will simply self-destruct.¡± ¡°Like a fail-safe?¡± ¡°Yes. Exactly. That¡¯s what makes cards such a great teaching tool for beginners. Even the worst mage is unlikely to get hurt from it.¡± He smirked. ¡°Of course, after most people get the basics with cards they move onto spells, and from then on, if their capacity is high enough, they can start with Unbound magic. But usually, pre-awakened mana isn¡¯t enough to learn Unbound magic. Unless of course, you¡¯re from one of the elite Elemental Families.¡± ¡°Like the Firebringers?¡± He nodded. ¡°We¡¯ll get into that later. Right now, let''s focus on cards and how to minimize waste when activating. Try to go slow. Don''t push in too much at once and don''t try to force your mana. Simply gently guide and shepherd it where it needs to go." Lexie nodded and then noted down all of that too. ¡°Any more questions?¡± he asked when she was done. She shook her head. ¡°Great.¡¯¡¯ He clapped once then picked up the deck, shuffled the cards one more time, before laying them flat and spreading them out ¡°Pick a card, ma¡¯am, any card,¡±¡¯ he said in a blackjack dealer voice and Lexie smiled. All the cards had a similar pattern on the back that she soon recognized as tetrahedral abstract designs. One of them looked like confetti popping out of a finger. The other was a musical note. She already knew what that one was. She picked it.
Card Type: Effect Power: 8 Description: We all have that one guest who hates every single song on the DJ¡¯s playlist. But Torad Card Corp. loves to accommodate the special needs! Have them pick from a list of songs and the card will play that song only for them. For one whole minute! It¡¯s a music party of one. Active Time: 60 Seconds Activation Prerequisites A minimum mana output of 80 Complete activation pathway. Target must hum a song that they want. Other prerequisites may apply.
¡°Hmm, that one might be a bit tricky,¡± he said. ¡°Here, pick another one.¡± ¡°Let me try first,¡± Lexie insisted. ¡°Are you sure? It¡¯s an effect card and those are harder because they involve disrupting someone else¡¯s pathways. Plus, using it against me adds an extra complication.¡± ¡°Why?¡± He shrugged. ¡°Because I have better pathway detection and control than you. That would make me particularly resistant to pathway disruptions.¡± He thought about it. ¡°But, maybe not because I¡¯m effectively a mundane now.¡± ¡°I see.¡± So [Heroes] and people with powers had better control of their pathways. That was probably why her skill hadn¡¯t worked on Hawaiian-shirt guy. She thought as much then but she didn¡¯t have the words to explain it. ¡°I still want to try. ¡° ¡°Okay, buttercup. Give it a go.¡± Lexie nodded, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, breathing the air into her lungs. Once more she had the awareness of that buzzing inside her, her own mana. She tried to go slow like Aiden advised, simply letting the mana flow in the direction she needed, only giving a gentle push here and there. Slowly the pathway lit up for her, a stream of water that was twisted and coiled around itself. While she worked Aiden hummed a song, which was part of the requirement. Lexie then guided the mana out of her hand and through the card pathway, activating it easily. And then once more, she felt the external mana and also the card mana flowing into her, giving her that euphoric feeling.
ACTIVATION COMPLETE. POINT AT TARGET NOW.
She felt the mana in her hands and when she pointed at Aiden, she felt it leave the atmosphere and she assumed it entered him. She eyed Aiden. ¡°Did it work?¡± He grinned to answer and she couldn¡¯t help but grin back. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it worked.¡± Some of her excitement leaked into her voice. "And it was a high-power card too! It wasn''t as hard as you said it would be.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because I put up absolutely zero resistance,¡± he said with a smile. ¡°And like I said, I¡¯m effectively a mundane. It¡¯s easier to do magic on mundanes because their pathways have neither the knowledge nor mana to put up much of a fight.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Some of her excitement dimmed. He reached across and took her hand, squeezing it. ¡°But you still did good. Especially for the first time. Most people don''t get the activation pathway right on their first try, even with simpler cards. That was a high-powered effect card you worked with and you managed it with little difficulty. That''s very impressive. I''m pretty sure you have an affinity for card magic." ¡°I guess,¡± she said noncommittally but she was still disappointed. ¡°Can I try again?¡± ¡°Yes. After you rest for, I think five minutes? How long is the cool-off period?¡± Lexie checked quickly and then said, ¡°65 seconds.¡± Complete activation time had been two minutes. Strange, it hadn''t really felt that long. ¡°Hmm. Then make it ten minutes of rest.¡± ¡°Ten whole minutes?¡± she gaped and he laughed. ¡°It¡¯s actually not bad for the first time,¡± he said, still chuckling. "I¡¯ve heard of people having to rest an hour for their first few activations.¡± "How long was your first time?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Oh no, don¡¯t do that, my love. Don¡¯t compare yourself to me or anyone else. You¡¯re doing well. Move at your own pace." He smiled. "In this, it''s just you against yourself. All you have to do is be better than you were yesterday.¡± Lexie wasn''t mollified by that, as dissatisfaction still plagued her. Aiden¡¯s words were nice and they were often the very words she wished her real parents would say to her. But right now, they fell on deaf ears. Lexie had been an overachiever for as long as she could remember and that overachieving nature didn¡¯t just disappear. Even without her parents here, she had an irrational fear of being stupid, or mediocre at anything. She wanted to be the best. She had to be the best. Especially if she sought any hope of getting out of here. Aiden had already told her he wouldn''t teach her crafting until she mastered card activation. That meant that she had to master it as soon as possible.
Lexie tried twice that night with two different cards. One was the . That only took her about 45 seconds to activate and it had the effect of making her only slightly faster than she usually was. Aiden said it was a scalable skill but still. She probably wouldn''t turn into Usain Bolt overnight with that card. Also, she noticed the card itself didn''t so much give speed but a certain weightlessness that made her feel more buoyant. She also tried the creature card, and it took her nearly two whole minutes to summon a hologram of a small frog that did weak backflips. It was kinda lame but Aiden must have sensed her disappointment because he started making jokes about how his backflips were just like that. "Really?¡± she asked. "No,¡± he admitted. ¡°I have zero athletic abilities. If I attempted a backflip, I think I would break a hip.¡± Lexie cracked a smile. After that, Aiden called for an end to the session, and to Lexie¡¯s dismay, he took the cards away so that she wouldn''t keep practicing through the night. He must have sensed how obsessed she was with getting better. Aiden promised to teach her more tomorrow. He didn¡¯t seem to mind at all if it took her while to successfully grasp a concept, he simply looked happy to be teaching. And Lexie supposed she was lucky to have a professor like him. He had vast wells of knowledge, but he also managed to break it down to such an elementary level that she could pretty much understand everything easily, despite not being from this world. Unlike some of her former teachers who prided themselves in making things as difficult as possible, Aiden was only satisfied when she truly understood. Later that night, Lexie googled the Party Planner''s deck to learn more about each card and the average activation times. She was below standard in most of them and she saw that the record for the fastest activation for the least powerful card () was sixteen seconds. That became her new time to beat. And then before she fell asleep, she checked the Video Alley and pulled up the video of the Dust Bunny fight. This one was against a guy called Kane the Mundane, who seemed to have tons of metal and weapons on his body called mechs. One of the mechs on his wrist could fire rubber bullets which, while they wouldn''t kill a target, seemed to really hurt. He got Dust Bunny in the boob with one and leered at her when she glared at him, even blowing her a kiss. He also had forcefield shields on just about every part of his body and he had goggles that offered him some immunity to Dust Bunny''s illusions. How he afforded all that, Lexie didn''t know because according to the NET, mechs like his were stupidly expensive. It was a hard fight despite Kane being mundane. Ultimately, Dust Bunny summarily whooped his ass in the end, much to Lexie''s satisfaction. Despite her earlier disappointment with the cards, Lexie fell asleep with a smile on her face. 17 - Mana Shaping and Meditation The next morning, after breakfast, Aiden taught Lexie about cloud awareness and mana shaping. He did this by first having her hold onto one of the cards. Then, he instructed her to push mana into the card without actually activating the card. It was a funny thing to do, directing her mana to her hands and watching the pathway appear, without filling it up. It felt like a waste of time at first to Lexie, but Aiden assured her that it had a purpose. It was supposed to help her get finer control of the movement of mana in her own body, and thus it would make her better at moving the mana cloud through the pathways. Better also meant faster. And as long as she didn''t start filling in the activation pathway, then she didn''t waste mana by doing it and thus didn¡¯t need any recovery time.. Given the explanation that this would ultimately make her faster, Lexie enthusiastically threw herself into practicing it. She did it religiously, when she woke up in the morning, the afternoon and even the evening. Even while at the clinic with Aiden, she would find a quiet spot to practice. She did this for about a week, and then Aiden gave her her second lesson. Mana shaping. Now that she had a better feel for her mana cloud, she was tasked with the more advanced skill of trying to manipulate it into shapes. Aiden taught her how to do it, using breathing exercises to ground herself and meditation to shut down her other senses so all she could focus on was the buzzing inside her. She was then asked to shape that buzzing tighter and tighter so that it covered less surface area. Like two hands corralling the mana into a smaller circle. Aiden called it molding and it was the first step to true mana shaping. And despite him making it seem like the skill was elementary, it was extremely difficult to do. The awareness lessons were easy for Lexie¨Cshe could feel her mana cloud without even trying. But even after three days of lessons, Lexie couldn¡¯t quite manage to shape her mana well. It was like her mind was finding it tough to comprehend the idea of holding something internally and pressing it together. Maybe if she could visualize it, it would get better. But with the pathway unactivated, she couldn¡¯t see the mana, only feel it. And that made everything worse. Still, she tried. She watched a few videos that taught her about ¡®internal limbs¡¯ that you could see with a third eye. But the woman used a bunch of potions to activate it and Lexie neither had the potions nor did she feel comfortable asking Aiden for money to buy them. So she kept raw-dogging it trying to shape mana without seeing it. She did this by first going into a deep meditative state, then trying to create an artificial blockade between her card-holding hand and the rest of her body. That way, she would separate the mana cloud from the mana-poor areas in her body, effectively shaping it on a larger scale. She spent about two hours on this every morning and though it still didn¡¯t feel like a smooth process, she thought it was getting better. She ended the session by completely activating the card and it did feel slightly more effortless. But not necessarily faster. Lexie couldn''t seem to crack forty seconds on that card. She worked on it every day, for at least two hours, with three-minute breaks in between each try. The actual mechanism of the activation wasn¡¯t difficult now that she knew what she was doing. It was a pretty straightforward process and she managed to at least somewhat activate half the deck (3 ability cards, 2 effect cards, and one creature card) relatively smoothly. Most of them had simple activation patterns to lace her mana through, except for which supposedly had a choreography component to it. But was the easiest card in her deck which was why she was using it as a study tool. Her goal was to get sub-30 second activation in a few weeks. But she kept getting stuck at that damn forty second mark, even after a week of trying. This morning, Lexie kept activating it again and again. Then she took a break from card activation to practice mana shaping once more. It was still hard. She still wasn¡¯t much faster or smoother. Yes, it had only been a couple of hours since she last tried and she didn¡¯t really expect things to move along at a break-neck pace, but she didn¡¯t exactly have time to spare either. After a few rounds of mana shaping and cloud awareness excercises, she tried again. Once again, disappointing results. It made her feet feel significantly lighter, and it was more noticeable when she tried to run across her room, but it wasn¡¯t an overwhelming speed. She could probably beat another ten year old in a race¨Cprovided they weren¡¯t super tall¨Cbut she could also have done that with just proper training. She didn¡¯t need a card for that. The effect itself didn¡¯t last as long as the recovery, because she was still wasting too much mana. But she didn¡¯t give up. She kept going. As she kept activating more cards in the deck, one after another, she noticed that she became more efficient with each subsequent card and, upon activation, her mana cloud seemed drawn to that pathway instinctively, meaning she had to ¡®push¡¯ less in that direction. So this was the power of the deck. After what felt like her twentieth try with the card, the activation clock was still stuck on 41 seconds. Lexie finally dematerialized the cards in a huff putting her head down on her desk. ¡°I suck,¡± she grumbled. A knock on the door interrupted her self-flagellation and a second later, Aiden poked his head in. He had his hair tied in a bun at the top of his head and he was wearing a bright pink apron with frills along the edges and thick plastic gloves dusted with soot. And then he topped it all off with big worker boots, a pair of goggles on and a clothespin on his nose. It was such a comical presentation that a snort cracked through Lexie¡¯s frustrated mood. ¡°What?¡± Aiden asked in a nasally voice frowning down at himself. ¡°I didn¡¯t get it on my face, did I?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t get what on your face?¡± ¡°Coal. I was cleaning out the chimney and I was trying not to get it on me. I hope I didn''t. It takes forever to scrub off.¡± They have coal here. Interesting. ¡°You were trying to clean the chimney? By yourself?¡± Lexie didn¡¯t know how it worked, never having had a chimney in her life, but the thought of how it got cleaned had never occurred to her. Aiden nodded with a heavy sigh. ¡°Unfortunately, I can¡¯t afford a cleaner right now, or get any of those fancy doohickeys in the infomercials. Usually, I would use magic but¡­¡± He let that trail off with a shrug. ¡°Desperate times call for desperate measures.¡± ¡°Sorry. I wish there was a way I could help.¡± She thought about it. ¡°Wait, is there a cleaning card?" ¡°There probably is but it¡¯s part of a different deck so you won''t be able to use it today.¡± ¡°Oh. But if it can wait till tomorrow, I can give it a try then.¡± ¡°No, that''s fine. I only want you to focus on Party Planner¡¯s Deck for now, to make it easier on yourself. Besides, I don''t want you anywhere near the chimney. All that soot and mana dust¡­ absolutely not. After the government relaxed mana smog regulations, you will not believe the pollutants these new-age devices have. That¡¯s why your mother and I prefer to buy vintage when we can." He gave a self-righteous sniff and then continued, ¡°And apart from that, there¡¯s a small but non-zero chance you might encounter a soot sprite." "Sprite? Like a fairy?" "Precisely. Nasty little cretins that lurk in there and try to bite your finger off. The exterminator is supposed to take care of them every five years, but they''re tough little things to eliminate. Usually, at least one of them is left behind." He looked disgusted. "You may not remember, but you used to be terrified of them when you were younger.¡± "You sound like you''re pretty scared of them too." He described them with the same narrow-eyed look and tone of hatred with which one would discuss a sworn enemy. "Well, I''ve had experience with them. Experience I''d rather not share." And now he looked like he was a soldier reminiscing on his time at war. Lexie tried not to smile. "They''re that dangerous huh?" He nodded firmly. "Very. With sharp teeth. And due to magic creature humanitarian laws, we can''t kill them and even if we could, they¡¯re not easy to kill. And did I mention their teeth are like blades or pincers slicing into you and the most inopportune moments? And they have a predilection for biting off noses too?¡± "How fearsome. Sounds like you need a hazmat suit and a helmet." She thought he would catch on to her sarcasm, but he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. ¡°That¡¯s not a bad idea, actually.¡± The image of him cleaning the chimney in a hazmat suit nearly made Lexie crack up but she held back. ¡°You should make the helmet iron, like what the Knights used to wear. Make it sturdier in case the sprite goes for your nose." "Hmm, you might be onto something here." Lexie¡¯s grin widened. "Or maybe just wear the whole suit of armor." That snapped him out of his musings. He shook his head. "Oh no. That would be overkill. Plus I would just look ridiculous, wouldn''t I?" Lexie simply nodded, showing significant restraint in holding her laughter back. He walked all the way into her bedroom now and said, ¡°Anyway, I believe the two hours of training time are up.¡± ¡°Aww.¡± Lexie pouted. As frustrated as she was about not being able to go lower than forty seconds she didn¡¯t necessarily want to stop her training yet. She wanted to keep going so that her mana would adapt to the pathways faster and she would gain greater control. But Aiden had insisted she only study it for two hours a day at a time and it appeared he was the type to lay down the law. ¡°I know how you are,¡± he said gently, holding out his hand. ¡°When you get interested in something you¡¯ll obsess over it all day if I let you. When was the last time you moved from that desk? Or drank water?¡± She thought about it. "Today," she said confidently. He sighed. "That¡¯s what I thought. Your dedication is admirable, but as your father, I have to make sure you don¡¯t go overboard and study all day." That sounds like me, Lexie thought. I guess Lexie Sparrowfoot and I have a few things in common. Except Lexie Evans'' parents had encouraged that tendency and turned her into a study beast instead. Aiden, on the other hand, was adamant that she didn¡¯t spend all day in her room looking at cards. He seemed to be one of those parents who thought their kids should have a life outside of learning. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Strange. Lexie occasionally used to think she wanted a parent like that. But now that she had one, she found it a little frustrating. ¡°Can I just get one more hour?¡± Lexie pleaded, holding her hand to her chest. ¡°It¡¯s just that I set a goal to crack under forty seconds today and I feel like I¡¯m close.¡± He sighed. ¡°You already cut your activation time by nearly five seconds. In just a week. That¡¯s amazing Lex. You''re doing astoundingly well. You don¡¯t need to push yourself any further.¡± "I watched some videos online and quite a few people have been able to shave thirty seconds of their time in a month by dedicating at least 6 hours of practice a day. And that resulted in them cutting down by 7.5 seconds every week. I think conservatively if I follow that, I should be able to do it at least another second today." "What did I say about comparing yourself to others? Those people often have paid tutors or have parents who are dedicated card users to teach them all the tips and tricks." "I have you," Lexie said hopefully. ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m a generalist mage which means I would be a poor tutor for any one specific skill. I know about magic in a general sense, but because I never affixed, I don''t use any one type of magic exceptionally well and don''t have tips and tricks for you. These things come with time, Lexie. And if you try to rush it, you¡¯ll only hurt yourself. And even if there was a way for you to do it without hurting yourself, I still wouldn¡¯t let you spend more than two hours a day on it. It¡¯s not mentally healthy and there¡¯s more to life than studying." Ha. Lexie thought. Not according to Dr. and Dr. Evans there is not. Aiden held his hand out and signaled a ''hand it over'' with a stern look. ¡°The cards, Lexie.¡± Lexie bit her lip and with a loud sigh, she finally materialized and gave the cards to Aiden. Then she crossed her arms over her chest and pouted. Aiden smiled at her dramatics. ¡°Thank you. Now, do you want to get changed and accompany me to the grocery store?¡± She kinda wanted to sulk but then curiosity got the better of her. ¡°Groceries don¡¯t just appear on the system interface?¡± While exploring her interface, she thought she¡¯d seen a section of food. ¡°Not usually. Food can be stored and sent through the system but it¡¯s just a hassle for the system to transport it that way. Most of us are encouraged to do our own shopping physically unless you¡¯re off-earth or in a remote area where it¡¯s hard to find food. In that case, you put in a special circumstance request, and that transports a designated amount of non-perishables to your inventory. But even that is a long tedious process with a lot of red tape and so it needs to either be an emergency or you would likely have to get pre-approved in advance.¡± Huh. Lexie guessed that information was good to know in case she ever got stranded somewhere. "Okay," she sighed. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll come with you." "I''m glad." Aiden looked happy about it and added, "Emma and Xena will be joining us too." Lexie paused. "They will?" "Yeah. Emma and I like to do our shopping together. We get great sales that way, and can buy in bulk." She didn¡¯t know how to feel about that and her reluctance must have shown on her face because Aiden paused. "Do you not want them to join us?" "It¡¯s not Emma I have a problem with," she admitted hesitantly. "So it¡¯s Xena? You don¡¯t like her?" Lexie thought about it. "It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t like her. It¡¯s just that I get the feeling she doesn¡¯t like me very much." After their little Arcadian excursion, Xena didn''t scowl at her as often anymore when they crossed paths at the hospital. But the little girl still made it clear that there was no friendship between them. "I don¡¯t think she doesn¡¯t like you," Aiden said, pinching her cheeks lightly. "I think it¡¯s impossible for anyone not to like you, honey bee." Lexie raised an eyebrow which made Aiden grin before he sighed. "The thing with Xena is not about you," he said. "She''s had a difficult childhood which makes her put up walls. She''s not great with people either, especially with people like us." ¡°Yeah, I know. She told me how her parents died, and I get why she would hate [Heroes]. But you''re not even a [Hero] anymore, and I was never a [Hero] in the first place." Lexie tried to remind herself that grief wasn''t exactly rational and being young, Xena was allowed to handle her problems irrationally. But still. "I mean I get it. It''s fine that she doesn''t like me but it''s just uncomfortable to be around her." Lexie met Aiden''s eyes and could tell there was something on the tip of his tongue. He struggled for a second and then leaned in conspiratorially. "Okay. Don¡¯t tell Emma I told you this. I¡¯m only confiding in you because I know you¡¯re not one to spread rumors, and you know I hate to gossip¡­¡± Lexie nodded slowly even though she secretly thought her father rather loved gossip. "About Xena...according to what the orphanage told Emma, Xena has been adopted before. In fact, she''s been adopted and returned to the orphanage four times." "Four times?" Lexie blurted. "How?" "Emma doesn''t know. She chose not to ask so it wouldn''t color her opinion of her daughter, and she told Xena to talk to her about it whenever she felt like it. But yes, I think something like that might have worsened Xena''s predisposition for building walls. It will make it difficult for her to trust anyone, even if she likes them." "Yeah." Lexie was still reeling from what she''d heard. Four canceled adoptions? Why? Sure, Xena could be annoying with her snarkiness but she didn''t seem that bad. Lexie would only understand if she was some kind of creepy psychopath like that girl in that Orphan movie. But Xena was a far cry from that. I mean she risked her life and broke into a cape party to save a boy she barely knew and a woman she won''t call mom. Those are not the actions of an unadoptable psycho. "This really wasn''t my story to tell, so you should be discreet with it," he said. "I just wanted you to understand Xena better. And even though I still think she''s a bad influence on you, I personally think you should keep an open mind when it comes to her." Lexie stared into Aiden''s eyes and slowly picked at her sweatpants. She''d always found it difficult to make friends growing up. Partly because she didn''t have time for friendship, nor the energy. Mostly, she felt like a zombie moving from class to class, homework to homework, doing things that felt important but not really, not in the grand scheme of things. If not for Mickie''s persistence, Lexie wouldn''t have friends at all. And even with Mickie, their last year of friendship was strained by Lexie''s focus on getting into MIT. She''d had to cancel plans to finish papers, couldn''t focus when Mickie would talk about her boy problems, and truly found it hard to care about anything. It was a wonder Mickie had stuck around that long. No other person would have. Lexie unintentionally pushed people away too, so in a way, she could understand Xena. People at her old high school probably thought Lexie was standoffish too. They thought that she was a smart loner who didn''t want or need companionship. It was the aura she gave off. But truly, Lexie had actually wanted friends. A lot. Lexie finally nodded to her father. "Fine. I''ll keep an open mind."
The shopping trip was uneventful. Emma was nice and friendly as always while Xena stayed mostly on her pad watching yet another fight. She completely ignored Lexie¡¯s existence and Lexie¡¯s attempts to start conversations about the fight fell flat. Lexie could take a hint so she focused on Emma and her father''s conversation, in which they appeared to be gossiping about a love triangle going on at the Green Fox retirement home. At a point, Lexie''s mind wandered back to the cards. It bothered her that she wasn''t advancing fast enough. Even though Aiden often commended her skill, she thought as a pre-awakened daughter of a magical prodigy, this would be a lot faster. At this rate, it would be forever before she learned any card crafting. She also had a thought that maybe Aiden was intentionally slowing her down and putting limits on her because he didn''t want her to advance too quickly. He''d implied as much many times, telling her he didn''t want to grow up fast and such. Maybe there were other ways to do this faster that he wasn''t telling her. So Lexie decided to use some of the time out shopping to go on the NET to research on how to reduce her activation time. She found articles discussing different mana-shaping techniques and their percentage efficacy. One of them looked like a college scientific paper, and used all sorts of foreign vocabulary, that Lexie either had to look up or glean the meaning of just by reading the abstract. The full article needed a scholar ID and Aiden already told her she would need to be a scholar or know a scholar to get that. Aiden''s scholar ID was no longer valid. She bookmarked the page and went on to the next. She also found a video about cardless meditation techniques that were said to help speed up activation. She bookmarked that for later too. And then somewhere in her research, she came up on the concept of deadrooms. Apparently, when a high powered dungeon portal disappeared from an area, it sucked out all the mana from the spawn spot, leaving that spot mana-empty. These were known as deadspots, spots in the atmosphere that were bereft of mana, and they actively repelled mana so the mana particles in the air moved around them. Back in the day, mages would often congregate at these dead spots and use them to practice both internal and external mana shaping as well as mana cloud movement. The dead spots made it easier to shape internal mana and be more aware of it. But it also made it harder to shape external mana, so that way one could train both muscles simultaneously in different ways. Now using this concept, a few mage-scientists created what became known as deadrooms. They were rooms that looked like pc rooms but they simulated deadspots using artificially created tools to repel mana. A few major cities, like Arcadia, had deadroom rentals in malls and city centers. The only problem was that it was far too expensive. Aiden had shown Lexie how to open her credit account and he gave her about a fifty credits a month, apologetically telling her that it was all he could afford. Lexie didn''t mind the amount and she told Aiden it was fine because she didn''t want him to feel bad. But looking at it now, she would have to save for at least ten months to be able to rent an hour at the deadroom. Damn. Later that night after dinner and helping Aiden clear the table for the second time, which earned her a smile from him, she went upstairs. And after she was sure he thought she was in bed, she watched the meditation video. She mimicked as she watched, trying to feel the mana in her body and move it around without using cards. It was immeasurably harder, but she kept trying, concentrating, focusing until she gave herself a headache. In the end, she wasn''t sure she moved the cloud so much as an inch. But she kept trying for hours later until her muscles felt sore from being clenched in concentration and her brain hurt. Then she switched over to watch some organized violence, and dozed off.
The next morning, Lexie woke up early to do meditation, shaping and cloud-awareness exercises. She did it for two hours straight and then did some more reading on the NET about activation times. They suggested potions and deadrooms were fastest way to cut down activation times. Lexie knew she couldn¡¯t afford either but she had another idea. She jogged down the stairs eagerly, already smelling the pumpernickel in the air. Aiden said he was baking pumpernickel bread today. When she got there, she walked to the counter right next to his aproned form. Salivating, she reached for a roll on the bread cooling machine, only to have Aiden tap the back of her hand with a spatula. ¡°Hey," she protested. ¡°Wait till they cool down,¡± he said, amused. ¡°Or you¡¯re gonna burn your tongue.¡± "Oh." Lexie shifted from one foot to the other. ¡°After we¡¯re done can we go for a walk? I wanna see if I can find a deadspot." He gave her an amused look. "Who told you about deadspots?" "The NET," she responded. "Are there any close by? Maybe that last unstable dungeon that Uncle Max destroyed left one behind." "No,¡± he said, dashing her hopes. He picked up a bread roll, made sure it was cool enough and then handed it to her. She took it eagerly. ¡°That dungeon was far too weak to create a complete deadspot. And you shouldn''t be going to dead spots anyway at your age. Besides, we¡¯ll have to spend some time today getting you ready for school next week." ¡°School?¡± Lexie squeaked, nearly dropping her bread roll. ¡°I have to go to school?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Aiden blinked as put the freshly baked bread down to cool. ¡°Did you think you wouldn¡¯t have to?¡± Lexie hadn''t really considered it. Despite what Luther had said, her only thought had been to stay home, study the cards with Aiden, and try to change her pre-affixation before System Day. Speaking of which she still had to ask Aiden about that... ¡°You¡¯ve missed quite a bit, but they understood because you were incapacitated,¡± he said. ¡°But I¡¯m afraid now that everyone knows that you¡¯re awake, especially with Luther knowing about it, there will be problems if they think that I¡¯m shirking your education which every child is entitled to by law. I could get into trouble for that.¡± ¡°Aw." She deflated and almost wasn¡¯t even as excited about the bread anymore. Almost. She bit into it, melancholically. It was still soft and tasty though. Aiden ruffled her hair before turning back to the counter. ¡°I know it will be difficult at first, but I let them know that you lost your memory so you''ll be given some time and extra help to catch up.¡± That wasn¡¯t the problem, although now that she thought about it, it did present a different type of problem. Lexie had always been one of the best in all her classes, but now she was tackling a curriculum from a new world that she wasn''t born in. Undoubtedly, there would be things she didn''t understand or simply didn''t know. Things she would fail at, questions she couldn¡¯t answer. The thought sent shivers down her spine, anxiety knotting her gut. While she had an irrational fear of looking stupid in general, she had a very rational fear of looking stupid in front of middle schoolers. They''re not technically real people, she tried to comfort herself by saying, So it doesn''t matter if I look stupid. Still. The anxiety remained. The second issue was time. She assumed that things like history and science and maybe even math would be different in this world that had magic. That would mean swaths of new information she would have to learn. And that would undoubtedly cut into her card lessons. ¡°What school do I go to?¡± she asked. "Everstone Elementary. It¡¯s in Arcadia." ¡°That far?¡± she asked and he nodded. ¡°Well, not too many kids in Hovelton so not too many schools. It¡¯s kind of a retirement community. But Everstone is a good school. One of the best in Arcadia." She sighed. Great. So she was going to school as the weird girl who lived in another town full of older people and who also lost her memories and was maybe stupid. This was going to be fun. ¡°So I¡¯ll need to take the train?¡± ¡°Well, not unless you want to. There¡¯s a separate bussing system and we can request them to pick you up." "I think I¡¯d rather take the train," she said quickly. She¡¯d done bussing once in middle school. She was lucky to make it out sane. "You only really have to attend classes in person two times a week," Aiden continued. "The rest of the study is through NET video conferencing so you''ll still be home most of the time.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± That was convenient and made her feel slightly better. ¡°Why isn¡¯t the whole thing just done through the NET then? Seems like that would be a lot more convenient.¡± ¡°Because going to school is good for developing interpersonal interaction,¡± he said, pointedly looking at her. ¡°You can¡¯t avoid the world forever Lex. Eventually, you have to start living in it.¡± Lexie frowned Once again, she had no clue what he was talking about. 18 - A Conversation With The Saintess Aiden kept to two-hour practice time for the next week. But in the morning, Lexie would wake up early to do the meditation exercises she found on the net, trying to move her mana without the use of a card. One person advised her to pretend like she was pulling a string from her body with her finger, and the mana would follow. She thought maybe it worked a little and she felt the mana cloud moving towards her hands. But she couldn''t be sure. It was a lot easier to be aware of the movement of mana with a card in her hand. She supposed that the card helped her affinity. But her affinity wasn''t zero without the card. The more she did it, the more she worked whatever internal muscle controlled the fizzling particles inside of her. Pretty soon, she was sure she could move the cloud at least more than an inch without using the card. And she was no longer getting the headaches as much either. The headaches, she read, were signs of approaching mana exhaustion, a separate concept from burnout that simply meant that she was straining the internal muscles that she used to move around her mana cloud. She didn''t want to strain her muscles, so whenever the headaches started, she would take a break, watch videos or read some more articles. And then when she felt adequately rested she would get right back into it. Maybe because of that, she thought she was starting to see some progress. Today she managed to activate the card in forty point two seconds. Elation filled her. That was her best time yet. At the rate she was going, she would get to her goal. Maybe not as fast as she wanted but faster than most people who weren¡¯t practicing for eight hours a day with potions. She again briefly wondered if this was usual, her affinity for mana. Or if she could simply sense mana better because she had lived in a world without it and was more attuned to the differences in her body with mana. Either way, she was happy about her time. If she kept at it, she could get her internal mana to move faster through the pathways. But the problem was that external mana movement was even slower than internal. And based on everything she''d seen and read, the only way to increase external mana movement was through deadspaces. Either way, she decided to celebrate her increased mana intuition by activating more cards, including the elusive . She had just got done with the choreography, moving her arm in a winding up pattern, when a knock on the door interrupted. It symbolized that her two hours were up. Disappointment washed through Lexie as Aiden opened the door, holding a large text book with a smile on his face. "Ready for the wonderful world of mathematics?" he asked. Lexie groaned. Her least favorite subject. Although she''d eventually gotten a hang of it thanks to her tutors back on Earth 2, Lexie had never liked maths. Which was funny considering she had gotten into a school famous for its maths and engineering programs. During the week, Aiden was also trying to catch her up to speed before her first day of class. That meant brushing up on basics¨CBasic Science and Magic, English, History and Politics, Common Language and Literature, and Geography. It wasn''t that Lexie didn''t enjoy the classes. Aiden was a good teacher. He didn''t expect her to understand everything right away, and he never made her feel stupid for any question she asked. He also had analogies that made the lessons stick better in her head, like when he compared the War of the Greater Districts to a group of friends who really wanted to but just couldn''t get along. Lexie noted everything down¨Cshe was getting the hang of writing on the study pad¨Cand made sure she understood it before moving on. But something was telling her that it still wouldn''t be enough. "I know you''ve never been a fan," Aiden said grinning at Lexie''s groan. "And I don''t expect you to be a number cruncher overnight, but I at least want to get you up to a point where you pass the final exam, even if you fail a few assignments or tests here and there." Lexie gaped at Aiden. Failing a test? Absolutely not. The horror. Lexie hadn¡¯t even thought about the possibility of botching an exam. She¡¯d never botched anything before. She¡¯s never even gotten below an A- in her life, and even that was only because Mr. Gunther hated that Lexie corrected him all the time. The thought of doing worse than that gave Lexie hives, but Aiden seemed laid back about the thought of her failing. But she wasn''t necessarily worried about failing maths. It was still elementary stuff, even with the few changes Earth 9 made to it. But maths still bored her for the most part and she wasn''t looking forward to the lesson. "It¡¯s okay, you don¡¯t have to do as well this term," he said. "It¡¯s not a big deal even if you don¡¯t pass the final exam so I don''t want you to worry. Anyone would understand given your condition." And then Lexie finally had to wonder, a question she probably should have asked earlier. ¡°And what exactly is my condition?¡± She asked. ¡°I mean what happened before that coma?¡± Guilt flickered across his expression and he shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± he said. ¡°I went out late to talk to Max, and I think you followed me out and then fell into a ditch. You hit your head and was probably unconscious for hours. When I came back and saw you, I...I nearly lost it." He swallowed thickly at the memory. "The healer said that you might have memory loss and it might stay for a while. Apparently, the concussion you sustained was more complicated than most. It might have been fatal. Thank the system, it wasn¡¯t.¡± "Ah." So it was a concussion from a fall? Huh. Lexie thought it would be a little more dramatic than that. How often do concussions here lead to an interdimensional soul exchange? And since it was apparently life-threatening, was the real Lexie Sparrowfoot dead? If Lexie Evan''s soul left the body right now, would this flesh just slump over, empty? Or was the other Lexie asleep in this body? Would she one day wake up and kick her out? That thought was disconcerting to say the least. She wondered how Aiden would react to the knowledge that she wasn''t his real daughter. Sometimes, she wanted to tell him, just to see if maybe he could help her figure out what happened, why she was here and how she could go back. But even without the ISTS rules, she still didn''t trust Aiden with that secret. And also, a huge part of her didn''t want to break his heart. Every time he smiled at her and gazed at her with strong emotion, it lathered Lexie with that uncomfortable guilt again. She felt like she was stealing something that didn''t belong to her. Aiden''s affection. And if there was one constant she knew in this new world, it was that Aiden Sparrowfoot loved his daughter. And Lexie wasn¡¯t her. That thought made her feel uncomfortable on many levels that she didn''t want to dig into right now. So she decided to change the subject. "So what kind of work do you do with Max?" she asked. "Dungeon delving?" He''d told her a few days ago that her Uncle Max was a famous Dungeon Delver. He''d even shown her a video of the one and only interview Max had ever done, where he''d looked like he wanted to behead the interviewer every time he was asked a question. Although to be fair, the questions were kind of inane. They asked him things like, "How did you feel when you encountered the monster on the seventh level? Were you scared or excited?" and "How did it feel watching your teammate get his arm torn from his body?" And the man said it with such wide-eyed glee, that it made Lexie kind of want to punch him too. According to Aiden, Max had sworn off interviews altogether after that. "No, I don¡¯t delve," Aiden said to answer her question. "Apart from the unstable dungeon problem we''re having, Hovelton is not a dungeon destination. Not even close and so Max is pretty much the only dungeon delver in town, and he only lives here because his brother lives here. The rest of his team live in other cities in Orinia and a few live in the other districts. They come together during peak delving season, which is in a few months, and Max will have to leave town then." "I see. So you''re helping him before he leaves?" "Yup. During off-season, he does a lot to get ready. Mostly working on improving his weapons, learning minor potion-making, and studying advanced theoretical dungeonology. The latter two is why I went to see him that night.¡± "To teach him?" Lexie guessed and Aiden nodded. "So you know a lot about dungeons?" "I know a lot about everything," he said with that slightly prideful tilt that made Lexie roll her eyes with a smile. In response, he reached out to tweak her nose. "Where do you think you get your obsessive studying habit from?" ¡°It''s not obsessive,¡± she said, but even she knew it was a lie. Even in her past life, before her parents made it her job to get good grades, Lexie had always been curious and liked to learn new things. As early as six-years-old, she used to read encyclopedias to pass the time. "Although I guess your mother was an obsessive learner in her own way too," Aiden continued. "Not with books but with battle techniques. She was a soldier-type fighter but she would spend hours poring over videos of other fighter techniques. It made her style more versatile." "Mmm." Lexie wanted to ask more about her mother, but she didn''t want that sad look to remain on Aiden''s features so she said, instead. "Okay. Let''s get this math thing over with." If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. The Earth 9 math refresher course took about two hours and then after that, they had History and Politics. Luckily though, Earth 9 shared a lot of history with Earth 2 with a few tweaks in details and names and such. For example there was the War of the Greater Districts which resembled World War 2, with Russia and Germany both being nations in District 8. District 5 also had a trade route that was reminiscent of the Asian silk trade. And then there was the history of the Guardians who were like the old Grecoroman gods of this world that not everyone was convinced actually existed. Lexie drew the parallels to make the information easier to remember, and even luckier for her, thanks to the system interface''s automatic translation, there was no need to learn different languages, unless she wanted to go into linguistics. History and Politics lasted a lot longer than Maths did, mostly because both father and daughter were enjoying it so much. It was essentially like a long story time and Lexie enjoyed asking questions to figure out all the neat ways Earth 9''s history differed from hers. ¡°You said you wanted to check on Evan, right?" Aiden said after they were finally done. They were both lying on the floor at this point staring at the roof, with Lexie''s head on his extended arm. Lexie nodded. She knew Evan had finally been completely healed by the Saintess, and so had several other people at the clinic. And so he would be getting discharged today. She wanted to see him but she also didn''t know about running into Rose who had been very awkward every time they met in the hospital hallway. ¡°Yeah, but it''s fine. I just wanted to know he''s okay.¡± As she spoke, Lexie paid particular attention to the bands on her father¡¯s wrists. She wondered if it was her imagination, or if his wrists looked a little rawer than they did before. It didn''t look like that before the whole Evan thing, did it? She would have noticed. Why was it so red now? He¡¯d told her that the bands often chaffed. Was it from that? Maybe I should get some ointment for him. ¡°Tomorrow I''ll be working all day, so you''ll have to do some self-study," he continued. "I think you can study Science and Magic tomorrow, and I have a textbook that can help you understand it better. It can help you understand cards too." ¡°Will it help me be faster?¡± She couldn¡¯t help but ask and he shot her a look. ¡°No. I repeat, faster comes with time, dear. But it can help you understand pathways better, and maybe that might help visualize." He transferred the book right to her inventory and continued, ¡°Once you¡¯re done with an hour of that, then you can move on to the cards. But you have to promise me that you¡¯ll only spend two hours on cards.¡± ¡°I promise,¡± Lexie said immediately but mentally crossed her fingers. Aiden didn¡¯t even pretend to believe her. He gave her a resigned look. ¡°At least try to get adequate rest between each try. Can you promise me that?¡± ¡°That I can do,¡± she nodded. She wasn¡¯t trying to burn out again. That was scary. After the lesson was over, Aiden let her play with the cards for a few more minutes and then finally insisted that she take a nap.
The next day, Lexie''s lowest activation time was only forty-two point six. She was disappointed but decided not to let it linger. It''s like exercising, she reminded herself. You couldn''t expect your body to be at its peak at every moment. Sometimes you went out jogging and hit your PR. Other times, you didn¡¯t. Probably, it suggested that she needed more rest. While in bed, waiting for sleep to catch up to her, she scanned the Video Alley and found that most of the top videos today were clips of a team of [Heroes] rescuing people off a burning building. One of them could fly, and he was going one-by-one to take each person off the building. But there were too many people desperately calling his attention and the fire was raging even more. Another person was using a forcefield to try to contain the fire from spreading to the street. And then, finally, a young man shot in the air, fire jetting from his hands. He floated then he put the side of his fist against his mouth, as though about to cough. But instead, he inhaled deeply. The craziest thing happened next. The fire began to form a whirlpool in the air, pulling in toward the man''s breath. Amazing. It was like he was sucking in the fire through his fist, like a reverse dragon breath. The flames arced and danced in the air, leaving the charred building as the victims stared at the [Hero] in awe. And then once it was over, they cheered for him and he dropped back to the floor. According to the comments, his name was Theo Firebringer. A quick net search revealed that he was Stella Firebringer''s seventeen-year-old son, Luther''s nephew. And apparently he was pretty popular because nearly all the comments were about him and also how good-looking he was. Lexie guessed she could see it. He had that longish curly red hair of a boyband member, not to mention clear blue eyes with a chiseled jaw. He was definitely heart throb material and the comments knew it. The top three comments read:
Firefangirlabbie90 Theo Firebringer is the dreamiest hero ever. Hot (literally), competent and I¡¯ve heard he smells better than Chef Nancy¡¯s xinnamon rolls. How can one human be so damn perfect? Nani232: Oh my gosh, I wish I was that building so he could take the fire right out of me. deadinsidejkjk: Guys, can we focus on the near tragedy that just happened? You all can be so gross sometimes. And girls like to say we¡¯re the pervs.
Lexie had to agree with deadinside. Some of the comments got pretty gross but she got it. Theo was a looker, but Lexie was definitely more interested in how the fire-swallowing thing worked. Was that some kind of Unbound magic? It had to be since Max mentioned that elementals were all Unbound magic users, but she didn''t know for sure that they didn¡¯t use any aids at all. Because where on earth did the fire go? His pathways? How did he eliminate it? Someone in the comments posted Theo''s probable stats, mentioning that he was an A-ranked Elemental (Fire Type). That got Lexie thinking: since elementals were all unbound magic users, did that mean that there were no B or C ranked elementals? Why? And how? According to what she read, unbound magic worked in a similar way to bound magic, in that it still somewhat balanced internal and external mana, except without a conduit. Occasionally, if the user was powerful enough they didn¡¯t need to even consider the external mana which meant that they could use magic even in mana-poor regions like District 2. She wondered if the Firebringers were like that, and that was why they were so revered. Watching Theo Firebringer work, saving an entire building in one go and swallowing fire, Lexie knew he probably was one of those people with mountains of mana. She felt a little envious and wistful. Would she ever be able to do something like that with cards? Be the bad ass who saved people? Not that she wanted to be a [Hero], obviously she couldn''t. But she did want to be powerful enough to save those around her. Lexie suddenly felt very bad about her affixation. Although she had no plans on being a [Hero], it was still a bummer that there were skills like Theo¡¯s in existence and she¡¯d been given one that was so¡­meh. Maybe if I¡¯d gotten a skill like Theo''s I wouldn¡¯t have minded being a [Hero]. It would have been easy for me to earn points by establishing feats of heroism. But that¡¯s going to be difficult with cards which is why I stick to research. Aiden told her that one way to change a preaffixation would be to continue to earn points in another affixation that she wanted more. So in this case, since she wanted to be a [Researcher] she had to earn scholar points, which were gotten from studying and research and other scholarly activity. So she was on the right track there. After a short, uneventful nap, Lexie made herself a bologna sandwich and had it for lunch. Once she was done, and Aiden still hadn¡¯t returned, Lexie made another sandwich for him. She had no clue if he remembered to eat at the hospital or not, but considering how many times he came home looking two paces from death she figured not. She packed up the sandwich and headed out locking the door behind her. Aiden said that the protection artifact he¡¯d gotten from Max for his home was kind of a full-blown security system, which only recognized her and Aiden as the owners of the house. No one else would be allowed in without permission. Well, no living thing at least. Ghouls didn¡¯t count since technically they weren¡¯t alive and non-corporeal entities messed with the artifact. Aiden mentioned that Max''s tech friend was working on a new version that would be impervious to ghouls too. Either way, she set off down the winding path, trekking to the hospital. Hovelton was relatively safe, Aiden said, and so she would be fine walking by herself. But if she saw a dungeon portal, a wild beast, or a creepy stranger, she needed to press a button to call the authorities and run away. She was met with an unexpected sight when she walked into the hospital. The waiting room was pretty much empty, which was interesting given how packed it usually was. There was only Carissa lounging at the front desk with a selfie PHORB. She grinned and waved at Lexie, then turned back to what she was doing. Lexie headed down the hallways, and found the Saintess talking to Xena. For once Xena didn¡¯t have that antagonistic expression on her face, nor did she look guarded either. Xena¡¯s expression was open, actively listening and when the Saintess said something with a wink, Xena actually cracked a smile. Of course, the second she noticed Lexie standing there, the smile died. A thread of annoyance weaved through Lexie''s mind. What did I ever do to her? ¡°Ah if it isn¡¯t the other little rascal,¡± the Saintess greeted as she approached. ¡°Come to deliver food?¡¯ ¡°Yeah. For my dad.¡± She shifted from one foot to the other and said, ¡°Thanks again for coming, Saintess Dee. My dad and Emma and everyone really appreciate it, especially since we all know you¡¯re probably really busy." She sighed. ¡°Unfortunately. The church works me like a dog. Literally. I live with priests and they keep me locked in the basement most of the time, feeding me slop on a metal plate and only letting me out when I¡¯m useful.¡± Lexie and Xena gaped at her with similar horror. ¡°I¡¯m kidding!¡± the Saintess laughed. ¡°Mostly. Anyway, you''re Lexie, right? I just gave Xena here my contact info, and I suppose she can share it with you. If you guys need anything, just let me know, alright?¡± Wow. Lexie shared a look with Xena then turned back to Saintess Dee totally awed. No wonder Xena was in a good mood. Healers were rare and Saintesses even more so. Plus they were always busy, so for her to make them that offer¡­that was insanely nice of her. ¡°Thank you,¡± Lexie said, staring at the Saintess with a whole new level of respect. But she also couldn¡¯t stop herself from asking the question that had bothered her for some time now. ¡°How come there aren¡¯t more healers pre-affixed by the system? If the system can pretty much force you to be anything it wants, then the lack feels like a feature, not a bug.¡± The Saintess wasn¡¯t expecting that question. Her eyebrow flew up her forehead. Even Xena frowned at Lexie as though Lexie was being rude. Lexie maintained eye contact until the Saintess finally answered. ¡°My, how articulate you are for such a youngster," she said, then her smile gentled. "The system can force you to have powers, but it can¡¯t force you to use them, not unless it employs some very unethical methods. It¡¯s not that there aren¡¯t more healers in the system. It¡¯s just that most people who end up being pre-affixed as healers, choose not to use their skill.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because healers die early,¡± she said matter-of-factly, so easily that Lexie simply assumed it was another joke. She waited for the punchline but to her growing dread, it never came. ¡°Healing is really hard on the body,¡± Saintess Dee continued. ¡°Our pathways get damaged and diseased along the line and we lose the ability to rejuvenate ourselves much less heal anyone else. It¡¯s a career with a short lifespan, literally and figuratively. Most of us don¡¯t live it past fifty.¡± Xena and Lexie still stared at the Saintess confused and dismayed. Dee''s tone still wasn''t properly relaying the gravity of what she was saying. Lexie didn''t know whether to take her seriously or not. It was hard to believe the woman was talking about her impending early death so casually. Especially since she followed it with a bright smile and a clap. ¡°Anywho, enough about that boring stuff. It was really nice meeting you two, but I¡¯m about to be summoned out now. You got my number, so don¡¯t be a stranger. Don¡¯t forget to call me if you need anything, alright?¡± They just nodded at her still in shock. Lexie was also thinking, How do you expect me to call you for help when you just told me that healing kills you? After the Saintess left, Lexie didn''t want Xena to think that she wanted to talk to her. So she pointedly ignored her and continued down the hallway to the lab. Unfortunately, Xena was going in the same direction. Lexie walked faster. At least this way she''s following me, not me following her. It was such a petty thought to have, but it gave her some satisfaction. She got more satisfaction when she delivered food to Aiden. He made a huge show of it, fawning over it to everyone else in the lab until Emma said, "Oh, how adorable. Xena you should stick with Lexie. Maybe she''ll be a good influence on you." She stared pointedly at Xena when she said it, which made Xena roll her eyes and Lexie smile smugly. And then Lexie soon returned home. She spent some more time practicing mana shaping, and doing more exercises she found online. In between that she watched more fight videos, including one of Dust Bunny Vs The Ink Witch, a weaponist who turned ink into solid weapons. Lexie knew within the first five minutes of the match that it would be Bunny¡¯s win. The other girl was good too, but Bunny was simply better. And the comments knew it too. Most of the comments were praising Bunny¡¯s skill. A few people wanted Bunny to step on them as she did on the Ink Witch at the finisher. Nani252 also crafted an elaborate fanfiction about Bunny and Ink Witch in the comments, and the replies called for her to find religion. And then as Lexie fell asleep, she tried not to let her stomach knot with dread. Tomorrow would be her first day of school. 19 - First Day of School Monty drummed his fingers on the table, but the sound was drowned out by the general din of the busy bar that sat at the corner of 5th and 6th Avenue Crest City, Arcadia. A hard, loud tune was playing on the radio, from some musician he¡¯d never heard of and it clamored over the wooden lodge decor. Monty was tempted to suggest that someone reduce the volume. It wouldn¡¯t take much to get them to oblige. He didn¡¯t even have to do it himself. A half-drunk crowd of mostly mundanes had loose control over their pathways, and it would take nothing at all for him to whisper a spell into enough loose ears and they in turn would pressure the bartender to turn it down. Or he could simply talk to the bartender for long enough that he would be amenable to his suggestion to reduce the music. Or he could somehow start a riot which would undoubtedly lead to the radio being broken. But of course, he would do none of those things. He wasn''t evil. He wasn''t his father. Besides, he was currently occupied with another spell, one that allowed him to telepathically touch the pathway of everyone in that room. It wasn¡¯t mind reading. He wasn¡¯t even close enough to scanning the surface of their thoughts because that was another huge no-no. What he was doing was more closely associated with reading auras, translating body language through pathways, detecting the sensations the crowd were unknowingly leaking into the air as waste. Mostly, he focused on detecting if anyone had any murderous intent toward him. Currently, no one did. He was sure with his cap and the dim lighting no one even knew who he was. And even if they did, he didn''t expect anyone here to want him dead. But it was good practice to check. The spell was still active when he detected a very distinct familiar psychic register. He felt a pleased aura which meant she¡¯d spotted him and a smile split his lips as she slid into the seat across from him. ¡°I feel like death,¡± she sang pleasantly to the angry beat of the song. ¡°You always say that every time I see you." He had to speak loudly to be heard. He also passed her the plate of cheese fries and fried chicken that he¡¯d ordered for her. ¡°Yes." She accepted the plate eagerly. "But this time I feel it. I don''t think I¡¯ve been this exhausted since I had to deal with that plague.¡± ¡°That bad?¡± A quick probe of her surface emotions showed that she was indeed tired. Monty kept it at the surface, though he knew Dee wouldn''t mind him going deeper. She was one of the few people who''d permitted him to look into her mind whenever he wanted. Of course, he didn''t take liberties with that either. Like he said, he wasn''t his father. Monty pulled back his probe, her exhaustion weaving him with guilt. It was his fault for asking her the favor, even though he knew how hard it was on her. Left to him, she wouldn¡¯t use her healing powers much at all, but Dee could never resist a soul in need. That was one of the reasons why she''d affixed early as a [Saintess]. ¡°Hey, sorry bout that," Monty said. "When I called you, I thought it was just two people who needed healing. I didn''t think the whole town was affected.¡± ¡°They weren¡¯t. At least not by the loiter bite. But they had much bigger problems.¡± She took a fry and stuck it in her mouth chewing enthusiastically but looking far off. ¡°They hadn''t had a healer visit them in years and they¡¯ve had at least three unstable dungeons attempt to spawn in the last few months.¡± Monty frowned. ¡°Dungeonology has never been my strongest subject but isn¡¯t that like¡­an abnormal amount?¡± ¡°It is,¡± she said. ¡°Even stranger is the fact that they reported a ghoul type monster escaping the dungeon a few weeks ago, but then on the same day they had a pestilence-type creature that attacked their crops.¡± ¡°So they had two different types escaping the same dungeon?¡± That was unusual for unstable dungeons. Normal dungeons could have multiple types of creatures (although they were usually limited to two and most commonly there was only one creature type present). But unstable dungeons were a trap for creatures that were in their natural habitat. When one creature went in, the dungeon would officially close and respawn somewhere else. So typically, only one creature escaped at a time. ¡°There were so many sick people there,¡± Dee added and her eyes darkened, her entire expression losing that light teasing affect that it usually had. ¡°And some of them didn''t even know it. They had simply gotten accustomed to living with their illnesses because they hadn''t been visited by a healer for so long. They had a mundane Healing House but still. I don¡¯t even know how they managed.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not your fault,¡± Monty said because he knew that guilt that always ate her up when she faced the human dilemma of not being able to save everyone. ¡°The priests are spreading you thin as is. You can¡¯t be everywhere at once.¡± ¡°I know,¡± she said but her next smile was too weak to be convincing. ¡°But, it is strange that the hero association hasn''t said anything about both the healer problem and the dungeons. And they haven''t sent anyone in to investigate either." ¡°Yeah, strange.¡± Monty frowned in thought. He might have to ask around about that. Dee took another fry and eyed him as he sipped his beer. Hunger flashed across her face. ¡°On second thought,¡± she said, ¡°I think I know how they¡¯ve been managing.¡± ¡°How?¡± A slow smile spread her lips. ¡°What''s that information worth to ya?¡± She eyed the beer again as though waiting for him to get her meaning. Monty raised an eyebrow. ¡°You know you could just order your own beer.¡± She shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m meeting the priests in an hour and they¡¯ll smell it on my breath. You know how they get.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± While drinking didn¡¯t affect Dee''s powers, The Church of which the Saintess was bound to, frowned upon her participating in any of the vices, namely drinking, smoking, partying, eating too much greasy food, or anything fun. They used the excuse that they wanted to keep her as healthy as possible, for as long as possible, but Monty often thought they were just prudish. The punishment for disobeying those orders wasn''t that bad. It usually required hours of prayer and reflection. But Dee hated that more than anything¨Csitting in a dark room with nothing but her thoughts. So she tried to avoid pissing off the priests as much as possible. Monty felt bad for his friend frequently because he knew how much she liked beer, but he failed to see how her drinking his beer was a work around. And after a few seconds of trying to figure it out, Dee finally rolled her eyes. ¡°Oh come on, do I have to spell it out to you? Just use your mind magic to form a small little harmless connection with my brain pathway, you drink the beer and I get the taste and satisfaction of drinking it myself.¡± ¡°No,¡± Monty said immediately. ¡°Oh come on.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to invade your mind.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not an invasion if I ask for it.¡± Discomfort crawled through Monty, so much so that it itched his skin. Even the thought of it turned his stomach. It was one thing for him to scan surface thoughts and use simple soothing spells. It was a whole other thing for him to use mind magic on his best friend. ¡°Not happening," he said. That was crossing one of his hard boundaries and he tried not to do that unless he explicitly had to. Dee crossed her arms and leaned back into the seat. With a pout and her hoodie up, she didn¡¯t look like the Saintess. She just looked like Dee, the stubborn, sassy girl he''d always known. Perhaps it was because he''d known her for so long that her ''Saintess glow'', as they called it , had little effect on him. ¡°Well then I guess you¡¯re just not getting the information then.¡± Monty smirked. ¡°You realize you''re a terrible liar, and I could guess my way to it, right?¡± ¡°Not if I make myself hard to read.¡± She shot back which was a fair point. They reached a stand-off but eventually, she relented. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll tell you,¡± she said. ¡°Sparrowfoot was there. In Hovelton.¡± He froze, feeling everything lock up inside him. She mistook his lack of response for a lack of understanding. ¡°You know. Aiden Sparrowfoot? The Archmage?¡± ¡°I know who he is.¡± Monty couldn¡¯t forget even if he wanted to. He still saw the guy in his nightmares sometimes. ¡°He was in Hovelton?¡± ¡°Yeah. Actually, one of the kids who broke into the party was his daughter.¡± ¡°The one who screamed?" "Not the taller one. The shorter one. She has the most adorable pinchable cheeks, so cute.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± He¡¯d barely seen the other girl who¡¯d run and grabbed her friend and he didn¡¯t think to get a sense of her, so focused on resolving the situation before it got out of hand. Dee gave him time to sort through his emotions while eating her fries. From her frequent glances, she knew how much she had discombobulated him. He didn¡¯t know how to react to this news. Years ago, Monty had been part of the extraction team that was sent to capture Aiden Sparrowfoot after the association discovered his whereabouts. It was an off-Earth expedition that nearly cost him his mind. He¡¯d faced a lot of fearsome foes in his time. Facing Aiden Sparrowfoot was another thing entirely and attempting pathway manipulation on the former [Hero] had nearly resulted in half of Monty''s pathways being ripped to shreds. With the timely arrival of other [Heroes], he''d managed to make it out of that fight but it had taken months of therapy, physical and mental, before he could go back to work. Still, that wasn¡¯t the part that featured most often in his nightmares. More than the agony and pain of having his pathways torn wounded, what haunted him was the rage, and sheer agony on Aiden¡¯s face as he faced down a battalion of mages and knights sent to capture him. His scream had been one of despair, and anger and utter desolation that had less to do with his capture and more to do with losing hope. Monty couldn¡¯t forget the other man''s sadness either, giving him dual, opposing but equally powerful impressions of Aiden. ¡°And the Archmage?¡± he said finally. ¡°What did you think about him?" Dee twirled a fry between her teeth. ¡°Why? Are you jealous?¡± She teased with a smile then cocked her head. ¡°I suppose he was kind of good-looking in a nerdy professor way." ¡°Not that, I meant about his aura. I can never get an accurate read on the guy.¡± He¡¯d tried again after Aiden¡¯s powers were suppressed with the Tilling bands. Suppressing his fear, he¡¯d approached the prison bars and tentatively tested probed Aiden''s mind. This time Aiden''s pathways didn''t put up any opposition. They couldn''t. Monty had searched him as Aiden sat staring sightlessly in that cell. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. At the time, Monty no longer detected animosity or a strong thirst for vengeance from the [Villain] and he relayed that to the association. That information, and Aiden¡¯s many years of impeccable service, were why the [Villain] was released into the world with only the Tilling bands as his punishment. But Monty still wasn''t sure releasing Aiden was the right decision. The things the Archmage had done...things he was capable off... They terrified him. Even when Aiden Sparrowfoot was sitting in the cell, alone and powerless, there was something about him that put Monty on edge. The man was effectively mundane, but he still didn¡¯t feel like it. He had a formidable aura despite his lack of mana, and supposed lack of willpower. Monty second-guessed himself all the time and frequently wondered if he''d done the right thing by inadvertently convincing the association to free Aiden. He wondered if Aiden really wasn''t planning any type of retribution or similarly heinous plots. What if Monty had read him wrong? What if the Archmage simply had an exceptionally guarded aura? After all, the man had more mastery of his pathways than anyone Monty had ever met. His plaguing doubt was what caused him to ask Dee the question, about her impression of Aiden. Dee¡¯s powers didn''t really work in the same way his did. She mostly got feedback emotions when she healed people but occasionally she could sense whether anyone close to her was in physical or emotional distress. Although, how that would help him figure out if Aiden Sparrowfoot was plotting something, he didn''t know. ¡°He was concerned about the kid with the loiter illness. And the woman too,¡± Dee said to answer the question. ¡°But mostly he was worried about his daughter.¡¯ ¡°She was bitten?¡± She shook her head. ¡°No. I think it was just general parental angst. You know, does she hate me? Is she doing okay? That sort of thing." ¡°Oh,¡± Monty took a deep breath. At least Dee didn¡¯t detect evil intent either. But he still wasn¡¯t totally relieved. ¡°His daughter is pre-awakened by the way." Monty''s eyes widened. ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°He told me. Well, more like he and Emma, the head nurse, humble-bragged about it to anyone who would listen. Never seen a prouder pair.¡± "Oh." Must be nice to have a proud parent. Wonder what that¡¯s like. Monty suppressed the childish thought, and chewed his lip in concern. ¡°Does the [Hero] association know?¡± ¡°Probably. Apparently, Luther Firebringer visited Sparrowfoot recently so might have figured it out." ¡°So Firebringer already knows,¡± he said. "And his sister probably knows too." "Yup. What do you think Stella''s going to do with that information?" Monty had no idea. Though he was acquainted with the Firebringers, he wasn''t close enough to either of them to make an educated guess. While he was thinking, Dee''s arm shot out and she snatched his pint glass. In a blink, she downed the entire thing and then closed her eyes in bliss. Monty watched her. ¡°Thought you said you were meeting the Priests in an hour.¡± She grimaced as she put down the glass. ¡°Yes, but it was worth it.¡±
Everstone Elementary School was a tall building that stood near a busy shopping center. It was walking distance from the subway, and around the corner from where Aiden sometimes worked as a street cleaner. ¡°It¡¯s over there." Aiden pointed at it with his free hand as they turned the corner. His other hand was firmly wrapped around Lexie¡¯s as though he was frightened she would run off on her own. ¡°When we cross the street, you should head straight up and the gate should be big and obvious on your left,¡± he said. ¡°Make sure you pay attention to your surroundings. Arcadia is pretty safe but you never know.¡± ¡°Wait, you¡¯re not walking me in?¡± She turned her face up to him. Not that she needed him too, but she was surprised. He¡¯d insisted on taking the train with her today and with how he¡¯d hovered, she just thought he wouldn¡¯t retreat till he was sure she was in school. But Aiden seemed shocked by her question. ¡°You...want me to?¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°I mean, sure.¡± ¡°Really? I only walked you to school a few times in the past, but you always told me not to get close." ¡°Why not?¡± Lexie asked again. Aiden gave her a small smile. ¡°You never mentioned it but I¡¯m pretty sure I have a good guess." And then when Lexie still didn¡¯t get it, he tugged his collar a little lower so that the metallic bands on his neck showed. ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie thought. That made sense. So that was why he¡¯d dressed like that today. It was a pretty warm day, but he¡¯d worn a long-sleeved loose top with a high-collar hoodie that covered all his bands. Not entirely though. The bands were thick enough to push underneath the fabric and anyone who got close would see them. Nevertheless, they were covered up. Lexie could understand Lexie Sparrowfoot being embarrassed by her [Villain] father and instructing him to not go near her school, where her friends could see them together. It was the exact type of thing a young, preteen girl would be stressed out over. And she could also imagine how much that would pierce Aiden''s heart. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said. She felt bad, even though it hadn¡¯t truly been her doing. Aiden cared about his daughter so much and it probably hurt him that his daughter didn''t want him to walk her to school because she didn¡¯t want to be seen with him. ¡°That was mean of me.¡± But Aiden looked completely taken aback by her apology. ¡°Don¡¯t be sorry, honey bee." He copped a squat so he could stare into her eyes, his hazel gaze exuding warmth. ¡°Lexie, you weren¡¯t wrong for what you did. I¡¯m the one who did the wrong thing, and I hate that you have to pay the price for it every time people know who you are.¡± A struggle appeared on his face. ¡°If I could go back...¡± As he trailed off, Lexie waited for him to finish the sentence wondering what he would say. If he could go back, then what? Would he have not searched for answers? Would he have given up on discovering the truth behind his wife''s demise? He clearly still loved her, to the point where, he left everything behind, including Lexie, just to chase the ghost of her. And knowing that, Lexie couldn''t judge Lexie Sparrowfoot too harshly. She likely had a different view of Aiden, and likely felt abandoned by him. Meanwhile Lexie Evan''s view of parenting was colored by her experience with her not entirely healthy parents. To her, Aiden was golden in comparison. As guilty as it made her to think such a thing. ¡°You can walk me in,¡± Lexie finally said in the ensuing silence. ¡°I mean if you want to¡­¡± The slow smile Aiden beamed at her more than made up for the awkwardness of the request. ¡°I would love to.¡± And then he straightened, recaptured her hand in his, and boldly walked her toward the building. The gate was made of sleek steel vertical bars with horizontal slants, and she could see the school field beyond that. It was vast, with a playground, a sandpit, and a few athletic accouterments. It all looked very normal. Aiden brought her up to the smaller gate, where a bleary-eyed security guard blinked at them. "Hey Mitch," Aiden greeted. The man merely nodded and yawned, rising from his seat. "I can''t go past this point," Aiden told her as he let go of her hand. "So Mitch is going to take you into the reception to get you situated. I already told them everything about your memory loss, so they''re going to take special care of you." Lexie nodded, but she was reluctant to leave Aiden. She felt like a kid on the first day of a new school all over again and she was anxious and frankly wanted to go home. But she didn''t want to worry him, so she swallowed those feelings. ¡°Good luck,¡± he said as Mitch took her hand and she followed him in. She turned back to stare at Aiden who was still at the gate. He smiled and waved at her. She waved back, feeling a pining in her chest. She already missed him and felt his absence. She shook the feeling off and faced forward. She could do this. And she wasn''t going to cry on her first day back at school. That would be lame. As they headed to the reception building, she spotted a boy doing a handstand while two other boys were counting down loudly. "Nineteen, eighteen, seventeen¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to hurl," the handstand boy groaned and looked like he was on the verge of it. ¡°Give up," the chubby one smiled evilly. "Give up and kneel before your king peasant!¡± "Fourteen," the bespectacled guy continued counting, ignoring his friends. Boys, Lexie thought with a head shake and she walked into the cool reception building. A curly-haired woman was by a water dispenser (mana powered of course) and she grinned when she saw Lexie walk in. "Hey Lexie," she called out. "How''s it going?" "Good," Lexie answered as the security guard let go of her hand and started making his way back out without another word. The receptionist didn''t seem to mind, walking to Lexie with a styrofoam cup of, not water, but coffee. It was a coffee dispenser? "Your father already told me about your memory loss, you poor thing. You don''t remember me do you?" Lexie shook her head. "I''m Maisey. The school receptionist. But it''s okay, we can catch up later. Class is about to start. Follow me." She led Lexie back in the direction she just came from, across the courtyard and the playground. The boys weren¡¯t there anymore and Lexie distantly wondered if the other guy had managed to hold his vomit till the final count. There was no visible throw-up on the floor, but maybe he¡¯d given up before he could. The hallways were relatively empty but they looked like every other middle school hallway she¡¯d ever seen, with lockers and bulletin boards and water fountains. Except for the random holograms here and there, and a self-cleaning vacuum that streaked up and down the hallway avoiding bodies as it went, Lexie would have thought she was back home. They turned two more corners before Maisey approached the classroom. Lexie could already hear the faint rumble coming from inside, which meant that everyone was already there. The knot in her stomach tightened. Maisie''s body blocked Lexie''s vision as she knocked on the wooden door and then slid it open. Lexie stepped to the side, in time to see the petite woman with shoulder length black hair blink at them from the front of the class Behind her was a holographic chalkboard, on which she was currently drawing something with her fingers. "Yes, Maisey?" she answered. ¡°I have Lexie Sparrowfoot for you,¡± ¡°Oh Lexie. Of course,¡± she beckoned Lexie forward with a warm smile and as Lexie tentatively entered, she did a brief scan of the classroom. She immediately recognized the boys who had been in the courtyard earlier, laughing amongst themselves at the back right of the room. The one who was doing the handstands still looked green but grinned triumphantly meaning he¡¯d managed to make it all the way through. Her eyes went across the room and they instantly fell on a beautiful blonde girl sitting to the far left, who was also laughing with an equally pretty dark-haired girl. As Lexie went to the middle of the room and faced the rest of the class, the noise around them quieted. It was silent even before the teacher laid a hand on her shoulder and said, ¡°Class, Lexie has returned to join us again. She¡¯s been gone because she had a minor accident and has lost most of her memories so you¡¯ll have to be patient with her alright? And try to help her out where you can, so she can recover her memories faster.¡± A boy stuck his hand in the air and before the teacher could call him, he asked, ¡°How¡¯d ya lose your memories?¡± ¡°Now, Bennie, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s an appropriate question for you to-¡± ¡°I fell down a ditch,¡± Lexie answered. She figured that they would just keep asking or make up stories if she didn''t clear it up now and she wanted to get it over with. ¡°And hit my head. I was out for a few days and then when I woke up, I couldn¡¯t remember anything.¡± Bennie didn¡¯t seem pleased with that response. He frowned. ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± ¡°It was a deep ditch,¡± Lexie said defensively. ¡°My grandmother fell down a deep ditch once,¡± one very short bespectacled boy said. ¡°She hit her head on a rock and it split right open. Her brains came pouring out and everything.¡± ¡°Gross,¡± a girl sitting in front of him said and he nodded. ¡°It was." He looked down at his laced hands. ¡°It''s my fault. I should have told her to watch out for the lizard people. They had it out for her.¡± Everyone in the class was silent for a second as they all processed his trauma dump. ¡°The lizard people?¡± someone muttered. ¡°How deep was the ditch?¡¯ Bennie asked Lexie as though the other boy had never spoken but thankfully, the teacher saved her from having to answer. ¡°Okay guys, enough questions about that. Just make sure you help her feel welcome alright?¡± ¡°Yes, Mrs. Thiery,¡± they chorused. ¡°Now, Lexie, I''m Mrs. Thiery, your mathematics teacher, alright? You can sit wherever you like while I chat with Maisey outside for a second." Lexie nodded as Mrs. Thiery and Maisey stepped out. But Lexie hesitated at the front of the class. Mrs. Thiery''s parting words posed a small but significant problem. There were only two free seats in the classroom. One was in the middle back row, by someone who she now recognized was Xena and who suddenly gave her a quick glare so that she dare not even think about it. The other empty seat was by the window and while she liked the view, it was beside the boy who¡¯d told the story of his grandmother¡¯s brains spilling out. Well, here goes nothing. She made her decision quickly, approaching the window seat. But before she could sit, the boy peered at her and a small smile curved his lip. ¡°Are you sure you want to sit there?¡¯ Lexie was instantly alarmed. ¡°Why? Did something happen?¡± ¡°Something might happen,¡± he said. Lexie didn¡¯t know if he was joking or not but she knew that when middle school boys said weird cryptic stuff like that, it usually spelt trouble. He was probably planning some kind of stupid prank. But she couldn¡¯t sit by Xena either so what was she supposed to do? ¡°Don''t mind my brother,¡± the pretty blonde girl from across the classroom suddenly said. ¡±He just likes to make people uncomfortable. You can come sit by me.¡± The seat beside her was already occupied by the black-haired girl but without looking, the blonde snapped her finger and said, ¡°Move.¡± Black-hair gaped and then glared at Lexie, as though it was her fault, before getting up and moving to sit by Xena. Xena stiffened slightly but she said nothing. Okay that was weird. The blonde girl had just rudely dismissed the other girl from her desk, and now she was tapping on it, smiling at Lexie all friendly. "Come on. You can sit here." Lexie wasn''t sure she wanted that seat anymore but it was either that or potentially end up as the victim of a middle school prank. So she decided to take her chances with young Regina George. Lexie gave the boy an apologetic smile and thought she detected a hint of sadness in his expression as she walked away, which definitely didn¡¯t make her feel better about her decision. ¡°Alright,¡± Mrs. Thiery said walking back into the class as Lexie took her seat. ¡°Now let¡¯s get back to our recap for the week. Quadratic equations. Great. Her first lesson of the day was maths. Lexie didn''t need to pay too much attention to follow the lesson closely. Much of it was like what she''d learned on Earth in seventh grade (Earth 9 had a faster curriculum) including familiar concepts of rational numbers and algebra. She was missing a few foreign details here and there, but anything she didn''t understand she just noted it down for later. After the first hour long lesson, they got a brief break and Mrs Thiery left the room again. The blonde turned to smile at Lexie. ¡°My name is Veronica by the way.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Lexie.¡± ¡°I know. I¡¯m not the one who lost my memory.¡± She said it in a joking way so Lexie smiled. ¡°Yeah. Sorry. I don¡¯t know if we were friends before that¡­¡± ¡°We weren¡¯t,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t think you had friends. You were kind of quiet and weird.¡± "Oh.¡± Was that rude, blatantly honest or both? Either way, Lexie was used to it. Mickie had been the same way when they met, and made similar offhanded comments that were a breath away from rude. In fact, Veronica reminded her of Mickie in a lot of ways, especially looks wise. There were also other parallels, given that she also met Mickie in middle school, when Mickie demanded she sit by her and forced the weird quiet girl to be her friend. Lexie wondered if that was what was happening here. ¡°We definitely weren''t friends then,¡± Veronica continued. And then she winked. ¡°But we¡¯re both pre-awakened so I figured we can be friends now.¡± ¡°Wait, Lexie you¡¯re pre-awakened too?¡± Bennie spun around in his seat and his eyes suddenly widened in awe. His voice had carried throughout the entire class. Suddenly, all eyes were on Lexie. 20 - A Faustian Offer Lexie blinked at Veronica stunned and a little embarrassed. How did Veronica know she was pre-awakened? She wasn''t planning on broadcasting it, simply wanting to keep a low profile in middle school. And the only one she told was¡­ She instantly turned to Xena, who like most people in the class was staring at her. ¡°You told her?¡± Lexie asked incredulously, and a tad accusingly. Xena¡¯s expression was first shocked then turned stormy. ¡°Why on earth would I tell her?¡± ¡°Yeah, why on earth would she tell me?¡± Veronica repeated blankly. ¡°So, she didn¡¯t...¡± Lexie spun back to Veronica and asked. ¡°So how did you find out?¡± ¡°My Uncle Luth mentioned it.¡± ¡°Uncle Luth?¡± The image of the red-haired [Hero] instantly flashed in her mind. That was Veronica¡¯s uncle? ¡°Luther Firebringer of the Firerbringer Elementals.¡± The black-haired girl blurted out, a vague sneer on her face. ¡°You don¡¯t know her Uncle? He¡¯s like one of the most famous capes, duh.¡± Before Lexie could respond, Veronica rolled her eyes at the girl. ¡°She lost her memory, Diane. Duh. She barely remembers her own name. How is she supposed to remember who my uncle is?" Bennie snorted and Diane¡¯s face flamed. Lexie felt bad for her and wanted to tell Veronica to ease up on the poor girl but she didn''t know how to say it without embarrassing her more. In any case, Diane¡¯s lips fused shut and she turned to glare back down at her desk. ¡°Anyway,¡± Veronica''s attention was back on Lexie. ¡°He mentioned last week when you broke into my mother¡¯s party that you had pre-awakened. Is that true?¡± Lexie didn''t have a choice but to admit. "Yeah." Veronica beamed. ¡°So neat. I pre-awakened too, like a week before you did. Isn''t it cool? We can totally be friends now, as long as you promise not to turn into a [Villain] like your dad.¡± Lexie stiffened. She didn¡¯t know what kind of facial expression she was making but she wasn''t okay with what Veronica just said. Even though her dad was a [Villain] now, it felt kind of a rude thing to mention in front of everyone. ¡°Oh sorry.¡± Veronica cocked her head and gave her an innocent smile. ¡°Is that a touchy subject for you?¡± ¡°Sorta,¡± Lexie admitted. Aiden might be a [Villain] but she didn¡¯t like people reducing him to just that. Especially when they didn¡¯t know and didn¡¯t see how hard he tried to be good. ¡°My mom says it¡¯s rude to use the ''V'' word,¡± a separate voice butted in. It was the boy who did the handstand outside. He gave Lexie an encouraging smile. ¡°She''s a philosopher and she thinks that [Villains] are just people with a different set of morality.¡± ¡°Do you know what your dad did?¡± Bennie cut in. ¡°You know, to get stuck with the big [V]? Apparently, no one knows.¡± Lexie shook her head and Veronica frowned at Bennie. ¡°How would she know? She lost her memory, genius.¡± ¡°Oh right." Bennie nodded. "But did you know before you lost your memory?¡¯ Veronica looked to the ceiling and heaved a sigh. ¡°Why am I surrounded by idiots?¡± Then she completely ignored Bennie and turned back to Lexie with that bright smile again. ¡°Anyway, I can''t wait to be pre-affixed on System Day. I¡¯m probably going to be a [Hero] because most of my extended family are [Heroes]. Will probably be a fire user too. What about you? I assume you want to be a [Hero] too, like your dad was before he turned evil.¡± ¡°My dad isn¡¯t evil.¡± ¡°Sorry. ''Differently-moraled''.¡± Lexie was fairly uncomfortable with the thread of conversation and she had a sneaking suspicion that Veronica was being intentionally malicious here. Unlike Mickie, who sometimes said rude things innocently, Veronica seemed to be trying to get a reaction out of Lexie. But Lexie refused to give her one. She thought about not answering the question, but then decided that that would only worsen the attention she already had on her. ¡°I don¡¯t know. But I think I want to be some kind of [Researcher].¡± Veronica was shocked by that answer. Bennie was downright disgusted. ¡°That¡¯s lame,¡± he said. ¡°Why would you waste a pre-affixation on that?¡± ¡°Are you sure you want to be a [Researcher]?" The boy with the philosopher mom said, looking truly concerned about Lexie'' decision. "Pre-affixed people make some of the most powerful capes. And your dad was a [Hero] once so..." "I don''t wanna be a [Hero]" Lexie said firmly. "I don''t think I''d be good at it. I¡¯m good at studying. And I enjoy [Research]. Maybe one day I¡¯ll be a [Developer].¡± "Still lame," Bennie cut in. "No offense but if I was pre-affixed I would be a [Hero]. Or in the Fighter''s Circuit." ¡°Only about two in five thousand [Researchers] become Developers,¡± Veronica pointed out. ¡°So you probably won''t make it. You should be [Hero] with me instead. It''s easier and much nicer. And if we''re on the same team, I''ll make sure you train hard, so nothing bad happens to you. " That''s sweet but since when was this a group decision? Lexie shrugged. "I¡¯m not interested in being a [Hero]. That''s all." Endangering her life and possibly shortening her life span didn¡¯t seem like a fun career path. ¡°Right.¡± Veronica still looked confused, and Bennie looked disappointed. Luckily, another teacher walked in at that point¨CMr. John, the class called him¨Cand class resumed. Lexie heaved a sigh of relief, happy to have been saved from that conversation. And then when she finally turned away, she saw that Xena was looking at her as though she¡¯d listened closely to everything she¡¯d said. There was a thoughtful look on her face but then when Lexie''s eyes met hers, the animosity was back full-force. Xena frowned before looking away. Lexie glanced at the clock on her system screen. Two hours down. Five hours to go.
Veronica invited Lexie to lunch with her and Diane but Lexie turned them down. Apart from the pretty severe glare Diane was leveling her, Lexie wanted some space, especially after being inundated with questions all day. At lunch, after everyone else had left, she stayed behind and materialized her cards. She wanted to spend time practicing mana shaping and wanted to use the push and pull technique that she''d just read about last night. She used the card for a change and took deep breaths, imagining she was a water-bender and her mana cloud was a wave that she would send forward and then pull back. She closed her eyes, doing this for several minutes, happy that the mana cloud was starting to feel more and more tangible to her every single day. And then she decided to activate the card, happy when, within seconds, a frog was backflipping on her desk. It was still more transparent than solid, and it was still kind of a lame thing to do. But she''d nearly broken the 40 second-barrier and done it in 40.3 seconds. That was also her best time for . Lexie was ecstatic. "Oh, I can do that." Lexie jerked and looked up. Veronica was leaning by the doorway and smirking at her. "I can do it in under thirty seconds too," she said as she walked to Lexie. "And I can also do this." She uttered a spell and snapped her finger, and suddenly a mirrored frog, even more full and more real-looking, started backflipping with Lexie¡¯s frog. "Illusion magic," Veronica explained. "Madam Clementia and I have already moved onto spellwork. We learned about cards months ago and I got sick of it after like a few days." Lexie didn''t know what to say so she nodded. She couldn''t take her eyes off Veronica''s frog. But Veronica wasn''t done. As she sat back at her desk, she continued talking, ¡°Madam Clementia''s the best pre-awakening magic coach. Our family has a deadroom and last month she took me to one every single day. And had me do a bunch of boring mana-shaping exercises. It was annoying but I guess it was worth it since I can do spellwork now. She says I''m the first one she''s ever seen who learned this fast.¡± Veronica glanced at Lexie and perhaps she could detect the envy in her face because she smiled pleasantly. ¡°I can ask my mom about adding you to my lessons if you''d like. You¡¯d have to apologize for crashing her party though. She was pretty pissed about it.¡± ¡°Oh right. Sorry about that.¡± ¡°Not to me." She waved the apology away. ¡°I didn¡¯t care. The party was boring anyway. But mom''s anal about everything and she planned it to perfection and then you guys barged in wearing the wrong color scheme and ruined the party for everyone. Drove her crazier than Dewie¡¯s shenanigans.¡± She jabbed her thumb to the empty desk where her brother had been sitting, so Lexie would understand who Dewie was. ¡°Anyway, as I was saying, Madam Clementia is a really good tutor. She also has access to a bunch of potions that help you channel your mana easier. So I can set up a date for you to meet my mom and ask.¡± The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie was conflicted. On one hand, it was a tempting offer and she wanted to get the hang of her magic faster. Aiden said a dedicated tutor would probably be able help her. Not to mention access to deadrooms would be great. On the other hand, she didn¡¯t want to be indebted or overly reliant on Veronica. While the girl was being nice to her now, she couldn¡¯t forget how easily she dismissed Diane without a second thought, even though the two were laughing together just minutes before. Veronica wasn¡¯t trustworthy and while Lexie didn¡¯t want to be her foe, she didn¡¯t want to be her friend either. Veronica made the choice easier for her when she added, "If it''s credits you''re worried about, you don''t have to. I''ll let you join for free. I know your [Villain] dad''s probably poor now and stuff." Another dig at Aiden. After I told her not to call him a [Villain] too. That one was definitely intentional. Now, Lexie felt more sure about turning down her offer. ¡°Thanks but no thanks. My dad is handling my training,¡± she said. ¡°Sure. Of course." Veronica''s smile was a tad tight. ¡°He is the Archmage after all. Well, was.¡± Lexie only smiled back at her just as tightly. And then people started coming back into the class and the two girls broke eye-contact to go back to their respective lives. But through the rest of the day, Lexie thought she felt visual daggers being thrown at her face.
After school closed, Aiden was at the gate to pick her up. ¡°There¡¯s my bee,¡± he said the minute she got to him. ¡°How was the first day of school, Lex?" She gave him a look that said everything that needed to be said. ¡°Say no more,¡± he joked and they headed home. After they left the Hovelton train station, Aiden sent Lexie ahead of him, saying he had to stop by the hospital to make potions. Lexie nodded and continued on her way, her thoughts keeping her company. She got home in one piece and walked in, wondering whether to start with mana shaping or card activation today. She was halfway up the stairs when she heard the rustling sounds along with mutters of ¡°Where is it?¡± But it wasn¡¯t coming from her room. It was coming from Aiden¡¯s. Lexie froze on the steps, her thoughts and heart racing. She took a second to think about whether or not to leave. Then she made her decision. She returned down the stairs, grabbed a kitchen knife, and then went back upstairs. Aiden didn¡¯t have a lot of worldly possessions. He didn¡¯t have money as is, and this robber was trying to steal from them. By the time she got help, they would probably already be gone. She should at least get a glimpse of him, so she could tell the law enforcement what he looked like. Lexie called up her system interface, her vision hovering on the emergency line as she crept closer to the door. But the second she peeked in, she found it wasn¡¯t a robber at all. She should have known. The voice sounded familiar. So did the wide back of the crouched man who was rustling through Aiden''s dresser. ¡°Max?¡± Max spun around when she spoke and they both reared back. His eyes flared in surprise then flickered to the weapon in her hand. A smile curved his lips and something like respect glinted in his gaze. ¡°You really have a thing for knives, don''t you kiddo?¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± Max cocked an eyebrow and gestured with his arms wide. ¡°Well clearly, I¡¯m not having a picnic now, am I?¡± ¡°You¡¯re looking for something.¡¯ "Ding ding.¡± He turned back to continue rummaging. ¡°And don¡¯t think you snuck up on me either. I heard you coming from a mile away.¡± ¡°Right. Then why didn¡¯t you stop and hide?¡± ¡°Why would I hide? Why didn¡¯t you run away?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s my house. And I thought we were getting robbed.¡± ¡°I see,¡± he said. ¡°Well, word of advice, but next time you hear a potential robber, especially one who can bypass my security system, you run away and get help. You don¡¯t run in headfirst with a kitchen knife. You¡¯re a tiny, ten-year-old kid not a barbarian. I know you¡¯re your mother¡¯s daughter and all, but try to be smarter than she was alright?" Man. Everyone''s just taking digs at my¨CLexie Sparrowfoot¡¯s¨C parents today, aren''t they? But he was right. In hindsight, coming in here was stupid even if she had a good reason for it. This is the exact type of thing that got me killed in Earth 2. I have to stop doing stuff like that. Lexie was distracted when Max paused what he was doing for a second, as though instantly recognizing that he made a faux pas. ¡°And that was probably very insensitive to say about your mom," he said without turning around "Sorry. I¡¯m in a hurry and I don¡¯t have enough brain space for manners and sensitivity right now.¡± "It''s okay," Lexie responded. If that had been her real mom, she would probably been more offended, but as it were she couldn''t fake it. ¡°What are you looking for?¡± she asked. ¡°Maybe I can help.¡± ¡°A book," Max answered going back to his rummaging. ¡°What¡¯s the name of the book?¡± ¡°Not sure." Lexie didn¡¯t believe that for a second. ¡°You¡¯re looking for a book you don''t know the name of?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± Lexie mused on that for a second. ¡°Well, do you at least know what it¡¯s about? Or what it looks like? And why do you want the book anyway? Also, why didn¡¯t you just ask my dad for it? But you won¡¯t be able to ask if you don''t know the name. How come you don''t know the name though?¡± Max heaved a sigh at being called out so many times and turned to her. ¡°Anyone ever told you that you ask too many stupid questions?¡± Lexie crossed her arms defensively. ¡°No,¡± she lied. He smirked. ¡°Of course. The only person you talk to is your dad and he¡¯s even nosier than you are." Lexie sniffed in the offense. ¡°I was just trying to help.¡± She did not understand why people kept being bothered by her asking questions. It wasn¡¯t illegal to want to know things. And then it hit her. ¡°Wait, is that why you came around when Aiden isn¡¯t here? Because you don''t want him to know what you''re doing?¡± "Aiden?" Max frowned. "You call your dad by his first name?" Oops. "It''s a memory loss thing. But don''t change the subject. You don''t want him to know you were looking for this book, do you?¡± Max straightened and cracked his neck. ¡°It''s a dungeonology book. One of the ancient ones that you can¡¯t even find in libraries or on the NET anymore, written in Eldritch Tongue. The only other copy I found was in District 8 and some basement-dwelling bastard was asking a thousand credits for it. Greedy nerd. I¡¯m not giving a thousand credits to a troll who hasn''t washed his ass in weeks.¡± He took a breath after his rant and then shot Lexie a sharp look after he said it. Lexie said, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I won¡¯t tell...Dad about your swearing. But why do you need the book? Because of the unstable dungeons?¡± ¡°Good guess. That book is the most comprehensive book I''ve ever seen on unstable dungeons, and has information that is apparently pretty forbidden for the public to know. I want to know what the hell is going on and I can¡¯t trust the [Heroes] to be honest about it.¡± Lexie digested that information and then asked, ¡°What do you think is going on?¡± ¡°Unstable dungeons could be a sign of magical instability somewhere on the planet,¡± he said darkly. ¡°I think someone somewhere is doing something they¡¯re not supposed to do, using mana in a very dangerous way, and they¡¯re screwing us over in the process. And the fact that the hero association hasn¡¯t done anything about it, despite the several reports Luke has made, is making me think they¡¯re the ones up to no good. But your dad doesn¡¯t like to hear me badmouth his old friends so¡­I¡¯m doing the research on my own.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°And in the interest of keeping secrets, do you think we can keep this little visit from your dad?¡± Lexie was about to say ¡®yes¡¯ but then she thought about it. ¡°What do I get in return?¡± Max laid a hand on his chest, a look of mock hurt on his face. ¡°Really, Lex? After everything we¡¯ve been through?¡± Lexie said nothing, smiling sweetly at him. That¡¯s what he gets for calling my questions stupid. Max crossed his arms. ¡°Another haggler huh? Fine, I get it. What do you want?¡± ¡°What are you offering?¡± Lexie asked. She kind of already knew what she wanted but she also wanted to know how far she could push him. Max smirked and then jerked his chin to the knife in her hand. ¡°How about instead of those, I make you a gun. A cute, pink one with turbo propeller bullets that whistle ever so slightly while they slice your enemy''s innards to shreds." Lexie blinked in surprise. ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t think Dad¡¯s going to like that.¡± ¡°Fine. No whistling then.¡± ¡°I think it''s the ¡®ten-year-old with a gun¡¯ part that¡¯s going to bother him more.¡± ¡°You think?¡± Max rubbed his chin. ¡°We¡¯ll make it child-friendly. Plus I''ll give you shooting lessons, like the ones I offered your dad. It¡¯s never too early to learn how to defend yourself." Lexie shook her head and Max¡¯s forehead furrowed in annoyance. ¡°Then what the hell do you want from me, kid?¡± "A favor,¡± she said, then ventured tentatively. "Do you know about deadspots?" He raised an eyebrow. "I know enough to know I''m never taking you to one." Lexie''s hopes fell. "Why not?" "Because your dad would skewer me. And those things can be dangerous for young people." And guns aren''t? "Deadrooms are safe for eight-year-olds and above." "Deadrooms and deadspots are two different things. The answer is no. What else you got?" "Fine." Lexie crossed her arms over her chest and resisted the urge to pout. "You''ll owe me an undefined favor then. I¡¯ll eventually ask for a favor from you some time in the future and you have to do it." Max''s frown deepened. ¡°Hmm.¡± He rubbed his chin in thought. "That¡¯s a tough one.¡± "That¡¯s what I want." He chewed on the inside of his cheek and sighed. ¡°Can''t believe I¡¯m getting fleeced twice today. Alright, fine. But this favor can¡¯t be something that endangers you or is too expensive or too annoying or takes too much of my time.¡± ¡°Deal.¡± She said. Lexie figured that was as good as she was going to get out of Uncle Max. After they shook on it, Lexie asked, ¡°Are you sure you don''t want my help looking for the book?¡± ¡°Nah." Max shook his head. ¡°I already searched everywhere. I don¡¯t think he has it anymore. It was probably one of the first things the association confiscated when they raided his place.¡± "Okay." There was an awkward bit of silence as they both stared at each other. Was she supposed to offer him something? Like a hot beverage? ¡°Do you want some tea?¡± Max smirked and shook his head. "I''ll see you around kid." Max patted her head then threw a salute as he left. After he was gone, Lexie went to her room and started on her shaping exercises. And then she tried the cards again. This time took her 40.1 seconds. Progress. But she knew the closer she got to her goal, the harder it would be to shave off time. She needed some way to get to a deadroom fast. During her hourlong break, she took out her phone from her bag. She''d secretly checked several times at school today but there was still no signal. Now, she went back to reading her brother''s texts, scrolling all the way back up to when he was telling her about his day at school: Logan: Someone got frosted today Lexie: Do I even wanna know what that means? Logan: Probably not. But I¡¯m going to tell you anyway. It¡¯s a Diet Coke milkshake mixed with menthose and it''s dumped right in the back of your pants right before it explodes. Rashid Blumenthal got it today, walking into the cafeteria. It was juvenile but kinda funny. Lexie: Oh God. How is that funny? Logan: Because. It got everywhere and Rashid was so mad he turned red. Thought he was gonna fight someone but then he just cried and ran out of there. I think he might have peed himself. Or pooped, it was hard to tell. Lexie: And let me guess, you stood there and laughed instead of helping him. Logan: Nah. I was sitting. Lexie: Very funny. You should have helped. Logan: So I can get frosted next? You¡¯re out of your mind. Lexie: Jerk. Logan: If you were there you wouldn''t have helped either. Trust me. Lexie smiled and shook her head at the conversation. Now that she was repeating middle school, she had a lot more sympathy for her brother. Middle school was tough. Nothing super bad had happened today but she¡¯d been on edge regardless. All those questions, the looks, the subtle jabs. She sighed and stared at the ceiling. She had to get used to it. Anyway she sliced it, it looked like she was going to be here for a long time. She had conflicted feelings about that, but as always she chose to look at the bright side. At least this way, she didn¡¯t have to go to MIT. She could take time to figure out what she was going to do with her life, once she got back to her real world. She didn''t know how time worked in relation to different dimensions but she was tempted to think that her old world was frozen, waiting for her return. In which case, she could look at this as an extended vacation away from her real life and try to have fun while she was here. It might not be so bad. Aiden was nice, and so was Emma. Hovelton was charming. She was learning magic which was amazing to think about. Plus, they had the best bread she''d ever had in her life. And croquembouche. 21 - Getting Tripped Up Lexie¡¯s first breakthrough came after two weeks. Ironically, that was also the day of her first major hiccup in school. Things had actually calmed down by that point. After the first few days of questions about her memory loss and the pre-awakening, most of her classmates lost interest and no longer stared at her for abnormally long times while whispering behind hands. Well, most except Veronica. The girl was still weirdly nice to her, even though Lexie got the impression she didn¡¯t like her all that much. Veronica''s pleasant facade was more than likely because of the pre-awakening thing. It must have been more of a big deal than Lexie thought because Veronica brought it up in every conversation, and she also brought up her famous [Hero] relatives often. Her aunt Stella was one of the most powerful unbound users ever, one of the youngest to achieve the rank of Super-Hero. She was amongst something called the Famous Five, who were the elite heroes of Earth 9. Her uncle was a [Hero] too and her cousin had just recently saved a bunch of people from a building (Lexie put two and two together and figured out she was talking about Theo Firebringer). Her other cousin was some kind of fire genius. Interestingly though, Veronica barely ever mentioned her parents except to say that her father was the Governor and her mother sometimes did charity work. She never spoke about her dad''s time as a [Hero], quite possibly because she was ashamed of it. Eventually, since Lexie barely ever engaged in the conversation by asking questions and frequently refused offers for extra lessons, Veronica finally resolved to ignore her, returning to conversations with her friend Diane who had switched seats with another girl behind them. Lexie was happy for the reprieve. And whenever Lexie got a spare moment, she worked on her cards, or her mana shaping. She''d gotten so attuned to her mana that it didn''t tax her too much even if she did her shaping for two hours straight without stopping. Lexie simply held the card in her hand during class, practicing the push-pull method while the teacher droned on. And she continued to do the mana shaping exercises too, until she was pretty sure she could shift her mana cloud without too much strain, nearly effortlessly. Everything was going well. Until one fateful recess when she returned from lunch. She walked into the half-empty classroom and found the three musketeers¨Cthe handstand boy and his friends¨Chaving a loud fight. "The two of you must be out of your minds, okay?¡± The loud declaration met Lexie at the door. ¡°You must be smoking something truly lethal for you to think that anyone can beat Brayden Rock in a full-on battle. He''s the adult champ!" It wasn¡¯t so much the exuberance behind the statement that gave Lexie pause. It was who was saying it. It came from the bespectacled one¨Cshe thought his name was Abernathy. He was typically more subdued than his friends but today his face was red, and he looked livid. ¡°And you must be stupider than Brayden dumb-as-Rocks if you think he''s going to win this battle,¡± his friend commented with a smug look. "He¡¯s not dumb." "He walked right into Refract¡¯s forcefield the other time." "It was a super-clear forcefield. Anyone would have made that mistake!" Lexie knew what they were talking about. She¡¯d heard them arguing over it yesterday. Top Dog had an upcoming exhibition match, not part of the major tournament, with Brayden Rock. Brayden was currently number 2 in the adult division, and he would probably be number one soon after Mr. Amazing retired. Top Dog would also be graduating out of the under-18 division soon, and so this was a match that would essentially set the tone and prove where he belonged in the adult league. ¡°Brayden has magic," Abernathy pointed out. "Not the pathetic kind like TD uses, but he¡¯s an actual A-Rank weaponist. He doesn''t need spells or anything. That¡¯s real magic.¡± "Top Dog doesn¡¯t need magic," the handstand boy¨CBoyle¨C sniffed. "He can beat Brayden with his eyes closed." Abernathy was starting to look even more infuriated and exasperated. "Top Dog is a speed-based fighter, but Brayden has him beat on both speed and endurance. Plus, let me repeat, he¡¯s only a spell user. Brayden can punch him in the throat before he can even spit out a word.¡± "It won¡¯t matter," Lexie said before she could help herself. "Brayden Rock doesn''t stand a chance against Top Dog." Both boys paused their argument, looking at her dumbfounded. "You watch the AFC?" Boyle asked. Lexie nodded. "Yeah. Which is how I know Top Dog is going to win this match." She heard someone snort and when she turned, Xena was looking straight at her with a mocking smile. ¡°Oh, do you have something to say?¡± Lexie challenged. She expected Xena to ignore her but she only stuck her nose higher in the air, giving an air of superiority. ¡°Just wondering when you plan to get off Top Dog¡¯s nuts and stop being such a fangirl.¡± Lexie narrowed his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m just saying things how I see it. I¡¯m not on his nuts." ¡°I am.¡± Boyle stuck his hand in the air with pride. ¡°And that¡¯s how I know that Top Dog has large nuts, possibly the largest in existence and he is definitely going to use at least one of them to pound Brayden Rock into a pebble.¡± Lexie winced at the visual, but she nodded to agree with the general sentiment as she walked to them. Abernathy crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head at Lexie in disappointment. "And here I thought you were sensible.¡± ¡°I am. That¡¯s how I know Brayden¡¯s going to lose.¡± ¡°How is he going to lose when he literally has everything to his advantage? He¡¯s bigger. Faster. Better.¡± ¡°Top Dog holds back in most of his matches,¡± Lexie pointed out. ¡°He never spends more than he has to. That¡¯s why it might look like he¡¯s weaker. But he''s not." ¡°You don¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°Yeah, I do. It¡¯s obvious. He was faster during the Conrad Grace match than he was during his prior match with Ghost. And every time, Conrad matched his speed, he would give himself a boost and get even faster. Top Dog might look like he goes all out but he conserves as much energy as he can in all his fights. And that''s how he tricks people into thinking he''s not as fast as he is." Abernathy looked like he wasn''t sure whether to look impressed by her insight, upset that she was disagreeing with him or doubtful of her conclusion. "Well you don''t know that," Abernathy said. "And it doesn''t even matter if he''s faster. Brayden stats are higher in everything." "Presumed stats.¡± The stats online found about each player were only presumed. Each player had to give their starting stat information while joining the circuit but they didn''t need to keep updating it after each level up. So it was anyone''s guess how Top Dog distributed his leveling points. "And I do know Top Dog is faster than he seems," Lexie said. "I ran the maths." "You...ran the maths?" Abernathy looked confused. Lexie nodded. A few days ago, while practicing speed equations (which were slightly different from the ones on Earth 2 since you had to also take into account the mana coefficient which affected aerodynamic drag and friction) she decided to do a few work sets measuring Top Dog''s speed. She watched him do that forward leap in a bunch of matches, and calculated the distance covered over time. To do so, she had to search up schematics for the colosseum and pull up a 3D holographic image of its field, so she could properly gauge the distance Top Dog cleared. She also timed his attacks, estimated the speed of his combo kicks, and noticed that they weren''t similar across each match. Which meant he greatly varied his speed based on his opponent. ¡°Based on my calculations, I believe Top Dog has more than what it takes to win this match,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Every other advantage Brayden has at his disposal, Top Dog can use it against him, the same way he used Conrad''s Berserker traits against him. And Conrad was a better hand-to-hand fighter than Brayden, who is a lancer.¡± "Conrad¡¯s a noob," Abernathy said and Lexie nearly chortled when Xena made a choking sound at that. "He lost because of lack of experience, not because he wasn''t better than Top Dog." Lexie shrugged. "Whatever it was. A loss is a loss." "She sounds like she knows her stuff," Boyle said. "You should just admit you''re wrong Abernathy." But that only made Abernathy dig in his heels more. "Yeah right. She''s just saying a bunch of words to sound smart. I doubt a girl who wants to be a [Researcher] knows more about AFC than I do." Lexie cocked an eyebrow. So it''s like that huh? "Didn''t you want to be a [Researcher] too?" Boyle pointed out and Abernathy blushed. "That''s not the point." ¡°It kind of is.¡± ¡°Ladies and Losers.¡± The chubby one¨CChris¨Cspoke and his voice projected over the din as he laced his fingers together like an evil mastermind. ¡°No need for further contentious discourse and nut measuring. Are we willing to put a wager on it?¡± There were a few seconds of silence, like a momentous gauntlet had just been thrown. It was broken by Xena shrugging and saying, ¡°Nope. Not interested.¡± "Of course not," Lexie smirked. "Because your precious Conrad''s not involved." Xena gave her the finger as she turned back to her pad. Lexie''s smile widened. Nice to see that still means the same thing on Earth 9. ¡°Conrad would wipe the floor with both of them," Xena muttered under her breath. "No, he wouldn''t," Lexie responded. ¡°A hundred credits say Top Dog wins this fight," Boyle declared. Abernathy gaped. ¡°You dick. That¡¯s my allowance for the whole month.¡± "Ha! You know you''ll lose. So just admit you''re wrong." "I''m not wrong," Abernathy insisted. ¡°It''s okay to be wrong every once in a while genius,¡± Boyle said. ¡°You just have to say the words, ''I''m wrong.'' And wager rules say, for being wrong, you¡¯ll have to switch socks with me for a whole month.¡± ¡°Never. You don¡¯t wash your socks. ¡°Exactly.¡± This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Abernathy bristled for a second then spat out. ¡°Fine. A hundred.¡± ¡°Ha. Baited.¡± Boyle turned to Lexie and said in an overly formal voice. ¡°And you madam? A hundred on the books for you too?¡± Lexie hesitated. That was all she had for the month too. And was it worth it to waste Aiden''s money on a stupid bet? Then again, she was fairly certain that Top Dog would win. She¡¯d watched one of Bradyen''s fights a few weeks ago, and while he was good, he was also fairly predictable. Top Dog would read him in a second. Plus with every second that passed, Xena was looking even smugger and Lexie didn¡¯t want to give the other girl the satisfaction of backing out now. ¡°Sure why not?¡± she said. ¡°A hundred.¡± ¡°Whoop!¡± Boyle called and then bumped his shoulders with hers. ¡°Welcome to the winning team, Ditch-Girl.¡± ¡°Lexie,¡± she corrected. ¡°Sure. Lexie. Oh and by the way, if you back out at any point, you¡¯ll have to pay the wager penalty,¡± he said. "I''m not exchanging socks with anyone." "Of course not, we''re on the same side." Boyle slung his hands over her shoulder, and Lexie tried not to rear back from his armpit scent, reminiscent of a loiter-infected Evan. "Welcome to the wager-guild Lexie Sparrowfoot," Chris said while Abernathy narrowed his eyes in protest. ¡°What are you guys yapping about?¡± Veronica said in a bored voice as she walked in with Diane and another girl called Desmodella. ¡°I could hear you from across the hall.¡± ¡°They¡¯re talking about large nuts and dirty socks." This came from Veronica''s brother Dewitt, who everyone called Dewie. He was at the desk in front of Abernathy and co, and had silently listened to the whole conversation. Boyle had been struck silent by the fact that Veronica was talking to him, and struggled to recover in time to cooly say, "Oh nothing. Just talking about the AFC you know. Boy stuff." ¡°Ew. You guys watch that?¡± Her lip upturned. ¡°It¡¯s so gross and vapid and shallow, watching a bunch of people beat each other bloody for no reason.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that kinda what your family does too?¡± Xena challenged, throwing Veronica a look of dislike. Veronica¡¯s eyes narrowed, ice in her voice. ¡°My family are [Heroes]. They have a code. They don¡¯t mindlessly attack their opponents. They have respect for themselves, and the citizens they are saving.¡± ¡°Huh. Must be why they respectfully levelled a building last week.¡± ¡°That was a mistake!¡± Veronica¡¯s voice was heated. ¡°And they didn¡¯t level it.¡± ¡°From what I saw on the news it was pretty levelled.¡¯ ¡°Well, they''re rebuilding right now. And it wasn''t their fault. It was a terrorist attack and the [Heroes] were preoccupied with catching the bad guys and making sure everyone got evacuated safely." "A couple of people were left behind," Xena said quietly. "And they got caught in the fire that your cousin Theo started." ¡°It was the rescue team who messed up! Those people were not supposed to be there. They were reporters who snuck in to get an exclusive. And Theo did the best he could to stop the fire once he realized there were people in there, and he even risked his life to save one of them, but then they got orders to..." Veronica seemed to realize what she was doing, and then she scoffed. "You know what? Why am I even explaining it to you anyway? You''re too dumb to understand." "What''s dumb is you defending them because they''re your family." "Yeah, and so what? If you had family you would defend them too. But you don''t so you make it everyone else''s problem." Her eyebrows went up with as she concluded in a cruel innocent tone. "It''s not my fault you''re an orphan." Xena shot up to her feet, eyes blazing like she was about to attack Veronica. Lexie wouldn¡¯t blame her if she did. Lexie didn¡¯t entirely agree with Xena¡¯s telling of events but Veronica crossed the line. Lexie was outraged on Xena''s behalf especially as Veronica smirked. ¡°That¡¯s a messed up thing to say to someone,¡± Lexie told her. Xena turned on her. ¡°You stay out of this.¡± Lexie reared back, shocked by the animosity. ¡°I¡¯m trying to help you.¡± ¡°I don''t need your help. I don¡¯t need anyone¡¯s help!¡± And with that Xena glared at everyone in class, then stormed out, bumping into Bennie on her way. Bennie didn¡¯t even flinch and seemed used to it. ¡°Again with the dramatic exit,¡± he said. ¡°Who annoyed her this time?¡± ¡°Lexie and I did,¡± Veronica said and Lexie glared at her because she didn¡¯t like being put in the same category. ¡°You should go apologize,¡± Lexie told Veronica. ¡°For what? She¡¯s the one who came at me first.¡± ¡°She made a legitimate point and you brought up her dead parents.¡± Veronica rolled her eyes. ¡°Whatever. I would worry more about your parent if I were you. Diane and I went to the coffee shop across the street yesterday, and I saw your dad cleaning up the gutters. Is that for community service or something?¡± Lexie found herself grinding her teeth. ¡°Yeah. So?" Veronica snorted. ¡°It¡¯s just kinda sad, isn¡¯t it? He used to be this bigshot [Hero] and now he cleans gutters for a living.¡± Anger spiked and before she knew it, Lexie shot back, ¡°Well, not everyone can organize boring parties with horrible color schemes for a living, like your mom does. Or be a lame ass [Hero] like your dad.¡± Lexie didn''t know where that came from. It was odd and completely opposite to her initial plan to keep her head down. But she couldn¡¯t help it anymore. She was sick of Veronica¡¯s barbs. The shot hit deep because Veronica''s face reddened. ¡°Excuse me?¡± Lexie didn''t back down. ¡°Not so fun when it¡¯s your parents being mocked, is it?¡± ¡°I was trying to be nice to you, you amnesiac freak!" Veronica¡¯s voice was so loud it echoed out the hallway. ¡°And this is the thanks I get?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t ask you to be nice to me! I asked you to stop throwing jabs at my dad. And if you mention my dad one more time, I''m going to do something you''re not going to like very much." The words hung in the tense silence following the statement, as everyone in the classroom gaped at Lexie. She stood her ground, staring down at Veronica. Outwardly, she was composed and assured. Internally though Lexie was reeling. Did I just threaten her? Why did I say that? What was even the plan there? What did I mean by that? Veronica retaliated by going to pick up Lexie''s bag from the desk beside hers and throwing it at the doorway. A clatter sounded as her pad hit the ground. "Consider yourself evicted," she said. Rage swelled within her, but Lexie just said, "Whatever." She stormed over to pick up her bag. But when she grabbed the handle and tugged, it wouldn''t move. Lexie frowned. She tried pulling but there was no give. And then suddenly, her body betrayed her. Her legs turning into noodles and she fell straight to the floor. "Ow!" she exclaimed as her knee hit the ground and she fell forward. A few people laughed, while some gasped as Lexie''s face burned. "Way to be a clutz, Lexie," Diane chortled and Lexie glared at her. She glared at Veronica¡¯s smug face too, knowing exactly what the other girl had done, despite the fact that she¡¯d probably uttered the spell under her breath. ¡°Oops,¡± Veronica said with a tiny evil smile. "You should be more careful. next time." Lexie was boiling with rage, but she didn''t retaliate. She had to sit on the ground until the effect wore off, and she¡¯d never felt so much like punching someone in the face. After a few seconds, she got up on steady legs again. She took the bag and thankfully it left the floor and she stomped over to sit by Dewie. There was a free seat by Xena too but Lexie didn''t dare take it. In the mood they were both in, they would probably kill each other before the day was over. ¡°Should we have said something?¡± Lexie heard Boyle mutter behind her. ¡°No dude," Chris responded. "It¡¯s good we stayed out of it. Girls are scary." *** Veronica decided to mess with Lexie for the rest of the day. Tripping her up in the hallway. Making her spill soup all over herself in the cafeteria. Making her legs give out whenever she got up. Most people couldn¡¯t tell that it was Veronica''s doing so it seemed Lexie was just unusually clumsy. Some people blamed it on her concussion and memory problem. Teachers called her aside to ask her if she was okay and if she wanted to go home early. The whole thing was mortifying. Lexie wasn''t actually physically hurt from any of it. But the embarrassment was just as bad. Even worse was that Veronica hadn''t done anything major, just little stuff. Lexie would have almost preferred if the girl came right out and tried to beat her up. Instead, she was just sneakily humiliating her. Death by a thousand insulting cuts. Lexie was pissed throughout the whole day and also at home. She punched her pillows for what felt like an hour and then when she calmed down a little, she tried to activate the card again. 41 seconds. She made a sound of frustration and threw herself back on her bed. Damn it. Why the hell was it so slow? Why did she have to be pre-affixed as a card user? It was such bullshit. She bet things would be easier if she could use spells like Top Dog or even that damn Veronica witch. Veronica hadn''t even looked a little stressed the entire day, nor burned out. Spellwork all seemed effortless for her. She just said the word and Lexie tripped on her own two feet. ¡°Ugh!¡± Lexie grabbed a pillow and flung it over her head. She wanted to scream so badly but she knew Aiden was downstairs. She didn¡¯t want to worry him. He¡¯d already been giving her sidelong looks the entire way home like he got a hint of her mood but he knew better than to ask why. But then when she heard his footsteps on the stairs anyway and the knock on her door, she knew he couldn''t hold himself back anymore. ¡°Lex,¡± he said as he stuck his head through her door. ¡°I know you probably don¡¯t want to talk about it right now and I¡¯m trying to respect your wishes, but it¡¯s killing me to sit back and listen to you murder our pillows.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m just pissed.¡± He walked in and sat at the foot of her bed. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Lexie stared at the ceiling contemplatively while the heat seared through her. ¡°I hate school.¡± He was silent. ¡°I hate cards too.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not being patient, Lexie.¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to be! I was being patient and I was doing all the exercises and trying to be happy with slow progress. Then Veronica Azure tripped me with a simple spell.¡± ¡°Azure...that¡¯s the mayor¡¯s daughter?¡± ¡°Yeah. And guess what? She¡¯s pre-awakened too. And she¡¯s a giant pain in the ass who won''t shut up about¨C¡± Lexie released a breath. ¡°Do you think you could teach my spells instead?¡± ¡°Is that what you want?¡± Lexie thought about it. She¡¯d chosen cards because the system had assigned it for her and, due to her affinity for it, she¡¯d figured it would be easier to go along with it while trying to change the [Hero] portion instead of overhauling the entire pre-affixation. But now, she was starting to look at the alternative. ¡°Spells aren¡¯t as easy as they look either,¡± he said. ¡°They¡¯re definitely cooler. And more powerful.¡± Veronica had managed to seal her bag to the ground while making Lexie fall over. That was two things at once. ¡°I bet if I had a spell Veronica wouldn¡¯t have sent me sprawling.¡± ¡°Is that what happened?¡± he asked, alarmed. "It got physical?¡± ¡°Only a little,¡± Lexie said because she didn¡¯t want her father to report anything to the school. In her experience that only made things worse and she was pretty sure she¡¯d already become Veronica¡¯s target. ¡°Mostly, it was just embarrassing.¡± Aiden nodded in sympathy, then shifted closer until he was lying beside her on the bed, staring at the roof too. They were both silently contemplative for minutes. And then Aiden said, ¡°Did I ever tell you about what led me to create the Card?¡± ¡°Yeah. A kid was picking on you.¡± ¡°Yeah, but it wasn¡¯t¡­I mean that made it sound lighter than what it was.¡± Lexie glanced at him and his eyes had a pensive look. ¡°It was relentless. Everyday. I couldn¡¯t get away from him. If I skipped school he would find me. We lived next door to each other and his family was powerful enough that he could get away with anything he did to me. Unless I was invisible there was no way to hide from him." Aiden took a breath and seemingly wanted to hold the next part of the story in. Lexie didn''t say anything and continued staring at the ceiling. ¡°Eventually though, he got sick of it." Lexie smiled sardonically. ¡°Is this the part where you tell me to ignore her and she¡¯ll eventually get sick of it?¡± ¡°No." Aiden let out a humorless chuckle. ¡°Ignoring seldom works. Some bullies only truly get tired after they''re done breaking you down. And by the time Chauncey left me alone, the damage was done. I was already...psychologically trapped by him. Even years later, I saw him and everything in me just froze. I would flinch when I heard his voice. It didn¡¯t matter that he hadn''t assaulted me in a decade, because the demon was inside me now. He¡¯d managed to make me fear him, so much so that I feared the ghost of him. I had nightmares and would sometimes see him when he wasn''t even there. He''d won, forever." Aiden shook his head. "Maybe if I''d stood up to him and fought back, then he wouldn''t have." Sympathy rolled through Lexie. "I''m sorry. That sucks." Lexie hadn''t been bullied in middle school. She hadn''t had friends except Mickie but no one had really picked on her. Mostly because she faded into the background, kept her head down, and didn''t bother anyone. But her brother Logan wasn''t like that. She knew he got picked on sometimes even though he never mentioned it. And Lexie let him keep the secret, pretending it wasn''t happening because she didn''t know how to deal with it either. I''m a horrible sister. And friend. And card mage. Everything I''m supposed to be good at, I''m failing. Aiden sighed. ¡°Lexie before I say this, I want you to know exactly why I¡¯m reluctant to teach you how to advance faster with your cards.¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re not a specialist.¡± ¡°No. That was just a lie." Lexie''s head snapped to him in shock and he gave her a droll look. "I¡¯m the most powerful Archmage in decades Lexie, a generational genius. You think I couldn¡¯t have been your card magic tutor?¡± Someone¡¯s humble. She thought about the question again. ¡°Is it because you don''t want me to be a [Researcher]?¡± "That¡¯s part of it. But that¡¯s a cover too.¡± He inhaled deeply and sighed. ¡°Lexie, it¡¯s because I don¡¯t want you to become me." ¡°What?¡± ¡°Knowledge is...addictive. It''s like an onion with a million gem fragments in a million centers. You keep peeling and peeling and you find more and more and the more you find, the more you realize how much you don¡¯t have. And it gets hard to know when to stop. It¡¯s hard for me to know when to stop and you and me, we''re very similar. I''m scared you''ll become obsessed with finding out everything there is to know about everything. Even the forbidden." A low howl of wind hit her window, making it clatter against the panes. Aiden wasn''t distracted and continued to regard her with an expression devoid of humor. "I let my thirst for forbidden knowledge lead me down a dark path. I don¡¯t want you to do the same and I¡¯m scared that you¡¯re too similar to me for it not to.¡± Lexie understood what he was saying. She felt that same draw to knowledge, especially when it came to her cards. She couldn''t explain it but maybe that was why she had always been reluctant to abandon card magic for something more practical like spells. Maybe it wasn''t just about her affinity. She felt there was something there, in card magic, something more to discover. ¡°Before I teach you what I''m about to," Aiden said. "You have to promise me that you¡¯ll know when to stop peeling.¡± ¡°I promise,¡± she said. She must have answered too quickly because he didn''t seem to believe her. He looked at her closely. ¡°I¡¯m serious, Lexie. I can¡¯t...I can¡¯t have you hurt too. I wouldn¡¯t know what to do with myself. Please, know when to stop." Aiden''s eyes were honest in his fear and concern for his daughter. His jaw clenched tightly. That sobered Lexie up. His daughter might already be gone. ¡°I promise," Lexie said again, a lot more quietly, and carefully. He sighed, then sat up reluctantly. ¡°Alright then. Let¡¯s begin the real training.¡± 22 - Black Hole Excercises Lexie shot up in bed, excitement making her heart beat faster. She immediately materialized the cards but Aiden halted her by shaking his head. ¡°Leave that alone for now,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯re not using that.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°No. That¡¯s only going to make it harder and it¡¯s going to be hard enough as is." Lexie cocked her head to the side. ¡°I thought using cards made shaping easier." Aiden sighed and seemed reluctant but he eventually admitted. "The method I¡¯m going to teach you right now is going to make things easier and harder. It¡¯s going to be harder in the beginning because I''m going to ask you to do something that will likely be impossible for ninety percent of mages to do, especially those at your stage. It requires a very high affinity to do it, and even then, you''ll still need quite a bit of help and dedication to make it work. And if you didn''t have all those things, I wouldn''t be teaching you this. But I suspect you do." He didn''t look happy about it, neither did he have that proud glint in his eyes. Everything about his body language told Lexie that he really didn''t want to teach her this. Which made her appreciate it all the more that he was doing it. "I''m going to warn you again that this is going to be difficult. One because I cannot visualize the mana-field with you. Plus, you''ll be using a transient skill that I''ll find difficult to explain to you. Today is going to be a test, to see if you can feasibly learn this method in the first place. If you can''t, we forget about it and go back to regular shaping. But if you can get the hang of it, it opens up a new world, and everything else flows much easier and faster.¡± Lexie nodded eagerly. She criss-crossed her legs on the bed mimicking Aiden¡¯s pose as they faced each other. "The final thing I want to say is that what I''m about to teach you...I''m not going to say it''s forbidden, but it''s not knowledge you should necessarily advertise. So you probably shouldn''t tell anyone I''m teaching you this." "I won''t." ¡°Alright then. The first thing we''re going to discuss is pathway imaging. I¡¯m going to teach you how to see your pathways without using the cards.¡± ¡°I can do that?¡± Lexie blurted out. ¡°Yes. The cards are an aid and a conduit but they¡¯re not the things generating the pathways. They¡¯re already there in your mana field. And you can see them with the right technique.¡± Aiden shut his eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°This is going to be a little difficult. It¡¯s not an elementary skill at all and I can¡¯t exactly guide you with my magic either, so it¡¯s more complicated. But you already have incredible mana control for someone your age. And you''re only getting better faster than anyone I''ve ever seen before.¡± ¡°I am?¡± ¡°Of course. I told you that, didn''t I?¡± He had, but Lexie had just assumed he was saying it so she would feel better about not upping her time on the cards. ¡°Lexie. I meant it when I said, you were already doing well,¡± he emphasized. ¡°Incredibly well actually, considering that you¡¯re not using any aids like potions to speed up your progress. And it¡¯s a good thing you didn¡¯t use that. Those might have helped you, but ultimately they would have become a crutch and would have stagnated your growth.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie didn¡¯t tell him about the one time she¡¯d been tempted by Veronica''s offer. Now she was glad she didn''t do it. "This method won¡¯t just help you with cards but also with any magic and anything pathway-related. You got it?¡± ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°Alright, let¡¯s start. Take a deep breath and close your eyes.¡± Lexie obeyed. Excitement buzzed over her skin, just like the mana did within. ¡°Take another deep breath. You¡¯ve been doing the shaping exercises, right?¡± She nodded. "Even meditation?" Lexie peeked one eye open to meet her father''s amused gaze. "You knew?" He nodded. "I caught you once or twice doing it before dinner." Drat. And here she thought she was being sneaky. ¡°But it''s good that you did. If you can do that, it makes what we''re about to do easier. Oh and hold on, we need one more thing." He got to his feet and quickly padded out of the room. Within a few seconds, he was back with a corked tube full of blue liquid. "What''s that?" Lexie asked. "Vitality potion. It will help." "I thought you said I''m not supposed to use potions." His lip quirked. "Maybe just this once. You''ll need all the help you can manage with visualizing your mana field, and this isn''t as strong as some of the others, so you likely won''t form a dependency with just a single use. It just helps boost your magical vitality and awareness." Lexie vaguely wondered why Aiden had a magic vitality potion if he couldn''t use magic anymore, but she decided not to ask. Instead, she took the potion he handed over and observed, swirling it a little bit. "I''m supposed to drink the whole thing?" "Yes." Lexie twisted the cork off, put the tube to her lip, and then upended it into her mouth. "Blergh!" She almost spat at it out as the foul liquid went down her throat and spread across her tongue. Aiden smiled. "Sorry. I would have warned you, but I thought it would be better not to." "Yeah." If he''d warned her she might have thought twice about taking it. It truly tasted disgusting. She wiped her tongue on her shirt when she was done, trying to get the awful taste out as Aiden went back out and then came back with some juice in a glass. She drank it down like she was dying of thirst. "Thank you," she said once she was done. "Now what next?" "Now, I want you to go into as deep a meditative state as possible. And I do mean deep Lexie. However deep you think you''ve gone, go deeper." Lexie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and then another. She did just as she''d done for weeks, getting herself into the proper mind space, but something was different now. It was like the buzzing in her body was louder, more distinct. Like before it sounded like a swarm of bees but now she could almost select out each individual bee. It felt incredible. This must be the vitality potion at work. And it wasn''t just hearing that was enhanced. As she continued her breathing exercises with her eyes closed, her sight was starting to change too. At first, it was just the darkness of her closed eyelids. But then she started to see white dots in the darkness, that seemed to expand and shake. The dots were vibrating and had a halo around them. They were growing and singing and dancing in circles. "What do you see Lexie?" Aiden said, sounding like he was from very far away. "Um..." she hesitated to say it but then she did. "I think I see my mana." He was quiet for a second. "What does it look like?" "White dots." "I see. You''re not quite there yet, but you''re on the right track. Keep going." "Keep going with what?" "Whatever it is you''re doing." But all she was doing was sitting there and breathing. Lexie wanted to ask more but she didn''t want to break her concentration and lose sight of the dots. So she kept breathing, kept listening to the buzzing getting louder and louder. At one point, she thought her back was cramped, and her knee hurt, but she still didn''t move, not wanting to lose focus for a single second. Something told her that if she lost it, it would be damn near impossible for her to get it back. Her head felt heavy suddenly like there was fog filling her brain. The more she concentrated, the more it filled until it became an uncomfortable pressure, on a physical and psychological level. It made her feel like her head was too heavy for her neck but it was also like she couldn''t think straight. Her mind was literally foggy. I hate this, she thought but she didn''t stop. She couldn''t. If she stopped now she would revert to the old weak Lexie who got tossed down like five times in the cafeteria today. Who struggled to reduce her activation time. Who was so horrifyingly mediocre that it wasn''t funny. Lexie didn''t want to be that girl. She refused. So she would sit here as long as it took. Even as her brain filled with fog, even as she became so terrifyingly aware of her breathing that it made her want to hyperventilate because she felt like maybe she could make her heart stop at will and the thought of having that kind of power terrified her. Even though she felt like her muscles were on fire, and she was so damn tired of sitting in the same position and everything hurt. Even though she couldn''t hear or feel Aiden anymore, and that scared her because he was her anchor. She still sat there and waited and breathed. And then the discomfort began to fade. The pain in her body was no longer there, or perhaps it was her body itself that was missing. The fog became clearer, it was simply her metaphysical thoughts trying to shield her mind from something deeper, something she could only understand if she was on the same plane. She cleared it away with a phantom wave and the strain lifted from her mind. And then suddenly she could see inside her. I think I did it. She had no clue if she spoke out loud or not, but she heard Aiden''s voice, disembodied, saying, "What do you see Lexie?" "Everything," she said. It was a messy field of everything, that was occurring all at once, but not necessarily on the same plane. It was difficult to explain. It was a tangled roller coaster, a complete motherboard of systems that interconnected to each other. She saw the physical and metaphysical all at once, saw the shapes on a board, twisting and winding like blood vessels, and overlaying on top of each other. There were three different colors of vessels, blue, green, and pink. And outside of them, casting their glow, were buzzing little particles, waiting for something to happen. "I think I see pathways," Lexie was aware of her mouth moving but it wasn''t the same feeling as she usually got while she was talking. It was just a voice in her mind. "Blue. Green. Pink. I think I see the mana as well, buzzing gold, outside the pathway." Aiden released a breath of...relief? Regret? Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. "That''s good Lexie," he said. "That''s incredibly good. You''re in your mana field. Now, what I want you to do is to pick a spot, and slowly drive out the mana from that spot, almost like you''re creating a black hole in your body." "How?" "You''ll have to figure that out on your own. But if you''ve gotten to that stage then you probably already know." Lexie didn''t allow the confusion to set in because it would only distract her. Instead, she thought about it and then realized something. She could move closer to the particles at will, like she was zooming in. She could also move the particles, picking them with her phantom hands that she used to clear the fog from her mind. She did so now, taking each particle one by one, and moving it to a pile on the side. While she did, she noticed something about the particles. They weren''t like water or air particles, that rushed to fill in the empty space she created. Instead, they tended to be attracted to themselves and repelled by the mana-less blackhole that she was slowly forming in her body. Ah. Lexie finally understood. It''s like making my own internal mini-deadspace. Once she''d formed a small space of nothingness, she said, "I have it." "Good," Aiden said. "Now I want you to focus on that spot. Like really focus. Harder than you¡¯ve ever done before. Try to analyze it with all your senses. Smell, taste, and sight. Feel it alright? Fuse it with your consciousness.¡± Lexie tried but she didn¡¯t even know what she was doing. She fumbled for a second then she decided to go for one at a time. What did that spot smell like? It smelled like her but deeper. Probably like her lungs would smell. Not that she knew what a lung smelled like but somehow her subconscious knew. And it told her that she was smelling her lungs. And tasting it. And feeling it. She felt every pulse of breath, every crackle of air in the black hole. She concentrated on it, harder than she''d ever done on anything before and her head began to throb but she didn''t stop. Fuse with the black hole? How? "I don''t know how," she admitted to her father. "Relate to it," he said. "Match its energy, but anchor yourself too." It''s energy? It had none. Unlike the particles that were buzzing about inside her, the black hole was still, lifeless and empty. Maybe she should be still too. She began shutting down all her senses, one by one. She decided she didn''t want to hear anymore so she shut it down. She didn''t need her sense of sight and the world went black. She didn''t need to hear or taste anything, so she pulled her attention from that too. And finally, she didn''t need to breathe at least for a few seconds. So she stopped it. And just like that, the connection snapped in place. She became the black hole. The next moment, someone shaking her shoulders. She blinked her eyes open and stared up at Aiden, blinking in surprise. "What happened?" He released a breath of relief. "You tell me what happened." He instantly demanded Lexie blinked and said, "I did what you said. I became the black hole." Aiden appeared shocked for a second and then he shook his head. "You''re not supposed to become it. You''re supposed to link with it." "I don''t understand." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Next time Lexie, you must anchor yourself before you connect to the black hole." "Oh. How?" "Retain awareness of at least one of your senses," he said. "Make sure you can still see the mana particles even when you''re linking with the hole. That way you can still be yourself." She nodded. "Okay. Can I try again?" He shook his head. "Maybe tomorrow. Right now, you need rest and I need to explain to you what it is you saw." "I''m not tired," she said even though she kind of was. "Well, I am." He gave her a wry look. "Lexie, do you know how long you were meditating for?" "Um¡­" Lexie glanced out the window and found that it was dark outside. The moons were out. It couldn''t be. It was just an afternoon a second ago. But then she realized that she didn¡¯t know how much time she thought had passed. Maybe an hour? A few minutes? Surely it couldn''t have been hours. ¡°You were in there for five hours,¡± Aiden said. ¡°That¡¯s pretty impressive bee. You didn¡¯t get distracted at all.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± She preened at the compliment, but she was still surprised. That did not feel like five hours at all. ¡°So what do we do now?¡± ¡°Now, we have dinner. While you were in there, I ordered us some pasta and made some chicken to go with it. We¡¯ll eat while I explain to you what exactly it is that you saw. I couldn''t explain it to you until you experienced it yourself. Otherwise, it would sound like gibberish." She nodded and Aiden had her lie in bed as he went out to bring in the food. They ate chicken and pasta on her bedroom floor, as Aiden explained, "So, the process of card activation as you know it is that internal mana moves out, activates the object mana, which brings the external mana inside. A step-by-step process with three separate mana fields?" "Yeah," Lexie said, biting into the crunchy chicken. It was really good, with the honey sauce. It reminded her of Korean fried chicken. "Well, as I mentioned that day, that explanation of mana fields the most dumbed-down version of events. It''s not really a step-by-step process and there aren¡¯t three mana fields. There¡¯s only one. The truth is that all those things are happening simultaneously, all at once on a different plane that all magical processes occur on." Lexie paused with the chicken in her mouth, blinking at her dad. He smiled at her confusion. "Imagine you were a spell user, and you said a spell. The words leave your mouth and you see the effect. But what you don''t see is the process by which the effect happens because that process occurs on a much different plane than the ones we see in our human eyes. It occurs on a fourth dimension, a magical plane." "And that was the plane I was just in?" "Yes. Once you''re on that plane, you can see that the pathways are all stacked on top of each other, and they''re not as different as they initially appear. They all work by a feedback loop impacting one another. It''s how cards can be shut down even after activation is complete to prevent damage. Because both internal, external and object pathways all inform each other.¡± "I see." Aiden bit a fry. "Now, using magic on the magical plane is a bit more complicated than what we''ve been doing so far. But once you''ve mastered that plane, it makes it easier to manipulate your pathways and your magic. And it makes it so much more powerful." Lexie grinned, feeling zeal and hope race through her. Now they were talking.
Aiden made Lexie work on her visualization for the next two days. Each time she tried it, her senses became a little sharper, the image a little better. It took a little less time to form the black hole. And when Aiden was off to work, she still kept up with her mana shaping exercises and her breathing exercises, finding that it helped her get in the mood faster. On the second day, she finally tried to link with the black hole again. Aiden finally explained to her what he wanted, that she was to move with the black hole, and it would help her see the individual mana particles better, as she chased them around her body. When connecting to the black hole this time, she kept some of her senses still awake, enough so she could still see and hear and visualize each mana particle even clearer like it was right in front of her. When she moved the black hole, the mana particles shifted to avoid it, and it became a fun game of chasing the big golden glowing balls. As she did, she studied and wrote down everything she found out about the pathways. Like Aiden suggested, they were malleable. People with high mana affinity had more malleable pathways than those without. And mundanes did not have malleable pathways at all. Pathways also had pores in them, which was how mana leakage and waste happened. There was research currently ongoing about how to calculate the distance between each pore and the level of elasticity in the pathway. At this point, it was highly individual, but researchers and scientists were determined to find a general formula that would predict or govern the way people learned pathways. And Lexie also found that the technique Aiden taught her wasn¡¯t all that commonly known. At least not as a way of controlling pathways. There was no reference she could find online at all for ''Black Hole Exercises'' which was what Aiden called them. So either they were super forbidden, or they were just not known to the general population. Which begged the question of how Aiden had found out about them in the first place. Perhaps she would ask later after she was done mastering this new skill. She didn''t want to spook Aiden into stopping his lessons by asking too many questions. Aiden, for his part, was continuously impressed by Lexie''s mana affinity. Lexie was convinced that her unusual mana affinity was due to her being from Earth 2. Well, that and probably Aiden''s genetics. Come to think of it, he said her mother had a high affinity too, although she wasn''t interested in learning anything magical. Did that mean that Lara Sparrowfoot could have learned what Lexie was doing if she wanted to? Could it have helped her? And then the thought was followed by another stunning question. Were there mundanes with high mana affinity without the capacity? What could she do with that? She noted it down. Potential area for research in the future. Lexie could see herself now, studying pathways with a concentration in card magic to serve a mundane population. If she could somehow make cards that worked for mundanes, that would certainly meet the criteria for revolutionary discovery, wouldn¡¯t it? Plus, it would help people and that was pretty heroic too. In any case, she should probably get started looking into that. Well, once she was done with her black hole exercises that is. The next day, when Aiden got back from work, she gave him some time to decompress and relax. She even made them sandwiches for dinner, (plus warmed up some left-over pizza) so he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about it. And she brewed some tea, not a complicated Muan tea, but one of the other ones he kept in little pots in the pantry. Aiden seemed amused by her devotion. ¡°Are you buttering me up for something?¡± She sat on the dining table chair beside him. ¡°No. Just trying to be a good daughter.¡± ¡°Ah. So you wouldn¡¯t mind if, after having this tea, I went up to bed?¡± She almost gasped. But she forced herself to choke out the words.¡°No, that''s fine. If you''re tired you should rest." He laughed then. ¡°Yeah right. I don''t believe for a second that you mean that. Alright, then. Let''s go to the living room so you can get in position.¡± She nodded and scrambled to do just that. She arranged herself right in the middle of the living room, with a pillow under her butt for comfort. "Materialize card," he said next. Lexie did and the card appeared in her hand. "Now you''re going to activate the card, but you''re not going to bother with activating it all the way. We''re just going to have what we call a partial activation while you visualize how the mana moves into the pathways." She nodded. She was excited. ¡°Visualize first.¡± She did. She concentrated until she was in the magical plane and his voice was once again, a far-away echo. "Activate the card." Once again, she did and it wasn''t as hard as she thought it would be focusing on two things at once. Actually, it was almost intuitive to activate the card while in the magical plane. All she had to do was think about it, and since she was already in the plane, she immediately saw which part of her lit up. She zoomed in on over there, as the mana began filling out the shape." "Again, you don''t have to fill it out. Once you''re halfway there, stop and focus on creating a black hole, right outside the pathway." Lexie nodded, observing the golden stream. Then once, she had enough, she began meticulously creating a black hole outside the pathway as mana particles drifted all around her. This time, when she connected with the black hole, she left her senses open, and observed the movement of the golden mana orbs into the lit up pathway. ¡°Now I want you to zoom in on the pathway vessels. What do you see?¡± She did as he asked, and confirmed what the online articles told her. ¡°They¡¯re moving. Shifting a little.¡± ¡°Yes. And what else?¡± ¡°There are pores on it.¡± ¡°Good. Now focus on them.¡± She did. And she saw something else. Constant mana, streaming in, streaming out. ¡°I want you to try and plug as many of those pores as you can.¡± Lexie was so confused that it nearly broke her concentration. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to control the stream of mana. The only way to do that and avoid mana leakage is to plug the pores.¡± ¡°How¡­how do I do that?¡± ¡°Pick a spot to focus on, not the entire channel, just a portion of it.¡± She did, focusing deeper on the portion of the pathway she was already looking at. ¡°Do you still remember the shaping exercises I taught you?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Well here¡¯s where they come in handy. To avoid leakage you¡¯d have to control the mana stream and shape it so perfectly that nothing escapes out the pores. The mana inside the pathways? You¡¯re going to mold it tighter so that it pulls back from the walls of the pathway. If they don¡¯t touch the walls they can¡¯t escape through the pores." "Um..." That sounded overwhelmingly difficult. "It is difficult, isn¡¯t it?" Aiden seemed to read her mind. "And it would be far too difficult for you to control the entire stream. That''s something that comes with years and years of these types of exercises. But luckily for you, we don¡¯t need to do that right now. You don''t have tons of internal mana so it makes it even easier for you." "How?" "Well, you see the mana stream, traveling along inside the pathway." She nodded. "What you need to do is concentrate on the particles directly at the edges of the pathway near the pores. Pretend like those are split off from the rest of the stream. Don''t lose them to the stream or let them mix in. Keep them in their position, and hold them there so they don''t escape." "Okay." Lexie swallowed and tried. Just like she''d done with the black hole, she tried to select the particles one by one, to separate from the rest of the stream. But it was hard. Each particle she touched vibrated in her hold wanting to escape and link back with it''s brethren. Lexie took a deep breath and admitted, "I think that might be a bit much for me right now." "What might make it easier," Aiden continued, "is to use a black hole you already have to cut through and create mana-less paths between the stream and the edge particles. That way you don''t have to worry so much about them mixing in." Oh. That made sense. That was probably why he had her create the black hole in the first place. Lexie immediately held on to the black hole and began separating the stream. It was still hard, but not as difficult as what she was trying to do earlier. It was just a much slower process though for whatever reason. ¡°This is supposed to make activation faster?" she asked because it seemed like it was taking forever. ¡°It will be once you get used to it," he said. "And it''s easier than just controlling the whole stream?" "Yes. It¡¯s much harder and slower to corral mana when it¡¯s moving in bulk because particles bounce around. But when you separate them like this, there are fewer particles to worry about." ¡°Alright.¡± She was kind of getting a headache now but she kept at it, shaping the lines by the pathway walls, making them thin, and using them to guard the walls against leakage. It was easier with after she used her black hole like a knife efficiently cutting paths in her mana. After that was done, all she had to do was focus on the lines closest the walls. ¡°Think of those lines as your little soldiers," Aiden was saying. "Every time one of them starts to get out of hand you corral them back in.¡± Lexie did her best and after painstaking moments, she managed to form an immovable wall of mana particles. She felt like a sheepdog, herding cattle. Just for that small section of pathway that she focused on, she wasn''t allowing anything to escape through the pores. And then she noticed that once there was no more room for escape, the mana particles inside the pathway were pushed together and gushed forward as a result of the force, like water from a spigot that too much water pressure. ¡°They¡¯re moving faster.¡± Excitement made Lexie breathless. ¡°Good. Now you can stop Lexie." She disconnected from the plane and opened her eyes to meet Aiden''s proud smile. "You did it," he said and she couldn''t contain herself anymore. Giddy with happiness, she got up and ran into his arms, hugging him tight. "Thank you," she whispered into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her hair. ¡°This is good for a start,¡± he said. ¡°But it¡¯s just a start. I have to warn you that we¡¯ll keep going for some time until you can do that for an entire pathway, not just a portion of one. And it will only get harder before it gets easier.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± she said. She was just excited for progress. "I¡¯m ready.¡± 23 - +1 Charisma Lexie went to school the next school day in good spirits despite what happened the last time she was here. Aiden didn¡¯t walk her to the gates because he had to head to his cleaning gig early that morning but Lexie was okay walking to the gate by herself. "Hi, Mitch." She waved at the security guard¨Cwho simply nodded her in¨Cand made her way across the school field. But the closer she got to the classroom, the more her apprehension grew. Truthfully, she was dreading seeing Veronica again. Not because she was scared of confrontation necessarily. But she didn''t feel prepared to face the situation yet. Even though Aiden told her that learning about pathways would make it easier for her to guard hers from manipulation, she wasn''t sure she was at the stage where she could. At least not without deep meditation. Aiden said she wouldn¡¯t always need the meditation and would eventually be able to access that magical plane while in the normal plane at the same time. But it would take time and work. Lexie was willing to put in the work. It was the time part that bugged her. In any case, she would face whatever came at her today head-on. No way was she letting herself get bullied by a middle schooler. That would be embarrassing. If she touches me again, I''ll just claw her eyes out, Lexie told herself, nodding resolutely. Funny, because Lexie had never been a fighter. She''d always been the type to avoid trouble rather than engage with it. But now she didn¡¯t have a choice. And even though Veronica was taller than her and probably stronger than her in just about every way, Lexie wasn''t about to let herself become a doormat. She wouldn''t let Veronica put that fear inside her like Aiden''s bully did to him. She would fight it with every bit of physicality she could muster until her magic could match up. So the second she walked into class, she located Veronica first, readying herself. Veronica was engaged in a conversation with Diane, but as if drawn by Lexie¡¯s gaze or some cruel twist of fate, she looked at Lexie at the same time. Their eyes locked. Lexie didn''t look away. It was like two lions in the animal kingdom. If she showed fear and looked away first, Veronica would think she was scared of her. She would pounce, thinking she''d won another easy target. So Lexie held her gaze until Veronica scoffed and looked away. And then Lexie continued to her seat, determined to maintain her good mood despite it. ¡°Hey, Dewie,¡± she greeted the bespectacled boy as she took the seat by the window. His head shot to her, a confused look on his face. ¡°You know my name?¡± She looped her backpack on her seat and brought out her study pad. ¡°Uh. Yeah?¡± Roll call happened every morning and she could see the names of everyone as the teacher ticked it off. Plus she¡¯d heard people call him Ewie-Dewie a few times so it caught. Did he not like being called his name? Maybe because of the teasing? Did he prefer Dewitt? He was still staring at her with that stricken expression and she was starting to get uncomfortable. ¡°I can call you something else if you want me to,¡± she said. ¡°Do you have a nickname in mind?¡± His eyes widened for a beat. ¡°Are you in love with me?¡± ¡°What?¡± Lexie blurted out loudly, so taken aback by his question that she drew the attention of the people in the surrounded seats. Her face heated and she reduced her tone to a whisper. ¡°No!¡± He peered at her. ¡°You¡¯re blushing. And you asked if you could call me a nickname. Kinda sounds like you love me and stuff.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± Lexie said firmly, ignoring the snickering in the seat behind her. Jeez, could she not just find one nice, normal seatmate? ¡°I asked your name because I was trying to be nice to you.¡± If anything, he looked more suspicious and confused. ¡°Why? Are you trying to prank me?¡± ¡°No, why would I be trying to prank you?¡¯ He shrugged. ¡°Some people think it¡¯s funny.¡± There was a mild tightness in his face when he said it, which told Lexie that he didn''t think it was very funny. ¡°I won¡¯t prank you,¡± Lexie told him. ¡°As long as you agree not to prank me either.¡± That shocked him. ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to prank you in the first place.¡± He sounded so genuinely offended that Lexie had to believe him. ¡°Really? Then why did you tell me not to sit here on the first day?¡± ¡°Because¡­something bad might happen.¡± ¡°What?¡± He sighed in exasperation. ¡°A red-hatted gnome sat there the week before you came. That means something, possibly something bad, is going to happen to that chair.¡± ¡°A gnome?¡± As part of her Politics class, Lexie was studying human relations with other planets and their inhabitants. While there were a lot of alien species, usually creatures Lexie thought were mythical like dragons, orcs, and the all-important Fae, she¡¯d never heard of gnomes. Suddenly, the brunette girl sitting in front of them, Mya, spun around and gave Dewie an annoyed look. ¡°Just ignore him," she told Lexie. "He¡¯s always saying silly stuff like that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not silly!¡¯ He frowned fiercely at the girl. ¡°It was really there. I don''t know why no one believes me.¡± ¡°No one believes you because there¡¯s no such thing as gnomes and you¡¯re either an attention-seeking liar or you¡¯re insane.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not insane!¡± He was getting agitated now and Lexie didn¡¯t want the situation to escalate so she said, ¡°I believe you.¡± Mya and Dewie turned to her stunned. Not just them, but the class had gotten significantly quieter too. Lexie held her ground and shrugged. ¡°If he said he saw a gnome then he saw a gnome. I don¡¯t get what the big deal is.¡± ¡°Gnomes don¡¯t exist.¡± Mya said it slowly like Lexie was stupid. ¡°Maybe they do, maybe they don¡¯t.¡± She glanced around to see that several people were staring at her like she was crazy now. "What? Is it that hard to believe that we discovered dragon aliens but not gnomes?¡± ¡°Is she for real?¡± She heard Veronica say with someone else snickering. ¡°Whatever.¡± Mya was tired of explaining it to Lexie. She rolled her eyes and immediately turned to her study pad. Lexie turned back to her pad too. Dewie leaned in to whisper. ¡°You really are in love with me, aren''t you?" ¡°No, I''m not." But she didn¡¯t think he believed her because he smiled and winked at her. ¡°Okay class.¡± Mrs. Patridge, the History and Politics teacher, walked in agitated, her curly hair a mess around her head, her glasses perched crookedly on her nose. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m late. There was an accident on 2nd and 5th Roman and the bridge almost collapsed. Caused a heap of traffic. But no worries. A few student [Heroes] have taken care of it.¡± An air of excitement was instantly injected into the class and some of the kids sitting by the window stood to take a peek out the window, to see if they could catch the [Heroes] at work from there. ¡°It¡¯s already done,¡± Mrs. Patridge snapped. ¡°Stop standing and take your seats.¡± The students grumbled as they did but they knew better than to defy her. Mrs. Patridge turned to the holographic board and pulled up a projection of the earth with each of its Districts split up into separate sections. ¡°Today we¡¯re going to be continuing our conversation about the First Great War." She surveyed the class and said, "To recap, who can tell me what the war was about?" Mya put her hand up instantly. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The war was between the old Guardians and humankind. The Guardians were slowly destroying human civilization forcing the Humans to seek help from extraterrestrial beings like the Fae. The Fae agreed to help us and then we managed to lock the Guardians up in the Evil Tower and got our own system." "Good." Mrs. Patridge glanced at Lexie, as though trying to make sure she was keeping up and Lexie nodded. Apart from the fact that they''d discussed this in their previous class, Lexie already read up on the First Great War. It was one of the few historical occurrences that didn''t have an equivalent on Earth 2. The Guardians were essentially like gods, supernaturally powerful beings who were worshipped and often bestowed powers on humans that they favored. The powers were given through contracts with the humans, and the humans would essentially sell their souls to these Guardians for power. Like the Grecoroman gods, there was a Guardian for everything¨Cstrength, beauty, wisdom and also magic. The problem though was that the Guardians hated each other and would often use human armies to wage wars on other Guardians'' territories. District would fight against District, nation against nation, a proxy war for supernatural beings who only saw humans as their toys. And then Earth was discovered by the Fae who had already established a magic system on their planet without the Guardians. The humans pleaded with the Fae to give them a system like that so they could fight back against the Guardians and the Fae agreed. That was basically how Earth''s system came into being. ¡°Excellent start. And how did we establish our system? Jefferey?¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± The freckled boy fumbled for a second, trying to hide the fact that he was probably doing something else on his pad other than taking down notes. ¡°The Great Developers and the Fae climbed the tower and found the source of the Guardian''s magic," Mya continued. "They found a way to siphon it and feed it into wells all over the world. Then they found a way for humans to use it without the Guardian''s interference." "That''s great Mya, but I want to hear from Jeffrey next time." Mya blushed and gave her a clipped nod. "Okay, Jeffrey. What happened after we took the Guardian''s magic?" "Well, um...the Guardians got weaker and we locked them up. Then we used their magic to create the system." ¡°Good, but Mya already said most of that. And what happened after?¡± ¡°Obviously, we got powers.¡± People chuckled all over the room and Mrs. Patridge shook her head. Lexie stuck her hand up in the air. "Yes, Lexie?" ¡°Why didn''t the system give powers to everyone?" she asked. "I mean part of the problem with the Guardians was that they only distributed powers to people who found favor with them or who they wanted to use for their nefarious deeds. The Great Developers of the system and the Fae reportedly wanted fairness and equality as well as an end to the wars. So why not just let everyone have powers?" ¡°Because then people who didn''t deserve it would get it,¡± Veronica pointed out. Lexie only spared her a glance. "How does the system decide who deserves it and who doesn''t?¡± she asked Mrs. Patridge next. ¡°It''s certainly not a moral decision, or there would be no such thing as a [Villain]. So basically it feels like the system is designed to arbitrarily give some people powers and others not, depending on what it wants from you. Isn¡¯t that what we hated the Guardians for doing? How is this different?" This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "It''s different because the system is fair," Veronica answered again, sounding annoyed at being ignored. "It doesn''t need you to worship it or kiss its butt. It''ll give you powers because it thinks you''re worthy." "Worthy? You mean if you have the right parents, hire the right tutors, or fight the right monster at the right time. Again, arbitrary things. And even then it''s inconsistent because you could have all those things and still not get chosen. Hardly seems fair to me." Veronica remained quiet grinding her teeth. Everyone in the class was watching Lexie now, and Mrs. Patridge seemed excited about the dialogue. ¡°Lexie, What do you think would happen if everyone had powers?" she asked. "Do you think things would be fair then?¡± Lexie chewed her lip. "I¡¯m not sure." She truly wasn¡¯t. On the Earth she came from, no one had powers but there was still the separation of rich and poor. And while most people may believe they could technically have access to wealth, because they weren¡¯t restricted from making money, very few people were actually rich. ¡°I guess there would probably still be problems even if everyone had powers." "Problems like..." She shrugged. "Probably more powerful bad guys. More [Villains]." "You would know," Veronica said and Lexie ignored her once again. "But people would also be able to defend themselves better," she said. "And we could maybe even have more healers. If that happened, even if people only healed themselves and their loved ones, then maybe the healer shortage wouldn''t be as bad." Although Lexie didn''t all the way believe that either. From what she''d read, there used to be more Healers in Orinia until just about a decade ago. Before that, healing was seen as a noble calling and Healers were assigned to the church to work under a [Saintess]. They dedicated their lives to going around, eradicating disease and helping people at the cost of their own health. The sacrifice was seen as a mark of honor to fulfill their duty. But the dark side of that was that it wasn¡¯t entirely by choice. The church had been bullying and using political power and underhanded means to force healers into compliance, forcing them to give up their lives or be ostracized from society, unable to find work anywhere. But then the Hero association stepped in and ended the forced recruitment of necessary [Heroes] and [Healers], allowing those who had the skill but didn''t want to practice to go free. So in a way, it was justice and choice that gave them the healer shortage. But if there were more Healers, odds were there would be more people like Dee who would still choose to sacrifice themselves for it. If you were pre-affixed as a healer would you do it? An internal voice mocked Lexie. Because it knew that the answer was most likely no. While she liked helping people, she wasn''t willing to kill herself for it. That took the air right out of her self-righteous sails. And all the more when Mrs. Patridge pointed out, "There''s also the fact that mana isn''t an infinite resource. There¡¯s certainly a lot of it in the world and will be for years to come, but there''s probably not enough to allow every living thing to utilize magic. Too many people using magic would mess with the balance of mana in the atmosphere and can have dire consequences." "We can run out of mana?" Lexie asked. She''d assumed mana was like oxygen, simply there to be inhaled and then exhaled by trees...although now that she thought about it, they could run out of oxygen too. Of course. Why hadn''t she thought about that? "It would be difficult to," Mrs. Patridge said. "But not impossible." "A world without mana," Veronica shuddered at the thought. "Sounds awful." "Not really. Everyone would be a mundane.¡± Xena finished in a low tone. "Might be nice." Veronica turned on her. "No, we wouldn''t all be mundane. We would be dead. Right, Mrs Patridge?" "Yes. At this point, our bodies are designed to live in a mana-filled atmosphere. To drastically change that, we either would not survive or we would be forced to evolve into a different type of human. But evolution typically takes many years to happen so death is the most likely outcome." "See?" Veronica gave Xena a triumphant look and Xena rolled her eyes. "Now," Mrs. Patridge clapped her hands and referred to the rest of the class. "Though the system initially gave out a lot of abilities, there were some that were restricted. Who can tell me just four of the many forbidden skills that the system almost never grants? Abernathy?" ¡°Some forms of necromancy,¡± Abernathy said. ¡°Reality manipulation. Mind Control. Future Sight.¡± ¡°Good. And why are these forbidden skills not allowed anymore?¡± ¡°Because they¡¯re too awesome and the system doesn¡¯t want us to have nice things,¡± Bennie said and a few people laughed. The question and answer went on and on until break time. Lexie didn''t go to the cafeteria, still traumatized from last week. Aiden made her promise not to use the cards to give herself time to rest, so she stayed in her seat and read through old notes, trying to ignore Dewie who stared at her like he was trying to figure out a puzzle. It was distracting. She wished he would leave but Dewie barely ever went for lunch at the cafeteria, unfortunately. Lexie was trying to decide if she should find somewhere else to study when the three musketeers walked in. ¡°Lexie!" Boyle said instantly when he saw her. ¡°We won!¡± She blinked at him. ¡°Won what?¡± ¡°The bet.¡± "Oh." She¡¯d been so busy with Aiden that she¡¯d forgotten to watch the match. ¡°TD won?¡±¡¯ ¡°Yup. Wiped the floor with Brayden. It happened exactly as you said. He pretended to be slower at first to make Brayden think he was winning and then bam. He had him. It was epic.¡± ¡°I bet.¡± Now that¡¯s another thing to look forward to today. After she was done with Aiden, she could reward herself and watch the highlights of the match. Abernathy looked sour as he trailed behind them but Chris said, ¡°Here, give me your account number so I can send you your winnings.¡± Lexie rattled it off. A minute later a notification popped up letting her know that 135 credits had been added back to her account.¡± She frowned. ¡°Why 135? It¡¯s supposed to be 150.¡± ¡°The wager guild takes ten percent of every bet pool,¡± Chris said. "Who on earth decided that?" "The wager president did.¡± Lexie frowned in confusion and then the realization hit her. ¡°You''re wager president?" He said smugly. And then Boyle spoke up. ¡°Hey, you know your stuff for a girl. Tomorrow is MediKate versus Kane the Mundane. Who do you have so I can make my bets?¡± Before she could answer a ding hit the corner of her vision. It was a notification, but it was weird, flickering almost like a glitch. She opened it up with a frown.
SYSTCALC... +1 Charisma.
Huh? What was that? She would have to ask Aiden when she got home. It didn¡¯t sound like any of the other boys got the same thing. They were still waiting for her answer. "MediKate will probably win," Lexie said. "One sneaky tranquilizer dart and the Mundane is down." Abernathy scoffed. ¡°Please. Obviously, Mundane or not, Kane isn¡¯t going to lose to a girl with barely any magic.¡± This again? ¡°Oh really?¡± Lexie slowly smiled. "Would you like to make a wager on that?¡±
It was on her way home that it occurred to Lexie. She suddenly stopped in her tracks as it hit her and she frowned into space for two seconds, her dad staring at her. ¡°Are you solving multi-universe problems?¡± She blinked at him and shook her head. ¡°Nah. Just thinking about something¡­in class today, the teacher said that there were skills that the system never gives to anyone anymore.¡± ¡°Yes. The forbidden skills. And?¡± She glanced at him. ¡°She said mind-control was one of them. But at that [Hero] party there was this guy and¡­I dunno if he had mind-control but I felt like he was doing something telepathic to Xena.¡± ¡°Really?¡± he frowned. ¡°Yeah. But I wasn¡¯t close enough to be sure.¡± Aiden¡¯s frown remained and he rubbed his chin in thought. They continued walking. ¡°Well, mind control is forbidden but there is a workaround.¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± ¡°I knew someone who was a telepathic spell caster.¡± For a second, his expression turned annoyed as though he was thinking of an irritating bug. Lexie got the feeling that whoever this someone was, Aiden wanted to punch him in the face. ¡°It¡¯s not real telepathy in the sense of the word. He couldn''t read minds but he could sense thoughts from pathways.¡± ¡°Pathways¡­can give away thoughts?¡± ¡°They give away a bunch of information. But you¡¯d have to be a pathway expert to be able to make sense of the information you¡¯re getting. And even then it¡¯s not as strong as real telepathy where you would outright read someone¡¯s mind. It¡¯s more so that you¡¯re getting the impression of their senses and emotions and you can manipulate it slightly.¡± ¡°Oh. So that¡¯s what he could have been doing?¡± ¡°It would depend. I only know of one telepathic spellcaster so I¡¯m not sure. It¡¯s a notoriously difficult thing to learn.¡± ¡°Even for a generational genius Archmage like you?¡± Lexie joked and he tweaked her nose. "Yes, brat. Even for me.¡± Aiden didn¡¯t have to work at the Healing House today, so he spent time with Lexie working on plugging her pathways. This time she was able to do it for a longer stretch and she was proud of herself. Aiden was happy about her quick progress too. After they were done, she ended up watching the TD fight on the couch while Aiden made dinner. It was exactly what she thought. He hung back a lot in the first half and then really dominated in the second half with his . He also exposed a new skill which saw him throwing his opponent from side to side and attacking him from each side he landed on. It was a cool move that looked quite complicated but of course, TD pulled it off. At the end of the match, he took off his mask and grinned genuinely for the first time at the roaring crowd. Lexie smiled back at him then remembered Xena¡¯s words about her having a crush on TD, so she stopped herself from smiling. "I¡¯m not a fan girl," she told herself even as she commented, "Good job, Top Dog! Amazing finish!¡± She also scrolled down the comments, where there was a debate about what Top Dog should name that final move. The top comment read: I think he should name that finishing move Dog Walker. Because he walked him like a dog. Lexie frowned. Dogwalker sounded good but she had a better idea. How about Ragbone? she commented underneath. What he did reminded Lexie of ragging when dogs would shake their toy aggressively as though trying to kill it. The comment almost immediately got two likes, which gave Lexie some validation for her choices. A doorbell rung and Lexie stood from the couch. ¡°I¡¯ll get it,¡± she announced as she jogged to the door. Aiden didn¡¯t even budge or respond. He was too focused on Nancy the baking queen again. But when she pulled open the front door, shock pierced through Lexie''s good mood. ¡°Xena?¡± "Hey,¡± she said, frowning. Lexie almost felt like closing the door again, before Xena could ruin her mood, but the other girl looked more uncomfortable than antagonistic, rubbing her elbow. ¡°Can we talk?¡± "Um¡­sure.¡± Lexie walked out and closed the door, wondering what this was about. ¡°Is Emma okay? Do we need to crash another [Hero] party?¡± ¡°No, she¡¯s fine,¡± Xena said with a small smile. ¡°No more party crashing. I don''t need you passing out on me again.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t pass out. I¡¯m getting better at activating cards, even the tougher ones. Of course, it still takes me almost forty seconds to activate most of the high-powered ones but I¡¯m sure we can work around that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Lexie blinked. ¡°Don¡¯t be. Aiden says forty seconds is great for my age.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m sorry about." She breathed out and then she said, ¡°I heard that Veronica was talking bad about your dad. Who for some reason you sometimes call by his first name.¡± The mention of Veronica dimmed Lexie¡¯s mood. The other girl hadn¡¯t done anything to Lexie today but smirked whenever their eyes met. Lexie wasn¡¯t scared of her, but it was annoying. ¡°Yeah, so?¡± Xena exhaled deeply, clenching her hands. ¡°Well, when she was talking about my mom you told her off, but I didn¡¯t say anything when she spoke about your dad.¡± Hang on, what? That¡¯s the part she¡¯s apologizing for? ¡°You weren''t there to say anything,¡± Lexie pointed out. ¡°You got your panties in a twist because I tried to help you and stormed out." Xena¡¯s face reddened. Her eyes traveled everywhere but at Lexie. ¡°Yeah, I shouldn¡¯t have done that either. I guess I¡¯m sorry for that too.¡± Two sorries in one day? What on earth is going on? ¡°Did your mom put you up to this?¡± Lexie asked, and some animosity jumped right back into Xena¡¯s expression. ¡°No. And she¡¯s not my mom.¡± Ah, that''s the Xena I remember. Ever the contrarian, because she literally called Emma ¡®mom¡¯ two speech bubbles ago. ¡°No. I¡¯m apologizing because I felt bad for yelling at you when you tried to help, but also you don¡¯t have to do that, alright?¡± ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°Defend me. Don''t try to talk to me and be nice. It¡¯s annoying. You don¡¯t have to be my friend just because my mom asked you to.¡± Who said I wanna be your friend, Lexie thought but she didn¡¯t say it. As prickly as she was, this was Xena at least trying to communicate and Lexie didn''t want to respond to that with nastiness. ¡°You think your mom asked me to be your friend? And that¡¯s why I¡¯ve been talking to you?¡± Lexie shook her head. ¡°Did it ever occur to you that maybe I just like you?¡± Xena made a weird face. ¡°You like me? Why?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I guess maybe I¡¯m a masochist.¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°I mean, you¡¯re mean but you¡¯re also kind of funny. And you introduced me to the AFC so that''s nice. And it takes a certain kind of person to go all the way to another city and disrupt a local political event to scream at the superpowered law enforcement. Plus you defended my dad when Rose was yelling at him.¡± ¡°I didn''t do that to defend him.¡± ¡°Yeah you did, at least a part of you did.¡± She smirked at her stormy expression. ¡°Anyway, I wasn¡¯t being nice to you because of your mom.¡± She peered at me. ¡°So you¡¯re saying your dad never told you anything about me?¡± ¡°Well...¡± Lexie tried to lie, but she wasn''t very good at it because Xena sighed. ¡°He did, didn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°Yeah, but that¡¯s just because dad¡¯s a gossip, not because your mom told him to say something.¡± Thankfully the door was closed so he couldn¡¯t hear her badmouthing him. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. I liked you before he even told me that stuff.¡± Xena didn¡¯t look like she believed her so Lexie let it go. ¡°But alright, fine,¡± she said. ¡°I won¡¯t try to be your friend anymore.¡± "You won¡¯t?¡± ¡°Yeah. As a matter of fact, I¡¯ll go out of my way to not be your friend. When Conrad loses his match on Thursday, I¡¯ll rub it in your face so hard you¡¯ll think I despise you.¡± That got Xena to smile before she said, ¡°He''s not going to lose.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡± Lexie didn''t think he was going to lose either but if she told Xena that, Xena might think she was trying to be her friend again. Xena soon left, and Lexie went back in, in an even better mood. And she completely forgot to ask Aiden about the notification she received earlier today. 24 - Hero Points Lexie didn''t remember the notification for almost another week. In her defense, she was pretty busy. Apart from her endless black hole exercises, her first few class tests were inching closer and closer and there was quite a bit for her to study. World history. Interplanetary relations. Math. Science and Magic. Politics. Maths. Even though maths was the easiest out of all them, because there was less new stuff for her to memorize, it was her least favorite to study. Not to mention she had to field questions from the musketeers every recess, when they frequently wanted to argue about who would win the next preliminary match. After correctly predicting MediKate''s win (and two others) the boys seemed to think that Lexie was some kind of diviner, or was using another type of magic to see who would win. Either that, or they thought she had insider knowledge which Abernathy muttered to Chris when he thought she wasn¡¯t listening. Either way, they didn''t bet much anymore, because they automatically sided with her and didn''t want to bet against her. So most of their conversations now devolved into long discussions about who the strongest in the league was, which led to very impassioned opinions being thrown about and Boyle''s socks being brought up at least once. "Listen, it''s easy," Boyle was saying gesturing with his hands. "Would you rather be punched in the face by a boulder or thrown a million feet into the air? Answer that and you''ll know who''s obviously the better fighter." ¡°That¡¯s a terrible argument," Abernathy said. ¡°Nuh-uh. It''s a great argument. Right, Lexie?¡± ¡°Right,¡± Lexie said distractedly without turning around. Trying to ignore him was pointless. He would just keep repeatedly calling her until she answered. But she kept her focus on the pad on her desk, reading through her prior notes. While doing so, she twirled a card in her hand, performing a push-pull exercise. Trying to kill two birds with one stone. She found that her black hole exercises made it easier for her to push-pull (even without cards) and she was starting to visualize activation even without going into a deep meditative state. She hadn''t tried to fully activate a card for some time, but she was sure she''d finally broken the 30-second barrier. The volume behind her spiked, and she resisted the urge to snap at the boys to be quiet. Sure they could be annoying, but they were nice guys generally and they considered her a friend. She didn''t want to hurt their feelings. On the bright side, Dewie seemed to be enjoying their company a lot more than she was. He''d turned around in his seat a few times, to interject about gnomes or something equally bizarre. The other guys ignored him whenever he did and Lexie sometimes felt bad when she saw the way his face fall, but she kind of understood too. Dewie was intensely weird. He stared at her for minutes sometimes, like he was trying to solve a really hard puzzle. And he often said things that were either off-topic or off-base. She didn¡¯t know what was going on with him, but she could understand why people kept their distance from him. He was strange. Yeah, like you''re normal. Lexie sighed. But despite her inner voice, and the prick of guilt she felt, she was determined to ignore/avoid Dewie too. Until two older boys walked into the class, followed by a teary-eyed girl. The boys were large and looked about fifteen, even though they were probably at most thirteen. And they had furious looks on their faces and zeroed in on Dewie. ¡°You,¡± the one in the middle with a severe bowl-cut and missing tooth said. Then he turned to the girl while pointing at Dewie. ¡°Is that him?¡± She nodded and sniffled. His face got angrier. ¡°You and I got a problem, buddy.¡± But Dewie wasn¡¯t paying attention to him. He was instead staring at the girl, his face squeezed in distaste. ¡°Did you tell her that my girlfriend that she had a wart?¡± Lexie raised an eyebrow. Thirteen-year-olds could have girlfriends? ¡°No,¡± Dewie said, frowning at the girl in distaste. ¡°I told her she has warts. Plural. They¡¯re there right now. And they¡¯re really gross to look at.¡± Throbbing silence punctuated the statement. Bowl-cut looked almost stunned by Dewie''s audacity. Lexie gaped at Dewie too, then looked back to the girl. She didn''t see any warts on her face. ¡°You take that back,¡± Bowl-cut recovered in time to say. "You made her cry. Apologize or I¡¯m going to make you sorry.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry your girlfriend has warts,¡± Dewie said with all sincerity. ¡°She should probably do something about them.¡± ¡°Dewie!¡± Lexie scolded. ¡°That¡¯s rude.¡± ¡°I¡¯m the rude one?" Dewie gave her an ''are-you-crazy-look'', gesturing at the girl. "She¡¯s the one who came in here looking like that. It¡¯s disgusting.¡± The girls gasped in outrage and in a flash, Bowlcut snatched Dewie by the front of his shirt hoisting him up into the air, his chair clattering to the ground in his wake. Lexie jumped a little at the suddenness of the move. Several sounds of surprise and laughter echoed into the classroom as Dewie wiggled in Bowl-cut''s hold, grasping at his wrist. "This is my mom''s favorite shirt on me," Dewie said. "If you bend the collar, she''ll never forgive me. She''ll never forgive you too." ¡°Hey,¡± Lexie shot to her feet before Dewie''s mouth could do further damage. ¡°Look, he didn¡¯t mean any harm. It¡¯s just sometimes he sees things that no one else can see.¡± And for some reason, he feels the need to tell people about it. ¡°That¡¯s bullcrap, Lloyd. He¡¯s just trying to be funny,¡± his companion said. ¡°Let¡¯s unfunny him right now.¡± ¡°No, don¡¯t unfunny him. I swear it¡¯s true. He really does see things. Ask anyone.¡± Lloyd faltered, eyeing Lexie. ¡°So he¡¯s crazy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not crazy,¡± Dewie protested, wiggling his feet and struggling to escape. Apart from the wriggling, he was pretty calm, as though he was used to this treatment. ¡°He¡¯s not crazy, he¡¯s just...¡± Lexie faltered, reaching for a fitting word. Different? Special? All of those sounded like nicer euphemisms for crazy. ¡°He¡¯s Dewie,¡± she finished lamely and the storm in Lloyd¡¯s expression returned full force. ¡°I don¡¯t care who he is. Governor¡¯s kid or not. I¡¯m going to make sure he learns to be nicer to girls.¡± And then he turned toward the door, still holding a dangling Dewie while his friend cheered him on and the entire class looked and whispered to themselves in excitement. About half of them probably felt bad for Dewie but the kid had said enough out-of-pocket stuff to everyone that most people probably wanted to see him get beat up. But Lexie knew that Dewie meant no harm. And memories of her brother and Tate raced through her mind. The chair scraped out as Lexie followed them, waiting for them to stop. But they kept going. They made it pretty far too, into the courtyard. Lloyd was a few seconds away from reaching the bathroom doors when he tripped on air and went crashing down. He dropped Dewie in the process, who rolled away and took off running like a rocket. Lloyd''s friends looked between Dewie and Lloyd as though wondering what just happened. How did their friend trip so badly? But they would never know the answer. Because the hallways were pretty empty and no one had seen Lexie activate her card. She put her hand down. As Lloyd rolled on the grass holding his knee, guilt swam inside Lexie. Oh God, I hope I didn¡¯t hurt him too badly. But when his friends started laughing at him, the boy got up proving that he had just been exaggerating and was more embarrassed than hurt. He stared after Dewie''s retreating form, debating whether to go after him. Then he seemed to decide it wasn''t worth it taking his girlfriend''s hand instead. Lexie hurried back into the classroom before they could see her or suspect she had anything to do with it. Her thoughts raced as she did. Did I just do that? How? Why? Well, the second part was easier to answer. She''d wanted to help Dewie. Though it was kind of his fault he was in trouble, she really thought he misunderstood and maybe thought he did see warts on the girl''s face. Maybe he had vision problems. When Lloyd had grabbed Dewie, her card had already been partially activated. Lexie could visualize the pathways with her eyes open now, due to her increased mana sensitivity, and she''d filled the card pathway up as she hurried after them trying to stop them from hurting him. And then once she was done, she''d pointed at Lloyd''s back. But she hadn¡¯t been trying to trip him that badly. What she¡¯d hoped for was a light stumble like with the server. But he¡¯d fallen hard as though his legs completely failed. And she felt guilty about it. Lexie thought about going to apologize but she scrapped that thought. No need to incriminate herself. It wouldn''t do anyone any good and besides he wasn''t seriously hurt. But she had to be careful with that card. It seemed she''d unintentionally pushed more mana than she wanted to and that had given the card more power. Which interested her because it meant that there was a range of mana that the card could accommodate and until she reached the threshold where the card would deactivate, how much mana she pushed through the pathway was directly proportional to how strong the effect was. Good to know. Lexie was already at her desk when she opened her activation timer. She didn''t notice what it said until she sat down. At which point she skimmed over it, and her entire body went rigid. It....it couldn''t be. Did that actually say what she thought it said? The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. It blinked in the corner of her vision next to another alert that told her she''d recieved notifications. The timer read:
ACTIVATION TIME: 21 SECONDS (ELAPSED) ACTIVE TIME: 5 SECONDS (ELAPSED) COOL OFF TIME: 16 SECONDS (4 SECONDS LEFT)
Oh. My. God. A huge wave of excitement hit her out of the blue, so sudden that she almost jumped to her feet and whooped for joy. Only the faintest sense of situational awareness reminded her that she was still in the classroom. But oh my God, she had gotten her activation time down to twenty-one freaking seconds! Not only that, but she''d also reduced her cool-off time, which meant that she was wasting less mana! It was working. All her training was paying off! Giddy thoughts ran through her head. She couldn''t focus. She just kept opening up her activity log to stare at that activation time again and again. Did she really activate that in twenty-one seconds? That was almost below twenty. This was the fastest she''d ever progressed. Guess the black hole exercises were working. And she barely felt any mana loss during that last activation. It didn''t exhaust her, barely felt like anything at all. When she checked her current capacity, it was at 360. Which meant that she''d only wasted approximately ten units of mana, rather than the standard 20 or more that the card would usually take. Oh my gosh. Aiden is amazing. When I go home I''m going to give him a giant hug. And then finally she got to the notification.
SYSTCALC... +1 Charisma. +1 Bravery.
¡°Something weird happened at school today,¡± Lexie said while lounging and watching the flat-screen TV. It was her first time using the clear glass television in the living room and even though the images weren''t as good as on the black pads, they were still better than anything they had on Earth 2. Aiden claimed that his wife had gotten the TV. They both liked vintage stuff and Lara said that watching things on TV reminded her of her home in District 8. Lexie was lying upside down with her feet on the back of the couch and her head hanging off the cushions. She''d been trying a new technique of meditation that was supposed to be improved by more blood flow to the brain. But after a few seconds of nothing but dizziness, she was starting to think it was all hogwash. She straightened. Aiden looked over from the other couch. ¡°Weirder than the boy whose socks smell like rotten garlic?" Lexie had finally observed the sock exchange between Abernathy and Doyle after the former backed out on a bet. It wasn''t a pleasant experience. ¡°Or weirder than the other boy who sees lizard people?¡± ¡°Yeah weirder than both of that. Although, it does have something to do with him. I got a notification today. It said something about me earning charisma and bravery points. What''s that?" ¡°Ah. Did you save someone?¡± ¡°Not really. I just helped out a friend. Well, not a friend, more of a... seatmate? Whatever. Anyway, it¡¯s not the first time I got it either. The other day, after I won a bet, I also earned a charisma point. What¡¯s up with that?¡± He chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s all normal. It¡¯s just the system letting you in on its affixation calculations.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It¡¯s calculating how good you¡¯d be at a certain affixation. Bravery points usually count towards a [Hero] role. In the same way, an intellect or ingenuity point would count towards a [Researcher] role. And charisma could advantage a countless number of roles and classes, including heroic ones.¡± "I see." Lexie doubted that charisma would help in [Research] though, which meant that it was probably useless to her. ¡°So that means that if I get enough bravery points, I¡¯ll become a hero?¡± ¡°Could be." He shrugged. ¡°I don''t want you to get your hopes. It¡¯s not that straightforward. It¡¯s just one of the factors that the system looks at before assigning a pre-affixation.¡± Lexie thought about it and frowned, annoyed that she''d unknowingly fallen for the system''s trap. Why did it feel like the system was trying to trick her into maintaining her [Hero] pre-affixation? How did she get a bravery point for tripping up a guy behind his back? Wasn''t that a bad thing to do? Sure she''d done it to help Dewie, but Dewie had brought the trouble upon himself by making fun of Lloyd''s girlfriend. And Lexie''s antics had nearly hurt Lloyd. If anything, she should have gotten a [Villain] point if there was such a thing. And charisma for winning a bet? How did that compute? Or was it because the boys trusted her judgment more after that? So charisma was equivalent to trust? Well, they also seemed to like her more, seeing as how much they bugged her during recess. Was that what happened? Either way, she didn''t like it. She didn''t want a damn charisma point or a bravery point. She didn''t want to be a [Hero] even if the system was determined to force it down her throat. "Don''t freak out," Aiden said watching her expression. "It''s not a bad thing. I would say the opposite actually. Typically it''s only individuals who have a high affinity that get a peek behind the system curtains, and so you being able to see those calculations even without being fully awakened means that your affinity is through the roof.'' "But I don¡¯t get it," she challenged Aiden. "I¡¯ve been studying cards for weeks. I''ve made improvements. Managed to activate a card in 21 seconds today. Why didn¡¯t I get any intellect points or ingenuity points? Or even study bonuses?¡± Aiden grinned at her disgruntled expression. ¡°I don¡¯t think the system gives study bonuses. You should get intellect points but those are harder because it counts against your baseline and you already were pretty smart,¡± he said. ¡°As for ingenuity or discovery points...that''s hard also because we¡¯re doing isn¡¯t exactly research. I¡¯m teaching and you¡¯re learning. But a scholar or [Researcher] goes beyond that. That deals with experimentation and trial and error. Not that I¡¯m encouraging that." He shot her a sharp look and a groan of regret. "I shouldn''t have said that. Definitely don''t do it, but I¡¯m just trying to explain to you how it works. But don''t let it bother you, Lex. Just be yourself and let the system figure it out.¡± No, I won''t. Because the system is deliberately sabotaging me and trying to make me something I don''t want to be. From what Aiden was saying, the system made it far more difficult for her to earn scholarly points than heroic ones, even though she was a far better scholar than a [Hero]. How did that make sense? She glanced at Aiden wondering if she should tell him the truth. On one hand, she wanted to. He was pretty smart and he would maybe help her figure out why her system had pre-affixed her even before she¡¯d pre-awakened. On the other hand, she was scared about the whole complete soul termination thing. But at the same time, she needed to understand what was going on, and there was no one else to help her. So she decided to ask it in a roundabout way. ¡°What if¡­hypothetically speaking of course, what if the system pre-affixed you before you pre-awakened?¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t happen Lex.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s say for argument¡¯s sake that it does. Say I had a friend who told me that they got pre-affixed as a [Hero] even before they pre-awakened. What would that mean?¡± Aiden stared at Lexie for a long time. He wasn''t a stupid man. He probably knew she wouldn''t just ask a question like that out of the blue so he might put two and two together and realize who the ''friend'' was. That was fine. As long she didn''t technically reveal it herself, she had plausible deniability in case the soul-terminators showed up. It''s their fault for not telling me the whole story before transmigrating my soul anyway. Aiden shifted his gaze away from her in thought for a few seconds. She tried to fix her expression into something resembling mere curiosity rather than desperate searching. Aiden didn¡¯t speak for what felt like minutes. And then quietly he said, ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I suppose it would mean that the system thought that individual would be extremely well-suited for that role and had strong reasons to believe so." Ha. Now she knew for sure. The system was messing with her. The system would have to be smoking something truly lethal, as Abernathy would say, to think that Lexie would make a good [Hero]. The only time she''d ever done anything heroic in her past life was saving Tate and look how well that turned out. ¡°Does that mean that¡­the pre-affixation is fixed? It can¡¯t be changed.¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°No sweetheart. A pre-affixation can be changed. Heck, even an affixation can be changed in certain cases. It¡¯s just more difficult. But if you stopped yourself from earning points in the pre-affixation you didn''t want, and earned enough points in the one you did, then you could change it at the end. Although..." "Although what..." "Given your sit...I mean your friend''s situation, it might be harder to convince the system against it." Shit. That was what she was scared off. "Hard," Aiden said giving her an encouraging look. "But not impossible." Lexie released a breath of relief. Ok, hard was fine. She could do hard. She just needed to do some of her own research. Figure things out and earn ingenuity points. Aiden pinned her with a look as though he could tell what she was thinking. "But Lexie, you shouldn''t be conducting magical research on your own. You know that right?" "Of course," she said in her most innocent tone and he only looked more worried. "If you need something just let me know," he said. "I''ll help you." She nodded again, still smiling innocently. Luckily, the oven dinged and he had to go check on it. While he was gone, Lexie began flipping through the channels until she landed on the image of a familiar woman. Stella Firebringer''s name was emblazoned at the bottom of the screen, encased in flames. She was wearing a red shirt with bronze detailing and once again Lexie was struck by the resemblance to Luther. She was Veronica¡¯s aunt. Luther¡¯s sister. Somehow she didn''t give off the same feeling as the other two. She felt more laidback even though she had that graceful posture that spoke of etiquette classes and good breeding. But the laugh lines made her look more jovial. Except she wasn''t laughing or winking right now. She wasn¡¯t smiling either. She looked grave, listening to the interviewer talk with that intense copper-colored gaze. "¡­you for being here today,¡± the interviewer, a stately woman in a purple suit was saying. ¡°I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to talk to us here at Capital News. Now let¡¯s get right to the most important question that our viewers want to know. What are your thoughts about what happened in Alpeco?" "What do you suppose that I think, Carol?" Stella said with a wry smile. ¡°It was a terribly-executed mission on all levels. Just a whole mess. Communication was poor, the wrong people got sent in, internal politics happened, and people¡¯s egos got in the way. The rescue team decided they''d rather chase down the bad guys than play their role, and command collapsed. It was a complete shit show. We could have done just about everything better. " She exhaled, her smile gone completely. "But we didn''t and people got hurt. And that¡¯s on us. Forever.¡± The interviewer looked taken aback by that. She glanced toward the cameraman in confusion. It was clear that the [Hero] had gone off script. "Um..." Carol said, recovering. "Yes, but I''m sure the [Heroes] were trying their best to deal with an impromptu terrorist situation with little warning and a lot of hostages¨C" "If that was our best then they need to disband all [Hero] training programs entirely, district-wide. Because what I saw was complete and utter garbage." Once again, the interviewer made a choked sound and glanced at the camera. Lexie wondered if she was trying to remind Stella that it was still there and that the interview was live. But Stella didn''t look like she gave a damn. "Everyone likes to think that, as [Heroes], we''re infallible,¡± she continued as the interviewer stared at her stunned. ¡°And that if any mistake happens, it happens despite our best efforts, not because we made mistakes. And most of the time we do try to be perfect. It¡¯s what we¡¯re trained for, right? It¡¯s why they pay us the big bucks. But we''re also human, and greed and pride and other fun emotions get in the way and then when we fuck up¡­oh shit, this is a family-friendly channel, isn''t it?" ¡°Uh¡­yeah..¡± ¡°Damn it. I meant to say we screw up,¡± she concluded. ¡°Is that fine? Screw¡¯s a family-friendly word, right?" ¡°I think so," the interviewer choked out. ¡°Yeah. So in conclusion, Alpeco? We screwed up. Big time.¡± After Stella finished, she laced her hands together waiting for the next question. The interviewer didn''t seem to know what to say next, riffling through her note cards and coughing to cover up awkward silence. ¡°Um...so you say that, Stella, even though you know your son was part of the [Heroes] assigned to the mission?" ¡°Sure. My son is a certified [Hero] now and he must be held accountable as all the other [Heroes] must, for the failure that happened in Alpeco. I was there too, albeit late, and someone needs to hold me accountable as well. I think the public should continue to demand answers from the hero association." Her eyes glinted with menace. "I suggest the situation gets audited by mundane law enforcement and the King¡¯s Knights too. Make the investigation as big as you want it to be. People need answers when it comes to catastrophic fuck- I mean screw-ups like that.¡± She has a point. Lexie increased the volume, finding her respect for the woman grew with every word. Stella Firebringer wasn''t really that eloquent and she didn''t sound like she was good at public speaking. But she sounded honest. Trustworthy. Lexie had a vague thought that this was probably high charisma at work. On the other hand, the interviewer kept shooting concerned looks to someone behind the camera. Lexie figured at least one PR person was having an apoplectic fit back there. The interviewer decided to forge on anyway. ¡°Second question. There¡¯s been a public outcry to the [Hero] association for some days now but the association was clear that they would not be giving any further interviews regarding the incident. And you rarely give interviews yourself. So why exactly are you giving me this one?¡± Stella smiled wryly. "Because the public deserves to know the truth, but any other [Hero] who spoke up would be in trouble. Anyone who told the truth would get in trouble with the association, and anyone who lied would get hate from the public. It¡¯s a lose-lose situation for them, you see.¡± ¡°But not for you?¡± "Well, I''m a high-ranking [Hero] at the association. They can¡¯t afford to get rid of me. Also, my son tells me I have something called an...online clout? It¡¯s supposed to mean I can get away with stuff like screwing around and botching interviews." She smiled a little at the interviewer''s chuckle and then sighed again. "To be completely honest with you, Carol, I don''t just dislike interviews. I hate them. I have anxiety every time I have to speak to a camera and have my words immortalized by the NET and viewed by millions of people. I hate letting strangers have a say in my life. I hate wearing stuffy suits sitting in freezing rooms, and being annoyed by questions from stylish reporters. No offense.¡± ¡°None taken.¡± The interviewer seemed more pleased at being called stylish than offended at being called annoying. ¡°But that¡¯s a selfish view. When you¡¯re in the position I¡¯m in, privacy is a luxury. With the kind of power and influence I have, people deserve to know who I am. Because at one point or another, they might have to trust me with their lives, and it¡¯s easier to do that when I¡¯m Stella who can admit she screwed up, rather than the Queen of Dragons who breathes fire.¡± The channel suddenly went black and Lexie''s head swung over to see her dad standing beside her. ¡°I was watching that,¡± she protested. ¡°Let¡¯s watch something else,¡± he said, switching to a blonde singer belting out a ballad. 25 - Meet Your Heroes The call tab on her system interface rang incessantly. The president of the PR agency, her publicist, her assistant, her grandmother, the head of the hero''s association, the headmaster of Victoire, her brother... it seemed like everyone in the world wanted to talk to her. And Stella Firebringer was determined to talk to none of them. Against all odds, she was determined to have a relaxing afternoon, as her therapist often reminded her was good for her mental health. Speaking of which, she should probably return Dr. Shaw¡¯s call and ask her what she thought of the interview. The good doctor would probably say something along the lines of: "Well, it was unconventional but it¡¯s good that you¡¯re taking strident steps to living as your authentic self. This should help with your imposter syndrome and your increased feelings of detachment from your job." That was Dr. Shaw''s way of saying that she thought Stella lied too much, which was funny because most other people thought she didn''t lie enough. Shaw also thought that Stella trying to be herself authentically was the trick to solving all her problems, which just proved that Dr. Shaw didn''t know what she was talking about. Stella was a [Superhero]. Authenticity was terrible in her line of business. Proved by the incessant ringing of the phone. Had she just lied yesterday, everyone would have left her the hell alone. ¡°And this is why I don''t do interviews," she muttered as she took a sip of her martini. She was reclined in front of her island mansion, sunbathing in her bikini while watching her younger son throw fireballs at his teacher over the pool. The presence of water was paradoxically great for fire training because the fear of getting wet would keep him moving and fighting, even as his teacher devised new ways to make him to fall . Once in the water, he''d have to wait for at least thirty minutes to dry off before using his fire starters again, so that essentially made it game over. Whoever fell in the water first lost. Usually, that was Torin, her son, but Stella didn¡¯t know if it would be his loss today. Her eleven-year-old was good, crazy good even for a Firebringer. He¡¯d pre-awakened at the age of eight, the youngest pre-awakener ever recorded. It was pretty much set that he was going to be an S-Class, the only one in her family apart from her. At eleven years old, he would be starting at Victoire Hero Academy pretty soon, and he trained hard every day in preparation. He barely took breaks, insisting that he had to be stronger, shoot cleaner, dodge faster. And he had to do everything perfectly. Such an adorably anal little boy. He reminded her of her brother. Like Luther, Torin was far too serious for his age. Stella wished he would relax a little, but all her attempts to get him to ease up didn''t work, not even his friendship with the irreverent Kai Skysoarer. The only one who could loosen him up was his older brother Theo, who sauntered out in his swim shorts, taking the lawn chair next to her. ¡°Is it just me or did Torin almost get Master Hua into the water right then?¡± ¡°He did,¡± she responded. ¡°He''s getting better.¡± ¡°He¡¯s getting incredible.¡± A tinge of jealousy mixed with pride in Theo¡¯s voice. He''d just graduated from the Hero Academy but it was only a few years ago, in his third year, that he managed to defeat Master Hua. And that was only once because he¡¯d distracted the master with a particularly juicy gossip he¡¯d found out about the master¡¯s new boyfriend. Seeing Torin this close at just eleven years old must sting a little. Theo was an A-Rank Fire User and even though he was leagues ahead of his little brother now, it was only a matter of time before Torin caught up and surpassed him. Stella imagined that brought up a lot of complex feelings in their sibling dynamic. She would have to deal with that soon, but she didn¡¯t have the delicacy or the emotional intelligence for that drama right now. Probably, they needed to talk to their dad who was far more sensitive and good at handling matters of the heart. And to think, she had two more younger kids and she would have to deal with their powers when they manifested too. Who on earth thought having four kids as a busy [Hero] was a good idea? Her call tab rang again and Stella groaned. Theo smirked at the annoyance on his mother¡¯s face. ¡°That was some interview,¡± he said. ¡°I bet Jerry was so mad when he watched it that he steamed his toupee right off." The visual made her snort, but then she sobered up again. ¡°Sorry that I sort of threw you under the bus there." She gave her son an apologetic look. She knew she''d said the right thing in that interview, kinda, but she¡¯d felt like a terrible mother doing it anyway. ¡°It¡¯s fine," Theo responded. ¡°You were right. We sucked ass that day. And people got hurt because of it.¡± He sighed and looked at the sky. Stella had initially watched the rescue through a video call, before going to Alpeco herself. She remembered the horrified face of her son''s hologram when he was told that there were people still in the building, the very same one that he''d just flooded with fire to disable any traps or bombs. To make matters worse, he''d exhausted his fire extinguishing capabilities and would need to wait a few minutes at least to use it again. Stella then watched as Theo bolted back into the burning building trying to save the two reporters who''d gotten stuck. He managed to save one but received the order to retreat before he could go back for the other one. And then when he tried to defy the order, he was held back by his teammates and told that the other civilian was probably already dead and they needed to go after the terrorists who were quickly escaping. When Stella finally arrived on scene, Theo looked as furious as she¡¯d ever seen him, and as a mother, her heart stung with sorrow at his agony. It hurt her to see him suffer but she couldn''t let it affect her decision. She was there as a [Hero] and she had a job to do. She had to take control of the situation and order her son to do what was necessary. And, in the end, he did. He caught the bad guys and took them in, while his mother extinguished the fire in the building. They''d saved the day for the most part. However, when they''d gotten back to headquarters for a debriefing, Theo didn''t say anything. He simply sat stewing in the corner, staring at walls. Stella didn''t speak to him even when it was just the two of them left in the room. She sat a few seats away and waited. She knew that words wouldn¡¯t help him then and neither would anything she did. All she could give him was space and time. He''d sat in that corner for hours. And now, as Stella analyzed him, she saw that despite his attempt at normalcy, a haunted look lingered in his gaze. ¡°Does it get easier?¡± he asked, still staring at the sky. ¡°Accepting that sometimes people have to die because of your screw-up?" She reached over, caressed his cheek, and smiled weakly. ¡°No. It never gets easier. And if it does¡­something''s wrong.¡± He allowed her touch for a few seconds and then heaved a heavy sigh. Her call tab rang again. Annoyance flashed through her. This is all Dr. Shaw¡¯s fault, Stella thought, for planting that authenticity bullcrap in my brain. She couldn¡¯t believe she actually let the woman convince her that telling the truth was better. No. From now on, Stella needed to lie to everyone. Even Dr. Shaw. Yes, that''s the moral of the story here¨Cstart lying more to your therapist. Or at least ignore her. "Dad¡¯s making roasted potatoes," Theo said. "And for dessert, he''s making some crock of bull thing." He frowned. "Some food I can''t pronounce." ¡°Croquembouche,¡± Torin said as he executed a perfect fiery kick that nearly singed Master Hua¡¯s hair off and left a shimmery arc in the air for several seconds. ¡°Of course, you know the name of it," Theo teased. "I guess that''s why they call you a genius Tory-banana." "Don''t call me that!" The nickname was enough to distract Torin as Master Hua hooked his legs and sent him sprawling into the water. His mother and Theo cackled as he swam to the surface, face heated.
Naomi¡¯s system call tab was vibrating off the hook. Just about everyone in the world was calling her except the person who should have been calling. No, that person wasn¡¯t answering her call. Naomi tried calling her again. ¡°Come on pick up.¡± It was six in the morning, which should be evening time where Stella was. Naomi had only gotten two hours of sleep all night. Her boss had already chewed her out. Even the agency president had called. So had the association and a handful of stylists and publicists. Naomi was tired. Tired of heroes. Tired of her job. Especially tired of Stella Firebringer and her unique ability to blow the gates of hell wide open and leave her assistant to deal with the mess. And now she refused to answer her phone when the demons came calling. Why are you doing this to me, Stella? she wondered miserably. What have I ever done to you except be a good assistant? ¡°Stupid Naomi," she muttered in the darkness of her apartment. It was her fault. She never should have taken this job no matter how much was offered. There was a reason that Stella''s last five assistants quit in under a month, one of them in under a week. The workload was just too much for one person to handle. Her boss was capricious and avoidant and everyone wanted a piece of her and took their anger out on Naomi when they couldn¡¯t get her. And now, Naomi was facing a call from the Hero Association''s Vice President himself. She swallowed her dread and took a breath to steady herself before she answered the phone. ¡°Hello, sir.¡± ¡°What the hell, Naomi?¡± Jerry Haynes barked. ¡°What the hell was Stella thinking? Get me on the phone with her, right now.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not here. She went on a trip with her family. ¡°Why?¡± How the hell would I know? ¡°I¡¯m sure the events of last week were very stressful for her.¡± ¡°Oh, I''ll show her stress. Does she know how many calls I¡¯ve gotten? The sponsors are pissed. The investors are raging! How could she drag all of us into this mess without even running it by me first?" The ranting continued for a good while and Naomi listened to it all while making sounds of assent and sympathy. But she was getting increasingly annoyed and her temples throbbed from the scolding she didn''t deserve. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Why is this my problem? she wondered. Why are they acting like I could have done something to stop Stella when even the president of the association himself couldn¡¯t stop her? I doubt the Guardians, if they still existed, could have stopped Stella Firebringer from doing something she really wanted to do. So what on earth did they want good old mundane Naomi to do about it? After Jerry Haynes was done with his tirade and hung up, Naomi sighed and sat back on the couch. One of the doors in her apartment opened and her roommate, Megan, came out of her bedroom in a long T-shirt yawning. She sauntered to the kitchen and glanced over. "Tough night huh?" she said when she saw Naomi''s face. Naomi nodded glumly. "I have a date today," Naomi said. "I''ve had to cancel on him three times already due to work, and it looks like I''m not going to make it again. I have to write statements, issue apologies. I have a headache and all I want to do is drown myself in those left-over donuts from Donut Town, but I can''t do that because I''m an adult, with an adult job working for the most annoyingly, high-profile [Hero] in the entire world." ¡°That sucks.¡± Meg paused and guiltily added, "Is this a bad time to tell you I already ate the last donut?" Naomi wanted to scream. That''s it! I can''t do this anymore. I''m done! In a flash, she opened her interface ready to start penning down her resignation letter. She¡¯d only gotten the first line done when a notification came in.
FINANCIAL TRANSACTION COMPLETE. Fifty thousand credits were transferred to your account.
It came with a note attached saying, ¡°Sorry about all this! *winky face* Ignore the calls and treat yourself to a nice spa day, okay?¡± Naomi didn''t have to check who the money was from. While making conversation, Stella had asked her a few months ago what she liked to do to relax. Naomi responded that she didn¡¯t relax much anymore but she''d loved to go to med spas with her mother back in the day. It seemed Stella remembered that little detail. Naomi stared at the credits, suspended on the hill of a momentous decision with no outlet for the turmoil storming through her. She grappled with her choice, tried to hold onto her indignation, and tried to ignore the voice telling her that leaving Stella would be a mistake. But it was no use. The voice got louder and louder and even her exhaustion was being replaced by the slow but heady pleasure of having so many credits in her account. In a flash, her heated anger evaporated into the air. She cursed and after a brief second of hesitation, she deleted the resignation letter. Instead, she added to her to-do list: Remind Stella. ¡®Screw¡¯ is not a family-friendly word.
¡°Luth! Wait up!¡± Luther''s muscles knotted in annoyance and he kept walking pretending her hadn¡¯t heard the call. He was finally back in the Capital City about to enter his favorite bagel place and, though he didn¡¯t know exactly who the caller was, the only people who still called him ''Luth'' were people from the Academy. He didn''t like any of them enough to talk right now. Unfortunately, the caller couldn¡¯t take a hint and was fast enough to catch up with him. ¡°Luther.¡± It was an S-Rank Fighter called Clive, along with his friend whose name Luther never bothered to discover. They fell in step beside him. "Did you see the interview?" "Yeah," the nameless one said, laughing. "That sister of yours is really something." "She''s a trip," Clive chortled. Yes, Luther smiled tightly. She''s something alright. Inside he was fuming, as he had been since he watched his sister''s interview. Damn Stella. She¡¯d managed to piss off the entire Hero Association with her little off-script stunt. Grandmother was furious and would be calling a meeting soon. Luther was sure their parents were rolling in their graves too. But he knew ultimately, after the circus died down, everyone would forgive her. It was what they always did and it was why Stella kept pulling stunts, because she would get away with it. Luther never would have gotten away with causing chaos like this, but everyone always liked Stella more. She was an S-Rank [Hero] after all, the famous fire-breather, Queen of Dragons, the soon-to-be matriarch of one of the most powerful families on Earth. And people, for whatever reason, found her charming. Stella was so important and beloved that nothing bad she did ever mattered. And if Luther wanted to be angry about the unfairness of it, then so be it. "I mean who could blame her,¡± Clive said, grabbing the door of the famed bakery, Donut Town, first. ¡°She was just being honest. That was a clusterfuck and the public was calling for our heads. At least with her speaking out, all the anger can be directed at the ones who actually caused the mess.¡± He shrugged. "Anyway, how have you been? We missed you on that last mission to District 5." Luther didn''t bother answering him. He simply walked into the store to get his bagel.
Nineteen seconds. Lexie couldn''t believe it. She kept staring at it, every few seconds as though the time would change. Her activation time for was only nineteen seconds. How on earth had she managed to do that? She couldn¡¯t believe it had all changed so fast. She was ecstatic. Sure, she still hadn¡¯t managed to duplicate that twenty-one-second time for that she''d gotten at school, but she understood that it was a situational thing. An adrenaline spike could contribute to the reduced activation time. But as Aiden explained to her, it was not something to rely on because it was not completely replicable. Still, she was excited about how she had dropped so much time in only a few weeks. And she was nearing the record rapidly. She wrote down her new time because she''d decided to start treating her advancement with cards like a real experiment. She penned down everything she¡¯d done to get to this point. She also wrote down how she felt¨Cher internal mana was flowing easier now, and she could feel all three mana types working smoothly as a unit. The only problem was that ambient mana control was still her weak point slowing everything down. If she could figure out a way to speed it up, she could drop time again. But external mana could really only be trained with deadrooms and those cost money. Fortunately, a few days ago, she¡¯d gotten an idea of how to get that money. On the last day of the school week, she told Aiden she would be staying behind for an hour after school closed to chat with her new friends. Aiden was happy to see her socializing and told her he would pick her up two hours late. Which was perfect. Lexie used that time to take a bus to the Elicart Stadium, where they sometimes held AFC matches when the circuit was in Arcadia. It was only a five-minute bus ride, and the stadium was large but mostly empty due to there not being any matches scheduled today. She went through the metal detectors and walked into the lobby, heading to a booth that had a sign saying, "Betting Booth." Betting was heavily regulated in Earth 9 especially when done over the NET. But there were still physical betting booths in place for people who, for whatever reason, could not bet over the system. They were also heavily regulated, but Lexie had an idea of how to get around that. As she approached, she kept an eye out to make sure no one was looking at her. It was probably unusual for a ten-year-old to be here by herself, but Lexie was hoping they would simply think her parent was close by. The man behind the betting counter was completing a crossword puzzle on a writing pad when she arrived, and he didn''t look up until she said politely, "Excuse me." At this point, his gaze flickered up. Then down at her. He frowned. ¡°Aren¡¯t you a little young to be gambling?¡± ¡°Um yeah, but I¡¯m not gambling. I¡¯m delivering for my dad. He¡¯s an ex [Villain] so the metal detectors bug him and it¡¯s a process to get through them. So he wanted me to drop off the odds himself.¡± The man raised an eyebrow and she added, ¡°I have his signature on the betting form and everything. I can show it to you." A few nights ago Aiden had come home exhausted and barely awake. Lexie decided to take advantage of it and told him that he was signing a school trip form. And it had been a sample school trip form she''d downloaded from the NET, but the last of the pages was a betting form. Aiden had signed without even looking to see what it was. Even after checking out the form, the teller narrowed his eyes at Lexie suspiciously. Lexie was starting to feel nervous. What would it take to get him to believe her? "Do you wanna talk to my dad?" Lexie asked. "I can give you his number so you can call." In preparation for this, she had Chris on the other line ready to pretend to be her dad. Apparently, he could do pretty good impressions and it only cost her an extra fifty credits. ¡°You can call him to confirm if you like.¡± ¡°Yeah, they don''t pay me enough for that.¡± The teller finally sighed. ¡°Alright. What do you wanna do?¡± ¡°I wanna put four hundred on Kane the Mundane.¡± The man frowned. ¡°You sure about that? That kid¡¯s a fraud and he¡¯s going up against Maverick, who is a three-time Golden Glove champ¡±. ¡°I know. But I...I mean my dad thinks Mundane has a good shot.¡± Kane¡¯s lack of significant powers and physical prowess was heavily buttressed by the fact he used high-tech wear. Gear only someone with millions to waste could afford. Luckily, his family was old-money wealthy and they recently signed a deal with a mining company which meant they would be even wealthier. Which meant Kane could buy more mechs. And as for Maverick, she suspected he had a brain injury even though he tried to hide it. She''d seen him limp and stumble slightly at the start of his last match against Turbulence, but he''d played it off like an ankle sprain. Everyone else had bought it too, but Lexie had gone to previous matches and seen him stumble a couple of times in the same way even when he hadn''t been hit. Plus, he swung wide most often now, when before, his brawling style used to be close and quick. During one of his matches, Lexie had also zoomed in to watch his eyes and noticed they widened and unfocused often, and sometimes he blinked a lot. When she kept digging, she saw the match that probably caused it, a blow to the head some three years ago, during the Golden Glove championships. In any case, Lexie suspected he had a TBI or a concussion that had never really healed. And if she could find that out, she was pretty sure that Kane could too. After all, she knew he probably hired people to dig into all his opponents and find their weaknesses. Rumor had it that one of his opponents had nearly killed him during a match because Kane had mocked him with his sister''s death in the locker rooms before they came on. The fighter had gotten disqualified due to the viciousness of his attack and he''d never fought again. It had earned Kane a lot of sympathy with the public until the video of the locker room leaked and everyone turned against him. Kane didn''t care though even when sponsors dropped him. It wasn''t like he needed sponsors in the first place. He was already rich. He just fought because he enjoyed it. Kane was an asshole but though he was frequently underestimated, he wasn''t stupid. The second he knew about Maverick''s injury he would do everything in his power to take Maverick down with headshots. ¡°Alright,¡± the teller said. ¡°Your funeral. But if it makes you feel any better, not too many people bet on Kane so on the off chance that you win, your dad¡¯s going to be a bunch of credits richer.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the idea.¡± The teller entered in all the necessary information on the form, processed it, and then told her. ¡°No need to come back to collect. If you do win, it will be automatically transferred to the account on file.¡± Alright, good to know. "Thanks," she said, and then she turned around. Only to freeze. No. It couldn¡¯t be him. He couldn''t be here. But even with a hat and a face mask to shield his face, she would know that frame and swaggering gait anywhere. Top Dog. He wasn¡¯t in his usual get-up obviously. He was wearing casual clothes, ripped jeans, and a sleeveless tank. A scar was carved on his shoulder, darker than his brown complexion. He was carrying a sling bag across his chest, with one hand tucked in his pocket and the other on his ear. He was also clearly talking to someone on a call. And worse, he was headed straight in Lexie''s direction. ¡°Yeah Anna I get it,¡± he was muttering. ¡°Just tell him I¡¯ll be there soon and stall for as long as you can. I¡¯ll grab a teleport when I¡¯m done.¡± He approached the booth and slid a note across to the teller. The teller must have been used to it because he just took the note and nodded, entering it into the system. As it processed, Top Dog drummed his fingers and continued his conversation, annoyance tinging his tone. ¡°Of course, I¡¯m being careful. It¡¯s why I ported to this random ass city to do this. I¡¯m not an idiot. Trust me, no one will recognize me here.¡± His voice cut out at the end because he suddenly realized that Lexie was staring at him intently. Very intently. And the look of barely bridled excitement on her face sparked a look of dread and growing resignation in his eyes. ¡°Scratch that. I think I just got caught by a nine-year-old.¡± I¡¯m ten, Lexie thought but she couldn''t get her voice box to do more than croak. ¡°Okay, okay, don¡¯t yell. I¡¯ll deal with it. Talk to you later.¡± He tapped to hang up and then tugged down his face mask to attempt a somewhat unconvincing and uncomfortable smile. ¡°Hey, kiddo. How¡¯s it going?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to tell anyone,¡± Lexie blurted out before he could say anything else. Then when he winced, she lowered her voice. ¡° Sorry. I mean, I know who you are but I won¡¯t tell anyone I saw you. Except maybe Xena. I have to rub it in her face, just to show that I¡¯m not trying to be her friend, but I won¡¯t tell her what you were doing. I won¡¯t tell my dad either because he¡¯s kind of a gossip. But I¡¯m not like him. I can keep a secret. ¡± He smiled at her, bemused. ¡°Yeah. That would be great.¡± He straightened and turned back to the booth, but she was desperate to continue the conversation so she said, ¡°Are you betting?¡± ¡°Uh, yeah. But not against myself of course. That would be illegal.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re betting on the next match, you should bet on Kane. He''s going to win." Distaste touched his expression. ¡°You think so?¡± She nodded and he smiled at her again but it was the indulgent smile one gave kids when they said something adorably silly. ¡°I¡¯m serious,¡± Lexie said. "You''ll win lots of money. Like lots.¡± And to exemplify she spread her arms far apart. He only smiled wider. ¡°That''s cute. I¡¯ll take that under serious advice." He completed his transaction with the teller silently and then gave her one last look. "It was nice meeting you, kid." He patted her hair a little again before walking away. Lexie¡¯s jaw dropped as she watched him leave and her fists clenched tightly to contain her emotion. For a moment, and only a moment, she considered never washing her hair again. 26 - Class Tests and Deadrooms ¡°Okay, class. Time¡¯s up.¡± The questions on the screen immediately vanished just as Lexie finished writing the last word of her final answer. Her stomach sank. Regret spread sharply. She hadn''t had time to go back and review her answers and that sucked. But she tried not to panic. She was pretty sure she¡¯d gotten all the questions right, even though that last one was tricky, asking about the three kingdoms of Lost which she thought was distantly related to some Korean History. History and Politics was the last test of the day, and even though Lexie enjoyed the class, it still tripped her up with the names and dates of everything. For the last few weeks before this, Lexie had studied like crazy for these mid-terms. Luckily she was used to sleeping late, and Aiden was too busy to realize that she often woke up at midnight to keep studying. But she was nervous because she hadn''t devoted a hundred percent of her time to class work like she usually would. She was still doing her mana shaping exercises and her black hole exercises and striving to do more individual research on cards. She''d started with the basics, searching up what she could find on the NET. Aiden was correct that cards were the very first type of magic the system created for humans to battle against the Guardians. Through many years of battle, the magic evolved to runes then spells, and finally unbound magic. Other artifacts like wands and potions came later with the advent of magical technology. But Lexie also discovered that there was a fourth kind of card that Aiden forgot to mention. The Land Card. Years ago, when humans first started using card magic, and before they could access the Guardian''s mana, the Fae allowed them to tap into magical wells on their Fae planet. Human used land cards to do this, creating a link to siphon the magic from the designated wells. But after humans captured the Guardian''s magic and mana spread through the atmosphere, land cards became obsolete. They were finally discontinued by Card Developers after the Fae disconnected the cards from their wells. One could probably still find them in some vintage shops, but they were collector''s items and served no use beyond that. Another thing Lexie learned was that, while the Torad corporation had market monopoly and the highest government backing, they were not the only company that created cards. There were others like; the Crimson Card company, Joseph McReach Card Company, and the whimsically named Gilded Promises Card Company (although that last one tended to focus more on tarot cards which worked by a different set of rules than regular cards). While each deck emblazoned the company logo on their descriptions, the individual [Developers] of the decks were kept largely a secret. There was no information on the [Developer], or even any of the scholars or mages that worked on the card. It was odd. Lexie assumed they would want praise for such a thing. But then it also reminded her of what Aiden said, about [Researchers] being locked in a dark room studying algorithms endlessly. A tiny bit of apprehension swam through Lexie''s mind. She wasn''t having second thoughts about being a [Researcher] per se...but perhaps she needed to find out more about that lifestyle before she committed herself to it. If only she knew any [Researchers] she could ask. ¡°I wanna throw up,¡± Mya muttered distracting Lexie from her thoughts. The girl was resting her head on the desk and groaning. "Stupid number 9." It took Lexie a second to realize Mya was talking about the test. Well, mostly the entire class was, although none of them looked as forlorn as Mya. Lexie felt bad for the girl and she could also very much relate. Typically she had that nausea after tests she wasn''t sure about or hadn¡¯t prepared adequately for, like this one. But for some reason, the nausea wasn''t present today. Despite how unsure she was of her grade, she was more relaxed than usual. Maybe because she was in a video game? Or maybe because Aiden assured her that he didn''t care how she did on the test, as long as she was happy with herself. It had warmed Lexie''s heart to hear him say that and it was a sweet sentiment, but she didn''t plan on failing this or any other tests. She wasn''t evolved enough from her past self to not attach her grades to her self-esteem, regardless of whether Aiden pressured her to or not. Plus there was still that whisper at the back of her mind telling her that maybe Aiden was lying. Maybe he was just trying to be nice, but if he ever saw a giant F on her paper, then he would be disappointed and turn into her parents, accusing her of being a failure. She shuddered at the thought of disappointing him, now feeling a little sick too. ¡°Alright, guys." Mrs. Partridge said. "How was it?¡± There was a general grumble of discontent in the class, which made Lexie feel a little better. If everyone else found it difficult too, then she was probably on the right track. Maybe they would grade on a curve. ¡°Alright, alright, settle down. No need for that. I know it¡¯s not an easy subject but it¡¯s necessary to understand our history and our relations with the other districts and planets.¡± ¡°But most of us aren¡¯t even going to be [Heroes], or go to other planets, Mrs. P," a girl at the back whined. ¡°Why do we even need to know all that stuff?¡± Mrs. Partridge smiled indulgently. ¡°Amy, there¡¯s such a thing as knowledge for knowledge''s sake. Meaning that sometimes it''s just good to know things without having an immediate reason to.¡± ¡°That¡¯s bullcrap, Mrs. P," Bennie said. ¡°Last week, you told me I couldn¡¯t do stuff like hit Abernathy for no reason, but I have to learn things for no reason?¡± Mrs. P pretended she didn¡¯t hear him and addressed the rest of the class. ¡°Okay, guys. How about now that the exam is over, we go over a few things that confused you? Wouldn¡¯t that be fun?¡± ¡°No, but I have a feeling you¡¯re going to make us do it anyway,¡± Xena mumbled and Bennie chortled. Lexie smirked at Xena, and the other girl met her gaze and then narrowed her eyes. Lexie only smiled wider. Xena had been grumpy ever since Lexie told her that she''d met Top Dog. She''d said she didn''t believe her at first, but after Lexie''s smug retelling of the encounter¨Cwith some minor embellishments of course, like Top Dog giving her a fist bump and a wink¨CXena had glared at her so hard that she''d thought the top of her head would pop off. And now, whenever they crossed paths, Lexie brought it up as much as she could. ¡°Xena." Mrs. Patridge''s smile brightened at having caught a prey. ¡°Since you¡¯re so talkative today, how about you start? What¡¯s a question that tripped you up?¡± Xena''s face heated a little as everyone turned to look at her. Lexie thought Xena would give some pithy answer, but then her expression actually turned thoughtful. ¡°I don¡¯t understand why there¡¯s a difference between the Knights and the King¡¯s Knights," she said. "Shouldn''t they be the same things? Why are they under different branches of government?¡± ¡°Oh, excellent question. Does anyone have an answer? Mya?¡± ¡°Knights are a class of fighters that are trained in both magic and melee,¡± the girl answered promptly. ¡°The King¡¯s Knights aren¡¯t actually Knights. They¡¯re not fighters, they¡¯re elite investigators who used to work for the monarchy back when we had one. The name just kinda carried over from then and that¡¯s why they¡¯re still called that even today." ¡°Excellent explanation, Mya. And with that, you¡¯ve earned yourself a question. What is the one thing you really want to ask?¡± Mya sighed her frustration. ¡°The Fae. They use like five hundred different systems of government on their planet. Doesn¡¯t that get confusing?¡± ¡°Perhaps. But can you think of a reason why they need all that?¡± ¡°Because they have a diverse ecosystem,¡± Abernathy answered. ¡°They¡¯re not like humans where we¡¯re more or less the same. They have lots of different sentient species occupying their planet, each with their own governments like Dark Fae, Light Fae¨C¡± ¡°And the spooky demon King!¡¯ ¡°Bennie!¡± Mrs. P. said sharply, her gaze instantly reprimanding. ¡°You know we don¡¯t use that kind of derogatory language in this classroom.¡± ¡°Sorry, Mrs. P. I didn¡¯t mean it in a de-gog-atory way. It¡¯s just that Demon King sounds way cooler than ¡®Lord of the Eldritch¡¯.¡± This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. She sighed. ¡°In any case, it¡¯s offensive and you won¡¯t use it again. Right?¡± Bennie nodded but his irreverent smile reappeared when Mrs. P. turned away. That told Lexie he had every intention of using it again. ¡°In any case, Abernathy, you''re completely correct. Now you get to ask a question from the test. ¡± Abernathy shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t really have a question to ask.¡± ¡°Show off,¡± Boyle muttered and Abernathy grinned at him in response. ¡°I have one,¡± Lexie raised her hand. ¡°The Elementals. Why are they so important?¡± Veronica¡¯s head snapped toward Lexie, glaring as though she¡¯d said something offensive. But Lexie ignored her and kept staring at Mrs. P. ¡°I mean I know they¡¯re unbound magic users and very powerful, but there are tons of other powerful unbound magic users. And a bunch of special classes like Necromancers or Shifters. And the Noble House of Ryand who are basically powerful Paladins, right? And the church controls all the healers and [Saintesses] who I would say are also very powerful. But they¡¯re not regarded on the same level as the Elementals.¡± Mrs. Partridge thought about it. "You have a point there Lexie,¡± she said. Then she glanced around. ¡°Well, anyone?¡± There was quiet. But that might also be because Veronica didn¡¯t seem pleased with the line of conversation and was glaring around as if daring anyone to say the wrong thing. When no one else spoke up, she rolled her eyes and said, ¡°It¡¯s because the Elementals were chosen.¡± ¡°By who?¡± ¡°By the Fae. When the Fae helped the Great Developers to incorporate a magic system on Earth, they needed to test the effect of unbound magic on humans. The Elementals were one of the few brave ones to step forward and volunteer and were chosen as the bravest of the bunch. As such they were given the best magic of all. The magic of creation.¡± Lexie blinked. "Creation magic?" "You don''t know what that is?" Veronica smirked. "Guess you''re not so smart after all." "Now Veronica¨C" Mrs. P protested. ¡°Most magic isn¡¯t creative. It¡¯s just basically using mana to change something into something else. But that wouldn''t be enough to keep the Guardians away, and so Fae asked for human volunteers with whom they could experiment more powerful magic forms. A few people volunteered, and most of them died, but the Elementals survived, meaning they were ultimately chosen as beings that could create something out of nothing with mana. A strong elemental can create fire, air, or water, or light, or shadows or earth even in a mana deprived-society. And some say they can even create mana itself. The only other creatures who could do that were the old Guardians." Ah. So that''s why people treat Elementals like they''re gods. ¡°I think I get it now," Lexie said, and Veronica looked smug about it. ¡°Veronica kind of touched on it,¡± Mrs P. continued. ¡°But Lexie do you remember the six elemental families and their names? She nodded. ¡°Firebringers, Skysoarers, Wavelost, Lightlark, Shadowsbane, Groundsmage.¡± ¡°Amazing. Good job, Lexie.¡± Lexie beamed. ¡°They should take Lightlark out of that list,¡± Abernathy commented. ¡°No one has seen a Lightlark on earth for years.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because they¡¯re all on Planet Fae," Mrs. P said. ¡°Yeah, that''s what they¡¯re saying but for all we know they¡¯re probably all dead.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not dead,¡± Veronica said. ¡°Lightlarks are necessary on Planet Fae and that''s why they get snagged up there quickly. The Fae gives our government a boatload of concessions so they can use Lightlark heroes on their planet. It''s why all the Lightlarks have pretty much moved there. Plus, Mom tells me that the Fae treat Lightlarks like royalty because of their skill.¡± ¡°Right." Abernathy sounded skeptical. "But they¡¯re probably also experimenting on them. Or they have them plugged up to a machine that siphons out all their mana.¡± "That¡¯s not true." "Then how come they rarely come back to earth?" "Um, have you seen the Fae Planets?" Veronica challenged. "If you went there you wouldn¡¯t come back to Earth either!" "I bet they''re being mind-controlled," Chris said. "Or the demon king has taken over their bodies, stripped them of their souls, and is wearing their flesh as jewelry." "Bennie." "Sorry, Ms. P. I meant to say the Lord of the Eldritch took over their bodies, stripped them of their souls and is wearing their flesh as jewelry." The conversation soon devolved into more theories on what really happened to the Lightlarks and whether or not they were secret human sacrifices for the Lord of the Eldritch. Then the bell went off and everyone was allowed to go home. Lexie, of course, didn''t go home. She had more work to do today. She had two stops to make. The first was to the Elicart Stadium to place another bet. She had won big on the Kane match, getting nearly four thousand credits from it. She''d almost had a small heart attack when she woke up and found the money deposited in her account and then she''d done a silent jig around her room. She was rich! Well, not rich but at least richer than she was previously. She was already thinking of what to use the money on. Deadrooms and maybe more books on pathways. She wanted to get Aiden something nice too but she didn''t know how to do it without him getting suspicious about where she got the money from. Anyway, she would figure it out later. But after that win, she''d placed two more bets, winning modest amounts each time. And now she was off to place another one. She left school, took the bus to the Elicart stadium and approached the booth. The teller, Miles, was waiting for her, and he grinned when she came. After she¡¯d won that Kane the Mundane bet, he¡¯d seemed to lose the initial suspicious attitude he had with her. He also no longer asked her where her dad was and never asked to see the betting forms either. He was overall nicer to her, and it made Lexie wonder if tellers got a cut of the wins from whoever''s bet they''d entered. ¡°Hey kid,¡± he said. ¡°Got another wager for me?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Lexie responded. ¡°Dad wants to wager on TechnocRat.¡± ¡°Ah, he¡¯s a popular one.¡± She nodded. The technomage was the newest member of TD¡¯s team and like the other two members, he was quickly making a name for himself through the circuit. He wasn''t a powerful fighter being as small as he was but he was wiley and resourceful. ¡°Alright," Miles said. "How much?¡± ¡°Two hundred.¡± Despite her first big win, Lexie still liked to bet conservatively around that mark. She didn''t want to lose it all at once, and would much rather make small wins than risk large losses. ¡°Gotcha," he said as he processed the odds. ¡°But your dad knows that even if the Rat wins, he¡¯s not going to get as much money as the last three times right? Especially that first one?" Lexie nodded. With Kane''s fight, the betting pool had been heavily uneven with most people thinking that he would lose. And Kane definitely would have lost, had Maverick not had his concussion problems. Even with Maverick''s issues it was a close call, and Lexie was kind of sad to see the former champion lose. Either way, it worked out in her favor because she''d ended up three thousand, eight hundred and thirty-four credits richer because of the bet. Her next stop was to the deadroom rental at the mall. She''d already made the reservation online, paying a little extra for the exclusive room. Money does make everything easier, Lexie thought as she walked in with little effort, only scanning her thumbprint on a metallic door with runes traced on it. After all, money was how Lexie had gotten into MIT in her last life. Her parents had spared no expense to get her the best tutors and books that money could buy. Lexie doubted she would have made it as far as she did without that. Just like she knew the deadrooms were the key to breaking the record on the fastest activation time ever. Except Lexie wasn''t just aiming for a sub-fifteen anymore. She wanted a sub-five. Minutes later, she was sitting in the booth, legs crisscrossed and lungs inhaling. There were different runes on the wall, some glowing black due to their mana-extracting components and others glowing gold containing mana. Holograms in front of Lexie directed her through the breathing exercises and told her what to do next. The goal was to draw the mana from the runes across from her, through a tunnel of air surrounded by deadspaces that were cast by the black runes lining the walls on both sides of her. Lexie could feel the mana inside her, pressing tightly together as they tried to escape the mana-less void outside. She took a few minutes to practice her internal shaping¨Cnow made easier¨Cgetting a stronger feel of her internal limbs while she did it. Then she finally moved on to practice pulling the mana from the golden runes seven feet away. It was the hardest thing she''d ever done. The mana actively refused to move as Lexie tugged. There was a very narrow path through the deadspace, directed by holographic arrows, which she was supposed to pull the mana through. That path wasn''t a total deadspace itself and so it could technically be filled with mana. But the deadspace around it made everything harder, made the mana reluctant to move. Lexie stopped trying to pull and instead attempted to shape the mana in the runes themselves. That was difficult too, but then she meditated and tried to form a link to just a single mana particle in the rune. Once she could get one of them, she was sure she would get a feel of the others. Due to the dead space between them, there was no other mana in the atmosphere to focus on and that should make it slightly easier to find what she wanted. Lexie tried to form the connection first without deep meditation, even though she knew it likely wouldn''t work. Nevertheless, she wanted to test herself so she directed her mana cloud to her hand, held it out, and tried to use her internal mana to bond with the external particles and coax them closer. But they were too far away and she wasn''t that good at mana control yet. She took deep breaths, moving her mana from side to side, trying to coax the ambient mana inch by inch toward the path. It didn''t work. Which meant she had to go into deeper meditation. Hopefully, she would do it in under an hour because that was how long she''d booked the room for. Lexie took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She felt her internal mana, but didn''t bond to it, instead looking outwards. She felt the deadspace, the coldness of it making her feel bereft. The mana particles buzzed, excited at her contact, scared to move because of the void surrounding them. She moved her focus closer to them and went deeper until she could identify one of the particles, by smell and by taste. Then, she bonded with it. With her conscious mind, she drew up a card, . She awakened some awareness of her internal mana back and visualized her internal particles trembling in fear at the deaspace surrounding her, trying to rush into her pathways to hide. She began to partially activate the card, feeling the mana rush in desperately. Upon complete activation, she called upon the external mana from the runes, straining her bond to coax it closer. And closer. And closer. As the mana moved out of the runes and into the air, she shaped it together so that nothing would touch the edges of the artificial tunnels created by the deadspace. This type of shaping was easier to do with external mana than it was with internal, maybe because there were less particles. At around the midway point, the mana particles sped up, and began rushing towards her as the bond strengthened. Lexie held on, and when the external mana moved into her correct pathway, she suddenly felt lighter. Just in time too, an alarm told her that her time in the deadrooms was over. She checked on her activation log. Activation time was 18 seconds. Not a bad start. It would still take her a while before she could do it without deep meditation, but she was getting there. And she had money to spend. It was a good day. Now she just had to get back to school before Aiden arrived to pick her up. She left the deadroom in high spirits. She was close to another major breakthrough, she could feel it. It was only a matter of time. And that time, could very well be tomorrow. 27 - Elvira Ernest Lexie''s second breakthrough came sooner than she had expected. And it began with one special visitor who came to their History and Politics class the next morning. Elvira Ernest didn''t look like she wanted to be there, talking to a bunch of middle schoolers on a Thursday. In Lexie''s opinion, Elvira would rather be getting her eyeballs picked with tweezers. Not that she looked mad or unpleasant, but she was¡­fidgety. While Mrs. P. gave her a welcome speech, the tall slender woman adjusted her glasses twice, coughed once, tugged at her sleeves, shifted from one foot the the other and her gaze seemed to skitter around the whole room, actively avoiding eye contact. And then, when it was finally time to introduce herself, she coughed again and gave a short wave and an unnecessarily detailed speech. ¡°Hello esteemed children,¡± she began in a throaty voice. ¡°Or preteens as I suppose some of you might be now. My name is Elvira Ernest, as your teacher mentioned. I¡¯m a scholar-mage at the Arcadia Research College under the Card Magic department, and I¡¯m currently in my third year, which means I¡¯m now working on my focus project. It¡¯s titled, ''Card Mechanics and Interaction with a Mundane system¡¯. Truly a fascinating project, although a little difficult to find volunteers and test subjects for, especially young ones such as yourself.¡± She paused and frowned as though she sensed she''d said something wrong. ¡°Not that I¡¯m using young people as test subjects. That is highly illegal. While a certain subset of scholars might argue that what we¡¯re doing inevitably involves quite a few children, I would assert that it¡¯s more in the observatory sense. It¡¯s not like we¡¯re cutting open their skull to extract their brains and observe their pathways¨C¡± ¡°Elvira,¡± Mrs. P¡¯s voice was a little sharp, her smile a little tight as several of the students looked at each other in alarm, especially at the ¡®cutting skulls¡¯ comment. ¡°Perhaps you want to get to the point of why you¡¯re here today?" ¡°Ah yes.¡± Elvira looked relieved to be given some direction and cleared her throat. ¡°And just to clear up that last point, in case there was any confusion, I would never use young human brains for experimentation. Not just because the college forbids it, and not just because it would be against my personal morals. But also, preteen brains are notoriously difficult to create a baseline or find controls for, so the effort isn¡¯t even worth it. Which is why I''ve never understood why child sacrifice was such a major feature of some magical cults¡­but in any case, uh¡­ I¡¯m here to complete my focus project which unfortunately includes speaking to you all today.¡± She paused on that, frowned again, and then seemed to notice she¡¯d made another gaff because she hurried to clear it up, gesturing defensively with her hands. ¡°I mean, it¡¯s not unfortunate in the sense that I don''t want to speak to you people in particular, but more so that I suppose, I don¡¯t want to be speaking to anyone, not just you. I¡¯m sure you are lovely speech mates but I¡¯m very bad at speaking in large or small groups, and I have no plans on significantly cultivating that skill. So I don¡¯t like to do it often. But I¡¯m here because I have to be.¡± One glance at Mrs P.¡¯s unsatisfied look and Elvira seemed to decide that even further explanation was needed. ¡°During our focus year, the college requires a certain number of community service hours, and one''s volunteering activity is assigned randomly. Not a very good system I think, because it kind of defeats the purpose of it being volunteer if we''re forced to do it, but no one listens to me when making the rules, even when listening to me would make things much easier for them." She sighed. "But, I guess it''s fine. As the college¡¯s guidance counselor likes to tell me, ¡®Easy isn''t always good Elvira. Sometimes doing hard things is better for you, and even if you fail, it¡¯s the effort that counts.¡¯¡± She shrugs, allowing that sentence to linger before she concludes. ¡°So I suppose that summarizes exactly what I¡¯m doing here. Failing effortfully.¡± Elvira ended her speech and the class was silent. Lexie didn''t blame them because that was a lot to digest. Plus the question had not been answered at all. Lexie was still somewhat confused as to why the woman was here. Oblivious to the reaction she elicited, the tall woman nodded her satisfaction and turned to Mrs. P. as though signifying that she¡¯d ended her speech. Mrs. P. gave her a strange look and then sighed in resignation. ¡°Elvira is here to speak to you about card magic,¡± she said. ¡°If any of you are considering utilizing card magic in your future careers¨C¡± ¡°We¡¯re not,¡± Bennie said plainly and she shot him a withering look before continuing. ¡°¨Cthen feel free to ask Elvira any questions you might have.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s what I¡¯m here for,¡± Elvira smiled nervously and bobbed her head. ¡°To answer questions.¡± There was a single second of silence, where everyone was kind of confused about what to do next. And then, to no one¡¯s surprise, Bennie stuck his hand in the air first. Mrs. P. really didn''t want to call on him. She glanced at just about everyone else in the class in hope and plea, even as Bennie waved his hand from side to side. Abernathy finally put a hand up. ¡°Yes, Abernathy,¡± she said, relieved. ¡°I think Bennie has a question, Mrs. P.¡± Abernathy sounded amused. Mrs. P. gave Abernathy a look and then said in a resigned tone, she finally exhaled. ¡°Yes Bennie.¡± ¡°Why is her hair white?¡± he asked. ¡°Is she old or sick?¡± ¡°You don''t ask people those kinds of questions, Bennie.¡± She looked to Elvira. ¡°You don¡¯t have to answer that.¡± ¡°Ah no, it¡¯s fine.¡± Elvira met Bennie¡¯s gaze steadily. ¡°My hair is white because I have Fae ancestry. Small and fairly distant, but there." That suddenly got a lot of attention in class. Murmurs broke out and some of the kids sat up a little straighter. ¡°For real?¡± Veronica asked, her eyes glittering. ¡°Yes, for real,¡± Elvira said. ¡°I¡¯m told it¡¯s my great-great-grandfather but I never met him. I do sometimes visit his temple when my family travels to Planet Fae.¡± Lexie was also amazed by what she was hearing but for a different reason. She didn''t know Fae and humans could have kids. Were the species reproductively compatible? That was...interesting, although mildly disturbing. ¡°You go to Planet Fae a lot, huh?" Veronica continued, finally giving the woman her complete attention. "So do my parents. I¡¯ve been there a few times too on vacation.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s¡­nice. I¡¯m there fairly regularly but it¡¯s mostly been for work. You see, with card magic, the Fae have a way of¨C¡± ¡°Which one do you think you''d rather marry,¡± Diane cut in. ¡°A fae or a human.¡± Elvira blinked in shock. ¡°Erm¡­I suppose I haven¡¯t thought that far ahead¨C¡± "Obviously, she¡¯s going to marry a Fae.¡± Veronica gave Diane one of her eye rolls. ¡°Fae boys are better than human boys.¡± ¡°Hey.¡± Bennie spun around in his seat, looking incensed. ¡°That¡¯s rude. You¡¯re not allowed to say that. Right, Mrs. P.?¡± ¡°But it¡¯s the truth. Fae boys have long hair and pointed ears. Human boys look like boogers.¡± ¡°No, we do not! That''s de-gog-atory, Mrs P! She¡¯s not allowed to say that.¡± ¡°Okay enough!¡± Mrs P. finally reached the end of the rope. ¡°No more questions about Fae or boogers or anything else that isn''t the point of Elvira¡¯s visit. She¡¯s here to talk about card magic. Does anyone have any questions about cards?¡± ¡°Who would have questions about cards?¡± Bennie looked genuinely perplexed by the question. ¡°No one wants to be a card user. It¡¯s like the lamest form of magic.¡± "Bennie, just be quiet." Mrs. P. sighed. "Please." Elvira looked a tad offended at Bennie''s statement. Lexie was also offended so much that she stuck her hand up instantly. ¡°I have a question,¡± she asked. Elvira¡¯s pale-purplish gaze traveled to her. "Yes, tiny one.¡± ¡°Lexie,¡± Lexie corrected, not liking the nickname one bit. ¡°Yeah, I was just curious about if you''ve had any findings so far.¡± Elvira cocked her head. ¡°In what sense?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Lexie was aware of all the eyes on her and it made her uncomfortable but she kept talking. "I mean you said that you were researching whether or not mundanes can use card magic, right?¡± ¡°Oh no!¡± Elvira adjusted her glasses. ¡°Although I can see why there would be confusion there, my research is not that controversial. It¡¯s pretty definitive that mundanes can¡¯t use any magic, including card magic.¡± "But cards are artifacts. Like potions. Mundanes can use potions to heal themselves. Why can''t they use cards?" "Well potions and cards are fundamentally different things. Potions aren''t a form of magic, at least not in the way we consider magic in more recent times. They''re medicine made with magic, but they themselves cannot imbue magic on another being, and their mechanism of action isn''t magic-based. Cards, on the other hand, are purely magic. Their mechanism is based on magic. Without any internal mana, they simply wouldn''t work." "But the cards contain mana themselves. Would it be possible to make a card with enough mana that they can be used by a non-magical person? At least one with some affinity for magic?" Elvira thought about it. "I suppose you have a point there. After all, there have been mentions of one or two people who made such a card, but that was a long time ago just after the war with the Guardians. It was a time of turbulence before the system had established the rules of play." Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. "What do you mean?" Lexie leaned forward in her desk, suddenly very interested in this thread of conversation. "You''re saying the system is the reason why cards can¡¯t be used by mundanes?" "Well yes," she said. "You have to understand that even mundanes with relatively high affinity don''t have the pathway components necessary to handle and control mana." "What does that mean?" "Well, not to get too deep into pathway anatomy, but there are different nodes and valves in a typical pathway that push mana forward and protect the pathways from rupturing due to mana pressure. Without these, you''re at best ineffective at using the mana, and at worst you''re risking your pathways and sometimes your life just to use magic. Many a mundane died like that in the past until the system stepped in and reassessed the way card magic worked. So now, they''re unusable by mundanes." "Oh." She''d never heard of that story. Interesting. "And there''s no way to add those components to a mundane pathway? How did they even make the mundane-usable cards back in the day?" Elvira shrugged. "I¡¯m not sure. That knowledge was system-wiped some time ago, so probably only a few history experts know about it. And to answer your first question, the answer is most likely no. Barring some very unethical experimentation, there is no way to change someone''s pathway." "But healers can repair damaged pathways and fortify them for healing too." Lexie had read up a little on healing magic recently. "Does that not mean that mundanes, in theory, can get stronger pathways with some kind of magic?¡± ¡°In theory. But in practice, it¡¯s more difficult. You¡¯re right that healers can fortify pathways but they can''t put in components that aren''t there, and as such, they can''t imbue fundamental safety systems that enable card magic to work. The nodes, the feedback protocol, the fundamental connections...you probably have no clue what I''m talking about but all these are important for mana pathways to have. And most mundanes either have incomplete or faulty mana pathways. That makes it more dangerous for them to use mana even if they could, because none of the fail-safes that the cards implement would work." "Oh." Now, Lexie couldn''t help but think about Aiden''s card, . It worked on mundanes and he''d never warned her not to let a mundane person use it (even though he didn''t want her to necessarily spread the word that she had such a card). So it figured that it was safe for them, if not he would have told her. This, of course, begged the question: what made the card different from all the others? How exactly did Aiden make the card in the first place? How did he ensure its safety? Why did it work better than the other cards that had been made in the past? Lexie had a feeling that Aiden had created an ingenious, non-typical way of making cards that he''d fashioned after the ancient methods. But also, she knew that he wouldn''t tell her anything about it, at least not anytime soon. He was already resisting giving her more information about pathway structure and was still encouraging her to make slow, measured progress that would have her doing this for at least another year. He was probably concerned that, if he told her too much, she would go off the deep end and become a [Villain] like him. He didn¡¯t seem to understand that Lexie was a good girl. There was no way she would turn into a [Villain]. But she was also impatient and she wanted to know what she didn''t know, now. ¡°So what is your research about?" Lexie finally asked, because Elvira was still looking at her in a curious, measured way and no one else was speaking up. "It''s about how to design cards in a way for card users to serve a larger mundane population," she said. "As we all know, card magic has rapidly fallen in popularity in the last decade, and developers are concerned that it will eventually become obsolete." "For good reason," Bennie cut in despite Mrs. P.''s sudden glare. Elvira ignored him and continued, "But I think that if we can prove more ways in which cards can help users to better serve their mundane friends and family, then it will grow in popularity by at least 23%." "Great,¡± Abernathy said drily. "Just what the world needs. 23% more party planners.¡± Doyle and Chris snickered and Bennie asked Elvira again about her hair, and the conversation soon returned to Fae Planet. Elvira looked relieved to be leaving at the end of the fifteen-minute session, but even after she was gone, what she¡¯d said still hung in Lexie¡¯s mind. I should have taken her number, Lexie thought, but she figured she would take it next time. According to Mrs. P., Elvira would be back in a few weeks. Lexie often thought that there was something familiarly methodical about card magic, almost like it was a computer program or some engineering software. The way it activated and could be turned off by a feedback loop was the first thing that gave her that notion. There had to be some kind of sensor at both the start and the end of the pathway to be able to shut down the mechanism when it detected something was wrong. All the things Elvira had mentioned, about nodes and valves and feedback protocols, strengthened this idea in Lexie¡¯s head. Given that card magic restricted the malleability of pathways, it would also seem that these feedback sensors and nodes were baked into the very structure of the pathway and could detect too much deviation which would lead to the mechanism shutting down as well. So the question now was, ¡°how much was too much?¡± And how did the nodes work? What did they detect and how did they do it? What amount of stimulus would be enough to shut down the entire mechanism and how much could she get away with? And was there a way to preemptively turn off the feedback loop? Or at the very least use it to her advantage? All these questions continued to rattle in her mind as the rest of the class droned on. She opened up her notes and penned down, Feedback loop manipulation? Is it possible? *** Lexie couldn¡¯t attempt it after school, because Aiden unexpectedly came early to pick her up that day. Recently, her dad had been pretty busy with work so she usually had to wait about an hour or two before he came to get her. She would either spend that hour studying and practicing card magic in class or, if she felt she could get away with it, she would visit a deadroom. Today she was planning on doing the latter when she got a text from Aiden telling her that he was downstairs. She quickly packed up her bag and went down to find him at the entrance waving at her. ¡°Hey.¡± She smiled even though she was somewhat disappointed that she wouldn¡¯t get to go to the deadroom that day. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± "Taking you home, of course,¡± he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder when she reached him. He wanted to carry her but she was too old to be carried in public so she shook her head firmly. ¡°I worked like a dog the entire morning so I could finish my quota early. My workmate Eddie is punching me out later. I¡¯ll be covering for him next week as a result. He has a wedding.¡± ¡°Why did you leave early? What¡¯s special about today?¡± He shrugged and took her hand. ¡°Nothing special. I just figured I haven¡¯t spent much time with you lately, because I¡¯ve been so busy, and I don¡¯t want to fall into old habits.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie peered at her father as they walked. ¡°You know that I get it, right? I get that you¡¯re busy and stuff.¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t get it,¡± he said firmly. ¡°I hate that you have to be so mature and understanding all the time. I¡¯d rather you acted like a kid and yelled at me for being a bad dad.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not a bad dad,¡± Lexie assured him. Aiden might be a lot of things, including a [Villain], but he was also better than most of the dads she knew, including her own. Lexie felt guilty thinking about her real father like that, but it was the truth. She barely thought about her real parents anymore and she wondered if it made her a bad daughter because, with each passing day, she missed them less and less. Or did she ever even miss them at all? Most of her thoughts regarding her home dimension revolved around her brother and how he was doing. And even with that, she didn''t feel the same urgency to return as she''d felt when she got here. Yeah, I¡¯m definitely a bad daughter. And sister. Perhaps she would have missed her parents more if she hadn¡¯t had Aiden. If he wasn¡¯t such a solid parental figure in her life. But he was. So right now, she only missed her brother and Mickie. She¡¯d stopped reading Logan''s texts. The battery percentage of her phone remained the same and there was still no service. But it was sometimes too painful to read her brother''s words knowing she wouldn''t see him for at least a while. Maybe forever. The thought brought a pang to her chest, and she squeezed Aiden¡¯s hand a little tighter. She wondered why the ISTS had given her the phone. To torture her, or as just as a memento from the past? Was that also why they left only Logan''s texts behind? Because they knew he was likely the only one she would miss so badly? Didn¡¯t leaving his texts increase the risk of her true identity being discovered? ¡°Speaking of special days,¡± Aiden said, interrupting her thoughts. ¡°Your birthday is coming up, isn¡¯t it?¡± She stared at him blankly. "It is?" ¡°Yes. It¡¯s in a few months,¡± he said. ¡°Didn¡¯t you wonder why I¡¯ve been working so hard, lately?" She shook her head. "I¡¯ve been pulling double shifts because I wanted to get you something nice for your birthday. Or even maybe just take you somewhere, wherever you want. We can go to the antique shop your mother and I used to go to. Or the consignment store you loved in Alberton. Where she bought you that phone from." "My phone?" ¡°Yes." He glanced at her and Lexie suddenly realized that the reason Aiden hadn''t brought up the phone was because he thought her mother had given it to her. How convenient. But was it true? Was that how the ISTS had baked in the phone element? Was she living in a storyline that they could just add to and remove from at will? This whole thing was giving her a headache. She needed to find out more about the ISTS along with her card lessons, but she didn''t even know where to start. Start with Aiden. She glanced up at him, and he smiled down at her. She decided to trust him, but wondered how to start. "We got a lady at school to talk to us today," Lexie said. "She mentioned something about an ISTS?" Aiden¡¯s eyebrows furrowed and Lexie''s heart skipped a beat. She was suddenly afraid she¡¯d said the wrong thing. But Aiden only continued by saying, "The Interdimensional Soul Travel System? Like the one in Alberton?" "It''s in Alberton?" "Yes. Your mother had a friend that used to work there. But she passed away some time ago.¡± Lexie¡¯s heart began racing. The plot thickened. "What do you want to know?" Aiden asked. "What is it? The ISTS?" "It''s a huge enigma to me, to be honest," he said. "And most of their research is largely experimental but I believe you''re supposed to be able to travel to different dimensions with it." "How?" "It''s hard to explain. Maybe we can check it out when we go to the consignment store." "Okay," she said quickly with a smile. Wow. She felt a little stupid for not asking earlier. That was so easy. And no soul termination. Hurray. But she had to be careful. She couldn''t ask too much. Better she see it for herself. He gave her a tender, sad look in return. "We can do anything you want on your birthday," he said. "I have enough money saved up to ensure you have a good time. I know you probably miss your mom...she used to throw the best parties. But since it¡¯s going to be the two of us, I¡¯ll make that day as special as possible." Lexie''s smile turned softer and she wrapped her arm around him, leaning her head at his side. He really was a sweet dad. And he still smelled a little like cinnamon even though he''d been working outside all day. As they hugged, a stocky, hairy man bumped into them hard enough that Aiden was turned around. The man snarled first. "Hey, watch where you¡¯re¨C" He took one look at Aiden and his face paled. His mouth dropped open and it was like a full-body shudder went through him. ¡°You,¡± he whispered. Aiden raised an eyebrow. ¡°Do I know you?¡± The man didn''t say anything else. He turned on his heels and ran. ¡°What was that about?¡± Lexie wondered aloud as she watched him retreat. Aiden shrugged. ¡°Who knows? So many interesting personalities in this city. Anyway, we should get going. I¡¯m thinking of roasting up lamb tonight. Would you like that?¡± Lexie put the strange man out of her mind for now and smiled at her father. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯d like that.¡± 28 - Osmosis When she got home, Lexie helped Aiden make dinner and they ate while watching TV. After it was done, she helped clean up and then told Aiden she was tired so she would go to sleep early. He looked tired as well, so he let her go with a brief hug before he presumably went to bed too. But once she was in her room, Lexie didn''t sleep. She materialized her cards and her study tab and sat at her desk. She was determined to do this systematically, test each variable one by one and then record her findings. First, she would start by observing the pathways and recording her observations to establish a control. And then she would begin to test her various theories. Lexie took a deep breath, shut her eyes, and turned her attention inward. An unknowable amount of time later, she was observing the pathway light up with a partial activation of her card. She wished there was a way she could slow down the activation so she could observe everything in slow-motion and take notes, but she wasn¡¯t quite there yet with her mana control. As such, she had to do about three half-activations before she recorded anything of note. The first thing she noticed¨Cfor each activation, the pathway looked slightly different. Not in obvious ways¨Ca crook becoming a softer curve, an edge smoothing out. The general shape stayed the same. Aiden often hammered in that deviation from the shape of the pathway could lead the card to shut down. But there seemed to be some allowance given for very slight deviations. But why was it happening in the first place? It wasn''t like Lexie had been trying to deviate from the pathway. Was she unconsciously varying each activation? She didn¡¯t detect it, but maybe she wasn¡¯t paying enough attention. She took a short break and then did it again. One partial activation later, she finally realized the difference. She was unconsciously varying the activation, putting slightly more mana in every turn. She confirmed it by checking her mana capacity and then doing another partial activation. Then she tried it thrice more, checking what was left in store each time. Yes, she had certainly used differing amounts of mana during every activation. And the more mana she used, the more malleable the pathway became. It made sense since people with more mana capacity tended to have higher affinity, which had to do with how flexible one''s pathways were, which helped them handle their mana better. Even though Lexie currently had a low mana capacity, she had a high affinity so her pathways were more bendable than others. The next question was: how much more bendable? What would happen if she pushed even more mana into the pathways? At what point would the card shut off? She would try at the end of the session, right before she took a break. In the meantime, she also mentally recorded another observation. Using more mana generated more waste. While that should have been obvious, she hadn''t noticed as much before because she''d always been so focused on reducing waste. Now, she was doing absolutely nothing to prevent waste for the sake of the experiment, so she could compare the amount of mana expended each time. She could indeed see that more waste was generated when the pathway struggled to accommodate higher amounts of mana. And the more mana she used, the more the path bent around the force of the mana moving through it. Again, it was a slight change, that she could only see with the insight that the black hole exercises gave her. Physically, none of the activations felt different. And without what Elvira told her, she wouldn''t have even thought to check. But now that she knew that cards had not always been so limiting, she wanted to figure out what changed and how. She planned to push even more mana into the pathway. She had a theory that using more mana also made activation faster. Although she hadn''t checked then, she suspected that she had unconsciously proven this when she''d rescued Dewie from the bullies and when she''d gone into the [Hero] party to save Xena. She hadn''t used more mana intentionally. It was the adrenaline that made her do it, and it had given her her fastest activation time yet. Aiden had told her that cards were not great for activating under pressure, probably because while panicked, people subconsciously used too much mana, leading to the card not being activated. But it seemed that the opposite was going on with her. Why? Was it that pushing more mana into the pathway made activation faster, provided you didn''t use enough mana to shut the card off? And if so, where did the limit lie? Well, time to test it. She took a deep breath and held onto the card. She took a second to think about how to approach this, seeing as how she''d never attempted to intentionally use more mana than she needed to. She could probably simply force her mana cloud towards and into the card pathway as fast as she could, but that was a more inelegant method, and it could strain her internal muscles. Or she could mimic the adrenaline and psychosomatic responses that her fight-or-flight triggered, and use that to make the mana move faster? Hmm. She thought for a second, then started breathing in short puffs trying to increase her heart rate. She tried to get herself in that scared and desperate state of mind, hoping that getting her blood thumping would help her push out more mana. Luckily, it worked. When she partially activated the card, mana rushed out of her, and the pathways shifted to accommodate it. She was happy that she at least knew one way of using more mana without straining her internal muscles. Of course, it wasn¡¯t an ideal situation. She didn¡¯t want to have to raise her heart rate and simulate fear every time she wanted to generate more mana, but it would work for now. She continued to push more mana into the card, trying to see where the limit lay. How much mana would cause the entire pathway to shut down? Or would it not shut down as long as she continued with partial activations? Maybe only a full activation triggered the feedback loop? In which case, was the loop triggered by a sensor at the end of the internal pathway? No, but that wouldn¡¯t make sense, because if it waited for her to use damaging amounts of mana in the entire pathway before it shut down, then the damage would have already been done by the point, no? Which defeated the point of using the card''s safeguards. What was she missing here? Her temples gave a warning pinch and her eyes flashed open. She realized that it was almost midnight now and she wasn¡¯t hearing any sound from anywhere in the house. Aiden was probably asleep. And Lexie should be too. She''d reached the limit of what she could do tonight without giving herself a pounding headache. She would have to figure out the rest tomorrow. But first, she had to note down her findings. She wrote: The pathway is malleable. And it gets more bendable the more mana you pump in until you reach a threshold. More mana does not shut down partial activation though. Perhaps maximum mana might? Or maybe the card simply allowed for more variance in mana pressure? Or maybe there''s another safety system somewhere else on the pathways that I''m missing? As Lexie got into bed, the thoughts raced through her mind. The more she thought about it, the more she was sure there was something else at play here. The card''s feedback loop could not just be triggered at the end of the activation pathway. It wouldn''t make sense. Apart from the risk of already having damaged your pathway by that point, there would also be a lot of waste generated at the end. It made more sense to put the deactivation trigger sensor at the beginning of the pathway or even midway. So why on earth was there not a mechanism at the beginning of the pathway that detected excess mana to stop partial activation? Lexie wished there was someone she could talk about it with, but the only mage she knew was Aiden and if he knew what she was doing, he would be upset with her. She decided that she might ask Elvira Ernest the next time she came to her school to give a talk. She wondered what expression the woman would make if she did. While imagining it, Lexie drifted off.
Lexie woke up before daybreak the next day to see if pushing the maximum amount of mana into a partially activated pathway would shut it off. She tried it, using both the makeshift adrenaline boost and her mana cloud exercises to shove every mana particle close by into the internal pathway. It didn''t shut off. Which meant one of two things. Either the maximum she could push¨Csomewhere around 100 mana points¨Cwas pretty low in the grand scheme of things. Or there was only one deactivation sensor at the end of the pathway that her partial activation hadn''t reached yet, and only that triggered the shutdown. If the latter was true, and if she found and manipulated the sensor, maybe she could avoid the feedback loop, tricking the card into allowing more power for a skill. Maybe she could use that to tweak her lower-powered cards, like , and make them faster. Better. Of course, this was all theoretical and she wouldn''t know until she actually activated the card. But even just the thought of it excited her. Her other thought was that there should have been another sensor at the beginning of the pathway that prevented her from pushing more mana in, but there wasn''t. And that meant something. What that something was, she wasn''t sure. She thought, perhaps, the reason for this was due to the elementary and low-power nature of cards. Cards were designed for beginner mages, who wouldn''t necessarily have the best control of their mana and might accidentally push in too much at the start before evening out. Although cards were meant to train against such a thing, they probably had to still give allowances so that young mages could actually know where they went wrong, rather than just being frustrated because the card refused to activate. This meant that card crafters had a complicated job due to contradictory aims: to make a card as beginner-friendly as possible, but also as safe as possible, while prioritizing strict pathway training techniques that cards were known for. So the lack of a sensor at the beginning could be to make the card more beginner-friendly, allowing the mages to visualize the pathway itself and see where they went wrong. But how did they prevent unintentional pathway damage? Just by making the card low-powered? Lexie thought that there might also be another protective mechanism at play that she couldn''t see. After all, even when she pushed in the majority of her mana, the waste wasn''t as much as she thought it would be. Tracking waste versus the amount of activation mana used, it seemed like it was more of a logarithmic rather than linear scale, petering out at the top. So what did that mean? She didn''t know but it was one of the questions she noted down. To truly confirm that there was only one sensor at the end of the pathway, Lexie had a plan to intentionally veer the middle portions of the pathway right before the end. She could do it by pushing her mana slightly to the left or the right of the pathway, only slightly so she didn''t trigger any other mechanisms that might have been baked into the pathway walls themselves. This wasn''t something she could have done before, as it required excellent fine mana control. But thanks to weeks of dedicated training, she was just about able to do it now. Doing so allowed her to see where the sensor was. As she filled the pathway, pushing the walls, using the golden mana to twist around the shape she was used to, she finally hit a point where the sensor triggered. The pathway snapped back into its original form instantly, the card shut off and the mana in it instantly dispersed through the pores as waste. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. Ah. So that''s where the sensor is. Near the very end. So the final step to increasing the power of a card was circumventing that sensor somehow. But how? She thought about it as the birds began to chirp outside her window. She didn¡¯t figure it out by the time Aiden called her down for breakfast. Mission number one, she told herself as she got out of bed, donning fluffy slippers that she bought at the mall with her new allowance. Figure out how to bypass the sensor. "Hi bumble bee," Aiden greeted as she sat. He slid some pancakes in front of her and her mouth instantly watered. "How did you sleep?" "Good," she responded, avoiding his eyes somewhat. Lexie felt a little guilty speaking to him because she knew exactly how Aiden would feel about what she was doing. Experimenting with your pathways is dangerous and foolish, he would probably say. You can hurt yourself. But Lexie had been learning her limits over these few weeks and knew the signs of approaching burnout or mana exhaustion. Her mana control was also good enough that she could somewhat make minor adjustments in her pathways and her visualization was good enough to see it. So she was doing everything as safely as possible. But Aiden probably wouldn''t see it that way and would blame himself for teaching her the black hole technique in the first place. So she swallowed the guilt, ate her breakfast, and assured him she was a nice well-functioning child who would stay indoors and do the dishes once he was gone. Rowena was apparently supposed to come over at some point and babysit, but Lexie wasn''t concerned since Rowena was very good at leaving her alone. After Aiden left, she went back up to her room to continue the experiments. Her next step was to try to fully activate the card to see what happened. It was a little annoying because she would have to take a long rest following it, but still, it had to be done. She got her heart rate up and activated the card, using her internal muscles to push as much mana as she could into the pathway. And she watched very closely. She watched the pathway struggle to accommodate the rush of mana and then finally she saw it snap straight as the card shut off. She saw the pores widening slightly to allow the mana out. And then suddenly an idea occurred to her. The pores. Do they work in both directions or just one way? She thought it might be the former. She thought she saw some of the mana particles bounce out, then in, then out again, attracted to the rush of the other particles leaving. So rather than just exiting the pathway, could she leak them in? That was experiment number 2 Try to leak the waste mana back into the pathway. The first thing Lexie did was check on the NET to see if this could be done. Also how safe it was. While she didn''t think she could hurt herself doing it, she wanted to make sure. She didn¡¯t want to rupture her pathways or burn out. Or have Aiden be mad at her. Frankly, she didn''t know which of those things would feel worse. They would all equally suck. She found a few articles about pushing mana back in through pores, but most of it had to do with unbound magic and ancient techniques of magical conservation during wartime. Of course, she couldn''t access any of the full articles without a scholar ID (it would be nice if she could get her hands on Elvira¡¯s) but she could surmise at least from the bits and pieces that she read that it was possible. Just difficult, due to the lack of knowledge about the exact mechanism of such a thing. Thankfully, Aiden had already taught her visualization. And then Lexie had another thought. "Osmosis," she murmured. Fluid or air moves through a partially permeable membrane when it''s more concentrated on one side. Did mana work like that? Did the pathway work as a partially permeable membrane and that was how mana kept moving out of it? From her observation, mana particles were super attracted to each other, and that should go against the basic principle of osmosis. But then, if they were so attracted to one another, then how did they escape the pores in the first place? Maybe osmosis and mana attraction played off each other in different ways. To see if osmosis was in play and if she could use it to move the particles back into the pathways, she would need to somehow increase the concentration outside the pathways. Which probably was unlikely given the way mana was dispersed in the mana cloud. Even if I move the cloud as close as possible to the pathway, it still won''t match the concentration of mana within. Yet another thing she had to figure out. Lexie went downstairs at noon to get lunch. Rowena had still not arrived, which informed Lexie that there might have been an emergency at the Healing House. Lexie was probably supposed to call Aiden and tell him, but she wasn''t going to. She could take care of herself. She opened the fridge to get a quick bite for lunch, only to find the fridge empty. Aiden was supposed to go grocery shopping yesterday but he''d probably been too busy. She decided to do it herself. She had a lot of money sitting in her bank account and as long as she didn''t buy too much, he probably wouldn''t be too alarmed. She could get him some cream to relieve the itchiness under his Tilling bands while she was at it. Lexie trekked to the town center she saw for the first time on the way to the train station. It was a charming area, with little wooden shops and a one-storey strip of building that functioned as a grocery store. She walked in through the sliding doors, staring down at the shelves as the system came to life to direct her. It also told her the prices of each item and what sales were currently happening. As Lexie moved through the aisles grabbing things on autopilot and placing them in a self-rolling basket, she thought some more about enticing leakage back into pathways through the pores. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn''t notice the few people who were watching her, some of whom were whispering behind their hands. Within a few minutes, she then sauntered over to the checkout line still wondering about mana attraction and osmosis. And apparently, she was doing it out loud because while she was in the checkout line, someone said, ¡°Quit talking to yourself, little girl. We don''t need any more crazies in this town.¡± Lexie¡¯s head shot up to meet the sharp gaze of an older woman who was currently bagging up her groceries. She had fierce facial features and short hair with stiff curls that had probably sat in curlers all night. Oh, and bright purple eyebrows. Leie was instantly intimidated by her gaze. ¡°Sorry,¡± she said. ¡°Just trying to make sure I got everything.¡± She checked her cart surprised to see she had indeed subconsciously picked out everything she''d wanted to. Go autopilot-Lexie! She was glad to see that her multitasking abilities hadn''t diminished since she left Earth 2. The woman analyzed her. ¡°You¡¯re the villain¡¯s daughter.¡± Lexie stiffened a little. ¡°Um¡­yes?¡± The older woman''s frown deepened. She reached into the bag of groceries she¡¯d already paid for, pulled out what looked like a slab of meat and dumped it unceremoniously in Lexie¡¯s basket. ¡°Too skinny,¡± she said and she walked away. Lexie''s eyebrows furrowed. What just happened? The woman at the other self-checkout across from hers also seemed similarly confused. She and Lexie blinked at each other for a second. Then, she shrugged and Lexie looked away. What was that about? But the strange woman''s actions only occupied her thoughts until she paid for the groceries. Once she left the store, she was back to thinking about her pathways and osmosis. How did she make the outside of the pathway so repulsive for the mana particles while making the inside more enticing? The carrot and the stick. She had to think about it two ways. What did mana hate? And what did mana love? Mana hated black holes. Mana loved itself, but it also apparently moved by osmosis. Two contradictory things. On Lexie''s long walk back home, a tentative idea formed in her mind. What if she took a section of the external mana cloud and shaped it around the active pathway, thereby forming a higher concentration of mana directly outside the pathway? That could work, she thought. She went home and put the meat away and then went up to her room to try it. She partially activated her card. But then came her first hardship. It was supremely difficult to shape external mana outside the pathway while also doing it inside like Aiden had taught her. Not just difficult but downright impossible. Her head hurt when she tried and she gave up after the second try. She noted down the observations she made from the second trial. Shaping mana in two different places is difficult. Will try again when better at shaping. Lexie took a deep breath and she went back to the osmosis thought. She decided to go over everything she knew to see if maybe something would click. "The mana moves body to card to body,¡± she muttered to herself. Body to card to body. Repeating it in her mind didn¡¯t help her with her breakthrough. At least not yet. ¡°Mana in body, moves into the card, back into body. But it''s all one unit on the mana field." Her mind drifted down another path, following that trail of thought. "What is the link? How does it know what direction to flow in and what controls it from flowing back in the opposite direction? There must be something holding all three systems together or it would fall apart." She sighed. One more thing she had to research. I bet Elvira Ernest might know. Now Lexie regretted not asking more questions and letting the conversation derail. More than anything she regretted not taking the woman''s card or contact or something. What if Elvira never came back? What if she decided that middle schoolers were too awful to handle? Maybe Lexie could track Elvira down at her college but she could just imagine how well that would go. Elvira mentioned she didn¡¯t like talking to people and Lexie doubted she would be more endeared to a ten-year-old stalker. Perhaps Lexie should search through the World Library to see if she could find a book on it, but from her experience, most publicly available books didn¡¯t go in-depth into the mechanics of magic. Seemingly, the mage guild kept such things under wraps so as not to be used dangerously by people who could hurt themselves or others. To get access to the truly helpful books, she would need to be a mage or mage-in-training, or a [Scholar] in that field. Her Dad could do it if he wasn¡¯t a [Villain]. Elvira probably could too. But she couldn''t ask any of them right now and the only card magic books she could access were all about how to start a career in cards, shaping, how cards could help you be a better person, more shaping, rules of card use, shap¨C Lexie bolted upright. ¡°Osmosis.¡± The answer came to her¡­not the answer for the most recent question, but for the osmosis question. Of course. It was so obvious. With osmosis, particles moved from a higher concentration to a lower concentration. So she had to create an area with higher concentration and an area with lower concentration simultaneously. It was a partially insane idea, but if it worked¡­. Then it would change everything. Lexie scrambled out of her chair, needing to pace so that she could sort through the thoughts that were currently falling into her head. You can''t activate two cards at the same time, she started. Only concurrently if you have enough mana. Activating two cards at once will cancel each other out. Aiden said that once the first card is activated, the second card won''t activate. But will the deactivation happen once the first card begins its pathway or when it has completed its pathway? Based on everything she''d observed today and yesterday, she thought it was the latter So, in theory, whichever card reached the end of its pathway first would be the only card activated. And the other pathway would just be shut off to generate waste. And that waste would probably provide a high concentration of mana outside of the pathway. Lexie bit her lip, heart racing. She tried not to get too excited as she followed the logic, in case she was off-base here. If enough waste mana was produced from one of the two activated pathways, and they were relatively close enough, the waste mana could be used to create a situation that was more favorable for osmosis into the first pathway. To do so, she would need large amounts of waste mana, which meant that she could only push slightly less mana into the second pathway (which she tagged as the waste pathway). She also needed a mechanism to prevent the waste mana from dispersing evenly throughout the mana cloud. So she had to shape it outside the first pathway, like herding sheep. She also couldn''t shape inside and outside the pathway at the same time, so she could simply focus on the outside, shaping tightly to prevent any mana from escaping. The steps played out like this in her head: Partially activate two cards. Push more mana into the first card and a little less into the second. The second is simply there to create waste. The waste goes into the mana field, creating a higher density of mana outside the pathways compared to inside. Shape waste around first pathway to prevent escape of mana. Then osmosis. She took a deep breath and repeated the steps to herself. ¡°Ok. Let¡¯s repeat that. Step one, is partial activation of two card pathways, one as the intended skill and the other to generate waste mana. Then fully activate the first card to shut down the second and create waste mana. While it''s going through the card and external activation phases, shape waste mana around the first pathway, and theoretically, the mana should go into the pathways through the pores." She bit her lip as she worked through it in her head, wondering if she missed something. Could it work? If it did...it would change everything. Now, she needed to find cards with pathways that were the closest together. The good thing was that the deck manual showed the ideal card organization based on pathway proximity. So and were closest together. Lexie materialized those two cards. She waited a little for her mana to refill to its absolute maximum, took a deep breath, and said, "Here goes nothing." She partially activated the two cards, watching their pathways fill up simultaneously. It was supremely difficult, like wrangling two different bulls. There was way too much information she had to pay attention to, too many things lit up. She almost lost focus a few times. But she refused to let it shut off, holding on and visualizing, directing some of her mana into the second pathways while focusing on the first. Her heart hurt when she did it but she ignored it, pushing the first pathway to the end. And then once it reached it, the second pathway shut off and mana dispersed out. Lexie released hold of the first pathway and immediately hurried to grab onto the waste mana particles, using her phantom limbs to shape it closely along the first pathway, rushing to plug the holes from the outside. She held her breath and pushed with all her might. And then she saw. Some of the mana was pushed in. Total activation of the card took nearly twenty-eight seconds, but it was the best she''d ever felt. There was no mana exhaustion, maybe a mild headache but that was already going away. And when she hurried to open her stats she saw that thing that told her she''d succeeded. Mana: 361/400 She gaped at it. Her breath fluttered with excitement. Her heart clenched. She had generated no waste even though she''d given the card more mana and felt the effects of the card more potently. In fact she had more mana left over. Typically, she would need to use at least 80 points of mana to get the same feeling, but she''d done it with the minimal amount of mana possible. That was...incredible. But by far the most incredible thing was what happened after, the notification that popped up in the corner of her vision.
SYSTCALC... +1 Knowledge. +1 Ingenuity
Lexie gasped again. She''d earned [Research] points. 29 - Blast From The Past Lexie emitted a loud yelp and hopped up in her excitement. The card also gave her a boost that made her jump nearly nine feet in the air before she landed. ¡°I did it!¡± She couldn¡¯t believe it. She jumped up again and again, the buoyancy only adding to her joy. Elation coursed through her. The notification blinked in her vision. She really did it! She managed to prove one of her theories. Not only that, she also got academic validation from a system that was pretty much the God of this world. What a rush! ¡°Ha.¡± She brushed imaginary dirt off her shoulders and dusted her hands. ¡°That¡¯s how it¡¯s done.¡¯ She said it to no one in particular because no one was home. That took a little wind out of her sails. She really really wanted to share this discovery with someone. Typically, she would tell Mickie or Logan when she hit a major milestone or solved a particularly hard differential equation. But of course, neither of them were here and she had no other friends, except her dad. And Aiden certainly wouldn''t want to hear that she was experimenting¡­probably. At least, not for now. Maybe when she was done she would tell him, and show him her findings and her methodology. That way he would see how safe she¡¯d been the whole time. As it were, she could only commemorate her victory alone and she danced around the room in celebration. Eventually, that wasn''t enough. She was dying to talk about it, to tell someone, even if they couldn''t hear her. So she dashed to her bag, reaching in to grab the phone. She opened up Logan''s texts and started a voice recording. Luckily, the voice-record function still worked. Lexie''s voice came out in a rush of excitement. ¡°Hey, Lo! I know you haven¡¯t heard from me in a long time but I¡¯m doing great. I''m not dead or anything. I''m just in a video game. Also, something cool just happened today. I activated a magic card with no mana waste whatsoever which is crazy." She still couldn''t believe it and if not for the mild headache she was having, she might think she was dreaming. "Logan, I know it doesn¡¯t sound like it but it¡¯s totally a big deal. This isn¡¯t the same as me nerding out over finally solving that differential equation. This actually has much bigger implications.¡± She paused by habit, thinking of what to say next that wasn''t going to be a full rundown of everything she''d just done. That would just bore him. And then Lexie sighed, realizing that she was probably being insensitive. Here she was happy about card magic while Logan was probably mourning her death. They''d probably already had a funeral and everything. Logan probably hadn''t left his room in weeks. Or maybe he had. Maybe he''d already gotten over it, and her reappearance would make everything worse. Reality crashed into her, ripping away her joy. Lexie swallowed past the knot suddenly lodged in her throat. That was the hardest part about being gone, the thing she really didn''t want to think about. The fact that while she was here, everything back home was probably moving on without her. Even if she did manage to make it back, she wouldn''t be the same person who left and neither would Logan or Mickie. Neither would her parents. ¡°I miss you guys." Lexie''s voice was more subdued now, and a tad hoarse. "Like, really miss you. I hope you¡¯re okay. Especially you, Logan. Don''t give mom and dad a hard time, okay? They just lost their daughter. And you just lost a sister which¡­sucks.¡± Lexie¡¯s happiness had completely leaked out by this point and was quickly being replaced by the grief she¡¯d been trying so hard to fight for weeks. That was why she stopped reading Logan¡¯s messages. Because of the thoughts that she was trying not to have, the sinking sadness in her chest, the sense of deep loss of something she was scared she might never get back. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Logan. I didn¡¯t mean to die like that. It was a mistake. I¡¯m trying to come back, okay? So just hang in there." She coughed to clear my throat, heated tears pushing behind her eyelids. "And tell Mickie, I''m sorry too. I should have gone home with her. This wouldn¡¯t be happening otherwise." But then Tate might be dead in that scenario. Or maybe not, considering it was her surprising Robbie that got her shot. "Tell her that I''m sorry I missed all those parties she threw. I should have gone to them instead of doing homework. I should have¡­I should have done a lot of different things.¡± Lexie¡¯s vision blurred, and her eyes got watery. She swallowed past it and continued the voice note in a choked voice. ¡°I miss you guys, but I¡¯m doing well so far. I met a really cool guy. His name is Aiden. He''s taking good care of me while I''m here." And he was, so much so that she didn''t miss her old life all that much, which made her feel guilty as heck. She missed aspects of it, like Logan and Mickie, but she¡¯d lived a pretty empty life apart from those two. She¡¯d done nothing but study, occasionally watch YouTube videos, and study some more. Other than Mickie, she''d made almost no friendships or meaningful connections with anyone. She was simply a robot existing before she died. My life on Earth 2 sucked, she realized. And she was doing the same thing here too, not making friends and keeping herself stuck in her room studying. If not for Aiden forcing her to go to school and to go for walks, she would never leave her home. She would be stuck in this room making breakthrough after breakthrough. All to get back to her family and a life that she was quickly realizing wasn''t much of a life at all. But she couldn¡¯t leave soon anyway, right? Especially seeing as how she needed to awaken her magic first, and give it time to grow. So did it matter if she took her time and maybe explored this world a little? This was an opportunity to do magic, something she might never get again. Would it be that horrible for her to relax and enjoy it? Make friends? If for nothing, she could find someone to bounce ideas off of? And while she was here, she could do something that actually mattered. Conduct research that would help people. At least craft a healing card, no matter how impossible it might seem, and leave Earth 9 a better place than she found it. Maybe that was the point of it all, the point of her being here. And even if it wasn''t, it was something she wanted to do. Lexie had a lot of regrets about her first life. She didn''t want to regret this one too. ¡°We¡¯ll see each other again, guys,¡± she whispered, wiping her eyes. ¡°Just give me time? Alright?¡± And then she sent the message, expecting it to fail but still slightly disappointed when it did. As she stared at the ''No Service'' bar, she finally sighed and deleted the message altogether.
Later that week, Lexie discovered that one of her first assumptions was wrong. Not every card had just one deactivation sensor at the end of the pathway. A couple of cards had two or three sensors and it seemed the more powerful the card was, the more sensors it had. She supposed it made sense. High-powered cards were more mana-demanding and so required stricter safeguards to prevent people from burning out from mana waste or harming themselves by twisting their pathway. But that discovery put a wrench in her plan to boost the powers of all her cards by using waste particles to shorten activation and strengthen the effect. She had pretty much figured it out for the lower-powered cards like and . But for higher-powered cards, she had to figure out how to bypass the multiple sensors along the intended card pathway. Even triggering just one of the sensors automatically deactivated the waste card, and if the sensor was early enough in the pathways, deactivating the card didn''t generate enough waste to produce the effect Lexie wanted. The problem bugged her for nearly three days. She thought about it every free moment, at school, at the clinic with Aiden, while she was watching the AFC, and even while studying in her free time. She tried activating the waste card first and then stopping it before it reached full activation, but it didn¡¯t work. She also tried partially activating waste card and then effortfully leaking mana out of it without deactivation. But that was time and mana-wasting because, by the time the intended card activated, most of the mana had dissipated into the mana cloud. She didn¡¯t have the shaping skills to hold the waste mana in place for very long. The only thing that sort of kind of worked was attempting to skip the sensor itself. This was done as follows: She partially activated the first section of the intended card, before the first sensor. Then while holding it there, she used a black hole to push mana particles out of that section into the cloud and then into the second section, thereby skipping the sensor area entirely. Then she activated the waste card as well, and used that to push more mana into the second section. This was, of course, extremely difficult to do. First of all, pushing mana out of the pathway wasn¡¯t necessarily difficult but without the waste mana creating an unequal concentration gradient, it was hard to push it back in. Creating mini-black holes to skip the sensor was also a killer. So she was doing two hard things at once. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Then when you added the extra pathway that she had to pay attention to, there was just too much going on. The first time took her nearly two minutes to complete activation, and she was breathless by the time it was done. And it still hadn¡¯t worked. She decided that she either needed better mana control, or she had to find an easier way to do this. She trained herself with more black hole exercises to get finer mana control. She also did more shaping and visited deadrooms twice more through that week, staying nearly two hours each time. She didn¡¯t get it right after countless tries. After a week, it was looking like she had to give up on this idea. And then something very strange happened. The two cards she¡¯d paired up that day for practice were the card and the as a waste card. While neither had multiple sensors along the pathway, she always liked to experiment with her simpler cards first to avoid wasting too much mana. She¡¯d started the process of partial activation, pushing mana, creating black holes, and skipping imagined sensors. All the manipulation was causing strain on her physically and mentally. It had also caused the pathways to twist slightly, shifting closer together. Lexie was concerned that the deviation of the pathway would trigger the structural sensors, deactivating both cards instantly. She struggled to rein it in but she was mentally exhausted by that point and it wasn¡¯t working. She expected deactivation to happen as she continued her observation. But something else happened instead. Both pathways snapped into place but not to their original form. Instead, they bonded to each other, forming a link, just as Lexie completed activation. A breathless rush of power filled her as she opened her eyes and blinked. What the hell just happened? Lexie stared down at her hands wondering why her whole body felt...jittery. Did the cards...combine? It didn¡¯t feel like it usually did when she activated the Card. But it didn''t feel exactly like when Veronica had tripped her either. It felt different. Almost like she was both. But that was¡­impossible, wasn¡¯t it? At the very least she''d never heard of anything like it. What exactly had she done? She hopped and found that she was shakier on her feet, but also lighter. She tripped on air but her landing was soft, and she was also able to bounce several feet in the air. Very odd indeed. She was so focused on the feeling that she barely sensed the ding in her periphery alerting her that she had more notifications.
SYSTCALC... +1 ingenuity. +1 discovery.
Research points. That was good. At least she¡¯d discovered something although she wasn¡¯t exactly sure how. She¡¯d somehow managed to combine two cards into one. That was incredible. Could she do it again? She checked her system screen to see which card it would say was activated. It showed both of the cards were active, but it was for a much shorter time. The cards shimmered in and out of focus and her SI also indicated there was an error in the activation so the activation time would be much shorter to compensate. What an unintentional but encouraging turn of events. Unfortunately for Lexie, it wasn¡¯t replicable. Lexie tried to do it every day for the next few days but she failed each time. Apparently, it wasn¡¯t enough to activate the two cards at the same time while the skipping sensor. She had to bring the card pathways together in a specific way, maybe a pattern or equation that she didn¡¯t exactly recall. Probably had to do with the structure of the pathway. Maybe it had to twist in a certain configuration. But it was too hard to figure it out and testing it so many times was a strain on her. Eventually, she decided to revisit that topic later and went back to perfecting her waste mana activation method.
¡°Lexie¡­¡± Lexie''s eyes opened and she found herself staring at Dewie¡¯s blinking brown eyes. ¡°You¡¯re drooling,¡± he said. ¡°And my mom¡¯s chauffeur is here.¡± Lexie sat up and wiped the drool from her lips, blinking blearily at her surroundings. She was exhausted. Although that was to be expected, considering how far she had pushed herself last night. ¡°What time is it?¡± she asked. ¡°It''s three. Schools over,¡± he said. ¡°You dozed off during Mr. Norris¡¯ class but I don¡¯t think he noticed because Bennie kept distracting him with questions. And then Abernathy got Mr. Norris into a lengthy argument about volcanic eruptions that took forever until class ended." ¡°Abernathy did that?¡± She blinked. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°So you wouldn¡¯t get caught.¡± Her heart warmed. Well, that was strangely sweet of him. She knew that she¡¯d grown some camaraderie with the boys but she didn¡¯t think they would hatch an elaborate plot to distract a teacher for her. ¡°I helped too. I stayed behind to make sure no one drew on your face with permanent markers,¡± Dewie pointed out, his eyes a little hopeful for praise. "Thanks," Lexie smiled. ¡°Why would anyone do that?¡± He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s what they did to me when I fell asleep. They drew a little lizard. But it was weird because it had two round legs instead of four." ¡°Oh.¡± She felt bad for him. Lexie had a feeling that it wasn¡¯t a lizard they¡¯d drawn on his face but she didn¡¯t want to break it to him. That would make it worse. ¡°Sorry about that.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It wasn¡¯t really permanent. It came out after a month." Yeah, but that was a month of walking around with skinny genitals on your forehead. ¡°That stuff you see,¡± Lexie ventured carefully. ¡°Why not... I mean, you could just not tell people about them. I feel like that would make your life a lot easier.¡± Dewie shook his head. "Last time I didn¡¯t tell, my grandma died." ¡°Because of the¡­lizard people?¡± He nodded. "My mom warned me not to talk about stuff like that anymore. She said it wasn''t publically necessary information. And so when I overheard the lizard people plotting, I didn''t tell my grandma because I didn''t want to get in trouble." His eyes grew aggravated, his finger twitching. "She died that night. The lizard people pushed her into a ditch." Lexie''s chest swelled with pity. Poor kid. To think he blamed himself for his grandmother''s death when it was more likely that the older woman had probably gotten confused and fell on her own. Lexie didn''t know how old Dewie''s grandmother had been but that explanation seemed a lot more sound than his lizard people claim. Lexie tried to get him to see it, even if it was just to ease his guilt. "I don¡¯t think that was related, Dewie," she said gently. "I think it was probably just a really sad accident." Dewie didn''t respond. He stared at her with a fathomless gaze that had just a hint of pity. Like she was the clueless one here. Okay, then. ¡°Thanks for staying." Lexie gave him a grateful smile. "I appreciate it." A tiny smile appeared at the corner of his lips and he asked, ¡°Are you going to go back to sleep?¡± She checked the time on her SI. Her dad told her he would be working late today and she was supposed to hang out at the school lobby to wait for him. She¡¯d meant to use that time to sneak off to a deadroom but she was exhausted and she didn¡¯t want to push herself too hard. She''d spent the last few days significantly taxing her pathways and she needed rest. So maybe she should just take today off. After all, she¡¯d made a discovery just recently. Two actually. She''d earned a little sleep. ¡°Yeah,¡± she said, yawning. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to nap a little more and then head home.¡± Her dad could always call her on the system when he arrived. Dewie blinked at her. ¡°You¡¯re gonna sleep here?¡± She nodded. ¡°You¡¯re not scared someone¡¯s gonna draw on your face with permanent ink?¡± She smiled. "No, I''m not. Thanks to you, I¡¯ll remain on alert.¡±¡¯ Dewie nodded and picked up his fine leather backpack swinging it over his shoulder. ¡°Alright. But if they do, hairspray and orcish gecko saliva get it out faster. I looked it up after the incident, just in case.¡± Lexie nodded and he hesitated a bit before heading to the door. ¡°Bye Dewie,¡± Lexie called out. He stopped, turned, and gave her one of his small smiles again. ¡°Bye.¡± And then he left. Lexie laid her head back and the cool desk. Hopefully, she could sleep off her exhaustion so her father wouldn¡¯t detect that something was wrong.
The next time Lexie woke, she heard a loud ringing. It didn¡¯t sound like a system call. It sounded like the ringing of a cell phone. Her eyes flashed open and she found herself in her bedroom. Her room in Hovelton, that is, not in New York. She frowned, glancing around. How did she get here? Did Aiden pick her up and carry her all the way home? She hadn¡¯t even noticed. Did she not wake up for the entire train ride? Strange. Her attention was almost immediately snatched by the incessant buzzing and clamoring in her drawer. She pulled it open and stared at the device that was making all the noise. It was her cell phone. It took a second for the cobwebs in her sleepy brain to clear enough for her to figure out why that was wrong. Her cell phone was ringing. And then it hit her like a lightning bolt. It wasn''t supposed to be ringing. She didn¡¯t have service. Hadn¡¯t had service in months. She scrambled for it, getting out of bed, her hand shook as she stared down at the blinking icon on the screen. It was her brother calling. Logan. Her finger shook so hard that it took her nearly three tries to answer. ¡°Hello?¡± Her voice was hoarse and heavy with disbelief. ¡°Lexie?¡± A wash of so many emotions, relief, longing, and hope, flooded her so hard that she couldn¡¯t contain it. She gripped the phone with both hands holding it at her ear, her legs shaky as she lowered onto the floor. Her voice was a single breath. "Logan." ¡°Lexie, where are you?¡± ¡°Logan I¡¯m¡­¡± She didn¡¯t even know how to explain it. ¡°I¡¯m in a video game.¡± She expected questions, but he was silent. Probably stunned at the situation. Giggles bubbled out of her. ¡°I know it sounds ridiculous, but it¡¯s true. After I got shot at the gas station, I woke up in a place called Hovelton. I think it¡¯s from your video game. You know, Heroes Online? And I met Aiden Sparrowfoot and Max and a bunch of other people¨C" "You have to get out.¡± Lexie paused, the urgency in his voice alarming her. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Lexie, something¡¯s coming. You have to get out of there.¡± She frowned but then she heard a slight whizzing at the other end of the line, like an approaching missile. And then the phone started ringing again, louder this time, distorting until it wasn''t a ringtone anymore, but an alarm. ¡°Lexie, wake up!¡± Lexie¡¯s eyes opened for the final time and she bolted up in her seat, taking in reality. She was still in class and the alarms were blaring in her ears. She glanced around sharply until something caught her attention outside the window. She stared at it in disbelief and shock. On the bright side, it wasn¡¯t a missile approaching. Instead, it was a round orb that seemed to float in the air for a split second. And then it exploded into a massive fireball. 30 - Five Minutes Before Disaster Five Minutes Before Disaster... Aiden sighed and wiped the beads of sweat off his brow. His back ached from bending over nearly the entire day, scraping grime out of the pavement in front of a hair salon. People had been walking in and out as he worked, throwing him odd looks, likely because no one liked having an ex-[Villain] outside their property. But it was a necessary evil to have perfectly clean curbs. Sure, the rest of the streets were machine-cleaned each morning, but human intervention was often needed to get the grime in the corners. It was a low-paying strenuous job that no one wanted to do. So why not assign it to ex-cons and ex-[Villains] alike? Luckily, it only had to be done once every six to eight months, and he was almost done with this stretch. He glanced at the salon just as two heads snapped out of view and the curtains fell. No one had confronted him yet, so that was good at least. They¡¯d all just watched him work through the glass walls, with various contraptions in their hair. Like he was a spectacle. Aiden cracked his neck as the heat bore down even more on him. He wondered why the sun chose this particular day to blare down with all its vengeance. To make this worse, Eddie was supposed to be here two hours ago to help, but the man was late as usual. Ever since he discovered that Aiden would cover for him in front of their parole officer, Eddie had stopped making a concerted effort to show up on time. Of course, this was partially Aiden¡¯s fault for allowing this behavior. It was just that Eddie already had so many problems and Aiden often felt sorry for him and didn''t want him to get in trouble too. He was a nice guy¨Cfor a three-time armed robber¨Cand to be fair, he¡¯d agreed to cover for Aiden weeks ago so he could take Lexie home early. Plus he was covering for him on Lexie''s birthday too. But his tardiness was getting out of hand. Aiden groaned a little as he cracked his back. And then he pulled up his system screen, noting that he had a text message from Eddie. Sorry! I¡¯ll be there soon. Got caught up in traffic. Aiden frowned. You don¡¯t drive Eddie, he responded. The answer came after a few seconds. No, but my girl does. She¡¯s giving me a ride today. His girl? Which one? One of Eddie¡¯s biggest problems was women. In that he had way too many of them, concurrently and consecutively, and each one he told Aiden about was more toxic than the last. During their last conversation, Eddie had told him about the recent girlfriend, who¡¯d chased him around his house with a gun while he was in his underwear. And twice more, she''d stabbed him with a knife because he''d done something to annoy her. Eddie was thinking of proposing to that very same woman. Aiden had spent hours talking him out of it, trying to show him that what they had wasn¡¯t love and wasn¡¯t something sustainable. He''d asked Eddie, "Do you want someone that unstable to be the mother of your children? Can you trust her to take care of your daughter or son while you''re not there? What about if something were to happen to you and she had to take care of you and not stab while she was at it? Can you trust her with that?" Aiden had also pointed out Eddie¡¯s many flaws and showed him how he wasn¡¯t ready for a relationship yet. And Aiden thought at the end of his lecture, he¡¯d gotten Eddie to see sense. The problem was that Eddie could only stay sensible for so long. Evidenced by how he replied to Aiden¡¯s message now with a guilty-looking upside-down smiley face. Which meant he was with her, the stabber, and she was the one driving him here. Aiden rolled his eyes. I don¡¯t know who¡¯s worse. Him or Max. Just be careful, Aiden texted. With the stories he¡¯d heard of this girl, he wouldn¡¯t be surprised if one wrong word would have her veering her vehicle off a bridge in an elaborate murder-suicide. Awww. Is the big bad wizard worried about me? was Eddie¡¯s response. I¡¯m worried about not finishing our quota and having to do extra work to make up for it. Yeah, yeah, quotas, schmotas. I know you love me. Eddie attached a bunch of kissy faces that made Aiden shake his head in consternation. He uses more emojis than my daughter. Just get here as soon¡­and safely as possible. Alright, I will. You want to say hi to Mirabel? She¡¯s in a good mood today. Aiden really didn''t but he couldn¡¯t figure out a way to turn him down without offending Eddie. And truthfully he wasn¡¯t actually worried about offending Eddie, but he was concerned that Eddie would relay his refusal to Mirabel leading her to mark Aiden on her list of enemies. Maybe she would even include him in that murder-suicide she was likely planning. Aiden didn¡¯t want to be her friend either because that seemed almost as dangerous as being her enemy. I have to get back to work. But send my regards to her, Aiden texted back and then closed out his system interface to crack his neck again. His joints were killing him. He turned back to observe the traffic-choked street as the sun finally began its descent. Aiden supposed there was one good thing about this assignment. On the horizon were rows of buildings that covered the street where Lexie¡¯s school was nestled. He smiled. She was waiting for him in school today. He could tell from the dot that blinked at the corner of his map at all times. It was from the nifty little tracking device he¡¯d ¡®borrowed¡¯ from Max and snuck into Lexie¡¯s favorite hairpin. He felt bad doing it but the tracking device was necessary. It was also how he knew that his daughter frequently took trips to the town center after school, instead of waiting for him on campus like she was supposed to. Sometimes, he felt a little bad about keeping tabs on her this way. It was the sort of thing parents weren¡¯t supposed to do right? It was an invasion of privacy and he knew that as a teenager, it was the exact type of ¡®controlling behavior¡¯ that drove a wedge between him and his father. How ironic. Then again, this was the only way he could ensure his daughter''s safety. Lexie was a special sort of child and far too inquisitive for her own good. He didn''t know where she got it from, but he did know she had a knack for getting into trouble and he needed to be prepared. So far, though, she hadn¡¯t gone anywhere worrisome. She mostly went to the mall, probably to play games with her friends, and then sometimes to the stadium, where they held AFC matches. He imagined that was for Xena¡¯s benefit. Lexie insisted that she wasn¡¯t friends with Xena but Aiden wasn¡¯t so sure about that, especially after Xena came to visit her that night. Sure the two might have had a rocky start, but so did he and Max and they were friends now. Or something like that. Anyway, Aiden didn¡¯t stop Lexie''s excursions because it was all in this general area and it was probably safe. It was good that she was making friends and doing more than obsessively studying every day. And there were worse things that she could have been doing than wandering a few kilometers away. But today she was at school, waiting for him like she was supposed to. It made him even more eager to finish his work so he could go see her. Excitement bubbled up as he imagined going to pick her up. She usually smiled when he approached. Her pigtails would often bounce as she trotted over to him and took his hand. Her eyes glittered like her mother¡¯s used to. Sometimes, he got really depressed with the turns his life had taken. But then he only had to think of his daughter to cheer him right back up. She was the only thing that made life worth living. Aiden stretched for the last time during this break. He needed to at least finish this pavement before he went home. And then Eddie could finish the rest as a way to make up for not being here on time. But as he worked for the next few minutes, Aiden began to feel something. A skittering at the base of his spine. Almost like a warning. He instantly tensed. Aiden didn¡¯t have premonitions nor did he have magic, but being a [Hero] for so long, he had a sixth sense for when disaster was about to strike. It was something many heroes had and wasn¡¯t linked to their powers so much as it was to their instinct. Like soldiers who had spent too much time in warzones. He straightened and looked around, trying to perceive where the danger was coming from. Horns blared in traffic. A mother and son jogged across the zebra crossing ignoring a man in a taxi yelling at them. At the coffee shop across the street, two men stood and shook hands, as their business concluded. None of it was out of the ordinary. And then he heard it, the thing that was likely what raised his alarm in the first place. A light whistling sound that was almost imperceptible, blending in with the general noise of the busy street. But the more he tuned in, the louder it got. Right as he heard it, he saw something whizzing through the air, arching in the sun. It was heading behind the building that shielded Lexie''s school. ¡°No.¡± The word left him in a rush of breath, but the whisper of horror was all he could manage. He couldn''t scream out a warning, couldn''t move. Couldn''t look away. In an instant, his breath seized. His heart stopped beating. His muscles all sagged as every strength fled him and he could only track the trajectory of the tiny dot in the sky before it landed. Run. But he couldn¡¯t. He was far too logical sometimes and he knew he wouldn¡¯t make it in time. While he was frozen, he felt the delay, felt that the explosion wasn''t going off. He almost began to believe that he was wrong, or that he was seeing things. But then it went off. Boom! ¡°No!¡± The word burst out of his mouth The sound galvanized him with an energy borne of pure terror. Chaos hit the crowds. People screamed and horns blared more aggressively. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. His legs shook, even as his lungs drew tight. He couldn¡¯t breathe. This couldn''t be happening. Then he began to run, fear racing through him as he screamed, ¡°Lexie!¡±
Five Minutes Before Disaster¡­ Lucy Frank frowned at her computer. Well, she called it a computer, but it was more so a screen connected to a series of servers, with which she was running permutations and combinations on the likelihood of disaster striking in the next five minutes. Arithmancy was a relatively new affixation, and so very few people understood exactly how her powers worked. And she supposed it was partially her fault because she liked to keep it simple with the whole ¡°can figure out an enemy¡¯s next ten moves¡± schtick that was basically her catch phrase. As the associations¡¯ brand manager, Lola Gherkin liked to say, ''simplicity is the key to perfecting a hero''s brand.'' And so Lucy had kept hers simple, using that catchphrase whenever she was asked. But it wasn¡¯t as easy as it sounded. In reality, her enemy''s next ten moves could be anything out of trillions of possibilities, and Lucy had to calculate the likelihood of every single one. And yes it was a lot of work and her powers merely cut down that time by nudging her in the right direction. Rather than divination, her powers worked by setting up mathematical formulas for each of her enemies. It was a bit more than that, but that was the long and short of it. It often took her forever, especially at the start of a mission when she was collating data. Luckily, she¡¯d had a tehcnomage build this system for her, so she could visualize the algorithm as she worked, rather than just have zeroes and ones running in her mind, giving her a headache. Despite her powers, Lucy wasn¡¯t all-knowing, not even close. She worked with probabilities and likelihoods and only acted when a certain score was above 80% accuracy. Her power was also governed by a few rules. She was better at figuring out the moves of individuals than groups. The more she knew about the target, the more accurate her prediction was too. And usually, smaller-scale events that were close to happening, were easier to predict than larger-scale events that further down the timeline. She¡¯d run the calculations over and over again today and so she knew that, a few minutes from now, a small-scale event was set to occur in Arcadia, really close to the coffee shop she sometimes liked to work in because they had the best lattes in the city. It was probably going to be triggered by the GLITCH gang, an anti-government terrorist group who had claimed responsibility for the disaster in Alpeco. There were hints that they were planning something similar, but bigger in Arcadia. It was Lucy¡¯s job to figure out exactly what. Here was what she knew: The gang had struck thrice in the last six months. They¡¯d struck highly populated wealthy areas, governmental buildings, or historical landmarks. They caused chaos and then looted the surrounding areas. But they always scattered right before the [Heroes] arrived. That meant that Lucy had to time everything exactly right, and the [Heroes] had to arrive before disaster struck. That was why they relied on Lucy''s power. Luckily, Lucy lived in Arcadia and had a bunch of information about the city which made things easier for her. She¡¯d been able to use the information on population density, traffic patterns, travel logs, and a bunch of other things to narrow down three possible locations for the bomb. She had a [Hero] staking out each location, giving her more information that would help her with her calculations. She tapped a button on her earpiece, connecting her to one of them. ¡°Eagle.¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am,¡± the girl answered instantly, anxiety in her voice. ¡°Is it happening?¡± ¡°No, not yet. But I need you to tell me what you see. Any funny movements?¡± ¡°Um...I¡¯m not sure exactly what counts as funny.¡± Eagle was currently in Longview, a heavily populated shopping district with rows of designer stores. "A lady just walked by with a tiny dog wearing tiny headphones. It had purple fur too.¡± Yup, that was typical for Longview. It was where the rich and powerful got clothes for themselves and their strange-looking pets. ¡°No, that¡¯s not it. Keep an eye out for abnormal behavior. Anyone looking extra watchful or tense, or lingering around the same area for too long.¡± ¡°Yes can do, boss lady!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not your boss,¡± Lucy reminded the girl for what felt like the thousandth time. ¡°Just Lucy is fine.¡± ¡°Yes Ms. Lucy! Sorry about that.¡± Lucy sighed and disconnected the call. While the extreme deference was grating, Lucy reminded herself that Desert Eagle¨Creal name Isobel Aureliano¨C was still just a student, a senior at the Arcadian School for Late in Life Heroes (or as most people knew it, Hero Community College). Lucy had needed a small number of lowkey, relatively-unknown [Heroes] for this stake-out mission because with high-profile [Heroes] on the case, news might have gotten out and it would have spooked GLITCH or had them changing their plans. She¡¯d selected a handful of volunteers mostly from schools in the area. Eagle had been chosen because of her exceptional far-reaching eyesight and her high combat scores. But the thing about working with students was that they were eager to please, especially when they were from lesser-known schools like Isobel''s. Because, unless they came from a good school like Victoire, they needed a list of recommendations to be able to join the Hero Association officially. Lucy had asked for help from Victoire too, but they were pretty picky about the missions they sent their students on and apparently, this one didn¡¯t make the cut. Lucy connected to the second student at the second location, who answered, ¡°Talk to me, pretty lady.¡± Lucy ground her teeth. She didn''t have to remind him of her name. He knew it but he just chose not to use it. ¡°Do you see anything strange?¡± ¡°Other than this nerd crying his eyes out then no,¡± Tremor said languidly. He was at the Honeylake pier, close to the Arcadian Research College. ¡°What does he look like?¡± ¡°Pale. Skinny. Nerd-like.¡± He cocked his head. ¡°He must have really bombed his test or something because he¡¯s been bawling for the last thirty minutes. Ope, and now he¡¯s climbing onto the guard railings in front of the lake. He¡¯s probably going to jump but he¡¯s taking a dramatic pause before he does it, just in case someone wants to stop him. Everyone is kind of ignoring him though. Do you think I should tell him that the lake bend is only about five feet deep? It would be pretty embarrassing if he tried to kill himself and only got submerged from the chest down.¡± ¡°Do you see anything else?¡± ¡°Nope. But I better go talk him off the ledge. He might hurt the fish. Hey buddy¨C!¡± Lucy hung up the call and rubbed her temples. Anxiety rolled through her but she wasn¡¯t sure if it was mere battle-readiness or something else. Something bugged her about this whole thing. It felt like there was a piece of the puzzle missing. Before she could check on her third agent, her earpiece buzzed to life and a familiar, smooth tone said, ¡°Luce.¡± Suddenly, her heart began racing for a whole different reason and her face flushed. ¡°Hey,¡± she said, unable to keep the slight breathlessness from her voice. ¡°I didn''t know you were assigned to this case.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t.¡± Theo Firebringer sounded like he was flying as he spoke. ¡°But I found out you were on a case with the same guys that plotted the Alpeco fiasco, and kind of invited myself on.¡± ¡°How did you find out?¡± Her mission, as most of them were, was top secret. The fewer people knew, the fewer details she had to account for and the more accurate her findings were. ¡°Used my mom¡¯s access card to hack into case files.¡± ¡°That¡¯s dangerous, Theo. You could get suspended for that. Not to mention your involvement might mess with my calculations.¡± ¡°I know. That¡¯s why I haven¡¯t done anything till now. And I¡¯m talking to you directly because I found something out that I think might help. Forensics evaluated the bomb they planned to use in Alpeco that was caught before it detonated. They suspect trace levels of transient mana in its core.¡± Lucy blinked. ¡°What? That wasn¡¯t included in the file they sent over.¡± ¡°Yeah, I know. Which is weird because that seemed like vital information, but maybe they only found out recently. Or maybe since they were sending over so many files, they missed one.¡± Lucy bit her lip and closed her eyes taking deep breaths. Great. Now she would have to redo her calculations all over again. But it was probably for the best. Maybe this would clue her in on what bugged her about his case. The niggling in the back of her brain was annoying and it wouldn''t rest until she had a complete picture. She had to take the information apart piece by piece and put it back together again integrating the new details. Bombs were GLITCH¡¯s main MO. Typically, though this only happened around election periods or to protest a new mandate the government was introducing. But there was nothing like that happening which meant there had to be another reason they were doing this. The motive could be just causing general chaos but then what was the end goal? Unless¡­the chaos was the goal? Transient mana in a bomb wasn¡¯t a good thing at all. Even trace levels were dangerous enough to disrupt the external mana of the immediate environments. Mana bombs didn¡¯t just cause temporary destruction, they destabilized the entire mana atmosphere. At best, they messed with the capes¡¯ powers. At worst, they made it such that the environment was uninhabitable for mages for weeks to years. That was because they made the external mana in the atmosphere unstable which then caused pathway damage every time a mage tried to use their powers. And if it wasn¡¯t just a bomb with transient mana, but a mana bomb¡­. Lucy took a breath. The rest of the bombs were regular. But they had trace levels of mana in one of the bombs that didn''t go off in Alpeco. The rest of the information was organized around those two pieces almost as though trying to form a pattern to lead her in a certain direction. One and zeroes ran on screen. Suddenly her mind was flooded with images and pictures and numbers and information that threatened to blow her pathways wide open, but she took breaths and managed it. And then her eyes popped open. ¡°It¡¯s a distraction,¡± she said. ¡°The other bombs were a distraction.¡± At the same time, her headpiece buzzed, cutting out her call with Theo. Freezeframe, the third Hero student she¡¯d gotten for this case, suddenly announced loudly, ¡°I found it!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The bomb! I saw a strange-looking guy on top of a building and then I yelled at him. He had a launcher and he shot the bomb in the air, and it went off but I caught it in time. I already froze it, but only for less than thirty seconds. I need to get it disabled but I don''t know where to¨C" ¡°No,¡± Lucy said suddenly, her heart racing with the new information she just found out. ¡°You don''t have time.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You need to head to the pier now and find the mana bomb. That¡¯s the priority.¡± And her powers told her that time was of the essence. She quickly typed a message to the rest of the [Heroes] on standby, alerting them of a possible mana bomb on the pier. But she knew that Freezeframe in particular had to be there. His powers were needed. ¡°But¡­¡± "Now, Freezeframe!¡± ¡°Okay, but what am I supposed to do with this bomb? If I deactivate my powers it¡¯s going to go boom! And I can¡¯t port with it.¡± ¡°Shit,¡± Lucy said. ¡°Lucy?¡± Theo had come back on a second line and joined the call. ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± ¡°Give me a second.¡± She immediately opened up her system screen with a map of the area. Next, she opened up the basic building schematics and started typing as she worked. ¡°Freezeframe, you''re on the ground right?" "Uh yeah." Shit. It would be better if he were higher up but they didn''t have time. "In a few seconds, you¡¯re going to turn the bomb to target your twelve o''clock¡± ¡°My twelve o''clock is a school building.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He paused and then his voice was partially shocked and partially horrified. ¡°You want me to throw a bomb at a school?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an elementary school.¡± ¡°Uh, yeah, I¡¯m not sure how that makes it better.¡± ¡°School got out hours ago. It¡¯s Friday so today was likely a half day. I doubt there¡¯s anyone still in the building, but just in case, I just had security turn on the alert to evacuate the building. We¡¯ll give them a few seconds to do that and then you¡¯ll let go.¡± She sensed his hesitation and she said. ¡°It¡¯s the only building in the area with reinforced absorbent walls. That will not only neutralize the blast, it will also partially contain it. And probably no one will get hurt in the blast as long as they¡¯re not standing right by the windows, which the alert specifically says to avoid.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯m sure, I ran the math.¡± And according to her calculations, if he threw the bomb in the next ten seconds and it hit the building the likelihood of everyone surviving was above 90%. The likelihood of everyone avoiding injury was 80%. That was as sure as she got. She could live with those odds. ¡°Ten seconds. We don¡¯t have time.¡± ¡°Lucy, I''m headed your way,¡± Theo interrupted. ¡°About to grab a teleport.¡± ¡°No, go to the pier instead. That¡¯s where I predict the mana bomb is. That¡¯s the immediate danger.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure about this¡­¡± Freezeframe said. ¡°We don¡¯t have time!¡± she snapped. ¡°Just do it and port to the pier. If that mana bomb goes off there, we¡¯re all in huge trouble.¡± Freezeframe released a breath. ¡°Alright.¡± But he didn¡¯t sound happy about his assignment. After the line disconnected she took a breath. Her head hurt already and she was likely going to have some backlash from how hard she pushed her powers just then. ¡°Luce¡­¡± ¡°Oh, you''re still here.¡± She was slightly embarrassed that Theo had heard her all panicked and bossy. ¡°Yeah. Just wanted to let you know that I¡¯ll head to the school first and make sure it¡¯s evacuated. Help deal with the chaos the bomb might cause,¡± he said. ¡°You don¡¯t have to.¡± She read between the lines and knew what he meant by that. And she was fully prepared to take responsibility for whatever might happen. ¡°You¡¯re not handling this alone. And I''m not letting you take the fall for anything. I¡¯ll be there soon." Theo hung up and Lucy shook her head. She reminded herself that Theo only saw her as a friend/student mentor and it was extremely ridiculous for her to have a crush on a self-confessed commitment-phobe who was two years her junior. 31 - Rescued? Lexie liked to think that she had a quick reaction time. She wanted to say that, when faced with an imminent bomb, she jumped out of her seat and flew to the ground, or shielded her head or did anything but blink dazedly at the fireball that exploded in her face. But the latter was exactly what she did. However, she doubted there was anything else she could have done that would have landed her in a better position. The explosion hit the walls with a loud clang that reverberated from the point of contact through the entire room. The blast was powerful enough to send Lexie and her desk flying before crashing into another desk. Her back struck the edge of the desk and pain burst through her on impact. But, it wasn¡¯t until she was slumped on the floor, blinking up at the roof that she realized the full extent of the damage. Her first warning was the blinking red health bar in the corner of her vision. And then the shock faded enough for her to feel her body. Her vision was suddenly unfocused as a wave of pure agony hit her in bits. Her chest was burning. Her stomach felt like it had caved in. Her limbs felt limp and useless as though lightning had travelled through them and zapped them of their strength. The more the shock cleared the more the pain ebbed and flowed. She gasped in breaths, weak moans leaving her mouth. She wanted to scream but she didn¡¯t have the energy for it. She barely had the energy to stay awake. But instinctively she knew she had to stay awake. She had to keep breathing. If not¡­ Well, she might die. Her eyelids grew heavy, and she focused on the pain in her chest shallowly moving up and down with her breaths. She stared at the roof in the aftermath of the blast as she realized that the sound she heard wasn¡¯t solely the ringing in her ears. The alarm that somehow made it into her dreams was actually blaring and it was saying in a repetitive monotone voice: Blast Incoming. Evacuate the building now. Exit through the front doors and stay away from windows and walls. Observe all other evacuation protocols. Wow. Sure would have been nice if I¡¯d been awake to hear that. But all things considered, Lexie had no one but herself to blame honestly. The system also made an alert as the screen popped into her vision saying, You Have Sustained Significant Injury. Emergency System Healing Commencing along with System Reboot. Rest Highly Recommended. Great. All she had to do was lie here until security came to get her. She could do that. A moan tore out of her throat as pain turned her vision hazy again. She hoped they would hurry though. This was pure torture. Lexie stopped trying to fight the waves of misery and instead focused on breathing through it. She also fought to stay awake by keeping up a constant stream of thought...I wonder where the blast was from. Is the city under attack? What about Aiden? Is he okay? But that final thought made her panic a little which made breathing slightly harder and so she discarded it. He has to be okay. She tried to contact him on her system interface, but her system was rebooting while all the energy was dedicated to healing. It wasn''t letting her contact anyone until the system reboot was over. Great. She took another deeper breath trying to figure out if she was feeling better or just wishful thinking when she heard a door slide open. ¡°Lexie!¡± Lexie frowned. The yell sounded like it was coming from far away and it took a second for her to place the voice. And when she did she could hardly believe it. ¡°Xena?¡± she gasped weakly. She couldn''t turn her head, but through the tinnitus, she heard quick familiar footsteps until Xena¡¯s boots were in her peripheral vision. Then suddenly, Lexie was blinking up at her old nemesis who had worry stamped all over her face. ¡°Oh shit,¡± Xena said and her hand shook as it hovered hesitantly over Lexie. And then she withdrew like she was scared she would make it worse. ¡°Are you okay? You got hurt, didn¡¯t you?¡± Lexie managed to grin. ¡°You know sometimes Xena, you ask really stupid questions.¡± Xena didn¡¯t like her joke. She narrowed her eyes instead. Lexie grinned wider. Some people can dish it but never take it. ¡°Am I dreaming?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Why?¡± She made a sad attempt at a shrug. ¡°Because you¡¯re here and you actually look pretty worried about me.¡± Xena bit her lip, regret mixing with a stubborn annoyance. ¡°Well, you¡¯re not my favorite person but it¡¯s not like I want you dead either.¡± ¡°So I¡¯m your second favorite?" Lexie teased. ¡°Who¡¯s your favorite person? Emma?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a favorite person. Look, we need to get out of here.¡± ¡°Yeah, probably.¡± Lexie could finally move her neck and found that some feeling returned to her fingers. The pain was also lessening, but the flood of endorphins was making her a little delirious. ¡°What are you doing here anyway? School closed hours ago.¡± ¡°That¡¯s none of your business,¡± Xena said, but it lacked its usual heat. ¡°Why? Because I¡¯m not your favorite person?¡± Lexie managed to cock her head. ¡°Is it Diane? I notice you no longer glare at her when she sits by you.¡± Diane did that whenever she fought with Veronica, which was often ¡°I don¡¯t have a favorite person idiot.¡± ¡°So then why can¡¯t it be me?¡± Lexie mock-whined. ¡°Because¡­¡± ¡°Because what? You have a problem with me or something?¡± Xena leveled her with a familiar glare for a few seconds but when Lexie matched it with an even stare of her own, Xena finally heaved a long-suffering sigh. Lexie was no longer bothered by Xena''s snark and her animosity. She was getting used to it. Plus annoying Xena was a fun distraction from the pain. Until Xena shocked her by releasing another bombshell. ¡°We can''t be friends, Lexie. Look, you¡¯re not going to remember this, but we have spoken before that day at the hospital. And we kind of had a fight." If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. ¡°We did?¡± This came as a surprise to Lexie. She thought they might have known each other from class, but she didn''t think they''d spoken before then. What did Lexie Sparrowfoot do to make Xena mad? ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re really annoying.¡± At Lexie¡¯s fallen look, she sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you later. Right now, I probably need to carry you out of here.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you should. I mean, if something¡¯s broken then maybe you shouldn''t move me at all. I''m sure help is coming.¡± "I don¡¯t think so. It¡¯s chaos out on the streets. And the security guard is trying to help control it. I don¡¯t think they know anyone is still in school. I only thought about you because I remember you dozed off in class and no one woke you up.¡± ¡°Wait¡­¡± Lexie blinked at her, finally regaining movement of her neck. ¡°You came back for me? Seriously?¡± Xena groaned. ¡°Don¡¯t make me regret it.¡± ¡°Awww. You do care about me.¡± Xena shook her head. "The system will probably alert you if something is broken. Did it?" Lexie scanned her list of injuries and shook her head. Underneath the blinking health bar, the system warned her of damages not limited to bruised tissues, ruptured eardrums, and torn vessels. But no fractured bones. ¡°Good. Then it means I can probably carry you. We should go before another blast hits the walls.¡± ¡°You sure you can carry me?¡± she asked, feeling slightly nauseous from the movement. Xena scoffed and gave her a look. Lexie scowled. ¡°I¡¯m heavier than I appear.¡± ¡°Right.¡± But then Xena squatted in front of Lexie, took her hand, and dragged her up to a sitting position. Lexie groaned as her sudden activity brought fresh waves of agony but Xena didn''t stop, lacing Lexie''s arms around her neck and telling her, "Hold tight." Lexie did or at least she tried to get her fingers to cooperate. It wasn''t easy even as she gripped her opposite wrist with all her might. Xena put both hands underneath Lexie''s knees, and then stood in the air, leaning forward so that all of Lexie''s weight was on her back. She took a few steps forward with little effort, as though she weren''t carrying anything at all. ¡°Light as a feather." She threw in for extra measure. ¡°Jerk,¡± Lexie said. As they started out the door though, Xena moved slowly so that Lexie wouldn''t slide off. There was little destruction in the rest of the hallway, which meant that Lexie''s window had taken the brunt of the blast. What bad luck. Xena followed the instructions from the announcement and kept to the very center of the hallway away from the walls. Lexie''s hands slid off Xena''s shoulder at a point, and Xena struggled to put it back there. She also had to pause and hoist Lexie higher, having some difficulty holding up Lexie''s limp form. ¡°Told you I wasn''t as light as I look.¡± Lexie pointed out smugly. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anyone proud of being heavy before.¡± ¡°You would be too if people made fun of you for being short your whole life.¡± In her past life, Lexie had heard, ''short stack'', ¡®pinch of a person¡¯, and even ''stubs'' more times than she cared to count. ¡°Yeah try being called Daddy Long Legs," Xena countered. "I¡¯m probably going to be six feet tall when I''m an adult.¡± ¡°And I¡¯ll be lucky to get to five-four.¡± ¡°Yeah, that might be worse.¡± Xena seemed to genuinely pity her because she added, ¡°You might still hit a growth spurt. .¡± ¡°No I won''t,¡± Lexie grumbled. ¡°You don¡¯t know that.¡± But actually, I do. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you risked your life and ran into a bombed classroom for me." ¡°Don¡¯t be too flattered. It was just one blast and everyone is losing their mind.¡± ¡°Yeah but still. Imagine if there were more bombs on the way. Or if there was some kind of noxious gas. I bet if you were there when the bomb went off, you would have pulled me out of the way and shielded me with your body. Like those cheesy romance movies." Then Lexie decided to take a page out of Dewie''s book and grinned. "Do you love me, Xena?" "Shut up or I''ll drop you." ¡°I¡¯m just saying. You¡¯re putting in a lot of effort to save someone who¡¯s not your favorite person.¡± ¡°Stop making me regret it.¡± Lexie laughed so hard that she slid to the side of Xena¡¯s back, banging her head into her shoulder. "Ow," they both said simultaneously and Lexie groaned because it made her headache so much worse. When they reached the entrance, Lexe finally had some feeling return to her legs. Maybe not enough to walk, she still felt pretty weak and lightheaded but she didn¡¯t want to be a burden on Xena anymore so she said ¡°Put me down.¡± "At the gate," Xena said and continued to trek across the field towards the security post. Mitch, the security, had his back turned to them and was currently on the other side of an iron-wrought gate, trying to calm down a crowd of people rushing down the street and scrambling over each other. The street was filled with sounds of panicked horning, people running, and general chaos. Lexie wished she knew where her dad was. He¡¯d told her he was working somewhere down the street but she didn''t know exactly where. And she was worried. What if there was another bomb and he got caught up in the blast? He might have been a [Hero] at one point, but right now he had no powers and he had weaker physicality than even some mundanes. Plus, she¡¯d read up on his Tilling bands and it seemed they also interfered with healing so he wouldn''t heal as fast as Lexie was. It was truly a cruel punishment and Lexie was once again, angry at the [Heroes] who gave it to him. "Remain calm!" Mitch was yelling as they approached. "Just get to a bomb shelter as fast as you can but don''t hurt anyone! Jeez." "Mitch," Lexie called out weakly and he spun around. Shock spread across his features as he walked through the gate. "What are you girls still doing here?" he asked. Lexie didn''t answer, instead scanning the crowd to see if any of them looked familiar. But no. None of them was her dad. Urgency flowed through her. She needed to find him. Where was he? I should put a tracker on him, she thought distantly. That way I can always find him when I need to. "What''s wrong with her?" Mitch asked Xena as he stepped closer through the gates for them. "She got hit," Xena said. "And I think it made her head funny." Mitch scanned Lexie''s face and body. "She''s healing?" he asked next. "I think so." "Can you carry her to the bomb shelter? There should be at least one healer there. And the [Heroes] should be here any time soon but they¡¯re making sure there are no other bombs that need disabling. All security personnel are tasked with keeping everyone safe and orderly in their absence.¡± "Where is it? The bomb shelter?" "There¡¯s one about 5 km from here. Near the Altazin Mall. You''ll have to walk, there¡¯s too much traffic to get a cab.¡± Lexie did the conversion to miles in her head and said. "That''s too far away. You can¡¯t carry me all that way. Besides, I need to call my dad." The system reboot was finally done and so she opened her call tab, to see that she¡¯d received a bunch of missed calls from him. She called back immediately and he answered on the first ring. ¡°Lexie!?¡± Lex froze for a second. She¡¯d never heard him sound like that before with so much fear and anxiety and desperation in his voice. The last time he sounded like that was the first night she''d woken up on Earth 9, after her untimely death. Lexie hadn''t appreciated Aiden''s despair back then because he was still a stranger to her. But now¡­he was her Dad, and she hated to hear him so worried. That brought along a complex mix of emotions that she wasn''t quite ready to deal with. ¡°Yeah I¡¯m fine,¡± she said to Aiden. ¡°Um¡­ kind of. I got hurt in the blast but nothing¡¯s broken and I¡¯m almost healed up.¡± ¡°Where are you? In front of the school?¡± ¡°Yeah. Can¡¯t really walk too well though.¡± ¡°Stay there. I¡¯m almost there.¡± "Alright." She turned to Xena. ¡°My dad¡¯s on his way here. He can carry me to the bomb shelter. So you could probably go now.¡± Xena seemed doubtful. ¡°Are you sure?¡± She nodded. ¡°Yeah. Thanks for the help. You know, for running in there and saving my life." ¡°I didn¡¯t save your life.¡± "Yeah, you did." Lexie shakily patted her head the way Aiden often did to hers and Xena rolled her eyes. Mitch helped Lexie get off Xena''s back and she found she could now walk a little, although he needed to help her into a chair by his security post. "I guess I''ll see you around," Xena said, watching Lexie closely. "Yup." Lexie smiled and waved. "Thanks for everything." "Yeah." With one last look, Xena turned heel and ran, disappearing into the crowd and heading to the bomb shelter. Mitch made sure Lexie wasn''t bleeding before he went back to his crowd control. Lexie continued to watch for her father, while her body healed up, biting her lips anxiously as she waited for his arrival. And then after about a minute of waiting, she finally saw him across the crowd, on the other side of his street. He couldn''t see her yet. His eyes searched through the school gates wildly and as he tried to cross the street, he got bumped into a bunch of times. "I''m here!" Lexie tried to call out but she wasn''t loud enough over the chaos. She got up and hobbled to the gate, waving her hand widely. "Dad, I''m here." Aiden''s eyes met hers across the stream of people. Relief flashed on his face for only a second. Lexie tried to go to him, but then her body froze, not of her own volition. A force tugged at her, until she was off her feet, flying in the opposite direction away from Aiden toward the other end of the street. ¡°Lexie!¡± She didn''t know what was happening but suddenly someone foreign that smelled like sweat and yoghurt snatched her up and ran. 32 - The Archmage Vs The Mouse Max drummed his fingers on the shiny hardwood table, over and over again. As his fingers left behind marks on the sleek brown surface, he wondered briefly what the cleaners used on it to get that sheen. Wax, or Loretta¡¯s oil polish? Max used the latter recently to pretty up his Beretta-Junior and he had to say it was starting to look quite nice. It was still nowhere compared to the beauty that was Beretta-Senior though. He¡¯d painstakingly crafted that gun from just a hunk of metal into a small portable powerhouse, rigged with an IED and a rapid fire mechanism capable of mass destruction. Even though over the years, he¡¯d arguably fashioned flashier guns than that, Beretta-Senior remained his pride and joy for a long time. Unfortunately, Senior had sadly met his demise during Max''s last dungeon crawl, when he¡¯d flung it into the mouth of a bug-eyed creature and activated the machine gun mechanism to destroy the thing from the inside, before a final explosion that ripped it apart. The creature was instantly riddled with internal bullets and erupted into a spray of exoskeleton, blood and green goo that rained the dungeon sky. Max had nearly wept, both from relief at being alive and from grief at losing his favorite gun. That gun had been with him for ten years. It was his best creation and it was hard to say goodbye. To this day, he couldn''t believe it was gone. But anyway, he was tinkering with Beretta-Junior so it would one day meet the standards set by Senior and maybe even surpass them. One day, Junior would make his father proud. As Max thought about the new changes he¡¯d make to his gun, he kept drumming, louder and louder until the man sitting opposite him finally cracked. ¡°Would you stop that?¡± Max grinned. ¡°You¡¯re so easy.¡± It was always nice to annoy his brother. He didn¡¯t usually have time for it anymore, but since his delving break began, he was bored more often than not and this was a nice way to alleviate his lethargy. Speaking of delving, he hadn¡¯t checked in on his team in months. He needed to call them and remind them not to get lazy on their vacation. Delving season was starting soon. ¡°Are you going to get me the invite or not?¡± Max asked Luke after his brother tried to go back to his work-pad. Luke glanced up to regard Max carefully. They had identical blue eyes and people liked to say they looked alike. But Max didn''t think so. Luke was a few inches taller and always had his short hair swept into a classic pompadour (or what Max liked to call, his smarmy politician¡¯s cut). Luke also liked to wear button-downs and long robes that exemplified his princely appearance. In both looks and character, Luke was softer, smoother, and more put together. The perfect picture of a polite gentleman. Except Luke had his crazy side too. Of course, no one but Max knew about that. ¡°I''m not giving it to you until you tell me what you need the invite for,¡± Luke finally said. ¡°What else would I need an invite to a fancy party with the hero association for,¡± Max said. ¡°For the contacts obviously.¡± Luke raised his eyebrows doubtfully. ¡°You want to do hero work?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯d rather die. But, you know the association gets the first dibs of all the high-value dungeons. I figure if I befriended a few of those bastards, then I would get the call before other dungeon parties.¡± Luke narrowed his eyes suspiciously. ¡°So you want to suck up to the association?¡± Max executed a perfectly lazy shrug. ¡°Well, if you can¡¯t beat the system, why not let the system work for you? You¡¯re the one who¡¯s always telling me to catch flies with honey or whatever it is you usually say in your lectures. This is just me taking your advice.¡± Luke snorted and shook his head. ¡°Yeah, right. I¡¯m not falling for that.¡± ¡°Not falling for what?¡± ¡°That fake innocent act. You¡¯re up to something.¡± ¡°Moi?¡± Max laid a hand on his chest dramatically, widening his eyes. ¡°What on earth could I be up to at a [Hero] party?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure but you¡¯re sounding far too reasonable right now, which means you¡¯re probably planning something utterly unhinged.¡± ¡°Jeez. So paranoid. I wouldn''t mess with the [Heroes], brother, I don''t have a death wish.¡± When Luke shook his head without a response, Max cursed internally. Frustration sliced at him. Damn you Luke, for being so perceptive. Then again, Max never expected deceiving his brother to be easy. As Luke remained silently reading his document, Max opened his mouth to play his trump card, reminding his brother of the favor he was owed. But just then, an alert pinged at the corner of his vision. It was a fully red alert, with multiple exclamation points that blinked rapidly in his personal dungeon detector. The machine was created by a friend and it wasn¡¯t always accurate in that it gave him a lot of false negatives. But it had never given a false positive before. His stomach sank as he opened up the message and swore loudly. "Oh, for the love of demonic little nutsacks, can I catch a break?" His brother looked up. ¡°You¡¯re that upset about not going to a party?¡± ¡°No. I''m even more upset that a level seven unstable dungeon is about to spawn in Hovelton.¡± His brother¡¯s jaw dropped open and the two of them stared at each other for several seconds. "Shit," Luke said.
The wind slapped at her face, as Lexie tried to orient herself to her surroundings and her situation. She was currently flying down the sidewalk of a busy street, slipping through light poles and narrowly avoiding bodies that were running in the opposite direction to a bomb shelter. It was actually an interesting experience. She would be having fun if not for the circumstances. Circumstances being that she wasn''t actually flying. Instead, she was tucked securely underneath an armpit that was covered in a cream, wooly coat that looked kinda like poodle hair, her head facing the street behind him. Who wears a coat like that when it''s so warm out? Lexie wondered and she craned her neck to try to see the man¡¯s face. From what she could tell at this angle, he was a chubby, sweaty mess, with bushy brown hair that broke out in patches over the side and bottom of his chin. His hair was another curly mass around his face, although the hair on top of his head didn¡¯t quite blend into his sideburns that well. It only took a few seconds before she realized that it was a wig. It must have been glued on pretty well, because it was withstanding the wind nicely. But also, why was this sweaty abominable snowman with a bad wig kidnapping her? ¡°Do I know you?¡± she asked him, having to scream over the wind and chaos. He glanced down at her midrun and, once she met his eyes, recognition flashed through her. ¡°Wait, I do.¡± He was the guy who had bumped into her and Aiden that other day, the one who¡¯d run away like he¡¯d seen a ghost. He didn¡¯t respond to her words and he turned the corner at the end of the street, continuing to book it. Lexie had to admit, he was much faster than he looked. He was a little on the shorter, rounder side, so she didn¡¯t expect him to bolt quite as speedily as this. But maybe that was a side effect of his powers, giving him a speed boost. The same powers he¡¯d used to yank her off her feet and have her attached to him as securely as if he were a magnet. Lexie didn''t need long to figure out that he was some kind of criminal or [Villain]. He fit the type and he was technically kidnapping her which seemed like a very [Villain] to do. She also had a good clue as to why he took her. What she hadn''t figured out yet was exactly how his powers worked. Once she could, maybe she could figure out how to make him let go of her. "Lexie!" She glanced in the direction of the voice and got a glimpse of Aiden. He was way behind, but not from lack of effort. In fact, his face was redder than the kidnapper''s, steam coming off him in waves. His arms pumped to drive himself forward, and one of his legs limped a little like he¡¯d pulled a muscle. But he kept going, yelling her name every few steps. His eyes gleamed with desperation, his chest heaved with the exertion and his teeth gritted with pain as he pushed his body much beyond what it could take. He was failing to run faster. He was trying to catch up and hoping beyond hope that he would somehow make it. But he was failing anyway. Even with his effort, the distance between them stretched and stretched. His one leg lagged behind the other, distress was in every step, every cry echoing farther and farther away until she could barely hear him anymore. ¡°Lexie!¡± Her heart clenched for him. She wasn¡¯t necessarily panicked about her current situation, for whatever reason, but she was worried that Aiden would hurt himself by pushing too hard. ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± she yelled back just to put his mind at ease a little. In truth, she wasn¡¯t sure if she was okay or not. Her body still hurt with all the jostling the kidnapper was doing and she wasn¡¯t entirely healed up from the bomb. But she didn''t want Aiden to worry. She kept her eyes on him and tried to tell him she was okay again but she didn''t know if he heard her. Bodies moved between them and she lost sight of her dad. And with that loss, fear pulsed through her veins but she swallowed it down. Now wasn''t the time to be afraid. She had to be level-headed and figure out this mess. She turned her attention back to her captor and mentally opened up her inventory, considering the various cards in there. What would be the best move here? Maybe she should cause a scene and yell that she was being kidnapped? Use for that. But everyone was in panic mode already and she doubted anyone would pay attention to her over the fray. Well, she guessed she had a card that could make him let her go. Keeping it out of view, she secretly materialized the card and she activated it. She didn''t use her new method to save time, but she did try to prevent as much mana waste as possible while pushing more mana into the pathway to speed up the process. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Activation was around fifteen seconds but she didn''t have time to celebrate. She immediately pointed at her captor and felt the magic leave her fingertips. But it didn''t work. It was too difficult to disrupt his pathways as they were guarded. Damn. Thankfully, the cool-off period was only ten seconds after which she tried again, deciding to risk burnout. This time, she pointed at someone in his path coming in the opposite direction. She targeted the man when he was close enough, but not too close, and activated the card. Sixteen seconds. Her timing was off by a second and the man bumped into someone in front of the kidnapper who then lightly brushed against them. The kidnapper barely felt it and continued running as the two strangers tangled on the floor. Sorry, Lexie said silently. She waited another ten seconds and tried again. This time, it worked. A stranger barrelled into the kidnapper, knocking him off-kilter into a wall. Lexie''s head hit the wall and she cried out. ¡°Watch where you¡¯re going!¡± she heard the stranger say. ¡°You watch you¡¯re going, asshole!¡¯ the kidnapper responded. The exchange took three seconds and then he was on his way again. Shoot, it hadn''t been enough. She needed to put more force in. She needed to slow him down even more so Aiden could catch up. Lexie started physically struggling while waiting for the cool-down time to elapse. She reached out to grab poles and staircase railings, and people. Anything she could to slow his progress. This all led him to say in a nasally, high-pitched voice, ¡°Settle down. My beef isn¡¯t with you.¡± ¡°Well, obviously," she replied in a surprisingly steady tone. "I¡¯m a kid. It would be pretty pathetic if your nemesis was a ten-year-old. Let me guess. You have a problem with my dad.¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct. Unfortunately for you, your father owes me a pretty large debt.¡± The distaste shone through when he spoke about Aiden, offering no doubt of his animosity for the other man. ¡°And he¡¯s going to pay up today.¡± ¡°You might be disappointed. We¡¯re kind of poor now.¡± Lexie was pretty sure that Aiden got paid very little each month and all he had to his name was his house and a handful of books and gadgets. How he paid for Everstone Elementary was a wonder because it certainly wasn''t a cheap school. Maybe I''m on a scholarship? Lexie thought. Do I have to keep my grades above a certain point or else I lose my scholarship and have to drop out? Dad had never told me that. Even though she didn''t want to go to school in the first place, the thought of dropping out was almost as shiver-inducing as the kidnapping. The man finally responded to her question with a grunt and a look. ¡°It''s not that kind of debt.¡± ¡°What kind is it?¡± she asked, hoping to keep him talking. Maybe if he spoke enough, she would figure out what he wanted from Aiden. Or maybe talking might slow him down even more. She attempted to grab a pole but her hands slid off it weakly as she asked, ¡°An honor debt?¡± ¡°No,¡± he gritted out. But to her disappointment, he didn''t continue. ¡°There¡¯s so many kinds of debts someone can owe you,¡± she said. ¡°Especially outside of earth. For example, the Fae have something called a body debt. It''s super fascinating. So basically how it works is that if Person A does hard labor for Person B, to the point where Person A suffers grave personal injury from it, they can demand any part of Person B''s body as recompense. So say, one person got into a fight on behalf of their friend and lost a tooth, just like that, then they could ask for the friend''s kidney in return. Or maybe I¡¯m misunderstanding but that¡¯s what I thought it meant. Is that what you want? My dad¡¯s kidney?¡± ¡°Do you ever shut up?¡± "Only when you ask nicely.¡± She¡¯d already activated the card as she spoke and this time she targeted right. A six-foot tall man with a large suitcase right in front of them tripped suddenly and his suitcase flew out of his hand and struck her captor in the face. ¡°Oof!¡± This force was enough to send him toppling to the ground and his hold on Lexie'' slackened. Lexie rolled out of his hands, adrenaline driving her to her feet but her shaky legs were too weak to carry her more than a few steps. Luckily, on the heels of the first activation, she''d also activated which kicked in right after she fell. She immediately got up and dashed back in the direction of her dad, but she kept falling over due to how weak she was. She cleared some distance, and was able to see a hint of the top of Aiden''s head again. But then she fell. And she felt her body being dragged once more like a magnet until she was in the man¡¯s hold again. ¡°What the fuck is with all the clutzes today?¡± he muttered and she glared at him. ¡°Language,¡± she said and he rolled his eyes. ¡°Shut the fuck up, kid. I don''t know why people today don''t know how to walk." ¡°Um...because there''s an emergency? I don¡¯t know if you heard but there was a bomb in the city. People are trying to get to the bomb shelter and you¡¯re going the opposite way.¡± He sighed. ¡°You¡¯re very annoying. You know that?¡± Lexie shrugged unapologetically. ¡°What did you expect? You kidnapped a middle schooler.¡± As he restarted his run, Lexie glanced behind her again. Relief washed through her as she saw Aiden wobbling behind them, but it turned into despair when she saw his limp had worsened. Shit. If he kept going he might dislocate his knee or break something. He seemed to glance behind him too, and swore when he saw Aiden. He picked up speed and then went into an empty alley between two brick buildings, littered with metal garbage cans and the like. The man ran for a long stretch of what seemed to lead to a dead end. It got darker and darker as they went. Lexie was starting to get scared. ¡°Stop!¡± Aiden¡¯s voice echoed behind her. ¡°Mouse, stop.¡± The man froze and then spun around to glare at Aiden. ¡°So you do remember me.¡± ¡°Yeah. Watching you fall over jogged my memory. You''re Mouse, aren¡¯t you?¡± Aiden finally slowed into a walk as he got closer, and it was clear Mouse wasn¡¯t going to run anymore. ¡°You can¡¯t blame me for forgetting. You look different. Bigger.¡± Mouse flushed. ¡°Yeah. Ironic isn¡¯t it? I gained weight in prison. Got taller too.¡± He shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you didn''t remember me. Didn¡¯t remember how you ruined my life.¡± ¡°You ruined your life.¡± Aiden¡¯s chest was still moving like a locomotive as he spoke, trying to catch his breath. ¡°I gave you two chances to turn things around. You chose wrong each time.¡± Mouse¡¯s jaw worked. ¡°I was just trying to feed my family.¡± ¡°By working with a group that destroyed other families.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t get it.¡± Mouse gave a short laugh and shoved his hand roughly through his wig. It still didn''t fall off. ¡°Being a villain...I thought you would understand now. But you still don¡¯t get it. What other option did I have?¡± A slight struggle appeared in Aiden¡¯s expression, and then he sighed. There was almost something like an apology in his gaze, but not quite. ¡°I understand now. Believe me, I do. But at the time, I took an oath to capture evil-doers.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t evil!¡± ¡°We say ''differently-moraled'' now Dad.¡± Lexie''s brain threw that out for whatever reason, maybe because of her concussion or maybe to break the tension or add some levity to the situation. Her statement did neither. Both men ignored her. ¡°My daughter has nothing to do with this," Aiden said to Mouse. "Let her go. And then we¡¯ll settle this, the two of us. I¡¯ll take whatever punishment you think is fitting for my crime.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t get to dictate things anymore, Archmage,¡± Mouse responded coldly and a slightly maniacal smile crossed his lips. Lexie felt a distinct shift in the atmosphere. While at first, it was charged and angry, now it was getting frostier, and deadly. ¡°They told me that you¡¯d lost all your powers. You''re worse than mundane now. And I¡­¡± He opened his one arm wide and said, ¡°I¡¯ve learned more than a few things while being locked up.¡± The rattling and clanking of metal resounded all around the alley. Things began to float up into the air. Medieval-looking weapons¨Cspiked clubs, a mace, wooden and metal shields, flails with a heavy metal ball, a freaking war hammer. Lexie''s heart stopped beating for a second as about a half-dozen painful-looking instruments rose higher and higher circling each other in the air. These aren''t stuff you leave lying around, Lexie thought as she stared up at them. He must have hidden them here ahead of time. Which meant that Aiden had been lured into a trap. He plans to use those on him. As the danger level suddenly elevated, Lexie¡¯s fear spiked through the roof and she began struggling in earnest. But Mouse barely noticed. She felt so powerless. She couldn''t trip him or use the cards for another few seconds, lest she risk burnout. Damn it! ¡°By the way, I go by Magnet now,¡± Mouse continued in a dreadfully casual tone. ¡°For obvious reasons.¡± Aiden regarded the various weapons in the air and then refocused on Mouse. Oddly enough, there was no fear in his eyes. Only a glint of determination. ¡°Let her go,¡± he said, his voice was carefully steady. ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± And then Aiden did the strangest thing. He smiled. ¡°Mouse, you do remember who I am, right?¡± He straightened, his brows shifting lower, his tone a curious mix of friendly and threatening. ¡°Believe me when I tell you that it¡¯s in your best interest to release my daughter this instant.¡± Mouse chuckled. ¡°Oh now, you¡¯re trying to play tough guy? Too late. I already know that you can¡¯t use your powers.¡± ¡°Do you think I lost all my powers?¡± Even with his leg injured, Aiden somehow seemed taller, and more intimidating. Maybe it was the coolness, the calculated look in his eyes, or the sneer that touched his lip. Either way, he no longer looked like the gentle soul she''d always known. With every word, he was starting to look and sound more and more like the [Villain] they called him. ¡°I was an Archmage, Mouse," he said. "The Archmage. You¡¯ve seen what I can do. Do you really think there¡¯s anything in this universe strong enough to contain me?¡± He took another step, the effect nearly ruined by the slight limp he still had. ¡°Do you want to bet your life on that?¡± The good thing was that it gave Mouse pause. Lexie felt him audibly swallow, felt the tension and fear vibrating in his muscles. His hold on her tightened, his expression no longer as sure. And Aiden didn''t stop there. His fingers clenched into fists and the silver at his neck began to glow just a little bit. It wasn¡¯t enough to be really noticeable, just enough to know that he was doing something. But Lexie knew what happened when he used magic and her stomach clenched as she imagined what he was going through. She bit her tongue to keep from telling him to stop, not wanting to ruin his bluff. Aiden''s face didn¡¯t show a hint of the pain that was probably ripping through him as he faced down Mouse. ¡°Let her go, Mouse,¡± he said again. ¡°Walk away.¡± But Mouse might be braver than he seemed because he lifted one hand in the air and sent one of the weapons rushing at Aiden. ¡°Dad!¡± Aiden jumped out of the way at the last second, nearly taking a mace to the head. Mouse laughed uproariously. ¡°Ha. I knew it! I knew you were bluffing.¡± Aiden got to his feet, as the weapon circled him swinging at his head again. He ducked in time and then grabbed the cover of a trash can beside him, using it to shield himself against the mace that attempted to slam into his face. It still managed to knock him back a few feet, making him land on his bad leg. He grunted in pain. ¡°Dad!¡± Panic was flying through Lexie as she fought Mouse like a wild cat, kicking, biting, scratching his face. "Let him go!" ¡°Damn it!¡± Mouse swore and flung her to the ground but that moment of distraction was enough for Aiden to wrench the mace out of the air by its handle. Mouse attempted to take it back but Aiden held on and charged at Mouse, attempting to swing at his head. Mouse jumped back and swore, releasing his magnetic hold of the mace and sending the other weapons after Aiden. One by one, Aiden knocked them away with the mace. A shield got him in the back sending him to his knees but he blocked against the baton that went for his knee. But that distracted him from seeing what looked like a hexagonal torture device that drove one of its spikes into his arm. Aiden bit out a scream as it ripped out of his skin, and Lexie echoed the scream as blood streamed down his arm. The warhammer dove from above, but Aiden leaped out of the way. Another weapon slammed into his back and he fell over, struggling to get back to a kneeling position, as the weapons waited to knock him down again. Mouse laughed. ¡°Now I see why people do this shit. It is very fun picking on the little guy.¡± He used both hands to make the weapons dance around Aiden, attacking him one by one, his eyes sparking with vindictive humor. ¡°I bet you never thought you would be the little guy, Aiden Sparrowfoot. You never thought you would be on your knees, at the mercy of a two-bit thief named Mouse.¡± ¡°Dad!¡± Lexie stood shakily to her feet and was about to attack Mouse again when she noticed something. Aiden¡¯s silver was glowing even brighter. So bright that she could see the skin around it reddening. Aiden was pushing more energy into it, his veins popping in his temple, his eyes nearly glowing with menace. He¡¯s doing something. Lexie¡¯s breath caught. He¡¯s trying to break the Tilling bands. Can he? He was certainly trying but struggling at the same time. From what she¡¯d read about the bands, Lexie thought it would be damn near impossible to break or unpower them. The hero association weren¡¯t idiots. They wouldn¡¯t let Aiden go free into the world unless they were absolutely certain those things could restrict his powers. And unfortunately, they probably knew enough about his capacity to know how to hold him back. Or did they? And then she noticed something in the air. Almost like a fireball leaping off one of the building roofs. But as it descended she saw it wasn¡¯t a fireball. It was a young man, in a red spandex suit with boots, descending from the sky on a cloud of fire. As he landed on the floor, facing Mouse, recognition struck her at the sight of a familiar redheaded hero. Theo Firebringer. He looked a little different from what she¡¯d seen on the NET. There were visible signs of weariness drawn on his face, heavy eye bags under his eyes, and his curly hair was not as lustrous. But it was undoubtedly him. He faced Mouse with a grim expression. ¡°I thought I smelled a rat,¡± he said. 33 - A Battle of Flames and Steel Mouse didn''t seem to know what to do about the newcomer. He clearly didn''t like the fact that Theo was there, but he didn¡¯t attack him outright, his weapons still swirling around the kneeling Aiden. ¡°This has nothing to do with you [Hero],¡± Mouse finally said. ¡°This is just two [Villains] settling a score.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Theo stepped off his cloud of fire and the flame extinguished instantly. Despite the heart-pounding tension of the moment, Lexie distantly wondered how that worked. Obviously, she¡¯d seen fire powers in movies and stuff before, but fire-flight always seemed to her like one of the more far-fetched uses. Theoretically, she guessed it could work in the same way as a jet or a rocket, but wouldn''t generating that much fire-force at once cause the human to burn alive or explode? Unless, somehow, having fire powers also made them impervious to the effects of fire. Lexie wasn¡¯t sure. Physics had never been her favorite subject. "You should leave," Mouse said to Theo, trying to sound as threatening as his high-pitched voice could manage. ¡°See I would do that, except for the fact that I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯re somehow involved with that bomb that went off today.¡± Theo Firebringer cocked his head as he stared down at Mouse. His voice had a dragging, bored cadence as though he were just having a dull conversation rather than confronting a villainous human magnet. ¡°You¡¯re that rat man, right? The one that¡¯s working with the GLITCH gang?¡± Mouse¡¯s jaw twitched. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°Of course not. It¡¯s only a coincidence that you happened to be in Alpeco around where we found the first bomb, and now you¡¯re here right as another bomb goes off.¡± Theo sighed. His eyes shrewdly took in the entire situation even as he put on the aura of a vaguely irritated teenager. ¡°Just admit it and give up, okay, so we can all move on with our lives. Why don¡¯t you [Villains] ever wanna do things the easy way? Why you gotta make everything such a drag?¡± Rather than respond, Mouse let out an expletive and immediately sent all his weapons from Aiden to Theo Firebringer. Theo immediately blocked the attack with a shield of fire that burned the wooden bat to ashes, allowing the embedded metal shards to clang to the floor. So cool, Lexie thought. Meanwhile, her dad was moving, with his mace, running towards Mouse. Lexie could tell that his stunt with the tilling bands had drained him somewhat as it took a lot of effort for him to move that fast, and it still wasn¡¯t enough. Mouse immediately pulled some of his weapons from Theo, including a metal spike, and then repelled them at Lexie''s dad. Aiden paused and deftly avoided the spike, knocking the rest away with his mace. With only three weapons surrounding him, it was easier for him to defend himself. Also because Mouse had focused most of his attention on trying to get the rest of his weapons to break through Theo¡¯s fire shield. He snarled with the effort while Theo appeared unphased. Mouse was directing so much of his energy to Theo that Lexie was pretty sure he¡¯d dropped her from his magnetic field. She no longer felt that slight tug of attraction that had remained even after Mouse had knocked her out of the way. With his attention on Theo, this would be a perfect time for her and her dad to get away. Lexie considered using her card right now, but it would be pointless since Mouse didn''t seem to be threatening her at this point. He was focused on Theo and Aiden and even if she disappeared he would still attack Aiden. She had to get the card to her dad. She stood. She needed to get close enough to do an inventory transfer, but she nearly jumped out of her skin as Theo''s fire shield blazed with a force that sent the war hammer flying back. Mouse ducked as it smashed into the wall behind him, splitting a hole in the brick. Lexie swallowed, and then she began hobbling towards her father, but Mouse must have seen her because the magnetic field snapped back in place and she couldn¡¯t move. Damn it. How on earth was he doing that? Also how come he wasn¡¯t doing it to the other two? Lexie struggled to move forward but the force held her back. It wasn''t pulling her to Mouse though, either because he wanted her to stand there at this awkward distance or because he couldn''t pull her back. It was probably the latter, given how much effort he was expending on Aiden and Theo. Perhaps if she was stronger, or all healed up, she could break out of it. But as it was, she had suboptimal physical strength and just standing was already an effort. And she didn''t have any cards to boost her strength either. All she had were stupid cards that wouldn''t help her at that moment. She couldn¡¯t get to Aiden. She felt so useless. No time for catastrophizing and self-loathing, she scolded herself. Time to think. There has to be something you can do. Lexie swallowed down her feeling of despair and pulled open her card inventory trying her hardest to ignore the sounds of a fight ensuing in the background. She searched for anything that could help her, trying to think creatively and quickly. Her eyes fell on but that could go either way. Maybe a speed boost would help her to escape Mouse''s magnetic pull, but then again the card made her lighter, which might make it easier for Mouse to hold onto her. She scrapped it and thought about trying the card on him again, but if it hadn''t worked the first time, it probably wouldn''t work now. For the same reason, she scrapped other effect cards like , and . She couldn¡¯t use yet because she didn¡¯t have a contract with an approved creature. was a stupid card just generally and she was too far away for to do any good. Nothing else seemed like a good fit, and Lexie was frantic, trying to scour for anything that would work. The sound of her father''s cry had her whipping her head around, refocusing on the battle. Her father was ducking and knocking away the metal club with his mace, but she was starting to see his exhaustion. The silver at his neck continued to glow and she didn¡¯t know if it was because he was attempting to use magic or because he was exerting himself too much physically. Aiden¡¯s hands shook as he clenched his weapon tightly, snarling as he sent the metal bat flying again, but it soon ricocheted back his way. Meanwhile, Theo was flying around avoiding his metallic assailants, seemingly trying to get a clean shot at Mouse. Lexie felt that the [Hero] was being too conservative in his approach. He seemed to be trying to get close to Mouse rather than blasting him with his fire powers. She knew Theo could probably incinerate Mouse on the spot, or just send his shield of fire Mouse''s way and it would burn him. So why wasn¡¯t he doing it? Why was he messing around while her dad got hurt? ¡°Argh!¡± Lexie¡¯s head swung back to find that the bat had slammed into her dad¡¯s shoulder but he managed to duck to avoid another hit to the head. ¡°Dad!¡± she yelled, but he didn¡¯t glance toward her, which was probably a good thing because he had to throw himself to the side, just as Mouse sent the war hammer his way. But after the hammer circled, Aiden didn¡¯t let it leave. He dropped the mace onto it, even as it yanked higher in the air, pulling his shoulder out of his socket. Lexie winced at the sickening sound. But Aiden refused to let go. He grabbed it with his other hand, grimacing as he finally pulled it closer to him. He held on and eventually, Mouse decided to just let the Warhammer go, regaining control of the mace instead. Lexie had never been this afraid for anyone in her life. It was strange because she wasn''t feeling personally threatened now. In fact, throughout this whole encounter even with her kidnapping, she''d never felt personally in danger. Even when she''d been hit by the bomb blast, she¡¯d felt pain but not really fear. Maybe she was still having trouble seeing this as anything but a video game. Or maybe after surviving death once, she was finding it hard to accept her own mortality. But seeing Aiden hurt, seeing him in trouble, knocked her back to reality. She might not care as much if she died in this world, but she couldn''t let him die. Not on her watch. I need an opening. Mouse¡¯s head swung between his two opponents and his hands hung in the air as though coordinating a particularly contentious orchestra. Sweat dripped from the forehead as he worked. This was taking a lot out of him too. And then Theo suddenly executed a flip over the metal weapons and found himself starkly right in front of Mouse. He swung at him. Mouse squeaked and backed away, bringing his shield forward to intercept Theo¡¯s blow. At the last minute, right before his fist met steel, Theo''s hand turned into a ball of fire that knocked both the shield and Mouse into the brick wall. Mouse cried out but landed on his feet. But the weapons around Aiden crashed to the floor and his hold on Lexie vanished. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Lexie didn¡¯t hesitate then. She ran for Aiden and requested the inventory exchange. Aiden¡¯s eyes widened as he accepted it and she transferred the card to him. Meanwhile, they both heard Theo say, ¡°Surrender, Rat. And tell me everything you know about the mana bomb.¡± Ah. So maybe that¡¯s why he didn''t burn him. Because he needed him alive to fess up. ¡°Lexie,¡± Aiden said and Lexie turned her attention back to her father. His body was jerky and his breath shuddered out of his mouth. He gave her a grave look. ¡°Run away. Now." Somehow, Lexie knew he would say that. She shook her head stubbornly. ¡°Not without you. Activate the card.¡± But he hesitated and she knew why. He wanted her to use the card to get away. But he needs the card more than I do. Meanwhile, the fight between Mouse and Theo had taken a turn. As Theo tried to speak to Mouse, the latter suddenly struck out his hand and gripped the air next to the wall tugging. One of the rusted pipes that lined the outside of the brick home suddenly burst, and a gust of water sprayed out, ¡°Shit.¡± Theo tried to jump out of the way, but he wasn''t fast enough. He got doused and his flames turned off. Mouse cackled maniacally as he put a hand in the air, recalling all his weapons to attack Theo. Theo shook the wetness off his hair like he was in a hair commercial, and then narrowly avoided getting him in the face with a spiked club. Another aimed for his leg and another for his side, but he expertly avoided both with the ease of sophisticated martial artistry that reminded Lexie of old Kung-fu movies. "Lexie," Aiden said again, his eyes fixed on the battle. "You should run now." Lexie was about to say no again, but then she thought about it. Maybe she should run. But not in the way her father expected. "At my signal activate the card," she told him. Aiden''s eyebrows furrowed. "What? Lexie I said¨C" But she was no longer listening. She was running away from him, needing to put as much distance between them as possible. While she ran, she activated . It took her about twenty seconds and it was done by the time she got out of Mouse''s peripheral vision so that he would have to turn his head to see her. ¡°Mouse!¡± Lexie yelled. ¡°I have a question!¡± His head swung to her for a split second, attracted and confused by the volume. ¡°The toupe. Is it magnetic, or glued?¡± His face had only a second to register confusion and anger, as Aiden quickly activated the card. By the time Mouse turned back to him, his face furrowed in confusion. ¡°Where the fuck did he go?¡± he wondered for a second. Of course, Mouse couldn''t afford to stay confused for long. Because Theo had managed to jump on the floating shield, and bounced off to hook his elbow on a high balcony railing. He perched his feet on the wall like Spiderman as he sent a light flame toward Mouse''s feet. Mouse jumped back and refocused all his attention on Theo, arranging half his weapons around his own body like shields while sending the rest at Theo. Theo danced, twisted, and volleyed them back to Mouse, all the while shooting jets of fire from each limb at Mouse¡¯s feet. Theo was going for the distraction angle as he could see Aiden reaching Mouse in record time. Aiden leaped and attacked from behind, swinging the hammer back as far as it could go and then slamming it into Mouse¡¯s head. The crack resounded through the atmosphere. Lexie winced again. Without a single cry, Mouse plunged to the ground. So did all his weapons. Through the cacophonous clatter, Mouse groaned from his position on the floor. Aiden held out the hammer threateningly to him. Blood was streaked on the hammer, on his forehead, and on his arm. The other arm was still shifted out of its socket. But anger rather than pain was etched into every line of his face. ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± he said in a voice like steel. ¡°Ever touch my daughter.¡± The tension was still high in the air, but Lexie sagged now that the immediate danger was neutralized. Aiden finally turned to her. The anger fled and relief took its place as he hurried to her. Lexie felt dizzy right before he reached her. She was about to collapse when his good arm wrapped around her, dragging her in for a tight, trembling hug. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Aiden asked, even though his voice shook. ¡°Did he do anything to you?¡± Lexie shook her head. ¡°No. I¡¯m just tired from the bomb.¡± Lexie wished she hadn''t mentioned it, because Aiden''s expression grew even more agitated as he pulled back. ¡°I¡¯m fine now.¡± She hurried to add. ¡°I only got caught in the blast because I was napping by the window and didn''t hear the evacuation message. My desk and I got thrown across the room¨C¡± Lexie had a singular electric thought, an occurrence like a lightbulb going off in her head, or lightning singing her mind. ¡°Huh,¡± she said. ¡°What?¡± her father inquired, sounding even more alarmed. She shook her head. ¡°Nothing. Just remembered something someone told me. Anyway, I¡¯m fine now. Just tired.¡± As Aiden¡¯s shrewd eyes took her in, he finally nodded, his shoulders relaxing a little. Speaking of shoulders¡­ ¡°You should probably get your arm looked at,¡± Lexie mentioned. ¡°It looks¡­wrong.¡± ¡°I called a healer already,¡± Theo said from behind, still standing over Mouse. He was staring down at the man crumpled on the floor with a foot on his back as he spoke. ¡°Although it might be a while. The city is in chaos.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need a healer,¡± Aiden called back and Lexie wondered if it was her imagination or if Aiden sounded a little terser than normal. Then again, he was probably in a lot of pain so it was to be expected. ¡°We¡¯ll go back to Hovelton and Emma will set it right back.¡± ¡°The train lines might be closed off due to the bomb. Your best bet is to get a medic at one of the bomb shelters.¡± ¡°Fine. Then we¡¯ll do that.¡± He squatted and picked Lexie up with his good arm, carrying her. ¡°You don¡¯t have to carry me¨C¡± she started but then she felt it, that slight pull that warned her that it wasn¡¯t over. Before she could so much as shout a warning, Mouse disappeared from under Theo''s feet, only to reappear on the other end of the wall and Lexie immediately swung into his arms. ¡°What the hell?¡± Theo¡¯s voice showed his shock. Lexie didn''t blame him. She didn¡¯t know what just happened either. ¡°Lexie!¡± Aiden called out but Mouse held out his hand. ¡°One move and I¡¯ll end her,¡± he said. Lexie felt her heart beat a warning. Was this it? Was she about to die? Sure, she¡¯d just said she had no problem facing her mortality but she didn¡¯t expect to be tested on it so soon. Both Aiden and Theo were also frozen in horror. Theo recovered first and said, ¡°Let her go, man. Or else.¡± ¡°Please. Your threat means less than nothing. I know your Hero Code means that you can¡¯t kill me without consequence. And you¡¯re a Firebringer which means you actually care about keeping your squeaky-clean reputation.¡± Lexie felt Mouse nudge his chin at Aiden. ¡°But you can kill him though.¡± Lexie had been somewhat calm under the threat of her own demise. But Mouse''s request for Theo to kill Aiden made panic skitter through her mind. Taking short, deep breaths, she opened her inventory, grabbing a card, praying it worked this time. ¡°What?¡± Theo¡¯s face twisted in confusion. ¡°Kill him and I¡¯ll let the girl go and tell you whatever you want to know about the mana bomb," he said. ¡°I know who you are, Theo Firebringer. I know how you must hate him for what he''s done to your family. So this would be the perfect opportunity. No one is here. No one will see you. You can finally execute the vengeance you must have wanted all this time.¡± Theo simply blinked at Mouse in shock. ¡°You¡¯re an insane creep, Rat.¡± ¡°His name is Mouse actually,¡± Lexie said. ¡°It¡¯s Magnet!¡± came the voice from behind, irritated. ¡°Magnet, let my daughter go and you can kill me yourself,¡± Aiden said. "Wouldn''t that feel much better?" ¡°No." Mouse shook his head like a petulant child. "Now, I want him to do it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not going to happen,¡± Theo said. ¡°But what is going to happen is that if you don¡¯t let her go, I¡¯m going to kill you, in an excruciating way.¡± ¡°Right,¡± Mouse laughed. ¡°No, I¡¯m serious,¡± Theo said, conviction ringing in his tone as he cracked his knuckles. Lexie noted several slim golden rings glittering on each finger. He then casually crossed his arms. ¡°If you don¡¯t let her go, I¡¯ll happily kill you and deal with the consequences.¡± ¡°How are you going to kill me without hurting her?¡± ¡°Easy,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m going to boil you from the inside out.¡± That statement seemed to shock Mouse into a temporary silence. Meanwhile, Lexie had already activated the card, pushing everything she had into it, praying it would work. She closed her eyes and focused on watching the pathway, plugging the holes, pushing every single shred of mana she could afford. Meanwhile, Mouse continued to talk. ¡°I¡¯m wearing a bomb under this coat,¡± Mouse said. ¡°If you don''t do what I said, how about I just blow all of us up?¡± She saw the second the external pathway opened and she pushed her awareness outward to try to get a feel of Mouse''s pathways. She was touching him so it was easier. She felt it, got a taste of the fizzing mania under his skin and she tried her best to push the mana in that direction, to twist his hands, praying this worked. She wasn¡¯t sure if it was the card¡¯s effect or her imagination, but she felt his hold slacken just a little bit and she drove her head into his nose. He finally freed her with a snarl. ¡°Ugh! You brat!¡± Lexie dropped to the ground, and she heard her father shout out ¡°No!¡±. But she didn¡¯t stop moving, crawling across the space to try to get to safety, knowing in her heart that it was probably too late and the bomb had already been set off and she would undoubtedly be caught in its blast again. Lexie had a single thought about what dying would feel like for the second time around. She thought about whether she would go home, whether the ISTS would simply take her to another dimension or another planet. Or whether it would truly be ¡®game over¡¯ this time. And with that, Lexie finally confronted the truth that she may not want any of those options. She found that she didn''t want to go home right now, not really. She didn¡¯t want to leave Aiden, not with his eyes staring so desperately at her, not with the devastated broken gaze, not with him already having lost his wife. If Lexie died, it would break him. In her old life, she didn¡¯t think anyone, except Logan and maybe Mickie, cared about her that much. And maybe they had even moved on already. But Aiden hadn''t and he probably would never move on from her death. She was all he had left. She couldn''t do that to him. She cared about him too much. She didn¡¯t want to leave him, not like this. She felt the heat explode behind her as she collapsed halfway across the field. She knew it was inevitable. She''d already heard the click, felt the boom of the blast, and expected the fire to engulf her any second now. Except, the fire never came. Seconds ticked by and nothing happened. She finally continued crawling and once she''d ventured far enough away, she risked a look behind her. What she saw made no sense at first. It was such a bizarre thing, that she had to concentrate to make her brain piece together what was happening. Mouse was¡­in the process of exploding. His jacket was thrown open revealing the bomb strapped to his chest and it had gone off. Some of the fire had already torn through his skin and split his face into two, his eyes were ablaze with madness, his mouth wide open in a shout of victory that quickly turned into choked screams of torture and despair when he realized what was happening. The explosion wasn¡¯t reaching completion. Instead, it was held in that moment of stasis by Theo, who had a hand extended toward Mouse, sweating as he held it there. "Get out of here," he said to Lexie and her dad, his voice slightly strained. ¡°I can¡¯t hold it forever.¡± Aiden didn''t need to be asked twice. While Lexie was still stunned by the sight of Mouse exploding in limbo, he rushed forward, picked her up, and ran toward the entrance of the alley without another word. The path seemed to stretch on forever, the sunlight at the other end seeming farther away the closer they got to it. And then, they finally broke out and turned the corner just as the flames finally erupted, engulfing everything in its path. 34 - Flame Eater Aiden jumped out of the way and shielded Lexie with his body as the alleyway behind them burst into flames. Lexie¡¯s mouth dropped in horror. The entire alleyway entrance was engulfed in fire, licking at the brick rising higher and higher. Luckily, the street was empty and Aiden had jumped out in time, but there was no way anyone in that alley escaped unscathed. Did the [Hero] just die? Before she could ask or worry for too long, Theo emerged from the flames of the alleyway onto the empty street, clothes, and body completely unscathed. He glanced at them. "Are you guys alright?" Lexie nodded. ¡°Yeah. That was¡­¡± ¡°Yeah sorry you had to see that. That was¡­intense.¡± Lexie was actually going to say that it was cool how he was able to stop a blast and freeze it in time, but one look at Theo¡¯s face dissuaded her from mentioning it. The [Hero] didn''t seem to like the way things had gone. ¡°Is he¡­¡± Aiden asked and Theo nodded. The [Hero] looked even more weary than before. She wondered if he felt guilty about how Mouse had died or maybe guilty that they¡¯d witnessed it. Either way, she didn''t think he should feel bad, because Mouse had brought it on himself. Literally. Nevertheless, Lexie had to imagine it was tough on the [Hero] to watch a man die, no matter the circumstances. ¡°Are you going to¡­.swallow it?¡± Lexie asked, gesturing to the fire. Theo''s eyebrows raised and he turned back to the flames. ¡°I guess I should huh¡­¡± And then just like he''d done in the video, Theo cupped a fist in his mouth and inhaled deeply. The flames immediately typhooned into his mouth, whirring as they whirled, until there was nothing left. Theo had literally eaten the flames and he spat out a small silver orb. ¡°So cool,¡± Lexie finally gaped and he offered her a small grin as he tucked the orb away. The smile slipped off his face as he examined Lexie closely. ¡°Are you okay?¡± he asked. She nodded. ¡°I think so.¡± Oddly enough, Lexie wasn''t all that affected by Mouse''s death. Maybe later she would think about it, and be haunted by the image of him burning alive. Right now, she was just glad Aiden was safe. And Theo too. The [Hero] had been nice enough to help them out and she would have felt terrible if he¡¯d died saving them. The situation was resolved as well as could be expected, even if Mouse was dead now. Am I a psychopath? she wondered briefly. She should probably feel something that someone had died right? Even if they were a bad person? But she didn''t. Maybe because Mouse had sounded like a spiteful person, and tried to justify what he was doing to Aiden. And Lexie didn¡¯t know the story between them so maybe he did have a point. But she found it hard to believe that Aiden had done anything bad enough to justify being beaten to death. Lexie was so deep in her thoughts that it took her a while to realize that an awkward silence had descended between the two men who were carefully assessing each other. The vibe was...off. It wasn¡¯t contentious necessarily, despite what Mouse said about Theo supposedly hating Aiden. The best way she could describe it was uncertain, tentative and so painfully awkward. Theo finally tore his eyes away from Aiden, choosing Lexie as the easier one to address. ¡°Sorry about that explosion by the way,¡± he said. ¡°I mean the one at your school. I heard you mention to your dad that you got caught in it and that was kind of our fault.¡± Lexie cocked her head. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Well,¡± he scratched the side of his face, grimacing. ¡°We found a bomb near your school, right as it was about to go off, and we were able to freeze it. But then almost immediately, we received word of an even more threatening bomb and we didn¡¯t have time to disable the first one. So we had to find a way to contain the blast, and the only thing that could in that area was your school walls.¡± He cringed at hearing himself say it and the apology in his face intensified. ¡°I¡¯m not going to say it was a great call, but it was all we had. And I¡¯m sorry. We calculated the risk and no one was supposed to get seriously injured. It was our fault that you got hurt and I don¡¯t have words to express the regret I feel for the situation¡­¡± Lexie watched him as he struggled to find more to say, remembering what Mouse had said about the Firebringers and keeping a squeaky-clean image. Maybe she might not have trusted these words if they were coming from Luther Firebringer. But Lexie didn¡¯t think Theo was just saying it for the PR. He did look genuinely distraught about what happened, running his hands through his hair roughly. And hearing his side of the story, she couldn¡¯t blame him for the choice he¡¯d made. She would have probably done the same. ¡°It''s fine,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Is that why you came after us?¡± Theo shook his head. ¡°When I got to the school, the security guard said he saw you get snatched by some guy. So I flew up and searched.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Lexie nodded. And then she asked the question that lingered on her mind. ¡°Were you really going to boil Mouse from the inside out?¡± Lexie was partially fascinated and partially disgusted at the possibility. Theo gave another of his crooked smiles. ¡°Nah. I was bluffing. But he didn¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie felt a little deflated. ¡°But could you? I mean hypothetically?¡± ¡°I guess.¡± He scratched his chin more in a thoughtful manner. ¡°It would take crazy mana control though. Fire is by definition, an explosive large-scale ability. It¡¯s easier to amplify a blast than to contain it. So something like that would be incredibly difficult.¡± ¡°But not impossible.¡± He gave her a bemused look. ¡°No. Not impossible.¡± ¡°How would that work? Would you disrupt his pathways and heat them up or would you just target the atmosphere surrounding him? I guess the latter would be easier but the former would be more dangerous because he couldn''t get away from the effect even if he tried. I mean that would be the ultimate threat right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s too many morbid questions, Lexie.¡± Her father interrupted. ¡°We need to get going to the bomb shelter.¡± "Wait." She hadn¡¯t even gotten to ask how the fire flight thing worked! "There''s no bomb anymore, is there?" Theo shook his head. "I don''t think so. I think my team and I already caught most of it. But you should still go, to get checked out by a medic.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m fine. It¡¯s probably going to be crowded and there might be people more hurt than me. I think I might be all healed up. You can do a wellness scan if you want.¡± Theo nodded and did just that. And then Aiden did one too, before they could be satisfied that she was okay. "So there''s no reason why we can''t stay and talk," Lexie wanted to ask a bunch more questions, like about the fire-swallowing thing. Theo seemed to sympathize with her father because he grinned. "Your dad''s still right though. You two should get to the bomb shelter, or go somewhere safe to wait it out until the train lines open. But how about I escort you? Make sure you don¡¯t get taken again, since the two of you might be a target.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that will happen.¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°Mouse and I¡­it was a personal vendetta. Besides, you have bigger things to worry about. If there¡¯s a mana bomb, then you need to disable it.¡± ¡°They''ve already done that,¡± Theo responded. ¡°I got the message while I was containing the blast. The mana bomb was found and disabled in time. They¡¯re regaining control of the situation and they caught six members of the GLITCH gang. The city officials and local enforcement are getting things back to normal." ¡°Oh great.¡± Aiden looked to the still deserted streets, a few cars abandoned at the side. "So the trains should be open again?" "Soon," Theo said. "It might take them a while though." ¡°What¡¯s the GLITCH gang?¡± Lexie asked, bringing Theo''s attention back to her. ¡°Terrorist organization,¡± Theo said. ¡°Seems like your mouse friend was a member.¡± Aiden frowned. ¡°Since when?¡± Theo shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m guessing very recently.¡± Aiden mulled over that for a few seconds. ¡°I suppose it makes sense. He used to work for a small gang of petty thieves and provide information to the Krawlin, a group of trained rogue assassins for hire. So I guess GLITCH isn¡¯t too far off. Although it¡¯s a bit more high profile than anything he''s done prior.¡± ¡°You seem to know a lot about him,¡± Theo said. ¡°Do you know how he got on their radar? I know they¡¯re selective with their recruits.¡± ¡°No. I don''t know how he got those new powers of his either. Back in the day, he had a minor magnetic ability that he used to slip wallets out of pockets and steal jewelry. Nothing to suggest that he could snatch a whole person through the air or sustain multiple magnetic connections with different weapons. Not to mention the fact that he could now execute what is essentially close-range magnetic teleportation which is a whole other crazy ability.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Theo responded. ¡°I tangled with him once in Alpeco but I probably underestimated him then. I thought he was just a petty thief and so I let him get away and faced the other targets. The teleportation thing was new to me.¡± ¡°Is that why you didn¡¯t scorch him in the beginning?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Because you underestimated him?¡± Theo offered her a tiny smile. ¡°No. It¡¯s just that we¡¯re not supposed to kill citizens, even [Villains], or harm them beyond a certain necessary limit. If not, we get in trouble and¡­.it¡¯s a whole lot of paperwork.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Lexie frowned. That went against her initial impression of [Heroes], the one that she got from Xena and Max. She¡¯d thought they could pretty much do whatever they wanted in the name of the law but Theo spoke of being controlled and restricted, even when it would have been justified to use deadly force. So where was the disconnect? Was being rule-abiding a widespread sentiment amongst the [Heroes] or was it just Theo''s personal code? Lexie had a feeling that it was more of the latter. Maybe, rather than being bothered by paperwork, Theo had a moral opposition to causing harm, especially to those less powerful than him. It was admirable that he felt that way. But also Lexie thought it was a little foolish. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. His restraint could have gotten them killed and while he was busy trying to be the good guy, Mouse had no such qualms about killing him. Lexie always thought it was ridiculous that Batman never killed the Joker no matter how much chaos and destruction and death the latter caused. All because of his moral code. This situation reminded Lexie very much of that. She would never have been Batman. Maybe that''s why the system gave me cards instead of fire, she thought in amusement. If I had Theo''s powers, I would have probably just blasted Mouse and been done with it. ¡°That¡¯s pretty noble of you," Lexie said. "I¡¯m not sure I would have been able to stop myself from torching the guy if it was me.¡± Theo smirked. ¡°You say that now, but you never know until you¡¯re the one who has to make the choice.¡± Lexie thought about it and figured he was probably right. She was still applying video game logic, operating solely on wins and losses. But that wasn¡¯t how the real world worked. Mouse¡¯s death probably wasn¡¯t a win for Theo. It was just one more life on his conscience. And while she¡¯d been frustrated with Theo''s restraint during the fight at times, she could understand it. With great power came great responsibility and all that. Also, while it looked like nothing, given Theo''s description of his powers, it probably had taken far more strength and control to send those little blasts at Mouse¡¯s feet instead of just hauling fireballs at the man. ¡°Yeah.¡± Theo continued. ¡°Typically we¡¯re able to capture most [Villains] alive due to lots of planning and preparation before missions. In the last few years especially, [Hero] work has become more preventative than reactive and our technomancers and our arithmancer, Lucy Frank, help to predict the big moves before the villains act. So much of our job now is preventing disaster before it strikes.¡± A wry smile twisted his lips. ¡°Ironically, that then makes it seem like we don¡¯t do shit half the time because preventing crime is an invisible, thankless act. And we only end up in the news when something goes wrong, after which our screw-up is all people care about.¡± Ah. Lexie felt herself blush when remembering how many times she''d silently agreed with Xena bad-mouthing the [Heroes]. She should have known it was more complicated than she believed. "Not that it''s your problem." Theo paused and rolled his eyes. He ran his hands through his hair again and began muttering to himself. ¡°And it''s certainly not stuff I should be ranting about to an eight-year-old. Especially while swearing.¡± ¡°I''m ten,¡± Lexie said. His eyes showed surprise. ¡°For real?¡± ¡°For real. And I know way worse words than ¡®shit¡¯.¡± For example, she knew the very bad word that her Uncle Max had called his uncle Luther just a few months ago. ¡°Anyway, thanks for saving us. I¡¯ll admit I didn¡¯t have the best impression of [Heroes] before now but¡­you¡¯re pretty cool. Even cooler than the Video Alley comment sections say you are. And for what it¡¯s worth I think you¡¯re doing a great job.¡± Theo seemed surprised at first, and then he gave her a bright smile that transformed his face from tired and haggard back into handsome and young. ¡°Thanks." He sounded a little hoarse. "It means a lot to hear someone say that.¡± Lexie smiled back. He held up his hand for a fist bump and then she fist-bumped it right back. ¡°We have to go,¡± Aiden said again, softer this time, more drained. ¡°Lexie needs rest.¡± ¡°Oh, sure.¡± Theo was once more uncertain as he stared at Aiden. Rings on his fingers gleamed as he rubbed his palms over the front of his spandex. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll see you around.¡± Aiden smiled a little sadly. ¡°Take care of yourself, Theo. Really.¡± Theo still had that conflicted expression, like he wanted to say more as they turned away. But Aiden didn''t stop to give him a chance. He just kept moving. When they¡¯d walked about a mile, Lexie finally broached the subject, unable to let it linger anymore. ¡°You know the Firebringers pretty well, huh?¡± Aiden was silent at first. Even though his expression was flat, she could sense the unease rippling underneath the surface. He was quiet for so long that Lexie wasn''t sure he would answer. And then finally, he offered her a bombshell. ¡°Your mother was best friends with Stella Firebringer.¡± Lexie¡¯s eyes widened. That was not at all what she was expecting. ¡°Shut up. Really?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± He nodded. ¡°But they had a falling out shortly before her death¡± ¡°Falling out? Why?¡± "That¡¯s another story for when you¡¯re older.¡± Lexie grumbled, ¡°Why do you always hoard all the good stories for when I¡¯m older?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s hard to explain complex adult relationships to a child. Even a precocious one like you.¡± I¡¯m not a kid though, she thought. I¡¯m practically an adult. But he doesn¡¯t know that. She sighed and then was about to ask a follow-up question about Theo when her father blurted out, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± She was still thinking about Theo Firebringer''s rings and the words took her aback. ¡°Sorry for what?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t save you today,¡± he said hoarsely. ¡°If not for Theo, Mouse might have hurt you or worse.¡± ¡°Oh." The reminder of their near-fatal predicament sobered her up. "That¡¯s okay. I couldn''t do much to save you either.¡± ¡°Lexie, that¡¯s not¡­it wasn¡¯t okay at all.¡± His voice cracked as he stared grimly over her shoulder, as though he couldn''t meet her eyes. "I¡¯ve never felt so powerless in my life. And I¡­I¡­¡± He looked a little like he was on the verge of tears, and Lexie felt her throat get thick too. Emotion washed over her, as did memories of watching Aiden desperately chase after her. And then watching him get thrashed by Mouse and feeling helpless to do anything. Lexie swallowed. If not for Theo, everything could have gone horribly wrong. Aiden could be dead. ¡°Don¡¯t cry, Dad," she told him, her voice already tight and watery. ¡°Because if you cry then I¡¯m going to cry and then we¡¯ll both be a mess.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t cry,¡± Aidne assured her, even though his eyes had a suspicious sheen. He cleared his throat and swallowed several times to be able to control himself. "But I do have to do something. I have to change. I can¡¯t let anything like this happen ever again¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Determination set in his features. ¡°From now on, I¡¯m going to get stronger. So strong that nothing and no one will ever touch you again.¡± He finally met her eyes, and whispered the words fiercely, as though more to himself than Lexie. ¡°Your dad will protect you, Lexie. I swear it.¡± Lexie stared into his determined eyes for a few seconds. Her own emotion boiled over and she threw her arms around his neck to hug him, burying her face in his shoulder. He held her tight and she closed her eyes, inhaling him. She was thankful that he was alive and that, if she had to be trapped in this world, it was with a father like him. It was when she opened her eyes again that she saw it. It wasn¡¯t clear from the angle and perhaps it was only a trick of light. Perhaps it was just the tears that made her see something that wasn¡¯t there. But whatever the cause was, Lexie thought she saw an anomaly on her father¡¯s smooth silver neckbands. A small, nearly imperceptible crack slivered down the center.
Lexie and Aiden never made it to the bomb shelters because two things happened back-to-back. First, the system alerted them that the train routes were open so they could head back to Hovelton. The second thing was that Max called to let Aiden know that another unstable dungeon was spawning in Hovelton. ¡°He needs my help,¡± Aiden told Lexie on the way to the station and she frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re in the position to be helping anyone right now.¡± She stared pointedly at his arm. The bleeding had stopped, and Aiden claimed it was already healing but the arm was still out of its socket. He smiled. ¡°This is nothing. I¡¯ve had worse in my hero days. Emma will just pop it right in place and I¡¯ll be right as rain.¡± ¡°Still,¡± Lexie said, although she didn¡¯t want to argue with him. She was tired from all the stress and just wanted to go home with her dad to some peace and normalcy. She hadn¡¯t even absorbed or dealt with the events of the day from being blasted and the last thing she wanted was to worry about Aiden in danger yet again. ¡°Max is meeting us at the train station in Hovelton," Aiden said. He saw her disapproving expression and smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. I promise. Max and I will just get rid of the dungeon like last time and it probably won''t even take ten minutes.¡± ¡°The last time took way more than ten minutes and you almost died because of a ghoul.¡± ¡°That was an¡­unusual extenuating circumstance." "Isn''t every unstable dungeon an unusual extenuating circumstance?" Aiden could clearly see her point but he just shrugged with one shoulder. Lexie sighed. She could see that nothing she said would change his mind. So she refused to say anything to him anymore. She pouted while they waited for the train at the crowded station, and even a few minutes after they got on. But finally, she couldn''t give her dad the silent treatment anymore. It was too exhausting. Besides, she had a very important question to ask. ¡°How did you know Mouse?¡± She immensely regretted the question the second it slipped out, just from the stricken look it triggered on Aiden''s face. ¡°I mean you don¡¯t have to answer if you don¡¯t want to¡­I just ¡­I was curious.¡± Aiden exhaled. ¡°We met while I was still a [Hero] solving a crime in District 8. He was a petty thief at the time and occasionally sold illicit substances. ¡°Like drugs?¡± ¡°Highly illegal, very addictive potions. The first time I apprehended him, he told me he did it to save money to pay for his mother¡¯s treatment. She was terminally ill and was on the waitlist for a healer but it was taking too long and he needed to keep replenishing her potions. At first, I thought he was lying, but then I followed him home to find that it was the truth. Seeing that¡­I couldn¡¯t take him in. So I simply warned him not to do it again and tried to scare him straight.¡± He smiled sadly. "It didn¡¯t work.¡± ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re not a very scary kind of guy,¡± Lexie admitted quietly. ¡°Apparently not. A few weeks later, I received news that Mouse had sold an illegal potion to the wrong person, a Governor¡¯s son, and the boy died. Mouse ended up getting sent to Vigo, a prison in Sonlief. His sentence wasn''t long. Only a few years since it was just a first-time offense. But it was enough time that his mother passed while he was in there. She had no one to take care of her but him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s awful.¡± He nodded. ¡°When he came out he was on probation and we met again shortly after that, while my team was hunting down Krawlin assassins. Once more I caught him and I didn¡¯t take him in. I felt sorry and a little guilty, I guess, for what happened to his mother. Once again, I tried to talk him out of a life of crime. I encouraged him to do something that would make his mother proud. Gave him a whole rousing speech about rising above your circumstances, even gave him the name of a man that I thought would work with him. A part of me thought I reached him that day and that he would change for the better. For a while, I kept tabs on him and he seemed to have left the criminal underworld. I was happy." Aiden heaved a sigh. "That is until I saw him on a piece of video evidence, providing information to the Krawlin for a fee. It was information that inadvertently led to two people¡¯s death. That was the last straw. I couldn¡¯t let him get away with it this time.¡± He shook his head. ¡°I knew where to find Mouse based on the tabs I kept on him and I captured him and took him in.¡± Lexie was silent as Aiden paused in his speech. The train car was full but no one was paying attention to them, each embroiled in their own conversations. So Aiden had stopped not because he was concerned he would be overheard. It just seemed that this was a difficult story for him to tell. And then finally, he continued. ¡°Mouse begged me not to take him, begged for another chance. But I couldn¡¯t trust him. Not after what I¡¯d seen. He got sent to Vigo for a long time after that and that was the last I saw of him.¡± ¡°Then it wasn¡¯t your fault," Lexie said. "Mouse blaming you was just his way of refusing to take responsibility for his own actions. You tried to help him. Twice. His going to jail was his own doing and what happened today wasn¡¯t your fault. ¡± Aiden continued to stare straight ahead. But his voice lacked conviction when he said, ¡°I know.¡± The train stopped to let a few people out at a street called Canes, and then continued smoothly on its way. ¡°If the dungeon spawns in Hovelton,¡± he said. ¡°Everyone will be in danger. Not just from the creatures it releases, but it will create a dead zone once it¡¯s gone and too much of that will eventually lead to instability in Hovelton. I can¡¯t let that happen.¡± Lexie stared at him. Sometimes Lexie forgot that her father used to be a [Hero] and then he would say stuff like that that reminded her of his heroic nature. ¡°Yeah, but why can¡¯t someone else take turns with Max instead of you?¡± she asked. "Why not mundane law enforcement?¡± Aiden chuckled. ¡°Law Enforcement in Hovelton is essentially two old men who were probably alive when the Great Developers crafted the very first card. Ernie and Roger. Nice people but ancient and not agile.¡± He shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s lucky that Hovelton has virtually no crime despite the relatively low income. Or else we''d all be doomed. ¡°So there¡¯s really no one else?¡± ¡°No. The town also wasn¡¯t much of a town until a few years ago. It was just an empty forest and corn fields. And then there was a half-hearted plan to develop it into a retirement community, a regime change later and here we are.¡± He adjusted her so she could rest more comfortably on his arm. ¡°Believe it or not, I¡¯m the best person for the job.¡± Lexie sighed but had to admit he was right. ¡°I guess.¡± But she still wasn''t happy about it on the way home, causing Aiden to chuck her chin several times to draw a smile out of her. The train ride was also the least comfortable one ever. While Aiden and Lexie got seats, multiple people were standing. Someone¡¯s butt was right in Lexie''s face for most of the ride, and she was starting to feel a little claustrophobic. ¡°Train rides can be tedious at times, huh," Aiden murmured to her when he noticed her discomfort. ¡°Maybe I should get a vehicle?¡± ¡°A road rocket?¡± Lexie inquired. ¡°No, something more affordable and slower.¡± He gave her a look. ¡°With a complex personal activation. Something a child can¡¯t ¡®accidentally¡¯ drive.¡± Drat. He was onto her. Not that Lexie would drive a road rocket even if given the chance. Fast cars were not her thing. Probably. The train slowly emptied out between Arcadia and Hovelton. The last quarter of the ride was more comfortable so much so that Lexie nearly found herself dozing off as the adrenaline slowly leaked out of her. ¡°What about the Mayor?¡± she murmured, her head in Aiden''s lap as she was tucked under his arm. "Why doesn''t he help out?" ¡°Fighting isn''t Luke¡¯s forte,¡± Aiden said and Lexie sighed, all out of arguments. But when they finally landed back in Hovelton, Lexie got a bit of luck. Max and someone who looked like him were waiting for them at the podium, with Max looking extremely pissed. ¡°The dungeon,¡± he said. ¡°It disappeared.¡± 35 - The Disappearing Dungeon ¡°What do you mean the dungeon disappeared?¡± Aiden inquired as the furious-looking Max paced. ¡°You mean, you got rid of it?¡± ¡°No. If I meant I got rid of it I would have said that.¡± The terse response was punctuated with a glare. He then rubbed his forehead. ¡°It disappeared by the time I got there.¡± ¡°It resolved?¡± Aiden¡¯s eyes widened in shock. ¡°Did someone get trapped there?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But I got the alert and within minutes it was already gone. It¡¯s very unlikely a dungeon spawned and resolved in that short a time frame. Especially a high-level dungeon like that.¡± Aiden rubbed his chin, worry spreading across his face. "Was there deadspace?" "Nope. Nothing. Like the dungeon was never there." ¡°That¡¯s unusual. ¡°This is all unusual!¡± Max threw up his hands. ¡°The world hasn¡¯t made any sense for months now, and no one but us cares! I¡¯ve gone to the hero center myself to make the report. Called the crisis call line. And guess what? Nothing. It¡¯s like someone somewhere is mocking us and I don¡¯t like it one fucking bit!" For the first time, Aiden didn¡¯t caution Max about his language. Aiden''s eyebrows were furrowed deep in thought, his shoulders tense. Lexie was also starting to tense up again, her mind wondering about the dungeon. ¡°What happened to your arm?¡± The other man said, addressing Aiden. His voice was quieter and steadier compared to Max¡¯s rant. He had Max¡¯s hair and eye color and was only slightly taller than him, but while they resembled each other physically, they gave off totally different vibes. This man seemed more relaxed, leaning against a pillar with his arms crossed, as opposed to Max¡¯s frantic pacing. Also unlike Max who was wearing leather pants and a shirt with ripped sleeves, this man was wearing a long regal-looking white robe, a black shirt with gold trimmings, and a collar that reminded her of a priest. At his question, Aiden glanced at his own shoulder, as though just remembering it was still dislocated. ¡°There was a bomb in the city,¡± he said. ¡°And then Lexie got kidnapped.¡¯ ¡°By who?¡± Max finally stopped to stare at the two of them. ¡°What did he want? And where is he hiding so we can kill him?¡± Max radiated so much violence that Lexie wasn¡¯t sure whether to be flattered that he cared or worried about his mental state. Maybe he wanted to avenge her, or maybe he just wanted an outlet for the fury he was experiencing. Probably both. ¡°He¡¯s already dead,¡± Aiden said. Max¡¯s eyes widened in shock. ¡°You killed him?¡± ¡°No. He killed himself.¡± Max looked even more surprised, and Aiden waved his good arm. ¡°It¡¯s a long story and I¡¯ll tell you all about it later. Let¡¯s figure out this dungeon mess first.¡± ¡°Well, I don''t know if there¡¯s anything to figure out.¡± Max gestured. ¡°The dungeon is gone.¡± ¡°Yes, but we need to know why and if it left anything or anyone behind. Or if it took anyone with it.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah.¡± Max cracked his neck and turned to the pillar, knocking his forehead against it. ¡°This is driving me crazy.¡± Then his head snapped to Aiden suddenly. ¡°Do you still have that book on you?¡± ¡°What book?¡± ¡°The dungeonology one with the funny name.¡± Aiden then said a word that was such a tongue twister, Lexie couldn''t make heads or tails of what it was. It didn¡¯t sound human. The word was between a growl and a hiss like a bear and snake decided to learn each other¡¯s languages. ¡°Yeah. That one,¡± Max confirmed. Aiden shook his head in regret. ¡°No, I don''t have it anymore.¡± ¡°Damn it.¡± Max went back to hitting his forehead on the pillar. ¡°Stop that before you lose even more brain cells, Max.¡± The other man said. ¡°We¡¯ll figure it out.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you always say,¡± Max grumbled with the countenance of a kid who had been promised a PS4 for Christmas one too many times. ¡°Because we always do in the end," the man responded. "If we haven¡¯t yet, then it means it isn''t the end.¡± He then calmly glanced back at Lexie''s father. ¡°In the meantime, Aiden, we need to get your arm fixed.¡± Aiden sighed and nodded. They ended up going to the hospital in his vehicle which was a self-driving car that Lexie didn''t know how to describe except to say that it wasn''t a road rocket. It was squarish on the outside and on the inside, it looked more like a carriage than anything. There was no wheel area or front seats. It was like sitting in the back of a limo, with black leather bench seats on either side of the door. The seats were plush and the perfect temperature which made for a comfortable ride as they ambled along, trailing Max¡¯s hoverbike. While in the car, the man seated opposite them finally said, ¡°I¡¯m glad to see you doing better, Lexie. You probably don¡¯t remember me but I¡¯m¨C¡± "Luke, the mayor,¡± Lexie completed. ¡°Max¡¯s older brother.¡± He gave her a surprised look. ¡°You do remember. But I¡¯m younger actually. By a whole year.¡± ¡°You are?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you tell?¡± He shot her a look of mock offense and she gave him an apologetic look because really she couldn¡¯t tell. Not that the mayor looked older necessarily. He had similar crinkles by his eyes that Max had and very similar features but she just assumed Luke was older because he acted older. ¡°I¡¯m also the one who christened you by the way. But we can catch up later. I would have visited sooner but life has been a little chaotic for me." Lexie nodded. ¡°Sure. I get it.¡± He smiled. And then he said, ¡°What do you think is happening with this dungeon thing?¡± Lexie at first thought he was still talking to her until she realized that his eyes had flicked over to Aiden, who was staring out the window. ¡°I truly don¡¯t know,¡± he said. ¡°But I have a sinking feeling that it had to do with the attack in Arcadia today.¡± ¡°What do you mean?" ¡°There was a mana bomb in the city, and it was set to go off today. As we know a mana bomb could disrupt the mana flow in an area, and as close as Arcadia is, that could be widespread enough to hit Hovelton.¡± Luke nodded slowly. ¡°Yes, but none of the other surrounding cities are experiencing anything close to this level of dungeon instability.¡± Aiden nodded. ¡°Not to mention that the bomb today didn''t actually go off.¡± He sighed heavily. ¡°Max is right. Something very strange and unprecedented is happening, and the longer we allow it to go unchecked the more dangerous and problematic it becomes.¡± Luke was consideringly quiet as his vehicle meandered down the road. A part of Lexie¡¯s brain that wasn¡¯t engrossed in the conversation wondered silently how the car worked. It was likely powered by external mana but there were no wheels or blue mana-coated tracks so how did the floating mechanism work? Was it triggered by repulsion? Like with her black hole exercises? ¡°Max thinks it¡¯s the hero association,¡± Luke finally said, breaking the silence. ¡°He thinks they¡¯ve hired [Researchers] to run secret experiments again and that¡¯s what¡¯s causing all this.¡± ¡°They wouldn''t do that.¡± Aiden¡¯s voice was certain. Luke spared him a glance. ¡°Are you sure about that?¡¯ Aiden was quiet for a few seconds before he said, ¡°I know you and Max think I¡¯m naive for still believing in the association after everything.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that,¡± he said. ¡°Max might, but that¡¯s because Max has his personal bone to pick with them.¡± ¡°Yes, I know. Look, the association isn¡¯t perfect, but the current leadership won¡¯t allow anything like that to happen.¡± ¡°You mean Stella Firebringer?¡± ¡°Not just her. Even if you ignored her and the other elementals acting as checks, Vice President Jerry Haynes is not a man you can easily deceive. Not to talk of Dominic Vacek himself who would definitely not let something like this slide. It¡¯s under his leadership for the past few years that the hero association has been tightening the reins and you know how strict he is about acceptable [Hero] behaviour. Do you think he would allow experimentation on this level to carry on under his watch?¡± Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°They may be doing it behind his back. He¡¯s in Planet Fae at the moment.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Jerry is here and I don¡¯t think anyone from the association would risk Vacek¡¯s wrath by doing something as foolhardy as that.¡± Luke didn''t answer. Another stretch of silence descended and Lexie eyed the buttons by the door, wondering if one of them was for a radio. ¡°So how do you explain the fact that nobody from the association has even come around to check out our reports?¡± Aiden leaned his head back in the seat, shutting his eyes. ¡°That I don¡¯t know. Maybe someone is interfering with the message.¡± ¡°The only person who could do that would be someone who has access to the system government alert database. Those would be the heads of state and important politicians and I can¡¯t think of any reason why they would do that. Hovelton isn¡¯t politically important in any way. An attack on Arcadia makes sense but one on Hovelton¡­¡± ¡°It could simply be that the association intends to check on it eventually,¡± he said. ¡°But they simply have a lot on their plate right now.¡± ¡°Could be. Although I struggle to find out what¡¯s more important than the threat of magical instability.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But there¡¯s someone I can ask to find out.¡± Luke remained quiet. He didn¡¯t ask who the someone was, perhaps sensing instinctively that Aiden wouldn''t answer that question. They finally arrived at the Healing House where Aiden and Lexie were fussed over by a worried Emma. She checked Lexie first after Aiden told her that Lexie was caught in the blast. That alarmed Max and Luke too and they asked her a bazillion questions about what happened and whether or not she felt she was targeted. Lexie told them the truth, that she was pretty sure it was a mistake and she wasn''t supposed to be there. But that didn''t stop them from blaming the [Heroes] for everything and Max went on a rant calling Theo Firebringer and his ilk every name under the sun. While Emma was making sure that Lexie was all healed up with no more concussions, Lexie asked about Xena. She was happy to discover that Xena made it home safely, and was more irritated than hurt after someone shoved her while on her way to the shelter. Once Emma assured Aiden that Lexie was completely fine, he relaxed a little and finally let her work on his arm. Emma scolded him for not seeing a healer at the bomb shelter, and for waiting too long to set it. And then she grabbed his arm, held his shoulder, and pulled. They all winced at the sound of it snapping back into place. Lexie had never had a dislocated arm before but she had to imagine that hurt, but Aiden barely grunted. He must have a high pain tolerance. Lexie''s eyes trailed down to the bands around his neck, recalling what they looked like when they glowed. Aiden had used some of his power today, or at least attempted to. His hands were even still shaking with the aftershocks, so much so that both Emma and the mayor commented on it. After he told them what happened, they both scolded him, Emma much harsher while the mayor did it in a calm ¡®fatherly¡¯ manner. And then after they were both done, Aiden and Lexie finally got sent home to eat and rest. Except Lexie couldn''t rest. Lying in her bedroom in Hovelton, she finally started to process the day, her heart still racing with the left-over adrenaline, her muscles twitchy with the need to run. Her mind bounced from one thing to the next. From the beginning, the dream she¡¯d had about her brother. To getting caught in a blast. And then being kidnapped by a villain named Mouse with weird magnet powers. Getting rescued by a Firebringer and her father. And then now. Her brain made the journey over and over, trying to sort through the tangle of emotions that till now she¡¯d been too stressed to acknowledge. Sadness about her dream. Longing for her brother, delayed panic from the bombing and the pain of the blast and kidnapping. Relief at the rescue, acceptance that this was her life now, affection for Aiden. Guilt that she was forgetting her home and her family in favor of this new strange world, fear that this world was dangerous and she would somehow lose Aiden and anyone she cared for... She forced herself to breathe, slowly, so she didn''t hyperventilate. Her mind lingered on that last thought for so long that her chest felt tight. It was close. She could finally accept it, her fingers clenching, her toes curling as her heart drummed out of her chest. A delayed flight-or-fight instinct took over her body. Mouse had been too powerful and seemed determined to kill Aiden. Lexie couldn''t have done much to stop him with her cards. If Theo hadn¡¯t showed up¡­ Aiden would probably be dead. And she might be dead too. Maybe for good. She didn''t let the thought sink, didn''t let it take hold. She knew herself and if she allowed it she would obsess over that outcome for hours. She would sink into a hole of anxiety-laden thoughts as she considered the worst-case scenario over and over until she got depressed by it and felt all the attached loss and hopelessness of something that hadn''t even happened. But she did have to deal with the feeling of her impotence. Eventually, she would have to think about how weak she was in the grand scheme of things. But for now, she tried to focus on things that wouldn''t make her sad. Like Mouse''s powers. How did it work? She understood the magnetic part of controlling metal, but how had he been able to keep hold of her? Maybe he''d targeted something small and metallic on her body, like a zipper or a hairclip, and used that to generate a magnetic field. For example, maybe he''d locked onto the little bit of iron in her hair clip and magnified that force of attraction so he could pull her body to him. That was the only thing that made sense. But then how come he¡¯d never targeted her dad or Theo? Silver was a type of metal and Aiden had a bunch of it, so it would probably have been easier to catch him. And Theo had a zipper too. Instead of attacking them, he could have frozen them in place and done whatever he wanted. Mouse could have kept Aiden still and used the war hammer to bludgeon him to death. Lexie shook away the image. Too gory. Too much. Stick to the question. Why hadn''t Mouse done any of that? Perhaps Theo and Aiden were too heavy? Or too powerful? Were their pathways too well-guarded? But her father was mundane now, so that didn¡¯t make sense either. Unless, he still had guarded pathways from prior training. Maybe he knew how to control his pathways without mana. ¡°Hmm,¡± she murmured. For some reason, it felt extremely important for her to figure out how Mouse''s powers worked. She needed to know what she would do if something like this happened again. Did she have a card that could have helped her? She didn''t think so. Which meant she had to either get better at finding more creative uses for her cards or look into another deck. Either way, Lexie was no longer satisfied with simply advancing her powers for its own sake. Now she wanted to be able to use it to fight back. To defend herself and Aiden from people like Mouse. And maybe even from [Heroes] like Luther Firebringer, or Theo or Stella if they ever turned against him. Today was the last straw. No one would be messing with her or her dad again. Lexie exhaled deeply and closed her eyes. She wanted to text Xena and find out how she was but Emma told her Xena was resting. Plus she didn''t have the girl''s number. She also thought about the sliver of a crack in her dad''s silver neckband. What could that mean? Was the band breaking? Because of his powers or something else? Was that just from today? Or had that been there before? Had Aiden been actively trying to break the bands before they got attacked? She didn¡¯t know but she thought the answer was ¡®maybe¡¯ because of what he''d said to Mouse. What if that wasn''t a bluff? What if Aiden could somehow regain his abilities by generating enough power to break the Tilling bands? Lexie didn''t know how to feel about that. On one hand, she wanted her dad to be free of the suffering and the powerlessness. But then if he regained his powers¡­the hero''s association might take that as a threat too. Lexie knew from her research now that if they felt the bands didn''t work, they would probably take him to the next best thing... a high-security prison used to house the most dangerous [Villains]. She didn¡¯t want that for her dad. So she hoped that the crack was simply a fluke and Aiden didn''t notice. Lexie didn''t plan on telling him about it either. She would simply keep an eye on it to make sure the crack didn''t expand. She would add that to her list of things to do. Lexie inhaled again. Exhaled. There was still so much to think of with the GLITCH gang, her dad¡¯s silver, the unstable Dungeons. She wanted to research it. But she felt like if she thought about all of that anymore, her mind would explode. So instead she did what she always did when she needed a distraction to clear her head. She opened Video Alley and watched match highlights. The latest one was Kane the Mundane vs Conrad Grace and it had a lot of views but a significant dislike ratio. Lexie knew almost instantly who would win the fight. Conrad was overwhelmingly better than Kane in every way. And Kane hated it. Lexie figured there was probably some interesting personal tension there because the two came from similar backgrounds, both of them with highly powered parents and a chip on their shoulders. Except Kane¡¯s parents were politicians and Conrad''s were [Heroes]. Conrad was once again not taking the fight as seriously as he should have been. He seemed like he was toying with Kane, lobbing all his bullets and arrows back at him, laughing in the face of his frustration. Conrad knew he was going to win. Everyone watching knew he was going to win and they laughed with him every time he got in Kane''s face and made him stumble. And maybe Conrad felt a little sorry for Kane because he was letting him get hits in and not tossing him around like he did to Top Dog. Why would he since the conclusion was foregone anyway? But then something went wrong. While he was laughing and dancing, Conrad tripped. Yes, he actually tripped. And unfortunately for him, Kane was the type to take advantage of something like that. He immediately trapped Conrad between two large force fields and shot sharp, barely-legal bullets at him. Each one hit Conrad, likely creating deep bruises on his body even though they didn''t break skin. Conrad couldn''t move as the force field pressed on either side of him and Kane was out of his reach so he couldn''t fight back. He pushed against the forcefield but they didn''t budge. Kane had spared no expense on them. He continued shooting mercilessly, never seeming to run out of bullets. Conrad held out for a really long time, and he snarled like a Berserker but he could do nothing but take the damage until his health bars blinked red and the ref called an end to the match. Kane had won. It was a shocking twist that left the entire audience stunned. Barely anyone cheered although Kane danced happily around the field. Conrad himself looked shocked and embarrassed, and the cameras zoomed into his face to expose that to everyone. Shit. Lexie thought. Xena is going to be pissed when she watches this. If she hasn''t already. Lexie couldn''t believe that Kane had won over a simple mistake like that. But that was life though. Sometimes, shit happened and things went wrong. And you lost. And sometimes like today, you won. But today didn¡¯t feel like a win to Lexie. Especially since she was still haunted by the image of Aiden being clobbered. Blood spilling from his arm. She saw him barely ducking the hammer and imagined that he hadn''t been able to avoid it. She saw it hit his head and split his skull open. It would have all been over in a flash. The panic clawed on her throat and she fought to breathe again. Inhale. Exhale At one point, she closed her eyes and recited the mantra. She was fine. Everything was fine. It had all worked out. 36 - The Azure Dinner So much changed in the next few days. The day after the bombing, Lexie and her father received a system mail from Everstone Elementary detailing the catastrophe that happened the day before. It was mostly a reiteration of what the news was already saying, and also some follow-up from the disaster response unit. There was a terrorist attack in Arcadia with bombs planted all over the city. One of those had been planted close to the school and wasn¡¯t disabled in time, hence it had gone off. Due to the building''s protective walls, the blast had been contained and no one was gravely harmed (they either didn¡¯t know or didn¡¯t care about Lexie¡¯s injury) but the ensuing chaos that happened after staff fled to the streets, led to some teachers and student stragglers sustaining a few injuries. The mail didn''t mention that the bomb was thrown by [Heroes]. Lexie figured it was information that the association would probably want to cover up and if not for Theo mentioning it, Lexie wouldn''t know. Which made her position the [Hero] in even higher regard. He didn''t have to tell me that, she thought. But he did it anyway because he felt bad. So he''s probably a good person. The mail continued to say that the culprits had been caught by brave student [Heroes] and were currently being investigated by the hero''s association, in collaboration with local government detectives. The school walls did sustain some damage due to the blast and they were being redone and reinforced to become even more protective to their students. Additionally, the message noted at the end, All students and teachers will need to now have mandatory disaster response sessions every last Thursday of the month. That decision is due to the less-than-stellar response displayed yesterday during the disaster. Preparation is needed so that the next time we face a situation like this, we approach it in a more clear-headed manner. Next time? Lexie smirked at the mail. Just how many times does the school plan on being bombed? Most importantly, the mail told Lexie that there would be no in-person school for the next few weeks while the damages were being dealt with. Lexie was happy about no in-person school for a while. It gave her time to practice her card magic. With her father occupied with figuring out the disappearing dungeon mess with Max (luckily no one from town was reported missing so the dungeon likely didn¡¯t take anyone with it), Lexie spent much of her time at home alone. She didn''t mind this at all, because she could then spend her free time figuring out how to reroute mana around her pathway checkpoints. She also did keep up with her studies. She couldn''t let her grades slip, after all, especially since Aiden had confirmed that she was on a government and merit-based scholarship. But schoolwork wasn''t hard. She had gotten the hang of most of the new Earth 9-specific information and was now ahead of the curve in class. So she increased her card learning time to eight hours a day and without Aiden around to stop her, she just got in the zone and kept going. During breaks from card lessons, she would do shaping exercises and meditation. And then when she got bored of those, she would watch random videos on Video Alley, usually AFC matches or educational content, but also sometimes random pop culture stuff. There was an actress everyone despised who got married recently to a highly beloved actor. Lexie crawled down the comments of that one for hours, entertaining herself with the history and lore of the couple. It was kind of a Brad and Angelina Jolie situation, except this time Angelina Jolie was the married one and she¡¯d left her husband of many years for her love interest in the movie. Though her former husband had since remarried, people still hated her, but she was too beautiful and popular to ignore so her videos always had a lot of views and a lot of nasty comments. After some time spent on that, Lexie watched another match ( the Bunny vs Kane the Mundane rematch where Bunny whooped his ass again) and then she went back to studying. It was a nice familiar routine actually and if Lexie Sparrowfoot had a brother breaking into her room every couple of hours to tell her about a high score he¡¯d beat, it would almost feel like home. But then almost a week later, something happened to break that routine. ¡°What?¡± Lexie''s voice was garbled thanks to a mouthful of potatoes and peas. Her dad gave her an amused look, and Lexie chewed and swallowed before she continued her inquiry. ¡°Governor Azure invited us to his mansion?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Aiden responded casually. ¡°There''s an honorary dinner for the direct victims of the blast so the Governor can apologize to them directly, discuss their feelings, and have their fears laid to rest. It¡¯s a multi-day event but since Everstone was one of the primary victims, you guys get to go on the first day.¡° ¡°So it¡¯s basically like a political thing,¡± Lexie inquired. She didn¡¯t know the governor but she had an inherent distrust of most politicians and also just doubted someone who¡¯d refused to increase their potion quota for months would suddenly care about the feelings and fears of middle school bombing victims. ¡°Sort of like a ¡®sorry you got bombed, but at least you get a nice dinner out of it?¡¯¡± Aiden shrugged. ¡°Something like that. The election is coming up in a couple of years and this is a good look for him.¡± His expression grew thoughtful. ¡°Although, you should still go. I¡¯m told the food will be fantastic. They have the best chef in Arcadia and these events typically have an ungodly spread. I would try the lamb if I were you. Also, the student [Heroes] who saved the day might show up which should be exciting for you.¡± ¡°For me?¡± The way he phrased it, it felt like she would be going alone. ¡°You¡¯re not going?" He shook his head. ¡°No. I figured your Uncle Max could accompany you. He typically despises these things, but he¡¯s for whatever reason enthusiastic to go to this one. Didn¡¯t even put up a fight when I asked him.¡± Lexie was quiet for a few seconds, as Aiden had two more spoons of potato soup. He paused with the third spoon halfway to his mouth. ¡°What, do you not want to go with him?¡± Aiden asked. ¡°Sure Max can be a bit of a handful, but I¡¯ll tell him to be on his best behavior¨C¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that.¡± She held up her hand. ¡°I like Uncle Max, it¡¯s just that I don¡¯t see why you can¡¯t come.¡± Aiden gave her one of those forlorn smiles. ¡°You don¡¯t want me there Lexie.¡± ¡°Yeah, I do.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t. And it¡¯s okay for you not to. Believe me.¡± He sighed. ¡°Arcadia isn¡¯t like Hovelton. I have no friends in that city and if I show up, plenty of people will judge you because of me and I would hate for that to happen. I would hate to have you dragged down because of what I did.¡± She felt the sadness in his voice, so profound it was an ache. ¡°But everyone in my class already knows my dad¡¯s a [Villain].¡± He shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s a difference between knowing and having their faces rubbed into it. I show up, and you will instantly become the center of attention in the worst way. And it won¡¯t just be the kids there. It will be their parents, most of whom probably know my face, and others who have the means to make some pretty good guesses as to the nature of my crime. There will be gossip and it will follow you around the entire party. You won¡¯t be able to turn a corner without a whispered comment or a gaze lingering too long on you. At first, you¡¯ll take it like a champ, but then it will become more invasive and you¡¯ll get more and more uncomfortable to the point where you¡¯ll begin to feel violated. And then you¡¯ll want to leave the party instantly and you¡¯ll have anxiety about attending events for a while. Because it won¡¯t just end there. It will follow you back to school and become a topic of conversation for weeks after. The gossip of group chats. You will further isolate yourself until you will no longer want to leave your room.¡± Lexie watched him. His words were too specific and held a distinct sting of melancholy. ¡°You¡¯re acting like that has happened before.¡± He twisted his lips. ¡°Well, there was a reason you asked me to stop walking you to school.¡± Lexie sighed, a conflict raging inside. ¡°Do I even have to go to this party? I don¡¯t want to hide you and act like I¡¯m ashamed of you or something.¡± ¡°I know." Aiden''s smile turned a little brighter. ¡°I know you¡¯re not ashamed of me and that you still love me and I take that to be the biggest gift life has ever given me.¡± He reached across the table, opening his palm. Lexie let go of her fork and put her hand in his. ¡°Go to the party,¡± he said. ¡°If it isn''t fun, then tell your Uncle Max to bring you home immediately. But I think you¡¯ll have fun. Xena¡¯s going.¡± ¡°I told you, Xena and I aren¡¯t friends.¡± ¡°For now.¡± Aiden grinned. Lexie shook her head. She wondered how exactly Emma had bribed Xena to go. Or was she going for nefarious reasons? Was she going to pull another stunt? Lexie was curious about that. "Oh, and this goes without saying,¡± Aiden said as though he could hear the direction of her thoughts. ¡°No screaming at cameras while you¡¯re there.¡± Lexie winked at her father. ¡°No promises.¡± *** ¡°The suit looks fine, Uncle Max.¡± Lexie rolled her eyes for what felt like the ninth time as Max complained about being stuck in what he called a cruel torture device of an outfit. To Lexie¡¯s eye, it didn''t look like a torture device at all. It looked like a regular suit, only a bit more disheveled. The event called for a formal black tie, but Max clearly drew the line at steaming or ironing anything. And as far as he was concerned, an actual tie might as well be a noose, with the way he¡¯d tugged at it on the ride over, eventually tugging the knot loose so it hung on both sides of his neck. He''d then undone the first few buttons of his shirt too. And he still wasn''t comfortable. ¡°I look stupid,¡± Max said. ¡°Don¡¯t mock me. I know I look stupid.¡± ¡°No, you don''t," she said. She was holding his hand and hurrying to keep up with his angry steps. ¡°Maybe the suit''s a little small in the arms but you could have gotten a bigger jacket.¡± ¡°This is the only one I own.¡± ¡°It''s your only suit? Aiden always says a man should own at least three suits.¡± He leveled her a look. ¡°Just how often do you think I attend these mind-rending, soul-sucking events huh? You think I want to rub shoulders with these brainless snobs?" ¡°Then why did you come?¡± she asked him out of curiosity. ¡°Just as a favor to my dad?¡± Max regarded her with a look and for the first time, she almost saw a tiny smile on the corner of his mouth. ¡°That¡¯s for me to know, and you to hopefully never find out.¡± Oh. Now that he¡¯d said that though Lexie was intrigued. Unfortunately, she couldn¡¯t pester him with more questions, because they''d reached the procession of people that were being slowly trickled into the cathedral gardens. It was funny that the last time she was here, she was trying to find a way to sneak in. And now she was on the guest list. What interesting turns life takes. There was no force field surrounding the garden this time, just two attendants at the entrance to check people''s names off a holographic list. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. The lack of forcefield was probably a measure to save money. They must not have been as loaded as Xena thought after all. Although to be fair, Lexie guessed that it would be a nightmare to key in all these individual people to the forcefield. As they stood in line, with Max glaring at anyone who dared to glance in their direction, Lexie felt two more people step up behind her. "Hey, you two." Lexie turned around to find Xena and Emma there.. "Hey," she said. It seemed the two had arrived right after them. Emma looked radiant with her hair curled and falling like waves onto her white dress. Xena was wearing a black poofy skirt and a black top and looked just as annoyed as Max. ¡°Aw, my adorable chubby-cheeked Lexie.¡± Emma reached out to pinch Lexie''s cheeks and Lexie let her because of her fondness for the woman. "And Max. Seriously. Would it have killed you to put in more effort?¡± ¡°It might have actually," he responded. "I already feel like I¡¯m on the verge of a stroke in this monkey suit.¡± Emma rolled her eyes but she said nothing as the line moved ahead. When they got close enough, Lexie realized that the Governor''s wife had arrived at some point and was by the attendants, welcoming people. The woman looked like an older Veronica in a fluffy pink wide-brimmed hat, an elaborate dress, and a white smile with which she greeted each person while shaking their hands and murmuring a few soft words to them. ¡°Oh my dears, what an awful awful thing that just happened, wasn''t it?" she said to the couple in line in front of Lexie. "You know where I was when the alert came? I was getting my hair done at that salon that Dovonio recommended to me because I needed to get those awful highlights out of my hair... my last hairdresser was supposed to do platinum chestnut but she gave me light sepia instead, can you believe it? That awful woman. Anyway, I told Dovonio all about it and he recommended me to this lovely salon on Fifth George, and this beautiful soul got me to the front of the waitlist, and was going to do my hair that day. And just as we were in the middle of it, we heard the city was under attack! Oh, I thought that was it for me you know? I thought I would just die there with half-styled bangs and light sepia highlights. The tragedy." The couple she was talking to looked at each other a little overwhelmed. Max leaned in to whisper to Emma, ¡°It¡¯s happening, isn¡¯t it? I¡¯m having a stroke.¡± Emma didn''t respond but Lexie squeezed his hand to assure him that he wasn''t having a stroke. Veronica''s mom spoke very fast in a constant stream of consciousness so it would be confusing to anyone who was listening. As the couple walked in, Max and Lexie finally reached the front of the line. Veronica''s mom''s smile faltered a little. Her gaze seemed to flicker from Max and Lexie to Emma and Xena and it was clear she¡¯d placed them all in the same distasteful basket. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you.¡± That was all she said in a less than enthusiastic voice. Her smile never completely left her face, but the distaste in her voice was clear for all to see. ¡°Nice hat,¡± Xena said in the flattest tone possible and Emma nudged her with her elbow. Xena persisted with, ¡°Very fashionable." The woman must have been immune to sarcasm because she touched the hat and smiled a little self-indulgently. ¡°Thank you. At least you have good taste.¡± Xena smiled tightly. "It¡¯s an authentic Maragialo,¡± she continued. ¡°There¡¯s only one of it in the entire world.¡± ¡°I can see why,¡± Xena said, and this time Emma nudged her even harder as the woman¡¯s smile slipped. ¡°Thank you for the invite,¡± Emma said, practically dragging her daughter around Lexie, through the entrance and into the garden. Veronica''s mom watched them go and then turned her cool gaze to Lexie and Max. "Thanks for coming," she said frostily. "No problem," Lexie answered because Max seemed distracted staring at something or someone at the party. She tugged his arm and he finally seemed to realize that she''d spoken. He nodded at Veronica''s mom and took Lexie in. The garden wasn''t decorated as elaborately as for the [Hero] party, but there were still swathes of fabric collating in the air, and perfectly trimmed flowers decorating the venue. A few people of all ages were there, some standing awkwardly around, others mingling. Lexie recognized a few of her teachers and classmates at standing tables spread across. She didn''t spot the three musketeers but she saw Mya with her parents. ¡°Alright, kid I gotta talk to someone," Max said, letting go of her hand. "Will you be alright by yourself for a few minutes?¡± Lexie would rather not but Max seemed itchy to be off so she said, ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s cool.¡± "Okay. You can go hang out with your friends when I''m gone." What friends? Lexie almost asked but then she spotted Dewie at a distance away, partially hidden by a rose bush, throwing stones in the pond. She instantly nodded at Max and made a beeline for him. ¡°Hey,¡± she greeted and he turned to regard her in surprise. ¡°Your prediction came true.¡± He blinked at her. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°The desk. Remember you told me something bad would happen to it on my first day of school? Well, you were right. It was practically the only chair in the entire room that got hit that hard by the blast.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± he said, his eyes widening. ¡°But you¡¯re alive.¡± ¡°Yeah. But I was hurt for a little bit. I wouldn¡¯t have been hurt at all if I¡¯d listened to you.¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± was all he said to that. He seemed more melancholic than usual. ¡°I just wanted to say thank you for telling me," Lexie continued. "You tried to save my life even though it was detrimental to your reputation and made other people see you as a weirdo. That was really cool of you." He ducked his head considering the stone in his hand. The silence grew oppressive and Lexie felt pressured to break it. ¡°So,¡± she said, "You can see the future?" He shook his head. "No one can see the future. Mrs. P said that was one of the skills the system doesn''t give people anymore." "What is it then?" she asked. "How do you know these things?" "I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t know why I see weird things and stuff happens. I think maybe I might be cursed. That''s what Veronica says anyway." Lexie thought about it, then shook her head. "That can''t be it." Why would a curse work so arbitrarily? And how would it control where the bomb was thrown? Besides, she''d never heard of a power like that. "You being cursed makes even less sense than you seeing the future." He sighed heavily. "I wish I didn''t see it." He sent the rock skipping over the pond. "It makes everything more difficult for me." ¡°Then why not just not say anything?" Lexie asked and his face squeezed. "I can¡¯t. If I don¡¯t say anything and something bad happens then¡­" He shook his head. "I don¡¯t think I can live with that again. I have to say it, have to try even if no one believes me." Lexie was doused in a wave of pity. She knew he was thinking about his grandmother again and the fact that he never told her about the talking lizard. He clearly partially blamed himself for her death. And Lexie didn''t know how to get him to not blame himself. She didn''t know the right words to say. ¡°You know,¡± she said instead. "You''re a really good person, Dewie.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Dad says good people are stupid people.¡± ¡°Maybe but the world is stupid so what does he know?" She thought about it and came up with an idea. ¡°How about this? Every time you have a vision or see something worrisome, you tell me and we''ll figure out how to break it to the person in a less¡­ insane-sounding way.¡± Lexie thought for a second that might offend him but instead, his head snapped toward her and his expression lit up. ¡°You would do that for me?" ¡°Sure. I feel like maybe your problem might be the delivery." No one would buy a little kid talking about seeing gnomes and things. But they might believe it if he said he was some kind of arithmancer or tarot reader. Actually, that gave Lexie an idea. Maybe her cards could help with it. Aiden mentioned tarot cards worked by a different set of rules. Lexie wondered what that was and how she could use it to maybe help Dewie make his predictions and relay them easier. In the meantime, Dewie stared at her wide-eyed. "But what if you¡¯re not there to help?" "Then just text me. I¡¯ll give you my number." His eyes widened. ¡°You¡­¡± he hesitated. ¡°You want to give me your number?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± "And I can text you¡­" Growing yet tentative excitement showed in his voice. ¡°Like¡­more than once?¡± ¡°Yeah. As many times as you want. Obviously don''t go crazy on me, but if you want to talk about something then just shoot me a text.¡± Lexie really hoped she didn¡¯t regret the offer. She was really busy and Mickie always used to complain about how she would take forever to respond to texts sometimes. But seeing Dewie light up, she couldn¡¯t take the words back. ¡°When?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°When can I text you?¡± He looked down at his fingers, folding them a little shyly. ¡°Um¡­I dunno. Anytime I suppose. I might not reply super quickly depending on what I¡¯m doing at that point, but I¡¯ll reply as soon as I can.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± His grin had literally spread from cheek to cheek as he asked, ¡°You sure you don¡¯t love me?¡± Lexie laughed. ¡°No Dewie. I don¡¯t love you. I mean I do like you yeah but as a friend.¡± Dewie didn''t seem bothered by that. Instead, his smile brightened, like someone turned up the wattage for the sun. ¡°Thank you,¡± he murmured. ¡°No problem.¡± Lexie felt slightly uncomfortable from the gratitude but it also triggered a pleasant, cozy warmth. Dewie was about to say something else, but they were interrupted by footsteps crunching on grass and gravel. Lexie looked behind just in time to see Xena walk up. "What are you guys talking about?" she asked. Lexie was surprised by her appearance at first. But then she figured Xena probably didn''t have anyone to talk to either. "Talking about how we¡¯re best friends now and forever seatmates," Dewie announced excitedly. Lexie thought that was one too many tags but Dewie looked so happy she didn¡¯t want to correct him. ¡°Yup,¡± she said. ¡°He tried to save my life so now we¡¯re best friends for life.¡± ¡°I thought you said I saved your life," Xena said. ¡°You did. So you want to be my best friend too?¡± Xena made a face. "That best friend stuff is for kids." "We''re still kids you know." "You''re a kid. I''m not." Yeah, as if that isn''t the most kid-like thing you can say. "Whatever," Xena said then turned to Dewie. "This is some party your mom is throwing." He nodded slowly. It seemed he too was wondering why Xena was talking to them. "She keeps watching me like an eagle," Xena finally complained. "Wanna go tell her that I don''t plan on ruining her party this time?" Dewie shrugged. "I could but she wouldn''t believe me." "Tell your dad then." "He won''t believe me either. And he doesn''t like me. He thinks I killed my mom." That had both Xena and Lexie freezing, staring at Dewie in shock. "But your mom''s right there," Lexie pointed, wondering if she was seeing things now. "I don''t mean her. I mean my birth mom. She died giving birth to me." "Oh," Lexie said. "That sucks. I''m sorry." "It''s okay. My second mom''s not so bad." Lexie and Xena watched him silently. Meanwhile, he stared at a bald man standing in the distance. "Do you see that gargoyle over there or is it just me?" "My birth mom¡¯s dead too," Lexie said because truly she didn''t know what else to tell him. "Me too," Xena said "Look at that." Lexie smiled. "We all have something in common after all." "We can form a club," Xena said snidely. "The association of dead mothers," Dewie completed. They all looked at each other and for some reason, that was so funny they all cracked into quiet, snorting laughter. ¡°That should be the name of our group chat,¡± Lexie said in between chuckles. ¡°Xena, give me your number. Let me add you to our group chat.¡± ¡°I don''t want to be part of your dumb group chat.¡± But she was giggling as she said it. ¡°Oh don''t be like that. Join our group chat. We¡¯re the ADM. That practically makes us family.¡± After a long back-and-forth of quibbling, Xena finally gave Lexie her number. In return, Lexie offered to go grab snacks for everyone from the snack table before the dinner started. While heading to the table at the other side of the garden, she caught sight of her Uncle Max going inside the Cathedral building with some other guy. The man looked drunk and was ranting about something and Uncle Max appeared irritated but he''d pasted a smile on his face. Lexie wondered what that was about but then shrugged and continued on. As she was filling her plate with egg rolls, she felt something imperceptible, tugging at the pathways on her feet. It was subtle and had she not had good awareness of her pathways, she wouldn''t have felt it. But she did. All that training had paid off. She immediately turned around and searched for the direction the attack came from. It wasn''t hard. Veronica was staring straight at her, smirking with Diane. Clearly, she''d just said a spell to trip Lexie again. But Lexie''s black hole training had given her much better control of her pathways and she made them shift to avoid Veronica''s influence, watching the smile drop from her face. As she finished filling the plate, she materialized a card in her hand and began activation. She started walking back to her friends and on the way there, she met Veronica''s gaze again. She smiled and pointed at her. Crash! Suddenly, Veronica stumbled back into a standing table where her mother was talking with someone and toppled it over on her way down. Plates and champagne glasses fell on her, drenching her with red wine and hors d''oeuvres. "Vero!" Her mother shouted. ¡°What happened?¡± Lexie watched long enough to see anger and humiliation turn Veronica''s face red. She brought her finger up to her lip and blew on the tip like it was a smoking gun. And then she continued back to her new friends. That¡¯ll teach you to mess with me. 37 - The Association Of Dead Mothers Sounds of yelling echoed above Dewie. The shrill female voice rose higher than the male''s, dominating it until the male one retreated into angry, protesting silence. Dewie knew that pretty soon, the male voice would start up again when she landed a deeply emotional blow. The argument would then continue into the night, leading to a very unpleasant breakfast the following morning. But all that wasn¡¯t Dewie¡¯s concern right now. Instead, he was wondering what to send as his first greeting in the official friend''s group chat. This wasn''t his first group chat experience. He¡¯d been added to one about a year ago, with a few other kids from a separate class. That was back in the day before people knew how strange he was. They still thought he was somewhat weird because he¡¯d once freaked out over what he thought was a giant snake on a teacher''s head, but back then he was still doing his best to hide his strange visions. But even then, no one liked him. It was painfully difficult to make friends, and no one seemed to want to talk to him, even when he made his best effort to approach them first. There was a group of boys he thought he might have a potential friendship with. They weren''t in his class so they didn''t know about the snake incident. They let him sit with them at lunch and sort of talked amongst themselves, but they didn¡¯t outright laugh or act creeped out whenever he interjected. Only once in a while did they roll their eyes. Mostly, they listened and nodded before going back to their respective conversations. So he thought they might be okay with him being their friend. And when they took his number and added him to their group chat, he was elated. He thought it might mean that they kind of liked him, maybe not in the best friend way, but in the way that they could tolerate each other for the rest of their lives. Like his parents. Dewie was added to the group chat while they were having a conversation about a gopher, and then Dewie sent a wave and injected some of his knowledge on gophers too. And then¡­nothing. No response. He didn''t know what it was that he said. To this day, he didn¡¯t know what turned them off and made them maintain nearly five minutes of nail-biting silence. All he knew was that he was swiftly removed from the group chat. Only to be added again, ten minutes later by one of the boys, just to show all the not-so-nice things they were saying about him. And then when they realized what one of them had done, they laughed even harder. LMAO. Crap. Why did you add him? That¡¯s messed up. Dude, he¡¯s still here! Oh my God. Get him out! Those were the final words before he was kicked out again. He never went back to that lunch table. For a while, he ate lunch in the bathroom, but some boys found him there too, and thought it was weird so they made him stop. So now he didn''t eat lunch at all. He simply stayed in class during lunchtime and didn''t bring out his food because he had an irrational fear that someone would have a problem with it and kick him out. Sometimes his stomach cramped from hunger while he sat but he always ignored it. He could eat at home. Anyway, that was his first, disastrous group chat experience. But here, life had offered him a second chance with Lexie, his seatmate and friend. And this time he wasn''t assuming anything because she''d even said it herself that they were friends! Lexie knew how weird he was, but she still wanted to be his friend anyway. He couldn''t mess this up by saying the wrong thing. He had to think hard so he could say the right thing so Lexie wouldn''t kick him out of the groupchat, and her life, forever. It should be fine. He spoke to himself to calm his rattling heartbeat. Lexie said she liked him. He¡¯d once read a book that said if people liked you, they were nicer to you and they would even let you mess up sometimes. And if they loved you, they let you mess up even more times. Lexie said she didn¡¯t love him but she did like him just fine. So maybe she would be okay with whatever he said. Or maybe she would just tell him when he''d said the wrong thing instead of icing him out. No. He couldn''t risk it. He couldn''t screw this up. He chewed his fingernail and then when he realized he was doing it, he ripped his fingers out of his mouth. Jagged fingernails were a big no-no in this household. His mom thought they looked ugly and whatever she said went. The tension throbbed in the silence. Dewie''s thoughts turned even more panicked. When Lexie said they were friends, did she mean it? What if she just said it in the heat of the moment, but then when she went home she realized how strange he was? What if she regretted giving him her number? Or maybe Xena would tell her not to talk to him anymore and she would stop being his friend? What if he said the wrong thing again? So Dewie waited, staring at the blinking cursor. Lexie had sent a ¡®hello¡¯ to the group chat and Xena had sent a middle finger. It was Dewie¡¯s turn to send something. He didn¡¯t know what. ¡°Dewie!¡± His door flew open and his sister stood there, eyeing him with that annoyed look she usually had. ¡°No!¡± Dewie instantly bolted out of bed. ¡°Not now.¡± He needed all his concentration for this text and didn''t have time to deal with her right now. But his reaction only made her more curious. ¡°Why? What are you doing?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± he said but she saw that he had a pad out to chat. He used a typing pad for texts because typing holographically gave him a headache. ¡°Who are you talking to?¡± A mischievous smile crossed her face and she headed for the pad on the bed, but luckily he dove and grabbed it before she could, and then made a run for it. He ran down the hallways of the Victorian house, lined with multiple elaborate paintings that meant nothing, and then finally ended up in the pantry, underneath the staircase. This was his second favorite room in the house. It was quiet, the sound muffled by bags of potatoes surrounding them. It was small. And most importantly, the door could lock from the inside. Even if it couldn¡¯t, Veronica wouldn¡¯t come looking for him here. She hated small spaces. He refocused on the texts wondering what to say. Were they waiting for him? Would they eventually get tired and kick him out? He had to think fast and say the right thing. While he waited, something perched on the ledge of the tiny window. A bird. It looked like a crow. He couldn¡¯t tell if it was the type that other people could see or only he could see it. He spent a few seconds wondering and then the next few seconds wishing he didn''t have to wonder. He wished he didn¡¯t see those things. Or at least he wished he could pretend he didn''t see them, so people wouldn¡¯t call him weird and a liar, and try to beat him up in the school courtyard. He stared at it for a long time and then stared back at the pad, his heart beating like a hummingbird. Then, he sent a single, ¡°Hi¡±. Almost instantly he regretted it. It was too little. Too much. It sounded rude and wrong. He was in the process of deleting the message when a ding interrupted. He bit his lips hard, from the anxiety. It was Lexie responding. Lexie: Dewie! Welcome to the association! He grinned. His heart felt like a bird that had finally taken flight, soaring and filling his body with electric heat. Happiness tightened and eased his muscles at the same time. He typed out a quick response. Keep it polite and interesting, Dewie. Thank you. Do you know some crows can draw water into cups even without opposable thumbs and can use said liquid to soften their meals so they don¡¯t choke on them and die? There was a moment of silence after he sent it, where Dewie was suddenly afraid that he¡¯d said the wrong thing again. Maybe it was too morbid. Too random. Or not educated enough. Maybe he was wrong about crows. His stomach tightened. His hands shook. He was terrified he was going to get kicked out. And then a ding came again. This time it was Xena who responded. Xena: What do you know? Crows are smarter than the average grade-schooler. Dewie laughed at that. Lexie sent a laughing face and Dewie sent one too. It was a joke. A joke that wasn¡¯t directed at him! Xena and Lexie were laughing with him, not at him. How amazing! The screaming upstairs continued. His sister eventually banged on the door, wanting to know what he was doing, her piercing voice adding to the cacophony. But Dewie no longer cared. He was happily engrossed in the group chat.
The group chat name went through several iterations. At a point, it was decided that the word ''association'' felt too formal and reminiscent of the hero association which Xena immediately had a problem with. So then Dewie suggested they call themselves the Brotherhood instead. According to him, Brotherhood was the most popular title for young informal groups of friends. Xena was the first one to protest. Xena: Yeah, but we¡¯re two girls. Dewie: And I¡¯m a boy. Xena: We outnumber you. If anything, we should be a Sisterhood. Dewie: How can we be a sisterhood if I¡¯m a boy? Lexie: An honorary sisterhood. That way you can be an honorary sister. Dewie thought about it for a second. Dewie: That sounds good to me. And so for another few days, they were the Honorary Sisterhood of the Dead Mothers. But then they realized that the acronym HSDM didn''t have the same ring as ADM had. Lexie: It has to be three initials. That¡¯s the thing that gives ADM its banging catchiness. Xena: What¡¯s a word for association that isn''t association? Dewie: Organization? Consortium? Syndicate? Xena: Ew. All those sound worse. Lexie: How about Affiliation or Alliance? That way we would still be ADM. Xena: Alliance is cool. Dewie: Fine by me too. Lexie: Alliance it is! Lexie: Guys, I change my mind about the alliance. I just looked it up. There''s apparently a Villain Alliance? This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Xena: Oh, yeah I forgot about that. Still, it should be fine. Your dad¡¯s a [Villain]. Lexie: Not anymore! Xena: Yeah but I mean that, even though he was a [Villain], he¡¯s still a cool dude. Lexie: Interesting. Because when we met, you insinuated that he must have done something heinous to end up with his punishment. Xena: Yeah but that was before I really knew him. I was wrong. He probably didn¡¯t do anything too bad, or they would have tossed him in Vigo. He probably just did something that pissed off the association. Lexie: Yeah that¡¯s what I think also. However, the people who tried to bomb our school were [Villains] too and they were definitely not cool dudes. They were assholes. Therefore, we can¡¯t use Alliance. Affiliation? Dewie: Affiliation can sometimes indicate political attachment. Lexie: What do we think guys? Are we politically attached to having dead mothers? What¡¯s our motto? Our manifesto? What rights are we fighting for? Dewie: The right to kill moms? Lexie: Dewie! Xena: That¡¯s messed up dude! Too far! Dewie: Sorry! (Panicked crying face) Lexie: It¡¯s fine. We¡¯re messing with you. I guess affiliation is out then. Xena: How about we call ourselves the Dead Mother¡¯s Union? Simple. To the point. Lexie: Hmm. DMU. I¡¯m thinking¡­ Xena: What¡¯s there to think about? It¡¯s a good name. Right, Dewie? Dewie: I¡¯m not picky. I¡¯m fine with whatever. Lexie: Dewie! Don''t let her bully you into agreement. Resist her infernal bossiness and only make a choice you believe in. Xena: Me infernal? You¡¯re the one who almost ripped his sister¡¯s hair out when she called your dad evil. Lexie: I did not! Xena: But you wanted to. I saw it in your eyes. Lexie: No. If I wanted to mess with Veronica, I wouldn¡¯t rip her hair out. Instead, I would tell Diane that Veronica called her fat which would make them fight and then I would sit by Veronica and try to comfort her. Except while I do that, I would also use this potion I found on the NET to dye the tips of her hair green. It''s a slow-acting potion and it will very slowly bleed up into the roots in her sleep. By the time she realizes what¡¯s happening, it will be too late to do anything and she''ll have to chop it all up. And I would get away with it too because she would think that Diane did it. Dewie:... Xena: That is the most evil thing I¡¯ve ever heard anyone say. Maybe we should be an Alliance after all and you should be our leader. Lexie: Oh come on, I was just saying. I wouldn''t actually do it. Xena: You sure about that? That sounded way too detailed for you to have just thought about it on the fly. Dewie: I agree. Xena: See, even Dewie agrees. Veronica had a point about you following in your dad¡¯s villainous footsteps. Lexie: Screw you Xena (middle finger) Xena: Wow, Lexie. You kiss your mother with that mouth? Lexie: I can¡¯t, asshole. She¡¯s dead.
Lexie wasn''t sure what to expect by the time she got back to school the next month. She felt more prepared academically than she''d felt in a while. But she wondered if she would have memories of the blast or lingering effects of PTSD. As she walked into the classroom she steeled herself for whatever she might feel. The last time she was here, she was in severe pain that only the strongest endorphins could hold back and the entire room looked like a disaster. But today it looked normal. Everything looked the same and her desk was even back where they left it. And she didn''t feel panicky looking at it so that was good. Everything was the same. Well, not everything. A few things had changed. For example, Xena and Dewie were barely her friends before. Now they¡¯d spent nearly the whole month arguing about their group chat name. ¡°Lexie!¡± Doyle said as she walked in. ¡°I need your help!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t bet on the Ink Witch.¡± Lexie already knew what he was going to ask. ¡°Her powers are weak against mech and Mundane is on a power trip.¡± ¡°Ha. I knew it!¡± ¡°No, you didn¡¯t,¡± Chris snorted. "Yeah, you said the exact opposite of what Lexie said," Abernathy concurred with a smirk. Lexie shook her head and then spotted Dewie who was sitting erect in his chair, staring at her oddly. She waved at him and he offered her a smile and enthusiastic wave in return. ¡°Hey, guys.¡± Bennie walked in right after Lexie did. ¡°Did you hear there was a bomb?¡± ¡°No, Bennie,¡± Abernathy responded. ¡°Because none of us read the bajillion messages they sent telling us about the bomb. Not to mention all the news reports on it.¡± ¡°Yeah, me either.¡± Sarcasm bounced off Bennie like he was inflatable. ¡°I only know because I overheard the teachers talking about us doing bomb drills.¡± ¡°Ugh I forgot about that,¡± Diane said. She was sitting beside Veronica today and they were both watching something on her pad. Veronica hadn''t looked up when Lexie walked in, but Lexie knew she was aware of her. ¡°This was the wrong day to wear this skirt," Diane continued "They¡¯re probably going to make us lie on the ground and roll around like soldiers and I¡¯ll get dirt on my goosefeathers.¡± ¡°Maybe they¡¯ll teach us how to shoot," Bennie said, excitement gleaming in his eyes. ¡°Why would we need to know how to shoot in a bomb drill?¡± Abernathy asked. ¡°So if someone throws a bomb at us, we can shoot it and detonate it before it reaches us." ¡°That only happens in movies and only if you¡¯re accurate enough. Or you had a scope and a bullet that was like a heat-seeking missile that would automatically target and destroy the bomb. It would also have to be faster than the trajectory of the bomb for that to work. But where would you find something like that?¡± Lexie was pretty sure Uncle Max had at least one of those lying around but she stayed quiet as she took her seat by Dewie. Who promptly announced to the entire class, ¡°Lexie got hit by the bomb.¡± The squabbling immediately ceased and Lexie felt the pressure of about half a dozen stares. She blushed. ¡°You got hit by a bomb?¡± Abernathy repeated. ¡°No,¡± she said. ¡°Technically, I only got hit by the resulting blast. I was sitting by the window that was in the blast radius and that¡¯s the only reason.¡± ¡°Did you get hurt?¡± ¡°Yeah but not badly.¡± ¡°Damn.¡± Bennie shook his head. ¡°First you fell in a ditch, and now you¡¯re getting bombed. Sounds like someone¡¯s trying to take you out. Do you have any enemies, Lexie?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°You sure?¡± He came over, planted his hands on her desk and leaned in so far that Lexie reared back. ¡°Might not be someone recent. Maybe it¡¯s someone from back in the day before you lost your memory and they''re still holding a grudge.¡± ¡°Crows can hold grudges for a lifetime,¡± Dewie said. ¡°And they can pass on those grudges to their descendants too.¡± ¡°Good point Dewie. Did you piss off any crows, Lexie?¡± ¡°Leave her alone. She probably just has some seriously bad luck,¡± Abernathy said. ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Lexie responded wryly and sent Abernathy a grateful look when Bennie backed off. ¡°Also thanks for not letting me get caught napping the other day. I appreciate it.¡± Abernathy''s cheeks turned a little pink. ¡°No problem. We¡¯ve all been there. "How come you never covered for me when I slept?¡± Doyle frowned. ¡°That¡¯s because you snore like a freight. I would need to fake a moon landing to drown it out.¡± Xena finally showed up right as the bell went off, walking in after the teacher. Lexie waved and Xena gave a greeting with her chin as she took her seat. Lexie didn¡¯t know exactly what to make of that and she didn¡¯t have a chance to ask because the lesson immediately started. Of course, Mrs. P began the class by trying to calm everyone''s fears about there being another possible bombing (although in Bennie¡¯s case, it was more excitement than fear) and then they went into District 5 History. Luckily, Lexie had read ahead for that class so this was just a refresher for her, and she spent most of the time with subconscious mana shaping exercises as it went. Xena oddly disappeared again during lunchtime, and Lexie ate with Dewie, who told her more crow facts and also told her that he thought the wart girl was going to be sick at some point. "You sure about that?" Lexie asked. He shrugged. "I''m not sure. It''s the first time I''ve seen warts so I don''t know what it means yet. But the stuff I see...it''s usually nothing good." Lexie nodded. Lexie figured that each creature or image Dewie saw meant something significant, but they didn''t know what it meant. So she proposed that they have a notebook where Dewie would track all the things he saw and the effects. For example, they were pretty sure that gnomes meant trouble on a sliding scale. He''d said that he''d seen gnomes on the day she and Xena crashed his mother''s party, but that gnome had a white hat on which meant minor mischief. The gnome he''d seen on Lexie''s seat had a red hat, which probably meant disaster-level trouble. Of course, this was only a theory with n=2, but Lexie was sure that, with enough evidence, she would be able to have it down to a formula. Lexie didn''t know where Dewie''s strange power came from. He wasn''t pre-awakened or anything so it wasn''t like it was magic. Perhaps he was simply more sensitive to premonitions than most, the same way some people back on her earth had extra-sharp senses and even ESP. Maybe it was just Dewie''s peculiarity. At least, that''s what Aiden figured when she told him about it. In any case, she''d read more about tarot cards but also found that they wouldn''t help Dewie in this situation. They could only be used by awakened or pre-awakened individuals who had scored high on perception (one of the measures under intelligence). There was also a formula to them that one had to study before they could use them properly. So for now, Lexie convinced Dewie they should simply observe and take notes. Once they knew exactly what his sights meant then they could figure out a way to warn people. Lexie thought that, when she finally started crafting, she could make cards for Dewie so he could properly translate his sights to the victim. They would act like Tarot cards but specifically for him. Dewie didn''t entirely like the plan of staying quiet and observing for now. He still felt duty-bound to tell people what he saw, but ultimately Lexie convinced him that no one would believe him if he kept on like he was doing. It was all about the delivery and they needed to find a way to deliver the news convincingly. Eventually, he understood. After lunch, class resumed again, and Xena was back. They still didn''t speak much and Lexie was almost concerned that the other girl was avoiding them. But it wasn¡¯t until the end of school that Lexie finally managed to catch up to Xena and figure out what she was up to. There were multiple bathrooms at Everstone. Most of them were in the main building and one of them was in a small outhouse by the groundskeeper''s cottage, where they kept a bunch of gardening equipment. Very few people use that bathroom by the garden because it was close to where the custodian lived and so most people assumed that it was for staff. The only reason Lexie even went there was because she¡¯d realized belatedly that she had to pee and she didn''t want to go back into the main building. So she rushed into the shed housing the bathroom, only to find that she wasn''t alone. Xena was there. And she had changed out of her school clothes, into a black leather jacket and her signature boots. She was slouched against the wall, a look of careless indifference on her side turned face, as she slung her hair over her shoulder. The most damning thing was a PHORB hanging in the air in front of her. She snapped and a picture was taken. She adjusted her pose and did it again. Shock slammed into Lexie. Oh my God. Never in a million years did I imagine this is what she was sneaking off to do. Lexie was stunned silent watching the whole thing, until Xena finally adjusted her pose in a way where she caught sight of Lexie. Her face paled, and she stiffened. Her jaw dropped. "Please tell me you didn¡¯t see that whole thing,¡± Xena said in a hushed horrified tone. ¡°Because if you do, I¡¯m going to combust." ¡°I didn''t see it,¡± Lexie said, but her snort gave it away. Xena spun around her face aflame. She seemed to want to bury her face in the wall, unable to look at Lexie. And Lexie took no mercy on her. "Oh my God." She giggled as a realization hit her. "This is why you were still in school on the day of the explosion! This is what you were doing!" "No! You ruined everything! What are you even doing here?" "What are you doing? You taking those for social media?" Lexie thought she would deny it, at which point she was going to tease her endlessly until she died of the cringe. But to her surprise, Xena spun around, crossed her arms over her chest, and said, "Yeah, and what about it?" To punctuate, she stuck her chin in the air. "Nothing." Lexie shrugged. "It¡¯s just¡­ I never thought you would put yourself out there like that. But it''s pretty cool that you¡¯re indulging in hobbies." Lexie¡¯s hobbies were mostly studying and watching Video Alley and that was kinda boring compared to what Xena was doing. "I''m just surprised because I thought you were a very private person." "My face isn¡¯t in any of the photos," she said a tad defensively. "No, it''s cool even if it is. Xena, I''m serious. This is fine. Better than fine actually." Okay, maybe I should stop talking. "Do you post it online?" Xena kept eyeing her as though she were waiting for Lexie to start mocking her. And when it wasn''t coming, she finally said, "Yeah. It''s on a site to showcase fashion and so I take pictures of what I wear. Some people like to see that." "Oh. That¡¯s cool." Like Pinterest. That made sense. Lexie had to admit that Xena was very stylish. Probably because she was so tall and well-proportioned, she made everything she wore look effortlessly cooler. She also had that careless goth girl thing going for her. But also, she was ten. Were ten year-olds supposed to have active social media accounts? Lexie didn¡¯t know because she didn''t¡¯ have one until Mickie made one for her at the ripe age of fifteen. "Why are you taking pictures here?¡± The shed wasn''t necessarily the best-lit place and it was full of gardening tools and cleaning supplies. Xena glanced around. "It¡¯s so rustic and cool. My house doesn''t have the same vibe and neither does any of the other bathrooms. I used to take pictures at the cathedral but then they fixed the broken gate so now I can''t sneak in anymore." "Bummer." That also answered the question about how Xena knew about the cathedral gate in the first place. Despite Lexie¡¯s assurances, she got the feeling that Xena wasn¡¯t trying to share this part of herself yet, so Lexie figured she should change the subject. ¡°Anyway," she said. "I was just looking for you because I forgot to rub that last Conrad match in your face in person. He lost badly.¡± Xena scowled for real this time. "Because of a technicality. Kane cheated. He trapped him and would have killed him if the ref hadn''t intervened." "No, Conrad lost his balance. He was winning before that. He needs to learn how to control his emotions and take things more seriously, or he¡¯s going to keep losing to weaker opponents.¡± Lexie thought Xena would argue but she sighed."Yeah. You''re right. But it¡¯s because he¡¯s a Berserker-type fighter. It¡¯s the only downside of the fighting style.¡± ¡°Yeah I get that, but he needs to get a handle on it. Because Kane is now going around doing interviews bragging about how easy it was to take him down and how he¡¯s now technically number two in the league." ¡°Ugh, I hate that kid.¡± Lexie raised an eyebrow. ¡°He¡¯s a mundane. I thought you liked mundane people.¡± "Not rich assholes like that one. And because of him, Conrad could lose sponsorships. Losing to Top Dog was understandable. Losing to Kane? That could be career-ending." Lexie was quiet because it was true. If Conrad didn¡¯t win his next few matches to prove that the Kane thing was a fluke, he would definitely be getting dropped by the sponsors for the humiliating defeat. He might already be. The only problem was that his next match was an exhibition match with Mr. Amazing from the adult league and the one after that was a strong opponent too. "We should send him a letter of support," Lexie suggested. "Tell him we still believe in him. He''s probably having a bad time right about now and he''s getting in his head about the next match. So he''ll probably want to know that someone out there thinks he can win." Xena made a face. "Yeah, but I would sound like such a fangirl doing that." "But you are a fangirl. Be proud of it." Xena shook her head. "Oh come on, you know you want to. I''ll even help you write it. And I''ll keep your whole picture-taking secret too. Under one condition." "What?" Xena eyed her warily. Lexie grinned. "We change our group chat name back to the Association of Dead Mothers. Xena narrowed her eyes. ¡°I always knew you were evil.¡± 38 - Dungeon Disaster Drills and Library Trolls It seemed elementary schools weren¡¯t the only ones interested in disaster preparation drills. Aiden and Luke also prepared a similar seminar for the Hovelton inhabitants, but this one was on dungeon emergencies and what to do when an unstable dungeon spawned near you. The seminar was held in the Green Fox Village retirement home because it was the only place that had a conference hall big enough to hold over two hundred people. It wasn¡¯t always that big, according to Luke. It had been a lot smaller, but then one of the retirees, the father of a famous Arcadian actor, personally funded the expansion of the conference hall, so that they could host a big bingo night for all the elders in town every month. Lexie stepped into the hall that had soft lighting from large windows overlooking a rose garden and greenhouse. The hall itself was far away from the retirement home apartments and right beside the woods to enhance the cozy and immersive Sylvan vibe. Wooden panels creaked underneath their feet as they walked, and the room felt slightly stuffy with wooden round tables scattered about, vintage decors, and interesting dog paintings lining the wall. It also smelt like mint tea and camphor but it wasn''t a wholly unpleasant scent. When Lexie and Aiden arrived, there were already about fifty people in there, mostly senior citizens except Rose, Evan, Emma, Xena, and a few other nurses from the Healing House. Even though the town was small, Lexie knew it wasn''t that small. Fifty people meant that a lot of people didn''t show up, either because they didn''t care about the situation, or because it was Aiden giving the presentation. If it was the former, then Lexie thought the people of Hovelton were severely underestimating the power of an unstable dungeon. Perhaps because none of them had had to battle a dungeon beast before and no one had died yet from the increased occurrence in Hovelton. Nothing too bad had happened because Max and Aiden kept stopping the dungeons from spawning. And ironically, that seemed to have lulled the townspeople into a false sense of security, where they felt like there was no true danger and this meeting was going to be a waste of their time. Lexie suddenly recalled what Theo Firebringer said about true hero work being preventative and hence invisible. She finally understood what he meant. She also felt bad for her dad, because the people here who weren''t very acquainted with him, eyed him with either suspicion or a distinct lack of enthusiasm on their faces. Aiden didn¡¯t look like he minded much though. Probably because he was used to it. On the contrary, he looked semi-excited to be giving a presentation, even if it was only to a small fraction of people. He was even wearing a tweed suit with patched elbows that looked like what her dad used to wear to lecture at his college. She wondered if Aiden had made the extra effort to dress up because he was happy to be teaching again. Lexie figured that was the case because she knew how much he enjoyed teaching her. According to Aiden, the dungeon disaster lessons thing was Luke¡¯s idea. The mayor figured since they could no longer deny the abnormally increased occurrence of unstable dungeons, then they might as well advise the citizens on what to do. Of course, Max was supposed to lead the discussion, but on the day of, he was nowhere to be found. ¡°It¡¯s my fault,¡± Luke muttered as Aiden met him standing at the side of the room. ¡°For actually believing him when he said he would be here.¡± Aiden nodded. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ve always preferred solo presentations anyway.¡± That didn''t mollify Luke but Aiden and Lexie went to take their seat anyway, at the far right of the room with Emma and Xena on their left and Rose on their right. Lexie and Xena didn¡¯t make eye contact. Apparently, Xena hadn¡¯t yet broken it to Emma that they were friends, because she didn¡¯t want Emma to gloat, so basically they had to still pretend to hate each other in public. Lexie didn''t get it, but she was starting to accept Xena''s peculiarities. Aiden checked his watch, waited for a few more minutes for people to arrive, then he cleared his throat and stood. He went to the front of the room, folding his hands in front of himself and giving everyone a welcoming smile. ¡°Hello everyone,¡± he started. ¡°Thank you for coming here today.¡± ¡°Not like we had much of a choice,¡± an old man with a shock of white hair grumbled. ¡°They said they would cancel bingo for the month if we didn¡¯t come. Practically held a gun to our heads.¡± Aiden shared a look with Luke who shrugged. Lexie guessed that the mayor pulled some strings with the retirement home managers to get that concession, in order to encourage more of the elderly to attend. And they still only managed to get less than fifty of them. ¡°Sorry about that," Aiden said politely. "But this is truly an important discussion to have. To make up for the inconvenience, I¡¯ve also taken the liberty to prepare some cookies for the evening. Oatmeal raisin and snickerdoodles, recipe from the baking queen herself." Aiden had had Emma bring in the cookies earlier since he''d known he would be arriving a little late. "They''re at the back and there are a lot of them since we seem to have overestimated the amount of attendants today. Please, take as many as you like.¡± A few of the nurses stood and shuffled over to take the cookies. None of the senior citizens moved. Probably waiting to see if it''s poisoned. Lexie truly hated the distrust they had for Aiden but if she thought about it rationally, she couldn¡¯t blame them. They probably didn¡¯t know him as well as she and Emma and all the other nurses did. All the elderly knew about him was the bands on his neck and wrists, which he¡¯d tried to cover up somewhat with a long-sleeved button-up shirt. Aiden continued speaking in a pleasant but serious tone. "As you all must have heard by now there¡¯s an increased occurrence of unstable dungeons in the region. We don¡¯t know why that¡¯s happening¨C¡± ¡°I heard it was the aliens.¡± The old man who spoke up first crossed his arms over his chest. ¡°Probably those Fae bastards trying to be our alien overlords again.¡± ¡°Man, that¡¯s horseshit,¡± another darker-skinned man countered. He was broad-shouldered and jolly-faced, wearing a fisherman¡¯s hat, cargo shorts, and duck-patterned socks halfway up his calves. ¡°They got everything but a god on that thrice-damned planet of theirs. What the hell would they need earth for?¡± ¡°Could be the Orcs.¡± A woman who was knitting furiously pointed out. Her fingers continued knitting as she spoke. ¡°My granddaughter tells me that she saw a video of orc spaceships circling the earth looking for a point of entry that would bypass human watch.¡± ¡°My grandson told me the same thing!" The first man called out. "The Orcs and the Knife-ears are scheming against us!¡± ¡°That¡¯s just a conspiracy theory,¡± Emma said a little loudly to be heard over the din. ¡°And it has nothing to do with the presentation today. Aiden is going to teach us about Dungeons.¡± ¡°Precisely,¡± Aiden sent Emma a grateful look but before he could say anything else the first guy interrupted again. ¡°Earth is the greatest planet in the bi-solar system, I tell you.¡± He gestured around, searching wildly for validation. ¡°That''s why all those aliens want a piece of us. But we will resist invasion with our lives if need be and we will not negotiate with extraterrestrial terrorists!¡± ¡°No one is terrorizing you, Frank.¡± Annoyance crept into Emma¡¯s voice. ¡°And no one is invading Earth either." ¡°Certainly not the Fae,¡± a quieter well-dressed older man in a double-breasted brown suit said. He adjusted his glasses. ¡°They don¡¯t need to. They¡¯ve already taken over.¡± There was a host of murmurs ricocheting at that statement and the man continued, ¡°They created our System, so they probably have back doors everywhere. They collaborate with all the important systems [Roles], our military and even our government. What else is there to dominate?¡± ¡°Our human spirit,¡± Frank said. ¡°The Fae have no soul.¡± ¡°Racist ass," someone muttered from the back. Lexie was surprised to find that it was the woman with the purple eyebrows who¡¯d given her the slab of meat that other time. She frowned at Aiden. ¡°How long is this gonna take? The girls and I have mahjong in the evening.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± This raspy declaration came from a man in a straw hat committing the most aggressive case of man-spreading Lexie had ever seen. ¡°And I gotta get back to the farm.¡± ¡°It will only take an hour, Mr. Lochlan. Sooner if you kind folk will let me get my point across.¡± Aiden must have had the patience of a saint because he sounded more amused than annoyed by their constant distraction. Lochlan turned to the other people who were still murmuring among themselves about Fae backdoors and orc spaceships and snapped,¡°You heard the man. Quit your yapping so we can get this over with.¡± There was a brief second of silence, which told Lexie that this Lochlan guy¡¯s words carried a lot of weight in this town. Everyone in the room seemed just a little scared of him, and they didn¡¯t seem to afford that same fear to the literal ex-[Villain] standing right in front of them. Sure, maybe some of them were apprehensive of Aiden when he walked in, but now they just faced him with the annoyed hostility of children who were forced to do homework before watching their favorite cartoons. ¡°Thank you,¡± Aiden said. ¡°Anyway, as I was saying, unstable dungeons are cropping up more frequently than before, and though Max and I are trying to get rid of them before they spawn, there might come a day when we won''t be able to. Therefore, we need everyone to learn proper dungeon disaster management. The first thing to know is that if an unstable dungeon spawns, the system will sometimes give an alert. Not all the time, as occasionally the system does not detect unstable dungeons. But at least fifty percent of the time it will. Everything within a mile radius should immediately evacuate. Now if you¡¯re close when it spawns, you might get sucked into the orbit and so you have to lay low and crawl on the ground to maintain your balance. And since UD¡¯s typically spit out monsters, we would also like to teach you some basic monster defense¨C¡± A woman in the back snorted. ¡°Imagine us trying to fight dungeon creatures. Gertrude fending off a troll with her walker¨C¡± Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°At least I¡¯d be able to get away quick enough without gasping for air, mouth breather.¡± ¡°Yeah Amy, unless you can get it with your C-PAP machine.¡± Another woman cackled as Amy glared. ¡°The Fae didn''t give us real magic for a reason,¡± Frank said, clearly not done with the topic. ¡°And it''s because they¡¯re scared of us. They know with our human spirit, we would become stronger than them and we would soon be their alien overlords!¡± ¡°How are the kids the only well-behaved ones here?¡± Emma muttered and Lexie grinned. The rest of the meeting went very much like the beginning. Aiden would barely manage to get two sentences out and then the conversation would get derailed by talk of Fae, or Orcs or just random insults flung between the elders. It got to a point where Luke finally snapped and said no one was allowed to mention anything about aliens again. Meanwhile, Lexie noticed that Evan was starting to get fussy in his mother¡¯s arms and was whining, so she decided to distract him by activating the card. Rose gave her a grateful look which Lexie smiled politely at. Things were still a little awkward between them after the hospital fiasco. Even though Rose apologized, Lexie could admit that she still held the tiniest bit of a grudge against her. At the same time though she couldn¡¯t really hold it against her, because Rose was genuinely out of her mind with fear for her son when she said all those awful things to Aiden. So Lexie couldn''t hate her. But she couldn''t like her either. Hence the awkwardness. Evan watched the frog flip over again and again and clapped his hands in delight while Luke and Aiden tried to get the room under control again. Evan kept trying to grab the frog but his hand kept passing right through. Lexie wondered if there was a way to make the frog more solid. Pushing more mana into her pathway did make it jump higher but didn¡¯t make it denser. Hmm. Maybe it was time to do some experiments with¡­Froggy? No, Froggy was a stupid name. How about Sir Toadword Hoppington? By the end of the allotted hour, Aiden only managed to get across maybe half of his presentation. Which meant that they would have to do this again, next week. That brought about groans of protest but Luke was pitiless. ¡°Well if you all wanted to get it over and done with, you should have just paid attention in the first place," he said coolly. "Same time next week. Or else.¡± They all acquiesced but not without grumbling about the mayor on their way out. ¡°Gosh-darned Mayor. Who elected him anyway?¡± ¡°I bet he¡¯s an agent installed by the fae,¡± Frank muttered as he walked. ¡°That¡¯s why he got all pissy when I talked about them.¡± ¡°Yeah. And he took away bingo night and brought a criminal here to lecture us.¡± Lexie subtly glared at the woman who¡¯d made the last remark but the older woman didn¡¯t look her way as she shuffled out of the room with her group. Then again, Lexie doubted the woman could see much even with the huge readers she had on. Neither Luke nor Aiden seemed offended by any of the insults from the group, even though they undoubtedly heard them. If anything, Aiden appeared amused and Luke just seemed annoyed in general, rubbing his forehead in circles. ¡°They¡¯re worse than grade schoolers," he said. ¡°Can confirm,¡± Lexie said. Aiden shrugged. ¡°It wasn''t as bad as I thought it would be, frankly. At least they seemed suitably engaged in the discussion.¡± ¡°They were engaged in making a mockery of everything.¡± Luke gave him a look that reminded Lexie of Max. ¡°Still. That¡¯s something. They say denial is the first step to acceptance.¡± Aiden patted Luke¡¯s shoulder comfortingly. ¡°We¡¯ll call this meeting a partial success.¡±
Later that week, Lexie received a stroke of good luck and finally found a book that could potentially help her get started on learning crafting. And she found it by accident too. She was watching a video where a girl used different card activation techniques¨Cdelayed activation, and stuttered activation¨Cto vary the card activity without manipulating pathways. She wasn¡¯t explaining very well how she was doing it, but while scrolling down the comments, Lexie came across a link for someone who said they had a book that could help. The link disappeared after about a minute, either deleted by the person who wrote it or by the owner of the video, but not before Lexie had taken it down. She went to the address of the link and it led her to a chatbox with someone who called themselves The Library Troll. Um hello? she typed. LibraryTroll: Hello! Library Troll is here for all your knowledge needs. Tell me what you want. And do it quickly, only online for 3 minutes. Why? Lexie wanted to ask but she didn''t want to waste time. This whole thing seemed sketchy but she was too curious to back out now. Lexie: You said you had a book that could help learn more about card pathways? LibraryTroll: Yes. Mathematics and Mechanics of Modern Card Pathways. You want it? Lexie: Sure. She thought for a second and then added. Lexie: Do you also have a book about card crafting? LibraryTroll: Jameson Crafting Manual 2nd Edition. Do you want too? Lexie: Yes. LibraryTroll: First Book, 500 credits. Last book 1500 credits. Lexie''s eyes bugged out. She didn''t expect them to be that expensive. From her experience, most books on the system were about 200 or fewer credits. But Troll didn''t seem to appreciate her shock. LibraryTroll: You buy or not? Quickly. Lexie had a second to think about it. She definitely wanted the books but she didn''t have the money for both of them. She had enough for the first book, thanks to her betting and saving, but definitely not the second. But she really wanted the second book. Lexie: Can I get the first one and put the second on hold? LibraryTroll: No hold. Lexie sighed as her heart sank. But she had to try again. Lexie: Please? I''ll do anything. Lexie almost regretted typing the last sentence but it was true. She was desperate. LibraryTroll: Will hold for three weeks for 2,000 credits. Shit. That was a 500-credit increase on a probably already overpriced book. She was getting fleeced! But she didn''t have a choice she already knew. And it occurred to her distantly that this was probably who Uncle Max was referring to when he spoke about a greedy troll in the basement trying to charge him 1000 credits for a book. Lexie thought he was referring to an actual internet troll, not a literal one. LibraryTroll: You buy or not? Quickly. Lexie sighed. Lexie: I''ll buy. LibraryTroll: Disconnecting Now. Send half payment to this number. Complete upon receipt. Go to post office for further instructions. Thank you for your purchase. Lexie blinked at the words that appeared rapidly on her screen before LibraryTroll disconnected. It also warned her that the page would autodelete in 30 seconds so she needed to get the number down. Lexie scrambled to record the number just as the page disappeared in front of her, taking her back to her usual system screen. What on Earth was that? It was so bizarre. She stared at the number. Should she send the money? Could she believe it was real? It was all so very sketchy though and she didn''t know whether to trust it. Then again, they probably had to be sketchy given that they were distributing advanced books to people without a scholar ID. How were they doing that? Was that part of the Undernet Xena spoke about? She looked up LibraryTroll and found nothing about it on the NET. Which made her extra sketched out. Her sense of self-preservation battled with her curiosity. To do or not to do? Lexie was tempted to text her Uncle Max and ask him about it, but then maybe he would stop her from what she was about to do. Or tell her Dad. She took a breath and sighed. She needed to be sure about this. It said for her to visit the post office for further instructions but which one? There was a single post office in Hovelton but it wasn''t in use anymore, since most people delivered things by the system, except for larger packages. But maybe distributing via the system made it more likely they would get caught, so Troll used a physical system instead. But why didn''t he at least specify which post office? She sighed and considered it again. If she was being taken for a ride, should she risk the 250? Would she regret it if she wasted that kind of money and found out that it was all a ruse? Yeah, but if she didn''t at least try and she missed this opportunity, she would hate herself even more. So ultimately Lexie decided to give it a try. She sent the money to the account number hoping that she wasn''t being scammed. A few minutes later, she got a message from an unknown number for her to visit the post office and use the code C26794B on box 8. Lexie did it the next day, bright and early after Aiden went to the hospital. She had also texted her Uncle Max that morning, telling him that she''d heard something about a friend who used Library Troll and wanted to know if they were bad, or actual trolls. They''re greedy bastards is what they are, had been Uncle Max''s response. Which told her they were probably not too dangerous. The post office was a single unmanned building with cobwebs lining the entryway and no one behind an eerily still counter. She had a moment where she hesitated, thinking maybe this was dangerous. But it probably wasn¡¯t correct, since her Uncle Max used them all the time probably. Also the system wouldn¡¯t have let her contact him if it was dangerous. Right? Speaking of which, how did LibraryTroll manage to bypass the system checks to even chat with her in the first place? Did the system not know that it was illegally trading books? ¡°I am never doing this again,¡± Lexie told herself. Or at the very least, she should have come with security or something. This felt really dangerous. But she¡¯d already come this far. She couldn¡¯t go home empty-handed. She activated , then quickly picked her way through and went to the box, typing in the code. It opened to reveal the book. Instantly, she got a text that said Complete payment before leaving or else. That sounded ominous. She glanced around searching to see if anyone was watching her but no one was. There was no one here. Well, no one except LibraryTroll apparently. Oh well, better not to risk it. She sent the rest of the payment, took the book, and left. But despite how sketchy the whole thing was, Lexie later thought that it was one of the better things she''d ever done. She uploaded the book to her inventory and immediately began reading it on her pad. It was quite thick and used a lot of terminology and formulas she didn¡¯t understand. To save time, she decided to skip the things she didn''t comprehend yet and follow the images until she found something at her level. She soon found a chapter written by the lead developer of a nail artist''s deck and the research detailed the woman¡¯s development of the deck and how she used the deck to train young mages about pathways. Lexie read through, noting the woman''s calculations on the changing pathways of a certain deck and how she used different ''stops'' on a single pathway to enact different effects; basically to change the color of the nail polish that the card gave. Lexie had a feeling that these stops were related to the checkpoint sensors that triggered card shutdown. So the more she learned about them the better. The next day, she also read about something called the Heisman cofactor, which determined the ideal distance between stops in a pathway, and also something else called the Kleinfelter Rule which stated that two stops on the pathway must be of less variance than points farther away from each other on the pathway. Therefore, by that theory, it should be easier to change a nail color from red to orange than to change it to blue. The book recommended exercises so one could start to feel the distance between each Heisman stop, applying the Heisman coefficient to figure out the other numbers used for the distance calculation. With that and the formula, one might predict the core design of a simple card. The idea excited Lexie more than she could stand. She immediately began the exercises that the woman put at the end of the chapter for practice. She logged into her system store and bought the Nail Artist¡¯s deck for fifty credits, happy that she hadn''t used any of her Party Planner cards today so she could practice right away. Lexie began activating but then she ran into her first snafu. It would be difficult to practice these cards on herself. Almost all of them were effect cards and even the ability card seemed to come with an arm choreography that Lexie wasn''t quite sure she would nail. Which left one other option. She went to her bedroom door and pulled it open. ¡°Dad!¡± She called out. ¡°I need help!¡± 39 - Nail Painting Discovery and Shocking Rescues When she got to the kitchen, Lexie found Aiden busy baking something. The TV was on in the background and he was intensely watching the cooking queen again, so he¡¯d likely not even heard Lexie¡¯s call. He finally turned when she patted him on the shoulder, glancing at her. ¡°Hey, honey bee. What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°I need your help." She then glanced at his hands which were sticky with dough. ¡°What are you making? ¡°Cinnamon raisin cookies,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m tweaking the recipe to make it a little chewier. Better.¡± ¡°Why? They¡¯re already pretty good.¡± Lexie noticed that some cookies were cooling on the dinner table and she strolled over to pick up one, taking a bite. ¡°Incredibly good actually.¡± ¡°Thank you. But I¡¯m trying to make them better than good. I¡¯m trying to make them utterly addictive so I can use them to entice people to our next Dungeon Disaster Drill.¡± He gave Lexie an evil smile. ¡°My plan is to hand out free samples at the hospital, and once I get them hooked, I¡¯ll tell them they can get more at the next DDD session. That''s what we''re calling it now. Anyway, they''ll come to feed their addiction and hopefully stay for the rest of the talk. And once they start they won''t be able to stop.¡± Lexie eyed him as she nibbled on the edge of the cookie. ¡°No offense Dad but that sounds like something a drug dealer would say.¡± ¡°No offense taken. I¡¯ve always thought I would make an excellent drug dealer. Probably the best, or at least better than a lot of the incompetent riff-raff currently doing it.¡± He paused and gave her another mischievous look. ¡°You know, I accidentally created a potent love drug in potions class once. Of course, it would have been unethical to test it out on a wide scale, but I did do some testing and found that it seemed like it had none of the usual side effects of other love potions; you know malaise, heart-sickness, mild constipation. It only wore out after a whole month, and was even undetectable in food and drinks. Something like that would have made me a fortune in the underground world, but alas, I simply reported my findings to the proper authorities and they took one of the ingredients off the market to prevent anyone else from discovering such a thing.¡± Lexie smirked. ¡°Shame. That could have been the next step in your villainous enterprise and it would be a hit in a town like this. You can call yourself The Kingpin Cupid.¡± She imagined her dad dressed as the godfather reclined in a leather seat, a cigar in one hand, heart-shaped love-laced cookies in the other. ¡°You should open up a bakery and use it as a front. Your motto can be ¡®love in the shape of sugar cookies.¡¯ ¡± Aiden chuckled and shook his head. Lexie swung herself up to the counter to watch him knead dough. ¡°But you probably want to take it easy on the sugar for the next batch. It¡¯s one thing to create illegal love potions, but giving the elderly diabetes is beyond evil.¡± ¡°Noted. So, what did you need my help for?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re done,¡± she said. ¡°I found a deck I want to try but I need your fingers for it.¡± ¡°You''re not chopping them off, are you?¡± ¡°Nope. Painting them.¡± ¡°Oh good. Because I need my fingertips intact to measure the correct ratio of water to rice later." Lexie analyzed her father closely for the first time in a while. He was wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants like he usually did at home, but now she noticed that he seemed slightly broader than she remembered, filling it out more. And were those calluses on his dough-covered palms? ¡°Have you been working out? You look bigger.¡± ¡°I¡¯m surprised you noticed,¡± Aiden grinned. ¡°Yeah. I''ve been taking fighting lessons from Max and another member of his dungeon party. They''ve been teaching me a few combat things whenever he has time. Plus I''m also building muscle in my spare time. Even though the Tilling bands keep my strength low, I should at least be able to max out what I¡¯m capable of.¡± Lexie thought that was a good idea. ¡°Where is Max by the way? I feel like I haven''t seen him in forever.¡± ¡°Probably because he¡¯s begun preparing for Dungeon season to start back up again. He''s going to have to leave in about a month and so he has to set up meetings with his party, get the documentation ready, and also pay all the Dungeon Union fees.¡± ¡°Oh right.¡± Lexie swung her legs still looking at her dad¡¯s shoulders. ¡°So how¡¯s training going?¡± He shrugged as he kneaded. ¡°Good, I suppose. We¡¯re using some mechs and potions to help me boost my strength. Only problem is mechs are expensive and the Tilling bands seem to interfere with them too, just not to the same degree. But it¡¯s fine. We¡¯re finding a work-around.¡± ¡°Wait Dad, when you say potions...you¡¯re not doping are you?¡± Lexie hadn¡¯t looked into what steroids were on this earth, but she did know that Everstone had had a ''Say No To Illegal Drugs and Potions'' class and they''d all watched a video of a guy who had taken strength potions until his heart exploded in chunks. It was a very unnecessarily graphic video. ¡°Not technically.¡± The corner of Aiden¡¯s lip quirked. ¡°The potions are my own making, with the assistance of an old friend¡¯s notes. They¡¯re extremely low-dose so the Tilling bands don''t detect them and mostly just help me with recovery. And also a slight boost for muscle production. But all very low-risk stuff, believe me.¡± Lexie still wasn''t entirely comfortable with it, but she really had no right to lecture him when she was doing practically the same thing, unethically experimenting with card magic. "As long as you know the risks," she finally said. Aiden''s determination to get stronger reminded Lexie that she needed to do the same. Sure it was nice and all that she was learning and earning scholar points, but she''d already experienced firsthand why she had to be able to defend herself. While she still didn¡¯t intend to be a [Hero], she wasn¡¯t planning on being deadweight either. Her dad had probably made enemies of both [Heroes] and [Villains]. Any of those enemies could come after her again and use her to lure him into a trap. Lexie didn¡¯t want that to happen again. So the next step was to scour the NET and try to find defense and attack-heavy decks. Aiden told her there probably wouldn''t be any but she needed to look for herself. And if there weren''t then...she just had to make her cards more attack-friendly. Which brought her back to now, trying to see if she could calculate and sense the Heisman stop and use those to perhaps adjust the effects of her other cards. Lexie waited for the next thirty minutes for Aiden to be done kneading. When he wasn¡¯t looking Lexie had two or ten more cookies until she felt slightly ill and stopped. Then, after he popped the cookies into the oven and washed his hands, they retired to the living room floor, sitting cross-legged across from each other. Lexie picked out the color card from the Nail Artist''s deck. The pathway itself was simple, and Lexie went slow. Instead of calculating, she used the black hole method to visualize and get a feel for each notch. She memorized how many breaths it took her to get from one color to the next, and wondered if the average distance between each stop was the same on every card pathway. That was what the textbook alluded to, wasn''t it? When she reached a stop, she would activate it by pouring mana into the walls, which would then open up a branched pathway. It would then generate an effect. For example, the first notch turned Aiden''s nails red, and the second turned pink. The card was designed so she could skip notches and then go to the final notch which added a glimmering sheen to the nail. Then she retraced her steps, retreating to turn it blue and then green and then hazel. ¡°That one matches my eyes,¡± Aiden said and Lexie smiled. ¡°It does.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen this deck before,¡± Lexie¡¯s father commented. ¡°Where did you get it?¡± Lexie already had a lie prepared for the moment. ¡°Xena told me about it. She¡¯s into fashion and stuff and wanted me to paint her nails.¡± Lexie winced as she realized belatedly what she¡¯d said. ¡°But don''t tell her I told you that. And don¡¯t tell anyone else either. She would kill me if she found out.¡± ¡°My lips are sealed.¡± Lexie gave her father a distrustful look, which he met with an innocent one. ¡°What?¡± Lexie sighed. ¡°Can you at least just not tell Emma?¡± ¡°I won''t tell anyone, Lexie. You have my sincerest word.¡± Lexie stared at him for a few seconds and then shook her head in resignation. It was her fault really for letting it slip. She would have to warn Xena before her dad inevitably told someone about it and it got back to Emma. It was only a matter of time. And Xena would be pissed but hopefully Lexie''s apology would make things a little better. Plus she was willing to agree to change the group name if that was what Xena wanted. After Lexie had done enough nail art, she retreated to her room with her findings. And then, twenty-four hours later, she tried to feel out the notches with a simpler card, . She felt around and found that the notches were indeed at very similar distances in the pathway. They were also not as noticeable as the ones in the card she''d just used; while those felt like cogs, these only felt like slight protrusions in the pathway walls. And apart from one or two of them acting as sensors, the rest of the notches weren''t doing anything. She tried pushing mana into the first few notches and nothing happened. So why were they there? Were they manipulable? If she pushed more mana into the notches or skipped notches would anything happen? She continued up the card and then pushed mana into a notch. She felt something lock inside her and frowned. What was that? She completed activation and felt the effect of the card on her body. She jumped up and down and then frowned. Was it just her imagination or did she feel lighter on one leg than the other? Did the notch affect how the skill was distributed around her body? Why? And what did that mean for her?
Lexie continued to play with her discovery all week. She tried pushing mana into the notches for several of her cards. She discovered that she could sort of suss out the distances between each notch without knowing what the other equations were, which was good because it meant she didn''t have to spend hours learning the equations just yet. Instead, she got good at playing with the notches and seeing what they did. Some notches didn''t do anything. Some had mild changes in the effect, but nothing too serious. Lexie also took a second to marvel at how far she''d come. Just a few months she wouldn''t have even dreamt of being able to do this, but her mana control was near perfect at this point. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. So the next thing Lexie tried to figure out was how exactly she''d combined the cards the last time. She had a feeling that it had to do with the notches. While trying to skip the sensor, she''d probably accidentally pushed in too much mana at close-by notches on the two different pathways and that had caused the pathways to combine. She just didn''t know exactly which two of the notches. So she sat down, brought out the two cards¨C and ¨C and performed a partial activation of both. Then she slowed it down and went notch by notch, pushing mana in there and trying to activate it. The first notch didn''t give a response and neither did the second. By the third, she was beginning to think that she maybe didn''t know what she was talking about. And then suddenly on the seventh notch, something changed. The two separate pathways moved so close they twisted and wrapped around each other. And then a connection snapped into place. This time Lexie didn¡¯t immediately complete activation. She kept staring at it, analyzing what had happened. She felt the mana in that area, felt like notches combined, the first card feeding its mana into the second. And then the activation was completed and she got exactly what she wanted. She didn''t even need the +1 ingenuity and +2 discovery alerts to tell her that she''d gotten it right. But it felt good to get it anyway. That light almost drunk feeling filled her, confirming what she''d thought. She''d done it. She''d combined two cards! It was incredible! Lexie finally opened her eyes and hopped. She flew so high her head skimmed the roof. Once she landed she tripped and fell onto the floor, sustaining no injuries thanks to the soft, weightless landing. She laughed. What on earth? Her heart raced. She couldn''t believe she just did that. While on the floor, she immediately opened up the group chat. She had turned her chat notifications off to concentrate but now she had to tell someone what she''d found. She first took a second to read the last two messages sent to the group chat. It was the usual. Dewie had shared an animal factoid for the day, and Xena had given a joking response. Lexie immediately began typing Lexie: Guys! I have good news. And bad news. Which one do you want first? Dewie: The good news. Xena: No. Always start with the bad. Lexie: Okay. The bad is¡­ I don¡¯t know how to say this. Xena, I¡­ Xena: Xena you what? Lexie: Are you sitting down? Xena: Why would I need to be? Lexie: You know what, I¡¯m just going to start with the good news. Xena: Oh no, you¡¯re not. You can¡¯t just say my name in association with bad news and not tell me what the bad news is? Why do I need to sit down? XENA YOU WHAT? Lexie: The good news is I think I figured out how to activate two cards at once. The trick is the Heissman notches on the cards. Some cards are combinable if you push enough mana in the right notches at the right time. Which I can do because my mana control is impeccable by the way. Dewie: Wow Lexie, that''s awesome. No one has ever managed to do that right? Lexie: Well I don''t know, but I don''t think it''s something a lot of people can do. Xena: Probably because they¡¯re not suicidal. I thought you were not supposed to play with pathways like that, especially without a tutor present. Lexie: Since when were you such a stickler for the rules? And my dad¡¯s the Archmage. He¡¯s better than a tutor. Xena: So he knows what you''re doing? Darn Xena and her perceptiveness. Lexie: Can you two just be happy for me for a second? Dewie: I¡¯m happy for you! Lexie: Thank you Dewie. Xen: I¡¯m happy for you but it¡¯s just I dunno¡­it feels a little dangerous. Also, you must have studied like crazy to get to that point. Lexie: Well yeah. Lexie pretty much spent every waking moment studying except for mini breaks to manage her headaches. Xena: How did you do it? And how come no one else can? Lexie had to take a second before answering Xena''s question thinking about how much she could reveal. She obviously couldn''t disclose anything about Aiden''s black hole lessons, neither could she tell Xena that it was easier because she was actually from a dimension with no mana so that made her more sensitive to mana and improved her mana control. There was also the fact that she was a dramatic overachiever in her past life and tended to get obsessed with whatever she was studying. Aiden was type A too, even if he liked to lecture her on taking breaks and would sometimes make her take a walk with him when he felt she¡¯d been inside too much. She was sure there was a genetic component to Lexie Sparrowfoot''s study habits, and perhaps that influenced Lexie Evans as well. So she supposed she couldn''t tell Xena that she was able to do it because of a combination of classified information, exceptional mana control, due to not being from this world and growing up in a literal dead zone, good genetics, and sheer tenacity. So instead, she went with an adjacent explanation. Lexie: It''s not that other people can''t do it probably. It''s just that anyone who can probably isn''t going to stick with cards long enough to be able to. They would have moved onto spells or something more powerful by now. Xena: But you won''t. Lexie: No. I like cards. They''re the safest type of magic to experiment with. Xena: If you say so. As long as you do it safely. Lexie: Is that¡­concern I detect in your tone Xena? Oh my gosh. Do you love me? Dewie, I think she loves me. Xena: Like a tumor. Now what¡¯s this bad news that has to do with me? Lexie: Um yeah. About that¡­so¡­I kinda owe you a huge apology.
Lexie''s next discovery was that she could reverse the card combination to create slight changes in the action. For example, using as a waste card instead and activating first generated an effect rather than ability and meant that the target got much lighter and clumsier than the other way round. Or at least that was her theory. Lexie got the chance to try it out the next week. Aiden had been gone all day with Max and so Lexie had gone to the bakery near the grocery store to pick up some sandwiches for lunch. They had one bakery in the entire town and while their sandwiches weren''t bad, they were nowhere near the quality of Aiden¡¯s baked goods. Lexie was so spoiled by Aiden''s cooking that she could barely stomach the sandwich, but she had to because Aiden had been too busy to cook for the last few days and she didn''t want to order anything expensive. He was still struggling to attract more people to the DDD meetings and to get them engaged in what he was saying. Lexie was getting sick of the elders and their snark but her dad had the patience of a saint. Aiden thought that they would take it a lot more seriously if they saw what was at stake, so he was staging a demonstration for their next meeting. He was arranging it with Max right now, leaving Lexie to wander alone on the streets walking back home. As she walked, she responded to Xena¡¯s messages in the group chat that had now been renamed ''THE VILLAIN ALLIANCE IS LEAD BY LEXIE QUEEN OF EVIL AND BETRAYER OF SECRETS'' as retaliation for Lexie¡¯s gaff. All things considered, Xena had taken it pretty well. She hadn''t even sulked for that long. But that was because according to her, she''d seen it coming. I knew the second you found me that it would come out, she''d texted. Neither you nor your father can keep a secret. Now, Lexie took offense at that because she totally wasn¡¯t like her dad in that regard. She could keep a secret most of the time. After all, no one here knew she was from another Earth 2 and that was a pretty big secret. And she didn''t tell anyone about her dad''s lessons either. In any case, it was while she was responding to that text defending herself that she heard noises that sounded like someone or something was shouting. At first, she thought it was an animal call carried by the wind. But then when she stopped and listened for it, she heard the voices even clearer. "Anyone out there?!" someone screamed. "We need help. A hippo fell on her ass." "Wow. Real nice. How lovely of you Glinda." "Well, how else do you want me to explain the situation, Grandma!¡± Lexie frowned. That first voice sounded familiar. After a split second of indecision, Lexie followed the voices down a lonely hiking trail into the woods. She almost immediately then came upon three women, two of whom she recognized and one she didn¡¯t. The first was the purple-eyebrowed woman, dressed in hiker gear and holding a hiking stick. The other one was the woman at the first DDD session who called her dad a criminal. She was also dressed like a hiker. And the third woman was a pleasantly plump woman who sat on the floor, wearing sweats and sneakers. She peered up at Lexie. ¡°Are you lost sweetie?¡± she asked. ¡°Um¡­no. I¡¯m Lexie. I heard your distress call." The women shared a look. ¡°Oh no, we weren''t shouting for you. Sorry about that. We already called those lazy bums over at the sheriff''s station, but I really don''t want to have to wait in the woods for them to get here. I thought if maybe someone¨Can adult¨Cwas walking by, they could give me a hand to get back on the road and flag down a passing car." ¡°You¡¯re one to talk about lazy bums,¡± Purple-Eyebrows commented and the other woman turned to glare at her. ¡°Hey, you asked me to come hiking and I came with you. It¡¯s not my fault my ankle got twisted around." "It wouldn¡¯t have gotten twisted if you did this more often." "No, it wouldn''t have gotten twisted if you didn''t keep pushing me when I told you that I was exhausted." Purple-Eyebrows threw up her hands. "Of course. Always an excuse with you. Everything is someone else¡¯s problem. I can¡¯t believe we had to cut our hike short because of you. I can''t believe after almost fifty years you''re still slowing me down." "You''re fifty, sis. I''m still only forty-five." They''re sisters? Lexie glanced between the two women. There was very little resemblance between the two. While Purple-Eyebrows was reedy and slender, with harsh facial proportions, her sister was softer with more delicate features. ¡°I can help,¡± Lexie said suddenly to stop the argument the women were having. They stared at her. ¡°How?¡± ¡°I¡¯m pre-awakened. I can use magic to get you to a road so you can flag down the car." "Be careful with her." The third woman was giving Lexie a suspicious eye. "She¡¯s the [Villain''s] daughter." Lexie stiffened but Purple-Eyebrows rolled her eyes. "She¡¯s also like nine. No offense but what is she going to do to us?" "I¡¯m not sure she can help either," the woman on the ground said, "Again no offense sweetie and this is nothing against your dad because I¡®ve met him and he seems like a nice man and I also don¡¯t believe in holding the sins of the parents against children," she inhaled, "but I¡¯m not sure how you could help." "With card magic," Lexie responded simply. "I can make you light enough that you won''t feel your broken ankle and you could even walk out of here." The two sisters shared a look. "You can do that?" Lexie nodded. "At the very least, it wouldn''t hurt to try." And Lexie did want to test her second theory out. They looked at each other again and the one on the floor sighed. "Alright sweetie," she said with a gentle smile. "But don¡¯t be too sad if it doesn''t work." "I won¡¯t," Lexie said. She was ninety-nine percent sure that it would work. She took the two cards from her deck and started activating. But while doing so she felt something weird...she wasn''t sure if it was coming from the card or the atmosphere but there was an emptiness or weightlessness already leaking out. The air felt thin. Was she wrong? Was the double activation making the card leak out its effect? Or was there a problem somewhere? She hesitated for a second before she completed the activation and then pointed at the woman on the floor. The woman blinked at her. "I don''t feel anything." Lexie could probably just get her to walk, but to prove a point, she walked over and lifted her Cinderella-style making her squeal in excitement. "Oh my God," she squealed. "Are you seeing this, Glinda? She''s carrying me! I¡¯m being lifted by a little girl. This is crazy!" "It is," Glinda said thoughtfully in a quietly shocked tone. The other sour-faced woman was also wide-eyed but silent. "If I put you down you might trip again," Lexie explained as they walked. "Because of the card I used. And the fact doesn''t last that long so it''s better if I carry you." "Oh right," the woman said, her eyes glowing with excitement. "Oh gosh, this is embarrassing. I haven''t done this since my wedding day." "That¡¯s because you¡¯re twice the woman you were on your wedding day, Terry," Glinda said, making Terry frown at her. "Alright enough with the fat jokes," she snapped, "I get it. I¡¯m bigger. You¡¯re not exactly a wilting daisy either." "At least, I try to keep healthy. While you¡¯re eating yourself to a quickly incoming grave." ¡°You know nothing," Terry sighed and chose to ignore her, facing Lexie instead. ¡°Thanks, sweetie¡¯," she said ¡°You¡¯re my hero.¡± To punctuate the sentence, another ding came in the corner alerting her that she¡¯d earned another point in charisma. And a point in chivalry. Lexie stared at it unenthusiastically. Great, she thought sarcastically. To the woman, she smiled and said, ¡°No problem.¡± Just as they reached the road, they noticed a group of people approaching from the other end. It was two older men, in what Lexie recognized as a law enforcement uniform, a blue constable shirt, and pants that looked like they belonged in a dojo. And between them was a very familiar woman. Lexie stopped at the edge of the street and gaped a little as they approached. They froze too, to stare at Lexie in a mixture of alarm and shock. ¡°Elvira Ernest?¡± Lexie blurted out. 40 - Partners and Promises Elvira was wearing the same sort of clothes that she¡¯d worn when she visited Lexie¡¯s school¨Ca long skirt made of some wool material, a formal blouse with long split sleeves, and a high turtle neck. And of course, her winged glasses were perched on her nose, which somehow made her eyes look even paler. She blinked at Lexie when she said her name, her head going to the side so she could see past Terry. ¡°Do I know you, little one?¡± ¡°Lexie,¡± Lexie said. ¡°You came to my school that one time.¡± ¡°Ah of course! Sorry, I didn''t recognize you through the um¡­.hold on, how on earth are you doing this?¡± She pointed to Terry. ¡°That¡¯s what I want to know,¡± one of the sheriffs said. ¡°You got super-strength, little lady?¡± ¡°No,¡± Lexie responded as she placed Terry down. Good thing too because the timer had just ticked down to zero indicating that the card effect was over. ¡°I used card magic.¡± ¡°Cards can do that?¡± The other officer murmured to his partner who shrugged. ¡°What deck?¡± Elvira asked. ¡°Party Planner¡¯s Deck.¡± Elvira¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°There are no cards in that deck that can help you lift a ninety-kilogram woman.¡± ¡°Excuse you, I¡¯m only eighty-five,¡± Terry protested and then scowled at her sister as though daring her to disagree. ¡°Well, I could only manage it because I¡­¡± Lexie instantly paused, coming to a swift realization. It probably wasn¡¯t a smart idea to reveal to this group of people that she¡¯d been able to combine two card skills into one. While it wasn¡¯t explicitly illegal, dealing with pathways like that was likely viewed as dangerous and Aiden could get in trouble for showing her all those tricks. Especially since most people in the town still viewed him with a layer of suspicion, despite how hard he tried. Everyone stared at Lexie waiting for her to finish the sentence. So she just said lamely, ¡°...I tried really, really hard.¡± They all blinked at her. Elvira especially did not look convinced. ¡°That¡¯s not possible,¡± she repeated and Lexie swallowed. ¡°I have to go,¡± she said. ¡°I have homework. Plus I¡¯m not supposed to be out too long.¡± ¡°Aw, I understand," Terry said. ¡°Thank you so much again for all your help." "It was nothing,¡± Lexie grinned at the warm lady who reminded her of one of her favorite teachers in elementary school. ¡°Oh, how adorable you are. I¡¯m staying at Bright Hope, near where you live I think. You''re welcome anytime for dinner or dessert. We usually have brownies!¡± ¡°They¡¯ll be disgusting and vegan,¡± Glinda warned. "Thanks, I¡¯ll come over some time," Lexie said and waved at them ready to make her escape. But she hadn''t gone more than a few steps when the sheriff called out behind her, ¡°Actually since you¡¯re headed home you might as well take this nice lady there with you.¡± Lexie paused and half-turned as he continued, ¡°Apparently, she¡¯s looking for your father.¡± ¡°She is?¡± ¡°I am?¡± Elvira looked similarly confused. ¡°Yeah. You said you came to town to find the Archmage, didn¡¯t you?¡± Elvira turned back to Lexie with widened eyes. ¡°The Archmage is your father?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Understanding dawned on the woman''s features. ¡°And suddenly it all makes sense.¡± What makes sense? Lexie was instantly nervous. Did she figure out that Aiden had taught her some mildly illegal or at least fairly unethical pathway practices? What was she going to do about it? Report to the authorities? She was partially Fae too so maybe she could get Aiden in trouble with the Fae police too, if they had such a thing. Lexie didn''t know if that was how it worked, but it would be terrible if it was. ¡°Why do you want to see my dad?" Lexie was immediately on the defensive. Suspicious thoughts flipped through her mind as she regarded Elvira. Was she coming on behalf of the Hero Association? But she wasn¡¯t a hero. She was a scholar at the Arcadian Research College. So what did they need Aiden for? Lexie''s heart began pounding in fear as she considered one horrible situation after another. Did they somehow find out about the fissure in his neckbands? But Elvira didn''t go in that direction. Instead, she said, ¡°I¡¯m to see him on behalf of the Arcadian Research College. They would like to offer him a job.¡± Lexie blinked. ¡°For real?¡± ¡°For real.¡± Elvira nodded. ¡°Seeing as how it¡¯s official business, I can¡¯t exactly go into the particulars with you but I would be more than grateful if you lead me to him in a timely manner and facilitate our introduction. I could even offer a favor in return. Or perhaps a minor blood oath to that effect.¡± ¡°Um no, that¡¯s fine.¡± At the blood oath thing, onlookers had switched from staring at Lexie to staring at Elvira like she was crazy. Lexie took a split second to make her decision. "Okay, I guess we can go then." Even if she didn''t take Elvira to see her dad, the sheriff would do so anyway, since he knew where they lived. At least this way, Lexie had more control over the situation. Besides, she wanted to know if it was true, If Elvira was really trying to offer her dad a job. She thought Aiden couldn¡¯t work on account of him being an ex-[Villain]. Why would they want him at a research university where he would be in charge of impressionable young minds? Granted she didn''t know how good a school it was, but surely they could get another professor whose prior villainy wasn¡¯t a disqualifying factor. Lexie considered it as Elvira fell in step beside her. If it was a legitimate job offer, then Aiden would surely be over the moon. Lexie saw how much he loved to teach, both her and even those grumpy grandpas at the retirement home. He loved to show people how to do things and watch them blossom. He would love a position at the university. Which was another reason why Lexie had to be careful and discover Elvira''s true intentions. She would hate for Elvira to offer Aiden a job and have him get excited, only to cruelly dash his hopes when she discovered his criminal record. ¡°You¡¯re aware that my father is a [Villain] right?¡± Lexie inquired as they walked. Elvira nodded. ¡°I have a limited yet somewhat accurate understanding of his criminal record.¡± What a way to answer it. ¡°So you know he¡¯s a [Villain] and you want to offer him the job anyway?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not the one offering him the job. The college is.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not for me to speculate, but I can only imagine it¡¯s due to his well-renowned knowledge and understanding of magical elements.¡± Lexie narrowed her eyes like she wanted to look into the woman¡¯s skull. ¡°I mean yeah, he¡¯s a generational genius, but they know he¡¯s a [Villain] right?¡± Elvira shrugged, quite elegantly actually. She had narrow graceful shoulders, Lexie noted, and a slim bone structure despite her above-average height. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°Magical elements? Is that a topic they want him to teach?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not at liberty to discuss the particulars of his potential employment.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Lexie took the hint and fell silent next to the woman who didn¡¯t seem inclined to fill the air with chatter. And there was nothing to make up for the quiet too. No bird chirping for whatever reason and not so much as a wind gust. It made Lexie feel uncomfortable and she was suddenly hyper-aware of the crunch of gravel underneath her feet. She even started wondering if she was walking weirdly, in a way that would tip Elvira off to what she had done. To calm herself, and give her something to do with the anxious energy, she took the sad-looking sandwich out of her pouch and began eating it. She anticipated finishing the trip in uncomfortable silence when Elvira suddenly said, ¡°You combined two cards for that skill, didn¡¯t you?¡± Lexie choked on her sandwich. She sprayed chunks and crumbs everywhere as she coughed to dislodge the piece of bread stuck in her airways. And then once that was done she gave her feet a glare at the betrayal before she turned to Elvira with what she hoped was a normal look. ¡°Whaaat? That¡¯s crazy. Why would you think that?¡± Elvira didn''t react to Lexie¡¯s choking and simply stared at her as though observing a monkey do tricks. ¡°It¡¯s the only explanation I have for that. I¡¯m very familiar with the Party Planner¡¯s deck. It was one of the first decks I used when I was young, and I also used it again on my sixteenth birthday in anticipation of entertaining my guests for a minor get-together I was throwing. Of course, they didn¡¯t find it all that entertaining and the party was a disaster due to being robbed by a gang of Eldritch creatures, but all in all, I¡¯m familiar with all the particulars of that deck, and the only way to achieve the effect that you just showed is to combine the light foot ability from with the effect node of one of the effect cards. Is that what you did?¡± ¡°I mean,¡± Lexie sputtered. ¡°Maybe I got the deck wrong. I think I used a card from a different deck. But I definitely did not combine the cards.¡± ¡°I think you did. I¡¯ve done extensive deck research for most of my life. There¡¯s no single card in any deck actually that can do that, with the exception of the bodybuilder deck but that is an ability not an effect, and it doesn¡¯t work quite like how yours did. Also, your heartbeat is elevated and you¡¯re avoiding eye contact. It suggests you¡¯re being dishonest with me when you tell me I¡¯m wrong. ¡± Darn the human nervous system. ¡°Alright, fine.¡± Lexie sighed. ¡°So what if I combined two cards? What about it?¡± Elvira didn¡¯t seem to notice animosity in Lexie''s tone because she nodded. ¡°Then it would mean you''re an exceptionally talented young lady. I mean it¡¯s to be expected considering who your father is, but this is beyond even my expectations of an Archmage¡¯s daughter. To do such a thing would suggest a level of mana control that I have never witnessed in any of my classmates, much less a child.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie''s defenses lowered a little, as she internally preened under the compliment, She tried to be humble though. ¡°Thanks. But I''m hardly that young. I¡¯ll be eleven in a few weeks." ¡°Regardless. Even most adult mages don¡¯t have that level of mana control. I¡¯m guessing your father has been teaching you mana shaping and pathway processes for a while now. Did you pre-awaken last year?¡± "No, this year.¡± Although, she had no idea how long she¡¯d been practicing mana shaping. Of course, Aiden may have taught the previous Lexie about it but he¡¯d never said anything to suggest he had. ¡°But my dad says I may have a natural talent at it.¡± ¡°Of course. There are quite a few mages like that, with a natural talent for pathway control. One of them is an Arcadian hero called Monty Ward. But that¡¯s a true lucky thing indeed to have.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Lexie responded, and then out of curiosity she asked, ¡°Have you ever combined two cards before?¡± ¡°Me? No,¡± Elvira said. ¡°I¡¯m only a level 4 C-Rank Mage so I¡¯m not all that talented with magic. I know how card combinations work in theory but I could never pull it off in practice.¡± ¡°I see. But others could?¡± She nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve heard it done once or twice. Although it¡¯s not all that common.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Cards are not made to be combined like that. They¡¯re made for simplicity and to do exactly what they say they do in the description. The fact that they can be combined or adjusted to create different effects is a glitch in their design and not always a glitch that should be exploited.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Lexie asked again. ¡°Well, you¡¯ve combined two relatively simple, weaker cards to create an effect. That''s usually fine. But if you try that with more complex cards and you¡¯re not extremely careful with your pathways, you could destroy the card for good, and leave your deck one card short, or you could permanently damage or twist one of the pathways if security measures fail. That¡¯s not a good thing. So it¡¯s smart that you''re only doing this under the strict supervision of a well-trained mage.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Lexie gulped. ¡°Strict supervision.¡± ¡°So I suppose that you¡¯ve read the recent textbooks on the card pathway.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± she said. ¡°I used Hesiman¡¯s formula and Kleinfelter''s notes.¡± "Hmm. Heisman¡¯s formula is good, but there are other more accurate ways to calculate the gate distance." "Gates? What gates? Heisman spoke about notches and valves". "Yes, that was the more archaic way of creating and studying cards. But that''s out of date now, and now all the recent textbooks use gates. Heisman''s theory would still work for very simple cards but they would fall apart for the complex ones." "So what would I need to use?" "Sovetsky is better. So is Amarilla. I have a few of their textbooks but they might be too complicated for you to understand." "Oh." Lexie was disappointed. "But I could teach you." Lexie¡¯s eyes widened. "You would do that?" "I suppose. Summer break is approaching and I should have more time then. Not to mention that I¡¯ll be a fourth year after that so I will no longer have to do things like speaking engagements at elementary schools and hunting down professors in remote towns." "Speaking of which, why did they send you to find him? You¡¯re a student right? Shouldn''t they have sent staff? Also they could have just mailed him probably." Elvira sighed. ¡°It was the guidance counselor, Rowena Romney¡¯s, idea. She believes sending me on petty errands is good for my personal development.¡± She stared at the sky. ¡°I¡¯m starting to think she just derives a sick humor from my discomfort.¡± Lexie had some experience with a pushy guidance counselor like that who kept encouraging her to take more extracurriculars to get a more well-rounded high school experience. But she knew it was to pad her application. ¡°Bummer,¡± Lexie said. ¡°But if you¡¯re serious about your offer, I would love to take you up on it. We could exchange numbers and text if you¡¯d like.¡± Elvira gave her an odd look and Lexie almost felt shy about extending the invitation. ¡°What?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°You do not find discussion with me¡­off-putting?¡± Lexie thought about it. ¡°Slightly, but I have a bunch of weird friends so I guess I have a high tolerance for off-putting conversation.¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°Some might say I attract the type.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Elvira nodded. ¡°That bodes well for our partnership then.¡± ¡°I guess it does.¡± The two ladies, kindred souls, smiled at each other and then continued on their way home in significantly more comfortable silence. Lexie even decided to give her sandwich another try, biting into it. She scowled. Still disgusting. "So, these lessons you''re offering," Lexie broached when they were getting close to the home. "Do they also include card crafting?" Elvira glanced at Lexie. "I think you''re still a bit young to think about crafting cards." "Yes but I''m just curious," Lexie lied. "I would just like to know how it works." Elvira stared at her but didn''t seem suspicious. She shrugged. "Sure. I suppose I could teach you how it works in theory." Yes! Lexie internally crowed even though she merely smiled externally. She felt bad for doing this behind Aiden''s back but her dad was dragging his feet about teaching her crafting. Since she was getting so good at activation now, she''d brought it up a few times but he''d always said she needed more time and more lessons. But given that he was busy, and was likely going to be busier, it was good to have another teacher on board. Lexie continued the talks with Elvira as they went home. Once there, she offered Elvira a hot or cold beverage, Elvira turned both down and they both sat on the porch and waited while still talking. It took a while but as the sun began to descend in the sky, Aiden finally approached her home. ¡°Hi Dad,¡± she called out. ¡°Hello.¡± He seemed confused at Elvira¡¯s presence. ¡°Make a new friend, Lexie?¡± ¡°Sort of,¡± Lexie said. ¡°This is Elvira. She¡¯s from the Arcadian Research College and she¡¯s here to offer you a job.¡± Aiden paused. His face froze. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Elvira stood and executed a formal curtsy. ¡°I¡¯m pleased to make your acquaintance, sir. And sorry to show up unannounced but we had no other way of reaching you and had no contact information for you except a general address. Fortunately, I met your daughter in the process of her executing a lifesaving rescue and she kindly agreed to introduce us even in the absence of a blood oath.¡± ¡°Hang on, life-saving rescue?¡± Aiden asked and then suddenly Lexie remembered something very important she¡¯d forgotten to mention to Elvira¨Cthat under no circumstance was she to tell Aiden that Lexie had combined two cards at once. She desperately rushed now to send signals to Elvira through a widened gaze and a slight shake of the head. Even though Elvira met her eyes and saw her subtle motions, the woman merely frowned and forged on anyway. ¡°Yes,¡± she said. ¡°Your daughter managed to carry an eighty-five to ninety kilogram woman all the way to the roadside today, by brilliantly combining two cards from her deck to turn an ability into an effect. It¡¯s quite an amazing feat and a true testament to the depth of your tutelage I¡¯m sure.¡± "She did what?!¡± Lexie winced. She¡¯d never heard Aiden''s voice go that high before nor had she seen him look that shocked and angry. ¡°A card combination, Lexie?¡± Lexie steadily avoided his gaze, looking at her feet and scuffing them. In the ensuing silence, Elvira said tentatively, ¡°Did I say something wrong?¡± Yup, Lexie though regretfully. And if they were indeed going to continue this partnership, then she had to teach Elvira Ernest the subtle yet necessary art of concealing or otherwise embellishing the truth. 41 - The Fight Aiden was furious. Lexie could feel his anger vibrating in the air around her, could sense his hurt that she¡¯d deceived him underneath it. And she felt the guilt crawling through her because he was right to be mad. She¡¯d given him her word that she wouldn''t do any experimentation without running it by him first, and yet that was exactly what she had done. She¡¯d lied to him. And she didn¡¯t have any defense for herself so she simply looked at her shoes. The worst part was that Aiden didn''t even yell. He spoke carefully, each word enunciated to the fullest to translate the depth of his anger. ¡°I cannot believe what I¡¯m hearing Lexie,¡± he said. ¡°Combining cards? Why would you do such a foolhardy and dangerous thing? And where on earth did you learn that? Because I know I certainly did not teach you that, and as far as I remember, we had a deal that you wouldn''t try anything I hadn¡¯t explicitly taught you.¡± Well, Lexie remembered their deal a little differently but this seemed like a poor time to bring that up. Aiden had gone quiet and was seemingly waiting for a response, and so Lexie offered in her most demure and cowed tone. ¡°I read a book.¡± ¡°You read a book?¡± he said. ¡°From where?¡± ¡°Just the NET.¡± ¡°Where on the NET are they offering books that teach children to combine cards?¡± Lexie searched for a way out but found none. Aiden was patient even in his anger, and he wasn¡¯t the type to just rant and get it off his chest. It seemed he wanted to exorcise this problem from the root and she wasn¡¯t brave enough to lie to him again. ¡°LibaryTroll.¡± Aiden swore then, uttering a startling string of words that he¡¯d probably learned from Max. ¡°Lexie, what on this green and luscious earth possessed you to even speak to a Library Troll? In fact, how did you find out about them? Max?¡± ¡°No,¡± she said in a tiny voice. ¡°I just kind of looked around. I read some articles on pathway manipulation but they were incomplete so I watched this video and someone in the comment section said they could get me a book to help." ¡°Yes. Illegally, because that book is not supposed to be accessed by anyone who¡¯s not in a dedicated mage or scholarly academy, much less a minor!¡± Lexie flinched. In her defense, she hadn''t been sure it was that illegal. She''d thought LibraryTroll was unethical and just mildly illegal, like piracy. But if it was super illegal, how had the Troll managed to contact her on the NET? Shouldn''t the system have blocked it? ¡°It was an early edition of the book too.¡± Elvira spoke up. ¡°Which meant it also had outdated information that could add to risk of further harm.¡± Aiden¡¯s face paled. ¡°Why are you making it worse?¡± Lexie hissed at Elvira who blinked in confusion. ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware I was supposed to make it better.¡± Aiden¡¯s next exhale was a loud and harsh huff of air. Lexie looked back down at her feet. ¡°After everything we discussed, I thought I was clear, Alexa-Beth." That nearly had Lexie¡¯s eyes snapping back up. Her name was Alexa-Beth? Gross. What kind of name was that? She was going to have a serious conversation about a name change with Aiden when he calmed down. Right now, he was still angry so she held her tongue. ¡°I thought I could trust you to be careful.¡± ¡°You can,¡± she said. "I was careful." She''d always stopped before she burned out and she never pushed herself beyond what she could handle. But Aiden shook his head and said in a disappointed tone that made Lexie feel like she was being crushed under a heel. ¡°I don''t think I can trust you anymore.¡± The words were like a slap. But what was even more painful was the expression that accompanied them, the sadness on Aiden¡¯s face that came from the loss of trust. Lexie realized that it was likely not something that could be regained. It was even worse than realizing her name was Alexa-Beth. Lexie swallowed tightly, wondering what she could say to apologize, to make the situation alright again, but she found herself short of words. And then a cough once more interrupted them. ¡°Excuse me,¡± Elvira spoke up. ¡°I¡¯m sure this is all very emotionally vital and taxing but this has nothing to do with my visit and I must be on my way to catch the next train.¡± ¡°Yeah, sorry about that,¡± Aiden said and he made an effort to control his emotions, running his hand over his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t even offer you a beverage or a snack for your trip. I apologize for my rudeness, but I¡¯m in poor form today.¡± ¡°Completely understandable considering the circumstances.¡± Elvira missed Lexie¡¯s second glare as she continued, ¡°But it would be nice if I could take an answer back to the university today because I don''t want to have to make this journey again. It was, for the most part, a waste of time." She frowned in thought. ¡°Not that speaking to you sir, is a waste of time, of course, it¡¯s just that I could be using this time studying or doing far more important things than bringing you this offer.¡± ¡°Offer?¡± ¡°Yes. To teach General Magical Elements and Mechanics at the research academy.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Aiden looked less enthusiastic about the offer than Lexie expected, but that was perhaps because he was still reeling from their argument. Aiden chewed his lip as he considered Elvira¡¯s words though. ¡°I''ll have to take some time to consider it.¡± ¡°Well noted. I will relay what you said to the hiring team. In the meantime is there a way to contact you if we require further information?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Aiden rattled off his number. ¡°Keep in mind that all correspondence is routinely monitored by my parole officer, so probably don¡¯t send anything confidential through that means.¡± ¡°I understand,¡± she said. She got up. "I¡¯ll be off now. Good luck with resolving your disagreement and dealing with your wayward child.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Aiden said tersely. Lexie shot the woman a sour look too as she left. And here I thought we were friends. After Elvira departed, Aiden opened his mouth and Lexie flinched again because she thought he would keep scolding her. But his face simply shut down and he shook his head. ¡°Inside Lexie,¡± he said, moving to open the door. She nodded and walked without argument. He shut the door behind her and said nothing else to her for the entire afternoon.
They ate dinner in the most awkward silence ever. Aiden was still angry and Lexie was miserable. It made for a wretched meal. Even though the food was technically delicious like everything else Aiden cooked, Lexie could barely eat it. She felt horrible, like she always did whenever she¡¯d disappointed her parents on Earth 2. It was why she¡¯d worked so hard never to do it. The first time she¡¯d gotten a low A-, almost a B, Dr. and Dr. Evans had simply looked at her grades and then turned to each other perplexed. As though to say, "How on earth did this happen?" Lexie¡¯s mother had given her a sober talk about applying herself and not taking her intelligence for granted. Lexie had felt like shit during and after it. Even worse, her father had simply gotten up and gone up to his study, as though he didn¡¯t want to bother with her. As though she¡¯d wasted his time and all the effort he¡¯d spent raising her by getting that almost B. As though she wasn¡¯t worth it anymore. He''d barely spoken to her for days after. Not that he spoke to her all that much before but that was because he was always at work or grading papers. But this time it was because he was annoyed and Lexie could tell the difference. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. It was a dark time in her life, one that Lexie fought very hard never to go back to. This was before she''d been friends with Mickie, and apart from Logan, her parents were all she had. To have them look at her like that, and treat her like she was such a waste of space and air, she started feeling like maybe she shouldn''t be around anymore. Those types of thoughts terrified her and ever since then, she made sure all her grades were flawless so that her parents never had anything to complain about. The clatter of silver against ceramic broke her from her thoughts. ¡°You have no idea the harm you could have caused yourself, Lexie,¡± Aiden said, suddenly breaking the aching silence with seriously uttered words. ¡°I told you, cards are safe only if they''re used as intended. Only if you don¡¯t attempt to break the card." ¡°That wasn¡¯t what I was trying to do.¡± ¡°Then why did you do this? Simply to test your limits? Because this isn¡¯t the way, Lexie. There¡¯s applying yourself and then there¡¯s this." "I just wanted to get stronger. Better." She tried to explain it to him, struggling to articulate her feelings. "I didn¡¯t want anything like what happened with Mouse to happen again." Aiden¡¯s face blanked for a second and then it was filled with a whole new type of pain. ¡°Oh Lexie¡­¡± Emotion rose in her throat. ¡°I hated seeing him do that to you, and hated that I wasn¡¯t able to help. If not for Theo, you would have¡­¡± Lexie swallowed. ¡°I would be alone.¡± His chair scraped and he got out of his seat. Next thing, he was kneeling beside her, taking her hand. ¡°It¡¯s not your job to protect me.¡± ¡°Who says? We¡¯re family, we''re supposed to protect each other. Besides, I''m also trying to protect myself here.¡± A hint of amusement appeared on his features and he ran his hand over her hair. Lexie leaned into it. ¡°Then why choose cards, honeybee? If you want more attack and defense capabilities then you might want to learn spell casting. I could teach you that.¡± Lexie only considered it for a second before she shook her head. ¡°I like cards. It¡¯s easy for me. Maybe because I¡¯m good with pathways.¡± Once, for fun, she''d looked up the spell that Veronica had used to trip her and she''d learned it. After a few days, she¡¯d successfully cast the spell, but it left her feeling more tired than when she''d done the same with cards. That alone now made card magic superior in her eyes. Besides, she had a feeling that there was more potential to the cards that she hadn''t unlocked yet. And there was also the fact that cards were the best thing she could use for her research on how to get magic to a mundane population. And she just liked them, plain and simple, maybe because she had an affinity for them. ¡°I was careful, I promise,¡± she said. ¡°I always stopped whenever I felt a headache incoming and I never pushed my pathways more than what they could bear. I was extremely careful with that.¡± He sighed. ¡°That¡¯s not enough. Even people who are extremely careful can make mistakes that could lead to crushing consequences, like pathway destruction.¡± Lexie swallowed and said, ¡°So are you going to stop teaching me?¡± Lexie really hoped he didn¡¯t because if he did, she would be a little lost. She doubted Elvira would agree to help her without Aiden¡¯s explicit approval. The woman seemed like the type to be very black-and-white with these things and also respected authority figures a lot, even her bullying guidance counselor. And she clearly had a lot of respect for Aiden. There was no way she would go against Aiden¡¯s wishes on this. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll have to think about it and let you know after your birthday.¡± ¡°My birthday?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s in two weeks and I already booked our trip to Alberton.¡± He glanced at her. ¡°Or did you want to do something else? I thought about throwing a party but you never seem to like those." ¡°No, no party.¡± The one birthday party Lexie had attempted had been more stressful than fun. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­I thought you were still mad at me." "Of course, I¡¯m mad. It doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t want to celebrate your birthday." He looked at her. ¡°Is that what you thought?¡± Lexie hesitated then nodded. She¡¯d gotten the A- a week before her birthday too. And the day had come and gone without a single acknowledgment from either of her parents. She¡¯d thought she was over that hurt but now she felt tears pushing against her eyes. And she didn¡¯t even know why. That was all old news, old hurt but suddenly it was rising to the surface. Lexie couldn¡¯t help it¡­she felt raw and vulnerable and really really bad. She just wanted to curl up and cry. She heard the scrape of her chair and then Aiden was lifting her into his arms. He hugged her, and the tears began rolling down her cheeks. Lexie wrapped her arms around his neck and wept, sniffling intermittently. She hated that she¡¯d made him mad and disappointed him. Hated that, even for a second, she¡¯d made him lose faith in her and betrayed the trust he gave her. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s okay, honey bee. I¡¯m not mad anymore." He pressed a kiss to the side of her head. ¡°And I wasn¡¯t even really that mad in the first place. I¡¯m worried. I¡¯m scared that you¡¯re too much like me for me to control. And I¡¯m scared I¡¯m also failing as a father. But none of that makes me love you less and I want to celebrate your birthday. Of course, I do. So can we put a pin in this conversation until then?" "Okay." Lexie¡¯s voice was muffled against his shoulder. He smelled like sunshine and a little bit of sweat but not in a bad way. "But I do want to say one thing." Aiden quietly wiped her face when she pulled back a little. ¡°No matter how mad you are at me,¡± she said, ¡°Don¡¯t give me the silent treatment. I hate that. And also, please never call me Alexa-Beth again."
The fifth ¡®Dungeon Disaster Drill¡¯ session was not starting swimmingly. Aiden had managed to convince more people to come with his cookies, but a few of them just took it and then swiftly left and the others who stayed didn''t seem all that interested in what he had to say. Apparently, it was murder mystery night tomorrow and that was far more interesting than learning about dungeons. Midway through Aiden''s lecture, everyone except Mr. Frederick, the man in the double-breasted suit from last time, started talking amongst themselves and then complained when Aiden tried to reel them back in. Even Aiden seemed to be getting frustrated at that point because, without Luke there, they were out of control. Emma and the nurses weren¡¯t there either, having been called last minute to stay at work for an emergency. So there was no one to support him. And it was making Lexie furious because Aiden had put a lot of effort into this demonstration. The entire room had been filled with household items, gardening tools, and general things that one might have lying around or in their purse. He was supposed to show everyone what could be used as a weapon in the case of an unstable dungeon monster attack. But they were all not taking it seriously even after they''d enjoyed his delicious cookies. And to think I folded serviettes for hours for this, Lexie thought resentfully, arms crossed and scowling at the group. The noise in the room grew louder and louder, despite Aiden''s efforts to quiet it. Then Aiden suddenly put two fingers through his lips and whistled sharply. The sound was shrill enough to cut through the din and then everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at him. ¡°Listen,¡± he said with an exasperated sigh. "I know this is not the way you would ideally like to spend your Saturday evenings. And I know a lot of you think this is a waste of your valuable time. But would you rather waste an hour of your Saturday or forfeit whatever little time you have on this earth because you were too stupid or too stubborn to learn what to do if a dungeon portal appeared in front of you?¡± They stared at him. "Did he just call us stupid?¡± One person asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Aiden said. "Extremely so. Because only stupid people would play with their lives like you folks are." Lexie''s eyebrows raised and satisfaction pulsed through her.It seemed her dad was done playing Mr. Nice Guy. Way to go, Dad. Call them out. ¡°Here are the facts," Aiden continued, undeterred by the pretty harsh looks some of them were giving him. "Unstable dungeons are popping up frequently in Hovelton. At the moment, we don¡¯t know what¡¯s causing them so we¡¯re not able to cull them. The only reason they¡¯ve been disappearing so fast is because our resident dungeon expert, Max, tackles and gets rid of them before they can spawn. And he also takes care of whatever creature might come out. But it¡¯s nearly dungeon season and Max will be gone soon. This means that each and every person here will have to fend for themselves. Now if you want to learn how to do that, I suggest you stay. But if you¡¯d rather not, and are just here to make a nuisance of yourself, then you can leave. And don¡¯t worry, your bingo night will be spared." Everyone stared at Aiden as though seeing him in a new light. Most have never heard him speak in that firm tone before. Some looked a little insulted at what he was saying. But others like Frank seemed a little¡­impressed? Or at the very least he was listening attentively. So was Mr. Frederick, but Mr. Frederick was the only one who''d been paying attention the whole time. ¡°And how do we trust that you know what you¡¯re doing?¡± someone called out. ¡°Yeah you were a [Hero] and all, but you were a wizard, not a fighter.¡± ¡°An Archmage,¡± Aiden corrected. ¡°And that is an excellent question. I will prove my merit today by teaching you how to defend against a dungeon creature in theory. Now I will need a volunteer to pretend to be a troll.¡± ¡°You do it, George. You already look like a troll.¡± ¡°Keep talking, Amy, and I¡¯ll turn that machine off at night. We¡¯ll see who¡¯s the troll then. ¡± ¡°Oh for system¡¯s sake, I¡¯ll do it!¡± Glinda of all people stood up. ¡°I¡¯m tired of y¡¯all whining. If no one else in this room cares, I would at least like to know how to live.¡± Aiden smiled. ¡°That''s great madam,¡± he said. ¡°My name¡¯s Glinda!¡± she responded. ¡°Don¡¯t call me madam like I¡¯m some old lady, pretty boy.¡± Aiden looked even more amused by the sort-of insult. ¡°My apologies. Alright so now what we have to know about trolls is that¨C¡± Silence. Aiden suddenly fell silent, his eyes flaring open, horror transforming his entire expression. And it wasn''t just him. It was like an eerie hush fell over the room all at once and a ghostly presence crawled over skin like an ominous wraith entered the space. Fear, unlike anything Lexie had ever felt, seized her soul. "Dad?" she murmured but Aiden wasn''t looking at her. He was slowly but surely turning to the large window behind him. "No," he whispered. "It can''t be." "Did you feel that?" Someone said and even though they didn''t say it loudly, the silence made it feel like they''d spoken into a megaphone. Suddenly the walls and the floors trembled like there was a mild earthquake. A few people screamed and dove to the floor. Lexie was still standing, still frozen in fear. It happened again. The light fixtures shook. The punch sloshed all over the serviettes. Aiden was staring. Waiting. And right then and there, a giant, veiny, monstrous eye, with tentacles all around it, floated into view of the window, blocking out the sun, staring right at them. No one spoke for several seconds. Some might have peed themselves. Lexie¡¯s stomach bottomed out. She was too scared to even scream. ¡°Well,¡± Mr. Fredrick commented from the floor in a trembling voice, while adjusting his glasses. ¡°You said you needed a volunteer. This is excellent timing, isn¡¯t it?¡± 42 - Elders Vs The Eye Lexie had never seen anything more terrifying in her life. The creature¨Cthe big, floating, bulbous eyeball with veins streaking across its sclera and tentacles erupting in place of its optic nerve¨Clooked like something out of a demonic nightmare. Long lashes jutted out from the eyelids as it stared unblinkingly at the crowd. It was still, floating in little bounces while the building continued to shake. Just staring at it filled Lexie with terror. Not just the obvious terror of being confronted by a nightmarish creature. Another type of fear, more intrinsic than logical, seemed to reach into her, seize her heart, and keep her entire body from working. She wasn¡¯t just scared of death. She was scared that she would never stop dying. She was scared that whatever this creature was, it would curse her to eternal damnation and she would never not feel fear again. All hope was doused out of her. And it was that very thing that forced the first scream out of her throat. A hand slapped over her mouth, but it was too late. All around her people were screaming, panicking. Table and chairs were crashing on the ground, glass shattering, bodies bumping into each other, panicked words flying through the air. ¡°Oh my God, we¡¯re going to die.¡± ¡°Get out of my way, I¡¯m getting out of here.¡± ¡°What the hell is that?¡± ¡°I should have stayed home. I knew I should never have come here.¡± ¡°I¡¯m too young to die.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry!¡± ¡°Stop grabbing me then!¡± ¡°Get the hell out of my way!¡± ¡°Quiet!¡± Aiden somehow managed to project his voice over the din and Lexie looked up to find that her father had been the one to clamp his hand over her mouth. He released her and ran to the other end of the room, slapping his hand on a button that activated the lockdown mechanism that had all the doors automatically locking. While everyone else in the room looked wild with terror, climbing over each other in their frenzy to get to the doorway and escape, Aiden was the only one who seemed unaffected. His face was severe and uncompromising but he didn¡¯t look at all afraid as he gave the order. ¡°Nobody leaves.¡± ¡°Fuck you,¡± Frank said as he continued toward the door, while being held by a woman in a wheelchair who was muttering that he needed to help her get out too. Apparently, she was planning on using him to wheel herself to safety. ¡°You want to keep us here to feed us to that thing? I¡¯ll break that damn door down if I have to. Damn it, let go of me, woman!¡± Both Aiden and the woman in the wheelchair ignored Frank, as Aiden then looked around the rest of the room. ¡°If you leave it will capture you. That¡¯s the whole idea. That¡¯s why it¡¯s instinctively giving off those pheromones to lead its prey out of hiding so that it doesn¡¯t have to come in here after you.¡± A few people had stopped to hear what Aiden had to say and some had never made it off the floor due to various injuries. But Frank and a few others were still determinedly making their way to the door like mindless zombies ignoring the fact that the door was locked. The only good thing was that they were actively obstructing themselves, each trying to be the first person to get out. They were also keeping an eye out for the thing to make sure it hadn¡¯t moved. ¡°You go outside, you will die,¡± Aiden continued. ¡°Stay indoors and live. You¡¯re not thinking rationally because that thing is instilling panic, but just look away from the creature for three seconds and I promise you will see.¡± "The emergency door is still open," someone yelled and like herd animals, they all turned toward the back and rushed for the corner where the back door was. Frank was ahead of the pack and was almost there when two things happened nearly simultaneously. Terry threw herself in front of the back door blocking it with both hands out and Mr. Frederick tackled Frank to the floor. Frank turned on him instantly. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you, you smug bastard.¡± ¡°He¡¯s right,¡± Mr Frederick said in a low tone. ¡°I stopped looking at the thing and some of my hysteria went away. I think¡­I think Sparrowfoot is telling the truth. The creature is trying to lure us out.¡± ¡°I think so too,¡± Terry said. ¡°I couldn''t get a good look at it since someone accidentally slugged me in the eye while screaming and so I believe I¡¯m thinking more clearly than y¡¯all are." ¡°Y¡¯all are insane!¡± Frank countered. ¡°You¡¯ve locked us in here with a [Villain] and a fucking floating eye!¡± ¡°The [Villain] is trying to help.¡± Mr. Frederick gave Aiden a look to continue what he was saying and Aiden nodded at the man. ¡°Everyone turn your back on the creature," he said. "Trust me. Just do it for a few seconds and see what happens. Don¡¯t look into its eye or you will be driven by fear once more and you will feel the unbelievable urge to run.¡± Lexie immediately knew that Aiden was right. She hadn¡¯t stared at the thing for seconds since she¡¯d been too busy watching the crowd. Aiden had turned her around to watch the chaos and while she was still scared, some of that mindless panic was receding. God. What a crazy feeling to experience. She still shuddered from the despondency she¡¯d felt. She wouldn''t have wished that hopelessness on her worst enemy. ¡°He¡¯s right.¡± Another woman said. ¡°The thing was just standing there but for some reason, I felt like it was going to kill me right there and then.¡± ¡°Yeah. I mean we¡¯re supposed to be scared but not that scared. I¡¯ve come within inches of a ten-foot troll before and it didn¡¯t scare me that bad.¡± Frank, who had been forced to the ground by Mr Frederick, finally stopped struggling and muttered into the carpet. ¡°Alright, I get it. Get off me.¡± Mr. Frederick rolled off, and Frank climbed to his feet, dusting himself off and glaring at Aiden. ¡°So what, the thing was messing with our minds?" Aiden inhaled. ¡°In a sense, although I¡¯m not sure it intends to. It¡¯s an eldritch creature, a pretty young one by the looks of it. And I don¡¯t know what it¡¯s doing here but typically creatures that young are looking for one of two things; comfort or food.¡± Lexie gulped. ¡°Any chance this one is vegetarian too?¡± she asked Aiden, her nerves plunging further down when he shook his head. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°No. They very much eat people.¡± A round of horrified gasps echoed in the room. ¡°With what mouth?¡± someone asked. ¡°Is that really important right now?¡± Glinda snapped and then said, ¡°Alright, professor. Tell us. How do I keep from getting eaten by that thing?¡± Oh now you want his help? Lexie thought snarkily, but she pressed her lips together to keep the words in. ¡°Maybe we can convince it that we¡¯re its mommy instead," Frank said before Aiden could answer. ¡°No. That won¡¯t work.¡± Lexie was pretty sure Frank made his comment mockingly but Aiden responded genuinely regardless. He sighed and then took a peek over his shoulder at the thing. ¡°Right now, it¡¯s not sure what we are. It doesn¡¯t see the humans inside the building, just the fact that there¡¯s a huge thing in its way. I don¡¯t know what attracted it here but that¡¯s not important right now. The important thing is that it¡¯s not sure whether we¡¯re a threat or a meal. And it¡¯s shaking us, trying to find out. That¡¯s why the walls are moving. ¡°So maybe it will think we¡¯re a threat and just give up?¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± Although Aiden didn''t sound so hopeful about that possibility. "Mostly this gives us time to come up with a plan.¡± He quickly strode to the place where he¡¯d arranged the household appliances and garden tools for the demonstration today, his eyebrows furrowing as he considered them. He took a barbed wire and a garden rake, carefully wrapping the wire around the rake and speaking as he worked. ¡°The creature is called a Hechtl. It¡¯s Eldritch for ''the all-seeing eye''. Looking into the eye for more than three to five seconds may cause a handful of symptoms based on the specific race. This could be anything from compulsion to petrification to sudden death.¡± ¡°C-compulsion?¡± someone stammered. "Like mind control? Oh God, not that." "You''d prefer sudden death?" someone else snarled. ¡°Based on what just happened now,¡± Aiden continued. ¡°I¡¯m thinking that this creature is more-so a compulsion type. So that means that as long as we don¡¯t look into its eyes for more than three seconds at a time, we should be able to destroy it. Conversely, it also cannot be looking at us.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand. I thought we just didn¡¯t have to look at it.¡± ¡°Yes, but some of its tricks can work if it looks into our eyes too. Right now it¡¯s not doing that, because like I said, it¡¯s not sure where our eyes are. It¡¯s still seeing the building as a whole creature. So as long as we don¡¯t do anything to break that illusion, then it should be fine.¡± He had finished lacing up the two rakes with barbed wire and took it over to an outlet that was usually reserved for high-powered manaronics. He used the edge of the tool to knock the outlet cover off, exposing the bluish liquid-uy substance inside. Then, he held onto the rubber ends and plugged the rakes into it, one by one. After he was done, he returned to the rest of the crowd and held out the tools to Mr. Frederick and Terry. ¡°Take these,¡± he told them. "The wires were gotten from a security fence and are imbued with mana. I''ve just charged them so they deliver shocks once they come in contact with a mana-conductive creature, like that one. The two of you will take these and guard the doors. If anything comes through that door, use your weapons to deliver a shock that will send them back.¡± Mr. Frederick and Terry swallowed and shared a look. The fear skittered across their expression as they both considered the huge responsibility they had just been given, to guard everyone in the room. And Aiden probably gave it to them because they were the most levelheaded of the group. Aiden waited for them to make their decision. They nodded at each other and inhaled deeply before accepting the rakes. "Make sure you only touch the rubber ends." Aiden turned back to the group. ¡°Who here has ever shot a gun before?¡± Frank and Glinda raised their hands. ¡°My father was a hunter,¡± Glinda said. ¡°And I was a mundane reserve soldier until my injury," Frank said. ¡°Was the best shot on my team too.¡± Someone said something that sounded like muttered doubt but Adien ignored them. ¡°Good enough.¡± He went back to a basket on his table and brought out what looked to be two water guns. He placed them on the table and materialized four vials of green liquid out of his inventory. ¡°These are some potions I was working on,¡± he said, plugging them into the water pistols. The water pistols glowed slightly as they were filled up and some smoke emitted from the muzzle of their barrel. ¡°You two have to be careful with these. One drop of the potion and it will burn your skin off." "What''s it for?" "The potions are poisonous and corrosive. Max tweaked the water guns to enable them to hold the poison and it also turns the liquid into bullet-like pellets that you can shoot. You two will take these and be our second line of defense." Frank looked at it and frowned doubtfully. ¡°Not that I¡¯m not grateful, professor, but wouldn¡¯t it have been better if you¡¯d brought an actual gun?¡± ¡°Yes, but I can¡¯t own guns. As an ex-[Villain] owning a clear assault weapon is¡­complicated. Illegal. So I had to get creative. A water gun and a corrosive potion do the trick just as well and fly under the radar much easier.¡± He glanced back at the creature. ¡°Besides, I¡¯m not sure a gun would even do much against it, although it''s young. Their tentacles are chitinous and hard to penetrate with regular bullets. On the other hand, the poison can burn through and have enough projectile force to pierce through tough material so they might work better than a regular gun." Frank nodded. "Got it. This works fine then." "Good. And also watch out for feelers¡­extra sets of eyes that sometimes sprout from its tentacles.¡± ¡°Disgusting," someone said and a murmur of assent went through the crowd. "Everyone else grab whatever you can and use it as a weapon. If you have some kind of conductive material, try to charge with a power source if possible. Use your canes, your oxygen tanks whatever you can to help you repel the creature''s tentacles. And most importantly, stay low to the ground and avoid its eyes." "To what end Professor?" Glinda asked. "Are we going to kill the thing?" He shook his head. "Very unlikely that we can. The plan is to repel it far enough away that we can make a run for it. Or if not, I''ll lure it into the building and trap it here while you guys escape." ¡°By yourself?¡± Lexie blurted out for the first time and he looked at her. He suddenly put his hand out and materialized two more water pistols, already filled up. Lexie wondered how long he''d had them in his inventory. He handed one to her and leaned in to whisper. ¡°Stay behind me, honey bee. I''ll keep you safe I promise.¡± She swallowed and nodded. As everyone scrambled around getting their weapons, Aiden kept giving instructions. He had everyone crouching underneath tables or hiding behind pillars. And as they got into position, he went over the plan again. Lexie''s heart raced. The walls were beginning to shake more violently and pretty soon Lexie was sure that the creature would break through the walls or find some other way in. It was pretty obvious that they were on borrowed time. Aiden and Lexie were behind the middle pillar and he took a second to stare at all of them, making sure everyone was where they were supposed to be. He released a breath. ¡°Despite having some experience, I¡¯ll warn you that I¡¯m not great in high-pressure situations,¡± he admitted. ¡°I do better as a [Hero] when I have time to plan. So I''m likely not the one you need right now but I¡¯m the only one here. This is just to warn you that for us all to survive, everything has to work out exactly as planned. Everyone needs to play their roles and no one can mess up. Understood?" They nodded, fear making hands shake, and faces unsure. He attempted an encouraging smile. ¡°We¡¯ll be fine. Let¡¯s just stick to the plan.¡± Suddenly the windows shattered. Everyone screamed and crouched even lower. That fearful feeling pulsed through the room again, tugging at their resolve but everyone held their position. ¡°Frank,¡± Aiden called and the older man glanced at him. ¡°I¡¯m going to try to communicate with it. I¡¯ll need you to shoot it¨C¡± ¡°Eat lead motherfucker!¡± Frank bolted to his feet straight and shot a spray of green pellets right at the eye. It landed with a scorching hiss and the creature screeched and reared back, with more glass cracking in its wake. It disappeared from view for a moment but there was little hope that it was gone. If anything the air felt heavier, more foreboding. The eerie moment that followed wasn''t a victory. Aiden gave Frank a look of such profound disappointment it was palpable as he finally completed his sentence. ¡°-only if I fail to negotiate,¡± he finished a tad uselessly. The walls trembled again as the creature articulated its displeasure again, dousing everyone in waves of fear. ¡°Oh God, Frank, what have you done?" Terry groaned. ¡°It''s not my fault,¡± Frank squatted again, glancing around him in panic. ¡°You should have led with that professor.¡± A screech filled the air and two tentacle arms burst into the room. 43 - Elders Vs The Eye Part 2 What happened next reminded Lexie of that famous Mike Tyson quote: ''Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.'' The unexpected retaliation from the Hechtl threw everything into disarray. Suddenly everyone was screaming and dashing for safety, which to them meant running to the very doors that were warned not to go through. They dropped weapons, shoved and pushed each other to get out as the tentacles searched for a victim. Someone yelled that they thought they were having a heart attack, and another person screamed back, ¡°No time for that! Move!¡± As the slimy tentacles slithered through the crowd, it mostly went after those who were running. Luckily, two things salvaged the situation. Terry and Mr. Frederick, who had been set to guard the doors, didn¡¯t budge. ¡°Get back people!¡± Glinda said. ¡°You all are losing it again.¡± The tentacle then wrapped itself around an old man¡¯s leg, who screamed bloody murder and fell as it dragged him back a few feet. But before it could lift him in the air, Aiden aimed and shot a bullet of green goo at it. It. It hissed as it made contact, burning through the shell of the tentacle. The creature outside screeched again, releasing its victim and whipping its appendage back through the windows. ¡°Hold your position, everyone,¡± Aiden yelled. ¡°No one goes out. Nothing has changed.¡± ¡°But it can get in now!¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter. We¡¯re still better off here than out there, where we can get picked off cleanly and individually. Now I know it¡¯s hard to resist the fear and the temptation to run, but do your best to not look at the creature for more than three seconds at a time.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t look at it and I still nearly pissed myself,¡± the older lady in the wheelchair croaked in a shaky voice, her knobbed hands shaking in fear. Lexie felt a wave of pity for her. It must be torture to be in a situation like this and be unable to wheel yourself out fast enough, so you have to rely on others for your safety. Her wheelchair looked motorized but maybe it wasn''t working or it wasn''t fast enough. They should make wheelchairs with turbo mode for situations like this. Or maybe they already do and she just doesn''t have one? I should look into it once all this is over. Lexie was aware her mind was traveling to such random thoughts because she was trying to distract herself from the panic that had overtaken her once again. When the tentacles had burst in, she hadn''t run like everyone else. She''d just frozen up and the thing could have easily grabbed her. Only luck saved her. Luck, and the fact that she was standing beside her father. Lexie didn''t know what was going on with her. She was typically great in a pinch, usually so quick to action, with good reflexes but today it was failing her. Both her mind and her will were failing her. They were no match for the fear and panic the creature inspired. She didn''t know how Aiden was doing it. Even as everyone panicked, he looked completely in control, if mildly annoyed that they weren''t following his instructions. She figured he might be fighting the fear by focusing his mind on survival tactics instead. Lexie started to do the same, distract herself. Whenever she was scared she should just think about something random, something that could make her mind wander. Or think of something useful that may be able to help her in this situation. Cards. She would think about her cards. Think of what cards you can use to help. ¡°I understand,¡± Aiden told the woman in the wheelchair and strolled to her. ¡°From now on, you¡¯re with me. You can hold onto me when need be and I¡¯ll try to block you from the creature.¡± She nodded and grasped onto his shirt. Her voice shook and her eyes glowed with gratitude. ¡°Thank you.¡± He nodded and then turned to the rest. ¡°The creature''s effect can still work when it looks at any of us but it''s not as potent. And we can ensure that it doesn''t look at us for too long." ¡°How?¡± ¡°We split up into groups and each hide behind the pillars in the farthest parts of the room. Now that the creature has found its way inside, it will send more tentacles and possible feelers into the room to detect how dangerous it is before coming in by itself. We attack the feelers one by one, and then also take turns trying to shoot the Hechtl whenever you sense it''s staring in one direction for too long. Shooting it will do one of two things; it will either scare it away or anger it into coming in. Best case scenario, we scare it away and we escape. Worst case scenario it comes in here, I''ll keep it busy and you guys escape." Not without you, Lexie said mentally. As scared as she was, as terrified as the creature made her, she wasn''t leaving Aiden here alone with it. "If it comes in," Aiden said. "Terry, you''ll lead everyone out the back door. Alright?" Terry, whose face was as white as her eyes were determined, nodded and held her rake to her chest. Suddenly, the air felt heavy again. ¡°Oh God. I think it¡¯s coming back," someone whispered. "I can feel it.¡± Aiden nodded. ¡°We¡¯re going to break into four groups. Each group should have a gun meister and a rake-person. The oldest and weakest should be at the back of the room so they can get out first if the Hechtl manages to come in. Now arrange yourselves accordingly. Quickly!¡± He added that last part because a screech punctuated the creature''s return. Everyone then scrambled to group themselves, muttering to each other but remaining surprisingly civilized. At least there was no shoving and pushing this time, only mild grumbling. "Frank, you''re with me." "Tessa! Over here." Soon they had their four groups although Lexie had to sacrifice her gun to one of the groups that didn''t have one, because her father insisted she be in his group. Aiden and Lexie were at one of the frontmost pillars and Lexie held her breath and watched as the feelers came in slithering through the windows and sliding on the floor. When it reached their group, Aiden aimed at it, but Mr. Frederick shook his head at him. "No need to waste the bullets," he said, reaching out with his rake and lightly touching the feeler. With a zap, the thing hissed again and retreated. In retaliation, the Hechtl sent three more tentacles in there. This time, Aiden shot at the one in the front but the other two reached the back group. Frank quickly took care of them and he wasn''t lying about his gunmanship as he squeezed off two shots within a second and hit both of them. The creature cried out and retreated again, the eyeball floating upwards and leaving the window bare. ¡°Hold steady,¡± Aiden said. ¡°It¡¯s not gone." And then to Lexie, he murmured. ¡°Lex, I¡¯m going to need the card.¡± Lexie stared at him and from his eyes, she didn¡¯t have to ask what card he meant. She could see what he intended to do. Fear seized her heart. She shook her head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Lexie¨C¡± ¡°What if it doesn¡¯t work?¡± she hissed at him. ¡°What if it sees you before you can activate it?¡± ¡°It won¡¯t. I¡¯ll cause a distraction.¡± Louder, he said, "Frank, I¡¯m going to need you to do me a crazy favor.¡± ¡°Crazy is my middle name, chief.¡± ¡°Good. I¡¯m going to need you to distract it, the next time it comes back. Try to keep its eyes on you but don''t look at it too long or you''ll fall under its thrall. Even if you don''t, keep in mind that this task is going to be more than a little dangerous because the Hechtl will be looking at you." ¡°You¡¯re in luck. Danger is also my middle name.¡± Aiden shot the man a grateful look, then turned to one of the back groups. ¡°Glinda, Terry, look out for the feelers and watch Frank¡¯s back. Make sure the creature doesn¡¯t lure him out. Everyone else, hold your position and be careful. No matter what happens, don¡¯t panic.¡± The atmospheric heaviness returned and Lexie heard more glass cracking. At the next earthquake-level shake, the rest of the front wall showed fissures. The squelching sound of the creature shook the air. Lexie closed her eyes. Cards. Think of cards and card combinations. What would help her in this type of situation? What could she do so her dad didn¡¯t have to risk his life? ¡°Lexie." Her father said before she could figure it out, and her brain jumped into her panic mode. She couldn''t think properly. She didn¡¯t want to open her eyes and have him ask the question again, or make her give him the card. But she couldn''t think fast enough. The creature was close. When she opened her eyes, Aiden was staring at her steadily as though trying to instill confidence in her, one that he wasn¡¯t sure even he felt. ¡°The card.¡± Lexie wanted to deny him again, but the thing was almost inside and the feelers were moving through. It wasn¡¯t fair for her to jeopardize everyone and the whole plan just because of her childish fear. So even though she really really didn¡¯t want to, she opened up her inventory and initiated the transfer. "Please be careful," she whispered after she was done. Aiden pulled her in for a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Take care of her,¡± he told the rest of the group surrounding her, which consisted of the fisherman hat man with the duck-patterned socks, Merryweather, and a few others. ¡°You have our word,¡± Merryweather tells him. ¡°Frank,¡± Aiden suddenly barks. ¡°Now.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go, bitches!¡± Frank came out with a battle cry and shot right at the eye, weaving and ducking as fast as his middle-aged body could go, all the feelers suddenly charged at him. Lexie glanced over and saw that the creature was looking solely at Frank and targeting him with the tentacles. Frank was struggling to shoot all six of the feelers to prevent them from reaching him. Glinda sprung out to help him and now all the creature''s attention was divided between both of them. Aiden crawled out the other side of the pillar, flashed the card, and immediately leaped into action. He bolted for it, getting as close as he could to the thing, and leaped off the table into the air. Lexie watched in awe for a second because that was a very high leap. Whatever workouts he was doing with Max must be paying off because he didn¡¯t even seem winded as he brought out his gun, inches away from the creature, and was about to shoot it in the eye. And then without warning, the eyeball flicked back to Aiden with horrifying clarity. It could see him. Suddenly Aiden¡¯s shooting arm went slack, and he crashed clumsily onto the table below. "Dad!" Aiden didn''t answer. Still, he had the dexterity and presence of mind to roll over to keep from looking at the creature and also avoid a brand new attacking tentacle. At least at first. As he scrambled back to his feet, the tentacle encircled his limbs and around his whole body, pinning down his gun arm and dragging him closer. ¡°No!¡± Lexie screamed as Aiden was being lifted in the air. Frank and Glinda were still occupied with the other tentacles, so they couldn''t help. It was Terry that moved first. She leaned back and javelin-threw her rake toward the arm holding Aiden. The projectile found its target. The creature screeched as it got zapped, and the shock was enough for it to let go of Aiden. He only fell a few feet this time, but he lay on the ground unmoving and groaning. Lexie quickly activated the joint and combo, targeting Aiden. It took fifteen seconds and then she dashed forward to carry him to safety. Aiden was groaning when she swept him into her arms. Confusion pierced through the pain in his eyes. ¡°Lexie, what are you doing? How are you doing this?" ¡°I made you lighter,¡± she said, running as quickly as she could. ¡°Why didn¡¯t the card work?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know I...it must have seen me somehow¡­¡± His eyes shut and his face squeezed in pain. She saw his arm was shifted out of position. The same arm that Mouse dislocated. As she put him down behind the pillar, Aiden had gotten some of his mobility back. Biting his lip, he grabbed his dislocated arm and shifted it back into place with a sickening crunch that made everyone around them wince. ¡°So,¡± he said, trying to sound casual about it. ¡°It would seem that the creature has a few more tricks up its sleeve than I thought. It can apparently petrify as well, if you get close enough.¡± ¡°Fantastic,¡± Glinda snarled while still fighting the feelers. Lexie, on the other hand, was trying to figure out why the card didn¡¯t work. Was it immune? Maybe because it had multiple eyes? Or did it somehow spot Aiden when he flashed the card? Lexie looked left and then right, her gaze scanning the corners. And then, at the far right of the room, she noticed something wriggling in the corner. ¡°There''s another eye,¡± Lexie said and then Aiden''s head snapped toward her, as he slowly climbed to his feet. ¡°What?" ¡°Look.¡± She pointed to the corner where the feeler had snuck underneath one of the locked doors. No one had noticed it before because no one was looking in that direction and, so far, the feeler hadn¡¯t done anything but observe the group. But it was there. It seemed that by that point, Glinda and Frank had managed to drive off the rest of the feelers, so Glinda glanced in that direction and sneered. "Nasty bugger," she snarled and shot it several times until the tentacle melted into green and black goo on the floor. This time, the Hectl screamed in pain but it didn''t back out. Instead, it banged against the walls, trying to push itself in through the broken windows. ¡°Alright, folks,¡± Aiden said, sounding remarkably calm for someone who¡¯d almost been eaten by a giant eye. ¡°This is it. It looks like the Hechtl is going for option number two. Everyone at the back without a weapon, make your way to the door. Once it gets in, you get out and don¡¯t stop running until you¡¯re inside another building.¡± The complaints started instantly. ¡°What? That¡¯s about a kilometer away.¡± ¡°What if we don¡¯t make it?¡± ¡°Oh God, I think I¡¯m really having a heart attack now.¡± ¡°Please do,¡± Glinda snapped at the man who made the last comment, then pointed at the Hechtl. ¡°And while you¡¯re at it, could you run in that direction? I think maybe we¡¯ll all have better odds of getting out of here if you distract that thing.¡± ¡°Glinda!¡± Terry scolded. ¡°What? He''s the one trying to die, he might as well make himself useful while he¡¯s at it." ¡°Ignore her, Ignacio,¡± her sister said. ¡°You¡¯re fine. Just do your best, alright?¡± ¡°Someone will need to take Mrs. Corwin with them,¡± Aiden said, gesturing to the woman in the wheelchair and then nodding at fisherman-hat guy. ¡°Merryweather. Can you do it?¡± His face was conflicted. ¡°Yeah, but I can stay and fight. I may not be good with weapons but I was a pretty good brawler back in the day. I don''t feel good leaving you here by yourself." Aiden smiled. ¡°Thank you for the offer, but I don¡¯t think that will be useful here. Just help get as many people to safety as you can.¡± Merryweather bit his lip and then nodded. Then he put his hand on Aiden''s chest and closed his eyes as though muttering a prayer in another language. Aiden must have understood it because he put his hand on the man¡¯s shoulder when he was done and said, "I appreciate it.¡± As Merryweather wheeled Mrs. Corwin away, Aiden turned to Lexie. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you would leave if I asked you to, would you?" She shook her head. ¡°Thought as much. Just stay down and remain hidden, honeybee. Okay? And if it gets out of hand, you get out." Lexie swallowed and nodded. After Merryweather quickly shuffled the more vulnerable to the back of the room, and the creature was nearly inside, Aiden finally addressed the group that remained, made up of Frank, Glinda, Terry and the shorter man who had Lexie¡¯s gun whose name she did not know. ¡°Alright,¡± Aiden said. ¡°Same strategy. Keep in mind that when it gets in here, it''s going to be a thousand times worse. That fear you feel will magnify. You¡¯re going to want to run away at all times, and you¡¯re going to feel like fighting it is futile. It''s all a trick. The Hechtl wants you to feel that way. It¡¯s the only way it can survive. But just know it''s almost as scared of you as you are of it." Lexie wasn''t sure about that. She thought Aiden might just be saying it to give everyone hope, and it must be working because they nodded and stood a little straighter. "We¡¯re going to hit it with everything we¡¯ve got. One after another. Spread out so that it can¡¯t get a hold of anyone. And if you see it targeting one person overtly then we all jump in to save them. Alright?¡± They all murmured their assent again. "Luckily it¡¯s still young so it won¡¯t be able to catch on to our strategy." He inhaled deeply and glanced back. The Hechtl had almost squeezed in completely. ¡°Okay good," Aiden announced. "Now let''s go!" A battle cry rang out as they all dashed toward the Hechlt at the same time it broke free from the wall entering the building. Behind her, Lexie could hear Merryweather opening the door to let the people out, but it was drowned out by Terry, Frank, and Glinda''s war cries as they valiantly attacked the creature. Terry focused on zapping the feelers, while Aiden, Frank, Glinda and the to other man were all shooting the eye. Lexie remained hidden behind the pillar, watching the battle play out. They were doing as Aiden said, going after it incessantly one after the other, never letting it focus too long on one person. They were injuring it over and over, but it was regrowing and healing fast and there was no sign that it was getting physically weaker. ¡°You have to get it in the main eye,¡± Aiden said. ¡°We can¡¯t kill it but we can blind it. It won¡¯t be able to heal as fast from that, and then it will be trapped here after we seal the windows.¡± "It¡¯s hard boss," Frank said, and Lexie agreed. The creature, though young, was relentless. She tried to figure out how she could help them. Maybe she could make them stronger or faster? Lighter? She wished she had tried out different card combinations now. When Glinda faced a particularly aggressive feeler, Terry threw herself in front of her sister, to distract the creature, shooting it with the gun. It wasn¡¯t enough and once it came after her, she began to run. Without hesitation, Lexie activated the combo. Lexie had a theory that she could reduce the clumsiness factor of the combo by simply limiting the rise of the waste mana in making sure the card deactivated before mana had gone halfway up it. When she was done, she pointed at Terry giving the woman a speed and dexterity boost. And while she stumbled at times, she didn''t fall and she managed to get away as the other man finally shot and destroyed the tentacle. She wasn''t as clumsy. Good. It worked. Now if only she could give it to someone else at the same time. "Ah!" Frank suddenly screamed, slapping at his body. "It¡¯s got me. The damn things got me and I''m going to die." "No one''s got you, Frank," Glinda said. "You just stared at it too long. It¡¯s just the fear talking. Look away." Frank did as Glinda and Aiden kept the creature busy. "Thank you," he said when he was done and got back into action. While they were attacking, the creature drifted closer and Aiden managed to fire a shot dead center in the eyeballs. The creature gave its loudest screech yet and even better, it bled. Black goo dripped from onto the eyelashes and it reared back. The rest of the group wanted to run away but Aiden didn¡¯t let it retreat, rushing forward, and executing another big leap. This time he aimed and got it right in the eye again landing a second shot. More black goo streamed out. The Hechtl sobbed. Lexie almost felt bad for the creature then. Almost. But then she noticed that it was starting to attack Aiden more aggressively, its feeler jabbing toward him faster than he could shoot. One of them grabbed him. Lexie''s heart pounded. Making a split second decision, Lexie materialized two cards, began activating them, and stood. Aiden saw her and screamed. "Lexie, no!" She immediately confronted the fear slamming onto her like an oppressive weight. As she thought of what she had to do, she felt the need to curl up into a ball on the floor and stay there. But now that she knew what was happening, she didn¡¯t give in. Instead, she took a deep breath, made the swirling motion that had taken her weeks to perfect, pushed all her mana into the pathway and then counted to ten, while hiding behind the pillar. And when she was done, she dashed right for the eye. , the first card she''d activated, gave her a speed boost and buoyancy to leap from the table like Aiden had done. Nothing grabbed at her mid-air, all feelers currently occupied by Aiden, Frank, Glinda, and the other man. For a second, Lexie felt like she was floating in mid-air, and stared right into the petrifying eye that was still focused on Aiden. And then she raised a finger and shot a confetti cannon right into its pupil. Screech! She''d pushed enough mana to add force to the projectile to make the creature cry out in pain. And though it didn''t make it bleed, the confetti got in its eye and Lexie had to imagine that was probably irritating in addition to obstructing his vision. It dropped Aiden as Lexie landed on the floor cleanly. Luckily, her dad managed to land on his feet too. ¡°Everyone out and shut the doors,¡± Aiden shouted and no one had to be told twice. They all bolted in unison for the backdoor, fear and desperation in every step, hoping that none of them got caught by a tentacle. Lexie was ahead of the pack but as her speed boost ran out she began to lag. That was until Frank grabbed her and swung her onto his shoulders, not missing a single step while he did. The spry old man was the first one out of the door, followed by the other man whose name Lexie did now know, Glinda and Terry. Aiden had reached the door before them, but he stood by it keeping an eye on the creature while they all went through. When everyone was out he finally came out too and slammed the door behind him. "We need to seal the windows," he gasped and Lexie was about to ask how when she saw a figure on a bike in the distance that made her entire body flood with relief. Thank goodness. Uncle Max was here. 44 - A Visit From Hero Support Uncle Max killed the eye in just under a minute. They watched him do it. The second he arrived, he didn''t wait for explanations and just charged into the bingo hall. He paused for a second when he saw the wailing, writhing creature, then pulled out a gun from his backpack and clicked a button. The gun automatically unfolded into a tool resembling a scythe. Max then pointed it at the eye and fired three explosive shots that had it crashing down finally. Then, for good measure, he swung the scythe and sliced it open so that it couldn¡¯t regenerate. Of course that also revealed the insides of the creature, inky and black with a few pustules that pulsed like it was digesting something. Lexie didn¡¯t follow that train of thought and looked away so she wouldn''t get sick. ¡°That was unsightly,¡± Glinda said after we retreated some distance away to sit on the grass. "You know that¡¯s probably what your small intestine looks like, Terry. All large and lumpy." ¡°Lay off her,¡± Frank snapped, before Terry could respond. ¡°She did amazing back there. And she saved your life.¡± Glinda blinked at him in surprise, and so did Terry. Frank didn¡¯t back down holding Glinda¡¯s gaze Finally, Terry chuckled to break the awkwardness. ¡°No more fat jokes, sis. At least not today.¡± Terry turned her head to stare up at the sky, a smile teasing at the corner of her lips. ¡°I did save your life¡± "Yeah," Frank said, sitting beside Glinda. "Twice by my count. It would have had you at the start of that if she hadn''t stabbed that tentacle right in the keister." Glinda opened her mouth like she was about to protest, then thought twice about it. Then she sighed. ¡°Fine. Thank you for saving me." She sounded begrudging but also maybe a little proud of it too. She stared at her sister for a good while, with a burgeoning respect. ¡°You saved my life too,¡± Frank said to Terry, nudging her with his elbow. "Also, I didn¡¯t know you could move like that woman. How did you manage to jump that far?¡± Terry didn¡¯t say anything and just kept staring at the sky. It seemed she didn¡¯t know the answer herself. And Lexie didn¡¯t plan on giving it to her. She also didn¡¯t plan on acknowledging the +1 Bravery and +1 Chivalry blinking in the corner of her vision. Gosh darn it. She¡¯d earned Hero Points again. ¡°What happened?¡± Lexie looked behind her to find some of the elderly who had run away returning, along with a few more people who had heard the commotion from nearby buildings. They started asking the same questions over and over but none of the six were ready to talk about it yet. Everyone was in varying levels of shock, relief, and plain old exhaustion concerning what just happened. It was crazy to think about the fact that they were attacked by a giant carnivorous eye. What was even crazier was that everyone survived it. It had been close a few times there. Aiden had been inches from being swallowed up. Frank and Terry had been in trouble a few times too. But the start of the attack was the most dangerous part of it all, because of the oppressive fear that made them all want to run out right into the creature''s maw. If they had done that, they likely would have been the things pulsing in its belly right now. If not for Aiden¡¯s knowledge, his preparation, and sheer dumb luck they would all be dead. And it seemed everyone knew it too, because all the survivors kept sneaking looks at Aiden, and the looks were filled with awe, gratitude, and hints of shame. Lexie knew the shame was because they hadn¡¯t exactly treated him the best in the beginning. And they had made a mockery of his tutoring just minutes ago. Now, he¡¯d just saved their lives. Aiden for his part wasn¡¯t paying attention to any of them. He was watching the building from a distance with a forlorn look on his face. ¡°Why do you look like that?¡± Lexie murmured so the others wouldn¡¯t hear her, leaning on his side. He wrapped one arm around her. ¡°Just thinking. That creature was very young,¡± he said. ¡°It probably didn¡¯t know what it was doing. It was just lost and hungry and looking for its mother. And now it¡¯s dead.¡± Although he¡¯d kept his tone flat, the same tone he¡¯d adopted when telling her the story of Mouse, Lexie knew what Aiden was feeling was guilty. Her father didn''t like killing things. Even things that were actively trying to kill him. Lexie felt a little bad for the creature too, after learning it was just a baby that got lost. But given the circumstances, where it was either the creature or her, she would kill it again. ¡°Was there any way to return it to its mother without killing it?¡± she asked anyway, probably to ease her guilty conscience. Aiden shook his head. ¡°Its mother is probably nowhere near here. And even if it was, there was no way for us to lure it back to her, and even if we did, most likely it would not accept the lost creature, since it appeared to have been away from its mother for a long time. So the young Hechtl would have just continued finding and eating people until someone else eventually killed it.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± The thought didn¡¯t make her feel all that relieved. Only sadder. The whole situation was so¡­unnecessary. She was about to ask how the thing got here in the first place when she noticed Max was done with his work and was now storming their way, a vicious expression on his face. And when he got there, he voiced the question before she could. ¡°What was that thing? Where did it come from? And why was there confetti in it?¡± Aiden rolled his shoulder. ¡°It was a Hechtl. Rare creature of the eldritch.¡± ¡°So a demon. Fantastic. How in the ever-loving hell did it get here?¡± Aiden shrugged. ¡°Either a very powerful summoner or an unstable dungeon. But I don¡¯t see a portal anywhere around here, and I don¡¯t see a summoner either.¡± Max gave a nasty laugh. ¡°Great. So we don¡¯t just have to worry about disappearing dungeons and dungeon creatures, we apparently have to worry about demons too.¡± ¡°Eldritch.¡± Aiden corrected. ¡°Oh, like it matters.¡± Aiden paused in thought. ¡°This could be linked to the disappearing dungeon. Maybe it escaped from one.¡± "And what? It¡¯s just been floating around for days and no one noticed?" "I noticed!" A new voice floated from far away, carried by the wind. Old Man Lochlan was briskly marching toward them, with two sheriffs and two costumed strangers in tow. Lexie instantly knew they were [Heroes]. It was the spandex and the self-important way in which they walked. ¡°I saw that damn thing on my farm earlier today," Mr. Lochlan was saying. "It¡¯s why I couldn''t make it to the meeting. By the time I went to call for help, it was gone.¡± ¡°It came to the bingo hall in your place.¡± Frank chuckled at his own joke. ¡°Maybe it wanted to tell us why you couldn¡¯t make it." Mr. Frederick shook his head, but smirked. His double-breasted suit was now completely rumpled and his glasses were broken but nevertheless determinedly perched on his nose. Now that the whole thing was over, both men seemed to have a sense of humor about things. Lexie wasn''t quite there yet herself. ¡°Who are those two clowns?¡± Frank pointed at the newcomers who stood there patiently surveying the group. ¡°We¡¯re from the hero¡¯s association,¡± the shorter man said. ¡°My name is Dexilot and this is my partner Robert Graves. We were on our way to respond to the SOS on Mr. Lochlan¡¯s farm when we heard there was some commotion over here.¡± ¡°Y¡¯all are [Heroes]?¡± Glinda asked. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°We¡¯re hero-support.¡± ¡°So they sent their assistants. Nice.¡± Dexilot flinched at the insult but his partner seemed to think it was funny. Dexilot then puffed out his chest so far out that he reminded Lexie of Luther Firebringer. Maybe that''s something they teach them to do at the hero academy. ¡°We received word that there was a sighting of an Eldritch creature,¡± Dexilot said stiffly. ¡°We more than sighted it,¡± Frank said. ¡°We nearly got eaten by it. But we fought back because as always, the human spirit is indomitable.¡± He put a hand in the air and pointed to the skies. ¡°Take that, you Fae and Orcan bastards. Earth remains number one.¡± The hero support guys blinked at him and then seemed to search around the group to find a more logical person to talk to. ¡°The thing appeared out of nowhere,¡± Mrs. Corwin began speaking from her wheelchair, her voice still shaky. She was bordered by Merryweather and the other silent man who had helped them, whose name Lexie still didn''t know.¡°We were about to begin drills with Sparrowfoot here about how to protect ourselves from Dungeon creatures when suddenly this big ugly eye creature broke the windows. And then as we were all running around terrified ¨C¡± ¡°These drills,¡± Dexilot interrupted, his gaze flickering to Aiden. ¡°They were organized by you, Sparrowfoot?¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°They were organized by the mayor in response to the growing threat of UD¡¯s in Hovelton.¡± "Right. And he put you in charge of them?¡± Aiden stiffened a little as though understanding the direction of questioning now. ¡°Not necessarily.¡± He answered carefully. ¡°Max was in charge. I was assigned to help him because I¡¯m the only one here apart from Max with dungeon experience.¡± ¡°Were you aware that, due to your rap sheet, you¡¯re not allowed to lead groups of more than three without a license?" ¡°It''s the cult leader convention," Robert added. ¡°You think he¡¯s a cult leader?¡± Glinda asked. ¡°That would be a natural assumption given that he''s a [Villain]." ¡°Oh, what bullshit.¡± Max rolled his eyes and his aura, which had just been guarded before, now shifted to full-on animosity. ¡°Yeah. What does that matter?¡± Frank frowned at the men. ¡°It''s because of him we were able to survive that. If not, it would have been a massacre.¡± "The rules are the rules,¡± Dexilot said. ¡°You can take those rules and shove them up your own ass,¡± Max snarled. ¡°You¡¯d rather they be dead?¡± ¡°Language Max,¡± Aiden said wearily. "I don''t give a damn, Aiden." ¡°You don¡¯t tell us what to do mister whoever you are," Robert said to Max in a quiet, but heated voice. ¡°Especially since I¡¯m not sure you have the license for that weapon either.¡± He pointed his chin at the black gun-scythe that was still in Max¡¯s hand. A predatory smile spread Max¡¯s lips. "Well, why don¡¯t you come take it from me then?¡± The taller officer raised an eyebrow. ¡°You¡¯re aware we have powers right?¡± ¡°Barely.¡± Glinda snorted. ¡°Isn''t that why you''re hero support and not [Heroes]?¡± ¡°Yeah. What is your power? Bet it¡¯s something stupid. That¡¯s why y¡¯all took so long. Because you were actually scared to face that thing and waited for us to kill it ourselves." ¡°What a ridiculous accusation!¡± Dexilot immediately burst out with. ¡°How dare you?¡± ¡°Relax, Dex. Easy,¡± Robert said. But Frank wasn''t done. "And what kind of name is Dexilot anyway?" "It''s a combination of Horanic and Luvian," Mr. Frederick volunteered helpfully. "It means ten inches." Frank snorted. "Really? Does that mean that your power is that you can stretch your limbs about ten inches longer? Oh jeez, it¡¯s even stupider than I thought.¡± They must have been close because Dexilot''s face flamed red. Lexie watched the whole thing with interest. Between the annoyed townspeople and judgmental [Heroes] she saw a situation that was quickly devolving out of control. ¡°Alright, forget about the drill license,¡± Robert said. ¡°Just tell us again how you defeated the creature.¡± But it was too late at that point. No one was willing to talk much and simply gave an abridged version of everything that had happened. They were attacked by the creature. By sheer dumb luck, it got killed. The end. ¡°And how did you get these weapons?¡± Dexilot asked as he gestured to the pistols still in their hands. ¡°They¡¯re water pistols, man,¡± Merryweather said. ¡°You could get them from a toy store.¡± ¡°He¡¯s clearly talking about the corrosive on the inside. Which one would probably need a license to own.¡± ¡°I wish they would give you a license to shut up,¡± Frank muttered and Aiden smiled a little. ¡°You,¡± Dexilot said to Frank. ¡°Tell me where you got yours from.¡± ¡°Hmm I wonder where¡­¡± he said, rubbing his chin. ¡°You know I think I may have looked into that creature''s eye for so long that I kind of forgot a few things. I have no clue where I got that from. Does anyone remember?¡± All the elders individually shook their heads. ¡°I think it was there when we got there,¡± Glinda said. "Definitely. Maybe they left it after the last bingo night," Terry concurred. ¡°Why would you have a water gun for bingo?¡± Dexilot asked. Terry snorted. ¡°You¡¯ve never been to a Hovelton Senior Bingo Night, have you? Let me tell you, things can get pretty heated and sometimes people need to get cooled off.¡± Dexilot wasn¡¯t buying it. ¡°You realize we can just take you all in for questioning don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Oh, that would be great PR,¡± Max mocked. ¡°¡®The hero¡¯s association ignores threat of unstable dungeon for months and then goes after a group of traumatized elderly people, forcibly rounding them up for questioning after they survived a demon attack.¡¯ That would be a great headline, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°Well, they admitted that their minds have been meddled with.¡± Dexilot smiled pleasantly. "We have every right to do that, to discover the extent of the damage.¡± "Oh, you know what? I remember where we got the acid potions from now!¡± Frank announced as he snapped his fingers. ¡°They¡¯re mine.¡± Both hero-support guys frowned. ¡°Yeah. I got them from a buddy in Moulding. I can take you to him if you want. Of course, his mind is not so good anymore, and he''s not all the way there, so he might not remember giving them to me, but he definitely did. He told me that was just a fancy liquid for the water guns. How was I to know that they were filled with illegal substances?¡± Dexilot raised a disbelieving eyebrow and Robert pinched the bridge of his nose in clear irritation. When Dexilot opened his mouth again, Robert held his hand up. ¡°Let¡¯s just clear the thing and leave,¡± he said resigned. ¡°But he¡¯s-¡± ¡°It¡¯s not worth it. Sparrowfoot saved these people, they¡¯re not going to say anything that they think will implicate him. Let¡¯s just do our job and go. Dora¡¯ll kill me if I¡¯m late for Mikey¡¯s ballet recital again.¡± Dexilot sighed and then gave Aiden a cold look as though it were somehow his fault. And then the two of them headed to the bingo hall that still had the remains of the creature in it. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Max said when they were out of earshot. ¡°I used a tech jammer to delete all the surveillance footage. They won¡¯t be able to get anything out of it." Aiden gave him a weak smile. ¡°Thank you.¡± And he turned to the rest of them. ¡°And thank you all too. For not saying what happened.¡± The elders fell over themselves to respond. ¡°Of course we wouldn¡¯t!¡± ¡°What kind of rat bastards do you think we are, selling you out and letting you go to prison for saving our asses.¡± ¡°They must have some nerve questioning us like that. Especially that Dexilot fella. The insolence. I have diapers older than him.¡± ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s an annoying little shit.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about him, Sparrowfot. He comes anywhere near you, I''ll whack him with his.¡± Gertrude held up her walker. Lexie was surprised as she witnessed the unanimous support of her father. Aiden looked stunned too and swallowed thickly as he looked down at his laced fingers. She thought that she saw a suspicious sheen in his eyes. Don¡¯t cry, dad, she thought. Or else, I¡¯m going to cry too. She leaned into him more and his arm tightened around her. ¡°Thank you,¡± he said again to the small crowd. ¡°You saved our lives Aiden,¡± Terry said gently. ¡°We¡¯re the ones who should be thanking you. You helped us even though we¡¯ve made things nothing but difficult for you.¡± ¡°And talked badly about you.¡± ¡°And thought endlessly about how you were going to destroy us.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think that," Frank said smugly. "I just didn''t like you because I didn¡¯t like the way you dressed. Still don¡¯t. You look like a pansy.¡± "And the way you were so polite all the time was off-putting," Glinda concurred. "It felt super disingenuous so I didn¡¯t buy it at first. But now I think you¡¯re just that disgustingly nice. You know you could afford to be mean once in a while." Aiden gave a weak smile. "Yeah. I¡¯ve been told that." He gave Max a look, but Max had seemingly tuned out the group, probably because he was uncomfortable with the show of emotion but also because he was trying to figure out what was happening and how the Hechtl got here. He turned to Mr. Lochlan who was standing there staring after the officers, "You said you found it in your farm? Where?" "Around Bowman¡¯s trail." "And what was it doing?" "Nothing. It was just floating there, upside down. But when I saw it, I bolted out of there, before it could do anything else." Aiden looked thoughtful. "Floating? Hechtls sometimes do that when they first break out of their eggs or enter an environment they''re not familiar with." "You think it just broke out of an egg?" "That or it came out of a dungeon." He faced Mr. Lochlan. "Was there a dungeon when you found it?" The man shook his head. "I also didn''t get any alerts about a dungeon forming," Max said. He eyed the hero-support guys who were still in the building. "You still think the hero association has nothing to do with this?" "Max..." "Not accusing, just asking." Aiden remained quietly introspective for a few seconds. While he thought, Lexie was thinking too and trying to figure out where the Hechtl had come from. Aiden and Max seemed to think it was from a dungeon, but the problem was that there was no dungeon anywhere close. And they said something about a summoner too? Could it have been summoned from somewhere? "What about the disappearing dungeon?" Max suddenly asked. "Could it have escaped from it?" Aiden thought about it, then shook his head. "That happened weeks ago, and I doubt that an Eldritch creature was just hanging around since then and no one saw it." "Unless it was hiding somewhere." "It''s a child. It''s not that smart." He sighed. "And besides, an Eldritch creature in a dungeon would be unlikely to venture out until hatching. And from what I saw, the creature only hatched recently." Max rubbed his chin. "And so what? It was in the dungeon the whole time?" He nodded. "The dungeon would have to still be here. Maybe somewhere hidden near the place where the creature was found after it hatched." Lexie suddenly got hit by a realization so strong that she almost choked on air. She bolted to her feet startling everyone around her and drawing her father''s gaze. "Lex," he asked. "Are you okay?" ¡°Yeah. And I think I know where the dungeon is.¡± 45 - The Found Dungeon ¡°Bumble bee, where on earth are we going?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll show you when we get there.¡± ¡°Alright but can you at least tell us why we¡¯re going to this mysterious place?¡± ¡°Not yet.¡± Lexie had to be sure first. She didn¡¯t want to raise everyone¡¯s hopes only for her memory to be wrong. It was why she¡¯d simply gotten up without saying anything and started in the direction she suspected the dungeon to be in. Her father had called after her and then followed her. The elders hung back though, with Frank calling out that Aiden didn''t have to worry about anything because he would take care of the two ''rat bastards'' that were trying to bother him. And then as they walked, Max came rumbling up in his bike. He''d been trailing them at that glacial pace since then. ¡°Okay, this is ridiculous,¡± Max grumbled. ¡°I look ridiculous sitting on this thing and going five kilometers an hour. I didn''t even know my bike could go this slow. Can you just tell me where to go and I¡¯ll meet you there?¡± Lexie shook her head. She didn¡¯t want Max to spend time alone there without knowing what she knew. Dungeon delver or not, it might not be safe. ¡°Alright then,¡± Max said. ¡°Hop on and I¡¯ll take you. Your father will meet us there.¡± ¡°My daughter is not getting on that death machine.¡± ¡°We wouldn¡¯t be having this problem if you would just get a vehicle like a normal person.¡± "Too many vehicles like that are bad for the environment. Besides, walking promotes good health and longevity." ¡°Yeah, you got all that good health and longevity just to get almost taken out by a demonic eye anyway.¡± ¡°Eldritch eye.¡± ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± Lexie finally announced and jogged off the walking path down the same hiking trail she¡¯d found Glinda and Terry at. She heard Max¡¯s bike stop and heard her dad coming after her, but she fixed her attention forward until she got to the path. And then she stopped. Her heart raced at the discovery. She shut her eyes to feel it, to ensure that she wasn¡¯t just imagining it. Nope. It was there. The weightlessness she¡¯d felt even before she¡¯d activated her card, the emptiness in the air. It hadn''t been from the cards themselves, but from the transient mana in the environment. More specifically, beneath her feet. She stared at the ground, as air whistled over the glistening grass. Something was siphoning the external mana around her, tugging at her internal mana slowly but steadily. She turned to her dad. ¡°Do you feel it?¡± ¡°Feel what?¡± he asked her. ¡°Underneath,¡± she said. ¡°I think there''s a dungeon there.¡± Both Max and Aiden froze, Max in the process of taking a step. His face twisted in confusion. ¡°You think a dungeon spawned underground?¡± ¡°Yeah. I mean no, I¡¯m not sure how it spawned but I know it''s underground now. It''s like the opposite of a deadspace¨Cit''s sucking all the mana from the atmosphere. And I think maybe that might be the dungeon the creature came out from, although I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­I don¡¯t think a dungeon can spawn underground,¡± Max said, then turned to Aiden. ¡°Can it?¡± Aiden was staring at the ground intently like he could see through the pebbles. ¡°The crops,¡± he said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Old Man Lochlan''s crops. They all died suddenly overnight months ago. And then there was a widespread disease in town. Psychological and physical presenting. At the time, we assumed it was a pestilence creature causing those attacks. But it could have been an eldritch infestation.¡± ¡°Hang on. You think the eye was what was causing it?¡± He nodded. ¡°It was clearly young. Had very little experience on how to use its powers, something that it would have been taught by the Great Mother just a week after birth. The fact that it wasn¡¯t taught, means that it was separated from its mother pretty early which indicates that it has been here for at least a few months.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s been in the underground dungeon.¡± ¡°Quite possibly. It was eating creatures underground and affecting the ecosystem which is why the plants died. And it also emitted all the compulsions of its emotions to anyone who crossed that path, causing the psychosomatic symptoms that we experienced.¡± He scratched his chin. ¡°When the Saintess came and purified the land, she alleviated the effect but her powers didn¡¯t harm the creature because it was protected by the fact that it was confined in the unstable dungeon. I am sure it stayed there for a while but then he got hungry and came above ground." He stared at the distance. "Possible came through that pond over there, which is why there''s no hole in the ground." Lexie thought Aiden''s theory was correct. The pond was muddier than usual and there were no ripples underneath the surface. No signs of life. ¡°Shit." Max swore. "But how did the dungeon end up underground?¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°That I do not know. But the fact that it is underground means that ¡­there may be far more dungeons in Hovelton than we¡¯re aware of.¡± Both men stared at each other, the heaviness of the implication stark in their gazes. "The disappearing dungeon," Max said. "Do you think it was underground too?" Aiden shrugged. "Could be. Or could be it formed above ground and then moved underground before you could find it. After all, this underground dungeon didn''t give any alert upon spawning." ¡°Why do you think it¡¯s still there?¡± Lexie asked. "I mean unstable dungeons tend to resolve quicker than that, right?¡± ¡°Not necessarily. We don¡¯t have any consensus on the resolution time of unstable dungeons. That¡¯s part of why they''re called unstable. It can last a few minutes or a few months. I¡¯ve heard of a couple that lasted years and they can even recur in the same place over and over again if you''re not careful.¡± Lexie swallowed. The possibility of more things like that eye creature breeding underground gave her the heebie-jeebies. She probably wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep tonight. ¡°Lochlan''s farm is in that direction,¡± Max pointed. ¡°Is that where you''re feeling the dungeon core, Lexie?" "I don''t know what a dungeon core feels like." "It''s the powerhouse of the dungeon. Basically, it should be where you feel the strongest effect." Lexie nodded and said, "Then in that case, I can check it out by walking there." She glanced at her dad, who nodded. "One second." Max ran back to his bike to retrieve his backpack before coming back to them. Aiden had told Lexie that Max¡¯s backpack fit all sorts of weapons and it was a lot larger on the inside than it was on the outside. Lexie vaguely wondered what he would pull out of it next. ¡°Just in case,¡± he said when he noticed Lexie looking at the bag. And then they began walking. They didn''t speak as they walked, giving Lexie space to concentrate. A few seconds after they passed by the tree in the middle of the field, Lexie paused. ¡°I think it''s there,¡± she said, instantly feeling the overwhelming drag of her mana. ¡°You sure?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± She said, her heartbeat pounding. She pointed. ¡°Just where the tree is.¡± Max nodded and doubled back to get a closer look. Aiden and Lexie began walking back to the hiking trail. Aiden talked as they walked. ¡°This is quite insane,¡± he murmured as though to himself. ¡°Dungeon portals, even unstable ones, don¡¯t spawn underground; it''s not how it works. The only reason they would appear there is because someone deliberately placed them there.¡± ¡°Who would be able to do that?¡± Aiden for the first time looked lost. ¡°I truly have no clue.¡± This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it That very fact concerned Lexie because not having a clue was very unusual for Aiden. ¡°What do we do?¡± she asked. ¡°Destroy it?¡± Aiden sighed. ¡°It¡¯s complicated. It¡¯s a high level UD and it¡¯s already spawned so it would take more than just Max and me to destroy it. Besides, it¡¯s underground, and getting to it is a whole other thing. We¡¯ll need to contact the hero''s association. I¡¯ll call Stella Firebringer directly.¡± ¡°And she¡¯ll probably ignore your calls.¡± Max returned with his hands in his pockets. ¡°Isn''t that what she did, when you tried to contact her for a healer for that Evan boy?¡± ¡°Maybe but I don¡¯t even think she got the message. It probably got screened out by her assistant. She¡¯s so high profile now it¡¯s hard to reach her.¡± He bit his lip. ¡°But I need to find a way to get word to her, even if I have to travel to Capital city myself. She would help, I know. This is beyond whatever our issues are. People will get hurt if we allow that dungeon to remain and Stella won¡¯t let that happen.¡± ¡°If you say so,¡± Max responded drily but he didn¡¯t look like he had much faith. He glanced around him in thought. ¡°Say, how much do you think two acres of arable farmland costs?¡± It was such a random question that Aiden paused. ¡°You want to buy the farm?¡± ¡°Not this one necessarily,¡± Max said in a harmless voice. ¡°But maybe, I might eventually want to buy a farm. Live a nice, cozy homestead life where I don¡¯t have to deal with all this bullshit. How much do you think it would cost for me to set up something like that?¡± Lexie cocked her head at him in confusion. Where was this coming from? Aiden of course couldn''t resist answering a sincerely asked question in as much detail as possible. ¡°Well, it depends,¡± he said. ¡°For example, high-yield land like this would cost about thirty to forty thousand credits. It''s a remote area but there are a lot of government attachments to this land, seeing as how Lochlan provides the corn for Hovelton, Arcadia and Turnwall. That''ll likely drive the price higher. It''s probably out of your wheelhouse right now but I¡¯m sure with proper discipline you could save up for it in a few years if you¡¯re frugal. Or maybe you could get it on a payment plan.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Max sighed. ¡°Shame.¡± He started towards his bike. ¡°The healer.¡± Lexie finally remembered as they followed Max slowly. ¡°Xena has her number. I could reach out to her and tell her what¡¯s happening.¡± ¡°You mean the [Saintess]?¡± Aiden said. ¡°We can try.¡± But his facial expression noted that he doubted it would do any good. And Lexie did too. After all, even though the title seemed glamorous, the woman had admitted she was a veritable creature kept in a cage, only released when she had something to do. Lexie didn''t know how true that assessment was but she had a feeling it was closer to fact than fiction. ¡°Either way, there¡¯ll be a wait," Aiden said. "It will take some time to convince the government of your theory and then they¡¯ll have to file some paperwork before they can begin investigating since it¡¯s on private property. All that could take days to mont-¡± Boom! Lexie screamed as a loud explosion from behind rocked the earth and Aiden picked her up and ran. When they reached the end of the road, they spun around. The ground next to the tree had cracked open, sending dirt, crops and the tree flying. Dust rose and Lexie coughed to clear her throat. She peered through to find that a crater was now in the middle of the field, right around where Max had stood. Right where the dungeon was. Someone screeched from afar and they turned to find Mr. Lochlan running to his land. "No!" he screamed. "What have you people done?" Us? Lexie was confused, until finally, they all turned in unison to stare at Max who had his finger pressed against what looked like the ballpoint of a pen. As he lifted his finger, Aiden¡¯s eyes widened. He repeated the question that Mr. Lochlan just asked. ¡°What have you done, Max?¡± ¡°You said it would take days to months. I wanted to cut down on our waiting time,¡± he said with a very Max-like devil-may-care grin. ¡°I give them ten minutes.¡±
The good news was that Max was right. The second his crime was reported, [Heroes] teleported there quickly, in under ten minutes. Probably due to the recent bombing in Arcadia, everyone was on high alert for corresponding attacks in the surrounding towns. A bombing, even one with no fatalities, would immediately be on their radar. So no one was surprised when three individuals in red, blue, and yellow costumes each carrying a variety of weapons instantly snapped into view, weapons in hand, ready to battle. Meanwhile, Max leaned against his bike, staring at them. ¡°Oh no,¡± he sang mockingly. ¡°They sent the primary colors after me. How terrifying.¡± The one in yellow, a tall blonde girl with a spear in one hand and an emblem on her chest rushed to Max. ¡°He¡¯s the bomber?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Mr. Lochlan, whose voice was hoarse from ranting slash crying about his crops, pointed a shaky hand at Max. ¡°This asswipe bombed my land.¡± ¡°Because there¡¯s a dungeon under there,¡± Max said, turning around and placing his hands behind his back. The girl hesitated and then pulled out cuffs from the toolbelt around her waist. She hesitated again before she cuffed him, staring at him uncertainly. ¡°A dungeon?¡± "Yes," Max answered. "An unstable one buried deep in the earth. And you might want to send it up the chain of command quickly to get checked out because my goddaughter is live-streaming this entire thing.¡± The woman glanced in confusion until she located Lexie who waved back. Uncle Max had given her a PHORB and so she was using it to record what was going on, streaming it on Video Alley. "Fifty thousand viewers and counting,¡± Lexie said. They would have had more if she¡¯d started filming before the explosion. She¡¯d told Max this but he¡¯d shrugged and said, "I¡¯ll keep that in mind for next time." To which Aiden had said firmly there was not going to be a next time. Anyway, their viewership was good. Max already had an account he barely used and so the video was getting a small boost from the algorithm. But also the fact that it was a bombing and Max had blown up the field belonging to a man who provided the corn for most of the city, made it more notable and was steadily attracting more viewers. ¡°We¡¯re taking you in,¡± Yellow, who seemed to be the de facto leader, said firmly. ¡°If your compliance is some kind of trick I guarantee I can make this arrest very painful for you. Surrender quietly, or else.¡± Max looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh. ¡°Sure thing, lady.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll come with you,¡± Aiden said. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. You shouldn¡¯t be anywhere near law enforcement right now. Luke will follow me. I already texted him.¡± Max shrugged. ¡°Although, he might be pissed enough to leave me in there all night.¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°Max this isn¡¯t a joke. What you did was dangerous and foolhardy and could have gotten you system-marked as a [Villain].¡± Max shrugged again as though he didn''t care. He gestured with his chin to the desecrated field. ¡°But it got them here and that¡¯s what matters. It¡¯s up to you two to explain what¡¯s going on here to them.¡± To their credit, the [Heroes] weren¡¯t being overly aggressive with their arrest. They looked a little young, like college students and they were staring at Max and each other as though they weren''t quite sure what to do. ¡°Wait, let me get this straight,¡± Blue said. ¡°You blew up a cornfield because there was a dungeon underneath?¡± ¡°Yeah. My goddaughter found it," Max said. ¡°Brilliant girl, that one. She¡¯ll make a great [Researcher] one day. Definitely not a [Hero] because you wouldn''t catch her dead wearing something this stupid in broad moonlight.¡± His eyes scanned Blue long enough for it to be insulting. Red snorted and Blue shot him a dirty look. ¡°Where is the dungeon?¡± Red asked and Max gestured with his chin. ¡°You can go check for yourself. I think I might have blown all the way to the earth¡¯s core so there¡¯s no way I didn¡¯t unveil it.¡± Blue and Red shared a look and then Red walked along the fissures and approached the crater tentatively. And then he looked down. ¡°Holy shit.¡± ¡°Told you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± He didn¡¯t seem to have words for it and so he just spent some time gaping down. Then he shook his head and told Max, almost apologetically. ¡°We still have to take you in. Sorry, but it¡¯s kind of a crime to blow up stuff and we¡¯ll have to investigate.¡± ¡°I expected as much,¡± Max said. ¡°But just so you know, I¡¯m willing to pay for the damages if that at all changes my sentence.¡± "You have no clue how much all this land costs!¡± Lochlan snarled. Max gave Aiden a half-smile. ¡°I have some idea.¡± And then he winked at Lochlan as the two [Heroes] arranged themselves around him, and runes appeared in the air. A teleport circle began to swirl behind them as Max delivered his final line. ¡°We¡¯ll work out a payment plan.¡± And just like that, Yellow and Blue winked away with Max leaving Red behind. Red sounded like he was on a call talking to a superior and so Lexie focused on the people in the comments who wanted to know what was going on and if there was really an underground dungeon down there. Lexie answered a few of the questions, saved the live stream to Max¡¯s account, and then disconnected from the account. Her father went over and spoke at length to Red telling him what he needed to do and how to arrange a team to get rid of the dungeon. Lexie hoped that he would be done soon so they could go home. She was exhausted. It had been a very long day.
Lexie was exhausted. But she couldn¡¯t sleep. She stared at the ceiling, leftover anxiety making her shaky. It wasn¡¯t as bad as what she¡¯d experienced with Mouse but it still had her going through everything in her head second-guessing, imagining all the ways things could have gone differently. They got lucky this time. So so lucky. But it could have all ended badly. And Lexie also couldn¡¯t stop seeing the giant eye and imagining it crying out for its mother. And then she began seeing a bunch of giant eyes lurking beneath her. She sighed and turned over, trying to purge the images from her mind. It was two am. She didn¡¯t have school tomorrow thankfully but she hated that she couldn¡¯t sleep. Maybe she should watch something on the NET. She could try to distract herself with mindless matches but she¡¯d already promised Xena that she wouldn''t watch Mundane Vs Hoover without her. All the other matches were boring. Speaking of Xena, she¡¯d texted Lexie earlier because she had heard from Emma what had happened. Xena demanded the details but Lexie didn¡¯t want to talk about it so she''d said, "Tomorrow. I¡¯ll tell you about it while we watch Mundane get slaughtered." Lexie reached over and lifted her pad. Xena was probably asleep by now and she didn¡¯t really want to talk to her. So she scrolled and texted Dewie instead, Are you awake? The response was nearly instantaneous. No, but I¡¯m perceptive. She grinned. Have any visions lately you need my help with? Lexie had been able to corner wart-girl in the bathroom and convince her to change her skincare routine. Lexie had no idea if that was the problem, but she wanted to see if that would have an impact on Dewie''s vision of her. I don''t know, Dewie admitted. I think I saw a large bird of prey in the living room earlier, but that might just be my mother¡¯s new dress. Ha. Lexie turned over on the bed, nudging the pillow to find a comfortable spot. After she rested for a while, she stared at the blinking cursor. Then she asked, Your visions¡­do you ever see stuff that scares you? He responded with, Sometimes. How do you deal with it? He didn''t say anything for a few seconds. And then he volunteered, I like to think they''re just as scared to see me as I am to see them. Even though I know it¡¯s not true. Yeah. Lexie sighed in the air, a prickle in her chest. It¡¯s not true. 46 - Mad Eye Max Max¡¯s leg bounced underneath the table, as he glanced around the metallic interrogation room, mentally counting how many cameras were in there. It wasn¡¯t his first time in a metal matchbox like this, and it wasn¡¯t even his second. But it was the first time he¡¯d been here for blowing a conspiracy wide open. And despite what Aiden said, Max knew the hero¡¯s association was involved somehow. There was just simply no way they didn¡¯t know about this. He¡¯d reported it directly to the hero¡¯s headquarters and met with the singular person he could stand there, the Human Resources Assistant manager. As far as employees went, Phil wasn¡¯t the highest up in the chain but he was high up enough that his word should have carried weight when he put in a high-priority alert for dungeon activity investigation. But nothing. Max had then gone to the press, to try to get the story leaked. Going to the press went against everything he believed but he''d had one of his delvers talk to a reporter on his behalf, a young woman who was desperate for a big break. The problem with the press was that they were owned by the very same sponsors who owned the heroes, and so they wouldn¡¯t let anything that wasn¡¯t in their best interest leak. Max wasn¡¯t even surprised when no article came out about it. But it did confirm that something was going on here and at the very least, the hero association was aware of it. And there was no point in continuing to try to leak the news via reporters. Every reporter worth listening to had been bought off, and even the underground ones only wanted to do an investigation if they got paid. And Max had a moral standing against paying bottom feeders, especially when there was no guarantee that he''d get anything out of it. Every other thing he¡¯d tried was useless. Mundane Law Enforcement. Useless. King¡¯s Knights. Double Useless. Mercenary Guild, Dungeon Union¡­so damn useless that he considered never paying another guild or union fee again for the rest of his life. All they did was make him fill out paperwork and then wait for a response from the¡­you guessed it¡­hero''s association. He thought the mundane powers were supposed to act as a check and balance against the capes, but they cowed to the big H assholes just as much as the rest of the world did. Which was what led Max to this point. He''d had no choice really. And no amount of guilt tripping from Luke, or frantic texting from Flaviana¨Chis extended fling¨Ctelling him that he¡¯d made a stupid choice, was going to change his mind. Still, the metal seats and the silver power-suppressing cuffs around his wrists were uncomfortable and chaffed. He sure hoped he wouldn''t be sentenced to them for the rest of eternity. He sighed and rolled his shoulders, trying to get the crick out of them that had been bothering him all day. He didn¡¯t know what it was. Maybe he''d slept wrong? Or maybe it was because he''d been under constant tension for the past week, trying to crack this case. Either way, his shoulder had stiffened into a permanently coiled state and now nothing he did could get it to ease. Ha, I sure do miss that Sirena. She knew how to give a good massage. I shouldn¡¯t have broken up with her but she said she didn¡¯t see a future with us and so what the hell was I wasting my time for? She didn''t want to date a [Mercenary]. I wonder if she would be down for hooking up with a [Villain] though? ¡°Jeez, how long do they plan on keeping me here waiting?¡± It felt like it had been hours already even though in actuality, it had probably only been minutes. The truth was that Max was really bad at waiting. He hated sitting still, hated being bored. He hated being in one room for too long and hated not having anything to stimulate him so he didn¡¯t have to fixate on every damn random thing that flitted across his mind. It was why he enjoyed dungeons. Every day was a new thing. New environment. New stages. New creatures to slay and or befriend. New treasure to be had. No time to sit around and mope. You had to think fast and act even faster or you would be killed before you could take a breath. It was always exciting. The job seemed to fit him to a tee, and he couldn''t believe there was a time he wasn''t a delver, a time that he¡¯d even thought about doing something else. Being a [Hero] of all things. What a disaster that would have been. Yeah, so glad that didn''t work out. I would have been a terrible [Hero]. Dungeon delving was perfect for him. Without dungeons, he would be bored and listless like he¡¯d been all spring before dungeon season arose again. Maybe his boredom was part of the reason he''d gone to such great lengths to reveal this conspiracy. Even staying in Hovelton just a few months out of the year was so dull that he needed some kind of excitement, and he¡¯d found it in the case of unstable dungeons. He hadn¡¯t been too bothered by the first one, thinking it would be great exercise to get rid of it. But eventually, they started happening too often, so much so that he was somewhat terrified that it indicated a shift in his world. That something was changing, and his universe was breaking in some way that it couldn¡¯t be put together again. Max liked change. But not that much change. What most people didn¡¯t know was that the rise in occurrence of UD''s had been happening for longer than a year and it was directly correlated with the decrease in the occurrence of stable dungeons. No one else had made the link. He didn¡¯t think anyone else was as obsessed with dungeons as he was, so much so that they had made maps and kept track of how many of them spawned every single year. Max wanted to defeat at least a thousand dungeons before he died and he crossed out each one he beat. And thanks to his maps, he could see the small changes that hadn¡¯t happened in the years before. If the trend continued, pretty soon, there wouldn¡¯t be any stable dungeons left to conquer. Max knew that it didn¡¯t necessarily mean the end of the world. Correlation wasn¡¯t causation and all that. But if it was¡­ If the world broke, if suddenly all the stable dungeons were somehow becoming unstable, unusable, and unable to be explored¡­ If Max was rendered redundant¡­ He didn¡¯t know what he would do. Luke would be happy. Luke didn¡¯t like his dungeon delving in the first place and thought Max should have gone into regular law enforcement. Or become a gun maker. Max liked guns. But the thought of doing the same thing every day made him sick. He could manage it for short breaks, like during a spring here or there, but eventually, the boredom would eat him alive. Being a [Villain] would arguably be worse though. He¡¯d seen it with Aiden. The man had been a brilliant professor and a [Hero], a really powerful one. More powerful than most people could even conceptualize. People had wanted to kiss his ass everywhere he went and even though he¡¯d stayed relatively humble considering his status, Max had slightly hated being around him sometimes just due to how brightly he glowed. And now¡­ He was so frighteningly weak and regular. Breakable. A man who might have been able to shift mountains and even reality to his will, who could stop an army and take down entire high-level dungeons on his own. Now, he got back pain from cleaning gutters, dislocated his shoulder from a simple spar, and tired out after a few hours of strenuous activity. He couldn¡¯t do anything without extreme difficulty. It was a torturous punishment and Max didn¡¯t think he could go through that, certainly not with as much grace as Aiden had. Max knew getting the [V] tag was likely a possibility today. Apart from his significant rap sheet, what he¡¯d revealed online was something that the [Heroes] wanted to keep hidden. He''d thrown egg at their faces. And they were going to want to make him pay for it. Fortunately, he had one last card to play. ¡°Okay seriously, how long do I have to wait here?¡± Waiting this long should be cruel or unusual punishment. He turned toward the reflective glass. ¡°Hello? What the hell are you guys waiting for? Get in here and interrogate me, or torture me, or lobotomize me for all I care. Just do something, please.¡± The door opened as though hearing his prayer and relief rushed through his body like a breeze, allowing an exhale. He thought it could be one of three people opening the door. His brother finally came to bail him out with whatever connections he still had in law enforcement. It could be Flavi attempting to break him out, even though he¡¯d ardently texted her not to do such a thing. Or it could be the third person, the one he¡¯d spent his one mandatory phone call on before they¡¯d cut off his access to telecommunications. As the figure cleared the doorway, Max felt a smile spread across his cheek. ¡°Ah,¡± he said. ¡°You my friend are a sight for sore eyes.¡± The man standing in front of the doorway did not look in any way happy to be seeing Max. His hair was slicked back with more gel than Luke usually used, his suit was the epitome of crispness and his shoes shined to perfection. Loretta''s oil polish probably. But he wasn''t smiling. Then again Silas Creevy had probably never smiled a day in his life. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. His shoes made no sound on the floor as he drifted over, and pulled the chair back, sliding his significant weight into it. The two men stared at each other for several seconds, Max with glee and Silas with the indignation of a canary that had been caught. ¡°I have to admit,¡± Max said. ¡°A part of me didn¡¯t think you would take the bait.¡± ¡°Talk.¡± Silas¡¯ voice, like the man himself, was severe and uncompromising, and quite intimidating considering how angry he looked. But Max let the silence linger, glancing toward the glass instead. He then shot Silas a raised eyebrow. ¡°The room has been cleared,¡± Silas said. ¡°The cameras disabled. Now talk.¡± ¡°Ah. You people sure are efficient and powerful. I wonder what it would be like to wield that much power. I bet your bread is always sliced perfectly right and your toilet gives zero splash. You probably use three-ply toilet paper too." Silas'' jaw tightened. His power bristled in the room. It was likely dangerous to anger such a powerful man, but Max was having so much fun he couldn¡¯t help himself. ¡°So, do you want me to start with the threat or my list of demands? I¡¯m not sure which one to go with first. Believe it or not, it¡¯s my first time blackmailing someone.¡± ¡°The threat was already obvious in your message.¡± ¡°But the message only said ''the hen is in the henhouse''. That could mean anything.¡± Max wasn¡¯t even sure what it meant. Only that he¡¯d passed that message along to Silas'' secretary and now the man was here. Max pursed his lips. ¡°Although you¡¯re probably also referring to the code attached to the message that I gave Helen. And the saying plus code is a password that only you and one other person knows.¡± Silas¡¯ frustration grew. Max smiled more. Good. That was for making him wait in this damned room for what felt like days. ¡°How about I start with the story instead?¡± Max said. ¡°Of how I discovered what you were up to. Because it wasn¡¯t easy I gotta tell you that. I had to bug phones from lower-ranked association employees. Had to pay a hacker literally ten thousand credits for it to be undetectable by your security systems. And then I went through transcripts, had to call in a bunch of favors¡­do you want to know the hardest part though? Not the staking out, or the bankrupting myself trying to figure this shit out. It wasn¡¯t even the one time I spent nearly an entire day in a barely open freezer waiting for something to move." He could still feel the cold in his bones. "No, that wasn¡¯t the worst part. The worst was when I had to wear this monkey suit and go to that stupid party thrown by Azure, and listen to Anthony Royal drone on and on about how [Heroes] today aren¡¯t like what they used to be. How y''all have it so hard thanks to the new rules Vacek has put in place." The air was silent as though Silas were poised to cut off Max''s airways at any moment. And he could probably do it. Get rid of him. Except that Max had put in contingencies in case anything was to happen to him today and he''d let Silas'' secretary Helen know that too. They were not great contingencies because they were kind of last minute but Silas didn''t know that. And it was likely killing him that he couldn¡¯t harm Max without repercussions. Maybe I should do this blackmail thing more often. I haven¡¯t had this much fun in a while. ¡°You know Anthony Royal right?¡± Max inquired, his leg bobbing even more. ¡°He was that hero that was embroiled in that embezzlement scandal. The one that you had to investigate yourself. Except you didn''t actually investigate him because you already knew about it. Because you had been using Royal to give you access to the man who controls the disaster reporting database, that way you could do some collusion yourself. You used that to somehow hide nearly all the reports we made, leaving some but getting rid of others. So it wouldn''t look like so many dungeons were appearing in Hovelton." "But that wasn''t enough. News of the unstable dungeons was already leaking and spreading to the [Hero] association, so you conspired with Azure, a man with wealth and power over damn near every reporter in the city, to keep everything quiet." Max tapped his fingers on the table. "Azure knew about the dungeons this whole time but was concerned about how it would affect his reelection campaign. He was also concerned about the fact that the dungeon appearance was apparently affecting Mr. Lochlan''s crops which Azure used in his cereal business. So he conspired with old Mr. Lochlan to keep it quiet. It wasn¡¯t too hard since Lochlan was worried that people wouldn''t buy his crops if they thought it was infected with unstable dungeon juice or whatever. There''s no such thing, but we all know how dumb and discriminatory people can be." Silas didn¡¯t respond to that, and Max one-handedly cracked his knuckles, one by one. ¡°So once I figured that out, the next question I had was why you, Silas Creevy, a paragon of virtue and head of the hero anti-corruption unit, would do any of that? What would you have to gain from this? You¡¯ve never taken a bribe in your life. And you¡¯ve never needed to seeing as how a [Hero] of your caliber can probably afford anything he wants. Maybe after you retired, the money wasn''t flowing in as easily.¡± Max tutted. ¡°Still, you wouldn¡¯t do this for the money. At least I don''t think you did because there are less messy ways to get money. You did it because the opportunity that had presented itself to you was a blessing in disguise. Unstable dungeons in a largely remote but not completely remote part of the district. You could exploit that to encourage some type of large-scale catastrophe. A catastrophe like a level four dungeon opening up and no one attending it, releasing a monster that wipes out thousands of people. That was what you wanted. And Hovelton, along with a few other places, was the perfect stage to carry that out." Max cocked his head, consideringly. "Hovelton is not politically important to Orinia, but it''s close enough to Arcadia for visibility''s sake. A disaster in Hovelton would definitely make the news but it wouldn¡¯t be devastating for the economy or the military. A [Hero] could show up right on time and save the place, but if they didn''t people would die or get hurt." Max''s mind worked as he spoke, putting the pieces together based on Silas'' facial expression. "If Hovelton collapsed, it would be a political blow for Azure, but he could recover from it by blaming us delvers for improper mining practices." One of the untrue superstitions was that mining too much, or improperly, created unstable dungeons. "Or you could blame a certain [Villain] who lived in Hovelton for the disaster. He would have been the perfect scapegoat, wouldn''t he? Especially considering his previous crime, which you would have found a way to make public. Even though Sparrowfoot is powerless now, once they knew what he¡¯d done, the masses would have figured that there was some way for him to bypass his bonds and they would have crucified him before he even got the chance to defend himself. "And that was all a small but necessary sacrifice to make for your main goal. To show the world how important [Heroes] are. When news broke of the disaster, reporters would ask, ''Well why didn''t the [Hero] association arrive on time and save those people?¡¯ and you would say something along the lines of ''because we don''t have enough personnel or funding or whatever. We''re overworked and underpaid. We have a lot of responsibility on our shoulders that no one appreciates. We have too much ¡®paperwork¡¯.¡¯ Oh we all know how much you [Heroes] hate ¡®paperwork¡¯.¡± Max knew ¡®paperwork¡¯ was a code word for some kind of punishment that Dominic Vacek implemented on unlawful and destructive [Heroes]. He didn¡¯t know exactly what it entailed but he knew they all hated and feared it. ¡°Then,¡± Max continued. ¡°You would trot out a Firebringer or one of your other high-charisma heroes to talk on camera and convince the world that it needed to give you more freedom. People would demand that [Heroes] got more respect and less oversight. Funding for hero programs would go up. People would revere heroes again. They would long for the old days when non-heroes like me weren¡¯t allowed to mine dungeons unless they had proper [Hero] supervision. And just like, a New World Order would begin. Or maybe should I say the ¡®Old World Order¡¯? Because we all know you aren¡¯t just satisfied with being our saviors. You assholes want to be our Gods too.¡± The silence essentially crackled with tension as Max delivered his final line. ¡°Tell me, how close am I to the truth?" Pretty damn close judging from how Silas looked like he wanted to incinerate him. Max felt like giving himself a giant high-five. And the best part was that Max didn¡¯t even have to figure all that out himself. Royal had spilled most of it when Max had gotten him alone and drunk at a party, and slipped him a mild truth potion he¡¯d prepared for the event. Max wasn''t sure the truth potion had even been needed. Royal had been so pissed and discontent at being cut off from the deal that he¡¯d just felt like opening his heart up to Max. And Max had felt like a used emotional prostitute after the event but at least he¡¯d had his answer. And it was worth it to see the putrid look on Silas Creevy''s face. ¡°Now that we¡¯ve gotten that out of the way," Max said, ¡°I have a list of demands¡­¡±
Hours later, Silas Creevy walked out of the jailhouse descending the stairs. His muscles ached from holding back the force of his powers and it had taken everything for him not to lacerate Max in that room. Now he finally understood why so many people, [Heroes] and [Villains] and rival [Delvers] alike, wanted that man dead. That one-eyed bastard was irritating as hell. As he descended the stairs, Silas saw Azure in the distance. He was smoking. It was disgusting habit that the man had never quite managed to kick even though he''d hidden it from the press during his [Hero] days. Azure always mocked his wife for having a nervous temperament, but he didn¡¯t seem to realize that he had one too. His gaze moved shiftily, his hand shook around his cigarette, and he didn¡¯t have his usual political smile. ¡°So,¡± he said anxiously as Silas approached him. ¡°What did he know?¡± ¡°Some of it,¡± he said. ¡°Not everything.¡± That didn''t comfort Azure. He heaved a sigh. ¡°We¡¯re playing a dangerous game here." ¡°You knew the risks before you joined us.¡± ¡°Yes." His nerves showed clearly on his face. "To make matters worse, Vacek is back." Silas nodded. He already knew Vacek would be returning soon. Despite how hard they''d tried to cover the dungeon incident, the [Hero] association was too big and there were too many ''noble'' souls for him to keep it hidden forever. It was bound to come out. He''d just hoped the president of the association never found out their true intention. ¡°The news of the dungeon brought him back from his trip to Planet Fae,¡± Azure said. ¡°We¡¯ll have to lay low for a while, and put up our fall man. Also bury the thing we GLITCH.¡± Silas nodded. ¡°Yes. But you understand that might still not insulate you. When you started this, you said you were willing to die for the cause.¡± A hard look entered Azure''s eyes. ¡°I was. And I still am."
Luther didn¡¯t like people in his house. He lived in a penthouse, on the top floor of a pristine Capital City loft, with high ceilings, large windows to allow light, and a contemporary design with sleek furniture and minimalistic accents. It was beautiful, featuring light brown oak and golden hardware. But the dour presence of the man standing in the middle of his plush centerpiece rug seemed to darken the whole room. And it was even worse when he turned around and pinned Luther with his grey-eyed gaze. Luther tensed up. ¡°Sir?¡± he greeted because the bastard liked formality more than breathing even though he''d come to Luther''s house with no invitation. ¡°Luther. You were supposed to stay in Hovelton to observe the dungeon situation." ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And what? ¡°What did you find?" Luther didn¡¯t want to admit that he hadn¡¯t actually stayed in Hovelton and had instead stayed in Arcadia and monitored the situation through the reports received at the Hero''s Center there. So he swallowed, tried not to show visible fear, and said, ¡°Nothing unusual. There are some UD dungeon issues but it was largely resolved within a few minutes." ¡°Lies." The man''s voice was quiet but cracked like thunder. ¡°Little Luther, you should know better than to lie to me.¡± Oh, how Luther loathed that name. The man looked away and stared at the window. ¡°They found an unstable dungeon underground. It was unearthed by Max, the dungeon delver, and it¡¯s causing a stir because there was an eldritch creature that emerged from it.¡± His jaw clenched slightly before he continued. "I also heard that Aiden Sparrowfoot''s daughter pre-awakened and she was involved in an incident with GLITCH where she got hurt. Because of us." "That was Lucy Frank''s call." Luther swallowed because Dominic Vacek turned to pin him with an accusing gaze again. ¡°Now, do you want to explain to me, Luther, what exactly you found in Hovelton?¡± 47 - Indigo, Alberton The sky bird was like nothing Lexie had ever experienced before. According to Aiden, it was technically a type of train but it didn''t move like a train on a straight-forward track. Neither did it move like a plane, where everything was kind of steady and there were regular dips and gentle rises. It didn¡¯t have a regular motion at all and seemed to twist along an invisible track sliding down and up, switching tracks without warning and coming to sudden stops for flocks of birds to pass by. Kind of like a less-sickening Rockin'' Roller Coaster. Lexie had been scared and a little motion-sick for the first half of the trip. She¡¯d squeezed Aiden¡¯s hand tight as the train had taken off from Borulino, a vast business district that was two cities away from Arcadia and had a direct skybird train to Alberton. Aiden had laughed at her and then told her that she reacted the same way every time she was on a skybird. But then by the middle of the trip, she¡¯d started to calm down. And then she¡¯d started to enjoy herself. It was a fascinating thing, the skybird. She couldn¡¯t figure out how it worked. When she looked out the window, she didn¡¯t find any jets at the back of the train propelling it forward. Neither did it have wings like a plane. It felt like they were moving on track but she couldn¡¯t see anything track-like below them. She mulled over it for a few seconds, then turned to Aiden. ¡°How does a skybird work?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure exactly,¡± he said. ¡°I had a friend once who was a technomage engineer and he tried to explain how mana interacts with large aerial locomotive systems and pumps but to be honest, I found the whole thing a little confusing and dull.¡± ¡°Wait, did you just admit to finding something confusing?" Lexie teased and he gave her an amused look. "I guess I did." She faked a dramatic gasp. ¡°But you¡¯re a generational genius. How could this happen?¡± "Ha, ha. Very funny." He tweaked her nose affectionately, and she finally broke character and chuckled to herself. ¡°Despite my high intelligence¨C¡± Aiden started. ¡°There¡¯s that famous humility of yours.¡± ¡°¨CThere are a few things I¡¯m not good at. Alchemy for one. Engineering for another. Engineering is boring but Alchemy just works too antithetical with magery that it requires me to think in a completely different way. Plus there are far too many strange rules and stipulations that keep one from being creative with application.¡± ¡°Hmm," she murmured and then stared out the window again. They were passing through a cloud and it surrounded them like fog. Lexie closed her eyes and swore she couldn''t feel the soft fluff pressing on her face. When she opened her eyes again, she saw the two suns in the distance. She was getting very used to the sight of it. To everyone¡¯s relief, Max hadn¡¯t been detained very long at the station. He''d showed up at Lexie''s house the next morning, right as rain wanting to know how things had gone with the [Heroes]. He''d then informed them that he¡¯d been released because the association felt that he acted in the best interest of everyone involved. They gave him a pass due to the dire nature of the discovery, and he only got two weeks probation and a ban from participating in the next dungeon season. Max was especially salty about that last one, and said something along the lines of ¡°Shifty bastard just wanted to get back at me somehow.¡± But Aiden himself seemed entirely shocked by Max¡¯s early release. Safe to say the entire thing was unprecedented. The severity of Max¡¯s crime should have at least gotten him a few months'' sentencing or a lifetime ban from handling explosives and dungeon delving, especially given how some [Heroes] were already prejudiced against delvers, viewing them as murder-hungry greedy maniacs. So Aiden couldn''t figure out how Max had gotten off so easily. Aiden would later tell Lexie that he thought maybe Luke called in a favor for his brother. He¡¯d also let it slip that Luke had a couple of powerful but shady friends. And thanks to that, everything had worked out. But Lexie wasn''t thinking about it right now. Right now, she was wondering how the skybird worked. She read about things like flying cars in sci-fi and knew someone had created something like that in her world, but she¡¯d always thought such a thing would be a logistical nightmare. She supposed it helped that most of the vehicles on Earth 9 were at least partially automated and some were fully self-driving, their programs perfected to reduce the risk of accidents. But with a skybird, it flew in such an unpatterned way that Lexie couldn''t figure out a rhyme or reason for it. It seemed able to detect birds through the clouds too. And the farther they went, the cloudier it got. Per Aiden¡¯s request, Lexie was wearing large fluffy wool boots, a coat, and a scarf that he¡¯d wrapped around the lower half of her face. According to him, it was cold in Alberton this time of the year. And pretty much every time of the year. As the skybird started lowering towards the station, Lexie felt a little sad that the trip was over. Pretty soon, they stepped out into a bustling train station. Indigo, Alberton was the second most populated city in Orinia and it was constantly inundated with people from all walks of life. The train station was even larger and more elaborate than the one in Acacia and a constant stream of holographic announcements appeared and disappeared at will. But the most noticeable thing was how thin the air felt here. And not just in terms of oxygen, but in terms of mana too. There was far less external mana than anywhere else she had been and she could feel it, the subtle recession of the buzzing on her skin. It felt weird like there was a lack of balance in the atmosphere. When she mentioned it to Aiden, he said, ¡°Yes, there is less external mana in Indigo than in Arcadia. While places like Arcadia, Alpeco, and even Dontiorre are considered the epicenters for magical training and research in Orinia, Indigo is the heart of non-magical science and engineering, at least in District 9. It¡¯s why the Space-Time Research Institute is here as well as the several Alchemy schools. We¡¯ll see them on the way to the consignment shop.¡± That made sense. Lexie also noticed that apart from the sky train they¡¯d arrived on, most of the other trains on the tracks looked steam-powered rather than mana-powered like the ones in Arcadia. As they exited the train station through two metal doors and stepped into the busy city streets, she noticed that it reminded her a little of St Petersburg, at least from the pictures she¡¯d seen. Tall dome-shaped buildings filled the skyline, punctuated by shorter more industrial-looking structures. The roads were large and though the lanes weren''t choked with floating cars, there was a lot of traffic. Unlike Arcadia, where the vehicles bore little resemblance to those on Earth 2, Indigo had more regular-looking vintage cars that had all sorts of gimmicks on them, like a tail or a string of bells on their doors. One large truck was in the shape of a reptile and had like twenty tires. People streamed on both sides of the street, and as they walked, Lexie noticed a couple of people throwing odd looks at Aiden every now and then. One person even did a double-take, but no one stopped to say anything. Aiden was dressed in a long-sleeved turtleneck and a heavy coat that completely covered his silver bands. He¡¯d had his hair swept back and his beard trimmed. He looked good, normal. So Lexie couldn''t figure out why people were looking at him because he certainly didn''t look like a [Villain] today. They decided to walk to their first destination, mostly because it was only fifteen minutes away and Lexie wanted to see the city. As they strolled hand in hand, Lexie taking two steps for Aiden¡¯s one, they happened on a charming street that looked like something out of a Grimm''s fairytale book. It featured quaint coffee shops, trinket stores, and an eclectic window display from someone who claimed to be a Love Witch, all with the witch costume and broomstick lying against a door with a knocker. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Are witches real here?¡± Lexie asked and Aiden chuckled. ¡°If you mean in the sense of a system class then no,¡± Aiden said. ¡°There were witches long ago, before the system was introduced on Earth but their power was more based on religious superstition than anything concrete.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s a [Saintess],¡± Lexie mused aloud. ¡°And Eldritch creatures. Wouldn¡¯t it make sense for the system to also give us witches? After all, all those things are linked to religious superstition as well.¡° ¡°True but the saintess and the church serve a purpose. The thing to know about the system is that it''s all about compensating for something and filling a need. It will only assign classes that serve a purpose. For example, given that Eldritch creatures exist, there must be another force to fight them back. Sometimes those are [Saintesses] who can purify and eliminate the effects of the Eldritch. And with a [Saintess] comes the church''s job is to guide, protect, and empower her. There are also paladins who are Knights dedicated to fighting chaos, Eldritch, and creatures of the dark. And of course, the Lightlarks, [Heroes] who are so essential for this fight that the fae use them almost exclusively for it on their planet. None of it is religious necessarily, although sometimes the church likes to believe otherwise. It''s all about function rather than belief. "But in terms of traditional witchcraft, belief plays a larger role in its function and historically, it was used to try to artificially imbue people with powers they didn¡¯t initially have. Ancient witches believed in and worshipped Guardians who could give them certain gifts for a time. But since the guardians are no more, neither is traditional witchcraft.¡± "Oh, I see." "Yes. There are some spell casters and potion makers who sometimes employ the title of ''Witch'' simply for whimsy, but historical witchcraft doesn¡¯t exist anymore.¡± ¡°Hmm,¡± Lexie said, digesting that. They passed by a few more stores, including a coffee shop where two guys were seated outside, having a heated discussion. One of them was gesturing wildly in the air, and then in the middle of it, his eyes flicked to Lexie and Aiden and then back to his companion and immediately back to Aiden. His jaw dropped. He immediately hit his companion in the shoulder, who complained, followed his gaze, and then did a double take. Lexie couldn''t see their reaction past that because Aiden turned a corner at that point. ¡°Why do I feel like people are watching us?¡± she asked him. ¡°You think?¡± Aiden reached up and self-consciously touched his neck as though trying to confirm that the band was still covered. And it was. ¡°Yeah,¡± Lexie said, but she got distracted when she saw a large black dome-shaped building on a hill whose walls shimmered like they were made out of obsidian and titanium. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°That is our destination. The Time Space Institute, home of the ISTS,¡± Aiden said. ¡°I¡¯ve only been there a handful of times. The very first time was during a class trip at Victoire, but a few other times with your mother.¡± ¡°My mother?¡¯ ¡°Yes. I told you she had a friend who worked there." "Oh right." Lexie was about to ask what the friend''s name was, but then Aiden pointed out the building next to it. ¡°And that¡¯s the Soul Research Department right next to it.¡± ¡°Soul Research.¡± ¡°Yes. Less than a century ago, Indigo was a huge necromancy hub before the last attack from District 8. They used mana bombs that destroyed and depleted the external mana in Indigo leading to mana deficiency. After the war ended, a lot of necromancers left the area and went to other places instead, but their research was left behind, leading scientists to piece it together. It was through this they were able to create the ISTS.¡± He glanced at her. ¡°What exactly did this person who visited your school tell you about the ISTS?" ¡°Not much,¡± Lexie said cagily. She wasn''t sure how much to reveal. "Just that you could theoretically swap souls from two different dimensions, I guess." "Yes. Usually, [Researchers] use it to conduct research in other dimensions, to figure out how to improve our own. It¡¯s a fascinating if dangerous thing to do.¡± At Lexie¡¯s look, he added. ¡°It¡¯s not unheard of for [Researchers] to go to other dimensions and never come back. But it¡¯s seen as necessary for a noble cause.¡± ¡°Only [Researchers] can go?" she asked. ¡°And a few [Heroes]. Sometimes the [Research] crew needs protection depending on what they''re studying. And sometimes [Heroes] travel there for other reasons.¡± That made sense, but also didn¡¯t. ¡°How will they protect them if they can''t use their bodies? Isn''t it just the soul that¡¯s transported?¡¯ ¡°Typically. While there has been some research in transporting whole bodies rather than souls, the most common way for ISTS to work is that they can find a similarly ''attuned'' body in that dimension and possess it unlocking similar attributes to what they had here. A lot of our mana and abilities is attached to the soul rather than the body, and so the transmigrated [Hero] should have the same capability over there that they do here." "What if that dimension doesn''t have mana." "Yes, that would be an outlier. In which case, other measures would have to be considered." Lexie shook her head. "Wow. That sounds like a lot to go through just for [Research]." "The proponents of the travels argue that it''s necessary. When their ethics are questioned, they say that they try to restrict such travels to only necessary people, and a lot of research is done to input the soul into someone that¡¯s not going to be there for much longer anyway.¡± It took Lexie a second to process it. ¡°They find a compatible body of someone who is going die around that time?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s one way around the questionable ethics, to target someone who is set to die soon, and then take over their body the second of their death. To outsiders, it would look like the individual had survived a near-death experience almost inexplicably. They wouldn''t know a different soul is now inside the body." Lexie tried not to show her disturbed reaction to the news. That was messed up on so many levels. Taking over someone''s body and pretending to be someone they were not...Not to mention, the fact that someone had known she was going to die, and exploited it to send a soul into her body¡­.all in the name of research¡­. "This is all supposed to be a secret by the way," Aiden said hastily. "So don''t tell anyone I told you this." "Wasn''t going to anyway," Lexie said deep in thought. "But that¡¯s¡­I mean¡­.How do they even predict such a thing?¡± ¡°That has been something I''ve never been privy to. Like I said, their research and data is very confusing unless you''re in it." "Right." Lexie''s discomfort was growing. She wasn¡¯t expecting that at all. So had she been targeted because she was going to die? Was the real Lexie Sparrowfoot in her body right now researching Earth 2? But Lexie Sparrowfoot was a child, and there was nothing to indicate she was a [Researcher]. Why would she go to Earth 2? And how on earth did Lexie Evan get sent to Earth 9 if she was supposed to die? Did it have to do with the other Lexie''s mother¡¯s mysterious friend at the Soul Research Institute? And how did travel points tie into that? Because this whole time Lexie had been operating under the theory that she could use those to go back to her dimension. ¡°So what are travel points then?¡± she asked Aiden. ¡°I thought that was what allowed you to travel between dimensions.¡± Aide¡¯s face swung to her in genuine surprise. ¡°Wow, they told you guys that too?" She nodded. ¡°Travel points are what gives the individual''s right to even contest for the ISTS. Soul transfer is an expensive thing to run, mana-wise, resource-wise, and time-wise, and very risky. So only those who can prove they have a reason to go can do it. Either their research is extremely vital and they¡¯re close to a discovery that would require them to travel, or other interdimensional matters need to be solved. Those individuals are then given travel points to do it.¡± Lexie mused on it. "It requires mana? But I thought you said Indigo didn''t have a ton of mana." "Yes. But the Soul Research Center managed to obtain a personal mana well for the ISTS to run." "Oh, I see." So Lexie had been thinking about it all wrong. She thought she would earn a travel point by doing something incredible and then using that to head to Earth but it wasn''t quite like that. Travel points weren''t like money you could earn to go to a different dimension. There were more like tokens that ascertained that you had a reason for going there because your research was really important. That was comforting. She didn''t necessarily have to complete a discovery then. She just had to show that it was promising enough to gain widespread interest and that she had evidence that it would work. Also evidence that she needed to test it in a different dimension. She mused on it as they approached the gates of the ISTS. There was no one at the security center or on the compound they could see through the tall iron rods. Only a keypad. Aiden pressed on it and a holographic loading button appeared. Someone answered and the hologram turned into a young woman with a pixie-ish face. "The Soul Research Center isn''t open for excursions today." "It''s not an excursion," Aiden said. "I''m here to meet Cecilia Horan." "Cecilia Horan doesn''t work here anymore." "Oh shoot." Aiden looked at Lexie. "She was a friend of Jamie, your mother''s friend. I didn''t know she had been let go." "Did you say, Jamie? As in Jamie Leith?" The woman''s face suddenly shone with interest. Aiden looked back. "Um...yes...?" The woman hesitated and adjusted her glasses as she thought. "Give me one second," she said and the hologram disappeared. Less than a minute later, the gate opened. 48 - The International Soul Transfer System The gates opened to reveal a vast compound of freshly trimmed grass and maze-like hedges leading away from the central building into one of the smaller outer domes that lined the four corners of the research institute. The central building itself was also a dome of shimmering black glass that seemed to morph slightly as Lexie stared at it, as though it were slime trying to escape its geometric confines. Behind it was a similar, albeit smaller dome that seemed perfectly oriented towards the sun for whatever reason. Lexie felt a warning skittering down her spine, even though there was nothing explicitly threatening about the space. Maybe in the back of her head, she was still remembering the ISTS warnings and had a feeling she wasn¡¯t supposed to be here. But curiosity had her taking Aiden¡¯s hand as he led through the gate anyway, only to stop when a holographic screen popped into view, blocking their advance.
IDENTIFICATION NOT RECOGNIZED > TRESPASSING DETECTED > ALERTING SECURITY IMMEDIATELY ...
The gate already swung closed behind them, blocking their retreat. Lexie¡¯s heart skipped a beat and she realized that by taking a step inside, they¡¯d been scanned by whatever invisible system governed this unassuming compound. And they were trapped here. Just as Lexie was about to panic another screen popped up and informed them:
SECURITY OVERRIDE INITIATED> PLEASE WAIT FOR AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL BEFORE YOU PROCEED
Lexie breathed a sigh of relief and Aiden gave her a crooked smile. ¡°Were you scared, honey bee?¡± She nodded. ¡°Uh-huh. For a second, I thought we were gonna get arrested.¡± Or worse. They were going to rip my soul out of my body and completely eviscerate it. Lexie shuddered. She should try not to have thoughts like those while she was here. She also wasn''t sure she''d made the right choice being here, but the alternative was continuing to live in ignorance about her circumstances and how she got to Earth 9 in the first place, and she found that she couldn¡¯t do that anymore. She needed to know what was going on and there was no other way for her to get the information. Even if she managed to get her hands on Elvira¡¯s Scholar ID, she probably wouldn¡¯t be able to access information about the ISTS since it wasn¡¯t pertinent to Elvira¡¯s research. And there was no one she could ask without potentially breaking ISTS rules. It was a lucky break that Aiden even knew someone who could get them in. This way, she might be able to talk to someone without revealing how much she knew. Or they would instantly recognize her as an ISTS candidate and capture her for their nefarious plans. But that was ridiculous. If they were going to do that, wouldn''t they have done it already? Why did they leave her with Aiden in the first place, barely giving her instructions on what was going on and why she was there? Lexie swallowed as one of the bottom hexagonal obsidian-black planes morphed into an open doorway with a woman hurrying out. She was small with pretty, pixie-like features and blonde hair cropped close to her skull. She was also wearing a suit with a labcoat over it, and sensible loafers that didn¡¯t make a sound as she trailed a walkway that abruptly appeared on the grass. Lexie was surprised by its sudden appearance. The second the woman''s foot was about to touch the grass, the walkway shimmered into view. Lexie glanced around and realized that nothing in this place was as it appeared. Things could change and morph at will, or disappear and reappear. She might be surrounded by dozens of guns or even maybe soul zappers and she would be none the wiser. Her apprehension grew. She had to be very careful while she was here. She was metaphorically in the belly of the beast and didn''t know enough about what she didn''t know. She didn¡¯t know if she could trust this woman. She didn''t even know why the woman had agreed to talk to them. Lexie was scared of giving too much away. Before the woman could get close Lexie put her hand behind her back and quickly materialized and activated the combined and cards. She shielded the activation and tried not to show her concentration as she went through the pathway. was supposed to help you know who was looking at you, while was used to read body language and guess the intent behind subtle body movements. So the both of them combined should be able to tell her how much danger she was in. Lexie had tried the combination once, targeting Aiden at dinner, but all she¡¯d gotten was that he was hungry and tired and also that he cared about her. Stuff she could have figured out without the card. This would be the true test of how much the cards could actually sense. Once they activated, Lexie''s skin prickled. She felt like she was indeed being watched but she couldn''t tell by who or from what angle. She couldn''t read their intentions either. But she could read the person in front of her. ¡°Sorry,¡± the woman said, flashing them a quick, slightly nervous smile as she approached. ¡°I should have told you to wait at the gate. The security here¡¯s a bit intense.¡± ¡°No problem,¡± Aiden said pleasantly. "My name is Aiden and this is my daughter, Lexie.¡± ¡°I know who you are,¡± the woman said quickly and Lexie wondered if it was her imagination or if there was a light blush at the tips of the woman¡¯s ears and the apples of her cheeks. ¡°I mean¡­everyone in this town pretty much¡­¡± She didn¡¯t finish her sentence, coughing with a flustered look. ¡°Anyway um, you said you knew Jamie Leith.¡± ¡°Well, ''knew'' is kind of overstating it. We met twice I believe, but he was always too busy to talk much.¡± ¡°Yeah, that sounds like him.¡± She gave a wain smile. ¡°I''m really sorry to hear about his death.¡± Leixe saw it then, a slight furrow of an eyebrow, that told her that something was wrong. It took Lexie a second to translate the stimuli she received. The woman had heard something she didn¡¯t necessarily agree with but she instantly caught herself and covered up her response. ¡°Yes, his death was truly a sad occurrence.¡± Lexie glanced at Aiden and saw that he hadn¡¯t noticed the lie at all, because he was nodding along commiseratingly and seemed to be buying her truthful affect. That meant that it was the card that was making Lexie more perceptive than usual and that split-second eyebrow ruffle wasn''t as physically pronounced as she''d thought it was. had simply magnified its appearance and effect. Hmmm. Apart from that though, Lexie wasn¡¯t detecting any animosity from the woman. Not that Lexie was even sure the card could detect something like that, especially if the target was good at shielding. Maybe it only picked up on obvious expressions or when someone was caught off guard. But at least on the surface, the woman didn¡¯t have any ill intentions or suspicions toward either Lexie or Aiden. Unfortunately at that point, the timer ran out and both cards went into cooldown. ¡°Um anyway, are you here for a particular reason?¡± the woman asked. ¡°Like I said, we¡¯re not open for excursions today so I won¡¯t be able to show you around.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s fine," Aiden said. ¡°My daughter seems to have an interest in the ISTS. Apparently, someone came to her school and told her about it.¡± ¡°Who?¡± The woman¡¯s eyebrow furrowed and Lexie tried to keep her face straight. ¡°I don¡¯t know her name,¡± she said. ¡°Well, what did she look like?¡± Lexie pretended to think about it and then shrugged. ¡°Normal, I guess.¡± Aiden gave her an odd look and then sent an apologetic one to the woman. ¡°Sorry. She¡¯s usually more observant and detailed than this.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s quite alright." When the woman glanced at Aiden, her eyes lost their suspicion and appeared shy once more. "I was just wondering who''d been assigned to any school talks lately and was drawing up a blank." She cleared her throat. ¡°Anyway, we should be closed today but since it¡¯s you and you know¡­¡± She blushed more obviously this time. ¡°You being a close friend of Jamie and all.¡± ¡°Well, close friend is kind of¨C¡± Lexie nudged her father so he would shut up and not ruin this with excessive honesty. The woman didn''t see it and continued to barrel on, ¡°I guess I can answer some of your daughter''s questions, off the record. We can talk in my office.¡± ¡°Perfect.¡± With that, she spun around and started back toward the building. Aiden squeezed Lexie¡¯s hand slightly as they followed. The hexagon once again morphed into an open doorway letting them in, Lexie was greeted with a vast empty floor. Seriously, there was seemingly no one and nothing there, except for a reception desk, with a call button floating above the center of the table. Lexie knew there were probably other things in the room she couldn''t see. She felt the buzz in the atmosphere at certain spots that were probably using manaronics. She kept note of them and also paid attention to the architecture and interior design as well. It was all clean lines and minimalistic decor with black and gold walls that blended well with the fixtures floating near the ceilings giving off a moody atmospheric light. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. It¡¯s difficult to tell whether it¡¯s night or day from inside, Leixe thought. It¡¯s probably by design so you can¡¯t tell when time passes. So you spend your entire day in here and not even notice. Finally, they reached the opposite wall of the dome and a door materialized just as they reached it. The woman pushed it open. It revealed what looked like a normal, high-tech office with holographic computer screens, and sleek pads on the table. There was also an ergonomic desk, art deco seats, and an exposed pipe that reminded Lexie of some fancy New York apartments. Oh and simulated sunlight from the roof. There were no windows in the office. Lexie found it all familiar until the woman walked to a flat wall and pressed a button that showed up out of nowhere. The seats, which were initially hardback and leather immediately transformed into a plus fabric couch that spread across that portion of the room. Lexie gaped at it. It was easier for her to understand things popping out of thin air, and a door morphing where the door wasn¡¯t before. But for some reason the thought of a chair becoming a sofa stumped her, mostly because she couldn¡¯t for the life of her figure out how that worked. ¡°I thought that would be more comfortable for you two,¡± the woman said ¡°Thank you¡­erm¡­¡± ¡°Jenna,¡± she said. ¡°Jenna Corawinkle.¡± Aiden¡¯s eyebrows went up. ¡°Any relation to Mathew Corawinkle?¡± ¡°Yes, he¡¯s my father. He told me about you as well. How you saved his life.¡± Aiden nodded. ¡°He¡¯s a good man. Is his leg doing better?¡± ¡°Yes, much better, thank you.¡± Lexie looked between the two of them and wondered if she was the only one who noticed Jenna¡¯s obvious crush on Aiden. Aiden didn¡¯t seem to realize or care. He simply smiled pleasantly and then gestured for Lexie to take a seat. ¡°Here, honeybee,¡± he said, ¡°Sit over there near the pillows¡± As Lexie obliged, she asked, ¡°How does that seat-morphing thing work?¡± Jenna winked at her. ¡°It¡¯s a trade secret,¡± she said. ¡°Is it magic?¡± Lexie asked but Aiden interrupted with a cough. ¡°It¡¯s alchemy,¡± he responded. ¡°But Lexie I¡¯m sure the nice lady is very busy, so why don¡¯t we stick to the questions you wanted to ask about the ISTS and soul magic.¡± Lexie let the couch questions go with an internal sigh, resolving to learn all she could about alchemy when she went back home. ¡°So the ISTS,¡± she said. ¡°They said it¡¯s used to transfer souls to other dimensions for research?¡¯¡¯ Jenna nodded. ¡°More or less. Sometimes, it¡¯s a little more, sometimes it¡¯s a little less, but at this level, that¡¯s all you need to know.¡± ¡°And there are rules, right? For whenever someone is transported using the ISTS?¡± ¡°Yes, typical non disclosures and such. You¡¯re also not supposed to do anything that can cause a dimensional rift or conflict.¡± ¡°Like what?¡± ¡°Well, if you''re in a dimension that hasn¡¯t learned how to cultivate and use mana yet, and you do use mana, you would be in direct violation of the ISTS rules.¡± ¡°And then you would get a soul termination?¡± Both Aiden and Jenna turned to Lexie alarmed. ¡°Absolutely not,¡± Jenna said, sounding almost insulted. ¡°We don¡¯t do soul terminations for that. It would be a hefty fine, a forced return, and a lifetime ban from ever using ISTS services again.¡± ¡°Oh." Lexie felt a little embarrassed even though she probably shouldn''t have. ¡°Did this woman at your school tell you that we do soul terminations for that?¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°Not really. She just mentioned that sometimes soul terminations occur and I was wondering what one would have to do to get their soul terminated." Jenna sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never actually seen one done before and I¡¯ve been working here for nearly ten years already.¡± Lexie wondered how long ago that was, because the woman only looked about twenty-five, although she could have been older. ¡°It would have to be something world-endingly terrible I think to deserve a soul termination.¡± Lexe was even more confused. That didn¡¯t make sense. Was someone messing with her? Why did her welcome manual suggest that she could get soul-terminated for disclosing her involvement with the ISTS? How would her telling anyone that she was from Earth 2 and wasn¡¯t the real Lexie Sparrowfoot be world-endingly terrible? Sure it would be sad and confusing for a few people but causing some kind of world-wide disaster? She didn''t think it would. Could the ISTS even foresee something like that happening? Or was it just guesswork? She thought about it for a second and then spared Aiden a glance. As he grinned down at her, a thought occurred to her. Maybe it¡¯s because of him. Maybe the ISTS thought that if Aiden Sparrowfoot knew his daughter was gone, he would raze the entire earth to the ground. Of course, Lexie couldn''t imagine the Aiden she knew doing something like that. But he had self-admittedly gone off the deep end when his wife had died. He''d done something so terrible he''d been dubbed a [Villain] for life. While Lexie wanted to think that the [Heroes] were malicious or overreacting with the punishment, Aiden himself somehow agreed with it. So he himself thought he¡¯d done something disastrous after his wife¡¯s death. How much more would he do for his daughter, who was all he had left? Lexie was starting to feel frustrated. Was that all this was about? Why was she here? Where was Aiden''s real daughter? ¡°So, typically when a soul is transplanted into a different dimension,¡± Lexie asked next. ¡°Is it possible that the other soul of the host body gets sent into the previous one?¡± Jenna shook her head. ¡°No. That doesn¡¯t happen. The soul of the host body is usually gone to the afterlife by that set date.¡± ¡°And how do you know when the date is?¡¯ ¡°Trade secret. Can¡¯t say. I¡¯ve already said more than I should honestly but¡­¡± She gave Aiden another glance and then her gaze quickly skittered away. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ll allow you a few more questions but then I really need to get back to work." ¡°Sure, sorry. I don¡¯t want to take up too much of your time.¡± Lexie took a breath organizing the last question in her head. "Has there been any situation with the ISTS that has worked the other way? Like maybe someone from another dimension got put into this one? And also what exactly is a Chosen?¡± This time Lexie didn¡¯t need a card to detect the shock that slackened the woman''s features. It was more than just shock. It was suspicion. Uh oh. I¡¯ve said too much. ¡°Ok, now you really need to tell me who this woman at your school was." Jenna leaned in to peer at her. Lexie leaned back a little. ¡°I told you I don¡¯t know.¡± Aiden looked between the two and asked, "I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s something she¡¯s not supposed to know about.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not even sure I know about it,¡± Jenna said. ¡°Only the higher-ups do. And it¡¯s strange that someone that high up would be going to schools and revealing information like that willy-nilly. They should probably be reported for it.¡± ¡°She didn''t mean to tell me. I overheard her talking to someone else." "Who?" "I don''t know." Shit, Lexie wasn''t good at making up lies on the fly and if this continued she would only dig herself deeper and deeper into a hole. "I don¡¯t want to get anyone in trouble." Lexie adopted her scared, sweet, innocent 10-year-old voice and the woman¡¯s features softened. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, sweetie. I¡¯m not mad at you. It¡¯s just that we need to make sure no one gets their hand on information like that. So I want you to describe who exactly it is that you came to your school." Lexie¡¯s heart raced and seeing no way out she squeaked. "Sure." And then she went on to describe the most generic sounding person she could think of, an average-height woman with hair that wasn''t quite brown and wasn''t quite blonde and wasn''t quite red, eyes whose color she didn''t remember, medium unremarkable features, medium weight, and nothing stand out about her. Lexie hoped there was no one like that who worked here. She thought there probably wasn''t given how confused Jenna looked by the end of it. Before she could say anything, Lexie tugged her father¡¯s shirt, saying, "I wanna go now." "Sure." Aiden rose and took her hand, sending Jenna a grateful look. "Thanks for everything, Jenna. And say hi to your father for me." "Likewise," Jenna said distractedly, still staring down at the notes she''d taken of this mysterious woman. As Jenna let them out of the office and they walked down the hall, Lexie¡¯s heart raced. She was expecting any moment now, for someone to call her back and interrogate her. Lock her in a room until she told everything she knew. And then they would terminate her to prevent this top-secret thing from getting out. Or maybe they could help her understand why this needed to be a secret. She didn¡¯t understand why ISTS would pick her for some important thing and not tell her about it. And then restrict who she could talk to about it also. Why? Was she a test subject? A guinea pig? Was the ISTS not letting her reveal her identity to hide something? She didn¡¯t breathe or stop gripping her father¡¯s hand until they were outside the compound gates. Aiden noticed Lexie¡¯s tension and asked, ¡°Are you okay, Lex?¡± Lexie nodded. "Yeah. I think I just needed some air.¡± ¡°It was pretty stuffy in there, wasn¡¯t it? No windows and all that recycled air. Bah. I don¡¯t know how they do it.¡± He shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t believe William¡¯s daughter became a [Researcher] of all things. I thought she would go into show business like her mother. Certainly has the looks for it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you should tell her that if you¡¯re not interested in dating her,¡± Lexie pointed out. Aiden gave her an incensed look. ¡°Lexie! That¡¯s ridiculous. I knew her father and she¡¯s young enough to be my¡­.well not my daughter per se, but my much younger little sister.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think she minded,¡± Lexie said and snorted when Aiden¡¯s face turned beet red. ¡°Well,¡± he coughed. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be appropriate. Besides, I''m not ready to date yet. I think I might never be.¡± And with that, Lexie knew he was a little sad again because he was remembering his wife. ¡°Our next stop is close by,¡± Aiden said, shaking it off as they stepped down to the cobbled walkways. ¡°And it¡¯s a surprise I¡¯ve been planning for a while, just for today.¡± ¡°Mhmm.¡± Lexie wondered how hard it would be to feign surprise because she was pretty sure she already knew what Aiden had gotten for her. Probably a deck of cards with a flower theme. He¡¯d dropped fairly obvious hints throughout the week, hints like ¡°Your birthday present is an ace up my sleeve¡±, and ¡°You''ll be as happy as a burst of sunflowers when you see it¡±. Lexie would have to be stupid not to put two and two together and stupid, Lexie was not. But when they got to the card shop, with holographic decks floating in display cases and beckoning Lexie closer, Aiden didn''t reach for any of them. Instead, he greeted and then gestured to the man behind the counter who immediately headed away to a backroom. While they waited, they wandered around and Lexie looked at some of the decks with holograms of individuals using different decks skills. The holograms were usually cute girls which Lexie supposed made them more attractive to buyers. They performed each skill one by one, smiling and winking as they did. Aiden then said, ¡°This was the place I got my first-ever deck. The party planner¡¯s deck.¡± ¡°Really?¡± He nodded. ¡°Your mother would later tell me that she was at the opposite shop the entire time. We would have met for the first time that day, but she left maybe a minute before I did, and we just missed each other. But then we would meet again, years later.¡± He smiled. ¡°Fate is funny that way. It always seems to take you back to where you¡¯re supposed to be and who you¡¯re supposed to meet.¡± Lexie glanced at him but before she could say anything, the man returned. He was holding a small wooden chest and he laid it on the counter eyeing them with glee. ¡°It wasn¡¯t easy hunting it down, Archmage,¡± he said. ¡°I had to pull a lot of strings.¡± Aiden smiled indulgently. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Elric. I¡¯ll leave a handsome tip before I go.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you¡¯re my favorite customer.¡± ¡°You say that to all your customers.¡± "Yes, but I lie to them. I tell you the truth." Aiden snorted. "You say that to them too." Lexie was only half-listening to their banter. Instead, she was wondering what was in the box. "Lexie," Aiden nudged her forward. "Open it." She walked forward slowly and stood on her tippy toes to draw the box from the counter. Then she undid the lock and flipped it open. Inside it, were three transparent card-shaped planes of glass that were set in a velvety pillow. Beside them was what looked like a fountain pen with a very sharp glinting edge. Lexie frowned in confusion and then glanced at Aiden. "What is it?" she asked. "That," he said. "Is the material for crafting your very own card." 49 - The Savior of Indigo Lexie gaped at her father, then at the box, then back at her father again stunned at what he was telling her. ¡°Are you serious?¡± Aiden nodded with a wide grin. ¡°Yes. Typically, you would need to be at least a year two scholar to get access to those, but luckily your father pulled some strings.¡± ¡°Expensive strings,¡± Elric commented from behind the counter, but Lexie barely heard him. She was still focused on Aiden and the box in her trembling hand. Lexie immediately put the chest back on the counter and went to him. Her heart raced as she closed the distance between them and threw her arms around his waist squeezing tight. ¡°Thank you,¡± she murmured into his belly. ¡°Thank you, thank you, thank you." ¡°You¡¯re very welcome, bumble bee.¡± His voice was warmth personified as he laid a hand on her head. ¡°I¡¯m glad you like your gift. I told you it would be a surprise.¡± And it was. Lexie had assumed, after their last fight, that her father would slow down on teaching her card magic, or may not even teach her any magic again. But now he''d gotten her a card crafting kit. Which meant he was going to start teaching her crafting too! She finally let him go, her heart overflowing with gratitude and glanced back at the box. She didn¡¯t know how expensive it was, but she was going to find a way to pay Aiden back. After all, she still had about 1,000 ill-gotten credits in her account. She would find a way to give it to him without explaining how she¡¯d gotten it. Or maybe she just needed to be honest about the gambling. It might show up on his tax documents, or he might get mail about it anyway. But she decided to deal with that later. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you how to use it later today," Aiden said as Lexie went over to retrieve the box. "For now, let¡¯s go to our last destination.¡± She nodded and beamed. "Sure thing, Dad." Their last destination was another ten-minute walk away, and it was some kind of pawn shop combined with a souvenir shop. But the souvenirs were things from trips to different dimensions. Through the window display, they saw cell phones, including flip phones like the ones they had in the eighties. Also a skateboard. And plastic hangers for whatever reason. A few books. And a whole bunch of things that Lexie had never seen before but probably came from another Earth dimension. ¡°These are all brought back by people from the ISTS travels?" Lexie asked and Aiden nodded as he pushed the door open. The man behind the counter looked up at them when they walked in. He was a round tall elderly man with a ponytail, surrounding a bald top, and round glasses perched on his nose. The second he saw them, he did the strangest thing. He smiled brightly. And not the customer service smile you get when you typically enter someone¡¯s shop. This one was a real warm smile. It even took Aiden aback. ¡°Welcome,¡± the man said and he went to the far edge of the corner lifting the separator. He was wearing a workman¡¯s apron, with ratty sneakers, stained with grime. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you again, Lexie.¡± Lexie blinked. "You know me?" ¡°Of course. Although the last time I saw you, you were knee-high.¡± He looked at Aiden. ¡°Welcome, Archmage.¡± Aiden smiled weakly. ¡°Thank you. But I¡¯m not the Archmage anymore.¡± ¡°You''ll always be the Archmage to some. Especially in the heart of many of us in this town.¡± He gestured. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the back, I have what you¡¯re looking for.¡± The man led them around the counter and through the backdoor of the store down a dark hallway that smelled a little moldy and dusty but thankfully wasn¡¯t too long. At the end of it, he unlocked a door that led into what looked to be a small warehouse, with shelves of brown boxes filled to the brim with stuff. Junk, Lexie''s mother would call them, but she was a stickler for cleanliness and hated any kind of clutter, especially the type Lexie''s father had lying around when he was trying to fix that Camaro. The man lifted one of the boxes onto a dusty table with one leg that had been broken and reattached, and then sorted through it, taking out picture frames, smaller boxes, and other miscellaneous items. ¡°I was about to send this off to District 4 for auction,¡± he began speaking as he rifled through. ¡°Because I didn¡¯t think you would be coming for it. I thought you¡¯d maybe forgotten all about it, or maybe outgrown the hobby but something kept telling me to hold onto it. Maybe it was remorse or something of that sort¡­but I¡¯m glad I did. That way I still had it when I got your call, Archmage.¡± "Sorry that it took so long," Aiden said. "I had a lot of emotions about this place that I needed to sort through." "Completely understandable." The man finally retrieved the thing he wanted, which looked to be a straight cylindrical case, like something you would put a cigar in. He brought it and handed it over to Lexie who took it and opened the box tentatively. Turned out, it was a necklace, a shimmery golden statement piece with pearls hanging off it and a rose petal as a pendant. Lexie analyzed it for a few seconds, before turning back to the man who was looking on eagerly. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said politely, but his face still fell. She felt like she¡¯d disappointed him with her reaction, which told her she was missing something here. ¡°You kept this for me?¡± He nodded. ¡°I¡¯m sorry but I have to ask. Why?¡± Confusion rippled across his face and then Aiden finally spoke up. ¡°Lexie suffered a bad fall a few months ago. Lost most of her memories.¡± The man''s eyes widened dramatically. ¡°Oh, I''m so sorry. I didn''t know.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Lexie said. ¡°I¡¯m fine now.¡± ¡°Yes, but she doesn¡¯t remember anything about your relationship in the past," Aiden said. "And she also won''t know what the necklace symbolizes." ¡°Oh.¡± Worry and pity appeared on his face but he immediately covered it up with a bright smile. ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure it will come back in due time.¡± He sounded hopeful and sad at the same time, and Lexie wondered just how close she¡¯d been to this man. ¡°About the necklace,¡± he continued. ¡°I kept this for you because you wanted it very badly. You and your mother would always come to my shop every time you were in town and you would ask if I¡¯d gotten it yet. The answer was always no, until now." Lexie gently palmed the necklace and then lifted it in the air. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a photosynthesizer, a tool from Earth 5 Dimension,¡± he said. ¡°It was used to grow specific types of plants in climates that usually would not tolerate them. You wanted it very badly.¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing that was during the phase when you wanted your own Phoenix-rose flower garden,¡± Aiden commented wryly. ¡°You had been talking about it for months. I was away from home then, but I remember your mother would message me all the time telling me you were in our backyard digging again. You wanted to grow Phoenix-roses, but Hovelton cannot grow them due to the climate.¡± ¡°And this would have helped.¡± Lexie regarded the necklace again with a new respect. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Let me show you,¡± the man said and gestured for the necklace. She handed it over. He twisted the petals, and the sound of a click could be heard. Then the pendant began to glow. ¡°Basically, at this point, you put a sample of the plant that you want into this and it will create a forcefield, around it to analyze it. Then it will ask you to put some soil in a different compartment right here," He twisted the petals again. "That''s for the soil you want to grow it in. From there, it will run tests and try to create a seed that should be able to grow a similar flower in that soil." "Wow." Lexie blinked. "Sounds incredible." "Yes, but note it''s not very powerful. It will usually only produce only one of that plant and it takes weeks to recharge. There are also some plants that it will not work for. I even told you that it may not be able to make you a Phoenix-rose garden without some serious magic involved. But you said, and I quote, ''My daddy is the most powerful mage in the world. He¡¯ll make it work.''¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Lexie glanced up at Aiden who was beaming down at her. Although his smile had a tinge of sadness in it. The man continued, ¡°It¡¯s a rare artifact indeed but a traveler from Earth 5 finally brought it in one of those days and I just knew I had to have it. I put in a ridiculously high bid for it, fending off a few collectors and even called in a favor before I could get my hands on it." "Wow." Lexie was moved by his determination and dedication to getting her the trinket. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± His wrinkled face lit up at her thanks. ¡°After I heard what happened to your mother¡­I suppose you could say I wanted to give you something that could at least, if not dull the pain, then it would ¡­¡± He couldn¡¯t find the words to finish the sentence, especially after he met Aiden¡¯s gaze then which had gone very somber. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. She was a good woman.¡± Aiden¡¯s smile was now stiff on his face. He looked a little sick like he always did whenever someone mentioned his wife¡¯s death, and his throat bobbed as he swallowed. The old man wasn¡¯t unaffected either, his eyes holding a sheen in them. It was strange that Lexie was the only one who wasn''t emotional during this moment. Yes, Lexie knew in a logical sense that she (or the girl whose body she was inhabiting) had lost her mother and that was sad, but she didn¡¯t remember the woman and unlike with Aiden, she''d had no chance to form that bond with Lara. So in her eyes, when Lara was mentioned, all she saw was a faceless, kind, smiling woman who would cook meals for her and take her places. Although the image was nice, there was no emotional attachment to them, no true sense of loss. It was more like a fantasy and wishful thinking than a memory. After all, you couldn''t miss something that you never had. She had Aiden now and he''d somewhat taken the position of her father here. But in her mind, her real mother was still back on earth. For better or for worse, it was the no-nonsense, brilliant, Dr. Evans. Lexie had had a complex relationship with her mother. On one hand, she understood her. The woman had come from a developing country and then fought tooth and nail to survive. When she arrived, she immediately taught herself English, had to take a lot of menial jobs to put herself through college, and then somehow clawed her way through the elitism and sexism rampant in such spaces to establish herself as an expert in her field. She¡¯d then gained a coveted tenure spot in physics and continued fighting until she was well-respected in the field of quantum mechanics. She¡¯d done that through sheer determination, forgoing just about everything in pursuit of her ambition. She''d had to be brutal and strong to survive the world of high academia. But that same harshness might have been what robbed her of any motherly warmth and what disenabled her from sympathizing with any flaws she viewed in her children¡¯s characters or performance. Or maybe not. Maybe that was just who Harlow Evans was. After all, Lexie had met plenty of academic women who made fantastic, soft, loving mothers. But Harlow wasn''t one of them. From the moment Lexie was young, it had been decided that she was someone who would follow in her mother¡¯s footsteps. While Logan was far more rambunctious and had to be wrangled down to have his lessons, Lexie had always been inquisitive and quiet. No one had to force her to study at an early age because she enjoyed reading, asking questions, and learning new things. Her mother had seen that and exploited those traits to set Lexie up for maximum success. She¡¯d spared no expense in doing so, got the extra tutors, and study aides, and spent a ridiculous amount of money on afterschool classes from the moment Lexie was six. And of course, as could be expected, all that work and pressure to perform killed any joy Lexie had in learning anything. She began to hate the routine of it, and would quietly rebel in little ways by watching videos on her phone or playing computer games. But, she was too much of a coward to truly rebel. Especially after her Grandpa¡¯s death. After she saw what it did to her mother, and saw her mother nearly break down for the first time, it was like that urge to fight completely left her. Lexie may not agree with Harlow but she didn''t want to see her suffer like that again. So she¡¯d swallowed whatever animosity she held and simply played the part of the good daughter to make her mother happy. It made her mother happy to see her get perfect grades so that was what Lexie did. Her mother wanted her to go to MIT, so Lexie did that too. On a selfish level, being so obedient made life simple for her. She didn''t have to think about what school she wanted to go to, or what she wanted to do with her life. She didn''t have to think about the fact that her parent''s marriage was falling apart or that Logan was having a terrible time in school, and distancing himself from their parents. She just had to do what was asked of her and everything else would be fine. She wondered what was happening now that she was gone. Was Lexie Sparrowfoot in her body and continuing with the routine? Or had her entire family imploded without her good-girl buffer? Aiden laid a hand on her shoulder and she realized that he took her quiet for melancholy. And while Lexie was a little sad, it wasn''t for the same reason as the other two. Tumultuous emotions shifted and bent within her but she smiled back at him anyway. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you heard," the man continued. ¡°But we held a little memorial service for your wife, down at the field. A few days after the funeral." Aiden shook his head. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t hear. I was in jail then.¡± ¡°Oh. Right. Of course.¡± He cleared his throat as his gaze lingered on Aiden''s neck, as though he could see the bands through his shirt. ¡°Anyway, um..yes that happened. We were very sorry to hear about it. And about¡­you as well.¡± Aiden nodded. It was clear he was uncomfortable with where the conversation was going but luckily, the older man changed the subject abruptly. ¡°I¡¯m Gunther by the way,¡± he said, smiling at Lexie. ¡°I suppose you don¡¯t remember that either. You used to call me ¡®Unther because for whatever reason you kept forgetting about the ¡®g¡¯. I¡¯m the owner of Gunther''s Interdimensional Pawn Shop. And of course, I know you are Lexie and you are the Archmage.¡± ¡°Just Aiden is fine,¡± Aiden said and Gunther shook his head. ¡°Of course not. I can never disrespect the Savior of Indigo by addressing him simply by his first name. No, that wouldn¡¯t do." The Savior of Indigo? Lexie glanced up at her father who looked embarrassed rubbing the back of his head. But there was also that slight hint of pride in his eyes that told her that it was more so the ''aw shucks'' kind of embarrassment and not the type that meant he didn''t want Lexie to hear the story. It was especially evident because he didn¡¯t stop Gunther from carrying on with it, telling Lexie, ¡°You don''t have a lot of [Heroes] coming to Indigo. The environment is not good for them, and they don''t like what it does to their powers. And most of us here have not even seen a [Superhero] except on the news and videos. That was until the Zayket attacked.¡± "Zayket..." Lexie murmured. She''d heard of the city-state. They were in District 8 and a major player in the Great District Wars. ¡°Zayket has always believed that Indigo should be a part of their nation," Aiden explained. "And when they didn¡¯t get that, they staged an attack on Alberton to destabilize the region, destroy their gains after the last war, and also send more refugees into District 8. They also wanted to drop another mana bomb even though the last one had devastated Indigo enough. Luckily, the [Hero] association got wind of what they were trying to do and they sent me in here to dissuade the attackers. Luckily, it all worked out.¡± ¡°He¡¯s underplaying his role,¡± Gunther said. ¡°I saw it myself, after bringing my little boy home from school. Two great large Bibivs in the sky that would have swallowed up entire neighborhoods and destroyed them. Would have made this place unlivable. Zayket first made threats to the Alberton government to yield to their demands. When they did not, they dropped it. I was standing right there, outside my gate taking out trash in my underwear. I thought I would die like that." He shook his head recalling it. "But then your father appeared and caught the explosions with one hand and made them disappear." ¡°You can control fire?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Not proficiently, not to the level of an elemental.¡± Aiden seemed proud to relive his heyday. ¡°What I did was catch it in a forcefield and then I transported it somewhere else, so it could be disabled. I also created a far-reaching shield to block all other missiles. My partner at the time focused on catching the attackers, while I was focused on protecting the citizens.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s exactly what he did. He protected us.¡± Gunther''s eyes once again were filled with awe. ¡°Most of us had never experienced a hero in action before. Seeing him dispel disaster so effortlessly¡­ It was like seeing a deity protect us. And then he projected his voice, loud like a Guardian, and told Zayket that if they did not leave he would rain hellfire down on them. They left.¡± He smiled. ¡°My boy¡­he told me he wanted to be a hero after that. He¡¯s now attending an academy in Turnwall. Wellington Academy.¡± ¡°Ah, that¡¯s a good one. He awakened?¡± Gunther nodded then tapped his temple. ¡°That Alistair. He¡¯s a thinker. He will likely be some kind of technomage.¡± Pride oozed from his tone and then he got serious again. ¡°I understand that your circumstances are complicated, Archmage, but most of us have never forgotten your bravery that day. They still teach about you in some schools. And you have many friends and supporters in this city.¡± Aiden smiled. "Thank you." At this point, Lexie finally asked the question she¡¯d come all the way here for. She took her phone out of her pocket and held it out to Gunther. ¡°Did I get this from here?¡± she asked him, trying to see if the system had somehow messed with time to add that to her story. He frowned as he took the item, turning it over in his hand. ¡°No, I don''t think so. But I have seen things like this. It¡¯s a communicator from Earth 2, 4, and 5 correct?¡± ¡°Er, yes,¡± she said. ¡°Although I think this particular one is from Earth 2.¡± ¡°Hmm, yes. It looks very Earth 2-like.¡± Lexie didn¡¯t know what that meant but she didn''t pursue it. ¡°It¡¯s just that there are a few things on it that don¡¯t work,¡± Lexie said. ¡°And it keeps saying no signal.¡± ¡°Of course. Communicators are typically frozen and stripped before they¡¯re brought here. Interdimensional communication is strictly banned unless you have the proper authorization. Therefore the signal is locked until then. These souvenirs are just for fun. You get to click it and it makes funny sounds.¡± ¡°Right," Lexie said, ¡°But do you know how to at least get the software on it back? I think they were there when I woke up from my coma but they got deleted accidentally.¡± Maybe she could get around the no communications rule by using social media. Now that she knew that the signal could be turned on, then she wanted to try. ¡°Hmm. Not really but there are a few people who might be able to. I''ll reach out and ask them." ¡°Alright, thank you,¡± she said. ¡°And just out of curiosity how would I get this interdimensional communication authorization?¡± He smiled. ¡°You would have to be a very strong, very important person to get access to that. And very wise too.¡± His gaze flickered to Aiden. ¡°With a father like yours, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll achieve that in no time.¡± 50 - Happy Birthday, Honeybee ¡°So that¡¯s why people were staring at us on the way here,¡± Lexie teased looking up at her dad as they exited the shop, walking onto the quaint cobbled walkways. ¡°Because you¡¯re famous.¡± ¡°I thought that might be one reason,¡± he chuckled. ¡°I didn''t want to say it or someone would accuse me of not being humble again.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t have that. So out here, your [Hero] popularity beat out your [Villain] infamy, huh?¡± ¡°You could say that,¡± he said. They were passing a small quiet neighborhood now with people walking dogs and other creatures that looked vaguely like pets. ¡°The people of Indigo are, shall we say, more open-minded to certain crimes. Especially when you have a strong motive for it. Crimes of passion are largely accepted as a part of the landscape as long as it does not cross certain lines. The area itself is rife with crime but polite gangs will often deal with each other to maintain peace. And of course, the constant threat from District 8 means that there¡¯s something unifying most of the citizens so they mostly try not to kill each other." "Ah. I see." ¡°Yes. Most of the world isn¡¯t like Arcadia and Capital City where there are lots of [Heroes] keeping the peace. Most places are like Indigo, with limited transient mana, so [Heroes] only pop in once in a while, do their jobs, and leave. Some regions don''t even have branches of the hero association. And over in those places, heroes are revered.¡± ¡°They¡¯re revered in Arcadia, still I think,¡± Lexie countered. She remembered how all the kids in her class had pressed their noses to the window, buzzing with excitement at the thought of seeing a hero. Aiden shook his head. ¡°No. It¡¯s on a whole different level here. In Arcadia, [Heroes] are mostly associated with spectacle and politics and maintaining followers and sponsorships. They¡¯ve become heroic entertainers. Some [Heroes] enjoy it, and some of them hate it. For better or for worse, it¡¯s what helps them do their job now, with less fallout.¡± ¡°Fallout in what sense?¡± They had happened upon a park and Aiden held her hand so they could walk through it. Kids played on slides and swings, while parents sat at benches by the pretty trees with purple flowers. Aiden led Lexie to a bench as he spoke. ¡°A [Hero]''s work is basically about balance. And back in the day that was hard to achieve. There were too many moving parts¡­politically, and socially. Yes, the role means that we could technically attend to any crime anywhere and it gave us jurisdiction in every government. But some governments will fight you about it. Not to mention the local law enforcement. Sometimes the citizens themselves actively did not want your presence and would dissuade you from doing your job." ¡°Why?¡± ¡°[Heroes]...tended to leave a lot of carnage behind, sometimes by no fault of their own," Aiden said. ¡°Especially back in the day when some of the Forbidden skills and more dangerous powers had not yet been removed by the system and the [Hero''s] association was too disjointed and corrupt to control their more volatile capes. At the same time, no one could do anything about it. [Heroes] were too powerful and they also had far more supporters than those who were against them. But slowly, with enough time and destruction, the scale started to tip the other way. There were active calls for reform in the hero¡¯s association and more and more protests against heroes. The voices of dissent grew until the association couldn''t ignore it anymore.¡± ¡°And then what happened?¡± ¡°Well, in came a man called Dominic Vacek, who was elected the new head of the Hero¡¯s Association. He completely changed the system by which [Heroes] worked, put a whole lot more restrictions collaborated with the eradication of Forbidden skills, emphasized proper behavior and training, and basically upended the definition of heroism. His regime also focused on building political relationships and humanizing [heroes] through sponsorships to appeal to the public, so they were no longer seen as destructive, unrelatable superhumans that were close to gods. They were now regular gifted humans who were trying to do the best thing for everyone. And the rebrand worked. [Heroes] were no longer untouchable gods. They were now endearing people who had action figures and toys made after them. The public¡¯s love for them grew when they saw how hard Heroes worked to abide by the new rules and reduce the level of destruction caused by [Villains]. Dominic¡¯s focus on [Heroes] keeping a squeaky clean image also helped." Aiden nodded. ¡°Most [Heroes] were happy about this or at least tolerated it because it made it easier to do their job. They don¡¯t necessarily enjoy the interviews and the need to make a spectacle of themselves, but they understand the need for it. But some [Heroes] really really hated it.¡± "Why?¡± ¡°Familiarity breeds contempt. Some [Heroes] saw it as a loss of status, of prestige. Some would rather be hated deities than beloved entertainers who are simply seen as a step above mundane law enforcement. A few years ago, those [Heroes] raised a lot of ruckus, rebelling against Vacek¡¯s new rules. Vacek had to deal with the dissenters with an iron fist. And now there are pretty dire punishments for [Heroes] who don¡¯t abide by certain codes. And a lot of paperwork as well.¡± Darkness flashed across his face when he said ¡®paperwork¡¯. "Ah." Lexie thought about it. She thought about how Theo Firebringer said hero work was more invisible now, more in the background, probably to reduce carnage. She also recalled how he mentioned paperwork with distaste and apprehension. He wouldn¡¯t hurt Mouse even when Mouse was actively trying to kill him. Maybe it wasn''t just about his personal code. Maybe that ''paperwork'' was more than she thought. She understood how Vacek''s new policies made things better, but she maybe understood the other side a little too, how it would make it harder for them to do their job in some ways. ¡°Xena told me that her parents were killed by a [Hero],¡± Lexie revealed. It wasn¡¯t a secret because Xena implied that Emma knew, which meant that Aiden also probably knew. He confirmed it by nodding. ¡°She said to the guy who did it, he got away scot-free. Got relocated to a different planet to do [Hero] work.¡± Aiden was quiet for a while considering his words carefully. ¡°I¡¯m not really familiar with the case and how it was resolved. But getting sent off to a different planet isn¡¯t the vacation you think it is. Apart from those like the Fae, some of those planets are virtual hellscapes. So it might be a punishment worse than you imagine.¡± Leixe was quiet. They observed a few people playing in the park and she said, ¡°A place like this could probably use more [Heroes].¡± ¡°Yes. But like healers, there aren''t enough to go around. And [Hero] academies are usually stringent about who they let in, thanks to Vacek as well. The standards cannot be lowered for anyone despite the dearth of [Heroes] because they need to have the right qualities to do what needs to be done." Lexie nodded. "That''s kind of the reason I want to do what I want to do with the cards. I want to make cards that Mundanes can use so that people don''t have to be so reliant on [Heroes] and [Healers] anymore. It''s ridiculous that such a highly advanced world is lagging in some basic things and the system forces people to rely on the [Roles] that have been created." Aiden didn''t say anything for some time, but there was some pride in his eyes as he regarded her. "I agree. But you realize how difficult what you''re discussing will be, right?" She nodded and eyed the wooden chest in his hand. "But you''re still going to teach me. Right?" Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! He nodded. "Yes. But in steps. There are several of them when you''re crafting a card. Apart from the numerous series of complex measures to create a card pathway, the real hard part is going to be identifying the intent of a skill." Lexie cocked her head. "What does that mean?" "To give you a surface explanation, the intent is the thing that governs how a card works. For example makes you faster but it does that by making you lighter. Why? And why does only do backflips? And why do you need a contract with a creature before you can use ?" Lexie couldn''t answer the questions, so she remained quiet as he kept talking. "Cards are deceptively simple, but making them is very complex. Every part of card creation is governed by intent behind the skill and to understand that you have to look back to what the Fae were thinking when they made magic." He smiled. "There''s a large inventory book in the World Library of every card ever made, some of which are no longer in use today and have stopped being produced. A card scholar should be able to access that inventory and study it to identify the intent behind each card. It helps them in creating a new card if they can get themselves to think in the same way the Fae did." He sighed. "You don''t have access to all that so it makes it a little more difficult. You might have to start with remaking and tweaking cards that already exist. And even with that, it will still likely be hard because I don''t have all the resources to properly teach you. And neither does Elvira." He gave her a knowing look as though he knew about her deal with the other woman. Lexie didn''t turn away. "That''s alright. I don''t mind if it''s hard. I''m doing it anyway." His smile widened and turned softer. "Your mother would have been so proud of you." Lexie shrugged. "Maybe or maybe not. You said she was a fighter, right? Maybe she''ll be embarrassed because I''m not as strong as her." Aiden looked surprised for a second. And then he laughed. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been trying not to have this conversation for so long. But I don¡¯t know how much longer I can keep it in.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Lexie was immediately dying of curiosity. ¡°What conversation?¡± He sighed dramatically. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I told your mother I wouldn''t tell you until you were much older, but I see you watching those games on your pad and it¡¯s just too much at this point.¡± "What is it? Tell me what?" "You know I don¡¯t like to gossip, Lexie." "Yes, you do! Tell me, Dad.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can.¡± She huffed and puffed. ¡°Fine, don''t tell me.¡± Lexie could tell he was toying with her and she was getting annoyed. She wanted to pretend she didn¡¯t care as she watched the children in the park but the question continued nagging her. "I swear if you don''t tell me, I''m going to hold my breath until I pass out." Aiden laughed louder at her threat and Lexie got antsier and even more annoyed, so much so that she tried to walk off. At which point Aiden relented, pulling her back into the bench and tucking her against his side. ¡°Alright fine, I¡¯ll tell you. You know the Fighter tournament you like to watch so much?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Well, your mother was once a prominent competitor,¡± he said. ¡°You used to watch the games with her all the time. And she wanted to show you her own matches when you got older." He winked at Lexie. "She was one of the first and youngest female competitors to win a Golden Glove.¡± Lexie gaped. Her jaw was clean off her face for more than ten seconds. She didn¡¯t think she¡¯d ever received news this shocking in her life. "Look her up when we get home," he said. "Her fighter name was Jane Phoenix." ¡°She sounds so cool!¡± ¡°She was. She even got a badge as an all-star tapper." A choked sound escaped her lips and Aiden''s smile turned wry. "I assume you know what that means." Lexie nodded slowly. It meant her mother had triggered the highest amount of submission tap-outs in a certain year. ¡°How on earth did you even meet her?¡± Lexie wondered aloud and Aiden burst out laughing for the second time. She laughed too, as she said, ¡°No offense but¡­I don¡¯t know how she got interested in you. Two of you just seem like you''re from two different worlds.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a nice way of saying you think she¡¯s way out of my league.¡± ¡°No,¡± Lexie lied weakly. ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant.¡± But Aiden simply shook his head and tweaked her nose. ¡°We were from two different worlds and she was way out of my league,¡± he said. ¡°Surprisingly, she actually approached me first.¡± ¡°She did?¡± ¡°Yes but not for romantic reasons. She wanted my help doing something highly illegal," he said. ¡°Someone told her a rumor that I could create slower-time pocket dimensions and she wanted me to make one for her. So she could go into it, and train for three weeks for a match she had, and then only a couple of hours would have passed.¡± ¡°Did you?¡± Aiden gave her a look like she was crazy. ¡°Of course not. Even if I could do something like that, which I couldn¡¯t, do you have any idea how much trouble I would have gotten into?¡± ¡°Boring.¡± Lexie was disappointed in her father¡¯s lack of daring. ¡°You¡¯re such a goody-two-shoes.¡± ¡°That was what Lara said as well. But there¡¯s nothing wrong with being a rule follower.¡± Her father sniffed indignantly. ¡°She kept bugging me about it but I remained firm and told her that I couldn''t do it. But she didn''t give up. She thought she could wear me down so she would pop up randomly from time to time, trying to get me to do that and more illegal things for her. I think she was just doing it to bother me at that point, or maybe as an excuse to talk to me. And somehow, we fell in love.¡± He smiled at the setting sun. ¡°She introduced me to Max, who was her class partner and frenemy, as you kids say. She kicked his butt for something stupid he did but they had to work together on some projects and so they were forced to be friends.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± That explained how Max and Aiden, two very opposite people, had become so close. ¡°Yes. Their friendship was strange. I thought they were dating at one point, but they both expressed such disgust with the idea that it was clearly not a possibility. I never thought I would fall for Lara either. And then somewhere along the line¡­things happened." ¡°Who asked who out?" Lexie wanted to know next. Aiden emitted a sound of pure joy as he shut his eyes, as though replaying the memory behind his eyelids. ¡°I¡¯m not sure how to answer that. We both have drastically different views on that and in my view, she asked me out first, but she insists I did it first. Which I suppose I did do by dropping very subtle hints that I was going to ask her out the next weekend, in a very romantic way. There were going to be fireworks andletters in the sky. I planned this elaborate thing. But she got impatient before then and said, ''Fine, you''ve twisted my arm. Let''s go on a date.''" Lexie chuckled and then they both fell silent. Birds could be heard chirping in the distance. The calming cold nipped the edge of her nose and some playing children¡¯s mother had finally arrived to collect them. They happily grabbed each of her hands and then danced away, one of them tearing off to run ahead of the other. ¡°The teaching job.¡± Lexie broached the subject as carefully as she could. ¡°You didn¡¯t seem all that happy about it.¡± Aiden was quiet for a few beats. ¡°I thought you would be,¡± Lexie admitted. ¡°I see how much you like teaching. I mean you even liked teaching those elders, even though they were being brats.¡± He seemed amused at the description, but his words were somber. ¡°When I lost my teaching job at first it was almost as bad as being told I would lose my powers forever,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re right. I loved teaching. It was something that brought me genuine joy and fulfillment, maybe even more than hero work. Losing that made me feel empty. I didn¡¯t know how I would cope at first. I filled up my time with a lot of hobbies, cooking, helping Max with his various adventures, and educating myself on napkin conventions and origami occasionally. But none of that quite scratched that itch. But I got over the devastation. I learned to live without it, to find joy in other things. To dedicate my life to being a good dad. And now going back into it¡­¡± ¡°You can teach and still be a good dad.¡± ¡°I know that. That¡¯s not what I¡¯m worried about. It¡¯s¡­¡± Lexie instantly understood. "You¡¯re afraid it¡¯s going to be hard to give it up again. In case they decide to fire you, it will be twice as painful." ¡°Something like that. You¡¯re very perceptive.¡± ¡°Well, I am your daughter.¡± ¡°And also very good at buttering me up.¡± Lexie grinned. ¡°For what it¡¯s worth, I think you should go for it. Life¡¯s too short to keep yourself from doing things you love. And if it doesn''t work out then all you have to do is pick up the pieces again.¡± She shrugged. ¡°After all, if you¡¯ve done it once, you''ve shown yourself you can do it again.¡± Aiden gazed at his daughter for several fathomless minutes, the pride returning and mixing in with the melancholy. ¡°I spoke to a therapist recently,¡± he said. ¡°The court-ordered one. He told me that maybe I was trying too hard to relate to you and not hard enough to parent you.¡± ¡°Meaning what?¡± ¡°In plain language, he said, ''Your children are not your friends. And you shouldn¡¯t treat them as such.''¡± ¡°But I like being your friend.¡± ¡°Me too. But I''m not sure if that means I''m doing a bad job. Sometimes I feel like you¡¯re far too mature for your age, and it makes me feel like my lack of parenting is preventing you from being a proper child." "Oh," she said. "I just think I¡¯m not very good at being a child in general." She stared at the sky. "I don¡¯t think I ever was.¡± Another bird chirped before Aiden spoke again. "I know banning you from experimenting on your own is probably not going to work. It will only make you do more things behind my back. So I''ve decided to support you instead.¡± That was so shocking that Lexie¡¯s head whipped to him. He met her eye and continued speaking, ¡°But I just want you to come to me first, and let me help you. I don''t want anything bad to happen to you. I¡¯ll support you to be anything you want, Lexie, do anything you want. But I need you to be safe and to be happy." "I¡¯ll try," she said. "And I want you to be happy too." "I am happy." He smiled and leaned in to kiss her forehead. ¡°Happy birthday, honeybee." 51 - The Not Party Lexie might not have wanted a party for her birthday, but that was exactly what she got when they got back later that night. The sun had sunk long ago and she¡¯d fallen asleep on Aiden¡¯s lap on the skybird, only to wake up being gently jostled and feeling the outside breeze on her face. She stretched and took a second to realize that they were back in Hovelton and Aiden was carrying her home. She tried to protest at that point to be let down but he simply chuckled and told her that it was a good exercise to carry her. Max apparently had him lifting weights through much of their workout, and those turned out to be much heavier than Lexie. Which Lexie didn''t like hearing but oh well. When they finally arrived home, they noticed that all the lights were on. Aiden frowned and put Lexie down as he peeked through the windows. Tthen he heaved a heavy sigh. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Lexie inquired. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry.¡± He shook his head and before he could say more the door swung open startling Lexie back. Emma filled the doorframe and was holding a cake in her hand. ¡°Surprise!¡± she yelled. A chorus of voices saying the same thing sounded behind her and Lexie glanced at her father in confusion. ¡°You threw a surprise party for me?¡± Lexie inquired. Not that she was complaining but she was indeed surprised. She¡¯d thought they understood that she wasn¡¯t a fan of parties. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t.¡± Aiden pinched the bridge of his nose. ¡°Emma, what is this?¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± Emma¡¯s look turned apologetic. ¡°I know you said pretty explicitly that she didn¡¯t want a party, and technically this isn''t one. At least it didn¡¯t start out as one. I came over to deliver Lexie¡¯s present, the cake and also some casserole I made, but as I was leaving work Lacey said she wanted to come too. And so did Godfrey because he bought Lexie a mini-surgery kit for her birthday. And Carissa got her some mascara, something about it being an important intro to womanhood? And Glinda was there for her yearly check up and she overheard us talking about it¡­¡± ¡°Yeah." The door opened wider and Glinda stood with her arms crossed, in hiking gear with rollers in her hair. ¡°How come you never told us that it was Lexie¡¯s birthday, Professor? We fought an evil eye together. We covered for you from the feds. You couldn''t tell us that it was your little girl¡¯s birthday?¡± ¡°We brought presents,¡± her sister said, appearing at Emma¡¯s other side. ¡°And brownies.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not good, don¡¯t have the brownies.¡± Aiden was shaking his head at Emma and she continued, ¡°Well, we decided to just stay long enough to say happy birthday. But we promise it¡¯s not a party. It¡¯s just a bunch of us¡­here to say happy birthday to Lexie.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t come for the party!¡± Someone that sounded like Frank shouted from the background. ¡°I came because a few buddies of mine wanted to join our dungeon class next week and I wanted to know if it was okay, Sparrowfoot.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s fine, Frank.¡± Aiden said tiredly, then looked at his daughter as though asking if she was okay with all this. Lexie shrugged. It wasn''t like they could do anything about it now. And it was nice of everyone to come over, made her feel a little warm inside. A smile spread across her lips and she nodded at her father. ¡°Alright," Aiden finally said. "But I will tell you that you can¡¯t stay too long. Lexie needs her rest.¡± And despite clarifying several times that it wasn''t a party, the minute Lexie walked in, everyone started singing a birthday song. The nurses from the Healing House were there. So was the Dungeon Disaster Elders Club (that¡¯s what they started calling themselves) consisting of Frank, Merryweather, and Mr. Frederick. Apparently, the rest couldn''t make it since it was bingo night, but they sent their regards. And of course, there was also Emma and Xena, Rose and Evan, and Uncle Max and Luke. There was a weird tension between the two men that Lexie could sense but they both managed to smile when Lexie went to them. ¡°Hey, Tiger.¡± Max tugged at her ponytail affectionately. "How was your day?¡± ¡°Good,¡± she told him. ¡°Dad told me that you and Mom were frenemies.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah.¡± He grinned. ¡°Good times. Did he tell you that she gave me this?¡± He pointed at a tiny scar on the top of his ear. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Well it¡¯s a funny story actually, I¨C" Luke cleared his throat loudly, which seemed to dissuade Max from continuing with his story. For now at least. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you when you¡¯re older," he whispered conspiratorially. Lexie sighed. She was really getting tired of that line. ¡°Happy birthday, Lexie,¡± Luke said, smiling at her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a flat metallic card about the shape and size of a debit card. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Credits,¡± he said. ¡°To be uploaded to the system and spent however you want. I wasn¡¯t confident that I knew enough about your likes and dislikes to get you a present, so I figured I might as well just give you the means to get something that you want.¡± Lexie stared down at it and then looked back at Luke with new stars shining in her eyes. ¡°I always knew you were my favorite uncle.¡± ¡°Hey,¡± Max protested and Luke shot him a smug look. ¡°You won¡¯t be saying that after you see my present,¡± Max said. ¡°But I have to show you that one later. When your dad isn''t around.¡± ¡°Aiden is going to kill you,¡± Luke countered. ¡°No, he won¡¯t. He understands the need for the girl to protect herself now. Besides, it''s licensed.¡± ¡°Not for her.¡± ¡°Well, unless she kills someone, we won¡¯t have to worry about it.¡± Lexie had a sneaking feeling that the present was a gun. It was Uncle Max after all. What else could it be? She wondered if it would really be pink with propeller bullets. It would be kind of interesting to see something like that in person. She left her uncles to their argument and then went over to say hi to the nurses. Godfrey really did get her a surgery kit and told her that the next time she came over to the Healing House, he would show her how to use it. When she asked if he meant on a practice dummy, he remained suspiciously silent and then Carissa dragged her away to show her the mascara. She of course immediately wanted Lexie to try it on her and tittered about how good it looked, taking a picture for her social media story. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. After that, Lexie turned back and noticed that Evan was still with Xena but Rose wasn¡¯t there anymore. Lexie went to them. ¡°Hey, Lexie!¡± ¡°Hey, Evan!¡± Lexie replied with just as much enthusiasm ¡°Happy birthday Lexie.¡± ¡°Thanks, Evan.¡± She materialized and activated the frog for Evan to play with. He seemed delighted by it, and she was happy to watch his efforts in trying to catch the backflipping creature. She was also just excited to be activating cards again. She¡¯d paused her training out of respect for Aiden and also as a self-inflicted punishment for breaking his trust. But she was free to resume now that he¡¯d given her the go-ahead. They would start card crafting lessons tomorrow. And he also knew and approved of her deal with Elvira. Things we are looking up. The next thing Lexie wanted to work on was her creature cards. She wanted to try out more combinations and see if she could raise the strength and usefulness of that darn frog card. So much work to do but she was looking forward to it. She was enjoying herself with the cards actually. It was nice to study something not because she had to, but because she wanted to push herself to her limit, on her own terms. And yes she also wanted to go back home still, kinda, but she was no longer in any hurry. Her next step was to figure out how to contact her brother. Maybe if she could just find out if he was okay, tell him where she was¡­he would believe her. She knew he would because he watched stuff like this all the time and she would tell him that he just needed to sit tight and wait for her. Yes, she still felt guilty that she was living life while people were mourning her. She thought about how Logan must feel right now, and Mickie and even her parents. Dr. and Dr. Evan may not have been warm people but she was sure they loved her or at least they didn''t want her to die. She would have to go back for her family and friends. But for now, this was her life, and these people were her family and friends. ¡°Oh by the way," Xena spoke up. "I don¡¯t know if you checked the group chat but Dewie is freaking out.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± She hadn¡¯t checked the group chat all of today, because she wanted to dedicate all her time to her father but she opened it now while Xena spoke. ¡°I dunno. I guess because I had to tell him it was your birthday, which I only know because Emma told me.¡± There was a single note of accusation in her voice, not hard but enough that it was noticeable. Lexie shrugged. ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s just that I don¡¯t really enjoy celebrating.¡± In her old world, it was usually just any other day to her. Except for that one disastrous party Mickie had tried to throw, it usually passed quietly with simple presents and she found that kind of preferred it that way. ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s not cool that your friends don¡¯t know your birthday.¡± ¡°Is this you admitting that we¡¯re friends?¡± ¡°I admitted it like a week ago,¡± she said and smiled. ¡°You just weren¡¯t paying attention.¡± ¡°Does this mean that you¡¯re going to tell me why you didn¡¯t like me in the first palace?¡± Lexie hadn¡¯t mentioned it before because their friendship had still been in a tentative place where she didn¡¯t want to rock the boat too much to unearth any ugly feelings Xena might have had. But Xena didn¡¯t react badly. She just smiled wider. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you after the Top Dog versus Conrad exhibition rematch. After Conrad kicks his ass.¡± ¡°Yeah right,¡± Lexie said, then scanned the text messages. ¡°Woah, you weren¡¯t kidding. He really was freaking out.¡± Dewie had sent no less than thirty messages after Xena had offhandedly mentioned that she would be over at Lexie''s house later for the birthday party. Of course, Dewie had then responded with "There¡¯s a birthday party? Can I come?" followed by "I don¡¯t have to come if you don''t want me to," and then "I can''t come because I don''t have time to get a present today" and, "I¡¯m sorry I don¡¯t have a present and that I didn¡¯t know it was your birthday. I¡¯m a bad friend." The next one was heartbreaking. "Are we still friends?" Eventually, it devolved into him telling her that some species of gnomes sometimes offered their firstborn child as recompense for a slight and he wanted Lexe to know that she could have his. ¡°Aww poor kid,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Why didn''t you say anything?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think he was for real at first,¡± Xena said. ¡°And then I kinda wanted to see how far he would take it before you put him out of his misery.¡¯ ¡°Mean,¡± Lexie texted Dewie back instantly assuring him that she wasn¡¯t mad and that she just hadn¡¯t responded because she was spending the day with her dad. And it¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t have a present, she said. He responded almost instantly. I¡¯m getting you a present. You don¡¯t have to! Lexie responded. Xena didn¡¯t get me a present either. Who said? Xena responded, clearly reading the texts from her end. Lexie raised an eyebrow. You did? Xena suddenly appeared embarrassed. She pulled something out of her pocket and thrust it at Lexie. "Here." Lexie stared down at it. It looked like an engagement ring. "Are you proposing to me?" "No, you creep. Gosh, why do you have to make everything so weird? It¡¯s a mana stabilizer.¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s supposed to help you channel your mana better. It was really cheap so I don¡¯t know if it''s just a hoax, but it had a four-point five star so at least four point five people approved of it." Lexie really nearly teared up. She was moved by the thoughtfulness of the gift, especially from someone like Xena. The girl was so worried that she would hurt herself that she¡¯d gone searching for something that would help. And she¡¯d found this? "That''s seriously so nice of you," she said sincerely ¡°No, truly. Thank you for the gift, Xena. And thank you for caring.¡± ¡°Yeah, whatever.¡± She tucked her hands in her pocket ¡°Just don¡¯t cry when Top Dog loses the match.¡± At which point Lexie realized she¡¯d ignored Dewie for too long again too and he was once more frantically trying to offer her his firstborn. ¡°Oh by the way,¡± Emma announced. ¡°I know this party is about Lexie but I thought I might mention that we have another reason to celebrate.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Well, Hovelton¡¯s emergency response hero and healer priority ranking just raised from 9 to 3. We¡¯re on par with Arcadia now.¡± ¡°What?¡± Aiden said and several sounds of shock and murmurs of excitement chorused around the room, including Uncle Max who had a sudden coughing fit. "Yup,¡± Emma said, seeming happy. ¡°I checked it today. And then even called just to make sure it was correct.¡± ¡°That¡¯s amazing. I bet it¡¯s all the publicity from the dungeon discovery that got it.¡± "Does that mean I no longer have to wait in line to get my stool-relief potions?" Frank said "No, you do," she said. "But if it leads to an anal fissure, we can call a [Hero] to get you right out of there." "Fantastic," Frank said and everyone laughed, except Luke who was giving Max a sidelong look for whatever reason. The party continued for much longer than a few minutes and eventually, Aiden brought out some of the desserts he¡¯d kept in the fridge for the next Dungeon Disaster Drill, at which point people rushed it. Lexie halfway thought that was the major reason a few people showed up. There were calls for him to open a bakery but then Emma announced he would be too busy because he was starting a teaching role, which triggered another round of cheers. ¡°How did she know his decision quickly?¡± Lexie murmured. She¡¯d only just managed to convince her dad to take it. ¡°Your dad texted her about it on the way home,¡± Xena murmured. ¡°Right.¡± Lexie should have known. At some point, she noticed that Rose had taken Aiden aside to the kitchen. Lexie walked closer and peeked in, watching Rose who seemed to be apologizing to him frantically. Aiden kept waving off the apology but Rose kept insisting on how sorry she was, until eventually she cried and Aiden had to comfort her. It was clear she''d carried the guilt of the Evan thing for so long. And seeing her genuinely apologetic, Lexie finally let the grudge she¡¯d been holding against the woman go. Lexie could see the truth clearly now. This party wasn¡¯t just about her. It was about Aiden and how much the people in this town had grown to admire him. And she couldn''t blame them. He was someone who continued to do what was right even if there was no reward, even when people had scorned him. He continued to be gracious, heroic, and brave in the face of danger. A true [Hero] Lexie didn¡¯t think she had that in her. And only someone who did should be a [Hero]. By the end of the night, Lexie still wasn''t a fan of parties. But as far as parties went this was the best one she¡¯d ever had. "Don¡¯t have my mom¡¯s casserole by the way," Xena said when she went back to her. "It¡¯s terrible." At which point Emma called out, ¡°Lexie, come try my casserole.¡± Lexie glared at Xena. "You jinxed it on purpose didn¡¯t you." Xena grinned. "No. Happy accident." 52 - Rabbits and Hens Lexie sat cross-legged in front of the low living room table, with her pad in front of her, while her father paced like a university professor. He looked the part too, with his tweed suit and hair brushed back and jelled to hold. But his dapper attire was mostly because he had an interview later today. It was simply a formality, Elvira said, but the board had to meet him in person and make sure he wasn¡¯t a murderous psycho like some of them thought he was. Now why they chose to even interview a potential murderous psycho in the first place was the thing Lexie couldn''t figure out. They must be desperate or something. Either way, Lexie was happy about it since it made her father happy. Aiden was in good spirits today and maybe that was why he had an extra bounce in his step as he spoke. ¡°Today is just going to be a brief overview of everything you would need to create a card,¡± he said, brandishing his finger. ¡°Once we¡¯re done, I¡¯ll give you an assignment to do on your own. A test of sorts. The practicals will begin when you¡¯ve sufficiently passed that. Alright?¡± ¡°Got it,¡± Lexie said, nodding. She was sure she would ace it. She was, after all, fantastic at tests. ¡°Good. Now to make a card, there are a few things you need to consider; first, the material. Then the power source. And then the mechanism. For the material, we already managed to secure some practice cards but just to briefly touch on that, most cards are made out of Fae crystals that have been pressed and shaped accordingly.¡± ¡°Are they much different from regular crystals?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Yes. These crystals are often mined from level five dungeons and above, which makes them a little bit expensive. That''s part of the reason why you don¡¯t see people making cards willy-nilly unless they¡¯re part of a dedicated card program or card companies who can afford to provide those materials. Luckily for you, someone owed me a favor so I was able to get it at a discount." Lexie nodded. ¡°Now the second reason why not just anyone can make a card is because card creation requires mana to power it. Since most card mages are typically B or C-ranked, they don¡¯t necessarily have the power necessary. Usually, Card Research Centers and Card Companies rent mana generators powered by wells or occasionally they solicit higher-ranked mages who will power the creation of the card. But since you can¡¯t do any of that right now¡­I have Elvira looking into getting you some access to a mini generator. Her family might have one that you can access. It won¡¯t be very powerful, and it won¡¯t be as intuitive as if you were using your own mana but it will work for now." ¡°Thank you,¡± Lexie said. She could see how much effort it had taken him to arrange all this so she didn¡¯t take it for granted. ¡°Now the third thing, and what we¡¯re going to focus on today, is the mechanism of card creation. That can be split into three parts. Intent, purpose, and Path. Intent as I explained to you yesterday, is about trying to figure out how the Fae perceive a certain skill and what it was intended for. That then informs your purpose of making the card. Which then informs the mechanism of the card action. So one thing feeds into the next. ¡°Out of these three things, the mechanism is the easiest to figure out, once you have the other two down. Card action works by a series of nodes and logic gates, using different functions that lead to another. The most popular nodes are the combination node, the exclusion node, a buff and debuff node, and so on and so forth. But again, you can¡¯t get to this point until you understand and can properly translate intent.¡± Lexie nodded. She knew a little about logic gates from high school physics so she didn¡¯t think that creating the pathways themselves would be difficult. But the way Aiden spoke about it, the ¡®intent¡¯ thing seemed to be a limiting factor. ¡°Okay,¡± Aiden said. ¡°Now for your assignment for today, I was able to get my hand on a portion of the translated Fae script that was used to create one of your cards. I want you to read it, and see if you can decipher the intent from what you¡¯re reading. And tell me which card it was used for." He transferred the note to her via the system and as it appeared on her interface, Lexie read it out loud: From hole, the rabbit fled, It''s home, a harried shed Its heart, a dancing sparrow Its soul too large for the arrow Lexie frowned. ¡°Is it a poem or a riddle?¡± "It''s both." Aiden smiled. ¡°Most Fae language even translated is literally, and metaphorically, a riddle to us. They understand us a lot more than we understand them and communication is part of that. The Fae communicate in stories and riddles most of the time, but when they visit Earth, they¡¯ve learned to use to brief, and to-the-point human language, which is considered juvenile and lowbrow in Fae planet. We¡¯ll go into Fae culture later as I feel that might be helpful for you. But for now, I want you to focus on this for most of the day.¡± Lexie looked at the note again and sighed. She liked puzzles, so it followed that she should like riddles too. But for some reason, this one bugged her. Nevertheless, she would figure it out. She just hoped it wasn''t one of those artistic types of riddles where the meaning was whatever you wanted it to be, or whatever you could convince your English Lit teacher that it was. That would irritate her.
Lexie couldn¡¯t figure it out. She even tried searching it up on the NET, hoping something would come up but nothing did. And then she''d tried to treat it like a thought exercise, looking at the riddle from a literary angle. The poem excerpt was about the rabbit running from something so it was scared? The word fled certainly suggested it. Or maybe not? Maybe it was just running because its house crumbled. Or maybe it was happy and that''s why it''s heart was dancing? Maybe that the soul too large for the arrow meant that it couldn''t be killed so maybe it had found some power of some kind and was rejoicing in its new found freedom? Also the way it spoke about its soul and heart so that would lead her to believe that the ''home'' might be figurative? It might be just be referring to its body. But what did any of that have to do with her cards? Dancing heart...maybe ? A rabbit running. So ? Or if the rabbit was truly rejoicing because it had found help or something then maybe ? Darn, this was harder than she thought it would be. It really could be anything and she couldn''t tell anything with those four lines alone. But Aiden seemed to think that she should. After getting a headache reading it over so many times, she decided to take a break so she could look at it with fresh eyes later. During her break she worked on the frog card. The card was another source of her frustration that afternoon. Creature cards, she discovered, were more complicated than ability or effect cards, because of their shape and because they had way more deactivation sensors which were more sensitive to triggers. She supposed it made sense. With ability and effect cards, one only had to worry about one facet, which was the action being done. But even with low-powered creature cards, Lexie had to worry about both the action and the creature doing it. So if she mangled up the creature. Card fail. Accidentally activate only one leg to backflip. Card fail. Push a node that makes the creature do something creatures typically can''t. Card fail. It was annoying. Sure, she could activate it easily if she did everything exactly as she was supposed to but this wasn''t about that. This was about trying to make the card more useful damn it. So when the bell rang, she was really not in the mood for it. She was annoyed and determined to hunker down and figure out a way to skip nodes, which was hard because the logic tree branches were so intertwined, skipping one node might mean skipping another more vital node which then triggered deactivation. But then the doorbell came again and again, and Lexie thought maybe it was someone with an emergency. Maybe a dungeon opened up again. The [Heroes] had destroyed the underground dungeon and were currently investigating any other potential dungeons in Hovelton. They were using some kind of scanner to go over to the ground to test for dungeon activity, and so far they''d come up with nothing. According to Emma, Mr. Lochlan was super pissed about everything at the last town meeting because his land had been confiscated and dug up and no one was paying for it. And even worse, he was mad that Max had been released and had faced no repercussions from what he did except for a missed dungeon season which Max continuously complained about to anyone who would listen. Anyway, Lexie was worried that maybe the [Heroes] had found another dungeon and they were here to warn her about it. ¡°Coming.¡± Lexie flounced down the stairs and across the living room to the door. She peeked through the hole before she opened up in case it was an ax murderer or a ghoul or¨C ¡°Dewie?¡± She instantly unlatched and pulled open the door to see her friend standing there. His bowlcut was mussed around his head, wisps flying about. His glasses were fogged over, and sweat dripped from his forehead. He was panting and also carrying what looked to be a school bag full of trinkets. He gave her a tentative smile. ¡°Hello. Did you know that your doorbell rings twice at a go instead of once? That¡¯s strange. Also, I saw a flying piranha in the lake on the way here. You shouldn''t swim there anytime soon." ¡°Dewie what are you doing here?¡¯¡± ¡°I ran away.¡± Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Lexie''s heart caught. ¡°From home?¡¯ ¡°No. From pre-awakening classes.¡± He shrugged. "I¡¯ll be twelve in a few months. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s going to happen but my mother insists on it.¡± ¡°Oh, okay.¡± She didn''t know what to make of that. ¡°I ran away and took the train to Hovelton. I asked the sheriff station where you live and they directed me here.¡± And they weren¡¯t bothered by a strange kid wandering around, asking? Then again this was Hovelton and strange things happened all the time. Plus Ernie and Roger were, like her father mentioned, very lazy. ¡°Not that I¡¯m not happy to see you Dewie. Because I am...¡± He grinned. ¡°But you can¡¯t just take off somewhere strange without telling your parents. That¡¯s dangerous.¡± He frowned. ¡°But you and Xena do it all the time.¡± ¡°Yeah but¡­¡± Lexie didn''t have a defense to that, only a guilty feeling in her stomach as she remembered her and Xena talking in the group chat about how she would sneak off to deadrooms and how Xena would sneak off to take cool pictures. Poor Dewie, she thought. We¡¯re a bad influence. ¡°Besides,¡± he continued, shrugging the backpack off his shoulder. ¡°I had something I wanted to give you.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Curiosity beat back her guilt He didn¡¯t answer, searching for it in his backpack, and then pulled out a pad. Lexie immediately got a notification for inventory transfer, that said Tickets from Dewie. She opened it up and emitted a loud dramatic gasp. ¡°Dewie, you didn¡¯t.¡± He grinned even wider. ¡°Do you like them?¡± ¡°Like them¡­ I...¡± Lexie choked on the words. She didn¡¯t even know what to say, didn''t have words to voice out the excitement that was bubbling up inside her. Dewie had sent her not one, but two tickets to watch the Top Dog versus Conrad Grace rematch that would take place in just a couple of days. And they were fantastic tickets too, in a booth of all things. I¡¯ll be able to see the fight in person. With no holographic screen and no highlights. I''ll be so close to the arena that I''ll be able to smell the grass and feel the energy. ¡°Dewie, how did you even get tickets this late?¡± ¡°They cost a lot,¡± he said. ¡°Like a lot, a lot. But I had money saved up. Birthday money, allowance, some from my grandmother¡¯s funeral. There was only a two-person booth left available so you and Xena can go.¡± ¡°What? You don¡¯t want to come?¡± He shook his head. ¡°No. I don¡¯t know anything about fighters or tournaments. I would be lost. You would have more fun with Xena.¡± ¡°Oh my God, Dewie.¡± Lexie walked forward and impulsively hugged the boy. She felt his body stiffen at first, and she thought she¡¯d done the wrong thing, but then his hands came out and patted her back awkwardly. Then she understood that he probably just wasn¡¯t used to hugs. She hadn''t been either until coming to Hovelton. ¡°Thank you so much Dewie.¡± She pulled back and grinned at him. ¡°But you know you didn¡¯t have to stage a full-blown prison break just to give me these tickets. You could have just messaged them to me.¡± ¡°Yes but¡­¡± He chewed his lip. ¡°Xena came to your house yesterday. I wanted to come too.¡± Lexie shook her head and smiled. She figured as much. ¡°Alright then. Come in.¡± Lexie gave Dewie the very short, yet elaborate tour of their small cottage¨CDewie insisted everything looked nice¨C and then they went up to the bedroom to video call Xena, and tell her about the ticket. She screamed for what felt like five minutes straight. ¡°Are you insane Dewie?¡± she gasped. ¡°How¡­.how on Earth did you even buy those?¡± ¡°With credits,¡± he said like it was obvious, and Xena didn¡¯t even roll her eyes. She just took it on the chin, with a nod that said, ''Yeah I deserved that one.¡¯ Lexie smiled because it was nice to see Xena be the victim of someone else''s sarcasm for a change, even though she was pretty sure Dewie''s was unintentional. And it was payback for Xena¡¯s balloon animals comment at their first meeting. ¡°Do you know how expensive those are?¡± Xena asked next. ¡°Of course. I bought them.¡± Ha. Dewie: 2. Xena: 0. Xena wasn''t even mad. She was too busy squeeing about the tickets and then she sobered up. ¡°Aw man, the two of you are going to have so much fun and I''m going to be eating my jacket out of envy." ¡°But you and Lexie are going,¡± Dewie said to which Xena frowned. ¡°Why would I be going? You bought the tickets.¡± ¡°Yeah, but the two of you would enjoy it much more than I would.¡± ¡°Well yeah, but I can¡¯t allow that. I can¡¯t in good conscience let us go without you.¡± ¡°She¡¯s right,¡± Lexie said. ¡°I would just feel bad the whole time.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see why," Dewie said. ¡°No, the two of you go. I¡¯ll be at home," Xena said. ¡°But it¡¯s you that needs to go, Xena," Lexie said. "Conrad lost his last three matches against Kane, Mr. Amazing, and Lobolobo. This might be Conrad''s last match if he doesn''t win. This match means more to you than it means to me." ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s your birthday present. It doesn¡¯t make sense for you to not go.¡± ¡°You two go,¡± Dewie said again. ¡°No,¡± Lexie and Xena said in unison. And then it went around in circles until Lexie finally realized, ¡°Guys. I think I might have a way we can all go. But keep in mind, it¡¯s not entirely legal.¡± They both turned to her. ¡°I¡¯m listening,¡± Xena said. Lexie told them very briefly what the plan would be and by the time she was done, Xena had an intrigued look on her face, but Dewie looked slightly disturbed. ¡°I don''t know,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m not sure I can pull that off.¡± ¡°Sure you can Dewie,¡± Lexie said with an encouraging smile. ¡°You just have to sell it and make it believable.¡± ¡°And think of how much fun we¡¯re going to have when you pull it off,¡± Xena said, grinning even wider. ¡°It¡¯ll be great.¡± A tentative smile turned the corner of Dewie''s lips and he looked between Lexie and Xena who were both staring at him intensely with near-maniacal smiles on their lips. ¡°Welcome to the dark side, Dewie,¡± Lexie said. ¡°We often have cookies.¡±
Phase I of the plan began the next day. On Lexie¡¯s end, this phase was called buttering her dad up. The problem was that it was really hard to do and not for the reason one might expect. She didn¡¯t know what to do to gain favors from Aiden. He never really asked her to do anything, not even chores, and of course, Lexie had selfishly neglected to even offer to pick up any. And he¡¯d always seemed happy to do it and had never asked her for anything at all. So she didn¡¯t know what he wanted for her. It wasn¡¯t good grades. It wasn¡¯t even really good behavior because he didn''t even seem to mind her mischief all that much. So what did he want from her exactly? How could she earn brownie points? She truly had no clue. But she decided to start with the chores and work her way up. She got up early that morning and started cleaning the house. It was already mostly clean. Aiden was a tidy person by nature and so was Lexie. So she only dusted the tables, turned on the vacuum for the floors, and went around wiping the various books that he had on his shelf. By the time he came downstairs, she turned to him smiling. "Good morning, Father." Aiden shot her a bemused look. ¡°Lexie. What are you doing up so early?¡± ¡°Wondering what you want for breakfast.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I mean I¡¯m not a great cook, but I thought maybe the sentimental value would make up for it.¡± Her father frowned. ¡°You want to cook for me?¡± Lexie nodded. ¡°Something simple like an omelet or toast. Something I can¡¯t easily ruin. And also I want to clean the house for next week.¡± His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Why?¡± ¡°To bribe you of course.¡± Despite the plan that Lexie had laid out for Xena and Dewie with their parents, she had chosen to go the honest route with Aiden. It was the only way. He would see right through any lie she was able to concoct on short notice. Besides, she didn''t like lying to him, especially since she''d promised not to do it again. But just because she couldn¡¯t lie to him didn¡¯t mean she couldn''t manipulate him with the truth. ¡°Xena and I want to go and see this match in Moulding. Dewie got us tickets. I want you to let us go.¡± ¡°Lexie, Moulding is a long trip." "I know. And I know it will take you away from work, but I had some money saved up and we can take care of the transportation. I just want your permission to go.¡± Aiden cocked his head. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you¡¯re asking me so plainly in the first place.¡± ¡°Yeah. I didn¡¯t know if I should. I kinda briefly entertained this plan where Xena and I would go to Dewie¡¯s house, sneak out and take the train to Mulding, and then lie that we were all sleeping over at Dewie''s. But that seemed really dangerous and unwise even for me. Beides, we had a deal. No more lying.¡± Aiden sighed. "You¡¯ll need an adult to go with you." ¡°Xena is going to ask Emma if she can get the day off. Apparently she¡¯s due it. I know you used up all your off-days for my birthday and also things will be very hectic with college starting.¡± He had a meeting this very morning on their campus to discuss his duties and work out with his parole officer if teaching a class would be breaking cult leader laws. Plus she also knew Aiden would be very uncomfortable in a crowd like those at the stadium. While Indigo had been friendly, they didn''t know what kind of mixed bag they would get in Moulding, whether it would be people who remembered Aiden more as a [Hero] or a [Villain]. Lexie didn''t want to take the chance and make her dad uncomfortable. ¡°So,¡± Lexie asked. ¡°What¡¯s the verdict?¡± Aiden mused on it. "And if I said no, will you attempt to sneak out?" Lexie thought about it and then gave him an honest answer. ¡°No. I would be salty and mad and will probably sulk for at least a month. But I will keep my word.¡± He seemed a little impressed by her honesty. Aiden exhaled. ¡°I guess I don''t have a good reason to say no.¡± ¡°Yay!¡± She jumped into his arms and hugged him tight. ¡°Just be careful,¡± he said, hugging her back. ¡°I¡¯ll see if I can talk Max into going with you too for security.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Lexie beamed. If that was what it took, she would even call in her favor with Max herself. Later that evening she texted in the group chat. Lexie: THE HEN IS IN THE HENHOUSE Xena: Huh? Lexie: I dunno. Something my Uncle Max said a few days ago, and seemed happy while saying it. I think it means ''mission accomplished''. Xena: Mission accomplished for me too. It was a few more hours before they got Dewie''s response. Dewie: The hen is in my henhouse as well.
The trip began early the next morning. Emma was so happy to see Xena making friends that she didn¡¯t mind accompanying them on their outing. She even wore a long bright yellow dress for the event. Max was less happy but he was there and that was all that was important. They took the six-hour train to Moulding and during most of it, Lexie and Xena chattered on about their theories of what would happen in the match, while Dewie listened on and tried to educate himself as quickly as possible. And once they got off, they walked to the packed stadium already swarming out with people streaming in through the forcefield in multiple spaced out single file lines almost venturing into the street. Lexie spotted a few people wearing Top Dog T-shirts, and others were wearing cute eighties T''s with the words ''Conrad Coolcats'' printed on the front. Lexie and Xena immediately began a contest, counting how many of each competitor''s shirts they could find in the line and at the end, Lexie smugly pointed out that Top Dog had more fans than Conrad. Xena of course argued the point that it was too soon to tell and they needed to get into the arena first. It was while Lexie was preparing her rebuttal that she swung around and saw the one thing that soured her mood for the afternoon. Hawaiian-shirt man from the [Hero] party was also here. 53 - How to Sneak into A Fighters Stadium Lexie snatched her eyes away from the man before he could see her, staring straight ahead. Her heart raced, her fists clenching and everything inside her cautioning her to stay on her guard. A conversation between Xena and her uncle continued but it was drowned out by Lexie¡¯s thoughts. What is he doing here? Unfortunately, she could think of many reasons why the [Hero] would be here. It was a large violent event and he might be here for security. Moulding was also a major city-state so he might be here for a [Hero] work. Or he could just simply be here to watch the game. There¡¯s no reason to believe he¡¯s here for you or Xena actually. But ever since Lexie had seen him, something about the guy just hadn¡¯t sat right with her. The line shuffled forward as the three chattering teens far in front of them moved through the forcefield. Once some of her apprehension died down, Lexie snuck another look in that direction, wanting to see if she had been spotted. Luckily, she didn''t think she had. But he had been spotted though. Despite his baseball hat, the [Hero] had clearly been recognized seeing as how he was surrounded by a group of eager teens, clearly looking to take a picture with him. Another group of adults with T-Dog shirts waited in the wing, throwing him glances as though waiting their turn. But he was patiently carrying along his conversation with the teens, seeming interested in whatever they had to say. Lexie wondered if the interest was real, or if it was just something he did to lull people into a false sense of security. She looked away before he could catch her again. That was none of her business, and she doubted he even noticed her. She was probably just being paranoid again. After all, Xena had said she didn¡¯t think anything had been done to her and there was no lasting damage from it. Maybe Lexie just didn¡¯t like the guy for reasons she couldn¡¯t articulate or because of the circumstances of their meeting. But he hadn¡¯t actually done anything wrong, so her feelings were probably misplaced here. She just needed to focus on the game and spending time with her friends today. Plus, they were almost to the front of the line. It was about to be show time. Xena was so far doing a great job of keeping Max distracted with questions about AK-47¡¯s and Emma had gone off to one of the booths outside to get food. But Dewie looked a little nervous, glancing around surreptitiously, his fingers twitching nervously. Poor guy. It was clear that he wasn¡¯t used to doing things like this and Lexie felt more than a little bad for him. Anyone who looked at him would instantly know that they were up to no good, so Lexie tried to distract him. ¡°See anything interesting Dewie?¡± she leaned in to ask. He gave her a look and then pointed in the distance. ¡°That lady is carrying ostrich eggs.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± She glanced at the lady in question and said, ¡°Oh no that¡¯s real. Although I don¡¯t know why she¡¯s doing it.¡± ¡°Are the ones on her eyes real too?¡± The woman''s eyes looked normal to Lexie. ¡°No...that¡¯s definitely a thing. We¡¯ll add it to the list.¡± Dewie smiled, happy to have done something useful. The line moved again. Two more people and then it was them. ¡°When you go in, you all stay in your seats, okay?¡± Uncle Max cautioned. ¡°Don¡¯t talk to anyone, don¡¯t follow anyone, don¡¯t do anything that calls too much attention. And if anything happens, Lexie just shoot me a quick Code 6, and I¡¯ll come get you, even if I have to blow the place up to do it.¡± Uncle Max smiled and Xena and Dewie chuckled at that. Lexie didn¡¯t. She wouldn''t put it past her Uncle at all. When there was one person left in line ahead of them, Xena drew Max back into the discussion, Lexie materialized the card from her inventory letting it slip into her hand. She glanced around her casually making sure no one was paying attention to her. And no one was except Dewie. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me or you¡¯ll make it obvious,¡± she murmured out of the side of her lips and he snapped his gaze away, looking straight ahead stiffly. She sighed internally. Dewie never could have pulled it off, and Lexie was glad that she¡¯d given him one of the real tickets so that he could get in legitimately. He wouldn''t have been able to convincingly break the rules. Not that Lexie was familiar with breaking the rules and sneaking into places like this either. She¡¯d been a rule follower all her life and so this was new to her. But she was frankly getting a little too used to it. Her heart raced, and her palms were sweaty. She tried not to think too hard about what she was doing or it would show on her face. No big deal, she thought to herself. People sneak into concerts all the time. Mickie even told her about the one time she snuck into an over-eighteen club, although that had involved a lot of flirting and conversation. Lexie couldn¡¯t flirt. But she could do magic. The thing that comforted her was that even if she got caught, it wouldn''t be a big deal. She''d checked online and punishment for sneaking into a fighter''s game ranged from a warning to a fine or, at worst, temporary suspension to the next few AFC matches. But it would probably just be a stern warning for Lexie since she was a child and it was her first offense. So there was really no reason for them not to try. And then suddenly they were in front. Lexie seamlessly flashed the card to the forcefield, hiding the shattering glass of the card with her body. She now had twenty seconds to pass through. As she pushed her leg into the forcefield, there was a slight moment of resistance, a second where she felt it wouldn¡¯t work and her heart sank with dismay. She was prepared to deal with it. She¡¯d given Xena the other card, and she was prepared to live with only Xena and Dewie getting to watch the match between Top Dog and Conrad Grace. She loved Top Dog¨Cas a fighter that is¨Cbut she would get other chances to see him. This match was far more important to Xena than it was to her. If Conrad lost this match, this might be the last time she ever watched him fight again. And as for Dewie¡­well, she just didn''t want him to feel left out. She had a feeling being included was important to him. So she was prepared to step back with a smile and bid her friends on as they left. And then she would make up some excuse to her uncle about how she didn¡¯t want to go anyway. They¡¯d wait outside and maybe she¡¯d watch the show on her pad. That would be almost as good, right? Whatever it was, she¡¯d do her very best not to show her envy and dull the rest of the night for her friends. But then the forcefield morphed around her leg and her limb popped through. Next, her entire body was moving through. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. It worked! She was so happy. Xena moved through too, and so did Dewie with their individual tickets. They then turned to wave at Max, and Emma who was returning with the drinks and popcorn in the distance. And in the corner of Lexie''s vision, she could see the Hawaiian shirt [Hero] still surrounded by a crowd, none the wiser to what she had just done. Good. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that worked,¡± Dewie said as they walked into the stadium surrounded by the crowd moving in the same direction. ¡°The forcefield didn¡¯t catch on or anything?¡± ¡°Nope,¡± Lexie said. According to her research the force fields at the arena disallowed things like weapons, bombs or certain powerful magical items. Not cards. And since it didn¡¯t use facial recognition, it made things even easier. Lexie glanced at one of the PHORBS floating in the air. Had they caught what she did? Were they even being monitored or were they just there as a deterrent? If there was one thing she knew about concert security it was that they were pretty lax. Besides, no one would suspect a little girl of something like that. ¡°Yeah, I''m surprised at how easy that was,¡± Xena said, excitedly. ¡°But I knew it would work. That card''s pretty cool. Also, Lexie, I think your uncle might have a rocket launcher in his garage. Did you know?¡± Lexie shrugged. She didn¡¯t know but once again, she wouldn¡¯t put it past him. Probably better she didn''t know for sure though, just in case. Plausible deniability and all that. But despite her nerves and the feeling at the back of her mind that she would get caught, she still couldn¡¯t help the excitement as they walked the long stretch of land to approach the arena. It was magnificent. Rows and rows of thousands of seats surrounded a coliseum shielded from the sun by a dome. Stretches of metallic shards encased the stadium, with force fields separating the crowds from the arena. Giant black pads bordered each side of the stadium suspended in mid-air, announcing TOP DOG VERSUS CONRAD GRACE. They also projected the image of both boys on opposite sides of the screen, with their leaderboard stats underneath them. Another pad was floating in between them, issuing a countdown. And around the pads, dozens of small black PHORBS whizzed in the air, vibrating with readiness to start flying around and recording the action. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m here. As the trio approached the steps leading up to the seating area, there were ushers there to direct them. Lexie had a moment of panic, wondering if they would check her tickets, but Xena confidently stepped forward and said "VIP Booth 12, please." She said it in the snooty voice of a rich girl, that reminded her of Veronica. "Reserved by Dewitt Azure, Governor Azure¡¯s son." The woman raised an eyebrow and a man behind her who was attending to other spectators rolled his eyes. But she seemed to buy Xena''s rich girl act and gestured up the stairs. ¡°That way, ma''am," she said. ¡°First row.¡± ¡°No need to follow us,¡± Xena told her dismissing her with a flick of the wrist as she walked up first, followed by Dewie and then Lexie. Lexie gave the annoyed woman a grateful and apologetic look as she passed. They went onto the lowest rung of the multi-tiered balcony, closest to the arena, each booth semi-secluded and encased in smooth, circular black material. It¡¯s so close, Lexie thought as she looked over the railings. We can see everything. We may not even need to look at the projection pads. ¡°Dewie,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Hmm?¡± Dewie turned to her. ¡°Have I told you how amazing you are yet?¡± she asked. "Because you are.¡± He laughed and then blushed and looked away. They finally found their booth, with the hologram B12, on it. In the booth was a very cozy long cushion that was probably only supposed to seat two adults. Luckily, they were three kids and Lexie and Dewie were both small, so they could comfortably fit in. No one from any of the adjoining booths could see them and with any luck, no one would come to check in on them, at least until the game was over. ¡°Should we order some wine?¡± Xena said and Lexie and Dewie both gave her a look. ¡°I¡¯m just kidding,¡± she chortled. ¡°Geez, lighten up.¡± Lexie didn''t know if she could relax yet, at least not until the match started. She wasn''t sure she was in the clear. She didn''t want to get caught and thrown out. That would be embarrassing. Not to mention that she promised her dad she wouldn''t get in trouble and he would probably be disappointed if she did. That was almost worse than the embarrassment. Lexie twiddled her fingers while they waited. As the arena began to fill up, more and more with people streaming in, excited buzzing filling the air, the countdown clocking down, Lexie¡¯s anxiety became anticipation. They were almost there. It was only a few minutes and the game would start. Xena had gotten quieter too. Lexie could see the anxiety on her face, and not for the first time, she wished that Conrad was facing a different opponent. Maybe if it was anyone other than T-Dog, Lexie could make a comfortable prediction that he would come out unscathed. But this time, she was pretty sure that Top Dog would win. He had been undefeated so far, and Conrad had been fighting like crap lately. He was losing matches because he was getting in his head and he didn''t seem to know how to fix it. Top Dog also had a clear understanding of Conrad¡¯s fighting style and his weaknesses and would have made contingencies to accommodate for his own weaknesses giving him a rock-solid defense. There was simply very little chance of Conrad coming out on top here. But the chance wasn¡¯t zero. And against all odds, she did want Conrad to win just to give him and Xena this victory. It was why she hadn¡¯t bet against him for the match, out of respect for Xena and to give herself room to hope. Maybe with a little faith, it would happen. Yeah, but it probably won¡¯t. ¡°Oh God, it¡¯s happening,¡± Xena said and she gripped the seat tightly. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to be sick.¡± There was one minute left on the countdown when the founder of the AFC walked out in a white suit, gleaming in the sun. He was a short, paunchy man in a cowboy hat and his son who was behind him was his spitting image. As they came out, the announcers who had been giving running commentary on both players¡¯ past matches fell silent. A microphone tap echoed around the stadium and everyone else straightened up. ¡°Greetings,¡± the founder said. ¡°Welcome to another Spring Golden Glove Exhibition Match. This is an unprecedented rematch in that it has broken all our viewership and ticketing records. It''s the tenth most viewed stream on Video Alley at this moment. Isn''t it incredible what we''ve made of this sport in just a few decades?" The crowd cheered and he beamed at them, gesturing wide. "As you know the vision behind these games was to give Fighters a chance to live life on their terms. For so long, our Fighter kids have been forced to choose between being [Heroes] or joining our military or dungeon delving. All very dangerous careers. But here, at the AFC, we watch out for their safety. Here all they need to do is to entertain with their skill. They no longer have to risk their lives to have a viable career. They can earn lots of money while testing their mettle in a safe and televised manner.¡± He clicked his tongue. ¡°And two such fighters, two young men that I¡¯m proud to know and have as a part of my circuit, are here today to prove their strength once again. Gentleman, have a roaring-good match.¡± Another chorus of applause echoed through the crowd as he walked away and a horn blared from a distance. Everyone rose and put their hands over their chest to recite the District Anthem. After it was over, they sat and another horn blared to announce the players were coming out onto the arena. ¡°Ladies and Gentlemen," an announcer called. "Let¡¯s welcome our main players onto the arena today. From the left corner, comes our B-Rank Spellcasting Weapons Meister, A-Rank Brawler Type Fighter, Number One in the entire Under Twenties subdivision, and number two in the league, TOP DOG!¡± The arena exploded with screams, including Lexie¡¯s, as people jumped to their feet to cheer for Top Dog as he walked into the arena. He was in his signature canine gas mask and techwear. He swaggered on and pumped his fist to the crowd, and the energy was incredible. People leaned far over the railings as though trying to catch an even closer glimpse of him or maybe to touch his aura. The ecstatic hollering took its time in dying down, and the announcer had to shout over them, ¡°And emerging from the right corner, the challenger of this exhibition match, A-Rank Berserker Type Fighter and currently number six in the league, we have Conrad Grace!¡± The cheering was not as loud as Top Dog¡¯s, but Lexie wouldn''t call it subdued either. Clearly, the man still had tons of fans in the audience, including Xena who forgot all about her cool-girl image and shouted his name over the railing, ¡°You go, Conrad!¡± Conrad didn''t wave or smile. He walked out rolling his shoulders, a distinct tension in his face and body. He really wasn''t good at hiding his emotions or hiding how nervous he was about this match. But maybe that was a good thing. Maybe that meant he would take it seriously. Lexie also noticed something wrapped around his wrist, like a strange button watch. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Lexie asked. Xena frowned. "I¡¯m not sure. I guess we¡¯ll find out." The two players approached each other and then shook hands, before retreating to the far sides of the arena to wait for the bell to ring. And then after a few tense seconds, a clang echoed throughout the arena and the game was officially on. 54 - Top Dog Vs Conrad Grace Conrad immediately stunned everyone at the start of the match by leaping straight into offense. This was the first time Lexie had ever seen him do that. Typically, he waited for others to come to him, and given that it was Top Dog he was fighting against, Lexie instantly thought he''d made a mistake. While Conrad also did well in close-range battles, his Berserker style made him far superior at long-range than Top Dog, and made him better at defense than offense. Charging full throttle did not seem like a bright move. But with a loud battle cry, he leaped forward clearing nearly twenty feet of ground with his incredible strength and landing right in front of Top Dog, not unlike how Top Dog had done during their very first match. Top Dog skated back and to the side, narrowly avoiding a blow to the face. He countered with a powerful punch to Conrad''s midsection, the spikes on his gloves extending to bury themselves in Conrad''s center, sending him hurtling back. But Conrad didn''t go alone. He brought up a hand and shot out strange, semi-transparent strings from his mech and they wrapped around Top Dogs¡¯s legs dragging him along with the momentum. As he was dragged forward, Top Dog struggled to resist and maintain balance. But then Conrad righted himself and dug his feet in using his strings as a makeshift Lasso to tug Top Dog as hard as he could. Top Dog finally fell and Conrad swung him across the field, in a loop like a cowboy. ¡°Amazing!¡± said the male announcer, Ned-something. ¡°It looks like Conrad¡¯s not playing around this time. He has activated his linker and is now taking Top Dog along for the ride.¡± Conrad, probably deciding that he''d made Top Dog dizzy enough, now pulled him in. Top Dog was about to fly face-first into Conrad''s fist. Or possibly the ground if Conrad changed his mind. But Top Dog was over his initial confusion and had prepared a counter. He flipped over mid-air and a forcefield appeared out of his feet, meeting Conrad''s fist instead. It shattered from the force of the blow, throwing TD and Conrad back and breaking their link. ¡°There''s the Top Dog counter we were waiting for! We knew our number one wasn¡¯t going to take it that easily. See how he shows off his brand new emitors too. You know, brawlers aren''t typically so light on their feet, but Top Dog manages to do it magnificently.¡± TD landed on his hands and flipped to his feet, the crowd roaring at his finesse. His natural flair was undeniable but Conrad wasn¡¯t giving him any breathing space and was on him again. This time, TD was more than ready for him Conrad landed a blow to TD¡¯s midsection driving him back, but TD barely reacted, even though Lexie knew it had to sting. With the second hit, TD drove his knee to the side of Conrad¡¯s head. Adaptability was Conrad¡¯s forte and so he was able to quickly duck and avoid it, which put him in the perfect position for TD''s follow-up uppercut. Lexie could see it coming. Conrad would probably move back to avoid the hit but TD¡¯s malleable metal would extend TD¡¯s fist and slam into Conrad¡¯s face anyway. She waited for it. But Conrad didn¡¯t do the predictable. He didn¡¯t avoid the hit. Instead, his face met the fist fearlessly, and with a sickening crunch, TD broke Conrad''s nose. "Ouch," Dewie said. "Damn it!" Xena yelled. ¡°Ooh, that¡¯s going to leave a mark!" Ned sounded disgustingly happy about it. "But look at that counter.¡± And it was a really counter. Conrad accepted the blow to neutralize one of TD''s fists so that at the same time, he could catch the other one and execute a judo throw bending backward to slam TD into the ground ¡® ¡°Oh shit!¡± Xena laughed in delight, and Lexie had her hands over her face but peeked through her fingers to make sure TD was okay. She shouldn¡¯t have worried. Even that wasn¡¯t enough to take him down. It might have, had Conrad started pummeling him immediately, which is what Lexie would have done in his position, but he was apparently too noble for that, allowing TD to windmill his legs, knock Conrad back, and escape. Top Dog jumped a few steps back, holding the back of his neck. Lexie was close enough to see the temper spark in his eyes as well as hear his voice over the screaming crowd saying, ¡°You¡¯re finally taking this shit seriously, huh?¡± Conrad cracked his neck. ¡°Yeah. I guess I am.¡± He charged for TD again, once again getting into close quarters. The two men traded and blocked blows for some time, in an even match-up. TD had better technique, but Conrad had better durability and reaction time. Conrad''s speed caught up, but TD increased his suddenly, to land a few more clean hits than Conrad could. Top Dog also got better at blocking Conrad''s strikes with force fields and avoiding the ones he couldn''t block in time. TD had gotten more fluid in the last few months and he seemed like he could read Conrad like a book, almost like he knew beforehand where each blow was coming from, knew how to avoid them, and counter with quick parries, even getting Conrad in vulnerable spots. The Berserker nevertheless had crazy endurance because even as TD flipped in the air, and kicked Conrad hard enough to send him into a wall, the man simply got back up and attacked again. "He just won''t quit," Dewie said in amazement while Xena screamed Conrad''s name at the top of her lungs. "He can¡¯t," Lexie said. Because this might be his last chance. Still, TD didn¡¯t ease up on him either. He was landing more hits than Conrad, especially in the face and jaw, and midsection. Lexie wondered if Conrad had repeated injuries there that TD wanted to exploit. TD was relentless, hitting one after another, refusing to let the other man catch a breath or even regain his equilibrium. "Top Dog is showing no mercy," Ned said. "For the folks that don''t know, this is what they call the , one of TD¡¯s signature moves, and once you¡¯re caught in it, he doesn''t stop until his opponent is down for the count.¡± And it really did seem like TD wouldn''t stop. But neither would Conrad. The two flitted across the field, attacking each other endlessly. Conrad was incredible because some of the blows TD landed would have knocked a lesser man out. And Top Dog was getting faster, dealing more damage in a way that Conrad couldn''t reasonably recover in time for. And it started to show. Conrad''s face was getting bruised and a little bloodied. TD had backed him up against the wall, and Conrad put his hands up in a boxing pose but it wasn''t enough. And then Conrad suddenly dropped on the floor and that was the only warning for what he did next. TD had less than a millisecond to react, and he flew back when Conrad held out his arm and tried to use Linker on Top Dog again. TD managed to avoid it, but he had to keep jumping around the field to keep avoiding Conrad''s draw. ¡°There it is folks. This should be the end of the first round, but as we know, this is a sudden-death match and there are no breaks between the rounds which means that this match only ends with a knockout. So far, I think that Top Dog is showing why he really is Top Dog, and he¡¯s going to end up victorious. What do you think of Nancy?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know Ned. I think Conrad still has a few tricks up his sleeve and he hasn¡¯t even revealed his signature move yet.¡± Lexie had to agree. So far, Conrad was fighting counterintuitively to his usual style. He was better than TD at long range and he was better with more indirect fighting but he kept getting into closer ranges. And while he got faster, he wasn''t getting fast enough to match up with TD''s speed. Why? Was he holding back? Was he setting TD up for a trap? Or was he simply trying something new after the string of embarrassing losses he suffered. Maybe his usual fighting style triggers too much mania and he¡¯s trying to avoid that. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. And he did seem more stable than usual. Even though Conrad wasn¡¯t doing as much damage as he could, he also didn¡¯t seem as out of control and crazed. Maybe he was learning to control his skill and this was the trick. Do less for more. Lexie was curious to see what his pathways were doing right now. Aiden had explained to her that physical types had mana too, but they didn''t have ''free mana'' like what mages had, rather the mana was bound to certain attributes like their muscles and ligaments and was used to reinforce their strength, speed, durability and healing. Similarly, intelligence types had mana that enhanced their brain. It was all still controlled by pathways and Lexie was fascinated, wondering how it all appeared. A quick gasp from Xena drew Lexie out of her thoughts and back into the battle. Just like what Kane had done, TD had used two force fields to trap Conrad in place, and now launched himself into the air and prepared a landing kick right on Conrad''s face. ¡°That¡¯s gonna knock him out,¡± Lexie muttered. No way it wouldn¡¯t knock him out with that much force. But Conrad wasn¡¯t struggling at all. Instead, he took a deep breath and inhaled. Closed his eyes. Then, he roared. Yes, roared. It was a roar that reverberated in the wind, a roar that showed all the veins on his face standing out, a roar that probably had TD¡¯s expression slipping temporarily into ¡®what the hell¡¯ right before he landed the kick on Conrad''s face. Or at least it was supposed to be on Conrad''s face, somewhere around his forehead. But Conrad shifted his head at the last moment and TD''s boot went into his gaping mouth. And Conrad chomped down. "FUCK!" TD cried out in pain, ripping himself back from the maniac whose mouth was now dripping with blood, eyes a little crazed. The crowd was stunned and seemed unable to decide whether they should cheer or retch. Murmurs of confusion rang through. Was that allowed? Lexie guessed it was, because the ref wasn''t calling an end to the match. It wasn''t a near fatal injury after all, just an odd one. ¡°That was¡­¡± ¡°Disgusting,¡± Dewie completed. ¡°So cool,¡± Xena said. Lexie had to agree with both of them. And the announcers were stunned too, before both of them scrambled into announcing how they¡¯d never seen anything like this before. Top Dog had a second to limp back and lean against the wall, as Conrad strained against the forcefield that was holding him in place. ¡°Are you serious?¡± TD yelled across the field, heard above the crowd noises. "You bit my foot!¡± ¡°Next time, keep your foot out of my mouth!¡± Conrad closed his eyes and pushed against the forcefield, his veins standing out on his neck as he struggled. For a while, there was no give, but then with a single crash, the glass shattered freeing him. He was soon on Top Dog, who took a second to drink a healing potion before leaping away on one foot. With the damage TD sustained, Conrad was now primarily on the offensive while Top Dog was on the defensive. TD was good at dodging but the foot wasn''t healing fast enough and it slowed him down enough for Conrad to deal more damage. Conrad slammed his fist into his ribs. TD ducked to avoid a hit to the face, then avoided another hit to the face that crushed the wall behind him like it was made of glass. TD threw up a shield, but Conrad¡¯s blow broke right through, though the brief reprieve allowed Top Dog to escape. ¡°Stay still, asshole,¡± Conrad yelled at him as TD dashed away from him. ¡°I¡¯ll make it quick I promise.¡± ¡°Not even in your dreams, Grace.¡± But while TD wasn''t as fast as Conrad with blocking, Conrad was starting to get even more accurate with his hits. Lexie was starting to get nervous. She did want Conrad to win for Xena¡¯s sake, but she also didn''t want Top Dog to get seriously injured or to get the shit kicked out of him in a way that was embarrassing. And it was looking to be a possibility. Because Conrad''s hits packed more of a punch than Top Dog¡¯s. Conrad came charging at Top Dog again who escaped by sliding between his legs. While doing so, TD shot his fist out with metal spikes landing on Conrad''s upper thigh. Conrad flinched as Top Dog leaped away. "Low blow, ¡®keem," Conrad called as he chased him. "A low blow would have been where I wanted to hit," Top Dog responded, running. "But I took your mercy on your gonads for Isla''s sake." Conrad didn¡¯t look like he appreciated that mercy, but luckily, Top Dog''s feet healed enough for him to regain his speed. Conrad smiled. ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s end this then.¡± He brought up his weird button watch, twisted and pressed it down. It glowed. And in a few seconds, Lexie finally understood what it was. It wasn''t just another linker. It was an object summoner. Object-summoning tech was rare and expensive. And also experimental. Lexie figured he got it somehow through his [Hero] parents. After Conrad pushed the button, a mini-portal appeared in front of him and suddenly objects were flying out. These weren''t weapons, because that probably wouldn''t be allowed. They were household objects; chairs, tables, plastic bowls, chopping boards. But there were a lot of them. All of a sudden, Conrad¡¯s plan became clear to Lexie¨Che used those close-range attacks in the beginning to tire Top Dog out, while maintaining his sanity, so that when he enacted this finisher, he would have enough of his sanity left to spare. Because having a bunch of objects flying around was exactly the type of thing that Berserkers would do extremely well with, but it would edge him closer to madness. He was willing to risk it now because it was near the end. The whole fight they''d spent in TD''s domain. Now they were in Conrad''s world and that was terrible news for Top Dog. Top Dog seemed to figure it out at the same time Lexie did, and immediately started sprinting but he wasn''t fast enough. Conrad pelted object after object at him, laughing and screaming at the same time, clearly close to the madness. And then came the twist. Suddenly, Top Dog got dragged back and then he looked behind to find that Conrad had placed several linker strings in his suit. Probably during all those close-range attacks, he''d slipped them in but hadn¡¯t activated them till now. Smart. Conrad Grace had certainly wised up. Lexie was almost proud of him at that point. But Top Dog wasn''t about to take it lying down. He turned around and erected a shield block on the first table and then the second. He then bounced on the shield and then grabbed the chair, using it to sever the links from his back as he turned to face the onslaught of weapons. It was a glorious thing to watch on screen but even more glorious in real life. Top Dog, leaped over one thing after the next, avoiding the objects with grace. Lexie had never seen that type of dexterity from anyone except maybe Theo Firebringer. It was amazing, a true art. But then Conrad wasn¡¯t done with him. All the things Top Dog repelled, Conrad would jump, grab, and pelt back, turning TD into the eye of an unstoppable hurricane. TD held out for as long as he could, but then eventually the table caught him in the midsection sending him into a wall. And just like that, Conrad Grace leaped across the entire space, landed cleanly in front of him, and slammed his fist into TD¡¯s face, effectively knocking him out. The health bar for TD blinked and the crowd roared. It was a testament to how great the match was that even people with Top Dog T-shirts were cheering madly. It made sense. Conrad was the only true competitor to TD in the youth division and with him winning the match, it meant he would stay in the circuit and these amazing fights would continue as they were the two favorites in the league. Lexie was cheering too. Even Dewie was. Xena was losing her mind and screaming into the field about how amazing Conrad was ¡°I told you!¡± she turned and grabbed Lexie''s shoulder, shaking exuberantly. ¡°I told you he would win!¡± ¡°Yeah, you did!¡± Lexie couldn''t even be mad. But she kept an eye out as the medical team ran out to revive Top Dog, watching his eyes open as he waved them off. He took off his mask and was staring at Conrad who was facing the cheering crowd with his arms up in victory. Lexie thought she detected a hint of a smile on Top Dog¡¯s face but it was gone before she could know for sure. However, a part of her couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that Top Dog could have probably avoided that last table if he wanted to. She wouldn¡¯t mention it though, so as not to dull Xena¡¯s joy. At least not now. Maybe the next time Xena pissed her off she would say it. Meanwhile, Conrad¡¯s face filled the big screen. Tears streamed out of his eyes, blood from his mouth, bruises on his cheeks. He was smiling the biggest smile he¡¯d ever smiled in his life as he faced the crowd. And then his mic was activated as he was asked to give a final speech before being taken out of the arena. "Uh yeah, I don¡¯t even know what to say,¡± he started. ¡°Thank you so much to the circuit for giving me another chance. Thank you to the fans. You guys have been great. Especially to a few of you who sent me letters...Marsha, Simon, Rob, Eunice22, Xena¡­¡± Xena froze beside Lexie. So did Dewie. Lexe turned to her with a gape as Conrad continued to recite names. ¡°I remember all of you. And I don''t know if you¡¯re watching this but your letters, to be honest, were the things that got me through some dark times. Hearing your stories moved me. So thank you for that. And thank you for the gifts too. I really appreciate it and I hope I continue to make you proud.¡± And that was it. The speech concluded in short order but Xena was still stunned silent. Lexie had turned back to the arena and she could have sworn she saw Conrad and Top Dog smile at each other as they exited to opposite sides. It was odd because, during their first match, it almost seemed like they¡¯d hated each other. Or was that simply for the cameras? Maybe they became friends along the line, like she and Xena did? Or maybe they were simply joined by their mutual hatred of Kane the Mundane. ¡°Did that just happen?¡± Xena asked, her voice shaky and quiet. "Yes!" It was Lexie''s turn to grab her and shake her. "You got a shout out Xena. And I got a headpat from Top Dog that one time. We''ve achieved greatness!" They squeed about it for like five minutes and forced Dewie into doing it too. After that, Lexie went outside to grab some food for the others. She took one of the legitimate tickets just in case, but frankly she didn''t really care if she didn''t get back in. She''d done what she needed to do today. And she also wanted to check in on Uncle Max and Emma. The two tended to bicker when they were left alone for too long and she didn¡¯t want either of them in a bad mood on the way home. She decided she would also get them some food too, as a thank you for bringing her here. She still had some money left over so she could even treat them to a nice dinner. Which reminded her that she probably needed to tell Aiden about the gambling soon, but even that couldn''t bring down her mood. After all, she¡¯d watched the most amazing match ever. But as she crossed towards the self-serving hot dog stand, she felt a hand touch her shoulder. She spun around and froze because it was the [Hero], Hawaiian-shirt man standing behind her. He gave her a pleasant smile and a wave. ¡°Hey. Remember me?¡± 55 - +1 Perception This morning before she left, Aiden had asked Lexie if she¡¯d deduced what the intent in the poem was, and what card the poem had been used to create. Lexie told him no. She needed more time and possibly more information, and she tried to get as much out of him as possible. But he refused to tell her more. He informed her she didn¡¯t need it. Aiden simply smiled and told her, quite annoyingly, that she would figure it out once the time was right. For some reason, that was the first thing that popped into her head now, as she stared at the [Hero]. Lexie¡¯s heart was racing. She felt caught, trapped even though he was only giving a friendly smile. ¡°Hey,¡± he said. ¡°Remember me?¡± Lexie fought to hide her apprehension as she attempted to smile back. ¡°Not really.¡± That¡¯s right. Feign ignorance. After all, there was so much going on at that party that it was plausible that she hadn¡¯t noticed him. ¡°I¡¯m Monty,¡± he said, holding out his hand for a handshake. She couldn''t find a plausible reason not to take his hand so she did. ¡°We met at a party, with your friend Nunya.¡± Lexie frowned. ¡°Who?¡± He chuckled. ¡°Never mind. Inside joke. Anyway, you¡¯re Lexie right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± How did he know that? She never told him her name. Time to get away. ¡°I have to go. I¡¯m not supposed to talk to strangers.¡± As she turned away, he said, ¡°Oh no, don¡¯t be weirded out. I¡¯m not a creep.¡± That was exactly what a creep would say. But Lexie for whatever reason felt obliged to hear him out, and she turned around to meet his bashful look. ¡°Yeah, um...¡± he said. ¡°I just wanted to say I¡¯m sorry. For what happened.¡± Why is he apologizing? We¡¯re the ones who broke into his party. ¡°Xena told me that there hadn¡¯t been a healer in your town for months. And then I saw on the news that they discovered an underground dungeon there and that was what was causing all the mayhem. And we all just ignored it the whole time.¡± He shook his head as though heavily disappointed with himself. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Us [Heroes] really dropped the ball on you guys, huh?¡± Lexie cocked her head trying to figure him out. Was he being genuine or was this whole thing an act? It looked genuine. He wasn¡¯t speaking in a flippant ''well it happens'' way, nor did he have exaggerated sadness. His tone was matter-of-factness mixed in with self-deprecation. But why was he blaming himself? He¡¯d had nothing to do with the dungeon, unless he¡¯d somehow known about it and ignored it. But she wasn¡¯t reading enough guilt on his face for that to be the case. More so than guilt, his expression was disappointed, like he¡¯d failed a test. And suddenly she remembered a similar look on Theo Firebringer¡¯s face after he¡¯d failed to capture Mouse alive. Were all heroes like this, or just the ones she met? They all seemed to carry this huge self-sacrificing burden, like nothing they did was good enough and that they needed to be able to save everyone, even the bad guys. Well, except for Luther Firebringer. Her memory of him was fuzzy and perhaps she was being too judgmental over that one tense conversation he''d had with Max, but he didn''t seem like the bleeding heart type. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Everything worked out. Oh, and a healer came and fixed the problem so you don¡¯t have to feel bad about that too.¡± ¡°You mean the [Saintess]?¡± Lexie¡¯s eyes flared in shock. ¡°You know her?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a friend of mine,¡± he admitted. ¡°That¡¯s actually how I know your name. I should have led with that. She¡¯s been keeping in contact with your friend Xena who tends to talk about you a lot.¡± Xena does? Aw. That thought was followed almost immediately by another startling one. ¡°Wait, are you the one who sent the [Saintess] to us?¡± Lexie suddenly remembered the [Saintess]'' words, about how a friend called in a favor because two little girls needed help. Was he that friend? From his half smile, it seemed that he was. ¡°Er yeah. But I wouldn''t put that on me. Dee wanted to help. I just told her about you.¡± Lexie blinked. ¡°That¡¯s nice of you. Thank you.¡± Maybe he wasn''t such a bad guy after all. Now she felt bad for judging him so harshly based on how they met. Aiden was right. She''d let Uncle Max''s perception of [Heroes] give her an automatic prejudice against them, where they were all guilty of neglect until proven innocent. But things were probably more complicated than she¡¯d initially thought and there was probably vast range of [Heroes] and their specific approach towards their job. Monty did not seem like he was on the Luther Firebringer end. Lexie relaxed. ¡°No problem.¡± Monty tucked his hands in his pocket, glancing around. ¡°Did you come alone? I mean the city isn¡¯t exactly safe to travel solo at your age.¡± Lexie shook her head. ¡°No. I came with my Uncle Max. and my friends. They''re in there, but I came out to get some food for all of us.¡± ¡°Oh nice. Your dad didn¡¯t come?¡± She shook her head. ¡°He doesn¡¯t like stuff like this.¡± Did he know her dad? She would need to ask Aiden. ¡°Too busy?¡± Monty quipped and then reached over, seemingly to pluck something off her shoulder. ¡°No he¡¯s¡­¡± Lexie felt something weird. She didn''t know what it was but she continued talking. ¡°He doesn¡¯t really like being around large groups of people. He¡¯s an ex-[Villain] and people stare and it makes him uncomfortable.¡± ¡°Oh really?¡± he said. ¡°Is he avoiding anyone in particular?¡± Lexie opened her mouth to answer and then was distracted by the feeling of weirdness again. She couldn¡¯t put her finger on it at first, and then she realized what it was. She was oddly comfortable. It was strange considering how uncomfortable she¡¯d been a few seconds ago. What was going on with her? When she concentrated, she felt the pathways in her throat subtly loosening, the ones in her shoulders shifting to relax her muscles. It wasn¡¯t a strongly invasive effect, almost imperceptible. But now that she felt it, she was able to shift her pathways back in place and blinked up at him. ¡°What are you doing?¡± His eyes flashed in surprise that he quickly shielded. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°You¡¯re doing something to me, aren¡¯t you?¡± Even as she said it, Lexie still wasn''t feeling as alarmed as she should be. She still felt very unnaturally relaxed. Which meant he was still doing it. His surprise expanded but before he could answer, Max¡¯s voice reached them, threateningly soft and deceptively casual: ¡°I''m going to give you a chance since we''re in public.¡± Lexie turned to find her Uncle Max with his eye boring into Monty''s face and a hand resting on his hip, exposing his holster. ¡°You either take your dirty paw off my goddaughter''s shoulder, or I¡¯m going to shoot that hand straight to hell.¡± Monty immediately ripped his hand back. ¡°Sorry, I just¡­.I know her. We were just talking. ¡± ¡°Uh-huh.¡± Max wasn¡¯t buying it. ¡°That¡¯s what perverts like you always say.¡± Uncle Max looked like he wanted to fight Monty and apprehension filled the [Hero''s] face. He must not have been a physical type, plus he was shorter and slimmer than Uncle Max. He held up his hand. ¡°Sorry. I guess I¡¯ll see you around, Lexie.¡± He quickly backed away and then broke into a light jog. As he left, Lexie felt her pathways shift back completely into place. Good. Relief swam through her. She was finally back to herself. But then her delayed anxiety shot through the roof, shivers running down her spine. That was creepy. That man had done something to her, and it was the most bizarre thing she''d ever felt. It wasn¡¯t mind control. He wasn¡¯t taking over her body and turning her into a zombie, which was how she''d assumed mind control worked. She''d still had enough presence of mind to leave that conversation whenever she wanted to. The only thing was that she didn¡¯t want to. He put her so at ease that she¡¯d stood there talking to him, despite clearly not wanting to do that prior. And even when she knew something was up, she didn''t leave, not because he was physically restraining her, but because she didn''t want to leave him. And it was so subtle that, had she not spent months training her pathways, she would not have even noticed. Creepy. ¡°You okay?¡± Uncle Max asked. She swallowed and nodded. ¡°Yeah. I think so.¡±
Monty fought the uncomfortable embarrassment flushing through him as he glanced around for Dearra. It was a rare day off for her and she''d wanted to spend it watching today¡¯s fight and meeting a friend who worked as the circuit healer. That was the only reason why he was here. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Although it was more than a strange coincidence that he¡¯d run into The Archmage¡¯s daughter while he was at it. Lexie Sparrowfoot was a tiny girl who appeared much younger than her age until you looked into her eyes. Her eyes held a sharpness beyond her years. She was very mature and held this quiet fierceness especially when she''d explicitly asked what he was doing to her. Monty had been taken aback. In all his years of telepathic spellcasting, he¡¯d only been caught out a handful of times, and all of those were in his early years before he refined his technique and learned to cast silently. Since his skill worked with pathways rather than restraining the mind, it was a much subtler specialty but the beauty of it was that most people couldn''t tell when he was influencing their emotions. But the girl had instantly caught him. You¡¯re doing something to me, aren¡¯t you? She''d noticed, even though her pathways offered little resistance to him. How did she know? Did she detect it? Or did she just guess? Probably the latter. There were fully trained S-Ranked mages who had never been able to detect Monty¡¯s magic, much less a pre-awakened girl. No matter who her father was, she would have to be a ten-year-old pathway expert to detect what he was doing. Monty himself had been raised on pathway manipulation from when he was a child, and it wasn''t until he was in his late teens that he truly got the hang of it. So there was zero chance that Lexie Sparrowfoot did. She was probably just extra sensitive because she didn''t trust him. And he''d proved her right because of what he did. He shouldn''t have done it. He¡¯d felt a little sick with himself after, but as always, he justified it by telling himself that he hadn¡¯t looked into her mind, just relaxed her nerves a little so she would talk to him. It was a necessary evil because despite whatever the association believed, he still wasn¡¯t comfortable with the thought of Aiden Sparrowfoot being free. The man terrified him and the fact that these underground dungeons happened to occur in the place where he was living¡­ No, something was up. And Vacek had assigned Monty, and others, to find out exactly what. The association president had done it right after he''d put Luther Firebringer on special administrative leave because he''d deliberately disobeyed orders and hadn''t properly monitored the situation earlier. Monty shuddered when he thought about what Luther was likely going through right now. Probably tons of paperwork. He would feel sorry for the [Hero] had Luther been a better person. But Monty couldn''t claim the high moral ground either, seeing as how he''d just interrogated a little girl and got called a pervert by her guardian. And he couldn¡¯t even blame the man, because Monty was sure he''d seemed like a pervert from the outside looking in. All that because he needed to figure out the man who was quickly becoming his obsession. Aiden Sparrowfoot. Monty sighed. Who exactly are you? Friend or foe? Misunderstood grieving [hero] or the worst [villain] the world has ever seen? ¡°Hey!¡± Someone called out and Monty turned around to find Dee walking towards him. He waved at her. ¡°Hey. What took you so long?¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t believe the line for the bathroom.¡± She cocked her head at him, ever perceptive. ¡°You doing okay?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± He gave her a tight-lipped smile, trying to hide the embarrassment he still felt. ¡°Never better.¡±
Lexie tried to put the [Hero] out of her mind as she settled in to watch the other two matches that day. These were exhibition matches to introduce a few new [Heroes] to the audience, but both of them felt like a letdown following the masterpiece that was Conrad Grace vs Top Dog. The first one was a match that featured a campy, probable theatre kid who said things ¡°Victory will be mine!¡± and ¡°Justice shall prevail!¡±. It was clear from his caped costume and one-liners that he was really someone who wanted to be [Hero] but couldn¡¯t cut it for whatever reason. And his opponent, a surly emo-swordsman, couldn''t decide whether to address the crowd or pretend they didn''t exist, so he awkwardly waved at intervals. The fight was entertaining at first but between the theatre kid''s grandiose posturing, and his opponent''s confused stares, the crowd eventually started to throw popcorn at the two, booing their disinterest. Lexie, Dewie, and Xena left before the second fight so they could catch their train back. On the way, Lexie asked Xena about her conversations with the Saintess. ¡°Yeah, we''ve been talking. Mostly about her job,¡± Xena said. ¡°If I ever do get magic, I¡¯d want to train as a healer. Nothing else." "You know you have to risk your life to do that right?" Lexie asked. "And it''s a ton of damage to your pathways. And you''ll die early." "I know," Xena said simply and her tone of voice said she didn''t want to argue about it. Neither did Lexie even though she was worried that Xena was making a rash decision here. Then again, she was a kid. She would probably change her mind when she grew up. And even if she didn''t, the odds of her becoming a Healer were slim. Healers tended to have high affinity and capacity, with special pathways that were extra flexible. And they had to train like crazy too. Plus, most healers were pre-affixed for that very reason. So Lexie chose not to worry about it right now, and simply spent time looking up Monty the [Hero]. His profile listed him as a telepathic spellcaster. Hang on. Was he the one her dad was talking about? The one he''d looked so annoyed by? Had Monty tried his weird emotion-control thing on him? If so she could see why her Dad hated him. Beyond that, the NET didn''t really have a ton of information about how his skill worked. Even though the words ¡®telepathic spellcaster¡¯ should seem pretty straightforward, it didn''t give away the specifics of his powers, because he certainly hadn''t cast a spell that Lexie could hear. She had also felt it in her pathways, not in her mind. And, now that she thought about it, his skill had worked better once he''d touched her shoulder. So what was it exactly? There were several theories online about it but there was nothing concrete. No one else had the skill, or at least no one popular enough for the NET to know. Monty was also currently one of the top ten most popular [Heroes] in the entire District so there was that. Still, all the information told Lexie was that she had to stay away from him and learn how to guard against his skill. After getting the basic information, Lexie closed out her SI and stared out the window. The rhythmic motion of the train slowly lulled her to sleep.
The sun was long gone by the time they got home and the kids decided to sleep over at Lexie''s home rather than go back to their respective houses. Of course, given that they''d napped for a long time on the train, they were full of energy that night and decided to reenact the final match. ¡°Oh come on, just one more time.¡± Lexie pleaded with Xena. "No one does it as well as you." ¡°Not on your life,¡± Xena said, but she was smiling. ¡°Come on, please. And here, wear the towel-cape while you do it.¡± ¡°No! I¡¯m not going to wear a silly cape and prance around just for your amusement.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you twenty credits if you do it.¡± ¡°You can offer me a hundred credits and I wouldn¡¯t do it.¡± As it turned out two minutes later, her price was actually a hundred and two credits. ¡°Stop!¡± Xena declared her towel-cape brandishing around her shoulders. ¡°In the name of justice. The Justice which shall prevail!¡± She looked and sounded so much like the caped fighter earlier, that Lexie and Dewie fell over each other cackling. The laughing got worse when Xena ran and attempted to bounce off the wall, flapping the cape up and down like a bird. ¡°Begone evildoer! And never return.¡± ¡°Oh stop!¡± Lexie wheezed, holding her stomach. ¡°It hurts!¡± ¡°I hate you guys so much,¡± Xena said, but again she was laughing too. A knock on the door interrupted and Aiden walked in with a tray of cookies. He beamed at them. ¡°I made Snickerdoodles. You kids want to try some?" ¡°Yup. Thanks, Dad." "Thanks, Mr. Sparrowfoot," Xena and Dewie parroted. "You''re very welcome, kids." Aiden laid down the tray and left, and then they all ran for the food. As they munched, Xena turned to Lexie. ¡°Pay up Mrs. Moneybucks.¡± ¡°Lexie¡¯ll give you another thirty credits if you eat in character,¡± Dewie suggested. ¡°Hey, you can¡¯t just make her do stuff with my money,¡± Lexie said then smiled evilly. ¡°But I will give you thirty credits if you do it.¡± After about two or ten more of that, the kids finally succumbed to sleep. Well, Dewie and Xena did, sprawled out over Lexie¡¯ bed. But Lexie was still awake. She opened up her system screen and finally searched for her mother¡¯s fighting name. She''d been avoiding it before now because she didn''t know what she would find. She didn''t know what emotions it would trigger in her and curiosity warred with self-preservation. But tonight, she finally gave in and searched her up on Video Alley. The top video was Jane Phoenix versus Mr. Amazing. And Lexie saw her mother. The woman looked like her. She had black hair and bright brown eyes like Lexie''s. She was petite too¨Cwhich didn¡¯t bode well for Lexie¡¯s hopes of a growth spurt¨Cbut you wouldn¡¯t know it from the way she charged into battle. Mr. Amazing swung at her, but she quickly ducked under his arms, delivering subtle nicks all around his body with a hidden blunt dagger. Her style seemed very similar to Bunny''s¨Cdeath by a thousand little cuts. She employed a sort of athletic dancing cadence as she swung around him like a bird. And she added a lot of flair to it too, winking at the camera whenever it was on her and working the crowd. Again, just like Dust Bunny. Lexie wondered if Bunny had learned her fighting style from her mother. At the end of a match, Jane Phoenix aimed what looked like a BB gun at Mr. Amazing¡¯s forehead and knocked him out with it. Her mother had a lot of fans in the comments, especially fanboys, who wanted her to do various disturbing things to them. Lexie quickly stopped reading the comments, going back to the image of her grinning mother that ended the video. She was real. It was weird that putting a face to the name was what finally made it click to Lexie. Lara Sparrowfoot wasn''t just a vague memory. She wasn¡¯t just the source of Aiden¡¯s trauma. She was a real person. A person who looked like me. A person that Aiden loved so much that he was willing to commit interplanetary crimes for her. A woman with so much vibrance she seemed to glow and now she¡¯s dead. As Lexie rewatched the video of her mother fighting off-brand Superman, something subtle shifted in her chest, but she clicked out of the screen before she could figure it out. That was enough of that. She didn¡¯t need to think about her fake mother and her death. It was bad enough that she¡¯d let herself get attached to Aiden and Max and Xena and Dewie and all the other people she¡¯d met in this world. Ultimately, she couldn¡¯t forget her goal. And it would hurt like a bitch when she had to leave. Her sleep was ruined, so she got out of bed and padded downstairs. She found her father in the kitchen with a cup of Muan tea, staring in the distance. His head swung toward her when she got close. "Hey honey bee," he said. "Can''t sleep?" She shook her head and hoisted herself into the seat beside him. "I think I finally figured out which card that poem was linked to." "Oh?" He brought the mug to his lips as he eyed her curiously. "It''s the card, isn''t it?" He paused and then a wide smile spread across his lips. "How could you tell?" "I don''t really know, to be honest. It was just something that happened today that made me think of it." When Monty had had his hand on her, the poem had popped into her head for some reason. And the card she felt like she needed at that time was the card. She wanted to no longer be seen by him. She felt frightened, like her soul was too big to hide from him, her heart racing and dancing to escape. Still, there was no logical reason for her assumption. It couldn''t necessarily be deduced from direct or even literary translation of the text, so she expected it to be wrong. "You''re correct," Aiden said. "Really?" she cocked her head. "But I can''t even properly explain why I felt what I felt." "And that''s kind of the point," he said. "Right now, you''re not going to be able to properly explain it because you''re not thinking like a human. You''re thinking like a Fae. A lot of the Fae communication is about perception rather than anything verbal but humans find it difficult to articulate that. At this stage, think of intent as something you know without having to think about it. It¡¯s something that can often be hard to translate into human words, but you¡¯re deeply convinced of. It¡¯s a way you perceive a situation. And learning Fae culture and language will help, because the more you think like a Fae, the better you understand the concept of intent." "So I won''t be able to just put myself in a similar situation and have an ¡®aha¡¯ moment for the next card? "No. It''s not replicable in that sense. It doesn''t work like that." Lexie sighed. "I''m finally understanding how hard this is going to be." "Yup. I told you." He winked at her. "But don''t worry. You''ll get the hang of it. You''re the daughter of a generational genius after all." And as though the system wanted to give her some kind of reward or encouragement, it blinked in the corner of her vision.
SYSTCALC... +1 Perception.
56 - Think Like The Fae It turned out that the Fae method of communication and identifying ¡®intent¡¯ made no damn sense. Alright, maybe that was unfair. It made a little bit of sense, but not in the ways Lexie would like it to. They told entire stories just to pass on a single message. And sometimes that message could be something as basic as ¡°I want my coffee hot.¡± Seriously, that wasn¡¯t even an exaggeration. Aiden once relayed a short soliloquy about a young elf whose mother had run out of ingredients to make him a special meal on his Naming Day, and then when she had gone out to buy the ingredients she¡¯d accidentally slipped on smyl (magical toad vomit) and fell. When she tried to get back up, she couldn''t because she had no energy to. As it turned out, some races of elves (who were creatures also under the Fae umbrella) needed to drink a special beverage every morning called Poi-fye, to gain energy in order to tackle the day. So like coffee. And the woman in the story, named Sh-l-b hadn¡¯t drunk hers because it had not been hot enough by the time she left home. So essentially, she¡¯d met misfortune because her coffee wasn¡¯t hot. And that story formed the intent behind a card in the Brewers deck that made beverages hot. What a waste of time. Lexie wanted to find this Shelby creature and make her pay for the wasted minutes that it took for Aiden to explain that to her. And the thing about the stories was that the lesson, or as Aiden called them, the ¡®intent¡¯ behind them the stories wasn¡¯t the same each time. Sometimes you would hear two identical stories about giants pillaging villages and, in one of them the intent would be to lock your doors at night, and the next one it would be to treat giants nicer. So one of them was used to design a card from a security deck that helped you check if your locks were steady enough. And the other one created a card in the reporter¡¯s deck and it helped boost your charisma temporarily during interviews. So yes, after weeks of study, Lexie still couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of what exactly she was supposed to do to get the intent right each time. And she tried her hardest. Aiden decided at a point that she should probably learn a few Fae languages (of which there were thousands) in addition to their varied culture because he thought that would better help her understand the subtext behind each story. Lexie didn¡¯t complain. She accepted it and thanked Elvira for helping her rent some of those Fae cultural textbooks. She added them to her already busy study schedule and pored over them for at least 3 hours every night. But all she learned from them was that the Fae were a confusing set of equally confused races seemingly only bound by their enjoyment in confusing humankind. And Lexi could sense the glee and superiority complex in each of the texts (written by humans but supervised and edited by Fae), where they were teaching lowly humans how to form intent using better communication to hone their magic better. And to be fair, some of the stories in the Fae history books were amusing. But Lexie couldn¡¯t enjoy them because she didn¡¯t feel they were getting her closer to her goal. So about a month after lessons began, when Aiden presented her with yet another story that she couldn¡¯t decipher intent from, Lexie finally blew out a frustrated breath. ¡°This is hopeless,¡± she said, feeling a little like a failure. ¡°Because you¡¯re not perceiving properly,¡± Aiden said. He was sitting across from her and seemed sympathetic but also amused by her problem. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m not trying!¡± She glared at him and he chuckled. ¡°I know you are, honey bee. But you have to be patient with yourself. You can¡¯t be good at everything from the get-go.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Which was a shame. Lexie liked being good at things from the get-go. Made life easier. But this was like her with Mrs. Lancaster¡¯s 8th grade calculus class where she couldn''t make heads or tails of what was going on. Lexie completely blamed the woman for her distaste for math. Mrs. Lancaster seemed to take pride in confusing her students and hated to be asked questions, humiliating anyone who tried. It had only taken one verbal beat down for Lexie to never ask her another question again. At least, Aiden was different. He welcomed questions and answered them well. But it still wasn''t helping her much. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to be great at it,¡± she said as her father slid another cup of Muan tea in front of her, her third today to soothe her annoyance. ¡°But I didn¡¯t expect to be this bad. I mean I¡¯m supposed to be smart, aren¡¯t I? How come I haven''t made any headway?¡± ¡°There are different measures of intelligence dear, at least when it comes to a system ranking,¡± he said gently. ¡°I think you likely score high on things like memorization, analytical thinking, and creative application. Probably high emotional intelligence and intuition as well. But I¡¯m guessing perception will be your lowest stat on the board.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Because she came from a world where things made sense and people tackled problems scientifically, not magically. People didn¡¯t just perceive things. They analyzed and experimented and then got a result that they could predict each time. But that wouldn¡¯t help her here, because here she was somehow supposed to just feel her way to the truth. ¡°And there''s all those Fae books I have to get through,¡± Lexie groaned. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong I like reading fables as much as the next girl, but the Fae are just ridiculous at this point.¡± ¡°Well, what did you think would happen when you become a research scholar?¡± he said. ¡°As I told you before, they spend most of their time in a room reading and studying. If it¡¯s not text, it¡¯s algorithms. Only a portion of their time is spent experimenting and even less of that is spent out in the real world." ¡°Is that what you had to do as a scholar?¡± He toggled his head. ¡°More or less. Mine was a little different because I didn¡¯t go to a scholar academy. What I did was self-study that the [Hero] academy helped facilitate so I could use my scholarly class even if I didn¡¯t necessarily want to become a full-fledged [Researcher].¡± ¡°They can do that?¡± Lexie asked and he nodded. ¡°Victoire is very powerful and very influential, and they have a huge budget for just about anything you could dream of. Although they only let a handful of the admits do individual research like that, I was an S-ranked scholar so they allowed me.¡± "Lucky. So all the card scholars at other schools, they have to learn all this Fae history stuff?¡± ¡°No,¡± Aiden said, shocking her. ¡°Perhaps they learn enough to pass card theory in their first few years, but very few of them learn the language and culture of the Fae and even fewer keep up with it, I believe.¡± "They don''t?" Aiden shook his head. "Most of them make new cards by simply amending existing cards, tweaking them to get similar yet different results. That¡¯s one of the reasons why most cards now are essentially a derivative of other cards and we have nearly ten party¡¯s planner¡¯s decks. Very few are doing anything cutting edge. Also another reason why cards are declining in popularity.¡± His lips curled with distaste. ¡°Anyway, the method I¡¯m teaching you right now, that¡¯s the proper way to learn it. And it will serve you better in the long run.¡± Lexie could only stare at him incredulously. Was he serious? There was an easier way to do it, and he¡¯d had her reading Fae script for a month? Lexie blew out a breath. ¡°Okay, I get it. And don¡¯t think I¡¯m not appreciative of you teaching me all this because I am. Super appreciative. But is it possible that I can just do it the way they do it for now? Just until I get the hang of it.¡± Aiden¡¯s eyebrows furrowed to show his disapproval. ¡°That would be taking the easy way out Lexie.¡± ¡°Yes, but hear me out. I want the easy way out for now. And then maybe in like a year or so, when I can finally make heads or tails of Fae culture, we can do things the hard way.¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°You have to learn to walk before you can run, right?" He rubbed his chin in thought. ¡°Yes, but this isn¡¯t like that analogy. This is more like you learning to walk backward before you learn to walk forward. But I suppose it might not be so damaging to do it that way, as long as you make sure you keep up with your Fae studies. The more you do that, the more you learn to think like the Fae and the better your perception gets.¡± Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Of course," Lexie said, brightening up. ¡°I can even write you a paper every day about one aspect of Fae culture if you want. And then in return, you can teach me how to reverse-engineer the cards I have and use them to make new cards. Doesn¡¯t that make sense?¡± Aiden thought about it some more, then finally gave in with a sigh. ¡°Fine. But I have to warn you, this way isn¡¯t going to be as easy as you think either. The intent is the thing that provides the magic behind the card, that links all the pathways together, the thing that stabilizes the card and gives each card its activation symbols. Using one card to make a similar skill for another card without taking into account the differing intent will not always work out. Sometimes all you end up with is damaged card pathways or a broken card. So this ¡®cheat¡¯ isn''t a sure thing either." ¡°No, I get that.¡± Lexie nodded. ¡°But will it work like 80% of the time?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± he responded. ¡°It¡¯s hard to say how often it would work. That would depend on the card, how strongly specific the intent is, and how many changes you try to make.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± So the trick then was to try to make as little changes as possible and pray that somewhere on the Fae Planet, Shelby did not forget her coffee. With that said, throughout the following week, Aiden began to teach Lexie pathway creation, theory and amendment. He knew at this point that she was already playing with her card pathways and experimenting with nodes and so he told her how to do it in a safer manner. ¡°Try not to experiment with the same card for too long," he said. ¡°You weaken its security protocol that way and can lead the card to self-destruct with enough time. And while your method of skipping nodes is quite clever and might work for now, it might not be possible once you have your full mana capacity. Another thing to be careful about is pushing too much mana into the waste card pathway. Again, it might work for now, because your mana is too tiny to cause much damage but eventually you will have enough mana to cause damage and if the security protocols fail, the backlash can hit you." Lexie nodded and noted down all his warnings and what would happen if she shirked them. Then, finally, Aiden showed her the basic construction of a pathway. And yes, it really was just logic gates. Once you identified the intent and purpose, Lexie just had to logic her way through from one end to another to create a suitable skill. For example, the intent behind the card was that scared rabbits needed to hide souls or something to that effect. And the purpose was to create a card for a creature to hide from predators. So logic dictated you had to have a method of first identifying the predator and then a method of hiding and then you had to link it to create a logic tree. ¡°To create this tree, you must first start by asking yourself whether this will be an effect or an ability card,¡± Aiden drew it on a pad so it reflected on a hologram floating in the air. The hologram was of a big flat card with all the pathways highlighted inside, a nice visualizer they¡¯d gotten courtesy of Elvira so that Aiden could educate Lexie. ¡°In the case of , it''s an effect card and so the effect node or effect gate goes at the very end of the pathway because it informs the direction of the skill. Now you might say why are we figuring out the last node first? And that''s because it''s good to know if it''s an ability or effect early, so you can rule out other paths that don''t make sense, choreographically or logically." He placed the node down and some of the highlighted pathways blinked off. ¡°Now you see in this card there were all these pathways available to you. Thousands of them. But once you put that final effect node, a few of them disappear from the screen. This is because these are no longer viable paths for you to take. Some of them are things that you can¡¯t do with an effect card, for example, and the effect cannot be used to boost your mana like that pathway over there would have done. And this is a choreography that won''t make sense for an effect card. But some of these pathways are simply restricted for safety reasons so the card doesn''t do too much.¡± ¡°Can I override the restrictions?¡± Lexie asked and her father shot her a look. ¡°Not that I¡¯m going to. Just asking.¡± ¡°I¡¯d prefer not to answer but I have a feeling if I don¡¯t, you¡¯ll find out the answer anyway. Yes, there are ways to override restrictions but it¡¯s not advisable. Let me stress on that. Very not advisable, Lexie. This is a starter card, for learning purposes, so the restrictions are there to help to guide you. But with a regular blank card, there will be no guides to help you know which path to take, and no restrictions to protect your card from destruction. With those cards, you sink or swim on your own, and once you try to do something you shouldn¡¯t, the card will not correct you and will simply self-destruct, costing you a lot of money and time.¡± Lexie nodded. Money and time were two things she didn¡¯t want to waste. So she would stick to the rules for the foreseeable future. Aiden continued to teach her what each node did. Exclusion nodes used the [OR] function and addition nodes used the [AND] function. There were also equivalents of the XOR gate, NOT gate, NAND gate, NOR gate, and XNOR gate. And there were also buff and debuff gates. Apparently, most of the ¡®locked¡¯ Heismann nodes she''d found in the card pathways that supposedly didn''t do anything, were debuff nodes or debuff gates depending on which textbook one used. "Card mages like to use a lot of these debuff nodes because of the way the card approval process works," Aiden explained. "If a card is deemed too powerful or capable of causing too much damage, it will not be system-approved. So rather than recreate the card from the start every time the system rejects it, mages simply use the debuff node they installed ahead of time to reduce the effect of a given ability or reduce the time that the skill is in play. Then they submit the card for approval again and keep debuffing until they finally get it approved. And once the card is approved, all the pathways are then locked into their current positions and the nodes are also locked. But as you''ve figured out my precocious daughter, the locked nodes can be unlocked by various mechanisms. But you probably shouldn''t do that too often." "I won''t," Lexie said breezily but Aiden didn''t buy it. ¡°They¡¯re locked for a reason, Lexie,¡± he said. ¡°So be very careful if you''re going to play with them, and heed my earlier warning." Once again, Lexie nodded. And after that, it was time to practice on her own. She began of course with her Party Planner¡¯s cards trying to deduce how they were created and identifying how many buffer nodes there were. She also started searching for a list of cards she wanted to amend to create her own cards. While doing this, she kept up with her Fae lessons. She started making some headways with Fae language, quickly picking up swear words like ''Pulechtl'' which meant a person who had lost their favorite broom, and ''Jhovit'' which was a specific type of semi-soft turd. And to prove that she was keeping up with her Fae studies, every morning Lexie would greet Aiden at breakfast with a new factoid she''d found out, or even give mini-presentations about whatever facet of Fae history she''d discovered. It was during one of those presentations that Uncle Max visited to ask Aiden, plainly, for credits. Apparently, Max had blown most of his credits on something or the other, and he needed to buy new weapons. And Luke was refusing to lend him anything. "I''ll pay you back in a few months when a business deal goes through," Max said and Aiden sighed. ¡°Sorry," he said. ¡°I wish I could help but I spent all my money on Lexie''s birthday present.'' "Damn it," Max said and Lexie felt bad so she pitched in. ¡°I can lend it to you,¡± she said. ¡°In return for another favor you''ll owe me.¡± Max shook his head without even looking at her. He was deep in thought. ¡°Thanks, Lex, but I¡¯m not talking chicken-change here. I need at least eight hundred credits." ¡°I can loan you eight hundred credits,¡± she said without missing a beat. It took a second for the words to register and for both men to glance at her. ¡°Where did you get eight hundred credits from?¡± Max asked. She hesitated for a second and then sighed. It seemed the moment had come for her to tell the truth. ¡°I¡¯m going to tell you,¡± she said slowly to Aiden. ¡°But you can¡¯t get too mad at me, okay?¡± If anything Aiden¡¯s expression turned more apprehensive. ¡°Lexie, what did you do?¡± Lexie sighed again and then finally told the whole story of her very brief and very light history of gambling. By the time she was done, both men stared at her in open-mouthed shock. Max recovered first and asked, ¡°You made how much?¡± She avoided Aiden¡¯s eyes, saying meekly. ¡°Only about 7000 credits in total¡­¡± Aiden made a choked sound and Max burst into loud and raucous laughter. ¡°I knew it! I always knew you would be my favorite goddaughter.¡± ¡°I¡¯m your only goddaughter,¡± she pointed out. ¡°That makes it even better! Listen, we should go into business, kid. We¡¯ll be rich I¡¯m telling you." As Max¡¯s eyes gleamed with greed, Aiden recovered from his shock and scowled at him. After receiving a fair bit of scolding from Aiden, (who made her promise never to do anything like that again) and a fist bump from Max, Lexie went back up to her room for more studying. She texted Xena and Dewie intermittently, telling them she''d learned a new Fae swearword called T-tl. It was Elven and it meant ¡®a wooden idiot¡¯. Of course, Lexie didn''t just teach herself the bad stuff, even though those stuck easier. She also learned good stuff like ''Popo'' which meant ¡®an honored child guest who deserved cookies¡¯ and ''Gar-etch'', which was ¡®a loved one I would give an important limb for.¡¯ And when she was done with that, she brought out Aiden''s poem for the day and tried to perceive the meaning behind it. She also did perception meditation exercises she¡¯d found on Video Alley, as that was supposed to help unlock whatever brain cells people used to perceive things. At least that was what Master Maureen said. Lexie didn''t know if she was for real or not, but a bunch of people in the comments section said they¡¯d found enlightenment from it. Nevertheless, hours later, Lexie still sat at her desk in front of a full moon staring at the passage. She sighed. "Are you going to tell me what you mean this time, or are you going to be difficult?" The page blinked up at her, not offering any help. Lexie closed her eyes. She had to feel it. Perceive what the meaning was about. And not think too hard because thinking might be counterintuitive to perceiving. ¡°Come on,¡± she muttered. ¡°Don¡¯t be a Jhovit, okay? Just give me a sign or whatever. And you will be my best friend. Don''t you wanna be a good Popo? I''ll give you all the cookies you could ever ask for." But still, no matter how much Lexie begged, there was no discovery to be had that night. Except that somewhere, deep within the system, hidden from Lexie and the world by the 1¡¯s and 0¡¯s and all the other calculations that were constantly running in the background, an entity smiled. 57 - The Catch Up The months passed with an interesting routine. Most of Lexie¡¯s time was dedicated to learning card magic and card crafting, now with her father¡¯s blessing. Aiden was diligent, teaching Lexie everything from the detailed origin of card magic to intricate factoids of Fae etiquette. He also helped her know which of the pathway nodes she could probably get away with tweaking and which were the more dangerous adjustments. However, once summer rolled around, he began teaching at the Arcadian Research College and didn¡¯t have as much time for their lessons. Not that Lexie was resentful. On the contrary, she was quite happy to see her dad once more doing what he loved. It had taken a lot for Aiden to be able to teach again. He had to agree to increased surveillance, more check-ins with his parole officer, and a significant cut of his pay going toward facilitating the added measures. Furthermore, every lecture and every meeting with a student had to be recorded, and preferably supervised by another teacher. Aiden agreed to all that without a word of protest, and his parole officer spoke highly of his impeccable record and community service so far. The court-assigned psychologist put in a good word too. Thus, it was a done deal. Lexie had in-person school on Aiden''s first day teaching so they¡¯d headed to the train together, with Aiden in his best tweed suit, looking nervous but excited. He adjusted his glasses multiple times on the train, and Lexie thought she heard him murmuring his introduction, which unfortunately included a dad joke. (¡®Well, I was looking for an icebreaker for the start of class but we''re already having a pretty hot summer, aren''t we?''). It was bad, but he wouldn¡¯t take it out no matter what Lexie said. "Dad, that is a terrible joke," she told him. ¡°It¡¯s good,¡± he argued defensively. ¡°I¡¯ll need something to break the ice and that always got my students at Victoire cracking up.¡± Lexie reminded him that there was a difference between [Hero] students who were probably in awe of his reputation and hence eager to please, and college research students who were probably cranky, possibly broke, and definitely socially awkward if Elvira was anything to go by. Nevertheless, Aiden was stubborn and so the joke stayed. His nerves persisted for the rest of the trip, even with Lexie trying to calm his fears, assuring him that his suit looked appropriately pressed, his cookies would remain warm in the flask and everything would be okay. ¡°You¡¯ll do great,¡± Lexie told him. ¡°You¡¯re a fantastic teacher.¡± He smiled at her. ¡°Thank you, Lex. I appreciate that.¡± Despite her words of encouragement, deep inside, Lexie thought it might be a rough first day anyway, for all the reasons she''d mentioned above. And also because, well, he was an ex-[Villain]. But somewhat to her surprise, it did go well. Aiden picked her up from school in significantly higher spirits which told her everything she needed to know but she asked anyway, ¡°How was it?¡± ¡°It was¡­much better than I expected actually,¡± he said. ¡°The joke wasn¡¯t the hit I would have liked it to be, but that was probably because the first part of the class was spent getting the students'' curiosity out of their system. Most wanted to hear about my missions from my [Hero] days and a few were curious about my short-lived villainy, but very few were openly hostile.¡± ¡°There were openly hostile people?¡± Lexie asked frowning. ¡°Of course,¡± he said, then winked at her. ¡°But don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll win them over.¡± And months later, nearing the end of the summer semester, he claimed he had. He¡¯d come home ecstatic that day with an empty flask that had been previously filled to the brim with cookies. He''d claimed that it had been an extraordinarily good day, and the students had been totally into the lesson. One student even wrote him a letter that said that Aiden helped him understand magical concepts in a way he never had before, and thanks to him, they were no longer considering dropping out of the program. Aiden had the letter packed neatly in his bag and beamed when Lexie suggested that they frame it. Of course, Lexie didn¡¯t understand just how beloved he was, until she actually visited him once after school. The Arcadian Research College was a sprawling campus that reminded her of when she¡¯d toured Yale. Old stone buildings with stained glass windows, steeped in history. Lush green grass with students hurrying across, very few stopping to talk to themselves. An Orinian flag hung and fluttering in the courtyard. She passed by it to reach her father¡¯s lecture hall, a large space with enough seats for a hundred. When she opened the door and walked in, she found him surrounded by a gaggle of students all arguing with each other, while he played chaperone with a bemused smile on his face. It was clearly the end of class but most of the students still stuck around, some paying attention to the argument that the group was having and the others having conversations with each other. Some of them shot her curious looks as she entered, hovering near the doorway. Lexie was focused on her dad at the center of the podium. ¡°Folks,¡± Aiden finally put up his hand in an attempt to halt the argument, ¡°I¡¯m glad that you¡¯re so passionate about this topic, but truthfully it¡¯s a philosophical discussion that has transcended millennia, so we likely won¡¯t find an answer for it now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because the answer is so obvious that to argue against it is stupid and deliberately contrarian.¡± The blonde boy next to him sneered at another brunette boy. ¡°It¡¯s clear that everything abides by magical formulas. It¡¯s the only thing that makes sense. Soft magic systems are a thing of myth and wishful thinking from people not talented enough to do real magic¨C" ¡°The Guardian''s magic worked by a soft magic system reportedly,¡± a girl interrupted him. ¡°And that was said to be more powerful than anything we have today.¡± ¡°If it existed,¡± he countered. ¡°And that¡¯s a big ''if'', considering we don¡¯t even know if the guardians did exist or it was just superstition that was used to explain Fae magic of today.¡± ¡°Ha. Now you show your bias," the brunette huffed sardonically. "We don¡¯t use Fae magic, only a Fae-adjacent system. And the Guardian''s existence is pretty well-documented." "Yes, documented long ago, when people thought 3D designs were revolutionary. They probably saw a Fae giant and thought it was a god." "Yes, but there is evidence that we had magic as early as a thousand years ago. And the Fae only came to Earth about a century ago, so how did magic exist on Earth before them without the Guardians?" ¡°You mean the Fae only made themselves known to humans a century ago. They could have been operating here for millennia without being noticed. I mean some of them are shapeshifters, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°What, you think aliens resided on Earth for that long, and none of us were the wiser?¡± ¡°Obviously. Humans are famously the dumbest species in the interplanetary alliance.¡± ¡°Hey, Doug, that''s out of line!" The girl called and that triggered more arguments from people jumping to defend their species against such slander. Aiden held up his hand again, trying to control the noise level, reminding them that there was another class going on next door. As he did, his eyes caught Lexie¡¯s. She waved and he waved back. ¡°Well, this has been lovely," he said loudly. "But unfortunately, I have to leave you to continue this discussion on your own. My daughter¡¯s here.¡± That sent the group''s eyes Lexie¡¯s way. She heard whispers ranging from, ¡°Aw she¡¯s so cute,¡± to, ¡°That¡¯s the daughter he¡¯s always talking about?¡± and a couple of people even said, "She''s so lucky. With a dad like him, I¡¯ll bet she''ll never have to struggle with advanced magical calculus." The girl who had been arguing with Doug frowned and swung her head back to Aiden. ¡°But Professor, you haven''t even answered my question. Doug here derailed the whole conversation.¡± ¡°Of course, Joan, my apologies. How about you come to see me first thing tomorrow morning during office hours? I¡¯ll make sure to be here before 7:30.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Joan said, suitably pacified. ¡°What about me Professor?" a boy in a lab coat who was still seated called out. ¡°You said you would go through my last test and tell me everything I did wrong.¡± Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. "Oh yes, I did say that, didn¡¯t I? You can go right after Joan.¡± ¡°And extra classes for me, Professor?¡± a reedy-thin boy meekly said. ¡°Yes, Pierre, you can be after Peter, who is after Joan. You know what Joan, why don¡¯t you make a list of everyone who needs to see me and arrange it in whatever order seems fair. Does that sound good?" Joan nodded and raised her chin to reflect her increased sense of self-importance due to the duty she''d been given. Aiden finally pulled away from the crowd and walked over to Lexie with an accomplished smile on his face and a bounce in his step. Lexie grinned, happy for him. ¡°Shall we?¡± He took her hand, waving at several people who called out to him as he left. Even with his busy schedule, Aiden made time out to continue his lessons with Lexie intent, Fae culture, and card pathways. Lexie was getting a hang of pathway design, seeing the patterns emerge. Typically, the beginning of the pathway had a lot more AND and OR nodes, which slowly narrowed down the skill to be as specific as possible. Then they would use buff/debuff nodes on pathway branches to tweak different parts of the skill and make them more or less prominent. And then finally, they would include a variable debuff node at the end (right before the ability/effect node) just in case the system thought the card was too powerful and they needed to turn it down a notch. Elvira and Aiden taught Lexie that even after the card had been approved, and the pathways had gotten fixed, card mages often left some nodes semi-flexible, so they could rework the cards after the fact, to occasionally make second and third editions of the deck. They would later tweak these cards using those flexible nodes, but the tweaks couldn''t be dramatic or the system wouldn''t approve. And the changes also still had to make sense with the intent of the card or the card wouldn¡¯t work. But those tweaks helped Lexie understand a lot about pathways in the coming months. Using that knowledge, Lexie started working on adjusting her existing cards. Of course, as they were still subject to system approval, she couldn''t buff them all the way up like she wanted to, but she could, for example, make Sir Hoppington do a few more skills than just backflips. She also managed to reduce the clumsiness factor of the card by turning the debuff node so it would debuff that attribute more. She did this just in case she needed to use the combination as she did for Terry during the eye fight. And since the debuff node was variable, she could change it back if she wanted to, and use it as an attack card rather than a support one, which was cool. Another cool thing Lexie found out was that, while she couldn''t technically buff cards by turning up their buffer (as the system wouldn''t allow it), she could buff them by skipping debuff nodes on her activation. This was done by using the black hole method to push out all her mana from the pathway right before the debuff node and then push it back into the pathway right after the node. The node remained inactive when it didn''t come into contact with mana and so, this allowed the skill created to be more powerful. Of course, she''d only tried this once with and after she told Aiden, he made her promise not to do it again. She planned on keeping her promise for the most part. At least for now. But it was nice to know that she could go a lot faster than she thought with the card. While Lexie got good at theoretically designing the cards, and even making the cards she had better. But she still struggled with making new cards because of the whole intent thing. Aiden was right. Trying to use an already existing card¡¯s pathway to create a new card wasn''t always accurate and sometimes the results could be unpredictable. It was usually more likely to work when the cards were similar, but when she''d tried to create a card that made one more stable and agile (basically by creating the opposite of the card), the pathway had simply fallen apart and refused to work. She didn''t know why, and she''d tried to reverse engineer it from all angles but it simply wasn''t working. She and Elvira tried to work on it and Elvira told her that her designed pathway was theoretically perfect, but it wouldn''t work probably because the intent for was too specific to that skill and could not be amended. And so she would need to find an intent that she could amend for the new skill. Or simply come up with an intent on her own that the Fae would have approved of. And that was the hard part. Now while Lexie''s perception was getting better at guessing intent in other cards, thanks to all her rigorous Fae studies, she was still only correct less than half the time. And coming up with intent on her own, for something that had not been done yet, was a whole other beast. But she tried studying lots of similar cards to see what she could glean from them. Apart from those lessons, a significant chunk of Lexie''s time was spent with Dewie¡¯s documentation journal. Lexie was still taking note of the things that Dewie saw, but one thing was starting to become clearer to her the longer she did this; Dewie''s visions seemed to have a Fae component to them. One of the things Lexie had noted in Fae culture was that goblins were often a sign of mischief, and warts, like the ones Dewie had seen on Lloyd''s girlfriend, were actually a sign of stomach issues caused by an improper diet. Lexie had once seen the girl curled up on the bathroom floor and discovered that she had an ulcer of some sort. Lexie had reported it to the school nurse and the girl was referred for treatment. Dewie was sad that it had happened despite his warning, but Lexie was somewhat excited that she was getting to the bottom of his visions. Dewie may or may not be seeing Fae creatures, which meant that he probably had some manner of perception. Of course that meant that, in order to create the ''Dewie Deck'' as she was starting to call it, she would need to know a lot more about Fae symbology. But on the bright side, with Dewie''s help, she might actually get better at identifying intent. Which was fantastic to know. The final thing that took up some of Lexie''s time was helping with Xena¡¯s social media stuff. Xena was gaining more and more followers rapidly as lots of people loved her style, even though they didn¡¯t necessarily know who she was. Lexie became the defacto assistant/manager, helping Zee scout locations, going shopping with her, and helping her research how to schedule posts. And that hard work was paying off. If Xena didn¡¯t become a healer, she could probably make a serious go as an influencer, and with at least three major sponsors, she would be set for life. Which was what Xena was going for. ¡°I wanna make money soon,¡± she said while they walked through a store at the mall. ¡°Emma doesn¡¯t get paid for me anymore after the age of fifteen and so I¡¯m on my own from there on out.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t really think she¡¯ll kick you out after fifteen do you?¡± Lexie gave her a look as Xena stopped to admire some pants. Xena didn¡¯t answer at first, but Lexie saw the doubt in her face ¡°Seriously?¡± Lexie raised an eyebrow. ¡°I know you like to do the ''you¡¯re not my mom¡¯ stuff as a bit, but you don¡¯t for one second think that Emma would do that right? She loves you. Truly.¡± Xena finally sighed. "I know. But having a kid isn''t cheap and it¡¯s not like she makes a lot at that job of hers. And if I do want to become a healer, I¡¯ll need money to buy books and tools and all that stuff. Money makes that easier." Lexie stiffened, the way she always did whenever Xena spoke about being a healer. But she forced herself not to say anything. No point in arguing about it, because that dream was unlikely to come true anyway. But Lexie did agree with Xena on one thing. Having money did make things easier. Which was why it bummed her out that she couldn''t gamble anymore. On the bright side, Aiden upped her allowance thanks to his salary increase, and she still had money saved up so she could afford dead room visits to help her channel her mana better. She was now down to activating most of her cards in under six seconds with very little waste. But Lexie still wasn¡¯t satisfied with that. While Aiden was amazed by her progress, Lexie thought she could do more. She wanted to activate the card in under a second and she knew she could do it with a little more training. Aiden told her that it might get harder when she awakened. "Your mana''s going to grow exponentially," he said. "And it will be more difficult to control and manipulate." But the thought didn''t bother Lexie. She was happy to have more mana. Maybe it would help boost her in some ways. But in anticipation of that, she kicked her mana control lessons into overdrive, visiting deadrooms at least twice a week, to the point where she had perfect control of her current capacity. Having achieved that, she wanted to be able to craft at least one card in a month and to be able to create a deck by the end of the year. In the fall, she worked hard toward that goal, almost to the exclusion of everything else. She made time for her friends of course, and kept up a little bit with the Fighter¡¯s circuit. Even though she didn¡¯t have a lot of time to watch matches anymore, she still managed to keep note of the important highlights. Top Dog remained number one in the league for the entire year and Conrad maintained his number two status. Kane was number 8, Bunny number five, and TechnoCrat number 11. Therefore Top Dog¡¯s team became the highest-ranked team earning them millions of credits in sponsorships and deals. They each individually exploded in popularity, becoming more mainstream-famous. Top Dog was even reportedly dating a chart-topping singer at a point which Xena mocked Lexie endlessly for. The joke was on Xena though, because Lexie liked the singer, Tiana Moon, too. TxT was her favorite couple and when they broke up Lexie mourned their short union and the wasted relationship goals. Speaking of relationships, Uncle Max had a string of girlfriends Lexie never met in that year, and according to Aiden, it was more than usual because he was bored and grumpy from missing dungeon season. This also meant that he threw himself into making all manner of weapons at his home. Going into his garage was like visiting an underground bunker full of military-grade machinery with some medieval weaponry mixed in. He didn''t get to use them much because there were no more unstable dungeons spawning. Still no news on where they came from or why they happened, but Lexie was at least glad to not be facing dangerous beasts every other fortnight. And as the season passed in relative harmony, almost an entire year had gone by since Lexie first arrived in Hovelton. It was almost time for her to apply to schools and she looked up [Research] programs she would want to attend, if she got her pre-affixation changed. That reminded her of applying to college, which further reminded her of home. She tried to put her old world out of her mind as much as possible to stave off the depression, although she would periodically record and send texts to Logan that never went through. The last one was a voice recording on Logan¡¯s birthday where she told him that she was proud of him for turning fourteen. She''d had Aiden unknowingly bake a cake for him and sung the birthday song alone in her room, blowing out the candles by herself. And then she cried so hard that Aiden rushed up to comfort her, worried about her distress. He thought she was crying about her mother. He told her that Lara would be proud of her which only made Lexie cry even more. It was a somber day, and Lexie fell asleep cradled in her father''s arms. She locked her phone in her drawer after that and didn''t check on it for a while. By fall, she got a shoulder-length haircut and shot up a half-inch in height. And System Day was right around the corner. 58 - Happy System Day The day before system day, Aiden called his daughter down for what he termed ''a very important talk''. Lexie knew what that meant. He was going to try to soothe her fears about what was coming, and tell her that even if she didn¡¯t get the exact pre-affixation she wanted, there were still options open for her. He was also going to encourage her to keep an open mind regarding whatever pre-affixation the system offered her. "There¡¯s a reason these things happen," he would tell her like he did one night a few months ago. "The system hardly makes mistakes when it comes to things like this, and usually, you¡¯re exactly who you¡¯re supposed to be. But if you utterly hate your affixation, there are ways to change it. You have options." Lexie had nodded because it was true. She did have options. And it was exactly these options that Lexie had been working on and banking on for the whole almost year. She''d calculated all the hero points and research points she''d accumulated through the months, and though she''d accidentally earned some additional hero points here and there (one of them during shooting practice with Uncle Max), she still overwhelmingly had far more Research points. Mostly because she''d stopped doing things like saving old ladies on the side of the road, or being excessively charming. She did her best not to earn any bravery, chivalry, or even Charisma points. Instead, she''d focused on ingenuity, discovery, and other such points. For almost an entire year, she''d worked hard to change her pre-affixation from [Hero] to [Researcher]. Hopefully, it would be enough. As they sat down with cups of Muan tea, Aiden finally smiled at her. ¡°So. Here we are again.¡± Lexie nodded, palming her mug. Nerves had stolen her appetite throughout most of dinner and Aiden had noticed. Hence his attempt at a lighthearted comment. ¡°Here we are again,¡± Lexie noted, attempting a smile that didn¡¯t quite make it all the way there. She was too anxious for that. Aiden reached across the table and took her hand. ¡°Lexie, I just want to let you know that it¡¯s not the end of the world.¡± "Ha. I knew you would say that." ¡°And if you don¡¯t get the exact pre-affixation you want, there are more options available to you.¡± "I knew you would say that too." "Lexie-" ¡°Dad,¡± Lexie said before he could say anything else. ¡°There¡¯s something I want to tell you.¡± Guilt knotted in her stomach adding to the nerves. She suddenly felt stupid for holding onto the secret this long. She probably should have told him earlier, but the whole breaking ISTS rules thing scared her. And she''d thought she''d given enough hints for him to somewhat understand that she had received a pre-affixation she didn''t want. But she didn''t tell him which one it was. Maybe if she had, he would have given her more specific details on how to get rid of it. She''d asked him several times if there was anything else one needed to do to change a pre-affixation, and he¡¯d always assured her that he''d told her everything she needed. But now she felt doubt. And also, guilty because he would definitely feel bad that she¡¯d kept this secret from him. She hated making her dad feel bad. Lexie took a deep breath, and then finally admitted. ¡°I already got my pre-affixation.¡± His eyebrows raised into his forehead, but he didn¡¯t look as surprised as one might expect. Instead, he offered her a weak smile in return. ¡°I thought something like that might be the case,¡± he said. Lexie wasn''t shocked either but she still said, "You did?" ¡°Of course. I¡¯m not slow, Lex. You asked enough questions about changing a pre-affixation and about having a pre-affixation appear before system day, that I wondered. It seemed to bother you a lot. Also, the fact that you took so quickly to cards made it even more suspicious. Despite its advantages, cards aren¡¯t typically the first thing that most pre-awakened kids gravitate to.¡± Of course. If Lexie had never been pre-affixed, she probably would not have considered even using the so-called ''weakest'' magic type. She would have tried out spells or maybe tried to learn the basics of unbound arts. While pre-awakened people couldn''t use unbound magic except for Elementals, there were apparently lessons that could help you get pre-affixed in unbound magic. Veronica was taking those lessons right now and would brag about them every day. But Lexie didn¡¯t have that kind of time or interest and since she was already a pre-affixed card mage, she¡¯d picked the path of least resistance. Cards. She nodded. ¡°Yeah. So...that''s what happened." Aiden''s smile turned softer, kinder. ¡°So, that was your pre-affixation? A card-user?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Not just that. It has me down as a [Card User Hero]?¡± Confusion finally rippled across his face. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Lexie recalled Aiden explaining to her before that there had never been a [Card-User Hero] to his knowledge, because cards were considered an impossible powerset for [heroes]. They were not very powerful, required exceptional mana control and they were typically terrible in a pinch. Even as hard as she''d worked, Lexie only managed to get her card activation time to a little under five seconds which meant if her enemy had superspeed, or was even just slightly faster than normal, he could maim her before she even got her cards activated. Or kill her. Or otherwise, incapacitate her. There was so much that could happen in that time frame. So fighting [Villains] with cards was generally not a smart move. She also wasn¡¯t sure how well cards would work in a rescue situation since most of them could only stay active for twenty seconds or so and she couldn¡¯t¨Cor at least she wasn¡¯t supposed to¨Cbuff them or activate more than one card at once. She couldn''t fight and she couldn''t save. So what other heroics was she supposed to do with card magic? ¡°I thought the system was broken,¡± Lexie continued. ¡°Or maybe something made a mistake somewhere when it pre-affixed me.¡± Aiden shook his head slowly. ¡°No. If it gave you that pre-affixation, there must have a way for you to pull it off. I¡¯m just not sure how.¡± He rubbed his chin in thought. ¡°Maybe you playing around with the cards was part of the plan.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Think about it," he said. ¡°You¡¯re working to reduce the activation time of the cards, maintain the lowest cool-off times I¡¯ve ever seen, and are also triggering abilities regarding activating more than one card at once. Not that I advise those things, but with your control, you''ve managed not to damage any of the cards or harm yourself. That''s pretty impressive. And that means that the two biggest limitations of card use in high-pressure situations don''t apply to you." Lexie nodded. "Yes but still. The system won''t let me have a deck with high-powered cards and card magic only stays active for a short time." Aiden sighed. "Yes. That''s a problem." He was silent for some time and then said, "Maybe it''s time for you to explore other decks than Party Planner''s." "I already have. None of them would be great for hero work." "Not as they are, maybe," Aiden said. "But if you could do to them what you''ve done to your current deck...they just might be." Lexie blinked at him, shocked. "Are you serious?" He gave her a bemused look. "I think so?" "So...this is you giving me permission to continue my experimentation with combining cards? Even the high-powered ones?" He chuckled. "Well, it''s not like you weren''t already tweaking your current cards. This is just a step above that. You seem to have the control to pull it off. Just, as always, be careful." "Always," she said. "But I''m still not confident cards will ever be good for pure hero work. And I''m not even sure I want to be a hero." If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Aiden nodded sagely. "Well, if it''s a question of desire, we can just keep working to change your affixation." "That''s what I''ve been doing already. But I''m not sure if it will work." Aiden cocked his head. "There''s about a fifty-percent chance. I''m sorry I can''t give you more assurance than that, honeybee." "It''s fine." Lexie sighed. "I just don¡¯t understand why this would happen, why me of all people would get that pre-affixation. I mean the cards I get, but I¡¯m not particularly heroic.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that,¡± Aiden said. ¡°You woke up from a coma and, on the same night, saved me from a ghoul. You also managed to keep your cool and help me out during the Mouse attack, and during the Hechtl attack too.¡± His gaze grew thoughtful too. ¡°Perhaps the system means for you to use your powers as the ultimate hero support.¡± ¡°Hero support? Like those assistants who came to interrogate you that one time?¡± Lexie made a face. That idea was even less appealing than being a hero. Aiden laughed. ¡°Not quite. At least not all hero support is like that. It''s complicated to explain but we can get into it tomorrow, depending on how it goes. Is that okay?¡± Lexie sighed and nodded. ¡°Yeah, that''s okay." *** The next day nerves were killer and sharing it with the rest of the kids in her class made everything even worse. Everyone looked like they hadn¡¯t slept all night. Xena had prominent eye bags that she¡¯d only managed to hide with some concealer. Dewie¡¯s bowtie was crooked and he was more somber than usual. Even Veronica had managed not to curl her hair today. ¡°You¡¯re lucky, Lexie,¡± Abernathy had told Lexie during lunchtime. He, Chris, and Doyle sat with Lexie and Dewie, while Xena had gone somewhere to take pictures. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about being mundane at least.¡± ¡°Yeah, I guess,¡± Lexie said and for some reason, she felt the need to apologize. She knew she was privileged in the sense that at least she was assuredly ranked in something and chances were that she was going to be a high ranker. And though she''d worked hard, her results were mostly based on circumstances of birth and luck. She hadn''t done much to earn her pre-affixation in the first place, and some people who had done the same as her probably would never get to where she was going to be. But instead of bursting into an apologetic diatribe that probably no one would appreciate, she glanced down at her meal, pushing around the mashed potatoes and gravy. It was usually her favorite school lunch, but today she had no interest in it. ¡°Well, it¡¯s easier if you don¡¯t think about it.¡± Doyle broke the awkward silence with his usual carelessness. ¡°See, both my parents are mundane so I¡¯m probably going to be mundane too. But it¡¯s not so bad. I¡¯ll just work in my dad¡¯s shop. Maybe one day we¡¯ll be rich enough to afford mech and I can start fighting in circuits like Kane the Mundane.¡± ¡°Yeah and maybe I¡¯ll win a lottery,¡± Abernathy responded sarcastically. Lexie knew Abernathy''s mother was a scholar of some kind but Lexie didn¡¯t know about his dad. Probably a mundane, considering how anxious Abernathy seemed. In his mind, he had at least a fifty percent chance of being mundane and it was eating him up. Poor kid. Chris was silent too, but seemed more relaxed than the other boys. Both of his parents were physical types so he was pretty sure he would get some physical ranking. Still, nothing was certain And until the clock struck three no one would be sure. They tried to continue their conversations but it was all forced. The air felt tighter, the jokes got louder and more obnoxious. The boys got snappier. The bell rang and they went back to class where Mrs. P droned on and on, and no one even pretended to pay attention. Everyone just kept their systems screens open, trembling in anticipation, waiting for the notification. "I bet I''ll be a Knight," Chris whispered from behind Lexie to which Doyle responded. "Knight of what? Greed?" "Yeah," Abernathy pointed out. "You like money way too much to be a Knight. No way you''ll pass their ethics and chivalry testing." "You don''t know that," Chris said with an evil smile. "I have an aunt that''s the meanest witch I''ve ever met, and she''s a Knight. She taught me a trick to pass the testing." "What''s the trick?" "Why would I tell any of you?" "Three of you. Quiet." Lexie murmured under her breath because Mrs. P was starting to give them intermittent but pretty fierce glares. "You''ll have to lose a ton of weight in Knight school." Doyle threw in the jab at the end, in an attempt to lighten the air, but once again, the laughter was strained. Class ended early today in anticipation of system day. But before anyone could get their things together to leave, it finally happened. The only warning they got was a loud gasp. Then system screen automatically triggered and an alert was announced in the center. It read:
HAPPY SYSTEM DAY! YOU HAVE AWAKENED! OPEN FULL STATS MENU NOW.
¡°Oh my God I¡¯m going to throw up,¡± Mya said. Lexie wasn¡¯t too worried, even though she was in the barf radius. Mya always said she would vomit but she never did. Xena might though. She looked more than a little ill. ¡°We''ll be fine guys,¡± Lexie tried to instill them both with a confidence she didn¡¯t entirely feel even as the class started getting filled with sounds of excitement or despair. ¡°It will be fine.¡± She met Xena''s eyes and gave her a confident nod. Xena nodded back. Lexie clicked to open her screen and it repeated:
CONGRATULATIONS, LEXIE SPARROWFOOT. YOU HAVE RECEIVED A RANKING IN TWO DISCIPLINES- MANA AND MENTAL. OPEN TO VIEW NOW.
Oh, thank God. At least I got a Mental Ranking. Okay, now, let''s see what it says.
Name: Lexi Sparrowfoot Race: Human Age: 11 Mana: C-Rank (Open to View More) Intelligence: S-Rank (Open to View More) Physical: Unranked Mana Class: C Rank Mage Subclass: Undeclared Level: 7 Optimal Mana Range: 400-600 Affinity: Bound Magic - Cards Sub Affinity: N/A Mana Cap: 600/600
Lexie felt her stomach sink. Well, that was a little disappointing. She''d thought, and was actually kind of hoping, that she would be an S-Rank mage like her dad. That way she had more options and could use unbound magic too. And if that didn''t happen, she thought she would at least be a B rank just because she didn¡¯t want to be last on the leaderboard. C-Rank basically meant that you almost weren¡¯t a mage which was crazy considering how much work she¡¯d put in with the cards and how her father was an S-Rank Mage and all. Then again, she was warned that Cards were for low-capacity magic so maybe the system had purposefully restricted her capacity so that it wouldn''t interfere with her use of card magic. Also, her mother had no mana ranking so C was essentially the average of both her parents. Which made sense. Still, it was kind of a bummer. Maybe she could have boosted her mana capacity by using potions like Veronica did, but she doubted it would have mattered in the end. She continued reading:
Mental Class: Undeclared (Choose from options now) Secondary Class: Undeclared (Cannot be declared until Optimum Level in Primary Class is Achieved). Affinity: Bound Magic-Cards Level: 7 Breakdown IQ: 120 Wisdom: 85% Memorization: 90% Creativity: 89% EQ: 80% Talent: 83% Thinking Speed: 90% Perception: 69% Belief: 68% Mental Strength: 97% CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE RECEIVED A PRE-AFFIXATION. OPEN NOW TO VIEW:
Okay. Moment of truth. Lexie took a deep breath.
!ERROR! ERROR! YOU HAVE BEEN PRE-AFFIXED AS A [CARD USER HERO] Points assigned: Charisma: +5 Bravery: +3 Chivalry: +2 Special System Points: +10 ERROR! ERROR! YOU HAVE BEEN PRE-AFFIXED AS A [CARD RESEARCHER] Points assigned: Ingenuity: +5 Discovery: +6 Creativity: +6 Perception: +3 You are preaffixed as a [Card User Hero]. Open to receive a rundown of your skills and to choose Starter Deck. You are preaffixed as a [Card Researcher]. Open to receive preliminary scholar ID, and receive a list of training academies/individuals.
Lexie stopped reading there, blinking at her screen thoroughly confused. What the hell just happened? Did she actually receive two role pre-affixations? It looked like she did. But how? Aiden said that was impossible. She''d thought that she would maybe have received a scholar class thanks to her intelligence ranking, but not a role. One person could not have two roles. That was what Aiden had told her. So how come it showed that she did? She was both [Hero] and [Researcher] What was she supposed to do now? What did it mean? Lexie had no clue. But she needed to talk to Aiden as soon as possible. Lexie was suddenly distracted by Xena''s sharp intake of breath. The other girl no longer looked sick. She looked shocked like someone had struck her, and her lips shook a little. Her eyebrows were furrowed in confusion and there was almost rage flickering in their depths. Shit. Lexie thought. She didn''t get a mana score, did she? Did she get a physical or mental score? Is she mundane? Lexie knew that was a possibility even as she''d encouraged Xena and gave her some pathway lessons. Lexie knew there was a chance that even with that, Xena might be mundane. She''d even practiced what to say for this exact moment but right now her mind went blank. So much for 80% EQ. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± she finally managed to say, quite lamely. ¡°It''s okay if you can''t be a healer. We¡¯ll figure something¨C" But Xena didn¡¯t even sound like she heard her. She simply bolted to her feet and ran out of the classroom. 59 - Shocking Discoveries ¡°Xena!¡± Lexie got up to chase her friend but then thought twice about it. Xena hated being emotional in front of people and Lexie¡¯s presence would probably be more of a bother than anything else. It was probably better to give her space. Right? Lexie wasn¡¯t sure, but she knew if she received very disappointing news, she¡¯d probably want to process it alone. So instead, she sat back down and quickly sent a message. Text me if you need me. Xena didn''t reply but Lexie didn¡¯t expect her to. The other girl was probably going through it. Lexie sighed and surveyed the environment around her. Xena wasn''t the only one who had run out. So had Diane. And Veronica looked shocked to her very marrow, muttering, ¡°How?¡± Lexie didn¡¯t know what that was about but she continued scanning. Abernathy looked disappointed. Doyle looked resigned. And Chris looked ecstatic. ¡°Yeah, boy!" He pumped his first, "A-Rank Physical, Brawler Type affinity!¡± Abernathy finally met Lexie¡¯s eyes. ¡°Did you get your pre-affixation?¡± Lexie nodded. There was no use in hiding it now. ¡°Card User Mage.¡± Abernathy blinked. ¡°That¡¯s lame,¡± he said plainly, looking surprised and maybe a little happy too that he wasn¡¯t the only one with bad luck. ¡°I thought pre-awakeneing meant that you were supposed to be powerful.¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°Apparently not. But I¡¯m going to try and see if I can get a [Researcher] role with it.¡± ¡°That might be best,¡± he said, then sighed deeply staring up at the ceiling. ¡°I wish I¡¯d at least gotten something I could work with. Instead of a big fat nothing.¡± Once again, Lexie felt guilty. She wanted to say sorry, but something told her that Abernathy wouldn''t appreciate her pity. As he and the boys got up and filed out of the class, she finally turned to Dewie who was sitting there silently. He was moving his lips like he was reading something off his system screen. ¡°Hey Dewie,¡± she asked. ¡°You okay?¡± He nodded slowly. ¡°I think so. I¡¯m not sure what this means though.¡± ¡°What what means?¡± He glanced at her and then a second later, she got the alert:
DEWIE AZURE WOULD LIKE TO SHARE HIS SCREEN WITH YOU. ACCEPT? [YES] [NO]
Lexie visually hovered over the [YES] button and it opened Dewie¡¯s stat screen. She took a second to read the first few lines and she gaped.
Name: Dewie Azure Race: Human Age: 12 Mana: S-Rank (Open to View More) Intelligence: C-Rank (Open to View More) Physical: Unranked Mana Class: Undeclared Subclass: Undeclared Level: 1 Optimal Mana Range: 1000-1200 Affinity: Undetected Sub Affinity: N/A Mana Cap: 1200/1200 Mental Class: Undeclared Secondary Class: Undeclared (Cannot be declared until Optimum Level in Primary Class is Achieved). Affinity: Undetected Level: 2 Breakdown IQ: 100 Wisdom: 35% Memorization: 50% Creativity: 69% EQ: 27% Talent: 90% Thinking Speed: 50% Perception: 92% Belief: 80% Strength: 30%
¡°Dewie, this is¡­¡± Lexie didn¡¯t have the words. It wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t consider that Dewie had magic. His visions hinted at something potentially magical and even though he hadn¡¯t pre-awakened, Lexie thought there was a good chance he had an innate magical ability. Just like how Lexie herself had been able to feel the mana in the atmosphere when she woke up from her coma. That didn¡¯t seem like something normal people could do and just like Dewie''s visions, she didn''t need the System''s input before she got that ability. But Lexie truly didn¡¯t expect him to be an S-Rank. However, if she thought about it, it made sense. Maybe his mana capacity being so high was why he could see visions. But how did the System not detect it and pre-awaken him? Also, maybe there was a genetic component? While his dad, the famed hero Blueman, was only a B-Rank, Dewie''s birth mother might have been higher-ranked. But Dewie never spoke about his mother, so Lexie had no clue. His mana ranking wasn¡¯t the only surprising part. He¡¯d gotten a mental ranking too, but he¡¯d scored pretty average on most things except Perception, Belief, and Talent. Perception meant that he could feel things that other people couldn''t. That was probably tied into the visions he had, and once again, Lexie linked it to the Fae, possibly. Maybe his mother was partially Fae? But Elvira was partially Fae too and she didn''t have the visions either. Lexie also hadn''t read anything like that in any of her Fae textbooks. Whatever, she would look into that later. She also didn''t know what Belief and Talent were exactly, but she could make educated guesses based on the context. ''Talent'' most likely meant that he had something he was exceptional at, more so than the average person, and the higher the number, the more disparity there was between him and other people. Belief well¡­probably had to do with how much he believed in himself and his visions? She would need to cross-check with Aiden to know for sure. ¡°Is it alright?¡± Lexie blinked and realized that Dewie was waiting there anxiously for her response. ¡°Yeah," she said and smiled at him for good measure. ¡°This is incredible. You¡¯re an S-Ranked Mana User. He offered her a little smile. ¡°Yeah, I guess. I didn¡¯t think I would be, even with all Madam Clementia''s lessons. She probably didn''t think I would be either.¡± ¡°Well, she was wrong.¡± And she wouldn''t be the first person. Judging by the students'' faces and grumbles as they filed out of the class, most people were surprised and unsatisfied with whatever they got. Including me, Lexie thought. She didn''t think the C-Rank in Mana would bother her but it did. Never got a C in my life before, she thought bitterly. Especially after all that hard work. Rather than dwell on it, she banished the thought to refocus on Dewie. ¡°So,¡± she asked. ¡°What are you going to do? Do you know?¡± He shrugged. ¡°No.¡± Then suddenly his face brightened. ¡°Do you think I could be a [Researcher] too? That way we could go to the same school?¡± Lexie¡¯s eyebrows raised. ¡°Oh. I''m not sure.¡± While Dewie¡¯s stats were overall pretty good, his mental ranking was still on the lower end for some of the schools Lexie planned to apply to, and he ranked high on the wrong things (typically the schools preferred high rankings on memorization, creativity, and IQ, rather than talent and belief). ¡°But are you sure you want to do research?" Lexie asked. Her own dad still didn¡¯t think she had the personality for it, but Lexie knew she could handle the isolation. Dewie, though, probably couldn¡¯t. ¡°How about being a [Hero] like your dad? Or even just a mage? You¡¯re S-Rank in mana so you can pretty much probably choose whatever mage academy you want.¡± If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I guess." He glanced down at his fingers and Lexie felt bad that she¡¯d been somewhat dismissive of his earlier plan. ¡°But,¡± she added. ¡°If we do end up at the same school, I¡¯d be happy.¡± Dewie hesitated then smiled brightly. Lexie smiled back but shook her head internally. It seemed that even though they¡¯d been friends for a year already, Dewie still had doubts about whether or not Lexie and Xena truly liked having him around. It showed in the things he said sometimes, and how he got really sad whenever they accidentally left him out of anything. Lexie was trying hard not to do that anymore. ¡°Dewie.¡± They both glanced over at Veronica who was swinging her leather school bag over her shoulder with an irritated look on her face. ¡°The chauffeur¡¯s here. Let¡¯s go.¡± Dewie nodded and stood, grabbing his bag. Lexie waved at him as he walked out with his sister, who glared at Lexie on the way out. Lexie glared right back. I wonder what her problem is. She didn¡¯t wonder for a long time though. There were so many other thoughts that were vying for her attention. For example, the thing with Xena. Lexie didn¡¯t know if she should wait for Xena or go. She probably couldn¡¯t stay long since her dad was waiting for her. While he let her use the train on her own sometimes, after numerous lectures on what and who she should avoid, he didn¡¯t want her coming home late. But she didn''t want to leave Xena to deal with the disaster on her own. But maybe Xena wanted to be left alone? After about a minute of waffling, she finally texted her Xena: Hey, I¡¯m leaving school now. Let me know if you want me to hang around for a little bit. Then she drummed her fingers as she waited. After ten minutes with no response, Lexie texted. Okay, I¡¯m going. But call me soon okay? Again no response. So she stood and walked out. *** Xena still hadn''t responded by the time Lexie got home and she was starting to get worried. She didn''t want to keep texting so she told herself she would give it another hour and then check in. Lexie was also worried about what she was going to tell Aiden. She wasn''t sure if the double role assignment was because of a screw-up with ISTS or not. Her reigning theory right now was that the initial affixation of [Card User Hero] was for Lexie Sparrowfoot, but the second one [Card User Researcher] was for Lexie Evans. Since she was technically both, the System messed up and gave her both roles. So did that mean Lexie Sparrowfoot''s soul was still in her body? Or was the system just glitching because Lexie Evan''s soul was in Lexie Sparrowfoot''s body? I don''t know but the more I think about it, the more of a headache I get. Lexie''s temples twinged as she rested her hand on the doorknob. But she hesitated at the threshold. She was going to have to tell Aiden about her low mana ranking. He¡¯d be letdown, wouldn¡¯t he? No matter how much he denied it, Lexie was pretty sure he was expecting her to be as talented with mana as he was. He would of course try to cover it up so she didn''t feel bad, but she would probably see disappointment and confusion flash on his face at least briefly. That would hurt. But she would understand. Due to her pre-awakening, he and probably tons of people thought she¡¯d have powers similar to his. Maybe they didn''t predict she would be a generational genius double S-Rank mage exactly, but they probably expected her to at least have maybe a B or an A mana ranking. But she got a C. An almost-unranked. This was what her father back on Earth 2 would call ''a massive disappointment''. It was the type of disappointment that would make him not speak to her for weeks. Her mother would give her a whole speech about how she needed to apply herself more and not take everything they did for her for granted. And Lexie would sit there silently, a lump in her throat, feeling like the lowest of the low. Aiden isn''t like that, she told herself. She doubted he would make a big deal about it, at least not to her face. But she knew even just that flash of disappointment would still cut her deep, with how much his opinion had come to mean to her. She swallowed and her fingers tightened on the door handle. Here goes nothing. She pulled it open and immediately spotted Aiden in the kitchen. He was still in his teaching suit, with the jacket off and the sleeves rolled up. But he''d also tied his trademark flower-patterned apron right on top of it. When Lexie closed the door behind her, he spun around. Welcome lit up his expression. ¡°Honey bee,¡± he said and Lexie walked forward to the kitchen. She saw two cakes resting on the counter, one of which said, ''Congratulations on System Day'', and the other said, ''Sorry that System Day sucked. '' ¡°I didn¡¯t know which one would be more appropriate for the occasion,¡± Aiden said following her gaze. ¡°So, I made both just in case. How did it go?¡± Lexie slid into the seat and said, ¡°Okay, I guess. I got a pretty good mental ranking.¡± ¡°Oh good!¡± He clapped once, happily. ¡°Looks like it¡¯s the first cake then.¡± ¡°But,¡± she snuck a look at his face, unable to help herself, ¡°I¡¯m only a C-Rank Mana User.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± His eyebrows furrowed in thought for a second, but he didn''t look mad or disappointed, or even really surprised. ¡°Well it¡¯s to be expected, I suppose, given your mother and my genetics. And the fact that you got prematurely pre-affixed as a Card User.¡± ¡°Yeah, but I thought I would be an A or B-Ranked Card User. That way I had access to a larger deck.¡± Even though almost no A-ranked mages used Cards, the system still gave some advantages to an A-rank Card User. They got access to a deck of twenty-four cards instead of the usual twelve and B-Ranked Users could have decks of eighteen. Lexie wanted that so she could expand her Starter Deck. Aiden smiled indulgently. ¡°Honey, you realize that being an A or B-Rank Card User makes it more difficult for you to perform the¡­amendments that you do to the activation process, right? After all, that requires precise mana control, and the more mana you have the harder it is to control.¡± ¡°Yeah I get that, but I just¡­I don''t know.¡± She sighed. Her head was kind of a mess right now and she couldn''t properly even articulate her feelings on the subject, couldn''t explain the stray feelings of failure she had. But Aiden seemed to understand. He came to her side and sat by her, taking her hand. ¡°You did well, Lexie. Very well." ¡°Not as well as you.¡± ¡°Oh, so it¡¯s a competition?¡± He teased, then chuckled. ¡°There are tons of things you¡¯re better at than I ever was. Your awareness of your environment, creativity, thoughtfulness, daring¡­ heck, Max thinks you would probably be better in a crisis than I would.¡± Lexie shrugged. She knew he was just saying that to make her feel better but she was happy he didn''t seem too let down. Nevertheless, she had to check. ¡°You¡¯re not disappointed?¡± Aiden snorted. ¡°Of course not. To be truly frank, I¡¯ve never cared one way or another what your ranking is. For some time, your mother and I thought that you might get the unranked combination of both of us and become mundane. Then you would be a botanist and open a nice flower shop in a safe part of whatever city you chose to reside in. And we were very happy with that. All I care about Lexie is your happiness and your safety.¡± Lexie stared at him. He looked like he meant it. She thought about all the times she¡¯d seen other parents say that to their kids, mostly on TV, and she¡¯d always thought something like that only existed in the minds of sitcom writers. She''d thought that most parents only wanted their kids to achieve greatness and perfection, and would invariably be disappointed when they fell short. But Aiden¡­ he truly looked and sounded convincing. So much so that Lexie felt like a load was being lifted off her chest. She finally attempted a smile. ¡°I guess we can have the first cake then.¡± ¡°Great. I was hoping you would say that. That one is a new recipe I was attempting with butter pecan and I was hoping you would like it.¡± He went over to the counter, to slice off a big piece of cake, shuffling it on a plate and lining up two forks on either side. Then he returned putting it on the table. Lexie took her fork and cut out a piece, popping it in her mouth. The flavor burst on her tongue. It was really good, buttery and moist. It alleviated even more of her earlier melancholy. ¡°If you were mundane,¡± Lexie said. ¡°I think you would own the best bakeshop in the city.¡± Aiden grinned. ¡°Thank you. But most restaurants still require ranked baking experts as their primary chefs.¡± ¡°Of course they do.¡± Lexie sighed and cut another piece. ¡°So, what now? Oh also, another weird thing happened but I''ll tell you after I''m done with my cake." ¡°Noted,¡± Aiden said as he picked up a fork and sliced out a piece for himself. ¡°How did your mental scores look? What was the breakdown?¡± ¡°I don''t really remember. It was a bunch of numbers and percentages. Here let me share my screen with you.¡± In between mouthfuls of cake, Lexie granted access to her screen for Aiden to see. She was about to take another bite when Aiden froze beside her. She faced him alarmed. ¡°What is it?¡± His mouth was slightly agape as he stared into the air at the screen she''d shared. And then he closed his mouth and swallowed. ¡°Well, for one thing," he said. "You massively downplayed how good your mental score was. And here you were jealous of my scores.¡± She cocked her head. ¡°What do you mean?¡± He gave her an incredulous look. ¡°Lexie, you¡¯re not just an S-Ranker. You''re a Level 7 S-Ranker." His eyes bored into hers, pushing to translate the impact of what he was saying. "There has never been a Level 7 S-Rank assigned on System Day. I was only a Level 5 when I awakened. To my knowledge, there has never been a level 7 S-Rank awakening before.¡± Lexie was somewhat confused by Aiden¡¯s reaction. ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± she said. "Perhaps I should explain it better then." He spread his arms wide as he searched for the words, uttering them carefully. ¡°Levels are calculated based on averages of the population, with more weight given to people with the same skill set and affinity as you. Ranks have to do with your mana capacity and affinity, while levels have to do with your expertise. So a Rank cannot be changed, because it''s deeply tied to your genetics, but levels can. An S-Rank Level 3 user will have more raw mana and higher mana affinity than an A-Rank Level 6 user, but the latter could have more mastery over the skill than the former. Now what that means is that a Level is a semi-complex ranking based on the scores of those like you and those not like you.¡± ¡°So¡­" Lexie wanted to reword his claim to ensure she understood fully what he was trying to say. ¡°You¡¯re saying that my level of intellect is as compared to other S-Ranked Card-Users and to a lesser extent other card users¡­¡± ¡°Yes and to an even lesser extent, others of other disciplines. Again we don¡¯t know the exact calculations the system uses to determine such a thing, but those are the major factors it includes. That means that starting out, most people are going to be, by definition, average or below average when it comes to any given discipline because they¡¯re being compared to people who have had years to level up. I, for example, awakened as a level 4 intellect and level 5 mana, and that was considered extremely good for my age. Most start as a level 1, 2 or 3. But you¡¯re starting as a Level 7. That¡¯s pretty unheard of.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Lexie shrugged but she didn''t see the big deal. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because I pre-awakened?¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°That still wouldn''t account for it. It would maybe, maybe get you a level 6 but not a 7.¡± ¡°That¡¯s only a one-point difference.¡± Aiden picked up his fork again, twirling it in his fingers. ¡°It might seem like not a lot. But it is. The higher your level, the harder it is to advance, because the stiffer the competition. There''s a bigger difference between levels 6 and 7 than there is between levels 6 and 4. At those high levels, most people are trying their hardest to advance so you might actually see your level drop if enough people advance past you, although that often doesn¡¯t happen. And it doesn''t happen mostly because of the second thing.¡± ¡°Which is?¡± ¡°Most talented people will only move up three levels in their entire lifetime. Four if they¡¯re extremely dedicated. Two if they start at a high enough level.¡± He met her eyes. ¡°Do you understand? That means that if you work hard enough, you¡¯ll reach level 10. You may even go beyond that." ¡°Like a level 11?¡± she frowned. "Is that possible? I thought people peaked out at 10." ¡°That''s what we assume because no one has ever gone beyond a level 10 before. It''s damn near impossible to even reach Level 10. Only one person, Lexie, one person I know of has ever reached Level 10 Intelligence.¡± ¡°Who?¡¯ Aiden''s face changed, becoming slightly shuttered. ¡°I forget his name. But that¡¯s not the important thing, the important thing is that you should have a pretty easy time going to any [Research] academy you want to with these numbers.¡± Lexie had a feeling Aiden was lying about not knowing the name of one Level 10 person, mostly because Aiden knew everything, but she let it go, focusing instead on what he was saying. ¡°You think?¡± "Yes. Even if you never manage to change your pre-affixation to research, your intelligence score puts you amongst the top ranked scholars." Lexie sighed and didn''t see any point in hiding it anymore. Aiden was the only one who could help her figure out the double role thing. "Speaking of pre-affixation, there''s also something else I need to tell you..." 60 - Late Night Visitor ¡°What is it?¡± Aiden asked, wiping some of the icing off his fork. Lexie sighed. ¡°Just scroll down a little on my screen. You should see it.¡± He nodded and while Lexie focused on eating her cake, Aiden went back to reading her system screen. She knew the second he saw it because his entire body stiffened and his eyes nearly popped out of his skull. ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± he murmured like he was talking to himself. ¡°Me either,¡± Lexie said, almost casually. "I don''t..." He shook his head again, trailing off. ¡°What on earth are these...Special System Points? And why did you get ten of them under the [Hero] affixation?¡± ¡°Again, I have no clue. I¡¯m guessing this is something that has never happened before too.¡± ¡°Never heard of it.¡± His eyes met hers, their hazel depths murky with his confusion. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of anyone getting two roles either. I mean it¡¯s most likely a system error and the system notes that as well but¡­¡± He didn''t seem to know what to say next, only exhaling. ¡°I just don¡¯t know, honeybee. So much about your affixation, and your abilities, simply do not make sense.¡± She nodded. She felt the same way. And now she was even more worried that it had to do with the ISTS and being a Chosen, whatever that meant. The welcome manual had mentioned something about her doing her ''civic duty'' once she was of age, but what did that even mean? What was she supposed to do now that she¡¯d awakened? ¡°So now what?¡± she asked her father. ¡°I have two role pre-affixations and an abnormally high level in two disciplines. What do I do with that?¡± Aiden gave himself a few seconds to think about it, then he shrugged weakly. ¡°Well, I suppose you can do anything you want at this point. You can pick whichever role you want¨C¡± ¡°[Researcher],¡± Lexie said immediately. ¡°That¡¯s what I want.¡± Her father looked like he wanted to argue but he nodded in resignation. ¡°In that case, I suppose you could just continue with that pre-affixation and ignore the other one.¡± ¡°I can do that?¡± It was what she''d planned on doing anyway, but she wanted to make sure it was feasible. ¡°The [Hero] thing isn''t going to cause me any problems?¡± Aiden shook his head. ¡°Not unless you affix it, which I definitely wouldn''t advise you to do just yet, with any of your pre-affixations. In the meantime, I¡¯ll poke around, and see if maybe I can figure out what¡¯s going on with your awakening. Because it''s very unusual and it worries me.¡± Lexie nodded slowly. She was also mildly worried, but she was more worried that by looking into it, Aiden might stumble upon information about the ISTS. Should she try to dissuade him from poking around? On the other hand, she also wanted to know what was going on, because so far, she was lost and just going off feelings and assumptions. And if Aiden found out on his own, and told her, she wouldn¡¯t be punished for breaking ISTS rules, because she hadn''t technically revealed her association with the ISTS, right? So it was a win-win. Also, there was no way for her to realistically tell him not to look into such a weird situation without seeming suspicious. ¡°What school do you think I should apply to?" she asked instead. "Arcadia?¡± She had a list ready of course, but she wanted to hear Aiden¡¯s opinion. Worry still rumpled his forehead, but he seemed to accept her change of subject. ¡°Arcadia has a good card magic program. Donington has a better one, with fewer core classes on their syllabus. Come to think of it, Victoire has a good research program too.¡± ¡°Victoire?¡± Lexie frowned. ¡°The hero academy you attended?¡± ¡°Yes. As I told you before, they do take on a handful of scholars on a case-by-case basis to conduct individual research, just like I did. It''s great because they''re quite hands-off with it and you get tons of funding to do as much research as your heart desires." Lexie''s interest was peaked. That did sound more appealing than sitting in dark rooms and studying. "But you said it was really hard to get into that program." "It is. For normal people." He gave her a wry smile. "But you are a Level 7 scholar, and a Level 7 mage. Not including the fact that you have dual roles. I''m sure Headmaster Journeyman would be very interested in that." He chuckled, as though he''d said a private joke. "In other words, yes it''s hard to get in, but I don''t think you''ll have a problem. The only issue is, you would have to be willing to do [Hero] work on some level.¡± "Oh." That put a damper on things. She didn''t plan on doing [Hero] work at all. Still, she wanted to find out more. "You think they''ll take me even though my research is in Card Magic and how it can help mundane populations?" Her father nodded. "I don''t see why not. My research was quite obscure and controversial as well. Plus I heard through the grapevine that they were looking to expand their research program into a full-fledged campus apart from their [Hero] program, but I''m not sure how far they''ve gotten with that yet." "Hmm." Lexie chewed the inside of her lips. She¡¯d never even considered Victoire because of its reputation as an elite breeding ground for [heroes]. And she''d wanted to stay away from anything heroic until her pre-affixation changed. But now that she had both pre-affixations, that might be an option to consider. It was just difficult because she''d spent the entire year eschewing anything remotely heroic, and didn''t feel suited to heroism at all. So now it was like reopening her mind to a path that she''d immediately shut away long ago, and that was difficult. "You don''t have to figure it out right now," Aiden said, clearly seeing the struggle on her face. ¡°We¡¯ll look through and create the list of schools later." ¡°I already have a list,¡± she said. She¡¯d ranked them based on their commitment to pioneering magical discovery and also their proximity to home. Arcadia was currently number four on her list. It was indeed a good research college, but they were a little small and their funding was limited. "Good," Aiden said, not pursuing the matter. "It looks like you¡¯ve figured it out. Let me know if you need my help. Also, have you picked a starter deck yet?¡± Lexie shook her head. She''d spent time researching decks online and in the World Library, but she wasn¡¯t super excited about most of her options. Most decks were lame. Perhaps she would just stick to her Party Planner¡¯s deck for now, until she felt a pull one way or another. Or until she made her own deck. That was an option that she had been working towards too, making a Lexie Deck full of all the things that she might need. But she needed to make the cards first. Another thing to add to her seemingly never-ending to-do list. Aiden smiled like he could read her mind. ¡°I understand. But again, there''s no rush. You have another few weeks before you even have to send out applications." "But the earlier the better isn''t it?" Lexie said. "As most of the academies work on a rolling admission basis." "Most, but not all," he''d said. "Well, just let me know if you need my help with that too. I can provide insight on some of the cards that are...well, let''s just say there might be more to them than meets the eye.¡± Lexie nodded. "Thanks, Dad." "Of course, bumble bee." After a few more bites of cake, she helped Aiden clear the table and finally moved to her room to lay on her bed and process the day. In a nutshell, she had good news and bad news. Bad news, base mana was pretty low. Barely above what she had as a pre-awakened kid. The good news was that her intellect was high and it would help her get into any research school she wanted. She was pretty much guaranteed to become a [Researcher] and then she could gain Travel Points. She thought she would be happy being one step closer to her goal but she felt¡­well, she wasn¡¯t actually sure what she felt. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. She supposed the closest feeling was how she felt on that day when she¡¯d received her admission to MIT. A sense of accomplishment but also a sense of loss. Loss of what? That was what she couldn''t figure out. She mulled over it for a few seconds and then realized what it was. The loss of an option. She was more than a little upset that she''d never had a real choice. She¡¯d been locked into the card thing from day one, and while she liked cards, she''d been looking forward to maybe attempting to explore more magical techniques with spells or unbound arts. Or heck maybe even something physical although the idea didn''t really appeal to her. But she simply just wanted options. Or at least the illusion of choice. Over the months, she had toyed around with spells here and there and while she got the hang of it, using spells always wiped her out because of her mana capacity. She figured that when she fully awakened as an S, or A, or even B-Rank, then she could do more experimenting with spells. But complex spellwork, which most combative spells were, was going to be difficult as a C-Rank Mage. And unbound magic was impossible. So she had no other choice but cards. The System had pretty much decided from day one. It was frustratingly similar to how her parents had planned her entire life on Earth 2. She felt like she was simply following a script someone else had written and she truly had no idea what she herself wanted to do. Even with this research thing. She should feel accomplished that she¡¯d been able to get that pre-affixation through all her hard work, but she also felt a little hollow about that too. Was her becoming a [Researcher] truly an act of rebellion against the system''s initial pre-affixation? Or was she just clinging to what she was familiar with already? Sticking to the prison she knew, rather than risking the one she didn''t. "There¡¯s a difference between the prisons others make for us, and the ones we make for ourselves. The former sucks, but the latter is a lot harder to break out of." Her Grandpa Morris¡¯ words still rung in her head from time to time, and right now, it felt like an accusation. She''d been through so much since she got here, but she felt like she hadn''t changed all that much at all. She was still the same old Lexie stuck in her cage. She sighed. Well, no use in stressing out over it now, and her thoughts would simply depress her more. The choice had been made and she had to live with it. Plus at least she liked card magic and saw the potential for its expansion. She was also choosing to follow this path because it was the most straightforward way to make it back home. That was that. Is it? She thought to herself. When was the last time you even thought about going home? Is that still your goal? Have you taken the time to think about who and what you¡¯re truly doing all this for? Or are you simply still lost? She didn''t know the answer to those questions either. But what other option did she have? She hadn''t tried anything else because there was nothing else that made sense to try. The simplest way to access the ISTS was by becoming a [Researcher] and she needed the ISTS to even just contact her brother, to let him know that she wasn''t really dead. Logan, she decided. That was who she was doing this for. The melancholy didn''t leave, but maybe it was just the highs and lows of today that were making her feel that way. She''d probably process better in the morning. Right now her head felt like a moth ball rolling and picking up stray thoughts. She needed to distract herself and focus on something else. She decided to take the time to look through the school options given by the system which had helpfully organized everything into a ranked list of the best card programs. Just like Aiden said, Donington was on top, located three hours North of Arcadia. The second school on the list was Lantian Academy from District 6. The third school was all the way in District 3. There was no mention of Victoire, which made sense since their program was probably not as official and was on a case-by-case basis so Lexie was pretty sure they had a separate application for that. Lexie began glancing through the general application. To her pleasant surprise, it didn''t look as tedious as applying back on Earth 2. The System already had most of her information and all she had to do was tick relevant boxes of what she wanted to get forwarded to which school. Some schools had an essay portion where they wanted her to provide short write-ups about why she¡¯d picked those schools in particular, but that didn¡¯t take a ton of time either. She just had to do some quick research on the school and then write a hundred words tops. Easy. She could finish the entire application in less than an hour if she wanted to. But not today. Maybe tomorrow. When she was done with that, she opened up her card inventory. There was now a button there, blinking to alert her to choose her Starter Deck. Underneath it, it warned her that she would not be able to level up as a card mage without choosing a starter deck and also informed her of the advantages of having that deck. Lexie clicked on the advantages portion and the following list popped out:
YOU ARE A LEVEL 7 CARD USER UPON CHOOSING STARTER DECK, YOU MAY CLAIM THE FOLLOWING ATTRIBUTES:
  1. RULE OF SIX ¨C HOLD SIX CARDS IN SPECIAL SLOTS OUTSIDE OF YOUR INVENTORY. THESE SIX CARDS FORM A MINI DECK.
  2. QUICK DRAW ¨C ONCE A CARD HAS BEEN INCLUDED IN ¡®RULE OF SIX¡¯, IT LOCKS ONTO YOUR MANA CLOUD, REDUCING BOTH ACTIVATION TIME AND REFRACTORY PERIOD.
  3. ACE UNLOCK ¨C UNLOCK SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES OF VARIOUS CARDS WITH RELEVANT MARKINGS
MORE REWARDS ONCE YOU LEVEL UP
Well. That was nice to know at least. Lexie closed out the page and then opened another new section titled System Quests. Once she opened that up, she saw that it had been divided neatly into two different portions: [Hero Quests] [Researcher Quests] Great. She got double the work. But Aiden said she didn¡¯t have to bother about that unless she ended up affixing both, which she didn¡¯t see herself doing for the foreseeable future. Pre-affixed people got quests too, but there were far fewer penalties for non-completion and those penalties usually had to do with losing your pre-affixed status. Which Lexie was largely okay with when it came to being a [Hero]. Lexie sighed and started thinking about what she would want for her starter deck. She would want the deck to be flexible and have things she could use to defend herself. She would also want to be able to do research with it one way or another. Where did she even start with making a deck like that when she could barely make her own cards? There was so much work to do and so little time. But her mind was too much of a mess today to think clearly. Instead of doing deck research, she went to something familiar. She materialized and activated the card, eyeing the cartoon frog. She¡¯d been working on this card for nearly a year now with only some progress in adjusting his movements. She was trying to get him to do a cartwheel flip combo, just for fun, but it wasn¡¯t exactly working out. By her calculations, it should, but the creature was proving stubborn. ¡°You going to cooperate with me today?¡± she asked him. The frog stared blankly. Maybe she should move on. It wasn''t working out. But on a deeper level, she didn¡¯t like leaving anything unfinished and she didn¡¯t like admitting defeat. She was determined to figure out this frog card if it was the last thing she did. It was while working on it that she heard the strange noises outside her window. She looked over in time to find Xena, perched on her windowsill waving at her. Lexie raised an eyebrow, then got up and hurried over, opening the window. ¡°You know the front door works right?¡± she asked the other girl. ¡°Yeah,¡± Xena replied, in a weird tone as she glanced around the room as though a boogey man might jump out at any second. ¡°I just didn¡¯t want your dad to see me.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want him to tell Emma I¡¯m here.¡± Lexie¡¯s head cocked. ¡°Are you two fighting?¡± ¡°I need to come in. Are you going to get out of the way or what?¡± Lexie raised her eyebrows. Well, someone''s in a mood. Nevertheless, she swallowed her smart retort because she could sense from Xena¡¯s franticness that something serious was going on with her. Lexie moved to the side and Xena finally crawled in and turned to her. ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s been a crappy day.¡± ¡°Yeah, I bet.¡± Lexie sighed. ¡°Look Zee, it¡¯s not the end of the world.¡± She stared at her in shock. "You know?¡± ¡°No, but I can pretty much guess. You didn¡¯t get a ranking did you?¡± When she didn¡¯t answer, Lexie continued. ¡°It¡¯s completely fine and I know it sounds hypocritical and crappy coming from me, but there are plenty of things you can do without a ranking. Especially you. Heck, you have nearly 20K followers on Stylish so it¡¯s definitely something you can scale up into a career. And once you start getting sponsorships then¨C" Xena did the oddest thing then. She snorted, loudly and then slapped a hand over her mouth. ¡°You think that¡¯s what this is about?" she said, voice muffled and her eyes a little wild. "That I got unranked?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Yeah, Lexie did think that but watching Xena¡¯s reaction she was less sure. Xena''s laugh faded away to bitterness and her hand dropped. ¡°I wish I¡¯d been a mundane. That would have been far better than what I got.¡± ¡°What¡¯s worse than mundane?¡± Lexie wondered aloud. ¡°See for yourself.¡± XENA COLE WOULD LIKE TO SHARE HER SCREEN WITH YOU. ACCEPT? [YES] [NO] Lexie clicked on yes without thinking.
Name: Xena Cole (Birth Name to be revealed on System Day- Xena Lightlark) Race: Human Age: 11 Mana: S-Rank (Open to View More) Intelligence: Unranked Physical: Unranked Mana Class: Unbound Mage (Choose from Class Menu) Subclass: Undeclared Level: 1 Optimal Mana Range: 1000-1200 Affinity: Light Magic Sub Affinity: N/A Mana Cap: 1200/1200
Lexie¡¯s eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she read trying to make sense of what she was reading. ¡°Xena Lightlark?¡± Xena snorted again. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s the exact face I made." 61 - Secrets Come To Light ¡°Xena Lightlark?¡± Lexie glanced at her friend in confusion. ¡°Why does this say Xena Lightlark?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I want to know.¡± Xena started pacing, up and down, running her fingers through her dark hair. ¡°I mean, what the heck? How am I a Lightlark? My birth parents were mundanes. At least that¡¯s what they told me at the orphanage.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t remember them?¡± Lexie asked quietly. Xena never spoke about her birth parents before and Lexie never pried. Xena shook her head. ¡°They died when I was like three. My earliest solid memories are from the orphanage. Maybe a few stray images here and there but mostly everything I remember is from after their death. And I never remember either of them using powers. So how come it says I¡¯m a Lighlark? The Lightlarks haven¡¯t even been on earth ages. They all moved to the Fae planet and have been holed up there, doing system knows what, probably being experimented on and having their brains cracked open and oh my gosh, I¡¯m freaking out, Lex they¡¯re going to have to cut my hair to do that, won¡¯t they?" ¡°Relax.¡± Lexie nearly laughed because she''d never seen Xena this panicked before. But she resisted the urge because her friend truly looked like she was on the verge of a panic attack and Lexie knew this was very serious for her. She took Xena by the arms and led her to the bed, making her sit. ¡°Deep breaths. Don''t freak out yet. No one is going to cut into your brain and you''ll get to keep your luscious locks." ¡°No, I won''t. The minute I apply to any school, everyone is going to know who I am because of my affinity, and they¡¯re going to come after me. Even if I don¡¯t apply, they¡¯ll probably know.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s they?¡± ¡°I don''t know. Whoever it is that captures Lightlarks, and ships them off to Planet Fae.¡± Lexie giggled then both from the visual of Xena being shepherded off by Fae men-in-black, and also to ease her friend''s concerns. Maybe if Xena saw her being amused by the assumptions she was making, she too would relax too and see how ridiculous they were. ¡°I doubt that¡¯s how it happens,¡± Lexie said. ¡°The System can¡¯t force you to go to Planet Fae. It doesn¡¯t force you to do anything.¡± Except pre-affixation, of course, but Lexie didn''t want to make it about her. ¡°Remember what the [Saintess] said like a year ago? About how even when people are affixed as healers most of them choose not to use their powers?¡± Xena¡¯s expression was still filled with panic but she nodded slowly. "Yeah?" ¡°Well, Zee, if they can¡¯t force people to be healers, even though we¡¯re in desperate need of them, then they probably can¡¯t force you to use your powers or go to Planet Fae either. I¡¯m sure most Lightlarks go to Planet Fae not because they''re forced to, but probably because they just like it better than here. It¡¯s supposed to be a paradise.¡± ¡°How would we know? None of us have ever been there.¡± ¡°Yeah, but we¡¯ve seen it in pictures and videos. Plus according to Veronica, the Lighlarks are treated like royalty there. Probably get paid a shit ton too, considering the exchange rate. But there¡¯s nothing to suggest that you¡¯re going to get captured and sent there by Fae-sponsored child abductors.¡± Xena sighed and finally collapsed on the bed, lying flat on her back with her arms splayed out. She stared at the ceiling. ¡°This wasn¡¯t how System Day was supposed to go, she groaned. Lexie lay beside her, also staring upward. ¡°Yeah, tell me about it. But it¡¯s not the end of the world.¡± ¡°Easy for you to say. You¡¯re not the one potentially getting your head cut open.¡± She didn¡¯t say it with as much conviction as she did the first time. Maybe Lexie''s soothing words had gotten through to her. The worry never left her features though. ¡°But what if it¡¯s true? What if the Fae are actually as shady as we think and I have to go live with them?¡± Lexie thought about it. The Fae were a polarizing figure on Earth 9. Some people practically worshipped them for the magical advancement they brought to earth and for helping get rid of the Guardians. Others loathed them or at least were highly suspicious of them. And then there were those in between. Lexie didn¡¯t know where on that spectrum she fell. She didn''t have much of a frame of reference for the Fae, except the Fae culture stuff she was reading, and going off that she just thought they were smug, slightly annoying, and condescending creatures with a confusing culture. But they were seemingly also well-meaning. Much like the system they built, they were a hodgepodge of good and bad, but far from what she would call evil. More so controlling in a patronizing way, in the sense that it was clear they thought they knew better than humans. Perhaps the Fae saw humans like the system did, like children who needed strict direction and supervision. Lexie didn''t think they were malicious creatures but their viewpoint could have malicious results. Then again, maybe she didn¡¯t really care about them one way or another. At least for now. ¡°Do you still have that thing you carry around?" Xena asked suddenly. "What¡¯s it called again? A cellphone?¡± Lexie raised her eyebrow at Xena¡¯s question. ¡°Yeah. Why?¡± ¡°I want to contact someone. Did you know you can communicate with that thing?¡± ¡°You don''t say,¡± Lexie said wryly as she reached over to grab the cell phone from her drawer. It was, as always, at 87% battery. ¡°Who do you want to contact?¡± ¡°Someone I used to know back in the orphanage. He''ll know what to do." "Oh." Lexie nodded. ¡°Is there another way you can contact him? Because from what I know, this thing is basically a prop and doesn''t work. Not here at least." ¡°Well, duh. They can¡¯t work unless you connect it to tthe Undernet.¡± Shock slammed into Lexie. ¡°Wait, what?¡± This was the first Lexie had heard of it. Not of the Undernet, Xena had explained a while ago that it was a series of platforms and networks people used to contact each other and get information without the system noticing. So like a Dark Web. But Lexie didn''t know that connecting her phone to the Undernet would make it work. "How do you know that?" Lexie asked Xena, gripping her hand. Xena seemed a little taken aback by her exuberance. "My friend from the orphanage, his brother told us. He was a huge tech nerd and also pretty paranoid and would talk about how the system was secretly recording all our conversations and texts. He said that this was one way to communicate without the system knowing." ¡°How?¡± Lexie was suddenly filled with a different kind of energy, needing to know everything instantly. A brand new opportunity had just been presented to her. She¡¯d always just assumed that the phone couldn''t work in this world without the ISTS, because of the different energy requirements or lack of electricity or the proper cell service. And now she was finding out that there was a way¡­ "Why did you never tell me?" she demanded of Xena. "Why did you never ask?" Xena said in a similar tone. "And why are you so bent out of shape about this?" This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. "No, I''m not, it''s just..." She took a deep breath to calm herself down, releasing her grip on Xena''s hand. Lexie was getting ahead of herself. There¡¯s still a high possibility that the connection won¡¯t work interdimensionally, she reminded herself trying to temper her own hopes. After all, Xena was only talking about the phone being used to talk to people here, on Earth 9, and not across dimensions on Earth 2. But now that the little nugget of hope had taken hold of her mind, it was hard to let it go. And if there was a possibility that she could contact someone on Earth 2 through the Undernet, no matter how small that possibility was, then she had to know. ¡°Does it work across dimensions too?¡± she asked. ¡° I mean I know you can communicate across with the ISTS¨C¡± ¡°The who?¡± Shoot. ¡°Nevermind. But did your friend mention anything about this working across dimensions?¡± Xena slowly shook her head watching Lexie as her heart sank. ¡°He didn¡¯t say anything about it,¡± she said. ¡°I mean I guess it might be possible but I can¡¯t be sure until we go see him.¡± ¡°Your friend?¡± ¡°No. A guy that my friend knew. A technomage that doesn''t work for the heroes association and knows how to work these things to connect them to the Undernet. He lives in Old Moulding, near the village where the orphanage was. It¡¯s only a short trip away and if we leave right now¨C¡± ¡°Hang on.¡± Lexie finally put her hand up allowing her to think clearly for a second. ¡°Xena, you¡¯re not actually thinking of heading to Moulding, tonight, are you?¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Lexie blinked at her. Did she just ask me that? Old Moulding, which was about 40 km North of Moulding, was a fairly high-crime city. Most of the regional news crime reports seemed to be generated from that locale. That was why hero activity was so concentrated there, because of all the villains who ran rampant. ¡°We can¡¯t go,¡± Lexie said again. At least not at night. Perhaps it was manageable in the morning when the heroes did their surveillance and the criminals presumably slept, but at night, crime was exacerbated. ¡°We can''t go tonight at least,¡± Lexie amended when it looked like Xena was going to argue. "We can maybe go tomorrow morning, early." Lexie thought that would appease her friend but Xena didn''t seem mollified. ¡°Why not now?¡± ¡°Xena, it¡¯s nearly ten o¡¯clock. That¡¯s past my official bedtime. And I can¡¯t just leave home without telling my dad. I promised I wouldn¡¯t do that to him.¡± Even beyond my own cautiousness, Lexie was held back by her loyalty to Aiden. If Aiden found out she''d endangered myself like that, it would break his heart. At the same time, it meant a lot for Xena to come and ask her this favor and she didn¡¯t want to let her down either. Plus knowing Xena, she might just set off on her own anyway and that was even more dangerous. ¡°We¡¯ll go tomorrow," Lexie said. "And we won¡¯t go alone. We need to take an adult with us." ¡°Not your Dad. He¡¯ll tell Emma and I don¡¯t want to tell her yet.¡± Lexie wasn''t planning on telling Aiden, but the thing about not telling Emma about Xena''s parentage surprised her. "Why not? You think she¡¯ll judge you or something?¡± ¡°I just don¡¯t want to,¡± Xena said firmly with a look that sent a clear warning that she didn¡¯t want to debate about this. Right then. Back on track. ¡°I won¡¯t tell Aiden, but we do have to take an adult with us. Maybe Uncle Max if he¡¯s feeling in the mood, although I¡¯m not sure you¡¯ll be able to keep the reason why we''re going to Old Moulding from Uncle Max and he may not approve." Uncle Max could be pretty lax about certain things, including giving kids guns, but Lexie didn''t think he would be so accepting of Lexie''s phone getting connected to the Undernet, something criminals used to evade the law. That might be a step too far for him. Not to mention, Xena was already shaking her head at the suggestion, which meant that Lexie couldn''t tell Max either. She sighed. ¡°Fine, he¡¯s out then.¡± She brainstormed for a few seconds then said, ¡°How about Lars? Dewie¡¯s chauffeur.¡± Lars had given them rides a bunch of times, and the girls were fond of him. He was a nice guy but quiet and unobtrusive, didn''t ask questions and just did his job. And while he may not really have the build of a body guard, Dewie mentioned that he used to be a soldier back in the day and did carry concealed firearms. That should be good enough. Xena wasn¡¯t shooting down the idea at least, which was progress. ¡°We¡¯ll text Dewie to see if it would be okay. Of course, he¡¯d have to come along too at that point because we wouldn¡¯t be able to keep him away. So we go to Old Moulding to meet this guy and then we leave once we¡¯re done. No detours." Xena mulled it over. ¡°Fine. But just so you know I think you¡¯re being over the top about this whole thing. I lived near Old Moulding for years and it¡¯s not like in the news where everything is dramatized. My friend and I used to go to that neighborhood all the time and nothing bad happened.¡± ¡°Yeah, no offense, but this friend of yours sounds sketchy as hell too.¡± Not that Lexie was judging anyone for being on the Undernet, especially seeing as she kind of wanted to get connected to it too if it helped her communicate with other dimensions, but in her experience, most people who were trying to circumvent the law to that extent probably had a lot of shady things to hide. Or they were just the excessively paranoid type, which Lexie had never been. What on earth is the government going to do with my cringy texts and calls anyway? ¡°He¡¯s not sketchy,¡± Xena yawned as though the tension had made her sleepy. ¡°You¡¯re just a lame-o who doesn''t like cool people.¡± ¡°Right. And you''re supposed to be the cool one here, Mrs. Almost-had-a-panic-attack-because-of-an-imaginary-problem?¡± ¡°You said it, not me.¡± And then Xena''s eyes widened again, as though she just considered something else. ¡°What do we do if we don''t have time tomorrow? What if they come for me tonight?¡¯ ¡°They won¡¯t come for you. I don''t think anyone''s coming but if you''re that worried, you can sleep over and if anyone comes in through my window, I''ll kick their ass." ¡°With what? Your little frog friend?¡± Lexie raised her chin. ¡°His name is Sir Toadward Hoppignton, thank you very much, and he¡¯s not so little anymore.¡± Lexie had managed to make him more solid and increase his size slightly by simply pouring more mana into one of the notches on the pathways. Though it wasn''t much, it was nice to see him look less transparent and more lifelike. He was a handsome little fella too, if she said so herself. Maybe Lexie should see if she could get him to wear a tophat or a bowtie like Dewie did. ¡°Just sleep here,¡± Lexie told Xena. ¡°Text Emma and tell her that we had an impromptu sleepover so she doesn''t come looking for you. And text Dewie and ask about the chauffeur. Everything will be fine.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± she said. "Everything will be fine." But she didn¡¯t sound so sure about it. There was a stretch of silence. Crickets chirped outside the window and the downstairs was entirely quiet. Lexie wondered if her dad had gone over to Max''s for his self-defense classes, or if he''d gone up to sleep. She also wondered if she could manage more cake, but her stomach was already sick of the sugar. ¡°You want cake?¡± she asked Xena who predictably shook her head. She¡¯d never been much of a sweet tooth. Xena smirked. ¡°Dewie¡¯s going to eat his heart out when he finds out we had a sleepover without him.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you dare tell him or I¡¯ll eat your heart out.¡± Xena merely smiled and continued considering the ceiling. Later that night, they asked Dewie and his answer was a solid yes. And it didn''t even take much to convince him. ¡°You sure?¡± Xena asked. ¡°Your mom won¡¯t be bothered that you¡¯ll take her chauffeur?¡± ¡°They¡¯re pretty¡­happy about my awakening," he responded. "I don''t think I could bother them right now if I tried. What time do you want me to come pick you up?¡± ¡°In the morning,¡± Lexie said. "Like maybe 9:00 am. The patrols come out at 10:00 in Old Moulding." "Alright. Sounds good." "Thanks, Dewie." After they hung up, Lexie calmed Xena''s anxiety some more until the other girl fell asleep. And then Lexie worked through midnight on her cards. If they were going to go into a dangerous neighborhood then she needed all the defense she could get and she had been working on a few defensive card combinations throughout the summer that she was hoping to craft into separate cards of their own once it was ready. The card would have to do for now, even though they were not intuitive. The next morning she told Aiden a little white lie about hanging out with Xena and Dewie for a System Day celebration. Apparently, that was a tradition that teenagers all across Orinia participated in. Aiden said ''sure'' without question and Lexie felt more than a little guilty. She told herself she was doing it for a good cause and she would be safe. Besides, Aiden already told her he''d put a tracker on her that he checked every once in a while, so if she was in crisis, she would just SOS him and he would be able to find her. The next stop for Lexie before Dewie''s arrival was Uncle Max¡¯s house. Predictably, he was in his garage bunker, a large metal room with guns, equipment, and artillery lined up on each wall. Max was bent over a table with a welding mask on, drilling into metal. ¡°Uncle Max!¡± she said, yelling over the sound of the drill. ¡°Can I get the gun? I need it.¡± Lexie half-expected Max to ask follow-up questions about what it was for or remind her of the safety precautions. But he didn''t miss a beat and simply pointed in the direction of some metal cabinets. "Fourth drawer," he said distractedly, going back to his drilling. ¡°Don¡¯t kill anyone unless they deserve it.¡± 62 - Meet The Genius Dewie¡¯s mom¡¯s Road Rocket had been designed for extreme comfort. It had plush leather seats that molded to one¡¯s form fitted with a massage mode, perfectly tempered glass, ample leg room even for Xena who was nearly five-eight at this point, and the pleasant scent of eucalyptus in the air. Not to mention, it also had a partition that could be raised in the middle to separate the kids from Lars. Of course, Lexie and co. never raised it because it felt a little snooty to do so and Lars was always so nice on the trip. Even though he barely talked, it was fun to sometimes watch his expressions. But it was also good to know that they could get some privacy if they wanted. The vehicle pretty much navigated itself so Lars was there mostly as a chaperone and also a partial DJ, ensuring that popular but child-friendly music continuously played on the radio. Lexie sat sandwiched between her two friends, Dewie wearing his trademark pressed shirt, loafers, and bowtie, and Xena in an artistically ripped shirt, black leather pants, and beret. Worry ruffled Xena¡¯s eyebrows, and Lexie marveled at how stylish her friend looked even when stressed. ¡°Do you know how to use it?¡± Xena suddenly asked, gesturing to the slightly-bigger-than-normal lighter in Lexie''s hand. At least it looked like a lighter. It was pink and sleek, with shiny metallic trim and two smaller buttons on the top. Clicking one of them had fire erupting from the top, like a regular lighter. Clicking the other button had the lighter instantly unfolding itself into the shape of a small gun that shot sharp, slender bullets that could pierce through metal. Uncle Max said he couldn¡¯t figure out how to fit propeller bullets in this model, but he would make sure she had it in the next. He¡¯d also given her a thin pink belt that doubled as a holster for the gun-lighter. ¡°Yeah,¡± Lexie said in response to Xena¡¯s question. ¡°My Uncle Max gave me lessons a few months after I turned eleven.¡± They were secret lessons because even he admitted that her dad would probably disapprove of them. He''d continued them anyway, because, as he put it, "A young girl needs to know how to protect herself. Especially in this world filled with creeps and perverts.¡± He¡¯d glared in the air when he''d said and Lexie had had a sneaking suspicion that he was thinking about Monty Ward again. Lexie didn''t think Monty wanted anything perverted from her, but she still didn''t like the [Hero] for trying to emotionally control her. When she¡¯d told her dad about the thing with Monty, his expression had grown hard. From that day on, he¡¯d added on more lessons on how to resist pathway manipulation. And Uncle Max had taught her how to shoot. Thanks to Max, Lexie was a pretty good shot if she did say so herself. Max thought so too. More specifically, he''d said she had her mother''s aim, glowing with pride and wistfulness when he''d said it. He''d also taught Lexie gun safety, how to unholster, unfold, and shoot in three seconds flat. He showed her what the different buttons on the gun did and most importantly, how to reload after you ran out of rounds. Uncle Max had been exceptionally thorough with his lessons and Lexie was glad for it, especially on a trip like this when she was going into a dangerous neighborhood. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± Dewie announced. He didn¡¯t seem nervous about the trip. He seemed his usual happy-go-lucky self but maybe since he was used to seeing strange creatures everywhere, he grew fearless towards everything else. Dewie¡¯s announcement wasn¡¯t necessary because the Road Rocket was equipped with a GPS map that hovered in the air and told them that they were close to their destination. Dewie waved his hand to banish it. ¡°Alright,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Going over the plan again. We just go in. Talk to your friend¡¯s friend about the cell phone and how to do the thing. And then we get out. Deal?¡± Xena nodded. Dewie nodded too, and then Lexie turned to Lars and said, "Lars, do you mind parking somewhere around the corner, so you''re a bit hidden but can still see the front of the shop? Just in case someone sees the fancy car and tries something. And Dewie, could you wait in the car?¡± His face instantly fell, and Lexie rushed to amend, ¡°It¡¯s just that¡­it¡¯s not safe for all three of us to go. I have my gun and Xena has my card but you would be defenseless.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not defenseless,¡± he argued. ¡°I¡¯m an S-Rank Mage now, remember?¡± ¡°Do you know any attack spells?¡± Dewie shook his head. That wasn''t one of the things the pre-awakening class taught apparently. So, although he had vast wells of mana, neither he nor Xena knew enough about pathways to be able to activate it right now. Which left Lexie and Lars as their defense. For the past year, Lexie had been working on outfitting her party planner cards with attack capabilities, mostly by mixing and matching and boosting certain aspects of their pathway while reducing limitations. It still may not be enough. Dewie still looked mulish but he nodded. ¡°We¡¯ll get you something nice,¡± Xena said to further placate him and he nodded again. Eventually, Lars parked in the corner of a street that was made up of cracked asphalt, faded paint walls and blocks of cinder held together by hope. Torn missing posters highlighted each wall, the ground was strangely wet as though something seeped from the sewers and the place was deserted except for a few rats. ¡°Are you certain this is the place?¡± Lars asked, concerned and disapproval in his voice. His voice was deep and rough from lack of use. Lexie assumed he remained mostly silent during rides because Vera Azure probably did enough talking for the both of them. For him to speak up meant that he was truly worried, and he also seemed reluctant to disengage the door locks so they could get out. ¡°Yup.¡± Lexie gave him a brief smile, trying to seem more confident than she actually felt. ¡°We¡¯ll just be in for a few minutes. Probably five minutes tops. If we¡¯re in there any longer then could you please call the number I gave you and tell him we need help?¡± It was Uncle Max¡¯s number. Lars nodded. "If you¡¯re in there for more than five minutes, I¡¯ll come after you myself." Aww. That was nice of him. He didn''t have a strong-looking build but it was the thought¨Cand his concealed weapons¨Cthat counted. "You guys are being dramatic," Xena said, rolling her eyes. "Nothing is going to happen." Lexie certainly hoped so. With deep breaths and a ¡®Good luck¡¯ from Dewie, Lexie and Xena stepped out of the car. Lexie immediately activated the card, which she¡¯d adjusted so it would give her more information about what was going on in the immediate environment around her. It gave her prickles on her neck if anyone was staring or talking about her, and it also just alerted her sometimes if there were people in the general vicinity. It also boosted the effect to mark urgency. She didn¡¯t feel anything so she told Xena, ¡°The coast is clear.¡± Xena nodded and they hurried to the entrance, a door that had been knocked off its hinges and rewelded. The Genius Bar was scrawled into the peeling paint on top of it. The Genius Bar. Lexie had a little chuckle at that. The interior of the place was lit up with neon colored tubelights. It also featured blood-red wallpaper, a slowly spinning fan, and a bright yellow ripped-up couch. The counter held a glass display case filled with broken motherboards, and different computer components. And at the other side of that sat an older teen with ratty black hair, who smelled a little stale and had eye bags underneath his eyes. He was using a funny-looking screwdriver to tinker with what looked like a gamepad, and according to his facial expression, it wasn¡¯t going very well. ¡°Hello.¡± Xena approached the counter first, calling out but the boy didn¡¯t look up. ¡°Are you Isaac?¡± ¡°Who wants to know?¡± ¡°Xena.¡± She cleared her throat. ¡°I¡¯m here for you to hook up my¡­cell phone to the Undernet.¡± He stopped what he was doing, gave them a single glance, and shook his head. ¡°No.¡± Xena¡¯s expression fell. ¡°I don''t understand. My friend Tony told me about you. He said you could get us hooked up for an affordable price.¡± ¡°I could,¡± he said. ¡°But I won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Why not? Name your price.¡± ¡°No price.¡± He gave them a grim smile and then pointed to the door. Then he turned back to what he was doing. Xena and Lexie looked at each other confused. What had just happened? ¡°Um excuse me,¡± Lexie called out but he didn''t stop with his tinkering to answer her. ¡°Hello? Did we do something?¡± ¡°No,¡± he said. ¡°But I don¡¯t want to talk to you anymore. I don¡¯t speak to your kind.¡± Their kind? How rude. But also puzzling. Xena and Lexie shared another confused look. They couldn¡¯t figure out what it was about them that he was discriminating against. ¡°You mean out-of-towners?¡± Xena tried. ¡°Or is it because we¡¯re not mundane.¡± He sighed and finally put down his screwdriver to stare. ¡°It¡¯s because you look like you have parents who actually give a damn about you," he said. ¡°Get lost, kids.¡± ¡°Not even for a thousand credits?¡± That gave him pause. ¡°You got a thousand credits on you?¡± ¡°Obviously, we wouldn¡¯t walk in here with that kind of money,¡± Lexie said, giving Xena an ¡®are you insane?¡¯ look. ¡°But we can work it out if you really can get us on the Undernet." The boy stared at them silently for a few seconds and then shifted his seat back, getting up. He immediately caught himself on the edge of the desk, blinking a few times as though woozy. Lexie knew that look very well. It was how her brother looked when he played video games for a weekend straight while forgetting that he had to eat and bathe and probably do some stretching at some point. When he finally got up, he would nearly pass out from all his bodily needs hitting him at once. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. After he recovered, Lexie noticed another similarity. Isaac also walked with the same slight hunch Logan sometimes got from bending over a computer all day. He held out hands with dark fingernails. ¡°Give it.¡± Lexie reached into her pocket and held out her phone. As his hand closed over it, she suddenly had a realization. She couldn¡¯t risk Isaac tampering with this phone, at least not until she knew him a little better. All her precious memories were in there, her texts with her brother and the character sheets. She''d locked those messages but he was a technomage and he could probably get access if he wanted to. He may not be able to figure out who Logan was talking to. Lots of souvenir cellphones on Earth 9 had texts for their original owners still on there, and people got a kick out of reading through those texts and imagining what was going on in that person''s life at that moment. But, it was too much to risk it. Maybe she should try connecting to the Undernet on another phone first. ¡°You won¡¯t do anything bad to it?¡± she asked. ¡®¡°Right?¡± ¡°Kid, I don¡¯t start work until there¡¯s money in hand.¡± That assured her and she released the phone. Isaac looked it over and under, frowning. ¡°This is an old, old model.¡± Yeah. It was seven dimensions old. ¡°Can you still work on it?¡± Xena asked. "Can I work on it?" Isaac quoted, chuckling to himself. "I could probably connect a toaster oven if I wanted to and you would be able to use it to contact anyone anywhere in the world.¡± His eyes glinted. ¡°Of course for the right price.¡± ¡°What about across dimensions?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Would you be able to rig it so that I can make calls across dimensions?¡± Isaac gave her a look like she was crazy at first, and Lexie felt her hopes lowering. But in a stunning shift, his expression turned thoughtful instead. He scratched the stubble at the side of his chin and muttered to himself, his eyes glazing over in thought. ¡°Hmmm,¡± he said. ¡°I wonder if I could. Funny enough, you¡¯re not the first person to ask me that. But why do you wanna know?" ¡°Just out of curiosity,¡± Lexie lied. ¡°I mean I know about the ISTS and the contact system there. But I wanted to know if there would be a way to bypass that.¡± ¡°The Undernet bypasses all system communication. But interdimensional communication will require something more than what we have currently. And it would cost a lot more than a thousand credits.¡± ¡°How much?¡± The man chuckled and handed Lexie back her phone. "Let¡¯s not put the chicken before the egg. First off, let¡¯s see if we can get this thing rigged to the Undernet and then if I like you enough as a customer, we can go from there. Deal?¡± Lexie turned to Xena who was staring at her. She shrugged and Lexie nodded to Isaac. "Deal," she said. ¡°So? You got a thousand credits for me?¡± No, she didn¡¯t. She hadn''t bet in a while so she just had regular allowance savings now. And she knew Xena didn''t have the money either. But for whatever reason, Xena blurted out, ¡°Yeah, I can get it for you next week.¡± Lexie''s eyes eyeballed her friend. Huh? Where did Xena plan on getting the money from? "We''ll definitely get the money for you next week," Xena said firmly. WE? Lexie sent Xena more wide-eyed signals but her friend stubbornly refused to meet her gaze as she continued negotiations. "So can you start work?" Isaac shook his head. "What? Do you think I''m sweet in the head or something? Do I look easy to rip off?" "We''re not trying to rip you off. Look, I''m serious. We can¨C" Isaac tutted. ¡°No can do. Get lost until you get the money.¡± He returned to his seat and the two girls stared at each other in dismay. What do we do now? Well, there was nothing to do but leave and figure out a way to get the money. Filled with crushed emotions, they started turning away. "Wait." Both girls spun back to him, eyes filled with hope. Isaac seemed to struggle with himself before he reached into a drawer, pulling out a cream, coin-shaped object that looked like a button. He tossed it over to them and Xena, being the taller, more athletic one, caught it. ¡°It¡¯s smart of you to come here with a gun and all,¡± he said, his eyes flickering down to Lexie''s gun-lighter holster. ¡°But it¡¯s a little overkill and might draw the wrong type of attention." Lexie blinked. How did he know it was a gun? Was that part of his powers, knowing how any technology worked? She''d thought it was limited to computer networks and things like that. How interesting. "Next time go through the proper channels and show them that coin," he said. "That way they know you¡¯re with me.¡± ¡°The proper channels?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll probably meet with them next time." Lexie and Xena swallowed. That didn¡¯t sound good. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Isaac said with a wicked grin. "Just be polite and honest, and it should all work out for you." Ok, that¡¯s it. Lexie grabbed Xena''s hand and immediately started pulling her out of the store, wanting to rush back to the safety of the car. She activated her card at the same time as they stepped out. But she noticed something. The Road Rocket was no longer there. ¡°Oh no.¡± Lexie thought, dread sinking in her stomach. ¡°No, no, no, no.¡± She immediately texted Dewie asking if he was okay, but there was no response. There wasn''t even an error message on the text, as though it never sent. What the heck? Was there a system jammer? She¡¯d never seen anything like it before. She didn¡¯t even know that could happen. There was a prickle at the back of her neck and sudden fear pulsed through her. She felt like she was surrounded. She tried to go back in but the door was closed. And then, a bunch of rough-looking young men blinked into view. Lexie almost screamed but one of them put a finger to his lips and said, ¡°Shhhh. Quiet, alright? We don¡¯t want to have to hurt you but we will if you make a sound.¡± Xena tensed, backing against her. Lexie was also on alert, but in the back of her mind, she was trying to figure out what just happened. How did they just materialize out of nowhere? The answer came to her when she saw the large mechs wrapped around their wrists. Forcefields. They must have used reflective force fields, the kind that TechnoCrat sometimes used to shield his location and cast illusions in his matches. And they were using some type of communication jammer to prevent texts too. Lexie wondered if there was a way to bypass it. She wondered if Dewie and Lars could see them or if they were hidden by the forcefields too. ¡°We don''t have any money,¡± Xena said. Lexie was impressed. Despite the fear she could feel emanating from Xena, her voice didn¡¯t shake. But one of the men with a blonde mohawk didn''t buy it. ¡°Why would you come to the Genius Bar without money?¡± ¡°Because we wanted information. To know if Isaac could do something for us.¡± "Isaac doesn''t give out information for free." Xena swallowed. She held up the round button. ¡°He gave us this and told us to come back when we saved up enough money.¡± Mohawk stared at the button and shrugged. "And what does that have to do with us?¡± Xena''s eyebrows furrowed with confusion and she swallowed. "I thought..." She didn''t seem to know how to answer that. ¡°Look, we don''t mean any harm,¡± the one who had spoken first said, shooting Mohawk an annoyed look. He looked about eighteen and talked in a soft, quiet tone, ¡°Like we said we don¡¯t want to hurt you. Just come with us and we¡¯ll call your parents to send us some money. Once we have it, we¡¯ll send you right back to them.¡± Yeah right. As if we¡¯ll fall for that. Meanwhile, Lexie was wondering what the right course of action was here. Obviously with everyone staring at them the card was out. And so was the gun because even if she managed to shoot one of them, her and Xena would immediately be subdued by the rest. The would only affect one of them at a time so that wasn¡¯t a great option either. What to do now? Lexie thought about it. She could buff up the clumsiness factor of the card and combine it with the collective choreography of . That way she could target all the men with all at once. The problem was that was kind of difficult to activate, and she would need to skip the node that extended the effect to her. It would need to be the waste card in this equation. She mentally calculated which node she had to combine with forming a perfect picture of it in her head. She¡¯d never tried that combination before but there was no time like the present. Once she got it, she went back to back with Xena, and materialized the cards, hiding the activation with their bodies. Meanwhile, Xena was still trying to talk their way out of this. ¡°You guys should know that we¡¯re [Hero] mages in training,¡± she said. ¡°If we go missing, a lot of people will be looking for us. We¡¯re not allowed to use our magic on you but we will use it if we''re sufficiently threatened." The men shared a look, but greed shone in Blonde Mohawk¡¯s eyes. ¡°Even better. We saw the car you rode in on. I bet there¡¯s a nice mage somewhere that would be willing to pay a handsome ransom for you two. Now if you come with us nicely this doesn¡¯t have to be messy.¡° In the meantime, Lexie finished the activation and pointed at their collective feet. The boys immediately lost control, stumbling on each other in a choreographed manner. "What the hell?" their leader said as Lexie grabbed Xena¡¯s hand and ran. She could see from the timer in her head that the effect would only last for ten seconds but she didn''t care. By the time they managed to break out of it, hopefully they would be on the other end of whatever forcefield was blocking them from seeing Dewie''s car. She was about to try calling Lars when suddenly she felt a very familiar pull backward. Shit. They had magnetic powers. Because of course, they did. Luckily, the magnetic pull was not as strong as Mouse¡¯s, probably because, unlike Mouse¡¯s, it was mech rather than magical. If she had to guess, these kids were mundane and could only use such powers thanks to the gauntlets on their wrists. The other lucky thing was that, after the incident with Mouse, Lexie had obsessively spent the last year looking into workarounds, something she could use if she ever tangled with magnetic powers again. She did it now by combining the with . Basically, she used the mirroring node of to mirror the magnetic field that was enacted upon her and used to send it back to them. That would cause like forces to interact and the generated effect should automatically repel her in the opposite direction. So after about five seconds of being dragged back, her body suddenly shot forward in the air and she dropped to the ground rolling. A second of elation filled her as she got to her feet ready to run. Great! Her workaround worked. Unfortunately, she hadn¡¯t planned that workaround to include Xena too. Lexie had run a few steps when Xena screamed as she was snatched up. Lexie spun round to find that Mohawk had snatched Xena by the hair and was trying to wrangle the rest of her struggling body. Lexie, without thinking, drew her gun and pointed it at the guy''s head, willing to shoot. ¡°What the hell?¡± one of the men muttered in surprise. ¡°Shit, I knew this would get messy,¡± another one said. Mohawk, maybe wanting to save face, didn¡¯t flinch. He smiled. "You think you can shoot that before I finish her off?" Lexie was pretty sure she could and she wasn''t all that concerned about the morality of killing him either, except she didn''t want his brain matter all over Xena and also didn''t want his boys to retaliate. "She might not be able to." A deep voice echoed beside her and she felt more than heard Lars walk up with a drawn gun. "But I can." His voice didn''t sound like what she was used to. It was deeper, more dangerous. Some apprehension flickered across the men¡¯s faces. "You should know that I was trained by special assassin forces in District 8," Lars said. "I could kill you all before you even blink. But I won''t because I like to give people a second chance. Also I''ve sent out a Hero alert so they should be on their way." The boys looked at each other in genuine fear now. Mohawk wasn''t paying attention though. He had an irritated look on his face, and his finger touched his ear as though someone was calling him. After a few seconds, he sighed deeply and released Xena, pushing her away from him. "You''re lucky," he said angrily. "Someone just called in a favor for you." "You''re the one who''s lucky," Xena said boldly as she ran from him and to Lexie''s side. And then Lexie watched the boys vanish into thin air again. Lexie''s heart raced. She finally dropped her gun and looked to Lars and then back to Dewie who was still in the car staring wide-eyed at them. "Are you okay?" Lars asked her. She nodded, swallowing. "Yes. I''m okay. Zee?" Xena looked a little pale but more so embarrassed than afraid. "Yeah. I''m sorry I got you involved in that Lex. You too Lars. I didn''t think...I mean my memory of the place is different from..." She didn''t seem to know how to finish, guilt tangling her tongue. "It''s fine," Lexie sighed. "Let''s just go home." 63 - Escape The Night As they rode out of Moulding, Lexie, Xena, and Lars kept glancing back to ensure the boys weren¡¯t giving chase. Despite what they said, Lexie wouldn''t put it past them. Maybe their backing off was a trap to lure Lexie and co. into a false sense of security, while they went to get more men to rob the car. The same thing was probably running through Xena and Lars''s mind and so none of them could relax until they''d crossed the bridge and entered Arcadia proper. Once they saw there was still no sign of the boys, Lexie began to relax against the seat. But the tension in the air didn''t dissipate. And Xena didn''t stop apologizing. "I''m sorry," she said in a very sober, un-Xena-like voice. "I''m really sorry I put the three of you through that. I can''t believe I was so stupid..." "Stop," Lexie said tiredly. "ADM rules says we can only apologize to each other once a day, and that each of us is allowed at least one screw up a month. So it''s cool. You just used yours and you can stop apologizing now." The Association of Dead Mothers¨Cmore specifically Xena, and Lexie¨Chad actually implemented the ''no-apologizing'' rule for Dewie, who still had a tendency to apologize a bazillion times for every minor mistake he made. Once, he''d done it so much that Xena had snapped at him to stop, which made him apologize even more and then it nearly devolved into an argument between Xena who was demanding Dewie have more self-respect, and Dewie apologizing for not having it, and it got more and more out of control, until Lexie finally suggested they add the rule to their unofficial ADM rulebook. It had helped reduce the amount of apologies Dewie gave. But she never thought she would have to use the rule against Xena too. "Besides you didn''t force us to come," Dewie volunteered quietly. "We came because we wanted to." "You came because you''re great friends and you were worried about me," Xena said. "For good reason." Her eyes traveled to Lexie. "You were right and I was wrong. You can rub it in now. And don''t be nice about it." Lexie shrugged. "I''ll give you the ''I told you so'' later. Right now, I just wanna get home." Xena opened her mouth to say something else but decided against it, and nodded. They continued in even more silence until Xena finally asked Lars, "How did you know we were in trouble? Did you see through the reflective shield?" He shook his head. "I heard noises. And Master Dewie saw something strange in the air..." "It was like a crow," he said. "Or a blackbird. It felt like something weird was happening." "So you don''t just see the future," Lexie wondered aloud. "You see stuff as it happens too." "Sometimes. I''m not sure how it works yet." "Hmmm." Lexie was even more determined to figure it out and make him a deck to help translate his visions. They could be very useful. "That technology they used," Lars said. "It''s very advanced. How did a group of street rats get their hands on that?" Lexie shrugged. "I don''t know. Maybe from kidnapping rich kids and demanding ransoms?" It was meant as a dark joke but no one laughed. Lars''s expression tightened. "I will not be bringing you back here." His voice was lower than normal, his words strangely formal. "I will not tell your parents if you don''t want me to, but you three will not come back here at all. Understood?" Lexie shared a look with Xena and they both nodded to Lars. Lexie crossed her fingers behind her back when she did. Even though a huge part of her really really didn''t want to have to come back here, she knew deep down she would. Apart from Xena¡¯s sidequest, now that she knew there was a way to possibly obtain backdoor communications to other dimensions, she wasn¡¯t about to let it go. On the other hand, maybe she was also being stupid for trusting Isaac to help her, when he may or may not have triggered the ambush back there. She didn¡¯t know if he was behind the kidnapping scheme, but if he was then what was the point of giving them the token? And why did he wait till they left? Why not just have his boys ambush them in the shop where it would be harder to escape? Yeah, that didn''t make sense. Inherently, Lexie didn''t think it was Isaac who ambushed them. She thought he might have even been the one to help them in the end. But if he was the mysterious person who called in the favor, why did he wait so long to do it? She didn¡¯t know. But she would have to do a lot more research before she went back there. And a lot more experimentation with cards, so she would know how to handle a situation like that if it cropped up again. Also she needed to figure a way around the whole system call jamming thing. How did it work? The same way a cell phone jammer did? How did it manage to block off communication from the system without blocking off access to the whole system itself? She could still access her inventory and activate her cards which told her that the system was intact, but her calls and texts didn''t go through. It was interesting and she had a feeling that information like that wouldn''t be readily available on the NET. Maybe she could ask Isaac about it the next time she saw him. ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯re following us,¡± Xena finally said, being the last one to relax into the seat. ¡°Who''s ''they''?¡± Dewie asked. Apparently, he hadn''t seen most of what had happened because of the illusion shield, and he was just going off their body language and his crow vision to know that something had gone down. Xena turned to him as though just realizing. ¡°So this whole time, you didn''t know why on earth we were running?¡± Dewie shrugged. "It''s a spooky neighborhood. I just assumed that you wanted to get out as fast as possible. Wait, someone was following you?¡± ¡°They don''t seem to be anymore," Lexie said, not wanting to worry him. "So it¡¯s fine.¡± Or at least she would be fine. Her heart was still racing from how close they got to not being fine. They were lucky. It was a close call. Too close a call. And it was all thanks to Lexie''s stupidity and overblown confidence in her own skills. She shouldn''t have gone in there without an adult. It was short-sighted and foolish. Living in Hovelton had apparently tricked her into forgetting that not every low income neighborhood was safe. But now she''d learned her lesson. If she ever went back to Isaac, she would go with more firepower. She would go with her Uncle Max, no matter what Xena said. She''d find a way to convince him to go along with it. He still owed her that favor after all. When they finally reached the Arcadian train station, Lexie was exhausted. Lars dropped Lexie and Xena off there because Dewie¡¯s mom ordered him to pick her up from the mall immediately. Xena and Lexie took a silent train back to Hovelton. Silent until Xena took a deep breath. "Lexie, I really am-" "Xena, if you say it again I swear on everything I''m gonna smack you." Annoyance leaked into her tone this time. She was already busy dealing with her own guilt and feelings of failure, she didn''t have time to handle Xena''s too. Xena gave her a weak smile and Lexie gave her a similar one back. At Hovelton, they separated as Xena went to the hospital to meet Emma for lunch and Lexie went home too to work on her cards. She didn''t give herself time to emotionally sort through everything that happened today, because if did, she would spend hours overanalyzing and hyperfixating on every single detail. It would leave her panicked and shaky for God knows how long and that simply would not be productive. Instead, what she needed to do was figure out how she would prevent it from happening next time. Starting from the magnet-repulsion effect. Was there a way of extending the effect to include other people? Probably. She could see if she could edit the card that way. She traced the functions of the different nodes in and trying to see which node could be tweaked to allow for another person. She wasn''t finding an obvious solution and she wondered if she could add a third card to the combo just for the grouping effect, or if that would be overkill. A few hours later though, she was distracted by Xena crawling through her window again. Lexie rolled her eyes. ¡°Seriously? Do you have a climbing hobby now? Aiden¡¯s not even home.¡± ¡°You called him Aiden again,¡± Xena mentioned. ¡°What¡¯s up with that? It''s been a year since your accident and yet sometimes you call him Dad and sometimes you call him by his first name.¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Lexie didn¡¯t know either. Most times, it was far too easy to get into the role of Lexie Sparrowfoot and view Aiden as her dad. Other times, she would randomly feel the disconnect of living in someone else¡¯s body and feel like everything that happened was happening outside of her. She was an actress in a role, and everything in this world, including her relationship with Aiden, was only a part of the play she had to act out. She would dissociate and then he would be Aiden again. She didn''t know how to fix it, so she was just ignoring it for now. But she couldn''t reveal that to Xena. She vaguely wondered how Xena would react if she found out that the Lexie Sparrowfoot she knew now wasn¡¯t the original, but rather someone from a different dimension. Based on how Xena had reacted to discovering her own real identity, she wouldn¡¯t react well to discovering Lexie''s. She would probably freak out and call Lexie a body snatcher and it would be proving every single fear she¡¯d had about other planets and dimensions to be true. And Aiden¡­Lexie could only imagine how devastating it would be for him to find out that it wasn''t his real daughter¡¯s soul in this body, and that the real Lexie Sparrowfoot was on Earth 9 or possibly dead. It would be a blow he would never recover from. He may also start to resent the person who was currently occupying his daughter¡¯s body and may think she was somehow involved in planning this. Lexie wouldn''t know how to deal with that. It would be heartbreaking. Knowing this was probably what made Lexie dissociate sometimes, the imposter syndrome overwhelming her. Sometimes, she even thought of leaving home or distancing herself from Aiden. Even though it would hurt, she thought it might be the right thing to do, or at least the only thing she could do to rectify the egregious situation that fate had put them both in. But she could only imagine what Aiden would do if his daughter went missing. She didn¡¯t want to put him through that. Plus as selfish as it was, Lexie wasn¡¯t prepared to lose that fatherly affection she was showered with, as well as the warmth and comfort. So she stayed and kept her mouth shut. ¡°Did you see what I sent you?¡± Xena said, distracting Lexie from her increasingly depressing thoughts. Xena had pulled herself through the window and plopped right on the bed. ¡°On the group chat.¡± Lexie shook her head and Xena rolled her eyes. ¡°Why do you never check the group chat?¡± "I was busy,¡± Lexie responded a tad defensively. ¡°What was it?¡± Instead of answering, Xena shook her head. A second later, a prompt appeared: XENA COLE WANTS TO SHARE HER SCREEN WITH YOU. [YES] [NO]? Lexie accepted the share and then stared at the poster that Xena had sent. It was announcing a new AFC Match. On one side of it was Top Dog, and on the other side was a black outline of a boy, and the words ''a new contender faces the champ.'' ¡°New contender?¡± Lexie asked. ¡°Since when do new opponents get to face the number 1?¡± ¡°Since their name is Torin Firebringer.¡± That got Lexie¡¯s attention. She banished her system screen to stare at Xena incredulously. ¡°A Firebringer is competing in the fighter¡¯s circuit?¡± ¡°Right?¡± It was shocking news for several reasons. First of all, it felt...wrong. While [Heroes] were not explicitly forbidden from joining the circuit, it was largely seen as an imposition. This was because the fighter¡¯s tournament had initially been created to give Fighters a chance to earn a living without having to do dangerous work as [Heroes] or [Knights]. It gave some mundanes a chance to attain fame and fortune too, even though mundanes rarely made it far in the competition, except Kane. Most of all, it provided people something outside of the already recognized roles and classes the system gave them. A place where a powered person with [Hero] parents didn¡¯t have to be a hero, and a less-powered person didn¡¯t have to be a sidekick. They could each face each other equally as opponents and the best, most skilled fighter, or most prepared fighter would win. Over the years, one or two [Heroes] had attempted to compete here and there in exhibition matches, but they were often booed the whole time because people saw it as unfair. The AFC had listened and stopped putting those on. So why were they letting it happen now? Maybe because Torin Firebringer was a hero student and not a [Hero] yet? But Lexie had heard of him. Like his brother, Torin was famous not just by virtue of his heritage, but also because he was extremely skilled. He¡¯d gone viral for being a young fire prodigy after someone had posted a video of him winning a spar against his trainer at the Victoire. For the following weeks, more pictures of him surfaced on other student¡¯s social media, but Torin never looked like he was a willing participant in those pictures. He also didn''t have a social media of his own even though he was probably one of the most searched young people in Orinia. Lexie had thought that meant he disliked spectacle. Which was why it was extra shocking that he of all people was taking part in this. ¡°Apparently he wiped the floor with everyone in the preliminaries,¡± Xena added. ¡°They couldn''t air the footage because the losses were too embarrassing and would have destroyed those fighters¡¯ careers for life.¡± ¡°Well, he¡¯s an S Rank Firebringer.¡± According to the rumors anyway. ¡°What did they expect?¡± Xena shrugged. ¡°I guess. It¡¯s just weird how lately more and more [Heroes] are trying to be a part of the circuit. I mean, [Hero] academies have battle training so don''t they have an unfair advantage? Plus they''re going to be [Heroes] anyway, and not AFC fighters so it doesn''t matter if they win or lose." Lexie nodded, but at the same time, she had a hunch she knew why this was happening. It was based on something her father had told her, about how the hero''s association was concerned that heroes were losing prestige, which could affect their sponsorships and investments. Lexie supposed this was one way to regain that prestige. The AFC was the hot new thing and it was only growing in popularity. Apparently, creatures from other planets even tuned it to watch sometimes. Lexie had dug into the analytics a little in her free time and discovered that while viewership on [Hero] interviews, ads and other related activities was dwindling, views on videos concerning fighters were increasing. Now, it wasn''t just top-ranked fighters like Top Dog who made millions from various sponsorships and ads. Top Dog''s entire squad and a few other standouts like Conrad Grace and MediKate and heck Kane the Mundane made bank. And the mid-range fighters still earned a comfortable income as well. The AFC''s popularity was booming especially amongst young people and heroism wasn''t something a lot of them aspired to anymore. So seeing the trend and needing to get ahead of it, what would be the response of the association? Simple. Get their people into the games to prove their superiority over every other fighter there is. And putting their best foot forward with Torin Firebringer, a powerful hero student, was one way to do it. If Torin managed to beat the number one in the league with little effort, then it would hurt the reputation of the fighters and the games, cementing [Heroes] as forever superior. It also wouldn''t be long before the AFC was overtaken by [Heroes] and regular fighters couldn''t compete. Which again begged the question, why would the AFC chairman agree to this? Lexie was so deep in her thoughts that she didn¡¯t even realize that Xena had been silent for a quick minute. And then when Xena finally spoke it was to say, "Do you think Dewie would agree to lend me a thousand credits if I asked?¡± Lexie¡¯s eyebrows went all the way up. This was an uncomfortable topic for her and she could tell Xena hated it even more. The two of them, especially Xena, never asked Dewie for money, not because they thought he wouldn¡¯t give it to them, but precisely because he would. But they didn¡¯t want him to think that to be the basis of their friendship. ¡°I think if you asked Dewie for the moon, he would try his darndest to give it to you," Lexie answered carefully. Xena¡¯s face contorted like she felt sick. ¡°Great. That makes it even worse.¡± She mulled over it for a second and sighed. ¡°I really don''t want to do it though.¡± Lexie nodded. ¡°And you don''t have to. Xena, I seriously think you''re overreacting here about this Lightlark thing. Maybe it''s a system error." She tried to look gentle. "Did you even figure out who your parents are?¡±¡¯ She shook her head. ¡°I system-mailed the orphanage but they haven¡¯t gotten back to me. But something is telling me not to dig too deep. What if I lead ''them'' back to me by asking too many questions?" ¡°There¡¯s no evidence there is a ¡®them¡¯ and there¡¯s zero evidence you¡¯re in any danger." ¡°By the time there is evidence it might be too late.¡± Knowing it was pointless to argue, Lexie shrugged. ¡°Fine. Then just call Dewie and ask.¡± It was a dare, one that Xena didn¡¯t like one bit. Nevertheless, she put on a brave face. ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s what I¡¯ll do." She said it like she was giving herself a pep talk. "I''ll ask him for money and we''ll sign a contract saying that I will pay him back in full." "That''s the spirit," Lexie said wryly. "Now let''s call him." Xena pressed her lips together and nodded firmly. But, as Lexie predicted, the second Dewie picked up, Xena totally chickened out. Not one word about the money left her mouth. Instead, Dewie talked about his day shopping with his mom and then added, ¡°Oh, by the way, she¡¯s hosting a dinner for me and Veronica tomorrow, to celebrate our awakening. She invited you guys.¡± ¡°Your mom did?¡± Xena said doubtfully. ¡°Yup. She said I could invite anyone I wanted." Xena and Lexie shared a look. ¡°This is the same mom that let you sleep in a tiny, drafty pantry that one time?" Xena asked. "That wasn''t her fault. I wanted to sleep there." Xena raised an eyebrow. ¡°What about the time she went to Ronan-Fae Ambassadorial Island for two weeks and completely forgot about your birthday? That mom?¡± "She apologized for that. And made it up to me the next week." "Okay, fair, but I still don''t think she wants us in her house. Every time I''m there, she sneers at me like I''m a bug." ¡°Yeah, plus the last time I was at your house, she said I looked and dressed like a dwarven maid she knew once." Lexie pointed out. "And then she tossed me a rag and asked me if I could be a dear and wipe the suds off the window''." ¡°Ah." Dewie snorted. "So that¡¯s why you were cleaning when I came out of the pantry.¡± ¡°You actually cleaned it?¡± Xena frowned at Lexie. ¡°It was just a few suds,¡± Lexie said defensively. ¡°Dewie, your mom is a little..." Xena said. "Actually, to be honest, I think your whole family, except you, kinda suck. I¡¯d rather dig till I''m at sea than be around them.¡± ¡°Oh come on," Dewie said. "It won¡¯t be bad. The food will be good and my cousins will be there.¡± Xena''s eyes widened. "Which cousin? The Firebringers?¡± ¡°Yup, including my cousin Theo and Aunt Stella. They¡¯re always a lot of fun.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Lexie wasn''t in any hurry to meet the Firebringers again, but at the same time she was curious about her history with them. According to her father, Stella was best friends with her mother but they''d had a falling out before the latter died. Lexie was curious to know what the falling out was about. And what was the thing that Aiden had supposedly done to them, that Mouse had harped on that one time? Also, she wouldn''t mind chatting with Theo again about his powers. Xena looked unsure. As Dewie''s expression began to change, falling, she finally said, "Alright, we''ll be there." His face brightened. "Great. I''ll tell her then. Bye." He hung up and then Xena''s shoulders sagged. "I shouldn''t have said that." "Why not?" "Because...it''s the Firebringers. They''re like buddy-buddy with the Fae. They probably know what happened to the Lightlarks too. What if they use their elemental mojo to detect the Lightlark blood in me?" Lexie smirked. "Are you even hearing yourself?" Xena sighed. "Yeah, that did sound pretty crazy." "It did. Listen, just relax. There¡¯s no evidence so far that anyone is being forced to go to Planet Fae and I doubt that the Firebringers have anything to detect that you''re a Lightlark." She shrugged. "But if you really don''t want to go, you can call Dewie and cancel. Just know that not going would be breaking Dewie''s heart and he''s going to overthink it and come to the conclusion that you hate him.¡± Xena narrowed her eyes on Lexie. "That was evil emotional blackmail." Lexie smiled unapologetically. "It''s what I do best." 64 - Creating The Repulsion Effect About thirty minutes later, after Xena left, Lexie went back to observing her notes. ¡°Now, where was I?¡± she muttered. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right. Figuring out how to factor in other people like Xena into the magnetic repulsion.¡± She was trying to find the simplest solution to a complex problem. Creating the repulsion effect in the first place wasn''t an easy or particularly intuitive feat. It had only come to her through months of practicing and experimenting till she finally learned that combining some facets of and could create the repulsion skill, but she had to skip and link nodes in a weird zig-zag manner. was an effect card that sent things back to their last known origin and was an ability and effect card that had a mirroring attribute that was used to ensure that all the people involved in the usage of the skill were doing the same choreography. So essentially what Lexie had to do was take the series of nodes that created that mirroring function, and delink it from a choreography. She used the delinked node to link to the ''back to sender'' function of the card. So the combination of the cards would essentially mirror the magnetic pull (rather than a choreography) sent by the target and it would then send it back at the target, which would then make it confront their magnetic field. As the ''like'' poles were brought in close contact, it would then create the repulsion force that sent Lexie flying away from them, breaking their hold on her. The problem was that linking it in such a manner didn''t allow for anyone else to be included in the effect. Though the contained a collective function that held multiple targets, including Xena as one of them would send her back with the boys and not forward with Lexie. And there was simply no way to connect the two cards in such a way that both Lexie and Xena would be pushed in the same direction unless she somehow found a way to establish a point of contact with Xena and make her part of her magnetic field. But how? Was there such a thing as a link card that could link them? Or could she steal a linking function from another card? What card had a linking function between two people? did. So did and . But the first two had their linking function as multiple interconnections which would be complicated to disentangle, and required her to be linking to someone less attractive than her for it to work, and in no world was that true for Xena. Plus again, she wasn''t confident that she could handle a combination of more than two cards. That might be asking too much of her mana control. She might want to consider tweaking her current approach slightly and changing up one of the cards for the repulsion skill to another. She took a look at her deck again. The two things she needed for repulsion to work was a mirroring function and a function that would reflect whatever was mirrored back at the sender. The latter could only be done by the card. But on second thought, two cards could achieve the former. The Card, but also, to a subtler degree, the could do it too, if she got creative. didn''t work in the same way as where there was a defined target. would target anyone who was looking at her, sending them away from her. But Xena would still get caught up in it if she happened to be looking at Lexie at that time. So how did she prevent that? She muttered and did the calculations on her study pad while opening up her system tab to analyze the pathway makeup of . After the activation node, was a detection node, then an OR function that extended to multiple other node branches which likely was used to detect just how many people were paying attention to Lexie. Of course, it wasn¡¯t that easy to tell and there were several other nodes attached to fine-tune that function, but Lexie had enough experience at this point to get the basics of it. There was also a debuff node that had been used to reduce the effect, as well as an experimental buffer node that could be used to increase it. And then an AND function at the end of the logic tree that seemed a little extraneous as part of a search function. That would be the best place to branch out from, to create a link to another. Maybe she could revise the card to do just that. But with revising cards, you had to keep it very simple, and right now the simplest thing she could do was to have the effect not target those in closest proximity with her. So if she and Xena were running in the same direction, close to each other, the card would not target her. In theory. Lexie still had to check if it would actually work. She began jotting down likely functions and logic trees that could possibly be amended to make that. It got big and complicated and she wasn¡¯t sure how long she worked for but when she received a sudden text message, her back hurt, her neck was stiff and she could hear Aiden calling from downstairs in the kitchen. ¡°Lex!¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m home!¡± ¡°Coming,¡± Lexie responded but she decided to read the message before she left. Unknown: LEXIEE! I NEED HELP. She frowned. It was from a foreign number that she¡¯d never seen before. Lexie: Who is this? Unknown: It''s Doyle. Lexie: Oh. Hey Doyle. Did Xena give you my number? Doyle: Xena? No, that girl scares the crap out of me. I got it from Dewie Lexie: Ah, that makes more sense. What¡¯s up? Doyle: I need to know who you think is going to win the Top Dog versus Firebringer match. Abernathy''s gonna put money down on Firebringer and so is Chris but I think they¡¯re both wrong and underestimating Top Dog. Lexie thought about it and then typed back. Maybe, but the Firebringers are no joke. Did you see that video of Torin fighting his trainer? He was very good. And I¡¯ve met his brother Theo before and he could probably torch down the entire arena if he wanted to. Doyle: Torin Firebringer isn''t allowed to use fire powers on his opponents. That would make it too dangerous. Lexie: Still, Firebringers are not sleazes at non-fiery combat either. Doyle: So you think he¡¯ll win? Lexie: I''m not sure. On one hand, the Firebringers seem to have raw power and they''ve probably been training their whole lives. On the other hand, I''ll never count Top Dog out on anything. Doyle: Damn it. Now, I feel like TD is doomed. The Firebringer wiped the floor with everyone in Prelims too. Lexie: I think Torin has a good chance of winning. But Top Dog also has a way of pulling through, like he did with that Conrad match. So I don''t know. I wouldn¡¯t bet one way or the other if I were you. Doyle: But I have to bet. I already said I would and if I don''t I''ll have to pay the wager forfeit fee! Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Lexie: You won''t have to pay it if neither of the boys bet. And they won''t bet. Doyle: Abernathy says he will. Lexie: He¡¯s bluffing. I guarantee he won''t. They''re just waiting for you to be the one to back out first so that you''re the one who pays the fee. It''s like a game of chicken. Just pretend like you''re going to bet on Top Dog and I guarantee you at least one of them will drop it. Doyle: Okay, I¡¯ll try that. Thanks! Lexie: No problem! Done with that communication, and thankfully not receiving any more charisma points, Lexie finally bounced down the stairs and went to meet her father in the process of putting on his apron. ¡°Need my help?¡± she asked. ¡°No honeybee. I just like having you around.¡± She smiled but she walked in to help him anyway. She picked up the green beans he¡¯d set in a bowl of water and began to peel them, with a not-so-great technique that snapped too much of the top off. Nevertheless, Aiden merely grinned fondly and shook his head. ¡°So,¡± he said. ¡°How is it going? With school selection that is.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ll attend Arcadia,¡± she said. ¡°At least I¡¯m putting it down as my first choice. Donington is nice but it''s too far away for me. Arcadia has a good program, they don''t require too many extracurriculars, and it¡¯s close enough that I don''t have to do boarding school and can commute from home. And still live with you.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s nice,¡± Aiden answered casually, but he couldn¡¯t quite hide his beaming pleasure. He was practically radiating with it. She knew that Aiden wouldn¡¯t want her to be too far away and she didn¡¯t want to be far away from him either. This was home. But also everything she¡¯d said about Arcadia was true. Even with their smaller research budget, they were undoubtedly the best option. Plus, Elvira was also there, and easily accessible on campus. Speaking of Elvira, Lexie should ask her about the card. Last they spoke, Elvira told her that she could get Lexie a willing creature to sign the contract. There were apparently tons of butler creatures from the Fae planet whose hands the card could summon to do specific acts. Lexie was looking forward to signing and trying it out finally. But Elvira hadn¡¯t called in over two weeks because she was busy studying for an important exam. But that should be over by now, right? ¡°Have you picked your starter deck yet?¡± Aiden asked. Lexie shook her head. She¡¯d spent a few hours scrolling through possible decks but none of them still called to her. She was probably going to have to mix-and-match. ¡°Which one should I pick if I just want to be a scholar?¡± He mulled over it. ¡°Anyone is good for that I suppose. Although, as a scholar, you should probably pay more attention to blank cards.¡± ¡°Blank cards?¡± Of course. Why hasn''t she thought about that? A blank card was like the cards that Aiden had bought her, a card that had the mechanics but did not have any of the functions yet. Blank slates that could be differentiated into any number of cards could and then activated, once they were programmed with their functions and attained all the proper approvals. They were mostly used for practicing card crafting in your third and fourth years of the research college, and they were also really expensive. Lexie had seen them recently while scrolling down the long list of decks she could choose from, but she ignored them ¡°You get a hefty discount on your starter deck,¡± Aiden said. ¡°I was thinking that you could take advantage of that discount to outfit them with a few blank cards. That way you have something to use and practice creating cards of your own.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± she said. ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought of that.¡± Now that she knew it was an option though, she would consider it. On the other hand, she didn''t want her entire deck only filled up with blank cards. It might still be a while before she managed to make a useful, powerful card of her own, and the way a starter deck worked, made it more difficult to use cards that weren¡¯t in the deck. It was like while it buffed activation speed on cards in the starter deck, it debuffed the speed on the others until you leveled the deck up. So essentially, you were required to master those cards before you could move on to others. That was why most people only managed to use a handful of decks in their lifetime. It was basically a sneaky method of system sub-affixation which is precisely why Lexie was taking her time with picking a starter deck. She sighed. So many decisions to make. So little time. And then she remembered something that she¡¯d meant to ask her Dad but always forgot. ¡°Oh by the way,¡± she said. ¡°You don¡¯t happen to have any internships open, do you? One that a kid my age could do?¡± ¡°Why? You want to intern for me?¡± He gave her an amused look and she shook her head. ¡°No. My friend Abernathy might want to though. I¡¯m not sure because I never asked him, because I didn¡¯t want to get his hopes up in case it wasn¡¯t feasible. But I think he wanted to be a scholar too. And he¡¯s super smart. Possibly the third smartest person in our class. But he didn¡¯t get any ranking so he¡¯s mundane. I wanted to know if there was something he could do as a mundane that would guarantee him a good scholarly career once he was done with school, like maybe as a TA or something.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± My dad paused in the process of pulling a pan from the top shelf and scratched his chin. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll see what I can do.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± she said. He gave her a secretive smile. ¡°Oh and when you called this friend of yours the third smartest person in your class, would that make you the smartest?¡± ¡°No, that would be Mya. She ranked number one for our year group last semester.¡± And Lexie was number two but only because she had spent most of her time that semester messing with card magic rather than dedicatedly studying. And even then, Mya only passed her in history and politics by a few points. ¡°She¡¯s super smart and super hardworking. She¡¯ll do great things I bet.¡± ¡°Hmm, how gracious.¡± Aiden turned away and that was when Lexie finally let the smile spread across her lips. Ha. And that¡¯s how you do the fake humility thing, Aiden. After they had left the beans to boil and the chicken to roast, the pair hung out on the couch, with Aiden grading papers on his pad, and Lexie lost in thought. The TV was on but neither of them paid attention to the sound droning in the background, some news about a robbery foiled by the [Heroes]. This reminded Lexie of the second thing she wanted to tell Aiden, although she did it a tad more carefully. ¡°Oh also, Dewie invited us¨Cas in Xena and me¨Cto a congratulatory dinner his family is hosting. Because he awakened as an S-Class magic user with a C-Class mental component.¡± ¡°Oh, how nice.¡± ¡°Yeah." And now came the tough part. ¡°But the Firebringers will be there. His cousins.¡± The only indication that Aiden had heard the news was the slight pause in his fingers as he scrolled down the pad. ¡°Stella Firebringer will probably be there too," Lexie completed. ¡°Probably,¡± he said and once again, his voice gave little hint as to what he was thinking. ¡°Is it going to be a problem?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Stella¡¯s problem was mostly with me and a little bit with your mother but none of it will extend to you.¡± Lexie sighed. ¡°Okay, this secretiveness is killing me. Can you just tell me what their fallout was about? I¡¯m eleven now, practically an adult. I mean if I can make life-changing decisions about my career path, then I¡¯m old enough to hear about this fight.¡± Aiden was quiet for so long that she didn¡¯t think he would say anything. But then he finally admitted, ¡°The long and short of it is, your mother didn¡¯t agree with the way the [Heroes] were running things. Prominent [Heroes] were fighting some of Vacek''s mandates and this fight was led by Stella¡¯s father, who was staunchly against Vacek overly restricting the jurisdiction and powers of [Heroes]. Lara was on Vacek¡¯s side, and Stella was caught in the middle of her family and her best friend. It led to this big blowout argument between the two women and Lara swore to use her connections to stop Stella''s father from ousting Vacek. Stella''s parents died soon after during a disaster rescue mission and I don¡¯t think Stella ever forgave your mother for making their last days so tough.¡± "Oh," Lexie said. That was actually kind of sad on both sides. Although Lexie would have probably sided with her mother on this. "You sure Stella won''t hate me for that too?" Aiden smiled sadly. "No. You won¡¯t remember this but Stella came to your mother''s funeral. According to Max and Emma, who were there, the two of you spoke for a long time. She even told you that you could go live with them if you wanted." "Really?" "Yes. But you chose to stay and wait for me to get out of jail instead. Stella didn''t let it go though. She pushed for custody of you still, but I pushed back and that¡¯s part of why we have that enmity. I won and sort of not-so-nicely asked her to stay away from you.¡± He winced. ¡°It was a childish decision made out of anger and possessiveness, but I was also worried because being associated with her might put a target on your back too." Lexie nodded. The Firebingers probably had many villainous enemies which was partially why their children trained so hard. ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t think she¡¯s ever forgiven me for it." Lexie nodded and digested the words. And then she responded, "I kind of get why she''s upset, to be honest. But I¡¯m glad I picked you though. Even if she¡¯s the most famous [Hero] in the world.¡± He grinned back. "I''m glad you picked me too." "I won¡¯t get a charisma point from meeting with her right?" Lexie joked. "Hers won''t leak off on me?" "No," Aiden laughed. "Charisma points only come from doing something that earns trust. Of course, being endearing helps." You could get charisma points for being adorable? She was doomed. The rest of the night was restful, spent relaxing in front of the TV. And it certainly did not prepare Lexie at all for the disaster that would come tomorrow. 65 - The Dinner Hakeem Jimenez, AKA Top Dog, walked in through the pristine glass doors of a studio gym, the location of an ad he was supposed to be shooting. He was already dreading the whole experience. ¡°You¡¯re late.¡± Anna was sitting on the counter, already dressed in her tracksuit, with her trademark bunny ears on. The stretchy spandex complemented her slender frame well, and the makeup on her face was tastefully done, to still reflect her natural girl-next-door charm. The effect was only semi-ruined by the deep frown on her face. ¡°So what else is new?¡± he responded breezily as he approached. Anna raised an eyebrow. Hakeem had a headache and he wasn''t in the mood for a lecture but he had a feeling it would come anyway. It was staved off by one of the crew who, upon seeing him coming, called for hair and makeup. In a few seconds, a whole flurry of people were on him. He sighed as they started pulling off his jacket, touching his hair, and calling for items for him to try on. This part of fame, he couldn''t get used to. Hakeem didn''t like being touched at baseline, and it seemed that when you were famous people couldn''t stop touching you. If it wasn''t fans who randomly recognized you and chased you down, or a mob of photographers camping outside your home, then it was hair and make-up people who never even asked before they started pulling and tugging at stuff. And part of his job was to be okay with it, and not yell at people invading his personal space. He couldn¡¯t tell them to fuck off, due to the clause in his contract that stressed him keeping a good public profile. Even though he didn''t totally get why he had to. Fighters were supposed to be raw and real, not polished and polite. It was what made them different from [Heroes]. No one wanted more of that fakery. But apparently, the sponsors liked it. And they''d been getting a lot of sponsors lately. So Hakeem tried to bear it, reminding himself that this ad was attached to three hundred thousand credits. But when someone yanked at his hair, he finally lost it. ¡°Okay the next person to touch me gets lasered,¡± he snarled and everyone jumped back. ¡°Just show me where the dressing room is, bring the costume and I¡¯ll dress myself. Then you can do hair and make-up." ¡°Hakeem!¡± Top Dog winced as a loud booming voice wrapped around the entire room. Their team manager, a large bear of a man they called Klaus, stormed up from the other side of the room, his beard practically bristling with his anger. ¡°You were supposed to show up at ten thirty and it¡¯s nearly twelve. Where the hell have you been?" ¡°Here and there,¡± he answered. ¡°That¡¯s all you can say? After you held everyone up?¡± He shrugged. He felt a little bad about it, seeing how annoyed everyone had looked when he arrived, but it wasn¡¯t like he could help it. He¡¯d been busy. These days, he was always busy. He was officially the most popular fighter in the entire circuit and within the last year, the circuit itself had exploded in popularity. He constantly had speaking appearances, events he had to attend, signings¡­not to mention the recent opening of about a dozen new stadiums across three different districts, all of which he had to be at. No one got how much time he didn¡¯t have. If he wasn''t at one meeting he was at another. If he wasn''t shooting an ad for this company, then he was at an event hosted by another company. There was even talk of him going off-planet to meet extra-terrestrial sponsors. Everyone wanted a piece of him. His trainer was running him ragged. And back when he¡¯d had a girlfriend, that had to be factored in too. So yeah, he had no time, at all. It was one of the reasons why his relationship failed. He simply didn¡¯t have time for anyone. He was too busy being one of the most recognizable faces¨Cwell gas masks¨Cin Orinia. So they''d had to break up, which sucked because he really liked Tiana. And they¡¯d tried very hard to make it work too. They¡¯d even fake broken up once, to get the press off their backs, and dated in secret for a while. But that hadn¡¯t worked. They¡¯d had to break up for real. That was when he had to accept that he would need to put relationships on the back burner for a good while. Maybe he and T would try again after he retired. But given how explosive his success was, and how much money people were willing to pay just to see him kick a few asses a month, he didn¡¯t know when that would be. And yes, he was aware of how privileged he sounded. Granted, it was a nice problem to have, but it was still a problem. He went to the dressing room to get changed, and when he came out, he finally let them mess with his face a little. Once they were done, Anna approached him again, still frowning. "Do you even know who your next match is against?" she asked. "Yeah.¡± He¡¯d heard rumors about it through the grapevine. Most of the top players in the circuit talked amongst themselves, and were even friends despite the played-up hostility on camera. They¡¯d informed him, even before his manager did, who he was going up against. ¡°Some cocky thirteen-year-old who beat up a few people at prelims.¡± ¡°He beat everyone, Hakeem. Everyone." "Including you?" "Of course not. I made sure I was busy with another match and wouldn''t get put into the lineup. No way, I wanted career suicide." She shook her head. "And you''re one to talk about someone else being cocky. You''ve grown cocky over the years and if you¡¯re careless, he¡¯s going to wipe the floor with you too.¡± Hakeem snorted. That was what they said about Conrad Grace. He was supposed to be the next hot thing, the one who was going to dethrone him as number one. But Conrad only got close once. Even with the single match Conrad won against him, it never would have happened if Hakeem hadn¡¯t let him. But he¡¯d taken pity on the guy and let him have that win. Conrad¡¯s loss against Kane had been brutal for his confidence, and he kept fumbling match after match. He would have been dropped by his management eventually, and that would have been bad for the league, given how famous he was. So Top Dog, a well-known hardass, had done his one good deed for the year, and let Conrad win. But never again. The amount of ribbing he¡¯d taken from that asshole, and a few other fighters, for weeks after hadn''t been worth the trouble. All for the bastard to retire anyway less than a year later. When Hakeem asked Conrad why he was retiring so young, when he''d just joined the adult league, Conrad suggested that it was due to mental health issues. Hakeem had been so mad he almost kicked Conrad''s ass again. Really? That was it? Newsflash: they all had mental health issues. If not they wouldn¡¯t be in a colosseum all day beating the shit out of each other. They didn''t take breaks from work because of ¡®mental health¡¯. They were supposed to ignore that shit or use it as fuel to kick more ass. Exactly like Hakeem did. But Conrad wouldn''t budge on his decision and seemed at peace with it, even telling Hakeem, "Maybe one day you''ll get it. Although I hope you don''t have to." What the heck did that mean? Hakeem had wondered before he put it out of his mind for good. He¡¯d simply blamed Conrad¡¯s strange behavior on all that woo-woo meditation stuff Isla had him doing. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± he smirked at Anna now, who still looked doubtful. ¡°It''s just embarrassing that I''m going to be beating up a kid. I''ll try to go easy on him so I don''t look like a total ass." "This is serious, ''Keem." "I know. And I said, ¡®I''ll be fine.¡¯ I always am." It was the same thing he¡¯d told her when they¡¯d first met, back when he was a too-thin gawky boy in rags with nothing but hunger and drive to succeed. He¡¯d used every little credit he¡¯d gotten from any mundane job that would hire him, to pay for training sessions at the gym, and with that, he¡¯d started entering small informal tournaments. And slowly, but surely, he made a name for himself as someone who never gave up. He could be bleeding and on the brink of death but he¡¯d get up and keep fighting. He could be sore as hell, but he¡¯d get himself to the gym the next day and keep grinding. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. And eventually, that dogged drive paid off. One day he¡¯d woken up and he was number one. He¡¯d clawed his way from poverty. He¡¯d become somebody. Somebody with millions of loyal fans willing to pay to watch him each month. Somebody with sponsors lined up wanting him to endorse their products. Someone who was mobbed and recognized wherever he went. Top Dog, the All Fighter¡¯s Champ. It was a surreal feeling. And also an intoxicating one. His whole life, he¡¯d watched his mother work herself to the bone, and sworn he would do whatever it took to be successful. And he did, sacrificed a lot to get where he was. No little brat, Firebringer or not, was going to take that from him. People were hyping the kid because his brother was a [Hero] and he went to [Hero] school. So fucking what? [Heroes] were overrated, everyone knew that. They¡¯d had [Heroes] come up to the ring before and lose against the top fighters. Even recently, one of them fell the Kane the fucking mundane. And of course, the asshole crowed for weeks, giving interviews where he¡¯d disparaged all the [Heroes] everywhere and declared himself King of the League. That was the problem with Kane, that he just didn''t know when to shut up. He never seemed to understand that people would like him more if he wasn''t a raging dickhead. Kane was one person who should have retired and faded into the background, but like a gnat he was still hanging around. Top Dog never liked him, but he especially didn''t like him after he¡¯d beat Maverick who was one of the few people who''d really helped Hakeem out back when he was no one. Maverick, the former champ, had been finally having a great year after a disastrous previous year, but Kane ruined his comeback. Maverick retired after he lost to Kane the Mundane and Top Dog had lost a pretty hefty amount betting on Mave. Who would have seen that coming? No one, except for that curious little girl he met at the wager pod. He still remembered her, the way she spread her arms wide, to symbolize how much he would win betting on Kane. And he should have taken her advice in hindsight. He wondered just how much she¡¯d won. Anna was still standing there staring and Top Dog poked her forehead, making her roll her eyes. She was probably right to be a little worried but she was wrong about one thing. Top Dog hadn''t grown cocky. He¡¯d always been cocky. Now, he just had something to back it up with. Because now, he was the best. He¡¯d ground for years and sweated blood to be the best fighter in that circuit and maintained the position for longer than anyone else has. What was there not to be cocky about? Hadn¡¯t he earned it? ¡°Were you betting before you came?¡± she asked, disapproval in her voice. Ah, perceptive Anna. ¡°No. I already told you I don¡¯t do that anymore," Top Dog lied. While he didn''t need to bet, it was still fun to do it once in a while. And he could afford to. He had more money than he knew what to do with. And he just kept getting more of it. They were doing a joint sponsorship today for a gym wear brand. Nearly half a million credits each just for him to show up and glower at the camera in leather. That was a ridiculous amount of money for a few minutes of his time, money he never thought he would see in a lifetime. Money he¡¯d always dreamed of. But he¡¯d spent the last year doing everything he¡¯d dreamed. Going on an expensive private skybird trip. Eating at a restaurant that had once called the law on him for rummaging through their garbage. He¡¯d even bought his mother a nice big house. They¡¯d never had a house before. They¡¯d had a hovel that was owned by one of the old Lords which they¡¯d had to pay an exorbitant rent on. But now they owned a private estate with a pool and a jacuzzi, and she no longer had to work herself ragged cleaning other people¡¯s houses, while blisters formed on her fingers and her bones creaked. Hakeem had even gotten her a massage chair. And after betting, he¡¯d spent most of the afternoon with her. "Relax," he told Anna. ¡°I know it doesn''t look like it but I am taking this seriously. I¡¯m not going to let that kid defeat me. Trust.¡± Anna shook her head with a sigh but she bit her lip with worry because this affected her too. If some newbie brat could beat the entire circuit without effort, then it just meant that they all aren''t worth shit, didn''t it? ¡°I hope for our sake you¡¯re right," Anna said.
Dewie¡¯s mansion smelled like a fresh coat of paint when Lexie and Xena arrived. Lexie didn''t know if they¡¯d painted it just for a celebration dinner but she wouldn''t put it past Dewie¡¯s mother. Vera had Lars pick them up too, which was nice of her. Lexie had asked Lars all throughout the car ride if there were any table manners she was expected to know, but he''d only smiled as she and Xena guessed amongst themselves. Xena thought that they might need to do a refresher course on where the napkins go when you¡¯re eating. Lexie disagreed because she was pretty sure it went on your lap and she thought that time would be better spent learning how to eat with a fork and knife without looking like an idiot. In the end, they both decided that learning all that was too much work and they chose to accept themselves for who they were. Low-class, uncouth children. Once they''d arrived, Lars dropped them off at the entrance and then drove around to park the car in the garage. ¡°You think we look okay?¡± Lexie asked. She was wearing a dress Emma had gotten for her, a simple periwinkle blue knee-length dress with an A-line cut. Xena, on the other hand, was in her trademark all-black everything, and was wearing a long leather bedazzled skirt, a shirt with a strapless bodice, and of course her leather jacket. ¡°I always look good,¡± Xena said confidently. ¡°Whether or not Ms. Type A is going to like it as a whole other thing altogether.¡± Lexie shrugged. ¡°Here goes nothing.¡± She reached up and rang the doorbell, listening as a pleasant lullaby leaked from inside. A second later, the door was pulled open and Dewie stood there beaming at them. ¡°You came!¡± he said. ¡°Yeah.¡± Xena gave him a smile. ¡°We said we would, didn¡¯t we?¡± ¡°Yes, but I wasn¡¯t sure for a second there. You guys are a little late.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because someone had to make sure that her winged eyeliner matched on both eyes.¡± Lexie gave Xena a sidelong glance. ¡°And it took her like a billion tries to get it right.¡± ¡°It takes time to look this good.¡± Xena shrugged. ¡°So? What¡¯s for dinner?¡± Dewie opened his mouth to answer, but a voice from behind him cut in before he could. ¡°Dewie.¡± Veronica moved into view, standing in the middle of a grand staircase, her hair in perfect curls around her annoyingly perfect face. Of course, she completely ignored Lexie and Xena''s existence as she addressed her brother. ¡°Close the door. You¡¯re letting all the hot air out.¡± ¡°Someone needs to let your hot air out,¡± Xena muttered as they walked in and closed the door. Lexie shook her head. She''d forgotten Veronica would be at this dinner. The other girl hadn¡¯t really bothered Lexie again after the incident at the first Azure dinner, but Lexie had still never forgotten it. And since then, she¡¯d never liked Veronica and probably never would. Veronica descended the rest of the stairs with regal grace and crossed their paths on the way to the dining room without a single word. On one hand, Lexie was happy they didn''t have to interact. On the other hand, it was undoubtedly rude. ¡°Come on,¡± Dewie said. ¡°Dinner hasn''t started yet, because my cousins aren¡¯t here. But I¡¯ll show you around the house.¡± ¡°Ok.¡± The tour was more extensive than Lexie thought it would be. Dewie¡¯s house was somewhat of a castle, with two external towers that were fashioned into guest houses and about three and a half different gardens. The walls were painted a deep blue, which was the Azure family color, and the Azure crest was mounted on a flag in the middle of the courtyard. Grand paintings were hung over the walls, all the wood polished till it glistened, shining statues of Knights guarding each doorway, and of course, perfectly trimmed shrubs. Dewie¡¯s room had about as much space as Lexie''s parent¡¯s apartment back in New York. It was a suite with a living room too. By the time the bell rang to let them know that dinner was ready, Lexie felt like she had walked five miles and seen enough blue to last her a lifetime. When they returned back to the front foyer, they heard voices in the adjoining parlor. As they got closer, Lexie noted with a little bit of excitement that one voice sounded really familiar. ¡°Yeah,¡± Theo Firebringer was saying. ¡°Mom had to jet out at the last minute because one of the Fae Ambassadors unexpectedly arrived on Earth this evening and requested her as part of the receiving team. And the little ones had a mild flu, so Dad¡¯s staying home with them. It¡¯s unfortunately just me and Torin today. Sorry about that.¡± ¡°Nonsense!¡± Vera Azure sounded as happy as Lexie had ever heard her. ¡°Of course, I would have loved to host the whole family, but I understand your predicament. Stella is a busy woman, and there¡¯s nothing to be done if children are sick. I¡¯m happy even if it¡¯s just my two favorite nephews.¡± By that point, Dewie, Xena, and Lexie had arrived at the entrance to the dining room where Vera was starting to direct the two boys to the table. Before she could though, Dewie called out, ¡°Cousin Theo!¡± causing him to stop. Theo Firebringer still looked about the same as when Lexie last saw him. Better even. He didn¡¯t have the eyebags anymore, and he didn¡¯t look as tired. He¡®d grown his reddish blonde hair out to shoulder length and was also sporting some stubble that may grow into a beard in the future. He looked a little like a smaller Thor and his eyes still glinted when he smiled. ¡°Dewie! My man! How have you been?¡± ¡°Good.¡± Dewie grinned as he reached them and Theo violently noogied his hair. ¡°I knew it would just be the two of you by the way. I only saw two fairies today.¡± Theo didn¡¯t give Dewie the same puzzled look people usually did when he said stuff like that. Instead, he grinned. ¡°Oh yeah? That¡¯s great buddy.¡± And he actually managed to sound sincere too. ¡°You know one of these days I should introduce you to a friend of mine, Lucy Frank. I have a feeling she would find you hilarious.¡± Dewie looked unsure but he nodded. ¡°Are these your friends?¡± Theo asked and he looked to Xena first, who nodded a little uncomfortably, and then Lexie. He started. ¡°Hey.¡± His eyes widened. ¡°It''s you.¡± Lexie gave a little wave and said, ¡°Yup. Hey, Theo.¡± ¡°The two of you know each other?¡± Vera inquired confusedly, glancing between the two of them. ¡°Yeah,¡± Theo said, still staring at Lexie with a puzzled expression. ¡°We met at a¡­¡± He didn''t seem to know how to explain the situation so Lexie filled in for him. ¡°He saved me from a villain with magnet powers,¡± Lexie said. ¡°Plus he also knew my mom.¡± Lexie said that last bit in part to see Theo¡¯s reaction to it. Aiden said that Stella and Lara had fallen out a few months before she died. So she assumed Theo had met her. How did he feel about her? Theo surprised Lexie by smiling softly. ¡°Yes. I did.¡± That was all he got to say before Vera clapped and announced, ¡°Alright, folks. Dinner is served. Harold will be down in just a moment to join us, but let¡¯s sit and have the appetizers first.¡± ¡°Can never say no to appetizers.¡± And as he moved, Lexie finally caught sight of the boy who¡¯d remained silent throughout most of the conversation, simply observing everything with a mild scowl on his face and arms crossed with disdain. She knew instantly who he was. Torin Firebringer. 66 - The Disaster Part 1 Torin looked like he did in the photos, but also not. Not that Lexie blamed the photos though. He had a vibe that was probably very hard to capture and translate virtually. First off, he was tall. At thirteen-years-old and five foot seven, he was probably somewhere in the 95th percentile for height. Lucky bastard. He also had a lean athletic build and messy hair that was slightly blonder than his brother''s. But it wasn''t even just his size that caught Lexie''s attention. It was the fact that he exuded arrogance. Perhaps that was judgmental of her to say when the guy hadn¡¯t even spoken two words yet. But Lexie felt it though, that ¡®I¡¯m so over this¡¯ energy combined with the ¡®what am I doing here when I¡¯m better than these people¡¯ gaze. Plus he stared at her for a a couple of seconds with an almost angry expression, even though she¡¯d never done anything to him. Lexie wondered if it was the mention of her mother that did it. Did he know she was Aiden¡¯s daughter? Maybe he had the same hatred toward the Archmage that his Uncle Luther did. Although Lexie wasn¡¯t sure because he didn''t seem too happy to see Xena or even Dewie for that matter. Dewie didn''t act like this was something unusual though and simply nodded at him with a meek, ¡°Hey, Torin.¡± Torin nodded back, and also did the same thing when Veronica greeted him too upon entering the dining room. So maybe it wasn¡¯t just Lexie. Maybe he just hated people in general. That made her feel a lot better then. The dining room, like the rest of the home, had blue walls and scarlet rugs that looked a little like feathers. Their feet didn¡¯t make a sound as they walked across and the chairs slid out automatically once they stopped in front of it. ¡°No need to tug on it, dear,¡± Vera said to Xena who hadn¡¯t noticed the chairs move and was reaching over to pull it out. ¡°These are custom-made Charivelli. They move on their own.¡± ¡°How convenient,¡± Xena said, catching Lexie¡¯s eye. Lexie shrugged and they both tried to sit on the elegant hard-backed seats without the awkwardness, while Theo and Veronica looked on in amusement. After everyone was seated, the food was brought in by about half a dozen servers, one for each person, and they avoided eye contact as they moved efficiently to place plates of seared lamb on the table along with long-stemmed glasses of grape juice for the kids and wine for the adults. Lexie murmured thanks to her server, but the woman merely nodded unsmiling, and retreated as quickly and deftly as she could. Like a ghost. ¡°I had them make your favorite, Dewie,¡± Vera said, smiling at her son. ¡°And even sent Wentworth to District 6 to get those special grapes you like. They''re sweet.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Dewie said politely but also a little uncomfortably as well. Vera was treating Dewie much better than normal, thanks to his S-Rank. She¡¯d even withheld her eye-roll at his mention of the fairies earlier. That was very unlike what Lexie had seen on Parent-Teacher Day at school, where Vera had doted on Veronica and Dewie had trailed after the pair like a sad lost puppy. Today, all her attention seemed to be on Dewie, and it was Veronica stewing in the corner in rigid silence. ¡°By the way, big congratulations on awakening, you two,¡± Theo said. ¡°Your mom tells me you¡¯ll be applying to the Hero Academy.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Vera answered before her kids could, beaming at them. ¡°They¡¯ve already sent in their applications. Of course, we had it prepared months ahead of time and it¡¯s perfect. Mrs. Pomme said she¡¯s never seen applications quite so robust.¡± She sighed. ¡°Dewie is obviously a shoo-in, being an S-Rank mage, but Veronica might need a little help getting in.¡± There was just enough wheedling in her voice to hint at her intention, even as her daughter stiffened from the fact that her mother was clearly begging on her behalf, belittling her in the process. Vera didn''t seem to notice her daughter¡¯s hurt, but Theo certainly did and he tried to rectify the situation. ¡°I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll be fine," Theo said, shooting Veronica a wink. ¡°A B-Rank isn''t bad at all. Only nine percent of the population are B-Rank Mages or higher. Heck one of my teammates is a B-Rank and they¡¯re a darned good spellcaster.¡± ¡°Oh, I know. It¡¯s just¡­we expected more from her. Since she pre-awakened and everything we thought...¡± ¡°A pre-awakening is not a predictor of rank.¡± Tell me about it, Lexie thought. ¡°Yes, we know that. It was just disappointing. Veronica so badly wanted to be a [Hero] and go to Victoire and now she might have to choose from the less reputable academies.¡± ¡°Mom¡­enough,¡± Veronica said, quietly furious at her mother¡¯s words, but once again Vera ignored her and Theo took pity on her. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to my mom,¡± Theo said. ¡°She¡¯s on the board for Victoire. Maybe she¡¯ll put in a good word." This was obviously the outcome Vera wanted because she smiled brightly when she got her way. And then she said, ¡°That would be very kind of you dear. Oh and Torin, I¡¯m sorry but I have to ask you to take care of our little Dewie while he¡¯s there. He¡¯ll probably need you to mentor him.¡± Torsten paused in the process of chewing but still completed the process and swallowed before he asked bluntly, ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well because, he¡¯s going to learn fire magic.¡± This caused both of the brothers to share a puzzled look. ¡°That would be a little hard...¡± Theo ventured first. ¡°Only Firebringers can learn fire magic,¡± Torin blurted out without his brother¡¯s delicacy. ¡°Yes," Vera said. "But we¡¯re family. Dewie is practically a Firebringer himself.¡± Not really, Lexie knew. Dewie had explained that his father was a very distant cousin of the Firebringers, and they may not necessarily be related by blood. But Lexie wasn¡¯t about to tell Vera that. And neither, apparently, was Theo Firebringer who nodded and said, ¡°Well, anything is possible.¡± Torin however did give a brief, sardonic twist of his lips as he regarded Vera, but then turned his eyes back down to his lamb, chewing it methodically. He chewed like a robot Lexie realized. Like he was counting between chews. Four times per side. Weird. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m late.¡± Footsteps sounded on wood but then disappeared into the feathered rug as Dewie¡¯s father finally made his appearance. Governor Azure looked like someone who had probably been handsome when he was younger and had a full head of hair. But the age had peeled his hairline back several inches, given him an unforgivable gut, and a double chin. Still, he had a pleasant enough smile that reminded Lexie of every politician she¡¯d ever met. Practiced, disarming, and a little smarmy. ¡°I had a few business calls to make. Theo, Torin. Welcome.¡± ¡°Thanks for the invite, Uncle Harry.¡± Once again, Theo spoke for both of them. ¡°Looking good as always.¡± Governor Azure laughed. ¡°Don¡¯t blow smoke up my ass, my boy. I know what I look like. But it¡¯s not important to my constituents as long as I do my job well.¡± ¡°Language,¡± Vera scolded with a tight smile. ¡°And why did you wear that shirt? I laid out a perfectly good shirt for you on the bed, honeybun.¡± This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. The Mayor ignored his wife and turned to the two girls. Lexie didn¡¯t know if she imagined the darkness in his gaze when he considered her. ¡°Welcome, you two. How is everything?¡± ¡°Good," Lexie responded. ¡°I hope congratulations are in order for you guys too. Especially you, Lexie. I heard you were one of our honored pre-awakened. I bet System Day was exciting for you.¡± Lexie nodded, although she felt put on the spot. ¡°Yeah, but my pre-affixation wasn¡¯t anything special. C-Rank Card User.¡± Veronica snorted and her eyes glittered wickedly. It seemed her mood vastly improved by knowing that Lexie had gotten a worse pick than she did. Everyone else around the table, except Xena and Dewie who already knew Lexie¡¯s pre-affixation, was shocked though. ¡°Really?¡± The Mayor said, sounding highly amused. Lexie tried to shrug like it wasn¡¯t a big deal. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because I enjoy cards. But as Theo said, pre-awakening is not a measure of rank.¡± ¡°Yes but..¡± The words trailed off but she could still hear them. Everyone had expected her to be a high-rank mage because of her dad. Lexie could feel her face getting hot. As much as she wanted to not care and act above it all, the disappointed stares were starting to get to her. And Dad said it was no big deal. It may not have been a big deal to Aiden, but Lexie certainly knew that it would be a big deal to other people. A C-Rank child of an S-Rank mage was disappointing and Lexie felt it. ¡°My mother didn''t have a mana ranking,¡± Lexie blurted out, feeling some need to defend or explain herself. ¡°She was a good fighter but Dad said she couldn¡¯t raise a mana signature to save her life. So I guess I got something between S-Rank and nothing, which was C-Rank.¡± ¡°But she has S-Rank Intelligence,¡± Xena spoke up. "And she wants to be a scholar anyway so it doesn¡¯t matter what her mana ranking is.¡± ¡°Oh wow!¡± Theo grinned. ¡°No wonder. I always knew you were pretty smart.¡± ¡°How would you know?¡± Lexie teased, finally easing up. "We had one conversation.¡± ¡°Yes, but it felt like a smart conversation. You asked a lot of questions.¡± ¡°It¡¯s her specialty,¡± Xena said wryly and Theo laughed at that. ¡°Oh and your mother wasn¡¯t just a good fighter, Lexie,¡± Theo continued. ¡°She was a great fighter.¡± ¡°She won a Golden Glove,¡± Torin said his second sentence for the night, and it almost sounded like approval in his voice. "The youngest female champion ever." ¡°Yes,¡± Lexie responded. ¡°I heard.¡± Thankfully, the conversation quickly moved on from that and Theo managed to make Veronica laugh by telling her a story of how he and his B-Rank friend saved some sorority girls from a swarm of angry, giant crocodiles. The story sounded so far-fetched that Lexie thought he probably made it up to make the girl feel better. The Mayor and Vera Azure spent most of their focus on their son who looked both happy and uncomfortable with the attention. And Lexie and Xena mocked each other by trying to eat with a fork and knife like Vera was doing. They had been initially making genuine attempts but they eventually gave up and would elbow each other to show the other¡¯s their increasingly abysmal skills. Lexie thought a couple of times she caught Torin glancing at her with a confused scowl but she couldn¡¯t be sure. As the dinner winded down, all the guests were leaving around the same time. They stood at the entrance getting their coats and Lexie finally got the opportunity to ask Theo, ¡°Oh by the way, how did the Mouse investigation go? I was always curious.¡± She''d read news articles about GLITCH and how they were behind several bombings. It said that some agents had been apprehended but it didn''t say who exactly. "I¡¯m not sure," Theo said. "I wasn¡¯t supposed to be on that case in the first place and kind of invited myself on in not totally legal ways. Got chewed out and suspended for a month because of it.¡± Torin snorted. ¡°That was nothing compared to what mom did to you.¡± ¡°Yup." Theo grimaced. "She tore me a new asshole because I used her access key to get into the files. Anyway, I never got to see the conclusion of the case, but GLITCH has been relatively quiet for the last year. Good thing too, because the year before that felt like one disaster after another.¡± ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Xena quipped. ¡°We had unstable dungeons popping up all over Hovelton¡± ¡°I heard. Sorry, that must have sucked.¡¯ ¡°It did,¡± Lexie admitted, and then took the opportunity to get to her next point of curiosity. ¡°Also, my dad says my mom and your mom fought about something before she died. Do you know what that was about?¡± Not that she didn¡¯t trust Aiden¡¯s telling of events, but she wanted to know if there was more to the story. Theo shook his head. ¡°Not really. But I did know she stopped coming around as often. It was a shame. I adored Aunt Lara. She taught me her famous pirouette.¡± Lexie cocked her head in confusion. ¡°You know the Hunter''s Pirouette?¡± He was shocked. ¡°The move she matched with the Sniper''s Bulls-eye? Your dad never showed you her old fights?¡± ¡°Maybe but I don¡¯t remember¡± She briefly explained about her memory loss. "I only remember the one with Mr. Amazing." ¡°Oh, that makes sense. I guess you don¡¯t remember when your mom brought you over to our place either.¡± ¡°She did?¡± ¡°Quite a few times. I was shocked you didn¡¯t remember me during our first meeting. I mean you were probably too young but still. I thought you would at least remember that you and Torin used to play hide and seek together.¡± She turned toward Torin. Was she supposed to remember him too? Their parents had been friends and they were around the same age? Had they been friends too? But Torin didn''t seem at all interested in this conversation and told his brother, ¡°We need to get going. I have homework due at midnight.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah, I get it. Your social battery is done for the night and you''re getting grumpy.¡± He ruffled his brother''s hair while grinning at the girls. ¡°It was nice seeing you again, Lexie. And, if you have time, you should watch Lara''s matches. It might give you a better sense of who she was than anything your dad might tell you.¡± With those cryptic words, he waved once more and stepped through the door. Lexie blinked wondering what he meant. She hadn''t watched any more of her mother''s fights after the one with Mr. Amazing because watching that one had raised a lot of emotions that she wasn''t ready to deal with yet. She didn''t know why, but she didn''t want to see too much of Lara. It was like her mind and soul resisted, and fought every time she tried. It was purely an emotional response, maybe because it would make everything feel too real. She might actually start feeling heartbroken at her death, and start to grieve a woman she never knew. Her mind was already a complicated enough mess. She didn''t need to add that to it too. "You okay?" Xena asked because Lexie had been standing there staring into the air for a few seconds. She nodded. "Yeah. I''m fine." When they stepped out, they saw Theo and Torin pulling off in a sleek, modern-looking Road Rocket. Xena gasped as she watched the car go, saying, ¡°I¡¯m going to die of jealousy. It''s almost as cool as your Uncle''s bike." "Nah. I think Esmeralda is way cooler." Esmeralda was what Uncle Max called his bike. As they walked into the cool night air to where Lars waited to drive them home, Lexie ventured, ¡°Well that was fun.¡± ¡°Was it?¡± Xena quipped. ¡°Or was it just fun because you had a conversation with dreamy Theo Firebinger?¡± Lexie stuck her tongue out. ¡°Speaking of which, did his brother seem mad to you?¡± Xena shrugged carelessly. ¡°Who knows? Maybe he has anger issues. Or maybe he just has resting asshole face.¡± She kicked a stone in her path, then grinned. "Dewie was really soaking in the attention. I¡¯m glad he had a good night at least." "Yeah, I''m glad he had fun." Although Lexie wasn''t entirely sure he''d had fun. At one point, he looked a little weary from all the doting, like he was tired of his parents pretending to care about him and tired of pretending like he didn''t notice their act. She made a note to text him when she got home and make sure he was really okay. And maybe she would ask about his sister too. She didn''t look like she was doing well. Poor Veronica. Lexie paused for a second. She couldn''t believe that thought had actually crossed her mind. She shook it off instantly and promised herself not to think about it again. The ride home was made in peaceful silence, where the girls started dozing off. When the car stopped at the end of Xena''s driveway, Lars had to shake them to get them awake. "Bye Lars," Lexie said as they stepped out onto the pavement. "Good night." "Good night, Lars," Xena parroted as she yawned. "Goodnight girls," he said and watched them walk to the doorway before he began to pull off. The girls were so tired that when they walked into the home they didn''t notice the eerie silence. Xena''s home was almost never quiet because usually Emma was playing music, or singing or had the TV on loud. But everything was quiet until Xena announced, ¡°We¡¯re home.¡± Only to be met with no answer. ¡°Mom?¡± she called and Lexie followed her past the staircase toward the living room. "Are you here?" But then Xena turned and stopped at the living room archway. Lexie came to a stop beside her when she saw a pale-faced Emma on the couch sitting opposite two stern-faced men in suits. Black suits. Oh no. One of them stood up. ¡°Which one of you is Xena Lightlark?" 67 - The Disaster Part 2 Lexie didn''t know what to do or say. She felt frozen like she was watching a horror movie play out. The men in black were real?? They certainly seemed real, standing there with identical grave expressions, like they had to carry out a deeply odious task. They were not large men, but their presence seemed to loom over the small living room, shadows dominating the medical textbooks Emma kept haphazardly on a shelf behind the couches. And their eyes were trained Xena, unblinking. Lexie thought maybe they didn¡¯t look entirely human. ¡°We need to talk to Xena Lightlark," one of them said and Lexie¡¯s heart stuttered. Shit. Xena was right and I was wrong. Even worse, I walked her right to the slaughter. Xena was the first to snap out of their little stalemate. In one explosive movement, she spun around and bolted for the front door. ¡°Xena!¡± Emma called as the men shared a look. They didn¡¯t look shocked. They probably expected it. ¡°They¡¯ll never take me alive!¡± Lexie heard Xena shout as the door slammed and she took off down the lawn. As one of the men rolled his eyes and seemed about to give chase, Lexie made preparations of her own. She opened her inventory getting ready to trip them up if they went after Xena. What she wouldn¡¯t give for magnet powers right now, so she could trap them in the room while Xena got away. Maybe she could figure out a card combination to keep his feet pierced to the ground. But unfortunately for her, he didn¡¯t run. He sighed, lifted a dark orb in his hand and simply disappeared. A teleportation orb. Great. Within seconds, he was back, holding a struggling Xena by the back of her shirt. ¡°Let me go.¡± She was pushing and beating his chest. ¡°Quit that,¡± the man said and turned to his companion. ¡°You, sedate her or something.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you dare!¡± Emma and Lexie said in unison. Lexie was about to either make them dance clumsily or blast confetti in their face, but Emma stepped in and efficiently wrestled Xena from the man¡¯s hand. To be fair, the man didn¡¯t try too hard to hang on. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare grab my daughter,¡± Emma said firmly, looking madder than Lexie had ever seen her. ¡°Who do you think you are? The only reason I let you in my home was because you said she was in danger, but that doesn¡¯t give you the right to manhandle her.¡± ¡°Alright, this is getting out of hand.¡± The first man pushed his hand through his hair, his expression shifting quickly from annoyance to exhaustion. ¡°We¡¯re not here to hurt or manhandle anyone. We¡¯re just here to talk.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere with you.¡± Xena hissed like a cat still clinging to Emma. ¡°And you don¡¯t have to. But you should at least hear what we have to say first. I can guarantee you that it¡¯s to your benefit.¡± Xena shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t care what you say or how many million credits you offer me. I¡¯m not getting shipped off to Planet Fae or any colonies.¡± ¡°Believe me, you won''t have to,¡± the second man scoffed. ¡°Do you think just because you¡¯re a Lightlark you automatically get a Fae Visa? You think we just give those out? You truly believe it¡¯s that easy?¡± Xena didn¡¯t say anything, her eyes still trained on him suspiciously. ¡°There are still several tests that you must pass,¡± he continued. ¡°Aptitude, strength, fortitude, heck even your body composition must be monitored to ensure that it can adapt to the job without a compatibility suit, which costs several million credits per piece. Even if you wanted to, you¡¯re not guaranteed access to the Fae Planet. People wait for years to even get a chance at getting a Fae Visa and you think we¡¯re just going to give you one?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the first illegitimate Lightlark we¡¯ve found, miss," Number One said in a less impassioned voice. ¡°Amadeus Lightlark was neither discreet nor discriminatory with his affections. We''ve found plenty of his children. Most of them didn''t awaken with the right affinity so we left them alone and never bothered them out with news of their heritage. And even with those who do have the light affinity, none of them so far has passed training to grant them access to the Fae planet." "Meaning all of them were a waste of our time," Number Two said with a grim smile. "And you probably will be too.¡± Lexie and Emma frowned at the man. Lexie really didn''t like him. ¡°How come I¡¯ve never heard of any of these other Lightlarks?¡± Xena demanded. "I searched the NET and didn''t find anything." ¡°For logistical reasons, the Lightlarks cut a deal with the government to hide these affairs, so anyone who does not join the Lightlark family is stripped of the name and gets to keep their adoptive name. If they don''t awaken, they''re never even told that they''re a Lightlark. That was why your true name was hidden until you came of age as well. Of course, if you''re deemed useful enough, then you can join the Lightlark clan and receive all the many perks that come with it. But if you¡¯d prefer to continue your life as it is¡­¡± He ran a disdainful glance around the apartment. ¡°Then, of course, that¡¯s your prerogative as well. But I think you should at least hear the offer, just for¡­how do you earthlings put it, ¡®Shits and giggles¡¯?¡± Earthlings? Lexie suspected the man speaking wasn¡¯t from Earth but he didn¡¯t look Fae either. The alien face, pointy ears, and long hair were prominent Fae features and he didn''t have those. He didn''t speak like the Fae either, although she detected a weird accent. He also looked mostly human. Maybe he was a human raised on Planet Fae? Emma, on the other hand, didn¡¯t seem curious about that. Instead, she looked down at Xena and ran a hand over her hair. ¡°You knew?¡± Xena glanced up at her and nodded. "I found out on System Day.¡± ¡°Oh Xen-Xen. Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± Xena sighed. ¡°I wanted to deal with it. I didn¡¯t want to worry you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not for you to decide. I¡¯m your mother. It¡¯s my job to worry about you.¡± Xena didn''t deny it, simply turned back to the men. "So if I listen to what you have to say and I still don¡¯t want to go with you, you¡¯ll go away and leave me alone forever?¡± ¡°Of course. You¡¯ll be stripped of the Lightlark name, and probably restricted from using your affinity, but you¡¯ll be able to carry on life as a Cole.¡± ¡°Restricted from using her ability?¡± Lexie spoke up finally. ¡°You mean with the Tilling bands?¡± ¡°No. Something similar but a modified version, more refined and less¡­barbaric,¡± Number One said. ¡°It''s not meant as a punishment. It would simply prevent you from using light magic but you should still be able to pick up any other magical affinities you want, within reason.¡± ¡°Why not Light magic?¡± ¡°It¡¯s dangerous in the wrong hands, especially untrained. The only adequate human trainers of Light magic are Lightlarks and so if she refuses to become a Lightlark, we can¡¯t have her walking around with the powers either. She becomes a danger to herself and others.¡± The man trained his eyes on Xena. ¡°I know you¡¯ve already felt it, what I¡¯m talking about.¡± Xena paled and grew silent. ¡°What is he talking about?¡± Emma asked but Xena shook her head. ¡°It will only get worse,¡± he continued. ¡°If you don¡¯t learn to control it, it will eventually consume you and cause you to lash out at others. And then you might seriously hurt someone." Xena took a second to think about what he had to say. She stared at the two, jaw clenching while still clinging to Emma. ¡°Fine," she said. "I¡¯ll listen to what you have to say." Number One shrugged like he didn¡¯t care one way or another. ¡°We can have this discussion in front of your legal guardian but I¡¯m afraid no other other parties may be privy to what we talk about.¡± He turned to Lexie with a pointed look. ¡°Why not?" Xena asked. "She¡¯s my best friend." Number One thought about it. ¡°If she''s going to stay, then she has to be bound by a stringent magical nondisclosure that may or may not affect her in the future." If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Before Lexie could fully consider the implications of that, Emma turned to her and said, ¡°No that''s fine. Lexie dear, would you mind going home? I can have your father come get you if you want." ¡°No need." Number One reached into his pocket and retrieved another teleportation orb. He handed it to her. ¡°Take this for your trouble. It will get you right to your destination with a single thought.¡± Lexie shared a look between all three and understood she was being dismissed. But she held Xena''s gaze for some time. Do you want me to go? Xena hesitated, then nodded. Her eyes seemed to say something else. I¡¯ll tell you about it tomorrow. Lexie finally acquiesced and took the orb. "I''ll see you," she told Xena, giving her an awkward hug before she left. As she stepped out of the house, she was tempted to hang around the windows and try to listen in, but suddenly the curtains fell and it was like all the sound had been muffled in the cottage. Lexie sighed and began home. She didn¡¯t use the orb though, not only because she wasn''t sure how to use it. But also because she¡¯d walked back from Emma¡¯s home multiple times and it wasn¡¯t late enough for her to worry. Besides, Hovelton was very safe and she knew how to defend herself. The bigger reason she saved the orb was because she thought it might come in handy later. Teleportation orbs were expensive and could typically only be acquired through an approved organization like the Hero¡¯s association. So now that she had one, she wanted to save it for when she really needed it. She tucked it into her pocket and continued home, considering everything that just happened. This was an interesting night to say the least. She stared up at the stars. Both Xena and Dewie were having big nights and she was concerned about both of them, but she couldn''t currently talk to them yet. Dewie might still be busy with his parents. And Xena was busy with the men in black. She hoped they were both okay. To take her mind off her worry, Lexie decided to text Elvira on the way home about the contract instead. "Would you like to do it now?" Elvira asked during the video call. "I can summon Meerp for you. He is my family''s [untranslatable] in our home on Planet Fae. They are like slime butlers." "Oh, that''s cool. Is it okay if I talk to him, or it, first? Elvira sounded surprised. "You want to meet Meerp?" "Well, yeah." Who didn''t want to meet a slime butler? "I mean, to ask its permission before we sign the contract. I don''t want to force him into something he doesn''t want to do." "That is kind of you, although unnecessary. Meerp are not slaves but they are not like what you''re thinking either. Conversation with you might confuse it." "Oh..." Lexie was disappointed, and perhaps Elvira sensed it because she sighed. "Then again, I suppose it couldn¡¯t hurt. We can set up the meeting tomorrow so it has time to ready itself for the conversation. I''ll be there to translate." Yay! Success. At least one good thing had come of the night. "You still haven''t explained to me why I need a contract for this creature card and not the other one, the ." "Ah yes, well, whether a contract is needed depends on the species and the nature of the card." "Meaning?" "It''s complicated. We can discuss it more when I return from Planet Fae." "Cool," Lexie responded. "How¡¯s the trip?" "Dull. My cousin is involved in another minor Orcan war and my father continues ranting about Eldritch attacks." Elvira''s father, while being only partially Fae, was heavily outspoken about Fae politics. He believed that the Fae were too magnanimous with the non-Fae creatures living on their planet who didn¡¯t abide by their system of government and their rules. He was particularly angry about the Eldritch. According to Elvira, her father thought the Fae should enact clauses to restrict and monitor Eldritch movement due to the outbursts of demon-led attacks on Earth in recent times. As of yet, the Eldritch Lord had received no repercussions for the things his creatures did, almost like the Fae were scared of him. Lexie didn¡¯t know enough about the topic to comment one way or another, but from the way Elvira described it, it was something that was mildly a concern, but certainly didn¡¯t deserve the level of attention that her father gave to it. Lexie and Elvira concluded their conversation as Lexie approached her cottage. The flickering lights in the window drew her attention first. She frowned, instantly on high alert as she crept close, opening up her inventory and selecting just in case. She crept close to the window, crouching behind the flower pot, and looked. In the blinking lights, she saw him. A strange man was sitting at the dining room table. She couldn¡¯t see his face clearly from this angle, but his body was broad, and covered by a dark coat. Plus he looked very tall. Gigantic in fact, probably close to seven feet. He sat nearly perfectly still, as though he did not need to breathe or even fidget. Then Lexie saw her father come in from the kitchen with a steaming cup in his hands and a plate full of cookies. He smiled at the stranger and murmured something she didn¡¯t quite catch. The man said something in return and Aiden laughed. Lexie¡¯s father placed the cookies down on the table as well as the steaming cup of cocoa topped with marshmallows. They''d only had a few marshmallows left when Lexie last checked, so she was a bit resentful that it was going to this stranger. She wondered who he was. She bent again and crept around so she could peek through the other window in the kitchen. Here she was also close enough to catch a few words and phrases, including when her father sighed and said, ¡°...I¡¯m seeing her again,¡± he said. ¡°In my dreams. And in nightmares. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s really her or if I¡¯m going mad again.¡± The stranger had picked up a cookie and was analyzing it as though he¡¯d never seen one in his life. ¡°Madness,¡± he said slowly, in a voice that could only be described as a rumbling whisper, ¡°is its own type of superpower.¡± He took a bite of the cookie, the tiniest bite possible, chewed a few times, and frowned. ¡°Interesting.¡± Aiden didn¡¯t seem comforted by the words. If anything he seemed even more troubled. He rubbed his hand over his face ¡°I assume,¡± the stranger said, ¡°that¡¯s not what you called me here to discuss.¡± Lexie''s father¡¯s face turned grim, and in a second, it was like something about him shifted. A hardness entered his expression, and all joviality disappeared. ¡°A year ago, you told me the Eldritch had nothing to do with the unstable dungeons,¡± he said. The man didn¡¯t respond. He simply took another bite of his cookie. ¡°You said the Hechtl we found was likely a mere coincidence.¡± ¡°Likely,¡± he said. ¡°At least according to my investigations.¡± ¡°But I have it on good authority that the Hechtl wasn¡¯t the only Eldritch creature that spawned from an unstable dungeon in that year. And that you were aware of the problem before I told you, yet you pretended it was the first you¡¯d heard of it.¡± ¡°Meaning you¡¯ve been speaking to my brother.¡± He sounded almost amused. As amused as a monotone voice could sound, that is. ¡°You should know, Neqal is a well-known liar, rabble-rouser, and a harlot. He said whatever he said so you would become upset with me." ¡°Two things can be true at the same time. He could have told me that to sow discord between us, but he could have also been telling the truth. Was he?¡± The man didn¡¯t answer. He picked up the cookie and took another nibble, this time musing on the taste for several more seconds. ¡°These are not like the ones they serve at the embassy,¡± he said. ¡°What do you use to get that crumbly but soft consistency?¡± ¡°This is you avoiding the question.¡± ¡°This is me reminding you, Archmage, that you have zero right to know about Eldritch affairs." ¡°I''m not asking as the Archmage, Litchie. I''m asking as an old friend.¡± ¡°Is that what we are?¡± Once again, monotone amusement. ¡°You realize admitting such in public would result in even worse shunning than what you endure now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m not admitting it publicly.¡± Aiden sounded frustrated with the stranger''s hedging. ¡°We¡¯re alone here.¡± ¡°Are we?¡± Suddenly, faster than a blink, the stranger¡¯s eyes shifted to where Lexie stood. And even through the refraction of the glass, she saw something that made her jerk back with a cutout scream. She bumped into a flower vase which crashed onto the floor. She barely registered it. Fear pounded in her heart, and all that was in her mind was escape. It was a similar fear to what she¡¯d faced when she saw the Hechtl for the first time. It wasn''t entirely rational, just a prey¡¯s drive to run from a predator it knew it could not defeat. She needed to get out of here. But her moves were clumsy and by the time she¡¯d stumbled to the front yard, the door opened and Aiden was calling, ¡°Lexie?¡± She froze. Her father¡¯s voice gave her pause, and had some of the fear receding from her mind so she could think. He rushed towards her, took her by the shoulders, and turned her around. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Concern glinted in his eyes. ¡°Did you hurt yourself?¡± Lexie shook her head slowly, but somehow her gaze still traveled from her father to the man standing at the doorway. Looking at him again confirmed that what she saw the first time was accurate. Though his face looked like that of a man with harsh features, upon closer inspection, it seemed like he was wearing a human mask, with stiff expressions and tight skin with little to no give. And in place of eyeballs, there were only swirling dark pits of nothingness. Lexie¡¯s heart rate spiked again. Chills ran down her spine and her breath ratcheted in his chest. ¡°Look here,¡± Aiden said, pulling her chin away. ¡°Look at me, Lex.¡± She blinked and the fear reduced again. ¡°You¡¯re okay,¡± he said, smiling weakly. ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± ¡°I¡¯d advise you not to look into my eyes again, child,¡± the man said. ¡°Don¡¯t stare at the abyss if you do not want the abyss to stare back.¡± That''s plagiarism, Lexie''s brain spat out but she took his advice and focused on Aiden who was giving her a comforting and guilty look. ¡°I thought you were spending the night at Xena¡¯s place,¡± he said. ¡°Something came up,¡± she responded, then whispered, ¡°Who is that?" "No one. Just one of Max''s old friends." It was an obvious lie that had Lexie''s heart rate shooting even higher. Who was this man that Aiden would need to lie to her about him? She didn¡¯t say anything to her father and tried to school her features into something resembling a smile as she nodded at the stranger who moved a little closer. But as the moonlight fell on his face, Lexie was hit with instant recognition. She recognized him from the pictures that Logan had sent, the character profiles. He was one of the characters that her brother had gone into deep length about and one of the major antagonists for the game¡¯s final arc. His name was Il Naem Y Ylich. Demon King. Lord of the Eldritch.