Blood everywhere. Bodies strewn across the ground, limbs and arms overlapping. Armor reduced to chunks of tal and gaping flesh. A twin blade forged of dark iron and silver edges was cast aside, familiar.
She knelt at the center, both hands poised to compress the big adventurers chest. His head lolled off to the side, his eyes lifeless. But the woman didnt move. Almost like she was petrified. Her dark hair was wild, eyes wide, seeing everything but seeing nothing.
Thud
Thud
Thud
It felt familiar in a way I didnt like. A way that invoked a tunnel and another lone survivor, their world shattered, grasping at the threads to keep going and coming up short. Her hands glowed blue, and an imp manifested outside the palisades, blind rushing down winding the path Id just taken without looking back.
Co on co on co on fucking die already just fucking die- Barely audible words ca out in a ceaseless ramble that never fully stopped.
The adventurer the woman tended was on his back, while the other two were on their stomachs, heads angled away from her, nothing before them but a sheer cliff. Ones arm extended upward, hand and fingers curved, as if hed tried to crawl away.
With all the powers, and flight charms, and fancy apartnts, it was so easy to forget. That the odds were against us and more often than not, this was how it ended.
Obliteration.
I hated the Order for what theyd done. To Jinny. Sae. And this woman was there. I saw her, loading her kid out of the Escalade, and later, when she did nothing. The next step should have been as simple as checking a box. Crossing a t.
Maybe it was a holdover from whatever Hastur had done to my mind, but I couldnt bring myself to do what Id co here to do.
An alternative solution presented itself.
The Adventurers Guild still holding at the bridge? I asked Talia.
Yes.
Status?
Without the vampire pincer theyre stable, but not making progress. None dead. So wounded. Probably why theyre not pushing forward. Hoping whatevers manifesting the imps will run out of juice.
Yeah. Im dealing with that.
Then deal with it quickly. Theyve noticed my presence, and are letting be for now, but that could change at any mont.
Noted. Play it safe.
Good. That ant this could work. But I needed a Plan B. I sent a brief ntal prompt to the vampires below and received an answer. One I needed but didnt want.
Another imp manifested beyond the barricade.
I unlaced my gauntlet, revealing Hasturs mark, and placed it in front of the womans face. She took a full second to look at it, then screeched, falling flat on her ass and scampering backward towards the barricade. Magic flowed down her arms and she prepared to cast.
One hand went to my inventory, with the other I extended my palm out towards her, taking a few careful steps. Im your backup-
W-who the hell are you? She said.
Your backup. I repeated evenly, making sure she could see Hasturs mark on my arm. We need to make tracks. Imps are pushing the other users back, so we have a window to the exit.
Stay the fuck away from ! She scread. The magic in her hands pulsed.
I stopped in my tracks. Fought through her ntal resistance and soothed a portion of the black, raging anxiety in her mind with The current still ravaged her. I tried again.
Whats your na? I asked.
Maria. Her voice was small.
For the first ti, recognition flitted through her eyes. Sunny sent you? My ssages got through?
Yes, I lied. If the Adventurers Guild picked her up at the chokepoint, it wouldnt matter. They wouldnt be letting her go until she spilled, and she literally couldnt spill.
Shit. Shit. Maria released her spells and pulled at her hair until several frazzled strands ca loose. She slapped the ground, tried to stand and failed, chest heaving, lungs pumping overti. If I didnt calm her shed hyperventilate.
I crouched in front of her. Snapped my fingers and pointed to my eye Look here.
She looked.
Deep breaths. I breathed in deeply, held it, then breathed out.
She breathed. Short panicked gulps slowly subsided, and clarity bubbled up to the surface.
Youre here. Im here. I took on a zen cadence. You went through sothing traumatic. Thats normal. But backup arrived in ti. You have an exit. Everything will be okay. But I need you to co with .
For a mont, hope filtered into her face, and I thought I had her. But her mouth set.
No. Maria shook her head, matted hair trailing behind the motion in a zigzag. She pushed herself back up on her knees and crawled to the downed adventurer, placing her hands on his chest. A few seconds later, he seized, and another imp manifested beyond the palisades. I monitored it, but like all the others, it scampered down the path without looking back. Then I scanned the grounded adventurer. Was he still alive? Was she draining him of mana, sohow?
Had she done the sa thing to the other two?
Need to stay, Maria said.
Why?
She reached into her inventory and tossed a sh bag. I opened it and found several near-translucent crabs in the bottom. But sohow less than wed found in the griling cave.
Didnt finish the quest. She was still rambling, but it was easier to make out the words now. Not even close. Little bastards kept dying or running away to where we couldnt reach them. Then that fucker showed up.
Miles?
This User? He was alone?
Maria shuddered. The rest were trash. We would have shredded them in seconds if it was just them. Him, though? He was a goddamn nightmare. Took hit and run to another level. She pointed to one of the downed adventurers with long hair, the smarmy one carrying around twin blades. Not so smarmy, now. Just fucking look.
I walked over to him and lifted the bandage on his lower back. There was a jagged wound big as a pool ball in diater. Bastard didnt need a bandage, he needed a new kidney and a staple gun. No wonder he bled out.
Maria spoke through grit teeth. Whatever his class? Whatever gear he was using? Arrows hit like a goddamn fifty cal. And he was fast, too. Impossible to pin down.
Definitely Miles.
Still alive, then. He going to cause us problems?
She scoffed. With any luck, he died screaming. Vamp food. There was a wave of them that got between us. Fucked up both sides. We got pushed to the fringes, he and his got pushed further in.
Good chance Miles was still alive then. But none of this explained why she wasnt leaving. If I kept harping on that point, shed sense the agenda behind it. I switched tact, tried for rapport.
You a vet?
Maria just looked at , startled.
Small number of people know what a wound from a fifty cal looks like. And it sounded like you were speaking from experience. I explained.
Marines. Semper-fuckin-fi. Did a few tours. Dont bother thanking for my service. Her eyes gained a far off quality. You know they screw you on VA benefits if you bag a DD? You can be a perfect little stone cold soldier for years, but break down at the wrong mont and do one little thing at the end they dont like? Forget accounting for PTSD, or the ntal toll. Youre done. Fuck your health insurance, fuck your kids health insurance, fuck you. And now Im fucking here. Bitterness gave way to lancholy and despair.
Lot about the old world made little sense. I said, mainly to keep her talking.
Were you in? She asked, giving a curious side-eye.
No.
Fine. Dont tell .
I pushed past it, trying to get through. If you saw combat, you know that retreating isnt cowardice. Its tactical repositioning.
Not about that.
Then what is it about? I ran a hand through my hair.
She hesitated. Grimaced. Then gestured to the n on the ground. My title lets absorb life-force and convert it to mana.
Ah.
So she had drained them.
She spoke faster, trying to justify herself before I drew my own conclusions. They were all wounded. One was already unconscious, the other passed out the second he put him down. First one, I didnt know it would kill him. Never took it that far. Second one I guess I did.
Maybe she hadnt known, definitively, but there was no way it hadnt crossed her mind.
And now its big boys turn. I finished.
Her face turned dark. Just go. Get out of here.
Im trying to help you.
Maria snapped back. If I go back to the Order, theyre not just going to pat my ass and give a better-luck-next-ti-champ. Sunnys gonna ask. And because of this geas bullshit, I cant massage the facts. Her eyes trailed to the bag in my hand. If I co back with next to nothing and have to explain what happened here? Im fucked.
In that case, arent you boned, anyway? For doing this to mbers of the order?
She shook her head. All they care about is results.
So whats the alternative?
Her face was hard. This positions defensible. Hold out until everyone on this floor is gone or dead. Bag the artifact, grab as many planners as I can. Get out.
Just that?
I hamred her with poking as many holes in her strategy as I could. I felt her mind harden, shoving away the doubt, until I couldnt influence her at all.
With that, I watched Plan A crumble to ash.
I stood. Youve been honest with , so Ill level with you. Im the Ordinator.
Her jaw dropped. I heard the rumors, but thought they were just people spinning bullshit. Sunny really brought you in?
I continued before she could regain her wit. Look, I saw what youre up against. Whoever they are, theyre here in number. And theyre not just going to give up. But crowd controls my speciality. If you can keep them distracted, I can finish them. Then Ill see myself out, and you can claim the artifact.
Marias eyes narrowed. Youd do that.
Of course, I looked to the side. For a few favors to be nad later.
Im not blowing you.
Not the sort of favor Im interested in.
I watched her think. Consider her circumstances. Eventually, she nodded. Okay. You gonna do to them what you did to Region 6?
On a smaller scale. But its still difficult. Takes ti to set up, otherwise things get unpleasant.
I can do that. Buy you ti. Maria shivered. Her eyes flicked, navigating sothing unseen, and a few seconds later I got a prompt.
I accepted the prompt. As I navigated the team screen and searched for her level, I prayed. Prayed to no one in particular that she was the baby of her group, low-level enough that I could justify guiding her into the Adventurers Guild without putting them in danger.
Fuck.
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