I thought this part was going to be a bit longer, but it just kind of worked out this way, so sorry about that. There should be one more part after this one and then I’ll probably do an editing run before posting the entire thing. As always, comments are much appreciated!

-Tas

Part 14

Earth, Day 12

Nick opened his eyes, immediately groaning and clutching his head, the world spinning.

Next to him in her bed, Jess looked down at him and laughed. "You did it again didn't you?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know, I have to lie down before I log off." The dizziness slowly faded, and Nick sat up. "I swear, that's taking longer and longer to go away."

The two friends had been traveling north over the past week, hoping to catch word of their friend, but as of yet there had been nothing. There had been a girl that had come through that had made a big impression with the Ilosians, some Aria, but no trace of Cariss. They'd made good progress, passing a large number of other players as they made their way through the villages.

Lorilee 'called' to chat every night, asking about their travels or just talking, and had even allowed Vivika to join in a couple times. It seemed to Nick that she was kind of lonely. She didn't look to be on friendly terms with the other Commanders of the Capitol Guard, and while she was close with her men, they were also her subordinates, so aside from Vivika; she didn't have anyone to really talk to just casually. Jess had voiced the idea first, citing how a lot of men had trouble with women that out stripped them, especially in physical activities, and after thinking about it, Nick agreed. Lorilee seemed like an incredibly capable woman, and would probably be somewhat isolated in the almost entirely male Guard. Regardless of the reason she kept checking in, it was good to make a friend and she was fun to talk to.

Nick, as Finn, had taken to his bastard sword very well, liking the adaptability the weapon gave him when he added other equipment to his arsenal. He had begun using a small shield, wielding his sword in one hand when he needed extra defense, and had even taken up a bow for when he needed ranged attacks. He still wasn't truly used to the System Assist yet, but he was getting there.

Lassea had proven to be a good shot with a bow, and could defend herself with a long dagger if she ever had to deal with melee combat, but her true talent was for spell casting. She could make fire and water do whatever she wanted them to, and only rarely spoke the words of power for the spell out loud anymore.

"Maybe you should actually remember to lie down. We go to an inn every night right after we talk to Lorilee, there's even a bed right there!"

“I know I know, but if I lay down I could very well fall asleep, and I don't know if you could wake me up here.”

“I suppose.” Jess sighed, then yawned and headed for the door. “Well let's eat and get to bed, it's really late.”

Nick glanced at the clock while he stood, groaning, noting that it was indeed late, to the point where it was technically early the following day, then followed his friend. “We can't live on pizza forever you know, we’re going have to go out sometime.”

“Not until we finish these we don't.” She replied, pulling two boxes of pizza out of her fridge where several more rested. “How many slices do you want?”

“Two's fine.”

She opened one, then closed it and handed it to him. “Here ya go.”

Feeling the heat coming through the bottom of the box, he just shook his head and sat down at the table. Inside was a whole pizza with exactly two streaming slices while the rest was still cold from the fridge. “Show off.”

A smug smile grew on her face as she sat down across from him with her own box, at least until she tried to grab a slice. “Ow!” She yanked her hand back, shaking it and sticking a couple of fingers in her mouth.

Nick snickered. “Looks like your spell casting is…” He mimed putting on sunglasses. “Too hot to handle.”

Jess burst out laughing and Nick took a very satisfied bite of his pizza, which despite his friend's mistake on her own food, was the perfect temperature. It still amazed him how quickly magic had become part of their lives. It’d been less than two weeks since they'd first stepped foot in Ilos, yet they both used spells to do things in their daily lives, like reheating pizza with fire, or drying off after a shower with water or air.

However, neither of them had left the small place Jess called home in that entire time, nor had they had much contract with anyone outside of Ilos. Nick had called his parents and let them know he was okay and was staying at a friend's house for a little while while everything cooled off. They were concerned of course, but he had proven to them time and time again that he was responsible enough to handle things himself and would come to them if he thought that a situation was out of his depth. Of course, this was way out of his depth, but it wasn’t something he wanted them involved in just yet. He'd gotten a few calls from friends as well, but had just texted them a generic 'I'm okay and I'll fill you in later'. The hardest conversation had been with David's parents, but he had relayed his theories that those who had the silver band were permanently stuck in Ilos rather than dead, so there was some hope that they would see David again.

Jess had essentially ignored all attempts at contact. No one had actually stopped by in person yet besides the media, and they had since moved on to a subject less dangerous to their reputation. Once she had her wits about her, his friend had talked circles around even the most seasoned reporters until they left seeking easier prey.

Her parents hadn't called, which while unsurprising, still pissed Nick off. He knew they didn't really keep up with their adopted daughter, but still, she was obviously in grief on national television! How could any parent not be concerned enough to even call?

He shook his head, drawing himself back to the task at hand now that his friend had gotten control of her mirth. “Well even if we don't leave for a while longer, you should still at least call some of your friends back in the morning. I'm sure they’re worried about you.”

Jess sighed, frowning. “I'm sure they are, and I know you're right, but how can I trust any of them with this?” She gestured and a small candle sized flame appeared floating in between them. “You and David are the only two I'd trust enough to tell about it.”

“You don't need to, just don't mention anything about it.”

“But I'm not good at lying, or even purposefully leaving things out. Everyone always seems to notice when I'm hiding something.”

Nick squinted at her, noting the way she tensed a little bit and how her lips thinned. How had he missed that for this entire time? Those signs would have been there any time she thought about hiding something from him while making eye contact. “Like now for instance?”

The slight widening of her eyes and the way she dropped her head so her blonde hair covered her face gave him the answer. He sighed, but smiled. “Jess, how many times have we told you? David and I aren't going to try to force something out of you that you don't want to share. You’re safe with us, with me.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “Thanks Nick. I'm not ready to tell you this one just yet.”

He waved her off with his pizza. “Not going to bother me.”

They finished off their food and put the rest back in the fridge, then headed back to the bedroom to go sleep, but the sound of Jess' phone ringing on the nightstand stopped them from laying down. Jess walked over and looked at the display, hesitating.

“Who is it? A friend?”

She nodded. “It's Daisy.”

“The marital artist?”

She nodded again. “Yeah.”

Silence reigned for a moment, broken only by musical sound of Jess’ phone. “Look, it’s almost three in the morning; she wouldn’t be calling if she didn’t really need to talk to you. Just pick up.”

“You’re right, you’re right.” She sighed, grabbing the device and answering the call. “Hello?”

Nick sat down on the bed, watching his friend as she talked. He’d never met the girl on the other end of the line, but had heard a little about her from his friend. From what he’d been told, Daisy, despite the gentle name, was an incredibly talented martial artist, though he didn’t remember what discipline she followed, and she was a sociology major. From what he could hear of it, her voice sounded fearful, but still controlled.

*She says she has a black Key too, and she just realized she can use magic on Earth.* Lassea’s voice said in his head. *She lives alone and doesn’t have anyone else to talk to. What if there were others like this? I should have been answering calls! I’ll check on things tomorrow morning.*

She sounds like Lassea when using su. I wonder if that’s a side effect of using magic. *Good, I’m glad. If she needs to talk things out, take your time, I’ll stay up till you’re done.* Nick thought back.

He leaned back on the bed, his eyes drifting as his friend continued to try to soothe Daisy. Behind Jess there was a movement in the window. Maybe it was all the time he had to keep alert in Ilos' forests, but he had a sense of foreboding. He focused on the view outside, trying to pierce the darkness. It was probably something innocuous, but still, he couldn’t help sharpening his hearing and slowly rising from the bed, preparing himself to use magic if necessary.

Jess noticed. *What’s wrong?*

*Can you stop talking for a few seconds?*

In the silence that followed his request, he heard the bolt on the door softly click and the hinges made a slight sound as they slowly swung open. Even just a week ago, Nick might have panicked at the thought of someone breaking into the house he was staying in, but now he had combat experience, enough to keep him thinking rationally.

*There’s someone in here with us, and I saw some movement outside the window. Can you contact Daisy with telepathy? We need somewhere to go.* He began stuffing clothes into his duffle bag that was still on the ground. His, Jess’, it didn’t matter, he just grabbed it all.

Jess’ eyes widened, and she held the phone back up to her ear, but didn’t speak. After a few seconds she nodded at him and hung up, softly opening her closet and beginning to shove things into it. *I’ve got her.*

*Good. Grab what you can and let’s run. I can buff our speed with cir, but that’s going to leave any defense to you. Try to make it sneaky, I don’t know if it’s public knowledge that we can use magic yet.*

*I will. They probably know we’re awake, if there’s more than one they must have seen the light on. I wish I had my bow.*

Nick zipped the duffle, hooking the handles around his shoulders like a giant backpack and then turning off the light. *Same. Ready? We’ll probably just have to run for it.*

She nodded, slipping her arms though the shoulder straps and tightening them. *Can you grab our shoes on the way out? It’s going to be hard to run in bare feet if we have to go off the roads.*

*Got it.* Nick watched as his friend put her hand on the doorknob and looked back at him.

*Three. Two. One.*

“Cir.” Nick whispered, focusing on speeding their movements.

*Go!*

The door shot open and the pair of friends dashed out into a squad of very surprised men dressed in dark military equipment who seemed to be preparing to breach the same entrance. Jess didn’t hesitate, sprinting past them and around the corner with Nick hot on her heels. Gunfire sounded behind them, punching holes in the wall where they would have been if Nick wasn’t boosting their speed.

“Targets are on the run!” One of the soldiers shouted, likely into a microphone.

The front door was still open, guarded by a pair of men who brought up their weapons, only to have the firing mechanisms freeze over. Nick scooped up their shoes in one motion as they pelted past the guards, then poured mana into his air spell, pushing their frantic flight even faster as they ran out into the street.

Wind whipped Nick’s face as he kept behind his friend, letting her lead them towards Daisy’s home, and that was the only sound for a few long seconds.

A small pain flared in his upper back, and he stumbled a bit as he reached around, his fingers encountering a tiny dart where the pain originated, now quickly being replaced by numbness.

He ran harder to catch up, then handed Jess her shoes, thrusting them into her hands. *Jess, keep running, I’ve been hit by a dart and I’ll probably lose consciousness really quick. I’m going to keep the spell on you for as long as possible, so get away and come back for me.*

Her steps slowed and she turned to look at him, her eyes wide with fear. *What?! NO!*

*Yes! If you get captured too it’s over for both of us! GO JESS! RUN!*

Still, she hesitated. *But-!*

*GO!*

Tears began to drip from Jess’ eyes as she whirled, sprinting out into the night.

“Cirres.” Nick whispered as the numbness spread to his legs, depositing him to the ground. In his mind’s eye he pictured a thick shield of solid air around his friend, swirling to deflect any other darts. He poured all his mana into the speed spell as blackness started to creep in along the edges of his vision.

*Run Jess… Run.*