Alex was starting to feel like he was developing an unhealthy habit of passing out at the wrong time, and waking up either in a strange place, or around strange people. Impromptu nap interrupted, his sleep addled brain did it’s best to get a grasp on the situation, but dead tired and with a sticky sauce dried to his face were not the ideal conditions to fight an ambusher. Then again, the ambushee was never meant to be in the ideal conditions, or else it wouldn’t be a proper ambush.

Blinking the crust from his eyes whilst he wiped away the same from his cheek, Alex discreetly summoned his dagger under the table. It was obvious that if the masked individual had wanted to harm him, they could have done so already, so he saw no reason to immediately attack. Still, having a weapon in his hand made him feel a bit safer.

If the person’s silent presence hadn’t been ominous enough alone, their outfit made sure to elevate the creepiness of the situation. While the majority of their outfit seemed rather plain, the one thing that stood out was their mask. It was white, in direct contrast to the all-black stealth theme they had going on, and covered everything from just above their brow to right below their nose. Rather than the cloth masks one might associate with a superhero, this one looked solid, made of a thick, polished, ivory-like stone that lacked an opening for eyes. The parts of their face he could see suggested more feminine features, though with the cloak they wore it was impossible to be certain.

Seeming to have grown tired of Alex’s one-sided staring contest, though he had no way to actually tell since their eyes were hidden, the person finally moved. Grip tightening around his new knife, he watched wearily as they removed their hood to reveal pinned down golden hair. Some of the tension left him as he realized who was most likely under the mask, their voice confirming it a moment later.

“So I guess ya didn’t need my help after all. Still, you fucked things up by killing them like that. I really wish you had waited.” Her words were nonchalant, maybe even playful, but they brought all the tension rushing back, and with it, a bit of anger. The last five days of his life had essentially been a blur of merciless torture, then after he finally makes what could be considered a miracle escape, she just waltzes in here and tells him he should have waited.

“Why the fuck should I have done that? I’ve been getting sliced, diced, and crushed for the better part of the last week, and you’re telling me I was just meant to sit around waiting for some rescue I never even knew was fucking coming.”

The light smile she’d been holding dimmed some at his outburst, though her tone lost none of the levity.

“Aww, cute, you think you’re the only one with problems, I was simply pointing out a fact. No need to get your panties in a twist.”

Unconsciously squeezing the hilt of his knife like a stress ball, he didn’t immediately respond. Dora’s naturally combative personality aside, Alex had enough self-awareness to know when he was on the verge of being irrational. Taking a moment to phrase his question in a way that deescalated the situation, he responded to her childish attempt at further aggravating him.

“Dora, why are you here?”

“Why? To rescue you, of course. Did I not make that clear?” Her smile was back in full force as she finally removed the mask, and Alex found himself losing his train of thought as his eyes met hers.

Had she always been this beautiful? The woman, and she was definitely a woman, had completely abandoned her childlike appearance, replacing it with a visage that would have put the lead of Homer’s most popular work to shame. Rather than the gray of fresh clay, her skin was now a fair white that lacked any blemishes. No, it wasn’t that she lacked imperfections per se, it was just that any mole or birthmark only worked to enhance her appearance in such a way that calling them so would be criminal.

The symmetry of her face was perfection, the gentle curve of her lips like the crescent of the moon, the light dip of her dimpling cheeks only matched by the graceful decline of a natural valley. But even still, while he knew that her very presence had redefined his understanding of beauty itself, none of it compared to her eyes. Irises that shone like the golden corona of the rising sun, pupils hidden behind their radiance as they seemed to pull him in.

Alex felt himself getting lost, his stare focused as if nothing else in the world mattered. He had seen her golden eyes before, but only in flashes, the time that they were present so short it only registered after the fact, but now he never wanted to look away. The sensation grew slightly painful as their brilliance seemed to seer into his very soul, his entire being laid bare for her to see. That slight change broke the illusion, and Alex found himself fighting against his brain to even speak.

“S- s- stop, that.” He managed to squeeze through gritted teeth, the words barely more than forced air.

A moment of confusion interrupted her irreplicable beauty, and Alex once more lost himself in the need to solve any issue she had. He watched as if in slow motion, the perplexity shifting to understanding, then regret as she immediately looked away, the spell that had been cast on him breaking near instantly. Alex groaned as he followed her example, his eyes darting to the ground as his head pounded.

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“Holy shit, I’m so sorry. Fuck! I completely forgot those were on, the mask normally deals with the…” She sputtered for a moment before weakly ending the statement with, “you know.” To her credit, Alex thought she sounded regretful, the ever present lightness of her tone replaced by remorse. Dora’s face had similarly changed, her smile shifting to a frown, though Alex made sure to watch in Sixth Sense as to not risk another of whatever that trance had been from activating.

“No, I very much do not know. Were you trying to fucking mind control me?” he asked, the moment he was sure he had full control of himself once more. Well mostly full control, Alex didn’t know how long he’d been staring, but parts of his body had been affected more thoroughly than others and would need a moment to calm down.

“Uhh, no. Well not exactly. It’s not mind control, and I wasn’t doing it. At least, not purposefully, the effect is a skill, part of what happens when my eyes go golden. But I can’t really control it, so when I need to use the ability for longer periods of time, I wear the mask. Look, I’m really sorry, that was an accident.” Now she seemed genuinely embarrassed, emoting and being overall more expressive. While Alex knew not to take her words at face value, if she was telling the truth he needed to take the chance and push this slight advantage.

“Dora, ok, as you might have noticed quite a lot of unpleasant shit has been happening to me lately, not the least of which being your fucked up charm spell.” She chuckled nervously but didn’t interrupt Alex, which seemed like a good sign. Risking a glance upwards, he confirmed her eyes were now the light brown color he was more familiar with. “If you wouldn’t mind explaining what you know without that cutesy little bullshit, it would be appreciated. If not, then do you mind saving both of us some time and just leaving.”

He knew Dora had a plans of her own, and that notion, after everything he’d been through, was just putting him more on edge. Alex could except that everyone had their motivations, in this fake tutorial world that was likely to be even more true, but she was already someone he stood absolutely zero chance against in a fight. If she wasn’t willing to at least tell him what was happening, there wasn’t much else for them to talk about.

“Uhm yea, I could do that. What did you want to know?” She still seemed cowed by the little incident and now it was time to see if it was real or an act.

“First, I’d like to understand why you are here. You keep saying that it’s to rescue me, but why you, and why just you. Beyond that, how did you find me, and how did me killing these people make a mess of things? Did you know them?

“Ok, so Janet asked for my help,” she began, some of her energetic nature returning. “Well actually Anise asked on Janet’s behalf, but they came to me since I’m good at finding things, or people.” She pointed to her eyes almost sheepishly. “I was supposed to tell them when I found you, but something came up, and I figured it was best for me to come immediately. Turned out you didn’t need me though.”

Alex nodded slightly, though internally he was less agreeable. She was lying, Alex knew she hadn’t just found him, rather she’d known where he was for at least half-a-day, maybe longer. Unable to come up with a way to use that knowledge without asking her, he opted for the direct path.

“I see. Then, if you don’t mind a follow-up question, why are you lying?”

“Excuse me,” the princess said, affront evident in her tone. Alex didn’t very much care.

“I’m asking why you claimed to have come straight here, when you waited until specifically now to show up. You were here earlier having a conversation, were you not?”

“Well-”

Alex could tell another lie was coming and decided to cut it off before she soured their relationship further. “While you don’t seem willing to share your reasoning, I do appreciate any help you were planning on offering me, but I think it’s best we cut this off here. That is, unless you were planning to whisk me away to that Eric guy now that I’ve killed his goons?

“No, it’s not like that. It’s more complicated.”

Nodding sagely as he did his best to keep his emotions in check, Alex agreed with the woman. “I’m sure it is, but like I said earlier, this week has been hell. I understand that I cannot win against you in a battle, however I will still try. If you do not plan to take me up on that, I’ll be on my way. Stay as long as you like.”

With that he rose, hand bloodless as he gripped his now exposed knife even tighter. Dora didn’t even glance at it, instead trying to hold his gaze as she spoke.

“No, wait, you can’t go.”

Dropping into Battle Trance, he took the extra time to finalize his course of action. As big as he’d talked, Alex had no plans to fight the woman. If her eyes alone could immobilize him, he stood nothing close to a chance. He broke eye contact, opting to observe her with Sixth Sense. If she tried to attack, Alex would get to try out his newest skill for the first time, and in a life or death situation at that. To his surprise she didn’t lash out, or try to placate him for that matter, instead she put her fingers up to her temple and let out a short frustrated scream. Not really sure what to do Alex waited for her next words.

“Sit down.”

“Excuse me?”

“No, not like that, I’ll explain.” Her voice was pleading now, but Alex refused to look at her directly.

“Why now? And why should I believe you? You already lied. Kind of hard to repair damaged burgeoning trust like that.”

“Because I need your help.”

That caught his attention. What could the powerhouse approaching D-Grade possibly need from him, so he asked as much.

“That’s not- I’m not even that close to D-Grade, not actually, Anise was just exaggerating. There are only two in the in a thousand miles who can claim the title of D-Grade, then another below them who are still much closer than me. Look it’s a long story, but I really do need your help, I’ll explain the truth, the entire truth, if you agree to help me after.”

“Help you with what?”

“Killing my father, the king.”

Alex took a seat.