I shout at the two Colossi arguing about titles, asking them if they wouldn’t mind helping dig a ditch for the ancestors to walk back in. They’re not really interested themselves, but they’re willing to get someone to help. I saunter back into the camp and bust open the weird prison pen the ancestors are milling about in. Some are just sitting around idly, doing nothing in particular. I don’t know if those ones will ever wander back towards Autumn Brook.

The observational presence continues along as we journey back to Autumn Brook, thankfully. Hopefully that’s Dawn and not some new presence. Helen actually has Rej track down Meredith, Clint, and Dodge, to help with herding the ancestors and creating a ditch for them to walk along. Once we’re certain the Aasimovian ancestors are all free, we walk the trail of the ditch ourselves, sort of testing its safety. Meredith and her two men outpace us quickly, since we’re no longer in a rush.

I’ve been ready to fall over and pass out this entire time. My limbs feel like lead, and I begin to stumble more and more frequently. Teuila looks at me worriedly for a bit as she slows her pace to stay beside me. She reaches to support me a moment too late as I plummet face-first into the mud, losing consciousness.

“They say tha’ magic is returning to th’ worl’ lad. Hear tell th’ people of th’ Hidden Heart are changing, some with skin like bark, some gaining antlers, some growing wings. And tha’s not all. Hear tell of new creatures roaming about, little gobliny things, stuff from stories and legends.”

I scoff at the utter nonsense. Returning to the world? It was never here to begin with. And there’s nothing magical about a bunch of people imagining or claiming they have horns. Magic was definitely never here to begin with. Hell, as far as I can tell, we were never here to begin with, up until recently. It’s as if our whole world and everyone on it just sprung into existence with a facade of history.

Even for me. It’s almost as if I myself only came alive in adolescence. No memories before then and such. Hell, even after that, it’s almost like portions of the world still didn’t even exist until I happened to venture far enough out into them. I wonder if I set a course for the Untamed Lands, if suddenly it’ll be a neighboring kingdom, and everyone will remember that it has always existed, like they did with Khudia and Usledian once again?

Or how they recalled Khudia and Usledian being at war with an unknown foe for whatever period, one that threatens to swallow them up under its own banner any day now. Next time I go out far enough and come back, they’ll probably have a name for the hostile kingdom. They’ll claim the unknown foe was known all along, and that they never claimed it was unknown. Wish I could prove it though.

Either I’m right, and everyone is affected by some sort of insanity as our world builds itself, or, or I don’t know. There has to be a logical explanation though, for why people would never mention any neighboring cultures for over a decade, and no one would leave to take on a job at all. All of a sudden, we’ve supposedly been a secret city of assassins this entire time. None of them are that good of actors, they couldn’t keep up a charade of not being assassins for a decade or more, especially with no one leaving town to take on jobs. Honestly, I could swear our village was smaller in the beginning, just a single quad, barely an alleyway between two of the four buildings. There were never any construction projects, but our city in this valley has dozens of homes, and several taverns.

Of course they all think I’m crazy. Maybe I am. No rational person would believe any of the things that I posit. They’d all just point out the fact that I already have problems with my memories, being that I can’t recall the first eleven or so years of life at all. Maybe they’re right.

I sigh as I slump my back against the booth, sinking into my seat. I’m going in mental circles. Grandpa Joe says these people to our east know magic. Eights and I have been taking on jobs for a long time now, they might be easier with magic. Maybe I could learn from them. The Hidden that live in the Heart of the Wilds have always seemed like good people, at least as long as they’ve existed. Always been on good terms with us of Vale Valley. I suppose I can take a vacation for a few years to study magic if someone is willing to teach me, if it really exists. I’m a relatively young assassin, and I look younger than that. I seem to age slowly, if at all anymore.

W, w, what? What hap. Where. Who? Ugh. My face hurts. Koff, koff. Ugh, my mouth is full of stinging mud. Who am, no, where. Ugh. Oh, oh soft arms. Those, those are, they’re nice. Those are Teuila’s arms. Mm, this is nice. I feel so exhausted. But, I think I just woke up. Didn’t I? Maybe I didn’t sleep for long. Is Teuila sad? I could swear she’s sniffling. I reach up to stroke her cheek. It’s damp, but that doesn’t prove anything in the constantly drizzling acid rain.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Teuila startles, “Dink! Oh my Dink. You’re, you’re okay! You’re awake. I. Dawn came by a few hours ago. Said they got a feeling, they were worried about you. I tried waking you up for a few hours at first, but, but I, I guess I just thought maybe you needed some sleep. You didn’t seem to be getting much rest from sleeping on the run, so, so I just stayed put. With you.”

I smile up at Teuila, “I’m sorry Te. I still don’t feel like I got much rest. Ugh, I do feel hungry though. Can we maybe hurry back to The Brook after all? I was happy to meander slowly, but I’m starving. It feels like I ran another marathon after the last ones. Oh crud I can’t even lift my arms.”

Teuila frowns and frets as she helps me up. She looks me over, trying to find wounds I suppose. When she doesn’t find anything, she just stares at me, frowning, for too long a moment. I start to feel embarrassed and recoil slightly, trying to lift my arms to wrap around myself. Te notices this and chuckles as she gives me a tight hug.

Te asks, “Want me to carry you? I mean, we took turns last time, but, well, I got a couple minutes of sleep just now, so I’m probably good to make it back to The Brook.”

I frown as I respond, “That’s not fair to you Te, I don’t want to put that on you.”

She bonks me lightly, “Come on my wonderdink. In the end, back home, you were flying us everywhere. I can handle this. I used to dash with Lin all the way to The Hollow to hunt every morning, and come back. Y’know? I can handle a few dozen miles or whatever. Hell, since you showed me how to access my inventory, I’m assuming the same thing goes for evolution stuff? I could probably just go Valkyrie and get us home in a few minutes or something. I mean, not home home, but, you know, The Brook.”

I wear a pouty frown as I’m unsure how to respond, “I, I worry though Te. It hurts me so much to use my magic, even more than it was in the end back home. It seemed to hurt you too just to use your inventory, that’s not normal. Or, maybe it’s because I gave you that extra mana as a tether when we were taking down the mite hulks one last time. I might have corrupted your magics. I’m sorry.”

Teuila slugs me playfully, “Oh come off it, don’t worry. You didn’t corrupt me Dink. I’m fine. Screw it, I’m doing it. You need food? We’re getting you food, and quick.”

Teuila glows slightly as she begins her transformation sequence. I want to say if we’re going to use magic, we can just summon some fish or insect meat from our inventories, but she would probably just slug me again. Her slugging would be playful, light, soft, obviously. And she might maybe call me no fun. Heh. My eyes droop during the time it takes Teuila to assume her Valkyrie form. Before I can see if it even fully coalesced, I’ve passed back out again.

Hm, what, where? Ugh. I, I think I feel a little less tired. From when? Compared to who? Who. Why. I’m, ugh. I blink harder and harder, and realize I’m in the arms of someone I love, Teuila’s arms. Right, right, Can’Z’aas, no, wait, Rayileklia. Right. Dead, alive, new world, giants, dragon. Apparently I can’t really see semi-humanoid faces properly, everything just looks really human-ish to me. Teuila made fun of me and my old mental logs. Apparently basically each new critterkin I met I labeled the most human ever. That does sound like me.

She wouldn’t run a bit on me that hard, would she? I ask, “Te? Te? You weren’t running a bit on me about the faces, right? Like, all the human giants, you said they weren’t just human giants?”

Teuila frowns as she pauses her leaping strides. She looks down into my eyes and answers, “Of course not. I, I’m worried about you. I mean, I guess the faces thing is just, fine or whatever, since apparently you’ve been like that your whole life. No wonder you thought you looked different in our eyes. No wonder you thought you were a human. Oh hey, I think Dawn’s up ahead, we caught up from where they got ahead after we napped.”

Oh, oh huh! Yeah! That makes sense! I remember looking through Lil’s eyes, and I looked more put-together, and, and stuff. More than that, like, like my own preconceptions were still filtering even that. I’m almost sure of it. I probably look even more Fae than I thought I looked in their eyes. Gosh. I guess this explains certain things about, koff, uh, heh, err. Embarrassing thoughts about various cuddle partners like Fawns At Sunsets. Ack. I’m flushing so hard with embarrassment. My blushing this hot and hard feels like it’s going to melt Teuila’s Valkyrie armor.

I accidentally say out loud, “Holy fudge, yeah, no, she, whew, yikes, yeah. So hot.”

Teuila starts to giggle at my nonsensical ramblings. I’m not sure if she realizes I was interrupting myself, and avoiding commenting on my own thought train about Fawns At Sunsets’ curves. Fawn was, whew, yeah, yikes. Ugh I’m at it again. Wait, no, but then wouldn’t that? No. No I don’t suppose. Wait. Now I’m confusing myself. No, Te is right. So is my earlier revelation. I just need to stop thinking about my various overly intimate snuggles with certain gorgeous women that I may never see again. There we go, now I’m sad. That works.

I mumble, “I really love you Teuila. Thank you, for taking care of me, for choosing me, for being there, for being you. Thanks for making sure I was alright. You’re amazing. I’ll love you through however many lifetimes we end up having.”

Teuila gives me an “awe shucks” look as she playfully slugs me in the shoulder. I hear Dawn politely cough nearby, and I’d like to wave to them. I’d like to talk to Dawn and thank them for being worried about me and such. First though I want to make sure Teuila knows I love her. I mean, I know she knows. I just want to kiss her. I don’t need to make an excuse for that. I reach up, or well, try to anyway, to kiss Teuila. My limbs still feel like lead, but at least I can slowly raise them. I try to bring her face towards mine but I’m not sure if I pass out before or after I kiss her.