Day 38, Month 4, Day 10

—

Name: Phoenix

Journey Tier

Attributes: 0 points

Strength: 7.1, Constitution: 14.1, Coordination: 13, Mentality: 23, Will: 17.3, Charisma: 18, Luck: 13

Skills: Acting 25%->27%, Disguise 25%->27%, Small Unit Tactics 23%->25%

Arcane Skills: Magical Theory 65%->66%, Intensity 63%->65%, Duration 58%->60%, Area 45%->47%, Passivity 62%->64%, Magical Shape 38%->40%

—

Phoenix roused himself in the predawn darkness. First thing he noticed is that his increased intensity of exercises had started to pay off, slowly but surely incrementing his strength and constitution scores. He would have to talk to someone about exercises he could do to work on coordination as well, but for now, he went through his routine with renewed vigor. Seeing progress so numerically was a huge boost to his determination to keep working out. Some people felt refreshed and energized after a heavy workout. He, on the other hand, felt like a worn out rag that had been twisted a little too hard to wring out all the sweat. Exercise was definitely not his favorite activity, but the dangers he got dragged through made some kind of physical conditioning mandatory.

Before he even began to work out, he layered on some basic defenses. With the town ready to be besieged any day now, he would not be caught unawares. Death Ward, Ward versus The Lie, Fire of Mentality, and Spirit Ward. He would have to get into the habit of putting these up every day, at least for the near future. Since his Passivity skill had increased, he could afford to use up his available persistent spells like this without sacrificing his ability to raise Illusory Earth walls or establishing his Sun Lance in an emergency. It provided him with a feeling of power, being protected from physical, spiritual, and mental attacks. It was not something he was used to feeling. But he definitely wanted to get used to it.

After his workout, it was spiritual exercises, working on his channel. The spiritual sense he had of his channel was very strange now, wider but also much rougher with a definite feel to it of being patched together hastily. This was all a metaphor that he used to make sense of what he could feel, of course. But it did help guide him on what he needed to do, smooth things down to give less resistance to the flow, and merge the pieces of his stolen power with his original channel so that they formed one continuous whole.

This all amounted to several hours of intense concentration, and by the time he was ready to wrap up, Panna had woken up and started making breakfast for the troops down on the first floor. As he came out of his meditative trance, he heard Yvonne’s voice being raised in some kind of fuss. Filled with a mixture of curiosity and dread, he took the elevator down to see what was going on.

“Magus, it is far too risky for you to leave right now. Please, just have breakfast here like the rest of us!” Sargent Isabel was pleading with Yvonne, who in turn was looking extremely annoyed.

“I despise those magically summoned foods. Obviously if the foe should somehow breach the walls, I will remain inside, but until then…” Yvonne was starting to raise her voice.

“Excuse me Magus.” Phoenix slid in next to her, bowing his head slightly. “Is there some errand you need done outside? I would be happy to accomplish such a task in your stead. Your important work with the War Tower in this time of crisis shouldn’t be interrupted.”

Yvonne grunted at him, looking mulish and upset. “Of course I have important work. All I wanted to do was get a little fresh air and go across the street for breakfast. But I suppose if needs must, you can do that for me, at least. I will return to my confinement on the top floor then.”

Phoenix remained still with his head bowed as Yvonne stomped off. Once she was safely on the elevator and out of ear shot, he smiled at a grateful looking Sargent Isabel.

“Not that I am all that much safer outside than her, but at least I am not needed to run the War Tower right?” He made puppy dog eyes at the taller woman, feeling impish.

“I was about to say you shouldn’t leave either, but if I am going to lose an argument it might as well be about you and not Yvonne. Two people in the town who can activate the War Tower, and they both fight tooth and nail against being protected.” Isabel noticed the confusion on Phoenix’s face. “Not you. Magus Yvonne and Priestess Reelwen. The Priestess was called away from the temple due to a serious accident in one of the food warehouses, several severely injured workers. If reports are to be believed anyway. If you are going to get some food, bring me back some too?”

Hella, just finishing getting suited up in her armor, perked up at that. “Oh, could you…” but Isabel cut her off. “Only so many hands does Fena have. Privileges of rank, sister. Go get yourself on duty before I have you cleaning the latrine.”

Hella sighed and gave a rather half hearted salute, arm across chest and hand in a fist. She then opened the door and guided Phoenix outside. “I mean, if you just happened to have extra as you came back, Sargent is gonna be inside all morning is all I am saying…”

Phoenix smiled. “I’ll do what I can. No promises!”

Phoenix let the smile disappear as soon as he was out of the door. The oppressive atmosphere of worry that pervaded the workers around the tower was infecting him, making him anxious and restless. No one looked scared or panicked, more grim and resolved. On the one hand, he had been able to take an active role in defending the town. On the other hand, there was his worry about assassins or saboteurs still in the town. Further, he still had no information on Michael’s fate. He hadn’t known hir long enough to call hir a friend, but he felt like it could have headed there. Still he had no idea what to do about them other than stay safe and ask questions. All in all it formed a mixed jumble that left him apprehensive.

He stood in line at the food vendor that Yvonne preferred, mulling over that jumble. The place sold little parfait like breakfast items, mixed oats and honey that approximated granola, yogurt, and fresh fruit. The vendor had them pre-made and waiting, some clever magic or other trickery kept them cool. Two copper chits a piece, served in a crystalized sugar glass that you could eat. Fortunately he still had money left over from Anaxitrith’s payment. He would have to ask for another disbursement soon, Yvonne naturally cared not at all for the logistics of her meals.

When he reached the front of the line, he ordered three, deciding at the last moment to cater to Hella’s request, despite Isabel putting the kibosh on it. While the woman serving the food was arranging his purchase into a neat sling, he decided to ask some questions.

“You must have heard a bit of gossip, any word what happened to the woman who lived in the apartment where that demon was found?” Casual, subtle, smooth, that was Phoenix all over.

The woman was shaking her head. “You are talking about that tart, Michael. One of the ladies from the bar comes round in the afternoon, we got to talking, and sure enough she says the guard got a letter saying zie was staying with a friend when the apartment got hit.” She handed him the three breakfast sweets. “Of course you know what kind of friends zie is gonna have.” The smirk on her face told Phoenix everything he needed to know about her opinion on those friends.

“No word on who the friend is? I would appreciate having a chance to talk to hir.” Phoenix pushed.

The vendor lady gave a knowing smile. “Didn’t take you for the type, but sure. The complex off of Orchard-way. Ask around, someone’s bound to have noticed hir.”

Phoenix thanked her and paid an extra chit, for the gossip. Then he stood outside and looked across the road at the entrance to the War Tower. Once he was back inside there, he strongly suspected he wasn’t coming out again. A bit of luck, however, as he saw Hella standing guard just inside the door.

Crossing quickly over, he sidled up to Hella. “Here, breakfast, on me. But do me a favor and take the other two inside for me? I got something I gotta check on.”

Hella fumbled with the packaged food and her spear, finally settling on just hugging the lot of them to her chest. “What? Fena, don’t wander off, things are going to get… oh well, never mind, there she goes.”

True enough Phoenix was headed around the bend to Orchard-Way. As soon as he exited the circle made by the ring road around the temple, he could feel his collar constrict slightly, and pulse, warning him that he was outside the bounds established by Celeste and Yvonne. This was yet another thing he needed to deal with sooner rather than later, but for now he just ignored it.

He arrived at the main entrance to the apartment complex that faced the north side of Orchard-Way. A near perfect sibling of the one Michael lived in, six stories of white dressed stone and filling the entire block, with stores on the first floor and apartments on the rest. A large open courtyard in the center was festooned with plant life, gardens, and flowers, some of which spilled out through the opening and into the street itself. He asked one of the women who were relaxing in the area, describing Michael as zie had presented hirself at the bar- handsome and dashing. Phoenix figured that such a person would be quite memorable.

He was directed to a third floor apartment, and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end, given the similarities to his last encounter. Indeed, as Phoenix arrived at the corner on the third floor, he paused, staring hard down the corridor at his destination. Once again, there was no one in this section of the apartment complex, a situation he found highly suspicious, and the lighting had failed and not been renewed. The trestle of ivy and other green growing things blocked the morning sun, leaving a green dappled shadow of a tunnel.

—

Ward versus The Lie 50%

—

Phoenix felt dizzy for a moment, and the shadows of the tunnel in front of him twisted.

A shadow… resolved itself, a few meters away. First dark lines of ink traced out a human form, then a dusting of light motes, glittering pricks of starlight in the black, cast shadows and shapes into stark relief. Then finally, Michael’s face became obvious in the dark, hir hands cupped below hir chin and shining a light up to illuminate hir face.

“What’s up buttercup?”

Michael was dressed in tight fitting black leather nearly head to toe. Several belts criss crossed hir waist and thighs, holding a variety of sheaths for knives, bottles, and other less identifiable items. A black veil was hanging loosely around hir neck, attached to the hood over hir head. Knee high boots completed the ensemble, and Phoenix was left with the impression of a sexy ninja grinning impishly at him.

Phoenix couldn’t pick his jaw up off the floor. “MIchael! What the hell?”

Zie made shushing motions with hir hands, looking behind him and then through the trellis to make sure Phoenix’s exclamation hadn’t drawn attention. “Calmly, calmly ‘cup. Let’s not make a circus out of this!” Michael turned to face him, smiling and seemingly relaxed. “Nice trick, whatever it was you just did. Pulled me right out of the shadows. Hey, can you do that whenever you want?”

“What? Yes? Wait! What happened to you! I went to your apartment and an actual demon attacked me! And it looked like it killed you before it got to taste a piece of me!” Phoenix was having trouble maintaining a quiet and moderate tone of voice.

Michael winced and put a hand on hir stomach. “Yeah, well, I probably should be dead if I am being honest with myself. As you just saw, Myiktek’s aren’t the only ones that can pull that hide in shadows trick. The two of us were playing cat and mouse in the shadows, until you showed up. I would have had to come out sooner rather than later, and it would have had me. So, you know, thanks ‘cup. Big assist.” Zie gave him a gentle punch on the shoulder, and a brilliant smile.

“You aren’t a server. Like that isn’t your real job. I knew it.” Phoenix muttered.

Michael just grinned. “Just like you aren’t some kid who wandered in from the wilds. Whatcha’ doing here, buttercup? Shouldn’t you be safe in the tower?”

“Why do you call me that? I have a name, you even used it before. What's up with this buttercup nonsense?” Phoenix glared at her.

“Because that’s what you are! A buttercup.” Michael was unrepentant.

“Ok, I’ll bite. Explain what a buttercup is.” Phoenix said.

Michael sat down on the ground, arms straight behind her to hold her torso up and her legs splayed in a very unladylike way. Like a glamour fading from a faerie dream, zie suddenly looked sweaty, bloody, and most of all tired. Hir eyes were still sharp and attentive, but everything else shouted someone who was at the end of their endurance.

“Buttercup is what we call the boys back home. Pretty yellow flower, right? Reminds you of spring and life and gentle innocent love. Something like that can only exist these days in a greenhouse. The boys are all back at the Capital, safe and protected, while we are all out here fighting and dying in a war that never ends.” Michael sighed.

“If you are lucky, you serve your ten, get to go home. You spend your pension on a trade or a share crop, making enough to retire when you are too old. Your lottery number comes up before you're all dried up, and you meet a guy for a night or two, courtesy of the Church. You take away whatever memories you can hold and a daughter, most likely. And all of this makes you blessed.”

Zie shook hir head. “She grows up and you watch as she signs up for her ten. And the cycle repeats. And every year, humanity as a whole takes two steps back for every one step forward. For two thousand years, that’s been the cycle. You want to know what I am? Fine. I am a kind of agent for the Church of Arachnae. We fight in the shadows, both literally and figuratively, and we hang our asses out in the breeze so that somehow, someday, a man like you might live out here in the hinterlands without having a coven show up with a thousand goblins and a horde of orcs within a week.” The last bit came out with more force than perhaps Michael realized, hir face flushed and sweaty.

“It's not a coincidence that you showed up here. I layed this nice little trap and you spring it, so I ask again, whatcha doing here, Fena?”

“Obviously looking for you. I asked the vendor where I was buying food and surprise surprise, she pointed me right to you.” Phoenix paused briefly. “Not a happy coincidence, I assume, judging by your trap statement. So, what, you spread rumors of you being here all through town to try and get someone to trip into you?”

Michael wearily leaned against the wall then, curling hir legs up beneath hir and gently clutching her side. “Yeah, well, kind of running out of ideas, to be perfectly frank with you. I’ve been playing tag with two, maybe three demons all throughout town for the last three weeks. Finally tempted that Myiktek to take a stab at me, but I underestimated it, and it managed to dig a claw or three into me. Then you showed up to save the day, and once I saw you weren’t going to die on me I bugged out. Tracked the one you killed to this apartment, been waiting for its partner to show up so I can bag it. Obviously that wasn’t working so I decided to make it a bit more obvious where I was. Figures that would pull you in instead.”

Phoenix knelt down beside Michael. Hir black leather clothes hid the damp stains well, but he could tell zie was still leaking blood. He remembered the Death Tainted wounds he himself had received. “We should get you to Priestess Reelwen. You are going to keel over dead, no further assistance from these demons required.”

Michael was shaking hir head. “Last thing I need is Sandra poking her nose into my business. Jurisdiction this, chain of command that, ugh.”

Phoenix raised an eyebrow at that. “Oh? Is that why the shrine to Shai was abandoned? Political spats with Priestess Reelwen?”

Michael chuckled, mordantly. “No. That’s ‘cause I haven’t been able to afford being down twenty magic pool for a day. The idea was to pretend to be vulnerable, not actually make myself vulnerable.”

“Shai was happy someone could donate at least. I cleaned it up for you. It’s even all charged up, if, you know, you wanted to check in. Or ask for help.”

Michael stared at Phoenix for a moment. “You talked to Shai.”

“Well, it was a little more one sided than that, but yes. After the fight with the Myiktek.” Phoenix replied.

“Curiouser and curiouser. I’ve heard maybe five words from Shai in my entire life, and those were when I took my vows. All right ‘cup, take me in your arms and carry me away to the temple. Maybe if you are there I can get away with asking some pointed questions of my own.” Michael reached out both arms, imploringly.

“You are joking. You want me to carry you?”

“No no, I want you to sweep me off my feet! I’ve been practicing my swoon ever since we met, you know.”

Phoenix rolled his eyes, stood up, and pulled Michael to hir feet. “I can give you a ride on my Illusory Earth spell, if you really do need to be carried…”

“No sense of the dramatic. Don’t you read any books?” The two of them made their way down to the ground floor, while Michael expounded at some length regarding the proper way for a young woman to save a young man from deadly peril. It took Phoenix a few minutes to realize that he was to take the ‘young woman’ doing the saving role in this epic tale.

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

As they arrived at the ring road, something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. Priestess Sandra Reelwen was making her way around the Temple, headed towards Dock-way. It wasn’t her entourage of two of the Acolytes that attracted his eye. It was the furtive presence behind them, a kind of shadow that moved without anyone attached to it.

—

Luck Uses: 0 [1 recharging, 24 hours remaining]

Ward versus The Lie Exhausted

—

He blinked several times as the chitinous form of a Myiktek resolved itself out of the shadow. He let out a sharp cry which caused a number of people on the street around him to look over in confusion.

“There, a demon! Do you see it?” he grabbed Michael’s arm and pointed urgently.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Michael growled “Back me up?” Zie flashed him a smile and twirled into a nearby shadow, reversing in an instant the myriad patterns of light and lines and shadow zie had displayed when zie appeared previously. He could barely track hir as hir shadowy presence zipped down the road.

Phoenix took off at a sprint, trying to catch up. As he rounded the bend and into Dock-Way road, Phoenix saw Reelwen enter a large building, with the Myiktek close behind. Some kind of visible distortion in the air had formed around both Reelwen’s group and the demon itself. Neither reacted to his shouted warning, and Phoenix growled to himself in frustration. He sprinted up to the big double doors, putting a hard shoulder against it. Sadly, the door opened by sliding up on rails, and he just bounced off the solid construction with a loud bang.

The icy calm of Fire of Mentality cut its way through his rising anger, replacing it with cool logic and crystal determination. Pulling the door up and open, he paused at the threshold to evaluate what he was jumping so recklessly into.

The interior was filled with crates and sacks of unknown goods, each arranged in towers taller than he was and with six to eight boxes per level. No windows let in light, nor were there any working interior lights either. This meant that he was standing there silhouetted by the sunlight streaming in from the door he had pulled open. Concerned about possible attacks from out of the darkness, he moved inside. His eyes adapted to the dimly lit area with exceptional quickness, and he was thankful once again for his Enchanted Heart boon.

Making his way around the first set of box towers, he saw the first body. It looked like one of the Acolytes, not one he knew the name of but vaguely familiar as a face from the several breakfasts he had had in their quarters. He knelt quickly to check her pulse, and let out a mournful sigh when he found none. He did not have time to deal with the dead however, if he wanted to be of any use to the living. Sounds of conflict, grunts and muffled cries of pain, pulled him into a run towards the back of the warehouse.

He pulled up hard when he broke through the last row of towers and into a more open area. Things hit his senses quickly, but the Fire of Mentality cataloged and addressed each one with lightning speed. There were four combatants in the open space in front of him. Priestess Reelwen, another Acolyte, the Myiktek, and a dashing Michael facing off with it. All four were injured to some degree, the Myiktek with bleeding gashes on both its arms and legs. Reelwen with three rents in her robes gushing bright blood. The Acolyte holding her head and kneeling next to a collapsed tower of boxes. And Michael dripped blood from a tear across her chest.

There was also a group of laborers lying unconscious or dead against the wall. They were each under a box, as if one of the towers had collapsed and stuck them all at once. In fact, most of the box towers had fallen past the row he had just exited from, creating a haphazard array of cover and open spaces depending on where the scattered boxes had landed. It was at the edge of this space that Phoenix found himself.

That evaluation took only a split second. Deciding his next action took a split second more, not even enough time for the actors on the stage before him to act.

“Arcane Combat Enhancement Personal Frame. Charge: 100%. Shock Bolt Module Activated.”

Phoenix charged the shock bolt and fired at the Myiktek, striking it along the spine and lower back. It whirled on him, hissing like a cat, claws at the ready. Before he could blast it again, Michael lashed out, her bare hands held rigid and straight, the tips of her fingers just touching the demon. Arcing streaks of black ichor sprayed across the ground with two quick strikes to the back of the Myiktek’s legs. Not deep enough to damage anything important, apparently, because it dashed forward, arms straight out to either side like a bird trying to take off. A great cloak of darkness streamed behind it as it went, engulfing the entire area in pitch black.

—

Death’s Panoply 63%

—

He could not see but he felt the impact of the demon's charge on his Death Ward. He also felt it when he smashed into one of the box towers, followed by the collapse of boxes burying him in bronze reinforced wood. Struggling against the invisible weight all around him, he quickly came to the conclusion that he was pinned. And further, that he lacked the physical strength to move these boxes off himself. Phoenix might have panicked at this point, but the Fire of Mentality would not let him. Buried as he was, he was insulated from further attacks by the Myiktek, so he could afford to spend precious seconds concentrating on bringing up his Illusory Earth.

Phoenix formed the Illusory Earth into a bubble around himself, causing boxes to slide off and bounce along the ground, freeing him from their crushing embrace. He still could not see, so he spent another handful of precious seconds bringing up his Sun Lance. The halo of light around his head shattered the unnatural darkness created by the Myiktek.

The fight amongst the others had gone poorly during his absence. Priestess Reelwen was face down on the floor now, a pool of blood staining her white robes red. The unknown Acolyte was cowering next to her, hands covering her head. The Myiktek was facing off with Michael, wary and clearly injured. It cast its gaze back at Phoenix, eyes filled with hatred, and then began searching the ground around itself.

“Keep your light on it! Don’t let it break contact!” Michael cried out.

Phoenix jogged behind the Myiktek and just out of reach of those claws, the halo of light casting stark shadows against the floor and walls as everyone moved about. Michael was darting in and out of range of the demon, striking and retreating. None of the wounds zie caused were serious, but the slow trickle of black blood running down the demons legs was starting to add up. The same, unfortunately, could be said of Priestess Reelwen. If she wasn’t dead already, she would be soon, so they couldn’t afford to dance about until reinforcements arrived.

You will have to touch it, you know. Just a touch is all you need. That thin, quiet voice was back in his head. It didn’t sound at all like Arachnae, nor did it sound like Shai. it was instead breathy and sibilant, and it made his scalp itch. Quickly, before you lose more allies.

A fleeting thought urged caution, but other competing thoughts shouted it down. He had his Spirit Ward up, and the Fire of Mentality, both or either of which should protect him from most mental intrusions. And this intrusive, whispery thought wasn’t exactly wrong about his options. Plus, Shai had given him permission to try again. That sounded very like a justification, and while his conscience twinged, he studiously ignored it.

Quickly, he dove at the Myiktek’s legs at the same time Michael was dancing hir way inside the reach of its claws. The impact of Phoenix’s body didn’t even budge the demon, but it was distracted just long enough for him to wrap a hand around its ankle. Unfortunately, his weak grip betrayed him, and the Myiktek kicked free before he could begin the spell. The kick continued back into his face, a punishing blow that slid him back several meters due to the force but otherwise didn’t hurt him.

—

Death’s Panoply 35%

—

Struggling to his feet, he called out to Michael. “Hold it for a second!”

Michael didn’t respond verbally, instead stepping inside the circle of those fatal claws once again. A quick block with one of hir hands turned into a straight arm lock, and then zie was pulling the demon off balance such that it was forced to fling the other arm behind it to hold itself off the ground. Phoenix took that moment to rush back in, wrapping an arm around the thing's neck and putting both hands together on its shoulder, flesh to chitin.

And then he used Draw Earth.

As before, the power poured into him, black and thick as tar. The Myiktek howled in fear, thrashing its torso to try and dislodge Phoenix, who held on desperately. Michael wasn’t idle either, jabbing hir stiff fingers into the armpit of the Myiktek. While all this was happening, Phoenix’s spiritual senses searched for the Myiktek’s passageway, and as before he tore it off of the demon’s soul, like a weed being ripped from the earth. One difference became suddenly apparent- it was too much power. He didn’t have enough room in his own passageway to absorb all that he was stealing from the demon, and he felt his own soul writhe and twist as it bloated under the strain.

The combination of intense spiritual discomfort and the desperate thrashing of the demon’s limbs dislodged Phoenix at last, sending him rolling off to the side. The Myiktek fell to a knee, dazed and streaming black smoke from its skin, black smoke which swirled around Phoenix in an ominous way. Michael took advantage of its new shorter height to drive hir hand into the back of the things skull. With a sharp gasp the massive demon twitched and then fell, dead.

—

Magic Pool: 42

Magic Burn I

—

Phoenix’s brain was on fire, the now familiar feeling of the magic burn coursing over his nerves. He managed to stagger to his feet, heading over to Priestess Reelwen. Michael handily beat him there, gently rolling the wounded woman over. Michael put hir palms on the two great gashes in Reelwen’s torso. No prayer was spoken, nor did Phoenix see anything obvious like holy light, but the wounds stopped bleeding and scabbed over. Michael gasped and sat down hard, panting with exertion.

“Damn Death-tainted wounds. That’s as much as I can do for her.” Michael said, shaking her head. “She will live, but she is the only one who could heal Death-taint in the entire town. That means she is out for the duration, however long that will be.”

Phoenix stumbled forward and sat down heavily next to Michael. He was trying to figure out the most important question to ask first when zie interrupted his thoughts.

“Hey buttercup. Why don’t you gather Veronica there while I carry Reelwen, and we can go meet the guards eh?”

“I… I can take care of the Priestess… if you two can run and get the guards here as soon as possible.” The Acolyte, Veronica, said in a shaky voice.

Phoenix snapped his teeth closed with a click, nonplussed by the casualness of Michael’s attitude. With a wave, he formed a gently curved plane of Illusory Earth to lift Reelwen off the floor. He stood alongside it, glancing back at Veronica and Michael. “We shouldn’t split up. Stick close.” He said.

Michael offered hir hand to Veronica, but the Acolyte shrank away from her, choosing to stand on her own. Shrugging, zie waited until Veronica followed behind Phoenix and the floating Reelwen, before zie brought up the rear.

“What about the others?” Phoenix asked, pointing at the bodies of the laborers.

“All dead, sadly, and for an hour or more if I don’t miss my guess.” Michael replied.

The adrenaline was draining out of him, and the Fire of Mentality released its hold on his emotions, letting him come down from the hyper aware unfeeling combat frame of mind and back into something a little more human.

They exited out of the warehouse and into the circle of militia and guards that had finally arrived. A considerably more robust response than the last time, twenty or so militia and a full squad of the guard had shown up. Surprisingly, Michael pushed Phoenix forward to do the explaining, and he lost track of hir in the mass of people and rain of questions. Eventually, the guards took Reelwen and Veronica into their charge, and Phoenix was escorted back to the War Tower by a squad of militia.

Once safely inside the Tower, he found an anxious Hella bouncing on the balls of her feet waiting for him, the food he had bought still there. Michael was sitting nearby, looking jovial and relaxed as zie ate one of the parfait.

“Fena! You triggered your collar again! And the Captain is seriously considering drafting you, I’d steer clear of her if I was you.” Hella said, reaching a hesitant hand out towards Phoenix’s neck.

Phoenix pulled away slightly, then frowned and fingered the collar. “This thing is really starting to chafe.”

Hella nodded, sympathetically. Phoenix glared at Michael and grabbed one of the parfait, determined not to piss off Yvonne by failing to deliver her breakfast completely. “You care to come upstairs and talk?”

“Hah, nah I’m good down here with the workin’ types. You go be a good girl and deliver for your master, I’ll be here when you’re done, ‘kay ‘cup?” Michael grinned insouciantly at him and Phoenix groaned. “These parfaits are really good. Sorry for stealing your breakfast.”

Phoenix glanced at Hella, whose face was starting to flush red. “I didn’t get a parfait for me, Michael.”

Michael paused, mouth open, and glanced at Hella guiltily. Phoenix took the opportunity to head over to the elevator, shaking his head in amusement. His good mood evaporated with the trip up the elevator to the top floor, and sure enough Yvonne was in a fine temper as he stepped off the lift.

“It took you long enough! Did you go all the way to the river for it?” Yvonne turned and stopped, raising an eyebrow. “Now then. What did you do to earn yourself another red mark, hmm?”

Phoenix spent a few minutes explaining the most recent excitement in his life, while at the same time setting the food out for Yvonne and making tea. Yvonne watched him with an unreadable expression, her hand fingering the key to his collar.

“You certainly have a very overdeveloped sense of duty.” Yvonne commented as he finished his story. “I might have to tighten up this collar on you, since you don’t seem to be interested in restricting yourself to safer and saner pursuits.”

Phoenix stiffened up, but forced himself to smile at Yvonne anyway. “Mistress, sometimes you just are in the right place at the wrong time. Besides, if you don’t let me go out to get you food, who will?”

Yvonne wagged a finger under his nose, before putting her hand on the top of his head and gently pushing him to his knees once more. Lifting his chin, she silently manipulated the key around his collar. Try as he might, he couldn’t tell what it was she was doing, and once she finished she turned to her meal.

“I need to work on the Tower’s magic point reserves this morning, so I won't have need of you. Come see me after lunch.”

Mastering his annoyance, a skill that he really ought to see on his panel given how much practice he had in it lately, he nodded back at her and descended once more to the first floor.

The first floor had reverted to a quieter state now that the alert had subsided and Sergeant Isabel had restored order. Hella was out in the entrance hall on duty, and the off duty guards had gathered around Michael. Phoenix arrived just as zie was finishing up the story of the fight with the Myiktek. Phoenix waited, with only minor impatience, for the group to finish their exclamations of surprise and admiration at the end.

“Hey” He said, once there was a lull.

Michael smiled at him and then stood “Right. Back into it. No rest for the wicked.”

“I’m sure you can take a few hours to sleep? Maybe have Panna look at your side, which you are not as good at disguising as you think you are.” Phoenix said, quietly, as he led hir over to the elevator and away from the others.

“Stoooop, you are going to make me blush. Panna can’t do anything, Death infected wounds. I’ll get over them, given time. Sandra could have done something, but now she is out for the duration. Those damn hags have been running the table, and frankly, the only reason they haven’t completely swept is because of a precocious boy sticking his nose where he ought not to.”

Phoenix stared at her, chewing on his lip thoughtfully. “You think there are more demons?”

Michael gave him a sidelong glance. “You aren’t going to go running out looking for them, are you?”

“What? I am not stupid you know!” He said, defensively.

“Stupidly brave I think. Don’t worry, I think I like ‘em dumb and heroic. But to answer your question, I don’t rightly know. Two Myiktek is a fairly large portion of any hags power. Would they risk more of their pets on these solo missions, where they can be defeated in detail like this? Seems unlikely.”

Phoenix nodded along, but something was bothering him. For several nights now, he had been having bad dreams and disturbed meditations while he ‘slept’ in the common quarters. Dreams that only faded when he moved into the more secure men’s quarter. “Michael, do you think these things could have gotten into the temple?”

Michael glanced over at the guards, who were pretending to ignore the pair. Lowering hir voice even further, zie turned to Phoenix. “No, second tier demons like those would be destroyed by the wards. Why do you ask?”

“Maybe it’s just nerves, but I’ve been having some bad dreams lately…” Phoenix went on to describe the weird sensations he remembered, of clawed hands and glaring eyes in the darkness of the temple common room.

Michael was biting hir lower lip, a worried look on hir face. “I wouldn’t dismiss that out of hand. If there is a higher tier demon in town… an infiltrator type, of some kind. With Priestess Sandra down, that leaves only Magus Yvonne as command authorized for the tower. Which makes her the prime target.” Zie refocused her gaze on Phoenix. “Don’t stray too far from Yvonne. I know you have all the guards and the tower’s defenses, but when push comes to shove I trust your abilities more than anyone else except for Celeste.” Michael patted his cheek. “In the meantime, I’ll be out there doing my job. All goes well, I’ll have this all wrapped up by tomorrow.”

“Right. Hey, speaking of Yvonne…” Phoenix hesitated for a moment, then plunged ahead. “Anyway to get this collar off? Or deactivated?”

Michael broke out into a wide, mischievous grin. “Whaaaat? You want your prison collar removed? What naughtiness are you planning on getting up to!”

“Well, maybe not removed, that might be noticed. But having it deactivated would be nice.” He looked away. “Yvonne makes me uncomfortable with that key of hers.”

His gaze was drawn back to Michael as zie pulled his chin over to look at hir. .

“Now, how does Yvonne do it? Would you kneel for me, ‘cup?” Michael’s grin was all cat eating cream.

“I might actually punch you.” Phoenix muttered.

Michael laughed, and holding his chin, started messing with the collar. A few moments later, zie was done.

“There. Deactivated. No more embarrassing moments of glaring red offenses. Don’t let Yvonne get too close a look at it, she will figure it out if she bothers to pay any attention.”

“Thanks. You will have to show me how you did that some day.” Phoenix said, impressed.

Straightening hir shoulders, the glamour returned, the exhaustion and pain washing away and the swashbuckling server lad was back. “Maaaaybe. After all, I need my buttercup here in the greenhouse waiting for me, ok?”

Phoenix smiled in return. “Fine. Just make sure you come back.”

“I will. Always do.” And with a jaunty wave, Michael descended out of sight.

Phoenix tried to get his head back onto some kind of plan of action. The pounding headache from the Mana Burn definitely interfered with any kind of careful study or rigorous thought, so he approached Panna with the hopes of healing.

“I’m glad I can be useful to you, Fena. All I ever feel like I end up doing is sitting around cleaning up the mess after something goes wrong.” Panna grumped.

Phoenix blinked at that, nonplussed. “Do you want something more? I think it’s amazing that you can heal like this!”

Panna just smiled. “A little excitement, you know? Some action! I have asked for a Sun Strike blessing, I am hoping the next time I sacrifice I will have enough to learn it. Priestess Reelwen says to leave the fighting to the fighters, but I think we can be useful on the front lines, you know?”

Phoenix didn’t know what to say. On the one hand, he came away from most of these fights kicking himself for risking his life. On the other hand, he had a demonstrated habit of running at top speed towards danger, so he was in no position to lecture someone about seeking danger.

“Well, once you have it, maybe we can work together, you and I. I’m sure with Celeste alongside us, there wouldn’t be much that could stop us, you know?” Phoenix said.

Panna looked radiant in her happiness at the thought. Phoenix thanked her for the healing, and with the remains of the morning, he broke out his books- the salvaged ones from the tower and temple where he had originally found himself in this world. He felt a need to review them, and in a way the rituals and rites of the Church of Arachnae were a strange comfort right at this moment.

The rest of the day went by in a blur of activity. In the afternoon, Yvonne had him assisting with maintenance of the crossbows of the guards. It turned out they were Artifice creations, self arming and loading with arm strength far in excess of what would be expected from a crossbow of their size. But they did need to be worked on by someone with at least a basic understanding of sorcery every so often, and because it was boring repetitive work it was perfect for Yvonne to dump in his lap.

In the evening, Phoenix found himself laying in his bed, listening to the soft breathing of Panna across the room, and trying to get the images of half a dozen dead women lying in a pile in the warehouse out of his head. He could completely understand how tired Michael could be, as each death weighed on Phoenix. The crones were running the table.