A man dressed in clean white robes with blue and gold trim shook his head, setting a clipboard aside. "It's like this."

"Can you fix it or not?" cut in Smoulder, her arms crossed over her chest, glaring at the healer.

"We can grow a new arm, or a leg, or even an entire tail…"

"But not the little bit I need, for some reason?" she questioned, a brow raised high.

"Two things." He raised two fingers up. "One, this took place above 60. The tower has rules. What it takes, it keeps." Even as Smoulder winced, he went on, "Two, it's not an actual limb. It doesn't impact your performance. This is, ultimately, a cosmetic fix, and those are more difficult."

"Why?!" she shouted, hands reaching for him, but resisting grabbing the human in her claws. "What kinda sense does that make?!"

The man’s eyes widened, and he stepped back, although he quickly hardened his countenance. “Magic is inexact. I’m sure you’ve noticed that guildchains all have themes. We have some minor control over these things, but the healing powers granted from them are… all entirely based around regaining combat effectiveness.” He smoothed out his robes. “Usually this means bringing you up back to normal, but for cosmetic injuries… well they stick.”

Smolder whipped her tail over. “Tell me again this is just a cosmetic injury.”

The man sniffed defiantly. “I don’t make the rules, ma’am. I don’t even enforce the rules. This is just how things are.”

Smolder glared at him. “You said more difficult but not impossible. Explain.”

“Well, guildchains aren’t the only source of magic. Healing scars, replacing ears or the like have been known to happen with significant boons from magical creatures, as a reward usually for service.” He counted off on his fingers. “I’ve heard of ancient celestial creatures healing someone scars, or demons returning youth, or temples allowing restoration if you hold rank with them and curry favor with service or goods... nothing is easy when it comes to this.”

She threw up her hands, turning for the door. "Right, yeah, get it. If we run into another genie, I know what our wish should be, otherwise, forget it." She grabbed the handle of the door and paused. "Thanks…" she managed, the most etiquette she could manage, leaving the healer behind and not slamming the door in his face.

Outside, the two other dragons held a near identical pose, holding their tail spades, their eyes searching for hers, but she had none.

Garble threw his tail down, though it swung itself back behind him. "They didn't fix it!"

"They can't," miserably confirmed Smolder.

"I'm… so sorry." Spike wrung his fingers on his own tail. "I can barely imagine, and I don't like it… Is there anything we can do?"

"No." She suddenly thrust up a hand to even with Spike's chest, her fingers balled tightly. "There really isn't. We have to finish this, and it isn't a game. Not anymore."

Sandra was quiet, her hands clasped before her, eyes on Smolder. She swallowed softly and nodded. "If there's anything… Let us know."

----------------------------------------

Sandra plodded alone through some of the shops. She had to buy more gear, they had to be better prepared for the tower. She sighed. Everything was looking up, but now the harsh reminder that the hardest part is next… and she already cost someone here part of her actual body. If she hadn’t started… all of this, if she hadn’t been involved, then all three of them would be safe.

And… she already needed to use her wish to send them back, she couldn’t possibly also restore Smolder to being complete, could she?

She turned the corner, face to face with a familiar face.

Tabitha looked back at her, standing directly in her way.

“Oh… Hi, Tabitha.” She shuffled uncomfortably to the side, trying to get past Tabitha. “Look, I don’t have anything for you yet, we are in the process of getting some better gear, and I’ll get the floor sixty item.”

“You went past floor sixty, didn’t you.” Tabitha stood back in her way. “You weren’t lying that somehow you knew that the tower would let you past, and you made it.”

"It's not like that," she demurred, trying to slip around Tabitha, but tanks did not allow that easily, Tabitha easily blocking the path.

"What is it like. This isn't a game," she hissed in echo of words spoken elsewhere. "What do you know?" She suddenly stepped forward, looking like she might grab Sandra, but the attack didn't come. "Look, you did it. You're better, congratulations. For all your failures. For all your false starts and timid steps… You made it. You're past me."

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"Um… Thank you?" ventured Sandra, genuinely unsure how to answer that. "Tabitha, I'm not here to make fun of you or gloat, promise."

"I never said you were." Tabitha leaned forward. "But you proved I was wrong. I thought they were serious. I thought they were ready to be heroes, but they just wanted a nice comfortable life, not to write history. Not like you." She leveled a finger. "I figured it out, you know."

"What did you figure out?" Sandra relaxed a little, shifting from nervous to a little curious. "About the tower?"

"Yes, exactly that. It makes sense now, why we were stopped in our tracks." She put her hands on her hips. "The tower gives you, in the end, what you want, and what you're willing to reach for. I was the only one in my party ready to reach for what came next, so it stopped us. It seems so obvious, looking back. They didn't want to see what was on floor 61, so it gave them an easy way to quit, and they did."

Sandra made a face. “I’m pretty sure we’ve both heard stories of people disappointed to not go further.”

“Wanting and wanting aren’t the same thing, Sandra. Somewhere you became a person that wanted to go to the top. You wanted to be a real hero.”

Sandra cringed a little at that. “That’s not… quite… exactly. I have to make it to the top. I owe it to the rest of my party.”

“And the tower knew you did! So you’re heading up.” Tabitha smirked down at her.

Sandra avoided her gaze, but looked back to her, more resolute. “Look, Tabitha, I’m pretty sure you’re leading up to something, so out with it.”

Tabitha’s grin widened. “I want in.”

“No,” Sandra said, flatly, attempting to walk past again.

“You haven’t even thought about it!” Tabitha protested.

“You were right when you said it wasn’t a game,” Sandra said, turning back to Tabitha. “It’s not just something that I ‘let you in on’ on a whim. It’s going to be legitimately dangerous, in a way the rest of the tower is not.”

“You don’t think I know that? You don’t think I’m excited for that?” Tabitha’s voice rose. “I got into this expecting to risk my life for glory, and now you’re telling me I should be worried about risking my life for glory? Come on.”

"You don't owe them anything," she hissed. "Why are you that eager to risk it all for them?"

"Them who, the dragons? What do they have to do with it?" Tabitha asked with genuine confusion on her face. "We get to the top, we're heroes, we get what we want, right?"

"No!" blurted Sandra, louder, looking angry with a balled up hand trembling. "We don't all get something. We get one thing, and me? I don't plan to get anything." Possibly a lot less than nothing, she mused with a twinge of fearful acceptance. "I'm letting them get what they want. One thing. That's it." She threw her hands wide at the last word. "One."

"One?" She frowned, that not quite… "What about your parents?" She prodded Sandra dead center in the chest. "They both got something. Your entire life is proof of that. They were both heroes. They lived it, they died it, but they were it, all of it."

Sandra stepped back out of the prodding. “They got the same thing though, and they…” She hesitated. Should she tell Tabitha about the cost. Would she try to stop her? No… “Look, what I’m using my wish on is sending them back to where they came from. They’re here and that’s my fault, and they need to go back.”

Tabitha blinked. “Sandra… they’re summons. They were created when they came out of the summoning egg, even if they’re extra special person-summons, there is no place to send them back to.”

“They’re no--” She shook her head. “No. Just no.”

Sandra finally about-faced and started to walk away, when Tabitha’s voice stopped her. “I heard you were at the healers earlier, and one of your teammates had come in asking for a cosmetic fix. That she was upset about it.”

Sandra swallowed hard, but didn’t look back.

“That’s how I knew you got past sixty. Your team got hurt already.” She walked back past Sandra, so they were facing each other. “Spike is a good healer and a good martyr, but he doesn’t have the shield power I have.” She gestured to her own shield. “Do you even have the best gear you have? If you’re shopping here you’re not getting the best gear you could have.”

“We have a smith, who we use--”

“And how many cores has their forge been fed? Is it enough that you can get as strong of gear you could be getting?” Tabitha flipped her hair, short as it was. “I’ve done a lot of looking into what we could be doing to prepare, what gear someone would need, how to get strong enough to go there.” She looked at Sandra, an intense glare piercing her. “I could help with all of that, and I could supply more shields in combat. I’d supplement Spike really well.”

Sandra stopped. These were… things she hadn’t thought of too hard. She figured a quick refresh would be good but…

“I can help you, Sandra. And I don’t even need a wish at the top, I just need to go there. To get to the top, to be able to come down and tell everyone I did it.”

"And just saying you did isn't an option?" Sandra asked, already knowing the answer.

Tabitha smirked at that. "You know the answer to that. Look, this is your party, that's why I said I admit you beat me. Your party, not mine. I'll follow the rules." She raised a hand to her chest. "I'll just help you, all of you, do better, so we can all get to the top. That's what we all want, isn't it?"

"Tabby…" Sandra turned slowly. "Tabby."

"Sandra, why are you using that kid name?" She shook her head. "Are you worried for me? Stop that! My team might have given up, but me? I'm still in this. I'm ready. I will push forward. With you! I'm not asking for a ride, just a chance, and I'll earn my keep."

"Tabby, seriously. I am worried for you, but not the way you think." What terrible price would the tower demand of Tabitha, were she to come along? The tower would not let her just come and go like that. Sandra couldn't envision that without doubt and fear gnawing at her. "How badly do you want to get to the top?"

"More than anything," she said, each word with a full stop, spoken with firm confidence. "If I die trying, at least I'll know I didn't give up. You do remember that's why I was… so angry with you, right? I put you in the 'gave up' category. I don't want to be there. I'm not ready to give up."

"Then your friends just walked off," sighed out Sandra, re-imagining how much that had likely torn Tabitha apart, to know she had been adventuring aside a bunch of people who, in the end, did give up. "I… need to talk with my party mates. We make decisions together. I can't just… say yes or no."

"You said no a few times," reminded Tabitha with a little smile. "Go on, ask… Tell them I'm sorry for the mean things I said. I'll make up for it, in action, in the tower. We will be a team, living or dying as one."

As Sandra finally walked off without Tabitha in her way, she really hoped that dying as one was not what they had coming.