The light of the waystone faded, and I found myself back in the inn on the second floor. As I stepped through the large double doors, Flint looked up from his seat at the bar, his face lighting up with a grin.

"Bas!" he said, rising to his feet. "You made it!"

I returned his smile, feeling the weight of the last few hours lift from my shoulders.

"I see you found a way to keep yourself busy," I said, gesturing at the row of empty ale mugs beside him.

"It's not the same without you," he replied, his cheeks flushed. "Elia filled me in about your adventures back at home. How’s everyone doing?"

"They're okay," I said, a bit uneasy talking about the subject. "I gave Alden [Pilgrim's Rest] he's taking the survivors to Teon's Temple."

His smile vanished. "You gave him the card?"

"Yeah," I replied. "The villagers need it more than we do."

"Who cares what they need," Flint snapped. "We could have traded it for a powerful card! We could have had a new weapon to face the boss with!"

What? This is not the reaction I expected.

"This isn't a game," I said, trying to keep my voice level. "The blight fiends would have killed them eventually, they had to get away."

Flint slid off his chair, holding onto the counter for balance.

"They are already dead," he said, his voice sounding bitter. "The point is to make it to the top and set things right. Who cares about a few dead villagers?"

"I do," I said, my anger starting to rise. "I know you think that what we do now doesn't matter because we're just going to change it when we get the wish card. But what if we don't make it? What if we die before then? This is their future. We can't just let it happen."

Flint downed the last of his ale and slammed his mug down. "We agreed that we'd be ruthless," he said, wiping his mouth, "we'd do whatever it takes to get the wish card."

"No," I said. "You wanted to be ruthless, I didn't. I'm not ok with torturing people for spell cards or letting villages get wiped out. I know the end goal is to change it all, but this is still happening. And until then, we should try to help."

"Don't put that shit on me," Flint snapped. "We agreed to take the spell cards from that dirtbag high priest."

"We did," I said. "But torturing and killing him was a last resort."

That can't be who we are. It's just can't. I already have too much blood on my hands.

"Where is this all coming from?" Flint said. "You were fine with the way things were a day ago."

I looked away, unable to meet his gaze. He was right. Just the day before, I had been ready to do whatever it took to get the wish card. But back then, I'd felt like we could do anything.

Now I feel like a failure, just another pawn in Patches’ game.

"It's not that simple," I said, "this shit is much bigger than we thought. The card Patches took from Evelyn can summon a god. We might be out of our league here."

"Then we do whatever it takes," he said, his tone unyielding. "We take every card, we kill any who stand in our way, and we keep going. There is no other choice."

"I think you're wrong," I said. "The end doesn't justify the means. We can't just throw all our morals out the window, it doesn't matter if we can just change it later. That's not who we are."

Flint laughed. "What the hell are you talking about? This is who I am. And who are you to say what I can and can't do?"

"I'm your friend," I said, my frustration building. "And I know you're better than this."

"I'm not better than anything," Flint growled. "I'm doing what I have to do to survive, and if you can't handle that, then you can go screw yourself."

His words stung, but I knew he was just lashing out.

"Look, Flint, I'm not trying to be a pain. I'm just saying that I don't want us to lose who we are in the process of getting the wish card."

Flint rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Bas. You always thought you were better than the rest of us."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"The fact that you don't even realize it is what pisses me off the most," he said, stepping towards me. "And next time you decide to vanish for a day, how about letting me know first."

"It's shit that you feel that way," I said, trying to defuse the tension. "But you are right about one thing, I should have told you where we were going."

I could see the impact my words had on Flint, his shoulders slumped, and he leaned back against the counter.

"We're the only ones that have a chance of fixing things," he said, looking away. "If we aren't together, then none of this matters."

"You're right," I agreed. "No more side quests. It's just us from here on out."

He turned back to me, a faint smile on his face. "Side quests?" He shook his head, "Right now, the only quest we have is getting to Tattertown before Miko's information broker friend leaves for the night."

"Sounds like a plan," I said, glad to have the argument over.

I looked around, realizing that it was just us and the barkeeper in the room.

"Where is Elia?"

"Bathing," Flint said. "You should probably do the same, you smell like an ashtray."

I laughed. "That bad, huh?"

He nodded. "That bad."

***

Eliaria felt clean for the first time in what seemed like ages. She sunk deeper into the tub, letting the warm water wash away the grime and filth of the last few days.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to clear her mind. It had been an eventful few weeks, to say the least. Her life as a priestess was over now, she wasn't sure what she was anymore. Her path had changed and the world had become so much larger than she could have imagined.

As she sat in the bath, she felt the weight of responsibility settle on her shoulders. She had made a promise to Bastion, to herself, that she would see this through to the end, no matter the cost.

She had been a fool, a pampered priestess who had been willing to die for a cause that in retrospect made no sense at all. It had been her duty to the Maker, to her people, but it was a false duty, a delusion she had built up in her own mind. All of that was behind her now, but it scared her that she could have so easily lost her way.

She got out of the bath, dried herself off, and got dressed. Her clothes were torn and filthy, but they were all she had. She would need to find something else soon, maybe ask Miko if she knew any good tailors in town.

She stepped out of the bathroom and into the main hall of the inn, and as she rounded the corner into the common room, she heard Flint's voice.

"We agreed to take the spell cards from that dirtbag high priest," he was saying, his tone tense.

"We did," Bastion said. "But torturing and killing him was a last resort."

"Where is this all coming from," Flint snapped.

Eliaria moved closer, trying to stay out of sight but wanting to hear more.

"This shit is much bigger than we thought. The card that Patches stole from Evelyn can summon a god," Bastion said. "We might be out of our league."

"Then we do whatever it takes," Flint growled. "We take every card, we kill any who stand in our way, and we keep going."

Eliaria felt her hands begin to tremble as she listened to their words. They were talking about summoning gods and killing people. Her heart raced, and she felt sick to her stomach. Had she been wrong about them? She had thought they were good people, honorable people. She had even started to develop feelings for Bastion. But now, she wasn't so sure.

She knew she should confront them and find out the truth, but she was afraid. She didn't want to believe that they were capable of such things, but the evidence was right in front of her.

She slipped back into the bathroom and closed the door, her mind racing. Bastion had given her a spell card, why would he have done that if he didn't care about her? But she knew he was keeping secrets, they both were.

She leaned against the door, her heart pounding in her chest. What should she do?

A knock at the door startled her.

"Elia," Bastion said, "are you almost done? We need to get going."

She swallowed hard, trying to keep her voice steady. "Y-Yes, I'll be right out."

"Are you okay?" he asked, concern in his voice.

"I'm fine," she lied.

She stood up and walked over to the mirror, staring at her reflection. She looked shaken, her face was pale. She had to pull herself together. She couldn't let them know that she had overheard their conversation. She had to pretend like everything was fine, like nothing had changed. She splashed some water on her face, and pinched her cheeks, adding some color to them.

She would play the part of the loyal companion until she could figure out what to do.

She opened the door and smiled at Bastion, trying to hide her fear. "Glad you're back."

"Me too," he said, returning her smile. "Sorry about leaving you, but I had something I needed to take care of."

Her heart ached as she looked into his eyes. She knew she couldn't trust him, but a part of her wanted to. She had to keep reminding herself that he was not who she thought he was, that he had dark secrets.

"It's okay," she said, her voice trembling. "I understand."

Bastion reached out and touched her arm. "Are you sure you're alright? You look like you've seen a ghost."

She flinched away from his touch, "I'm fine."

Bastion frowned, but he didn't press the issue.

"We should get going," he said. "We are heading to Tattertown to meet Miko's information broker friend."

"Great," Eliaria said, following him down the stairs and into the common room.

Flint was waiting for them, it looked like he had been drinking.

"About time," he said, rising to his feet.

They headed out into the night, and Eliaria fell into step behind them, her mind in turmoil. She couldn't stop thinking about their conversation. What was all that about summoning a god? It didn't make sense, but then again, nothing seemed to make sense anymore.

She had thought that she had found a new family, people who would help her find her place in the world, but now she wasn't so sure. All she could think about was what Flint had said about killing anyone who stood in their way.

Was she standing in their way?

***

We passed through the gates that separated the Guardian Citadel from Tattertown and the full extent of the contrast between the two zones became apparent.

The poor district was a maze of narrow streets and dark alleyways, with dilapidated buildings that were packed together like sardines. People huddled around small fires, trying to keep warm in the perpetual night, and wide eyes peered at us from the shadows, tracking our movements.

In the distance, the towers of the rich and powerful loomed over the slums, their windows alight with the glow of artificial sunlight.

Caldera, the dark city where the wealthy and privileged are bathed in moonlight while the destitute and downtrodden struggle to survive in the eternal night.

I shook my head and continued on, making our way through the twisted streets, the air thick with the smell of garbage and decay. Our goal was the entrance to the Undercity, where Miko had told us to meet her contact, a zorin by the name of Rakanar.

As we neared the entrance, I could see that it was heavily guarded, with a pair of massive iron doors that were flanked by two burly zorin's. They wore leather armor, their horns were wrapped in metal bands, and they were armed with long-curved swords.

I stopped a short distance from the doors, not wanting to get too close.

"Do you think that's the right place?" I asked.

Flint nodded. "If I was a dodgy information broker living in the slums, this is where I'd be."

Eliaria looked nervous. "How do we get in? It's guarded."

She'd seemed off ever since I'd returned to the second floor, and I couldn't figure out why. She kept looking at us like she was expecting something, but I didn't know what.

"We go in and ask," Flint said. "If it's the right place, then the guards will let us through. If it's not, then we move on."

"I'll talk to them," I said, moving forward.

As I approached, one of the guards held up his hand, stopping me.

"What's your business?"

"We're looking for a zorin named Rakanar," I said.

The guard nodded. "I know him, but he's not taking visitors."

"Can you tell him that Miko sent us?" I asked.

The guard hesitated, then nodded. "Wait here."

He disappeared into the darkness beyond the door, leaving us standing there with the second guard glaring at us.

After a few minutes, the first guard returned.

"He'll see you," the guard said. "You need to leave your weapons here."

"I'm sorry," I said, shaking my head, "but that's not going to happen."

The guard scowled. "You don't understand. Rakanar is a cautious man. He won't see you unless you leave your weapons here."

"You do realize that we could just as easily kill him unarmed," Flint said, stepping up beside me.

The guard glared at us. "You can leave your weapons here, or you can go back to where you came from."

I considered our options. We could leave our weapons, but I wasn't comfortable doing that.

"Don't worry, I got this," Flint said, he stretched out his hand and a shimmering portal appeared in the air in front of him.

He murmured, "Seven percent," as he tracked the side effect of his foundation card, and then he tossed his staff and my dagger into the opening.

As I watched the portal wink out of existence, I couldn't help feeling uncomfortable about the situation. I just knew that Flint’s ‘Karmic Debt’ side effect would hit at the worst time imaginable. What would happen when it did? Would a meteor fall from the sky, or would poison find its way into our food? If I had learned anything about foundation card side effects in the last month, it was that the worst shit possible was bound to happen when we least expected it.

"There," Flint said, turning to the guard. "Happy now?"

The guard grunted, "Just don't let Rakanar see that magic. Trust me, you don't want to be trapped in the same room as him when he's afraid."

I frowned, unsure what to make of the guard's comment, Miko had said something very similar.

"Let's get this over with," I said. "No funny stuff. We just want some information."

***