An office chair is surprisingly comfortable when the alternative is studying law books searching for crimes you may or may not have accidentally committed.

I passed out some time between 11 and whatever time it was now. It's definitely still late. Stars are out and the only thing I can hear is the bugs. Why'd I wake up, usually I sleep like the dead?

WAKE UP!!!

Ah, that's why.

"Nola, tomorrow is gonna be a long, painful, difficult day for me. Please let me sleep." I said.

People are dying!

That woke me up. I slapped the side of my head and started rubbing wakefulness back into my eyes as I shot up out of the chair. "What is happened? And who?" A plus grammar there Roy.

I don't know their names. A family just got hit by another driver. They're rural. There's no one around to call for help and the driver is knocked out. Both drivers are. We need to help!

Tyler and Buddy came running up to me with Burt bobbing in the dirt behind them. "Hey Roy! Burt just started bumping both of us in our tents and there was a medical rescue kit next to me when I woke up. What is happening?"

"Car wreck. Bad. No one knows yet and no one has called for help" I said to Tyler. He had the bag on his back and was ready to go. Verdandi heard my part of the conversation and also seemed ready to help. "Nola, how far is it?"

74.3 Miles. Mountain highway 70. They went off the side.

"Tyler get your truck, we need to drive fast." I said. He ran

That won't work. They won't last that long.

"We can't get much faster than that Nola. Unless you have other ideas.

Burt. He's much faster than a car when traveling in a dungeon. I spent the emergency fund on a tunnel big enough for all of you and I am making a sled for him to tow you.

"Alright. Let's do it and stop thinking about it then. Can you do anything for them till we get there."

Only for the "winner" of the crash. Everyone else doesn't qualify for much of a dungeon reward. I can't give them anything. I tried.

The demon off spring of a shark cage and a bobsled popped out of the dirt next to me as Tyler pulled up from the back in his truck. Verdandi understood its purpose and started attaching the bespoke harness to Burt who for his part cooperated fully.

"Change of plans Ty, get in." Tyler threw the vehicle in park and got into the sled without hesitation. I headed for the sled after Tyler as Verdandi finished tightening the harness around Burt before vaulting the lines back to his place in the sled.

It's definitely pleasant to have two people who listen to you. At least in emergencies. As Verdandi slipped into his seat I pulled the cage closed around us. The moment it clicked into place Nola sent a signal to Burt to dive.

Fast is an understatement for how Burt moves. I could feel the world moving around me and every turn had G forces that felt dangerous. After the first 90 degree turn we all demanded not to have that happen again. Nola burned more energy to smooth down the curves on our path. For the most part we were traveling under the same highways that Nola used for all her dungeon work, but with the smoothed out turns we had started to pass through other things. Pipes and wires were terrible when I saw them coming. We passed through them just like the dirt and rocks in the rest of the tunnel, but seeing a wire coming at you at neck level at high speeds will never not be terrifying. The strangest was passing through basements of homes and businesses. I am not sure if we got seen, but every gap hit us like a speed bump as Burt suddenly had gravity start acting on him. I was not a fan.

I had it a little easier than Tyler and Verdandi. I could see the dungeon as a whole. They couldn't. They were just banging around in a sled in total darkness with occasional basement lights to flash against their corneas. At least one of them was screaming at one point and Tyler definitely started swearing at every single 'speed bump'.

We got to the crash site in under 6 minuets according to my watch. But we wasted at least 30 seconds after arriving getting our feet back under us. Verdandi ended up throwing up. I almost fell over as I stood up from the light headedness.

"Are they still alive?"

Down the hill! Passenger of the Subaru first!

There were multiple health potions on the ground next to me. I grabbed 4 of them and headed in the direction of the eviscerated guard rail. Tyler followed unsteadily behind. "Nola, if you have anything left in the tank extend yourself down to them. If we need something else I don't want to come back up this hill.

It will be a small spot. I burnt almost everything getting the tube made. But I can do it. Not much energy coming in right now.

"If we end up needing more eat Ty's truck. You'll owe him a new one tomorrow during morning rush."

Tyler gave me a look but didn't say a word to stop it. I hope he knows we're good for it.

We quickly but carefully made our way down the hill to the scene of the wreck. A Subaru had wrapped the passenger side around a tree, the other Jeep was on its roof against another tree nearby.

"Subaru first. The blue one." I said that mostly for Verdandi's benefit. Odds are he isn't gonna know brands yet. He was following about 20 feet behind Ty and I after recovering.

We got to the car and I spared a look to see Burt log rolling uncontrollably down the hill past everyone. No big loss, I don't think he'd be too helpful for this part. But he did give me the funeral giggles. I tried to stifle the inappropriate laughter while moving. I barely succeeded. Tyler didn't.

3 passengers. Only the youngest looked to be still awake. The back passenger seat had the most urgent case. A tween boy was pinned to his seat by the door collapsed in by the tree and stabbed by more than one branch. He looked pale. I threw a vial to the hood sliding Tyler as he reached him and forced down a healing potion. He went to work with his his rescue pack without instruction.

The mom had also been impaled through the shoulder by another branch and had a broken face from hitting the steering wheel. The airbag must have deployed late. I reached down and switched off the car. She was un responsive when I pulled her eye open, so she got a potion too. I packed the shoulder with a gauze strip and I started to carefully cut away at the branch with a knife from Nola

Verdandi was left to deal with the youngest. He mimed that she should cover her eyes before cracking the rest of the window with his elbow. She stared at him wide eyed the whole time he removed her from the car seat. She was cold, wet and scared. But otherwise unharmed. We got her a blanket and she kept trying to reach for 'Fuffy'. I had Nola print a new car seat so we could keep her safe and contained out of the way of the other parts of the rescue effort.

Once the youngest was squared away I called Verdandi over to help me get the mother out of the car. The branch was cut away and the part still stuck in her was being slowly forced out. We laid her down next to her daughter and assigned Burt, who had crawled back up the hill, to slowly removing the branch as the potion worked its magic. He gripped the branch with his weird tongue thing and pulled careful.

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That left all three of us free to deal with the teen. We had to cut up the car to get to him. Verdandi went after the front passenger seat to try and get it to come out using a crowbar. I used a large car or truck jack to try and lift the roof of the car away from him. Tyler stayed on the tree side and patched up any new holes and cut away new branches. He went through a lot of bandages. But we got him out of the ruined car and bound up to stop the bleeding. The potion was working. We think.

Not enough. His aura is dimming. I don't like this.

"Give him another potion." I said to no one in particular. I had dropped mine at some point during the chaos. Ty had one and gave it to him.

"You wouldn't happen to be a universal donor would you? Cause I have a transfusion kit I fed Nola. That can't hurt?" Tyler asked.

"I don't know, I've never been tested. And Verdandi's out. Why not you?"

"I'm B negative. Bad odds to do blind."

"Nola can you figure out blood types with a sample?" I touched the small spot of extended dungeon to avoid wasting energy by re connecting to her directly

No? Yes? I don't know. I don't know. I don't know what to do

"What about blood directly?" Verdandi asked. "Dungeons have made organs before in the past. I've never seen blood made, but I don't see why not.

I'll try. Give me a bandage.

I asked Tyler for a bandage. I caught a bandage Tyler threw at me and slammed it down on to the small circle of dungeon next to us.

I felt the nervous energy as Nola processed it. It took longer than absorbing normal things. I am not sure if that's a factor of her focus or it being more difficult. Doesn't really matter right now. We just need the blood

"Not breathing! Hurry up!" Tyler shouted

That set off the youngest into a crying fit. I motioned to Verdandi to deal with her, she seemed to like him and he wasn't helpful for this part.

"Come on Nola. You can do it. Just start with a little bit if you can't do it all at once."

What if we fail? What if I do it wrong?

I didn't have a great answer for that. I hadn't had anyone die on me before. But that's not helping right now.

"We do everything we can now. We worry about what ifs later. We don't need perfect, just go for good enough and get us started." I said to her. And I prayed.

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Nola ended up giving us a bag of blood in time. Before the first bag was empty she was ready with a 'better one'. They both looked the same to me. But the kid stabilized after the second one, that's the important part.

"Please don't pull my whiskers little one." Verdandi said, "Fuffy" was all he got in reply. She did not stop. He was in good spirits about it at least.

The mom had the branch removed, and the hole was sealing slowly under the bandages. We gave Nola a sample of her blood too, just in case she took a bad turn. I think she will feel more confident the second time if needed.

"We need to check on the other guy. Nola said he was fine, but he hasn't come out in 5 minutes so he isn't doing great. Tyler, you stay here and keep playing doctor. I'll call you if I need you. V, Burt, with me"

Any reason you think he was fine. Normally people shouldn't be knocked out this long

He's not knocked out. He's passed out.

That's.... oh.

Upon opening the door my worst assumptions were confirmed. It smelled like a bar in the Jeep.

"And this guy 'won' the dungeon encounter?"

Yes. He defeated 3 other delvers. I technically owe him a prize. It would have been bigger if they died. That's terrible, and I don't like that as a rule.

Yeah, rewarding someone for almost wiping out a family seems like a piss poor way of encouraging moral behavior. "Can his prize be taken if another delver defeats him?"

That could work.

I explained the plan to Verdandi and then got the supplies we needed.

We cut him out of his seatbelt and dragged him back to the proper dungeon of the highway. Still empty this late at night. We'll be quick about this.

"Don't kill him. We just need to defeat him. I'm not good with murder." I said to Verdandi, who was still holding the child. His eyes said he disagreed, but he nodded along anyway and handed off his charge to me.

He dumped a bottle of ice water on our drunks head. Followed quickly by a brisk slap. He came to against the remains of the guardrail they had smashed through with two large angry people standing over him.

"Wake up sleepyhead. You've got a date with the consequences of your actions." I said in my best ominous voice. He seemed sufficiently scared. That might have had something to do with the wolf man more than me, but I will take it.

"Wha..wha.. what's going on.. Who are you people?" The drunk said, eyes wide. He tried to back away but was caught be the guard rail. Burt hissed loudly behind him.

"Do you know what you did tonight?" I said staring down at him. "You took down a family. Do you even remember?" I tried to keep the anger out of my voice. I was aiming for controlled an ominous, not reactive homicidal rage.

He was crying and babbling. If there were any words said, I couldn't understand them. Well, I could hear one word. Sorry. Over and over again.

Verdandi lifted him up to his feet and beyond with one hand. That is impressive and intimidating. The baby in my arms laughed. I laughed too. I am so far out of my element. And about to commit another crime to tell Dave about tomorrow morning.

But the sound of me and the baby laughing sent him over the edge. Begging, crying and screaming for help.

"You owe me two things if you want to go on living. The first is easy. You are never going to drink again. And we will know, we have eyes everywhere." I said in my best scary voice. Or maybe I was imitating batman. Don't judge me, I'm new at this.

"The second is harder. You have to get to the other side of the road and into the ditch in under a minute. If you do that, you are free. Do you accept your quest?" Verdandi let me know I could guaranty he loses by offering a quest, and preventing him from succeeding

"Whas the catch." He slurred.

"Whatever I want it to be. But I think I will settle for him." Verdandi growled in response. He plays his part well. The child shouting 'Fuffy' again, less on theme.

I checked the highway in either direction. No cars for more than 3 miles in either direction. We had 3 minutes before the first potential witness drove by at their speed. As long as we aren't in the road we should be fine.

Verdandi unceremoniously dumped him back against the guard rail and took his place in the middle of the road.

"One chance, drunk. Take it now or take your chances."

He said nothing but the surge of static let Nola and I know that he accepted our quest. He tried to run diagonally away from Verdandi towards the other side but stumbled on the first step. Not that it would have mattered. Verdandi is... just a lot faster than a human. Our drunk took a knee to the chest that knocked him all the way back to his back. Verdandi dragged him by the ankle back to the guard rail. He tried to move, but had to sit there and wheeze for a moment. Our drunk gave the crossing one more try before time ran out and Verdandi unceremoniously punched him in the head, sending him back into unconsciousness.

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We ended up having Nola make another phone for us. I didn't have my original on me and Tyler's is always in his truck, which Nola had eaten to make the blood bags. Turns out blood has a terrible conversion rate just like potions. Good to know.

Nola pumped up the number of bugs on the roads she controlled to unrealistic levels to get some energy back, and after about 15 minuets had enough to make my much smaller car. Albeit with lots of pieces missing. Like the engine, stuffing on the seats, anything not visible from the outside or the headlights really. But it was just there for show, to explain our presence to the ambulance drivers and cops. We had called them immediately upon receiving the phone. That's why we had to cut corners on the car. We had it made with only 90 seconds to spare.

The mother had started to come to when we started to carry her up the hill. She probably saw Verdandi and Burt, but not for long. We will be blaming anything she claims on head trauma. Meanwhile the two of them will be hiding deeper in the woods till the ambulance leaves.

All 4 victims were waiting on the side of the road in the light of our fake car.

"Tyler. Keep your mouth shut around the cops." I said remembering the last time we had to speak to the fuzz. I yawned. Tyler joined me. The lights came into view

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The cops wanted to secure the site for an investigation, so they didn't leave. I am not sure why. They cuffed the drunk almost immediately after smelling him. But still, they secured the area for investigation. Bit of a problem for us on account of our fake car. But Nola kept up the bug swarms on the main highway until she could make an engine and send a note to Burt to lead Verdandi further down the mountain to meet us. Verdandi was apparently not willing to get in the sled again. Tyler wasn't either. As we picked up our final two passengers and began our drive down the mountain I glanced at the time. 3:13 AM. With our meeting starting at 6 and a 90 minute drive ahead of us, the odds of a good nights sleep were officially zero.

"Tomorrow is gonna suck" Tyler said

"Yeah. We are gonna be running on no sleep during a legal beat down." I said in response

"The hardship is worth the reward" Verdandi said from the back seat. Burt was sitting across his lap, looking like he was sleeping. Well at least one of us will get some rest

"Yes it was. I would do this again, even with everything that comes." I said in response

"Same" Tyler said, adjusting himself in his seat to get more comfortable. Bastard is gonna try and nap in the car on the way down leaving me here alone. Can't blame him.

"Both of you should get some rest. I'll make sure we get back to home." I said, and drove down the mountain