-- Aster --

I watched as they all left me to go save the city. I knew they didn't want me to go so I only made it easier for them when I showed up in a wheelchair. I think that through them of because the only questions I kept getting was where did you get the wheelchair. Not why are you in the wheelchair? That was the last indication I needed to understand they would no longer believe me about anything, and I didn't know what to do.

I was finally starting to see the way they were treating me wasn't right, whether it was through indifference, just plain not trying, or even verbally being ridiculed. I had had enough. Maybe at one point, we were all really friends but now we were just acquaintances. It took help from people I barely knew to open my eyes, to it. But I couldn't help but still want to assist them and be there when they fought. I didn't want to be the hero. I just wanted to be a part of their journey, and I don't think they wanted me there at all.

Whether or not that was true, I just couldn't be with people who looked at me the way they did now. I watched as the bus passed through the barrier around the compound, as I was left behind. It was funny. The night I would have gone after the siren I actually wouldn't have been able to leave, as the barrier was designed to keep us in and any other, people trying to get in on the show out. It was one of the biggest reasons why Kerria was so reluctant to believe me. Rot the reason I even learned of the barrier itself was thanks to the Trickster, who snuck in.

I could only laugh at seeing all the trainer's faces, even edelweiss when I came out in a wheelchair. None of them could figure out where I got it, little did they know I did learn something last night. I learned how to make a construct, with a few side effects, but it was thanks to the Tricksters that I could even contemplate my plan.

I just hoped they wouldn't see me any differently after the footage airs. I really liked them.

I wheeled myself back into the building despite the now sparse lack of security. I still had the barrier to deal with. I felt with the amount of energy I had been accumulating I might be able to punch a hole through it. But I wasn't sure I could survive the process itself.

No, I had a much better Idea than just through power at it for once. I made my way into the building, past the two people left behind to guard me. Though guard was a loose term as they didn't even look up as I passed. There was no reason to. Why would I try to escape? They already think me a coward, they probably think the wheelchair is a ploy to get out of fighting. No, they were much more concerned about someone trying to break into the compound and taking me away. Something to make everything exciting.

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I Made my way all the way to the top of the compound, all for the next step in my escape. Yes, I was going to escape. I didn't like being controlled by them and the longer I stayed the worse it would get. Reaching the top, I waited. Luckily I didn't have to sit there long as portals appeared all around me, and Mullein and his crew stepped out.

"I really need to learn how to do that," I said smiling at the boarders.

"Oh, we can teach you. Might take a couple years, though." I grimaced at that, I didn't have that much time to learn the trick of it despite how cool it was.

"Well, maybe when I actually have some time." Though learning a skill like that without a teacher, I could understand it taking a long time. I had actually had to strong-arm the wheelchair construct under me. The look on his face when I succeed was priceless, though there was so much mana leakage Mullein couldn't understand how it wasn't dissipating.

The entire group looked excited, for the big heist. "Are you ready?" Mullein asked.

"Get me the fuck out of here," I said, just done with this entire place.

"Alright." It was then we started to hear footsteps from down below. "And that's the silent alarm. Let's get out of here."

One by one, portals began to open. As I watched I could see the tether leading beyond through the barrier, the thing was solid at first glance. But the closer you looked the more you started to notice it wasn't actually solid, but more like a woven tapestry of energy. And the Tricksters were brilliant. Their tethers were just small enough to reach through the tiniest of gaps, and as Mullein told me the other day. As long as that can go through so can he.

Mullein grabbed my hand as I let the wheelchair dissipate back into energy. I felt a sudden wave of heat as the energy I was using to maintain the chair, shoved full force back into.

"Your feeling a little warm." Mullein said concerned.

"Just get me out of here and I'll deal with it," I said as he slung me over his shoulder, just as the roof access door opened.

"Stop."

"Nah." As Mullein jumped through his portal.

I should have had him take me through the night before just to know what it felt like because I was not expecting my body to feel stretched out like a spaghetti noodle, they slapped back into shape, all in the course of a second. It was unnerving, to say the least.

At the dry heave, Mullein tossed me off his shoulder, and I could not blame him for it. Though being tossed to the ground after having my entire body stretched like that. It took a minute for me to get nausea under control.

"We need to go."

I took one last breathe to look around. We had portaled out of the building alright but we were only about four or five blocks from the compound itself, on one of the taller buildings. Must be a limit on the distance. Looking around I didn't see any transport, just the group tightening their gear. My stomach tightened, "Alright, where the vehicle." I asked dreading the response because seeing their faces I knew what was next.

"Who needs a car when you can fly?" Mullein said grabbing me and putting me back on his shoulder. It was the answer I was dreading. There were going to be a lot of portal jumps on the way and I was just going to have to get used to it. "Please don't puke on me." He said right before opening a portal.

"No promises." And like that I was free, there was just one thing left to do.