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As soon as he finished sending the photos, Vincent went to Prague. Before the group managed to say a word, he brought Lila, Irene, Bee, and the new Warg pet with him, appearing on the edge of the destruction brought by the two nukes.
The forest lay in ruin, its once-vibrant canopy reduced to charred stumps and smoldering trunks. Blackened earth cracked underfoot, while the air was thick with the acrid scent of ash. Fallen trees, their branches twisted and broken, littered the ground like the remains of some great battle. A haunting silence enveloped the desolation, broken only by the occasional crackle of dying embers smothered under the falling rain. The town, with the line of ruined walls and houses, was visible on the other side.
“The monster withstood two nukes at point zero and kept coming,” Vincent said, “I couldn’t risk losing you the first day after we got back together… I’m sorry I didn’t ask before taking you to Prague… I was selfish…” And anyway, Ireine, the guys would have done the same. They have orders from your parents… the ones with the money, after all…
“I’m perfectly OK with your decision,” Lila shivered, looking around.
“Ditto,” Bee nodded. “Say, man… err… you know what radiation is, right? Maybe this is not the best place to be.”
“A drone measured it. We’re safe,” Vincent said. The wind, rain, and the core made sure of it…
“Next time, I want a piece of the action,” Irene grumbled. “I have a ton of ranged magic attacks.”
“OK…” he said, more to appease her. “Now, there’s another matter to discuss…” Vincent sagged his shoulders in what he thought was a sad pose… “Bee, does your mom know karate?”
“Kung Fu. Yes, she was a martial movie actress before coming to the States,” Bee said.
“So it was her, after all… I hoped I was wrong. So sorry, man…” Vincent squeezed his friend’s shoulder. “She sacrificed herself to save lives… Fought like a tiger…”
“Mom’s… dead?” Bee yelped, his eyes filling with tears.
Vincent hugged him. “The monster blew a hole in her head with a laser.” Vincent looked intently at Irene over Bee’s shoulder. ‘See, that’s why I took you to safety,’ his eyes said. She grunted again, but her frown diminished. “And she wasn’t the only victim… The main lesson is that we have to slow down… It was my mistake… Jumping into an asteroid without—”
“There shouldn’t have been any asteroid at that height, Vincent,” Irene said. “The belt and the other planets are millions of miles away.”
“Let’s go home,” Lila pleaded, wrapping her arms around herself. The rain had redoubled its strength, and it was chilly. Vincent took care of that, transporting the group in between their rooms. “Your mother is in the reception room if you want to say goodbye,” he said to Bee, then looked left and right. Where was he supposed to go, in Irene’s or Lila’s room?
“No! My baaaaaby!” Irene screamed, opening her door and being met by a whimpering tiger cub. “You left Cupakes here to die?” The door slammed behind her, her muffled voice and kissing noises continuing. “Come to momma… you poor little thing… That bad boy! How could he?”
“I could use a little sleep,” Vincent made puppies eyes on Lila. “I’m broken…” She smiled and beckoned him to the room. The warg, whose presence Vincent had forgotten, yawned and went into a nook further the couloir, curling on itself on the rug.
“What really happened?” Lila asked after Vincent had let himself sink into the bed’s soft mattress. “You sounded a little fake about Bee’s mother…”
“You think he noticed?” Vincent gasped.
She shrugged. “Bee? No way.”
“His mom power-leveled overnight, somehow, and stole the Guildchy core… Killed two mercs in the process and got shot by a third… Ayman burned the wound to look like a laser… You think Bee’ll ask for an autopsy?”
“Would you, in his place?” Lila came to the bed, caressing his forehead.
“No,” he sighed. “Poor Bee…”
“Get some sleep, I’ll check downstairs.”
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
After kissing him briefly, she went out. Vincent had told the truth; he felt exhausted despite waking up only a few hours before. He closed his eyes, planning to do breathing exercises and count sheep. However, his consciousness slipped away in moments.
----------------------------------------
In the late afternoon, something scratched at the door, waking Vincent. It was the warg, and he felt the hunger sensation before he opened the door. And the need to pee. He offered his new pet a sausage he had in storage, then transported the animal to the forests to the east, the ones in the west being destroyed.
“Can you stay here for now? I have to sort out a lot of things before I can take care of you.”
The warg barked, looking at Vincent with a befuddled expression. ‘You promised you’d adopt me, and now you’re abandoning me in the woods?’ his sad eyes said.
“You’re right; I’m really bad with pets,” Vincent sighed, removing the cardboard fez and pulling it into the storage to avoid littering. “I did the same with the tiger. And worse, when I was a kid, I had this dog… I was too lazy to walk her. I opened the apartment’s door, and she went out by herself… Now that I’m thinking back… I wonder how did she open the main door? That needed a key… Hm… Did she relieve herself on the stairs? The neighbors complained about a heavy smell… Anyway, she was a great dog, and I neglected her, but she still loved me and slept in my bed…”
“Iiiii,” the warg whined.
“Sorry, I talk too much, I know… Go pee, I’ll take you back with me. I’ll find you a place to stay… who knows, maybe Lila and Raya are dog people… Irene’s a hard no… cat pet and person… What I’m doing?” The question was rhetoric; Vincent was speaking to himself, the warg long gone into the trees.”Fuck… These two months were a rollercoaster… Here, there, back here… Irene, Lila, Raya… fights everywhere… and I do real magic, and a singer wins the talent competition… And now I lied to my friend about his mother…”
Progidia Guildchy Core: Hello, Vincent.
“Oh, hi, Gia. Anything I can help you with?”
Progidia Guildchy Core: I just wanted to tell you I’m building a space for the… err… new pet next to the main entry. The warg would be a perfect guard dog. It’s a he, and I need to know his name to include him in the guild. He’s a highly intelligent beast.
“You want me to name him?”
[Gia]: Switching on chat, it’s faster. No, I need you to find his name. He’s an adult. You must also sort out your right of ownership of him… The kennel is ready.
[Vincent]: Wow… so fast? Thanks.
[Gia]: You’re welcome. Gia over and out.
“Hey, warg! Come back, time to go!” Vincent yelled.
A howl replied, and the animal appeared far away, running toward Vincent at tremendous speed. The young man patted the warg’s head and Strode in front of the Guild’s tree. A booth had appeared beside the main entrance, with a huge dog door leading inside. The lobby had been widened, and a kennel added. It had a bed of straw and two bowls, one for food and one for water.
[Vincent]: You’re great, Gia.
[Irene to Vincent]: WHO’S GIA?
Vincent could feel Irene was suspicious and jealous, even in written words.
[Progidia Guildchy Core to Irene and Vincent]: I’m Gia… Guildcher Vincent chose to nickname me. For the future, Guildcher Vincent, please use ‘to – – – when using the chat in public spaces. For further details, please consult the related Menu under Guildchy>Guildchy Guild>Chat settings.
[Irene to Vincent]: Where are you? There’s a service for Bee’s mom and the rest of the victims in the church. It’s to the north of the New Main Square, in the building with the clock.
[Vincent to Irene]: How many died?
[Irene to Vincent]: 34. The mayor is among them.
[Vincent to Irene]: The mayor? How?
[Irene to Vincent]: He… I can’t talk about it in a church… The service is in ten minutes… Please come… I’m… I need you… I’m not comfortable alone…
[Vincent to Irene]: I’ll be there. Where are you exactly?
[Irene to Vincent]: At the balcony, near the organ… It’s less crowded.
[Vincent to Irene]: See you in five.
[Gia to Vincent]: The mayor was in one of the houses that got destroyed, having sex with his wife’s best friend. They both ignored the evacuation order, thinking it was a trifling matter. And yes, I can read and hear all chats; they pass through me. You can use your phone if you want privacy. Do not reply. Gia over and out.
The conversation reminded Vincent he had to make another call to Earth. He concentrated his will into the ring, and soon, he heard a voice:
“Vincent, it’s you? We have audio now!” Ludwing still liked to emphasize the new words he learned.
“Is it in our heads or—”
“No, we can hear you loud and clear. I’m in Prague now, with your parents. Phoning the Altenchsloss for a group meeting… done.”
“We love you, Vincent!” his mother said cheerfully.
“Heeey,” his dad added.
“Good evening, Vincent,” Elina said.
“Hi,” Karl said.
“I’ll be brief. We had a crisis today, but it’s solved. We put a satellite in orbit and accidentally met a former… err… dungeon boss… a lady riding a bug.”
“The Calamity?” Ludwing gasped.
“Yeah, a girl nicknamed Calamity Jane,” Vincent improvised to keep his parents in the dark. They surely would have panicked if they’d known the truth. “We tried to calm her by offering the two special suitcases Karl gave us, but it was too little. In the end, we managed to calm her… but I had to.. borrow some ritualistic… peace-making items from Ludwing’s apartment—”
“Like a calumet?” Vincent’s father asked.
“Yeah, yeah…”
“I see…” Ludwing said calmly. “Is everyone OK?”
“Sure, sure… Only… err… two, no, three people got a little… indisposed… two mercs and Bee’s mother… Everyone else is fine… Szarathustrinella helped a lot… she’s very responsible… Like father, like daughter. Listen, guys, I have to go… Ah, one more thing, Ludwing… there was a… err… puppy in your room, and it kinda… attached itself to me… Is it OK if I keep it?”
“Keep the castle too, since it seems you like it so much— never mind. Yes, keep him.”
“What’s the puppy’s name?” Vincent asked.
“Vorrak the Devourer, son of Skull Crusher and Reaver of Blight,” Ludwing said deadpanned. “He likes sleeping under the bed. He’s all yours. Enjoy.”