Several minutes before the end of the first wave, four travelers walking in a dead forest nearly reached their destination. Isaac, Cody, and Vijan were headed to the lost town of Marinosa with a new person tagging along. With plenty of sass and no knowledge of the world around her, Fiona wandered with them, clueless about what was happening.

Fiona groaning: [Are we there yet?!]

Cody grew agitated, holding back a fist and clenching his teeth. This hadn’t been the first time she asked, and Cody wasn’t the only person getting annoyed.

Isaac calmly: [We should almost be there.]

He looked to the sky and saw a sky-scraping tree utterly devoid of life.

Isaac: [Watch your step from this point onward.]

Fiona: [You said that an hour ago!]

Cody quickly turned to her with a vein popping out of his forehead and his head turning pale.

Cody infuriated: [IT’S BEEN TWO MINUTES!]

Fiona pulled her head back and furrowed her brows.

Vijan: [Calm down, dude. It’s not that serious.]

Fiona agreed with him, even repeating his words.

Cody: [If you didn’t come from the box, I swear I’d have you killed by now!]

Fiona: [Talk about anger issues.]

Cody growled and fixed his eyes on her as she walked by him.

Several minutes later, they escaped the forest of dead trees and arrived at a cliff that perfectly captured the town from above. Looking down from the ledge, Vijan felt his stomach turn and his headache. Though it was subtle, returning to his home made him feel sick.

Fiona and Isaac, on the other hand, adored the view and couldn’t turn away.

Fiona: [What tree is that?!]

Cody turned to Vijan before he answered. He caught a glimpse of Vijan’s narrow eyes and heavy breathing and took it as a sign not to explain extensively.

Cody: [It’s a unique one grown by Vijan’s people.]

He walked up the rock-side stairs and descended with a hand on the rough wall.

Cody: [Legend says it’s the only one in existence.]

The others followed behind.

Isaac: [After what it did, it’s no wonder why it’s been banned.]

As she walked down the cliff, Fiona chuckled.

Fiona: [What did a tree do that was so bad?]

Vijan grimly: [Slaughter the entire village.]

What followed was silence. Fiona turned to Isaac, who responded with a shrug. The four of them continued their path down the cliff in silence.

As they approached the village, a cleared orange path set way for them to make it without a hassle. Surrounding the trail was nothing but dying red petals scattered everywhere. The red color of the petals faded into black the closer the four of them came to the ghost town.

Walking towards a gate with the town’s name arching over their heads, Fiona suddenly felt a wave of despair and suffering from waning cries begging her to stop. The voices were faint but noticeable. Like a friend whispering gossip or a muffled child crying their heart out, she could hear them loud and clear.

She quickly stopped and turned around, eyes wide, and brows furrowed, only to see Isaac and Vijan walk by her without a care in the world. The voices continued even though their mouths were shut.

Voices: [S̵t̶o̴p̸!]

Was repeatedly shouted in whispers from the voices around her. She began to recognize the voices crying vaguely.

Voices: [Y̶o̵u̵'̷l̸l̷ ̴d̷i̸e̶!̵]

The voices were beginning to drive her insane. Her head ached with a sting as she pulled on her hair to get them to stop.

Voices: [D̷o̵n̷’̷t̴ ̵g̵o̴ ̷a̸n̴y̸ ̴f̶u̴r̵t̴h̷e̸r̶!̸ ̴Y̶o̶u̴’̶l̵l̶ ̷d̵i̵e̸!̵ ̷Y̸o̷u̸’̶l̷l̷ ̴d̵i̸e̵!̶ ̴Y̸o̸u̵’̴l̷l̵ ̵d̸i̵e̵!̸]

Fiona: [STOOOOP!]

The three walking before her halted in their step and turned to her, panting in anguish. The boys couldn’t help but grow confused and worried. Cody asked Isaac to confront her as she fell to her knees and wept. Hesitantly approaching her with his hand out, Isaac agreed and stepped forward.

Isaac: [Are… are you okay?]

He took small steps at a snail’s pace and tilted his body towards the others to bolt in case something was to happen suddenly. For all he knew, Fiona could be a demon sent by the demon lord or, worse, working for Leviere. The origins of the box she sprouted from were unknown but were in the hands of Leviere when they stole it. Isaac got to his knees and looked at her as she winced and groaned in pain, staring at the ground beneath her.

Isaac: [Is everything alright?]

He reached for her shoulder when suddenly,

Fiona: [STAY AWAY!]

She smacked his hand and continued to groan. Isaac retracted and turned to the two waiting for him. As soon as they locked eyes, Cody shrugged with a raised brow.

Fiona struggling: [Don’t… move!]

Isaac: [Hey, what’s going on? You’re scaring us.]

As Isaac spoke, the voices in her head began to fade away. With one final message, the voices departed, leaving her alone. Her headaches came to an end, and so did her shivering. When she came back to her senses, she looked into Isaac’s soft brown eyes. Cody and Vijan watched in silence as Isaac helped her up.

Fiona: [We can’t go in the village!]

Her sudden statement surprised them.

Cody: [I’m sorry?]

Isaac let go of her hand and let her walk on her own. She grabbed onto her exposed shoulder and did a few rolls.

Fiona: [We’ll die if we go through that door!]

Cody: [You have a mental breakdown, and suddenly you’re a sage?]

Fiona looked towards Isaac.

Cody: [Yeah, no thanks.]

Fiona: [I don’t know how to explain it. I heard voices. They said not to go in there!]

Cody looked at the other boys and scoffed at her statement.

Cody: [And I have a wife that told me not to eat turkey.]

Isaac: [You have a wife?]

Cody: [What? No!]

Isaac looked towards the ground with his brows furrowed.

Cody: [My point is, you can’t trust every little thing you hear.]

Vijan: [She may have a point, y’know?]

Cody: [I don’t want to hear it from you! You don’t want to be here to begin with.]

Cody turned back around and continued walking forward when, suddenly, Isaac grabbed his wrist and forced him to a stop. With a roll of his eyes, Cody turned to Isaac and stared at his stone-cold expression.

Cody: [Wha-! Not you, too.]

Isaac: [She isn’t from this world, Cody. She has no reason to put on a show like that. I think that we should listen to her.]

Cody: [You remember what OJ said, right? We don’t have time to put our–]

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Isaac tightened his grip on Cody’s wrist and narrowed his eyes.

Isaac: [Trust me, for once in your life.]

Looking at Isaac, Cody felt a sense of fury coming from his partner that he had never seen before. He pulled his arm back and turned to Fiona while adjusting his cuffs.

Cody irritated: [So, what do you suggest we do?]

Fiona: [I think there is a death barrier past the front gate, so maybe there’s another way through?]

Vijan: [Marinosa was a village full of secrets. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had put a system in place that kills anyone who tries to step in.]

Cody looked at the Hydra ninja in shock.

Vijan: [If what she’s saying is true, there could be no way inside.]

Isaac: [Maybe we’re not supposed to go in there to begin with.]

Everyone turned to him.

Isaac: [What if there’s another way to get Vijan’s memories back?]

Cody growing irritated: [OJ had strict orders.]

Isaac: [The first thing OJ wanted us to do fell apart! We’ve improvised our way up until this point.]

Cody: [Isaac, we don’t have time to make shit up!]

Raising his voice, Cody stomped towards Isaac and stared at him in the eyes with his burning fury.

Cody: [The first wave already ended, and we’re running out of time! Either we get through that door and retrieve Vijan’s memories or lose our jobs and everything we ever loved.]

Isaac stared back, slightly pulling himself away from Cody, but kept eye contact.

Cody: [We prayed to God that he’d let us off the hook the first time, and by some miracle, we got it! This is our second chance, Isaac.]

Isaac: [We’ve seen it happen before.]

His retort forced a sigh out of Cody.

Isaac: [Listen! Ruby cleared the soldier’s memories, remember?! That restored their memories! There’s a chance that bringing him here won’t fix anything!]

Cody: [Yeah?! Why don’t you tell OJ yourself, huh? Go ahead and message him. I’ll wait.]

Isaac: [We don’t need to get him involved.]

Cody furrowed his brows and threw his hands in the air. As he looked at the neutral faces of the two watching, he groaned and took several steps back.

Cody: [HE SET US ON THIS MISSION, YOU RETARD!]

Isaac clenched a fist and gripped his teeth.

Cody: [IF WE WANT TO DO ANYTHING OUT OF ORDER, WE. TELL. HIM!]

Isaac: [LISTEN TO ME FOR A FUCKING SECOND!]

Fiona widened her eyes in shock.

Isaac: [All that matters is that we get Vijan’s memories back, right?]

Cody: [That’s not how this works!]

Isaac: [SHUT UP FOR A MINUTE! If we could get one of the people that wipe memories to do it for Vijan, then we–]

Cody: [No one would help a war criminal! Besides, even if we did find someone, OJ told us to do this specific task.]

Isaac: [Well, that’s beginning to become impossible, isn’t it?]

Cody stared at Isaac from afar. The boy he kept by his side ever since they were young, the one that would follow his directions and listen to him like a boss. That same boy was going against his orders and making his own decisions. For the first time in his life, Cody felt cornered and alone. Before this point, Isaac had always been by Cody’s side, regardless of the outcome of his choices. They were inseparable. Standing in front of him wasn’t the same Isaac he knew. This wasn’t the same boy who would never speak his mind. Isaac’s assertive and confident stare into Cody’s psyche began to drive him mad. With a growing growl, Cody shouted and threw his hands in the air.

[Cody: Fine!]

Isaac widened his eyes and smiled.

Cody: [What’s the plan?]

Isaac: [Yes! Okay, here’s what I know;]

Intrigued, Fiona and Vijan walked closer to Cody’s assistant.

Isaac: [Only three known classes with the Memory Wipe ability exist. Mind-Specific Mages, Druids, and Dragon Tamers. Do any of you know people in those classes?]

Cody: [The only people I know are on the opposing team.]

Vijan: [Heirloom is in Leviere.]

Fiona confused: [What’s a Mind Mage?]

Isaac: [Well, shit.]

Cody: [Don’t tell me that’s your only plan.]

Isaac: [No, I know a guy I didn’t want to contact unless absolutely necessary. He’s a Mind Mage that works for the underground in Jime, and when I tell you he’ll do anything for the right price,]

He let out an exhale,

Isaac: [He’ll do anything.]

Cody suspicious: [Why do you know what’s happening in the Jime underground?]

Isaac: [Follow me, and I’ll tell you.]

He began walking away from Marinosa’s entrance and towards the cliff they came from. Vijan and Fiona followed without restraint, while Cody stayed behind for a moment longer.

With a roll of his eyes, Cody ran to them and walked beside his partner.

They made it up the cliff and far enough from the tree that seeing it was nigh impossible. The entire walk had been silent, with several groans and grunts coming from Fiona. The suns in the sky emitted dense rays of light that were slowly tanning her skin and burning her as they did. It wasn’t until then that she decided to speak up that a conversation started.

Fiona whining: [How far away is this place?!]

Hearing her complain triggered the same nerve as earlier in the day.

Cody: [It hasn’t even been an hour!]

Trying to keep himself composed, Cody made a fist by his waist and clenched his teeth.

Isaac: [If we pick up the pace, we should see it in about another hour.]

Vijan: [This person you’re taking us to see… who is it?]

Isaac: [His name is Ryan. He’s something of an adventurer, but not really.]

Vijan: [The cleanup guy?]

His response surprised them. Isaac nodded.

Cody: [You know him?]

Vijan: [Heirloom hired him to erase the memory of witnesses whenever we attacked. A few always slip out, but he managed to get the job done.]

Cody: [We’re hiring a criminal’s janitor to wipe Vijan’s memory? [Sarcastically: I wonder how this could go south.]

Isaac: [He does work for people regardless of their history. As long as he’s getting paid, he should have no problem with this.]

Cody: [Well, one small problem, Isaac.]

He ran ahead of the group and stopped walking in front of them. Everyone came to a halt as Cody crossed his hands and shouted.

Cody: [We’re broke! We’re only helping OJ because he’ll pay us!]

Isaac: [I have a plan, Cody. Just let me lead the way.]

He walked around Cody, and the others did the same. Cody watched them walking away with his brows narrowed.

Cody: [The longer we keep this up, the sooner–]

A sudden ping interrupted Cody mid-sentence. Though none of the others could hear it, Cody widened his eyes to the sound of the notification and directed his eyes towards the icon that appeared in his peripherals.

An image of the Aveay Paladin, OJ Daring, smiling at him with a broad smile and glasses reflecting the two suns, induced him with fear he couldn’t explain. Lightly panicking to himself, Cody took large, quick steps to Isaac and pulled him aside from the path.

Rolling his eyes, Isaac groaned and turned his attention away.

Isaac: [What now?]

Cody whispering: [OJ sent me a message.]

Isaac: [Just ignore it, man!]

Isaac attempted to walk away but was pulled back by Cody.

Cody: [This isn’t something I can ignore, dumbass! This is our boss!]

Isaac: [So what? That didn’t stop you from ignoring him during the last war.]

Cody: [He wasn’t as serious then! If I don’t answer, he’ll hunt us down!]

Isaac stared into Cody’s frightened eyes.

Isaac sighing: [What did he say?]

Cody turned to the interface and read;

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

Paladin OJ: [The first wave ended an hour ago, and there’s a riot happening in the castle. - Did you two get Vijan from his cell? - I thought I told you to do it without getting caught!]

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

Isaac: [Tell him we ran into a few problems.]

With a nod, Cody began entering his response.

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

Cody to OJ: [The box didn’t work as intended. Some random chick came out of it and told us Marinosa is dangerous, so we’re looking for a different option.]

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

Isaac agitated: [Tell him our entire plan, why don’t you?!]

Cody: [It’s the only way he’ll leave us alone!]

He threw his hands in the air and continued.

Cody: [We don’t have time to–] A ping interrupted him.

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

Paladin OJ: [A girl came out of the box? What does that even mean? – Where are you guys now? Marinosa is the only place where Vijan can get his memories!]

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

Cody to Isaac: [I knew this would happen…]

Isaac: [Because you told him our entire fucking plan!]

Isaac pushed Cody ever so slightly.

Isaac: [Now he won’t get off your dick about this. We need to hurry to Jime.]

Fiona: [I don’t think I can run if that’s what you’re asking.]

Isaac groaned. Irritated by the heat and sore feet, Fiona raised her voice after Isaac’s groan.

Fiona: [Don’t get mad at me, okay?! Isn’t this a video game? Shouldn’t there be a “Fast Travel” or something?]

Cody: [Fast Travel was banned in the north a few years ago. We either go by foot, companion, or portal. And assuming neither of us has a companion or can spawn a portal, we’re going by foot.]

Isaac and Cody began walking down the path toward Jime. Vijan followed as Fiona shook her head, baffled at the idea of banning convenience.

Fiona groaning: [You gotta be kidding me! Who would ban Fast Travel?!]

Fiona ran to catch up with them.

Cody: [It caused more problems than it solved.]

Fiona: [Then… Do you guys have cars? A license to drive, even! Anything?]

Isaac: [No, what’s a car?]

Fiona suddenly stopped on the path behind them and watched as they continued onward without her. Her jaw dropped to her chest, and brows furrowed; she struggled to comprehend what had just come from Isaac’s mouth.

This world is ancient.

Fiona baffled: [You–You’ve never heard of a car?]

Isaac: [This is my first time hearing about one.]

Fiona: [A car… a motor vehicle. You’ve never–?]

Isaac to Cody: [Have you ever heard of one?]

Cody: [A motor vehicle? I think I heard Devon mention something about them a few years ago. They scrapped them because of what happened to that place in the west.]

Isaac confused: [Place in the west?]

Cody: [Yeah… they, like… everything went to shit after they tried making everything into a farm.]

Vijan: [The Western Wastelands?]

His sudden inclusion surprised Cody.

Cody: [Yeah! That place! Motors basically killed them as a whole. No one on Tietus wants anything to do with them.]

Fiona: [How in the–]

Vijan: [They use motors for stuff like flying balloons in the south.]

Fiona confused: [You guys have airships, but not cars?]

Isaac confused: [Airships?]

He continued walking in silence as he thought to himself. Suddenly, a thought came to him.

Isaac: [Woah! Airship is a good name for them! You should coin it before someone else does!]

Fiona: [Huuuuuuuh?!]