This body is amazing. Kicking myself off the ground is trivial, even while two behemoths of an Orc try to corner me.

I can jump over them, and keep running before they realize what happened.

If they can't see in the dark I'll be safe once past the first tree line. That said, — and I know I shouldn't take fantasy facts for granted — don't Orcs have night vision in H&M?

It happens in a flash so I don't have the time to think about it when I stumble upon Mabel. Right, the little green puppy of a girl followed us and hid herself in the bushes.

I don't want anyone to get hurt who has anything to do with Alex, but especially not this adorable child. I couldn't bear it if she became a collateral loss to this fight.

Her huge eyes sparkle in the moonlight looking at me with excitement. This pulls the corner of my mouth into a slight smile.

Damn it. This isn't the right time to melt from her cuteness.

[Notice: you could use her as a shield.]

Don't you fucking dare! What kind of System would suggest something so sinister? She's a child, come on. Is this what Alexandra is like?! I hope it's nothing but a faulty AI that she programmed. I'm so upset, I even forget to run for a moment, and someone grabs my arm.

Shit, did they already catch up? No, they didn't even realize what happened yet. They stand at the edge of the clearing and look around confused.

Charlotte picks up the tip of the broken spear before noticing me by the tree line.

So who...

"Will you run away?" The little voice chirps. "Are we not worthy?"

Ugh, my heart! It's Mabel and her pleading eyes.

"Ah, um, it seems we have some creative differences." I try to comfort her, wasting precious seconds, but she won't let me go and I don't want to rip my arm off of her hands.

"You see, Charlotte thinks I'm not who I claim to be, and, uh, we started a game to see who's right." What am I even talking about? Run!

"A game!" Her eyes light up even more, and now I'm certain I messed it up.

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

The two Orcs are advancing this way and still have a functional spear. My first assessment tells me that Charlotte is smarter and Hana is stronger.

As long as she's convinced I'm an imposter she'll push the Standard Bearer to take me down.

Could I convince either of them if they're separated? They move in unison though, and approach fast.

And then there's Mabel, still clinging to me.

"Can I play too?" Ugh, is it possible to say no to those puppy eyes? Here's my best attempt.

"The sun already went down, aren't you supposed to be sleeping? I don't want you to get into trouble."

She frowns, and it feels like someone grabbed my heart and twisted it in ways I couldn't even imagine before. Come on, I don't like kids, how can she do this?

Is she a witch or something?

Or is it Alexandra's reaction? It can't be right if the Orc's problem is that I wasn't acting tough enough. But then again, what do I even know about her? It can't be me.

Not even my little sister had this effect on me. And she knew how to get anyone to do her bidding with her specialty. Emotional blackmail. Gingers are different.

The saying that they steal your soul and that's how they get freckles? My sister had lots and for a good reason. She was a spitting image of my mother, and not even that made her seem as adorable as this Orc child.

Blood of my blood. That doesn't sound right, it has to have something to do with this world, Mabel's magic, or Alex's body.

I was more of a brunette myself, it must have come from my father's side of the family, but none of this matters now. Snap out of it. Quick.

The Charlotte and Hana combo dashes to catch me, and I'm still stuck with Mabel, going down memory lane.

[Notice: as you aren't serious about this, your emergency powers are now disabled.]

Wait what? I had emergency powers? It explains that insane grip strength and the high jump, but you only say this now when you take them away?

What kind of System are you?

Shit, shit, shit. What do I do now?

"Is it a game of tag?" Mabel doesn't seem aware of the danger. "Take me with you, please! Charlotte also has a teammate, I could be yours."

[Suggestion: take the child hostage.]

Fuck. There's no time to think.

"I can't believe you." I roll my eyes, picking up the kid. "I'm not kidnapping you, okay? But this is a dangerous game so we should get moving."

[Sarcastic comment: whatever you say.]

Ugh, the System is getting out of hand.

I dash with Mabel in my arms, and she's chirping with joy. Charlotte pauses to reevaluate the situation, but they keep following me. God damn it. Now I'm a kidnapper and an impostor too?

"How fast can you run?" The child asks in my arms, and I'd like to know too.

Can I outrun two adults while carrying her without the emergency powers? Do they matter? I didn't even know about them until the System rewoke them. Ugh, the System. We'll talk about this later.

I'm sure you're not supposed to operate like this. It can't be right, Alex didn't strike me as a psychopath.

Although, she did evaporate my body, out of being helpful.

Whatever. The only thing left to do is to run.

"Do you know this area?" I ask the girl squirming in my arm, looking back to see our pursuers. The distance won't shrink any further, so I should be good, as long as I know where I'm heading.

"Of course." She beams, pointing ahead. "If you keep going that way, you'll reach the lake where we usually play. It's right beyond the swamp."

Ugh, a swamp? Can I lose them there? There's one way to find out.