The cake version of Teddy's parents was delicious. And we were all waddling away after finishing. Teddy, Celanae, and Eodyne left, with Teddy joining his parents to discuss something kingdom-related.

I tuned them out and watched as Igas slipped away while munching on a chunk of moist cake in his hand. He talked to Isaac, but the rogue hung back just enough that when Igas turned the corner, he silently closed the door to the dining room.

After turning around silently, the shadows in the room darkened enough to block out the bright, colorful glow orbs above.

I sat and waited, letting him set the scene.

"You know. I'm all for the edginess, but I know for a fact that you don't have the means to silence this room with your shadows. So why are you setting the fuck-me mood?"

My words spilled out the moment he opened his mouth, and he promptly shut his jaw with a click. He breathed in, and a dark haze breathed out.

I crossed my arms.

"I don't need to silence the room... all rooms have a noise-containment enchantment built in."

"And the fuck-me ambience is for?" I trailed off.

"You've gotten more sarcastic ever since exiting the rift, you know that?"

"Maybe. But you're still not answering."

"The shadows make me feel better, okay?!"

I kept my face perfectly neutral and nodded once. "So, spill."

He grabbed a chair and spun it around to sit on it backward while facing me.

"Those people are one of the gangs. Part of the thieves' guild, they operate pretty lowkey crime-wise. For the most part, they run legitimate businesses, all above-board stuff. They like to ship in illegal goods and dip their fingers into information gathering. Not great at it, but I hear they have a tier one scry-type skill user they are sponsoring," he explained.

"And you know this why? And why do I care?"

"You shouldn't care. They only got wind of you because they like to track when I'm in the city," he answered. A hand raised before I could voice my next question. "I did a few jobs for them here and there. It gets me access where the others can't get to, and it helped me get things I couldn't get anywhere else."

"And they treat you like an ex-lover; why?"

The room got darker, and I felt his mana flare. "I'm good at what I do."

The theatrics didn't impress me, but I let him have his moment.

"So I have nothing to worry about?" He nodded, and I shrugged and stood up.

He blinked several times and watched me head for the door. Before I left, a small tendril wrapped around my wrist before I could touch the door knob.

I turned around slowly and waited.

"That's it? No more questions?" he half-asked, half demanded.

"Isaac. Do you know what questions get me?" His mouth pressed into a thin line, but he said nothing, so I continued. "Questions get me into trouble, trouble I really don't want right now."

"Cyrus..."

It wasn't anger in his voice; it sounded almost concerned, hesitant. The change-up was enough to make me stop reaching for the doorknob and face him fully.

"Dude, seriously. Remember what I told you happened to me during the rift? It assigned me a special quest that nobody else got. Not Sereza, not you guys, not Groxl or his team." I breathed in and then exhaled. "I can accept my own stupid decisions, but being told by the world itself to do something like a pawn or soldier doesn't do it for me. I was ready to say goodbye to all of you near the end of the rift, thrown into the void, tossed and spat out on some random world. I don't want questions, I don't want to know about other people's shit."

The words spilled out like vomit, and I sensed a headache creeping up. It began as a slow pulse that brought flickers of an old memory to mind, but I crushed the stray thought and focused on Isaac's eyes. They sucked in light, dark, gloomy, and endless as the void. It was a good enough target to center my thoughts around.

The shadows receded, sucked up and drained away like a plug setting water free. With it, the blanket of mana around us retreated, and Isaac stood up, turning his chair and placing it back underneath the table.

"If anything is brought up about you, I'll let you know," he said coolly.

He pulled up his mask built into his cloak, but I saw the gritted teeth beneath his neutral facade. His right finger twitched, subtly moving toward his belt where his dagger stayed sheathed.

I watched him sink into the shadows. For a split second, his movement stopped, and his eyes flickered toward me, but he slipped beneath the tile without a word, leaving me alone in the now bright room.

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Standing there, I stared at the spot he had been for a good while before eventually turning around and heading to the training ground.

Maybe some exhaustion will make the headache go away.

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

After two hours of practicing with my new spear and having my familiars join me, I finally collapsed onto the stone floor and rested my head on the cool ground.

Zharia and Sturmrorex raced to get to me first while Áine rode Magnus. Erebus remained in my soulspace, but that was fine; he wouldn't have cared about my sparring, not like the others.

Bracing for the impact, I tensed as Zharia's feathery body landed atop my chest and flared her feathers with bright golden flames as she triumphed over the swimming dragon.

"Mine!"

Sturmrorex harumphed and slid over to my stomach, coiling up and flaring his own mist with little zaps of lightning.

"You win this one! But I shall win more!"

They played in mock outrage towards each other, but I could feel their true emotions through the link. It was all bluster meant to distract.

Magnus arrived and headbutted my cheek before rubbing his wet nose against me. I reached up and gently booped him before he lowered his head, and Áine walked over, plopping herself down on my forehead, staring into my eyes from above.

I blinked slowly and reached up a finger, but she grasped it in her tiny hands and lowered it.

A deep sigh exited my body, and my familiars grew silent, the loud duo silencing and canceling their skills while Magnus rested his head on my chin.

"You know, it's not like I'm dying guys."

"Master feels bad," Zharia chirped.

Direct and Sweet.

"Not bad, just not ready for whatever keeps trying to intrude. Would you want a headache?"

She hopped closer and lightly pecked my chest. It tickled, but I didn't move.

A small burst of energy slipped into my skin and across my skull. It brought forth the scent of berries and flowers, fresh grass topped with dew.

Áine retracted her hands from the side of my head and stood and crossed her arms.

I got the message.

"Fine. Fine."

After releasing my grip on the spear, I swept both arms towards my belly and then upwards, dragging the dragon and phoenix together, moving them to just under my chin. Continuing, I wrapped my arms around Magnus while Áine adjusted by lowering herself more on my head, using my horns as a stabilizer.

"You guys are manipulative, you know that? Too cute for your own good."

"Not cute, majestic!" Sturmrorex roared.

"Fierce!" Zharia screeched.

I chuckled and closed my eyes. The headache grew throughout the last two hours, constantly trying to fill my mind even as I ruthlessly squashed its attempts.

Time to fix this.

Landing in my soulspace, I found myself lying on the obsidian island and watched two wisps appear. One brought the sense of bonepile wreathed in shadows, the other an endless expanse that filled my ears with a loud Chomp!

They settled above me, and I waved.

Alright then, let's get to it. Bring it on, you stupid memory.

Finally, I gave in. The headache ceased, and the pressure in my chest disappeared. Like a balloon bursting, a swirl of thoughts rushed into its place, filling my head and sucking me in with a flood of information.

I stared at myself, my face gaunt. Heavy black eyebags and a permanent frown stood out on my face. My short brown hair was combed but lazily, with little done to smooth out the stray strands that poked out.

The mirror held nothing back; it didn't let me escape.

My arms were skinny, and my pale skin color didn't do anything to help my appearance.

But what me-I focused on the most, what drew my attention past the ghoulish appearance--was my eyes.

They were dead.

No emotion lay behind them.

The sight enraged I-me, but like a dying flame, it came and sputtered out before it could gain momentum. Whatever fire the rage tried to light was snuffed out in an embrace of nothing.

"Cyrus... dear? Are you ready?" a hesitant female voice called out from the door behind me.

I didn't respond. Instead, I reached up and adjusted the tie around my neck. Black. Black as the suit around my shoulders. Black as the pants and shoes I dressed in.

A light tapping came at the door.

Again, hesitant, like tapping on the world's thinnest glass sheet.

I bent down and turned on the tap, washing my hands. Soap, water, rinse, dry off. The actions felt automatic. Once done, I stared at my face again, the spark once more trying to stir up something inside me but failing.

A smile stretched across my face. It seemed off, so I tried again, this time with teeth. That didn't work either.

The smile dropped, and my shoulders rose with an inhale before falling away.

Pivot, turn around, twist the nob, pull.

A woman dressed in black fabric lowered her hand. I didn't see her face; I refused to look up and meet her eyes.

"I won't ask if you're okay. But know that we're all here for you. You ready?"

I nodded, and she placed a small hand on my shoulder, brushing off dust that wasn't there.

"Okay, let's go. Sammy and the others are waiting."

She hooked her arm into mine, dragging me forward. I didn't resist. The hallway was blurry; nothing stood out except the black leather shoes on my feet.

Step by step, down the carpeted hallway.

A sinking feeling began to settle into the pit of my stomach, and my heart thumped louder in my ears.

Thump. Thump. THUMP!

"Cyr... Hey, just a few... okay?"

My feet felt heavy, too heavy. They wanted to stop; I needed to stop.

I couldn't stop.

Pulling my arm back, I slid out of the woman's grip and crossed through the archway, finding a soft, warm light shining down from above. Faces, a lot of them, all blank. Their features were unknown. They turned and stared.

Sam. She stood, still healthy but pale. She stared at me with bright blue eyes, a sadness etched onto her face.

I ignored the words she mouthed at me and stopped in place. The sinking feeling spread to my legs, and I felt weak. A new and foreign emotion erupted from my chest.

Unlike the anger that tried to form and rage, this emotion stayed. My stomach was lead, heavy, and uncomfortable. A tightening in my chest made me hesitate, not wanting to look at the center of the room past the pews filled with people.

This time, when the sparks came, it stayed lit. The oppressive nothingness that smothered its light before couldn't reach its tendrils far enough.

Somebody said something; a large, firm hand gently tugged on my shoulder while another supported the small of my back.

I wanted to...

The spark burned hot, spurning me to move and turn my head.

Slowly, I did, but the world grew fuzzy. Static began to fill my ears—the voices no longer distinguishable from each other. The grip on my shoulder tightened, but I didn't feel it—or rather, I didn't care.

In the middle of the room, on a small stage, two large easles stood guard next to two...

Two...

A thunderous roar shook the world around me.

NO!

DING!

The memory shattered, and my eyes shot open. I couldn't see. The world looked blurry.

A soft mew filled my ears, and a familiar energy pushed into my head that anchored my senses to reality. I reached up carefully, my fingers wiped at my cheek, only to come away wet.

My familiars made themselves known, snuggling deeper into my arms and pressing down on my chest.

"Master.." Zharia trilled softly.

I closed my eyes once more and let the fuzzy memory fade away.

"I love you guys," I whispered softly.