A few more planks of wood were tossed into the firebox of the rail engine.

“Timber! We need more timber!” the train conductor, named Clarek, exclaimed. “Ronn, Junil. There’s definitely more in the carriages, go fetch it!”

Junil nodded and stepped over the destroyed coal car to the carriage right behind it. Most of that carriage had been dismantled already, the wood from the carriage going directly into the firebox of the steam engine.

Ronn was working on disassembling the last half of it with his sword. The edge of the Hero’s blade glowed as he hacked away at the walls of the carriage.

“Do we have any more?” Junil asked.

Ronn nodded, then pointed to a stack of roughly-cut wooden planks laying on the floor of the carriage. The Healer scooped it up and immediately ran back, tossing it over to the conductor.

She then returned to Ronn.

“I don’t see why I have to be the one that fetches the firewood!” Junil exclaimed.

“The train will not run otherwise, not after what happened to the coal stores.”

“Yeah, and whose fault was that?”

“I apologize. At that moment, I had considered the strike necessary to capture the Second Coming.”

“Well, you didn’t capture her at all, did you?”

“And for that, I apologize.”

The two were interrupted when the conductor yelled from the Rail Engine. “Hey, what’s the hold up? I need more timber!”

“We need more wood,” Junil said to the Hero. “Ronn, cut some more.”

“I’ve heard him already,” he replied.

A few more planks of wood clattered to the ground, after Ronn sliced them off the roof of the carriage with his sword. Just as Junil was about to grab them, he stopped her.

“I can carry them much easier than you can,” he stated.

The Hero didn’t waste a moment. Hoisting several large planks of wood over his shoulder, he carried them over to the rail engine. The man proceeded to deposit them right in front of the conductor.

“This should be enough to get us back...” Clarek said, looking at the mess in front of him.

“It better be,” Junil replied. She sighed, dropping the own pieces of wood she carried at the pile. “Finally, we’re done. I’m exhausted.”

She stepped over to the carriage that had mostly been broken down and fell backwards right onto the floor. She remained laying there, sprawled out and staring at the sky.

“At least nobody got hurt,” she continued. “I didn’t need to use my healing magic.”

“Don’t get yer hopes up,” Clarek replied. “If I need more timber, I’ll tell you.”

“Oh, damn it. How much stuff does this Rail Engine burn?”

Clarek adjusted his cap, which was stained in black dust. “It burns better with coal, but your Hero friend here knocked it all off.”

“For that, I apologize,” Ronn stated.

Clarek shrugged. “I’m just paid to run the rail engine. It’s the manager who you’ll need to apologize to. Gotta admit, the bit of excitement I saw today made up for the inconvenience.”

The conductor leaned in a bit. “And, I’m curious. Who’s that gal y’all were chasin’? Was she a fugitive? Associate of the Demon Lord? I don’t usually see the Hero Party out ‘n about doing this kinda—”

“Confidential,” the Hero said, cutting him off.

Clarek blinked. “Aight. You better pay the rail manager good money to keep his mouth shut.”

“No point,” Junil replied. “Everyone on board saw it. The news is gonna spread like rats in a grain silo.”

Ronn leaned in to whisper to Junil. “Regardless, they will be unaware of the motives. Our true objectives will remain obscured.”

“Obscured? You think that’s the thing I’m concerned about?” Junil hissed, under her breath. “You see yourself apprehending the Demon Lord’s sister. Everyone else saw you attacking a defenseless Demonfolk girl! How do you think people will perceive this?”

“They have done nothing nor said anything so far,” the Hero retorted.

“That’s because you’re the Hero. Of course they won’t, not immediately... This isn’t good for your image!”

“My image is irrelevant to the outcome of the mission.”

Junil gave a loud sigh, realizing that he was not going to budge on this position. So she decided to just drop the conversation.

“As we have time to burn, I have a few questions to ask,” Ronn continued. His voice was at a regular volume again.

“Questions about...?”

“Demonfolk anatomy. You are a medical student, correct?”

“Yeah, I am. And I know a few things, so go ahead.”

Ronn nodded. “I recall you once said the Demonfolk have good balance. Why did she stumble, regardless of that?”

Junil blinked. “Well, yeah they have good balance. That’s because of the tail. But the tail doesn’t help much when they lose their footing and plunge into a ravine.”

She turned over onto her side. “That, and she was Manic, too. I know a fair deal about their Manic phase, but we don’t know everything.”

“Do tell me more,” Ronn insisted.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

The Healer glanced up at them. There was a slight pout on her face. “You’ve fought them before. Shouldn’t you know?”

“I know how to fight a Manic Demonfolk, but I’ve never studied the intricacies of their Manic state-of-being before. Would you be so kind as to teach me?”

Letting out a breath, Junil placed a hand on her forehead and rubbed the sweat off.

“Alright, so... They’re mostly incomplete theories, ones we’ve carried over from Humans to re-apply to the Demonfolk. So a lot of this is... new, especially considering that the Demonfolk haven’t been too cooperative in studies.”

“Tell me what you do know, though.”

“Well, I’ll use an analogy. In times when you felt threatened or knew a battle was coming up, you’ve felt anxious before, right?”

“I would not say ‘anxious’. Rather, I feel as though my limbs are bursting with energy before a fight, even if I felt physically exhausted otherwise.”

“Yes, that. It’s an incomplete theory, but our bodies store and use up stimulants as energy. When you feel nervous, your body is getting ready to use them. It’s called the ‘flight-or-fight response’.”

“Yes.”

“The Demonfolk, in theory, are very similar to that. Except, since they’re usually physically stronger than humans, not as much can threaten an individual Demonfolk compared to a human, right? So they might not have a need for it.”

“Yes.”

“Except for cases where something terrifying comes in that can actually threaten them. In those cases, a little injection of energy won’t really help. So, instead of injecting energy, it’s some type of... well, we’re not sure what it is that does it. But it speeds up their body’s healing, blood clotting, reaction speeds... everything across the books go up. Not only that, but the skin on their arms and legs toughen, their nails and hair grow quicker, and a second layer of teeth temporarily emerges from behind their main set.”

Junil stopped, and glanced at Ronn.

“Do you understand this?”

“Please continue,” he said.

The Healer took a deep breath and began to speak again.

“We found that it comes with its own side effects. The hardened skin on the arms and legs doesn’t stay forever. It peels off after an hour, and the area that was underneath is sore and vulnerable to injury. The jutting of their teeth also creates areas in their mouth that have been cut through, which isn’t too pleasant. And their eyes remain bloodshot for up to five hours after going manic.”

“So, there are after-effects to their Manic phase,” Ronn continued. “I had my suspicions, but I was not entirely sure. How much impact would this have on their performance?”

“Like a sore body,” Junil continued. “Pushing themselves further after that is possible, but they’ll injure themselves.”

“But they can continue pushing themselves, yes?”

“You can. It’s not very healthy, especially when extended. Or, that’s what we guess,” Junil continued. She picked up a wood chipping that was in front of her, before tossing it off the side. “We can’t figure out much. No Demonfolk wants to work in our medical trials.”

“Perhaps,” Ronn suggested. “You were being too aggressive in approaching Demonfolk?”

“Aggressive?” Junil asked. “If anything, I think you’re the one aggressive.”

“Am I?”

“To that Demonfolk girl,” Junil said. “I was expecting you to stop, try to reason with her. But... well, I didn’t hear everything you two were talking about, but it didn’t sound like much.”

Junil finished her sentence, and waited for Ronn’s response. Fifteen seconds passed before she glanced over at the lack of response.

“Ronn?” the Healer asked. He seemed to be staring out into the distance. However, the Hero acknowledged Junil and turned his head at her.

“A Demonfolk going Manic cannot be reasoned with, Junil,” he stated, matter-of-factly.

Junil blinked her eyes a few times, in surprise.

“I haven’t heard this before,” the Healer replied.

“It is what I have deduced, based on personal experience and observations with fighting Demonfolk in their Manic phase.”

Instead of showing interest at this new piece of information, Junil frowned. She gave a sigh, rubbing the side of her head with a hand.

“There’s... Ronn, I... well, I don’t think that’s true,” she said.

“I believe it is. The Second Coming did not surrender, even when cornered. That is irrational behavior.”

Junil shook her head. “No, I think otherwise. That’s why I tried to stop you. She was still very lucid, even when Manic.”

“Junil. I have told you already, a Manic Demonfolk is not an individual you are capable of reasoning with. They are not lucid, they are in a trance. I have attempted to do so myself, in the past. It has only resulted in injuries to myself and others.”

If there was anything that Junil weighed more than her own intuition, it was the Hero’s personal experiences being relayed to her. She decided to give up her line of argument.

“Fine, they aren’t reasonable when Manic,” Junil admitted. “But... what if they were?”

Ronn seemed to muse over that for a second. But he shook his head, not even five seconds after Junil asked.

“An impossibility. If I ever do encounter such a situation, you can witness my answer. For now, I have no suitable response for you.”

From that point, the conversation had died down. There wasn’t much left to talk about anyway, not like there was time left. The Rail Engine was slowing into the New Frontierland station, and both Ronn and Junil could see the look of surprise on the faces of those who were waiting for it to arrive.

Considering the sorry state of the entire Rail Engine, that was not surprising.

Ronn and Junil were the first to disembark from the torn-down carriage. They simply walked past the group of maintenance workers, who simply stared at them.

Stepping up to the ticket booth, where the ticket seller stood, Ronn deposited a bag full of coins onto the table.

“This is for payment,” Ronn stated.

It took the ticket seller a moment to realize what the Hero did. “Oh, uh... right! What is this... for?”

“This is for the cost of damages,” Ronn replied. “If this amount of funds is insufficient, please do not hesitate to contact my estate.”

The ticket seller blinked. “Now, wait up—”

“I cannot. I have urgent business to attend to. You may bill me for additional financial damages stemming from my unintentional impact on your earnings.”

“The— the cost of damages?” the ticket seller asked. “Wait, was that why the rail engine pulled into the station like that?”

“As I said...” Ronn began. He stopped walking and turned back to stare at the ticket seller. “I do not have the time. An invoice for damages may be sent to my estate. Have a nice day.”

The ticket seller stood there, flabbergasted, with the bag of coins in his hands.

Junil glanced back at him, just as Ronn started walking again. She stood there before turning to look at the Hero and skittering up back to him.

“You could’ve spared a minute to explain to him, couldn’t you?” the Healer asked.

“We do not have such time on our hands,” Ronn replied. “Unfortunately, every moment from now onwards is another second the Second Coming has to prepare.”

Junil gave a sigh. “That’s true. But I’m worried about all that, it’s not going to blow over.”

“Once the damages are repaid back, there is no reason for any form of animosity.”

“That’s... going to be a lot of money, Ronn,” Junil replied.

“That does not mean I will not pay them back.”

Junil scoffed. “At least you’re responsible. But, uh, should I pay my share, then?”

“I had directly caused the vast majority of the damage. I shall incur the expense.”

Junil rolled her eyes. “More like all of the damage.”

“That is true, yes.”

“Anyway, where are we going? Don’t tell me we’re walking aimlessly.

“We shall be heading to the library to collect information,” Ronn replied.

Junil said. “Do you have an idea where to start researching?”

“I know the geography well. That river has a stop at Fort Logger.”

“Fort Logger?”

Junil scratched her cheek. “It sounds familiar, for some reason. Have we been there once?”

“Yes, we have,” Ronn replied. “We’ll be going there again. Before we do, however, we must perform some research.”