~~~Lee~~~

"So… ready to go back in?" Lee asked.

"Are you a fucking lunatic!?" Larry butted into the conversation.

Lee ignored him and talked to Jake. "You and me can clean up in there. The tick's numbing shit doesn't work on me, and I'm guessing you have something that let you avoid every single one..."

"Are you sure, Lee? I saw a lot of those things..." Alejandro said.

Lee handed him the core from his tick hitchhiker. "We need cores. I need them, and I know everyone else does as well. As far as I could see in there, each one dropped a core. This is a gold mine and I'm not about to run away. We need to get stronger for when the next giant hawk shows up."

The looks from most of them were dubious, and scared. "Plus, we still need food and weapons, right?"

That tack worked better. Lee could see the resistance to his plan weakening. "We just need to watch each other's backs. Make sure that the ticks don't get to sit on us or swarm too much."

He looked toward the store's entrance, where no sign of the monsters remained. "They didn't follow us out, so we can always run away if we need to."

"I will help you, Lee," Alejandro declared with sword raised to the sky. "I said I would, and I meant it." The sword drooped. "Plus, I would like to get a few things for Maria..."

"Saira," Jake said, turning to the woman. "This will probably require more of your healing before it's over. You in?"

She looked at each of them in turn, eyes searching for something, before settling on Alejandro. "I meant what I said as well. I will help. Though I am not sure how much I can do inside there..."

"What if I pull one of these little trees up and take it with us?" Jake asked her.

"I... do not know."

Jake walked to the still mostly healthy tree and pulled it from the ground in one smooth motion. It wasn't huge or anything. His hand fit almost entirely around the trunk, but everyone still gaped at the display of strength, Lee included.

"Does it work?" Jake held the tree out to her.

The green glow sprang into Saira's free hand for a moment and then faded. "It will work." Her other hand still clutched Mar, despite the girl being invisible.

Lee was glad to see the idea working, but the sight of Mar... or rather the lack of sight on Mar, had his mind on a different track. "Mar, how long can you stay invisible?" She had barely appeared for more than a few moments at a time. Not nearly enough for her mana to regenerate.

She reappeared to say, "Um... forever?" Her face was downcast, but Lee saw her eyes jumping over everyone before she vanished again just as quickly.

Everyone turned from her to look at Lee. "What? I was just curious. And here, Mar." He tossed her the other core. Let her see what they had to gain.

Jake was scanning their surroundings again, including the sky, and he was smiling. Lee was fine leaving the lookout role for Jake. With the guy being F-grade, and his weird eyes, he would probably see anything long before Lee could.

Alejandro chuckled. "The real question is, how did the tick find you, Mar?"

"Heat, smell, blood... magic?" Jake rattled off a few possibilities.

"Probably best if you don't go invisible while we're in there, though," Lee said.

"What! Why?" Mar flickered again. Lee was getting the feeling that she preferred to be hidden.

"Because someone might cut you in half with an enchanted blade," Jake said.

"Oh..."

"Yea, that's pretty much what I was thinking," Lee said with a glance at Jake's bloodied pants.

"I... can try." It honestly sounded like she would have to make an effort not to be invisible... What kind of broken skill did she have?

Regardless, Lee wanted to get back in there. The cores were calling his name... plus; he hadn't even grabbed any of the cores from his kills yet. "So let's do it!"

The others agreed, some reluctantly and others looking as excited as Lee felt. Mainly Jake, who went first again, ahead of the lights, and the first thing he did inside the doors was to look up. Probably a good idea. He must have seen nothing, because he waved them forward.

They walked almost all the way to Lee's abandoned shield before spotting another tick. Even the ceiling was clear. Which was odd. Where did they go, and why would they leave? The ceiling seemed like a great place to ambush from.

Then the ticks swarmed over the shelves and down the aisles.

The group was expecting it this time, though, and they were far enough from the shelves to kill the first few that jumped at them.

It still turned back into a fighting retreat as the flood of bugs continued to charge ahead, and Lee cursed as each tick he killed got buried in the swarm before he ever had a chance to get the cores.

He stopped retreating, letting the others move further behind him, and then started swinging wildly with the sword. Each swing killed multiple ticks, the back swing taking more. He tried to advance into the horde, hoping to clear a path, or at least hold them back long enough for someone else to get the cores.

More than one tick jumped onto him. Some he knocked away before they got a bite, but too many sank their stabbing jaws into his flesh. He killed them when he could, but slowing down his wide swings risked the entire swarm overrunning him.

Debuff Upgraded: [Famished]

An arrow blew past his head at one point, killing the tick that was just starting to chew into his neck. That could have been bad... Lee gave up his heroic stand and started backing up. As he went, he tried to drag his feet, hoping to kick the corpses or cores along behind him.

Of course, then he slipped in the rapidly growing puddle of blood and gore. Fuck me...

Lee landed on his back, most of his attention on trying not to stab himself, while the rest was on the charging tide of bugs eager to drain him of every last drop of blood.

Alejandro appeared between Lee and the monsters, shield and blade moving to drive back or kill the attackers. A streak of blue shot past the man, and an explosion lit up the darkness in a blinding flash of blue light.

A hand grabbed Lee's collar again, and he heard Jake yelling over the ringing in his ears. "I've got him! Fall back!"

Like that, the second run ended even worse than the first...

Lee didn't look at anyone when Jake dropped him back outside. Twice he'd been carried out now, and he was the only one. No one else had to be saved... "Fuck," Lee cursed under his breath, hands clenched into fists as he sat on the ground.

"Fuck is right, you moron. You really are trying to get us killed." Larry was as helpful as ever.

Alejandro patted him on the shoulder. "Not your fault. That floor was a mess."

Jake stood nearby when Lee finally lifted his head, but the archer was once again scanning the area like a responsible lookout. But as if he had eyes in the back of his head, Jake spoke the moment Lee looked at him. "Not a moron, but overeager maybe. What's the rush?"

Lee dropped his gaze back to the asphalt. "I..." he trailed off. I'm going to die if I don't get stronger. That was what he wanted to say, but the feeling was weird... obsessive, even. He wasn't sure what these people would think of him if he tried to explain himself. They probably didn't need the crazy number of cores that he did. They wouldn't understand.

Saira placed a hand on him, and Lee felt her magic for the first time. He didn't need it. All of his injuries were already gone... but it did feel nice. A soothing warmth that filled his body with the smell of spring. Grass, flowers, dirt, and even a strong scent of pine... before it all spiraled down into his center and vanished.

Debuff Downgraded: [Hungry]

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Or... maybe into his stomach? That was weird... and awesome! It looked like she could heal... hunger?

"That..." Saira gasped, and Lee looked back to see the tree crumble into dust in her hand. "Were you injured? There was so much blood, but I couldn't tell... and all the magic just... vanished inside you."

"Thanks, Saira. That was great!"

"I think my mana is low now," Saira said while dusting her hands off. "I do not know how I know that, but I do... and I feel unwell."

Mar appeared briefly behind her mother as the woman sat on a concrete curb near Lee. She didn't stay visible for long, but Lee caught the worried expression on her face. He also saw Jake eyeing him again.

"Sorry about your arrow," Lee said, remembering the blue explosion.

Jake shrugged. "I got a skill level out of it. Worst case, I'll switch to melee."

"Will you go back in with me?" Jake was unharmed this time, so hopefully he would not quit just yet.

"Of course. I still want more arrows and I think I'll find them here. Plus, I'm curious about this whole 'Lair' thing."

Lee breathed a sigh of relief. For all his idiotic bravado about hunting alone the night before, he really didn't want to face the tick swarm by himself.

"I too am not ready to give up," Alejandro said. "Though I think we need a better strategy."

"Agreed," Jake said. "I've been watching and think I've figured out where they turn back. I say everyone sets up and I'll see if they will chase me back to you. Worst case, we will have to keep a hit and run going until the numbers drop."

Larry grumbled but didn't actually protest, and everyone else liked the plan, at least as much as anyone liked the idea of going back in to fight giant bloodsucking ticks...

They still waited for Saira's mana to recharge, a process that seemed to take far too long in Lee's mind. He didn't question her about it, though. That felt like the kind of question that would tell everyone about his own mana regeneration.

They posted up near the registers inside, only a couple dozen feet from the doors, and waited for Jake. Saira stayed almost directly behind Alejandro, while Mar remained behind her to watch their backs and conveniently stay out of anyone else's weapon range in the process. Everyone else spread out a bit, giving each other enough room that they wouldn't accidentally hit anyone.

Jake returned with a swarm of ticks chasing him, though less than they'd seen on the last attempt. Lee had time to wonder if they sent less for one target instead of the whole group, then Jake slid into his spot and the fight was on.

Lee tried to keep his swings more horizontal because chopping down tended to send his weapon into the floor. Literally. It wasn't that bad if he stabbed the floor. Some charge lost from the runes was no big deal, but his crude sword liked to get stuck after punching through. That always left him exposed while trying to yank it free.

The resident archer didn't use any more arrows for the fight. Instead, switching to his enchanted knife. He made it look effortless too... A tick would leap for him, and Jake would lean or step aside while his knife almost casually flicked out to kill it. More often than not, this resulted in his kills falling behind him instead of in the swarm. Lee tried his best to emulate the man, with mixed results.

His footing was nowhere near as stable or quick and his sword swings were much slower and less accurate. Lee made up some of the difference by leaning on his regeneration to take a few hits in exchange for kills. It would make him hungry faster, but he knew Saira could fix that. It still hurt…

Eventually, they did have to retreat. The ticks just kept coming and other people got wounded. All of them without noticing. Lee still resisted the numbing effect, but no one else seemed able to do that. Jake was the only one Lee wasn't sure about; the man never got hit, and he didn't even look tired...

Lee kicked a lot more corpses behind him during the fight, without falling down this time, and he was able to claim a handful of cores in the retreat. The fact he scored some loot, and while not getting carried out, helped immensely with his mood following the battle.

+0.1 Strength

+0.1 Vitality

+0.1 Wisdom(+0.1 Wisdom Fortification)

Lee stopped absorbing to look at the others. He wasn't the only one to claim cores, and he saw a few in the process of absorbing them, including Saira. Alejandro must have shared his since the woman hadn't been killing anything.

Jake was the only one not busy with cores, still on the lookout for danger. "Jake, do you know what fortification is?"

"Yea, it gives you a boost toward..." Jake's voice seemed to fade mid sentence, as if he was receding further and further away.

Lee clutched at his chest, the world gone to him as a terrible weight crushed his heart. He couldn't breathe! Everything was going dark... fading... drowning... falling... cold...

The feel of his body hitting the ground was a distant thing. An unimportant detail happening to someone else. He was too busy dying.

No... I don't want to go...

Before the darkness could fully claim him, a great thump echoed out from his heart. Then another, and another. Like pounding drums and ringing bells, it reverberated throughout his body, rippling outward from his chest with every beat.

Light and sound crashed back into Lee along with the drumbeat, and he surged upright. "Nooo!"

"Lee!" Unyielding bands imprisoned his arms, and Lee blinked at the faces staring at him. Alejandro and Jake were holding him, the latter keeping Lee's sword arm in a vice grip and well clear of the both of them. "Lee," Alejandro said. "What is it? What happened?"

"I... don't know." He'd been dying... but now he...

Lee swayed in their grip as the crushing grip around his heart tightened again. The drumbeat faltered, and darkness dragged him back down, dragged him toward the yawning void that was waiting to swallow him up.

Once again, the drumbeat of pain and life pounded from his chest before he fell too far, dragging him violently back into the light. With the pain came rage, and Lee screamed again. He wasn't even sure who or what he was screaming at... "I'll fucking kill you! Die, you fu..."

His scream faltered as Lee stared at the multiple pairs of wide eyes before him. The anger made him want to kill... something, anything, everything! But it faded even as he tried to catch his breath while his heart raced at a mile a minute.

His heart... that was the drumbeat that kept stopping...

Lee was terrified... and so angry... Then he sobbed out of nowhere, surprising himself when crushing despair replaced the rage.

"What's happening to him?" a voice said.

What had happened? He didn't know! He was crying... and his heart ached. He couldn't breathe beneath the soul-crushing sorrow in his chest... and then, like a switch being thrown, joy bloomed inside him.

Lee couldn't help the laugh that bubbled up in the wake of that feeling.

As he laughed, and cried, and then laughed some more, the feelings all dimmed.

It wasn't like before, not the all-consuming void, but as if he had taken a step back from the emotions... as if they weren't actually his...

"Stanley!" Lee gasped as understanding finally hit him. "Oh god..." He suddenly knew what had happened. Stanley had been hurt... had been dying... had almost died... "No, it's okay! He can heal like me! He'll be okay! He has to be!"

"Who's Stanley?" Alejandro yelled, and Lee realized he was shouting and babbling even as he struggled against the people restraining him.

"My..." Lee took deep breaths, trying to relax his struggles. He could still feel Stanley in the distance, could feel the fear and anger, but it was fading. The fear was fading, not Stanley. It was dimming behind the joy and relief he could still feel coming from his brother.

His twin was alive. Still alive! He would be okay... "He's my brother..."

Saira's magic was flowing into his back, and had been for a while. It spread through his body, and Lee closed his eyes, letting the soothing magic ease his aching chest and racing heartbeat. I'm okay. Stanley's okay.

He'd known Stanley would be fighting, but hadn't worried about him. Stanley was already powerful before this started, and he should have been fine. Should have been more than fine... What was he fighting to almost get killed? Just how bad was it over there?

Alejandro was still talking, along with a few other voices, but Lee tuned them out as he focused on the feeling in his... soul? It had to be his soul, or rather, their twin-soul. At least, that was his best guess for the feeling. It implied they were connected or combined into basically one soul, and Lee could definitely feel his brother in the distance.

"I'm okay," Lee said finally. "I'm alright. Um... you can let go of me now."

Hands released him, and worried faces backed up. "Are you sure you're alright?" Alejandro insisted.

"He's a damn lunatic," Larry said from somewhere.

"I'm fine," Lee said, ignoring the other man. "Thanks." He tried to smile at Saira as she offered him a hand up, but couldn't seem to make his mouth stay in that position.

They were all staring when he stood up, and Lee searched for what to say. "My brother... I can feel him." He touched his chest. "He almost died... and it felt like... like I was dying with him."

"Where is he?" Alejandro asked. "Can we go help him?"

Lee shook his head. "No. He is... too far." The realization sat heavily in him as he slumped. "I can't do anything to help..."

"Yes, you can," Jake said, sounding supremely confident. "Just get stronger and go find him."

"Sure..." Lee trailed off as he took in where he was. They had moved much further from the store, and he could see a line of dead trees in the parking lot planters, running in a straight line out to where they were now.

Saira was dusting the remains of the nearest tree from her hands when Lee looked at her again. She met his gaze. "I discovered I can still funnel the life of the plants even without my mana. It is... less efficient."

Lee guessed it was also unpleasant just from her expression. "Thank you..." He didn't know if she had actually helped him at all, but appreciated the thought behind her actions. Though, at least he wasn't hungry anymore...

"All of you. Thanks for helping me..." Lee ducked his head, the welling emotions making him embarrassed. These were good people, most of them. He had misjudged Saira before, but it turned out she was a better person than he was.

Then he straightened and looked at Jake. "I'm going back in. I need to get stronger." Jake nodded, and Lee turned to Saira. "I'll gather cores for you, Saira. You don't have to go..."

"I will not shirk from what must be done. I have been granted a gift, and I will not waste it."

"Why do you keep trying to get rid of us?" Alejandro exclaimed while clapping Lee on the back. "We are in this together!"

"Yeah," Mar said while flickering into view for an instant.

"Let's squash some bugs," Sandra said.

Larry scoffed but still turned to face the building, while Jake just rolled his eyes and headed that way.

Lee smiled. Maybe other people weren't that bad after all. He really hoped Stanley found someone like this to watch his back. After what had just happened, it felt like Stanley needed all the help he could get.

The sunshine was warm on his skin, but Lee shivered from the memory of that chill as he walked. His hand trembled, and he tightened his grip on the sword. The cold was fading, but another thought was dominating his mind.

I'm running out of time. I have to get stronger!