~~~Lee~~~

Lee stirred when he felt a flash of fear coming from somewhere nearby. Then the fear faded and turned into pure contentment. That was better. Lee breathed out with his own contented sigh as he rolled over to go back to sleep... and stopped when he bumped against something soft and warm. Someone else was in his bed. His bed...

His breath caught and his eyes snapped open as he lurched upright. He was home! How was he home!? He couldn't be here! Wait... how was he alive? That monster! Where was the monster!? It might have followed him!

It was dark in his room, but he calmed slightly as he took in the whole picture of what Mana Mind was showing him, including inside himself. That reminded him of what had happened. Or rather, what he had done to himself at the end there. When he'd turned himself into a shadow.

Sort of.

The rune on his skeleton had changed. Now it had an extra little flourish that looked an awful lot like the rune he'd used to hide Three in the shadows. His anti-light rune.

He'd created it to help Three blend in with the shadows, and it had worked! Three was still standing. Mostly.

At the time, he'd never even considered sticking it on himself, much less that it would work. Though he didn't think it had been much of a conscious choice at the end there. More of a last-ditch effort born from a desperate and instinctive desire to survive. And it had worked... he was still alive. Somehow.

It made no sense. He couldn't believe it had worked. Nothing could hide from what he'd felt in there. Even with this rune. Even with Three hiding him. It was impossible.

Yet here he was. Alive and well, if slightly... changed. Except he was pretty sure the change wasn't permanent. Or it didn't have to be. The rune was making him a shadow, and he could change it back. Probably?

He studied both the rune and the effect it was having on his body, and the more he looked at it, the more certain he was that he could change it back. Because he wasn't technically a shadow. Not like the monsters he'd seen in that place. To change into something like that would probably require a full racial evolution, and his runes couldn't do that. Not that he knew anyway.

Instead, it was only cosmetic. The rune only made him look... faded. He looked like the ambient background of the shadow realm. Like a rock or any other piece of the landscape. Uninteresting and unimportant. Not food. Not a target. It was a cloaking device. Useful if he ever wanted to go... back...

Lee shuddered as his mind and body both violently objected to the thought of ever going back there. Of ever facing that terrible presence again.

He clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms, and fought back against the terror. It had been worth it, and he would do it again in a heartbeat if he had to! The proof was right outside his apartment, in the courtyard.

Alejandro. Bradley. Martin. Everyone. They were all out there. They were all alive! What wouldn't he do to keep them that way?

He knew the answer. He would do anything to protect his family. Even go back into the shadows. An eventuality that was almost guaranteed. He'd hidden Three's copy over there, but they would need to check on it. Maybe even help rebuild it. Though he could always send Z to check first...

It looked like they were having dinner in the courtyard, going by the gathered people and the angle of the sun...

Lee frowned as he looked around his pitch-black room. There was no light. But he could see. Though not very well, and everything looked gray, but he could see. Not only that, but he could feel the light outside like a physical presence pressing in on his room.

As for how he knew where the sun was in here? That was easy. Mana Mind let him practically see the light-rays from the sun, including where they didn't shine. Like behind a wall. Because wherever the sun shone, it filled the air with a type of light mana, or maybe solar mana? It was definitely different from other types of light.

Of course, that was how he knew normally. Right now, he could feel the sun like a roaring furnace just out of sight. He wasn't even sure if the slightly brighter and warmer sensation coming from that direction was actually real or only his imagination. Either way, he was pretty sure his current shadowy state was responsible for the sensation.

Lee memorized the new addition to his skeletal rune, even copying it into his soul storage, then pushed his will against it and told it to become what it used to be.

It obeyed, and his room darkened into complete opacity.

He'd practiced changing his runes plenty of times, but never on this one. Not since he'd first changed it to survive getting nuked, also an instinctive reaction, and then earned a couple of traits for his trouble. Runic Resonance and Runic Augmentation, the latter of which evolved into Rune Harmonics. Both traits had definitely helped him today. Along with his Indomitable trait.

The strangest and most interesting part of the shadow rune was that it hadn't confined itself solely to his bones, like before. It had changed his whole body. Was it really as simple as wanting it to work that way? Pinching himself confirmed that it definitely wasn’t making his flesh as strong as his bones, so it wasn’t quite that simple. Maybe it only worked with some effects?

Could he make himself invisible? Not that he had a rune for that yet, but his anti-light rune felt like a good place to start. Or a time rune to make himself faster? Anti-grav rune to fly? If he could ever figure out a healing rune... whatever he came up with, the possibilities felt nearly limitless, and not only for himself.

Before he got too excited, Lee tested switching it back and watched the light reappear in his room even as a slight chill permeated his flesh. The light was definitely coming from the wall facing the sun, but also from every wall, though to a lesser extent. It was even coming from the woman sleeping in his bed...

He kept the rune in shadow mode as he climbed gently and slowly from the bed, trying not to wake her. He failed and froze in place when she turned over with a mumble, "Not yet... five more minutes."

Lee waited with his feet on the floor until she'd settled back down, then slowly stood...

"You!" Amy's hand shot out and latched onto his wrist, though he had no idea how she could see him in this darkness. "I should punch you!"

Lee smiled down at her. "If you must."

"You left me behind!" she growled.

"I had to. You couldn't have helped me against... that." Lee shivered and forced himself to smile at her. "If it's any consolation, I'm pretty sure you saved my life." He had a lot of notifications about bleeding, organ failures, and the like. He'd taken a beating even before that thing showed up. "I'm guessing you got to Saira?"

"Why do you think I'm not punching you?" she grumbled with her face still half-buried in the pillow. Her soul held a bone-deep weariness, but it wasn't enough to drown out the terror as she whispered, "You still shouldn't have left me... You don't know what it's like... I'll tell you anything you want about my class." Her grip tightened around his wrist as she struggled upright in the bed, and her voice was pleading. "Just don't leave me behind again! Please!"

Lee sat back down. "You don't have to tell me anything. I already know I can count on you to the ends of the earth. I knew that when I sent you back. Honestly, I didn't think I would survive, but I knew you were my only chance of doing so. Besides, there was nothing you could have done against that monster."

"You don't know that!" She knew he was right. She just didn't want to admit it. "I could have fought! I could have done... something!"

She was being stubborn, and Lee had a sudden terrible insight into why her soul felt so rundown. "You felt it, didn't you?"

He didn't need to clarify what he was talking about. Her grip on his arm tightened to a painful degree, and he both saw and felt the tremor pass through her as she squeezed her eyes shut.

"I'm sorry, Amy. You shouldn't have had to..."

Her eyes snapped open, locked on and boring into his own with fire in her gaze. "I don't care about that! I don't care what we have to face! I don't care if it hurts! So long as I can face it beside you!" The fire in her eyes faded back into weariness. "Just don't leave me waiting helplessly to find out if... don't leave me to die alone."

"Amy." He'd never come right out and asked, but he needed to know. "Will you die if I do?" He assumed there must be some limit, a cutoff where...

She nodded.

"Why!?" Lee couldn't help the disbelief in his voice. "Why do you care about me that much? Why would you ever take that class?"

He knew it wasn't anything romantic, and he couldn't imagine any other reason someone would tie themselves so tightly to another person. Well, he would do it for Stanley. Hell, they were already linked like that. He might even do the same for Alejandro or Maria... but Amy didn't even know him that well. They weren't family. At least they weren’t before. She was for goddamn sure a part of his family now.

Amy finally broke eye contact and looked away. "I... don't make me answer that. I don't think I can explain."

"Of course you don't have to." Lee didn't know what else to say. What the hell do you say to someone in this situation!? He wanted to thank her again for saving his life, but now it just felt weird. Thank you for being willing to sacrifice your life for me? He almost wanted to hug her... but didn’t.

She said nothing either, but eventually let go of his wrist and scooted around him to put her feet on the floor while obviously still exhausted.

"Go back to bed," Lee said, standing up to make room. "I know you're tired, and don't worry, I won't go anywhere." It wasn't like he could, anyway. Because Three's rune only reached slightly past his apartment, though it looked like it was growing. Slowly. "Unless you want the room to yourself... my apartment still looks solid."

"Don't!" Amy said, almost lunging for him. "You'll burn out there. Your body's all gray ever since you came back, and..."

He'd suspected as much, but it was nice to have it confirmed. At least without getting burned to find out. "It's fine. I made myself a little shadowy to hide... over there, but I can change it back."

"Oh." She stared longingly down at the bed before looking back at him. "I can't believe how tired I still am after all that healing... and how the hell are you not tired!?"

Lee shrugged. "I'm special. Now go to sleep. I'll sit on the floor over here."

Amy laid down reluctantly but pulled a communication disc from under her pillow as she did. "He's awake," was all she said before shoving it back. "Lee, wait for them to come inside. We don't know if the airlock works or not, but the bedroom door does."

She was asleep before Alejandro reached the... airlock, which was impressive since it took him all of two seconds after hearing her message. The airlock was exactly what it sounded like—sort of, basically an extra door outside his original door—Bradley's work, no doubt.

Lee switched his rune back before going into the light, only then remembering that Amy had seemed to have no trouble seeing him despite the blackness. She must have a skill for it. Dark vision? Then Alejandro was there, sweeping him up into an enthusiastic embrace. Lee hugged him back, equally grateful that the man was alive and okay.

It was a nice hug. Alejandro definitely had a knack for them. Though maybe it was simply that he put everything into his hugs while holding nothing back.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Alejandro let him go eventually, and Lee asked why they'd all moved back in already. Three was a shell of its former self, and they had no idea if that nightmare might be able to cross over...

"Z told us that even the C-grade couldn't cross," Alejandro said, surprisingly calm about everything.

"C-grade?"

"The one who was holding us until you..."

"No way! That wasn’t a C-grade! No, it was too powerful for that... It had to be at least a B-grade... right?"

Alejandro shook his head. "Z was adamant. Said it was high or peak C-grade. Though he thinks the second one that Amy told us about might be a B-grade... a low B-grade."

It was impossible. If the system was letting through D-grades now, how the hell would they survive once it started sending C-grades? Never mind if they made it to C-grade. That so-called B-grade had gobbled the C-grade like it was nothing. "Where's Z?"

"Hunting," Alejandro said. "Ever since you got back. He refused to rest, even though I'm pretty sure he's as wiped out as Bradley." Lee could see Bradley downstairs, asleep with his head on a table.

"What happened to them, and how are you holding up?" Alejandro's soul felt fine—not even tired. Nothing like Bradley's soul when the man suddenly jerked awake downstairs in a fit of pure terror. The fear eased when Mar took his hand, but Lee could feel a shadow of it still lurking inside him.

"Saira used them as healing batteries while keeping Amy alive, but Z also said the monster was doing something to Bradley before you showed up... the rest of us just blacked out as soon as it appeared. Something to do with grade suppression." Alejandro shivered and glanced toward the door. "I only got a flash before things went dark... but it was bad. Bradley hasn't said anything, and I didn't want to pry... not yet. Still, he's strong. I think he'll bounce back after some rest."

Torture? That monster had wanted him. Had it been torturing Bradley to find him? Lee watched Bradley in his mind's eye as the man's relentlessly scanning but exhausted gaze kept straying back to Mar beside him. Mar hadn't been in the shadows... but it felt like Bradley was terrified of something happening to her.

Whatever had happened, his exhaustion couldn't be helping his mental state. "Can we give him a vacation or something? What if we send him to a smaller fort before the timer ends?"

He didn't like the idea of having their newest D-grade away for the next invasion, but Bradley had earned it. He'd been a true champion of this place for so long, never mind whatever torture he'd endured in that dark place. A dark copy of Three. Yeah, it might do him a lot of good to get away from this place.

"I floated the idea, and he insisted on staying. Though, maybe now that you're awake..." Alejandro held Lee's gaze. "How are you holding up? From what little I felt, and after what Amy said she felt from the B-grade... well, I can't imagine you're doing much better."

It was Lee's turn to shiver as he recalled the experience, but... "I'm okay. It wasn't... that bad."

Sure, it had sucked, but he was an E-grade and had gone up against a C-grade and a B-grade. Allegedly. It should have been worse, shouldn't it? If all the other E-grades, including Alejandro, had been knocked out by a C-grade... how had he remained conscious in front of a B-grade? Well, as long as he had anyway.

He had some theories about that. Three had helped, shielding him from the outside as much as it shielded the outside from him. Stanley had also played a role, for sure. His rage... Lee could still feel it echoing back from his twin, though it was far less intense now. I'm sorry, Stanley. You shouldn't have had to help me. I fucked up.

Then there was Caffeine. He knew the pug had protected their soul somehow, but thinking back on it now, he could have sworn he'd also heard Caffeine growling at the B-grade. Had it been some kind of shadow beast that Caffeine could scare off as the Beast Lord? Was that even possible? Caffeine definitely kicked some ass, but he couldn't send a B-grade packing. Could he? Or had he played a role in hiding Lee from it?

That would explain why it hadn't found and eaten him—impossible as it was. Either way, he'd helped. I'm sorry for you too, Caff. Please look after Stan for me. I'll make it up to you. I swear!

Alejandro was still staring at him and clearly not believing a word he'd said as he tried to pull Lee into another hug. Lee fought him off. "Seriously, I'm fine."

He was, too, and he only felt better by the minute as he drank in the sight of everyone he cared about going about their lives instead of grieving what could have been a terrible loss.

Gabriel was barely eating his food as he struggled to squeeze another rune onto the plate beside him that was already chock full of runes. Meanwhile, Anita was already finished and trying unsuccessfully to sneak away from her mother under the long tables. She found Maria waiting for her at the end, and Lee could easily imagine the sound of her scream to match the wild glee in her soul as she took off in the other direction.

Maria pursued, and while her soul couldn't compare to the more carefree soul of a child, it was mostly positive. She wasn't mourning the loss of her husband. Her kids were happy. They weren't asking her when Daddy would come home.

So yes, Lee was perfectly fine. You don't know it yet, Stanley, but our pain was worth it. These people are your family, too.

Saira was out there too, under her tree, and Lee couldn't miss how much smaller the tree was now compared to the day before. A sacrifice she'd made to keep him alive. Still, that wasn't what got most of his attention. Instead, it was the newborn girl cradled in Saira's arms. She was the origin of the fear he'd felt when he'd first woken up, as she'd finally come out into the world. Of course, that fear was long gone. Now she slept, content in her mother's arms, while Saira's soul radiated with pure and absolute love for her child.

The anubians were out there with her, but no one else... He was glad to see she wasn't alone, though Trak obviously hadn't heard that he was awake, and Lee was silently grateful for the reprieve. Outwardly, he asked, "Did you know Saira had her baby?"

Alejandro's eyes went wide, and he immediately fumbled through a handful of rune discs on his belt before activating one. "Saira! Lee said... are you okay? Um, can I get you anything?"

Lee saw her laugh as she touched her own disc. "Thank you, but I am well. Though I take it, Lee is awake then? Is he there?"

Alejandro handed over the disc, clearly eager to escape from his awkward start.

"Congratulations," Lee said, smiling. "What’s her name?"

Saira's smile widened as she stared down at her sleeping baby. "Aasha. Her name is Aasha."

"I can't wait to meet her," Lee said, surprised to find that he actually meant it after the words left his mouth. He'd never been a fan of babies before, or children, for that matter. Then another thought occurred to him. "Though you should probably keep her away from me and my soul."

"Nonsense!" Saira exclaimed while standing up and immediately heading his way. "No, she will know you, and she will know that you are a good and kind man."

He didn't even try to argue with the woman, and Alejandro was no help either. He just grinned at Lee as he backed toward the door. "I'll let you two have some alone... I mean, I should go finish dinner!"

"Bring me some," Lee said, not rising to the bait. "Some for Amy and Saira, too." Then he sat down on the couch and looked through his notifications, starting with the most obvious.

Source is burning your body and mind: -100 All Base Attributes per second.(+80 from Source Nexus)

-100% Health per second from Source

+100% Health per second from Source Regeneration

It had only taken one second, so not that bad. A very low price for their survival. Honestly, if they could figure out a way to channel only tiny amounts of source like that... it might be a viable weapon. A very viable one. If expensive.

He skipped past a bunch of notifications about bleeding and injuries.

Debuff Resisted: [Soul Suppression]

That must have been the C-grade... sadly, it hadn’t lasted.

Debuff Partially Resisted: [Soul Suppression]

Debuff Gained: [Soul Intrusion]

That one sucked, but the next one made up for it.

Debuff Removed: [Soul Intrusion]

Lee smiled as he remembered that thing screaming. Good boy, Caff.

Debuff Gained: [Soul Suppression]

The B-grade. It felt like there should be something more, but that was it. The entire hellish experience of realizing how utterly small and insignificant he truly was in this universe, all summed up with a single debuff.

He had more notifications about his injuries, all of which slowly healed one after the other, all without any climbing hunger debuffs. It had to be from Amy. It looked like she couldn’t send healing back to him, but it also looked like she was sharing something. Energy, at least. Whatever it was, it had kept him from dying. Then his mana burn debuff expired shortly after he gained a heal from Maria. Which told him that he’d spent somewhere close to an hour in that place...

Lee smiled bittersweetly as he glanced toward his room. For all that he didn’t understand her reasons, Amy was a goddamned hero.

His smile grew as he felt Saira's meeting with Mar and Bradley downstairs. He couldn't help it. Saira's soul was so happy. She was literally bubbling over with joy. It infected Mar and even lifted Bradley's mood as the man gazed upon the precious little bundle in her mother's arms.

Unfortunately, Bradley's good mood didn't last, shifting back toward fear... but also resolve.

Lee understood. It was a wonderful day for Saira. For all of them. A new life had just begun, and all of their worlds would be brighter for Aasha's presence. But that same joy was also something that would be all the more bitter if it was lost. Lee felt the weight of it settling onto his own shoulders, another life hanging in the balance of his choices and mistakes, and from what he could tell, Bradley was feeling that same weight.

He was too young to be feeling that way. He should be worried about sneaking in alone time with his girlfriend while hiding from her mom and not about how many near-literal gods he would need to defeat to protect his girlfriend and her family.

I'm going to make damn sure you take a vacation! Lee swore to Bradley as they all headed his way together, Trak studiously and deliberately trailing behind. Maybe he could send all of them... except Saira might not want to leave her tree. Either way, he'd make sure Bradley went with Mar. They could use some alone time, and he highly doubted Saira would object. She liked Bradley. She liked seeing him with her daughter, and hell, she might even secretly be hoping for a grandkid and could help him set up the vacation.

On that note, Lee realized he had no idea how old either Bradley or Mar were. Though he was pretty sure they had to be over eighteen at least. Hadn't Bradley been going to college?

Lee's anticipatory smile grew as Saira entered the airlock, the new solid-stone door sliding shut behind her. He deliberately pushed his concerns and fears away, thinking only pleasant thoughts. It wasn’t difficult, and hopefully it would make his soul easier to bear.

At the last minute, he told Three not to open the door if his soul might leak beyond. The door opened immediately and without fanfare, revealing a radiant Saira and a wide-eyed Aasha staring at him from her arms.

“This is Lee,” Saira said, holding Aasha so the girl could see him. “You’ll like him.”

Lee smiled, and she didn’t cry like he had feared she might; she only watched curiously and contentedly as more people cycled into the room.

On closer examination, he noticed a similar weariness inside Saira that matched Bradley and Amy, but her joy drowned it out. She looked healthy. Perfectly healthy, as if she hadn’t even been pregnant only this afternoon. The benefits of magical healing?

Alejandro returned with food, as well as his family, and others followed behind. People who had been there in the shadows. Some of them only wanted to confirm that it was over. That they were safe. While others wanted to thank Lee for getting them out...

He reassured them as best he could without any blatant lies, since they would know if he lied, and accepted the thanks while returning them in kind. They were all heroes. They had stepped into a nightmare for him. It was the least he could do to bring them back out.

His apartment got crowded and noisy, and even Jeremy stopped in, but Lee didn’t care. It was wonderful. Amy didn’t feel the same, and she came out of his room clearly ready to holler at everyone to shut up. Lee met her in the hall with a smile and a rune plate of silence.

Bradley was the opposite, and he finally knocked out on the couch despite the racket. Or maybe because of it. He slept peacefully, for the most part, and Mar stayed by his side to hold him when he stirred.

Lee told everyone about his new rune discovery and asked for ideas. Of course, Gabriel was the only one completely unsurprised by the revelation, and he immediately started drawing new variations once Lee showed him the rune.

Z returned later, as things were winding down and children were being taken to bed. He staggered through the door, a beaten and bloody mess. Half of his weapon and armor runes were depleted, with the other half not far behind as he collapsed to one knee in front of Lee and held out a core.

“Found one. In the... mountains.” Then he face-planted into the floor, unconscious. He was driven; Lee had to give him that, though this seemed a little excessive. It wasn’t like he’d ordered the alien to push himself so hard. His soul had felt almost... desperate? Still, Lee took the core while Saira made no move to heal the alien.

[Skill Shard](D-grade)

Titan Stride (Rare)

Walk like a Titan.

Allows the user to adjust a portion of their weight when moving...

It was a D-grade core... where had Z gotten it from? Had he gotten himself caught in an invasion somewhere, or were D-grades appearing naturally?

Lee handed it to Saira without hesitation. Sure, he should probably give it to Amy if not use it himself, but Saira was closer to the next grade and could protect her daughter better than he could at this point. Plus, he wasn’t sure if he wanted Amy to be that much stronger than him—especially not if he needed to send her away again.

Saira’s eyes flashed when she saw what it was, and Lee thought she might absorb it then and there. She didn’t. Instead, she passed it to Alejandro before begrudgingly sending a small vine threading between Z’s armor plates, carrying a trickle of healing energy with it.

Alejandro agreed with Lee’s decision to give it to Saira, and Lee finally realized that her baby was E-grade. How did that work? Did it mean she was stronger than a peak F-grade adult? Was she stronger than Gabriel and Anita? He should probably find out... but later.

Despite everything that had happened that day, including the news of a potential looming D-grade advancement coming to Earth, it was a good dinner, and Lee smiled through most of it. The bright smiles, the warm laughter. It was the perfect capstone to an otherwise dark day.

There was only one lingering shadow throughout. Lee could feel his twin far away, and Stanley wasn’t enjoying a wonderful night with friends and family. He felt alone and afraid. Take care of him, Caff. There must be some good people over there. Help him find them.