~~~Stanley~~~

Stanley found himself with a new and terrible problem as he hovered above the alleged E-grade lair.

He was afraid. Terrified.

It was bad enough that he didn't even send his mind down into the lair. He wasn't even close enough to do so...

Stanley hadn't forgotten that blinding power he'd used to kill the skeleton. It was still inside him. He could... almost feel it. He knew it was there... just out of reach. He wanted to reach for it... take it up again... become a god and wipe this world clean.

Except he couldn't. He'd tried in that instant when he thought Nate was E-grade. He couldn't touch the power... and it was a good thing. Because it would cost him everything he had left.

He'd escaped death by a hair's breadth last night. Saved by Caffeine sacrificing himself. Again.

Now visions of zombies and giant skeletons assaulted his mind. Memories of his flesh ripping... his bones breaking... soul tearing...

Worse memories followed those. Caffeine bleeding... Caffeine unconscious... wounded. Corrupted. Dying.

His hands were shaking...

"I'm not fucking scared of you!" Stanley screamed and threw the metal spike.

You have attacked a Lair structure. All Lair residents notified.

He fled.

Stanley hauled himself across the sky fast enough that the wind screamed in his ears. He only stopped when a glowing blue wall appeared to block his path. Then he dropped to the earth and rested his head against the barrier as tears blurred his vision.

The gentle tongue lapping away his tears with a sad whine only made him cry harder. "I'm... sorry... Caff! I'm... worthless... I'm... too weak!"

Caffeine didn't respond, only kept licking.

Stanley stayed there until he eventually stopped crying. His hands stopped shaking, and he just sat there with his head on the stupid wall while it kept flashing that same fucking message into his brain.

[Dungeon Perimeter] No Dungeon Entities may cross until All Invaders or Defenders are Defeated.

"Damn it..." He lifted his head and looked toward the feeling of Lee in the distance... he'd flown right towards him.

Lee felt happy. Stanley liked that... and hated him for being happy while he felt so terrible... Then hated himself for feeling that way...

"Be happy, Lee. I want you to be happy..."

Caffeine squeezed his head between Stanley's face and the wall, licking furiously. "You too, Caff. Please be happy... even though you're stuck with me..."

He sat there for a little longer until he realized he was wasting time. Caffeine's time. He couldn't bear to go back and face the lair... but Caffeine could still have fun. He could still be happy. For now.

So Stanley flew to Nate's base. He wasn't sure if he cared at the moment if Nate might try to kill him. I should have given Caff all the cores. But there would be food... and friends for Caffeine. That was good. Caffeine should have better people than him to hang out with, better friends than the one he was stuck with.

It was getting dark when he arrived, but there were plenty of magical lights everywhere. Stanley came in from directly overhead, not wanting to deal with the patrolling guards he could see on the perimeter. He even kept Soul Sight off, since apparently people could feel it.

His attempt proved successful. Or no one cared. Either way, he made it inside.

Stanley let Caffeine run free, content to follow his lead... nose... whatever. Caffeine would find food, at least.

He did.

Not that it was hard to find. The huge room looked like a restaurant with tables everywhere... or a cafeteria. Bill and Jerry were there, cooking behind their own grills next to open windows.

Stanley ignored all the people as he trudged behind Caffeine on his own two feet. He didn't enjoy walking...

"Hi, mister. Good food's over... holy shit! Is that you, Stanley? What the fuck happened?" Jerry said in a rush, slowing his movements over the three little grills in front of him.

"I..." Stanley didn't know what to say. "I almost died. Again."

"Yeah, shit's fucked, isn't it? Take whatever you want. Nate's order. Though you look fucked. He made a big announcement earlier and told everyone you killed one of the bastards. I just didn't know what he was talking about when he said not to mess with the old guy..."

"Are you..." Stanley asked hesitantly. "Are you happy here?"

"I'm alive," Jerry said. "I'm protected. At least until something too strong shows up and the guards can't deal with it. You?"

"I'm... scared."

Jerry sighed, then threw his tongs into the wall. "I'm scared as shit too! I heard enough about your fight with the zombies to know we're fucked! Then that shit last night!? How are we supposed to survive this? I'm a damn cook in a world full of monsters that won't even notice when they step on me!"

Stanley levitated the whole bin of meat into his lap as he sat in the air. Walking was shit. Then he started tossing it piece by piece to the suddenly very attentive pug.

"You should eat Bill's food," Jerry said after picking up his tongs from the floor. He frowned at the broken and dented thing. "Stupid, bullshit system..."

He was right. Stanley grabbed the much smaller pile from Bill's table and fed that to Caffeine instead. He ate the shitty stuff himself. "Are you going to kill him for his skills?"

Jerry froze in his effort to make the broken tongs stick back together and looked up. So he had thought about it... Then he tossed the tongs away with another sigh. "No, I won't kill Bill for his damn skills." His eyes darted toward the other man. "Though, if you just so happen to have another nightmare and go on a killing spree..."

"Um, guys?" Bill said nervously and well within earshot.

"Gods Bill, I'm just kidding!" Jerry said, using his fingers to flip the meat. "Nate would kill me. Like he did that other guy..."

"That's... the only reason you won't... kill me!?"

Jerry laughed. "You're too easy. I might not share Nate's delusions about humanity, but I'm smart enough not to shoot us all in the foot for pure greed. Our chance to survive is bad enough already."

"That doesn't sound much better," Bill grumbled. "How about not killing me because it would be wrong?"

"Would you kill me if it meant a better chance at saving your wife? Your kids? Or would that be wrong?"

"I..." Bill stopped talking.

Stanley kept snatching up each piece of food as soon as Bill finished cooking it, much to the annoyance of the growing group of people waiting. He met their hostile gazes and deliberately fed all of it to Caffeine.

Nate must have indeed told people about him, because none of them said anything. They wanted to, though.

It was nice that he could see Caffeine's status. It let him know when the food buff maxed out. He switched the pug back to Jerry's food and ate the good stuff himself. It didn't taste any better. All the food tasted like dirt in his mouth... Stanley ate anyway. He had to be stronger... had to protect Caffeine.

He tried throwing a piece of each to see if Caffeine had a preference. Of course, Caffeine snatched both out of the air in a gray blur that only shook the building a little.

That display of power wiped some of the hostility from the watching eyes. Replacing it with fear. Good.

Stanley turned Soul Sight back on and looked over the people in the room with him.

Nothing really stood out other than one man whose soul had a sensation of cold in it. Stanley considered asking if he had ice magic... but he just didn't care. None of them would meet his gaze, either.

Bill's soul, unsurprisingly, gave him the scent of food. Bread specifically. Then Stanley looked back at Jerry.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

"Jesus!" Jerry yelled while flinching away. His soul had a... flavor. Savory.

"Do you feel something?"

"Christ, of course I do! Your eyes turned into black pits, and you look like a demon!"

"Oh, that's all?"

"That's... should I feel something in particular?"

Stanley shook his head, canceling the skill. "It doesn't matter."

He focused on Caffeine and watched his bright eyes track each piece of food with rapt attention. Watched the little tailwags when each new piece appeared from the bin and flew at him. He was adorable... and gray now because of Stanley's weakness... old, like him. But he looked happy... he was happy, right? His tail was wagging...

The meat ran out after Caffeine ate a few times his own body weight. Stanley eyed the other people eating in the room. Well, he eyed their plates... Then left them alone when Caffeine started sniffing at the air and followed whatever he was smelling out of the room at a trot.

Stanley followed him to another large room on the other side of the building. He could hear music... so Arthur was probably in there. He didn't want to see the man; he didn't want to see the blame in his eyes like last time they'd met...

It wasn't Stanley's fault Samantha was dead... she made her own choice... and died for it. For him... to save his life... Because I was too weak.

Loud barking rattled the walls, and Stanley rushed into the room. Oh, it's him. The giant pit bull, Barbie, was barking at Caffeine while the pug crouched in front of him, his chin nearly on the floor as he play-bowed, tail wagging madly.

Caffeine jumped up, spun rapidly in place a few times, and bowed again with a little return bark. A yip.

Barbie barked again, no playfulness in the sound, and with his entire body shivering. All the while, a little girl tried to comfort him from out of sight behind his bulky form.

Stanley looked at the dogs with Soul Sight. Caffeine still showed nothing to the skill, but the pit bull glowed with... ferocity. The red glow of his soul shone very fiercely, but it also smelled fierce, felt fierce. Fiercely, violently, protective.

It was the single strongest sensation he'd seen from any soul, and Stanley knew without a doubt that the dog would go down fighting to his last breath to protect the little girl behind him. Then he'd probably get back up and keep fighting.

He also knew it was terrified of both him and Caffeine. Its head swiveling back and forth as it braced for a deadly showdown it knew it couldn't win...

Stanley flew away. He was the problem. Caffeine would win him over. Play with him, Caff. He's a good boy, too. He deserves to be happy.

Which he never would be if the monsters killed his human... if a zombie ripped her apart while he watched helplessly... powerlessly.

Stanley slid down the wall in the hallway until he was sitting on the floor. Is this what you wanted, Samantha? You saved her... saved them all. Saved me...

A glowing blood red spear drifted into his shaking hands, and he twisted it around over and over. I can't save them from what's out there... I'm not strong enough... I can't even protect Caffeine...

He sat in the dim hallway until the angry barking faded into more happy, playful noises. Until the floor vibrated beneath him with the impact of sprinting dogs playing chase. Stanley smiled at the sound, and his tears dripped onto the spear while trembling fingers squeezed and twisted uselessly against the wood. Caffeine is going to die in this place... and I'll have to watch helplessly because I'm too fucking weak!

"You're not alone."

Stanley surged into the air, spear coming up to throw at...

Nate sat in the hallway, leaning against the opposite wall a safe distance away. If any distance was truly... "I know what you're feeling."

"Useless fucking skill!," Stanley cursed, cancelling Soul Sight and glaring at the other man.

"It's not your skill," Nate said with no visible reaction to the spear poised to impale him. "I know what you're feeling because it's what I've felt every day since this started."

He looked past Stanley toward the open doorway, where the sounds of laughter emerged. Adult's and children's laughter, along with happy yips and barks of playing dogs.

"All these people. All these lives. All of them are riding on my shoulders. If I make the wrong choice, they will all die. Even if I make the right choice, they could still die."

"We're doomed," Stanley said, sinking back to the floor, hugging his knees and burying his face in them. "I'm too weak."

"You're not alone."

"We're all too weak."

Caffeine would die. Lee would die. Everyone would die...

"You haven't died yet, and not only because you were indeed strong enough, but because you didn't fight alone. Caffeine fights with you. Samantha fought with you. I will..."

"Now she's dead!" Stanley spat. He wanted to scream at the man, but he didn't want to ruin Caffeine's play time. Caffeine deserved to be happy... while he still could.

"I can't save everyone," Nate said in the same calm voice. "I've accepted that. Even though it hurts. Even though each loss is worse than the last. I will keep fighting until we win or I can no longer fight."

Nate stood up, and Stanley could feel him approaching. He didn't react. Just get it over with... Nate stopped in front of him. His hand reached down... and hovered there, palm up. Inviting.

"Come, Stanley. You're missing the best part. The reason we fight. The reason we suffer and keep coming back for more. Come see why it's all worth it."

Stanley didn't take his hand, but did reluctantly float up off the floor and stand up, if only to stop Nate from looming over him.

Nate was smiling slightly when he dropped his proffered hand and tilted his head toward the doorway. He said nothing else, just walked through and left Stanley alone in the hallway.

Stanley followed.

A giant Caffeine was sprinting laps around the room while an equally giant pit bull chased behind him. Three little kids sat on the backs of each dog, all laughing, squealing, and swaying as they struggled to stay on the running dogs.

Arthur was playing something lively, and people were laughing along with the children.

There were a lot of smiles in the room... until the pit bull came near Stanley and abruptly veered away, sending all three of his passengers flying.

Stanley caught them without thinking about it... and set them back atop the frozen Barbie while they screamed in what he thought was excitement.

Caffeine came back to smack Stanley's face with his giant tongue, then he spun on Barbie and dropped into another bow, this one shallow enough that he only almost threw the kids off. He barked and took off again in the opposite direction.

Barbie stood still, staring at Stanley, until Caffeine finished another circuit and barked as he raced past.

The pit bull took up the chase.

Stanley stayed where he was and watched them play. He could see the little hands holding fistfuls of his fur as Caffeine ran, but the pug didn't seem to mind at all. The kids switched out riders as they inevitably fell off, with even some of the older kids getting in on the action.

He only realized Zeke was there when the kid lit up one rider who fell a little too hard. Eve stood right behind him, and her eyes snapped away when Stanley met her gaze. He didn't linger on her... because there was a giant behind them.

The giant met his gaze briefly before continuing his nonstop scan of the room.

"This is what I fight for," Nate finally said beside him. "This is what it's all about."

Only mean, snarky comments came to his mind, so Stanley said nothing. Instead, he tried to stay in the moment and just enjoy Caffeine's clear happiness. To be glad that Barbie wasn't terrified of him anymore. Good Boys.

But apparently Nate wanted to keep talking. "This system wants us to be monsters, to fight for our lives. I am willing to be the monster if that's what it takes to preserve this."

He had big dreams. Foolish dreams... but seeing Caffeine play... hearing the carefree laughter...

"It's a sacrifice for sure. To be on the front lines. To be the one taking the hits. Not everyone will see it. Not everyone will understand or appreciate the costs of their safety. No one here knows what you've been through… and I don't want them to know. I want them to laugh and smile. They don't need to know how bad it is out there. They don't need to be afraid."

"They should be scared."

"Maybe, but I will fight my way through hell and back to make sure those kids keep smiling. Not only me, either. There are others here willing to get their hands dirty, to wade through rivers of blood if that is what it takes. You are not alone. There are others fighting for the same cause."

Stanley stayed silent.

"So let me help you. Let us help. You've done so much for everyone here, even if you didn't mean to or want to. You made all of this possible. So let us return the favor. You've held the line by yourself when you should have had an army at your back. Let us fight with you."

What would it be like to have someone like Nate helping him... to have anyone... to not face the monsters alone? To not have to watch Caffeine suffer when he fell short...

Stanley missed Lee more than ever at this moment... but he was glad Lee wasn't here. He didn't want his brother to suffer this nightmare with him. Of course, Lee wasn't much safer outside this dungeon either… because Stanley had left him.

To have allies... people that weren't trying to stab him in the back... Stanley wanted that. He wanted what Nate was offering. He wanted the laughter and smiles... but he knew too much for that. He knew how screwed they were...

He'd gotten a taste of it when Samantha and the others had helped him, had protected him and Caffeine when they needed it most, and he hadn't appreciated them until it was too late. Hadn't truly trusted Samantha... until it was too late. Until she gave her life to save him.

Stanley wanted to feel... safe. Even if it was an illusion. He wanted Caffeine to be safe.

"Okay."

Nate kept his hands clasped behind his back but bumped Stanley's shoulder with his own. "It's not over yet. We're going to win this. I have a feeling."

~~~Caffeine~~~

Caffeine played the best game of chase with his new best friend! It was the best because Dearest Human was smelling less like sadness and frightened!

Dearest Human smelled like very sad and very afraid before, but now the Not Dearest Human beside him must have said some good magic words.

Magic words always made Caffeine happy. Like Treat! Or Breakfast! Or Good Boy! Oh, maybe the Good Human was telling Dearest Human he was a Good Boy!

Caffeine told Dearest Human he was the very goodest of boys every day, but it didn’t always comfort him. “Good Boy!” Caffeine said it again as he chased past, just in case.

It worked! Dearest Human smelled a little more like happiness!

All the Little Humans on his back made so many happiness and excited noises as he chased New Best Friend. It was the best to carry new friends! Almost as good as when Dearest Human carried him for cuddle naps!

He played for a long time. Until the little humans smelled too much like tired. There were so many of them. So many new friends. It was the best play ever!

Then he had the best cuddle nap with Dearest Human!

Though he did have to comfort Dearest Human a few times during the napping. But that was fine. He was good at comfort!