Valorie glared at me, “What’s the point? You are just going to keep cheating with you overpowered disciple so you can assert your control?”

“You think I am overpowered?” Spine asked. His grin was approaching a shit-eating curve.

“You’re only overpowered because a high scale player saw an opportunity in giving you some scraps and now you are paying him back by stomping on us. You’re a sell out,” Valorie said.

“Hey, I resemble that remark!” Spine shouted.

“Don’t you mean resent?” I asked him.

“That too,” Spine agreed. He scowled back at Valorie.

I turned to the mystic troopers, “This isn’t about my ego.”

“Are you seriously trying to turn this around on us?” Valorie demanded.

“If the shoe fits.” I said. “What do you bring to the war effort?”

“We can fight!” Gisele said.

“I have over 35,000 soldiers. Do you really think you five are the thing that is going to tip the scales? Do you know siege craft?” I demanded

“No,” Gisele admitted, not looking at me.

“How about infiltration? Can you circumvent hardened defenses?” I pointed my question at Tobias.

“Well, no but-” he tried.

“Exfiltration? Can you bust civilians out of bondaged and get them out of a war zone?” I wasn’t giving them room. Valorie and I gazed at each other.

“No,” Valorie sighed.

Just when I thought this was put to bed Sunit spoke up, “I could take them under my wing.”

I nearly shouted profanities. Instead I asked him, “The current goblin battle plan doesn’t really factor you in. What do you currently plan to do.”

Sunit smiled. “My current plan unless asked to do otherwise is to hang back through the initiation of the conflict. Break through the weakest defense I can see, and then fight my way toward the captives. They will likely be concentrated in the lower levels. From there I plan to release as many as I can and lead them to safety through the tunnels in the Dark.”

I could feel the warmth of hope blooming in the kids behind me.

I glanced over at Zarina. From the look in her eye, she knew what I was about to do. I felt bad, but it needed to be done…

All Processes Stopped.

The telltale thrum of time ceasing its moment filled my heart with dread.

“You know kid, you are starting to really fuck yourself over,” Wilson said behind me.

I didn’t turn around. I almost said something snotty.

“Starting?” Grace asked. “This Spawn has almost systematically chosen to limit its power and control. I assume it is defective.”

“You two are working together now?” I asked turning around to survey them.

“We have never, not been in a collaborative team,” Grace explained. Somehow her near emotionless deadpan sagged with sarcasm.

“One big happy family,” WIlson agreed. He was gazing at Grace with a vulpine leer.

“Yeah I still don’t like you two agreeing,” I looked back and forth between them, “What is this about?”

“For the sake of the greater narrative, we would like you to have the Mystic Troopers travel with you.” Grace said.

“And if I don’t?” I demanded. This felt like a trap.

“Then, long term you set yourself up for a catastrophic failure. A likely Cancelation level event.” Grace explained. She stared into my eyes. She didn’t like me, but she did not want Cancelation.

“Alright I will bite, Cancelation?” I turned to Wilson.

“What it says on the tin,” Wilson said. I didn’t like him being serious, “The Audience tends not to like someone winning flat out. It’s boring. They tune out, and then we have to pack up and start over somewhere else. It’s a pain. Also you don’t want that. It will go bad for the earth. Think Chicxulub and you are pretty close, but there will be more screaming.”

“Extinction? You are seriously going to say, me denying some young adults their misadventure is going to kill the planet?” This was a threat.

“I am shocked you understood the reference.” Grace condescended. “The point still stands. You have made too many mistakes already. You need to take them with you. You will also need to keep them close.”

“Both you and the Titan said I was going to win at the tower already,” I pointed out.

Grace sighed, “Talk to him.”

“There are all sorts of types of winning, kid.” Wilson said. Some of that easy sleaze he normally had crept into his voice as he talked. “You are currently on track for a pyrrhic to tragic sort of victory. That is just for the tower mind you. You have hamstrung your side consistently. And just like Mrs. Emotional has pointed out, what you are doing is going to get this whole thing canceled.”

“How?” I asked.

WIlson grinned maliciously. “I can’t tell you.” he turned to look at Grace and said, “That would be metagaming.”

They were sniping at each other again. Good.

“Alright, how am I fucking up?” I demanded.

“The most recent ‘big dumb, what is wrong with you?’ moment was giving away the axes,” Wilson explained.

“And before that?” I pressed.

“Creating the axes,” Grace chipped in.

“Okay this is bullshit.” I prepared to become uncooperative.

Wilson went very still, “You could have upgraded the structures you made for tanking all the way up to Divine Scale. Four moveable Divine Scale walls meant to stop damage. Could you think of any use for that in the immediate future?”

Goddammit. They could be telling the truth.

Okay that is not true. They weren’t obviously lying. That did not mean they were telling the truth. Everything was a manipulation. So the trick became asking, ‘to what end?’ and finding the truth there. Neither of them had my best interest at heart. I could probably assume my safety was mostly guaranteed. So, who were they trying to kill?

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“Okay, who are you trying to get killed?” I asked. I figured the direct approach was best. I doubted they rehearsed this.

It actually worked. Grace and Wilson spoke at the same time. Neither willing to give the other any due respect.

“De Leon,” Grace answered.

“A lot of people you don’t care about… Dammit,” WIlson frowned at Grace.

Shit this was serious.

“Let me get this straight. You want me to bring these kids, so that Angelica dies?” I watched Wilson very carefully.

The narrator hitch on a winning smile, “I make no guarantee that leaving the sailor shitheads behind won’t still result in your main squeeze biting the big one.”

“I am going to need you two to cut the shit,” I told them. “Who dies if I take the Mystic Trooper with me?”

“We cannot tell you that,” Grace said.

When I just watched her impassively Wilson added, “You don’t want us messing with things behind the scenes. I don’t either, but that does leave the door open for surprises.”

“Yet, you can confirm me leaving them behind will result in an extinction level event?” I pressed.

“Let me flip this around. You leave twenty toddlers alone in a room with a loaded six-shooter. Can you tell me which one is getting shot? No. Can you tell me that gun is going off? “ Wilson waited for my answer.

“Answer my question,” I said flatly.

“We do not answer to you,” Grace said. “We are wasting time. If he isn’t going to cooperate-”

“I am not allowing a retcon,” Wilson argued, “No do overs.”

“That’s reckless,” Grace said.

“No. It’s art,” Wilson replied. He stared at me and smiled.

“Give me a rough breakdown,” I insisted.

“We don’t make deals with players,” Grace said, something in her almost emotionless voice hinted at danger.

“Yeah you can go ahead and make whatever threats you want,” Wilson said. He immediately took several large steps away from her.

Grace watched him, but didn’t speak.

“I am not going to make decisions without discussing this with Angelica and Celeste,” I said, trying to circumvent their power struggle.

“No,” both said at the same time.

Damn!

“Then I am going to out your interference,” I threatened.

Wilson grinned at Grace again.

“What?” I asked.

“Wilson’s long term pitch to deal with you is to turn your story into a full Metanarrative. He claims the Audience while likely initially annoyed at the introduction of us Narrators, would eventually see our work as just one more aspect of the story.” Grace shook her head as she eye me balefully.

“And that it takes away the leverage I have by discussing meta-knowedge is just a happy accident?” I asked.

“Actually yeah,” Wilson said. He briefly laughed to himself, “It is mostly to just fuck with Grace and her crew. Brandon will not do well with the Audience watching.” he checked his watch. “Make a smart choice kid.”

“What choice?” I demanded.

Grace seized the moment, “Work with me. We can adjust the past slightly to prevent a Cancelation. There are billions of people in this world. You negligence could kill them all.”

“Or break the fourth wall one too many times” Wilson offered. His grin widened impossibly, “Think about it, no rush.”

Time will resume in…

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

Something spun me back to my original position. Time surged forward again.

That isn’t a bad counter-move.

I took a deep breath. Grace wasn’t on my side. Wilson didn’t want me dead, but I sure as hell didn’t want to live under his boot. In the end this was about trust. I sure as hell wasn’t going to invest any in the Narrators.

Everyone was watching me, “Tell me Sunit, will having five others you need to look after make things easier or harder for you?”

Sunit frowned at me. After a long pause and some consideration he answered honestly, “It would be a burden.”

I turned to the others, “Are you willing to risk other people's lives and the possibility of their freedom to get what you want?”

This question required a team huddle. They were debating and we were expected to pretend we couldn’t hear what they were saying.

Spine poked me, “Why’d your mood shift that hard?”

“My mood didn’t shift,” I said bluntly.

Spine eyed me flatly, “...okay.” he did not believe me. He wasn’t going to pry… directly.

“Please let me feel unknowable and mysterious,” I muttered.

Spine punched my leg, “I got you.”

“Thanks,” I said. He meant it, and that mattered.

The huddle broke. They didn’t look happy. Valorie spoke for everyone, “Fine you win, Doug.”

“This isn’t about winning and losing. This is about doing what we can. I am not saying you are weak or useless, or any bullshit like that. I am just saying this isn’t your moment.” That didn’t hit right I could tell.

“And you get to decide that?” Valorie raised and eyebrow.

“No. hear me out, after this is done, Angelica…” I paused. I assumed she would head back to the Fantasy coast, but Grace’s threat stopped me cold. “I can make arrangements with the Chimera Soldier. They can give you a ride to the Technacoast.”

Zarina hated that. Her face shifted from relieved to near venomous. “I don’t think that is a good Idea.”

“We can talk this is done.” I said, trying to head off the argument.

“You just expect us to wait?” Gisele demanded.

I shrugged, “Without Sunit this place needs protectors. Minorou needs help with the gardens. Someone needs to guide Madigan’s followers. Hell, I would take it as a personal favor if you checked up on Seth. He needs more friends in his life.”

Bob seemed to consider that, “This isn’t just you stalling is it?”

“No,” I answered immediately. “I know it is hard but take the time, try to grow.”

Conversation sort of died after that. Sunit went over to the goblin camp. Spine and I made our way to Seth. I needed to tell him about the journal. That was clearly time sensitive, and it’s not like I could communicate with him across vast distances. I wasn’t stalling with Angelica. That's silly. I am offended you would even think that.

I may have been stalling with Celeste.

Don’t judge me…

Okay sure that is the point when a normal person would provide a defense for their actions. It would be really nice to have a defense for my actions. I was just scared. Mostly that I would mess things up, or that I wasn’t actually ready for a relationship, or that I was getting ahead of myself with the idea of a relationship.

The obnoxious thing was admitting I had those feelings, and being aware of them didn’t magically make them go away. Which was bullshit.

“She took it?” Seth asked. The luminous smile that washed over his face.

“Yes, but-” I didn’t want to give him too much hope.

“I know,” he assured me. “I know, but there is hope.”

I didn’t want to kill his mood, “Let’s try and teach you another step of Unrelenting Glacier.”

Seth grinned at me and slowly he was encased in ice as he stood ready.

“Okay I am impressed,” I admitted. I did the thing with my hand. You know the ‘come here’ thing all the cool kung fu types can do.

Honestly Seth was better trained, more control, and a smarter fighter than me. That said I was faster, stronger, and way tougher. I slid past his strike and cracked his candy shell quickly. The thing is Seth was watching me as I was working to not get kicked in the dick. It didn’t take long for him to start dodging my counters and following up himself.

It was a constant ebb and flow and the crushing milling of ice. We were basically honing each other. Raw power showing experience what can be done, and experienced knowledge showing a better way.

Eventually Seth was nearing exhaustion but he smiled, “I … I got… it”

You should probably sit down,” Spine said. He tried to move one of the stone chairs and it barely budged.

Seth walked over and sat down. He laughed to himself for a moment. Giddy with the power he was gaining. After a moment Seth shifted into a more serious posture, “Honestly though what are you staying away from?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said a little to quickly

Realization hit Spine. He pointed at me and shouted, “You have girl trouble!”

“Angelica is a woman,” I argued.

“That is a bigger problem,” Spine admitted.

“You two seemed fine when I saw you.” Seth said.

“We weren’t like official then,” I explained.I hated how I sounded as said that.

“I know what to do,” Seth said.

“Really?” I asked.

Seth nodded, “Yes. I am going to tell you what my grandfather told me. He was a truly wise man.” he gestured for me to lean closer. When I did, he smacked me across the face hard, “Just sack up and be happy with her.”

“Yeah, listen to Pappy Cohen,” Spine added.

Seth rounded on him, “He would tell you to stop treating girls as a problem to solve, and treat them like people to know and love.”

Spine gazed at him in awe, “Really, Pappy Cohen is wise.”

Seth considered and hedge, “He might have just yelled some shit about, ‘who let a goblin in the house?’”

Spine looked less impressed, “I get it.”