“Ladies, ladies, didn't the church tell you about making sure the South Swell’s get our cut if you’re going around our turf?” The slim man said. I tapped on Sofia’s shoulder to stand up, she was kneeling from healing a child, before I stepped forward.

  “Well you already have your cut seeing as we weren’t taking payment,” I said, facing the entourage.

  The slim man tsked at me. “Don’t play cute with me. A silver dolve per person or there’ll be other ways for you to pay.” They were getting closer to us. The crowd meanwhile was moving away, but not far enough not to watch. Annoyed murmurs rippled as they backed away.

  “A silver? That’s rather high don’t you think?”

  “Pah! You shouldn’t’ve been healing filth then.” The slim man chuckled a bit. “Look girly, I get you pious types aren’t too bright, but if I have to teach you a lesson about going where you don’t belong, so be it.”

  The man whose arm we healed looked over to me, his face souring a bit. “I’ll give him the coin, I don’t have much, but you two take care. You did good by us.”

  “Don’t bother,” I whispered back before projecting my voice. “A silver per person? Well if that’s the price…” Reaching into my pocket, the bald burly man was stepping closer for the supposed coin. Their group was maybe twenty feet away from Sofia and I. I opened my hand to reveal a rock. A split second later I sent the rock flying towards the bald burly man, landing squarely in the middle of his chest as he stumbled back.

  “Grah!” The man groaned, as I grabbed Sofia’s arm. We started running.

  “Cut them!” I heard the slim man yelling. I glanced back to see both of the slim man’s goons were on our heels. Fuck! I had hoped the one rock would’ve been enough.

  We turned a few corners. I kept an ear out. Their footsteps were growing louder. They were catching up to us. I pulled another rock as I turned to face them. Pinching it between my fingers, I held it as threateningly as I could. The two men were a bit weary. Especially the bald one I hit previously.

  “We could just call this even and part ways?” I said, buying time to take note of the alley. Running wasn’t an option when they were faster. The alley was too narrow for the two of them to come at us at once. For the most part it was littered with trash. Sections of the buildings around us seemed weak and unsteady, but I wasn’t about to destroy someone’s house unless I was really desperate. The two of them both had their daggers drawn.

  “Ha! Maybe after we gut you,” said the bald man.

  “Well, if that’s how we’re playing it.” I lifted up my left hand with the rock in it above my head. Their eyes followed, waiting to charge after the shot. Only instead I sent my magic into some loose wood from the second story of the building. It wasn’t weight bearing… hopefully. It flew down hitting the bald man I hit before. Blood was coming from his head, I broke through his Aura. He was dazed but still on his feet. As the bald man staggered his partner charged forward. I launched the rock from my hand. Despite his size and the narrowness of the alley he dodged it.

  He was quickly on me. I tried to dodge back as the brown-haired man thrust his dagger into my stomach. I felt a dull piercing pain in my gut, yet the dagger only lodged itself a few inches into my stomach. Not as deep as it should've normally been given the force it was delivered with. The pain was there but dulled as well.

  “Hahah, so this is how Aura feels? It’s better than I thought,” I maniacally cackled out. I coated my hand in electricity, delivering a punch to his head.

  “[Radiant Flame]!” Sofia chanted behind me. The harsh light burned at the man who stabbed me. He was smouldering from the lightning and the light. Though he likely had his own Aura protecting him. The now smouldering man pulled the dagger out and stabbed me again. I could feel it more this time, the pain much sharper. I grabbed at the dagger cutting my hand. It was still partially lodged in me. I gave him a kick. It was enough combined with everything else for him to lose his grip on the dagger. We each tumbled backwards.

  “Fuck!” I screamed, as I tripped on some trash. The fall lodged the dagger deeper in my gut.

  The bald man charged in now while his companion recovered. He brought the blade down at me with a slash as I threw up my left arm to block. Whatever Aura I had was depleted and it cut into my flesh hitting the bone. I yelled out in pain again.

  “[Radiant Flame]!” Sofia chanted again. Seeing the spell used on his friend the bald man avoided the searing light. However, it gave me space to hurriedly get back on my feet and put some distance between us and them. I pulled the dagger from my gut with my right hand. Blood and other fluids gushed out. At least I had a weapon, and two spells left in me. Aside from Sofia, who hadn’t been touched, none of us were looking great. The smoldering man, whose dagger I took, pulled out a shorter knife.

  The two men looked at each other before both charging at us. The smouldering man taking the lead.

  “[Lesser Healing]!” Sofia chanted quickly with her hand on my shoulder. The wounds on my arm and stomach were closing, but not entirely. I used one of my last two spells to add extra kinetic energy into the smouldering man’s leg as he ran. It was enough to trip him up, but the bald man swerved past his falling comrade and was on me. I managed to dodge his initial thrust then parry the blade with my dagger. My left hand was digging in my pocket for a rock. He went for a left hook that sent me to the ground. He loomed over me, dagger at the ready. I freed my left hand from my pocket and shot the rock at him. It shot into his upper neck with a cracking sound as he fell over onto me.

  I hesitated for a moment after. There was a strange energizing sense of warmth that seemed to flow from his corpse into me. It was warm and almost filling like a hot meal. What the fuck was that.

  “You fucking killed Lemmy!” The smouldering man yelled. Reigniting my focus. His face red with rage as he charged at me. I pushed the corpse off me and started to get back onto my feet. He discarded his knife and went in for a tackle while I was still trying to get up. I wasn’t even back onto my feet before I was smashed onto the ground again. He pinned me to the ground. He could've killed me if he kept the dagger but he had other plans.

  “Sofia help!” I pleaded. He was pelting me with punch after punch while I was struggling to grapple his arms. The body I was granted by this world was strong enough that I was at least somewhat able to partially contest him, but I hadn’t exactly kept up my fitness the last two and a half months.

  “Grahh!” He cried out several hits later. I saw Sofia trembling as she stabbed him in the back with the dead man's dagger. I tried gripping his arm, but he broke free from my grip as he hit Sofia. Sent her flying to the ground. I grabbed for the dagger I dropped when I was tackled. Him facing Sofia was enough of an opening for me. As he turned back to me I thrust the dagger into his chest. It was enough. He fell over and the morbid warmth flowed into me again.

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  Everything hurts, but I had enough adrenaline to keep me going. I pushed the second dead man off me. I staggered to my feet and went over to Sofia who was on her knees rubbing her cheek where she was hit wide eyed. “Are you ok?” I asked.

  “I… umm I’m fine. I’m mostly surprised. I’m used to being hit harder than that. What about you?” She asked. It took me a moment to process what she said, but my brain wasn’t able to unpack that, not right now. Instead, I looked down to see I was covered in three people’s blood.

  “Not great, but let’s get going. We can’t handle any more trouble.” I said. I grabbed their daggers and coin purses before giving one of the daggers to Sofia as we ran off.

  We quickly left the slums and kept going until we reached a rocky shoreline. I held the still open gut wound closed, I’d need to trust in healing magic. Thankfully there didn’t seem to be anyone around, or close enough to care. I washed myself in the ocean, the salt water stinging my open wounds, before I joined Sofia who was sitting under the shade of a large rock.

  We sat in awkward silence. Everything had gone to shit. I don’t think I was wrong to have shot first. I didn’t have my money on me nor did I have anything close to the amount the slim man wanted. My right hand, which was free, ran over my face, swelling from the punches.

  “I-I’m sorry I can’t heal it, but I might have barely enough mana in like an hour or two.” Sofia said, glancing my way for a moment.

  “That’ll be good. Don’t apologize, it’s my own fault,” I said with a sigh. I’ll need to talk to Clair about what the fuck happened and why she suggested that place. The world felt like it was spinning around me so I laid down on the rough stone beach.

  “I-I’m sorry,” Sofia said again. I looked up to see she had her legs tucked up to her chest. Her arms around them.

  “Don’t be. It’s fine.” I rested my eyes. I couldn’t shake the feeling when those two died. I killed them and somehow it felt like I gained something from their deaths. What was it? Experience points or some stand in for them? That’s fucking grotesque and morbid. I never even used experience points in my games. The phantom, lingering, sensation disturbed me. Did Sofia feel that as well, was it common? I wasn’t sure if there was a good way to ask about it either. How the fuck do you ask about something like that in socially acceptable manor. Especially if it turned out not to be common. We sat together in silence for some time.

  “I-I knew you should’ve kept away from me.” Sofia said, breaking the silence between us.

  “I disagree.”

  “I’m incapable. You did everything while I watched.”

  “If you don’t like it then change it,” I grumbled, being a bit short. “Learn how to fight or something. I’m sure Glenn would teach you.” I wasn’t in the mood for talking and a short period of silence between us followed.

  Sofia wasn’t done, however. “Why do you care what happens to me?” She asked, her monotone voice returning. I just wanted to rot on the beach. I can’t deal with this now.

  “Fine. Do you want the nice answer or the honest answer?” I said, perhaps with more agitation leaking through than I intended as I picked myself up from the ground. The fucking hole in my gut stung.

  “I-I want to know why.” She responded unfazed.

  “So the honest answer,” I affirmed. Sofia avoided eye contact as I turned to face her. “I want you to look at me when I say this. I’m doing it for the same reason that anybody interacts with anyone else. You are useful to me and I want to use you. I hate it, I hate it so much but that’s just how it is.”

  “What?”

  “Everyone’s just using each other. That’s what all social interactions are. Everyone uses everyone else to get what they want. That’s just life. I’m at least honest about it. You, Glenn, Archie, and Ivili. You all are a close knit group. I’m just some outsider who muscled her way in because I’m ‘special’. Because I have something to offer. My revelation. I’m not dumb enough to think I can really be a part of whatever you all have going on. My novelty will run its course then you’ll all move on and leave without me. You’ve seen all the fights I’ve gotten in.” To make my point I showed her my arm and stomach both with a large fresh cut that would be new scars to add to the collection. “I need to use you to patch me up. Plus, if you don’t go, I’m not a fucking replacement for you… I can’t replace you. The rest of them care about you. If you join… then I think their mood would be good enough to bear my presence at least until my footing is firmly under me. Or at least that’s all I can hope for.”

  Sofia was silently watching my ranting and raving.

  “The best I can try to do is to try and make sure I leave people better off,” I decided to continue. “That’s why I want to help you get stronger. Help you get more spells. Help you to believe in yourself. So I don’t know. Maybe then you’ll have use for me for a longer time. Then by the time you do decide to ditch me or get sick of me, well, at least I can feel like maybe I did some good in your life and my own might actually mean something. I’m sorry, this is all… it’s just stupid of me to say.”

  I laid back down on the stony beach. This whole thing was so stupid. I’m used to being alone. I’m used to being left behind. When it happened I’ve always picked up and left going someplace else in the hope that something might be different. It never has been. I don’t know why. I want to know why. People don’t like me. They never have. I’m always some outsider looking in, wanting a connection I’ll never have. Or never will have again. Not since Lily left me. Not since my parents disowned me, not that they ever cared. I guess I wanted someone to complain to before the end. I wasn’t stupid, the deck was too stacked against me, in my own world no less.

  Silence returned between us for a while longer.

  “[Ritual Heal],” Sofia softly chanted, while placing a hand on my shoulder. I felt the swelling on my face subside, the gashes on my arm and gut close. She pulled out a handkerchief to wipe away some blood and maybe tears, likely sweat, from my face. “L-let’s go back to the cathedral. If you don’t plan on leaving me then I won’t plan on leaving you. If you can help me, then I’ll help you… We… We can use each other.”

  I gave a sigh at what seemed like an empty promise. Everyone leaves eventually.

  Our walk back to the church grounds progressed without incident. I did my best to hide the blood stains as we walked. It gave me time to collect myself if nothing else. I figured we would go back to our quarters, but Sofia was insistent on praying in the cathedral. In truth I was hesitant. I didn’t expect one outing to change much, but Sofia was intently insistent so there was little I felt like I could do.

  We entered and Sofia was dragging me towards the altar that laid before Corlyn’s statue. When we got closer I tried to stop to give her space to pray. Sofia looked back at me.

  “I don’t feel like I have a place here for this,” I said, scratching the back of my neck.

  “O-oh, okay.”

  I watched as she moved and knelt before the altar in prayer. I looked up at the statue. There was lightning and fire dancing around Corlyn’s figure. It wasn’t clear if her statue was floating with magic or if there was something mechanical keeping it in place. Corlyn, the most powerful sorceress to have ever lived; she was magic incarnate. A moment passed. Sofia returned, her head hung low. I needn't ask to know what hadn’t happened.

  “Can we try a stupid idea I have?” I asked her in a whisper.

  “W-what?”

  “Fionn told me about the faux vow you have with Stultvultan. Let’s pay the lizard a visit.”

  “You shouldn’t be so irreverent,” Sofia scolded. “Let alone in their own home.”

  “Maybe, once they do their jobs and help you I’ll pay them respect,” I lied. “Come on, it’s a stupid idea but I think it’s worth a shot.”

  We walked across the cathedral's main hall to Stultvultan’s statue and the altar before it. The priest there was some corvid-like bird person and seemed surprised we were here. None of that mattered though.

  “I’ll come with you this time,” I said. It was the least I could do considering I was subjecting her hopes to some farfetched idea that, more likely than not, would end in failure.

  “I-I think you being here will help. If nothing else but to show that…” Sofia stopped herself trying to find the right words, but could guess she was avoiding talking about my ‘revelation’. I respected her earnestness in keeping quiet about it. “That I’ll be following the path they laid out for you.”

  She knelt in prayer before the altar. I knelt next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. For no other reason then it somehow felt right. After a moment there was a freezing chill down my spine. Far more than some random shiver. I looked up at the statue of Stultvultan. The myriad of colored scales dancing in random patterns. Was he looking at me, at us?

  A moment later Sofia opened her eyes. There was a smile and tears starting to streak down the side.

  “Thank you!” She said, pulling me into a hug.

  “Your prayers were answered?” I asked, knowing the answer.

  “Yes.”

  I looked up at the statue. One question on my mind: why you?

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