A Different Circumstance - Paranoia

	Sam caressed his scraped face with a sore hand. Each arm had been crudely slashed once, the side of his torso stung, and his nicotine withdrawal still remained. As far as he could see, Kris was unharmed. Nobody would question someone like him being hurt, but there would be hell to pay if a single blemish appeared on her skin.

	Sam got a closer look at the architecture of the town he found himself in. There were four buildings, two on each side of a blueish-gray cobblestone street. The buildings were just as impossibly black as the dark sky above, yet gave off a strange, blue glow. Shaped like twisted, malformed arrows, the buildings seemed to defy the laws of gravity and were surprisingly stable despite their bizarre architecture.

	Each building had a bright blue door, several windows of varying size and shape, and a sign that signified its purpose. Light blue shrubs lined each black wall, with similarly warped structures sprouting from the blackness like mushrooms. Blue torches attached to wall sconces provided light, yet they hardly seemed necessary as the very ground itself seemed to create light. Sam felt more like he was in some sort of children’s laser tag course than an underground cave.

	The dragon gave the air a quick sniff. He didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, but the air was musty and stale. It smelled as if it had been undisturbed for decades.

	Trying his best to stay strong, Sam walked down the cobblestone street in front of him and approached the nearest arrow shaped building to his left. A sign displaying a tied up sack was plastered above the door. He grabbed and jiggled the doorknob, but it wouldn’t budge. “Hey, this one’s locked!” he called out.

	Sam looked to his right to see Kris attempting and failing to open another door, this time with a question mark on its sign. She gave Sam a quick glance and shrugged. The dragon huffed, rolling his eyes. He knocked on the door.

	“Helloooo, anyone in there!?” he shouted. After several seconds of waiting, he concluded that nobody was home. The dragon advanced towards the next building. Its sign displayed an odd, curved sword with a blue blade that almost looked like a flame. He attempted to open it, only to find it too was locked.

	“What the hell? Is this place just abandoned?” he asked. Kris tried to open the door to what looked like an inn, only to be greeted by another stubborn doorknob that refused to twist. Having failed to open any of the doors, the two classmates rendezvoused in the middle of the road.

	At the end of the road lay what seemed to be a mockup of a city one might see in a stage play, along with a staircase leading up to a castle that emanated a soft blue light against a dark horizon. A black geyser poured from somewhere near the center of said castle, spewing thick, viscous darkness endlessly into the void above.

	The duo stopped to gaze at the sight. It looked so impossible, yet so mesmerizing. The technology, or possibly the revived magic used to create such a structure must have been incredibly advanced and powerful. The gears within Sam’s mind turned as he thought of the possible applications of such a thing. Possibly a form of space travel, or-

	“Are- er, are you okay?” Kris asked, her voice breaking from underuse. Sam whipped his head around, surprised to hear her speak for what felt like the first time in ages.

	“W-What?” he asked.

“You got hurt pretty bad back there... Are you alright?” Kris elaborated.

Sam took a deep breath and sighed. “I’m fine. It’s nothing I can’t handle,” he replied. He looked at Kris and saw her staring at him with a look of worry.

	“I’m fine!” he snapped, looking back towards the castle ahead and crossing his arms. He winced at the sudden pain he felt from touching his scraped claws to his arms.

	“...You shouldn’t worry about me. I can take it. I’m not some pussy that cries over nothing. I’ve felt worse than this, so this isn’t shit. Let’s just keep moving so we can get the hell out of here.” He then walked up the stairs, leaving Kris behind.

	At the top of the stairs, Sam was met with a platform constructed from black brickwork. Sam looked around, but then focused his attention behind him as Kris caught up. They shared another moment of awkward eye contact before Sam continued.

	Just as he was about to continue exploring, something appeared from the shadows. “Welcome, h-”

	Before the voice could finish, Sam jolted and nearly fell back down the stairs.

	“Oh my goodness, are you alright?” A dark figure spoke with a child-like voice. “P-Please, do not be alarmed! I am not your enemy!... U-Um, please come forward, b-both of you...”

	To Sam, the figure’s words sounded rehearsed and nearly robotic. Its voice was muffled, though still comprehensible. The shadowy figure approached, revealing a cloaked figure.

	Sam and Kris looked at each other once more before they both slowly walked forwards together. The cloaked figure stood in front of the entrance to the castle, lined with black windows and a wooden door. Emblazoned on the ground before the door was a Delta Rune.

	“Welcome. I am the prince of this kingdom... The Kingdom of Darkness,” the figure stated. Sam squinted his eyes. He wanted to call out what he thought was some sort of prank, but he kept his mouth shut.

	“Kris, Samuel... There is a le-”

	“Woah, how the hell do you know our names!? Who the hell are you!?” Sam barked. The moment he heard names being dropped by a person he didn’t know in an unfamiliar and hostile environment forced him to go on the defensive.

	“...P-Please let me finish, I-I’m getting to that...” the figure pleaded.

	“You better get to it quick, because I have absolutely no reason to trust you,” Sam spat.

	Sam felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked to see Kris slowly shaking her head. “What?” he snapped. She nudged her head towards the hooded figure with a frown on her face. “...Ugh, fine, keep talking I guess,” he relented. His patience was running thin.

	“T-Thank you... Now... *ahem*,” the figure continued, “There is a legend in this land. A legend that one day, two Heroes of Light will arrive, and fulfill the ancient prophecy, foretold by time and space,” the figure explained.

	Sam raised an eyebrow. He didn’t believe a single word of any of this. This was a trap, and this so-called prince would hurt him somehow. He could practically smell betrayal in the air.

	“Please, heroes... Listen to my tale...” the figure requested. Sam narrowed his eyes, skeptical of the entire situation. The figure looked uneasy and even intimidated by him, which was the one thing bringing him any comfort.

	Kris nodded her head, then sat down next to her classmate. “Yeah, sure, I wanna hear every word of this...” Sam sneered. He sat down as well, and tried his best to have a modicum of patience.

	“Very well then...”

	The hooded figure began his tale; a prophecy involving the duality between light and darkness and the fragile balance between them. He says that if this balance were to be disrupted, an apocalyptic calamity would occur and bring about the end of the world. The dark fountain atop the castle gives the world of darkness form, keeping the balance steady.

	However, the figure stated that a new fountain has been erected on the horizon, threatening to tip the scales between light and dark and usher in the apocalypse. Only three heroes are capable of closing it, according to the figure. These three heroes are said to be a human, a monster, and the heir to the dark throne. The figure concluded his tale, saying that closing the dark fountain may be Kris and Sam’s only way home.

...

	“Kris, Samuel... Thank you for listening to my long tale. I deeply believe you two are the heroes of the legend. That despite whatever enemies you may face... You two have the courage to save the world,” the figure continued, “Delta Warriors! Please, won’t you accept your destiny...?”

	Sam sat, dumbfounded. He was confused, yet oddly offended. How was some lower class fuckup supposed to save the world? This was too much for anyone to ask of him. “...You serious? Not only do I not believe you, but even if you’re not straight up lying to me, how the fuck do you expect us to do something like that? I don’t even know how to DRIVE!”

	“W-Wait...” the figure said, trying to form a sentence that could break through Sam’s stubbornness.

	“I’m not some grand hero, I’m just some dude who lives in the middle of buttfuck-nowhere! Find someone else,” Sam finished before getting back up and dusting himself off.

	“B-But Samuel... without you, the... the world will-” the figure tried to warn, but Sam had other plans.

	“Will what? Continue like it always has? The world doesn’t give a damn about any of us. How would anything we do make any sort of difference?” Sam asked.

	The figure stood silent, seemingly defeated. “C’mon, Kris, let’s-” He stopped when he saw the expression on Kris’s face. She looked half mortified, half disappointed. Sam barely stifled a laugh and furrowed his brow. “Don’t tell me... you actually believe this crap? Come on, I’m not gonna sit through hours of questioning if you go missing so let’s go alre-”

	Sam was interrupted by a high pitched cackle that threatened to split his ear drums. Wide-eyed, Sam darted his head around, trying to find the source of the noise. Kris followed his gaze with her own but had no better luck..

	The sound of tires screeching filled the air and reverberated off the cold stone surrounding them. Suddenly, something rapidly approached the hooded figure from the right and crashed into him, sending him tumbling and crashing into a nearby wall.

	“Holy shit!” Sam let out. As the dust settled, the entity that had assaulted the hooded figure came into view. Sitting atop a bicycle, equipped with flaming training wheels, rode a strange, yet oddly adorable creature. It flashed a goofy smile, complete with a tongue sticking out from the side.

	A blue spade symbol was embroidered to the chest of its black shirt. It wore two light blue rain boots, and its dark blue, shoulder-length hair fluttered in a wind that had begun to blow. It wore an even darker blue and triangular crown that pointed straight to the sky. It was difficult to determine where its skin began and its clothes ended, and its eyes were obscured by an impossibly dark shadow. As far as Kris or Sam could tell, this thing was female.

	“Hee hee hee heeee!” she cackled, “The heroes are already running away, and they didn’t even know I w-” she said before Sam began to raise his voice.

	“Hey, hey! I recognize you, you little shit! You almost killed us just a few minutes ago!” Sam interrupted, clenching his still sore fists and adopting an aggressive stance.

	“Oh HOH! Not only are the heroes running away, but one of them is a biiiiig POTTY MOUTH! Mommy’s gonna be so proud when I make sketty meat outta you two!” She howled, pedalling in place while holding down on the bike’s brakes.

	“Who are you and what the hell do you want?” Sam asked.

	“I’m...!” she began before quickly doing two donuts in place, kicking up dust and throwing a peace sign into the air. “The bad guy!” Sam was impressed by the sheer agility and balance required for such a trick, but he didn’t dare say anything.

	“So, you dummies wanna close our dark fountain, huh!?” she accused.

	“Uh-” Sam stammered before the creature continued.

	“And, I dunno, try and save the world from eternal darkness too, HUH!?” she continued.

	Sam rested his face in his palm and sighed heavily. “I want to go home!” he growled impatiently.

	“Hee hee! Exactly! The only way home is through our dark fountain, dummy! Your only way home is east! And I, Lancella, will stop you RIGHT in your tracks before you even THINK about even BEING there! Hee hee hee!” she giggled.

	Sam glanced over at Kris. She seemed defiant and ready for a fight. Kris returned the look, but did not seem to be made confident by Sam’s irritation and aggression. Sam ripped his eyes away from Kris and stared Lancella down.

	“And I got a flawless two-step plan to ensure it!” Lancella squealed. “Step one. I trash you. Step two. You lose!”

	“...Huh, not sure if that’s what I’d call ‘flawless’, kid,’ Sam growled, baring his fangs at her.

	“Woo, scaaaary! Hee hee hee! Let the games begin!” Lancella cackled before riding back into a defensive position, ready for Sam and Kris to make their move. As if on instinct, the image of a weapon appeared in Sam’s mind; a wooden beam with several short rows of metal spikes near its end and a small blue flame burning at the tip. As far as Sam could tell, it was a war club.

	Sam felt something materialize in his hand as he unwillingly swung his arm forward. To his surprise, the same weapon that appeared in his mind was in his grasp. It was heavy, but quite sturdy. “Holy crap, I have a spiked club? That’s awesome!” he exclaimed. He looked to his left and saw Kris wielding a large, heavy sword that required both of her arms to properly hold.

	Tired of waiting for her opponents to attack, Lancella made the first move. “Stop right there, dummies! My bike is fueled by victory!” She cried as she rapidly accelerated towards the lightner duo, honking her bike’s horn along the way. Sam and Kris both darted out of the way, both nearly being run over.

	Sam and Kris regrouped. The dragon strongly considered rushing forwards and knocking this admittedly dangerous nuisance, but her youthful appearance made him hesitate. “Hey, uh, Kris?” He leaned over and whispered to his companion. “I’m all for self defense, but are we really gonna beat the shit out of a little girl?”

	Kris intensely glared at Sam, which surprised him. They were clearly not on the same page. “What? Don’t look at me like that!” he blurted out, “This little shit tried to kill us earlier, and now she’s doing it again! If you have a better idea, then say so!”

	“Pooootty mooouuuuth!” Lancella teased from the other side of the battlefield. She stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry at her foes in an attempt to taunt them into attacking..

	“Just... give us a sec, we’ll deal with you in a minute...!” Sam weakly retorted.

	Kris placed her hand on her chin. After a few moments, she cleared her throat. “Uh… I can’t tell the difference between your clothes and your body...?” She sounded awkward and unsure of herself; Sam was left wondering what the point of her words had been.

	Lancella seemed calmed by Kris’s words, taking a less aggressive stance on her bike and relaxing her grip on the handles. “Oh! You make my feelings do wheelies! Sweet wheelies!” She cheered before continuing her assault.

	Once again Sam and Kris were forced to roll to the side in order to evade the oncoming bike. “Damn you’re fast!” Sam growled. He swung his weapon wildly, aiming low in an attempt to damage the bike itself. He missed every single time as Lancella laughed at him.

	Lancella began to circle around the lightners, haphazardly throwing spades at them while kicking up clouds of dust that clouded their eyes and forced them to cough when it intruded into their airways. In the midst of all this, an exposed part of Kris’ shoulder was sliced by one of the errant magical projectiles while two more nicked Sam’s cheek and shoulder respectively.

	Kris winced but stayed silent through the pain. Sam,however, had no such discipline.“Ow! Damn it!’ He grunted, angry both at being wounded and his inability to retaliate. Lancella screeched to a halt as the dust began to settle once more. Once the air was clear, Sam was able to perceive his surroundings and notice that Kris was hurt; a red, viscous liquid seeped from the wound on her arm, a fact she seemed relatively unconcerned by.

	“Oh shit, are you alright?” Sam asked worriedly. Kris quickly nodded her head, but this did little to quell his anxiety. If Lancella wasn’t attacking them with everything she had after somehow being flattered, then he didn’t want to know how hard she would hit them if she was angry. He began to seriously reconsider his desire not to attack her outright.

	Kris cleared her throat again, trying to think of another compliment to potentially make Lancella stop. She took a deep breath and spoke again. “I uh... I like your... crown?” Her uncertain mumbling gave Sam the impression that she wasn’t particularly well versed in the art of flattery.

	Lancella frowned and hunched over on her bike. Her grip on the handles tightened. “Oh hoh! How insincere! Did you not know that I can mask my self esteem levels!?” she asked, beginning to pedal in place in preparation for another attack.

	“Hey, Kris!” He growled. “Maybe, JUST MAYBE, trying to compliment the little freak isn’t the best way to go about this!” Instead of getting ready to evade Lancella’s bike, Sam dug his heels into the ground, bent his knees, and held his weapon tight. He was going to end this charade his way whether Kris liked it or not.

	Lancella let go of the brakes and charged the duo down again, but while Kris was preparing to get out of the way, Sam remained unwaveringly in the path of the oncoming vehicle. His heart beat like a drum and every instinct screamed for him to move and spare himself what would no doubt be a painful collision. Despite the natural urging to lose this game of chicken, he remained steadfast, commiting wholly and utterly to his risky gamble.

	Kris took one look at Sam and immediately knew what would happen. Mere moments before a collision, she cried out. “Lancella, he’s gonna hit you!”

	Struck with realization, Lancella attempted to swerve away from Sam, but it was too late. Sam reared his weapon back and swung it hard.. A metallic clang echoed throughout the empty town as the club made contact with the bike.

	Lancella tumbled out of her seat, rolling across the ground as her bike clattered in the other direction. Opening eyes that he didn’t remember shutting, Sam observed the aftermath. Kris was wide eyed and frozen in place while Lancella was slowly rising to her feet with trembling legs.

	Lancella slowly turned around and sniffled with a mournful frown on her face, clearly on the verge of bursting into tears. Guilt immediately began to build up and fester within Sam’s soul at seeing such a young girl in obvious distress. Before he could begin apologizing, Lancella ran past him.

	“My bike! My totally rad bike! You almost thrashed it!” She cried. The guilt within Sam faded as she picked up her mangled bike. She didn’t seem to be in pain, which was his main concern when he had first seen her rising from the ground.

	“O-Ok you punkaroos, this has been fun, but I gotta take my ride to the shop after you dented it, you big meanie! ” Lancella sniffled and got back on her bike. “I gotta get back home before dinner anyways...! S-Seeya, losers!” She exclaimed before riding away.

	There was silence. Sam stood, still tightly holding his club and bewildered at everything that just occured.The fact that Kris tried to compliment and even save someone who was actively trying to kill them both, that a little girl put up such a fierce fight, how she barely felt such a hard tumble, and how eerily silent everything was after the fact.

	Before either Sam or Kris could say a word about any of this to each other, the cloaked figure from before walked back into view. “Are you two ok...?” the figure asked. The club in Sam’s hands dematerialized as he took a deep breath.

	“Are WE ok? Lancella, or whatever the hell her name was, made you eat major shit back there. You need uh... what, like a back doctor or something after that?” Sam asked, surprised at how sturdy the figure was after such a brutal attack.

	“No no, I’m quite alright!” He insisted. “T-Thank you for caring, though...” Sam looked over at Kris. She looked concerned for the figure’s health, so her focus wasn’t on him for the time being. He had a feeling Kris was slowly growing to hate him even though he was only trying to act rationally.

	“Now, um... Allow me to properly introduce myself more properly, I’m-” the figure spoke again, but Sam cut them off. Their muffled voice was hard to hear, and it was beginning to grate on Sam’s nerves.

	“Dude, I can barely hear you under that hood! Could you take it off already?” He demanded.

	“U-Ummm, alright...” the figure replied anxiously. He pulled a small string that held the hood together and let it fall. As it made contact with the ground, it faded away into nothingness as if the very Earth itself devoured it.

	Standing before the lightners was a fuzzy, black creature with a small tuft of hair hanging over its nose. It wore a large red scarf that covered the majority of its face, a bright green and thick-rimmed pair of circular glasses, a robe with a black heart symbol stitched onto the chest, and a pointy hat with what appeared to be two small horns sticking out from its head.

	“Hello everyone. I’m Ralsei,” he spoke. His voice was much clearer this time, sounding childlike, yet vaguely masculine. He smiled at them, looking hopeful, enthusiastic, and nervous all in equal measure.

	“Kris, Samuel…” Ralsei continued, “It’s ever so wonderful to meet you!” Sam narrowed his eyes. His distrust stood strong, and he still refused to let his guard down.

	“I’m certain we’re going to become great friends, and I know that we can fulfill the prophecy and save the world!” Ralsei beamed with a bounce.

	Sam rolled his eyes and cleared his throat. “Best way to leave is East, right? I think we came from the west, so…”

	“Yep!” Ralsei replied, “That’s where we’ll head first!” Ralsei nearly walked past the lightners before coming to a startling realization and abruptly stopped in his tracks. “Oh my goodness, I’m so inconsiderate! Kris, Samuel, you’re both hurt!”

	“Yeah yeah, just check on Kris and make sure her arm doesn’t get infected or something. I’ll be fine,” Sam grumbled. He turned around and nearly went back down the stairs, but he stopped when he felt an overwhelming warmth in his chest. The sensation was far from unpleasant and was akin to the feeling of a hot bath.The pain in his sore claws and his several lacerations was washed away, leaving him feeling as good as new..

	“There you go!” Ralsei cheered, clapping his hands once in celebration. Sam spun around and looked at the neon green creature to see a soft, yellow glow fading from his hands. He took a look at Kris’s arm to see the red liquid that had leaked from her wound still there, but the wound itself was nowhere to be seen.

	“...What... What the fuck did you just do?” Sam asked, bewildered. He had never felt such a sensation before in his life. Healing wounds was normally a slow and tedious process that required patience and a tolerance for lasting discomfort. The only respite he was accustomed to was being numbed by ibuprofen, alcohol, or a combination of the two with no regard for potential consequences.

	“W-Well… I healed you! It’s such a wonderful spell, isn’t it?” Ralsei chirped with a wide smile, holding his hands that had yet to depart from each other to his chest. As Sam slowly comprehended what had just happened to him, Kris removed one of her gauntlets, spat at the blood on her arm, and rubbed it away before it could dry too quickly.

	She spotted something on the ground as she replaced her gauntlet. As she approached it, she recognized it as what looked to be standard United States dollars, but its coloration was a dark purple, with many of the symbols and much of the text being unrecognizable. She carefully picked them up from the ground and counted them as she walked back over towards Sam.

	Sam felt a tap on his shoulder as he was staring at his healed claws. He turned to see Kris holding the dark currency. “...The hell is that?” He asked.

	“I think it’s money. I just found it on the ground. I think Lancella dropped it,” she said, nonchalantly pocketing the money.

	“Hah, wow, you just straight up jack whatever shit you find lying around? I didn’t take you for a klepto, Kris!” Sam chuckled. He was about to say something else, but a worried gaze from Ralsei met his own. “...What?” He asked the darkner irritatedly.

	“Umm... Well, there’s some things I need to teach the both of you about how this world works, those ‘dark dollars’ being one of them. Also... um... Samuel? Could you... maybe... stop swearing so much? It’s making me a little uncomfortable...” he weakly mumbled.

	“Pff,” Sam scoffed. “Get used to it. I don’t give a damn if you like it or not, it’s just my vocabulary,” He wasn’t about to change how he spoke for someone he didn’t even know.

	Kris crossed her arms and gave a quiet, irritated groan. Sam growled, noticing yet another bit of resistance against him. No matter what he did, Kris always took issue with it and seemed to think of him as some sort of asshole.

	“Oh for- holy fuck, Kris, you just love sucking up to EVERYONE around here, huh? Let me remind you I’m the only person from Hometown here and you’re constantly acting like I’m your enemy. You don’t even know these people and you keep acting like they’re supposed to be your friends!” He hissed as he stomped down the stairs before Ralsei could mumble something in defense of Kris. “If you wanna ride everyone’s dick the moment you see them, fine, but don’t expect me to go along with it! So sorry for being such an asshole by giving a damn about myself and my OWN needs and wants when everyone is out to fucking murder me down here!”

	He stormed his way down the steps, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth. In the back of his mind he still remembered the potential consequences if Kris were to be seriously injured or even killed, so he still had a responsibility to help her regardless of what he wanted. It was an infuriating thought, but that didn’t make it any less valid.

	Just as he walked past the four locked buildings, he took a left towards a quiet alleyway with something vaguely resembling Ralsei standing in the corner. It couldn’t be him, because Sam was just talking to him mere moments ago. He summoned his war club again with a flick of the wrist and aggressively approached his target, expecting another fight. “Hey, you! Stay REAL fucking sti-...”

	After a quick glance, it was clear that what he was looking at was a dummy that was dressed to look like Ralsei. Sam let out a sharp breath and let his guard back down, but still clutched his weapon. He examined the dummy a bit more closely.

	It was surprisingly well made. A few of the seams were beginning to come apart, but it otherwise looked quite professional. It had a cartoony, closed-eyed smile snitched into its face but lacked the horns of the real thing.

	“Oh, Sam! That’s my-”

	“GAH!” Sam yelped, spinning around and swinging his club wildly with clenched eyes. After a moment of silence, he opened his eyes to see Kris and Ralsei staring at him from several feet away. He felt like an absolute fool and bashfully disarmed himself once again.

	“Don’t sneak up on people like that!” he barked, baring his fangs.

	“O-Oh, I’m so terribly sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you! M-My mistake...” Ralsei apologized with his head bowed. Kris seemed like she was about to burst into laughter but didn’t utter a single peep.

	Sam heavily sighed and rubbed the temple of his snout. “...You were saying, er... Ral...sie? Ralsie, right?”

	“Oh, w-well, i-it’s actually... i-it’s pronounced Ralsei, but you can call me Ralsie if you want... Oh! And you were just looking at the training dummy I made!” He sputtered nervously, seeming anxious to exposit every detail he could muster from his memory about it.

	“...Were you just about to beat up something that looked like Ral-” Kris began, but Sam quickly cut her off.

	“N-No, I didn’t get a good look at it until- uh-... just-... look, I STILL don’t trust anything or anyone down here, so get off my back!” Sam sputtered, his embarrassment only continuing to grow.

	“I believe you, Samuel!” Ralsei chirped, “Actually, this is a great opportunity to prepare for the enemy! Would you two like me to teach you how to fight?”

	“...Didn’t we JUST fight a minute ago?” Sam asked.

	“Y-Yes, but uh... I think the fight before didn’t really... cover all the basics...” Ralsei mumbled, turning his head away and anxiously prodding his fingers together.

	“And what exactly do we NOT know, other than attacking and not getting hit?” Sam questioned, crossing his arms.

	“Well, why don’t I show you?” Ralsei said, returning to a much more chipper demeanor.

	Sam gave a glance towards Kris. She shrugged her shoulders, indicating that she was fine with humoring the dark prince for a while. The dragon sighed and dropped his shoulders. “Fine,” Sam conceded, “Let’s get this over with. After this, we’re hauling ass and getting back home. I don’t feel like wasting time.”

	“Ok!” Ralsei cheered. “Get ready you two!”

	The dark prince scampered to the western side of the room and waited patiently for Kris and Sam to follow. Kris quickly stepped to the left of Ralsei and Sam begrudgingly joined him to his right. Suddenly, the air around them began to blow as it had during the battle with Lancella, lightly whipping at the trio’s hair and clothing.

	“Now!” Ralsei began, “You know those white projectiles you’ve both been hit with?”

	“Gee, I dunno, it seemed like that kid from before was just throwing paper at us,” Sam sarcastically quipped.

	“...Umm, well, they’re actually magic! They carry a special property that makes them different from physical attacks,” Ralsei said.

	“Different how?” Sam grumbled, remembering the wounds he had from before. “It sure FELT physical.”

	“Well, those projectiles... They actually attack your very soul, too,” Ralsei revealed, patting his chest with a closed fist.

	“My soul? What the hell are you on about?” Sam inquired with a waning suspension of disbelief.

	“Yes, your soul, the culmination of your being! Within, it holds your will... your compassion... and the fate of the world,” the fluffy prince explained, “If you get hit by magic, your soul will take damage. And... I don’t think we’d want to find out what happens if your soul breaks... So, please take care to avoid the enemy’s attack.”

	“You could have just said ‘don’t get hit' instead of all this soul crap,” Sam grumbled.

	“Oh, of course, but I think it helps to know what exactly happens whe-” he continued, but Sam cut him off.

	“Yeah yeah yeah, keep it moving already. What next?” He asked with audible impatience in his voice.

	“R-Right, sorry...” Ralsei apologized. Kris placed her hand on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze to show her support. He let out a soft chuckle in response and bashfully looked the other way. Seeing this, Sam pinched his snout and quietly grumbled something intelligible.

	“Now, are you two ready?” Ralsei asked, suddenly regaining all of his confidence.

	“Ready for what?” Sam groaned. He began to feel as if this supposed dark prince was playing hopscotch on his nerves on purpose.

	“To dodge!” Ralsei cheered.

	Sam’s eyes widened as the dummy began to glow white. His heart now pounding, Sam braced himself as he flicked his club back into existence and gripped it tight. From behind the dummy several spherical, white projectiles bounded towards the trio. They looked identical in size and appearance to the projectiles thrown at him by the wobbly, fleshy objects from the area he woke up in.

	They approached at a brisk pace, yet were quite slow when compared to Lancella’s spades. All the three heroes needed to do was step to the side as the projectiles came towards them, after which they softly dematerialized.

	Once every single projectile had been launched, the dummy ceased glowing and returned to a normal state. Sam spun around to face Ralsei, in a mix of irritation and an odd sense of disappointment. “The fuck was that!?”

	“...T-Training...? Good job on dodging, by the way! You two are naturals at this!” He cheered, “Anyhow, now that the enemy has attacked, it’s our turn! First, we’ll fight the dummy!”

	“Fight? Well damn, maybe you and me are on the same page after all!” Sam chuckled.

	“Well, fighting isn’t exactly necessary in this world, but... There’s no harm in a thorough lesson!” He replied.

	Before either Sam or Kris could react, Ralsei’s red scarf slithered around his neck and raised itself above his head. It shed its softness and turned as flat and sharp as a knife.

	“Here, let me demonstrate!” He said. He bent his knees before twirling in a circle, using the momentum from his body to launch his scarf forwards. It slashed the dummy’s torso, leaving a deep laceration in the cloth as it slowly bled pieces of fuzz. Kris stared in awe, though Sam seemed to be terrified.

	“Holy shit!” Sam let out, backing away from Ralsei, “Is that scarf alive!?”

	"Hm? Oh, no, it’s not, but it sure did look like it, huh Samuel?” Ralsei asked with a soft smile on his face.

	“What is your scarf even made of!?” He demanded. Sam refused to believe it was made out of anything other than some sort of extremely malleable metal filled with magnets.

	“Oh, just wool and magic, but mostly magic! Magic doesn’t only just hurt people, it can also change the properties of some objects and even heal you if applied to things like food,” he explained further. “Now, Samuel! Kris! Please, let me see your best attacks!”

	Kris brought out her large sword again and twirled it in the air; she was clearly still getting used to the weight of it. The human took in a deep breath, exhaled, and charged forward. Her boots clanked loudly against the hard stone beneath her as she rapidly approached the dummy. She raised it in the air and twirled her body, mimicking Ralsei’s motion from before to get the most out of her attack.

	She brought her weapon down hard on her target, letting out a grunt. The sword slashed right through the dummy, sending fuzz and shredded cloth into the air. Sam and Ralsei, for the moment, were left speechless by the sheer ferocity and grace she demonstrated in one attack.

	Ralsei slowly began to clap his hands before building up to an uproarious applause. “Wow, Kris! That was an amazing attack!” He exclaimed enthusiastically.

	Kris walked back over to her two companions with a smug bounce to her step, clearly quite proud of herself even if her face didn’t show it. She slid next to Ralsei and dematerialized her sword and looked over at Sam expectantly.

	Upon making eye contact, Sam knew exactly what she was waiting for. “O-oh, uh... My turn?” He asked. Kris shrugged in response while Ralsei quickly nodded his head.

	Sam examined the weapon in his hands, feeling its weight and caressing the handle. He looked towards the dummy and took a quick breath. Sam swiftly stomped forwards, kicking up dust and fuzz along the way. Smirking as he ran, he planned on outdoing his companions and putting their attacks to shame.

	Just as he was mere feet away from the dummy, memories of watching baseball on mediocre cable TV came to his mind; specifically the way they struck the ball. Skipping to the right and tossing his body back to the left, he swung his club at the dummy’s face with all of his might while letting out a loud roar.

	Not realizing it in the heat of the moment, something rose from Sam’s chest; it was describable as what felt like hot energy radiating from his very soul and traveling down to his arms. Once the energy reached his club, the fire at its tip exploded into a bright blue fireball.

	As the metal spikes mangled its face, showering him and the immediate area in dust and fuzz, the now roaring flames quickly began to engulf the bundle of fluff and stuff. Sam slowly backed away from the now flaming dummy, slightly horrified yet amazed by the destructive power he held in his hands. With one swing, he could cause grievous and agonizing wounds to anyone he wanted. While his mind was not geared towards such sadistic violence, he still enjoyed the sense of power he felt from having such a dangerous weapon at his disposal.

	Ralsei came rushing from behind, holding a bucket and making panicked noises. “Oh dear, oh dear, oh golly!”

	Sam stepped out of the way as Ralsei dumped out a bucketful of water to douse the flames. The flames died with a hiss, leaving only a charred and soggy mess behind. “Uh... Sorry, I uh... I didn’t think that would happen...” Sam said as he began to slink away.

	“W-Well that’s quite alright, I still have a backup dummy for occasions just like this!” Ralsei said, sprinting back to the castle.

	Sam disarmed once Ralsei had gone, letting the club vanish into thin air. The silence in the alleyway was deafening and the tension was near tangible. After several seconds, Kris finally cleared her throat and spoke. “That was pretty cool.”

	A smile crept up the dragon’s face as he began to chuckle. “Yeah, ha ha ha! That was awesome!” He laughed. For a moment, he could have sworn he saw Kris smile but he couldn’t be sure. Maybe they had more in common than Sam initially thought.

	“Oh? What are we all laughing about?” Ralsei asked as he returned, carrying another dummy coiled up in his scarf above his head.

	“Eh, nothing important. Let’s... Fuck man, is there anything that scarf can’t do?” Sam asked.

	“...It doesn’t give very good hugs...” Ralsei replied, setting the new dummy up right next to the burnt one. He stopped and put a hand to his chin before suddenly coming up with an idea. Using his scarf again, he carried the burnt dummy and set it aside.

	“Now it can watch us complete our training!” Ralsei chirped. He returned to his companions. “Next, let’s try defending! Simply hold your weapon out in front of you and use it to block enemy attacks!”

	“...Yeah, and?” Sam asked.

	“Well... It’ll still hurt you and your soul if it hits your weapon, but... It’ll hurt less! That, and if your weapon is special, it can turn into a shield!” Ralsei paused and thought for a moment. “Um… I don’t think it’s necessary to show you how to block, since that should already come naturally to you.”

	“Now that we have all the basics done, it’s time to get into some more advanced things. Like I’ve demonstrated before, I can use magic!” Ralsei pointed towards the unsullied dummy. “For instance, if that dummy had been a real enemy that we’d hit, I could put them to sleep by pacifying them and we’d win peacefully!”

	Ralsei raised his hand for a moment before a bright yellow glow enveloped it before silently exploding into sparks. The yellow glow shined on the dummy itself, but seemed unaffected. “We would have won the battle by now, but I still have a little left to teach you two.”

	“Sheesh, there’s more? Still?” Sam whined. “What else could we possibly need to know!?”

	“J-Just one more thing...!” Ralsei assured him, “Now, this might be a bit more advanced, but I’m sure you two have the wits to figure it out! Instead of fighting, we can... Umm, I don’t know what to call it, actually...”

	“Just explain it and we can come up with a name later, we got shit to do.” Sam gumbled.

	“W-Well, it’s basically doing or saying things that would make the enemy not want to attack anymore! If we do this, then even the most violent enemies through various acts of kind- ACTS! That’s it, we’ll call them acts!” Ralsei exclaimed.

	“Yeah, okay, we’ll ‘act’ and just politely ask our enemy to not try to kill us, that’ll work...” Sam growled sarcastically.

	“I did something like that with Lancella.” Kris piped up. Sam looked over at her and was about to say something, but he realized she had a point. Regardless, he had a point of his own.

	“Yeah, but she still kept attacking us.” Sam countered,  “If a weird little girl can’t be convinced to not try to kill us, then what’s stopping some random schmuck up ahead?”

	“W-Well, maybe some acts work less than others, but Kris put up a good effort!” Ralsei chirped. Sam rolled his eyes.

	“So, umm... Kris! Even though it’s just a dummy, why not give it a hug?” The dark prince nervously suggested, prodding his fingers together. Sam snickered at the thought, but Kris was already moving.

	Instead of walking towards the dummy, Kris stepped around her draconic classmate and hugged Ralsei. Sam planted his face in his palm. So much time was being wasted and he just wanted to go home.

	“K… Kris!?” Ralsei yelped. A bright pink blush was somehow visible on his dark face. “Umm, I don’t think, um…”

	“You told me to hug the dummy.” Kris jokingly said. Sam nearly failed at suppressing a groan. He felt as if he was one minute away from just leaving them behind.

	“Can we stop doing dumb shit and get doing already?” The dragon grumbled, only now taking his face away from his hand.

	“Want me to hug you instead?” Kris suggested, sounding a bit more serious while still keeping a straight face.

	“No, you fucking weirdo, I wanna get moving!” Sam impatiently exclaimed. The implications of what would happen if he said ‘yes’ flew right over his head.

	Kris let go of Ralsei and walked towards the actual dummy. She gave it a quick hug, then walked back to her original spot. She looked at her two companions and waited.

	“Aww, that great, Kris! Sam, do you w-” Ralsei said, but Sam quickly cut him off.

	“NO.”

	“...Oh... W-Well, um... I’m sure there’s other things you can do other than hugging if it makes you uncomfortable... Besides, each enemy might have different ‘acts’ that satisfy them. When it’s satisfied, we can agree not to fight anymore and move on!” Ralsei explained. “If we spare all the enemies we meet, we’ll never have to fight!”

	“Yeah yeah yeah, Kris hugged you, whatever, go away.” Sam deadpanned at the dummy. He turned towards the others, “Okay, introduction to namby pamby pacifist shit is done, can we go now?”

	“Yes, that’s everything!” Ralsei cheered, “I’m really happy I had the chance to teach the both of you! Oh, that was fun! You are both wonderful students!” Ralsei cheered.

	Sam rolled his eyes. “What now?”

	“Well, er, in case you ever need a refresher, I…” Ralsei rummaged through his robe, seemingly looking for something. Once he found it, he whipped it out and held it high in the air. “Here! I wrote a manual for you two!”

	Ralsei handed a stack of stapled together papers to Kris. It was adorned with several childish drawings, colored glue, and glitter. Kris shrugged and carefully tucked it away for later use.

	“So! We’re done learning about how we can avoid all of our problems by holding hands and singing Kumbuya like good little pacifists. Let’s hit the road already!” Sam sarcastically barked. He started eastwards, hoping Kris and Ralsei would follow. He heard footsteps behind him and felt no need to look back. Sam looked at the ground as he walked, stewing over all the time they had wasted on inane lessons in peacemaking.

	When he finally looked up, however, he couldn’t help but pause and marvel at the awe-inspiring display of art before him.. A large, gold and black double door stood before him. The gold around the door’s frame looked as if they were feathers, blowing in the wind yet caught in a permanent stillness. It was absolutely beautiful, and Sam was left dumbfounded.

	Ralsei and Kris caught up to him and joined his side. Ralsei seemed more perturbed than impressed by the majesty of the golden doors. “Oh my! The Great Door is opened?! No wonder Lancella was able to come through...”

	“Yeah... No shit...” Sam mumbled.

	“Kris, Samuel, once we pass through this door... Our adventure will really begin. A journey foretold exactly by the prophecy... But Kris, Samuel, I believe YOUR choices are important, too,” Ralsei said.

	Sam snapped out of his stupor, dragged back into his usual pessimism. “I doubt it. If my choices mattered, I wouldn’t be here...” he groaned.

	“Samuel, please! It’s not all doom and gloom. You may not have had a choice in coming here in the first place, but you can choose how you go through your journey! This world is full of all kinds of people and in the end, how we treat them makes all the difference,” Ralsei happily retorted.

	Sam sighed and pinched his snout. “And what about how THEY treat US? If Lancella was anything to go by, I expect a lot of pain real soon,” He avoided eye contact with Ralsei as he spoke, not wishing to subject himself to the naive, saccharine expression of one who didn’t understand how the world worked.

	“You can still be nice, Samuel. Instead of literally killing your enemies, you can kill them with-”

	“Kindness, yea yeah, I’ve heard it all before. I don’t believe in it,”. Kris crossed her arms upon hearing his words, glaring at him beneath her bangs. Sam rolled his eyes in response.

	“Please, let’s try our best to get by without fighting... If we can manage to do that, I believe our tale will have a happy ending,” Ralsei chirped, “Otherwise, I fear that... you may not... find the result favorable... Oh, I’m sorry! Is that too much to ask?”

	“Yes,” Sam growled.

	“We can handle it,” Kris said.

	Their words came out at the same time, though it was still easily discernible who said what. “Samuel, I’m sorry if this comes off as... Abrasive? But... I... don’t think your pessimism will get us anywhere good. Please, try to chin up?” Ralsei pleaded.

	Sam paused for a moment. He sighed and dropped his shoulders, forcing himself to speak. “You know what? Fine, I’ll humor you. We’ll go past this gate, then I’ll let you test your little theory out. If shit goes south, I’m busting out my weapon and I’m gonna start bashing some skulls in,” he said, making eye contact with Ralsei for the first time in several minutes.

	“Thank you, Samuel! I have no doubt that we’ll get through this together!” The dark prince cheered.

	Sam led the way through the gate. A sudden apprehensive twist in his stomach stayed his feet for a moment, yet he persisted. The entryway into the rest of the Dark World was itself very dark, not letting him see what was ahead. On the other side was a dense forest wherein all the leaves on the trees were red, as if locked in the throes of autumn.

	The gate closed behind him.