Everything Stays

Jenny and Abigail once again sat in the living room of the former’s apartment, both sitting on the large plush black couch which took up the middle of the room and faced the television. Jenny had more music on, though they listened via headphones out of respect for John’s sleep.

Being an amateur herself, Jenny still had no problem introducing Abigail to the world of gaming. Together they sat listening to forty year old music and playing Sundrop Mountain. The brawler got bored easily at the lack of competition in the game, and so Jenny introduced her to Pentris 88. They sat with one headphone on, music pouring out of the other.

Abigail was on the edge of her seat as the screen filled with blocks. Accidentally pressing the wrong button, she failed to clear them in time and was knocked out of the game. She dropped the controller in frustration and collapsed, her head landing in Jenny’s lap. ““How are people so good at this! Those gray blocks keep killing me!”

“Takes some practice, I guess,” Jenny advised, despite only ever winning one game herself. One hand switching the music, her other hand went to the bushy hair of the girl in her lap. More used to the high-octane entertainment of a nightclub, she was finding it harder and harder to just relax in her own home. Though not as skilled in it as John, Abigail always managed to help her loosen up. Her fingers absentmindedly brushed through the black locks beneath her as she continued, “You should see John play. Even when I distract him, he doesn’t lose.”

“Distract him? Like, do you walk in front of him?” They locked eyes, and Jenny quickly looked away as she wore a distracting smile.

“Yeah, that’s what I do.” Her mind flashed back to the last time John had booted up the system. She sat next to him in her underwear, groping him in a teasing attempt to make him lose his winning streak.

“How do you two do it? You’re always happy when you’re with each other, and you’re always doing things for each other. You make it look so easy!” It was a burning question that had been on Abigail’s mind ever since the concept had made itself known. Growing up secluded with just her family, she had sexual and romantic urges before, but never knew what they meant or how to act on them. That is, except for a few naive experiments with her sister.

“We’ve only been together a few months, and even then it hasn’t always been easy. He wants to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, and the Abyss is too heavy for that. When I think about him, or even you, out there, risking your lives just for money or to make the world a better place or anything else… it scares me. I’m only so scared because of how much I love him. The way he makes me feel just when he looks at me… I don’t have a lot of places to get that feeling. He’s willing to do anything for me, and I think the same is true for me, at least I want to,” Jenny confessed, her fingers stopping the stroking of the coarse mane below her.

“And I see the way other girls look at him. I see the way you look at him. He has that effect on people. If you were to ask him, he’d say it was because he has a high Charisma score or whatever, but I don’t think so. I think it’s just who he is. He makes people’s lives better.” She found her eyes gravitating toward the bedroom door, wondering if her sleepy lover had heard anything she just said. Her heart raced even just thinking about him.

“What about… the way I look at you?” Abigail’s words came out barely more than a whisper, and it took a few seconds for the redhead above her to actually realize what she had heard.

“Me?”

“Can we make this quick, old man? I’ve got more important shit to do.” Isabelle’s palm rested on the hilt of her sword as she sat across from The Magician, who wore an entertained grin.

“You and I are the same age, Isabelle. I simply choose to wear it,” Alvaro retorted, plucking a mug of hot tea from a tiny pocket dimension. “Now, you said you had information for me?”

“That’s right, but I want something from you first. If I bring any more of my sisters in, I don’t want them to be killed. We have plenty of space to keep prisoners, and people who have done worse shit than them live a pretty comfortable life.” The star-champion ground her teeth as she thought about some of the scum she had captured over the eight years she had been with the Rider-Waites, and how her family was treated worse than them.

“That’s a large thing to ask. I’m only one piece of the puzzle, you know. There are 21 other Major Arcana members-”

“Yeah yeah yeah, don’t feed me that shit. If you want to get something done, you can get it done. The Emperor and The World listen to you more than anyone else. You can be in a hundred places at once, so you handle a lot of shit for them anyway. That’s my price. Say you’ll get it done, or I’m not interested.”

“I aim to end all unfair bias our system may have. If what you say is true and people are getting preferential treatment, I will put an end to it. That much will have to do. Anything more would be pure hypocrisy on your part and mine.” He sipped from his tea, eyes alight at the slowly opening book before him. She is not known for her great insight, but to come to me with such a request, she must have something great worth knowing. “Is there any other reason you’ve come to see me today?”

“Yeah, I found out something even you would have trouble with, skittish of the gods as you are. What are your plans for The Gamer?” Her palm left her sword as she looked at the kind face of the man before her, and she instead began to lean on the table.

”Amusing that you find one of the only humans that shows us proper respect ‘skittish’.”

“The Newman boy, he is an interesting character, isn’t he? I didn’t know you had taken an interest in him. He and I have had some… enlightening discussions, and he has been a monumental help in some of my research. After his less than stellar welcoming, I’ve placed him under my personal watch. I planned to send him out with my apprentice to further his growth. Surely she could teach him a thing or two.” He set the now-empty mug of tea on his desk, letting out a satisfied puff of breath.

“Why don’t you conjure me up something, got any sake?” Isabelle asked, noting the satisfaction his own drink had given him.

“Right away, how rude of me not to offer. Now it is my turn for a question. Why do you ask? Is this information you have regarding him?” Prepared for any meeting, he had a pocket dimension full of drinks to his guests’ liking. With a handwave, a calabash of sake and a small cup for it appeared in front of her.

“After the mission where I saved his ass, he and I had a private conversation. You know the extent of my aura sensory skills, having taught me yourself.” Isabelle grabbed the cup in front of her and filled it to the brim. She downed her drink before repeating this action, only draining half the cup the second time.

“You took to it like a fish to water. Champions gain a talent for it, to assist them in identifying other champions, I suppose. Still, it is not an easy subject to master. I’m proud of your progress, and your skills have grown beyond my own. I’d wager you’re the only one on Earth that can feel everyone else’s aura’s at will.” Out of view, his hands clenched underneath the desk. Say it already!

“Damn right. Anyway, it turns out he’s the Champion of Gaia. There’s no way it’s anybody else. Astra thinks so too. I planned on taking him along for a few missions, rub off on him a little bit. He’s a good kid.” She drained the cup then drank from the gourd proper, tired of the restrictions the small cup held.

“Are you sure? I thought the Wardens of the Golden Rose were her champions? You’ve worked with them before?” The Magician sat frozen, mouth agape and eyes wide open. To have such a man working for us… and so early in his journey! It all makes sense now. Did The Hermit know? How?

“Not specifically, but they’re a bunch of uptight assholes anyway. I’ve been near them, and they didn’t feel the same. I don’t know what they are, but I’m sure as hell about what he is,” Isabelle explained, finishing her drink and pushing the gourd toward him. “Got another for the road?”

“What? Sure, sure.” He plucked another out, sliding it across the desk before leaping to his feet. “You’ve given me much to think about. I’ll work tirelessly to get your issue solved,” his voice began to fracture as Isabelle picked up the drink, and by the time she was at the door it sounded like two people speaking at once, “and find out the extent of our luck in this matter.”

“You have to wake up earlier than that to get the drop on me!” A wall of bubbles accompanied his words, rolling inward on itself as it moved forward like a wave. They surrounded the drow and zapped her into unconsciousness. “That’s the last one. How have you fared, mia dama?”

“Better than you. I had everyone on my half of the building fried ten minutes ago,” Elizabeth taunted, getting off the chair she was sitting on and walking up to the bubble mage. The whole room otherwise was destroyed, **** drow and broken furniture littering the concrete floor. The walls were made of the same, yet still had scorch marks staining them at even intervals.

“Not very powerful, are they?” Mandruzzo bent down and raised the chin of one of the prettier **** women they had just fought. This one had nailed him with the crossbow loaded on her wrist, but the wound wasn’t bad enough to keep him from knocking her out. He raised her up by her leather biker jacket, noticing her name emblazoned on it. “Houndiira. Well, she was as ferocious as a-”

Eyes shooting open, Houndiira shifted her rapier into a spear and thrust it at Mandruzzo’s gut, but the bubble shield he formed in his hands bounced it off. “You know you’re just proving my point, right?”

“This is why it takes you a million years to get it done.” An arc of lightning shot out of the electromancer’s hands, instantly knocking out the last remaining nightsister. “We’re done. Let’s tell that other gang and get our reward.”

“Sure-” Mandruzzo began, but was cut off by his text-tone. Picking up his phone, he saw a friend request and a message from John. “We must wrap up quickly. I have other business to attend to.”

“Oi, you asleep?” Grace appeared at Amy’s door, who felt a twinge of regret at not closing it before going to bed. She had discarded her normal jean jacket plastered with stickers and black hat, instead wearing a loose-fitting, silky grey pajama robe and black flannel pajama bottoms. Amy’s outfit was simpler but served much the same purpose, instead being a matching leafy green pajama outfit.

“Um, no. Not yet. Why, do you need something?” Amy rose from her bed, rubbing her eyes as the blanket fell off her.

“I just wanted to ask you a few questions if you don’t mind.” Grace stepped into the room, and Amy did her best not to look taken aback by the usually brash Brit’s timid demeanor.

“Of course! Is something bothering you?” Amy moved to the edge of her bed, sweeping the blanket away and clearing a place for her troubled friend.

“Do you think I’m getting on alright with everyone?” Grace plopped down onto the kind beast tamer’s bed, looking sidelong at her.

“I think we’re all getting along well. We have a pretty high stress job, but we’re lucky. There are probably a bunch of people who don’t like their roommates. Not only are we all friends, but because of the grouping system the contracts use, we get to go to work together. Why, did somebody say something?” Amy half-turned in her sitting position, looking into the Brit’s eyes and seeing how they were downcast.

“Sometimes I feel like I don’t say the right thing. Like bringing up that bird that betrayed John, Abigail, and I during our trials. I saw the look you two gave me! I didn’t mean to hurt his feelins’, I just didn’t want him to feel infallible.” Grace grabbed Amy’s hands, pulling her closer. “I’m not daft, I know sometimes I say the wrong thing, but I don’t want to mess this up!”

“That you care enough to talk about it is good enough for me,” Amy explained, slowly pulling her hands back. “As for Abigail… she kind of goes with the flow of the room. You two are close, you were partners during the trials, right? I don’t think you have to worry about her. As for John, he doesn’t really let that stuff get to him. I didn’t get to see much, but he was… not popular at the mundane school we went to. He was bullied a lot before he got his powers. They’d beat him down daily and socially isolate him. I think he’s just happy to be surrounded with friends like us. Being introduced to the Abyss so late in life causes a culture shock for a lot of people, and he’s been under a lot of pressure. I don’t think you need to remind him that he’s not infallible.”

“Did he really? He always seems so confident whenever he’s with us. Without even trying he turned into our leader. I can’t imagine some mundane prat giving him the business.” John’s smiling face appeared in her mind unbidden, though she couldn’t imagine it bruised or bloody. He’s gotten hurt, sure, but he’s always gotten back up no matter what. When I ran out of stickers during the trial, all I could do was hide. And even though I’ve been a bit of an arse, he’s helped me without a second thought.

“You’ve given me a lot to think about. Cheers.” Smiling to herself, Grace slid off the bed and walked out. Amy, not bothering to close the door now, just laid back in bed, eager to sleep.