Thank Gaia it's Friday

Images flashed before John, a confusing collage of people, places and things that did not match in any way. An elaborate chair sat in a pool of red liquid, a blonde woman with a vial festooned red jacket fiddling with some of its tubes. That shifted to a bleak and sparsely furnished room, a stocky figure standing menacingly in the doorway. Then the scene was a familiar hallway, one from Ashcroft as someone bumped into him. Abruptly the school became Cammie’s, the haggard man stepping back from him.

Then things shifted again, to a dimly lit hallway. A woman stood opposite him, a thin blade coated in flowing blood. Blood that seemed to flow from his chest to the weapon.

---

The bleating of his phone’s alarm **** John awake, his eyes shooting open before squeezing shut from the morning light. He blindly reached for his phone on his bedside table, reflexive memory easily letting him grab it, and turned off the incessant beeping. He splayed out on his bed, a frown forming on his face as the dream faded and reality cemented itself.

‘Man, it feels weird to wake up alone,’ he thought. Left paranoid after getting caught by his mother, he, Aeolia and Vivian figured it would be best if he returned home alone and they stayed at the redhead’s place.

‘Well, I guess I’m not totally alone,’ John mused, his perception drifting to the back of his mind, where he could feel his connection to Senka. It wasn’t active, leaving him with only the innate knowledge that she was inside her personal domain. Beyond that, John would have to cast Spirit Link to draw her into his aura or properly summon her outside.

For now, he was going to let her rest. No point in calling her pointlessly, especially since he still had to shower. Before he could extract himself to undertake that task, his phone let out one quick ping.

Hey, you up?

It was from Vivian’s phone, but John had a suspicion Aeolia sent the message. Playing cautiously, he replied.

Yeah. Just bout to head to shower

He hauled himself out of bed and collected his toiletries. By the time he’d gathered everything, his phone pinged again.

Hope it’s not too boring without me there

‘Yep, Aeolia,’ John thought as he typed his response.

Morn, Aeolia. Vivian up yet?

The response came a second later.

She got up way too early. Ruined a good dream.

Aeolia’s message caused John’s brow to furrow.

Huh. Had a dream too. Can’t really remember it, but it was weird.

He lingered at his door, awaiting a reply.

Well, mine involved some whip cream. But I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. Enjoy your shower.

The mental image caused his morning wood to jump excitedly, and John groaned.

‘Damn her,’ he lamented as he left his room. ‘Now I can’t just leave this.’

Consigning himself with having to relieve his passions the old fashioned way, John reached the bathroom and quickly took care of business. Once his erection was tamed and skin thoroughly cleaned, John exited the shower and saw a new message on his phone, one with an image attached.

‘Why do I have a bad feeling about this?’ he wondered before he opened it.

It was a picture of Aeolia draped over a flustered Vivian, the redhead obviously ambushed by their girlfriend. Though John guessed it may have more to do with Aeolia’s lack of clothing, one of the winged woman’s modest breasts pressed against her ear.

Maybe this can give you a hand. ;)

‘Note to self: Get Aeolia back later,’ John vowed, his cock beginning to stir once more. ‘I wonder if Vivian would team up for that?’

He closed his phone, saving the pic before he did so, then returned to his room to get ready for school. After quickly equipping his uniform, John sat down at his desk and pulled up his Character Sheet.

‘Probably should get this level up out of the way now,’ John thought as he reviewed his stats. ‘Definally going to need to up my magic and magic regen since Senka drains both, plus boosting mana reduces her cost. Two in Intelligence and Wisdom each should be enough to stay in a fight, but what do I do with the last point? Charisma is really lagging behind but I really don’t have a need to boost it. Agility’s not failed me yet, and that leaves Strength and Endurance. Maybe I should alternate between the two. Up Endurance now and Strength next level up. Yeah that sounds like a good idea.’

John cashed in his points and reviewed his sheet.

Finding it satisfactory, and after letting out a small chuckle when he saw what his mana regen rate was, John closed it before making his way downstairs. As he tread down the stairs, he felt a tug at the connection between him and Senka.

‘Guess that means she can request a summoning,’ John thought, casting Spirit Link. For a second, his vision dimmed ever so slightly as Senka shifted into his aura and he felt her somewhat miffed emotions brush against him.

‘Perhaps we should establish some routine,’ Senka said, her tone flat. ‘Even my patience has its limits.’

‘Sorry,’ John apologized. ‘I couldn’t sense if you were awake. Um, I mean…’

Senka’s emotions softened. ‘I think we need to have a good long discussion on how this will all work. Firstly, yes, I can sleep. The only thing I don’t need to do is eat or drink, along with the natural consequences of those actions. Beyond that, when manifested I am just as alive as anyone.’

‘Does that mean you can die?’ John asked, suddenly worried.

Senka hummed through their connection.

‘I suppose my manifestation can be killed,’ the spirit remarked, very nonchalant over her potential demise. ‘But in the end, I am a being of consciousness and mental energy. My body out there is ultimately just mana. I think it would take something that could damage souls to truly injure me.’

Privately, John made a mental note to ask Mason or Cammie if there were ways to kill a spirit, just to ease his mind on the subject. Out loud, or what approximated out loud in a mental communication, John said, ‘Well, I’m not going to summon you to take a hit for me.’

‘I know,’ Senka replied warmly. ‘Now, I’m going to quiet down so you can talk to Brenda without me adding in commentary. Probably wouldn’t be good if you seem overly distracted.’

John felt Senka draw back, not retreating back to her personal domain but more akin to moving to the back of a room. Present, but not obtrusive.

“Morning, dear,” Brenda greeted as he entered the kitchen. “You turned in early yesterday. Hard day?”

John shrugged as he made his way to the toaster, forcing down his guilt at having to continue to lie to her. “A bit more of the moving in stuff. Plus, we got a new co-worker so there was some getting up to speed needed.”

Brenda looked at him with concern in her eyes as he popped a toaster pastry into the toaster to cook. “They aren’t overworking you too much, are they? I know you feel like you can conquer the world at your age, but don’t let people take advantage of you because you think you can deal with it all.”

John smiled as he pulled out his heated pastry. “Don’t have any world domination plans, Mom. If they start to overwork me, I’ll quit. This is just something to get my feet wet, and to bring in some cash of my own.”

John hoped his causal ease regarding the situation would assuage his mother’s worry as he bit into his breakfast, the warm strawberry filling oozing into his mouth. Thankfully, Brenda seemed to buy his words, her face relaxing as she sipped her tea. Then a sly smile worked its way to her lips.

“So, how are things with Vivian?” she asked. “Any weekend plans for the two of you?”

John’s mind flashed back to Aeolia’s selfie, and Vivian’s desire for the both of them to be her first, and he subtly adjusted himself.

“We haven’t planned anything,” he carefully said, hoping that the table kept him hidden from the waist down. “But we’re probably going to hang out later.”

“Ah, going for the casual approach,” Brenda said, placing her mug down, her expression growing a touch more serious. “Just a little advice: don’t take things too casual and lead Vivian on.”

“I’m not, Mom,” John groused half heartedly. “You raised me better than that.”

“Damn right I did,” Brenda stated, a proud smile replacing her serious expression. “I also didn’t raise a slacker, so you should head off to catch your bus.”

“Aye, aye.” John saluted, before shoving the last of his pasty in his mouth. “Schee yu lader.”

“I also taught you not to talk with your mouth full,” Brenda yelled after him, playful exasperation in her voice.

“Love you too,” John shot back as he exited the house, letting out a sigh once the door was closed.

‘You really don’t like having to hide all this from her,’ Senka chimed in, gracefully gliding back into his perception.

‘I’ve done nothing but lie to Mom since I got these powers,’ John lamented. ‘I can’t tell her about what shit we’re in, for several reasons. I can’t introduce Aeolia or you to her. Hell, the first conversation I had with her on Monday ended up with me lying to her and getting a skill for it.’

The phantom sensation of lithe arms wrapping around him caused John to stumble, the lack of an actual **** holding him throwing off his balance.

‘Sorry,’ Senka apologized, her unseen and unreal limbs releasing their hold. ‘Felt like you needed some reassurance. Lying just to make things easier for yourself or to avoid responsibility is different from lying to protect someone from something too big for them to handle. Even if there was no risk in just telling your mother about the Abyss, the fact that we are hunted by a group that has no qualms in ritual **** and foul magics means drawing her in would make her an easy target.’

‘I know why I have to keep her in the dark,’ John thought back at her bitterly. ‘I just hate having to do it. Mom’s always been there for me, and having to hide something this big, something I’m actually good at, just feels wrong. I have friends, girlfriends even, and I can’t share it. Even sharing something like me dating Vivian feels wrong since we can’t bring Aeolia in.’

Senka hummed and John got the impression she had adopted a thinking pose, one hand cupping her chin.

‘Perhaps there is some spell or item that can disguise Aeolia’s distinguishing traits,’ the spirit mused. ‘There have to be others with obvious non-human appearances who have needed to blend in with the non-magical.’

‘That sounds like it could work,’ John replied. ‘At least that way we can bring Aeolia into things as much as possible. You know, it’s weird that the whole throuple thing is easier to explain than the whole magic and doom thing.’

Further conversion on that topic was halted as the bus approached. John suppressed a groan when he spotted Frank and Vanessa sitting near the center of the bus, with no unoccupied seats ahead of them.

‘Why do they even take the bus?’ Senka remarked. ‘From what I know of them, they should easily be able to afford a car.’

‘Probably so they can torment me,’ John answered with resignation.

‘Don’t give them the satisfaction,’ Senka murmured, her tone full of malice. ‘You may not be able to stand up directly to them, not without questions being raised, but you only stand to gain by standing tall against them. Don’t let the growth you’ve gone through mean nothing in the mundane world.’

Emboldened by Senka’s words, John’s posture straightened slightly.

‘Right. What’s the worst Frank can do to me? Punch me? I’ve taken worse hits from things that’d make him piss his pants,’ John thought. ‘And he didn’t look too thrilled to be confronted by Moira and he doesn’t know she’s some evil smiting holy warrior. Maybe actually standing up to him will make him back off.’

Senka hummed thoughtfully. ‘Perhaps. But the bus is a poor battlefield for such a confrontation. It would be best to put that off for later.’

‘Yeah, good point,’ John agreed. He quickly scanned the seats, hoping someone neutral towards him wouldn’t mind letting him sit next to them. Two rows ahead of his tormentors sat a plain girl who blankly stared out the window.

‘That’s the girl I saw on Monday. The people watcher, right?’ John questioned, firing off an Observe to check.

‘It would seem so,’ Senka remarked. ‘What a boring person.’

'Yeah,’ John agreed as he moved towards the odd girl. ‘But she probably has the highest opinion of me. Best shot to not have to cross paths with the Mr. and Ms. Popular.’

“Mind if I sit here?” he asked, doing his best to look friendly.

The drab girl’s head turned towards him, dull brown eyes peering from under her messy brown hair, sighed and nodded once, returning her passionless gaze outside. John quickly sat down as the bus continued on its journey, his posture rigid.

‘You’re rather stiff,’ Senka noted.

‘Well, this is kind of awkward,’ John replied.

‘It’s not like you have to strike up a conversation with her or anything,’ Senka pointed out. ‘This is just a ride to school. Nothing more.’

‘Yeah, you’re right about that,’ John thought, relaxing a bit.

The pair lapsed into a comfortable silence as the bus rolled on. John let Arcane Sense activate, once again finding no sign of anything Abyssal near him. He let his skill lapse, mind drifting back to Monday.

‘I wonder if that really was some magic charm,’ he thought. ‘I got the quest to look for other Abyssals after I Observed it, but that could have just been because I assumed it was magic since Observe was too low level to get more info and that seems like something that would get level locked.’

‘If we can’t find them, then we don’t find them,’ Senka chimed in. ‘We can remain vigilant, but stressing over it is not a good use of energy.’

‘You’re right,’ John thought back to her. ‘I’ll still sweep around with Arcane Sense. If nothing else, it might level it up.’

John felt Senka nod and he glanced out the front window, catching sight of the academy in the distance.

‘Let’s see if there’s anything more to uncover at school.’

---

‘At least I got that skill level up,’ John remarked as he plopped into his seat, eyes drifting to the still present level-up message.

Skill Level Up: Arcane Sense Lv. 3.

‘Not that it gave me anything,’ he added, dismissing the popup. ‘Guess every level up can’t give a bonus.’

‘I wonder what other bonuses that skill can give,’ Senka pondered as the bell rang. ‘Its range is tied to your Wisdom, correct?’

‘It is,’ John answered as his teacher began to do the roll call. ‘So that’s probably out of the upgrade pool. Since I got spirit sensing added to it, maybe there are other mystical energies out there I could detect. Seems like that’s a good guess. I can’t really think of anything else that could be added.’

‘I can think of one,’ Senka interjected. ‘You have to manually activate the skill, yes? Without it you can’t sense anything right?’

‘Yeah,’ John replied.

‘Then perhaps you could unlock some sort of reflexive detection modification,’ Senka theorised.

‘So a spidey sense,’ John joked, a grin stretching his lips. ‘That would be nice. Especially with who knows how many unknowns there are out there.’

‘Speaking of unknowns,’ Senka pivoted, ‘are we still aiming to do a long Barrier later?’

‘Didn’t get any negatives from the others,’ John answered, mind drifting from whatever his teacher was droning on about to their future plans. ‘We do need a full on team fight. Aeolia, Vivian and I have been pretty much winging it, but that’s not going to cut it as we get stronger and bring in more people. We need to establish proper roles and how to effectively use our abilities to their best potential.’

Senka hummed thoughtfully.

‘Aeolia is definitely a frontline fighter, good at both close and mid range attacks,’ she noted. ‘You and I, both as a team and separately, are probably better at staying mid range, only going in close when we have to or have a clear and easy victory. Vivian is support, no doubt about that.’

‘She could do long range attacks, too,’ John pointed out, recalling that she apparently dished out some massive damage to the tree abomination.

‘True,’ Senka agreed. ‘What we need to do is establish Beth’s proper role. She’s agile and could be a good skirmisher. Get in, outmaneuver and lock down some enemies, then get out for us to pick them off.’

‘Could work,’ John thought. ‘I’m a bit concerned though since Beth has to make direct contact with something to stick it. That’s a bit risky. If we could buy or make something that lets her flow her power out, like a power wire or something, she could strike at a distance and still play the lock down role.'

'Yes, that would make things easier,' Senka conceded. 'Perhaps she could develop her ability towards that without the aid of an item.'

John hummed as he considered Senka's point. There was a lot he didn't know about how people normally increase their abilities, but he assumed that working out an ability would be like working out physically.

‘Something to ask Vivian about,’ he thought. He turned his attention to his teacher, but his mind drifted back to planning their later excursion and which Barrier to run. As he mulled over all the creatures they could fight, an idea came to mind.

‘We haven’t done a ‘Dungeon’ yet.’

Thanks again for reading this little story. If you liked the chapter, please hit that thumbs up, and if you want to support my writing, check out my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/ScrapCrow. Get access to my chapters before they’re published here and join my private Discord.