From Real to Realm

The funeral ended up being much shorter than Val expected.

Once the coffin was sealed, everyone was given the chance to come up and say their goodbyes. Val and her group were some of the only ones who did so, aside from a few other adventurers she didn’t recognize. It was only thanks to Lynesia that Val was able to stay as calm as she did.

Once everyone had taken their time to say their own whispered prayers, the priests began readying the coffin to be buried. Val had scant memories of losing her grandparents back on Earth, so she wasn’t sure what came next.

She took a calming breath. “Do we follow them to the graveyard?”

The question was meant for anyone to answer, but Lucia was the one to answer. “If we wanted, we could follow them to the fencing surrounding the graveyard. But only those within with the church are allowed inside the graveyard.”

That kind of precaution sounded unnecessary at first. But the more Val thought about it, the more it made sense. Controlling who could come and go meant there would be a deterrence from grave robbing or something similar. There was no telling who was buried there and what they were buried with. Famous adventurers? Nobles? Rich merchants? Any of those could have items within their coffins others would happily take.

Then Val remembered the red rune that appeared over Elza’s coffin. At first Val thought it might be something to keep it sealed and protected from the elements. However, who was to say it wouldn’t also keep prying fingers from getting within as well?

Amarisse gently placed a hand on Val’s shoulder. “I know you just met her, but I’m sorry… I couldn’t protect her even when I was her tank.”

Val swallowed. She was still coming to terms with what happened, even now. It still didn’t feel real that Elza was gone. Nightmares had kept her up most of the night and even now she felt like she was falling apart. Everything felt muted to her. The only thing keeping her sane was her love, Lynesia.

“We did everything we could Amarisse. None of us could’ve anticipated a Soul Mimic showing up. It took advantage of the situation…” Val turned to her. “Don’t blame yourself, okay?”

Amarisse’s eyes searched Val’s expression for a moment. “Make sure you heed your own words too, okay? I can see it in your eyes, you’re blaming yourself just as much.”

Val sighed. It wasn’t normal for her to be so easy to read. However, exhaustion made it hard to keep any form of poker face up. How could she not blame herself, though?

Amarisse held out a piece of paper. “This has both mine and Lucia’s addresses. If you ever need someone to lean on or talk to, you come knock any time, day or night. I don’t want you struggling on your own if we can help.”

Lynesia gently rubbed Val’s arm, a smile on her face.

“Then again, it seems like you’ve got a pretty good anchor as is,” Amarisse said, smiling. Then she pulled Val in for a strong hug. “Just be careful, okay? If you ever need us, come by.”

After Amarisse released Val from her hug, Lucia stepped up and did the same. “Any time you need us, Val. Anytime.”

Once both girls had finished the goodbyes for now, Lynesia retook her place next to Val.

“You have good friends,” she said, fingers interlacing with Val’s.

Val nodded. “Yeah, I do.”

Lynesia had refused to leave Val’s side the entire time. Val felt like she could never repay her for how much she’d helped. Even last night as she woke from nightmares, Lynesia just pulled her in close and held her until she fell back asleep. It felt unfair for Val to have such a loving partner after everything that happened. Even now she struggled to not blame herself, just like Amarisse had pointed out

The walk back to The Weeping Wagon wasn’t overly long. As they walked, the sky slowly darkened. What started as a bright and clear morning was quickly becoming overcast. If Val didn’t know any better, she’d think the heavens were reacting to what happened.

As soon as Val and Lynesia pushed through the front door, Marxus looked up from his book.

“Hey there, lass. How are ya feeling?”

Val weakly waved to him. “Not so great, Marxus. But I’m holding on.”

He nodded, closing the book. “You’ve got a good lass to support ya, so stay strong. Let us know if you need something to eat.”

Lynesia smiled, looking from Marxus to Val. “Thank you once again, Marxus. We both really appreciate everything you’ve done for Val.”

Marxus only nodded as they began ascending the stairs out of sight.

The hallway had become more manageable to walk down for Val. It still had a tendency to stretch unnaturally for her sometimes, but she was adapting to the feeling. Honestly, at this point she struggled to think about fighting anymore. Did she really want to give up, though? Val plopped onto the couch as she tried wrapping her head around what to do.

Lynesia didn’t hesitate to climb onto the couch next to her, cuddling into Val’s side. “I can only imagine how hard this is for you… I wish I could do more to help.”

Val wrapped her arms around Lynesia, pulling her closer and kissing the top of her head. “You just being here is more than enough. I don’t think I could do any of this without your support.”

They stayed that way on the couch for a good half hour. Not a word was spoken as Lynesia was content to be there for Val.

Finally after a long drawn out sigh, Val started getting up. “I need to look through Elza’s things. See if she has a letter or will or something she left behind for family.”

Together, they made their way to the door leading to Elza’s room. Val hadn’t opened it yet. Even now, Val wished Elza was inside just relaxing on the bed ready to flirt. After taking a deep breath, she turned the knob and opened the door.

Hey, I could’ve been changing! You were just trying to catch a peek weren’t you?

Val smiled to herself. That sounded like something Elza would’ve definitely said. But all that welcomed her was a messy bed, bag next to the nightstand, extra tome harnesses on a wall hook, and a small pile of clothes.

Lynesia squeezed Val’s hand. “You okay?”

Val shook her head. “No. Not at all.”

She didn’t wait for the tears to start again. Instead, she moved forward into the room, trying to give her mind something else to focus on. Lynesia entered the room a moment later, eager to help in any way she could.

Val grabbed the bag from next to the night stand and started emptying it slowly. There wasn’t much in there other than some personal care products and some more clothes. It shocked Val how little Elza had with her, but then again Val didn’t have much either.

“Val…”

Val stopped what she was doing, turning toward Lynesia. In her hands was an envelope with the words “To Mom & Dad” on it. Val’s heart immediately sank.

“Do you think this might be a goodbye letter?” Lynesia asked, flipping it over in her hands.

Val gulped. “Probably. I just don’t know where to send it.”

Lynesia sat on the edge of the bed as Val went back to putting everything back into Elza’s bag. She put everything in there, the extra clothes, the tome harnesses, anything she could send back to Elza’s parents.

“I’ll ask around the guild, see if anyone there might have her home address,” Val said, sealing the bag. “That’s the most likely place.”

With Elza’s things packed together and the note, Val and Lynesia made their way to the guild. Ideally the guild would be able to send Elza’s things to her parents. If not, then hopefully it was somewhere close so Val could take it herself instead.

It took a bit of asking around before they were finally directed to the right person. Not many people came looking for the addresses of other adventurers. There was a records room, so whoever was currently working should be able to help.

As Val pushed through the door, a younger man looked up from the papers on his desk.

“Excuse me, this is the records department, right?” she asked, stepping through the threshold.

“That’s correct,” he said, shuffling some papers to the side. “Is there something I can help you with?”

Val explained the situation to him. In the process she had shown him the bag of Elza’s belongings and the letter. At first he was a bit hesitant to indulge such personal information, at least until Val told him what happened.

“I see…” he said, pausing for a moment. “Carrying and delivering someone’s final words isn’t easy.” He turned around and began shuffling through some papers. It took a few minutes before he finally pulled what looked to be a file of some sort. “Her parents live in another town out east. If you’d like, you can leave her things here and I’ll make sure a trusted courier handles the delivery as soon as possible.”

Val slid everything across the desk toward him. “Thank you so much. If they send anything back can you make sure I receive it? My name is Valnarei Strouss, I’m staying at The Weeping Wagon currently.”

He took Elza’s belongings and set them to the side behind the desk. “Of course, I’ll make sure to forward along anything that might be sent back. I’m sorry for your loss.”

Val nodded. “Thank you, again.”

Just as Val and Lynesia were leaving the front gate, they saw Amarisse and Lucia.

“Val!” Amarisse yelled, rushing over to her with Lucia in tow. “They’re going to let us see Mina. We can’t actually get close, but they said we can at least see her!”

Val’s heart started racing. If they were going to let them see Mina, then that had to mean they were making progress, right?

“Is she okay?” Val asked, hand squeezing Lynesia’s. “Did they say anything about her condition?”

Lucia shook her head. “They said it’s still been tough going with healing her, but they’re more confident she’ll pull through. Progress has apparently been slow, but not impossible for the guild healers.”

It wasn’t a clean bill of health, but it was positive news regardless.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Lynesia asked. “Shouldn’t we go now then?”

Val turned to her. “We?”

Lynesia smiled. “I might not know Mina, but she’s important to you. So of course I want to help and be there for all of you.”

“You really did bag a good one,” Amarisse said, smiling. “Let’s go.”

Without another word they all started heading back inside the guild. This time they went beyond just the infirmary Val woke up in a day ago. Deep within the guild hall there was what amounted to an ICU. Of course it didn’t compare to what Earth had, but was beyond what Val expected.

There were multiple rooms, each with curtains pulled across a large window. Even as they were escorted through the hallway, Val couldn’t see into the rooms. Were they occupied? Who else was being kept here?

“Ah, here we are.”

The older gentleman who had been guiding Val’s group stopped. He was tall, well mannered, and very clean. His clothing reminded Val of scrubs from Earth, but they were made of better material and still had the same gold and purple theme.

“She’s in here?” Amarisse asked, looking at the window.

“Yes, just one moment and I will open the curtains within.”

After unlocking the door to Mina’s room, he slipped inside. After a handful of seconds, the curtains opened up revealing the interior.

Val didn’t know what she expected. Beeping monitors showing her vitals didn’t make sense on this planet. Did they have any way to check vitals? Or to keep track of them? Turns out the answer was no.

Within the room were two “nurses” in the process of healing Mina. She was lying on the table unconscious as one nurse dabbed the wounds in her side while the other woman channeled magic.

The sound of the door closing tore Val’s eyes away for just a moment. “What are they doing?”

“I was told Guildmaster Theoden informed each of you of her condition, correct?”

The girls all nodded.

“Unfortunately due to the corruption, we are unable to heal her all at once like we usually would. Thankfully the corruption is fading as the days pass, but not fast enough to heal her quickly. As such, we have a rotating staff of healers who take turns keeping her unconscious while also trying to heal her. One focuses on keeping the wounds cleaned and covered, replacing bandaging as needed, while the other channels healing. We’ve made great strides compared to when she first came to us, but I’d say she’ll be here for at least another week.”

“Is the corruption affecting her in any other way?” Val asked, mouth dry.

“We have used every spell we have to check for other ailments or malignant effects. As of this moment, the corruption is just lingering due to the residue left behind by the ice and what melted within her. It is not affecting her in any way beyond making healing much less effective.”

Lucia placed a hand on the glass. “Is there anything we can do? To help?”

The older man sighed. “Pray. We have some of the best healers this side of the continent. We’ll take care of her, we just need time.”

Val wanted to go into the room. To hold Mina’s hand, talk to her, tell her to stay strong. She was sure Lucia and Amarisse wanted to do the same. Having such a solid barrier between them made her feel so powerless, just like in the dungeon.

“If you want to visit again, you just need to ask someone in the infirmary. You’ll need an escort each time, but you’re free to visit like this any time you want.” He waited a moment, for anyone to speak. When no one did, he spoke up. “Did you need more time? Or were you ready to head back?”

Lucia surprisingly was the one to speak up this time. “I actually have something I want to talk to you all about. Can we head outside?”

Val and Amarisse shared a confused glance.

“Sure, lead the way?” Amarisse said.

The older man led them back out to the infirmary before saying his goodbyes, then Lucia took the lead. She ended up taking them outside into the courtyard trying to keep her distance from anyone else.

When they found a spot she stopped and turned to them, a pensive expression on her face. “I… I need to tell you both something…”

Lynesia must’ve realized this was important so she quickly excused herself. “I’m going to head to the main gate. I’ll be there when you’re ready to head home.”

With Lynesia gone, it was just the girls.

“What’s wrong, Lucia?” Amarisse asked, stepping closer.

Lucia wouldn’t make eye contact with either of them. She sighed, balling up her fists. “I’m giving up my badge.”

Val and Amarisse’s eyes bugged out. Their jaws went slack in shock as they absorbed what their healer just said.

It was Val that finally spoke. “It wasn’t your fault, Lucia. It was a shitty si—“

“I know what a bad situation it was!” Lucia yelled, drawing the attention of others leaving. “I know we were fucked. I mean, two mimics at the same time is bullshit! But I can’t do this again, or anymore.” She took a calming breath. “I jump at the slightest bump or loud noise now. I’ve lost it, any kind of edge I had down there. I’d just put you both at risk if I kept go—“

Lucia was cut off by Amarisse hugging her. “You don’t need to explain yourself to us, Lucia.”

Slowly, Lucia embraced the hug as muffled sniffles bled through.

Amarisse started rubbing her back. “You are welcome anytime to hang out with us. There’s no need to cut all contact just because you’re stepping down.”

Val slowly stepped up and joined in on the hug. “Exactly. And no one blames you for anything that happened, always remember that.”

Amarisse nodded. “Val’s right. We all went down there knowing exactly what could happen. It’s part of the life, right?”

Lucia slowly pulled away from the hug, nodding and wiping tears away. “Right.”

Everything had been too much for the healer. Val could see that now.

Lucia gave her goodbyes, leaving Amarisse and Val standing side by side. Lynesia was still waiting for Val at the main gate.

“What about you, Val? You stepping down as well?”

Val sighed. It was something that had been weighing on her mind a lot.

“I… I honestly don’t know right now, Amarisse. I want to keep going, but losing someone like that…”

Amarisse nodded. “It changes you. I get it.”

They stood there in silence for a moment longer. Each second dragged on as they both considered what had recently happened.

“You have my address now. If you need to talk, about anything, you come and see me. Even if it’s to just tell me you’re turning in your badge,” Amarisse finally said.

Val smiled softly. “I promise to keep in touch, regardless of my decision.”

Amarisse’s ears wobbled as she nodded. “Good, I’ll see ya around.”

With that she started walking away without another word.

Val was left standing in the courtyard surrounded by other adventurers. Some were chatting enthusiastically while others were more serious. Who knew what level they were or what kind of experience they had. They could experience exactly what Val did and they’d likely never see it coming. Did any of them know what the next day held for them in this kind of career? No, they didn’t, but they kept going anyways.

Val started walking toward the main gate.

As soon as Lynesia saw her, she slid up next to Val interlacing their fingers. “Now what?”

Val sighed, looking in the direction of her family’s home. “I think it’s about time I go home for a bit.”

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