“Can’t fucking believe them.” Kim said, leaning her face on her chin.

We stopped for lunch after learning we lost our gate reservation.

“Power is Justice.” I said, shrugging as I continued to tap through the Awakened app on her phone.

“Seriously? You’re not even a little mad?” Kim asked.

My eyebrows furrowed. The gate we had reserved for today had been bought out by a high level Awakened. Typically, a company wouldn’t dump someone else’s reservation, even if they were high level. Except that the Awakened that stole their reservation was a member of the guild that owned the gate.

What someone of that caliber wanted with a shitty little gate was beyond me, though. Maybe they were taking their little brother on a tour. It didn’t particularly matter though — there were dozens of gates available for rent, all below a grand.

“What about this one?” I asked, sliding the phone over to Kim.

She took one look before rolling her eyes.

“It’s all flying enemies. Unless you’ve got a bow you want to bring.”

“I can use a bow.” I replied.

She pushed the phone back to me, tabbing back out of the menu. On the new page was a listing marked with bright red and urgent. I pressed on it.

“This one says it’s free. What’s the catch?” I asked.

Kim looked at the listing, her eyes widening.

“Iron gate. But available to Bronze up — because it’s never… been cleared.”

Kim was paying more attention now, leaning forward and scrolling over the listing. Then she stopped, set the phone down, and pulled out her own, checking it again.

“I don’t know, Rain. Maybe we should find an already scouted gate.”

“So this one is a gate that’s never been cleared? No one has ever seen what’s inside?” I paused. “It’s iron too. What’s the worst that can happen? We can handle it. It’s an adventure. Let’s clear it!” I leaned forward, maybe with a little too much enthusiasm.

“Okay.” Kim said, leaning back and breathing out. Then she tapped on the phone, confirming the reservation. “But let’s prepare properly.”

We split up again. Kim headed back to her apartment to grab her own supplies and sent me off with a shopping list.

It felt like we were half preparing for a camping trip. Water, food, hiking supplies, rope, a compass, bandages, and nothing in the way of weapons. I supposed I still had the knife, though, which I kept on my side. It earned some strange looks, sure, but it wasn’t that unusual for Awakened to carry full length spears around, which kept questions to a minimum.

I just felt more comfortable with a blade by my side.

We met back up at the Church, where Kim pilfered a bunch of water bottles and other supplies. ‘I’m the one who bought them anyway,’ she had said, loading up her backpack. And then she led the way to the gate.

It was right around noon when we met at the local museum. An employee of the museum met us outside, leading the way in through the exhibits to where one was closed off. Glass surrounded the exhibit the gate opened in, normally allowing anyone to look in. Curtains hung over the walls, choking out most of the light. The museum kept operating as normal everywhere else.

When we stepped inside the room, a man sitting in a chair outside the gate greeted us. He wore a badge with the DoAA’s logo on it — the government body responsible for dealing with gates. He was in a folding chair, equipment littering the surrounding ground, half loaded onto a cart. Secure cases littered the ground, while one cable trailed out of the gate, which itself had opened in the middle of a painting.

I could feel the Qi in the room on my skin. The air thrummed with it; this place was a holy ground for cultivating. There might be enough to advance here, just in this room. It poured over me, spilling past and through the glass walls and doors, imperceptible by the time it reached the entrance of the museum.

The little exhibit had walls with comic book art painted on them, dim indirect light entering the room around the gray curtains that were drawn low. But I found myself paying no attention to the room — not to the polished floors or the hanging art or the low ceiling. Instead I stared directly at the gate.

“Kim? I’ll need to see some ID, please.”

I looked to Kim, who smiled and shrugged, handing over a driver’s license. I handed the man mine as well.

“This is expired.” He said, tapping the card. “If you were here as an Awakened and not as a porter, I wouldn’t let you in. And — word to the wise — don’t even try to use that knife in there. If anything happens, just run.”

I nodded and smiled, looking at him for only a second before looking back at the gate. Then I stepped towards it.

“Hold up — “ the gate attendant said, reaching out to grab my arm. I grabbed his first, grabbing his wrist and looking down. He was unarmed. He winced at the force I used. “Your ID.” He said, reaching out with his other hand.

“Oh,” I laughed, “My bad. Sorry about that.” I pocketed the ID. The man wrung his wrist.

“You good, Rain?” Kim asked, freeing her spear. She pushed the cloth covering into her backpack.

“Yeah.” I replied, gesturing forward. “After you.”

Kim looked at me for a moment, searching my eyes, then stepped through the gate. Jumping may have been more accurate of a word; the painting hung a few feet off the ground. The attendant stood.

“There’s a stool in here somewhere…” he said, searching through the room.

I leapt after Kim, jumping through the gate, and landing on my feet earlier than I expected. The ground was higher on the other side.

I scanned my surroundings, ready for Kobolds or Birds or a dozen other monsters, knife already drawn.

But there was nothing here besides my own breathing.

Not even Kim.