For now, I decided to just keep my answers about my own background short and vague, and reveal as little as possible without appearing to be actively obfuscating anything.

“I experienced the first Reaver Dog attack in Lake Placid, and that was about it,” I continued, volunteering some additional information in the hope of getting her to talk more about what had happened afterward.

And what she shared with me while we made the trek down into the canyon was stunning – a group of foreign adventurers had come in and taken over Lake Placid.

Just like that.

At first, no one had taken them too seriously, even though they had slaughtered that first group of bikers. But it soon had become apparent that they were the real deal. Their combat capabilities were through the roof, and they also had plenty of skills useful for more civil settings. And instead of hoarding those to secure their position of power and control, they were freely sharing them, teaching people how to cycle their mana, how to cast spells, fight, build fortifications, and all kinds of other things.

“So, what is in it for them?” I asked, somewhat suspicious of so much generosity. “There has to be a hook, no?”

“That, Daniel, is the big question. Supposedly it is some weird competition against other nations. Don’t ask me the details as it went right over my head. But, apparently, there are lots of nations on Miranda that war against each other for supremacy, or for survival, or… well, one reason or another. And these nations can expand by conquering other nations’ territories using good oldfashioned military campaigns, or they can participate in dungeon sweepstakes, winner takes all.”

“What is that supposed to mean? Dungeon sweepstakes?”

“Well, I don’t know if you were aware, probably not, but there is supposed to be dungeon around here somewhere. And nations that want to add the dungeon to their territory can participate in a contest. But to do so, they have to invest resources, basically an ante. Which is us, it turns out. Or rather the magical energies they invested in a teleport of a semi-random populated region from one of the multiverses. The more nations or groups compete, the bigger the pot.”

That sounded insane. But I had been to the dungeon already and had encountered some weird shit there… so maybe? But…

“And so, how is that connected to the teaching part?”

“Well, there is some sort of ranking involved in this competition, so that probably plays into that. Chad has not been very forthcoming on this issue. Dungeon exploration seems to play a role as well, but I’m unclear on how much.”

“Seem like you don’t know much about what is going on,” I quipped. “Ignorance is bliss?”

“Screw you, Mr. Skinny Legs,” Sue shot back good-naturedly. “At least, I know more than you.”

“Great accomplishment,” I responded. “Since I’ve never even met Chad or any of the others…”

“Speaking of… how come you can do magic if you never met them?” Sue asked nose scrunched up as the seeming inconsistency suddenly occurred to her.

“Well, I experimented and figured it out,” I said slowly. “You mentioned that they taught you… what exactly did they teach you? What kind of spells can you do?”

Sue looked quizzically at me for a moment before responding. “I won’t just tell you all the spells that I know… but they taught us some basic exercises to increase control and gave us a few starter spells to work on.”

“Gave you spells, what does that mean?” I asked curiously.

“So, once you display enough proficiency with mana manipulation in your type of mana, they have this little ritual they do.. and then, bang, knowledge of a new spell enters your brain. Well, your blood, as I understand it, but you kinda know how to cast it, almost instinctively.”

“What the fuck! Really?”

I was almost outraged at how easy it was. I had worked my butt off, experimenting, struggling to push the mana into this or that application, only to end up with a few paltry spells, and people in Lake Placid got their spells handed to them on a silver platter?

“Can you show me one of your spells?” I asked.

Sue looked questioningly at me. “Why?”

“Just because…, well, I basically just want to see if it looks any different from when I do my own spells.”

Instead of responding, Sue stretched her arm toward me. Almost immediately, I saw runes, lit up in a white light, race along Sue’s arms toward her outstretched hand, and a split second later, the air began to move. Just in time, I switched on my Mana Vision to see twisting strands of white mana rush all around me, buffeting me with a gust of wind, strong enough to push me back a half-step.

That was definitely different from what it looked like when I did magic. For one, I didn’t have any runes run down my arm, at least none that I had ever noticed. And secondly, this had been freaking fast. Activating Shadow Skin was relatively fast by now, after all that practice I had put into it, but it did not activate nearly as quickly unless I had previously prepared for it and then just triggered the spell. And having a spell go off that quickly… that offered fantastic opportunities. Like that wind gust… by itself, it was not too powerful, but if one could cast that in the middle of a fight with a flick of the wrist to unbalance the opponent, it was potentially quite useful.

“There. Happy now?” Sue asked, interrupting my musings. “By the way, what’s up with your eyes? Are they like magic or something?”

“Why do you ask? Anything wrong with them?”

“Well, apart from them just turning silver when I cast my spell and them changing colors every few seconds… nothing major,” Sue deadpanned. “So?”

“Uhm, I really have no idea,” I responded contemplatively, “I wasn’t even aware of it. Apart from the silver… that is one of my spells.”

“Oh, what does it do?”

“It allows me to see mana,” I said absentmindedly, while still trying to figure out why my eyes might be changing colors. I needed a damn mirror.

Sue whistled appreciatively. “Oh, that is so cool! What does it look like? Is it like an x-ray or something?”

“Well, not quite,” I replied. And then I described to her, to the best of my ability, what the view was like, while we made our way down into the canyon.

And even though I was distracted by the conversation, I was struck by how beautiful the gorge was. Red-streaked beige-brown and near-vertical walls seemingly reached up to the sky, only disrupted, here and there, by the small trees clinging desperately to the few outcroppings along the steep cliff. At the bottom, the limestone was polished smooth over the eons, parts of it covered with slick moss and algae. Occasionally, the walls closed in on both sides, creating passageways barely wide enough room to squeeze through. And the small lively creek running through the canyon intermittently tumbled down small waterfalls into deep pools of frigid water.

A few times, there was no way to avoid wading through the cold water. Soon my teeth started chattering, and I was glad for the warm rays of the sun still reaching the other side of the canyon, at least in the broader portions of it.

Could I use the red mana to warm myself? That should be possible, right? I had to experiment with that, like urgently. But I didn’t want to do it in front of Sue for a couple of reasons - there was no need to reveal that I had red mana, and I also couldn’t ignore the possibility that experimenting with red mana would burn stuff around me, including my clothes.

At least, all the talking and hiking together had reduced Sue’s anxiety about me being some type of dangerous weirdo. Toward the end, she was walking right next to me, where possible, and sometimes in front where it was not.

Finally, after perhaps half an hour of slogging through the winding and twisting gorge, the canyon opened up into a somewhat more open space, and I could see a few dark-green tents set up on the slightly elevated, rocky bank, next to the creek. Backpacks were leaning against boulders next to the tents, and I could see a few clothes left out to dry in the fading sun.

But no people.

Before I could turn around and ask Sue where everyone was, a man stepped from behind a big boulder. He was fairly unremarkable, with average height, average built, and an average face. Altogether forgettable really, if it wasn’t for the sword in his hand, which was a gaudy affair with gemstones set into the crossbar, golden filigree inserted into the handle and a large pearl as the pommel.

It looked ridiculous. Clearly, it was a showpiece from an antique store, not a serious, practical blade.

Was that one of the foreigners Sue had mentioned? But the appearance and weapon did not match her description of them as experienced and lethal fighters.

Just then, an easy, warm smile lit up his face, and I finally recognized him. It was Ben, the guy who had been the unofficial leader of our group that first day. He looked different now. Back then, he had some extra wobble to his cheeks and chin, some baby fat, even though he was in his early thirties. Now… I wouldn’t call him square-chinned or tough-looking, but he had lost some of that extra pudginess, and he looked, well, average. Which was an improvement.

“Sue, you made it back!” He said with noticeable relief.

“I sure did, Ben, and put that toothpick away before you accidentally stab someone,” Sue responded cheerfully. “And Tom, why don’t you lower your bow, will ya? I wouldn’t want your hand to slip and get hit by one of those arrows…”

Only now did I notice the guy standing on top of one of the big boulders that were framing the entrance to this area. And I recognized him too. It was Tom of the Tom and Jerry pair of hunters that had used to go bow hunting before the change. He had picked a good spot, hard to see when entering, and offering a commanding position. He’d be able to pepper anyone approaching the open area, or his boulder, with a few arrows before they could ever get into melee range.

“So who is this friend of yours,” Ben asked as he put away his sword. He scrutinized me carefully but not overly judgemental, which I liked.

“This is Daniel,” Sue responded. “He was hanging out at the road, trying to hitch a ride for the last six days, but no cars came by. That is why he is so skinny.”

“Oh c’mon, Sue…” I groaned. “Stop it already.”

Turning to Ben, I said: “I was going after a couple of gars next to Sue’s hiding spot, and so I met her. Serendipity, I guess, only that I am slowly beginning to regret it.”

Ben chuckled, and I heard a few guffaws from behind the boulder, quickly revealing another two people in hiding.

“I hear you, Daniel. Sue is a special kind of girl. She grows on you, though. Just give it some time. Like a year or two,” Ben continued. “I am Ben, as she already told you, I guess.”

I shook his hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

“So, Daniel, you look familiar. Have we met before?” Ben asked, inspecting me once more.

“We have indeed,” I responded. “First day of the change.”

“Ah, yeah, that was a turbulent time… not that it’s that much better now. But those first few hours were quite scary. I don’t recall much of those moments, it’s all one big blur by now. But, be that as it may, welcome to our humble camp and have some food. Despite Sue’s occasionally strange sense of humor, she got this one right, you indeed look quite starved.”

The rest of the evening was one of the most relaxing I had had in a long while. And there was food. Not like great food, mostly cans of beans, corn, beef jerky, pickles, and other stuff that was easy to carry and wouldn’t spoil, and could be eaten without cooking. But for me, it was heaven on earth.

I would have stuffed myself even more if I wouldn’t have felt bad about eating all their supplies.

And as I was eating, I told them an abridged version of my experience, basically claiming that I had fallen into a cave, and it had taken me a while to get out. I kept it light on details, deflecting their questions to things that I was more comfortable talking about, such as my Mana Vision, the Shadow Skin, and some of my background before the change, leaving out for now, that I had been that Daniel in the wheelchair. I didn’t outright lie, just withheld some information, and redirected their curiosity at other times.

And then I told them about the gars torturing the man, about my guilt, and anger, and the decision to hunt them down and the fortuitous meeting with Sue. As I had already suspected, the man had been part of their group, and they were quite emotional about his painful demise.