Sitting in silence, Dean doesn’t feel uncomfortable. Some people feel the need to talk to fill the void when no one else is, but Dean wasn’t one of those people. Besides, having lived in the semi-quiet of the woods for so long recently, it was comfortable to him. The old gnome in the driver's seat was never one to talk unnecessarily, so it was par for the course to Dean by this point.

Instead of sitting there and racking his brain for something to say, Dean Parker was enjoying the scenery. Pine trees lined the side of the road as they drove down the little highway, constantly descending toward the valley of the sun. His thoughts were occupied more with what he would find when he returned to the city.

Would Sandy be waiting, or has she moved on. Dean couldn’t deny that it had been a while since he saw her. On top of that, he had no contact with her the entire time he was gone. Long distance relationships were hard even when you could pick up a phone and talk to the other person regularly. Unable to do even that, Dean couldn’t help the worry that wormed its way into the back of his mind.

Dean hadn’t had much time for anything other than training during his sabbatical. And it wasn’t like they were around many others during that time either. On the other hand, Sandy was a gorgeous woman in a big city. There was no doubt that she would have had the opportunity to get into another relationship during his absence.

Shaking his head, Dean tries to clear his head of the negative thoughts as the scenery changes. The pines became sparse the lower their elevation. They were being replaced by pale green grassy fields. Eventually all the trees were gone and rocky hills began replacing the grass. By the time they were approaching the Phoenix metro area, the only grass to be seen was sparse and more of a tan color. Scraggly bushes and cacti dotted the landscape as they entered the outskirts of town.

Looking over to him briefly, the old gnome that was his teacher, turns his eyes back to the road before speaking. “Where to then Dean?”

It was in that moment that Dean realized he didn’t know. He was so focused on getting back to Sandy that he hadn’t even thought about any of the logistics. During the mad scramble to get everything situated before he left, Dean had ended his lease at the apartment and canceled everything else. That included his cell phone and car insurance. This meant that what little money he had wasn’t gone, but it also meant he was essentially homeless.

On top of that, he couldn’t even call anyone or drive his car, since he had no phone or insurance. Thinking of his car, Sandy promised to have it stored for him while he was gone. With nowhere else to go, that seemed like a good place to start. It had nothing to do with seeing his childhood friend again he told himself. Excitement rising again, he gives Sodek the address to drop him off at.

The rest of the trip was observed in silence as Dean watched the buildings pass by and the old truck navigated the streets to its destination. Pulling into the parking lot, Sodek stops near the front office. “Thanks master.” Dean turns to the old gnome and shakes his hand. “I can take it from here.”

The wizened skin on Sodek’s face crinkles as he gives Dean a proud smile. “Be well then. I will be seeing you soon.” With a nod in return, Dean gets out of the truck. Before he can step away, Sodek calls out for him to stop. “One more thing. I have a sort of graduation present for you.” His weathered hand reaches under his seat and tosses something made of cloth to Dean.

He takes a moment to unfold the small square of cloth, revealing a drawstring pouch. It was small and the opening would only be about six inches wide. Dean can feel mana in the object though. “Is this what I think it is?”

“Yeah.” Sodek said. “Glad you like the gift.” With another wave, the old gnome pulls away and back onto the street. When he is gone, Dean takes a minute to play with his new toy. The dimensional bag required him to bind it to him with blood. Pricking finger, a couple drops of blood fell on the bag to be absorbed. After the link is made, he reaches in. The sensation is weird, and he just knows the bag is empty. Taking his wallet out of his pocket he drops it in and tries again. In his mind, an image of his wallet appears, and he knows it’s within the bag. Satisfied, he turns back to the apartment buildings and walks past the office.

Sandy’s apartment complex was in south Scottsdale. It wasn’t really the nicest complex, as it was really geared toward college students, but it was in the area she wanted, and it wasn’t too expensive. She had a second story apartment that overlooked the pool from her front balcony.

Walking by all the stucco buildings in the southwest style everything around here tends to be in, Dean looks over the pool as he walks. There are people having fun during their time off from college courses. After the events of last summer, the people enjoying themselves seem so much younger than him. In reality, they were only a few years younger than Dean though. Maybe the feeling came from how naïve they all appeared, unaffected by the dirty underside of the world that would eat them alive if they were bold enough to reach for true power.

Shaking off his musings about the events from last year before his time training, he approaches his destination. The excitement from before that lightened his steps turns to nervousness. Thoughts swirling, he can’t help but wonder if she will be happy to see him. Then another thought crosses his mind and he almost laughs out loud. Dean can’t even remember what day of the week it is at this point. Right now it was the middle of the day, what if it’s a weekday and she isn’t even home, out to work.

The small amount of internal levity helps him loosen up and a hopeful Dean makes his way up the metal and stone steps to the second-floor apartment. Not waiting for his nerves to return and cause him to hesitate, Dean quickly knocks on the tan colored door. There is a long wait, and just standing there alone begins to wear on his optimism.

Dean started to feel a little awkward as he stood there with no answer. Just as he was about to leave he hears a rattling from the other side of the door. A moment later the door flies open. Before he can get a good look at the person on the other side, he gets slammed backward into the railing behind him.

When Dean’s brain is able to catch up, he realizes that Nadira has slammed into him and is squeezing for all she is worth. Surprised at the sudden and emotional welcome, it takes Dean a moment to wrap his arms around her. Returning the hug is good. It feels like a real homecoming now. But as the seconds tick by, he is getting more curious as to where Sandy is.

Giving Nadira a last squeeze, he starts to let go, but maintains her grip on him. That is when Dean notices the slight bouncing of her shoulders. She is crying into his chest and he notices the dampness forming there. “Nadira, what’s wrong?” She just shook her head and stays where she is.

It took a few minutes for Dean to shuffle them both into the apartment, close the door and then sit on the couch in the living room. When seated, Dean just held Nadira for a time until she was able to sit back. Now able to get a better look at her, he saw her tear streaked face and worry settled into him. “Nadira, where is Sandy?”

The cat woman takes a deep, stuttering breath and Dean is worried that she will break down again. She regains her faculties and is finally able to speak. “I don’t know. I haven’t seen her in a couple of days now.”

Disappointment and worry for his best friend lace together in a complicated feeling. “Do you know what is going on? Why would she have been gone for so long?”

Taking another deep breath to center herself she starts to update him on what they have been doing since he left. “Let me start from the beginning. While you were gone I tried to get a job. I had a couple, but they didn’t make much. I was a waitress for a time and worked the cashier at a grocery store. After everything that happened before you left, Sa’dra was getting a little anxious. It was her idea to take a few quests from the board at the adventurers guild. She wanted to get stronger and the extra money was good.”

More composed now that she had started talking, Nadira takes a moment to get up and head over to the kitchen. Meanwhile, Dean takes a look around. Sandy’s apartment is much larger than Dean’s old one, but still only a one bedroom. It was also in a better area than his previous one. Now that he was looking around, he noticed that the couch was new. From the looks of it, it’s a pull out bed. Dean’s best friend probably picked it up for Nadira to sleep on.

Other than the blue couch not much had changed in the living room. There was a TV across from him, next to the door, and a shelf to the right holding knick knacks beside movies. There were a few new flicks on her shelf that piqued his interest a little. Dean hadn’t really been in touch with pop culture this last year. That train of thought is cut off and forgotten when Nadira returns a minute later with a couple of beers.

She hands one to Dean and takes a long pull from her own after sitting. “At first, we took easy jobs. There weren't any problems on them and we made a little extra coin. Sandy wanted to do harder ones though. She wanted to explore more and dive a dungeon or two.”

Dean holds up a hand to stop her there. “Dungeons? How does that work?”

The furry eared woman nods, understanding that Dean was new to everything still. Nadir can’t help but ask her own question though. “Didn’t Sodek tell you about them?”

Despite his mood, her question elicited a small chuckle from Dean. “Sodek wasn’t much of a talker. Big proponent of saying only what is necessary.”

After his answer she continues with an explanation. “Dungeons are areas where mana has gotten dense. When it reaches a sufficient density, a sort of critical mass, the system forms a dungeon to relieve the pressure. This is the theory most believe because too much mana can warp and mutate living things. The mana gathering in these dense areas is used to spawn creatures and create a pocket of space for the dungeon that is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside.”

“Like that bag that Sandy has and I got from Sodek? That sounds interesting, but why would you want to go into these places instead of doing the other jobs off the quest board in the guild?”

Nadira hesitates for a second as she glances to the pouch now attached to Dean’s belt. “Money. The things you can collect from the animals and even the mana rich environment in a dungeon. The difference in payout is significant. On the other side, the creatures that spawn in these dungeons are far more dangerous. For safety, it’s best to enter as a group. There are limits to how many people can enter at once, but at least five or six people is the usual group size for these trips.”

Dean is surprised by the fact that dungeons like that are real. “But there were only the two of you. Don’t tell me you tried it anyway?”

Shaking her head, she quickly denies it. “No we didn’t. At the adventurers guild there are notices with teams looking for members to fill out their group to do these dungeons. We found one looking for two members and we gave it a try.”

As he listens, Dean feels a little spike of jealousy. They were his team before, and it felt like they were replacing him. He knew that it was a ridiculous thing to think, so he mentally stamped down on it. “And then what?”

“The team we met up with was a trio of fae. Two guys and a girl. At first they were nice, but they pushed us to do more dungeon dives with them than I was comfortable. They did share potions with us though. I never had to use one myself, but Sandy had to a couple of times.” Nadira takes a moment as a frown crossed her lips. “Soon, Sandy went out with them when I didn’t. A couple days ago, she went with them and hasn’t been back since.”

It was Dean’s turn to frown. “Why would she go and not take you? Did you offer.”

Nadira looked more troubled with her own response. “I offered, but lately she has refused my help. She said they were just doing a little one and that they could manage without me. The other day, before she left, she flat out refused me. I was surprised that she was almost rude about it too.” Placing her beer on the coffee table in front of them she then hugs Dean again. “I’m really worried about her.”

Hugging her back, Dean gets a dread feeling. “Me too Nadira. Me too.”