With his hands in his pockets, Eric hunched his back and walked down the alley. No one was here except for him.

Where he was heading, he didn’t know, and he didn’t care. All he needed was to empty his head and get a clear mind.

Eric chuckled.

Oh, whom was he kidding? He was just running away. Dammit. He behaved like an idiot. Altera wanted to make up for her mistakes, yet he did his best to reject every apology. Even though both wanted their situation to return to normal, and his behavior could worsen Altera’s anxiety, he couldn’t face her. It was the logical thing to do. And it was easy. Altera’s bipolar disorder had messed with her and brought her to her breaking point. He shouldn’t be mad, yet he was.

“Twice, why am I such a loser?” He clenched his hand to a fist and punched against the wall.

“What did that wall do to you?”

Eric’s eyes widened.

Wait a minute. That voice sounded familiar.

He turned around, and Nephthys smiled at him. “What are you doing here?”

“Me?” Nephthys pointed at his chest. “I was going to deliver a message from Geißel to Altera. What are you doing here, all alone?”

Eric looked away. “It’s a long story.”

“That’s great. I love long stories. The longer, the better.”

Eric sighed.

Trying to argue with that munchkin would waste his time. He might as well tell him about his problems.

֎

“So, you’re angry at Altera because she accused you of betraying your friends?” Nephthys asked once Eric finished his story.

“Kinda.” Eric let his head hang. “I get that she was in a rough place, but I can’t. And that just pisses me off.” He ground his teeth. “Why can’t I just act normal?”

Nephthys started to laugh, and Eric narrowed his eyes. “What’s so funny?”

“You can be such a big dummy.” He poked Eric’s chest. “You’re acting normal.”

Eric tilted his head. “Come again?”

“Yeah, Altera had her reasons for acting like that, but that doesn’t change that what she said didn’t hurt you.”

“Hurt me?”

“Aren’t you her friend?”

Eric lowered his eyes. In his mind, he replayed the words he had told Altera. “I thought we were friends, but now, I’m not so sure.”

“Imagine if your best friend tells you that they never liked you. How would you feel? Hurt, right? Altera betrayed you, and you can rationalize it all you want, but it doesn’t change that you’re hurt and angry.”

“I don’t like this.”

Even if Nephthys told him the truth, he couldn’t it accept it. He should be above such petty squabbles. What was he? A child?

Nephthys smiled. “That’s what makes us human. You’ve lived all alone for so long that you forgot what it means to have someone you care about again. When Altera hurt you, she made you feel it again.”

“What can I do?” Eric asked.

“Nothing.”

“Nothing?” Eric crossed his arms. “What do you mean “nothing”?”

“Very simple. It’s not a question about if you will forgive Altera, but if you can forgive her.” For a moment, Nephthys’ smile disappeared. “We can’t escape our feelings. All the logic and sayings about being the better man or taking the high road won’t help you. It’s what makes us human. You gotta find out for yourself what you’ll do.”

Eric’s phone rang.

A blessing in disguise had appeared before Eric that allowed him to avoid the question as he couldn’t provide Nephthys an answer that would satisfy either of them.

“Sorry. Gotta take this.” He picked it up, seeing Ragna’s number.

“Hey, Ragna. What’s up?”

“Clockwork teamed up with Skyfrost. We’re under attack.” Ragna’s words shot out of his phone like rapid-fire.

“What?” Eric stopped him himself. He lowered his voice and narrowed his eyes, glancing at Nephthys. “What do you mean? What’s happening? Are you okay?”

He had to keep his cool and assess the information she gave him. If he stormed off without a plan, he might worsen the situation Ragna had gotten herself into.

“I’m fighting Skyfrost, and Jareth’s dealing with Clockwork. What about you? Is Altera with you? I can’t reach her.”

Eric nodded. “Everything’s fine here, but she’s not with me. I’m talking with Nephty right now. Last I saw her, she was heading to church. You sure she didn’t just notice your call? Tech’s not exactly her forte.”

When she said Skyfrost, did she mean the Vice-captain? Yeah, that had to be it. Ragna and Altera had gotten into trouble with Skyfrost before. Why the Hel did a Vice-captain team up with a criminal? Morals aside, that would become a PR nightmare.

“Please just check on her. If Clockwork’s alive, his cronies might be too. I’m calling you later.”

She hung up.

“Everything’s okay?” Nephthys smiled.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” Eric turned his back away from him, forming a line of blood between his shoulder blades. “Ragna and Altera just have some relationship troubles. You know the two.”

Why exactly was Nephthys here in Heorot, again? He said he had to deliver Altera a message from the chieftain, but couldn’t he have called her? Geißel didn’t give the impression that he was as hopeless with technology as Altera. So why did he get through the trouble of sending one of his Samurai to Heorot?

Nephthys chuckled. “Yeah, they’re quite something.”

Eric nodded and returned the smile. “True. But I gotta make sure that Altera’s not bawling her eyes out. After the tower, I’m worried about her.”

But even if he assumed that Geißel had ulterior motives, why would he team up with Skyfrost and Clockwork? As much as he would stab them in the back without a second thought, he cared about Altera more than anything.

“I’m sorry, Eric.” Nephthys shook his head. His smile didn’t waver. “I’m afraid I can’t let you do that.”

Eric narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“I’ve got clear orders. Keep you guys from interfering with Clockwork and Skyfrost. So, no. You can’t help Altera.”

His blood formed into a whip. “So, Geißel betrayed us.” Without a second of hesitation, Eric threw his blood at Nephthys.

Nephthys drew a knife. He cut through the construct and jumped back. “Believe it or not, he didn’t.”

“So, what did he do?” The blood reformed, and Eric attacked again. Crimson bullets shoot out of his shoulders. Nephthys danced around them and closed the distance to Eric.

“Your defense’s lacking.” Grinning, Nephthys poked him. “If you don’t keep up, you’ll end up dead.”

“What?”

Eric’s eyes grew large, and Nephthys slashed him with his knife across his chest. He shrieked and stumbled backward. Blood splattered from the wound in the air. He giggled, held the back of his hand towards his face, and licked up the liquid like a cat.

“On the battlefield, blood can be sweeter than strawberries and highlight your face better than any makeup.” He giggled a second time and wiped away the blood that had caught his body from his cheek. “But in this case, it would be more like arsenic.”

In the air, Eric’s blood floated like rain droplets whose movement gravity had stopped. They surrounded Nephthys and bombarded him at once.

Eric walked forward. He placed his hand on his wound and grumbled.

He liked this shirt. Was Nephthys okay? He might have gone a bit overboard, but Nephthys shouldn’t be dead. It wasn’t like he had much choice. Geißel had become an enemy, and he was fighting against a Samurai. He was screwed if Nephthys decided to use his Kaa.

The blood from his surroundings retreated into his wound, and with his Fylgja, he kept it from flowing out.

“Yahoo.” Nephthys clapped his hands. “I figured just wounding you wouldn’t cut it. That means I can go a bit out without worrying about yer pretty face.”

“Why don’t you tell me why Geißel’s attacking his own sister.” Eric narrowed his eyes.

Not a single wound had blemished Nephthys’s skin.

“Didn’t ya listen?” Nephthys pointed his finger at his temple. “He didn’t betray you. And he would never harm Altera. You know that as much as I do.”

“So why is Vice-captain Skyfrost attacking Ragna?” From his shoulder, Eric threw a whip made of blood at his opponent.

“This is all on them.” Nephthys dodged and jumped a step backwards. “They have some beef with Ragna, it seems. Something about revenge. I dunno, and I don’t care.”

“Then why are you here?” Eric attacked anew.

“To keep an eye on them and make sure that Altera will be fine.” Nephthys dashed forward. He drew his knife, thrusting its edge at Eric.

“Right now, you’re not doing either.” Eric blocked the attack with his blood as Nephthys sliced through the construct. The two went back and forth in their fight without either harming the other. Eric attacked with his blood, and Nephthys dodged. In turn, Nephthys retaliated with his knife, and Eric blocked him with his blood. All the while, the two continued to talk.

“I don’t really need to worry about Altera. She may be mentally unstable, but she’s strong. Nothing they can do could kill her.”

“And Ragna?” A crude smile appeared on Eric’s smile.

“Skyfrost’s condition for me being here was that no one interfered with their prey. That’s you, and me, and Altera too. Shucks for her, but that’s life.”

“How cruel. She thought you were her friend.”

“Really?” Nephthys’ face glowed, and he grinned like a child. “I like her too. The world’s so much better with her around. We should totally go clubbing once this is over. Or watch that new show “MC Kaiser Wilhelm.”

“Yeah. Might be difficult. Ragna got this issue with people trying to screw her over.”

“Hey, I’m rooting for her.” Nephthys pouted. “But I’m still a Samurai. So, I carry out the Chiefs’ orders without fail.” He started to grimace, and a poisonous gleam flickered in his eyes. He might as well have swapped out his face for a mask. “Besides, I lost any morals the moment my family threw me out into the streets for the way I looked and dressed.” His hand and lips trembled. “For whom I wanted to love.”

For a second, Eric stopped his movements. He looked at his opponent, and the corners of his mouth turned upside down. “I wish I could say I’m shocked, but you’re a gay crossdresser from Kemet-Raa. I figured that some intolerant assholes drove you out of your kingdom. You weren’t exactly subtle with the hints.”

“True.” Nephthys started to grin. “The times on the streets were cruel. They left with me with scars on my skin and soul, but they had thought me well. And one day, it was time to teach the streets my name.”

“Your name?” Eric gulped. His eyes jumped around the alley.

It started to rattle. Red orbs glowed in the darkness and circled him. Bleak white bones and skeletons that reached to his torso crept through the alley. A few bowed to Nephthys and allowed him to sit on their corpses.

He crossed his legs and stared with a grin at Eric. “Queen Ghoul.”