It took about twenty minutes to get the rest of the party relatively taken care of but Tony hinted it would be a few hours before some of them were able to fight the toxic side effects off and wake up.

“I could try healing them,” Orrin offered.

Tony shook his head. “You need to rest. Stop pushing yourself. A little sleep will do them good.”

Brandt had carried every guard to a small part of the clearing that hadn’t been covered in blood. When Orrin offered blankets from his [Dimension Hole], he’d gladly accepted and covered each separately.

Brandt rubbed the fabric of the last blanket between his fingers. “This is good cloth and looks familiar.”

Orrin laughed and slapped the man’s armored back. “Good thing I’ve got it, huh? No need to look closer.”

Tony and Orrin sat down next to the sulking guard. Madi was checking over the guards, making sure they were all comfortably positioned. Daniel had pulled Samara, the huge warrior, and the archer over to their tents and was going through their belongs. At a cough from Tony, he left the bodies alone and began to get firewood.

It’s so weird watching Tony mindspeak to just one person. Orrin thought as he scratched his arm. He had healed the slight cut he’d gotten from falling on his own sword but the skin felt fresh and itched.

Brandt frowned and covered his own shoulders with the last blanket. “I still don’t get how we took down Wendeln’s Agent. I was able to knock her attacks away but any hits I landed did nothing at all.”

Daniel dropped a pile of small twigs and sticks he’d collected between them. “I’d also be interested in that. Mind you, I was doing damage with everything I had turned up to one hundred but that lady could take a hit. What did you do to her?”

Madi wondered over as the discussion turned to the new topic.

Orrin hesitated. “I’m not sure I should just say it out loud. Especially after Jude...you know.”

Jude’s betrayal was fresh on his mind.

“If it is any consolation, Sir Jude kept his thoughts so well cloaked I never suspected either. He didn’t let a single stray thought through until he let Brandt take him out.”

“What?” Orrin turned and stared at Tony.

“Did you lose Intelligence as well?” Tony furrowed his brow. “You think Brandt could take out a close friend that quickly? Or that Jude would open up his own weak spot to a sparring partner of years? He acted with honor at the end. He couldn’t fight Brandt. Not truly. He knew that his death was the only hope that his family had of not being immediately killed.”

Daniel sat close to Brandt and put a hand on his shoulder. “Is that true?”

Brandt kept his head down as he answered in a quiet voice. “I’ve made that same attack against Jude in practice for years and never landed it. I helped him come up with a counter. When he was a kid, he got in lots of fights due to his smart mouth. He learned to fight, run quickly, or take his lumps. But he took a punch to his stomach once, just to the side, here.” Brandt pointed at his own side, just above the hip. “He said it was the worst pain he’d ever felt. It was his critical spot. Like when Madi got hit in the head during the dungeon run?”

Daniel and Orrin nodded at the memory. Madi shuddered.

“When he joined the Catanzano house, he was a good fighter but always too open. I got a good hit in during practice and knew right away,” Brandt continued to open up. “You learn to figure out where to hit a person when your life revolves around protecting others from danger, but you don’t hit a sparring partner there. So I went to Jude later and helped him correct his guard. He always kept his hammer’s head too high. I thought if I attacked him there, he would use the feint I’d shown him. I’d be able to avoid that but be close enough to try and disarm him.”

The dirt under Brandt was wet. “The bastard didn’t move.” Brandt looked up with haunted eyes and a stricken face. “Why didn’t he move?”

Orrin couldn’t find any words. Madi wrapped an arm around her protector.

“His last thoughts were about imagining you beating Samara and saving his niece.” Tony’s voice held both gentleness and strength at once. “He knew you’d find a way. There was no anger when he went quiet.”

Brandt stood abruptly, fists held at his sides. “Anthony, do not lie to me. That man was a traitor who knocked you and Madi out. He was a danger to-“

Tony cut him off. “Sir Jude DeGuis gave his life to keep his family safe. Do not sully his memory. We all make the wrong choices but what we are, who we are when we get the chance to fix our mistakes is what defines us. He made the best of his situation, just as we all would.”

The stars in the sky reflected off Brandt’s cheeks as he turned and screamed into the night. The wounded howl of a beast...or a man who lost a brother he loved.

“...Orrin. Daniel. Will you watch over Madi for a while? I need a minute to breathe. I’ll check the perimeter again.”

Daniel made a shooing motion and Orrin nodded. Brandt slunk off into the forest. Madi watched him walk away forlornly.

“So now that he’s gone...” Daniel leaned in conspiratorially. “You got [Increase Constitution] didn’t you?”

Orrin shook his head. “Madi, could you give us some privacy?”

Madi looked hurt. “You’ll let Anthony know but not me?”

“I’m sorry. Please?”

Madi stood and brushed her knees. “I’ll just go try and get some water into the group of men and women who risked their lives to save Daniel.”

She stomped off.

Orrin waited for her to be out of earshot. “Remember Administrator Access?”

Daniel blinked and glanced at Tony in shock.

“Don’t worry, he knows more about it than we did. Tony’s good people,” Orrin said, ignoring Daniel’s doubtful looks. “When Samara was going on a rampage, I got a prompt to use Administrator Access to reset her Constitution.”

“So just like [Increase Constitution] right?” Daniel asked confused.

“No. I think it was permanent and she didn’t have a chance to block it. She just lost ten points of Constitution right away.”

“That is fucking wild!” Daniel nearly hopped up from the ground. “You can permanently take away stats now, too? Is there a limit? Can you increase them, too?”

Tony reached out swiftly and tried to yank Daniel back down. Daniel jerked back and swatted his hand. “Don’t touch me. Orrin might trust you but I don’t yet.”

Oh how the tables have turned, Orrin laughed to himself.

“Sit down, child, and lower your voice. There’s a reason I drove Brandt away and Orrin asked Madi to leave. This is more dangerous than you being a [Hero].”

Daniel crossed his arms and scowled but sat back into a crossed leg position. “Spill, Orrin.”

Orrin sighed. “I spent one of my own points to decrease hers. It took twenty points before you guys were doing real damage.”

“You spent two points? Like two Con points that are gone now? Didn’t you start off really low?” Daniel uncrossed his arms and pulled Orrin close, looking all over for some sort of damage. “Are you okay?”

Tony chuckled. Daniel let Orrin go and glared at the man. “I’m allowed to worry about my friend.”

Tony held his hands up in mock surrender. “By all means, I said nothing.”

“I’m fine,” Orrin interjected, rubbing his shoulders. Daniel’s grip hurt a little. “I’m just a little more squishy now.”

“Squishy?” Tony asked.

“It’s a word we use to describe someone who is weak, mostly in a tabletop game,” Orrin explained.

“I’ve never heard of a dragon in a Dungeon before.” Tony quirked an eyebrow. “Usually, they stick to the seas and islands, only coming in for the occasional sheep or cow.”

“No, no,” Orrin laughed. “It’s and, not in, and stop reading my thoughts. Wait, dragons are real?”

“Of course.” Tony shivered. Daniel held up Brandt’s abandoned blanket and Tony accepted, wrapping his frail frame up. His hair still stuck out at the top. “Since the world was broken, they avoid nearly everyone though. The last sighting was years ago. The dead body of a red one washed ashore.”

“I want to see a dragon,” Orrin whispered wistfully.

“Do they give good experience?” Daniel asked.

Tony sneered. “Good experience? Dragons are an intelligent species. Like humans or dwarves. You get no experience for that.”

“But don’t we get experience for killing Demons? Aren’t they intelligent?” Orrin chimed in. He’d been wondering about the experience discrepancy for a while.

“How much do you actually know about Demons?”

“They’re bad,” Daniel answered. “And killing them is kind of my job now.”

Tony rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Demons are just another race. Some have horns or different color skin, but others look the same as you and me. At some point in history, they broke from civilization and did something to the System. They can kill each other, monsters, or even us and gain experience. However, we also got the ability to gain experience from them. The history books talk of centuries of bloodshed between the two groups until the world was broken and remade.”

“But Daniel’s right too, right?” Orrin asked. “They’re bad. They attack the Walls of Dey and try to kill people still.”

Tony shrugged. “And Dey sends expeditions into the Pass and beyond to kill indiscriminately and find any major cities to destroy. It’s a matter of perspective but if you’re asking if I would make friends with a Demon, the answer is a firm no. Semantics and logic puzzles aside, I believe anyone who tries to kill me should be in the ground.”

Daniel just nodded at the conclusion of Tony’s little speech, but Orrin got stuck. “What about a treaty of some sort? Surely, somebody has tried talking with them. Maybe-“

“Orrin, I know what you’re thinking...literally. It’s never been done. They kill anyone they find. You just barely evaded one.”

Orrin let it rest, but only because the sound of footsteps approaching ended the conversation.

“Perimeter is clear. The sun should be fully up within the hour. How are they?” Brandt asked as he came back from his walk. He put on a professional air, but Orrin could see the streaks in the dirt of his face.

“They really should sleep for a few hours, but if we travel slowly, they could be woken now,” Tony answered.

Brandt nodded and turned to the sun. “Let’s get to it. I have some unfinished business in Dey. Hey Daniel and Madi. Do you want to help me strip the bodies? Orrin, can you carry a few extra things in your spatial storage?”

Daniel stood and nodded, running back to the task he’d already started. The few times that Orrin had gotten Daniel to play table-top role playing games with him, he’d always been a murderhobo. No surprise he wants to loot.

“I’ll carry what I can. I’m not totally sure what the limit is, but I’m guessing I’ll find out soon enough.” Orrin stood also. He stretched his arms over his head and bent. “I’m guessing we are going to have to travel on foot?”

Brandt’s smile peeked out for just a brief moment as Madi headed to help with the plundering. “Yes and no. They had a cart and a few horses. I think we can let the injured sit in shifts.”

“But I’m not hurt.”

“Exactly. You get to walk with us. Isn’t that great?” Brandt smacked Orrin’s shoulder as he passed.

Orrin fell hard on his butt.

Brandt was on his knee immediately, helping Orrin back up. “I’m so sorry. You are hurt, aren’t you? I’m putting you on the cart. That was barely a love tap.”

Tony stepped in and grabbed Orrin’s other arm. “He’s just a little mana-tired. So many spells. Go help the [Hero] and young Catanzano.”

Brandt hesitated at being directed by Tony but quietly conceded. The two men and Madi were soon breaking down tents and pulling boots off dead bodies.

Murderhobos.