"JIM! Wake up, Jim. You need to get up now!" I snap upright in the bed so violently that I nearly knock Alexis off.

"What's going on!?" My head snaps around to check in every direction. As far as I can see, there is nothing out there. It's the same as when I fell asleep, except for a stack of mana bricks sitting beside the bed.

"Someone is banging on the door to your room. Hold on because I need to send you back outside of me." Before I can say anything else, I feel a shoving on me and the edges of my vision goes gray.

With a jolt, my head snaps up as a loud bang echoes through the room.

"For fucks sake! If you are going to pay for delivery, then open the door when it gets here! Fucking hurry up or I'll leave your shit right here! I have other orders to fill, you know!" I scramble to my feet and shove Alexis's core back into its pouch. I gently toss the pouch on the bed where Shiva and Thea are slowly walking up.

"What's going on?" Thea rubs her eyes as she slowly shifts on the bed. Shiva is shaking her head and shifting closer to Thea. It looks like she is going to try and go back to sleep.

She is probably still worn out. Thea said that she doesn't have the stamina of Thea and me.

"I paid to have my weapons delivered. I'm pretty sure that's them. Don't worry, I got it " The banging on the door is just starting again when I turn the nob.

"Fuck, I heard you the first time you don't need to keep yelling." When the door swings open, Talora has her hand raised to bang again.

"Well if you would open your door in a timely manner, I wouldn't have to yell while standing in the hall!" She pushes her way in the room past me. The large canvas bag on her back gives a metallic clink as it shifts. "Seriously, what the hell kept you so…… Eeeep!!!" She spins on her heels to turn back towards me, a blush racing over her skin.

"Who the hell is that!" Her gaze locks on me for the first time since she entered the room. Her eyes look down my body then back up to my face. "Why are you not wearing any clothes!?" She buries her face in her hands and looks like she is about to collapse. I glance down to double check that I am wearing pants.

"I am wearing clothes. See, I still have my pants on." Talora shakes her head back and forth violently, still hiding her face.

"Can you please just put some clothes on! If I had known you weren't dressed, I would have waited in the hall!" Thea slips out of the bed behind Talora and I see a mischievous grin on her face. Shiva seems to pick up on what is going on and slips out of bed behind her.

I take a second to admire the way their bodies look in the early morning light. My mind runs over the different things I would love to do with them. Then I shake my head to remind myself that there are more pressing matters at hand.

"Silas, what did we tell you about bringing strange women home?" Thea pulls on my discarded shirt as she steps close to Talora. Shiva is grinning as she slips on her shirt off the floor and moves around to Talora's other side.

"We clearly said no women we didn't approve of. While she is kind of cute, I don't know if I would approve. I mean she is very shy." Thea runs her hand down Talora's arm which causes her to jump. Talora's head snaps up and she seems to realize how close Thea and Shiva are to her. With a loud scream, she runs into the adjoining bathroom and slams the door.

"I'm not coming out until you are all dressed!" I can't help myself and start to laugh uncontrollably. It takes longer than I want to admit to get control of myself again. By the time I do, Shiva and Thea are already dressed and eyeing me. Thea hands me my shirt back and I quickly pull it on.

"Fine we are all dressed now!" The washroom cracks open and Talora peeks out. When she sees that we are dressed, she swings the door open wide and walks back into the room.

"Just how many women do you have anyway?" Talora stares at Thea and Shiva as she crosses the room to me. She rips the bag off her back and slams it into my chest. I raise an eyebrow at her as I walk over to the bed and lay the bag down.

"I have two, and until a couple days ago it was just one. Why, you looking?" Talora lets out a yelp at my teasing question. I catch myself chuckling as I open the bag and start pulling out the weapons inside. There at the bottom of the bag is a bag of coins I'm assuming is the payment for the excess materials I sold Assad.

"If you are looking then you need to keep looking." Thea's voice sounds almost angry, not the teasing tone she had earlier. I turn my head to see that Shiva and Thea have backed Talora into a corner, literally.

"We aren't going to be in Shevel long. With what little time we are going to be here, he is not going to be looking for new women. So you need to remember to keep your hands to yourself and keep your distance. Do you understand?" Shiva has pulled a knife from somewhere and is almost casually cleaning under her nails with it as she speaks. Talora is looking around the room as if she is searching for help.

"I don't want your man! I was just delivering his weapons like he asked! If it wasn't for the instructions my father gave me, I would have tossed the bag at him and left!" Talora looks like she is about to break down under the combined glares of Shiva and Thea.

"And just what were the instructions he gave you? Something to the effect of trying to catch you a man, hmmm!?" I start to shake my head at Thea's teasing. Even if Talora can't tell that the two of them are teasing and not serious, I can.

"Nooooooooo! He told me if any of the weapons were not to his satisfaction, to bring them back and he'd fix it. I swear I'm not trying to catch anyone!" She looks like she is about to cry so I know I had better step in.

"You two need to quit teasing her. I don't think she can tell that you two aren't serious." Shiva groans as I turn back to the bed to finish sorting the weapons. I'm turning the sheaths over to examine the attachment points when I hear Shiva speak.

"You just have to ruin all my fun, don't you?" I feel her hands slip around my waist as she is speaking.

"I don't know, I think we were having plenty of fun last night." Shiva starts to purr as I finish pulling everything from the bag and laying it on the bed.

"That looks like more than just a sword." Thea walks around the edge of the bed and starts to run her fingers over the sheathed weapons.

"Yeah, that's what took me so long yesterday. I figured I might as well replace all that I lost in the dungeon." Thea nods her head as I gently pull Shiva's hands off me.

"Awwww what? Don't want me hugging you right now?" I laugh as I draw the sword from its sheath to test its balance.

"Not trying to ruin your fun, but I'm sure Talora would like to leave at some point. So I figured I'd check the blades now instead of after you tease her some more." The blade is heavier than I was expecting, but is balanced great. The metal has a wavey pattern to it that reminds me of pattern welded steel.

I shift my grip on the blade and rotate my wrist slowly. The tip of the sword moves in a smooth arc with barely any effort. I might not understand the metals that were used to forge it, but I recognize the quality in the build. As I slide it back into its sheath, I catch myself smiling.

The rest of the blades take almost no time to check. All of the work seems to be of high quality. Even the wooden scales of the handles have been sanded and polished with a checkered pattern for a solid grip. The only ones I had been worried about were the push daggers. To my surprise, the ones for me fit my hands perfectly. The blades are slightly narrower than my fist and surprisingly thin. When I try to flex the blades, it becomes clear that even though they are thin there is no give in them.

As I'm about to slide the blade back in its sheath, I notice a mark etched on the blade. I turn the blade in the light to get a better look at it. It looks like a snake with claws swallowing its tail?

"What's this?" Talora steps closer to me to look at the blade.

"That's dad's mark. He puts it on all the blades that are made in his shop. Or at least all of them that are made by his master smiths. He also told me to give you this." She reaches into her belt and hands me an envelope. When I raise an eyebrow at her, she laughs.

"Yeah, yeah I know you can't read. Luckily, you don't need to. Inside there is a bracelet etched with Fashen script. It tells anyone from my homeland that you are a friend. If a merchant or smith from Fashen sees it, they will try and help you as best they can. Just don't put it on in Shevel because most of the merchants don't like us here." I take the envelope and tuck it into my pocket.

"Thank you, I'll make sure to keep it safe." I turn the sheathed dagger over in my hand to examine the back. The back has a thick leather strap with a button on it. It doesn't take long for me to realize how they will attach to my armor.

"So is everything satisfactory?" I nod my head as I sort through the blades. I set mine to one side and the rest to the other. "Ok, I'll just be on my way then."

"Wait a second." As Talora stops short of the door, I grab the bag of coins off the bed. I shift the contents of the bag until I dig out two of the gold coins. "Here, for delivering the blades." Talora looks confused as she stares down at the coins.

"You paid for the delivery yesterday."

"I know, consider this a tip for excellent service." Behind me, I hear Thea start to laugh.

"It better be the only tip she gets!" Shiva's yell makes Talora jump.

"Well thanks." She tucks the coins away and steps into the hall. She disappears down the hall without so much as a goodbye. As I shut the door, Thea comes up behind me and wraps her arms around me.

"Come on, Jim. We need to get cleaned up again. We have to meet the contact in the next few hours. I for one would like to get something to eat first, and not smell like sex when we meet them." I stretch as I turn around feeling a small pop from my lower back.

"Yeah, that sounds like a plan." I strip off my shirt and pants, tossing them into the chair.

"Jim, why did you sleep on the floor instead of coming to bed like you said you would?" At Thea's question, I freeze while my handrestis on the door to the washroom.

"Well you see, that's kind of a long story." I quickly explain what happened inside Alexis's core. As I'm explaining, both Thea and Shiva start to eye Alexis from where she is laying on the bed. When I finish, both of them are quiet for a long moment.

"So maybe we should be more worried about Alexis trying to move in on us?" Thea rubs her chin like she is thinking, but I can see her grin. Shiva is not grinning, instead she is stalking closer to the core.

"Maybe we should make sure she understands where the line gets drawn at." Something tells me she is joking, but the look in her eye is very convincing.

"JIM, YOU HAVE TO TELL THEM I WASN'T TRYING TO MAKE A MOVE ON YOU! PLEASE!" When I start to laugh, Shiva jumps and spins around to look at me.

"What's so funny, Jim?" I hold up a hand to tell her to give me a moment as I keep laughing.

"Whew! Fuck, I needed that." I start to wipe a tear out of my eye as Shiva glares at me.

"Jim!" Seeing Shiva glaring at me causes me to start laughing again. It takes me another minute to get my laughter back under control.

"Alexis is seriously scared right now. She honestly thinks you two are going to hurt her. I was mostly sure you and Thea were playing with her." Thea steps in between Shiva and Alexis then scoops up the dungeon core. She pulls Alexis up level to her face.

"We aren't actually mad at you. I wish you had told Jim before what a surge of mana does to you. We aren't angry, though. We just wanted to tease you a little. I'm sorry that we scared you like that." Thea turns to Shiva and glares at her for a second, prompting Shiva to sigh.

"I'm sorry too. Just for the record, I was only half teasing. If you try and make a move on Jim, I will crush you!" Shiva smiles at Alexis and somehow looks apologetic and threatening at the same time.

"I promise I'm not trying to make a move on Jim. I just want to set up a dungeon and settle into a normal life. Maybe have you all come and visit from time to time, but not in a sexual way." I can stop myself from chuckling as I relay Alexis's words to Thea and Shiva. Shiva nods to Alexis as she strips off her clothes and heads into the washroom.

"As long as it's settled, I won't say anything else about it. Jim, hurry up and get in here to wash my back." Her tail slaps me on the thigh as she walks past. Thea sets Alexis down on the bed before starting to strip down too.

"Alexis, in the future, just let us know before it gets embarrassing. Also don't make Jim lie to me again."

"When did I lie to you?" I strip my shirt off as Thea starts to walk past me.

"You said you would come to bed, instead you slept on the floor. I'm not happy about that even though I understand what happened." Thea stands up on her tiptoes to kiss my cheek.

"I'm sorry, babe. I'll try and do better in the future." As I'm stripping off my jeans, Alexis starts to speak again.

"I have a decent version of your grenade finished. I'll have a chest for you with them inside it when you all get out. I'll clean your clothes too. It won't take me but a second." As I'm turning around, I hear Alexis speaking in an almost whisper. "What is with them just stripping down."

As I step into the washroom, the sight of Shiva and Thea bathing makes me pause. Shiva is leaned against the edge of the tub with Thea washing the redhead's back. I step into the room and slip into the tub behind Thea. My hands wrap around Thea to help her wash Shiva's muscular back.

"I thought I was supposed to be the one washing her back?" Shiva lets out a snort against the tub.

"You could have, but you waited too long and Thea got here first." Thea moans quietly as her soapy hands caress mine along Shiva's back.

"Hmm, someone's getting excited." Thea nods her head slowly and I can see her biting her lower lip.

"Yesssss! We need to hurry up if we are going to eat and meet the contact. So no playing, we are just getting clean right now." She splashes me with the warm water of the tub, causing me to pull back slightly. A grin splits my face as I splash her back and she squeals loudly. It breaks down into a splashing war for a minute with Thea and Shiva teaming up against me. After I finally surrendered, the rest of the bath went quickly. When we step back into the bedroom, there is a decent sized chest sitting next to the bed.

"Ok, what's that supposed to be?" Shiva stares at the chest, but is searching the room for her clothes. Her movements get more frantic when she realizes her clothes seem to be gone.

"Alexis said she would clean our clothes for us and is dropping off the thing we were working on last night." I flip the lid open on the chest and examine the neat pile of clothes on top. Shiva reaches around me and pulls hers off the top as Thea sits patiently on the bed.

"So what are you waiting on?" I raise my eyebrow at her as I take a knee beside the chest.

"Waiting on you to help me into my clothes." Her eyes are shining playfully as she crosses her legs in front of me. As I pull her clothes out of the chest, I smile up at her. I start to slip her panties up her leg and kiss my way up her legs. She lifts her hips to let the thin fabric cup her hips and ass before settling back onto the bed. I kiss the inside of her thigh as I stare up into her eyes. Thea lets out a shuddering breath as she stares down at me.

"Seriously, you two. We need to hurry so quit teasing each other." I turn my head to look at Shiva who is somehow fully dressed.

"Dammit Jim, she's right." Thea pushes me off her as she stands and dresses quickly. She smiles at me as I nearly trip while pulling my pants.

"What?" Thea smiles, but it's Shiva who answers.

"She finds it funny when you get so worked up you can't do simple tasks. That's the reason she was making you help her dress. She knew it would get you worked up." Thea gives Shiva an angry glare as I finish dressing. Before I can comment on Thea's ingenious plan, I hear her start to speak.

"So what are these things anyway?" I had turned to look at Shiva when she was speaking and am starting to turn around when Alexis yells.

"JIM, TELL HER NOT TO PULL THAT!" I react on instinct as I spin around.

"DONT!" Thea's hand freezes in place. Her fingers almost gently trace over the handle on the grenade. I step close to her slowly, not making any sudden movements.

"It's alright, Thea. These are just very dangerous." I take the grenade from her hand and make sure the ring is still firmly set.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have touched it." She leans her head forward to cover her face with her hair. I let out a deep breath I didn't realize I was holding. Carefully, I set the grenade back into the chest before pulling her close to me.

"No, it's alright. It's just one more thing that I have to teach you about first. Kind of like the rifle and pistol, I want you to be safe with it first." She tilts her head back up to look at me.

"You aren't mad at me?" I shake my head and kiss the top of her head.

"I wasn't mad, I was scared. If you had pulled the pin, it could have killed all of us." Thea stiffens in my arms and I start to stroke her back gently.

"How, it's so small?" I laugh lightly at her words, letting her go and setting down on the bed.

"The bullets for my guns are small and you have seen how deadly it can be. These are more dangerous because there isn't a way to aim them." I pick up the grenade I had placed back in the chest. "Alexis, how big of a range does the blast have?" I figure it would be better to tell Thea and Shiva the most accurate information about them.

"The immediate blast range on these is about eighty feet. If you are any closer then you had best be behind cover. Inside of thirty feet, the shrapnel will pierce through heavy plate mail on both sides of the body. Seriously, do not use these in the city. A lot of innocent people will die if you do." Shiva and Thea take a seat beside me.

"So here's the breakdown. If you pull this ring and throw it, people are going to die." I hook the tip of my finger on the ring and jingle it to show them. "Alexia said that at the range of thirty feet and closer, it will go through a body and heavy plate mail like it's not there. If you throw one, make sure you are at least eighty feet back or have sturdy cover to hide behind. I don't mean like a wooden door. I'm talking like a stone wall."

Shiva holds out her hand for the grenade so I hand it to her. She turns it over in her hand as she stares at it. The grenade bounces into the air as she tests the weight in her hand.

"It's heavier than I would think." She gently hands it back to me. I weigh it in my hand for a second, then hand it back to Thea.

"They are easy to figure out. You just squeeze the handle against the body of it and pull the ring." I show Thea how to squeeze the handle as Shiva watches closely.

"Jim, I made it where there is exactly a ten second timer on them from when the handle is released." I nod my head slowly as I continue to pass the information on to Thea and Shiva.

"So even after you pull the ring, it doesn't just explode?" I smile as I nod my head at Shiva's question.

"Right, the time starts when the handle is released. So if you ever pull the pin, hold the handle tight until you throw it." Shiva nods her head in understanding as she stares at the grenade.

"So….can I have one, or three?" Thea bursts into laughter at Shiva's question which makes Shiva glare at her.

"What, he taught you to shoot. I can throw farther and more accurately than you can. So it makes more sense for me to have these." Thea looks at Shiva with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"It would make more sense. I can throw decently, but I'm better with a bow, or a gun as it seems." I slip off the bed as they are talking and pull the restore of the grenades from the chest. On the bottom of the chest is a pouch just big enough for one grenade and a canvas knapsack. Tilting my head to the side, I pull both of them out as the chest dissolves into dust.

"Uh, what's this?" I turn my head to look at Alexis as I hold both containers.

"I know how to make void bags so I made two for you. One for the grenades and one as a backpack. I figured that would fit better with you than the kind Jacob has. I mean you don't seem to like hanging extra things off your belt."

"Seriously?" I turn the pack over in my hands to examine it closer. It has two outside pockets, one on either side, and a single main compartment on top. As I open the top and look inside, I'm greeted by a black empty space.

"Just picture the thing you put in to grab it. Until then, it just appears black. Right now, it's got a shitload of mags for your AR and not much else." I chuckle quietly as Thea and Shiva stare at me.

"How many is a shitload?" Thea arches an eyebrow at me as I turn the bag over in my hand.

"Two hundred of them all fully loaded." I reach my hand inside the bag and picture a magazine for my AR. My hand is empty for a split second before I feel the textured surface of the magazine in my hand. Now that I know how to find what I'm looking for in the bag, I let go of the magazine and close the top.

"So is the pouch for the grenades the same?" Alexis's core flashes brightly before she answers.

"Yes it is. I made it to attach to your armor, but I can make another for Shiva if you want." I take a second to think about it as I stand up and pick up my armor.

"Not right now, but probably later on. I kind of just want to get some breakfast and get out of here." My fingers work quickly to attach the grenade pouch to my armor and slide the grenades inside before flipping my armor over on the bed. When Shiva and Thea see me getting ready, they start to gather the rest of our gear from the room. By the time I finish attaching the new blades to my armor, our gear is all gathered.

"Are you not ready to go yet?" Shiva is tapping her foot while she smiles at me.

"Yeah, yeah I know. I'm taking too damn long to get ready." My armor slides over my head smoothly. I roll my shoulders to adjust to the added weight from the blades.

The two toothpicks are sitting comfortably on my lower back, in easy reach of my hands. One of the push daggers goes just above my right hip. The other, I attach on my right shoulder just above my pistol's grip. The Bowie goes on my left shoulder, mirroring the push dagger on my right with the handle hanging down.

"Here, these are for you two." I hand Thea and Shiva a push dagger. Thea raises an eyebrow at me as she looks over the blade.

"I thought these were for you?" I shake my head as I sit on the bed and start to pull on my socks and boots.

"No, I had two made for me. Then I had one made for the rest of you too." Shiva is flexing her fingers around the daggers grip, testing its feel in her hand.

"These are kinda weird." She makes a slashing motion with the blade and I start to laugh out loud. When she glares at me, I pull the one from my waist to show her.

"It's not made to slash. The design is for a punching motion." I stand and throw a jab with the dagger in my hand. "It's a last ditch, fight for your life knife. When the least little edge could be the difference between being able to walk away and dying there." Shiva adjusts her stance and throws a punch.

"It's a strange design, but I like it." The blade gets sheathed and disappears before my eyes. Thea shakes her head as she attaches the sheath to her belt.

"Seriously you two, are you ready to go yet?" Shiva glares at Thea as I attach the sword to my belt and strap it on.

"Boss, are you all going to come eat or are you spending all day fucking? Jacob said to ask just like that." I slip my rifle's harness on and set the AR under my right shoulder.

We are on the way now, boy. We will be down directly. It's been a little too warm for my jacket, but I need it to conceal my rifle. As I slide my jacket on, I take one last look around the room. There doesn't seem to be anything we left behind, so I open the door to the hall.

"Jacob and Vaunea are waiting on us downstairs. So let's go eat and get this shit taken care of. I'm really not wanting to spend another night in town." The feeling that I'm being followed is starting again and I'm wanting to get on the road. Thea wraps her arm around my waist, nudging Alexis's pouch as she does. Shiva dumps all of her gear into the void bag Alexis gave me, then slings it over her shoulder.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go eat and make our plan." Shiva shakes her head as she squeezes past us and heads down the hall. The door closes with a barely audible click as we start down the stairs.

When we make it to the main dining room downstairs, it takes me a second to spot Jacob. He has staked out a table back in the corner of the room. The table in front of him and Vaunea is laden down with dishes. A movement under the table causes me to glance down at Sarge who's sitting quietly underneath. An empty plate in front of him tells me he already ate.

"I thought Sarge needed to stay hidden while in town." Jacob raises an eyebrow as I slide into the seat against the wall. Thea plops down in my lap with a wiggle before sliding across to sit on my right. Shiva huffs and takes the seat on my left.

"He's under the table and won't attract much attention. Plus, he needs to eat." I nod as I lean down to scratch Sarge under the table. His tail thumps softly as I straighten back up. Thea hands me a plate of some kind of fried meat with eggs.

"Here, you take this plate." She starts to reach for another for her as I raise my eyebrow at her.

"How do you know Jacob doesn't want it? Or Vaunea, I mean they were here first." Jacob waves my question off as he takes a long drink from a steaming cup in front of him.

"We ate already. Just been sitting here waiting on you, watching all this food start to get cold." Not needing any more of an invitation, I dig into the food in front of me. Shiva is already half way through a plate by the time I start to eat.

Thea offers me a steaming cup and I give it a sniff. My nose wrinkles at the smell as I realize it's some kind of tea. I set the cup to the side and reach for the pitcher of water on the table.

"Not a tea fan?" Shiva takes the steaming cup and downs half of it quickly.

"More of a coffee drinker. I never was a fan of tea." Vaunea tilts her head as she slips her own cup of tea.

"What is coffee?" I chew my mouthful of meat and eggs as I try and think of how to explain.

"It's a drink made from a roasted ground bean. The beans are grown in a hot climate in my world. Then shipped to different places where they get cooked. Then you take the grounds and brew them with hot water." I take another bite and swallow it quickly. When I go to grab another, I realize my plate is empty. Before I get a chance, Thea places another full plate in front of me. This one is just as full as the first, but has a chunk of wheat bread on it as well.

"Thanks." She smiles at me before going back to eating from her own plate. "Anyway, it's a fairly bitter drink, but it's full of caffeine. So I drank it most every day just to wake up." Vaunea looks thoughtful as she sets down her glass.

"I believe we have a drink like that here. Or at least it sounds similar to one they drink in some of the southern countries. We call it charth here though." She glances around the room before taking another drink. "Shevel is a big town, and they might have it for sale here. We can look around later if we have time." I nod my head as I continue eating.

"Couldn't hurt, if we have time." Jacob shrugs which draws my attention.

"We are going to have to split up anyway. While you head to the enchanter, I can try and see if anyone has it." That causes me to pause in my eating and turn to face him.

"Why do we have to split up?" He takes another sip and sets the cup down before he speaks.

"The contact is supposedly paranoid. He says no more than three people can meet him at a time. So it's you and two others that can go there. The rest of us will stock up on supplies and meet you after." I feel myself getting annoyed at that fact. I hadn't been planning on that.

"Well, that's not ideal." I take another bite of the eggs and swallow it quickly. "So who's going with me?" I feel Shiva kick me under the table.

"You mean who else is going, cause I can't leave you alone. You get in too much trouble when I do." A laugh escapes my lips as I turn to Thea.

"So I'm guessing it's the three of us?" Thea thinks for a second before shaking her head.

"I think I'm going to go with Jacob." At my confused look, she explains quickly. "I want to stop in at a bookstore if I can. There should be a few books suitable for young children. I know how much not being able to read is bothering you, so I thought I could teach you." I pause in my eating, feeling myself starting to get choked up at Thea's words.

"I didn't realize it was that obvious." Thea nudges me with her elbow, causing me to look back up from where my head had started to drop.

"There are literally four books behind the seat in your truck, and another one under the seat. It's obvious that you enjoyed reading in your world. While you might not have had a lot of time here, you will sooner or later. I just think you should be able to when it happens." I mouth a silent thank you to Thea as I quickly finish eating.

"Well, I figure Sarge will go with me this time. I'd rather have Vaunea go with you and Jacob honestly. It would let me feel a little more at ease with us being separated." Vaunea nods to me from the other side of the table.

"I don't mind, but that puts you at two going to meet the contact." I shrug as I take a drink of water.

"Between Shiva and me, I think we can handle ourselves. If anything goes wrong, Thea and Sarge can still talk to each other. So we can still be in contact even when we aren't close." Jacob nods his head as he reaches under the table to open his void bag.

"Then you will probably need this." He pulls the gas can out of the bag and hands it to me. Before I can grab it, Shiva takes it from Jacob and places it in the bag from Alexis. "Where did you get that from?" Jacob raises his eyebrow as he looks over the void bag in Shiva's hand.

"Alexis made it for us. She felt it would be a better fit for me." I glance at Shiva out of the corner of my eye. "Of course, Shiva seems to have claimed it for herself." Shiva sticks out her tongue at me before sliding the bag under the table between her feet.

"She has always wanted one. She just never had the money to afford one herself." Jacob shakes her head and reaches into his bag again. "Here, this should help you hide your face." He passes me a leather hat that reminds me of a flat brimmed cowboys hat.

"Where did you pick this up?" I turn the hat over in my hand, and it looks to be about the right size at least. When I set it on my head, I feel the band inside relax the slightest bit. I work the leather string to make it snug under my chin without being tight. Just like adjusting a stampede string.

"I grabbed it yesterday, and it seemed to fit your attitude. It will block most of your face in town." I take the hat off and let it fall behind my head. The string holds it on the back of my neck.

"Well thanks, I have something for you too." Shiva dips her hand into the bag between her feet and pulls out the two blades. She hands one to Jacob and tosses the other to Vaunea.

Jacob turns the blade over in his hand before pulling it from its sheath. Unlike Shiva, he seems to understand its purpose immediately. He rolls up his left sleeve and attaches the sheath to a band on his wrist. He tests the blade to see if he can draw it with either hand. When he seems satisfied, he pulls his sleeve back down and nods to me. Vaunea, however, just attaches it to her belt and continues drinking her tea.

"How much did those cost you?" I shrug at Jacob's question.

"Nothing really. Alexis made me the materials, and I traded them for the work done. As a matter of fact, the smith paid me to rush the order." I grin as I see Jacob's eyes start to bug out slightly.

"You are just full of surprises, aren't you." He tosses a handful of coins onto the table to pay for breakfast as he stands up. "Let's get going. The sooner we are done, the sooner we can leave." I nod in agreement as I stand myself. Sarge slips into my shadow as Shiva and I make our way out of the dining room. Thea gives me a quick kiss before her, Vaunea and Jacob take off.

"Well, shall we go now?" I hold out my arm to Shiva who shakes her head.

"Put your hat on, then follow me. It doesn't do any good for me to take your arm since I have to lead the way." She starts to walk ahead of me when I grab her arm and tuck it into mine.

"It's called chivalry. It may not exist here, but I was raised with it. So let's walk together and pretend we aren't wanted by everyone." Shiva shakes her head again, but doesn't try to remove her arm from mine.

It doesn't take long for me to get completely lost in the city. Every street seems to look almost identical to the last. We pass through two checkpoints, calling them that is a joke. The guards merely waved us through as they continued to joke among themselves.

About a half hour after we left the inn, we come to a stop. We are staring at a small stone shop sandwiched between two other identical shops. There is a single window on the front of the building, covered in steel bars sink deep into the stones. The door is metal and seems like it has been reinforced. A single simple wooden sign hangs above the door with a small single word printed on it.

"Nice place, you sure it's the right spot?" Shiva nods as she checks up and down the street.

"Yeah. Enchanters are paranoid about their work. The good ones can lose platinum coins worth of products in seconds if they are robbed. So most of them build bunkers for their shops and make appointments with people." We start to cross the street when a gap appears in traffic.

"Makes sense, it looks like you would need a battering ram to take down that door." Shiva nods her head as she knocks on the steel door.

"It's also enchanted to be stronger. A battering ram would still take a while." She points out where faint glowing lines cross on the door. After a second, a section of the door slides back and a single green eye stares out.

"Whaddya want!?" The voice from inside is muffled but full of anger.

"Have an appointment." Shiva leans back against me as she speaks to the man behind the door.

"Name?" The eye flicks between Shiva and me as he speaks.

"Nico Hammerdick." I have to bite back a laugh at Shiva's answer. She drives her elbow into my ribs making her yelp and rub her elbow.

"Armor remember." I whisper in her ear making her turn her head to glare at me.

"Password?" The man behind the door interrupts Shiva before she can get too angry at me.

"The lost drum has been sounded." With a grunt, the section of the door slides shut. There is a sound of latches being thrown and keys turning inside. When the door opens, Shiva slips inside and I'm close on her heels. My boot barely clears the door before it slams shut. The latches sliding into place on their own.

"This way." The shape in front of me grunts and starts to move through the crowded shop. Every inch of the shop is filled with tables and shelves. Bits of metal, glasses, leather, knives, axes, springs, books and boots are piled on every available surface. It reminds me of a nightmare hoarders episode. The only plus side is the shop smells faintly of flowers, in a vaguely artificial way.

"Boss, something doesn't feel right here." At Sarge's words, I stop Shiva from moving farther into the shop.

"What is it Sarge?" Shiva glances around as I speak.

"I don't know, something just feels off. Something is making me nervous." I tilt my head as I look around the room.

"We have to keep going. We need this Sarge. We will keep an eye out though. You do the same, ok boy?" Shiva glances back to me with a curious look.

"Will do, boss. Just be careful."

"Sarge feels like something is off, so keep your eyes open." Shiva nods and we start to make our way through the shop, following the man who let us in.