The search came back with the same coordinates, again and again, so I decided to go to the Source. The Gym. Maybe there was a beacon, or a transmitter there that was accepting and re-routing the data stream.

---

Though I found a stash of M&M's in Johnny's office, there was no diabolical tech that would work as any sort of receiver or transmitter.

"What are you doing up there?" Johnny suddenly asked, turning the lights on.

I looked down from the rafters. "Uhm... you see, there a Pirate Signal stealing poetry, remember? Well, it's based here, according to all my tests, and I'm trying to find a Transmitter or... anything, really. And I thought you were allergic to chocolate?"

He chuckled. "I'm not allergic to chocolate, I just don't eat it often. The M&M's are for the pre-K class I teach on Sunday's."

I nodded. "Ah. Right. Well... care to help me down? I didn't realize where I was until you spoke, so..."

He laughed. "You're stuck, huh? Your cat seems to be just fine."

Dotty washed a paw slowly, glaring at me.

"Well then. I didn't even remember bringing her. Shame on me, huh?" I smiled.

She batted my nose, and then climbed down the shelves on the walls, narrowly avoiding knocking over our trophies.

I sighed and followed, gingerly stepping on the support posts, and was soon on the ground, with Dotty lounging across my shoulders like a queen.

---

I locked the doors to the Warehouse as Dotty sat on my shoulder primly, despite her age.

She batted my earring, amusing herself, and I chuckled, walking towards Johnny's car. "So, we're still on for Saturday, yeah?" I checked with him, leaning down to look through his passenger window.

The car was empty, making me pause. "Engine's running... smell of Urine?"

Dotty puffed up, hissing, and I leapt forward over the car, just as a giant bug of some kind slammed into the door where I'd been, mandibles ripping the steel like paper.

I landed on the hood, and pet Dotty. "Don't worry, lovely, he won't get us. We're safe-ooh god I forgot ants could climb anything!" I leapt off the roof as the giant ant, (easily the size of a full-grown German Sheppard,) skittered onto the roof without pausing.

Instead of touching ground, I slipped on mud, which was odd. Johnny's voice startled me as well, as he groaned nearby.

I stepped towards the sound, only to be shocked by the change in setting. The parking lot was gone, and replaced by a dirt tunnel, which smelled of the worst things imaginable.

I tucked Dotty into my jacket, and she slowly calmed down, apparently assured whatever that giant ant was, it was gone.

I looked around, and in the dim light I saw Johnny, nursing his stomach. I knelt next to him slowly, and moved his hand so I could see.

"Don't think about telling me it isn't that bad, partner." He grinned a bloody, heartfelt grin.

I hummed. "Nooo... looks pret~ty damn bad, partner... I'm not a doctor, but... that's a serious you got there."

He chuckled softly. "Ouch, huh? Good, make that my obituary. 'Drunken moron dies of an .' You won't believe the amount of drunkards at my funeral, man."

I nodded and started wrapping his stomach with the shreds of his shirt while Dotty sat on his shoulder, kneading his skin gently. He protested, but I glared at him to shut him up. "If you're dying, then you won't mind me stopping you from bleeding all over my cat?"

He grumbled, but allowed my ministrations, rudimentary as they were.

Once I done tying his skin closed, I hauled him over my shoulders like he'd taught me, a fireman's carry, and Dotty leapt into my jacket again.

Then I had to decide which direction I was going... "That one is lighter than this one, which could mean the surface of whatever tunnel I'm in, but it could also be the nest of those Ants that got Johnny... brighter tunnel it is. The dark is starting to wig me out."

I walked, straining under his weight, but pressed on. The surface was a while away, from the density of the air, but that was fine. With a torn gut and no Doctor for miles, I was just transporting his corpse, by now. No way he survived this.

"Say... if I survive... can we still go to that championship? I promise I'll stay in my wheelchair with my hot nurse." He mumbled.

"Sure thing, buddy. I'll even get you a hot nurse, giant jugs, nice ass, short skirt, the whole shebang. Whatever you want, man." I nodded.

"Promise?"

". ." I nodded again, straining to climb an incline in the tunnel.

"Imma... hold ya to that..." he chuckled softly. "Mmm... can she have cat ears? Love me some neko's, man-"

"Whoa, buddy. Let's stick with reality... and I'll make sure to delete your browser history, ya freak." I laughed breathlessly.

He coughed, then grinned. "Did that already. I do it every morning, just after-"

"Oversharing!" I interrupted. "Did you watch that baseball game, buddy? Mets and... who was it?"

"Mets and Dodgers? Maybe... I didn't really watch it. My Ma had me washin' dishes instead of listenin' to the TV."

"Ha! 36, still livin' with your mother, still doin' dishes! Dork." I laughed.

He snorted. "Says you, asshole."

"I'm 18, thank you, and that's a reasonable age. Oh, and I help pay the bills." I retorted.

He didn't respond, and I looked over my shoulder to see his eyes closed. I nudged him roughly, waking him, and tsk'ed. "Can't sleep, Johnny, not allowed, nope. Not until you tell me about that gal, what was her name... Melissa?"

"... yeah... what a woman... dunno if... I can tell the story... my head's heavy."

"Yeah well your is , ." I grunted, climbing over some rocks slowly. I noticed the tunnel floor had changed, and was less dirt, and more stone now.

Suddenly, a small creature appeared in front of us, looking to be a small green person.

I blinked. "Weird..." It snapped its gaze to me, raising a large nose to sniff loudly, then drew a small axe off its belt. "Oh. Great. Does everything in this godforsaken tunnel want to kill us?"

An arrow exited the beasts chest, and a tall woman appeared, bow in hand. "Mostly, Yes. How wounded is your comrade?" She nodded to Jack.

I blinked slowly. "Uh... ? Gut tear. Trying to... find the surface... sorry, who are you?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh... I'm Sadie. And... that doesn't smell like a normal Gut Tear. Set him here, I'll take a look."

I quickly set him down as she pulled out several different bottles and jars, and she ripped my binding off easily, making me grumble about effort wasted.

She nodded slowly, using her fingers to carelessly push around his intestines, then push them back into him. "Not too bad. Seen worse. Hold this."

She handed me a bucket, and I blinked. "What's this f-uurgh?!?" She had pulled out his large intestine, and was checking it for cuts... thoroughly.

I held in my puke, (barely,) and shuddered. "Shouldn't we be closing him up? Not..."

"Hmm? Ah, yes. The blood loss isn't too bad yet, so I'm checking to make sure I don't put a leaky pipe back under the sink, you know?" She grinned easily. "And good job, not puking. The bucket is for what I dig out."

"Dig out? What's there to-"

She started pulling out what looked like poisoned meat, and dropping it into the bucket. "Mm... killer ant, huh? Yep... poisoned... drink this." She pushed a bottle against Johnny's lips.

He was unconscious, thank god, so was unable to consent, but I pulled his tongue, letting his throat unblock, and the liquid to slide into his stomach, when he swallowed reflexively.

She nodded. "Good. That should take care of blood loss... now for wounds. You any good with a needle?"

"No." I answered honestly.

"Good, start sewing his skin back together." She handed me a thick needle and thick white string, like dental floss.

I didn't question her, this time, and simply started pressing his skin together, and sewing in an uneven, jagged line across his stomach and hip.

She chuckled. "Believe it or not, I've seen worse. Done by a six year-old on his own ribs, but hey. Gotta start somewhere." She patted my shoulder, and then slapped Johnny harshly.

He shuddered, and blinked once, before shivering a second time, and coughing blood.

She nodded and forced another bottle of medicine down his throat, with my help, which visibly returned color to his cheeks.

"Whoa... super medicine, huh?" I grinned.

She nodded slowly. "I guess. Kinda cheap, but they're plentiful, which is helpful. How come you're not wearing armor?"

"Truth be told? I've got no clue where we are. We were at our dojo, and then that ant dragged him through some sort of portal, then chased me into it as well... oh, and Dotty, of course."

Dotty leapt onto Johnny's shoulder, and purred, kneading his skin without her claws.

She hummed. "Portals... yeah, we've been hearing about those lately. Shouldn't be that difficult to find again, and get you back home, but we need to do some more work on him, first. His name?"

"Jonathan Gyllenhaal, or Johnny." I nodded.

"Yours?"

"Xavier Dorian... pleased to meet you. You have no idea, truly." I grinned in relief as I realized he wasn't going to die so easily.

She nodded. "Sadie Pickett. Now pick him up again, we have a ways more to walk."

"Yeah... I figured." I hauled him across my shoulders, and Dotty claimed the new girl's shoulder, purring loudly.

I noticed belatedly that Sadie had a tail... and it was swishing.

"Staring at a lady's ass is very rude, you know." She tossed back.

I flinched. "Ah! Sorry, I wasn't... you have a tail."

"Hmm? And? Never seen a Beastman before?"

"A... a what?" I asked, afraid I'd misheard.

"Oh wow, you're one weird Elf. Probably from one of those secluded villages, huh?" She chuckled.

"Elf?" I spoke softly, confused even more.

"Oh... wow. Yep. You're clueless. Lesson one: if you don't want anyone to know you're an elf? Hide your ears. And your friend, too." She nodded.

I blinked and looked at Johnny's ears, to find that they were indeed pointed, and much longer than before. His features were also different, slightly more angular, like a hawk. I touched my ears, and flinched when I felt they were longer, and pointed. I hummed softly. "I'm sorry, I must seem very ignorant to you."

She shrugged. "No problem. At least I didn't save an asshole or a bandit. A dumb elf is good enough for me."

I raised an eyebrow. "I am not ."

She laughed, a pleasant sound, and shook her head. "Wandering into a tunnel without weapons, potions, of armor-"

"Being into a by a whilst not expecting any trouble." I corrected, stopping her in her tracks.

"Hmm... true. Why didn't you use magic to heal him, anyway?"

"Magic?" I scoffed gently. "Right. No thanks, I prefer science to nonsense."

She shook her head. "I see, that's why. Ah well, not my place to educate you... but you should really get over that attitude quickly, kid. Magic is very real... and without it, most elves die horrible deaths in the Dungeons. Like your friend was about to."

I hummed softly. "Magic is simply highly advanced science; misunderstood or completely unknown to the uneducated masses."

She raised an eyebrow, turning forward to hide her expression. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, lamb chop."

"I don't sleep at night, actually, but I get the gist of your statement... so are you a doctor?"

"Yes and no. I'm more of a Medic. My father is the Healer, and that's where we're going." She nodded. "If we can get there in about two hours, your friend might live through this."

"Wait, I though he was on the mend? You fixed him?"

"Not even close, kid. I just fixed the basics, blood toxicity, leaking guts, blood loss, the poison is still in his system, and I need the antidotes and more potions to help him. Or rather, my father does. He'll he presiding over the surgery."

I growled softly. "Then let's pick up the pace, if we only have two hours!" I dug deep, and started running at a steady pace, holding Johnny still so he didn't jump around on my shoulders.

She squealed at my sudden acceleration, and caught up slowly. "Okay, then, you do have some guts, huh?" She laughed softly at the bad joke, and started leading again.