“We should have stayed,” mumbled Carlos, who was trudging along a few paces behind Zeke and the rest of his companions. Abby strode beside him, Pudge was a little off the path and darting from one obstruction to another as if he sought cover in a firefight, while Talia was at Abby’s shoulder. “Those people need us.”

Zeke sighed, running his hand through his hair. It had grown out of control again, but he’d forgotten to get Abby to cut it. He said, “Nobody’s making you come with us. You could have stayed. You’re strong enough that you could’ve probably established herself as the big man in charge.”

“You know that wouldn’t have worked,” was the man’s response. “I can’t stand up to what’s coming. Not by myself.”

“Leave it,” Abby said with a shake of her head. “We’re not going to just argue for the whole trip.”

Zeke bit off a counter and picked up the pace. As he walked, he constantly scanned the desert for threats. But there was nothing in the area; the stream of undead had killed or converted anything with a heartbeat, leaving the desert landscape devoid of any life. And while Zeke found the lack eerie, he was grateful that the group wouldn’t have to stop and fight monsters unnecessarily.

It had been an entire day since they’d left Jariq behind, and almost a week since Zeke had recovered from the battle. In that time, he had done what he could to hasten the repair efforts, but it had immediately become clear that he was ill-suited for that kind of work. The runecrafting wasn’t difficult, but the repetitive nature of enchanting one block of sandstone after another strained his patience and stressed him out. He had spent hours hunched over in an assembly line of runecrafters, and it was an experience he never wanted to repeat, regardless of how necessary it was.

In that time, Zeke was reminded of how little he wanted to deal with Jariq’s problems. He was clearly the strongest person in the city, and not by a small margin. So, as the natural order of things in the Radiant Isles asserted itself, the residents had begun to look to him to solve all of their problems. To put it mildly, he was ill-equipped to do any such thing, and, when he wasn’t with the runecrafters, he was sequestered in his tower where the petitioners couldn’t find him.

It was ironic that Zeke could easily face down a fifteen-foot tall giant without flinching, but the moment anyone approached him with an administrative task, his response was to run and hide. Such was life, though. He had no interest in making decisions that would affect an entire city. Nor did he want to confront the minutia of running Jariq. There were plenty of people better suited to that task, both in terms of temperament and competence.

Slowly, they made their way out of the desert, and as they did, the terrain transformed. The barren rock and sand became scrubby vegetation, which in turn turned into a savannah. There, they were accosted by a host of dangerous creatures. From great hunting cats to insanely durable rhinoceroses, it sometimes felt like they couldn’t go more than a hundred yards without being attacked. Of course, none of the monsters were difficult to defeat, and the closest they came to being injured was against an elite-tier lioness that attacked alongside the rest of her pride. Even that proved mostly inconsequential, with Zeke holding the lioness in place as Pudge bathed her in destructive flames.

Beyond that, there weren’t even any close calls, which made the entire trek more tedious than dangerous. At night, Zeke summoned the tower, which provided them with a level of comfort never felt by traveling adventurers. In truth, it almost felt like a vacation, after everything they’d been through in the previous couple of weeks.

In his spare time, Zeke and Talia sparred, Abby practiced her archery as well as her control over [Thunder Strike]. Pudge ranged all around them, often fighting any monsters stupid enough not to flee the moment he showed himself. Most of the time, the infernal bear didn’t even use his Hellfire.

Meanwhile, Carlos sulked. Or at least that was how Zeke saw it. Sure, he was aware that the other man had plenty of reasons to feel the way he felt. However, that didn’t make it any easier to tolerate. Finally, a couple of weeks after they’d left Jariq, Zeke had finally had enough.

Dismissing his armor, piece by piece, Zeke strode toward Carlos. Night had already fallen, and after a later afternoon thunderstorm, the air was heavy with humidity. Insects chirped, and the tower gleamed red-and-white in the silvery moonlight. Carlos sat on the steps leading up to the door, his elbows on his knees as he stared at the muddy ground.

Zeke approached, saying, “Still all up in your feelings?”

Carlos didn’t reply. Instead, he remained where he was, barely moving a muscle. So, Zeke sat beside him and said, “You didn’t have to come with us. You could have stayed behind.”

“We’ve been over this,” Carlos said. “It wouldn’t have done any good. If the guards and other adventurers still in the city can’t handle it, there’s not much I would be able to do. I’m not strong enough to make that much of a difference. Not like you.”

The last was said with a note of bitterness that sliced right through Zeke’s annoyance. It was an accusation, and it settled on Zeke’s mind like a wet blanket.

“I’ve made no secret of my reasoning,” Zeke stated. “You say that you couldn’t make a difference. I agree. In the grand scheme of things, I can’t do anything either. The Radiant Isles are doomed. If not the whole world, then at least this continent.”

“You don’t know that.”

“No. Not for sure. But I can see the writing on the wall. So can you, which is why you’re here with me and not back in Jariq,” Zeke said. Despite believing in his reasoning, he hated being the sort of person who would abandon a city of innocents. Sure, Jariq’s elites had betrayed him. They’d kidnapped his friends and tried set a trap for him. But the everyday citizens? They’d had no hand in any of that. They didn’t deserve to suffer for their leaders’ transgressions.

However, the reality of it was that Zeke’s feelings on the matter were irrelevant. Regardless of his power, he couldn’t stop what was coming. He was a match for any individual undead – probably – but he couldn’t be everywhere at once. Eventually, there would be too many for even him to handle. His only hope was to leave it all behind. Otherwise, he’d end up just like all the rest – an undead monster. Perhaps he’d be the last to fall, but his fate would still be the same as anyone else in the Radiant Isles.

Carlos hung his head, clearly unsure how to respond. Finally, after a handful of awkward moments, he said, “You know, growing up, I always idolized superheroes.” He gestured toward his all-black outfit, complete with hooded cloak, and said, “You can probably tell from my outfit who was my favorite.”

Zeke shrugged. “Wasn’t much of a comic book guy, myself. No time,” he admitted. “My little brother was, though. He even bought these trading cards – like, a whole set – and would try to copy the art. He could really draw, you know? Sometimes, I wonder if he ever got the chance to develop that. I was gone way too soon to see any of that, though.”

“How?” Carlos asked.

“Some sort of complications from when I tried to donate my kidney to Tommy,” Zeke answered. “According to Oberon, Tommy eventually got what he needed and lived a long life. But I died on the operating table.”

“That…that…sucks,” Carlos said.

“You?”

“Nothing so noble,” was all Carlos said, but he pointedly didn’t elaborate. “But my point was that I always imagined that I’d be the kind of guy to make the right choices. That I would protect the innocents. That I would sacrifice myself for those ideals. And I did that. For years, I’ve protected people in Jariq. But now? I feel like a coward, like I’m running away just because I’m afraid.”

“Are you?”

“Am I what?”

“Scared,” Zeke elaborated.

Carlos shrugged. “I am,” he said. “The idea of becoming one of those…things…” He shivered, then went on. “It keeps me up at night. I mean, what does it feel like? Are they gone? Or are they still in there, just without any control over what they do?”

“I don’t know.”

“It’s kind of funny, really,” Carlos stated. “Back on Earth, I spent all my time playing games. Some of them had rules kind of like this place. You know, stats and everything. And I used to fantasize about living in this kind of a world. The reality of it, though…sure, there are good parts. I love being able to do the things I can do, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t feel good to help people. But everything else? The constant danger, the killing, the blood and guts, and the smell…”

“You get used to it,” Zeke said.

“Do you, though? And is that a good thing?” Carlos asked. It was a rhetorical question, so Zeke didn’t answer. Carlos went on, “But you know what the worst part of it is? You. You’re the worst part.”

“In what way?”

“I’ve spent years developing my abilities,” Carlos explained. “I was meticulous about how I spent my stats. I chose my skills with care. And it made me powerful enough to rise to the top. I was never one of the people in charge of the guild, but I was on my way. Everyone knew I could punch above my weight class. But then you come along. Your skills are a mishmash of disparate abilities. You just throw your stats wherever the wind blows. From what I understand, for the longest time, you only had one real skill. And yet, you’re far more powerful than I could ever hope to be. You make all my planning seem stupid by comparison, but I know that if I hadn’t been so careful, I’d be dead. You’re just on a different level than any of the rest of us.”

Zeke knew that was true, though he didn’t like to think about it in those terms. Even if they were all special in their own ways, Zeke was far and away more powerful than any of his companions. But that didn’t matter. They all played their roles. And what’s more, they were his friends. Relative power didn’t matter next to that.

But before Zeke could say as much, Carlos shook his head and continued, “It’s not fair to blame you for it. I know that. But the feeling’s there all the same.”

“Is it going to be a problem?” Zeke asked.

Carlos shrugged, answering, “Hell if I know. I do know it’ll push me forward. Nothing like competition to bring out the best in someone, right?”

“That’s what my dad used to say,” Zeke allowed. He’d hated the abusive man, but like was the case with everyone else that had ever existed, Zeke’s father was more complicated than a simple good or evil classification might suggest. While the horrible man would have easily qualified for the latter category, he was also responsible for much of what had made Zeke the man he’d become.

And that grated on Zeke’s nerves more than it probably should have.

“So, any real idea of where we’re going?” asked Carlos.

Zeke said, “Not really. I’ve got a general area of where we can find the cave system that leads down to the wyrm’s lair, but…well, it’s a pretty big area. And I think I’m probably going to have to go it alone. Or with just Pudge. I don’t think you’re all going to be able to survive down there.”

“What? Why?”

“Fire,” Zeke stated. He hated that none of his companions could go into the tunnels with him, but it was a simple matter of resistances. With his near immunity to fire, Zeke could survive. His friends couldn’t.

“Do you plan to actually try to fight a wyrm on your own? You’re strong, but not that strong,” Carlos said. “There’s no way you’re going to win that fight.”

“I know,” Zeke conceded. “Which is why I have a plan. I’ve been working on some things.”

“What kind of things?” was Carlos’s next question.

“Traps,” Zeke said. Indeed, he’d been studying his runecrafting books – he’d picked up a couple of new ones during his initial stay in Jariq – and he’d found some that might help him accomplish what he needed to do. “So, when we get to the tunnels, I’m going to spend a few days laying traps. Then, I’m headed down there to lure it out into the open.”

“How?”

“Not sure, but I’ll probably smack it with my mace,” he said. “Once it’s good and mad, I’ll take off and lead it into the trap.”

“Seems too simple to actually work,” Carlos said.

Zeke shrugged. “Simple plans are better,” he said. “Because the complicated ones have way more things that can go wrong, right? Plus, I’m no genius, and this is the best I could come up with.”

Carlos gave a chuckle at Zeke’s false humility. Sure, the big warrior never claimed to be the most intelligent of people. However, he was anything but humble. He’d shown that in his initial assault on Jariq and the elites of the Crystal Spiders.

“Better than your usual tactics,” Carlos said. “You know, screaming while you jump at the monsters?”

“You’ve been spending too much time with Abby, I see.”

“Maybe so,” Carlos laughed.

Zeke gave a polite chuckle as well, then clapped his hand on Carlos’s shoulder. Then, he decided to address the original issue head-on. “Look, man – I know this whole thing is difficult for you. It’s not easy for me, either. Every instinct I have tells me to save as many people as I can. The problem is that I just don’t think we can do anything about what’s coming. I could kill Micayne, and I will if given the opportunity. Maybe that’ll give whoever’s left a chance. But for now, I have to look out for myself and the people I actually care about. That includes you, by the way.”

“Does it?” Carlos asked, narrowing his eyes.

“Talia would kill me if I let anything happen to you,” Zeke said. “And I care about keeping her happy, so…well, you’re one of us now.”

“I’m not interested in –”

“I know that,” Zeke said. “So does she. I think. Maybe.”

The truth of the matter was that Zeke had noticed a shift in Talia’s obsessions. Instead of constantly staring at Carlos, as she had since the first time they’d met him back in the desert, Zeke had become the target of her attention. The way she looked at him was far different than how she’d looked at Carlos, but her focus was still a little unnerving.

“Maybe,” Carlos said with a bemused smile and a slight shake of his head. “Your confidence it very reassuring.”

Zeke took that moment to push himself to his feet. He looked down at Carlos, saying, “Anyway, good talk. I’m going inside to get some rest. We’ve got a long day tomorrow, and I’m hoping we can make it to the wyrm tunnels.”