The Genesis Game

Jack paced about nervously, anxiety setting in over the elf heading their way.  As Jack paced, Seraph used the moment to try and clear his mind to think of what their next move should be, this was unknown territory for him. Rosebud stood at attention, never leaving Jack's side, it's white grin fixated on the door while it's eye slits split their attention between Jack and the door.  

"Think." Seraph told himself as he joined Jack in his pacing. "I need to start a guild, I have three days to make it happen, and everything else is secondary."

Rosebud's head abruptly snapped towards the exit. "She's here." He announced as his eyes narrowed on the opening door. 

Seraph felt a strange unease as his own gaze fell on the door.  He knew things would be moving at a rapid pace for the foreseeable future, and he had not yet mapped out his next steps.  The ironic uncertainty of the future did not sit well with him.

In walked a familiar elf woman Sadie, wearing a heavily armored suit of green platemail over a leather jerkin.  She carried on her hip steel shortsword whose blade glowed with a hint of blue. Memories stirred within Seraph in recollection, this was the form Seraph had remembered her by.

With a scowl she looked about the room, her eyes passing over Seraph and Jack in judgement and in disgust when she looked upon Rosebud.  "I should have known you would be involved." She declared. "You're the last to leave the area, and the next cohort can't begin filling the room until we've been able to reset it."

Seraph mentally filed away that another group of people would be arriving soon, but made no other comment.

"But that's not the only reason I've been sent to fetch you." She explained, her voice edged with tension as she looked out the window at the falling light.  "We all need to leave now, follow me and we can talk on the way. Try to keep it, it isn't safe here and I don't plan on getting caught out in the open after dark waiting for you. If you get caught you're on your own, I'm not dying for you." 

With no further words, she turned and walked out the door and down the hall to leave the in-processing building, not bothering to see if they were following, and not waiting for a response from either of them.

Seraph followed.  The woman had a sense of urgency about her that made him believe her words when she said the area wasn't safe.  Her anxiety had been real, and if she had reason to be concerned, so would he.

"Jack, hurry up.  Don't get left behind him." Seraph shouted behind as he ran through the doorway trying to keep pace with the woman in front of him.

She opened the door to the outside and went down a long set of metallic and rusted stairs, her steps loud as the metal creaked and grounded with each step.  Struggling to keep pace, his stamina rapidly draining, Seraph followed behind as fast he could, while Jack lagged further behind. Of Rosebud, Seraph could not see, he knew the pet could easily keep pace with Jack.

As Seraph followed behind, he looked for landmarks to see if he recognized anything so he could try and orient himself.  All he noticed was a trail leading through nearby trees, surrounded on all sides by large pines and deep piles of pine straw that sloped ever downwards. To an extent it reminded him of his old guild hall.

Once Sadie reached the bottom of the stairs, she looked up to see if Seraph and Jack were following but didn't give them a chance to catch up.  She was already moving on, her pace brisk as she headed for the treeline, she had no need to find landmarks, she already knew where to go, she had been here before and knew the way.  Once her feet found the small walking path down the hill, the path that led through the underbrush and the treeline, she doubled her pace, the growing dark seeming to drive her as worry become more evident.

Far behind him, Seraph could hear Jack's complaints and hoped the man would realize this was not the time to be wasting his energy.   

Down they ran, though their vision was obscured they were able to keep line of sight on Sadie as she easily put more and more distance between them as she navigated the thicket with ease.   Seraph's eyes burned as his face bled from running into branches he didn't see, moving as they did at the frantic pace Sadie had set, and though she had said to ask questions as they moved, and Seraph had questions he wanted to ask, he found he couldn't.  

Seraph was winded, his sides burned as sweat rolled off his body and he struggled to breath.  Eventually, when there was no end in sight to their mad dash, and he knew he couldn't continue at the pace, he spoke up and hoped the wind would carry his words to her.  "Sadie, I can't keep up with you anymore. My stamina can't match yours. Please, slow down."

She turned and looked at him, surprise on her face.  Surprised that he had admitted he couldn't keep going and surprised that he had asked her to accommodate.  She slowed her pace down just enough so that he could manage. "Things have changed haven't they Seraph? Maybe even you can be different.  I can't slow down more though, things aren't like they used to be. The nights aren't safe anymore, and to be outside of Hometown at night is a death sentence for all but the newest Cohort."

"Even Hometown" She explained "Is unsafe, it's only a designated safe area during the day, at night that changes, only owned homes, shops, and the Inn are designated as safe.  When the sun goes down things roam waiting to swarm those who haven't found shelter and take them screaming into the dark to never be heard from again."

"Sadie." Replied Seraph still out of breath, "But you're an elf.  The dungeon is your home isn't it? You are a dungeon creature are you not?"

"There are rules Seraph." Came a curt reply.  "Not even us Elves are given protection come night, and yes, I am a dungeon creature, but I am not immortal, if I die again I have no guarantees the dungeon will raise me anew when the Game begins again. I am quite hoping this new threat helps to keep the numbers of you humans down this time around."

It was then that Seraph knew why she had shown such previous hate and disdain for him.  She knew who he was, who he really was, though how much she remembered, he could only assume, and he assumed it was plenty, he would need to be wary.

Silence fell between them, the only sound was Seraph's heavy breathing soon joined by Jack as he and Rosebud were able to close the distance gap.  Eventually Seraph broke the silence, a question on his mind. "Why are you helping me Sadie?" He asked.

She stopped for a moment, turned and looked at him. "I've told you that monsters roam the night, monsters that even I'm afraid of, and you choose now to ask me why I'm helping you? Because I'm not a monster, I'm not a murderer, I've no intention of leaving you to die, besides, we all have our roles to play."

"I've heard enough." Responded Jack, his face flushed with exhaustion, when he got close enough to join the conversation, the bloody gashes on his face healing just like Seraph's had.  "Whatever history you two have can be settled later. Can you tell us what's waiting for us when we get to Hometown. It looks like it's going to be night time shortly, the sun's almost down and were only just now approaching the edge of this tree line."

Sadie looked and saw that he was right.  At best they had five more minutes of light left. "Let's focus on getting to the Inn first, and then we'll talk more. But i'll let you know as I can"

Seraph could only wonder how that conversation would go, he would need to be diplomatic, he was not strong enough to challenge her.  

"Some are called Wraithmothers, they sit and cry and weep for the families they have lost, their minds warped and gone, if they touch you, they will drain the life from your bodies and claim your souls for themselves so they may not be as alone.  Those I have seen personally, and they are easily avoided." Explained Sadie as she motioned for the pace to pick up from it's crawl as they approached the edge of the wood line. "Beware the Shadow Devourers, theirs is a unique way to kill, they cannot attack you, unless first they announce themselves twice, and you look for them.  They hide within your shadow and make subtle noises to trick their victim into looking around and in doing so, look at them."  

"There are others." She explained. "But I do not know them, it looks like this night will be my first out among the stars in the dark." Looking up as the last vestiges of light left the sky as they excited the woodline.

"But at least were here." Said Jack as he looked in front of them at the great stone gate that marked the entrance to Hometown, a gate that was rapidly closing.

"Run." Commanded Sadie as the four of them, including Rosebud quickly sprinted, using up the recovered stamina reserves to make it threw the great gate before it closed locking them out for the night.  

"Well what now?" Asked Jack?

As for Seraph, he had no answers as he looked about the buildings all around him, nothing he saw was as he knew it to be.  He did not recognize anything.

Seeing the stunned and confused look on Seraph's face, Sadie spoke up. "Oh, Seraph, my boss wanted to remind you, No Second Chances."