"-..."
Adam suddenly jerked his head. He blinked as he stared at the book. He had placed it on the table earlier, now that he no longer needed it, yet something was wrong. Adam's eye twitched as he watched the book ignite with fire.
The flame came from inside the book. It swept over its pages, coming from inside. Specifically, the page on which he wrote his newest story.
"I see." Adam let out a sigh. "So this chapter is still going on?"
"What's happening?" The woman asked, staring with wide eyes as the book burned away.
"The story goes on." Adam whistled. "Someone is trying to reach Rome before me."
***
Pock managed to break the roots that were wrapped around him. He stood next to Olivia now, quietly staring down at Davi. The raven-haired man looked strangely peaceful, as if he were sleeping. His eyes were closed, and he had the faintest hint of a smile on his face.
Death wasn't new for Pock.
He had watched a lot of people die even before he joined Phoenix Flight. After joining the guild, even in such a short amount of time, he had watched his teammates die. Death was always lurking around the corner for them. Cursed Life was a trait that left them fighting against fate itself.
Some of them could last longer. Some, like Vlad, could go on for years. Others weren't as lucky. Davi had been one such person.
Pock thought about reaching out and placing a hand on Olivia's shoulder, but he changed his mind. He was never good at stuff like this. Olem or Ghost would have been better. Sadly, neither Olem nor Ghost could leave the guild base, so bringing them had been impossible.
Olivia had her arms wrapped tightly around Davi, and she was crying. She held onto him as tightly as she could.
She felt strangely hollow. In all honesty, she didn't know Davi for that long, but he was still her friend. He had saved her village, saved her, taken her on this adventure, helped her improve, and, knowingly or not, given her the ability to speak with Maya and use the Determined trait to access the World of Paths. Davi was always helping her, and when he needed help, she couldn't be there for him.
Being in Phoenix Flight had seemed like a curse, but less so with him by her side. Davi Hawker was her hero. He was her friend. And he was dead.
And yet…
The story wasn't over.
Olivia let out another choked gasp. She was holding the man to herself, cradling his body as if it would make a difference. Then, it was like her prayers had been answered.
Davi's body had been shockingly light. Gone was his heavy armor, simple black robes draping over his form instead. With the loss of blood, he was empty, and yet, as she held him, something changed.
One moment, he felt as light as a feather, and then the next, Olivia felt her arms strain to hold him. She could feel a sharp pain in her side as well as metal poking into her, and Davi's head, which had been pressed into her stomach, felt warmer.
Olivia blinked away some of the tears, and she looked down in confusion. Davi had changed. The robes, which had covered him, were gone, and his armor was back now. It was still banged up and cracked open, mainly around the chest area, where a hole was. Polymorph had worn off.
It was thanks to that skill that he had been healed earlier, and he had the outfit change. She recalled bitterly the way the spell worked. It would just temporarily create an ideal form for the user, based on what they wanted, and when it wore off, they'd revert back. Her version wasn't like what the monsters had, who could seemingly freely heal themselves even if their bodies had been reduced to bits. Perhaps if she had had that version, she could have saved Davi.
It was as she was wondering this that Olivia noticed something.
Blood…
Blood was pouring out of the hole in Davi's chest. Then she felt it. Breathing. Shallow and weak. It was against her stomach, and the warmth she was feeling was returning.
At once, Davi gasped, and his eyes flew open. Pock and Olivia both looked shocked and stared down at him.
"What the hell?" Pock gasped.
Olivia felt herself shaking as she held him. Her mind was racing, trying to figure out what was going on, but she knew. Polymorph had saved Davi's life. It hadn't occurred to her, but the switch went both ways.
Whenever one form was damaged, that damage wouldn't be reflected onto the other. Davi had a hole in his chest, but his Polymorph self didn't. His Polymorph self had his heart ripped out, but the current him didn't…
He had died.
A version of him.
A version she created.
And now he was alive. Weak, struggling to breathe, and still sporting the hole the kitsune had left in him, but still alive.
"D-Davi?" Olivia asked slowly, still trying to process everything. His hand raised up weakly, and she took it in hers, squeezing it. "Davi!"
"I saw it…" Davi's voice croaked out, barely above a whisper, and a slightly jagged smile crossed onto his face. "It was only for a moment, but I did." His eyes felt heavy, and his breathing grew shallow. He was still severely injured and on death's door after all. "I. Think. I. Get. It."
And then his eyes shut once more.
"Davi!" Olivia screamed again.
"It's okay." Pock crouched down, and he placed a hand over Davi's wound. "He just blacked out. He's still alive and breathing, though. Give him to me. I'm rushing him toward Olem."
He had seen people die. Pock watched friends and family alike be lost. This was the first time he saw someone come back from the dead, though.
For the first time ever, a member of Phoenix Flight came back.
Like an actual Phoenix…
Meanwhile, at the other end of the tunnel, Laerton stepped out, finding herself in an open subway station that was long destroyed. She looked around but eventually let out a sigh. Calmly, she reached up and took her helm off.
"That mutant got away." Bloom was gone. "Damn it." Laer scowled, and for a moment her lip trembled. "Haru, damn it. Why is it happening again?"
Soon it would all be over.
Soon, she wouldn't have to worry about these pesky feelings anymore.