A deep breath later, I'm trotting up the stairs. My fingers graze the large banister, chunks of wood chipping at my touch and falling to the floor soundlessly. Faint arguing echoes behind me as if something immediately goes wrong within seconds of entering the hotel.

The carpets and drapes would've gone together if not for the charred marks everywhere. Most curtains are seared black or nonexistent spare a few rooms either locked well or soaked in water from the handicapped sprinklers.

Humans and their priorities.

My mind muses over the eras when the weak weren't so well catered to. The days left behind were ones where the sick or unable only had their families to rely on and society would've sooner left them to perish.

Depending on the culture that is.

I always respected Native American tribes for protecting and nurturing their elderly. Even if 'taking a village' often seemed more work than worthwhile.

When we arrived, I'd already noted that a soul dwelled somewhere within these walls. Alive or dead, someone is here. My guess is hiding in one of the rooms and I want to resolve the problem before anyone is endangered.

Taking the left first, I wander up and down every little corridor and open doors on both sides. Nothing. Besides the smell of mold and the lingering rot of certain corpses, only the rooms not rented out in the decay of society were clean. Most are scattered too far apart for my liking as well.

Heat rising might make the potential of a second-floor room impossible anyway.

My stomach knots up in an unfamiliar feeling, something I seldom recognize save for one occasion. The night Lindon and I were separated.

Bracing a hand on the wall and touching my stomach, strange nausea pushes through me again as if once again dreading the worst. This sensation isn't a lack of Mana or even becoming reacquainted with an adequate amount.

Once again, the odds feel against me.

This time I won't let him slip away, even if the world must burn a thousand more times.

Rough steps sound on the stairs and I turn slightly to see Daniel, his pale face a red I haven't seen before on him. If it weren't clue enough already, his jaw is working itself into oblivion, teeth grinding so hard it's painful to look at.

The tension eases a little when he catches sight of me though.

"Rough night?" I ask, attempting to joke.

Dan catches up to me swiftly, dragging his gaze up to mine. "Please tell me you can put me to some kind of use up here."

"If you'd like to follow me around while I check each and every individual room for a sign of life, I wouldn't hate the company."

He sighs and nods. "Good enough."

Taking a slow pace deliberately, I can tell Daniel needs to cool off a little bit and I'm not entirely sure asking after the situation will help. Some of the humans like to vent. Others like to snap your neck off for even implying something is even remotely out of the ordinary. Though I've come to notice that's mainly menstruating women.

He continues to glare behind us as if the ghost of an argument follows him around and plagues his thoughts, though from what I understand of them, it probably is. A subconscious trait they seem to develop at some stage in life when wanting to discuss something.

When entering a room to check, he hangs by the bed so obviously lost in thought.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask, lowering my voice.

Daniel shrugs, pushing a hand over his face and into his hair. "It's irrational really, I shouldn't be so upset."

I suppress a light laugh, enjoying the feeling of a genuine smile. "You seem to get particularly annoyed whenever they do anything human."

A test, but passable as a simple tease.

"So? You do too," he smirks.

Fair enough. You walked into that one, Ira.

Shaking the thought, I just roll my eyes and go back to shifting for anything under the beds. Nothing but dust.

"How old are you?" I toss over my shoulder with a cough, swatting more dust and debris away from my face.

"Can't you just tell or something?" Dan asks back, evasive and nonchalant.

My back aches when I push off the floor, getting up and cracking my neck a little bit. I give him a knowing look but continue to nod and walk past him out the door. However tempting it might be to turn on him just to see what happens, I refrain.

"So, what if you're not being irrational then?"

"Theron's sick."

My eyes narrow in on him. "What kind of sick?"

"I don't know, he won't tell me."

I try to trap him again. "How is he hiding the scent of it, if he's sick?"

"I don't know," he says, looking at the ground. No denial but there is nothing condemning in these words either. "But apparently trying to force it out of him isn't the best approach."

We go through a couple more rooms while I think about it. "I tried the gentle way outside, but that didn't get me anywhere but on what seems like good terms."

"At least he didn't throw something at you."

My eyes wander over in, scanning. "He missed."

"Of course he missed, but that's beside the point. He could be infecting all of us by the second if he's too proud to admit there is even a problem."

"You mean Remi."

Daniel's brows furrow for a minute before relaxing. That is a concession. I can see it in his eyes.

"How long have you known?" He asks a more lethal calm consuming his voice.

"What you are, I don't know. But you've made some pretty interesting comments coupled with the fact that your questions were a tad basic for even an apocalypse. Asking about the different rankings of creatures. Not low class then, you'd be dead. So what then Daniel? How many more years do I add to the twenty-six-year-old body you dwell in?"

Dan shrugs. "Enough to know when someone is and isn't going to kill me."

"Pre or post-storm?"

He glances back to the stairs again where Remi squeaks a little and a crash sounds. The only other masculine voice grumbles something incoherent and likely fixes whatever she broke or dropped.

"They can't know."

I nod, my eyes softening. "Of course, I wouldn't dare."

He seems curious at my reaction but says nothing. A sort of consideration goes on, decisions and estimations being made in his head. Lowering the volume of his voice substantially, he answers vaguely. "Pre, quite a few years before but I don't count anymore."

Of course, he didn't, no one did after a certain age. I'd be another year older just counting all of them. Surely he's not ancient, but I understand the premise.

"Now for what?"

The floor shifts slightly and anxiety wells inside of him again. Dan crosses his arms, more uncomfortable and out of place than I've ever seen him. "Not here. Please."

"Fine," I sigh. "Come on, we're almost done."

We wander a few more hallways before something drops off in the distance.

Going rigid, I look back and see a flash of darkness bolting into one of the rooms we'd already been in.

Tense at my side, Daniel starts to walk towards the noise. I throw my hand in front of him and take a few steps forward, creeping soundlessly towards a master suite. Though smaller than most chain hotels, this building has some impressive suites the size of a small flat.

Glass shatters on the floor in one of the showers and I know I've won.

Flames encompass my hand and Daniel pulls on my elbow a little when I reach for the handle. "It could be a child, just try to go easy."

I scowl. "What are the odds it'll be a-"

The door clicks and a small squeak comes from inside. I nudge the opening more to reveal a small African girl trembling under the sink. Her head bangs on the rusty piping, only scaring her more.

I can feel the clever energy Daniel exudes, proud of guessing the situation no doubt. Kneeling down, I hold out my palms and offer a tiny smile. "Can you understand me, dear?"

She blinks, inching away into the cobwebs.

Can you understand me, dear? I whisper gently in Zulu. The language had become more popular in the last few years before everything went to shit. South Africa had been attempting to reinstate its culture and separate itself from the English so deeply rooted there.

At this, she nods, hesitant to relax but less frightened. Your language is rusty.

It is barely a whisper but I laugh nonetheless. I haven't had to use it in a very long time, I'm not from here.

I can tell.

Do you live here?

She nods and points to the room I'm assuming she came from.

We won't bother you, I promise. We're only passing through, a day or so at most.

Crawling out from under the sink, she stands before us. Likely about twelve years of age, I can see how scavenging through the small town might be easier than sharing with a large group.

A whole story is behind her, if not told from the weight in her eyes then the muscles and dirty clothes she wears. One of the dead siblings that got away from what I can tell. The protector still lurks in her irises even though there is no one left for her to protect.

"I stay up here," she manages in English.

Daniel and I nod in agreement. We'll stay downstairs.

Without so much as a goodbye, she slips between us with wary eyes and goes back into the room she was in. Shutting the door, I hear the old springs of the bed creak and wonder if there weren't something else I could do for her.

"How many languages do you know, Iridian?"

I scoff, my lips tugging upwards for a moment but never reaching a smile. "Most of them. Including several dead languages. It used to be all, but I got sloppy when I stopped using them."

We finish all the rooms upstairs and make our way back to the top of the stairs. No one is making a peep in the main room. Whether or not Meika found acceptable rooms, I don't know but at least there's no fighting.

Dan goes to take a step but I wait, uneasy about what's waiting for me.

What's expected of me.

He sees my hesitation and reaches out slightly. "Are you okay?"

I shake my head, lips pursing.

"You're scared of Meika severing the connection."

Nodding, I peek over the thick banister and hold it tightly. "I don't know what it will do to Lindon... To me... And even if it doesn't kill us instantly, we'll be on a timer from then on. I'd rather deal with this temporary contract then play with something I don't know anything about..."

He stares at me as if I'm not finished.

Without thinking, I mindlessly spill more than intended. "I just... I couldn't live with myself if I hurt him so severely... I know this is all for him. I know this might be the only way. But it's hard to convince myself a potential suicide mission is worth it."

"It'll be okay..." He reassures softly. "This might be the only way, right?"

"Right..."

Or this might be the end.

Okay, okay. I know I'm bad at this as of late. But I promise it's for all the right reasons. Even now. This year I will be updating more regularly again. Please don't hate me.

Edit : Dedication goes to Crimson_Graves for being a a wonderful commenter through the first half. I'm a firm believer in appreciating the time and effort people put in for you. I am really grateful for the time you gave me to read this :D

I don't know if I regret this chapter yet, but I am indeed curious to know what you think so, don't hide. Let me know what you think.

Vote and comment if you enjoyed! Thank you for reading!