Two weeks later...

"B-Boss!" I heard Radar call from the corridor.

"Radar, we've already had this-"

"He's awake!" Radar interrupted. "H-Hadrian! H-He's awake!" I froze for a moment. He was awake. Fear and relief tumbled around inside of me after hearing the news. I put down my book and bristly walked over to the spare room where Radar was waiting, and indeed, Hadrian was lying there in bed, wide awake. He squinted as he looked at his surroundings most likely because he didn't have his glasses on, however once he got a good look of me, he gasped.

"J... J-Jesse...?" He whispered. "Is that you...?"

"Don't worry Hadrian, I'm here to help you" I assured him as I took a seat by his bed. "Do you remember what happened?" As I asked this question, Radar pulled out a pen and notepad, ready to take any notes. Hadrian looked up at the ceiling, pondering for a short while.

"I remember Mevia and I running from a fire-" He stopped and gasped. "Mevia! Wh-Where's Mevia?!" He exclaimed, worried.

"She's in another room" I told him calmly. "She's still unconscious at this point..."

"I-I need to see her!" Hadrian exclaimed. He tried to move, but winced from the pain. He collapsed back on the bed and gasped from the sudden pain in his back. He gently moved his left leg and noticed he couldn't even wiggle his right one, and he winced as he tried to move his arms. He slumped down, defeated. He was too injured to move at all... He started to tear up, though I wasn't sure if it was from the pain of his realisation on being completely immobile. Gently and cautiously, I placed my hand on his shoulder.

"Hadrian, you need to rest" I told him. "You've been out cold for two weeks and your injuries are healing very slowly. You need to minimise movement if you want to recover..." Hadrian only sighed and tilted his head to the side, looking out the window where the sun shone through the stained glass, illuminating the room. Silence fell over us all as Radar and I awaited Hadrian to speak once more. I had no idea what was going through his mind, but I was sure whatever it was, it wasn't pleasant... Finally, Hadrian turned back to us both

"Fine..." He murmured. "Is... Is Mevia OK?"

"M-Mevia's wounds have been treated and she seems to be recovering at a-a steady rate" Radar spoke up as he flicked through his notes. "H-However, she is still unconscious and her head wound opens up on occasion"

"Will... W-Will she be OK?" Hadrian asked us with a worried look. I smiled.

"I'm sure she'll be fine" I assured him. "She may still be unconscious, but she's recovering well. I'm sure she'll wake up soon" Hadrian only nodded in response. "Hadrian" I started once more. "Can you tell us how you and Mevia got caught up in that fire? How you were able to reach this world?" Hadrian looked taken aback when I asked that question, while Radar merely peered over his notes, curious. I wasn't intending to ask the second one, it just... Came out... Hadrian looked up at me, though to my surprise, his face showed guilt and regret. I had never seen such an expression on someone like him. Sure, I was helping him and his friend recover from a damaging event, but it doesn't excuse the fact that every time I even think about the two Old Builders, all I can see is their malicious grins, piercing laughs and taunts, twisted deals and the terror they shot into everyone they reigned over. Seeing Hadrian's regretful look in reality right in front of me was almost surreal... I even blinked a few times just to make sure I was in reality! And I was, though in many ways I wish I wasn't... Radar cleared his throat, snapping me out of my thoughts as he spoke to Hadrian;

"Hadrian Sir" He started. "D-Do not worry about the second inquiry, w-we're only concerned on the f-first one as we need information fr-from all witnesses on how the fire p-possibly started and to further help tr-treat your injuries" I almost felt like sighing with relief. For the short amount of time he had been my intern, Radar knew how to get myself out of a tight situation with his persuasive wording and professional upbeat, even with his continuous stammering

"I understand" Hadrian started with a nod. Then, with slight hesitation, he started to tell us his side of the peril;

"The night started fine, no smoke or cloud in the sky, only the moans and groans of the mobs..."

I sighed and slumped down, hugging my knees close to my chest as our campfire burned brightly, however contained within the stone barrier we had placed around it and our shack. Across from me sat Mevia, looking just as distraught as I felt. Tears were visible in her eyes as she desperately tried to hold them back, but they only seemed to build up even more. It pained me to see her this upset, but what she had said to me, hurt me. The truth she bestowed on me, pierced me like a bullet.

Why...? Why did she never help me? Why did she only follow when I was internally suffering? Why did she let me do what I did? Why did she let this all commence? And why does she think I want to continue this insanity?! I don't... I never meant to hurt anyone... I never meant to mutate into the monster I became before... I never meant to lose myself... And I never meant to drag Mevia along with me into the bottomless pit I had been trapped in for years... And yet, here we are now, the aftermath of a tense argument, both of us distraught and a mess, our point of views both enlightened and crushed. And to think, only a night ago, we were happy, joyful, and buzzing with glee. It was one of the best nights I had experienced in a very long time...

As the silence only grew more and more uncomfortable, so did the noises outside. The moans of mobs were now distant, the squealing of bats more common, low growls and hisses from wolves and Ocelots closer than before. It was only then at the earshot of wild Ocelots and Wolves did I perk up. Their natural habitats were Jungle and Boreal biomes, not the Grassland biome Mevia and I were in. Then suddenly, a rush of wild animals could be heard from outside. Panicked squeals from pigs, clucking from flocks of chickens, the pained howls of wolves perishing... I looked over to Mevia, who also noticed the strange noises. Without a word, we both jumped up and exited the shack, only to be confront by a horrid wall of fire burning in the distance, closing in quick;

A forest fire

We both stood there, motionless for a moment, frozen in fear. In almost an instant however, my adrenaline kicked in.

"RUN!" I shouted. I quickly grabbed Mevia by the hand and took off. At first, she struggled to keep up with my pacing, but soon we were bolting through the forest, weaving our way through trees and passive mobs, all scurrying away from danger. As we ran, we heard the roar of rushing water nearby. Without hesitation, we followed its sound until we were met with a large riverbank. Mobs, all passive, jumped in and started to swim to the other side for safety. Seizing the opportunity, I jumped in, the cold water immediately submerging me. I darted to the top and gasped for breath, shivering. I looked over to Mevia, who looked terrified.

"It's OK!" I told her. "It's safe! Just a little cold, now come on!" Mevia didn't move. Her gaze was only fixed on the rushing river. I could see the fear in her eyes, but creeping behind her was the burning hell itself.

"Mevia, come on!" I shouted. "You'll be safe in the water!" Mevia shook her head, now tears visible in her eyes.

"No!" She retorted. "Not aft-"

"Mevia, I am NOT leaving without you!" I pushed on. "Please, trust me!" I opened my arms up wide, intending to catch her. Mevia glanced behind her, seeing the fire sweeping through the forest heading straight for the riverbank, before looking back at me. She bit her lip, before she jumped into my arms. She gasped at the hyper cold water and coughed, but she wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her head into my shoulder, before she started to cry. I hugged her tightly, though our moment was short-lived when I saw the fire had approached the riverbank. It stopped right at the edge, however the flames started to jump almost as if they were sentient. I pulled Mevia and myself out of the way of one such flame, scraping myself on the arm, burning my sleeve into ash and leaving a glowing red mark on my arm. I winced at the searing pain, however that was the last of my worries. I heard a cracking noise from close by. I darted my head around, before I heard Mevia scream in absolute terror as a burning tree teetered for a moment, before it started to fall towards us. I stood there for a moment, then looked over to Mevia. Then, on instinct, I shielded her from the burning tree...

"The last thing I remember, is Mevia's shocked and bewildered expression, before the tree sliced my back..." Hadrian finished. "It... It was unbearable..." I was speechless. Everything that Hadrian had just explained to me was horrifying... Even Radar, who had been taking notes the entire time, slowly lowered his pen and gave Hadrian a shocked yet concerned expression. Hadrian only nervously shifted in his bed (To the best of his ability), feeling uneasy with our silence. Once again, Radar broke the uneasiness;

"Th-Thank you Hadrian Sir" Radar said with a small bow. "We appreciate you giving us this information, we know it must be hard to talk about" Hadrian only looked over to Radar and smiled a little, however from the twitching in the corner of his mouth, I could see he was shooting him a fake grin.

"It's fine" Hadrian said in a surprisingly calm tone. "I needed to get that off my chest" Radar smiled.

"I-I'm glad we could help" He replied, before turning to me. "Boss, the doctors will be arriving soon for Hadrian and Mevia's check-ups. Sh-Shall I wait for them at the entrance?" I nodded my head

"Yes please Radar" I said. "And remember, you don't have to call me 'boss' or 'ma'am'" Radar chuckled nervously.

"Y-Yes Jesse, I-I understand" He spoke. "I-I'll be waiting by the entrance if I am needed for anything else" Without another word, Radar turned around and exited the room, closing the door behind him without one sound.

"He's a good kid" Hadrian spoke up. "Very polite. Is he your secretary?"

"Technically, he's my intern" I replied. "He's been on the job for over a month now. He's handled all this extremely well"

"He certainly has" Hadrian said with a smile, this time a real one. I couldn't help but smile either after spotting his, especially after hearing how he and Mevia were caught in the fire. However, just as quickly as the smile appeared, it melted into a distraught, upset and guilt-ridden look in an instant. Hadrian looked up at the ceiling with a ponderous look once more, this time much more deep in thought. Concerned, I lightly tapped him on the shoulder, grabbing his attention

"Are you OK?" I asked him. Hadrian didn't respond for moment. He avoided my eyes, looking out the stained window once more with the same in-depth look. After a short burst of silence, he finally turned back to me.

"... You want to know how Mevia and I arrived in your world?" He asked me cautiously. "How we escaped the world you banished us to?" I winced when he mentioned their banishment, however Hadrian didn't look angry as he mentioned this. In fact, he looked guilty more than anything, like he regretted something, possibly escaping the world he was banished to in the first place, or coming to this world, however I didn't know... There was only one way to find out though, and that was through Hadrian

"Only if you are comfortable with sharing the story with me" I spoke. I was not expecting Hadrian to be willing to tell all this to me, especially after what happened back in The Games, when surely I thought that was a Journey's End, however it seemed he wanted me to acknowledge how and why he and Mevia escaped their world, though I would only listen to his story if he was comfortable with sharing it. Hadrian took a deep breath;

"I never thought we would escape that world..."