I woke up to Saber's soft groans. I couldn't tell if she had woken up, not with her eyes blindfolded. She sounded like she was in pain.
"Saber?" I whispered to her. "Saber? You alright?"
The groans petered out. She began to breathe more evenly, and deeply.
"Thanks," she said. "Just a nightmare."
I didn't blame her. After everything she had been through, I doubt she'd have much peace of mind, even in sleep.
I vaguely remembered napping by my father's side when I was little. He, too, would vocalize grunts or whimpers when he dreamed unpleasant dreams. I used to wake him up, too, when I heard him make those noises. He never said thanks, nor did he ever get mad at me for waking him up.
"I had a dream," he would simply say, without elaborating. Then he'd shut his eyes again.
"Here," I said to Saber. "Let me take that off."
I eased her headband up, off her eyes. She squinted, then opened her eyes.
"Can you see?"
"Are my eyes open?" she asked me.
My stomach sank. I had feared this. I had hoped things wouldn't have turned out this way.
"Yeah," I told her. I waved my fingers in front of her face. "Can you see my hand?"
"Still pitch dark," she said.
My head sank on to her chestplate. My hair cascaded across the blood-spotted metal. I held on to her, desperate. Impotent.
Now, when she needed help more than ever before, I had nothing to give.
Two quick knocks sounded against the closed bedroom door.
"Come in," I said. I eased myself up into a sitting position.
"Been six hours," Jack told me as he peered in. "Saber's sight back yet?"
I shook my head.
"Yeah," he said. "Hal feared as much. He said Cirrus wouldn't have run off after wasting an Ultimate to steal her sight, if the effect ended right after." In a lower voice, he added, "Might even be permanent, who knows."
I doubted it. I really wanted to think that wasn't true. If we somehow found Cirrus, we should be able to get Saber's sight back, right? Perhaps we'd have to kill him, but so be it. After everything he had done, he could hardly blame us.
"And, Hal told me Bounty Hall's about fifty, sixty miles from here. Roughly three days of travel normally, but superhumans like Cirrus will manage it in much less."
"Point is?"
Jack took an uneasy glance aside. "If he goes back for reinforcements, he might be back soon. Soon as I wake up, we'll need to get moving."
"You're saying they've got no reinforcements in the vicinity?" I pointed out. "Despite the onslaught on the supermarket just now."
"Who knows," Jack said. "If Cirrus could rally those allies, we'd already be dead. Hal thinks their whole mission was to retrieve Roger and take over the supermarket. That they can't add on a third objective, not without taking on unnecessary risk."
"And if Saber hasn't recovered when you wake up? We just venture out into the open, with an invisible assassin waiting for our missteps?"
Jack bit his lip. "Yeah. Unless you want to stay cooped up here forever. Best case scenario, we leave while Cirrus went back to get reinforcements, and we get to the mall before he catches up."
I furrowed my brows. "And if he never left? If he had been waiting outside the whole time, to ambush us as we leave?"
"Then we die." Jack shrugged. "It's a gamble."
"A losing gamble," I pointed out.
He scoffed. "We already lost when we sided against the Bounty Hall. All we can do now is play our hand. Anyways. I better get to resting."
He gave me a pat on the shoulder as he walked past me and into the bedroom. Saber remained upon the bed.
"I'm a light sleeper," Jack told me. "I'll make sure Saber's alright."
"Thanks," I said. I closed the door, leaving the two of them inside.
I found the others not in the living room, but in an adjacent bedroom with its door scarcely cracked open. Strange way to keep watch, though I supposed the living room was no longer defensible with much of its walls obliterated. Hal had just lain down in the bed. The landlady, sitting in a chair in the room's corner, greeted me with a slight, cautious nod. I sat down on the carpeted floor, in the opposite corner. I leaned my railgun against my shoulder, with its stock resting upon the ground.
Our shift passed wordlessly. Once in a while, I'd scan for metal in the vicinity using my magical gun.
We waited. At first I felt nervous. Soon, that subsided into a mind-numbing monotony. I charged my phone and checked the time, once every few minutes, waiting for Jack and Hal to finally wake up.
Relief eased me when the two of them stirred from their sleep. We assembled in Saber's bedroom, and the landlady asked for a few minutes to pack her things.
She didn't take long, and packed lightly. She only glanced back once, with a sigh, as we journeyed off towards the mall, leaving her house behind in the thick fog.
I woke up to Saber's soft groans. I couldn't tell if she had woken up, not with her eyes blindfolded. She sounded like she was in pain.
"Saber?" I whispered to her. "Saber? You alright?"
The groans petered out. She began to breathe more evenly, and deeply.
"Thanks," she said. "Just a nightmare."
I didn't blame her. After everything she had been through, I doubt she'd have much peace of mind, even in sleep.
I vaguely remembered napping by my father's side when I was little. He, too, would vocalize grunts or whimpers when he dreamed unpleasant dreams. I used to wake him up, too, when I heard him make those noises. He never said thanks, nor did he ever get mad at me for waking him up.
"I had a dream," he would simply say, without elaborating. Then he'd shut his eyes again.
"Here," I said to Saber. "Let me take that off."
I eased her headband up, off her eyes. She squinted, then opened her eyes.
"Can you see?"
"Are my eyes open?" she asked me.
My stomach sank. I had feared this. I had hoped things wouldn't have turned out this way.
"Yeah," I told her. I waved my fingers in front of her face. "Can you see my hand?"
"Still pitch dark," she said.
My head sank on to her chestplate. My hair cascaded across the blood-spotted metal. I held on to her, desperate. Impotent.
Now, when she needed help more than ever before, I had nothing to give.
Two quick knocks sounded against the closed bedroom door.
"Come in," I said. I eased myself up into a sitting position.
"Been six hours," Jack told me as he peered in. "Saber's sight back yet?"
I shook my head.
"Yeah," he said. "Hal feared as much. He said Cirrus wouldn't have run off after wasting an Ultimate to steal her sight, if the effect ended right after." In a lower voice, he added, "Might even be permanent, who knows."
I doubted it. I really wanted to think that wasn't true. If we somehow found Cirrus, we should be able to get Saber's sight back, right? Perhaps we'd have to kill him, but so be it. After everything he had done, he could hardly blame us.
"And, Hal told me Bounty Hall's about fifty, sixty miles from here. Roughly three days of travel normally, but superhumans like Cirrus will manage it in much less."
"Point is?"
Jack took an uneasy glance aside. "If he goes back for reinforcements, he might be back soon. Soon as I wake up, we'll need to get moving."
"You're saying they've got no reinforcements in the vicinity?" I pointed out. "Despite the onslaught on the supermarket just now."
"Who knows," Jack said. "If Cirrus could rally those allies, we'd already be dead. Hal thinks their whole mission was to retrieve Roger and take over the supermarket. That they can't add on a third objective, not without taking on unnecessary risk."
"And if Saber hasn't recovered when you wake up? We just venture out into the open, with an invisible assassin waiting for our missteps?"
Jack bit his lip. "Yeah. Unless you want to stay cooped up here forever. Best case scenario, we leave while Cirrus went back to get reinforcements, and we get to the mall before he catches up."
I furrowed my brows. "And if he never left? If he had been waiting outside the whole time, to ambush us as we leave?"
"Then we die." Jack shrugged. "It's a gamble."
"A losing gamble," I pointed out.
He scoffed. "We already lost when we sided against the Bounty Hall. All we can do now is play our hand. Anyways. I better get to resting."
He gave me a pat on the shoulder as he walked past me and into the bedroom. Saber remained upon the bed.
"I'm a light sleeper," Jack told me. "I'll make sure Saber's alright."
"Thanks," I said. I closed the door, leaving the two of them inside.
I found the others not in the living room, but in an adjacent bedroom with its door scarcely cracked open. Strange way to keep watch, though I supposed the living room was no longer defensible with much of its walls obliterated. Hal had just lain down in the bed. The landlady, sitting in a chair in the room's corner, greeted me with a slight, cautious nod. I sat down on the carpeted floor, in the opposite corner. I leaned my railgun against my shoulder, with its stock resting upon the ground.
Our shift passed wordlessly. Once in a while, I'd scan for metal in the vicinity using my magical gun.
We waited. At first I felt nervous. Soon, that subsided into a mind-numbing monotony. I charged my phone and checked the time, once every few minutes, waiting for Jack and Hal to finally wake up.
Relief eased me when the two of them stirred from their sleep. We assembled in Saber's bedroom, and the landlady asked for a few minutes to pack her things.
She didn't take long, and packed lightly. She only glanced back once, with a sigh, as we journeyed off towards the mall, leaving her house behind in the thick fog.
