The Oryza Alba was much different from the first time Adam had visited it alongside the rest of the group. Chandeliers no longer hung from the ceilings, instead replaced by simple bronze lanterns. The mural at the back wall that depicted the Mind Most High and Friendly Moon had been repainted. Now, the lapping of an electric blue sea spread itself around the base of the mural as well. The entire establishment was reasonably busy, but the pair were swiftly greeted by a waiter in a blue suit.

  “Table for two, please.”

  Hannah’s mood was unaffected by the dimmer atmosphere in the restaurant. After being led to their table, Adam noticed yet another change. At the top of each menu was an advertisement to join the Imperial Army. Moreover, the menu claimed, in large, bolded font at the bottom, that “Each Head spent is a Head donated to the armed forces of Martes!”

  “It seems that the war down south has quite an effect on the place…”

  Hannah sighed.

  “Yeah, there are plenty of rumors circulating, so I don’t know what’s true and what’s not. But I do know that Viernes has sent over most of its own military to help.”

  A waiter dressed in a blue suit ambled over to their tables.

  “Can I interest either of you in donating to the military efforts down south? The country of Martes is being beset by undead! Both Viernes and the Empire have sent significant troops, every little bit helps.”

  Adam glanced up at the waiter, who was smiling with clear strain. He had blonde hair and green eyes and looked to be about fifty.

  “You don’t look like you come from Viernes, why all the concern? Isn’t it in the southern hemisphere?”

  The waiter sighed.

  “My son lives down there, and my wife was from Viernes. She passed away a few years ago now, but my son still works down there. Heh, he joined the army as soon as his mom passed away. Fuerte was always strong-willed.”

  The waiter’s expression was noticeably gloomy.

  “I haven’t actually seen him since his mother passed away, me and him never got along. I didn’t want him to join the army, but now with all this going on, I can’t stop being worried, even if we don’t talk anymore. He shouldn’t be off fighting some undead mob…”

  Adam coughed.

  “Uh, my condolences for the passing of your wife, and I do sincerely hope that your son is safe down there.”

  He glanced at Hannah, who nodded.

  “We will donate a hundred Heads to the cause.”

  The waiter’s eyes pricked up with light as he bowed deeply towards the table.

  “Thank you, thank you so much!”

  Rushing off to get his manager, the waiter’s mood was elated.

  Adam sighed, looking to Hannah for guidance. She smiled grimly and shrugged her shoulders.

  …

  A few buildings from the Oryza Alba restaurant, a number of police officers and military soldiers armed with sidearms and rifles prepared to break into a small house. It had started as a standard wellness check, but when the door was found locked, and the stench of sulfur wafted to the patrolling officer, he had called for backup. As the squad prepared to breach, a deep voice boomed from inside.

  “My will creates your form.”

  The soldiers used a portable battering ram to hammer on the door. Once, twice, thrice.

  “My spirit creates your pathway.”

  The door collapsed in on itself after the third strike. Soldiers entered the abode in standard fashion, clearing corners and slowly making their way to the back of the house. A stench of sulfur permeated the area, and as the squad got closer to the back of the house, they stepped on more and more broken eggshells.

  “I summon you, Aranea Ingens!”

  The final room at the back of the house had its door blown off with extreme force. A massive spider, tinged a sickly yellowish bronze, shambled into the hallway. Its legs were each the size of a man, and its fangs were as large as knives. Behind it stood a young man, perhaps even a teenager, in a comfortable dark tunic and brown pants, laughing maniacally.

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  The soldiers hesitated for a split second, struggling to comprehend how a spider of such size could exist. They backed up to retreat and shot without mercy.

  The sidearms were useless against the creature, simply serving to slightly inconvenience it. The rifles pierced its chitin but didn’t have the stopping power to prevent its assault.

  Like a living train, the creature crashed into the squad of soldiers, biting with its fangs and stabbing with its legs. After ten seconds, it was over, and the squad lay dead on the ground of the house. The young man continued to laugh, stooped to the ground, and carved out the heart of the nearest soldier.

  “Not so big and tough now, are we, big soldier man?”

  The lad hopped up, blood dripping from the heart in his hand, and skipped out into the road.

  It was a natural sequence of events.

  …

  A few buildings away, Adam and Hannah, just as they were preparing to eat their food, heard gunshots.

  The rest of the patrons of the Oryza Alba clamored with alarm after a brief moment of hesitation, but Adam and Hannah were already up and out of their seats. Flinging a bag of 200 Heads onto the table as she left, Hannah quickly caught up to Adam outside. Glancing around, they were surprised to see a young man with a heart in his hand, still dripping blood. Behind him, a spider the size of a horse broke its way through a small house. From a brief glance inside, Adam and Hannah could both see the bodies of a half dozen policemen and soldiers.

  “That isn’t a monster, is it?”

  “Nope. That’s a spiritual creature. Summoned from whatever Realm that Passenger is harmonized with. It's quite large, too.”

  Adam smirked.

  “I could use some stress relief. What do you say, Ms. Chosen, ready to give your new powers a spin?”

  Hannah smiled and locked eyes with the unlicensed Passenger across the street.

  “Oh, I can’t wait.”

  Dashing forwards, Hannah blitzed towards her opponent as Adam spread out his arms to embrace the sun. A beam of light shot down from the sky, landing on the massive spider, though it only served to make a sizzling sound on the creature’s carapace.

  Eyes wide as Hannah closed the distance twice as fast as any athlete could have, the enemy Passenger brought his arms up in self-defense, growing chitin across them as he blocked a roundhouse kick that sent him stumbling backwards. The spider moved to intercept Hannah’s next lunge but was swiftly staggered by Adam’s use of a SHUNK.

  Colliding directly with the chest of the enemy Passenger, Hannah’s blow pierced deep into his left lung. Hooking her hand into his ribcage, she kneed him in the stomach, causing him to double down in pain, nearly blacking out.

  The spider, its faculties regained, attempted to stab Hannah with its legs, but she swiftly disengaged and created distance from the creature. Adam created a ball of light in his hands and sent it directly at the spider, causing it to stagger once again.

  Closing in himself this time, Adam focused on the sense of strength and empowerment he felt Bruenor give off when he talked. Tensing his muscles, he pounded on the spider with hit after hit, denting its chitinous carapace and causing it to be unable to stop Hannah as she dashed in towards the enemy Passenger again.

  To his credit, the young lad attempted to put up a fight. Taking out a series of cracked eggshells from his pocket and rubbing them across his face for sensory stimulation, he quickly morphed his left arm into a chitinous lance and lunged at Hannah. However, she was much quicker. Twisting her body mid lunge, she outstretched her hand and slit the throat of the enemy Passenger as if her hand was a blade. With her continuing momentum, she twirled and, using her other arm, pierced through his heart.

  Adam jumped back, avoiding an attack from the oversized spider as he did so. Creating a ray of ruby light in his hands, he ejected it outwards. The sound of cracking chitin could be heard as the creature was swiftly killed, burning up into ash and leaving only small traces behind.

  “Looks like your Realm gives you some nice powers.”

  “Looks like you can actually use yours without dying. What changed?”

  Adam laughed, shaking his head.

  “They aren’t my powers. I keep reviewing all the reports of all the combat encounters I’ve been in, and I use those to help me keep my mindset straight when I train. If I think of it as borrowing power from Hellig, or Uncle Bruenor, or the ruby charm of the Rainbow Pantheon, I can use them just as easily as if they were my own.”

  Hannah scoffed.

  “And you call yourself weak.”

  The pair glanced at the unlicensed Passenger, now dead on the ground. Adam sighed.

  “You know, neither of us had ever taken a human life before. You ok?”

  Hannah glanced away and started making her way down the street.

  Adam hesitated, watching her walk off without a verbal response. When she was far enough away, his head drooped down and he coughed up a mixture of blood and phlegm. Clenching his hand so tightly it shook, he took deep breaths before catching up to Hannah.

  “We should tell the authorities and Mr. Sureb. Adam, you go on ahead, and I’ll finish up here in the Physical World.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Hannah didn’t meet his eyes, instead preferring to stare at the windows of the various houses and shops that they passed.

  “Yeah. I can handle it.”

  “... Alright.”