Whether it was morning or night was far beyond Gwyn’s understanding by the time he woke up. All he knew was that he felt rested and ready to go. If only he had somewhere to go to, leaving the room meant getting more involved in ever more complicated Resh BS, but he wasn’t going to get out of the ruins without having to go through it. He yawned and stretched his arms high. Eventually, the Earthling noticed the sleeping Mina.

  The elf girl lay on the ground, resting her head on her arm and mumbling something to herself.

  “Mm, no, Mistress Kako, not the branding iro…”

  Gwyn was sure he had misheard whatever she was on about and turned to the door he had sealed before their short rest.

  “Mem,” he whispered, “Do you have any idea where to go next?”

  Fiona and Hailiegh were still missing, but given the structure of the ruins, Gwyn wasn’t sure which was even up. He wished there could just be a quick solution. After a quick rescue, they could all get back to Quenth and he could get some peace and quiet. If only.

  No, I can’t even reach Sun from in this place.

  The Needaimus was being unhelpful, and Gwyn sighed. He liquified the door and peeked out. The hallway was empty, creepily empty. They were fortunate that the scouts met early, as they seemed to be scarce after all. Not even any other Xenototes had gone looking for them. He figured that meant they weren’t reported as missing yet and were still expected to be on scouting duty. Or at least he hoped that was the case.

  Mina continued to stay in a deep, mumbling sleep. Gwyn figured it could give him so much-needed alone time to scout on his own.

  “…iat, don’t go…” she mumbled as he took a step out the door, but so far as the earthing could tell, was still fast asleep. He shook his head and began to creep down the metallic hallway. Whoever designed the rotten place could have at least hung a painting or two—anything to break up the monotony of grey and more grey.

  After a while, the Nonpareil came up to a fork. There was no telling anything of interest led down either grey path, and knowing introducing turns would only make it harder for him to get back to Mina, he figured it was best to return and wake the sleeping elf.

  He turned his back on the fork and froze, suddenly, it felt as if eyes were on him. Another scout may have been out after all. The Nonpareil looked all around for a weapon, but none were to be found in the smooth hallways. He settled to press his palm against the wall and try something.

  The smooth metal turned liquid, then formed into a sloppy sword before hardening again. It was heavy and dull, and he wondered if he should have just made a club instead, but there was no time to be picky. Pivoting back around, he aimed the jagged point at the halls.

  “Mem,” he hissed, “can you scan ahead?”

  There is a lifeform there, to the right.

  “I know you are there, you can’t hide!” Gwyn aimed the sword to the right and squinted his eyes. Once he knew to look for something, something was finally visible. A body shape was faintly visible as the scene and the air itself seemed to wrap around it. Faintly reminiscent of cloaking from video games. Without realizing it, it was easy enough to miss, but once he knew to look for something, he could make it out.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  The figure drooped slightly for a moment before standing tall. At once, the colorless effect vanished like paint was being poured on. The Zenotote woman from the beach stood with her open hands in the air.

  “You have good intuition for a Playboy,” she said in a smug tone.

  “A what?”

  “Someone who enjoys spending his time–”

  “I know what it means! I just didn’t expect to be called that.” Gwyn cleared his throat and pointed at her with the tip of his sword, “Now, do you mind telling me where the other two are hiding?”

  “Hmm,” she muttered, “I wish I knew as well, the… fish… caught them and I was the only one who slipped away.”

  The Zenotote didn’t seem to be concerned with his attempt to threaten her. She may have been confident in her fighting skills, or sure enough in her ability to disappear that it led to a more casual demeanor. Either way, Gwyn could see he was exhausting his only good arm holding all that weight up. He liquefied the sword and tossed it to the wall, where it turned solid as an ugly bump.

  The woman made a curious glance at the display, and Gwyn figured he needed to follow it up with some words to keep things where he wanted them, even if he wasn’t sure where he wanted anything to be.

  “I figured you’re smart enough to know there is no point in us fighting,” he grumbled. “Why don’t we swap what we know?”

  It felt like something someone would say in an anime, so it had to be good enough for the woman.

  She chuckled, “You certainly raise a good point, but I’m afraid I have nothing to share with you.

  She flicked her tail as she spoke, and if a lizard could make a smug expression, she was doing so. Gwyn thought about threatening to win the information out of her with a fight, but he wasn’t in the mood to incite a brawl; it would still be painful after all. Instead, he scratched at his left arm and frowned.

  “So you plan to go up against the army of Xenototes alone? You didn’t seem like much of a fighter.”

  “And you think yourself one better?” She made a hearty laugh. “Ah, to be young again.” The woman’s stance changed, and one fist raised as if she were getting ready to box. Gwyn sighed. More Resh BS.

  “Gwwwyyynnn!” A shout from behind caught both of their attentions. Mina came running up, hands in a frenzy, waving in front of her as she frantically charged forward. “Why did you leave me?” She sounded as if she was about to cry.

  “I was… I was just about to come back!” Gwyn shouted back; he wasn’t sure if his tone expressed guilt or annoyance. He felt a mix of both.

  The Zenotote woman snorted, then burst into a laugh.

  “Oh, what a fine mess I’ve gotten myself into!”

  “It’s that one lady!” Mina shouted as she stopped just next to Gwyn. She took a combative posture, but Gwyn put his hand in front of the elf girl.

  “Look,” he said to the Zenotote woman. He paused a moment to think of what seemed most appropriate to resolve the conflict and get them out of the ruins faster. “We both have people we are trying to find, so why don’t we just chill out and search together. I really don’t care about anything you were looking for, so you can keep whatever treasure you find.”

  The Zenotote woman’s posture loosened.

  “Well, at the very least, you don’t seem like a liar.”

  “The Nonpareil has many flaws, but being a liar isn’t one of them!” Mina put her hands on her hips and made a triumphant expression. Gwyn sighed and scratched at his arm.

  “Very well, we can call this a temporary alliance. I am not keen to try to fight or outrun two of you anyway.”

  She said two, but Gwyn wondered if Mina just looked like enough of a threat to change her attitude compared to him. It made him a bit sour inside to think the ditzy elf could incite such an emotion. He ground his teeth while the lizardwoman kept talking.

  “You may call me Amaris, by the way. My companions were captured in the ocean by the … Xenototes, but I alone evaded due to my natural gift. I was certain they came down the hall I just did, but I have had no luck in finding anyone, until now.”

  “Uh, Gwyn, I was caught up in the ocean, but we met some scouts a while back, so I figured we couldn’t be too far. Oh, and this is Mina.”

  “Very well, Gwyn and Mina. I hope our partnership is a fruitful one.” She held out a hand to Gwyn. He accepted.

  “Yes, let’s get our friends and get the hell out of here.”