The V'Sala looked disgruntled at being dragged away from whatever it was doing, but as Naem put it down, it still greeted, "Hello, Princess."

"Do you have a name?" Lexie asked, and both Naem and the V'Sala faced her in surprise.

"What?" Lexie asked. "I'm assuming there's more than one of you running around. Isn't there?"

She addressed the next question to Naem, who nodded slowly.

"There is."

"Are all of them under your soul line?

"Yes, but you don't have to meet them. He is the strongest of his kind, so with your authority superseding his, they will not be a threat."

"I know, that's not why I was asking. I was just wondering how you differentiate between them."

Naem looked even more perplexed. "Why would I need to?"

Leixe shrugged. She'd assumed each V'Sala had individual traits that he wanted to keep track of, but maybe not.

Anyway, since the V'Sala didn't have a name, she decided to give him one. "I'll call you V for short. Do you mind?"

The V'Sala glanced at Naem, who executed a shoulder movement that could have been a shrug.

The V'Sala turned back to Lexie with a blinking expression.

"No," it finally said. "I don't mind."

"Good. Now that we've been properly introduced and exchanged names, I have a favor I need to ask you."

"What is it?"

"You're a ghoul, and I'm told that ghouls, even Eldritch ones, are one of the creatures that can enter the Shadow realm."

"Yes," he said. "I may enter the Shadow realm."

"In that case, may I have some of your essence?"

"My essence."

"Yes." Lexie had an idea of how to bypass the human requirements to enter the Shadow Realm, and that was with a creature card. She would use a creature that could access the Shadow realm through its shadow and seize the end that way, giving Lexie control of its end.

That meant she had to make at least two cards working simultaneously, one a creature card that could enter the Shadow realm easily, and the second card would be the control card. It would be a card that not only linked to the creature card but went beyond that, took the Shadow, and stripped it of the final piece that would make a shadow into a void.

"Can I do that?" Lexie turned to Naem when the V'Sala wasn't answering, clearly confused by Lexie's words. "I already read up on how to extract a creature's essence and place it into a card, and how to strip it of its most dangerous attributes, leaving only what you need. You can help me do it too."

Naem thought about it, then slowly nodded. "I suppose I can."

She turned to the V'Sala, who promptly shook its head. "No."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to," it said like a petulant child as it grinned. "If I do not comply, it will bring you pain, will it not?"

Ah. Lexie had forgotten that it was the sadistic creature's guiding light.

She turned to Naem, who raised an eyebrow.

"You do not need to ask for its permission," Naem said. "I have told you that you have authority over it."

Yeah, but Lexie felt uncomfortable exerting that authority.

She tried to threaten the creature.

"If you don't agree, then I'll have to make you."

The V'Sala bared its teeth, but unlike before, it didn't scare her. Nothing in the Eldritch realm scared Lexie much anymore, now that she thought about it. Or maybe she'd gotten so used to the sensation of fear and was so accustomed to dulling her reaction that she barely noticed it anymore.

Still, she didn't want to have to force the creature. Apart from it being against her own moral code, she didn't want their relationship to remain contentious since they were going to be working together long-term.

"How about I offer you a favor in return?" Lexie suggested.

"Which is?"

"Through the creature card, we can maintain a connection," she said. "And when I activate it, sometimes, I will allow you to feed on the fears of my enemies."

The V'Sala's ears perked up, twitching in interest. Its eyes widened, and it stooped over in thought.

"Do you have a lot of enemies?" he asked hopefully.

She shrugged. "Not yet, but I probably will."

He tilted his head from one side to the other, like a dysfunctional hand of a clock. "Fine. We will sign a soul contract to that effect."

"No," Lexie wasn't ready to sign a soul contract with another Eldritch yet, until she had better awareness of her soul and what it entailed. "This is the highest I can offer you. I don't want to force you, but if it comes to that, I will." There was only so much her sense of fairness could go.

The creature said, "Yes. But you must give me your sincerest word. I can not lie, but you can, Princess."

"Of course," Lexie said.

"We may begin," Naem said.

There were two ways to create a creature card: either by linking the creature to the card and signing a helper contract (like with Handy Helper) or by extracting some of the creature's essence into the card (like with Sir Hoppington).

With the V'Sala, Lexie was doing a little bit of both.

The process of the essence extraction involved having a creature hold a blank card and push as much of their essence toward it as they can. Then Lexie had to slowly activate the nodes in the card that would process the essence, stamping the creature's impression on the card.

Thanks to their deal, she also created a linked signature for the card so that it would always be attached to V.

Naem watched her through the entire process, and every time she glanced at him to make sure she was getting it right, he would nod promptly, which told her she was on the right track.

It took her an unknowable amount of time, and when she was done, she handed the card to Naem, "Does this look right?"

He didn't even look at the card. He nodded yes.

Lexie beamed.

"Good. I'm guessing we're out of time, so I'll make the accompanying Seize the End card when I get home. Speaking of which, do you know the thing that I have to strip the shadow from to make it a void?"

"Yes. It's personhood." He said. "You must sever the shadow from the source, and cultivate it until it withstands the light on its own. Then it is nothing but dark space, or what you call a void."

"Hmm." It sounded complicated, but Lexie already had a pathway in mind for that.

"Thanks, Naem," she said. "And thank you too, V."

V was no longer paying attention to her. He was sniffing the air and itching his hand, clearly eager to return to his forest.

As they returned to the Dream Realm, Lexie noticed that Naem was watching her thoughtfully.

"What?" Lexie asked.

He shook his head. "Let's go."

***

Theo didn't show up for breakfast the next morning, and upon asking, she discovered he'd been shipped off to another District to deal with an emergency there.

Lexie was disappointed to hear that, because with only a few days left of vacation, it meant that they wouldn't get to finish their fire lessons. She doubted any other Firebringer would help her. Well, maybe Nathan, but he admittedly had worse fire control than she did.

Lexie also thought Theo's sudden departure was weird. She was sure when he left home that it had something to do with Lucy Frank.

She expected him to give her some news or an update before he left, but maybe Lexie was just thinking too highly of herself and her role in Theo's life.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Still, there was doubt in her brain. She asked Mane about it, and he confirmed that he saw Theo early in the morning before he left.

He'd just received the emergency orders from the head of the association himself. That made Lexie even more apprehensive, because Theo had been spying on Vacek's office this whole time.

Had Vacek found out? Was Theo being punished? Did they ship him off to a different planet like they did Luther?

Lexie didn't know. She wondered if she should mention to Mane the thing about Theo looking for Lucy Frank, but she didn't want to get Theo in trouble, just in case he wasn't already in trouble. She tried calling him that afternoon, but he didn't answer. Later on, he sent her a text that read: Hey, sorry I'm sort of in the middle of something.

It gave Lexie a modicum of relief to receive that.

Lexie: But are you okay?

Theo: I'm fine. Talk later.

That was it.

Lexie hoped 'later' would be in the evening, but Theo didn't call then. Nor did he call the next day, or the next.

Not knowing what to do with the worry, Lexie decided to exert her restless energy into crafting the Seize the End card. It took her time to craft the card. It was a complicated process even without the creature cards aspect, and it took her a few days of trial and error to get it right.

But eventually she did, by creating nodes that slowly separated the V'Sala creature from its shadow. She then needed a third card to ensure the shadow held its form while being processed to stand on its own, and systematically separated. Once it was done processing, it was then severed completely from the V'Sala and became void, a hungry, bereft, darkness with nothing at its base, desperate to grab onto anything in its path to replace its lost link.

Lexie figured it out on the last portion of the pathway on the same day that Dee texted her, asking her if she was free. She wanted Lexie to accompany her to a refugee camp, where she would be healing about two dozen people from noncontagious illnesses they'd gotten from contaminated water.

Lexie agreed, and she met Dee with Aoife and Mide in tow.

The place was in a very remote area in District 3, surrounded by nothing but trees and swamp. It was also very muggy.

Dee spent most of her time trying to get the people transferred to a real medical center in a different, more upscale nearby city in District 3, but there was still a war ongoing, and most people didn't want to leave their homes or risk the journey.

Lexie could feel the thinness in the air and knew that this was one of the places with less ambient mana concentration, which would make it harder for Dee to do any magic.

Yet Dee did it anyway.

Lexie could sense the strain on Dee's pathways. From her observation, they were moving more slowly than usual. But the healer continued working. Lexie tried to track the shapes that the pathways made to extract and eliminate the illness, but the pathways shifted too quickly for her to track. She could only really catch the final pathway it landed on, and she mentally traced it in her notes as they went.

Dee didn't stop moving for most of the day, even as she told Lexie more about the illness. It sounded like a severe case of food poisoning. Even when Dee clearly looked exhausted and pale, she went from one tent to another to another, until everyone affected had received a healing touch.

"Sorry for flaking on you so many times," Dee said as they got a chance to breathe. They were reclining in their tents, and Dee was shoving as much food in her mouth as she could manage. "It's just that a lot of the cases I've had this month haven't exactly been child-friendly, and most of them have been in dangerous areas."

"It's okay," Lexie said. "I don't mind the non-child-friendly cases."

"Yeah, but I do." Dee smiled.

"But weren't you around my age when you started healing?"

"No," she said. "We had to train in the Church for the first few years. It was essential to really grow our belief."

"Belief?"

"Yeah," Dee said. "A big part of healing is belief. Even those who don't have an intellect ranking must gain belief points from the system, and that can be gotten through the Priests."

"I see." That made sense now, how the healers and Saintesses were controlled by the Church.

"Speaking of which, this is a good time for me to give you some more blessings."

Oh God no. Leixe had thrown up the last time it had happened, and this time, she just might be violently ill.

"No, that's okay," she said. "You look exhausted. Besides, I'm not having bad dreams anymore."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I sleep through the night these days."

Dee sighed in relief. "That's good. I'll still need to check it out, though, soon."

"Of course."

They chatted for a few more minutes, and then it was back to work.

***

The day after that, Lexie got a visit from Cara, who came along with Urmas. She was happy to see her dojo friends, and just as happy to help both Cara and Urmas adjust their cards. She attached Cara's card to her pathways and reduced the speed and dexterity components of Urmas' card. Maybe when she had more time, she would figure out how to add it back without overheating the card, but right now, this was the best she could do.

Lexie and the Firebringers didn't end up visiting the Firebringer Island because Theo and Stella's continued absence didn't really put anyone in the vacationing mood.

For those last few days, there was a somber tension in the atmosphere, especially felt at mealtimes, and it put all of them on edge. It was most potently felt with the twins, especially Thor, who started acting out in different ways.

Lexie knew the kids missed their mother, and they missed Theo, too. She and Torin tried to keep them distracted with games and training, but it didn't work. Tamsin was quieter than usual and was almost always glued to her pad watching the AFC. It made Lexie's heart ache because the girl reminded her so much of her younger self.

That must have been what Lexie Sparrowfoot was like when Aiden had to work all the time.

While Tamsin became withdrawn, Thor turned into a tiny terror. Mane had gotten called at least twice from the restaurant, thanks to Thor throwing a fit. He screamed his head off on one occasion and threw all his toys out of the window on another.

The third time Mane rushed home, Thor had thrown a fit and broken more than a few dishes in the kitchen. Torin then locked himself and Thor in his room to calm Thor down. While Mane went in to talk to his son, Lexie held Tamsin in the hallway, who was crying and clinging to her.

About thirty minutes later, Mane came out, weariness on his face.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, Lexie," he said.

"No, it's fine." Lexie was sitting on the floor, cradling a sleeping Tamsin at this point. Mane gently took his daughter into his arms. "Is Thor okay?"

"Yes. He's asleep now." He sighed. "They miss their mom."

Lexie nodded. "Yeah, I figured. She can't come home at all?"

He shook his head. "Things are very volatile in District 4. The New Age Militia has gained a lot of ground, and without Stella's presence, they will attack." He brushed his daughter's hair fondly. "I didn't realize how bad it would be this time. I think I'll need to adjust a few things so that I can work from home."

How is he going to run a restaurant from home?

Lexie didn't ask. Instead, what slipped out was:

"Do you sometimes wish Stella weren't a [Hero]?"

He smiled wainly. "It doesn't matter what I wish. But for Stella...I don't think there was ever a time she wanted to be a hero. She was simply born into it, and she's the type who never thinks her needs and wants are important. She'll put the entire world before herself." His smile turned bitter. "I suppose that's what makes her such a good hero."

Lexie didn't know what else to say. It was just a sad situation all around.

Despite the somber mood at the tail end of the break, Lexie was sad that it was over. She didn't want to go back to school and leave the Firebringer residence. She found that she would miss the kids and the bodyguards and the staff and everyone who'd made her stay comfortable.

She went to say goodbye to them one by one, the day before she had to go back, and they said things like, "Aw, we'll miss you too, little miss Lexie."

"Just Lexie," Lexie would respond. "I'm not little anymore."

That, for some reason, made them laugh.

Pollock even gave her some of the ripe squashes to take with her. He told her she could eat it raw, and it would have a sweet, slightly nutty taste to it.

Lexie had found out from Theo that Pollock was actually a combination of a goblin, monopod, and dwarf (although he was a bit ashamed of the monopod side of him). So, Lexie told him thank you profusely in fluent dwarven and goblin languages, and that seemed to tickle him pink.

Lexie's goodbye to the bodyguards was surprisingly emotional.

Quiet Ralph gave her a rare smile and ruffled her hair.

Aoife kissed Lexie on the cheek.

Nathan told her that the next time she came, he would take her to a race track and they would ride together.

Mide gave Lexie a vial of corrosive tears that she should keep in her weapon's inventory for emergencies only.

Lexie was close to tears by that point, and Mide gave her another hug and told her, "Come back soon."

"I'll try," Lexie said.

Mane echoed the sentiment the next day when they loaded the bags into the Road Rocket.

"Come see us during the summer break," he said. "Hopefully, things would have quieted down by then, and we can make it much more fun for you."

"No, this was great," Lexie told me. "You all have been wonderful. Thank you so much."

Mane's eye glittered as he smiled. "Goodbye, Lexie. Take care of her, Torin."

"I will," Torin said. They were riding together in the Road Rocket back to school.

But even in the car, Lexie still had that unsettled feeling about Theo.

He'd texted her once in a while, but hadn't answered her questions about Lucy Frank, only said he was following that lead too. He'd never answered when she called. Lexie couldn't tell if her gut feeling was right or if she was just being paranoid.

Probably the latter.

Theo had texted her, after all. Was there any way he could have done that without it being the real him? Except for cellphones, numbers were embedded in the system and were unique. There was no way he could have been hacked.

Right?

Besides, Mane said he'd seen him before he left, right?

Lexie sighed. She would have to ask Isaac. He'd been away from his shop for longer than he anticipated, but he told her he would simply send her a brand new Undernet-rigged phone, with a brand new profile so she could use that instead.

She reached out now, asking Isaac if there was a way that a system contact number could be hacked.

As she waited for his response, Torin seemed to notice her mood, glancing over at her multiple times. He didn't say anything. He seemed to be dealing with his own things, too, his face grim.

Lexie couldn't stand the silence, so she asked, "Are you sure Theo's okay?"

"I think so." He nodded slowly. "I hope so."

That wasn't comforting at all.

Lexie arrived on campus earlier than Xena and Dewie, so she went straight to her room.

Her defense deck was almost complete, and she wanted to check it out. She was excited by how much she'd achieved and how many powerful cards she had now. She just needed good names for them.

Ava was already in her room when she got there, studying at her desk. Everything was the same as Lexie had left it, and Ava didn't look like she'd had to unpack. Had she stayed on campus during the break?

Ava glanced at Lexie, and Lexie paused.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," Ava said back, which surprised Lexie. That was the first time the other girl had done that.

It was odd that they'd shared the room for a couple of months, and this was the first greeting that they'd given each other. Interesting.

Lexie dragged her luggage to her bed.

Before she could get settled in, she got an urgent alert to go to the headmaster's office.

Oh God. I just got here. What have I done now?

She sighed and abandoned her luggage, trekking over to his office. She expected this to have something to do with Madswick, or Jett, or Rufina, or Dewie.

What she didn't expect was to see a man she recognized from her dreams lounging in the seat opposite Journeyman.

"Lexie Sparrowfoot," Journeyman greeted. "I hope you had a restful break. It looks like you'll be going into the field before the rest of your classmates. This is the head of the Hero's Association, Dominic Vacek. He has a job for you."

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