Path of Dragons 7 - Chapter 40 - The Affable One (Patreon)

Sitting on the bench, Dat stared at the floor.  But he didn’t see the pristine white tiles.  Instead, he was entirely focused inward, on the memories dancing in his mind.  Some were comforting, but others – like the hours he’d spent carrying Lisa’s body back to Heaven’s Bastion – were decidedly less so.  He didn’t weep at those memories, though.  He didn’t have any tears left.

He looked up, running his hand through his hair.  He’d let it get too long, lately.  That fact was representative of a common trend.  It was just so difficult to maintain normalcy when Lisa was gone.  When he wasn’t sure if he’d ever truly be happy.  With his levels and cultivation, he stood to live for centuries.  Maybe much longer.  But without Lisa, it all seemed so meaningless.  Years and years of loneliness held little appeal, after all. 

He glanced around, then sighed.

He had no right to be as sad as he was.  Not when so many others were dead.  Row after row of urns, all sealed behind thick stone plaques displaying the names and likenesses of the deceased, was a testament to that.  Millions had died in the immediate aftermath of the world’s transformation, and thousands more had perished since then.  By any measure, the world had become a wonderous place, but that had not come without a significant price. 

How many others had died across the world?  The death toll had to be in the billions.  How many had survived?  How many were barely hanging on?  And why did they cling to existence so firmly? 

If Dat was being honest with himself, the question was less about the rest of Earth’s population and more concerned with his own continued existence.  Even before Lisa’s death, he’d dedicated himself to helping as many people as he could.  He liked to believe that was why he’d been given an elder core. 

But in the back of his mind, he knew he was no angel.  His class was a testament to that.  He had a darkness inside of him, and one that couldn’t be banished regardless of the illumination from his core.  He was meant to be a killer.  The ghosts – when he let himself hear them – made that absolutely clear. 

So far, he’d managed to harness his nature in service of the greater good, but how long would that last?  At some point, Dat knew he’d go down that dark and ever-so-beckoning road.  The only question was who would be made to suffer for his choices. 

The worst part was that he didn’t have anyone to confide in.  There was no one to listen – without judgement – to his fears.  No one to assure him that he was a good person and that no class could ever change that.  No one to tell him that he was not beholden to his nature. 

Once, Lisa had filled that role.  She had done so much else for him, but at present, her undiluted support was what he missed most. 

Maybe that was because he couldn’t remember what her embrace felt like.  Until his return from the Trial, even her face had become blurry in his memories.  That struck him as a terrible tragedy, and one which brought with it significant guilt.  He knew it wasn’t fair.  He knew that down to his bones, but as he’d discovered so often of late, guilt rarely concerned itself with reason.

He sighed, looking at the image of Lisa.  It was the work of a talented Artist, and it resembled the holographic displays from some of Dat’s favorite science fiction movies and television shows.  Still, it was a little blurry, and though the Artist had used a photograph as reference, it didn’t really capture her beauty. 

On the surface, she’d looked a lot like Sadie.  A little shorter.  A little less graceful.  She’d often referred to herself as the lesser sister, though only to Dat.  He’d refuted that claim, and not just because he’d loved her.  Objectively, she’d possessed a warmness that Sadie could never emulate.  And more importantly, she and Dat had fit together so perfectly that he’d often thought of their first meeting as love-at-first-sight. 

They’d been forced to hide their romance, though.  Her family – aside from Sadie – never would have approved, and what’s more, the time had never seemed right to tell everyone that they were in love.  After all, they were in the midst of an undead invasion.  Compared to that, everything else just seemed inconsequential. 

But that hadn’t affected the fierceness of their feelings for one another, so when she’d died, it had devastated Dat more than he ever could have anticipated.  Until that moment, they’d all thought they were invincible.  And for good reason, too.  For all his judgmental nature, Nico was one of the most accomplished Healers in the world.   Sadie was Sadie, and Dat had established his power in his own right.  And Lisa could devastate entire city blocks with the snap of her fingers. 

They were like superheroes, and in those sorts of stories, the heroes never died. 

Except, the apocalypse was no story, and super though Dat and his companions were, they didn’t strut around with the plot armor of a lucrative comic book character.  Never was that clearer than when Lisa had died.

It happened so suddenly that no one even had a chance to react.  One second, she was alive and well, and the next, she was dead.  Of course, everyone reacted the way they were supposed to react.  They slew her killers, and even stopped the ritual that would have doomed Heaven’s Bastion.  When the dust settled, though, she was still dead. 

That expression of surprise as her cold, lifeless eyes stared up at nothing would never leave Dat’s memories.  It was indelibly etched into his very spirit.

Often, he thought about all the things he could have done differently.  He’d known she wasn’t as durable as everyone else.  A glass cannon, she’d always called herself.  He knew he should have protected her.  He should have been there to take the hit, to sacrifice himself like a true hero.

Instead, he’d been a half mile away killing the demonic summoner that had been in charge of the ritual.  It was a perfect use of his talents, and yet, he still questioned his actions. 

But he knew regret didn’t change anything.  It couldn’t.  Though, there were times when he looked around at all the magical aspects of the transformed world, and he wondered if there was some spell or skill that might allow him to go back in time and right the wrong that was Lisa’s death.

If only he’d had a little more time with her.  If only he had told her one more time that he loved her.  If they’d bickered a little less.  Or just watched the sun rise over Hong Kong one more time. 

“Dat?” came a voice both familiar and unexpected.  Dat looked up to see Elijah standing at the end of the row of plaques.  Even from so far away, he felt stronger than before, and it was more than just a few levels.  To Dat, it felt like Elijah was a walking storm.  A promise of disaster.  Or perhaps nature’s vengeance.  It was difficult to parse, though it was obvious that Elijah had ascended. 

“Hey, bro,” Dat said, forcing a smile.  “When did you get here?”

Elijah stepped closer, his footsteps echoing through the Shrine of the Fallen.  The Druid sat next to Dat and answered, “Only a couple of hours ago.  Sadie’s been filling me in on the situation here.  It’s not really what I expected.”

Dat shook his head, but he didn’t answer.  He didn’t have the energy, even if he knew he should once again don his mask of affability.  That usually made it easier to deal with his grief, which still felt fresh even after all that time. 

“That’s Lisa, right?  Sadie’s sister?” Elijah asked, clearly indicating the flickering collection of light that represented Lisa’s visage.  “She was pretty.”

“She was,” Dat responded.  In some ways, he wanted to open up to Elijah, but something held him back.  He felt certain that the Druid would be empathetic and try to help, but there was a piece of Dat that didn’t want help.  As if unburdening himself was somehow a betrayal of Lisa’s memory.  “We were together, you know.  I don’t think anyone else really knew.”

“I gathered as much.”

Dat glanced at Elijah, but he saw no judgement.  Not surprising.  He had no reason to judge, unlike Lisa’s family.  Sadie might have understood, but the rest of them?  There was no chance that they would have accepted a foreigner like Dat. 

“How did you meet?” Elijah asked.

Dat shrugged.  “I came here for Sadie.  We were friends from college, and she’d invited me to visit Hong Kong.  But I was on the other side of the city when everything happened,” he explained.  “I…well, it didn’t go well.  Chaos and zombies and everything else, you know.  I was with someone then, but she…she died.”

He’d already explained that to Elijah, so he skipped over the gory details.  Instead, he said, “After that, I led some people across the city.  It’s so much bigger than it looks, especially without cars or public transportation.  And along the way, I got pretty badly injured.  Not enough to stop us, but enough that I had pretty much resigned myself to dying when we reached the International Commerce Center.  That’s what this was before it was renamed Heaven’s Bastion.  I got almost everyone here alive, but…but there I was, bleeding out and sure I was going to die.  Then, Lisa shows up like an angel…”

He shook his head.  “She saved me.  Brought me back here so I could be healed.  But even then, even with a miracle happening, all I could think of was how perfect she was,” he said.  “It took me a little while to talk to her again, but…but after that, I knew she was the only person for me.”

“That sounds nice,” Elijah said.  “Not many people ever experience that.”

“I know,” Dat stated.  “We were lucky.  Until we weren’t.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No.”

Elijah took a deep breath, then said, “Well, if you change your mind, I’m here.  It’s important to talk these things out.”

Dat didn’t respond until, a few seconds later, he asked, “Why are you here, Elijah?”

“After Sadie explained the situation with the Primal Realm, I decided I needed to check it all out for myself.  On my way out, I sensed you sitting here by yourself, and I thought you seemed like you needed a friend,” he explained.  “So, here I am.  Being a friend, even if you’d obviously prefer I just left you alone.”

Dat didn’t want to think about the last part, so he focused on the more important – at least to everyone else – matter of the Primal Realm.  “Thirteen days.  That’s how long we have until we can unlock access.  Then, we have to go in.”

“That’s the gist of it,” Elijah agreed.  “Anything I should know about the area before I go investigate?”

“Nothing you don’t already know,” Dat answered.  “You shouldn’t have any issues with the zombies.  Even if they find you, you’re strong enough to kill most types.  Watch out for the flyers, though.  They’re strong and fast.  I’ve seen them dive and kill people before anyone could react.”

“Good to know.  Anything else?” 

Dat shook his head.  “That’s about it.”

Elijah clearly wanted more from him, but in that moment, Dat didn’t possess the emotional fortitude to wear his mask.  Instead, he just stared at Lisa’s smiling face, alternatively wishing she was there with him and that he’d been the one to die in her place.  The world would have certainly been a better place with her still in it. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” asked Elijah.

“I’m fine, Elijah.  Trust me, I’ll be back to normal next time you see me.  Then, we can get down to the business of dealing with the Primal Realm.  Until then, just leave me to this,” he said.  “I appreciate what you’re trying to do.  I truly do.  But I don’t need to be rescued.  I don’t need to be comforted.  Sometimes, people just need to suffer for a little while.”

“I…I understand,” Elijah said, pushing himself back to his feet.  He reached out and gripped Dat’s shoulder, adding, “Just take care of yourself, okay?”

Dat looked up at him, then, for a second, resumed his mask. “I’ll be fine, bro.” He added another broad smile for good measure.

Elijah looked like he wanted to say more, but he was obviously aware that there was nothing left to say.  So, he just nodded, then left Dat to his grief.  When Elijah was gone, Dat once again dropped his eyes to the tiles and felt the tears streaming down his cheeks.

Apparently, he wasn’t done crying after all.