Mounting Pressure (1)

The explosions have finally stopped. I take a few deep breaths to try and regain my composure, but the images of dismembered corpses keep running through my mind. It's only been ten minutes since I saw Inari using her Railgun spell on the Duke's army, but I know it's something I'll never forget.

I look down at my shaking hands. Just being near that battle could end my life. I've heard of world war one soldiers suffering from shell shock, and I think I get what that might have been like. The whole planet was rumbling beneath my feet; I was like a speck of dust that could've been blown away at any moment.

[Hold it together. We have to do something, anything to help.]

I close my eyes and slow my breathing until my hands stop shaking. My heart is still beating out of my chest, but at least my legs aren't numb any longer. I wipe the dried tears from my eyes and stand up. The rolling of the ground has calmed, at least for now. I begin heading back to town while using the trunks of the Mammoth Trees to keep my balance. My blurred senses make the fantastical forest feel like a nightmare. The dark luminescence clouds my already shaken mind.

I fumble through the woods until I see the light of the tree line. It's cathartic. I run as fast as I can and collapse on the open plain. The cool morning air pushes away the weight of war. The grass brushing lightly on my face fills me with life again. I take a few minutes to gather myself before jogging back to town. The kids are waiting for me at the gate.

"What happened?" Shinobu asks as I slow to a stop.

"It's hell." Shinobu and Sakura exchange glances before she continues.

"That bad, huh?"

"Worse. It's like a meat grinder in there." The air stills as no one knows how to respond to my words. "That being said, I want to help. I don't know what use I'll be, but I've got to try. I'm going to talk to Jezabel about it. You're all free to sit this one out if you want. I don't want to force anyone into this."

"Fuck you, Nick." Sakura frowns. "You always do this. We're a team, and they're our friends; of course, we're going to help."

Shinobu and Josh nod along to her words.

"Thanks, guys." I smile. "I hope Jezabel has some ideas because I've got nothing."

The smell of smoke follows us down the street as we walk toward the Adventurer's Guild. The tension in the air is palpable. No one knows what will happen when this war is over but it will likely change the town's nature forever. I watch the nervous townspeople as I lead the way to the guild.

"Everyone's acting weird," Sakura comments softly from behind me.

"They're scared. Just like us, they have no control over what's happening with the war." I reply.

"I wish everything would go back to the way it was."

"Yeah, me too." but it won't. I swallow those last words and keep walking. Time is of the essence. Despite my best efforts, I can't stop thinking about how I may never see any of the fairies again. Seeing the scared faces of the townspeople makes me nauseous with anxiety. I look at the ground and take slow, deep breaths to stay calm.

The guild hall is uncomfortably silent when we enter. The usual crowd is hanging out around the bar, but no one dares speak.

"Hi, Nick." Shelly greets me with a smile as if all my worries are a lie.

"Hey, you look well," I comment, hinting at her odd behavior.

"Yup." Nothing. Whatever is going on, it appears I will remain in the dark. "Would you like to speak to the Guild Master?"

I can't help but blink as I'm taken aback by her words. It's like she's cutting through the mood with a knife as if she already knows what will happen.

"Sure." I look back at the kids and shrug, as they seem just as confused as I am.

"You kids have been really knocking it out of the park recently," Shelly continues, "I overheard Travis talking about how you and Shinobu held off a giant spider while the rest of the expedition cleared the escape. I've always had high hopes for you, but even I can't believe how fast you're improving."

Shelly turns around to smile, but I'm too distracted to respond.

"I know things are busy right now, but I want you to know how proud I am of you all. Things have been much more interesting since you kids showed up, and I can't wait to see where you go next." Shelly swings open the double doors to the Guild Master's office as she finishes speaking.

"Nick, Josh, Shinobu, Sakura, good to see all of you. I just received a package from Guild Headquarters, and I thought I'd get this over with." Jezabel immediately picks up the reins of the conversation before I have the chance to speak. "Here are your official plaques; congratulations, the three of you are now silver-rank adventurers."

She steps forward and hands each of us a placard.

Jezabel claps lightly, and Shelly quickly joins in. I notice Nyatalie and Hugo clapping as well. The whole situation is too surreal. I can't tell if I'm more weirded out by the fact that everyone is acting like a war isn't happening only a few miles away from us or the fact that Jezabel spoke to me without opening with an insult.

"Alright, just a second. What the hell is going on?"

"I just told you, dumbass," Jezabel replies.

[Nevermind, it's the same as always.]

"No, I mean, how can you all just stand here and act like nothing's going on?" The room goes silent. Everyone looks at me like I'm crazy.

"Nick?" Travis begins. "I understand you're upset, but there's nothing we can do right now."

"There has to be something!" I cry.