She left me

Stranded. That was the first word that came to mind as Lily awoke- her head emptied itself, and she groaned, trying to come to her senses. She couldn't see- no, she could, but the light was barely reaching her...? Groaning, slowly, she planted her hands and pushed, hard, trying to get up- something hard on her back, weighing her down, but she pushed harder, groaning. It wasn't enough... So she pushed harder, slowly screaming, and when she heard a cracking sound, she pushed harder, trying to ignore the pain...

Above her, some sort of slate broke apart, and she was able to stand up, body searing with pain, fatigue ripping at her like a thousand blankets weighing her down- still, though, she forced herself to her feet, coughing raggedly.

"Found her," came a voice, and Lily looked up, panting; overhead, a bright sun gleamed down at her in the center of a clear blue sky, and all around her, the ruins of a castle overgrown with flora, squirrels and deer with four antlers and two tails. Approaching her was a figure dressed head to toe in gear she didn't recognize with a print similar to snow and ash- she'd seen this before, the soldiers with Hina...?

"Wh-Who are you?" Lily shouted, favoring her right side; her body felt shaky and weak, still, but she didn't want to black out again- red and black tinged the edges of her vision, but no, she had to hold out. "Where is Hina-?!"

"Hey, I'm on your side, okay, no threats." The man raised his arms in surrender. "May I please pick you up? You look wounded, and I want to get you medical help. As for Hina, she took off, I'm not sure where she's gone to."

"So she's safe?!" Lily coughed, and her eyes widened in horror as a stream of blood poured over her chin- she staggered, falling to one knee, panting raggedly. "What about Thorn?! Where are they?!"

"Mn... I'm sorry, child, but Thorn died. She's gone. She absorbed Cthulhu into herself somehow, but she couldn't regulate that much magic - so she used it to self destruct, rather than letting Cthulhu recover. Hina, yes, she's safe- she freaked out and took off. She's been through a lot- now, please, you're going to die if I don't get you help, and we have very talented doctors."

"I h-have to make sure Hina is okay, she wouldn't leave me here!! She wouldn't!!" Lily screamed, but her voice broke, and her eyes widened as the taste of blood flooded her mouth- she choked, once, and the darkness swallowed her vision entirely. She wasn't conscious to feel her self hit the debris underneath her, again.

=

"Fang, I'm bringing back a live one?!" Lily heard the voice through a haze of fog, and tried to open her eyes, but she couldn't, not yet- they were so heavy, and all that she could see, all that she could taste, smell... Red, blood, decay...

Haven't I done enough...? Hina is alive, I saved her... The evil god of Underland or whatever is dead... Can't I let go? Is it selfish of me to let go...? I've, done my part... Done more than some ever will, by opening the window... Thorn is dead... And Hina left me... Hina left me... To die... Hina left me to die...

When next Lily came to, she was lying in a warm, soft bed, plush sheets hugging her from above and below- her clothes had gone, but she was covered. Slowly, she managed to open her eyes, swallowing the taste of blood- everything was sore, but the imminent threat of death seemed to have passed. She didn't recognize the place she slept, though- it was a small, compact bedroom with a desk, a bed, and a tiny, doorless closet- in that closet hung dark pants and a tank top, along with some undergarments and a pair of boots.

"Ng..." Slowly, Lily hauled herself out of bed, letting the sheets fall away, and limped across to the closet, leaning on and sniffing the fabric; there were no scents of potions, or a mimic, so she pulled the clothes down and hurriedly dressed herself, wincing but swallowing and toughing out the pain; she felt like she'd been thrown from a waterfall and left to tumble, but at least her wounds were closed.

Dressed, she contemplated;

Do I go out there sneaky and try to make sure nobody sees me? But no- if they wanted to kill me, there wouldn't be comfortable clothes waiting for me, and I'd just be dead by now. So they probably want me to do something for them...

"Hello?" She called quietly, stepping into a long, narrow hallway; it was, all doors, but she could see a sign reading "1F" with a downward arrow down the hall to her left, and so she walked that way, finding a narrow spiral staircase and headed down.

"Hello??" She called again, and this time there was an answer; Lily had stepped into what seemed to be a bar of some sort, but it seemed strange- on a wall sat a mirror that showed constantly changing pictures, like the watching a memory, and the lighting, the design, even the chairs... They were like nothing she'd ever seen. It's like I'm in another world altogether...

"Hello, dear girl. How are you doing?" Behind the counter, a man who looked to be in his mid thirties or early forties smiled, washing dishes. "Might I make you some breakfast? Free or charge, of course."

"W-Where am I? Where's Hina?"

"You, my dear girl, are in the Wolve's Den Bar. Or, more broadly, we are in Underland, still. I believe you are the last reason for our staying, before we leave."

"What...?" Lily frowned and hopped up onto a barstool, her toes just brushing the floor as she looked up at him.

"I'll explain the whole story, dear- but, one thing at a time. It's been three days, you slept, and you need food. May I please cook you breakfast while I catch you up to speed?"

"Sure, thanks."

"What would you like?"

"Anything."

"Noted. My name is Sebastian, and I will be your server today. The soldiers will be back, they are all enjoying some much needed rest and time in the sun, at the moment." The dark-haired gentleman smiled, nodding and beginning to pull out ingredients- raw meat, eggs, vegetables, and so forth. "As for Hina... she has been through a great deal, and all that I know is that, once she awoke, she fled, safely, with her harem. I am not sure as to whether she knew of your presence- or, perhaps, remembered."

"I know she's been through a lot, but... what do you know, of her?" Lily asked, mostly out of curiosity. 

"Well, I know that she was manipulated by angels, gods, and demons- controlled, used, and sent to where she was wanted by others, again and again. Then brought here, again under the whims of others, to Underland- all part of the plan, again and again. For now, Hina is resting, and though I cannot say for sure where, I suspect that she is, if only for a time, free of control or influence." He was cooking now, sautéing ingredients and tossing them carefully. Lily thought carefully, and he continued.

"As for us, we are the wolves, cursed to eternally wander, saving others, and solving problems. It is a cruel curse, in some ways, but it does, at the very least, reassure me to know that we are serving the greater good. Never have we, and never will we, be cursed to assist a cruel tyrant, or the like. It... brings me some solace," He added quietly, cracking eggs now, stirring them a bit.

"Mn..." Lily sighed, resting her chin on her hands. "Then, you were brought here to save Hina?"

"Who knows? Maybe the god's overtaking our leader made her get too confident. Maybe without our presence more Underland soldiers would have had the courage to intervene at the castle. I can't tell you why, exactly, the day was saved, nor can I tell you which part was crucial from us. All that I know is that we were called, and so we came, whether we wanted to or not. Though, I think, there are none of us who really mind," He added, smiling quietly back at Lily.

"What about me? Are you able to help me find my way home?" Lily asked quietly, resting her chin on her hands now, swallowing.

"I wish that we could," Sebastian lamented, shaking his head. "When the time comes, this bar will disappear, and we will visit our next mission. Should you be inside, you'd be left standing still."

"Is there any gear I can take? I want to find my way home, to get out. I'll need weapons, food, water, if possible."

"Yes, we do have the ability to leave behind gifts- but as for what we ought to give you, that will be a question to ask Fang," He added, beginning to plate an omelet. Once he had, he handed it over, and Lily took up a fork, nodding.

"Thank you very much. So Hina is gone, and it's on me to find my way home."

"Are you angry, that she left you behind?"

"I don't know," Lily answered honestly, softly, starting to eat. The flavor- it was exquisite, and she groaned, closing her eyes slowly. "Shit..."

"Oh? is the flavor not to your liking? I apologize, I can remake it," Sebastian hummed worriedly, leaning forward.

"No, sorry... like, shit it's good, gods..." Lily sighed, swatting his hand away from her plate and eating slowly. 

"Hm. Haven't heard that slang before," Sebastian hummed. "Ah, we have company- welcome back, all!"

Lily looked up, and over her shoulder as a host of soldiers like the one who'd found her in the castle's rubble entered. At their rear, a woman with dark gray hair, ears akin to those of a wolf, and a tail to match entered. She was scarred up to hell and back with piercing gray eyes and a small scowl, and threw herself down at the bar beside Lily while the soldiers collectively filled the bar and a handful of tables scattered around.

"My usual," Fang barked.

"On it, ma'am," Sebastian hummed, and Lily relaxed as he turned away, continuing to eat slowly, closing her eyes again.

"You know the deal?" Fang asked quietly, tiredly. "Name's Fang. Once you're ready to leave, best I can tell, we're going to disappear. Need anything? Supplies?"

"Supplies would be great." Lily swallowed, again, thinking. "I appreciate all the help. Really. Guess in the end I'm just your mission, so I won't try to get friendly."

"Good. Only because I don't want to end up missing you," Fang added. "It's not personal. We get attached, it's only going to give us sadness. For what it's worth though, I'm glad that we were able to save you and bring you to health. How good are you with outputting mana?"

"Pretty good. Why?"

"We have guns that are mana fed. I can leave you with one or two, along with a few weeks worth of food that won't rot on the road."

"Guns?" Lily asked, angling her head, and Fang smirked softly.

"You'll need to figure that part out yourself, we won't have time to teach you properly. After all, if you're ready to train, you're also able to leave. But, here. Somebody get this girl some weapons and road supplies!!" Fang shouted, drawing the funny metal black thing at her hip- it was shaped loosely like an L, and Lily angled her head, confused.

"Pour some mana in, and..." Fang hummed, and yanked some sort of little stick on it inward- with an explosive cracking noise, several plates and glasses hanging on a drying rack behind the counter shattered, and Lily looked up with wide eyes at a small, smoking hole in the wall.

"Wow... and I can just do that... to whatever I want? It's magic, I know, but what, is that thing like some sort of catalyst?"

"Exactly," Fang agreed as a backpack was placed on the bar beside Lily, along with two of the funny tools. One of them was similar to Fang's, and the other was a bit longer, seemingly made from polished wood and something black, with two gaping holes on the end.

"What's the other one for?" Lily asked, looking sideways, at Fang, almost done with her food now and wishing there was more. Already, she was almost full, but even so, it was just so good...

"Use the other one only in emergencies, if an enemy is right in your face. Promise, you'll be grateful later if you use it as a get out of jail card, rather than a standard weapon." Fang hummed, clapping Lily's shoulder. "So, are you ready to hit the road?"

"Mn..." Lily nodded, finishing her food and swallowing. "I guess so- huh- AH-!!!" She yelped, as her ass hit the mud- no sooner had she stated her readiness to leave than she, the backpack, and the weapons hit the grass- around her, the forest was quietly abuzz with small animals and insects going about their business. For a moment, she faltered, and then shook her head.

"Man, I guess I should have said I wasn't ready yet... everybody's left me, now. Do they think I'm dead?" Lily sighed, standing and slowly shouldering the bag. Well, time to go, I guess...