Static Reflections: Book 1 of The M... - Chapter 48: Chapter 48

Nick and Adrian walked into the hyena's residence, the mouse laughing as they came through the door. "Gods, I can't get over the look on their faces when you told them we used to see each other."
"I'm surprised they were surprised considering they take people from Austin. The odds of knowing someone can't be that low."
Adrian stopped, looking around Nick's place. "Damn, Nicky! You still don't have any furniture! How long has it been since you got this place?"
"Two days," Nick told him. "I would have gotten furniture, but . . . ." He wiggled his head. "Let's just say my first mission didn't go how we hoped."
Adrian came over, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Shit. What happened?"
Nick shook his head. "I have a bed. We can sit and talk there."
"Inviting me to bed already, huh?" Adrian snickered.
"No," the hyena told him, and the duo made their way to Nick's room. They removed their shoes and overcoats, then sat down facing each other. "But damn, it feels so good to see you. Like, I saw Nora when I first came in, but I haven't seen her since, despite being back in the Medical Sect recently."
Adrian swallowed. "Yeah. Feels good to see someone I know other than my partner, for once. I haven't seen you in such a long time." He looked to the side, rather sadly. "It's surreal having you here."
"Shit!" Nick put a hand to his forehead. "I was supposed to go furniture shopping with Richard after we met with Iwai! Gods dammit, why did I make other plans right in front of him?!"
Adrian winced, pulling at his collar. "Ah . . . I didn't know. But he probably understands, right?"
Nick sighed. "But I wanted to . . . go with him . . . ."
The mouse pointed to his pocket. "You can call him with your phone, you know. I can hang out another time."
The hyena exhaled. "No. It's fine. We'll go another time. So, how long have you been here?"
"Nora and I actually joined together when we were nineteen. You know how we liked going out super early in the morning and walking around? Like at 4 AM? Well, somehow, the Mortal Guard found us one of those mornings. They were there for Nora but didn't have a problem with me there. Apparently, her mom was part of the Medical Sect, so they wanted her. Lineage and stuff. It took some convincing for me, but I basically ended up joining for the cool magic abilities."
"That sounds a lot like you," Nick chuckled.
"Ugh, and then I joined, and there were all these rules, and I was never gonna see my family again . . . I wish they had said that in the pitch. But I guess no one would join, then."
"Yeah, there are a lot of things I question about this place," Nick huffed. "Especially after that first mission . . . I'm having trouble calling it home."
"Maybe it's the fact that you have no furniture," Adrian joked.
"Hah . . . no . . . Anyway, how have you been? You look good in your Guard Garb."
"You don't look so bad yourself," Adrian winked. "I've been good. I never realized that I would be so good at magical combat, but I'm one of their best magicians! Which is why I'm on the King case."
"So only the best members and kids are chosen for it," Nick pointed out rather snidely.
". . . Uh, yeah. I guess you could say that. Though, the kids are usually in Timeline Travel."
"Mhm. I can't believe that I was the Virtue of Patience all this time, and I didn't even know it. How does that even work? They told me I had powers. How does that work? Is it different from magic? It's all so confusing."
"Well, magic is limited because we only have the spells we've taken from the creatures. I figure your powers won't exhaust you after using them, after. Maybe," suggested Adrian.
Nick sighed again, laying back. "I guess I'll figure it out, eventually. I'm just totally tired of all of this information, but another part of me is really happy, ya know? Like, I can save Boris now." And Richard.
Adrian pulled at his arm sleeves. "Gods, I heard about that shit. I'm so sorry, Nick. I always liked Boris, personally. Hearing he was possessed and did that to Astrid---I wonder how my Double took it."
"He's probably not thinking much about it, considering they altered his memories," Nick pointed out. "At least I was never making out with a clone."
Adrian brushed the fur on his head back. "Ha! Good thing we ended our fling before all of that."
The hyena cleared his throat. "Yeah, sorry about that. I just wasn't ready to be a couple."
"Well, you're lucky I can handle rejection!" Adrian flicked Nick's leg. "I'm too much for you anyway, in that regard."
"That's definitely right," answered Nick. "I've never been about all of that, you know. I'd rather take my time falling into something."
"Well, you are Patience, after all!" Adrian slapped his legs, causing Nick to jump.
"It's great that we're gonna be working together," the hyena told him. "Like a little piece of my past life with me."
"Same here. It'll be good to get away from my partner, Dmitri. He's this big wolf guy, and we have a complicated relationship."
"Complicated? Are you together?"
"No, but we sleep together and . . . other stuff," Adrian mumbled. "Have you ever heard of Replacement Syndrome?"
"Uh . . . I think so," Nick nodded.
"Yeah. It gets really lonely here. So lonely that some people-- Let's just say they go really far for a connection. The Neon Nightclub has these things called Release Rooms for those purposes. I've used them more times than I'd like to admit, with and without Dmitri."
Nick gawked. "Eww."
"I think it's sad," Adrian said. "Imagine if you were dating someone and got recruited to the Mortal Guard, and your Double gets to be with them while you're alone. It's pretty fucked."
Nick stared at the ceiling. "Yeah, that sounds really shitty. Uh, are you still practicing your saxophone? Like, did you buy a new one or what?"
Adrian nodded. "Actually, yeah. I play it occasionally. I miss hearing new music every week, and I miss playing with the band. I didn't even get to tour Monster with you."
Nick felt more sadness weighing him down. "Yeah . . . I know. But you were doing important things here, right?"
"Yeah. I got Mortal Realm updates every time I went out on missions. It made me pretty sad to see things moving on without me but, ya know, gotta stay focused!"
Nick huffed a laugh. "Hm, yeah. What about your journalism? Been pursuing writing further?"
"Nah. Nope. That ship has sailed." Adrian glided his hand in the air. "Not really a reason to write. I think learning spells has taken over."
"Mmm . . ." Nick felt heavier and heavier as the conversation continued, and his eyes shut slowly. Adrian's voice faded into muffles, then into nothing.
"Nick! Nick! Hey!" Adrian called, and Nick heard it but didn't wake up, his subconscious disappearing into the blackness.
Nick appeared standing in a void, wearing the same clothes he had when talking to Adrian. Where was he, anyway? The hyena looked around, seeing nothing for a long time, but realizing the space he was in went on and on and on.
"Adrian?! Hello?! Where did you go?!" Nick called, still looking around. "ADRIAN?!" When there was no response, no sound but his breathing, Nick found himself walking forward through the void, unsure if he was moving or not.
Suddenly, a light appeared in the distance, shining down on something on the floor. The hyena couldn't quite make out what it was. Nick walked faster, toward the only thing he could see, and as he got closer, he realized that it was a sword. He approached it and looked down, seeing that the blade's hilt was some sort of metal, gray and shining in the light. The silver blade extended to medium size, but interestingly enough, its point wasn't that of a typical sword, but more a diagonal edge. Down the middle of the blade was a blue light that made it look somewhat futuristic. Nick bent down and picked it up. Did the Mortal Guard make this?
"No, they didn't," a strange voice responded. Suddenly, the light on the ground disappeared, a bright white light flashed on behind Nick, shining onto the wall. Out from the edges of the ring of light, the shadow of an otter appeared—the shadow of Boris.
"Boris!" Nick called, running up to it and placing his hands on the wall, his own shadow non-existent. "Where are you?"
"I'm not Boris," the figure answered. "But you do know me. I'm the one they call Absalom, and you're in my realm."
Nick stepped back. "Absalom . . ."
"That's right. It seems you've finally figured out who you are. I can't stop you from claiming your weapon, despite this being my realm. But I can assure you that you're far too weak even to activate its true strength."
Nick stared at the blade for a moment. "I don't care about that. Where the fuck is my friend?"
"I still have him," Absalom said. "I'm about to introduce him to someone very special to both of us. You won't be here long enough for that, as you have what you came here for."
"What have you been making him do?" Nick asked. "Why do you need him so badly? Couldn't you just possess someone else?"
The dark otter's head shook. "No. That isn't how it works. The contract is signed; Boris is my vessel. No one else, yet."
"But why?! Why him?! What did he do?!" Nick cried.
"In time," Absalom told him, walking along the wall as the light followed him. "He's vital to my plans. As his kills rack up, I get stronger. But I'm still not strong enough. You may have retrieved the weapon that was hidden here for you, but my plan is already much farther than a mere mortal could catch up to stop it. Even one who is a Virtue."
Nick hissed through his teeth, tightening his grip on the sword. "Hidden? What do you mean?"
"I don't have time to entertain you with stories," Absalom told him. "Boris is arriving. Goodbye."
"Wait!" Nick called but vanished before he could spend another moment there.
When the void snapped away, Nick was standing at the foot of his bed, alone, looking down at the blade which had transferred into the physical realm with him. The sword's name came to him instantly as if he remembered something he had forgotten for a long time. And it did feel familiar in his hand.
Tålmodighed. That was its name.
Nick took the blade, sliding it into the locket and holding it up. There was a feeling in his other hand, and he lifted the item inside it up, finding a long sheath for the weapon. A second later, the bottom of the sheath began shrinking, and Nick could only watch as it shrunk until it was about the length of a small knife, similar to the size of the ones the Mortal Guard used on their missions.
The hyena noticed that the blade was still extending down into it and, with his brows furrowed, he tried pulling it out, but found that it was stuck. He tried pulling, again and again, but it wouldn't come out. Deciding he was still too tired to even think, the hyena set the thing down on the end of the bed, stripped down to his underwear, and crawled back under the covers.
Nick's mind raced with everything that Absalom had told him: How someone had hidden the weapon there and how whatever he was planning was already further in its stages. But most of all, he couldn't keep his mind off the fact that Absalom said that someone signed a contract and that Boris was his vessel, almost like he was his property. It sounded ludicrous, but what didn't when it came to the Other Side?
Not only those things, but all of the information from the day before about King, how he was Patience, and how Richard was Diligence. It was just all so much. At this point, he thought he was done being overwhelmed with knowledge, but this was just a clear indication that his journey was far from over.
And even though Absalom said there was no hope to catch up, Nick was willing to do whatever it took to prove him wrong.