Seeds of Discordia

Liam stood there like a deer in the headlights. Shocked, confused, and surprised, he didn’t know which he was. He slowly turned his head to look at the other three people from his original team and saw their grins. They looked like they knew what was going to happen but decided not to tell him.

His idiotic expression turned to an embarrassed one then to a frown. “You guys knew? You guys knew and didn’t bother to tell me?” A thought then crossed his mind. He sent out a mental thought to Eri and accused, You knew too, didn’t you?”

[I have no clue what you’re talking about. However, if I did. You should know I wouldn’t have told you since it would bring a little fun chaos like it did. – Eri.]

“A little birdie told us you were looking for us,” Ariyana grinned.

“A little birdie?” Liam questioned.

[Tweet. Tweet, motherfucker. – Eri.]

Liam inwardly sighed before letting out a chuckle. “Well, I wish that little chaotic bird would have said something to me or maybe, I don’t know, those that knew.” Liam side eyed Artem, Blair, and Roman for a brief moment before taking in Ariyana’s, Avery’s, and Mercer’s appearances.

Besides their new clothes, they looked almost exactly the same. Liam was surprised that Ariyana had a second creature tattoo but decided to wait for her to reveal what exactly it was since he didn’t recognize what the picture looked like. There was a lot he wanted to ask them, but at the moment them being right in front of him made him unsure what he wanted to say first.

Liam went to open his mouth, but before he could say anything, Avery raised a hand and said, “If anything that comes out of your mouth isn’t who was the last one to finish their shot then we don’t want to hear it.”

“Agreed,” Mercer nodded. “Tonight is a night we celebrate a reunion. Tomorrow is a day we get down to business.”

“Hear, hear!” Roman and Ariyana shouted.

“However, before we designate who’s buying the next round…,” Ariyana started as she looked at Gimmel and Uncle Naro. “Would you like to introduce us to the two new people here?”

Liam turned to see who she was looking at. After seeing Uncle Naro down a third mug of alcohol, confusing him on when and where he had gotten the other two mugs, and Gimmel staring at Ariyana and Avery with red cheeks, he let out a laugh. “The teenager is Gimmel, and the Bear-folk is Uncle Naro.”

“Gimmel and Uncle Naro?” the three questioned with a puzzled look.

“Is he your Uncle?” Mercer inquired.

“No, he’s…,” Liam started to say. He then explained about how he met Uncle Naro and why he called him that.

After he was done explaining most of the situation, not bringing up all the conflict, Uncle Naro introduced himself and insisted that they all called him Uncle Naro. Liam laughed at all their expressions when he insisted on it. He laughed even harder when they tried to just call him Naro, and he interrupted them like he did with him until he finally went with it.

After they finally agreed to the man’s insistence of them calling him uncle, he offered to buy the next round of shots and beers. They didn’t have any issues with that. When he left the table, Liam then explained Gimmel’s situation. According to Mercer, they were informed that there was a new Follower of Eri’s. They weren’t told who it was by Eri, just that they would meet him soon enough. They were even more surprised when he informed them that he was Nabal’s nephew.

After some talking with the newest member of the group, Uncle Naro returned with more alcohol. They toasted once more, a proper one this time, and enjoyed the night. Liam was happy to see them once again. He was happy to see them all together, just enjoying themselves with no issues around the corner nor a dungeon they needed to conquer. However, there was still a sinking feeling telling him they were here to just meet and then go their separate ways. That they were just making sure each were fine. He decided not to worry about it until that time came. Which it did…the very next morning.

                               

---

 

Liam sat at one of the tables the next morning. He was up late last night due to the time change and slept until ten. When he came out of the room and made his way downstairs he found everyone, except Gimmel and Uncle Naro, sitting at a table in the furthest corner of the room. They were talking to each other and looked to have just received their food.

Artem saw Liam enter the establishment and waved him over. Liam waved back and made his way over to them. After he reached the table, Mercer stated before he could ask, “Gimmel and Uncle Naro went out to look at some stuff and won’t be back till later. I figured you should be getting up around by now. We ordered you some food.” He pointed to a plate in front of an empty chair at the end of the table.

Deciding to make a joke, Liam said teasingly, “Oh? Are you sure a little birdie didn’t tell you I was making my way down here?”

Ariyana, Mercer, and Roman chuckled as Avery, Blair, and Artem shook their heads.

[Okay I admit that my part with that was funnier in the moment. – Eri.]

I am sooo going to use that against you sometime. Liam smirked. He then asked them as he looked down at his plate of bacon, eggs, and toast, “So what were you guys talking about?”

The others went silent at the question. Liam caught their silence and stopped reaching for his fork and looked at each of them. He could see their seriousness in their eyes as they stared back at him. He didn’t like that. It felt like a calm before the storm. Not wanting to overthink it and let his mind run a million miles a second, he repeated his favorite mantra, Calm the Storm, a few times.

After a few seconds of silence, Ariyana finally broke it. “Artem, Blair, and Roman were filling us in on what had happened when they met up with you.”

Liam froze. He looked at the three, who just so happened to be sitting on the same side of the table. Artem had his arms crossed against his chest as Blair sat back with her arms on the rests of her chair. Roman was moving his eggs around with his fork.

“What all did they say?” Liam asked.

“They mentioned a bit about the Black Dungeon full of Undead creating spiders and something about Demon-kins using the same summoning circle Gary and Steve used back on the sixth floor,” Mercer casually informed.

“Also that they were followers of the Seven Immoral Vices,” Ariyana added.

“They also brought up something else, but that can wait after you fill in everything on how you happened to get caught up in it all and what exactly happened,” Avery said. She then lifted her fork and waved it back and forth between Artem, Blair, and Roman as she added, “These three kept saying they weren’t entirely sure how everything escalated that far.”

Liam let out a sigh. “How much do I have to say?”

“All of it,” everyone at the table said in unison.

They all looked at each other before letting out a small chuckle.

“We want to know exactly what happened before they arrived,” Mercer explained. “They had mentioned some things happened before they arrived that they weren’t sure of, but we can talk as we eat. We don’t want our food to go cold.”

Liam acquiesced to their request and between bites he explained what had happened. From the moment he had arrived to after they had finished with the Black Dungeon. He left out some parts, like him running into his old friends and his altercations with Chad as well as his time in the Fiddler’s Spider Web since they weren’t things that important to the events. They did ask some questions that led back to the Fiddler’s Spider Web activities, and he tried to move pass them, but after Eri had told him he could just say he joined an Association that has strict rules on what he cannot say, they all accepted that. He wasn’t sure if they really did, but he felt that Eri had explained what he couldn’t, without giving away too many details.

“Damn. You serious had all that happening?” Ariyana asked as she gave Liam a look of concern.

“That must have been hard. Especially during the time your Stat Shatter Debuff was still active,” Mercer commented.

“It was,” Liam said as he looked down at his plate. Memories of that time replayed back in his mind. “However, it also helped me to understand what I was lacking and what I needed to work on. Sure it was all tough, but I received equally as much positive as I did negative.”

“Still,” Mercer started back up. “If we were all there then maybe you would have had an easier time with it all.”

“Especially when your old friends treated you the way they did,” Avery commented

Confused by her words he looked at her. He then saw Ariyana and Mercer staring at him.

Liam noticed Avery staring at him. Her eyes were narrowed, “What do you mean by…”

“We are a team. As a team we look out for each other. We don’t allow others to look down or try to devalue our teammates, right?” Mercer stated.

Liam stared at him. Realization and understanding dawning on him.

“So you…,” Liam started to say, but was cut off as Ariyana said with mock irritation, “I, for one, am quite offended that you would entertain the idea that we wouldn’t want to team up again.”

“Right?” Mercer chimed back in. “I know our time was short back in the Tutorial Area, but are you so eager to cut ties with us that you are trying to make yourself believe we don’t want anything to do with you anymore?”

“No, I just…,” Liam tried again.

“Ah,” Avery cut him off. “Not a word out of you. You’re just going to overthink things again. Just accept that we’re continuing our group changing it from temporary to permanent.”

Liam was baffled. He couldn’t get a word in edge wise. However, he was also happy. Happy that his worries and concerns were just that. He didn’t have to tip toe around the question. They already knew what he wanted to ask they and they beat him to it. Feeling the weight, he didn’t realize was there, suddenly disappear, he let out a long breath and felt his body relax.

That relaxed feeling lasted for a brief moment when Avery asked, “So why was this Chad such a dick?”

Liam felt irritation and annoyance replacing the weight as he scowled.

“Right? I mean he might be a variation of the same race as Avery…No offense, but Eri damn he sounds like a prick,” Ariyana stated with a sour look on her face.

“I think he’s just some entitled dick, but he became worse after he found something out. My pettiness formed…well grew more after I saw how he treated Gimmel, after I found out a key piece of information as well.”

“What key piece was that?” Mercer asked.

Liam felt embarrassed. After thinking about it, those who didn’t know that he really didn’t care that he and his ex-girlfriend weren’t together anymore, but his actions towards the elf spoke differently. Liam waved a hand as he tried to move on to a different topic.

Ariyana beamed as she smelled something juicy was being hidden from them. “Do not try to wave it off and move on to a different topic. There is something there that you’re embarrassed to admit, isn’t there.”

The others looked at him curiously as she said this.

“No….,” Liam said. “It’s not worth talking about.”

“Liam I know that look. Tell us. Spill it,” Ariyana demanded as she got excited.

“No. The reason is stupid,” Liam stated as he went to take a drink.

“Is it because you like him? Do you have a crush on him?” Ariyana smiled wickedly.

Liam, Artem, and Roman spluttered their drinks and coughed. Liam didn’t see that they had taken a drink at the same time as he.

Avery and Mercer swiftly looked at him. Mercer with a curious look on his face as Avery had a slightly disappointed one before schooling her facial features.

“What…,” Liam coughed. “What, in god’s name, led you to that?”

Ariyana pouted. “Aw, so you’re saying that you and he weren’t fighting like an old married couple?”

“No!” Liam exasperated. “He’s dating my ex from Earth.”

Everyone raised an eyebrow at that. As Liam looked at them he noticed they were all very curious and wanted to know more. Especially Avery, who had for the briefest of moments looked relieved at Liam’s words. He wasn’t sure why she did, but he wasn’t going to ask at the moment.

“So it’s a you dated my current girlfriend and now I want to show you she’s with a better man sort of situation?” Ariyana asked, not as excited as her earlier theory, but still held a level of I want to know more kind of excitement. “I take it you responded with the I want her back because she’s mine not yours sort of challenge and it just escalated from there?”

“Probably yes on his part, but a big fat no on mine,” Liam replied.

This made everyone even more curious.

“Why’s that?” Ariyana asked, taking control of the conversation even more. “Don’t you want her back?”

Liam shrugged. “It’s been a few years since we last saw each other. We were dating right when she and my friends suddenly disappeared. Well got transported here. She moved on without waiting and it would just be awkward to be like hey now that we’re both here on the same world again lets date once more.”

Ariyana nodded. She could see where he was coming from. However, it still didn’t stop her from asking, “So you don’t want to date her again? What would you do if she suddenly arrived and said she wanted to get back with you?”

Liam thought about it. he remembered how they were back on Earth. He also remembered how her parents looked and treated him while they were dating. If she did suddenly appear and pronounce that she wanted to get back with him, would he do it?

As he thought about it, images of Chad suddenly appeared. The way he acted were worlds different from how he was. His clothes and attitude spoke that he came from a well off family, something her parents really liked and sometimes she liked to. He remembered the times she would try to convince him to buy clothes from those stores that douchebags wore. The type of clothes that he hated to wear. If she really chose to be with a guy like him then he knew that she must have changed or revealed her true character.

Liam shook his head. “No. First she wouldn’t do that. Secondly, I believe she has moved on just like me. I was just annoyed with the fact that out of all the type of people she would decide to get with, he was the type.”

“He really was an arrogant douche wasn’t he,” Roman chimed in.

 “A major one,” Artem and Blair nodded their heads.

“That bad huh?” Mercer muttered. “Then its best to just leave them be and have each other. Besides, you don’t need to think about them when you have some cuties here right?”

Avery snapped her head at Mercer as Ariyana giggled. Blair raised a brow as she watched Mercer look at her.

Liam chuckled. “I guess you’re right.”

“You lot look like you’re having fun,” Gimmel suddenly said as he and Uncle Naro arrived at their table.

“Just getting some ribbings in,” Roman stated.

“A good ribbing is best when done by and with great company,” Uncle Naro said. “However, a good rib is better cooked and eaten with great company.”

Liam let out a groan. “That was horrible. Why did you think it would be good to turn that into a food quote?”

Uncle Naro let out a loud laugh as he took a seat near them. “There is never a bad time to make a food quote.” His face then looked warm as he stared at Liam. “I take it you have asked them?”

“More like they told me before I could even ask the question,” Liam replied as he gave the man a smile. “In case it’s not obvious, yes they are going to continue.”

“Good. Splendid even,” Uncle Naro beamed. “Then I guess it is time we start.”

Confused, everyone stared at Uncle Naro. It was Mercer who asked the question they all were wondering about. “Start what?”

“Why, my dear boy, training,” Uncle Naro replied. “There is a lot you need to learn and a lot you’re unfamiliar with. So it’s best to get right to it before we leave this place.”

“Leave?” Avery inquired. “Where are we going?”

“Ah, the destination is not the goal nor the worry. What you should be asking is, what mode of transportation you will be taking?”

Everyone looked at each other.

“Are we not going by Teleportation Portal?” Liam asked.

“No. We will be going by sea,” Uncle Naro answered with a smile.