VIII - Healer Lost

After Dosigma's defeat, Mivangeline's party exited the Cubic dungeon victorious. Shien, Phoenicia, Elysia, Enshiron, and Mivangeline rested in Enshiron's bar within Tetrachrome City. He served his friends cool cocktails and pub burgers to celebrate their rare victory.

"Enshiron, you're the best!" Elysia munched on her burger and fries.

"I knew I had to feed the hungry warriors within us," Enshiron prepared his burger meal.

"Thank you so much for this, Enshiron." Mivangeline clinked glasses with Enshiron and the group. "You all did great."

"Yeah! We're a team!" Shien jumped beside his crush. "Don't forget, you led us!"

Mivangeline blushed. "I-I'm doing my best. God is helping me. I honestly couldn't have done it without a great team."

"It's our pleasure to serve our commander and see you grow," Phoenicia sipped her cocktail.

"What did I tell you, fair maiden?" Enshiron whispered to Elysia. "Now you see the commander within her?"

Elysia whispered back. "Well, I cannot lie, Mivangeline is getting better."

"Because you've seen, you believed. But blessed are those who believe even when they don't see!"

"Alright, I get it," Elysia rolled her eyes and elbowed Enshiron.

Shien overheard his Vulpi friends. "Elysia can't see well cause she doesn't think!"

"Okay, little shrimp. You have some serious problems! You know that?" Elysia huffed.

"Other than you, what else?"

"Your chickadee-sized body!"

Mivangeline stared at the commotion as Enshiron ate his burger. The commander turned to Phoenicia, who rolled her eyes.

"I'm not small, you dumb fox! Your brain isn't much bigger!" Shien yanked Elysia's tail.

"Ow! Bring it, half pint!" Elysia grabbed Shien's hair. "I'll make you cry like the baby you already are!"

"Cease your bickering!" Phoenicia bonked Elysia's head and threw a plush warbler to calm Shien.

"Well, the show is free, my lady," Enshiron grinned at Mivangeline.

After finishing their celebration meals, the five friends noticed a news notification from real life. It was live footage of Empress Maika's manifesto to program agents who would manually free players.

"Please send your loved ones to our reformation centers, where we'll monitor their unconscious bodies for their safety and our ability to locate them within Cyanic Odyssey. Thank you all for your cooperation!"

"I'm so tired of hearing Maika talk," Elysia swiped the footage away. "I hate that she's also pretty."

Mivangeline sighed. "I-I'm sure the players would rather wait for rescue than help us activate Saitori's antiprogram."

Shien tapped her shoulder. "We'll be fine."

Suddenly, Enshiron's bar was filled with gray smog from smoke bombs. The five friends coughed as Enshiron played a note on his violin, using his wind magic to blow off the smoke.

"What was that?" Elysia gagged.

Shien wiped his eyes. "Where's Phoenicia?"

The four friends frantically looked through the broken glass.

"Phoenicia!" Shien chased the robot samurai who kidnapped an unconscious Phoenicia. "Give her back!"

"I-It's the Dynastiotron!" Mivangeline followed, swiping a tab to grab her katana. "They kidnap androids for their Shoguness, the next boss! E-Enshiron, fire!"

"Yes, Commander!" Enshiron fired wind arrows at the robed machines wearing red goggles and jingasas.

He destroyed a few until the samurai drew their photon muskets. They shot Enshiron with blue gunpowder, leaving him injured.

"N-No! Elysia, take him to safety!" Mivangeline ordered. "S-Shien and I will chase them."

"I will!" Elysia cared for the Vulpi archer.

"Avian Form: Riflebird's Wingbeat!" Shien flapped his arms like wings to summon a gust of wind to blow the samurai away.

The machine samurai were blown back, bumping into a large, rectangular hovertrain. It was the Dynastiotron wartrain that arrived in Tetrachrome to collect android specimens.

"We need to get Phoenicia quickly!" Mivangeline attacked the samurai.

The Dynastiotron warriors drew their katanas to battle Mivangeline on equal footing.

"Avian Form: Woodpecker Beak Strikes!" Shien pummeled the samurai riflemen with beak-shaped palms.

Unfortunately, this bought enough time for the samurai to load Phoenicia into a train cart. The hovertrain whistled as the Dynastiotron stopped fighting Shien and Mivangeline, jumping onto the wartrain.

"Give her back!" Shien chased the wartrain that slowly rumbled away.

Mivangeline then noticed the samurai aiming mechanical ballistas at Shien. He paid no attention as the giant napalm arrows were launched.

"Shien! No!" Mivangeline jumped on Shien.

She pushed him away as the arrows exploded with flames that burned the ground. The duo was lucky to roll away unscathed, but sadly watched the train blitz off with Phoenicia.

"We lost Phoenicia," Shien huffed. "Mivange! Why did you stop me?"

Mivangeline blinked. "Huh? S-Shien, you were about to be shot by napalm! I just saved your life!"

"I could take it! You weren't much help!"

"E-excuse me?"

"You were so busy with those samurai that you didn't help me catch Phoenicia!"

"Listen! The samurai also had katanas. The Dynastiotron is much more intelligent than the Cubic!"

"Fine! Then just let me jump after the train!"

Mivangeline then lost her patience, yelling like never before. It made Shien tremble.

"Be quiet! I could just let you die flat by that napalm ballista! I'm your commander, and I went out of my way to save you. You show respect to me! Do you understand, Shien?"

Mivangeline then took a deep breath, and so did Shien. Their sudden loss of their team's healer left both of them frustrated.

"L-look, this was unexpected," Mivangeline huffed. "There was no way we could've prepared for that. It's nobody's fault."

Shien nodded. "Yes, you're right. Mivange, I'm sorry. You did save me. Thank you. I was just angry we lost a dear friend like that."

"I-I know. Phoenicia has been good to us. She's our healer," Mivangeline swiped a tab for a healing potion, sharing it with Shien. "We'll have to use healing items without Phoenicia for now."

Shien walked with his crush. "You said the samurai have a Shoguness? That's the next boss?"

"Yes, if we beat her, we save Phoenicia."

The two met with Elysia outside Enshiron's bar.

"Enshiron is out cold for now, but I gave him a healing potion," Elysia reported. "Is Phoenicia alright?"

Shien sighed. "The Dynastiotron took her."

"What? You two let them go?"

"E-Elysia, we weren't fast enough. They caught us by surprise," Mivangeline reasoned.

"Look, I know you're getting better as a commander, but how could you let our friend be taken?"

"Elysia! Don't talk to her like that!" Shien pouted. "We did our best! Mivange just saved my life!"

"L-listen, we can save Phoenicia by beating the Dynastiotron boss," Mivangeline assured.

"Oh, yeah? What's your great plan, Commander?" Elysia crossed her arms.

"T-the Dynastiotron village doesn't appear on the map like the Cubic or DiskGen factions, but if we board the train, we can hitch a ride to the samurai village."

"And how are we supposed to find the train?"

Mivangeline's hands fidgeted as she calculated plans in her head. "I-I heard that the wartrain has a scheduled pattern. I can ask the androids to calculate the wartrain's schedule!"

"Then how do we fight without a healer?"

"W-we just use healing items in the meantime!"

With Mivangeline able to construct plans on the spot, Elysia had nothing left to say while Shien laughed.

"What are you laughing at, shortie?" Elysia growled at Shien.

Shien grinned.

"I thought it was cute that you were speechless when Mivange countered everything you asked. I wish you had seen the look on your face. It was priceless!"

"You tiny brat! You're always following Mivangeline like a lost puppy!"

"I'm not lost! I like her!"

Mivangeline blushed.

"Listen, we're all frustrated to lose Phoenicia, I get it," The commander did her best to calm the two. "But we can save her."

"And does Mivangeline like you?" Elysia glared at Shien.

Shien pouted. "S-she does. I think."

"Aw, did I hurt your little feelings?"

"Since when do you care about feelings, you dumb fox?"

"Ever since I watched you flirt with Mivangeline! Does it compute to you if a tall, pretty girl like her would ever go out with a half pint like you?"

Shien froze.

I can't go out with someone small like you. The thought of passing your short genes to my future kids makes me shudder.

"Elysia, stop!" Mivangeline ordered.

"Why? Am I right?" Elysia snickered.

Shien was still frozen as if he had seen a ghost.

Someone short like you can't marry! Only wild pigs would marry you!

"Elysia! You listen, right now!" Mivangeline yelled at the Vulpi girl. "Can't you tell something's not right with Shien? Something's wrong! Shien?"

Mivangeline shook Shien's shoulder, but he was still frozen.

No girl would love you, little Shien. You're too small to love! How can someone like you have children?

"W-what? Was it something I said?" Elysia observed Shien, blinking in realization that he wasn't himself. "B-but I call you short all the time!"

The laughter of the girls Shien dated in his school years echoed in his mind. Shien suddenly grabbed Elysia's shoulder in tears, pointing a finger at his Vulpi friend. Elysia shuddered, for she had never seen Shien like this before.

"Listen, Elysia," Shien's wrathful eyes filled with tears as he shook his finger at Elysia. "I don't mind when you call me short. I know we like to fight, but never say that no girl would love someone small like me."

Shien bumped Elysia, crying as he ran away.

"W-wait! I-I'm sorry!" Elysia called.

Shien was gone, and Mivangeline glared at the Vulpi girl.

"W-what? I didn't know!" Elysia sweated.

Mivangeline wanted to scold Elysia for making Shien cry, but she sighed.

"Elysia, we're all angry that Phoenicia was taken. I am too! We can save her by beating the next boss. But Phoenicia wouldn't want us to be fighting! Right?"

Elysia took a deep breath. "Y-yeah, true. I'm sorry for questioning you."

Mivangeline patted Elysia on the shoulder. "I understand. Now, I'm going to check on Shien. Please tend to Enshiron."

"Yes, Commander."