If I Had a Heart

Raptor followed.

As they walked in silence, his mind went to the first topic that it could think of: the questionable fate that awaited them outside of this cave system. He wanted to stay hopeful. He had to stay hopeful - he still had to meet with May. But it was hard not to entertain the thought of them facing even more challenges once they stepped outside of the caves.

He needed a change of topic.

He glanced over at Eira.

"When we were in the main room earlier," he said, "you were able to help Ainsley. How did you do it?"

He faltered.

"...Whatever it was?" he added.

Eira bit the inside of her cheek, rubbing one on her arms self-consciously. "I...well, that's an ability I don't really use. But it's basic blood manipulation. Found in demons of all kinds, some fae, the occasional vampire, werewolf, or shifter, not that I'm any of those. It's just pretty common just across the rift near where I'm from, is all." They shrugged a shoulder, "I don't really...practice. Honestly, I'm surprised he's not...well, dead."

Raptor studied Eira from behind his helmet, red pinpricks of light narrowing as he listened to her explanation. If she wasn't anything that she listed, what could have possibly given her powers like that? The scorpion had confirmed Raptor's suspicion that he was somewhere far from where he was used - with a different set of rules - but her mention of demons when listing who could do what she could further proved his theory.

As far as he knew, demons had no power like that.

"You were lucky," Raptor agreed. He readjusted the strap of his bag, glancing between her and the tunnel ahead. "But it seems like a useful ability, even if you don't regularly use it or practice it."

His gaze turned to Nikolai.

"What about you?" he asked. "Do you have any secret abilities?"

If they were going to be walking through these tunnels together, they needed to know what each other could do. They didn't have a powerhouse like Aumrauth to support them anymore - not that Raptor had really trusted him to begin with.

Nikolai blinked slowly, a little surprised by the question. “I don’t remember anything,” he explained timidly. “I just know my name and... that’s basically all I know about myself.” He glanced down at his hands with a sigh. “I guess I don’t really know if I can do anything special.”

So far, he felt like the most ordinary, most normal person in the group. Even the ones that appeared human were all... strange, in one way or another.

But he was starting to realize that no one who had been brought here was normal. And even though he had no idea who he was, he guessed he probably wasn’t normal either.

Mel paused, thinking about what Aumrauth said. So he could die, but only for a moment; he would regenerate back to life again shortly. This situation felt eerily familiar to her, but she decided to block the thoughts as it didn't pertain to the situation they were in.

She pretended to casually inspect the creepy door. "So if you were to open a potentially trapped chest, it would be fairly low risk, right? I mean, compared to the rest of us. Because, you know..." She paused, trying to remember what he called her earlier. "We're mortals."

Mel looked back at Dr. Archer and Aisnley, wondering if they would approve.

Aumrauth rolled his eyes. "That's what I've been saying this whole time. But no one's been listening to me."

Raptor didn't say anything for a moment.

He just stared at the ground and thought. May slipped from the corners of his mind; assessing their group's strengths did, too. His mind just kept flickering back to when he was little and first realized that most children had parents. That they didn't grow up closed away in schools with just the tiniest, weakest memory of two smiling faces that felt like family - or of tiny little hands clasping another pair as sleep overtook the two of them.

When Raptor finally found his voice, it was quiet.

"I'm sorry," he said. And while his tone the entire time he was here had come off as irritated or all-knowing, the tone to his voice now was clearly one of empathy and genuine apology.

Eira gave Nikolai a once-over, maintaining a neutral expression. The sports of spells that could take away memories had a wide range, from simple accidents to absolutely horrific rituals.

They hoped it was the former.

Nikolai blinked, putting on a weak, slightly forced smile, as if to say that hopefully he would be alright. He let out a quiet, gentle sigh. He’d handle the caves without memories, and maybe escaping would be enough to magically trigger them back. And if it didn’t, he’d find another way somehow.

“It’s not what I would have wanted at all,” he admitted softly. “And yes, it’s confusing and I have no idea how it happened, but I’m not devastated about it yet, for some reason...” He paused for a few moments, trying to find the words. “It’s hard to miss what you don’t even know you had. But thank you for caring.”

As they walked, the came into a small room with another of those chests. Eira sighed in frustration when they saw it.

"We are not opening that."

"Probably a good idea," Nikolai said slowly, frowning thoughtfully as he examined it. He didn't touch it, just in case, but made sure to give it a good look all the same.

He didn't want another trap, since it was clear those chests had been left for them. But at the same time, didn't there have to be something good in them? Otherwise, what reason would they have to open them? The wine bottles hadn't hurt them-- of course, they could have all gotten drunk and passed out on the cave floor, but that was hardly the worst thing that could happen to them here.

"Unless..." He got on his knees next to the chest. There was a hesitant look in his green eyes as he glanced up at them. "Well, for starters, can either of you fight decently? Because I don't know how good I am at it."

"Right now?" Eira shook her head. "There's hardly any light and I drained all of my energy with that blood trick. I couldn't fight off a sewer rat."

Any magician knew it was unwise to admit weakness, but this was the one time in his life where Raptor would let something like that be ignored. Not wanting to admit weakness was a form of self-preservation for the most part; admitting it here would probably be more likely to help him get out of this alive.

He shook his head.

"I can't fight," he admitted. "I haven't ever needed to."

He eyed the chest. He didn't like the idea of opening it, but he had suggested something back in the main room that still had merit as a potential idea.

He let out a sigh.

"...But I am like a tank right now," he reluctantly said. "It's hard to penetrate my armor, I can't get hurt easily, and I have a...custom-made potion in my bag that can heal me. If we decided that we had to open another chest, I...could do it."

Nikolai nodded slowly, thinking. He sighed quietly after a moment. “I mean, in that case, it’d be up to you whether we opened this or not, Raptor... It would be you taking the risk of a trap.”

He looked back at the chest. It made him feel even more nervous how there could be something dangerous inside it, only separated from him by the walls of the chest. They could move on and avoid the threat, but they might also be missing out on something that could potentially help them. Even with the trapped chests, there had been something else inside them.

“We all agree it’s risky to open it,” Nikolai said gently as he glanced up at his companions. “And we don’t want you getting hurt, Raptor, but you would be the one in most danger if it was a trap. So it should probably be your decision about what to do here, right?”

Raptor thought for a moment.

Nikolai was right, even if he kept trying to look for some form of guidance. If he was the one who would be in the most danger, it was his decision to open the chest. He still wasn't entirely sure that they needed to, but...

He glanced over at Eira.

"What are your thoughts?" he asked. "We're defenseless right now, and the chest might have a weapon we can use if we run into the scorpions again. I can theoretically open the chest without facing any major problems."