I woke up in a clean apartment.

  The stains in the carpet had been removed, matching the walls and ceiling. The table had been washed and the chairs set back in place. The radio had been wiped down, sat next to the fan, beside a recently washed window, glistening as sunlight poured into the room, pooling over the couch where I lay.

  When I tried moving, someone pushed me down.

  “Don’t you even start,” Ardenidi huffed, sitting on the other cushion with her legs tucked beneath her. “You’re in bad enough shape as it is. Take a nap or something.”

  I had to stare at the apartment for a couple minutes before realizing it was mine. “What’re you doing here?” I asked, allowing myself to relax.

  “What do you think? You left the door unlocked, by the way. That’s just asking for trouble.”

  I pinched myself, glancing around the house again.

  Not a dream.

  “Thank you,” I sighed. “Thank you very much.”

  She scoffed warmly. “I barely did anything.”

  Sip barged into the living room, holding a spatula and a pan utterly caked in week-old squash. “IT WON’T COME OFF!” He shouted. “Something in these vegetables had a chemical reaction with the metal!” Sip cut off, swiveling toward me. “Oh. Hey Grind. Feeling alright?”

  “Meh,” I groaned. “I’ve been better.”

  I was starting to feel a headache coming on.

  “Valid.” He leaned close, whispering in a low voice. “I don’t suppose you have any wizardry shenanigans to get this gunk off—”

  “OH NO YOU DON’T!” Soise hollered, coming into the room like a storm, grabbing Sip by the ear and dragging him back into the kitchen. “Grind is forbidden to do anything of the sort!”

  “I feel better now,” I said, checking my screen.

  {Grind : Shock - system_integrity 63%}

  [Disruption effect : 4.5%]

  [Edge case : 95%]

  [Regulator : 23%]

  Huh. My emotional regulation had more than doubled.

  Not great.

  Ardenidi sighed, pulling a book from her inventory. “Speaking of how you feel, we need to do a quick mental evaluation.”

  “How quick?”

  “Not too long.” Ardenidi flipped through a couple pages. “It’s part of the book Soise gave me.” She paused. “Did you know this was written in-game?”

  “I hadn’t thought about it,” I said with a shrug. “How else would it be written?”

  She shrugged back. “I always figured they’d all be summoned, but that’s apparently really hard...” Ardenidi cleared her throat. “First question. Do you feel emotionally overwhelmed at times?”

  “Nah,” I grunted, pushing up from bed as I realized who was missing from the room. “Sorry, but I’m really fine. I need to—”

  “Toya’s taking care of Screech,” Ardenidi snapped. “And Catania’s already buying milk and cheese, which Sip helped us afford, so, if you’re grateful, swallow your pride and talk to me.”

  I slumped back into the cushions. “Alright.”

  “Do you feel emotionally overwhelmed at times?”

  “Definitely.”

  “When you’re overwhelmed, how well would you say you handle that stress?”

  “Fine? Alright?” I sighed, adjusting my seating. “I usually handle things fine.”

  “Do your hands shake or feel sweaty?”

  “No.” I frowned. “What would that have to do with anything—”

  “Are you self-critical?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can you move past traumatic situations?”

  “A little.”

  Ardenidi squinted, looking from me, to the rest of the room, and back to me again. “I’m putting that down as a no.”

  I huffed. “What else?”

  “Are you lonely?”

  “Of course not,” I chuckled. “I have all of you looking after me.”

  She squinted again. “On a scale of one to ten, how well do your friends actually know you?”

  I bit my lip. “Seven?”

  Ardenidi leaned closer. “Really.”

  I had to think about it.

  “Two,” I sighed. “On average, anyway. But that’s just because—”

  “Do you get the sleep you need?”

  “Sure.”

  Ardenidi scoffed. “Grind, c’mon. Seriously?”

  “What?” I scowled at her. “I sleep a few hours every night. It’s a video game, so you don’t really need more than that.”

  She held her hands in the air. “Sure. Fine.”

  There was a brief period of scribbling as she scored my answers.

  Ardenidi blinked. She rubbed her eyes again. “Coping.”

  “Eh?”

  “Apparently the book thinks you’re doing alright, all things considered.”

  “Oh. Really?” I had to check the booklet myself. “Huh.”

  “Well that was a waste of time,” Ardenidi grunted, tossing the book into another room, followed by a sharp thunk and a yelp from Sip. “You’re clearly not okay.”

  We sat on the couch together.

  “I’m not okay,” I admitted.

  “There you go,” Ardenidi said, smiling.

  “I haven’t been okay for a while.” I finally got up from the couch, strengthening my legs. “And honestly, I don’t know if I’ll ever be okay. I don’t know if I should be okay.”

  She scoffed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  I met her gaze. “Ardenidi, if I hadn’t pushed myself so hard during the nightmare’s attack, all of you would have probably died, losing who knows how many stats in the process.”

  “And I’m thankful for that. Really.” She crossed her arms. “Now it’s my turn to repay the favor, starting with you getting in shape.”

  “I can’t work out, remember?” I gestured toward all of me. “Still healing.”

  “Bah,” she grunted, tying her scarf around her neck. “Look, your thinking is all messed up, and I’m not really great with therapy or advice in general. So, we’re going to fix you up my way.”

  “Which is?”

  She smirked. “You ever seen Union Park?”

  The place with the trees in Union square?

  “Yeah.”

  …

  I have, in fact, not seen union park.

  I have most certainly not seen union park.

  “You’re telling me they built this…what…yesterday?” I stammered.

  “They’ve been building it the entire time,” Ardenidi corrected. “And then the monster attacked and they had to rebuild everything over a week, but yes, they finished yesterday.”

  “There’s not an awful lot of nature.”

  “Not that kind of park.”

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  {Union theme park}

  [1 Qualm admission]

  Sip adjusted his robes, nodding to the rest of us. “Girls, Girls, don’t you worry.” He flashed a suave grin. “Sip’s got you covered.”

  {Notice}

  [[1] Qualm has been deposited into your account : Source : Sip]

  “You realize you’re just giving us back our money, right?” Toya asked, grunting at the dinky little coin. “Just because you manage our money doesn’t mean you’ve earned it.”

  “See if I ever do anything nice for you,” Sip grumbled. He adjusted his robes again. He clasped his hands. “Well. Anyway. You guys can have fun here and I’ll see you…later…”

  He made a dash for the exit, bonking against a floating blue statue.

  “NO!” Sip cried. “Haven’t I already paid enough!?”

  Soise grabbed him by the front of his shirt, dragging him kicking and thrashing through the gates. “We’ll need you to buy lunch.”

  “What’s with that?” I asked.

  Ardenidi shrugged. “Maybe he doesn’t like carnival rides? Anyway, this is a big theme park, so there’ll be plenty to do.”

  Screech was drooling on the pavement, twitching and shaking as he took in the view.

  “And he’s okay?” I whispered, pointing toward the four-year-old.

  Ardenidi squinted. “I think so.”

  “I WANNA GO ON EVERYTHING!” Screech shouted, clutching Toya by the ankle. “NOW!”

  Toya grit his teeth, forcing a smile. “Which do you want to do first—”

  “ALL OF THEM!”

  “That’s not—”

  “ALL OF THEM RIGHT NOW!”

  Toya shot me a glare. “Grind, you better get better faster!”

  I smirked. “Have fun you two.”

  Screech dragged him through the open gates where they vanished in the dense crowd.

  I bobbed up and down on my heels.

  Ardenidi bobbed up and down on her heels.

  Catania glanced at the two of us, clasping her hands in front of her. “Well. I guess…I’m…I gotta…”

  She hustled away so the two of us could have time alone.

  …

  I use the word ‘alone’ very, very loosely.

  “DUDE THIS IS AWESOME!” A twenty-year-old man in floral shorts screamed, grasping the whirling teacup with both hands, putting a little more mana into the system. The cup just kept accelerating, stretching out the folds of skin on my face. The man screamed, flung into the air where he was caught and scolded by an observant attendant, shortly before puking into a nearby trash can.

  Me and Ardenidi, the other two players in the teacup, staggered out when the ride stopped, collapsing to the ground in a wave of nausea.

  “I think I know that guy,” Ardenidi groaned. “One of the second courts. I’m gonna kill him.”

  I made garbled noises from facedown on the pavement. “I’m picking the next ride.”

  …

  I opened my mouth, cackling in delight as the distorted reflection stretched up and up, making my teeth larger than most people. “Looth ath thith!”

  Ardenidi frowned. The reflection in her mirror was about two feet tall and thirteen feet wide.

  “This isn’t even a ride.”

  I pulled on the sides of my face. “Buth ith’s fun ritht?” I asked, spinning around.

  Ardenidi just looked at me.

  She blurted out in laughter, covering her mouth with her hands as her scarf loosened.

  “Oh!” I started toward it as she reached out, still smiling and laughing.

  Our hands met.

  Ardenidi snatched the scarf from my grip, wrapping it back around her face. She cleared her throat. “This is very immature.” She gestured toward the mirrors, clearing her throat a little louder.

  I made a face in another mirror and she burst back into an uncontrollable squeaky cackling.

  …

  “What do you want?” I asked, glancing at the food truck’s menu.

  “Maybe some tater tots and a corndog,” Ardenidi mumbled. “You?”

  “I’ll just have what you’re having.”

  She nodded. “Alright.”

  I smiled brightly.

  The clerk turned to Sip, who was on the ground, begging Soise.

  “Who is this clown,” the clerk said, grimacing. He cleared his throat. “Qualms?”

  Soise looked up. “I’m so, so sorry. Yes we’ll get these meals paid for—”

  “IT’S SO MUCH MONEY!” Sip weeped.

  “---in a second.” She smiled through grit teeth, forcing Sip to stand. “We’re sorry for any trouble, aren’t we?”

  The clerk sighed. “I don’t get paid enough for this.”

  Sip whimpered, pressing the buttons. “A hundred thirteen Qualms. A hundred an-and thirteeeen…”

  I didn’t eat much food, so I gave the rest to Ardenidi, since she was still hungry.

  Something flickered through her expression.

  “Thank you. Anything else you want to do after lunch?”

  “Your choice.”

  …

  “Is that…jazz?” I asked.

  “Hmm?” Ardenidi perked up, glancing at some of the dots in the ceiling. “Oh. Huh. Yeah I guess it is. This is the ‘ride of love or whatever, so I guess the music makes sense.’”

  “Well how’d they get jazz music?” I grumbled. “This would have to be done by musicians, right? Are they standing on the roof? I just can’t seem to think they’d have the technology for recording.”

  Ardenidi bonked me on the shoulder. “Don’t think so hard about it. Probably summoned or magic or both or whatever.”

  Our boat swayed in the river, connected to the underwater track below by some sort of hinge. The swaying was probably meant to feel more realistic or romantic, but it just made me feel nauseous, which reminded me of the teacup ride, which just made me more nauseous.

  Ardenidi crossed her arms, leaning back. “You alright?”

  “Just give me a moment,” I grunted, clutching the side. “I’m alright.”

  She snorted. “Don’t think I don’t notice.”

  “Okay, I’m a little queasy.” I offered her a smile.

  “I wasn’t talking about that.”

  She looked me in the eye. “Stop it.”

  “Stop…” I blinked. “---What?”

  “You’re not having fun,” she stated. “All you can think about is making sure I’m having fun.”

  “I have fun if you’re having fun.”

  “Well you’re not having fun, so I’m not having fun.”

  I bit my lip.

  “This ride kinda sucks.”

  “That it does.”

  Thankfully, it wasn’t very long, so we got off and wandered around the carnival.

  “How about the Ferris wheel?” She asked, pointing to the metal ring, cresting above every other attraction.

  “Okay.”

  “Nah, you don’t look interested,” Ardenidi stated. “How about a roller coaster?”

  I grimaced despite myself.

  “Got it,” she huffed. “The mirror house?”

  “Again?”

  “Agh! This is hard! There has to be something good around here!”

  “Ardenidi,” I muttered. “I’m having fun just being with you.”

  “Sure you are.” She twitched. “Did you hear something?”

  A kid started screaming. Before a moment passed, I had crossed the entire street, whipping up a gust of wind in the process, scattering the remains of the child’s ice cream cone.

  “AHAAH! Silver!” Sip shouted, jumping in the air with his hands over his head.

  Toya took a step back. “Grind? Where’d you come from?”

  I was breathing hard and uneven. “Who’s hurt?!”

  Screech grabbed my pants. “I-I-WA-N-ICE CREAM!” He screamed, face covered in hot snotty tears, struggling to utter much of anything coherent.

  He was okay.

  I got up and started walking.

  Screech reached toward me, but by that point, I was already gone.

  I was gone.

  Mentally.

  My heart beat in my chest like a distant storm, sharpening my vision. Sounds bled together.

  I stumbled.

  Ardenidi grabbed me, shouting something in my ear.

  I looked up. “What?”

  She squeezed my head with her hands, gritting her teeth to the roar of energy surrounding us. Her scarf had blown off her face.

  {Grind}

  //1m Hp 1m Str//

  The energy around us stilled for a moment.

  {Grind}

  //10k Hp 10k Str//

  Ardenidi led me to the ground, where I sat with my eyes closed, shaking despite myself.

  Eventually, my heart started to calm. I felt Ardenidi’s hand in mine. Soise and Toya stood nearby. Everyone was worried out of their minds.

  I finally realized Screech was in my lap, hugging my neck.

  “You’re so warm,” he mumbled in a squeaky little voice, ice cream forgotten. “Are you sick?”

  Slowly, I started laughing.

  “Yes.”

  They’re all okay.

  I just knew something bad was going to happen. I just knew it. Almost every time I tried something fun, something happened. I’d been tense since the moment we arrived.

  But everyone was okay.

  Everyone was actually okay.

  Sip nodded to himself. “He’s still laughing. That’s a good thing, right?” He pursed his lips. “Well I’d say this day was a success, wouldn’t you?”

  Toya glanced at Ardenidi, who shrugged.

  He sighed. “We need a medical professional.”

  “Soise is using the bathroom. We’ll have to make do with this before the situation escalates.”

  “I want ice cream,” Screech mumbled.

  “Sure,” I said, pushing up to my feet, supporting Screech against my chest. “Why doesn’t everyone get a cone?”

  Sip choked. “Even a small is three Qualms so we’re looking at nearly twenty for all of us—”

  Arenidi smacked him on the back of the head. “Stop mathing. Give everybody ice cream.”

  “Nobody values their accountants these days.”

  // {Notice} //

  Hi! Hope you enjoyed my fantasy story. But as much fun as a fantasy is, there’s things in the real world beyond what writing can fix. That’s where you come in.

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