The sun rose in Roak's sky and Millie was feeling worse than when she went to sleep, with her breasts hurting so much that she had to make a strong effort to get up. She regretted doing that foolish action the night before, especially because, apparently, they have not grown much larger. In order to be able to resist the pain, the Fellpool had to wear a light dress and no bra, something she had never considered doing before because she was too prudish. Gathering her strength, she decided to pay a visit to the HQ, hoping nothing had happened and her presence was not needed, so she could take the day off to recover the pains caused by her imprudent act.
However, it was not meant to be like that. After leaving her house, Millie started walking slowly across the Kratus' unpaved roads, enjoying the light breeze in the hot summer day. It gave her a feeling of peace, and helped her to forget her pains for a moment. However, before arriving the Kratus' Defense Force headquarters, the pink-haired girl noticed something was wrong. Patrolling guards were coming and going, running around aimlessly, like ants at the sight of something dangerous. Millie could see clearly confusion and despair in their faces. It meant something very serious had happened, otherwise there wouldn't be so many guards gathered together. Despite the pain, she ran towards the HQ, but, on her way, she hit one teenager patrolling guard and fell on the floor. The boy excused himself and helped her up, but the damage had already been done, as her chest pain only grew worse. The Fellpool girl tried to lure the thoughts of returning home out of her mind and resumed walking slowly towards the headquarters. Damn! When they need me, I have just put myself out of combat with that selfish, stupid, and disgraceful act!
Arriving at the door, there were so many people inside the wooden house that Millie had a hard time making her way to the private meeting rooms. All she wanted was to meet Roddick and Dorne in order to understand what was happening there. She was frightened, believing that the casual joke with her blond friend the day before may have become a reality and that the situation was so bad that they needed to leave their hometown on another dangerous quest. Making her way among the crowd, the Fellpool girl finally reached the counter, where the official promptly let her inside. Arriving inside the main meeting room, she found her companions discussing, with worried countenances.
"What is happening here?" Millie asked, worried.
"Oh, Millie!" Roddick seemed relieved to see his friend. "Finally you came."
"The situation is pretty bad." Dorne added.
"What happened? What happened?" The pink-haired Fellpool was jumpy. By that time, she had even forgotten her pains.
"Remember that group that was raiding Haute?" Roddick answered and immediately continued after his rhetorical pause, "They screwed it pretty bad this time."
"Those rascals blew a hole in mount Metorx to serve them as a refuge." Dorne hit the wooden desk with his fist.
"And?" Millie was at loss.
"Don't you remember what was inside the mountain when we explored it during our time-travel, Millie?" Roddick asked dryly.
"What?" The way her friend has answered her not only hurt her feelings, but also added to her confusion. She might be silly sometimes, but the way he asked her made her feel like a complete idiot.
"You don't have to talk to her like that." Dorne scolded his friend.
"Oh, sorry, Millie." Roddick tried to fix his mistake. "It is… it is just that I'm too worried…"
"Nevermind." Millie interrupted Roddick and dismissed the subject as irrelevant. Then, she turned to Dorne, hoping that he would not act so harshly towards her. "So?"
"Roddick told me that you have found dangerous Bloodworms inside an abandoned mine in mount Metorx back then. Looks like the bandits managed to release them out of the mountain."
"Now they are on the verge of overrunning Haute, Millie!" The blue-haired Fellpool could not control his anxiety and interrupted his friend.
"Oh, no! That is really bad!" The news made her more anxious than before. "I thought they were all dead by now."
Dorne swallowed hard. "It is a very serious situation, Millie. The patrolling guards who tried to fight them were seriously injured…"
"Yes. Luckily no one died yet. Remember how strong they were, Millie?" Roddick added.
The girl recalled her memories. "Yes… if I remember well, they were really strong. The first time we tried to explore it, we were almost killed." Millie didn't have fond memories of the abandoned mine.
"And these guards are too weak to face this new menace…"
"That means…" Millie interrupted Roddick, but hesitated. She knew what would come next. The three friends had to step up and fight the new threat to Haute's safety. The notion of taking up arms again annoyed the pink-haired Fellpool. She believed she would be able to settle down after the crazy adventures she had had in company of Roddick, but the tranquility didn't last more than a few weeks. However, she was no coward and she knew that there was no one better than Roddick and her to deal with that dangerous threat. They were not only strong and experienced combatants, but also knew well how to deal with those dangerous bloodworms. So, the answer was more than expected.
"That means we will have to take care of this threat."
"You are right, Roddick." Millie sighed, resigned to the idea.
"So we must hurry! Let's go!" Dorne picked up his sword and opened the door of the meeting room.
Roddick and Millie followed him. While Roddick was breaking the news to the patrol guards gathered inside the HQ, news that were received with applause and cheers, Millie was very introspective, and didn't even hear what was being said inside the room. She had many things, many contradictory thoughts in her mind. As much as she liked the idea of being close to the man she was deeply attracted to, especially in a critical situation where hidden feelings are more prone to flourish, she was also afraid that her life has become an unending cycle of the same things going over and over again. More than that, that her relationship with Roddick has become a spiraling cycle where she would never be able to get to the edge and would turn around and around until she was crushed under the weight of her passion, in its center, destined to the eternal loneliness and oblivion.
The fighter trio then left the Kratus village and, as they set foot on the road that linked their hometown to the village of Haute, Millie was relieved that the group of patrolling guards finally left them alone. She walked at a small distance behind her two companions, instinctively adopting the formation the group used in the battlefield. The pink-haired girl was not very proficient in combat, but her symbology skills were indispensable to ensure her companions safety. Besides that, she felt a bit disconnected from her friends, opting to abandon herself to the inner machinations of her own mind. Probably the boys were talking about boyish subjects and she was unwillingly to disturb them, for one of the resolutions she had taken the day before was to leave Roddick and Dorne talk about whatever they wanted, without showing any hints of her girlish curiosity, in a way to look older and more mature to them.
What she didn't know was that, among whispers, she was the subject of the boys' talk.
"Roddick, did you pay attention to Millie today?"
The blue-haired Fellpool was caught off-guard. He was not sure about what to answer to his friend and decided to go with a non-committal answer. "Yes…"
"Man, you can almost see it all!" Dorne was so excited that he almost raised his voice enough for the girl he was talking about to hear him.
"Really?" Roddick was startled and turned his face to look at Millie, for he didn't notice anything strange before. The girl, who was following them in silence, smiled at him. He forced a smile, but he had already had his attention fixed on his friend's chest. After a few seconds, embarrassed, he turned back to his friend.
"Wow! That is really strange! I've never seen her like that." He was a bit shocked to see his longtime friend wearing clothes that made it possible to catch a glimpse of her breasts under her dress. She always wore modest clothes before.
"Do you like them?" The blond Fellpool took his companion out of his dazed state by elbowing his ribs lightly.
"Wha… what?" Roddick was very embarrassed with the situation and tried to avoid the subject. "Her clothes?"
"Clothes?" Dorne stopped and raised his tone. "Come on, Roddick, you know what I'm talking about. The pretty things under her dress."
"Shhh!" Roddick halted. He was desperate because he didn't want the girl who was following them to overhear the conversation, so scolded his friend for talking out loud things that, in his mind, should always remain secret. However, his friend didn't seem inclined to comply with his request.
"Give me a break, Rod! Do you want me to believe you have never looked at her… ouch!" The blond Fellpool was interrupted by the contact of Roddick's boot to his shin. Before he could protest, he noticed Roddick was not looking at him anymore.
"Huh?" Millie, who had approached the two boys slowly, stopped walking, with puzzlement in her face. She was very curious to know why the boys were arguing. It should be something interesting, for they had even stopped walking, but she fought back her urge of asking them because she didn't want to look like the pathetic hot-headed girl she though Roddick considered her to be.
"Oh, Millie?" Roddick failed miserably in his intention of looking natural to the subject of the conversation that caused the small squabble between him and Dorne, but the girl seemed to have bought his fake expression, at least partially.
"Is everything ok?"
"Yes, it is." Dorne promptly answered.
"Alright." The girl smiled, trying to reassure them she was not dying to know what they were talking about. "It is just that you suddenly stopped…"
"Oh, it is nothing." Roddick tried to dismiss the matter quickly. "Dorne and I were just arguing."
"Anything serious?" Her tone of voice was calculated to make it look like she expected a negative answer.
"No, just some silly boys' thing." Dorne promptly answered, knowing that confessing the real subject of their conversation was the worst option.
"Girls, heh?" Millie answered playfully, grinning at her friends.
"No, no, of course not!" Roddick was so troubled that Millie was started by his behavior, and she knew his next sentence would be a lie. She didn't know, though, the reason why he was so annoyed. "We were talking about…"
Millie interrupted calmly. "No need of being squeamish about it, Roddick. There is nothing wrong in two young men talking about women."
"Yeah?"
"Yes." Millie smiled sweetly at her friend.
"Yeah, Roddick, let's resume our conversation peacefully…" Dorne addressed Roddick and was turning his back on Millie, but then realized it would be indelicate, so he sought her permission. "Shall we?"
As the girl nodded, they resumed walking. Not wanting to be a nuisance, Millie gave them the same lead they had before the silly dispute. She knew she wouldn't conquer Roddick's affections by forbidding him to talk about other women, although she couldn't deny she felt jealous and even a bit envious of the women Roddick considered worthy talking about. The thing that she didn't know was that that time she was the girl worthy of his consideration.
After walking for a while in silence, when he felt safe enough to not be overheard by his female companion, Roddick scolded his friend. "You almost screwed it, Dorne."
"It was you that almost screwed it, Roddick. Do you want me to believe that you never looked at Millie as a woman?"
Roddick disturbance caused him to use all his forces to refrain from punching his friend, but the sense of justice prevailed. It would be a barefaced lie if he answered affirmatively. Being always his only close female friend, she had always been the only attainable girl of his teenage dreams. It was very common for him to resort to her image to fulfill his romantic and lustful dreams. She was not the prettiest or the most interesting girl in the world, but she looked good and, most important, she was there, representing the only real expectation of fulfilling his dreams. He had many reasons not to pursue the fulfillment of his dreams with his friend, as her friendship was something too valuable to lose. But it didn't prevent him of thinking about her.
Calming down, Roddick answered, "You know, Dorne, we have talked a lot about it. We even quarreled about her."
Grinning, the blond Fellpool asked again his opinion. "So, what do you think?"
"Well…" Roddick bit his lower lip. "I can't deny she looks pretty, and that is such a rare view. However, it is so un-Millie to dress up like that. I wonder what she had in mind this morning to dress up like that."
"I hope she was thinking about me." Dorne chuckled.
"About you?" The blue-haired Fellpool answered harshly. "Don't make me laugh."
The two boys quarreled a bit before changing the subject. Behind, Millie was unnaturally upset. Instead of her usual upbeat and confident mood, there was something inside her saying that something bad was about to happen. Her physical condition, though somewhat better, was not helping her to concentrate on the impending battle. Everything because of a desperate, unintelligent, and selfish move by her part. She hoped she could concentrate in protecting her friends during the battle, but she could not get rid of the gloom she felt.
After some time walking, they finally saw Haute at the distance. But the gravity of the situation was so clear that they didn't even enter the city. Visible groups of bloodworms were surrounding the city's western and northern walls, trying to break into the small town. As soon as they caught a glimpse of the gigantic green enemies, Roddick and Dorne charged towards them, but Millie shouted some sense into their heads and urged them to approach carefully, in order to not be surrounded by the monsters. The two boys slowed the pace and the pink-haired girl approached them.
"Hang in there everyone. I don't want to see anybody trying to play the hero. The most important thing is to come back alive."
"Alright, Millie, we will take care." Roddick answered promptly, understanding the dangers of the situation.
"Especially you, Dorne." Millie turned to the other boy. "As much as you try to be a good fighter, Roddick is much more skilled and experienced than you. I trust his skills, and together we have defeated much stronger enemies. As for you, I don't know if you are up to the task ahead, so don't take unnecessary risks."
The stern way she said that made him become nervous and irritated. Damn! It is always about him! I`ll never stand a chance with her!
He was ready to answer, but the girl added in a pledging manner. "I don't want to lose you."
It was enough to disarm his spirit. Could it be true that she has a genuine feeling for me? Oh, Millie, please…If I was courageous enough to ask her out and open my heart…
But none of the friends had time to think about anything else than the bloodworms. They were running towards the group, and, despite their slow speed, their massive size, and their large numbers were enough to make the Fellpools to proceed with the utmost caution. In a few seconds, there were screams, clash of swords in hardened shells and the battle was set up. While the boys swung their swords over the large worms, Millie stayed behind using protective and healing spells whenever one of the boys were wounded enough to demand her services.
Roddick was doing a brilliant job, having finished eight bloodworms already. Dorne, proceeding with more caution, had managed to dispatch two of the big monsters. There were more or less ten worms still alive surrounding them. Suddenly, two worms broke out of the group and started charging towards Millie, who tried to run away from them and keep a safe distance that enabled her to concentrate in casting her spells.
However, bad luck was on her side. A group of three large bloodworms suddenly came from the other side of the city walls, cutting off her escape route. Then, Millie was surrounded by five dangerous bloodworms and the high village's western walls. She screamed for help, but the boys couldn't break free from the worms that were surrounding them in order to help her.
As the circle closed, the bloodworms started mauling the defenseless Fellpool girl. Her screams of pain and agony filled Dorne`s and Roddick`s ears, but they were unable to do anything, except to pray for a miracle. The situation was so desperate that both the boys lost their concentration and were injured by the bloodworms they were fighting. Feeling weaker and weaker, Millie let out a loud yell "I don't want to die!" that paralyzed her companions. After a few seconds of constant mauling, the healer, unable to concentrate to cast spells while being massacred, started losing her senses. Is this the end? I'm dying… Help me… please… Moaning in pain, the pink-haired girl let out her last words. "I can't stand anymore…"
Roddick, perceiving the magnitude of Millie's tragedy, screamed his lungs out, "Millie!" and tried to bravely come to her aid, but the bloodworms surrounding him attacked back, forcing him to assume a defensive position. Dorne lost the coolness and started weeping, for he was sure the noises he was hearing were Millie's bones being crushed by the worms. Is it worthy to remain alive when Millie is dead? He was almost surrendering and accepting his own death, but a strange voice filled the air, with a debauchery tone.
"Who's that?"
Roddick was shocked to listen to the familiar voice of a person that should not be there, but as it was followed by the words "Healing Dance", and Millie's voice mumbling something he could not understand, he felt like crying of joy, for it meant she was still alive and, with the help of the newcomer, she stood a chance against the bloodworms.
"Pericci?" Millie was not sure if she was hallucinating, dead, or if the Lesser Fellpool in fact showed up to help her. The only problem was that, as far as she knew, the Lesser Fellpool had stayed three hundred years back on time, so it was not logical that she had shown-up suddenly. Considering the time-traveling paradox, Pericci had to be dead by that time, so it was more believable that Millie was dead too.
"Roundhouse!" The Lesser Fellpool started attacking the bloodworms. She seemed to have picked up the fighting rhythm very quickly, and it was not a big surprise, for she had faced the same enemies in the past. Millie, with her mind still fuzzy, remembered that Pericci was an active party member during their mount Metorx abandoned mine quest. "Multiple punch!" Soon, the wails of a dying bloodworm filled Millie's ears. It was the time to come back to the fight, and she knew the boys were having a hard time.
It didn't take long for Millie to hear the cries of pain and anger coming from Dorne and Roddick. They were barely able to keep fighting. Not only they were tired and wounded, but Millie's almost death event made them lose their concentration, so they were fighting poorly. Millie was very upset because she knew she was the cause of their setback. Pericci, despite of her good start, was facing difficulties, as she attracted the attention of the worms which had surrounded Millie. The pink-haired Fellpool felt she had to do something urgently.
"Tractor Beam! Tractor Beam! Tractor Beam!" Millie started casting offensive spells madly. "Gahhh! Die! Die! Die!" She entered into a kill frenzy, exhausting herself quickly. She collapsed to the ground and almost lost her senses, but her desperate effort was rewarded, for it was enough to finish all the remaining bloodworms, which were already weakened by her companions. Feeling an enormous pain, the pink-haired Fellpool closed her eyes an tried to catch up her breath.
"Millie!" Pericci ran towards her and took the wounded girl into her arms. "Millie! I'm so happy to see you! Did you miss me?"
"Yea... Yeah..." The Fellpool girl was so weak that she could not even articulate a proper answer. She wanted to ask Pericci how she managed to appear there to help them, but her mind was not steady enough to allow her to ask the questions she had in mind.
The Lesser Fellpoll laid Millie's head on her lap and asked. "Is everything okay?"
"I think... I'll... survive..." The answer came through a lot of pain.
"Great! I missed you so much! Don't you think I'm sexier now?" Pericci asked Millie while leaning over the wounded girl, almost touching her chest on the poor Fellpool's face.
"Certainly..." Millie was almost passing out, and although Pericci's question seemed completely out of place, she excused her companion, for she knew the Lesser Fellpool was genuinely worried about her. It was just that her antics were very weird. The sight of Pericci's wonderful rack so close to her eyes made she remember about the puff-puff deal, and she became so upset that she eventually passed out.
