His head pounded. His shoulders and knees ached, throbbing with pain. His throat was dry and his tongue felt thick like leather. David slowly turned his head, groaning with pain when the sun hit his eyelids and seeped through. He pulled the soft covers back over his head, turning over again to resume his sleep.

Wait… covers?

David begrudgingly opened his eyes, pulling the covers back down. He was in a bed—soft, comfortable, and cushioned—and surrounded by numerous blankets and pillows. He looked out the window, through the blinds, towards an almost familiar looking stone road. Turning back around once again, he studied the room he was in.

It was clean and small, with a nightstand to the left of the bed covered in glasses of water, bandages, medicine, and ointments, all placed upon a diamond patterned towel. A desk sat against the opposite wall, a computer and monitor placed on its surface, and the walls surrounding the desk were covered in flashy posters. Between the bed and the desk was a closet, cracked open halfway, where countless slippers and hoodies and shorts were displayed. Draped over the swivel chair next to the desk were David’s clothes, folded neatly. His boots were placed near the base of the chair.

David looked down at himself, realizing he was dressed in a hospital gown, bandages wrapping around his chest, shoulders, and legs. He sat up, wincing at the pain in his arms, and swung his legs over the bed. As he tried to stand up, his wings unfurled a moment too late as he fought to keep his balance, his legs giving way beneath him.

He failed.

Tumbling to the floor, David tried to grab onto something—anything—one his way down, his hand catching onto the towel on the nightstand. It fell down with him, alongside all of the objects placed on top of it, causing a loud clatter.

Moments later, the bedroom door slammed open, revealing the bandaged man David had fought with earlier.

“Woah, you okay?” he asked, kneeling down and holding out a hand to help David up. David scrambled backwards at first, but his elbow buckled and he collapsed once more on the floor. Gordon laughed, before hooking an arm around David and helping him to his feet. “I’m not gonna hurt you, I promise. Actually, I’m the one taking care of you right now.”

David narrowed his eyes. “I’m dangerous, you know. I’ll corrupt you with the miasma.”

“You aren’t dangerous,” Gordon retorted. Then added, “Not to me.”

“Not to you?”

Scratching the back of his head, Gordon sighed. “It’s… hard for me to explain. All you need to know is that these guys—” the bandages wrapped around his head came to life, unraveling themselves and lifting their heads to gaze at David. “—are the reason I can get close to you for long periods of time. They’re constantly rewinding both of our… “conditions”... just to prevent disaster.”

“I… see.” David looked down, grimacing as a piercing, burning pain shot through his head. He doubled over, clutching it tightly.

Gordon grabbed David’s shoulders, helping him back onto the bed. He rummaged through the pill bottles on the floor before uncapping one and handing Gordon a small, white tablet.

“Here. Asmodeus says this one is for migraines.” Gordon handed it to David. He recited, slowly, “Su-ma-trip-tan. He even wrote a note here: ‘take one tablet by mouth as needed for migraines, try to avoid using alongside buprenorphine, and to call him if there are any unusual side effects’. Dr. Asmodeus swung by with that pharmacist… Alecko? And dropped them off.”

Turning to reach for the glass of water, Gordon realized its current place on the floor, forming a puddle in the carpet. “Let me go get you some more water.” He picked up the fallen glass and walked through the bedroom door. 

He was only gone for a moment before returning, setting the glass on the nightstand. He watched over David as he took his medicine, then made sure he swallowed it.

David looked back up at Gordon, then back down. His gaze kept shifting and his eyebrows furrowed, and his hands kept clasping and unclasping, clearly unsure of what to do with them.

Finally, David blurted out, “Why are you taking care of me?”

“Huh?”

“I… I attacked you. I attacked everyone. So why are you taking care of me?”

Gordon sat down on the bed, resting his hand on his chin and gazing at David. He sighed wistfully, looking deep in thought. “I don’t really know,” he finally replied. “The Serpens vitae wanted me to, they told me they could keep you safe. They wanted to keep an eye on you as well. As for me? I suppose you don’t really seem like that bad of a guy.”

Gordon and David locked eyes: Gordon’s deep amber eyes with a hint of sorrow, and David’s dark red ones, brimming with a quiet rage. David’s face fell as he looked down at his hands, twiddling his thumbs. 

“Of course I’m bad,” David whispered. “I’m possessed by this miasma. All I can do is bad.”

Gordon’s expression softened. “I don’t think that’s true. After all, everyone else has been pitching in to help you out. I think they can see it, too. That you can do good. That you don’t just have to be a victim to this miasma.”

David’s eyes lit up as he looked back at Gordon. “Ev…eryone…?”

Moving to the chair, Gordon picked up David’s clothes and other items, laying them out on the bed. Then, he hastily exited the room, only moments later returning with a large tray filled with sweets. There were chocolate chip cookies, brownies, slices of mille-feuille cake, lokum, baklava, macarons, and lemon bars. David’s eyes widened as he leaned forward to examine the array of treats, laid out neatly for him.

“Frankie, Delphina, and Syzygy made all of this for you. There’s even some lemonade in the fridge from Bitte.” Gordon picked up David’s black mask, holding it out for him. “Dr. Alde, Professor Savant, and Armel worked together to repair your face mask and the tubing for you. And like I mentioned earlier, Asmodeus and Alecko, as well as Altair, have been coming over regularly to check up on you. Oh, and lastly—”

Gordon handed David a rectangular device, showing him how to turn it on and open the menu. On the homescreen was a message from Kintsugi, saying, “Me, Ignis, and Ginger want to teach you a thing or two about controlling magic. Let us know when you feel better and we can schedule a time.”

“—this phone is a gift for you as well,” Gordon said. “From Professor Savant. Everyone’s contacts are in there, even mine. I’ll show you how to use that later. And also-”

“Why…?” David whispered. “Why go through all this effort for someone like me?”

“Ah, well. How do I put this lightly? Although you gave us a run for our money, it’s clear you’re still very immature. Mentally, that is. You’re dangerous if left alone, but you’re also just untrained.” Gordon’s voice softened and he smiled a little. “You must’ve been alone in the Outer Frontier for a long time. We all saw that. We just want to help take care of you, and teach you what you weren’t able to learn by yourself.”

Nodding shakily, David adjusted himself so he could look Gordon head-on.

“My mother…” David began, mumbling. “She was the original Queen of Hearts. Before that woman killed her and my dad. Then she tried to throw me and my twin off of a cliff. I survived, thanks to the miasma, but Daimon… they weren’t so lucky. My only regret is that I wasn’t able to say goodbye to any of them…”

Gordon’s eyes widened a little. “I’m… sorry, David. I didn’t know that happened.”

David's gaze became intense as he spoke. “But I can say goodbye to her. That Queen… this is why I must get revenge on her. Not just for me, but for everyone else she’s taken care of from the shadows, too.”

“Yes, yes, I understand. But before that, you need to regain your strength and learn how to control the miasma so it doesn’t hurt you again,” Gordon pointed out. “You’ll burn out far too quickly like last time.”

“Surely I lasted a while, right?” 

“Eh… seven minutes.”

“Really?” David pouted. “It felt longer…”

Gordon shook his head, laughing. “No. You need more training. Queen Regina is very powerful, and she’s backed by powerful magic and technology. Her reputation precedes her, and no one dares to challenge her yet.”

“I understand.” David nodded solemnly. “I’ll work hard, then.”

“Good. But first, focus on recovering.” Gordon held out his hand. “Now, I made breakfast. Asmodeus will be here soon to check on you again, he’ll be happy to see you awake, but he’ll also want you to be eating properly. Also, he’ll have my head if I don’t feed you, and I’m rather scared of him.”

David limped into the kitchen, supported by Gordon, who guided David to the table and settled him down in a cushioned chair. He brought back a plate, setting it down in front of him. Inhaling and breathing in the warm scents of bacon, scrambled eggs, hashbrowns, and waffles topped with strawberry jam and whipped cream, David picked up his fork to begin eating while Gordon began pouring him a glass of orange juice.

“Thank you,” David breathed, still in awe at the food placed before him. 

“No big deal. I’m not much of a cook, so you’ll have to tell me what you think.”

Immediately digging into the waffles, David paused to voice his approval. “Mmm! I haven’t eaten anything this good in a long time!”

Gordon then watched in shock as David proceeded to polish off the whole plate in less than five minutes.

Laughing, Gordon leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest. “Hungry, huh?”

David nodded, still licking crumbs from his fork and fingers. “You don’t get a lot of opportunities for food in the Outer Frontier. It’s been a while since I’ve had something cooked, too.”

“I guess that makes sense… Well, I’m glad you liked it.” Gordon smiled fondly. “Tonight, after Asmodeus’ checkup, I’ll take you to get some good food at Branzino’s.”

“Really?”

Gordon nodded. “Of course. They’re finally re-opening tonight after being closed for the past two weeks due to the queen’s trade ban.”

David blinked. “Trade ban?”

“Yeah. According to Kintsugi’s former colleague, a caravan was attacked, which led to the queen to close all the trade routes.”

“Oh… uh…” David set his fork down and swallowed nervously. “Whoops…”

“David…”

“Mm?”

“Were you the one responsible for that?”

“Mm… well… mmmaybe…?”

Gordon sighed as the snakes suddenly came to life, unraveling themselves to glare at David.

“You!” Hesterno cried. “You’re the reason why we couldn’t get chicken! Cras, bite him!”

“Woah, woah, woah!” Gordon grabbed Hesterno, shaking them lightly. “We don’t bite people! How many times have I said that?”

“You fiend! Unhand me this–!”

They were interrupted by an abrupt yet firm knock on the door. Gordon carefully released his grip on Hesterno, pushing away from the table to answer the door.

Awaiting him was Asmodeus, still dressed in his scrubs from work, accompanied by Altair wearing his usual white and gold attire.

“Gordon! Good to see you.” Asmodeus pulled him into a hug, patting him on the back. “I’ve brought new bandages for David, and–”

His eyes drifted over to the wide-eyed figure sitting at the table, his pupils dilating. Asmodeus quickly pushed past Gordon, setting his things down on the floor as he crossed the threshold and rushed towards David.

“David! How are you feeling?” Asmodeus studied David thoroughly. “Your wounds seem to be healing well.”

David nodded, shifting in his chair. “I’m… okay. Just a little disoriented.”

“That’s understandable. You were out for two weeks.” Asmodeus began checking David’s vitals and replacing his bandages, taking note of any remaining scars, contusions, or abrasions. He hummed to himself as he worked, then stepped back when he was finished. “I apologize for hurting you so much when trying to incapacitate you. It seems I went too far.”

“Ah, uh, it’s okay. I attacked first,” David replied meekly. He remembered the flash and sting of the needles, and shuddered to himself. His head turned to Altair, who had his arms folded across his chest as he leaned against the doorframe with a disinterested expression. His golden rings attached to his cape glistened in the morning light, catching David’s attention. “Your portals… how do they work?”

Altair looked at David, eyes narrowing as he tried to ascertain David’s intentions. Finally, he exhaled, unfolding his arms and pulling off one of the rings. “I can make a portal through any ring that goes to any place I’ve seen before. But these specific rings on my outfit are ones that have been custom made to expand or shrink, letting me move through them and carry them around easily. I’ve got more here, in the pouch on my belt…”

David listened intently as he watched Altair’s every move, the angel displaying how the rings grew and shrank. He even held a ring up, letting David look through it to a scenery of rolling hills and dandelions. When Altair finished explaining, David asked another question. “Does it feel weird?”

Thinking for a moment, Altair shrugged. “Not really. It does at first, like your stomach is being flipped, but you get used to it after a while.”

“Cool… I’ve… always wanted to go to a beach.” David murmured, continuing to eye the ring still in Altair’s hand. Altair smiled, reattaching it to his outfit.

“When you get better, if you’ve been behaving for Gordon and once you’ve learned how to control the miasma, I’ll take you.”

David jumped to his feet excitedly. “Really?”

“Promise.”

“You’ve got it!” David stood, picking up his plate and scanning for the nearest sink, before rushing towards it. “Don’t worry, Gordon, I’ll do my best!”

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Gordon fretted. “You can just leave the dishes to me.”

“Nonsense! Let me help!”

Asmodeus smiled, before turning to Altair. “Let’s depart, then. We’ve got to get ready, introduce me to your friend, then head to our reservation at Branzino’s.”

“Ah, you too?” Gordon walked them to the door, pausing in the doorway.

“Of course. Me and Branzino are good friends.”

“Same. Well, the Serpens are. They adore his food, so we’re always welcome.”

“Oh yes, the Serpens vitae. I’ve always wanted to study their lifesaving abilities. Do you know how they do it?” Asmodeus asked, his eyes landing on Gordon’s bandages. Gordon raised a hand, running a finger over one of the snakes curled around his throat.

“They formed a contract with my soul, and now they’re constantly turning back time on my body,” Gordon replied. “The moment they decide to stop, I’ll die again.”

“I see.” Asmodeus buried his chin in his hand. “And, how do they decide on a suitable host?”

Gordon sighed. “Entertainment.”

“Entertainment?”

“Yes. Their stipulation is that I keep them entertained.”

“Interesting.” Asmodeus turned back to Altair. “Well. Shall we, then?”

Altair nodded. In one smooth motion, he picked Asmodeus up, carrying him bridal style. He walked out from the door a little before unfurling his wings and lifted both of them into the sky.

Gordon watched them depart until he heard the unmistakable sound of glass shattering.