"Would you please take Katie with you?" Samantha asked.

"Next time," Nathan said without looking up from the dozens of cards he had on the table.

"Why not this time?"

"So Keith and I can focus on our enchanting."

"And you can't if she's there?"

"Why do you want her to come with me every time?" Nathan asked.

"So that you can get to know her better," Samantha answered. "I know you want to have sex with her and are only holding back because of how little you know her. This will solve that problem."

"Why else?" He asked.

"So that someone makes sure you two eat," she told him. "You two will forget about it if you get too absorbed in your work."

"That's what our familiars are for," Nathan said. "Suggestion rejected. She can come on tomorrow's run. Keith and I should be done with the scrying orb by then."

"You're not going to win this one," Keith told Samantha. "Don't worry, I'll make sure he eats if he gets too absorbed into this project."

"And if you do?" She asked.

"That's what familiars are for."

Samantha rolled her eyes, then returned to watching her boyfriend sort through the cards. He was making sure that they were bringing everything in. The pair of magicians had gone to the store after swimming with Luke for awhile to buy bulk packs of goods.

The one they went to after dinner the day before was for bulk packs of things like drinks and snacks, pasta and rice, and the one that morning for 'survival' cans. She wasn't sure where that store was, but they filled metal cans with things that could last for years if sealed. Hot cocoa, flour, sugar, stuff like that.

She wasn't sure how long the boys were planning on going in for, but knew it was at least four or five months in each round, which meant likely around a year to a year almost two years.

Something that confused her was why Nathan had also bought twenty boxes of paper reams. Why did he need thousands of sheets of paper? In addition to the craft paper and origami paper?

"Nathan?" Katie asked as he sorted his cards into stacks and put them into his backpack.

"What?" He looked at her. "Is the reason that you won't have sex with me really because you don't know me that well?"

He thought over his answer. Part of it did stem from that, but if it weren't for something else, he'd be more willing to do it with her.

"That," he said. "And the fact that I find myself enjoying sex without condoms far more than sex with, and don't want to go back."

"Didn't Master Torzin and Ichtvar both say that it's almost impossible for a demigod to impregnate someone, even another demigod?" Samantha asked, and Nathan gave her a droll stare. "Right. That's… I'm living proof there are exceptions to everything."

"Indeed," Nathan answered, then looked at Katie. "So until we can sort out a way to ensure you don't get pregnant, too, no sex."

"Blowjobs?" She asked, and Nathan sighed. "That can't get me pregnant, and birth control helps, too."

"Birth control isn't perfect," Nathan said. "I'll try to figure something out in the game this round. Ichtvar's a phoenix, so his magics specialize in life and healing. He might know something to stop life from happening."

Nathan stood and reached for his backpack, only to be stopped by Katie taking his hands into hers and stepping up to him, pressing her lips against his.

"Why do you want to avoid getting me pregnant?" She asked.

"One, so you don't have to deal with it," he answered. "Two, so there's no risk to you or the baby in the game. Three, because dealing with a pregnant Samantha who couldn't really fight was bad enough. Four, because I'd rather not have to deal with not having sex with you-"

"You don't have to avoid having sex with a pregnant woman," Samantha sighed.

"How rough were we?" Nathan asked her.

"And you'll be a lot more gentle with Katie," Samantha told him. "She's not tough like me. She's gentle, so you'll go gentle with her."

"No more pregnancies for my women until after I destroy the game," Nathan pulled his backpack on, then made sure his weapons were equipped. "Keith, let's go into the game. It's better that way all-around."

Katie gave him another kiss, then he gave Samantha one, before sending Keith the invite as he grabbed a banana off the table. A moment later, the two of them were in the Fields of Choice, and Nathan set the banana down.

Between the two runs with the group to progress Samantha's pregnancy, Nathan had left a marble in the Fields of choice. When they returned after the second round, the marble was still there. It was an experiment that Nathan told only Keith about.

Now, he was going to test if the fruit would still be fresh when they returned. If it was, then that meant time froze in the Fields of Choice. This would allow them further options when doing longer runs.

Letting out a breath, Nathan contemplated something. The game was there to make people stronger and to get work done that the people running it didn't seem inclined to do. If they abused Survival runs for research, it might result in some sort of penalty to them.

"Keith," Nathan began walking towards the Dungeon archways. "Let's do a Dungeon."

"Why?" Keith hurried to follow him. "We're here for-"

"Because we just ran two long Survival runs," Nathan answered. "And I'd like to do something different for a change. The people running this game do seem to want more than us being in the same thing over and over."

"Good point," Keith said. "To be honest, I didn't much like doing a Dungeon with the others."

"Why?" Nathan asked.

"It's based on the abilities of the party," Keith answered. "Which meant that my power, when combined with my familiar's was factored in."

Which meant that it was a lot more difficult for the others than it was for him. When planning on doing Dungeon runs, it was best to only go with someone of the same or similar level of power and ability as you, that was something widely agreed upon by the players.

Nathan nodded, then approached a Dungeon entrance

"Islands of Darkness," he looked at Keith. "This wasn't here when I was alone."

"Which means it's tougher than something you or I could handle alone," Keith looked at the information. "And possibly needs skills from both of us. Advanced Difficulty. Do you think the difficulty actually means anything for Dungeons?"

"Probably meant to let us know how we should gauge them," Nathan answered. "If Ichtvar and Splashy are correct regarding the other dimension we're entering, then the monsters aren't artificially-generated, either. At least, in theory. I haven't asked Ichtvar."

"And if that's the case," Keith said. "Then they aren't adjusting the power of the monsters, either. They're added into the System, though. Why would they do that if they want us to kill them?"

"Probably a requirement," Nathan said as Keith came to the same conclusion. "To allow those with the System into that dimension and for it to function properly within the System and the game as a whole."

"Yeah," Keith nodded.

"Want to try this one, or look for another?"

"Let's do this one," Keith answered. "As long as we don't do anything stupid, this should be within our abilities."

Nathan pulled up the information for the Dungeon, then launched it. Immediately, they found themselves on a beach, waves crashing against the shore. The sky was dark, as if night, though there was no moon to see, only the stars, which barely gave any light.

As Keith appraised what little of the surroundings they could see, Nathan fiddled with his deck of cards, then swore under his breath and unbuttoned his shirt, moving his tie to the side so that Ichtvar could come out.

Keith removed his shirt so that his own familiar could exit, and when the heavenly storm elemental exited him, its natural light illuminated their surroundings. Despite how bright the familiar normally was, the darkness around them pressed into the light, only allowing it to stretch around seven or eight feet in all directions.

"Damn," Keith said as Nathan buttoned up his shirt and fixed his tie. "The darkness is so oppressing that my familiar's light fades out quickly. What are you looking for?"

"Here," Nathan triggered the pair of cards he was searching for, and a lantern formed along with a pack of batteries. "Always be prepared when possible."

Nathan opened the pack of batteries and pulled two out, then placed them into the lantern as Keith put the pack into Nathan's bag. Ichtvar burst into flames and soared straight up, and the two teens looked around, determining that even the phoenix's bright, golden flames were affected by the islands' darkness.

As the phoenix did its thing, the pair read the entry notice they'd received upon entering the Dungeon.

Dungeon Entered: Isles of Darkness Challenge Type: Scavenger Hunt Difficulty: Advanced Locate the talisman fragment on the island you're on. You make take as long as needed.

"Not what you were hoping for?" Keith asked when he saw Nathan's face.

"Was expecting another Seed of Life," Nathan answered. "Ichtvar can identify it quickly because of the overwhelming life energies within, now that he knows what to look for. The talisman fragment, though? We won't know if what we found is it unless we actually find it."

Nathan tugged on the link to his familiar, and felt a tug back a moment later.

"Is this the same dimension as before?" He asked.

"Yes," Ichtvar responded. "The same as the one you'd gone into for the other Dungeon and your first Survival Challenge. This is an interesting world. By the way, there are eight islands. You're one one of the outer four. They form a ring. Then there's a second ring of three on the inside, with another island in the very center. If you need a Seed of Life, it'll take me a few days to be able to find it."

"We're looking for something else," Nathan told the phoenix. "Talisman fragments."

"Good luck," the phoenix responded. "There are creatures of the night abound. Also, you're on an island with a sort of maze covering most of it. That, or just the ruins of a stone village with lots of shrubs and trees. One of the two. Hard to make out in this darkness."

Nathan rolled his eyes, then looked at Keith.

"Ichtvar mentioned 'creatures of the night'," he turned on the lantern, whose light managed to stretch around ten feet in all directions before the darkness overtook it. "I'm not sure what that means. I do know this lantern can normally go twice that distance, though."

"Probably monsters of darkness."

"Or just animals that normally stalk the night," Nathan said. "This is Ichtvar we're talking about."

"Oh, I meant both," Ichtvar swooped down and floated between the two teens. "I saw some shades. Nasty buggers."

"So you'll handle those," Nathan told Keith.

"Uh," Keith said. "I don't actually know how to handle a shade. I've looked up information on them before, but it seems that the supernatural community doesn't actually know what to do to take them out. Apparently, none have been seen on Earth in… known memory."

"Splashy can handle them," Ichtvar informed him. "Since his light is holy light, it'll rip through them. Normally, holy light can only be used by demigods or devout believers who've been blessed by a god, but hey, heavenly creatures work, too."

"So Nathan can learn to use holy light?" Keith asked.

Ichtvar appraised Nathan. The demigod wasn't magically inclined in that way, so it would probably take him several years after learning light magics to be able to add in the holy aspect. The forged part of his soul made it so that he could learn enchanting and force magics easily, not other types.

Since he was a demigod, there were magics relating to his father's power and domain that Nathan would learn easily – even more so than enchanting and force magics – but they were few and quite specific.

"It would probably be more beneficial," Ichtvar decided to tell them. "For him to learn how to do holy enchantments rather than holy magic. Demigods can use holy magic, but that doesn't mean they have an affinity for it. So for things that require holy magic, your familiar's best."

"What about you?" Nathan asked. "Can members of the Ultimate Trinity use holy magic?"

"Yes and no," Ichtvar responded. "Other than 'middle species', such as humans, dwarfs, elves, beastkin, and so on, almost every species can become powerful enough that the ascend to the heavenly planes. Elementals are the ones everyone knows about because they have the most obvious change with the holy light becoming a part of their elements. It's a rare occasion for something else to manage it, though.

"As for the 'higher species'," he continued. "That is, the Ultimate Trinity, it's… different. Phoenixes are the only species truly incapable of becoming 'heavenly' and ascending into the divine realm. Dragons can, but since they're already so powerful naturally and don't really have a way to grow more powerful through training in the way most species can, it takes quite a lot, and they tend to die of old age without ascending. As for unicorns… they have 'blessed power', which is a type of holy power. In order for them to acquire the holy aspect, they have to give up their blessed aspect, which most won't do. They usually die before it happens naturally.

"For all other species," he continued. "It takes meditation and growth in magic. Once you reach a certain threshold of power, you can ascend to the divine realm. For middle species, it's as gods. For all others, it's as magical creatures. Of course, this would require said species being magical first, but that's not relevant to this conversation."

"And phoenixes can't?" Nathan asked.

"We are the only species truly incapable of it."

"Why?" He asked.

"Maybe one day, I'll tell you," Ichtvar answered. "But it's not important, so maybe I won't."

"Alright," Nathan said. "Let's get to work locating this piece. Ichtvar, stay close by. We'll rely on you and Splashy to know what Splashy's needed for, and for what is probably the talisman fragment. It's likely a piece of an enchanted item, so it would have a broken enchantment on it."

Ichtvar inclined his head, then the quartet began walking towards where the sand turned to dirt.