-- James --

The pink color drained, turning to the dark grey of water. I floated in the depths of the now tepid water, when above a bright light showed me where to go. I kicked my legs propelling myself towards the surface breaking through into night air. Instinctively I took a deep inhale, the air tasting sweet and familiar.

My mind and body were exhausted, everything was finally catching up with me. I just wanted to lay in the pool drifting on my back and do nothing. I let myself lay back staring at the night sky the stars going on forever, occasionally covered by a cloud passing by.

After some time, when I started to grow cold and pruney, I Lazily kicked toward the edge of the pool.

My head bumped the stone boundary, sending a jolt down my body. I was too tired to care. I was just watching the sky, in the late darkness. The streets were quiet and muted with my ears below the water.

My peace was broken by the shadow of a person high above, becoming a silhouette against the stars. My eyes locked onto the distortion moving from roof to roof. A memory shot to the forefront of my mind bringing a burning fury to my chest. "Shadow Rogue." The memory of the night I was beaten and dumped flared to life, fresh after being rebuilt.

'I was just looking for a new guild.' I pulled myself out of the water exhaustion forgotten. Reaching deep inside myself, I found my center of power bursting with energy. My eyes never left the rogue as he moved without a care in the world. The sight of one of their kind made me angry beyond words.

I pushed the overflowing power into my body, energizing my muscles, oxygenating my blood, making my bones denser. Power permeated every cell mending any damage, removing any remaining soreness.

I kicked off the ground toward my quarry leaving only water in my wake. I flew through the empty streets a shadow to a shadow, gaining closer with every step. When I was not 20ft behind the rogue I jumped.

The speed of the bounce took me by surprise, even with the running start I didn't expect to find myself more than 50ft in the air. I felt like I was floating as I reached the top of my arch, I took a quick look at my screen seeing I had jumped all the way from level 15 to 25. 'What the rot happened to me?'

That was enough of a distraction for me to nearly overshoot my landing barely touching the edge. I pushed off the corner, soaring toward the next building, where I quickly found my footing and continued my pursuit to my unwitting prey.

I moved at deadly speeds, my new reaction time the only thing keeping me from splatting into the ground. It was only at this realization did I notice the rogue appeared to be moving in slow motion.

All too soon, I was behind my target, already swinging my sword towards his neck. I only had a millisecond to notice the telltale shadow covering his face, a dark reflection of his class. The man never saw anything, as my sword slid through his neck like warm butter. The rogue kept moving his head and body still moving forward collapsing on top of the roof, head falling to the ground below.

My guild was one of the few that hunted shadows, they even gave us these special cards to confirm a kill. I pulled out one of the bounty cards that I kept on me at all times, wiping it across the blood dripping off the side of the building. The card glowed for a moment confirming the man was a shadow, and now all I needed to do was turn it in.

I kicked the rest off the corpse over the edge, and with a thud, it hit the ground. I placed the card back into my pouch and marveled at how smooth the pursuit had gone.

'Every other time I fought one of them there was always a hard fight, but this had been effortless. It was so easy, but why did I chase him in the first place?' I shook my head realizing how I had moved on instinct when I saw him. 'I didn't think I was still angry about that.'

I practically fell back onto the roof, my mind whirling, and exhausted. My eyes drifted down to a trail of blood to my side, feeling lost. 'I took a man's life, for no more than he was running on the thieves road. I didn't even know he was one of them. It had turned out that he was a shadow, but that had been complete luck on my part. If I had killed an innocent would I have just excused it as their fault for running on the buildings? Would I care since they would just come back?'

Thoughts like these flew through my mind. 'Have I always been this quick to anger?' I tried to think back to another time I lost my temper like this, but couldn't remember any; except when I was on a hunt for a shadow. I remember during some of those fights they would just be running away, or trying to explain themselves. I never even tried to listen to them, my anger driving me to just attack.

I could no longer avoid the truth. I took a single beating over a year ago, and I still held an unreasonable hate for their kind. My guild had only exacerbated those ideas with horror stories of members of the "Shadow Cat" guild.

'I wonder how much of what they've told me is actually true.' I was unusually introspective and knew it was my new word of power pulsing through me, forcing me to reflect, and question everything I have been avoiding.

'Why is my guild the only ones who hunt them so zealously? I know there is an open bounty with all of them, but why? Really why?'

Bright light from the alley below brought me out of my self-reflection. 'Time to move.' I pushed off the roof knocking loose a few tiles, jumping down to the streets, running back to where I woke up. When I made it back to the crystal pool it finally dawned on me. I was alone.

'I run after a rogue and forget everything else.' I finally took a look at my surroundings, seeing I was back in An Le Notre in the center of the warrior district.

'How the rotten earth did I end up here?' I still didn't know how much of what had happened was real or if it was some kind of hallucination. It all felt like a distant dream now. I don't even know where those rooms we looped through were, we could have been in the city the whole time for all I knew.

I turned back to the gem remembering the last time I was here. I had placed my hand on the pillar and leveled up to 15. 'I was so excited to brag to my friends about my level, now I just want to know if they're safe.' I was trying to figure out how to find my team when a thought hit me. 'I'm in the city now, my phone should be working.'

I pulled out my crystal smartphone, it was a newer model I got right before graduation, able to connect to the cities network and lots of storage for music. I looked down at its screen remembering I turned it off when we left the city.

I held my finger on the on button waiting for the little loading animation. 'Who should I call first? I could call Rowan, or...' Suddenly, it occurred to me. 'Are the other's even awake? Was I the first to level up? How long have we been gone?' I stared down anxiously as the phone took forever to load up.

'Ok calm down. If I'm first...I'll figure it out. If the others are already awake, great maybe they know more than me.' The display finally loaded up, I put in my password and was greeted with my home screen. Nothing. 'I guess I was the first' Then my mobile finally synced with the network, and all the messages started to come in.

I opened the group chat and began to read.

Aster: Hey All. I don't know or when you'll get this message, but I'm free of the mayor. You all should be free of the loop, and I don't know what happens next. I'm going to go try something stupid. If I don't come back, I'm sorry it took so long to find you. Goodbye.

Violet: Hey.

Violet: HEY!!!

Violet: ASTER! WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT MEAN?

Violet: HOW DO YOU EVEN KNOW OF THE LOOP?

Violet: Answer me!

Violet: Anyone answer me.

Violet: WHERE ARE YOU ALL?

Violet: Someone answer me.

Violet: Please

Rowan: Violet where are you

Violet: Where have you been.

Rowan: I've only just got out of the fountain in the rangers district.

Violet: That was days ago.

Rowan: No that was just now for me.

Violet: Fuck! Was I the first?

Rowan: Looks like it.

Rowan: Were are you we need to meet.

Violet: Yeah. We do.

Violet: I learned why we were in that damn loop.

Rowan: ???

Violet: Yeah it's fucked up.

Violet: it's easier to just explain in person. Meet me at the Lily's fall, its right across the street from the building that looks like a hat.

Rowan: Omw

Bay: So did you kick the Mayor's ass yet?

Violet: Waiting on your sorry ass. Took you long enough.

Bay: How long?

Violet: I came out like 5 days ago.

Rowan: 2 days ago

Bay: Wonder why the difference. Wait different levels of trauma.

Violet: Just get your ass over to the Inn.

Bay: But I have so many questions.

Violet: You get over here and we'll talk.

Bay: Fine. Heading there now.

How am I the last out. :James

Violet: Fucking finally.

Violet: We are still at the Inn. It's been 7 days.

Ok. :James

Any word on Aster. :James

Bay: None. We think he's in the wilds.

What Why :James

Violet: Just get over here. There's a lot to talk about.

Heading over now :James

I looked up from my phone and began to make my way to the inn, I only knew where the hat store was, but I could make my way from there. I was excited that everyone was ok. 'Why was I the last out? And what did Violet mean she learned why we were put in a loop? So there was a purpose to it?' I shook my head. 'Whatever the purpose it can't be a good one. And what was Aster's cryptic message about?' My head swam with these questions as I made my way to the Lily's fall.