A few days after the beacons activated, the two of them finally stumbled across one. Beth excitedly grabbed the faintly glowing rock, and a virtual screen was projected above it. Beth quickly selected the option for two people, and the rock projected two red spots onto the ground. Once they got into position, she hit ready, and after a three second countdown, they flashed out of existence.

The next moment, they appeared in a large cavern. This cavern was entirely separate from both the Maze and the city, acting as one of four inspection areas in between the two. Just in case some creature managed to piggyback its way onto the teleportation, the inspection points acted as a second line of defense. Even if some undefeatable monster of a creature arrived, it would only wipe out the inspection area, not the City. Additionally, the entire cavern acted like a beacon, allowing the operators to send any dangerous elements back to the upper levels of the Maze if needed. Chris and Beth looked around a bit, before heading towards the inspection line. Since it had already been a few days, the line was short, so they only had to wait a few minutes before reaching the front.

"Name?" The officer asked as Chris stepped forward, not even looking up from his pad.

"Christopher Vincent." Chris answered.

"Christopher Vincent… ah, here we-" the officer froze as he saw Chris's information, looking up in surprise. "You- you survived?!?" He asked incredulously.

"Obviously." Chris rolled his eyes.

"How did-" The officer began, before his eyes narrowed, and he clutched his weapon. "Please step into the scanner." He ordered in a determined tone.

Chris frowned at the officer's sudden change of tone, but did as he asked. The officer hit a button and the machine whirred for a moment, before stopping. The guard looked over the results intently, before frowning. Agitated, he started the machine again. And then again. And then again! "Is there a problem?" Chris asked in a confused tone.

"You stay right there!" The officer demanded, before turning around, whispering insistently into his communicator.

"What are you-" Beth began, stepping forward, before the officer whipped out his sword, pointing it at her.

"Stay back!" He ordered. "Both of you, stay exactly where you are!" Beth's eyes widened as she took a step back, putting her hands up, not sure what was going on. Several of the other officers paused their work as well, gathering around the three of them, placing their hands on their weapons.

"Clear the way!" A stern voice demanded, after the standoff had lasted for a few minutes. Chris turned to see a high ranking official pushing his way through the crowd, before arriving at the scene. "What's the sit- Beth?" The man began, before pausing as he caught sight of Beth.

"H-hey Uncle Samuel." Beth greeted him with a weak smile, still keeping her hands up.

Samuel frowned, turning back to the officer. "What's going on here?"

The officer saluted. "Sir, I believe this man is a creature in disguise, sir! His records indicate that he has no ability, yet he managed to not only survive, but come out unwounded, sir!"

"Oh, that's what this is about? I can explain that." Chris breathed out a sigh of relief, stepping out from the scanner. "Just kill me, it'll explain everything."

The officer was about to yell at him again, before freezing, dumbfounded by what he'd just heard. "E-excuse me?"

"Kill me." Chris reiterated, gesturing to his sword.

"Beth! Explain!" Samuel demanded, turning to Beth.

Beth sighed helplessly. "Uncle Samuel, it's kind of a weird explanation, and you're going to need an example anyways, so you might as well just kill him. Basically, he can't die, so don't worry about it."

Samuel froze. "He can't die?" Beth nodded. "You're sure?"

"I've seen it." Beth nodded again.

Samuel paused for a moment, before shrugging. "Alright, kill him. Either way, problem solved."

"S-sir!" The officer exclaimed.

"Just do it, soldier! We'll deal with the rest once we verify his condition." Samuel growled.

"Y-yes, sir." The officer gulped, hesitantly approaching Chris, raising his sword.

"Whoa, hey, could you go for the head? The heart is a sucky death. Like, you have a while where your brain is still working while desperately pleading for blood. Not a fun experience." Chris explained. "Best way to go is to kill the brain first. Very little pain, comparatively… at least, it's quick."

The officer froze, before adjusting his stance. His blade began to glow a soft red, before with a short yell, he swung it down, slicing through Chris's head. The moment he did, Chris's body winked out of existence, leaving only Beth's top to fall to the ground, leaving the entire group stunned. "Where'd he go?" Samuel asked, turning to Beth with a confused look.

"Give him a minute." Beth replied.

A moment later, a small portal opened, and an arm poked out, reaching down to snag the top and drag it back through, before disappearing. A moment after that a larger portal opened up and Chris stepped back through, retying the top around his waist. "There, you see? No wounds. Also, no clothes, hence this fiasco."

Samuel frowned. "Why wasn't this detailed in your file?" He asked in a serious tone.

"Because apparently the Readers can't detect it and when's the last time you died?" Chris replied, rolling his eyes. "I only get sent to that place when I die, so it's only when I died that I learned it existed."

"That's a rather convenient explanation, don't you think?" Samuel commented, raising an eyebrow.

"Uncle Samuel, I swear, he's not a creature! He saved my life!" Beth exclaimed.

"I- he- he what?!? Why were you in danger!" Samuel exclaimed, whirling on her with a stunned expression.

Beth flushed, looking down at the ground in embarrassment. "I-I got ambushed by an invisible centipede." She muttered in a barely audible voice.

Samuel groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Beth, how many times have I told you, never underestimate the Maze! Power doesn't equal danger!"

"I know." Beth groaned with a pout.

Samuel glared at her for a moment, before sighing and shaking his head. "How did he save you?"

"Well… anyone that goes into that world of his can't die." Beth explained. "Even though I was at death's door, he took me in, stabbed me in the face- oh, you have to die first, so that's why he did that."

"I wanted to get her in the side of the head, but she moved." Chris added.

"How is that better?!?" Samuel asked incredulously.

Chris gave him a weird look. "Face hurts more."

Samuel sighed. "Right. Obviously. So you take her into… whatever that place is, you stab her, and bam, she's healed?"

"Essentially." Chris agreed with a shrug.

"I see…" Samuel muttered, before shaking his head. "Still, this doesn't clear our concerns. You could have saved her with ulterior motives. We're going to need you to stay in holding until we can bring someone in to confirm your identity."

"What? No! He didn't do anything wrong!" Beth protested.

"Beth, it isn't that simple. Even if I believe he is who he says he is, since I can't confirm it, we need to follow procedure until we can. Don't worry, as long as his family can confirm his identity, he'll be free to go." Samuel assured her.

"Uh, I don't have a family." Chris interjected. "I'm an orphan."

Samuel frowned. "Then, do you have anyone you're close to who can confirm your identity?"

Chris thought about it. "Well, there's Derek, but he went into the Maze as well, so what if he was replaced too? Wouldn't confirm much. Uh… probably Penny and Thad? They're the two I'm closest with at the orphanage."

Samuel sighed. "Alright then, we'll contact the orphanage and have them send them over. Come with me, I'll take you to the holding area to wait."

"Wait!" Beth stepped forward. "I'm going with him!"

"Beth, you don't have-" Chris began.

"No! This isn't fair! I'm not going to let you be holed away for who knows how long alone, just because of some stupid proceedure! I'm going with him!" Beth demanded again, turning to glare at Samuel fiercely while clenching her fists.

Samuel glanced between Chris and Beth with a weird look in his eyes. "I see… Well, then, let's go." After waiting a moment for Beth to go through the scanner, Samuel led the two of them to a separate area of the cavern, where a small, sturdy building stood. He unbarred a sturdy looking door, and opened it to reveal a comfortable looking room, with a couch, a few chairs, and some magazines laid out. "If you'll wait here, we'll get in contact with the orphanage as soon as possible." Samuel assured them, before closing and barring the door.

Chris immediately turned to Beth. "Beth, you really didn't need to do this. It's just a matter of procedure."

"Well it's a stupid procedure." Beth huffed, crossing her arms.

"Is it? Someone comes back from the Maze with a completely new ability, and you don't think they're right to be at least a little suspicious? Consulting a few people who are close to the person is the basics of what they should do. I wouldn't have been surprised if they wanted to keep me under observation for a few weeks as well, just to make sure. When it comes to the Maze, you have to be careful. Even if everything looks right, you should still double check and make sure." Chris retorted in a serious tone.

"Ugh, you sound like my dad." Beth groaned, throwing herself onto the couch. "I get it, it has to be done, but that still doesn't mean you have to go through it alone! Besides, if it turns out you did use me, I want to be there to give you a good pounding for it~" She commented cheekily, sticking her tongue out and waving her fist at him.

"You have got to work on your phrasing." Chris muttered under his breath, falling into one of the chairs and rubbing his temple

"What was that?" Beth asked, cocking her head, not having heard what he'd said.

"Your threats don't phase me." Chris answered, glancing over at her and shaking his head. "I'm immortal, remember?"

"Yeah, but I can still make it hurt." Beth shot back with a grin.

"You do realize this is the dumbest card game ever, right? There's literally no strategy to it, it's all luck." Chris grumbled as he flipped the top card of his pile over, placing it down.

"Then why do I keep winning?" Beth teased, flipping her own card and grinning, before sweeping them up and placing them on the bottom of her pile.

"Because there's no strategy and it's all luck!" Chris reiterated in frustration.

"Wow, Chris, I didn't know you were such a sore loser." Beth gasped in mock shock.

"I'm not, I'm just- ah, forget it." Chris grumbled, throwing up his hands in defeat, regretting finding the deck of cards in the first place. Apparently Beth only knew the one card game, so that's what they played. Chris thought it might be better to be bored.

Beth snickered, before relenting. "Alright, alright, we can play something else. You'll just have to teach me how to play."

"Finally!" Chris let out a relieved sigh. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll pick it up pretty quick. Card games are always the 'easy to learn, difficult to master' type. You can get the hang of it after a few rounds, but after that, it's mostly minutia." He explained as he gathered the cards together and began to shuffle them. He carefully explained the new rules as he dealt the cards, and they began to play a few practice rounds. As they went, Chris pointed out the mistakes Beth had made, showing her what she could have done and how it would have worked out better. Finally, they began to play for real, and about fifteen minutes later…

"That means I won, right?" Beth asked, cocking her head as Chris frowned at the piece of paper they were using to keep score.

"I don't… that was a twenty-nine point hand!" Chris muttered in disbelief.

"So I won, right?" Beth repeated.

Chris sighed. "Yes, you won. But there's a level of luck in this game as well, so it isn't that surprising. Come on, let's go again." One game later. Two games later. Three games later. Chris stared intently at Beth's hairline.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Beth asked, shifting uncomfortably.

"I'm looking for the horns… only a demon could have this much luck." Chris muttered seriously, squinting as he leaned in closer.

"Knock it off!" Beth protested, backing away and covering her forehead.

Chris snorted, leaning back and shaking his head. "Seriously though, did you like, capture a fairy or something? Steal a leprechaun's pot of gold? Drink unicorn blood?"

"I feel like none of those things would give you good luck…" Beth muttered with a frown.

"Well you had to do something. Seriously, I've never seen someone get so many good hands!" Chris retorted.

Beth shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you. I've just always been lucky."

"Freaking bullshit." Chris cursed.

"All this is normal behavior?" Samuel asked from the observation room, turning to the two teenagers who were watching Chris and Beth interact with him.

"Yeah, that's Chris. Barely paying attention to the pretty girl and focusing on the fact that he's losing a game." Penny commented with a weary sigh, shaking her head.

"Plus the whole demon thing and the luck examples. That's classic Chris." Thad nodded.

"And you're sure? There's nothing that strikes you as odd or suspicious about any of his behavior?" Samuel asked again, to confirm.

Penny and Thad shared a look, before turning back to Samuel and shaking their heads. "No, it just seems like… normal Chris. Though, you'd think he'd show a little emotion at being not dead! Freaking EQ of a potato." Penny muttered bitterly.

"And that isn't strange at all?" Samuel asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No? It's Chris. I think he's like… autistic or something." Thad shrugged.

"Well then, that should be all we need." Samuel nodded. "Let us know if you notice anything strange later on, but otherwise, he's good to go. I'll go let them out."

Chris was in the middle of losing yet another card game when the door clunked and Samuel pulled it open. "Alright, we're all done. You're free to go."

Chris looked over with a frown. "Huh? Don't you need to bring in my friends?"

"Already done. They've been observing you for the last hour or so, and they're confident you are who you say you are." Samuel explained.

"Ah, cool." Chris nodded, getting to his feet. "Guess we'll head out then."

"Aw, but I was winning!" Beth pouted.

"You're always winning. Next time we're playing chess." Chris grumbled.

"Nyeh!" Beth stuck her tongue out at him, packing up the cards and getting up herself. "Come on then, let's meet your friends!" She chirped, heading out the door with a slight bounce in her step.

Chris frowned after her. "Where does your energy come from?!?" He muttered in exasperation, before following after her.

"Chris!" Penny exclaimed, rushing up and giving him a big hug. "Oh, I can't believe you're alive!"

"Well, you know, turns out I didn't have much choice." Chris replied, patting her on the back.

"Eh?" Penny pulled back in confusion.

Chris raised an eyebrow at her. "You know, my ability."

Penny's eyes widened. "You- you have an ability?!?"

"Yeah? They didn't tell you?" Chris asked.

"No, they just said they needed us to make sure you were you! They didn't say anything about you having an ability! What is it? What tier?" Penny asked excitedly.

"Tier? I'm not sure… basically, I'm immortal, but I'm not sure how they grade that. What's the standard for healing abilities? Do they get tiers?" Chris began muttering to himself with a frown.

"Wait, wait, wait, you're immortal? Really?" Penny asked incredulously.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, pretty much." Chris nodded.

"Like, how immortal?" Thad asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Uh… very? Like, I die, and then I wake up in this other place, completely healed. I've died from poison, being stabbed in the head, bleeding out, being eaten… and you know, still good." Chris answered with a shrug.

"Ugh, you are the worst at this!" Beth complained. "Guys, his ability is amazing! He opens this portal to this huge space, and nothing can die in there! It isn't just him! So, not only is he immortal, he can heal others, and he has a huge storage space! It's awesome!"

Penny blinked at her a few times, before turning back to Chris. "You should just let her explain everything for you from now on."

"Agreed. Clear, concise, and intriguing." Thad commented with a nod.

"Thank you, thank you." Beth took a bow, grinning proudly. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I'm Beth."

"I'm Thad, Chris's roommate." Thad introduced himself with a wave.

"I'm Penny. I'm Chris's unofficial little sister." Penny announced proudly.

"It's nice to meet you both!" Beth replied cheerfully.

"Guys, we should probably go, right?" Chris commented, pointing towards the exit beacons that would send them home.

"Chris! Don't be rude!" Penny chastised him, poking him in the side.

"I'm not being rude! I'm just saying, we both just got out of the Maze, I don't have any clothes, she's missing top, and we haven't slept in a bed in a month. Why don't we save the meet and greet for after we've readjusted to the basic human comforts? Maybe wait until Derek gets back so he can join? Have a big meal to celebrate?" Chris elaborated.

"That does sound good…" Beth muttered. Penny and Thad agreed, so Beth and Chris quickly exchanged contact information, and they all headed home.