Chapter 13: Fun from above
Irwin followed after the others as best as he could, but now that he wasn't the one in the lead, he found they had been holding back more than he'd known. It took all his effort just to keep up, let alone have any energy left to look around for things to jump them.
He also noticed his body was hurting. The muscles in his legs and back screamed with every step, but not in the same way he knew. Then, it had been weakness and overuse. Now, he felt a different pain, and he couldn't explain it.
Over the last few days, he'd come to accept the fact he had to do things because the others didn't dare, want, or think of them. Though he'd complained at times, it had also brought a sense of self-worth. Now that he was relegated back to being the runt at the back of the pack, the slowest and weakest, he realized just how much it bothered him.
It didn't matter that he could use his fire to kill more imps than any of the others... if it came to something as simple as running, he was left in the dust.
And he hated it.
Even Greldo is doing better than me, he thought, his fists clenched as he forced his aching body onward. Shouldn't this special card be making me stronger?
As his thoughts turned dark, part of him knew that he was asking too much, even from a card that might be rare. It usually took a year before significant changes were noticed when someone slotted an uncommon, and though it was probably faster with better cards, it was unlikely to happen within weeks. Not that he knew that much about it. He didn't know anyone who had cards higher than uncommon.
Perhaps if I survive, next month I'll be as strong as Greldo is today, he thought, watching in envy as his friend jogged after the others, out of breath, red-faced, and sometimes stumbling, but keeping up.
Ahead of him, Olban reached another bridge, this one next to a four-story stone thing that could barely be called a building. He stopped and looked around, seeming to try and decide if they had to cross this or continue circling to the next one ahead.
The previous times, these moments had given Irwin the opportunity to catch up, but he was so far back that he knew he wouldn't. Worry grew as he wondered if they would leave him behind. He stumbled along the edge of the building, trying his best to cover the hundred feet between him and them.
A red blur moved from the roof of the building. If he hadn't been so far back, Irwin knew he wouldn't have seen it.
"Look o-" he croaked, his weary body not even allowing him a shout.