[BL] I Didn't Sign Up For This-Chapter 120: In Which This Isn’t Over

We tumbled through the gate and hit solid ground hard.

Switzerland ground. Real and stable, not-collapsing-into-dimensional-nothing Switzerland ground.

I lay there for a moment, breathing hard, still clutching Void against my chest like it might disappear if I let go. Which, given our track record with dimensional weirdness, wasn’t entirely paranoid.

Azryth was beside me immediately, still holding the sword in one hand while his other found my arm. Checking that we’d both made it through, that we were both still in one piece, that neither of us had accidentally gotten left behind in an imploding dimension.

You know, normal relationship concerns.

Mara hit the ground next to us, somehow still clutching her scanner. Henrik landed more gracefully than any of us, already checking his tablet like dimensional collapse was just another data point to record. Ryota rolled to his feet with tactical precision, scanning for threats despite the fact that we were clearly back in Switzerland and nothing was actively trying to kill us.

We’d all made it through.

Behind us, the gate shuddered violently.

The massive metal panels groaned, energy flickering along the seams like a dying light bulb, and then the entire structure just... collapsed inward, on itself, metal and power imploding into absolutely nothing.

One second: massive dimensional gate.

Next second: empty air.

Gone, completely gone.

"Well," I gasped, still not moving from my position on the ground. "That’s one way to close a gate."

"THEY’RE BACK!" someone shouted from the coalition perimeter.

Footsteps thundered toward us. Coalition personnel, medical teams, and Chen Wei leading the charge with an expression that suggested she’d been preparing herself for us to not come back.

She stopped a few feet away, and I watched her professional mask slip just slightly.

"You’re alive," she said.

"Surprisingly, yes," I muttered. "Though I’m not entirely convinced I should try moving yet."

"The gate collapsed," Henrik observed, already making notes with the kind of clinical detachment that suggested he was coping by being analytical. "Complete structural failure immediately upon our exit."

"Is that normal?" Chen Wei asked.

"For dimensional structures? Probably," Mara said, sitting up and checking her scanner like it might have answers. "We removed the anchor. No anchor, no gate."

I finally pushed myself to sit, and Azryth moved with me, close enough that our shoulders pressed together. His hand stayed on my arm, warm and grounding, and I felt some of the tension ease just from the contact.

Void made a pleased sound from where I’d been clutching it and wriggled free, floating up to hover near my face.

"Mama okay?" it asked in that bright, cheerful voice.

"Yeah, I’m okay." I reached up to touch it gently. "We all made it back."

"Good!" Void chirped, creating a small burst of sparkles.

I looked around at Switzerland, specifically at the area that had been experiencing reality distortions when we’d arrived.

The air was clearer now. Not perfect, but significantly better, the shimmering wrongness was fading, colors slowly returning to normal expensive tourism aesthetic instead of dimensional horror show.

"The distortions are clearing," I said.

Mara’s scanner beeped confirmation. "Energy levels are dropping fast. Whatever was destabilizing this area, it’s gone."

"The gate," Henrik said, cross-referencing data on his tablet. "It was the source. With it collapsed, Switzerland should return to normal dimensional stability within a few hours."

Chen Wei looked relieved and concerned in equal measure. "What about the people who developed dimensional perception?"

"They’ll keep it," Azryth said quietly. "That change is permanent, but no new cases should develop now."

"We can work with that," Chen Wei said, though she didn’t sound entirely happy about it. "Training programs. Support systems."

Medical personnel were hovering nearby with scanners and concerned expressions, clearly wanting to check us over but not quite brave enough to interrupt.

I waved them off. "We’re fine. Tired and dirty, but fine."

"You’re bleeding," one of them pointed out.

"Minor wounds. Nothing that won’t heal." I looked at the group. "Is everyone actually intact?" 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"Yes," Mara confirmed. "Exhausted, but functional."

"Same," Henrik added.

"Ready to leave," Ryota said, which was probably the most honest assessment of our collective state.

Chen Wei was coordinating with her team now, issuing orders about perimeter maintenance and civilian support. The professional mask was back fully in place, but I caught her glancing at us occasionally.

Probably trying to figure out how we’d survived when her entire coalition couldn’t handle the gate.

"We should get moving," Azryth said quietly, offering me his hand.

I accepted, letting him pull me to my feet. My legs protested the movement but held, and Void transferred from where it had been floating to my shoulder with practiced ease.

"Wait," I said, looking at Void. "We promised you something."

Void’s eyes brightened immediately. "Chocolate!"

"Yes. Chocolate." I looked at Chen Wei. "Is that shop still standing?"

She blinked, clearly not expecting that question. "The chocolate shop? Yes."

"Good. We’re making a stop."

Five minutes later, we were standing in the same chocolate shop we’d visited days ago, though it felt like weeks. The woman behind the counter recognized us immediately, her eyes widening.

She could still see Void.

One of the thirty-seven permanently affected.

"You’re back," she said.

"Briefly," I confirmed. "We need chocolate. Lots of it, for the small floating entity."

Void made an excited sound and created sparkles that drifted through the shop.

"Chocolate! Chocolate!"

The woman smiled, and I realized this was probably the first time she’d seen Void as something delightful instead of terrifying.

"What kind?" she asked.

"All kinds," I said. "We promised."

Ten minutes and several dozen Swiss francs later, we had a bag of assorted chocolates and Void was making pleased sounds while clutching a piece in its tiny appendages.

"Good!" it announced. "Very good!"

"I’m glad you approve," I said.

We left the shop, Void happily eating chocolate on my shoulder, and met back up with the coalition transport.

The drive to the rift anchor point was quiet. Everyone was too exhausted for conversation, and I spent most of it watching Switzerland pass by the window while Void made small happy sounds and occasionally said "Good!" or "More!"

The rift passage back to Alaska was standard. Disorienting, vaguely unpleasant, but mercifully free of complications.

The Kael fortress materialized around us.

Home.

We stumbled into the common room and collapsed onto various furniture like someone had cut our strings.

I claimed the couch. Azryth settled beside me close enough that our legs pressed together, his arm along the back of the couch behind me. Void curled up on my lap, still clutching chocolate and making pleased sounds.

Mara took the armchair, already reviewing scanner data because rest was apparently optional for her. Henrik had his tablet out. Ryota was methodically checking weapons and equipment.

"So," I said into the comfortable silence. "We survived our first dungeon."

"Dimensional prison," Henrik corrected automatically. "Technically."

"It had a boss fight and loot. That’s a dungeon."

"Right."

Azryth had pulled the sword across his knees, examining it with focused attention. His other hand rested on my shoulder, thumb brushing against my collarbone absently.

"It’s definitely legendary quality," he said. "Well-balanced. Infused with power even without the entity signature. Very useful."

"At least we got something good out of almost dying," Mara said.

"And we stopped Switzerland from collapsing into dimensional chaos," Henrik added. "Mission accomplished."

I glanced down at Void, who was creating small lazy sparkles between bites of chocolate.

Was it bigger?

I studied the furball more carefully. It definitely looked larger than before, more substantial, the energy around it felt stronger, more concentrated.

Or maybe I was just exhausted and paranoid.

"You okay?" I asked it quietly.

"Yes! Good!" Void chirped, offering me a piece of chocolate.

"I’m good, thanks."

It ate the chocolate itself and made a pleased sound.

Definitely bigger, I was sure of it now.

But how? Why?

I watched it for another moment, trying to figure out if there was something wrong or if this was just... growth? Could nexus residual energy get bigger?

Void created another sparkle and looked at me with bright innocent eyes.

"Mama?"

"Yeah, I’m fine," I said, but I was filing this observation away for later, something was different about Void since the dungeon.

I just couldn’t figure out what.

Azryth’s hand moved from my shoulder to the back of my neck, fingers gentle. "You’re thinking too hard."

"I’m allowed to think."

"You’re supposed to be resting."

"I’m sitting. That counts."

His lips curved slightly, and he leaned in to press a kiss to my temple. Soft, brief, grounding.

I felt some of the tension ease.

The comfortable decompression lasted approximately fifteen more minutes before Ryota’s phone rang.

He looked at the screen, frowned, and answered. "This is Ryota."

His expression shifted immediately, alert, concerned.

"Yes, Director Sato. One moment." He put it on speaker and looked at us. "Coalition leadership."

Well, that couldn’t be good.

Director Sato’s voice filled the room, measured, but strained in a way that made my stomach drop.

"Ryota. I need to speak with Riven Kael and Azryth Valek. Are they available?"

I sat up straighter, Azryth’s hand moving to my waist. "We’re here. What’s wrong?"

There was a pause on the other end. Long enough to be ominous.

Then Sato spoke, and I heard the weight in his voice.

"We have a situation," he said. "Multiple situations, actually."