Phoenix Phire

Nix shook his head to clear it; why are there so many of you? He gripped his mug tighter and finished off the last drink before slamming it down. To his surprise, none of his drinking buddies vanished. Three men sat at the table with him; it was Pon, Pon, and of course... Pon. Nix laughed at the sight of his companions. "The world might end if there were three of you."

All three answered at the same time.

"Fuck off."

"This is a handsome group."

"You drink like a girl."

Nix laughed loudly and staggered to his feet. Squinting slightly in the dimly lit Tavern. "Innkeeper! Another round, if you please..." His sentence trailed off when the Innkeeper scowled at him; it was Pon. "The fuck is going..." An old man with a beer in his hand jostled him, causing half the beer to spill on the floor.

Pon's face turned red with anger. "My fucking beer!"

"Oh god... I've found hell." Nix glanced around the room, counting as the number of Pons slowly increased. He felt like crying by the time he reached a dozen.

"Over here, Nix!" A dark-haired man called from a booth in the corner.

"Finally... Someone who isn't Pon." Nix staggered and swerved his way to the booth. He sat across the two men who had been talking in hushed tones. "Hey, Gideon!"

Gideon smiled slightly. "Hey, Nix."

The second Gideon wore an identical smile. "Hey, Nix."

Nix laughed at the sight of the dual assassin's. "I should have come here with Shae. Now that would have been fun."

A finger poked Nix's head after it had been resting on the table for nearly a minute. "Why is there only one of you, Nix?"

Nix shrugged without looking up. "Cuz one's enough." He chuckled at his own joke before sitting up. "Only two of you?"

The Gideon on the left shook his head. "The rest of us are sleeping already. We don't like to stay up late."

The other Gideon nodded in agreement. "Early to bed, early to rise."

"Pffft..." Nix blew a raspberry at the assassins. "That explains an awful lot. Which one of you is the real Gideon?"

"Me."

"Me."

Instead of talking further, the Inferno leader reclined on the booth's soft cushions and closed his eyes. "This will be easier after a quick nap."

****************

Ducky stroked the smooth head of the predator and kissed its nose before sending it back up the submerged stairs.

Pradi floated next to the Turtle Titan, making sure to keep an eye on the friend Ducky had made. His water abilities included both gills and webbed extremities. On the second day hiding in the lower levels, the Water Witch had found a shark-like creature to play with. or at least it looked like a shark. The thief had spent most of his time talking with Milat, one of the Aquarions.

It was Ducky who kept the waters from completely receding; with her friends patrolling the lower halls, they hadn't needed to worry about security issues. "I haven't stayed in the water for this long since I was a Nymph."

"Do you need a break?" Milat heard her talking and swam closer. Although Inferno had grown famous because of their Cai'Song raids, nothing was better in the water than an Aquarion.

Ducky shook her head slightly. "No. I like it a lot. I'm worried about the passing days."

Milat nodded in agreement. Every night one of the Inferno members would check in with the group hiding in the lower levels. They would share intel and then leave some supplies behind. All of them were aware that the ones who had left on a special mission were several days overdue. "He's going to be fine, Ducky."

Ducky smiled at the Aquarion. "I know. We will hear something soon. I'd know if something was wrong."

Soup drifted close to the group; she smiled at them before sharing a wave with Ducky.

The Water Witch followed her, and within a few moments, they were playing.

Milat laughed at the Titan, who looked like he wanted to join in. "Nix is never going to give you her bond."

Gil's round face smiled cheerfully. "You don't know that! Me and Nix are pretty close."

Milat shook his head. "You should give up."

*********************

The steady din of similar voices talking woke Nix from his comfortable seat in the corner booth. The two Gideons that had been there when he fell asleep were no longer present. An object lying on the table in front of him drew his attention. "What now?"

Nix picked up the spherical-shaped object and turned it over in his hands. It was black in color and smooth to the touch. "No markings... What am I suppose to do with this?"

As if replying to his question, a small screen lit up in the center of the object. Nix squinted to read the sentence. [Use me to ask questions, Jackass.]

"Huh?" Nix stared at the tiny screen until it disappeared a moment later. "Hey! I used to have one of these!" He shook it a few times and then looked for the screen; it didn't reappear. "Shit... Is it broke?"

The screen lit up once again. [No. I am not broken.]

A plate of food appeared in front of him, along with some utensils. The only person who didn't appear to be either Pon or Gideon offered him a smile. "Eat up, going to be a great day."

Nix nodded in agreement and started eating. "Hey, Ball! How does this work?"

[I ask your companions questions. Based on their answers, you decide who to eliminate. And no... you don't need to shake me.]

"That sounds easy."

[Eliminating the wrong companion will result in it failing this objective.]

"Easy." Nix chuckled while he started wolfing down his food. "Why so angry?"

[I'm stuck in a ball, or I'm stuck with you. Take your pick.]

"Ahh... Multiple choice, I'm good at those."

By the time he was done with his breakfast, the small Tavern was once again crowded with Gideons and Pons. "Let's get this show on the road. You two! Have a seat!"

Nix gestured to the two nearest Gideons and motioned for them to sit down. "Ask away."

[Which guild are you a member of?]

"Inferno!"

"Salamander!"

Nix pointed to the nearest Gideon. "Correct answer is Salamander."

The companion who answered Inferno immediately disappeared. "Keep them coming, Gideons! When one disappears, I want another one to take his place."

Without asking, the next Gideon sat down.

[What is your favorite disabling move?]

"Hamstring Slash!"

"Groin Stab!"

Nix shifted uncomfortably on his seat. "Groin stab!"

The Gideon that had just sat down vanished, only to be replaced with another a few seconds later.

[Which Pathfinder member proposed a marriage between Raine & Nix?]

"Jiggs!"

"Nebs!"

"Sonofa..." Nix scowled at the question. "So that's what happened. Has to be that bastard Jiggs!" The Inferno leader stored the information away for future reference. "Next!"

The questions continued; Nix was fairly confident that he was eliminating the correct Assassin. Oddly enough, the one who first sat down was one of the last two remaining Gideons.

[When the choices are down to the last two companions. You may ask one question to figure out who is the correct one. Warning... I must approve the question before you ask.]

Nix whispered his question to the ball.

[Denied.]

"The hell... What about this?"

[Denied.]

"Bastard... This one?]

[Odd... but approved.]

Nix cleared his throat and lowered his voice since it appeared some of the Pons were snooping. "Would you consider me attractive?"

"No."

"Yes."

Nix laughed aloud and waved goodbye to the negative answer.

[Amazing.]

Gideon's face had turned deep red. "Shitty Nix... "

"I know," Nix admitted. "I'll make it up to you."

"Don't get all full of yourself."

Nix figured that the real Gideon would answer as Mai. "Have a seat with me while we figure out the Pons."

Gideon got up from his seat and scooted next to the Inferno Leader.

Nix sat across from the two scowling Pons. "Truthfully, it doesn't matter which Pon we bring back. They all seem alike."

Gideon nodded in agreement. "Just a crabby old bastard."

"Bite me."

"Fuck you."

Nix rolled his eyes at the two Pons. "This one might be tough. Okay, let's get started."

[What's your favorite Fire-based spell?]

"Balefire."

"Firestorm."

"Huh? Both of those are wrong." Nix pointed to the one who said Balefire. "You! Outta here!"

[Which Inferno member has an Aquarion daughter?]

"Nix."

"Me."

Nix waved goodbye to the Pon, who answered Nix. "Keep going."

[Which Inferno member has slain Khione?]

"Me!"

"Nix."

Nix scowled at the question ball. "Did Pon write these questions, Jackass?"

[No. But it is funny.]

"Going to melt you when we're done here. Next Question!"

[What's the name of the first Aquarion daughter born to Human and Aquarion parents?]

"Ayla."

"Panyu."

Nix nodded at the Pon, who said, Ayla. "Good answer."

Finally, the last two Pons sat at the booth. It seemed eerily quiet given the earlier amount of noise.

[You may ask your last question.]

Nix whispered something to the ball.

[Approved.]

Nix offered the last two Pons a grin. "So... When the two of us are hanging out, what do you call me?"

"Nix."

"Punk Bastard."

Nix shrugged slightly and waved to the Pon who said Nix. "Cya, Imposter."

[Challenge Complete]

An instant later, the three companions found themselves once again bathed in the comforting glow of the Well of Du'Wei.

[Key of Chaos acquired]

[Ball of Enigma acquired]

Nix felt himself drifting upward. When he reached the top, a white-furred hand reached down and pulled him up. Deya hugged him tight, her cheerful demeanor once again returned. "You okay, Deya?"

Deya nodded while Chiba helped Gideon and Pon out of the well. "I know it wasn't them. It was nice hugging Dad and my Uncles again."

Nix nodded in agreement. "It was."

After Chiba and Deya told Nix he'd been gone two more days, the group hurriedly retraced their steps to the locked door.

/Pathfinder: Gideon: We have probably been gone four or five days?

/Pathfinder: Nix: Something like that. Time flows funny around Chaos magic."

Nix inserted the Chaos Key into the door next to the Guardian's key. When he turned them both, the door opened inward with a click.

Pon whistled softly. "That looks familiar."

"Very familiar," Gideon agreed.

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