Hey hey hey! I'm here with a new chapter, and I have a very important question at the end of this chapter that I need you all to read. But without further ado, enjoy the chapter!

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GAME OVER

Chapter 44 [A New Plan]

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Seto never respawned.

Adam searched the town entirely for a phone and finally found one after breaking into a house. His guilty conscious tore at his gut even though it was for the sake of getting back to the AHD as quickly as possible.

But when Adam finally got the phone to Captain Mau and when she finally managed to send a distress signal and when they finally managed to make their way back to the AHD after help arrived, Seto was nowhere to be found.

"I want a report of the past hour since I've been gone," Captain Mau leaned on Adam and used him as a crutch.

"Roger!"

"O and Jin take two groups and divide up provisions and medical treatment to the refugees. We need to bring everyone here for safety reasons. Barney, Mary, and Ally, you three will be in charge of setting up a shelters for all the arriving refugees. Make sure to provide towels and as much spare clothing as we have."

"Yes Sirs!" Barney's voice overpowered the other two.

"You can delegate whomever you need to help you, we'll be busy for the next few hours," Everyone dispersed and set about their duties with the utmost urgency.

"Adam help me towards the offices."

"What about your injuries, you get those checked out--"

"Time is of the essence, I need to send word to the king of our current situations and get my forces in the capital to prepare for war. My injuries can wait, let's get moving."

Adam and the Captain made their way across the bridge and into one of the office buildings. Captain Mau began addressing the woman behind the desk, "I need you to locate Tyler Brotato, I don't care how, I need to get in contact with him."

"I'm afraid I can't do that ma'am, he's completely gone offline, no, he's been offline since leaving his job to you temporarily. He has made no efforts in reaching out or checking in. There is no way for me to find him right now."

Captain Mau grumbled, "Then start sending out orders to my DROP officers to keep their eyes out for him, I want a report as soon as he's been spotted, now is not the time to be pursuing some secret mission he won't tell anyone about. He has a duty here to help out in this war," the Captain slammed her fist down on the desk.

"Y-yes ma'am, I'll send out orders to the capital and all other DROP operators."

"Thank you, sorry for snapping," the Captain winced for a moment.

"Now will you get your injuries looked at?" Adam fussed.

"Fine."

~~~~~

Adam was rummaging through Seto's home, which was also like his home. It felt frighteningly empty without the grumpy sorcerer here and Adam still couldn't understand what came over him. Everything Seto did since that moment he snapped was unordinary and now he was nowhere to be found.

Now he was dead as that Ender, Alista, said.

Adam looked at the messay cave, Seto never was good at staying organized. Adam was unsure what the coming days would be like and what he could do to help, but he was determined to spend what little freetime he had cleaning up. For Seto, he couldn't leave this place the way it was.

"Adam," Adam looked back at the doorway. It Jin carrying a towel, "Adam you're still soaked, you need to dry off. You can't let yourself get sick."

"Oh," Adam looked down, he was indeed still soaked and chilled to the bone. He hadn't even noticed how powerful his shivering was, "I guess you're right," Jin walked into the cave and gave Adam the towel. For several moments they stood in silence as Adam towled himself dry, "Give me a moment to get changed." Adam walked quickly to his room.

"Adam, are you ok?" Jin was outside his room, away from the doorway to give Adam his privacy as he changed. It's not like he or Seto installed a door in this cave.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"It's ok if you aren't, you went through....you went through something terrible. It's ok to be scared and to want to hide, it's unfair to you to be so close to the deaths of Ty, Jason, and Seto," Adam stopped changing and glanced back towards his doorway where he could just see the tip of Jin's shoulder on the other side of the wall, "It's ok if you just want to sit down and talk, this isn't something you're probably used to--"

"I'm fine, don't worry. I have a lot of things to do so you don't have to worry--"

"Adam," Adam stopped talking as Jin interrupted him, "I think you should evacuate like all the other people. Ross told me about your amulet, its cracked, and he said he doesn't have the reinforced glass to repair it. It's not safe your you here, you could really, really die."

"Jin..."

"You should leave before the Enders attack, go see your family, and hide in a shelter with them. We'll take care of everything else, you've done enough. You don't have a reason to be here anymore, you shouldn't risk your life in this kind of fight anymore, it's...it's not safe," Adam could hear the tremor in Jin's voice. He could see the slightly shaking of his shoulder.

"Adam, I'm worried, Barney and Ross are worried, even Alesa is getting worried. She was messaging Ross earlier about the malfunction of your amulet and he had to lie to her so that she wouldn't know, but you can't be here anymore Adam. If not for your sake, then for hers. Don't put her through that kind of pain just because you want to play hero. This isn't a game anymore Adam, this is real life, and this is a real war."

Adam stayed silent, his wet shirt half off his body. He sat down on the edge of his bed and pulled his shirt the rest of the way off before he tossed it to the ground. He didn't move to take his pants off despite the uncomfortable cold wetness that it made him and his bed feel.

He was scared, he was so scared in that fight with Alista; he didn't know what to do. Every moment in that battle he was sure he was going to die. He was sure Alista would bring her sword down over his head and he would perish in a murky black void. Like Seto who was supposed to be unkillable in his OP state. When he had died before to her sword, he survived, but his amulet had malfunctioned and he had died only a few moments after he respawned.

Adam was afraid that if she killed him again, then even with the 4 lives he is supposed to have in his amulet, he wouldn't respawn again. That somehow, his short, meaningless, human life would come to a sudden end, but...

Despite that, Adam didn't take her offer for mercy, for freedom, for salvation, even though he could tell she would wholeheartedly give it to him. Because Adam couldn't run away he couldn't abandon the people he swore to himself to protect.

"I understand," Adam said.

"So you'll pack up and--"

"But I'm staying here--"

"Adam!" Jin jumped around behind the wall, his face desperate, fearful, and angry all at once, "You can't! You have to leave, with the other Humans. It's the safest way for you to live! Barney, Ross, and I won't die that easily, but for you it's risking too much."

"That's the thing Jin, Alista--the Ender that I fought, she killed Seto while he was an OP. Her sword can kill an OP, imagine what permanent effects it has on a Player, but me," Adam stood up with his hand over his chest, gesturing to himself, "I was killed by that sword and I'm still alive--"

"You can't prove that that will happen to us Players, there's no reason to risk your life for such a stupid theory!" Jin marched a few steps forward.

"I have to stay Jin, and not because of that 'theory', but because I'm scared. Because I faced death in the eyes and because I have to stay in fight for those who can't--"

"This isn't a game of Heroes and Villains anymore Adam. You need to get serious--"

"I thought you supported me. You know what being here means to me. This has been my dream for as long as I--"

"If you're dream," Jin took a step forward, his frustration imminent. He jammed his finger into Adam's chest, "is to die as some martyr, then you're heading down that path, but if you're dream is to protect other people then leave the AHD and evacuate. You don't need to be in the frontlines to defend."

Adam was shocked, "You can play your little hero game away from the battles and keep people away from danger. You can't possibly go into battle and you know it. You know where your skills are at, you know that jumping into a war like this will kill you before you even reach your goal. You have to leave, you have to be with your family, and you have to stay alive."

Adam stumbled back with each jab of Jin's finger. Jin took a step back and lowered his hand. He let out a long sigh, "Just think about it," Jin turned around, "and hurry up and get dry. We don't need you dying of pneumonia."

Jin turned around and left Adam alone in his room with his thoughts and shivering body.

~~~~~

"Adam, I hope you finished attending to your business. You need to train, I have Jin here to be your partner," Jess lifted a hand to Jin on the other side of the field. He glanced up as the Captain mentioned him and his eyes flickered towards Adam for a brief moment.

It was the next day. Adam had spent his night cleaning and thinking. He had cleared all the trash from the cave floor, shelved all the books, and packed away some of the few personal belongings that Seto had. Like that white device that Seto used to store memories and information that Jason had made him centuries ago.

Adam looked down at his stone sword and sighed, "Actually...Captain. I was thinking I should evacuate."

Jess looked at Adam, "Evacuate, why?"

Adam bit his lip, he felt Jin's eyes on him suddenly, "Because I want to see my family and I want to be there to protect them. I think I would do better by their side and by the side of the other evacuated people. I think I will only get in the way here."

"You know without you I may have died by that Ender's sword, right?" Adam nodded but didn't meet her eyes. There was silence. Captain Mau sighed at last, "I suppose you may be right. I won't stop you, you've done plenty already to help the AHD and your kingdom. You should be allowed to see your family, I'll allow it."

"Thank you."

"Raise your head Adam, there is no shame in wanting to be with your family. You can evacuate with all the Sooul refugees in 4 days, go rest and get packed," Adam looked up into the Captain's eyes and nodded. He glanced back at Jin who waved quietly. He saw Jin mouth 'Thank you' and Adam nodded and hurried to the ravine.

Did Adam make the right choice, who could tell, but he couldn't turn back now. He had to look forward. He knew he wasn't going to pack much, just a few items because...he lied. Adam frowned as he walked down the ravine.

"I'm doing the right thing," Adam clenched a fist, "This is the only way that things can go, I can't involve anyone else or make anyone worried about me," he repeated to himself, he felt very little reassurance from his half-baked motivational speech. He knew he was just being a coward and hiding behind false bravado.

But Adam didn't want Jin, Barney, or Ross to worry about him in the battle, and he didn't want Captain Mau to know where he was really going to be. Only he knew the real past, and only he knew what was going to inevitably transpire. Only he could stop his home from crumbling into the void, and only he could stop this war, he needed to believe this fact in order to head his probably suicidal mission.

Adam was planning on sneaking into the capitol forces and confronting Alista himself. For all her terrifying power, he was convinced he could reason with her with his knowledge and make her stop this war. He could help reunite her with the Ender baby that was likely her younger brother...Just like his visions of the poor Celenian prince that never got to before his home crumbled into the Void.

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Ok first things first, my very important question. To all my followers/readers, IF you have read my Falling to Rise Series (Falling to Rise, Grasping Fate, Destiny Calls, Sweet Desire) This pertains to YOU.

I'm considering a very special project that needs all my readers to tell me some of their favorite scenes from any book in the series. You can list as many scenes as you want. All I need to know is the scene and I will do the work finding it. 

I want to know all your favorite scenes from the series because I may need it for this project I want to do after I go home for the summer. If you have not read that series then don't worry about this small request.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! And I hope yall are excited for the future chapters!