Amanda blows pillows across the room with the force of a pro baseball player cracking the bat. They fall, spreading feathers and debris through the air, onto the top floor, where they wedge themselves between segments of the railing or land inside our respective rooms. The last one hits the wall and sinks to the ground, looking dejected.

I'm polishing my shield, which I'm almost certain is unnecessary, but after Amanda got a good dose of acid across the raised crescent, I'm sure it couldn't hurt... is my shield acid impervious? Hopefully, because I feel like my singular weapon would be a lot less intimidating if I had a huge, corroded stain running down the front.

Karen sits in the corner, tapping her foot against the floor. Shiloh sits next to her, his long body stretched over both sides of the bench so that he looks like a poorly made faux fur boa. His tail dangles, swinging back and forth, and his mouth is hidden from view, but his eyes are narrowed.

Garrett busts through the Veins so fast his hoodie flies up around him. "Holy shit guys, news." He holds out his phone, which is pre-loaded to an article from a local website. Shiloh tilts his head up, alarmed, and I lean forwards.

"What kind of vision do you think we have? Just tell us what's going on." Amanda says, squinting at him.

Garrett, shaking, puts one hand up to the side of his head and begins to read. "Local string of missing persons continues. People from around the Westwood metropolitan area, up to within a ten mile radius, have been reported missing. It is unknown at this time what the cause of these disappearances are, but locals report their loved ones appearing vacant or unlike themselves several weeks before they vanished, and it is suggested that locals watch for these signs in other residents. Furthermore, the disappearances seem to be most heavily affecting white, middle to upper class families."

"Now, that's the first time that's ever happened," remarks Karen.

"The rest of it is names. Looks like there's at least thirteen, but they're still going." Garrett clenches the phone. "We are se-e-eriously screwed."

"How are we going to keep doing this? Our parents are going to freak." I say.

"Forget us for a second. What's going on here?" Karen asks. "Shiloh, is there something you're not telling us?"

"No," Shiloh says numbly.

Trust him! Believe him! echoes my mind, and I close my eyes and try to empty out my mind. I lay the shield down and calm myself. "You're sure you have no idea what's going on."

Shiloh shakes his head slowly. "Do I ever wish I had a clue. It very well could be Ignatius. The Diosite creates more and more erratic behavior as it progresses."

Garrett winces, sinking back into his hoodie. "You mean it'll get harder."

"No duh." Karen places her hands on her hips. "Look. Are you not getting this? It could happen to our families too. I might not fall in the 'white' bracket, but we're all middle to upper class, and whatever that thing is? There is nooo way in hell it isn't magical like we are. Stop snivelling, get your shit together, and get ready to beat him for good."

I fold my hands. "It sounds magical, but I don't know if that's caused by a plant. What would Ignatius want with civilians, anyways?"

"I have about thirty video games ready to answer that question for you." Garrett volunteers.

"Is there a chance it could be another cherub?" I ask.

All of Shiloh's fur stands on end. "No."

Karen looks my way, half glaring, and I realize that in fact, all of my teammates are looking to me now, like I have any clue what's going on or what we should do next.

"You know what? It's too dangerous for negotiation. Even if he didn't do it, we can't stroll up to Ignatius and ask him about this." I say. "We're going to have to go in there again and confront him."

"If there is a chance he did this, we could legit die." Garrett laughs nervously, "Anyone else not want to die today? Takers?"

"We've always been at risk of dying!" Karen yells back.

"Geez, sorry."

"Do you think it has anything to do with the board?" Amanda asks, tapping her brush against the ground.

"What board?" Karen asks.

"We saw one in Ignatius's house a while ago- with locations-" Amanda begins to explain.

"You didn't think to mention this, huh?" Karen says. Garrett's gaze hardens as well, though he looks more appalled by all the yelling. The two of them stand across the room from us, with Shiloh standing between Amanda and I, trembling.

My anxiety curls up in my chest, my voice coming out in a haphazard mumble. "Shiloh didn't- We were going to eventually-" My legs are shaking. Shiloh stares me down from the corner, and Amanda's eyebrows shoot down as her face crumples in pain.

Electricity curls around Karen's fists. "Fuck you both." She turns and runs out of the Veins.

"Karen, wait!" Garrett yells, but she's already gone.

"I don't s-suppose there's a chance she went home, is there?" I ask. My head is still spinning. Keep your eyes above the water. Your mind can't hurt you. Steady. Steady.

It's not helping.

"She used an erratic portal, and she's still Diosite-empowered." Shiloh warns. "I can't control her."

That's worse. "I'll go." I say.

"I'm coming." adds Garrett.

"No you aren't. If anything happens to us, there's still the mission. If we get caught, or... worse, I need you to finish this off, and Amanda can't do that without support."

"What the hell are you talking about? You are not dying on us, Will."

"I'm not." I agree. "I'm just... trust me."

"Why should we?" asks Garrett.

Amanda holds him back. I have no doubt that she could physically restrain him with one hand if she wanted to, but Garrett relaxes, and I jump through and disappear.

I see Karen a ways off, arms held tight against her. We're on top of a roof. It's not a suburban house, but rather the top of a building in an industrial complex. We're hidden from view from the people below us, but not by much. She walks towards the edge, and I throw myself towards her, and we fall onto the gravel of the building's top together.

Karen swings around and punches me off. "I thought we had a moment," she says as blood rushes through my nose and I crumble into the gravel. "You've been lying to us?"

I close my eyes, waiting for the next blow. Several rocks besides me fly into the air, jolted by a spark of electricity, but none of them hit me. I flinch at the impact anyways.

"What else haven't you been telling us?"

"It does mess with you." I say, wiping blood from my nose. "But I know you've already figured that out."

Karen chokes back a sob. "Crap, you're working with him, aren't you? You're... on his side. Everything you said to me. Was that just to keep me under control?"

"I was being honest." My head is still spinning, but I compose myself best I can, even through the scent of blood and the stinging pain across my face and through my chest. My heart is like a live animal, trying to scrape its way out of my chest. "I ha- I have been working with Shiloh, though. Sometimes I can't even tell... if they're my thoughts or his."

"Why are you going along with all of this? Will, this is a dangerous alien, a dangerous game, and it's-"

"Do you know what I was like before this?"

Karen falls silent, though her eyes still shine with tears.

"I spent my whole life in my brother's shadow. I've never had a real friend group, I've never won anything, I've never even had any exceptional talents. I've been waiting my whole life for someone to tell me- just once- that I'm doing anything but reflecting a little of his light." I pick up the shield, which has come back to its holster. "Like the moon. I'm stupid. I'm naive. I got told by an alien that I was worth anything at all, and Shiloh helps me. With homework. Life. It's the only way I can control what an enormous fuck-up I am. I'm sorry I lied to you, I'm sorry I'm desperate, I-"

Karen steps forwards and kneels down. Slowly, she wipes the blood from my nose. "Will."

"I know. It won't happen again." I sneeze, blood gushing all over my clothes. "I deserved that."

"Oh. Shoot." she says. "Are you okay?"

I raise her a thumbs-up. "Not to be rude, but as a side note...where are we?"

"Apartment building, by an old mall." she says. "There's a comics store down there. A few clothing stores, a pretzel place I used to go to with the family on Saturday. First place I thought of, I guess? There happened to be a portal around." She steps towards the edge, wind ruffling her jacket, and shakes her head. Electricity crackles from one outstretched hand. "This power is like a key. A key with no lock. It's screwing with me."

"This might be our lock." I say. "The disappearances, I mean."

"We don't even know what's going on." She pauses. "Garrett's going to be worried. Same with Amanda." Her shoulders tense. "Look. We can't get out of this. We really, really can't get out of this, and if we stop now, people might be hurt. I just- I need to know you're on our side. Not his. Ours."

I nod.

She doesn't nod back, nor smile, nor so much as acknowledge my presence.

"Parents will want me home. I'll heal up, head back... tomorrow, we start making this count. See what info you and Garrett can dig up. I'll start plotting our battle plans."

"Gotcha, Luna." she whispers.

We reenter and training is officially over. Shiloh has a hard time getting to my nose without it being awkward, especially because I don't even let dogs lick my face, but I suck it up and let his healing magic do its work. All the while Shiloh's purple eyes are on me, omniscient. Karen watches the whole time, nervous, and Garrett reads the article a few times over, looking for details. When I'm better and we've all grown sick of the awkward silence, Amanda grabs me and pulls me back to her house, into the basement portal,.

"Did things work out?" Amanda asks.

"Enough," I say.

The panic of the day follows me home, into the shower, to dinner, and back into my room. When I wake up at midnight, my wall peeled open into the void, I know it has no plans to leave me alone. Might as well clear my mind.

The Veins are strange even though I've walked them dozens of times before. It doesn't have the same home-y feel the lair does, on the contrary, this is a place that was never meant for humans. It doesn't even feign hospitality. The pulsating walls, their movements so faint that the dark near masks them, seem to open around me, a labyrinth of unknown material.

"What are you?" I whisper.

I find myself lost, open path on both sides of me but no difference between them, and ahead the path beckons with a slight twist. The walls are different, there, and as I approach I see a small sliver of pink. The walls have been cut open to reveal lighter flesh- it has to be flesh- and the scars form a message: WE WERE HERE.

"Who wrote this?" I ask. "Who wrote this?!"

I turn around to see Shiloh. He is different in the shadows- more ragged, his eyes half-lidded and rimmed with sleep. His collar fits like a shackle around his neck. "Who are they?" I ask.

"They're going to get in our way, Will." he mutters, showing white teeth.

I wake up clutching the sheets, but I'm not sure I've awoken then, nor the next morning. Lately, my dreams compound in on themselves, procreating into their own twisted maze, and I get the uneasy feeling that I am not alone in my head.

!A/N!

ENDGAME CONTENT WARNING

We are just over halfway through the book. However, the story skews darker from here to the end and for those of you who be more sensitive, I feel obligated to place a content warning. The following chapters, to the end of this book, will contain more mature themes. I'd prefer not to extrapolate because the spoilers do ruin the viewing experience, but viewer discretion is advised.