Ari, Fris, and Shon stiffened. More shapes moved in the red mist not too far away. The pattering of footsteps reached Ari's ears. Human cries. Human screams. They were just behind a collection of vats nearby.

"Oh my god! What are those?" shrieked a girl. Scuffling reached their ears.

"I can't see!" said Shon, his gun pointed at the source of the sound, peering through the machinery. Ari dashed to the nearest working generator and tore off its lid. She stuck her hand into the live wire, feeling energy course through her body. With a swat of her free hand, a gust of wind rippled out, temporarily blowing the thick fog aside.

A User struggled against a creature that had its mouth clamped against her arm. She pressed her free hand against its face, trying to gouge out its eyes, but its jaws closed too tight. Her hand glowed. The monster's flesh melted into itself but didn't seem to affect it in any way. Shon fired. With a thump, the creature collapsed. The girl wept, getting onto her side, gripping her bloodied arm.

"Xera!" said Fris, horrified. "Oh god, the others are just escaping now!"

More young people joined the fray, confused and terrified. The monsters swarmed, attracted by their screams, tearing into the nearest ones. Ari fired blast after blast of energy, hitting them with accuracy on a par with Shon's. Fris hesitated, anxious, her fingers poised. User and creature tumbled into a mess of limbs, making it almost impossible to shoot without the possibility of injuring innocent parties.

"We have to go! They won't stop coming!" hissed Rale from atop the wall. The fog drifted in again. Once more, Ari blew the smoke aside. The sight of figures in bright yellow hooded capes caught her eye. Her heart skipped a beat.

She snatched Shon's arm and tugged him behind the generator with her.

"What?"

"Investigators," she whispered. Shon went white. Fris must have seen the same thing, for she crouched at her hiding spot, daring only to peek now. "At least the kids will be safe now."

"Are you kidding? Don't you know who else must be here if they are? The hounds never leave the master."

On cue, a tall, slender figure appeared in the red smoke, her dark cloak billowing. The yellow-clad Investigators fanned out, their electric batons and whips at the ready. Some of the creatures got distracted and attacked them instead – and dropped dead when the Investigators retaliated. The rebels huddled together, trembling and crying.

"Ari, you have to help them!" called Mina from above.

"Lira's going to hear her!" said Shon. He waved at her, gesturing for her to be quiet.

"Please! They don't have anyone to look out for them!"

Ari hesitated. Lira hadn't detected their presence yet, but it wouldn't be long until they were discovered if they stayed. If she were in this situation a week ago, she couldn't have cared less about them. The rebels would be safe from the monsters if the Investigators were here, but Shon was right. Lira was renowned for being merciless. The rebels might be safe from Kena's creatures, but who would save them from Lira? They deserved a chance. It could easily have been Mina and Fris in that crowd.

"Stand back from that wall, Shon," she said. She gestured above. Rale understood, pulling Mina away from where Ari pointed. Ari put her hand inside the generator again, sensing the pulsing warmth from the millions of joules of energy coursing through the wires. Taking in a deep breath, she absorbed the energy. It continued to pulse into her skin. Her core storage filled to the brim within a few seconds. Squeezing her eyes shut, she took in a little more, her skin and lips tingling. Her hair stood on end. She wouldn't be surprised if she were glowing then. She ignored Fris's gasp.

With deliberation, she swung her other arm up and pointed the flat of her palm at the wall. When she could hold in no more, she focused the blast. A small crackle of energy danced on the surface of her palm. All the excess waste she tried to condense into pure kinetic energy.

There was a small whistle in the air, followed by an almighty rumble shook her and Shon to the ground onto their knees. Dust filled the air, thrown by the explosion, making the air both difficult to see through and breathe in. Coughing and with their heads ducked, Fris and Shon made their way to the cragged hole Ari had created in the wall.

The boom distracted the fray. Some of the panicked students spotted the hole.

"Let's go, guys!" someone yelled, dashing to the exit. A few followed. Some of the slower-reacting ones were caught by the creatures that recovered first. The Investigators cracked their whips, shouting instructions to each other and herding the renegades.

With another jolt of energy, Ari leapt onto the top of the wall where Mina crouched, peering with anxiety.

"You saved them!" Mina threw her arms around Ari, who shrugged.

"I saved a few. The rest I leave up to whatever gets them."

"That was quite brash, Ari," Rale said reproachfully. "What if the whole wall had come down?"

"I'm sure it'll take more than that to bring the wall down," said Ari, breathless. She dropped Mina down at the bottom, recovering that kinetic energy to bounce herself back up to Rale again.

"I'm surprised you even considered those guys, seeing as they did kidnap your sister and experiment on you two," said Rale, eyebrows raised.

"Not them. Kena did. And even then, there were reasons... I suppose I feel sorry for them."

"Oh, well, save them because they're pathetic, eh?"

Ari rolled her eyes. "If phrasing it like that makes you happy. Now, come on!"

Rale took her hand. Ari timed their jump. Air breezed over her sweaty skin for the eighth time in a short few minutes. There was a small spark of the old exhilaration from jumping. Shon and Fris met them at the bottom. Ari dispersed the last of the energy onto the smooth, pristine Area Seven floors and stood up, fatigue threatening on the brim of washing her over. Shon must have spotted her trembling limbs and pale face.

"Let's get a pod car out of here," he said, ushering them onto the main streets and away from the large chunk missing from the wall. They must look a state. Students passing by on the way to school or work gave them odd glances but didn't interact with them. Shon jogged over to the nearest pod stand and inserted his credentials. Mina quietly supported Ari. The glistening coloured windows and elegant sky-scraping buildings were gorgeous as ever, but Ari felt sick looking at them. For every spotless window or high-security entrance there lay god knows how many starving, dying Users – or worse, a former User, now turned into monstrosity. And with each minute ticking by, Ari was starkly aware of her own eighteenth birthday, only a year and a half away now.

Rapid footsteps and screams reached her ears. She whipped around, as did all the nearby students, puzzled by the sudden ruckus. A silver round pod car rolled up, its engine soundless.

Students – the rebels – poured onto the Area Seven streets, dishevelled, bloodied, and hysterical. Their unkempt appearance made them stand out against the pristine, smooth white pedestrian paths and spotless walls and windows.

The local students paused, confused. The terror soon became evident when the malformed monsters exploded into the clear behind the rebels, tearing into them and any other bystander who happened to be nearby. Some of those furthest away shrieked and ran; others stood rooted to the spot, terrified. A few with offensive abilities attempted to fight them away but were quickly overwhelmed.

"Get in!" said Shon in a fierce whisper, shoving them all into the pod car.

"But—" Mina protested.

"The Investigators are here and the Peacekeepers will show up soon." On cue, Shon's hip badge beeped. 'Violent event, fourth street, Area Seven. All Peacekeepers to dispatch immediately.' "I'll meet you at Ari's. Just go!"

Shon plucked out his gun, aimed, and fired. The furthest creature, about to clamp over the face of an Area Seven student, flinched and then dropped dead. Ari could only watch as the round silver vehicle rolled away, her friend's silhouette getting smaller and smaller.

"Bloody martyr," muttered Rale, crossing his long skinny legs. "Kindly drop me off at mine. I have pressing matters."

****

"Secure the area. Nothing comes in; nothing goes out." Lira's voice was like icicles. She stepped out of the sizeable jagged hole in the wall designated to separate oddities that survived in Area Six from Area Seven. Glancing back, she took in the singed edges and fine sand that littered the ground. A few of the Investigators paused and studied it, impressed. There was only one person in March City capable of wielding energy of that capacity. Lira's eyes narrowed. There was no way that User could talk her way out of this. Several of the Investigators stayed behind, securing the remaining renegades that lived through the fight. They were a sorry sight, battered, bruised, and a snivelling heap. Lira barely gave them a second glance. They were bundled into the secured pod cars and taken away.

The rest of the Investigators entered the area, weapons drawn. Peacekeepers secured the outside perimeter, ushering passing students back into their accommodations. On Lira's command, the windows of nearby buildings dimmed, preventing curious eyes. Those under Lira's command tried to tease monster from student, slaying the creatures one by one. The rebels and passing Users kept the creatures occupied and fed, but there were many of them, and many casualties.

The nearest creature leapt up, spotting Lira. Growling and saliva dripping from between its fangs, it raised its hackles and stared at her with hungry red eyes. Humanoid, hairless, but there was nothing else that gave an indication as to what it really was – not that it mattered. It was a monstrosity and must be destroyed. Death and bloodlust radiated from its body. It leapt at Lira, snapping. Her nearby Investigators swivelled around, weapons pointed. Lira slid out a gun from her hip and fired. The bullet entered its abdomen and exploded. Shrapnel tore through its organs. It dropped on the ground and skidded, leaving a trail of blood.

The sound attracted the attention of the feasting monsters. They got up, starving eyes fixed upon the Investigators. Barely-alive students wailed from the ground. A few who were yet uninjured begged the creatures to no avail. Lira's Investigators circled her, their backs facing her, weapons raised also. The Investigators furthest away formed another circle, poised for further fighting.

"The Healers will have their works cut out for them," said one of the Investigators to his partner.

"You best hope you don't become one of the casualties," was the dry reply. The Investigator attempted to sound off-hand, but Lira sensed his anxiety. They fired, sending some monsters onto the ground and halting some in their paths for only a few short moments. The rapid cracks of gunfire filled the air. Snarls and shrieks of pain came from the creatures, adding to the cacophony of crying injured students. Despite the numbers of dead monsters hitting the ground, more seemed to get back up and re-join the fray. Lira killed several with one shot each, but even she could see there were more than all her Investigators and Peacekeepers could manage. The circle of her dedicated Investigators shrank; some of them got ripped away by monsters, kicking and screaming, others were forced to back when the enemy continued to advance.

Lira's lips pressed together. Sharp green-grey eyes surveyed the situation. Too many enemies, too few fighting bodies left.

The air chilled.

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