One entered the hall to find it with fewer people than she was used to. Where was everyone? Had they decided to sleep in at the same time? She headed to the countertops where their food was. It was a miracle those were found in random points in the grounds and Thirteen was able to pinpoint every single one with a concerning degree of accuracy.

She retrieved a metal pot, a mug, and the jar of powdered cacao beans. She was halfway in making her drink when Twelve dropped by, having finished hers. "Great day, isn't it?" One greeted the girl as she rinsed the dark brown stains in the only working sink. Thirteen had yet to fix the plumbing system, and he was out doing other things.

Twelve chuckled, shaking the droplets off her mug before slotting it on the twisted wires they called the dish rack. A huge 12 emblazoned on the mug's side stared at One upside down. "I would say it is had we not almost died yesterday," Twelve replied. She dried her hands by bracing her hips. She sighed. "I just...don't want that to happen again."

"You feel lost, don't you?" One asked.

The door to the hall opened and in came Sixteen and Seventeen. It has been a few counters since their last team-up, but those two had been inseparable ever since. Was it just coincidence their names were one after the other? Twelve leaned past One's shoulder to see who it was before passing her by. "Kind of." She shrugged. "I don't hate Thirteen, but I don't trust him either. But we can't afford an internal conflict, so I just swallow my thoughts and pretend I still care about his whole thing."

One replaced Twelve on the sink just as Sixteen passed by and made a beeline for her and Seventeen's mugs. "Are we talking about our dear leader?" Sixteen asked, placing down both mugs with distinct clicks against the marble. "What do you think about him disappearing yesterday? It was pretty shady."

"Oh, you say it." Seventeen's heavy footsteps thumped against the floor on his way to his girlfriend. He gave her a quick peck on the cheek before retrieving the jar. "That guy's a real dodgy show."

"I feel bad for him, though," One said, flicking the faucet's lever on. She positioned the metal pot on the spout. The water gurgled like a brook as it filled the dented basin. "We shouldn't be talking about him like this."

Twelve rounded the countertop and leaned her weight on her palms on the rim opposite One. "You know how well he listens," she said with a goofy smile. "The guy's lost in his own world to care."

"Agree on that," Seventeen chuckled, dumping two scoops of powder into each of the mugs on the table.

One removed the full basin from the faucet after turning it off. Then, she placed it on an elevated rack Five built for this specific purpose and slotted her hand underneath. Activating her ability, they all watched flames lick the bottom of the pot until the water bubbled. She grasped the boiling pot and started pouring a portion in the ready mugs. She'd dump the powder later.

"Too late for one more?" Twenty sidled into the hall with a stupid grin on his face. After being pummeled close to death by Section P yesterday, it was out of place. "I swear I could use five cups of these everyday."

One laughed, plucking the mug with a big 20 on it. Taking over the jar when Sixteen and Seventeen flew their steaming cups to a random table, she made Twenty's cup as well. "Sure. We have some water left," she said.

With drinks made, they clustered into the table Sixteen chose. Twenty was kind enough to retrieve a box of red packets from underneath the sink. A series of crunches later, One munched on the questionable lump of pastry along with everyone on the table. "So, I was thinking of investigating," One blurted while chewing. She swallowed but paused in taking the next bite. "Starting with where Thirteen went or if he went somewhere when he went silent."

"Are we mounting an opposition against him? At this point in the game?" Twenty shifted in his seat and took a sip of his drink. His packet was already a discarded crumple on his spot on the table. "I am a bit unsure about that one. Am I supposed to be here? You guys don't mind?"

"I mean, we're only going to keep things in top shape," One defended. "I'm not going to start a rebellion or defect to other sections. We need him as much as he needs us to win this thing. But...we need to be ready in case he leaves us in the air once again."

Realization flashed in Twenty's eyes. "That's...okay, I guess?"

"What's going on?" Five's voice zipped from the sky, making One flinch. Making everyone on the table flinch. "What are you whispering about so early?"

"Five! I was just going to mention you." Seventeen waved a hand in the air as if he was delighted by her presence. One glance at Sixteen showed the girl wasn't happy about that small detail. "You don't like Thirteen too, do you?"

Five frowned, turning to One as if the latter was a more convincing authority than the goofball with cheese-colored hair. "What's he talking about?" she asked.

"We've decided to investigate Thirteen's activities from now on," One said with a sigh. No use trying to crawl out of the gutter now. "I don't want a repeat of yesterday. We have to be able to stand on our feet, and if Thirteen makes that impossible, we get rid of him. And we're hoping you can join us in this. As your second-in-command."

A second passed. Two. Five stepped backward, disappointment clear on her face. "Pass," she said. "And I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

Before any of them could make the supporting argument, Five stalked out of the hall and back to the quarters. Did the square heels of her boots just gain an inch?

Along with Section O and V, there was no one else who could stand up to Section M's fighting unit. At least, that was what Five thought as she stabbed left and right, blood splashing across her pale skin. She twisted and slashed, her arms feeling the impact of each one.

Overhead, the sky flashed red and blue as One blundered into the scene, screaming with fervor worthy of her ability. The fire user slammed into the leader of Section O. The poor boy shrieked, attempting to dislodge One's hand. It only resulted in more burns. More misery.

One whipped towards the rest of the combatants. "Abilities, down," she declared, her voice carrying across Section O's patio. The glass roofs of the building had long caved in due to Eight's winds and Twelve's sonic blasts. Many people sprawled on the ground, not quite dead but weren't keen living either. Groans and whimpers of pain littered the clearing. Five clamped her teeth over her lip as her gut recoiled.

Today's counter was different. It was like Thirteen had stumbled into something but wouldn't tell any of them. He forbade anyone from killing these people, which only drove more confusion and suspicion among the ranks. But he didn't feel like explaining, and they didn't feel like rebelling. So, the plan went through.

They would only demand submission, and after that, Thirteen would talk to them. That was beyond Five's jurisdiction, and the counter wouldn't last long anyway. The watch on her wrist displayed recalibrated numbers, with Thirteen telling her to see if it held true. If it did, he would have gained another coin to slot into his ever-growing pride bank. But Five didn't want the counter to be longer, giving Section H or any section to ambush them. She didn't want it to be shorter either, else they would have to cut to the chase. Something would always be forgotten in haste, and Thirteen couldn't have that.

She lowered her blade and watched One and the others round the remaining people in Section O. The leader plopped to the ground when One let go of him. His hands were bright red, and from the wince twisting his features, it couldn't have been a good feeling.

"Please." Tears ran down the leader's face. "Let them go. I'll gladly let you deal with me."

One loomed over them, her fists clenching. Five stepped forward, nodding to Eight and Fifteen on her way to lay a hand on One's shoulder. "Scout the perimeter," Five ordered the others. "Link to my channel if there is something wrong."

Ten nodded and disappeared through the foliage. Leaves rustled and branches creaked in response to Eight kicking up a breeze. Fifteen and Twelve's footsteps crunched against the layer of dried leaves as they hurried off as well. They knew better than to stray half a kilometer away.

Five turned to the leader and crouched in front of him. "We're not going to hurt you," she said. It was better to regulate her tone to not betray her confusion and disappointment in her new orders. "Stay put, and someone will talk to you. Someone from our Section."

The leader wiped his tears from his sleeve. "You're Section M, aren't you?" he asked. "The one with the sleeper devil as the leader."

Five almost snorted but maintained her composure. Sleeper devil? Where in the world did they get that? Sure, Thirteen could be a bit unpredictable and vile, but he wasn't a devil. He just had a little more darkness than an average person. But hey, since they were all stuck inside this game where they were supposed to take lives to win, maybe everyone had something darker too.

"He's alright, I promise," Five said. "He will talk to you, and when he demands something, it's in your best interest to comply. You don't know what he's capable of."

Neither did his own comrades. Up until now, he hasn't revealed his ability. There was a betting stash going around among them to see which of them could guess Thirteen's hidden ability and the reason he was hiding it. Five hasn't placed her bet, but technological inclination seemed to be her most probable guess. That kid could tinker with the most complex gadgets and come out with an entire system to aid them in surveillance, combat, or defense.

The leader bobbed his head. "We'll wait for him," he said, bowing his head at Five. "Thank you for sparing us."

Five opened her mouth to answer when a rush of silver exploded in her periphery. Her cheek stung in a flash, and before her, a metal dart buried itself into the leader's neck. He fell sideways, faster than Five could catch him. Her heart climbed to her throat, whirling around. Trees. Branches. Shadows. Where the hell was that piece of lumber?

Fifteen, Ten, and Twelve burst through the undergrowth, panting. Weapons glinted in the sun. Abilities sparked in their eyes. Where was Eight? A wall of darts arced from the canopies, all pointed downwards. Five cursed. There was no way past without risking being hit by a handful. If she ran before they hit, she could make it just as the farthest line to skewer her senseless. And...Section O—what would happen to them?

The darts hit. Fifteen's shriek made Five lower the arm she threw over her head. Her gaze landed on hundreds, if not thousands, of darts hanging in mid-air, inches of decorating their guts. Five whipped to the rest of Section O. "Run!" she screamed.

They scrambled to their feet, knowing what fate had in store for them if they didn't. From a distance, Fifteen winced, her control on the darts slipping. With both abilities focused on controlling objects surrounded by air currents, she and the metal boy were at odds. They needed to get out of here. Karrel must be nearby.

Five tapped into the comms to warn Thirteen when a dart sank into her wrist. Pain snaked down her arm, especially when the metal boy opened his hand and withdrew the dart. More figures emerged from the foliage. Two. Three. Four...

Six. There were seven people from Section H, and standing among them was Karrel. Five didn't miss her face, the self-assured smirk plastered on her face, nor the way her sword flashed against the occasional rays of sun.

"What are you doing?" Karrel leveled her sword at Five. "Our goal isn't to spare these fools. Have you forgotten that?"

Five rose, drawing a dagger from her belt. "I'm not inclined to answer, am I?" she said. "What are you doing, Karrel? Ran out of toys to play with?"

Karrel's lips widened. "As a matter of fact, yes," she said. "Section M has caught my eye. For a number of reasons. Don't think there's only one."

Ah, she was still salty about the assassination attempt. Five couldn't care less about that, If Thirteen intended to kill her, he would have. But he's keeping her alive for reasons Five could never understand, and he didn't reiterate his point about running whenever Section H crossed their path. There must be a reason for that.

Five plucked the earpiece and switched it to the other ear. Her other hand was as useless as a damp cloth. She tapped it on the way, making sure the channels were all open. Thirteen would have to figure out for himself what was going on. Karrel's voice would be a perfect clue, so Five has to keep her talking.

"I know. You've pissed us off more than once too," Five answered, lowering herself to a stance. "Fifteen, cover me!"

She lunged forward, but another shadow beat her to it. Ten met with Karrel's blade head on, the former's superior strength the only one keeping her alive in blocking the latter's advances. The rest of Karrel's cohorts zipped to action. One found her initial aggressor, the poison manipulator, and locked him in battle once more. Twelve dealt with a dark-skinned woman who moved as if she didn't have bones. Extreme agility? Electric blade was back, cutting through Eight's blasts from the sky and Fifteen's lashing attacks.

A blade slammed into Five's dagger, catching her in shock. Verez, the spectacled second-in-command, grinned at her. "Five," he said. "I've always been curious about you."

"Keep it to yourself," Five growled, parrying his blow. She planted her foot on the ground and pivoted, driving her blade from the left to right. That was his weak point. He wouldn't be able to see that coming.

Verez's grin didn't fade as he whirled and slammed his sword down. Right where Five intended. How come—

"Not to brag, but I can read you like an open book, Five," Verez whispered. "That should be your first clue."

An open book. It wasn't just reading the signals in her face or in her stance. It was almost like...

Reading into the future.

Five gritted her teeth and lunged. How many seconds was the limit? It couldn't be a full minute. No one could sense the future to such a degree. At most, thirty seconds. At the least...

She whirled, slamming into Verez's feints and blind spots. Each blow was dealt with, the hearty clangs reminding her she only fought with one hand. Would it matter if she fought with two? Before Verez's ability kicked in, she drew the other dagger from her belt and slashed up. The tip bit into his cheek, missing his eye as he jumped back.

So, bias and expectations had something to do with it. If he didn't think it would happen, he wouldn't see it. Nothing in the future, even if it was just seconds, was absolute. She rolled her shoulders, preparing for another clash. Sure. She could work with that.

She was about to lurch forward again when a distinct squelch rang behind her. She turned in time to see Karrel drive her sword straight into Ten's gut. The blade's tip came out on the other end. No!

The only thing she could do was stand there with wide eyes. Ten...

A more vindictive scream rang from the east. Twelve opened her mouth to unleash a wave of ear-splitting blares, but no one winced or covered their ears. Instead, after a second, Twelve's hands flew to the sides of her head. Her knees hit the ground, and bright red liquid flowed between her fingers. It was as if her own ability worked against her. What was that?

Five aimed to defend Twelve as Karrel stalked towards the fallen girl, but Verez thrust his blade at her. She dodged at the last moment, parrying the blow with her injured hand. The pain sent black spots into her vision, just in time for Verez's fist to slam into her nose. She stumbled back, her rear hitting the grass. The tapered silver rushed towards her. Was this the end?

The line in her ear creaked and fizzled. Out came Thirteen's voice, loud enough to think he was there with them. "Fifteen! Play the card!"

And the weight of the world crashed over all of them.