Emily walked into the arcade as she occasionally did for the past few weeks. She navigated through the various games consoles with familiarity and entered a backroom that was occupied.

"Yo," a man greeted her casually while sitting on a sofa. He leaned back, appearing very at home in the room, and gestured at Emily to sit next to him but she didn't budge and stood standing with her arms crossed.

"I need another two, Taylor," Emily said stiffly. The man she was talking to was the drug dealer who sold her Accelerant previously.

"Hmm, that's unfortunate," Taylor said after puffing some smoke out. "We're low on blue spider, so it'll cost ya double, for each hit. Diesel is the same price though."

Emily frowned and didn't answer; she recalled how for the past two weeks, Taylor has slowly been increasing the price of the drugs, especially the purer version that was called blue spider. Right now, she could only afford the diesel version, a cheap version of heroin that was like black tar due to its impurity. Emily knew what he was doing: Taylor was slowly making her dependent on him, but despite knowing this, she continued buying from him, as she was already ensnared in his trap.

"I'll take one diesel then," Emily answered after pondering for a moment. Without a job, she needed to be more frugal with her expenses. A major issue, considering that she was developing a resistance to heroin, evident by her need to take a larger dose every single time.

“Sounds like you’re having a tough time buying more,” Taylor smirked and said and Emily narrowed her eyes at his words.

“Which is none of your concern,” she replied scathingly.

“Nope, it isn’t,” he agreed while pulling out a clean syringe full of black tar. He handed it to her while she swiped a holographic transfer of money to his holo-device. “But if you're looking for a job, then I could help you out.”

Emily’s eyes narrowed as she stared at Taylor with suspicion. She had a hunch that Taylor or whoever he worked for was observing her for some time. While she felt unnerved at this prospect, Emily didn’t allow herself to panic; she knew that they could’ve harmed her by now but their inaction signified that she wasn’t in danger.

"What kind of job?" Emily asked steadily. Deep down, her intuition was warning her that he was up to no good, but curiosity and desperation drove her to ask.

"Nothing much. You just need to … accompany and drink with customers," Taylor said dismissively.

"You want me to sell my body?" Emily asked, her voice low with anger as she clenched her fists.

"No, no," Taylor shook his head with a devious smile on his face. "You're too young, that'd be illegal now, wouldn't it? No, you just need to entertain our patrons as a hostess."

Emily almost rolled her eyes in anger before giving out a short chortle. She wasn't born yesterday, she knew full well that she'd have to drink with the customers and she could envision what would occur next once she was drunk.

"Screw you, Taylor," Emily hissed like an angry cat before storming out of the room.

Taylor didn't stop her, he watched her go with an insidious smile. Only after he was certain that she wouldn't return did he call a number.

"It's done," Taylor said quietly. "I'll have her soon."

"Good," a voice replied. Above the city, in a darkened room, the smoking man crushed the remains of a burnt-out cigar as he spoke. "Remember, do not touch her. She is … very valuable."

"Understood," Taylor replied before hanging up.

The smoking man turned the chair and looked out the panoramic window, watching with contemplation as the sun slowly rose.

You took everything from me, Fenrir, The smoking man thought with a dark chuckle. So I'll take everything from you. Beginning with that little crush of yours.

"Enough with the games," Yu, who was meditating quietly nearby, spoke with a slight annoyance present in his voice. "We have been waiting, sitting, and wasting our time for two weeks. When do we strike?"

"Patience, my eager friend," the smoking man answered. "You know the saying, "Haste makes waste". Striking now would be ineffective. No, it's better to break him slowly by poisoning those around him. Let his world crumble before delivering the killing blow."

Yu didn't answer and instead went back to meditating while the smoking man opened a case and pulled a new cigar out.

I'm looking forward to what comes next, The smoking man thought as he cut his cigar before lighting it.

***

"You're really gonna leave me here?" Jason asked Alina who was packing her bag. She had changed from her swimsuit back to her casual clothes and was preparing to leave the club.

"I told you I might go if my friends called," Alina answered as she swung her damp hair backwards.

"Yeah, I know. But …" Jason turned back and looked at the swimming pool. Silvia and Daria were dressed in luxurious swimsuits and the former we sunbathing while the latter played in the shallow pool with Alice.

"Oh c'mon, you can do it," Alina punched Jason in the shoulders encouragingly. "Just don't listen to that little devil on your shoulders and you'll pass through this temptation."

"That's not -" Jason protested but Alina shrugged him off.

"Sure, sure it isn't. Whatever you say," Alina smirked as she walked away.

Jason turned back to look at Silvia and Daria before turning back to Alina and sighing.

"Fuck it," Jason muttered. "I'm outta here too."

Jason braced himself as he began walking back to Alice when his phone rang. Jason checked the caller ID their his holo-lenses before picking up the call.

"Having fun on your date with Ms. Graves?" A sweet yet sultry voice asked through the phone. It was Melanie who called Jason.

"Spying on me?" Jason asked back. He was both amused and annoyed over both Melanie's jealous tone and the constant surveillance she had over him.

"Ms. Graves asked you out in front of my office," Melanie answered. "It was easy to read her lips."

Somehow, that doesn't comfort me, Jason thought as he leaned against a wall.

"What do you want?" Jason asked brusquely. He wasn't in the mood to hear her flirtatious teasing.

"I'm heading to the orphanage," Melanie replied innocently. "Come with me?"

"Your ward, Maple, will she be there?" Jason asked after a moment of consideration.

"Yes."

"Alright then. I'll bring Alice along," Jason confirmed.

"Great! I'll see you there," Melanie said coquettishly before hanging up.

Funny how she knew exactly when to call, Jason thought wryly as he walked back to where Silvia and Daria were. After explaining that he had to leave to a despondent Daria and receiving a knowing glance from Silvia, Jason dashed away with Alice in tow.

A few minutes after Alina exited the leisure club, she received a message and opened it through her holo-lenses. It was a chat message from Katherine.

[Hey Allie,] the message read. [What's up?]

[I was wondering if we could meet up now?] Alina texted back.

[Sure. I'm at RogueTech,] Katherine replied after half a minute. [Just use the VIP elevator to reach Selly's office]

[Alright! I'll see you there soon] Alina texted before deactivating her holo-lenses. With a smile, Alina walked towards RogueTech towers, her footsteps were light and full of happiness.

***

As Emily slowly made her way home she paused when she saw two men walking nearby. One was supporting the other who had a leg injury but that wasn't why Emily stopped. She recognized the injured man, she was certain that she had seen him when she visited Papa John with Asami. As Emily wondered about what happened, an idea surfaced and she began considering the feasibility of it working.

"Hey," Emily called out and the two stumbled before stopping.

"What do you want?" The man aiding the injured sent Emily a suspicious glare as he asked harshly.

"You work for Papa John, right?" Emily asked serenely as she attempted to remain calm.

"Why do you want to know?" The man asked as his hands reached into his back pockets.

"I'm an Esper and I have a proposition for him," Emily answered calmly. Her heart was pounding, begging her to stop but she continued speaking. "I want to join his gang. But first, a demonstration."

Emily's hands were shrouded with a fun green light and she hovered then above the injured man's mangled knee. Within minutes, the wound knitted itself together even as the kneecap and ligaments joined together again. The two men exchanged looks before turning and agreeing with Emily's request with a humble and respectful attitude: to normal people, Espers and Spellcasters were the elite in Atlantis, regardless of their level or skill.

"Lead the way," Emily stated and the two respectfully began escorting her towards the Sumps when Emily's phone rang.

"Melanie," Emily accepted the call and answered awkwardly.

"Hi there, Emily. Are you busy?" Melanie asked cheerfully.

"Somewhat," Emily replied shortly. Despite reaching an agreement with Melanie, her feelings about her rival hadn't changed much.

"Aw, that's too bad. And here I was planning to invite you to go on a date with me and Jason but since you're busy -"

"When and where?" Emily asked abruptly. She definitely wasn't willing to allow Jason to spend time alone with a minx like Melanie.

"I'll text it to you right away," Melanie giggled. "But don't push yourself too hard, it's fine if you can't make it. I'm sure I'll find some way to entertain Jason myself."

Emily sighed and hung up, too annoyed to retort at Melanie's teasing. She turned back to the two men and smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go," Emily said. "I'll meet with Papa John as soon as I'm available."

As she turned to walk away, the man who was most suspicious of her stopped her.

"Wait," he called out. "Just now in the phone … were you talking about Jason?"

Emily turned to look at the man carefully before calmly stating, "You know him."

"He was in our gang, long ago," the man replied. "Was one of the founding members, and a good brother of ours. Got us out of that hellhole. If you meet him, tell him … tell him that he'll always be our brother, regardless of what he thinks of us."

Emily nodded and walked away while the two men watched her go until she was no longer visible.

"Do you think that she's …" the man who was previously injured hesitantly asked the other.

"I hope not," the man answered while shaking his head. "If it is, then he'll lose her too."

***

Katherine sighed as she placed her glass of brandy on the table. She was sitting in the CEO office in RogueTech, watching the news while waiting for Selena to finish her meeting with the executives. Stock rates for RogueTech went down once the anonymously released scandal of weapon sales to Sanctuary was revealed to be true and Selena, despite running damage control, was being blamed for the aftermath.

What was more concerning are these protests, Katherine thought as she watched a live protest that turned sour almost immediately. The incited crowd was hurling stones at the SecBots that were overseeing the security while the latter used nonlethal suppressive tactics to contain the aggressive protesters. Dad keeps reminding me to leave Atlantis but … Alle … Jason. Besides, those assholes are probably waiting for me back in Europe.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Katherine's face darkened as the last thought crossed her mind. She was also close to connecting with both Alina and Jason, she didn't want to leave and lose her opportunity. And while Sanctuary currently appeared to be in turmoil, Katherine knew that her enemies, Practitioners and other creatures from European sects and families, wouldn't act recklessly in the city.

Rock music blared the office room as an incoming phone call interrupted her musings, and Katherine's face changed when she noticed the caller ID. She sighed and hesitantly answered the phone after placing the call through her holo-desk. A man with curly hair and olive skin appeared over her desk and he smiled at Katherine gently.

"Hey Katie," the man said softly.

"Faro," Katherine answered stiffly and mechanically.

"Everything ok? I've been trying to reach you but you didn't answer. I was starting to worry."

"Yeah, no. Everything is alright. I just … I've been busy," Katherine answered.

"Your dad's worried about you being in Atlantis alone, need me to come by?" Faro asked in a flirtatious manner and Kathrine shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. I'm actually taking my time trying to bond with my cousin."

"Hey, Kate, sorry I'm late," Alina exited Selena's secret entrance and greeted Katherine with a grin but paused when she saw the latter conversing with a cute guy.

"Speak of the devil. I'll talk to you later, hun. Hey, Alle," Katherine quickly hung up and smiled as she stood up. "Any trouble getting here?"

Katherine gestured with her head at the television which was still broadcasting the protests occurring all over the city.

"Nope barely had any trouble. Rooftops," Alina shook her head and answered before adding the last bit when she saw Katherine's questioning face. "But more importantly, who was that? Your boyfriend?"

"No, not my boyfriend. Not exactly. It's complicated," Katherine answered while thinking, Yeah he's my boyfriend for the past me in this new timeline but not the current me.

"He's cute in a he-reminds-me-of-Jason kinda way."

"Ungh, don't remind me," Katherine shuddered and Alina burst out laughing.

"So, what was so important that you needed to meet me asap?" Katherine asked and Alina pulled a hand-drawn schematic from her pocket.

"I was wondering if you could build this," Alina replied.

"Hmm," Katherine inspected the schematic for a very long time before sighing. "Whoever designed this was ingenious. Using stabilizers, not unlike those in aircraft, to turn the cable in midair … of course, also creating a quantum algorithm that can calculate well, everything … incredible."

"What makes you think I didn't design it?" Alina asked curiously and Katherine rolled her eyes.

Because I've seen Jason use this before, Katherine thought but she didn't voice it out loud. The Anchor Grapple was a favourite for Jason and Katherine fondly remembered how in the past timeline, Jason used it to saddle onto a rampaging Drake before killing it. She wouldn't be able to explain to Alina how she knew of the Anchor Grapple when it was currently an experimental prototype.

"You stole this from Jason, didn't you?" Katherine asked, her voice carrying the weight of her accusation and Alina flinched.

"I … borrowed it," Alina muttered and Kathrine sighed.

"Why exactly do you need this?" Katherine asked with a raised eyebrow.

"For a - uh - school project," Alina fibbed and Katherine raised her eyebrows while giving a reproachful gaze. "Oh, okay, fine. I borrowed it cause it's just like the Anchor from that Batman game."

Katherine opened her mouth to reply to Alina's lie when the television caught her eye. The news broadcast had taken a break from covering the protests and instead focused on blurry and grainy video feeds of a masked figure fighting in the Sumps. The figure was moving much too fast for the shaking camera to catch and the blinking street lights gave the illusion that the figure was teleporting as he fought with armed men.

"Huh," Katherine smiled knowingly and Alina followed her gaze. The latter blinked her eyes without being surprised, but Katherine noticed her heartbeat increasing as her nose flared ever so slightly.

"Must be hard for Jason, eh?" Katherine commented before walking back to the CEO's desk. "Pulling all-nighters for so many days."

"What do you mean?" Alina asked bemusedly with furrowed eyebrows.

"Alle, please, I know," Katherine said quietly and Alina stopped breathing as she realized what the former meant.

Alina rolled her eyes when she saw Katherine smiling and she briefly turned her eyes away from the latter's shit-eating grin before looking back with a piercing glare.

"How did you know?" Alina asked grimly.

Katherine's eyes moved downwards to study Alina when she noticed the latter slowly moving her right leg backwards while pulling an arm back; Alina was moving into a concealed fighting stance and this made Katherine shake her head wryly.

"Because I'm just like him - and you," Kathrine answered as she raised a hand. After a spark, ball of condensed flames conjured in her hand and Alina raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"A Practitioner?" Alina murmured hesitantly. She still remained suspicious of Katherine.

"Relax, kid. I'm on your side," Katherine continued. "I am a Practitioner, but I'm also your cousin. Besides, I've fought Practitioners alongside Jason before. So we're … I wouldn't say allies … buddies?"

"And I'm supposed to take your word for it?" Alina asked sarcastically.

"Kid, I'm just as strong as Jason," Katherine answered. "If I wanted to hurt you …"

Before Katherine could finish her sentence Alina struck out, sending a fist coated in a layer of electricity barreling towards Katherine. The latter instinctively blocked the punch with a flaming arm before sending a flummoxed gaze at Alina. Quicker than she could retort, Alina delivered a chain of attacks, punches and kicks, that were aimed at Katherine's weak points. Katherine, not wanting to harm Alina, merely deflected the attacks using her palms, elbows, knees, and feet while waiting for Alina to tire out.

Alina, on the other hand, realized that she couldn't beat Katherine when she saw how relaxed the latter appeared. She performed a spinning kick and spun around, using her body to block Katherine's sight, before charging her fists and sending a double punch at Katherine. One fist was aimed at Katherine's face while the other was directed at her solar plexus. With her automatic reflex kicking in, Katherine blocked the fist aimed at her face but the second fist accurately connected with her chest and she slid backwards as pain coursed through her body.

"Alright," Katherine swallowed back the bile that threatened to escape her lips and then cracked her neck. She had been holding back against Alina this entire time but decided right then and there not to anymore. "That's it."

The two charged at each other and both began exchanging blows at an extremely fast rate. Katherine focused on boxing techniques while Alina used Kenpo Karate to counter-attack with lightning precision. Catching Alina off guard, Kathrine twisted her arm and tried slamming her into a wall but Alina ran up the wall instead, escaping Katherine's clutches. Unfortunately, just as she landed behind Katherine, the latter spun around and back kicked one of her shins sending her down to the ground. Katherine sent a spin kick at Alina's head while the latter raised her arm to defend herself. The kick connected with Alina's arm and sent her spinning backwards. Katherine was about to pursue Alina but the latter raised her hands in deference.

"Alright, alright. I give," Alina said while smiling. "You aren't as strong as Jason though."

"I'll admit, he's got better techniques and martial prowess. But I'm pretty sure I'm stronger," Katherine rolled her eyes before speaking. "I'm not your enemy. But if you don't trust me, I could show you something that might change your mind."

A breathless Katherine led a tired Alina to the secret elevator and latter hesitantly followed her.

"You know I've been to the secret armoury already," Alina said.

"Oh, you know about that?" Katherine frowned for a second. "How - did Selena take you down here before?"

"Yep," Alina replied. "After all, Jason's a -- uh, what did he call it? -- a control shareholder?"

"... What?" Katherine was stunned for a moment before turning back to Alina. "What did you just say?"

"Jason is a shareholder," Alina replied calmly. "Apparently, he bought a majority of the shares that went public years ago."

"... He's Mr. Gram … of course," Katherine muttered while massaging her eyebrows. "I should've known."

After arriving in Sanctuary, Katherine had been overlooking RogueTech's past. Although her family was once a majority shareholder, the long years of the War forced them to sell their stakes. The last sellout happened four years ago when a person named Mr. Gram bought a majority of the shares that went public. With almost forty percent of the company stocks in his hand, he became a controlling shareholder alongside the Rogues, and the two maintained an equilibrium. What baffled Katherine was that Mr. Gram never interfered with the company, other than agreeing to place Selena as the CEO, but now she understood why.

"You've seen the armory in the first sublevel. But did you go down to the second sublevel?" Katherine asked.

"No," Alina answered shaking her head. "I didn't know there was another level."

"Well, you're in for a surprise," Katherine answered mysteriously. She was being vague intentionally in an attempt to surprise Alina.

***

Jason parked his car beside a decrepit house and took Alice out from the backseat. He held her in his arms and walked to the entrance where a gentle-looking woman stood and next to her was Melanie and Maple. The former was smiling sweetly while waving her hand but Jason failed to notice her when he caught sight of Emily.

Nearly tripping, Jason steadied himself and continued acting normal as he turned to observe the woman next to the two girls. She had several wrinkles and her great lined hair displayed her age. The jacket she was wearing was mired with mismatched patches and aged wool threatened to emerge from tears that weren’t patched. A large group of children stood behind her, lined up with the youngest at the front and the tall, older children lingering at the back. All of them watched Jason approach with curiosity.

“Mr. Sage,” the lady bowed her head slightly in respect and Jason tilted his head in bemusement. “I’m Ms. Grace. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“What’s all this?” Jason asked while nodding at Melanie and Emily before his eyes fell on the children behind the woman.

"Grace knows me well, I've been helping her for years," Melanie explained to Jason, who barely heard her.

For a split-second, Jason narrowed his eyes as he saw a brown-skinned scrawny boy with a mane of pearly black hair. He blinked his eyes and looked back but only saw a tiny freckled face that was sunburnt. A dull knocking echoed through his head as he felt his past incarnations repeatedly try to connect to him.

"Jason?" Emily reached out and placed a hand on his shoulders and Jason roused himself while ignoring the pounding in his mind.

"Oh hey," Jason replied with a smile. "I didn't … realize you'd be here."

"Melanie invited me," Emily said softly. "We were hanging out when she mentioned that she wanted to volunteer here today and I decided to join her."

"Huh."

Something's up, He thought as his eyes continuously shifted from Emily to Melanie. Were these two ever that close? Didn't I get the impression that these two were competing for me?

Had he allowed the voices of his past incarnations out to witness this event, they would have certainly pointed out that these two were working together to reach him.

"Hi Alice," while Jason was lost in his thoughts Emily had turned to Alice who was pouting after seeing Jason preoccupied with the girls. The only consultation for the little girl was that Maple seemed excited to see her and the two children were having a staring contest while the adults conversed.

Alice wanted to show her discontent with Emily but the latter picked her out from Jason's arms and hugged her. Alice calmed down and closed her eyes as she felt the warmth from Emily's hug: her warmth was very similar to her mother's.

Emily . . . and Michelle, Alice thought. They're like mom in some ways.

After hugging Alice, Emily set her down in the ground and Maple ran towards her.

"Hi, Alice!" Maple said excitedly. She grabbed Alice's hand and tugged her away. "C'mon let me show you my home!"

Jason smiled and nodded at Alice when the latter turned to look at him and Alice cheerfully agreed with Maple as the two ran off.

"Home?" Jason turned to Melanie and asked.

"She's not used to living in my place," Melanie replied helplessly. "Also I think it's better for her to live with other children."

"Emily, can you look after Alice for me? I need to discuss something with Melanie," Jason said. Emily hesitated for a second before nodding and reluctantly leaving. Jason then turned to Grace with a smile. "Ms. Grace, I know we've only just met but I can see how happy the children are. I'd like to prepare a meal for the children if that's alright with you. And don't worry, there'll be lots of meat."

Jason winked at the children at end and several of them turned to look at Graves with bright eyes and hopeful glances.

"Please, by all means," Grace answered and wrinkles formed around her eyes as she smiled. The children around her cheered and began running around in every direction like a hurricane. Within moments, Grace was forced to run after the children while Jason and Melanie looked on with a smile.

"Quite a bit effort in getting us alone," Melanie said as she leaned in on Jason. "What do you want to ask?"

"Why are you looking after that child?" Jason asked.

"Because she reminds me of me," Melanie replied instantaneously.

"And the real reason?"

Melanie didn't reply immediately and instead, she looked to where Maple and a few girls were showing Alice the playground. Jason waited patiently and Melanie sighed after watching Maple for a few minutes.

"She successfully tried escaping when they were imprisoned by those traffickers," she slowly explained. "And she saw the traffickers having a holo-meeting with someone. A board member, Jason."

Jason narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms.

Of course, He thought. A Council member would be involved in such a high profiled trafficking ring.

"You're worried they'd send someone to kill her?" Jason asked and Melanie nodded. "Want me to look after her? She can stay with Alice."

Melanie turned to look at Jason in surprise when she heard his suggestion but shook her head. "No, I want to look after her myself. Maybe train her to be like me. Better than me."

Melanie turned to look at Jason with envy before continuing softly. "Just like you did with Alina."

But was it right? Jason thought with a forlorn smile. Did I do the right thing for Alle?

"I need to prepare my ingredients," Jason said finally. "The boys are getting jealous with me monopolizing you."

Jason jerked his head to a few boys who were disgruntled while watching the two converse and Melanie laughed. Since Melanie had been volunteering in caring for the children, many had grown close to her.

"Don't be jealous," Melanie chided the boys as Jason walked away. "I had something to discuss with my boyfriend."

Both Jason and the boys who were surrounding Melanie stumbled before regaining their footing. Without saying a word Jason walked towards Alice, his mind lost on Melanie.

What is she to me? He thought. Why am I so complaisant when it comes to her? I've let her get away with things that I killed others for even attempting …

"Hey," Jason called out to Emily who was watching over Alice. Emily looked back and smiled back forcefully, her eyes avoiding Jason and the latter sighed when he noticed her discomfort. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to exclude you from our conversation. It was … about her ward, Maple."

Emily used one arm to hug herself as she shook her head. "I'm not - I just - do you hate me?"

"What? No. No, why would I hate you?" Jason was surprised at Emily's question and he vehemently denied her.

"You've been keeping your distance from me for some time," Emily answered. "I know I'm not as strong as the others or brighter or beautiful … and I know my reputation isn't good but -"

"Stop," Jason raised a hand to interrupt Emily. "I … Emily, do I - am I that shallow to you? I have never treated anyone better based on their looks or brains. And I give two shits about rumours and what other people say. The only reason why I -"

Jason broke off when a child ran nearby. He smiled at the little girl who blushed before running off and he turned back to Emily.

"The only reason why I have been avoiding you is because I can't let myself get closer to you," Jason continued. "I - you and Alina are friends and you're my student and … it's just not possible."

Emily's nails dug into her arm as the world turned blurry. A slight ringing echoed through her ears and the loud shouts from the children around them slowly drowned.

"And Melanie?" Emily finally asked. "Is it possible for her, can she be together with you?"

"It's not possible for her either," Jason replied. His attraction to both Melanie and Emily were a distraction and so after taking a deep breath, he decided to nip the bud before it bloomed. "I'm sorry, Em. What you like, what you have a crush on, isn't real. I'm not real, I'm something else. And you'll only be hurt if you get involved with me."

"I don't believe you," Emily shook her head repeatedly as she felt knives burrow do in her heart. "I won't believe you."

"It's true, kid," Jason said quietly. "I'm a heartbreaker. So stay away - away from me. Besides …"

Jason walked to Alice as he muttered his last words but Emily could hear them clearly, even though she wished she didn't.

"I already have someone I care about."