“What do you have the right do do this to us?”

Matt’s words are slightly slurred, and don’t form a perfect sentence. It’s probably because of the handprint on his cheek and the missing tooth. Noland sighs and shakes his head, already annoyed with trying to explain what happened to a group of people that don’t want to listen to him.

“Yeah! We want the Preservation back!”

“You don’t have the influence to do this!”

“I’ll make sure none of you ever set foot in South Dakota ever again!”

Complaints ring out like the echoing of hammers in a repair shop. I only make out a few of them through the din of dissatisfaction, but even if I can’t hear the individuals, I can easily make out the general vibe; they’re pissed that they’re coming away from this with nothing. Since they came here hoping to latch onto the Preseravtion’s appealing teats like the helpless sniveling brats that they are.

“All that money… all that influence… wasted on them.” I grumble without moving from my spot. “Sorry that you had to be born into this world instead of the other one, Fleur.”

“Had I been born in another world, I would not have met you.” Fleur says with a glow of satisfaction as a pair of her arms massages my shoulders. I didn’t ask for it, but it feels nice, so I let it happen. “Though, as I see it, these people are remnants of the previous norm’s thinking. Had they gained the place in the Preservation’s hierarchy that they sought, it would not take a decade for their feet to be swept out from under them.”

I smile at the thought, but shake my head. “You’d be surprised how good parasites like them are at adapting. Once it becomes utterly safe to take a Class Coin and go to the other world, they’ll all be lining up to get the statistically most powerful coin and get some magic for themselves.”

Fleur’s orange light flickers for a second. “That, or they take the same path as the Giselas did. I feel that they are still keeping many secrets from us, even now, and they have powerful mentors to assure they do not fail. Will they be our enemies when they return?”

“I have no idea, Fleur. Maybe… maybe we shouldn’t give them a chance to return.” I lean forward and tighten my fingers around the sphere of shields. “I’ve only got a little bit before the other world calls me back. Illumisia’s waiting for us there, and if she agrees that they’re a threat, we’ll get rid of them.”

“I would recommend torturing their truths out of them first.” Fleur suggests without a hint of malice. “That way, we would not have to wonder if they have additional schemes in place on this world.”

“Good idea.” Pearl chimes in eagerly. “If Noland’s going to effectively take over their company, we need to know if they have any dangerous moles. Do you want me to feel all their employees for magic?”

Honestly, I don’t know. A different kind of exertion rises from my chest and forces a long, tired breath from my lungs. It’s only been a few hours, but I feel like my brain’s just been forced through a strainer with everything I just learned. Listening to a bunch of privileged rich people and politicians bitch about not being rich or powerful enough isn’t exactly helping, either.

“Noland, can you just… deal with them?” I hop off the stage and land next to him, which only serves to make me the target of their questions. “Ursula said they’d be terrified of you. Right now, it feels like they’re not scared at all. Mind fixing that?”

He raises an eyebrow, then smiles. “Sure thing, Shelby. I swear, as the sole survivor of the Everyday Eden massacre, I will deal with these annoyances.”

The words ‘Everyday Eden’ rock through the crowd like a grenade, bringing silence and fear instead of death and ringing. Colour drains from most of the faces I can see, and more than a few of them start backing up from Noland. He puts his hands on his hips and pouts sarcastically, but he can’t hide the cruel joy that radiates from his eyes.

“What, did none of you recognize me? I’m not even trying to hide the family resemblance.” He raises a hand and waves it over his face. “Has it really been that long that all of you think it’s done? Do none of you remember the promise I made in blood and bone?”

He takes a single step forward. Two thirds of the group step back. The ones who don’t look more confused than anything–as if the words ‘Everyday Eden’ kind of mean something to them, but not in the personal way that it affects the others.

“Oh, I get it–some of you weren’t on the list when I did the broadcast.” Noland laughs and shakes his head. “How embarrassing for me–I thought all of you would warn the next generation of wealth and power when they came up! But you just tried to forget me, didn’t you? Pretend that the scary man from the video doesn’t actually exist, and that you can keep doing heinous shit without worry?”

Puddles of gold appear under six sets of feet. Matt, one of Gisela’s friends, and four others that I don’t recognize. They all scream, nearly in unison. Golden spikes as wide as tree trunks silence the screams instantly, tearing the unlucky six into bloody pulp that rains down on the crowd in an instant. Solidifying the fear of Noland in everyone.

He spreads his hands and grins as blood rains down on them, a golden sheen protecting his clothes. “Remember, you stupid greedy bastards! Eden is only one step away, and I won’t hesitate sending you there earlier than everyone else! Oh, and as a little parting reminder… none of your houses are safe any more. Better get home quick, before the apocalypse takes your families like you’ve destroyed the families of so many.”

Stolen story; please report.

Screams of terror and scrabbling footsteps accompany a mass exodus of the party guests. Noland nods to himself and smirks in satisfaction as they run, watching until the very last guest disappears from the concert venue. Then he looks back at me, snaps his fingers, and dispels the golden spike trees.

Six very much alive bodies thump to the floor. All of them are absolutely rocked and terrified–as if they don’t understand that they’re still alive. Noland looks down on them like they’re the scum of the Earth, and honestly, I kind of agree with him. He walks up to Matt and slaps him–hard–to get his attention.

Woozily, Matt looks up at Noland. And screams in utter terror.

“Hey, none of that–not until we’re gone. Then you can scream and piss yourself as much as you want.” Noland’s expression turns deadly serious as he lifts Matt’s chin to force him to stare into his eyes. “All of you have forgotten what you’re dealing with. I know what all of you do to keep your power–and it sickens me. Do you remember what I did to the last group of rich, influential people that sickened me?”

Matt nods vigorously. Noland leans in so close that his forehead touches Matt’s.

“Tell me.”

“You… you… slaughtered them.” Matt swallows hard, tears in the corners of his eyes.

“And? What repercussions did I suffer for that?”

Matt tries to move away. Noland doesn’t let him.

“I asked you a question, Matt. It’s polite to answer your betters.”

“Nobody did anything about it.”

“And why is that?”

“Because…” Matt swallows hard again, the tears now readily flowing. “Nobody could do anything to you.”

Noland smiles cruelly and smacks Matt’s cheek twice. “Good man. Maybe you should try remembering that the next time you try and choke the world’s access to magic. Just remember how well it went for Taka–and know that I’m infinitely stronger than Ava.”

After one last tearful whimper, Noland lets Matt go and wipes his hands off on his jacket. He sighs in annoyance, as if dirtying his suit was the worst thing that had happened to him tonight, and turns to me.

“I’m done here. They’ll spread the word, and it’ll keep activity down for at least a little bit. But if it doesn’t… well, I’m not against keeping my promises.” He chuckles and flicks his wrist, summoning a portal with a familiar beachside view. “This probably isn’t how Gisela wanted things to go, but then she shouldn't have run away in the middle of her speech, now should she have?”

I raise an eyebrow at him as I step through the portal to the resort. “Did you really have to make us look like supervillains? They’re going to tell everyone we’re the real problem, not the Preservation or HuSt. Hell, you might’ve just given the two organizations a little more power than they had before.”

Noland shrugs as he pulls off his jacket and holds it over his shoulder. Once Fleur steps through the portal, he shifts the scenery seen through it to the inside of a limousine. Ursula clicks her tongue and points finger guns at me as she gets up, then finally, the portal dissolves behind her. Putting a definite end to the party.

“The name ‘Everyday Eden’ should scare them into not spreading anything. Or, at least, making it look like they’re not the ones spreading it.” Noland says as the sand crunches under his feet and the late-night beachgoers look at us with mild surprise. “And hey, if I’m wrong, it just means I have to go clean out a few scum-ridden organizations. I haven't had to do that for a while, but it doesn't mean I'm not looking forward to it a little.”

Ursula raises an eyebrow, both at Noland and Fleur. But from how she locks eyes with Noland, it looks like she’s dealing with him first. “So you pulled the ‘EE’ card on the party? How’d they react?”

He shrugs. “Not as terrified as I would’ve liked. When March gets back, tell her to do some research to find the scummiest company that’s operating right now. I’ll do a little hostile takeover when I get the time.”

“Hit me up when you’re doing it–I need to make a public appearance so they don’t forget about me.” Ursula pats herself on the chest and grins. “HuSt could use a little reminder that their own mistakes are out here waiting to murder them.”

“Oh, speaking of HuSt, Ava wants to delay your fight. Whatever that means.” I cock my head to the side and look at Ursula out of the corner of my eye. “I never bothered asking–do the two of you hate each other?”

“Eeehhh…. Not really. Ava was violent, sure, but she never went for people that weren’t on the battlefield. She just… reciprocated what our enemies did.” Ursula sighs and crosses her arms. “A lot of medics and prisoners of war died because of that. But I couldn’t bring myself to kill Ava when I was strong enough. Seeing the people around her being so much worse kind of made me think ‘oh shit, you’re just brainwashed to hell and back’, you know?”

No, I didn’t know. But I also didn’t really have an argument, since Ava kind of did a face-turn in the few hours I knew her. If Ursula knows she’s strong enough to kill Ava at any point, then I’ll just trust her to do exactly that if Ava steps out of line.

“Well, that’s enough for one day.” Noland claps one hand, but the noise is just as loud as if he’d clapped with both. “Let’s get a good night’s sleep, then tomorrow we can debrief and decide what we’re going to do from now on. Fleur, do you want to get set up on the platform? You should be able to get much stronger if you connect to the krarig hearts and make yourself a little slice of Eden.”

Fleur thinks for a second, then glances over at me. I give her an encouraging nod. She returns a happy glow.

“I think I shall, so I will take my leave.” She bows to me slightly. “When you get the chance, Shelby, I would love to speak with you privately on the platform. There is something I wish to try in the hopes of being able to shift worlds with you, at least partially.”

Her hands pull away, and she slithers off towards the water. I’ve honestly been wondering the same thing; but if she isn’t an item, the only thing I can think of is relocating her across space and time. It might not even work, but if she’s got a better idea, then I’m all ears.

“Weird how she turned black all of a sudden.” Ursula says, then scrunches up her nose. “Wait, that sounds horrible. Let me rephrase that.”

“Nope, too late.” Noland laughs and pats her on the back. “We’ll remember that for all eternity. Or at least for a few days.”

Ursula sighs and shakes her head. “Damn me for not thinking before I speak.”

I fall silent as the two of them banter like old friends. The events of the night might be old news already to them, since they’ve seen so much, but it’s a little too fresh in my mind to be passed over so easily. Can we actually trust Ava and Gasp? Are they actually working with Gisela and Dora? What does it mean that Garza Industrial is working with the resort?

As my footsteps crunch against loose sand on the boardwalk, I slowly realize that only time holds the answers I’m looking for. And the quickest way to those answers is to get to the other world as fast as humanly possible.