Lubanzi’s bowling ball hurtled towards Evie. She saw it coming and swung to the side just in time to help Amelia dodge it. The umbrella was doing most of the work, but they had long ago learned that Evie could use her weight to aid Amelia’s maneuvers. The ball bounced off the wall of the arena, then shot backwards as Lubanzi recalled it. Evie was grateful he had missed. Despite the armored pads she wore beneath her uniform, getting hit with the bowling ball hurt. Lubanzi kept its mass low enough to prevent serious damage in these exercises, but there was only so much he could do.

Evie looked down at her two opponents. Lubanzi stood on the edge of the curved walkway leading from the arena’s entrance, about twenty feet from the ground. Haruto rocketed towards him, perpendicular to the wall on his motorcycle. Trailing out behind Haruto was a thin black ribbon tucked into the back of his pants. Evie absentmindedly reached behind her back and brushed her own ribbon with the hand not clutching Amelia, double checking it was still there.

Lubanzi caught his bowling ball, spun, and sent it spinning along the wall in Haruto’s direction. The ball went wide, and for a moment Evie thought Lubanzi had missed. Haruto clearly thought so. He accelerated, giving the ball only a cursory glance as he made to speed by it. Then the ball’s path changed. Lubanzi had added some spin when he’d thrown it, and at the last minute it veered sharply down the wall and straight into Haruto’s front tire.

The bike pitched to the side, throwing Haruto into the air. The second his body left the seat he flicked his wrist, the one wearing the motorcycle’s control cuff, and the bike folded into itself, becoming the small police badge shaped shield. Haruto and the shield hit the pathway above Lubanzi and slid to a stop against the wall, but not before Haruto had scooped the motorcycle off the ground and clipped it onto his belt.

Lubanzi opened his gloved hand to recall the bowling ball again, but Haruto was already on him. The two men went tumbling down the pathway as the bowling ball smashed into the wall behind them, bouncing harmlessly onto the path. Lubanzi had gotten much better at hand to hand over the last seven months, but he had never excelled at it. A brief scuffle ensued between the two men before Haruto got Lubanzi in a headlock, reached behind him and snatched the ribbon out of the back of his pants. Haruto pushed Lubanzi away and jumped off the path. Lubanzi spun and lunged for him, but he was too late. Haruto’s motorcycle materialized beneath him, turning his fall into a controlled acceleration down the wall. He sped away and across the Arena’s floor, tucking Lubanzi’s ribbon into the back of his pants next to his own.

Evie saw an opening. “Amelia” she shouted, but the umbrella had already moved, dropping so fast that Evie’s stomach flew up into her throat. She ignored the feeling and focused on the man below them. When they were about fifteen feet above Haruto, Evie let go.

She had become skilled at falling without injury, but landing on a moving target was tricky. She hit Haruto earlier than intended, landing on top of the man instead of behind him. It hurt, but the motorcycle’s momentum broke her fall. Haruto grunted in surprise, then swore as she wrapped her legs around him, trying to pin his arms, scrambling to reach his ribbons. Before she could he pitched to the side, toppling them over and sending them skidding along the ground. The pads Evie wore under her uniform prevented the worst of the road rash, but her skin still burned as they slid to a stop.

For a moment Evie felt the weight of the motorcycle crushing down on her leg, but then Haruto flicked his wrist and the bike once again folded into a shield and fell harmlessly to the ground next to them. Evie lashed out a foot and sent it spinning across the floor before Haruto could grab it.

She was still better than Haruto in a fight, but in a grappling situation like the one they were in, his weight and strength would be too much of an advantage. He flipped her underneath him, but she managed to spin them just a little on the floor before he got a leg over her and pinned her. She struggled, but knew she wouldn’t be able to break free. Smiling with satisfaction, he reached his free hand underneath her, searching for her ribbon.

Come on Lubanzi. She thought.

WHAM. Haruto pitched forward as Lubanzi’s bowling ball struck him square in the back, cracking against the armored plate he wore there. Evie used the momentum to push him off. She grabbed for the two ribbons tucked into the back of his pants, got a grip on one, but the second slid through her fingers. Haruto turned, recovering quickly and lunging, but Evie’s other hand was already in the air. Amelia yanked her up and away to safety.

“Did you miss??!” shouted the umbrella.

“Shut up,” Evie yelled back as they rose.

Below them, Haruto looked around frantically for his motorcycle. Evie’s eyes moved in the direction that she had kicked it, and found Lubanzi, the tiny shield in one hand and his bowling ball in the other. He cranked his arm back and nailed Haruto in the stomach at point blank range. Evie winced. Haruto went flying back into the wall and crumpled to the floor, momentarily stunned despite the headgear and protective pads. As he lay groaning on the ground, Lubanzi ran forward, snatched Haruto’s remaining ribbon, and darted away up the ramp, recalling his bowling ball as he ran.

Evie watched as he slid to a stop and took careful aim at her and Amelia. They were too far away for the throw to catch them off guard. As the bowling ball came whistling towards them, Amelia flashed her shield, not even bothering to dodge. It proved unnecessary. Lubanzi’s aim was unusually off, and the ball missed them by a few inches.

Amelia dropped her shield as soon as the bowling ball had rocketed by, conserving her battery. “Let’s go for—“ Evie's words were brutally cut off as Lubanzi’s bowling ball ricocheted off of the wall behind her and struck her in the back. Surprise knocked her grip from Amelia’s handle. The umbrella tried to catch Evie with her shield, but was a microsecond too late. The bowling ball dug into Evie’s padded back and accelerated back to Lubanzi, dragging her with it. Before she could think what to do, Lubanzi caught her with one arm, pinning her arms twisting so she wasn’t sandwiched between him and the bowling ball. He plucked both flags from her waistband with his free hand, kissed her on the top of the head, and set her down.

The buzzer sounded. Lubanzi had won.

“That was a dirty trick!” Evie grumbled, smacking Lubanzi playfully on the arm. Her disappointment at losing was easily overwhelmed by the pride that filled her. Lubanzi grinned. “I’ve been wanting to try that for a while! Thanks for giving me the perfect opportunity.”

Haruto walked stiffly towards them, hiding a limp. “I’d be impressed if I wasn’t so annoyed,” he sulked.

Korgan, Haruto’s producer, landed on Haruto’s shoulder. “Don’t turn your back to a man whose main trick is hurling bowling balls,” Korgon said in his slurred but oddly posh Honrad accent. Haruto glared.

The other two pigeons landed on their respective humans. “I can’t believe you fucking missed,” grumped Hat.

“She had literally one job to do by herself,” said Amelia, floating down to them.

“Shut it, Miss ‘I have a 360-degree field of vision but I didn’t notice the bowling ball bouncing off the wall at us,’” Evie muttered.

“All I hear is a bunch of sore losers,” said Lubanzi, grinning triumphantly as Amiya affectionally preened the short, wiry hair on the side of his head.

“I have to agree with Lubanzi.” Claro’s voice drifted down from the top of the ramp as she descended towards them. “Congratulations on your victory, kid. Though I must say, all three of you put on a damn good show.”

Claro held a small stack of folders, and as she reached the bottom of the path, Evie could see each was labeled with one of their names. Claro leafed through them, pulled out Lubanzi’s and presented it to him.

“The paper is just for show, of course,” she said as Lubanzi eagerly clutched the folder to his chest. “We’ll send all the information to your tablet. Inside is the name of your first assignment, some preliminary information about them, and contact information for the informant you’ll be working with. We’ve cleared your schedule for the rest of today and tomorrow, so you and Amiya can go start making plans. Good luck, Lubanzi.”

Lubanzi’s eyes lingered on the folder for a moment, then he looked up at Evie. A lot passed between them in that moment. This wasn’t goodbye, but it was close. He would spend the rest of today and tomorrow researching and making plans. She probably wouldn’t see him until right before they left.

Evie forced her face into a smile. “What are you waiting for? I’ll see you before we leave,” she said. He hesitated, then nodded and turned, walking resolutely up the path.

“You two, on the other hand, have the privilege of a last day of training,” said Claro to the remaining two assassins. “If there’s anything specific you want to work on, ask. After all, it’ll be the last chance you get!”

Warm water cascaded over Evie. She shut her eyes and let her head hang back, focusing on the feel of the shower running through her hair and down her face. Her last day aboard the Skonarian ship had been a blur. After a few solo exercises in the Arena with Amelia and Hat, she had spent the afternoon sparring with Claro and Formad, and finished with a final “tune up” in a Resurrection Chamber with Var. She felt strong. She felt prepared. And she could no longer deny that her time aboard the Skonarian ship was coming to a close. Beneath the water, the flow washed away her tears before she could really feel them.

No amount of denial could change the fact that she didn’t want to leave. She had to do well in the Sim to have even a chance of seeing Mildred again, but her new reality had tempered that all-consuming desire. Whether or not the feeling was her own, she was happy, and had found new people to care about. No one could replace her sister, but aboard the Skonarian ship, she had begun to do something she had never been able to on Earth: move on.

The delicate equilibrium that she had found was about to be tested. Hat and Amelia would be with her, but Lubanzi would be on his own. There was nothing she could do to help him, and if anything happened… she couldn’t bear to think about that possibility. The memory of the empty husk of a person the death of her sister had turned her into still haunted her.

For a long moment, she let the water wash over her, and let the tears fall. She allowed her fear, worry, and sadness to flow through her, threatening to overwhelm her. Then she took a deep breath, and let them go. Let the water wash them away. She opened her eyes.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Evie, wrapped in a towel, exited the bathroom right as Mijra entered her room. The Skonarian balanced a plate of hot food, a smaller bowl for Hat, and an armful of black cloth.

“Perfect timing. Put one of these on!” Mijra said as she set the pile of dark uniforms down on the bed alongside the hot plate of food. She put Hat’s bowl on the bedside table, but he ignored it and started edging towards Evie’s dinner.

Evie picked up a uniform from the top of the pile and examined it. The fabric was light but sturdy and unusually dark. Evie glanced at Amelia hovering beside the bed, then at her mask which sat atop the dresser. The uniform was the last piece.

“We need to start getting your room ready for departure,” Mijra said, walking to Evie’s dresser. She began to pull the well-used white uniforms from inside. “We’ll be switching all of your clothing and stocking other supplies.”

“When will I get to move my stuff to… whatever I will use to get down to Honrad?” Evie asked the Skonarian.

Mijra looked at her like she was an idiot. “No need to move. Your current room will be fine. When it’s time for you to depart tomorrow morning, this section of the ship will pinch off and become an autonomous pod. Your producer,” Mijra raised her voice and Hat, who had been surreptitiously leaning over Evie’s plate, jumped. “Will control your pod once it enters Honrad’s atmosphere. It will be your home base during each assignment.”

“The bird gets control of the spaceship?” Amelia asked skeptically. “That doesn’t raise red flags for anyone else?”

Evie deliberately dropped the shirt she was holding between Hat and her dinner, causing him to hop backward and glare at her reproachfully. “I think he can manage, so long as the poor starving creature gets breakfast first. Thank you, Mijra. Do we need to get out of your way?”

Mijra shook her head. “I just wanted to switch out the uniforms. The ship will move some stuff around, and we’ll sort out the last few things tomorrow before you leave.” She gathered up the pile of white uniforms, and left.

Evie picked up her plate. “Well, that simplifies some things,” she said absently, her eyes flicking to the bottom of the mattress. Seeing Evie’s distraction, Hat flew to her arm and snatched a big mouthful of food off her plate, chewing triumphantly. She rolled her eyes and flicked him off with the back of her hand. He squawked indignantly but caught himself and fluttered back to the bedside table, resignedly walking to his own food bowl.

A knock on the door sounded, and Lubanzi entered, carrying his own dinner. Amiya sat on his arm, snacking delicately on the contents of Lubanzi’s dinner. Hat threw a pointed look at Evie, but she ignored him.

“Lubanzi, what are you doing? You shouldn’t be here,” she said, trying to conceal how pleased she was to see him. “You should be working on your assignment!”

“I know, I have been,” he replied. “But… this might be our last chance to spend time together. I can spare a half an hour. One last dinner. Please?”

He met her eyes, and she saw a reflection of her own feelings there. It was stupid of him to waste the time he had to prepare, but she couldn’t bring herself to tell him no.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said as she took a seat on the floor. “There’s a good chance we’ll end up in a group together at some point. And we’ll have lots more time after we’re out of the Sim!” During the last few months, a silent agreement had formed between them. After the Sim, they would stick together. Assuming they both survived.

Amiya jumped from Lubanzi’s arm and landed next to Hat, shouldering him off the rim of his food bowl and helping herself.

“So what’s the plan once we’re out?” said Lubanzi around a mouthful of food. “After we hunt down the men who took your sister. What then?”

“You know, I honestly haven’t thought about it.” Evie replied. She had spent hours daydreaming about what it would be like to have Mildred back, and getting revenge on the group that had ripped them apart. But after that? She didn’t have a clue what she would do then. Go back to working as a translator, even though she wouldn’t need the money? She wasn’t sure.

Lubanzi gave her a moment, but when she didn’t continue, he said, “We’ll be rich, so we’ll have options. To start, I think I want to travel. I’ve never been outside of South Africa! Well… except for now, but you know what I mean. We could go all over the world.”

Evie smiled at the younger man. “Mildred always loved traveling. It was one of her favorite things about being a model. Plus, I happen to know an excellent translator.” She winked at him. “I’ve always wanted an excuse to study Hungarian. It’s got fourteen vowels! Nine more than any of the languages I speak. Though I’ve never thought about Quall’s use of vowels…” Evie paused, distracted.

Lubanzi snorted. “Leave it to the linguist to decide where we’re going purely by the difficulty of the native language. Better you than me, though. I’ve never had much of a talent for languages.”

“Says the man who speaks English, Afrikaans, and Sepedi.”

“That’s different. I never had to study them. I just speak them.”

Evie rolled her eyes. “So what did you have a talent for, then? I don’t think I’ve ever asked what your plan was before all of this.”

“I had just graduated high school, old lady.” Evie winced. It was easy to forget how young Lubanzi was. “I was going to start classes at a community college studying computer science, but if I’m honest, it was a means to an end. I wasn’t that interested in the subject, just the livelihood. After we’re sick of traveling, I want to settle down. Meet someone and have a bazillion kids, be a stay-at-home dad, you know?”

Evie’s eyebrows went up in surprise. She had been entirely focused on her career until her sister's disappearance, and had never really considered the idea of settling down. Now that she thought about it, though, that kind of life would suit him.

“That’s a wonderful idea. You’ll make an excellent father! And after you’ve had a nice big family? What then? Would you tell them about all of this?” she asked, waving her hand around.

“Preferably not,” Lubanzi replied, “but I suppose I’ll have to explain the talking pigeons.”

Evie laughed. “And Amelia. Maybe by the time we get back to earth AI will be so normal a talking umbrella won’t seem out of the ordinary.”

“God, I hope so,” Amelia replied, floating down to rest on the floor next to them. “Can you imagine having to pretend to be a normal umbrella for… how long do humans live again?”

“I have a better idea! You two can become a real-life superhero duo, just like in the movies!” Lubanzi said brightly. “I bet my kids will love their Aunt Super-Poppins.”

Evie snorted. “I would prefer Aunt Super-Peabody, I think. I got the idea for a self-defense umbrella from the Amelia Peabody books, though Amelia always wielded a parasol, not an umbrella.”

“If you threaten to sew lace on me, I won’t let you smuggle me back to Earth,” said Amelia.

Evie's smile was painful. It was such a lovely fantasy, making a life together in the future. But a fantasy was all it was. She wouldn’t be allowed to keep Amelia, and they had no idea if the producers could stay in touch after the Sim. Hat avoided the subject, which told her they couldn’t. The chances of both Evie and Lubanzi making it out of the Sim alive were far from certain, but while they ate, they chose to pretend. For half an hour, they made plans that could never be, and savored the time they had left.

The alarm tone sounded, but Evie was already awake. Next to her, Hat shifted and swore sleepily, cracking his small beady eyes. Amelia floated into the air, opening and closing in her morning systems check.

Evie got up, brushed her teeth, and put on a black uniform. It was identical to the one she normally wore in every way except the color. On an impulse, she grabbed the mask from the top of the dresser, put it on, and walked to the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. It was the same reaction she had whenever she saw Celia, or the other assassins, in their episodes. An instinctive reaction to danger.

“Stop ogling yourself and get your ass over here,” Hat called. Evie’s eyes lingered for a moment, then she turned to see Azur standing by the doorway.

It was the first time Evie had seen her in months. Azur had delegated most of her duties to the trainers, and neglected the rest. Evie stomped down the rush of warmth and excitement that filled her at the sight of the alien. Azur had done nothing to earn it.

“Looking good Evie! I’ve been keeping tabs on you these last few months. You’ve done very well, and today is an exciting day for all of us!” Azur's face split in her wide, pointy toothed grin. When Evie didn’t respond, she went on. “It’s time to head outside. Mijra and her team need to finish stocking your room, and the entire crew is waiting to give you a proper sendoff. When you come back here, your assignment will be waiting, and you’ll begin your descent to Honrad.”

Evie nodded, removed the mask, and placed it back on her dresser. Scooping up Amelia and Hat, she followed Azur out the doorway.

Everyone was waiting. Claro, Var, Huacken and the other trainers stood front and center of a crowd of Skonarians. Next to them was a reporter, typing away on a tablet, with a pigeon filming from her shoulder. Lubanzi, Haruto, and their producers were already outside.

Mijra and a few other Skonarians bustled behind Evie and into her room. She looked back in time to see someone pull the curtain from her doorway, the thin rod that had held it retracting back into the rest of the ship. Azur wrapped an arm around Evie’s waist, cleared her throat and started to speak. Evie forced herself not to listen. Instead, she took her time looking from one face to another. Despite the circumstances, despite her suspicions about being manipulated, many of these people had become her friends. Given her a home and a life.

After some time, Azur’s speech finally droned to a close. Evie mechanically smiled for the cameras, then turned to the others. Claro stood in front of her. Evie held out a hand, but her trainer pushed it aside and pulled her into an affectionate embrace, whispering her goodbyes into Evie’s ear. Var was next, and he clasped her tightly to his cold chest. Evie moved through the crowd of Skonarians, shaking hands and hugging, accepting farewells and words of encouragement.

Then they parted, and she stood in front of Haruto and Lubanzi. Haruto hesitated, then bowed deeply to her.

“Okiotsukete Okaeri kudasai,”

It was a very formal Japanese farewell, loosely translating to ‘Please be careful, and come back.’ The gesture touched her.

She responded in kind. “O daija ni.” ‘Take care’. The English translation didn’t convey the full meaning.

Haruto turned to Lubanzi, who held out a hand. As Haruto took it, awkwardly, Evie saw that the corners of his eyes were pinched with stress. His stakes were the highest of all of theirs, and it was time to see if he could beat them. Without further ceremony, he headed back to his room.

Evie turned slowly to Lubanzi. For a moment, they just stared at one another. Then she fell into his arms. As they clung to each other, she couldn’t hold back tears any longer.

“Be safe out there, Super-Aunt,” Lubanzi whispered for only her to hear, and pulled away. He brushed a tear from her cheek, ignoring those that ran down his own.

“You too,” Evie choked out. “I’ll be watching, so don’t do anything too stupid, or I’ll never let you live it down.”

She gripped his arm for another moment as their producers and Amelia made their farewells. Finally, she turned and hurried back into her room, forcing herself not to look back.

The doorway sealed behind them. The room looked mostly the same, with a few new storage areas, presumably to hold food and other utilities. On the bed was a folder. She sat down next to it and the surrounding room shifted. They were moving.

Reaching down, she opened the folder. The top page had a name, a photo, and a location written on it. The photo was of a Honrad, which wasn’t particularly informative since she couldn’t tell the creatures apart. Under the photo was written Vorclom Ude, Level One, Administer of the Shlordal Resurrection Chambers. Primary residence located in Shlordal Sha. You have six weeks.

Six Weeks. Evie’s stomach twisted. Before she could dwell on the time limit, the wall in front of her flickered and she looked up and out into space. A dusky green planet dominated the view. It looked nothing like earth. There were no oceans or continents, just a continuous web of green and blue covered in thick roaming clouds.

“Okay, birdbrain,” Evie said to Hat, wiping her eyes and squaring her shoulders. “Take us to Shlordal Sha.”