The Headmaster paused after stepping past the portal’s threshold. As the alien took stock, its eyes settled on the writhing form of Alice on the ground. The girl looked back at the creature through tear-stained eyes, whimpering as she trembled. She suspected what was coming. They all did.

Yet, her friend Strickland had gone quiet. There was an inexplicable look of acceptance in the boy’s gaze, even if it was accompanied by grinding teeth, bloodshot eyes, and short, shallow breaths. Like he had been waiting for this. Don’t tell me he has a plan for this too?

After it finished surveying the scene, the Headmaster approached the lot of them.

“Well, what’s this about then?” It spoke, addressing the servitor. Its voice was still as high-pitched and gravelly as ever.

The sales-bot stepped up, smoothing out her dress before curtsying. “The first duel of the new Magi generation has occurred, Headmaster, but unfortunately the defeated party has violated a portion of the settled upon terms.”

The robot stood back up, then gestured towards them. The Headmaster scoffed, before turning to glour at Millie specifically, who was still standing next to CJ.

“Why am I not surprised?” It said. “Broodmothers are notoriously aggressive—hardly surprising it lost control. So what was the violation?”

Millie narrowed her eyes at the Headmaster. Really? It thinks I caused the violation? She was about to speak up when, surprisingly, the servitor moved to stand in front of Millie, shielding her from the alien.

“I apologize, Headmaster, but Initiate McArthur was the victorious Magus that was aggrieved.”

Millie looked past the top of the servitor’s bronze, done-up hairdo to see the tall alien gawk in surprise. She suppressed a smug smile, before taking the opportunity to clear some of the blood still covering her face. Wincing, she tenderly felt at one of the numerous still-forming bruises her opponent had left her. Fuck, he may not have hit hard but Strickland really wailed on me, didn’t he?

Eventually, the Headmaster cleared their throat. “Well, that’s…” it paused, before regarding Alice and Strickland. Its wide-mouth formed its signature, and disturbing, scowl. “Congratulations on your losses, Initiates,” it muttered, before turning to address the servitor once more.

“And the violation?” The Headmaster repeated.

The robot bowed its head gracefully. “There was an agreed-upon Pact of Non-Aggression for a week that Initiate Nguyen, of the Strickland team, violated.”

The Headmaster sighed, before looking down at the squirming form of Alice. “This one, I take it?”

The servitor nodded.

“Very well,” the Headmaster intoned with a bored air. “The good news, student, is that you and your teammates will not have to live with the embarrassment of losing to the broodmother. Violence shall beget violence, so as Acting Head of the Disciplinary Committee I sentence you all with execution, to be—”

“What?” Millie shouted. “But it was a shove!?”

“And why are we being punished?” Strickland’s bald-headed companion added from the sidelines. “We didn’t do anything wrong!”

“And the rules state—”

A glowing hand silenced the last voice. On the ground, Strickland had half risen from his position to add his protest but his words were cut short by a sharp gesture from the Headmaster. He was blanketed in silence. The previous grudging acceptance in Strickland’s eyes suddenly gave way to panic as he gripped at his throat.

Had he been expecting to plead his case? Millie thought.

Headmaster Trieaties, however, glared at them, obviously annoyed at the interruption. The alien spared one last disgusted look to the sobbing girl on the ground, before approaching Millie. It reached her quickly, towering over her and CJ, forcing them to crane their necks.

“Violence, broodmother, shall be met with violence,” it said, its cold eyes boring into her soul. “The degree to which is irrelevant. And as for the lot of you—” the tall alien turned, sweeping its long arm towards the pudgy boy and tall bald man, “—you are correct. You did nothing. Nothing to stop your teammate from breaking the Terms of the duel. Let this be a lesson to all of you on the consequences of relying on the incompetent.”

“This is insane,” Millie said. The adrenaline from the fight surged through her again, making her tremble. She felt a shaky squeeze on her shoulder from CJ—likely trying to comfort her, but it might have also been a warning not to do anything reckless.

She was grateful for his support, as when the Headmaster swiveled back towards her, she had to fight not to shrink back. Its triangular head hovered just a foot above her own, its wide mouth large enough to fit her entire skull in. This close, its six-fold gaze was beyond disturbing to her newfound instincts—there was no spark in them that spoke of a killer’s drive. No intensity. No fury. Just…disdain. An absolute arrogance of a being so far removed that to claim to have been an insect in its eyes felt like it would’ve been giving her too much credit.

“Why is this insane, broodmother?” It said. “You should be grateful. I have the right to set the conditions for this punishment and enact them at my leisure. By killing these cretins now, I eliminate your rivals. Students who were in conflict with you and who would seek retribution for their loss in the future. Are you truly so naive as to not comprehend that?”

“It’s…” Millie hesitated. She couldn’t believe she was defending Strickland of all people, but as she had noted in the fight: he may have been an asshole but she didn’t think he was definitively a bad person. Even after being disarmed, he could have easily tried to strangle her or strike at weak points such as her belly to force her to submit.

She also didn’t want more blood on her hands.

“I just don’t think they should be punished for this,” Millie said. “Obviously, if Alice knew shoving me would get her in trouble she wouldn’t have done it. She was only trying to help Strickland because I was having trouble, um, standing back up after the fight.”

“Ignorance?” The Headmaster scoffed. “That is what you would plead? They were ignorant of the consequences of their actions, so they should be spared? Tell me, broodmother, how much about Magincia’s Laws have been explained to you?”

“Well,” she said, before pausing in thought. Biting her lip, she finally confessed, “I, ah, didn’t actually listen to everything my maid told me. Um, Headmaster.”

She could feel the alien’s eyes judging her, which didn’t help her nerves. After a moment, the Headmaster huffed and turned their attention to CJ.

“You, Initiate—” The alien paused, before snapping its fingers towards the servitor.

The sales-bot stepped forward and spoke up. “Initiate Johnson, Headmaster.”

“Initiate Johnson,” the Headmaster continued. “Tell me—did you listen to everything your personal attendant had to say?”

She felt CJ shuffling next to her before clearing his throat. “Um, yes, Headmaster.”

“And did they inform you of the Laws of the Academy?”

“N-no, Headmaster. At least, nothing concerning duels and…all of this.” He gestured helplessly towards the market.

Millie looked at her friend in confusion. Wait, I thought I just didn’t know because I hadn’t asked. But if they didn’t tell CJ then….

“Ah,” the Headmaster sighed. “I see recognition is beginning to take root in the broodmother. Miracles truly can occur.”

Millie flushed, biting her cheek to keep from scowling at the alien. Damn it. Of course, if CJ knew students could attack others freely he’d never have been so damn casual about going out to explore. Fuck, clarity or not I’m still dumb as a brick. She vowed to add intellect boosters to her growing list.

“The point, dear students, is that answers are not simply handed out—they must be sought after. Servitors, like your personal aids or the shopkeepers, will only inform you in so much that their position allows.”

Which forces us to have to leave the safety of the dorms to find said answers, Millie thought. And it’s why the damn robots are constantly telling us to go elsewhere for information, despite clearly having access to it. The sales-bot knew of my vision after all.

“Ignorance is not an excuse,” the Headmaster reiterated. “It is a weakness. One that must be…stamped out.”

The alien smiled, as though making a joke. A split second later, its meaning became apparent.

It moved, nearly as fast as the servitor had previously, to stand above the increasingly panicking Alice. With a quick motion of its leg, Alice’s gasping breathes came to an end with a gut-wrenching snap. The Headmaster then casually lifted its foot from the girl’s shattered neck a second later.

“Finally,” it intoned. “I so tire of—”

It broke off as it noticed Strickland’s two companions make a run for it. With a sneer, the Headmaster lifted a hand and a glowing light appeared within it. The students nearest the two runners panicked, diving for cover while screaming, remembering the last time the Headmaster had done this.

The two students vanished, however, as though teleported away.

Unexpectedly, the Headmaster turned, its face twisting unsettlingly as it stared at the servitor.

“Why were they removed to the Detention Center for elimination? I could have easily disposed of them here.”

The servitor looked panicked, its wide smile wavering under the sudden scrutiny. It lifted a hand to its ear, its eyes glowing a bright blue before it finally responded.

“T-the Governor moved to minimize collateral damage, Headmaster. The, um, bone shrapnel from your earlier disciplining led to a number of unnecessary losses.”

The Headmaster lowered its glowing hand, looking dumbfounded as the light winked out.

“Mercy from a machine,” it muttered, before scoffing loudly. “Here I thought it would savor the opportunity. Very well, I’ll finish this in a more…subdued manner.”

Saying that it walked over and reached down to Strickland’s kneeling form. Wrapping a long, six-fingered hand around the boy’s face it lifted him high into the air, staring slowly into Strickland’s eyes as it began to squeeze. It became ever more apparent that the Headmaster meant to drag out the execution. Like a god damn psychopath, she thought.

“Wait!” Millie interjected. “How is this not enough?”

“I said as much, broodmother,” the Headmaster stated, never taking its eyes off of the student in its grasp. “Standing by and allowing the violation to occur isn’t an excuse.”

“But he didn’t have an opportunity to stop it—he was still recovering from our fight!”

The Headmaster snarled, before finally lowering its gaze towards Millie. “That’s meaningless. He shall still be punished.”

Fucking hell—Millie wanted to scream. She really had to just stand by and watch him die? Watch his eyes go blank like the girl’s on the ground? Millie would have happily taken the bitches hostile gaze a thousand times over rather than the emptiness that now filled them.

‘But the rules state—’ Strickland had said. The memory rang clear in her mind.

“Wait, the rules state—” Millie shouted, before hesitating.

The Headmaster’s eyes narrowed at Millie. Its fingers continued to tighten across Strickland’s face, which had turned red as he screamed silently. There was no more anger in the boy’s eyes.

Just pain.

Fuck, what would the rules state? There has to be something. Maybe I can just bluff it?

Breath tickled her ear.

“Try advocating for your right to decree the punishment,” CJ whispered. “You’re the wronged party here, not him.”

Millie glanced at her friend. He’d studied law before dropping out to start a business, so she had no reason to doubt his instincts on the matter.

“As the aggrieved party,” Millie stated, eyes flickering over the servitor who’d used the term. “I demand the right to, ah, determine his punishment.”

The Headmaster’s wide, flat teeth ground audibly, even as its eyes sharpened dangerously. However, its hand…stopped squeezing.

“You know nothing of the rules, broodmother,” it said. There was every hint of warning in its tone.

“So?” She shot back shakily. “Ignorance isn’t an excuse, right? Um, Headmaster. Just because I don’t know the rules doesn’t mean they aren’t enforced.”

She stared the alien down, cold sweat running down her back. Eventually, the Headmaster sighed before lowering Strickland to his feet. It didn’t let go, however.

Instead, it continued to glare at Millie, as though waiting for something. CJ nudged her slightly, and she cleared her throat.

“Um, so, I say that the…loss of his companions is sufficient. Punishment over.”

The alien cocked its head, looking at her incredulously.

“I think what she means to say,” CJ jumped in, “is that those responsible have been disciplined, Headmaster. Alice enacted the violation and the two that failed to stop her have been…addressed. Jesse was in no position to interfere, so he’s innocent.”

“Besides,” Millie added. “He’s…alone now. Isn’t that enough?”

Her heart hurt to say it, and glancing over she caught Strickland’s eyes. There was no gratitude to be found in them, however. Just the harsh truth of reality settling in on the boy. Maybe…fighting to save him isn’t the mercy I think it is. She tried not to dwell on that.

The Headmaster’s expression darkened, its fingers trembling against Strickland’s face before finally, it relented. With an indifferent shove, it tossed the boy to the ground.

“As Acting Head of the Disciplinary Committee, your petition has been accepted,” it said, practically spitting out the words. “As Headmaster, I would like to advise you of the sheer, unimaginable, stupidity of your choice. Enjoy the consequences of them.”

It sneered, before looking down at the body on the floor. Its face rankled at the smell that had broken out—the consequences of death. The Headmaster snapped its fingers and the corpse vanished, leaving only a soiled patch on the ground.

“Were there any other Terms to settle?” The Headmaster said, looking at the servitor.

“The victory conditions haven’t been finished just yet, Headmaster. A standard resource exchange still needs to occur.”

The Headmaster grimaced before stepping back and gesturing at the servitor as it crossed its arms. Its meaning was clear: get on with it.

The servitor bowed, before approaching the stunned boy sitting on the ground. Unexpectedly, she paused, before walking over to pick up his glasses and bring them to him. Strickland accepted them silently, staring at the bent frame and cracked pane. Millie hadn’t thought she’d hit him that hard—which meant they must have been cheap. Numbly, the boy eventually put them on and looked up at the robot.

She held out a hand. “Pill.”

Strickland nodded, standing up slowly, before fishing out a single, large pill from his pocket and handing it over. Turning to look at the crowd, the Headmaster, and Millie, the boy then silently began to walk away. In his wake, the robot approached Millie, handing her the pill.

“He had three of the same pill, Initiate,” she said. “Its a tier-one Greater Strength.”

Why is she telling me that? Millie paused in thought. Oh, right. I was supposed to choose.

Millie nodded slowly and stuffed the pill into her pocket.

“Please choose between the following Tier-One Greater pills,” the robot continued. “Strength, Stamina, or Dexterity.”

Millie winced. Those weren’t exactly her first picks.

“Stamina I guess.”

“Willpower, Cunning, or Clarity?”

Sighing, Millie shook her head. She was robbing the dead.

No, don’t think about that, she told herself. Just…pick one.

“Cunning,” she finally said, waving her hand. None of those were going to give full value for a Greater pill, but she might get one or two more points with Cunning.

The servitor nodded. “Lastly—Strength, Intellect, or Potency.”

Someone chose one of the magic stats to get a pill in? She thought, raising an eyebrow. She wasn’t sure what her spiritual stats would start at after the remedy, so in the end, she decided to go with something she knew would be immediately helpful.

“Intellect.”

The servitor bowed politely and left to presumably fetch the pills from wherever they’d…disappeared to. Looking around, she saw Strickland waiting near the edge of the market, standing next to the portal. He was watching her, which made her wince, but oddly she didn’t sense any judgment from him. Not even anger.

Just a cold, distant awareness from the boy. Finally, he broke away and activated the entrance portal.

He brought this on himself, she told herself. I was defending myself. It’s fine. It’s…fuck why do I have to feel guilty here? Why?

She couldn’t get the image of Alice’s empty eyes out of her head, or the sound of the snap out of her ears. Millie was torn out of her thoughts, however, when she heard Strickland cough. Without looking back, he spoke once last time.

“Don’t trust that fucking Fortune-Teller.”

And with that, he disappeared through the gate.

----------------------------------------

They returned to the dorms, following the…disciplining and the conclusion of the Market challenge. While Millie had ended up forming a team and finishing the puzzle, it didn’t feel as rewarding as she would have liked, emotionally speaking. Victory, it seemed, was a bitter pill to swallow.

At least the prizes looked to be worthwhile—plus sharing news on it with her classmates was something she almost looked forward to. The one ray of hope in an otherwise depressing situation.

“I’ll see about setting up the meeting,” CJ said. “8 o’clock sound good?”

Millie nodded, and with a final, brief side hug, they parted. Of course, by 8 o’clock he really meant the 8th Hour of the Ascension Cycle, but no one wanted to spout all that. However, it did mean she had some time to waste, which she’d probably need.

“Are you sure she’s going to be okay?” She heard Katelyn say quietly. She had been the only classmate in the common room when they’d arrived and had been none-to-happy to see Millie in her bloodied-up state.

“She’ll be fine,” CJ answered. “Do you know if anyone else is out?”

“Well, Catherine’s still in her room, but I think I saw—”

Their conversation faded into the background as Millie walked through the entrance to the healing pools, the cloth curtain serving as the door flapping behind her. It was one of the three shared rooms for their dorm, the common room and the study hall being the other two. Dark, granite-like floors greeted her, covered in natural cracks filled with an azure, crystalline material. The air was warm and lightly misted, with a smell of spring showers accented with a hint of something floral. Sounds of nature gently played in the background.

Glancing around, Millie saw that a pair of small changing benches and shelves were on either side of the entrance, and in the middle of the room was a large, pool-sized walk-in bath easily large enough for the entire class to use at once. Flowers, leaves, and petals floated freely in the steaming water, pushed about by a slow, yet gentle rhythmic current.

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Along the edges of the squarish room were cleaning areas, complete with stools, mirrors, and sink-like basins. Above, and around those areas, was a beautifully painted mural that covered the walls as it depicted a serene jungle oasis. The image seemed almost alive, showing small movements of swaying trees, running rivers, and the occasional animal darting around.

The ceiling above, however, was covered in small dangling lights that softly glowed against a dark backdrop, like stars floating overhead. Despite them all, the room was dim, made dimmer by the mist, but was indisputably designed for relaxation. The only other thing Millie saw was another doorway, opposite the entrance she stood at. It was roped off with a warning—thankfully in English—declaring it hazardous to non-remedied students. Her vision’s memories told her it was a room dedicated towards Mana recovery, the insides looking and feeling much like a sauna.

Great, so it really is a mixed bathing area, Millie noted sourly. She wasn’t sure what the rules on ‘attacking’ other students would be in the dorms—but she’d already decided that uncovering that information was a priority. This was just a further incentive. She did hesitate though, as she debated whether to postpone her bath until she knew for certain she was safe. Eventually, she decided to move forward. She needed to recover from her Backlash, injuries, and fatigue and she wouldn’t be able to do that in her room. Not without ordering medicine from the system, she thought, and there’s no reason to waste RP like that. I think the cheapest healing potion was 50RP?

Slowly, she made her way over to a bench and sat down. She was wearing her coat again, so that was the first thing to go. Her chest was already sore enough as it was, so she was glad to be free of it. She paused, however, as she slid the material off her shoulders.

Every bit of clothing fits just fine, she thought, but not our uniforms.

As she took off the coat, she stared irritably at the perfectly fitting bracer on her forearm, before leaning forward to begin untying her footwear. The heeled boots hadn’t been entirely comfortable, but it wasn’t so much their fit but how much her ankles had swollen from so much walking. Overall, they’d held up fairly well thanks to her gauging the size properly.

She couldn’t say the same for the coat. They let us pick sizes, but it was still a poor fit for most pieces due to crappy tailoring. Why? At first, she’d thought the poorly fitting uniform had just been the universe picking on her unfairly. It hadn’t taken long to find that she hadn’t been the only one struggling with the clothing. But while she had vowed to stop overlooking things, that, unfortunately, didn’t mean she had all the answers. There was simply more to it at play.

She’d seen that now, first hand, after teaming up with the Hispanic student, Joshua as she’d learned his name was. In his case as well, his uniform barely fit, however, he’d also had a hat. After talking to him, she’d discovered Joshua had arrived with a similar peaked cap, having been on his parent’s boat at the time of his abduction. Apparently, the inventory system in Magincia had allowed him to register it. Thanks to that, he was able to get a matching hat to his uniform.

Which means we can expand what items are available to us, she concluded.

After she tossed her coat to the ground unceremoniously, she reached into her pocket and pulled out further proof. Joshua’s group had only been him and two others, one of whom was his aunt. While Joshua was only twenty-one, the older woman was near the age limit for Maginica, it seemed, but more importantly, she’d had a pack of cigarettes with her when she was taken. She could now requisition more of them for a resource point per pack. While Millie wasn’t a smoker, she’d accepted the woman’s offer for a free pack. She wanted to test something.

They’d told her once an item was registered to a student, it and any duplicates couldn’t be registered for anyone else. Joshua and his group claimed they’d tried, but she wasn’t going to take them at their word. Would this work for phones? Jewelry? Where is the line drawn for registering new items? Can you trade who the ‘owner’ is?

What is even the point of having this feature?

She frowned, before shaking her head. Setting the pack onto the shelf next to a towel, she unhooked her Tarot cards and added them as well. She hesitated, worried about someone stealing her most valuable item hitting her suddenly. She debated calling out to CJ, as he’d offered to take her pills and winnings to her room for her, but in the end, she dismissed it. She was tired, and he was working to round up the class. So, if people wanted to kick her while she was down she’d deal with it later. Plus, if she couldn’t trust her classmates, who could she trust?

She still covered her items with a towel though.

I really hope I can trust them all. She felt like her outing to the Academy had been a rude awakening—and she didn’t enjoy the paranoia it had left her with.

Shaking her head, she took off her bracer and added it to the shelf, before fishing out her Soul Scroll to go with it under a second towel. Next, her belt joined the floor, followed by her boots. With a groan, she stood up and hobbled towards the rinsing area. Vaguely, she realized she should have probably stripped completely at the bench, but she couldn’t bring herself to care about bathroom etiquette right now.

Once she was at one of the rinsing stations, she shimmied her pants and undergarments down to her thighs and sat down on the blessedly warm seat. Pausing for a moment, she stared at her reflection in the mirror, noting the multitude of vivid bruises and dried blood covering her. Her eyes looked bloodshot but otherwise normal. She was glad for that—she hadn’t known it at the time, but she’d been informed her eyes had turned completely black when she’d done her Tarot reading. Add on top of that a deluge of bloody tears? It wasn’t nearly as surprising now that Strickland and the others had flipped out as much as they had.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have joked about doing a Bloody Mary impression,” Millie grumbled. Her temporary teammate, Joshua, had found her reference hilarious and dubbed her ‘Bloody Millie.’ Looking in the mirror now, it was hard to refute the nickname.

“Better than broodmother, I suppose….” Sliding her lower clothes off, she thought back to something else she’d finally caught onto.

She’d come to Magincia with CJ, Liam, and Tanya. Katelyn had come with Catherine, Raj with Braylon, and D’marco with his sister. Joshua with his aunt, and Jesse Strickland with his cousin and Alice. Even the pleated dressed man had been with the woman in the dress. Which meant, no one had been taken alone.

She wasn’t sure what to make of that. It was undeniable that the people brought to Magincia weren’t entirely random. Though, as far as she could tell they had all been in Toronto, or nearby when they were taken. Joshua’s aunt had been across town from him during the abduction, and him being on the lake meant they could rule out a localized area being targeted. Another mystery on her list. Much like Strickland’s parting warning.

She suspected, however, that she knew part of that one, at least. After all, the potion shopkeeper had been all too willing to tell everyone about the amazing gift she’d given out. The only real question then, was how much had the Fortune-Teller sold Millie out?

And why had that been enough to set Strickland and his group against her? He hadn’t even known about her Tarot cards.

She kicked her clothes off her feet and gingerly peeled her undershirt off, wincing as she scraped the blood-matted mess that was her hair. Looking at her reflection, she saw her head wound was long enough she’d have needed stitches if she were back home. She grimaced at it but was fairly confident the magical healing pools would still have her covered.

Finally, she removed the constraints on her chest and took a breather. She felt exhausted. Idly, she debated just how clean she wanted to be before getting into the magical waters gently sloshing behind her.

Reaching forward, she probed the basin, looking for a bowl of some kind, only to find the decorative front fade when she pressed on it. Inside, the shelves contained plenty of supplies, so she lifted up a large dish and set it on top of the magical sink. Her vision’s memories helped her find the glyphs to control a small blue crystal that popped out, shooting out an arc of water that gently filled the bowel. When it was full, she unceremoniously upended it over her head.

She gritted her teeth as she felt some of the dried blood break free, running down her face alongside a fresh rush of red. Looking in the mirror, she didn’t appear any cleaner. Yeah, maybe we’ll just skip the—

The mirror flashed as a blue message appeared on its surface.

“Holy fuck sticks!” Millie screamed, nearly jumping out of her skin. She collected herself before glaring at the message in the mirror.

System Notification

Audio commands are enabled for the dorm area. Would you like to summon your personal attendant?

Please use the word 'System' to direct your requests.

“…audio commands,” she said darkly. “You have hidden fucking terminals every five goddamn feet but you’ll take audio commands? Why not, I don’t know, say something instead of trying to scare me to death.”

The mirror didn’t reply, but the message did slowly fade. She felt like she’d been snubbed. And of course, this wasn’t in my damn vision’s memories.

“Fine. Audio command summon my maid,” Millie said. She sat there patiently for several seconds before frowning. It clearly hadn’t worked. What had it said? Use the word ‘system’ to direct it?

“Ah, system please summon my maid,” she rephrased.

A sudden whoosh of air blew into the bathhouse, fluttering the doorway, and her maid materialized out of thin air a couple of yards away. She curtsied politely.

“How may I assist you, Mistress?”

Millie stared at the robot nonplussed. Why am I not even surprised anymore?

“Um…” Millie paused, uncertain what to ask for.

“Would you like assistance bathing, Mistress?” The robot ventured. “I can also apply oils and a massage to help you relax.”

“No, no—that’s fine,” Millie said, waving her off. “Um, thank you miss robot.”

Her maid looked taken aback, her eyes widening. “Y-yes, of course, Mistress. Perhaps…I could collect your clothing for washing?”

The robot asked before gingerly glancing down at the now wet, blood-covered, clothing Millie had left on the floor.

Right, kind of forgot about those when I rinsed myself, Millie thought. She did notice, however, that both the water and blood were slowly being absorbed by the crystal inlaid into the floor.

“Ah, sure,” Millie finally said. “Actually, could you grab my stuff off the shelf too?”

The maid happily nodded, before bending down to collect Millie’s soaked garments. Turning on her high heel, she clacked softly against the floor as she strutted away to collect Millie’s other items.

Narrowing her eyes, Millie noted how the robot swayed her hips before settling once again on the rather visible stockings on her legs. What was it the robot had said when I first met her? Please utilize me as you wish?

She had an unsettling suspicion on exactly what kind of ‘amenities’ the robot might be designed to fulfill. She stopped glaring, however, when she saw her robot turn to look at her, likely to give a parting remark before it paused uncertainly at Millie’s hard look.

“Is everything alright, Mistress?” The metallic girl looked worried, despite her wide smile.

“Sorry, it’s fine,” Millie answered, waving her off. “We can talk about it later. I do have one last question though.”

“Of course, Mistress,” she said, nodding. “Whatever you’d like.”

“If I were…attacked, here in the dorm, could I use an audio command to summon you to defend me?”

Millie was fairly certain she’d sussed out the means by which the dorms would remain a ‘safe’ area, despite the blanket allowance of student violence. She had not, however, anticipated the reaction she would get.

The smile dropped off the robot’s face.

“If anyone harms or threatens harm to you within the dorms, Mistress McArthur, call me immediately. I will deal with them.”

The words were innocuous. But her eyes? The robot’s eyes had a spark. One of pure desperation and fury. Millie shivered, knowing with every instinct in her body that the robot wouldn’t hesitate. The metallic girl was literally trembling where she stood at just the thought of something happening to Millie, before she finally took a steadying breath, nodded curtly, and left with Millie’s items. The servitor’s smile didn’t return.

Okay…did they program our robots to be fanatically loyal or something? Fucking hell, Millie thought. She wasn’t nearly as worried about her safety from the other classmates anymore, but she was suddenly very concerned her robot might kill her in her damn sleep.

----------------------------------------

Time passed as Millie cleaned herself and relaxed in the healing pool. The water was warm, nearly to the point of discomfort, yet it never reached it. Instead, the greenish water left her with an odd tingling sensation but did so while removing her aches and pains. Even her fatigue had seemed to melt away, so it hadn’t taken long before she found herself nodding off while she laid on an underwater lounge chair located to the side, with only her head sticking out of the water.

As such, she didn’t notice when someone entered the bathhouse.

“Millie?” A quiet, familiar voice called.

She stirred slightly. “Hmm…? Yeah babe?”

A small chuckle answered her.

“I’m glad you don’t look as bad as Katelyn said. I was…are you even awake?”

Millie groaned before her eyes fluttered open. Standing on the edge of the pool was…

“Liam?” Millie’s awareness snapped back in a rush, as she quickly covered her nude form. “What the hell are you doing here?”

He scoffed. “Katelyn said you were in here, and I wanted to talk with you.”

She glared at him.

“What?” He said. “It’s not like I haven’t seen you naked before.”

“And that gives you the right to ignore my privacy?” She snapped back.

Liam rolled his eyes, before turning to walk away. She watched him go, hopeful he really would leave—but he didn’t. Instead, he picked up a couple of towels from the front and returned to her. He handed one over but at least had the decency to face the other direction as she took it. Once she was covered, Liam began to strip where he stood.

“Great,” she said. “I guess you plan on joining?”

“Yup,” he said curtly, finishing quickly and stepping into the pool. Millie kept her eyes turned away, only throwing him a quick glare when he settled into the chair next to hers.

“Really?” Millie said. “A dozen seats and you take the one right next to me?”

“I told you I wanted to talk,” he replied. “I don’t want to have to shout at you.”

Millie snorted. “The pool’s not that big.”

“Yeah? Did it occur to you maybe I wanted to sit next to you anyway?”

She could feel her blood pressure rising. He was only a few feet away, his cocky grin a reminder of the happiest years of her life.

“Did it occur to you maybe I didn’t?” She replied.

His grin faded, and he shook his head with a sigh. “Fine. Let’s make this quick, and I’ll leave you in peace.”

“Make what quick, Liam? What exactly are you hoping we’ll hash out here?”

“Look, I just want to make sure we’re on the same page here. I know I don’t have to explain how fucked up our situation is, but I want you to know that you can rely on me. To be there, for you and our son.”

“Fine.”

“I’d appreciate—wait, fine?” He looked at her in disbelief.

“What?” She said with a shrug. “You want to help, then help. I won’t stop you.”

“You won’t stop me? What the hell, first you ghost me and now you’re all sunshine and rainbows about us?”

She glared at him. “What part of all this is sunshine and rainbows? And I didn’t ghost you.”

“You cut me out of your life and didn’t tell me about our son until two months ago.”

A bit of red flushed her face. “Firstly—I didn’t think you’d care. You didn’t care about me, after all.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Secondly, I didn’t…realize I was pregnant until I was into my second trimester. You didn’t find out that much later than me.”

Liam looked at her confused. “How the f—how did it take you that long to notice that?”

Millie threw her hands up. “Because I was on the stupid anti-baby-patch. Because I’ve missed periods before in high school ‘cause of sports and it didn’t stand out to me. Because I miss things, all the time, like you fucking Tanya.”

“Didn’t you get sick? How many periods did you have to miss before you figured it out? How large did you even get?”

“Do you even know how much fucking junk food I was gorging myself on after our breakup? You think I gave a damn about what I figured was just endless fucking food poisoning? I’d have drowned myself in alcohol if it wasn’t for our rule about drinking to medicate. So yeah, I didn’t figure it out until it was undeniable, okay?”

She watched him clench his jaw before he turned away. “You still didn’t tell me. I had to hear from my father.”

“Yeah, well, draw your attention back to my first point.”

“Was that really the reason? You just assumed I would want nothing to do with having a child?”

Millie ran her hands through her hair, trying not to pull it out. “Fine, you got me. I didn’t want to see you again, ever. Are you happy now? I took forever to find out, assumed you wouldn’t care, and didn’t want to hurt myself by bringing you back into my life.”

“I’m sorry I hurt you. I just….”

“You’re just not sorry you cheated, are you?”

His silence was telling.

“Will you at least tell me why?” She asked.

He sighed, before folding his arms. “I…I don’t know. I guess I…just wasn’t happy with our life, or how everything was going. I wanted more but didn’t think I’d ever get it. I wanted a future, but I could never see it.”

A thousand thoughts ran through Millie’s head. About how he spoke of a future, but one that included only him. About how hard she had worked to provide for them. About how she knew he’d been unhappy but that she thought if she’d just tried hard enough things would work out.

About how happy she’d been living a life he clearly thought was a disappointment.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’d hoped to maybe talk to you about going into an open relationship. I didn’t want to break things off with you—I did want to spend my life with you. I just…”

“Wanted more,” she finished.

He nodded. She wanted to scream.

“So why did you track me down then?” She asked evenly, her jaw so tight she thought a tooth would break. “Did you think being a father would give you that?”

“I always wanted a family, you know that. It was just never the right time. We never had the money or the space. Hell, we had to keep pushing back our wedding.”

“Having a kid doesn’t change any of that, you know.”

“I know, it’s just…my father got us something.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Okay? I don’t see what that—”

“He got us a house,” he cut in.

Millie’s eyes widened. “Your father? The man who lives in a glorified shack using a truck older than either of us? You’re telling me he got a house for us?”

She remembered learning mechanics from Liam’s father, just to keep his old truck running. She loved the man like an uncle but calling him a spendthrift would have been like calling the Headmaster temperamental.

“Yeah, he’d been sitting on it for a while. It was going to be a marriage present.”

This time, Millie did scream. She quickly bit down on her knuckles to stifle it, and the tears that threatened to come out with it.

“I know,” Liam said. “After I nearly…flunked out of private school and he made me pay for college, I really thought he’d cut me off. Especially after OCS, I just…I guess he really wanted things to work out between us.”

Millie took several deep breathes to compose herself. “What do you mean?”

“Well…” Liam hesitated, before shaking his head. “He offered me the house if I could patch things up with you. He offered to help us start a family.”

Tears fell, but Millie ignored them. “Is that…the real reason you came after me then?”

Liam looked taken aback. “What, no, I—” He hesitated again, but this time Millie couldn’t tell if he was calculating, or genuinely concerned. She wasn’t sure she could tell anything about the angel next to her anymore.

“I didn’t mean for it to sound that way, I’m sorry. I just…I saw it as an opportunity. To start again, and I wanted to take it.”

Was he lying? Or was he being honest?

Did it matter?

She took another steadying breath. “Is this the legal reason you needed proof the baby was yours?”

Liam flinched, his eyes darting away. “Yes.”

“And, ah,” she bit her lip, before wiping at her face, “what made you think I would just accept you back with open arms?”

He looked back at her, genuine confusion in his eyes. “It was an opportunity for everything we wanted. I know I made a mistake, but I thought we’d be able to work past it.”

“Work past it…”

“Yes,” he said. “And I was prepared to take as long as I needed to make it up to you.”

“Oh?” Her voice cracked, but she kept back the worst of the tide bubbling under the surface.

“The, ah, house was…right across from your parents.”

She choked back the sob. “You were right across the street from me?”

“I was,” he said. She felt his hand gently settle on hers. “I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything about…all this,” he said with a gentle laugh.

He was close to her now, his face a foot away from her own. She could smell his breath, fresh and warm, his eyes inviting and soft, his voice enticing and enthralling. She wanted to lean forward, she wanted to close her eyes and forget the pain, forget everything.

Even if it was a sweet lie, she wanted to live it with all her heart.

But she pulled away. With another sniffle, she wiped at her face.

“Was Tanya with you?”

She felt him move away, hesitating. Finally, she turned to face him again.

“You brought her to our marriage house. The one your father bought for us. You wanted to patch things up and you were still fucking her?”

“I…” he hesitated again, before leaning back in his chair. “I…hoped to work things out.”

“You mean,” she said, tears flowing no matter how hard she bit them back, “you wanted to get me to agree to an ‘open’ relationship. I raise your child while you fuck your mistress. Is that right?”

His silence was all the more telling a second time. She laughed ruefully in its wake.

“Great. Well, I for one am glad we got kidnapped now. At least we don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

“Millie,” he whispered. “I still care about you and I still want to help. Whatever it takes, right?”

The words sounded like a joke coming from him. A man who had wallowed in self-pity for three years after dropping out of OCS. She’d thought if she just tried hard enough she could make it better. Give him the space to work on himself, to find his passion, to live his dream.

She just hadn’t expected that dream to involve another girl. The Headmaster was right—she really was naive.

“I…appreciate that, Liam,” she said. “If you want to help, I accept. If you want to be the father, I won’t stop you. But that’s as far as that goes.”

She could tell it wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but as far as she was concerned he was lucky she wasn’t screaming in fury, clawing at his face. Her heart hurt so much she wanted to sink into the water and drown herself just to get away from him.

“I’m sorry Millie, I—”

“I really wish you’d stop apologizing for something you clearly don’t care about,” she finally snapped.

He glared but dropped the issue. A few long moments of silence stretched between them before he finally cleared his throat.

“I did some digging.”

“Is that why you needed a bath?”

He glared again. “I was looking for a way to help our son.”

Oh, she thought, before biting her tongue.

“I met up with Rebecca and a few others, looking for clues in the Academy earlier on.”

“Rebecca…the one with the scar?”

“Yeah, that’s the one,” he replied. “The girl that greeted us out of the trial.”

“Huh, I didn’t think she was your type,” she quipped. “Strong, independent, a bit rough around the edges…”

“Millie,” he snapped. She let out a mirthless laugh, before waving him off. He continued. “We ended up finding something. Something that could help.”

I doubt it, she thought. “What’d ya find.”

“Well, Rebecca found some sort of armor—”

Millie sat up, displacing water with a small wave and causing Liam to hesitate.

“Was it…the golden armor?” She asked.

He furrowed his brow. “You heard about it?”

She nodded. “She was the one who found it though? Did you…find something too?”

Liam smirked, then held up a hand. A black crystal about the size of a damn Pikachu materialized out of nowhere before plopping into his hand with a solid thunk. He then lightly tossed it into the air where it proceeded to float.

“You’re the crystal guy…” she trailed off.

He looked somewhat offended by the title.

“I guess word spread about it,” he muttered. “Did you hear anything about what it can do?”

Millie shook her head.

“Well, to be fair I’m still sorting it out,” he said. “The shopkeeper was…vague. She said it would help me hold onto things that are lost. But after I got it I was invited to start learning…Necromancy.”

“Liam…” she wasn’t sure she liked where this was going.

He held his hands up placating. “Listen, when someone dies their soul begins to…decay, I guess. After about an hour it’s out of reach for all but the most powerful magics. But, with a simple Necromantic spell, you can preserve a soul. Indefinitely if you get it soon enough.”

“Are you…” she had to swallow hard, before forcing herself to continue. “Are you suggesting that we let our son die?”

“I don’t know if there’s a better way. But I can hold onto him. And later, when we have the means, we can bring him back.”

He looked at her with all earnestness, but what struck her most was a sudden premonition of deja vu. Even though her vision didn’t contain memories of this exact moment, she knew without a doubt this had been the choice she’d made. She’d…accepted his offer. This was the path she’d walked. She was glad she knew that now.

It made it easier to turn it down.

She shook her head. “It won’t work out.”

“Please, you need to trust me, we can—”

She held up a hand to stop him and gave him a small smile. He looked confused. He probably expected her to react passionately, at least. But she was calm.

“I, ah, got something too. A vision.”

Liam cocked an eyebrow at her. He clearly hadn’t heard about her, but chances were that meant he’d been out earlier in the day when she’d been asleep.

“I’ll go into more details at our class meeting. But, I…know how that path ends.”

“You…do?”

Perhaps it was his own experience with the strange and magical that day, but he didn’t even question her. He just looked at her anxiously, even as she stood up and began to make her way out of the pool.

“Millie—where are you going?” He asked.

“Meeting’s at 8 o’clock,” she answered, pausing as she realized he could see her entire backside. With a shrug, she dropped the towel and kept on walking. “That’s the eighth ascension hour, just so we’re clear.”

She heard him stand out of the pool.

“Millie, please at least consider this. I don’t want to lose you.”

You already did. She paused at the doorway, before wiping at her face one last time.

“You made me really happy, Liam,” she turned to look at him, choking on emotions she could barely contain anymore. “I’m sorry I couldn’t do the same for you.”

“I—” he held an arm out, but was at a loss for words. She gave him a small smile, before walking through the curtains and leaving him behind.

She wasn’t sure what tomorrow would bring, but she was sure that if her angel wanted to be at her side, it would be as an ally.

Nothing more.

“Dear God—w-why are you naked?”

“Oh hi, Catherine.”

In hindsight, however, she probably shouldn’t have left the towel behind.