In the middle of the night they spent in Lathusser, Mia was awoken by Aimee nudging her shoulder. She drowsily pressed her fingers against Aimee's lips, who blushed before telling her to get dressed, as her & Makoto needed to tell her something. After the two were clothed, Makoto stepped inside.

"You ever hear of a nightlight?" she yawned, flipping the light on.

Mia snuffed her flaming orange hand out. "What is it?"

"One sec. Makoto." said Aimee, gesturing to her.

Makoto took Mia & Aimee's phones off the nightstand and tapped them. "Symphony - Tone Deaf."

"You didn't wake Matoi up, right?" said Aimee and she shrugged.

"Uh, the chick sleeps like she's a fucking vampire, so I dunno." Makoto sat down. "Thanks for pairing me with her too, dick. I wouldn't have minded Marisa, you know. At least then I'd have something to look at."

"Stay away from her." said Mia.

Makoto shrugged. She figured Marisa was just a few well-placed jokes away from letting her taste under the rainbow; most women were, in her view. "Anyway, I just made it so your phone won't make any noise or send any audio. No FBI, no CIA, no secret state shit."

Mia looked at Aimee, who nodded reassuringly to her. "Mia, I can trust you to keep a secret, right?"

"…er, of course." She placed her hands on Aimee's. "What is it?"

Aimee explained to her that, after the night they had fight Lao's Ante-Up, she had checked her reports from Urasaria about Revenants in other countries, and found that a recent graduate of China's equivalent of Urasaria had hosted a Revenant, whose name roughly translated as "Ante-Up".

With worry, she had spent that night researching reports of Revenant-related assassinations in Africa, and found reports of a corrosive green mist killing political figures, usually coinciding with troubled business negotiations between their respective countries & China. With little information past the translation barrier, and knowing the tendency for hosts to be drawn to each other, all Aimee & her three knew was that it was likely more Chinese hosts would hunt her & other Urasaria students, for reasons not indiscernible to matters geopolitical.

As Mia listened to this, she sank nearer to the back of their bed, remembering the two words & six syllables of Ningsing Academy. While she didn't let Aimee know of her eavesdropping, she assumed this was what Makoto & her had been discussing. It felt strange that, despite the situation, she felt more relieved that Aimee was not keeping something else hidden from her.

Ignoring Makoto, she looked at Aimee and asked what they should do.

"Destroy their Revenants." said Aimee. "I… know how it sounds, but…"

"But we can't let them get away with it." said Mia, sitting up. "There - isn't there something else we can do?"

"Uh, like report it to staff?" said Makoto. "They'd probably say Aimee is a Chinese spy and then remove Saya's Revenant for some fucking reason."

Mia disliked nothing as much as when Makoto was right.

"Yeah." said Aimee. "I just… I don't think it's a good idea to get involved. At all. Revenant researchers can figure out the name just by examining Revenants, too. If I found this out, they can find it out, too."

"That reminds me of something." muttered Makoto. "Lemme see your phone, I gotta look something up."

Aimee handed Makoto her phone. After a minute, Makoto showed them an image of someone using a block of dry ramen as a rubber stamp, captioned "HOW TO WRITE IN CHINESE". Neither laughed.

"You should show that to Matoi." said Aimee. "Bet she would really find it funny."

Thinking of that, Mia smiled a little. "…I suppose there's not much we can do, then, er."

Aimee nodded, then hugged her. "…u-um. Just hope you're not mad at me for not telling you at first."

Mia hugged her back. "It's alright."

Aimee smiled, pulling her head back. "…still. Need you to not tell anybody this. Please."

"I won't. Do you think it has anything to do with, er… what was her name?"

"Lanara?" said Makoto. "Probably. I mean, stealing Revenants with her spit is pretty convenient."

"Atori still needs to get them to clear her family's debt." said Aimee. "Can't get her in to witness protection otherwise."

"I don't get why he doesn't just rob a bank or some shit." yawned Makoto. "Like some people."

Mia felt her tone point to her, and the heat began rising in her face.

"You know what they call a hundred dead debt collectors?" said Makoto. "A good start."

"Makoto, go back to bed." sighed Aimee, and Makoto grinned as she re-tapped their phones and stepped out. "…sorry. She's been getting worse lately."

Her voice defensive, Mia repeated that she wouldn't let Makoto around Marisa.

◆◆◆

Since mid-December, Atori had stayed with Dmitri, the professional hero Granite, & Lanara's family, and worked five jobs to pay off the payday loans Lanara's father had spent years accumulating interest on. Atori despised this drudgery, but hadn't let it tint his view of Lanara & her family; at least any more than usual. As a student rarely prevented from taking what he wanted from life, he had developed a particular stint of condescension towards civilians, unaware how little control most could exert over their lives.

As the heroic six were sleeping, one of his illusions (from his Revenant, Eclipse) stepped in to the payday loans office, badgeless and without a scar for a face. After speaking with the female teller, he made a payment in to the debt, and as he was walking out, a man wearing a red suit asked him if he was paying for Schmueli.

"Are you a host?" said Atori, stepping back to the front doors.

The man shook his head as he stepped up in line. Twelve blue globes appeared on his sleeves, and in the next instant -

- he smacked the teller -

- one of the globes shattered in a rain of blue shards; and in to the empty orb shrunk the woman, dehydrated corpse of a man replacing where she'd just stood; his hands swept back -

- and as he smacked another patron behind, the same spectacle repeated, husk dumped out of suddenly broken & suddenly repairing globes. Atori swept back as nothing but a scar replaced his facial expression, pulling his knife out with Eclipse readied, recognizing the man now as former Ningsing president Yijun.

"Hope you have a good aim on that." said Yijun, and in the next instant -

- threw one orb to Atori, and as the scarfaced man swept underneath -

- the globe burst as it hit the ground; and out of the shards fell the husk of one of the men captured prior.

"Understand?" said Yijun, bouncing another in his hands. "If you do not -"

" - of course." grunted Atori, tucking his knife in to his pocket. Yujin started rushing at him ahead -

- but Atori burst right out of the front doors and to the street beyond, keeping his eyeless gaze on Yujin in pursuit behind as he ran; another globe was thrown towards him -

- but he leaped and caught it in one hand, rolling as he hit the ground, starting his first rush away with pursuing behind.

◆◆◆

Only six of Eclipse's twelve illusions were in range to aid him, and three were occupied.

"Have a nice day." said an untransformed Atori, grocery store's cashier with a smile that wore him down like a frown.

◆◆◆

"Hello, my name is Atori, calling for…"

An untransformed Atori glanced down at his index card, sitting in a call center.

"Reven - ah, Senator Armstrong."

◆◆◆

"Welcome to - worthless fucking Revenant - uh, sorry - Serano's." said a waiter Atori to the family gathered at the table.

◆◆◆

The remaining three had gathered quickly, and alerted Dmitri & Granite through a text as they ran up the streets.

"Consciousness transfer - #1." said one, and the group began to slow, master far out of range and their strength dulled.

◆◆◆

Yujin laughed as he saw the juggling & fleeing hero running away from him on the sidewalk, a crowd standing on the corner ahead and the road packed with cars beside.

Atori leaped to the left and along the car roofs, and Yujin the same as he chased up the road, stomping on every hood he could as he ran. The intersection ahead was blind & had a red light; no option left, Atori leaped in to it -

- and a pickup truck smashed through his body in a broken burst of crimson & bones, halting Yijun as he laughed, broken body sliding against the pavement -

- and globes gone. Yijun cursed -

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

" - transfer #2." sputtered the dying illusion, who had thrown the globes up the instant the truck had hit, and as a second leaped out of the flatbed -

- he caught the four in midair, landing with an arced jump on the pavement, rushing again down a far sparser sidewalk. A foreign curse passed Yujin as he ripped two fresh orbs from his sleeves, throwing them to the new Eclipse illusion -

- who caught them again with six orbs balancing in his arms, and the two began their chase again.

◆◆◆

"I need to go." muttered the cashier Atori to his manager. "I will work overtime, this week -"

" - post-holiday rush starts today." said the woman, a fattened figure & personification of the bourgeoisie. "You leave early now, don't bother coming in Monday."

"You are giving me a four-day weekend?"

◆◆◆

"I - sorry, sorry -" sputtered Atori to the crying child and angered parents, all eyes in the restaurant on him. "I - will ensure a free dessert for - my fucking god this kid won't shut the fuck up!"

Twelve minds were harder to manage than one.

◆◆◆

"These fucking globes! I swear to fucking god!" shouted call center Atori, and the man beside tapped his shoulder knowingly.

"I know, man. Job gets stressful."

◆◆◆

Yijun had disappeared down a corner back. Atori ran like a decorated Christmas tree. Ahead was a corner he was helpless to take, and as he surged past -

- a figure tackled him from the side, and the two hit the ground fighting, both desperately trying to avoid smashing the orbs as they thrashed. In a whirlwind of blows and jingling orbs they revolved down the sidewalk; Yijun ripped one from his sleeve, and as he readied to smash it against Atori -

- a second illusion ripped him by his neck and threw him to the wall; yet the fear of shattering the globes dulled his strength. His foe recovered quickly, throwing a new set of four to the second Eclipse, both illusions trapped and scattering separately.

◆◆◆

"You're fired, effective immediately." grunted the restaurant's manager, who hadn't understood the concept of overtime, and believed his employees to be family. "I'm so sorry he used such awful -"

" - thank you!" said Atori, and he was gone.

"M-Must be Chinese." sobbed the child, who had learned the prejudice from his father.

◆◆◆

The pursuit led the two to an alleyway, ladders along the walls and stairs above. Yijun was growing closer by the second, but the scarfaced man held more than the ability to scare children.

He threw the four globes to the ladder's tip, leaped up to the base of the stairs, catching them as he landed -

- but Yijun was at his heels as he climbed up laughing, Atori rushing up the three flights of stairs, seeing it led to the roof above. He threw four globes back in to the alley -

- and another Atori rushed out to catch the four, scattering in to the street lights.

◆◆◆

"After all the time off I've given you - vacation, everything - "

" - no, you're correct." muttered the grocery Eclipse. "I - received a message from my mother. Simply a miscommunication - she has not fallen in to a coma."

"She - what?"

"She said that she was released from the hospital after - consciousness transfer #3."

"Ah. Must be Italian."

◆◆◆

The roof illusion had little to run, and no escape left but the stairs blocked by Yijun now, laughing as he pursued with a globe in each hand. Yujin threw one up and caught it, taunting for Atori to try his luck with the streets below -

- and as he said it, so it was. Atori leaped off the roof, keeping to the wall as he slid down, throwing the globes up as he fell -

- and his body smashed a crater right in to the sidewalk just as his legs snapped back; he caught the four globes he'd thrown, but his legs wouldn't work now. Beside, Yijun slid down the wall with far more ease, stomping with last two globes in hand, and as he scooped Atori's legs up -

- too quickly for the sight to follow, a figure leaped down from the roof -

- and his knife split Yijun vertically in a torrent of gore. The grisly halves fell opposite ways, and the globes shuddered as they hit the ground, but didn't burst.

"C-Consciousness - transfer - #5…" sputtered the new arrival, and the two illusions disappeared in black mist.

From the corner beside stepped out the true Eclipse, unmasked. Two figures now lay at Yijun's feet, and four laid where the previous Eclipse had dropped the globes; a scream echoed above, and with the swiftness of night -

- Eclipse caught the next four falling from the sky as a true hero might. The ten saved stared stupidly at him, paralyzed by relief and fear.

"Come." murmured Eclipse, flashing his badge. "You are safe, now. A simple explanation for what has occurred, and you will be on your way."

After his explanation, replacing Yijun's ability with a different, but similar Revenant, he made a gesture to the loan agency's teller, indicating he needed to speak with her. He asked her a few meaningless questions: whether she had known the man, if he had any outstanding debt. Pretending she had mentioned her address, he asked for clarification if he needed to ask any follow-up questions and offered to walk her home.

He asked if she knew about Lanara's family, and explained his perception of her; a teenage girl under threat of debt that couldn't go in to witness protection until it was cleared.

"I need you to clear her father's debt." said Atori. "Hassan Schmueli. The account I've paid in to for the past month."

The woman's eyes lowered as she backed away. He saw her as someone who knew her wage came primarily from families like Lanara's, and instinctively he despised her.

"We… I-I can't really do that, I'm just a teller." she said. "I-I think we have some exemption programs, but -"

" - I was not asking." he grunted. "I was nearly killed over this. You will solve this problem for me, or I will become your problem."

He threw her to the ground and she fell limp with fear.

"Report me." he said, flashing his badge. "Rank #3. Eclipse. It won't make a difference. I already know your address. You have one week."

◆◆◆

With some argument from Makoto, and none from Marisa & Matoi, Mia swapped with the conductor to keep the trio of M's as they arrived in Tawnee. Their hotel was the only but of urban in the rural cloth the town had been cut from, and Marisa had decided to keep her Boudoir-tanktop rainbow, hoping to enrage the type of people she imagined these states were filled by.

Saya had asked them to go out to buy food, and Marisa had noticed Makoto's eyes on her cleavage before they left.

Their trio talked little on their way down the dirt path to the farmer's market; Matoi was a woman of little conversation, and if she'd had her choice, she wouldn't have paired with anyone else anyhow. This wasn't from any particular dislike, however. Her disrespect of Mia had passed from her head by now, and as someone with a strong sense of embarrassment, she preferred to not think about her misjudgments.

Searching for the peppers Saya's recipe requested, they came across a straw man wearing a straw hat at the pepper stall. Marisa looked over the empty boxes and frowned.

"Y'all looking for something?" he said, tipping his hat, the sun nearly overhead.

Matoi recognized his accent as Chinese, and his gaze shifting towards her. That was alright: she could reflect it.

"Uh, we were looking for bell peppers." said Marisa. "Are you out?"

"They go quick 'round this time." he said. "I'll see if I got any extra. Come back after an hour and I'll have some for ya'."

"We could buy some of the habaneros." said Mia, gesturing to them.

"I don't want anything spicy." winced Marisa.

Mia just shrugged. Her winter break with Aimee had grown her taste for every sort of unholy spice, the type that would have a woman pleading she would never eat them again on the toilet after.

"Let's just get the rice and beans."

◆◆◆

Marisa winced as they started down the dirt path an hour later, having carried a heavy load on her back & front. "W-Who the hell sells rice and beans in fifty pound bags?"

"At least we'll be regular." muttered Mia, relevantly -

- Matoi shouted as she saw the grisly scene ahead, and as the others caught sight of it -

- instantly their Revenants formed, Boudoir's full dress, Wedding's armor & veil, Mia's scarabs & sword. The farmer's market was ahead, corpses strewn over broken stalls & rotted vegetables.

"Not good." winced Marisa. "Gotta be around here somewhere."

The dirt behind them began to rumble, and as the three turned -

- a titanic & gleaming figure burst out of the ground, height of three men, golden sword & shield in his golden hands; the three swept back with their backs to the mass grave as they stepped away -

"- Boudoir!" shouted Marisa; a volley of bullets erupted from her palms and burrowed below the ground, and as they shot forward -

- four strands burst from out of the ground and gripped the beast's limbs and ankles -

- but a flash of golden sword went through the rope that choked it and sliced it free, and it started stomping in pursuit as the three stepped back, Marisa closest to the beast -

" - Wedding!" shouted Matoi, and as an explosive barrage struck the creature's skull -

- it was truly maddened now.

It was like a golden nightmare as it rushed down the road, enormous legs hurtling its statuesque body at terrifying gait; a sweep of its sword broke through the next barrage of missiles, and as the second sought decapitation -

- a strand erupted from the ground behind and threw them down the path with the strength of a hundred, and Marisa was launched with them a second later -" - this is gonna h-"

- and the three skid & slid as they landed, skin gashed & scraped as their backs caught pebbles. A cabin was at the end of the road behind, and with no time to waste, the women started rushing towards it as the golden nightmare kept its chase going.

Few could match its speed, and as it hurtled closer -

" - Boudoir!" shouted Marisa, and another set of strands brought them closer to the cabin, rushing under a dark awning & up its front steps; Matoi drew her blade and sliced the door open, and they swept inside the home -

- they heard something groaning and dirt shifting, and as they turned, there stood the creature at the shadow & sunlight's border just before the awning.

"Sunlight." muttered Matoi, and Mia nodded as they stepped back -

" - wait - shit, the windows!" shouted Marisa, and before they could react -

- the beast burst through the sunlight path of the windows and shattered through the front half of the home; the women rushed back down the hall and out the back door, field of tall corn beyond, scattering in separate directions, almost without their own volition. The stalk were thick and clipped Marisa's arms as she ran, sun overhead still gleaming as the crops slowed her step. She felt the creature growing closer behind -

- but the next scene was instant. A strand erupted from her palm and hit the ground ahead; a second flick launched her up in to the air, first strand hardening like a pole below; she landed right on it, eyes sweeping the field and seeing Mia & Matoi in separate directions, another cabin off on the distance.

She flicked her back's web again, and it launched her with the strength of a thousand forward; as she flew, another rope lassoed Mia to her -

- and they landed straight ahead of Matoi in a burst of cracking wrists and blood, wincing as they stood -

" - I was wondering where you were." muttered Matoi, as the three began to surge again, Marisa leading the way to the cabin beyond. "I have a strategy for it - follow my lead."

The three came up to the cabin's back door, and a set of missiles blasted it down. Two rooms flanked them as they rushed down the hall, in to the living room at the front with the windows like the previous.

"Marisa, Swarm - seal the windows." said Matoi, turning her eyes up -

- and one missile blasted a hole in the ceiling as Marisa boarded the windows up & Mia rushed in to one of the back rooms. A pole of sunlight was peeking in. They turned and saw the beast running through the back door, shrinking as it fit to its sunlight, and as Matoi swept back from the miniscule ray -

- the next scene was instant. A barrage of missiles flew to the open back door, and a set of lasers welded them together to seal it, leaving only the ceiling light for sustenance -

- and the creature shrunk to a miniscule size, source of energy lost.

Matoi stomped on it and it crunched like a dead scarab.

◆◆◆

Were the deepest loves only mutual respect, or was there something else required? Was it reasonable to expect a man who did not probe too deeply in to her work, so that she would not have to do things to him she might regret?

These were the questions that sat with Mei, a high-ranking Chinese medic, in her office at Zhongnanhai. Nearly forty, she was not close to middle-age for a host, yet her being unmarried was still a problematic fact in this country.

She was interrupted by a straw man knocking at her door, hard enough that he nearly put a hole in it before she opened it. "(You have something to report?)"

"(Flare is dead.)" Vortex's anger was still in him as he slammed the door shut. His breath was a little short.

"(Mm. Unfortunate.)" Mei walked back to her desk and sat down. "(Find their next destination, and I'll have Gauss or Ten-Mile handle them next. We'll meet at our regular location beforehand.)"

Stomping up to her, Vortex asked her when she was sending Eternity: his tone made it obvious *when* he thought she should.

"(As a final option.)" she replied evenly. "(I'm sure you've already realized there's very few useful Revenants out of this batch of hosts: you excepted. They're replaceable, and Eternity isn't.)"

"(Until one of them cuts his heart out before I do. I say we kill him and give his Revenant to a student. There's a thousand more deserving natives there than a fucking Westerner.)" When Mei said nothing, he continued. "(You don't care about that, though, do you? For all you care, your country ends with you sitting at that fucking desk. You wouldn't even be allowed in this building if you were born with a different Revenant.)"

Mei looked off to the side, mulling over if she should bother with this. "(Are you finished? I am your superior, and you will listen to me. If you want a forum for your opinions, start a newsletter.)" She resumed eye contact. "(And I find it rich to tell me that I wouldn't be in this position without Rejuvenation, coming from a man hosting a transportation Revenant. A man who was Ningsing's student president just a year ago. The reason I've advanced as far as I have, as bitter as it may make men like you, is that I don't require a greater justification for everything I do. I am asked to complete missions, and I complete them.)"

Vortex grunted. "(You'll look up one day and realize you forgot to develop any principles.)"

"(I have principles. I simply don't let them interfere with my work.)"