Eve held the levitating girl's gaze. Her eyes were bright pink, startlingly so.

"I'm an Other, my name is Eve," she said, taking off her hat and bowing slightly.

Nianna added: "She's my plus one. I'm cashing it in."

A wave from the ginger, followed by: "Fucking great, Nianna. Right now? You sire someone now?"

"I didn't sire her, Laely."

The blue-haired woman's eyes widened. "Does her sire know she's here?"

"No. Eve here was turned while she slept. Possibly drugged to induce a brief coma."

Eve glanced at Nianna. I might have been drugged?

Laely, the ginger girl, laughed. "A rogue. Perfect. But what about..." - Laely walked up to Nianna and stared up at her - "...Vami!? Did you even look for him?"

"I did," said Nianna, as waves of pity radiated. "He's dead."

Laely's entire body recoiled. Her eyes shone red as green dust enveloped her. Nianna immediately shifted into darkness. She was taller than Atilan now, and by a lot.

The levitating girl sucked in a breath. "I'm sorry, Laely. But you need to calm down. Look where you are."

"I don't give a flying fuck if we are in the Checkmate. All these rules were yours and Rook's idea, not mine," Laely yelled and focused back on Nianna. "And you!"

Laely's arm lengthened and slashed at Nianna like a whip. Nianna bent backwards and fell to the floor. Her face grew a snout, she gained a tail, and her body was covered in dark fur. Nianna had become a dark wolf.

She ran at Laely and morphed back into herself as she grabbed her by the throat. Nianna pulled the shorter girl off the ground. Waves of excitement drummed from her.

"Drop the dust, Laely. Now."

Laely screamed and slammed at Nianna, whose dark form cringed slightly with each strike. Nianna remained firm and after a dozen punches, she asked:

"Are you done embarrassing yourself?"

When Laely nodded, Nianna let her go. The ginger fell to the floor on her knees.

Nianna turned back into herself and looked down at the kneeling woman.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry? My boyfriend is dead." Laely stood up. "Who did it?"

Nianna sat on a sofa and motioned for Eve to do the same. "Keepers. Who else? He went after a civilian in the open and paid for it."

Eve sat next to Nianna and asked: "On the campus? Was that him?"

"The dead body? No, that was his victim. Vami's body was taken by the Keepers, as protocol."

The levitating girl turned herself upside down, her slick hair falling down, and floated in front of Nianna. "Heard about that. Are you sure it was him?"

"I'm positive, Kori."

Kori nodded, still upside down and moving slightly to her left - now facing Eve.

"Species?"

"Me? Uh, not sure. I have some mental senses, so possibly a Liumanau - but no antennae." Eve tapped her hair, searching for any new growths. "So that rules them out. I can summon arms from anywhere within my body. That hints that I may be an Étha with a unique mutation..." Eve powered through the word, a tingle of pain escaped from beneath the skin of her left arm. Eve quickly continued - "But they have no mental abilities."

Eve noticed all the girls staring at her.

"How much did you tell her?" the blue-haired woman asked Nianna.

"Not a thing, Mini. Eve is a cryptozoologist."

"No shit?" asked Laely as she stood. "Well, good for you. It should make acclimating much easier!"

"Enough with the angst, Laely," warned Kori.

Laely snorted, grabbed at a supporting beam on the ceiling, and pulled herself up onto a raised platform in the center of the lounge. She was hidden from sight, but Eve could hear her plopping down on something soft - a bed perhaps?

Mini walked up and sat across from Eve, she said a touch too loud: "Don't mind my sister. She is a bitch."

Eve's eyes widened as she looked up to where Laely was. She expected an explosive reaction, anything else except the single wave of displeasure.

Kori said: "The main question is of your species. Usually, when sired, you get taken in and taught the basics by whoever sired you."

"Won't work. She remembers nothing," said Nianna and looked towards Eve for confirmation.

Eve nodded and said, "Nothing. I just woke up with increased strength, these pulses of empathy, and now the extra arm."

"We can do a metal test," said Mini.

Eve's eyes widened. "It's real then? Others have chemical elements they're vulnerable to?" She smiled at Nianna. "That means that the Cubrin gap is bogus. - There are no mysterious gaps in the abundance of natural elements. Wait..."

Eve got up from the couch and began pacing. "If the gap is manufactured by the Others, then that must be why all cobalt deposits were lost during the turn of the previous millennium, when the Vanator Others first appeared. Right, Kori?"

Kori straightened and floated away from Eve slightly. Her brows furrowed. "Why would I know?"

Eve's expression turned deadpan. "Come on, the flying, the metallic hair. You're a Vanator."

"This one," Kori looked at Nianna, "is going to be a handful."

"Don't I know it," Nianna smiled and looked at Eve. "Want to do the test?"

"Sure," Eve said with a giddy smile.

"I've got it," Mini said and turned in her seat. Her arms twisted and lengthened as her head turned to look behind her. She used her arms to open a safe on the wall behind her, hidden behind a small bookcase. From inside she pulled out a leather satchel.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Eve glanced upwards. "Is Laely going to be alright?"

"It's a part of being what we are," said Kori. "Many of us die every day. She will bounce back."

Mini opened the satchel and emptied ten small cubes across the table. They clanked like dice, and Mini began arranging them in a line. They were metallic, of various shades of grey, but one was clearly gold.

Eve asked: "How will we complete the test? There are eight elements in the Cubrin gap, and 12 species of Others. We are missing 5 elements."

Kori smiled at Eve's question and levitated closer. "Ah, excellent question, young one. Cubrin himself is an Other, and has gone through great efforts to conceal the final element. The element his kind is vulnerable to."

"Wait. Albion Cubrin is alive?"

Kori nodded. "Yes. He is quite an interesting fellow. Very talkative."

"You've met?" asked Eve.

"We did. Many times."

Eve glanced at Nianna. "How old are you, Kori?"

Kori rotated clockwise with a smile. "I am 807 years old."

"You... but..." stammered Eve, "look like you're in your 30s."

Kori laid in the air, as if she were relaxing on a bed. "Ah, the blessings of immortality."

"Eve," called Nianna. "You lost track of your question again."

Mini smiled. "Kori does that too. I can already see conversations between the two of them leading nowhere."

Eve nodded, embarrassed. "Right. So, the other 5 elements?"

Kori blinked. "Oh. Well, silicon is shared by two species. And the other three are too abundant for Cubrin to spread falsehoods about them. Hydrogen, Fluorine, and Beryllium."

The blonde reached back into the safe and brought out a yellow can. It was marked with large symbols showing the toxicity of its contents. Mini brought the can closer and gave it a good shake. Eve could read a large F on its front.

Fluorine. Extremely poisonous, 1 milligram capable of killing a fully grown human. It attacks the body's cells and deconstructs... Wait.

"Fluorine is harmless?" asked Eve.

Kori shook her head. "Far from harmless, just not as dangerous as you've been told. Beryllium as well."

When Mini set down the can of Fluorine, she rose and went to the kitchen. Eve looked at the elements in front of her and asked: "How will we test for Hydrogen? It needs cryogenic storage."

Mini returned and handed Eve a glass of water. She smiled and said, "H2O baby. Drink up. And here." She handed Eve a sharp kitchen knife.

"Place each element one by one in contact with your skin, and try to cut yourself with the knife. Your powers should also immediately stop working."

Eve looked towards Nianna. "Did you do this as well?"

Nianna shook her head. "No. My sire told me what I am, and what he is."

"What about you girls?" Eve asked Kori and Mini.

Mini sat deeper in the sofa and crossed her arms and legs. "Yup. My sire definitely told me what I am. Definitely."

"Me too," Kori smiled. "I've known since day one."

Eve stared at the glass of water. "My situation is uncommon?"

"Big time," said Nianna. "What your sire did is punishable by death."

"Who enforces it?"

Nianna made a vague hand gesture. "The Others as a community, I guess... but mostly the elders give the go-ahead."

Mini clapped her hands and pointed at the elements. "Hurry up, Eve. We need to figure out how to contain you."

Nianna nodded. "Yup. Remember the blood downstairs? You're exceptionally strong - Even for an Other. We need to know your element if you lose your calm and attack someone."

Eve gulped the water down with her eyes closed and waited. She opened her eyes, and when she didn't feel anything different, she put the blade to her finger and sliced.

Nothing.

"Whoa," gasped Eve at the ease with which Eve tried to harm herself.

"You're not a Honikai. Next," noted Mini.

Eve heard Laely rustle from above them. She could practically see her move to the edge of her platform as quietly as she could. She was peeking from above, trying to steal as many glances as she could of her sister and the test.

Eve startled herself as she realized she could hear. She closed her eyes and focused. Laely's breathing, the beating of her heart, the falling of droplets from the sink in the kitchen, the sound of Rook wiping the booth clean.

Eve could see it all, as clear as if it were happening in front of her.

As she focused outwards, Eve reached a barrier some 20 meters around her, beyond which she heard nothing.

"Hey, Nianna. I can hear!"

Nianna looked at her and laughed, giving a thumbs up. "Good. I can hear too."

"No, I mean I can hear really well. Like echolocation except better, much more precise." Eve explained and called out: "Hey, Laely?"

Laely jumped away from the ledge and back to her bed. "What is it, Red?"

"Can you hold up your fingers and I will try to guess how many?"

Laely laughed. "Be my guest."

Eve closed her eyes again and focused upwards. She felt Laely's arm, and her three outstretched fingers.

"Three," Eve said.

"No fucking way," Laely said, twisted on the bed and dropped down onto the floor next to Eve.

"That's... unusual," said Kori. "Never heard of that ability, even as a mutation."

Nianna smiled. "Eve, it may be possible you have multiple mutations. Considering the arms and now this."

"Mutations?" asked Eve.

"All Others have a mutation. Majority have just one - an alteration of their base abilities. Some have multiple," replied Mini.

Eve closed her eyes again; Rook had finished cleaning the booth and was back behind the counter when two customers walked in.

"You need to be careful, Eve. Others with multiple mutations are highly sought after. If your sire doesn't reveal themselves, you might find yourself the target of several Clans. They will want you."

Eve gasped. "Groups of Others bound by species and common history and goals? Those are real?"

Nianna grunted. "They are. Plenty of times when you would talk cryptozoology, I was impressed just how spot on your theories were."

Eve smiled and closed her eyes again. Rook was tending to the two customers, a man and a woman. They wore suits and had metal shields on the left sides of their chests. Both had flowers on their person, the stems pressed between the suit and the small shield. The man wore ten rings, and the woman had a sword on her back.

"How did you realize she was an Other, Nianna?" Kori asked.

"Uh, guys?" Eve interrupted.

She was still listening, focused entirely on the downstairs. The man had a ragged voice, the kind you get after years of cigarettes and alcohol.

"Rook, isn't it?" the man asked, and Rook's heartbeat immediately skyrocketed. He became a beacon of nauseating waves.

Rook put on a smile and asked. "That's the name, what can I get you?"

Nianna put her hand on Eve's shoulder. "What's up, Eve?"

Eve focused on the shields, they were small, made of steel. And had four emboldened letters on their front, encircled by leaves of the olive tree.

The letters read: PACT

The man smiled downstairs. "You can get on your knees, Other vermin. You are under arrest."

Eve's eyes shot open. "Rook is being arrested!"

"Don't fuck around," warned Laely. Mini and Nianna rose to their feet.

"Eve? Are you sure?" concern radiated from Nianna.

Eve focused again. She felt the tension in Rook's muscles and joints - he was ready to bolt. The man opened his hand towards Rook, and a sizzling ball of energy appeared in it.

"Do not fucking test me," warned the man.

The woman spoke for the first time. She sounded apologetic. "Please, Mr. Rook. Come peacefully."

"Nah," interjected the man. "Look at him, Meadowsweet. He is a runner."

Eve rose herself. "I am not joking. Keepers, two of them. One of them is named Meadowsweet."

"The velvet serpent?" asked Kori.

Laely's eyes widened. "You know the Keeper?"

Kori raised a hand to silence Laely and asked: "Does she have a sword with a broken tip?"

Eve closed her eyes. The inside of the woman's scabbard was filled, except its latter quarter, where it ended in many jagged points.

Eve nodded.

"We need to run," Kori said and flew towards the window.

"What about Rook?" asked Mini, eyes panicked.

"He's gone already," said Kori as she unlocked and opened the window. She touched the floor with her legs, timidly so, and began climbing down onto the street.

"Let's go," said Nianna and grabbed Eve by the hand.

"No way I am leaving Rook alone," Mini said, still firmly in her place.

Laely approached her sister. "Hey Mi, we need to go."

Mini stared at her sister. "Don't call me that, we are no longer children."

Laely winced. "Yeah, I know. We have to go with them," she motioned at the window. "I know Rook means a lot to you, Vami meant a lot to me too. But they wouldn't want us getting killed alongside them."

Mini clutched her hand and said: "Dammit!"

Mini and Laely followed through the window. Nianna and Eve were outside already, climbing down a duct to the winter streets below. The trip was short, they were only on the first floor.

"We stand out," said Kori - who was very short now that she was no longer floating.

Nearby citizens of Lürich were glancing at the 5 women. Particularly at Laely, who was still in her booty shorts at temperatures below freezing.

"My bike is out front. Can you make us lighter while we are on it, Kori? I don't think it can carry us otherwise."

Kori nodded and asked Eve: "Is the coast clear?"

They were at the corner of the building, the bike and the entrance to the Checkmate was around the bend. Eve closed her eyes and checked up on Rook. He was on his knees between the two keepers, with a metal mask across his face. His hands were glued together by some paste. Eve scanned the surroundings, and finding no other suited individuals with shields on their chests, she said: "Clear."

The five women huddled onto Nianna's bike. Kori put her hands on the bike and small bolts of lightning arched across her arms and hair. The bike shot up as Nianna turned it on.

"Whoa!" she yelled as she regained control. "Good job, Kori."

Laely was shaking, rattled by the sudden motion.

"Close your eyes, Laely," said Mini. "It's not as bad."

Nianna took off as fast as she could, swerving to avoid other airmotors and cruisers. The Checkmate was out of sight soon.

"So..." asked Kori, "where to now?"