Nianna parked her airmotor on a private spot atop the Eagle, the 3rd largest skyscraper in Lürich. Or was it the 4th? Eve could never quite remember. She collected herself as she stepped off Nianna's bike. She had been pressed between Kori and Laely during the ride, and had gotten some of Kori's hair in her mouth.

Eve coughed it out, taking hold of the railing that guarded the walkway on the Eagle's 63rd floor. Eve could see a good chunk of the city from up here, and the entirety of Eaglesight, the district that housed the Eagle and many other skyscrapers. Lake Garda was just to the north, guarded by the Alps on all sides. Eve stared at the stone structure in its center, a man-made artificial island; hexagonal in shape, two thousand years old, and one of the wonders of Lürich.

The Cathedral of St. Michael, the main headquarters of the European branch of the PACT.

Beautiful, Eve thought.

It was a testament to her passion, a billion-tonne construct representing humankind's will to resist and overcome the Others. And Eve was a betrayer now, a creature of the night.

A gust of wind hit from the east, ruffling Eve's red hair and forcing her to grab her hat - lest it be carried away forever. The sun was just setting and the full moon rose in the east.

"This is the safehouse you told us about?" asked Laely.

Eve turned and saw them approach the tall glass door that led into the interior of a luxury apartment. Kori was floating again.

Nianna nodded as she opened the door. "Yeah. We can use it for a week or two."

The girls sat on the couches around an antique wooden table. Eve closed her eyes and listened to the apartments below and above, both were empty. Nianna's emotions were a mix of anxiety and fear. Eve was about to say something but Laely beat her to it.

"First Vami, and now Rook. Is the PACT targeting us?"

Mini shook her head. "Why would they be? We were careful."

Nianna answered: "Doesn't matter now, does it? If they knew about Rook, they know about us. Vami must have told them."

Laely rose to her feet, her skin radiating mist again: "Like hell he did."

Kori floated over to Laely and put a hand on her shoulder. "Have you ever been tortured, Laely? By the PACT?"

"What?" Laely looked into Kori's eyes. "No, I was not."

"Then trust me," Kori nodded. "Vami told them everything."

Mini opened a small fridge beneath the table. She pulled out a bottle of vodka. "How did they get Vami, Nianna?"

Nianna grunted. "As far as I can tell, they waited for him to reveal himself. Somehow, they knew which college Vami was going to. The moment Vami attacked that groundskeeper, they were on him."

Mini opened the bottle and threw in some red dust. She closed the bottle again and shook it well. "How do you know?"

"There were eyewitnesses. People I know since my college days. I'm pretty sure the Keepers that caught Vami were the ones that arrested Rook."

Mini took a deep chug of the vodka straight from the bottle. Eve cringed, expecting her to throw up, like Eve did after the canned cake. Instead, Mini just let out a satisfied sigh and made eye contact with Eve.

Mini smiled and said: "You can drink or eat anything if you sprinkle some dried flesh in it. It still won't quench the hunger though. So, yeah, you can still get drunk." Mini drank again.

Laely cleared her throat and looked at Kori. "Speaking of the Keepers; what do you know about the woman with the sword?"

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Kori thought for a moment. "She is part of the Meadowsweet lineage. Her mother, grandmother and so forth, were all distinguished Keepers of the PACT. I've met her ancestor while I was in Hokkaido three centuries ago."

Eve's mouth hung open. She knew the Others were immortal, but to hear such casual talk of events spanning centuries.

Will I be like this? Old, wise and detached. Will I remember this city, my friends, my family...?

"How dangerous is she?"

"If her family is anything to judge by, we are looking at a world-class swordsman and mage of Physical Chemistry. And her sword is the real problem here."

Everybody perked up to listen to the floating woman.

"A compound of every single element in the Cubrin Gap, including Beryllium. Specially made as an instrument of Other extermination. When powered, the sword forms a tip of frozen Hydrogen Fluoride - thereby covering every single element to which Others are vulnerable."

Mini whistled. "Well, we should get the fuck out of Europe."

"Agreed," Laely said. "We need to get out of this city, and run far. After we get Rook and Vami back."

Nianna and Kori glanced at each other. Nianna spoke: "That is not happening. They are both at St. Michael's by now. You need to let go."

Laely smiled. Waves of wicked nausea radiated from her. "You either help us get them back, or I snitch." Laely glanced at Eve.

Eve was being used as a bargaining chip. Not on my watch.

"Nianna," Eve said. "Whatever it is, you plan on telling me?"

Nianna looked at Eve. Sorrow came from her first, then a long pulse of regret, and finally, determination. Nianna nodded. "Of course."

Eve looked at Laely. "Then you're going to have to get better ammunition. Whatever it is, Nianna had good reasons for it."

Laely smiled. "She kills people."

"Laely," Nianna warned, standing and turning into darkness.

"Yes, Nianna? I thought Eve trusted you... No problem if I tell her everything?" Laely's arms and legs stretched, her eyes shone red as dust formed ethereal armor around her body.

"I'll tear you to shreds," said Nianna.

Laely flashed a cheeky grin; "To shreds, you say?"

Both women took a step forward when Kori floated between them, she pointed a finger at each of their heads. From it, a long white spike snapped into existence. It pointed at the heads of Laely and Nianna, and at its tip, it was pointier than a needle.

"Down, girls," said Kori. "We appreciate your hospitality, Nianna. And the hospitality of the Wallayan Clan. We shall continue this in the morning."

Eve saw Mini smiling again and glancing between her sister and Nianna. Tense waves flowed from her.

What kind of a tangle of emotion did I fall into?

Nianna and Laely calmed slowly, shifting back into their human shapes.

Laely grunted. "Fuck. Alright. Tomorrow it is then. We begin with training this puppy." She pointed her finger at Eve.

Nianna shook her head. "I don't..."

Laely interrupted her: "Think Eve should be able to defend herself, and us? To learn her abilities so that we may find her sire and her species? Get a grip, your emotions are showing."

Laely stalked out of the room and into an adjacent bedroom. Mini followed, bringing the vodka, but went into her own, separate room.

"Hypocrite..." whispered Nianna.

"Laely has it rough, Nianna. You know this," said Kori as the blades vanished back into nothingness. "First her parents, now her sister."

"What about Mini?" asked Eve.

Kori looked down at her from where she floated. "Laely was turned, then abandoned by her sire. She attacked her family, killing them all and eating her parents. But Mini survived, becoming a Teriyad, like Laely. She is carrying an incredible amount of guilt."

Nianna nodded. "Yeah. She's been getting worse lately, and now that Rook and Vami are gone... they were the only ones that could rein her in. I'm worried she will snap."

"Mini and Laely are young Others too?"

Nianna took off her coat, revealing a short black blouse and grey slacks. Tattoos covered most of her body. "Three years since they were turned."

"Very young," said Kori. She nodded to both Eve and Nianna and floated into her own room.

The sun had set completely now, light was still coming in from the outside - from the moon and the skyscraper nearby. Nianna was resting on the couch, her head thrown back and her eyes closed. She was thinking furiously, Eve felt the waves of conflicting emotions within her.

Eve put down her coat as well, and her bag. The laptop within clanked as Eve pulled it out and set it down on the table. Eve had barely saved up for it - sacrificing more than half of her measly allowance for 2 years.

It was made of bronze, and one of Eve's favorite possessions. All her class notes were on it, as well as some apps that turned Eve into a pirate. She opened it and turned it on.

"Want to watch something? We haven't seen each other like this in a long time." She smiled at Nianna, the other girl glanced at the screen and smiled herself.

"I guess we can. We can now." Waves of happiness.

Eve turned serious. "Tell me tomorrow? What Laely meant about you killing people."

Nianna searched Eve's eyes, and nodded.

During the evening and well into the night, Eve and Nianna caught up on 6 hours of missed opportunities; shows they once binged together. Before Nianna became what she was, and before Eve followed her into this life of immortality. They laughed, made some overpriced popcorn in the kitchen, and drank some whisky.

The entire time, Eve heard Laely softly cry into her pillow.