~~~(Jared)~~~

"It's so cute!" Flame squeals, and I look over to where the GMDF agents are eating. He's staring at a white tiger in excitement. "Look at it, Davis! It's so big and fluffy! I've never seen a white liger before!"

Liger? A mix between a tiger and a leopard? White ligers, specifically, are crosses between white tigers and snow leopards, and I can now see the thicker tail and the spots on the legs that meld into the strips of the body. Massive paws and body.

It kind of is adorable, but is also giving a Flame a look that reminds me of Caleb, when he thinks Flame is being annoying. The white liger definitely knows Flame's about to go up and hug it.

If I didn't know that Caleb can't shapeshift, I'd think it was him.

It's probably a friend of his. Or a familiar. Or just some random white liger he found and decided to ask for a favor. Especially since it's got something tied around its neck.

"Who's a good kitty?" Flame ruffles the white liger's fur, messing with its ears, and I swear, I can hear it huff from over here.

Oh, wait. I probably can. Dragon senses.

The dragon in me chuckles when I remember that, and I get a little annoyed by the fact that it tends to have its own personality, even though it's me.

"What's this?" Flame looks at the cord tied around the white liger's neck, then pulls it off. "It's a letter addressed to the Colonel. Colonel Spencer!"

Flame waves the letter at the GSDF trainer, who looks at him annoyed.

"You've got a letter from the kitty!"

People chuckle, and the GSDF trainer approaches, taking the envelope and opening it, reading the paper inside. It looks official, from what I can find.

He looks down at the white liger.

"Hello, Caleb," he says, then looks at one of the other leaders. "Everyone's here! Let's move out!"

"Where's Caleb?" Someone asks as I walk over.

"He's the tiger," Colonel Spencer answers the GMDF agent.

"White liger," Flame corrects. He's scratching behind the white liger's ears, and it's leaning its head in. "Who's a good kitty?"

Cue the annoyed look. He knew it was Caleb from the start, didn't he? If that really is Caleb. Caleb can't change his form, he's complained about that before.

Well, complained in the way he complains. So he just made a mention of it at some point with a wistful look in his eyes.

"Caleb can't change his form," I tell Colonel Spencer, then look at Flame. "Remember?"

"It's Caleb," Flame rubs his head into the white liger's. "Can't you smell it? And sense his dragon?"

The dragon in me isn't reacting to the white liger, but when I inhale with my draconic sense of smell, I can smell Caleb on the white liger, faintly. Caleb, and six others, all male, including… a tiger.

He couldn't shift before, but I can smell a tiger on him, and he's transformed. He can also transfer someone's Gift into someone else, at the moment of their death.

The only reason I can think of for him to transfer them into himself would be… one of his brothers. Someone from the orphanage he lived at in Alkran City. That would explain why he's sticking to the white liger form, then. His brother must have had that form.

"Ow!" Flame exclaims, then bops Caleb on the head. "Bad kitty! No biting!"

Caleb looks over at Mukura, who just arrived. That kid unnerves me. I still can't sense his dragon, yet he definitely has one, if Caleb's brother gave him the same treatment he gave Flame. That, and Caleb casually mentioned that he did.

I'm not looking forward to two magicians with that much magical power being my enemies for this mission. Caleb probably won't go full-power, either, if he's mourning a brother's death.

That, or he'd just take everyone out.

Caleb gives me a sharp glare before nuzzling Mukura's leg, causing the younger boy to start petting him. Oh, right. I'm not supposed to know what mission we're on. It's not like it's a secret, since they do it every April. Most of the cadets here probably already know the general mission, just not the specifics, since those generally change every time.

Sort of like what Caleb says is the truth…

They tell everyone that we're taking off, and ten minutes later, we're in the air. Caleb's laid down in a corner, curling up with his head on his paws. Jeez, that looks so weird. I approach Flame and Mukura, who have been joined by Holden, Brooks, and Owen.

"Hey, guys," I say, and they look at me.

"Caleb's somehow turned himself into a white liger," Brooks tells me. "But he won't tell us how."

"He's talking?"

"Sometimes," he nods. "He's doing it telepathically."

"Caleb," I say. "Are you in my mind?"

He opens one eye, glaring at me.

"Please enter it."

What do you want?

Can you shoo away the others so we can talk? In private? And put up a barrier against eavesdropping?

Why?

Please?

Caleb stands up, looking at each of the others, then gives me a 'follow me' look before padding off.

"What are you guys talking about?" Owen asks.

"I'll tell you," I say. "If Caleb lets me."

I follow Caleb to one of the cabins and locks the door. A moment later, I feel a faint trace of magic.

The room is sealed. No one can eavesdrop on us.

I slip out of my shoes, jacket, and belt, then climb up onto the bed and lie down, looking at Caleb.

"Come here, you big kitty-cat," I tell him, patting the bed. "I know what must have happened. I know you want to cuddle someone."

Caleb hangs his head down, then pads over to the bed and jumps up, lying down next to me, his head on my chest. He exhales heavily, shakes, then starts crying into my shirt. I feel like we've done this before, but have no memory of it.

He eventually calms down, but is still conscious. If he gets talking about what happened, he'll probably end up crying himself to sleep. For now, he just rests here, eyes closed, body vibrating.

"Caleb?" I stroke his fur, and he 'hmms' in response. "The smells lingering on you… six other males, including a tiger. More brothers?"

Yeah…

"The tiger," I say. "He was a Transmuter, able to turn into a tiger, right?"

Yeah, tears start to form in his eyes again.

"He died, didn't he?" I ask, and Caleb starts shaking again. "What happened?"

He contracted a disease that only affects big cats, most commonly, tigers. He had to stay in tiger form to delay his death. In human form, his lifespan was shortened hugely. He had a few months left, or hours, in human, but we were hanging out, and he wanted to be human with us one more time, with the rest of us. We're down to only six of us, now. Jon, Tommy, Kieran, Sammy… there's only six of us left, now!

Six? I thought the orphanage had a couple of hundred kids?

We were so close, Jared! The ten of us! We were the best of friends!

Oh, he's referring to his core group of friends and mischief-makers.

Jon died in the Massacre, Bar says I had to kill Tommy when he tried to kill me, Kieran got killed by that guy, even though Jeremy's prediction said he couldn't have, and then Sammy died from that stupid disease!

Jeremy's prediction? Couldn't have? What does he mean by that?

I was there for three of them! I was supposed to be there for Kieran's! Jeremy's prediction's always come true exactly as he says! He said his prediction was that the one who killed Kieran would be the one he loved the most! Kieran loved me the most! I'd never kill him! So why is he dead? Did Teacher screwing with the past screw things up? Why does this keep happening to me? How long before the rest of them are dead? How long before I'm dead? I'm so scared, Jared! They're all dying! I'm going to be all alone, and then I'm going to die! I just wish the next year would pass already, so I can rescue the Moon and feel his light on me again! I want to break these damn seals on me so I can have my full power! I don't want them all to die on me, Jared! They're all gonna die, and I'm gonna die!

Caleb's thoughts become scrambled after that, not really completing full ones before moving to the next, sometimes not related. He shakes and cries a lot more, eventually passing out.

Once he's unconscious, I wait a bit, then start to look around, examining the spell he made around the room. If I didn't already know his magic, I wouldn't even detect it. As it is, it's still hardly-noticeable, and I can't get a read on what it does, even though I what exactly what it does.

At least, have a general idea of it.

The fact that the spell it's still stable after his mental state wasn't, and after he passed out, is only a testament to how powerful Caleb is and how good he is at magic.

I sit up as much as I can and kiss him on the forehead, rubbing my fingers behind his ears as I lie back down.

At some point, I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I know, there's a pounding at the door.

"OPEN UP!" Flame yells. "WE'VE LANDED, AND I WANT TO PET CALEB AGAIN!"

Caleb huffs on my chest, glancing at the door, which then opens as Flame goes to pound on it again, causing him to fall forward. Brooks, Mukura, and Owen just laugh, and Flame charges over to the bed, jumping onto it and wrapping himself around Caleb.

"You're a good kitty!" He exclaims, ruffling Caleb's fur. "Let's go! We're at the airfield now!"

Caleb huffs as Flame gets off the bed, but stands up, turning so his giant liger ass is in my face, then jumps off the bed, tackling Flame to the ground before padding out the door. Flame stands up and looks at us, confused.

"He seems moody."

"Any more than usual?" Brooks asks, causing Mukura to chuckle.

"There you are!" Holden enters the room, looking around, then sighs, fixing his gaze on his brother. "Kura! Stop running off on me!"

"I walked off," Mukura says casually, looking at his brother… well, turning his head towards his brother.

This kid is somewhat disturbing. I know how he can 'see', but it's still a bit confusing, especially how Caleb could effortlessly hide his existence from us and Teacher.

Does he have other students we don't know about? Others that Nikvar 'gifted' with more power?

And what, exactly, did Caleb mean by 'the Moon'?

"Mukura?" I ask, and he looks at me.

"Yes?" He asks when I try to formulate the words. "We're supposed to be leaving."

"Caleb," I say. "He mentioned something to me, while we were talking. He mentioned that he wanted to rescue the Moon and feel his light on him again. Do you know what he meant by that?"

"The moon's in the sky!" Flame says, the strange boy's expression still neutral at my request. "Why does it need rescuing?"

"You haven't sensed it yet," Mukura says. "But with our power, we can sense the power of Domain Deities. The Moon's Domain was anything under its light. Caleb said he could hear him talking at times. I heard it once, he was… interesting. I think he only talked to me because Caleb was there, and feeling depressed and needing more than cuddles."

"So the Moon… is a being?"

"A Domain Deity," Mukura nods. "They're ancient and powerful, and the Moon's presence has been weak for a couple of years, practically nonexistent. Caleb can sense it better than I can, so I'm not sure how much strength he has left. Not sure what Caleb meant by rescuing him, though."

"And feeling his light?" Flame asks. "That just sounds weird! So Domain Deities are super ancient things?"

"Yeah," Mukura responds. "I did say that, Flame. Caleb never mentioned them to you?"

"No," Flame looks sad. "Caleb doesn't tell us much."

"And when he does," Brooks adds. "We can't ever tell if it's the truth or a lie until someone else confirms or corrects."

"Sounds like Caleb," Mukura shrugs. "It really isn't that hard to sort out the truth from the lies, if you know him well enough. He lives in multiple timelines at once. The weirdest part is that Caleb's in the GSDF, since he's not a Superhuman, and hasn't been since a few months before he left for BT."

With that, Mukura walks out, leaving the rest of us baffled.

"Multiple timelines at once?" Owen asks. "I thought there was only one timeline?"

"That's what Caleb told us," I nod, wondering what Mukura meant by that and about Caleb not being a Superhuman anymore.

How? I'm sure he could merge his powers together and release it, much like Nikvar did for Flame and Mukura, but why would his Reality Marbles still register as Abilities? Why would he go into the GSDF and not the GMDF?

"There is," Flame nods. "Unless my knowledge of magic is wrong, there is only one timeline, which is why there were no 'adverse' effects to someone altering history on us. So how can Caleb be living in multiple timelines?"

We can't figure that out, and get called off the airship. The eighty of us cadets are led to the hotel we'll be spending the night at, and told that we are free to explore the city, but to be back be eight tonight, and that lights-out is at ten, and we're to be at breakfast by seven.

We make our way to our assigned rooms and drop our bags off in them, then change into swim trunks to head down to the hotel pool. The hotel caters to Superhumans and magicians, so things might get a little wild down there.

All in good fun.

I remember a trip here a couple of years ago with Father. Man, was that a good one. So much-

"You coming?" Flame flies through the door as Owen opens it. "Come on! We're gonna throw Caleb in the pool!"

He's off again, and Owen and I look at each other, then crack up laughing. There's no way they'll get Caleb in the pool.

Then we stop laughing.

They'll never get him in the pool.

Right?

"I've got to see this," Owen and I say at the same time, then run downstairs.

We get down there to find a dozen cadets, about even between the two agencies, carrying Caleb, who's struggling to break free.

"And three!" Flame yells, then they throw Caleb, who flails about before landing in the pool. "Enjoy the swim!"

Flame then jumps into the pool, and the other cadets join him. More jump in as well, and they all start playing with Caleb, who I think is trying to swim out of the pool.

"I'm going to work on my tan," Owen sits on a pool chair. "You?"

"Going to jump in," I tell him. "I won't rust."

He chuckles, and I start to make my way to the pool when I sense something… weird. Scanning around me, I notice someone who isn't there. Hidden, but not by magic. An Invisibility Ability. It's concealing them from my dragon, even. I can sense their metal, and that's the only reason I detected them.

"Actually," I look at Owen. "I'm going to go have a conversation with someone. May jump in after."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Owen nods, and I walk to a quiet corner of the pool courtyard, sitting down on a chair. The mystery person is sitting on the chair beside me, judging by the soft rising and falling of the necklace they're wearing. It's on a thin metal chain, a small token hanging around it. The etchings on the token remind me of…

Of Caleb's ring. The inside of the band has similar etchings on it, even if the outside is decorated with wolves and dragons.

"Ever seen a liger in a pool before?" I ask, and the necklace pauses for a moment. They held their breath. After a few moments, they resume breathing. "It's interesting, the things you see and learn, as you travel. I'm probably one of the only Superhumans you'd ever meet able to detect you, while you're invisible like that."

This time, they start to get up. I grab control over their necklace, slamming it into them and pulling them towards me. As expected, as soon as the chain moves, they go with it. It means something to them, something dear, and they don't want to break it.

"I've created a magical field around us," I tell him. "Only a few people here would be able to detect it, and they know it means I want some privacy, so you can stop using your Ability. If you're hidden, it's for a reason, and I won't out you."

"Who are you?" He asks, and I look over.

He'd be about Kieran's age, and has black hair and vibrant green eyes. He's dressed in black shorts, combat boots, and a dark blue tank with a black shirt over that, unbuttoned.

"Not tanning?"

"Don't tan when I'm invisible," he says. "Who are you?"

"Jared Fuller," I answer. "Good friends with the guy with literal red hair who led them in throwing the liger into the pool, his blue-haired brother, the liger, and a few others."

"Liger's a Gifted?"

Gifted?

The Rivers Orphanage.

"His name is Caleb Rivers," I nod. "He's my team's leader. Flame and Brooks – the colored-haired boys – and I are the other members of the team. We had another member, Kieran, but he was killed by a hunter of Superhumans. Kieran and Caleb were adoptive brothers at an orphanage, when they were younger."

"Uh-huh," he doesn't believe me.

"There," I say. "They were trained in both their Abilities and their aura, even though they were so young. It seems to me like there were a lot of powerful children there. Including you, whatever your name is."

"And what makes you think I was at this orphanage?" He asks.

"Several things," I answer. "You're a powerful, but young Special, you're wearing a necklace that has etchings I've only seen once before – on the inside of Caleb's ring – and you refer to Abilities as Gifts, and Superhumans as Gifted."

"Caleb wasn't a Transmuter."

"He's a Creator," I nod. "Said he was the only one there. The ability to shift into a big cat was Sammy's. Caleb can use his Ability as a Creator to merge the Abilities of someone who died into someone else. Sammy apparently passed away yesterday, when Caleb met him. He said that there were six in his core group left. The ones he named as dead were Jon, Tommy, Kieran, and Sammy. I'm surprised that he didn't include a Special who can turn invisible in that group."

"He did," the kid snorts. "It just wasn't me. It was my twin. I was a loner, and didn't want to be a part of it."

"Name?"

"Henry."

"And I'm assuming you want to be left alone right now?"

"Always do," he says. "And Caleb's on his way over here."

I look over to see a very wet white liger padding its way over here, looking somewhat annoyed. It walks between our two chairs, turns around, then plops itself down, resting its head on its paws and sighing heavily.

Flame has too much energy. I hope he throws Owen in. He decided to warm up the water, you know. Hey, Henry. Jared, your barrier is flawed.

Caleb then proceeds to correct me on the barrier, telling me where I went wrong in the spell.

"So you're using magic again?" Henry asks.

So you're hiding around here? Caleb asks.

"For a few weeks," Henry answers. "I don't stay in one place for too long. Been hoping I could find more of us. I was hoping that if I survived, others did. Jared says that Jon, Tommy, Kieran, and Sammy are all dead? The others from your core are still alive? Including Hunter?"

Yeah, Caleb sighs again. Somehow, for some reason, we were all in town yesterday. We gathered together. When Sammy turned back into his human form, so that he could spend his last hours with us, we had a lot of fun and talk. Hunter thinks you're dead. He'll be happy to know you're alive. When Sammy died, I took his legacy into me. I wish I could've done the same for the others. Supposedly, I took Tommy's, but I can't sense it. I apparently did it to Kieran with Jon, but I wasn't there when Kieran passed. Jared, can you give us some time alone? I wanna talk with my brother.

"Okay," I say, going to pet a now-dry liger. "You just removed the water, didn't you?"

Clearly.

I scratch between his ears, then make my way to the pool, wishing I could be there for that conversation.

We cadets mess around in the pool, and at one point, Brooks starts freezing it as Flame tries heating it up, the two of them getting into a match to see whose power will reign supreme.

Until Owen decides to send waves of electricity through it, resulting in a very shocking cloud of fog and snow.

Eventually, Caleb leaves Henry, but the boy is still there, just invisible. I return to my spot before and erect the barrier.

"Sorry for bothering you," I say. "I'm not going to ask about what you and Caleb discussed, since it was probably personal. I've put the barrier back up, by the way. I wanted to ask what it was like, living with a Creator at the orphanage."

"Insane," he sighs, making himself visible again. "Having two of them was a nightmare."

There were two there?

"Yeah," he nods, and I realize I said that out loud. "Caleb never mentioned his competition? Well, I say 'competition', but Caleb was the clear superior. Mick's power could only reach probably a mile out for his Passive Territory, while Caleb's was over twenty miles."

What? Caleb's nowhere near that. In fact, he's closer to…

To Mick's.

Caleb isn't a Superhuman.

He's not a Superhuman.

He isn't using his power of Creation. He's using Mick's. Does he know that? Is he aware that he took Mick's Ability?

"He's never mentioned Mick?" Henry asks. "That's weird. Together, the two of them were a dangerous duo. The staff could only contain one of them at a time, and it was usually Mick who took the sacrifice, because of how much more powerful Caleb was. Then again, Caleb often let Mick take the stage."

Kieran never mentioned Mick, either.

"Was Mick one of the ten?" I ask.

"No," Henry frowns. "That's odd… why wasn't he one of the ten? He and Caleb were thick as thieves."

The altered history. It caused someone else to take his place as one of the ten, especially since he likely died back then, and Caleb wasn't aware of it. Him dying back that would definitely explain why Caleb's Ability is so weak, if Caleb 'took on his legacy'.

"Who knows?" I ask, then stand. "I'm heading out. See you around, Henry. Or not."

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

~~~(Caleb)~~~

"Still in your liger form, huh, Caleb?" the Colonel greets me as we assemble for the training mission, at the gates to the massive city ruins this mission will take place. "Are you prepared for today's events?"

I ignore him, taking my spot in the lines.

"Guess so," he sighs, then looks out at all of us. "Cadets! As you have noticed, the GMDF cadets are not with us! We will be participating in a mock war between the two campuses! You forty are the forty best cadets in the GSDF's Youth Division!

"Behind me!" He continues. "You will notice we are at a city with powerfully-reinforced walls! It is contained with a phantom field! Once you are killed within it, you will be ejected out and into the safe space to recover from your injuries! For the first three days you will be in there, you will be limited to one half of the city!

"After that!" He stomps a foot down. "It will be war between the two sides! The goal is to eliminate all enemies! The battle ends once one team has completely lost all of its members! Surrender will not count! There will be food and supply drops throughout the town! The main base will also restore food every day!

"There is no time limit!" He informs us. "The battle will go until one side is completely eliminated!"

The Colonel looks to one of the other Colonels, who hands him a tablet, and he then hands it to Jared, standing beside me.

"That should go to Caleb," he says. "Except…" He looks at me for a moment, then back to Jared. "He can't exactly hold it. That contains a map of the field. You are allowed to use your Abilities and your magic for this battle. It contains all other necessary information."

"Thank you, sir," Jared dips his head.

"The map," the Colonel says. "Will update as members of this unit explore the city – it will only show areas they have been in since the start of this match. It will, however, show you a map to your current base, by way of a line. Follow the line, and the city will fill in as you reach your base."

"Yes, sir," Jared says.

The Colonel returns to his position, then looks out at all of us.

"Good luck, cadets!" He says. "I will see you when you die – or perhaps when we claim our first victory!"

The GSDF Youth Division has never won this, despite the inferiority of the GMDF's powers. The GMDF was always able to lay traps with their magic to catch the GSDF cadets, and turned it into a battle of attrition and determination, which they always ended up winning.

"Sir!" Someone says. "It's a bit uneven, isn't it? They have those two monsters, Flame and Mukura, while we have-"

"Caleb!" Jared interrupts him. "We have Caleb! He might be in liger form right now, but his power is real, and he is the most powerful Superhuman in the world, second only to the one who taught him how to use his Ability and his magic! There isn't a doubt in my mind that we can and will win this! In addition to having Caleb here, you have Brooks, Owen, and myself! We can and will win this! Let's move!"

I wanna be lazy.

Everyone moves forward, collecting the packed bags for each of us. Jared helps strap mine onto my back, since it's a bit difficult with my paws. I could have used my magic, but whatever.

Once the team is equipped, we start moving, making our way into the city. Jared follows the map on the tablet for almost an hour before we reach a relatively small building, though my Passive Territory says that there's an underground base with two more exits underneath.

"Great," someone says. "We get a tiny little building for our base?"

"No," a student steps forward, and I glance at him. He kneels, placing a hand on the ground. "There's a base underground. This is simply an entrance to it."

The student is around fourteen, like the rest of us, and has brown hair and eyes. He has a lean, defined build, like all of us, and a hefty amount of power in his Gift, as well as a strong aura. If I'm not mistaken, his Gift of Manipulation specializes in the stone element, with a focus on reading the stone-based things around him. His combat capabilities stem from his use of spears and rods formed of his element.

He's an A-Rank Gifted, with the a dual-element with the fire element, which he obtained probably around a year ago, if my reading is accurate enough. I'd say that he's nearing S-Rank, and might even break through to it here. He can only use the fire element with his stone element, and if he manages to break through, he would be able to form magma with his power.

Flame would probably ask him for a bath.

"What was that huff for?" Jared asks, and I glare at him. "Let's head inside, then get our battle plan ready. Caleb – how long are you planning on staying in that form for?"

I'm not done mourning. I'll switch out of it when I'm done. Plus, me entering the fight would be cheating. You can probably handle one of my students, while Owen and Brooks together can probably handle the other.

Jared sighs, then leads everyone inside. The building is just a regular house, with a second floor. There are three bedrooms up there and one downstairs. The door to the basement leads us into the actual basement, which contains a secret entrance to the base itself.

Once they figure out the secret entrance, we head down to the actual base, which is large, spacious, and has several dorms for sleeping, as well as a communal shower room and a locker room, as well as several bathrooms, a large kitchen that's fully-stocked, a dining room, a rec area, and a few additional rooms, including a couple of armories stocked with more weapons.

"Alright," Jared looks around. "Caleb's supposed to be our leader, but since he's… being him, I'll take his place until then."

"And we should listen to you, why?" One of the girls in the group asks. "You're just some arrogant son of a noble, and-"

I growl at her.

"Because Caleb trusts me to be his second-in-command?" Jared asks when she shuts up. "I'll need a complete breakdown of everyone's Abilities and Ranks. Caleb – can you do that? Or will you just verify them for me?"

The backpack on my back unclips itself, sliding off of me. I stretch, then pad my way into the rec area, climbing up onto a couch and lying down.

"Or you can do that," Jared sighs. "You can't mourn forever, Caleb. Keep his memory, but don't let it hold you back. Would he want you to do that?"

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

~~~(Flame)~~~

"This is so cool!" I say as we meet back up in the dining room of our underground base. "I've always wanted a secret underground base!"

"Remind me why they put you in charge?" Gabby asks.

"Because despite his childishness," Mukura says. "He has advanced tactical knowledge and a hefty amount of real-world experience. Also, they had initially offered it to me, but I turned it down. Being blind can be a hindrance, at times."

"She wasn't being completely serious," I tell him. "Right, Gabby?"

Gabby snorts, rolling her eyes.

"So what now?" She asks.

"We explore the city!" I tell her. "Or at least, the half we can access! We fill in the map, which does seem to register multiple levels of a building. As we do, we lay traps everywhere!"

"Won't Caleb, Flame, and Brooks notice them?" Gabby asks. "That's worked in the past, but with those three being magicians as well, they'd definitely notice the traps we lay. They'd probably dissolve the magics in them, too."

"Only Caleb would be a real threat, there," Mukura says. "The other two aren't at the level where they can simply disarm a magical trap. In addition to that, Flame and I are at a level far above those two, meaning that we can lay traps that cannot be detected. We discussed this on the way, but we plan on spending our free days both planning and focusing on constructing magical traps for the rest of you to place down, to assist with this. Unless Caleb is passing by, they'll be fine."

"However!" I add. "Caleb's currently mourning the death of someone he saw as a brother! So we probably have awhile before he'll actually get involved directly! Hopefully, it'll be long enough for us to… we're doomed!"

Everyone stares at me.

"We have to go," I say. "Until we kill everyone on the other side, no exemptions! Or until all of us are dead! We're never gonna kill Caleb, no matter what form he's taking! Alright, people! We're going to be exploring this place and training the crap out of ourselves in the hopes that as a united force, we might be able to contain the natural calamity that is Caleb Rivers!"

We'll definitely need to train our butts off for that!

We'll still probably lose, but it'll be fun, all of us taking Caleb on at once!

"There's one more thing," Mukura steps up. "Which can probably change the game vastly. There is a second way to beat this. We aren't supposed to know about it, and the Phantom Field we're contained within prevents discussion of it or spreading its knowledge, but that won't affect someone like Flame and myself… or Caleb and Jared, the latter of whom will be able to for different reasons."

A secret way to win? Cool!

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

~~~(Brooks)~~~

"Hold up," I say. "What do you mean?"

"I mean just that," Jared says. "The magics woven into this place will prevent discussion of it, but because of how I know, I'm excluded. It's safe to say that, with the powers that Mukura has, he knows about it as well and can tell others. Caleb likely knows as well, and can ignore the magics preventing its discussion."

"A secret win condition?" I ask. "That magic prevents us from being able to discuss? Is that even possible?"

"Considering the powers that would've been required to make the Phantom Fields we use?" Jared asks. "Yes, it is. It's part of why no one's really found out about it, even though they do this test every year. A few groups win that way."

Everyone murmurs for a few moments.

"So what's this other way?" Owen asks.

"Underneath both bases," Jared says. "Is a generator that powers that half of the city. Anything electronic in that half of the city runs off of it. Streetlights at night, any buildings with power, vending machines, et cetera. Communication signals are also reliant on those generators to function, though that's mostly due to the towers providing the relay being powered by them as well."

"So we can target their towers?" Someone asks, and I look over at them.

"That is probably one of the most moronic things I have ever heard," I say. "And considering who my twin is, that's saying a lot."

"No, we can't," Jared says. "Taking out the towers takes out our communications as well. We're all run through the same ones, as I explained earlier, when going over the information we have on the tablets.

"The alternate victory method," I say. "Would be to destroy the other team's generator, isn't it?"

"Indeed," Jared nods. "Which means that we'd need to first locate their base's entrances, then their secret entrances, then get inside the base itself, then locate the entrance to the stairs down to the generator, then destroy it. Shutting it off just means it can be turned back on, so the alternate victory condition will be shutting it off."

Everyone talks for a few minutes, then someone asks what the plan will be.

"First," Jared says. "We'll map out the city. Parker – you can read any stone or dirt around you, right?"

"Yes, " the kid who told us about the hidden base beneath us responds. "However, my sister, Gabby, is on their team, so she'd know I can do that. She specializes in illusion magics."

"That's fine," Jared says. "Once the barrier goes down and we can head to the other side of the city, you start scanning the ground for it. Report back on what you find and where you are. Odds are that they'll want to keep you away from the base, but also make you think somewhere else is the base. We can put that together to find out where it is."

"Can't Caleb scan the city with his Passive Territory?" One of the girls asks.

"The Phantom Barrier prevents that," I shake my head. "The magician who constructed these training areas was very powerful, and made the training regions for the GSDF and GMDF akin to Ruins with the sole purpose of nullifying the Abilities of Territories and Creators. He's mostly useless here until he figures out how to bypass that."

"Speaking of Caleb," she asks. "Where did he go?"

"He's dealing with the voices in his head," Jared says.

Voices in his head? Everyone looks at him in confusion, though he doesn't seem to notice.

"They'll likely be looking for our generator as well," Jared says. "Making this the first Mock City Battle for the Youth Divisions where the goal isn't actually to wipe out the other side, but to take out their generator. They know they can't take on Caleb, even if they have Flame and Mukura. He taught them their magics, and while they might seem like monsters due to the absurdity of their powers, which have outshone pretty much all of the magics Caleb's ever done before… Caleb is easily more powerful than them. And that's with most of his magic locked up behind powerful binds and seals."

And that's the terrifying thing.

"So," Jared continues. "We'll need to keep them away from our base as well. They'll expect Caleb and me to be near it, as a central commander, so when it's time to pass through the barrier, I'll relocate elsewhere. This will also allow me to interact with the other side without leading anyone back to base."

"What about Caleb?" Someone asks.

"Caleb can become completely unnoticed if he wishes," I say. "He mastered the art of hiding through magic before he joined the GSDF, because it was easier for him to avoid fighting than it was for him to confront enemies… or bullies. The way I hear it, even Jared got hit with that."

"He wasn't completely concealing himself," Jared shakes his head. "I told you that, and I know Caleb never mentions it, since he sees failing to hide himself completely then as a failure in him, so it can't be said he was overstating what he did.

"Anyway," Jared looks out across all of us. "We'll be dividing up into teams. I'll have three others accompanying me at all times. Brooks, Owen, Parker, Katherine, and Nina – you five will be the first team. Your goal will be to locate their base. If you run into Flame or Mukura, summon me immediately and run. You will not be able to handle them, even if it's just one of them."

They'll likely be going around on their own. Mukura would be the one most likely to find our base, taking into account his mirror magics.

As Jared starts giving out the group assignments, I feel a subtle shifts in the magic around us, and look at Jared, who seems oblivious to them. Considering how much better at sensing magics than me, he had to have felt that.

His lack of response says he was expecting it, though. He would have shifted if he weren't, even if it was only slight. He's a good actor, but magic suddenly shifting around us would definitely cause him to react.

Which means he was expecting this. Even if Caleb's mourning right now, he's still communicating, at least with Jared. That must be what Jared meant when he said 'voices in his head' – he's been talking with Caleb this entire time.

Reading the magics in the air, I do my best to figure out what Caleb did, but they're the exact same as they were on our way here. His magic is too subtle, as always. On a hunch, I try my hand at telepathy again.

Jared? I push, focusing on him the way Caleb taught us.

You finally managed it, he responds as he answers a question someone asked him.

What is Caleb really doing?

I'm not sure where he's at, Jared says. But he's dealing with some stuff right now. The only help he'll be for awhile is creating the barrier around the three entrances to our base, as well as hiding the base itself. It's only illusionary, but it should do the trick, for the most part. The goal is to fool Mukura, so Caleb's laying out illusions not just at the entrances, but on the paths leading to them. They're set to fool those who don't have an Ability, he said.

What voices were you referring to? I ask.

Oh, right, he shifts his eyes to me for a moment, then returns to discussing things with the others. Caleb has six older brothers. I guess you're the last of us to find out, though Kieran never did. Flame and I both know, as does Owen. These other brothers have about as much dragon in them as Caleb, but they seem more draconic. It was one of them that took Flame's arm in exchange for his Ability being released back into magic, as well as the intense flood of knowledge he acquired. Same for Mukura, only with his sight instead.

Caleb's talking with them here? I ask. Doesn't the Sage's Phantom Barrier prevent stuff like that?

Normally, Jared responds. But Caleb has a connection with his brothers that can't be severed, it seems. They're constantly in his head, at all times. They may well be the reason why it seems like he lives in different timelines.

If Caleb's connected to six other people on a more raw level than would normally be possible, closer to the core – or even there – it would certain explain that. Especially if each of them has as much power or more than he does. It would explain why he could tell something was wrong with history.

And why he sometimes has a hard time keeping a story straight. Having seven streams of thought running through his head must be tough. With the commcuffs on our ears, we'd only have between one and five, and that'd be easy to tune out – and that's if they are talking at the time.

Five…

"Jared?" I ask, and he looks over at me. "How come your team only has four members to it, while the rest of us have five? Who isn't on a team?"

"Caleb," he answers. "With him mourning right now, he's not up for combat or scouting. Hopefully, he'll be ready in a few days, though if he is, he'll be having another project to take care of."

"Another project?" Owen asks.

"Yeah," Jared nods. "He won't tell me what it is, though. Alright! Do we have any questions?"

Jared answers a few more questions, then dismisses everyone to go to their assignments for now and start the city's exploration. I look at him, and he gives me a slight nod.

I don't know what Caleb's going to do if he finishes mourning enough for him to actively participate, but even without that, his illusions will be powerful on their own, especially if they're meant to fool a monster like Mukura.

Turning, I head out with my team.