My Diary

It was around 3 AM when Pell's instructions arrived, and it took thirty-four minutes before the three of us had left the church.

Today I wonder if any correction in the sequence of events would've changed the outcome.

We were already in the CityPilot when Kai was finally able to get out the comment about the red hair that had been on the tip of his tongue the whole time.

"That actually looks damn cool," Kai said. "Suits your style."

"Like a hero?"

"Like the hero this city deserves."

We were still laughing there. Maybe against the tension. Maybe because we sensed something was going to happen.

"How long until the explosion, roughly?"

"Over twenty-four hours," I answered.

"That's enough," Kai said confidently.

The area got more restless the further we drove into the center. We covered the last two kilometers on foot. Even though it was still pitch dark — or probably precisely because of it — the unrest was audible not too far away.

Dull blows from a blunt weapon.

Shots from an MJ86 or a similar model.

And scattered sounds that humans don't normally make.

When we stood in front of the double fence of the complex, the sunrise had just begun. The morning dew was already in the air. The coldest part of the night had arrived.

"And we just get in with our WristChip?" Kai asked.

"Yeah," I answered. "Plus the drones should allow our faces in all areas. And even the guard bots in the innermost section have been shut down for the next few hours."

So Pell hadn't just given us access — he'd essentially bypassed the entire security system.

"We just have to be careful with the actual guards. Our identities aren't stored in the local databases. If a guard gets suspicious, we're done."

We looked for a side entrance. One where only machines were monitoring the gates.

"Over there. That one looks good."

We found our entrance quickly.

Just one gate and one sensor between us and the grounds.

But it's always that first moment. The one where you know: either it works, or you turn around.

Breathe. Stay calm.

I held my wrist under the scanner and the machine went about its business.

It took just long enough that I started mentally preparing for the worst case.

But then you heard the rumble and the gate slid open.

Inside, two guard bots stood at the entrance. The four-legged models that can move quickly on open ground. Drones watched from the air. And cameras sat on most elevated posts as well.

We spoke quietly and walked one behind the other, as inconspicuously as possible.

"Nothing gets past the people here."

"That's why it's good we're wearing the uniforms."

A delivery drone had brought us guard uniforms earlier this morning. We'd even been given a remote team with access to the camera feeds. Pell had thought of pretty much everything.

Kai waved briefly at a camera.

"Hello there," appeared as a message on our display.

"Come on now. No time for dawdling."

Kai's little gift proved especially valuable. Pell had sent us the complete infrastructure plans of the complex digitally. The lenses showed the way and even room outlines behind walls.

The grounds were large and we still had a long way to go. So we walked a step faster. Enough distance from the guards. But still slow enough not to draw attention.

"Hey," a guard suddenly called from the side.

He moved toward us.

"I don't think I've seen you around here before," he began. "Are you three the new ones?"

Improvise. Fast.

"Yeah, exactly," I answered quickly. "Just started."

"Then let's grab a coffee sometime. I'll tell you a bit about the facility here. I'm sure you could learn a lot."

His tone was slightly flirtatious.

So I stepped one step closer.

Personal space.

"What's your name?"

"Benjamin. And yours?"

"Okay, Ben. Here's the thing," I answered. "I'll tell you my name next time. But for now we have to hurry. The boss is waiting for us. And we don't want to make a bad impression right at the start, do we?"

Ben swallowed once. "Sure."

We walked on and Kai threw me a crooked look.

"That was the easiest solution," I countered.

At some point we saw the massive rectangular building that the lens had been guiding us toward the entire time.

We took a few more steps closer, when suddenly three messages popped up on the display one after another.

"STOP."

"Assembly at the entrance area."

"Wait briefly. Rerouting to side entrance."

Three seconds passed. Three seconds in which I noticed my pulse was higher than usual.

I'd been away too long.

Then the route suggestion updated on our display. It led us on the most efficient path to the side entrance of the main building.

"Wait. This is where the flickering in the air starts."

"Already here? Do you know how far we are from the energy storage? That's still a long way."

"Yeah. I know."

"What does that mean?"

"It means the rift must be very large," Kai answered, concerned.

Don't doubt. Keep going.

"The MagComputer and the access to the energy storage are in there. It's not far now. We've got this."

We refocused on the here and now and entered the building.

Pell's team and data proved invaluable in here.

We could see the winding corridors behind the walls. And the team actively warned us about guards.

"HOLD."

"QUICK AROUND THE CORNER."

"INTO THE ROOM."

It was hectic but went exactly according to plan.

At some point we finally walked through the large corridor that brought us into the bunker-like core of the building. Two massive security gates had been waiting for us in this corridor. All open.

"We never would've made it through there with a large-scale operation," Kai said as we caught our breath on the other side.

"The gates are designed to withstand the worst attacks."

We followed the route on the display for a few more minutes. Careful and tactical as before. Until we finally arrived at the large open freight elevator. This platform could fit not just people, but entire vehicles.

"On this level are the monitoring rooms. Below that is the MagComputer. At the very bottom, the energy storage units are waiting."

We waited for the signal from Pell's team.

"NOW."

We ran to the control panel. One sensor for the WristChip. One for biometrics.

It had been clear from the start that the connection would drop down there.

And as we stood in front of the lift menu, the last message came.

"WE HAVE TO SAY GOODBYE HERE. GOOD LUCK."

Up to this point, everything important had gone perfectly according to plan.

But could they have helped us down there?

I clicked on the lowest level and the lift began to move.

For the first four levels it was still slow. Those were the levels where, through the open AR lens, you could take in the full scale of the MagComputer.

Four levels completely filled with server racks, massive fans, cooling shafts, and cable ducts.

"I'd imagined the MagComputer differently."

"Did you think it was a small computer under a desk?"

"No. A big one."

At the end of the fourth level, the lift accelerated.

The lens displayed the depth.

"-28 meters."

"-31 meters."

"-33 meters."

"-36 meters."

And then stopped displaying at around -41 meters, when the signal dropped.

The large platform rushed deeper and deeper through the shaft.

Lamps on the walls flew by and grew fewer. The light turned more yellow and shifted to orange. The temperature dropped.

"Almost like the church," Kai joked.

Kai had his shoulders slightly raised. Like always when he was focused.

Then we stowed the light pistols from the guard uniforms and put on the Gatekeeper weapons we'd smuggled in underneath.

"No machine armor can withstand the MJ90X. That's what the weapon was designed for."

And everything waiting for us down there would be machines. Almost everything.

Suddenly there was a jolt.

The platform came to an unexpected stop in the middle of the shaft.

"What happened? We're not there yet."

"I don't know, but the flickering here is already very strong."

I looked down over the side of the platform.

"It's about twenty meters more."

"And what do we do now?"

I pointed at the maintenance ladder on the shaft wall that had been accompanying us from the top.

"You're serious, aren't you?"

I nodded.

"But you know I'm afraid of heights?"

I nodded again. "You can do this."

So we took the ladder step by step. Twenty meters down.

"Like we discussed: don't look down!"

When we finally reached the bottom, it wasn't much further.

"Wait. Kai, your eyes have started glowing."

He shook his head.

"We don't have time for that now. Save your energy!"

Kai had made his decision and we kept moving.

We hid behind a corner.

Four guard bots stood at the entrance.

"Guys."

Something's not right here.

Three of the bots sat deactivated in their positions.

"Why is that guard bot active?!"

The fourth was running around erratically. From its position to the left wall. Then it spun around once and ran at full speed into the opposite wall. Even though it got stuck there, its legs kept running.

"I don't think it's a threat. It's got a few circuits loose."

"Should we shut it down anyway?"

"No! The guard bots report to the system constantly — whether on or off. The moment one stops transmitting, the alarm goes off."

We agreed quickly.

"Let's keep moving. It's not far now."

Just past the guard bots lay what was perhaps the largest underground room I will ever enter.

Hundreds of meters long. Thirty meters high.

Massive cylindrical containers in rows. All of them threaded with pipes connecting floor to ceiling. The vibration was almost visible. Orange light filled the room.

A cathedral of concrete and steel.

And we didn't have to search.

The moment we entered the room, I could see it right away.

Your expression.

Your look of disbelief.

"What is it? What do you see, Reo?" I asked.

You shook your head hard.

"That's it," you said. "I'm sorry. I can't do this."

First silence. Then the panic in your voice.

"I think we should just turn around. We storm Warren's estate, I heal him, and once he's come to his senses, we get the evacuation started."

"You want to evacuate over a million people?" I countered. "Millions of people who will lose their homes when these storage units explode? Not to mention we have no idea if we can stand up to Warren's technical and military support. Within minutes the place will be swarming with Gatekeepers and drones."

"What if we just sneak in? Like here? Pell can surely..."

Kai didn't let you finish. He grabbed you by the collar and pressed you against the wall.

Kai had never really been the type to lose his temper quickly.

"Pull yourself together now, boy!" he shouted. "There is no plan B! There is no Warren! We've been searching for this rift forever and we're closing it today! And you know why?!"

He loosened his grip. The shock was still on your face.

"Because we believe in you, boy. I've seen you do incredible things. You can do this."

I nodded in agreement.

"If anyone can do this, it's you, Reo. I've trained you for months and I've never seen anyone make progress this fast. You have the gift. And you're ready."

In that moment I actually wasn't sure if you were ready.

I'm sorry. I lied down there.

But if I hadn't, you might have given up before you even tried.

This way, it only took a few seconds before your doubts were gone.

"Okay," you said. "The rift is almost fifteen meters. This is going to take a while."

You got into position and we both drew our weapons. Just as a precaution.

"Ready?"

"Are you?"

"Have to be."

You could always tell from your right hand whether you were using your abilities.

I don't even know if you ever noticed.

When you concentrate hard, you clench your right hand into a fist.

And the harder you push, the redder it gets.

In that moment it was already dark red.

Then all of the lights in the hall began to flicker.

Kai and I looked at each other for a moment.

"That's new," he said, scanning the hall frantically.

A moment later you were swaying on your feet. The lights didn't stabilize, but the flickering slowed down.

Kai steadied you.

"Can you still go? Do you need a break?"

"I don't think we have time for that. The Corruption is infecting everything in the vicinity."

"What are you talking about? Edda said it infects humans and large energy systems."

You were dizzy, but you still wanted to talk.

"Edda was wrong. The Corruption infects everything," you said. "The lift? The bot at the entrance? All the Corruption."

You thought for a moment.

"At the assassination attempt on Warren, a detector was flickering. Only now do I understand what I saw there."

Kai grabbed his head.

"We need to think."

"We're running out of time. The glow in your eyes is getting stronger, Kai. I don't know if I can heal you and still close the rift after."

"What do you suggest?"

"I try again. Until the rift is closed."

Kai and I were now focused on the surroundings while you approached the rift again.

Every aisle between the storage units was monitored by us. As far as four eyes and two pairs of legs could manage.

When the flickering started again, you gave in shortly after.

The rumbling in the pipes had gotten louder.

"How far do you get?"

"Barely two thirds."

Your hands were on your knees.

"But it's even worse. The narrower the rift gets, the more concentrated the Corruption flows onto the surroundings."

"Meaning?"

"I think it's accelerating the infection of the energy storage. Massively."

"Don't scare me now and just close the damn rift," Kai said, still frantically scanning the room.

"Okay. Give me one very last time."

Just as you started, I saw his expression.

Kai must have noticed I was getting more restless. He looked me deep in the eyes. A sincere smile. A small wink.

Then the lights began to flicker again. Violently. Rapidly.

An orange light show in rhythm with your fight.

The pipes began to shake. Harder than before.

You screamed. Loud. Probably just to keep from collapsing.

And then I saw the shock on Kai's face.

He was staring at the entrance. Then he started running in your direction.

Before I saw anything, I heard it. The hum of servomotors. Metal legs extending. Paws on concrete.

I turned around.

There they stood.

The three guard bots that had been sitting deactivated in their positions before. Their barrels were turning in our direction.

Weapon up. Fast.

Number one was taken out.

Next.

Number two also took a precise hit.

GO.

Number three was too fast.

Four shots.

My back was turned to you. But from the impact and the sound he made, I already knew.

I pulled the trigger and finished the last machine.

When I turned my head, I saw your disbelief in the orange neon light.

The rage. The fear. The shock.

But your focus didn't break.

And in the middle of all those emotions, your will emerged.

When you saw Kai on the ground, something must have shifted inside you.

I saw the glow in your eyes.

And the clenched right fist on your arm.

It became clear to me in that moment.

You can do this. You're ready. I believe in you, Reo.

More than I've ever believed in anything.

The lights raged and the shaking of the pipes grew louder and louder.

The rift must have fought back hard.

Until the next moment the entire facility exploded.

But that one instant stretched across half an eternity.

You'd told me about your struggles with process deceleration.

Now you'd managed to freeze the entire moment.

Nothing stirred.

No sound. No rumbling.

Silence.

Metal debris hung frozen in space.

A massive dark cloud of dust, laced with flames, that didn't move any further.

No flickering. No shimmering.

And your body rested before it.

Timeless.

Before the moment ended, I saw the trembling in your hands. And then the fist that opened.

The explosion retreated. The debris settled back where it came from. The lights stabilized.

You were still standing. One second. Two seconds.

Then the strength left your body and you fell beside the man who had sacrificed himself for you.

Before I could pull myself together, the alarm went off.

That was my wake-up call. I ran to you and tried everything I could.

I didn't know where to start.

But you were breathing and your pulse was still there.

So I turned to the person I had confessed my love to just the night before.

His protective vest had caught two shots when he'd jumped in front of you.

One shot hit him in the arm.

The other in the neck.

He was lying on the ground. I leaned over him.

"You can't die, Kai," I said, as I realized this was where it would end.

Tears ran down my cheek.

"What am I supposed to do without you?"

With his last strength, Kai formed a smile.

The Kai smile, as you would call it.

The kind of smile that had always given the people of Canfield hope.

Only blood was flowing from his mouth at the same time.

Then he pointed his finger at you.

His last seconds after that belonged to me.

---

It wasn't long before the guards reached us.

They recognized the situation and administered first aid with me until the paramedics arrived.

The situation in the city calmed down immediately.

When the rift was closed, the Corruption disappeared from everyone it had infected. Including Warren.

The rebellion in the streets stopped.

The lockdown is over.

We won't be charged. Neither for breaking in nor for property damage. Warren put in a good word for us with those responsible for the MagLane complex.

But that doesn't matter right now.

Only one thing matters:

That you finally wake up.

You've been unconscious in Neon Cross for over thirty hours.

But you can't leave me too.

Please don't.

And we still have to find out where you come from.

So wake up, Reo.

Wake up already.

After the others were evacuated, Kai and Aya came to the church. Since then we've been waiting for a message from Pell. And every time we become aware that he could reach out any moment, the moment is already over again.

"Dammit! Why is this taking so long," Kai called out impatiently.

I'd never seen him like that.

But it's not exactly a standard situation when half the city is about to explode.

"I'm guessing because we only have one shot and it's about more than just access," Aya answered.

"Like what?" I wanted to know.

"The complex is full of security measures," she began. "Getting through the entrance is one thing. Preventing every robot and human from shooting at us is another."

"Reo could just use his powers and fling everything in the area out of the way," Kai said ironically, playfully acting out the scene.

Aya and I laughed at that.

"Great idea. We buy him a minute before it kicks in, and then carry Mister Blackout on our shoulders."

"Exactly," Kai said grinning, grabbing a few pistachios.

"Where did you even find those pistachios?" I wanted to know.

"Right cabinet, top shelf, behind the mountain of mugs."

I was amazed at how quickly Kai had turned the kitchen upside down to find something to snack on.

"I think you found Kovun's secret stash that Diona's been looking for forever."

Kai shrugged and took a few more nuts.

"It's not that I search that hard. No. The snacks just want to come to me."

"I'd say that's love in both directions," Aya said.

He stuck his tongue out at her.

She stuck hers back.

Both grinned at each other.

"What do you think about it being just the three of us?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Pell probably could've given us half an army and we would've just stormed in."

"Maybe he'll have to do that in the end if we don't hear from him soon," Aya answered. "But a large operation is much riskier here. With a big group you can't do it covertly and I have no idea what Warren would order if he caught wind of it. All Gatekeepers and drones at once as defense against terrorist efforts? A targeted airstrike?"

"Either way he'd have all the main emergency doors sealed and I don't know if we'd still make it down there," Kai added.

Aya nodded.

"And one more person? I asked Carver yesterday. He said there's a reason he's not an active Gatekeeper anymore."

"Carver would've been a good choice. Intelligent man. Well trained. I just bet Kai sees it differently."

Kai scoffed.

"Good guess. Carver can't be relied on. I'd rather do this without him."

"You've never told me what happened between you two," I said, amused by his uncharacteristically annoyed reaction.

He thought for a moment.

"That's a story for another time."

Then Kai suddenly stood up. "I just remembered, I've got something for you."

He left the room for a few seconds and came back with a small cardboard box. Maybe the size of a pack of pistachios.

Aya seemed to recognize from the format alone what had to be inside.

"Let's see if he likes it."

He smiled and pressed the box into my hands.

AR Lens read the beautifully designed packaging.

"You still don't have your memories back and we have no idea where you come from," Kai began. "You're still clinging to the past, but slowly I get the feeling you've found a place where you belong. A city you know your way around. And these lenses are a step into the future."

I swallowed and glanced at Kai.

A few seconds later the grin came.

"Since when are you this melodramatic?" I asked him, laughing.

He laughed too. "If you don't want them, I can take them back."

I shook my head and they helped me set up the lens over the next hour, connecting it to my WristChip so it could register my hand gestures for controls.

When I put it on, I suddenly saw the world the way the others saw it. Behind a battery indicator and with menus you could expand.

"You'll have to take it out at night to charge," Kai said. "But there are also a lot of people who have lenses like these integrated directly into their eyes."

"Maybe in a few years," I said jokingly.

"There are enough people out there who've optimized their bodies with a lot of money," Aya said sarcastically. "Just stay as much human as you can."

"Naturally imperfect?" Kai asked teasingly.

"Exactly that," she said smiling and stood up.

It was about nine o'clock.

"I'd like to head out quickly once Pell gives us the go," Aya said and hugged me. Then she gave Kai a kiss on the cheek and looked at him intently for a moment. "So don't stay up too late."

He had to smile and looked her straight in the eyes.

"I'll be there soon, promise."

She nodded and walked off.

"Good night, boys."

"Good night, Aya," we both called after her in sync.

Kai stood up, went to the kitchen, and came back with two beers. Non-alcoholic.

"Oho," I said. "Being responsible tonight?"

"The mission is too important. This is all I can afford, unfortunately."

He took a first sip, made a face, but then nodded it off.

"What are you going to do when all of this is over?" I wanted to know.

"First I'm grabbing Aya and then we're going on a long vacation. A month. Minimum. Somewhere out in nature. Or on a beach," he said. "And as soon as we're back, the next big task will be waiting."

"And that would be?"

"Helping you finally figure out where you come from."

I smiled but stayed quiet.

In truth my hope was that God would finally speak to me or Arlo, that she would finally answer my questions.

But Kai didn't know about God. I'd never told him. Aya neither. And certainly not anyone else.

Only I'd unfortunately missed my chance to get Amari's blessing for it.

I wanted to take other people's secrets seriously too.

Even if it meant keeping something from my best friend.

"You're not saying anything," Kai said. "You don't suffer from it as much as in the beginning either, do you?"

I shook my head.

"I have too few memories to really miss anything. And the unbearable feeling of being in a foreign world has dulled. So no. Suffering is the wrong word. I only suffer when it hits me again that my entire past is missing."

"You mean things like your first kiss? Or your first broken heart?"

"Something like that," I said and took a sip.

"Overrated," Kai answered curtly. "And besides, those are all memories you can make brand new now. You just need the right girl."

He thought for a moment.

"Wait. How's it going with the nurse, actually?"

I had to grin.

"Meeting up isn't exactly allowed right now, but we text a lot. Apart from the fact that we have to save the city first."

My stomach dropped for a second when I remembered that Neon Cross was in the blast radius too. I couldn't even think about failing.

"Does she know you're a hero? And that you're saving her for a second time right now?"

I laughed.

"No, of course not. I can't just tell her that. How would that even come across?"

"Yeah, you're right. But have you ever thought about getting a hero look?"

"What's that supposed to be? A tight costume and a cape?"

Kai laughed.

"No, that'd be way too cliché. You need something that stands out. So that everyone sees you right away and knows: it's safe here. Reo is here."

"A bunch of tattoos and piercings?"

He squinted.

"That's not that eye-catching. Do you even still notice them? For me they just blend in by now."

I thought about people I considered very eye-catching. People you'd recognize in any crowd.

Aya came to mind.

"How about red hair?" I asked him directly.

"That could work," Kai thought out loud. "Would probably even suit you. Maybe not completely red, but at least a bit."

I took a sip of the non-alcoholic.

"Well, back to the topic," Kai continued. "Your past: what else do you miss?"

I didn't have to think long.

"I have no memories of my parents. And did I have siblings? I might never have had any, but I'm suffering right now anyway, simply because I don't know. Not knowing is shit."

He nodded.

"The not knowing part I get. But family itself is a complicated thing. Before you know it, you're dumping your broken childhood and twenty years of guilt onto others."

Kai almost never talked about his family.

"I've been fighting with my brother for years and I see my mother maybe once a year. I love them both. Somewhere in me at least. But some things I'd rather forget than keep in my head."

Memories can be shit too, I thought, and realized how much I still didn't know about him.

"At least I have you guys," I started. "You're the family I can't remember."

Kai smiled wide.

Suddenly there was a knock on the doorframe. Aya stood in the door.

"Are you coming? I can't sleep."

Kai nodded understandingly, took a last sip, and stood up.

"Of course," he said smiling and Aya walked off.

As he stood at the exit, he turned around one more time.

"Hey," he said.

"Hmm?"

"The beer wasn't half bad."

Amari crouched down next to me while most of the others were still packing.

"I can't believe you're being evacuated right now," I started.

"He's just very cautious. That's all."

Diona called out in a frenzy across half the church. "What must I absolutely not forget?"

"Your WristChip," Edda called back, having just dragged a small bag into the prayer hall.

"Ha ha. Very funny. Seriously though?"

"The church isn't in the blast zone, Diona. There shouldn't be any major damage here anyway, we'll be back soon."

"Are you sure?" Kovun asked. "These walls are pretty old."

Edda looked at him critically for a moment. Then she nodded and scurried off. "Damn. Then I still need to pack some of the records."

Kovun just said "I think I'm still missing a bottle. One of the good ones" and headed toward the kitchen.

"One of the good what?" I wanted to know.

He shrugged and kept walking.

Amari laughed.

The next moment the old priest and I were alone in the prayer hall.

It was quiet.

"What if I can't do it?" I asked him, my gaze still on the door Kovun had just walked through.

He didn't answer for a few seconds.

Then he smiled gently and turned to me.

"You know, my boy. Sometimes faith is half the battle," he said. "She believes in you. We do. And it's time you finally start believing too."

I nodded. "I'll try."

"Don't try. Just believe."

Suddenly Arlo came running into the main hall. Rowana called after him: "Hey! No running in the prayer hall, young man!"

Worse things have happened here, I thought, and was glad the boy didn't know about Samantha.

Arlo just laughed and kept running.

Rowana set her bags down and chased after the nimble child. But she couldn't catch him. Three quarters of it show, one quarter owed to heavy bones.

He finally ran to me and stopped.

"Let me fly again, Reo. Please," he demanded.

I'd let Arlo hover a few centimeters off the ground with my abilities a few days ago. He'd loved it.

Rowana looked at me sideways.

"You did what?"

I stared at the little boy with wide eyes. "You were supposed to keep that to yourself!" I whispered loudly and slightly panicked.

"Oops," he said dryly.

Rowana snorted.

"Easy, Rowana. I think by now Reo knows best what he's capable of."

She took one deep breath.

"You're right. Maybe I should learn to loosen up a bit."

From outside the building you could suddenly hear a quiet hum. It slowly grew stronger but never really got loud.

Rowana checked at the door.

"It's here," she called out finally.

Pell had sent the SkyPilot to pick up the others.

I'd only ever seen those things from a distance before. High up in the sky.

The rest came running with their luggage. Kovun had a bottle of something in his hand. And Edda had dragged along a massive suitcase with both hands on top of everything else.

"Leave the suitcase here, Edda. You won't need it," Amari said confidently.

"And what if something goes wrong?"

"That's not going to happen," Diona added. "Right, Reo?"

I nodded.

"Besides, that thing outside won't be able to take off with the suitcase," Kovun said, patting Edda on the back.

She grinned slightly. Mentally she still wasn't thrilled with the idea.

"Okay, then I'll just leave it here," she said, hands on her hips, half convinced.

"Come on now," Rowana called impatiently. "That thing won't wait forever."

One after another said goodbye to me. Long hugs and encouraging words.

"Come on, people. This isn't a farewell, we'll see Reo again soon. So let's go!"

Edda, Kovun, and Diona were practically shooed out of the main hall by Rowana.

Then Rowana squeezed me tight.

"As soon as you have the access, you go. In, down, close the rift, done. Understood?"

"Understood," I confirmed, smiling.

She took the boy by the hand and walked off.

"Wait, Arlo," I said to the prophet.

I knelt down on one knee to his level.

"Do you think when all of this is over, she'll speak to us again?"

He placed both hands on my shoulders. For a moment he looked almost grown up.

"Yes, I think when it's all over, she'll speak again."

I stroked the boy's head and they walked on.

Amari nodded at Rowana and stayed with me for another second.

"Ask me one more time," he said quietly.

It took me a moment to form the words.

"Who is Pell really, Amari?"

Amari looked at Arlo, who was standing at the main entrance waving goodbye.

The boy laughed. As happy as always.

"Julian Pell is Arlo's father."

I didn't know what to say.

"I'm sorry. I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone. And I take other people's secrets very seriously. That's my duty."

"Then why now?"

"I told him that I'm convinced you can be trusted."

He slowly stood up.

"When all of this is over, he'll want to meet you. He said I can tell you now."

Amari laughed. "He's not some criminal mafia fanatic, or whatever you'd been imagining about him."

Then he held me for a long time and slowly walked off.

"Will you pray for me, Amari?" I called after him.

The old man slowly turned around as he walked.

"I'll pray for you if you promise me you'll start believing."

I had to smile.

"Deal."

May 12, 2026

After our meeting yesterday, Amari had apparently contacted Tolep.

The results are...

"The energy storage will explode."

Terrible.

"In approximately four days."

Panic was written across the faces in the crisis room.

Panic and a chunk of disbelief.

"Where did you get this?" Rowana called out.

"I don't want to make a secret of it. Tolep put a team on the MagComputer and sent me the data and analyses."

Amari spoke in a controlled, calm manner. The way he always did.

Apparently even when the city is going under.

"Edda, can you take over here?"

Edda was the only one among us who looked more weighed down than panicked.

She nodded and slowly stood up.

"Tolep's team compared the telemetry data of the affected energy storage with that of the exploded hydrogen reactor. Shortly before the explosion, the reactor's storage units showed the exact same anomalies. And from that they were able to extrapolate when the storage will explode."

Normally Edda presented her facts with a certain expressiveness. But today she seemed different. Somehow helpless.

"Did you double-check that?" Aya asked in disbelief.

Edda looked around the room and shook her head.

"I don't know what you all think of me. But I'm not a universal genius," she said, desperate. "I'm interested in a lot of things, sure, but I've never evaluated telemetry data from a reactor!"

She dropped into her chair.

"But those were undoubtedly experts at work. The AI tool claims so, at least."

Aya nodded slowly.

"The energy storage is underground. That has to help, right?" Diona wanted to know.

Edda just shook her head.

"I said it yesterday. It doesn't help. With an explosion of this scale, it probably makes it even worse."

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"According to the analyses I have, it means half of Canfield."

"'Half of Canfield' as in 'half of Canfield feels a slight tremor'?" Diona pressed.

Edda stared silently at the floor.

"Edda?"

She took one deep breath and looked at Diona.

"'Half of Canfield' as in 'half of Canfield is rubble afterward,'" Edda finally answered. "The Gates of New Haven will feel the tremor. And the estimated number of casualties is close to a hundred thousand."

My hands were shaking.

The group was speechless.

Only Amari managed to move his lips.

"This is a serious matter, I know. But Reo can do this. He's already closed many rifts. We just need a way to get there."

Rowana shook her head firmly.

"No, that's not enough! People need to be evacuated immediately! Imagine we don't pull this off. That's simply too much responsibility for one person."

Amari looked at her.

"Tolep has already contacted various emergency coordination centers."

"And?!"

Edda answered in Amari's place: "Warren is contradicting him. He's denying everything. He says everything is under control and that Tolep doesn't even have access to the real data."

I squinted. Something was very wrong here. Warren was a politician, but not an idiot.

"How come they can reach Warren but we can't?" Kovun asked loudly.

"Because that's the city's damn emergency coordination center," Aya answered. "Warren probably has a dedicated line just for that."

Kovun scoffed. "Then you should really go see him in person right now."

Aya was about to counter, but Amari raised his hand.

"Please stay calm. We have four days," the old priest spoke. "And please let me remind all of you that Reo was sent to us by God to overcome exactly this crisis."

He seemed to look everyone in the eyes at once.

"This is not a moment for doubt. This is the moment to realize that everything so far has gone according to her plan."

Even Aya seemed somehow receptive to Amari's words.

"I suggest we stick to the existing strategy. Only now we hurry." Amari turned to me and Aya. "Get your Gatekeeper friend here as quickly as possible. And then head to Warren. We have to try in person."

---

Kai had worked until late at night. Due to the chaos on the streets, all Gatekeepers were stretched thin.

By noon he finally managed to pick us up.

Aya gave him a kiss.

A few weeks ago I would've looked away. Today there were worse things than my heartache.

"You look terrible," she said smiling and sat down next to him in the back.

"You have no idea how much sleep I've had."

"City hall square. Fast, please," I said to the car before addressing Kai's comment. "I doubt the next few days will bring much more sleep."

"Great," Kai said ironically and needed a moment to process. "Wait. What are you talking about?"

While the CityPilot flew to Warren, I filled Kai in on the latest information.

He was wide awake after that.

---

The CityPilot dropped us off just past the innermost ring. Driving through downtown was out of the question.

We tried to avoid contact with infected people as much as possible. We don't know if we can save them by closing the rift. And we don't know if we'd have to kill them if we encountered them.

Even though we were pretty lucky, we saw three infected people on the city hall square attacking each other. One was defending himself with a cracked glass bottle. We hid behind a building corner.

"It's really like in Carver's records from the Tellow reactor," Kai said to me as we waited for the best moment to move on.

I nodded. "Everyone against everyone."

The mayor's residence wasn't far from there. It had a large wall and a few trees rose behind it. One of those places where you know the owners must be very wealthy.

Aya rang the bell relentlessly.

Nothing stirred.

"What if we climb over the wall?" I asked.

Both looked at me sideways.

"There could be drones or Gatekeepers or other security systems waiting on the other side. That's a really bad idea," Kai said.

"Then what's the suggestion?"

Right at that moment the intercom came on.

"You need to leave!" a man's voice snarled.

I needed a second to place the slightly electronic-sounding voice.

"Warren, is that you?! Let us in! It's urgent!" I shouted into the speaker. "It's about the MagComputer's energy storage."

"What nonsense. Not you people too!"

"Listen to us, Warren," Kai said urgently. "I don't want to be shouting this on the street, but the storage units are going to explode and take half of Canfield with them."

"BULLSHIT! All lies! You just want me to evacuate the city for no reason and then nothing happens!" Warren yelled.

What's wrong with him?

"No, what?" I asked quickly. "Why would we do that?!"

"TO END MY CAREER!!" Warren screamed.

Kai and I looked at each other, baffled.

Suddenly he came onto his balcony. Two Gatekeepers beside him.

"I SAID LEAVE!" he shouted from fifty meters away. "NOW!!"

"Guys, Warren is infected," I added, shocked.

Despite the distance, it was clearly visible.

"Can you heal him from here?" Aya asked quickly.

"I can try."

I don't know if I would've managed it, but before I'd really started, Warren turned around and went back inside.

His voice blared loudly from the intercom.

"IF YOU'RE STILL STANDING HERE IN TEN SECONDS, I'LL SEND THE GATEKEEPERS AFTER YOU!"

Kai signaled us to get out and we hurried away.

"And now?" Aya said.

"Now it gets tricky," Kai said, grinning with exasperation.

I tried to reach Amari.

He was practically already waiting on the other end for exactly this scenario.

"Amari," I started right away. "We can't count on Warren. He's infected and barricaded in his estate."

Amari was calm as always.

"I've spoken with Tolep," he answered.

"He might be able to help us too."

Sometimes miracles show up right on time.

"Reo, I've got something for you," Carver said frantically on the phone. "You once asked me to look into the pattern in the distribution of offenses in Canfield."

"Did you find something?" I almost shouted.

"If you only look at the last two days and disregard everything that happened outside people's own homes, a clear pattern emerges."

"A center?"

"Yes, exactly. The distribution of incidents inside people's homes has a clear center on the map."

"And no one noticed this earlier?"

"I'm truly sorry, for all the victims' families. But if it weren't for the lockdown, this might never have been noticed."

Hard to believe. Warren had unintentionally delivered the decisive puzzle piece.

"Where is it, Nicolas?"

Carver went quiet for a moment.

"At the MagLane computer."

I closed my eyes.

"We've already been there."

"I know," Carver said. "But the data doesn't lie. And I verified it multiple times before I called you."

Short pause.

"I'm not the type to bother clients with half-baked theories. You know that."

Barely after Carver had said it, we found ourselves back in the crisis room. Aya had somehow made it here too. I wasn't surprised though.

"You were already there and didn't see anything," Rowana called out, slightly accusatory.

"Has anything changed since then?" Aya asked.

Edda answered: "No. But I did some more research. The energy storage units are two hundred meters underground. If we assume the rift is there, it's no wonder Reo didn't see anything at the surface. The architects moved them down there because people were afraid of the explosion risk."

"And that helps?" Diona wanted to know.

Edda shook her head.

"No, not really. It's just harder to get to."

"Out of sight, out of mind," Kovun said dryly.

"Hold on," Rowana interrupted. "The MagComputer complex is incredibly well secured." She crossed her arms. "How exactly is Reo supposed to get underneath it?"

"Warren," I said. "He said he'd listen if we had the solution, and here it is. The pattern points right to it. He'll help us."

Rowana scoffed quietly. "And if he doesn't?"

"Then we'll find another way."

Amari nodded.

"And who goes down there with Reo? He's absolutely not going alone."

"I'll go with him," Aya said without hesitation.

Amari looked at her.

"Thank you."

Aya smiled slightly.

"I'm coming too," came from Kovun's direction. "You'll have to take over with Arlo for a few hours, Rowana. I have experience with operations like this and I can help."

Rowana was about to object at first, but then seemed to understand the necessity.

Amari looked around the group.

"Then it's decided. Please reach the mayor now."

He left the room shortly after.

---

"I'll text Kai. He'll definitely want to be there too," I said to Aya outside the door.

Diona was already trying to reach the mayor.

"Fine," Aya answered neutrally.

Diona got quite loud during the call, by her standards. When she was done, she came back to us.

"His secretary — I'm guessing — says he's currently unavailable."

"Did you make clear how urgent this is?" Aya asked.

"Yes. It didn't change anything."

"What if we go in person?" I suggested.

"There's a curfew. If they catch us without clearance, there are serious penalties for that," Aya answered. "After that, so many drones will circle your church that you won't be able to set foot outside."

"But you're here too?" I said to Aya.

"I didn't waltz into the mayor's quarters though!"

"And with Kai?" Diona wondered.

"That would be possible," Aya said. "But he's on duty all evening."

"Okay, proposal. We keep trying to reach Warren. If we don't have him on the line by tomorrow, we go in person with Kai."

The other two agreed.

Since then I've basically been pacing around with my phone to my ear.

Dammit, Warren. What are you doing?

May 10, 2026

"You have no idea what's going on out there," Kai told me, pacing back and forth, stressed. Despite the lockdown he'd come to the church, apparently because he absolutely had to tell me about it.

"People are rebelling in the streets. Rocks, Molotovs, armed attacks. And I don't think it's just infected people."

"Why do you think it's not just infected?"

"First, I've never seen groups of infected, have you?"

I shook my head, thinking.

"Second, some of them are wearing special masks designed to disrupt surveillance cameras."

He exhaled deeply.

"This is too organized for infected people. At least partially."

My gaze drifted briefly to the church window, then back to him.

"I need to get out there, Kai. I need to see it for myself and see if I can help."

"Are you crazy? There are people with weapons out there, boy. No way you're coming with me."

"You took me along on your calls too. Was that completely safe?"

"'Store owner throws can at brat' and 'mother worries about daughter' aren't a great comparison."

"But I was there when Sam lost it. I've gotten a lot stronger since then and I'm not going to let anyone else have to go through something like that."

He stayed quiet, but crossed his arms behind his head and stared at the ceiling of the prayer hall.

Hard to believe I still haven't told him about God to this day.

Does that make me a bad friend?

"I believe I'm here for a reason. And it's only for that reason that God blessed me with this gift."

He looked at me.

"You've never argued with God before. Why start now?"

"I've been living in a church for months. It's a miracle I didn't start sooner."

Kai hesitated, but I doubled down as he opened his lips with a dismissive expression:

"I need to get an overview and see what I can do. Besides, maybe we'll find the source now. Maybe something's changed."

He breathed in deeply.

"And if you don't trust me, then please for once trust God."

Then he breathed out and raised his index finger to my face.

"You stay behind me and you only heal when I explicitly agree. When I say stay, you stay, and when I say run, you run!"

He must have noticed I was about to object.

"This is not up for discussion, boy!"

I nodded.

"Okay."

The streets of Canfield were mostly empty. The occasional car. A woman who smashed a bottle against the window of a small general store. An older man watching everything from a rooftop.

The sky, on the other hand, was not empty. More drones than I'd ever seen. Most of them delivering essential groceries to the countless households.

We drove toward the center, where the unrest was strongest according to Kai.

"Outer center. We're staying in the outer center. That's what I can still justify to myself."

"And if we don't find the source there?"

Kai got louder.

"We already searched the entire district center! We even went to the MagLane computer. Nothing!"

He looked ahead at the road.

"Outer center will have to do. You can get an overview, maybe help a few people, and then we leave."

His gaze shifted to me. Intense.

"Understood?"

I nodded and adjusted the safety vest he'd given me.

The further we drove into the city, the more restless it became.

You could already hear crashing and banging. Behind the buildings, smoke rose into the night sky. Somewhere you heard a gunshot.

A transporter hovered silently at the curb. A small group of people was loading crates into it. They all wore transparent, curved masks that refracted the light strangely. You could make out faces behind them, but no details.

"What is that? What are they doing?"

"People using the chaos for unguarded operations. Gatekeepers from other districts have been brought into Canfield too, but we still can't deal with organized crime on top of everything. And the masks help against facial recognition."

A large man looked at us as the CityPilot passed by at a safety-reduced speed. His hand seemed to be waiting under his coat, ready to draw a weapon.

Kai placed his hand on his own weapon for a moment too and briefly looked the man in the eyes through the distorted mask. Then Kai turned away, and we just kept driving.

Five minutes later the CityPilot let us out at a location Kai counted as the outer edge of the center. The long street that circles around the center formed the border to the innermost ring.

"Let's go. Don't stop moving," Kai said with his weapon drawn.

I stayed close to him as we moved quickly and quietly through the alleys.

We found an emaciated older woman kneeling on the ground a few hundred meters later. She was holding a rock and scratching the pavement with it. The same line, over and over. Her posture alone looked terrible.

"Is everything okay with you? We can help," Kai called out, muffled, as we slowly approached her.

His hands were ready at all times to aim at the woman in the tattered clothes if necessary.

But the woman just kept scratching. Her gaze fixed stubbornly on the ground.

Kai moved a bit closer, I stopped him.

"Wait. Her eyes are flickering."

Between the strands of hair blowing in the light wind, I could see it clearly for a moment.

"Can you heal her?"

I shook my head, weighed down.

"The glow is already gone."

Kai briefly pressed his eyes shut and took a deep breath.

"Then let's keep moving."

Carefully and with as much distance as possible, we walked past her and left her there.

When I turned around one more time, I saw her pale face. For a few seconds she had been looking at us. Her lips slowly formed words, as if she was remembering a behavior she'd long since forgotten.

A few corners later, Toldin Square was waiting. Noise blared toward us. Kai carefully peered out of the alley.

"There are a few Gatekeepers. All with riot shields," he told me quietly while getting an overview.

"Across from them is a larger group. Some with blunt weapons."

I moved closer to look around the corner too, but Kai grabbed me and pushed me back.

"I said you stay behind me!"

"You have to understand, Kai! I need to see this!"

He looked angry, but eventually gave in.

"Stay inconspicuous."

And then I saw the Gatekeepers. Secured behind their large shields in full gear. Helmets, thick plates across the entire upper body, and a weapon ready at the stock. Drones accompanied them.

They moved toward the crowd in a controlled, practiced formation. The crowd seemed more angry than organized.

A few of them wore a similar mask to the man who'd been standing by the transporter earlier.

And even though their faces were heavily distorted by the masks, I had no doubt about the glow in their eyes.

"Almost all of them are infected, Kai."

"Then why are they forming groups? That's never happened before."

"We discussed once that the Corruption only amplifies what's already there. Maybe they really are all desperate and angry. Only through the Corruption, much more so than they actually are."

"And they're still human enough to group together," Kai added quietly.

I nodded.

Scattered individuals in the crowd looked for a way to break through the Keepers' defense, which was moving slowly but tactically toward them.

I noticed a small boy watching everything from a window.

People screamed. Anything that looked throwable was thrown. A larger chunk hit a drone at a critical point and it crashed. The crowd cheered.

To the side of this chaos, a tall woman suddenly came around the corner. Determined steps. In her hands a pistol. In her eyes an episode.

She walked straight toward the Gatekeepers along the side of the crowd. Her steps were uniform. Her gaze empty.

The closer she got, the higher she raised the weapon in her hand.

She was about to fire, I could feel it.

BANG!

It took a moment before people woke from the shock. Most of the crowd ran.

The Gatekeepers still held their shield formation. No one in their ranks moved from their position.

The tall woman lay lifeless on the ground.

A drone had fired when it had calculated the necessity.

I looked up at the window where the boy was standing.

"Watch out, someone's coming!" Kai shouted.

An agitated member of the crowd ran into our alley. His blunt weapon was useless when I forced him to the ground in a single breath. Kai pinned him there.

He was panting and struggling.

"Goddammit! Are you going to arrest me now?! I haven't even done anything!"

"No," I answered and stepped closer to the man with the glowing eyes. "We want to help you."

---

Half an hour later we were already back in the CityPilot.

Neither of us spoke.

It was much worse than I'd imagined.

And the only thing that stayed in my head was his face.

The horrified expression of a small boy who'd just had to watch a woman get shot.

Now that the church isn't being overrun during the day, it almost feels like before.

Except for the empty prayer hall and the closed Station.

If a stranger had been anywhere nearby, she would've heard my frustration.

"I just can't get it right! What else am I supposed to try?!" I called out.

"First, stay calm, and then maybe you could try seeing the process as a whole," Rowana suggested.

I sighed.

We'd been practicing process deceleration again.

With simple, smaller processes like a falling ball, it was no problem.

But the moment it got even slightly more complex, it was too much for my abilities.

Swinging pendulum? Easy.

Burning match? Complete disaster.

It went on for a while. But the match did get better by the end. Instead of twenty seconds, it burned for almost two minutes.

This morning Kai had called me. Suspension lifted. They needed him. The first night of the lockdown had gotten so out of hand that they couldn't or wouldn't do without him anymore.

His call had basically woken me up, but I was glad he wanted to tell me right away.

After training I stood by the church window.

Outside the gates there were no people. Just a few drones and cars that sometimes flew by. Automated transports, ambulances, Gatekeeper calls.

Kai's definitely in one of those, I thought.

Behind me I heard footsteps. Kovun. He was coming from the basement, probably from Arlo. He stood next to me and looked out too.

"What's supposed to happen out there when everyone's locked inside their own walls?" I asked.

Kovun looked at me, questioning.

"The calls, I mean. What's the point of all of it when everyone's at home? What's supposed to happen?"

His expression grew more serious.

"The cruel things."