“I’ll reach out to you again at the start of the next loop,” Vorrick said as he summoned a handgun from thin air.
I was already moving.
With my Cryora still burning, I thrust my hand forward and conjured a wall of ice just as the shot rang out. The bullet hit the frozen surface and stuck inside. I quickly scrambled to my feet and dove behind a nearby toppled carriage.
“What are you doing?” Vorrick called after me, irritated. “I’m doing you a favor. So you won’t have to do it yourself. So you won’t get marked. Come on out and let’s get this over with.”
The odd whistles pierced the air, louder now.
His suggestion was insane, and worse—likely calculated. If I let him kill me here, he’d use my amnesia against me in the next loop. I couldn’t give him that advantage.
I needed time. Time to leave myself strong enough clues. Time to make myself understand that Thea is at the Expo. Time to make sure my future selves understood what I’d learned—that the soldier from the first Memory Fragment was Valdemar. That he was the founders’ son. And if Vorrick was telling the truth—if Mom had resurrected him—this was an end I needed to investigate.
“Killing me is a favor?” I called from behind cover, incredulous. “It’s barely afternoon. This loop’s way too young for me to give up on it yet.”
“Fool,” Vorrick spat. “I’ve seen these things. You can’t outrun them. And there's no point fighting them. Just let me kill you—it’s in your best interest.”
The whistles grew even sharper, overlapping—close…very close.
I had no idea what things he meant. And maybe he was right. But still, dying here, dying now? That wasn’t happening. Besides, I’d already decided I won’t be accepting help from anyone. I’m doing everything my way and that means I’m calling the shots. I’m deciding what risks I can and can’t take.
“No thanks,” I said, staying put. Hopefully, that wasn't a mistake.
Another round of loud whistles echoed from the buildings’ walls.
“Good luck then,” Vorrick muttered.
BANG.
A gunshot cracked through the street.
“Casten!” a woman’s voice screamed.
I peeked out from behind the carriage.
Casten Vorrick lay sprawled on the pavement, half his head obliterated by a point-blank shot.
Rushing toward him, tears streaming down her face, was Alice Verldson.
And just behind her was…
“Trent?” I shouted in disbelief. “What are you doing here?!”
He wasn’t supposed to be here. That wasn’t part of my plan.
“Me?!” Trent shouted, eyes wide. “Dude, you told me to wait for a message before I did anything. But you never said she’d come to me first! Then she saw the note you left. Then I panicked!” He scratched his ear, glancing around wildly. “But forget that! What the fuck just happened here?! Why did Casten Vorrick kill an Obsidian Crow and then shoot himself?” He frowned. “And what are those annoying whistles? Is Skyhaven’s phonotube system busted? High society my ass!”
So Alice had suspected Vorrick enough to snoop around. Enough to then follow us.
I wondered how much they’d seen. How much they’d heard.
Alice finally reached Vorrick’s body and dropped to her knees. Her hands hovered over him, trembling, not daring to touch.
“Casten…” she sobbed. “Why did you do this?”
Then, through her tears, her gaze hardened and locked onto me.
“Why?” she demanded. “What did you say to him? Casten Vorrick would never kill himself. Especially not after – “ She stopped abruptly, shaking her head.
How do I even begin to explain this?
Do I even have time?
Do I even want to?
The whistles were far too close at this point. And it wasn’t just about me anymore.
I couldn’t let Trent get marked. I didn’t even know what that fully meant—physically. And I definitely didn’t want to see him get killed.
I couldn’t let Alice get marked either. Not only did I not want her—an unrelated party—hurt, I needed her unmarked. At least for possible future leverage over Vorrick.
Vorrick probably hadn’t realized they followed us. Judging by the ease he killed his own brother, if he had known he would’ve killed her too. Without hesitation.
I couldn’t be as ruthless as him. I didn’t have it in me.
Which meant…I had to find a way to keep all three of us alive and unmarked against whatever was coming—something I couldn’t even see yet.
I focused on the whistles again, trying to pinpoint their source.
Nothing.
They were close enough to hear clearly, yet there was nothing there. Vorrick had said they’re invisible, but I didn’t really believe him until now.
Meanwhile, Alice shot to her feet and pointed at me. “Speak! Ironwatch are already on their way and – “
Trent, now by my side, stepped between us. “Hey, lady, relax! Hypnotism isn’t real!”
“H-Hypnotism?!” Alice echoed, baffled. “I’m talking about extortion! He clearly told Casten something that made him – “
“Extortion?!” Trent mimicked her reaction. “Who do you think Viktor is? Some kind of criminal mastermind? Please…”
“No, but – “
“Both of you—shut up for a moment!”
I activated Freeze.
I just couldn’t take it anymore. Couldn’t even think properly.
The world locked in place, sound dying instantly. Alice’s fingers remained pointed at me. Trent’s mouth was still half-open. Dust and smoke hung suspended in the air.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Finally. Silence.
Now I could think. Now I could plan.
I took in the frozen scene before me, searching for them.
I wasn’t allowed to move my head—to move anything, really—so I trusted only what my eyes had captured at the moment I triggered Freeze.
Now look, Viktor. What can you see?
At first, again, nothing. Or almost nothing.
In the distance, an Ironwatch unit was mid-sprint, rushing toward us. Two Obsidian Crows led them.
I was almost amazed at their fast response. In Orlinth, you’d bleed to death twice before an Enforcer bothered to show up.
Either way, scary as they were, they weren’t the real threat.
But other than them, I couldn’t see anyone else. They were completely invisible and I couldn’t escape or fight something I couldn’t see.
So I focused harder. Forced myself to search for the smallest irregularities. Anything that stood out.
And then I saw it.
The glass shards on the ground.
In several places, they weren’t lying flat. They were pressed—tilted, disturbed—as if something invisible was standing on them, forcing weight into the pavement.
Bingo.
I counted twenty distorted spots. So…ten pairs of feet? Ten of these things?
The closest one was only a few meters away. Maybe fifteen at most. It stood right next to our carriage—the one Theo Vorrick smashed with his landing.
My eyes suddenly caught something else.
The black smoke rising from the carriage coiled unnaturally, as if bending around something on its way up.
A shape interrupted the flow. Something four-legged. Big. Much larger than an Ironwatch Hound.
So not ten, but five. Five things.
Okay. Now I know something at least.
Time to hatch the escape plan.
No whistles came from behind me—the nearest building. That meant it was the cleanest and safest direction.
But that only answered the first step.
Then what?
The answer came almost instantly: the Foundry Passenger Terminal V. The same one Vorrick had been taking me to.
We get on an airship. We go up. And unless those things can fly too, we should be safe.
For how long? No clue. Hopefully long enough for Erebus to forget he needs to mark me—because if not, I’d actually have to pull a Vorrick and kill myself.
Just the thought of that sent an ice-cold shiver down my spine.
No. It won’t get to that. Focus on the logistics of the escape for now—the real problem.
The Terminal itself wasn’t that far. Five minutes, if we ran hard. But Skyhaven’s layout was the real challenge for me. I had no idea how the buildings behind me—or any buildings in Skyhaven for that matter—were structured.
Did they all have rear exits? Did they all link together through elevated passageways or rooftop walkways like we have down in Orlinth?
Running inside blindly might just trap us in a dead end.
Alice could probably help with that. But there was no way I’d get her on my side right now.
She already blamed me for Vorrick offing himself. And I couldn’t exactly convince her of a danger she couldn’t even see. If those things stayed invisible even while attacking, she wouldn’t believe a word I’d say until it was already too late.
Which meant there was only one logical first step: before escaping, I had to make them visible.
Now how would I do that?
I mentally opened the Inventory.
[Inventory]
- Tantalum – 11.22kg
- Iron – 51.33kg
- Copper – 1.01kg
- Titanium – 10.89kg
- Beryllium – 17.34kg
- Nickel – 12.22kg
- Time Plane Memory #1
- Time Plane Memory #4
- Time Plane Memory #5
- Time Plane Memory #6
- Time Plane Memory #7
- Vestige of Time #1
- Vestige of Time #2
- Dematerializer
- 5 Steamcrowns
- Ignis x3
- Cryora x3
- Aero x3
- Kinetra x4
- Umbrium x3
- Armor-Piercer x2
- Armor-Piercer Magazine
- Ironwatch Foldable Sword
- Ironwatch Handgun x3
- Red Ribbon
- Civic Omni-Gear: Thea Stanford, ID: 150890
- Family Picture
- Friends Picture
- Detonator
- Casten Vorrick's House Transportation Writ of Passage
- Key Item: ZK-0, Aetherprint: SKO-03543
- Key Item: Civic Omni-Gear: Viktor Halegrim, ID: 260604
- Key Item: Aetheris Crystal, Aetherprint: RCF-516548
- Key Item: Aetheris Crystal, Aetherprint: RCF-520111
- Key Item: Aetheris Crystal, Aetherprint: RCF-526485
Seeing the crystals I had, Multi-Channel was the best answer.
I assessed the situation one last time—Alice’s and Trent’s distance from me, the invisible creatures’ from us, the number of seconds I likely had before the nearest one would lunge. I took a sharp breath and moved.
The world snapped back into motion as I reached forward, grabbed Alice and Trent, and yanked them behind me. Then I stepped forward and immediately summoned an Aero from the Inventory, slotting it into the Channel Core.
[Burn Rate lvl. 5: Cryora’s burn paused. Time left – 00:01:11]
[Burn Rate lvl. 5: Aero is burning. Time left – 00:04:59]
[Memory Slots lvl. 2: Cryora is saved for repeat use – 00:24:59]
[Multi-Channel lvl. 2: Dual-Channel available – Cryora + Aero]
“What do you think you’re doing?!” Alice snapped behind me.
I ignored her. Instead, I centered my thoughts on the space in front of me, not the creatures themselves. I didn’t need to hit them. I needed to hit the air they were moving through.
One pulse. Wide.
I concentrated, then clapped my hands together.
[Multi-Channel lvl. 2: Dual-Channel ACTIVE – Cryora + Aero. Time Left – 00:00:29]
From the point of contact, a cone of freezing air blasted forward. The temperature plummeted, and the moisture in the air flash-condensed all at once, turning into a violent bloom of white frost and mist.
And suddenly, they were there.
Well, not fully. Just outlined. Frost clung to their moving shapes, tracing limbs, joints, and hunched backs.
Trent and Alice could see them as well now. Even the approaching Enforcers and Obsidian Crows seemed to notice them.
The creatures seemed to slow their approach as if realizing the world could suddenly see them.
At first, despite my initial thoughts, they had reminded me of Ironwatch Hounds. But the resemblance broke quickly. Their heads were an odd metal cylinder ending in four oversized blade-like protrusions, while their bodies looked like crude metal frames held together by something writhing and breathing—something alive that kept shattering the frost that tried to set on top of it.
Suddenly the Déjà vu System reacted, revealing a name above each distorted silhouette.
[Dark Hunter, lvl. 60]
“What in the world is that?” Alice whispered, stunned, as the closest Dark Hunter resumed its advance.
“We need to run,” I said, stepping backward and lightly shoving both her and the shocked Trent away from danger, eyes not leaving the Dark Hunters.
But then another Déjà vu System message blinked into existence across my vision, making me consider a change of plans.
[Quest Available: Face the Darkness #1]
[Kill the Dark Hunters]
[Reward: 1 Level Upgrade per kill]