Interlude: The HunterHe was a hunter and not in the ways the humans of Sword claimed to be. No, he was a real hunter: an animal, a beast, a monster of the highest order. He was a wolf in the truest sense of the word.Not a lycan, like the humans insisted they be called. It didn't matter to him if the rest of his kind chose to adopt the human name for them, he would always be a wolf. If Enrico could see what they had become, the first wolf would roll over in his grave. If their kind buried their dead.And he was at Venus Academy, a freaking prep school. Maybe not so much a prep school, but it was the best school in Neptune. It ranked third nationally and was filled to the brim with children of the most important families in the city.It would only fit a progenitor would take refuge in a place like this. The luxury of this simple school made his skin itch. The hunter wanted to rip a couple of faces off, but he controlled the impulse. Though it was people like the children at this schoo
"Wow. I didn't know we got to go to the top of the buildings," I said as we climbed the stairs."Didn't you used to be a Japanese anime fan? Didn't kids in those anime always go to the top of their schools?""In the anime, yeah, but I watched a YouTube video about it. That wasn't a thing they let students do.""Well, you can go to the top of any of the buildings here. During lunch or after school for two hours. At five, the school grounds close." She slide her key into the door and pushed it open.The top of the building had a green fence all the way around it. It was tall enough that no student would be able to jump over it and if some kid was stupid enough to climb it, the top curved back inward, making it harder to get over.There was a small basketball and a tennis court on the roof, divided into two sides. There was a space for people to sit down at the far end of the court, where I imagined people would eat lunch. This place looked like a cool place to eat. Why was I bothering t
Alaric XIVThe driver was a striges. A zombie in all but name, controlled by whatever knight or progenitor killed the poor bastard. Someone at this school wanted me and my knights forced out.I didn't know if I believed that story about a sole survivor, but if the rumors of another strain had lured more strixes here, then there was probably more to the rumors than meets the eye... Or meets the ear, I suppose.Some rumor had it that some student in this school was the next strain and strix were here to collect. Maybe even more than just strix. I was involved in a group with two lycans and a titan. If others-"Yo!" Bianca yelled, cutting off my train of thought. I looked over at her right as the wind hit and I caught the scent of dog on the breeze."Hey." I waxed back."You alright? I heard you almost got hit by a car."News traveled very fast around school it seemed. I thought that only happened in small towns. "Yeah... It was a close call. They swerved at the last moment.""They must
Alaric XVThe first thing I noticed was the blaring sounds of the base mixing with the higher notes. Lights of every color, even the two I had no name for, flashed across the room in every direction like a strobe light. The music was so loud that I doubted any human could hear anything.I couldn't even hear Bianca at first, though her lips were moving. I had to focus and then I could just make out the words she was saying: "That's Pointblink, my favorite band!"Pointblink? That was a familiar name. I wasn't surprised to see Yayoi on the stage, rocking with her guitar. She was singing in Japanese about a lover lost in space and how his wife spent the rest of her life looking for him.Was Yayoi here to keep an eye on me? This gig didn't seem like something that had been planned hours ago. This had to be planned in advance. So was Yayoi always going to play here? Or was this just so she could keep an eye on me?I guess Kaya wasn't able to convince Mireille to change her mind. Mireille se
Interlude: The TitanShe watched the proceedings with a careful eye. It had taken some effort to overcome the girl's resistance, and at last, it had paid off. She had lured the strix out into a place that every Sword would take some time to respond, and it was all thanks to her puppet.The Titan turned her head to the factory window, watching as the lights flashed, the music boomed, and no one inside was any the wiser. The Titan eyed through the crowd, searching for her puppet. She found the mutt over with the rest of The Titian's puppets, drinking away. Though they were all under her sway, she only needed one of them for today.Unlike the males, her puppet was a beast. One of the lesser strains. She might become aware that she had been manipulated. It might be prudent to watch her in the future. Or not use her at all.It didn't matter either way. If that boy was the progenitor, The Titan would know. If he was merely a strigo, then he would be dead.The Titan's watch began to chime. I
Evelyn XIIIThe nurse at my bedside looked over at the invisible screen. It appeared like she was touching air, but it seemed like someone took my linker off, because I couldn't see anything.Director Miyuki looked at the nurse. It was the first time she looked away from me since I got to the infirmary. Hawkendale and Nori stood quietly in the corner, staring at Miyuki with open lust and open fear. Hawkendale was the former."Well?" the acting director asked in her soft, quiet voice.The nurse nodded. "Her brain patterns have stabilized. They were fluctuating when she arrived, but they are stable. If I had to guess, I'd say that whatever effect drove her into vision is over."The nurse knew about my vision? I hadn't told anyone."What vision?" Miyuki asked."I don't know, but the way her brain patterns were acting, she wasn't unconscious. It matched similar patterns from hunters who were subjected to mental attacks by titans."Miyuki turned to me. "What was this vision?"I didn't want
Evelyn XIXThere was supposed to be a clue in that vision. Alice had ordered the titan to put me in that prison for a reason, but the more I combed over those memories, the more they didn't make sense. The visions felt real. They didn't feel like an illusion or memories, but-"HEY!" Hawkendale's scream came from the other room. "Don't throw away the vegetables! Farms worked hard to grow them!""Vegetables are gross! I won't eat them," Norima yelled.What the hell was going on? I brought those two in and cooked them a meal and now they're screaming at each other about vegetables? I walked into a scene of what could only be called a food fight. I hadn't been in this apartment for a whole day yet and my kitchen was destroyed. Food was flung everywhere on the walls. The soup I made was now on the floor, soaking into the wooden legs of the table.I was going to eat the rest of that soup later. "Are you kidding me?!" I snapped at them.Hawkendale pointed to Norima. "She did it!"Norima roun
Evelyn XV"I thought we were going to patrol," Norima groaned. "I want to go see the city! I've never been to Pluto before!""I want to go eat sushi!" Hawkendale declared. "I want to see a sushi train! I've heard this city has sushi trains!"These two thought with their stomachs. Not that I could blame them. They were raised in a lab and I knew from personal experience that lab food wasn't very good.Still, I didn't want to stay here and listen to this. I had a message to analyze. My brother's murder had declared war. That was more pressing than parenting these two children.I was even starting to miss Johana. She had a mouth on her, but at least she could prioritize her work.These two didn't need to be Sword Hunters. They needed to be put in special classes to reintroduce them to society. They weren't complete lost causes, but they needed a push here and there."If you pass my test, we'll go on patrol tomorrow," I said to placate them. God knows I'd have to beat them to make them li