Galactic High

“It has come to the school’s attention that several students have been reported missing, with a few being discovered several hours later with seemingly no memory. All students are advised to be extra cautious until the threat is rooted out," Mrs Schlart addressed them at their end-of-day form class.

It had been a day or two since Jack had relived his arrival in his nightmares. He hadn't been sleeping much, to the concern of the others, who were amazed that he was still standing even without the use of energy drinks. He had taken to spending many restless hours training outside with his footwork, gunplay and up close axe work, with Dante occasionally coming over to observe him. It would not do to be unprepared for a fight, and if his fight with Svaartal proved anything, it was that he needed to get better.

He needed a better counter for magic as well, and though Chiyo agreed with his hypothesis that he had some kind of resistance to certain aspects of it, he wasn't invulnerable to it.

The others had spoken about shopping for some better gear for the future, though that depended upon them selling their loot, especially what he and Sephy acquired from the Prefects Lockup. Jack was especially keen on getting some more magical items to give him more of an edge after he got Xharl's shield, but Alora had warned him about the prices.

Which led to some discussion about their next run, to Alora's dismay. They had made a lot over the weekend, but the promise of a hot tub had been an expensive one, and although they had more than enough to pay their bills, they could always have more funds…

Their plan for this week had been to try and divine where the Gloom Cauldron had come from by tracking both it and Dubakku via divination; however, despite Alora and Chiyo's best efforts, they had been unable to do so on their own.

So the plan was to get some help.

Svaarti, Zayle and Nya had been persuaded to help with a divining ritual after school, and it was only now that their schedules coincided. School had been a mostly boring affair, with a few repeat classes of maths and communication as they were core curriculum subjects, though Jack had to admit that Geography had been pretty fun. Miss Riied was one of those passionate teachers who liked to go off-topic in response to class questions, and as a result, Jack had learned about some fascinating natural phenomena from alien planets Miss Riied had visited. He wouldn't be surprised if he learned more from her stories than he would had she conducted the lesson properly. He wasn't even mad he received homework.

"So I urge all of you to be careful," Mrs Schlart concluded. "We don't know the nature of the threat and I do not wish for any of you to be in danger, especially with the loss of several of you recently." She looked towards the empty seats where Xharl and his cronies had once sat. "Class dismissed!"

"Finally!" Nika groaned. "Today was so long! I can't wait for this week to be over!"

"It's not all bad!" Sephy grinned. "We have a Deathball game at the end of it with our new secret weapon!" She looked pointedly at Jack.

"And a party that's sure to be fun!" Alora smiled. "The Bharzum triplets have invited most of our year! They're definitely looking to show off!"

"I wonder why .." Jack snorted as the triplets in question were giving him the eyes as they left the classroom. "But I want to see what this ritual does…"

"I have faith it will go well," Alora cheerily replied. "Five of the best mystics in our year are working on this. Even if we have different styles, I'm confident we'll find something useful."

"What are we even trying to find?" Sephy asked, a little lost.

Realistically, whatever information we can get. Chiyo clarified. What the Gloom Cauldron does, why Dubakuu had it, and what connection does it have with the slicer. Hopefully we'll get some good answers, but I'd be happy with more clues.

"Well, if not, I've reached out to one of my slicer friends who has the equipment needed to take a crack at the cyberware." Sephy sighed. "We track that, we find the asshole, though we'll need to be ready to strike quickly. If we get a ping, chances are whoever was helping Dubakuu will too, and we don't want them to wipe their data and escape!"

"After the Deathball game, then?" Jack suggested. "Assuming that doesn't kill us?"

"Good idea!" Nika agreed. "Since we're on school premises we should be juiced up. Since it's also the last day of school before the weekend, we should have enough time for Sephy's friend to do their thing and to raid wherever they tell us."

"The party's the day after!" Sephy grinned. "So we already have the post-run celebration sorted if it doesn't take too long!"

If we absolutely have to hit a location on such short notice without scoping it out first or knowing what kind of opposition we'll find, then we need to prepare. Chiyo cautioned.

"Agreed," Alora replied seriously. "Everything we know about Dubakku's activities before we fought him tells us he was operating locally, so we shouldn't need to worry about any long trips."

"I have some spare MREs anyway that won't take up much room," Nika added. "And we should have enough water. I reckon we need to make sure we gear up as best we can. Wands, grenades, batteries, whatever. And the best armour and guns we can get if needed. Just make sure you can carry it all without slowing. We need to hit hard and fast."

"Is there a way of teleporting us to wherever we need to go?" Jack asked. "We know Vanya can do something like that?"

"Chiyo and I can't," Alora replied with a sigh. "The way our magic works is less compatible for teleportation than, say, Vanya's or Svaarti's. It's not impossible, but it's a risk."

But there's nothing stopping us from asking a friend that can for help. Chiyo reasoned. I know Nya can do it, and it's not like she'll tell anyone before we're done.

"As long as they don't stick around after they get us to wherever we need to go," Jack cautioned. "I feel bad enough that you guys are stuck in my mess as it is."

"It's our mess too, now!" Sephy laughed. "Don't worry about it. This should help clean it up anyway once we slice up the slicer!"

"I don't really talk to her that much, so if you speak to Nya that'd be great, Chiyo,” Nika added, getting down to business. ”Honestly, I'd trust her out of the people we know. Vanya will blab, Svaarti's too close to an enemy we really don't want fucking things up, and Luvia would probably try to eat us if we suggested she fly us."

"Sounds good," Alora confirmed, and the others nodded in agreement. "Chiyo, I think if we ask her later in private we can keep it more secret. Let us know if she says no, but I think we should be good."

Chiyo just nodded and smiled as they got to the room they had booked for that afternoon.

As they waited for the others, the two mystics of the group stretched and acted nervously, as if they were anticipating running a race, before one by one their friends arrived.

"We'll need you three to let us know if something looks wrong," Alora told them nervously. "I've never led a ritual like this before."

"We know, Alora." Nika rolled her eyes. "And we'll keep an eye out for glowy woojoo shit and any anomalies, not that that's ever happened before."

"And we have the map and compass as well," Sephy added. "If we have an esoteric trace we'll write it down while you commune with the gods."

"That's literally not how this works." Alora sighed at her friend, but stopped when she saw the Skritta's grin, knowing her friend was just winding her up.

"Write down whatever we see," Jack confirmed. "Just don't push yourselves."

The casters all nodded as they all sat cross-legged in a circle, having drawn some runes on the ground and setting up some physical props and components to use. On getting the Gloom Cauldron out of her bag, Svaarti marvelled at all the tiny runic scrips running throughout, noting that much of it looked ancient and impossible to fully decipher, though the others agreed with her initial conclusion that it had an aspect of summoning.

As all five casters started whispering words to focus their power the lines and runes began to glow a dark purple, beginning with the cauldron in the middle. Several lines of runes began to glow around its base, which Jack quickly tried to scribble down as quickly as he could.

"Look at the map!" Sephy whispered to him and Nika, as a circular pointer slowly moved to certain places, sometimes stopping for a period of time before slowly resuming.

"I'll note down the places it moves to and how long it stays there," Nika whispered back. "What's the other stuff doing?"

Jack looked towards an orb that swirled with smoke, which changed colour from a deep purple, to a blood red, and finally black before repeatedly the pattern.

"Jack." Sephy got his attention, pointing at a needle in a bowl of water, which was pointing right at him. "Would you mind moving a few paces?"

Jack did, and the needle followed.

Interesting.

Jack noted another piece of paper on the ground that was shoddily writing several runes using a special writing implement designed to be manipulated by ritual magic.

The purple runes on the cauldron seemed to expand out, blurring slightly before twisting into forms that even Jack was able to determine.

Tapestry…Unholy…Avatar…Corruption…Death…Beyond…Domination…

Suddenly, as one, all five casters recoiled back in shock, releasing their hold on one another and disrupting the ritual, as various reagents that had been in motion clattered and fell still.

"Here!" Jack quickly handed Alora and Zayle some cups of water they had prepared as Nika and Sephy did the same with the other three. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"I think so." Alora sighed, audibly frazzled. "We agreed we'd stop at the first sign of something dangerous."

"This…artefact is evil," Nya spoke with serious eyes as she looked specifically at Jack. "Where did you get it?"

"Told you, picked it up off some asshole coming after Jack," Sephy quickly spoke up. "Just need to know if we can sell it or not."

"Destroy it," Nya replied, speaking in an affirmative tone Jack had never heard from her before. "That thing radiates evil magic. Whoever last used it was preparing to make a sacrifice of something powerful.

The Oracle. Jack thought to himself. That would explain why Dubakuu tried to get to it.

"If this artefact is focused on summoning, then maybe they wanted to summon something powerful," Zayle reasoned. "You said its master tried to attack halveer Jack? I don't think he'd work as a sacrifice…"

"What else did you find out?" Nika asked, wanting to note down everything while the memory was still fresh

"Divine in nature," Alora dismissed. "None we recognised, probably an old god, definitely one of the evil ones."

"Nekdon?" Jack asked. Despite that particular god being checked, he had faced way too much shit with that god's name on it recently, so he had to ask.

"Shared some aspects, but if Nekdon is involved it would have been in collaboration with several other gods, which rarely happens - especially among darker deities, though a worthy champion could theoretically gain the blessings of multiple gods.”

"The artefact has also been heavily drained of magic," Svaarti added. "It was used for something powerful recently. Honestly, you should really hand this in to one of the churches, they'd be able to investigate."

"Not until we know everything first and confirm we're in the clear," Sephy dismissed. "Since we were involved directly, I'd rather not receive a reward from the Church of Siros only for their Purifiers to come after us. They've been known to do that before."

"Svaarti may be right." Alora sighed. "I know you have your reasons for not trusting the Church of Astara, but it might be best to leave this with them once we’re done with it. You haven't seen the things we've seen."

"We've been relying on the Church of Astara too often recently," Sephy grumbled. "A private collector would pay a lot for it…"

"Let's discuss this another time," Jack interrupted, heading off the incoming argument. "What else do we know?"

"Got the locations on the map," Nika answered, waving her paper around to show them. “Significant places for the Cauldron. Why we don't know, but hey - it's something!"

"Some of these places are ruins, some are the middle of nowhere and some are some pretty hot spots," Alora concluded. "What else did you see?"

"There was the needle following Jack around!" Sephy pointed out.

"Could it be because he was the intended sacrifice?" Svaarti asked, unconvinced. “If not, I have no idea!"

"Purple, Red and Black smoke, too," Jack added. “Apart from that writing thing you had, that's it."

Purple involves summoning, Red is probably destruction, Black is corruption. Chiyo confirmed.

"That confirms what we know," Alora nodded. "Sorry, Sephy, we can't hold on to this."

Sephy swore under her breath but Nika slapped her on the back. "Hey, we've made a lot already, and chances are we're going to make more. Keeping this thing's gonna cost us long term."

Alora turned to their three friends, credit chips in hand. Zayle took hers without complaint, Nya didn't expect to receive one and Svaarti's came with something extra.

"That's the scale I wanted! Perfect!" the Nirah squealed in glee.

Why do you even need that? Chiyo asked her, a little curious. Svaarti had been much more upbeat today than usual, and the Ilithii found it strange, despite being happy for her friend.

"Let's just say I have a ritual of my own to conduct!" Svaarti replied with a smile as she left.

"That was weird." Nika finally commented after several seconds of silence. "What shall we do now? Got a cauldron to get rid of, preparation for a run, homework, Deathball practice and fuck knows what else…"

They paused like that for several more seconds before Alora spoke up with a one-word question.

"Drinks?" she asked.

"Drinks," the others all confirmed.

*****

"BWAHAHAHAHA!" the portly-looking snail-creature exclaimed. “EVERYBODY'S GOT A PRICE! FOR THE MILLION CREDIT MAN!"

"Speaking of," Nika prompted, as she and Jack kept hold of the bags of weapons they had to trade.

"Of course!" The man grinned. "May I offer you a drink?"

"As payment for the bags, no." Sephy rolled her eyes, nudging her head to indicate Jack. "Trust me when I say my Deathworlder friend here is more than capable of taking down a less-than-honest entrepreneur."

"Now, now! I would never!" the 'Million Credit Man' exclaimed in overexaggerated disbelief. "On the house then, to celebrate our transaction."

"No thank you," Jack growled, having been warned not to accept refreshments beforehand. "Payment. Now."

"Very well. Viirgll!"

A hulking brute of a Ploothe trundled beside his boss, carrying a case. On opening it and showing it to the room he brought it up to the centre of the room. Nika walked over as agreed to check it was enough, while Jack just stood there, trying to look intimidating as he did.

"I take it our business is concluded?" the 'Million Credit Man' asked.

"Sure," Nika replied with a smile. "Unless you're willing to part with a few of your magical artefacts."

"Hmm…” the broker replied, thinking hard. "Another time."

"Dammit!" Sephy moaned after the three of them had left. "I was sure he'd fall for a double or nothing! Chiyo said she wanted more magical gear!"

"I think he was on the fence," Jack replied. "Challenging him on the drinks probably turned him against it. Doesn't matter, there's always next time."

"At least this guy pays well." Nika shrugged. "Alora and Chiyo should get the underlay armour for all of us sorted out, at least now we have the funds."

"The skintight bodysuit stuff? Ewww." Sephy grinned. "Calibrating Jack should be fun though!"

"If it keeps us all safe, fine," Jack admitted with a sigh at Sephy's comment. "I just hope they got my size right, and that they have one for Dante!"

"That's why he's gone with them!" Nika grinned. "Though Chiyo wasn't too happy about that!"

The group had been focusing on preparing that evening. Sephy had found a reasonable enough buyer for their looted weapons, with the possibility to purchase further dubiously obtained goods, and Alora suggested they invest in a good quality base layer. So they decided to split the part to get things sorted that evening, before they would have to experience Chiyo's cooking later on, which the others had joked about but Jack had never experienced.

Sephy knew their buyer in question had several magical items in his collection and was a notorious gambling man. She had hoped to goad him into betting a few magical items pitting one of his bodyguards against Jack, who had agreed with her plan. It was a shame the 'Million Credit Man' didn't take the bait.

The trip back was uneventful despite Jack's worries. There had been a close call at one point where a group of undead 'Crypt' gangsters were loitering by one of the district entrances, dressed in rags of bright blue and obviously looking for trouble, but Jack and the girls had successfully blended into the busy crowds and weren't bothered.

As they approached the house, the smell of something noxious permeated the evening air.

"Ah! There you are!" Alora forced a smile as they entered. "Chiyo's just finished cooking!"

*****

Okay, maybe the unidentified lightning beast isn't completely unbearable. Chiyo admitted as Dante finished the rest of their leftovers for that evening. To Jack, the soup hadn't been as terrible as he had expected, just that the ingredients likely weren't the best combination. At least the 'dog' liked it.

Making his excuses and attempting to go to sleep early that night, Jack tossed and turned as he anticipated the horrors of that night.

Jack did not know when exactly he first became lucid. The first thing he remembers is a corridor of grey, a few shadows of insignificant faces walking by. Grey walls, darker grey floors, and grey skies barely lighting up the battered, rusted locker he was rummaging through.

And then he heard the sounds.

The shouts, the cruel laughter, the screams…

“No…” Jack replied in horror. He knew why he was here. “No!”

He knew exactly what this nightmare was, and he wanted no part of it. The end of the corridor was there, inviting him like a siren call. He knew if he went there he would experience it again.

“WHERE ARE YOU?!” Jack yelled, though no answer came. The siren song of his past actions called harder and harder…

Striking back with a force of sheer will, Jack refused to heed its call. He couldn’t live through that again…

There was another way…

The quiet sound of footsteps snapped Jack out of his thoughts as he lay in wait. They were deliberate, like someone was purposefully trying not to make too much noise as it came closer, before finally stopping, then shuffling around in confusion.

It was then Jack struck, charging out of the locker with burning fury as Devil’s Daughter snapped round with wide eyes of shock only to take a full-force punch to the face from the pissed off human. She fell back with a panicked expression, holding up her hands to cover her shimmering face as Jack quickly closed the distance…

Only for Jack to wake up.

“Aww come on…” He sighed as he took a few sips of water and checked the time. Another early morning, but he’d gotten some hours of sleep in, which was better than the last few nights. Dante quickly came trotting up a minute later and jumped onto the bed, giving Jack a few licks.

Chuckling, Jack relaxed and gave the ‘dog’ a few scritches as he leaned back and relaxed.

“Doesn’t matter.” He sighed again, more to himself than to Dante.

“At least I got her this time!”