The most frustrating part of Knights of the Apocalypse is when my teammates disconnect.

  When I disconnect, that’s fine. The game’s done—unless I want to try soloing max difficulty runs with a Tank Knight and no healers or damage dealers. I can reconnect if I hurry, or I can wait and try to catch another lobby in a couple of minutes.

  But when a teammate disconnects, the other players all sit around for a while. We wait for the dropped Knight to come back. They don’t. Then someone gets the bright idea to keep pushing with only three Knights in the game, and we spend the next ten to twenty minutes trying to small-pull big pulls, crowd control our way through the stage, and limp toward the end.

  Then we wipe to the boss, and the group breaks up. Every. Single. Time.

  ?▼?

  SHOCKS Olympia Administrative Wing, Washington, USA - June 19, 2043, 3:37 PM

  - - - - -

  James still hasn’t reconnected.

  I get to watch the battle, though, and if he wins, he’ll be weak. Very, very weak. Weak enough that another batch of ICE will kill him.

  But not quite weak enough for Sidney to make a move. I hope.

  He’s not ready, and revealing himself early will be a disaster.

  The battle’s playing out on the screen in front of me, and I’m trying to record as much of it as I can. There’s a lot going on, but it’s all ones and zeroes. Even with the computer helpfully color-coding it, it was hard to follow at first.

  But that was before I started getting Anomalous Computing Systems levels for it. Apparently, just watching what’s happening here is enough to learn something. And right now, James is winning. But it’s not a foregone conclusion.

  I watch a battalion of ICE programs rip across the ones and zeros, stabbing deep into James’s heart, only to be surrounded by waves of yellow digits and overwhelmed. They collapse, and James counterattacks into the opening.

  [Skill Learned: Anomalous Computing Systems 9]

  I’ve gained five levels in the last half-hour. But that last one took almost fifteen minutes, and I don’t have time to wait an hour or longer to get one more. Anomalous Computing Systems also doesn’t help me close merges or defeat most of what comes out of them. And it’s frustrating not being able to do anything to help James, too.

  So I stand up and leave the office.

  The math on this one is simple.

  X is Director Ramirez.

  Y is Alexander.

  And I don’t want to solve for either of them yet. I’ve got too much to do, too many things to take care of. Without James, I don’t know if I can handle Alexander. And the Voltscorpions and air ants are too similar to the gigantic spider and its Offspring. There’s got to be a reason all these bugs are here. It can’t be coincidence.

  I need to get the door open and let Director Ramirez in. He can turn off the ICE programs. But I can’t let Alexander in until James is here.

  So I need to go quiet until he’s done with his fight.

  ?▼?

  The one thing the director’s computer did give me is a map of the facility. A real map. This one’s got a few features that aren’t on the publicly available ones. Not black sections; those don’t show up. But ‘secret’ passages. There are a lot of them in SHOCKS Olympia, and one of them leads from the director’s office to the back doors of the display cells.

  I’m halfway down the tunnel, heading for the air ants, when the facility’s voice rips through my aug.

  [Geren-Danger humanoid anomaly breach detected: Administrative Wing Tram Entrance.]

  “Shit,” I whisper. That has to be Alexander—which means he got tired of waiting. I keep moving down the secret passage until I pass steel doors with tiny viewing ports. One’s welded over—I’d guess that’s the memetic anomaly. The next one’s empty. But the one after that has a somewhat uninterrupted view of the museumlike, concrete entrance. It’s a little blurry because I’m staring through air ant tunnels, but it’s good enough.

  [Attention, Acting Director Pendleton. Due to a higher-ranking member of SHOCKS’s presence, your status as Acting Director is terminated.]

  [Your security clearance within the SHOCKS Olympia Intranet is Level A.]

  It’s Alexander, all right. And the rest of the SHOCKS folks. For a second, it looks like they’ve got the door open. But when I look closer, I realize that’s not the case. The solid steel door’s still there. Alexander’s just made it completely invisible and changed it. Once I see it, it’s impossible not to see; it is weird to watch Daley step through the barrier like he’s a ghost. It’s still there, though. Alexander’s just manipulating it somehow.

  That means they’re trapped. The door’s still there, and they’re trapped in the SHOCKS Administrative Wing with Alexander—who they don’t know is a threat.

  I wonder how long it took him to think up that solution to the door.

  Then I wonder how I’ll be able to beat him. He knows I’m in here, and he’s tried to kill me before. We’re going to have to fight.

  I’m going to have to fight him.

  But he doesn’t know where I am. That gives me control of all the variables. And I’m going to need them.

  Alexander’s a reality shaper. He can do what he wants—within the limits of his power. That’s not all that different from me. I can do what I want, but I’m limited by the Revolver and my list of Halcyon System-approved powers. He’s got to have some limits, too.

  So, that’s what the first part of this fight will be: figuring out what the math that Alexander operates by even is.

  He’s talking with Director Ramirez and Daley. Even now, now that he’s inside, he’s still acting subservient and listening to Ramirez. That tells me something. He doesn’t have Level A clearance yet. He’s not an employee. If he was, he’d have everything he needed right now, and he’s proven he’s not above violence. I think he’d kill them all if it got him what he thought he needed.

  So, Director Ramirez is still in charge. He needs access to the SHOCKS Olympia Intranet to promote Alexander. I have until he gets that access to solve this problem.

  I need to take Ramirez off the table without killing him.

  So I’m going to become a ghost.

  The first thing is back in the director’s office. I put a single round into the computer. It’s loud, and it echoes through the facility. I wince; James could have taken care of that more elegantly, but I don’t have James right now. He’s busy, and he might lose his fight.

  So I’m doing the best I can. I vanish into the ‘secret’ passage. With the director’s computer down and the cubicle computers wrecked by the power-stealing Voltscorpions, it’s going to be a lot harder for Director Ramirez to take control. From here, the next variable is either forcing Alexander to use his powers or waiting for James to show up again. I have questions, and those are the best two ways to get the answers.

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  While I wait, I check the cells.

  I’ve got an idea for Ramirez, but I need an empty, Geren-Danger humanoid containment cell with protections in place that isn’t visible from the administrative wing’s atrium. I can’t stop Alexander from breaking Ramirez out, so I have to hide the SHOCKS director away.

  This still doesn’t solve Alexander, but it’ll give me time.

  Once I’ve got the cell picked out and open, all that’s left is the waiting and the doing.

  And both of those are agony.

  ?▼?

  This whole mission stank.

  It reeked.

  And Daley knew it.

  The blocky, museumlike feeling of SHOCKS Olympia’s administrative wing felt wrong to him. The assault rifle and two extra magazines didn’t feel like enough to handle his assigned task. He’d burn through that in a heartbeat or two if anything went wrong. And he didn’t have any backup. Lieutenant Rodriguez could just about grip a pistol, but she couldn’t control her arms well enough to pull the trigger, much less aim.

  But Director Ramirez had assigned him as overwatch, so he kept the assault rifle ready as teachers and SHOCKS agents filed in through the open door. He’d have to pick his shots carefully. The ants could get free if that tank’s walls ever lost their airtight seal, and damaging the device in front of the memetic anomaly would be disastrous with as many weapons in the atrium as SHOCKS had brought. He’d done threat assessments before picking his spot near the top of the stairs.

  For all the good that’d do.

  Something thudded behind him. He didn’t spin to look quickly. Slow was smooth, and smooth was fast. And when he came around, gun up, he didn’t see anything.

  But something felt wrong in the office area. He kept the assault rifle at his shoulder and stared into the quiet, empty cubicles. Then he stepped back; the agents would be clearing that section soon.

  ?▼?

  Paul Ramirez, Director of SHOCKS Victoria/Vancouver Island and Olympia, held a pistol in one hand.

  The administrative wing’s office space was scarred and battered. Cubicles and computers had been ripped from their desks and thrown around the room, electrical burns and scorched holes covered every surface, and the room’s wiring was in tatters. He didn’t even bother trying to turn on any of the computers; a low-Anquan anomaly had broken containment and, without proper recontainment protocols, bypassed the automated defenses.

  Then, they’d feasted on every power source in the office.

  And now they were dead. Judging by the bullet holes everywhere, Claire had been here. She’d made it to the director’s office—and if he was the facility’s director now, she’d been acting director for a few minutes. On the other hand, she had opened the door for him; the teachers were moving into the atrium under a few SHOCKS agents’ careful observation.

  And Alexander? Paul wasn’t sure where the one-eyed mountain man had gone. He’d all but vanished as soon as they entered the office.

  It was strange, but right now, Paul Ramirez had a goal. He pushed open the director’s office doors and stared at the hole in the computer screen.

  A gun barrel pressed against his head. “Drop the gun.”

  He froze. His pistol slipped from his grip, but it didn’t hit the ground. Something caught it. “Turn around.”

  He did, and a pair of pitch-black eyes stared up at him, red cores burning. Claire had both guns trained on him; she gestured at the wall with his. “Through there.”

  And for the first time, Director Ramirez noticed the half-open door made of concrete in the back of the room.

  Once I get Director Ramirez—who’s miraculously transformed back into Doctor Twitchy—into the spare holding cell near the end of the secret passage hallway, I can finally breathe.

  Alexander’s still in the facility, though, and Doctor Twitchy doesn’t know anything about him at all. In fact, it’s strange how little he knows about the one-eyed reality shaper. Doctor Twitchy thinks he’s just a guy who was in Olympic National Park when Merge Prime started, and that he knew something was wrong and decided to tough it out in the woods instead of finding civilization.

  But he doesn’t even know Alexander’s last name. He doesn’t know what he did for work before Merge Prime. And he definitely doesn’t think he’s a formerly-contained anomaly that broke out of his cell through sheer force of…will, or personality, or something like that.

  Now that Doctor Twitchy’s taken care of—for now—I can focus on Alexander.

  I can’t fight him, though. Not directly. Not without figuring out more about him.

  And I can’t trust my Skills in close contact with him, either. There’s a good chance that he could neutralize anything the Revolver could throw at him, and if he recognized that I was using Truthseeker on him, he might be able to control the memory, too. He’s disturbingly powerful, and the truth is that I can’t just beat him the way I’ve been beating my enemies. I can’t shoot my way through the problem.

  I need to stall him out.

  The first thing is to put distance between Doctor Twitchy’s brand-new cell and myself. I hurry down the hall, step through the secret door in the concrete, and leave the director’s office. SHOCKS agents are crawling all over the place; they’re checking out the fried computers and making sure the Voltscorpions are actually dead, running analytics on the known anomalies, and inspecting the facility’s passive security measures.

  None of them bother me. I’m supposed to be here. The Revolver’s tucked away in my pocket, and I don’t look like I’m causing trouble, so everyone assumes I’m L4-3, the Level A anomalous member of Recovery and Stabilization Team Lambda-Four. I ignore my dad and nod to Sora to let her know things are still happening.

  My first target is Daley. I can’t trust him with everything, but I can trust him with enough that he’s an ally, for now. He’s standing at the top of the stairs. “L4-3, good to see you. The rest of the squad’s gone. L4-1’s around, but she’s still recovering. I’m running overwatch.”

  “How much do you know about Alexander?” I ask.

  “Nothing. Why?”

  I don’t say that he’s a powerful anomaly who’s probably manipulating everyone here, and who’s capable of reshaping reality to suit his whims. I do say, “I don’t trust him. I ran into him while I was looking for you guys, and we were over a day behind. How long has he been with you?”

  Daley’s face tightens, and I wince. I should have known he wasn’t stupid. “A day or so. He shouldn’t be that fast. You think…?”

  “I don’t think anything.” It’s time to come clean. “He’s bonded with an anomaly, and he might have some weird features or abilities. Did you see the crystals?”

  “The crystals?”

  “He’s hiding them, but they’re there. They’re like my wings and eyes. If you’d seen them, you’d know he wasn’t a normal person. They’re like my eyes. James says he’s a reality shaper. I can’t fight him, and neither can you. I need you to tell me if you see him and where he goes. But you can’t let him know you’re watching him, and don’t try to contain him yourself.”

  Daley looks a little unsure about that last part. I roll my eyes. “Can you contain me?”

  “Probably not,” he says.

  “I’m high Xuduo-Danger. A lot like Li Mei was. So is—“

  “Was?”

  “I killed her.” That’s not, strictly speaking, true. But she’s not coming back. “The point is that Alexander’s about as powerful as I was, so if you can’t fight me, you can’t fight him. Don’t try. James and I are working on solutions. Just tell me where he is if you see him.”

  That’s a lie, too. James isn’t around, and I don’t have any idea how to win. I scoop up a SHOCKS agent’s headset. “I’ll keep this on me so you can get in touch.”

  Then I’m gone, moving toward the tram platform. It’s the last place Alexander will look for me, and right now, that’s exactly what I need.

  I’m checking out what’s left of the tram when a message pops into my vision.

  [Claire, this is Sindey. I’m temporarily in control of and am running life support for James. He’s unconscious, but alive. I’ve got him stable, and I’m passing control back to him. You’ll need to assign augment permissions to him when he reboots. He had to clone his operating system multiple times to beat the ICE programs, and he may not technically be compatible with your augs in his current form. He can brute force it, but it’ll be easier if you assign perms. My actions here shouldn’t be a problem, though.]

  I don’t sign in relief, but only because I’ve been expecting him to win. “Can you go back into hiding?”

  [Yes. I’m leaving evidence that a temporary clone caused him to stabilize. It’ll be believable.]

  “Got it. Going silent.”

  Something else is in the cavern with the tram platform with me. I just heard it move, and whatever it is, it’s bad news. Maybe the big spider. Maybe something else. Nothing good, though. I grip the Revolver’s handle, finger on the trigger, and duck into the tram itself. At the same time, I maneuver through my augs’ settings. There’s a new program at the door. I whitelist it for everything, and James’s voice comes through. He sounds weak.

  [I didn’t expect SHOCKS to layer multiple anomalous digital infovores with their security ICE. Next time, I’ll probe more cautiously, and I’ll have personal ICE programs ready to assist. It’ll be a more fair fight early that way. Sorry about going silent, by the way.]

  “How do I beat Alexander?” I ask.

  [You’re fighting Alexander again?] James goes quiet. [Okay, reviewed aug data. You’re not ready to fight him, but you’ll have to be eventually. He’s a reality shaper, and I don’t know what his limits are. At the very least, he can re-shape matter. If he’s strong enough, he can reshape thoughts or information, too. The strongest reality shapers in our database don’t exist in our database anymore, because they re-wrote reality to either abandon their powers or to leave Reality Zero entirely.]

  “Do you think that’s his goal?”

  [No. If he could do that, he could have done that without this facility. I’d place his powers at high-Xuduo-Danger like you told L4-4. He needs something here, and he’s not powerful enough to just make it happen. But he could be with a bit of training, and if—when—he finds Ramirez, his power level won’t matter. You won’t be able to fight the facility and him simultaneously.]

  I sit down on a tram bench. James is right. I need to make a move. But that still leaves me with the problem of not having anything that can hurt Alexander. As long as that problem stays unsolved, I’m not beating him. There’s no way. He can mess with the fabric of reality. I can’t.

  Or can I?

  “James, do you have a readout of the reality levels around Alexander when he used his powers?” I ask. An idea’s forming in my head. It’s just a seedling—the first step in an equation—but it’s further than I’ve gotten so far.

  It takes a couple of seconds. Then James pulls up the footage of him burying me up to my calves in suddenly-solid mud. He overlays something—it looks like heat vision. [Hotter colors are high reality. Cooler is lower. Color-coded for your convenience.]

  “Thanks.”

  I watch the five-second clip three times, just to be sure. As the ground turns to mud and then solidifies, an area around me the size of a basic living apartment goes ice blue, and the mud blazes hot red.

  And just like that, I’ve got my weapon. I just have to get close enough to use it.

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