Karim

I blink several times.

Services of a god, huh?

Ace moves to stand in front of me.

"You should have listened to your instinct and picked up the glass mask. Being here with your eyes uncovered is very risky business."

How does he…?

They're both a bunch of creeps - I had been as stealthy as possible.

"But you should be warned - my proposal won't last forever. I'll be leaving this place very soon."

I resist the urge to glance at it.

"What makes you so sure?" Ace asks.

The Presence chuckles.

"Come closer and I'll show you." It tells Ace.

Ace smirks.

"Maybe you can try fooling Karim with that, but you should know that I know you better than anyone else."

I raise a brow.

"True. Very true indeed." It agrees, clapping lightly.

"But you haven't seen its true form. So, in my opinion, you don't know him that well… or at all." I say, thinking of Arya.

"You're very wise. I think you two would make perfect friends. I'll call you 'the foolproof pair'."

"Terrible. Very terrible. And we're not the type to have friends."

I glance at him.

"I'm not. But, I don't see why we aren't friends already."

Ace's eyes soften. He says nothing.

"I told you. Making friends is not that hard when you allow yourself to be likeable."

Ace wheels around.

"Since when was this conversation about my social life?" He asks.

"Ah, yes. The impending doom of your world. But, it's so boring to argue about that. You know what's coming but still choose to deny it. Why don't we talk about something more interesting - like your new found friendship with Karim, for example?"

"What did you see Ace? What did it show you?" I ask, breaking my number one rule - crossing boundaries.

As expected, he doesn't respond.

"Tell him. You think keeping it to yourself would make it… less true? Less of a fact? Unreal?" The Presence taunts.

From the side of my eye, I see Ace's jaw harden.

With a heavy sigh, Ace turns to me.

"No one survived."

Just three words, but they're enough to shatter the little hope I tried to have.

"What about It?" I ask.

"Except It and Furuno."

Furuno?

"Furuno?" I voice my confusion.

"As it seems. I don't know if I can trust the vision. He may be trying to fool me."

"Then why is your heart so troubled?"

"You know what I saw!" Ace says, his voice contrite.

The emotion in his voice is heavy and raw - I can only imagine what he saw.

Too bad I'm not into the business of seeing beyond physical images.

"I was in your Domain. No one can deceive you in your Domain. Not even me, unfortunately - and you know it." The Presence says.

I remember Ace saying that he is like a god in his Domain. Could it be true?

Ace makes to walk away, but spins on his heels, his face unreadable.

"That's exactly the thing. When you're involved, I no longer know who's in charge here." With that, he leaves.

"That's just your inner voice lying to you and you know it."

"If I have full control over you while in my Domain, why can't I see your true form?" Ace asks, his tone measured.

I hear the sound of it sliding its hands along the bars.

"I'm surprised you haven't figured out the answer to that by now." It replies, mischievous.

"And what is the answer?"

"Simple. I have no true form."

Ace scoffs.

"I'm no fool. Everything has a true form. And Karim is right about one thing - I don't know you at all, so I can't believe a single thing you say."

It laughs, a deep and guttural sound.

"I am everything. And everything doesn't have a form - it just exists."

"Keep your fucking philosophies to yourself. I'm done!" Ace says and walks out for real this time.

Then, as if remembering my presence, he calls out, "Are you planning on listening to more of its nonsense?"

Lost, I reach Ace in quick strides, not before I hear the Presence's whisper as it fades.

"My nonsense would turn out to be the basis of your ruin." It said.

The words keep bothering me. Something tells me that the vision might be real.

When we reach the mask shelf, Ace stops to return his mask.

I take the cue.

"How exactly did we die?"

"I don't want to talk about it, Karim."

"What's so hard in narrating the deaths of people you don't care about?" I ask, mostly to tempt a response out of him.

He turns to glare at me.

"Who says I don't care about them? Have you had to watch your wife die before your eyes?"

I clench my fists. His question brings up painful memories.

"Is this about Morrow?" I ask, tactically evading his question.

He raises an eyebrow.

"What does she have to do with anything?"

"Why mention my wife?"

"Why not mention her? She's probably the closest person to you."

I step back, my gaze faltering.

"She was taken by the monsters. I don't know if she's still alive or not." I finally admit.

Ace pulls off his headphones completely, placing the full intensity of his gaze on me.

"Is that why you're here?" He asks, his voice patient.

I just nod.

He runs a shaky hand through his hair.

"Yeah, I don't want any of you to die either. Not even Praisch." He whispers.

"Especially you." He adds.

I look up at him.

"How did I die?" I ask.

His gaze falters, his hands clutching fistfuls of his hair.

"You died saving Morrow." His tone is reluctant.

I keep my expression stoic.

"And Morrow? Did she survive?"

His shoulders slump.

"I've already told you. She died the most gory death of all of us. Don't make me relive it."

"I'm sorry. I remember you mentioned Furuno survived. Do you know why?"

"Furuno wasn't quite himself. It seemed like he was someone or something else entirely." He explains.

I nod as if I have the faintest clue what he is talking about.

Does it tie down to what is currently going on with Furuno?

Then, a question pops up.

"Since you've seen what is going to happen, do you know the exact time this event would take place - we may be able to beat it."

He gives me a watery smile.

"I used to think the same way, Karim. But the future can always shift in parallel directions. One change in our actions can change how we end up dying. It's no use."

I ponder his words.

"Just tell me the dates. Besides, how would we know if we are doing anything differently?" I ask.

He rubs his brow in thought.

"I don't know the exact dates if that's what you're asking. I only know the circumstances surrounding the deaths. Like Safari died when the mainland bridge crumbled. She managed to lift the rest of us to safety but couldn't save herself."

I pause.

"Wait. You saw all of this within that short time?"

Ace looks away, embarrassed.

"Not only then. I've been paying private visits to the Presence, like you have seen." He mutters, clearly ashamed.

I cough briefly.

"What if the Presence is right? What if the future it showed you would actually take place?"

He leans back against the wall.

"If that's the case, we are powerless against the monsters. Let's give up now we can."

The hopelessness in his voice gets to me.

"Don't give up yet. The fight has just begun. We're going to start by getting ourselves expelled." I say, grinning.

His eyes widen in shock.

"Expelled? Do you know who my parents are? They'll roast me before I even sign the rustication document." He admits.

"Are you really worried about that? What's the point of remaining in a school that won't see the end of this month?" I ask him.

He twists his mouth as he contemplates my words.

"What about others? How are they going to get themselves expelled?"

"They'll just have to become extremely naughty." I say.

He grins widely.

"Say no more. I know just the way to help them."

He makes to leave.

I hold him back, placing my hand lightly on his shoulder.

"Does this mean you are going to become a member? One of us?"

"I think you know the answer to that already." He says, his eyes twinkling.

I raise a brow, confused.

"Do I?" I ask.

"I was a member of your resistance from the beginning. Just an unsubmissive one."

His response makes me smile.

"So then, we're not paying anymore visits to the Dungeons, right? How long would it take for the school to notice that we're skipping our punishment?"

"Since Mrs. Val is involved, I'd say pretty fast. She's had an eye on my comings and goings for the past two days."

"That must make you very uncomfortable." I comment.

"Not as uncomfortable as it makes her, though. She always looks like a frightened chicken in the rain - afraid I might pluck her cocky feathers."

"Then, that makes everything much easier for us."

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