"What the fuck, Flick!?" The words actually came from Miranda, technically, but I was pretty sure they could have come from literally anyone and everyone there who was seeing all this. Miranda, all the random students standing around, Liam, Mekkta, Tabbris, even Eurso and Cerberus if they had been able to talk. All of them, every last one, were just staring up at the hovering ship, mouths agape. A hovering ship that had been the Crossroads Lighthouse up until thirty seconds earlier.

It was Liam who was the first to find his voice after that. And not only his voice, but his hands and legs too. The next thing I knew, he was on me. The man used some sort of rocket burst (not quite like my own, this one had six different bits of flame coming out of him, all of which glowed bright purple) and slammed into me before I knew what was happening. His hand grabbed my throat, even as a forcefield appeared around us, cutting me off from the others. "You! You and your mother, they just keep-- you just keep ruining things!" That came as he threw me into the dirt, his foot lashing out to kick me.

It didn't get that far. I was already twisting out of the way and rising, using a bit of help from my own rocket burst, directed out one side, to lift me up. My left hand smacked his incoming foot away. Not exactly easily, given he was still stronger than me even with the boosts I'd gotten through those rifts. But he wasn't nearly as much stronger than me as he would've been.

His voice came in a sharp, snapped tone that made it clear he wasn't exactly in his right mind at that point. "Now you think you can come after the one thing that gives us a chance to fight back and protect ourselves!? You think you can sneak in here and steal the Edge from us? You think I'll just let that happen? I was your teacher once, so let me give you one more lesson. See, that shield is generated from the same spells that protect the school itself. Thirty-seven very experienced adults contributed to that power. Whatever friends you've brought with you won't be able to get through it any time soon. They can just stay out there until you're ready to surrender."

He came after me then, in a quick flurry of blows that I barely managed to avoid the worst of. My head snapped away from one punch, my arm rose to deflect another, I twisted aside from a third, and the fourth glanced off my shoulder before the fifth graced my stomach hard enough to make me stumble a little. Even then, I was able to pivot on one foot to escape his followthrough.

Honestly, if he had been a level of headmaster that Gaia or Ruthers had been while they were in charge, I wouldn't have stood any real chance on my own like that. Especially given how angry he was. But he wasn't the same level as they were. He was an adult, experienced Boscher, yet nowhere near what they were. He hadn't been put in the position of headmaster because he was really the best choice for the job. He'd been put in that position because Ruthers and the other loyalist members of the Committee wanted someone they could control, after Gaia.

All of which meant that he didn't completely demolish me the way he clearly thought he would. He wasn't even bothering to use much in the way of esoteric powers. I wasn't sure why exactly, but he stuck to simply trying to hit me, and that was the sort of thing I could deal with. Yes, he was stronger and faster than I was, and more experienced. But we were much closer in that regard than he was expecting. Which was probably why he abruptly stepped back after a few quick and brutal seconds of that. He'd come after me in a rush, no doubt without even thinking it through. But now he paused, putting a bit of space between both of us as he reevaluated things.

That pause gave me an instant to take in what was happening outside the forcefield. The bubble itself was about twenty feet wide, and opaque blue to stop anyone from seeing in or out. But I had ghosts on the outside I could look through. The security team and some more teachers had shown up in force by that point, and the few who hadn't stopped short to stare in bewilderment at the hovering spaceship were trying to do something about Mekkta, Percy, a dozen Mirandas, Cerberus, and Eurso. Even with help from the older students who were there, they weren't having much luck with that. Mekkta alone could probably have dealt with most, if not all of them.

Oh well, this gave me the chance to see if Liam would listen. Focusing on him, I spoke sharply but clearly. "You have to stop what you're doing. Not this. The spell. The one you're trying to use to send all of us away for good. If you keep trying that, it's going to backfire worse than you can possibly imagine. I know you want your family back, Liam, I do. But that isn't the way to do it."

The man stared at me. I remembered sitting in his class as a student just a year earlier. He was a lot friendlier then. Maybe it was the whole throwing me around and trying to repeatedly punch me that made him seem like less of a fun teacher. He was panting now, probably more from his own emotions than any of my actual physical efforts, to be honest. "I never wanted to hurt you or your mom, or any of the others," he informed me in a voice that seemed to crack with emotion in every other word. "I really didn't. She was my friend. She was-- I just wanted her to stop and come back. And you… damn it, Felicity, you were a good student. You were-- I didn't… God, Felicity, I never wanted any of this to happen. I just wanted things to go back to the way they were. That's all I wanted, just for things to go back to normal."

There was a whole war going on outside the forcefield. Not to mention the whole problem of Ruthers waking up soon. We had to get out of here, now. Still, I hesitated for just a second. "I know you didn't want this, but you've got it. And you need to stop what you're doing. I tried to tell Ruthers, but-- look, the Reapers know what you're trying to do. If you don't stop, if you keep trying this, they're gonna destroy the sun, Liam. They're going to kill all of us if you keep going with your little plan to get rid of us."

The man's head went back like I'd hit him, eyes widening fractionally as he made a noise deep in his throat. But any thought I'd had that I might actually get through to him with that evaporated as a disbelieving snort escaped him. "They were right, you're just like your mother. You really will say absolutely anything to get what you want. Is that what this is all about? You just wanted to come here and say whatever it took to save yourself from being sent someplace where you can't interfere with our lives anymore? Is that why you went through all the trouble of that absurd illusion out there? Did you really think that would convince anyone? What, are we supposed to believe the Reapers are responsible for that too? I suppose the dead Reaper in the Edge itself turned the place of its confinement into a magical spaceship so it could just fly away, is that it?"

"Well," I replied with a shrug rather than trying to argue with him more, "I tried to do this the easy way. Now I suppose we'll just have to do whatever it takes to stop you from doing that spell."

His eyes narrowed dangerously, and the man straightened to his full height. His posture, which had already been guarded, closed off even more. "Is that supposed to be some sort of threat?"

"A threat?" As I echoed his words in the most even tone I could manage, my head shook and I casually crossed both arms behind my head. Rocking back on my heels a bit, I informed him, "No, Liam, that wasn't a threat. In fact, I wasn't actually talking to you at all. I was talking to her."

The man didn't have a chance to even process what I was saying before a fist punched through his special forcefield and grabbed the back of his neck. His mouth opened, but before any sound could come out, Mekkta came the rest of the way through the disintegrating shield and pressed another one of those cuffs like she'd used on Ruthers against his wrist. A quick word activated whatever spell was on the thing, and Liam collapsed, eyes rolling up into the back of his head as he groaned softly. Something told me he wouldn't get out of it as quickly as Ruthers would.

He would have fallen into Mekkta's arms, but the woman simply stepped aside and let him collapse to the ground unceremoniously. At the same time, she looked at me and announced, "You know, it would probably be a lot easier on you in the long run if you just let me kill him before he makes a nuisance of himself again. The man isn't going to recognize his mistakes."

"He's Sands' and Sarah's dad, we're not killing him," I insisted. It was basically the same thing Tabbris had told her through one of the ghosts while they had been setting that whole thing up and telling Mekkta exactly where to punch through the opaque shield in order to grab the man.

While all that had been going on, Hot Type was controlling our army of ghosts, sending them out to help the others. That was why I didn't use any in my little altercation with Liam. They were busy making sure the other Boscher students and staff didn't kill any of my friends. Which, of course, included sending out Jason, Chas, Emily, and Kaleigh. And… well, I was pretty sure just seeing a handful of their former classmates and students as ghosts still using their powers had been even more effective at neutralizing those guys then the actual powers themselves had been. And yes, a big part of me did feel bad about exploiting those kinds of emotions, but it was better than letting anyone get really hurt, or worse. We made sure no one died.

Reaching down, I grabbed Liam and hoisted the man off the ground easily. By that point, the primary Miranda, Percy, Cerberus, and Eurso had come sprinting over to join us. They were all staring up at the ship, which was still just hovering in place, like it was waiting for us to get up there.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Miranda started to say something, but I cut her off with a quick, "I'll explain later, let's go!" So far, her duplicates and my army of ghosts were keeping everyone else occupied, but I didn't expect that to last for more than a few seconds. Most of the advantage we had right now was that those guys were all still reeling from multiple layers of shock about what was going on. Any second now, they were going to regroup and focus on their main problem. We had to leave, now.

Even as I said that, a hatch on the side of the ship opened and a ramp extended down about ten feet. We still had about a forty foot jump to make, but that was no big deal for most of us. And for the others? Well, I was about to summon some of the ghosts to lift Cerberus and Eurso, but Mekkta beat me to it. Not by summoning her own ghosts, naturally. No, she carefully picked up Cerberus, gave him a reassuring whisper, then literally threw the big metal dog all the way up to the ramp. Eurso was sent up right after him, both landing safely even as a frantic shout went up behind us when some of the loyalists realized we were about to leave with the ship that had once been their lighthouse.

Yeah, I really wasn't sure what they thought was really going on. Liam seemed to think the ship was an illusion, but that we were still trying to steal the Edge somehow. Did these people all think they were looking at an illusion, a hologram or something? I wasn't sure, but one thing was for certain, they did not like the idea that we were about to leave. Which meant they were organizing, regrouping, focusing. Exactly the thing I didn't want to happen. Now, we really had to go.

None of us needed help either. Percy and Mekkta simply jumped up there, easily making the leap. Miranda followed suit, using two different powers, one that made her incredibly light, and another that summoned focused wind to blow herself onto the ramp. And as for me, in the old days, I would've used my boost, rocket burst, and a blast of power from my staff to make it. But now? After everything I'd been through at the rifts, I could lift over ten thousand pounds. Hell, that was probably a big part of why Liam was so surprised that I wasn't easily smacked around. Ten thousand pound lift translated into a pretty decent vertical leap. Even carrying Liam didn't really hinder me much as far as that went.

Landing a bit more awkwardly than I'd planned, thanks to severely overestimating how much effort it would take, I let go of Liam's legs and caught myself against Miranda's offered hand before urging everyone to get inside. I didn't even look back at what was going on below. I knew it wouldn't be pretty. Dozens of my ghosts had already been cut down, destroyed for the time being. They would reform later, but for now, they were gone. We had to get the hell out of this place. I just hoped I was actually right about the ship being able to do that. A ship that was carrying the skull that-- nope, I really didn't have time to think about that. I'd told the others we had to focus, and that went for me as well. We were leaving. Actually taking the time to comprehend the situation could wait.

The ramp led to a simple cargo bay, one of the smaller ones that was probably meant for crew foodstuffs and such. It was empty now, save for all of us, which made it a bit cramped. As the hatch closed behind us, I recalled my ghosts, getting the ones who were left out of there before any more of them were hurt. Miranda did the same with her duplicates, and I felt the ship move under us. The engines were revving, while it flew away from the island.

Racing to and out the nearby door into the hall beyond after simply dropping Liam right there, I called out, "Bob, or whoever's in charge of this thing, we need to go, yesterday! Get us the hell away from this--"

I was interrupted by the sudden appearance of a figure in front of me. Ruthers. He was right there. Or rather, he was starting to be there. I saw his body manifesting, but it was partially transparent. It was like he was trying to teleport into the ship, but something was stopping him. Or at least slowing him down, making his teleportation take an extended time. His physical form wasn't fully there. Over the next couple seconds, it gradually solidified. He may have been slowed, but he wasn't stopped. He saw me there, mouth twisting in rage as he began to raise a hand.

And then he was gone. Or rather, we were. The ship made some sort of jump and left him behind. He hadn't managed to finish teleporting inside before we left. Another second or two, and he would've been right there with us. But now, at least for the moment, we were safe.

Should you really be thinking that before we know exactly what's going on? That was Tabbris, her mental voice anxious and worried. We don't even know where we-- wait. I felt her use my location distance power to check how far we were from Laramie Falls, just in case it worked. And it did. We were roughly four and a half thousand miles from our old home. Which meant we were back on Earth. We had escaped Crossroads, and we did it while taking the Heretical Edge itself, and their current headmaster.

Yeah, if I hadn't already been right at the top of their most wanted list, I was pretty sure this would get my name there. Probably underlined and with several stars around it. This was going to piss them off pretty badly. But hey, at least no one could call me a slouch.

Percy had left Cerberus to watch over Liam, making sure he stayed out. Yes, Mekkta insisted he wouldn't wake up for hours, but there was no sense in taking stupid risks. Between him, Eurso, and the couple ghosts I left as well, they would let us know if he so much as twitched at all.

Meanwhile, it was time to see just what the hell was going on here. And get the others caught up at least as much as I already was. So, as we met our way through the narrow ship corridors toward the bridge, I gave them a quick and simple rundown about who and what this ship was. I told them about how it had been stuck in Tartarus long enough to gain the power of sapience itself, waving a hand to empty air as I added, "Care to introduce yourself, buddy?"

The holographic words appeared as we walked past.

HELLO, ALL.

IT IS GOOD TO MEET YOU.

AND TO FINALLY FULFILL MY MISSION.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO OUR BRIDGE.

SO WE CAN TALK.

Obviously, we all had questions. But I figured it wouldn't do any good to stand there in the corridor asking Skuttlebutt to explain more right then. So, we took the lift up to the bridge. The whole way, I kept seeing Miranda stare incredulously at me out of the corner of my eye. When I looked that way, her mouth opened, then shut before she managed a weak, "Did we really just steal the Heretical Edge from Crossroads, and kidnap their headmaster at the same time?" She sounded like the realization of all that was about to make her collapse. Which, to be fair, it was a lot.

All I could do was offer her a shrug. "I know about as much as you do at this point. But, well, yeah. I'm pretty sure that's exactly what we did. If you thought they were pissed at us before, just wait. They're gonna do anything it takes to get this back."

By then, the lift had stopped, the doors opening to allow us out onto the bridge itself. The room was shaped like a crescent moon, with the forward viewing window taking up the inside curve. There were an assortment of stations scattered through remaining space, with a captain's chair right in the middle. Part of me had been wondering who we would find waiting for us here, and the answer was no one. The whole bridge was empty. Looking around, I asked, "Skuttlebutt, you said we should join you on 'our' bridge. But I don't see anyone here. Are you plural, or is someone missing?"

NO ONE MISSING, the hologram words displayed right there on the bridge viewport.

WE ARE BOTH HERE.

I SKUTTLEBUTT, THE SHIP.

AND MY CAPTAIN

MY PARTNER

THE ONE YOU CALL BOB.

Percy piped up quickly, "Bob my creator?"

Oh, right, the Reaper who became the key piece of the Heretical Edge had been the one who created Persephone. She had always wondered why she was different, why she didn't have the mindless bloodlust of other Revenants that the rest of the Reapers had made. They were like attack dogs or whatever, but Persephone had always been special. Had Bob done that on purpose? Had he created her that way intentionally? Maybe this would be her chance to find out the truth, finally.

HE IS HERE.

HIS PHYSICAL REMAINS ARE IN MY HEART.

BUT HE CANNOT MANIFEST HIMSELF NOW.

IT IS TOO DANGEROUS.

That raised a lot more questions, but before I could say any of them, Miranda spoke up. "Okay, but how did you turn into a lighthouse? How long have you been there? What is-- how did-- what?"

Again, the answers appeared immediately.

I HAVE BEEN THERE SINCE THE BEGINNING

THEY COMPLETED THE BUILDING OF THE ORIGINAL LIGHTHOUSE

AND BEFORE THEY MOVED THE REAPER REMAINS INTO IT

I TOOK ITS PLACE. IT WAS MY MISSION

TO WAIT UNTIL YOU CAME BACK

AND THEN TAKE YOU AND THE REAPER BACK TO EARTH.

"Your mission, but from who? Who did all this, who set it up?" I managed.

YOU.

That was the word that appeared.

YOU SET IT UP. YOU FOUND AND PREPARED ME

THE OTHER YOU. THE ONE WHO HAS LIVED LONGER.

The other me. The one who was sent into the past and had to live through all that. She was the one who put Skuttlebutt there and convinced it to stay hidden for all that time. She was the reason we had Liam and the Heretical Edge itself.

"Is she here now? Is she going to… join us?" I asked hesitantly, trying to think of what it would be like to be around a version of myself that was over four thousand years old.

NOT NOW

THEY DELAYED RUTHERS

AND NOW ARE DOING OTHER THINGS

IN THEIR OTHER IDENTITIES.

IT IS NOT MY PLACE TO REVEAL

Other identities plural? What other identities? What was this other me doing? Besides delaying Ruthers back there, apparently.

"What… what do we do now?" Miranda asked, after absorbing all that.

"Now? I uhh, I guess we contact the others to let them know we're back," I murmured, still trying to come to terms with everything.

"And tell them that we just took this war to a whole new level."

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