After classes ended, I went looking for September. It was like she’d vanished completely—no sign of her anywhere. The building felt weirdly empty without her. The air just felt... off.

  If I’d had the rest of the team with me, maybe I wouldn’t have been so nervous. But alone? I had to be careful. Really careful. I searched everywhere—hallways, stairwells, classrooms—but she was nowhere to be found.

  Then, while heading down the stairs, I spotted someone.

  It was her.

  But something about her felt wrong. She wasn’t her usual sharp, intimidating self. Her aura—her entire presence—had this dark, unstable energy that gripped my soul. She was just sitting there in the cafeteria, alone, like the world around her didn’t exist. The room was quieter than usual. Almost empty. Which made it feel even stranger.

  This had to be the place.

  I stepped into the cafeteria slowly, scanning the space. And there she was—just sitting at a table, calm as ever.

  I didn’t rush this time. I moved carefully, not wanting to startle her—but also not wanting to look scared either. I couldn’t let her think she had control over me, even if she kind of did.

  Then her eyes met mine.

  She didn’t say anything at first, just stared—hard. Her expression was cold, almost like she was sizing me up. Then she smiled. Not a friendly smile. It was sharp. Dangerous.

  And then, she laughed. Quietly at first, then darker. Like something about this situation genuinely amused her.

  Before I could say a single word, she lunged.

  Her hand wrapped around my neck, slamming me into the wall. My breath caught instantly. I struggled, trying to breathe, trying to speak, but she was too strong.

  “What brings you here?” she asked. Her voice was harsh and full of power—like she already knew the answer and just wanted to hear me stammer it.

  “I—” I choked out, barely able to speak. “I have something important to tell you!”

  She didn’t let up. Her grip got tighter.

  “You’re just a clueless little kid,” she snapped. “Did you even listen to me last time?”

  “I did!” I gasped. “But this is different—I have a plan!”

  She didn’t care. Her grip tightened again, and my vision started to blur. My legs kicked against the floor, trying to do something—anything—but it was useless. I couldn’t break free.

  “Do you know how hard I worked to get here? Do you know how much you ruined everything for me?” she said with a twisted smirk. Her eyes turned blood-red, glowing like something out of a nightmare. She shook me hard, laughing again—but this time, it was pure cruelty.

  Then—bam.

  She punched me hard in the face, knocking me to the floor. My head spun. I struggled to breathe, staring up at her through blurry vision. She just stood there, completely unfazed, like nothing had happened.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  “September…” I groaned, barely able to speak. “Just listen to me. Just one second, please…”

  That caught her attention. She looked down at me, curious—still smiling, but not quite as cruel now. She grabbed my collar and pulled me back up, setting me in the seat next to her like nothing had just happened.

  I definitely should’ve used my perk to absorb those hits, because it felt like a baseball player had swung a hammer into my chest.

  “Alright,” she said more calmly. “What?”

  I took a deep breath. “What did you want me to do?” I asked.

  “What kind of question is—”

  “You know exactly what kind of question that is. What did you want me to do? Call Mr. Drails? You guys could’ve done that yourselves. Did you want me to let the TSA capture us?”

  She didn’t answer. Instead, she sighed, her eyes fixed on the ground.

  “I did what I could,” I said quietly. “I barely even know how to use this thing, and it’s been over six months since I got here. If I had a choice, I probably wouldn’t have accidentally caused a Fourth of July for an entire town. What else could I have done?” My voice cracked, tears starting to build.

  There was no reason those emotions should’ve come up, but they did. And I had to fight hard not to break down completely.

  “I get it,” I said. “If I hadn’t made such a mess, we wouldn’t be blacklisted. I know it’s hard to call Mr. Drails while you’re running for your life. I just… don’t want to be seen as the bad guy for trying my best.”

  Silence hung between us for a long moment before September finally looked up. Her eyes were red—not with anger, but from tears she’d tried to hide. Suddenly, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around me.

  “I’m… sorry,” she whispered. “I just didn’t want things to end like this, y’know?”

  I nodded as she let go, tucking some hair behind her ears. Her gaze drifted toward the ceiling as she searched for the right words.

  “I’ve always wanted to become a real spy mage,” she said softly. “Not because of the missions or the powers or anything like that. Honestly, it’s mostly paperwork.”

  “Really?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.

  “Nothing’s ever as cool as it seems,” she chuckled. “This is your first mission in months—it’s not just because you’re new.”

  “Oh… well, dang,” I sighed.

  “Before I got recruited here, I was—let’s just say—kind of a criminal,” she admitted, glancing off to the side.

  “How criminal are we talking?”

  “I killed six guys. They hurt my brother.”

  I swallowed hard.

  “I grew up in a bad city—or at least the bad part of one. There were gangs everywhere, punks who liked to cause trouble. My dad was a carjacker and a street racer. He taught me everything about cars. Honestly, I probably know more about cars than a mechanic who’s been working since ’95.”

  “Debatable,” I muttered. A mechanic working since 1995 has a lot of experience.

  She rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I was always surrounded by violence. Eventually, I got tired of being the monster. But when those guys hurt my brother… I lost control. After that, everything spiraled. You don’t need the details.”

  I nodded silently.

  “So eventually, I got caught. But while I was being transported to jail, there was this huge explosion. I think we got caught in the middle of a battle between the YMPA and some MSTO group. One of the YMPA agents found me and pulled me out. They scrubbed my record, changed my name, and gave me a chance to become a spy mage. It felt like a second life—a way to use everything I’d done for something good. Fumbling it now... feels like I’m losing everything all over again.”

  “Maybe not,” I said. “We could still go through with the mission—just us. If we pull it off, Mr. Drails can’t keep us blacklisted. He’ll have to see us as real agents.”

  She leaned back, crossing her arms. “Who told you that?”

  “No one,” I said. “It’s just our best shot. This is our first real chance to prove we can handle the job.”

  She tilted her head, studying me like she couldn’t decide if I was brave, stupid, or both. “You realize we’d probably get expelled if this goes sideways, right?”

  “Yeah,” I said. “But we might also finally earn their trust. We’ve got nothing to lose.”

  September stared at me for a moment, then exhaled slowly. “You might actually be onto something,” she admitted. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

  I laughed weakly. “Don’t say that. You’ll jinx us.”

  We were all gathered on the stairs now—everyone had shown up.

  Malachi raised an eyebrow. “Did you tell her about the plan?”

  “Yeah,” I said with a nod. “We’re all here.”

  Tisiah looked between us, trying to catch up. “So… what’s the move?”

  I hesitated. “I wasn’t expecting everyone to agree this fast.”

  Nikki spoke up, eyes sharp. “We need to get to Britain. We have to save Dr. Jones. Is there an airport anywhere near here?”

  Malachi nodded thoughtfully. “There is. But it’s not close.”

  “Alright,” I said. “We’ll figure it out. For now… let’s get to class before someone notices we’re all gone.”