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Chapter 22: No Rest

After exiting the reality rift, Finn flipped open his blanket and stood up, then calmly headed for the door. He prepared to walk down the stairs, but then remembered Iris and her lack of a wheelchair.

Sighing, he went over to her room and gently knocked on the door.

“Iris. Are you awake?”

“Mm…”

Finn heard a soft groan coming from inside the room, then knocked again. “… Iris?”

“Mmngh… yeah… I’m getting up…”

“Are you wearing clothes?”

“H-Huh? Yeah, I am… is that you, Finn? You can come in.”

Finn, having received permission, opened the door and walked inside. It’s not like he could see anyway, but it was still polite to ask.

“How long has it been…?” Iris asked, rubbing her eyes cutely.

“I’m… not sure either,” Finn admitted honestly. “Though… I don’t believe all that much time has passed.”

He was, of course, judging from how long he spent within the reality rift, but whether time flow inside the rift was the same as the outside, he had no idea. Zelestria had said it was a ‘gap in space-time’, but the true meaning of that was unknown. It would be most natural to assume time was just stopped in a reality rift, but it could also be accelerated, as in time flowed extremely fast across the gap.

Iris climbed onto Finn’s back, and the two of them set off to head downstairs.

*****

Once the two descended into the living room, they saw everyone else already gathered. However, this time, there was also someone Finn had never met before — a young boy who appeared to be no older than a middle school student, wearing glasses that gave him a bit of a ‘nerdy’ look.

However, the sharp gleam in his eyes signaled that he was no ordinary kid. They were battle-hardened and resolved, despite being so young. The attire he wore was a white lab coat that seemed far too large for his stature, but he somehow seemed natural in it, like it was practically made for him other than the size.

“Oh, Finn and Ivis,” Archon laughed. “You’re finally up.”

“How long were we asleep for…?” Finn asked, still having no idea about the stranger since he was blind.

“5 whole hours,” Octane chuckled as if that was a lot. “I’m honestly shocked, how did you not get hungry or thirsty? Then again… you didn’t eat or drink after waking up from a whole day of sleeping back when you were injured too… some special ability? Heh.”

“Uh, that’s…” Finn trailed off, unable to tell them about the reality rift. Still, he got his answer — time definitely flowed faster in the reality rift than out here, in a roughly 1:60 ratio (1 minute in the rift is equivalent to 1 hour in the real world).

“Oh yeah, you haven’t met Fanatic yet, right?” Archon finally remembered, glancing to the little boy sitting to his left. “I know you can’t see him, Finn, but just picture a little kid wearin’ a lab coat and square glasses. That should be a good enough image, right?”

Finn was definitely confused, but he just accepted it and nodded. “… Nice to meet you. You can call me…”

“Ace,” Iris whispered sharply into Finn’s ear, reminding him of the alias she had come up with.

“… Ace,” Finn finished.

At this, everyone present raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“Nice to meet you as well… Ace,” Fanatic responded.

“… Is that the alias you’ve chosen for yourself?” Archon asked.

Finn nodded. “More accurately, Ivis picked it for me, but yes.”

“Oh yeah… they did mention it while trying their armor out…” Octane murmured, having forgotten all about it due to the sudden call-to-action.

“I see… well then,” Archon smirked and cleared his throat. “Welcome to the 154th Squadron of the Phantom Slayers Corps, Ace.”

“Glad to be here,” Finn replied formally, without a hint of emotion in his voice.

And as the two shook hands, a voice suddenly interrupted.

“Uh… that’s great and all, but like, can we eat? I’m starving…”

Everyone turned to face Octane as he cowered in fear, ready to be scolded, but instead, they all just sighed and shook their heads.

“Well, as much as I hate to admit it… he’s right,” Archon chuckled. “After a quick nap and a long day, the first thing you need is food.”

*****

As Archon left for the kitchen, Storm got up as well and followed him.

“Where are they going?” Finn asked, confused at the sudden silence that had settled in and the sound of people leaving.

“Those two take care of all the cooking here,” Fanatic explained, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose as he flipped open his book. “Archon might not look it, but he’s quite the excellent chef.”

“He’s like a father to all of us here,” Octane added. “We all lost our parents to Phantoms… and he lost his wife and son. So, here we are, banding together to form a new family.”

“I see…”

Finn, in reality, wanted to know more about everyone here, especially Iris, since knowledge was power, but they weren’t exactly all that close yet. He decided to just give it a bit more time.

After about half an hour of Octane rambling on and on about the game he was playing on his phone, Archon returned with several plates of steaming food. He wore an apron, which definitely did not match up with the ferocious image of him in battle. With a wide smile on his face, he set the plates down on the table. Storm followed him, placing down bowls and utensils for everyone.

“Now then, sorry for the delay, kids. Let’s dig in.”

Octane immediately shoved his phone into his pocket and reached for his chopsticks, but was interrupted by Archon, who grabbed his arm.

“Go wash your hands first. That goes for everyone else here as well. Yes, even you, Reaper.”

Octane sighed and stood up, heading for the bathroom. Finn, carrying Iris, followed, as Reaper the robot hovered slowly behind, the dark cloak covering him unable to hide its unsatisfied single red eye — or rather, sensor. It looked like an eye though.

On the way, Finn couldn’t help but think ‘he’s really like a father’, with regards to Archon.

Soon after, they all returned, where the two chefs sat patiently.

“Alright…” Archon said once everyone settled into their chairs. “Now, I know you’ve already been with us for a while, kid, but it’s customary to hold a quick yet formal welcome at the newcomer’s first meal, here at the 154th Squadron. So, without further ado…”

He lifted up the cup of beer in his hands and raised it high up into the air, Octane, Storm, and even Reaper doing the same. Fanatic had apple juice as a substitute.

“… Cheers for Ace and Ivis!”

Finn and Iris both hesitantly picked up their own cups and bumped it against the others’, before taking a sip as everyone else did the same. Reaper poured his cup straight down but couldn’t drink it, ending up spilling it all on the floor.

“Damn it, Reaper! I have to clean that up, you know!” Octane groaned in annoyance, rolling his eyes.

[Apologies, Subject OCTAN3.]

“Ugh…”

“Ivis, by the way, you’re okay with us calling you that, right?” Archon asked. “It sounds like an alias already, which was why we never asked you for one like we did with Ace.”

“Sure, I don’t mind,” Iris said with a nonchalant shrug.

“Good… now that formalities are out of the way, let’s talk about the real stuff.”

“The real stuff?” Finn asked, taking a bite out of his rice.

Archon sighed. “Yes… which do you want to hear first, the good news or the bad news?”

“Good,” Octane immediately said.

“Bad,” Iris and Finn replied simultaneously.

Reaper, Fanatic, and Storm didn’t expression an opinion.

“Okay, majority rules, bad it is,” Archon chuckled, then took on a serious expression. “When reporting back to HQ today, I was alerted of some… concerning information.”

“Let’s hear it,” Finn said quietly.

Archon nodded. “According to reliable sources, a Perfect Outbreak occurred in District C just a few days ago. It completely destroyed the city, and the Hunters that were dispatched there didn’t stand a chance. I was told that every District now holds an Emperor-level Ghost, which is why Outbreaks have been so frequent lately.”

At this, Storm, who took his mask off to eat, narrowed his ocean-blue eyes. “A Perfect Outbreak… that’s an Outbreak where all five Ghost archetypes spawn in, correct?”

Archon nodded. “They are extremely rare, and the only time it’s happened before was decades ago. And when it did… humanity was nearly completely destroyed — otherwise known as the Expungement. However, thanks to the power of Angelicas that were bestowed upon us by some unknown, paracausal source, we managed to rebuild civilization and quell the Ghost tide.”

He gripped his chopsticks tightly, face solemn as he continued.

“But this time’s Perfect Outbreak… it’s even more dangerous than the last, according to the guild. Even with the power of Angelicas, this time… we may not be able to survive.”