Day Five
Streets, 3 AM, Present
Niche walks without direction. His flames keep sputtering out, trying to ignite from grief, dying from whatever the trial failure did to him. Each attempt leaves him weaker.
The streetlights flicker as he passes beneath them. Everything feels muted, distant, like he's moving through water. His father's blood has dried on his hands, brown and cracked in the creases of his palms.
He doesn't remember deciding to walk. His body just started moving, carrying him away from the catacombs, away from what happened.
His phone buzzes. The vibration feels too loud in the silent street.
Ryuga's name appears on the screen, along with a notification. "Your location?" the message says, sent two hours ago.
Niche stares at it. His thumb hovers over the keyboard but nothing comes. What would he even say? He turns the phone off instead.
More walking. Block after block. The city at this hour is abandoned but not peaceful.
His flames try to ignite again, into a flicker of orange, then nothing. They behave almost as if they try to ignite on their own, flickering in desperation. The weakness spreads through his chest and arms. He stumbles, catching himself on a streetlight.
Was it the failure of a trial that caused this? The weakness? Not just mental, but…physical.
He doesn't know. Doesn't care enough to think about it.
He keeps walking.
The air changes before he realizes where he's going. Salt. Ocean. His legs have been following muscle memory, taking him to the one place that used to feel normal.
Beach, 4 AM, Present
The sky remains dark, with the moonlight illuminating the water with a dim glow. The black bleeds into navy blue. There is no sun yet, just the promise of it.
Niche sits on the sand, staring blankly in front of him at nothing in particular. The waves keep their rhythm. In, out. In, out. They don't care about anything.
Footsteps sound behind Niche, muffled by sand.
He doesn’t turn to look at the person, but he figures out who’s sitting next to him by her voice.
"Finally found you," Maruka says, standing next to him. She plops down a bag – or something like it – onto the sand beside him and sits down herself. "I was heading to your house with these." She opens the bag and pulls out something, shaking it in the air.
Niche forces himself to turn to his side and engage with her.
"The books?" he asks, sounding forced.
"Yep. About the trials. You asked me for it, remember?" Her voice lightens up. "I wasn’t sure why at first, but after reading one of the books they mentioned something about ‘trials?’ It said the kind of trials depend on the user.”
“That’s interesting.” Niche’s voice remains hollow.
“Yeah. I didn’t bother reading the others; I don’t think I would’ve understood them anyways.”
"Maruka," he says suddenly. "Have you seen my family? My mom?"
Her voice falters for just a second. "T-they... your mom took Mika on a trip. T-to get away from all the chaos in the city."
"A trip? When?" Niche sounds slightly interested.
"Yesterday. Maybe the day before?" She forces normalcy into her tone. "Mika texted me about missing school. Seemed excited.”
"I see.”
"Everything's been crazy with that whole Almajara thing," Maruka assures Niche, looking intently into his eyes. "She probably wanted to get Mika somewhere safe."
Niche nods slowly.
The silence stretches between them. Maruka shifts in the sand, clearly wanting to ask what happened, why he's out here at dawn. But she doesn't.
He looks down at the bag of books beside him.
"I need to read these alone," he says finally. "Can you do me another favor?"
"Of course."
"Just... if anyone asks, you haven't seen me."
"Niche—"
"Please."
She hesitates, then nods.
Maruka stands, brushing sand from her clothes. "I'll leave these here." She sets the bag of books beside him. "When you're ready."
She walks away without looking back.
Niche stays on the beach as the moon lowers. The books sit unopened beside him. He should read them.
He doesn't move.
Hours pass. The beach remains empty, with the occasional group of seagulls passing by.
Eventually, Niche starts walking. Not toward home. Just...somewhere else. Along the shoreline for a while, until the sand starts bothering him. He moves to the street.
The streets are populating now. Not too busy, but the occasional morning jogger passes by Niche every once in a while. Niche keeps his head down, letting people flow around him.
"Niche!"
Maruka's voice rings in his ear. He stops.
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
She stands across the street, still carrying the bag of books from the morning. She must've been out this whole time. She crosses over, concern clear on her face.
"You never took these." She holds out the bag. "I've been waiting."
"Sorry. I..." He takes the bag. "Thanks."
"You're not okay."
"I just need to read these."
She watches him walk away, clearly wanting to follow but respecting his space.
Niche’s Room, Present
Niche spreads the books across a dusty desk. His demeanor changes: his determination grows as he pushes his emotions down to focus on the immediate task. Opening the books, he sees no mention of "Damage, Intelligence, Speed, Defense, Purity" anywhere. All that the books say vaguely is that "each bearer experiences different trials based on their nature and circumstances."
Niche reaches in the bag to see if he missed anything, and his hand grazes a hefty, cold, rectangular metal item. He pulls it out; it’s a fifth book that he missed the first time. He opens the book in anticipation –
The book’s pages appear blank.
He carefully holds his palm over a page, summoning a small, controlled flame. Ancient writing flicker into existence, but his flames are too weak for the writing to be somewhat legible. The translucent text appears for a second, blurry and unreadable, then fades.
He tries again. Weaker still. His father's death, the failed trial – his defenses are shattered.
"Damn it.” Niche scoffs.
He puts the other books bag in the bag and pockets the fifth one.
Two days left.
He stands up from his chair, the newfound motivation driving his actions. He efficiently showers, dresses, and goes down to the kitchen. Gracefully gliding across the kitchen, he quickly makes breakfast.
His mom stumbles into the kitchen, breaking his flow state.
"You're up early for a day off,” she says, her depressed eyes and slouched body revealing the quality of her sleep.
"Couldn't sleep," Niche says, scrambling eggs, perfectly calm. "Heard about the fire?"
"Just saw. Thank god no one was hurt." She notices his shoes by the door. Slightly damp. "Were you out?"
"Went for a run earlier." He plates the eggs. "Want some?"
She's too tired to question it, taking the plate.
Then, Niche wakes up in a sweat.
His eyes open to dim light filtering through the curtains. He's on his bedroom floor, sprawled next to the door. The books from Maruka are scattered around him.
His body aches like he's been running. His throat feels raw.
He sits up slowly. His jacket is still on. He looks down at his hands. There's something dark under his fingernails.
His phone buzzes on the table.
He picks it up, trying to remember last night. He was at the beach. Took the books. Came home. Started reading and then... nothing. . Just that strange dream about breakfast with his mom.
He picks up his phone and turns it on. A news alert on the screen says, "School Closed: Electrical fire in maintenance building. No injuries. Fire department investigating."
He stares at it, trying to process.
Maruka's Apartment, Morning, Present
Maruka sits on her bed, staring at her phone. The text to Mika sits there, unanswered: "guess we're free today"
No reply. There won't be one. She knows that.
She locks her phone and walks to the living room, turning on the TV. She needs something to fill the silence.
The morning news is already covering the fire.
School, Present
Smoke still rises from the maintenance building. Fire trucks surround the campus, hoses snaking across the parking lot. The main blaze is out, but crews are still working on smaller fires that keep flaring up in different sections.
Students gather behind police tape, some recording on their phones. Teachers stand in clusters near the street, trying to make sense of what happened.
A reporter stands in front of one of the fire trucks, microphone in hand. Behind her, firefighters move through the wreckage.
She turns to the fire chief beside her. "Can you tell us what you know so far?"
The chief wipes soot from his face. He looks exhausted. "Seems to be electrical, but it's strange; the fire started in five different places simultaneously. Almost like..." He pauses, choosing his words carefully. "We're investigating all possibilities."
The camera pans across the damage. Windows blown out. Part of the roof collapsed. The air thick with the smell of burned plastic and wood.
The reporter continues. "Classes are cancelled for the rest of the week while investigators –"
Maruka turns off the TV. She can already guess what happenedwas probably involved. Or at least, she knows Mika won't be texting back about it.
Niche's House, 7 AM, Present
The doorbell rings.
Niche doesn't move. He's sitting on the floor of his room, back against the wall next to the door. The lights are dim. He's exhausted – eyes heavy, body aching from whatever happened last night that he can't quite piece together.
His bedroom door opens. Ryuga and Arius walk in, stopping when they see him on the floor.
Ryuga moves to the rolling chair by the desk, sitting down. Arius walks over to the bed and sits on the edge. Niche stays on the floor, his back against the wall.
Ryuga starts spinning slowly in the chair. Just slight rotations, casual. His eyes drift around the room.
Arius observes Niche. The way he's sitting. The exhaustion in his posture. The jacket tossed on the bed behind him.
The room is quiet except for the faint squeak of the chair.
A minute passes.
"Convenient," Arius says, looking down at Niche, finally talking. "The fire."
"Very convenient," Niche agrees. His voice is flat. He doesn't get up.
Ryuga's eyes scan the room. Niche's jacket is tossed on the bed. There's a faint smell in the air. Smoke. He doesn't say anything.
"So," Niche says from the floor, "we have all day. Let's talk about it: the Dome."
Raizen's voice cuts through the room, amused. "All day, hm? How fortunate. Though I do hope they fix that shed before it spreads. Five ignition points is quite ambitious for faulty wiring."
Niche doesn't react.
"Five?" Ryuga asks.
"According to the news," Raizen continues casually, his feline figure now appearing gracefully on Niche’s desk, facing Ryuga. "Though I'm sure our host was fast asleep at the time. Weren't you, Niche?"
"Dead to the world," Niche says monotonously.
Arius and Ryuga exchange a glance.
"Right then," Ryuga says slowly. "The Dome…"
Niche finally looks up at them. "Yes. I need you to handle something, Ryuga. I'm still recovering from…the past few days."
“Or maybe you’re just too lazy to do it yourself,” Raizen adds smugly.
Niche continues, ignoring the remark. “There's a facility in the heart of the city called the Dome. They track solar energy readings. From that, they can monitor bearer activity through power fluctuations. And with that information, they can make their moves, undetected by society.”
"So…you suspect them of energy theft. A government building stealing energy under the radar?" Ryuga concludes.
"I suspect them of lying about what they do. Take Raizen. Find out what they're hiding."
"Understood." Ryuga nods, turning to leave and holding out his hand as the sword materializes into it, changing its form into an inconspicuous briefcase.
"Wait,” Niche says, stopping Ryuga in his tracks. “You're taking Arius with you."
"I'm paired with him?" Arius asks, offended.
Niche responds logically. "You're a shifter. He follows orders. You're both expendable if this goes wrong."
Arius scoffs. "Whatever.” He smirks. “I can work with that.”
The door opens. Shima enters with the room with someone following behind her.
"Found someone in the hallway," Shima announces.
Maruka walks in behind her, scanning the room. "So, this is where everyone disappeared to." She stops scanning when she sees Ryuga. Her head tilts slightly. Something feels off, but she can't place it.
"Who's this?" she asks curiously.
"Ryuga," Niche says. "He's... joining us. Yuna assigned him."
Maruka approaches Ryuga, circling slightly like she's trying to see him from different angles. "Have we met?" she asks.
"No," Ryuga states simply.
"You sure? You seem really..." She trails off, frustrated. "Never mind."
Ryuga stands completely still under her scrutiny. The others watch this weird standoff.
"Anyway," Arius breaks the tension. "We have that thing to handle."
"Right." Ryuga nods to Niche. "I'll gather what we need."
Ryuga heads for the door with Arius following, muttering something about "wasting time."
After they leave, Maruka looks between Niche and Shima.
"I just came to check in," Maruka says. "See how you're holding up."
"I'm fine,” Niche retorts dryly.
"Sure you are." She glances back at the door where Ryuga left. "Your new addition's interesting. Something familiar about him."
"You said that already."
"Yeah, well." She shrugs. "I'll figure it out eventually. Always do."
She turns around and starts walking towards the door. "I won't keep you. Just wanted to make sure you weren't, you know, dead."
"Still breathing."
"Good. Keep it that way." She pauses at the door. "That bodyguard guy... just be careful, okay? Something feels off."
Niche nods – seemingly against his will – as Maruka walks out of his room, leaving Niche and Shima alone.
As the front door opens and closes to let Maruka out, Shima comments.
"She's not wrong," she says quietly to Niche. "About him feeling familiar."
