Kano woke to the sound of Nove’s deep, growly voice. She was saying something about the children. And just like that, Kano was completely awake.

“Did something happen to them?” she asked while she was still taking in her surroundings. The children were sitting quietly around Nove and Kano on the floor. One look was all it took for Kano to know they were still bound together. They were being far too quiet.

“Not exactly. They’re just like they were before, all of one mind.”

Kano had hoped they’d be over that by the time they woke up, but clearly that had been in vain. Even as it was, it didn’t seem like much of a problem. Though the children didn’t seem to like being that way, it probably wouldn’t do them any harm. And even if it did, they’d be able to recover; Kano was sure of it.

Between An, the children, and Nove, they should be able to deal with it. Now that she thought of it, where was An, anyway? If she wasn’t here, then she must’ve gone back to her lab. It was by far her favorite place to spend time, after all.

“You guys sit tight,” Kano said. “I’m going to go see An.”

“Good idea, I’m sure she’ll be able to help.”

Kano did intend to ask An about that, but it wasn’t her priority right now. The children could wait. She needed information about what Karen had told her. And confirmation if what she’d been saying was true. Kano didn’t think she was lying, but dying people that existed only in your head probably weren’t the most reliable sources.

Hurrying off to the lab, Kano found An hard at work, just as she’d expected. Didn’t necromancers ever take breaks? Maybe they’d be less crazy if they did. Though, looking past An at the remains of flower, she understood why An was here again. It would be quite a shame to let all her work go to waste.

On second thought, maybe it was better not to bother her. She probably had enough to worry about as it was. And she’d already done more than enough for Kano and the others. She could probably use a break from being dragged into other people’s messes.

Kano was on her way out when she heard An call out to her. “Oh, hi, Kano. Did you need something?”

“It’s nothing much. I can see you’re busy, so don’t worry about it.”

“No, it’s fine. Go ahead. I am busy, but I can spare a little time for you.”

“Really, I don’t want to bother you. It’s not that important.”

An gave her a withering look. “Kano, you’re already bothering me, and it’s only getting worse the more you make excuses. Just spit it out already.”

Pausing intermittently to collect her thoughts, Kano recounted her conversation with Karen. Once she was done, An stared at her for a few moments, her mouth moving as she tried to formulate a reply. Finally she said, “Oh. That’s really not what I was expecting.”

“What do you think I should do? Should I try to find this other Karen?”

“I think so. I’d do it if I were in your place, knowing that she could be out there without meeting her would bother me too much.”

That was a good point. “What if she doesn’t exist in the first place?”

“Then you don’t have much to lose, and at least you’ll know for certain.”

“True.” Kano wasn’t sure if she hoped this other Karen was real or not. If she was out there, it opened up a whole new realm of possibilities, for better or worse. Probably worse.

Though it was possible Kano was being too hasty in her evaluation. Even if this other Karen was a necromancer, she might not be that bad. The fact that she wasn’t following the original Karen’s plan made Kano wary of her intentions, but maybe her choice had been for the best; their creator had been far from perfect. The more Kano thought about it, the more she needed to find this new Karen.

“What about everyone else?” Kano asked. “Will you guys be able to handle things while I’m gone?” It seemed doubtful, given how close they’d all come to disaster with her help.

“I think so. Things should quiet down around here now that the reactor’s gone. I doubt we’ll be seeing any more necromancers around here, at the very least.”

Maybe they did have a shot of it after all, then. “Get Himin to help you. She should be able to handle most of the actual running of Shorinstown. You should probably have Miusvon keep an eye on her, and don’t trust her too much. But if you do that, I think she’ll do a good job. Also, I’d prefer if you didn’t kill her.”

An scratched her head beneath her hood. “I’m supposed to put her in charge, but not trust her?”

“Yep.”

“Somehow that strikes me as a little counterintuitive. What good is she if I can’t trust her?”

“Because it means she’s ambitious, and you need someone like that. Besides, there’s really not many other choices anyway. If you’ve got a better one in mind, then by all means, use them instead.” There was no way An had anyone like that.

“Fine, whatever. I’ll get Miusvon to do it.” After a look from Kano, she added, “and I’ll tell her not to kill Himin, okay?”

“Good. Then I’ll get going.”

Leaving An to her work, Kano left the lab and stood in the corridor beyond. She could leave right now without telling anyone else. What she’d told An was bound to get around to Nove and the children before long. All in all, it would probably be a lot easier on all of them as well as save them some time.

The sooner Kano got going the better. Who knew how far Karen had gotten by now. And the others were sure to have plenty to do in the wake of the disaster. All those reasons and more drifted through Kano’s mind, yet she couldn’t bring herself to actually leave without seeing them again.

She wouldn’t exactly miss them or anything, but it didn’t feel right to leave without saying goodbye. They were sure to miss her, after all, and it would do them good to see her one last time. Mind made up, Kano headed for the reactor room.

Nove and the children were still there, though they didn’t seem to be doing much of anything. Why weren’t they back in their own room, anyway? She couldn’t imagine there was much reason for them to stay here anymore. Had they been waiting for her? It didn’t make much sense, but it was the only explanation she could think of.

“You can go back to your room now,” she said from the doorway. “We’re done here.”

The children dutifully got up and filed out in unison. It was still unsettling seeing them like that. Hopefully they’d be their chaotic selves by the time she got back. At least it would make saying goodbye easier.

“But before you go, I have an announcement to make.” She waited, hands on hips, until everyone was focused on her. “I have something I need to do outside of Shorinstown, so this is the last time we’ll see each other for a while.”

There was a collective hush, and the eyes of each of the children glittered with unshed tears. The force of their reaction struck Kano like a hammer blow. What happened to this farewell being easy? “It won’t be that long, okay? We’ll see each other soon, so please don’t cry.”

In flagrant defiance of her order, tears rolled down the children’s cheeks. Yet they still said nothing. If they didn’t want her to go, why didn’t they say so? Was it because they believed that she needed to go and weren’t trying to stop her out of consideration? Somehow that only made it harder to leave them.

“Isn’t anyone going to say anything?” It felt ridiculous to be the only one speaking. What kind of goodbye was that?

“Goodbye, Kano,” Nove said, her voice a quavering rumble. “Have a safe trip.”

“Bye,” Kano said, lowering her head and hurrying out of the room. If she stayed much longer, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to leave at all. And she had to go, had to fulfill Karen’s last wish and find out the truth for herself. Everyone would be fine without her. She’d done everything she could to ensure that. If only she could convince herself of that, then leaving would be so much easier, but it appeared to be beyond her powers.

“Kano?” Ren said, rounding the corner outside the reactor.

“What’re you doing down here?” The timing was far too convenient for it to be a coincidence.

“An told me you were going to find Karen’s successor.”

“That’s right. I’ll probably be gone for a while.” Had Ren just come to see her one last time before she left?

“I’m coming with you.”

“What? Why?”

“I want to see what this Karen is like, just like you do. Besides, it’s a good opportunity to see more of the world, don’t you think?”

Kano didn’t really know what to think, but she couldn’t come up with a good reason to refuse. They both had a stake in this. It seemed only fair to let her come and see for herself. She might even be useful. At the very least, she should make the trip less boring, and she no longer had her blobby mass to slow them down.

“Fine, let’s go.”

Kano’s footsteps echoed through the empty halls of shining metal, her strange twin by her side as she ventured out in search of the last living remnant of their creator.