Despite the enhanced senses, it still managed to skitter around them in the air.

Despite the enlightened minds, they still screamed, flinched, and tensed up as something they couldn’t catch whipped at them.

They had everything they sought after, what they needed… But it just wasn’t enough.

The pale shadow weaved about the girls, causing the current of air it was burrowing through repel them in multiple directions, shooting off with prejudice as it whipped at them with it’s own body to boot.

River was slammed into the ticket booth, and her feeble body completely folded onto it. She felt her now-siVis back, left shoulder and lower jaw jut out, forward, due to the impact.

It’s not exactly pain, the feeling of whenever this happens. More an acute sense that something is very, intensely wrong. Pain is a sharpness, aching, beating, an alert—literally that’s what it biologically is.

This was disruption. Loss. Emptiness. Being broken, put into this alien feeling. The body—River—losing something and everything that she still had—echoing, screaming back at each other to “figure” out who’s just left, building and building.

But the distressing thing, the thing she was sure everyone else was freaking about, was the fact that if they were still normal: they would’ve died or became crippled in that one move.

They tried to escape this, this harshness that would’ve instantly killed them. Now they have the double-edged tools that told them in untold detail how they would’ve died.

And if they continued this, how they would’ve died multiple, and differing times.

River tried to put herself together, this inward and invisible yet present grasp that pulled all the pieces together, slotting her back straight—jaw fastened—shoulder crooked yet snapped back.

There was no time for perfection, because the Nulgarrt was beaming towards a Maddie, laid out on the floor broken still.

Targeting the weak of the pack. A predator move.

In a surprising display; Aiko was the one that limped over and slid over to protect Maddie, not Jackie. This was enough for the thing to get second thoughts, darting away into the air again.

While predators are powerful beings, they know they thrive more in opportunity. And despite having what it takes to become the apex, it is in their DNA to worry. To second guess. To constantly feel that they’re going to die at any second.

But there was no time for existential dread.

The pale blur flailed in a frenzy within the air, even hitting—ripping up the ceiling it didn’t care that it was crashing into. The debris rained down, Aiko thinking faster than what River—everyone—especially Maddie gave her credit for, as she shielded her by getting over her.

“You—You don’t need to owe anything anymore…” is what was River gleamed from Aiko from afar, her backpack taking most of the brunt.

River tried to get up, to help both of them out… But the debris was beginning to float back up.

Her eyes darted up and a cluster of motion, debris, and wind was what she saw.

River’s head turned on instinct, towards Jackie who was hollering something at her, at everyone. The sound distortion from before was acting up, because of course it did.

Maybe find cover, something that can hold out against what’s coming next.

River looked again and Aiko was helping Maddie away, she looked again and saw Jackie ducking behind a pillar.

No Tracy. Where’s Tracy-?

As much as it somehow hurt more than the shoulder (River cursed her sad brain), she rolled over behind the ticket booth, and braced for whatever was coming…

It didn’t prepare her for Tracy huddled behind the ticket booth already, shaking and knees to her chest.

There was a sickening crackle, before an audible slam rocked through wall, rock and bone.

The force somehow rattled River, as if the torrent kept rocking her even after the fact. Her eardrums instantly flooded, head instantly aching.

River tugged on an ear lobe, clearing her drum, just in time to hear the reckless splashing.

She craned her head around, to see the pale blur dipping into the Stew everyone was covered in, trying to scavenging the parts of it’s progenitors. Fast.

The Nulgarrt during Wave 3 usually have the comfort in choosing the parts at random, really trying each option out until it turns out not to be compatible to them. This Nulgarrt feels that there’s a threat there, and the process is going to be somehow more chaotic than usual.

In other words, they have to lure or stall this creature on defense mode, that also can do whatever virtually whatever it wants.

River felt Tracy grab her shoulder and tug her back, almost being the representation of what was once logic.

“Don’t poke your head out!” she somehow managed to scream out while whispering. “It preys on the weak—that means us two! I-it’s better to let the rest go do the plan, we’re just in the way!”

River couldn’t even consider the thought.

The Nulgarrt was barreling toward them, from zigging from the lobby to the ticket booth.

River tugged at Tracy in turn, using the vitality of what the flood granted and her siVis enchaned strength, she quickly and was able to drag her out of the way.

Leaving her wide open for the Nulgarrt to tackle her head-on, on her side.

She tried to push back, grappling onto its head to do anything, anything. She started to skid away as the Nulgarrt frantically thrashed, the soundtrack to this AMV worthy moment was Tracy’s panicked screams.

And looking face to side at it, River finally saw the creature.

A flat, arrow like head with two horn-like flaps sprouting out of its head. The body, long and serpentine, had various feelers on it jutting out, flexing all at once yet at different paces as the tube of a body was painstakingly pulsing for air.

The Nulgarrt can be various things, become various things. But the one, unifying thing other than their feeble fetal form, is the fact there’s left over flesh from their sprouting from it, their previous face—eyeless holes and permanently screaming mouths— hanging off their new bodies. This one had theirs still on its face, stretched out.

But what this means, as River realized, that it doesn’t have a maw—nothing to bite or maul her or the rest with. All that they needed to worry about is it’s ability to create air distortions and the fact that it can pick up a jaw or mandibles if there’s some laying around.

…But how is it eating the air?

And River wondered why she was feeling light-headed.

She looked down back at the Nulgarrt, with a brief but poignant lapse in her vision.

The thing is a mass of writhing worms.

Where she gripped her hands on it, the not-so microbe life latched onto her hands, the skinny, featureless worms didn’t draw blood (despite her not able to anyways), but maybe to suck the literal oxygen out of her. Is. She didn’t know, her brain was getting fuzzy.

Whatever she knew it or not, she found herself being tackled again.

Being ripped from the worms didn’t instantly cure her parasite-based suffocation, but it helped. She laid on her side, trying to breath, and there wasn’t relief when whatever was left of the air flooded into her lungs.

It just highlighted how tired she was.

Jackie filled her vision, as the haze from the edges started to disappear. Of course it was her…

“C’mon, stay with me!” she managed to pick up and hoist River up, an Olympic feat.

“What happened… To the thing…?” River slurred out.

“Don’t worry about that,” Jackie tried to assure but kinda can’t since it was the only thing that can save them. “Just say with me. In fact, we’ll go do it together—the creep doesn’t like it when we pair up…”

River shook her head, still tired yet the light-headed-ness gone. The Nulgarrt retreated to the ceiling again, peering down this time with it’s non-eyes.

Jackie grabbed River’s hand, and started to run with her towards the flooded steps. “AIKO, MADDIE, TRACY—HIDE AND STAY CLOSE!”

They made it to the stairs, trekking it up being a labor of bitterness due to the current working against them. “The Stew had to… Originate up here…” Jackie forced herself to say.

Without realizing it, River as well as Jackie used siVis on their legs to conquer the stairs… Which made River sigh, because she would’ve suggested doing that and this means even with siVis, this would’ve been a grind.

“It’s in my backpack, the generator…” Jackie pointed to the top of the stairs, the pack open wide with the generator sticking out yet snug, the handle of the pack hanging off the railing’s start. “Had to improvise… Had to save you…”

But as the Nulgarrt swooped down, racing towards them, there wasn’t anyone to save them for what happened next.

“GOD DAMN IT, YOU FUCKING--!” Jackie roared, much less screamed.

But it didn’t aim to tackle them.

Before it made contact, it went upward just enough for them to see its underbelly.

It’s underbelly of swelling pockets of air. And as they became engorged, they proceeded to pop.

Popping concentrated air onto the girls.

Where it was either siVis enlightenment, their basic instincts or their attempt to being proactive—Jackie and River used their siVis enhanced legs to spring off the stairs in speeds they never thought they could achieve, trying to evade.

But the effect still happened—echoing and hitting them despite getting away—the blast forcing them onto the ground below hard, splashing onto the goop.

River struggled to rise from it, noticing that her glasses cracked again—but only on the right side where she was hit with the air blast. At least she can still make out the death of her and everyone.

She was too slow to respond to the Nulgarrt advancing back down to her and Jackie, trying to finally pick them off.

It screeched as fallen ceiling and wall, and whatever else started to sail in the air and hit it.

It wasn’t even a screech of anger, rage. Just sheer desperation.

It looked over to see Aiko doing much of the throwing, as Maddie and Tracy were behind her.

It tried to whip at them, but Jackie followed their lead for a change: throwing everything she could at the thing as it screeched, cried, again.

It twitched, back and forth, as if it was torn on what to do.

In its moment of hesitation, Aiko acted. She darted using her siVis-enhanced legs, jumping into the air, and reached out with her arms, and managing to grab its tail as she falls back down, dragging it with her as she hit the ground.

Aiko quickly let go, she definitely felt the drain before it happened, and Jackie and Maddie spurred forward.

“Stomp this thing, now!” Maddie quickly enhanced her leg and firmly started stomping on the Nulgarrt’s body, Jackie and Aiko quickly joining in.

River searched for Tracy, and she was slowly moving away from the scene. Still running. Hiding.

They met eyes, maybe for the first time. River allowed her… Disappointment. Something that doesn’t say outright heartbreak, making this more pathetic… But she saw Tracy possibly for the first time, today.

And River guessed that she felt nothing looking back at her. Nothing left.

But she needed to keep going.

River got up, dragged herself, and started stomping down the Nulgarrt as it not longer screeched. But screamed.

Screamed and screamed.

“WHY AREN’T YOU FUCKING DYING ALREADY?!” the compassion in Jackie’s voice, what River heard not a minute ago, was completely gone.

It started twitching again.

“JUST FUCKING DIIIIIE!” Jackie commanded it.

Despite stomping it relatively flat.

Despite having, for once, an advantage.

It just wasn’t enough.

The Nulgarrt somehow managed to flip itself over, it’s feelers reaching out for the girls.

“WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?! WHY CAN’T YOU ALL JUST FUCKING--?!”

The feelers instantly sharpened as they elongated, using the legs to fling them all back, getting knocked down, back first, again.

This had to be it. There wasn’t anything anyone can do anymore.

Just like in the overflow reality, where River didn’t have anything left then. Why she instantly gave in, because she was finally allowed to.

At least she can rest here. Shame it had to take for her dying to do so.

But there was rustling in the water, as Jackie got back on her legs, huffing, fuming.

She instantly bolted, and River was sure she didn’t plan or even notice.

She raced towards the Nulgarrt, risen and turned towards her.

“WHY CAN’T YOU ALL JUST FUCKING STOOOOOOOOOP?!” she raised her fist…

And it began to glow with an intense light, as she punched it right into the side of its head.

Everyone was just as surprised as the creature, when suddenly, it was blown back because of Jackie’s punch, leaving an energy explosion.

It sailed away, screaming, as it flew into the corner of the lobby.

The place was already low on air, but everyone was breathless.

“…The actual fuck…?” Maddie with the whites of her eyes exposed further than everyone’s seen.

“It happened—” Aiko motioned. “It actually happened!”

“W-what--?” Maddie asked, no hint of sarcasm or malice. Until it clicked a second later, then she started to laugh. Aiko joined in.

“Of course, the superhero of the group gets her siVis ability first!” Aiko said with strained joy.

Jackie’s eyes were gazed over, becoming brilliant again as she looked at her fist, shocked more than any of them.

Then the familiar voice made everything official.

siVis Ability! FOUNDED!

“Oh my god…” Jackie flexed her fingers. “W-what can I do--?”

“You tell us!” Maddie shouted. “I thought it came with the manual!”

Jackie looked towards her and Aiko.

“Guess I honestly blacked out there, I don—”

There was no time to explain, the Nulgarrt swooped down to attack River.

Jackie then bolted forward again, raising her fist as it radiated a light blue again.

“A-alright, hopefully it works again--!” Jackie squeezed her eyes shut as she threw another explosive punch at the worm, it shrieking now as it backs away into a corner again.

Jackie promptly fell on her back, limpless.

“Jackson?!” Maddie gasped out.

River struggled to get up herself, looking over to Jackie. Her eyes were closed, her breathing stopped… As if she lost her soul, no movement in her body what so ever.

Is that the trade…? Explosive energy but it comes from her body’s available energy…?

Jackie got up, as if she didn’t miss a bit. Looking at her shaking hands… With a smile on her face.

“Finally… Something.”

“But… There’s a handy cap…” River said, haggard. “Handicap…? I’m dumb… As hell…”

Jackie looked to her, River continued to explain—or at least explain what she figured.

“You… Don’t pass out but… You use your energy I guess…”

“Right… Still!” Jackie chirped.

“Still…?”

“We can finally fight back… Turn this around. We can figure out how to get you guys to get your abilities, we can finally face this thing head on and even ABANDON the original plan! We just have to hold out, just a tad longer!”

River didn’t respond, just continued to pant.

“And I can protect you all until then! We can finally win something, River.”

River panted more, closing her eyes briefly, feeling the now-human pain aching throughout her body, highlighted as well. She opened them, and forced herself to get up, shaking.

“Of course… Whatever you want…”

Jackie looked up to her, her ecstatic face melted into concern. “River…?”

As she barely held her consciousness, she slipped into her Mindspace.

Again, seeing herself as the gear within gears.

Again, noticing her gear is cracked, rusted, coming undone as it moved faster than the rest, unyielding.

Again, seeing her father collapse within the faculty her family worked and will work.

Again, at her desk in her dark room, the only light being her lamp as she struggles to recite her Biology study guide to herself—cutting to taking the hour-long test that felt like days and only getting a C for what was weeks of work.

Again, her brother yelling at her mother for pushing herself, then regretting. Then, the talk they had together by themselves.

“We have to take care of them. Even if it kills us.”

All these events, all of these stopping points that leads up to the same, pathetic moment that managed to “scar” her for life.

The realization, no matter what she does, how smart she can be, how much she and her brother can help, how much money she’ll earn, college she needed to go to, apartment she rents, house own, life lived… Sometimes, it just isn’t enough, compared to what can wipe it all away.

But she can’t quit either, or it isn’t life.

River laughed to herself, as she does. She can feel Jackie’s confused and concerned stare. It was something she always felt, how everyone always looked at her.

“Funny… I wonder who’s the Nulgarrt here…?” she said, without thinking.

Jackie just looked at her, then at Aiko, Maddie. She looked down at her hands and sighed to herself.

“…Yeah,” Jackie agreed. “I guess we are.”

“So, what’s the plan… Fearless leader, Princess Jackie…?” River mumbled. “Animorphs reference… But it was ‘Prince Jake’, then…”

“It’s the old one, River…” Jackie cooed, getting up, putting her hands on her shoulders. Don’t worry, you don’t even have to force yourself. I’ll take care of it…”

“I… I can…” River tried to finish.

“No, it’s fine,” Jackie urged. “You’re good. You’re good.”

The tall girl begun to help her , turning them both around as they talked together, “Just hide out with Aiko and Maddie and—” She looked up at the stairs.

River glanced upwards as well. The bag was gone.

…And so was Tracy.

“...I knew she was still such a wonderful, pretty woman…” River’s filter completely undone, causing Jackie to look at her, before getting it herself.

Tracy slammed open the door and said the following:

“OKAY I TRIED BEING QUIET AND I MEEPED ALL OVER TO FIND THE MAIN STEW POOL AND IT WAS IN THE MAIN THEATRE AND I TURNED THE THING ON AND I WAITED FOR IT GO VROOM AND TOSSED IT AND I THINK IT WORKED, LET’S RUN LIKE THE WIND--!”

She ran out, screaming all the way down the stairs, as a fleet of bright arcs of lightning chased after. Maddie booked it as soon as Tracy was finished and as much as Aiko wanted to hang back a bit to see whatever’s happening, she bailed as well.

Jackie helped River and they ran off together, all of the girls running out of the doors together but going through it.

Wasn’t the best non-idea.

They all looked back as the Nulgarrt tried to chase, but the living electricity filled the lobby with an unhealthy light and grabbing the creature back as it desperately tried to get away.

The living lightning completely consumed the Nulgarrt, rendering into pieces as it fell onto the ground as the Extant alert sounds coming from the black box.

The living lightning skimmed and popped within the flooded space, but as soon as it tried to reach outside, it couldn’t survive. It was just as River relayed, what she explained. It can’t exist without its generator, place of origin. The Stew was ruined.

So, it raced back, aiming to stew within the generator until its ready again.

Despite being covered in glass, despite being drenched in the cold night’s air, despite being so tired, despite painting to regain the oxygen they lacked… The girls all began to laugh. Laugh and run. Running as fast and much as they could. Running, laughing, and waving their arms in the air within the night, despite the next source of light being a ways away.

They made it to that source, which was a bare bones bus stop with a sole double-street light. They all were out of breath, all taking their turns to sit on the bench, with a sickening choir of squishes.

“Fuck… It worked!” Maddie beamed. “It actually worked…! Fuck me… I thought… Fuck, I mean we were basically dead…”

“Tracy, I love you…” Jackie begun.

“Oh come now…” Tracy fanned her hand at. “It was either that or death—Anyone would’ve done what I did…”

“Yeah… But maybe that was the wrong choice of words…” Jackie looked at River. River looked at her back, hoping that she didn’t get it, until Jackie smiled and gestured her head towards her.

“…Fuck it, we nearly died…” River sighed out. She looked at Tracy, who was confused. “…You… I… You kinda awoke me…”

Everyone looked at each other, varying levels of surprise.

“Well then,” Jackie blinked. “I thought it was more… You thought she was cute already, I didn’t see—”

“Oh no,” River explained. “This didn’t happen just now… It happened when I was 12 and she was 13, actually…”

Everyone’s face twisted in confusing, sans Tracy’s, which her beautiful face was wearing a warm smile.

“Heh… It’s nice, being remembered…”

River looked at everyone else, “You guys really forgot?” She pointed at her. “She’s Tracy. Tracy Goodwin. The Tracy Goodwin.”

Maddie jumped to her feet, really looking at her, “Wait a fucki—Yo, she is! She’s little ‘Tracy Tells the World’!”

“T-the wha--?” Jackie was just confused.

“You or Kobayashi wouldn’t know,” Maddie began. “She had a show that aired here—fucking yeeeears ago. Just as cheesy as Full House or Eight Simple Rules, until the Shifts started to REALLY affect the world and… It was one of the first shows that wrote that shit in.”

Maddie put her hands on her hips, “The reason why I didn’t recognize you was because you fucking filled the fuck out! Seriously, you were like… Iunno, me sized. Now you’re playing some Hollywood accountant that’s too pretty for her job!”

Tracy giggled, scratching the side of her nose. “Yeah… The show had to be cancelled because… I developed a lot…”

Maddie turned to River, “And you liked her BEFORE all this…” She then turned to Tracy. “She’s fateful as fuck, you better say yes if she wants to date man—”

Tracy laughed earnestly again, turning her attention to River with a smile. “I’m incredibly flattered, River…”

“Y’know I—” River rubbed the back of her neck. “I… I know that you—You don’t swing my way, so you don’t have to let me down and stuff, an-and I’ll stop—Looking at you at that, that way and…”

Tracy didn’t say a word, before getting up and planting a kiss on River’s cheek. Even the hollering and whooping of Maddie in the background could ruin that.

“Hey,” Tracy said. “Regardless of all that, I’m honored that you found yourself because of me and I’ve had many letters expressing the same thing… You’re free to. I’ll be happy that you like me, despite not being able to return that…”

River didn’t say a thing, just holding her cheek.

“And while I can’t offer any kisses…” Jackie joked, laughing. “I can say that everything that happened today, the fact we made it out, was because of you, River. I know you’re not the biggest fan of yourself… But we can be.”

River just nodded, feeling her usually dry-eyes water.

“Still…” Aiko piped up. “Too bad we couldn’t have that Megaplex to stay in now… We still lost so much, and despite having that new risky power you have.”

Jackie looked at her hand again, “Yeah…”

River broke from her silence, “But I think… I… I think it’s okay to be shitty. To have days that only one thing worked out…”

She was expecting, and on some level hoping, that one of the questioned her—shutting her up. But they all stared, waiting for her to continue.

“Because… Good days can end just as bad as a bad day started… And a bad day can have some good in it. We did what we can, and we shouldn’t stew in not doing more.”

“…Motherfucker, was that a pun?” Maddie smirked.

“God, I wish…” River admitted. Causing a round of laughter from everyone.

“But yeah, I’m guessing at least one Extant van is gonna come here…?” Maddie asked.

“Basically,” Jackie crossed her arms. “It’s gonna be a while, for sure. We’ll sleep again, despite… Y’know…”

“After all that, I’m ready to pass out right now…” Tracy rubbed her eyes.

Maybe it was the slight crying. Maybe it was from the exhaustion. Maybe it was the sheer happiness she felt.

But River closed her eyes, and she slept better than she did not only the nights before, but for years.