System Administrative Dimension, Lake Stonecrest, DeKalb County, Georgia. Friday, November 1st, 02:00b

> The reason why there's a "B" next to the time would become evident soon enough.

Sara wasn't done. She roared and turned to face Verachiel.

"Sara, stop!" The wounded Titan, Seraph, Fallen, Serpent of Eden, Flame Bringer, or whatever that thing truly was, tried to parlay with her so wounded it was.

"Daughter of Eve my ass!" She shrieked and charged, scythe in hand, ready to claim another life. "You fucking gaslighters."

Wounded by his fight against Fourth, Verachiel tried to draw more power from the Core.

> "Warning. System energy cannot be used against an Administrator," The sweet lady voice of the System Core bleated with a klaxon.

Verachiel became desperate, all eyes fixing themselves on the scythe. Sara grinned. Yes, she could kill the mastermind behind all that. Kill, kill, kill. She embraced her Role for that moment.

A spell diagram flared to life behind Verachiel and sapped Sara's momentum. Sara slowed down because time itself slowed down. She could feel her notion of time stretching...

Stretching!

Bleeding coward of a motherfucker!

Sara had nowhere to brace herself against as the pressure of the spell. She felt her feet detach from the lower dimensional boundary that doubled as floor and get sucked into a rift along with Verachiel. She still swung the scythe at the Seraph, connected, and pulled. It catapulted the girl into the void while slowing down the Seraph. it closed and cut Verachiel in half.

Sara felt her stomach touch the bottom of her abdomen and the crown of her head at the same time. Everything was spinning and she had no notion of up, down, or even where or when.

She was caught in Verachiel's flawed contingency spell, sabotaged by Abby, along with only half of the now very-dead Seraph. Not even Celestials could contend with getting ripped in half.

October happened in reverse, until she found herself sitting on the school bus.

*

*

Terrell Starr High School, Forest Park, Clayton County, Georgia. Monday, October 7th, 2019. 07:22c.

> If you didn't get why there's a "C" next to the hour, "give it some time".

The world was scheduled to end that day, at rush hour, which was not until roughly eleven hours later. On planet Earth, more than seven billion sentient beings went around their daily lives. Some were asleep, others were going to sleep, while a few just woke up. Among them, was a seventeen-year-old girl.

The sun had yet to rise over the horizon. The celestial sphere never missed an appointment and today it would shine upon the Peach State in twelve minutes. Yet the sky was already painted in shades of blue and light orange, a few stubborn stars who didn't get the memo still shining thinking it was yet night.

"WHAT THE HELL?!?" Sara rose to her feet, throwing her backpack to the ground. She sucked in a big lungful of air, feeling it dry and stale. Her head spun and she felt parched. "What is going on?"

Abby inquired.

Sara looked around. People looked at her with weird, disgusted faces. She knew those people. She was on the school bus.

"Dude, it's too early to do drugs!" A guy sneered at Sara, then slapped his buddies' hands, snickering.

"Don't fuck with me. What the hell is going on?" Sara asked, staring at the bozo who mocked her.

"Fuck with you? Not even in a thousand years, bitch," the guy replied.

"Not talking to you, asshole," she retorted.

Sara bent to pick up her bag, then fetched her phone. She tapped any number, then pretended to be in a call.

"What happened?"

"Are you kidding me?"

"What about your partner in crime?"

"Seems? Are you sure?"

The bus reached the school. Everyone went out, leaving Sara alone.

"So, everyone is still alive?"

Sara could work with that.

Sara got off the school bus and followed the flux of students to the school grounds. As usual, she felt that eerie disconnection between herself and this place. While she knew the name of the other teenagers walking the same path, she wasn't really friends with any of them. She didn't care to be, either. Wave when waved at, and so on. Those that don't bother her weren't bothered by her in return. Her collected and brooding demeanor, coupled with her mysterious appearance in town less than a year ago painted her as a bad girl, one to avoid. Rumors about her ranged from just a bitch to a serial killer who changed schools every time she committed mass murder.

And now rumors of her outburst at the bus would add to her infamy.

"Sara, do you have a minute?" Mr. Ericsson, the literature teacher, called her in the corridor.

Several students snickered and stared at her before rushing away from the teacher's ire, thinking she was in trouble. She was, but not the kind of trouble they think.

"Is this about my essay?" She asked as she approached. "I can't be late. Mr. Matthews is very strict. And yes, I would love to join your writing club. Can we talk during the interval? In your office?"

Taken by surprise, Mr. Ericsson agreed without thinking. "I'll be waiting for you. Great!"

Sara saw the English teacher walk away with a pep in his step. Huh, weird. Was her social Skills active?

And Abby claimed she couldn't read Sara's thoughts. Creep.

*

*

Terrell Starr High School, Forest Park, Clayton County, Georgia. Monday, October 7th, 2019. 09:11c

She was minding her business in the corridor, waiting for someone.

"Sara, do you have a minute?"

The girl fought back the urge to pretend she wasn't on cloud nine for seeing the Latina brunette again. The scare of seeing her dragged into Hades was just three hours ago in Sara's account.

"Sure, Mary, what is it?"

Mary Hernandez, the other girl in question, approached Sara with light steps and hooked her arm as she leaned in to whisper a secret, "I heard Pamela will invite you to her party tonight."

Sara couldn't hold back a smile. She put a hand on Mary's shoulder. "Awesome. I just need to cancel my previous appointment!"

"This is important, Sara. You only refuse Pamela's invitation once..." Mary blurted her rehearsed line, "wait, you agreed?"

Sara chuckled, "Of course! Who in their sane mind would miss Pamela's invitation? Mary, I'm so glad to see you."

"Thank you?" Mary was weirded out. "Wait, are you crying?"

"No, silly," Sara wiped a tear. "I just realized that I know your grandma. From the church."

Mary removed Sara's arm. "What? You don't."

Sara leaned forward. "Yes, I do. She called you what? Cuddle bear? No. Bee? Close... What is it?"

Mary went pale. "Shut up! Is this a setup? Did Pamela talk to you? Is this some sort of prank?"

"Swear to God, it's not," Sara raised a hand, making a hand sign, "Scout's honor." She then grabbed Mary's hand. "Come with me."

"Wait, what?"

The girl and the other girl went downstairs and found the organizer of the game night. Sara brewed a plan in her mind.

"Hey, Sara," a stereotypical fat guy with glasses greeted her. "What's up?"

"Simon, look. I found this awesome venue for our game. Free snacks, free soda, free pizza. And I convinced Mary to join us."

"No, you didn't!" Mary protested.

Sara leaned next to her ear. "Just play along. Say you want to make a bouncy elf priestess. Look behind you, Pamela is watching."

Mary looked behind her, where Pamela was supposedly hiding. Then back at Sara, "I knew it!"

"Simon, can you cook a bouncy elf priestess for Mary? And you can kill my parents if it fits the backstory better."

"Whoa, wait. Too fast. Where are we playing? I need to contact the guys."

"Stonecrest Lake Mall. Tell everyone I'll pay for an uber. Gather the crew, the gaming supplies, the D-twenties, minis, what-have-you. It's a date, 'kay?"

"Da-da-date?"

"Game date, silly," Sara deadpanned.

"Sure," A puzzled Simon was scratching his head as Sara tugged Mary away.

They didn't go far. Right at the corner of the corridor, they bumped into Pamela.

"Mary, what is going on?" Pamela demanded. "Why didn't you do what I told you... hey, Sara."

Sara opened a wide grin and squealed like a fan girl. "Pamela! I'm your biggest fan!"

"The hell is wrong with you, Sara?" Pamela moved a step backward.

"I'm so happy you liked my gift!" Sara moved a step forward, dragging Mary along.

"What gift? When did you give me anything?"

Sara bit her lower lip and looked down. She turned to Mary, "Can you wait here for a moment? I need to talk to Pamela here."

Mary pouted, frowned, and crossed her arms. "Sure! Go ahead! I don't know anything anymore!"

Sara threw an arm over Pamela's shoulders, leaning close. "I didn't send it using my real name," she whispered. "I saw the video where you unbox my gift."

"Vi-video?" Pamela stammered. "I posted no videos..."

"My screen name was Power Guiddo, from Brazil," Sara explained in a sub rosa whisper close to Pamela's ear. "Did it hurt when you put it in?"

Pamela made a sound like Elsa from Frozen had choked on a snowflake and died. She was hyperventilating. Sara hugged her and whispered again.

"Your secret is safe with me. I'm your fan, I'm not going to doxx you. Never. I was so happy when Mary told me you were inviting me to your party." But there was no party. Sara rubbed Pamela's back, "calm down. I know you have questions. Ask them."

"How? It was hidden to viewers from Georgia."

"I used a VPN to access with a Brazilian I.P.," Sara explained with a grin. She thought about mentioning the studio she rented at the Regal Lakeshore Hotel but dialed back on that. It would push her status from fan to stalker. And it would be good to have a trump card for later. "Believe me, I wish you well. Sorry if I scared you."

Pamela giggled nervously, "It's okay. Fine. Thank you, Sara."

Sara giggled happily, "I'm so happy! Now, let's get Mary over here and clear the misunderstanding, okay? She thinks I set you up."

The two turned around and waved at Mary.

*

*

Terrell Starr High School, Forest Park, Clayton County, Georgia. Monday, October 7th, 2019. 09:20c

"What are you two plotting?" The well-endowed brunette was brimming with suspicion and jealousy as she stomped closer.

"A party, what else?" Sara swiveled her hand to and fro, trying to reach consensus. "Pamela's party. She just shifted it. It will be at the Stonecrest Lake Mall. Starting 5 PM sharp!"

"Is it so?" Mary glared at Pamela.

"Of course, it is. I'm even sponsoring the food and drinks. All on me!" Sara poked her chest with a thumb. "I would do anything to make Pamela happy."

"When did you..." Mary's glaze futtered to and fro between the girl and the... nineteen-years-old cam-girl. Totally legal.

"We just discovered we were chatroom buddies!" Pamela declared as she waved an arm around Sara's elbow. "Sara and I go back a long way! I had no idea!"

Mary narrowed her eyes.

"It's true. I even know what kind of stuffed animal Pamela likes the most. You won't believe how many she has!" Sara proclaimed and felt Pamela's arm go stiff.

"Liar! I saw no stuffed animals in Pamela’s room!" Mary protested.

Sara pulled Pamela closer and leaned her head on Pamela's shoulder, eyes on Mary. "She doesn't keep them at home."

"It's true, I don't!" Pamela exasperatedly agreed.

The three walked together back to the upper floor.

Sara saw a person of interest down the corridor, "Christine!" She shouted.

Christine Appleby halted and stared at the improbable trio. "What?"

Sara let go of Pamela and jogged ahead. "Christine! I'm so happy for you!" She hugged the blonde.

"Oof, too close! What is going on?" Ms Appleby pushed the weird girl away.

Sara looked over her shoulder, "Pamela, you have to invite Christine!"

"Yeah, sure," Pamela shrugged, completely defeated. "Hey, Chris, we're going to do a thing at the Stonecrest Lake Mall. Everyone is going."

"Food and drinks on me!" Sara shouted, turning several heads her way. "Everyone is invited. It's going to be so awesome. Five PM sharp."

"I can't, I have prep school," Christine took a step away from the obviously crazy women.

"Andrew Wilson is going," Sara wiggled her eyebrows.

Christine blushed, "What does it have to do with Andrew? It's not like..."

She lost momentum as Sara stared at her with arms crossed. "I know Mrs. Wilson very well. From the First Baptist Church."

"Just how many churches do you visit?" Mary bemoaned.

Sara leaned forward to whisper on Christine Appleby's ear. "Can I tell you a secret? I'm gay and I think I have a thing for you." Christine pretended to be disgusted but Sara could see the curiosity in the blonde's eyes. "So, are you in? Skip prep school. Let's party like the world ends today."

With some color on her cheeks, Christine nodded. "I'm in."

"Great, I knew you would come," Sara squealed. "Christine, while we are there, I need you to help me shop for some clothes. I know you have great shopping taste, and I bet your wardrobe if fa-bu-lous!"

She was playing these teens like a fiddle. Christine was completely stunned.

"Yeah, sure. I would love to give you some pointers!"

"It's a date!" Sara winked. Christine gasped.

"What is happening? Why is everyone..." Nobody gave Mary any mind. FOMO took over Mary's heart. "Fine! I'm in! I'm in!"

"Okay, planning time. Come here, everyone," They gathered in a close circle. "You three go and invite everyone. Pamela, you make sure Andrew Wilson agrees to come. Don't mention Christine."

"Okay?" Pamela glanced at Christine, who averted her eyes and blushed. "Okay."

"Mary and Christine, you go and make sure everyone knows they are invited and I'm paying for everything."

"Do you even have money?"

"No, I'm robbing a bank after Class," Sara rolled her eyes, pretending to be sarcastic. "I'm dropping the cash on Christine's house later today, around three. Then she takes it to the mall. You good, Christine?"

"Sure, whatever."

"Great, love that energy," Sara gushed. "it will be a blast. We'll party so hard it would be as if the party is going to last for weeks!"

The bell rang. They parted ways, each with their own mission. Sara went to the nurse's office to get out of school earlier on a claim of female issues.