Midnight at Midday

The stronghold’s common room was quiet when they entered.

Not peacefully quiet - emptied quiet.

Only three people occupied the space: Sunata, Braith, and Yumie. Braith still had her piggybacked, her weight light but heavy all the same, her arms slack around his shoulders. The drive back had passed in total silence, the kind that pressed in on the ears. Only now, as they came to a stop and turned toward Sunata, did the quiet finally break.

“You two have had it rough,” Sunata said.

His voice was firm, but not unkind.

“You may spend the rest of the day as you wish. This evening, however, you’ll be required to report downstairs for Mahotona training. You are long overdue.”

Braith nodded numbly.

Sunata turned on his heel and headed for the exit.

“Until then,” he added without looking back, “good day.”

The door closed behind him.

For a moment, Braith simply stood there, breathing slowly, grounding himself. Yumie shifted against his back, then whispered softly into his ear.

“Braith?”

He nodded and turned toward the stairwell leading up to the apartments.

The climb felt harder than usual. Each step dragged, legs aching, lungs burning more from fatigue than effort. Yumie murmured something - an apology, maybe - but it barely registered through the fog in his head.

By the time they reached the fourth floor, Braith felt hollow.

He shuffled down the hallway toward their room, but before they reached it, a door ahead creaked open. Fadel poked his head out. He looked exhausted, eyes rimmed dark, concern clawing its way up from somewhere deep inside him.

Braith stopped.

“All right?” he asked weakly.

Fadel shook his head.

Baha appeared behind him, silent and watchful.

Fadel took a breath. Let it out.

“You probably don’t want to hear this after what you’ve been through,” he said, voice heavy, “but you need to.”

Braith stiffened.

“Julen’s been killed,” Fadel continued. “Murdered. And since Amane was his Mahotona… she’s gone too.”

Braith’s breath caught.

He’d barely known either of them, but the finality of it - gone - hit all the same.

“How?” he whispered.

Fadel grimaced.

“Fireball. Nothing left. They were ambushed by purists.”

Braith struggled to process it.

“But… aren’t the purists attacking the mall right now?”

Fadel let out a hollow laugh.

“There are thousands of them,” he said. “Maybe tens of thousands.”

Braith shook his head, grasping for sense.

“Thousands? But their cause is so extreme-”

Fadel’s eyes narrowed.

“How much do you actually know about the Mahotona Programme?” he asked. “About why Japan is the only country with magic? Why no one’s allowed to leave?”

Braith tried to answer.

He couldn’t.

His shoulders sagged.

“Not enough,” he admitted.

Fadel nodded once, then stepped back and opened the door wider.

“Then come in,” he said. “Eevi and Kertu are here too.”

Braith hesitated, then nodded.

He managed a small, tired smile.

At least there were still a few familiar faces waiting on the other side.

Fadel’s apartment was identical to Braith and Yumie’s, save for one detail - two beds instead of one.

Eevi sat on the far bed, cheeks streaked with silent tears. Kertu sat beside her, one arm wrapped protectively around her Mahoro, the gesture maternal despite the strain written plainly across her own face.

Fadel pointed to the empty bed.

Braith gently set Yumie down before sitting beside her. The mattress dipped under his weight, tipping her into him - though she would have done it herself if he hadn’t. She clutched his arm, tail curling around her legs as if anchoring herself.

Fadel dragged a chair away from the wall-mounted table and straddled it, resting his arms across the back. Baha stood behind him, unmoving.

He glanced briefly at Eevi and Kertu, judged that they didn’t need him right now, then turned back to Braith and Yumie.

He sighed.

“Alright,” he said. “The Mahotona Programme.”

Yumie’s grip tightened.

“Around four years ago,” Fadel began, “a woman on the verge of death woke up in a hospital with a hamster sitting on her chest.”

Braith blinked.

“I’ll skip the fluff,” Fadel added quickly. “That hamster was the first Mahotona. And it scared the hell out of everyone.”

He leaned back slightly.

“Turns out it had the unlock quirk. It could awaken Mahotona in others. Research followed. Quietly. Secretly. Governments got involved. All of them.”

He exhaled through his nose.

“At the time, none of it was public.”

Braith listened closely, Yumie pressed against his side.

“Foreign governments pressured Japan to keep it contained while they figured out what magic was,” Fadel continued. “But someone leaked it.”

His mouth twisted.

“So when the public found out, Japan made a decision. They turned the entire country into a quarantine zone.”

Yumie stiffened.

“Those Mahotona travel permits?” Fadel went on. “They’re fake. No one’s getting out.”

He smiled - but there was no warmth in it.

“We’re a disease. And the world doesn’t want us spreading.”

Braith’s breath hitched. Yumie squeezed him harder.

“But… then why keep letting people in?” he asked. “Why let foreigners unlock their magic at all?”

Fadel’s eyes narrowed.

“I think there are two reasons.”

He raised one finger.

“Money. Japan’s population is shrinking. There’s a labour shortage. Letting people in who can’t leave solves that nicely.”

He raised another.

“And power.”

Braith nodded slowly.

“You’ve seen what magic can do,” Fadel said. “I think they’re building an army.”

Braith sat back slightly.

Only now did he notice it - the restless flick of Fadel’s eyes. Kertu’s quiet disapproval. The way statements piled up without proof.

A conspiracy, his mind whispered.

He sighed internally. Still - some of it fit too well to dismiss entirely.

“So what do we do?” he asked.

Fadel shrugged.

“I don’t know,” he said. “Hope we win?”

Then a thought struck Braith.

“Why haven’t I seen any native humanoid Mahotona?” he asked. “Why are they all foreigners?”

Fadel grinned.

“Easy. There aren’t many. And the ones that exist?”

He leaned forward.

“They’re military.”

Braith frowned.

“But… we’re military.”

Fadel shook his head.

“Not really. We're foreign contractors. Mercenaries, if we’re being honest.”

Braith nodded. It made enough sense - for now.

Before he could press further, Yumie slumped forward onto his lap. The movement startled her awake, ears flicking as she jolted.

Braith squeezed her gloved hand.

Then he stood.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “My fiancée’s exhausted.”

Fadel nodded. Eevi didn’t respond, eyes glassy. Kertu looked away.

“I bid you all good night.”

Baha opened the door for them.

Once it closed behind them, Braith exhaled deeply.

Alone again.

He glanced down at Yumie.

“Are you alright?”

She nodded weakly.

“Just tired.”

It was barely past noon - but she looked like she could sleep for days.

Truthfully, so did he.

He guided her down the hall to their apartment, where they collapsed onto the bed together. Yumie curled half atop him without thinking, tail draped across his legs.

Within minutes, they were asleep.

Outside, the world continued to burn.