As the whine of the aerial vehicle grew louder, Evantra’s mind raced as she considered her options.

  If it’s the PIU, I’m out of luck. The [ritual of concealment] will only hide me from their operatives with cybernetics.

  [Object mimicry] has a limited duration, and they’re likely to cordon off the megabuilding and put it into lockdown.

  It’s only a matter of time before they’re able to detect me.

  Evantra quickly stowed the Blade of Galahad in her backpack, zipping it shut. Then, she deactivated her [ritual of concealment].

  At the very least, I hope I’ll be able to conce—

  Uriel walked into the room.

  The Ghostslayer was dressed just as Evantra had last seen her. She had fitting black leather pants and a black trench coat that dropped to her ankles. She was wearing the same red sweater tucked into her pants. Two golden irises stared back at her as she entered the floor.

  “Fancy seeing you here, Evantra. We’re making this quite the habit.”

  The [Seraphim] ranked Ghostslayer smiled, and Evantra didn’t know whether to be terrified or relieved. She let out a breath of relief when Uriel didn’t activate her optics and reduce her to ashes. Instead, the Ghostslayer inclined her head towards the shattered window from which she had entered.

  “The little ones are safe. Jack has them secured. Let’s go.”

  Evantra strode through the shattered window, which led out towards a terrace complete with a pool and sprawling view of Demteria’s continental greenhouses.

  The Ghostslayer’s hypercar was just as she remembered it, save for one small detail. It was currently in hovercar mode, and its thrusters were sending the rainwater in the pool outwards in waves. Evantra quickly slid into her seat and felt a distinct sense of déjà vu as the hypercar lifted off.

  “Not bad. Sending a poltergeist running on your very first ghost hunt. That being said… you've been busy since I last saw you. Perhaps it isn’t your very first run,” Uriel said with a hint of a smile. Evantra could swear that she could sense an undertone of pride in her voice.

  “The poltergeist... did I manage to kill it?"

  Uriel laughed and shook her head.

  “Somehow, you managed to get it to flee. That's better than most Ghostslayers short of [Archdemon] or even [seraphim] rank could boast of. Frankly, I'm surprised you managed to survive at all. I'm sure you figured it out by now,” Uriel said, her eyes ahead.

  Evantra stared at Mega Building Z5 as the hypercar pulled away, flying towards Megabuilding A3. She could see police hovercars surrounding the perimeter of the building, and personnel entering the Megabuilding in a rush.

  “That poltergeist was far more powerful than a class 5. It somehow managed to lure Veilcreatures into its vicinity and—”

  Evantra broke off, seeming to remember herself and casting a glance at Uriel.

  Uriel laughed.

  “I knew you had potential. I'm surprised that you've learned this much on your own without attending the Academy. You're right about that. From what Jack mentioned to me, the poltergeist has been sending out drones into Demeteria’s continental greenhouses. It’s been stunning and retrieving Veilcreatures to consume in its domain, slowly consolidating its power over time”

  Evantra frowned, shaking her head.

  “I don’t understand… if it was so dangerous, then why hasn’t Bastion’s council or the guild done anything about it?”

  “Sometimes… it’s hard to gauge just what level a poltergeist is. Classifying ghosts on a scale of 1 to 5 has always been a challenge. Generally speaking, as a poltergeist grows stronger, its abilities develop across a number of areas. The size of the domain it's capable of controlling. The extent to which it can concurrently control different tech. The complexity of the tech it can control. But many of these factors are reliant on the tech that it has within its domain.”

  Evantra frowned as she processed Uriel’s words.

  “Class 2 poltergeists are capable of interfacing and controlling cybernetics. They usually aren’t capable of controlling individuals if they’re still alive, but their threat increases exponentially if they get their hands on dead Ghostslayers.”

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The Ghostslayer must have been a resident of the executive suites. The poltergeist must have bided its time, amassing souls until it was capable of controlling the cybernetics.

  If I didn’t have Galahad’s blade, Clark’s pistol and the [ritual of concealment], I never would have made it past the first few floors.

  “Class 1 poltergeists, on the other hand? They’re the scary ones.”

  Evantra listened to Uriel in rapt attention.

  “They’ve been known to overpower living Ghostslayers, outright hijacking their tech. Class 2s have some baseline regenerative abilities, but class 1s are known to regenerate at a rapid pace, “healing” any damage inflicted to the tech in their domain. But class 1s go further. They can iterate on or enhance the underlying tech they possess, making them perform at a level superior to what they were originally designed for. If that poltergeist had succeeded in its goal…”

  Evantra shifted in her seat. The thought of facing a Class 1 poltergeist capable of regeneration, which could completely outpace the damage inflicted, coupled with the ability to iterate on or enhance the tech it possessed, was horrifying. It partially explained the ghostslayers’ hesitance to investigate the poltergeist, even one as dormant as this one.

  Even having discerned the true nature of the poltergeist’s power and how it had achieved its evolution, mysteries still remained.

  “Do ghosts have an instinct to evolve? What exactly was its ‘goal’?”

  Uriel nodded with a smile of satisfaction.

  “It was likely drawn to Elsecaller’s grid. Poltergeists are usually relegated to the domain in which their originating ritual is placed. They need to stick close to it when they feed, which is why it brought the Veilcreatures into its domain before killing them. Once it evolved into a class 2 or beyond, that’s when it gains the confidence to venture out, transferring its body into a physical piece of technology. But doing so leaves it vulnerable.”

  Uriel’s expression darkened.

  “In this case, the hostages were likely meant to attract the attention of a Ghostslayer that it could control. After doing so, it would have attempted to make its move after killing them and possessing their body.”

  “That’s the reason why the capital cities haven’t been inundated with poltergeists? Poltergeists are reluctant to leave their domain and inhabit a single piece of tech which would make them vulnerable?”

  “Among a few reasons, yes.”

  Evantra shook her head.

  “It still seems negligent that the council failed to properly assess its risk. Sending in an organic Ghostslayer at least, or a team to properly assess its power.”

  Uriel nodded as the hypercar slowed, finally reaching its destination. She watched as they drew closer to the landing pad atop Megabuilding A3, dedicated to executive aerial vehicles.

  “I knew I liked you. In this case, Demeteria likely hammered out an exclusivity agreement with Bastion’s council. I wouldn't be surprised if they intended to run experiments on the ghost.”

  Evantra scoffed.

  “An exclusivity agreement? A megacorporation with an exclusivity contract over a poltergeist? Megacorporations never cease to surprise me.”

  She watched as Uriel’s smooth lips curled into a smile, lips parting to produce a bright laugh.

  “Coming from you! Who knew that magical girls were still around?”

  Evantra felt her blood run cold.

  ***

  Uriel's apartment was an uncanny reflection of the Executive suites that she had glimpsed in Megabuilding Z5.

  One noticeable difference was that her apartment was humbler than the others, but even that wasn’t saying much. Instead of taking up an entire floor of the megabuilding, it ‘merely’ occupied a section of it. Having briefly called Carmen to check in on Tai and Lucas, she quickly returned her attention to the Ghostslayer sitting in front of her.

  She supposed it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Depending on the information Uriel possessed on Project Darwin, the Ghostslayer might know more about her nature than herself. Coupled by the fact that Evantra had made it through a megabuilding to reach the executive suites largely undetected, she wasn’t surprised that the Ghostslayer had concluded.

  Noelle was seated beside her, and Evantra could see her visibly shaking her thigh and biting her lip as she eyed the Ghostslayer sitting opposite them.

  They rose abruptly to their feet as the door to the apartment opened. They watched as Benjamin entered the apartment with a bright smile. When Evantra told him that Uriel was bringing her back to her apartment, the monk said that he’d be there as soon as he could, to her surprise and confusion.

  “I'm glad to see that you're alright, Amitabha. When Noelle told me what happened, I was at a loss for how I could assist.”

  Evantra shook her head.

  “Not at all, Ben. If you hadn't pointed us in the direction of the megabuilding, who knows what could have happened.”

  Evantra's eyes narrowed as she watched Uriel wave cheerily to Ben, before her wave was returned with equal enthusiasm by the monk.

  Ben knows Uriel?

  Just what have we stumbled into?

  Have we been played for fools—

  Uriel rose to her feet, causing Evantra and Noelle to tense at her movement.

  “I just received news that the poltergeist has been dealt with. I made sure to express my disdain at how my kill had been stolen.”

  Evantra exchanged a glance with Noelle, turning over the Ghostslayer’s ambiguous wording in her mind. They watched as the apartment door to Uriel's apartment opened once more, and once more, they were greeted by a familiar face.

  “Back so soon? Can't get enough of the veil, can you, Dozza?”

  ‘Dora’ has evolved further.

  “Thanks for helping them out of there, Jack,” Uriel said with a nod to the Australian Ghostslayer.

  “No dramas. You should really consider suing Demeteria for the trouble they've caused ya. Shall we get started?”

  Uriel clapped her hands together.

  “Indeed. Without further ado. I've called you all here for a reason. I had my suspicions after our first meeting in Wisptown, but now they’re as good as confirmed.”

  Uriel paused, her golden eyes shining.

  “You're a magical girl.”

  Now the only question is… what exactly do Uriel and Jack want with me?

  “Oh, lay off her. She's been through a spectre and a poltergeist these last two weeks. The pair of them look just about ready to drop.” Jack flashed her a reassuring grin.

  “Don't mind the old hag. She was the one who convinced me that we seniors had a responsibility to take care of our junior. Magical girls and guardians should stick together, don’t ya reckon?”

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