So, I decided to split this chapter into two for a few reasons:

-It's really long

-I'm not done editing the second part yet

-It actually has a pretty good breaking point

That being said, this chapter isn't super exciting. I'll try to get the second part up tomorrow. Thanks for bearing with me! :)

Review Responses:

Orangeflight of ShadowClan: Yeah, I was worried when nobody was reviewing. I thought that I did something wrong. xD I am almost certain that they'll reject A Harmless Game. At this point, I'm just trying to get feedback from someone who calls the shots. Even I don't know how much work these college apps are... I'm applying early to a school, so I have a wave of work to do now and a wave during the winter. I'm hoping to finish this "book" before winter break, but I get the feeling that isn't going to happen. :x

Yeah, Claus is not a healthy person to be around. I'm glad that you recognize that; I know that there are some people who think that guilt tripping like that is okay. D: And yeah, Flint's a wreck. No more to be said. Heh, I take no responsibility for that weighing on your mind (which who/what killed Hinawa). :P ...Even though it kinda is my fault. xD Yep, more Kuma backstory soon, piece by piece.

Well, that's good that it's your favorite one. :) It's supposed to be one of the more pronounced ones (The Ana one doesn't really affect the plot for a long time haha). I hope that you like this one... well, the second part. This one's a bit slow. :( And pretty much everyone dislikes discrimination (pretty much everyone reasonable, anyway). Well, I play League of Legends, and you're probably better of not playing it. It's not even that good and a lot of people rage (I've even gotten a death threat, albeit not ones that the person actually planned on carrying out). The teacher isn't rude, he just hates BS and is willing to sacrifice a few of us due to honest mistakes to stamp it out. He's pretty chill as a person, actually. I guess I should revise the characterization thing: people like for characterization to either relate to the plot or be matched by plot thingies happening.

DarkFoxKit: Oh yeah, I would totally do what Lucas did... at least, I would have a few years ago. Now, I don't know. It feels like independence has kinda slapped me in the face. As for the knife... I left it ambiguous intentionally. :) And Claus wanted to pressure Lucas into coming with him because he knows that Lucas is more scared of Flint than living alone. He fully expected Lucas to follow (and he probably would have, honestly). Kind of a jerk move, huh? :(

PSIBoy: Hey, thanks for reviewing! :) These reviews really make my day! As for who he wants dead, I won't say yet. :) And in Tazmily, politics are just starting to form. But yeah, there's a lot of strife going on. Yep, Flint is messed up... but he does truly believe that Claus killed Hinawa. That does things to a person. Yeah, Boney lives with Flint (I don't think that he's actually going to make an appearance in this story, sadly D:). As for Lucas' future, all I'll say is that he'll definitely show up. :)

A Fan: An estimate? With ANs, I'm thinking 500-600k total. I'm about halfway done with this "book," and there are two more coming. Book 3 might be shorter because I don't have much planned, but I may come up with stuff. Yeah... it's gonna be a while.

Maybe it is secretly City of Progress! ...Nah, I'm just kidding. xD

Two Years Ago

Diana Carpainter walked through the streets of Vulcan, wearing a grey cowl that concealed all of her features. Raindrops soaked her cloak and seeped into her skin, but she didn't mind. Even in warm weather, Diana always felt cold. She had realized that no amount of sunlight could overcome the iciness in her heart. She had become one with the grey buildings and grey skies.

Diana waded through a sea of people, trying to make her way to an abandoned house where she could use PSI without anyone else noticing.

Minerva always said that she hated the crowds, but I've never minded them, Diana thought.

Once, that revelation would have produced sympathy, curiosity, or nostalgia. But now she felt… nothing. Diana tried not to gape at the tear in her heart where emotion used to reside.

She gritted her teeth. Diana almost wanted to shove. Almost. After realizing how many people she had hurt, she never wanted to inflict pain on anyone ever again.

But pacifism was tricky. Diana truly believed that some people deserved to die. What would happen if she needed to kill someone and simply… couldn't?

I can think about that later, she thought, slowly advancing towards her destination.

As she got closer to her hideout, Diana encountered less people. There as a good reason for that, as her irritated lungs started to tell her. The air in this part of the city was particularly bad. Diana had heard that thousands of families who were too poor to move out died of lung infections. Apparently, their lungs had turned completely black.

That was Vulcan's mantra, in a way. Use, use, use… and then forget about the leftovers and leave them to pollute the rest of the planet.

However, this part of town offered a lucrative benefit: shelter. Diana spotted countless people on the streets. She guessed that they had gotten kicked out of their homes and had moved into the abandoned houses littered across the area. Under her cowl, Diana favored each one with a sad smile.

Most of them wouldn't last the month.

Diana closed her eyes, trying not to linger the withered, black lungs that she imagined.

You kill hundreds of people, she told herself. And yet you still can't face the truth. Pathetic. You truly are a child.

Diana walked up to a grey house. It looked indistinguishable from the rest. She walked in, taking in the emptiness of the grey walls around her.

"Healing," she muttered, purging herself of any toxins that she had inhaled.

Didn't Minerva say that people used to use different kinds of healing PSI to treat different problems?

Diana shook her head. That didn't matter now. She took a deep breath, readying herself for what she had to do.

"Dimension door," she whispered, and a void to nothingness opened in front of her.

Diana leapt through, closing her eyes and directing herself to create another portal as she floated in the emptiness. She opened her eyes to find herself straddling between doors to Vulcan and Ceres. Gingerly, she dove through the portal to Ceres, landing in a posh, colorful room. Immediately, she felt her senses go numb as she collapsed on the floor. It felt vaguely like being electrocuted.

Urgh… Diana thought. What the psych?

"Ah, an intruder," came a familiar voice. Diana felt a hand lift her hood up. "Oh, Diana! What are you doing here?"

The numbness faded. Diana gasped for air, standing up and coming face to face with her twin sister. Minerva's cheeks reddened as she shot Diana a sheepish look.

Well, she didn't kill me, Diana thought. That's good.

"Nice place," Diana said, looking at the furniture and decor. She couldn't tell what anything was made of, but it looked fancy. "Is how all people on Ceres live?"

Minerva nodded nervously.

"Yeah, all of the people at my station live this way… I'm sorry about that trap. I set it to spring on anyone who teleported in."

"Well, it works psyching well," Diana said with a good-natured smile.

Minerva released a sigh of relief.

"You… really don't hold grudges, do you? That can be a fault, you know. If you held a grudge against father, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess."

A sense of overwhelming guilt overtook Diana, although she did her best not to show it. Years of hiding emotions from her father gave her plenty of practice at keeping her face neutral.

"…You're right," Diana whispered.

Minerva's eyes shot open in surprise.

"Wait, you actually realized that father is wrong?" she asked incredulously.

Diana nodded.

"I'm sorry, Minerva," she said. "I should have listened to you earlier. Maybe then, some of my victims would still be alive… That fantasy seems so close."

Minerva looked uncomfortable. She opened and closed her mouth multiple times, but didn't say anything.

"At least you're not denying it," Diana said. "I'm a monster."

"No, it's not that…" Minerva said. "You've always been so strong. Whenever I needed help, you were there for me. It's a little concerning to see you like this… even if it is a step in the right direction."

Diana looked for a hint of humor in Minerva's voice and found none.

"Wait, you think that I'm strong?" Diana asked, waiting for the scornful laugh that would surely follow.

"Yeah," Minerva whispered seriously. "You always seem to know what to do, and you were never afraid to take action. I guess it's no wonder that I started to admire you."

Diana's jaw dropped wide open.

"Wait, you admired me? I thought that you hated my guts!"

"Jealousy," Minerva explained with a guilty smile. "Father always loved you more. You were his little hound, willing to get your hands dirty and never questioning his orders. Next to you, I was nothing. At first, I tried to imitate you, but you were always better… So I ran away. It's funny how jealousy saved me in the end. I guess there's an evolutionary basis for everything…"

Wow, Diana thought. I never knew.

"Please," Diana said. "I know that I don't deserve to ask this, but would you tell me about your life on Ceres? I need something to distract myself from the atrocities that I've committed."

"You… really want to hear about me?" Minerva asked, her eyes widening slightly. "…I don't think that anyone has really cared about me before, Diana."

Minerva's surprised tone made Diana feel both relieved and horrified: relieved that she could finally find something to talk about besides her struggles on Vulcan and horrified that Minerva had truly been alone for her entire life.

Now that I think about it, I've been alone as well, Diana thought. I believed that my father cared about me. Now I know that he only sees me as a tool.

"I don't know how to respond to that," Diana said. "I've never been good with feelings. I'm… sorry."

Minerva flashed a sad smile.

"I have issues with emotions as well," she replied. "I'm the jealous one, remember? My life… well for starters, there's a lot of sexism here on Ceres. There's a social stigma about women in my profession. It's perfectly legal and some people honestly don't care, but others do. I'm starting to see the universe differently after being looked down upon for so long."

"Err…" Diana said. "I've paid so little attention to your life that I don't even know what you do."

"I'm a politician," Minerva said with an awkward smile.

"Really?" Diana asked. "I'm surprised that you found enough money to bribe your way through the ranks."

"Politics on Ceres work differently," Minerva replied. "Here, ideas rather than money rules. There's still quite a bit of bribery, of course, but most politicians have to be more discreet about it. We each develop a personality and make promises in hopes that we'll get elected. I'm one of the few who is sincere."

Ah, Diana thought. I had always heard that people have more rights in Ceres. It makes sense that politicians would have to be a little less overt about their corruption.

She didn't even consider the possibility of an honest government. Having grown up on Vulcan, such an idea seemed like a fairy tale to her.

"What was it like?" Diana asked. "Being a foreigner and all?"

"Some see me as uncultured," Minerva replied. "But the people of Ceres like that I come from Vulcan, surprisingly. While the ex-noble families sniff and shake their heads at my prospects as a politician, most of the people here are… normal. They have basic issues that need to be met, and they're tired of someone sophisticated trying to deal with their problems. My survival story provokes empathy. It also helps that I've found a wonderful friend who can work magic on a crowd."

"Really?" Diana asked, trying not to let jealousy shine through. "Who?"

"Her name is Megan Aniah," Minerva answered. "She's rather upbeat, kind of like how you were. She can put a lot of… energy into events, and she's a wonderful person. She also happens to be the secretary of psionics, or at least one of them. She shares the title with her husband."

"Secretary of psionics?" Diana asked. "That sounds important."

"It is," Minerva said with a smile. "She helped me out a lot. Without her, I don't think that I would have come close to my comfortable position."

"It's… great that you have such wonderful friends," Diana said, but her heart wasn't in it.

Minerva adopted a concerned expression.

"Is something wrong, Diana?" she asked. "Are you… jealous?"

"…I suppose that I am," Diana whispered. Why was that so hard to admit? "Sorry. I am a lousy excuse for a human being, literally."

"We both are," Minerva replied with a smile. "But our biology shouldn't hold us back. Now tell me… what happened?"

Diana bit her lip. She didn't want to talk about this to Minerva. Revealing her faults in front of her little sister always wounded her pride.

Grow up, Diana told herself. This isn't a contest. Not anymore…

"It's about Juno," Diana said. "She has the power to use PSI."

Minerva's eyes lit up.

"Oh my…" she said. "And I assume that father hunted her down?"

She could be a starman as well, Diana heard in her father's voice. She closed her eyes, trying to block out the noise.

"He… tried," Diana answered. "I stopped him. Juno still wants to kill me, though."

"Why?" Minerva asked, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"I was the one who detected her innate psionic abilities and told father," Diana admitted. "But I didn't think that he would try to kill her! He wants to hunt down starmen disguised as humans, and I know that Juno isn't a starman!"

"I… don't think that father is sincere about hunting down starmen," Minerva said. "After all, don't you know his secret?"

Damn! Diana swore in her head.

"How did you figure out that I knew?" she asked. "Have you been spying on me?"

"You tipped me off," Minerva answered with an insufferable smile. "Politicians like me pick up on secrets rather quickly. His secret happens to be quite… frightening, no?"

Six months on Ceres and she already carries the air of a noble, Diana thought. I guess that she could always bend language and appearances to her will.

"It… is," Diana replied slowly. "I thought that I was in a nightmare when I first figured it out. Afterwards, I felt horrible."

"Ah," Minerva said, smiling in pain. "Because suddenly, you are not following god's will. You are committing atrocities."

Diana flinched. Minerva's succinct assessment rang true.

"Don't hide from the truth, Diana," Minerva said. "That was never your style."

"Everything that I knew was a LIE!" Diana shouted. "Can't you cut me some slack?"

"You killed another human when you were seven, Diana," Minerva answered. "You just don't react to the filth and gore of life."

"But I was imprinted…" Diana protested.

"Subconsciously, yes," Minerva said. "And now you are free from the thralls of your mind. You are a catalyst for change, Diana. You are an arrow that needs to be directed. For years, you have impaled the innocent. Now, you need to strike down the guilty."

"…You mean that I should kill father," Diana said flatly.

Minerva nodded.

"I can't just kill the person who gave me everything, Minerva!" Diana explained. "It doesn't work that way!"

"You've killed people less deserving of death than him," Minerva replied.

"I won't do it," Diana insisted.

Minerva sighed.

"I thought that you would say that. Just like an arrow, you don't like to change directions once you've been put on a trajectory. I shall have to take father's little cult into my own hands."

"What do you mean?" Diana asked.

"I'm running for president, Diana," Minerva replied.

Diana almost toppled over. Her sniveling sister was running for the most powerful position in the universe?

Stop judging her, she told herself. Minerva has done more good for this universe than you ever will.

"I… hope that you win," Diana said shakily.

"You could have done a better job than that of hiding your surprise," Minerva replied with an amused smile. "I know that the profession seems out of the realm of possibility, but you don't have to act so shocked. Regardless, if I take office… my first action will be to hunt down father. I'm pushing officials here to act, and many people support my view. However, there is a lot of dissent from the noble families. Do you know how military service works on Ceres?"

"No," Diana answered.

"There are many rules, but the most important ones concern psions," Minerva answered. "All male psions, psychic warriors, and wilders are required to serve in the military for three years after graduating from school. Kids of ages 20-23 make up the psionics forces of Ceres' standing military. Most of the psions spend their time whoring, as there are never any real threats on Ceres."

"Wait, all male psions?" Diana asked. "What about women?"

"Women are not even allowed to join the military," Minerva replied. "People on Ceres are rather traditional, and the longstanding tradition has been to put women in front of an easel and hand them a paintbrush while the men fight the wars."

"Huh," Diana said. "That seems stupid."

"Doesn't it?" Minerva asked, shaking her head. "But people will do anything if they're used to it."

Diana suddenly felt self-conscious about what she had gotten used to: killing anyone who her father told her to.

"But anyways," Minerva said, "The point is that our military psionics unit is small and the soldiers in it are young. Their parents don't want them to actually fight anything, as if they're supposed to do something else in a psyching military!" Minerva released an exasperated sigh. "As a result, most noble families oppose sending a psionic strike force to take out father, and those families carry all the real power."

Diana nodded, starting to feel comfortable again. This was how politics worked.

This was how life worked.

"But," Minerva continued. "The common people are getting annoyed that nobody's taking action. My support of hunting down father has made me quite popular, actually. The presidential election is in a few months, and I think that I can win it."

Diana still couldn't believe that her sister had a chance to become the single most powerful person in the universe, but she managed to hide her surprise this time.

"I'm surprised that the common people have the power to do, well… anything," Diana replied.

"That was one of the refreshing things about coming to Ceres," Minerva said. "People can even get away with speaking poorly of a leader. It's still illegal, of course, but nobody really enforces that law."

"Wow…" Diana said, her eyes widening in surprise. "That's pretty crazy."

"I know," Minerva replied. "Going from a place where speaking out against authority is akin to asking for death to this… it's a little unsettling, honestly. I hear that Earth has made even more advancements."

"But Earth is filled to the brim with a bunch of entitled brats," Diana replied curtly. "They want more, more, more… and they don't give a damn if people over on Vulcan are starving."

Minerva shrugged.

"People can't possibly consider every aspect of the issue. The reason that most Earth people don't know what it's really like to live on Vulcan is that powerful businesses blot out most of the truth. I've told people here about events that I saw every day on Vulcan and they don't take me seriously. They don't believe me when I say that you have to watch where you're walking so that you don't step on corpses or limbs."

Diana raised an eyebrow.

"That's… different in other places?" she asked.

"Yeah," Minerva said. "Do you want to see what it's like for yourself? I can show you around town."

"…No thanks," Diana replied. "What if someone saw me under my cowl? It would ruin your image to be associated with a mass murderer."

"Yes, but-"

"Besides, I have other stuff to do," Diana interrupted. "It was nice talking to you, but I should really go now."

"I know your body language," Minerva said. "You mean to talk to father next."

Diana sighed. Why bother denying it?

"…Be careful, all right?" Minerva asked. "Of him and yourself. I don't want to see your strings pulled again."

"I don't think that will happen," Diana replied. "I'm too broken to be used as a puppet."

"Father will still try," Minerva said. "And if he realizes how broken you are, he will try to throw you into the trash. Prepare yourself."

"Always. Now, you didn't set any traps for people teleporting out of this place, did you?"

"No," Minerva said with a smile. "Have a nice… chat with father."

Diana smiled sadly.

"Thanks, Min," she said.

"You haven't called me that in almost 30 years," Minerva said wistfully. "Ah, look at me. I'm getting all sentimental. Good luck, Diana. Try not to die out there, all right?"

Diana nodded, turning around.

"Dimension door," she whispered, a portal to emptiness appearing.

She took one look back at Minerva's nostalgic face before leaving Ceres behind.

(ILH)

Diana stepped into her father's meeting room. The walls and floors were grey, just like the rest of Vulcan. If Apollo Carpainter was surprised at seeing his daughter walk into his room through a dimensional rift, he didn't let it show. He turned around, revealing a handsome face with creepy blue hair.

"Diana," he said, his eyes fiery and his smile icy. "The starman escaped."

He's not a starman! Diana wanted to shout, barely able to force her anger down. He's just a normal kid named Ness.

"…And?" she asked lifelessly.

Diana's father walked circles around her, chuckling madly.

"God wishes for us to hunt down all aliens. Surely you know that starmen can disguise themselves as humans? Oh, they can't enter Ceres because of that barrier, but people on Ceres don't care about us. We need to root the starmen out of our planet. Any man, woman, or child with innate psionic potential could be a starman. You must bring them here for me to judge."

Diana tried not to listen. She had been trained for so long to follow that voice, and now she had to tear herself away. It felt like she was splitting in two

"Do you ever judge someone innocent?" Diana asked.

"No, because they are all guilty," her father replied. "Starmen are an inferior race, and god has tasked me with overseeing their extinction. You shall be his finest tool. Keep up your good work, and heaven will wait for you."

How can he even say that? Diana thought. He's asking me to kill innocent people and says that I'll be rewarded. I still can't quite grasp how messed up that is.

"I have psionic powers," Diana said. "Does that make me a starman?"

Her father laughed maniacally.

"Of course not, my dear! There are a few people out there who can use psionics, but most of the 'people' with innate psionic potential who we've seen are starmen. Did you know that there are fewer than 2000 psions in the universe? The chance of finding another human with psionic potential in the population of this city is quite low."

Ness isn't a starman, Diana thought. Juno isn't a starman. Their expressions of fear were too real.

"Maybe there are so few psions because most people can't afford to make it to a small town in Earth to get tested," Diana suggested.

Her father's expression twisted. He glared at her, his frown so large that it almost seemed comedic. It didn't seem funny to Diana, though. She fought down the fear that she had been conditioned to feel.

"God has told me personally that I must take out the starmen," he said. "God trusted me, not you! Learn your place! You must be meek and obedient. Only then can you go to heaven."

Stop! Diana wanted to scream. Stop spouting lies! I… can't take it much longer.

"All right," Diana said, trying not to let her loathing show. "I understand. I'm sorry, father."

"You've been acting rebellious lately," her father said. "Where were you during the last starman's execution?"

Distracting your little zealots, Diana thought. Because Ness is not a starman!

"You didn't say that I had to be there," Diana replied.

"Ah, I didn't, but god did," her father replied. "You must accept that you are his tool! You must do what he says, which means ensuring that all starmen are eradicated!"

So crazy… Diana thought. I believed his words just a month ago.

She didn't know if she should laugh or cry at that thought.

"The fault is on you!" her father shouted, his eyes lighting up with zeal.

"…Why do we need the executions?" Diana asked. "Why do we need the crowd? Why do we need the zeal?"

"Stop asking questions!" her father snapped. "God didn't create us to question him."

I think that he did, Diana thought. Why else give us cognitive capabilities?

"But to answer your question," her father continued, his voice returning to neutral in a split second. "In order to fill god's requests, we must spread his will. Everyone on Earth, Ceres, and Aphrodite is going to hell. Everyone else on Vulcan will follow if we don't save them first."

Diana tried to suppress memories that surfaced from her unconscious. She saw limbs flying, blood splattering, a crowd cheering, and a boy weeping. She had to remind herself that each of those memories came from a different scene. They all seemed connected to one event.

But Diana wasn't the kind of person to commit only one atrocity.

"…Okay," Diana replied, feeling like she needed to get outside and breath fresh air even though she knew that polluted air existed on this planet. "Shall I hunt down the… starman?"

Her father eyed her carefully.

"You hesitate. You should not."

How can I determine what I should do if I don't think about my other options first? Diana wanted to yell.

"This is about Juno, isn't it?" her father asked.

Diana slowly nodded.

"I know that I shouldn't question you or god, but I do," she lied, disturbed at how natural her words seemed. "Please help me, father."

"I know that it can be hard to accept that someone who pretended to worship god just like us was a starman," her father said. "One that managed to escape, no less! I will not ask you to hunt her down."

Diana gave a sincere sigh of relief.

"To return to your faith, you must hunt down and capture the other starman," her father continued. "We shall bring it to justice."

Diana tried not to sneer as her father's eyes lit up with zeal.

"The one that goes by Ness?" Diana asked.

Her father nodded, his chilling smile making Diana want to run screaming out of the room.

"That will help me rid myself of doubt?" she asked, trying to sound sincere.

"Yes," her father replied. "But if you fail…" the corners of his mouth turned upward to form a sadistic smile.

Diana didn't have to pretend to be afraid.

"I… I understand," she said shakily. "I don't want to suffer your wrath, or god's."

Her father nodded.

"You may go now," he said.

As Diana opened the door to leave, her father cleared his throat. Diana turned back around to face him.

"God does not look kindly upon those who fail him," her father said with a cruel smile. "How would you like to spend an eternity burning in hell?"

Honestly, I don't give a damn, Diana thought.