Hey, guys! How's everyone doing? :) Do I ask that every week, or do I just feel like I ask it every week? xD
Anyways, I'm a little sick, so hopefully my brain still works well enough to give this chapter a last round of edits before I publish it. It's a Jeff chapter... and the last one for a while. Yeah, he's getting the short end of the stick in this fic (feel free to keep complaining about it, A Fan :P).
This part of the trilogy is probably the one that fits in the least with the others. What would otherwise be somewhat of a progression through Ceres and the outside world takes a break to head back to Earth. For a time, things get less political and less violent. I planned the whole story to be kinda like this, but I switched up some parts a lot (like... going to Vulcan wasn't part of the original plan). However, this part received less touchups than the others, so for a time it may feel kinda... weird. Hopefully you guys will still enjoy it.
Also, a lot of the changes I made took a lot of content out of the Jeff plot (originally, Lucas was going to do stuff in the labs on Ceres but that didn't really end up happening), so this chapter wraps up some of what happened back in the last part. It might feel a little... empty, but I tried to add in enough stuff to still make it cool. We'll see how it goes, I guess.
Also, now that I have more time, I'm planning on updating twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays. If this is concerning (like you don't think that you'll be able to keep up and you actually care about this story), please let me know. :) Yes, this means that I plan to update in three days on Monday.
As always, feel more than welcome to drop a review! :D
Review Responses:
Shimo no ko: Ness is definitely the most standard out of all my protags. Jeff is kind of standard, I guess, but Ninten is just super weird. So I guess it makes sense why it would seem like it's Ness' story; he goes through the standard hero's path and all that. Ah, I'm glad that you like how the relationships between my characters develop. :) Well, we'll see what happens to Claus, won't we? ;)
DarkFoxKit: Heh, I did go pretty hard on those tragic backstories, huh? Don't worry; we still have another round of interludes to go in fic #3. :D But don't worry too much, only two of those will be super tragic. And we'll see what happens to Lucas and Claus (although not really in this chapter). :)
A Fan: I didn't want to put this chapter before the interludes because the interludes themselves are cooldowns from the regular story so I felt like people would lose interest after the Vulcan plot arc finished completely. Also, the tone matches the rest of this part better than the first part of this fic. I could be totally wrong, though. This chapter wraps up some of the Ceres parts (or at least stalls them out), since most of this arc will take place back on Earth. It won't be a while until we see the labs pop back up again. :) Yes, Giygas will start to play a larger role in all of this, though. And more light will be shed on Mr. Agerate. Your idea about Mr. Agerate being a starman is probably closer to the truth than you think... After all, he does know a suspicious amount about starmen and how they work. And hey, don't feel bad about spaced out reviews! I'm just glad that you take the time to review at all! :D
I know better than to think that I'm some sort of tragic hero. What I did to Aphrodite was wrong, and I wish that I could take it back. I will forever go down in history as a monster, and rightly so.
I guess I'm trying to say that I accept my status of a villain. Still, that doesn't keep me from feeling bad for myself. Oh sure, I know that I should suck it up and get my act together like a big girl, but that knowledge alone does no good if I can't apply it.
So I weep. I bawl. I curse the universe for creating me.
My solitary melodrama releases steam so that I can keep up appearances.
Kumatora didn't come back the next day. Or the day after that. On the third day, Jeff spotted not a pink-haired girl but another familiar face… one that he would have been happy to never see again.
Jeff was walking to Paula's room when Mr. Agerate waved to him in the halls. Jeff balled his hands into fists. How dare he show himself now! And while pretending that nothing was wrong, no less.
"Hey, Jeff," Mr. Agerate said. "It's been a busy few weeks. You look angry about something. Did you fail a final or what?"
Failing a final? Jeff snorted.
"This is serious," Jeff hissed. "I need to talk to you in private. Take me to your metal box thingy."
Mr. Agerate raised an eyebrow at Jeff's rude tone but didn't comment.
"If you really want to…"
"I do," Jeff said.
Mr. Agerate shrugged as if it meant nothing to him.
"All right. Teleport."
The next second, Jeff stood in a box made completely of steel. He spotted tiny air holes in the walls, but there were no entrances or exits. Only psions with teleportation could access this place.
"Now, what do you wish to talk about?" Mr. Agerate asked.
"Tony's dead," Jeff snapped.
That got Mr. Agerate's attention. The teacher stiffened; blood drained from his face. He looked at Jeff in disbelief.
"How?" he asked. "An accident?"
"Murder," Jeff hissed.
"At the school?" Mr. Agerate asked. "Like Pokey?"
"Tony went to the chimera labs," Jeff said. "After he didn't come back for a while, Kumatora and I went looking for him. We found his corpse next to an open journal about how President Carpainter planned to drain psions of their energy and use it to power cities."
"Oh," Mr. Agerate said, his eyes widening.
"Scary, isn't it?" Jeff asked. "But no, you had to go off and leave when we needed you the most."
Jeff looked for a reaction in Mr. Agerate's face. A twitch, a flash of guilt, something that would tell if the cloaked man back in the lab really was someone else pretending to be the teacher.
He got nothing.
"No, not that," Mr. Agerate said. "I meant 'oh' as in I know who killed Tony."
"You?" Jeff asked.
"What? Why the psych would I kill him?"
Mr. Agerate's harsh language startled Jeff. Even in situations of life or death, Mr. Agerate always kept his composure. Jeff studied Mr. Agerate's face, trying to pick out extreme emotions. He saw confusion. Anger. Sorrow.
Betrayal.
"Someone with your voice came up and admitted that he killed Tony," Jeff said. "Isn't it natural that I would suspect you?"
Mr. Agerate's face relaxed.
"Oh," he said. "Is that all?"
"What?" Jeff sputtered. "I psyching heard you…"
"You heard my voice," Mr. Agerate said. His next words perfectly imitated Megan Aniah's speech, "A voice which, with psionics, can easily be manipulated."
"I know that!" Jeff said. "But I still suspect you. Where were you in these past few weeks anyway?"
"Jeff," Mr. Agerate said. "A word of advice. If you're going to accuse someone of a crime, make sure you have backup when doing so. If I actually did kill Tony and wanted to keep that fact a secret, you wouldn't be alive right now."
"Why don't you listen to me for once?" Jeff asked. "You say that anyone could have faked your voice, but why would they have chosen yours? I don't think it's a coincidence that you went missing for three weeks."
"I know who the murderer is," Mr. Agerate said. "And I am sorry for not warning you about her. I never imagined that she would stoop so low to kill an innocent boy." Mr. Agerate sighed. "Maybe I should have kept you two from going into the lab at all. I try never to force you guys to do anything because from my experience, that doesn't end well. But would it have saved Tony's life?"
"Stop changing the subject," Jeff snapped.
"I'm sorry if you want to pin the crime on me, but I didn't do it," Mr. Agerate said. "Is Kumatora safe?"
"Poo fought against the man who sounded like you while we escaped," Jeff whispered. "But Kumatora went back to save him. I haven't heard from either of them since."
"Psych," Mr. Agerate muttered. "So she probably got what she wanted."
"What do you mean?" Jeff asked.
"You said that you found Minerva's journal, right? Did it mention that Kumatora was one of the psions that she drained for energy?"
Jeff managed a nod. He could see where this was going…
"So now they have her again," Mr. Agerate said. "Probably. She used Tony's death to lead you into the lab so that she could capture Kumatora. She probably took Poo as well… or she killed him. Not much of a difference, really. I still can't believe that she would stoop so low."
Mr. Agerate closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Jeff wasn't sure why he found that so infuriating.
"You mean President Carpainter?" Jeff asked. "Because if she destroyed Aphrodite, I don't think that she would have any qualms with this."
"Ah, so you know about that," Mr. Agerate said. "But Minerva didn't do this. She's not stupid enough to leave such an obvious trail back to her headquarters. This is Juno's work."
"Juno?" Jeff asked.
"You probably know her as Ms. Monotoli."
A shiver ran down Jeff's spine. How could he forget the crimson-haired teacher with the falsely sweet voice who "taught" telepathy and bullied Paula heartlessly? Ninten had stood up for Paula and chased Ms. Monotoli out of the classroom, but Jeff should have known better than to assume that the teacher was done after that.
"What makes you think that she did it?" Jeff asked.
"She was in charge of the lab on Vulcan that the journal talked about. She originally captured Kumatora to drain her power and viewed it as a personal insult when Kumatora escaped and crash landed on Ceres. So Juno has a motive to recapture Kumatora. She probably left the journal out so that when Tony read it, she would be 'forced' to kill him, thus drawing Kumatora to the lab. She disguised as me because she hates my guts."
Was that why she lead Jeff, Tony, and Kumatora to the staff archives to see Giygas as well? Was it her entire plan to sow seeds of distrust between the students and Mr. Agerate?
"Why does she hate you?" Jeff asked.
"It's a long story," Mr. Agerate said. "Basically, we were friends and I betrayed her trust, nearly getting her killed. Still, she never seemed… completely evil. I never imagined that she would strike in such an obvious way."
"Well," Jeff snapped, "She did!"
"And of course it's my fault for not being there to babysit you, even though you knew that the lab was dangerous," Mr. Agerate said.
Well, he had a point there.
"Why should I even believe you?" Jeff asked. "You might be making this whole thing up."
"I don't really care if you believe me or not," Mr. Agerate said. "Well, that's not entirely true. But your disbelief won't change anything. I'll teleport you back to your rooms and kill Juno either way."
"Killing her won't bring Tony back!" Jeff shouted. "You're not changing anything! Stop pretending that you'll make up for your mistakes by spilling blood."
"You misunderstand me," Mr. Agerate said. "It was not my fault that Tony got killed. I'm not making up for anything. Juno's actions revealed that she's a danger to the universe, so I'm going to make sure that she can do no more harm. Preservation of the future is my only reason for this course of action."
"Then maybe you should learn to take some responsibility," Jeff said, his voice frigid. "As the teacher, isn't it your job to keep us from getting into trouble?"
"My job is to teach, about safety and other things," Mr. Agerate said. "It's not my problem if you refuse to learn."
"So you're saying that it's our fault?" Jeff asked.
"It's Juno's fault," Mr. Agerate said, "But you and Tony did play the situation rather poorly. I know that you want to blame this on me because I'm enigmatic and powerful, but look at this from an objective standpoint."
"I don't psyching care!" Jeff shouted. "I know that you can talk circles around me; you don't have to prove that. You don't understand how I feel!"
"Ah," Mr. Agerate said. "Every teenager's mournful cry. The world just doesn't understand them." He put a hand on Jeff's shoulder. "Look at me, Jeff. I know how you feel better than most."
"You clearly don't," Jeff muttered.
"No, I understand you so well that it makes you angry," Mr. Agerate said. "You're panic-stricken by Tony's death. Up until now, exploring dangerous places was a bonding experience. Kumatora and Tony leap in, and you grumble about their lack of caution before following, nevertheless enjoying the whole exchange."
Jeff perked up. It never occurred to him that a teacher could pick up on such nuanced social interaction between teenagers.
"But then, you find Tony dead on the floor. Suddenly, you understand why we stuffy adults turn our noses up whenever you go on those kinds of explorations. The consequences are real. Sneaking through abandoned labs and creepy libraries is no longer a harmless game, and you feel like an idiot for not realizing it sooner."
Jeff gritted his teeth. How did Mr. Agerate know his reaction better than he did?
"You want to take your knowledge back to a time when it would make a difference, but you're powerless to reverse the death of your best friend. Teenage social interaction teaches you to puff up your courage and wear it like armor, but the sheer realization of the fact that you can't do a psyching thing cuts through that armor like a knife through cheese. Suddenly, you feel weak and you realize that there's nobody to help you."
"Stop," Jeff whispered. "I get it."
"But you can't show that to the outside world," Mr. Agerate continued. "So you replace it with anger: anger at yourself, anger at the world. You then realize that it was supposed to be your job to keep Tony safe. At least, that's what everyone's always told you. You've always been a good influence on your peers, so all of the adults expect you to teach your friends a thing or two about proper, logical behavior. Isn't that right?"
"I… guess so."
"So you start to think that it's your duty to keep your friends out of trouble. You think that it's your duty to keep them safe. So when Tony waltzes off on his own stupid mission and never comes back, what do you feel?" Mr. Agerate looked into Jeff's eyes. "Guilt."
Jeff gasped, the realization of his own guilt physically hurting him. He was supposed to be there for his friends. He was supposed to keep their curiosity in check.
He failed.
"But of course," Mr. Agerate said. "You're already angry, so you suppress that guilt and let it feed your fiery rage even further. You need to find someone to direct your anger towards so that you feel justified, and I was the perfect candidate. I can tell that those words make you even angrier. Yes, how dare I dismiss your profound hatred of me as an attempt to alleviate guilt. But," Mr. Agerate flashed a wry smile. "It's true."
No! Jeff's anger was more reasonable than that. Mr. Agerate made him suspicious from the beginning…
"It's like I'm looking into a mirror," Mr. Agerate said, shaking his head. "It's good that you begin to realize this now rather than in your forties."
Jeff gulped. Was that why Mr. Agerate could pinpoint Jeff's emotions with obnoxious accuracy?
"What happened to you?" Jeff asked.
"It's a long story," Mr. Agerate said, "And one which I do not wish to tell. Listen, I know that you want to be angry and that nothing I say will change that. And yes, I might be that patronizing teacher whose injustice rivals none, but I just needed to get that out. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings further."
Mr. Agerate's somber tone brought Jeff back down from his heightened state of anger. He coughed, realizing only then that he yelled loud enough to make his throat sore. He slouched, feeling drained from the exchange. Beneath that exhaustion lay the dull anger that Mr. Agerate pointed out. Once again, he couldn't do anything right. He couldn't help Kumatora, he couldn't save Tony, and he needed a teacher to identify his own feelings.
It made him feel like a pile of dung. He accepted the emotions anyway.
"No," Jeff whispered. "I… can kind of see where you're coming from. Thank you for sharing that with me."
"Wow," Mr. Agerate said, his voice softening. "It took me months of self-pity and anger to get to that point. I guess you're quite a bit smarter than I am."
"I should have recognized it earlier," Jeff said. "It's what I respected about you in the first place. You do see me as a person instead of a student." Jeff sighed. "Ah, why am I so tired? I just want the suffering to end so that we can live happily ever after. But that's silly, isn't it?"
"Silly or no, we all share that sentiment," Mr. Agerate said. "It's not one to be ashamed of, so long as it stays a wish and doesn't turn into an expectation. Are you ready to go back to your room now?"
Jeff nodded.
"I still don't trust you," Jeff said. "There's just too much about you that I can't explain. But I trust you a little more after this."
"I couldn't ask for more," Mr. Agerate said as he teleported Jeff away.
Jeff appeared in his room to hear knocking on his door.
"Who is it?" Jeff asked.
"It's Paula. Our friends are getting back soon, remember? We should probably head out to the astroport."
Right. Jeff was going to Paula's room to remind her about that when he saw Mr. Agerate in the halls.
"I'll be right there," Jeff said.
He scooped the psicrystal that Ness had given him to borrow off of his desk. It made a shimmering noise that sounded unearthly… so perfect for Ceres. Jeff closed his eyes and imagined himself in a city of stained glass where everyone respected each other and disagreements didn't provoke hostility. He took a deep breath, releasing some of the tension inside of his body.
Jeff opened his eyes, slipped the psicrystal in his pocket, and opened the door. Paula stood outside, her puffy eyes indicating that she had probably wept recently.
"Sorry that I dropped the ball," Jeff said. "I was going to meet up with you in your room like we agreed, but I got sidetracked."
"No problem," Paula said. "We still have plenty of time. This is what happens when I obsess about an event so much that I want to get there an hour early. God forbid that we get there only 30 minutes early instead!"
Jeff smiled, taking off towards the exit of the school. Paula followed next to him, and while she put up a nonchalant attitude, Jeff could tell that she was dying for someone to talk to. Both the excitement of seeing her friends and her horror at Tony's death and Poo's and Kumatora's disappearances probably made solitude unbearable. Fine by Jeff; he didn't want to his bitterness to fester alone.
"Well, I can definitely see why you would want to get there early," Jeff said. "Congratulations for the news about Ninten being okay! I'm really happy for you."
"And Claus," Paula added with a grin. "But thanks. To be honest, I'm a little worried that Ninten kind of forgot about me. A month is a long time…"
"If he was in a war zone, thoughts of being with you probably pushed him through combat," Jeff said.
Paula's cheeks turned a light pink.
"Thanks," she said. "I guess it's a little silly to worry about something like that when Poo and Kumatora might not even be alive anymore, huh?"
"Hey, we all worry about stuff," Jeff said. "And it doesn't always make sense. Just comes with being a human."
"You know, you're not as socially awkward as you first appear," Paula said.
"You're not so shy as you first appear," Jeff pointed out.
"Well," Paula said. "I changed."
"I like to think that my social skills changed too," Jeff said. "But honestly, who knows?"
"Yeah, there's not really a good way to measure social awkwardness," Paula said. Her voice dropped to a whisper, "…What do we tell our friends about Tony, Kumatora, and Poo?"
"I don't know," Jeff said. "Honestly, I've been dealing with my own emotions for so long that I didn't even think about that."
"I filed missing person reports on Poo and Kumatora," Paula said. "The experts will probably do a better job than our friends of finding them."
If they're still alive, her words implied.
"Well," Jeff said, fidgeting with his glasses. "I guess we could just not tell them?"
"But lying's wrong," Paula said.
"Even white lies? Besides, withholding information is a little different than flat-out deception."
"I suppose," Paula said. "Yeah, I don't think that God will blame us too harshly for something like that. It's for their own good, after all."
Coming from Winters, a largely atheist community, Jeff found it strange to use religion as a moral compass. Why would someone follow codes that they themselves didn't create?
I suppose it's all relative, Jeff thought. If the majority of people were religious, atheists would probably seem weird.
"Are you nervous?" Jeff asked.
"Yeah," Paula said with a sigh. "I still don't know what to expect from Ninten. He's a little…"
"Unpredictable?"
"Yeah. Impulsive, too. It makes him more exciting, but I do worry about what he'll do."
"At least he's not a jerk," Jeff said. "Or at least not a complete one. Sometimes, exciting people are just flat-out toxic."
"Oh yeah, you two don't really get along, huh?" Paula asked, picking up on Jeff's hesitation. "Why is that?"
"I think that it bugged him how I liked to show off," Jeff said. "Which, granted, is kind of obnoxious on my part, but I wish that he talked to me about it instead of resenting me."
"I'm not sure if Ninten has the best communication skills," Paula said with a guilty smile, "But he does mean well."
"I won't deny the second part," Jeff said. "Actually, I won't deny either part."
Paula laughed.
"Poor Ninten," she said. "Ah, this would be even funnier if he were here with us. He would do the thing where he scowls and pretends to be sullen even though he doesn't really care."
"I must admit," Jeff said, "I don't think he realizes just how entertainment that habit of his provides."
It didn't take long for Jeff and Paula to reach the astroport. They stood outside, chatting about weather and school. Even though they both knew that their words only served to distract them from recent tragedies, they seemed to enjoy it. Jeff supposed that to an outsider, they must look like a romantic couple.
After Jeff and Paula exchanged thousands of meaningless words, psions started to exit the astroport. First came a half-dozen older students who Jeff didn't really know. After Jeff and Paula stepped off the road to let them pass, Ana and Ninten exited the astroport. Paula inhaled sharply, clutching her hands over her heart as she stared at her boyfriend. Ninten's face lit up when he made eye contact with her.
"Hey, Paula," he said. "Ana just informed me how I probably gave you the scare of your life by going missing. Sorry about that."
Paula breathed a sigh of relief, releasing the tension in her body.
"I'm just glad to see you safe," she said.
Ninten walked up and embraced Paula in a hug.
"I really missed you," Ninten whispered.
"…Oh," Paula said, her eyes growing wide.
"Is something wrong?" Ninten asked.
"No, not at all," Paula said. "I just didn't expect you to make the first move."
Out of the corner of his eye, Jeff caught Ana smiling smugly. He would have bet a thousand golden dollars that Ana coached Ninten behind the scenes.
"Why does this feel so nice?" Paula asked. "But…" she released Ninten, blushing furiously. "Um, I think that we might be embarrassing everyone else."
"Nah, we're fine," Ana said. "This is touching. Right, Jeff?"
"Yeah, of course!" Jeff said. Only an idiot would have missed the hint in Ana's voice. "I mean… you guys didn't see each other for a month. It's only natural that this is a pretty big moment for you."
"Thanks," Paula said, taking Ninten's hand. "You guys are awesome friends."
"To you, at least," Ninten muttered. "Ana threatened to tell you about all sorts of embarrassing stuff that I did on Vulcan."
"I was kidding," Ana said, waving her hand in dismissal. "I wouldn't tell Paula now. It will be so much entertaining if I can hold it over your head for the rest of your life."
"See what I mean?" Ninten asked, his face turning sullen. "She always picks on me."
Paula exchanged a glance with Jeff as they both struggled to keep a straight face. After talking about how entertainment Ninten's false angst provided, this exchange became even funnier.
"You guys have been away for too long," Paula said. "School was so boring with you gone." Her face turned downcast. "And now we have to split up again for break. Ugh, I have to see my parents again."
"Hey, you hate your parents too?" Ninten asked. "That's a nice coincidence. Now we can complain about how much our parents suck together."
"Speaking of which," Ana said. "We came up with the idea of sticking together during break and travelling around the world. With our generous stipends and my parents' nearly bottomless pockets, we can go pretty much wherever we want."
"I suggested Summers," Ninten said. "But everyone else called me unoriginal."
"That sounds amazing!" Paula said, her face lighting up. "I can't believe that I didn't think of that myself."
"There's just once catch," came Ness' soft voice from the entrance to the astroport. "I'm coming along too."
Paula flinched and then grimaced in shame. Jeff looked back to the entrance and saw Ness and Claus walking towards them. Claus examined Paula similar to how Jeff would look at a complex math problem and Ness took careful steps to appear as a non-threat.
"I'm sorry, Ness," Paula said. "I didn't mean to…"
"Flinch?" Claus said. "It's a reflex. Those things are damn near impossible to control."
"I don't mind," Ness whispered, smiling sweetly. "Really, I don't. I'm just worried that I might ruin your vacation if I tag along."
"He even offered to stay behind if you wanted to go," Ninten said. "Being his friends, we told him to forget the idea."
"We did talk about splitting up, though," Ana said. "We want to respect your feelings, Paula. We just need to respect Ness' too."
"I understand," Paula said, nodding slowly. "And I'm glad that you didn't want to leave him behind just because I would feel a little uncomfortable. I'm fine going with you, Ness. It's about time that I faced this stupid fear of mine."
"Really?" Ness asked, a smile appearing on his face. "Thank you, Paula!"
"It should be me thanking you," Paula said. "It was sweet of you to think of me. Not that…" Paula trailed off, looking at Ninten. "Not that I think you're any less sweet, Ninten."
"Well, I kind of am," Ninten said. "I'm a downer and Ness is super nice. It only makes sense."
Paula rolled her eyes.
"You're sweet in your own way," she said.
"Can confirm," Claus said with a wink. "It's nice to see you in good spirits, Paula. It felt like I only saw the negative part of you for the first few months of school, if you don't mind me saying. Now, I did promise Ninten ice cream right when we got back on Ceres, but I wouldn't want to tear you two lovebirds apart. Do you want to tag along, Paula? It's all on me."
"Sure!" Paula said. "And since when were we 'lovebirds'?"
"Ever since I became too damn hostile to get a girlfriend," Claus said. "Everyone set to go?"
Paula and Ninten nodded. The three of them walked off towards the city neighboring the school.
"Both Paula and Claus changed a lot," Ana observed, "It's nice to see them engaging in normal activities."
"I know," Ness whispered. "Paula seemed a lot more like when I knew her as my childhood friend. It brings back memories."
"Oh hey," Jeff said. "Before I forget…" Jeff pulled Ness' psicrystal out of his pocket. "This is for you."
"Huh," Ness said, taking the psicrystal. "I forgot about this thing. Thanks, Jeff."
"You're welcome. And speaking of change, you've grown more confident. You're still shy and reserved, but…"
"But I'm not trying to hide myself anymore," Ness said with a smile. "It's refreshing."
"As your girlfriend, I agree about the refreshing part," Ana said. "So, Jeff… do you want to tag along with us during break as well? You're welcome to join us."
"Yeah!" Ness said. "It would be a lot of fun, and maybe Ninten could learn to stop getting annoyed by you."
"I think you already know the answer," Jeff said, looking into Ana's steady eyes.
"You want to stay behind on Ceres," Ana said. "I was hoping that I could persuade you to come with us."
"There's something that I need to investigate," Jeff said. "I need to do it alone. I'm sorry."
"Aw," Ness said, his face crestfallen. "I guess we'll meet up in a month, then?"
"Did something happen to Tony?" Ana asked.
Jeff knew that he couldn't lie successfully through the shock that popped up on his face. Time for plan B.
"Yeah," Jeff said. "It's nothing that you can help with. I need to fix it on my own."
"I understand," Ana said. "And I won't try to force you away from your path. Just remember that we're always there if you need us."
"Right," Ness said. "You can call us on your portocom any time."
"Actually," Ana said. "Portocoms don't really work for communicating between planets, much less planets in two different galaxies. Regular telecommunicators should work, though. Feel free to call whenever you want."
"Sounds good," Jeff said. "I'll keep that in mind."
"I think that I'm going to go shopping downtown," Ana said. "Either of you want to tag along?"
"I'll come," Ness replied instantly. "What's the point of courting each other if we don't do anything together?"
Oh right, Jeff thought. They're in a relationship.
Sometimes, it was easy to forget. Ana and Ness acted so casual around each other.
"Thanks for offering," Jeff said, "But I think I'll pass."
"All right," Ana said. "But don't be a stranger, all right? You can't always do everything by yourself."
Ana and Ness walked off, leaving Jeff to mull over her words. Paula had said something similar when she talked about how she managed to quell her bitterness. But Jeff had never really needed anyone else. Sure, he couldn't do everything, but he could do enough.
As Jeff walked back to the school, the reality of his decision to remain separate from his friends hit him square in the chest. What if he did need someone? What if he got stuck in another sticky situation and nobody was there to bail him out?
Right then, Mr. Agerate appeared right in front of Jeff. Tears rolled down his cheeks, but he still managed to put on a smile.
"It's done," he said.
It took Jeff a moment to remember that he had disappeared earlier to kill Juno Monotoli.
"Ah, I screwed that up," Mr. Agerate said. "I tried to read her mind to see where Kumatora and Poo were, but she wiped her own memory before I could. So when I captured her… she didn't remember anything about what she did to them. That's why I'm crying. The look of betrayal on her face…"
"Should we really talk about this in public?" Jeff asked carefully.
"I don't really care if anyone hears, honestly," Mr. Agerate said. "At this point, we're both in danger just for knowing. I'm sure that Juno told Minerva what happened back at the chimera labs. I think that I can convince Minerva to keep you safe… unless she's gone just as crazy as Juno."
"Well, if you feel so bad about it then maybe you shouldn't have… er, dealt with Ms. Monotoli."
"No," Mr. Agerate said. "I knew that I would feel this way. I'm not crying because I want your pity or anything like that; this is just a healthy, physiological response to guilt. I should probably leave you in peace."
Mr. Agerate teleported away, once again leaving Jeff alone. Jeff crossed his arms over his chest. He wanted to feel bad for the teacher, but he wouldn't risk getting too close to someone he didn't trust. If only there were a way to determine once and for all if Mr. Agerate had a hand in any of this mess.
Jeff's portocom started beeping. He took it out and saw once again the shaky black letters on the purple screen that had no right to be there. The last time they appeared was right before Jeff and Kumatora set off to the chimera lab, telling them not to go. This time, it read:
If you wish to seek the truth, head to the Shard of Ceres.
-LOVE
Jeff read the message over once, twice, three times. Based on the signature, it appeared to come from the same person who warned him to avoid the chimera lab, but who was this "LOVE"? Why did they sign their name in all capitals?
Jeff shook his head. He couldn't tell who sent this message, but heading to the Shard would allow him to find the truth. According to what Jeff had heard, anyone who made it through the trials that the Shard offered would get to know anything that they pleased. Except there were stories of people getting greedy and wanting to know too much, so the Shard gave them no information at all. Jeff didn't know whether or not he trusted the stories, but the plausibility of the Shard as well as LOVE's last message telling the truth made Jeff curious.
It was time to do some research about the Shard of Ceres.