I wished I’d brought an umbrella as Caya led our group to the beach, as it was one of those weird mid-winter rains. At least, that’s what it looked like.

"We should move quickly, we don't want to be out in this too long," Caya said. "Rain droplets like this could have adverse side effects."

Now I really wished I had brought an umbrella.

“Are we going to be OK? Should I go back and get something?” Oka stopped me as I reached for my phone; she knew I was about to instinctively load up 3WMB (What’s Wrong With My Body, my go to health website) to search the effects of void storms.

“Just a few minutes won’t hurt,” Caya said.

“R-right,” I said. "What kind of effects could this have on us?"

"None of you are void born, but we should all be on our toes," Caya said.

"That doesn't really answer my question," I said.

“Weren’t you paying attention to the video?” Roux asked.

“Kinda sorta…” I said.

"The primary effect of void storms is abrupt jumps to the void, sometimes to completely random void dimensions," Dr. Diast said. "With one of the major dangers being the potential to be thrown to an unknown node that's hard to return from.”

"Again, my hope is we can get this dealt with quickly,” Caya said.

"Hopefully we don't get chucked across twenty universes or something," I laughed nervously.

"If you get chucked anywhere, I'll be right beside you," Oka said.

That warmed me up just enough to ask the other question that was weighing on me.

“So if Mom’s here…then what?” I asked. “Are we going to fight her?”

“I am hoping it wouldn’t be a violent encounter,” Caya said.

“If it comes to that, I have full confidence in Kara,” Tik said.

“I do owe your mom an ass kicking, no offense,” Kara said, rubbing her shoulders.

“Absolutely none taken,” Stella said.

“And I’m no slouch in a fight either,” Dr. Diast said.

“I’m rusty, but…” Stella trailed off. She winked at me. “It won’t come to that, don’t worry.”

“I’m pretty dang good too,” Oka said, clasping my hand.

I told myself again, I wasn’t gonna freak out today.

Just think about that beach trip. About Oka’s…yeah. Everything.

Those pleasant daydreams brought me safely to the caves. I had only been around here once or twice, most memorably when Oka and I were all Feral Flu’d out and were running around above them like wild animals (well, we were in a beast-like form at that point, we basically were wild animals). There was some gossip thrown around about how romantic the place was and how many couples from the school snuck over to explore the caverns together, and some about how there were like twelve secret magical serial killers hidden inside waiting to get the jump on those many couples. The killer ones sounded like tall tales the teachers said to keep us away. Not that I needed any help there, actually exploring the shadowy passage did not strike me as romantic in the slightest.

“How did you end up coming along, Roux?” Oka asked as our companion’s ears twitched.

“A secret,” Roux said.

“I had a prior search party with some students joining me,” Caya said. “I extended an invitation to everyone involved that time, but only Roux accepted.”

"I said it was a secret, teacher!" Roux said.

“If it’s any consolation,” Mars said. “Amara told me she definitely would have come along, but she and her pals had to guard their beloved table.”

It didn’t seem like that was much consolation to Caya.

“They love that table,” Kara said.

When we first met Mars, the love trio were also there, having previously had some case in Novu solved where they got in touch with Rain. I hadn’t gotten many details about that case, but it was kinda neat to make connections like that.

The sound of Tik’s cane tapping echoed as we descended into the caves. I didn’t know what waited for us at the end of it. I held a small spark of hope that Mom wouldn’t be here, and that we would go another day without encountering her or my father.

I thought we stumbled upon the site of a massive battle when we found a pile of mangled metal, some of the parts connected to an overturned boulder.

“What happened here?” Oka asked.

“That’d be me,” Kara said. “We couldn’t figure out the secret door, so I opened it on my own.”

“Oh,” I said. “Dang.”

I poked the rock with my foot. To say I couldn’t even slightly move it would be a hilarious understatement; a reminder of just how strong Kara was.

“Why is this…what is this?” Oka asked. “Why is there a secret doorway on campus?”

“I’ve worked here for quite some time, and I don’t think I know all the hidden spots on campus,” Caya said, which wasn’t very reassuring coming from her.

“Why would Mom know about this?” I asked. How did she know anything on my school’s campus? I guess it could have been the same way she found out about my transition. A shiver ran down my spine, another reminder that I didn’t know much of anything about my mother compared to how much she apparently knew about me. Stella surmised that the retention sprites, the walking talking memory illusions they made, had been sent out to gather information on us.

“That’s what I’m hoping to find out,” Tik said.

“You don’t think this would scare her off, do you?” I asked, gesturing to the wreckage. “I mean, if she thinks she’s meeting with Caeda…wait, isn’t Caeda going to show up too?”

“We’re a few minutes early for this meetup,” Tik said. “Caeda will be a tad held up.”

“Tortured into not going, I get it,” Roux said. 

“Not tortured!” Kara said.

“We had the front desk call her in, so she’ll be conveniently late,” Mars said.

I trusted Tik, Kara, and Mars, but I couldn’t help but think this plan had some holes in it. Maybe it was so last-minute when they found out about Caeda’s meeting that they didn’t have time to think it through? Or maybe Tik was twelve steps ahead, and the apparent sloppiness was part of it?

Even though I had Oka and my family near me, the reality of the situation began to make me feel like I was slowly sinking.  I was in a dark cave, and we were waiting for my mother. What if none of them could stop her? What if I ended up trapped and forced into that beast tendency state again? My gut told me I had to get out of there, to run. All my efforts keeping my panic at bay were rapidly failing. I was going to pass out, or faint, or throw up, or explode, or—

“I…I maybe…” I stammered, my voice weak. Oka held tightly to me, but it felt like she was miles away.

“Um, teacher?”

It was Roux, their voice calling from the passage past the mangled rock door.

I don’t know how my legs carried me, because it felt like they had turned completely to jelly, but I managed to follow the others. Roux was on the opposite side of the chamber, and between them and us was a bubbling pit of a substance I knew too well.

“It’s…Elka,” Diast said.

Elka, the gunk connected to dark energy from Cani and the void. But it wasn’t like any kind I’d seen before.

“Everyone stay back!” Caya yelled.

As it boiled hotter and hotter, I swore I saw bizarre shapes that almost looked like eyes opening, abstract shapes that were almost hypnotic. Whispers surrounded us, voices I didn’t recognize swirling around like howling wind.

“Oh, you’re finally going to let me do something?”

“Are you serious? You have to do this.”

“I’m just making sure what’s mine isn’t getting tampered with.”

“I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

“It won’t be like this forever, will it?”

“You’re all I took of life.”

“Let’s see if our esteemed guest can aid us here.”

Before anyone could react, the pit of Elka burst upwards, rocketing directly towards Roux.