Chapter 96: 86. Super Monster Winner

Jay watched his mom dance as they relocated after breakfast.

The smell of smoke, corpses, and junk riding a northbound wind couldn’t daunt Mom’s fun. She skipped and bounced at the front of the Champion congregation. She stayed on beat with the low and consistent claps ringing out from their destination.

Miss Williams and the Divine Father regarded Jhara with a mixture of bewilderment and curiosity. Mister Hernandez and Mother Zhou tried to pretend they weren’t associated with Mom… until Mom wrapped her arms around her friends' necks and yanked them free from their children.

“Super Monster, Super Monster!” Jhara cheered into her captives’ ears. “Super Monster, Super Monster!”

“Lilith, help!” Luis cried.

“Son,” Michelle called.

“What are those strange creatures that want to cling to us?” Lilith asked Mike.

“I believe they’re called parental units,” Mike said, sliding his glasses up. “We have no use for such embarrassing things.”

“Obviously.”

The hope in their parents’ eyes died.

Jhara laughed like a witch and dragged her friends straight ahead. She would’ve run them through the entrance gate if it weren’t for the nervous guardsmen blocking them off.

Jay strolled up behind his eager mom.

“What do you guys need before we can go in?” Jay asked kindly.

“We haven’t received proper clearance to let you through, sir!” shouted a sergeant.

Nearly half of the Champions winced. They were still new to controlling their heightened Perception. 

Jay barely batted an eye. His most preferred Attribute and the associated Talent made his sensory control even greater.

“What clearance do you need, son?” asked the Divine Father–a Mister Elliot Allen. Up until now, the man seemed more watchful and to himself.

Jay shifted slightly, allowing Mister Allen to take the floor.

“Clearance from our company officer,” another guardsman explained.

“But he told us not to bother him around this time,” said a different guard.

All of the parents looked at the young guardsmen like lost children in need of common sense or guidance. Mister Allen didn’t bother explaining a point. He took a step back, highlighting the twelve magical and ferocious teenagers being upheld for no good reason.

“I’ll get him on the comms!” shouted the sergeant.

A few minutes later, the guardsmen moved aside a wire-meshed gate. Something the Champions could’ve easily torn through or jumped over.

Jay thanked the guardsmen. He ignored the looks his bloodied and bruised face received. Jay didn’t want to think about how it might heal incorrectly. Not when he had a bunch of kiddies to greet. At least his nose was correcting itself.

The guardsmen inside the pen looked shakily from their charges to the Champions. The guards only had fifty men and women compared to the two thousand undead roach girls they had to guard.

The kiddies remained seated in a muddy field, one set of hands clapping a beat they’d maintained since getting left here. Soon as the Champions crossed inside, the kiddies looked at them all at once.

Miss Williams cried out to the wrong religion, which plainly bothered Brit. But the Holy [Medium] held her mouth shut instead of correcting her mother.

The parents’ reactions were reasonable. Except for Jhara, which was reasonably unreasonable.

She ran up to the nearest kiddie. “I love your hat.”

The former grunt made a happy shrilling noise and offered its decorative mushroom hat to Jhara. Mom took the hat and grabbed the grunt by its wrists. She frolicked through the muddy field with her new friend, exciting every kiddie along the way.

“You should go join her,” Jay told Mister Hernandez and Mother Zhou. Before they could resist, Jay turned to the nearest kiddies. “They’re shy. But loads of fun. Would you play with them?”

Moments later, Michelle, Luis, and Jhara got hoisted up and paraded around by two dozen undead Yoroachians. Michelle didn’t like it, but she kept her cool better than Luis, who screamed the whole time. Jhara laughed like an insane schoolgirl.

“And these are your creations?” Mister Allen asked his goth daughter.

“Yeah,” Emily muttered. “I haven’t decided what to do with them yet. They keep existing on their own when they shouldn’t.”

“And if they keep being bundles of joy while serving the pantheon, I don’t see why we can’t keep them,” Brit said aloud.

There was a chance that Emily might fall into a well of guilt and destroy her own creations. The Holy [Medium] acted as the staunchest defender of the undead roach girls. Jay wondered if this level of ironic insanity was normal because of the situation or because of the people in the situation. It was probably the latter.

“Brit, dear, you sure you wanna give up your future for this?” Miss Williams asked.

“It’s worth it, Mama,” Brit grunted.

“But it’s dangerous!”

“If I may interject,” Mister Allen said, “I believe the other parents don’t see it that way.”

He pointed at Jhara, Michelle, and Luis sharing a flask as the kiddies paraded them around from one side of the muddy pen to the other. Jay figured his mom would get her way sooner or later. Michelle and Luis wouldn’t have been hanging with the Luckruns if they weren’t drinkers themselves.

“It’s too early for Father to drink,” Lilith complained.

“Let him have this one,” Mike said. “He’s taking in a lot. And he’s going to need it.”

“I’ll have to call his contacts and reschedule his meetings. You know how he gets when he drinks.” Lilith sighed.

Miss Williams gaped at the drunk parents and their associated children.

“And they even have very capable children watching over them,” Mister Allen said merrily, turning the insanity into a poignant and positive point. A natural-born salesman, this man.

“They’re part of a violent gang, Mister Allen,” Brit’s mom argued. “That’s not what I’ve raised Brit to be a part of.”

“If we are to call it a gang, it is one supported by our very government,” Mister Allen countered amusingly. “You can almost say the military is an oversize gang of sorts, my dear.”

Brit and the Divine Four lowered their heads as their parents went back and forth. Some of the other Champions ignored the parents or found their debate somewhat amusing if they weren’t already amused by Jhara leading a muddy conga line.

“Shouldn’t we be treating this a little more seriously,” Dennis muttered. “People died because of these monsters.”

“I am taking it seriously,” Jay said softly. “I’m not gonna control how everyone else acts if it ain’t hurting nobody.”

The ones getting hurt right here and now were the kiddies, honestly. They had been left in the mud even though they were a big factor leading to Champion victories.

Jay stopped. Everyone else did the same, the argument between Mister Allen and Miss Williams ending.

“Commander R,” Jay called.

From the corner of the pen, a single creature fanned out its wings. It crossed the distance with a silent leap and landing that nearly sent some of the guardsmen into a panic.

Standing eight feet tall, the former Yoroachian Commander loomed over Jay and others. Just like the other Yoroachians, Commander R had humanoid feminine features, dark brownish coloration, and mandibles hidden behind soft human lips.

But unlike the others, it wielded a huge bug-wing colossal sword. The sword had a wider point compared to its base, granting it a top-heavy design that would hit like a massive axe. Commander R’s upper arms were brawny, perfectly made for wielding the large weapon. Its size and weapon scared back the parents and CWG among the group.

The Champions waited patiently as Commander R bowed deeply in deference to Emily. Then she gave Jay a shallower bow.

“Champion King,” Commander R greeted.

Jay tried not to smile. “Not a king. Just wanted to check with you. How are the others?”

“We are concerned, Champion King.” R lowered its head. “We wish to move and dance. Or to serve you, o’ Champions and friends of Death Momma. But we can’t serve like this.”

R waved its lower arms at the two thousand kiddies waiting around in the mud. “Have we failed you to be punished in such a way?”

“You were the same monster slurping down innocent people’s spines like noodles!” Dennis reached into his bag of holding. “Regardless of what we believe, shouldn’t this thing be put into the dirt.”

Commander R nodded slowly. “When you say for us to be put into the dirt, do you mean for us to expire and lay still forever?”

“Yeah,” Dennis grunted.

Commander R knelt and offered its neck. “Please end my existence if it would please. But grant mercy to the others. We were newly born monsters that quenched our thirst for blood and mayhem before serving your pantheon. And we are terribly sorry for that. But now we are newly arisen monsters wishing to serve others and spread revelry to your benefit. That means our lives are yours to decide, ultimately.”

Brit moved in between Commander R and Dennis. The challenge went unsaid.

Dennis’s hand hovered over the bag of holding. He looked around, searching for backup. His eyes found Frank, but the Dragon [Fighter] remained unreadable and in the background. Dennis looked to the O'Kelly Twins, but Rick and Tim were fans of the kiddies. Dennis’s last shot was Emily.

“I don’t know,” Emily said.

“They shouldn’t stay upright,” Dennis said. “What if these monsters lose control and start attacking people?”

“Hey, Kleo, are you going to lose control and attack people?” Jay asked.

“I want to attack you for letting yourself get beaten so badly,” Kleo muttered, clinging to her master’s neck still.

“I'm new to this magic business,” Mister Allen said, frowning at the mud-splattered kiddies, “so I must ask this. How are you certain they will lose control and attack others? Do you have any idea how any of this works, young man?”

“I don’t,” Dennis said.

Mister Allen moved carefully to the front and touched Commander R’s shoulder. His daughters tensed until they saw their father was more than okay. He was peachy, really.

“At your fingertips is power beyond imagination.” Mister Allen stared reverently at his hand. “Power that can breathe life into the inanimate, or ignore the death of the fallen, and give personality to monsters you’ve slain throughout this entire weekend of yours. And you’re telling me that you wish to throw this all away or let it languish in a pig pen?”

“Which leads me to my main point for calling you here, Commander R,” Jay said, taking control of the conversation now that Dennis’s white knight moment was diverted. For now, at least.

“Yes, Champion King?”

“Prepare the Corpse Kiddie Parade,” Jay said. “We’ll be marching out once we’ve decided upon Gatanna’s owner.”

“Wait, what?” asked a nearby guardsman.

“You might want to run to your nearest officer,” Derek suggested from the back, hanging with Amanda and the other CWG escorts. “Don’t call. You’re gonna wanna say this face to face, brah.”

The guardsman ran for it, shouting for the first gate to swing open immediately. Protocols could be damned, apparently. He had to hustle quickly and get news up the chain. Some poor sap was going to need all the time they could get to figure out the logistics. Jay wasn’t waiting for the gate to open when he was done here.

Jay smiled. “Come now, let’s go see our resident super monster.”

***

Gatanna sat in a muddy, watery pen in the middle of the kiddie’s wider pen. Her pen was rectangular, haphazardly built, and practically pointless since the fencing was only seven feet tall. But it marked her area where a team of guardsmen waited at her gate, completely surrounded by the undead.

“They didn’t think very hard about your placement, huh?” Jay asked the guards of Gatanna.

“Nope,” said the lead guard.

“Do I need clearance to get inside?”

“Nope.” The guards opened the gate with a quick pull. 

They hadn’t even bothered putting a latch on it. If someone tried to break in to reach Gatanna, Jay figured the guards would merrily let them.

“Hey, Gatanna, how are you doing?” Jay asked.

“Raaaawr!” Thunk!

She was doing so-so. Not bad. But not good either.

She shouldn’t be hungry. Kleo had figured out Gatanna was a weekly eater while in a passive mood. Kleo could communicate by using [Faerie’s Voice] under a more benign lens. She could read thoughts and instincts without completely overriding control.

“She’s moody and bored, Master,” Kleo informed.

“She’s been waiting for the big reveal, I’m sure,” Jay said.

“She’s a beauty.” Mom took a spot next to Jay. They stood inside of Gatanna’s pen, knee-deep in watery mud. Everyone else was hanging back.

Gatanna was thirty-six feet tall standing on two feet. She was a fusion of humanoid and scaly gator. Her dangerous teeth crisscrossed outside of her mouth. Thick, black scales covered her body, following the curves of her hips and the swell in front of her chest. Her legs were more gator-like compared to her arms which had more of a humanoid shape to them. Then add the tail extending far behind her and the scaled dreadlocks streaming from her head–and you have the most monstrous and fantastic creature anyone had seen yet.

Jay glanced up and around. A bunch of helicopters flew in the distance. Jets, too. They were prepared to rain fire and brimstone if Gatanna and the kiddie parade acted hostilely. All that military activity restricted the airspace, so news helicopters got butted out of the area. Just a few last acts of trying to contain the secrecy, as doom as that was.

Jay looked back where everyone waited outside the gate and on solid ground. The kiddies were on their feet now, crowding the fence outside of Gatana’s pen. 

They stayed silent for a few moments until a kiddie started up a slow beat. It clapped on the hard carapace covering their thighs. Other kiddies followed suit, having a natural feel for theatrics. They turned a muddy camp into something akin to a parade field meeting a theater hall. Their synchrony was so admirable that Brit became smitten with them.

“This is Gatanna.” Jay waved at the super monster behind him.

“Raaaawr!” Thunk! Thunk!

“That’s her saying hi,” Jay informed as his mom waded away from her son’s side and to Gatana’s side.

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Some of the parents, CWG escorts, and even a Champion looked queasily as Jhara climbed onto Gatanna’s lap.

“You’re so pretty!” Jhara complimented.

Gatanna eyed the little human. Then she dipped her head and nuzzled her snout against Jhara’s face. Mom howled with witch-like laughter.

“As you can see, Gatanna likes compliments. She’s a little vain, but she means well.” Jay paused as his mom stuck her head into Gatana’s mouth for a few seconds. “And she’s friendly. As long as you keep her fed. And yes, she’s currently fed.”

“May I?” Jhara pointed at Gatanna’s dreadlocks.

“Rawr.” Thunk. Thunk.

Jhara played with Gatnna’s scaled hair. She struggled a little. They were pretty thick and heavy. If Gatanna whipped them around, they could do damage.

“Gatanna is specifically a Yogatzilla, the only one of her kind,” Jay announced. “Super monsters like her are immensely strong. Sometimes stronger than a Boss Monster. Boss Monsters are creatures that order the other monsters around and are usually the strongest in a lair or dungeon. Some of us got to see how strong Gatanna can be when she kicked the Yoroachian Commander through a wall.”

“She sure did!” Brit agreed.

“It was a really good kick,” Commander R complimented from next to the uncomfortable three-letter escorts and guardsmen. Commander R was the former Yoroachian Commander, so it would know how good that kick from Gatanna had been.

“And this magnificent creature is available to be won?” Mister Allen asked, finding his voice ahead of most others. There was a glint in his eyes that spoke of well-utilized greed.

“Eh, don’t treat it as a contest,” Jay said. “Gatanna trusts me to make the decision. Or more like, appoint her to the Champion that would match her best.”

“Shouldn’t she go to Emily?” Casey grouched, forcing herself to speak to Jay. “She called for Gatanna to help.”

“You’re not wrong, exactly,” Jay said. “But are you prepared to take care of Gatanna’s needs, Emily? She’ll want more of your attention than the kiddies.”

“No, thank you,” Emily said before her family could talk her into it.

That was a close call. Jay would’ve conceded if Emily pushed for Gatanna’s ownership more. She wouldn’t be the best choice for Gatanna. None of the Divine Four would be.

That wouldn’t stop their father from inserting himself into an opportunity. And to his credit, Mister Allen literally did so.

He entered the pen, shooing away his daughters’ concerns. He muddied his expensive shoes and slacks, slipped, and got more mud splattered all over him to his daughters’ dismay. He straightened himself out and took a spot next to Jay while Jhara swung around on Gatanna’s dreadlocks.

“How much?” Mister Allen asked. “How much can I pay to link such a magnificent creature with one of my daughters?”

“This can’t be bought, Mister Allen,” Jay said.

“Son, there’s a price for everything if you look hard enough. You just have to name it for me.”

“And you’re probably right,” Jay said, finding it a little weird he was conceding to an adult. Even if only a little. “But the price for Gatanna isn’t standard. In fact, it’s downright heinous.”

Mister Allen looked hard at Jay. So did the others, anticipating Jay’s choice. In the background, the kiddies maintained their drumbeat as Mom played and shrieked happily, amusing Gatanna.

“The System recommended someone responsible and calming to have ownership over Gatanna,” Jay said.

“So, it goes to Brit,” Casey muttered.

“Thank goodness.” Dennis sighed in relief.

“Oh Lord, no.” Brit’s mom panicked.

Mister Allen gave the Holy [Medium] an assessing look as if calculating the amount he could pay her. Then he glanced at Miss Williams as if that might be his leverage to get his way. Mister Allen was wasting his time.

Jay crooned out, “Is Gatanna going to you, Brit?”

“No, she’s not,” Brit said, unable to hide her disappointment. “I would’ve loved her, though.”

“I know you would’ve, but you’re the System’s most recommended,” Jay said, his different-colored eyes glinting brightly. “And we don’t do what the System recommends when we can easily diverge, do we?”

“Not when we’re speedrunners, backdoor bastards, zone-abusing cheaters, dungeon genociders, and boss-level terrorists,” Mike said with a sigh. “We’re the System Admins’ worst nightmare.”

“Oh shit,” Tim said, one of the first to realize the Super Monster Winner. “Jay, she’s already a monster.”

“Bon! Fang sharpens fang!” Jay grinned, looking directly at Lilith. “You are the Super Monster Winner, by the way.”

“How?” Lilith asked breathlessly. “Shouldn’t she go to someone more deserving?”

The group erupted.

Mister Allen tried to purchase ownership over Gatanna from Mister Hernandez. Lilith’s dad was a lightweight when it came to drinking. He was way too drunk to understand what his daughter was getting. He defended her right to have a super monster despite his normally cautious stance and the tens of millions the Divine Father would write to him instantly.

None of the squabbles mattered much. Jay waited in the mud. Patient. The kiddies kept their slow clap going.

Lilith took a single step forward.

The clapping went up in tempo.

Lilith took two more steps.

The kiddies clapped a little faster.

Every step sloshing Lilith closer to the Super Yogatzilla was accentuated by the kiddie claps rising in tempo. Then the kiddies threw in their vocals like a celebratory choir. Right when you would naturally sense the climax striking, the kiddies held the beat and melody while Lilith waited beside Gatanna’s leg.

Jhara splashed down. She offered her hand and shoulder. She pushed Lilith’s scrambling form onto Gatanna’s lap even though the [Crafter] could’ve hopped up on her own. She was shocked and uncertain over this ordeal and could barely act normally.

“You truly are beyond imagination,” Lilith complimented. “I saw your work last night. You are as brutal as you are beautiful.”

Gatanna let out a rumbling purr. She dipped her head down and nuzzled Lilith’s face with her snout.

“Are you okay with this arrangement?” Lilith asked. “Will you accept me?”

“Rawr.” Thunk. Thunk.

“That’s her saying yes,” Jay assisted. “Not a pet black hole, but I hope Gatanna is suitable for you.”

Tears of joy leaked out from Lilith’s eyes. “Thank you, Jay. And I say yes in return!”

Lilith and Gatanna tied the knot. The kiddies erupted into a musical ovation. Lilith dropped back into the mud with Jay. Mike joined them. And the Super Yogatzilla started to change. To transform.

The trio looked up at Gatanna’s rising form as black vapors hissed free from between her scales. A yellowish glow radiated from within Gatanna’s chest while most of her form was shrouded in the meat-smelling mist.

“What’s happening to her?” Mike asked.

“Adaptive,” Lilith said.

“To what?”

“To anything perhaps! That’s her new Affinity. Adaptive Affinity. This is what she gets for becoming my familiar! She’s an Adaptive [Yogatzilla]!”

“And she’s growing,” Jay said.

[Madly Identifying]: Super Yogatzilla, Level 22–This super monster has a base of 3470 Health, 3250 Stamina, 500 Mana, x10 Chance, and an Adaptive Affinity. Heavily favors Resilience and Strength. Skills: [Tumbling Rumbler], [Death Roll], [Hearty Feast], [Polymorph Evolution]. This creature is so strong she cannot fight at full power consistently, or she will be too overwhelming to her own body. Even with that limitation, point this black death machine at an enemy of the same rank, or sometimes above, and sit back. She would do the rest. She delivers +1 Strength or +1 Resilience to her owner every time she levels up.

“It’s [Polymorph Evolution] she’s using, a new Skill earned by our union and her new Adaptive Affinity,” Lilith explained. “She’s so ridiculously strong, she’s already giving me the AP she had stored for this.” Lilith was like a starving kid in a candy store. “She gave me +11 Strength and +10 Resilience.”

“You don’t even need those!” Casey complained.

Jay begged to differ but decided to let Casey’s voice fall on deaf ears. No love was lost there.

Gatanna shook off the mist and revealed her latest form. She was scalier, bulkier, and taller. Way taller. Gatanna raised her maw to the sky and roared, showing off her new height at 54 feet.

The kiddies ended their climactic choir song with a crescendoing finish. They switched tracks to something more parade-like. Good for dancing. All the military and government in the area were in for a show.

“Alright,” Jay said, clapping his hands. “Let’s march out of here.”

“Um, Jay, I think everyone needs a bit more time to prepare,” Amanda said, the one voice willing to speak against Jay, the Champions, and their monsters. “You can’t just have two thousand monsters walking the streets on a Monday morning. Especially your super monster.”

“School is out, isn’t it?”  Jay asked.

“Not Central High,” Derek answered. “Everything else fell under martial law except for your school. It has some special arrangements.”

“Welp! Might wanna keep the students inside. We’re gonna take the parade through the woods behind Central. Best way to avoid the roads on our way to YoAnna’s outer mansion,” Jay said.

Amanda threw her hands up. “But you can’t just move them! We need more time to set the logistics correctly. To get trucks to pack them into so they aren’t seen. To keep the secret!”

Amanda panted hard.

“You okay?” Jay asked her. “Need some water?”

“I’ve completely failed my job,” Amanda muttered.

“It happens to the best of us,” Jay said with a shrug. “You should take the day off. Have a drink or something.”

“Jay, I’m turning in my resignation letter,” Amanda threatened.

“That’s okay,” Jay said, turning his back on Amanda. “You are still someone of interest to me, Amanda. And that’ll keep you bound to us whether you like it or not.”

Amanda made raspy putt-putt noises in disbelief.

Jay grabbed Mike and Lilith by their waists and fell into the air with his friends. They landed gently on top of Gatanna’s head. 

“Mind if our parents get a ride?” Jay asked.

Lilith happily agreed. She was completely high off the moment and would barely make for good conversation. The same could be said for their scared, bewildered, or exhilarated parents as Gatanna scooped them up and held them to her chest.

The Adaptive [Yogatzilla] disregarded the fence and stepped over. Everyone moved out of her way. Undead roach girls scrambled from under her shadow as her foot slammed down with a hefty THUD. The ground quaking, body quivering step shook the air next to Jay’s ears. Then another THUD reconfirmed how ridiculously monstrous this creature had to be to exist. Despite physics wanting to disagree with her existence and have her suffocate or collapse from her own weight.

Gatanna was too strong for physics and biology. And she knew it.

The kiddies formed up behind Gatanna’s stomping feet. Some kiddies scrambled onto her tail as it dragged behind her. They weren’t alone. Rick and Tim latched onto the tail for a joy ride. Brit joined them, escaping her browbeating mom to ride with her friends. The parade was formed with Gatanna leading the way.

All that could pose as a blockade were a caravan of humvees armed with heavy machine gun turrets. Jay suspected he’d have to dive down there and deal with the military politics. To his surprise, he heard a militant bark for the caravan to roll ahead and maintain a distance of one hundred feet. Gatanna naturally fell into a meandering pace behind the caravan as they guided the giant monster parade out of camp and onto the road.

“Wow,” Mike said. “Did Chance grease the wheels for the military to use its common sense?”

“It’s a mix of both, this time,” Jay said, just as stunned. “Someone must’ve figured they had no way of stopping us. So, why bother?”

“Could look bad on their resume,” Mike said.

“Anyone risking their careers to make things easier for our pantheon will find better-paying work,” Jay offered. “Good thing, too. It would’ve been harder to move our pantheon monsters if we waited. Can’t let them set up their red tape and politics or they’d mistreat our people.”

Mike looked at his friend sharply.

Jay glanced behind them. Junkers waiting in line for emergency supplies watched the monster parade march away. They weren’t easy to read. Jay couldn’t tell if they hated the Champions or liked them. Maybe they just wanted to be left alone, especially after all the mess they’d been through on back-to-back weekends.

“I’ve changed a lot, haven’t I?” Jay asked his friend.

Mike nodded. “It’s a little scary. The changes are fast for those who embrace them fully. For some of us, it feels like we’re not changing fast enough.”

Jay winced. Mike had nearly died last night after getting ambushed by hidden Yoroachian Warriors and Witches. It was a close call for the [Mage], and Jay could tell through his emotional-g that Mike was badly shaken by the circumstance. The [Mages] had it hard last night. Mike had it the hardest since he was out in the open the most and had few defenses for himself.

Jay had considered Gatanna going to Mike to help protect him. But that wouldn’t have been the best move.

Gatanna was meant for Lilith. It felt right even if the diabolical girl was the last person you’d want to own a high-caliber bio-machine of death and destruction. With an Adaptive Affinity.

“I need to put more time into my craft,” Mike explained. “I can’t half-ass this anymore.”

“What does that mean?” Jay asked.

Mike glanced at Lilith. She was a grinning, drooling, overstimulated mess. No good for talking.

“Lilith and I are dropping out of Central High,” Mike said. “We’ll be devoting our full time to the outer mansion where we can study, magic stuff, and craft.”

Jay’s mouth opened and closed.

“It’s not just us considering it,” Mike added. “Hailey plans to do the same. Brit's done with the band and doesn't have further ties to the school. Dennis didn't play in his last game and got booed off the field, so school is another source of trauma for him. I don't know what happened with Rick, but he made a mention that the O'Kellys will be staying in uptown for the foreseeable future and the outer mansion could accommodate. If most of us go, the twins might leave school behind, too. And the others might follow suit.”

Jay opened and closed his mouth. That was a lot to take in. The School Arc hadn't even ended yet.

“This is all after the school arc, r-right?” Jay stuttered.

“As of today.” Mike scanned the horizon as Gatanna’s thumping steps cracked the pavement underneath them. “Lilith and I are no longer First Nerd and Second Nerd. We’re simply YoAnna’s Champions, and all the great and terrible things that ensue.”