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It's another few days before I attend classes in person. I'd missed classes before, of course, but I wasn't particularly interested in playing hooky any more than I already had. Especially since it seemed Prof Wolfhound had something out for me. Luckily, the appearance of a stomach bug keeping a few other students out of classes gave me a convenient excuse.

Staying on top of classwork wasn't difficult, thankfully, with everything being put on our online portal as well. So it soon rolls around to Friday evening, and I'm sitting on the small, beat-up couch in my dorm, tapping my pen idly on my open notebook after finishing an equation. My mind had been distracted from the work--some biology class about how Powers work within the human body--and now was spiraling off about Powers.

Little has changed since Powers came around, from what I can tell. School, work, politics...maybe some of it has been made easier for some, nigh inaccessible for others. But little besides that has changed. But that could also be...

My mind spins off to recall the memory of the old codgehound spying on me from the Astra. And how I still had not asked anyone more experienced about it. I set my pen down in my notebook, stopping its incessant tapping, and shutting the notebook around it. Then I cross my legs and sink into the cushions, and once I'd gotten myself situated, I silently Project.

With my window closed, I have to squeeze out through the cracks in the door. I'd been reliant on the old hound being unable to manipulate his Spirit to get through the door, and so far I had been right. But the rest of us still can, so I've been able to still contact friends and reach the city.

Master Makoto awaits me at my usual bench, once I've grabbed myself some food. I settle onto it silently for a moment, letting myself take a few bites before broaching the silence. "Are Spirits able to inhabit bodies that have been vacated?" I ask.

"Yes." The hare nods once.

"Are they able to inhabit bodies of other Astras while that Astra's spirit is Projected?"

This time, Master Makoto hesitates. "That is a more complex question."

"And are they able to Project from this new body, or are they bound by the new body's Power?" I press.

He holds up a single white-furred paw, forestalling any more questions. "Slow down, Jensen." He pauses, gathering his thoughts. "It is, in theory, possible to inhabit a body whose Spirit is Projected, either by force or willingly. However, unless a Spirit should get corrupted, this is done infrequently, if at all. It's considered trespassing of the highest degree to invade another's body, even if dead."

I lean back into the bench, holding my chin in my paw. "And their Power?"

"Given we have no official records of such an event occurring, it's difficult to say," Master Makoto replies quietly. "In theory, they would now have two Powers: Projection, their own, and whatever Power the new body has. No government has ever seen an instance of two Powers in one body, but it is theorized--in very, very high-level science circles, mind you--that a single body could hold up to four Powers before it became impossible to physically withstand their forces."

My lips turn down as I consider that for a long moment. "So it could be possible, then, for someone who doesn't have Projecting on their psych profile to theoretically be a possessed body and be a Projector?"

"This is entirely theory, but yes, it's possible," Master Makoto answers. He turns slightly towards me. "Is this about what happened with your Professor the other day, Jensen?"

"How do you know about that?" I shift uncomfortably in my seat, watching him out of the corner of my eye.

"Donovan mentioned it yesterday when I happened upon him," Master Makoto explains. "He summarized what you'd been through this week."

"Gee, thanks, Donny," I mutter to myself. Then, louder, I add, "Well, cat's out of the bag. Yeah, it is. I'm not so upset about him threatening me, though...on Wednesday, I saw his Spirit watching me study in one of the cafes on campus."

Master Makoto freezes. Then he looks at me and says, very slowly, "His Spirit was watching you?"

"Came about this close to me," I reply, pinching my fingers together, leaving just a bit of space. "If he was physical, his breath would've been ruffling my mane."

"Are you absolutely certain it was him?" Makoto insists.

"No," I admit hesitantly. "That's why I came to you. Because even if an Astra possessed his body, they would have to reshape their Spirit to look like his. And unless they were incredibly at odds with how they looked before, they likely wouldn't."

"What this says to me," Master Makoto muses slowly, "is that someone, perhaps malicious, perhaps not, wants to spy on you. They have noticed that you dislike this specific professor, and perhaps in order to drive that wedge deeper, they've shaped their Spirit to look like his."

"Which is arguably more concerning," I say in a similar murmur. "Who would take such an interest in me? And why? And why would they need to drive a wedge between me and someone I already dislike?"

"The answers to those questions, young one, are anyone's guess," Master Makoto replies. I fight to keep my expression neutral; I've always hated that nickname. "The only advice I can give is to be cautious. It's hard to say what a malicious Spiritkeeper is planning."

"Or what they're doing," I add grimly. Master Makoto nods. "Thank you, Master. I'll keep your advice in mind."

The older hare inclines his head to me slightly, then dissolves, tracing back along his Soulthread back to his body, likely somewhere in Japan. I nearly do the same, after finishing my food, but before I can commit, I feel a twang as someone latches onto the Soulthread connecting me to my own body, signaling a friend approaching me. So I remain in the Plane, wandering slowly around Central Park for a few moments while waiting for the friend to reach me.

As it turns out, it's not one, but three--Donny had noticed me enter the Plane and had brought Kain and Lorenz with him. "How's our favorite cheese wedge?" Lorenz teases.

I roll my eyes at the giraffe. "That hasn't been funny since second grade, Lo," I reply, crossing my arms.

"Doesn't make the question irrelevant!" he protests.

"I'm doing fine," I reply, then shrug. "Haunted by a mysterious Astra, but it's whatever for now. How are things out y'all's way?"

"Just peachy," Kain says, in his typical hoarse growl of a voice. From a reptilian like him--he's a crocodile--it's exactly what I expected. It carries a hint of an African accent, though he's never divulged exactly where he lives.

"Hard not to be, with these two fuckers tagging along everywhere I go," Lorenz mutters, leaning toward me conspiratorially.

"Oi, we can still hear you!" Donny shouts, lunging at the giraffe, who dodges out of the way rather nimbly, belying his size.

Kain lunges between the two of them, playfully keeping them separated, while I just watch on, laughing. "Now, now, you two, keep it together. We're not in the bedroom, we're in front of a Master!" My laughter fades, just slightly. Sometimes, it's easy to forget what I am around these three.

"What do you mean, the bedroom!" Lorenz protests, though he's laughing too. "I've never touched Donny like that!"

"Oh, sure you haven't," Donny challenges, tapping his right hip--where his phone must be, on his physical body. "I have picture proof!"

"Don't you even dare!" Lorenz cries, struggling against Kain's grip.

Finally, I laugh and wave my paws. "Boys, boys, calm down. There's room enough for all your dicks."

"Did I hear dicks?!" This time Kain's head snaps up to me.

A laugh snorts out of my nose, and I shake my head playfully. "I know there's a reason Donny brought y'all here, anyway. Let's get to it, before we end up in one of our rooms."

That immediately causes them to sober up. Donny grips my arm and tugs me off into the park a short ways, where we're less likely to be overheard by other Spirits. Kain and Lorenz follow silently. After a moment of watching me levelly, Donny speaks. "Since you don't get out and watch the news much, if at all, we figured it was up to us to let you know this," he explains quietly.

"What? I watch the news! Every...you know, Sunday..." My joke trails off as I notice none of the three are even smiling. "Horizons, it's that bad?"

"Probably worse," Kain admits.

Donny lifts a paw to scratch at the back of his head. "You haven't been in the Plane for a couple of days, so we started to get worried it had happened already. Took us long enough to find you today."

"You almost missed me," I reply, barking a rough laugh. "I'd hopped in to chat with Master Makoto because prof Astrally spied on me. I think. It's tough to explain."

"Be careful of whoever it is," Donny warns. "There's been a series of disappearances across the States, all Spiritkeepers. We don't know who, or how. But since we're the only ones who can track our own..."

"If we don't know, nobody knows," I whisper. A cold shiver runs through my Spirit. "Do you think it's possible they're cutting Soulthreads?"

"Absolutely not," Lorenz replies immediately. "They're not dying. They're disappearing. Bodies and all."

I sit down, cross-legged, steepling my fingers and resting my chin on my thumbs, tapping my forefingers on my pointed nose. "Do we know who's doing it?"

"Anyone who's been around during these "abductions" have unilaterally agreed that victims are loaded into an unmarked black van with what appears to be a supercomputer built into the back," Donny explains. Despite how fast he's talking, the words come out clear and concise. Upside to being a cheetah, perhaps. I hide a smile at the thought and refocus. "The ones conducting the operation wear uniforms not unlike police or military gear, but bear no insignias or identifying marks."

"Which indicates government," I continue, mind whirling. "But that can't be confirmed. If my guess is correct, the subject is always limp or groggy during the abduction, which implies the abductors are aware, somehow, of when the Astra is Projecting, which means there's some sort of monitoring going on. What about students?"

"A total of three have reported their Masters being missing for over a week," Kain answers grimly.

"Which means whoever's behind this is going for skilled Power users, nothing less. Otherwise, they'd just take the students, who're significantly less in-tune with their body--but then, how do they know when to monitor?"

Donny sits on the grass in front of me. "Almost all of the kidnapped had family living with them."

"So the Pulse, then," I reply. All three of my friends nod. I sigh. "That's going to make this more complex. Because the strongest among us only silently Project. If they're going after the strongest, they're still not on target. If they're using it for a bad purpose, this is a good thing; if they're using it for a good purpose, it's bad."

"What do we do?" Lorenz asks. Of the four of us, he's easily the most timid, but he keeps his voice steady.

"Silently Project, from now on, if you have to at all," I reply. "Don't do it unless you absolutely have to. Until one of us can figure out what the hell is going on, this stays between us. Understood?"

All three of them nod. I give a quick salute, a thump of my right hand to my chest, then immediately recall, letting my Spirit dissolve back into my body. To my immense relief, I find myself exactly where I'd left myself, on my couch in the living room of my dorm. I relax a little bit, then unfold my cramping legs and stand carefully with a stretch. Only then do I walk to my door and open it, stepping out and locking it behind me before taking a long, slow walk through campus.

One way or another, my life is about to change. Drastically.