(Arkgrim's POV)

  9:00 AM. The alarm clock was screaming as if it was being slaughtered. I barely pried my eyes open. Damn it, why do normal people think that nine in the morning on a weekend is a time to be awake? Oh right, "the big day." The day when Leon's rose-colored glasses are supposed to shatter against the harsh concrete reality of the Third Legion.

  I crawled out of the room, rubbing the back of my head. The old man was just coming out of the bathroom, adjusting his undershirt.

  "Why'd you get up so early? It's the weekend," he squinted, studying my crumpled face with his usual "roommate" look.

  "Just gotta... go somewhere," I grumbled, heading for the sink.

  "Ohhh, and where might you be going?"

  "To the Corps. It's their open house today. Anyway, doesn't matter," I splashed my face with ice-cold water. It invigorated me about as much as an electric shock.

  I had already pulled on my sneakers and grabbed the door handle when the old man yelled after me:

  "Hey! Did you take your pills?"

  I froze. Right. The damn pills.

  "Oh, yeah, forgot..." I came back and shook one out of the bottle. Looked inside—the bottom was already showing. "Damn, they're running out. Only a couple left."

  "I'll have to order new ones," the old man replied a little too quickly.

  "Whatever, who cares, later," I popped the pill into my mouth and left.

  The subway at this time was packed with strange people. I stood leaning against the doors and lazily examined my reflection in the glass. And suddenly... a prick. I closed one eye, concentrating on the sensation. At the far end of the car, through the crowd, someone was looking at me. The gaze wasn't like that of ordinary workers—it was professional.

  'What does he want? Decided to pickpocket me?' I thought, feeling for my phone in my pocket. But a second later the sensation vanished. The gaze simply dissolved into the crowd. Oh well. There are plenty of crazy people in Yokohama.

  When I reached the headquarters, Leon was nowhere to be found. I pulled out my "space-phone" and quickly typed a message. The answer flew back half a minute later: "Traffic is terrible, I'll be there in 20 minutes."

  Twenty minutes? No way. I looked around and noticed a small, cozy cafe right across the street from the checkpoint. I went in, sat at a corner table, and was almost falling asleep when a girl in an apron loomed over me.

  "Are you going to order anything? Coffee?"

  "Coffee?" I blinked, trying to fish the word out of the depths of my memory. "Um... what's that?"

  She looked at me like an idiot who had just fallen from the Moon.

  "Well... espresso, americano, cappuccino, viennese, mocha, macchiato..." she started rattling off names.

  "Hmm... something new. 'Espresso' sounds cool. Let's have that."

  A minute later she returned with a tiny cup containing some sloshing brown-black sludge. I sniffed it.

  "Ugh... smells kind of nasty. Alright, maybe it tastes better?"

  The moment a drop of this substance touched my tongue, I almost threw up.

  "EW! How can anyone even drink this?!" I almost spat it all back out. "It's crap! Sour, bitter, tasteless! Who invented this?!"

  The girl approached the table again, hiding a smile.

  "Is this your first time drinking coffee?"

  "Yes! And hopefully the last!"

  "Hmm... do you have a sweet tooth?"

  "Well... I like sweet things," I admitted, wiping my mouth with a napkin.

  "Then a frappuccino would suit you."

  "Well, let's try it..." I said with deep suspicion.

  A minute later she brought a huge glass. On top was a whole mountain of whipped cream drizzled with caramel, and some crunchy sweet cookie.

  "Oh yes..." I instantly cheered up. I licked off the whole top, crunched on the cookie, and started drinking. "Oh yes! Now this is drinkable! So sweet, so tasty! Can you add more chocolate?"

  The girl looked at me with slight shock.

  "Maybe I should just make you a chocolate shake then?"

  "Yes! I don't know what that is, but let's do it!"

  She left, and I downed the rest of the frappuccino in one gulp. The cup with that disgusting espresso was still sitting on the table. It was a pity to throw it away—I paid for it, after all.

  At that moment, some guy in a gray coat sat down at the next table.

  "If you don't like sour, kid, add some sugar and milk to it," he tossed out without looking at me. "It helps."

  I froze. Logical. Why didn't I think of that myself? I poured three packets of sugar in at once, splashed some milk from a little pitcher. Stirred it. Well, at least now it resembled food. I picked up the cup and in one gulp, in one sweep, poured this boiling liquid into myself.

  The guy at the next table actually flinched.

  "Stop, kid! You'll burn yourself!.." he cut himself off, watching me swallow the scalding liquid completely calmly. My throat didn't even turn red. He looked at me like I was a ghost, slowly stood up, and left the cafe without even finishing his water.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  "Well, thanks, stranger," I muttered.

  Then they brought me the chocolate shake. I took one sip and... that was it. The world sparkled with new colors.

  "Ohhh... Now this—this is exactly what I was looking for!" I clutched the straw like a life preserver.

  Ten minutes later I stepped outside, blissfully sucking on the shake from the tall cup. I saw Leon walking toward the gates. He looked serious, composed, in his best school blazer. I waved at him cheerfully.

  Leon approached, looked me over, and stopped.

  "Listen, Leon," I began, not waiting for a greeting. "Did you know there's this thing called a chocolate shake? And it's just incredibly delicious! Why didn't you tell me earlier?!"

  Leon looked at my cup, then at my ecstatic face, and smiled involuntarily.

  "Yes, of course, Arkgrim... Probably every single person in this world has tried a chocolate shake."

  "Alright, smart guy, let's go already," I gave him a light shove on the shoulder. "Your 'shrine' awaits. Let's see how you talk when you see what they actually do in there."

  We headed for the checkpoint.

  Chapter: Behind the Shiny Facade

  (Leon's POV)

  Yes, yes, yes! Finally, I'm here! My heart was pounding so hard that it felt like it could be heard even through my jacket. I came to the open house last year too, but everything felt different now. Now I am a graduating senior. Now it's not just a tour, it's a look into my future.

  I glanced sideways at Arkgrim, who was lazily sucking on his chocolate shake. 'Maybe at least today the Third Legion can light a fire inside him?' I thought. I so wanted him to share my excitement, for him to stop calling my dream a "game".

  At the checkpoint, we were met by two stern men in heavy armor. The assault rifles in their hands looked imposing—blued steel gleamed dimly in the light of the lamps.

  "Empty everything out of your pockets," one of them grumbled.

  We passed through the metal detectors (I always forget what they're officially called) and were let inside.

  A group of about twenty people had already gathered in front of the main entrance to the administrative building. In front of them stood the deputy commander of the Third Legion—Arhel Reshet. Tall, athletic, with the piercing gaze of a professional soldier. We walked up just as he began his speech.

  "The Third Legion is the shield of Yokohama," he clipped his words. "Last year, we eliminated a record number of specimens. Today you have a unique chance: you will see how the Third and Fourth Legions train together. We have scheduled joint exercises."

  'No way!' I almost jumped. This is a hundred times cooler than I expected! Seeing both elite units in action is simply a dream.

  We were led down a long corridor. On one side was a continuous armored glass, behind which a view of a colossal hangar-sports complex opened up. Down below, on the training ground, soldiers were working out. I pressed myself against the glass, greedily absorbing every detail. Down there, at the edge of the floor, stood two people: the legendary Mon Fun and the graceful but deadly Ari Nor. They were quietly discussing something, watching the soldiers running in a circle.

  We went down the stairs. Arhel Reshet swiped a keycard across the lock, and a heavy door opened with a hiss.

  "The guys are on a break right now," the deputy commander announced. "You can talk to the fighters in person."

  The soldiers who had just been running laps stopped. They were breathing heavily, sweat pouring down their faces in buckets. They sat down at long tables to have a snack.

  "This is your chance," Arhel encouraged us. "Ask about anything."

  I immediately dashed to the nearest table. A sturdy guy with a short haircut sat there. The emblem of the Third Legion adorned his shoulder.

  "Hello!" I blurted out. "You're Corporal Sato, right? Tell me, what is life in the Exterminator Corps really like?"

  He looked up at me and smiled tiredly, but kindly.

  "Well, an exterminator's life isn't a walk in the park, kid," his voice was hoarse. "We train until we drop. Every day is a struggle with yourself. But we do it so that one fine day we can protect you. So that you can sleep peacefully."

  "Now that's a speech!" Arkgrim's sarcastic voice rang out behind me. He stepped closer, twirling the empty shake cup in his hand. "Hear that, Leon? What pompous propaganda. And you really believe him?"

  "Arkgrim, what are you doing!" I shushed him, feeling my ears turning red.

  "It's fine," Sato replied calmly, not taking offense at Arkgrim's jab. "Our life really isn't easy. We look death in the face every day. The main thing here is to overcome your fear. If you're afraid—you're already a corpse."

  "And what, LEON, DO YOU BELIEVE THESE WORDS?" Arkgrim stared at me point-blank with his black eyes.

  "Yes, he's telling the truth! I can feel it!" I got angry. To prove Arkgrim wrong, I decided to do what I usually avoided doing in public places.

  I locked my gaze on Sato.

  Click.

  'Well, come on, show him your thoughts...'

  I dived into his head. And in that very second, the world around me ceased to exist. I was hit not by heroic pathos, but by an icy, sticky darkness.

  '...God, I'm so tired... My legs are burning... Kid, if you only knew... Last time in the tunnel I wasn't protecting... I was just running... I almost died, I was at my limit... I can't do this anymore... Sato, you're a coward, you're a nobody... Tomorrow... tomorrow I'll file my resignation papers. To hell with the contract. I can't bear to see them being torn apart anymore... Kenji... his arm just flew off into the darkness... I can still hear him calling for me... and I just stood there and watched...'

  Sato's thoughts were soaked in such horror that I was literally thrown out of his consciousness. The familiar sour lump rose in my throat. My head exploded with pain.

  "Kha..." I doubled over.

  The next second, I threw up all over the clean concrete floor right at the corporal's feet.

  "Hey, what's wrong, kid?! Feeling sick?" Sato jumped up, trying to hold me by the shoulder. His voice was full of genuine concern, but all I could see before me was his internal scream.

  "Yeah... yeah... just got overwhelmed..." I wheezed, wiping my mouth with my sleeve.

  I looked up at Arkgrim. He stood motionless. He wasn't laughing. He looked at me as if he knew in advance exactly what I would hear in there.

  We were led further. I still felt weak in the knees, and an unpleasant aftertaste lingered in my mouth, but I tried to keep my composure. Deputy Commander Arhel Reshet brought our group to a massive, hermetic airlock. When the heavy doors parted, a strange smell hit our noses—a mixture of sterile alcohol, ozone, and something heavy and organic, reminiscent of the smell of raw meat and iron.

  "Welcome to the Heart of the Legion," Reshet said solemnly. "The bio-suit storage sector."

  We entered a huge hangar, where they hung in transparent capsules filled with a nutrient solution. The Corps' exoskeletons. They didn't look like ordinary armor. They were tangles of muscles, scales, and bone plates, connected by complex electronics. Looking at them, I could feel it in my skin—they were alive. The plates on some of the suits twitched barely noticeably, as if in a dream.

  "You must understand," Reshet swept his gaze over us, "a bio-suit is created from the tissues of defeated Kaiju. It's a symbiosis. At selection, the most important stage is the synchronization test. You will have to make contact with this flesh and unleash the suit's potential. If you cannot unleash the armor's potential..." he paused meaningfully.

  Everything tightened inside me. I looked at this pulsating armor and realized: Sato was right. This isn't a game. If I couldn't handle the thoughts of one exhausted soldier, how could I bend the will of a monster trapped in armor to my own? Fear, sticky and cold, paralyzed my thoughts. I felt like an impostor who just pinned on a pretty badge without understanding the essence.

  "I... I'm not sure I can," I whispered under my breath. "I'll fail this. This is exactly where I'll break."

  I desperately needed to hear at least some biting remark from Arkgrim. His cynicism right now would be better than any support—it would snap me out of this stupor.

  "Arkgrim, what do you think?" I turned around, expecting to see his bored face and the shake cup. "I look pathetic, don't I?"

  But there was no one next to me.

  I quickly looked around. The group of twenty people stood in a tight huddle, listening to Reshet. Classmates, teachers, a couple of reporters... But the familiar black windbreaker and those impenetrable eyes were nowhere to be seen.

  "Arkgrim?" I called a little louder, drawing a displeased look from the deputy commander.

  Emptiness. He had vanished. Completely silently, as if he had never been in this hangar. A bad premonition pricked inside me. We were in a top-secret military facility, packed to the brim with cameras and armed patrols.

  'Where could he have gone?' flashed through my head. And most importantly—how did he manage to slip away?