Diem was still catching her breath from the jump between Lancaster and the mortal world. The three, tall girls that accompanied her seemed to be unfazed by the leap while she was nauseous and dizzy. She was hypersensitive to the sights and sounds; the bright lights of the city, the chatter and the collective purr of car engines. It was all too much. Freya assured her that it would wear off in time, and it did. As she moved behind them, the cold air blowing against her skin, she began to feel the effects wane. She tightened her jacket around her, “How aren’t you glamazons freezing your tits off?” She called to the girls in short skirts and mini-dresses, long legs bare and exposed. She was mostly<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fimgur.com%2F4HtaOiM&amp;hash=29bcb48cb6cc4ecbd77cd0cd2f176234" href="https://imgur.com/4HtaOiM" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">covered</a>, dressed—by comparison—more modestly than her escorts. Diem couldn’t afford designer dresses, shoes and pricey accessories. Freya tried to put her in an outfit of hers, but after learning that they were going to be in New York in the middle of September, she decided to forgo the dresses and heels for something more comfortable and practical.<br/><br/>“We’re Excellero,” Freya laughed. “We don’t get cold because our body temperature always run warm. Keep up!” She shouted as they neared the building, which was thrumming with the sound of music. Inside it was lively, full of people swaying and gyrating to the bumping music. Diem smiled, ready to let loose on the dance floor when Freya squealed with excitement. She looked over to see her embracing a tall male, muscular and strong enough to lift her off her feet. He twirled her around like a princess before bringing his lips to hers passionately. After the lengthy lip lock, that she was surprised didn’t end with the pair stripping one another of their clothes, she turned to Diem.<br/><br/>“This is my boyfriend, Talon. He graduated from Lancaster last year.” She introduced the two of them, allowing them to shake hands.<br/><br/>“You look a little young. What year are you?” He asked.<br/><br/>“She’s a freshman. House Anima. She’s like a little sister almost. I think her and Maxi are going to have get married and have babies.” Freya smiled.<br/><br/>“Who’s going to do what?” Diem laughed at the thought, but her laughter gradually came to a halt when Freya looked like she said something she shouldn’t have.<br/><br/>“You’re not dating?” Freya blinked.<br/><br/>“N-no . . . I mean, should we be?”<br/><br/>“Leave her alone, Freya. If she’s Anima, she’ll know who she’s supposed to be with.” Talon said. “I’ll go get you all some drinks.”<br/><br/>“I need you to see if he’s been faithful.” Freya said after he was out of earshot.<br/><br/>“What?!” Diem blinked. “He seems so nice.”<br/><br/>“I have a suspicion. I just need to know for sure.” Freya countered. “I know you need to touch him for retrocognition to work. Ask him to dance when he comes back.”<br/><br/>Diem had only been able to glimpse in the past once before. What put her at ease was knowing that if he had something to hide, and had done so in the recent past, she would see it. She was just “lucky” that way. Despite being incredibly uneasy, she downed her drink when Talon returned, chugging a bit of liquid courage before asking him for a dance. He obliged and led the way. Diem was trying to act natural, but she was nervous and a little tense. It must have shown in her features since Talon reached for her, grabbing her hands to twirl her around. A melodic roll of laughter escaped her at the sudden move, but something caught her eye as she spun. Something familiar.<br/><br/>There were symbols on the wall. The same runes that she saw in her vision in the courtyard with Professor Relic. Diem looked as though she’d seen a ghost as she paused, the only still body in the middle of the dance floor. Everything around her seemed to fade away, and a sinking feeling developed in the pit of her stomach. “This is bad . . .” She breathed just as the windows burst open, sending shards of glass soaring through the air. Diem ducked down, throwing her arms over her head to protect herself from the sharp debris. Men, clad from head to toe in black, began to slaughter the unsuspecting partygoers. Freya and her crew were by her side in an instant, along with Talon.<br/><br/>“Diem, you need to run.” Freya said, watching as the hunters began to close in.<br/><br/>“I’m not leaving you guys.” She shook her head, shrugging out of her jacket. Her eyes turned white as the hunters finally got to them. Back to back the students fought to eliminate as many as they could in order to get back to the door. Diem was holding her own, predicting the attacks of her opponents before they could make them, allowing her to avoid too much harm. But, they kept coming, flooding the building in droves.