Ada fiddled with the pleats on Rui’s skirt. “That last Revenant you killed in the Simulator before you fainted... who did he look like?”
Rui got up.
Fingers skating over the hangers in her closet, she pulled out a navy military-style coat with light gold buttons and the emblem of the Academy embroidered above the breast pocket. She laid the coat at the foot of her bed and rummaged for a sweater.
“The Revenant that killed my mother,” she said at last, her voice slightly hoarse.
A furious noise erupted behind her, and Rui found herself enveloped by a sudden tangle of arms and the scent of green apple.
“That horrible no-good piece of—I can’t believe Ash did that to you. It’s bad enough he scheduled the test for today, of all days.” Ada made another angry sound.
Rui nudged her away. “I’m trying to get dressed.”
“Why!” Ada exclaimed, hands flailing. “Why did they program those weird Revenants into the test? Revenants can’t speak, and they don’t have faces or personalities or—”
“Hybridscan speak, and they look human,” Rui said.
Ada sucked in sharply.
Officially, Hybrid Revenants did not exist. But every cadet had heard the rumor. Hybrids looked like humans and behaved like humans. They could be someone you loved, but then they’d try to kill you. Most cadets thought it was an urban legend.
But Rui knew better.
“I know what you’re going to say, Ada. You’re going to tell me they made the Revenants look human to catch us off guard and test our mental strength. You’re going to tell me they didn’t do it because Hybrids actually exist. But just because there haven’t been any solid reports of Hybrids that we know of, it doesn’t mean they don’t exist. I know what I saw that night.”
Ada squeezed her hand. “I believe you, you know that. It’s just... the Blight doesn’t infect humans.”
“Maybe it does, and we don’t know it yet.”
“Maybe. How did Ash even know what that jerk looked like?”
“He must’ve asked around,” said Rui. “The Guild questioned me after my mom died, remember? I told them what I saw, even drew a sketch.”
Not that they believed her in the end. They’d said she was delusional, that she’d been so scared she’d imagined things.Didn’t stop them from recommending me to the Academy.
“It would explain why the Exorcists are having a hard time lately,” she said out loud. “Why there’ve been so many Night Hunts suddenly. The Revenants are different now, they’re—”
“Rui—” Ada began.
“Look, I don’t want to talk about it anymore, okay?” Rui raised her voice, then felt bad for raising it. She didn’t mean to take her frustration out on Ada. It bothered her that the Simulator could conjure up theRevenant’s exact face from a lousy sketch she’d drawn four years ago as a kid. Was it even possible? How else would Ash have known if not from her old records?
She wriggled into her jeans and got her coat, wincing when her arm caught in the sleeve.
“Is it your shoulder?” said Ada. “You landed so hard on it. Let me help.”
Rui was careful not to make a sound when the pain flared up again as Ada guided her arm. Instead, she clucked her tongue and finger-gunned. “I’m good. The Academy healers are amazing, remember?”
Ada didn’t look convinced.
Wrapping a thick utility belt around her torso, Rui slid her talismans and new crossbow securely into their compartments.
“What are you doing?” Ada said. “It’s not time to get ready for our rounds yet. You should get some rest. In fact, maybe you should sit out tonight’s shift. Someone else can cover you; it’s just a routine patrol.”
Rui shook her head. “I’m not missing out on any training.”
Even though the cadet patrols were routed away from known Revenant nests to keep the cadets safe until they were ready for actual Night Hunts, they still ran into a lone Revenant now and then. Rui wasn’t giving up the possibility of killing one tonight.
“I’m catching the next shuttle off the island,” she told Ada.
