Echelon: A Multiverse Story

"Isn't this a little too dangerous to just be giving away?" 

Maki shrugged. "It's not like anyone will say otherwise. Besides, it should keep you...mostly safe from harm. Just think of it as a welcoming gift." 

Playful Cloud wasn't overly spectacular in appearance. Sure, it was unique in that it was the only three-sectioned-staff Quinn had ever seen, though the cursed tool wasn't nearly as impressive as some of the other weapons in Maki's room. 

Being in here to begin with is already a little weird, he noted. I was around Yuki for a while...so why do I feel this way?

Attraction, perhaps? It wasn't like Maki was an unattractive girl, and it wasn't like he was unfamiliar with her, considering he'd read the story already. Maybe feelings from when I read the story are having an impact here?

Strange, but then Quinn didn't hate the way he felt. In a way, it made him feel at home again—that sensation, this affection; it was familiar. 

"That so?" Quinn finally said, taking the weapon. It felt light in his hands, though there seemed to be some sort of energy transfer when he focused, like it was siphoning off some of his cursed energy. 

Isn't this supposed to be one of the few cursed tools that relies less on cursed energy?

"You're...not unlike him, you know?" 

Caught off guard by her sudden words, Quinn locked eyes with the girl. It wasn't that she'd said anything inherently strange or nonsensical, but that he was having a hard time gathering his own thoughts. As though she'd come and stuck a needle into a balloon, Quinn felt himself pop. 

"What?" 

Maki shook her head. She grabbed the opposite end of playful cloud a moment later and dragged him out of her room, a strange look plastered on her face. 

Is she embarrassed? About what?

Quinn questioned whether he was being dense, though he was certain he hadn't been oblivious to anything significant. This was a person concerned about proving herself; a person that, despite their circumstances, could step beyond the confines of what was expected of them. She wasn't the kind of person to let an intimate moment get in their way...and yet here she was, dragging him somewhere by the end of a weapon she'd so candidly handed over. 

"I'm surprised you weren't more against giving me this," he started, "or any weapon, at that. I got the idea that you were a little particular about them." 

Maki sniffed, eying him over shoulder. "And what gave you that impression?" 

"You grimace when you drop your weapon." 

Despite the atmosphere, Maki didn't suddenly turn beat red or begin to panic, but froze for a moment, a shocked expression written across her face. He hadn't said anything off or strange, which meant Quinn had said something correct; or something she considered respectable. 

Before Quinn could react, Maki released the staff and lunged towards him, polearm in hand. Scrambling on his feet, he had to duck under her first strike, unable to activate Axis. 

"Fine," he whispered to himself. Dragging playful cloud up from the ground where it was dangling, Quinn adjusted his posture and readied himself. He kept his cursed energy output to a minimum, and rather than try to enhance his body, he imbued the weapon with it. 

"Playful cloud doesn't work like that," Maki immediately said, half mocking, half advising. Quinn could tell she meant nothing by it, though by the natural tone of her voice, he couldn't help but take it that way. "It won't work like traditional cursed tools. You..." 

Stepping forward, Quinn whipped the staff towards her, spinning on his feet as to build momentum. Due to how he moved, the tip of the staff lunged out, crashing into the side of Maki's polearm as she braced herself. 

His timing had been off, but that didn't matter. Unlike Axis, his cursed energy didn't need constant monitoring in order to be effective. So long as the strike connected, his cursed energy would not only deliver the blow originally intended, but it would apply something else. 

Maki staggered as the wood along the shaft of her polearm splintered, cracking up the sides as playful cloud delivered its serrated blow. It didn't break entirely; Maki proved that as she used it to close the distance between them, parrying two more strikes Quinn had intended to land on her abdomen. 

She's good, he told himself. It's not about losing focus or concentration; it's about intent. 

Again, much like his first interaction with Kusakabe, Quinn got the impression that there was even more to Maki Zen'in then he'd perceived after reading the story. In the span of a couple seconds, Maki had shown more about what it meant to become strong to him than anything else; it was a simple and elegant procedure, not something he had to beat himself up about. 

"I need to become strong," he told himself, tempering his resolve. "That's it." 

Maki narrowed her eyes. "Think I'll let you?" 

Planting his feet, Quinn flung his arm back and pulled forward a moment later, whipping playful cloud forward for a second time. It whistled through the air as though slicing it, crashing against Maki's polearm. 

Unlike before, the shaft only seemed to struggle for a moment as the girl parried the blow, kicking it upwards with sudden force. Quinn stumbled for a second, though was quick to respond, grabbing the three-sectioned staff in the middle. By doing so, he cancelled out the momentum Maki had put into it, transferring it to the remaining sections.

"Shit!" Maki hissed. Before she could respond, Quinn slid his hands down to the left-most section of playful cloud, focusing all the momentum on the tip of the weapon as it crashed into Maki. 

Blood splattered across the floor as Maki crashed into the wall at the end of the corridor. It wasn't much, but it was enough for Quinn to falter momentarily; enough for Maki to throw the blunt-end of her polearm directly at his face. 

"Agh!" 

He heard Maki laugh before he saw her. "Now we're even." 

Opening his eyes, a little blood trickled down the side of his face, landing on the floor beside her own splatter. 

"Could you let me know about something like that beforehand?" 

She chuckled. "Wouldn't be much of an ambush if I did that, would it? Besides, do you think any cursed spirit is gonna warn you before attacking?" 

"Suppose not." 

Before he could adjust his stance, Maki planted her foot in the side of his chest, slamming him through a door and into a room. She followed through immediately, digging her knee into his abdomen before he could scramble from the ground. 

"Hey?!" 

She placed a hand on his neck. "Activate your technique." 

"W-what?" 

Her grip tightened, and she leant in, whispering. "Your technique." 

Struggling to breathe, he focused on his innate technique and turned it on. 

Weirdly, despite easing slightly, Maki didn't move. Her rough fingers remained around his neck, tight but not enough to choke him out completely. That wasn't what confused Quinn, however—it was that Maki was still on top of him at all. 

Maki pulled her hand back a moment later. "What happened? Do you even know?" 

Quinn shook his head. He focused on himself while she helped him up, though nothing felt off. His technique was active, just as his cursed energy was flowing through him normally. There was nothing wrong, and yet...

"Yuta had the same issue a while back." Sighing, she sat herself down on what he could only assume to be her bed. Not having noticed, Quinn glanced around to see she'd kicked back into her room. "You're pushing so much cursed energy around at a time that you're not giving yourself enough to function." 

Looking down, Quinn could see what she meant: all his cursed energy was focused on both his legs, which were shaking violently. Both his hands were shaking as well...how had he missed this? He thought about it, he tried stopping them, but nothing seemed to work. His limbs were shaking, and yet...he didn't know why. 

Maki chuckled, though it didn't seem intentional. "Maybe we're not so different after all." 

Despite the daylight, despite his surroundings, and despite the person before him, Quinn felt as though he couldn't see a thing; like he was staring into an abyss, a void. 

So much had happened over the past few days: he'd died, been abruptly brought back to life, and then just as abruptly thrown into a fictional world in order to gather strength for a tournament he was unwillingly a part of. 

I'm...losing myself, then? What is it? Am I worn out or just afraid? 

He didn't know, he didn't want to know. How many days had he even been here? Two? Three? Had a week passed? What if he was sent back to the tournament tomorrow? 

Wasn't he strong enough yet? 

"You okay?" 

Quinn glanced up at Maki. 

"I...think I might be a little impatient." 

Maki rolled her eyes. "You reckon?" 

Cursed energy isn't just a resource. It's...volatile. 

Being transported into a world where cursed spirits are born from humanities grievances and negative emotions, it should've been no surprise that such notions would only serve to sever his balance. He could tell himself to concentrate, to keep calm and to focus, but that wasn't how it worked. 

In practice, he needed to be himself. 

"Man," he muttered to himself, cupping his face. "What am I doing?" 

Two days. 

That was how long had passed since he'd died. 

There were twenty-nine days remaining. 

Quinn eyed Maki again. "Maki." 

She nodded. "Hmm?" 

"Is progress linear?" 

She cocked her head. "As linear as you let it be, I guess?" 

This girl wasn't unconcerned with his current state of mind, Quinn recognized that. It wasn't that she was ignoring him, but that she was intentionally letting him breathe. Force feeding him pity wasn't what he needed; he needed structure, a foundation. 

What's the point in all of this if I work myself to death?

Balance. 

Shutting one of his eyes, Quinn could see two things: the darkness of the void, but also the light of day. 

Two sides, one coin. 

He smiled. 

You can have your void, spaceman—and I'll have my life back.