After the break from their third round for the night, Rafael asked Lucianne, ‘Ready?’

Lucianne nodded, and Rafael started at the pace they stopped in the previous round. She felt her awareness diminishing, like she was being induced to daydream, which decipios have found to be the perfect place to start at manipulating their victims. As hard as Lucianne tried to fight to stay aware and alert, she couldn’t completely clear the seemingly-harmless fog invading her mind.

Instead of trying to focus on making her mind clear of the fog, she channeled her concentration to her nose and skin, smelling any creatures near her in reality and trying to feel...