Dawn sat on the luxurious sofa, the silence of Xander's living room pressing in on her. The rhythmic tick of a grandfather clock in the hall seemed to mock the frantic beat of her own heart. Xander's words echoed in her mind: "The next situation we undergo, you will kill at least one." And, more chillingly, "These lives are only part of a simulation from Cosmo."

  Her hands trembled, her gaze fixed on nothing. Kill. Take a life. The concept was a cold, hard knot in her stomach. She’d seen Xander's casual brutality with the elves, witnessed the terrifying, immediate consequence of her own hesitation. Could she truly do that? Could she pull a trigger, cast a spell, strike a blow that ended a life? A wave of nausea swept over her. She was not a killer. She had never been a killer. Her life on Earth had been unremarkable, devoid of violence beyond the occasional argument. This... this was different.

  But then, another thought pushed through the fear. The memory of the Summoner Elf, his face etched with terror, begging for his child's life. The subtle, yet undeniable, surge of relief she'd felt when Xander had opted for a less destructive path, even if he had his own price. She wanted to help. She genuinely did. If that meant eliminating the truly monstrous, the villains of these realms who inflicted suffering, could she draw that line? A cold efficiency, distinct from Xander's nihilism, began to form in her mind. Not a slaughter, but a necessary removal. A precise elimination, against those who deserved it. That felt... almost justifiable.

  Her gaze drifted to her new smart phone, resting on the coffee table. She pictured the "Attributes" screen, her increasing stats glowing with their green plus signs. The power building, waiting. If she was going to commit such an act, perhaps distance would make it easier. If she could eliminate a threat from afar, without seeing the eyes, without feeling the spray of blood, it might be more manageable. Ranged combat. That was the key. Keep the raw, visceral act at arm's length.

  Xander’s voice returned, flat and dismissive: "They are not like you and I. They are not bonded to Cosmo... just a simulation." The idea was horrific, yet... it offered a strange kind of solace. If these realms, these lives, were merely elaborate constructs, fleeting simulations in a cosmic game, then perhaps the burden of ending them wasn't as heavy. She wasn't sure she could truly dismiss their lives so easily, could she truly believe they were just simulations. Her stomach still churned at the thought. But it was a concept she would have to grasp, to twist into a shield, if she was to step across that unseen line and truly embrace her path as an Incarnate.

  One hour passed. Xander emerged from his bedroom, cracking his neck as he walked into the living room. He saw Dawn still sitting on the couch. "Have you hardened your resolve to do what must be done in these situations?" he asked, his voice even.

  Dawn looked at Xander with newfound confidence. "I'm ready."

  Xander nodded. "Pick a situation on the app and hold my shoulder before you start it."

  Dawn, not wanting to lose what little resolve she had, clicked on the Cosmo app. Once on the situations page, she looked at the four options. She instantly knew she wasn't ready for a Calamity situation. Her gaze then fell on Containment. Thoughts of the deer child flashed in her mind. Her first two missions had been Restoration, but with Xander's new stipulation of killing at least one, she knew Containment might not be the best choice either, given its potential for wide-scale casualties.

  Finally, Dawn looked at the last mode she hadn't tried yet: Intervention. Maybe she could get lucky and need to hunt down some thieves or kidnappers. She allowed herself a small, hopeful smile; perhaps she had found an easy way out. With a surge of determination, Dawn reached out and put her hand on Xander's shoulder as she started an Intervention situation.

  Everything flashed to white. Cosmo's robotic voice echoed: "Welcome, Legend Dawn. Welcome, Agent X."

  Upon seeing the avatar screen, Dawn immediately began picking her loadout. There seemed to be a large pool of races—human, elf, beastfolk, dwarf, and more—to pick from. She quickly chose an elf that resembled her Earth self. Then came the ability selection. She thought back to her plan for effectively killing, if she had to. Long-range. What could she use from a distance? She scrolled through the list until she saw it: Magic Arrows. She'd be able to cast these arrows and shoot them from far away, finishing the task quickly. After she finished her selection, she glanced over at Agent X, who was already done and just waiting for her.

  "Legend Dawn loadout selected. Agent X loadout selected. Initialize situation?" Cosmo chimed in.

  "Yes," Dawn said.

  With that, the white room went black.

  The next thing Dawn saw was a dense wooded area, as if they were in the middle of nowhere. Then, like clockwork, she heard a voice demanding the recall crystal. Dawn shook her head, a faint grimace on her face, then looked over to see Agent X in his High Elf avatar. She wondered to herself if he had chosen that light magic again. This summoner, a robed human, complied and gave Agent X the crystal without issue.

  As usual, Agent X performed his signature bow and introduced himself and Dawn. The summoner's eyes glinted with an evil grin. "Agent X? That sounds promising for my goal!"

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  Agent X stopped bowing and stood up straight. "What is it you summoned us for?" he asked.

  "We have a kingdom that has gone mad with power," the summoner began. "The rest of the court wants to switch to a voting system for major topics. But the King wants to have any and all say. What I need is simple: eliminate the King so we can advance our region."

  Agent X smiled, then looked at Dawn, then back at the summoner. "You just need one person killed? That's all you need? How convenient. What does this king look like, and where might we find him?"

  The summoner looked overjoyed as he replied, "The King isn't hard to miss; he's quite round and wears a crown. As for where to find him, simply go to the only castle down the hill that way. The King likes to spend his alone time in one of the higher towers."

  "That's enough," Agent X said. "Go be seen somewhere in town. Make it so people know where you were when the King dies. This keeps you from suspicion."

  The summoner nodded, his grin widening as he made his way back toward town.

  Agent X turned back to Dawn. "What ability did you select?"

  Dawn informed him, "I chose Magic Arrows."

  Agent X stared blankly at her for a second. "I assume you don't know what that ability does."

  Dawn looked puzzled. "Doesn't it make arrows out of magic?"

  Agent X shook his head. "No. It makes it so you can infuse arrows with magic. This makes the arrows stronger, and you can control their flight path with enough practice."

  Dawn's heart raced as she realized she didn't have a bow or arrows. Thoughts of having to kill someone bare-handed haunted her.

  "Relax," Agent X said, seeing her panic. "I have a weapon I can give you." Agent X pulled a fingerless glove and a metal quiver out of his Stash and tossed them down next to Dawn.

  Confused, Dawn looked at the items. She saw a black left-handed fingerless glove and a metal quiver that seemed to be empty. She looked back up at Agent X. "That's great and all, but you wouldn't happen to have a bow, would you?"

  Agent X pointed to the glove. "Put it on," he said sternly.

  Dawn put the glove on, not sure what he was getting at. Once the glove was on, she looked back at Agent X, still confused. Agent X, instead of saying anything, just did a gesture. He stuck his left arm out and clenched his hand into a fist. Then, with his other hand, he grabbed at the air and pulled back, as if loading a bow.

  Dawn, seeing this, decided to mimic the action. She did all the steps, but still nothing happened. Frustration and impatience began to build. Finally, she asked Agent X, "What... what am I doing?"

  "You're doing it right," Agent X explained, "well, if you were using any elemental magic, but you're not. So you need that quiver for an arrow."

  Dawn snapped back, "But the quiver is empty!"

  "The name of that quiver is the Magician's Quiver," Agent X said. "Instead of pulling a rabbit out of a hat, why don't you pull an arrow out of a quiver?"

  Dawn was shocked at the concept. Then she reached down and did as he said. Sure enough, she stuck her hand in and felt nothing. Annoyance built in Dawn. Sarcastically, Dawn went to make a grabbing motion, mockingly bringing out her empty hand toward Agent X. Instead, as her hand closed, it closed onto a nicely formed metal arrow. Dawn pulled the arrow out of the quiver, astonishment replacing her annoyance.

  Agent X, missing Dawn's surprise, said, "Okay, now do the same motion, but remember: pointy side out. Once you get it lined up and start to pull back, you'll feel the arrow begin to have tension and stay in place."

  Dawn nodded and started to do the gesture with the arrow. She reached out with the arrow in hand, slowly began to pull back. As she pulled the arrow back, Dawn saw a bow made of energy start to form out from the glove. As Dawn pulled the arrow back more, she saw lines of energy on her skin begin to form. More of the bow was beginning to form; it now looked like Dawn had a hunting bow made of energy in her hand. The arrow was now staying in place, Dawn only having to hold onto the end of it to keep it from releasing. She didn't feel too much tension, but the lines on her arm were all the way to her elbow and weren't going any further. She thought to herself: This must be fully drawn.

  She turned to Agent X. "Where do I shoot it, and how do I infuse magic into it?"

  "Shoot it anywhere except up," Agent X said. "To infuse your magic, just focus on the arrow and what element you want it to inflict."

  Dawn thought of something simple and easy to clean up, just in case. She thought of water coating the arrow and released. Within an instant, the metal arrow changed into a water arrow three times the size of the original arrow and blasted through three trees before busting and losing form.

  Amazed, Dawn turned to Agent X. "Why don't you use this? It's incredible!"

  Agent X replied, "It's just some old junk I never used much."

  Dawn thought to herself, There's no way this is junk.

  "Now that you understand your ability, let's go find your target," Agent X said.

  Dawn hesitated, then moved to follow Agent X down the hill. Catching up, Dawn asked, "What's the plan?"

  "This is your situation," Agent X replied. "You should be planning it."

  Dawn realized he was right and stopped walking. She turned and told Agent X, "First, we need to find a vantage point for that tower the king likes to hang out in."

  Agent X nodded. "Good first step. Why don't you get up to the top of one of these trees? The summoner said the town is downhill, so the top of a tree should be able to overlook most of the town."

  Dawn agreed and decided to put her new stats to the test. She started jumping, and with her increased stats, she could already tell it was a lot easier to get around. A short time later, Dawn made it to the top of the tree. She looked out, seeing the town, and realized she got lucky; the castle was close to her. She could even see the King lounging through the window.

  Dawn found her footing in the branches and stood up. She stretched her arm out toward the King and clenched her fist. She reached to her hip, where she had attached the quiver, and grabbed an arrow. Dawn loaded the arrow, aiming at the King, and started to pull back. Dawn held the arrow for a second before she became a little shaky. She retracted the arrow and made her way back down the tree.

  "Did you see anything?" Agent X asked Dawn.

  Dawn said, "Yeah, I saw where he relaxes in the tower. But," she hesitated, "how can you be so sure this king deserves to die?"

  Agent X looked annoyed. "If you care that much about it, investigate."

  "How?" Dawn asked.

  Agent X pinched the bridge of his nose, annoyed. "Try asking villagers questions, try a stakeout watching the King's movement, or stop making the same mistake."

  "What mistake?" Dawn asked.

  "What ability do I have?" Agent X replied.

  Dawn realized she didn't know and asked him.

  Agent X revealed, "I chose Clairvoyance. I can project what's happening somewhere else right here."

  Dawn's eyes lit up with an idea. "Agent X, can you help me watch various parts of the castle to gather information?"

  Agent X agreed, and they sat down to watch the King's activities. For hours, the heroes found out many things about the King. During their watch, they discovered the King was very selfish, had human slaves, wanted to keep his monarch reign by any means, and had several prisoners chained in the basement, slowly starving. Dawn had what she needed.

  The sun started to set, and Dawn made her climb back up the tree. Back in her vantage point in the tree, Dawn thought of all the horrible stuff she saw this King do in just a single afternoon. She reached into her quiver and grabbed a metal arrow. Once again, she stretched out her arm toward the King in his tower and grasped her fist. But this time, she had her resolve. She loaded the arrow and pulled it all the way back. She thought about the metal arrow and how a single shot from its sturdy form should be enough for the kill. She released the arrow, and as she did, it swirled and grew five times its size. She shot what almost looked like a missile at the tower. Dawn's mouth dropped as she saw this massive arrow blast into the tower causing it to collapse.