When you're in a death game, it's all too tempting to love your allies without restraint. I did. I loved them as myself. They were my comrades in arms, my fire-forged friends. Their life and survival were tied to my own. They had been my world.

So when I lost them, it felt as though I myself had died. After Hei was gone, I became someone different. Someone less than the person I once was. And again, after Saber was killed, the little bits that remained of Sophia withered away.

I wasn't sure what was left of me after that. Just an empty husk? It seemed that way. I had no dreams left, and no desire beyond an unthinking instinct to survive. I killed, because I had nothing better to do.

So when I met Atlas and Reens, and learned of our chance at taking over the Bounty Hall, I drank up that ambition. I, who had no purpose left, clung on to that one goal and allowed it to consume me whole. I wasn't proud of the fact. I wish I still had nobler motivations, like making it back to Earth alive, alongside the teammates I so treasured. But my chance at that happy ending was long past and gone.

I liked Mr. Atlas and Reens, but I wouldn't devote myself to keeping them alive, as I did with my previous teammates. Atlas and Reens were my partners, and I'd save them if I could, but this was a death game. No one was safe. I knew not to love them too much. I knew how easily I could lose them.

The three of us spent the next few days devising our plans. We didn't have long before the next Seasonal Challenge, and ideally we'd duel the Bounty Hall leaders before then. That'd allow us to be exempt from the Seasonal Challenge, and also give us control over the Bounty Hall. Two birds, one stone.

Reens explained to us the internal status of the Bounty Hall. She identified the three remaining leaders that would be left after Cirrus' death. One of them would've become his successor, with the other two occupying similarly high positions.

"They're very skilled bounty hunters," Reens explained. "You can think of them as assassins, mostly, and they're good at fighting one-versus-one."

"Makes sense those sorts would lead the Bounty Hall," I commented. Cirrus certainly seemed like a 1v1 specialist. His Greater Theft was a deadly single-target debuff, and his invisibility and damage allowed him to pick off targets.

"I think our best chance at winning is to force them to a team battle," Reens said. "Three-versus-three."

"So Mr. Atlas, you, and myself, versus them?" I asked. Reens confirmed with a nod.

"We've got a frontline fighter," I mused, glancing at Atlas. "I'm ranged damage, and Reens is a healing support, I think. So theoretically, in a 3v3, we'd have the advantage of a proper party composition."

"That's right," Reens said. "Though at the start of the match, we'll need to each go to one of the separate lanes and fight alone. But it's 3v3, so there's no Jungler to ambush us, so it's easier to farm safely. We'll just need to weather out until we collect enough resources, then we can group up to win."

"True," I said. In 5v5 matches, the early game usually involved 1 person in the Top Lane, one person in the Middle Lane, one person farming the Jungle, and two people in the Bottom Lane, with one of them being the "Support" that drinks the Potion of Austerity. This ensured maximal collection of all resources available on the map. In 1v1 matches, the arena would shrink to a single lane, and that'd be where the two contestants dueled it out.

3v3 matches, meanwhile, took place in the full arena, with all three lanes, just like 5v5. So it was natural to forego the Jungler and Support roles, and field one person in each lane.

"Can you manage on your own?" I asked Reens. As a healer, she didn't seem like the type to be able to hold her own as a solo fighter. But she assured me she'd be fine.

"I won't win, but I can avoid losing," she theorized. "My abilities are good for keeping me alive. Being a healer, and all that."

"If you say so," I said. "But be careful."

Mr. Atlas volunteered to take the Top Lane, as he usually did. Reens and I, meanwhile, both habitually went to the Bottom Lane as Supports.

"I'll switch to Mid Lane," I volunteered. "I should have enough firepower to control the center of the map."

Reens agreed. She could survive just fine supposedly, but that wasn't good enough for the Mid Lane. You wanted someone more dominant in the middle, the most important part of the arena that dictated the pace of the match.

"That settles it then," Mr. Atlas concludes. Reens and I returned affirmative nods. As the final solidification of our alliance, Reens inducted Mr. Atlas into the Bounty Hall as well, and the three of us joined a formal team.

We still had more to go over. I needed to learn Reens' skills, and she needed to learn ours. Mr. Atlas also had his Ultimate Ability now, and I needed to learn that. And Reens had to tell us the abilities of the bounty hunters we'd fight against. But all those conversations would have to take place on the road.

Mr. Atlas packed us ample supplies. I stood with Reens outside the convenience store as he closed the shop. For the first time since I arrived, the lights inside were off, and the door was locked. It had been a welcomed, short season of normalcy. I wondered if we'd ever come back.

The three of us began our journey to the Bounty Hall.

Just us three, up against a hundred killers. I scoffed to myself. Somewhere along the way, perhaps we had lost our minds.