I had to act quickly – I guess Level 7 is the most capacity and I won't lose any of my classmates if I can help it. Why? Because that's what heroes do in the books! So the answer is simple – Level 7, here we go! The upgrade process kicked in at the same time as the souls were being pulled in and the same pain that I felt at the time of "initialization" came back. This time I was able to open my eyes and saw "energy indicator" in the red and very close to ZERO. Where do I get energy? I jumped up and remembered I got some when I kissed Diana on the forehead. I could barely move or even think but I had to climb out of the seat and across the aisle. Two bodies – two girls – best friends. Kiss one, put her fingers into the "Sub-dimensional storage" purse – she disappears, kiss the next, guide her fingers into the purse – she follows her friend. Energy indicator popped slightly above ZERO but is going down again. I need to move to the next seats. The eyes aren't seeing well – tears running down, pain in the entire body, learning for the first time what "head-splitting headache" means. Moving on. One row back. Locating the head by touch, kissing it, can't find the fingers to put into the bag, trying to put the bag over the head – worked, the body is inside. The next body in the window seat – too painful to bend down to kiss; located the head, putting my palm on the forehead as if feeling the fever, making a kissing sound with my lips – worked! I got the energy, the bag got another one of my poor classmates. Keep moving. PAIN.... Felt around, found the next body, not looking for the forehead – I think it's the elbow. Trying to do the kissing / through the straw sucking movement with my lips – WORKED – I got the energy in and it was used up almost immediately. Bringing over the "bottomless bag" – worked again. Next row – the pain got even worse, as the toothache joined in with the mega-migraine. Keep moving. Keep moving… I can't miss anyone. Next row. Feel around, find the body, suck the energy, bag the body. Don't think who was it, don't recall names, group projects, answering homework questions. Keep moving. "CLICK" in the ears, floating text before the eyes visible even with my eyes closed – "Level 2". Now I notice more souls are entering me – can't stop can't re-access, can't ponder. "Level 7" was selected and something tells me if I can't gather enough energy to make it all the way there, the upgrade process will eat me up inside and all of the souls including mine will go toward the Cloud. Keep moving. Suddenly I notice I don't need to feel around for bodies in the seats – I seem to feel a direction, I extend my palm there and suck in the energy. I just follow it with a bag transfer. Next row, Next row.. This one doesn't feel the same. I got just a little bit of energy and the bag doesn't allow it inside. OK, skipping it. Next row, Next row… Again a strange "specimen" – getting a bit of energy and moving on. "CLICK" – "Level 3". More souls getting in, pain is slightly less horrible – either I'm learning how to work around it – just like the Shaolin monks I've read about – or Levels bring some kind of resistance. With my eyes still closed now, I see the little dark energy balls floating above the seats and some are starting to move toward the Cloud. I stretch my hands: "Get over here!" and some obey flowing into me – "CLICK!" – "Level 4". I see some of the balls still getting sucked into the Cloud and with a new-found self-confidence I demand "GET OVER HERE!" – they obey. Every single one. "CLICK!" – "Level 5". I can actually open my eyes and quickly go from through the bus putting all of the bodies into the bag. The Ghosts are not seen – either they are all inside me or some gotten into the Cloud. I'll figure it out later. Finding several bodies that I wasn't able to put into the bag. Looking at one – the boy was number one in sports – tall, muscular, smart and not a jerk at all. His name was Dimitry. I'm looking at him and noticing that there is no "Corpse" text hanging over him. There are 9 people left out of 54 – I can't see them breathing but they are not recognized as dead so I'm leaving them alone. The "energy indicator" shows up again – about a fifth and falling. I need energy… Darn… Should have picked "promotion to Level 5" but somehow I'm sure it wasn't a wrong choice. Probably whoever is in-charge of this whole thing is giving out a "beginner special" – I just suspect that going from Level to Level would take a lot more than 3000 units to reach the Seventh. Still where do I get the energy? Looking around – there's the Cloud, still hanging… Waiting for me, aren't you? With all the pain I just went through? I wonder if it collected the "Pain" energy the way I gather the "Necro". You'd like me to drop down and burn up inside while you mop up the souls including mine, wouldn't you? YOU! Just hanging there, probably smirking at me… I stretch out my hands at the Cloud – "GET IN HERE!". The Cloud seems shocked as it starts moving toward me and then trying to break off. I'm seeing my energy level slowly going up and the Cloud trying to move out of the bus. The tunnel is still dark around us – I spread my hands and keeping in mind the tunnel and the darkness outside I command with never-before felt surety – "GET IN HERE!". The energy flows in. I get a "Level 6" notification and the bus shakes. I think the Tunnel or someone controlling it is upset and hurt – it probably has been transporting these busses in a calm and orderly fashion for a while and suddenly the tiger shark has swallowed a small blender that's hurting it inside. It can't be that way. It was never that way. Food can't object to being eaten. The bus accelerates, the Cloud shrinks and hides and I walk over to the one person I've overlooked so far – the bus driver.