The sunlight slanted through the open college corridor, catching on backpacks, laughter, and the distant echo of music rehearsals.
"I still can't believe he sang that song," Elena practically danced beside Rhea, clutching her phone like it was a sacred relic. "Kael was on fire! Literally. Did you see his eyes when he hit that high note?"
Rhea gave a distracted hum.
"Hello?" Elena waved a hand in front of her. "Earth to Rhea. This is your best friend rambling about your favorite singer who just melted a thousand hearts and possibly some speaker wires."
"I saw," Rhea said, softly. "He was good."
"Good?" Elena looked like she might faint. "Ma'am, he was celestial. I swear, even the lights blinked in rhythm when he smiled."
Rhea cracked a smile—but her mind wandered.That dream from the night before still clung to her like a second skin.
The sword… the voice…And the way her tattoo had glowed, responded, almost as if someone else had reached back.
"Elena," she murmured. "Do you ever get that feeling where… something is waiting for you? But you don't know what it is?"
Elena blinked. "Rhea, are you still dreaming about masked dudes in ruins?"
Rhea sighed. "Kind of."
"Well, next time your dreams include someone that mysterious, at least get a name," Elena teased. "You've had, like, three dreams and still haven't seen anyone's face."
Rhea opened her mouth to argue—then stopped.
In the corner of her mind, something flickered.
Not a name.Not a face.But…Eyes like winter. And a voice that made the dream burn.
Rhea
RheaThere was something… off about Rael.
He never laughed at their group jokes. Never fully joined the chaos of lunchtime teasing or Elena's dramatic lunchtime reenactments. Always calm. Always distant.Too distant.
Rhea sat on the grass with her friends, pretending to pay attention to Elena's rambling, but her eyes kept flicking toward the tree across the lawn.
There he was. As usual.Rael, sketching in that same worn notebook like the world around him didn't matter.
She'd caught it—just once—the shimmer across his collarbone when his shirt had slipped a little.Right where her tattoo had burned the night before.
Coincidence?Or fate creeping up again?
"Rheaaa," Elena whispered, nudging her with a smirk. "Stop staring. You'll scare the boy. He's pretty, not a puzzle."
"I wasn't staring," Rhea said without missing a beat.
"You were analyzing," Elena said, poking her side. "Dangerous upgrade."
Rhea sighed, dragging her gaze away. "Maybe I'm just tired."
"Or maybe you've got a mystical crush on the campus enigma."
"I do not have a crush."
Elena raised a brow. "Uh-huh. You only track his every movement like a hawk with Wi-Fi."
Rhea rolled her eyes. "I'm just… curious. He's weird."
"Right. And totally not hot."
"Stop."
"No, seriously. I support this. Mysterious artist boy with cheekbones sharp enough to slice karma? That's main character material."
"He barely speaks!"
Elena gave her a look. "So do mysterious love interests. That's the whole point. Silence. Brooding. Secrets. You're living in a Wattpad plot."
"I think he's hiding something," Rhea muttered.
Elena gasped. "You do like him!"
"I think he's an alien," Rhea corrected. "Or, like, a spirit in disguise. That shimmer wasn't normal."
Elena leaned back on her elbows. "Well, duh. His energy is totally 'I once protected a magic realm but now I have exams and back pain.'"
Rhea paused. "…That is oddly specific."
"I've read a lot of fanfiction."
They both burst into laughter. For a while, it was easy to forget the weirdness. The dreams. The shimmer.
But across the field, under the tree, Rael's pen stilled for just a second.
As if he knew.
Kael stood near the edge of the rooftop, city lights flickering below like restless stars. The wind played with the ends of his hair, but his eyes were fixed on nothing in particular—focused inward, on the memory that wouldn't let go.
A soft crackle sounded in his earpiece. Static. Then a voice, distorted and low.
"Status?"
Kael didn't answer right away. He reached into his jacket, pulling out a worn photograph—faded, edges singed. Not recent. Not ordinary.And not forgotten.
Finally, he spoke. Calm. Certain.
"I think I found the girl."
Silence.
Then—"You're sure?"
Kael's lips tilted into a half-smile, no amusement in his eyes.
"Same burn pattern. Same energy shift. It spiked when she was near him."
A pause. The voice on the other end grew sharper."Her mark's active?"
Kael turned the photo over. The back was covered in strange, curling symbols—half burned, half smeared.
"Not fully. But something's waking up. And if she's connected to him…"He trailed off.
"Then she's not just a key. She's the lock too," the voice finished grimly.
Kael's gaze dropped to the campus field far below—where Rhea had stood hours ago, laughing under the sun.
"She has no idea," he murmured. "Not yet."A beat."But when she remembers… everything changes."
The wind picked up again, carrying the whisper of something ancient.