I walked toward the voices.
The arguing had sounded so real—my parents, shouting at each other through the walls.
But when I reached the hallway, there was no one.
The sound stopped completely.
Then my mother appeared behind me.
"Get dressed for bed, Noah. Dinner's almost ready."
I turned, confused.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing."
I went back to my room and changed. But my mind wouldn't stop spinning.
Those voices had been so clear.
The Talk
A few minutes later, my father walked in.
"Anything eventful happen today?"
I didn't answer.
I just started crying.
The tears came before I could stop them. I didn't even know why.
"I don't know what's wrong with me," I said.
He sat down beside me.
For once, he didn't lecture. Didn't ask why I hadn't told him sooner. He just listened.
And I told him everything.
The eyes. The training. The figure. The red-eyed monster. The touch.
By the time I finished, his face was still. Calm. But I could tell something underneath was worried.
Dinner
At the table, I felt empty.
Completely drained. Like I'd run a hundred miles without stopping.
I poked at my food. Couldn't eat.
My mother noticed. "What's wrong, Noah?"
My father cut in before I could answer. "He trained all day. Probably just tired."
She didn't push.
I was sent to bed early.
It was the most hollow I'd ever felt.
The Night
I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
The voices from earlier kept replaying in my head. I told myself it was just exhaustion.
I turned onto my side. Closed my eyes.
A cold breeze brushed past my leg.
I opened my eyes.
The room was freezing.
I got up, walked out to the living space.
The moon was bright outside the window. Full and silver.
Then my stomach dropped.
Something was watching me.
Fear surged through me—and my left eye activated on its own.
The figure was there again.
But this one was different.
Muscular. Horned. A long tail. Eyes like fire.
It walked through the wall.
I tried to scream—
And was thrown backward. Suspended in midair.
I couldn't move. Couldn't speak. Something invisible held me in place.
The monster walked past me, toward my parents' room.
I tried to call out. Tried to warn them.
Nothing came out.
Then the grip released.
I hit the floor hard.
A scream echoed from down the hall.
My mother.
The Baby
I ran to her room.
My father was holding her. She was clutching her stomach, screaming.
"The baby's coming," my father said. "Noah—get a bag. Put your mother's clothes in it. Now."
I moved without thinking. Grabbed a bag. Stuffed it with whatever I could find.
He took it from me.
"Stay here. Don't leave the house."
He activated his armor—red and white flames roaring to life.
Then rings of energy surrounded them both.
And they vanished.
I'd never seen him use that power before.
Alone
The house was silent.
My eye was still active. I could feel the drain pulling at me, but I couldn't sleep.
Not after what I'd seen.
I sat on my bed and grabbed a book—something about chasers. The chapter covered the ancient spell chasers. They used to be the strongest in the world. Now they didn't exist anymore.
There were alternatives—magic chasers—, but they weren't as powerful.
I couldn't focus on the words.
All I could think about was the baby.
My sister.
I was going to have a sister.
Why hadn't they told me sooner? My mother's stomach had been bigger for months. I should've known.
But I didn't.
About thirty minutes later, I started dozing off. I fought it. Lost.
And fell asleep.
The Dream
Kids were screaming.
"What's wrong with him?"
"What is he?"
I stood in the middle of a classroom.
One of my eyes was red. The other was white.
A wing stretched from my back—one side black, the other white.
My teeth felt sharp. Wrong.
Then I was in the training arena.
My whole class surrounded me.
A pitchfork was in my right hand.
And at my feet—
Ace.
I didn't remember killing him.
Or maybe I did.
The kids ran. Screamed. Scattered like insects.
I looked into the crowd.
My parents stood near the edge. My mother was holding a baby.
The baby smiled at me.
Not warmly.
Menacingly.
It wanted to hurt me.
Its eyes turned red.
The pitchfork flew from my hand—and landed in the baby's grip.
Horns sprouted from its head.
I woke to a voice.
"Noah! No sleeping during a lesson. Do it again, and there will be consequences."
I blinked. "Sorry. I didn't get much rest last night."
"Then manage your time more wisely."
The class laughed.
I thought to myself, if that baby would shut up, maybe I could have.
Aubrey,
She tapped my shoulder.
"News got around. Your mom had a baby."
"Yeah. So?"
"So why didn't you tell me?" She smiled. "I love kids. I could come over more."
My brain short-circuited.
I started imagining us spending time together. Just the two of us. Maybe with the baby.
She waved her hand in front of my face.
"Hey. You still in there?"
"You want to come over and see her?" I blurted.
"Of course I do. It's a baby."
After Class
During physical training, I ran into Karr.
"What happened to you yesterday?" I asked.
He looked at me like I was crazy.
"No, Noah—what happened to you?"
"I was followed by something I saw."
He stared.
We spent the next few minutes catching each other up.