The first shadow leapt—
Fast.
Unnatural.
Straight toward Feroz.
He didn't think.
Didn't hesitate.
His hands rose on their own—
And the light answered.
Not violently.
Not wildly.
Smooth.
Controlled.
A sharp wave burst forward—
Clean.
Precise.
It struck the creature mid-air—
And hurled it back into the trees.
It vanished—
With a hiss.
Like smoke tearing apart in the wind.
Silence didn't come.
Not yet.
Feroz stared at his hands.
The glow still there—
Steady.
Alive.
"…I didn't lose control."
Yusuf nodded once.
Calm.
Certain.
"Because you didn't fight it."
A pause.
"You listened."
Then—
Movement again.
More shadows rushed in—
From both sides.
Faster.
Closer.
Hungry.
Mrs. Aliya stepped forward.
Her arms lifted—
Slow.
Deliberate.
Her voice dropped—
Low.
Steady.
Symbols formed in the air—
One after another—
Glowing faint blue.
The space around them shifted.
Thickened.
The shadows slowed—
As if the air itself had turned heavy.
Trapping them.
Holding them.
"Focus, Feroz!"
Her voice cut through everything.
Sharp.
Clear.
"One thought."
A pause.
"One aim."
Feroz closed his eyes.
Just for a second.
But inside that second—
He saw it again.
The park.
The tree.
The still body beneath it.
Waiting.
Watching.
Not a future—
A direction.
His voice didn't leave his lips.
But it formed—
Clear.
Certain.
I choose when.
His eyes opened.
And the light changed.
Not brighter—
Sharper.
Refined.
He stepped forward.
This time—
Not reacting.
Deciding.
Short bursts of energy followed—
One after another—
Precise.
Measured.
Each one struck.
Each one ended cleanly.
No waste.
No chaos.
Within moments—
The forest stilled.
The shadows—
Gone.
Silence returned.
Heavy—
But different now.
Feroz stood still.
His chest rising.
Falling.
Not panicked.
Not overwhelmed.
Tired—
Yes.
But clear.
Yusuf stepped closer.
Watching him carefully.
"This is the first lesson."
A pause.
"Power is not anger."
Another.
"Power… is decision."
Mrs. Aliya turned slightly—
Scanning the trees.
Alert again.
"They'll report back."
A pause.
"We don't have time."
Yusuf nodded.
Then turned.
Toward a narrow path—
Hidden between broken rocks.
Easy to miss.
Impossible to notice—
Unless you were looking for it.
"There's a place ahead."
A pause.
"Safe."
"For now."
They began moving.
The forest shifted with them.
Subtle.
Unseen.
But present.
Feroz felt it first.
A pull.
Faint—
But real.
Like something beneath the ground—
Recognizing him.
His steps slowed.
Not by choice.
By feeling.
"Yusuf…"
His voice lower now.
"Why does this feel familiar?"
Yusuf stopped.
Didn't turn immediately.
Then—
"You've been here before."
Feroz frowned.
"That's not possible."
Yusuf glanced back.
"Not in this life."
That answer didn't settle anything.
It deepened it.
Mrs. Aliya turned sharply.
"Yusuf…"
A pause.
"Are you sure now is the time?"
Yusuf didn't respond to her.
His eyes stayed on Feroz.
"The truth doesn't wait for the right moment."
A pause.
"It arrives when it must."
Then he pointed ahead.
Through the trees.
Toward something not yet visible—
But already present in Feroz's mind.
"The place you keep seeing."
A pause.
"The tree."
Feroz's chest tightened.
"What about it?"
Yusuf's voice lowered.
Not dramatic.
Not fearful.
Certain.
"It's not just where this ends."
A pause.
"It's where it begins."
The words settled—
Slow.
Heavy.
Feroz felt it immediately.
Not confusion.
Cold.
"Beginning… of what?"
Yusuf didn't hesitate.
"Of the moment the world finally notices you."
Silence followed.
Not empty—
Loaded.
They reached a small hill.
The forest broke slightly.
And beyond it—
City lights.
Distant.
Faint.
Unreachable—for now.
Feroz looked at them.
Then away.
Because something else pulled his attention.
Behind them—
Deep within the forest—
A sound.
Low.
Long.
Echoing.
A horn.
Not loud—
But absolute.
Mrs. Aliya's voice dropped to a whisper.
"They're calling them."
A pause.
"The Hunters."
Feroz didn't turn back.
Didn't flinch.
His fists tightened slowly.
Light flickered again—
Between his fingers.
Controlled.
Waiting.
"Then let them come."
Far away—
Beyond distance.
Beyond time.
Under a quiet tree—
In a park that had not yet arrived—
The future waited.
Patient.
Unmoving.
Certain.