The fire crackled softly in the library hearth. The rain outside tapped gently against the windows, but inside the mansion, it was quiet—too quiet.
Anna closed the book she had been reading, her red eyes calm, but distant.
"I wish I had more to give you," she said softly, not looking up. "Even when I was born… demons were already legends."
The others sat scattered around the room—Derek sharpening his blade, Bam poking a leftover pastry with a fork, Kain scribbling in a half-burned notebook. The doll sat on a velvet cushion like royalty.
"I've read scraps," Anna continued. "Heard old whispers from ancient dragons. Most are gone now… but a few elders still remember what came before."
She folded her hands.
"But I never imagined the Seven Sins were real. Or that someone would be stupid enough to break the seal."
Everyone slowly turned to Bob.
Bob looked at his boots. "The orb looked soft…"
The doll cleared his throat. "What's done is done."
He stood—well, propped himself up dramatically.
"I do remember something, though. A spell. From the final years of the war."
They leaned in.
"It was used to seal spirits—not destroy, but imprison. It took strength, precision, and the ability to bind raw essence."
Derek frowned. "Could it work on the Sins?"
The doll nodded slowly. "Maybe. Their power isn't what it used to be. They've been dormant for centuries. No hosts. No form. Just… raw, drifting will."
Kain rubbed his chin. "If we could isolate one…"
The doll paced—or, more accurately, shuffled.
"There's one problem. I can perform the spell—or at least guide someone through it—but I need to find them first. Spirit or not, they're still hiding."
Then Anna stood and crossed the room.
She reached into a nearby drawer and pulled out a small, strange-looking object: a compass, but not like any they'd seen.
Its center glowed faintly with a dull silver light. The needle didn't point north—or anywhere. It just hovered, perfectly still.
She handed it to the doll.
"This," she said, "is something I made years ago. A prototype."
The doll tilted his head. "A compass?"
"A Seeker's Compass," Anna replied. "It doesn't point toward places. It points toward disturbances in magical balance."
Bam blinked. "You mean…?"
She nodded. "When a Sin is nearby, their spiritual energy will disrupt the surrounding magic. The compass will respond."
The doll looked it over with curiosity. "It's reacting to ambient flow... I see. Brilliant."
"It won't lead you across the world," Anna said. "But when one of them is close—you'll know. It'll glow. Shake. Even scream if it has to."
Marcus raised a brow. "It screams?"
Bob looked nervous. "I don't like that."
Anna ignored them. "It has limits. If a Sin is in hiding, quiet and dormant, it may not trigger until you're very close. But if one is active…"
"We'll feel it," Derek said.
The doll handed the compass back to Derek. "Then that's our key. We follow this. Seal what we can. Stop what we must."
There was a long silence.
Then Derek stood.
"We broke the seal. Now we fix it."
The others nodded, one by one.
And in the center of the room, the compass twitched.
Just once.