Ronan crouched near the greenhouse wall, watching the moonlight filter through the glass panels. This part of campus was always quiet at night — too quiet. The Circle liked it that way. Secluded places made perfect stages for hidden rituals.
Lyra stood nearby, watching the shadows. She wore all black, her hair tied back, her eyes sharp. She wasn't just following Ronan anymore. She was choosing this.
Ronan activated *Echo Sense*.
The world dimmed slightly, and faint imprints lit up — trails of past energy usage, faded footprints, and the lingering pulse of a sigil that had been activated hours ago.
*"They were definitely here,"* he muttered.
He stepped forward, passing through the greenhouse doors. Inside, it smelled like damp soil and overgrown roots. Plant beds were overturned. Dirt scattered across the floor.
Then the system pulsed.
*[Anchor Sigil Residue Detected – Recently Activated]*
*[Warning: Current location marked – risk of trace high]*
Ronan froze. "They knew I'd come."
Lyra tensed. "Is it a trap?"
Before he could answer, the doors slammed shut behind them.
---
A soft chuckle echoed through the greenhouse.
"Well, well. The hidden one steps out at last."
A figure emerged from the far side, robes draped over a campus hoodie, a glowing red symbol across his chest. He looked young — maybe twenty — but the aura surrounding him pulsed with unnatural confidence.
"I was wondering when you'd try playing hero," the stranger said. "You're messing with things you don't understand."
Ronan didn't flinch. "Then explain it to me."
The man smirked. "You think this is about power? About systems and quests and points? The Circle exists because it must. Because the world *needs* balance — and sacrifices bring that balance."
Ronan stepped forward. "You're just stealing people. Turning them into batteries for your control."
"They're *evolving.* We're giving them meaning."
Lyra stepped beside Ronan. "You're lying. They're not stronger — they're empty."
The man's eyes shifted. "You brought an outsider?"
"Leave her out of this," Ronan said, his tone dropping.
The sigil on the man's chest glowed brighter.
*[Threat Level: High]*
*[Recommended Action: Engage with Disruption or Escape]*
He wouldn't run.
Not this time.
Ronan activated Sigil Desruption.
A blast of invisible force tore through the greenhouse. Glass cracked. Plants withered. The man staggered, clutching his chest — but stayed standing.
He laughed.
"You've improved. But you're still just one system. One spark. The Circle is a *network.* And you're alone."
Then another pulse hit — this one *from above.*
Ronan's system screamed:
*[Alert: External Overload Detected – Second Entity Entering Field]*
He looked up.
A girl in silver robes dropped through the broken glass roof, landing silently behind the sigil wielder.
Her eyes shimmered violet.
Ronan recognized the energy instantly.
*She was one of them. But different.*
The man stepped back. "Wait. You're—?"
Too late.
She raised her hand, and a sphere of pale blue light slammed into him, sending him flying across the greenhouse. He hit the wall with a heavy crack and didn't move.
The girl turned to Ronan.
"You're the anomaly," she said. "The one disrupting the anchors."
"And who are you?" he asked warily.
"I'm... what the Circle tried to control and failed." She paused. "I've been watching you, Ronan. You're not like them. You were never meant to be."
The system pulsed again.
*[Entity Identified: Echo Diver – System Variant: Abandoned]*
*[Sync Not Available. Observation Recommended.]*
"Why are you helping me?" he asked.
She looked at Lyra, then back at him. "Because they know what you're becoming. And they're afraid."
She turned to leave through the shattered wall.
"When the next mark rises," she said, "don't fight it. Embrace it. Or you'll lose everything."
And just like that — she vanished.
---
Ronan stood in the ruined greenhouse, stunned.
Lyra touched his arm. "What *was* she?"
"Something broken," he replied. "But powerful."
He looked at the unconscious Circle agent across the room. He wouldn't wake up for a while.
"We need answers. And soon," he added. "Because this just stopped being a game of numbers."
It was war now — between systems, ideologies, and people caught in between.
And Ronan, hidden no longer, was now in the center.
---