"Hey, Julie," Orion said with a playful wink and a charming, almost mischievous smile. His voice carried the easy confidence of someone used to talking his way out of trouble.
Without waiting for a response, he turned his back to the small gathering behind him and began slipping away, every step measured and quiet like a seasoned escape artist making his getaway.
Juliet felt her cheeks flush crimson, the youthful blush of a long-time crush blossoming across her face. For a fleeting heartbeat, her world narrowed to the image of Orion's retreating form. But reality came crashing back as the sharp rhythm of six running feet thundered from the distant left, shattering her dreamy moment.
The heavy boots of the pursuing students reminded her why Orion was on the run in the first place.
Realizing what was happening and desperate to help, Juliet acted on instinct. There was little she could do to directly confront the Supplementary Military Corps. Her only option was to buy him time.
She gripped the wooden bucket in her delicate hands, pretending nothing was amiss, feigning ignorance as if she were just another villager going about her chores. Her petite fingers tightened, muscles trembling slightly as she poured the remaining water in the bucket with deliberate force—the same move she had used once before.
The stream arced through the air like a glittering ribbon of sunlight, creating a perfect watery barrier across the narrow path. Xander, Samuel, and Marcel—three students spaced just far enough apart to see one another—reacted almost in unison, trying to mimic Orion's earlier dodge to avoid being drenched.
Xander, slightly ahead of the other two, hesitated for the briefest of moments. He slowed down, calculating his next move with the precision of a hunter sizing up his prey. The ground in front of him was slick from a previous splash, so following Orion's under-the-arc maneuver was out of the question.
He scanned his surroundings, searching for another route—any route.
To the left loomed a sturdy stone wall, close enough to use as leverage. Xander decided he could run up its surface just far enough to clear the splash zone. But the split-second pause gave Samuel and Marcel enough time to close the gap.
Samuel, running on Xander's left, had the same idea. He darted toward the wall, his boots scraping stone as he prepared to launch upward.
Seeing Samuel's trajectory, Xander instantly recalculated. The odds of avoiding the splash by sharing the wall with Samuel were slim to none. Zero chance. His eyes darted to the opposite side. Another wall—the one belonging to the building Juliet had stepped out from—offered a second option. He lunged for it, only to realize Marcel, coming up on the right, had also anticipated this and shifted toward the very same plan.
Marcel and Samuel moved in near-perfect synchronization, both pressing their boots against opposite walls. They kicked off simultaneously, their bodies lifting gracefully just past the height of the falling arc of water.
Xander, trapped in the middle with no escape route left, was forced to a sudden halt. He stopped mere centimeters behind the descending curtain of soapy water, mood soured.
Not willing to risk a soaking when the water splashed onto the ground and spread outward, Xander made a split-second decision. He executed a clean backflip, landing a safe four feet back.
The air hissed as the water crashed onto the stone path, splattering across the ground in every direction. Samuel and Marcel landed lightly on their feet just as the water splashed, ready to resume their chase after Orion—except the pursuit had already faltered.
Their quarry had not gained much distance—Juliet's attempt at helping him had slowed them but not enough to give Orion a real lead. Then, unexpectedly, a sharp thud echoed through the narrow alley.
The two soldiers halted mid-step, startled by the sudden sound.
They turned and saw Xander standing stiffly, a wooden bucket now lying on the ground at his feet. Juliet stood frozen in place a few feet away, her small hands still stretched forward, trembling slightly.
A thin cut marked Xander's temple, and a bright line of blood traced a path down the side of his face, glistening in the sunlight.
"I–I'm so sorry!" Juliet stammered, her voice cracking with feigned panic. "My bucket just… slipped out of my hand and… and—" She stopped, pretending as though she hadn't thrown it intentionally. Her wide eyes darted nervously between the three students.
Samuel and Marcel jogged toward Xander, concern etched across their faces as they abandoned the pursuit.
"You're bleeding," Marcel said, his tone softer now.
"Does it hurt?" Samuel asked, leaning in to get a closer look at the wound.
"This is all my fault," Juliet said frantically, her voice quivering just enough to sound genuine. "Please, come inside. Let me clean that up for you—it's the least I can do. I'd never forgive myself if you were hurt because of me."
Samuel and Marcel exchanged glances, their expressions somewhere between frustration and reluctant sympathy. She looked so innocent, so harmless.
Marcel sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.
"There's no need to worry. He's fine," Marcel said gently, his diplomatic tone designed to keep the villagers on friendly terms with the Corps. "Just go back inside and carry on with your day."
"B-but I insist!" Juliet protested, raising her voice slightly. "How can I just go back when I caused such a—"
She was cut off by Marcel's sharp tone. A vein pulsed visibly on his forehead as he forced a tight smile. "As I said, miss," he interrupted, "go inside. Don't trouble yourself over this any further."
Juliet opened her mouth to argue again but froze under Xander's icy stare. The unspoken warning in his eyes silenced her.
"I… I'm sorry," she whispered. She bent quickly to retrieve the fallen bucket and retreated inside.
Behind her closed lips, however, a discreet smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. From the crack of the door, she could see Orion already at the far end of the path. He was seconds away from disappearing around the junction's corner—safe, for now.
Once he took that right turn, he would vanish from view entirely, free to find a place to hide.
As she pulled the door toward— a a satisfied grin on her face— Juliet heard Xander's voice slice through the air, sharp and cold:
"Screw this running-around like monkeys nonsense."
The bitterness in his tone made Juliet's stomach knot. She turned back in alarm just in time to see him lift Samuel's jacket, reaching for a small leather pouch tucked inside.
"What is that?" she wondered silently, her breath catching in her throat.
Whatever he was doing, clearly it was more important than resuming the pursuit after Orion.
Juliet's eyes widened when Xander's hand emerged, holding a mesmerizing marble pinched between his index and middle fingers. The small sphere shimmered faintly, as if light itself was trapped inside.
Without hesitation, Xander raised the marble to eye level and crushed it between his fingers. A soft, crystalline chime resonated in the air, delicate yet ominous.
Juliet's brow furrowed. "Why would he—?" she began, but her words faded as a sudden gust of wind swept through the alley, tugging at her dress and whipping her hair across her face.
"Wind? In this weather?" she whispered, glancing up at the clear blue sky. There wasn't a single cloud to justify the strange breeze. Her heart pulsed.
The unnatural wind strengthened, swirling through the village streets. Then, from the distant direction where Orion had fled, a heavy *thud* echoed, followed by a pained grunt.
Juliet's blood ran cold.
'That voice… That sounded like—' Her thoughts cut short as her legs carried her outside again.
She turned quickly toward the source of the sound, and her eyes widened in horror.
Far down the path, Orion's body was pinned several feet above the ground, slammed against a crumbling wall. Dust and debris spiraled around him, drawn into a violent vortex of wind. The air itself seemed alive, circling his struggling form like an invisible predator.
"What… what is this?" Orion gasped, straining against the crushing force. His voice was raw with disbelief and pain. "The wind… the wind is attacking me?"