**š CHAPTER FOUR ā Lockdown
The courtyard froze.
Every student stopped.
Every drone rotated toward Anya.
Red laser-scanners locked onto her like she was a walking threat.
Zayn swore under his breath.
Kai stepped in front of her instantly, arm stretched out as if he could shield her from the entire security system.
"Don't move," Kai murmured, voice low and sharp. "They'll fire if you look dangerous."
Anya's voice was barely a whisper.
"I am dangerous right now."
Her hands were still glowing.
Her pulse still crackled.
She felt like a glitch in reality.
Zayn grabbed her other hand, ignoring the energy buzzing under her skin.
"Hey, look at me. Breathe. You're not alone."
Kai shot him an irritated glance but still said, "Listen to him. Calm your pulse before the drones classify you as hostile."
But calming down felt impossible ā not with a dozen red lasers pointing straight at her chest and the entire school staring.
Then the academy's main doors slammed open.
A squad of armored guards rushed in.
At the front was Officer Seraph, a high-ranking Council enforcer, known for having zero mercy and even less patience. Her armor glowed with white runes; her eyes were cold silver.
"Subject identified," Seraph said, her voice amplified. "Young woman. Early twenties. Unregistered Astra signature."
Astra.
That word again.
Zayn muttered, "They're not taking her."
Kai's jaw tightened. "If you fight them, they'll label all of us rebels."
Seraph lifted her hand.
"Contain her."
The drones clicked into combat mode.
And something inside Anya snapped.
Not fear.
Not anger.
Something deeper.
Older.
Her vision blurred at the edges as the world slowed down.
Heat pulsed up her spine, down her arms, glowing brighter than before.
Her heartbeat synced with a strange rhythm ā like a signal from somewhere far away.
"Anya," Kai whispered, "don'tā"
But the moment a drone fired a stun shot at her, instinct took over.
Her hand lifted on its own.
BOOM.
A shield of shimmering blue energy erupted around her like a dome, the force shaking the courtyard. The stun shot bounced off harmlessly.
Gasps echoed everywhere.
Even Kai and Zayn looked stunned.
Seraph's eyes narrowed.
"Advanced energy manipulationā¦ level four? Impossible."
Another shot fired.
Another deflection.
Zayn grinned.
"Okay that's actually sickā but uh, they're gonna freak out."
Kai hissed, "She can't control that power, idiot. She's going to burn herself out."
The dome grew brighter, cracks of light spiderwebbing across it.
It hummed.
It vibrated.
It felt like it wanted to explode outward.
"Anya," Kai said again, stepping toward the barrier, "listen to me. You need to stop the flowā"
"I don't know how!" she cried.
Zayn pressed his palm against the dome, wincing.
"Just breathe! Focus on meā not the drones, not the alarmsā just me, okay?"
"Or me," Kai added quietly, eyes fierce but soft.
Both boys staring at her.
Both reaching for her.
Both trying to anchor her in completely different ways.
But the energy was too strong.
The dome crackedā
And shattered.
A shockwave blasted outward, sending drones flying and knocking guards back. The courtyard lights blew out in a flash of sparks.
When the dust settledā¦
Anya stood in the center, shaking, surrounded by fallen drones.
Seraph straightened, fury in her eyes.
"She's coming with us. Now."
Zayn moved in front of Anya.
"No she's not."
Kai stepped up beside him.
"She needs protection, not imprisonment."
Seraph raised her handā
But suddenly, the academy's entire power grid went out.
Darkness swallowed everything.
A voice came through the speakers ā distorted, glitching, like an AI whisper:
"Anya. Run."