Morning in the Mortal World was loud. Too loud for their liking.
The market street buzzed with a chaotic energy that made Ember's skin crawl. Carts rattled over uneven stone, and merchants shrieked prices like they were going to war. Ember walked at the front of the group, her eyes sharp, her irritation simmering as the crowd pressed too close.
"I don't like this," she muttered, her hand twitching toward the hilt of her hidden blade.
"Too many people. Too many eyes."
Felix, carrying a small basket of supplies, gave her a crooked grin. "Relax, Firebrand. If we blend in enough, no one notices anything."
At that exact moment, a local merchant stared openly at Felix's vibrant, flowing hair. Felix didn't miss a beat; he waved cheerfully. "Good morning!"
The merchant paled and fled into his shop.
Melissa tried—and failed—not to laugh. "Smooth, Felix. Real smooth."
Kai slowed his pace, his senses alert. To the others, the air was just air. To him, it felt wrong. Tense. Like a string pulled until it was ready to snap. "Someone's watching," he said, his voice barely a whisper.
They didn't see Leo. But Leo saw them.
From across the street, struggling under a bundle of iron tools too heavy for his thin frame, Leo paused. Something in his chest pulled sharply—a physical tug, as if the air itself had shifted.
His gaze landed on the group: the red-haired woman with fire in her stride, the calm one walking beside her, the dark-clad man who moved like a blade, and the bright-haired stranger who smiled too easily.
Not from here, Leo thought, his heart skipping.
His wrist burned faintly beneath his sleeve, a pulsing heat that made his breath hitch. A heavy cart jolted between them, blocking his view for only a second. When it passed—they were gone.
Leo stood still for a moment, his mind racing, then he shook his head and kept walking. He couldn't afford curiosity. Curiosity was for people with full stomachs.
The danger came quietly. It started with a scream.
A sharp cry echoed from a side alley—raw, jagged panic. Ember was moving before Kai could even process the sound.
"Wait—" Kai hissed.
Too late.
They rounded the corner to find a merchant cornered by three armed men. Blades were drawn, their voices low and snarling. The merchant was on his knees, shaking, clutching a small leather pouch to his chest as if it were his own heart.
"Give it up," one of the thugs spat. "Or we end this now."
Felix's smile vanished instantly, his eyes turning cold.
"We can't interfere," Kai said lowly, his hand gripping Ember's shoulder to hold her back.
"Not openly. We can't reveal what we are."
Ember's fists clenched, her knuckles white.
"They'll kill him, Kai."
Melissa stepped forward without thinking—her foot catching on a loose cobblestone. She tripped, the sound of her scuffing the ground echoing like a gunshot in the narrow alley.
The thugs turned. For one terrifying second, the world held its breath.
Then, everything went wrong.
One of the men lunged at Melissa, his face twisted in a sneer. Ember reacted on instinct, shoving Melissa back hard as heat flared dangerously beneath her skin. But she didn't strike.
Instead, the ground beneath the attacker suddenly shifted.
It wasn't dramatic. It wasn't an explosion. It was a subtle, localized tremor. The stone beneath the man's feet simply… rolled. He stumbled, falling hard onto the cobbles, his blade skidding across the street.
Melissa stared at her hands, her eyes wide with shock. "What did I—"
"Move!" Kai snapped.
Felix was already in motion. He didn't draw a sword; instead, he threw a small dagger with surgical precision. It didn't hit a person—it sliced through a weathered rope holding a heavy crate above the alley. The crate crashed down, spilling grain and wood between the mages and the attackers, buying them the seconds they needed.
"Run!" Felix shouted to the merchant.
The man didn't need to be told twice. He scrambled to his feet and vanished into the crowd as the sharp trill of city guards' whistles sounded in the distance.
Silence fell over the alley, thick with the scent of dust and adrenaline. Melissa's breathing was uneven, her hands trembling. Ember's skin was still hot to the touch, her internal fire fighting to be released.
"That was too close," Kai said, his voice like ice.
Felix exhaled a long breath, forcing a grin back onto his face. "On the bright side, no one died, and I only mildly broke several laws of physics."
Ember turned to Melissa, her expression softening. "Are you okay?"
Melissa nodded slowly, still looking at the earth beneath her feet. "I… I moved the ground. It just happened."
Ember's gaze stayed on her, a strange look of pride and worry in her eyes. "You saved him, Melissa."
Melissa swallowed hard. For the first time, the Mortal World had felt her presence—and it had answered.
Unseen, from the edge of the street, Leo watched the guards rush past the alley. His wrist burned again—stronger this time, a searing heat that made him press his hand to his chest.
Something is coming, he thought, his heart pounding. And for the first time in his difficult, ordinary life—he was right.