Kai had never seen a building so big that it made the sky feel small.He stood at the iron-wrought gates of Vespera High Academy, one hand still clutching the invitation letter that brought him far here. Gold-rimmed, signed by a scary handwriting that signals danger, and stamped with a wax seal that smelled faintly of smoke and pine. It had come three weeks ago, carried by a crow that refused to leave until he opened it.Now here he was in front of a school that didn’t even look like a school. It looked like a warlock’s castle had been hijacked by a tech billionaire. Giant crystalline towers pierced the clouds. Floating sigils rotated above buildings. In the distance, he swore he saw a student fly past on.......… a vacuum cleaner?Kai tightened his grip on his bag, the only one he owned. He didn’t have much , just a cracked phone, two hoodies, and a notebook with “How to Talk to Cool People” written on the first page. Spoiler: it was empty.But even with all that doubt rattling in his

Kai woke to a rhythmic hum. The ceiling above him was stark white, glowing faintly like a low sun behind clouds. A mechanical limb passed into view, jointed with silver wires, its fingers whirring as they adjusted something on his forehead.“Subject stabilizing,” a voice said ........genderless, clipped and not human.Kai shifted. His muscles felt like jelly and needles. His eyes darted sideways.Three figures stood around his bed. One had no face, only a screen where features should be, displaying graphs and pulsing data streams. Another had an exposed chestplate where gears rotated beneath translucent skin. The third, somehow worse, looked almost normal, except for the silver gleam of his skeletal forearms and the blue light flickering behind his pupils."You're in the Rainbow Medical Wing," the faceless one said. “Tissue repair at 47%. Neural instability detected. Anomalous energy spike logged.”Kai opened his mouth. His throat was dry, tongue sticking to the roof. “W-What happened

Kai woke to the warmth of sunlight already piercing through the arched windows above his bed, slashing golden bars across the stone walls of the dormitory.His entire body ached.Not the dull soreness of fatigue, but the deep, soul-scraping kind of pain that came from being used as a werewolf’s personal punching bag. He groaned as he sat up, dragging a hand across his face and blinking blearily at the bedside clock rune hovering midair.8:57 AM.“Crap.”The door slammed open.“Sleeping beauty awakens,” Jace announced, marching in with a scowl and a half-eaten piece of toast in his mouth. “Guess what? Everyone’s forming teams. Everyone. And you, sir, are snoring through your chance at glory.”Kai blinked. “Teams... for the festival?”“No, for a tea party,” Jace deadpanned. “Yes, the festival! Come on, man! If we don’t find three other lunatics brave enough to team up with a rainbow-ranked Arcane and his sarcastic werewolf roommate, we’re going to end up watching this thing from the ble

Kai stood in the middle of a barren field, the sky above him split and bleeding red as though the heavens themselves had been torn open. Black feathers rained down from the sky like ash. The wind howled like a dying creature, carrying with it voices that spoke in tongues he couldn’t recognize......but somehow still understood."You're too late…""You were warned…""You should have died in the womb…"He turned in place, his breath clouding as if winter had seeped into his bones. Shapes flickered just beyond the edge of sight, tall, gaunt silhouettes with hollow eyes and skeletal wings. A ring of them circled him. Their presence pulsed against his skin, heavy as guilt.Suddenly, the ground beneath him cracked open like fractured glass. From the depths below, a hand clawed its way out, bloodless, and unmistakably human.Kai stared, frozen, as his own hand dragged itself from the abyss, followed by a second, then a broken mirror of his face rising from the pit, mouth split too wide in a g

Leaves rustled overhead as Kai’s team and the rival group stood in a loose standoff. Tension crackled in the air like dry lightning. The realization that the lantern they’d found was just a fragment had shifted something in both teams, something competitive and territorial. Thalia stretched her arms overhead, a devilish grin curling on her lips. “Don’t blink. I’ll be done before you finish your next breath.” Kai arched a brow, skeptical but amused. “You’re really going to solo all four of them?” Jace gave a mock gasp. “Please don’t kill them, Your Majesty.” The opposing team, four students, Team Veritas — stood several paces away, spread out on the grass with the confidence of challengers who believed they had the upper hand. Their robes bore faint sigils of defense and enhancement. Still, Thalia cracked her neck and stepped forward, drawing her twin daggers in a smooth, practiced motion. With a shout, Thalia surged forward, her boots slicing through the grass. The first opponent