Long ago—long before cities rose and machines hummed—the world was shaped by forces beyond mortal understanding. Light and Shadow, bound in eter
Chapter 1 – Whispers of Magic
The sun dipped behind the horizon, spilling orange and crimson light across the rooftops of seven distant towns. In each of those places, a teenager felt an itch they couldn't explain—like the world was about to change, and they were standing at its center.
Aria sat cross-legged on her room's wooden floor in the quiet mountain town of Elmsridge, staring at the glowing symbol on her notebook. It hadn't been there this morning. It pulsed faintly, shaped like a crescent surrounding a star, and no amount of scrubbing erased it. She'd tried water, fire, and even the neighbor's dog's slobber (a desperate moment), but it wouldn't fade. Her black hair fell in front of her eyes as she leaned closer. "What are you?" she whispered.
Half a continent away, Evan kicked a ball through an alley, laughing with some younger kids. His laughter faded when the ball rolled back to him with a golden shimmer around it. No one else seemed to notice. He picked it up slowly and blinked. "Did that just… glow?"
In the southern port city of Merosia, Kael was mid-fight with three bullies twice his size. It wasn't unusual—he picked fights with the worst kinds on purpose. But this time, as one swung at him, Kael ducked and felt something surge under his skin, like static. His reflexes were too fast. He moved before they did. The world slowed. A single punch, and all three stumbled backward like rag dolls. His chest rose and fell. "No way," he muttered, staring at his hand.
Lira wandered the dense green edges of her village forest, seeking the last blooming petals for her grandmother's tea. She heard the trees whisper. They didn't usually. One root shifted slightly, just enough to trip her—and catch her before she hit the ground. The air was rich with the scent of moss and something else… something ancient. Her emerald eyes widened.
On the snow-covered cliffs of Nivara, Rhea stood outside her family's icy mansion, wrapped in a white cloak. Her dreams had been strange lately. She kept seeing flickers of people—people she didn't know—but who called her name like they'd known her forever. Her fingers trembled as she touched the frost-covered glass of her balcony. She drew a perfect spiral… and it shimmered back at her.
Nico, an orphan from the city slums, ducked under another collapsing wall. The underground tunnels were collapsing behind him, but he'd seen it—a dark glowing symbol deep in the catacombs. It called to him. He didn't know how, but it belonged to him. As he slid into the corner chamber, the floor lit up beneath his boots. "Well, I guess I'm not normal after all."
And in the wind-swept dunes of Zephyra, Tarin closed his eyes as a storm approached. He could feel the wind listen to his breath. For weeks, the breeze followed him, but today it obeyed. As the sandstorm neared, the winds split around him. He didn't even raise a hand.
That night, seven different skies blinked with the same strange star formation. Some saw it. Most didn't. But those who did heard whispers.
---
Aria couldn't sleep. She curled under her blanket, the notebook still glowing faintly. Then came the knock.
She crept to the window, expecting her mother. But no one was there. Instead, a small black box sat on the ledge. She opened it slowly, her heart racing.
Inside was a folded piece of parchment with a message in perfect handwriting:
"The world remembers you, even if you have forgotten it.
You are one of the Seven.
Meet where the old forest touches the sky.
Bring nothing but yourself and your courage."
She blinked. The letter had no name. No sender. No seal.
Moments later, Aria's eyes widened as her room's walls shifted—no, shimmered. A brief flicker, and they were back. She felt dizzy. Something ancient and powerful had just reached through her room.
She wasn't the only one.
Each of the other six had received similar letters, hidden in different ways. Nico found his inside the glowing floor chamber. Lira's grew like vines into a scroll. Eli's appeared in the golden shimmer of the ball. Rhea's froze onto her glass. Kael's was carved into the punch-bag in his gym. Tarin's appeared in the sand itself, a gust forming the letters.
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By sunrise, they'd each made the same decision—confused, curious, but drawn by something greater than themselves. With nothing more than questions, a strange mark, and an unshakable pull in their hearts, they set off.
None of them knew that their lives had already begun to intertwine.
None of them knew the old world was waiting.
And none of them were ready for what the academy had planned.