Chapter Three: When Reality Cracks
The feather didn't disappear.
Kael had expected it to. Like some weird hallucination. Some leftover dream.
But no. It was still there the next morning. Sitting on his desk like it belonged there. The black sheen of it caught the early sunlight through the curtains, glinting unnaturally, like it was wet with something more than dew.
He hadn't touched it.
Couldn't.
Every time he got close, his fingers started to burn. Not literal fire—but a prickling heat under the skin, crawling like ants through his veins. It didn't want to be held. Not yet.
Kael avoided the desk altogether after that.
He wrapped himself tighter into his world—headphones on, curtains drawn, his computer humming with the glow of his MMORPG's loading screen. He played, sure, but he didn't enjoy it anymore. The thrill of combat, the laughter of the crew over Discord… it all felt muted. Distant. Like a video on loop that he'd already watched too many times.
> [Rin]: Yo, Kael. You alive or what?
[Mace]: We're raiding tonight. You better not bail again.
[Juno]: Kael, seriously. Come outside. Touch grass. Breathe. We miss you, man.
The messages kept pouring in.
He left them on read.
Until Rin finally cracked.
She showed up.
Not a call. Not a text.
A knock at the front gate.
Kael nearly jumped out of his chair when he saw the security cam notification flash. There she was. Hoodie half-zipped, two piercings on her eyebrow, hair tied into a messy bun and a tired-ass look on her face.
He debated pretending he wasn't home.
Too late.
> [Rin]: I can see you watching me on the camera. Open the damn gate.
He sighed and unlocked it remotely.
Rin didn't waste time. She walked in like she owned the place—flicked off her shoes, tossed her bag on the couch, and gave Kael a long, judgmental stare.
"You look like shit."
"Thanks," he muttered.
She looked around the room. Noticed the dark curtains. The dust gathering on unused chairs. The leftover food containers.
"You living in a damn tomb or something?"
Kael didn't answer.
Rin's gaze wandered—and landed on the feather.
She froze.
"…what is that?"
Kael stiffened. "Don't touch it."
"I wasn't gonna. Chill. It's just a feather."
"No, it's not."
There was a silence. Thick. Weighted.
Kael didn't know why he said it like that. Just instinct.
But Rin didn't mock him. Didn't laugh. Instead, she looked at the feather a second longer, her lips thinning.
"I've seen something like that before," she said quietly.
Kael turned sharply.
"…What?"
She shook her head. "Never mind. I'm probably just—No, forget it."
"No. Rin. What do you mean?"
Rin bit her lip. Her eyes darted away. "It was a long time ago. My grandma used to talk about 'markers.' Things that show up when a person's fate gets… messed with. Crossroads, she called them. Things you can't explain. Objects that don't belong in this world."
Kael swallowed. His throat felt dry.
"She said some of them were alive. Sentient. Waiting."
The room felt colder. The feather pulsed once—softly, subtly, like it heard her.
Rin backed away from the desk.
"I'm gonna get Mace and Juno," she said suddenly. "We need to talk. All of us."
Kael didn't argue. He didn't have the strength.
By that evening, the whole crew was there.
Mace, the tall loudmouth who always had a sarcastic comment ready, tried to joke about the feather—until he looked at it.
Then he shut up.
Juno, the quiet strategist who rarely spoke unless it mattered, sat in front of it for nearly fifteen minutes without saying a word. When he stood, he whispered only one sentence.
"It's watching us too."
They didn't sleep that night.
They played games, ate junk food, tried to laugh. But the feather was in the corner of every conversation. It made them nervous. Jumpy. Paranoid.
And Kael? He couldn't stop staring at it.
Because something had changed.
The feather wasn't alone anymore.
A second one had appeared.
Right beside the first.
And Kael knew—he knew—that meant something was coming.
Something closer.
They thought maybe they could shake it. Ignore it. Pretend it was just some freaky cosmic glitch.
But then, at exactly 3:07 AM, while the others were dozing on the couch…
The television turned on by itself.
The screen went black—then red.
And a voice spoke.
One word.
"Soon."
Kael's vision blurred. His ears rang. He fell to his knees.
In his mind, the chains clinked.
The Blade was calling again.
And this time, it wasn't just a dream.
It was a countdown.