Kael didn't remember falling asleep.
But he remembered waking up.
He was on the floor, cheek pressed to the cold tile, body heavy like it had been dragged through cement. The house was dead silent—too silent. Even the usual buzz from the fridge or the hum of his PC fan was gone.
The TV was off.
The feathers were gone.
And so were the others.
He shot up, heartbeat punching through his chest like a war drum. "Rin?" he called, voice cracking. "Juno? Mace?"
Nothing.
The living room was empty, cushions still dented where they'd been sitting. Chips on the table. Soda cans sweating on the floor. But no people. No laughter. Not even snoring.
He checked the front door. Locked.
The windows? Closed.
He even opened the bathroom door expecting a prank.
But no one was there.
Then his phone buzzed.
He scrambled for it like a drowning man reaching for air.
[Unknown Number]
> They're still with you. Just not in ways you understand.
Kael stared. The message deleted itself before he could screenshot it.
The screen glitched.
Just for a second.
But long enough for his reflection in the black glass to twitch—delay behind his movement.
He threw the phone down like it bit him.
"Nope. Nope. Noooope," he muttered, backing up until his legs hit the couch.
He was shaking.
Not out of fear—well, not just fear.
There was something deeper. Thicker. Like gravity had shifted inside him. Like the world had pulled away and left him dangling.
And then—knock knock knock.
Three slow, deliberate knocks at the back door.
The door that led to the alley.
The door no one ever used.
He didn't move.
The knocks came again. Louder.
His body moved without asking. Step by step. As if something behind his ribs was tugging him forward, whispering: You already know who it is.
He opened the door.
No one was there.
Just a note.
Folded. Burned at the corners. Inked with the same language from the blade's dreams—runes he couldn't read, but somehow felt. Like they vibrated in his blood.
He touched it.
And instantly—
FLASH.
The world cracked.
He wasn't in his house anymore.
He was in a city.
But not his city.
This one breathed.
The buildings pulsed like they were alive. Vines of light crawled over skyscrapers. The sky swirled with ink and fire. The people—if you could call them that—had no faces. Just mirrored masks that showed Kael his own reflection… distorted. Split.
A scream echoed through the air. Metal grinding on bone.
Kael stumbled backward, clutching his head. "No no no—take me back!"
The rune on the note burned into his palm.
The city blinked—
And he was back in his living room.
Gasping.
Sweating.
Crying.
The note had turned to ash in his hand.
The feather was back on the desk.
Only now, there were five.
One for each of them.
Kael didn't know what it meant, but his instincts screamed it wasn't just about him anymore. Whatever was happening—it had chosen them all.
He grabbed his phone.
Finally messaged the group chat.
> Kael: Something's wrong. I think we're marked. All of us.
Juno replied first.
> [Juno]: I know. I saw it in my dreams. The city of mirrors. The faceless ones.
[Juno]: You went there, didn't you?
>
Mace jumped in.
> [Mace]: Wtf are y'all on. I just woke up in my bed with blood under my nails and my closet door wide open.
[Mace]: I live alone, bro. Explain.
Then Rin.
> [Rin]: We triggered something. That feather—it wasn't just a warning. It was a seal.
[Rin]: And we broke it.
> Kael: What do we do?
> [Juno]: We gather. Tonight. The old arcade downtown. After midnight. No one else can know.
Kael hesitated.
Then typed:
> Kael: I'll be there.
As soon as he hit send, the lights in his house flickered.
The television came back on.
And the screen wasn't red this time.
It was white.
A symbol glowed in the center—a black blade bound in chains.
And below it, the words:
"Choose your tether."