The air in Neon Haven felt like it was soaked in static, thick with tension none of them dared to break. The buzz of arcade machines, the clink of a token dropped, even the faint hum of the old neon sign outside—all faded into the background, swallowed by the weight pressing down on Kael's chest.
He sat slumped on a cracked vinyl stool, fingers still trembling as he stared at the flickering arcade screens. The black blade symbol—the same one that had burned itself into his vision earlier—lingered in the corners of his sight, an unwelcome stain on reality.
"Alright," Rin said, cutting through the silence like a razor. Her voice was steady, sharp, but carried the kind of seriousness that made everyone listen. "We need to talk about the tether. What it is. What it means. What it does to us."
Kael swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry. "From what I saw... it's like a line. A connection between us and something else. Something pulling on us."
Juno nodded slowly, fingers tracing a worn pattern in the dust covering the arcade counter. "Less a connection, more a bond. Binding us. To a fate. To each other."
Mace snorted, breaking the heavy mood with a bitter laugh. "Great. Bonded for life. Like some bad tattoo we can't wash off."
Rin's eyes narrowed. "You joke, but I've been digging into those runes. Those symbols aren't random. They're ancient sigils used to bind spirits, curses, powerful magic."
Kael leaned forward, desperate for answers. "Do you think the mark is a seal?"
"Exactly," Rin said, holding up her palm. The faint rune shimmered with a dull, eerie glow in the arcade's flickering lights. "A seal. A prison. Or a promise."
"Promise?" Mace echoed, voice dripping with disbelief.
Rin met his gaze without flinching. "Power comes with a price. That figure in your vision—he said we'd have to choose one tether. But warned the others would claim us. It's not a choice. It's a contract."
Kael rubbed his face, overwhelmed. "What if we don't choose? Or if we choose wrong?"
Juno's voice dropped low, almost a whisper. "Then we lose ourselves. The tether takes us."
Cold dread crawled down Kael's spine.
Rin pulled out her phone and scrolled through the notes and images she'd collected. "There's a legend from far away about five warriors bound by different colored cords. Each cord gave them strength—but at a cost. Only one survived without being consumed."
Kael's eyes widened. "That sounds exactly like the vision."
Juno exhaled slowly. "We're those warriors now."
Mace looked away, jaw clenched tight. "So we're screwed?"
"No," Rin said firmly. "Marked, yes. But chosen too. If we understand the tethers, maybe we can control them. Maybe we survive."
Kael felt a flicker of hope. "Alright. Where do we start?"
"Information," Rin said. "The runes. The colors. The city of mirrors. We have to find the source."
Juno frowned. "That city. It felt like a prison. Or a reflection of our souls, twisted by the tether."
Kael swallowed hard. "So the tether's not just a bond. It's a test? A trap?"
"Maybe both," Rin said quietly. "Or neither. But we have to figure it out before the blade chooses for us."
The room fell silent again, the weight of their fates pressing down.
Rain began to tap against the grimy windows, steady and cold.
Kael's phone buzzed suddenly.
[Unknown Number]
> The choice is coming. Prepare.
His heart slammed against his ribs. "Prepare for what?" he whispered.
No one answered.
The arcade lights flickered violently, plunging them into near darkness.
Only the black blade symbol burned sharp and bright on the CRT screen.
Kael's breath hitched.
"This is it," Rin said, voice steady but fierce. "The tether calls."
Mace cracked his knuckles, eyes narrowing. "Then let's see what hell looks like."
---
The night had just begun.