Saeda’s eyes flashed blue, but none of her teammates were around to see it. The aura of everything around her grew so strong it felt like a second sense—sharp, distinct, alive.

  She felt the pull of nearby energy sources, one so powerful it numbed her senses until she forgot to breathe. Unable to contain it any longer, she activated her holo-map and tapped onto Zod’s tag for a private call.

  “Zod, my eyes flashed blue again, and I’m feeling a strange pull. My aura ability might be back.”

  Zod was perched high in a tree, scanning the lands when he got the message. He brought his telecom to his face. “Saeda, that’s great news. Try using it to locate the fragment. Wherever it is, the Harbingers must be close.”

  “You really think I can do that?”

  “Tell me first—what did you touch?”

  Zod leapt down from the tree, landing with his knees and fist hitting the ground. Cracks spread beneath his boots as he activated his holo-map to pinpoint her location.

  “I didn’t touch anything with my bare hands—just the ground when we teleported. You think that’s connected?”

  “Well, it’s the best lead we’ve got. I have faith you can find the fragment.” He scratched his head and looked back at the path he’d come from, where trees were suddenly sprouting in rapid, unnatural growth. “Besides, blind searches are wasting our time.”

  Encouraged, Saeda switched to open communication so the others could hear.

  “Kie, my ability’s back. I think I’ve found the lead you wanted—I’m sensing a strong aura. Maybe it’s the fragment.”

  The uncertainty in her tone made Kie hesitate, but they couldn’t ignore any possibility.

  “Fine,” he said for everyone to hear. “We’ll regroup.”

  Miko was the first to reach Saeda, thrilled that her friend was finally mastering her ability. But when she saw Saeda standing still, focused, she held back her excitement and checked her holo-map instead—only to frown in confusion.

  By the time Zod and Kie arrived, Saeda had both hands pressed to her temples, eyes shut in deep concentration.

  “Where’s the fragment?” Kie asked.

  “Where’s Tee?” Miko demanded, louder.

  Kie turned sharply toward her and opened his holo-map. His brows knitted when he saw Tee’s tag—too far away, and not moving.

  The noise broke Saeda’s focus. Her eyes opened, glowing faintly. “Tee must’ve gone solo again,” she said flatly.

  Miko’s brows furrowed. “But why would she do that?”

  Kie clenched his jaw. He tried reaching Tee through his telecom, but not directly—if she saw it was a one-on-one call, she might ignore him.

  “Tee, where are you? I gave specific instructions to rendezvous at Saeda’s location!”

  Everyone heard Kie’s voice through their telecoms. Then—silence, except for faint breathing.

  Zod shook his head. “She’s probably holding the telecom too close to her face and staring at it. That’s why we can hear her breathing.”

  Miko frowned deeper. “You mean she’s ignoring us?”

  Kie sighed and lowered his hand. Tee would learn her lesson soon enough. He couldn’t let her derail the mission. Turning back to Saeda, he asked,

  “Which way did you say the fragment was?”

  Saeda started forward briskly, hands raised like antennas catching invisible waves. “I’m not sure it’s the fragment,” she said, eyes narrowing with focus, “but I’m definitely picking up something strong. Follow me.”

  It became clear the land itself was changing. Tremors from distant earthquakes made their hearts sink, and floods of green sprouted through the ground like rushing water—forming forests in seconds. The sight was mind-blowing. The impossible things they witnessed convinced Zod he should write a fantasy novel about it—one that would make him rich and famous just to rub it in his parents’ faces.

  They followed Saeda past geysers that shot steaming water high into the air. But instead of falling back down, the water joined the thick layer of low clouds above their heads.

  Towering tree stalks bent toward them as if to slap them away, putting everyone on edge. Kie welcomed the distraction—finally, something he could slice through to vent the anger boiling in his head. Tee had better have a good explanation for her nonsense. He was convinced something had to be wrong with her brain to explain the stupid things she did.

  Miko, on the other hand, found the blue, shimmering landscape Saeda led them into beautiful. Everything looked coated in crystal, and for a moment she imagined breaking a piece off to make a necklace. That thought quickly vanished once the sharp, uneven spikes beneath them began tearing up their boots. Since none of them could fly, they resorted to summoning their swords and laying them flat to walk across. It worked. Kie even patted Zod on the shoulder for coming up with the idea.

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  The soft, sinking ground that firmed up a few inches below their feet was funny at first, but it quickly became irritating.

  “Grounds like this shouldn’t exist!” Zod complained.

  The heat grew unbearable as they entered the crater fields. The enormous craters looked like the land’s pores, as if the world itself were sweating—but the water was long gone. Miko was about to faint from the heat, and with nothing else to focus on, all she could think about was how brittle her hair felt.

  Saeda suddenly stopped. Ahead, an unnatural shadow blanketed the land in total darkness. Kie immediately voiced his concern—there could be hidden ditches, and they wouldn’t see them coming. No one argued when they chose to walk around it, staying on course toward the pull Saeda felt.

  But the next obstacle stopped them short. A vast sea of yellow liquid that stretched too far to go around. They had no choice but to swim. Doubt crept in—even Saeda questioned herself—but no one had a better idea. The fragment was still their only goal.

  A bolt of lightning struck the water ahead, freezing them in place. Moments later, the water began to twist. They weren’t swimming toward the other side anymore. They were fighting to escape a massive whirlpool. It was useless. The current dragged them down, their screams echoing in their heads as they clutched each other’s hands to avoid being separated.

  When the water vanished, air filled their lungs again. They gasped and opened their eyes just in time to see the ground rushing up at them—endless green fields below.

  They landed hard, but alive. Around them, towering, multicolored algae hung above like a glowing canopy stretching for miles.

  Kie got up and brushed the dirt off his uniform. “I hope we’re not lost.”

  Saeda stood and continued walking in the direction of the pull. Without looking back, she said,

  “I’m not Tee. I wouldn’t lead you all this way for nothing. If anything, that whirlpool did us a favor. The pull’s even stronger here.”

  Kie sighed, silently hoping she was right.

  The smell of iron was too strong in Tee’s nostrils. She ripped her eyes open, blinking against the sticky substance clinging to her lashes. To her surprise, she could see again. Her vision slowly sharpened, though a sharp cramp in her neck stole her focus.

  She had healed after what felt like two hours of unconsciousness. It was silent—so silent that her own breathing sounded loud. When her memories returned, panic hit her like a wave.

  There were no white infirmary walls, only shades of brown. She was lying on her side on the ground, unable to move. Pain radiated from her arms, and she hesitated to look, afraid of what she might see.

  What had the Harbingers done to her? The pain wasn’t unbearable yet, but that could change if she saw missing limbs. Tears welled up, but curiosity overpowered fear. She glanced down and gasped.

  Chains. They were the source of the pain, coiled around her so tightly she could barely breathe. She didn’t get the chance to study them or even attempt to break free. Three dark figures stood nearby, and her heart skipped a beat. Her vision blurred as her mind tried to focus on the voice echoing inside her head.

  No way. The Harbingers couldn’t be that close without slicing her apart. But what else could those shapes be? Her memory flashed—Lilith’s black eyes staring at her in the mountain chamber.

  She gasped again. So that’s where she was. But why was she still alive—and not locked away in darkness like they did to Saeda?

  When she didn’t see any pale faces in her blurred peripheral view, she darted her eyes toward the figures. It was Lilith, Legion, and Sade with the bird perched on his shoulder—all with their backs turned to her.

  How rude. But wait… why were they standing so still? The longer she stared, the more she realized they weren’t moving at all. Not even breathing. She couldn’t hear a single heartbeat other than her own.

  Statues? Maybe the Harbingers had left decoys behind to guard her while they plotted some new, twisted punishment. Or maybe they were in some sort of stasis, waiting for her to wake before beginning their torture. The thought made her pulse race.

  Ten minutes passed. If she had individual teleportation, she could’ve escaped—but her hands were bound. She stopped blaming herself long enough to wonder about something else entirely.

  What did the Harbingers do when they weren’t hunting fragments? Maybe that was her answer. They shut down between missions, only reactivating when a new fragment appeared. Their existence revolved entirely around serving the Dark Lord. Maybe that was why Legion always seemed so excited during fragment hunts. He had no life beyond chasing glowing rocks.

  Even Sade ignored her. That didn’t surprise her. He always pretended not to know her. Or maybe she had hallucinated those encounters altogether. No… that couldn’t be.

  She couldn’t see his face, but he didn’t seem to be doing any Seal-breaking or ritual nonsense. And he hadn’t spoken since she last saw him at Mid-Guard. Asking him anything would be pointless. The bandaged one wasn’t there either—but a part of her refused to believe that demon was truly dead.

  Tee took a deep breath and tried to break free from the chains. It felt like struggling inside a coffin made of solid steel. She couldn’t even roll away. Some invisible force pinned her to the ground.

  Her last option was to yell. Maybe she could at least tell Legion to drink some water for that awful raspy voice.

  “Hey, Legion!” she shouted, knowing he wouldn’t have allowed her time to say the rest of her words.

  Nothing. Her heart pounded with every silent second that followed. The stillness smothered her courage. What was the point of yelling at statues?

  The pain reminded her that that wasn’t a nightmare. But why keep her alive? Considering what the Harbingers were capable of, that almost counted as mercy.

  Then it hit her—the horrifying realization. The Harbingers were using her as bait. Her teammates would see her location tag unmoving and come for her. But would the Harbingers really let her answer their calls? Something didn’t add up.

  She strained her eyes, looking around as far as she could. Her normal vision wasn’t enough, so she swallowed hard and activated her foresight. It came at a cost—losing sight and hearing of the present for a glimpse beyond.

  Five long minutes passed with nothing happening as she kept assuring herself she was safe—until it finally worked.

  Light streamed through the holes at the top of the cavern. Other than that, there was nothing in the space but her and the Harbingers. She saw herself lying behind them, helpless and bound to the ground. The sight was pathetic. How was she ever supposed to become the best Sentinel if she couldn’t even break free from a set of chains?

  Something about the Harbingers’ stance nagged at her. She turned her focus from the light to them again and again, comparing the scenes. Then she blinked, realization dawning. She didn’t even need foresight anymore—the image was etched in her mind.

  For figures standing tall under the light, they should have cast shadows. Even her own body had one, faint but visible. She looked down to confirm—and froze.

  The Harbingers had no shadows.

  Her eyes widened as the truth struck her.

  The Harbingers were invisible.