A vortex tore open in the air, and two figures cloaked and hooded from head to toe leapt through. The one draped in yellow—Elder Caledor, Miko instantly recognized—raised his hands, tracing invisible lines. Blue symbols shimmered around him, and a vast translucent dome of light formed above the area, enclosing them in its protective glow.

  The other figure, in a dark red cloak, was another Elder. With his hood still shadowing his face, crimson runes spun around his hands as arcs of energy lashed out in every direction. The monsters trapped inside convulsed and burned, their bodies collapsing in clouds of smoke and ash.

  The Fragment had already vanished, but the two Elders had seen enough. They had waited until the Harbingers withdrew before stepping in with reinforcements. Through the still-turning vortex, Primus soldiers in green battle suits emerged and rushed to carry Zod away. Miko realized they hadn’t even needed the spare telecom the Commander had given them. Teleportation back to Primus was already being handled.

  Two more vortexes opened across the ruined zone, spilling soldiers through the blinding light. Their weapons glowed with layered runes as they burned through the monsters piled over the cocoon Tee was trapped in. Kie’s body lay in a cleared patch—the blast of light that consumed him had already obliterated the creatures nearby. All that remained was to retrieve what was left of him and depart.

  Elder Caledor turned sharply toward Miko. “Get away from her,” he urged, motioning toward Saeda lying unconscious in her arms.

  Miko hesitated, eyes wide, staring at the cloaked figures as though they spoke an alien tongue.

  Elder Earvangar—the red-themed Elder—glanced over his shoulder at the encroaching radiance of destruction drawing closer by the second. The soldiers had already departed with Miko’s other teammates. Only the two Elders and Miko remained.

  Elder Caledor spoke quickly, his tone grave. “Young lady, we must ensure the one you hold is cleansed of every trace of corruption. We cannot risk bringing her back if there’s even a chance the Harbingers could follow.”

  “And that requires both of us,” Elder Earvangar barked. “We’ve no time left—so begone!”

  Miko jumped back on instinct. Being a speedster, she was already gone before Earvangar could finish saying “thee.”

  The two Elders performed a short but precise ritual over Saeda’s body before vanishing through separate vortexes. The zone behind them collapsed into light, erased completely.

  When Miko opened her eyes again, she was the only one standing among her teammates. Saeda lay motionless.

  She allowed herself to be placed on a stretcher and carried to the medics. The sight of her teammates—especially Saeda—was enough to pull her into an exhausted, dreamless sleep.

  Miko woke before the others. Relief flooded her when she saw Saeda breathing steadily beside her. Hours later, she slipped quietly from the infirmary and returned with a small white box clasped in her hands. By the time the sun began to set, the tall windows stretched long bars of orange and shadow across the room. To her surprise, her teammates had stirred awake.

  “Saeda!” Miko squealed, rushing forward to embrace her friend.

  Zod gave a small laugh. “Yeah—great to have you back, Saeda.”

  Tee and Kie nodded in agreement.

  They soon began their usual recount of the last mission, piecing together what fragments they could remember from the chaos with the Harbingers.

  “We took down one of them!” Miko said brightly. She was the only one not in white, having already changed out of her uniform. Perched on the edge of a bed, she beamed so hard her smile barely wavered.

  Saeda blinked, then blurted, “No way! Who was it—Legion?”

  Zod shook his head.

  Her eyes flicked up to the ceiling as though searching for the answer before she sighed and added, “Was it the bird?”

  Tee rolled her eyes, already dreading what felt like the start of another long guessing game. Knowing Zod, he would drag that out until morning—and she had no patience for it.

  “It was the walking pile of bandaged skeletons,” she said flatly. “Why was that so hard to figure out?”

  Miko opened the small white box she had brought and tossed it into the air. A burst of bright confetti exploded upward, fluttering toward the ceiling in a cascade of colors. “Victory!” she shouted.

  The shreds of colored paper drifted down in silence. Kie rose from his seat and quietly walked toward the door. The others stood as well, though none of them tried to stop him.

  “It’s good to have you back,” Tee said to Saeda. “Dish duty hasn’t been the same without you pointing out all the spots I miss.”

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  Saeda gave a faint smile, though her eyes stayed on Kie’s retreating figure. “Thanks,” she said softly. “But I need some time to decide if I’m glad to be back.”

  Miko dashed ahead of them and began walking backward to face the group, her grin wide. “You two should help me decorate the surprise cake!” She threw her hands into the air and cheered, “We’re having a party!”

  “With five people?” Tee asked, half-lidded eyes betraying her exhaustion.

  Zod slipped both hands into his pockets. “Pretty sure you’re not supposed to say that in front of the guest of honor.”

  Miko blinked, glancing at Saeda. “Oh—right.”

  “I didn’t hear anything,” Saeda murmured, eyes still fixed on the large doors ahead.

  “You should use the time to do something about this hair,” Miko said, sidling up beside her. She reached for the ends of Saeda’s long, dull locks, stopping just short of touching them. “All of this needs to go.”

  “I will,” Saeda replied. “And I’m using a knife from the kitchen since my scissors are only good for cutting split ends.”

  Miko’s jaw dropped.

  True to her word, Saeda took a kitchen knife and spent nearly four hours in the bathroom restoring her hair to its old style. When she was finally done, she stepped out of her room, following a trail of confetti that led through the glass doors to the pool. Her blank expression was her way of pretending she didn’t already know what awaited her.

  “Surprise!”

  Zod and Miko burst out from hiding the second Saeda stepped through the door. Tee followed more calmly—unlike the two toddlers in teen bodies.

  “Guys, you shouldn’t have,” Saeda said with the faintest flicker of a smile.

  “Smile!” Zod said.

  The camera in his hand began flashing nonstop in Saeda’s face, each burst of light more irritating than the last.

  “Can we cut the cake already?” Tee asked, heading for the table.

  Night had fallen, but the glow beneath the pool, mixed with the warm light spilling from the house, lit the area in a tranquil shimmer. It was well past global curfew, yet none of them cared. They weren’t about to postpone Saeda’s welcome-back celebration. Besides, there hadn’t been any Xeno-victims near Primus. It was safe enough.

  The four of them gathered around the cake on the table near the pool.

  “What the freck!” Saeda shouted, jerking back as something cold dripped down her head. Her eyes snapped to Zod, who was stepping away, holding an empty cup.

  “What?” he said, shrugging. “People do that all the time in my district—it’s a welcome-back thing.”

  Saeda flicked her hands to shake off the liquid sliding down to her elbows. She was going to have to wash her hair again—at night—after just spending hours fixing it. “The people in your district are idiots.”

  Kie chuckled from the balcony. Tee, noticing him standing apart from the group with a reading tab in hand, frowned. For a supposedly nice guy, shouldn’t he be down there making Saeda feel welcome? Or maybe the great pretender just couldn’t fake kindness that day.

  She activated her eye ability to peek at what he was reading. Then she cut a slice of cake, balancing it on a plate as her excuse to approach him. The memory of when he’d used his mind-linking ability on her without consent still lingered—that place, the courtyard, brought it all rushing back.

  The white glow from Kie’s tab illuminated his face, but he wasn’t reading. He was watching Tee instead, the corners of his mouth twitching when Saeda reacted to Zod’s prank. When he sensed Tee’s approach, he quickly turned his head, pretending he’d noticed her all along.

  She reached him and pressed the plate against his chest. “Laughing about something you’ve already read?” she asked. “You must be really bored.”

  Kie blinked. “What?”

  Tee pulled the plate back, scooped a bite of cake, and pointed her fork as she spoke between chews. “I’ve used my eye ability to check your tab before. You’ve already passed that page, which means you’re either rereading something that wasn’t funny—or laughing like a madman for no reason.”

  Kie closed the tab, blinking slowly as he processed her words. “Such invasion of privacy,” he muttered, slipping the tab inside his thick jacket. Then, with a faint smirk, he added, “But I won’t get mad at you. Spy on me all you want.”

  He stepped closer, wiped a smudge of cake from the corner of her mouth with his thumb, and—without hesitation—licked it off his finger before walking away.

  Tee froze, blinking rapidly, then stared down at her reflection in the plate. She couldn’t look at him again for the rest of the night.

  Kie rejoined the others and said, “Saeda, it’s good to have you back.”

  Saeda’s smile wavered.

  Miko broke the silence with a forced cheer. “It’s getting late—we shouldn’t be outside at this hour anyway.” Then, with renewed brightness, she added, “Let’s go watch the movie!”

  Zod grabbed Saeda’s arm playfully. “You’re gonna love this one—it’s hilarious!”

  Tee closed the glass door behind them, trailing a few steps back. When she heard Saeda scream, she froze mid-step—but forced herself to keep going. By the time she reached the archway, the lights flickered on.

  Miko and Zod stood near the center of the room, scanning every corner for movement. Saeda sat curled up on a couch behind them, her legs pulled close.

  “I knew it,” Zod said, glancing around in panic. “The Harbingers did something to Saeda—now they’re here!”

  “That’s impossible,” Miko protested. “The Elders said she was clean.”

  Kie’s calm voice cut through the tension. “None of us know where Primus is to begin with. Even if they got information from her, it wouldn’t lead them here.”

  Tee dashed in, half-expecting blood—or worse, a Xenosapian. “What’s going on?” she demanded.

  Saeda lowered her legs to the ground, head bowed. “It… it’s nothing,” she stammered.

  Miko and Zod turned toward her.

  Saeda clutched her arm, voice trembling. “You don’t know what it was like. I was in endless pain—trying to take back control—and the darkness made it worse. I can’t go back there. Not ever. If I do, I’ll get trapped again.”

  Her shoulders quivered as she buried her face in her hands. “Please… don’t turn the lights off. I’m scared.

  They watched the show with the lights on. Afterwards, Saeda went to her room, but she left the lights gleaming. She lay there with her eyes wide open, unable to sleep, and spent the entire night awake.