Flashback – Five Years Ago
The alley reeked of damp trash and fear. A young Elise Veyra, small and frail, pressed herself against a wall as three stray dogs snarled, saliva dripping from bared teeth. She clutched her torn backpack, tears blurring her vision. I'm going to die here.
"Hey! Over here!"
A rock whizzed past the dogs, striking the wall. They turned, growling, to see a boy her age—Adrian Clarke, trembling but standing tall—waving his arms. "Leave her alone!"
The largest dog lunged. Adrian threw another rock, hitting its flank. "Run!" he shouted at Elise.
She didn't hesitate. She sprinted past him, but glanced back just once: Adrian, pale but defiant, holding his ground until the dogs finally slunk away.
He didn't even know my name, she thought later, cheeks wet with gratitude. But I'll never forget his.
Present Day - Morning – The Library
Adrian's golden eye flickered as he squinted at a crumbling manuscript. Calamity Class: A curse disguised as power. The user's soul fractures with each use. He shuddered, the words gnawing at him.
"T-That one's a forgery," a soft voice said behind him.
He turned. A girl with lavender hair stood there, her violet eyes glowing faintly. Stats flooded his vision:
Name: Elise Veyra
Age: 16
Power Class: Rare (Spatial Jump)
Strength: 95
Intelligence: 162
Magical Capacity: 140/160
Ability: Micro-Teleportation (10-meter radius, 1.5-second cooldown)
"Elise?" Adrian blinked. The girl from the alley?
She teleported to his table in a snap of purple light, leaving a lavender afterimage that dissolved like stardust. Cheeks blooming pink, she stammered, "Y-You remember me?"
"You… uh, hid behind a trash can," he said awkwardly.
"I—! W-Well, you looked like you needed help!" She gestured to the books, nearly knocking over a lamp. "C-Calamity Class research is 83% myth, 12% propaganda, and 5%… um… scribbles by drunk scholars."
Adrian snorted. "So you're saying I'm doomed?"
"N-No! Just… misunderstood!" She teleported to a high shelf, snatched a hidden ledger, and reappeared breathlessly. "This one mentions 'eyes that hunger.' Maybe… a metaphor?"
Hunger. The word echoed in his mind.
Midday – The Courtyard Picnic
Lucy skipped into the library, clutching a paper bag. "Adrian! Cafeteria sandwiches!" She froze when she spotted Elise. "Uh… who's this?"
"Elise," Adrian said. "We… knew each other as kids."
"Hi!" Lucy grinned, her Uncommon Class shield bracelet glinting. "I'm Lucy. Wanna eat with us? I stole extra cookies!"
Elise's eyes widened. "O-Oh, I don't want to intrude—"
"You're not!" Lucy grabbed her wrist, dragging her outside. "Adrian needs friends who aren't Nova. She's scary."
Sunlight dappled the grass as they settled under an oak tree. Lucy chattered about school while Elise nibbled her sandwich, stealing glances at Adrian. His eyelashes are unfairly long, she noted, then teleported a crumb off his shoulder just to feel useful.
"Soooo," Lucy drawled, licking cookie crumbs off her fingers. "How'd you two meet? Adrian never talks about girls!"
"Dogs," Elise mumbled, blushing. "He… saved me."
"Dogs?!" Lucy gasped. "Tell me everything!"
Adrian groaned. "Lucy—"
"Nope! This is gold."
By the end of lunch, Lucy had pried out the full story—minus the doodles.
Afternoon – Bonds and Bullies
"I'll grab water!" Lucy hopped up, her shield flickering faintly as she jogged to the vending machine.
Around the corner, a sneering voice cut through the calm. "Look who's here—Little Miss Uncommon!"
Lucy froze. A lanky boy with greasy hair blocked her path, his Common Class Earth Manipulation gloves crackling. "Heard your brother's a PAO lab rat now. What's he got? Glow-in-the-dark peepers?"
"Leave me alone," Lucy said, activating her shield. A translucent dome shimmered around her—but it wavered, her magic draining fast. 10 seconds. That's all she had.
"Cute toy." The boy slammed a fist into the ground. A spike of earth shot toward her.
Lucy's shield shattered on impact. She stumbled back, panic rising—
"Apologize."
The bully whirled. Elise stood behind him, violet eyes cold as winter, lavender afterimages trailing her like ghostly footprints.
"Or what, twerp?" he spat.
She teleported—10 meters in a blink—kneeing his spine. He crashed face-first into dirt. "Next time," she whispered, her voice monotone, "I drop you from the roof."
The boy scrambled away, cursing.
Lucy gaped. "Elise is… kinda awesome."
Late Afternoon – Research and Secrets
Back in the library, Elise helped Adrian test his copied powers.
"Focus on the space between," she said, blushing when he stared at her too intently. "Teleportation isn't movement—it's folding reality."
Adrian's right eye glowed violet as he copied her ability. He tried to blink to the door—but rematerialized halfway, his legs fused with a chair.
"Graceful," Lucy giggled, snapping a photo.
Undeterred, Adrian tried again. This time, he appeared upside-down, clinging to the ceiling like a bat. Elise teleported up to fix his posture, then accidentally brought a startled librarian along. "S-Sorry! Wrong coordinates!"
Lucy snorted. "You two are disasters."
While Elise flustered over the mess, Lucy peeked at her open notebook. Amid equations and portal theories, she spotted Adrian Clarke doodled in looping script—then scribbled out. Oooooh, Lucy mouthed, snapping a stealth photo.
By sunset, they'd found nothing about Calamity Class. Adrian slumped. "Maybe it's hopeless."
Elise hesitated, then touched his wrist. "You saved me when you had no power. Now you have too much. But… you're still you." Her violet eyes softened. "That's enough."
Evening – Dinner and Whispers
Lucy dragged them to the dorm kitchen, determined to "bond" over cafeteria takeout. "Sooooo," she drawled, grinning at Elise. "You're definitely sticking around, right?"
"I—! I mean, if Adrian… um…" Elise teleported a stray noodle off his shirt.
"She's staying," Lucy declared. "Anyone who kicks bully butt and puts up with Adrian's brooding is family."
Later, alone on the rooftop, Adrian finally explained—partially.
"The golden eye… it lets me see things. Stats, weaknesses. And copy powers," he said, avoiding her gaze. "But it's… unstable."
Elise hugged her knees. "Does it hurt?"
Every time. "Not really."
She frowned, seeing through the lie. "You don't have to tell me everything. Just… don't shut me out."
A breeze swept past, carrying the scent of lavender. Without thinking, Adrian reached for her hand—then froze.
"S-Sorry," he mumbled, pulling back.
Elise teleported her hand into his. "C-Cheating," she whispered, her face crimson.
Night – Whispers in the Dark
Two blocks away, the Mysterious Man leaned against a lamppost, watching the rooftop through a swirl of violet smoke. "Touching," he murmured. "But hunger always wins, little Calamity."
After the night, in her room, Elise flipped open her notebook. She froze when she saw the doodled name—Adrian Clarke—lightly circled in Lucy's pink highlighter. No. No no no. She teleported the notebook into her pillowcase, cheeks flaming.
Some bonds are forged in fire. Others? In the quiet spaces between heartbeats, where a single touch feels like a revolution