Mya woke up early and headed downstairs for breakfast. A sudden knock echoed through the quiet house. When she opened the door, no one was there only a small white card stuck to the wood.
She picked it up.
"Meet me at the old oak tree in the town square at midnight. Come alone."
No signature. No clues. Just that message.
All day, Mya tried to ignore it, but the words kept circling in her mind. By nightfall, she knew she couldn't ignore it anymore.
At midnight, she arrived at the old oak tree. A man in all black stood beneath it, completely still, eyes cold.
"You must stop this search," he said quietly.
Mya clenched her fists. "Why should I? I'm already involved in all of this."
"You're meddling in things you should stay far away from," the man replied. "This… whatever you think you're looking for… it has nothing to do with you. End your search."
Then he disappeared without a sound.
Shaken but determined, Mya returned to the cottage. Alex, Kira, Vile, Ethan, Liam, Lyra, and Kaelor were all there, gathered around a fire.
She lifted the note. "Someone left this. They told me I'm not supposed to be involved in any of this."
Alex frowned. "Well, that sucks for him, because you are."
Lyra nodded, protective. "We're not letting someone scare you out of this."
Kaelor leaned back, smirking. "If someone's stalking us, I wanna meet him. He sounds fun."
Kira crossed her arms. "Whoever he is, he doesn't get to decide your place."
Mya exhaled. "I'm staying. No matter what he says."
The next morning, the group traveled into a small, quiet town. The locals whispered and stared as they passed. Alex didn't like it. Kaelor loved it.
"Look at them," Kaelor grinned. "It's like we're celebrities."
Vile muttered, "More like aliens…"
They spotted a bar and headed inside. The place was dim, smoky, and filled with murmuring voices.
As they walked in, they overheard locals talking:
"You hear the stories… about that ninth one?" "No one even knows if they were human…"
Kaelor immediately stepped up to the bar.
"Hey, bartender," he said casually. "What's with all this 'ninth' stuff people keep whispering about?"
The bartender snorted. "Just legends to scare kids. They say there were fourteen individuals dangerous ones who nearly destroyed a kingdom long ago."
Alex blinked. "My grandfather told me those stories. He said they weren't real."
"Oh, they were real," the bartender said, wiping a glass. "Probably long dead. Or maybe never existed. Honestly, it all sounds dumb to me."
Kaelor smirked. "Fourteen maniacs almost destroying a kingdom? Sounds like a normal Tuesday."
Ethan laughed. "Bro… YOU would say that."
Before Alex could reply, a hooded figure walked into the tavern.
Everyone fell silent.
The man sat nearby, and Kaelor elbowed Alex. "Ask the bartender who that dude is."
Alex did. "Who's that?"
"No one knows," the bartender whispered. "He comes here every week. Never talks. Never orders anything."
A man suddenly approached their table and laughed. "Relax! Not everything mysterious is scary!"
He pulled back his hood just a smiling performer with painted cheeks.
"The name's Jack," he said. "Just a traveling entertainer."
Kaelor immediately pointed at him. "I KNEW you weren't dramatic enough to be dangerous."
Jack grinned. "But I do hear interesting things. Like a kid named Ben getting mixed up with a certain group."
Alex froze. "Ben… is he okay?"
Jack shrugged. "Depends how you define okay. Some say he joined a group called the Order."
The bartender cut in. "Nah, kid. He's part of something else now a group called the Shadow Syndicate. Assassins. Formed by the king's brother."
Kira went silent. Ethan's expression darkened.
Kaelor rolled his shoulders and sighed. "Welp. Guess we know where we're headed next."
The bartender slid them a rough map. "If you're brave or stupid this leads to their hideout. The Shadow's Lair."
Alex tightened his grip on the map.
"Then that's where we go."
Mya, standing beside him, nodded.
"Together."
The team stepped out of the tavern, the weight of everything settling over them but with their personalities clashing, joking, and holding each other up, they were ready for whatever came next.