The café smelled like over-roasted beans and old textbooks—perfect for college students pretending to be productive. Arkin walked in alongside Theo, both ducking under the low hanging chalkboard sign that read The Study Brew in whimsical, looping script.
Alissa was already there, settled at a corner table with her laptop open and a half-finished smoothie sweating beside her. She waved as soon as she spotted them.
"Took you long enough," she teased, grinning. "Let me guess—Theo got distracted by an existential crisis again?"
Theo rolled his eyes and flopped into the seat across from her. "Actually, Ark was having a spiritual moment with a library shelf."
Arkin set his bag down and shrugged. "Some shelves just have better taste."
Alissa laughed and scooted her chair closer. "Alright, brainiacs. Time to make this project actually decent."
She pulled up the shared document and adjusted her glasses. "Electromagnetic propulsion. Let's make this science sexy."
Theo gave a slow blink. "I can't believe you just said that with a straight face."
"I can," Arkin muttered, already opening his tablet. "She probably practiced it in the mirror."
Alissa leaned toward him with mock offense. "Please, I'm a natural."
They got to work—well, mostly. Alissa typed with impressive speed, throwing occasional teasing glances at Arkin. Theo scrolled through academic sources with the enthusiasm of a man filing taxes. Arkin contributed where needed but found his mind drifting.
The book in his backpack felt… present. Like it knew he was trying to ignore it.
Alissa noticed. "You're zoning out."
"Just thinking," Arkin said.
Theo glanced at him. "Thinking about that book again?"
"Maybe."
Alissa perked up. "Wait, what book?"
Arkin hesitated. "It's called Stormbound: A Chronicle of Lightning and Ash."
"That sounds intense," she said. "What's it about?"
Arkin hesitated slightly "So there's this guy — Kael Thorne. Pirate captain. He commands this beat-up old ship called Stormrider, sailing across some outer-world sea in a planet they call Velhara"
"Sounds dramatic," Theo muttered. "Bet he's got glowy scars and a tragic past."
Arkin smirked. "Not exactly. Then there's this… cosmic shift. Like some hidden system in the universe flips on overnight, and everyone starts awakening powers. Kael—main guy—gets lightning. His crew awakens too. Different things."
"Of course it's a system," Theo groaned. "Same template as always. Only difference is instead of Walmart MC, everyone awakens."
"Right, right," Arkin nodded, brushing it off. "Anyway, Kael starts using lightning in all sorts of ways—powering the ship, enhancing weapons, experimenting with tech they loot. He's not just zapping stuff; he's clever about it."
Theo took a sip from the smoothie left on the table—and immediately regretted it. 'Ugh. So, how far did you get?"
"Not that far," Arkin said. "Just finished the part where they raid a corrupted fortress and find a map to something called the Veil of Silence. Kael wants to sail into uncharted waters for it."
"Lemme guess," Theo said. "Big storm, sea monster, betrayal, emotional trauma, more lightning."
"Sounds like a Tuesday," Alissa added.
Arkin chuckled but didn't add more. He didn't mention how the words felt like they were meant for him. How reading it made his fingertips tingle, like static clinging to his skin. He hadn't even wanted to read fantasy lately. Yet here he was, thinking about the next chapter instead of their propulsion design.
_______
Theo snapped his laptop shut. "Alright, I'm officially out of focus. Let's call it for today."
Alissa yawned theatrically. "Seconded. I need something sweet before I collapse."
They packed up, and the three of them walked out together. The clouds outside had thickened again, casting long shadows over the sidewalk.
_______
Back in his dorm room, Arkin dropped his bag with a thud. He kicked off his shoes, cracked open the window. The rain had started sometime after dinner. Light at first — barely more than mist, but suddenly heavy.
He collapsed onto his chair, groaning. "Screw propulsion theory…"
His laptop blinked from sleep mode, the group doc still open on the screen. A single sentence from Theo, highlighted in mocking yellow:
> "Alissa, tell your bro here to stop reading pirate fanfic mid-calculations."
Arkin smirked, but didn't type anything back.
Instead, his eyes slid to the corner of the desk.
Stormbound: A Chronicle of Lightning and Ash sat there like it had always belonged — the edges still damp from when he'd rushed it out of the library.
He didn't even remember putting it there.
He hesitated, checked the time — 10:10 p.m. The document wasn't due until next week, but their professor wouldn't let them breathe, bringing it up every day like his life depended on it. Technically.
He opened the book.
______
The moment the page turned, the storm outside seemed to match the one inside.
Kael stood atop the creaking deck of the Stormrider, drenched in rain that shimmered with static. Around him, crew members scrambled to tie down crates and sails. The sea itself looked alive — pulses of light racing beneath the surface like something massive was stirring.
The writing wasn't flowery. It wasn't trying to impress. But it moved. Fast. Confident.
By the time Kael's hands first sparked with lightning — pale-blue threads arcing between his fingers — Arkin had stopped noticing the sound of the rain altogether.
______
He didn't look up for over an hour. And when he did, it was only because something inside the book buzzed — like a tuning fork striking bone. Just for a second.
His heart jumped.
The room was dark now. Just the desk lamp, the book, and that faint scent of ozone.
He rubbed his eyes. "What the hell…"
He glanced at the clock again. 1:14 a.m.
Three hours gone.
The laptop had gone to sleep. His phone had one bar of battery left.
He looked back down at the page.
Kael was kneeling, burned and coughing on the deck. The crew was gone. Only lightning remained — thick like fog, crackling across the planks.
Arkin didn't even blink.
He turned the page.
Just one more chapter.
Then sleep.