I jerked awake, tearing out of the suffocating silk sheets, lungs clawing for air. My name was Marcus Sterling, but the body I was in wasn't mine. It was Kaelen Vance's—pale, stretched tall, and cursed with a reputation that reeked just as bad as his cologne.
The panic hit first, hot and choking. But then it cooled into fury. This wasn't a trial anymore; this was sabotage. All the things I fought for—my 98% in Physics, the $150 I'd sweated out working shifts at Wok Stop, the grudging respect I'd carved out—they were gone. Stripped away. Replaced with Kaelen freaking Vance.
Everyone knew Kaelen. Six-three, sharp jawline, a closet full of overpriced clothes, and a personality that made people cross the hallway just to avoid him. He wasn't respected—he was feared. Always in detention, always mouthing off at teachers, always making someone's life miserable. I'd lost my old self's fragile progress and landed smack in the middle of a villain's mess.
That was the part that scared me most. I wasn't starting from zero anymore. I was starting at negative ten.
I pulled on Kaelen's stupidly expensive jeans and some faded designer band tee, every movement foreign and awkward in this taller frame. My one priority was Yui. She was the only thread tying me back to sanity.
I found her in the courtyard, sitting alone like she had been waiting for me. Calm. Too calm. I stormed toward her, Kaelen's sharp features twisting into a scowl I couldn't control.
"What the hell is going on, Yui?" My voice cracked out of me, hoarse, high-pitched—so different from Eli's or my own it almost startled me. "Another transfer? Did I screw something up? Wasn't the progress I made enough?"
For the first time, her expression shifted. Just a flicker, but it was there—concern.
"No, Marcus," she said quietly. "You didn't do anything wrong. You adapted faster than we expected."
"Then why the reset? Why Kaelen freaking Vance? Elias Finch was bad enough, but at least he was harmless. This guy's a walking hate magnet. I lost my money, my grades, my—everything."
She leaned in, lowering her voice like we were conspiring. "I told you not to let your guard down. The test reacts to your progress. The moment you start standing tall, the ground shifts beneath you. That's how it works. Gold is stripped away so steel can be forged."
Her words hit like ice water. A lesson, not a lifeline.
"You're saying this is because of me?"
Her smile was maddeningly faint. "Yes. You triggered it. By resisting, by refusing to be broken, you proved you were ready for the next layer. It isn't random. It's responsive."
I wanted to scream. Instead I spat out, "Fine. Then I'll figure it out. I'll beat this too. I'll find out where Kaelen's rock-bottom is and climb out."
I stalked away, legs too long, too fast, like the body itself was mocking me. I didn't know what class to show up to or who I needed to apologize to first. Elias Finch's shame had been replaced by something darker—Kaelen's debts.
I was still drowning in that thought when I turned a corner near the back lockers. Three guys were waiting. Big, broad, leaning against the walls like they owned the place. Their eyes locked on me with instant, ugly hate.
The biggest one—thick neck, shaved head, grin full of menace—stepped forward. "Well, well. Look who finally crawled out of hiding."
I froze, planting my feet. "I don't know who you are. Move."
He barked out a laugh. "Don't know us? You broke Leo's nose last month. We're here to collect."
My stomach sank. Kaelen hadn't just bullied. He'd fought. Hurt people. And I was the one standing here to face the fallout.
"I didn't break anyone's nose," I said, trying to sound calm, but Kaelen's face twisted the words into a smirk.
"Yeah, sure," the guy sneered, pulling back his fist.
I braced, chest tight, knowing I was about to eat the punch for sins that weren't mine.
And then—everything stopped.
The fist hung inches from my face, frozen in the air. The boy's eyes stayed wide, locked with violence that wouldn't land. Dust motes hung still in the light, and even the low hum of the ventilation disappeared.
Silence. Absolute silence.
Then the hallway burst into blinding light, white-hot and unbearable, swallowing everything in its path....
To Be Continued.