cLakefront Metropolis
UCA (United Continent of America)
Terra, Gaea, Solar system
Milky Way Galaxy
Neutral Free Zone
January 14th 2019
Across a vast field strewn with the bodies of the fallen, a lone figure walked, unhurried and indifferent. The ground was soaked in blood, forming crimson streams that carved through the carnage. The stench of decay mingled with the sharp tang of iron, thick in the air, but the figure seemed unfazed by the morbid atmosphere.
Scattered across the battlefield were survivors—individuals clad in strange armaments and uniforms, their movements sluggish and disoriented. The figure paid them no mind and stopped at the edge of a shimmering crimson pool. She gazed at the reflection staring back from the bloodied surface: a face with oval-shaped features and olive-brown skin, framed by alien-green hair tied in an intricate braid. She wore emerald armor that hugged her lithe form, its gleam marred by streaks of blood and grime. In her hands rested a longsword, its blade heavy with death.
The face was hers, yet it felt foreign—like wearing the memories of another. Her introspection shattered as a spark of thunder cracked through the silence, followed by a flash of lightning. Something erupted from the pool, a shadowy tendril that snaked around her with impossible speed.
Before she could react, it pulled her into the dark depths. She struggled, thrashing and clawing toward the surface, but her strength ebbed away like sand through her fingers. The darkness whispered to her, its voice seductive and relentless. She hesitated, the weight of her exhaustion pressing down like an anchor. The urge to resist faltered, replaced by an aching desire for release. Maybe it was time to stop fighting. To surrender. And as the abyss enveloped her, she let herself sink, drawn deeper into the embrace of the darkness...
"Samantha!"
The name cut through the ringing in Sam's ears.
Her eyes fluttered open. Rosa's face filled her vision—too close, too sharp. The pilot's seat was empty now. Rosa stood over her, brows drawn tight, the concern in her eyes pressing against Sam's senses like heat against skin.
Sam clenched her jaw and forced the feeling away.
"Are you alright?" Rosa asked again.
Sam pushed herself upright. Across the cabin, the others were watching.
Callum leaned forward, worry written plainly across his face. Trini stood beside him with her arms folded, her expression tight with irritation. The air around her prickled with it—sharp, sour. Trini never bothered hiding how much she disliked Sam.
"I'm fine," Sam said.
The hovercraft's engines wound down with a low whine. Through the open hatch, the mission site stretched out ahead of them, the structure looming in the distance. They had set down a short distance away, far enough that the craft's shadow didn't touch it.
Rosa straightened and turned toward the rest of the team, slipping back into command as if the moment had never happened.
"Alright. First things first—we establish a bounded field around the site," she said. "No Mundanes get anywhere near that structure."
Her gaze settled on one of the men near the hatch.
"Henry and Trini. That's yours."
Henry rose from his seat. Tall, broad-shouldered, brown hair cut close to the scalp, he adjusted the straps of the military gear that matched the rest of theirs—the standard field uniform of the Golden Dawn Order. Without a word, he moved toward the exit hatch, Trini following after him.
Sam unclipped the belt across her waist and rose from her seat as the team moved after the mages toward the hatch.
She stepped forward—
Rosa's hands caught her shoulders.
"You don't have to be here if you don't want to," Rosa said quietly.
Sam swallowed. The wave of protectiveness rolling off Rosa pressed against her senses, thick and suffocating. For a moment, it felt like trying to breathe underwater. She forced herself to steady, pushing the feeling back behind a wall in her mind.
"I'm alright," she said, the lie smooth on her tongue. "Go on. You're the team leader. You should be out there."
Rosa studied her for a few seconds.
Then she nodded.
A bronze spear flashed into existence in Rosa's hand, summoned from the dimensional band around her wrist. With that, she turned and stepped out after the others.
Sam let out a slow breath. She tightened the gauntlets around her wrists, making sure the clasps were secure before heading for the exit.
She stepped out of the hovercraft just as Henry and Trini finished their work.
A translucent barrier surged upward from the ground, spreading in a wide dome that swallowed the entire field where they had landed. The air shimmered as the bounded field locked into place.
Corn stalks rustled around them, stretching in every direction beneath the gray sky. They had landed in the middle of a cornfield somewhere in the rural outskirts of Lakefront Metropolis—one of the many states within the United Continent of America.
A few hours earlier, Golden Dawn—the shadowed organization Sam worked for—had intercepted a signal that traced back to this location.
The readings had been wrong.
Too strong.
Strong enough to tear a hole through the Veil.
Now Sam and the rest of her team—Guardians, the enforcement arm of Golden Dawn—were here to investigate the source and seal the area before any Mundanes noticed something they weren't meant to see.
"Wasu, what's the reading?" Rosa called.
Across the field, Wasu crouched beside a slab of magitech equipment humming with pale blue light. Thin rings of energy spun above the device as it scanned the area.
"The Odic levels are already above the normal threshold," he said without looking up. His fingers moved quickly across the glowing interface. "And they're still rising."
No one here needed the machine to confirm it.
The air itself felt heavy.
Odic energy pressed down on the cornfield in slow, pulsing waves. The stalks trembled as if stirred by a wind that wasn't there.
Every one of them could feel it.
They were Mystics—humans born able to see past the Veil, the invisible barrier the planet produced to hide the deeper truth of the world from Mundanes. Magic, spirits, and forces older than history all existed just beyond that curtain, concealed through the quiet work of Golden Dawn, the ancient order that kept the mystical and mundane worlds from colliding.
Sam stood among them, though she was different even from most Mystics.
She wasn't a Mage like Henry or Trini. She couldn't shape spells or carve sigils into the air.
But she could feel.
Emotions moved through her like currents through water—fear, anger, suspicion. Every heartbeat around her left an imprint she could sense.
And sometimes… more than that.
A surge of Odic energy rolled across the field.
Sam felt it before it reached her.
When it did, her skin prickled, every nerve lighting up as the pressure of the spiritual essence washed over her. Od—the force that existed within everything, living or not—vibrated through the ground beneath her boots and through the air filling her lungs.
It was building. And it wasn't stopping.
"Let's move," Rosa said.
The team advanced into the cornfield, stalks whispering against their armor as they pushed toward the source of the energy flooding the land.
A sound threaded through the rustling leaves.
Soft.
Melodic.
Sam slowed.
"Callum," she said quietly, "can you feel that?"
"Feel what?" Callum glanced around. "The World energy?"
"No… not that." Sam tilted her head slightly. "Something else."
The tone grew clearer the farther she walked—like a distant note carried on the wind. It vibrated along her nerves, raising the fine hairs along her arms.
Her senses tugged at her.
Follow.
Without realizing it, she began drifting away from the others, stepping deeper between the rows of corn.
"Hey—Sam, where are you going?" Callum called.
Rosa turned.
Sam was already several paces ahead, moving faster now, as though pulled forward by something only she could hear.
Rosa narrowed her eyes and lifted a hand, signaling the others to follow.
Of everyone on the team, Rosa understood Sam's ability better than anyone. If there was something here—something powerful enough to cause this surge of Odic energy—Sam would be the one to find it first.
They pushed deeper into the field.
The land began to change.
Corn gave way to broken earth. Jagged rocks burst up from the ground, blackened and twisted, as though the soil itself had been forced upward and frozen in place. It looked like the aftermath of a volcanic eruption—except there had never been a volcano here.
The humming in Sam's ears intensified.
She stepped forward—
Something dropped out of the sky.
The movement was so fast she barely registered the blur rushing toward her.
A bronze spear flashed past her shoulder.
The creature split apart mid-air, torn cleanly in two before it could reach her.
Sam turned.
Rosa stood beside her, already shifting her stance, spear raised.
Shapes began emerging from the rocks.
Dozens of them.
Bodies twisted by Odic energy, eyes glowing in the dim light as they crawled and leapt from the shattered terrain.
"Dammit," Rosa muttered. "Mystic beasts."
Creatures like these thrived in places where World energy gathered too densely. The ambient Od saturated them, warping their bodies and filling them with violent magic.
With this much energy flooding the area… It was inevitable that something like this would appear. The beasts came at them all at once. They were as large as bears—corded muscle rippling beneath coarse, iron-hard hide. Their jaws snapped as they charged through the broken ground.
Rosa didn't hesitate.
Her bronze spear ignited with a flare of enchantment, fire racing along the weapon's runes as she stepped forward. The first creature lunged—
The spear punched straight through its skull.
Callum moved beside her, twin swords flashing free. White energy blazed along the blades as he cut into another beast, the luminous edge shearing through flesh and bone.
Behind them, Henry and Trini raised their hands. Sigils flickered into existence in the air as the two mages began casting—layers of defensive barriers, bursts of support magic flowing across the battlefield.
One of the creatures broke away from the pack. Orange fur. A mane like burning copper. Massive paws that could crush a mundane vehicle with a single strike.
An Ernead lion.
It lunged for Sam.
She pivoted away, her footwork instinctive. The beast's claws tore through empty air as she slipped past the strike, body moving with the rhythm drilled into her through years of training.
The gauntlet on her forearm unfolded with a metallic snap. Its shield lattice flared to life, the enchantment strengthening her arm as she stepped in to counter.
Her fist drove forward—
Then something flashed through her mind. Blood. Warm. Pooling beneath her. Her body lying above it, unmoving. Her wrist— Slit open. The vision slammed into her without warning.
Again.
And again.
Sam froze. The Ernead lion's paw came down toward her. Henry crashed into her from the side. A green square barrier snapped into existence in front of them. The paw struck. The barrier shattered like glass. The force hurled both of them across the clearing.
"Henry!" Trini shouted.
Sam blinked, the vision shattering. The lion turned again, raising its paw for another strike.
Henry staggered up and threw himself between the beast and Sam. The paw slammed into his chest—
A bronze spear burst through the creature's back. Rosa twisted the weapon free as the beast collapsed. Blood sprayed across the rocks. Henry slammed hard against a jagged outcrop, sliding to the ground.
The team rushed toward him. Trini dropped to her knees beside him, hands already glowing as she began weaving a healing spell. The light sealed the worst of the bleeding before she rounded on Sam.
"You—why in the gods' name would you freeze in battle?" Trini snapped. "What the fuck are you even doing—"
"Trini!" Callum barked.
She fell silent, jaw tight.
"Calm down," Rosa said sharply. "Now's not the time."
"Henry…" Sam said quietly.
"I'm good," Henry grunted, forcing himself upright. "Not that deep. Lucky Captain Sanchez got it when she did."
Sam tasted bitterness in the back of her throat. Her fault. Again. She could feel it—the doubt, the anger, the distrust rolling off the others. Trini didn't even bother hiding hers. More movement stirred among the rocks.
More beasts.
The melodic hum still echoed in Sam's ears, pulling at her senses—but now the path toward it was crawling with creatures. Rosa grabbed Sam by the arm and pulled her close.
"Get a grip, Sam," she said quietly. "I know you're still recovering. But this isn't the time to lock up. You promised me you could do this."
Sam nodded. The Ernead lions circled them, fangs bared. Henry stayed back while Trini focused on casting. Callum remained beside them, guarding the mages. Rosa surged forward to meet the pack.
Sam followed.
Her gauntlet snapped open again. A slim enchanted blade slid from the mechanism along her wrist. She drove her fist into the nearest beast.
Steel flashed. The creature dropped. The rest of the fight ended quickly. Steel, magic, and flame tore through the remaining lions until the field finally fell quiet again.
The humming in Sam's ears grew louder. They pushed forward. At the center of the shattered terrain, something rose from the earth. A monolith. A dark pillar of stone thrust upward as though the ground itself had forced it into existence. The team slowed as they approached. Odic energy poured from the monolith in waves so dense the air itself seemed to vibrate.
Sam felt it press against her skin. The sheer amount of energy made her chest tighten. Terra—her world—simply didn't produce World energy at this scale. It was why their planet was considered a backwater among the countless worlds that held sentient life.
"What is this?" Henry murmured.
Even he could feel it. Wasu stepped forward with his magitech scanner, but the device sputtered and flickered in protest, unable to stabilize a reading.
Sam drifted closer.
The melody came from the monolith. She circled it slowly. Symbols were carved across the stone. Runes. But not any she recognized. Sam had studied the runic systems Golden Dawn had collected for decades—ancient sigils, magical languages, and inscriptions discovered across Terra. None of these matched. She kept walking—
Then stopped. One symbol stood out among the others. An upside-down "T." Its upper arms spread like branches of a tree, encircled by a droplet-shaped loop.
Sam stared at it.
Her breath caught. Slowly, she raised her wrist. Just above it—etched into her skin since birth—was the same mark. The same strange rune that had followed her her entire life. The birthmark no one had ever been able to explain. Sam felt the world narrow around her.
All the questions she had carried—about herself, about her family, about the purpose she had never understood— Now stood carved in stone before her.
"We'll need to set up multiple Defensive Arrays. Release as many observer drones as possible to scout ahead for more Mystic beasts..." Rosa was speaking with the others, but Sam was barely listening. She had gotten close to the rock, her hand moving unconsciously towards it.
"....and- Sam, what are you doing?" Rosa turned to her just as she made contact with the rock, her finger brushing across the symbol. The ground shook, rumbling, as a wave of energy surged through the monolith. The space around the symbol tore apart, like a mirror was forming, and within the space of the mirror, an image appeared.
Sam couldn't believe her eyes. She didn't want to believe it. The only thought running through her mind was that she had finally lost it. Desperate to wake up from what felt like a vivid dream, she slapped herself hard across the cheek.
"Wake up!" she muttered under her breath. Nothing changed. The figure in the mirror remained. The person's face was indistinct, obscured somehow, but their clothing stood out: a black trench coat paired with matching pants and boots.
"Who are you?" Sam asked, the words escaping her before she could think. She didn't know why she asked—it just felt like the right thing to do.
No response.
The figure turned away for a moment, then faced her again. Sam's voice cracked as she asked, "Hello? Are you real?"
The crystalline surface of the mirror rippled and then began to solidify. Slowly, the figure's face became clear. Sam's heart stopped. It was him. The person within the mirror was familiar. A face that she knew so well. Her golden prince. Sam's mouth opened, but no sound came out. She could only stare as the vision before her came into sharp focus. He was exactly as she remembered him—dressed in a black trench coat and pants, with hair that gleamed like pure gold. His bronze skin glowed faintly, as though kissed by the sun itself.
Sam's hand moved on its own, rising toward the surface of the mirror. She felt an inexplicable pull, a deep urge to touch him. And then he mirrored her movement, raising his hand as if to meet hers. Their fingertips met. The touch wasn't just visual—Sam felt it. She felt the warmth of his skin radiating through the mirror.
A jolt of energy shot through Sam. For a heartbeat, everything went still. Then the monolith answered. A pulse—deep, ancient, and utterly alien—burst from the connection between them. It rippled outward like a shockwave, racing through the air as if the world itself had been struck.
Energy surged through the stone. The symbols carved across the monolith flared with light. Sam staggered back, her vision swimming. The surface she had been staring into fractured like glass, shards of light splintering apart as the pulse detonated outward.
The blast tore across the field. Sam's feet left the ground. She tumbled backward, rolling through dirt and crushed stalks while the others dug their heels into the earth, bracing against the wave of power.
The world spun.
Darkness rushed up to meet her. By the time Sam hit the ground, she was already unconscious. Behind her, the symbols along the monolith burned brighter, their strange runes glowing with a rising, otherworldly light.
****
Not far from the cornfield outside Lakefront Metropolis, a silent hovercraft floated high above the fields. Inside, a figure clad in obsidian armor watched the events below through the feed of an observation drone. The Terran warriors had reached the monolith. And among them—
The girl. The one they had searched for, for so long. So she had been here all along… walking beside the enemies of his people. The armored figure's gaze lingered on the unconscious girl lying near the monolith.
Of course, she would be with them. Her existence alone was a threat. He activated a transmission. The response came almost instantly. A projection formed in the air before him—an imposing figure cloaked in shadow, features obscured by darkness.
"You have found the girl," the voice said.
"Yes, Your Majesty," the armored being replied. "She is with the Golden Dawn."
"Of course she is," the figure answered calmly. "Soon, catastrophe will strike Terra. The Celestial Realignment will begin."
The projection's gaze seemed to harden.
"Bring her to me as soon as possible. Do not fail me, Apou."
The armored warrior lowered himself to one knee.
"Yes, Your Majesty."