Chapter 10: The one who forgets

Kael didn't sleep.

Even after Echo called off training. Even after Noelle handed him a dull gray shard with a look that said "you need this more than I do." Even after the mirror cracked and whispered secrets it had no right to know—he still couldn't shut his eyes.

So, he sat.

Cross-legged on the couch in the bunker's dim-lit common room, hoodie pulled over his curls, anchor shard rolling between his fingers like it was alive. It pulsed once. Cold. Then again. Slower. Like a heartbeat that didn't belong to him.

Kael looked like someone who had spent his whole life hiding in corners. Tall but slouched, like he didn't know what to do with his height. Storm-gray eyes that didn't sparkle—they hummed, low and unreadable, like a thundercloud waiting for a reason to strike. His skin was rich brown with warm undertones, marred only by a single ink-drop freckle under his left eye. His hands were always fidgeting. Always moving. Like if he stopped, the thoughts would catch up.

He hated mirrors now.

They knew too much.

"Still spiraling?" Noelle asked, dropping onto the floor beside him. She wore ripped sweats and an oversized tank top, one leg stretched out, the other bent lazily. Normal. Almost human.

Kael didn't answer right away. He watched the anchor pulse again.

"I think I broke something," he said quietly. "Or maybe I am the thing that's broken."

Noelle rested her head against the couch. "Welcome to the club."

He huffed a laugh. Weak. "Echo thinks I'm dangerous. Maybe he's right."

"Echo thinks everyone is dangerous," she muttered. "He probably sleeps with a knife under his pillow and a grudge under his bed."

Kael smirked. It faded fast.

"The thing in the mirror… It knew me. It said I left the gate unlocked. That I made myself forget."

"And maybe you did," she said. "But maybe it was the only way you survived."

He went quiet again.

Then: "I don't even know what I am."

"You're mirror-born," she replied. "And they hate that. Because mirror-borns don't need spells or tools. You are the power source. You don't reflect. You resonate."

Kael shook his head. "I didn't sign up for this."

"Neither did any of us. But here we are."

Before Kael could respond, the lights above flickered. Once. Then again. Soft buzzing rose through the walls.

Then Ziv stormed into the room like caffeine given human form. Two pads under his arms. Hair like static.

"We got a problem," he announced. "And it's personal."

***

In the control chamber, everyone had gathered. Mara leaned against the wall, chewing gum and spinning her bat like she wanted to hit something. Echo stood apart, arms crossed, gaze sharp. Juno lingered by the corner, quiet and unreadable as ever. Renji sat near a chalk circle, tracing runes with deliberate fingers.

Ziv dropped the first image on the screen.

A feed. Shaky footage. A city plaza. People passing by. But one stood still.

A reflection moved without its person.

It raised its hand while the real person didn't. Smiled while the real face was blank.

Kael felt his stomach twist.

Ziv pulled up the next image. A mirror-mask. White, eyeless, mouthless. "Field agents," Juno whispered. "They use them when they want to extract memories or possess hosts."

Kael blinked. "That's a thing?"

"Oh yeah," Mara said. "They wear your face like a Halloween costume and then go joyriding in your life."

Ziv dropped the third image.

A breach signature. Subway. Flickering red.

"Active gate. Local. And pulsing hard," Ziv said. "Cult-coded."

Echo straightened. "We move at once."

Kael blinked. "Wait—me?"

Noelle handed him the anchor shard again. "Yes, you."

***

The subway station was dead. Still.

Kael followed closely, breath fogging. The deeper they walked, the colder it got. He wore a rune-stitched cloak now, black with threadlines of silver, boots too tight, gloves warded against reflective contact. Nothing about it felt real.

The shard pulsed in his sleeve.

They reached the breach. A broken advertisement screen. Only the frame remained.

The glass, though? Clean. Too clean.

Kael stepped forward. His reflection stared back. But it was waiting.

Then it blinked. Out of sync.

And it smiled.

"You're close."

The voice was in his skull.

"One more step, and you'll remember it all."

The shard glowed.

Kael staggered. The glass cracked.

And then something stepped out.

It wore his face.