Chapter 13: Sparks and Shadows

Training day. Or, as he liked to call it, "Let's Get Humiliated in Style."

Echo's orders were clear: spar with everyone. Study them. Learn their limits—and his. What they could do was still a mystery, but one thing was already painfully obvious: Kael was going to be thrown around like a rag doll in a mirror maze.

Great.

He adjusted the wraps on his hands, sweat already prickling down his neck. They were in the bunker's lower floor, a mirrorless training chamber layered with protective runes and a vibe that screamed "pain."

Noelle was first. Of course.

Noelle.

She was all cool confidence in combat boots and a sleeveless black top, exposing a crisscross of scars down her toned arms. Her dark brown skin shimmered faintly when she moved—like her reflection hadn't caught up.

"Try not to cry too early," she said with a wink.

"I'll pencil in my breakdown for later," Kael muttered.

Noelle's ability wasn't flashy until you realized your own shadow had started mimicking her moves. She could echo physical patterns—reflections of other people's motions and tactics. And when she locked eyes with Kael, it was like she'd memorized his body language before he even moved.

He threw a punch. She dodged it before he finished deciding to punch.

"What—?!"

"You flinch on your left side," she said mid-spin, kicking the air just shy of his face. "And your right foot drags."

"I didn't sign up for a roast session!"

"Too late, sweetie."

---

Ziv.

Ziv's look was 'tech-witch goblin' chic. Shaggy bleached hair with pink tips, one green contact lens (for fashion, not function), and an oversized hoodie that read: I break reality for breakfast.

Kael barely stepped into the circle before the world glitched.

For a split second, Kael was behind Ziv, then beside him, then across the room.

"What the hell?"

"Spatial mirroring," Echo called from the sidelines. "Ziv can short-circuit your place in reality for up to three seconds. It's like fighting a skipping DVD."

Ziv grinned. "Basically, I'm a lag spike with sarcasm."

Kael tried to dodge. Too slow. Ziv was suddenly above him.

"How are you—"

"Mirrors don't need gravity, bro."

Kael hit the mat.

Hard.

---

Mara.

Mara looked like someone who didn't need powers to break your spine. Pink hair . Piercings in both brows. Tank top that read Unholy Vibes Only. Her arms were thick with muscle, and her eyes were always a little too calm.

When she stepped onto the floor, the lights dimmed.

Kael blinked.

Suddenly she was gone.

"Mara?"

"She's in the blind zones," Echo said. "She can vanish from your awareness as long as you're not looking directly at her. A literal blind spot."

Kael turned slowly. Then—WHAM.

A bat nearly cracked his ribs.

He wheezed. "Oh my God, you're a horror movie in cargo pants."

Mara just grinned. "Thanks."

---

Renji.

Kael wasn't sure if Renji was real or just a stress hallucination. The guy wore layers of charcoal-grey robes like he stepped out of a cursed monastery. Long black hair tied back. Eyes too pale to be comforting.

When he raised his hands, the room filled with mirror shards—except there were no mirrors.

"These are memory loops," Noelle explained. "He can trap you in moments from your past—real or imagined."

Renji flicked his wrist.

Suddenly Kael was eight again, staring into a bathroom mirror that didn't show his face.

"What is this—"

"You've looked away from yourself for too long," Renji said.

Kael barely escaped the illusion by biting his own arm.

"Did you just bite yourself?" Ziv asked.

Kael spat. "Desperate times."

---

Juno.

Last. Of course she was last.

She floated into the arena like moonlight in human form. Loose silver robes. Silver tattoos spiraling up her arms. Her hair was long, white-blonde, and glimmered like it didn't obey physics.

Her eyes didn't glow—they reflected.

And then she smiled.

Kael blinked—and the room was gone.

He was alone, in an endless field of mirrors, each one showing versions of him: twisted, screaming, laughing, dead.

"Make it stop—"

"Not until you choose which one you are," Juno's voice echoed from everywhere.

He fell to his knees. For a second, he saw himself staring back. Not from the outside—but from within.

Then, snap.

Back to the room. Juno hadn't moved.

Kael was drenched in sweat.

Ziv tossed him a towel. "Congratulations. You survived our dream ghost."

Kael slumped onto the bench, towel over his face.

"I hate all of you."

"You're welcome."

But deep down?

He didn't hate them. Not even close.

They were weird. Wild. Ridiculously overpowered.

But for the first time, he was starting to feel like he belonged with them.

Now all he had to do… was survive.