Chapter 38: The First Class
The Beacon Circle shimmered in the dawn light.
It was still incomplete — carved from salvaged stones, half-fused tech, and reinforced grounding lines — but it felt alive.
Not wild.
Not chaotic.
Just ready.
---
Anthony stood at the center, adjusting the straps on his forearm stabilizers.
Chi-Chi stepped up beside him, hands in her jacket pockets.
"You're really doing this," she said.
"Feels like the only thing that makes sense," he replied.
Ken snorted from the perimeter. "We blew up a rogue Beacon three days ago, and now you're hosting orientation."
Anthony smiled faintly. "Balance."
Confidence adjusted the uplink drone above the circle. "Let's just hope none of them explode."
Emmy approached with a tablet. "Five arrivals this morning. Three more expected by next week. Ages range from 11 to 17."
Anthony nodded.
"All of them awakened naturally?"
Emmy hesitated.
Then: "All except one."
---
The skiff touched down in the grass clearing just after sunrise.
Zina stood waiting near the platform, arms folded awkwardly.
When the doors hissed open, five students stepped out.
A boy with light-reactive eyes, blinking too fast.
A girl trailing sparks from her fingertips.
A silent teenager whose shadow flickered behind him even in perfect light.
A short boy with no visible power but a constant low hum of energy in his footsteps.
And last…
A girl with silver bands around her wrists and a quiet, focused stare.
Her name was Layla.
Seventeen. Nigerian. Soft-spoken. Observant.
And unknown to everyone else… wired.
---
Anthony greeted each one personally.
He welcomed them like people, not threats.
No uniforms. No pledges. Just grounding.
"Welcome to the Anchor Program," he said. "We're not here to test you. We're here to help you test yourselves."
Zina smiled as the others looked around nervously.
"This isn't a school," she added. "It's a place to breathe."
Layla didn't speak much.
But she watched everything.
Especially Anthony.
---
Over the next two days, the new recruits began to adjust.
They trained in small teams. Learned how to feel the Pulse.
Chi-Chi taught them how to ground an energy spike.
Ken taught them how to survive in a blackout.
Emmy handled the Beacon translation drills.
Anthony rotated between groups — guiding, encouraging, listening.
---
On day three, Layla asked her first question.
"What happens if we lose control?"
Anthony paused.
Then answered honestly.
"Then we catch you."
She nodded.
But didn't look comforted.
---
That night, Confidence pulled Anthony aside.
"Layla's readings are weird," she said quietly. "Her Pulse signature is stable — too stable. Doesn't fluctuate like a normal Beacon sync."
Anthony frowned. "Could she be suppressing it?"
"No. I think it's being managed externally. Like… someone's helping her stay stable."
Emmy looked up. "Artificial grid?"
Confidence nodded. "Possibly Kairo's."
---
They didn't confront her.
Not yet.
Because she hadn't shown signs of aggression.
But Anthony kept an eye on her.
Not with suspicion.
With concern.
---
Meanwhile, in the ruins of a forgotten Riftborn outpost, Kairo activated his second artificial Beacon.
This one didn't sync with the Root.
It bent reality around it.
A boy emerged from the surge — screaming, half-phased, skin flickering with unstable energy.
Kairo knelt beside him.
Placed a hand on his forehead.
> "Shh," he said.
"Let it burn through you."
"You don't have to carry the fear. Just the fire."
The boy calmed.
Not because he was safe.
But because Kairo made him feel strong.
---
Back at the Anchor Circle, Layla sat alone after lights-out.
She opened her comm.
Encrypted. Shielded.
A message blinked.
> "Anchor Prime observes you. Do not respond."
"Await activation protocol."
"The next Beacon will burn by morning."
She stared at the screen.
Then slowly closed it.
---
At 2:16 AM, a Beacon core lit up in northern Uganda.
A child Variant — age 12 — activated in the middle of a refugee zone.
Too fast.
Too strong.
No one trained him.
He screamed as the Pulse consumed him — warping the ground in a 200-meter radius.
Casualties: 19.
Anthony saw the report an hour later.
Chi-Chi swore.
Confidence punched a wall.
Emmy cried.
---
"This is Kairo," Anthony said.
"He's forcing awakenings in unready environments. Breaking kids."
"He's trying to make us look like the weak ones," Chi-Chi muttered.
Ken added, "He's showing the world that Anchor Prime isn't fast enough."
Anthony's jaw tightened.
"Then we go faster."
---
But before they could deploy, Zina appeared at the entrance.
"Layla's gone."
---
They found her near the outer forest — not running.
Standing.
Alone.
Waiting.
Her hands glowed faintly. Beacon lines shimmered in her palms.
Anthony approached carefully.
"Layla."
She turned.
Eyes glowing red-silver.
"I didn't come to betray you," she said.
"I came to understand you."
Chi-Chi readied her gauntlet. "Who are you syncing with?"
Layla didn't deny it.
"I was raised in a Kairo cell. I was meant to activate inside his grid… but I delayed. I wanted to see your way."
Anthony stepped forward. "And now?"
Layla closed her eyes.
And dropped to her knees.
"I still don't know."
---
Anthony lowered beside her.
"I don't need you to pick sides," he said. "I need you to stand for something. For someone. For yourself."
Layla looked at him.
The glow faded.
And for the first time…
She cried.