Wake up, sweetie... It's time to get up."
A soft, almost forgotten voice drifted through the air.
"Huh... Where am I?" Nova stammered, her throat dry.
"What a question! You're at home, my dear."
Nova jolted. Her eyes snapped wide open and she bolted upright, her heart hammering violently against her ribs. Home? Impossible. Her last memories rushed back in brutal waves: Caden's face, the fury of the blows, the sheer pain, and then total darkness.
The man sitting on the edge of the bed smiled at her with infinite tenderness:
"What are you talking about, sweetheart? Did you oversleep, or are you just hungry?"
Nova froze. Who is this man? And why is he speaking to me as if we've known each other forever?
Seized by sudden panic, she threw off her sheets and rushed toward the bathroom. Crossing the threshold, she froze in front of the mirror. The shock was so violent it stole her breath away. The reflection staring back wasn't hers. It was her face, yes, but miniature. Her hands were tiny, her arms thin. She had just woken up in her own childhood body.
A cry of pure terror escaped her lips.
Hearing her distress, the man immediately rushed into the room. In Nova's blurred mind, the foggy features of the stranger suddenly aligned with absolute clarity. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes.
"DADDY?! Is... is it really you?"
"Yes, my little princess, of course it's me! Lise!" he shouted down the hallway, panicked. "Come here, I think our daughter has a terrible fever!"
"Yes, I'm coming honey!" a familiar voice answered from the next room.
Nova was overwhelmed with emotion. To see her father again, and then to glimpse her mother stepping through the door... It was an impossible miracle. No longer trying to understand, with tears flowing freely down her child cheeks, she threw herself into their arms and squeezed them with all her might.
"I missed you both so much..." she whispered between sobs.
A quarter of an hour later, Nova was lying down again. A family doctor was finishing her examination under the anxious gazes of her parents. Outwardly calm, the little girl's mind was racing: Daddy... Mommy... They're alive. I can't believe it. Is this a dream?
The doctor packed up his stethoscope, cast a grave look at the couple, and nodded toward the hallway to signal he preferred to speak in private. Before stepping away, Nova's mother gently stroked her hair:
"Daddy and I will be right back, sweetheart. Be a good girl."
Nova nodded, faking compliance. As soon as the door closed, she sat up.
"I remember that fight to the death against Caden, passing out... And now, I wake up here, with only blurred fragments of my past."
She slipped out of bed and approached the window to look outside. Her eyes widened. The architectural landscape was completely unfamiliar. Wait... This place looks nothing like the area around Vendal High. Where on earth am I?
Suddenly, muffled shouting cut through the wall from the living room. Her mother's voice, usually so soft, was laced with obvious panic.
"Keep your voice down!" her father whispered urgently. "Nova will suspect something. Go check if she's sleeping."
Hearing fast footsteps approaching, Nova sprinted back to her bed, slid under the covers, and closed her eyes, feigning a heavy sleep. The door cracked open with a slight creak. Her mother watched her act for a few seconds then, reassured, returned to the living room. The argument resumed immediately, more intense this time, allowing Nova to catch crucial sentences.
"Honey, you can't accept this!" Lise protested. "Haven't you heard the rumors about that boy? He is unstable, he is dangerous! It doesn't matter if the royal family ordered you to take care of him, you must refuse! It's suicide... What happens if he snaps and attacks you? And Nova, huh? Have you thought even once about your daughter's future?"
"Lise, please, calm down..."
"I can't calm down! I'm suffocating here, I'm going out to get some air!"
"Lise, wait! ... Pff," her father sighed, abandoned to his helplessness.
A heavy silence fell over the house again, then heavy footsteps headed toward the bedroom. He walked in, approached the mattress, and said in a soft but firm voice:
"I know you're not sleeping, Nova."
Daddy knows me way too well... she thought. She sat up, crossing her arms and pouting visibly:
"Why are you and Mommy fighting? Is it because of me? What did the doctor say?"
Her father sat beside her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder:
"I was right, you just had a nightmare that messed with your head. What you heard... it was just a silly couple's argument over nothing. Don't worry about it."
"Are you sure?" she pressed, her gaze locked onto his.
"Yes, sweetheart, absolutely sure. Come on, try to get some sleep, it'll do you good. Afterwards, I promise, the two of us will go out."
"Okay, Daddy."
Nova lay back down and closed her eyes, but her mind was spinning. He's lying to me. Something terrible is brewing in the shadows, and I am going to find out what.
Meanwhile, in the reality of the present, the house was a scene of absolute chaos. The living room was devastated, furniture overturned. Ren and Emron stood facing each other, tension thick in the air, while Aera had barricaded herself in the adjacent room to watch over Nova's unconscious body.
"What are we supposed to do now?" Ren alarmed, his hands shaking. "What are we going to tell the Grand Master after yesterday's disaster? Caden completely lost it... I don't even know if he'll ever be normal again."
"Me? The only thing driving me crazy is that girl!" Emron spat, his fists clenched. "Everything is her fault! Caden already almost slaughtered her, what's stopping us from finishing the job and making her disappear once and for all?"
"Caden had lost control of his mind, remember?!" Ren snapped, stepping in between them. "You won't touch her!"
Emron violently shoved Ren against the wall, grabbing him by the collar:
"Am I dreaming, or are you protecting her?! Tell me right now... Did you fall for her too? Admit it!"
"What the hell is wrong with you since yesterday?! You're completely unstable, back off and snap out of it!" Ren replied, breaking free with a shrug of his shoulder.
Alerted by the destructive racket, Aera abruptly opened the bedroom door and burst into the living room, pale:
"What is going on here?"
Emron turned his head toward her and let out a cynical laugh:
"Well, look at that, here comes the second one... The one who caused Caden's downfall."
"What is this psycho talking about?" Aera snapped, taking a step back. "He's the one I called for help, not you!"
"How dare you speak to me in that tone, you little sh*t?!"
Suddenly, a terrifying mutation occurred within Emron. The whites of his eyes were instantly consumed by total, opaque, and malevolent darkness. An aura of pure rage radiated from his body. He raised his fist, ready to crush Aera's face, but Ren threw himself in the middle to take the hit.
"What the hell is wrong with your eyes, Emron?! Regain control!" Ren yelled as a brutally violent fistfight broke out.
The blows rained down, destructive. Ren, fighting for his life, screamed at the top of his lungs:
"Aera! Get in the room! Lock yourself in with Nova and lock the door leading to Caden! Fast!"
"What about you?! You're going to get killed!" she panicked, terrified by Emron's superhuman strength.
Ren nodded, his face covered in blood:
"My phone... on the table! Take it and call for help if I fall!"
"Okay!"
Aera slipped away just in time, locked access to the room where Caden lay, and then locked herself twice in Nova's room. Outside, the dull thuds of bodies slammed against the walls and the impacts of fists echoed. Since the house was completely isolated on the outskirts, no one for miles around could hear their ordeal.
Suddenly, a sickening crack followed by an agonizing scream from Ren tore through the air. He was losing the fight. Tears in her eyes, her hands slick with terror, Aera grabbed Ren's phone.
"Who do I call? What number?!"
Her eyes caught a contact saved at the top of the list: Vendal High Secretary. She pressed the screen, her heart in her throat.
"Answer... Please, answer!"
One ring. Two rings. Then a click.
— Hello? Vendal High secretary's office. Who is calling?
Aera's voice was nothing more than a trembling, breathless whisper:
"I... I'm Aera! Send help, please! Ren is dying... He won't hold on..."
A final, muffled groan from Ren cut through the door, followed by a monumental crash. The wood of the lock shattered into pieces. The bedroom door had just been obliterated. Through the receiver, the school secretary heard a distorted, deep, and chilling voice:
"You shouldn't have done that, you little vermin..."
Then, a sharp sound of crushed plastic ended the communication. The screen went black.
— Hello? Hello?! Miss, answer me! the secretary urged on the other end of the line, her blood running cold from what she had just heard.
Turning pale, she slammed the receiver onto her desk and bolted upright, nearly knocking over her chair. I have to notify the Grand Master. Immediately.