Ava finally walked back to his room.
He shut the door behind him and exhaled slowly. From his desk, he picked up his grimoire, the familiar weight of it grounding him. He flipped through its pages, eyes scanning spells and sigils he already knew by heart, reading them anyway as if repetition could quiet his thoughts.
Eventually, he closed the book and turned toward his bed.
Knock. Knock.
Ava paused.
He walked to the door and opened it.
"What are you doing here, Star?" he asked quietly. "I told you. I don't want to do this anymore. No more sleepovers. Don't come to my room."
"I know," she said softly.
Before he could react, she pushed him back into the room, closed the door, and locked it.
Ava frowned. "What are you doing?"
She walked toward him slowly, her voice low and earnest.
"We can be together," she said. "I'm willing to tell everyone. I don't care what my father says. I don't care what anyone thinks. I don't care that you're human."
Ava hesitated. "You… you mean that?"
"Yes."
She moved quickly and kissed him.
For a moment, Ava kissed her back.
Then his golden eyes, Tenshi no Me, flared to life on their own.
A sudden unease twisted in his chest. He pushed her away gently but firmly.
She blinked. "What's wrong?"
Ava stared at her. "Who are you?"
She smiled faintly. "Babe, I don't know what you're talking about. Maybe you're just tired. Let's go to bed."
Ava's voice dropped. "Lilith."
Her smile widened.
Star's body began to shift, flesh warping and reshaping as her form twisted into something darker, more elegant, more predatory. Lilith laughed softly.
"You're really good," she said. "Seeing through my disguise already. I'm not surprised. And I have to say, you're a pretty good kisser."
"You need to leave," Ava said.
Lilith circled him slowly, her footsteps light as she spoke.
"Why?" she asked. "We were having so much fun. So much chaos. You try to act like you don't like chaos."
She stopped in front of him.
"But I can tell just by looking at you. You don't want to control chaos. You want to be chaos."
"You don't know me," Ava said.
"I know you're always holding back," Lilith replied calmly. "You're constantly restraining yourself. And that little goody two shoes, Star, she's holding you back."
"She's not holding me back," Ava snapped. "No one is holding me back."
Lilith tilted her head, amused. "You're holding yourself back."
She stepped closer.
"I told you about my species. We can see potential in males. It helps us find the perfect mate. The one we can bond with. When a male claims us, we become one with their spirit."
Ava frowned. "Become one with their spirit?"
"Yes," Lilith said softly. "One with each other's spirits. You and I are already one step closer."
She leaned in.
"When you kissed me, and wanted to kiss me, you claimed me. That is how it works for my kind. When a female is claimed, we gain some of the male's strength and power. Over time, we gain more."
Her smile sharpened.
"We usually kill the males after. But you…" She laughed lightly. "I might keep you around. Just from that one kiss, I can feel it. Your power is inexorable."
"So you want to use me to get stronger," Ava said coldly. "My abilities can't be copied. If you think you can reaching my power, you're wrong. I don't claim you."
Lilith smiled wider. "I can tell your abilities are special. I can't steal or copy them. But the bond still exists. My strength and speed have already increased because of that kiss."
"I think you should leave," Ava said.
Before she could respond, there was another knock at the door.
Ava glanced at Lilith. "Stay here."
He walked to the door and opened it.
Star stood there.
Ava froze.
"Star…"
Her eyes were red, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"I'm so sorry," she said. "I've been thinking ever since our first argument. You were right to be mad at me. I said I wasn't ashamed of you, and I meant it. I just… I cared too much about what my people think. About my father."
She took a shaky breath.
"But maybe I should take that chance. Maybe you matter more than all of them. The way you make me feel… I think it matters more than everything else."
She stepped forward. "I'm sorry for being a jerk."
She rushed into his arms and hugged him tightly.
Ava hugged her back.
As they hugged, a voice cut through the moment.
"You two are so confusing."
Star stiffened.
She looked up.
Standing a short distance away was Lilith, dressed provocatively, her posture relaxed, her smile sharp with intent.
Star's breath caught.
Confusion flashed across her face, followed by hurt. Her eyes filled with tears as she shoved Ava away.
"No…" she whispered.
Then she turned and ran.
"Star, wait!" Ava shouted as she chased after her. "I can explain. It's not what it looks like!"
She didn't stop.
Ava froze for half a second, then turned back sharply toward Lilith, fury burning in his eyes.
"Why would you do that?" he demanded. "Why would you change your clothes to something like that?"
Lilith snapped her fingers.
Her appearance shifted instantly, her clothing returning to normal as she smiled calmly.
"Because she doesn't deserve you," Lilith said. "I do. I deserve to be with the alpha."
Ava clenched his fists. "When I come back, you better be gone."
Lilith's smile widened. "Whatever you want."
Her body twisted, shrinking and reshaping as she transformed into a dark, bat-like creature. With a single beat of her wings, she flew out the window and vanished into the night.
Ava turned and sprinted down the halls.
"Star, wait!"
He caught up to her near the outer corridor. She slowed but did not turn around, tears falling freely as she kept walking.
"Just leave me alone," she said.
Ava grabbed her hand gently. "Stop. Please. Let me explain."
She yanked her hand free and shoved him back.
"There's nothing to explain," Star said through tears. "I get it now. The only reason you didn't want us to be together was to make this easier. You just needed an excuse."
"That's not true," Ava said desperately. "Please, just listen."
She shook her head. "That's all it takes, isn't it? One argument, and you're ready to move on. To another girl."
"That's not what happened," Ava said. "I swear. Please let me explain."
She pulled her hand away again.
"I don't want to hear it," Star said. "Like you told me before… we're teammates. Friends. Maybe not even that."
She pushed past him.
"I'll see you tomorrow," she added without turning back. "On the front lines, leader."
She walked away.
"I'm sorry," Ava called after her. "It's not what it looked like."
She didn't stop.
She didn't turn around.
And Ava was left standing alone in the hall, the echo of her footsteps fading into silence.
The next meta day.
Ava sat in class with his team, the room filled with quiet tension and low murmurs. Rows of students stretched before and behind him, all clad in training gear, all preparing for what lay ahead.
At the front of the room, the instructor spoke calmly, hands moving with precise intention.
"These are the movements required to form a portal," the teacher said. "Each gesture must be exact. Hesitation will destabilize the spell."
Ava sat one row ahead of Star and Demeter. He could feel her presence behind him without turning around. It weighed on him heavier than any training armor.
Around them, students whispered.
"I was so nervous," one said softly.
"Me too. Today's the first day," another replied.
A third scoffed. "Why are you nervous? It's a mortal realm. We'll conquer it easily. It's the higher realms that are terrifying."
Ava barely heard them.
He leaned back just enough and lowered his voice.
"Hey," he whispered to Star. "Can we talk after class?"
No response.
Star stared straight ahead, eyes fixed on the teacher, her expression unreadable. She didn't even acknowledge that he had spoken.
Ava swallowed.
Dallas glanced sideways at him, brow furrowing. "What's wrong?" he murmured. "Is she mad at you or something?"
Ava shook his head quickly. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong."
Dallas studied him for a moment, unconvinced, then nodded. "Alright. Last thing we need is the team being dysfunctional. Today's our first day."
Ava forced himself to face forward again.
The lesson continued, the teacher demonstrating the portal sequence step by step, but Ava absorbed none of it. His focus remained fractured, pulled backward by silence, by everything Star had refused to say.
And class went on.
Class was over.
Students filtered out of the room in loose groups, voices rising as the tension of the lesson gave way to anticipation. At the doorway, Star and Demeter waited as Ava and Dallas stepped out.
Demeter smiled. "Are you guys ready? We're finally going on the front lines."
Dallas nodded eagerly. "Me too. I can't wait to try out this new armor. Especially after last night. I added some tech to it, a few of my constructs."
Ava didn't respond.
Star didn't either.
Demeter tilted her head, studying them. "Why are you two so quiet and awkward today?" she asked. "You'd better wake up and get focused. I know it's the human realm, so we should conquer it pretty easily, but still."
Ava and Star spoke at the same time.
"Nothing's wrong."
Footsteps echoed down the hall.
They turned as Uzuhana came skipping toward them, spinning back and forth like a living vortex, her energy impossible to miss. Behind her followed Team Vortex.
Uzuhana grabbed Dallas's hand, grinning. "Are you guys ready? I'm pretty sure they're about to start any moment now. It's almost time for our missions."
Dallas laughed. "Yeah. Let's hurry up and go."
Behind her, the rest of Team Vortex gathered.
Kabuka floated above the ground, seated cross-legged on a small white cloud, a chessboard hovering in front of him as he played against himself. "I can't wait to use my battle strategies," he said cheerfully.
Ryujin's dragon maw curled into a growl, smoke drifting from his nostrils. "You call that strategy?" he rumbled. "I'm the one who always comes up with the plans while you goof around."
Kabuka flicked several chess pieces at him.
Ryujin exhaled a short burst of dragon breath, blowing them away. "Stop messing around."
Kabuka tapped the side of his cloud lightly. "Sorry, big guy. Just trying to have some fun."
"This isn't the time for games," Ryujin said. "Come on. Let's move."
Demeter laughed. "Yeah, come on. I like your attitude," she said to Ryujin. "I can't wait to knock some heads around. Hopefully we'll run into a god."
The group began walking together toward their destination, voices overlapping with excitement and rivalry.
As they passed through the corridor, Lilith walked by Ava and Star without slowing. She glanced at them, smiling faintly.
"Come on," she said casually as she passed. "You two look frozen. Like you've seen a ghost."
She kept walking.
Soon, Team Vortex and Team Chaos reached the very edge of the forest bordering the school grounds, where the trees thickened and the path forward darkened, waiting.
As they arrived at the castle grounds, the noise hit first voices, footsteps, armor clanging, spells humming in the air. Students filled every stretch of the courtyard, nearly shoulder to shoulder, while ranks of armored soldiers and field generals stood at the front like a wall of authority.
Then a single voice cut through everything.
"Settle down!"
Head General Kharos stood on the raised platform tall, armored in blackened steel trimmed in obsidian metal, his voice carrying across the entire castle. The sound alone made conversations die.
Students scrambled into formation, organizing by teams.
Team Chaos and Team Vortex ended up side by side in the same line.
General Kharos scanned them all, expression flat, eyes cold.
"We are splitting into multiple divisions," he shouted. "In this section of the Academy alone we have three thousand seven hundred fifty teams."
Murmurs broke out shock, excitement, fear but Kharos raised a hand and silence returned.
He pointed toward the row of generals standing before him. There were dozens each radiating different pressure and killing intent.
"Each general will command multiple units," Kharos continued. "Four teams per general. Each team has its own team leader. Above your leader is your commanding general. You will obey them without question."
He let that sink in.
"The generals will evaluate each universe you invade in the mortal realm. The mortal realm we stand upon is infinite in size containing infinite multiverses, all of them mortal."
Even the confident students swallowed. Infinite wasn't a number. It was a sentence.
"You will each be assigned territory to conquer. At the end of the day, you will return to the Academy. Your objective is simple conquer. Only destroy if conquering cannot be achieved."
His voice hardened, ritualistic.
"All hail the Dark Lord."
Thousands of voices erupted:
"ALL HAIL THE DARK LORD!"
Everyone except Ava.
He stood silent.
Team Vortex and Team Chaos remained shoulder to shoulder. Uzuhana leaned toward Dallas, energy buzzing from her fingers like a vortex she couldn't turn off.
"Hopefully we stay together," she whispered.
Dallas nodded. "Me too."
Then one of the generals stepped forward a tall figure with wild, spiked black hair that stuck out in chaotic angles. Both of his eyes were covered by a strip of dark cloth wrapped tightly across his face. His outfit was a hybrid of hardened cloth and segmented armor plates: sleeveless, high-collared black tunic layered under matte-steel pauldrons, armored greaves, and fingerless gloves wrapping his hands. A long dark sash hung from his belt, swaying as he moved, giving him the look of someone who could shift from battlefield to assassination without changing gear.
He didn't bother projecting emotion. No threat to intimidate. He simply pointed at four teams.
"This is the division I am taking," he said, voice flat. "Team Chaos. Team Vortex. Team Valor. Team Black."
Just like that it was decided.
Team Chaos, Team Vortex, Team Valor, and Team Black all stepped forward toward the waiting general.
He approached with his hands behind his head, rubbing lazily as if he had just rolled out of bed. His posture slouched, his walk unhurried, and when he reached them he let out a bored yawn.
"My name is General Caecus," he said flatly. "I need the team leaders from each squad to step forward so I know who I'm dealing with."
Uzuhana stepped up first, her boots clicking together as she snapped into salute.
"I'm leader of Team Vortex, sir."
General Caecus nodded halfway, already losing interest, his expression drifting somewhere between boredom and obligation.
The next student stepped up and the atmosphere changed. His presence was darker, quieter, controlled. He wore a long armored jacket reinforced with plated segments beneath the fabric, the high collar rising to his jaw. A hood shadowed most of his face. Beneath that coat, dark cloth wrapped his arms from shoulder to wrist, layered under lightweight armor panels. His gloves covered most of his hands except for the fingertips, which were bare, revealing pale skin and steady precision.
His boots black, military-grade, reinforced with armored plating hit the stone like punctuation. Everything he wore was a fusion of armor and cloth, functional and silent. The palette never strayed: midnight blue fading into black.
His hair fell jet black over his forehead, slightly messy, and when he finally lifted his face, a pair of cold gray eyes stared from beneath the hood calculating, empty of warmth, like he was already imagining the battlefield.
"My name is Vesperos," he said, voice low. "Leader of Team Black."
General Caecus scratched his jaw unimpressed, but acknowledging him with a faint nod.
The next leader stepped forward with absolute confidence.
A broomstick was strapped to her back like a sheathed weapon.
Her suit was a tight one-piece, superhero sleek, colored in rich purple.
Matching boots hugged her legs, and a dark cape flowed behind her as she moved.
Around her neck sat a black feathered collar, shaped like layered raven plumage elegant, ominous, almost ceremonial, giving her the look of a witch-queen.
Her eyes were red, sharp and fierce, and her hair was long and straight, falling down her back like a dark curtain that matched her cape.
"I am leader of Team Valor," she declared. "My name is Azalea."
Ava stepped forward.
He didn't hesitate. He didn't posture. He simply met the general's blindfolded stare and spoke with a steady voice.
"My name is Ava," he said. "Leader of Team Chaos."
General Caecus lifted his hand.
A spell flared.
Magic snapped into existence and a map materialized in his palm, glowing with shifting territory and expanding cosmic geography.
"This is the section we're conquering," Caecus said, gestures slow but certain. "I hope you're prepared. Some of you look nervous."
He smiled not kindly, but as if anticipation amused him.
"Follow me."
Without another word, General Caecus stepped off the cliff.
Gravity stopped mattering.
He dropped, then angled into flight, cutting through the void. The teams launched after him, wings, magic, and sparks carrying them upward into open space.
They passed through the barrier
and entered the infinite sprawl of the mortal realm.