Darkness...

  Not the kind of darkness that pressed heavily against the skin, but the weightless kind, soft, boundless, like drifting in the deepest part of sleep. Emma’s consciousness floated there, unanchored, until a faint sound began to pull her back.

  A voice.

  Calm, steady, calling to her through the void.

  “Emma… Emma… Emma.”

  Her eyes flew open. The icy air hit her lungs like a splash of water, and the first word that slipped from her lips was..

  “A Miss?”

  A frown tugged faintly at Liz’s brow as she tilted her head. “What’s… A Miss?”

  The fog in Emma’s mind cleared at the sound of her voice. She turned her head, slowly taking in the familiar sight of the frost-painted stone walls. She was back... back in the icy cave, lying on a slab of rock that had served as her bed for the night.

  She let out a small, awkward smile. “It’s nothing. Just a dream. An odd one.”

  Liz studied her for a moment longer before nodding. “It’s already morning. We’re heading out now, need to keep moving if we’re going to reach the Xin region.”

  Emma’s gaze drifted past Liz and toward the cave’s entrance. Jett, Ron, and Dan stood there, outlined by the pale morning light spilling in, their breath rising in faint clouds. From the way they lingered, it felt like they had been waiting for her for a while.

  Her cheeks warmed faintly. “I… kept you guys waiting, didn’t I?”

  Liz shook her head. “Not at all. We just decided to wake you last.” Her lips curved in a small, lighthearted smile, without any mockery in it. “Since you’re the smallest one here.”

  Emma exhaled, resisting the urge to puff her cheeks. I hope I grow tall enough soon… this child stuff is getting on me. She pushed herself up, brushing the cold grit from her skirt before moving to join Liz. Together, they walked toward the others.

  Once they were all gathered, Dan moved first, his boots crunching over the frozen ground as he stepped out into the pale white morning. The others followed, the sound of snow shifting beneath their steps echoing faintly through the canyon of ice.

  Outside, the world stretched wide and blinding. A narrow manmade path cut along the snowy mountainside, winding forward toward Xin.

  But only a few steps out, Dan stopped.

  He raised his right hand, a silent command. The group’s steps stilled in unison.

  The wind whispered, the snow hissed softly beneath shifting weight.

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  Dan’s eyes narrowed, his breath misting in the frigid air. His voice was low, almost lost to the wind.

  “Someone is… trying to manipulate my existence.”

  Emma’s gaze darted calmly to him, her expression dimming slightly.

  Who is doing this now…?

  ***

  “Someone is trying to manipulate my existence…”

  Dan’s voice rolled out like a cold ripple across still water, carrying through the air until it reached every ear. The tone was sharp, low, almost lost to the wind but at the same time, almost cutting, as it hung in the silence like a warning bell.

  Every head turned by the warning. A quiet stillness swept over the place, yet beneath it there was the faint, unspoken hum of tension, an instinctive alertness that made the world feel smaller, more fragile.

  Jett reacted first. She shifted her weight forward, one boot deepened softly against the snow as she stepped subtly in front of her younger brother. “Stay behind me,” she said, her voice low, steady, protective.

  Ron obeyed without protest. The boy’s pale gray eyes were unreadable, his hands tucked into the folds of his gray beast-pelt coat. He moved with a calm, measured pace, shadowing Jett’s side like a quiet extension of her.

  Liz stood a few steps away, her emerald-green eyes narrowing. Her breath clouded faintly in the icy air as she muttered under it, irritation clear in the edge of her voice. “These Eradicators… again?” The name tasted bitter on her tongue, her gaze drifted around as though expecting a shadow to appear from any direction and strike.

  Beside her, Emma tilted her head, silver white hair brushing lightly against her cheek as she turned toward Liz. The faint glimmer of curiosity sparked in her unique white eyes. “Liz,” she asked, voice soft but cutting through the tense air as if ignoring the tension, “what… and who are these Eradicators?”

  Liz didn’t look at her at first. Her eyes kept roaming, scanning the edges of the clearing. “Nothing special,” she replied, though the clipped tone made the words feel heavier. “Just a bunch of lunatic entities that ambush people… or try to forcefully manipulate existences through Plot Control.”

  Finally, she glanced down at Emma and allowed a small, almost teasing smile to curl on her lips, as if trying to disarm whatever fear she assumed Emma had. “But you don’t have to be afraid. Good news is, they can’t manipulate or control us… if we don’t allow it.”

  Emma’s gaze lingered on her, unreadable. Inwardly, she scoffed, grumbling to herself. I’m not afraid. Her thoughts drifted briefly, not to the danger, but to something else entirely, When will I finally grow taller?

  For a while, the group remained tense, listening to the stillness that followed Dan’s warning. The icy wind dragged lightly across the clearing, whispering through the snow path. No movement. No sign of an ambush.

  Liz’s lips pressed into a thin line before she finally exhaled. “It seems this Eradicator isn’t going to ambush,” she said, the words laced with mild annoyance. “Gosh, I hate their damn omnipresence…”

  Her complaint barely settled in the air before Dan’s voice cut through, unmannered and flat as always. “I’m doing a search, so everyone back off from me.”

  Jett gave him a brief nod and began stepping backward, boots crunching against the snow. Ron matched her retreat quietly, his gaze never leaving Dan.

  Liz, however, moved the opposite way... forward. Her boots crunched slightly into the snow as she closed the space between herself and Dan. Her movements seemed careful, almost concerned, as though she were going to whisper some warning or urge him to be careful.

  But what she did next was entirely different from what anyone expected.

  With a sudden swing of her leg, sharp, fast, almost too casual.. Liz’s boot connected squarely with Dan’s side.

  “Ouch!” Dan blurted, his voice pitched with both pain and surprise. He bent slightly, one hand instinctively going to his side. “I’m just trying to help! What wrong did I do now?”

  Liz gave a small, dismissive “hmph!” as if that were enough of an answer. Without sparing him another glance, she turned on her heel and strolled back toward Emma.

  Emma’s lips curved into a faint, amused smile as Liz reached her side, and together they stepped back to where Jett and Ron were waiting, giving Dan the space he’d demanded for whatever he was about to do.

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