The Academy finally calmed,
but only in the way a wounded animal does—
silent, tense, and waiting for the next strike.
The sun had set hours ago.
Darkness settled across the campus like a heavy cloak.
Alya sat on the edge of her bed in the dormitory,
hands clenched in her lap,
mind pulsing with the weight of everything she had learned.
Born with all five roots.
A "true" Convergence.
A being the Seals belonged to.
Ren paced so aggressively the floorboards squeaked in protest.
"Nope.
Nope nope nope.
I REFUSE to let you become the cosmic Queen of Destiny.
You hate attention.
You can't handle group projects.
You get stressed about lunch lines—"
Cael sighed,
"She's trying to be reassuring."
Alya almost smiled.
Almost.
Eris sat in the windowsill, legs crossed, eyes scanning the moonlit campus.
"The forest is restless."
Lami looked up from where she was tending to Mila—still unconscious, still glowing faintly.
"Is it Rian...?"
Eris shook her head.
"No.
The Seal.
It's moving."
Alya flinched.
"Already?"
Cael answered quietly.
"It's watching you."
Ren threw up her hands.
"Respectfully, it can watch from a DISTANCE—"
But Ayla felt it too.
A presence brushing against her mind.
A whisper in the wind.
A flicker in the shadows.
Not threatening.
Not demanding.
Curious.
Waiting.
Alya swallowed hard.
"I can't sleep."
Lami softly replied,
"None of us can."
Cael leaned against the wall beside her bed.
"You need rest."
Ren rolled her eyes.
"She needs emotional support and twenty cookies, but sure, start with rest."
Alya exhaled shakily.
"My dreams...
I think the Seal is in them."
Eris nodded once.
"That's expected."
Ren shrieked,
"Expected by WHO—WHY DOES EVERYONE KNOW THIS EXCEPT US—"
Alya rubbed her forehead.
"When I close my eyes...
I see pieces of that resonance realm.
Like it's waiting for me to come back."
Cael crossed his arms.
"Then don't sleep alone."
Ren snapped instantly,
"YES. AGREED. I WILL GLUE MYSELF TO HER—"
Eris cut in,
"Aster said the Seal will test her through dreams.
We need to keep watch."
Ren hugged her pillow like a shield.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
"I volunteer as the designated Anti-Nightmare Buddy."
Cael looked unimpressed.
"You snore."
"I don't SNORE—"
"You do."
Lami whispered gently,
"I'll sit with Ayla. Ren can... um... rest."
Ren gasped.
"TRAITOR."
Alya's voice cut softly through the bickering:
"Cael...
what happened to Rian?"
The room went silent.
Cael's eyes darkened.
He sat beside her, elbows resting on his knees.
"He was born different. Stronger. Like you."
Ren whispered,
"Five roots?"
Cael nodded slowly.
"But unlike you...
he felt everything too strongly.
Anger. Pain. Fear."
Alya swallowed.
"Did he always hate you?"
Cael shook his head.
"No.
He loved me."
Lami blinked.
"Oh..."
Eris listened without comment.
Cael continued, voice steady but heavy.
"He was born with the ability to manipulate raw resonance.
He could shape it before he could speak."
Alya's eyes widened.
"That's... impossible."
Cael nodded.
"And dangerous.
The Academy took him after his first 'incident.'"
Ren frowned.
"Incident? What incident—"
Cael looked away.
"He cried.
And the house collapsed."
Silence.
Alya's chest tightened.
"And they locked him up?"
Cael's voice hollowed.
"They said they would help him.
Train him.
Stabilize him."
A pause.
"They lied."
Eris whispered,
"So he grew up believing he was a monster."
Cael nodded.
"Yes."
Alya's breath trembled.
"That's why he hates the Academy."
Cael's jaw clenched.
"And why he wants the Seal.
So no one can ever put him in a cage again."
Alya felt the bitterness like a familiar ache.
"Do you think he wants to hurt me?"
Cael didn't answer right away.
Finally:
"No.
He wants you on his side.
That frightens me more."
Ren stomped.
"OKAY. ENOUGH TRAUMA. IT'S BEDTIME."
Eris raised an eyebrow.
"You're going to force sleep on her?"
"Yes," Ren declared.
"Alya. You're lying down now.
We're doing sleep.
We're doing unconsciousness.
We are doing healthy coping mechanisms—"
She shoved Ayla gently onto the bed.
Cael pulled up a chair.
Eris stayed on the windowsill.
Lami sat by Mila.
Ren plopped herself against Ayla's side, hugging her arm like a koala.
Alya whispered:
"Ren... I can't sleep. I'll see—"
"We're right here," Ren said softly.
"See whatever you need to see.
We're not going anywhere."
Alya's throat tightened.
"Thank you."
Ren squeezed her hand.
"Always."
Alya closed her eyes—
and the world slipped.
Alya's Dream — Not Alone
She expected darkness.
Instead:
A field of white.
Wind blowing through invisible grass.
Light with no source.
Shadows with no objects.
And a figure waiting for her.
Not Rian.
Not Mila.
Not her mother.
A girl who looked exactly like Ayla.
Except—
Her eyes were bright gold.
Her hair floated like a halo.
Her body shimmered with five elemental colors.
Alya froze.
"...Who are you?"
The girl smiled sadly.
"I'm who you become if you choose power."
Alya's breath hitched.
She stepped back.
The other-Ayla stepped forward.
"You think you don't want anything."
She tilted her head.
"But you do."
Alya whispered:
"What?"
"Peace."
The girl smiled softly.
"And you'd burn the world to get it."
Alya shook her head.
"No—no, I would never—"
The girl touched her cheek gently.
"You don't believe it yet.
That's why the Seal is watching."
Alya stepped away, shaking.
"I'm not you."
The girl nodded.
"You're not."
Her expression softened.
"And that's why I need to tell you something."
Alya stared.
"What?"
The girl's golden eyes dimmed into sorrow.
"You are not afraid of power."
She took a breath.
"You are afraid of losing someone again."
Alya froze.
The dream whispered around her:
"You cannot save everyone."
Alya whispered back,
"I have to try."
The girl smiled—warm, tragic.
"And that's why you were born with all five roots."
Alya's throat closed.
"Because I'm the Convergence?"
The girl shook her head.
"No."
She stepped closer.
"You were born with all five
because you are the only one
who will choose people
over power."
Light broke across the field.
The dream began to shatter.
The other-Ayla whispered one more thing:
"When the Seal returns...
don't ask what the world needs."
Alya blinked.
"What do I ask?"
The girl smiled.
"Ask who you refuse to lose."
And the dream folded into light—
Alya Wakes
Alya jolted awake.
Ren screamed.
"AAAA—WHY DID YOU WAKE UP LIKE THAT—"
Alya sat up, panting, heart pounding.
Eris was instantly beside the bed.
Cael reached for her shoulder.
Lami gasped.
Mila opened her eyes on the stretcher—
and whispered:
"Ayla...
it spoke to me too..."
Ren froze.
"What spoke to you?"
Mila trembled.
"The Seal."
Alya's breath hitched.
"And what did it say?"
Mila whispered:
"'Choose who you can't live without.'"
Everyone fell silent.
Alya stared at Mila.
Mila stared back.
Eris whispered:
"The Seal isn't testing your power."
Cael nodded.
"It's testing your heart."
Alya swallowed.
Ren whispered, voice trembling:
"Ayla...
who can't you live without?"
Alya didn't answer.
Not yet.
The night pressed in.
Three days.
Three choices.
And in the darkness—
Alya felt something warm touch her palm.
She looked down.
Ren's hand.
Then Cael's.
Then Lami's tiny fingers.
Eris joining silently.
Her team.
Her family.
Alya whispered:
"I think I know what it wants me to understand."
Ren squeezed her hand.
"You don't have to tell us yet."
Alya exhaled.
"Tomorrow...
we find Rian."
Everyone stiffened.
Eris nodded slowly.
Cael's jaw tightened.
Ren groaned,
"You mean the tall, glowing apocalypse boy? Fine. But I'm bringing snacks."
Alya stood.
Stronger.
Clearer.
Determined.
The Seal watched from the window—
a faint flicker of five-colored light in the forest.
Waiting.
??
