Riva
The smell hit her first.
Damp stone, rot, and something metallic lingering in the air, like rusted water dripping somewhere behind the walls. Riva slowly pushed herself up from the ground as the world tilted slightly around her. Her head throbbed, her stomach twisted, and for a moment she wasn't even sure they had actually arrived somewhere.
The alley was narrow, almost suffocating. The walls leaned inward, cracked and dark, damp in places, and a crooked lantern flickered high above, barely giving enough light to make the shadows seem alive.
Riva took a breath and immediately regretted it.
"This is disgusting."
"Yeah," Kaera said flatly. "Not what we aimed for."
Riva sat up fully and finally looked around. Kaera was already on her feet, standing slightly turned toward her as if ready to move at any second. The other guy stood a bit further back, more relaxed, but still watching.
Riva swallowed.
"That… was a teleport, right?"
Lio gave a faint grin.
"Technically."
"And practically?"
"More like… a guided mistake."
Riva closed her eyes briefly.
"Great."
A short silence settled between them, broken only by the faint, uneven dripping somewhere in the walls.
Kaera stepped closer.
"What you did back there," she said quietly, "wasn't a normal Title."
Riva looked up at her.
"I know."
This time, Kaera paused.
"Then explain it."
Riva shook her head.
"There's nothing to explain."
"Everyone has a Title," Kaera said. "You do something, achieve something, you get one. Or more."
"I know how it works," Riva cut in. "I don't have one."
Silence.
Lio raised an eyebrow.
"Not even one?"
"Not a single one."
"That's… rare."
"That's not normal," Kaera said.
"I've been told."
Riva looked away.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then Kaera spoke again.
"Then what you did…"
"I don't know," Riva said immediately. "I didn't train it. I didn't work for it. I shouldn't even be able to do something like that."
Her voice was tighter than she wanted.
"It just… happened."
Kaera studied her.
"And you didn't feel anything?"
Riva hesitated.
For a moment, it came back–the flashes, the movements, the strange feeling like someone else had been there with her.
"No," she said.
It wasn't entirely true.
But she didn't want to say more.
Lio let out a quiet breath.
"I don't like this."
"Neither do I," Kaera said.
A faint sound came from beyond the wall. Not close. Not loud.
But there.
Kaera tilted her head slightly.
"They're still looking."
Riva let out a dry laugh.
"Of course they are."
"They didn't give up," Lio added.
"Obviously."
Riva stood up slowly. Her legs were still unsteady, but at least they held.
"Alright," she said. "So what's the plan?"
Kaera watched her for a moment, then turned.
"We move."
"Where?"
"Away from here."
Riva sighed.
"That's not a plan."
Lio grinned.
"It works."
Kaera had already started walking. Riva hesitated for a second, then followed.
The alley twisted and narrowed as they moved forward. The walls seemed to close in, the air growing heavier, and the distant sounds of the city faded behind them. This part of the city didn't feel abandoned—it felt left behind. Riva glanced back.
She didn't see anyone.
But something felt wrong.
Like they weren't alone.
She quickly looked forward again.
"We're not teleporting again, right?"
"Only if we have to," Lio said.
"We don't have to."
"We'll see."
Kaera didn't answer, but her pace picked up slightly.
The sound behind them didn't fade.
It just didn't get closer.
That was worse.
The alley slowly opened into a wider, though still deserted street. The ground was more even here, but the place felt no less oppressive. The buildings stretched higher, their windows dark—some broken, others simply empty, as if no one had lived there for a long time.
Riva's footsteps echoed too loudly.
"I don't like this place," she said quietly.
"You don't have to," Kaera replied. "Just don't die in it."
"Reassuring."
Lio chuckled softly.
"I think it's charming. If you ignore the smell, the darkness, and the part where we're being hunted."
Riva glanced at him.
"Are you always like this?"
"Yes."
"That's unfortunate."
Kaera glanced back at them briefly.
"Quieter."
They both fell silent.
The city here felt wrong. Not just empty—abandoned in a way that suggested people had left all at once. The streets were too clean to be natural, yet too neglected to be maintained.
Riva shivered.
"What is this place?"
"Old district," Kaera said. "No one uses it anymore."
"Why?"
Kaera didn't answer right away.
"Not good questions to ask."
"That's not an answer."
"I know."
Riva exhaled.
"Then let's try something simpler. Who are you people?"
Lio's grin returned instantly.
"Finally, a normal question."
"Don't start," Kaera warned.
"No, I think it's fair," Riva said. "You dragged me out of there, threw me through space, and now we're being hunted. I think I deserve something."
Kaera stopped.
Riva stopped behind her.
Lio shifted slightly, watching.
"We didn't drag you," Kaera said.
"That's debatable."
"I saved you."
Riva hesitated.
"I didn't ask for it."
"You didn't have time to."
Silence.
It wasn't kind.
But it was true.
Riva exhaled.
"Fine. Then why?"
Kaera's gaze lingered on her for a moment.
"I didn't like what I saw."
"That's vague."
"It doesn't need to be specific."
Riva frowned but didn't push further.
"And now?"
"Now we're involved," Kaera said simply.
Lio added quietly,
"Deeply."
Riva didn't comment.
They kept moving.
The street narrowed again into a tight passage. The walls were closer here, the air thicker. Riva noticed that Kaera's pace wasn't random.
She knew this place.
"Do you come here often?" Riva asked.
"No."
"But you know it."
"Enough."
Riva nodded, not reassured.
A new sound came from behind them.
Closer this time.
Kaera stopped immediately and raised a hand.
Riva froze.
Lio went silent.
Footsteps.
Not many.
But more than one.
Kaera moved to the wall.
"Quick," she whispered.
She pulled them into a narrow side passage, where the darkness swallowed them almost completely. Riva pressed herself against the wall, trying to stay as still as possible.
The footsteps passed.
They didn't stop.
They didn't search.
They just… moved on.
That was worse.
Riva slowly exhaled.
"They weren't even looking for us?"
"They were," Kaera said quietly.
"Then why didn't they check here?"
Kaera paused.
"Because they don't need to."
Riva didn't understand.
But she didn't like the answer.
When the sound faded completely, Kaera moved again.
Faster this time.
"They're close."
"They were already close," Lio muttered.
"Closer now."
Riva's heart picked up.
"So what's the plan?"
Kaera didn't answer immediately.
Then–
"We get out."
"And then?"
"We think."
"That's still not a plan."
"It works."
"I hate that sentence."
"You'll hear it a lot."
They moved again, and eventually the passage opened into a small, cracked square. At its center stood a dry, broken well, surrounded by uneven stone.
Riva slowed.
Something felt wrong.
"Wait."
Kaera reacted instantly.
"What?"
Riva looked around slowly.
"It's too empty."
"The whole place is."
"No. This is different."
Silence.
The air grew heavier.
Too quiet.
Even Lio's expression shifted.
"Okay… now I don't like it either."
Kaera's hand moved to her weapon.
"I told you this place wasn't good."
Riva couldn't explain it.
She just felt it.
Something was watching them.
Closer than before.
Much closer.
High above, on the rooftops, a shadow stopped.
Still.
Watching.
Waiting.
And this time…it wasn't just following them.