Brevia – Local Schoolhouse, Late Morning
Ashen sat cross-legged on a rough wooden bench, shoulders slumped, chin propped on one hand. Across the cramped room, the teacher pointed at the board with a stick like it was a wand conjuring math from thin air.
> "Seven plus five, children. Count clearly. Use your markers."
Half the kids bent over their slates, lining up pebbles or scratching tally marks into the wood. Beside Ashen, a boy stuck out his tongue while drawing vertical lines like he was calculating rocket trajectories.
Ashen (internal)
> "No calculators. Just basic math and wide-eyed faith."
He leaned back, a half-smile tugging at one corner of his mouth.
Ashen (internal)
> "No science. No higher education. Not even the idea of it. This place is about two thousand years behind Earth… and proud of it."
The boy next to him counted twelve lines and beamed, raising his hand like he'd just unlocked the secrets of the universe. The teacher nodded, proud.
Ashen gave a faint nod back, lips tight.
Ashen (internal, dry)
> "Congrats, kid. You'll never have to suffer through trigonometry. You've been spared."
The lesson dragged on — apples and goats, subtraction and addition, all taught like advanced theory.
Ashen's gaze drifted to the open window. Outside, the sun bounced off clay rooftops. A breeze tugged at a laundry line. Somewhere, a dog barked.
Inside: dust, creaking benches, and math he'd mastered when he was two. In his last life.
Ashen (deadpan)
> "If I keep studying this, I will go insane."
He exhaled, stared at the board for another second, then rested his head on the table. Not asleep. Just... surrendering.
---
Brevia – Outskirts, Just Before Noon
Katrina had spoken to three shopkeepers, two farmers, and one tired librarian.
All six had looked at her like she was trying to buy a child.
The words she used were innocent enough — "special," "unique," "someone with potential" — but apparently, a heavily armed woman asking about gifted kids came off… wrong.
Katrina (walking away from another awkward conversation)
> "Should've worn something less murder-y."
By noon, she claimed a tree just off the road.
One branch was wide and low enough to climb without fuss, high enough to stay out of sight. She nestled into it, arms crossed, legs dangling, coat pulled close against the wind.
Katrina (quietly)
> "Alright. Five minutes. Just five minutes to close my eyes."
She hadn't rested properly since the mansion raid.
Five minutes turned into ten. Ten into thirty.
By mid-afternoon, Katrina was completely out. Breathing steady. Fingers twitching faintly, like she was still holding a blade in her dream.
---
Mid-Afternoon
Something landed on her forehead.
Soft. Light.
Enough to wake instinct.
She moved in an instant — hand to her belt, body coiled—
Then froze.
A bird.
Round. Brown. Tilting its head at her like she was the strange one.
Katrina (flat)
> "Really?"
She slumped back, dragging a hand across her face.
Katrina (exhaling)
> "Guess I actually slept."
She sat there for a while, half-lidded, listening to the wind rustle the leaves.
Then her stomach growled.
Katrina (deadpan)
> "Perfect. Useless and hungry."
She stretched, adjusted her coat, and dropped from the tree with a soft thud.
Still no sign of the kid Madhav had mentioned. No leads. No reason to think this wasn't a massive waste of time.
But she wasn't going back yet.
Later —
She darted across the rooftops, boots light on the tiles, coat flaring behind her like a trailing shadow. Her breath was calm. Focused. Almost meditative.
Katrina (muttering)
> "Maybe the bird was the prodigy. For it to land on my forehead without me noticing…"
She didn't actually believe that. Probably.
But after a full day of dead ends, weird looks, and mud-soaked boots, she was about ready to train a pigeon if it looked clever enough.
Then she stopped.
Eyes narrowing.
A backyard just past the next row of roofs — wild grass, crooked fence, an open patch in the middle.
And in the center of it: a child.
Maybe three, maybe four. Red hair. Bare feet.
Kicking a tree.
Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
Again.
And again.
Katrina crouched, silent, watching from above. At first it looked like a tantrum. Then... rhythm. Control. Like he was testing. Calibrating.
Katrina (quietly, intrigued)
> "...Huh."
She watched for ten minutes.
He didn't slow. If anything, he adjusted — changing angles, shifting weight, trying new impact points.
That wasn't rage.
That was method.
Her glove flexed. A faint hum from the bracer on her wrist.
She jumped.
---
Brevia – Ashen's Backyard, Moments Later
Ashen took two steps back, narrowed his eyes, and sprinted — lining up for one last mid-air heel strike against the tree.
But he didn't land.
Because halfway through the leap, a hand grabbed him midair.
Upside down. By the ankle.
Ashen
> "Wha—?!"
A tall woman stood in the yard. Coat snapping in the wind. Whip coiled at her hip. Something sparking on the bracer wrapped around her left wrist — the one holding him.
Her right hand was already inspecting him — brushing back his sleeve, tilting his head, checking behind his ear.
Katrina (muttering)
> "Where is your mark…?"
Ashen flailed.
Ashen
> "HEY! What the—?! I'm just learning subtraction! Don't vaporize me!"
At that moment, the side door slammed open.
A woman stepped out, apron tied in haste, eyes full of fury.
Lira
> "HEY! Who the hell are you?! Put my son down!"
Katrina turned her head, still holding Ashen upside down like a mildly interesting artifact.
Katrina
> "He's your kid?"
Lira
> "Yes, and you better not mean any harm to him."
Katrina blinked.
Then sighed.
Then gently — but not too gently — set Ashen down.
He landed with a light thud, legs wobbling. Straightened. Brushed himself off.
Then stared up at her.
Ashen
> "What is wrong with you?! You can't just—jump into people's yards and—grab children!"
He looked her over. The long coat. The sparking bracer. The whip.
Ashen (internal)
> "Okay. Definitely not a normal crazy person. This one's got professional crazy energy."
Before he could yell again, the woman raised one hand — not threatening, just asking for a moment.
Katrina
> "Name's Katrina. I'm with the Whisper's Light Guild. I was just looking for someone."