Chapter 2: Shadows Have Names
Lux slipped into the locker hall, every step silent, like she'd trained her feet not to exist.
She hated the mirrors here — not because of how she looked, but because of what she didn't see. No history. No family. No proof she'd ever existed before Ravenmoor.
The instructors called her Ghost.
Students called her worse.
She peeled off her training vest, sweat cooling on her back, when a voice slid through the hallway like a knife through silk.
> "You're getting faster."
Lux didn't turn. "And you're getting better at stalking."
Arlo, top of their class, leaned casually against the lockers. Blond, sharp-featured, smile like poison. Most people feared him. Lux didn't — she just didn't trust him.
> "Word is Knox is watching you," he said. "That's dangerous."
"Only if you give him a reason," she muttered, pulling her jacket on.
Arlo's eyes narrowed slightly. "He doesn't watch anyone. And he's not the kind who trains favorites. You should be careful, Ghost. Everyone's wondering why you're still breathing."
Lux turned to face him fully for the first time. "Maybe because no one's tried hard enough."
That made him grin. "That... or they're waiting for orders."
---
Meanwhile, Knox stood alone in his private quarters, reviewing trainee files. Most had paragraphs. Lux's had one line:
> "Brought in by Directive 7. No history. No record. Keep under surveillance."
He closed the file slowly.
Then opened an encrypted message from the Director:
> "She's not here to be trained, Knox. She's here to be watched."
He stared at the screen, jaw clenched.
He hated secrets. Especially the kind that wore daggers and dared to defy him in front of the whole damn