Velmire's Grand Market buzzed like a living beast. Stalls spilled into narrow streets, their colorful awnings fluttering in the breeze. Scented smoke curled from incense burners, mingling with the aroma of spiced meat, fresh herbs, and the occasional sulfurous pop from malfunctioning magical trinkets. Kai moved through the chaos like a shadow.
Cloaked in a dusty traveler's coat, his noble crest carefully hidden beneath layers, he kept his head low. His golden eyes scanned every vendor, every child scampering with firecrackers, every old woman with glowing runes carved into her fruit stand. He wasn't here for pleasure. He was here on orders. A pulse of wild, ancient magic had been felt days ago in the far reaches of the kingdom. His family believed it was tied to an old prophecy; one they dismissed for generations until now. Just as Kai turned a corner, a shriek pierced the air.
"Out of the way!" a girl's voice shouted. A flash of tangled curls and flying robes slammed into him. The world spun. Fruit flew. A wooden stand expelled in a puff of enchanted glitter and spellbound apples rolled in every direction. Mina groaned, sprawled on top of him, her satchel spilling herbs, empty bottles, and half a sandwich.
"Ugh," she muttered, wiping glitter off her face. "You're not a crate."
Kai blinked, stunned. "Clearly."
Guards yelled nearby. Mina's eyes widened. "Oh crumbs. We gotta go!"
Before Kai could argue, she yanked him to his feet and darted into a side alley. The shouts faded as they ducked behind a stack of spellbound brooms. Kai crossed his arms. "Do you always knock people down and drag them into alleys, or am I just lucky?" Panting, Mina smirked. "Only the pretty ones." He raised a brow. "You have jam on your nose." She wiped it with the back of her sleeve, unfazed. "Battle scar. So, stranger, thank you for not screaming. Most people scream." "I don't scream."
"Yeah, you just look like you read too much poetry."
Kai almost smiled. Almost.
As he adjusted his coat, a shimmer flickered beneath the fabric his family's crest, lit faintly for the first time in years. He pressed his hand to it quickly, hiding the glow. Mina didn't notice.
Before he could walk away, a nearby trinket vendor's crystal flared deep red a rare sign of magical imbalance. Both their eyes locked on it.
"You felt that too?" Mina asked, voice suddenly serious.
Kai nodded slowly.
The same surge he had tracked. It pulsed again faint, but present. And it was coming from the East. "You are heading that way?" Mina asked, already slinging her satchel back on.
"Maybe." "Good. I'm going with you." Kai narrowed his eyes. "Why?"
"Because I have a feeling whatever we're chasing... it's going to need both of us."
And just like that, a noble in hiding and a clumsy herbalist began a journey neither of them fully understood but fate had already written their names beside hers.
The girl of roses and ruin.
And the world would never be the same again.
As the sun dipped below the hills of Veil spire Market, golden rays washed over the cobbled streets and stalls now emptying. Mina skipped ahead, munching loudly on a sugary bun she hadn't exactly paid for, while Kai trailed behind, lost in thought.
"You're awfully quiet for someone who almost got mugged and then rescued by a genius," Mina teased, twirling dramatically and nearly knocking over a stack of crates.
Kai smirked, catching one before it fell. "You didn't rescue me. You just... distracted them with your chaos."
"Chaos is a form of brilliance," she shot back with a wink.
They stopped at a small fountain nestled between two quiet alleys. The water shimmered unnaturally light rippling through it like silver threads.
Kai's eyes narrowed as he crouched near it.
"What is it?" Mina asked, peeking over his shoulder.
He dipped a finger in the water. The surface stilled, then bloomed into a rose-shaped glow brilliant and blue. Just like the one that had been whispered about all day.
As Mina leaned closer, the glow flared then pulsed, as if the fountain had recognized not one, but two echoes of something long lost.
A cold wind brushed past them, and somewhere in the distance, bells rang.
Kai stood; eyes fixed on the glowing rose. "Something's calling."
Mina stepped back. "Well, if it's calling you, it better be prepared for both of us."
He glanced at her, a rare smile playing on his lips.
"Then we leave at first light."
The rose shimmered brighter as the wind whispered through the alley like a promise.
Far from Velmire, in a temple built before time had a name, a prophecy scroll stirred beneath glass. Dust lifted. Pages turned on their own.
A new stanza bled into existence:
"When laughter meets lineage, and clumsiness touches the crown, the Balance shall stir. Not all stars fall alone."
And the stars above shifted ever so slightly.
Watching.
Waiting.