---
"I'll go straight to the point," he said. His voice was quiet. Too quiet.
"I hope you're ready for this."
"The mark on your head," Vael said. "That's what makes me curious."
He took one step forward. The fog parted around his boots like it was afraid of him.
His head cocked to the side. Two fingers rose to his temple. Not touching. Just hovering.
The violet pattern in his eyes spun once. Slow. Slight.
A small smile pulled at his mouth.
"Fascinating."
Ira's hand twitched toward the mark on her forehead. She caught herself. Dropped it.
Her palms were damp.
She met his eyes. The pattern was strange. But it wasn't hurting her.
It was worse. It felt... interested.
"Ready for what?"
Her voice came out steadier than she felt. Her heart was hammering.
Behind her, Aneouz went stiff. Heat at her back. A silent wall.
"You realized by now," he said. His voice dropped, gravel rough.
The fog went quieter. "Your mark isn't normal."
Ira's fingers brushed her forehead.
The mark was warm.
And just like that —
The fog in her mind vanished. dissolving into a completely different night.
---
The park. Evening.
Darkness was settling. Moonlight cut through the branches.
She was with Sirnithi. Side by side. rackets griped tight in their hands.
A shuttlecock cut toward them. Fast. Cold wind pushed it faster.
Ira swung. Hit.
Sent it back to Amira and Zaiera. Their opponents.
Amira moved. Her racket came down, swoosh,
But the shuttlecock clipped the edge. Fell to the ground.
Sirnithi turned. Grinned. High five.
_Smack._
`We won.`
"It's already night," Amira said. "We should head home."
"Yeah," Ira said. She moved closer to Amira. "You're right."
Zaiera exhaled. A cloud of smoke came out of her mouth in the cold.
Ira noticed.
She looked at Amira. Then at Sirnithi.
Both of them were already staring.
Ira's eyebrows went up. Her head tilted.
She turned to Zaiera too.
Amira and Sirnithi followed Ira's gaze.
All three of them were looking at Zaiera now.
"Only weird people can do that," Amira said.
---
Zaiera stared. "Huh?"
"It's because of winter," she said.
Amira breathed out. Smoke.
Sirnithi did too. Ira did too.
"Mine's big and long," Sirnithi said, laughing.
"No," Ira said. "Mine's better."
Until...
Sirnithi's smile faded. Her face went blank.
Her voice came out wavering. "What's... on your forehead."
Ira frowned. "What?"
Amira and Zaiera stopped smiling too.
"It wasn't there a little while ago," Amira mumbled.
"It was glowing," Zaiera said. Her voice shook.
Silence.
Just the wind.
Then —
Sirnithi's hand moved behind her back.
A small signal.
Amira saw it.
Zaiera saw it.
They both nodded. Once.
Ira's stomach dropped.
They took a step back.
Then another.
Together.
"Guys?" Ira said. Small.
No answer.
Then they turned.
And ran toward the dark trees at the edge of the park.
"Wait!" Ira called. She ran after them.
Shoes slipping on leaves. Cold air burning her lungs.
Sirnithi stopped. Turned.
"Don't follow us!"
She screamed it.
The words hit harder than the cold.
Ira's legs froze mid-step.
Right there on the path.
She stood alone.
Watching them disappear between the branches.
"I wanna be with them," she whispered.
Her voice cracked.
"Why did they leave me behind?"
Her hand touching her forehead, Far and wide, what she could see now was just emptiness and darkness.
Then, the cold park shivered and dissolved. Ira blinked. The fog was back."
---
Ira blinked. The fog was back. Cold on her skin.
Vael's hand twitched in front of his eyes. Like it moved on its own.
A muscle jumped in his jaw.
Then he turned back to Ira. His hand dropped. Slow. Deliberate.
"First," Vael said. Hands back in his pockets.
His eyes never left her forehead. "I wanna ask you something."
Ira lifted her chin. The air felt thin.
"Just talk. What do you already know?"
Her voice didn't shake. She was proud of that.
Vael's smile was small. Empty.
He wasn't looking at her eyes.
He was looking _through_ her. At the mark.
"Do you know what the Horizontal Mark is?" he whispered.
The whisper hit her ears. Too close.
Ira frowned. She crossed her arms.
"I'm not allowing questions. Yet."
Her fingers brushed her forehead. The mark was warm.
"I want to know why this mark is on me."
Vael blinked. Slow.
Like he was listening to something else. Not her.
The fog around them got colder.
He took one more step forward.
Close enough that she could see the violet pattern spinning in his eyes.
His voice was flat. Factual.
"Dose you felt disconnect to this world.
Ira's breath caught.
Her heart hammered once. Hard.
The mark pulsed. Warm against her fingers.
Her head gave a fraction of a shake—a tiny, involuntary side-to-side motion that she cut off before it could fully form.
"Be straight forward. What do you know about this weird mark?" she said.
Her arms crossed over her chest. Not to look tough. To stop the shaking.
"I don't know much, either," Vael said.
He didn't move. But the fog around his feet swirled, like his words had weight.
"However, I can tell you whatever I know."
"The horizontal mark was implanted on you," Vael spoke.
His eyes dropped to her forehead. Didn't blink.
"It was implanted by someone you know."