At a dimly lit bar, Shenelle sat across from Aegis, her fingers idly tracing the rim of her glass as they drank in companionable silence. Aegis broke the quiet with a curious glance. “So, what made you work at Arcanum Royal Institute?” he asked, taking a sip of his drink.

  Shenelle leaned back, her expression calm but resolute. “I rebuilt the school from the rubble. I only work there to make sure my kids get the education they deserve,” she said, her tone matter-of-fact.

  Aegis raised a skeptical brow, coughing as if processing her nonchalant confession. “You rebuilt the school? What are you, some kind of miracle worker?” he asked, half-seriously, leaning forward with genuine intrigue.

  Shenelle straightened, brushing off the question with a wave of her hand. “I, uh—how about you? What made you take the job?” she asked quickly, deflecting the attention.

  Aegis sighed, his gaze softening. “It was a chance to help my kid. The wizarding world wasn’t safe for him, so I took the job to give him a fresh start. Honestly, he seems fond of your kids. You’ve done a good job raising them.”

  Shenelle’s guarded expression softened as she smiled. “Thank you. That means a lot,” she said quietly.

  Meanwhile, Medusa lounged ominously in the headmaster’s chair, her emerald eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. Her serpentine hair slithered beneath a shadowy hood, restless as she muttered to herself. “Baba Yaga has children now? First, she steals the attention of my late spouse, Merlin, and then lives in the same city as Melanthius? And now, she dares to bring her brood here?” Medusa hissed, her voice venomous and low. She leaned forward, her tongue flicking out with a sinister slither. “I’ll turn her precious little ‘children’ into my Basalites.”

  Medusa’s lips curled into a smirk as she glanced at the school’s control system. “Let’s see how they manage in the dark.” With a sharp flick of her hand, she extinguished the power, plunging the entire school into an oppressive, inky blackness. Seconds later, terrified screams filled the air, followed by the eerie pounding of stone footsteps as her Basalites burst out of the headmaster’s office and into the school hallways.

  In one of the classrooms, Dontai, Sera, Lumi, and Caius huddled together, flinching as the screams of panicked students echoed through the building. Dontai clutched his head, his voice shaking. “What the hell is going on?! Why is everyone screaming?”

  The others exchanged uneasy glances, their hands instinctively covering their ears. Before anyone could answer, Forge burst into the room, his face pale with fear. “We need to move—now!” he yelled, his voice trembling.

  Before they could react, a Basalite burst into the room behind Forge. Its glowing stone fingers grabbed his face, and with a sickening crunch, his body hardened into grotesque stone, transforming him into another Basalite. The squad froze, their screams catching in their throats as two more Basalites stormed in, their glowing eyes locked onto the group.

  One lunged for Dontai, its stone fingers inches from his face. With a quick burst of his Torque magic, Dontai spun himself across the room and out of the creature’s reach. “This way!” he shouted, urging the others to follow as he bolted for the nearest door.

  Lumi, Sera, and Caius ran after him, dodging the Basalites as they swiped and lunged. They burst into a nearby room, slamming the door behind them and holding their breath. Outside, the heavy thuds of Basalite footsteps grew fainter as the creatures searched for their next prey.

  In the oppressive silence, Dontai’s voice broke through, barely above a whisper. “What the hell are those things?”

  No one had an answer.

  Suddenly, the intercom crackled to life, and a sinister hiss filled the air. “School’s out, children,” Medusa purred, her voice dripping with venom, “except for those three little ones hiding.” Her tone turned almost playful as she added, “Or should I say... Baba Yaga’s children?” The sound of a snake slithering punctuated her words, sending chills down their spines.

  “Baba Yaga’s children? Who is this?!” Dontai shouted, his voice shaking as he looked up at the intercom.

  Sera’s expression hardened, and with a sudden burst of anger, she slammed her fist into a desk, shattering it into splinters. “What does she want with us?” she demanded, her voice sharp.

  Dontai flinched, confused by her words. “Us? What do you mean?”

  “She’s probably an old enemy of Yaga’s,” Lumi said quickly, her tone anxious as she began stacking tables and chairs against the door to barricade it. “But how did she even find us?”

  “What?! Baba Yaga is alive?!” Dontai exclaimed, his bewilderment growing, but the others barely acknowledged him, their focus on the immediate danger.

  Caius, standing silently in the corner, raised a single finger to his lips, signaling for quiet.

  “Ohhh,” Lumi and Sera said in unison, their realization dawning as they exchanged glances.

  “What?! He didn’t even say anything!” Dontai exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air, his confusion only deepening.

  Suddenly, a Basalite emerged silently from the wall behind Caius, its stone fingers reaching for him. “Caius, watch out!” Dontai shouted, raising his fist instinctively. But before anyone could react, Caius spun around, executing a powerful wheel kick with a precision that startled everyone. Mid-kick, his leg morphed into a zebra’s muscular limb, his shapeshifting magic amplifying the force of his strike. The Basalite’s head shattered into pieces, the glowing fragments scattering across the floor like embers.

  Dontai blinked in disbelief. “Whoa...”

  Sera stepped forward, inspecting the glowing rubble carefully. “Doesn’t look like it was a human turned Basalite,” she said, her voice steady but cautious. “But next time, Caius, tone it down. If it was a transformed person, you could’ve—”

  Caius nodded silently, his expression unreadable.

  Sera crouched, picking up a handful of the glowing shards and letting them trickle through her fingers. “It’s creation magic,” she explained, her brow furrowed. “But they have the power to turn humans into one of them. We can’t let them get close to us.”

  “Can someone please explain what’s going on?!” Dontai shouted, his voice laced with frustration and panic. Lumi, Sera, and Caius exchanged hesitant glances before letting out a collective sigh.

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  “You can’t tell anyone this,” Sera began, her tone firm but wary. “Baba Yaga is alive. She’s Shenelle Upan.” Dontai’s jaw dropped, but before he could respond, Sera continued. “She saved me and Lumi from execution when we were being hunted for our wizardry. We’re twins, and a few years later, she found Caius and took him in too. He’s our brother, not by blood, but by bond.”

  Dontai blinked, his mind reeling, but Sera wasn’t done. “Shenelle—Baba Yaga—trained Merlin Shadowbane. That might not sound important, but if that lady on the intercom is after her, it’s probably tied to Mel’s death.” She paused to catch her breath, her words hanging heavily in the air. “We’re all wizards, Dontai. That’s the truth.”

  Dontai stared at her, trying to process everything. “Baba Yaga, alive? Mel’s death? You’re all wizards? This... this is insane,” he stammered, his head spinning.

  Lumi peered out the window, her expression grim as the distant screams of students and the horrifying sound of people being turned into Basalites echoed through the air. “This is bad,” she murmured. Dontai nodded in agreement, his panic growing.

  “We have to make a run for it. The windows can be broken with a wand—follow me!” he urged, moving toward the window with urgency. But when he turned around, he saw the siblings crouched over the rubble, meticulously analyzing the fragments of the Basalite.

  “What are you guys doing?!” Dontai exclaimed, disbelief in his voice.

  “Trying to figure out how to reverse this,” Lumi replied without looking up. “Did you really think we’d just run?” Her calm tone carried an edge of determination.

  Sera held up a piece of the glowing rubble, her brow furrowed in thought. “Mel would’ve fought to save everyone. So, of course, we have to.”

  Their words struck Dontai like a lightning bolt, breaking through his fear. He hesitated, then straightened his posture. Their courage and conviction shifted something inside him. “You’re right,” he said, his voice steadier now. “Let’s figure this out—together.”

  Back in the bar, Shenelle swayed to the music, her steps light and rhythmic. She allowed herself a rare moment of ease, a smile gracing her lips. “Maybe I should move out here,” she mused aloud, almost to herself. “It’s not so bad. Seems like wizards have come a long way.”

  Aegis leaned back in his chair, watching her with mild amusement. “You’re getting real comfortable, huh?” he asked with a chuckle.

  Shenelle turned, her smile lingering. “Why not? For once, I don’t feel like I have to look over my shoulder.” She stretched her arms lazily, as if the weight of her past had lightened, even if just for the night.

  Aegis glanced at the clock. “It’s getting late. Are the kids okay?”

  She waved a dismissive hand. “They’re fine. They’ve been through worse. They can handle themselves.” Her tone was confident, but beneath it, there was a flicker of concern she wouldn’t admit.

  The bar door swung open, and the atmosphere shifted. A pair of rowdy men stumbled in, clearly having had too much to drink. One of them caught sight of Shenelle and sneered. “Hey, isn’t that one of them wandrats?” he slurred loudly, using the derogatory term with venom. “Look at her, acting all high and mighty like she belongs here.”

  The word struck Shenelle like a physical blow. Her carefree demeanor evaporated as a surge of memories hit her—faces jeering, a crowd screaming for her to burn, her hands trembling as she clutched a young Sera and Lumi, shielding them from hatred.

  Her expression darkened, and her jaw clenched. Aegis noticed the change immediately. “Shenelle,” he said cautiously, but it was too late.

  She turned sharply toward the man, her eyes narrowing with a fiery intensity. “What did you just call me?” she asked, her voice low and dangerous.

  The man hesitated, taken aback by her sudden shift in demeanor, but his friend laughed nervously. “What’s the matter? Hit a nerve?”

  Shenelle stepped forward, her movements deliberate and controlled, though anger radiated off her like heat. “That’s what I thought,” she said, her voice sharp enough to cut glass. “The next time you want to open your mouth, remember who you’re talking to.”

  The air in the bar grew tense, and even Aegis, who had seen Shenelle at her fiercest, shifted uncomfortably. He placed a calming hand on her shoulder, but she didn’t pull her gaze away from the men until they muttered something incoherent and backed off.

  After a moment, Shenelle exhaled and returned to her seat, but the mood had shifted. Aegis watched her carefully, choosing his words. “You okay?”

  She didn’t answer right away, staring into her glass. Finally, she spoke, her voice quieter now. “People like that don’t change. No matter how far you run, they find you. And they’ll always remind you of what they think you are.”

  Aegis nodded slowly, sensing the pain behind her words. “But you’re not what they think, Shenelle. You’ve proven that, time and again.”

  “Actually, Aegis,” Shenelle began, her voice trembling slightly as she ran her hands down her face, trying to steady herself. “I’m not what you think.”

  Before Aegis could respond, a loud crash erupted behind them. The rowdy man who had insulted her moments ago was flung backward across the bar, his body slamming into a table with a sickening thud. “Run!” he screamed, his voice high-pitched with terror, before his body twisted and contorted. In an instant, he transformed into a monstrous Basalite, its glowing cracks and jagged structure pulsating with eerie light.

  Panic overtook the bar as screams filled the air. Patrons scrambled to escape, knocking over chairs and tables in their frantic rush for the exits. The Basalite rose to its full height, its crystalline form looming menacingly as it turned its glowing gaze toward Shenelle.

  Shenelle froze for a split second, her eyes widening in shock. “No… Medusa?!” The name flashed through her mind like a warning siren.

  The Basalite lunged at her, its massive arm swinging down in a deadly arc. Shenelle moved on instinct, catching its arm mid-swing with both hands. Her muscles tensed as she gritted her teeth, then with a sharp twist, she snapped the arm outward, shattering part of its crystalline form.

  In a fluid motion, she reached into the glowing structure and pulled the rowdy man free from the Basalite’s core. His body collapsed to the floor, unconscious but breathing heavily, the remnants of the Basalite still glowing faintly on his skin. Shenelle stepped back, panting, and stared down at the crumbled remains of the creature.

  “Medusa,” she muttered again under her breath, her mind racing.

  Aegis, who had stood frozen in shock, finally found his voice. “Shenelle?! That… that was incredible!” he exclaimed, his eyes wide with both fear and admiration.

  Shenelle shot him a sharp look, her expression a mixture of frustration and urgency. “Aegis, this isn’t the time for praise. If Medusa is behind this, we’re all in danger. Get everyone out of here!”

  She glanced down at the unconscious man and then back at the glowing rubble, dread into her features.

  Back at the school, Dontai placed four wands on the table in front of them. “These wands are made from goblin teeth,” he began, his tone serious. “They’re not exactly high-quality. Nobody really uses them—most people buy theirs from proper shops—but they’ll have to do for now. Have any of you ever used a wand before?”

  Sera crossed her arms, her expression flat. “Nope.”

  Lumi shook her head. “Nuh-uh, never.”

  Dontai sighed, rubbing the back of his neck before picking up one of the wands. “Great. Well, most people use wands for casting spells, but I’m not much of a spell guy, and we don’t have time for lessons.” He gestured for them to pick up the wands. “Think of it as an extension of your body—like an extra limb. You can channel your magic through it to send out attacks, kind of like what you’ve been doing already with your techniques.”

  He reached into his bag and pulled out an old book, flipping through its worn pages until he landed on one he’d marked. “This spell here is supposed to reverse the enchantment. A reverting spell. If we hit the Basalites with it, it should turn them back into normal people. But,” he added, pointing at the page, “if you use it on someone who’s not enchanted, it’ll just make them woozy and disoriented.”

  Dontai raised his wand, muttering an incantation. The wand tip began to glow faintly with a pulsing light, though he didn’t fire the spell. He turned back to the group. “It’s probably best if we split up and cover more ground. We’ll need to hit as many of them as possible before they hurt anyone else.”

  Sera picked up a wand, examining it skeptically. “This better work.”

  Lumi held hers with more curiosity than confidence. “I guess we’re doing this?”

  Dontai nodded firmly. “We have to.”