Eve sat curled on the couch, knees to her chest, Blue's hoodie draped over her shoulders like armor against the silence. The sleeves hung well past her hands, swallowing them whole. Across from her, Blue's mother clutched a half-empty glass of wine with trembling fingers. She hadn't changed clothes in days...her eyes hollow, skin pale, lips barely moving as she stared ahead with a haunted, sleepless gaze.
Blue's father stood behind the couch, arms folded, his weight shifted into one leg like he'd been leaning there for hours. He said nothing, just stared at the television flickering before them. Then, the silence broke.
"The first golden gate in America appeared earlier this week behind this pizza shop in downtown Columbus," a newscaster's voice echoed from the screen. "The Buckeye Guild has cordoned off the area. So far, no hunters have shown compatibility with the gate. If you're interested in testing your resonance, please contact the Buckeye Guild directly…"
That pizza shop… it was Blue's favorite place. They went there every day after school—rain, sleet, or snow. She could still taste the garlic knots and hear his dumb jokes echoing off the brick walls. Could he... have gone through? The timing lined up too perfectly. Her heart pounded in her chest. No... I cant say anything...not yet. Not until I'm sure.
She looked at Blue's mother and spoke gently, "Um… can I use the basement? I want to get a little training in. My parents said they'll be here in about an hour with food." Mary blinked, then forced a hollow smile. "Sure, honey. Go ahead." Eve nodded and slipped away.
The basement light buzzed as she flicked it on. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a smooth, faintly glowing stone—glasslike and cool, with a thin swirl of light slowly shifting beneath the surface. Her fingers curled around it instinctively. The Veyl Stone. A gift from Faelorn, carved from the breath of Thalorin's ancient spirits. It didn't carry sound. It carried thought...clean, direct, and silent to everyone but the one holding it. Eve placed her palm against the stone and gently pushed her spirit energy inward...tentative at first, then steady.
Once…
Twice…
A third pulse shimmered across the surface like ripples through still water.
the silence stretched. Then...A voice bloomed within her mind.
"Ahh, my sweet, sweet disciple. How goes Terra?"
Eve nearly collapsed with relief. He's still with me.
"Master Faelorn... Blue... he... he's gone."
"Gone? What do you mean?"
"A golden gate appeared here. I think he went through it."
There was a pause. A breath. A change in the air.
"Are you sure?"
"No, but it appeared around the same time he went missing, and where it appeared...It's no coincidence."
"Then it may have chosen him," Faelorn said quietly. "Those gates respond to resonance...those who carry a frequency the gate recognizes. If it opened before him, it saw something… something deep within."
"Is there a way for someone compatible to bring others through? Even if they don't resonate?"
"Not that we are aware of," Faelorn replied. "The gates reject those who do not match their frequency. But..."
"But?"
"Two days after you left, a golden gate opened in the Spinning Hills. I gave a Veyl Stone to a group who entered. They've reported back, Veltrax they called it, and it leads to a world unlike anything we've ever seen. Sentient machines, floating cities, technology that far surpasses even the lost tales of Terra you once told me. "
Eve's heart skipped. "Could they help us understand the gates better? Maybe even help bring someone through who isnt compatible?"
"I will reach out to them," Faelorn said. "If anyone can unravel the gate's workings, it's the machines."
"Thank you, Master."
"Of course, my dear. Remember... if the gate chose him, then it is not the end. He will return. Worry will only make you falter. Focus your heart, your energy, and your training. Let sorrow pass through you, not control you."
Eve nodded to herself, the warmth of his words steadying her breath.
"I have to go now," she whispered.
As Eve headed back upstairs she thought to herself. "Blue... I miss you. I hope you're safe. I still haven't told you how I really feel."
She pressed her fingers to her heart. Please come back soon.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
A breeze stirred the dust across the training yard. Dry, sharp wind that smelled faintly of steel and pine. Blue rubbed the side of his ear and muttered under his breath, "Tch... my ear itches. Who's cursing me now?" From a nearby bench, a voice piped up, "Probably your own ancestors, the way you flailed during orientation." Blue looked over to see one of the Silent Edge recruits slouched with his boots kicked up, chewing lazily on a stalk of dried root.
"Thought you were talking to ghosts again," the recruit added. "For a second, I almost bowed out of respect." A couple of the others chuckled. "We got ourselves a wandering sage, huh? Master of invisible monologues." Blue rolled his eyes but couldn't help the corner of his mouth twitching. "Didn't realize Silent Edge trained comedians." "They don't," the first guy said with a smirk. "I'm a tragedy. You're the punchline."
Another round of chuckles rolled through the courtyard as the group began shuffling off. As they dispersed, Blue stood alone again, the weight of his bruises settling in, but the silence didn't feel quite so heavy now. It's not the Tang Clan... but it's something.
High above the courtyard, just beyond the edge of the northern watchtower, Wu Jin leaned silently against a beam, arms crossed beneath his sleeves. He had seen some of the new recruits fight among themselves to establish dominance. He saw Blue ignore those fights. He'd also seen the flicker of something else...something buried deep beneath that loss. A stillness that didn't belong to someone untrained. The kind of restraint that came with dangerous experience.
So when his father had pulled him aside and whispered the truth--that boy... Blue is Tang Jiung, Yeol's nephew who died during the invasion. He reincarnated...He's setting aside his lineage. He needs strength... he needs you, Wu Jin. You're the only one that can strengthen him and keep his secret...
Wu Jin hadn't believed it. Would he really set the Tang in him aside?
From his perch, Wu Jin watched as Blue bantered with the other disciples. Not too much. Not trying to stand out. Just enough to be part of the corps. He didn't correct them. He laughed with them. He's not clinging to it, Wu Jin thought. Not his name. Not his ego. Not even his grief.
Wu Jin let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Maybe the boy really is willing to set it all aside...for now. Maybe he's not here to stir up the past. Maybe... he's here to bleed like the rest of us. He stepped back from the railing, shadows swallowing his form as the courtyard laughter faded. Tomorrow, Blue would learn what Silent Edge truly meant.
That night he moon hung low beyond the frost-kissed windows, casting long silver shadows across the wooden floor. Blue pushed open the creaking door to his room and froze. A scroll lay neatly on his bedding. Tied with black twine. Silent Edge insignia stamped into the seal. Beside it...a folded slip of parchment, unadorned except for one inked line:
I told my father I'd train you. Doesn't mean I'll hold your hand. Master this. Do what you must to do so.– Wu Jin
Blue stared at the note, then the scroll. His fingers hesitated...then unrolled the parchment with care. It wasn't flashy. No radiant qi diagrams or divine revelations. Just a breathing technique. Simple… and maddeningly complex. His eyes followed each motion written on the scroll: inhale through the stomach, tighten the ribs, release through the spine, circulate to the base of the skull, repeat. It was written like poetry but demanded perfection like steel.
Twilight Flow.
The technique felt foreign and yet familiar. As if something inside him stirred at the rhythm.
A flicker pulsed in the corner of his vision.
[Technique Identified]
[Twilight Flow – Passive]
[Progress: 3%]Internal Qi synchronization increased when training alone.
Focus alignment enhanced during meditation.
"The blade may be loud, but the breath must be still."
Blue furrowed his brow. "...Man, this system really says the most outlandish things." He exhaled, then laughed quietly to himself. Just a breath. No one else around to hear it. Still… maybe I need to rely on it more than I thought. He rolled the scroll back up and sat cross-legged, the rhythm echoing in his chest. The room was quiet, but his pulse wasn't. For once, it wasn't from fear… or guilt. It was anticipation.
And then---
BANG. BANG. BANG.
A fist slammed into the door. Heavy. Urgent.
"Wake up now! Courtyard in five." The voice belonged to Cheng, the assistant instructor. Gruff, gravelly, annoyed. Blue blinked...they are really calling us outAt midnight? He grabbed the scroll, tucked it beneath his robes, and stepped into the cold.
The courtyard was darker than usual. No torches. No moonlight. Just sound of boots straggling along as groggy recruits shuffled into line. Some wore half-fastened belts. Others looked half-asleep. But Wu Jin stood still. Waiting. Arms behind his back. Eyes closed. A ghost carved in granite. Blue slipped into place, the scroll still warm against his chest. His breath curled like smoke into the cold night air.
Cheng barked out a count. "Twenty-four present."
Wu Jin opened his eyes.
"One's missing," he said. "He's out."
Silence. No one dared to speak. Then, Wu Jin paced forward slowly, wooden rod tucked beneath one arm like a general surveying a battlefield.
"You were accepted into Silent Edge," he said. "That was your first mistake. You thought it meant you belonged."
His voice wasn't raised, but it cut through the courtyard like a blade through silk.
"This isn't a school. This isn't a temple. This is a crucible."
He stopped, glancing at each recruit. Blue met his gaze for the briefest second and felt his breath catch.
"On your beds tonight," Wu Jin said, "you found scrolls. Twilight Flow. It is the only breathing method you'll use while you're here."
He let that hang in the frozen air.
"You have ONE MONTH to master it. Or leave."
Another beat of silence.
"Training begins at sunrise."
He turned his back to them, steps echoing off the frost-bitten stone.
"Sleep if you dare."
He vanished into the shadows.
Some recruits muttered under their breath. Others looked panicked. One whispered, "He's testing us." Blue didn't move. He only reached inside his robes, touched the edge of the scroll beneath his clothes… and let out a slow, steady breath.
[Twilight Flow – Progress: 4%] "Even stillness must be earned."
The recruits stumbled off in silence, their exhaustion deeper than sleep could fix. Some whispered. Some stumbled. Some didn't speak at all. Wu Jin didn't watch them go. He didn't need to. In one month, half of them would break. A few might survive. The rest? Buried in the dirt...forgotten like they were never here.
Silent Edge didn't reward potential. It only remembered the ones who endured.