A tap on my shoulder.
I turned—
Silver.
The same girl.
That was when it clicked.
It wasn't a coincidence.
She had seen through Hide.
She was special.
"Let's go," she said, eyes bright with something gentle. "I'll show you around."
That was how it started.
"You still haven't told me your name."
"It's Night," I said.
She giggled.
And just like that, I was walking beside her.
She spoke with laughter in her voice, walked with the ease of someone untouched by burden—at least on the outside. There was something in her smile that reminded me of my sister.
Her presence didn't fill the silence.
It softened it.
For a while, I forgot I was alone.
We wandered through stone corridors and glass halls until the sky outside dimmed, and sunset kissed the windows with a sleepy orange hue. The academy had grown quiet—only the hum of lights and faint murmurs in the distance remained.
Eventually, I left her side and returned to the quiet waiting behind my door.
---
My room was modest. Built for function, not comfort.
A bed. A desk. A shelf. A keycard left on the table.
Everything a Seeker would need.
Nothing more.
I stepped into the bathroom and stood still for a moment.
The stillness held me.
Then—I let go.
The shroud dissolved.
Cloth melted into the air like ink in water, revealing the form beneath.
I turned the faucet. Water came alive, washing over my hands. Cold.
But familiar.
I stepped closer to the mirror.
And froze.
The reflection staring back—
It wasn't mine.
It couldn't be.
I leaned in, breath catching. Wet strands clung to my forehead.
My hair, once plain—now split.
Shadows of black twined into silver. Not dyed. Not disguised.
Natural. Real. Changed.
I raised a hand, touched the strands.
They didn't shift back.
Instead—they glowed faintly beneath my fingertips.
But even that wasn't what held me there.
My eyes—
Stars.
Not metaphorical.
Real stars swirled inside them.
The irises shimmered like galaxies caught in a tide of shadow.
Light curled with abyss. Burning. Breathing. Watching.
I staggered back.
"What… am I?"
I looked down at my skin.
Not pale.
Not fractured like before.
Balanced. Whole.
Like two extremes learning to exist as one.
My chest rose and fell—firm, steady—
But everything inside me trembled.
This wasn't just survival.
It felt like something had unsealed.
And it had a name:
Rune
---
Traits:
[Night Pierce]
A gaze that does not seek light, but claims the dark.
No shadow can conceal. No abyss can hide.
In the dark, your sight is absolute.
The unseen is laid bare. The forgotten is yours to remember.
[Shadow Kin]
All shadows are yours.
They see you not just as master—but as son.
Even your own shadow obeys, for it remembers who you are—
Even if you don't.
[Shadow Devour]
The shade within you consumes. It takes and becomes.
No shadow is wasted. All fear your hunger.
[Black Flame]
A flame born of sorrow and silence.
It burns without heat. Destroys without ash.
[Seal]
Something deeper. Locked. Watching. Waiting.
Even now, part of you is hidden away—because the world is not ready.
Because you're not.
---
I stared at the list.
I didn't understand it.
Not fully.
But something about it felt... right.
This was me.
Who I had become.
Or maybe who I had always been.
I walked out of the bathroom in silence.
Let the light fade.
Let the thoughts fade with it.
I fell onto the bed, face buried in the pillow.
Sleep didn't come easy.
But when it did—
It swallowed me whole.