Above the tunnels, the city buzzed with its usual noise — neon lights flickering, cars honking in midnight traffic, people lost in their own hurried lives. None of them knew that under their feet, something ancient had stirred and fled.
Zindra, Liyaya, and Kethra emerged from the old subway just before dawn, dirty and exhausted but alive. They didn't speak much as they slipped through back streets to reach Zindra's small apartment.
Inside, Kethra traced symbols on the floor with white chalk, building a protective circle to sense any nearby fragments. Liyaya made coffee — strong enough to keep them awake. Zindra stared out the window, eyes scanning every shadow.
But miles away, a fragment had escaped the tunnels. It drifted on air currents, invisible, drifting into an alley where a young man named Jaro lay curled against a dumpster. Homeless, hungry, and angry at a world that had forgotten him — the perfect vessel for something that fed on fear and emptiness.
The fragment slipped inside him like cold breath. Jaro's eyes snapped open — no longer just his own. In the next heartbeat, he stood up straighter, stronger. The shadows seemed to bend around him. He grinned as broken glass rose from the ground and hovered in the air like puppets on invisible strings.
---
Back at the apartment, Kethra jolted upright inside the chalk circle. Her eyes glowed faintly. "It found a host," she whispered.
Zindra stepped forward. "Where?"
"Downtown. It's feeding — anger, pain. It's growing fast," Kethra said.
Liyaya grabbed her coat. "Then we stop it now."
Zindra touched her shoulder, hesitating. "Liyaya, this isn't the tunnels. If it's in a host — it can fight back. It's dangerous."
She locked eyes with him. "So am I."
He saw no fear — only fire. He nodded. Kethra placed her cracked mask back over her face. Together, the three slipped out into the waking city, moving fast toward the heartbeat of the darkness.
Far ahead, Jaro — now a vessel for Sanavak's hunger — stepped into the street. A passing car braked too late, swerving as Jaro lifted a hand. The car froze mid-air, suspended like a toy. People screamed and fled. Jaro laughed — a sound that wasn't entirely human anymore.
From the shadows, Zindra watched. He knew this was only the beginning. The fragments were learning — and so must he.
The first real battle with Sanavak's host was about to begin.