By the time classes ended, the sky over Velastra had started to shift — gold bleeding into orange, clouds casting long shadows over the training fields.
Noctix didn't head straight to the dorms.
He knew she'd be there.
---
Kaia.
Same spot as the day before — back field, near the edge of the cliffs. Legs crossed. Coin still flicking between her fingers.
Noctix walked up, slow, hands in his pockets.
"You followed me again?" he asked.
She smirked, not looking up.
"Nope. You just walk slow."
---
He rolled his eyes and sat across from her.
For a second, neither of them said anything. Just the wind, the low hum of city tech in the distance, and the soft clink of her coin flipping and catching.
---
Then she spoke.
"That mark of yours… it only reacts when you push yourself, right?"
He nodded.
"Yours too?"
Kaia looked down at her shoulder — pulled her sleeve back slightly. Her mark was dim, barely pulsing.
"It's quiet most of the time. But when I fight… when I actually try—"
She snapped her fingers.
The mark flared. Brief, sharp. Then gone.
"—it listens."
---
Noctix leaned back, thinking.
"Same core… different code."
She looked at him.
He shrugged. "I dunno. Just sounds cool."
---
Kaia grinned. "Wanna test it?"
Noctix blinked. "Test what?"
She stood up, stretching one arm across her chest.
"Your mark. Mine. Us. Friendly match. No stakes. First to knock the other down wins."
---
He paused.
Then got up.
"…No powers, or…?"
She slid her coin into her pocket and cracked her knuckles.
"Use what shows up. That's the point."
---
They stepped into the empty sparring ring — the gravel crunching under their feet.
Noctix took stance. Hands loose. Eyes steady.
Kaia mirrored him. Lowered her stance. Balanced. Sharp.
---
The second the wind shifted—
She moved.
Fast.
---
Noctix dodged left, barely missing her kick. His mark flared—a flash of violet light running down his arm.
He felt the air lighten again—weightless for a second.
His counter was clean: a low sweep meant to trip her, but she jumped it, flipped mid-air, and landed smooth.
---
Both marks flashed.
Quick. Brief.
Just enough to say "Yeah… we're awake now."
---
They circled again.
Not enemies. Not even rivals yet.
Just two people with something buried in them… and finally someone who understood what that felt like.
---
Noctix grinned.
Kaia grinned back.
This was just the beginning.
---
End of Chapter Eight.
Next: "Power Is Not a Gift"