“Show me what, exactly?” Gabriel replied. His voice was calm, a resonant melody that seemed to hang in the air of the grand council chamber.
Everyone’s attention snapped to Carter. He stood awkwardly next to Killian in the central pathway. Dozens of eyes were on him—a collective gaze of curiosity and suspicion that felt like a physical pressure.
The uniformed men and women began to whisper. Some wore sharp black suits with crisp white collared shirts and black ties. Others had on long, formal black overcoats. Their voices were a low, indecipherable murmur that buzzed in Carter’s ears.
“Who is that?”
“Is he a new recruit? He looks like he just got here.”
“Why is Killian so messy?”
Killian placed a firm hand on Carter’s shoulder. He stepped forward, his voice cutting through the whispers. “Well… I recently rescued this young man from a Safeguard trigger. And—”
Gabriel raised a hand.
It was a gesture of placid authority that silenced the room instantly.
“Killian, I am happy to discuss a promising new recruit with you. But not right now. We have gathered everyone here for an important meeting.”
“Yeah, that’s exactly why this is the perfect time,” Killian retorted. A challenging grin spread across his face.
“There are a lot of witnesses. You’d think I was lying if you didn’t see it with your own eyes.”
A flicker of genuine intrigue crossed Gabriel’s angelic features. His long, pale white hair seemed to catch the light streaming from the arched windows. His piercing golden eyes narrowed slightly.
“What are you talking about exactly?”
Killian pointed directly at Carter. “Before I rescued this young man, he broke himself free from the Safeguard’s influence.”
Gabriel’s expression remained serenely unchanged. “That’s rare, but not a reason to interrupt this meeting.”
“No, you don’t understand,” Killian insisted. His voice rose with an intensity that commanded the attention of everyone present.
“He broke himself free, by using magic.”
A wave of shock rippled through the room. The whispers stopped. A stunned, collective silence replaced them. The older man with the British accent shot to his feet. He had spoken out earlier. His face was a mask of disbelief.
“That’s impossible! No one has ever done that!”
“That’s not all,” Killian continued. His voice was now a booming declaration that echoed off the domed ceiling. “This young man has the ability to cast magic through thoughts.”
“Just like you, Director. And just like the founder.”
The room erupted. The silence shattered into a cacophony of disbelief. People seated in the rows of chairs began to call out. Their voices were a mixture of outrage and incredulity.
“Liar!”
“Fraud!”
“That’s impossible!”
Gabriel’s calm facade finally cracked. His golden eyes widened. Pure, unadulterated shock was on his face. He stared at Carter, truly seeing him for the first time. His gaze was so intense it felt like a physical touch. “I need to see it for myself,” he said. His voice was a low, intense whisper that cut through the noise.
Killian turned to Carter. “Just do what you did before.”
Carter froze. His heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird. The entire room was staring at him. Their faces were a sea of skepticism and expectation.
He felt like a bug under a microscope. His blood turned to ice in his veins. He turned to look at Gabriel, to plead with his eyes. But the director was no longer standing on the platform.
He’s right beside him…
Carter flinched back, jogging back a few steps. A strangled gasp escaped his lips.
Gabriel hadn’t walked. He had simply… appeared. There was no sound, no rush of air. Just a seamless transition from there to here that defied all logic.
Is this his magic?
“What is your name?” Gabriel asked. His voice was soft but commanding. His nearness was an overwhelming presence.
“Carter,” he replied. His own voice sounded thin and distant. “Carter Cross.”
“Where are you from, Carter Cross? What do you do in the normal world?”
“I’m an EMT. From California.”
“And what happened when you used this magic?”
Carter’s mind flashed back to the car crash.
He remembered the searing heat, the suffocating smoke, the overwhelming, primal terror of watching a woman burn alive.
“I was under extreme stress,” he said. His voice trembled slightly at the memory.
“Okay,” Gabriel said. A strange, profound understanding was in his golden eyes. “I understand now.”
He took a step back. The air in the room grew heavy. It was charged with a sudden, terrifying pressure. Gabriel raised a hand. A spear made of pure, blinding light materialized in his grip. Its heat was a palpable force that made the air shimmer.
His face, once a mask of calm authority, transformed into a vision of cold, divine judgment.
“I’m sorry, Carter Cross,” Gabriel said.
His voice was devoid of all warmth. Each word was a perfectly formed shard of ice.
“But you’ll need to die now.”
Carter felt it instantly. A raw, palpable killing intent washed over him. It was so potent it felt like a physical blow. It wasn’t a threat; it was a promise.
He stumbled backward even farther. His legs suddenly felt weak. His mind was screaming. Across the room, people stood up. Their faces showed a mixture of shock and horror. The young woman with the striking pink eyes and the heart and star tattoos on her face ran forward. Her hand was outstretched.
“Director, wait!”
But Gabriel didn’t wait. He launched the light spear. It flew through the air, a streak of golden death aimed directly at Carter’s heart. There was no time to dodge. No time to think. There was only the primal, screaming certainty of his own imminent death.
He’s gonna kill me! I wish there was a wall! The thought was a desperate, silent scream in his mind. It was a final, futile wish against the inevitable.
Yes, that’s it… A WALL!
He thought of the word, wall. He thrust his hand out in front of him, a final, instinctual act of self-preservation.
The floor erupted. With a deafening groan of grinding stone, a thick, solid wall of marble shot upward. It intercepted the spear of light in a shower of golden sparks and shattered rock.
The room went silent. A profound, ringing silence that was heavier than any sound.
The girl with the pink eyes stopped. Her mouth was agape. The boy with the scar at the back of the room had been watching with an unnerving intensity. His red eyes were wide with a mixture of shock and something else… something that looked almost like jealousy.
Carter stared at the wall he had just created. His hand was still outstretched, trembling uncontrollably.
Gabriel’s expression softened. The murderous intent vanished as quickly as it had appeared. “That was a test,” he said.
“You passed.”
His voice returned to its normal, calm tone. “Those arrows weren’t going to kill you.”
He looked at the wall. Then he looked back at Carter. A thoughtful, analytical expression was on his face.
That’s interesting, though. You’re an American, likely with an English affinity. Yet you manipulated the existing stone floor to manifest a wall. That’s something Russian language magic would be capable of.
“Did anything else strange happen when you saved that woman trapped in her car?” Gabriel asked.
“Well… the word ‘shatter’ came to my mind,” Carter said. His voice was still shaky.
“I know it sounds weird, but a voice told me to say it.”
That’s it, Gabriel thought. It confirms what I thought. He turned to Killian. “Thank you for bringing him to me.”
“Letting someone with his ability die out there or get taken by the Order would be stupid,” Killian replied with a shrug.
Carter looked around at the stunned faces of the people in the room. “Why did everyone go quiet?”
“I know you are new to magic,” Gabriel said. His voice was gentle.
“And you just broke free from the Unity recently. But you have no idea of the gravity of what you just did. Like Killian said, you’re what’s called a Resonant.”
Resonant? What’s that?
“Resonants are special people, chosen by magic itself,” Gabriel explained. “As you’ve already figured out, magic is used through spells constructed by language.”
“Being a Resonant has advantages that normal magic users lack.”
“We are fighting a war, Carter, and everyone you know and love is at risk. All across the Earth for the last twenty-six years, human beings have been living under the hell of the Unity spell.”
“Just imagine. Sons who awaken from the spell and speak a strange tongue, killed by their own mothers and siblings.”
“Wives killed by husbands. Friends killing other friends. And moments later, the act is wiped from their memory as if it never existed.”
Gabriel’s voice was filled with a profound, ancient sadness.
“It’s rare to break free from the Unity spell.”
“It’s even rarer to be able to wield magic.”
“It’s miraculous to be a Resonant.”
“And it’s nearly impossible to cast magic through thoughts alone.”
“It was a good thing Killian found you. Here, we study, practice, and train to defeat the Order of Babel.”
He paused. His golden eyes swept across the room.
“The one who cast the Unity spell, the one responsible for all the death, and all those who follow him…”
“WILL be destroyed. That is why we exist. That is our purpose. And that is who we are.”
He stood tall. His divine white wings caught the light.
“We are the Library of Solomon.”
Everyone in the room stood in respect, a silent, unified affirmation. Gabriel turned his gaze back to Carter. A soft, almost paternal light was in his eyes.
“And we need people like you. People who can use magic.”
“Welcome to the Library of Solomon, Carter Cross.”
People like me?
“But for now, we’ll let you get situated and think it over. We need to finish our meeting. I’ll have Lady Seraphina take a look at you. She’s our head doctor.”
The girl with the pink eyes and the face tattoos stepped forward again. A bright, irrepressible energy was about her.
“Director, I can help him find living quarters.”
Carter glanced at the back of the room. The boy with the scar was glaring at him. His expression was a mask of pure, unadulterated animosity. Carter looked back at him, wondering what he was thinking.
“Very well,” Gabriel agreed. “You may both leave.” He then turned to Killian.
“You Killian, however, will stay. You are known for skipping out on mandatory meetings.”
“Ahh, shit…” Killian says under his breath.
Carter followed the girl out of the council chamber. The heavy doors closed behind them with a soft thud that seemed to seal his fate.
The grand hallway felt less intimidating now. It had towering marble columns and sparkling chandeliers. The cheerful, energetic girl walking beside him softened the space.
The director’s words echoed in his mind as they walked. They were a burning coal of purpose in the pit of his stomach: destroy the spell that his parents and friends were under.
“I’m Ruby Sato, by the way,” she said.
She turned to him with a smile so bright it could outshine the chandeliers above them. Her pink eyes, the color of cherry blossoms, sparkled with mischievous energy.
The small, whimsical tattoos on her face—a red heart on one cheek, a blue star on the other—seemed to dance as she talked. She had long, straight black hair cut into bangs that framed a face so perfectly feminine it almost looked unreal.
“That was pretty intense back there, huh? Don’t worry, the higher-ups are always that stuffy. You get used to it. It’s kinda fun to shake them up sometimes.”
Her bubbly personality was infectious. It was a stark contrast to the grim reality he’d just been thrown into. He found himself smiling back, a small, hesitant thing.
“Did you… go through the same thing to get here?”
“Oh, god no,” she said, shaking her head. The light in her eyes dimmed for a moment.
“I’ve never experienced the Safeguard. I’ve only heard the stories from the new recruits. It sounds absolutely terrifying.” A shadow crossed her features.
“I’ve been a member of the Library since I was a kid. My parents were members, too. My mom passed away a while back, but my dad is a healing specialist. He used to work right under Lady Seraphina. He’s the one who taught me the basics.”
She brightened again. Her smile returned at full force, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes this time.
“C’mon, I’ll introduce you to the other new recruits. They’re probably all freaking out in the lounge right now.”
They entered a spacious lounge. It was a comfortable room filled with plush couches and low tables made of dark, polished wood. Ruby led him to a small group sitting together. Their postures showed a mixture of tension and exhaustion.
“Everyone, this is Carter,” she announced brightly.
A tall, powerfully built young man with messy blonde hair and piercing blue eyes looked up. He had the raw, imposing physique of a heavyweight boxer. His face, though handsome, carried the weary look of someone who had seen too much.
When he spoke, his Russian accent was thick and pronounced. “It is good to meet you. I am Yulian Volkov. Everyone calls me Yula.” He offered a hand. His grip was firm and strong.
Next to him sat a short, slender girl with fiery red hair and rectangular, red-framed glasses. She had pale, freckled skin.
Her intelligent, piercing blue eyes seemed to analyze everything, taking in every detail of Carter’s appearance.
“Paige Hellen,” she said. Her voice was a soft, melodic blend of Irish and American accents.
“It’s a pleasure.”
“How did you guys get here?” Carter asked. His gaze swept over the others.
A heavy silence fell over the small group.
Yulian’s friendly expression tightened. His jaw clenched. His eyes became distant, lost in a memory Carter couldn’t see. Paige looked down at her hands. Her shoulders hunched slightly, as if warding off a chill.
It was a fresh wound for all of them, a shared trauma they weren’t ready to speak about.
Suddenly, a presence filled the doorway. It was the boy with the spiky black hair and the scar. He strode into the room. His intense red eyes immediately locked onto Carter.
He wore a black and red uniform. The hilt of a katana was visible over his shoulder, its presence a silent threat.
“Hey, Akira!” Ruby said. Her voice was cheerful, though slightly strained. “This is my cousin, Akira Kendo.”
Akira’s gaze was cold and dismissive as he looked Carter up and down. “So this is the one Killian dragged in off the street.” His voice was a low, contemptuous drawl.
“What’s your problem?” Carter asked. A surge of anger rose in him.
Akira let out a short, humorless laugh. It was a sharp sound, like the scraping of metal on stone.
“I don’t have a problem. I’ve just been training my entire life for this war. I don’t have time for amateurs who stumble in by accident.”
He gave Carter one last look of disdain. His eyes lingered for a moment on Carter’s ordinary clothes, before he turned his back and walked away.
Carter took a step to follow him. But Ruby put a hand on his arm, stopping him.
“Don’t worry about him,” she said. Her voice was a low whisper. “He’s just… intense.”
The tension broke when a few other recruits approached their group. One was a young Filipino man with semi-long brownish-black hair that covered his ears. He had a friendly, if somewhat nervous, expression. He kept shifting his weight from one foot to the other.
“I’m Nico Reyes,” he said. He offered a small wave. “It’s, uh, nice to meet you.”
Next to him was a striking African-American girl with a puffy, curly afro and a very gothic, alternative appearance. She wore a black mesh top, dark makeup, and several silver rings on her fingers. Her brown eyes held a confident, almost jaded look. It seemed at odds with the fear lingering in the room.
“Keyona Baker.” Her voice was cool and steady.
The third was a Korean-American girl with bleached blonde hair and a black spiked choker necklace. She had a delicate, almost fragile appearance. Her demeanor was nonchalant, laid-back, as if she’d just woken up from a nap.
“Amy Soo-young,” she said with a slight yawn.
They looked nice. But their eyes held the same haunted, confused look that Carter felt deep in his own soul.
They probably all experienced something similar to what I went through.
After a few more minutes of introductions and awkward small talk, Ruby glanced at a clock on the wall. “Okay, I need to take you to Lady Seraphina’s ward now.”
They walked through the massive, echoing halls of the headquarters until they reached the medical wing. The air here smelled of antiseptic and strange, exotic herbs that tickled the back of Carter’s throat. Ruby asked Carter to sit and wait on a comfortable chair in the waiting area.
“The meeting will be over shortly. Don’t worry,” she said, before disappearing down a corridor.
Carter was left alone with his thoughts.
This whole situation is insane. Magic, spells, a secret society? Just earlier today, I was drifting as an EMT with nothing spectacular about me.
He thought about what Gabriel said. *He said, “We need people like you, Carter.”
Is this really the change that I needed? No… that’s not important right now.
Everyone that I know is under this mind control. My best friend, my parents… they were really going to kill me. I have to do something about this.
If I can learn to use this gift that I have, maybe I can help stop this.*
Fifteen minutes passed. A woman in a pristine white doctor’s robe walked in. Carter was immediately struck by her appearance.
She had pale white skin, bright, intelligent turquoise eyes, and long, flowing turquoise hair. But the most striking feature was her ears. They were pointed, longer than any human’s, and had a delicate, almost fin-like quality to them.
“I am Seraphina Godin, the head doctor here,” she said. Her voice was calm and soothing. “But everyone at the Library calls me Lady Seraphina.”
She led him to an examination room and had him sit on the table. She raised her hands.
“Summon. Ophelia.”
She said. Her voice resonated with a quiet power. A beautiful, ornate book with a mother-of-pearl cover materialized from thin air, hovering before her.
She cast a spell in a language Carter didn’t recognize. It was a melodic string of Greek words that seemed to hum with power.
As she worked, her professional gaze became intensely focused. The spell allowed her to see inside him, to perceive the very fabric of his soul. She was looking for his Gate, the metaphysical doorway that all mages must open.
She expected to see it already open, a clear channel for the magic he had already used.
But she saw nothing.
No lock, no door, no barrier of any kind. Where a Gate should be, there was only an open, infinite void, a direct conduit to the raw, untamed power of magic.
Her breath caught in her throat. Her heart stuttered. For a fraction of a second, her calm, professional mask slipped.
Her turquoise eyes widened in pure, unadulterated shock. She had never seen anything like this. It was an impossibility, a fundamental violation of the laws of magic as she knew them.
She recovered instantly.
Her expression smoothed back into one of serene professionalism. She must not let him see her reaction.
Gabriel’s warning echoed in her mind: See if there’s anything else unusual going on with Mr. Cross.
This was more than unusual. This was unprecedented.
She told Carter that he was fine, and that there was nothing wrong with him. The lie felt smooth and practiced.
“What… are you?” Carter asked. His curiosity got the better of him.
She offered him a small, enigmatic smile. “I am similar to our Director, and to Sir Agamor and General Wulan. But incomplete. We can talk about it another time.”
Just then, Ruby returned. Her cheerful smile lit up the room. “I found a room for you to stay in!”
“He is free to leave,” Lady Seraphina said. “There is nothing wrong.”
As they walked, Ruby talked about how kind Lady Seraphina was.
“Everyone here loves her. She’s like the mom of the place.”
“A lot of the mages who have lost their parents, either from the Safeguard or from fighting in the war, kind of view her as a trusted parent.”
“Not literally, but she gives off that energy.”
Was she talking about herself? Carter wondered. She did say her mother passed away.
They reached his room. It was located high up in one of the headquarters’ towers. Ruby opened the door, and Carter stepped inside.
It was a simple but elegant space, with a comfortable-looking bed, a dark wood desk, and a large, arched window that dominated the far wall. But it wasn’t the room that took his breath away. It was the view.
He walked to the window and looked out. For the first time, he could see the edge of the floating city. The Marble City stretched out below him, a breathtaking panorama of white stone and golden domes.
But beyond it, there was nothing. No ground, no horizon, just an endless, bottomless sky of the deepest, purest blue he had ever seen.
Distant celestial bodies, like faint, ghostly moons and shimmering nebulae, drifted in the infinite void. It was beautiful and terrifying all at once.
“Relax and get some rest,” Ruby said from the doorway. “Orientation begins first thing in the morning. Good night.”
The door closed, leaving Carter alone in the quiet, unfamiliar room. The weight of the day, of his new reality, settled over him.
He was no longer just Carter Cross, the unremarkable EMT who blended into the background.
He was something else now. He was an anomaly.
Carter lay in bed staring at the ceiling. He thought to himself.
Tomorrow’s my opportunity.
I need to learn as much as I can about magic.
