The morning light streamed through the cracked stained glass windows of the AMP House, casting colored rays across Athena's worktable. Fabric swatches, spools of shimmering thread, and half-finished sketches were scattered in organized chaos—her kind of order.
Something had shifted.
Athena had woken up with an idea burning in her chest, not just a "good design day" type of thing. This felt... otherworldly. Her hands buzzed as she touched a silky piece of cloth she didn't remember bringing. It shimmered like liquid moonlight and pulsed softly beneath her fingertips.
Zora walked in, still brushing her hair. "Whoa. You designing for fairies now?"
Athena didn't even glance up. "I don't know what this is, but it's not from here. Keitha's doing something to me."
"You say that like it's a bad thing," Zora said, plopping on the bed. "Girl, you've always had magic fingers. Maybe now it's just... actual magic."
Athena smiled faintly. "Maybe."
As the day unfolded, the squad gathered in the living room, prepping for another exploration round. Athena appeared last—wearing something no one had ever seen before.
A sleek black jacket that shifted colors like oil on water, stitched with glowing lines of silver that moved on their own. Literally moved. Like veins of light pulsing in rhythm with her breath.
"You made that?" Axel asked, half in awe, half in suspicion.
"Last night," she replied, adjusting the collar. "I didn't even sketch it. I just... thought of it, and my hands knew what to do."
"Since when does thread glow?" Enzo muttered, circling her like she was an artifact.
"Try touching it," she said.
Blair reached out cautiously, grazing a glowing stitch—and instantly recoiled. "I heard... whispers?"
"Yeah," Athena said. "It speaks to me too. Not in words. In feelings. Like... it knows what I need. What we need."
Sylvia leaned forward. "You've been given a gift. Maybe even a guide."
"Or a warning," Asher muttered under his breath.
They decided to test it.
Athena crafted a lightweight vest for Axel out of the same glowing fabric. As he slipped it on, the threads tightened, contoured perfectly to his body, and shimmered a soft orange.
"What does that mean?" he asked.
"Protection," Athena said instinctively. "It's reading you. Responding."
"I'm not crazy, right?" Blair whispered to Zora. "This is... so cool but also insane."
They made their way deeper into Keitha, approaching a field of strange stone pillars that seemed to hum in harmony with Athena's jacket. As they walked, tendrils of wind whipped up dust devils, and the pillars started shifting.
One stone cracked open, revealing a glowing orb—and a burst of wind knocked Enzo straight back.
Athena stepped forward without thinking. Her jacket flared with light, shielding her like armor. The orb stopped spinning.
"It's reacting to her," Asher said. "Keitha recognizes her."
"I don't think it's just fashion anymore," Athena said, her voice calm. "These threads—they're woven from this city's magic. Somehow, I'm connected to it."
When they returned to the AMP House, Athena didn't rest. She created a cloak that shimmered with stars for Sylvia, gloves with mirror-like palms for Blair, and a scarf that shifted shape for Ace.
Each item tuned itself to the wearer's energy. Each one spoke.
And then came the vision.
That night, Athena stood at her worktable, breath stilling. The stitches on her original jacket rearranged themselves before her eyes, spelling out a single word:
"Threadkeeper."
"What... does that mean?" she whispered.
The room shifted. For a flash of a second, she wasn't in the AMP House anymore—she stood in a grand marble hall, tapestries floating mid-air, echoing with thousands of stitched voices. In her hand was a needle glowing like fire.
Then she blinked—and she was back.
Shaken. Breathless.
But changed.
"Athena?" Zora called from the hallway. "Everything okay?"
Athena stared at her jacket, at the pieces she'd made, at her trembling hands.
She whispered, "Keitha didn't just give me a power. It gave me a purpose."
And somewhere in the shadows, the threads whisperd.