Theo is floating at eye level with the King.
Arthur and the other three watch him while quietly debating what the hell is going on.
"Art, Liam, you guys are crazy!" Julian whispers urgently. "Look at her! That's Aldriana! She's wearing the same thing since I saw her yesterday!"
Then he turns to Maeve. "Maeve, I'm not crazy, right? You also saw Aldriana, right?"
Maeve doesn't answer. She's staring at Theo intently, her brows slowly knitting together.
Then she blinks.
Once.
Twice.
Then a few more times, rapid and sharp.
"Hey… hey. Look." Her voice drops. "Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"
All of them focus on Theo.
The figure of Aldriana shimmers.
For a brief moment, the image distorts, like heat waves rising from asphalt. Then another image overlaps it.
A man.
As tall as Julian, broader through the shoulders. His frame is unmistakably male. The jet-black hair is gone, replaced by dark brown. His clothes are still black. The baseball cap is still there.
