They slipped back into the sanctuary without a word, but people noticed.
Every tired face turned as Ethan's group crossed the square — not because they brought hope, but because they came back empty-handed.
No food. No water. No supplies.
Only Marcus carried something new, a shape wrapped in cloth that hummed faintly when it moved. To everyone else, it looked like a piece of scrap metal. The council watched from their makeshift podium but didn't speak. Not yet.
Ethan led them to their corner near a cracked wall. A rusted basin burned low, its smoke curling into the dome's shimmer. They sank down, heavy with exhaustion.
Then Maya broke the silence. "How do you see it?"
The others looked up.
"The levels," she said. "You talk about them like numbers. I don't see anything. I don't even know if I'm getting stronger."
Marcus gave a crooked grin. "You'll know. You'll hit harder."
"That's easy for you to say."
Darren poked at the fire with a stick. "I didn't even realize there was more after we chose. I thought that was it."
Tina nodded. "Mine's Guardian's Instinct — protecting children. But I don't know how to use it."
Everyone turned to Ravi. He sighed, adjusting his cracked glasses.
"The system doesn't talk loud," he said. "It whispers. When you fight, you'll see it — a shimmer at the edge of your sight. When you kill, essence flows into you. That shimmer fills, bit by bit. That's how you grow."
Caleb frowned. "So killing's the only way?"
"For now," Ravi said. "Essence fuels everything. No fight, no progress."
Ethan rubbed his eyes. "Healing burns mine away, drop by drop. But when we survive, I see it brighten again. You just have to notice."
Maya folded her arms. "And if I don't fight?"
"You'll fall behind," Kira said bluntly.
Ethan softened it. "You changed the fight today, Maya. Sonic Veil isn't strength — it's control. Don't forget that."
She didn't answer, but her shoulders eased a little.
---
For the first time, they compared.
"Level eight," Marcus said, grinning.
"Seven," Kira replied. "Give me a day."
"Six," Ravi added. "But I do the math for the rest of you."
"Seven," Ethan said. "Healing slows me down."
Caleb mumbled, "Five."
"…Five," Maya whispered.
Silence followed. Then Marcus laughed. "We'll drag you up with us. Just keep screaming at things."
"It's not screaming," Maya said.
Ethan smiled faintly. "It's a weapon."
Ravi lifted a hand. "Keep this to us. The council doesn't know about levels. If they do, they'll try to use it—or use us."
Darren shifted uncomfortably. "Feels wrong, hiding it."
"It's survival," Kira said.
Tina looked at Ethan. "And what about us? Those who don't fight?"
"You'll find your way," Ethan said. "Every path has a trigger."
---
They decided to test it.
Maya stood, eyes closed. Nothing happened at first. Then the stone rippled — a faint vibration like breath over water. Caleb lost his balance and fell, earning a few quiet laughs.
"That's it," Ethan said. "You're learning."
Encouraged, Tina knelt beside a child crying near the barricade. She placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. A faint shimmer wrapped the small frame — soft light like glass catching firelight — and then it faded.
"I felt it," Tina whispered. "Like something protecting her."
Marcus squeezed her shoulder. "Then it's real."
They exchanged quiet looks. Not everyone would fight. Some would shield. Some would sense. All of it mattered.
---
Night settled thick and close.
The council's voices faded to mutters near the courthouse. Ethan's group stayed apart, their small fire burning low.
Ravi stood first. "Crows," he murmured.
Dozens perched on rooftops and lampposts beyond the barrier, their eyes glowing faintly in the dark.
"They're not just birds," Ravi said.
Maya crouched, palm flat to the ground. "Their wings… every beat feels like a drum."
A low hum rolled through the dome, deep enough to make teeth ache. Ethan felt it vibrate behind his ribs. For the first time, he wondered if the barrier could actually hold.
The crows didn't move.
They just watched.
And the dome shuddered once — faint, but real — as if something vast had brushed against it from the dark.