Lord Of The Stories

Leo kept to the narrow path beside the sloped rooftop, boots brushing puddles left by a leaking gutter. He glanced back for the third time.

Still there.

Not in view but not gone either. The kind of presence you feel between glances. A rhythm offbeat from the rest of the world.

He ducked down a stone stairwell behind a butcher shop. Shadowed. Cramped. The kind of place you'd go if you didn't want to be seen.

Too late.

"Stop running."

The voice was steady. Too calm.

Leo turned fast, only to feel the ground shift beneath him.

Not violently. Just enough.

The stone under his feet seemed to harden around his boots. Thin strands of grit climbed his ankles like growing roots.

He looked down in panic… the hell is this?

Then a gust of wind burst from the mouth of the alley, pushing him back against the wall. Not strong enough to hurt. But strong enough to make it clear… this guy had control.

The knight stepped forward. "We meet again Nightwalker"

His hand glowed faintly green at the fingertips, fading as he lowered it.

Leo struggled, yanking one foot up. It cracked free with effort.

"What the hell did you just do?" Leo snapped, heart pounding.

"Nothing permanent." The knight approached. "Earth and wind affinity. Low-grade. You're lucky I didn't trigger the full restraint."

Leo backed up a step. "You used magic?"

"Ability. Blessed. You wouldn't understand."

Leo's voice rose. "Try me."

The knight stopped just out of arm's reach. "You're undocumented. You don't have the system trace. That means you're either forged…"

He looked Leo up and down. "...or foreign."

Leo's jaw tightened. "I'm not anything. I don't know how I got here."

The knight's hand twitched. For a second, the wind around him seemed to listen again.

"You're not supposed to be here. But someone clearly disagrees. My job is to take you in quietly…"

"Not interested," Leo said sharply. "I'm not playing whatever game this is. I just want to live."

"And I want to do this without damage," the knight replied, stepping closer. "So let's…"

"Wow, you two really suck at conversations."

The new voice bounced off the alley walls, light and casual.

Leo and the knight both turned.

A girl, barely more than twenty sat on a low roof beam above them, legs swinging like she was on a park bench. Short jacket, smirking eyes, dark curls pinned behind her ear.

The knight tensed. "You…"

"Easy, rocky," she said, flipping down with a lazy twist. She landed light on her feet. "You pull another gust and I might actually get serious."

Leo stared at her. "Who are you?"

"Me?" She offered a hand. "Call me Zee. I'm your unsolicited help line."

The knight didn't move. "This is Daylight business. Stand down."

"Last I checked, we're in Twilight" Zee smiled wider. "And this is my entertainment. So no."

"You're interfering."

"I'm intervening."

She turned to Leo. "You coming?"

He hesitated.

"You trust her?" the knight growled.

"Nope," Leo said. "But she didn't trap my legs in a stone cocoon."

Zee winked. "Smart man."

She threw a handful of something.. dust? Ash?... into the knight's direction. It didn't explode. It shifted, rippling the air like heat waves. The knight flinched, stepping back.

What the heck is that?

That was all they needed.

Zee grabbed Leo's arm and yanked him hard. "Time to rewrite the scene."

They ran.

Behind them, the knight's wind scattered the ash. His stone magic tried to snag the alley floor again, but the structure refused to answer fast enough.

He cursed under his breath.

"Unauthorized Nightwalkers," he muttered. "Just great."

He tapped the symbol etched beneath his gauntlet.

"Target lost. Interference by rogue."

A pause.

Then "Awaiting new instructions."

They didn't stop running until the street noise turned into back-alley murmurs and the cobblestone gave way to rusted grates and damp concrete. Even then, Leo's breath was tight in his chest.

Zee didn't seem winded.

In fact, she was humming.

He stumbled, caught himself on a pipe, and shot her a look. "You know I nearly had a heart attack back there, right?"

She didn't look at him. "Nah. You're too stubborn to die from something as boring as fear."

Leo scowled. "You threw dust at a guy with magic."

"Correction. Ability. And it wasn't dust. It was anti-trace shavings. Interferes with elemental targeting." She finally glanced back. "You're welcome."

"Yeah, thanks for saving me from the stone boot trap. I'll add it to my gratitude list, right under 'Woke up in a blank void with a talking fox thing.'"

Zee grinned but said nothing.

They weaved through a collapsing fence, stepped over rusted railings, and down into what looked like an old train depot converted into some sort of underground system. Pipes ran along the ceiling. A few flickering bulbs lit the way, barely.

Zee walked with a bounce. She even whistled once.

Leo shook his head. "You think this is funny."

"No. I think you're funny. Walking around like a confused cat. All ears and no clue."

He opened his mouth to argue but stopped when she reached a steel wall and tapped twice on what looked like a riveted panel.

A dull clank. Then a hiss.

The wall cracked open down the middle. A door. It split with steam and rolled aside.

Leo blinked.

The inside was… not what he expected.

A round room, dimly lit by overhead lamps. Bookshelves stacked from floor to ceiling. A large table at the center, strewn with paper, ink pots, and faded maps. Candlelight flickered in thick glass jars.

To the left, a man sat in a deep chair, legs crossed. He wore a suit, crisp, navy with a top hat tilted slightly forward as he read a book. He didn't look up.

Across from him, a girl in a dark blue gown leaned on the table, an owl perched on her shoulder. She watched Leo with curious eyes like she already knew everything about him and was just waiting for him to catch up.

And beside the bookshelves…

A small, fox-like creature.

It blinked slowly at Leo, parchment-brown fur glowing faintly. Its tails shimmered with soft golden ink.

Leo froze.

"You," he whispered.

Zee stopped beside him. "Oh? You've already met one?"

Leo took a cautious step forward. "You were there. In the white space. You spoke to me."

The creature tilted its head. "No," it said softly. "You met my sibling."

Leo's stomach twisted. "There's more of you?"

"They are called Narrators," Zee said behind him, her tone lighter now. "Each Ascender has one."

Leo turned slowly. "Ascender?"

Zee leaned against the doorway, arms folded. "Writers. From Earth. Chosen participants in the Story."

She walked past him, flicked a candle, and smiled.

"Welcome to the world of Ascenders."