The videos spread faster than anyone expected.
By morning, they were everywhere.
Blurry clips.
Shaky hands.
Voices layered with fear.
Blue light.
A man collapsing.
A boy standing at the center of it all.
Some had doubts.
Others called it edited.
But those who were there…
They knew.
It was real.
Inside a quiet office building, far from the noise—
A screen flickered.
Paused on a single frame.
Shango.
Standing still.
Eyes sharp.
Unaware he was being watched.
"Play it again."
The voice was calm.
Measured.
The video resumed.
The moment replayed.
The man lunging forward.
The sudden surge.
The flash of blue.
Then the collapse.
Silence filled the room.
"…Slow it."
Frame by frame, the footage broke down.
"Pause."
The screen froze.
The blue lightning flickered across Shango's skin.
Contained.
Alive.
Wrong.
"That's not a known technique," someone said.
"No," another replied quietly."It isn't cultivation."
A third voice spoke, older, more experienced.
"Check energy circulation."
A few taps.
More analysis.
Then—
"…There isn't any."
Silence.
"That's impossible."
"It should be."
Another pause.
"Run it again."
The screen obeyed.
But no matter how many times they watched—
The result did not change.
No structure.
No flow.
No system.
Miles away—
Shango sat in his room.
The door closed.
The lights off.
Quiet.
Too quiet.
His hands rested on his knees.
Still.
But not calm.
Something was wrong.
Not inside him.
Around him.
Watching.
He exhaled slowly.
"They're looking."
Nkiru stood by the window.
She hadn't sat down since she arrived.
"They started the moment it happened," she said."Now they're focusing."
Shango looked up.
"The cultivators?"
She shook her head slightly.
"Them… and something else."
A pause.
"They don't feel the same."
Shango didn't ask what she meant.
Because he already knew.
Elsewhere—
The man who had led the response stood in a dim hallway.
Phone pressed to his ear.
"I've reviewed the footage."
A pause.
"No… it doesn't match anything."
His expression didn't change.
"I'm aware of the implications."
Another pause.
"…Understood."
The call ended.
He lowered the phone slowly.
Behind him, one of his team stepped forward.
"Orders?"
The leader didn't turn.
"Surveillance."
A pause.
"Quiet."
Another.
"No confrontation unless necessary."
"…And the boy?"
Silence lingered for a moment.
Then:
"Observe him."
His tone didn't change.
But something in it…
Shifted.
"He is not to be provoked."
Back in Shango's house—
A knock came at the door.
Soft.
Too soft.
Shango's head turned.
Nkiru froze.
Neither of them spoke.
The knock came again.
Same rhythm.
Deliberate.
Not impatient.
Not human.
Shango stood slowly.
Every instinct told him—
Something was wrong.
"Don't," Nkiru said quietly.
But he was already moving.
One step.
Then another.
The closer he got—
The heavier the air became.
Pressure.
Familiar.
But different.
Not like the cultivators.
Colder.
Watching.
The knock came again.
Right in front of him now.
Shango reached for the handle.
Paused.
Then—
Opened the door.
Nothing stood there.
Just empty space.
Quiet.
Still.
"…What?"
Behind him—
Nkiru's voice dropped.
"Close it."
Too late.
The air shifted.
Not outside.
Inside.
Right behind him.
Shango's eyes widened—
A hand reached out of nothingness.
Not fully visible.
Not fully real.
Grabbing.
Locking onto him.
"Signal… confirmed…"
The voice wasn't spoken.
It pressed directly into his mind.
Shango reacted instantly.
Power surged.
Not outward.
Exploding inward first—
Then—
Out.
Blue lightning erupted across his body.
Violent.
Unstable.
The invisible presence recoiled.
Distorted.
For a brief moment—
It became visible.
A warped outline.
Not human.
Not physical.
A fragment.
"Target identified."
The voice sharpened.
Clearer now.
More certain.
"Lock acquired—"
It didn't finish.
The lightning surged again.
Brighter.
Stronger.
The presence fractured—
Then—
Disappeared.
Gone.
Like it had never been there.
Silence.
Heavy.
Shango stood frozen.
Breathing hard.
"What… was that?"
Nkiru didn't answer immediately.
Her eyes were wide.
Not afraid.
Focused.
"That wasn't a person," she said slowly."That was something else."
Shango looked at his hands again.
They were still glowing faintly.
Then—
They dimmed.
"…Who's doing this?"
Nkiru nodded.
"We need to find out what's happening."
A pause.
"Whatever that was... sure wasn't random"
"I think someone is after you."
Far above—
"His aura stands out now."
"Confirmed."
A pause.
"Location narrowing."
Another.
"The seal is degrading faster than expected."
Silence followed.
Then—
"Continue."
No hesitation.
No doubt.
Back on Earth—
Shango closed the door slowly.
The house felt different now.
Not safe.
Not quiet.
Watched.
He turned.
Looked at Nkiru.
"I can't stay here."
The words came out low.
Certain.
Not fear.
Decision.
Nkiru didn't argue.
She didn't try to stop him.
Because she knew.
This was only the beginning.