Nyroxia had never felt so unfamiliar. The towering gates stood exactly the same. The silver banners still waved gently against the wind. The glowing towers still stretched proudly into the sky. Students still moved through pathways. Teachers still gave orders. Life continued. It was normal.... it never changed. And somehow — That felt wrong. Because everything had changed for them.
Cole, Kevin, and Lenora walked silently through the academy grounds.
No Joyce.
No Artifact.
No Blood.
Only exhaustion, failure and questions. People stared as they passed. Some whispered. Others simply watched.
The three of them looked terrible..... Like survivors returning from war.
Kevin sighed heavily.
"I hate this already."
Lenora folded her arms tightly.
"Same."
Cole barely responded. His mind still lingered in Ohio. Still stuck in that forest. Still replaying everything..... The shadows, joyce, the betrayal, the loss. And those terrifying words from Kenny Rogers.
'You were never meant to find this one'
He still didn't understand. And honestly, that scared him. Word spread quickly. Because although the vial wasn't the original, it was in the wrong hands.
Before long, they were escorted directly to the Council Hall. A place reserved for important matters. Dangerous matters actually. Inside, officials stood waiting, as if they were expecting them to come. They were the balance keepers. The ones who choose them for the quest. And at the center was Mr. Bruce.
The headmaster stood straighter than usual, though his expression gave away more concern than he tried to show.
"You're back," he said quietly. Cole noticed it immediately. There was no relief. Only urgency.
Lenora stepped forward first.
"We..... We failed"
The room shifted instantly. Silence spread.
Kevin rubbed his forehead.
"It was horrible..... Really bad."
And then, they explained everything.
Italy.
The museum.
The Blood.
Ohio.
Kenny Rogers.
The duplicate vial.
The shadows.
The strangers.
The fight.
The betrayal.
The forest.
The loss.
Nobody interrupted. They just listened.
When the story ended, silence sat heavily in the room. Then, shock. But not where Cole expected. Nobody seemed shocked that supernatural beings had tracked them. Nobody seemed surprised about the existence of ancient experiments. Nobody even reacted strongly to Joyce's betrayal. Their focus shifted somewhere else entirely.
"The Artifact...." one official whispered. It was Mr. Eric
"And the Blood...."
"In their hands?"
Another official stood abruptly.
"That cannot happen."
Mr. Bruce's expression darkened.
"How many were there?"
Lenora answered quietly.
"At least several."
"And shadows."
The room immediately became tense. People exchanged worried looks. Fast.... Uneasy. Cole frowned.
'Why did this feel like they already knew something?'
'At least, why wasn't anyone surprised?'
Kevin noticed too.
"You guys are acting weird," he said bluntly. Nobody answered him.
Instead, everything became busy. Orders..... Meetings.... Whispers. People rushing in and out. Plans being made.
Mr. Bruce barely stood still.
"Security teams need updating."
"Find historical records."
"No delays."
Cole tried approaching him once.
"Mr. Bruce...." But someone interrupted immediately.
"Sir, we need you."
Then again. And again. Questions. Problems.
Every time Cole tried, something got in the way. The questions he wanted answers to stayed trapped inside him. He wanted to talk about Kenny, about the Artifact, about the betrayal, but none of them got asked. Because Mr. Bruce was too busy... Too distracted.
Eventually, Cole gave up..... At least, for now. Days passed. And slowly, life at Nyroxia tried to continue. Though things felt different.
Cole, Kevin, and Lenora became quiet. People asked questions about the quest constantly. Too many questions.
"What happened?"
"Did you really travel to the mortal world?"
"Is Joyce dead?"
"Did you fight shadows?"
Most of the time, they avoided answering. Sometimes, they simply walked away. The mission hurt too much to explain. But still, they eventually reunited with old friends. Familiar faces. People they hadn't realized they missed. For brief moments, things felt lighter. Kevin laughed again. At least a little. Lenora argued with Emma and Oliver over random things. Even smiling once or twice.
But Cole.... He still felt stuck.
One evening, unable to sleep, he wandered through Nyroxia alone.
The world glowed softly beneath the moonlight. Cold wind drifted through the gardens. That was when he saw him..... Percy, sitting alone near the old courtyard fountain. Looking exactly the same as before — Relaxed. Quiet. Observant.
Percy looked up immediately.
"Well," he said.
"Look who's back!"
"You look terrible." He added
Cole almost laughed.... Almost.
"Good to see you, brother!" Percy moved slightly.
"Sit."
Cole hesitated..... Then did.
For a while, neither of them spoke. Just silence.....Comfortable silence.
Finally, Percy spoke quietly.
"So...."
"The quest."
Cole stared ahead.
"It went wrong?"
"At least, it's obvious, isn't it?" Cole laughed weakly.
"Yeah."
He told Percy pieces of it. Not everything but enough. Percy listened quietly without interrupting. When Cole finally finished, Percy leaned back slightly.
"You blame yourself." Cole frowned.
"Because I failed."
"No," Percy said simply.
"You survived." Cole looked at him.
"That doesn't feel like enough."
Percy was quiet for a moment.
"You know," he said carefully, "sometimes people hide things from us because they think they're protecting us. Remember the time we had to deal with the fact that we were supernatural?. Your parents didn't tell you. My parents didn't either. But they finally did...."
Cole immediately thought of Mr. Bruce. And Kenny's warning. Percy noticed his expression.
"There's something bothering you." Cole hesitated.
Then quietly, he said
"I think I'm missing something."
Percy nodded slowly.
"You probably are."
That wasn't comforting.
"But," Percy continued, "missing pieces doesn't mean the story's over." The words stayed with Cole. For some reason, they mattered.
Because maybe Percy was right. Maybe the mission wasn't over. Maybe — This was just where things got worse.
But somewhere far away—
Someone still had the Artifact. Someone still had the Blood. And Joyce — Joyce was still out there.