Morning came grey and reluctant.
The city looked washed clean after last night's rain, but Zayden knew better.
Some stains didn't disappear.
They settled deeper.
He stood by the large window of his apartment, one hand in his pocket, the other clenched around the edge of the glass.
The mark on his hand pulsed once.
Then again.
A slow, irritating burn.
Like a heartbeat that didn't belong to him.
"You're already awake."
Her voice came from behind him.
Low. Calm. Uninvited.
Zayden turned.
Aria stood near the door as if she had always been there.
Black jeans, dark oversized hoodie, hair falling loosely over one shoulder, moonlight somehow still clinging to her even in daylight.
"How did you get in?" he asked.
Aria glanced at the lock.
"It wasn't difficult."
A beat.
"You should really improve your security."
A faint, cold smile touched his lips.
"I wasn't asking for home decor advice."
Aria ignored the tone and stepped inside.
Her gaze swept over him once.
Sharp.
Clinical.
"You didn't sleep."
"Neither did you."
"I wasn't the one fighting my own soul all night."
Silence.
That landed.
Of course it did.
Zayden's jaw tightened.
Every time he closed his eyes, he felt it.
That presence.
The contract.
Watching.
Waiting.
Hungry.
"Then let's get to the point," he said.
"You said training."
Aria nodded once.
"Yes."
She walked past him and placed a small black notebook on the table.
Zayden looked at it.
Then at her.
"…Seriously?"
Aria met his gaze.
"You think this starts with throwing fireballs into the sky?"
A pause.
"It starts with understanding what owns you."
He didn't like the phrasing.
That was exactly why she used it.
She opened the notebook.
Inside, symbols and diagrams covered the pages.
Circles.
Lines.
Ancient-looking script.
"What is this?" he asked.
"The structure of a contract."
She turned a page.
"Every contract has four layers."
She pointed to the first symbol.
"Binding."
Next.
"Power."
Next.
"Price."
Then the last.
"Trigger."
Zayden folded his arms.
"Explain."
Aria looked up.
"The binding is the chain."
"The power is what it gives."
"The price is what it takes."
A pause.
"And the trigger…"
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
"…is what makes it lose control."
That caught his attention instantly.
"The street last night."
"Yes."
Aria nodded.
"You weren't fighting the scout."
A beat.
"You were fighting the trigger."
Silence.
His expression darkened.
"So what triggered it?"
This time, Aria didn't answer immediately.
She closed the notebook slowly.
Then looked at him.
"Emotion."
The room went quiet.
"Your contract responds to unstable emotional spikes."
She stepped closer.
"Anger. Fear. Desperation."
Her eyes locked onto his.
"Rage."
The word sat between them like a blade.
Zayden exhaled slowly.
"That's inconvenient."
Aria almost smiled.
"That's dangerous."
Before he could answer, she stepped even closer.
Now they were only a breath apart.
Close enough for tension to hum in the air.
"Try it," she said.
His eyes narrowed.
"Try what?"
"Use your power."
"Now?"
"Yes."
A pause.
"Without emotion."
Zayden stared at her.
Then raised his marked hand.
Nothing.
The room stayed still.
He tried again.
Harder.
The mark glowed faintly.
Then dimmed.
Aria watched carefully.
"Again."
His jaw tightened.
The mark pulsed.
A faint dark mist curled around his fingers.
Then vanished.
"Again."
Her voice was calm.
Relentless.
He tried.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Each time, the power came in flickers.
Unstable.
Broken.
A leash jerking against its chain.
Frustration climbed fast.
Aria saw it immediately.
"Don't."
Too late.
The emotion hit.
The room temperature dropped sharply.
The mark flared.
Dark energy burst violently from his hand, cracking the glass behind him.
Zayden froze.
Breathing harder.
The power still curling around him like smoke.
Aria moved instantly.
Her fingers caught his wrist.
Cold.
Steady.
The effect was immediate.
The darkness paused.
Like it recognized her.
Then slowly receded.
Silence.
Their eyes met.
Too close.
Too intense.
Zayden looked at her hand still around his wrist.
"…You always do that?" he asked quietly.
Aria didn't let go.
"Only when you're about to destroy the room."
A beat.
"Or yourself."
The words hit harder than they should have.
Before either of them could move—
something shattered.
Not inside the room.
Outside.
A violent crash echoed from below.
Both of them turned toward the window.
A black car had slammed into the building entrance.
The front doors burst open.
Three figures stepped out.
Dressed in dark suits.
Still.
Silent.
Wrong.
Aria's expression changed instantly.
Sharp.
Dangerously cold.
"They found us faster than expected."
Zayden's gaze darkened.
"The scouts?"
"No."
She let go of his wrist and stepped toward the window.
"Hunters."
The word dropped like ice.
One of the figures slowly looked up.
Directly at the window.
At them.
Impossible from that distance.
Unless—
"They can sense the contract," Aria said quietly.
A pause.
"And me."
The hunter raised one hand.
The building lights flickered.
Then died.
Darkness swallowed the room.
For a second, everything was silent.
Then—
a voice echoed from below.
Deep.
Inhuman.
"Contract Breaker."
A beat.
"Return what was stolen."
Zayden turned toward Aria.
Her face was unreadable.
But her eyes—
for the first time—
held something close to fury.
"Looks like the lesson is over," she said softly.
Then she looked at him.
Sharp.
Focused.
"Stay close."
Zayden's faint smile returned.
Cold.
Dangerous.
"I wasn't planning to leave."