Arden Hayes stood in the training courtyard, squinting against the morning sun as Professor Marrow's voice echoed over the chatter of two dozen students. The pillars hummed softly, their faint glow a reminder of yesterday's duel and last night's creepy encounter. Arden's fingers twitched around the rubber ball in his hand, his ten-second pause still fresh in his mind. No ripple, he'd done it. But that cloaked figure watching from the shadows? That wasn't a win. That was trouble, and Lila's warning about hunters wasn't helping his nerves.
"Group exercise," Marrow announced, pacing the dirt circle. "Four teams, six per team. Objective: weave in sync to stop, slow, or rewind a barrage of balls. Precision matters. Fractures will cost you points."
Arden glanced at Jaxon Reed, who was tossing his ball up and catching it with that cocky grin. Mira Kline stood nearby, braid neat, her expression unreadable as she listened to Marrow. Lila was on the far side, whispering to a girl with spiky blue hair. No sign of cloaked creeps, at least. Small mercies.
"Hayes, Reed, Kline, Tasha, Leo, Wren Team Three," Marrow called, pointing to a corner of the courtyard. "Set up. You've got five minutes to strategize."
Arden trudged over, falling in with Jaxon and Mira. Tasha, the girl who could speed time, bounced on her heels, her curly ponytail swinging. Leo, a lanky guy with glasses worse than Arden's, gave a shy wave, muttering about his rewind spark. Wren, short and wiry with a streak of green in her hair, just nodded, her slow-time spark already making her ball drift lazily in her hand.
"Alright, Team Three," Jaxon said, clapping his hands like he was coach. "I say we go offense, rewind and speed to mess with their throws, let Hayes and Kline clean up with stops and slows."
"Offense?" Mira's voice was quiet but sharp. "We need balance. If everyone's weaving at once, it's chaos."
"She's right," Arden said, surprising himself. "Last time I stopped too hard, it… fractured. Hit you. I don't want a repeat."
Mira's dark eyes flicked to him, softening a fraction. "Then don't push. Stay steady."
"Steady's boring," Jaxon cut in, grinning. "But fine. Hayes, you and Kline anchor stop and slow when we signal. Tasha and I'll push, Leo and Wren back us up. Cool?"
"Cool," Tasha chirped. Leo nodded, Wren shrugged, and Arden just sighed. Jaxon's plans always sounded like trouble, but arguing was pointless.
Marrow blew a whistle, and the courtyard sprang to life. Balls flew in dozens, launched by some unseen mechanism in the pillars, arcing high and fast. Team One scrambled, a kid's rewind sending a ball backward into his teammate's nose. Team Two's slows turned their corner into a sluggish mess. Arden's team spread out, Jaxon already shouting orders.
"Go, Tasha!" Jaxon yelled, rewinding a ball midair to redirect it at Team Four. Tasha sped her throw, making it zip past a girl's ear. Wren slowed a barrage heading their way, giving Leo time to rewind one back to its pillar.
"Hayes, now!" Jaxon called, dodging a ball that grazed his shoulder.
Arden focused, reaching for his spark. A ball screamed toward him, low and fast. Time froze, clean, sharp, the courtyard silent. He stepped aside, counting one, two, three, four, five. Time resumed, the ball thudding harmlessly into the dirt.
"Nice!" Jaxon whooped, but another wave was coming five balls, all aimed at their team. Mira's hand twitched, and one slowed, drifting like it was underwater. Arden went again, stopping time to dodge another. One, two, three but that ripple came back, a faint shudder in the air. His head throbbed, focus slipping.
"Hayes, watch it!" Mira's voice cut through as time snapped back. The ball he'd dodged veered, wobbling unnaturally, and smashed into a pillar. A crack split the stone, loud as a gunshot, and the hum from the pillars flickered, stuttering like a bad engine.
The courtyard froze, not by Arden, but by shock. Every student turned, eyes wide. Marrow stormed over, his face a thundercloud. "Hayes! Explain!"
"I...I didn't mean to!" Arden stammered, heart pounding. "I stopped it, but it rippled, like last night..."
"Last night?" Marrow's eyes narrowed to slits. "You were out of bounds?"
Arden's mouth went dry. Busted. "I was practicing. Ten seconds, no ripple, but..."
"Enough." Marrow's voice was low, dangerous. "You fractured the weave, again. That pillar's tied to the Academy's temporal grid. Damage it, and you risk more than a cracked rock."
"Risk what?" Arden asked, voice small.
Marrow didn't answer, just pointed to the bench. "Sit. Out."
Arden trudged over, face burning as whispers followed him. Jaxon shot him a sympathetic shrug, but Mira's frown was heavier, like she'd expected this. Lila caught his eye from across the courtyard, shaking her head. Great. Everyone knew he'd screwed up again.
The exercise dragged on without him, his team pulling through with two points docked for the pillar. When Marrow finally dismissed them, Arden stayed put, staring at the cracked stone. It wasn't just a rock, was it? Nothing here was just anything.
"Rough day," Jaxon said, flopping onto the bench beside him. "You okay?"
"No," Arden muttered, shoving his glasses up. "I'm breaking stuff I don't even understand."
"Join the club." Jaxon leaned back, hands behind his head. "First week, I rewound a clock so hard it exploded. Glass everywhere. Marrow was pissed, but I learned. You will too."
"Learned what, not to suck?" Arden's laugh was bitter.
"Nah. To keep going." Jaxon stood, offering a hand. "Come on, let's grab lunch. Mira's probably glaring at someone else by now."
Arden took the hand, pulling himself up, but his eyes lingered on the pillar. He didn't notice the cloaked figure watching from the campus's edge, hidden in the shimmer of the morning light. It turned, slipping into the shadows, and whispered into a small device, voice low and cold.
"The boy fractured again. He's unstable, perfect for the plan."
A crackle came back, a voice even colder. "Keep watching. We move soon."
The figure nodded, vanishing as if it had never been there, while Arden walked off with Jaxon, oblivious to the eyes on his back.