*Layla's POV
San looked at me with furrowed brows. Blood stains were smeared on his forehead—my blood, which I was using as a medium for the spell.
"Will this really work?" he asked.
I pressed on the cut on my hand, forcing more blood to flow. "Don't underestimate magic. How do you think I got here in the first place?"
"But we're on the first floor. They even gave us the room key."
After I managed to push San into revealing his power in front of the researchers, they immediately made several changes. They moved our room to a more comfortable area, gave us back our original clothes from before we were brought here, and even allowed us to roam the first floor freely. There was only one reason for all this. I figured they had realized it, too—escaping from this place was only a matter of time for us. So, the only way to keep us here was to make us comfortable.
"Do you think it makes sense that we're wandering around at midnight?" I asked while focusing, feeling the Atma—pure energy—begin to connect with the Atma in my blood. "And there are so many surveillance cameras. I don't like being watched."
San looked up, trying to glance at the blood on his forehead. "How does it work?"
I extended my injured hand. The blood on my hand and on San's forehead began to glow with a bluish light. Slowly, it vaporized, transforming into particles of blue light that scattered across the room.
"Are you ready?"
"Will this really work?"
This time, I didn't answer. I grabbed his arm, opened the room door, and ran down the hallway. We passed one or two guards at each end of the corridor, in the main room, and near the stairwells or elevator halls. None of them saw or heard us. With the spell I had activated, of course, it was possible.
I'd been doing this every night. Removing the cuffs and unlocking every security system on the doors was easy. If I had wanted to, I could've found San on the first day. But I felt the timing wasn't right. So, every night, I spent time wandering. Mapping the entire facility in my head. Every hidden room. The guards' schedules. The blind spots from all the security cameras. Usually, I'd go to the file room on the second floor and read through all their research data. Most of it was just basic hypotheses. Nothing special. But because of that routine, I discovered one unique place in the facility.
The hallway was narrower and unguarded. At its end was a staircase leading up, with a metal door at the top. The door wasn't even locked. I opened it and stepped through.
The night wind hit us instantly, whipping through my hair. It was the rooftop—a flat, square-shaped area spacious enough to walk around. The night sky stretched wide above us, with stars scattered across, some hidden by drifting clouds.
I let go of San's hand and walked to the center. Closed my eyes, savoring the sting of the cold night air.
San walked up and stopped beside me. His face looked tired but also mesmerized.
"Listen," I said. "From now on, you must bring me here every night. You can do it with your power, can't you."
San didn't reply. His eyes were still fixed on the sky. "Why are you doing this to me?"
"Doing what?"
"You tried to kill me before. Now you're being kind."
I laughed. "Did you really think I'd kill you?"
"I don't know. You didn't hesitate at all."
"Of course not. What if you were the one who tried to kill me instead?"
San went quiet.
"I'm not a good person, you know."
"Then why are you being kind to me?"
I took a few more steps. What kind of answer I must say? "Maybe because I owe you."
"Owe me what?"
"Owe you for doing the same thing for me." I turned around, and our eyes met. "Now tell me, what do you want to know?"
***
I was nine years old then. The first time I met him. A boy just one year older than me but far more mature than his age. My mother was the one who brought him to me. After that, she never came again.
Before that, Mother always came every night. She would bring food and leave money for me. She always asked the same thing every day—about what I'd seen. And every time, I would talk endlessly about everything I had seen that day: about the kids who threw stones at our house; about the old woman who was struck by lightning two days after I warned her; or about the summer storm I told them would come.
Only then did I realize—that wasn't the answer my mother was looking for.
That boy then took over my mother's role. With the money I had, he bought enough food to last a month. He was good at cooking delicious meals, and in the mornings, he'd go out and do all sorts of work to earn more money.
During winter, when no one had enough to hire anyone, he taught me how to steal. We would go to the market at night. Run through the cold air and the bustling shoppers. Our hands trained to snatch things while we ran. Jewelry and strange trinkets to sell later. And food, for our dinner and lunch.
One year after the boy came, I had a vision. I saw the end of Solaris. Not long after that, the council attacked our village. That was the last time I saw him, smiled before disappearing in flames.
Someone came for me after that. Forced me to learn magic that very night. That was the first time I used magic. I opened a portal to Solaris.
***
San sat cross-legged next to me, his brows still furrowed as I explained everything I knew about Enigma. How the power had existed since the lands of Solaris were split in two. How it manifested as one Weaver in every generation. How the power functioned in mysterious cycles—if the previous bearer used it to destroy, the next would use it to rebuild.
I also told him that the previous bearer was born in a cycle meant for rebuilding. That fact alone seemed to trouble him deeply.
"That's all I know," I said, stretching my body.
San stayed quiet, head bowed, staring at his fingers. "Mala said the same thing," he murmured.
"What?"
He looked at me with a serious face. "About my power. She called it Enigma too."[]