The cabin didn't look like much from the outside. Weathered wood, a sagging porch, and a half-dead pine tree leaning like it had given up on life. But Cadmen swore it was safe.
Zeke wasn't so sure.
He stood in the doorway, arms crossed, scanning the one-room interior. It smelled faintly of smoke and pine sap, with mismatched furniture shoved together like a garage sale had exploded. A crooked bookshelf leaned against one wall, stuffed with yellowing paperbacks and a single cracked snow globe.
"Cozy," Maya said, dropping her duffel bag on the couch with a whump. "If your idea of cozy is horror-movie chic."
Cadmen, unbothered, was already unpacking supplies onto the rickety table. "It's off-grid, untraceable, and the only neighbors are squirrels. That's the definition of cozy."
Zeke smirked. "Cool. So when Harbinger shows up, we can offer him nuts."
Maya shot him a look, the kind that said you joke because you're scared. And she wasn't wrong. Ever since the fight at the skate park, Zeke's head hadn't been quiet. Not once.
Because Harbinger was still in there.
A whisper. A pull. Like standing too close to a cliff edge and feeling the ground tilt under your feet.
And sometimes, when Zeke blinked, he swore he saw glowing red eyes staring back.
They worked in uneasy silence. Cadmen stacked canned food. Maya claimed the couch as hers. Zeke wandered to the window, peering at the forest stretching beyond.
It should've been peaceful. Crickets chirping, wind threading through trees, the occasional owl call. But instead of calm, Zeke felt a weight pressing down on his chest.
Cadmen noticed. Of course he did. The guy had radar for emotional meltdowns.
"You're too close to the glass," Cadmen said without looking up.
Zeke frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means you're staring so hard at what's out there that you're ignoring what's in here."
Zeke rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Yoda. Real inspiring."
Maya snorted from the couch. "He's not wrong, though. You've been zoning out since—" She cut herself off, the word Harbinger hanging unsaid.
Zeke turned back to the window, jaw tight. He didn't want to admit it, but she was right. He hadn't been the same since facing… himself.
Or worse, the part of himself he didn't want to admit was real.
The Whisper
That night, after Cadmen had finally given up lecturing and retreated to the tiny loft upstairs, Zeke lay awake on a thin mattress in the corner.
Maya was snoring softly, sprawled out on the couch like she owned it. The forest hummed outside.
And then—
You can't hide.
Zeke's eyes snapped open.
The voice wasn't loud, but it vibrated in his bones.
You felt it too, didn't you? The rush. The power. You liked it.
Zeke sat up, fists clenching. "Shut up."
Maya stirred, mumbling something in her sleep, but didn't wake.
The whisper laughed. She won't save you. Cadmen won't save you. You and I—we're the same. Two sides of the same spark.
Zeke pressed his hands to his temples, heart hammering. He wanted to scream, to drown it out, but the harder he fought, the stronger the pull became.
Images flashed behind his eyes: flames licking at the sky, streets cracked open, people running in terror. And at the center—him. Not Harbinger. Him.
"Not me," Zeke hissed.
But the whisper only laughed again.
Morning Training
When dawn came, Zeke looked like death warmed over. Maya noticed immediately.
"You didn't sleep," she accused, handing him a mug of Cadmen's questionable coffee.
"Couldn't. Kept hearing squirrels plotting my downfall."
Maya didn't laugh. Her brow furrowed, eyes scanning him like she could peel back layers with just a look. "Zeke—"
"Drop it," he said too sharply, then softened. "Please."
Cadmen clapped his hands together before Maya could push. "Up and at it, Zero. If you're going to stand a chance against your shadow twin, you're going to need more than snark and a skateboard."
Zeke groaned. "Great. Boot camp with Grumpy Gandalf."
But he followed Cadmen outside anyway.
The Lesson
The clearing behind the cabin looked ordinary enough—moss, pine needles, a few rocks. But Cadmen treated it like an arena.
"Your power is a muscle," Cadmen explained, pacing in a slow circle. "And right now, it's out of control. Harbinger is the part of you that acts without discipline. If you don't strengthen your side, he'll consume you."
"Cool, no pressure," Zeke muttered.
Cadmen stopped, facing him squarely. "Close your eyes."
Zeke raised a brow. "So you can sucker-punch me?"
"Close. Your. Eyes." Reluctantly, Zeke obeyed.
"Now," Cadmen said, voice low, "find the tether. You've felt it. The pull between you and him. Don't fight it—acknowledge it."
Zeke's gut twisted. The last thing he wanted was to acknowledge Harbinger. But the moment he focused inward, the whisper was there. Immediate. Waiting.
Finally, it purred. Welcome back.
Zeke's fists tightened. His breath hitched.
"Stay with it," Cadmen urged. "Don't let it drag you under. Hold it, then pull away on your terms."
You can't escape me, the whisper growled. I am you.
Zeke grit his teeth, forcing himself to push against the tide. For a moment, it felt impossible. But then—
He remembered Maya's laugh. Cadmen's relentless gruffness. The way his chest had tightened when Harbinger almost hurt her.
He pulled.
And the whisper snapped like a stretched band recoiling.
Zeke gasped, stumbling backward, eyes snapping open.
Cadmen studied him carefully. "Better."
Zeke wiped sweat from his brow. "Better? That felt like wrestling a demon made of Red Bull."
Cadmen's mouth almost curved into a smile. Almost. "Good. Tomorrow, we'll do it again."
Zeke groaned.
The Bond
That night, Zeke collapsed onto his mattress, exhausted. Maya sat cross-legged beside him, notebook open, doodling badly-drawn superheroes.
"You didn't tell me it was that bad," she said quietly.
Zeke turned his head, meeting her eyes. For once, he didn't try to joke. "Didn't want you to look at me like I was…"
"Like you were him?"
Silence stretched.
Finally, Maya set her notebook down and punched him lightly in the arm. "Newsflash, idiot. You're not him. You're you. And you've got me—and Cadmen, I guess—reminding you of that."
Zeke blinked, then smirked weakly. "That was almost motivational. Who are you, and what have you done with Maya?"
She rolled her eyes. "Shut up and get some sleep."
For the first time in days, Zeke did.