The infirmary of Celestara Spire was usually serene. Crystals glowed with soft blue light, healing runes drifted above beds like gentle snowflakes, and the scent of herb-mist filled the air. But now it buzzed with nervous whispers and the sharp ring of mana monitors.
Caelum Vale stood near the cot where the mysterious girl lay unconscious. Her violet energy had stabilized, but thin streaks of light still pulsed across her skin like constellations trapped beneath the surface.
Elowen sat at her bedside, coaxing calming runes of green light from her palms. Lyra paced like a caged phoenix. Seraphine scribbled notes with an icicle-tipped quill. Astra leaned against a pillar, arms crossed, watching Caelum closely.
The academy healer finished inspecting the girl, wiped his brow, and stepped aside.
"She's stable," he said, "but the mana signature inside her is… not natural."
Lyra huffed. "Not natural is an understatement. She dropped out of the sky like a meteor."
Astra added, "And she recognized Caelum. That part matters more."
All eyes turned to him.
Caelum didn't look away. "I've never seen her before." He paused. "But when she spoke… I felt something. Like my Starfire reacted to her."
Seraphine's gaze sharpened. "Describe the reaction."
"It wasn't a warning," Caelum said slowly. "More like a resonance."
Lyra muttered, "Great. Mysterious sky girl with unstable magic resonates with you. What's next, a prophecy carved on your forehead?"
Caelum's lips twitched. "Hopefully not."
Before anyone could speak again, the girl stirred.
A pulse of violet rippled through the room.
Elowen leaned forward. "She's waking."
The girl's eyes opened—deep violet, swirling like nebulae. For a moment, she looked lost. Then her gaze locked onto Caelum.
"You're late," she whispered.
Everyone froze.
Caelum stepped closer. "Do you know me?"
The girl swallowed, voice trembling. "Not yet. But you will. They're coming, Caelum. And they want the Celestial Crown."
A chill ran through the room.
Seraphine's quill paused mid-air. "The Celestial Crown is folklore. An allegory."
The girl shook her head weakly. "No. It's real. And if they take it, this world falls."
Lyra threw her hands up. "Fantastic. Catastrophic doom in Chapter 3. Love that for us."
Astra smirked despite the tension. "At least it's not boring."
Caelum knelt beside the girl. "Who are you?"
Her breathing hitched. "My name… my name is Aradia. I was sent to warn you." She reached out, gripping his wrist with surprising strength. "You're the one meant to unite them. The Constellation Circle."
Elowen blinked. "Unite who?"
Aradia's voice dimmed. "Those who orbit you. Those who choose you." Her eyes flicked to the others. "Your circle is already forming."
Lyra sputtered. "Orbit? Choose? We're not planets—"
Aradia continued, ignoring her. "But jealousy fractures the crown. And if the crown fractures… the void wins."
Seraphine whispered, almost to herself, "Void."
Aradia collapsed back onto the pillow. The violet glow dimmed.
Caelum stood, mind racing.
Astra pushed off the wall. "So. We have a cosmic doomsday threat. An unconscious oracle meteor girl. And apparently Caelum is the center of a magical solar system."
Lyra crossed her arms. "I refuse to orbit anything."
Seraphine corrected calmly, "Technically, if the metaphor holds, it's gravitational pull, not—"
"Not helping!" Lyra snapped.
Elowen looked at Caelum with quiet worry. "What do you think this means?"
Caelum glanced at Aradia, then at the four girls standing around him—each powerful, each different, each already connected to him in ways none of them fully understood yet.
"It means," Caelum said softly, "that our duel this morning was the least important thing that happened today."
A beat of silence.
Then the academy alarms blared.
A booming voice echoed through the infirmary: "All students report to emergency stations. Unknown entities approaching the Spire from the north."
Astra grinned. "Entities. That usually means fun."
Lyra ignited instantly. "Let's go."
Seraphine snapped her book shut. "We need information."
Elowen rose, vines wrapping protectively around her arms. "We should stay together."
Caelum looked at them all and nodded. "Then let's move."
As they raced toward the exit, the sky outside darkened—not with storm clouds, but with drifting, violet shapes.
The void had come early.
And Caelum had never felt his Starfire burn so bright.