The Whispers of Arcanum
Chapter 1 - “Awakening”

Maya woke up with a start, her heart racing as she gasped for breath intrusively. She searched around the room, trying to shake off the remnants of the nightmare that plagued her sleep. When she sat up, she noticed a flicker of movement out of the corner of her eye.

Lily was woken, staring intently at the flame in her hand, possibly thinking of the play-out of today. She was the only one in the group who could control fire; it was more energy than fire.The sight of Lily’s powers never failed to mesmerize Maya. She watched as Lily closed her hand, extinguishing the flame as easily and as simply as she had lit it.

“You okay?” Lily asked, turning her head to face Maya.

“Just a bad dream,” Maya replied, rubbing her eyes.

A second for self-gathering.

“What time is it?” Maya asked as she collectively rounded her thoughts.

“Early,” Lily said, looking at the clock on the wall.

“But we should probably get going. We have too much to do today.” Lily continued.

Maya nodded, throwing her legs over the edge of the bed. Lily was right, she knew. They had all gathered here in the hideout for a reason— to fight against the hatred that they faced because of their powers. Today they were finally going to start putting their plans into action. INstead of fronting like they usually did

Maya got dressed swiftly; or at least swiftly in her mind. She made her way to the main room, where the rest of the group was already waiting.

Nico was typing away on his laptop, his fingers moving quickly across the keyboard as he hacked into various systems and websites. Phoenix was lounging on the couch, her eyes shut as she focused on her breathing. Eden was flipping through a medical textbook, her brow furrowed in concentration. Tempest was glaring out the window, her eyes following the raindrops as they streaked down the glass. In the corner of the room, Orion was pacing back and forth, head down,his hand hovering over his chest as he focused on his power, telekinesis .

As soon as Maya walked in, they all turned to stare. She could feel the weight of their expectations on her shoulders. She could feel the pressure building in the room; it was making her chest heavy. She was their leader, the one who had brought them together. And she knew that they were depending on her to make their vision a reality.

“Are we ready?” she asked, forcing her voice to sound more confident..

They all nodded in unison, and Maya took a deep breath, making it unobvious. It was time to replace out what they were capable of.