Chapter 1: Kidnapping

A door slammed shut, shaking the wall around it. After bouncing and oscillating for a few seconds, a worn-down sign settled, crooked to the right. “Do not disturb—even for world-ending crisis.”

Aurora sighed. It was the third time this week, and it was only Tuesday.
“Why don’t we go by ourselves and get it done without him?”
Heilig’s perpetually calm voice answered her. “You know the prophecy. Without Lumen, we wouldn’t be able to complete the ritual.”
“But he’s just a kid who doesn’t care about the ritual! Are we even sure he’s really the one?”
“All the signs label him as such, even if he isn’t ready to accept it yet. We just have to be patient, and one day, he’ll listen to what we have to say.”

Behind them, Morgan was mumbling under her breath.
“See, it’s even getting to her. I say we go without him and we’ll find a way to make it work.”
“Aurora, I know you’re frustrated, but I’ve studied the old texts, and if there was another way, I would have found it. We’ll try again tomorrow.”

As he was turning around, Morgan lifted her head up. It was the first time he saw such determination in her eyes. Thinking back on it, it might also have been the first time he saw her eyes, usually hidden under her large hat.
She grabbed her staff firmly and stepped towards the door. The volume of her voice was rising, and her mumbles turned into intelligible words.
“This fucking brat… drag him out… should have… by himself…” She put the end of her staff against the door. “WE’RE NOT LEAVING WITHOUT YOU, FUCKER!”

An intense light erupted where the staff was touching the door, and an explosion blew it straight across the room. Before the dust could settle, Morgan was already inside, grabbing Lumen by the collar, dragging him out through the hole that was his front door.
“Leave me alone, you old hag. You have no idea what you’ve been set up for. This is all–”
“SHUT UP!” She punctuated her sentence with a knock of her staff on his head. He stopped moving.
“Don’t just stand here. Help me carry him.”