Sherwood City looked different from the sky. Usually, it was a grid of lights and possibilities. Now, as I walked toward the front gates of Sherwood High, it just looked like a place where I had to pretend to be a normal sixteen-year-old girl who didn't just save an underwater civilization.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7cfACp5bF
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My father had dropped me off, his eyes lingering on me a little longer than usual. "Try to just be a student today, Vic," he’d said. "No portals. No energy blades. Just... history and math."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8wz7z9TZe1
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I adjusted my backpack, the heavy silver Watch hidden under the sleeve of my oversized hoodie. I walked into the crowded hallway, the smell of floor wax and locker dust hitting me like a physical force.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTJTLXGKLGe
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"Hey! Watch it!" I muttered as someone bumped into me.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2h9k7XBfUx
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"Maybe if you weren't standing in the middle of the hallway like a statue, you wouldn't get hit, Vega."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwHjzLtN8e
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I froze. I knew that sharp, icy tone. I turned around to see Elizabeth West. She wasn't wearing her tactical Nightshadow gear. She was wearing a perfectly pressed school blazer, her hair in a tight ponytail, carrying a stack of advanced calculus books.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHGZxvAZD5f
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"Elizabeth?" I hissed, pulling her into an alcove by the gym. "What are you doing here? You're a... you're a student?"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6cEdgiIF2
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"My father insists on a 'well-rounded' education," she said, her eyes scanning the hallway with the same intensity she used to scout for Wraiths. "And don't call me Elizabeth here. It’s Liz. And we don't know each other. Understood?"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcCIVkV3qiw
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The Cafeteria Revelation100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPMQcD8DnJL
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By lunchtime, my head was spinning. But the surprises weren't over.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡngwc1prBJ4
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I sat down at a corner table with a tray of questionable mystery meat when a tall, muscular guy with a varsity jacket sat down across from me. He was laughing with a group of swimmers.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoeVaUaBgQ3
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"I’m telling you guys, the current in the pool was weird today," he said, winking. He looked at me and froze. "Victoria?"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlcXDhMhEkX
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It was Leon. Without his Atlantean armor, he just looked like the star of the swim team. His iridescent skin was less noticeable under the harsh fluorescent lights of the gym, looking more like a "healthy glow."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWQ9ROr4ILW
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"Leon?" I whispered. "You go here too?"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpFlWfDw2Ep
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"Since freshman year," he laughed, leaning in. "Where do you think West finds his 'interns'? He scouts the local schools for kids who... stand out. I thought you went to that private academy across town!"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFo5kjNpl3c
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"Yo, are we having a V-Team meeting without me? That’s cold, guys. Real cold."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ670Q8qH2kY
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A boy with messy blonde hair slid into the seat next to me, his sneakers squeaking on the linoleum. He was wearing headphones around his neck, and tiny blue sparks were literally jumping from his earbuds to his ears.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw1bFedewXy
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Avan.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4fFAAUl87k
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"Avan! Turn that off!" I grabbed his hand, feeling a tiny jolt. "People will see!"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvEZ6Vd3oG2
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"Relax, Vic," Avan grinned, stealing a tater tot from my plate. "Everyone just thinks I’m 'statically prone.' Besides, nobody at Sherwood High pays attention to anything but their own phones."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmQ3u5vLBIT
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The Reality Check100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBMDVq4EsiV
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We sat there for a moment—the Last Daughter, the Atlantean Prince, the Lightning Bolt, and the Assassin—surrounded by kids complaining about the WiFi and upcoming prom dates.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQgok93sPL
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"It’s weird, isn't it?" I asked, looking at my friends. "Last night we were fighting a Kraken. Now we have a Chemistry test in ten minutes."100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN4Wd3m9ywP
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"It’s the most important mission we have," Elizabeth said, her voice softening just a fraction. "If we can't protect this—the boring stuff, the normal stuff—then what are we even fighting for?"100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROeCJypkag
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My phone buzzed in my pocket. A text from my dad: Found a lead on that 'Subject Zero' thing you mentioned. Be home for dinner. Love you.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcH2ndaNwYA
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I looked at the Watch under my sleeve. It was quiet, but I knew the peace wouldn't last. Doctor Science was still out there. Subject Zero was coming. And Dementra was watching.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsTClczA195
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"To the boring stuff," Avan said, raising his juice box.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2AYx4lxdGl
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"To the boring stuff," we all echoed.100Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuRvhrDh9yY
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