Chapter Twenty-Two: That Night

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The room was dim, the glow of the suite’s privacy wards casting faint patterns across the walls. The hum of muted magic filled the space, a low thrumming like a heartbeat under the surface. Jace sat cross-legged on the edge of his bed, his brow furrowed in thought. The others were scattered around the room, their expressions ranging from tense to outright grim.

Ell broke the silence first, her tone sharp but not unkind. “Alright, are we all going to pretend like that carnival wasn’t one of the creepiest things we’ve ever seen?”

Dex snorted, flopping into a chair. “You mean the creepy fortune-teller tent that nearly ate us alive? Yeah, hard to forget that.”

“No, I mean all of it,” Ell shot back, leaning forward. “The way everything felt... off. Like it was too bright, too loud. The smells, the sounds, even the people—it was all just... wrong.”

Alice nodded slowly, her fingers tracing the edge of the table. “It was overwhelming. My senses felt bombarded the entire time. But here’s the thing—nothing showed up in our HUDs. No status effects, no alerts, nothing. How is that even possible?”

“It’s not supposed to be,” Marcus said flatly. His arms were crossed, and his usual scowl was deeper than usual. “If it’s not showing up in the HUD, then it’s bypassing the system entirely.”

Jace exhaled, his hands resting on his knees. “It was overriding my Word of Power,” he said, his voice steady but laced with unease. The statement landed like a thunderclap, drawing the room’s attention. “That’s why I noticed it. My Truthsense wasn’t working right—it was like something was actively fighting it.”

Marcus straightened, his expression sharpening. “Overriding a Word of Power? That’s... not supposed to be possible.”

“It’s not,” Jace agreed. “But it happened. If my Word wasn’t already active, I might not have seen anything at all. And once I pointed it out, you all started noticing too, right?”

Ell nodded reluctantly. “Yeah. I didn’t catch the distortion at the ring toss until you said something, but once you did, I could see it. Like a shimmer in the air.”

“Same,” Alice said quietly. “It’s subtle, but it’s there. And it gets worse the closer we get to the center of town. Out in the Commoners’ Circle, it’s faint. But in the Merchant District...” She trailed off, her meaning clear.

Dex tilted his head, frowning. “But why hasn’t anyone else noticed? I mean, the townspeople are acting like this is all normal. And what about higher-level Travelers? Surely they’d pick up on something this big?”

“Maybe it’s a Traveler-specific thing?” Ell suggested, her tone uncertain. “Like, maybe it only affects us?”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Alice said. “There are Travelers who are way stronger than us. If this is targeting Travelers, they’d see it, wouldn’t they?”

The group fell silent, the weight of the question pressing down on them. Finally, Marcus spoke, his voice low. “Or maybe it’s not just a Traveler thing. Maybe it’s a Jace thing.”

All eyes turned to Jace, who shifted under their collective gaze. “What do you mean?” he asked, though he already suspected the answer.

Marcus shrugged, his expression unreadable. “You’re different, Jace. We all know it. You notice things we don’t. You see things we can’t. I don’t know if it’s your Word of Power, or...” He hesitated, his words hanging in the air like a lead weight.

“Or?” Jace prompted, though his voice was quieter now.

Marcus’s jaw tightened. “Or if it’s connected to the Dark One.”

The room went still, the mention of the name settling like a stone in water. No one spoke, their gazes flickering to Jace as if expecting him to lash out.

“It’s okay,” Jace said after a moment, his voice steady but distant. “You don’t have to dance around it. I’ve wondered the same thing. If... if it’s because of him.”

The group exchanged uneasy glances but said nothing. The silence stretched, heavy with unspoken thoughts and unanswered questions. Finally, Ell broke it, her tone softer now. “Well, whatever the reason, it’s a good thing you noticed. Because without you, we’d be walking blind into... whatever this is.”

Jace nodded but didn’t respond. Instead, his gaze drifted to the faint glow of the privacy wards, his mind turning over the possibilities, each one darker than the last.

“There’s something else, guys.”

Jace’s voice cut through the tension, his tone measured but heavy with significance. The group turned to him, their discomfort from the earlier conversation still hanging in the air. He hesitated, running a hand through his hair before finally speaking. “I was born here. In Terra Mythica.”

The words landed like a thunderclap, the room going utterly silent. For a moment, no one moved, no one even breathed. Dex was the first to break the silence. “Wait... what?” His brows furrowed, his voice tinged with disbelief.

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“I was born here,” Jace repeated, his voice steady but laced with something deeper—something raw. “My parents... they had me here. In this realm.”

Ell blinked, leaning back in her chair as if trying to process the revelation. “Hold on. Are you saying you’re not—like—the rest of us?”

Jace shook his head. “Not exactly. My parents traveled to Earth when I was young. I grew up there, just like anyone else. But later, I came back here—using the device, just like you all did.”

Alice’s brow furrowed, her analytical mind already piecing things together. “So... you’re a native? That makes you a citizen of Terra Mythica?”

“Sort of,” Jace said, his lips twitching into a humorless smile. “It’s not that simple. I left, and when I came back, I wasn’t exactly the same. I don’t even know what I am now. Hades has been pretty clear about one thing, though—I can’t tell anyone. Not outside of this room.”

“Hades?” Marcus leaned forward, his voice low and sharp. “Why does he care?”

Jace’s expression hardened. “Because it’s dangerous. If the wrong people find out, it could put me—and all of you—in danger. He says it could get me into trouble I can’t even begin to understand.”

Ell let out a low whistle, her usual bravado tempered by genuine unease. “Well, if there was any doubt before, that settles it. This isn’t a game.” She gestured vaguely to the room, as if encompassing all of Terra Mythica in her words. “I mean, we all knew that already, but this... this is different. It’s not just real—it’s personal.”

Dex rubbed the back of his neck, his expression unreadable. “Yeah. And here I thought we were just leveling up and killing bosses. Guess that’s out the window.”

Jace took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping across the group. “There’s more. Hades... he evolved my abilities.”

Marcus stiffened, his eyes narrowing. “A forced evolution?”

Jace nodded. “Yeah. It was his way of giving me a permanent boon—something that would stick, even if I ever separated from him. It lets me block my identity, hide my true nature. That’s why the crone freaked out. She couldn’t see me. Not fully.”

Marcus leaned back, his expression thoughtful. “Forced evolutions are rare. Painful. And permanent. If Hades went that far, it means he’s taking this seriously.”

“That’s an understatement,” Jace said grimly. “He’s not just trying to protect me. He’s trying to protect all of you too. If anyone found out who I am—or what I am—it wouldn’t end well.”

The group sat in heavy silence, the weight of Jace’s words settling over them like a shroud. Ell finally broke it, her voice softer than usual. “You know we’ve got your back, right?”

Jace met her gaze, the faintest hint of gratitude flickering in his eyes. “I know. But this stays between us. No one else can know.”

They all nodded, the unspoken agreement solidifying the bond between them. The air in the room felt heavier now, charged with secrets and the unshakable reality that they were all in far deeper than they’d ever realized.

The room felt heavier after Jace’s revelation, the kind of weight that no privacy ward could hold back. Silence stretched as the group tried to absorb what they’d just heard, the enormity of it all settling in like a storm cloud.

Marcus finally broke the stillness, his tone measured but rough around the edges. “Forced evolution, huh?” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “That’s no small thing, Jace. Zeus did it to me once. It’s rare, and yeah, it hurts like hell. But what you get out of it? That sticks. No god does that lightly.”

“What did Zeus give you?” Dex asked, his voice carrying a cautious curiosity.

Marcus shrugged, his expression unreadable. “Doesn’t matter. What matters is, Jace isn’t kidding when he says Hades did it to protect him. A forced evolution isn’t just a gift—it’s a gamble. Once it’s done, that boon is yours, no strings attached. Even if you turn your back on the god who gave it to you.”

Jace nodded, his expression grim. “And in this case, it’s the only reason I’m still standing. That’s why the Soulrender reacted the way she did. My concealment—it’s built into me now. She couldn’t see me for what I really am, and it drove her over the edge.”

“But what about what she said?” Alice interjected, her brow furrowed. “That she had to ‘warn them all.’ What does that even mean?”

Jace shook his head, frustration flickering across his face. “I don’t know. And I’m not sure I want to. Whatever it is, it’s big. Bigger than us, maybe even bigger than Hades. And that scares me.”

The room fell into uneasy quiet again, but Ell wasn’t one to let silence linger for long. “Alright,” she said, leaning back in her chair with a sigh. “Let’s focus on what we do know. Like the Tower. If you’re technically a citizen of Terra Mythica, doesn’t that give you some kind of edge?”

“‘Citizen-ish’ is more accurate,” Jace replied, a faint smirk tugging at his lips despite the tension. “I think it means I can access things that Travelers can’t. At least, I hope it does. The tenth floor of the Tower? That’s where we’re going to find answers. About the town, the illusions—maybe even the Soulrender.”

“And the weirdness in this town?” Marcus asked, his tone pointed. “What about that? Because while I’m all for tackling the Tower, we’ve got people here who are clearly in trouble.”

Ell crossed her arms, her expression reluctant but firm. “Marcus is right. Something’s going on here. Those kids, the people acting like puppets—it’s not normal.”

Jace’s jaw tightened, his frustration bubbling to the surface. “It’s not that simple!” he snapped, the sudden outburst cutting through the group’s deliberations. His voice carried more than just anger—it was layered with something deeper, something raw and unspoken.

The group fell silent, their gazes fixed on Jace. He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. “Sorry,” he muttered, his tone softer now. “But there’s more. Something I haven’t told you.”

He stood, pacing the small space, his movements restless. Finally, he stopped, turning back to face them. “My mother... she was Osira. Queen of Roandia.”

The room went still again, the weight of his words hitting like a tidal wave. Dex blinked, his mouth opening and closing as if searching for the right words. Alice looked stunned, her analytical mind clearly racing to catch up. Ell let out a low whistle, shaking her head in disbelief.

“So... you’re the last king of Roandia?” Marcus asked, his tone carefully neutral.

“Technically, yes,” Jace admitted, his voice strained. “But it’s not that simple. Hades has warned me to keep a low profile. If I try to claim anything, it’ll backfire—badly. There are factions I don’t understand, powers at play that could crush us before we even realize what’s happening. If I make a move, we could spark a war or have thousands of Divium-ranked fighters at our doorstep.”

Ell frowned, leaning forward. “So what do we do?”

Jace’s expression softened, though his resolve remained firm. “We keep our focus. The Tower is still our priority. But this town, these people—I can’t ignore them. It’s not logical, I know, but I feel responsible. For the kids, for the people caught in all this. I can’t explain it, but it’s there.”

The group exchanged glances, and one by one, they nodded. Marcus sighed, crossing his arms again. “Fine. We’ll keep digging into what’s happening here. But the Tower comes first. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Jace said, his voice steady. For the first time that night, he felt a small spark of hope—fragile, but real.