“Coffee for Norman!”

“Shit.”

Auriella pulled her hand back from the steamer, tipping the cup over the counter and catching it before it fell. She quickly placed it back on the surface and held her crimson hand over an open faucet, wincing as her hand trembled below the cold stream of water.

“Riel?” She turned to the direction of the voice, finding Axle wiping his hands on a cloth before making his way towards her. “Are you okay, hun?”

Auriella scrunched her nose. “Yeah. Just a little burn.”

Axle hovered over the sink to inspect the damage. “Hm, that definitely looks worse than a little burn. I think I have some cold cream in the back. I’ll get some for you.”

“No, it’s fine. You don’t need to–”

“Uh-uh.” Axle shook his finger, a grin on his lips. “I insist. It’s a bad image for an employer not to take care of his employee. Wait here.”

Auriella sighed, knowing better than to argue with Axle once he made up his mind. It had already been a year since she began working at Astro Cafe, a small but popular coffee shop in the middle of downtown. As busy as the shop was, it was only her and Axle that ran the place, and before her, just Axle.

Auriella turned the faucet off and wiped her hand. It was still a bit red, but the pain had subsided enough for her to continue work. As she finished the coffee she was making, she peered over the counter to the person who just received his drink from Axle. He was an elderly man who hunched over his coffee and stared thoughtfully out onto the busy streets.

Norman.

That man's name was Norman, and he ordered a medium Americano. Just black. No sugar, no milk.

The man shifted his head from the window to his coffee. He took a sip then glanced over at Auriella behind the counter, giving her a warm smile.

Auriella returned a grin.

He didn’t look like the Norman that had saved her the night her Grandmama died. That Norman held himself in a confident and all-knowing manner, and his gray eyes sank deeper with exhaustion than with age. That Norman was wise and practical, who dressed in only robes of jade and gold and who also, as she later learned under his care for almost a decade, was self-imposing, close-minded, and terribly stubborn.

Auriella couldn’t remember the interval between the time he had picked up her phone call to when she awoke in a new land they called Ihimya. It came to her mind in small fragments as if they were puzzles she couldn’t piece together. She remembered the bloody taste in her mouth, the broken ruby, and a portal leading to another world. It was only when she met Norman again, this time as a guest of the esteemable Ancient Sage, did Auriella learn of her situation and who she was.

Auriella was under the care of Yelerna’s ruler, the nation in possession of Knowledge and the Mortal Realms of Earth and Ihimya. She was the Constellation Goddess, Asteria’s Successor, with the blood she drank from the ruby that night possessing the powers of Stalera, and thus, the powers of the Universe.

It was a hell of a lot to take in all at once, especially at the young age of eight, but Auriella quickly understood her purpose in life. She was Stalera’s savior and the Archfiend’s demise.

She was Asteria’s vessel.

Evidently, that led to her escape from Norman’s care in Ihimya to freedom on Earth. That was a year ago.

Auriella shook her head, reprimanding herself for flinching at every mention of Norman’s name or any other reference to an object that would remind her of Ihimya. She reminded herself that it had already been a year.

A year since she moved on from–

“I found it,” Axle sang, making Auriella flinch. “It has aloe. Great for the skin.”

“You really didn’t need to, Axle,” Auriella said as she held out her hand for him to apply. As soon as his skin touched hers, a sharp pain crossed her head, and she winced. “Ah, shit.”

Axle pulled back. “Does it hurt that bad? Maybe we should send you to a doctor.”

“No, it’s my head.” Auriella pinched the pressure points where her nose met the edges of her brows. “I suddenly have a headache.”

“You’ve been having those for a while,” Axle said, shaking his head. “Have you not been sleeping well?”

“I don’t know…” Auriella groaned, the pain intensifying. It felt as though someone took a knife to her head and was splitting it in two. She placed a hand on the counter for support and closed her eyes, hoping that concentration would help her endure it. It did nothing for her.

“Is it stress?” Axle continued.

“I don’t know. Shit.” Auriella had the urge to pull out her hair.

“Maybe it’s–”

In an instant, Auriella felt the world grow silent. Axle’s voice became distant and blurry and drifted into the sea of murmurs that filled the cafe. The loud cars outside of the shop, the coffee brewing in front of her, and even the sound of her own voice were all inaudible to her ears. All but the rising beat of her own heart were hushed.

Then she heard it. The only clear and firm voice she could distinguish.

Wake.

As if she had taken out a pair of earmuffs, the noises of the cafe returned to her. She could hear the cars, the coffee machine, and Axle’s rambling of the reasons for her headache. The pain in her head subsided, and her heart returned to its normal rhythm.

“Did you hear that?” Auriella asked, interrupting Axle.

“Hear what?”

“A woman. Someone told me to wake up.”

Axle arched an eyebrow. “Maybe you should see a doctor.” He paused. “Or maybe a shrink.”

Auriella rolled her eyes. She looked around to see who had spoken to her. The voice she heard was clearly a woman’s, but when Auriella looked, there hadn’t been anyone close enough to have spoken to her.

“I swore I heard something.”

“I think you should take the day off, Riel,” Axle began. “You seem out of it.” In a murmur, he added, “And maybe it’ll be a good opportunity for you to see a shrink.”

“I heard that,” Auriella remarked.

“I’m just messing with you.” Axle grinned. “But really. Go home and get some rest. That temper of yours when you’re irritated will be no fun later. You are attending your own birthday party tonight… right?”

Right, Auriella thought. My birthday.

It was a bittersweet moment for her since the last time she had a birthday, she spent it on a ferry to Earth, leaving Ihimya.

“I’ll go only if that damn headache doesn’t return,” Auriella replied.

“It better not,” Axle huffed. “I did not plan this whole affair just for you not to show up, okay? Now go, go. I’ll see you later.”

Auriella nodded, mumbled a thank-you, and left to grab her belongings. Yet, she couldn’t leave that strange voice behind her.

Auriella observed that there were two clear differences between Yelerna’s districts, Earth and Ihimya. The first was the fact that Earth felt so much more free. It wasn’t because Auriella had been trapped in Norman’s palace for the last ten years– although that probably was a part of the reason– but she never knew what it felt like to walk freely on the streets without being constantly supervised or having to smell that metallic fragrance of mana.

And that was the other difference Earth had with Ihimya: the lack of mana. Along with submitting to her imprisonment– for her “safety,” they said– Auriella was obligated to be educated on what her destiny entailed. That included the creation of the Four Nations: Stalera, Yelerna, Antalis, and Talonis, with special emphasis on Yelerna– the nation she currently inhabited.

Unlike the other nations, Yelerna was divided into only two divisions, Earth and Ihimya, and was ruled by Norman, the Ancient Sage. Like the other rulers, Norman’s main task was to protect and guard the Mortal Realms from the threat and influences of the other nations. His protection limited the amount of mana or magical deities, entities, and creatures Yelerna could admit in. Yelerna mana was solely kept in Ihimya, hence only mortals in Ihimya wielded abilities that mortals on Earth would deem impossible, fictitious, or unrealistic. This was due to the nature of Earth mortals, who were much weaker. To protect them and their livelihoods, Norman and other beings outside of the Ihimyan Realm were prohibited from interfering with the lives and activities on Earth. Thus, as time passed, restrictions on citizens of the other nations tightened until Norman no longer accepted any immigrants from Stalera, Antalis, or Talonis, implementing his protection spell that muted the mana and magical abilities of non-Yelernans.

And that was why Auriella pinched her brows together in confusion and, frankly, in fear, as the familiar scent of mana crossed her nose. She took a look behind her and found an empty street. Auriella had always walked this alleyway from work to home, and she never found it scary or unsafe, even after sunset. But for some reason, a chill ran down her spine, and Auriella couldn’t help but feel as though she was being watched–

Or worse–

Followed.

She was being followed by someone with mana, someone who wasn’t from Earth. That meant trouble.

Auriella quickened her steps. Mana smell or not, being followed did not appeal to her. Maybe if she just passed the alley quickly and entered into a busy street, her anxiety would ease. But unlucky for her, that task proved to be harder than it ought to be as the sharp pain in her head returned, her heart racing fast after each step. It made her escape slightly un-ideal.

Well, slightly was an understatement.

Auriella fell onto the nearest wall for support. Her bag dropped to the floor as she grabbed her head, groaning as the sensation of her mind splitting magnified. To make it even worse, her heart raced furiously, as if it might beat itself out of her, and the feeling of someone standing behind her made the small hairs on her neck rise.

The scent of mana quickly became intoxicating, and Auriella began to think that it was Norman who was lurking in the shadows, finally ready to drag her back to Ihimya. But when Auriella looked up to verify that thought, she found no one.

Then a hand rested on her shoulder.

And she screamed.