The city was alive beneath a shroud of enchantment.
Reyna stepped out into the glowing streets of Nocturnum, a modern metropolis humming with both magic and machines. Neon signs flickered in ancient runes, self-driving cars hovered noiselessly past shimmering alleyways, and skyscrapers pierced the skies like blades wrapped in illusion.
She had landed in a new life, once again as a villainess—but this time, in a world where arcane energy flowed through circuits, and sorcery powered skyscrapers.
This version of her life came with a new identity: Dr. Reyna Vale, the notorious founder of Blackspire Innovations, a company whispered about in government halls and feared in underground circles. In this reality, she was a suspected arcane terrorist, rumored to have created a device that could rewrite magical DNA, and now, she was presumed dead in a laboratory explosion that she herself orchestrated.
Perfect.
It gave her the anonymity she needed to begin rewriting this world's fate.
Inside a high-rise penthouse cloaked in shielding wards, Reyna sifted through her former life's belongings. Sleek files lined the walls, most encrypted with biometric magic. She waved her palm across one of the drawers, her new body's genetic signature unlocked it.
Inside lay a device that pulsed with dark blue light.
The Eidolon Core.
Her memories rushed in.
This was what started the war between the magical elite and the rogue spellcasters. The Core was capable of amplifying any user's magical signature tenfold, but at a cost—soul corrosion. Whoever wielded it paid with fragments of their essence.
She had created it for control. But now, she would use it for something else: redemption and domination.
A sharp knock sliced through the silence.
She spun, hand glowing with a surge of arc-light magic.
"Easy, Doctor," came a deep voice. "I come bearing no weapons."
He stepped through the security wards without triggering them.
That meant only one thing—he was a keyed entity.
Her eyes narrowed.
Tall, dressed in a long obsidian coat woven with hexmetal threads, the man's aura shimmered with a blend of charm and deadly precision. His face was sharp, aristocratic, and his eyes burned silver beneath his dark brows.
"Kairo Thorn," he said with a faint smirk. "Head Enforcer of the Bureau of Magical Regulation. And—if you can believe it—your biggest fan."
"Funny," Reyna replied, "I don't remember starting a fan club for people who hunt me."
He laughed, low and dangerous. "I'm not here to arrest you. I'm here to warn you. The Circle believes you're alive—and they've sent someone worse than me to find you."
Her lips tightened.
The Circle of Twelve—the ruling magical elite of this world. If they believed she was alive, she didn't have much time before bounty hunters, specters, and soul-seekers came sniffing.
"Why warn me?" she asked. "What's in it for you?"
"I think the world is going to burn. And I think you're the only one mad enough to stop it."
Reyna stared at him, her mind racing. She didn't trust him. Not yet. But there was something in his eyes—something fractured, like her.
"We're not allies," she said.
He nodded. "Not yet."
Later that night, as Reyna activated the Eidolon Core, a shadow watched her from the rooftop across the city. Cloaked in moonlight and bound by silence, it whispered one word through the night air:
"Target located."