The lights kept flickering, each pulse more intense than the last. The blue glow from the sphere on Cael's table bounced off the walls, casting shadows that danced to the rhythm of the strobing.
Outside, the streetlights and windows of neighboring buildings flickered too, as if the entire neighborhood was caught in the same chaos.
Cael stood frozen in front of the sphere, his trembling hand hovering near the main wire.
His breathing was rapid, sweat streaming down his forehead.
'Do I unplug it?' he thought, biting his lip.
If he did, he'd lose all the progress from tonight.
But if he didn't, he could trigger a full blackout—or worse.
The fear of wrecking not just his apartment but the neighborhood's entire electrical grid had him teetering on the edge of panic.
Suddenly, rapid footsteps echoed down the hallway. The door burst open, and there was Yuna, her black hair a mess and her golden eyes wide with alarm.
She was in her blue pajamas, her chest heaving with frantic breaths.
"Cael!" she shouted, gripping the doorframe. "What's going on? The whole building's lights are freaking out! What did you do?"
Cael turned his head toward his sister, and seeing her so scared sent a pang of guilt through him.
He wanted to yank the wire, end this mess before it got worse.
But something stopped him.
For the first time… the sphere hadn't shut off right away.
The blue glow, though unstable, was still there, pulsing, like it was on the verge of stabilizing.
'What if it works this time?' Cael thought, his heart racing.
Yuna stepped into the room, frowning.
"Are you even listening?" she said, raising her voice. "This chaos in the neighborhood—it's because of your gadget, isn't it?"
Cael nodded slowly, his eyes glued to the sphere. He raised a hand toward Yuna, motioning for her to keep it down.
"Shh, hold on," he whispered. "Just… give me a second."
Yuna clenched her fists, clearly ticked off. She stepped closer but lowered her voice as he'd asked.
"Cael, I get that you don't want to fail, okay? I know how important this is to you, to Lena, to… everything. But this is too much. You're risking the whole apartment, the entire neighborhood! Don't you see that?"
Cael dropped his gaze, the weight of his sister's words sinking in.
She was right.
If he kept going and something went wrong, he wouldn't just lose the project—he could face legal trouble.
A massive blackout in the neighborhood wouldn't go unnoticed. He could get fined, or worse, sued.
But still, he couldn't ignore the possibility staring him in the face.
'What if I'm actually pulling this off?' he thought, eyeing the sphere.
The blue glow looked stronger now, less erratic. He'd poured months into this prototype, sacrificing sleep, money, even his health.
If it worked, it would change their lives. It could break the barriers of mana, give Yuna the chance to live her dream of becoming a mage.
He couldn't quit now, not when he was this close.
Yuna took another step toward him, her voice trembling slightly.
"Cael, please. Listen to me. You don't have to do this. I… I'm getting a scholarship for college soon, you know? You won't have to worry about me so much anymore. We can make it without you taking these risks. You don't need to do this—not like this."
Cael turned to Yuna, and for the first time that night, he really looked at her. Her golden eyes shimmered, not just from the sphere's light but from tears threatening to spill.
She was scared, but more than that, she was worried about him.
That's how it always was: she had his back, even when she didn't agree with his choices.
'She's right,' Cael thought, a knot tightening in his chest. 'This is too risky. I can't keep going.'
He clicked his tongue, frustrated with himself, and stepped toward the table.
"Alright…" he muttered. "I'll unplug it."
Cael reached for the main wire, ready to yank it out and end the chaos.
But just as his fingers were inches from the wire, something happened.
The sphere started to hum.
At first, it was a low buzz, barely noticeable, but then it grew louder.
Cael froze, his hand suspended in midair. The sphere slowly lifted off the table, hovering a few inches above the wooden and plastic base. The blue glow turned brighter, steadier, bathing the room in a constant light.
"What…?" Cael mumbled, stepping back.
Yuna, still by the door, let out a choked gasp.
"Cael!" she yelped, pointing at herself.
Her feet weren't touching the floor.
She was floating, a few inches off the ground, arms flailing for balance. Her blue pajamas rippled slightly, as if an invisible current was holding her up.
Cael spun toward her, eyes wide.
"Yuna!" he said, stepping toward her but stopping short.
He noticed the room's lights, which had been flickering like crazy a second ago, were now steady.
He glanced out the window and saw the neighborhood's lights had stopped blinking too.
Everything seemed… normal.
Except for the sphere, still hovering, and Yuna, hovering with it.
Yuna stared at her brother, confused and a little freaked out.
"What's happening?" she asked, her voice shaky. "What did you do, Cael?"
Cael blinked, still processing what he was seeing.
The sphere kept glowing a steady blue, no flickers, no blackouts.
Yuna was floating, and he felt a faint pressure under his own feet, like the floor was pushing him upward.
A nervous laugh escaped his lips, and a grin spread across his face.
"I did it," he said, barely believing it. "Yuna, I did it!"
Yuna frowned, still floating.
"Did what? What did you do? Get me down from here, Cael! This isn't funny!"
Cael shook his head, his grin not fading.
"No, no, wait. This is… this is mana. The sphere's working, Yuna! It's manipulating mana!"
He stepped closer to the table, staring at the sphere in awe and excitement.
"I've never gotten this far. It always shut off, but now… it's stable. It's generating a mana field!"
Yuna crossed her arms, still hovering a few inches off the ground.
"Okay, awesome, but why am I floating? This is weird, Cael! Make it stop!"