Page 34 of Saints & Sinners

“Futures,” Sariel murmured from the front of the room, her voice low but resonant. “Possibilities. This is the gift of Guardians—to see and to guide the world accordingly.But... futures are never fixed. They can change. In fact, they are always changing.”

One pair, a girl with a sleek braid, seemed caught in an argument with herself. The threads around her shimmered erratically, flashing from gold to silver to a dull grey. The Guardian frowned, muttering under her breath as her anchor steadied her with a firm grip.

“The harder the choice,” Sariel continued, “the more volatile the threads. It is the duty of Guardians to weigh these futures, to find the path that serves the greater balance.”

I hesitated, my fingers hovering over Veronica’s hand. She already looked annoyed, her sharp green eyes narrowing as if daring me to mess this up.

“Just do it,” she snapped, her voice low enough for only me to hear. I swallowed hard and clasped her hand, bracing myself for whatever might happen.

As soon as I did, her body jerked, and her face twisted in pain for several seconds.

“Veronica?” I whispered, unsure if I was supposed to speak or not.

She fell silent for a moment, the threads around us darkening into an inky black—then, without warning, she screamed.

I jumped as her panicked voice echoed through the room.

“Something’s happening to my brother! I can’t change it—I—I can’t stop it. No!”

My blood ran cold. “Ver—”

“This is all your fault!” she cried, her eyes snapping open but still glassy as if she were lost in the vision. “You did this!”

I stumbled back, the accusation slamming into me with fullforce. “What—”

“You shouldn’t even be here!” Her voice was filled with rage as her fingers clawed at the floorboards, drawing blood. “You’re just as bad as a Riftkeeper!”

I looked around the room, panicked about what to do. Sariel was moving toward us, her usual calm demeanor replaced with urgency.

“Leave the classroom,” she said to me, kneeling in front of Veronica.

“What? But—”

“Now!” Sariel repeated in a way that left no room for argument.

Veronica continued to scream with tears streaming down her face as she cried out for her brother. My stomach sank as I stood and stumbled toward the door, barely able to breathe past the agonizing sounds.

I ran across Celestia’s hallways, the words, ‘this is all your fault’repeating in my mind like a curse I couldn’t shake off.

I didn’t know where exactly I was going, but I just wanted to get out of here. I wanted—

Stumbling to a stop, I blinked as I almost crashed into someone. I stared at a crisp, clean blue suit before my eyes slid to Azrael’s face.

“Sorry,” I mumbled, a pathetic apology. My head was throbbing.

“It seems you lack spatial awareness as much as you lack the skills to be a Warrior.”

I didn’t care for the insult, at least not at that moment.

“Perhaps,” he continued, straightening the collar of his shirt. “You should watch where you’re going. Would hate for you to get lost one of these days.”

My brows furrowed at the meaning behind that, but when I went to ask, Eden appeared.

“Grace.” She smiled from behind Azrael, though her smilequickly morphed into concern. “Are you alright?”

I wasn’t sure if I had nodded or not.

She looked at Azrael and cleared her throat. “How is she settling in with the Warriors?” Her question seemed innocent, something to ease the tension from the air, but it didn’t work.

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