Sealed inside the towering city walls of Acadia, magic users known as Wielders are feared and hunted for the abilities they have been blessed with. They're living in hiding, terrified of revealing themselves to the Authorities that hunt them.
But w...
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"Don't be scared. Don't let them see."
-Alexandra Bracken
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Seven years later
It was still strange to Marina. For two months, she had no one to yell at. No one to complain to. No one to throw a plate at when they ran their mouth too much. Ryder was gone. Her brother was going to stay gone.
Marina shifted on the couch, unable to sit still, her eyes continuously falling back on the front door. If Ryder were there, he would be saying that she was making him nervous. Marina shook her head, a small smile tugging at her lips.
After the authorities captured Ryder, Marina thought they would come to take her in for questioning - if they didn't arrest her first. They never came. She watched the door and the windows, searching for signs that they were coming for her. But everything remained quiet for weeks in and weeks out.
Marina went out when she needed to, only using cash at grocery stores. She envisioned the Authorities sitting in front of screens, watching every movement she made. She felt their eyes on her, making her skin crawl.
Things didn't always used to be so bad.
Marina remembered when she used to play on the block with Ryder and their friends. She relished in her memories of laughter and happiness as she tried to make it through the dark days.
A shiver shot down Marina's back as the memory of the news seven years ago filled her mind. One group of rogue Wielders had massacred close to fifty civilians in a grocery store, and the island of Acadia had never been the same. Three of the victims were Wielders themselves, but that didn't matter to anyone. Marina still remembered the girl on camera—the one screaming her head off before running towards the nearest exit. She was never found. She escaped without leaving a whisper as to where she went or whom she was.
The Council of Acadia had had enough after that. Kraenite, a smooth black stone, was found to have the ability to snuff out any magical power when in proximity of a Wielder. Walls made of the stone were built and the purging of Wielders began. Marina had a theory that the Council had kraenite in their possession the whole time. They were just waiting for an excuse to whip it out. The Council acted too quickly, too calculated.
