As if to prove her point, they burst into a frenzy of unpleasant retching. Willow spat on the ground a few times before saying, “No kidding! Blech! Remember when we found that dead horse on the river? This tastes how that smelled.”

My lips curled at the memory. “Great. Can’t wait to eat it.”

“Give it a few minutes to kick in,” instructed Sharp, no doubt mentally preparing herself for the sensation. “None of us are Of-the-Wilds, so the bad taste should be the only negative side effect.”

 “Negative side effects?” I raised my eyebrows. “What do you mean? I thought it was just Divine energy.” The way Willow had spoken about it, I assumed this would be an adventure with no consequences.

She frowned. “Yes, but the Savage Wild is one of the most powerful sources of Divine entropy on the entire continent. For people that live in that region, the effects are random, and in rare cases, dangerous.”

Pir and I exchanged nervous glances.

“Don’t be like that.” She popped the fruit into her mouth, chewing and swallowing with surprising ease. “For people like us, it’s about as dangerous as a cup of coffee.”

I held my own fruit up to my mouth, waiting as Willow suggested. Despite Sharp’s words, I felt a gnawing anxiety, but like an idiot, I pushed it away.

It took five minutes for any of them to notice a difference, when Sharp looked upward and asked, “Do you smell that?”

I sniffed the air but smelled nothing. “What do you mean?”

“That’s weird.” She touched her nose. “I can smell the rain on the horizon.” Her eyes widened and turned glassy. “Whoa! I can hear all the way back to the market.”

A similar expression washed over Willow’s face. In a glorious moment, he twirled his blue scarves, and instead of floating ten feet above our heads as usual, he matched the height of the tree in a single effortless hop.

The ATMOSPHERE began to change.

“No way! So cool!” Piranha punched a fist in the air and jumped all the way to a branch in the middle of the tree. They were no match for our flying friend when it came to height but beat their personal record with ease. Pir’s natural Jungle power was called Wildcat, and due to unique muscles in their limbs and tough, lightweight bones, they moved around with more speed, power, and control than the average person.

“Come on Badger!” shouted Willow, flitting about like an energetic jaybird. “It’s your turn. This is awesome!”

Under my breath I mumbled, “Yeah, awesome for you.”

“I heard that!” said Sharp, which was perplexing, since she was standing twenty feet away from me, practicing the swing of her dual blades. “He’s right! You should give it a shot! I didn’t think it would make a big difference, but I feel like I could catch up with those two for once.”

The two landed in front of us, Piranha’s fangs exposed in a malevolent grin, and Willow’s arms akimbo, his hair a windy mess. “You heard the boss. Eat the nasty death fruit.”

I held it up to the sun. Dense and smooth like it a rare blue stone, the Fruit grew heavier the longer I waited. I popped it in my mouth, attempting to consume it faster than I could taste it. No good. As soon as I swallowed, the taste hit me, and I doubled over.

“That horse…yuck…” I gagged. “Better be worth it.”

Sharp flipped her hair over her shoulder with the dull side of the bone blade. “Before we play, let’s figure out how it alters Lucent, or else we won’t have a chance.”

“There’s no way you’ll get me,” I jeered.

We teased each other for a few minutes before I started to notice a change. The greens of the leaves sharpened and grew more distinct, and the air thickened with the smell of rain and the distant marketplace. The grass under my feet warmed. I leaned back my head and took in the clear blue sky. A bird flew past my gaze, and I heard the notes of its traveling song.

“Feels cool right?” Piranha chirped. “Have you ever felt so powerful in your life?”

“It feels… like I could run for miles,” I whispered, inhaling the warm afternoon air, “like I’ll never get tired.”

With an imperceptible flourish, Sharp returned one of her blades, but pointed the other at my face. “Activate your power and revert it before we start, just to make sure you can.”

“Are you saying I might stay invisible forever?” I balked.

She flicked my ear. “Doubtful, but just in case. We could do something else if you’re too scared.”

“Fat chance. I’m committed now.” I met Willow’s gaze, which was soft and concerned. “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine, and I promise to come right back.”

“Famous last words,” joked Piranha.

Sharp held up her hand. “Count to five and then reappear. Alright?”

I nodded.

And then I disappeared.

Chapter Two

The Other Side

FIVE.

I’m not in the right place.

Four.

I’m burning. I’m on fire.

Three.

Why can’t I move? What is that light?

Two.

I can’t deactivate. I can’t go back.

One.

A bright flash, and I was gone.

This was somewhere new, where light melted the darkness. Six luminous circles bobbed in midair, connected through many arms of moving brightness, in diverse colors from muted orange to baby blue to pure white. They were faceless, but I was overcome by the sensation they were looking at me with some unknown intention.

One of the lights was near my face, a golden circle enveloped by sparkling blue tendrils. It moved at an even pace, like a dancer in a slow pirouette. I’d never seen anything so beautiful in my life.

I was certain I had died.

The moment ended before I had any more time to dwell on it. I awoke with a sharp, desperate breath.