Sherwood City looked different from the sky. Usually, it was a grid of lights and possibilities. Now, as I walked toward the front gates of Sherwood High, it just looked like a place where I had to pretend to be a normal sixteen-year-old girl who didn't just save an underwater civilization.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKtPOqgu5jd
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My father had dropped me off, his eyes lingering on me a little longer than usual. "Try to just be a student today, Vic," he’d said. "No portals. No energy blades. Just... history and math."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYUwHiwhfBc
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I adjusted my backpack, the heavy silver Watch hidden under the sleeve of my oversized hoodie. I walked into the crowded hallway, the smell of floor wax and locker dust hitting me like a physical force.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwwPjkUkAm0
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"Hey! Watch it!" I muttered as someone bumped into me.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkP4I7nNnNi
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"Maybe if you weren't standing in the middle of the hallway like a statue, you wouldn't get hit, Vega."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsih92CrStZ
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I froze. I knew that sharp, icy tone. I turned around to see Elizabeth West. She wasn't wearing her tactical Nightshadow gear. She was wearing a perfectly pressed school blazer, her hair in a tight ponytail, carrying a stack of advanced calculus books.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX12wqy19cl
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"Elizabeth?" I hissed, pulling her into an alcove by the gym. "What are you doing here? You're a... you're a student?"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrWRjzMUMJ
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"My father insists on a 'well-rounded' education," she said, her eyes scanning the hallway with the same intensity she used to scout for Wraiths. "And don't call me Elizabeth here. It’s Liz. And we don't know each other. Understood?"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4R5TK8Ay02
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The Cafeteria Revelation83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJJPjGS8Wtz
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By lunchtime, my head was spinning. But the surprises weren't over.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpLAAeGM4ZG
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I sat down at a corner table with a tray of questionable mystery meat when a tall, muscular guy with a varsity jacket sat down across from me. He was laughing with a group of swimmers.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZoS9xOvmFV
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"I’m telling you guys, the current in the pool was weird today," he said, winking. He looked at me and froze. "Victoria?"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh2YGNM6IBp
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It was Leon. Without his Atlantean armor, he just looked like the star of the swim team. His iridescent skin was less noticeable under the harsh fluorescent lights of the gym, looking more like a "healthy glow."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7fqBhsK4Fj
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"Leon?" I whispered. "You go here too?"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp9dYmQuQpL
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"Since freshman year," he laughed, leaning in. "Where do you think West finds his 'interns'? He scouts the local schools for kids who... stand out. I thought you went to that private academy across town!"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaKUUPpi3P8
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"Yo, are we having a V-Team meeting without me? That’s cold, guys. Real cold."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjez1k5eMdv
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A boy with messy blonde hair slid into the seat next to me, his sneakers squeaking on the linoleum. He was wearing headphones around his neck, and tiny blue sparks were literally jumping from his earbuds to his ears.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfATN4LcUmB
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Avan.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡODy2iMfxtt
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"Avan! Turn that off!" I grabbed his hand, feeling a tiny jolt. "People will see!"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUTUooKnIV9
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"Relax, Vic," Avan grinned, stealing a tater tot from my plate. "Everyone just thinks I’m 'statically prone.' Besides, nobody at Sherwood High pays attention to anything but their own phones."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQ11Zjtr4P
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The Reality Check83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqnDm1MFP5
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We sat there for a moment—the Last Daughter, the Atlantean Prince, the Lightning Bolt, and the Assassin—surrounded by kids complaining about the WiFi and upcoming prom dates.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiA8x3RfWm
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"It’s weird, isn't it?" I asked, looking at my friends. "Last night we were fighting a Kraken. Now we have a Chemistry test in ten minutes."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnDtITW9ba
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"It’s the most important mission we have," Elizabeth said, her voice softening just a fraction. "If we can't protect this—the boring stuff, the normal stuff—then what are we even fighting for?"83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtmi2VpiMaN
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My phone buzzed in my pocket. A text from my dad: Found a lead on that 'Subject Zero' thing you mentioned. Be home for dinner. Love you.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5xSYqnrYJf
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I looked at the Watch under my sleeve. It was quiet, but I knew the peace wouldn't last. Doctor Science was still out there. Subject Zero was coming. And Dementra was watching.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhyquHPHu8B
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"To the boring stuff," Avan said, raising his juice box.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzXvEEggEZV
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"To the boring stuff," we all echoed.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtEHD3re3jX
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1234 copyright protection79ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bEu1wVFfd 尼83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWcQjnEUZwX