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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSQepjBiAF
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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."158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIc5gZomnrC
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8m0g5FxSog
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"Hey! Watch it!" I muttered as someone bumped into me.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2duNGNnfXf
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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."158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaNuo837xAv
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZQTxVIqBm
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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?"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdeCoRVRNYz
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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?"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGasL0urOe1
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The Cafeteria Revelation158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVKzIiAAJ9
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By lunchtime, my head was spinning. But the surprises weren't over.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZPQrFAipG
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcsWkEKiON2
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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?"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzaVl0ULo4e
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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."158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUXtqoRZ2U
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"Leon?" I whispered. "You go here too?"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbNUvVFWP9
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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!"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDFidVd6Qlg
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"Yo, are we having a V-Team meeting without me? That’s cold, guys. Real cold."158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71BAoScrzy
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9zSb1T7clE
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Avan.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIJI0HbvFcl
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"Avan! Turn that off!" I grabbed his hand, feeling a tiny jolt. "People will see!"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFMCAZ6Z9PG
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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."158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsaRrDzBRBD
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The Reality Check158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1QWy2W3G5u
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCOdqvrmmb
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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."158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡicwcFcIiGV
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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?"158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0W5mSNW2j
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqr6jKsByj
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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.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDoLHHCMwFp
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"To the boring stuff," Avan said, raising his juice box.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzW7lIr5Ht0
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"To the boring stuff," we all echoed.158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKCV01qVjI
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1234 copyright protection154ＰＥＮＡＮＡTeJSloyH8I 尼158Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7MMbUmcWpK