After a breathless sprint, Sky and Shark reached the sixth floor and slipped through an open window.

Shark landed second and stayed still for a moment, his chest rising and falling fast. The chill that had crawled down his spine during the escape still hadn’t faded. He didn’t even know why he had started running… but something back there had truly scared him.

He spun toward the window and leaned out slightly, his hard gaze scanning the street below.

Nothing.

Only the wind dragging scraps of paper across the asphalt and a suspicious silence.

Then he saw it.

A black crow, perfectly still on the outer ledge, its glossy eyes fixed on him.

Shark narrowed his eyes, irritated. “…That crow again? It can’t be the same one.”

The animal cawed, a dry sound that cut through the air, and spread its wings. With a heavy beat, it lifted into the void and vanished between the buildings.

Shark kept staring at the sky for another second, as if searching for an answer that never came. Then he slowly turned back toward the room.

They both froze. In the dim light, sitting in a wheelchair, a boy stared at them with wide eyes. Silent. Tense, unreal.

Sky adjusted his sunglasses. And smiled.

“Hi! My name’s Sky. And you?”

Shark stared at him in disbelief. Seriously… was he greeting the guy like they had just come in to make friends?

The boy didn’t answer immediately. His eyes slid over the imperial uniforms… and turned cold. One hand disappeared beneath the desk.

Click.

A blue flash cut across the room.

Sky barely moved his arm. The electric arc slid against his palm and was deflected aside, crashing into the floor with a sharp crack.

“Hey! Easy!” he said, more surprised than angry.

The boy watched him, breathing fast.

“If you’re from the Empire… you’ve got the wrong person.”

Sky lifted a hand slightly, like calming a frightened animal.

“No Empire, okay? We’re not here to arrest you.”

Then he puffed out his chest as if nothing had happened, ignoring the acrid smell left by the electric strike behind him.

“I’m the clan leader, and him”—he pointed at Shark with his thumb, proud—“he’s my officer.”

Shark exhaled slowly through his nose, his nerves still tight.

“No, that’s it. I admit it. You don’t just look stupid. You actually are.”

Sky blinked, genuinely confused.

“Why? What did I do?”

The silence lingered for a moment. Steven slowly lowered the electric weapon, his gaze shifting from the burned mark on the floor to Sky’s disarming smile. Then a half-laugh escaped him, unexpected. Too absurd, too unpredictable not to laugh at.

Steven tilted his head slightly, studying the imperial uniforms and the scorch mark.

“Imperial uniforms… but you don’t act like soldiers. And you just said you don’t work for them.”

A thin smile curved his lips.

“So… you’re rogue Level Ups. Or worse: fugitives.”

Sky turned toward Shark triumphantly, as if he had just won an argument.

“See? You need to learn to be less suspicious. Not everyone is an enemy.”

Shark slowly raised his hands to the ceiling, defeated.

“I. Have. No. Words.”

Steven grew serious again, his eyes sharp with calculation.

“If you’re not imperial and you’re wearing that uniform… it means someone is looking for you.”

A brief pause.

“You’re running away, right?”

Sky nodded without hesitation.

“Exactly!”

Steven showed no obvious reaction. He slowly turned his chair toward the desk, his gaze already esewhere, as if evaluating a thousand variables. His fingers tapped softly against the armrest in silence.

“Staying here is a terrible idea…” he said quietly.

“If the Empire is really looking for you, a place like this would be among the first they’d check.”

He paused, then gave a sharp half-smile.

“But I’m good at making my tracks disappear.”

Shark watched him, wary.

“You’re pretty confident… do you live here alone?”

Steven shook his head.

“Not exactly. My parents are almost always out of town, so yeah… I’m basically alone most of the time. And since I can’t move around much, I spend my days in front of my PC. It’s my world.”

Sky smiled like he had just found treasure.

“Awesome! We’ve already found a new companion for our clan!”

Shark closed his eyes. One, two, three. Deep breath.

“What?! Are you insane? You can’t recruit anyone just because you like them! We don’t know anything about him!”

Sky shrugged, serious as if stating the most obvious truth in the universe.

“Come on, relax a bit. It can’t always go wrong.”

Steven watched them, more and more puzzled, almost wondering if he was dreaming. Just minutes ago, his life had been a monotonous loop. Now he had two wanted fugitives in his room… and for the first time, something truly broke the routine.

“Wait,” Steven said, narrowing his eyes as if reorganizing data in his head.

“What kind of clan would that even be?”

Sky leaned toward him with a huge grin.

“Ours! Shark and I decided to found one. And you… you’re going to be part of it.”

Steven stared at him in silence, studying him like an unsolvable riddle.

“You talk like it’s already decided. We don’t even know each other.”

“Of course I’m serious!” Sky shot back proudly. “We started at Castle Rock. With you, we’re five now!”

Shark pressed a hand to his forehead.

“Five? Better not comment.”

Steven inhaled slowly, his gaze drifting between the two of them. They didn’t look organized. They didn’t look dangerous. And yet… something in that blind confidence intrigued him.

“I don’t even know if you’ll survive this week,” he murmured. “But… go on.”

Sky clapped his hands with a dazzling smile, as if he had just made a historic decision.

“Then it’s settled! Steven, from this moment on you’re part of our clan!”

Steven let out a short, bitter laugh.

“I’ve always dreamed of joining a clan… but sorry to say it, you don’t look like a clan at all.”

Sky stopped abruptly, confused.

“And what should it look like, then?”

Steven leaned back against the chair, his gaze turning colder, almost distant.

“A real clan is a structure. Clear hierarchies. Objectives. Resources. The Empire considers them public enemies because they control territories, collect tributes, forge alliances… or wars. Some are born from noble families, others from private armies. But they all have the same thing.”

A brief pause.

“A name. An identity. A Leader.”

Sky looked at him and, instead of feeling discouraged… smiled even wider. He stepped forward and held out his hand, with the same natural madness of someone who already believes in the future.

“Then we’ll start before all of that. I haven’t chosen what to call it yet… but I’m looking for people who believe in it before the name. Join us, Steven.”

For a moment Steven stayed silent. His gaze dropped to his own hands, then lifted back to Sky. He evaluated risks, probabilities, scenarios.

Everything said it was a terrible idea.

And yet… that unfiltered determination hit him with a force he couldn’t ignore.

He inhaled slowly, as if making a decision he had never expected to make. Then he truly smiled, for the first time.

“We just met… but alright, Sky. I don’t promise miracles. But… I’ll help you.”

Sky didn’t even give him time to add anything else and hugged him impulsively.

Shark sighed softly, pulled out a crumpled cigarette along with a small metal lighter. He flicked the wheel with a sharp click, the flame trembling for an instant as he inhaled slowly, letting the smoke drift upward. His gaze already resigned to whatever would come next.

Sky’s clan had just gained a new member.

And even without a name… something had already begun to exist.

—

Next Episode — The Hidden Threads