Chapter 1

"That's the third time this week, KJ. You're banned. For good."

KJ sighed, his head drooping as he shuffled out of the curiosity shop. The bell above the door jangled mockingly. He stuffed his hands into his pockets—or tried to; his stick fingers poked through the holes he'd accidentally drawn on his pants last week. "It's fine," he muttered. "Who needs a dusty old compass anyway?"

He trudged down the cobblestone street, past the baker and the tailor and the house with the perpetually barking dog. The sun was setting, painting the sky in shades of orange and pink. KJ kicked a pebble, watching it bounce and roll into the gutter. He was supposed to be saving the day—that's what red stick figures did, right? But so far, his day had consisted of broken glass and a lifetime ban from the only store that sold glow-in-the-dark chalk.

That's when he saw it.

In the middle of the road, right where the pebble had stopped, something pulsed with a soft blue light. KJ squinted. It was a small orb, no bigger than his thumb, nestled between two cobblestones. He glanced around. The street was empty. No one else had noticed.

He crouched down and poked it with his finger.

The orb flared. KJ yelped as a jolt of energy shot through his hand, up his arm, and into his entire body. For a second, everything went white. Then he was somewhere else.

He was on a rooftop.

"What the—" KJ looked down. The street was three stories below. The orb was gone, but his hand tingled with a warm, buzzing sensation. He flexed his fingers, and they stretched like rubber, elongating into thin strands before snapping back to normal.

"Okay," he said slowly. "That's new."

He tried it again, focusing on his arm. It stretched—really stretched, like a piece of taffy, reaching all the way to the chimney across the roof. He grinned. "I can do that."

He pulled his arm back, and it snapped into place with a satisfying thwip. KJ stood up, feeling a bit dizzy but also... powerful. He looked around. The city stretched out before him, a maze of rooftops and chimneys and laundry lines. He could see the clock tower, the market square, the edge of the forest beyond the walls.

This was way better than glow-in-the-dark chalk.

"Hey! You up there!"

KJ spun around. A figure stood on the neighboring rooftop, a person in a long blue cloak with a hood pulled low. Their voice was sharp and commanding. "You touched the Celestial Shard. Hand it over."

"I don't have it," KJ said, backing up. "It, uh, it disappeared."

The figure took a step forward, and KJ saw a glint of metal—a sword, or maybe a staff. "It didn't disappear. It's inside you now."

KJ looked at his hands. They still tingled. "Inside me?"

"The shard bonded with you. That's not supposed to happen. You're not a guardian."

"I'm not a what now?"

The blue-cloaked figure leaped across the gap between the rooftops, landing gracefully on KJ's roof. KJ stumbled backward, his heel hitting the edge. "Wait, wait, wait—"

The figure reached out a gloved hand. "Give me the shard. It's dangerous in the wrong hands."

"I told you, I don't have it!" KJ stretched his arm again, this time on purpose, grabbing the chimney behind him and pulling himself to the next rooftop. He landed with a stumble, but he was moving. "And I don't know what a shard is!"

The blue-cloaked figure didn't answer. They were already jumping again, faster than KJ expected. KJ ran. He leaped from roof to roof, his new stretchy limbs making the jumps easier than they should have been. But the figure was closing in.

"Why are you chasing me?" KJ yelled over his shoulder.

"Because you have something that belongs to the Order," the figure replied. "And I'm not letting a random civilian mess with cosmic forces."

KJ reached the edge of the last rooftop. Below was an alley, dark and narrow. He didn't have time to think. He jumped, stretching his legs to absorb the landing, and hit the ground with a soft thud. He scrambled to his feet and ran into the alley.

The blue-cloaked figure landed behind him, their boots echoing on the cobblestones. "This is pointless. You can't outrun me."

KJ ducked around a corner, then another. He spotted a stack of crates and dove behind them, pressing himself against the wall. His heart pounded. His hands still tingled.

He held his breath.

The footsteps stopped.

For a long moment, there was only silence. KJ didn't move. Then he heard a soft whisper, like wind through leaves. "You can't hide forever, shard-bearer."

KJ stayed still, not breathing.

After another minute, the footsteps resumed, fading away into the distance. KJ let out a shaky breath. He looked at his hands again. They were still red, still stick-figure thin, but now they glowed faintly, just under the surface.

"Okay," he whispered. "So I can stretch. And I glow. And someone with a sword wants to talk to me about cosmic forces." He stood up, brushing dust off his pants. "This is not how I planned my evening."

He stepped out of the alley, back into the main street. The sun had set fully now, and the street lamps were flickering to life. KJ started walking, his mind racing. He needed answers. He needed to figure out what this shard thing was, and why it had chosen him.

But first, he needed to find somewhere to hide. The blue-cloaked figure might be gone, but KJ had a feeling they wouldn't give up that easily.

He turned a corner—and stopped.

There, standing in the middle of the street, was another figure. This one was tall, dressed in white, with a staff that glowed with golden light. They looked at KJ, and their voice was calm but firm.

"You've met the blue one, then. Good. That means you know what you're carrying."

KJ blinked. "Is everyone in this city wearing a cloak and chasing me?"

The white-cloaked figure smiled. "No. Just the ones who know what that shard really is." They took a step closer. "And I'm here to offer you a choice."