The Harbinger's Oath

The Harbinger's Oath

Vex's POV
I ducked as the fireball zoomed over my head, singing my hair. The witch who threw it was already making another spell, her hands glowing bright blue.
"Traitor!" she screamed at me. "You swore the Harbinger's Oath!"
"The Harbingers were wrong," I yelled back, pulling a small mirror from my pocket. The next fireball hit it and bounced back, causing the witch to dive for cover.
I'd been running for three days straight since I left the Harbingers. Three days since I saw the golden wolf—Detective Thorne Davidsyn—transform and fight alongside the hybrid girl instead of killing her like our predictions said he should.
Nothing made sense anymore. The Harbingers had raised me since I was ten, teaching me that mixing blood between vampires, werewolves, and witches would bring death. That hybrids were dangerous mistakes that had to be removed.
Yet I'd seen Elara Nightingale with my own eyes. She hadn't broken anything. She'd saved the city.
The witch threw another spell, this one smashing the mirror in my hand.
"Fine," I grumbled. "We'll do this the hard way."
I wasn't a witch, vampire, or monster. I was something the Harbingers called "Touched"—a human with just enough magic to sense supernatural beings and fight their powers. Not much against a full witch, but I had other skills.
I rolled behind a bin and pulled out my phone. Opening a special app, I tripped every car alarm on the street. The sudden blast of noise broke the witch's focus, giving me the chance I needed.
I slipped away through the back lanes of Ravenshadow City, my heart pounding. I knew where I needed to go next. The only safe place for someone like me would be beside the mixed girl herself. If I could convince Elara I wanted to help her, I could get close enough to learn the truth.
And if the Harbingers were right after all—if she really was a threat—I'd be in position to stop her.
But first, I had to make her trust me.
Two hours later, I stood across the street from Lyra Ravencroft's house, watching. Elara had been staying there since the fight at the city monument. Through glasses, I could see people moving inside—Elara, Lyra, and the vampire Sebastian.
No sign of the werewolf cop. Interesting.
I checked my image in a car window. The burn mark on my neck was clearly visible—the Harbinger brand every member got upon joining. I'd need a story to explain it.
Taking a deep breath, I ran across the street and banged on the front door.
"Help!" I cried. "Please, they're after me!"
The door swung open, and I came face to face with Elara Nightingale. She looked exactly like the photos in our Harbinger files—dark hair, focused eyes that seemed to see right through you. Only now, there was a glow about her that wasn't in any picture.
"Who are you?" she asked, magic crackling around her fingers. "Who's after you?"
"Harbingers," I gasped, letting real fear show in my eyes. "I escaped three days ago. They've been hunting me ever since."
Her eyes narrowed. "You're one of them? A Harbinger?"
"Former Harbinger," I corrected. "They lied to us. About everything." I pulled down my shirt to show the brand. "After what happened at the monument, after what I saw you do... I couldn't stay with them."
Sebastian appeared behind her, his vampire speed making it seem like he'd formed from thin air.
"Could be a trap," he warned.
"I know," Elara said, watching me. "But he's hurt, and the Harbingers really are dangerous." She stepped away. "Come in. But know this—if you try anything, you'll wish the Harbingers had caught you instead."
I trusted her.
"Your name is Vex?" Lyra asked as she cleaned the cut on my arm. "Just Vex?"
"It's what they called me at the Harbinger compound," I explained. "I don't remember my real name. They took me when I was ten."
That part was true, at least. The Harbingers found me in a foster home, tested my blood, and learned I was Touched. They said I was special. Chosen.
"What exactly did you see that made you leave?" Elara asked. She sat across from me, her eyes never leaving mine.
"The golden wolf," I said. "Fighting alongside you, not against you. Our teachings said he would be your destroyer, not your defender."
Elara and Lyra traded looks.
"The Harbingers know about the golden wolf prophecy?" Lyra asked sharply.
I nodded. "They have their own version. Seven mutants will be born. Six will bring chaos. The seventh—the unifier—must be stopped at all costs."
"And that's me? The unifier?" Elara asked.
"According to them. But I saw what happened at the statue. The countdown that started. There's more going on than what the Harbingers told us."
Sebastian folded his arms. "How convenient that you show up right when we're trying to find the other hybrids."
My heart skipped. Other hybrids? So there really were more than just Elara and her brother Orion. The Harbinger elders were right about that much.
"I can help," I said quickly. "I know how the Harbingers think, how they track people. If they're after these other breeds too, I can help you find them first."
"Why should we trust you?" Sebastian asked.
I took a risk. "Because I'm Touched. I can feel things others can't." I reached out toward Elara, stopping just short of touching her. "Like the fact that your power has changed since the monument triggered. It's... brighter now. Connected to something bigger."
Elara's eyes widened. "How did you know that?"
Before I could answer, the front door banged open. Detective Thorne Davidsyn stormed in, his golden eyes burning with urgency.
"Elara! We need to—" He stopped when he saw me, his nostrils flaring. "Who's this?" "A former Harbinger," Sebastian said. "Claims he wants to help."
Thorne growled low in his throat. "We don't have time for new trainees. My grandfather just confirmed what the plaque showed. All seven hybrids are in danger, and the first one's already been taken."
"Taken by who?" I asked, truly curious now.
"We don't know yet," Elara said. "But Orion found another hybrid at the Moonhaven Colony before everyone there left. A girl who says she's our sister."
Sister? The files never referenced a third sibling.
"What's more," Thorne continued, pulling a stone from his pocket, "according to this, the next hybrid is in trouble right now. They're in Old Harbor, on the other side of the city."
I felt a chill run down my spine. Old Harbor was where Cell Nine of the Harbingers worked. If they found a hybrid... "I know that area," I said. "I can get you in without being spotted."
Lyra looked at the others. "We don't have much choice. Time is running out."
"Fine," Thorne said grudgingly. "But one wrong move..." He let the threat hang.
As we prepared to leave, my phone vibrated quietly in my pocket. A text from my Harbinger handler: REPORT STATUS.
I had sworn the Harbinger's Oath: "Truth through blood, purity through fire, loyalty until death." Breaking that oath meant penalties worse than death.
But looking at Elara, seeing the determination in her eyes as she fought to save a sister she'd never met, I felt something shift inside me.
What if the Harbingers were wrong about her? What if she truly was the bridge to peace that my heart was starting to believe she might be?
I quickly typed back: INFILTRATION SUCCESSFUL. WILL REPORT HYBRID LOCATIONS.
As I put my phone away, Elara caught my eye. She smiled—a small, cautious smile, but real. It hit me like a blow to the chest. No one had ever looked at me with anything but suspicion or apathy before.
"Ready?" she asked.
"Ready," I answered.
But as we headed for Old Harbor, my phone vibrated again. The message made my blood run cold: NEW ORDERS: ELIMINATE ALL HYBRIDS. THE SEVENTH HAS AWAKENED. THE END BEGINS NOW.
And attached was a picture that made my heart stop—a young child with eyes that glowed three different colors, standing in front of the Old Harbor lighthouse.
The seventh mutant wasn't just in danger.
The seventh combination was the danger.