"Okay… let’s meet."

Rumi follows the blue, cat-like creature, uncertain what it really is. Light on her feet, she scales the wall of a ramen shop, moving silently as if she were gliding on tiptoe.

She keeps her distance, assuming it will eventually lead her to you. Peering around a corner, she watches as the creature stops before a statue carved in its own likeness. The stone begins to shimmer, brightening until the creature leaps into it and vanishes through the glowing portal.

A flicker of motion catches her eye—a shadow, shaped like a human silhouette. It has to be you. A grin spreads across her face. She pushes off the wall, vaulting onto the rooftops in one smooth motion. Her landing is silent, almost effortless. She draws a slow, steady breath and raises her hand, conjuring a blade from the air itself. Leaning forward, she explodes into a sprint, her weapon aimed to slice cleanly through the figure’s throat.

In an instant, she closes the gap and swings. The head topples onto the rooftop with a dull thud.

She blinks.

A mannequin.

“What?”