My girlfriend is trapped in my superpower

Chapter Three: Dawn of the A-Team

I woke up to someone screaming in my head.

"GET UP, KAEL! IT'S ADVENTURE TIME!"

I flailed, nearly tumbling out of my cot. "Lyra! It's still dark!"

"Exactly. That's when the best people wake up. Heroes, farmers… insomniacs."

I rubbed my eyes. "Can't we be afternoon heroes? Or, like, early-evening ones?"

"Nope. We have a monster problem. And a monster problem doesn't wait for you to finish your beauty sleep—though, honestly, you could use more of it."

I groaned and sat up, wincing at the smell of the Guild dorms: unwashed socks, damp leather, and despair. Lyra, of course, floated beside me looking like she'd just stepped out of a painting. Her long hair drifted in an invisible wind, her golden eyes sparkling with way too much enthusiasm for this ungodly hour.

"Come on," she said, yanking on the sleeve of my shirt. "You're about to meet your new teammates. First impressions matter!"

"That's rich coming from the disembodied magical girlfriend who yelled at me for drooling in my sleep."

"It was gross, Kael."

Outside, the pre-dawn air was cold enough to sting my nose. A handful of heavily armed warriors stood by the main gates, most of them looking like they could snap me in half with one hand.

"Ooh," Lyra whispered in my head, "look at the tall one. He could be trouble."

"Stop sizing up the scary people," I muttered.

"No promises."

The group clustered by the gates looked like the start of a bad joke. A giant in full plate armor polishing an axe the size of my torso. A girl with twin daggers flipping them in the air like she was born with them in her hands. A sleepy-looking archer chewing on what looked like cold bread. And a man in a pristine white coat sipping tea like we weren't about to fight magic-eating monsters.

The giant spotted me first. His face broke into a grin.

"Oi! You're the Crestless kid, right?"

"Yeah I don't like him," Lyra said instantly.

"Uh… yeah. That's me," I said, already bracing for mockery.

Instead, the giant thumped me on the shoulder so hard my teeth rattled.

"Name's Bram. Don't worry, I'll make sure nothing eats you on your first day."

"Okay, he's fine. I like him now," Lyra amended.

Next was the dagger girl. She gave me a once-over so sharp I swear I felt it.

"Mira," she said. "If you get in my way, I'll throw you at the monsters as bait."

"She's my favorite," Lyra whispered, clearly enjoying my suffering.

The archer waved lazily. "Reeve." He yawned. "Don't talk to me until I've had… mmm… two more naps."

Finally, tea-guy lowered his cup and smiled faintly. "I'm Soren. I handle healing. Please try not to bleed too much, it's… unhygienic."

Bram clapped his hands. "Alright, rook. You ready to see the Rift?"

I glanced at Lyra.

"You were born ready," she said with a smirk.

"I was actually born screaming and confused," I muttered. "Not much has changed."

The path to the Rift wound through a foggy forest that smelled like wet leaves and something vaguely… carnivorous. Bram led the way, Mira stalked just ahead of me, and Lyra floated alongside like my personal commentator.

"Don't lag behind," Mira said without looking back.

"I'm not," I replied. "I'm just… strategically pacing myself."

"That's called being slow."

Bram laughed. "Relax, kid. First Rift trip's always nerve-wracking. You'll be fine—unless the Rift decides you look tasty."

"That's… very comforting, thank you," I said.

Reeve walked with his hood pulled low, muttering about how mornings were "an affront to nature." Meanwhile Soren kept sipping tea while walking. I was sixty percent sure magic was the only reason he hadn't spilled a drop.

"Kael," Lyra whispered, "don't tell them about me yet. Not until we figure out who we can trust."

"That makes me sound like I'm smuggling stolen treasure," I murmured back.

"You are. I'm priceless."

By the time we reached the Rift clearing, the sun was just peeking over the treetops.

It wasn't a hole in the ground like I'd imagined—it was a swirling, vertical wound in reality, its edges shimmering like molten glass. A low hum vibrated through my bones.

Bram's grin widened. "Here we are, rook. Home sweet nightmare."

Mira twirled her daggers. "Let's see if the Crestless kid survives."

"Tell her you've got a secret weapon," Lyra urged.

I took a breath, eyes fixed on the Rift. "Oh, I've got something better."

"Me," Lyra finished with a wink only I could see.

The world inside the Rift felt… wrong. The sky was a dim violet, the air heavy and electric, like a storm about to break. Black, jagged rock jutted from the ground, and glowing red veins pulsed through it like blood under skin.

Bram hefted his axe. "Alright, stick close to me and—"

A shriek ripped through the air. Out from behind the rocks crawled three insectoid beasts the size of horses, their mandibles dripping with some sizzling green fluid.

"Scatter!" Mira shouted.

The team split. Bram charged one head-on, Mira darted around another, Reeve loosed an arrow mid-yawn, and Soren sipped his tea before muttering a healing spell. That left the third beast charging straight for… me.

"Oh, good," Lyra drawled. "We get the ugly one."

"I don't have a weapon big enough for this!" I yelled, scrambling backward.

The creature lunged. Instinct kicked in—I threw my hands up and something exploded out of me. A shimmering barrier of silver light formed between us, forcing the monster back with a screech. The team froze for a second. Even I stared, wide-eyed.

"Oh… huh," Lyra murmured. "That's… not supposed to happen."

The beast tried again, but my hands moved on their own. The barrier twisted into a spear of pure light and launched forward, impaling it clean through. The monster collapsed in a hiss of steam. I stood there, breathing hard, palms still glowing faintly.

"Crestless, huh?" Mira said slowly, lowering her daggers. "Not bad, rookie."

Bram grinned like a proud older brother. "Looks like we've got ourselves a surprise package!"

"Told you someone would like you," Lyra whispered smugly.

Two more beasts lunged in from the side, but now Bram and Mira had closed ranks around me.

"Stay behind me," Bram barked.

"Not a problem," I said, still shaking from the whole light-spear thing.

Reeve's arrows whistled through the air, pinning one creature's legs, while Mira vaulted off Bram's shoulder—actually vaulted—and drove both daggers into the beast's skull. She landed like it was nothing.nThe last insectoid turned to flee, but Soren, still holding his tea cup, murmured something under his breath. A chain of glowing script wrapped around the beast and yanked it to the ground.

"That's that," Bram said, planting his axe in the dirt.

We regrouped near the Rift's edge. Everyone was looking at me waaay too much.

"So…" Mira said, twirling a dagger in her fingers, "what was that little trick?"

I scratched the back of my neck. "Uh… adrenaline?"

Reeve snorted. "Adrenaline doesn't usually manifest as weaponized divine light."

"I've been… eating a lot of glowing mushrooms lately?" I tried.

Bram clapped me on the shoulder, nearly dislocating it. "Whatever it is, kid, I like it. We can work with this."

Mira's gaze lingered on me for a second longer than necessary—sharp, assessing, but not unfriendly.

"She's definitely not into you," Lyra murmured.

"She's definitely ready to stab me if I slip up," I muttered back.

"Same thing, in some cultures."

We stepped back through the Rift into daylight. The hum faded, but my palms still tingled where the light had formed. I wasn't sure if it was excitement… or the beginning of something dangerous. Either way, my team didn't seem to fully believe my glowing mushroom story.

The Guild's return gate shimmered into view, and we stepped through. Warm sunlight replaced the Rift's purple gloom, but the moment I saw the Guild plaza, my stomach sank. Captain Darius was waiting for us—towering, broad-shouldered, and about as cheerful as a brick wall.

"Report," he barked before we even cleared the gate.

Bram went first. "Three Rift beasts. Neutralized. Minimal injuries."

Darius's gaze shifted to me. His eyes narrowed. "And the rookie?"

"He killed one," Mira said, her tone unreadable.

Darius's brow furrowed deeper. "With what weapon? He's not registered with a crest, and he doesn't have an armory pass."

"Oh boy," Lyra whispered in my head. "This is where you either become famous… or dead."

"Uh," I began, "it was… a sort of… light-spear?"

The surrounding Guild members perked up like pigeons spotting free bread.

"A light-spear?" one murmured.

"Isn't that divine-class magic?" another said.

"Rookies aren't supposed to—"

"Silence," Darius snapped. His gaze bored into me like he could peel the skin off my soul. "I'll be reporting this to the Council. Until then… you're on probation. You move with this team only. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," I said quickly.

Mira's lips quirked—just the tiniest smirk—as we were dismissed.

We headed toward the Guild lounge, which was basically a big tavern attached to the main hall. Bram was already ordering drinks before we'd even sat down.

"Don't worry, kid," he said, passing me a mug. "Probation isn't bad. It just means they don't trust you yet."

"That's… oddly comforting?" I muttered.

Mira slid into the seat across from me, leaning forward on her elbows. "So, Kael. You gonna tell me the real story behind that magic, or do I have to keep guessing?"

"She's totally flirting," Lyra sang.

"She's totally interrogating," I whispered back.

"Both," Lyra said. "And if you let her get too close, she might end up inside me too. Which… actually sounds fun."

I choked on my drink. Mira's smirk deepened.

Bram was halfway through a story about "the time a Rift beast tried to eat my helmet but choked on my hair" when Mira cut in.

"So, Kael," she said, swirling her drink, "was it just the spear, or do you have other… surprises?"

I laughed nervously. "Nope. Totally normal guy. Nothing strange here."

"You're lying so badly," Lyra said.

"Not helping," I muttered.

Unfortunately, Bram heard. "Who you talking to?"

"Uh—myself?"

"Suspicious," Mira said, leaning closer. "You know, when people keep secrets in our line of work, they either die fast… or become legends."

I was about to insist I was neither when a waiter carrying a tray of hot stew tripped near our table. Without thinking, I reached out—and the tray froze in midair. Like, literally froze. Steam turned into shimmering ice crystals, the bowls suspended as if time itself had hiccuped. Everyone at the table stared. I slowly lowered my hand, and the tray thudded onto the table without spilling a drop.

"…Okay," Bram said, blinking. "That was… not normal."

Mira's eyes locked onto mine—sharp, almost predatory, but with a flicker of curiosity. "Time stop magic. And light spears. You really are full of surprises, rookie."

"Oh, she likes this," Lyra purred. "The dangerous type is her thing."

"She also might be planning to dissect me," I whispered back.

"Same thing, in *some* cultures."

Bram leaned in, grinning. "You're gonna be fun to have around."

Mira just sipped her drink, never breaking eye contact. And for the first time since the Rift, I felt like maybe—maybe—being stuck with this team wasn't going to be so bad.

The laughter and clinking mugs around the lounge faded when a man in a dark blue Guild officer's coat appeared at our table. His presence alone seemed to drain the warmth from the air.

"Kael Veyren," he said. "The Council requests your presence. Now."

Bram's brow shot up. "Already? That's a new record. Usually takes a week before they start interrogating the newbies."

Mira didn't even pretend not to be listening. Her smirk was still there, but sharper now, like she was filing away every word for later. I followed the officer through twisting stone corridors until we reached a heavy door carved with glowing runes. He opened it, gestured me in, and stayed outside. Inside, three people sat behind a crescent-shaped desk:

* An elderly woman in silver robes, her eyes cloudy but sharp.

* A man with scarred hands clasped in front of him.

* A hooded figure who didn't move at all.

"Kael," the woman said, her voice carrying both warmth and warning, "you have displayed abilities beyond your registration. This… concerns us."

I swallowed. "It's not what it looks like—"

"It is exactly what it looks like," the scarred man cut in. "Light magic. Time magic. Untrained. You're a risk."

>"Wow," Lyra whispered, "they really know how to make a guy feel welcome."

The woman leaned forward. "Where did you learn such powers?"

"I… didn't. They just… happened."

A long silence. Then the hooded figure finally spoke, voice low and cold: "We'll be watching you, Kael Draven. Every move. Every breath."

The runes on the walls flared, and I felt something like a brand press into my skin—not burning, but heavy. When I stepped out, Mira was leaning casually against the wall. "So," she said, pushing off with one foot, "how was your little chat?"

"They branded me," I muttered.

She smirked. "Sounds kinky."

Bram popped his head around the corner. "Welcome to the team, rookie. You're officially one of us now—just… under constant surveillance. No pressure."

"Oh, this is going to be fun," Lyra purred in my head.

And as we walked back toward the barracks, I realized something: I wasn't sure if I'd survive this… but it was definitely going to be interesting.