The moment we land in a dark airplane hanger, we’re greeted by a full squadron of armored sorcerers. They look like members of the SWOT team; large, imposing figures clad in black face masks and armed to the teeth with magical weapons. I can’t help but wince away on reflex.

“What’s all this?” Tom asks, his brow furrowed in confusion. “There aren’t any other magic-users in this group-,”

One of them steps forward. “We’re here for Lucy Chen,” he says tersely.

An uneasy look of realization dawns on Tom and Meena’s faces. Lucy- who spent the entire plane ride in a near-catatonic state- merely looks dazed.

“I don’t remember anything,” she breathes. “I swear I didn’t try to kill anyone. I don’t know what’s going on.”

“Just come with us,” the man says.

“She’s not going anywhere,” I say, shooting Meena and Tom angry looks. “Are you guys kidding? We leave one group of sorcerers trying to hurt us for another group of people trying to hurt us?”

“Yeah, that. We’re going with her,” Dev snorts.

“They’re not going to hurt her,” Meena tells us hesitantly. She looks at the man in apprehension.

“We’re just taking the proper security measures,” the man says. “We’re not just going to let Lucy Chen into Hado Headquarters without taking precautions. Even if Kozlov says she lost her memories.”

Tom looks affronted. “Are you saying you don’t trust me-,”

“No, but don’t be silly. She was one of the Kado’s most dangerous junior sorcerers.”

My head is spinning. Lucy looks like she’s going to throw up. Several long, tense moments pass as everyone stares at each other, waiting to see what will happen.

And then Lucy steps forward, trembling.

“I’ll go.”

The man nods. “Follow me.”

“Lucy, wait-,” Dev says, but Meena pulls him back.

“She’ll be okay,” she murmurs as we watch the guards flank Lucy, walking her to a side corridor in the airplane hanger. “She has nothing to hide.”

“Most dangerous junior sorcerer?” I whisper. “Lucy?”

Tom grimaces. “Yeah... we have a lot to catch up on.”

Dev whips his head around to face him. “Yeah, like how you’re a part of the Hado. What the hell, Tom. You knew about magic the whole time? You knew Meena was alive?”

“I was in hiding!” Meena exclaims. “The Hado were protecting me. And knowing you, if you’d found out I was alive, you would’ve done something stupid-,”

“Well, sorry for wanting you to be alive!”

“I was an undercover agent,” Tom bursts in before Dev and Meena continue bickering. “Windsong’s a hub of Kado activity, so I was trying to protect the humans that lived there. Like you and Joo and Meena and Sofia-,”

“We were going around like idiots, trying to figure everything out!” Dev shouts, throwing his hands up in the air. “But you knew all the answers along!”

“Dev, I’m sorry-,”

“I would’ve gotten killed if Tom wasn’t in Windsong-,” Meena cuts in, but suddenly, someone interrupts us.

“Maybe an airplane hangar isn’t the best place for this conversation,” a calm, even voice says. The four of us turn. A tall, lean woman clad in a navy blue pantsuit is standing behind us. Something about her confident demeanor, the determined set of her lips, and her posture instantly commands respect in her. I’m immediately fascinated by her.

“Captain Cardozo,” Tom says, straightening up.

“Nice to see you again, Tom and Meena. And it’s nice to meet you, Joohyun and Dev.”

“Who’re you?” Dev says in a brusque way that makes Meena elbow him in the side.

Her lips curl into a smile. “My name’s Isabel Cardozo. I’m Regional Captain of the Northeast Region.”

I blink. “Huh?”

“Let’s head to Central Command. I’ll explain everything there.”

“Holy ,” I breathe.

We are facing an enormous glass atrium with a dizzyingly high ceiling and enormous TV screens lining the walls, which are broadcasting streams of about 20 international news stations. There are people everywhere. Nearly all of them are impeccably dressed in business professional attire; I stick out like a sore thumb in my oversized sweatshirt and leggings. It’s not like anyone’s paying me any mind, though- they’re too busy. At the top of the TV screens sits enormous gold letters, shimmering in the air: Hado Division 6.

I slowly make my way around the atrium, watching my surroundings with wide eyes.

“Where are we? Are we still in New York?” Dev asks, equally in awe.

Captain Cardozo nods. “Yes. Hado HQ is well-concealed, but we’re in the middle of Manhattan.”

“That’s amazing,” Dev whistles.

Captain Cardozo leads us to a round oak table near the side of the area.

“First, I’d like to say that it’s an honor to meet you,” she tells me and Dev.

It feels strange to have this beautiful, powerful-looking woman, with her neat brown hair and elegant features, say it’s an honor to meet me.

“Why?” I ask confusedly.

“You’re a sixteen-year-old human who managed to engineer magical objects from scratch. ” She faces Dev. “And your proficiency with a computer is admirable. You managed to uncover Meena’s goodbye note and discover magic all on your own. There’s been a lot of talk about both of you here.”

I flush in pleasure. “A- A lot of talk about us? And when you say here... where exactly are we?”

“We’re at the Northeastern Region’s Headquarters. This is the Hado.”

“The Hado,” Dev says dazedly.

“Let me just begin explaining,” she tells us. “When you were in Windsong, you first came into contact with magical creatures- particularly sorcerers. I know you and your friends were under the misconception that all sorcerers are evil, but they’re not. There are two types.”

Realization hits me. “Wait- I think I remember Meena telling us about this.”

Captain Cardozo nods. “You were only exposed to sorcerers from the Kado. See, kado refers to magic used for evil purposes, or black magic. The Kado refers to the organization of sorcerers who practice black magic. The Hado are sorcerers who practice magic for the benefit or others, or good magic. That’s what we are.”

My eyes widen. “Wait... organization? So, like... a group?”

“It’s larger and more organized than just ‘a group’. Think of it like this.”

My jaw drops as she begins writing- writing- in glowing font with motions of her hand in mid-air.

“The Hado and Kado are set up in almost identical ways. At the top of the hierarchy, we have our Force Lords for both the Hado and the Kado.

These are the most powerful sorcerers from each force.”

“Okay...,” Dev says uncertainly.

“Now, the world is split up into different Divisions. Those are the different continents, basically. Each Division has a Captain and Vice-Captain. You’ll find that the Vice-Captain or another high-ranked official in the Division offices usually assume positions in power in the human world, too.”

“Wait, really?”

Captain Cardozo grimaces. “I’m not naming any names, but let’s just say a significant number of people belonging to our current presidential administration belong to the Kado’s North American Division.”

“The Lords of the forces must be really powerful, then,” I say. “If people in the Cabinet are only at the Division-level, I can’t even imagine how crazy the Lords must be.”

“Oh, you have no idea.” Captain Cardozo shakes her head. “Lords stay behind the scenes- human affairs are quite below them. I would try and give you a parallel to understand their strength, but it’s literally impossible.”

“So... you’re a Region Captain, right?”

“Right. Divisions are split up into Regions. Right now, we’re in Region 6- commonly known as the Northeast region. There are 10 regions in North America. And then every Division has several squads responsible for different things. Got it?”

My head is starting to hurt. “I think so... how long has this system been around?”

“Well, this exact system has only been around for a few centuries, but the Hado and Kado have been around for thousands of years.”

“Whoa. Really?”

“Yup. Magic first came to Earth- okay, wait, you can read about the history of magic later. For now, Tom and Meena can give you a tour of HQ. And you should be joined by another one of your friends soon.”

Dev has barely said a word since Captain Cardozo started speaking. He sits with his head in his hands, a half-baked expression of utter bewilderment on his face. “Who’s the friend?” he finally croaks.

“Sofia Flores.”

Meena squeaks in excitement.

I’m standing in line for frozen yogurt on the 6th-floor food court when someone places their hand on my shoulder.

“Hey,” Lucy says.

“Luce,” I sigh in relief, wrapping my arms around her. “Oh my god. What happened?”

“Nothing,” she says wearily. I scan her face in concern. Lucy’s demeanor is incredibly anxious. Her long, straight black hair has been hastily tied into a knotty bun. Her face is hollow and paper-white. She looks as if she’s about to collapse at any moment.

“Let me get you some fro-yo,” I say stupidly, not sure what else to do. “And then I’ll get you food, and some water, and we can go watch some TV or something-,”

“I’m a sorcerer,” she utters.

I blink rapidly.

“What?”

“I know.” She takes a deep, shaky breath. “Joo... the things they told me about myself... they can’t be true. It’s just...,”

“Lucy,” I whisper as tears begin to well in her eyes. My arms clutch her to my body. Lucy Chen never cries. Lucy Chen never shows weakness. What in the world did she discover to bring her to this point?

“It- it just explains everything,” she mumbles, resting her head against my shoulder. “For the longest time, there have been things in my life that haven’t made any sense. Things that just don’t seem right, or things that should have an explanation. Like where my parents are, or why I’m in Windsong, or- or what my favorite class was freshman year.”

“Wait... what does your favorite class freshman year have to do with anything?”

“I don’t remember... anything before sophomore year. I remember feelings, and fragments, and a few things, but... anytime Dev or Tom talk about a specific event, I can’t remember what I was doing then. When I think about my family- nothing. Middle school- nothing. Just nothing.”

Trepidation is creeping up over me. “You... lost your memories?”

Lucy wipes her eyes. “Joo, they told me I was a sorcerer for the Kado.”

My jaw drops.

“That’s impossible,” I breathe.

“I just- I don’t know all the details- they only told me what they knew. Apparently, they had files on me even before I met Tom.”

“What? How?”

“Apparently, I was a well-known junior sorcerer. Tom said I had belonged to a prominent sorcerer family, and I’d... done magic since I was little. I wasn’t put in the scholarship student seminar because I was smart- it was because I’d been assigned by the Kado to monitor the humans.”

Hearing Lucy talk about herself like this sends chills down my spine. I can’t imagine her as this powerful Kado sorcerer she speaks of- she has been so firmly anti-magic for the entire time I’ve known her. This can’t be possible.

“Are you sure this is true?” I ask.

“Tom said so himself. And the Hado files... it all matches up. But it- I just can’t believe it. I’ve been guarded the entire time I’ve been here.”

“Wait. So what do you have to do with killing Meena?”

“Tom said I was assigned to kill her, but I let her go at the last minute. From what he could gather, I was banished from the Kado for that and my memories were wiped and replaced with filler memories- along with everyone else’s memories of me before the event.”

“Holy .”

“I’ve been trying to come to grips with this the whole time. I... it’s just... it can’t be.”

“Luce, wait. If you were a part of the Kado, does that mean you were friends with Taehyung and Jimin and them?”

“Apparently. Again, Tom doesn’t really remember, either- his memories were wiped, too. The only reason he knows all this is because he sent report logs back to the Hado.”

“Because if you were, then wouldn’t Jin have said something?” I continue, furrowing my eyebrows.

“Maybe he was acting like he didn’t know me.”

“No.” I bite my lip. “He’s not that good of an actor. I’m assuming his memories were wiped, too. But then-,”

And then the conversation between Jimin and Taehyung from that fateful night flashes in my head.

“While we’re at it, I’m sure Lucy and Tom know about magic as well,” Taehyung says in a desperate voice. “Do you want to kill Lucy, Jimin? Huh?”

Jimin lets out a soft, terrifying laugh.

“Oh, don’t worry about little Lucy. She’s all mine.”

“What? What does that mean?”

“You,” Jimin says, the humor disappearing from his tone, “will never understand what I mean. I’ve sacrificed more than all of you combined. So don’t question me.”

“Lucy,” I say slowly. “I think... Jimin knows something.”

Her eyes widen. “Jimin?”

I nod slowly.

“Why would he know anything?”

“Do you remember that conversation I heard the night of the lacrosse game? I didn’t... give you all the specifics on what Jimin said.”

Lucy looks incredibly skeptical as I describe their conversation in detail. She seems totally in disbelief about the prospect of Jimin acting like that.

“I didn’t believe it either, until I heard him say that stuff!” I try and tell her, but she just says, “I don’t know, Joo. It seems a little... out there. It’s Jimin.”

“Lucy-,” I sigh, cutting myself off. “Okay, fine. Let’s just get you some food for now.”

“Food would be nice.”