Chapter 18: [16] Divine Threads
Xavier checked his watch: 8:47. Plenty of time before they needed to catch the 11:30 ferry to Catalyst Academy.
"This. Is. Amazing!" Calypso spun in a complete circle, nearly colliding with a businessman who swerved at the last second. Her borrowed jeans hung loose despite the belt, and his t-shirt slipped further down one shoulder as she moved. She didn't notice or care. "Look at that building! It's breathing!"
Xavier followed her gaze to the Phoenix Imperium Tower, its crystal-infused exterior pulsing with gentle waves of amber light—the corporation's signature color.
"It's not actually breathing," he explained, steering her away from the middle of the sidewalk. "The facade uses reactive crystals to create that effect. Corporate branding."
"I know that," she huffed, but her wide-eyed wonder betrayed her. "I've watched human cities develop for centuries. I just never..." She trailed off, pink eyes reflecting the kaleidoscope of lights from a passing crystal delivery truck.
Xavier studied her. Despite her claims of omniscient viewing and centuries of observation, this was different. She wasn't watching humanity through some divine scrying pool. She was here, breathing the same air, feeling the same ground beneath her feet, experiencing the sensory overload that was Metro City firsthand.
For all her divine power and ancient knowledge, Calypso was experiencing human life for the first time.
"Never been in the trenches before, huh?"
She glanced at him, something vulnerable flickering across her face before her usual bravado reasserted itself. "I've visited Earth plenty of times!"
"But not like this." Xavier gestured toward a holographic advertisement that morphed between images of the latest crystal-tech phones. "Not as one of us."
Calypso opened her mouth to argue, then closed it. "It's... more intense than I expected," she admitted. "Everything's so loud and bright and there are so many smells!" She wrinkled her nose as they passed a food cart.