THE RAVEN | avengers

[01]

ACT 1
Chapter 01
Two Years Later

It had been two years since that night when the cold felt different, like it carried something more than just the bite of winter. Alexia hadn't known it at the time, but that had been the beginning of a change. It wasn't sudden — nothing ever was in Siberia. Change came slowly, like snow, building layer by layer until, one day, you woke up and realized everything was buried beneath it.

Now, at fourteen, Alexia was old enough to notice the difference, even if no one spoke about it. The village was quieter than it had once been. The streets weren't as lively, and the few villagers who ventured out seemed more cautious, more reserved. The air carried a weight that wasn't there before, and people glanced at each other with a hint of suspicion. Even Mrs. Ivanova, who had once smiled at everyone, now barely looked up when she walked to the market. Her husband had gone to work at Kronos two weeks ago and hadn't returned. No one talks about it, though. They had learned not to ask questions.

Dmitri was seventeen now, practically an adult — at least, that's what their father said. Alexia could see it in the way he carried himself, shoulders straighter, movements more deliberate. He spent more time at Kronos these days, almost as much as their father. It was as if he had become part of it. He didn't tell her what he did there — he didn't tell her much of anything anymore. He used to. There was a time when they shared everything. Late at night, they'd sneak under the covers and whisper about Father, about the future, about things that had once seemed too far away to be real. But that was before. Now, Dmitri was distant. His eyes were harder, his words shorter. When she looked at him, she still saw her brother, but it was like he was fading into someone else. Someone colder. He had changed, and Alexia didn't know how to bring him back.

Their father hadn't changed, at least not on the surface. He was still tall and strong, with the same stern face, always focused, always busy. He worked more now, long hours at Kronos, coming home with that same tired look he'd had since their mother died. But there was something else too, something darker in his eyes that hadn't been there before. Alexia saw it when he didn't think she was watching — a heaviness in the way he moved, like he was carrying more than just the weight of his work.

They talked at night, Dmitri and her father. They thought she was asleep, but Alexia heard them, their voices low, barely more than a murmur. She didn't understand most of it — half the time it was scientific words she had never heard before, their meanings foreign on their tongues. But she didn't ask questions. Not anymore. Every time she tried, her father shut her down, his voice sharp, like a door slamming closed. "It's not for you to worry about, Alexia. Focus on your studies." That's what he always said. Focus on her studies. As if learning English and Russian would be enough to distract her from the creeping sense that something was wrong. As if conjugating verbs and practicing equations would somehow make her forget the way the air felt heavier these days, like it was waiting for something to break.

Alexia pulled her coat tighter around her as she stepped outside, the cold biting at her skin the moment she left the warmth of the house. The wind was relentless, swirling the snow in icy gusts that cut through the village. Under the gray sky, the wooden houses looked smaller, huddled against the wind like forgotten relics. Thin columns of smoke rose from chimneys, wavering in the air before disappearing into the clouds. The village was a simple place. People kept to themselves. Everyone knew each other, but lately, the greetings had grown quieter, the smiles more forced.

Her eyes drifted towards the woods, where the dark line of trees separated the village from Kronos. Whatever happened inside those walls was a secret, and no one dared to uncover it.

A voice pulled her from her thoughts. "You shouldn't be out here, Alexia."

Dmitri stood at the edge of the yard, his coat buttoned up to his neck, his breath visible in the frigid air. His voice was low, almost scolding.

Alexia rolled her eyes but tugged her coat tighter all the same. "Since when do you care about what I do?" Her words came out sharper than she intended, but she didn't take them back.

Dmitri looked at her, and for a moment, something flickered in his eyes — something almost like guilt. But then it was gone, replaced by the cold, unreadable mask he had perfected over the past year.

"It's not about that," he said, his tone softer this time.

Alexia narrowed her eyes at him. "What is it about, then? If there's something I should know, just tell me."

But he didn't. He never did.

"It's not my place," he said, turning away, his gaze shifting towards the woods, towards Kronos.

"Dmitri—"

He cut her off with a shake of his head. "Not now, Alexia. Just... stay out of it. For once."

Before she could say anything else, he was gone, walking towards the woods, his figure disappearing into the swirling snow. She stood there for a moment, watching the place where he had vanished, the weight of his words pressing down on her like the cold. She didn't understand what he was hiding, but she knew one thing for certain.

Whatever it was, it was coming closer.

And she wasn't ready.