One final question escapes her lips.

"WHO ARE YOU?" Her own voice is deafening, enhanced by the Weight she bears. It thunders down the alley, bouncing off the walls. The ringing returns to her ears, nearly drowning out his answer.

"You'll know soon enou…

"But, Bearers are supposed to be heroes," she stammers, that note of confusion returning to her voice. "We don't fight each other. We fight monsters. We fight evil. We push back the darkness wherever we find it. That is our purpose and our calling. …

She turns to face her assailant, who stares her down mere steps away in the alley, smug expression fixed on his face.

"You," she says, a puzzled tone to her voice. "You're a Bearer?" His response is to spread his arms wide and grin even wider, as if to s…

Olivia hits the ground with a sickening crunch, but she barely feels it. Her vision is swimming, her ears ringing, and it takes her a moment to realize she's landed left hip on the pavement, her arms supporting her upper torso. Her jaw throbs with a dull …