The shadows surged forward, a tsunami of black tendrils and crimson eyes, consuming the clearing with their malevolent energy. The creature’s guttural roar reverberated through the forest, shaking the ground beneath Lira’s feet. Her wolf clawed at her insides, urging her to act, to run, to fight. But her golden eyes were locked on the man standing before her, his silver gaze burning with an intensity that seemed to pierce straight through her.
“Choose, Lira,” he said again, his hand outstretched. “You don’t have time to doubt.”
Her pulse thundered in her ears. The mark on her chest seared with heat, the shard in her hand pulsing in perfect rhythm. Everything in her screamed that this man was dangerous, his presence overwhelming and unfamiliar. Yet the shard—the one thing that had guided her so far—seemed to trust him. The light of the shard harmonized with the glow that radiated from him, as though they were connected.
The shadows surged closer, and instinct took over. Gritting her teeth, Lira made her choice.
She grabbed his hand.
The moment their skin touched, a jolt of energy shot through her, electrifying and terrifying all at once. The portal behind him flared brighter, and with a single, fluid motion, he pulled her into the shimmering light.
The shadows roared in fury as the portal swallowed them whole.
---
The world twisted.
Lira felt as though she were being torn apart and rebuilt at the same time. Colors swirled around her, brilliant and blinding, and the air hummed with an ancient, otherworldly energy. Her wolf whimpered inside her, disoriented and restless, and Lira herself could barely hold on to reality.
Then, just as suddenly as it began, it stopped.
She stumbled forward, her knees buckling as the ground beneath her solidified. She was dimly aware of the man catching her, his hands steady and firm as he helped her regain her balance.
“Breathe,” he said, his voice low and steady.
Lira forced herself to inhale deeply, the air sharp and cool in her lungs. She blinked, her vision clearing, and found herself in a place unlike any she had ever seen.
They stood in a vast hall carved from black stone, its walls lined with glowing silver veins that pulsed faintly like a heartbeat. The ceiling stretched impossibly high, and massive arches framed the space, each one inscribed with the same symbols that adorned the shard. The air was thick with power, ancient and unyielding, and the silence was deafening.
“Where are we?” Lira asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
“The Sanctuary,” the man replied, releasing her arm and stepping away. He turned to face her fully, his silver eyes scanning her as though he were searching for something. “It’s one of the few places left where the darkness cannot reach.”
Lira stared at him, her chest heaving. “And who are you? How do you know my name? How are you connected to all of this?”
The man’s gaze softened, though there was a guarded edge to his expression. “I’m someone who has been waiting for you,” he said simply. “My name is Kael.”
“Waiting for me?” Lira’s golden eyes narrowed, her wolf bristling at the vagueness of his response. “Why? What do you want from me?”
Kael studied her for a moment before gesturing toward the shard in her hand. “It’s not about what I want, Lira. It’s about what you carry.”
“The shard?” Lira asked, holding it up. Its light dimmed slightly, as though exhausted from the journey.
Kael nodded. “That shard is a fragment of the Light of Aetherial, the essence of the Forgotten. It chose you because of what you are.”
“What I am?” Lira’s voice rose, frustration bubbling to the surface. “I don’t even know what I am! I don’t understand any of this—the mark, the shard, the darkness chasing me. None of it makes sense!”
Kael’s expression remained calm, though a flicker of something—sympathy, perhaps—crossed his face. “You are more than you realize, Lira. The blood of the Forgotten runs through your veins, and with it, a power that has not been seen in centuries. The darkness wants that power because it is the only thing that can stop them.”
Lira shook her head, her mind spinning. “The blood of the Forgotten? The darkness? I don’t even know what that means! I’m just… I’m just a wolf. An orphan. I’m nobody special.”
Kael stepped closer, his gaze unwavering. “You’re wrong,” he said softly. “You’ve always been more than that. The mark you bear is proof of it. The shard chose you for a reason, and whether you believe it or not, you are the key to stopping what’s coming.”
“What’s coming?” Lira demanded.
Kael’s expression darkened, his silver eyes hardening. “The end of everything.”
The weight of his words settled over her like a stone, and for a moment, she couldn’t breathe. Her mind raced with questions, but before she could voice them, the air around them shifted.
A low rumble echoed through the hall, and the silver veins in the walls began to pulse faster. Kael’s head snapped toward the nearest archway, his body tensing.
“They found us,” he muttered.
“What?” Lira’s heart lurched. “I thought you said this place was safe!”
“It was,” Kael replied, his voice grim. “But the darkness is growing stronger. They must have found a way to breach the barriers.”
The rumble grew louder, and the shadows began to seep into the edges of the hall, twisting and writhing like living things. The temperature dropped, and Lira’s wolf snarled, her instincts screaming danger.
Kael stepped in front of her, his hand glowing with a silver light. “Stay behind me,” he ordered.
“No,” Lira said, her own claws extending as she shifted partially into her wolf form. “I can fight.”
Kael glanced back at her, his expression unreadable. “You don’t know what you’re up against.”
“Maybe not,” Lira shot back. “But I’m not going to stand here and do nothing.”
Before Kael could argue, the shadows surged forward, taking form. They coalesced into a massive creature, its crimson eyes burning with hatred. It let out a deafening roar, and the ground beneath them trembled.
Kael moved first, a wave of silver light erupting from his hand and slamming into the creature. It staggered but recovered quickly, its tendrils lashing out toward them. Lira darted to the side, her claws glowing faintly with the shard’s power as she struck one of the tendrils. The blow sent a jolt of energy through the air, and the tendril recoiled, disintegrating into ash.
“Not bad,” Kael said, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.
“Save the compliments,” Lira shot back, her eyes fixed on the creature. “We’re not done yet.”
The battle raged on, the creature relentless in its attacks. Lira and Kael fought side by side, their movements instinctively synchronized. But no matter how many times they struck the creature, it kept coming, its form regenerating faster than they could destroy it.
As the shadows began to close in, Kael cursed under his breath. “We can’t hold it off forever. We need to retreat.”
“Retreat where?” Lira demanded, her chest heaving.
Kael didn’t answer. Instead, he raised his hand, the silver light flaring brighter than ever. The shard in Lira’s hand responded, its light harmonizing with his once more.
“Trust me,” Kael said, his voice steady despite the chaos around them.
Before Lira could respond, the light enveloped them both.
As the light consumed her, Lira felt the world shift again, her body weightless and her senses disoriented. She reached out instinctively, her fingers brushing against Kael’s as they were pulled into the unknown.
But just before the light swallowed her completely, she heard it—a voice, low and menacing, echoing in her mind.
“You can run, child of the Forgotten. But you cannot hide. We will find you.”
And then, there was nothing but darkness.