Do you hear me, child of the light?
My muscles freeze.Icy fingers trail down my spine, causing the flame within me to shrivel into a small, blue ember.
The voice cuts clean through the ringing in my ears.It isn’t Seren’s, and it isn’t mine.It’s a soft, melodic tone—the same one that spoke through her in the chamber.
“No,” I mutter.
“What?”Seren snaps, turning suddenly.
“Nothing.”I shake my head too fast, the motion sending a pulse of agony through my wrist.I pull back my sleeve; the skin is raw, the veins lit faintly like fire under glass.I tug the fabric lower, hiding the evidence.
A draft creeps down from the cracks above, carrying motes of stone and the distant baying of the Light’s hounds.
“They’re coming.We have to move.”
She doesn’t budge.“Let them come.”
“Seren—”
“I’m not afraid of them anymore.”
“You should be.”The words cut sharp, like a threat.“Whatever you woke in this place may have given you courage, but you’re still someone they can break.”
She looks at me then, and the universe narrows down to the violet ring of her gaze.For a heartbeat, I forget what language to think in.There is power behind her eyes, but also something heartbreakingly calm—like the tide deciding whether to drown or spare the shore.
“I have to find the others,” she says.
“What others?”
“She told me there are two more shrines.Two more ofher.”
Her voice doesn’t tremble when she speaks of a goddess.It should terrify me, yet, the only thing I feel is my mark burning brighter—a warning or a summons.
“Then we move,” I rush toward her.I reach for her arm before hesitating, my hand hovering in the cold air.“Before the guards reach the tunnels.”
She tilts her head, her expression almost a smile.“You’re coming with me?”
“Apparently,” I try for levity, but the words come out rough.“Someone has to make sure you don’t fall into another abyss.”
A faint laugh leaves her lips—short, strange, and almost normal.
Her shadows point us in the direction of a passageway carved into the raw rock.We follow; Seren leads, and I cover the rear.The mark on my wrist sears with every step, the spirit of a woman’s laughter curling through my thoughts.
You must help her, son of the light.
The voice crawls under my skin.I don’t know if I’m hearing salvation or a death sentence.
“Why?”I whisper.
She will rebuild the darkness and restore the balance you so desperately crave.
Power surges behind my eyes, illuminating Seren’s back.I watch her follow the shadows, her arms scraping the sides of the stone walls for guidance.I slow my pace, increasing the distance between us.
“But whyme?”
You have been touched by the darkness; it spreads through your soul like a virus.I can feel it.Touch it.Almost.Help her, and I will strip away the shadows from you—the ones you pretend are faith.
I stumble, catching myself against the damp wall.The voice fades, but the weight of her presence remains—a cold anchor moored in my mind.Ahead, Seren’s silhouette cuts through the dark like a blade.She doesn’t look back, and I’m glad.I don’t want her to see how afraid I am.I don’t want her to see that my path is utterly lost without a guiding light.
