The mist hung thick over Black Stone Forest as Lin Che, Su Qing, and Xiao Ya approached the stream where they'd hidden the crystal. The moon peeked through the tree branches, casting silver streaks across the water, and the air hummed with a faint tension—like the forest itself was holding its breath.
Xiao Ya led the way, her small feet light on the damp earth. She'd been quiet since they left the slums, her eyes darting to the shadows as if expecting danger to leap out at any moment. When they reached the stream, she stopped, pointing to a pile of smooth stones half-buried in the bank.
"There," she whispered. "The ferns are still covering it—no one's found it yet."
Lin Che knelt beside the stones, his heart racing. He brushed away the ferns, revealing the stack he and Su Qing had built hours earlier. He carefully lifted the top stones one by one, his fingers trembling. Under the last stone, wrapped in a tattered cloth, was the crystal—its silver glow dimmed but still warm to the touch.
He picked it up, pressing it to his wrist. The Star Marrow flared, and the crystal's light brightened, casting a soft glow over the stream. Su Qing leaned in, her eyes wide with awe.
"The connection between them is stronger now," she said, her voice soft. "Like they're waking up."
Before Lin Che could answer, a distant sound echoed through the forest—a low, rhythmic drumbeat, slow and steady. Xiao Ya froze, her hands flying to her ears.
"What is that?" she asked, her voice shaking.
Su Qing's face paled. "The ritual," she said, her voice sharp. "The Zhao family's started. That's the drumbeat they use for Arcane ceremonies—my grandmother wrote about it. It means they're calling for the 'sacrifice' to the darkness."
Lin Che's blood ran cold. Sacrifice. They were going to use someone—maybe even the crystal—to wake the darkness. He stood, slipping the crystal into his jacket pocket. "We need to get to the old factory. Now."
They set off at a run, the drumbeat growing louder with each step. The forest seemed to close in around them, the trees' branches twisting like gnarled fingers, and the mist thickened until Lin Che could barely see Su Qing's back ahead of him. Xiao Ya clung to his hand, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
They'd been running for twenty minutes when Xiao Ya suddenly stumbled, pulling Lin Che to a stop. "Wait," she said, pointing to a cluster of glowing mushrooms growing at the base of a tree. "The mushrooms—they're warning us. There's a group of men ahead. Lots of them."
Lin Che nodded, slowing his pace. He crept forward, peering through the mist. Up ahead, a clearing opened up, and in the center stood a group of ten men—all wearing the Zhao family's brass badges, their hands glowing with faint red Arcane energy. They were carrying torches, and between them walked a man in a black robe—his face hidden by a hood, a staff topped with a red crystal in his hand.
"Arcane expert," Su Qing whispered, her voice tight. "That's the one Old Man Zhao brought in. His staff— it's powered by a Shadow Shard. I've seen pictures in my grandmother's book."
Lin Che's jaw tightened. A Shadow Shard— the same kind of dark crystal he'd heard rumors about in the slums. The Zhao family wasn't just after the Star Marrow and the crystal—they had a Shadow Shard too.
The robed man raised his staff, and the red crystal flared. The men around him knelt, their heads bowed, and the drumbeat grew louder. Lin Che could hear words now—low, guttural chants, in a language he didn't understand.
"They're preparing to open a rift," Su Qing said, her voice urgent. "The Shadow Shard plus the drumbeat—they're trying to tear a hole between our world and the darkness. If they succeed… the forest will die. The city will fall."
Lin Che glanced at Xiao Ya, who was trembling. "We can't let that happen," he said. He pulled the crystal from his pocket, its silver light glowing brighter. "The crystal—can it stop them?"
Su Qing nodded, her eyes determined. "My grandmother's notes said the crystal is a 'light shard'—the opposite of the Shadow Shard. If we can get close enough to the robed man, we can use the crystal to cancel out the Shadow Shard's energy. It'll break the ritual."
But getting close wouldn't be easy. The men were circled around the robed man, their torches casting a ring of fire. Lin Che thought of Ling An's memory—the way she'd used the forest to her advantage—and turned to Xiao Ya.
"Can the plants help us?" he asked. "Distract them?"
Xiao Ya nodded, her fear fading into determination. She closed her eyes, her hands glowing green, and whispered to the trees. A moment later, the branches above the clearing began to twist, sending a shower of leaves and small twigs down on the men.
"What the hell?" one man shouted, looking up.
The robed man paused, his head snapping toward the trees. "Find the intruders!" he barked.
Two of the men left the circle, drawing their clubs and moving toward the trees. Lin Che waited until they were close, then jumped out from behind a trunk, swinging his knife. He sliced the first man's arm, making him drop his club, and Su Qing tackled the second, knocking him to the ground.
Xiao Ya kept the distraction going—vines shot up from the ground, wrapping around the men's ankles, and the mushrooms glowed brighter, temporarily blinding a few of them. The circle broke, the men scrambling to fight off the plants and find the intruders.
"Now!" Su Qing shouted.
Lin Che ran toward the robed man, the crystal held tightly in his hand. The man turned, his hood falling back to reveal a face scarred by fire—Old Man Zhao, his eyes glowing with red Arcane energy.
"You," he snarled, raising his staff. "The Star Marrow bearer. You've come just in time—to be the first to bow to the darkness."
He swung his staff at Lin Che, who dodged, the red crystal's energy grazing his arm. A searing pain shot through him, and he stumbled. Old Man Zhao laughed, raising his staff again.
"Give up, boy," he said. "The darkness is coming. Nothing can stop it."
Lin Che didn't give up. He thought of Ling An's vision, of the Guardians protecting the forest, of Su Qing and Xiao Ya counting on him. He held up the crystal, its silver light flaring, and shouted—pouring all of his energy into it.
The crystal's light shot out in a beam, hitting Old Man Zhao's staff. The red crystal on the staff cracked, and the drumbeat stopped. The men around them froze, their Arcane energy fading, and the mist began to lift.
Old Man Zhao screamed, dropping his staff. The staff shattered on the ground, the Shadow Shard breaking into pieces. The rift he'd been trying to open— a faint black crack in the air—closed with a soft pop.
The men stared in shock, then turned and ran—fleeing into the forest, leaving Old Man Zhao alone. He fell to his knees, his face contorted in rage.
"You've ruined everything," he snarled, looking up at Lin Che. "But this isn't over. The darkness will come—with or without me. And when it does, you'll regret stopping me."
Lin Che stepped forward, his knife raised, but Su Qing grabbed his arm. "Don't," she said. "The ritual's broken. The Shadow Shard is gone. He's no threat anymore."
Old Man Zhao laughed, a bitter sound. "You think that's the only Shadow Shard? There are more. Many more. And the one who controls them… will control the darkness."
He stood, stumbling, and ran into the forest—disappearing into the mist.
Lin Che collapsed onto the ground, his chest heaving. The crystal's light dimmed, and he slipped it back into his pocket. Su Qing and Xiao Ya knelt beside him, their faces filled with relief.
"The ritual's over," Su Qing said, squeezing his hand. "We stopped them."
Lin Che nodded, but his mind was racing. Old Man Zhao's words echoed in his ears—more Shadow Shards. Many more. The fight wasn't over. The darkness was still out there, waiting.
And they were the only ones who could stop it.
He stood, looking at the broken staff on the ground. The drumbeat was gone, the mist was lifting, and the forest was quiet again. But Lin Che knew—this was just the beginning.
The hunt for the Shadow Shards had started.