The rain had stopped by dawn, but the village was buzzing like a kicked hornet's nest.
Tracks had been found — deep clawed prints pressed into the mud near the outer road, leading in from the forest and vanishing just before the first houses. No one could say what made them. No one wanted to.
Kael stood near the prints, his hand resting over the mark on his chest. It still tingled faintly, like an echo of the night before.
"This isn't normal," muttered Jarek, one of the hunters, crouching near the tracks. "No animal I know of leaves prints like this."
"Could be Voidspawn," another villager whispered.
"Don't speak of such things," Jarek snapped.
Kael crouched beside the tracks, ignoring the looks from the others. The shape of them was wrong — almost humanoid, but longer, like something that had been stretched.
His mark pulsed again.
"Kael."
He looked up to see the elder standing there, his cane planted firmly in the mud.
"We need to talk."
They met in the hall again, the air thick with incense.
"You felt them, didn't you?" the elder asked.
Kael nodded.
"They were searching," the elder said grimly. "And you called to them."
"I didn't do anything—"
"You carry a shard of the First Knowledge," the elder interrupted. "Whether you wish it or not, it sings to those who would take it."
Kael's stomach sank. "Then what do I do?"
The elder's gaze softened. "You learn. You grow stronger. And until then…" His eyes hardened. "…you survive."
That night, Kael couldn't sit still. He left the house after everyone had gone to sleep and made his way to the old training ground.
Liora was already there, leaning against a post with her arms crossed.
"Knew you'd sneak out," she said.
Kael blinked. "You followed me?"
She shrugged. "You're predictable. Now tell me why you look like you're about to fight ghosts."
Kael hesitated. "Something's coming."
Liora's expression grew serious. "Then we face it together."
Before Kael could protest, a sound split the air — a low, inhuman growl from the edge of the training field.
Both of them turned.
Shapes moved between the trees — three of them this time, their eyes glowing faintly in the dark.
Liora grabbed a wooden staff from the rack. "Those aren't wolves."
Kael's heart pounded. His mark burned like fire now, the glow faintly visible through his shirt.
The creatures stepped into the torchlight — twisted forms of men and beasts, their skin dark like ash, their claws glinting.
Kael swallowed hard, raised his practice sword, and took a step forward.