The light that came from inside it wasn't natural. It was as if the metal had been filled with fire—with living memories or contained life itself. I shielded my eyes halfway, but I couldn't look away.
Inside the box was a thick glass vial, old and sealed with an ornate metal cap. Inside, a dense liquid floated, a deep red with golden reflections that pulsed slowly, as if imitating the heartbeat of something alive.
—What is that? —I asked, my voice breaking.
—Blood, —he answered gravely. —My blood. Concentrated. Purified. It's the last elixir of the healer's lineage.
I turned to him, horrified and fascinated at the same time.
—That's… all that's left of your kind?
He nodded slightly. His expression was solemn, but beneath that calm there was something else—an ancient fear, tightly contained.
—There are still a few of us left in the world, —he continued softly. —Hidden. Scattered. But without this… without someone like me, or like... —he paused, lowering his voice— like a descendant… our kind will vanish forever.
I took a step closer. The liquid seemed to vibrate more intensely. Declan tensed, as if his body was reacting to the vial the same way the vial was reacting to me.
—Does it hurt? —I asked.
—No, —he said, though his voice trembled. —It's your presence that stirs it. It responds to you… just as everything on this island will.
I extended a hand without touching it, just to feel the heat emanating from it.And the heat recognized me. It was as if it spoke in a language I didn't understand—but could feel. A pulse ran through my palms, identical to the rhythm beating within that ancient elixir.An echo between my body and it.
—What is it? —I whispered again.
—A fragment of the origin, —he replied. —Each of us carries one within. What you see there… is mine.
—How can it be outside of you?
—Every healer must keep a few drops of their blood in an external vessel, as a safeguard. But this… this is nothing compared to the sanction method.
—What do you mean?
—My kind isn't entirely compatible with this world. We suffer certain conditions, and when that happens, we can linger between life and death. That's when someone like me—a healer—comes in. My blood is a medicine.
—That's twisted, —I said without thinking, covering my mouth instantly, ashamed.Declan let out a small laugh.
—No one's ever said that to me before, but… I suppose you're right.
—What does any of this have to do with me?
He sighed. His face hardened, as if cornered by his own destiny.
—You see, I'm the last healer. And the only way another can exist… is through my bloodline.
My eyes widened.
Now it all made sense—why he needed a child. The pieces fell into place inside my head.
—If you don't have one… your kind is doomed?
—Not just doomed, —he said quietly. —Erased.
That last word hit like a blade. His tone was heavy, stripped of hope, thick with guilt. He tried to keep talking, but the words kept failing him until he finally whispered:
—I know I'm asking too much. But please, Sereniah… consider it.
His words were daggers wrapped in velvet.
I couldn't imagine the weight this man carried on his shoulders. I didn't owe him anything. I could still leave, go back to a normal life, with a normal man, a world that made sense.But everything I had lived had led me here.
Was this my destiny?
As if reading my mind, he met my eyes and said:
—This isn't your destiny. It's a choice.
I turned back toward the vial.
Every part of me pulled toward it. I owed it to myself to understand why I was here—and why I felt this way.
Declan stepped behind me, slowly.
He wrapped his arms around me, but didn't touch—just let his warmth hover close to my back. The gesture was protective… and painfully intimate. His breath brushed my ear.
—If you keep going, you'll see things that might hurt you. Not because they're real… but because they'll show you who you are—and who I might be to you.
I closed my eyes for a moment. Not from fear, but to keep myself steady.
—Sereniah, if you choose to know me, —he murmured, —you must also accept what that means.
I nodded.
Then I touched the vial.
Instantly, a golden light surged through my hand. My pulse raced; the walls trembled.I heard Declan stifle a quiet groan.
The air changed and something deep inside me… woke up.