I woke up, not like the sun coming up, but more like a painful wave washing over a broken beach. First, I felt the ache – a deep, throbbing in my bones, and my head felt empty, like someone had scooped out a part of me and left it in that sea cave. Then I heard stuff: a fire crackling softly, people talking quietly, and the Chroma of the Sanctuary humming in the background. It smelled different too; not salty or rotten, but like pine and ozone from the Aura.
I was back at the Sanctuary of the Unseen.
I opened my eyes. I was in a small, round room made from a living tree, lying on a soft bed of moss. Sunlight came through the leaves and made spots on the floor. The peace here felt like a joke.
The memory of the coast hit me like a punch. The screaming Siphons. The pain. The Null-Gorge coming down. Finn, standing on the rock, his body twisting as he pulled all that power into himself. The perfect, grey circle where he used to be.
I groaned. I tried to sit up, and the world spun.
Easy, Lyra said. She sounded tired in a way I hadn't heard before. She sat in a chair made of roots in the corner, watching me. A fresh burn went from her head down her neck, under her shirt. Her left arm was in a sling made of shiny cloth.
Lyra, I said, my throat dry. Finn… he's…
I know, she said softly. We felt it. The… end. And then the Nexus waking up. She got up and gave me a cup of water. I drank it fast. You did it, Kaelen. Against the odds. The Nexus of the Sunken City is free. The Prime Chroma's plan is set back, maybe for years. You saved a big part of our world.
That should have made me feel happy, relieved. But it just felt like rocks dropping into that empty spot inside me. At what cost? I whispered, still seeing that grey circle. Your arm… the others?
She looked grim. We lost eleven from the diversion team. Good people. Warriors I've fought with for years. Lots more are hurt. She looked away at the glowing wall. But the mission was a big win. Their sacrifice, and Finn's, wasn't for nothing.
It doesn't feel like a win, I said, my voice bitter. It feels like we just lost a little less than they did.
Lyra didn't argue. She just nodded, looking really sad. That's war. You count the cost and hope it was worth it. Rest now. Elias wants to see you when you're better.
She left me alone with the memories of the coast. I lay there for a long time, staring at the light on the ceiling. I thought about everything, every choice. Could I have been faster? Could I have done it differently? It was a horrible loop that wouldn't stop.
After a while, I got up, my legs shaking. I needed to move. I needed to leave this room that felt like a prison. I went to the door and stepped out into the main area of the Sanctuary.
Everyone was quiet. The happy vibe of the place was gone, covered in sadness. People moved slowly, their auras dim. I saw Kael, the master forger, standing in front of his anvil, not working, just staring at the metal. Where Finn had learned to draw his straight line was empty.
I went to the silver river, to where I'd last talked to Finn. The Zephyr and Cerulean flowed on, its song the same, like it didn't care about the life that had been lost for its cousin in the sea. I sat on the bank, holding the same grey stone.
He liked you, you know.
I turned. Elara, the woman who spun moonlight, stood nearby. Her silver hair didn't shine as much, and her eyes were shadowed.
Really? I asked.
She smiled sadly. He came to me a few days before you left. He was worried. He said you saw what he was trying to be, not just the soldier he had been. He said that was rare.
Her words made me feel even worse. He died because of me. To protect me.
He died for something he chose, Elara said gently. There's a difference. We all have a part to play, Prince Kaelen. His was messed up for a while. At the end, he made it strong, pure, and brave. He gave it meaning. Don't ruin that by saying it was only for you.
She put a small bracelet on the bank next to me. It was made of the same moonlight-thread, but with a grey strand in it. He helped me get the starlight for this, she said softly. He said the grey reminded him that contrast makes beauty better. She looked at me sadly and walked away.
I picked up the bracelet. It was cool, like it remembered night and determination. I put it on my wrist. It didn't make me feel better. It was a reminder. A debt.
The next day, I was called to Elias's home. He was waiting, sitting at a table with some stones on it. The stones were different colors and humming. It was a Scribe's board, for planning.
Sit, he said. I sat down across from him.
He picked up a green stone and put it in the middle of the board. The Nexus. Saved. Then, he took eleven small, grey stones and put them near the edge. The cost on the cliffs. Then, he took a bigger grey stone and put it by the green stone. The cost on the shore.
He looked at me. You carry the weight of the grey stones Kaelen. It's a burden. Every life lost is part of your story. It's a sad note that you have to learn to carry.
How? I asked.
By making sure their loss wasn't pointless, he said. By winning the war. There's no other way. Feeling sad is something you can only do when you are safe.
He pushed the board aside. We have to look ahead. The Prime Chroma is angry. He'll hit back hard. We have maybe a season to prepare.
What can we do? I asked. He's… huge. I felt him.
And you stood up to his Captain and broke his cage, Elias said. Don't underestimate yourself. But you're not ready to face him yet. You know defense. You know precision. Now, you need to use your power like a wave, not a knife.
He pointed to the stones. Your power is neutrality. You can silence one sound, like you did with the Siphons. But what if you could silence a whole section? Not to break what made the sounds, but to make a still spot in the storm? A shield for lots of people.
It was an amazing idea. My power had always been personal. I wanted to make a big still spot.
The strain… I hesitated.
Will be huge, he said. You'll need to link to the Chroma more deeply. You can't just listen to the music; you have to feel like you control it. Like stilling it is something easy like a gesture.
The training was really hard. Elias took me to the center of the Sanctuary, where all the Chroma came together. The air was thick with power.
Don't try to stop this, Elias said. Try to make a bubble inside it. A place without sounds. Start small.
I tried. I focused, trying to push my silence outwards. But my power scattered. It was like trying to hold back a river with sand. The Chroma flowed around me. It was exhausting.
For days, I failed. I went back to my room each night, with a headache and the thoughts of my failures mixing with the sadness for Finn and the others. The Sanctuary felt like a training ground for a war we couldn't win.
One day, I was fighting all the sounds, when I felt something else. It was a small, grey spot.
It was another Grey Scribe.
But this one was different. This one felt… young. Scared. And it was screaming. A silent scream of a Scribe being hurt.
I snapped my eyes open. The Chroma faded away.
Elias, I said sharply.
He was next to me in a moment. What?
I feel… another one. A Scribe. Like me. But they're… they're hurt. They're being captured.
Elias closed his eyes and looked into the Chroma. He was quiet for a minute. When he opened his eyes, they were cold.
You're right, he said quietly. To the south-east. The Prime Chroma has taken another Scribe. A kid. They're moving them fast, with guards, to the heart of his area.
He looked at me, and the weight of the grey stones was in the air.
It's over, Elias said. The Prime Chroma isn't just reacting. He's getting weapons. He wants to corrupt this new Scribe, to make them an Ash-Singer, like he tried to do with you.
The idea was horrible. Another kid, like me, with a power they didn't understand, being made into a weapon. Finn's sacrifice, the deaths on the cliffs… it would all be pointless if the Prime Chroma could just break someone new.
We can't let that happen, I said, my voice shaking not with fear, but with rage.
No, Elias said. We can't. We can't stay hidden any longer. The time to defend is over, Grey Prince. It's time to attack. It's time to take back a soul from the dark.