The waters of the Emberlight River rushed violently, carrying ash and embers from the battle that had just ended. Lyra stood at the river's edge, trembling—partly from the cold, partly from the fading surge of adrenaline. The silver light pulsing from her hand still throbbed faintly, like a second heartbeat that refused to rest.
Before her, a figure in a gray cloak cleaned his blade in the current. The red glow of Resonance slowly faded from the steel, leaving behind dark stains of blood. The evening wind tugged at his hood, revealing a sharp jawline and ember-colored eyes that burned like the dying sun.
"Who… are you?" Lyra's voice was soft, but steady.
The man regarded her for a long moment, saying nothing. There was something mocking in his gaze, as though he found it amusing—a small ten-year-old girl wandering alone through the forest.
"If you value your life, don't stare too long into the eyes of someone who just killed two of the Veil."
Lyra frowned but didn't back down. "I'm not afraid."
Kael raised an eyebrow. "You're braver than you look. But courage without direction is just another way to die."
"Do you… know about the Veil?"
"Who doesn't? Only the blind could fail to see who they are."
"Then why did you help me? If you meant to kill me, you could've just let me die in their hands."
"Hey, kid."
"K–Kid?!" Lyra's eyes widened. Just because the man was taller, broader, and clearly older, didn't mean he could call her that so casually.
"What? You are a kid. Would you rather I call you 'old woman'?"
Lyra scowled, but she didn't argue. He had saved her life, after all. "Thank you… for helping me. I'll be going now."
She turned to leave—toward Aetheris, the path she had sworn to follow—yet before she could take another step, he caught the hem of her cloak.
"Come with me. They won't stop hunting you just because two of them are dead."
"And why do you care?"
He looked at her briefly. "You think you know the Veil? Look closer at my sword—I've spent half my life hunting them."
Lyra hesitated, then followed. Together they crossed the river and climbed the narrow ridge into the forest beyond.
They walked in silence for a long while. The sky deepened from amber to violet, and then to black. Among the towering pines, the sounds of night grew louder—chirping insects, snapping twigs, the faint hum of Resonance drifting through the air. Lyra held her questions, but one finally escaped.
"How did you know they were from the Veil?"
Kael stopped, glancing over his shoulder.
"The way they hide their faces. The stench of rotten Resonance on their blades. And that spiral mark—" He paused, his eyes distant.
"I know it far too well."
Lyra waited for more, but he said nothing. Erebus whispered softly through the silver band around her wrist.
Don't press him, Lyra. His blood carries too many scars.
Like mine? she murmured.
No. Deeper. Because he already knows the price of power.
Hours later, they reached the ruins of an old stone cottage hidden among the trees. Kael lit a small fire—not with magic, but with flint and splinters of wood.
Lyra watched. "You don't use Resonance?"
He met her eyes. "Every time you call upon Resonance, something looks back from the other side. Are you ready to pay for that?"
"Pay with what?"
He stared into the flames. "With a part of yourself."
Lyra said nothing. She knew those words weren't a threat—they were a warning. Before she could respond, her hand began to throb again. Pale blue light seeped through her skin, and Erebus's voice grew sharper.
He's not lying, Lyra. Resonance is never free.
Why tell me only now?
Because now, you can feel its hunger.
Lyra looked down at her wrist, then toward the man by the fire.
"Hey, kid—"
"My name's Lyra. Stop calling me kid. And maybe tell me yours?"
He hesitated, then answered simply, "Kael."
"Do you… hear them too?" She lifted her wrist slightly, revealing the dark cracks running beneath her skin—like fractures in stone. Kael didn't need to ask why the Veil had been after her. He had already seen the mark.
He raised an eyebrow, reluctant to answer. But when he spoke, his voice carried the weight of old pain.
"I used to think that voice was my protector," he said quietly. "Then I realized Resonance never speaks to help us—it speaks to keep us bound."
Silence settled between them. The firelight danced in their eyes. Lyra pulled her knees close, staring at the flickering coals.
"So… what about you? Why are you wandering alone?"
"I lost everything in the Order," she whispered. "Everyone… gone. My teacher, my home. Even my Mother. They took her from me."
Kael said nothing.
"I thought if I could reach Aetheris, I'd find answers. But the further I go, the more it feels like I've never been free of the darkness."
Kael drew a slow breath. "Aetheris isn't a place of answers. It's a place of reckoning."
She frowned. "Reckoning for what?"
He looked northward, to the faint glow of blue auroras on the horizon.
"For every sin born from human magic."
"I don't understand."
"You don't have to. Not yet. Rest for now—we move at dawn."
Night deepened. Kael kept watch by the dying fire while Lyra drifted into uneasy sleep. In her dreams, she saw Seren standing amid the ruins of the Order, bathed in pale light. But Seren's face cracked like glass, and from the fractures emerged a shadow with silver eyes.
Lyra, the voice called from within the dream. You cannot escape the price already set.
I don't want any more blood.
Then you've chosen the wrong language. Blood is the only one Resonance understands.
She jolted awake, gasping, sweat cold on her skin.
Kael turned. "Nightmare?"
Lyra nodded. "More like a warning."
He studied her. "Resonance often wears familiar faces to test our resolve."
"How do you know?"
"Because I see the face of the one I killed every time I close my eyes."
"Do you feel guilty?"
"Guilt changes nothing. What's done is done. The only thing left is to keep walking."
Lyra didn't understand how he could sound so calm. She hadn't killed anyone, yet her heart still carried more guilt than she could bear.
They left the cottage at dawn. Fog blanketed the forest, though sunlight began to pierce through the pines. Kael led the way, his stride steady. Lyra followed close behind, eyes drawn to the faint glow pulsing beneath her wrist.
Erebus's voice came softly. He isn't your enemy, but he's no savior either. Be careful, Lyra.
I'll be careful with everyone—including you. Her tone was cold now. Trust was a luxury she could no longer afford.
The path ahead turned to stone, winding upward toward the highlands. In the distance, a bronze tower gleamed under the rising sun—the border of Aetheris.
Kael paused on the ridge, gazing at the city with an unreadable expression.
"Beyond this point, there's no turning back."
Lyra met his eyes. "I never had a place to return to."
He gave a faint nod. "Then be ready to pay the next price."
The wind rose, carrying blue sparks from Lyra's hand and red embers from Kael's blade—two Resonances, different yet strangely attuned. Above them, the sky shivered, as though straining to contain something vast and waiting. There is always a price for entering. Easy to go in—hard to ever come out.
꧁𓆩༺✧༻𓆪꧂