The night wind that swept through the ruins brought Kael back to reality. The fire before him had burned low, its glow now faint, yet Lyra remained awake — her eyes catching the dying embers like pieces of molten glass.
"So," she whispered, "you… were born from their experiment."
Kael didn't look at her. "I wasn't born, Lyra. I was made. And because of that, I understand better than anyone — The Veil cannot simply be destroyed."
Lyra drew her knees closer, her heart beating fast. Kael hadn't told her everything, but she understood enough — the shadow of his past, and its ties to the Order.
"Lyneth Veynhart…" she murmured. "That name — it's the same as my family's. What's her connection to us?"
Kael was silent for a long time before answering quietly. "Lyneth once told me about her childhood. She grew up in an orphanage — with a younger sister. Perhaps, that sister was your mother. The one Lyneth said she wanted to protect more than anyone, until the two of them were torn apart by different choices."
"My aunt?" Lyra breathed. "You mean she's my aunt?"
"When your mother learned that Lyneth had joined the experiment, she left the Order," Kael said. "She never asked why Lyneth made that choice."
Silence fell between them. Lyra stared at the dying fire, unable to tell which was colder — the night air or Kael's words. A truth she had never wanted to hear now burned quietly inside her. No wonder Seren had spoken of her so often. But which her did Seren mean — her mother, or Lyneth?
"Then… what did she mean when she told you to protect the child with the same mark?"
Kael finally turned to her. For the first time, Lyra saw fear in his eyes. "Because that means you are the end of all this. The last of the Veynhart bloodline — the one who can open the way for The Veil."
✦✦✦
The fire had long gone out, but Lyra still stared into the faint glow as if the ashes might whisper an answer. The air in the ruins felt heavy, as though it, too, held its breath. Kael leaned against the wall, half his face hidden in shadow, while Lyra wrestled with the weight of what she had learned.
The wind slipped through the cracks in the stone, carrying dust that shimmered faintly — like the ashes of spent Resonance. For a long time, neither spoke. Two souls bound by scars they could recognize, but could never heal.
"I used to think," Kael said at last, his voice low, "that I could run from all of this. But after meeting you, I realized — no one escapes the script written by the hand of Resonance."
His gaze fell to the mark on Lyra's wrist. "You're the reminder that the past never stops hunting me."
Lyra covered the faint blue light pulsing beneath her skin. "Maybe that's why Seren sent me to Aetheris," she said softly. "Not to find safety… but to find a reason to stay alive."
"And the only reason I have to keep living," she added, her tone hardening, "is to destroy them. The Veil — and all who serve it."
Kael turned slightly but said nothing.
"For so long, I've hidden behind the memories of the dead," Lyra continued, her eyes fixed on the cold ashes.
"But now I know — if I keep hiding, they'll stay dead inside me. I have to change."
She looked at him sharply. "I don't want to be the child who's always saved. I want to fight — and protect."
Kael smiled faintly. Not mockery, but something softer — the kind of smile a man gives when he sees a shadow of his younger self.
"You don't even know what kind of world you're walking into."
"I don't care," Lyra said. "That's why I need to see it for myself."
"You're still a fool."
"Maybe. But I'd rather be a fool who fights, than a coward waiting to die."
Kael studied her for a long moment. "You do realize, Lyra — your choice will drag you deeper than you can possibly imagine?"
Lyra lowered her gaze. "Isn't that fate? Even if I bury myself beneath the earth, or hide at the bottom of the sea… they'll find me eventually, won't they?"
There was a long silence. Then Kael laughed quietly.
"You're right. It's too late to turn back."
He rose, taking up the sword that leaned against the wall. The blade of Eclipsera was still cracked down the center, but the red light within it had not gone out.
"Aetheris has layers of darkness, Lyra. The undercity is only the first gate. If you want to live here, we can't keep hiding."
"What do you mean?"
"We start hunting. One by one — those who uphold the city's false balance. The dark mages, the Resonance merchants, the ones who serve The Veil from the shadows."
Lyra hesitated. "You mean… you want to destroy the underworld?"
"No," Kael said flatly. "I want to cleanse it. If we don't, Aetheris will become the next fracture. We start from the surface — then go deeper."
He stepped out of the ruins, greeted by the pale mist of dawn settling over the western district. Lyra followed him — her steps lighter than before, as if the weight on her shoulders had turned into direction.
꧁𓆩༺✧༻𓆪꧂
Days passed in the shadows. They lived on the edge of the western district, above an abandoned workshop long forgotten by the city. From there, Lyra began to learn — small things at first. How to read the signs of black Resonance, how to trace hidden sigils on the city walls, how to rewrite a protection spell.
Kael taught her not with gentleness, but with cold, relentless precision.
"If you draw a sigil without conviction, Resonance will reject you," he said, slamming an old tome onto the table.
"I can't focus if you keep glaring at me!" Lyra snapped.
"Darkness can strike at any time. You don't get to relax."
"I know! So stop breathing down my neck and let me concentrate!"
At night, they shared meager meals — stale bread and cold water. Sometimes Kael would disappear and return with fresh wounds, offering no explanation. And whenever Lyra asked, his answer was always the same.
"There's still someone I need to find."
Lyra knew he wasn't talking about an enemy. He was searching — for someone, or something — lost. And in those days, Lyra began to change. She learned to summon her Resonance without losing control; the blue light that once flared wildly now pulsed gently at her fingertips.
Erebus' voice murmured in her mind. "You've finally learned to speak with Resonance — not fight against it."
Lyra answered softly, "I'm just trying to survive."
"But life isn't about surviving, Lyra," Erebus whispered. "You're preparing to kill your fear — and avenge what was stolen from you."
The words lingered long after the voice faded. Because each night, when she looked out the window at the lights of Aetheris — shimmering like stars over a city built on blood and lies — she knew Erebus was right.
✦✦✦
One morning, Kael came back holding a sealed letter stamped in gold.
"Who's it from?" Lyra asked.
"Someone who calls himself the Broker," Kael replied. "He arranges work beneath the lower markets."
"Work?"
He nodded. "We'll start there. There's a group of mages controlling the flow of illegal Resonance in the northern district. They call themselves the Ashvein Circle. If the rumors are true, they have a direct link to The Veil."
Lyra's blue eyes caught the morning light. "And we're going to destroy them?"
"No. We're going to infiltrate them first. Find out who they serve."
"And if they attack us?"
Kael smiled faintly. "You wanted to learn how to fight, didn't you? Consider this your first lesson."
He looked toward the brightening sky. "We're done running, Lyra. The world won't change if we keep hiding."
Lyra glanced at her hand, watching the faint pulse of light beneath her skin.
"Then when do we start?"
Kael drew up his hood and looked toward the heart of Aetheris — a city gleaming like a god's illusion.
"Now."
꧁𓆩༺✧༻𓆪꧂