Cherreads

Chapter 4 - The call of the Bearers

The sanctuary was still trembling.

Not from an attack.

Not from an intrusion.

But from something deeper—older.

Like a heart beating again after centuries of silence.

Daniella placed her hand against the engraved wall.

The stone felt warm beneath her fingers.

— Is this me? she whispered.

Kaël shook his head.

— No. Not consciously.

Pyra stepped closer, the fire around her hand softening into something almost reassuring.

— The sanctuary is responding to your presence, Daniella.

— Why?

Kaël moved toward the center of the circular chamber.

There, an ancient stone platform lay engraved with multiple concentric symbols.

He placed his palm on it.

— When an Omega Lymen awakens…

— …the other Bearers feel it, Pyra finished.

One symbol ignited red.

Then another.

Green.

Blue.

Gray.

Daniella took a step back, stunned.

— Wait… each light… that's a person?

Kaël nodded.

— Survivors. Hidden. Scattered.

— Each connected to a different element.

The green light pulsed more intensely.

Pyra smiled faintly.

— That one is Terra. He commands mineral matter—stone, metal, earth itself. He can turn the ground beneath our feet into a weapon… or a shield.

A blue symbol trembled like breathing air.

— Aeris, Kaël said. Air and pressure waves.

— He's fast? Daniella asked. — Too fast, Pyra replied. He never stays still.

A gray flicker shimmered, unstable.

— Nyx. Illusion and concealment. She can erase entire areas from sight if she wants.

Daniella felt a chill crawl up her spine.

— And they're coming… because of me?

Kaël looked her straight in the eyes.

— Not for you.

— With you.

The platform vibrated. A wave of light rippled across the chamber.

Something had been triggered.

Miles away…

A young man froze in the middle of a crowded market.

The stone beneath his boots cracked outward.

— Damn it… he muttered.

— Terra?! someone shouted nearby.

He grinned slightly.

— She's awake.

On a rooftop battered by wind, a figure halted mid-leap.

The air folded unnaturally around them.

— That feeling…

Aeris pressed a hand to his chest.

— It's happening again.

In a narrow alleyway, a young woman observed reality bend and blur around her like heat shimmer.

— A Lymen…

Nyx smiled from within the distortion.

— Finally.

Back at the sanctuary.

Daniella sat curled into herself, arms wrapped around her legs.

— What about Hélios? They'll feel something, won't they?

Kaël stiffened.

— They'll sense an echo.

— Not the call itself.

Pyra crossed her arms.

— But it'll be enough to alert them.

— How long before they tighten the hunt? Daniella asked.

Kaël answered instantly.

— A few days. A week, if we're lucky.

She closed her eyes.

— Great. A week to learn how to be a… prophecy.

Kaël knelt in front of her.

— Listen to me, Daniella.

His voice was calm but intense.

— You're not responsible for the future.

— But you can choose how you fight.

She met his gaze, eyes shining.

— And if I refuse?

Pyra placed her warm hand on Daniella's shoulder.

— Then others will decide for you.

Silence fell heavy over the chamber.

Daniella inhaled deeply.

When she opened her eyes, her voice trembled—but she didn't back away.

— Okay.

— I want to learn.

— I want to understand my power.

— And I want to protect those you call "the others."

Kaël smiled. A real one, this time.

— Then welcome, Lymen.

The sanctuary's light pulsed once more—

Brighter.

Clearer.

The generation was coming together.

And somewhere deep within Hélios…

A silent alarm activated.

Something irreversible had begun.

More Chapters