The deep woods were a cathedral of silence. Kenji slumped against a pine, cradling his shattered hand. The dark veins had faded, but a deep, cold hollow had taken root in his bones, like the shadow-fire had burned away something vital.
Rina stood a few paces away, scanning the path. "They won't stop. Zed's trackers are coming."
"How far to the Kharman woods?" Kenji grunted.
"Two days east. If we don't die first."
They moved. The forest grew ancient, trees thick as towers. Kenji's dizziness returned with a vengeance. The hollow ache spread, a chilling tax for the power he'd unleashed.
By midday, they found a shallow cave behind a waterfall. Kenji tried to light a fire, but his injured hand failed. Rina watched, then knelt. She cupped her hands. A soft, golden glow emanated from her palms, warming the air until the moss between them smoldered into flame.
"A small spark," she said, feeding it twigs. "Too much, and it's a beacon."
They shared the last of Kenji's dried meat. The cold in his bones was a constant presence.
"Your power," Rina said abruptly. "It… drains you."
Kenji nodded. "Feels like something's missing inside."
"The stories only say it shortens life," she said, her voice low. "That the Shadow's price is years. I don't know how it works. I just know it killed my tribe." Her gaze was stark, honest. She didn't have answers, only trauma.
The admission changed things. She wasn't a guide. She was just as lost as he was.
Dawn came grey. They moved at first light. Kenji's fatigue dragged at him. He stumbled over a root, and Rina's hand shot out, steadying his arm. Her touch was warm, a stark contrast to his internal chill. She withdrew quickly.
"You're a liability," she said, but the edge was gone from her voice.
"I'll manage."
They heard the baying of hounds in the distance. Panic sliced through Kenji. The hollow in his chest flared aggressively, dark veins stirring under his skin.
"No!" Rina grabbed his wrist. "Not like that. You'll burn out, and we'll both be caught."
"What's your plan, then?" he snapped.
She pointed to a rocky slope overlooking the path. "We ambush the first tracker. Together."
It was a desperate plan. But it was theirs.
They climbed. Crouched behind boulders, they waited. One tracker, two mastiffs. The man was cautious.
"I'll disorient the hounds," Rina whispered. "You take the man. Fast. Controlled."
The tracker paused below. Rina opened her palm and pushed gently. A wave of warm, heavy air shot forth, invisible, but potent. It hit the dogs like a wall. They yelped, dazed.
The tracker looked up.
"Now."
Kenji didn't let the shadow consume him. He focused on the cold ember and pulled a single thread of it down his arm. The veins lit only along his forearm. He leapt.
The tracker raised a sword. Kenji's shadow-wreathed fist met the blade. A sound like cracking ice echoed. Numbing cold shot up the steel into the man's hand. He screamed, dropping the weapon.
Kenji followed with a clean punch, just his own strength. The man crumpled.
Silence. Kenji's forearm glowed faintly. He willed it to fade. It obeyed. The hollow ache worsened, a sharp payment, but not the soul-deep drain from before.
Rina dropped beside him, staring at his arm. "You… controlled it."
"A little."
"It's a start," she said, and something shifted in her eyes. Not respect, but a flicker of possibility.
They moved until dusk, putting miles between them and the unconscious tracker. The temperature plummeted with the sun. Frost painted the leaves.
"We stop here," Rina said, her breath fogging. "We won't survive the night cold without shelter."
They found a hollow under a giant fallen oak, shielded from wind. They gathered dry leaves for insulation. It wasn't enough. The cold seeped into Kenji's bones, amplifying the hollow ache.
Rina hesitated, then said, "We'll freeze separately."
It wasn't a suggestion. It was survival. They lay back-to-back, sharing body heat through their clothes. Her warmth was a shock against the chill in his spine. Neither spoke. The intimacy of it was louder than words.
"Why are you helping me?" Kenji whispered into the dark. "You know what I am."
A long pause. "Because Zed wants us both. And right now, you're the only one who understands what that means."
They were woken by baying, closer this time. Much closer.
Kenji jolted upright. Rina was already on her feet, golden light flickering in her palms.
"They're fast," she hissed.
"We run," Kenji said, scrambling up.
"No. They'll run us down. We stand." Her eyes glowed with defiance. "You take the left flank. I'll take right. Don't let the shadow take over. Direct it."
"You don't get to command me," Kenji shot back, anger flaring. "I'm not one of your tribe."
"And I'm not your keeper!" she snapped. "But if you lose control and die here, I die too! So focus!"
Three mastiffs burst into the clearing, followed by two grey-clad trackers. No time to argue.
Kenji focused on the cold ember. He pulled two threads this time, one to each fist. The veins lit up to his elbows, dark and smoky. He moved, not with wild rage, but with sharp, precise strikes. Each hit carried a burst of numbing cold, slowing the dogs, making them stumble.
Rina fought differently. She didn't blast. She pulsed. Quick, sharp bursts of golden force aimed at the trackers' legs, knocking them off balance, giving Kenji openings.
It was messy, uncoordinated, but it worked. One tracker went down, a dog yelped and fled, the other tracker hesitated, and they ran.
They didn't stop until the baying faded into the forest murmur.
Night had fallen completely when the trees changed. The pines gave way to twisted, ancient oaks with silver bark. The air grew still and heavy. No birdsong. No insects.
"The Kharman woods," Rina breathed, slowing.
A wall of silence enveloped them. Ahead, the path narrowed between two impossibly tall, gnarled trees that arched together like a gate.
And between them, a figure stood.
Cloaked in deep grey, face hidden in shadow. In one hand, a lantern glowed with a pale, cold light. And from within the hood, two points of soft blue light burned where eyes should be.
The figure did not move. Did not speak. It simply stood, blocking the path, the lantern light casting long, dancing shadows that seemed to cling to Kenji's skin.
Rina took a step forward. "We seek the Kharman Witch."
The glowing eyes shifted from her to Kenji. A low, rustling voice, like dry leaves scraping stone, filled the silence.
"Men are forbidden."