Somewhere deeper along the edge of the woods;
Where the mist refused to thin;
General Darius Vorn moved ahead of his men.
Slower now.
More deliberate.
His boots pressed into damp earth, each step measured, controlled.
"Spread out," he ordered quietly. "Stay within sight."
Torches lifted.
Light flickered across bark and twisted roots, shadows stretching long and uneven across the ground.
"…Frauner!" a soldier called out.
The name carried;
Then broke;
Swallowed by the mist.
"…Mauris!" another voice followed.
No answer.
Only the faint whisper of wind moving through the trees.
Darius stepped forward, scanning through the haze, his gaze cutting through every shadow, every shape that looked almost human;
But wasn't.
"Frauner!" he called.
His voice echoed stronger.
Sharper.
Yet beneath it;
Something strained.
Waiting.
Silence answered.
A pause.
Then again;
"…Mauris!"
The men followed.
Calling.
Again.
And again.
Names rising into the forest;
Only to return as broken echoes.
"Answer us!"
Nothing.
No movement.
No voice.
No sign.
Darius stopped for a brief moment, his breathing steady but heavy, his grip tightening slightly at his side.
"…keep calling," he said quietly.
And they did.
Voices layered over one another;
Fading into the mist;
Until even sound itself seemed to disappear.
And still;
No one answered.
.....................
Beyond the trees;
At the border;
A wooden cart waited.
Two horses shifted restlessly at the front, their breath visible in the cold air, hooves scraping softly against the ground. The wheels creaked as weight settled.
Leah sat at the back.
Wrapped in cloth.
Still.
Her body leaned slightly to one side, supported by rough wooden planks and the slow rhythm of movement beneath her. Across from her;
Uncle Garron sat in silence.
The cart began to move.
Slow at first.
Then steady.
Wood creaked.
Wheels turned.
The forest behind them began to pull away;
But not from her.
Leah's eyes stayed fixed on it.
Unblinking.
As if something inside her refused to leave.
The trees stood there.
Watching.
The mist lingered.
Unchanged.
As if nothing had happened at all.
"…Frauner…" she whispered.
The name barely left her lips.
It broke halfway through.
No answer came.
Only wind brushing past the cart as it rolled forward.
Garron heard it.
He didn't respond.
Couldn't.
His hands rested against his knees, fingers curled slightly, his gaze lowered; not to the ground, but somewhere deeper. His thoughts were elsewhere.
On Thalia.
On what Valen had said.
Her body alive;
Her soul gone.
Trapped.
Somewhere unreachable.
His jaw tightened.
How do you bring someone back from a place you cannot enter?
How do you fight something you cannot see?
The cart jolted slightly as it rolled over uneven ground.
Neither reacted.
Silence filled the space between them.
Heavy.
Not empty.
Leah's fingers twitched faintly against the cloth around her.
Her mind moved;
Not forward;
Back.
Flashes.
Blood.
Screams.
Faces twisting in pain;
Accusing.
Blaming.
Her breath caught slightly.
Then steadied again.
She didn't cry.
Didn't move.
Just sat there;
Caught between what she saw…
And what she felt.
Garron glanced up once.
Toward her.
His expression softened for just a second.
Then hardened again.
Because he had no answers.
Only responsibility.
Only what came next.
The horses continued forward.
Step by step.
Pulling the cart away from the forest;
Toward the kingdom.
Behind them;
The mist remained.
Unmoved.
Unchanged.
As if it hadn't taken anything at all.
And inside the cart;
Two survivors sat in silence;
Carrying grief neither of them knew how to speak.
The cart creaked as it rolled forward.
Wheels grinding softly against uneven ground.
Horses pulling;
Steady.
Unaware.
Leah sat at the back, her body swaying faintly with each movement. Across from her, Uncle Garron remained silent, his thoughts buried deep, his eyes distant.
Leah's gaze slowly dropped.
Her eyelids heavy.
Just for a moment;
She let them close.
Darkness.
Immediate.
Not gentle.
Not restful.
It pressed in.
Thick.
Alive.
A faint pulse moved through it;
Slow.
Deliberate.
Then......
A voice.
"…you felt me… didn't you…?"
Leah's breath caught.
Her body stilled.
"…in there…"
The darkness shifted slightly.
Not forming;
Just… watching.
"…when everything broke…"
A flicker;
Voices;
Blood;
Screams;
Her fingers twitched in the cart.
"…that fear…"
A low, almost pleased tone slipped through.
"…it was real…"
Leah tried to move.
Tried to open her eyes;
Nothing responded.
"…and you touched it…"
Closer now.
The voice felt nearer;
Too near.
"…you reached where you shouldn't…"
The darkness pulsed again.
Heavier.
"…little spark…"
The words lingered.
"…I can see you now…"
A faint pressure brushed against her;
Not physical;
Something deeper.
"…and you can feel me…"
Leah forced a thought.
A push.
"No…"
Barely a whisper.
But there.
The voice paused.
Then.....
A faint shift.
Not anger.
Interest.
"…good…"
A slow, dragging tone.
"…hold on to that…"
The darkness leaned closer;
Or folded inward.
"…it makes the next time better…"
A pause.
Then...
Soft.
Right beside her.
"…I'll be waiting…"
Leah's eyes snapped open.
A sharp gasp tore through her chest.
The cart still moved.
The world still real.
But her hands....
Wouldn't stop trembling.
.......................
Far in the kingdom that lost its light;
The chamber was quiet.
Too quiet.
Heavy curtains softened the light, letting only a dim glow fall across the bed where Prince Damian lay.
Still.
Breathing
But weak.
At his side;
Queen Elira sat close, her hand gently resting over his. Her fingers traced faint, slow patterns against his skin, as if grounding herself in the simple fact that he was alive.
Beside her;
King Alric stood.
Silent.
Watching.
The rise and fall of Damian's chest.
Counting each breath without meaning to.
"He's warmer today," Elira whispered.
Not looking away.
Not letting go.
Alric gave a small nod.
"Yes."
A pause.
"…the healers said the same."
Her fingers tightened slightly around Damian's hand.
"As long as he breathes…"
She didn't finish.
Didn't need to.
Alric's gaze drifted briefly toward the window.
Toward the distant horizon;
Toward the forest they could not see from here;
But could not stop thinking about.
"They'll return," he said quietly.
Elira looked up at him.
"…Leah was with them," she said.
Soft.
Fragile.
Alric didn't answer immediately.
"They know how to survive," he said at last.
But even he didn't sound fully convinced.
Elira lowered her gaze again.
"…she tries to be strong," she whispered. "…but she is still our daughter."
Silence followed.
Then...
A breath.
Different.
Uneven.
Both of them turned instantly.
Damian's fingers twitched faintly beneath Elira's hand.
A shallow inhale;
Then a weak, strained exhale.
His brows tightened slightly.
"…mm…"
A faint sound escaped him.
Barely a voice.
Elira leaned forward immediately.
"Damian…?"
His eyes shifted beneath closed lids.
Struggling.
Heavy.
Then.....
Slowly;
They opened.
Just slightly.
Unfocused at first.
Light hurting.
"…mother…?" he murmured weakly.
His voice was dry.
Broken.
But there.
Alive.
Elira's breath caught.
"I'm here," she whispered, gripping his hand tighter. "I'm here…"
Damian's gaze drifted;
Trying to focus;
Trying to understand.
"…where…?"
"You're safe," Alric said quietly, stepping closer. "In the palace."
Damian blinked slowly.
His breathing uneven.
Then...
His expression changed.
Not pain.
Something else.
Memory.
"…Leah…" he whispered.
The name came out strained.
Urgent.
Elira froze slightly.
"…she"
Damian tried to move.
Failed.
His hand tightened weakly in hers.
"…the forest…" he forced out. "…don't let her…"
His voice broke.
His eyes flickered with something close to fear.
"…it's not"
The words faltered.
His strength slipped.
His eyes closed again.
Breath uneven.
Fading back into weakness.
"Damian!" Elira called softly, panic rising.
But he didn't respond.
Only the steady;
Fragile.
Rhythm of breath remained.
Silence returned.
But it wasn't the same.
Alric stood still, his gaze fixed on his son.
On the words left unfinished.
On the warning that hadn't fully formed.
"…the forest…" he repeated under his breath.
..........................
The forest grew darker the deeper they went.
Not just from the fading light.
But from something else.
Something thicker.
Heavier.
The mist clung lower here, curling around roots and broken ground, swallowing sound before it could travel far.
Valen slowed slightly.
Then...
Drew his sword.
A quiet breath left him as his fingers tightened around the hilt.
A whisper followed.
A spell.
"Lumen… awaken."
The blade responded.
Light spilled along its edge.
Soft at first.
Then brighter.
A steady, pale glow that pushed back the darkness just enough to see the path ahead.
Shadows recoiled.
But didn't disappear.
Zyra walked beside him, her steps light, almost careless compared to the weight of the forest around them.
Her eyes moved constantly.
Watching.
Listening.
"…so," Valen said after a moment, his voice low.
"Frauner."
A pause.
"Do you think he's alive?"
Zyra didn't answer immediately.
Her gaze shifted slightly into the distance.
As if she was trying to feel something beyond sight.
"…I don't know," she admitted.
Unusual.
Honest.
"But…"
A small shift in her tone.
"We can try to track him."
Valen nodded once.
That was enough.
A few more steps passed in silence before he spoke again.
"…and the Demon Queen?"
Zyra's lips curved slightly.
Not fear.
Not concern.
Something closer to amusement.
"…we kill her."
Simple.
Casual.
As if she were talking about something far less dangerous.
Valen glanced at her.
A long look.
"…yeah."
A beat.
"…yeah."
"Do you actually think we can?"
Zyra stopped walking for a second.
Turned toward him.
A slow smile forming.
"That's why I have you," she said lightly, tapping his arm with one finger. "So I don't have to worry."
Valen stared at her.
Unimpressed.
Unmoved.
"…I see."
She grinned wider.
"Exactly."
Then she turned again, continuing forward like nothing had been said.
"Let's not worry about that now," she added, waving a hand dismissively. "Big scary queen can wait."
A brief pause.
"Let's find princess sweatheart first."
Valen " ????"
" Come on! Don't say you couldn't realise it"
" You should have heard how her heart was beating every time she think about Frauner"
" Ok fine fine... Let's focuss on finding him first; then we can worry about his love life."
Valen adjusted his grip on the glowing blade.
The light cut a narrow path through the darkness.
And together....
They moved deeper.
Into a forest that had not finished with them yet.
..............................
The forest closed around them.
Not with sound;
But with presence.
The light from Valen's blade stretched thin against the darkness, carving only a narrow path forward. Beyond it;
Endless shadow.
Unmoving.
Watching.
Zyra moved ahead, quieter now, her earlier playfulness dimmed into focus. Her eyes traced paths unseen, reading the forest like a living thing.
They didn't speak again.
Not about Frauner.
Not about the Demon Queen.
Because now;
They felt it.
Something had shifted.
Not ended.
Shifted.
Far behind them.
The kingdom breathed in fragments.
Leah sat in silence, carrying something she couldn't name.
Uncle Garron carried questions he could not answer.
General Darius Vorn searched a forest that gave nothing back.
And within stone walls;
King Alric waited.
For news.
For hope.
For something that might still be saved.
Between worlds;
A presence stirred.
Not whole.
Not gone.
Awake.
The forest did not forget.
The abyss did not close.
What had been bound;
Had not fully broken.
Two paths had begun that day.
One;
Toward home.
Heavy with grief.
The other;
Into darkness.
Chasing something that might still be alive.
Or already lost.
And somewhere....
In the quiet space between a heartbeat and a thought;
A voice lingered.
Waiting.
Listening.
Smiling.
This was not the end.
It was the beginning.
End of Volume I