The dagger remained on
the table.
Cold.
Still.
Unassuming.
But its presence changed
the room.
Elira could feel it.
Even after Cassian left,
the air hadn't returned to normal. It lingered—tight, alert, as if something
invisible had been disturbed.
She stood quietly for a
moment, her gaze resting on the blade.
"…So this is what it
looks like," she murmured.
Not power.
Not yet.
But the beginning of it.
Her fingers twitched
slightly, as if remembering the weight of it in her hand.
Then—
A sound.
Soft.
Unsteady.
Elira turned instantly.
Kael.
He was awake.
But not calm.
His small body shifted
restlessly against the blankets, his tiny hands curling and uncurling as if
grasping at something unseen.
His breathing—
Uneven.
Again.
Elira's chest tightened.
"…Not now."
She moved quickly to his
side, kneeling beside the cradle.
"It's okay," she
whispered softly. "You're safe."
But the words didn't
reach him.
Kael's eyes were open—
Dark.
Too dark.
And fixed—
Not on her.
But past her.
Toward the table.
Toward the dagger.
Elira froze.
He was staring at it.
No.
Not just staring—
Reacting.
The air shifted.
Subtle at first.
Then—
Cold.
The same cold as
before.
But stronger.
Heavier.
The candle flames
flickered violently, their light bending as if pulled toward something unseen.
"…Kael," Elira
whispered, her voice tightening slightly.
His fingers curled
sharply.
And the shadows—
Moved.
Not gently.
Not slowly.
They stretched across
the floor, darker than before, thicker, as if the light itself was being
swallowed.
And all of it—
Pointed toward the
dagger.
Elira's breath caught.
"…You don't like it."
Or—
You're responding to
it.
Kael let out a soft,
broken sound—half cry, half something else entirely.
The pressure in the
room intensified.
The shadows twisted
upward—
Reaching.
Hungry.
Elira didn't hesitate.
She moved instantly,
grabbing the dagger from the table and stepping back.
"Look at me," she said
sharply.
For a split second—
Nothing happened.
Then—
Kael's gaze shifted.
Slowly.
From the dagger—
To her.
The shadows stilled.
But they didn't
disappear.
They lingered.
Waiting.
Watching.
Elira held the dagger
tightly in her small hand, her heart pounding.
"…It's just me," she
said softly now.
A contrast to her
earlier command.
Gentler.
Grounding.
"You're okay."
Kael's breathing
faltered.
His fingers loosened
slightly.
But the air remained
heavy.
Unstable.
Elira swallowed.
Then—
Carefully—
She lowered the dagger.
Not toward him.
Not threatening.
Just—
Down.
Out of sight.
The shadows twitched.
For a moment, it felt
like they might surge again—
But then—
They receded.
Slowly.
Reluctantly.
Like something being
pulled back.
Kael's body relaxed.
The tension drained
from his small frame, his breathing evening out as his eyes fluttered.
And just like that—
He went still.
The room returned to
silence.
But not the same
silence.
This one—
Carried meaning.
Elira stood there for a
long moment, the dagger still in her hand.
Her fingers trembled
slightly.
"…It's reacting," she
whispered.
Not random.
Not uncontrolled.
Reactive.
To threat.
To intent.
To something deeper
than simple magic.
Her gaze dropped to
Kael.
Sleeping again.
As if nothing had
happened.
"…You're not just
dangerous," she murmured.
A pause.
Her eyes sharpened
slightly.
"You're aware."
That thought—
Was far more terrifying
than anything else.
A knock came at the
door.
Quick.
Controlled.
"Enter."
Cassian stepped inside
immediately, his gaze sharp.
"I felt it," he said.
Of course he did.
Elira didn't deny it.
"…He reacted."
Cassian's eyes moved to
the dagger in her hand.
Then to Kael.
"…To that?"
Elira nodded.
"Yes."
Silence.
Cassian stepped closer,
his presence cautious now—not toward Elira, but toward the cradle.
"…Weapons trigger him,"
he said quietly.
Elira tightened her
grip on the dagger.
"Not just weapons," she
corrected.
A pause.
"…Intent."
Cassian glanced at her.
Elira continued.
"When I picked it up
before, nothing happened," she said. "But just now—"
Her gaze lowered
slightly.
"I was thinking about
using it."
Silence.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
Cassian understood
immediately.
"…So he responded to
your thoughts."
Elira nodded slowly.
"Yes."
The implication settled
between them.
Dangerous.
Unpredictable.
Powerful.
Cassian exhaled
quietly.
"…That's not normal."
Elira gave a faint,
almost dry look.
"That's becoming a
pattern."
A brief pause.
Then—
Cassian's expression
hardened.
"This cannot be seen
again."
Not a suggestion.
A necessity.
Elira looked down at
Kael.
"…It won't be."
A promise.
Or a challenge.
Cassian studied her.
"…Can you control it?"
Elira didn't answer
immediately.
Instead—
She placed the dagger
back on the table.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
Then—
She turned back to
Kael, her hand gently wrapping around his small fingers.
The shadows didn't
move.
The air remained still.
"…Not yet," she said
quietly.
A pause.
Her grip tightened
slightly.
"But I will."
Silence.
Cassian nodded once.
"…Then we train
faster."
He turned toward the
door.
But stopped.
"…And we remove
anything that might trigger him."
Elira glanced at the
dagger.
Then back at Kael.
"…No."
Cassian frowned
slightly.
"Elira—"
"If we hide
everything," she interrupted softly, "he'll never learn."
A pause.
Her eyes hardened.
"…And when it happens
again outside this room…"
She didn't finish.
She didn't need to.
Cassian exhaled slowly.
Then—
"…Fine."
Reluctant.
But accepting.
"Then we control the
environment."
Elira nodded.
"Yes."
Because now—
It wasn't just about
hiding Kael's power.
It was about
understanding it.
Before it destroyed
everything around him.
That night—
As the palace slept—
Elira sat awake beside
the cradle.
Watching.
Thinking.
Planning.
Her fingers gently held
Kael's hand.
Warm.
Alive.
Unstable.
"…We're running out of
time," she whispered.
Because now—
The danger wasn't just
outside anymore.
It was growing—
Right beside her.