The words Lyra read from the old book hung in the air between them. "A living key." Tayo looked at the drawing of the Primeator's son again, then at his own hands. Was it true? Was he, Tayo, the reincarnation of that son, truly a key to something powerful? The idea felt strange and heavy, like carrying a stone in his chest.
"What does it mean?" Tayo asked, his voice quiet. "A key to what? To the wild energy? To... something from the time before?"
Lyra looked at the old book, her brow furrowed in thought. "My family's stories say that after the shattering, many things were lost or hidden," she said. "The Mind broke, the world changed, and the energy became chaotic. Maybe the Primeator and Nuwa made a way to bring something back, or to fix something. And maybe their son was the only one who could start it." She looked back at Tayo. "If you are that key... and the city's watchers are looking... they might know what the key is for. Or they might just want to stop anyone from using the wild energy at all."
The peaceful grove suddenly felt very small and exposed. The sounds of the garden, which usually felt comforting, now seemed too loud, as if they could hide the approach of someone listening. They remembered the cold, hard energy of the watchers Tayo had sensed. They were looking. And now Tayo knew why they might be looking for someone like him.
"We can't just keep meeting here," Tayo said, looking around nervously. "If they are watching the gardens... they might have seen us already. Or they will find this place."
Lyra nodded, her expression serious. "You're right. It's too risky now. My home is not far from here, but it's not safe for you to come there openly. The city's influence reaches many places." She thought for a moment. "The book doesn't say what the key unlocks. We need to find out more. And we need to be very, very careful."
Tayo felt a new kind of fear, different from the boredom or disconnect he felt in his rich house. This was real danger. His life had suddenly become like the Wuxia novels he used to read, full of hidden powers, ancient secrets, and people who wanted to stop the hero. But this wasn't a story he was just reading; he was the main character, and the danger was real.
"What do we do now?" Tayo asked.
Lyra carefully closed the old book, holding it tight. "We have to be smart," she said. "We can't face the city's watchers directly, not yet. Your power is growing, but it's still a secret. And we don't know what they truly want. For now, we must stop meeting here. We need to find a safer way to talk, to learn more from this book, and to understand what being the 'living key' truly means. Your life in the House of Solaris might be your best hiding place for now, even if it feels like a prison."
Tayo looked back at the path leading towards the large house. It felt even more like a cage now, but perhaps a necessary one. The wildness he had found with Lyra had brought not just understanding and power, but also a great danger. Their secret journey into the past had just become a race for survival.