Elara emerged from the Trial chamber with the Moonstone clutched in her hand. Its silver-blue glow pulsed in rhythm with her heartbeat. The Keepers bowed as she approached, but it was Kael's expression that rooted her.
Pride. Relief. Love.
"You did it," he said, arms already pulling her into his chest.
"I faced her," Elara whispered against him. "The part of me I was most afraid of. And I won."
Kael stepped back, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "No. We won. You just proved to the Moon and stars that your fire was never meant to destroy — it was always meant to protect."
The Keepers approached with solemn expressions. "The Moonstone is bound to your soul now, Flameborn. But its power will draw many eyes. Vael will feel it."
"He already knows," Elara murmured, the stone warming in her hand. "We don't have much time."
They set out immediately, descending the mountain path that wound through the Hollow Peaks. Fog clung to the rocks like grasping fingers, and the wind carried a low, mournful howl.
As they approached the mountain pass, Kael suddenly froze. His eyes narrowed.
"Elara. Something's wrong."
They weren't alone.
From the shadows emerged figures — cloaked in tattered robes, their faces hidden beneath bone masks. Their scent was wrong, tainted. Not wolves… not truly. Elara's pulse quickened.
"Voidborn," she whispered. "The cursed remnants."
One of them hissed. "The Moonstone belongs to the shadows now. Hand it over."
Kael stepped forward, claws unsheathing. "You'll have to tear it from her corpse."
The first strike came fast — dark magic that cracked the stones beneath their feet. Kael met it midair, steel flashing. Elara threw out her arm, flames arcing like spears, driving the creatures back.
"We can't fight them all," she growled. "Not here."
Kael grabbed her hand. "Then we run. Now."
They bolted through the pass, dodging blasts of corrupted energy. The Moonstone pulsed with power in her grip, sensing danger, hunger. Just before they reached the other side, Elara turned, flames spinning from her fingers.
With a scream, she sent a wall of fire hurtling down the pass, sealing it behind them.
For now.
But the war had begun.