In the following days, Caelara and Ashen traveled through dense forests and across barren plains, making their way toward the Briarlands. The Thorn King—a figure cloaked in mystery and immortal through ancient magic—was their only hope to change Ashen's fate.
The Briarlands were a dark, unwelcoming place, shrouded in perpetual twilight. Twisted trees rose like skeletal hands from the earth, their branches bearing thorns as sharp as daggers. The air was thick with the scent of decay, and the ground beneath their feet seemed to pulse with a life of its own.
"We're close," Caelara murmured, her eyes scanning the horizon. "The Thorn King's domain lies just beyond the Darkwood. He will help us, but we must pay the price."
Ashen's eyes flickered with unease. "What price?"
"A memory," she said quietly. "One you cherish most. The Thorn King deals in memories, and to bargain with him, you must offer something precious."
They reached the edge of the Darkwood just as twilight fell, and there, among the twisted trees, stood a towering figure draped in vines and thorns. His face was half-hidden by a crown of jagged black thorns, his eyes glowing with an otherworldly light.
The Thorn King spoke, his voice like the rustling of leaves. "Caelara, Last Oracle. You come seeking my aid. What do you offer in return?"
"I offer my most cherished memory," Caelara said, her voice steady despite the storm raging inside her.
The Thorn King's lips curled into a smile. "Very well. What memory do you offer?"
Caelara hesitated. The memory of her first vision, the one that had set her on the path of prophecy, was the one she loved most. It was a moment of clarity, a moment where everything had made sense. But in exchange for Ashen's future, it was a memory she would have to relinquish.
Her hand trembled as she reached for it, the fading memory slipping from her grasp like sand through her fingers.
The Thorn King nodded solemnly. "Done. Now, you shall have what you seek."
With a flick of his hand, a powerful surge of magic enveloped them, and the path ahead became clear.