Chapter 10: The Watcher in the Distance

The figure stood at the edge of the horizon, unmoving yet undeniably present.

It wasn't a mirage, nor a trick of the shifting sands.

It was real, and it was watching.

"Who… or what is that?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Lira didn't answer immediately.

Her eyes narrowed as she studied the distant silhouette, her hand tightening around her blade.

"I don't know. But it's not here to welcome us."

A chill ran through me, far colder than the desert wind.

The shards in my hand began to pulse erratically, their energy fluctuating as if in response to the figure.

Each pulse sent a wave of unease through my chest.

"Kay," Lira said firmly, snapping me out of my trance. "We need to move. Now."

We left the ruins behind, but the figure remained a constant presence, trailing us without ever drawing closer.

No matter how fast we moved or how far we ran, it stayed within sight, like a shadow tethered to our steps.

"It's following us," I said, glancing over my shoulder.

Lira frowned.

"It doesn't seem to be attacking. Maybe it's waiting for something."

"For what?"

She didn't answer.

The shards grew heavier in my grasp, their light dimming and flickering as though they were struggling against an unseen force.

The visions began soon after, fragmented images flashing before my eyes.

A broken sky.

A world torn apart.

A figure holding the shards aloft, their features obscured.

I stumbled, clutching my head.

The visions left me dizzy and disoriented, my breathing ragged.

"Kay, are you okay?" Lira's voice cut through the haze.

"I… I don't know," I admitted, shaking my head to clear the lingering images. "The shards… they're trying to tell me something."

Lira's expression darkened.

"Or someone is using them to get to you."

The wasteland stretched endlessly before us, the ground cracked and barren.

The air grew heavier with each step, as though the figure's presence was pressing down on the world itself.

Suddenly, the figure moved, not toward us, but around us, flickering in and out of view like a phantom.

"Stay close," Lira ordered, drawing her blade.

I did as she said, my heart pounding.

The figure appeared again, this time closer.

Its form was cloaked, featureless, but its presence was overwhelming.

"I'll confront it," Lira said, taking a step forward.

"Wait—" I reached out, but she was already moving.

She approached the figure cautiously, her blade at the ready.

But before she could get too close, it vanished, reappearing farther away.

"It's toying with us," she muttered, returning to my side. "Whatever it is, it doesn't want a direct fight."

The ground beneath my feet shifted suddenly, and I was no longer in the wasteland.

I stood in a memory, a scene from my past that I had buried deep.

A younger version of myself knelt in the dirt, his face streaked with tears.

The dreamscape around him was crumbling, the world he had built in his mind falling apart.

I remembered this moment vividly.

The day I failed to save someone I cared about.

"Why did you give up?" The words came from behind me, cold and accusatory.

I turned to see the figure, now standing within my memory.

Its voice wasn't a sound but a sensation, like a knife cutting through my thoughts.

"You carry the shards, but you're weak. You couldn't even save one person. How can you hope to save Elysia?"

The words struck deep, dredging up old guilt.

I couldn't respond.

"Kay!"

Lira's voice broke through the illusion, yanking me back to reality.

I gasped, realizing I was kneeling in the wasteland, the shards glowing violently in my hands.

The figure stood closer now, its presence suffocating.

It extended an arm, pointing directly at me.

The ground around us began to twist and crack, the landscape warping into a chaotic battleground.

The shards flared in my grasp, their energy wild and untamed.

I felt their power surging through me, but it was too much to control.

"Kay, focus!" Lira shouted, fending off debris as the ground beneath us shifted.

"I'm trying!" I yelled back, gripping the shards tightly.

The figure didn't move, but its influence was undeniable.

The environment continued to collapse, and I felt my strength fading.

Desperate, I channeled the shards' energy, directing it toward the figure.

A shockwave erupted, momentarily pushing it back.

"Now!" Lira grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the edge of the battleground.

The shards' energy surged again, enveloping us in light.

When it faded, we were no longer in the wasteland.

We stood in a vast forest of crystalline trees, their branches glimmering like glass.

The air was cool and still, a stark contrast to the chaos we had just escaped.

"What just happened?" I asked, my voice trembling.

"The shards transported us," Lira said, scanning the new environment. "But it wasn't intentional. That energy… it's unstable."

I looked down at the shards in my hands.

They were dim now, their light flickering weakly.

My body ached, and I could feel the toll they were taking on me.

Lira's gaze shifted, her expression tense. "Kay… we're not alone."

I followed her line of sight and froze.

The figure was there, standing at the edge of the forest.

It didn't move, but its presence was undeniable, its gaze piercing even from a distance.

"It's not done with us," I whispered.

Lira's grip on her blade tightened. "No. It's not."