Chapter 17: Shadows in the Threads

The air around the Loom felt heavier than usual. Mira stood before it, her fingers trembling as she traced the faint hum of its threads. The rogue thread gleamed faintly, its glow unsettling, as though it pulsed with a heartbeat of its own.

Elias shifted uncomfortably behind her. "You've been staring at that thing for hours. What are we waiting for?"

"We don't act without understanding," Mira replied sharply. She hadn't meant to snap, but the weight of the rogue thread's presence was pressing down on her. "The Loom doesn't make mistakes, but this… this is something I've never seen before."

Elias stepped closer, his expression softening. "And maybe it's a message. Something it's trying to tell us."

"No." Mira's voice was resolute, but inside, doubt gnawed at her. "Messages from the Loom don't feel this… wrong."

The Vision Returns

When Mira brushed her fingers against the rogue thread earlier, the vision had been overwhelming—a glimpse into chaos that left her trembling. Now, standing so close, she felt the pull again, stronger this time, as though it recognized her presence.

She closed her eyes, resisting the urge to touch it again. But the memory of the vision flooded her mind:

The Figure: A being bound within the Loom, fragmented and shifting, its voice calling her name.

The World Unraveling: Towns swallowed by the earth, skies bleeding red, and an ominous black void spreading across the land.

Her Own Face: Reflected in the threads, her eyes dark with power, and her voice echoing in a language she didn't recognize.

"It's trying to warn me," she whispered. "But I don't know what it's warning me about."

Elias frowned. "Then let me try. Maybe I can—"

"No!" Mira's voice cracked like a whip. "You don't understand what you're asking. If you touch it, the Loom might reject you, or worse… it could destroy you."

The silence between them was thick, broken only by the faint hum of the rogue thread.

The Loom's Unstable Influence

Over the next few hours, strange phenomena began to ripple through the village near the Loom's sanctuary:

The Sky: The colors shifted unnaturally, clouds swirling in patterns that defied logic.

The People: Villagers reported strange dreams, hearing whispers in their sleep, and waking up with fleeting memories of places they'd never been.

Nature: Crops began to wilt and grow simultaneously, flowers blooming and decaying within moments.

Mira watched from the sanctuary's balcony as the chaos spread. "The Loom is bleeding into the world," she said quietly. "If we don't stop this, it will unravel everything."

Elias joined her, his gaze fixed on the horizon. "Then we need answers. And that thread is the only clue we've got."

---

The Forgotten Keeper Appears

That night, Mira dreamt—or perhaps she didn't. She found herself standing in the heart of the Loom, the threads glowing softly around her. The rogue thread loomed larger than before, its light pulsating ominously.

"You've already felt it, haven't you?"

The voice came from behind her, echoing strangely. Mira spun around to see a figure cloaked in shadow, its form shifting like smoke. Its eyes glowed faintly, and its voice was a haunting blend of desperation and menace.

"Who are you?" Mira demanded, summoning all her courage. "What do you want?"

The figure chuckled darkly. "I am what remains of those who dared to rewrite destiny. A Keeper like you, once, but now… something else."

"What happened to you?" she asked, her voice softening despite herself.

"I touched what should not be touched," the figure replied. "I sought to change the Loom, to rewrite its threads, but the Loom does not forgive. It bound me here, neither alive nor dead, to witness the unraveling of what I once tried to save."

Mira felt her stomach drop. "The rogue thread… it's you."

"Not entirely," the figure said, stepping closer. "But it is part of me—a fragment of my will that escaped the Loom's grasp. It calls to you because it knows you are afraid. But beware… if you attempt to sever it, the price may be greater than you can bear."

Before Mira could respond, the figure dissolved into shadow, and she woke with a

Start.

Mira bolted upright, sweat dripping down her temples. The Loom's hum was louder than ever, and she realized Elias was no longer in the room.

Heart pounding, she rushed to the Loom's chamber, where she found Elias standing before the rogue thread.

"It's calling to me," he said, his voice distant and hypnotized.

Mira's breath caught. "Elias, step away. Now."

He turned to look at her, his eyes glowing faintly with the same ominous light as the thread.