Chapter 5: Whispers in the Light

Liam stood with the fragment in his hand, its glow dimming as if catching its breath. The warmth from earlier faded, replaced by a sharp chill that crawled up his spine. The others were talking, catching their breath, but Liam could barely hear them.

A voice — soft, almost loving — echoed inside his head.

"Return us… complete us… awaken what was lost…"

He blinked, shaking his head. "Did anyone hear that?"

"Hear what?" Aeris turned sharply, hand instinctively drifting toward her weapon.

Liam didn't answer. The voice was gone. But the feeling it left behind — like fingers brushing the back of his neck — remained.

Nyra was still seated on the grass, her fire-cat summon lazily curling around her. "Probably just the aftershock of using power for the first time. Trust me, the first time I summoned, I hallucinated that a goat gave me relationship advice."

Kael, who had just finished wrapping a wound on his arm, raised a brow. "That… explains a lot."

They all chuckled. All but Liam.

Something about the fragment unsettled him now. He tucked it safely inside the pouch Aeris gave him earlier. As soon as it was out of sight, the whispers vanished — but the unease lingered.

They set up camp near a quiet stream outside the Glassroot Wilds. The stars blinked overhead like distant watchers, silent and uncaring. Aeris sat on a rock sharpening her blade, eyes darting toward Liam every so often. Kael stood nearby, running slow practice swings with his wind-blade, focused but clearly on edge.

Nyra was crouched by the fire, sketching something in a tattered notebook. Mog was asleep, curled up on Liam's cloak.

Liam sat alone, the gentle hum of the fragment still vibrating faintly in his pouch. His hands wouldn't stop shaking.

He could still feel it — the power. Raw, untrained, and coiled like a storm behind his ribs.

"Why do I feel like I'm about to break?" he murmured.

"You're not broken," Aeris said quietly, stepping over to him. "You're awakening. That's worse."

She sat beside him, offering a small flask. "Water. Don't worry, it's not cursed. Probably."

Liam drank. "You've seen this before?"

"I've been this before. The first time my magic surged, I nearly collapsed an entire riverbank. Power doesn't care if you're ready. It just demands."

He looked down at his trembling hands. "What if I lose control? What if I hurt one of you?"

Aeris leaned closer, eyes sharp. "Then you fight it. Or we fight you. That's the deal."

That didn't sound very comforting.

Nyra joined them, stretching her arms overhead. "So, next step: the Fragment of Echoes in the Ruins of Telmira?"

Kael returned from training and sat down. "If the legends are right, the next guardian doesn't just protect the fragment — it tests the bearer's mind."

"Oh good," Liam muttered. "Because the one whispering in my head definitely passed that vibe check."

Aeris tensed. "It spoke to you again?"

"No, just… before. It said… something about awakening what was lost."

Silence fell. Nyra and Kael exchanged worried glances.

Mog stirred from the cloak and hopped into Liam's lap, glowing faintly. His tiny voice echoed in Liam's mind:

"You carry not just the book's key… but its memory. Be wary. It remembers pain."

Liam stared at him. "You can talk?!"

"Only when you stop talking long enough to listen."

Mog hopped off and waddled toward the fire, leaving Liam stunned.

Kael chuckled. "We've all been ignoring the talking frog this whole time?"

But Aeris didn't laugh.

She stood and walked to the edge of the clearing, her expression unreadable. Her fingers grazed her earring — the tiny crystal she often touched when she thought no one was looking.

She whispered so quietly, only the wind heard.

"Is this really him? After all these years…?"

Later that night…

Liam couldn't sleep.

He wandered toward the stream, hoping the cool water would clear his head. Instead, he found himself staring at his reflection — and for a moment, the face looking back wasn't his.

It was older. Wiser. Wounded.

With glowing eyes.

He stumbled back.

Suddenly, shadows twisted behind the trees.

From the darkness emerged a figure — tall, cloaked, and humming an eerie tune.

Liam's instincts flared, but before he could move, the figure raised a hand.

"You're not ready," the figure said in a hollow voice.

"Who are you?"

"A whisper. A guide. A warning."

Liam stepped forward. "What do you mean I'm not ready?"

The figure turned, revealing nothing but shifting mist beneath its hood.

"The next fragment will break you, Liam Gray. If you are not strong enough, you will become what you fear."

Before Liam could ask more, the figure vanished — dissolving into the wind like a bad dream.

He ran back to camp, heart racing.

But he didn't tell anyone.

Elsewhere… far away in the depths of the realm

A twisted throne of bones and molten roots sat in the heart of a ruined palace.

The true enemy — cloaked in shadows, with eyes like hollow moons — stared at a mirror of black glass.

The face within showed Liam, alone by the stream.

Behind Nytherion stood a new presence — one of his newly awakened allies: a woman with void-black wings and a mask carved from obsidian.

"The boy has touched the first fragment," the monster hissed. "It has begun."

The woman knelt. "Shall I test him?"

"Not yet. Let him stumble. Let him question… and break."

His voice lowered into a growl.

"The book will not awaken until he suffers."