Chapter Thirty-Four – The Children of the Lost Temple

Their eyes glowed like candlelight through fog—dozens of them, barely more than children, yet marked by the same ancient symbols that burned faintly beneath my skin. The girl who stood at their front couldn't have been more than twelve, but the weight of centuries echoed in her voice.

"You say you don't want to destroy," she repeated. "But magic like yours never walks quietly."

I didn't answer right away. I couldn't.

Something inside me shifted—like a thread tightening against a needle's pull. These weren't enemies. Not yet. But they were frightened. Trained. Bound to a purpose just like I was.

Kael stepped forward. "She hasn't broken the Weave. If anything, she's restored what was buried. Don't you feel it?"

"We feel everything," said the girl, her pale hair brushing her shoulders. "Every time she breathes, the world listens. Every time she dreams, the Tapestry trembles."

That silenced even Kael.

"I'm sorry," I said finally, stepping forward. "I didn't ask for this. I didn't even know what I was until a few weeks ago. But I'm trying to understand. I'm trying to do what's right."

"You sound like the last one," the girl said bitterly.

"The last what?"

"The last Threadbearer who awakened the First. He tried to wield it, too. Said he could fix the world. But he broke it instead. Cities fell. The skies turned black. He lost himself."

I felt my blood chill. "When was that?"

"Four hundred years ago. We buried what was left of him in a tomb of silver. And we swore to never let it happen again."

Kael whispered, "That's the story of the Burning of Elareth..."

The girl nodded. "He was the First. You are the Second."

Riven's hand tightened on his sword hilt. "We're not going to let you touch her."

"You think we want to hurt her?" The girl's voice cracked. "We're here to protect her from herself. And from those who will use her power to bring the world to its knees."

A gust of wind stirred the trees, scattering leaves like ash across the forest floor.

"I don't want to be a weapon," I said. "But I won't be locked away like a curse either."

The girl looked at me for a long time, then nodded once, slowly. "Then come with us to the Hollow Temple. Learn what your magic truly is. Meet the Elders. We'll decide—together—what your path should be."

"And if I say no?"

She blinked. "Then you'll face what every chosen one before you did… alone."