I sat frozen, my mother's words echoing in my mind.
A child of the sky.
A Taidyain.
From Taidya.
The name felt familiar, like something I had always known but never quite remembered.
I swallowed hard. "Taidya… that's the place from your stories, isn't it? The kingdom where darkness can't reach?"
She nodded, her silver eyes—eyes just like mine—filled with something I couldn't quite name. "Yes. And it's not just a story, sweetheart. It's real. It's where you were born."
I shook my head, trying to make sense of it all. "But… how? Why am I here? Why didn't you tell me?"
She sighed, looking down at her hands. "I wanted to. But I needed to protect you."
"Protect me?" My wings twitched. "From what? You always said Taidya was peaceful, that no darkness could reach it."
Her expression darkened. "That's true. But peace doesn't mean there aren't dangers. And the greatest danger… was losing you."
I stared at her, my heart pounding. "Losing me?"
She took a deep breath. "You were born in Taidya, but you weren't just any child. You were special. Your silver eyes, your wings—they mark you as something rare. Something powerful."
I swallowed. "What do you mean?"
She hesitated, then said, "You are meant to be a guardian of Taidya. A protector. But before you could grow into your role, something happened. A force—something unknown—tried to take you. We didn't know what it was, only that it wasn't from our world. So I did the only thing I could."
She looked at me, her gaze steady.
"I brought you here."
The weight of her words settled over me like a heavy blanket.
I wasn't just different.
I was hiding.
I took a shaky breath. "And now… the doorway opened."
She nodded. "Which means Taidya is calling you back."
I felt the truth of it deep in my bones. The ripple in the sky, the voice, the song—it hadn't been random. It had been waiting for me.
I clenched my fists. "So what do I do?"
She reached out, squeezing my hand. "That's up to you. But if the doorway has appeared, it means the time has come."
I looked toward the window, where the sky still shimmered faintly.
Taidya.
My home.
I had spent my whole life feeling like I didn't belong.
Maybe it was time to find out why.