Kaelen followed Lirael through the forest, feet silent on moss-covered paths. The trees thinned slightly as they walked, revealing strange plants and glowing fungi clinging to fallen logs. The silence between them stretched—tense, but not cold.
"You knew what that creature was," Kaelen said. "The… vraith?"
Lirael nodded. "Shadowborn. Scavengers from the Shattered Realms. Twisted things, bound in chains of cursed iron. They shouldn't be this far north."
"Why are they here?"
"Because *you* are," she said without turning. "Or, rather, the thread you carry."
Kaelen glanced at the glowing line beneath his skin. "I didn't ask for this."
"No one ever does," she said softly.
They arrived at a quiet overlook. Below, a valley spread out like a painted scroll—lush, green, crisscrossed by rivers and dotted with ruins swallowed by time.
Lirael stood still, eyes on the horizon. "Five hundred years ago, the one who bore your name vanished after sealing the Godflame beneath the world. Kaelen Starsworn. Warrior of the Light. The last of the soulbound."
Kaelen exhaled. "And now I'm just... him again?"
She turned toward him, eyes sharp. "No. You're different. You're not carrying his sword or his memories—but you carry his *thread*. That means something."
"I was just a guy," he said. "A normal one. I died. I thought that was it."
Her expression softened slightly. "You were chosen. Not just pulled from death—but bound to a purpose."
"And what is that purpose?"
She glanced down the valley. "To stop what's waking."
Before he could ask more, a low horn echoed through the trees—three short notes, like a warning.
Lirael's hand flew to her bow. "Scouts. Too close."
Kaelen's muscles tensed. "Do we run?"
"We fight."
---
They moved fast—through trees, across stone. The forest shimmered with danger.
From the fog came movement—two vraith, gaunt and twisted, with glowing red runes spiraling down their limbs. They hissed as they spotted Kaelen.
Lirael moved like lightning, loosing an arrow that exploded in silver light. One vraith vanished in flame.
The other charged Kaelen.
He barely had time to react—he grabbed a nearby staff from the ground, and it sparked in his hand again, igniting with silvery flame. The creature struck, but Kaelen blocked, then swung, cleaving through it.
Ash scattered on the wind.
When it was over, he stood there, breathing hard, the fire fading from the staff.
"You were never trained?" Lirael asked, surprised.
"Nope," he said. "Unless video games count."
She stared at him.
"What?"
"I don't know what a 'video game' is," she said. "But your reflexes… your flame… you're waking faster than expected."
"Waking?"
"The soulbound awaken slowly. Magic doesn't just return—it *remembers*. You're not just wearing Kaelen's name. Something of him still lingers in you."
He looked at his hands, still tingling.
"This doesn't feel like remembering," he muttered. "It feels like being rewritten."
Lirael stepped closer. For the first time, there was real emotion in her voice. "Then fight to stay yourself. The old world made gods and monsters out of men. We don't need another legend. We need *you*."
Their eyes met.
The moment lingered—soft, unexpected. Her fingers brushed his arm briefly before she stepped away.
"Come. Before the others find us."
They made camp in a grove where the trees curved like arches, sheltering them from above. Fireflies drifted around them, glowing silver-blue. Lirael worked silently, laying down a faint line of protective runes in the dirt.
Kaelen sat by the fire, staring at his reflection in a polished blade she'd lent him.
"I keep thinking I'll wake up," he murmured. "That I'll be back in my apartment. Alone. Boring. Mortal."
"You're not dreaming," Lirael said. "And you're not alone."
He looked up.
She was watching him. Calm. Steady. Sad.
"Have you ever lost yourself in battle?" he asked quietly. "Like something else took over?"
She sat across from him. "Yes. That's the danger of power rooted in memory. If you're not careful, you'll become a story—one written by someone else."
He swallowed. "What happened to the original Kaelen?"
She paused. "He died saving the world. But his death broke the Thread. Until now, it never rewove."
They sat in silence for a while, listening to the forest breathe.
"I don't want to be a hero," he said eventually.
Lirael smiled faintly. "Good. That means you may survive.