Miyara's POV
I woke up and immediately knew something was wrong. My body didn't feel like mine. My hands were soft. My skin was too smooth for a Dragon Queen. My hair fell over my shoulders in a way that screamed it wasn't me. I pressed my palms to my chest. Not Akeira. Not Luna. Not the Dragon Queen who had fought and bled. Great. I'm not even dead.
I tried to laugh. It came out hollow, more like a strangled groan. Perfect. Couldn't even die cleanly. Couldn't even escape once. No, let's make it worse and wake up in someone else's body.
Did this shadow god even understand my plea? Did he even know who he was messing with? I'd bargained, and begged. And now this. Alive. Trapped in some random girl's body. I could feel the corners of my mouth twitching, but no, it was too bitter for a laugh.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed. Cold, hard and Real. My stomach twisted. Everything I had lost, everyone I had lost, and now this. If I didn't pinch myself, I'd think I was dreaming. But no, it was painfully real. Every inch of me screamed someone else . Not my body or my life.
The door creaked. A voice cut through, sharp, impatient.
"Finally. You've been out forever. I was starting to think you'd just decided to die on me."
I froze, scanning the girl in the doorway. Arms crossed and she was sharp-eyed, young and looked annoying in a way that made my head spin.
"Who are you?" I asked, my voice rough, foreign, not even my own.
Her eyebrows shot up. "Who am I? That's rich. You hit your head harder than I thought. I'm Ayame."
Ayame. The name hit me like a thread I didn't understand but scratch that. I frowned. I usually do fights bleed, and destroy. Pulls are useless.
"I… wait. Where am I? What happened?" I stammered. My throat felt raw. My head was spinning.
She stepped closer, squinting like I'd just grown a second head. "At the farm. We went to gather crops, and some wild animal rammed right into you. You've been out since then. Days."
Farm? Harvest? An animal. That wasn't the hall. That wasn't the sword. My hands trembled. "No," I whispered. "That's not possible. I was…" I stopped myself. Dying. Begging a shadow god. Bleeding out. And now I'm a glorified farm girl? Well, if I was in another body, might as well just take the opportunity.
"What day is it?" I asked.
Ayame frowned, one eyebrow higher than the other. "Miyara, you really need help. It's the 7th of Frostfall. Why?"
So… Miyara. That's my name now. Frostfall. The 7th. My lungs caught. Weeks before the queen's death. Weeks before everything I'd lost. My throat tried to laugh, but it came out broken. Exactly sixteen days. Sixteen days to change everything.
He answered me, I whispered in my head. The shadow god actually answered.
Sixteen days. Sixteen days before the queen would die. Sixteen days to change everything. My pulse slammed against my ribs. This wasn't some twisted joke. This was real. My mind raced, filling with possibilities, calculations, and plans.
I sank back against the wall, gripping the edge of the bed. Thoughts ran faster than my heart. If I can move now, I can.. no, I must…do something. I can't waste a single moment. Sixteen days. That's all I get. That's my chance.
I drew a sharp breath and let it out slowly. No time for panic. No time for doubt. Sixteen days wasn't long, but it was enough. If I acted, and if I played this right… I could save her. I could fix it. I could make the world stop burning before it even started.
I glanced at Ayame again. Her expression was sharp, cautious, like she knew more than she was saying. Instead, I muttered, "So… you just leave me lying here for days and then stroll in with all that confidence?"
Ayame rolled her eyes. "You're dramatic. And maybe if you weren't trying to die all over the place, I wouldn't have had to worry."
I pressed a hand to my forehead. Right. Dramatic. That's all this is. Sure. I risked my life, got stabbed at the palace, called on a god, nearly died and it's dramatic.
"You're impossible," I muttered.
"And you're whining," she shot back, smirk curling her lips.
I just sat there, absorbing it. Her presence was grounding, irritating, and necessary all at once. I could almost imagine using her to… something. Not sure what yet. I'd figure it out later. Now, I had sixteen days.
I clenched my fists. My voice came out in a whisper I barely recognized as mine. "Then I guess I've got work to d
o."
And I'll make every single second count.