The silence after the storm is always the most dangerous.
No one speaks.
The forest around them holds its breath,
as if even the roots are waiting to see who will make the first move.
Kael still stands in front of Lunaya.
Not out of jealousy.
Out of instinct.
His body is tense, ready to bite, ready to die.
Dravik doesn't move.
He burns.
The heat around him is not a threat, it is a presence.
An ancient, savage claim that does not ask permission to exist.
Sahr watches.
His eyes half-closed.
Calm on the surface.
Calculating deep down.
Lunaya feels her threads vibrate all at once,
like a heart beating too hard for a single chest.
"Erynd... is alive," she repeats, more softly.
Kael clenches his teeth.
"Where."
It's not a gentle question.
It's a demand.
Lunaya closes her eyes for a second.
She can't see Erynd.
But she can feel him.
"Far away."
Her voice trembles.
"Chained. Not just physically.
They... they use his broken name to keep him conscious."
Dravik growls.
A low, ancient sound.
"The Corbins."
Sahr nods slightly.
"No."
His tone is calm, but serious.
"The Guardians of the Ritual. The Corbins are only obeying."
Kael turns to him, fangs bared.
"You knew."
Sahr does not deny it.
"I suspected."
Then, more softly:
"But I didn't think they would dare keep him alive."
The words cut like a knife.
Lunaya opens her eyes, shocked.
"Alive... why?"
Sahr finally looks at her properly.
Not as a temptation.
Not as prey.
As a dangerous truth.
"Because Erynd is the only key they couldn't completely break.
And because you..."
He pauses.
"You came back."
Dravik takes a step forward.
The earth cracks beneath his foot.
"They want to use him to lure you."
"No," Lunaya whispers.
All eyes turn to her.
"They want to use me to finish him off."
Kael freezes.
"What?"
Lunaya feels the words tearing her apart, but she continues.
"His name is severed... but not destroyed.
As long as he lives, they cannot complete the ritual.
And as long as I live... they cannot erase me without consequences."
A heavy silence falls.
Dravik clenches his fists.
"Then we take him before they do."
Kael shakes his head.
"You don't understand."
He looks at Lunaya.
"If she gets too close to this ritual... they can force her to choose."
Sahr whispers:
"And this time, she won't be able to choose everyone."
Lunaya takes a deep breath.
When she speaks, her voice is calm. Too calm.
"I'll go get him."
Kael turns abruptly toward her.
"No."
One word.
A wall.
"You're not going alone, he adds immediately,
his voice lower, more broken.
And you're not going as a sacrifice."
Dravik nods slightly.
"She is no longer an offering."
A dangerous smile slips across his lips.
"She is a reminder."
Sahr takes a measured step forward.
"The Guardians don't expect you to be together."
Kael looks up.
"Together?"
Sahr smiles.
"The fire.
The wolf.
And the one the world tried to erase."
Lunaya feels something settle within her.
Not a choice.
A decision.
"Then we won't hide anymore, she says.
We won't run anymore.
And we won't give them any more time."
Kael rests his forehead against hers.
"You're coming back alive."
Dravik stands to her right.
"And if they touch her..."
Sahr finishes the sentence softly:
"The world will remember why certain names must never be spoken."
Far, far away...
A rune activates.
And in the shadows, a man with broken wings opens his eyes.
He whispers, barely conscious:
"Lunaya..."
The silver-black thread trembles.