The world blurred around Adrianne as Kaelith led her through the forest, shadows slipping over his shoulders like obedient creatures. She clutched her coat tight, struggling to match his pace.
"Where are we going?" she asked breathlessly.
"A place where your power won't tear the mortal realm apart," he answered without turning.
The trees parted.
Darkness spilled outward, bending the air like heat. The boundary shimmered with ink-black light, rippling like a curtain between worlds. Adrianne felt it tug on her, calling to something buried deep inside her bones.
Kaelith stepped through first.
The shadows parted around him.
Adrianne followed.
Instant warmth embraced her skin—a strange, vibrant warmth that felt nothing like sunlight. The ground beneath her feet was solid, but the space around her felt fluid, unanchored, dreamlike.
"This place…" she whispered.
"It's not a place," Kaelith said softly. "It's mine."
A shadow realm.
His domain.
Her breath hitched as she took it in.
Night stretched infinitely above them, dotted with silver lights that shifted like drifting embers. The ground was a dark mirror, reflecting the sky. They stood on what felt like polished obsidian, but it rippled like water beneath each step.
"Is this… safe for me?" she asked cautiously.
Kaelith turned to her—slowly, deliberately—his silver eyes glowing brighter in the dark.
"It's the only place you can train without being found."
Adrianne swallowed. "Train how?"
Kaelith approached her.
A little too close.
His presence wrapped around her like heat curling through smoke. "Your light magic awakened again. We must teach you to control it before it consumes you."
"I didn't mean to use it," she said quickly. "It just… happened."
"That is the problem." His voice softened. "You are powerful, Adrianne. Too powerful to be untrained. Your magic reacts to fear, to instinct… and sometimes, to me."
Her cheeks warmed. "To you?"
Kaelith didn't deny it.
He lifted his hand slowly, giving her time to pull away.
She didn't.
His fingertips brushed her wrist—the one marked by faint starlight. A pulse of warmth radiated through her arm, and the mark flared in response.
"You feel that?" he murmured.
Adrianne's breath caught. "Yes."
"This bond," Kaelith said quietly, "is older than you remember. But your body is not accustomed to channeling power yet. If you lose control, it could destroy you."
She swallowed hard. "Then teach me."
Kaelith exhaled—a long, slow, pained breath. "I am trying."
He stepped back, and Adrianne almost missed his warmth.
"Close your eyes," he instructed.
Adrianne did.
"Feel for the light inside you," he said, voice low and steady. "Do not reach for it. Let it come."
She inhaled deeply.
Silence enveloped her.
A faint warmth sparked in her chest, like the flicker of a candle.
"There," she whispered. "I think I—"
The warmth surged violently through her arm.
Adrianne gasped as light exploded from her palm, cracking through the air like white fire. Kaelith moved instantly—shadow enveloping her, wrapping her in a protective cocoon.
The blast ricocheted off his barrier, fracturing the mirrored ground.
Adrianne stumbled backward. "I'm sorry—"
"Do not apologize," Kaelith said sharply, taking her by the shoulders. "You did well."
She stared at him, incredulous. "I nearly vaporized myself."
"And I stopped you." His voice softened. "We do this together."
He guided her hand upward, his palm covering the back of hers. His touch sent warmth flooding down her arm, steady and grounding. The mark on her wrist pulsed beneath his skin.
Adrianne's heart hammered.
"This is too close," she whispered.
"No," Kaelith murmured. "This is necessary."
Their joined hands moved through the air as he guided her breathing.
"In… and out," he said. "Do you feel the light?"
She nodded. "It's… brighter this time."
"Good. Now shape it."
Adrianne focused.
The light flickered in her palm—soft, warm, less violent. She concentrated on keeping it steady, but it trembled like a fragile flame.
"Focus," Kaelith whispered, his breath brushing her ear. "Believe you can control it."
His voice did something to her—calming yet electric.
The light steadied.
Adrianne exhaled shakily. "I think—I think I'm doing it."
"You are." His tone warmed. "Very well."
But then—
Something inside her shifted.
A vision struck her like a blow.
Her body froze.
The shadow realm dissolved.
She saw flames.
A throne cracked straight through the center.
A crown of broken silver, stained with blood.
Her own hands were glowing with violent, burning light.
Kaelith on his knees—his expression shattered, pleading.
Her chest seized.
A voice—her own, but not her—whispered in her skull:
"You will obey my command, Kaelith."
Adrianne staggered backward, choking on air. The vision evaporated. Her knees buckled.
Kaelith caught her before she hit the ground.
"Adrianne!" His voice broke with panic. "Talk to me—are you hurt?"
She clung to his coat, trembling. "I… I saw something. I don't know if it was real."
His jaw tightened. "What did you see?"
"A throne. Broken. Flames everywhere." Her breath trembled. "And you kneeling."
Kaelith froze.
Just froze.
"What else?" he asked—too softly.
"My hands were glowing. Like they were… dangerous."
His eyes darkened with something like grief. "You're remembering."
Adrianne's heartbeat pounded painfully. "Remembering what?"
Kaelith hesitated—a long, agonizing silence.
Then he whispered:
"…who you once were."
The air thickened.
Adrianne pulled away from him, unsteady. Her mind swirled with fear, confusion, and something deeper—something ancient stirring inside her.
Kaelith stood slowly, expression raw.
"We should return," he murmured. "You need to rest."
Adrianne shook her head. "No. I need answers. What exactly am I remembering?"
He didn't meet her eyes.
The shadows at his feet trembled with unease.
"Not yet," he said quietly. "Your mind is not ready."
Adrianne's frustration flared. "Then when will it be ready? When I lose myself? When some celestial thing kills me first?"
Kaelith's eyes snapped to hers—hurt flickering across his features.
"I am trying to protect you," he said, voice rough. "Even from the truth."
Adrianne stared at him, heart still racing from the vision.
Something between them felt different now—charged, fragile, and threaded with tension neither of them knew how to name.
Kaelith approached her slowly.
He reached out—then stopped just short of touching her cheek.
"Adrianne," he said softly, "you are not alone. Not in this. Not again."
Her breath hitched.
He lowered his hand.
"Let me take you back," he whispered. "Before your power tears you apart."
Adrianne wanted to argue.
She wanted to demand the truth.
But her body felt heavy, drained, trembling with leftover magic and fear.
She nodded weakly.
Kaelith wrapped an arm around her waist, lifting her effortlessly as the shadow realm dissolved around them.
Darkness swallowed their forms.