The grove shuddered.
Not with corruption.Not with violence.
But with panic.
The air—once clean, once singing with restored magic—now vibrated like a snapped string. Time itself felt thin, stretched too far, humming with a pressure that made Elara's skin prickle and her lungs burn.
She tightened her grip on Kaelen's hand.
He was solid. Real.For now.
"They're trying to erase us?" she whispered.
The words felt wrong in her mouth, like speaking a curse aloud. Around them, the ley lines pulsed erratically—faint distortions rippling through the trees, through the light, through her. It felt like standing inside a breath that refused to be released.
"From the future?" she asked, fear sharpening her voice. "How is that even possible?"
Elandria stood unnaturally still, her ancient form outlined by the unstable glow of the Echo Stone behind them. The blue light flickered—steady, then frantic—like a heart struggling to keep rhythm.
"The King does not act alone," she said grimly. "With the Dark Echo in their possession, the Collective has learned to ride the ley lines across time. They are striking at fixed points—moments that must exist for your future to survive."
Elara swallowed.
"Moments like… us."
Elandria met her gaze. "Yes."
A low snarl ripped from Lyra's chest. "So let me get this straight," she snapped. "We jump into the past to save Havenwood, and now the future decides to delete us like a bad footnote?"
Oberon folded his arms, unusually subdued. "A paradoxical erasure. Crude, but effective. If they destabilize enough anchors, causality collapses." He sighed. "I do hate when villains get creative."
Kaelen didn't react.
His eyes were fixed on the Echo Stone—on the faint cracks of temporal distortion spiderwebbing through its glow.
"How long?" he asked.
Elandria hesitated.
"That depends," she said carefully, "on how aggressively they pull the thread."
Elara's chest tightened.
We're unraveling.
She could feel it now—small things slipping. A memory flickering at the edge of her mind. A name she knew she knew, but couldn't quite reach.
Panic clawed up her throat.
Kaelen turned to Elandria. "Can you stop it?"
The question was blunt. Controlled. But Elara knew him well enough to hear what he didn't say.
Can you save her?
Elandria shook her head slowly.
"My power is bound to this time's Echo Stone," she said. "I can protect Havenwood here—but not the temporal assault they are launching across eras. This disturbance is vast. Coordinated."
She inhaled, steadying herself.
"It requires an anchor."
Silence fell.
Not the peaceful kind.
The kind that knows what's coming.
"A greater one," Elandria continued. "One bound not just by magic… but by blood."
Elara's heart slammed.
No.
Her gaze snapped to Kaelen.
No, no, no—
Elandria's eyes softened with sorrow. "There is a way."
The words landed like a blade between Elara's ribs.
"The Vane pact," Elandria said. "The one your ancestor forged in fear." She looked at Kaelen. "It can be reforged."
Kaelen didn't flinch.
"A Vane," Elandria went on, voice heavy with ancient grief, "can bind a piece of their soul to the Echo Stone of this time. Not to contain the King—but to anchor existence itself. It would stabilize your presence here. Buy you hours."
Elara shook her head violently. "No."
"But—" Elandria raised a hand, pain etched into every line of her face, "—it comes at a cost."
Elara's breath came shallow.
"It will weaken you," Elandria said to Kaelen. "Diminish your power. And if you fail to retrieve the Dark Echo…"
She didn't finish the sentence.
She didn't need to.
"…my soul becomes exposed," Kaelen said calmly.
"Yes."
"To the King."
"Yes."
Elara let out a broken sound.
"No," she said again, louder now. "No. Absolutely not."
She stepped between them, gripping Kaelen's arm like she could physically keep him rooted in place.
"We did not come all this way for you to sacrifice yourself," she said, voice shaking. "Not like this. There has to be another way. There is always another way."
Kaelen looked down at her.
Really looked.
Her eyes were bright with terror. With love. With defiance.
She would burn the world to keep me standing, he realized.
And something in his chest twisted.
"Elara," he said softly.
"No," she repeated, tears blurring her vision. "Don't you dare look at me like you've already decided."
His thumb brushed her cheek, wiping away a tear she hadn't realized had fallen.
"This isn't death," he said quietly.
"That's not comforting."
A faint, humorless smile touched his lips.
"I know."
Lyra shifted uncomfortably. "I hate this plan," she muttered. "Just putting that on record."
Oberon sighed. "Heroic self-sacrifice is dreadfully traditional. Very on-brand for Guardians."
Elara ignored them all.
Her world had narrowed to Kaelen.
"You promised," she whispered. "You said we'd face this together."
"We will," he said.
She shook her head. "This isn't together. This is you bleeding your soul into a stone while I stand there and watch."
His voice hardened—not angry, but unyielding.
"This is how I stay."
The words hit harder than any shout.
"If I don't anchor us," Kaelen continued, "you fade. Slowly. Painfully. And even if you retrieve the Dark Echo… there may be no you left to return it."
Her breath caught.
He's right.
She hated that he was right.
"I won't lose you," she whispered.
He leaned his forehead against hers.
"You won't," he said. "Not today."
Elandria stepped closer. "The ritual must be done now," she said gently. "Before the temporal distortion deepens."
Elara's fingers trembled against Kaelen's chest.
"Please," she begged, voice breaking. "Let me carry this instead."
Kaelen closed his eyes for a brief moment.
Then opened them—resolved.
"This burden is mine," he said. "It always was."
He turned to Elandria.
"Tell me how."
Elara's heart shattered.
"No—Kaelen!"
He didn't look back.
The Echo Stone pulsed sharply, as if sensing the choice being made.
Time rippled again—harder this time.
Somewhere, far beyond the grove, the Collective pulled the thread tighter.
And Kaelen Vane stepped forward to bind himself to the past—so the future could exist long enough to be saved.
He cupped her face before she could argue again.
Warm hands. Steady. Real.
"Elara," Kaelen said quietly, his voice cutting through the chaos humming in the air. "Look at me."
She did. Gods help her—she did.
"We are together," he said, unwavering. "Always. This isn't me leaving you. This is me choosing us. I will take this risk—for you, for Havenwood, for a future where the King's shadow doesn't follow your every breath."
Her lips parted to protest.
He didn't give her the chance.
Kaelen leaned down and kissed her.
It wasn't gentle.
It wasn't careful.
It was desperate and consuming, a kiss born from the knowledge that time itself was cracking beneath their feet. It burned with promise and fear, with forever whispered against the threat of never again. Elara clutched his cloak, fingers curling like anchors, as if holding him hard enough could keep the world from tearing them apart.
This is us. This is real.
The air exploded.
Blue light surged violently from Elara's locket, flaring brighter than it ever had before. It didn't lash out—it flowed, pouring into Kaelen like a living thing. His body tensed as ancient Guardian magic responded, awakening with a force that rattled the grove.
The Echo Stone screamed.
Not in pain—but in recognition.
Kaelen gasped against her lips, eyes snapping open as something shifted inside him. The kiss broke as he staggered back, breath sharp, pupils blown wide with shock.
"I—" He sucked in a breath. "I can feel it."
Elara reached for him. "Kaelen?"
"The King," he said hoarsely. "His weakness. It's—gods—it's close."
The temporal distortion rippled violently, then stilled for a heartbeat.
"A Sunstone Amulet," Kaelen breathed, clarity slamming into him like a blade of light. "Ancient Fae relic. It was part of the original binding ritual. Crafted to amplify light—pure light—and repel shadow. It didn't vanish. It was hidden."
Elandria's breath caught. "The Sunstone…" Her eyes widened with something dangerously close to hope. "A relic thought lost after the fracturing. Broken apart during the chaos and scattered."
"It's not destroyed," Kaelen said. "It's near the ruins of the Sunken Village."
Oberon's lips parted slowly. "Well. That's inconveniently perfect."
Lyra blinked. "You get all that from kissing?"
Elara ignored her.
She stared at Kaelen, heart pounding as realization sank in. Their bond did this. Not the locket alone. Not the Echo Stone.
Us.
"Our love connected you to the Echo Stone," Elara whispered. "Deeper than the pact ever could."
Kaelen nodded, awe still etched into his features. "It showed me a different path." He turned to Elandria. "We don't need the Vane sacrifice. Not yet. The Sunstone can stabilize the temporal flow—and amplify Elara's ability to track the Dark Echo."
Elandria's shoulders sagged with relief. "A way forward without blood."
"Without losing you," Elara said fiercely.
Kaelen looked at her then—really looked at her—and something fierce and reverent crossed his face. "You saved me."
"No," she said softly. "We did."
"There's just one problem," Lyra said flatly. "The Sunken Village is a nightmare."
"Infested with corrupted Fae," Elandria confirmed. "The last remnants of the dissident faction. They guard the ruins zealously. They will not surrender the amulet willingly."
"They won't need to," Lyra growled, claws flexing.
Kaelen's expression hardened. "Time is still against us. The Collective hasn't stopped pulling at the thread."
As if summoned by his words, the air split.
A shadow stepped out of the forest.
Not Fae.
Not ancient.
Familiar.
Black robes whispered against the ground as the figure emerged fully into view. Its face remained hidden beneath the hood—but the energy it carried was unmistakable.
Dark. Dense. Hungry.
In its hand pulsed a shard of twisted shadow.
The Dark Echo.
Elara's blood turned to ice.
"It followed us," she whispered.
The figure tilted its head, as if amused.
Kaelen moved instantly, stepping in front of Elara, power coiling tight and lethal beneath his skin. "So much for subtlety."
The robed figure spoke, voice warped and layered, echoing with the King's influence. "You are too late."
The Dark Echo flared violently.
"You cannot outrun fate," it continued. "The Sunstone will not save you. Your bond will break. Time will erase you. And Havenwood will burn."
Elara's locket blazed in response.
"No," she said, stepping forward beside Kaelen, voice steady despite the fear clawing at her chest. "You don't get to decide that."
The figure laughed softly.
And the grove trembled.
The race was no longer looming.
It had begun.
Between light and shadow.Between love and erasure.Between a future that might exist—and a past determined to destroy it.
And somewhere beneath the ruins of the Sunken Village, the Sunstone Amulet waited.
Whether it would be their salvation—
or their final mistake—
was about to be decided.