---
No one spoke as they approached Hollowmoor.
The air was thick with the scent of moss, stone, and something older—like forgotten blood. Trees bent away from the path as if bowing in respect or fear. Violet lichen clung to every surface, glowing faintly even in daylight.
Virella's breath caught when she stepped onto the stone threshold. This wasn't just a ruin. It was a heartbeat. A memory. She felt it pulse beneath her soles—faint but unmistakable.
Isolde, pale and dazed, clung to her side. She was recovering from Naera's venom, but her dreams had not lessened. They'd become worse—violent, urgent.
Arlen flanked them, hand on his blade. "This place gives me the creeps."
"It should," Rian muttered. "Ley lines converge here. Energy, memory, blood. All of it."
"Feels more like a trap."
"Every sanctuary is a trap if you wait long enough," said a voice from the trees.
Virella spun—heart leaping.
Alaric stepped out of the mist.
He was different.
His clothes were torn from battle, his jaw shadowed with stubble. His eyes—one human blue, one golden from his hybrid side—glowed faintly.
And beside him stood a woman.
Virella's gaze snapped to her. Pale as frost. Too elegant. Too still.
"This is Eira," Alaric said. "A sleeper. One I woke. She helped me survive Maelis."
Rian's brow furrowed. "You woke a sleeper?"
"She's not like them."
Eira inclined her head. "For now, I am bound to Alaric. You may relax."
"That's not comforting," Arlen muttered.
And then—another presence.
From the opposite path, Callum emerged.
He looked tired. Worn. His left arm was wrapped in a bloodied cloth. Kyden followed him, and behind him, a limping Zerius.
Callum's eyes locked with Virella's.
And softened.
"You're alive," he said, voice low, disbelieving.
She ran to him, arms tightening around his neck.
"I thought you were dead."
"I wasn't. I… I had to disappear."
Alaric's voice behind them was sharp. "Convenient."
Callum didn't look away. "I stayed away to protect her."
Alaric stepped forward. "You mean you ran."
Virella's hands lifted. "Stop."
Both men fell silent—but tension crackled like static.
-----
The group spread out among the ruins. Tents were pitched between pillars. Eira lit a protective fire with violet sparks that danced skyward like fireflies.
Rian unrolled a map over a mossy boulder. "This is the convergence point. Hollowmoor is the key to the Mother Gate."
Kyden nodded. "You really think it'll open?"
"Not yet. But it's stirring. I can feel it."
"Because we're here," said Eira. "The Key. The Lightblood. The Heir."
Callum raised an eyebrow. "Who's the Heir?"
Alaric answered. "Me. And Mara. Varen wants to use all three bloodlines to become the Hollow One."
Zerius coughed. "If he drains Mara completely, she'll die. The Mother Gate doesn't care who opens it."
Virella's stomach churned. "We have to stop him."
Eira's eyes gleamed. "Then you must choose what you're willing to sacrifice."
-------
Night fell like a curtain.
The group huddled near the central fire. The tension had not broken—it had merely shifted. Now it simmered beneath the surface. Virella sat between Isolde and Arlen, though her eyes kept drifting.
To Alaric.
To Callum.
Both sat on opposite sides of the flame.
Both staring into it.
Isolde leaned closer. "You're going to have to choose eventually."
"I know."
"But not tonight."
Virella smiled faintly. "No. Not tonight."
Arlen sharpened his blade. "I don't like this. Alaric's too quiet. And Callum—he's hiding something."
"They all are," Rian muttered. "That's what happens when secrets rot for too long."
--------
Virella slipped away from the fire.
She didn't hear Alaric follow her until he was beside her.
"You always disappear when things get hard," he said.
"So do you."
He smirked. "Fair."
They walked in silence.
"I missed you," she said at last.
"I didn't stop thinking about you," Alaric replied.
"Even after everything?"
"Especially after."
He reached out, brushed a strand of hair from her face. "You're more powerful now. I can feel it."
"I didn't ask for power."
"No one ever does. But you carry it well."
She leaned into him, forehead resting against his chest.
"You don't have to choose him," Alaric whispered. "You can still choose us."
-----
Callum stood beneath a broken archway, watching.
When Virella returned to camp, she found him waiting.
"I saw you," he said.
"You were supposed to be resting."
"I can't rest when you're giving your heart to someone who'll break it."
She swallowed. "You broke it too."
"I know. But I'm still here."
He touched her wrist, gently.
"I left because Arlen threatened to kill me if I stayed. He didn't trust me. I thought if I disappeared, it would make things easier."
"It didn't."
"I see that now."
Silence fell.
"I never stopped loving you, Virella."
She met his eyes.
"I never stopped wondering what we could've been."
-----
Isolde screamed.
They ran to the tent, weapons drawn. She was thrashing, eyes glowing violet.
"She's dreaming again!" Rian shouted.
Eira stepped in, hand glowing with old magic.
"She's channeling—Naera is pushing through."
Virella dropped to her knees beside her friend.
"Isolde! Wake up!"
Isolde sat bolt upright—eyes wide, blood streaking down her face.
"He's coming," she rasped.
"Varen?" Kyden asked.
"No. Something worse. He's becoming it. The Hollow One. And he's almost ready."
Rian's face turned pale. "We don't have much time."
------
Later, as the camp quieted, Virella found herself alone again—this time with Callum.
"You kissed him, didn't you?" he asked.
She didn't answer.
"Do you love him?"
"I don't know."
He looked at her, eyes full of unshed hurt. "Do you still love me?"
She opened her mouth.
But before she could speak, Alaric approached.
"It's starting," he said. "The stone's vibrating."
Virella stood.
But her heart stayed behind.
---
8. The Gate Shivers
At the center of the ruins, a great slab of obsidian began to hum. Virella felt it under her skin—like a second heartbeat.
"We need Mara," Rian said. "If she dies, the Gate still opens. But so does every world behind it."
Eira frowned. "Then it's time we go after her."
Callum nodded. "I'll lead."
"I'll follow," Alaric said.
They looked at each other.
Enemies. Brothers. Rivals.
Both drawn to the same girl.
Virella stepped between them.
"No more rivalry. We do this together."
---