Dawn crept slowly over the burnt horizon, casting long shadows across the charred remnants of the village they had saved. Kael sat on a fallen log, eyes distant as the fire crackled low at his feet. The villagers slept behind him, too exhausted to dream, huddled together like fragile embers trying to resist the cold.
He had barely slept. When he did, visions clawed at his mind.
In his dream, a figure cloaked in radiant light stood before him—tall, faceless, and wordless. Its form pulsed with warmth, like the sun breaking through storm clouds. It tried to speak, but before the message could reach him, darkness surged from below, coiling like ink in water. The figure reached out in warning, but was yanked down into blackness, vanishing into a pit that had no bottom.
Kael woke gasping, sweat trickling down his spine. Even now, hours later, the image lingered like smoke in his lungs.
He turned as Leonardo approached from the treeline, wiping blood off his blade with practiced indifference. "Scouts," the older warrior muttered. "Probably Valeur's. Didn't get close."
Kael nodded. "They'll be back."
"They always are." Leonardo slumped down beside him. "We'll need to move the villagers by noon. There's an abandoned outpost to the west. Safer ground."
Kael didn't answer immediately. His gaze was on the sky.
"I saw something," he said finally. "In my sleep. Or maybe something showed me."
Leonardo raised an eyebrow. "Another vision?"
Kael nodded. "There was... light. A figure. It tried to warn me, but the dark pulled it under."
Leonardo remained silent, then said, "Dreams like that don't come from nowhere. You've felt it too, haven't you? The pull. Like something out there is watching us."
Kael nodded slowly. "Ever since the Spectre."
That word hung between them like a blade.
Leonardo's jaw tightened. "If you're thinking what I think you are—"
"I have to find it," Kael interrupted. "I thought helping people village by village would be enough. But it's like trying to scoop out the sea with your hands. We need more than swords. We need power."
Leonardo didn't move. "Power corrupts, boy."
"So does silence."
The older man sighed, staring into the fire. "The Spectre nearly tore you apart. If it weren't for your sister..."
"I know. But it also showed me what the world really is. And maybe what it could be."
Kael stood. He looked over the sleeping villagers, then toward the path that led into the east—into the unknown. "You said yourself. We save one village, five more burn. I can't keep doing this. I need something more."
Leonardo rose too, but didn't stop him. There was sadness in his eyes, but no surprise.
"Then this is where we part ways."
Kael blinked. "You're not coming?"
Leonardo shook his head. "I've seen what chasing power does to men. I'll help these people get to safety. Keep doing what I can with what I have. You… you walk your road. But don't lose yourself to it."
Kael nodded. "Thank you. For everything."
Leonardo extended his hand. They clasped forearms like brothers.
"I'll see you again," Kael said.
"Only if the gods are bored enough," Leonardo replied, with a rare smile.
---
Kael left that afternoon. No farewells. Just a sword, a pack, and the fading trail of smoke behind him. He traveled east, toward the mountains, where rumor spoke of hidden things and cursed lands. Toward the old path—the one tied to the Spectre's last awakening.
His journey was not easy. The forest thickened into a suffocating maze. He crossed streams that stank of decay, and fields where bones lay half-buried in the grass. The world seemed to watch him now, as though it remembered his trespass.
On the third night, as he slept by a dying campfire, the dreams returned.
This time, the figure of light was clearer—closer. Its mouth moved, though no sound came. Behind it, symbols glowed like ancient runes. A crown. A flame. A door split in two. But then the darkness returned, faster this time, and Kael felt it pull not just the figure—but himself.
He awoke screaming, clutching his blade.
His breath came in ragged bursts. Around him, only trees.
He reached into his pack and pulled out the charm Melia had given him. It pulsed faintly, like a heartbeat.
"Spectre," Kael whispered into the wind. "I'm coming. But not for your power."
He looked at the horizon.
"For their freedom."
And he walked on, the road ahead darker than ever—but his purpose, finally, clear.