Losing everything.
And that was when I felt it.
A whisper.
A thread of warmth, curling into my mind like smoke through a locked window.
You’re in pain,said a voice I hadn’t heard in some time.
Siergen.
My breath hitched.Where are you?
But his presence was faint. Distant. Like he was calling from the edge of a void.
Far. But always with you.
How?
Blood ties are deeper than any other.
I clutched the edge of the basin, shaking.I can’t hold this much power alone.
His voice coiled through the splintered cracks of my soul.
Then don’t.
Then he was gone.
But the silence that followed wasn’t quite as dark.
I sat on the edge of my bed after evening drills, the barracks quiet, the others scattered—some washing up, some sneaking food, some pretending not to watch me. The lantern by the door flickered low, casting long shadows that swayed across the floor.
I closed my eyes and reached inward, willing the thread to stretch across the bond I hadn’t dared touch since the dreams began.
And then?—
Little storm cloud.
My breath caught.
His voice slid into my mind like silk over steel, familiar, dangerous, comforting in the strangest ways.
You always respond to me… when others don’t,I whispered silently, a faint smile tugging the corner of my mouth.
You are special to me.
I let out a shaky exhale.Where are you, Siergen?
A canyon north of Thubia, he replied, tone clipped now.The terrain’s torn to pieces. Burn marks in the stone, but no signs of dragons. Or people. Just… ash.
You’re searching for the Varnari.
And whoever is helping them, he confirmed.There’s something here. Not just in the rocks, his voice lowered,the magic. It’s warped. Wrong. I’ve never felt fae power echo like this before.
A pulse of worry rippled through my chest.Can you trace it?
That’s the problem, he said.Every time I try, it disappears. It’s like chasing smoke through fog.
