I was running, my breath ragged, heart pounding like a drum in my chest. The forest was a blur of green and brown, trees whipping past as my legs carried me forward. Twigs snapped underfoot, branches lashed at my arms, but I felt nothing beyond the sheer, unrelenting terror propelling me forward.
Behind me, his voice echoed through the woods, dark and demanding, laced with a sinister edge that made my skin crawl.
"Liliam!" Owen's voice cut through the air, closer than before, the sound of it chilling my blood. He was relentless, his presence suffocating, a shadow chasing me with the promise of devastation.
I could feel him behind me, his energy like an icy hand reaching for me, ready to ensnare me, to claim me. Panic surged through my body, my heart racing even faster as I pushed myself harder, forcing my legs to move despite the burning pain.
Run. Just run. Don't look back. Don't slow down.
But then another voice cut through the chaos.
"Liliam, wait!" Zeff's voice. The sound of it shattered something inside me, a desperate cry wrapped in worry and urgency. I could hear him somewhere behind me, but I didn't dare look back. I couldn't trust it. Couldn't risk it.
Because Owen's voice had been warm once too, before it had turned into something twisted, possessive.
A tree branch scratched my cheek, but I barely felt it. My body was on autopilot, pure instinct and fear driving me. I just knew I needed to get away—away from Owen, away from the suffocating pull that tried to wrap itself around me, from the madness that had crept into every corner of my life.
The forest suddenly opened up, the trees giving way to an all-too-familiar clearing. My feet skidded to a halt at the edge of the hill, loose dirt crumbling beneath my shoes.
The waterfall loomed before me, roaring as water crashed down into the river below, the mist rising up like ghostly tendrils. I had been here before, so many times. In my dreams. In my memories. In the space between worlds.
A place where everything began.
"Liliam!" Owen's voice was closer now, too close. My breath caught in my throat, panic surging anew as I turned to look over my shoulder.
A shadow moved through the trees, a silhouette taking shape. Owen's form emerged, his eyes dark, his mouth twisted in a cruel, determined smile. The air around him seemed to crackle with energy, with power, and my heart skipped a beat.
Zeff's voice echoed somewhere behind him, pleading, desperate. But it was distant now, fading into the background, buried under the pounding of my heart and the roaring of the waterfall.
I was trapped. There was no place left to run.
A cold wind swept past me, carrying a whisper of something… something darker. I felt my stomach twist, a sickening sensation that made my head spin. Was it him? Was it me? I didn't know anymore. I didn't know what was real.
You can't run from me, Liliam.
The voice slithered through my mind, cold and smooth, wrapping around my thoughts like a vice. I stumbled backward, my heel slipping dangerously close to the edge of the cliff.
"Liliam, jump!"
The voice broke through the chaos, firm and commanding. My head snapped down to the river below. William.
He stood in the water, his arms outstretched, his eyes locked on mine. The spray of the waterfall misted around him, his figure solid and steady amidst the chaos. His face was etched with determination, with trust, with… love.
I looked back at Owen. He was so close now, his eyes blazing with an intensity that felt like fire against my skin. He would catch me. He would take me. He would never let me go.
Zeff's voice was a whisper now, lost somewhere in the wind. I wanted to trust him, wanted to believe that he could protect me, but the darkness was too strong. The hold Owen had on me was too powerful.
"Jump!" William's voice boomed again, slicing through the fear, through the doubt. His eyes never left mine, a silent promise echoing between us.
Trust me.
I closed my eyes. My body moved before my mind could catch up. My feet left the ground, the world falling away as I leaped off the cliff's edge.
The air was cold, rushing past me, tearing at my clothes, my hair. My heart lurched as gravity pulled me downward, a weightless free fall. But as the wind howled in my ears, the fear faded, replaced by an overwhelming sense of freedom.
For a brief, fleeting moment, I was free.
Free of the darkness, of the pain, of the fear. Free of the bond that tied me to Owen, to the shadows that haunted me.
I was falling.
But I wasn't alone.
William was waiting for me.
His arms were strong, catching me as I fell into the cold water. I felt his warmth, his power wrapping around me, shielding me from the icy river. The world faded, the roar of the waterfall dimming as I sank into his embrace.
His lips brushed my ear, his voice a whisper. "I've got you."
The darkness clawed at me, trying to pull me back, but William held on tighter, his presence a light in the void. I felt the strength flowing through him, the power of his bond, the love he carried.
For me.
For us.
The sensation was overwhelming, an electric rush that surged through my veins, igniting every nerve ending. It was like a storm, fierce and consuming, burning away the shadows, the pain, the doubt.
I felt alive.
But then… everything went black.
I woke with a gasp, my body jerking upright in bed, my heart hammering against my ribs. My skin was drenched in sweat, my hair clinging to my forehead. I could still feel the cold wind, the water rushing around me, the strength of William's arms.
I looked around, disoriented. I was back in the infirmary, But my body trembled, my hands shaking as I gripped the sheets.
The dream had been so vivid, so real. I could still hear the roar of the waterfall, the echo of Owen's voice, the warmth of William's touch.
I could still feel the rush of freedom, the sense of liberation as I jumped.
My heart ached, a hollow, empty ache that seemed to echo through my entire being.
William had caught me. He had been there. But it had only been a dream.
I sank back into the bed, my body curling in on itself as the weight of reality crashed down on me. The dream had felt so real, so vivid… but it was only a dream. Or was it a sign?