The night strained between Ren and Kael as they struggled along narrow, dark city streets. Kael was carrying the unconscious boy in his arms, the tiny body fragile, frail. Ren went ahead, being very watchful. Every alley and every corner seemed to be concealing an attack. Since what had happened in his apartment, he did not trust the silence. The Abyss stirred, and he knew it would not be silent for much longer.
"Where are we going?" Ren asked, his tone very low.
Kael watched him, his face inscrutable. "Someplace safe. A place beyond the reach of the Beacon's power."
Ren furrowed his brow. "And that is where, pray tell? It's the Abyss just everywhere, isn't it?
For a moment, Kael said nothing, his gaze fixed on the small boy he was holding tucked against him. "There are places, hidden places. The Resonance can be.weaker there. But it will be hard.
Ren's fists were so clenched, he was so angry. His brain would not quiet down and surrender-that scene in the Pit, that figure, that ocean, the blackness.it all felt so real, and the emotion felt so real, as if it were never a dream. Besides, that voice.different from the whispers, scarier because it was.different.
They walked for hours in silence, down small streets and narrow alleyways, into parts of town unfamiliar to Ren. The buildings here were old, crumbling affairs with blacked-out windows serving as cold, dead eyes of giants, it seemed, from times long forgotten. It was colder here, a chilling cold that seemed to seep right into the bones.
He guided them through to a small, unassuming door set into the sidewall of what was apparently an abandoned structure. Kael did not seem fazed by the structure's seeming abandonment; she shifted the boy in her arms and rapped three quick times.
Nothing happened for a moment. Then came a clattering of locks from the other side of the door, and hinges creaked open.
A man stands in the doorway, his face shrouded half in shadow. Older, gray-haired with sharp, observant eyes that take in Kael, Ren, and the unconscious boy in their company all in one swift glance before stepping aside to silently admit them indoors.
Kael nodded and stepped inside with the boy. Ren hovered in the doorway, warily eyeing the man. Something felt.off about him. But then again, he had little other option.
This was a somewhat dark hall they came into, full of old books, some weird items, and unknown signs on its walls. To enter it means to cross into another world, whereby reality and mystery there was only a hair's breadth apart.
He closed the door behind them and began locking it with a series of unnecessarily complex motions that Ren couldn't quite follow.
"Kael," he said in hushed, gentle tones. "You ought not to have brought him here.
Kael puffed a great sigh, setting the boy down on a small bed at the side of the room. "We had no choice, Dorian. He's marked."
The man, Dorian, nodded gravely. "I know. I feel it. The energy of the Beacon's around him like a storm.
Ren bristled; "You can feel it, too?"
Dorian turned to him, and Ren felt a cold shiver run down his back. "Of course I can. Anyone in tune with the Resonance is able to feel the mark of the Beacon. You are not the first, you know."
Ren's heart quickened. "What do you mean?
Dorian had said nothing, but had passed across, and, sinking into a chair, had begun to turn the leaves of an elaborately illustrated volume that lay on the table.
"The. Beacon doesn't pick at random," Dorian said softly. "It searches out those with the potential to get a hold of its power. But most of the time, of course, those who are picked don't survive."
Ren's gut seized. "You're saying that.?
Kael's voice was soft, though serious. "The Beacon tests those it picks, Ren. Part of that testing is the Abyss. But it is more, Ren. The Resonance, that power you feel, it connects you to something very, very old, something much older than this world.
Dorian ran his finger up and down one of the diagrams in the book as he nodded. "The Beacon's a conduit-a gateway to some realm beyond our perceptions. Those marked of the beacon are given the key to its power, though for a price it does come.".
Ren lay caught up in a heap of thoughts. He knew Resonance was dangerous, but never like this. "What now? What am I supposed to do?
Dorian closed the book and finally turned to Ren: "You live. You learn to master the power, or the power consumes you. But it's not just your life that hangs in the balance: the Beacon's not just testing you, it's watching you. And if it decides you're not good enough. the Abyss will claim you.".
Smothered, the heart of Ren racing in anticipation, the weight pulled upon him-the weight of a situation which had long since ceased to have anything to do with survival but was something more, of which he did not fully comprehend.
Kael moved in closer and laid a hand on his shoulder. "You are not alone in this, Ren. I have gone through the same thing. Dorian has too. We will help you. But you have to trust us.
Hard swallowing, Ren felt bewildering and emotional as he wanted to place his trust in them, yet did not want to lose control and be taken over by the Abyss.
He had just asked when the boy suddenly stirred on the bed. His eyes opened slowly, and though he was breathing easily, he was awake.
Ren and Kael ran up and knelt beside him.
"Hey," Ren said quietly, his voice kind. "You're safe now."
The boy looked threatened; his eyes fled around the room until they stayed on Ren. In a low voice, he said, "They're coming."
Ren felt a chill. "Who's coming?" His eyes fixed on the door, small hands trembling, the little boy said, "The ones from the Abyss-they know where you are." The room fell silent. Dorian with that countenance of discontent, Kael clenching tightly onto Ren's shoulder. "They've found us," Dorian whispered. His heart quickened. The Resonance roared in his veins, its murmurs loud and insistent. Kael stood, eyes shining with determination. "We need to get moving. Immediately."