The forest was alive with whispers as Kael and Liora fled the ruins, their footsteps muffled by the loamy ground. The sun barely broke through the tangled canopy above, casting fragmented light that flickered like dying embers. Every breath felt heavier, weighed down by unseen eyes.
"Did you feel it?" Liora asked, her voice sharp with urgency.
Kael nodded, his senses still on edge. "The Covenant didn't just send that thing to kill us. It was drawing power from it—like a chain binding it to the Rift."
"A chain…" Her eyes widened. "If we can break the chains—"
"We can sever its connection to this world." Kael finished the thought, gripping Eidolon so tightly his knuckles turned white. "But it won't be easy. The Covenant is using ancient magic, and each link is forged in blood and memory."
They reached a narrow stream, the water clear but unnaturally cold. Kael knelt, letting the chill ground him as he splashed his face. Liora stood over him, scanning the forest for signs of pursuit.
"Do you know where the other chains are?" she asked.
"No." Kael wiped his face and looked up. "But the visions from the sphere—there were glimpses. A tower of glass beneath a crimson sky. A labyrinth of bones."
"That's helpful," she said dryly.
He smirked faintly. "It's all we have."
A sudden rustling in the trees silenced their conversation. Liora drew a dagger from her belt, her movements fluid and sure despite the fear in her eyes. Kael rose, Eidolon ready in his hand.
The underbrush parted, revealing a hunched figure cloaked in tattered gray. Its skin was as pale as frost, its eyes sunken pits of shadow. The stench of decay clung to it like a shroud.
"Stay back!" Kael warned, stepping in front of Liora.
The figure raised a trembling hand. "Not… enemy," it rasped.
Kael didn't lower his sword. "Who are you?"
The creature's lips curled into a ghastly smile. "I am one… who remembers. The Covenant's chains are forged in death… and I am bound by them no longer."
"You're a survivor?" Liora asked.
"More a ghost," the figure whispered. "But I know the way. The chains you seek… they are hidden in places where time breaks."
Kael exchanged a wary glance with Liora. "Why help us?"
The figure's hollow eyes stared deep into him. "Because I have seen what happens when the last chain is whole. The Rift will devour everything—memory, time, and truth. Even death will be undone. I would rather fade into nothing than see that horror unleashed."
A shiver crawled down Liora's spine. "Where do we begin?"
The figure's voice dropped to a hiss. "Seek the Tower of Shattered Reflections. There lies the first chain."
Kael frowned. "And what's guarding it?"
The figure laughed, a sound like dry leaves crumbling. "Your reflection… and the truths you fear the most."
It melted back into the shadows, leaving behind only the faintest trace of its foul stench.
Liora exhaled, her dagger trembling in her grip. "This just keeps getting better."
Kael stared at the spot where the creature had vanished, the weight of his destiny pressing heavily on his shoulders. "We have a path now. But every step brings us closer to the edge."
"And if we fall?"
He turned to her, his eyes cold and determined. "We don't."