By the time they stopped running, they were far from the marshlands. The landscape had shifted into rolling hills and dense forests, the air cooler and less oppressive.
Elias collapsed against a tree, his chest heaving. "Okay," he gasped, "new rule: no more fighting magic assassins."
Liora sank to the ground, clutching the satchel to her chest. Her body trembled, not from exhaustion but from the lingering energy of the shards. She could still feel their warmth coursing through her, an unfamiliar power that both intrigued and terrified her.
"What was that back there?" Elias asked, looking at her with wide eyes.
"I… I don't know," she admitted. "The shards reacted to me. It felt like they were guiding me."
"Guiding you? Or controlling you?"
Liora hesitated. The thought had crossed her mind, but she pushed it aside. "I'm fine, Elias. We need to focus on finding Darian."
"And how do you propose we do that?" Elias asked, frustration creeping into his voice. "He could be anywhere—or worse…"
"Don't say it," Liora snapped, her voice sharper than she intended.
Elias threw up his hands. "Fine. But we can't keep going like this, Liora. Between Raven, that woman, and the shards themselves, we're out of our depth. We need help."
Liora nodded reluctantly. "Darian said he had allies in the south. If we can find them, they might know where he is—or how to stop Raven."
Elias sighed. "South it is, then. Let's just hope we're not too late."
As they set off, the weight of their mission pressed down on them more heavily than ever. With Darian missing and enemies closing in, the path ahead seemed more treacherous than ever.
• Get access to advanced chapter only on my Patreon.
patreon(.)com/Bersertales