The island rises from the mist like something out of a dream. Jagged cliffs loom over the churning sea, their edges softened by thick, emerald-green foliage. Waterfalls spill from unseen heights, their silver streams glinting in the early morning light. The air is thick with the scent of salt and something else, something ancient.
Something familiar.
A shiver runs down my spine as the Black Tide drifts closer, cutting through the mist like a knife. The island hums in my bones, a silent whisper I can't quite hear, but feel pulling me forward, wrapping around me like an old memory.
"We're here," Colm says from the helm, adjusting the sails. "Welcome to Vaelora."
I can't move. Can't breathe.
Vaelora.
The name had always sounded like a promise. A safe haven, a last refuge. But standing here, staring at the shore, I realize something else.
I know this place.
Not from stories. Not from maps.
From before.
Avis nudges my arm. "Pandora?"
I blink, jolted back to the present. "I-" My throat is dry. "I've been here before."
Avis frowns. "What?"
Before I can explain, the ship lurches as it scrapes against the shallows. The crew throws down the anchor, and Colm gestures toward a narrow wooden dock barely visible through the mist. "This is where we part ways," he says, leaning on the ship's wheel. "I don't make a habit of lingering in places that hum like they're alive."
His words send another shiver through me. He feels it too, the way the island breathes, watches.
Avis doesn't hesitate. He grabs a pack and gestures for me to follow. "Come on."
The dock creaks beneath our feet as we step onto solid ground. The moment I set foot on the island, a rush of energy floods through me, like the earth itself is waking up, recognizing me.
The trees shift. Not from the wind there is no wind. The leaves ripple in a pattern, like something unseen is moving through them.
"Pandora," Avis says warily, his hand drifting toward his dagger. "Why do I feel like we're being watched?"
I swallow hard. "Because we are."
The vines along the trees unfurl slowly, almost curiously. The very air feels charged, thick with magic, like the island itself is alive.
Then, from the depths of the jungle, a voice echoes.
"Welcome home, child of the sea and forest."
The words hit me like a bolt of lightning.
My heart pounds. My knees go weak.
Because in that moment, I remember.
This isn't just Sanctuary.
This is my home.
And it has been waiting for me to return.