By the time Kael reached the safe house, he was soaked to the bone, shivering with exhaustion. The storm hadn't let up, and the heavy rain made the ground even more treacherous. His legs ached, and his mind was clouded with fatigue, but he couldn't stop. Not when they were so close.
The safe house was hidden deep within the mountains, far from the city. Only a few trusted allies knew its location, and Kael knew he could trust Lyra. He made his way to the small door, knocking three times in quick succession. There was a pause before the door creaked open.
"Kael," said Elira Kaen, the older woman who lived there, stepping aside to let him in. Her face was weathered, her eyes sharp and calculating. Elira was a former Xypherian historian, someone who knew more about the planet's ancient past than anyone else Kael knew. She had taken him in when he had nowhere else to go, and now she was the only person who might know what the artifact really was.
"You're drenched," she said, taking his pack. "Come in, quickly."
Inside, the warmth of the fire immediately hit Kael, but it wasn't the only thing that comforted him. Lyra was already there, her face lit by the soft glow of the fire.
"Did they follow you?" Lyra asked, her voice tense.
Kael nodded, dropping his bag onto the small table in the center of the room. "They're getting closer. But I lost them, for now."
Lyra stood and moved toward him, her eyes focused on the pack. "We need to see it. What's inside?"
Kael hesitated for a moment before he unzipped the bag. Slowly, he pulled out the artifact, its faint glow illuminating the room. Elira studied it closely, her sharp eyes flicking over the patterns etched into the crystalline surface.
"This," Elira said softly, her voice barely above a whisper, "is the Heart of Xypheris."