The approaching creatures pause in confusion as the light envelops me. I can still see my body, but they apparently cannot. I seize the opportunity, scrambling to my feet and continuing east as quietly as possible.
After what feels like an eternity of careful movement, I spot it—the same shimmering barrier we crossed earlier, barely visible between two twisted trees.
Just as I reach it, my Veil Cloak flickers and fades. The chittering returns, closer than ever.
I don't hesitate. I throw myself at the barrier, feeling that same inside-out sensation as I pass through the membrane between worlds. I tumble onto leaf-covered ground, back in the normal forest once more.
For a moment, I lie gasping, expecting the Veil Stalkers to follow. But nothing emerges from the shimmering barrier. Whatever those creatures are, they seem confined to the Veil Lands.
I struggle to my feet, taking stock of my situation. I'm alone in a dark forest, separated from Thorne, with no supplies or clear direction. And somewhere in the Veil Lands behind me, my demon lord father is either fighting or has already overcome my only ally.
Dawn is breaking, pale light filtering through the mundane trees. I need to find shelter, to think, to plan. But first, I need to know if Thorne survived.
As if in answer to my unspoken question, a ragged figure stumbles through the barrier twenty paces to my right. Thorne collapses to his knees, one arm hanging at an unnatural angle, his face a mask of blood.
"Thorne!" I rush to his side, helping him away from the barrier.
"No time," he gasps. "He's delayed, not defeated. The silver flame… won't hold him long."
"What do we do? Where do we go?"
Thorne's eyes are unfocused, but he gestures weakly northwest. "Two days' walk. Village called Ravenwatch. Ask for… Syphiira the Hedge Witch. Old friend. Tell her…" He coughs, blood flecking his lips. "Tell her the debt is called."
NEW QUEST AVAILABLE: REACH RAVENWATCH
Find Syphiira the Hedge Witch in Ravenwatch Village. Receive medical attention for Thorne.
"You're badly hurt," I say, tearing strips from my already ragged dress to bind the worst of his wounds. "Can you walk?"
He nods grimly, allowing me to help him stand. "Your father—he wants something from you. Not just alliance. Something specific."
"What?"
"Don't know. But he's afraid… afraid of what you might become if you master your powers outside his influence." Thorne grimaces in pain as we begin walking. "That's why we need Syphiira. She knows about… crossed bloodlines."
We manage perhaps two hundred paces before Thorne stumbles again. His skin is growing colder, his breathing labored.
"We need to rest," I insist. "Just for a moment."
He shakes his head stubbornly. "Further from the barrier first. Find running water."
"Water? Why?"
"Harder for him to track us across it. Old rule… old magic."
I adjust my grip on him, taking more of his weight. "Just tell me which way."
He points with his good arm, and we struggle onward. The forest is waking around us, birds beginning their morning songs. Normal sounds, normal smells—so different from the alienness of the Veil Lands that it's almost shocking.
After nearly an hour of painful progress, we hear it—the sound of running water. A small stream cuts through the forest ahead, perhaps ten feet wide and shallow enough to wade across.
Thorne insists we cross immediately. The cold water revives him somewhat, and on the far bank, he seems marginally stronger.
"We should keep going," he says, but I can see his strength is failing.
"Not until I've properly bandaged these wounds." I force him to sit on a fallen log. "And you tell me what happened back there. How did you survive my father? What is he?"
Thorne's laugh turns into a cough. "Who says I did survive? This might just be borrowed time." He submits to my examination of his injuries. Besides the broken arm, he has three deep gashes across his chest and another along his jawline. His tattooed sigils have faded to dull blue lines.
"These need stitching," I say, feeling helpless.
"Later. Syphiira can help." He draws a shuddering breath. "As for your father… what you saw wasn't his true form. Just a projection, a shadow of himself."
"A projection did this to you?"
"Even a demon lord's shadow holds immense power in our realm. For him to manifest fully would require a gate, a proper summoning." His eyes fix on mine. "Or a willing conduit of his bloodline."
The implication sinks in. "Me. He needs me to fully enter this world."
"Yes. The blood connection gives him a tether, but not enough to cross completely." Thorne's gaze drifts to the pendant I still clutch tightly. "Your mother's gift responded to you?"
I nod. "It created some kind of concealment."
"The Veil Cloak." He smiles faintly. "One of Mira's specialties. She could move between worlds almost as easily as walking through a doorway." His expression grows serious again. "That pendant contains more than just a spell. It holds a piece of her essence—her final gift to protect you."
"From my father?"
"From many things." He struggles to his feet. "Come. We've lingered too long."
We push on through the morning, stopping only when Thorne's strength fails completely. I help him create a small shelter of branches and leaves in the hollow of a large oak tree, hidden from casual view.
"Just a few hours," he insists. "Then we continue."
I nod, watching as he falls into an uneasy sleep almost immediately. His breathing is shallow, his skin ashen. I'm no healer, but even I can tell his condition is worsening.
While he sleeps, I attempt to use my Observe ability on his wounds.
OBSERVE ACTIVATED
Target: Thorne's Injuries
Type: Magical/Physical Trauma
Status: Worsening. Corruption detected. Origin: Eighth Circle contamination.
Note: Requires specialized treatment within 36 hours to prevent permanent damage.
Cold fear settles in my stomach. Whatever my father did to him, it's more than physical damage. Some kind of corruption is spreading from the wounds.
I try to think rationally. Two days' walk to Ravenwatch means we'll barely make it within the 36-hour window, and that's assuming we travel without stopping. In Thorne's condition, that seems impossible.
While keeping watch, I examine my mother's pendant more closely. The crescent moon design isn't just decorative—tiny runes are etched along its curve, so small they're barely visible. The blue gem at its center pulses faintly, like a heartbeat.
I try using Observe on it as well.
OBSERVE ACTIVATED
Target: Moonstone Pendant
Type: Legacy Artifact
Creator: Mira Moonshadow
Status: Partially active. Bonded to bloodline descendant.
Functions Accessible: Veil Cloak
Functions Locked: 4 (Requires higher attunement)
I close my eyes, focusing on the feeling of connection I experienced when the pendant activated earlier. There has to be more it can do. If it truly contains a piece of my mother's essence, perhaps I can communicate with it somehow.
Recalling my new Blood Sigil Creation ability, an idea forms. If blood is the connection between me and my father
could it also strengthen my connection to my mother's pendant? The thought feels right—intuitive in a way I can't explain.
With trembling fingers, I reach for Thorne's hunting knife, still sheathed at his belt. He doesn't stir as I carefully slide it free. The blade gleams dully in the filtered sunlight.
I hesitate only a moment before pressing the edge against my palm. The cut stings, blood welling up in a thin line across my skin. I let it pool in my cupped hand, then carefully drip it onto the pendant's gem.
For a heartbeat, nothing happens. Then the blood seems to sink into the stone, disappearing completely. The gem flares with brilliant blue light, momentarily blinding me.
BLOOD RITUAL ACTIVATED
Bloodline connection strengthened. Accessing sealed memories.
The world around me dissolves. I'm no longer in the forest but standing in a circular chamber with walls of pale stone. Moonlight pours through a domed skylight above, illuminating a woman working at a table covered with arcane implements.
My breath catches in my throat. Though I've only seen her in dreams and faded drawings, I recognize her instantly. Tall and graceful with flowing silver-blonde hair and eyes the exact shade of mine—my mother, Mira Moonshadow.
She looks up suddenly, staring directly at me. Not through me, as I'd expect from a memory, but at me.
"Aria," she says, her voice soft but clear. "If you're seeing this, then I've failed to return to you, and the pendant has accepted your blood offering."
I try to speak, but no sound emerges. This isn't real—not quite a memory, not quite a vision.
"This is a memory imprint," she continues, as if reading my thoughts. "A fragment of myself I sealed within the pendant before… before I confronted your father. I don't have much time, so listen carefully."
She moves toward me, her movements fluid and ethereal.
"The abilities awakening within you come from both bloodlines—human and demon. The System you're experiencing is unique to our family line, designed by the first Moonshadow to help control and channel magical talent. Your father's blood gives it unusual potency." Her expression hardens. "But never doubt that you are more than your lineage. Your choices shape your power, not the other way around."
She gestures, and floating runes appear in the air between us—similar to the ones etched on the pendant.
"I've locked most of the pendant's abilities until you're ready. Each will unlock as your attunement grows." Her eyes flash with intensity. "But there's one more you need now. Blood Memory. It will allow you to access knowledge I've stored within the pendant—spells, histories, warnings."
The runes rearrange themselves, forming a complex pattern.
"Memorize this sigil. Draw it with your blood when you're in danger and need guidance. But use it sparingly—each activation drains both the pendant's power and your own."
I stare at the pattern, committing it to memory as it burns with blue fire.
"Aria, there's so much more I wish I could tell you." Her voice catches. "About your father, about the Covenant, about why I had to leave you with Thorne. But some knowledge is too dangerous until you're ready."
The chamber begins to shimmer around us, the edges of the vision blurring.
"One last warning," she says urgently. "Trust no one who claims to serve the Arcanum. The council is corrupted from within. Seek out the Twilight Accord instead—those who remember the old ways."
"Mother, wait!" I finally find my voice, reaching for her. "How do I find them? What is father truly after?"
Her image is fading now, but her eyes remain fixed on mine. "The answers lie in Ravenwatch. Find Syphiira. And remember—your blood is both key and lock. What it opens is your choice alone."
The vision shatters, and I'm back in the forest, gasping, the pendant hot in my palm. The cut on my hand has healed completely, leaving only a thin silver line.
NEW ABILITY UNLOCKED: BLOOD MEMORY
Access sealed knowledge within the pendant.
Cost: Moderate blood sacrifice and 30% max energy.
Beside me, Thorne stirs, his eyes fluttering open. "Aria? What's happening?"
Before I can answer, a distant howl echoes through the forest—the same layered, wrong sound from the Veil Lands. Impossible. We crossed running water. How could they have followed us?
"We need to move," I say, helping him sit up. "Now."
"What did you do?" he asks, his gaze fixed on the pendant, still glowing faintly blue.
"I'll explain later." I haul him to his feet, ignoring his grunt of pain. "My father's creatures have found us somehow."
As if in confirmation, another howl sounds—closer this time, joined by others.
Thorne's face pales further. "Not possible. The water barrier should have—" He stops abruptly, his eyes widening as he looks at my hand. "You used blood magic. He can track that."
Guilt floods through me. My attempt to connect with my mother's pendant has led our pursuers straight to us.