CHAPTER 6

ANOTHER PORTAL

The bell rang somewhere in the distance.

Once.

Twice.

Then a third time.

The sound rolled across Aurelis like thunder, echoing between crystal towers and moonlit bridges before disappearing into the night.

Aeron's expression darkened instantly.

"What was that?" Eveline asked.

Neither of them answered.

The silence was answer enough.

A chill crept slowly up her spine.

For the first time since arriving in Vaeloria, she realized whatever secret everyone seemed determined to keep from her was far larger than she'd imagined.

Far older.

Far more dangerous.

"Aeron," Elara said quietly.

"I know."

His golden eyes lifted toward the sky.

Hundreds of silver-winged birds circled above the city.

Searching.

Watching.

Waiting.

The music still floated through the streets.

Lanterns still drifted lazily overhead.

Children still laughed somewhere beyond the market.

But beneath it all—

something had changed.

The city wasn't celebrating anymore.

It was listening.

"Can somebody please tell me what's happening?"

Her voice cracked sharper than she intended.

Neither of them answered.

They simply looked guilty.

That only made the frustration burn hotter.

For eighteen years no one had explained anything.

Not why Elara disappeared for weeks.

Not why strange things always happened around her.

Not why she'd spent her entire life feeling homesick for somewhere she'd never been.

And now she'd crossed into another world only to discover everyone here knew something she didn't.

She was done being the last person to know.

"Evy—"

"No."

Elara blinked.

"No?"

"No."

The word surprised even Eveline.

"You dragged me through a portal."

"You weren't safe."

"You told me I wasn't crazy."

"Because you aren't."

"You brought me to another world."

"I know."

"And now an entire kingdom seems to be hunting me."

Silence.

Eveline let out a short, humorless laugh.

"Do you realize how insane that sounds?"

Aeron offered a tired smile.

"Quite insane."

"Thank you."

"Unfortunately..."

The smile vanished.

"It's also true."

A cold breeze swept through the alley.

Every lantern flickered.

Then—

they all went out.

Darkness swallowed the narrow street.

Eveline's pulse hammered.

A figure stood at the mouth of the alley.

No footsteps.

No warning.

One heartbeat the space had been empty.

The next...

someone was there.

A woman cloaked entirely in black.

Her hood concealed most of her face, but pale silver eyes gleamed beneath its shadow.

She didn't speak.

She didn't move.

She simply watched.

Every muscle in Aeron's body tightened.

Elara quietly stepped in front of Eveline.

The woman raised one hand.

Shadows answered.

They spilled across the cobblestones like liquid ink, twisting into impossible shapes that crawled toward them.

The air itself grew cold.

Eveline stumbled backward.

"What is she—"

A sharp crack echoed overhead.

Silver light split the darkness.

Another figure landed between them.

Not with force.

With impossible grace.

Long silver hair danced in the wind.

Moonlight gathered around her robes as though the night itself recognized her.

She carried no weapon.

She didn't need one.

The shadows halted.

For the first time, the hooded woman took a step back.

Nysera lifted her eyes.

"You are early."

Her voice was calm.

Almost disappointed.

The hooded woman smiled beneath her veil.

"So are you."

For a heartbeat, neither moved.

Then darkness exploded forward.

Nysera swept one hand through the air.

Silver symbols bloomed around her fingers like living constellations.

The shadows struck the barrier.

Light and darkness collided.

The alley shook.

Stone walls cracked.

Lantern glass burst into glittering fragments.

"Warden," the hooded woman hissed.

"Exile," Nysera replied evenly.

"Take the girl."

Aeron didn't hesitate.

Golden runes ignited around his hands, weaving themselves into a circle behind them.

The air folded inward.

Moonlight poured through the opening.

A portal.

"Go!" Nysera commanded.

The shadows crashed against her barrier again.

This time tiny fractures spread across the glowing shield.

Elara grabbed Eveline's wrist.

"What is that?"

"A portal."

"I KNOW IT'S A PORTAL!"

"Then stop asking questions."

Despite everything, Eveline almost laughed.

Another blast shook the alley.

Nysera planted both feet.

Silver light erupted beneath her.

For one impossible moment the entire street glowed like daylight.

"NOW!"

Aeron shoved them toward the portal.

Eveline caught one final glimpse before the light swallowed her.

Nysera stood alone between them and the darkness.

Unmoving.

Unafraid.

As though she had held impossible odds at bay many times before.

Then the world disappeared.

Silence.

The kind only mountains knew.

Cold air filled Eveline's lungs so sharply it almost hurt.

Grass bent beneath her boots.

The scent of pine, snow, and ancient stone replaced the perfume and smoke of Aurelis.

She staggered forward as the portal collapsed behind them with a whisper instead of an explosion.

For a long moment...

No one spoke.

The world stretched endlessly around them.

Jagged mountains crowned with snow rose toward a sky overflowing with stars.

Silver rivers carved their way through dark forests below.

The wind carried nothing except the distant cry of unseen creatures and the whisper of leaves dancing somewhere far beneath the cliffs.

It felt untouched.

Older than kingdoms.

Older than history.

Then Eveline saw it.

Built into the mountainside stood an enormous manor of pale stone.

Its towers reached toward the heavens, their windows glowing with warm amber light.

Waterfalls tumbled from terraces carved directly into the cliffs.

Gardens clung impossibly to the mountainside, blooming beneath the moon as though winter had forgotten this place.

The estate didn't conquer the mountain.

It belonged to it.

Eveline could only stare.

"...That's a house?"

Aeron smiled faintly.

"You'll get used to impossible things."

"I sincerely doubt that."

Behind them, another shimmer of silver light rippled through the air.

Nysera stepped through as the portal quietly sealed itself.

Not a strand of her silver hair was out of place.

She simply brushed an invisible speck of dust from her sleeve, as though she hadn't just held back living darkness.

Eveline stared.

"...Who are you?"

Nysera met her gaze.

Before Eveline could ask another question or Nysera could answer, the great doors of the mountain manor began to open.

Slowly.

Heavily.

A lone figure emerged onto the stone steps.

An elderly man wrapped in dark robes.

Silver hair caught in the mountain wind.

He descended only a few steps before stopping completely.

His eyes found Eveline.

And the entire world seemed to stop with him .