The Chronicles Of Eternity

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The smoke of Hallowrest still lingered in the wind.

Even miles away, it clung to their skin like grief, sour and thick. The silence that followed the battle with the Dominion scouts was not relief. It was a hollow echo—of loss, of rage, of guilt.

Kael rode ahead, the reins in his hands tight with tension. His eyes never left the road ahead, but his mind churned like a storm. The shard—Aunnex—had changed again. Not just in form, but in feel. It now pulsed with a deeper rhythm, like it had tasted blood and awoken something ancient within itself.

Behind him, Lira winced with each step her horse took. The cut along her side had reopened during the ride. Still, she said nothing.

Alfred rode beside Rye, watching him carefully. The boy had gone silent since the fight, his usual energy extinguished. He held his blades too tightly now, eyes sunken, as though the weight of what they'd lost had finally caught up to him.

They moved for hours through dense forest and across shallow streams, until the ground began to dip into a long canyon—a scar in the land, with stone walls etched by time.

"We rest here," Kael said finally, dismounting.

The group set up a small camp beneath a stone overhang. There was little conversation. Just the sound of fire being struck, of cloth being torn for bandages, of shallow, tired breathing.

Kael stood at the edge of the canyon, looking east. "I saw something in the light," he muttered.

Lira, sitting nearby and binding her ribs, looked up. "What kind of something?"

"A city… or ruins, maybe. Beyond this canyon. I think it's where the second shard is."

"You trust those visions now?" Alfred asked from his post near the fire.

Kael nodded slowly. "I didn't before. But after today… it's like the shard is remembering, and I'm seeing through its memory."

Silence followed.

Then Rye spoke, voice flat. "We didn't bury them."

Kael turned. "What?"

"The villagers. We didn't bury anyone. We just ran."

Lira stood slowly. "We had no choice. You saw what was coming."

"I know," Rye whispered. "I just hate that it was the only choice."

A crack echoed through the canyon.

Everyone froze.

"Was that thunder?" Alfred asked.

"No," Kael said, rising. "That was steel."

A horn blew in the distance.

They scrambled to their feet.

"Scouts again?" Lira asked.

Kael's expression darkened. "Not this time."

From across the canyon, shadows emerged. Dozens. Soldiers in full armor, riding sleek dark horses bred for war. And at their head was not a scout, but a knight clad in obsidian armor trimmed in crimson.

The Dominion had arrived.

"They found us already?" Rye gasped.

"They followed the scouts who escaped," Alfred said. "We should have known they'd send more."

"We have to move," Kael said, mounting his horse.

But it was too late.

A smaller unit had already descended into the canyon from a side path, flanking them.

"Kael," Lira said, pointing. "Look!"

The second force—eight strong—closed in from the west, cutting off their escape.

Alfred raised his hammer. "We fight."

"No," Kael said, thinking fast. "We split. Lira, take Rye and go around the southern edge. Alfred and I will hold them here and buy time."

"Kael—"

"Go!"

Lira cursed but obeyed. She grabbed Rye by the arm and pulled him onto her horse. Together, they raced south.

Kael turned to Alfred. "Let's make this count."

They stood shoulder to shoulder as the Dominion riders charged.

The first struck with a massive axe. Alfred blocked it, sparks flying as steel met steel. Kael spun beneath the second attacker, his new blade flashing silver as he slashed across armor, cutting deep.

The shard responded to his rage. With every swing, it hummed, shifting subtly in his hands—becoming lighter, faster, sharper.

Alfred bellowed, swinging his hammer in a wide arc that crushed the leg of a horse and sent its rider flying.

A spear grazed Kael's arm. He cried out, pivoting and driving his blade into the attacker's chest.

But they were still outnumbered.

One rider dismounted and hurled a flurry of knives. Alfred caught one in the shoulder but stayed on his feet.

"They're trying to separate us!" Alfred growled.

Kael pushed back another soldier, breathing hard. "Let them try."

From above the canyon, a shrill whistle sounded.

Lira's signal.

Kael looked up to see her and Rye waving from a ledge overhead. A rope had been tossed down.

"Go!" Alfred shouted. "I'll hold them!"

"I'm not leaving you—"

"Kael, go!"

Kael ran, leaping over a fallen horse. He grabbed the rope and began to climb.

Below, Alfred swung one final time, knocking two soldiers back.

Kael reached the top, hands bleeding.

Lira and Rye pulled him up. The three of them turned back just in time to see Alfred break away and sprint to the rock face. He climbed with brute strength, ignoring the knives and arrows that chased his heels.

He made it.

They didn't stop to celebrate.

Together, the four of them ran.

Hours passed before they dared to slow down. They found shelter beneath a cliffside overhang, hidden by brush and rock.

Kael collapsed onto the ground, chest heaving. "We need a better plan."

"They'll never stop," Lira said. "Marrek will send the entire Dominion if he has to."

"Then we stop running," Alfred said.

Kael looked at him.

Alfred continued, "We make for the ruins you saw. If the shard is there, it's worth it. But we move carefully. We watch every path. And we don't split again unless we have to."

Rye looked up, a little fire in his eyes again. "We fight smart."

Kael nodded. "Together."

Above them, the stars had returned—cold, watching, indifferent.

But Kael felt it now, deep in his bones.

The next piece of Aunnex was close.

And so was the war to come.

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The next morning, the group pressed forward. The forest gave way to cliffs, and a river roared beside them. The path narrowed to a slippery ledge over fast water.

Suddenly, the edge gave way beneath Kael's horse.

"Kael!" Lira screamed.

He and Alfred, trying to pull him up, were both yanked into the current. The river swallowed them.

"Meet us at the Shapeborn village!" Kael shouted, before the waters dragged him under.

Lira and Rye stood at the cliff's edge, helpless.

Separation had come again.

And now, two paths remained.

Both heading toward the next shard.

And into greater danger.

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