Untamed bond

There are sigils that are drawn with blood. Others, with bone dust or whispers. But this one… this one carved itself into Aure's spine as he slept.

Lian watched the glow pulse beneath his skin like a heartbeat that didn't belong to him. It was ancient. Forbidden. And definitely not in the Order's archives.

"They're going to come for you now," he murmured.

"I know," Aure whispered. "I'm tired of running."

The mark shimmered. Then pulsed. A new line etched itself in real time.

The sigil was growing.

Suddenly, a shriek split the night—not from the forest, not from any beast. It came from the sky.

The stars were moving.

One by one, they shifted from their places and spiraled down like burning feathers, forming a circle in the sky above them. It was a summoning.

Or a warning.

From the shadows, a figure emerged. Not fully human. Not fully anything. Silver-eyed. Horned. And wearing a piece of Aure's past around their neck—a fragment of his soul.

"Child of two realms," the figure spoke, voice like ash and thunder. "You were never meant to wake."

Aure's hands curled into fists. "And yet… here I stand."

The figure laughed—no joy, just a sound to make the trees tremble. "That sigil on your back? It's a lock. And you've been opening it."

Lian stepped forward. "If you touch him—"

"You are the key, warrior." The being smirked. "That's why the bond was severed. You were dangerous together. Still are."

Aure's eyes widened. "So the Order—"

"They made me. To unmake you."

The sky crackled.

The ground bled.

And just as the figure raised his hand, Aure stepped in front of Lian, eyes blazing, voice shaking the realm itself:

"Then unmake me. But leave him untouched."

The sigil erupted. Light swallowed the grove.

Lian screamed.

Aure vanished.