The wind howled against Aeris’ ears as she sprinted over the uneven terrain, her lungs burning with every breath. The ruins behind them had long since vanished into the distance, swallowed by the endless stretch of land that separated them from the capital.

  Each step pounded the same thought deeper into her mind.

  They had to get there first.

  She stole a glance at Sorin beside her. He moved with sharp, deliberate strides, keeping pace but never wasting energy. He didn’t look at her—his eyes were locked forward, toward the horizon.

  Ahead of them, the Exiled One was nothing but a silhouette against the fading light. He wasn’t even running. He simply walked, yet somehow, he never fell behind.

  Aeris forced herself to focus. The sun had begun to dip below the jagged cliffs in the distance, stretching their shadows long across the cracked earth.

  They couldn’t stop.

  Not until they knew what they were running toward.

  The first sign of disaster came just before nightfall.

  A scar in the landscape.

  Sorin was the first to notice. “What the hell is that?”

  Aeris followed his gaze, and her breath caught.

  A vast stretch of the land ahead had been split open. A jagged rift, too deep to see the bottom, cutting through the path toward the capital like an open wound.

  It hadn’t been there before.

  The Exiled One was already stepping closer, peering into the abyss.

  “…It’s waking,” he murmured.

  Sorin stiffened. “You mean—”

  “Yes.”

  Aeris’ heart pounded.

  They had hoped the god was still lost, still forgetting itself.

  But this—this—meant it had already begun to remember.

  And it was reshaping the world in its wake.

  She swallowed hard. “How do we stop it?”

  The Exiled One turned his head slightly. “We don’t.”

  Silence.

  Then Sorin let out a quiet, mirthless laugh. “Great. That’s comforting.”

  The Exiled One’s gaze lingered on the rift. “Stopping it is impossible. Delaying it is not.”

  Aeris exhaled slowly. That was the best answer she was going to get.

  She stepped forward. “Then we keep moving.”

  They had no choice.

  Because if the god was already leaving scars in the earth—

  Then the capital was running out of time.

  The wind howled through the rift, carrying whispers of something old, something vast. Aeris shivered.

  She didn’t want to think about what might be down there.

  Sorin crouched at the edge, peering into the darkness. “So. Anyone got a bright idea on how we cross this thing?”

  The rift stretched far in both directions, vanishing into the distance like a wound splitting the earth apart. There was no telling how deep it went.

  The Exiled One said nothing.

  Aeris knew better than to expect an immediate answer from him. He wasn’t the type to throw out half-formed ideas—when he spoke, he was certain.

  Sorin, on the other hand, was already muttering under his breath. “No bridges. No way around it. No idea how deep it goes.” He exhaled sharply. “This is fantastic.”

  Aeris ignored him. Her gaze swept across the landscape, looking for anything—anything—they could use.

  Then she saw it.

  There.

  Jagged rock formations, stretching across the chasm like the remnants of some long-forgotten skeleton. Sharp, uneven, and unstable—but possible.

  She pointed. “We cross there.”

  Sorin followed her gaze. “…Are you serious?”

  The path was barely more than a scattering of stone pillars, some leaning at impossible angles, others cracked down the middle. If they misstepped, there was no telling how far they would fall.

  But it was the only option.

  The Exiled One was already moving. Without hesitation, he stepped onto the first stone, testing its weight beneath his foot before pushing forward.

  Aeris clenched her jaw. If he could do it, so could they.

  She stepped forward—

  And Sorin grabbed her wrist.

  “You fall,” he said quietly, “and I’m not climbing down to get you.”

  Aeris looked at him. “Then I won’t fall.”

  Sorin muttered something under his breath, but released her.

  She moved.

  One step.

  Then another.

  The stone trembled beneath her weight.

  The air in the rift felt different—wrong.

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  Like something ancient was stirring in the dark.

  Aeris ignored it.

  She focused on the next step.

  Then the next.

  And the next.

  And she didn’t look down.

  The wind surged through the chasm, making the stones beneath Aeris’ feet groan. She kept her breathing steady. One step at a time.

  Sorin moved behind her, muttering curses under his breath every time the rocks shifted. “I swear, if I die here, I’m haunting both of you.”

  Aeris ignored him.

  The Exiled One was already near the other side. He moved like he belonged here—like the wind and the stone knew him.

  Aeris forced herself forward, stepping onto the next rock. Steady. Focused.

  Then—

  A crack.

  The sound of something splitting beneath her weight.

  Her heart lurched.

  She barely had time to react before the stone gave way beneath her foot.

  For a single, terrifying moment, she was falling.

  Then—a hand grabbed her wrist.

  Sorin.

  She swung violently against the side of the stone pillar, her feet dangling over the abyss. The chasm yawned beneath her, endless and dark.

  Sorin gritted his teeth. “Told you not to fall.”

  Aeris clenched her jaw, forcing herself to stay calm. The rock was crumbling beneath his grip. If she didn’t act fast—

  She swung herself upward.

  Her free hand caught the edge. She pulled.

  Sorin shifted his weight, anchoring her as she scrambled up.

  Her boots hit solid ground again. She inhaled sharply.

  Sorin let out a breath. “You—”

  A sound cut him off.

  A rumbling.

  Low. Deep.

  Coming from the chasm below.

  Aeris’ stomach turned.

  She met Sorin’s gaze. He had heard it too.

  The Exiled One was already looking down, his expression unreadable.

  The wind died.

  Silence.

  Then—

  The darkness below began to move.

  The darkness shifted.

  A low, guttural grinding sound rumbled from deep within the chasm, as if the earth itself was stirring from an ancient slumber. Aeris’ breath caught in her throat.

  The Exiled One’s voice was quiet, but firm. “Move.”

  Aeris didn’t need to be told twice. She forced herself forward, leaping to the next stone, ignoring the sharp pain in her arms from the near fall.

  Sorin landed beside her with a rough stumble. “I don’t like this. I really don’t like this.”

  Aeris wasn’t sure if he was talking about the crumbling path or the thing waking beneath them. Either way, she agreed.

  The rumbling deepened.

  Then—a breath.

  Aeris’ stomach turned.

  She hadn’t imagined it. That was breathing. Something in the chasm was alive.

  And it was waking up.

  The Exiled One was already at the edge of the rift, standing on the final stone before the solid land on the other side. He turned, watching them with an urgency Aeris had never seen before.

  He lifted a hand. “Jump.”

  Aeris hesitated. The gap was too wide.

  Sorin’s expression darkened. “You’re joking.”

  “I do not joke.”

  The ground beneath them shifted.

  A shadow moved in the abyss.

  Aeris clenched her jaw. They didn’t have time.

  She took a breath—and ran.

  The wind roared past her as she leaped. For a split second, she was weightless—suspended in the air between the two edges of the rift.

  Then—a hand caught hers.

  The Exiled One gripped her wrist and pulled her forward, steady, strong. She landed roughly, rolling onto solid ground.

  Behind her, Sorin cursed—then jumped.

  For a terrifying second, Aeris thought he wasn’t going to make it.

  Then the Exiled One moved.

  A flash of movement—his arm shot out—and caught Sorin by the collar.

  Sorin let out a strangled sound. “I take back everything bad I’ve ever said about you.”

  The Exiled One didn’t respond. He simply let go once Sorin was safely on solid ground.

  Then—

  A roar.

  Not of a beast.

  Not of a man.

  Something else.

  Aeris turned—and froze.

  From the darkness of the rift, something was rising.

  It was vast. It was formless.

  And worst of all—it was looking at them.

  The air turned heavy. The weight of it crushed against Aeris’ mind like something ancient was trying to push its way inside.

  Sorin took a step back, his voice low. “We need to go. Now.”

  The Exiled One stared into the abyss.

  A beat of silence.

  Then, finally—

  “…Run.”

  The air cracked.

  A presence—not just vast, but old—seeped through the chasm like ink bleeding into the world. It had no shape, no form, only weight. A terrible, suffocating weight that made Aeris feel like her own mind wasn’t entirely her own anymore.

  Her vision blurred. She wasn’t standing here.

  She was somewhere else.

  A battlefield.

  A city, burning.

  A name, half-forgotten, whispered through the ages—

  “You were not meant to wake.”

  Aeris gasped, wrenching herself back to the present. The chasm was still there. Sorin. The Exiled One. The thing rising beneath them.

  And it saw her.

  A great, shuddering breath filled the chasm.

  Then—it moved.

  A black tendril lashed up from the abyss.

  Sorin barely had time to shout before the ground beneath them exploded.

  Aeris was thrown backward. Her ears rang. The force of the impact sent her skidding across the rough ground, stones cutting into her skin. She barely managed to keep from tumbling into the rift.

  Dust filled the air.

  Sorin coughed. “We’re dead. We’re so dead.”

  The Exiled One was already moving. “Get up.”

  A second tendril—larger than the first—rose from the darkness, curling in the air like smoke made solid. It stretched toward them—slow, deliberate.

  It wasn’t in a rush.

  It was savoring this.

  The Exiled One stepped forward. His sword was already drawn.

  Aeris’ breath caught. “You’re not actually going to fight that thing, are you?”

  He didn’t answer. He just moved.

  A flash of steel—

  Then, impossibly, he cut through the darkness itself.

  The tendril recoiled. The thing in the rift let out a sound—not quite a scream, not quite a roar. A sound that was wrong.

  Aeris forced herself up. “We need to go.”

  Sorin didn’t need to be told twice.

  The Exiled One moved last, stepping back only when the next tendril lashed out toward him. He dodged, pivoted, and ran.

  Aeris and Sorin followed, sprinting across the uneven terrain. Behind them, the abyss pulsed. The tendrils thrashed violently, shattering the rock formations they had just crossed.

  There was no time to think. No time to look back.

  Only time to run.

  The world was breaking.

  The entity in the rift thrashed against the stone, and the land crumbled. Massive slabs of rock, once ancient and unmoving, were now shattered like brittle glass.

  Aeris ran. She didn’t think. She didn’t look back.

  Just run.

  Sorin was right behind her, his breathing ragged. “I’m—really—starting—to hate this!”

  The Exiled One was ahead of them, moving like he already knew the path. His sword was still drawn, gleaming with an eerie light. Aeris had never seen it glow before.

  What was that blade made of?

  She pushed the thought aside. Not important. Not right now.

  The ground beneath them trembled.

  Another tendril lashed forward, striking the cliffside ahead. A path that should have led them to safety collapsed into the void.

  Sorin cursed. “We’re trapped!”

  Aeris’ heart pounded. No. There had to be another way.

  The Exiled One suddenly turned. “This way.”

  He darted to the right, leaping onto a narrow ridge barely wide enough for one person. It spiraled upward, toward a jagged, half-crumbled bridge of stone.

  Aeris didn’t hesitate. She followed.

  Sorin groaned but ran after her. “You know, I’d love it if—just once—you led us somewhere that wasn’t actively trying to kill us!”

  They reached the bridge. It was ancient, weathered, and worse—unstable. Chunks had already fallen away, leaving gaps in the stone.

  Aeris’ stomach twisted.

  If they fell—there was no surviving that.

  The Exiled One went first. His movements were precise, measured, like he had crossed worse before.

  Aeris took a breath and stepped onto the bridge.

  Beneath them, the entity shifted.

  A low sound rumbled through the air, something between a growl and a whisper.

  It was aware of them.

  And it was learning.

  Another tendril shot upward—faster this time. It wasn’t just lashing blindly anymore. It was aiming.

  Aeris barely dodged as it slammed into the bridge beside her. The impact nearly knocked her off balance.

  Sorin yelped. “It’s getting smarter! Oh, fantastic!”

  A crack echoed through the air.

  Aeris turned—and her blood ran cold.

  The impact had weakened the bridge.

  The section ahead—the part the Exiled One had just crossed—was collapsing.

  Aeris ran.

  So did Sorin.

  Stone shattered behind them, crumbling into the abyss. The bridge was falling too fast.

  Aeris leaped.

  For a terrifying moment, she was weightless—then she slammed into solid ground.

  She barely had time to process it before she turned, reaching back—

  Sorin jumped—but he wasn’t going to make it.

  His eyes widened. “Oh, come on—”

  Then the Exiled One moved.

  Faster than Aeris could see—he caught Sorin by the arm.

  The moment was so quick, so effortless, that Sorin could only stare. “Okay. That was actually kind of cool.”

  The Exiled One said nothing.

  Then—the world shuddered again.

  Aeris turned.

  The entity wasn’t just reaching anymore.

  It was rising.

  Fully.

  And for the first time—she saw its face.

  Or rather, the absence of one.

  A hollow void, a shifting darkness in the shape of something long forgotten.

  And it spoke.

  Or maybe—maybe it had always been speaking, and she was only now beginning to understand.

  “You should not exist.”

  Aeris’ heart nearly stopped.

  Then—the Exiled One stepped forward.

  His expression, always unreadable, darkened.

  A beat of silence.

  Then—he finally spoke.

  “…Neither should you.”