Is that... my mother’s voice? But why would she speak to me—after all these years? Was she perhaps trapped in this crystal alongside the Sonatius Mortaeda?

  “Vespera Entium… what is your mother’s name?” the false twilight asks, a trace of confusion in his voice. “Are you the daughter of Isilyn Entium, daughter of Mireon Entium?”

  Mireon Entium? I’ve never heard that name before. But Isilyn Entium… she was my mother. According to Zyar Velqorin, the Legate of the Elements, she vanished without a trace shortly after I was born.

  “Vespera…”

  His voice trails off—or perhaps falls silent altogether. The shattered crystal, which had hovered motionless in the air just moments ago, begins to change: it forms into a shimmering ellipse, its light bathing the dark chamber in a soft glow.

  Veydris, can you hear me? What is happening here?

  No response. The Losniw no longer reaches me. Am I still trapped in my subconscious… or has my mind already crossed that final threshold?

  This white, boundless nothingness—so still, so alive—feels like life after death.

  Have I died without knowing it?

  Suddenly, two arms wrap around me. Reflexively, I spin around—only to stare into my own reflection. Or rather… almost.

  Before me stands a woman with long silver hair, worn in a simple cut. Her green eyes rest on me—alert, piercing. A gentle smile plays around her lips as she brings her hands together in a shy, apologetic gesture.

  “Forgive me… I shouldn’t have embraced you like that,” she says softly, tapping her forehead in embarrassment.

  “Who are you?” I ask—though deep down, I already know the answer.

  My voice trembles, and my heart clenches. For a fleeting moment, sorrow flickers in her eyes—brief as a shadow, yet deep as an ocean. Then she gives me that smile again, the one I’ve seen so often in my mind’s eye.

  She gazes at me for a long moment, tilts her head slightly—and in that instant, the entire world seems to stand still.

  “It’s so good to see you again,” she whispers, sniffling almost imperceptibly. “I promised myself I wouldn’t cry… but perhaps you’ll forgive me these few tears.”

  I don’t move. Or rather: I can’t move. My heart is pounding so hard it feels like it wants to burst free from my chest. The woman before me stands still, wearing that same expression now etched into my memory: a radiant smile—and eyes reflecting the echo of deepest sorrow.

  “I’ve missed you so much…” The words burst from me suddenly.

  We stare at each other, stunned—she, surprised by the words; I, because I couldn’t stop myself from saying them. For a brief moment, all my restraint collapses. My desperate silence loses all meaning.

  “So often I wished I could see you.” My voice shakes. “So many nights I imagined your face… and all I had to do was look into the mirror.”

  The words spill from me, unfiltered, raw. I feel like a child—vulnerable and yearning, longing for nothing more than the closeness of their mother. Each word cuts through the silence like a blade. I see the sorrow in her eyes deepen, see her smile tremble beneath the weight of guilt and regret.

  I don’t know if she’s angry at herself… or simply exhausted from all the years that lie between us.

  We stand across from each other, both unable to take the first step. Something invisible separates us—a barrier made of pain, of time, of guilt. As if we no longer exist in the same space.

  “Why were you trapped all those years?” I finally break the silence. My voice is soft, almost fragile. “I have so many questions… but something tells me that time is running out.”

  She only nods—slowly, heavily. “Where should I even begin…?”

  A moment passes, so still I can hear my own breath. Even though she must have imagined this moment countless times, she seems unprepared for this one question.

  “Zyar told you that I was supposed to become the ninth vessel of the Sonatius Mortaeda, didn’t he?”

  I nod. I barely dare to breathe.

  “My child… I never wanted to place that burden on you.”

  Silence again.

  She waits for a response—but what could I possibly say? How can I tell her that her decision still marked me?

  “Why?” I whisper.

  It’s the only word I manage. Her eyes widen. My heart races, my knees go weak, my stomach knots in fear—fear of the truth that is now inevitably drawing near.

  “Because otherwise I would have had to watch you die.”

  Her words hit me like a blow. Confusion and horror mix inside me.

  “What do you mean?”

  “With the awakening of the Sonatius Mortaeda in Elindros, the Vessels and the Children of Light were born as well.” Her voice sounds rough, almost broken. “The Vessels, as you know, were meant to serve the Primeval Being. The Children of Light, on the other hand, are those Elindine who developed special abilities in their childhood. Through them, the villages you know today came into being.”

  “And what does that have to do with me?” I ask urgently. “I’m not a Child of Light—my gift is the same as any Losniw’s—and I don’t feel up to the role of a Vessel.”

  “You’re right, my child.” A shadow passes over her face. “And yet fate has given you a role that I wanted to prevent at all costs.”

  “What role?” My voice trembles. I feel the air around us charge, grow heavier. “Why did you make me a Vessel then?” My body shakes with anger, with sorrow… and all the emotions I’ve tried so desperately to suppress. “What could be worse than becoming a tool of a cruel Primeval Being? Tell me!”

  She hesitates—then the words burst out of her, just as desperate as my own voice: “Because otherwise I would have had to kill you!”

  The words echo like a thunderclap. My mind refuses to comprehend them.

  “Along with the awakening of the Sonatius Mortaeda…,” she continues, “…the Children of Shadow were born as well.”

  Children of Shadow? The counterpart to the Children of Light? What does that mean? Confused, shaken, I look at her—my mother—while she realizes how desperately I seek answers.

  “Children of Shadow…,” she says softly. “They are no coincidence. Each Vessel of the Sonatius Mortaeda has had one of them placed at their side.”

  I frown.

  “What do you mean—placed at their side?”

  “A counterpart,” she explains. “A mirror. Not created to complement, but to consume.” Her voice is calm, but I can hear the trembling behind it. “A Vessel can only exist if its shadow is born somewhere on Elindros. Only through them can the Vessel establish a complete connection to the Sonatius Mortaeda.”

  I swallow. “And what happens to these Children of Shadow?”

  She closes her eyes. “They don’t live long. The Vessels… the ones who came before you… have all killed their counterparts.”

  I sharply inhale. “All of them?”

  She nods.

  “They weren’t their children. Foreign beings, born of the same origin, but never bound by blood. So it was… easier.” A bitter smile flickers across her face. “But fate had different plans for me.”

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  My heart skips a beat. “You mean… I…?”

  “You are my child, Vespera. My flesh, my blood. And still… fate declared you the Shadow Child before I ever held you in my arms.”

  I feel the ground slip away beneath me. Everything in me rebels.

  “But I… I was supposed to die so you could live?”

  “No,” she says immediately, with a strength in her voice that reveals a new side of her. “I would die for you a hundred times over, my child.”

  I breathe heavily. “Why was I appointed a Vessel? Why was that the only solution to this problem?”

  She doesn’t hesitate for a second. And I know she’s not lying to me.

  “Because I saw you,” she says quietly. “Even before you saw the light of day, I felt you—not as a threat, but as hope. As if there were something in you that could bring all this to an end.”

  A moment passes in heavy, almost reverent silence. Then I ask: “And how did you even know I was a Children of Shadow?”

  She looks at me with an expression that’s hard to read. Are those her memories of that night—memories that still frighten her to this day?

  “When a Vessel is born,” she begins, “three moons rise simultaneously over Elindros. It’s the sign of the Void—a silent omen that warns us of the coming darkness.” Her voice grows softer. “But on the night of your birth… it was different. Alongside the two usual moons, countless stars circled the sky. Since the pact with the Sonatius Mortaeda, the Red Vessels have declared this event to be the birth of another Children of Shadow.”

  I stare at her, speechless. “What...?”

  “Yes, it sounds contradictory, I know,” she whispers. “I too wondered that night why the sky would so rejoice at the birth of a being whose life is marked by an early death.” She briefly closes her eyes, as if seeing the night sky from back then. “Those dancing stars were the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. The existence of the Children of Shadow is not widely known in Elindros. Only the Vessels and our guides know of them. The Red Vessels are an exception in this regard, since they have fought at our side for centuries.” Her voice trembles slightly, but she continues: “It is said that ten Vessels will see the light of this world before we face the end of time. And with each of them comes a new Shadow Child—the counterpart.”

  She pauses. Just for a moment, but it’s enough to feel how exhausted she is. Everything she just revealed… perhaps she spent years thinking about how to tell me with the least pain. Now that everything is spoken, she seems almost broken.

  I stand before the woman who gave birth to me. But I can’t go to her. No embrace, no comforting gesture. Something holds me back. But what? Fear? And if so, of what?

  As I wrestle with these questions, she suddenly breaks into tears. She presses a hand to her chest, claws at the fabric of her dark red blouse. I stare at her, surprised by this sudden outburst, and still, I don’t know what to do. Why is she crying? What exactly triggered this pain? All I can do is watch—helpless, as I’ve done so often.

  If I had grown up with her… Would I have been a good daughter? Could I have eased her pain?

  “You’re my daughter!” she finally cries, her voice cracking with pain. “How am I supposed to accept that you’re the Shadow Child of the ninth Vessel? How am I supposed to live with the knowledge that my destiny demands I kill you—just to strengthen my bond with the Sonatius Mortaeda? I never wanted this… I never wanted to become his Vessel!”

  “Is that the reason?” My voice trembles, but my mind grows clearer. “Is that why I had to live among humans for seventeen years? And now I’m supposed to serve a world I barely even know?”

  She nods.

  “I only wanted what was best for you,” she whispers. “That the Sonatius Mortaeda allowed you—and not me—to become the ninth Vessel even surprised me. I’ve met many of the Vessels. Each of them spoke of his cruelty. But to me… he showed kindness. I never understood why.”

  “And then you separated his soul from yours and sealed it in this crystal?” She answers with a silent nod. “But why did you retreat afterwards? You could have gone on living!”

  Then something occurs to me. The words of Veydris Entium. Whoever performs the soul separation… dies. Does that mean…?

  “Yes,” she says softly. “I have been dead for a long time. Only through the power of the Sonatius Mortaeda was I able to remain here – to wait for you. How often I wished to see your first steps, to hear your voice. In all those years in this crystal, your heartbeat was the only thing that kept me sane.”

  “But why did you send me to the human world? Why not raise me here, in Elindros?”

  She points to the roots of her hair. “You must have noticed that your hair has turned silver since your arrival. To protect you from the Losniw, I brought you to King Valdyris Mukuta. During my time as a Vessel, I often traveled to the human world with the help of Aetherion. I read in the Library of Thalvaren that their world is most similar to ours. I felt connected to it...”

  I frown. “Don’t tell me… Mukuta was close to you?”

  She smiles faintly and waves it off. “Not in the way you think. I met him during my second visit there. He was… curious, open, a man who loved nature and the supernatural. He sensed immediately that I wasn’t from his world.”

  King Mukuta, an idealist? Hard to believe. And she was convinced he was the right one to protect me?

  “He was like a light in the darkness,” she says. “You’ve probably heard that the Losniw are despised in Elindros. Our people, my child, are cruel. Your grandfather… wanted me to marry my brother Alaric, as is tradition with us.”

  I gasp. “He is… my father?”

  She shakes her head violently. “A Vessel must not bear a child. Since my birth, it was known that I was the ninth Vessel. My entire life, I was treated like a saint. But my father could not accept that I should remain childless. When I learned that he intended to marry me to Alaric, I fled. That very night.”

  “But how did you manage that? You must have been constantly guarded.”

  “There was one,” she says, her voice growing gentle, “One who was willing to risk everything for me. More than once. If your path ever leads you to Losnat – and it will – then I hope you meet him. His name is Veydris Entium.”

  “Veydris Entium is… my father?” I can hardly believe it.

  She nods. But in that moment, I see something on her face that wasn’t there before – longing. Deep, aching longing.

  “He is surely married to another by now,” she whispers. “I last saw him eighteen years ago – the moment I entered the Nexari.”

  “You… haven’t known anything of the world all these years?” She nods. “Then you don’t even know that I found the Sonatius Mortaeda with Veydris’s help…”

  “W-What?” Her voice breaks. Her gaze goes blank. She trembles. “Veydris… is here? You were in Losnat?”

  I swallow. How can I explain to her that the man who wove Nyssa’s soul is my father? That I cannot see him as she does?

  “No,” I say slowly. “I met him in the Nexari. A Sualtier named Coren Veyr wants to return me to the human world to annul my marriage to a man named Elowirn Louweris.”

  “Your marriage…?” Her eyes widen. “But… Mukuta would never have married you off! He promised me he would protect you!”

  I lower my gaze. “I think I have a lot to tell you. But I’ll be brief – I don’t know how much time we have left.”

  And so I begin to speak. About my childhood. About the King and the Queen. About all that was done to me. With every word, I see horror creeping deeper into her face.

  She places both hands on her head and shakes it silently. I remain still, patiently waiting for a response. All those years she was trapped in this crystal, isolated from the world – only my heartbeat reached her.

  “You told me that my heartbeat was the only thing you could hear,” I remind her of her words. “Did you never wonder why it always beat so fast?”

  “I tried to explain it to myself,” she admits, looking at me with a sadness that reveals the depths of her soul – and regret. “I thought it was the wild joys of a young girl. I never imagined Mukuta would deceive me so thoroughly.”

  In truth, she had entrusted me to a stranger. Just because she had met him a few times didn’t mean he was a good man.

  She sees that her answer doesn’t satisfy me. “I’m sorry, Vespera. I wasn’t a good mother to you. I let myself be guided by my emotions. I wish I could accompany you to the human world and confront Mukuta. But my soul is bound to this place. Once you make contact with the Sonatius Mortaeda, I will become part of the Nexari.”

  “Then you’ll be reborn,” I say suddenly. “Veydris said that souls who end up in the Nexari will one day return to life.”

  “I hope I get the chance to be a good mother to you one day,” she whispers, biting her lip to hold back tears. “You deserve a different life. Your heart was always so clear before my eyes – so pure. You never wanted harm, never wished ill upon anyone. You deserve a better life.”

  “You’re wrong,” I reply, looking deep into her eyes. “I believe every being lives the life that is destined for it. Fate would not have burdened me with this pain if I didn’t have the strength to bear it.” She was not a bad mother – and not a bad Elindine either. She made wrong choices, yes, but she made them in a moment when they felt right to her. “If everything I’ve learned about the Losniw in the past few days is true, then I know you had no choice. I don’t blame you for anything. If I’m counting right, you were barely 21 when I was born. You were far too young yourself to bear all this.”

  Before I can react, she steps toward me and embraces me. Surprised, I remain motionless – unable to return the hug. Gently, her hand moves over my hair as she inhales deeply.

  “How I longed for your scent,” she whispers, pulling me closer, without suffocating me. “It feels like I’m holding the baby from back then in my arms again.”

  She looks directly into my eyes – her gaze pierces me and breaks my heart at the same time. They are the eyes of a mother who knows she must say farewell to her daughter for the last time.

  “I will leave you now, my child. When I go, the Sonatius Mortaeda will connect with you – the connection I was able to prevent all these years. I won’t sugarcoat it: he is a monster. But I know you have the strength to face him. Live a good life. And when you look up at the blue sky… do it once more – for your mother.”

  With these words, she gently strokes my cheek. A sad smile plays on her lips, her mouth twitching as she suppresses her tears. We look deeply into each other’s eyes – one last, intimate moment. Then she begins to dissolve. The body I could just barely hold becomes nothing. My hands grasp at emptiness before I understand that she is gone.

  In my subconscious, which all this time had been shared with two other souls, there now lives one less. It is a strange feeling, to have met my mother – and yet I believe that my heart needed this encounter. It longed for answers. For a reason. For an explanation. For her.

  All these years I watched Queen Mayyira care for Crown Prince Yula. While I… was only allowed to feel her coldness.

  As my thoughts race in every direction, I don’t notice that the shattered crystal behind me is slowly reassembling. Only when the blinding glow gradually fades do I realize: the crystal has regained its original form – but it is now pitch black and softly pulsing.

  A foreboding feeling spreads through me. It warns me not to take another step closer. And yet, my body moves on its own. Something is drawing me in – a foreign force calling to me. It is as if the Sonatius Mortaeda himself is yearning for me.

  I take a step. My fingertip touches the shard of the crystal. At that very second, it begins to pulse – rhythmically, urgently, faster and faster. Then, a shockwave erupts, hurling me back with brutal force. My body is flung through the air, crashing multiple times before I land hard on my back.

  Gasping, I push myself up. Where the crystal had just been, two gigantic eyes now stare at me. Everything around is cloaked in darkness.

  “Vespera Entium… the shadow child of the ninth Vessel,” says the being with a voice that cuts to the bone. “At last, we meet.”