Chapter 46: The Threads Unraveled
Lila stood there, the weight of the scroll pressing against her palm, her heart thundering in her chest. "A Breaker," she whispered under her breath, testing the word, trying to make it hers. What did it mean? And why now, when the Hidden Court's judgment loomed closer?
Professor Caldrin's words lingered like a spark in her mind. You're crafting a new one. Could she really change the future? Could she defy what the Veil, what fate, had planned?
But how could she? How could she face the unknown, knowing the Hidden Court would stop at nothing to erase her?
She looked down at the map in her hands, the inked lines crisscrossing across strange, forgotten places. The Threads. The Ones Who Sleep. These weren't places she could find with a mere glance. They were hidden for a reason protected by magic far older than even Arcanwyn. Magic that Lila didn't yet understand.
But she had no choice. She had to try.
The soft click of the door pulled her from her thoughts, and she turned to find Niall standing there, his brow furrowed with concern.
"You've been standing here for too long," he said softly, stepping toward her. His eyes shifted to the scroll in her hand. "What's that?"
Lila hesitated. She could feel the weight of it the responsibility pressing down on her. But there was no turning back now. Not after everything.
"It's a map," she said, her voice steady despite the storm of thoughts churning in her head. "A map of places even the Hidden Court doesn't remember."
Niall took a step forward, curiosity lighting his gaze. "Where does it lead?"
"To the Threads. To the Ones Who Sleep."
"Who are they?"
Lila shook her head, unsure. "I don't know. But I have to find them."
A long silence passed between them, thick with the tension of unspoken words. Finally, Niall exhaled sharply, his expression hardening. "I'll go with you."
"No," she said quickly, shaking her head. "This is something I have to do alone."
He frowned, but his eyes softened. "Lila, you're not alone in this. You never have been."
Lila's breath caught. She wanted to believe him, more than anything. But the truth was that her path was hers alone. The Veil. The Creatures. The hidden magic waiting to be awakened it was all tied to her. If she failed, the consequences would be hers to bear.
"I have to do this," she said again, her voice quieter now. "But thank you, Niall. For everything."
For a long moment, they stood in silence, the weight of the world pressing down on them both. Finally, Niall nodded, his face still tinged with concern but also a reluctant acceptance. "Then I'll be here. When you come back."
Lila smiled faintly, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. She wanted to promise him that she would. But in that moment, she knew better than to make promises she couldn't keep. The future wasn't hers to control anymore.
As the moonlight spilled across the tower, Lila packed the scroll into her satchel, the weight of her task growing heavier with each passing second.
She had to find the Threads. She had to awaken the Ones Who Sleep.
But what would happen when she did?
The next morning, Lila set out before dawn, the map her only guide. Arcanwyn's towering spires disappeared behind her as she walked, her heart pounding in her chest with every step. The Forbidden Forest, the Hollow Wood, the Whispering Plains—all of them were places no one had dared to enter for centuries.
But she had no choice. To break the Veil, to reshape the world, she had to walk these forgotten paths.
As she entered the Hollow Wood, the air thickened, becoming heavier, saturated with ancient magic. The trees here were twisted, their bark blackened and gnarled, their branches reaching out like fingers, grasping at her.
She shivered, feeling the weight of the forest's watchful eyes. The map led her deeper, further than she had ever gone before. The deeper she went, the quieter it became. There were no birds here, no rustling leaves. Just silence deep, suffocating silence.
Lila's steps slowed as she reached the clearing marked on the map. She took a deep breath, looking around. This was the place. The air hummed with power, the ground beneath her feet vibrating slightly, like it was alive.
With a trembling hand, she reached into her satchel and pulled out the map again. She had no idea what she was supposed to do here..no idea how to awaken the Ones Who Sleep. But she could feel them, as though they were waiting, hidden beneath the earth, in the heart of this ancient place.
She knelt, laying her hands on the ground, feeling the pulse of magic beneath her fingers. Slowly, carefully, she closed her eyes and whispered the words from the scroll, the ancient incantation that Professor Caldrin had said would unlock the Threads.
The earth shuddered beneath her.
And then, it was as if the world itself held its breath.
A low rumble echoed from deep within the earth, a sound like stone shifting, like something ancient and powerful stirring in its slumber. The ground cracked open before her, revealing a set of stone steps that spiraled down into the darkness below.
Lila's breath caught in her throat. She had found it. The path.
But what lay at the end of it? What waited in the darkness, behind the Threads?
She didn't know. But she was going to find out.
With one last glance at the world above, Lila took the first step down into the shadows.