Morning in the post-Fracture world came slowly, like the sun had to fight its way back into existence each day.
Nuel sat on a crumbling log beside the dying fire, staring at the bracelet on his wrist. It no longer glowed, but it pulsed faintly with warmth, almost in time with his heartbeat.
Nyra was off scouting ahead. She didn't say much after he woke—just that they'd need to move soon, before the Riftling patrols began their usual route. Whatever they were, Nuel hadn't seen one yet. But the way she said the name made his skin crawl.
He wasn't sure if he trusted her. But for now, he had more questions than answers—and she seemed to have a few of those.
He looked up as movement rustled the nearby trees.
It wasn't Nyra.
He rose to his feet slowly, crowbar in hand, eyes scanning the dense brush.
A low, warbling hum echoed—like a crystal singing in distress.
Then a light broke through the trees.
Nuel squinted, stepping forward.
It wasn't just light. It was a person.
A girl.
She stood barefoot in the clearing, her dress torn but flowing, hair silver-white like starlight, skin pale as moon-glow. Her eyes shimmered with soft blue light, and for a moment, Nuel forgot how to breathe.
She looked lost. Confused.
And impossibly... unreal.
"Hey," Nuel called gently, lowering his weapon. "Are you okay?"
She blinked. Looked at him. Then tilted her head, like she was trying to remember something just out of reach.
"Where... is this?" Her voice was distant, like wind through chimes.
"You're safe," he said, stepping closer. "Well, safer than most places. What's your name?"
She opened her mouth to answer, then faltered. Frustration flickered across her face.
"I don't know."
Before he could say more, Nyra burst through the trees, blade in hand, eyes wild.
"Step back!"
Nuel raised a hand. "It's alright! She's not—"
"She came through a Rift," Nyra said, pointing. "Look at her eyes."
He did.
And he saw it now—barely visible marks beneath her skin, like veins glowing softly with energy.
She was touched by the Rift.
Maybe even born of it.
"I don't think she knows where she is," Nuel said quietly. "Or who she is."
Nyra didn't lower her weapon. "That doesn't mean she's safe."
The girl backed away, shaking her head. "I didn't mean to come here. It was... an accident. I heard a call. A voice." She looked at Nuel. "Your voice."
That stunned him.
"I've never seen her before in my life," he said, looking to Nyra.
But Nyra's expression had changed—less suspicion now, more thoughtfulness.
"Some of them cross over by accident," she said. "When the Fracture pulses, it weakens the barrier between us and the Rift. Maybe she slipped through."
Nuel stepped toward the girl again, slower this time.
"You said you heard my voice?"
She nodded, eyes wide. "In the dark. It was calling me... pulling me toward here."
Nuel exchanged a look with Nyra.
The bracelet. The dreams. Now this.
Something was connecting the pieces behind the scenes.
"Do you remember anything?" he asked softly.
The girl hesitated. "Only my name."
"What is it?"
She closed her eyes. Whispered.
"Elara."
---
Nyra relented enough to let Elara stay—for now.
They made camp deeper in the forest, under the protective illusion of the runes carved into the trees around the ruin. Apparently, Nyra had been maintaining them for weeks to keep the more hostile creatures at bay.
Elara sat close to the fire, knees drawn to her chest, eyes distant.
She didn't eat much, but Nuel noticed the way she watched him. Not fearfully—more like curiosity. Like he was familiar in a way she couldn't explain.
He felt it too.
Not attraction. Not yet.
But connection.
Something unspoken passed between them when their eyes met. A sense of unfinished stories and shared echoes.
"Do you think she's dangerous?" Nuel asked quietly later, sitting beside Nyra as Elara slept.
Nyra didn't answer right away.
"Everything from the Rift can be dangerous," she said. "But not all of it is evil. Some are just... lost. Like us."
"Do you think she's really here because of me?"
"I think," Nyra said, "the Fracture doesn't do things by accident. And neither does fate."
---
Later that night, Nuel woke to a whisper.
"...Nuel…"
He opened his eyes.
Elara stood at the edge of camp, looking up at the sky.
He joined her, keeping his voice low. "Can't sleep?"
She nodded. "It feels like... the stars are listening."
He followed her gaze.
The Fracture shimmered faintly above the clouds, like a second sky bleeding into their own.
"Do you know why I heard your voice?" she asked suddenly.
"No," he said. "But I'm starting to think we're both part of something much bigger."
She looked at him, eyes soft and luminous. "Then maybe... we can figure it out together."
For the first time since the world ended, Nuel smiled.
"Yeah," he said. "I'd like that."