The road out of Merrow's Edge wasn't marked on any map. It wound through the ashen woods like a forgotten vein, narrow and half-choked by overgrowth. Birds didn't sing here. Even the wind had gone silent, muffled by the stillness of trees that seemed to lean inward, listening.
Kael stood just beyond the village gate, a small satchel slung over his shoulder. It carried little—some dried roots, a flask of water, the blank journal Lira had given him, and the recorder slate, now dormant. He glanced back.
A handful of villagers watched from a distance. None stepped forward. The Elder from the House of Recording muttered something to a boy beside him, then spat in the dirt.
"You'd think I burned their food supply," Kael said.
"They're afraid," Lira replied, tightening the strap across her chest. "They've seen what flares lead to."
He met her gaze. "Have they seen what I am?"
"Not yet," she said. "But they suspect."
Kael looked out at the trees ahead. "And you think we'll find answers out there?"
Lira didn't answer immediately. She pulled her braid over one shoulder, weaving it tighter, as though it gave her focus.
"There's a place past the Siltpath," she said. "A cliff where old stone eats the light. Inside it is a Vault the Houses sealed, but not completely. Some call it the Glass Vault. Others say it's a mouth that remembers."
"That sounds like something we should avoid."
"Which is exactly why it's still useful."
Kael shifted the satchel on his shoulder. "You've been there?"
"Once. Years ago. I didn't get far."
"And now?"
She looked at him. "Now you're with me."
They stepped onto the path.
As the village shrank behind them, Kael felt something odd stir inside him. Not dread. Not fear. A pull. Like a thread being gently reeled from somewhere in the east. He didn't know where it led. Only that he'd followed it before.
The trees grew denser. The sky narrowed. They walked in silence.
Then Lira spoke.
"I'll warn you now. What's in that Vault might not answer your questions. It might only sharpen them."
Kael kept his eyes ahead. "That's fine. I've had enough silence."