The sky pulsed with stars.
Lena stood at the edge of the shimmering path, breath caught in her throat. Before her stretched a bridge of light—ethereal and translucent, as if spun from moonbeams and stitched with the threads of galaxies. It hovered just above the tide, arching out from the rocky beach toward the heavens, pulsing with a rhythm that matched her heartbeat.
The pendant at her neck warmed again, glowing brighter now with each pulse of the bridge. It was as if the crystal recognized the light—welcomed it.
Behind her, the waves murmured their familiar lullaby. The salty breeze tugged at her shawl, urging her forward. But this—this was something altogether new. Terrifying and beautiful. Like stepping out of the pages of a dream she hadn't realized she'd been reading her whole life.
She glanced at Aiden.
He stood beside her calmly, the breeze teasing the edges of his silver-toned coat. His hair—just a shade lighter than night—rippled slightly, as if moving with the same invisible current that tugged at the bridge. His eyes, still unreadable starlight, flicked toward hers.
"It's not dangerous," he said softly. But there was a note of caution threaded through the calm.
Lena swallowed. "You say that like I won't fall through the sky."
"You won't." He smiled faintly. "The bridge knows you."
She looked down at her feet, then at the span of glowing light. Her hand curled around the pendant, seeking reassurance.
"What happens if I do fall?" she asked, only half-joking.
Aiden tilted his head. "Then I'll catch you."
There was something steady in the way he said it. Not flirtatious. Not dramatic. Just... true.
Lena exhaled and took a step forward.
Her boot touched the bridge—and a ripple of light spread beneath her foot, like a stone dropped in a still pond. She hesitated. The surface felt firm, almost like glass, but alive somehow, humming underfoot.
She took another step.
Then another.
Each footfall sent a soft pulse down the span of the bridge, and the air around her began to shimmer with something more than just starlight. She felt the world she knew shrinking behind her, Salt Haven dissolving into a memory as the bridge carried her upward, toward something vast and ancient.
Aiden followed just behind, silent and sure.
"Where does it lead?" she asked without turning back.
"To the Isles," he replied. "To Liora. It's the heart of our world, suspended between yours and the sky."
"You said... few from the mainland can cross."
"True," he said. "Most can't see the bridge. Even fewer can touch it. But your pendant makes you different."
Lena glanced at it again, its glow still bright, almost as if it were leading her.
"How?" she asked. "Why me?"
Aiden was quiet for a moment. Then: "Because your grandmother was one of us."
The air around her seemed to stop.
"What?"
"She was a Weaver. One of the last who guarded the balance between the Isles and the mainland. The pendant you wear—it holds a fragment of the Loom itself."
"The Loom?"
"The threadwork that binds our worlds," he explained. "It connects light and shadow, sea and sky, memory and future. Most people live their whole lives unaware of it. But Weavers... we see the threads. And with training, we can shape them."
Lena's mind spun. "You're saying my grandmother was a magical seamstress?"
He chuckled. "In a way, yes."
"And I'm supposed to be one too?"
He gave a small nod. "That's why you were called. The Isles need you."
Lena turned toward the horizon. The bridge continued ahead, rising gently into a sea of stars. The ocean below had vanished, replaced by swirling clouds that shimmered with hints of violet and gold.
"I don't know if I can do this," she whispered.
"No one ever does," Aiden said. "Not at first."
They continued walking.
Around them, the stars shifted—subtle changes that felt like watching constellations realign. Shapes Lena had never seen formed above them: a spiral of orbs, a phoenix with wings outstretched, a spinning bloom that seemed to unfold into infinity. She felt as if she were walking not through space, but through story—an ancient one written in light.
Finally, the bridge began to slope downward.
And then they arrived.
Before her stretched an island unlike anything Lena had ever imagined.
The Isle of Liora.
It floated not on water but among clouds—resting upon currents of starlight and invisible winds. Crystal spires rose like frozen fire, catching the moonlight and reflecting it in dazzling shards. The air smelled of jasmine and something sweeter, like magic itself had a scent. Strange flowers bloomed along glimmering paths. Trees with translucent leaves chimed softly in the wind.
Everything shimmered. Everything was alive.
"Welcome," Aiden said. "To the Floating Isles."
Lena stepped onto the ground—it was firm but light, springy like moss underfoot but glittering with flecks of embedded stardust.
"How is this even real?" she breathed.
Aiden just smiled. "Magic, remember?"
She turned slowly, taking in the view. Bridges of light extended to other nearby isles—smaller, scattered like stepping stones in the sky. She saw waterfalls that spilled into nothingness, only to be caught and cycled back up by invisible hands. Birds with wings like silk drifted lazily through the glowing air.
In the distance stood a tower—tall, crystalline, glowing faintly at its peak.
"That's the Heart Spire," Aiden said. "It anchors the Isles. It's where the Loom is strongest."
"Is that where we're going?"
He nodded. "There's someone you need to meet."
They began walking again, the path winding through luminous gardens. With every step, Lena felt her worries being replaced—not with certainty, but with curiosity. The fear was still there, yes, but it pulsed now alongside something else: wonder.
A shape appeared ahead—tall, regal, cloaked in silver and white. The woman's hair flowed like water, and her eyes shone like twin moons. She seemed both ancient and ageless.
"Lena," the woman said, her voice rich and warm, "I've waited a long time to meet you."
"Who are you?" Lena asked, not daring to step closer yet.
"I am Seris," she replied. "Memory keeper of the Isles. And once, I was your grandmother's teacher."
Lena's breath caught again. "You knew her?"
"She was one of my brightest students. And one of my deepest heartbreaks."
The words struck something deep in Lena's chest.
Seris stepped forward and gently took Lena's hands. "There's so much you do not yet know. But I will help you remember. Magic runs in your blood, Lena. It calls to you. All you must do is answer."
Lena looked down at her pendant, now pulsing gently with warmth.
She nodded. "Okay. I'm ready."
Seris smiled.
But even as the welcome shimmered in the air around them, a cold wind whispered through the clouds—an unseen tremor that made Aiden glance toward the horizon.
"Something's shifting," he murmured.
Seris nodded, her expression sobering. "The rift grows."
Lena looked between them. "What does that mean?"
"It means," Seris said, "you must begin your training. Immediately."
As they turned toward the tower, Lena felt the stars shift again—this time with urgency.
The bridge had brought her here.
But the real crossing was just beginning.