The mist thickened as they stepped deeper into the cavern, swirling like living smoke around the three of them. Darkness pressed close, but their eyes slowly adjusted to shadows moving with a rhythm of their own.
Without warning, the ground gave way beneath Prava and Allara. A sudden slip, a startled cry—and then cold water enveloped them. Rafael's hands were quick, steady, pulling them to the surface.
And then—the glow appeared.
Emerald light rose from beneath the water, floating like a living flame, illuminating the cavern in otherworldly hues. The light pulsed with a heartbeat, casting ripples that danced across the stone walls.
A voice echoed through the chamber, deep and resonant:
"Are you friend… or foe?"
From the emerald radiance, a figure emerged. A man—tall, robed in deep green, eyes as sharp as obsidian, and a presence that commanded the cavern.
"I am Holam," he said, his voice both gentle and stern. "I guard this place, waiting for its true owner to return. Let me see your wrists, both of you."
Prava and Allara instinctively held out their hands. The light danced across their skin, touching their pulse as if reading hidden threads of fate. Rafael stepped close, protective yet silent, sensing the gravity of the moment.
Around them, the cavern seemed alive. Sparks of emerald scattered through the air like stars caught in a green fog. Each pulse of light was a heartbeat of the forest itself, measuring their intentions.
Holam's gaze lingered on them, piercing and infinite.
"The forest does not lie," he said. "Only those bound by destiny may proceed. Your hearts… your choices… they will determine the path."
Prava felt a shiver of recognition. Her pulse synced with the emerald light. Somewhere deep within, she understood that this trial was not just about courage, but about reclaiming a past she had long forgotten.
Rafael grasped her hand, and Allara stood ready beside them. Together, they were no longer intruders—they were seekers of truth, stepping into the heart of destiny itself.
And the cavern responded. The emerald light expanded, stretching into tendrils that wrapped around the trio, guiding them toward secrets hidden for centuries… toward truths that would confront Prava with shadows of her own past.