The first Fade stepped fully into the light of the burning parchment leaves.It was taller than any man Cipher had ever seen, its limbs thin as ink strokes, its body bending unnaturally with each step. Its head tilted sharply to one side, as though listening to whispers only it could hear.
Red whimpered, clutching Cipher's sleeve, but he did not flinch. He only set the base of his scythe into the ground, the runes flaring faintly with the rhythm of his pulse.
The Automaton's glow flickered in warning."They are story-wraiths. Fragments without form, bound to enforce the 'script.' If Red falters, they will devour her voice and fold her back into the ending."
Cipher's eyes never left the Fade."And if I falter?"
The Automaton hesitated, wings twitching nervously."Then the tale itself will eat you too."
The Fade moved closer, feet not quite touching the ground. The sound it made was like paper tearing, each motion leaving faint black scratches in the air. More figures emerged behind it, one by one, until the clearing was ringed with faceless shadows, each chanting in one voice that hissed like the scraping of quills.
Stay in your ending. Stay in your ending. Stay.
Red clutched her crimson cloak tightly to her chest, trembling. "They want me to… go back."
Cipher stepped forward, placing himself between her and the encroaching ring."No. They want you silent."
The runes on his tie and scythe flared at once, sparks scattering off the black metal. His stance shifted, smooth and practiced, a teacher's calm discipline turning into a warrior's readiness.
The first Fade lunged.
It didn't move like flesh but like shadow poured forward, its arms stretching unnaturally, reaching for Red. Cipher's scythe blurred in an arc, carving across its torso. The strike landed with a burst of light—runes clashing against un-inked flesh. The Fade recoiled, body splitting into smoke before pulling itself back together with a hideous shudder.
Cipher narrowed his eyes. "Not fragile. They bend like the story itself."
Another Fade lunged from the side, but Cipher pivoted, sweeping the scythe in a low arc that severed its legs at the knees. They dissolved into shadow, only to regrow moments later, as if the wound were merely a delay.
The Automaton shouted above the din:"You cannot kill what is not written to die! They are ink stains! They return until the story changes!"
Cipher bared his teeth, voice sharp. "Then we don't waste time fighting shadows. We cut the script."
The Fades surged forward together, shadows writhing like a tide. Cipher braced himself to swing again, but Red cried out suddenly, the sound cutting through the chant like a crack of thunder.
"Stop it!"
The Fades hesitated. Not much, but enough. Their chant faltered, some voices breaking into a stuttering echo. Cipher looked back at her, his grip tight on the scythe's handle.
"Red—again."
Her lip trembled, but her eyes burned with something brighter than fear. She lifted her chin."I am NOT food!"
The words rippled outward, striking the ring of shadows like a shockwave. Several Fades recoiled, their forms flickering violently, edges unraveling into loose threads of ink before reforming.
Cipher's voice cut across her own."Good. Again. Louder."
She screamed it this time, cloak flaring like a banner of blood and light:"I am NOT food!"
The forest shuddered. The stitched tree groaned, its cracked face twisting as though in pain. The parchment leaves above them caught fire all at once, burning faster, their whispered words consumed.
The Fades writhed, their chant breaking into chaos:Not food—no, eaten—no, the girl is eaten—
Cipher lunged, scythe cutting down three in a single sweeping arc. The blade scattered them into ash, though he knew they would return. Still, every strike gave Red more room to breathe, more room to speak.
He turned, catching her gaze again."They aren't afraid of me, Red. They're afraid of you. Afraid of your voice. Don't let them take it."
Her tears glistened, but her jaw hardened. She stepped forward, cloak flowing around her like wings. Her small fists clenched at her sides.
"I won't go back! I won't let you make me food again!"
Her words cracked like a whip. One Fade screamed soundlessly, its faceless head splitting open as if torn by her defiance.
Cipher moved beside her, his voice steady, measured, teaching even in battle."Don't fight their shadows. Fight their story."
The tree shuddered again. From its hollow, more shadows bled, pouring into the shape of a larger Fade, its body thicker, limbs more jagged, words dripping from its formless skin. It towered above the others, eyes two burning holes of ink.
The Automaton's voice faltered in fear."A page master. A stronger echo. This one binds the ending itself!"
Cipher lifted his scythe, voice low and calm, though his body tensed."Then this is the test."
The great Fade raised a hand, its voice booming louder than the forest, layered with the whispers of a thousand retellings:The girl is eaten. The girl is eaten. The girl is eaten.
Red clutched her ears, staggering, but Cipher caught her shoulder, grounding her with a firm squeeze."Don't listen. Write your own line. Out loud."
Her lips quivered. "I… I don't—"
"Yes, you do." His eyes locked with hers, steady, unyielding. "The story wants you silent. Prove it wrong."
She bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. Then she shouted, voice raw and breaking, but filled with fire:"The girl lives! The girl fights! I LIVE!"
Light exploded from her cloak, crimson fire surging outward. The Fades shrieked as the light struck them, their bodies unraveling into ink that bled into the ground. Even the great Fade staggered, its towering form cracking under the force.
Cipher seized the moment, leaping forward. His scythe blazed like a midnight star, runes streaming across its length. With a roar, he brought it down in a cleaving strike that split the great Fade in two.
It screamed, body collapsing into rivers of ink that dissolved into the soil, seeping back into the roots of the stitched tree.
The forest fell silent.
Only the crackling fire of parchment leaves remained, their glow lighting the clearing. Red stood trembling, but her head was high, her voice ragged but firm.
"I… I said it." She looked at Cipher, tears on her cheeks, but a fragile smile curving her lips. "I didn't let them win."
Cipher rested the scythe against his shoulder, studying her with a faint, proud smile. "No. You didn't. You rewrote it."
The Automaton hovered higher, its light pulsing faintly. "Teacher… the tale bends. The girl breathes, the ending shifts. The Fades weaken because she stood."
Cipher exhaled slowly, lifting his gaze to the stitched tree. Its hollow face was gone, melted into black ash. The roots writhed faintly, as if in retreat, and for the first time the forest smelled of pine instead of rot.
He looked back at Red. "This isn't finished. The Wolf still waits. But today… you've proven something."
She blinked at him, voice small. "What's that?"
"That you are not food. You never were."
The words hit her harder than any strike. Her smile trembled, but she held onto it, even as exhaustion pulled her shoulders low.
Cipher turned back to the Automaton, his expression sharpening."The Fades… are they in every story?"
The machine's wings clicked nervously. "If corruption lingers, yes. They enforce silence. They… prune the tales back to endings they recognize."
Cipher's hand tightened on his scythe. His eyes darkened with a fire the Automaton had not seen before."Then we'll give them endings they don't recognize."
The firelight dimmed, and the forest grew still again, but not safe. The Wolf's presence lingered, heavier than ever, watching. Waiting.
Red tugged at Cipher's sleeve, whispering:"Do you think… we can really win?"
He didn't answer at once. Instead, he looked at her—this trembling girl who had stood and screamed her truth into the face of shadows.
Finally, his voice was quiet, but certain."Yes. Because you've already started."
And above them, in the smoke of the burning parchment, a faint shimmer of stars glowed—subtle, fleeting, but there.
A sign that the gods were still watching.