By the time they reached the cabin, the forest had slipped into an uneasy quiet. Not hostile — just holding its breath.
Lucian reached the door first and eased it open, his gaze sweeping the room with the calm precision of someone trained by centuries, not fear. Only when he noted the familiar stillness did he tilt his head for Asher to follow.
Inside, the hearth glowed faintly with dying embers, soft orange light flickering over the wooden floor.
Lucian lifted a hand; a muted pulse of crimson shimmered at his fingertips, and the embers brightened into a living fire once more.
Asher stepped out of his boots, leaning against the wall. "You said they could track me."
Lucian nodded, removing his coat. "The awakening leaves traces. Faint… but not invisible."
He paced once, thinking. "Cassandra won't come herself. Not yet. She'll send someone to test the ground. A scout. Or worse."
"So what do we do?" Asher asked.
"We prepare," Lucian replied. His eyes drifted to the dark steel sword resting on the table. The engraving along the hilt caught the firelight, pulsing softly when his fingers brushed it. "If they arrive uninvited, we won't greet them kindly."
Asher wanted to argue — he wasn't ready, not after nearly collapsing in the clearing — but fatigue pulled heavily at his limbs. The locket on his chest had cooled, as if it too had slipped into a resting heartbeat.
That's when a knock sounded.
Soft. Three taps.
Then silence.
Lucian stilled. The shift in his posture was small but unmistakable. "Stay behind me," he murmured, voice low but steady.
He crossed the room and opened the door with measured calm.
A man stood there — tall, cloaked, silver hair catching droplets of mist. His eyes were unmistakably familiar. **Orion.**
Lucian's tone sharpened. "You shouldn't be here."
Orion stepped inside without hesitation. "And yet this is exactly where I need to be."
Asher's confusion flared, but Lucian remained rigid, expression unreadable.
"What do you want?" Lucian asked.
"A warning," Orion replied, brushing moisture from his cloak. "The Council knows the boy's name now. They're calling it *the second awakening*. Cassandra isn't the only one who's interested."
Lucian's jaw tightened. "So they're repeating history. Again."
"I tried to sway them," Orion said with a tired sigh. "But fear leaves no room for reason. They believe the bloodline rising will bring ruin again."
Asher stepped forward despite Lucian's unspoken caution. "Then let them meet me before deciding what I am."
Orion's gaze softened. "It was never about who you are. It's what you carry. The last time her blood awakened, the world shook."
Lucian's voice cut through the tension. "Because they forced it to."
A silence followed — thick with memories none of them wished to relive.
Finally, Orion pulled his hood up again. "Hunters are already in the woods. They'll reach you by dawn. If you want to keep him alive… don't stay here."
He paused at the threshold, looking at Asher with an expression that almost resembled pity.
"She watches through you. Don't let her light be twisted again."
Then he vanished into the mist.
Lucian closed the door slowly, his hand steadying on the frame before he turned.
"We leave at first light," he said. "There's a safe haven deeper in the mountains — a place Cassandra won't dare touch."
Asher swallowed. "And until sunrise?"
Lucian met his gaze, crimson eyes steady and fierce.
"Until sunrise… we prepare to survive whatever finds us."
To be continued....