Morning did not arrive in the Grey Reach the way Lyra expected. There was no sunrise, no burst of color across the sky, only a slow pale light filtering through the stone halls as if the world itself woke cautiously. Lyra stood at the center of the training circle, boots planted on cold stone, the air humming faintly against her skin. Etched symbols surrounded her, glowing softly, ancient restraints designed to contain whatever she might awaken. Seris moved around her once, measured and calm, saying this was not about force but intent, that power fractured when panicked and burned when resisted. Lyra drew in a slow breath and asked what would happen if she failed. Seris stopped before her and answered that they would stop before it consumed her. Kaelin watched from the edge of the circle with folded arms, his expression unreadable, while two other Watchers stood nearby, silent and alert.
Seris instructed Lyra to close her eyes and not reach outward, to let it rise instead. At first there was nothing, only breath and stone and the steady rhythm of her heart. Then warmth stirred in her chest, subtle and familiar, unfurling rather than exploding. The Starfire moved like light through water. Her hands began to glow and the symbols beneath her feet responded, brightening as her pulse quickened. She anchored herself, refusing to push or pull, allowing the fire to listen. A ripple of silver blue light traced the circle, illuminating the runes in a controlled flare. The air thickened gently and she felt the connection, not domination but alignment. Seris told her she was doing well and instructed her to shape it. Lyra lifted her hands and the light between them condensed, tightening into form. Doubt flickered as the memory of the Whispering Veil brushed her mind and the Starfire wavered. The ground trembled and Kaelin warned her to focus. She steadied her breathing and thought not of fear or flight but of the choice she had made to stay. The light stabilized into a thin pulsing arc between her hands.
Then something pushed back. Pressure surged through her mind, foreign and invasive, and images flashed of burning skies, shattered cities, Starborn torn apart by their own light. Lyra gasped and the arc flared violently. Seris commanded her to break it. Lyra dropped her hands and the light collapsed inward in a rush of heat. She staggered but remained standing as silence fell. Kaelin exhaled and said she had felt it. Lyra admitted something had resisted her. Seris explained it was an echo, residual will from past Starborn testing whether she would repeat their mistakes. Lyra asked what would happen if she did and Kaelin replied that history would finish what it started.
A distant horn sounded through the Reach, low and urgent, and every Watcher stiffened. One of them identified it as the outer ward, breached. Lyra felt the Starfire stir again, restless now, and met Seris's gaze, saying they were here. Seris corrected her, saying they were closer than they should be. Kaelin turned toward the corridor and ordered the gates prepared, warning that if the Council had tracked her resonance, but a second horn cut him off, sharper than the first. Lyra felt it before anyone spoke, a presence pressing against the Reach, cold and deliberate, not the Council but something older. The air dimmed and the symbols in the stone flickered, struggling to hold. Seris told Lyra this was no longer training. Lyra straightened, the Starfire answering her resolve with a steady glow. Fear curled in her chest but no longer ruled her. She said then let her help.
Beyond the walls, something screamed, not in sound but in intent, and the Grey Reach braced for impact.