The night wind howled across the Lowlands.
Kael ran.
His legs burned with exhaustion, but he didn't stop.
Behind him, the village was still burning. The orange flames lit the sky like a dying sunset, and thick smoke rose toward the floating Highlands above.
Kael clenched the silver pendant in his hand as he ran through the dark fields.
His father was gone.
The soldiers had killed him.
The thought stabbed into Kael's chest again and again.
But he forced himself forward.
Live… Kael.
Those were his father's final words.
And Kael intended to keep that promise.
Suddenly—
A distant horn echoed through the night.
HOOOOOOONK.
Kael froze.
Another horn answered from the east.
Then another from the south.
His heart dropped.
"They're hunting me…"
Torches appeared across the dark fields.
Riders.
At least six of them.
Bounty hunters.
Kael's breathing became shallow.
In the Lowlands, bounty hunters were worse than soldiers.
Soldiers followed orders.
Bounty hunters followed money.
And a witness to the truth about the dragons would be worth a fortune.
Kael quickly ran toward the nearby forest.
The tall grass scratched against his legs as he sprinted down the hill.
Behind him, the hunters shouted.
"I see him!"
"There!"
A horse neighed loudly.
Kael dove into the forest just as arrows whistled through the air behind him.
THUNK.
One arrow struck a tree beside his head.
He stumbled deeper into the darkness of the woods.
Branches whipped against his face as he ran.
The ground was uneven and covered with roots.
But Kael didn't slow down.
The hunters were already entering the forest.
Their torches cast dancing shadows between the trees.
"You can't run forever!" one of them shouted.
Kael's chest burned as he pushed himself harder.
Then suddenly—
His foot slipped.
He crashed down a steep slope hidden beneath the leaves.
"Aah!"
Kael rolled down the hill, slamming against rocks and dirt before finally stopping at the bottom.
Pain shot through his entire body.
For a moment, he couldn't breathe.
Above him, the hunters' voices grew closer.
"Spread out!"
"Find the boy!"
Kael forced himself up.
His ankle hurt, but it wasn't broken.
He looked around quickly.
The forest here was darker.
Thicker.
Old ruins of stone pillars stood half-buried in the earth, covered with vines.
Kael frowned.
He had never seen this place before.
The pendant in his hand suddenly felt warm.
He looked down at it.
The silver surface was glowing faintly.
"What…?"
The light grew brighter.
Then a thin beam of blue light shot out from the pendant and pointed deeper into the forest.
Kael stared in disbelief.
"The pendant…"
His father's words echoed in his mind.
The pendant will guide you.
Kael swallowed nervously.
"Guide me where?"
Behind him, a branch snapped.
One of the bounty hunters stepped into the clearing.
A tall man with a scar across his face.
His bow was already aimed.
"Well, well," the hunter said with a grin.
"Looks like I found the little rat."
Kael stepped back slowly.
The hunter laughed.
"You know how much you're worth right now?"
Kael said nothing.
The hunter drew the bowstring tighter.
"Dead or alive."
TWANG.
The arrow shot forward.
Kael reacted instantly.
He jumped to the side.
The arrow sliced through his sleeve and struck the ground behind him.
The hunter cursed.
"Hold still!"
Kael ran.
But this time he followed the blue light from the pendant.
The hunter chased after him, pushing through the vines and branches.
"You're not escaping!"
Kael's lungs screamed for air.
The glowing light guided him toward a large stone structure hidden deep within the forest.
An ancient door built into the side of a hill.
Covered in strange symbols.
Kael stopped in shock.
"A ruin…?"
The pendant suddenly floated out of his hand.
It hovered in the air.
Then it shot toward the door.
CLINK.
The pendant fit perfectly into a circular hole at the center.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
Then the entire door began glowing.
The symbols lit up one by one.
The ground trembled.
The bounty hunter burst into the clearing just in time to see it.
"What the—?"
RUMBLE.
The massive stone door slowly opened.
Cold air rushed out from the darkness inside.
Kael stared at the hidden passage in disbelief.
The hunter quickly aimed his bow again.
"Move and I'll kill you!"
Kael looked at the dark tunnel.
Then at the hunter.
He made his decision.
Kael sprinted into the ruin.
The hunter fired another arrow.
But just as the arrow reached the doorway—
BOOM.
The stone door slammed shut.
The arrow shattered against the rock.
The forest fell silent.
Inside the ruin, Kael collapsed onto the cold stone floor.
His chest heaved as he struggled to breathe.
The pendant fell back into his hand.
The faint blue light slowly faded.
Kael looked around the dark corridor.
Ancient torches suddenly lit along the walls with a soft blue flame.
The passage stretched deep underground.
Toward something unknown.
Kael swallowed.
His father had told him the pendant would guide him.
But now he wondered…
Guide him to what?
Far above the forest, the floating Highlands continued to shine in the sky.
Unaware that deep beneath the Lowlands…
An ancient secret had just been opened.
And Kael had just stepped into it.