Beyond Hollow Echoes (Book Three)

⋆˖☽ ​​​​​​Chapter 3 ☾˖⋆

The sheer agony that had consumed my veins dissipated. The harsh winter air melted away, and the warmth of golden sunlight broke through my closed eyelids. I turned my head to the side. Soft, fragrant grass swayed against my bruised cheek, a delicate tickle against my nose.

Just a moment. Let me stay here a moment longer. I took a long, deep breath, letting the untainted air fill my aching lungs.

My eyelids fluttered open. An endless, rolling sea of wildflowers danced in a gentle breeze before me, their vivid colors catching and fracturing the golden sunlight into prisms. My dry lips parted. "Enkarthos," I called out into the vast expanse.

A draft rustled through the meadow, carrying a flurry of loose flower petals with it. The familiar, deep tingling sensation rose over my skin, raising the hairs on my arms before falling away. His ancient voice wasn't spoken aloud; it was a profound whisper that echoed from everywhere at once within my mind.

“I am here, child.”

A vibration hummed deep within the earth beneath me. Tiny green saplings sprouted from the rich dirt, weaving themselves into the shapes of dragon footprints. They tracked closer and closer until they stopped in front of me.

I pressed my body up into a sitting position and craned my neck backward. The golden sunlight bent and refracted in the air, tracing the towering outline of a dragon. Of Enkarthos.

“I am glad to see you again.”

A fragile smile broke across my lips as a tidal wave of relief washed over me. "I am glad to see you as well," I breathed. "Are you… healing?"

A low rumble resonated from his chest. “Hmmm. I am mending…” His voice trailed off.

For a fleeting second, two glowing crimson eyes flashed into existence within the ethereal outline of light. They locked onto mine, swirling with an ancient sorrow—or perhaps, a crushing guilt. Before I could quite understand the depth of the emotion, the eyes vanished back into the sunbeams, leaving only his majestic silhouette.

My hands grasped at the soft grass, grounding myself. "Do you know what that monster was? What—"

His shimmering head came down to meet mine, the warm light brushing against my forehead before he pulled back up. “Our bond is strengthening,” his ancient voice soothed the frantic edges of my mind. “There is no need to rush.”

The meadow trembled as his towering silhouette began to shift and shrink. He lowered himself to the earth, his invisible body wrapping around me in an enclosing circle, leaving his head resting in the grass in front of me.

The sweet scent of wildflowers grew stronger, wrapping around me like a blanket. I allowed my eyes to close as radiating warmth crept against my back. With the slow, rhythmic rising and falling of the ambient air, I realized Enkarthos had shifted to support my weight. I let my head fall back against the phantom weight of his scales, the golden warmth of the sun kissing my face. My breathing slowed to a peaceful lull. If only this were real.

Reluctantly, I pushed myself back into an upright sitting position, resting my hands in my lap as my fingers intertwined. "I killed him." My muscles coiled tight, the weight of Ruslan's lifeless body pressing down on my hands all over again. "Ruslan is dead."

The shimmering outline of light shifted around me as Enkarthos let out a long exhale that rustled the grass. “Did stopping him bring the peace you had sought?”

I thought about the dark, blood-stained dungeons of the Underkeep, the terrifying monsters he had released to slaughter all of us—even those loyal to him. His twisted plans. "I do not know what peace is," I admitted, pausing for a moment in the quiet meadow. "But I know he cannot harm anyone ever again."

My eyes searched the outline of Enkarthos, staring at the space where his glowing crimson eyes should be. "But I think I am beginning to find comfort." The vulnerable words themselves tasted foreign on my tongue. "That trust you spoke of… I think I am starting to find it in others. And in you. Taking down the Vow couldn’t have happened if I were alone."

“Yes,” his ancient voice hummed with a quiet, resonant pride. “You are special, child. But you could not have done these things alone. You are still growing.”

"But, I—"

A gentle huff of air from his snout brushed the loose white hairs out of my face, rustling the meadow grass. As my vision cleared, my eyes locked onto a single crimson wildflower blooming beside my knee. A gust of air caught its paper-thin petals, making them flutter and dance.

For a breathless, terrifying second, it wasn't a flower at all. It was a luminous crimson butterfly, waiting to enter my chest.

My heart plummeted into my stomach, the phantom agony searing my veins all over again. It’s not real. My heart slowed as my muscles relaxed once again.

"I lost control of my own body." I shook my head, the flower returning. "The red butterflies that carried me into the Blighted Glade… I could have gotten someone killed." The terrifying memory of the ethereal wings dissolving and forcing their way into my chest surfaced, making my lungs burn. "Enkarthos, I do not understand what they are."

“And what did they lead you to?”

"To a monster," I whispered. "A creature I had never seen before. It could have killed me… killed Emeric. It would have been my fault."

“Hmmm,” he mused, shifting his invisible head closer to mine. “You said Emeric hated you.”

"I… I did. He did."

“But he saved you.”

"Yes, but it’s only because of—" I stopped myself before letting Mikaeus's name spill from my lips.

No. It wasn’t because of him.

The sensation of Emeric's rough, calloused fingers grazing my cheek flared in my memory, sending a dizzying, confusing warmth blooming through my chest. "He said he was worried."

I let out a sigh, pushing the confusing thoughts aside. As I did, the memory of the blinding black miasma rushed in to replace them. I looked down at my trembling hands. "The miasma I see in the waking world… no one else can see it, can they?"

“No, they cannot. Only you can.”

"Why?" I pressed the heels of my palms into my eyes, trying to rub away the lingering horrors before dropping my hands back to my lap. "You said I see the truth. Then what is it that I am seeing? It’s mixing with reality."

“What you see is reality, child, even if the others do not see it or feel it.” The ambient sunlight dimmed slightly. “You are seeing the curse itself, and how it manifests in the world.”

I sucked in a sharp breath of the meadow air. It’s the curse. All of it… it has always been the curse? "It is blinding," I murmured, staring down at my empty hands. "I almost gave up. That monster… the curse surrounded it so thickly I couldn’t even see what I was fighting."

“I am sorry, child.” He nuzzled his snout against my lap. As he pulled his head back, his glowing crimson eyes appeared fully through the golden haze, locking onto mine with clarity. “That monster you faced… it had a name. The Maw of Morthos.”

My brows creased in confusion. "But—"

“It is not the only one. There are more. And you will have to face them.”

An unnatural chill crept through the warm meadow, wilting the flowers around us. "Why… why must I face them? What are—"

“The Storm Siren.”

"The Storm Siren?" I repeated.

“Our time is drawing to an end, but you aren’t alone. I am with you.” His ancient voice began to grow distant, echoing as the meadow around me flickered like a dying candle flame. “I will answer.”

"Will you?" I jumped to my feet, my hands grasping at the fading light. "You remain silent when I need you most!"

“No, Alanah. You just couldn’t hear me.” The vibrant colors bled away, the entire dreamscape collapsing. “Our bond...”

My eyes snapped open. A white ceiling swam into my blurry vision.

“...is strengthening,” his voice finished in my head.

The creak of wood from a nearby chair pulled my attention. I weakly rolled my head to the side, my eyelids fluttering open. The harsh light of the room forced them shut again before they could adjust.

When I managed to pry them open a second time, Ondina’s bright green eyes were locked on me. At first, they carried a breathless shock, her lips slightly parted. The tension melted from her frame. Her eyes softened into relief as the tight muscles of her face relaxed.

"You are awake," she breathed, the words carrying the weight of a long vigil.

I opened my mouth to speak, but was met with nothing but an airless croak. The pain in my battered body was returning, blooming into a deep ache across my spine. I gritted my teeth, planting my palms against the mattress to press my upper body off the bed.

Ondina’s hand slid forward, resting a firm but gentle weight against my shoulder to hold me down.

"Do not move yet," she warned. "You just woke up."

My numb fingers twitched against the crisp linens as I surrendered, allowing my body to melt back into the mattress.

"Everyone is safe," Ondina offered. "At least… mostly."

My mouth opened, a question caught like a burr in my dry throat.

She offered a reassuring nod. "Mikaeus and Mira are safe."

I closed my eyes, my heart beginning to hammer. She didn’t mention him. I forced my lips apart, pushing his name into the room. "Emeric?"

Ondina hesitated. Her hand twitched on my shoulder. "He is… well, a bit beaten up. He is the one who carried you back, and then…" Her words trailed off, her gaze darting away from mine.

"Then what?" I rasped, cold panic rising in my chest. "Ondina, what happened?"

She shook her head, offering me a weak, unconvincing smile. "Nothing. He is just helping Mikaeus right now."

She shifted back into the wooden chair, her posture stiffening. When she spoke again, her words came out slow and deliberate "The Storm Siren."

My eyes snapped wide open.

"You mumbled the name in your sleep." Her hand retreated into her lap, her fingers knotting together. "I… I haven’t heard that name in a very long time." Her eyes fell down to her hands, refusing to meet my gaze.

She knows about the monster? I stared at her, tracing the tense lines of her face. But her reaction… she looks terrified.

I swallowed hard. "I only know its name." I took in a shallow breath, wincing as my bruised ribs constricted.

"Oh…"

"And you?" I demanded. Ignoring her previous warning, I forced my aching body up, resting against the headboard.

Her gaze drifted past me toward the frosted window. Her jaw tightened as a complicated mix of emotions crossed her features. My eyes followed hers. The muted, gray light of a deep winter day filtered into the room, thick white snowflakes drifting down from the heavens. In the hearth across the room, the fire popped and crackled.

"Is it important?" her voice dropped just above a whisper.

"Yes," I answered without hesitation. "I need to find it."

"Okay." She let out a slow breath before continuing. "The Storm Siren is a legend. It's an old story, a myth told to all the children to keep them from wandering too far." She paused. "In Scryer."

Scryer…her hometown?

"But I do not remember much more than the frightening parts of the old tales," she admitted, looking back at me. "If you need real information, we would have to travel there. I am sure there are old records, hidden books on it, or you could ask the surviving elders."

I need to go there. I need to know what this curse truly is, but… I studied her expression, the shadows haunting her green eyes. "Ondina, you don’t have to force yourself. Didn’t you say you wanted to return home?"

"I know I said that once Ruslan and the Vow were taken care of, I would return. But I do not know…" She wrapped her arms around her torso. "I do not think I am ready."

"Then you don’t need to go with me. I can do this with the others."

"No," she interrupted. "I am coming with you." She bit her lower lip, a deep sadness pooling in her eyes. "No one would recognize me there anyways… it’s been far too long."

I reached out, my hand resting against her forearm. "If that is truly what you desire, then we will travel to Scryer together. But if being there becomes too much... promise me you will walk away."

"It won’t. I want to return. I need to know what happened to my home, and we need to figure out what this Storm Siren is." She patted the back of my hand with hers, her skin warm, before sitting up straight. "You worry about everyone else far too much, Alanah."

A tired, genuine smile pulled at my lips. "And you don’t?"

A matching smile formed on her face, though it didn't quite reach the sorrow in her eyes. "We had better speak with the others about everything… I should let them know you are awake. Everyone has been waiting for you."

She slid her arm out from under my hand and stood up. She hovered by the side of the bed for a quiet moment, looking down at me. "I am just happy you are safe."

"Me too," I whispered.

I let my head fall back against the wooden headboard as she turned and headed for the door. The fire cast dancing, leaping shadows across the white ceiling.

My thoughts began to race, spinning out of control. What happens next? What happened to Emeric while I was unconscious? How bad is he—

The resonant warmth of Enkarthos's voice broke through the rising panic, washing over my waking mind like a soothing balm.

“Breathe, child. You will need your strength for what is to come.”

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