The Stranger Beyond the Trees
758 Words
The cottage had never felt so small.
Lyra stood in the darkness beneath the floorboards, barely breathing.
Her grandmother remained beside her, one hand holding a candle that had already been blown out.
Above them, the house was silent.
Too silent.
“Grandma,” Lyra whispered.
No answer.
Her grandmother’s eyes remained fixed on the staircase.
Waiting.
Listening.
Then came the sound.
A slow creak.
Someone was inside.
Lyra’s heart slammed against her chest.
“How did they get in?” she whispered.
Her grandmother’s expression hardened.
“Because the old protections are fading.”
Lyra frowned.
“Protections?”
But before her grandmother could explain, a shadow moved across the small opening above them.
Someone was searching the house.
Lyra instinctively reached for her pendant.
Her grandmother noticed.
“No.”
The word came out sharply.
Lyra looked at her.
“What?”
“Do not let it reveal you.”
Lyra stared.
“What does that even mean?”
Her grandmother opened her mouth to answer.
A loud crash interrupted them.
Something had fallen upstairs.
The stranger was no longer searching.
They knew someone was there.
The hidden door opened suddenly.
Lyra’s grandmother stepped out first.
“Stay behind me.”
Lyra almost laughed.
“Absolutely not.”
Her grandmother turned.
“This is not the time to be stubborn.”
“I’m always stubborn.”
Despite everything, her grandmother almost smiled.
Almost.
Then the moment disappeared.
Together, they climbed the stairs.
The cottage was empty.
The front door was open, swinging slightly in the wind.
Lyra looked outside.
The village was still asleep.
No one had noticed.
“Who was here?”
Her grandmother walked toward the doorway.
She bent down and picked something up from the ground.
A black feather.
Lyra looked at it.
“That’s not from any bird around here.”
“No.”
Her grandmother’s voice was quiet.
“It isn’t.”
Far from Asteria, beyond mountains that humans had never crossed, a message was delivered.
Inside a dark stone castle, a young woman stood before a throne.
The room was silent except for the flames burning in the walls.
“Father.”
The man sitting before her looked up.
“You found her?”
The woman lowered her head.
“Not yet.”
A pause.
“But someone confirmed the legend.”
The king’s expression remained calm.
“The Moon Heir?”
“Yes.”
The woman looked toward the window where the Crimson Moon still lingered.
“Shall I bring her to you?”
The king leaned back.
“Not yet, Seraphine.”
She waited.
“Let her believe she is still human.”
A small smile appeared on his face.
“It will make things easier.”
Seraphine bowed.
“As you wish, Father.”
And she left.
Lyra spent the rest of the morning searching for answers.
Every book in the hidden room contained pieces of a story she did not understand.
Ancient kingdoms.
Forgotten wars.
A prophecy written in a language she could not read.
But one symbol appeared again and again.
A silver tree.
The same tree from her dream.
She traced the drawing with her finger.
“Why do I keep seeing this?”
Her grandmother became quiet.
“Because some things are remembered before they are understood.”
Lyra looked at her.
“What does that mean?”
“It means your dreams are not just dreams.”
A cold feeling moved through her.
“Then what are they?”
Her grandmother looked at the drawing.
“Warnings.”
That evening, Lyra left the cottage to clear her thoughts.
She walked beyond the village fields, toward the edge of the forest.
She had always loved the forest.
But today it felt different.
Like it was watching her.
The trees moved slightly.
A branch snapped.
Lyra stopped.
“Who’s there?”
No answer.
She took a step forward.
Another sound.
Closer.
Then she saw him.
Not clearly.
Only a figure between the trees.
Tall.
Silent.
Watching her.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Lyra felt something strange.
Not fear.
Recognition.
As if some forgotten part of her knew him.
The stranger stepped forward, but before she could see his face…
A flash of silver light appeared between them.
Lyra shielded her eyes.
When the light disappeared, the figure was gone.
Only footprints remained.
And one word carved into the tree beside her.
A name.
Kael.
Lyra stared at it.
She did not know why.
But somehow…
She knew this was only the beginning.
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