THE VOICE'S GUIDANCE
1399 Words
Lyra ran until her lungs burned.
She could barely keep up with Damian, who moved through the forest as though he knew every tree, every rock, and every hidden path.
“Damian!” she called.
“Slow down!”
He didn't stop.
“Not yet.”
Lyra pushed herself harder.
Branches brushed against her shoulders as they hurried through the darkness.
Her heart pounded against her chest, and her legs were beginning to ache.
She glanced over her shoulder.
Nothing.
No footsteps.
No figure.
No sign that anyone was following them.
That frightened her more than she wanted to admit.
Finally, Damian stopped beside a large fallen tree.
Lyra bent forward, trying to catch her breath.
“Are we safe?”
Damian looked behind them before answering.
“For now.”
Lyra straightened.
“You keep saying that.”
Damian turned toward her.
“What?”
“For now. We don't have time. Someone knows I'm here, you know about my mark, and somehow you know things you refuse to explain.”
Damian remained silent.
Lyra folded her arms.
“I want answers.”
He studied her for a moment before finally speaking.
“The person we saw wasn't supposed to find you this quickly.”
Lyra's stomach tightened.
“You knew someone was looking for me?”
“I suspected someone might be.”
“That is not the same thing.”
“No. It isn't.”
“Then why didn't you tell me?”
Damian looked away.
“Because I wasn't certain.”
Lyra shook her head.
“You could have warned me.”
“I should have.”
The simple admission caught her off guard.
She expected him to argue.
Instead, he continued.
“I don't know who sent him. I don't know exactly what he wants. But I know that your mark has been seen before.”
Lyrah pulled her sleeve over her palm.
“By whom?”
“Someone I once knew.”
“What happened to that person?”
Damian hesitated.
“She disappeared.”
Lyra stared at him.
“Because of the mark?”
“I don't know.”
“You always say that.”
“Because I don't have all the answers.”
His voice was calm, but there was something in his expression that made Lyra believe him.
She looked down at her covered hand.
The strange mark had become a part of her life so quickly.
Only days ago, she had been worried about one thing—escaping the humiliation of Kael's rejection.
Now she was running through a forest with a stranger who claimed to recognize a mysterious mark on her hand.
Nothing made sense anymore.
Then she heard it.
“Lyra…”
She froze.
Her eyes widened.
The voice.
The same voice that had called her name when she first entered the forest.
“Did you hear that?”
Damian looked at her.
“Hear what?”
“The voice.”
His expression changed.
“What voice?”
Lyra looked around.
“It called my name.”
Damian stepped closer.
“What did it say?”
“Just my name.”
He looked into the darkness between the trees.
“Where did it come from?”
“I don't know.”
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Then the voice whispered again.
“Keep moving.”
Lyrah's heart began beating faster.
“It's telling me to move.”
Damian's eyes narrowed.
“Which way?”
Lyra looked around.
The forest seemed exactly the same in every direction.
Then she noticed a narrow opening between two enormous trees.
“There.”
Damian followed her gaze.
“That path?”
Lyrah nodded.
“The voice says we should go that way.”
He hesitated.
Then he nodded.
“Let's go.”
They moved through the opening.
The path was narrow and covered with fallen leaves.
Damian walked ahead while Lyrah followed closely behind.
After several minutes, she noticed something strange.
The forest had become completely silent.
No birds.
No insects.
Not even the sound of wind moving through the branches.
Lyra slowed down.
“Damian.”
He stopped.
“What?”
“Why is it so quiet?”
He looked around.
“I don't know.”
Lyra's instincts told her something was wrong.
She had spent enough time in the forest to know that silence like this wasn't normal.
A faint sound suddenly came from behind them.
Crack.
Lyrah turned halfway.
Damian immediately raised his hand.
“Don't.”
She stopped.
“Someone's there.”
Another crack came from the trees.
Closer this time.
Lyrah's heart raced.
“Is it the person from before?”
“I don't know.”
Damian moved carefully toward the side of the path.
Lyrah stood still.
Then the voice whispered directly into her thoughts.
“Do not turn around.”
Her entire body went cold.
She swallowed.
“Damian.”
“What?”
“The voice told me not to turn around.”
He looked at her carefully.
“Then don't.”
“But what if someone is behind us?”
“Keep walking.”
They began moving again.
Lyra fought the urge to look back.
Every few steps, she heard something moving among the trees.
But she didn't turn.
The voice had warned her.
And for some reason, she trusted it.
After several minutes, the sounds disappeared.
The forest slowly became less silent.
Birds began calling again.
The wind returned.
Lyra finally released the breath she had been holding.
They reached a small rocky opening surrounded by tall trees.
Damian stopped.
“We can rest here.”
Lyra sat against a large rock.
Her hands were trembling.
She looked at her palm.
The mark was glowing faintly beneath her skin.
“It's doing it again.”
Damian crouched nearby.
“Your emotions affect it.”
Lyra looked up.
“How do you know?”
“I've seen something similar.”
“On the person who disappeared?”
Damien nodded.
“What was her name?”
He looked away.
“I don't think that's important right now.”
“It is to me.”
He remained quiet.
Lyra waited.
Finally, he said, “Her name was Diamond.”
Lyra looked at him.
“What happened to her?”
“I told you. She disappeared.”
“And nobody searched for her?”
“They did.”
“Then why was she never found?”
Damian's expression became serious.
“Because whoever took her knew how to hide.”
Lyra's stomach tightened.
“Whoever took her?”
“I said I believe she was taken. I don't know that for certain.”
Lyra looked at the mark again.
For the first time, she wondered whether discovering her power had made her life more dangerous instead of better.
She had wanted to escape her old life.
Now she wasn't even sure where she was going.
“Why me?” she whispered.
The forest gave no answer.
Then the voice returned.
“Because you were never meant to remain hidden forever.”
Lyra's eyes widened.
She slowly stood.
Damien noticed immediately.
“What did it say?”
Lyra looked at him.
She almost told him.
But something stopped her.
The voice had never told her to trust Damien completely.
It had only guided her.
“I think we should keep moving,” she said.
Damien studied her face.
“You're hiding something.”
“Maybe.”
He didn't push her.
“Then let's go.”
Lyra took one step forward.
Suddenly, the mark on her palm flared.
Silver light spread across the ground beneath her feet.
She gasped and stepped back.
Damian stared at the glowing symbol.
“What just happened?”
“I don't know.”
The light disappeared almost as quickly as it had appeared.
Then the forest became silent again.
A deep voice echoed from somewhere beyond the trees.
“I know you're here.”
Lyra froze.
Damien's expression hardened.
The voice came again.
“I can feel the power awakening.”
Lyra's hand began to tremble.
Someone was coming.
And this time, whoever it was had found their trail.
Damian stepped in front of Lyra.
“Stay behind me.”
Lyra stared into the darkness.
For the first time, she understood something the mysterious voice had been trying to tell her.
Her life had changed.
And there was no going back.
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