Chapter 19 – Moonlight and Fire
(Malikye POV)
The moment I stepped out of the temple, the world felt louder—not in sound, but in presence. The Veilwood stretched before me again, silver light slipping through the trees, the night air cool against my skin, but something had shifted. The pull I had felt before, that quiet whisper of the moon and the forest, wasn’t distant anymore. It was clear now, connected, alive in a way that settled deep in my chest. I exhaled slowly as I stepped down from the temple, dragging a hand through my hair as I glanced back at the towering structure behind us.
“Well, that was exhausting, mildly life-changing, and entirely too violent,” I said.
Lyra walked beside me, her pace steady, her eyes scanning the trees like she didn’t trust a single shadow.
“You ha
