Aurenya’s POV
The white didn’t disappear.
It stretched.
Endless.
Silent.
For a moment, I thought I was unconscious again.
Then I realized—
I could still feel my body.
Bare feet against cold stone.
Breathing.
Heartbeat.
Too loud.
Too real.
Slowly, the brightness faded.
And darkness took its place.
Not empty darkness.
A room.
Large.
Circular.
Stone walls curved around me, cracked with age. Symbols carved deep into them glowed faintly beneath layers of dust.
The air felt still.
Like nothing had moved here in years.
I turned slowly.
No door.
No forest.
No Rhydan.
No one.
My chest tightened instantly.
“Rhydan?”
Nothing answered.
Only my own voice bouncing softly through the chamber.
I swallowed.
The silence here felt wrong.
Not peaceful.
Watching.
I took a cau
