The forest held its breath.
Even the wind dared not move as Aelira stood barefoot in the shallow water of the river that divided the Hollow Lands. Her reflection shimmered at her feet—distorted, almost unrecognizable. Her belly had grown, round and full, but it wasn’t just the shape of her body that had changed.
Something in her eyes was different now. Deeper. Wilder. A shadow that moved just beneath the surface.
Behind her, Astren watched silently. He had stopped trying to understand the power inside her days ago. Now he only tried to stay close enough to catch her if she fell—and far enough not to burn with her when the fire turned too dark.
She turned to him slowly. “It’s not just a child,” she said, her voice flat and clear. “It’s a threshold. A gate. Something is coming through me
