Cracks Beneath The Surface
850 Words
The fight ended—
But the tension didn’t.
The forest was quiet again.
Too quiet.
The rogue beasts lay motionless on the ground.
Unmoving.
Empty.
I stared at them, my chest still rising and falling too fast.
“…Are they dead?” I asked.
“…Yes,” Solren answered.
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
I swallowed.
“…They didn’t feel like normal beasts.”
“They weren’t,” Aeris said, brushing dirt off his sleeve. “Something’s wrong.”
“…That’s an understatement,” Kael muttered.
I stiffened.
Of course he’d say something.
“…What is that supposed to mean?” I asked.
Kael’s gaze shifted to me.
Sharp.
“It means,” he said slowly, “…we have bigger problems than just rogue beasts.”
My chest tightened.
He knows.
Or at least suspects.
“…We should return,” Solren interrupted.
No one argued.
But the air—
Felt heavier.
Back at camp—
No one spoke at first.
Not until—
“…Explain.”
Solren’s voice cut through everything.
I froze.
“…What?”
“The ground,” he said, eyes fixed on me. “It reacted before Taika moved.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
Say something.
“…I don’t know what you mean.”
A lie.
A weak one.
“You were the first to react,” Aeris added, arms crossed. “I saw it too.”
“…Coincidence,” I said quickly.
“…That didn’t look like coincidence,” Kael said.
Of course.
“…Then what did it look like?” I snapped.
Kael smiled slightly.
“…Like power.”
My heart skipped.
“…You’re imagining things.”
“…Am I?”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Enough.”
Solren stepped forward.
The air shifted instantly.
Authority.
Heavy.
Unyielding.
“…We are not enemies,” he said. “There’s no need for hostility.”
“…Tell that to him,” I muttered.
“I’m just asking questions.”
“No—you’re accusing me.”
“…If you feel accused, maybe there’s a reason.”
“That’s enough, Kael,” Taika said firmly.
I glanced at him.
“…You’re defending her?” Kael asked, brow raising.
“…I’m saying you’re pushing too far.”
“…Or not far enough.”
The tension snapped.
“Kael.”
Solren’s voice again.
Sharp this time.
Warning.
Kael exhaled and raised his hands slightly.
“…Fine.”
But his eyes didn’t leave me.
Not for a second.
He’s not letting this go.
“…Luna.”
I turned slightly.
Eryndor.
“…Are you alright?”
“…I’m fine.”
“…You’re not.”
Why does everyone keep saying that?
“…I said I’m fine.”
“…You’re trembling.”
I froze.
I hadn’t noticed.
My hands—
Were shaking.
“…It’s nothing,” I muttered, clenching them.
But even that didn’t stop it.
Because the truth was—
I wasn’t just shaken from the fight.
I was shaken from myself.
“You need to rest.”
Solren again.
I nodded.
“…Yeah.”
Because if I stayed any longer—
I might break.
That night—
I sat alone.
Again.
But this time—
It wasn’t just to avoid them.
It was to avoid myself.
You almost lost control.
“I didn’t.”
You did.
“I stopped it.”
Barely.
I clenched my fists.
“…I can control it.”
Can you?
Silence.
Because I wasn’t sure anymore.
“…You’re thinking too much.”
I didn’t look up.
“…Go away, Taika.”
“…No.”
“…I said go away.”
“…Not happening.”
I sighed.
“…You’re annoying.”
“…You say that a lot.”
“…Because it’s true.”
He sat beside me anyway.
“…They’re starting to notice,” he said.
“I know.”
“…Kael especially.”
“I know.”
“…Solren too.”
“…I know.”
Silence.
“…Then what are you going to do?”
I hesitated.
“…Nothing.”
“…That’s not a plan.”
“…It’s all I’ve got.”
He exhaled quietly.
“…You’re not alone in this.”
My chest tightened.
Don’t rely on him.
“…I didn’t say I was.”
“…You’re acting like it.”
“…Because I am.”
Taika didn’t respond immediately.
Then—
“…You don’t have to be.”
I looked at him.
“…You keep saying that.”
“…Because you keep needing to hear it.”
I froze.
He’s getting too close.
Emotionally.
“This is dangerous… you’re getting too comfortable again.”
I stood abruptly.
“…I need space.”
Taika didn’t stop me this time.
“…Fine.”
But his voice—
Was quieter.
Different.
And somehow—
That made it worse.
As I walked away—
I felt it again.
That pressure.
That unstable, unfamiliar power inside me.
Waiting.
Growing.
And this time—
I wasn’t the only one who noticed.
From the shadows—
A pair of eyes watched me.
Cold.
Calculating.
“…So it’s true,” a voice whispered into the darkness.
“…She’s starting to awaken.”
- Writer
