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1203 Words
The river was restless that night. Moonlight rippled across its dark surface, silver and shadow woven together, never still. I sat on the bank, knees drawn to my chest, staring into the water as if the current might carry away the storm inside me.
For hours, the same thought circled like a wolf that couldn’t find rest.
I was free. Lena was not.
Every memory of laughter around the fire, every sparring match, every run through Varrowood’s woods now felt poisoned. I had lived in wild skies and open ground while my twin—my blood—had grown up in chains.
A sob pressed against my throat, but I swallowed it down. Wolves didn’t cry. Wolves endured. Still, my chest ached as if someone had reached in and twisted.
“You’re too quiet for someone who beat Garrick bloody this morning.”
I turned sharply. Gavin stood a few paces behind me, hands shoved in his belt, his wolf-braided hair tousled from the night wind. He was grinning, but not the playful grin he wore during training. This one was gentler, tinged with worry.
“What are you doing here?” My voice was hoarse.
“Following you,” he said simply, stepping closer. “You’ve been brooding since the bonfire. That’s not like you, Aleya. Usually you’d be teasing Garrick or daring Leo into something stupid. So what’s wrong?”
I looked back at the water. Words tangled in my chest. Telling him meant making it real, dragging the truth from shadow into light.
He crouched beside me, close but not crowding. “Aleya, you can trust me. You always can.”
The ache split open. My voice came out low, trembling despite myself. “I have a sister.”
Gavin blinked. “A… sister?”
“Her name is Lena.” Saying it hurt and soothed all at once. “We’re twins. She’s alive. Raymond didn’t kill her the night of the m******e—he caged her. All these years, while I was running free through Varrowood, she’s been trapped.”
His mouth parted in shock, but he stayed silent.
I pressed on, the words pouring out now like a wound that couldn’t close. “Do you know what that feels like, Gavin? To realize that your other half, your blood, your twin, has been bleeding in silence while you laughed and sparred and—” My voice cracked.
I turned away, ashamed of the wetness burning my eyes.
He didn’t try to offer false comfort. Instead, he let the river speak for a moment, its endless rush filling the space between us. Then he said, steady as stone, “Aleya… what are you going to do?”
I lifted my head. The moon caught the silver in the river and threw it across my face, cold and bright. My heart had already chosen. “I’m going to find her. I don’t care what it takes. I don’t care who I have to kill. I’m going to bring her back.”
Gavin’s breath left him in a slow rush. He studied me for a long moment, then nodded once. “Then I’m going with you.”
That startled me. “You don’t even—”
“You’re not alone in this,” he cut in, firm. “You shouldn’t be. You’ve carried enough weight by yourself, Aleya. If your sister is caged, then she’s our sister too. Pack isn’t blood—it’s who you fight beside. And I’ll fight for her.”
The knot in my chest loosened, just a little. I let out a shaky laugh. “You don’t even know what you’re signing up for.”
He smirked. “Danger? Death? Probably Garrick whining about blisters? Sounds like any other day.”
Despite everything, a smile tugged at my lips.
We sat in silence for a while, listening to the current. But my mind was already racing. I couldn’t do this alone. And Gavin was right—this wasn’t just my fight.
When we returned to camp, I went straight to Natania.
She was in her tent, hunched over a table littered with herbs and scrolls, the firelight painting shadows across her one-eyed face. She looked up as I entered, and the weight of her gaze pinned me still. She already knew. Somehow, she always knew.
“You’ve made your choice,” she said.
I swallowed. “I have to go. She’s my sister. I can’t leave her in chains while I breathe free.”
Gavin stepped in beside me. “She won’t go alone.”
Natania’s jaw tightened, but there was no anger in her eye. Only sorrow—and pride. “I feared this day would come. And I prayed you would be strong enough to meet it.” She rose, the raven cloak shifting around her shoulders, her presence filling the tent like storm winds.
“You will not go without warning,” she said, her voice like flint. “Raymond is no common tyrant. He is a Rogue King. Cunning. Poisonous. He destroyed Aeryndor’s throne and bled its people into silence. If he still holds Lena, it is not by accident. It is because she is the key to his downfall—and he knows it.”
Her words carved into me, but they did not shake me. “Then we’ll break his cage.”
The faintest smile ghosted her lips. “Spoken like your mother.”
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.
Then Natania’s tone hardened again. “You will need allies. Gavin. Leo. Gwenyth. The four of you together may just survive what waits beyond the mountains. But be warned—if you go, there is no turning back.”
I glanced at Gavin. He nodded once, steady.
“Leo and Gwenyth will come,” I said. “They won’t hesitate.”
“Then so be it,” Natania whispered, as if sealing a vow. She laid her hand, calloused and scarred, against my cheek. “Go, my child. Save your sister. But do not let vengeance blind you. Remember who you are—not Raymond’s prey, not his weapon. You are the fire he could never burn out.”
My throat closed, but I managed a nod.
That night, beneath the cover of darkness, the four of us gathered at the edge of camp. The moon hung swollen above the trees, pale and watchful. Our packs were light—blades, cloaks, flasks, charms Natania had pressed into our hands with whispered spells.
Leo adjusted his bow, eyes glittering with mischief even now. “Off to storm a tyrant’s castle. Just another Tuesday.”
Gwenyth snorted, braiding her long dark hair tighter. “Try not to get yourself killed before we get there.”
Gavin gave me a sidelong glance, steady and grounding. No teasing, no words. Just a nod that said I’m here.
I drew a breath, the night air cold and sharp in my lungs. Beyond the trees lay the world Raymond thought he owned. Beyond the mountains, the cage where my sister waited.
The river had carried my doubts away. All that was left was fire.
“Let’s go,” I whispered.
And together, we vanished into the dark.
- Writer
