chapter three :The Shadows
1135 Words
🌸 Chapter Three: The Shadows
The scream came at midnight.
Elara bolted upright in bed, her heart hammering. At first she thought it was just another dream, but then the sound came again—raw, terrified—echoing through the village streets.
She stumbled to the window. Smoke curled into the night sky, and shadows flickered like living things against the firelight.
“Elara!” her aunt cried from the doorway, clutching a candle with trembling hands. “Stay inside!”
But Elara couldn’t. Something deep inside her surged, pulling her toward the danger. She grabbed her shawl and ran barefoot into the chaos.
The village square burned. A barn had collapsed into flame, and people scattered in panic. But it wasn’t fire that made Elara’s blood run cold.
It was the creatures.
Figures of smoke and ash, taller than men, with hollow eyes that glowed a sickly green. They moved like liquid darkness, swallowing anything they touched.
Elara froze as one turned toward her, its mouth opening in a silent, inhuman scream.
She couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. The creature lunged—
—and was met by fire.
A wall of flame roared to life between them, forcing the shadow back with an unholy shriek. Elara shielded her face from the heat, eyes wide.
Kael stood before her, his cloak thrown back, his hand ablaze like a living torch. His ember eyes burned hotter than the fire itself.
“Stay behind me,” he commanded, his voice sharp as steel.
Before she could speak, a gust of wind swept through the square, scattering two of the creatures like smoke. Riven dropped lightly to the ground beside her, his grin gone, replaced by grim determination. “Well, well,” he said, sword gleaming in his hand. “Looks like our little star’s in trouble.”
Elara’s pulse raced. The dream. The prophecy. The shadows. It was all real.
Villagers screamed as more creatures poured into the square. Kael’s fire raged, Riven’s winds cut sharp, but still the monsters pressed closer.
“Elara!” Kael barked, glancing over his shoulder. “You have to run!”
But even as he said it, the shadows moved toward her—not the others, not the villagers—her.
As though she were the only thing they truly wanted.
The shadow-creature lunged.
Elara stumbled back, her breath caught in her throat. Its hollow eyes fixed only on her, hunger stretching its mouth wide—
And then darkness met darkness.
A blade of pure shadow sliced through the creature’s chest, splitting it apart like smoke. The monster dissolved into ash with a hiss, and in its place stood another man. Cloaked in black, his eyes sharp as obsidian, he lowered his weapon without a word.
Darius.
Elara recognized him instantly, though she had only glimpsed him in dreams. He moved with silent precision, no wasted motion, as though the battle was nothing more than a game of strategy he had already won.
“Late, brother,” Riven shouted, slashing through another creature with a gust of wind. “Decided to join us after all?”
Darius’s gaze flicked briefly to Elara, unreadable, before he turned back to the fight. “I go where I am needed.” His voice was low, cutting, the kind that demanded silence more than respect.
Kael’s fire roared higher, his face set in grim determination as he drove the shadows back. “Form a line! Keep them from her!”
But it was too late.
Three more shadows broke through, surging straight toward Elara. She cried out, stumbling as their smoke-like limbs reached for her.
Her heart hammered. She tried to move, to run, but something strange pulsed inside her chest. Heat—bright and wild—like the dream.
For an instant, her eyes burned with light.
And the shadows faltered.
They froze, as though struck by an invisible force, their hollow mouths opening in silent screams. Kael noticed, his fire flaring brighter in response.
“Elara…” he breathed, realization sparking in his ember eyes.
The creatures screeched and recoiled, but more poured into the square. Villagers fled in terror. The air smelled of smoke, fear, and something darker—the promise of a power that wanted her, claimed her.
Riven planted himself at her side, spinning his blade with a smirk that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Well, looks like the prophecy was right. You really are the star.”
Elara’s hands shook. She had no weapon, no training, no explanation—just the weight of three impossible men standing between her and death.
And yet, as another shadow lunged, she felt it again: that strange power rising in her blood.
This time, it didn’t ask permission.
The power inside Elara flared, bursting out of her like a pulse of golden light. Shadows shrieked, recoiling, their smoky forms unraveling in the glow.
She staggered back, clutching her chest, gasping for air. What was happening to her?
The monsters swarmed again, enraged, their hollow mouths stretching wide as they closed in. Kael’s fire blazed, Riven’s winds howled, Darius’s shadows slashed, but there were too many.
A scream tore through the night—until suddenly, silence fell.
Rain.
It began as a whisper, then a torrent. Water streamed from the sky though no clouds had gathered, drenching fire and smoke alike. The shadows hissed, writhing as the downpour struck them. Where the water touched, they dissolved into mist and vanished.
Elara turned, breathless, as a fourth figure stepped into the square. His cloak was pale, silver-blue in the moonlight, his hair dark and damp, his eyes calm as a still lake. With a single raised hand, the rain obeyed him, flowing like a living thing.
Theron.
“Enough,” he said softly, his voice like the hush of waves. “This fight is done.”
The creatures gave one last shriek before crumbling into nothingness, leaving only smoke and silence in their wake.
Elara’s knees buckled. She might have fallen if not for Theron, who caught her gently, his touch cool and steady.
“Breathe, little star,” he murmured, his hand brushing against her temple. Warmth—no, peace—flooded her body, and for the first time that night, she felt safe.
Kael’s flames dimmed as he strode to them, his face tight. “She used her power. Too soon.”
“She saved herself,” Riven countered, tossing his dripping hair with a grin. “And quite spectacularly, too.”
Darius only watched, his gaze unreadable, shadows coiling faintly at his feet.
Elara’s lips trembled. “What… what are you?” Her eyes darted from one to the other, desperation in her voice. “And what am I?”
Theron’s calm eyes met hers. “Not ordinary, Elara. Never ordinary.”
- Writer
