"The Light You Carry"

"Unseen Wings"

Chapter 1: The Silent Sky

The world was quiet, as it often was in the early hours of the morning, just before the first rays of dawn broke through the horizon. In the small town of Larkswood, nestled between the rolling hills and thick forests, the air felt thick with unspoken promises. But to Adeline Carter, it felt more like a cage.

Adeline, or Addie as her friends called her, had always felt different from the other children. At the age of twenty-one, she still lived with her parents in the same modest cottage where she had spent her childhood. Nothing had changed—except for her dreams. Every night, she would dream of a place beyond the clouds, where wings made of light and shadows fluttered in the silence. The wings would be so beautiful, yet unseen by all, except by her.

But there was something else, something she couldn’t quite explain. Every time she woke from those dreams, the feeling lingered, like a weight on her chest. It was as if the wings in her dreams were meant for her, waiting for her to find them. She had shared her visions with no one. No one would understand.

One morning, while walking through the dense woods near her home, Addie noticed something strange—an old, weathered book hidden beneath the roots of an ancient oak tree. The book was leather-bound, its pages yellowed with age. There was no title on the cover, just a symbol—a pair of wings, broken in the middle. It felt strange, almost as if it was calling to her.

As her fingers touched the cover, a rush of cold air enveloped her, sending a shiver down her spine. She opened the book carefully, revealing pages filled with symbols and illustrations—of skies, of wings, of people soaring through the air. It was a book of secrets, one she knew she was meant to uncover.

But as she turned the pages, one illustration stopped her heart. There, in the middle of a page, was an image of a girl. Her eyes were wide, her expression both hopeful and fearful. Behind her, a pair of wings—beautiful yet ethereal, almost translucent—were spread wide. The girl’s name was written beneath the image: Adeline Carter.

For the first time in her life, Addie felt a connection to something greater than herself. She was not just dreaming these visions. They were a part of her destiny.

That evening, Addie found herself unable to sleep. The book lay open beside her on the table, the mysterious wings still etched in her mind. She had to know more. The following days became a blur of research, seeking out every possible clue that could explain the meaning of the book and the visions. She visited the town’s library, searching through old tomes and forgotten journals. She scoured the history of Larkswood, hoping to find something that could shed light on her mysterious connection to the wings.

But the more she searched, the more confused she became. There were no stories about wings, no legends of ethereal beings soaring through the sky. The town’s history was as dull and uneventful as any small town could be. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was missing something, that the answers were just beyond her grasp.

One rainy afternoon, while browsing through an ancient section of the library, she stumbled upon an old journal. Its pages were brittle, its leather cover cracked with age. It belonged to a man named Jonathan Grey, someone she had never heard of before. The journal seemed to contain notes about the same symbol she had seen in the book—the wings.

As she flipped through the pages, she found a passage that made her heart skip a beat.

"The wings are not of this world. They belong to those who have the power to transcend the limitations of the body. It is said that when the right person finds them, they will be able to see the invisible paths that lead beyond the veil of reality. But beware, for the wings are not free. They come with a price, one that must be paid in full, or else they will remain forever unseen."

The journal also contained drawings—sketches of the wings and of a figure, cloaked in shadows, standing at the edge of a cliff, staring into the abyss. There was something deeply unsettling about the figure, yet Addie couldn’t bring herself to look away.

The more Addie uncovered, the clearer it became: the wings were real. But so were the consequences of claiming them. She began to question everything she knew about herself. What was this price? What had Jonathan Grey meant by “the wings are not free?”

One night, unable to shake her thoughts, she ventured into the woods once more. She found herself standing beneath the oak tree, the same one where she had discovered the book. The wind was still, the moon barely a sliver in the sky. It was then that she heard it—a whisper, soft at first, then growing louder.

Addie.

Her heart raced. She spun around, expecting to see someone, but the forest was empty. Only the shadows stretched long in the moonlight. Yet the voice was unmistakable.

Addie, you are not alone.

The whisper seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once. Her feet moved on their own, carrying her deeper into the forest. She followed the sound of the voice, drawn by an unseen force. The further she went, the more the air seemed to shimmer, as if reality itself was bending.

Then, just ahead, she saw it—a clearing, bathed in an ethereal glow. At the center of the clearing stood a figure, cloaked in white, its face hidden in the folds of a hood. Addie approached cautiously, her heart pounding in her chest.

"Who are you?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

The figure did not respond immediately. It simply raised its hand, and with a flick of its fingers, the air around them seemed to ripple. Suddenly, Addie could see it—the wings. They were not physical, yet they were undeniably present. They shimmered in the air, translucent yet full of life, stretching wide, then folding gently behind the figure.

"I am the Keeper," the figure said, its voice echoing through Addie’s mind. "The wings you seek are not given freely, child. They come at a cost. You must decide whether you are willing to pay it."

Addie took a step forward. "What cost? What do I have to give up?"

The Keeper did not answer immediately. Instead, it extended a hand toward her, palm open.

"Your freedom," it said. "Your path will no longer be your own. The wings will carry you to places beyond your imagination, but they will also take you further from the world you know. Will you still choose them?"