The forest had grown unnaturally quiet.

  Not the peaceful quiet of resting leaves or distant birdsong.This silence felt held—tight, waiting.

  Even the monk sensed it.

  The three boys had not returned to the inn.

  At first, the villagers assumed they had found shelter somewhere along the trail. The forest paths were long, and exhaustion often asked for rest before reason could.

  But night passed.

  Lanterns burned low.Doors remained unopened.Footsteps never came.

  Morning followed.

  Worry ripened into fear.

  So the monk gathered several villagers, their faces drawn tight with unease, and they began to search.

  They checked the inn first.

  Empty.

  Beds untouched.Blankets folded as they were.Windows still.

  No signs of return.

  A quiet dread settled into every chest.

  No one needed to say it aloud.

  They turned toward the forest.

  Calling their names.

  Listening.

  Waiting.

  Only the wind replied.

  Then—

  They found them.

  Three bodies lay scattered across torn earth and scorched stone, as if the land itself had tried to rise and failed.

  Clothes ripped.Blood dried dark against fabric.Skin marked with bruises and burns.

  Breathing—

  But faint.

  "Quickly!"

  The word shattered the stillness.

  Careful hands moved fast.Someone lifted Kael gently, supporting his head as if cradling something sacred.Someone carried Elior like fragile glass, afraid even breath might break him.Someone pressed firm cloth against Aevrin's bleeding side.

  No one spoke after that.

  Fear was faster than language.

  They returned to the temple in urgent silence.

  Healers were summoned.Herbs burned thick in the air.Medicines were prepared with trembling precision.

  And the long night began.

  Kael woke slowly.

  A pale ceiling hovered above him.The scent of incense drifted through warm air.

  His body felt distant—heavy, unresponsive—as if sleep had turned him to stone.

  "You're awake."

  A soft voice reached him.

  The caretaker leaned closer, relief easing his features.

  "How do you feel? Do you need water?"

  Kael blinked.

  His thoughts moved like shapes beneath deep water.

  Then memory surfaced in fragments.

  Forest.Light.Impact.A voice—Elior—

  His lips parted.

  "I…" His throat burned. "I'm back…"

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  "Yes," the caretaker said gently. "You're safe."

  Water touched his lips. He drank slowly.

  "I'll bring something light to eat," the caretaker added.

  Kael's fingers caught his sleeve weakly.

  "How long… was I asleep?"

  "A day and a half. It's afternoon now."

  A day and a half.

  Time felt unreal. Stretched. Stolen.

  "If you're feeling stable, I'll—"

  "Wait." Kael's voice sharpened. "The others?"

  “They’re being treated in their rooms. They haven’t woken up yet.”

  Kael was already moving.

  Pain flared instantly.Muscles protested.Bandages pulled tight.

  "Please rest—"

  But he was already at the door.

  The caretaker watched him go with a quiet sigh.

  The room was warm.

  Still.

  Muted light pooled across the floor.

  A healer sat nearby, grinding herbs with slow, steady movements.

  Kael approached the bed carefully.

  Each step felt heavier than the last.

  Elior lay there.

  Too pale.Too quiet.

  Lips colorless.Eyes closed gently, as if sleep were pretending to be peace.

  Breathing uneven. Soft. Fragile.

  Kael sat beside him slowly.

  Like sudden motion might break something invisible.

  His hand lifted—

  And rested against Elior's cheek.

  Warm.

  But distant.

  Unaware.

  "He hasn't regained consciousness yet," the healer said softly.

  Kael didn't look away.

  "What happened?"

  "His inner strength was nearly exhausted. I've stabilized his energy and treated external wounds."

  The healer adjusted the blanket.

  Kael nodded faintly.

  "If recovery continues, he should awaken in three days. One and a half have passed already."

  "So… one more day?"

  "Yes."

  One day felt longer than the battle itself.

  Hope existed.But it didn't soothe.

  Seeing him like this—

  Unmoving. Silent.

  Unreachable—

  hurt more than blood or broken bone.

  A quiet ache bloomed in Kael's chest.

  Soft. Constant. Deep.

  "…And Aevrin?" he asked.

  The name felt strange leaving his mouth.

  "Aevrin is stable," the Vaidya replied. "His injuries are serious but not life-threatening."

  Kael exhaled slowly.

  Relief came—hesitant, reluctant.

  He didn't like Aevrin.

  Didn't like how easily he stood beside Elior.Didn't like the wordless understanding between them.

  A selfish thought flickered.

  Serves him right.

  But it faded quickly.

  Aevrin had fought.Bled.Stayed.

  Something tightened in Kael's chest.

  He didn't want him gone.

  Why?

  Kael frowned slightly.

  Because I'm human.

  Because anyone would care.

  It's only decency.

  He told himself that.

  But his gaze softened.

  Time slipped.

  Footsteps came and went.Incense thinned and renewed.

  Kael never moved far.

  His hand rested near Elior's—close enough to feel warmth,close enough to confirm he was still here.

  But his mind drifted elsewhere.

  Fragments returned like broken reflections.

  Flashes of fire.Cracking earth.A voice—

  His voice—

  but deeper. Older. Colder.

  It echoed inside him.

  Not unfamiliar.

  Just… not entirely his.

  A strange heaviness stirred beneath his ribs.

  An emotion with no name.

  He pressed a hand to his chest.

  What is this feeling?

  Not pain.Not relief.

  Something suspended between.

  Like standing before a door memory refused to open.

  Then—

  Elior falling.

  Body going limp.

  Ground rushing closer—

  Kael moving.

  Fast.

  Certain.

  Catching him.

  Holding him.

  Protecting him.

  He felt it vividly.

  The weight.The fear.The urgency.

  But confusion followed.

  When did that happen?

  Before that—there was only light.

  Blinding. Endless.

  Power that didn't feel borrowed—but remembered.

  Then—

  Nothing.

  A gap. A tear. A silence.

  "I caught him…" Kael whispered.

  But the memory felt distant.

  Like watching through fog.

  Was it truly me?

  Or someone I used to be?

  He tried to remember.

  Forced his mind backward.

  But the more he reached—

  the further it slipped.

  His head ached.

  Why does it feel important?

  Not just missing—

  but meaningful.

  He looked at Elior again.

  Still breathing.Still here.

  And yet—

  Kael felt as if something vast had shifted between them.

  What happened to us?

  What did I become?

  The questions lingered unanswered.

  He didn't rest.

  Servants pleaded gently.The monk advised softly.

  "Your body needs recovery."

  But Kael couldn't close his eyes.

  If I sleep… what if he wakes alone?

  So he stayed.

  Counting Elior's breaths unconsciously.

  When medicine time came, Kael tried to stand.

  "I'll do it."

  But his strength failed him.

  Arms trembled. Vision swayed.

  Too many wounds.Too much strain.Too much fear held quietly.

  He sank back.

  "…Please," he murmured.

  The caretaker nodded and continued.

  Kael watched, guilt settling softly.

  I should be the one helping.

  When the room emptied again, silence returned.

  They were close.

  So close.

  But it felt impossibly far.

  Kael leaned forward.

  As if nearness could be forced.

  But the closer he tried to feel—

  the farther Elior seemed.

  Like light beneath deep water.

  Visible.

  Untouchable.

  Don't go.

  I'm right here.

  The words never left his lips.

  Darkness pooled quietly inside him.

  The light was beside him—

  Warm. Breathing. Alive.

  Yet unreachable.

  That was the cruelest pain.

  Time blurred.

  Then—

  "…Kael…"

  A whisper. Fragile. Searching.

  Kael lifted his head instantly.

  "I'm here."

  Elior's fingers moved faintly across the sheets.

  Searching without awareness.

  They brushed cloth. Air.

  Then—

  Kael's hand.

  Fingers curled slowly.

  Holding.

  That small touch shattered something inside him.

  Like a thread cast across endless distance.

  The hollow in his chest trembled—

  then began to close.

  Softly.

  Like dawn brushing night.

  Kael turned his palm, holding Elior's hand properly.

  Gentle. Firm. Certain.

  "I'm here," he whispered again.

  Elior's grip answered.

  Weak—

  But real.

  Alive.

  And that was enough.

  Air filled Kael's lungs completely.

  Relief arrived quietly.

  Like rain easing sun-scorched earth.

  This warmth.This fragile connection.This proof he wasn't alone—

  It was enough.

  Kael lowered his forehead to the edge of the bed, their hands still joined.

  "Take your time," he murmured.

  "I'm not going anywhere."

  And for the first time since waking—

  Kael closed his eyes.

  Not in exhaustion.

  But in peace.

  Because the light beside him…

  had reached back.

  — by Aurea;"Even when silence stretches between us like an endless road, a single touch can become the bridge that brings the light back home."