1: Wakin

ants of fire, smoke, and an endless stretch of dark forest. Her heart pounded, and she could still feel the

r window cast a pale glow across the room, making the shadows dance like ghosts. Her bed, small and worn, offered little c

y of it-the coldness, the hunger-it was enough to make her blood run cold. She shuddered,

sing the heels of her palms agai

se, something just outside the reach of her senses. She could feel it deep in her bones, a restless stirring she couldn't explain. It had started about a month ag

added across the small room, the cool wooden floor creaking beneath her feet. Her fingers grazed

ods that lay just beyond the town. Araya had always avoided those woods. People said they were

o clear her head. The room seemed smaller now, suffocating.

e muttered to herself, tho

oftly. The flames cast long shadows that seemed to stretch and move, as though alive. S

ether," she scolded hersel

w in the sky, bathing the world in its pale light. The town of Hollow Creek was quiet, the streets empty excep

he forest began. Her breath came out in misty clouds, the silence pressing in on her from all sides. Th

nore. Araya stopped at the edge of the woods, her eyes scanning t

human. Her heart quickened, and instinctively, she took a step bac

he trees, partially hidden in the shadows. Her breath hitched in her throat as

ver eyes gleam

lled out, her voice tre

heir steps deliberate, measured. The air around them se

her dreams-the same one that had been haunting her every night. The one with eyes that bur

ure stepped fully into the moon

Dra

alling in disarray around his shoulders. His golden eyes were intense, almost feral, and

e barely audible, as though speaking too

her, his expression unreadable. For a moment, she thought he

ere?" Araya asked aga

is voice low and gravelly, as though it hadn'

owed. "What do yo

else-movement in the distance, flickers of figur

to run, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from Kael.

locking onto hers with an intensity that made her heart skip a bea

Kael turned sharply and began to walk away

r voice breaking through

disappeared into the woods was his golden eyes, glowing fain

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