She Chose the Wrong Hero

They left the chamber in silence.

Elira didn't speak until they were far from the door—back in the upper halls of the fortress, where the air was warmer and the light felt real again.

Even then, her voice was quiet.

"There's something alive in there."

Kael nodded. "I know."

"It saw us."

"Yes," he said. "It always does."

Aeren didn't say anything. His hand was still tight on the hilt of his sword. Elira could tell he didn't believe the door should exist at all. Maybe he was right.

They walked into a side room. The windows were frozen, but a small fire burned in the hearth. Kael sat down on a stone bench. Aeren stood by the door, still watching.

Elira stayed near the fire.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do," she said. "You said it can't be stopped with force. Then what can stop it?"

Kael looked at her, tired. "It wants despair. It feeds on fear, regret, anger. It grows stronger when we're at our worst."

"So we stop feeding it?"

"Easier said than done."

She looked at Aeren. He was quiet, as always, but his eyes were sharp.

"I saw something," she told him. "When we were down there. I didn't tell Kael."

He looked up.

"What did you see?"

"A child," she said slowly. "Standing in fire. Reaching for me. She looked like me."

Kael sat forward. "That's how it begins."

Elira's skin prickled. "What do you mean?"

"It shows you your pain," Kael said. "It twists it. Uses it to make you feel helpless. And then… it offers you a way out."

Aeren's voice was quiet but steady. "But the way out isn't real."

"No," Kael said. "It just leads deeper in."

Elira looked at her hands. They were still trembling.

"I used to believe in light magic," she said. "In healing. In hope. Now I feel like I'm always standing in the dark."

Kael looked at her gently. "You still carry the light. Even if you can't see it right now."

That hurt more than she expected.

Because it reminded her of the Kael she used to know. The one she had followed. The one she had loved.

But that Kael had also made choices that destroyed kingdoms.

Aeren moved toward the fire. "We have to warn the capital," he said. "If that door ever opens—"

"It won't," Kael said sharply. "Not yet."

"But it's waking," Elira said. "We felt it. We heard it."

Kael looked at her. "Yes. Which means we still have time."

Elira stood.

"Then we need to use it. Every moment. Every day."

Kael rose too. "Agreed. But there's more."

She looked at him. "More?"

He nodded. "When I touched the door, I felt something else. A mark. A link."

"To what?"

He hesitated. "To you."

Elira stared at him. "Me?"

"Yes," Kael said. "It's drawn to you. I don't know why. But it knows your name."

The room went quiet.

Aeren stepped in front of her. "She's not going near that thing again."

"She might not have a choice," Kael said.

"I'll make sure she does."

Elira spoke before they could argue more.

"I'm not afraid," she said, even though her hands were still cold. "I just want to understand. If I'm connected to that door… then I need to know why."

Aeren looked at her with concern. "You've already given everything."

"I'm still breathing," she said. "Which means I have more to give."

Kael gave a small smile. "You haven't changed, Elira."

She looked at him. "No. But you have."

There was sadness in that truth.

He nodded. "I had to."