Chapter One: The Girl with No One
The sky was gray when Elira ran again.
Her shoes were too small, her coat was too thin, and the wind bit her like it was angry. She kept running, one foot splashing in a puddle, the other slipping on a rock. Her legs hurt. Her breath was like little white clouds puffing from her lips. But she couldn't stop. Not now.
She was just a girl. A human girl.
And in this world, full of scaled beasts that could fly, shadows that whispered, and glowing-eyed elves, she was nothing special. No magic. No wings. No fangs. Just... Elira.
But somehow, she was still alive.
She ran into the woods, the trees whispering above her head like they knew things. Maybe they did. Everything in Fynthwood had a secret.
She didn't cry. Not anymore. Crying was for when her mother vanished and her father turned to stone in the curse storm. Crying was for when her brother walked into the fire and never came back. That was three winters ago.
Now? Now was for running.
Behind her, the forest opened its mouth and howled.
Warg hounds.
Her heart jumped. The ground became mud. Her foot sank deep and stuck. She pulled, yanked, fell.
A voice in her head screamed: "GET UP, ELI!"
She did. She always did. Somehow.
She stumbled forward, not looking back. She didn't want to see their red eyes or their sharp smiles. She didn't want to see if today was the day they caught her.
A light blinked in the trees. One single glow, like a star had fallen and was waiting. She ran toward it. She didn't think, she just moved.
And then—
Nothing.
Silence.
The light wrapped around her like a hug. Warm. Soft. It smelled like old pages and cinnamon. And then she was somewhere else.
A library.
Books as tall as houses. A roof made of sky. A ladder that moved on its own.
Elira blinked.
A creature stood in front of her. It was all fur and feathers, with eyes too big and a smile too wide.
"You made it," it said.
She didn't speak.
"You're early," it added, tilting its head. "But that's alright. The others will come. They always do. Because you call them."
"Call?" Elira's voice was small.
The creature nodded. "You don't know yet. That's okay. You're not ready to remember."
It handed her a book. Her name was on it.
"Elira Gray," she read aloud.
And just like that, something inside her woke up.
Not magic.
Not fire.
But something deeper.
The feeling of being believed in.
The book opened on its own.
Elira gasped as pages flipped in a blur, stopping at one in the middle. The paper shimmered. She could see shapes, moving shadows, like people caught in light.
"There are others?" she whispered.
The feathered creature nodded. "They're waiting for you. All over the world. Some don't even know they're waiting. But they will feel it. Because you'll wake them."
Elira stared. "I don't understand. I'm just me. I'm not a hero."
"No," the creature said kindly. "You're more than a hero. You're hope."
The library cracked like thunder, and suddenly the scene changed. She was standing on a hill under starlight. Below her, little glimmers lit up, torches? No. People. People walking toward her, through shadow and fear, like they knew she was there.
They weren't all human. Some had horns. Some had tails. Some shimmered like water.
Elira stepped back. "Why would they follow me?"
"Because you see them," the creature said. "Even when no one else does."
She swallowed. "What am I supposed to do?"
"Just be you."
The wind lifted her hair. The stars leaned closer.
The book closed with a soft thud, and the world spun.
Elira woke in a meadow. The grass was cold. The sky pink with dawn.
And standing not far from her was the first one.
A boy, maybe her age, with silver hair and eyes like frost.
He looked scared.
"Are you... Elira?" he asked.
She stood slowly. "Yes."
His shoulders relaxed, and he smiled. Not big. Just enough.
"I'm Kesh," he said. "I don't know why, but I think I was supposed to find you."
Elira looked at him. Really looked.
And for the first time in a long time, she smiled back.
(To be continued in Chapter Two: The First Fire)