Morning came softly.
The sun did not rise with brilliance. It crept slowly behind a curtain of pale clouds, casting a dull gold over the gorge. The light felt thin, as if afraid to touch what lay ahead.
Rael stood at the edge of the Hollow Bridge. The stone beneath his boots was smooth and cold. He stared across the span. On the other side, the world looked the same. But he knew it was not.
Maerin said nothing. He simply watched.
Rael took a breath and stepped forward.
The moment his foot touched the midpoint of the bridge, the air shifted. The silence deepened. He felt something press against his thoughts. Not a voice. A presence. Curious. Cautious. Cold.
He kept walking.
A whisper brushed against his mind.
Who are you?
He flinched but did not stop.
Why do you carry the blood of silence?
Rael clenched his fists. The glyphs on his arms lit up faintly in warning.
You should not be. You are unwritten. Unshaped. Unwelcomed.
He reached the end of the bridge and stepped onto the other side. The voice vanished.
Maerin crossed behind him, slower, more wary. When both stood on the far bank, the sky darkened slightly, though no clouds had moved.
"You felt it?" Maerin asked.
Rael nodded. "It asked questions."
"They always do. That was only the threshold. Now we walk within their domain."
They moved through the landscape slowly. Trees grew taller here, but none of them made sound. Their branches did not sway. Their leaves did not rustle. Everything felt preserved, as if the land were holding its breath.
After an hour, Rael began to feel the pull again. Not from his blood, but from his thoughts.
Doubt whispered at the edges of his memory.
Was Hollowmere ever real?
Had the Cradle truly awakened for him?
He reached out and touched the trunk of a tree. His fingertips brushed rough bark that felt wrong. Too smooth. Too perfect.
"Maerin," he said. "They are already watching."
"They do not need to watch. They listen. To every thought. Every fear. Every wound you try to hide."
Rael's voice was low. "Then let them listen."
They followed a narrow trail deeper into the forest. Eventually, the path opened to a clearing filled with standing stones. Each stone bore a different symbol, pulsing faintly.
In the center stood a man in pale robes. His face was hidden behind a silver mask shaped like a smiling face.
He spoke without moving.
"You seek understanding."
Rael stopped. His voice did not shake.
"I seek the truth."
"Truth is shaped by thought. Yours is unformed. Let us show you clarity."
Maerin stepped forward. "We are passing through. That is all."
The masked figure tilted his head. "None pass through thought untouched."
The glyphs on Rael's arms lit again, brighter this time.
"I do not want your clarity," he said.
The figure's smile widened. "Then you will have your chaos."
The forest shifted. The stones pulsed in unison.
And Rael stepped into the mindscape of House Saerin.