Chapter 4 — Shadows of the Past

Mae

The dream washes over me like a cold tide, pulling me into its depths before I can catch my breath.

The world is fractured, a shadowed version of itself, its colors muted and edges blurred as if seen through frost. The Moonlit Grove stretches before me, luminous and alive with an unnatural sharpness. Silver light spills from an impossibly large moon, pooling on the mossy ground in deliberate symbols—shapes I almost recognize but can’t grasp, their meanings slipping through my fingers like water. The air hums, heavy and electric, prickling over my skin until my pulse thunders in my ears. I’m not alone.