The thread of light carried them to an island unlike any they had seen before.
It was vast—big enough to hold a forest of pale, glass-like trees that sang faintly when the wind passed through them. The air here was colder, thinner, and the void beyond the trees shimmered like it was holding its breath.
At the center of the island stood a monolith.
It was a single shard of crystal, taller than the tallest oak, glowing faintly from within. The light pulsed in a slow rhythm, and with each pulse, the watch in Iris's hand answered in kind.
Nyx's voice was hushed. "That's it. The first fragment."
Thalen's hand rested on his sword. "Then let's take it and go."
Iris took a step forward—
—and the ground shivered.
From between the glass trees, shapes emerged.
They were human in outline but made of fractured starlight, their bodies cracked and leaking silver mist. Where their faces should have been were flat, featureless masks of glass.
"Guardians," Nyx muttered. "The Fold's way of protecting what's inside it."
The nearest one moved. It didn't walk—it slid, covering the space between them in a blink.
Thalen met it with a strike, his sword ringing like he'd hit stone. Cracks spread across the guardian's chest, and light poured from the wound. It didn't slow down.
Nyx's dagger flashed as he spun past another, slicing at the thin seams between its limbs. The creature let out a soundless shriek and burst into shards, which reassembled in midair.
"They don't stay down!" Nyx shouted.
Iris backed toward the monolith, clutching the watch. The guardians moved faster now, forming a ring around them.
She glanced at Nyx. "The watch can connect to the fragment. If I can reach it, I might be able to—"
A guardian lunged at her. Thalen shoved her aside, taking the blow on his armor. The impact sent him skidding back, boots gouging lines in the crystal-like soil.
"Go!" he barked.
Iris ran.
The closer she came to the monolith, the heavier the air felt, like she was wading through deep water. Her limbs resisted each step, her breath coming hard.
The watch's glow grew stronger, its ticking louder—until it wasn't ticking at all. It was beating.
She reached the base of the monolith and pressed the watch to its surface.
Light exploded outward.
The guardians froze mid-movement, their cracks glowing brighter. The light from the monolith poured into the watch, etching new patterns across its face. Iris felt a presence—not the Astral One itself, but a fragment of it—slip into her mind.
It whispered in a voice like distant thunder:
First thread reclaimed.
The crystal flared once, then cracked down the middle. A shard broke free and floated into Iris's hand. It was warm, pulsing faintly with golden light—the same light she'd seen in her earlier visions.
The guardians turned toward her as one.
Nyx and Thalen fought to hold them back, but the creatures were relentless.
Nyx saw the shard and yelled, "Iris—now would be a good time to run!"
She turned, clutching the fragment, and sprinted toward them. The guardians followed, their movements jerky but fast.
Thalen slashed a path open, and they dashed back toward the light-thread bridge.
The moment they stepped onto it, the guardians stopped at the island's edge, watching silently as the thread carried the trio away.
Only when the island was a distant glimmer did Iris finally breathe.
Nyx glanced at the shard. "You can feel it, can't you? The rest of the Heart is going to pull at that piece like a magnet."
Iris nodded. "And the Lord of Masks will feel it too."
Thalen's gaze was fixed ahead. "Then we don't stop. Not until it's whole."
But far behind them, on the island they had just left, the guardians parted.
The Lord of Masks stepped into the clearing, mask gleaming faintly. He touched the cracked monolith, then looked into the void where Iris had gone.
"You've taken your first step," he murmured. "Let's see how far you're willing to go before you understand the cost."