The ninth month began with fine snow falling over the rooftops of the capital.
Kaellia and her group—Allan, Lyn, Saphira, and the newly admitted Tolen and Mireya—were summoned by the Central Guild. The mission assigned to them carried more than risk: it promised fame, prestige… and a dark omen. A new fragment of the Harbinger had been detected near the forgotten City of Whispers.
In the meeting room, surrounded by marble columns and shimmering magical crests, the atmosphere was one of veiled tension. One of the Guild's representatives raised his eyes from an aged parchment and said:
"You were chosen for your recent achievements. But you won't be alone on this mission."
Kaellia kept her chin high, her posture steady.
"And who will we be sharing this task with?"
The man hesitated, glancing at the parchment again.
"We don't have a name. Only… reports. A group operating in the far reaches of Valos. Absurd efficiency. Flawless results. No official record, but their actions already echo across the region."
Allan narrowed his eyes.
"Trusting ghosts doesn't seem like a solid strategy."
"Some call them 'the shadow group of Valos.' Others, 'specters of the north.' But officially… they're a mystery."
---
**Two days later – Outskirts of the City of Whispers**
A white mist enveloped the trail like a living curtain. The cold cut like blades, and the silence was dense, almost suffocating. Kaellia's group waited at the meeting point, all on high alert.
Then came the footsteps.
Slow. Rhythmic. Heavy.
Five figures emerged from the fog—cloaked in dark overcoats and deep hoods, as if light refused to touch them. Not a single patch of skin was visible. Only the muffled sound of boots against the frozen ground.
The first, leading the group, moved with silent authority. Jin. His posture was unmistakable, even concealed. His overcoat swayed with the wind, dragging slightly on the ground, his arms crossed behind his back. A presence that didn't need words to command.
The second, just behind to the left, was larger. His broad shoulders and firm stance revealed restrained strength. Ziek. Each step he took seemed to weigh twice as much as the others, as if he refused to tread lightly.
The third figure, more slender, moved with feline grace. Eira. Her hood was slightly tilted, revealing a stray silver strand escaping the dark fabric. Her right hand lingered near the handle of a short dagger at her belt.
The fourth, of medium build, walked slightly behind—out of step. His fists were clenched, and even with the hood, the tension in his steps was palpable. Lino. The stiffness in his shoulders wasn't from the cold.
And the fifth figure… didn't walk.
It was a shadow.
Gliding over the ground as if floating. Feminine. Delicate. And utterly wrong.
The shadow of Fliria.
Kaellia stepped forward.
"I've heard of you. Your deeds have echoed. But this mission was assigned to me. I'm the leader here."
Ziek took half a step forward. His voice cut through the air like ice cracking under pressure:
"We follow our leader. And only him."
"Don't be mistaken," said Lino, eyes half-closed. "We don't collaborate. We do what we decide. When we decide."
Ziek crossed his arms, his shadow stretching slowly behind him.
"If that bothers you… step back. We'll go alone."
Allan growled.
"You think you're legends because you move in silence? Try not to get in our way, kids."
No response. No reaction.
Jin slowly turned and began walking.
As if they were a single body, the group turned and started down the trail. Synchronized steps. Absolute silence. Like specters in a funeral march.
Kaellia felt a chill run down her spine.
"They… are like specters," Saphira whispered. "And I feel… we're not the ones leading this mission."
Mireya said in a playful tone, "Their name isn't for nothing."
---
The trail to the forgotten city continued.
The muffled crunch of snow under boots was all that accompanied them. The cloaked figures ahead walked as if they knew every stone of the path.
Jin raised his hand. They stopped. Lowered it. They moved. No words.
"They communicate with gestures," Lyn noted.
"This is beyond training," Tolen said. "It's instinct. They live like this."
Allan snorted.
"That bothers me even more."
Saphira kept an eye on the rear. She stepped closer, whispering to Kaellia:
"They carry something… dark. They act like they know every corner of this place. They move as if this were… a hell they're crossing."
Kaellia watched Jin. Every gesture carried natural authority. Impossible to teach.
"They may move like shadows," she murmured. "But we won't yield to a nameless specter."
---
**Entrance to the City of Whispers**
The dead city rose before them like a forgotten echo.
Walls covered in moss, shattered windows, half-collapsed structures. The fog here was thicker, almost liquid. The air felt trapped in time.
Jin raised his hand. Everyone—including Kaellia's group—stopped.
He pointed: a side street. Then to himself. Then a broken tower.
Ziek and Lino moved as if following an invisible map. Eira vanished into the alleys. The darkest cloaked figure stayed by Jin's side. No orders were given. Yet everything flowed.
"They plan without speaking…" Mireya said, incredulous.
Jin glanced over his shoulder. No one saw his eyes. But everyone felt them.
Kaellia met his gesture with defiance:
"They move like shadows… but we won't play their game. We'll move as we always do," she said firmly.
"Let's go. We won't be extras in anyone's show."
---
The city's interior was surreal.
The streets twisted into labyrinths of fog. The buildings seemed to shift as they walked. No enemies. No signs. No life.
"This is wrong," Allan said, breaking the silence. "This city should be crawling with something."
"Or… it's already empty," Tolen murmured.
Kaellia stopped in front of a plaza. An ancient fountain, covered in slime. Everything still. Everything… strange.
"This isn't a city," Saphira said. "It's a tomb."
She turned to the path they'd come from… and froze.
"Wait."
"What is it?" Kaellia asked.
"The scenery changed."
Where there had been a collapsed bridge, there was now a stone arch covered in vines. The arrangement of windows was different. The ground seemed… new.
Kaellia closed her eyes, as if trying to visualize the map she'd seen.
"The city is transforming," Mireya whispered.
Then the whispers began.
Distant. Cold. Slithering through the fog like invisible serpents. No origin. No owner.
Each heard something different. Voices of relatives… friends… acquaintances, all blended into a poorly rehearsed choir.
"This… isn't real," Allan muttered.
The fog swirled in the center of the plaza. As if the world had exhaled backward.
And they were there.
Jin's group. Silent. Motionless. As if they'd sprouted from the air itself.
"Is this some kind of magic?" Allan whispered, stepping back.
Eira took a step forward. Her voice was a blade of ice:
"The city moves at his will. We're in his labyrinth."
Ziek lifted his face beneath the hood. A crooked smile appeared.
"Perfect. Let's play his game, then."
"How…?" Kaellia began, eyes wide. "You were in another part of the city…"
Lino smirked.
The whispers grew louder.
The city—alive, conscious, distorted—once dormant, now closed its doors behind them.
And the mission, at last, had begun.