Strolling through the woods, Adam said, "You called me your friend."
Turning to meet his gaze, Kira abruptly looked away.
"Yes, I know I did," she replied softly.
Adam stared at her, lost in thought. He remembered how lost he had felt the day they first met and then came the betrayal. His mind held onto both memories, neither one fading.
"How long has it been?" he asked.
Kira responded with a vague hum and a dismissive hand gesture, unable to find her words.
He repeated the question, this time more firmly. "You know what I'm talking about. Tell me everything. How long has it been?"
Kira hesitated for a moment, then finally said, "Since that day. I didn't know the full plan .I was just told to take your necklace and run past the guards at the Octa Grounds."
"Why didn't you refuse? Why didn't you say no?" Adam snapped. "How do I know I'm not being tricked by you ?"
His voice suddenly cracked into a roar. "What did I do wrong!?"
Without waiting for a response, Adam turned and ran deeper into the woods like a wild, wounded beast. Kira tried to follow, but he was too fast. Left behind, she shouted after him, her voice trembling with pain:
"I'm sorry!"
Adam, alone like a forsaken wolf in the forest, broken by betrayal and loss, pulled out the Humming Wand, given to him by Mr. Klein. He studied it, then shouted, "What should I do?" before collapsing to the ground, drained of all strength.
He hadn't eaten in days. His stomach groaned a miserable symphony of hunger
And then, a wide, monstrous cat appeared.
This beast was unlike anything he had seen or heard of, two hydra-like heads, a single muscular body, and teeth as large as kitchen knives. With a thunderous growl, it lunged at Adam.
He rolled away just in time on his back , a sharp claw grazing his side. Faced with death, Adam stood his ground. His eyes blazed with a silent authority ,fierce, unyielding. The standoff lasted only seconds, but the beast recoiled as if recognizing a greater authority. Without another sound, it turned and slunk back into the shadows.
"Wake up, Adam… wake up…"
Whispers echoed in his ears, carried on the wind. As he slept under the cold night , haunted by dreams, Adam was jolted awake by a scream ,a real one.
Valoria was burning.
Flames rose from the trees. Corpses littered the ground. Screams pierced the air like knives. Without hesitation, Adam sprinted toward the cave where Kira had last been.
The battle was fierce.
Kira and Kile stood their ground against a horde of trolls, though they were clearly outnumbered. Elemental magic lit up the battlefield Kira wielding water, and Kile, fire.
Kira fought with an ice-forged sword, conjuring razor-sharp thorns from thin air, launching them like fighter jets. Kile turned everything not human into ash.
Nearby, an archer, a mage, Kade, Jade, and others fought desperately, nearly spent. The trolls showed no sign of withdrawing.
When Adam arrived, the group was almost entirely drained of magic. Kira lay on the ground, bleeding heavily ,barely conscious. Seconds later, trolls lunged toward her vulnerable body. Kile had already collapsed ,blacked out .
Without thinking, Adam jumped between them, unarmed and unaware of how to wield magic. As the troll lunged, the Humming Wand at his side suddenly flared to life. A radiant shield burst forth, surrounding the group.
The trolls slammed against the magical barrier again and again, but it held. They roared and thrashed until the first light of dawn broke through the trees. With no way through, they eventually retreated back into the dark forest.
And then, as if the earth itself exhaled, everything fell quiet again .