They didn't wait until sunrise.
Snow-Mouth insisted they move immediately — the Shadow Weaver's illusion meant she was close enough to slip into dreams, close enough to bend the air, close enough to strike.
So the group rode under starlight, the horizon sharp and silver.
Ayisulu rode in the center by Arslan's order.
Erlan rode on her other side by his own choice.
Temir tried to ride behind them but kept drifting forward to ask dramatic questions like, "If a shadow steals your soul, are you still allowed to eat dumplings?"
"Eat dirt," Kanykei muttered.
Cagan and Akbota led the way. Snow-Mouth rode silently, watching wind patterns the way other people watched footprints.
Ayisulu tried to steady her breathing, but the night felt alive — the grass whispered, the stars pulsed, the air trembled as if something huge was crossing the steppe without touching the ground.
Arslan leaned slightly toward her.
"You're quiet."
"I'm thinking."
"You always think too much."
"And you not enough."
Erlan snorted. "She has you there."
Arslan glared at him. "No one asked you."
Temir whispered, "They're fighting again. Should I throw something to distract them?"
"Throw yourself," Kereg said.
But their bickering died when the wind changed — abruptly, unnaturally.
It didn't blow.
It stopped.
Every horse in the group froze.
Even the night animals went silent.
Cagan held up a fist. "Do not move."
Something glowed in the tall grass ahead.
Two pale lights floated between the blades — round, steady, moving with a slow, eerie grace.
Ayisulu leaned forward. "What is that?"
Akbota exhaled sharply. "Nogai-Blik."
Ayisulu blinked. "Is that a spirit?"
"Worse," Snow-Mouth said. "It is a creature that sees through illusion and truth… and shows back what it sees."
Temir whimpered, "Does it eat people?"
"No," Cagan said.
Temir sighed in relief.
"It steals their memories."
Temir immediately tried to climb onto Kanykei's horse.
She kicked him off.
Arslan tightened his grip on Ayisulu's reins. "We go around it."
"No," Snow-Mouth whispered. "It's already chosen."
Ayisulu's stomach dropped. "Chosen… who?"
The glowing eyes turned toward her.
The creature emerged from the grass — a slender, deer-like shape made of mist and starlight, its antlers shimmering like cracked ice. It didn't touch the ground; it hovered, each step leaving faint ripples of light in the air.
It walked straight toward Ayisulu.
Erlan immediately dismounted and stepped between them, dagger raised. "Stay back!"
Arslan drew his sword. "Touch her and—"
"No," Snow-Mouth interrupted. "If you attack it, we all die."
Arslan froze.
Ayisulu's breath trembled. "What does it want?"
Nogai-Blik approached her horse, lowering its head until its glowing eyes met hers.
Ayisulu felt a pull — deep, soft, ancient.
Her memories stirred.
Her grandmother's hands braiding her hair.
The smell of warm milk and steppe herbs.
Her father teaching her how to ride.
Her mother singing lullabies at dusk.
"Stop," Arslan said sharply. "Ayisulu, look away."
"I can't," she whispered.
The creature drifted closer.
She felt something reaching inside her, searching gently, brushing against her gift like a curious child touching a drum.
Arslan grabbed her shoulder and shook her hard.
"Ayisulu. Hear me. Hear my voice."
Her vision dimmed.
Her thoughts slipped like sand between fingers.
She heard a faint whisper —
Let go…
"AYISULU!" Arslan shouted.
That broke through.
Her breath snapped back into her lungs.
With all her remaining strength, she lifted her hand and placed it on the creature's forehead.
Everyone gasped.
Snow-Mouth nearly fell off their horse.
"No one touches a Nogai-Blik!"
But Ayisulu's fingers glowed faint blue — the same color as the spirit's eyes.
The creature paused.
Then bowed its head.
A wave of cold air swept across the ridge — then the creature dissolved into a trail of light, disappearing into the stars.
Ayisulu's vision faded, and she slumped forward.
Arslan caught her in his arms before she fell from the saddle.
"I've got you," he murmured, lowering her gently to the ground. "Ayisulu. Ayisulu."
Her eyes fluttered open weakly.
"I think it… showed me something."
"What?" Erlan asked, kneeling beside them.
Ayisulu shivered. "A place. High on cliffs… wrapped in clouds. The monastery."
Snow-Mouth's eyes widened. "It reached into her gift. It gave her a direction."
Ayisulu sat up slowly, dizzy. "But it also saw something in me. Something I don't understand."
Arslan brushed her hair back, his touch careful but trembling.
"You're safe now."
But before Ayisulu could speak — before Arslan could say anything more —
A voice screamed across the camp:
"WHERE IS CAGAN?"
Everyone turned.
Akbota jumped off her horse, eyes wild, scanning the shadows.
Snow-Mouth's expression dropped.
"No…"
Erlan frowned. "He was right ahead of us."
Kereg swore. "He was just here. A minute ago."
Ayisulu stood, heart racing.
The cold silence of the steppe suddenly felt like a closed fist.
Arslan's eyes hardened. "Someone took him."
Snow-Mouth nodded grimly. "No illusion. No trick."
Ayisulu felt the truth sink into her bones:
Cagan was gone.
Vanished without noise.
Without struggle.
Without trace.
A perfect signature.
The Shadow Weaver.
Ayisulu's hands trembled.
"She's here," she whispered. "She's already here."
And somewhere in the dark…
A faint laugh curled through the air, soft and mocking.
Not heard.
Only felt.