Chapter 121: The Whisper of the Shadow
Melissa’s POV
The wind carried the smell of blood and smoke as it howled across the shattered battlefield.
I stood in the middle, reaching for something I could feel but not see with quivering fingers.
a presence.
Just outside my senses is a shadow.
Kane was standing next to me, looking around the wreckage with his golden gaze. The conflict was over. Darius had left. We were victorious.
So why did we feel as though we hadn’t?
Kane turned and spoke softly to me. “You’re shaking.”
I became aware that my hands were trembling when I blinked. I made fists out of them. “Something is not right.”
His eyes become stony. “What do you mean?”
I let out a slow exhale, finding it difficult to describe the sensation. “The air itself seems to be observing us.”
Kane scowled. “That isn’t feasible.”
However, I was aware. The whole fabric of our universe was knitted with magic. And it felt strange now.
A piercing scream reverberated around the battlefield as I opened my mouth to speak once more.
I turned around.
A soldier had fallen, his skin going pale, his body trembling.
There was more screaming.
The surviving fell one by one.
Lydia knelt next to one of the fallen warriors, her hands glowing with healing magic. Her temple was dripping with sweat.
“It isn’t functioning,” she said. “My magic isn’t helping them get better.”
My gut twisted as I knelt next to her. “What is this then?”
Lydia touched the soldier’s forehead with her hand. His veins turned black, and he breathed shallowly.
“It’s not a wound,” she stated somberly. “It’s not just that. Something… gloomy.
I felt a chill creep up my back.
Kane spoke in a strained tone. “Is poison the possibility?”
Lydia gave a headshake. “No. My magic would have neutralized it if it had.
Then what was it?
My heart thumping, I looked around at the fallen troops. Even when the conflict was over, people were still dying.
There was a problem.
Then Lydia said something in a whisper that chilled me.
“This is not an illness.” Her attitude was solemn as she looked into my eyes. “It’s a curse.”
With frantic eyes, Zephyr rushed toward the healer’s tent. He held a battered, ancient book close to his chest.
“I discovered something.”
With my heart racing, I turned to face him. “What is it?”
The ancient script glowed dimly as he turned the pages. “It serves as a warning.”
As he read aloud, we all leaned in:
“Beware the Hollow One, for it does not die.”
“When the Shadow King falls, the true darkness wakes.”
My throat felt like it was being squeezed by the words.
Kane tensed. “The King of Shadows…” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “That’s Darius.”
Lydia pressed her fingertips into the table. “You’re implying that we didn’t murder him?”
Zephyr gave a headshake. “No. He was killed by us. However, something else could have replaced him.
The tent fell into a thick hush.
I took a deep breath. “After that, we simply ended one war and began another.”
Nobody said anything.
As everyone knew I was correct.
The breeze was different.
My spine tingled as a chilly presence descended upon the battlefield remains.
I looked in the direction of the charred ground where Darius had collapsed.
I saw him at that point.
Standing at the edge of the ruins was a guy with a dark coat covering his face with a hood.
He wasn’t a member of our military.
He didn’t come from our planet.
However, he was observing me.
With a pounding heart, I walked slowly forward. “Who are you?”
The stranger remained still.
Didn’t say anything.
Then he suddenly disappeared.
A voice, not mine, resonated in the breeze like a whisper.
“You should not have come back, Melissa.”