The wind howled like an ancient beast across the glacial plains of Isenwold, far in the northern edges of the Divine-Spirit borderlands. Here, the world lay buried beneath a sheet of pale silence—snow stretching endlessly in every direction, broken only by silver-barked trees and the shattered remnants of old temples, long forgotten by time.
Beneath one such ruin—a circle of standing stones half-buried in ice—Liora Sylven knelt quietly, hands pressed against the cold ground. Her breath fogged the air before her as her lips moved in a silent chant, her long hair trailing behind her like ribbons of moonlight.
The earth below responded with a soft glow.
Pale blue runes bloomed beneath her fingers, stretching outward like frost patterns on glass. The ground vibrated faintly. A ripple of gentle energy pulsed through the clearing.
Liora opened her eyes.
Beside her, a low growl rumbled—deep and wild—and from the mist emerged a beast of frozen fur and sapphire eyes. Glacien, her familiar, stepped forward. The great wolf's breath steamed against the air, his white fur bristling with awareness.
"They're drawing closer," Liora whispered, her voice nearly swallowed by the wind.
She stood slowly, fingers tightening around the crystal staff slung across her back. The wind caught her cloak—a flowing wrap of pale violet and silver—and lifted it behind her like wings of frost.
For days, the dreams had returned, stronger with each night. Visions of flame, of blood, of four runes glowing like stars. And always… a boy's voice calling out across the void.
She had never seen him. Not clearly. But his presence lingered like warmth in a frozen world.
Elandor had told her to stay hidden. That the world was not yet ready for what she was. Even here, among the Spirit Elves, she was called an anomaly. A child born of light and nature, yet neither fully divine nor entirely wild. A bridge between realms.
A hybrid.
She had learned early to hide her rune beneath wrappings. The priests feared it. The spirits avoided it. Only Mistress Aravelle had dared to teach her how to listen to the earth and ice, how to calm storms and speak to creatures not born of man or god.
And now, the winds whispered again.
Not just warning—but invitation.
"Glacien," she said, running a hand through the wolf's fur, "he's waking up. The one I saw in my dreams."
Glacien huffed, a burst of mist scattering in the air.
Liora turned toward the east. Somewhere beyond the snow-capped ridges lay the Divine Citadel, and beyond that, the world she had never known—realms of fire and steel, shadow and ruin. Warzones that had birthed her fate long before she was born.
A shadow passed over the snow, silent and sudden.
She looked up.
A black-winged shape circled high above—a raven, etched in wind and darkness. Not a spirit of this realm.
Not hers.
Liora's heart pounded.
She wasn't the only one awakening.
---
Somewhere deep in the Jungle of Thal'Varae...
The earth cracked beneath Druun Vaelok's feet as he slammed his fists into the ground, sending tremors through the roots and soil. The training ground—a clearing surrounded by colossal jungle trees—shook with the aftershock.
Opposite him, the stone serpent Tyrakka coiled and hissed, its emerald scales flickering with light. The great beast lunged again, jaws wide.
Druun didn't move.
His rune—etched like a primal fang across his chest—blazed with molten brown and gold. His arms rippled with strength. As Tyrakka struck, Druun caught the serpent's massive head and flipped it with a growl, slamming it to the earth.
The jungle fell still.
Above, thick canopies blocked the sun, but rays of golden light still pierced through, catching on dust and pollen in the air. Druun knelt, breathing heavy, hands resting on the earth.
The trees listened.
The beasts watched.
"Better," came the gruff voice of Grak One-Eye, seated atop a gnarled root. His massive arms were crossed, his tusks gleaming beneath his hood. "Again."
Druun stood. "He's close, isn't he? The one from the prophecy."
Grak grunted. "Close enough. The world stirs. That means you must be ready."
Druun glanced at his rune. It pulsed like a buried drumbeat.
He didn't understand the prophecy. Not fully. But he had seen it in his visions—the fire, the storm, the four standing together against a tide of ruin. And he had felt something new lately.
A distant flame calling across the wild.
"I'll be ready," he muttered, fists tightening.
---
Far to the west, in the city of Duskveil...
Rain fell like silk across cobbled rooftops. The city was a maze of mist and shadow, alleys winding between tall spires and crumbling stone walls. The light of lanterns flickered behind colored glass, dancing like spirits in the fog.
Nyxira Velshade crouched on a rooftop, her eyes locked on a moving carriage below. Her cloak merged with the rain, her presence vanishing with every breath. She didn't move—not until the target stepped out.
A man in armor, draped in blue and gold, escorted by two guards.
Nyxira's lips curved into a smile.
She whispered something.
The wind listened.
And suddenly, she was gone.
A blur of shadow, a flash of silver. Moments later, the man gasped, clutching his shoulder—his sigil torn, his pouch gone. The guards spun, but there was nothing there.
Above, a dark-winged raven soared through the storm.
Nyxira stood again atop the roof, eyes gleaming like obsidian. Her rune, carved in pale silver shadow across her collarbone, pulsed faintly beneath her clothes.
"I saw him again," she said softly to Umbros, her familiar. The raven croaked in response.
The dreams had returned.
A boy with fire in his hands. A voice that called her name like he'd known it forever.
She didn't know what it meant. But it stirred something buried long ago—something fierce and unfamiliar.
Hope.
---
Meanwhile…
In a quiet cave on the edge of the borderlands, Kael sat in stillness. The fire before him crackled low, casting flickering shadows across the cavern walls.
He stared into the flames, his rune glowing bright.
And far across the realms, three other runes pulsed in perfect rhythm.
The prophecy had begun.
And none of them could run from it now.