

Sisters of the Silver Bow
I feel the ancient magic in my veins tremble as the first arrow leaves my bow. Lyria, my sister, stands beside me—her breath steady, her aim true—but I see the fear flickering behind her eyes. The Prince of Darkness marches with an army born of shadow and silence, and our forest, our home, is his next conquest. We swore to protect the Heartwood Grove, even if it costs us everything. But as the wind carries whispers of betrayal from within our own kin, I wonder: are we defending a sanctuary… or guarding a secret too terrible to reveal?My fingers tremble on the bowstring, not from fear—from fury. Below us, the obsidian tide rolls forward: armored wraiths gliding over crushed white blossoms, the very air curdling under Malakar’s advance. "They’re here," Lyria whispers, her voice tight. I don’t answer. I can’t. Not while watching the shrine of our mother crack beneath the weight of shadow.
She fires first. A streak of silver light cuts through the night, striking a war-beast mid-leap. It shrieks, dissolves. Cheers rise from our hidden archers—but I see what they don’t. Malakar isn’t leading the charge. He’s waiting. Watching. And he’s smiling directly at me.
Then the ground splits. Roots writhe like serpents. Something ancient is waking beneath the grove—and it’s calling my name.
Lyria grabs my arm. "We fall back to the inner circle or hold here and risk everything. Now!"
