Chapter 28 Escaping

Chapter 28 Escaping
Lyra

I couldn’t move.

My body locked where I sat, fingers gripping the edge of the bed so tightly they started to hurt, but I didn’t let go. I didn’t breathe properly either, not after that voice.

“Found you.”

It didn’t sound human. It didn’t sound alive.

It sounded like something dragged from somewhere deep and dark, something that had forgotten how to speak but tried anyway.

“Kael…” My voice came out barely above a whisper, shaking despite my effort to steady it.

He didn’t look back at me.

That scared me more than anything.

Kael always looked back. Always checked. Always made sure I was still there, still safe, still breathing.

But now—

He was completely still.

Like whatever stood in that corner had all of his attention.

“Stay where you are,” he said again, quieter this time, but firmer.

I nodded instinctively, even though he couldn’t see me.

My eyes shifted to the corner.

At first, I thought it was just shadows.

But then—They moved.

Not like normal shadows. Not from light or motion. They twisted, like something inside them was trying to push out, trying to take shape.

My chest tightened painfully.

“No…” I whispered under my breath.

The air grew colder.

Not gradually.

Like the room had been plunged into something unnatural. My skin prickled instantly, goosebumps rising along my arms as that same metallic scent from the forest crept into my nose again.

Blood.

Something about that smell made my stomach twist.

The shadows deepened, folding into themselves until they became too thick, too heavy to ignore.

And then—Something stepped out.

I sucked in a sharp breath.

It wasn’t a person.

It wasn’t anything I could name.

Its form flickered, unstable, like it couldn’t decide what it was supposed to be. One moment it looked almost human, tall and thin, its limbs too long, its posture slightly bent. The next, it blurred, stretching into something darker, something less defined.

But the worst part—

Its face.

There wasn’t one.

Not really.

Just a hollow space where something should have been, where faint shapes moved like smoke trying to become features.

And those eyes—If they were even eyes—

They were just… darkness.

Endless and watching.

My breath hitched.

“Kael…” I tried again, but my voice cracked this time.

“I see it,” he said, his tone calm, controlled, but there was something underneath it. Something tight.

Something ready.

The thing tilted its head slowly, like it was studying him.

Then—It shifted.

I flinched back instinctively, my heart slamming violently against my ribs. “It’s moving,” I said, panic creeping into my voice.

“I know.”

He stepped forward.

Deliberately placing himself between me and it.

Something about that—

About him standing there like that—

Should have made me feel safe.

But it didn’t. Because whatever that thing was…

It didn’t look threatened. It looked interested.

The air around it pulsed faintly, like a heartbeat out of sync with everything else.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Kael said, his voice low, firm, carrying authority.

The thing didn’t respond.

It just tilted its head the other way, like it was trying to understand the words.

Then—

It moved again. Faster this time.

I barely saw it happen, just a flicker, a distortion in the air, and suddenly it was closer. Too close.

“Stop!” Kael’s voice snapped through the room.

And for a second—

It did and It froze, right there.

Like something invisible had grabbed hold of it.

My breath came faster, my hands trembling as I pressed them against the bed to keep myself steady.

“Go back,” Kael ordered, his tone sharper now. “You don’t belong here.”

The thing didn’t move but the air around it shifted again.

Heavier and darker and then—

It laughed.

The sound wasn’t loud.

But it wasn’t soft either.

It was wrong.

Like broken glass scraping against itself, like something imitating a sound it didn’t fully understand.

A chill ran down my spine.

“That’s not possible,” I whispered.

Kael didn’t answer because it wasn’t.

Whatever this was—

It wasn’t supposed to be here.

The thing’s head tilted toward me now.

Slowly and deliberately and I felt it.

That same pull from before.

That same invisible thread wrapping around my chest, tightening, dragging my attention toward it whether I wanted it or not.

“No…” I shook my head, trying to push the feeling away. “Stop looking at me.”

But it didn’t stop.

It stepped forward again.

This time, Kael moved.

He closed the distance instantly, his hand snapping out as he grabbed something—something I couldn’t see—and forced it back. The air rippled violently around them, like something invisible had been struck.

The thing recoiled.

Not in pain but In surprise.

“You don’t touch her,” Kael said, his voice cold now, deadly in a way that made even me freeze.

The thing stilled again.

Then—It spoke.

Not clearly, not fully.

But enough.

“Her…”

The word stretched, broken, like it was being dragged through something thick.

My heart dropped.

It knew me.

“No,” I whispered.

It moved again. Not toward Kael. Toward me.

I scrambled back instinctively, my breath catching as panic surged through me. “Kael—”

“I said don’t move!” he snapped, his voice sharper this time.

But I couldn’t stop.

Every instinct in my body screamed at me to get away, to run, to do anything but sit there while that thing got closer.

The markings on the wall flared suddenly, brighter than before, reacting violently as the thing passed them. The air cracked sharply, like something was being torn open.

And then—

Pain.

It hit me out of nowhere, sharp and blinding.

I gasped, clutching my chest as something burned under my skin, spreading fast, too fast. My vision blurred, the room spinning as that same pull intensified, dragging at something deep inside me.

The thing stopped right in front of me.

Close enough that I could feel it.

Not physically but something else.

Something deeper.

It leaned closer.

And for the first time...I felt it breathe.

"Mine…”

The word slipped out of it, broken and uneven.

Terror swallowed me whole.

“No!” I cried out, shaking my head violently.

Kael moved again.

This time, there was no restraint.

The force of it slammed into the thing, sendinlg a violent ripple through the room as the markings along the walls flared to their brightest point. A sharp crack split the air, followed by something like a scream—

Not from me. Not from Kael but From it.

The shadow recoiled violently, its form distorting, breaking apart into fragments of darkness that twisted and pulled back toward the corner.

And then—

It was gone, just like that.

The room fell silent, the air snapped back into place.

And I collapsed forward, gasping, my body trembling uncontrollably as the pain faded just as quickly as it came.

For a few seconds, neither of us moved.

Then— Kael turned, his eyes found mine instantly.

“You’re not safe here anymore,” he sai
d, his voice low, urgent.

My heart pounded wildly.

“Then where am I supposed to go?” I whispered.

He didn’t hesitate. “Somewhere they can’t reach you.”

A chill ran through me because the way he said it—

It didn’t sound like a place. It sounded like a risk.

And something told me…Wherever he was about to take me—was worse than this.