After her vision in the mirror, Amara didn't sleep. She sat on the floor until morning, staring at her wrist. The spiral seal was no longer a glowing burn, but a living mark—it pulsed softly, like it was breathing.
At dawn, her grandmother entered, her cane thudding softly on the wooden floor. She held a wooden box carved with ancient patterns Amara had never seen before. No hinges. No lock.
When Amara touched it, the box opened by itself.
Inside:
A hand-drawn map stained with age, a pendant, obsidian set in sun-worn gold, shaped like the spiral on her wrist, a brittle photograph: A younger version of her grandmother standing with five people cloaked in black and gold,each wearing the same pendant.
Her grandmother spoke in a low voice, one she hadn't used in years.
"We are the Line of Niazi. Spirit-Walkers. Guardians of the Seals. Your mother refused the call. I hoped you would be spared… but the forest is calling you."
"You're not just my granddaughter," her grandmother said. "You are the last of the Line of Niazi. And that forest—the Whispering Forest—has your answers."
"I prayed this day would never come but now that it's here, there's no other way out, you need to leave at dawn," she murmured, placing the box on the bed.
The next day:
Amara arose very early at dawn and followed the map through fields and overgrown paths. After four hours, she reached the threshold of the Whispering Forest—a place no one in the village dared to enter.
The air changed. It was thicker, damp, and full of tension, like the forest itself was holding its breath.
As soon as she stepped past the first tree, her compass spun wildly. The trail behind her disappeared. The forest had closed its mouth behind her.
Then came the whispers.
"...Sealed one…"
"...You are not ready…"
"...Unlock us…"
The trees began to pulse with faint golden veins, echoing the glow of her wrist. The deeper she went, the clearer the voices became—not just whispers now, but memories. She saw fleeting visions of people—ghosts from a time before her—walking the same path, fighting unseen enemies.
After what seemed like forever, Amara arrived at a clearing: thirteen tall stone pillars surrounded a large circle. Each pillar bore a different symbol—elements, animals, celestial signs—but the center stone had the spiral seal carved deeply into its surface.
As she stepped forward, a hum filled the air, and from the shadows of the trees emerged a being, Luthien.
He stood nearly seven feet tall, skin like bark fused with silver veins. Moss hung from his hair, and his glowing eyes held centuries of sorrow and knowing.
"You are late, Sealed One," he said. "The Balance is fraying."
He told her of the Five Seals, ancient powers left behind when the celestial realms tore apart in war, four Seals were bound to nature: Flame, Storm, Tide, and Stone.
The Fifth Seal, the Seal of Spirit, was hidden in bloodlines — her blood.
"You are not a warrior," Luthien warned. "But you must become one. For the darkness is waking. And you… are the last door it must open."
Suddenly, a high-pitched scream split the air.
Above them, the sky cracked open. Not metaphorically—literally. A jagged gash tore across the sky, revealing a swirling inferno beyond, from it, something fell—a creature unlike anything Amara had seen.
It had no face, only spiraling holes where eyes should be.Its body was made of smoke and obsidian.
It crawled upside-down across the stone circle, screeching in tones that bent the air.
Amara couldn't move. Her legs locked. Her breath caught. The creature turned toward her—and whispered in a voice that sounded like her own: "Let me in."
Luthien slammed his staff into the ground. Roots burst from the earth, wrapping around the creature.
"Amara—run! The seal is calling others! More are coming!"
But something inside her snapped.
She wasn't going to run.
Her pendant burned against her chest. The symbol on her wrist flared to life. Light exploded around her, knocking the creature back. Amara floated above the ground, her eyes glowing white.
She didn't know what she was doing—only that something inside her remembered how.
With a wave of her hand, the creature was cast back into the sky, screaming, its body unraveling into smoke.
Then she collapsed, Luthien caught her."You've only just awakened… and already, the shadows are hunting you."
"Why me?" she whispered.
"Because you are not just a Seal... you are the key to all of them." he said....