The glow of the spire dimmed after Eris released it, but the air in the basin remained charged. The guardians shifted, their crystalline bodies resonating in low hums that rippled through the ground. It was no longer the restless vibration of warning—it was something deliberate, organized.
Mara rose to her feet, her rifle steady but her eyes darting between them. "They're moving. Why are they moving?"
Jonas pressed a hand to his ribs and muttered, "Maybe they didn't like the prophecy about our planet blowing up."
But Liora stepped forward, her face pale, her voice barely above a whisper. "No. They… recognize him now."
The guardians moved as one, descending from the basin's walls, their glowing shards casting eerie patterns over the soil. They didn't rush, didn't attack. Instead, they formed a circle around the crew, their heads bowed slightly toward Eris.
Eris struggled to his feet, his knees still weak. The glow hadn't left his eyes. He met the faceless stares of the crystalline beings, and for the first time since entering the forest, he didn't feel hunted. He felt… measured.
One of the guardians stepped forward. Its body was taller than the rest, its chest cracked with deep fissures that glowed brighter than the others. When it raised an arm, the air trembled.
Eris braced, expecting an attack. Mara swore under her breath and aimed her rifle.
But instead of striking, the guardian pressed its hand flat to the ground.
The soil split.
Roots of glowing crystal tore upward, coiling into a structure that resembled a bridge leading deeper into the forest. The path shimmered faintly, pulsing with the same rhythm as the spire.
Jonas whistled under his breath. "So… it's showing us the way?"
Eris nodded slowly. "Not just showing. It's giving permission."
Mara lowered her rifle reluctantly. "Permission to what? To follow their little light show into who-knows-where? We're already in over our heads."
Eris didn't answer. His gaze was locked on the path ahead, and though fear churned in his chest, the echo of the crystal's words still rang in his mind.
Choose differently.
He stepped onto the crystalline bridge.
And the guardians, as one, bowed.