I didn't hit the ground.
I should have.
I was falling—there was no doubt about that. The air rushed past me, cold and sharp, tugging at my hair, my tail flailing wildly as panic surged up my spine. My heart slammed so hard I thought it might tear itself free.
And then—
The fall slowed.
Not stopped. Slowed.
Like invisible hands were cradling me, lowering me with deliberate care instead of letting me crash.
My feet touched stone.
Solid. Warm.
I staggered forward, gasping, dropping to my knees as the ground beneath me pulsed faintly with light. The symbols here were different—older, deeper, carved so deeply into the stone they looked fused with it.
I was alone.
No Aeshryn.
No Mist.
No path back.
The space around me was vast and circular, like an ancient arena. Towering stone figures stood evenly spaced along the edges—statues at first glance, but my instincts screamed that they were anything but lifeless.
I rose slowly, tail curling close to my legs.
"Hello?" My voice echoed, small and fragile.
The statues moved.
Stone cracked.
Eyes opened.
One by one, the figures came alive—massive beings with elongated feline forms, bodies carved of moonstone and shadow, their eyes glowing with ancient intelligence. They radiated power so old it made my skin prickle and my patterns flare instinctively.
The Keepers.
My knees threatened to buckle.
A deep, layered voice filled the chamber—not from one Keeper, but all of them at once.
"Luna Moonclaw."
Hearing my name spoken like that—heavy with judgment—sent a chill straight through me.
"You have stepped where no Moonclaw has stepped in generations," the voice continued."You carry life where none was foretold.""You bind worlds that should not touch."
I swallowed hard, forcing myself to stand straighter.
"I didn't come here to challenge you," I said, my voice shaking despite my effort. "I came because I had no other choice."
A Keeper stepped forward.
This one's stone form shimmered, shifting into something more fluid, more alive. Their eyes fixed on me—piercing, unblinking.
"All who arrive here say that."
My hand moved instinctively to my stomach.
The moment I touched it—
The entire chamber reacted.
Symbols blazed to life. The air vibrated violently. The Keepers recoiled—not in fear, but in surprise.
The voice returned, sharper now.
"The unborn one recognizes the Path."
My breath caught.
"I don't know what that means," I whispered.
"It means," another Keeper said, stepping forward, "that your child is not merely Moonclaw."
My heart stopped.
"What?" I breathed.
"Nor fully of this world."
Panic surged, hot and wild. "Don't you dare talk about them like they're a mistake."
The stone beneath my feet cracked.
Light burst outward from my patterns—brighter than they had ever been before. The life inside me pulsed, strong and defiant, responding to my emotion.
The Keepers froze.
Silence fell—heavy, reverent.
Then—
A sound like laughter echoed through the chamber. Low. Ancient.
"She defends without hesitation," one murmured."Even before understanding," said another."Dangerous," a third whispered."Necessary," countered a fourth.
My heart pounded painfully. "If you're going to judge me—then do it. But leave my child out of it."
The first Keeper met my gaze.
"Impossible."
They raised a massive hand.
The world shifted.
Suddenly, I wasn't in the chamber anymore.
I was somewhere else.
I stood in the Moonclaw village.
But it was wrong.
The sky burned crimson. The air reeked of smoke and blood. Bodies lay scattered across the ground—Moonclaw warriors, elders, children.
My breath caught in a silent scream.
"No—"
I saw myself standing at the center of it all.
Older.
Hardened.
Power blazing uncontrollably from my body.
Kshatri lay at my feet.
Still.
My scream tore from my throat as I lunged forward—
And the vision shattered.
I collapsed to my knees back in the chamber, sobbing, gasping for air.
"That's not real," I cried. "I would never—"
"It is one possible future," the Keepers said calmly."One shaped by fear."
Another vision struck.
This time, I saw Kshatri walking away from me—alive, but distant. His eyes cold. Zaya stood between us, torn and helpless. I reached out, but my hands passed through them like smoke.
A life of loneliness.
A child raised between worlds.
Alone.
"Stop," I begged. "Please."
The visions faded.
Silence returned.
I was shaking violently now, arms wrapped around myself.
"What do you want from me?" I whispered.
The Keepers closed in slightly, forming a circle around me—not threatening, but absolute.
"A choice."
My head snapped up. "I already chose. I chose my family."
"No," they said. "You chose survival."
The lead Keeper stepped closer.
"Now you must choose purpose."
The ground beneath me split, revealing two glowing paths.
One shimmered softly—familiar, warm, leading back toward the Moonclaw lands.
The other was darker, deeper, pulsing with ancient energy that resonated painfully with my patterns… and my child.
"If you take the first," the Keepers intoned,"you return unchanged. The Veiled Path will forget you."
My heart clenched.
"And the second?"
"You accept the bond.""You become a bearer of balance.""And the world will never see you as only Moonclaw again."
I thought of Kshatri—his steady strength, his trust.I thought of Zaya—fierce, loyal, waiting.I thought of the life inside me—already shaping fate without meaning to.
I wiped my tears.
"If I take the second path," I asked quietly, "can I still go back to them?"
The Keepers were silent for a long moment.
Then—
"Eventually."
My chest tightened painfully.
Outside this chamber, somewhere beyond ancient stone and broken laws—
Kshatri was preparing to tear the world open to find me.
Zaya was standing beside him, defying elders and fate alike.
And here I was, being asked to choose what kind of future I would bring back to them.
I rose slowly to my feet.
My hand rested firmly over my stomach.
"I won't let this world decide my child's fate," I said, voice steady now. "But I won't turn away from what they are either."
The Keepers watched in absolute silence as I stepped forward—
Toward the darker path.
The moment my foot touched it, the symbols exploded with light.
And the chamber began to collapse.