The air shimmered around me, thick with heat and grief.
I stood at the edge of a forest that was not my own, but somehow felt familiar. Fire crackled in the distance, eating through dry branches and thick underbrush. Smoke curled through the trees like whispers, carrying voices I couldn't understand.
This wasn't just a fire. It was a memory. A warning. A test.
I was still within the spirit realm, somewhere between what was real and what was remembered. The ground under my feet felt like ash, soft and crumbling. Each step I took sent it puffing up in little clouds that clung to my legs.
I looked back once, hoping to see the path I came from, but the forest had swallowed it. Orrin had warned me that this second trial would be harder. That it would take from me before giving anything back.
The trees moaned as the flames moved, their limbs blackening and splitting. I could hear wolves howling somewhere inside—and children crying.
Then, I heard my name.
"Luciana."
