Chapter 2: The Quartz Veil

  The transition from the cabin to the forest felt like stepping through a camera lens that had finally snapped into focus. Behind them, the smoldering remains of the Sun Paladins—now nothing more than dust catching the wind—faded away.

  "We need to put some distance between us and that cabin," Vex said, her tone disciplined and sharp as she scanned the horizon. "Okay, looks like we are going to have to cut through the Quartz Veil if we want to get one of those monsters."

  Ren stumbled after them. He felt heavy, his mind still reeling from the memories of the rain and the truck. He wasn’t wearing his old school clothes or his old hair he now had ja jo haircut with a single twist braid on the front of his head and was in traveling gear—a dark, tailored suit reinforced with matte-black armor plates, and a blindfold across his eyes.

  As they crossed into the clearing, the “forest” loomed over them. Huge, towering pillars of translucent quartz rose slowly from the ground like frozen lightning. The "leaves" were clusters of jagged amethyst shards that vibrated with a faint, melodic hum.

  "Hey, watch the roots," Vex noted calmly, not as a command, but as a reminder to her leader. "The Echo-Roots are sensitive to pressure tonight. One wrong step and the whole forest will chime. If they chime, the Warden beasts will find us before we find it."

  Ren looked down at his armored boots. He stayed a few paces back, his shoulders hunched. In Ota, staying quiet had been his survival mechanism. And here, it meant just that as well. He wanted to speak, but the social anxiety—the fear of saying the wrong thing—kept his throat tight.

  Ren started monologueing in his head about the situation. Okay Keep it together. Just keep walking. I can’t stop, or they’ll ask why, clearly this isn’t my body. What happened where am I. This isn't Ota. There are no flickering streetlights or damp asphalt here. Everything is too bright, too sharp… my hands... they're glowing. Why are they glowing!? Am I dead!? If I’m dead, why does my head hurt so much?

  Where the hell am I? I woke up on some stone slab in that cabin, and now I'm in a forest made of glass? Did I get teleported? Is that even a thing? I remember the cold. After Dad kicked me out... that was supposed to be the end. So why am I wearing this? These clothes. Is this armor. Ok wait have movie taught you, ya that’s right movie they must just be playing a prank on me or something th… that has to be it right un.. unless it’s not damn all this thinking is starting to make my head hurt a lot more.

  The silver-haired girl what did they say her name was Lyra right that’s what the other one called her. She’s way too loud for someone who just saw a bunch of people die in front of her. And the girl with the pink hair.... Why aren't they freaking out? They’re acting like killing people is just a norm. And they keep looking at me like where friends. Wait, right this isn’t my body was the persons body that I took a cereal killer are the cereal killers. I mean I might as well be I killed those people back there how why. Dang what’s going on.

  "Ren? You’re doing that 'ghost-stare' again," Lyra said, dropping back to walk beside him. She nudged his shoulder playfully with her elbow. "Is the memory block really that bad? You're usually the one leading us through here blindfolded while complaining that the sun is too bright."

  Ren flinched slightly at the contact but didn't pull away. He adjusted the edge of his blindfold, his voice barely a whisper. "The ritual… it’s like my mind is a shattered mirror. I recognize you guys, but I can’t see the whole picture anymore. And by the way, what is this blindfold meant for anyway?"

  “It’s there to keep your power under check,” Lyra said.

  “Huh… really?” Ren said, stunned by what Lyra just told him.

  Lyra and Vex laughed. “Well, that’s what you say, but we call bull crap knowing damn well the only reason you keep it on is because you think it makes you look cooler,” Vex said.

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  Ren replied in his, “Well, bull crap or not, I should probably keep it on then, just in case?”

  “But we don’t really know since you never take it off other than when you’re transformed out of your armor,” said Lyra with a big smile on her face.

  “Hey, Ren,” Vex called out with a concerned look on her face. “Are you sure you’re okay? You are forgetting quite the amount of things.”

  “Huh? Y… yeah, I’m fine, don’t worry. Like I said, I fell and knocked my head and my memory is just a bit wonky.”

  The Refraction of the Past

  As they moved deeper, the light filtered through the quartz trees, hitting the crystal leaves and splitting into a thousand different hues. Suddenly, the path ahead seemed to shimmer.

  Ren gasped. For a split second, he didn't see a crystal forest; he saw a narrow, rain-slicked alleyway. He felt the cold sting of the rain and the sad street of his old world. He blinked, and then it all left, replaced by a floating moth drifting past his nose.

  "Illusions," Lyra explained, her playful tone gone for a moment as she noticed him trembling. "The forest refracts intent. It messes with your mind by showing you what’s in your heart to try and trip you up. Focus on us, Ren. We're right here. Keep your mind clear and you’ll be alright."

  Ren nodded wordlessly, his hands clenched into fists. He thought about the small tin in the closet. The money for the seaside.

  "Hey," Ren said, his voice sounding small. "Is there... a real ocean here? Not a magic one. Just an ocean?"

  Lyra laughed, a bright, warm sound. "The Pride light Sea. It’s a long trek, Ren, but the water is real. It’s beautiful. Maybe we can head there for a break or something."

  An Uncontrolled Spark

  They stopped to rest near a massive fallen crystal. The purple sky was darkening, making the jagged terrain dangerous.

  "We need a bit of light, but a fire is out of the question," Vex said, looking at Ren. "The Wardens hunt by scent and heat. Ren, can you give us a low-level spark? Just enough to see the path?"

  Ren hesitated. He knew he could—it was a feeling in his gut, a heat he didn't really know how to make but felt as if he could. "I... I'll try."

  He closed his eyes. He tried to visualize a small, steady flame. Just a candle. He kept his palm open.

  THOOM.

  Instead of a small spark, a violent orb of violet energy erupted from his palm. The gravity shifted instantly, pulling at the loose rocks around them. Ren’s feet left the ground, and he began to float upward, his armor clanking.

  "Ren! Stabilize it!" Vex shouted, lunging forward to grab his ankle to keep him from drifting into the sharp shards above.

  "I’m trying! It's not working!" Ren cried, his voice cracking. He felt a surge of panic. He was the leader, he was supposed to be the strongest, but right now he felt like a kid again, helpless.

  With a desperate grunt, Ren "crushed" the energy in his hand. It dissipated with a soft pop, leaving behind a trail of glowing dust. Ren fell onto the soft moss, gasping for air.

  "A bit... overkill... for a flashlight," Lyra panted, crawling out from behind a rock. She looked at him with a mix of awe and genuine worry. "You're leaking power, Ren. It’s like you’ve forgotten how to hold it back."

  The Weight of Prophecy

  As the twin moons rose, they huddled together in the dim glow of the dust Ren had left behind.

  "The Five Solar Deities," Ren said, leaning his head against a quartz root. "Tell me about them again."

  Vex sharpened her dagger, the rhythmic shink-shink the only other sound. She paused, looking at Ren’s tired, anxious face. "Before we talk about the Gods... what about your family? How are they?"

  “Family,” Ren said with a sad expression.

  Suddenly, a name flashed in Ren’s head. “Yui?” he said out loud. Who is that? he thought in his head.

  “Oh yeah, your younger sister, right? How is she?”

  Younger sister, Ren thought to himself. “Y… yeah, she’s doing okay.” “Must be the siblings of this persons family he.” He thought.

  Lyra replied in a happy tone, “Well, she must be doing better than Aliza.”

  “Yeah, most probably,” Ren said, his eyes fixed on the sky.

  Ren’s throat tightened. He thought of his mother’s tired smile and the smell of his father’s booze. Speaking in his mind, he then said, My mom is dead and my dad is probably still drinking. He probably doesn’t even know that I’m gone. What am I saying? He definitely does know that I’m missing since I didn’t bring back the money he needs for some drinks anyway. But yet to him, I’m just a ghost in the house he doesn’t care about at all.

  Vex watched him for a long moment, her strict demeanor giving way to something kinder. "Hey, Ren, I hope you know I’m here for you, right? Me and Lyra, okay?”

  “Yeah, sure,” Ren muttered.

  "The Deities," she continued. "Tyrants. They feed on the life force of the people to keep themselves immortal. You’re the only one who ever tapped into the power they couldn't control. That's why they're terrified of you."

  In the far distance, a long, low roar echoed.

  "The Wardens," Vex said, standing up and drawing her blade. "They saw that burst of energy. We move now. No more mistakes."

  Ren stood up, his legs shaking. He adjusted his blindfold and gripped the hilt of his sword that he pulled out of thin air. Right now, he was just a kid trying to protect the only friends he had left.

  The Celestial Sea, he thought. I’m going to get us there. For both of them, Akari and Mom.