Rielun's POV:
The forest didn't breathe.
Not a leaf stirred.
Not a creature moved.
Even the wind seemed to hold itself still.
Rielun clung to Aeris's sleeve, chest tight, breath trembling. The collapse of that echo still throbbed through him like an old wound reopening.
Sylas crouched beside him, checking his pulse again. "It's too fast. His body's reacting to something."
Elias pressed a hand to the ground, eyes widening. "Not something. Two things."
The earth pulsed beneath them — once, twice, like a heartbeat.
Then it cracked.
A jagged line tore through the soil, black sap bubbling up like blood. The trees bent inward, groaning under the pressure of something ancient forcing its way upward.
Noctis's shadows recoiled. "It's trying to open a path."
Rowan's eyes widened. "It can't. Not like this."
Elias shook his head violently. "The Hollow isn't stable enough. If it forces itself open—"
The ground split again, deeper this time.
A scream tore through the forest — not a creature, not a voice, but the Hollow itself.
Rielun doubled over, clutching his chest. "It hurts—why does it hurt—?"
Aeris pulled him close. "Rielun, stay with me. Don't let it pull you."
But the Hollow was pulling.
Shadow curled around Rielun's ankles like grasping fingers. The air thickened with grief, with longing, with something broken trying to reach him.
The Hollow whispered, soft and trembling:
"Little… Moon…"
Rielun's breath hitched. Tears welled in his eyes. "Stop—please stop—"
The ground shuddered violently.
The Hollow fractured.
A ripple of cold swept across the clearing.
Not a shape this time.
Not at first.
Just a distortion in the air — like heat shimmer, but wrong.
Like something trying to exist and failing.
Then it condensed.
A figure pulled itself together out of drifting shadow, piece by piece, as if remembering how to stand.
Not the same silhouette as before.
This one was:
hunched flickering barely holding form
Its outline wavered like smoke caught in a storm.
Its chest glowed with a faint, sickly pulse.
Its hands twitched uncontrollably, as though the memory they came from was too painful to bear.
Rielun's breath hitched. "It's… smaller."
Elias's voice was tight. "It's not a full echo. It's a fragment."
The figure lifted its head.
No face.
No features.
Just a hollow impression of someone who once mattered.
It took a step toward Rielun — not steady, not purposeful.
More like a child learning to walk.
Or a dying man trying to reach someone he loved.
A sound escaped it.
Not a sob this time.
A whimper.
Aeris moved instantly, shielding Rielun. "Don't come any closer!"
But the echo didn't seem to hear him.
It reached out — not with intent, but with instinct.
As if drawn to Rielun by something older than memory.
Rowan whispered, "It's not attacking. It's… lost."
The echo's trembling hand hovered in the air, fingers spasming, trying to form a gesture it no longer remembered how to make.
Elias swallowed hard. "The Hollow is trying to rebuild him, but the memory is too damaged."
The echo's chest flickered.
Its voice cracked open like a broken instrument:
"Li…—"
The rest dissolved into static.
Rielun's knees buckled. "Please… don't say it…"
The echo shuddered violently, its form collapsing inward like a dying star.
It reached for Rielun one last time—
And then the ground behind it erupted.
The ground behind the echo erupted.
A creature crawled out — massive, twisted, dripping black sap. Its limbs were too long, its eyes hollow pits, its breath a rasping hiss.
A Hollow guardian‑beast.
Noctis's shadows surged forward. "Aeris—!"
Aeris didn't hesitate.
He shoved Rielun into Sylas's arms. "Keep him steady!"
Then he and Noctis charged.
Noctis's shadows lashed at the creature, binding its limbs. Aeris darted in with blinding speed, striking at its joints, its throat, its eyes.
The creature roared, thrashing violently.
The echo flinched, curling in on itself like a wounded memory.
Sylas held Rielun upright, grounding him with steady hands. "Stay with me. Don't let either side take you."
Rowan pressed a hand to Rielun's back, channeling warmth. "You're here. You're safe. Focus on us."
Elias knelt in front of him, voice low and urgent. "Rielun, listen. The Hollow is calling you. The Haven is calling you. You have to choose neither. Not yet."
Rielun's vision blurred. "I… I can't—"
Sylas tightened his grip. "Yes, you can. Look at me."
Rielun forced his eyes open.
Sylas's voice softened. "Good. Stay with us."
The Haven doorway flickered again — dangerously unstable.
Aeris slammed the Hollow creature into the ground with a burst of wind. "We can't hold it forever!"
Noctis's shadows strained, cracking under the creature's strength. "Move! Now!"
Rowan hauled Rielun to his feet. "We head for the Haven. It's the only place the Hollow can't reach."
Elias nodded. "Before it collapses completely."
Sylas supported Rielun's weight. "Come on. One step at a time."
Rielun stumbled forward, pulled by the guardians, pulled by the Haven, pulled by the Hollow.
Behind them, the echo whispered again — softer, fading:
"Little… Moon…"
Rielun sobbed as they dragged him away.
The doorway flared.
Silver light pulsed outward — slow, rhythmic, like a heartbeat.
The ground trembled beneath their feet.
The Hollow screamed behind them.
The Haven hummed ahead.
And Rielun stood between them, tears streaking his face, the echo of Little Moon haunting the air.
The doorway pulsed again.
Once.
Twice.
Then—
It opened a fraction wider.