Page 36 of Starlit Bargains

“Shadows,” Eliar finished, his voice barely audible. “They're regrouping.”

A chill ran down Kai's spine. He'd hoped that Eliar's display of power would have dispersed the creatures completely, or at least bought them more time. “How far to your safe place?”

“Too far,” Eliar admitted, sagging further against Kai's support. “In this condition... I won't make it.”

Kai swore under his breath, mind racing. They couldn't outrun the shadows, not with Eliar barely able to walk. Fighting them in the open forest seemed equally suicidal. They needed shelter, defensible ground, something...

His gaze caught on a tumble of ancient stones half-hidden by vegetation about fifty yards to their right. “What's that?”

Eliar followed his gaze. “Old ruins. Part of the same complex as the temple, but older. Forgotten.”

“Is it safe?”

A shadow of a smile crossed Eliar's face. “Safer than standing in the open waiting for the Void Feeders to find us.”

Decision made, Kai adjusted his grip on Eliar and changed direction, heading for the ruins. As they drew closer, he could see that what had appeared to be a random pile of stones was actually the remains of a small structure—perhaps a shrine or outbuilding that had once been part of the larger temple complex. Most of the roof had collapsed, but some walls still stood, creating a partial enclosure. More importantly, the entrance was narrow—defensible, if it came to that.

They had just reached the crumbling doorway when Briar hissed a warning from above. “They're coming! From the east!”

Kai looked back and saw them—not individual shadow creatures this time, but a rippling wave of darkness flowing between the trees like liquid night. It moved with purpose, accelerating as it sensed their presence.

“Inside, now!” Kai urged, half-dragging, half-carrying Eliar through the narrow entrance. The interior of the ruins was surprisingly intact—a single room about fifteen feet square, with stone walls rising to what had once been a domed ceiling. Only part of the roof remained, allowing dappled evening light to filter down into the space.

Like the temple, the floor here was inlaid with a mosaic of celestial patterns, though centuries of neglect had obscured much of the design beneath dirt and fallen debris. Along the walls, similar markings had been carved directly into the stone—symbols that reminded Kai of the ones at the temple, but somehow older, more primal in their execution.

He lowered Eliar to sit with his back against one wall, then turned to the entrance. Outside, the wave of shadow had reached the clearing around the ruins. It paused, spreading out to surround the structure like a pool of ink.

“They're not rushing in,” Kai observed, keeping his voice low. “Why?”

Eliar's breathing had eased slightly, though his face remained ashen. “This place... has protections. Old magic, tied to what I once was. They can sense it.”

“So we're safe?”

“For now,” Eliar qualified.

Kai peered out at the shadows again. They were indeed settling into what looked like a siege formation, keeping a wary distance from the ruins but clearly not abandoning their pursuit. The sight made his skin crawl—these weren't mindless predators but calculating hunters.

“What do they want?” he asked, returning to Eliar's side. “I thought they were just drawn to magical energy, but this seems... deliberate.”

Eliar leaned his head back against the stone wall, his eyes drifting to the patch of darkening sky visible through the brokenceiling. “They weren't after me,” he said after a moment. “Not specifically. They're drawn to power—to the energy that exists at boundaries between realms. My power.” His mouth twisted in a bitter smile. “The moment I used it while tethered to you, they latched onto me like vultures to a dying animal. They sensed the corruption within it, the connection to the void.”

“They feed on it?”

“They feed on anything that bridges worlds,” Eliar corrected. “The fact that my essence is corrupted just makes me more... appetizing to them. It creates a clearer path back to their realm.”

Kai digested this, trying to fit it into his understanding of the prophecy. “And if they get what they want? If they... feed on your power?”

“Then the corruption spreads faster,” Eliar said grimly. “The veil thins further. Eventually, it tears completely. And what's on the other side...” He shook his head. “It makes the Void Feeders look benign by comparison.”

A chill ran down Kai's spine at the implication. The shadow creatures weren't the real threat—they were just the harbingers of something far worse. Something that could enter this world if the veil between realms was breached.

He moved to the entrance again, studying the shifting darkness beyond. The shadows seemed to be testing the boundaries of the ruins, probing for weaknesses. One tendril of darkness stretched toward the doorway, then recoiled as if it had touched something painful.

“They're getting bolder,” Kai observed. “How long will the protections hold?”

Eliar didn't answer immediately, which was answer enough.

Kai's hand went to the dagger at his belt—a pathetically inadequate weapon against creatures of pure shadow, but its familiar weight was reassuring nonetheless. He positionedhimself in the doorway, a physical barrier between the shadows and Eliar.

---