AnneStars
She notices what she shouldn't.
He notices her anyways.
In a quiet coastal village left off most maps, Kage has learned how to live between glances. She bakes bread before dawn, helps run a market stall by midday, and leaves offerings to the Old Gods out of habit rather than belief. She knows the world is larger than mortals are meant to understand, but like everyone else, she has learned that keeping your head down is safer than asking questions.
Then the dreams begin.
Strange, vivid dreams that leave her restless. Flickers of light she cannot explain. Moments that make her wonder if she is imagining things, or finally noticing what has always been there.
When Kage is summoned to a neutral institute watched by powerful forces, she finds herself surrounded by heirs, warriors, and figures who seem certain of what they are meant to become.
She is not.
Among them is Kaleen, an heir of the sea who keeps his distance and watches her with open distrust. He is disciplined, guarded, and clearly aware of rules she does not yet understand. Where others dismiss her, he notices. Where she questions, he withdraws. Their interactions are restrained, uneasy, shaped by tension rather than trust.
But proximity has a way of eroding certainty.
As old powers stir and the balance of the world begins to strain, Kage must decide who she is willing to become, and whether the shadows she carries exist to hide her... or to protect something far more dangerous than she ever imagined.
Β© Anne Starks. All rights reserved. Work in progress.