Fate Dark Side of Betrayer

Elara's voice sounded desperate, almost begging as the room around us collapsed into glittering light. "This is what fate wants you to understand. Look closer."

I staggered backwards, my breath seizing as the symbol on my wrist blazed to life, filling the area around me. The air seemed thick, heavy, as though reality itself were straying under the weight of whatever was happening. I attempted to calm myself, but the visual pull was too strong.

"What's happening? I gasped; the words almost heard in my ears over the roar.

"This is the Vision," Elara murmured, her voice remote. "The truth fate has been keeping from you. The reality you have been fleeing.

The light whirled and changed, then I vanished from the outpost. Ground underfoot burned and strewn with broken weapons, I was standing in the center of a battlefield. Dark, heavy with clouds that sparked with unearthly force, the heavens above was In the middle of the anarchy stood a shadow-covered person whose face was hidden but whose presence was indisputable.

The person remarked, their voice rich and resonant, "You cannot escape me." "You could never."

" Who are you? I asked, clutching my knife firmly.

The person moved in closer, and for a second their face flicked into view. I was the one doing this.

"I am your end," they said, quite straightforwardly. Then your commencement.

The image changed once more, and I was in another place—an elegant hall with walls decorated with elaborate carvings and tall columns. A large loom at the middle of the chamber spun together an infinite tapestry, its threads barely glowing.

"Isn't it gorgeous? "a voice said behind me."

I whirled around to discover a woman there with timeless features and glittering eyes like loom threads. She gave a tiny smile, but her eyes seemed icy.

"You are who? "I asked carefully.

She claimed to be the Weaver. "The one who threads Fate in different directions."

"What from me would be of interest? "I asked."

Her smile dimming, she waved toward the loom. "Your thread, Arden, is breaking. The decisions you took and the relationships you broke have left the tapestry fragile. Should it really come apart, everything will collapse?

"I didn't ask for this," I responded, my voice shaking. "I asked not to be included in your tapestry."

"No one does," she stated, quite succinctly. That does not, however, release you from accountability.

Her comments chilled me, and I felt her eyes weight down on me. "So, what am I expected to do? "I inquired." "Just mindlessly carry out your plan?""

She gave her head a shake. "Arden, this is not my intended course. It's yours. You can weave the threads. But be warned; every decision you make has costs.

"What sort of cost? "She answered not when I asked. Rather, she lifted her hand and the vision changed once more.

I was standing in the center of a forest this time, the trees like sentinels looming above me. The air smelled like mist, and the sound of footfall was barely audible far away. Turning toward the sound, I stopped still in front of a figure coming out of the darkness.

She was Caius.

Arden, he said, his voice strained. You really ought to pay attention to me.

"What is happening? Stepping up toward him, I asked "For what reason are you here? —

"I'm not," he answered, his tone gloomy. "This isn't real." Here is a caution.

"A warning about what? "I demanded.

" About me," he whispered softly. "You know of things I have concealed from you; there are things you never know. When the time comes, you will have to choose whether to walk away or trust me.

His words caused me to shiver and I stepped back. "What are you referring to? I questioned. "What are you keeping from me?''

"I can't tell you," he continued, his voice strained. But you will know shortly enough. And when you do, remember this: I have always been on your side.

The scene changed once more, the woodland disintegrating into light before I could reply. I was back in the outpost gasping for breath as the symbol on my wrist darkened the world back in focus.

At my side, Caius was at once, his hands steadying me as I battled to keep straight. "What became of it? His voice was frantic as he inquired. "What were you seeing?''

"I...," I said, the weight of the vision falling on me. "I saw the Weaver." Including you.

Me, too? With his brow wrinkling, he asked. "What ought I to have done? «

"It wasn't you," I said fast. Not precisely. The warning was there, though. regarding trust.

His face reddened, but he did not press any more. Elara moved forward, her eyes keen as she inspected me. "The Vision is never clear," she whispered. Still, it always implies something. Whatever you observed relates to the challenges yet to come.

Her words weight settled over me, and I looked down at the insignia on my wrist. Now it was faint, but I could still sense it, a continual reminder of the road I was traveling.

At last, my voice firm despite the turbulence inside me, "We need to move; the Circle won't stop, and neither can we."

With his countenance impassive, Caius nodded and we left the outpost behind, the weight of the Vision hanging like a shadow.

The ground under us started to shake as we were walking across the forest, and a low, menacing rumble came from among the trees.

Today? I said, my fingers reaching for my knife.

A figure emerged from the darkness, their face covered under a hood. "You see the Vision," they continued, their voice icy. But really, do you grasp it?"