New God(wheel of time)

Chapter 23: Shifting Tides

The forest was still. The last echo of the dark figure's voice lingered in the air, fading into the distance like the remnants of a bad dream. Eryndor stood at the center of the clearing, his chest rising and falling with the aftermath of the battle, his hand still outstretched where the divine energy had torn through the air.

Moraine stood beside him, her expression one of awe and caution. The magnitude of the power she had just witnessed was beyond anything she had encountered before. She had seen strength in Aes Sedai, in the mighty forces of the One Power, but this... this was something entirely different.

"Are you all right?" she asked softly, her voice filled with concern as she watched him carefully.

Eryndor blinked, his gaze far off, as if he were still tethered to the remnants of the divine force. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "I thought I understood what I could do. But that... it felt like something inside me had awakened."

Moraine's heart fluttered with the understanding that something fundamental had changed within him. The power he wielded wasn't just divine—it was primal, raw. And yet, it was still something that seemed foreign to him. As though it was part of him, but not fully his.

She stepped closer, placing a hand on his arm, grounding him. "What you did... you stopped it. Whatever that was, you stopped it. But you need to be careful, Eryndor. That kind of power isn't something you can control with ease. You need to understand it before it overwhelms you."

He looked down at her hand on his arm, and for a brief moment, something flickered in his gaze—something fleeting, almost imperceptible. "I don't want to lose control," he murmured, almost to himself. "But what if I have no choice?"

Her fingers tightened slightly, a reassuring gesture. "Then we'll find a way together. You're not alone in this."

There was a long pause as Eryndor looked into the distance. The shadows of the forest stretched out before them, and in the silence, he could almost feel the pull of something—somewhere. It wasn't just the weight of the power within him. It was something deeper, more ancient.

And then, almost as if in response to his thoughts, a wind stirred around them. A sharp gust of air blew through the trees, carrying with it a scent of something that was both familiar and foreign—something that made his pulse race. He turned his head, as if sensing something.

"Do you feel that?" he asked, his voice steady, though there was a sense of urgency in it now.

Moraine nodded. "Yes. It's different, though... it's like the air itself is charged with a presence. Something is coming."

Eryndor's eyes narrowed as he focused his senses. Something in the world was changing. The forces that moved beyond his understanding were shifting again.

The sky above them darkened, and the wind began to howl, twisting and turning in unnatural ways. Leaves flew through the air, whipped about by the force of the gathering storm. In the distance, a deep, resonant growl echoed, coming from the depths of the forest.

Eryndor didn't hesitate. With a powerful movement, he reached out to Moraine, pulling her close. The protective instinct within him was undeniable—something was coming, and it wasn't going to be easy to face.

"We need to leave the clearing," Eryndor said, his voice low and commanding. "Whatever is coming... we're not ready for it."

Moraine didn't argue. She trusted him more than she had ever trusted anyone, and in that moment, she felt the weight of their shared fate more than ever. She nodded. "Lead the way."

Together, they moved quickly through the forest, the sounds of the storm growing louder with every passing second. The trees bent under the force of the wind, and the ground trembled beneath their feet as if the world itself was reacting to the arrival of something enormous.

It wasn't long before they emerged from the dense undergrowth into a small clearing. The sky above had turned a deep shade of red, the clouds swirling in an unnatural pattern. And then they saw it—the source of the disturbance.

A figure stood in the center of the clearing, surrounded by an aura of dark energy. Its form was cloaked, shadowed, but the power emanating from it was palpable, crushing the very air around them. Eryndor's grip on Moraine tightened as he stepped forward, instinctively shielding her from the threat that lay ahead.

The figure slowly turned to face them, and its voice came, low and echoing, as if it reverberated from the depths of the earth itself. "You are more than I expected, Eryndor. But your presence complicates things."

Eryndor stepped forward, narrowing his gaze. "Who are you? And what do you want?"

The figure laughed, the sound rich and deep, like thunder rolling across the horizon. "I am not your enemy, Eryndor. Not yet. But I am part of what you must face. A being of darkness, bound to the forces of the world that seek balance. And you..." The figure paused, its shadowy form flickering with a strange energy. "You are the key. You always have been."

Moraine stepped forward slightly, her sword drawn, though she had no illusion that her weapon could harm such a being. "You speak as if Eryndor is some kind of prophecy. What is it you want from him?"

The figure's form shifted, swirling in the air like smoke. "What I want is not important, Aes Sedai. What matters is the choice he must make. The balance will not allow him to exist in its midst without consequence. He will have to choose a side. And when that choice is made, the world will either break or be remade."

Eryndor's eyes flashed with defiance. "I won't be anyone's pawn. I will forge my own path."

The figure's smile was as cold as the abyss. "That is your right. But know this, Eryndor—the world's fate has already been written. And your path will not be as simple as you believe."

The figure raised one hand, and the earth beneath them began to tremble. Eryndor felt the air around him grow dense, the weight of it pressing down on his chest as though the world itself was ready to crush him.

Moraine's hand shot out to grab his arm, her grip tight. "Eryndor, don't let it control you! We can't let it!"

But Eryndor was already reacting, his senses flaring with the divine energy within him. He stepped forward, pulling the power from deep within himself, and raised his hand toward the figure. A brilliant light exploded from his palm, shattering the dark energy in an instant.

The figure recoiled, but its laughter only grew louder, echoing through the clearing. "You have only begun to understand, Eryndor. The path ahead will test you beyond anything you can imagine."

With that, the figure vanished, leaving only the fading remnants of its presence behind.

Eryndor stood in the clearing, his chest heaving, feeling the weight of the encounter settle over him. This was only the beginning. Whatever was coming, whatever choice lay ahead... he was not prepared.

But he would have to be.