The Protectors: Rising from Ashes [Progression Fantasy | Action-Packed | Epic Battles]

The hall slowly quieted as the last of the dishes vanished into soft golden light, leaving behind only the gentle clink of goblets and the low flicker of floating lights. They all sat gathered loosely at the table, but there was no silence now, just voices rising and overlapping in quick bursts, filled with curiosity and eagerness.

Eddy gestured animatedly with his hands, eyes lighting up as he tried to explain something. Aiden leaned forward with a half-grin, clearly fascinated, while Lyric tilted her head thoughtfully, nodding as though trying to piece it together in her mind. Alice let out a soft laugh at something Eddy mimed, while Thorne watched with a skeptical squint, but even he was listening.

They weren't just talking.

They were drawn in.

Questions came from every side, their tones eager, reactions amused or bewildered. There was a spark in their eyes, the kind only new, strange things could ignite. Even the flickering lights seemed to sway in time with their animated movements.

Then, without a word of farewell, Sentinel stood.

He didn't need to raise his voice.

"We will meet tomorrow morning at the training grounds. Be prepared. You all have much to face."

The shift was immediate, not in volume, but in energy. Elias half-turned in his seat, about to speak, but Sentinel was already moving. His steps were swift, deliberate, too swift for someone meant to linger. He offered no glance back, no pause for questions, his dark cloak trailing like smoke behind him as he vanished down the hall.

No one said a word to stop him.

No one but Cassandra seemed to notice the way his shoulders stayed too straight, his pace too sharp. She didn't move, but her eyes followed him, narrowing just slightly. One corner of her mouth dipped, the lightness in her posture dimming. Then, just as quickly, she relaxed again and turned her gaze on the table.

Eddy leaned forward, his arms braced awkwardly on the table. "Soo… uh, just one question—where do I sleep? Or do I crash on a floating bed made of light or something?"

Cassandra, seated comfortably at the dining table, let out a soft chuckle. "You'll be staying in their wing. One room's vacant. I think it'll suit you perfectly."

Aiden blinked. "With us?"

Thorne narrowed his eyes, folding his arms as he leaned back in his chair. "He's not one of us. Why would he stay in our wing?"

Elias finally looked up from his plate. His voice was calm, but carried an edge of logic. "There are plenty of rooms in the Sanctum. He could've taken one of those. So why place him with us?"

Thorne snorted. "Yeah, exactly. What if one night Elias gets thirsty, loses control, and drains poor Eddy dry in his sleep?"

Eddy's face blanched. "What?"

Aiden groaned under his breath, dragging a hand down his face. Lyric just shook her head.

Elias glanced at Thorne with the patience of someone who'd heard the same joke a hundred times too many. "That's getting old, Thorne. Maybe try something new? If tales of our journey are ever told, I imagine even the scribes would start skipping your lines."

Eddy gave a weak laugh, trying to recover. "Yeah… it wouldn't have affected me anyway."

Thorne leaned forward slightly, the ghost of a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Really? Because looking at your face, it's still working."

Eddy instinctively reached for his glass of water.

Alice rolled her eyes and cut in. "Maybe it's not the joke that's old. Maybe it's just your delivery."

Elias's brow furrowed slightly, voice quieter now. "Still doesn't explain why he's staying with us and not in one of the other rooms."

Cassandra's gaze swept across all of them. Her tone was steady, but something firmer threaded beneath it. "The sooner you start trusting each other, the better. This isn't about what you were. It's about what you need to become."

There was a beat of silence. Aiden exhaled slowly and nodded. Thorne said nothing but didn't argue further.

As the group pushed back their chairs and stood, Eddy paused again, glancing over his shoulder.

"One second—what about my stuff? My bag's still in that bubbling potion lab. Didn't see anyone fetch it."

A voice, calm and lightly amused, came from just beside Cassandra. "It's already in your room."

Eddy turned quickly to see Maris, still seated at the dining table, her hands resting gracefully in front of her as she watched him with that ever-composed expression.

He stared at her, confused. "How? All the time we were here, no one touched it."

Maris didn't rise. She simply extended two fingers toward the table beside her, where a silver spoon rested untouched on a plate.

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With a small flick, the spoon shimmered, vanished in a wisp of silver light, and a soft chime echoed faintly in the air.

"Some things don't require hands," she said smoothly. "Just intent."

Eddy stared at the space where the spoon had been. "Right. That's… weirdly impressive. And slightly terrifying."

He shook his head, then muttered, "Guess I really do have to get used to this place."

Aiden grinned from his spot opposite Eddy, resting his arms lazily on the edge. "That feeling doesn't go away anytime soon."

Lyric lifted her gaze, smile playing on her lips. "At least you're asking the right questions."

The others smirked, even Elias, just barely.

Cassandra lifted her gaze, sweeping it over each of them with quiet command. Her voice was calm but unmistakably firm. "All right, that's enough for tonight. You all need to be on time tomorrow morning at the training grounds."

She narrowed her eyes just a touch, lips quirking. "Or I will come drag you out of bed myself. No one wants that."

Aiden held up both hands. "Noted. Very much noted."

Thorne muttered, "Wouldn't be the worst way to start the day."

Cassandra raised an eyebrow at him. "Try me."

Meanwhile, Maris offered one last parting note in her usual calm, melodic tone. "Rest while the Sanctum is quiet. It listens more than you think. And it remembers dreams."

They didn't quite know what to say to that, so they said nothing.

Cassandra gave a final nod. "Good night. You'll need your strength."

With that, the two women remained behind as the group stepped out together, the heavy wooden doors closing quietly behind them.

The corridor stretched ahead, vast and hushed. Light bled softly through the smooth stone beneath their feet, veins of blue and silver moving like breath under skin. Along the arched ceiling, orbs of pale gold drifted slowly, casting halos as they hovered, flickering like living lanterns.

Eddy's boots tapped against the floor with uneven rhythm. He kept glancing around, his steps slightly hesitant. His eyes were wide, tracing every glowing seam in the walls. "Does the entire place glow like it's alive?"

From just ahead, Elias's voice drifted back, calm and certain. "That's because it is."

Eddy turned his head slowly, mouth parted. His gaze darted to a stretch of wall where the light curled and shimmered like water. "Okay… the walls shimmer, the lights float, and I swear that statue just blinked. Is everything here enchanted?"

Alice walked beside him, the corner of her mouth lifted in a sly smile. "Just don't open random doors. Some of them bite."

Eddy blinked, clearly alarmed. "Wait—really?"

Alice gave him a sidelong glance, her smile widening.

Thorne, walking just ahead, didn't even look back. "Don't you know the difference between a joke and a warning?"

A second later, the realization hit. Eddy's shoulders dropped. "Right. Joke. Ha. Very funny."

Lyric's steps were light, her arms folded as she watched the path beneath them. The glowing patterns there seemed to move under her shadow. "The Sanctum is alive, in its own way. It remembers things."

Aiden tilted his head back slightly as he walked. His eyes followed the curves of the ceiling. "It hums. When no one's talking."

Eddy narrowed his gaze at the space above. "And that's normal to you?"

Thorne's voice came again, low and dry. "It's annoying when you're trying to sleep."

Their steps slowed as the corridor twisted. A soft chime rang through the air, sharp but distant, like crystal tapping crystal. The space ahead shimmered, the very air unraveling into strands of golden light that spun and coiled like silk being unwoven.

A presence unfolded from the light.

Astraea appeared.

She floated just above the ground, her body a delicate dance of stardust and translucent glow. Tiny sparks spiraled from her edges, falling behind her like fragments of broken constellations. Her form pulsed gently, shifting like a dream that refused to stay still.

Elias stiffened mid-step. Alice flinched, blinking rapidly. Aiden's hand twitched, half-lifting in reflex before he lowered it with a breath. Even Thorne took a cautious step back, his eyes narrowing at the sudden flare of magic.

But they all recovered quickly. They had seen her before. They remembered her glow, her impossible presence.

Only Lyric remained still. Her gaze lifted to Astraea with quiet familiarity, her face unreadable but calm.

And Eddy, he stopped completely.

His foot hung in the air for half a second, then landed noiselessly. His eyes locked onto the figure in front of them, wide with disbelief.

His voice cracked. "That's her… she's real?"

Astraea floated forward, trailing glittering stardust in her wake, her motion slow and impossibly smooth. She orbited around him like a moon circling a planet, light brushing his skin with a delicate warmth.

Her voice moved like wind over hollow crystal. "We meet at last, dream-watcher."

Eddy turned in place, following her with wide eyes. The glow lit his face in gentle silver, and he didn't blink.

"You can talk?" he whispered, half to himself.

Thorne crossed his arms as he continued walking, steady now. "She always could."

Aiden exhaled, shoulders relaxing. "You're the only one who didn't know."

Eddy couldn't look away. "She was in my dream. With Lyric. There was light everywhere and—" He shook his head. "It felt so real, but now… seeing her up close…"

Alice's voice came softly from his right. "She does that. Appears in places that don't always make sense."

Lyric stepped closer, her arms loose at her sides. The soft light from Astraea spilled over her like moonlight caught in motion. "You saw her with me because of the Echo Weaving. It pulls fragments, memories, thoughts, pieces of other souls, into dreams. The Eclipse Heart's magic connected you to something."

Eddy's lips parted, but no words came. His eyes tracked Astraea's movement like someone watching a star fall in slow motion.

Astraea floated nearer, voice soft and teasing.

"You watched from behind the veil. Curious eyes. Restless thoughts."

He swallowed. "I didn't even know if you were real. And now you're… floating. Talking. Right in front of me."

"Most truths are stranger in daylight," she replied, spinning midair, scattering stardust in slow spirals.

Astraea hovered close, her glow brushing across Eddy's skin like the warmth of a quiet flame. He didn't move. His breath slowed. His eyes locked onto every flicker of stardust trailing from her, following the lazy swirl of her orbit as if the motion alone held him in place.

Then she stilled.

Her form froze mid-glide, not with stiffness but with eerie precision. Just inches from him, suspended in the air, she became completely motionless.

A faint pulse of light rippled from her core.
Then another. Brighter this time.

The soft shimmer in her body responded, constellations inside her swirling faster, not fading but sharpening. Shapes once scattered began to align. Her focus shifted, narrowed. She tilted her head, the movement subtle, almost avian. The light in her center thinned into a thread and leaned, drawn toward him like a needle pulled by unseen force.

Across from them, Lyric's steps faltered. Her face tightened, the calm in her expression slipping just slightly.

"Astraea?" Her voice was soft, careful.

No answer came at first.

Astraea's eyes, if that soft cosmic glow could be called that, didn't leave Eddy. She floated as if in trance, silent, listening to something not spoken aloud. Then, her voice emerged, lower, filled with something quieter than wonder. Almost reverent.

"There is something… within him."

And the corridor held its breath.