Deborah's POV

The sun rose over the Cursed Forest, making the trees glow pink and orange. But something felt wrong. The light was too bright, like it were watching them.

Deborah woke up with a groan. She tried not to wake Erick, but her body ached from all the running. A phrase kept repeating in her head: "Discover your birth's truth." She didn't have time for riddles.

She looked at her left hand, hoping something would happen. Maybe fire would shoot out, but it was just her hand, rough from training. Everything seemed normal.

Erick was sitting by the shrine wall, watching her calmly.

"How long have you been watching me?" she asked, her voice sharp.

"I wasn't watching you," he said. "I was keeping watch." He stood up and stretched, and Deborah looked away quickly, her face feeling hot.

"Did you see anything?" she asked, looking at the trees.

"Nothing," he said, moving closer. "Which is worse than seeing something. It's completely silent."

Deborah nodded, feeling the heavy silence. "It's the shrine," she said, touching the carvings. "It's keeping things away."

"How?" Erick asked.

"It lets some things in and blocks everything else out," she said.

"What about us?" he asked, his voice softer.

She didn't answer, tracing a loop pattern on the stone. Erick crouched beside her, close enough to touch. She shifted away, her skin buzzing.

"This one," he said, pointing to a symbol of two crescent moons. "It looks like the mark on my wrist."

Deborah looked at his arm. His golden birthmark had grown, matching the pattern on the shrine. She touched it. Heat shot through her, comforting like a warm bath.

Her head spun, and then she saw everything through Erick's eyes. Her own eyes looked sharp and questioning. She felt strong but untouchable, both fierce and frightening. Then she felt his emotions, the same feelings she tried to hide. And underneath it all, a pull towards her.

Deborah pulled back, gasping. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice shaky. "I didn't mean to do that."

"I know," Erick said quietly, stepping back. "The bond" felt wrong. "Just watch." Deborah walked away, needing space.

"Deborah," Erick said, his voice closer than she expected. "We need to understand these marks and what we're becoming. Ignoring it won't help."

"Maybe so," she said.

He looked hurt. His question wanted a truth she wasn't ready for, but his gaze broke her silence. "I'm scared," she said softly. "I've always been strong alone. If I need someone, they'll see I'm broken."

Erick moved closer. "You're not wrong," she said, changing the subject. "We should search the area. Elder Thorne said the shrine protects us, but we need to know how."

Erick didn't argue. They went down the stone steps into a circular room with murals. The murals showed two figures, one with silver flames, the other with golden light, holding back darkness.

"The Lunar Bloodline," Erick said.

Deborah studied their faces. The woman looked familiar, while the man...

"They resemble us," Erick said. The woman had Deborah’s fierce look, the man Erick’s build. The prophecy was that two souls would fix what was broken.

She touched the figures, and the mural glowed.

"Deborah, wait…"

Silver and gold light exploded. Deborah tried to back away, but energy shot through her, swamping her body. She felt herself sinking, but Erick caught her.

"Put me down," she said weakly. She tried to push away, but her limbs felt heavy. The mural's energy ran through her, searching for a purpose.

Erick carried her upstairs and laid her by the shrine. His eyes made her chest ache.

"What did you see?" he asked. "When you touched the mural."

"Everything," Deborah said. "Void-touching. Dark. They died, Erick."

"We're not going to let them do that to us."

"How can you possibly know that?"

Deborah swayed, and Erick caught her arm. This time, the touch brought a current between them, balancing her energy with his.

"You're channeling power to me," Deborah said.

The golden light from his mark spread into her. Deborah felt her strength return. Fatigue disappeared, replaced by warm energy. Her own silver light came to life, dancing with his gold. It felt right.

Erick's eyes widened. Then Deborah pulled away, scared of the intimacy.

"I need to check the perimeter," Erick said, his voice rough. "Deborah, what we just felt..."

"Nothing happened," she said.

The lie tasted bad, but Erick agreed.

Deborah sat alone by the shrine, her body still resonating with energy. She looked at her hands. A silver light shone on her left palm. She tried to hide it, but it kept coming.

It was marking her as his.

"No," she said to the wood. "It's just magic."

Only the prophecy binds us together, but she knew the truth.

The connection wasn't creating feelings. It was making the ones that already existed even bigger.

And that was worse.