DAWN

DAWN | Chapter 1

He should've done so many things differently. But he hadn't, and now she was gone.

Gone.

And he would never see her again.

His vision blurs slightly, the word echoing around in his head like some twisted melody.

Gone.

Forever.

The woman he'd fallen in love with, despite everything that'd been stacked against them.

Taken from him by his own father.

The decision takes shape easily in Kale's mind, fuelled by loss and mourning. If he and Blake succeed in locating the Shadow forces, Kale will not hesitate to kill Ashleigh. He'd do it. For her.

All of it for her.

He'd enact Harper's revenge.

And he'd claim his revenge for her death.

She deserved that much, even if her dedication to the cause had always extended beyond her personal motivations to avenge her parents.

Kale knew that it had.

From the very first moment he'd met her, he'd known she was the main driver of a much larger change, even if she hadn't realised it. She'd helped to unite the people of their world and pushed them to overcome tradition in search of something better, something greater.

That was no easy feat.

Harper Bryant had been a miracle. His miracle.

And he missed her more than he'd ever have believed.

He'll always miss her.

Her death had taken a part of him; had torn out a chunk of his heart that would never be replaced. It's absence would forever be a reminder of what he'd lost, what he would never find again.

An agonising, constant absence brought upon him by his own father.

Kale is snapped back to the present by a sharp whistle. His eyes instantly dart to the right, trained on Blake. It was their signal.

His brother has spotted something.

Blake motions for Kale to take cover behind the nearest tree, as he himself ducks out of sight on the other side of the mostly overgrown path.

The grief in Kale's mind is overcome only by a burst of adrenaline. Have they found the Shadows? Is that what Blake has spotted?

Kale's eyes shift from Blake to their surroundings, monitoring, assessing.

Silence.

Nothing.

But Blake motions again to remain hidden, and Kale overrides his instinct to jump into action and instead trusts his brother. He stays put.

He'd never been able to trust Blake until Harper had come along. It was another thing she'd given him, something Kale had given up hope of ever experiencing — what it was like to have a brother.

Not just another person born from the same parents, but a rock. Someone that understood him almost as well as Harper herself had, and someone he could trust with his life in her absence. Someone he could rely on, who he knew would have his back.

Yes, Blake was all of those things to Kale. And he had Harper to thank for mending their previously shattered relationship.

A twig cracks — from the west. Kale's eyes focus on the forest ahead of them, scanning for the threat. For any sign of the entire army he and his brother were now seeking. Kale squints his eyes against the setting sun, appearing to light the forest on fire with its bright red and gold hues.