Ink and Embers

hree – Beneath

leave the arch

y passing second, thickening with unsaid things. She watched him from a distance, th

flicked over the delicate parchment-everything he did was deliberate. But Eliana couldn't shake the feeling that

clenched at her sides, trying to

, the archive, her father's legacy? And why did it feel like she w

he silence, his voice low and rasping, "knowled

hadn't expected him to speak, especially not aft

, her voice steady despite the unease tigh

Was it regret? Or perhaps something dar

her, his eyes locked on hers with an intensity that made her breath catch. "You have n

arge, and Eliana felt her heart skip a beat. She stepp

uieter now, more determined. "I want to know what happened to

nt, it felt as though time itself had stopped. There was a heavin

t no less firm. "There are things buried deep, things that-

to protect her or warn her, but she knew one thing for certain: she couldn't s

and stepped back, pul

oice a whisper of steel. "I'm not afraid of the dar

o a half-smile. It was a smile that was both am

his tone teasing, but with an underc

cing. There was a tension between them now, an undeniable pull, something neither

plied firmly.

. He pulled down a leather-bound volume, its cover cracked and weathered with age. He opened it to a marked page,

his voice low, almost reverent. "The archive, these books... they hold more than just knowl

n her father's handwriting, the cryptic symbols and references to people she didn't recogniz

ut this?" she whispered, m

ng for her to process the information. When she finally looked up, her eyes meet

s at play here that you can't begin to imagine. Your father-he tried to protect you from i

ouldn't stop herself from asking the quest

ind of

door behind her, as if checking for anyone who might

archive... it's not just a collection of books and relics.

didn't understand what he meant, but she felt a deep unease settle in her chest.

ve creaked open, and the sound of footsteps echoed in the ha

e a warning. "Leave now. Yo

told her it wasn't the right moment to press further. With

," she said,

she turned and left the room, his gaze followi

ould feel the weight of everything pressing down on her-the mystery of her father

sn't afrai