The wind rustled through the trees as the last light of the day faded behind the mountains. I stood in the clearing, hands trembling as I tried to catch my breath. The weight of the Echo of Arcanum in my hand felt different today—heavier, almost as if it were waiting for something. My skin was slick with sweat, and my limbs burned with exhaustion. It had been hours since I first began training with the sword, hours that seemed to stretch endlessly, as if the sun itself had decided to mock my progress.
I was no closer to understanding the blade's power than I had been when I first touched it. It didn't hum with magic, didn't offer me a sense of strength. It was just a weapon, and I was just a kid, fumbling with forces I didn't even begin to understand.
I sighed, wiping a hand across my brow. I wanted so badly to be ready. To be able to wield the magic that had been thrust upon me. But I wasn't.
I wasn't even close.
Suddenly, the air seemed to shift. The breeze stilled, and a heavy silence fell over the clearing. My heart began to race, an instinctive sense of danger prickling at the back of my mind. I turned, scanning the tree line. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
Something was coming.
At first, I saw nothing. Just shadows, the soft murmur of leaves. Then, a low, rumbling noise echoed through the forest—like the growl of a massive beast, deep and guttural.
I stepped back, my eyes widening as the ground beneath my feet trembled. A shape loomed in the distance, moving steadily toward me. A massive figure, a towering monster that seemed to cast its shadow over the entire clearing. My breath caught in my throat as the creature came into view.
A Stone Golem.
The hulking figure was made of jagged rock and enchanted clay, its body covered in cracks that pulsed faintly with a sickly, magical light. The golem's eyes burned like molten embers, and its massive fists swung at its sides with each slow, deliberate step. The earth itself seemed to bow before it as the golem's presence caused the ground to tremble.
I froze, unable to move, paralyzed by the sheer scale of the thing. It was a guardian, a construct—immune to magic and built for destruction. I could feel its presence, like a storm gathering in the distance. It was heading straight for me.
I scrambled for the Echo of Arcanum, gripping the hilt with shaking hands. I had no illusions about my chances. This wasn't a wild animal I could outsmart or outrun. This was a creature made of stone and magic, built to protect something—or someone—and I was the intruder.
My mind raced. Magic. It had to work. The blade could... but I didn't know how to use it properly. I had no training, no idea what I was doing.
The golem's fist swung down with terrifying speed.
I barely managed to dodge, throwing myself to the side as the enormous fist collided with the earth. The ground cracked beneath the impact, sending a shockwave that knocked me off balance. I scrambled to my feet, heart pounding, but the golem was already turning, readying for another strike.
I raised the sword, trying to steady my breath, but my hands felt numb. The golem's fist came crashing toward me again, and this time, I had nowhere to run.
I didn't think—I just acted.
I swung the Echo of Arcanum with all the strength I could muster, the blade meeting the golem's arm with a bone-rattling clang. It was like striking a mountain. The blade was barely a scratch against the stone, and the impact nearly knocked me off my feet.
The golem didn't flinch.
I had no idea what I was doing. I was a child playing with forces far beyond me.
The golem swung again, and this time, it connected. The force of the blow sent me crashing into a nearby tree. My body collided with the trunk, and I felt the sharp snap of something in my side—my ribs. Pain flared through my body like wildfire, and for a moment, I couldn't breathe. My vision blurred, and all I could hear was the sound of my heart pounding in my ears.
I couldn't move.
I was too weak.
The golem lumbered toward me, its massive fist raised for the final blow. I could barely lift my head, could barely hold onto the Echo of Arcanum, but the sword felt like it was getting heavier by the second.
This was it. I was going to die.
And there was nothing I could do about it.
I closed my eyes, bracing for the end. The golem's fist came down with all its might, the earth quaking beneath it, and—
Whoosh!
A blast of wind tore through the clearing, knocking the golem back with unnatural force. The ground trembled beneath me, but I wasn't crushed. I opened my eyes in time to see the golem stumbling back, its massive body unsteady, as if something was holding it in place.
Then I saw her.
A woman. No, not a woman—something... more.
She stood a few paces away, her hands raised in the air, glowing with a strange, ethereal energy. She was tall, draped in a dark cloak that fluttered around her like smoke, her face obscured by a hood, but her eyes... they gleamed with an otherworldly intensity. A staff, tipped with a glowing orb, rested in her hand.
The air around her shimmered with arcane power. The wind seemed to obey her, swirling around her like a living thing.
She was... controlling the golem.
The creature stumbled, its massive form shaking as though struggling against some invisible force. The woman's voice was low, commanding, yet strangely calm as she muttered something I couldn't understand. Her words hung in the air like music, almost hypnotic.
"Enough," she said softly, her voice carrying a weight of finality.
The golem faltered, its body crumbling slightly under the pressure of her magic. It groaned as if in protest, but it was powerless to fight back. The woman's magic twisted the stone and clay that made up the golem, forcing it to its knees.
I watched, stunned, as the massive creature collapsed to the ground with a mighty crash. The earth shook beneath it, and dust flew into the air, but the woman stood unscathed, her hands lowered as the golem crumbled into rubble.
For a long moment, there was silence.
I couldn't move. I couldn't think. I just stared at her—this stranger who had saved my life.
She turned toward me, her eyes gleaming from beneath the hood. There was a flicker of recognition in her gaze, but she said nothing. She didn't even move as I slowly got to my feet, my body still aching from the blow.
"Who... are you?" My voice was barely above a whisper, hoarse from the pain and the shock of what had just happened.
The woman didn't answer immediately. Instead, she studied me for a moment, her expression unreadable. Then, with a flick of her wrist, she summoned a small, ethereal orb of light that floated in front of her, casting a soft glow over the clearing.
"I'm someone who was watching," she said, her voice distant, as if she were speaking from far away. "Someone who knew this moment would come."
My mind raced. Watching? Knew? How could she have known?
"Why... why did you help me?" I asked, still struggling to understand what had just transpired.
She glanced at me, her lips curling slightly. "You were never meant to face that thing alone."
Before I could say anything else, she turned and started walking away, her cloak flowing behind her like a shadow. "Get up," she called back over her shoulder. "You have a long way to go before you're ready."
And with that, she disappeared into the darkness of the forest.
I stood there, frozen, staring at the spot where she had been. My mind was a whirlwind of questions. Who was she? How did she know? And... why had she helped me?
I was no closer to answers, but one thing was clear: I wasn't alone in this world. Whoever she was, she was watching. Waiting. And maybe, just maybe, she was the key to unlocking the power I needed.
But for now, I was still too weak.
And that would change—no matter what.