Day 13: Nylyrkon’s Journal

I found myself near the old ruins again. Not the kind of ruins that were there when I first came—those that had been swallowed by time and moss. This one was newer, like it had been carved just yesterday. The stone felt warm to the touch, as if it were breathing. I remember Vex standing by the river that evening, his voice low and urgent. ‘You’re not meant to be here,’ he said. Not a warning, not a threat—just a truth that made my chest tighten. I tried to tell him I didn’t feel that way, but the words stuck in my throat like sand. Now I wonder if it was the river’s water or his words that made me go back to the ruins. The cracks in the stone are deeper than I thought. I keep tracing them with my fingers, feeling the pulse beneath the surface. It’s like the earth is whispering something only I can hear. I don’t know what it wants, but I know I need to listen. The air smells of wet stone and something older, like the silence between breaths. I think about Nyx’s spark—how it flickered when I spoke of the cracks. Maybe the storm’s energy is draining her. Or maybe it’s just me who’s getting tired. But the earth feels alive, and I can’t stop wondering if it’s the only thing that understands me.