The wind whipped fiercely through the narrow canyon as the heirs pressed onward. The landscape had shifted once more—from the gentle twilight of the valley to a forbidding expanse of jagged stone and bitter winds. High above, dark clouds churned like restless spirits, and beneath them, a labyrinth of narrow passages and precipitous cliffs awaited. The air was charged with an electric tension, as if the very land were preparing to unleash a long-held secret.
Liam led the group along a narrow path carved into the rock face. The Emberheart glowed steadily at his chest, its warmth a small comfort amid the relentless chill. "There is a power here," he murmured, half to himself and half to his companions, "a force that both challenges and refines us. I feel it in the tremor of the stones beneath our feet—a call to face our destiny."
