The portal collapsed behind them in a cascade of snow and fractured light. As Ariella, Leo, and Eleanor stumbled out onto the icy ground just outside the estate's secured gate, the wind howled around them like a scream from another world.
Ariella dropped to one knee, arms wrapped tightly around her trembling daughter. Eleanor clutched her mother's coat, her small body shaking uncontrollably—not from cold, but from the lingering aftershocks of power.
Leo landed beside them, eyes scanning their surroundings with military precision. "We're clear. No tail. No frost signature."
"She tried to force her," Ariella gasped, brushing strands of hair from Eleanor's damp forehead. "Lira showed her futures. Alone. Burning. Frozen. She wanted her to choose fear."
Leo's jaw clenched. "Then we show her something else."
Recovery and Reflection
It took hours to stabilize Eleanor.
