Noah steadied his breath and dropped to one knee, pulling the weathered journal from his bag. The pages fluttered in the forest breeze as he flipped through them, his fingers trembling only slightly. The fog still clung to the trees, but something had shifted. The world felt watched.
Behind him, a small pink bird—the Dodo—stepped forward, its soft steps unnaturally silent on the grass.
"Where did you get that book?" the Dodo asked suddenly.
Noah jumped, startled.
Lumi gasped. "Did… did the bird just talk?! He's so cute! What animal is he?" She reached forward, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
The Dodo turned and glared.
However, his tiny round face and fluffy feathers only made him look more adorable. Lumi squealed, "I need to hug you—!"
But the moment her foot brushed an invisible boundary, her eyes widened. A torrent of memories flooded her mind—images of trees with faces, monsters rising from mist, voices in the dark—and she staggered backward, pale and breathless.
She nearly collapsed.
"Lumi!" Noah reached out instinctively, but she caught herself, staring at him with fear and confusion.
"What… what was that?"
He didn't answer. He was already turning back to the journal, flipping rapidly. What kind of Kin Tree are we facing? What are their weaknesses?
The Dodo's voice sharpened.
"Hey, kid. I'm talking to you."
"Solutions," Noah muttered, his eyes still scanning. "I'm looking for solutions."
The Dodo scoffed. "And what exactly are you going to do, huh? Fight them? You're just a kid."
Noah stopped turning pages. His voice was low but calm.
"In war, you don't win by running at your enemy. Sometimes you let someone else fight them for you."
The Dodo blinked.
Then Noah found it—handwritten, ink slightly smudged—Cassidy's notes.
> "During my expeditions, I encountered many species—some good, some evil… but all dangerous. Even the most adorable could be the deadliest. Like the Dodo. I named it that to remind myself: cute doesn't mean harmless."
The bird huffed loudly.
"That stupid girl stuck me with that name in the end," he grumbled.
Noah turned sharply. "You knew Cassidy Manson?"
"'Knew' is too kind," the Dodo replied. "That woman was a pest. She stuck her nose where it didn't belong."
"Woman? Wasn't Cassidy just a kid?"
The Dodo tilted his head. "She looked like a child. But inside? No child lived there. Not anymore."
That sent a chill through Noah. He looked back down at the journal, as if expecting it to change before his eyes.
"That book," the Dodo said, pointing with one tiny wing, "is one of her many. That one's focused on shard realms, runes, and magic theory… a bunch of stuff she didn't fully understand."
Another wave of realizations washed over Noah.
"And you?" Noah asked slowly. "You said someone knows more?"
"My master knows more about her than I ever did."
Noah stood. "Then take me to your master."
"No."
Noah blinked. "What?"
"I said no," the Dodo repeated. "We don't want humans here. You're all nuisances."
"I want to ask about a mirror—"
Before Noah could finish, the Dodo lunged. In the blink of an eye, he transformed—no longer a bird, but a humanoid beast with soft pink fur and glowing green claws. His claws pinned Noah to the ground, a snarl on his face.
"Noah!" Lumi screamed, terrified.
"You saw a shard mirror?!" the Dodo growled. "Where is it?! Did you stare into it? No… no, you'd be twisted by now. You survived. Where is it?!"
The pressure of his claw drew blood from Noah's neck. But what stunned him wasn't the pain; it was the face above him. The beast's eyes were fierce, but its features… beautiful. Feminine. Strange.
"Stop!" a voice boomed from the woods.
The beast froze.
"…Big sister," it growled toward the trees in protest.
The forest answered with a gust of wind that carried weight. Command.
The Dodo's claws lifted. Noah gasped for breath, hand at his neck.
"You're lucky," the forest voice echoed again, disembodied. "Not many survive a shard's touch. Perhaps it's luck… or something else."
Noah stood, shaky but defiant. "What are the shards? What's really going on?"
The voice grew cold. "Things you were never meant to unearth."
It turned sharp and commanding.
> "Dodo. Bring them to me. Now."
The Dodo hesitated. "Why are we wasting time? There are bigger threats than—"
"Do it," the voice interrupted. "Especially that boy. He's not the only one who remembers what should've stayed forgotten."
The Dodo growled but obeyed. Her beast form expanded once more. She grabbed Noah and Lumi with ease.
"Um… could we maybe… not go fast?" Lumi asked with a weak smile.
The Dodo grinned. "Hold on."
She vanished into the forest, trees bending away from her path as they tore through fog, roots, and branches.
---
Elsewhere…
Far below the forest, in an underground cavern humming with ancient energy, something moved.
A single broken shard—jagged and glowing faintly—hovered at the center of a stone pedestal carved with runes. Fog leaked from it, curling across the chamber.
A cloaked figure approached. A wide witch's hat cast a shadow over their face.
They reached one pale hand toward the mirror shard, whispering something.Noah steadied his breath and dropped to one knee, pulling the weathered journal from his bag. The pages fluttered in the forest breeze as he flipped through them, his fingers trembling only slightly. The fog still clung to the trees, but something had shifted. The world felt watched.
Behind him, a small pink bird—the Dodo—stepped forward, its soft steps unnaturally silent on the grass.
"Where did you get that book?" the Dodo asked suddenly.
Noah jumped, startled.
Lumi gasped. "Did… did the bird just talk?! He's so cute! What animal is he?" She reached forward, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
The Dodo turned and glared.
However, his tiny round face and fluffy feathers only made him look more adorable. Lumi squealed, "I need to hug you—!"
But the moment her foot brushed an invisible boundary, her eyes widened. A torrent of memories flooded her mind—images of trees with faces, monsters rising from mist, voices in the dark—and she staggered backward, pale and breathless.
She nearly collapsed.
"Lumi!" Noah reached out instinctively, but she caught herself, staring at him with fear and confusion.
"What… what was that?"
He didn't answer. He was already turning back to the journal, flipping rapidly. What kind of Kin Tree are we facing? What are their weaknesses?
The Dodo's voice sharpened.
"Hey, kid. I'm talking to you."
"Solutions," Noah muttered, his eyes still scanning. "I'm looking for solutions."
The Dodo scoffed. "And what exactly are you going to do, huh? Fight them? You're just a kid."
Noah stopped turning pages. His voice was low but calm.
"In war, you don't win by running at your enemy. Sometimes you let someone else fight them for you."
The Dodo blinked.
Then Noah found it—handwritten, ink slightly smudged—Cassidy's notes.
> "During my expeditions, I encountered many species—some good, some evil… but all dangerous. Even the most adorable could be the deadliest. Like the Dodo. I named it that to remind myself: cute doesn't mean harmless."
The bird huffed loudly.
"That stupid girl stuck me with that name in the end," he grumbled.
Noah turned sharply. "You knew Cassidy Manson?"
"'Knew' is too kind," the Dodo replied. "That woman was a pest. She stuck her nose where it didn't belong."
"Woman? Wasn't Cassidy just a kid?"
The Dodo tilted his head. "She looked like a child. But inside? No child lived there. Not anymore."
That sent a chill through Noah. He looked back down at the journal, as if expecting it to change before his eyes.
"That book," the Dodo said, pointing with one tiny wing, "is one of her many. That one's focused on shard realms, runes, and magic theory… a bunch of stuff she didn't fully understand."
Another wave of realizations washed over Noah.
"And you?" Noah asked slowly. "You said someone knows more?"
"My master knows more about her than I ever did."
Noah stood. "Then take me to your master."
"No."
Noah blinked. "What?"
"I said no," the Dodo repeated. "We don't want humans here. You're all nuisances."
"I want to ask about a mirror—"
Before Noah could finish, the Dodo lunged. In the blink of an eye, he transformed—no longer a bird, but a humanoid beast with soft pink fur and glowing green claws. His claws pinned Noah to the ground, a snarl on his face.
"Noah!" Lumi screamed, terrified.
"You saw a shard mirror?!" the Dodo growled. "Where is it?! Did you stare into it? No… no, you'd be twisted by now. You survived. Where is it?!"
The pressure of his claw drew blood from Noah's neck. But what stunned him wasn't the pain; it was the face above him. The beast's eyes were fierce, but its features… beautiful. Feminine. Strange.
"Stop!" a voice boomed from the woods.
The beast froze.
"…Big sister," it growled toward the trees in protest.
The forest answered with a gust of wind that carried weight. Command.
The Dodo's claws lifted. Noah gasped for breath, hand at his neck.
"You're lucky," the forest voice echoed again, disembodied. "Not many survive a shard's touch. Perhaps it's luck… or something else."
Noah stood, shaky but defiant. "What are the shards? What's really going on?"
The voice grew cold. "Things you were never meant to unearth."
It turned sharp and commanding.
> "Dodo. Bring them to me. Now."
The Dodo hesitated. "Why are we wasting time? There are bigger threats than—"
"Do it," the voice interrupted. "Especially that boy. He's not the only one who remembers what should've stayed forgotten."
The Dodo growled but obeyed. Her beast form expanded once more. She grabbed Noah and Lumi with ease.
"Um… could we maybe… not go fast?" Lumi asked with a weak smile.
The Dodo grinned. "Hold on."
She vanished into the forest, trees bending away from her path as they tore through fog, roots, and branches.
---
Elsewhere…
Far below the forest, in an underground cavern humming with ancient energy, something moved.
A single broken shard—jagged and glowing faintly—hovered at the center of a stone pedestal carved with runes. Fog leaked from it, curling across the chamber.
A cloaked figure approached. A wide witch's hat cast a shadow over their face.
They reached one pale hand toward the mirror shard, whispering something.