The spiral tunnel changed again.
The walls became smooth, like glass. The floor shimmered like black water, but firmly held her steps. Elara's spiral mark pulsed fast and bright. Her heart felt tight, like something was being pulled out of her chest.
Suddenly, she was no longer in the tunnel.
She stood in a candle-lit room filled with books, vials, and herbs hanging from the ceiling. The scent of lavender and burning parchment filled the air.
At the center stood a woman in a dark robe, her hair long and wild, her eyes fierce and glowing faintly gold.
Her mother.
Elara's breath caught.
She barely remembered anything about her mother.
But here she was- real and alive.
The woman stood at a small table, drawing a glowing spiral with chalk.
Behind her, Elara, as a little girl, was sitting quietly on the floor, playing with a paper bird. She was little, five maybe.
And beside her…
A boy.
Rhian.
The woman raised her hand.
"Elara," she said softly. "Come here."
The little girl stood and walked forward.
The older Elara, the one watching the memory, followed, unnoticed, her heart thudding. This wasn't a dream. It was a memory. A secret buried deep or probably erased.
Her mother knelt and touched both children's foreheads.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "But you must forget."
Young Rhian looked confused. "Forget what?"
"You've seen too much. The book has already felt you."
"The book?" little Elara asked. "The red one?"
Her mother's face darkened. "Yes. The Grimoire."
She traced a glowing mark in the air, a burning spiral made of strange symbols.
"Elara. Rhian. I must keep you safe. One day you'll remember… but not yet. Then, you'll understand why I had to do this."
She sadly smiled at the children whispered a spell:
"Memorae velaris. In somno dormient."
Light exploded around them.
Then the memory changed again.
The same room, but darker.
The spiral now pulsed red, and the candles were out.
Elara's mother stood in the center, wounded, her hand bleeding. She held the red Grimoire open and glowing with dark fire.
She screamed the same words, but this time the spiral broke.
"Memorae-"
The book swallowed her voice.
And the room turned black.
Elara gasped andfell to her knees.
She was back in the spiral tunnel. Her hands were shaking and her eyes burned with hot tears.
"She made me forget," she whispered.
Not just her mother.
Rhian. The book. The spell.
And somewhere in the mix…
The Grimoire was born.
Not written. Not summoned.
Born out of a memory sealed and a spell gone wrong.
The spiral whispered again, softer this time.
"Now she remembers.
Now the page turns."
Ahead of her,a door opened, black and gold, shaped like a flame.
Elara stood.
And walked toward it.