Olryme's Arc

Chapter 1 of 10

Olryme stepped into the crowded square and stopped beside a sleeping mortal. No one saw Olryme. No one ever did, unless Olryme allowed it. They had walked every age alone, searching for one dreamer who could stand beside them as an equal. This mortal was dreaming something new. Olryme watched, and wanted. A violet cliff rose from the ground where Olryme stood watch. It pushed up through stone and street, sparkling in the dark. The crowd thinned. Olryme folded their power inward, layer by layer, so the mortal would not burn. A shadow beast slid from an alley. Behind it came an assassin with a thin blade aimed at the mortal's throat. Olryme raised one hand. The shadow tore apart. The assassin froze, then crumbled into ash. A small bunny with amethyst fangs appeared at the mortal's feet, fur full of stars, eyes bright and fierce. It bared its teeth at the empty air. The mortal woke. They saw the cliff. They saw the bunny. They saw Olryme, and Olryme let themselves be seen. The mortal scrambled back, shaking. Olryme knelt and set a small token on the mortal's wrist, a bracelet shaped like tiny cloud steps. "You are not in danger from me," Olryme said. "But you are not safe in this world anymore." Olryme lifted the mortal into the sky. They came to rest on a floating island where a bright temple burned with steady flame. "This is where we begin," Olryme said. The mortal stared, afraid and awake. The first lesson started before either of them was ready.