Ruby took a slow breath before climbing down from the loft.

  The voices below were quieter now, the earlier discussion settling into a tense silence broken only by the crackling of the hearth. The smell of roasted vegetables and fresh bread filled the cabin, warm and comforting, but the mood around the table felt heavier than usual.

  Lyriel sat near the fire with her arms folded while Darius leaned forward with his elbows on the table, rubbing his temples as if the conversation had already exhausted him. Calder stood by the window staring outside, and Lena sat near the hearth poking absentmindedly at a piece of wood with the end of her staff.

  “…tuition alone would be more than we could manage in a year,” Darius was saying quietly. “Even if we sold the spare horses.”

  Lyriel nodded slowly, her expression thoughtful. “The academy does offer sponsorships for promising students. I have a few acquaintances from my adventuring days who may be willing to write recommendations. That could reduce the cost considerably.”

  Ruby stepped down from the dder.

  The wooden rung creaked softly under her weight.

  Everyone looked up.

  The conversation stopped instantly.

  Ruby hesitated for half a second, then walked toward the table with her hands csped behind her back.

  “I heard you,” she said quietly.

  Darius frowned slightly. “Ruby—”

  “It’s okay,” she interrupted gently, gncing between them. “I know you mean well.”

  She shifted her weight and looked directly at Lyriel.

  “But sending a ten-year-old girl to live on a college campus full of sixteen- to twenty-four-year-olds… and professors with their own motives… and students with their own agendas…” Ruby shook her head slowly. “That’s probably not the best pn.”

  Lyriel studied her carefully but didn’t interrupt.

  Ruby took a small step forward.

  “Please train me,” she said. “At least until I’m sixteen.”

  The words hung in the room.

  Ruby hurried to continue before anyone could respond.

  “I can work for it,” she added quickly, her voice growing more earnest. “Anything you need done around the new house. Chopping wood. Carrying water. Helping with cooking. Cleaning. I’ll do whatever you ask.”

  She gnced briefly at her father.

  “And it gives us time to figure out how to pay for the academy ter.”

  The room remained quiet.

  Calder shifted slightly near the window, and Lena stopped tapping her staff.

  Darius leaned back slowly in his chair and crossed his arms, his brow furrowed with concern as he looked at his daughter.

  “Ruby,” he said carefully, “is that really what you want?”

  Lyriel spoke next, her voice calm but serious as she watched the girl across the table.

  “Child prodigies are not unheard of,” the elf said. “If you were accepted now, you would be the youngest student the academy has ever admitted.”

  Ruby nodded slowly.

  “I know.”

  She looked back at them.

  “And that’s exactly why it’s safer if I wait.”

  The words came out more firmly now.

  “Once I’m sixteen… I’ll be an adult.”

  She paused, then turned toward her father again.

  “Please, father,” Ruby said softly. “I don’t want to live without you and mom yet.”

  Then she looked up at him with wide hopeful eyes.

  The full puppy-dog expression.

  Darius held her gaze for about two seconds before sighing deeply and rubbing his face with both hands.

  Calder chuckled quietly under his breath.

  Lyriel gnced toward him. “What?”

  Calder shrugged. “That look works on everyone.”

  Darius lowered his hands and shook his head slowly, though the corners of his mouth twitched with reluctant amusement.

  “I already wasn’t thrilled about sending my ten-year-old daughter across the kingdom,” he admitted. “And now she’s giving me those eyes.”

  Ruby remained perfectly still.

  Waiting.

  Finally Darius looked toward Lyriel.

  “Well?” he asked.

  The elven battlemage studied Ruby for a long moment.

  The girl stood straight, her posture determined but hopeful, clearly bracing herself for the decision.

  Lyriel’s expression softened slightly.

  “…very well,” she said at st. “If you truly wish to train until sixteen, I will teach you what I can during that time.”

  Ruby’s shoulders rexed with relief.

  Lena groaned quietly beside the hearth. “Great,” she muttered. “Now I get six years of training with a disaster generator.”

  Lyriel shot her daughter a brief look that silenced further compints.

  Darius leaned forward and rested his hands on the table.

  “Then it’s settled,” he said.

  Mira stepped into the room at that moment carrying a steaming pot and raised an eyebrow at the tense group gathered around the table.

  “Good,” she said calmly. “Because dinner is ready.”

  The tension in the room broke almost instantly.

  Chairs scraped against the floor as everyone moved toward the table.

  Ruby sat down quietly, trying not to smile too obviously.

  Inside, however, her thoughts were already racing ahead.

  Six years.

  Six years before the academy.

  Six years to train.

  Six years to learn everything Arkhavel could teach her.

  Ruby gnced briefly toward the loft where the ghost master still lingered unseen.

  The academy might have the brightest minds in the world.

  But by the time she arrived there…

  She intended to surprise all of them.

  Two years ter.

  Ruby sat cross-legged on her bed with her eyes closed, breathing slowly as she guided the warm current of mana through her body. She was twelve now. Her fiery red hair had grown longer, usually tied loosely behind her neck when she trained, and the constant climbing, sparring, and spellwork had given her lean muscle that hadn’t been there when she was ten.

  Her mana flowed steadily through her chest and arms while she pulled faint threads of energy from the world around her.

  Inhale.

  Absorb.

  Circute.

  Release.

  The process was familiar now. Almost calming.

  Ruby tried not to think about the other changes her body would soon go through. She had overheard Mira talking about it with Lena once. The thought of her first period was… not something she was looking forward to.

  She focused harder on her meditation.

  The quiet hum of mana filled her senses.

  Then a voice interrupted.

  “Come.”

  Ruby’s eyes opened.

  Arkhavel hovered beside the window.

  The ghost’s glowing form was faint tonight, but his expression was serious.

  “Follow me,” he said.

  Before Ruby could ask anything, he drifted straight through the wall and out into the night.

  Ruby sighed quietly, slid off the bed, and moved toward the window. She pushed it open and slipped outside, carefully climbing down the snted roof before dropping lightly onto the stacked logs beside the cabin.

  She had done this many times now.

  The forest beyond the house was dark and quiet.

  Ruby lifted one hand and summoned a small fme that floated above her palm, its light casting long dancing shadows between the trees.

  Arkhavel drifted ahead of her through the woods.

  She followed.

  The deeper they walked, the quieter the forest became.

  Eventually they reached a small clearing.

  Ruby immediately recognized it.

  It was the same pce.

  The pce where she had first summoned him.

  Two years of rain and wind had erased every trace of the ritual she had performed that night. There were no animal bones, no blood markings, no ash from the circle she had drawn.

  Just grass.

  Trees.

  And silence.

  Ruby stepped into the clearing and lowered her fme slightly.

  “Why are we—”

  Arkhavel began speaking before she could finish.

  “Long ago,” he said quietly, “in a dimension far different from our own, there existed beings of immense power.”

  Ruby looked up at him.

  “They desired recognition,” the ghost continued. “Legacy. Worship. They wished to create something that would remember them.”

  He drifted slowly across the clearing while he spoke.

  “So they created this world.”

  Ruby listened silently.

  “These beings are what the people of this world now call gods. They shaped the nd. The oceans. The skies. And then they created life. Humans. Elves. Dwarves. Giants. Dragons. Creatures of feather and scale and fur. They filled the world until their imagination was exhausted.”

  The forest around them remained still.

  “But they made one mistake.”

  Ruby tilted her head slightly.

  “They never pnned for what would happen after their creations died.”

  The ghost’s glowing eyes dimmed slightly.

  “The souls of the dead had nowhere to go.”

  Ruby frowned.

  “At first it was only a few. Then hundreds. Then millions. Lost souls wandering between worlds.”

  Arkhavel’s voice grew quieter.

  “Some became angry. Some confused. Some desperate enough to steal the bodies of the living.”

  Ruby’s eyes widened slightly.

  “They became the first demons.”

  The fme in Ruby’s hand flickered.

  “The gods who created this world panicked,” Arkhavel continued. “They had brothers and sisters who had built other worlds. But these six… had been foolish.”

  “Six?” Ruby asked.

  “Yes.”

  He nodded.

  “So they turned to their seventh brother.”

  “The God of Death.”

  Ruby felt a strange chill run through her.

  “This god was kind,” Arkhavel said softly. “He agreed to help them. He created a realm where the souls of the dead could gather peacefully.”

  Ruby listened carefully.

  “For centuries he guided the souls that passed from this world. But the number of dead continued to grow. The burden became too great.”

  “So he sought help.”

  Arkhavel’s voice hardened slightly.

  “He searched for beings who shared his affinity. Souls that could wield the magic of death itself.”

  Ruby’s chest tightened.

  “He found them among the demons.”

  Ruby blinked.

  “The first demon lord accepted his offer,” Arkhavel said. “But power corrupts. Over time the demons rebelled. They stole the God of Death’s power and reshaped his realm into something else.”

  “H-hell,” Ruby whispered.

  Arkhavel nodded.

  “The God of Death retreated and created a new realm instead. A paradise for the souls who deserved peace.”

  Ruby thought of her past life.

  Of heaven.

  The simirities made her stomach twist slightly.

  “He began rescuing worthy souls before they could fall into hell,” Arkhavel continued. “Blessing them. Sending them onward to become gods themselves.”

  Ruby’s heart skipped.

  Exaltation.

  The word echoed in her mind.

  It sounded… almost exactly like the religion she had grown up with.

  Arkhavel turned toward her.

  “But eventually,” he said quietly, “the God of Death decided to recim the power the demons had stolen.”

  Ruby waited.

  “He needed warriors.”

  “So he returned to this world… and granted certain races the ability to wield dark magic.”

  Ruby’s breath caught slightly.

  “But those who received it were often corrupted,” Arkhavel said sadly. “The power of death frightened people. Dark magic gained a terrible reputation.”

  The ghost looked up toward the stars.

  “The God of Death was betrayed many times. Defeated many times. Now he simply watches over the souls who deserve salvation.”

  His voice softened.

  “He only answers when a truly kind soul calls for him.”

  Ruby stared at him.

  Arkhavel looked back down at her.

  “I was once like you.”

  Ruby blinked.

  “My vilge was destroyed during a raid,” he said quietly. “My family sughtered before my eyes. I was cut down as well.”

  Ruby felt her throat tighten.

  “But I did not want to die,” he continued. “My will to live reached him.”

  “The God of Death appeared before me.”

  Ruby whispered, “He healed you.”

  Arkhavel nodded.

  “And he asked me if I would aid him.”

  Ruby already knew the answer.

  “I agreed.”

  The ghost’s eyes dimmed.

  “But I was weak.”

  Ruby frowned.

  “I tried to resurrect my family,” he said.

  His voice cracked slightly.

  “They returned as mindless corpses.”

  Ruby’s stomach dropped.

  “I had not yet learned the ritual of true resurrection.”

  Arkhavel closed his eyes briefly.

  “My grief became madness. I committed terrible acts in pursuit of power.”

  Ruby said nothing.

  “In the end… my closest friend was the one who struck me down.”

  The forest was silent.

  “In death,” Arkhavel said quietly, “I was not granted paradise.”

  Ruby swallowed.

  “I want you to be my repentance.”

  He looked directly at her.

  “Become the Dark Archmage.”

  “Use the power of death to protect the innocent.”

  “Become the God of Death’s arbiter of justice.”

  “And perhaps…”

  His voice faded.

  “…save my soul.”

  Ruby’s chest felt tight.

  “That,” he said softly, “is my true request.”

  Ruby stood there stunned.

  The story.

  The tragedy.

  The strange parallels to her old faith.

  Finally she nodded.

  “I promise, master,” she said quietly. “I will.”

  Arkhavel smiled.

  “I believe you.”

  Then he extended his hand.

  “Now… give me your hand.”

  Ruby hesitated only for a moment before pcing her hand in his.

  For the first time since she had summoned him, she felt his touch.

  Warm.

  Solid.

  Their hands began to glow.

  Ruby frowned.

  “Master…?”

  The light intensified.

  Arkhavel looked at her with something like sadness.

  “I wish I could watch you grow up,” he said softly. “You will become a beautiful woman one day, many men will fancy you. I'd torture the lot of them."

  Ruby’s face twisted in confusion.

  “…what?”

  “Child, to pass an affinity,” he continued gently, “I must give you part of my soul.”

  Ruby’s heart skipped.

  “And since I am only a soul now…”

  The glow grew brighter.

  “…I will not survive the transfer.”

  Ruby’s eyes widened.

  “Wait.”

  His grip tightened.

  “What?”

  Arkhavel’s form was already beginning to dissolve into tiny glowing particles.

  “Wait, what?!” Ruby shouted. “No! No! No!”

  “It is too te, Ruby.”

  The light intensified around them.

  “Just know…”

  His voice softened.

  “…I am proud to have you as my disciple.”

  “Wait!” Ruby cried. “You promised! You said you would train me! You said you would guide me!”

  The specter’s form was breaking apart now.

  “Farewell, child.”

  “Good luck.”

  The blue particles of his soul lifted into the air like glowing pollen carried by the wind.

  Red strands of energy sank into Ruby’s body.

  “NO!” Ruby screamed.

  Her voice echoed through the forest.

  The st fragments of Arkhavel disappeared into the night sky.

  Ruby colpsed to her knees in the clearing.

  Her chest heaved as the reality struck her.

  Her teacher.

  Her master.

  The presence that had guided her for two years.

  Gone.

  The forest suddenly felt enormous and empty around her.

  Ruby pressed both hands into the dirt as tears blurred her vision and spilled freely down her cheeks.

  “You promised…” she whispered hoarsely. “You said you’d guide me.”

  Her shoulders shook as the grief finally broke through the walls she had built around it.

  For two years Arkhavel had been there.

  Every morning.

  Every night.

  Watching. Correcting. Pushing her.

  Teaching her to bend mana in ways no one else even understood.

  Now the clearing was silent.

  Ruby dragged a shaking breath into her lungs and wiped at her face, but the tears kept coming.

  “Stupid ghost…” she choked out quietly. “You can’t just… disappear like that.”

  Her voice cracked completely.

  She bent forward and covered her face with her hands as the sobs finally broke loose.

  Behind her, the ground began to change.

  At first it was subtle.

  The grass beneath her knees slowly lost its color.

  Bright green faded to pale yellow.

  Then dull orange.

  Then brittle brown.

  Ruby didn’t notice.

  Her shoulders trembled as she cried into her hands.

  “I didn’t even get to say goodbye… not to you... or them."

  A thin shadow spread outward from where she knelt.

  It crawled across the clearing like spilled ink.

  Where the darkness touched the grass, the life drained away instantly.

  Bdes of grass shriveled and curled inward before colpsing into dry husks.

  The shadow continued spreading.

  It reached the roots of the nearby trees.

  Leaves high in the branches began to discolor.

  Green faded.

  Yellow appeared along the veins.

  Then orange.

  Then deep brown.

  One by one the leaves loosened and fell from the branches.

  They drifted silently down through the night air like dying butterflies.

  Ruby remained hunched over, sobbing quietly, completely unaware.

  The shadow climbed slowly up the bark of the nearest tree.

  The trunk darkened as the life inside it withered.

  More leaves fell.

  Then more.

  The forest around the clearing began to change color.

  An expanding circle of decay spread outward from the girl kneeling in the dirt.

  Dead leaves scattered across the ground around her.

  The air itself seemed to grow colder.

  Still Ruby cried.

  Her grief poured out unchecked.

  The dark magic inside her chest pulsed in response.

  It answered her pain the only way it knew how.

  By taking life.

  More leaves withered.

  More grass died.

  The patch of earth around Ruby slowly turned gray and lifeless.

  A ring of dying forest expanded quietly into the night.

  And in the center of it all…

  "Master..." Ruby wept.

  Unaware that the world around her was beginning to die.