Lying there, staring at the ceiling, he found his thoughts drifting back to Elara. The way she'd been avoiding him, the cold glances, the way she always seemed to be nearby, watching, waiting, but never speaking. It had gnawed at him ever since he returned, but now it felt like the pieces were finally falling into place.

The voice in the alley... it was Elara. The realization hit him like a bolt of lightning, his stomach twisting with guilt.

Groaning, Kael rubbed his face with his hands. "I messed up… again," he muttered under his breath, the weight of his failures pressing down on him like a stone. He had pushed her away when he should have been there for her, and now it was too late.

Kael paced anxiously in his room at the inn, the weight of the girl's words still heavy in his mind. The quiet of the night pressed in on him, and he felt a deep ache for Elara, an urgency that made his heart race. He needed answers, clarity, and maybe even a path toward redemption.

Suddenly, a familiar whisper slithered from the shadows, its tone darker but disturbingly gentle.

"Kael."

He froze. The room seemed to close in, the faint light casting sinister shapes on the walls. His skin crawled. "Who's there?" he barked, though deep down, he knew. He had known this voice ever since the day he fled.

"You know me," the voice cooed, a false warmth dripping from every word. "I've always been here, lurking... waiting. Watching."

Kael swallowed, his throat tight. "Help me? You accused me of running away," he spat, crossing his arms defensively.

A soft chuckle echoed, a sound that both mocked and reassured. "Ah, yes. Running away, but only because you didn't see the full picture." The voice grew colder. "But I can show you what you've missed—what they suffered because of you."

Kael hesitated, but a creeping dread stirred within him, the need to know clawing at his gut. "Show me," he whispered.

The walls around him dissolved into blackness, swallowing him whole. When the world rematerialized, he stood at the center of the village. But it was no longer the bustling place he remembered. The streets were ravaged, debris scattered like the remnants of a broken dream. Shadows twisted unnaturally, looming over everything.

Kael's stomach churned as grotesque creatures tore through the village. The air was thick with the cries of the dying, steel clashing against monstrous flesh. And there, amidst the chaos, was Elara, her sword gleaming as she cut down her enemies, her face hard with exhaustion.

"Fight harder! We can't let them through!" she roared, her voice fierce but edged with desperation.

Kael's heart pounded as he watched Jorvan wield a jagged weapon, Amelia tending to the wounded, and Maren screaming orders. It was a nightmare, a brutal reality that gnawed at his soul. But then, one by one, they began to fall. The creatures swarmed, and his people crumbled under their weight, their cries snuffed out like candles in a storm.

"No!" Kael gasped, fists trembling as horror flooded through him. "No, no, this can't be real!"

The voice hummed in his ear, dark and knowing. "This is what happens when you abandon them, Kael. This is the price of your cowardice. They fought for you, but they were doomed without their 'hero.'"

His chest burned with guilt and rage. "I didn't know! I thought—"

"You thought wrong," the voice cut him off sharply, though its tone softened once more. "But now, you know the truth. They needed you. And they still do."

The vision shifted again, dragging Kael's gaze to Elara. She knelt beside a fallen villager, tears streaking down her face as she cradled the lifeless body. "I should have done more," she whispered, broken.

"Stop!" Kael cried, the weight of the scene too much to bear. "I can't… I can't watch this!"

"Then don't watch," the voice whispered, its tone serpentine, curling around him like a noose. "Act. You can still make it right, but only if you stop hiding and embrace the power you fear. Find Elara. Apologize. Make them believe in you again… or leave them to rot. The choice is yours, Kael."

A deep silence fell over him. The burden of his past pressed heavy on his shoulders, suffocating. He clenched his fists. "I have to find her. I need to… fix this."

"Good," the voice purred, pleased. "But fixing things will require more than words. It will require you to embrace what you are becoming, Kael. Don't shy away from your power. Use it, command it, and they will follow you again."

As the vision faded, Kael stood alone in the cold room once more, but the echo of that voice lingered in his mind like a dark promise.

"I will guide you," it whispered.