In the middle of the night, while thousands of souls rested, Noah stared at the ceiling of her room. The stars that were supposed to shine in the dark had already faded, but she still clearly remembered when she had placed them there as a child.

Earlier, shortly after she had started packing her bags, her father had come to her room. Her mother refused to leave town and leave behind the family legacy, but her father needed time. And that time would be provided by Damon, his brother. Soon, he told his daughter that her uncle would come to pick her up.

A noise at the window brought her back to reality. From the window, she saw her uncle throwing pebbles, the pickup truck still running behind him.

“Hey, kid... Are you ready? We have to go…”

“Aren’t you coming in?"

“Honestly? I don’t want to look at your mother’s face. Come on, pack your things and get out. You can’t stay here anymore…”

Noah sighed, picked up the two suitcases, and threw them out the window. The sound of them dragging across the roof tiles and landing in her uncle’s arms seemed too loud in the middle of the night. She looked around one last time. She always knew this day would come, she just didn’t think it would be so soon.

She walked past her parents’ closed bedroom door. The house was completely dark and silent, except for the low hum of the refrigerator motor. She clutched her necklace tightly. She didn’t want to admit it, but the uncertain future frightened her.

Outside, the cold wind stung her skin. The gray sky was a perfect reflection of how she felt inside.

“I’m not bad, uncle.”

“I know.”

“So why?”

“People are afraid of what they don’t understand. We just need to show them that you’re not what they think you are…”

“Easy to say…”

“Yeah…”, he came closer and ruffled her hair. “Your father is going to take care of a few things before he meets us. And he’ll bring your brother. Your mother is blinded by the power that the Bexley name carries… Too blind to understand anything. So we’re going ahead. Together. You and me. A great team, right?”

“Aren’t you afraid of me?”

Damon laughed, crossing his arms. “I’ll tell you a secret.”, he said, leaning in and lowering his head so his eyes were level with hers. “I’m not a fucking elemental. Much less your father. You don’t scare me, because our mother was like you. And our mother was an incredible woman.”, he raised his head, straightened up, and walked to the car. “Come on... I’ll tell you the sordid secrets of the family.”

“You won’t abandon me? Ever? Can you promise me that?”

“Never, brat. Never.”

As they were about to get into the car, the sound of the back door opening caught their attention. Her father’s eyes were red and swollen. Wrapped in a worn robe, his shoulders slumped as if carrying the weight of all the decisions he didn’t have the courage to make, he opened his arms, waiting for a hug.

“Dad…”, Noah whispered, running to him.

He wrapped her in a tight, desperate embrace. His face was hidden in his daughter’s neck, his voice choked with emotion. “Forgive me, little star... Forgive me for everything... I should have protected you. I should have been stronger. But... I…”

He choked on his words and just held her tighter.

Damon stood still, silent, respecting the moment. There was a hint of sadness in his gaze, but also determination. When Elijah finally stepped away, he placed his hands on his daughter’s shoulders and looked at her as if trying to engrave every detail of her in his memory.

“Take good care of her, Damon. Please. I’ll find you as soon as I can.”

“I’ll take care of her, brother. With my life, if necessary.”

Damon hugged him tightly, and quickly.

Noah looked at her father one more time before following her uncle. Her eyes were filled with tears, but she remained silent. The early morning air was crisp, and the lights in the houses were off, except for one or two.

Damon started the engine with a soft purr and gently pressed the accelerator. As they drove away from the house and left the last lights of the city behind, Noah rested her forehead against the window, watching the world she had always known slowly disappear into the darkness.

“Uncle... my mom must hate me, right?”

“I would like to say no, but I don’t know... But don’t think about it. The important thing now is that you are safe.”

She nodded, but did not respond. She put her hand in her coat pocket and closed her eyes, exhaustion weighing heavily on her. And so, under the veil of dawn and the shadows of the trees, Noah left Kirel Valley without knowing when – or if – he would return.

The car drove along narrow roads, swallowed up by the early morning fog. Noah, nestled under the blanket in the passenger seat, tried to follow the curves of the road with her sleepy eyes, but gradually fatigue got the better of her. She dozed off to the sound of the engine and the rhythmic patter of light rain that had begun to fall.

It was the pale morning sun that woke her again, filtering through the trees and shining through the fogged-up glass. Damon was still driving steadily, but there was a deep weariness in his shoulders – as if carrying that escape weighed more than he was willing to admit.

Noah stretched slowly.

“Have we arrived somewhere?”, she looked around, not recognizing the place. “Where are we?”

Damon nodded, with a discreet half-smile. “Almost there. Just a few more minutes.”

She sat up straight on the seat, pushing the blanket away from her lap. Outside, the gray landscapes had given way to rolling hills, low vegetation, and a sleepy village at the bottom of a valley between mountains. The houses were simple, made of stone and aged wood. A single main street wound between them, lined with old lampposts and window boxes hanging from the windows.

The entrance sign, rusty and half fallen, read: Mirrowen Village.

They walked slowly past a grocery store with a moss-green awning, a small café with a blue façade, and a quiet church with a crooked bell. There was hardly anyone on the streets. Just a woman sweeping the sidewalk with a scarf on her head and a dog sleeping under a wooden bench.

Damon turned right down a cobbled alleyway and parked the car in front of a small, single-story house with low windows and faded paint.

“We’re here.”

Noah looked at the house with attentive eyes. It wasn’t big, but it seemed safe. An unkempt garden took over the front yard. There was ivy climbing up the wall and a rusty bench under a skinny tree.

“I thought we were leaving town, not hiding away at the end of the world…”

Damon let out a brief chuckle through his nose and got out of the car. He staggered slightly as he put his bad knee on the ground, but he hid it. He walked around and opened the door for Noah, taking her suitcases out of the car.

“It’s not like your dad gave me much time to plan anything…”, he shook his head. “We’ll rest here for a few days until I find a good town. It’ll be cramped at first, but it has hot water and an attic that doesn’t stink. The neighbor next door is mute, which means peace and quiet. And the radio signal picks up in two corners of the house. If you find both, let me know.”

“Radio signal? No internet?”

Damon laughed. “Look around, kid. Do you really think there’s internet here?”

“You want to kill me, you just can’t…”

“The only way you can die here is from boredom.”, he said, tossing a backpack to Noah. “Stop complaining and help me.”

Noah complained, but took some other backpacks and bags from the trunk. She walked to the door, waited for him to unlock it, and went in first.

The air was stale, but not hostile. There was the smell of wood, dust, and something like stored coffee. She took a deep breath, as if trying to mark that moment forever.

There, on the edge of the unknown, Noah knew that her life would never be the same again.

And, strangely, she felt no fear.