The horn's echo faded into the night, leaving only the ragged sound of Kael's breathing and the distant rustle of wind through the trees. The clearing still stank of blood and magic, the corpses of the adventurers sprawled like discarded dolls.
Kael tightened his grip on the blood-stone orb in his pouch. His pulse was still wild in his ears.
He turned to Fenrahl, whose crimson gaze was fixed on the direction the sound had come from.
"Who… what is the Forgotten Court?" Kael asked, his voice rough, cracking against the weight of everything that had just happened.
Fenrahl didn't answer at first.
He lifted his head, sniffing the air, the fur along his back bristling.
Finally, the ancient beast spoke.
"They are… what remains of monsters like me. Beasts born before the kingdoms of men, before the first swords were forged and the first 'heroes' sang their hollow songs." His voice was a low growl, heavy with old grief.
"The Forgotten Court," he went on, "is a gathering of ancient beings — creatures cast aside, sealed, hunted, or driven into madness when humanity decided the world was theirs alone. Some, like me, linger in shadows. Others sleep beneath mountains, frozen lakes, or cursed forests. And some… some still walk among the living, hiding their nature in plain sight."
Kael swallowed hard.
"And they… sent that horn for us?"
Fenrahl's gaze met his.
"Not for us. For you."
A cold weight settled in Kael's chest.
"Why me?"
The beast's eyes softened, just a little.
"Because you carry more than just my mark now, Kael. The Blood Stone — it isn't a simple trinket. It was meant for one born of both bloodlines. Ogre and human. Flesh and spirit. Someone caught between the laws of monsters and men."
Kael stiffened.
"I'm… what?"
Fenrahl gave a low, humorless chuckle.
"You never wondered why you looked different from your kind? Why even your own ogre brethren never truly accepted you? Your blood is old. Marked by things neither side would claim openly. The Court… they watch for those like you. Some will want to guide you. Others to chain you. And a few… to tear you apart before you become something they can no longer control."
Kael's throat felt dry.
"And what about you?"
His voice was quiet.
"Why help me?"
Fenrahl stepped closer, lowering his massive form so his burning eyes were level with Kael's.
"Because I'm done watching the old world die. If one of us still has a chance to break the wheel, it's you."
A silence stretched between them.
Then Fenrahl's ears twitched.
"More are coming. And not the foolish adventurer kind."
Kael's skin prickled.
"Then let's move."
They vanished into the dark, deeper into the forest — the sounds of night growing quieter, as though even the beasts of the wild feared to be near them.
But Kael couldn't shake the feeling they were being followed.
Hours later, as they made camp in the ruins of an ancient stone shrine overrun by moss and vines, Kael sat by a flickering fire, his body weary but his mind turning.
He stared at the Blood Stone.
And then —
A voice. Soft.
Not Fenrahl's.
"Found you."
Kael spun, dagger drawn.
A figure stood at the edge of the firelight.
Tall. Hooded. A smile visible beneath the shadow of the cowl.
"The Court sends its regards… Bloodmarked."
The hooded figure stepped into the flickering firelight.
Her face was sharp, angular — the unmistakable, ageless beauty of an elf. But where most elves carried an air of aloof grace, this one radiated something far colder. Her hair was pale as bone, her eyes like shards of ice, and a faint, unnatural glow clung to her skin.
"Name's Aelvara."
Her voice was smooth as silk, but with a venomous undercurrent.
"Of the Forgotten Court."
Kael didn't lower his dagger.
"What do you want?" he spat.
Aelvara tilted her head.
"You. Bloodmarked. The Court has watched your… progress." She cast a sidelong glance at Fenrahl. "And your little pact."
Fenrahl's lips peeled back in a low snarl. "Stay your tongue, witch."
Aelvara's expression barely changed. If anything, her faint smile widened.
"You're a curiosity, Kael. One not meant to survive this long. But you did. And now the Court offers you sanctuary. Power. A place in the old order… before it falls entirely to ash."
Kael's grip tightened on his dagger.
"I'm not interested in being anyone's pawn. I've had enough of monsters and men deciding my worth."
The words hung heavy in the air.
Aelvara sighed.
"I was hoping you'd be reasonable."
Without warning, she raised her hand. Ancient words spilled from her lips like a soft prayer.
The ground beneath them trembled.
Kael felt the air grow thick, heavy. His lungs struggled to draw breath. Frost spiderwebbed across the stones. The flickering flames of their campfire died, swallowed by the cold.
Chains of pale-blue light burst from the earth, wrapping around Fenrahl's limbs, pinning the massive beast in place. He roared in fury, muscles bulging, but the magic held fast.
"Damn you!" Fenrahl bellowed.
Kael staggered, every bone in his body screaming. His knees buckled, and he fell to one knee, his bloodstone pulsing wildly in his pouch.
Aelvara stepped closer, the temperature plummeting with each footfall.
"What about now?" she whispered.
Her hand stretched toward him, fingers curling as if to seize his very soul.
"Join us… or be scattered to the winds like the others."
Kael's vision blurred. His fingers brushed the bloodstone, its warmth a sharp contrast to the freezing air.
Not yet. Not like this.
A voice — faint but unmistakable — rumbled in his mind.
"Call me, Kael."
Fenrahl's voice, deep and ragged.
Kael gritted his teeth, forcing his head up to meet Aelvara's cold gaze.
"I told you before," he hissed through clenched teeth, the bloodstone flaring in his grip, "I don't bow to anyone."
He crushed the bloodstone in his palm.
A pulse of crimson light burst outward.
The chains around Fenrahl cracked, then shattered.
The beast lunged, his form blurring with dark mist, claws aimed straight for Aelvara.
But she was fast.
So impossibly fast.
With a flick of her wrist, a barrier of ancient symbols sprang into place, catching Fenrahl's strike. The impact sent shockwaves through the air, trees cracking and earth splitting beneath their feet.
Kael used the moment's distraction to roll aside, retrieving his dagger.
Aelvara's smile faded, her eyes narrowing.
"Interesting."
Then she spoke again — not to Kael, but to the shadows beyond the ruins.
"Enough. The Court will not claim him… yet."
Kael's stomach dropped as more figures materialized in the gloom. Shapes too large, too misshapen to be human. Eyes glimmered in the dark. The faint sound of ancient armor clinking. Dozens of them.
The Forgotten Court was here.
Aelvara gave Kael a final, cold look.
"You've made your choice. We'll see how long you survive without us."
And in a swirl of mist and frost, she was gone.
The other figures vanished with her.
The oppressive weight lifted. The air warmed. The fire reignited.
Kael slumped against the stone wall, drenched in sweat.
Fenrahl limped to his side, blood matting his dark fur, his eyes filled with both pain and pride.
"You've just made yourself a proper enemy, Kael."
Kael coughed a bitter laugh.
"Story of my life."
And from the distant hills, another horn sounded — deeper, heavier, and older than before.
But this one wasn't from the Forgotten Court.
Something else was coming.