Between Rayla and Callum as romantic.
The night had draped itself over the land of Xadia, a jeweled tapestry spun with strands of twinkling stars, the moon full and luminescent against the black velvet sky. In the Silvergrove, tranquility reigned as the Moonshadow elves relished the comforting embrace of their ancestral magic. It was a night where the troubles of war seemed distant whispers, lost to the peace that had tentatively begun to bloom.
In the heart of this calm resided Rayla, her silver hair reflecting the moon's glow, her mind lost in the rhythmic sound of whetstone against blade. Each swipe was an attempt to silence the uncertainty tugging at her - a restlessness she couldn't quell. Beside her, Callum, the kingdom of Katolis' prince and her partner in all things, watched her with an expression tinged with both admiration and concern.
“You should try to rest,” Callum said softly, his sketchbook forgotten in his lap. “You've been at this for hours.”
Rayla's hands stilled, and she looked up to meet his gaze. “I can't. It's like something's waiting out there, in the shadows. I can feel it in my bones.”
Callum's brow furrowed. Her instincts were rarely wrong. Ever since the battle at the Storm Spire, a weight had settled upon them, one that couldn't be easily lifted. It was true the war had ended, and peace was spoken of in every town and village, but peace was a delicate creature, easily spooked, easily shattered.
“Let's take a walk, then,” he suggested, offering her an easy smile, “Clear our heads under the moonlight.”
She hesitated, then nodded, sheathing her twin blades. Together, they stepped into the moonlit forest, the world around them shimmering with magical energy, the plants and trees alive with whispers of ancient enchantments. Their path meandered through the woods until they reached the banks of a crystal-clear stream, the water reflecting the heavens above.
It was there that they found it – half buried in the earth, a stone that seemed to pulse with an inner light. Rayla reached down, her fingers brushing against the smooth surface before she gripped it and pulled it free. The object was no ordinary stone, but an orb, and as her touch warmed its surface, an azure glow began to emanate from within.
The light danced upon their faces, revealing the mixture of wonder and apprehension in their eyes. They knew the magic of the primal stones, though none like this had ever been seen before, it sang of a primal source lost to the sands of time.
“What do you think it is?” Callum whispered, a gust of wind rustling the leaves around them as if in response.
Rayla turned the orb over in her hands, watching the light play along the edges of her vision. “It feels old... powerful,” she murmured. “And it’s connected to something. Something I don't quite understand... yet.”
The expression in Callum's eyes changed then; it was the look of a scholar faced with a tantalizing mystery, the soul of a mage set alight with the prospect of undiscovered magic.
“Then we'll figure it out. Together,” he affirmed, his hand finding hers in the darkness, intertwining their fingers. The warm assurance in his touch bolstered her spirit, and she returned the squeeze, grateful beyond words for his steadfast presence. “Whatever this is, we’ll face it—as we always do.”
As if in answer, the orb's light flared once more, casting long shadows on the ground that twisted and writhed like living things. In their hearts, they felt the coils of a coming storm, the prelude to a journey neither could have anticipated—one that would test the strength of their bond and the very fabric of the peace they had fought so bravely to achieve.
Unbeknownst to them, their discovery had awakened more than mere magic; it had stirred a force that had been waiting, biding its time in the darkness. A force that, as the moon climbed higher in the sky, would begin to cast its gaze upon the lands of Xadia with intentions as ancient as they were dark.