The wind in the Karakoram mountains howled like a wounded spirit, its voice sharp and mournful. Zahra tightened the straps of her thermal cloak as she trudged behind Mufti Rafiq along a narrow, snow-covered path that coiled upward through jagged cliffs. The altitude pressed heavily on her lungs, but the Book of Veil pulsed warmly inside her satchel, steadying her breath and strengthening her steps.
Below, in the icy valley, the village of Skardu slumbered in a deceptive peace. It was here the last Marked One had vanished — a teenage girl whose eyes had turned silver before she walked into the mountains and never returned.
They were searching for her. Or rather, for what she had become.
"Are you sure she's alive?" Zahra asked, her voice muffled by the scarf covering her mouth.
Rafiq nodded solemnly. "Yes. The bone doesn't lie."
He held out a carved femur — part of an old ritual tool — which glowed faintly when pointed toward the cliff above. "She's not alone anymore. Something has found her. Something old."
Zahra's stomach clenched. The last time she followed such a trail, it led to the emergence of a Shadowed One. And this time, the power felt... darker.
They reached a cavern entrance half-hidden by hanging ice. Strange markings were scrawled on the rock — symbols Zahra recognized from the Book of Veil. Ancient warnings. A seal is broken.
Inside, the darkness swallowed them.
Zahra touched the staff in her hand, whispering a word. A soft blue light radiated from the crystal at its top, casting shimmering patterns on the icy walls. As they moved deeper, she felt a pulsing beneath her feet — not from the earth, but from something below it.
"She's down there," Rafiq said quietly.
They descended a staircase carved by hands long dead. The air grew warmer and damper, thick with the scent of iron and moss. The cave opened into a wide chamber — and there, in the center, sat the girl.
She was no older than seventeen. Her hair was a tangled curtain of white strands, and her skin glowed with faint silver lines. She sat in a trance, surrounded by a circle of bones and candlelight. And behind her…
A statue. No, not a statue — a creature turned to stone. Massive, with wings outstretched and hollow eyes frozen in mid-roar.
"The Sealed One," Rafiq whispered.
Zahra stepped forward. "A Shadowed One trapped in stone?"
"For now."
The girl's eyes opened.
"Are you the surgeon?" she asked, her voice distant, as though echoing through lifetimes.
"I am."
The girl smiled weakly. "He spoke of you. The Collector."
Zahra's heart thumped. "What did he say?"
"That your heart holds both keys — healing and ruin. He wants the ruin."
Zahra moved to the edge of the bone circle. "What is your name?"
"Safina," she whispered. "But I don't know if I'm still her."
Zahra reached out. "You are. Come with me."
But before her fingers could touch the circle, the cavern shook violently. Cracks split the floor, and the bone markings ignited with crimson light. The stone creature behind Safina began to glow — the hollow eyes pulsing red.
"We have to go!" Rafiq shouted.
Zahra ignored him. She dropped to her knees, chanting from the Book of Veil. The language was not her own, but it flowed from her mouth as though she'd always known it.
The runes dimmed.
Safina collapsed into Zahra's arms.
But the creature's eyes flared one last time — and in that moment, Zahra felt it.
A fragment of its spirit jumped.
Into her.
The Vision
Zahra blinked.
She was no longer in the cave.
She stood in a burning city, ruins collapsing around her. Screams echoed in the smoke. And above it all, a winged shadow soared, laughing.
She saw herself, older — standing at the gates of a ruined Noor General Hospital, blood on her hands. A child cried behind her. A body lay in front.
Arif.
"No!" She cried.
A voice answered.
"Only one future among many."
She turned and faced her.
Her own face, but twisted — eyes glowing with black fire, staff cracked and burning.
The Dark Healer.
"I'm what you become if you choose fear."
Zahra stumbled back. "I would never…"
"You already are."
The vision shattered.
Return
Zahra gasped awake. Rafiq had pulled her from the collapsing chamber, Safina held close. The statue was gone — as though it had never been there. Only the circle of ash remained.
Safina stirred, whispering, "He knows now. He knows you're not ready."
Zahra held her tighter.
"Then I'll become ready."
The Revelation at the Circle
They returned to Istanbul within a day. Zahra sat in the council chamber beneath Hagia Sophia once more, this time with Safina by her side.
The elders listened as Zahra recounted what happened — the jump of the spirit, the vision of her darker self, and the ruined Noor.
Mufti Rafiq remained silent.
Then, the elder woman — the same one who had marked Zahra with the title of Last Flame — spoke again.
"You carry not only light, but its reflection. The gate did not fully close. A part of the enemy lingers in you."
Zahra stood. "Then take it out."
The elder shook her head. "It cannot be removed. It must be mastered. The surgeon's gift is balance — between life and death, light and shadow."
Safina looked up. "She saved me. She's not darkness."
"No," the elder agreed. "But she could be. And so she must learn."
A silence settled in the chamber.
Rafiq finally spoke. "We must find the next shrine. The Crescent of Silence. There, the Surgeon will face herself fully. Or fall."
Zahra clenched her fists.
"Then let's go."
Far Away: The Second Awakening
In a city beneath the sands of Egypt, another tomb cracked open.
The Bone Collector smiled.
Beside him, a woman with snake-like eyes emerged—the Whispering Widow, second of the Twelve.
"She bleeds," the Widow hissed. "She doubts."
The Bone Collector grinned. "And doubt... is the sweetest poison."
Final Scene
That night, as Zahra packed in silence, Arif joined her. He was stronger now — but distant.
"I saw you," he said.
Zahra paused. "When?"
"In my coma. You were fire and storm. But part of you... was cold. Like stone."
She sat beside him. "I know. I saw it too."
"Will you become her?"
Zahra looked at her hands.
"I don't know. But I'll fight her every step of the way."
He nodded, taking her hand. "Then I'll fight with you."
Above them, the moon hung low and red — a blood moon rising.
The Circle of Shadows had begun to turn.