Lyena had just turned five.
That morning, the woman packed a small satchel with calm hands and a distant smile.
She told Lyena she needed to walk to a nearby village to pick up something she had forgotten.
Her voice was casual, like it was just another day.
As she stepped outside, she added, "I forgot the satchel string, but I'll manage."
She closed the door gently behind her.
Lyena sat on the floor near the window, playing with pebbles.
She looked up after a while and noticed something strange.
The satchel string was still there - folded neatly on the table.
She blinked.
Then stood.
Then ran.
She followed the path into the woods, clutching the string in both hands.
She wanted to help.
She wanted to surprise her.
When she reached the edge of a clearing, Lyena stopped and crouched behind a stone.
What she saw froze her breath.
Five men stood near a heavy wooden wagon, filled with children in chains.
And standing between them - alone - was the woman.
Lyena rose, ready to wave.
But the woman raised her voice first.
"These children are not yours. Let them go."
Her tone was sharp and sure - one Lyena had never heard before.
The men laughed.
They mocked her.
But the woman didn't back down.
Then something shifted.
The air rippled.
Light moved around her fingers.
Lyena's eyes widened.
She had never seen the woman use magic.
Not once.
Not for warmth.
Not for defense.
Not even for lifting heavy buckets.
But now - it rose from her like heat from fire.
She moved forward and shattered a lock with one glowing strike.
She pulled two children from the wagon and screamed:
"Run!"
Some ran.
Others didn't
The men attacked.
One hit her with lightning.
Another slashed with steel.
Still, she reached for another child.
Then one of them drove a blade into her back.
Lyena's hand tightened around the ribbon.
She didn't move.
She couldn't.
Then something broke inside her.
Not like a crack, but like a door opening.
Her feet stepped forward on their own.
The sky above dimmed.
The earth stopped humming.
The world waited.
A warm light glowed from within her chest - soft and steady.
A tiny crystal, no larger than a tear, pulsed just above her heart.
It had been silent all her life.
Now... it burned.
The men turned.
They saw her.
But it was too late.
She spoke clearly.
"She tried to save them."
"She was kind."
"You took that away."
The first man disappeared.
The second collapsed into his shadow.
The third turned to dust without falling.
The fourth begged.
She said nothing.
The fifth ran.
She let him.
She walked to the children.
They watched her with eyes full of fear and wonder.
She knelt beside them.
"You're safe now."
None of them replied.
One of them touched her hand.
Another hid behind her.
They did not run.
Then she turned to the place where the woman had fallen.
She walked slowly.
The grass was red.
She knelt beside her.
Her hand was cold.
The satchel string slipped from Lyena's fingers and fell beside the woman's arm.
Her eyes trembled.
Her body swayed.
The light in her chest pulsed once more...
...and faded.
She collapsed without a word.
The children stood around her.
One covered her with a blanket.
Another held her hand.
None of them knew who she was.
None of them spoke.
They only watched the sky.
And above them, the stars grew quieter.
As if the heavens themselves were holding their breath.
End of Chapter 12 - The Fire Beneath the Sky