Bc_brooke_belle_159 -

"Wait," Brooke commanded softly, catching Belle's wrist. She looked closely at the beast. It wasn't snarling or destroying the stone. It looked tired, desperate, and desperately sad. Brooke noticed a jagged, angry red scar running down the creature's side, weeping a dark, thick liquid. "It's hurt. It isn't stealing the light to destroy it; it's using the warmth to heal itself."

Leaving her walking stick behind to show she meant no harm, Brooke stepped out onto the black rock. The creature's head snapped over instantly. A low, thunderous growl rolled across the clearing, shaking the very stones beneath Brooke's boots. The white star eyes locked onto her. bc_brooke_belle_159

Brooke gripped the handle of her walking stick until her knuckles turned white. They had been tracking the creature for three days, ever since it had slipped into their village under the cover of a storm and stolen the Sunstone. Without the ancient artifact, their village would freeze before the winter solstice, which was now only a week away. The weight of their entire community's survival rested on their shoulders. "Wait," Brooke commanded softly, catching Belle's wrist

The creature tilted its massive head, the growl subsiding into a low rumble. It looked down at the fading Sunstone in its hands, then back at the small human brave enough to stand before it. Slowly, with a grace that defied its massive size, the beast lowered itself to the ground and extended its injured side toward Brooke. It looked tired, desperate, and desperately sad

"We cannot afford to be timid now," Brooke said, forcing a bravery she did not entirely feel. "The fog is lifting. If we move fast, we can catch it before it reaches the Black Crag."

Belle nodded, standing up and brushing the dirt from her trousers. She was the tracker of the family, possessing an uncanny ability to read the wilderness, while Brooke was the strategist, always thinking three steps ahead. Together, they were a perfect team, but the sheer scale of this task was testing them both to their absolute limits.