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Tessa's expression shifted, a mixture of confusion and uncertainty. She leaned back slightly, her emerald eyes narrowing in thought. The gravity of Kieran's question seemed to settle in, and the carefree atmosphere of the coffee shop retreated to the background.

"The key?" Tessa repeated, her voice softer, slower, more contemplative. "I... I don't know what he meant. I have talked to him before in that tavern a couple of times. He was always a bit cryptic, talking about things that felt beyond my understanding. That is why I always felt a steady level of wariness around him.”

Kieran watched her closely, assessing the authenticity of her response. There was a vulnerability in Tessa's gaze, a flicker of unease that betrayed the innocence beneath her celestial facade.

"Did he ever mention anything specific, even if it seemed unrelated at the time?" Kieran probed further, his golden-yellow eyes searching for any subtle cues in Tessa's reactions.

Tessa sighed, her gaze shifting to the steaming cup of coffee in her hands. "He talked about my celestial heritage, how it made me different. I never really understood the full extent of it. He said there was power in my blood, something ancient and potent."

Kieran nodded, absorbing the information. "Did he mention anything about what your blood is capable of?"

Tessa hesitated, her eyes meeting Kieran's. "Yes, he did. He spoke about the ability to perceive things beyond this realm, but it always sounded like madness to me."

Kieran leaned back, processing the details. The puzzle pieces were scattered across the table, forming an intricate pattern, one that he was determined to figure out. "Do you feel different, Tessa? Do you have any abilities that might be considered, shall I say, otherworldly?"

Tessa's somewhat sad gaze drifted to Perseus, still slumbering peacefully by her side. "I can sense things, visions of events that haven't happened yet. But I've always thought it was just a quirk, not something of any significance."

Kieran's expression tightened. Once again, Kieran believed in spiritual things, he just did not subscribe to any particular religion; spirits, ghosts, and otherworldly abilities were completely within his realm of reality.

The celestial fox's abilities seemed to align with what Malachai hinted at, too, weaving an interesting narrative.

"Do you know what he meant by 'the key'? Anything that might unlock these powers, or perhaps something more?" Kieran pressed, urgency seeping into his tone.

Tessa shook her head, her uncertainty mirroring the complex web of the supernatural. "I wish I had answers. I truly do. But I've always been in the dark about this... this destiny."

Kieran sat back, his mind churning with the newfound revelations. The celestial fox, seemingly an ordinary denizen of Dawnbreak, now held the threads of a mysterious tapestry that connected her to dimensions and prophecies.

Kieran's gaze remained fixed on her, a furrow forming on his brow. The weight of Malachai's ominous words echoed in the quiet conversation between them.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"He said something," Kieran began, his voice measured, "when I confronted him. 'Mark my words, Kieran, it’s already too late for Tessa. The shadows have a way of consuming even the most valiant of souls.' What did he mean by that?"

Tessa's expression darkened, a shadow seemingly passing over her. She traced the rim of her coffee cup with a contemplative finger as if searching for the right words in the heat rising from the brew.

"I don't know exactly," she admitted, her voice carrying a hint of unease. "But Malachai was obsessed with this notion of 'the shadows.' He believed there was a force, something beyond our understanding, that sought to consume or control those with unique abilities."

Kieran leaned forward, his gaze intense. "And he thought you were a target for this... shadow?"

Tessa nodded solemnly. "Yes. He hinted at some ancient prophecy, a destiny tied to my heritage, but I never believed in such things. It all felt like a twisted fantasy in his mind."

"Does he know something we don't?" Kieran mused quietly to himself, looking away to the side to dart between all the coffee shop customers, his mind grappling with the cryptic nature of the territory his job was taking him into.

Tessa sighed, her eyes reflecting the complexity of her emotions. There was an edge to her that struck him oddly. He’d been in this career long enough to know what it was; she was hesitating, or hiding something. She did not seem like one to do it maliciously, but he noticed.

"Tessa," he said, his voice a gentle nudge, "there's more to this, isn't there?"

Her gaze faltered for a moment before she met his eyes. "I didn't want to involve you any further… but maybe you need to know."

As she began to speak, the coffee shop transformed into a cocoon of shared confidence. Tessa's words wove a tale of her ancestry hailing from the Celestial Peaks, a lineage tied to a cosmic tapestry that transcended the boundaries of their world.

She spoke of a prophecy given by sages, ancient as time itself, foretelling a convergence of dimensions in the time of ‘the end’, and the emergence of one with the power to bridge the realms.

Kieran listened in a mix of awe and skepticism, grappling with the fantastical nature of the story. Yet, as Tessa continued, he saw the sincerity in her eyes, the weight of, what was for her, an inevitability that she had carried with both reluctance and acceptance.

"I was expected to fulfill this duty, to protect my home, to commune with the spirits in the other dimension,” Tessa went on, growing a bit uneasy as she recounted her past, “but it was too hard. I couldn’t take it anymore. Perseus helped me escape to the furthest reaches, away from my family and everything that had to do with the future they wanted for me.”

The revelation settled between them, a pause in the symphony of the coffee shop. Her history was riveting.

“There are forces at play," she concluded, her voice a murmur in the quiet booth. "Forces that seek to manipulate us. That much I know is true. The prophecy, though? I can’t say... and I don’t care, either."

“I understand,” Kieran said softly, “it seems like you just want to live free. Yet, some people seem intent on dragging you back into what you’ve already left far behind you.”

"Yes, but that said, I don't want you to be dragged into this," Tessa said, a plea in her eyes. "It's dangerous. I've seen things, shadows that move with intent and whispers in my ears. I don't know what's real anymore. Sometimes I swear something is watching me, but I can’t pinpoint anything…”

Tessa began to tear up, and Perseus woke up; the dragon quickly snuggled her. For her, it was obvious that everything was boiling over, a domino effect set by her parents and utterly shaken further by Malachai’s treacherous actions.

He did not know if she was just crazy or was seeing real things, but that didn’t matter nor was it his business.

Kieran’s ears flattened, giving her a sympathetic look. “I don’t know what Malachai or the people above him want with you exactly,” he said, “but all that matters is that they do.”

“Yes…”

“You will stay with me until I get to the bottom of this. I will protect you.”

Tessa widened her eyes and tilted her head. “Wait, you don’t need to, I have Perseus. He is more than enough to keep me safe.”

Kieran shook his head. “He is a formidable warrior, but last night proved that that only goes so far.”

Perseus eyed him with keen attention.