Ashes of the Forgotten

Previously

…The stranger, Elara, had spoken of it in hushed tones, her eyes wide with a fear that mirrored his own, yet held a strange, determined glint. "The shadow lengthens, Kael," she'd said, her voice barely audible above the rustling leaves. "His influence seeps into the world, seeking to reclaim what was lost. You feel it, don't you? The growing darkness." He did. It was a palpable entity, a coalescing void that seemed to drink the very light from the world. The sun, when it managed to pierce the perpetual twilight that now seemed to hang over Aranor, felt weak, anemic. Even the vibrant hues of the forests, once a symphony of greens and golds, now seemed muted