The Binding of Ages

Previously

…They quickened their pace, the rhythmic tapping of their feet on the stone now a race against an unseen enemy. The passage twisted and turned, but Pip navigated it with an uncanny certainty, their every step sure and purposeful. Elara, though her heart hammered against her ribs, found a strange sense of calm in Pip’s unwavering presence beside her. She was no longer just a baker lost in ancient ruins. She was a guardian, a protector, and she was not alone. The hidden path Pip had revealed was not just a shortcut through stone, but a pathway to her own dawning courage.