Chapter 10

  Aloy woke to the soft glow of dawn spilling through the mouth of the shelter. The crisp mountain air carried the st of pine and damp earth, and the distant calls of grazing striders echoed through the valley. She stretched, feeling the ache in her muscles from yesterday’s training. Today was different. Today, she would leave this pce—the only home she had ever known—and step into the world of the Nora.

  She sat up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes before notig Rost standing at the fire pit, sharpening his spear. He must have been awake for hours, as always.

  "You’re leaving early," he said without turning, his voice steady but tinged with something she couldn’t quite pce.

  Aloy pulled on her bracers, fastening the straps. "I ime to prepare. And…I just want to see the vilge before the Proving."

  Rost finally turo face her. His weathered face was unreadable for a moment before he nodded. "Be careful, Aloy. The tribe still sees you as an outsider. Even if the Matriarchs permit you entry, not all will wele you."

  She scoffed, strapping her bow to her back. "I don’t heir wele. Just their acceptaer I win."

  He studied her for a long moment, then reached into his satchel and pulled out a small, intricately woven bracelet. "Then take this. A reminder of where you came from—and that no matter what happens, you will always have a p this world."

  Aloy hesitated before taking it. The leather was worn but strong, with beads woven into the pattern—symbols she reized from her childhood. "Like Ana’s," she murmured.

  Rost nodded. "I made hers, too. So she would never fet she is not alone."

  Aloy tightened her grip on the bracelet, something warm settling in her chest. Then, with a final nod to Rost, she turned and walked away, heading toward Mother's Heart.

  The gates loomed ahead, tall and imposing against the rising sun. For the first time, Aloy saw them not as a barrier but as arao a life she had been dehe guards stiffe her approach, hands resting on their spears, but beside her, Ana moved with ease.

  When the guards blocked Aloy’s path, Ana stepped forward, her expression firm. "She’s here for the Proving. You know the w."

  One of the guards sneered. "Law or not, she—"

  "She is permitted," came a voice from above.

  High Matriarch Teersa desded the wooden steps, her presence immediately sileng the guards. Her gaze nded on Aloy, and there was something almost…soft in her expression.

  "You have been allowed to walk this path, Aloy. But your pce among us is not yet earned." Then, turning to Ana, she added, "See to it that she learns our ways before the night ends. And do not let her be te for Braves' Rising."

  Ana smirked. "Wouldn’t dream of it."

  The guards stepped aside, and as Aloy crossed the threshold into Mother’s Heart, she felt a strange mix of anticipation and unease.

  As the suhe vilge gathered for Braves' Rising. Lanterns flickered in the growing dark, eae inscribed with prayers and names of those who came before. Aloy watched as Ana carefully crafted a ntern for her, hands steady as she etched something into the wood before lighting the small fme within.

  "This is yours," Ana said, handing it to her.

  Aloy hesitated before taking it. "Thank you."

  Ana’s eyes glinted in the firelight. "Don’t get too seal on me."Aloy found herself sitting in silehoughts of Rost and her journey ahead lingering in her mind. But it was the ritual that brought her back to the present.

  Ana handed her the ntern with a small, encing smile. "It’s for the Proving. But also… for Rost," she said softly. "He’s part of this too."

  Aloy took the ntern, feeling the warmth of the small fme inside. "For Rost," she whispered. And as the night wore on, she khat this ntern, this moment, would be a step toward a future she could hardly begin to prehend.

  After the festival ended Aloy began moving by herself expl Mother's heart .The festival burned bright with nterns and voices, the air thick with the st of roasted meat and the crackle of bonfires. Aloy moved through the crowd, watg the way the people gathered in tight groups, their versations a mixture of excitement and wariness.

  Then, a man stepped forward, making his way toward the ter of the gathering.

  He was broad-shouldered, his starong, but there was a rougho him—like someone who had seen his fair share of fights. His armor was different from the Nora’s: heavier, metal-pted, built for war. The firelight flickered over the golden emblem on his chest, marking him as an outsider.

  The crowd grew quieter as he raised a hand. Clearly, they were unsure of him.

  "People of the Nora," he began, his voice carrying the weight of experience. "I know many of you have doubts about the new King of Meridian. You have every right to. The st king—he was a madman. He burned your nds, stole your people."

  A murmur ran through the gathering. The memories of the Red Raids still lingered in the hearts of the Nora.

  "But the new king is not his father," the man tinued. "He seeks peaot war. And I know this because my sister—Ersa—was one of the maook. She fought her way out, escaped his madness. And now? She stands at the side of a man who does not seek to ensve, but to rebuild."

  Aloy watched the crowd shift, faces tight with mistrust. Some nodded, others muttered amongst themselves. The name Ersa meant little to her, but the way he spoke of her—it was clear he carried her story as a weight.

  He sed the crowd, meeting their uain gazes head-on. "I don’t expect you to trust me," he admitted, his voice rough but steady. "But know this: the Carja of Meridia your enemy. Not anymore. And the sooner we stop looking at each other as ehe better ce we have at keeping our people alive."

  A long sileretched over the gathering. Some looked away. Others folded their arms, unvinced.

  Aloy wasn’t sure what to think of this man. He spoke with vi, but she had no idea who he was. A soldier? A leader? Someone from this new king’s court? All she knew was that his words had stirred something in the Nora, though whether it tance or simply more unease, she couldn’t tell.

  Then, from the er of her eye, she caught movement. A man standing just beyond the crowd, wearing something strange on his temple.

  She frowned. Something about him felt… off.

  And that was wheiced it. The faint e flicker.

  A Focus.

  She had never seen a Focus worn quite like his before. He was standing just outside the area he High Matriarchs’ lodge, clearly not a part of the tribe but blending in with the crowd. His Focus wasn’t like hers—his seemed more advanced, emitting a faint glow she hadn’t noticed in any Focus before. It wasn’t until he turned and looked directly at her that she realized he’d spotted her too.

  She stepped forward, her curiosity piqued.

  "Who are you ?" she said, her voice cutting through the murmur of the crowd.

  The man fli the sound of her voice but didn’t move away. He blinked, as though deg whether to approach, then finally made his way toward her.

  "The name's Olin" His voice was rough, low, as though he wasn’t used to speaking with others.

  Aloy g the Focus on his temple again. "I’ve never seen a Focus like yours before."

  He chuckled softly, though it didn’t seem particurly warm. "Not something you’re used to seeing, huh? People in the Nora tribe don’t wear things like this."

  She frowned. "Who are you?"

  The maated, then looked around as if cheg for any eavesdroppers. "I’m just someone passing through. But you’re not the only oh a Focus in these areas. There’s another one , a boy. He wears a mask, and his Focus is… well, different from mi glows, and his eyes glow too. Blue."

  Aloy blinked, startled by the revetion. "A boy? Who is he?"

  Olin shook his head. "I don’t know who he is. But I’ve seen him mingling with the nobles in Meridian and he moves with his Guardian a Banuk tribesman. And he’s dangerous. You should be careful around him."

  Before she could ask more, Olin quickly turned away, blending bato the crowd.

  "Enjoy the festival, Aloy," he muttered as he disappeared.

  Aloy stood still, the information swirling in her mind. Another Focus user, a boy with glowing eyes and him being dangerous .Was he ected to what she was searg for? She couldn’t shake the feeling that something much rger y.

  She turned back to Ana, who was already waiting for her.

  "Everything okay?" Ana asked, eyeing her carefully.

  Aloy nodded, but her thoughts were elsewhere. "Yeah. Just a little… distracted."

  Later, as they moved toward the lodging hall, Aloy couldn’t shake the versation with Olin from her mind. She was still processing the mention of the boy with the glowing eyes when they reached the entrao the hall.

  That was when she saw him again—Bast. The same wiry boy who had been so rude earlier.

  "Motherless chuff," he sneered as he saw Aloy. "You still here, outsider?"

  Aloy turned, meeting his gaze with a hard stare. "What’s it to you?"

  Bast gred, his hand tightening around his spear. "If Ana weren’t here, I’d put you in your pce."

  Aloy raised an eyebrow, her stanfling. "Try it."

  Before Bast could say anything further, Va stepped between them, her expression cold. "Enough. The Proving is tomorrow. If you want to fight, do it then."

  Bast huffed and stormed off, clearly displeased.

  Va crossed her arms and g Aloy. "You’ve got something to prove, Aloy. Better be ready for the Proving."

  Ana smirked, nudging her shoulder. "She will be. And she’ll win."

  Aloy didn’t reply immediately. Her mind was still filled with the mystery of the Focus users, and the boy Olin had mentioned. She had a feeling that the answers she sought were much closer than she’d realized.

  As the three of them ehe hall, Aloy felt a weight in the air, but this time, it wasn’t the same as before. It was the weight of something about to ge—something big.