The forest wasn't the same anymore.
As Rai and Barely ran deeper into the woods, the trees grew twisted and strange, bark woven like braids, branches humming with strands of light. Threads shimmered through the air like mist– alive, watchful.
"what is the place?" Rai gasped, dodging a low branch that reached for him.
"This is the Threadwild," Barely replied, pulling him forward. "The loom's edge. A place where threads get... Wild."
" perfect," Rai muttered. "you dragged me into cursed threadland."
Behind them, the hum returned – louder, heavier, pulsing like drums through the trees.
"They're close!"Barely shouted.
A sharp burst through the woods – tall, armored, faceless. A keeper. It's body was made of shifting thread and metal, it's eyes glowing with judgment.
Barely stopped, threw her hands forward. Threads shot from her fingertips and wrapped around the ground, summoning a wall of glowing silk between them and the keeper.
" keep moving!" she yelled. "that'll only buy us seconds!"
"They protect the Loom. Anyone who threatens the pattern – especially you – is a target."
"Me?! I didn't even ask for any of this !"
Another explosion shook the air. The wall shattered. The keeper lunged, a whip –like thread lashing toward them.
Rai raised his hands to shield himself – and without thinking, he pulled.
The keeper's thread snapped back , recoiling as if shocked. Barely's eyes widened.
"you... You redirected a thread?"
"No Threadless should be able to do that !"
They leapt over a broken log as more keepers burst fom the treeline. The sky flickered above – the Loom was rippling.
"Rai" Barely cried, tossing him a shimmering thread from her hand. "wrap this around your wrist!"
He hesitated –but did it. Instantly, warmth surged through him. His feet felt lighter, breath steadier.
"Thread of swiftness," she said. "old trick."
They darted through the Threadwild, leaping over roots, dodging glowing webs. Barely's threads carved paths through the tangled woods while Rai somehow felt the threads shifting around him, guiding his steps.
But just as they thought they 'd escaped, the ground ahead exploded.
A figure rose from the crater – taller than the others, cloaked in threads that pulsed like stars.
"A pattern warden, " Barely whispered, fear creeping into her voice. "He's not just a keeper. He rewrites threads."
The warden raised his hand. The threads around Rai began to construct, like chains tightening.
Rai screamed – until something inside him snapped. A wave of invisible force blasted outward, threads unraveling in every direction.
The warden staggered.
Barely's jaw dropped. "you just unraveled a warden's bind. That's impossible."
Rai fell to his knees, breathing hard."I don't know what's happening to me ..."
Barely knelt beside him. "That's because you were never meant to follow the threads. You were meant to break them."