*River*
I blink, the world around me coming into focus like a fog lifting from the ground. I’m lying on something soft, something familiar yet foreign, and a warmth envelops me. Confusion swirls in my mind, like a storm gathering strength. I try to sit up, but my body feels heavy, as if bound by an unseen force.
“Easy there,” a soft voice says, breaking through the haze. It’s gentle and familiar, yet it takes a moment for me to place it. I turn my head, and there she is… Daphne, her bright eyes filled with concern.
“What… what happened?” I croak, my voice rough and dry like sandpaper. I try to shift again, but a wave of dizziness crashes over me. The last thing I remember is the fight in the clearing, the chaos, and then… darkness.
“You fell,” she says, her voice steadying me. “You w
