The silver light on the eastern horizon had been growing for three days.
Sarah stood on the wall, watching it pulse like a second heartbeat. The Deepening was gathering its strength. Not for another servant. Not for another skirmish. For everything.
It is afraid, the void said.
"Good."
Fear makes it dangerous.
"Fear also makes it careless."
Elara climbed the wall beside her daughter. She was fifty-three now, grey-haired but strong, her eyes sharp.
"The scouts report movement from the Glass Sea. Thousands of Deep Ones. Marching this way."
"The ones who chose the Deepening?"
"The ones who never chose anything. The ones who just followed."
Sarah looked at her mother.
"Can we reason with them?"
"The void can try. But they've been serving emptiness for a long time."
"Then we remind
