POV: Nixie
The forest didn’t feel like a refuge. It felt like a witness.
Moonlight filtered through the canopy in fractured shards, silver and pale, lighting the narrow path ahead while leaving everything else in shadow. Every snapped twig sounded too loud. Every gust of wind felt purposeful.
We moved without speaking.
Lyall led, his senses alert, shoulders tense but steady. He didn’t rush me or pull me along. He matched my pace without a word, as if he already knew the rhythm of my steps.
The Echo stayed quiet but alert. Not dormant. Listening.
After a long stretch of silence, the man slowed and raised a hand. We stopped immediately.
He crouched, pressing two fingers into the damp soil. “They’re searching,” he said quietly. “Not just the Council.”
My chest tightened. “The thing th
