Riven’s POV
Kael believes answers should be immediate.
I don’t.
Some things need silence before they become truth.
And Elera Vale proves that theory every second she stands here without breaking.
She is still here.
Still breathing.
Still trying to process something that was never designed to fit inside her understanding of the world.
And now… she has reached her limit.
I see it before she speaks.
It isn’t dramatic.
It never is with her.
There is no collapse, no visible panic, no emotional spillover like most humans would show when reality fractures.
Instead, it is subtle.
Almost quiet enough to miss if I weren’t watching closely.
Her shoulders loosen slightly.
Not in relief.
In decision.
That matters more.
Her eyes stop moving between Kael and me.
The scanning stops.
T
