Child of the Rift
Smoke drifted low over the ruined clearing. The last flames had died beneath Selene’s power, yet the scent of ash clung to everything. Kaen prowled the perimeter, nostrils flaring, tracing the faint trail of golden dust the stranger had left behind.
Selene knelt and touched the ground where it had stood. Warm. Not the warmth of fire, but of life.
She felt the echo of a heartbeat—fast, uncertain, searching.
“Mother,” the word replayed in her mind, soft as breath.
Kaen whined.
“I heard it too,” she said. “Whatever it was… it came from us.”
The forest around them murmured. Leaves turned their faces toward her like listeners. The moon above flickered between silver and gold, uncertain which color it should wear.
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They followed the trail east. Each step carried the
