The silence that followed was crushing. Smoke curled along the fractured walls. Dust hung heavy in the air. The ground beneath Mae’s feet was scorched and split like the aftermath of a localized earthquake. The room, once chaotic with battle, now stood eerily still. Mae stood in the center of it all, her arms slack at her sides, her breathing shallow but steady. Light still pulsed faintly from her skin, fading slowly like the embers of something that had burned too hot, too fast.
No one spoke.
Ashar stared at her as if he no longer recognized her. Riven’s wings twitched once before falling still. Kaine wiped blood from his mouth and leaned back against the wall with wide eyes. Sethis’s hands hovered near his weapons, but even he didn’t move. They had seen power before. They had never see
