The first thing Mae felt was softness. Not stone. Not cold metal. Not a dirt floor, not the sting of chains. Warm. Soft. Quiet. Her lashes fluttered. Her body felt like lead. Her breath dragged in slow, ragged. Chest heavy. Limbs heavier. Where am I? The ceiling wasn’t warped. No twisting lines. No broken sky bleeding through the walls. Smooth. Clean. Whole. Her heart stuttered. Panic surged. Her hands jerked, cuffed? No. Her wrists were free. Her fingers trembled against soft bedding.
No, no, what happened. where, the memories surged fast, too fast. The fracture. The world bending. Riven’s voice pushing her, daring her. The pull. The change. The snap. Mae jolted upright with a sharp gasp, hands clawing at the blanket like it might hold her in place. Her breath ragged, eyes wide. No. I br
