The marsh swallowed their steps long after the Page-Walker’s door had shut. The reeds bent, the water sighed, and the mud clung, greedy and thick, but none of it felt natural anymore. Every ripple seemed too deliberate, as if the marsh was waiting to report their progress to someone higher. Every shadow in the shallows looked like a quill just waiting to rise and write.
They walked in silence—not for stealth, but because words were expensive after what they had survived. Every syllable risked being stolen.
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Exhaustion and Resolve
Tor barked orders like a whip cracking. “Shift weight forward! Keep the elders between pairs! Nobody drags—if you fall behind, someone pulls you.”
Her tone was iron, but her hands were soft as she lifted a boy whose legs had given out. She slung him onto h
