Ariane:
The stack of books had grown around me like a fortress—tomes on lost gods, threads of fate, whispered realms, and deathless things that should never have been given names.
The grimoire sat open before me, my notepad half filled with questions and half with names too ancient for any tongue I trusted.
I didn’t hear them enter.
“Ariane,” Varek’s voice cut through the hush like a sigh, soft but edged. “You missed lunch… and dinner.”
I didn’t look up right away. “Sorry, I wasn’t hungry.”
Kaelen stood beside him, arms crossed, gaze narrowing on the parchment-scattered chaos. “What is all this?”
I tapped the page with the Looming Mother’s name. “Answers.”
Varek stepped closer, eyes scanning the sigil. When he saw it, his brows drew low. “That damned book…”
“It’s not real,” Kaele
