They fell.
Not through fire, not through air—but through light. Blinding. All-consuming. A place beyond elements, beyond time.
Seren’s hand remained locked with Kael’s, their bond a golden tether spiraling through the void, the only thing anchoring them to anything. Their daughter’s voice echoed in their minds like a lullaby made of thunder.
You were never meant to break. Only burn. Only rise.
The fall didn’t end with a crash.
It ended in silence.
And then—
A gasp.
Seren’s eyes flew open.
She lay on a surface that felt like velvet and stone, warm and cool at once. The sky above her was not a sky at all—but a dome of shifting constellations, each star pulsing like a heartbeat. Light moved like water, cascading from invisible streams in the air. There was no wind. No sun. No moon.
