The note had been brief, inked in a sharp, urgent hand that carried the weight of her entire world. There was battle within Moonridge and the only person who could see it clearly was Kael.
You were right.
The rot is deeper than I imagined.
Meet me before sunrise.
The western borders.
Selene pressed her heels into her mare's flanks, urging the horse faster through the dense, waking terrain of Moonridge's western boundary. She had received no reply to her message, but she knew Kael would be there.
The midsummer dawn was briefly cool, offering a fleeting reprieve from the sweltering heat that would choke the valley by noon. The earth was dark and damp beneath the horse’s hooves, and a thick, heavy layer of summer dew clung to the long blades of overgrown grass like liquid glass.
As th
