The new rift did not glow.
It consumed light.
Stars vanished into its widening mouth, swallowed without reflection, without resistance. The storm above fractured into spiraling bands, dragged toward the void like shredded banners pulled into a collapsing sky.
Elara felt it immediately.
Not fear.
Not pain.
Recognition that hurt deeper than either.
Her chest tightened as the buried bond within her flared violently, no longer quiet or hidden. It pulsed in direct response to whatever stirred beyond the rift like a heartbeat answering another it had forgotten existed.
“Elara…” Draven’s voice cracked as he staggered forward, raw panic cutting through his control. “I can feel it through you.”
She nodded faintly, unable to speak as pressure built inside her ribs, behind her eyes, along he
