The pressure did not crush.
It measured.
Elara felt it immediately the way the presence in the sky did not seek to dominate her, but to understand her. The air bent inward, sound warping, time slowing as if the world itself had leaned closer to listen.
The Watchers recoiled further, their pale forms flickering violently now. For the first time since they arrived, fear cracked through their composure.
“This was never meant to awaken,” one of them hissed.
Draven stepped closer to Elara, his body instinctively angling in front of hers despite knowing deep in his bones that whatever watched them now was not something teeth or claws could challenge.
“What is it?” he demanded.
Elara swallowed, eyes fixed on the widening rift. “Not a ruler. Not a judge.”
The darkness within the tear in th
