The water turned gold at dawn.
Lena saw it first from her porch. The river that ran through Haven, usually clear and cold, now shimmered with a warm, metallic light. She walked to the bank and dipped her fingers in. The water felt alive—pulsed with a gentle rhythm, like a heartbeat.
Lyra joined her. "What is it?"
"I don't know. But it's not dangerous. It feels... kind."
"Kind?"
"Like it wants to help."
---
The gold spread.
Within a week, every river in the Divide had turned. Plants grew faster. Crops yielded more. People who drank the water felt stronger, healthier, their ailments fading.
Hope studied the phenomenon. "It's not natural. But it's not harmful either. It's like the water is being... enhanced."
"By what?"
"I don't know. But whatever it is, it's been here all along. W
