By dusk, the fog had finally thinned, but the sky was no comfort. Clouds stained the horizon crimson, as though the setting sun had bled across the heavens. The Hollow’s walls, blackened by smoke and splattered with blood, loomed against the fiery light like the spine of some ancient beast guarding the city’s heart.
Kael stood at the northern parapet, his cloak stiff with soot and ash. His crimson eyes reflected the scarlet sky as he watched the enemy camp come alive beyond the charred fields. Torches flared one after another, spreading like wildfire across the lines of tents.
“They’re moving again,” Lira said beside him, pulling her gloves tighter. The dried blood on her sleeve crackled as she flexed her fingers. “No rest for the weary, I suppose.”
The boy joined them, still limping sl
