The days that followed were unlike any we had known before—not bright and golden as the days of careless peace, but quiet, steady, and braced against the dark. The sky remained draped in heavy shades of grey, the sun appearing only rarely as a pale, silver disc behind layers of cloud. Yet within the stronghold, a profound shift had taken root. Fear still lingered in corners and quiet moments, yes—but it no longer drove us apart. Instead, it bound us closer together. We had learned the hardest lesson of all: the greatest danger was never the darkness outside our walls, but the doubt we harbored within our own hearts. And armed with that truth, we stood far stronger than we ever had before.
Kaelen rose before dawn each morning, and I rose beside him. Together we walked the ramparts, inspect
