Cassian
The forest feels quieter after the silver seal breaks.
Not safer.
Just emptied of something ancient and watching.
The last remnants of silver mist dissolve between the trees while the surviving members of the first war retreat deeper into the shadows beyond the forest line.
None of us move immediately.
The bond hums steadily beneath my ribs.
Not tense.
Thinking.
Gods.
It becomes more aware every hour.
Aria stands near the center of the clearing, silent beneath the fading light filtering through the trees. Kaelith remains close at her side
while Lucien watches the retreating survivors with sharp suspicion.
Eryndor looks thoughtful for once.
That unsettles me more than almost anything else today.
And Orion—Orion watches the survivors leave like a man staring at ghosts
