The fire had burned down to embers, faint red veins pulsing beneath the ash like a dying heart. Smoke drifted in thin, broken lines, clinging to the damp air before vanishing into the night. Around the camp, the darkness was absolute, swallowing the trees, pressing close until it seemed the forest itself was listening.
They sat in uneasy silence. No one spoke, yet the weight between them was louder than words, an invisible noose tightening around every breath.
Leo lay on his side with his cloak pulled tight, eyes fixed on the embers. Sleep refused him. Every time his lids drooped, the fragment stirred, its whispers curling like smoke against his skull.
Why fight her? She will betray you when the time comes. They all will. You are meant for more. You are the one who will break the chains.
