---
He stayed in the egg chamber until the worst of the frantic hatching settled into something like a rhythm. Watching the steady rise of new life did something strange to the tight knot in his chest. It did not erase the weight of the dead above, but it changed the balance, just a little.
The mountain breathes, he thought. The mountain bleeds. The mountain hatches.
By the time he climbed back toward the upper levels, the sun had slid down behind the desert's distant ridges. Evening bled into night. Torches burned brighter. The earlier frantic energy had sagged into a heavy, worn quiet.
He had half expected to be ambushed by someone before he reached his chambers. Luna, demanding to poke at his ribs again. Shadeclaw, wanting more orders. Miryam, radiating prickly jealousy.
Instead, his path stayed unexpectedly clear.
Until he opened the door to his room.
Mia stood in the middle of it.
