Aaron beat his head against the ground, wailing in despair again.
Gabrant was stunned. He staggered toward the center of the barren land, toward the heart of the radial destruction. Down here… Dominic is down here…
He dropped to his knees and began clawing at the ground with his hands. The soil was rough, mixed with stones, but he dug and dug, desperately trying to reach Dominic buried beneath. He kept clawing, tearing the earth away, because there was nothing else he could do.
"Gabrant!"
A voice called out behind him—Ashe's voice. He thought it must be an illusion, but he didn't stop digging.
"Gabrant!"
A warm weight pressed down on his back.
Ashe. Yes, she had said she was coming to the capital. Was it today?
Her soft white hands closed over his, halting his frantic digging. His hands were caked in mud, nails cracked and bleeding, but he felt no pain.
"Gabrant… with you here, how could this happen?" Ashe whispered.
