The human woman opened her eyes upon cold ground. Darkness pressed around her, thick and shapeless. She couldn’t see walls, a door or even the edge of the floor beneath her knees. For several heartbeats, she didn’t know where she was or how she had come to be there. Then the pain arrived. Her right […]

The next morning brought more travel. Camp disappeared piece by piece as the tents came down and Thorn released the branches of the living shelter from their woven shape. Once packs and weapons had been gathered, Garrick returned to the front with the map and led them north again. The forest continued to thicken around […]

Quintra’s light seeped into the camp in thin, broken bands, turning the dew into scattered sparks across moss and fern. The hunters woke like people who didn’t have the luxury of slow mornings. Boots scraped against the ground, gear shifted and someone was already swearing at a stubborn strap. Garrick’s voice cut through the bustle. […]

Vasha walked beside the Ee’dornil as they followed Kaelen towards her camp. The large elf still carried Suraia in his arms, while the half-elven woman bore her dead campmate across her shoulders. She shifted the weight higher with the ease of someone accustomed to carrying weight that way. It was late in the afternoon when […]

Quintra’s light filtered through the canopy in broken shafts, catching upon dew and moss until the forest floor glittered with scattered sparks. The damp air smelled of sap, earth and last night’s fire. Somewhere deeper among the trees, a bird offered the morning its finest song. Suraia opened her eyes and blinked, taking a moment […]

Lyonne Forest received them quietly. The road narrowed almost at once, swallowed by moss and root until it became less a road than the memory of one. In the early afternoon, light slipped between the branches in pale threads. The air had changed as they left Lyonne d’ura behind: less salt, tar and fish; more […]